#i had to be brief because if i wasn't we would be here for nine years

[weasleyreidstyles]

Serendipity

chapter nine

summary: it was only meant to be a purely transactional relationship. he would help her strengthen her abilities in return for her getting his friends out of his father's nasty path. he didn't mean to fall for her, but loving her was the easiest thing in his dark world.

no use of y/n, but your general nickname is Meadow. all characters are aged up to be over 18.

pairings: mattheo riddle x fem!ravenclaw reader; platonic!slytherins x fem!reader; platonic!golden trio x fem!reader

warning(s): mentions of drugging (love potion) and brief mentions of poisoning (like right at the end)

series masterlist; previous part; next part

The library is your sanctuary. A place you can go to ease your mind and satiate your need for more knowledge. Usually you're not disturbed while your here, but Mattheo seemed to find a new joy in persistently annoying you.

You had been completing an essay for Defence that Snape wanted to be completely for two days time, when the calm air around you changed with the announcement of his chaotic presence.

"I thought you had Quidditch practice." you say, not taking your eyes off of your parchment as he takes the empty seat beside you, thigh brushing your's.

"Finished ten minutes ago. I got bored." he says noncommittally. His hand has found it's way to your thigh, tracing barely-there patterns with the tips of his fingers. You tense on instinct before relaxing almost instantaneously.

"Don't you have friends for that?" you snark as you spare him a single glance before you continue working.

"I'm offended that you think we aren't friends, sweetheart." he says with feigned outrage.

"Friends don't do what we do, Matt." you whisper. If it weren't for his already close proximity, he probably would not have heard you. His hand begins tracing firmer patterns, tracing longing lines of comfort.

"No, I suppose they don't." he muses with the ghost of a smile. He's tracing your figure with inquisitive eyes, now a honeyed brown in the sunlight reflecting in the windows.

"Do you want something?" you ask, turning your head to face him, your breath hitching in your throat at just how close he was to you – his lips a fraction of movement away from your's. "We're in public," you say, with a breatheless stammer.

"I'm starting to find that I don't care where we are, anymore." he says just as quietly, eyes flickering between your mouth and fluttering eyes. "What have you done to me?"

"I haven't done anything." you snicker, your nose brushing imperceptibly against his, gaze landing intently on his plush lips.

"We're lucky your favoured spot is so closed off between the shelves, Meadow." he mumbles, his voice dropping to that low rasp you've come to appreciate over the months. "Because that means I can do this, with little consequence."

He kisses you then. Hard and passionate and with entirely too much feeling for something that wasn't supposed to be anymore than a transactional friendship to help out a mutual friend.

~∞~

Much to your delight, Mattheo stayed with you a little longer before the feeling of his quidditch gear, still dirtied from practice, became too much to comfortably bare. He left with a lingering peck to your cheek, something entirely too affectionate for you to properly process.

Not ten minutes later, your solitude was once again interrupted.

"What the hell is going on between you and Riddle?" Ginny's hissing whisper filled the quiet atmosphere, who landed in Mattheo's previously occupied seat with venomous grace.

"Nothing." you say with furrowed brows, lowing the book you were scouring for Siphon lore, to your lap. As far as you knew, Ginny was only aware of your tutor sessions with Mattheo.

But all these weeks of lies and deceit was bound to blow up in your face sooner or later, you just weren't planning on the most ferocious of your friends to figure it out first.

"Don't bullshit me." she snapped, keeping her voice low. "The tutoring sessions? The continued trips to the Room of Requirement? It's so bloody obvious, Meadow."

"I swear. Nothing is going on between me and Riddle." His name felt foreign on your tongue – he hadn't been 'Riddle' to you in months. Ginny only gave you a look that screamed her disbelief in you.

"Right and it wasn't him I saw leaving this little nook about ten minutes ago?"

"How's Dean?" you ask, swiftly averting the subject off of you. She sighs tiredly at your denial and relaxes into the cosy sofa, a contemplative look on her freckled face.

"I think we're over. The relationship is done and dead. We weren't compatible at all." she sounds resolute, but you could tell that she felt the pain of heartbreak. She leans her head on your shoulder and accepts the hug that you wrap her in. "I just wanted to feel something. I've pined for Harry for practically six years but-"

"I know. I know." you comfort her, quietly soothing her as she leans further into your embrace. Ron's younger sister had been a stellar part of your life for as long as you could remember. Her infatuation with your best friend was what prompted a friendship – at first she had been jealous of the attention Harry gave to you but when you confessed that you had a crush on a fellow Ravenclaw, she admitted to liking Harry and you sought to help her in any way you could. Of course the one thing you couldn't remedy was Harry's blatent obliviousness to his surroundings.

"I wouldn't be angry if there was something going on between you and Riddle, by the way." you hear her mumble into your neck. Your eyes involuntarily close with guilt.

You needed to tell someone you could trust in your circle of friends. It had been knawing away at you all this time.

The guilt.

"If you trust Nott and Parkinson as much as you do, and you're willing to be in Riddle's presence, then I trust your judgement." she says, sitting up with red rimmed eyes to look at you. She squeezes the hand that isn't still wrapped around her and that's all it takes for your resolve to crumble.

"Promise you won't freak out." you mumble and she looks at you weirdly before she agrees. With a deep breath, you do what Mattheo had been teaching you, and wordlessly you enter Ginny's mind. You can see the moment she realises what you're doing, but she doesn't flinch away like you expect; she watches you in awe instead.

He's been teaching me to better control my Legillimens abilities. You tell her cautiously. You can feel her disbelief and her curiosity at your words so you continue speaking to her wordlessly.

I've been teaching myself since the end of fourth year when He returned. Theo found out during one of our first patrols last year and that's really how I became better friends with him and Pansy too. Now that- Now that you-know-who is back they- Theo told me that he was going to have Mattheo teach me to do it defensively and keep my mind locked from enemies. In return, I'm going to help them all.

"How are you going to do that?" she says, her whisper so quiet you could barely hear her.

"I don't know, Ginny." you sigh. "With Harry so suspicious of Malfoy, I don't know how I'll convince him that they're on our side."

"Fuck what he thinks." she says, squeezing your hand again. "What your doing could help not only the Order, but it could save them, too. Have you thought about going to Dumbledore?"

"I have but-" you pause, hesitant to share the most vital piece of information you know.

"But what? Is there something else?" she asks, her curious tone edging to something else.

"There is. But you must promise not to tell a soul. Only me and Matt– only me and Riddle know about it. But I think Dumbledore knows– and Remus was acting strange when I asked him for help about it over Christmas."

She motions you to carry on and you know she'll keep her promise because she practically screams it at you mentally.

"I'm a siphon." you say and when Ginny goes to speak you swiftly interrupt her. "I know it sounds bizarre but it's true. Remember when Katie was cursed? I somehow absorbed some of that dark magic and fainted as a result. Mattheo figured it out first and we've been using the tutor sessions as a rouse to research about it."

"Siphons are rare. I don't think I've heard anything other than bedtime stories my mum used to read us when we were little. They're folklore." she says, awed. You sigh and throw your head back against the top of the sofa and groan in frustration.

"We keep getting the same information over and over again. It's incredibly annoying." you admit and you snap your head up when Ginny begins snickering. "What?"

"And how do you alleviate that frustration, Meadow?" she smirks, "A tumble in the Come and Go Room? How scandalous!"

You gape at her, but that only makes her laugh harder; the distant sound of Madame Pince shushing the two of you doesnt help either. "For Rowena's sake Ginny! Stop laughing!" you say but her laughter is infectious and you can't help but join.

"Hey I don't blame you, he's far too attractive for his own good."

Tell me about it. You say with a grumble and she lets out a loud snort that promptly ends with the two of you being kicked out of the sanctuary of the library.

"Your secret is safe with me, Meadow. I promise."

Somehow, admitting your greatest secret to someone lifted a giant weight from your shoulders. Perhaps having someone like Ginny in your corner was a good thing.

~∞~

The Ravenclaw Tower holds an abundance of the best rooms in the whole castle; from the tall ceilings of the common room with constellations painted like glittering sparkles, to a miniature astronomy tower that over looked the Black Lake and the mountainous highlands that surround the castle grounds.

Or maybe you're just biased.

Your dorm room is another place of solace for you. It's a little different to the library, however. Your dorm is place where you find peace and serenity away from the troubles of schoolwork and the stress of keeping up with your friends' woes. Hardly ever are you disrupted once the door to your room is closed off to the outside world, only the occasional murmur of conversation from girls passes by to get to their dorms interrupts the quiet atmosphere.

You needed a break from everything. Harry had somehow managed to go from Professor Slughorn's favourite student to his most failured prodigy after asking him about Horcruxes as per Dumbledore's instruction; Hermione believed that the library had actually failed her when she (and you) had no such luck finding any information about them and Ron appeared to be so wrapped up in his relationship that you rarely saw him outside of lessons and meal times.

It was at times like this that you yearned for Mattheo's presence which scared you half to death. He had been attentive with you as of lately, no longer was he grueling and rough with his Legillimens lessons and he made an effort to help you search for books in the library to aid in your research for your siphon abilities. You hadn't told him about Ginny, but you had a feeling that he just knew somehow that she was now aware of the arrangement.

He had a knack for always knowing everything.

You did feel a little bad, since it was Ron's birthday and you always spent it (and each of your respective birthdays) with the Golden Trio. This year your friendships with them seemed distant and awkward, like the thread holding you altogether was strained and fraying. But when you got a frantic knock on your door to find Harry supporting the intoxicated redhead you call your best friend, you let them in with no hesitation.

"What the hell is wrong with him? Did he have too much to drink? It's not even gone lunchtime." you say frantically as you and Harry turn to watch Ron stare into space with starry eyes.

"The cauldron cakes," Harry muttered tiredly, scraping a hand through his unruly hair, "the ones from Romilda-"

"Romilda? Did you say Romilda, Harry? Where is she?" Ron turned his gaze to you, his eyes wide and unseeing. "Meadow! You're a girl. You must know her, can you introduce me? I love her."

"Merlin's beard." you say incredulously, mouth agape. "He ate the spiked chocolates, didn't he?"

Harry only nodded. "He ate them like ten minutes ago. I don't know what to do."

"Well you're the Potions master, Potter." you say with a grimaced smile and he only glares at you in response. You shake your head. "You'll have to take him to see Professor Slughorn or Madame Pomfrey for an antidote. Better to have someone who knows Potions inside-out to help."

"Okay. Okay yeah– good." Harry stutters as he drags Ron towards your door. "Are you coming?"

"Oh– no I'm doing some research. Or trying to, at least. Still not one mention of Horcruxes in anything I've read." you say as you stand at the threshold of your door. "But tell him I'm never letting him live this down once he's all cured."

An hour later, you eat your words as Ginny bursts into your room with tears streaking down her face. Because someone had poisoned her brother; if not for Harry's quick thinking, he would be dead.

~∞~

a little bit of a short chapter, mostly because its only a filler before shit kicks off 😃😃

more soft matty for you all xxx

taglist:

@camille-1019 @lovelyygirl8 @xluansstuff @babeylover @thejadeazalea @undercover-smutlover @adhxmoony @dreamingofonceuponatime @thepassionatereader @urmomsgayforme5 @aphroditeisamilf @devotedlycrookeddonut @purplegirls-posts @nofacenonamelikekira @foxboyapologist @lafrone @lovely-maryj @nromanovaswife @leeknows-wife @dracygf @wildlyobserving @ravenclawprincess33 @melllinaa @vellicora @lantsovheiress @emiliahoward @stunkbiggu @vcosette @prongsprincessworld @mattiesgirl @rachmmb @x-kermit-x @sun-fiower-seed @cas-planet @certaindreampost @weirdowithnobeardo @mikalovesicecream @sunasbbie @rainy-darling @faeriepigeons @lovely-blackinnon @topguncultleader @gimalo135 @elsafromcabinsix @moonlightreader649 @blueshome @nopedefe @spencerreidsthings @navs-bhat @agent-tempest @magimtz23 @y0urm0m12 @sbrn0905 @leona-hawthorne

#harry potter #ron weasley #mattheo riddle x you #mattheo riddle x reader #mattheo x you #mattheo x y/n #mattheo riddle #harry potter x reader #ginny weasley #ginny weasley x reader #serendipity series

[my-writings-and-musings]

hi!! could I request a tfe bumblebee x bot! reader who is also in hiding, and she stops by on occasion to check on the Terrans? No stress if you can't :) Thank you!!!

Oooooooh definitely! I made it especially soft and romantic because we need more soft and romantic Earthspark Bee. Thank you for the ask!

You'd sent a message ahead regarding your impending arrival, contacting Bumblebee through the encrypted channel the two of you shared to let him know you'd be moving through the area and hoped he'd be free for a visit, and as always the enthusiasm in his reply had warmed your spark. It wasn't as if you were any less excited, but you were a little worn down after covering thousands of miles in mere days. Being on the run made stops like these quite hard to set up safely.

There was little worry in your spark now though, and as you finally saw the warm glow of a cozy home shining through the dark forest you were beyond thrilled to send the message of your impending arrival. Bumblebee replied in the affirmative almost instantaneously, and you couldn't stop smiling as you grew closer with every step. The kids would be there as well, and you were confident they'd have a million questions about your travels and even more stories of their own adventure to share. No amount of exhaustion could temper your enthusiasm to meet with the family after so many long months away.

The rumble of an engine caught your audial, and you arrived at a gap in the trees just in time to see a yellow sports car zooming in your direction. Brief, instinctive alarm gave way to confusion when the vehicle drew close enough for you to recognize a very familiar paint job.

"Bee?" you said as he skidded to a halt on the grass, tires struggling for purchase before he transformed and stumbled into a run with the momentum. Looking too enthusiastic to feel awkward, his bright blue optics met yours, and everything beyond the mech you loved melted away. You were running to meet him before you even knew you were moving.

"Y/N!" he said as the two of you collided with a clank for a long overdue hug. Feeling his frame against yours all but melted away the tension of the past few months, your actuators relaxing save for the tightness with which you wrapped your arms about him and held on for dear life. Every part of him felt like home, his voice everything you didn't know you needed as he whispered into your audial. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you too..." you sighed, so content you could have stayed there for hours just soaking in his presence. It took a moment for uncertainty to cut through the blissful reunion, especially as you realized it was about nine people short of what you'd been expecting. Figuring they were all still in the house or the Dugout, you pulled your helm back to face him with a raised optic ridge and a perplexed smile. "But why drive all the way over here? I was making my way to the house to meet you and the kids."

Bumblebee blushed at the question, embarrassment briefly lighting up his cheeks before he cleared his vents to answer. "I know, and they've got a ton of new things to show you, Hashtag probably has a few days worth of footage saved up." he explained with equal pride and amusement, making you chuckle as you imagined the impromptu movie night that was waiting for you. Softening his expression once more, the Scout looked to the side, holding you closer but speaking quietly. "But I... wanted a few minutes with you. Just the two of us."

The open vulnerability from the usually private mech briefly made your optics widen in surprise, but you recovered and closed them to bring your forehelm forward and tap it against his, a tender gesture of intimacy between bots. Bumblebee returned it with a tiny sigh, savoring your presence as much as you did his. In a few minutes the two of you would head for the Dugout and reunite with the family for what would be a delightful evening of games and catching up, but for now, the two of you were just going to enjoy the quiet together. There was no way to know when you'd next have the chance...

#transformers #maccadam #earthspark #transformers earthspark #transformers: earthspark #tf earthspark #tfe #tfes #earthspark bumblebee #bumblebee x reader #x reader #self insert #bot reader #tf

[melancholicbutterflies]

a Papa Bear story

♡ PART III ♡

Summary: Your best friend invites you over for your first sleepover!

Tags/Warnings: protective!elvis, mentions of corporal punishment

Word Count: 2,858

YOU WERE SO excited. Finally, you'd been old enough to be allowed to take part in your very first sleepover! Your good friend Macy had invited you and, after a brief talk with your momma, plans were underway. After school on Friday, Macy's momma would pick you two up and you'd go to the mall for a bit to shop and walk around and have dinner, and then you'd go to their house to hang out. Macy said they had a whole slew of movies and it was really up to them; in their household things were laxer, and you couldn't wait. You loved your momma and step daddy but gosh, Elvis could be really strict and there didn't always seem to be a rhyme or reason why, at least in your young, early adolescent mind. Since the next day was Saturday, Macy's momma would drop you off sometime in the afternoon, so you could sleep in and just have a ball.

The only thing that concerned you some was your momma hadn't mentioned anything about Elvis knowing about your plans. He wasn't home, on a tour somewhere out west and had been for a few weeks now, and so he wouldn't have known right away anyhow, but usually he liked to be updated and would call frequently, insisting to speak to you. Ever since your conversations, and when you'd become a woman as he called it (you still didn't quite feel that way), he seemed to keep an even keener eye on you. It was not unusual for him to inquire about your who with and how you were spending your time, but not in any sort of way that made you think it was purely out of curiosity. There was always this undercurrent of if you said the wrong thing he'd be angry with you, and even in the few years you'd known him you just couldn't take him being upset with you for any reason.

Macy appeared to have a very different relationship with her daddy. He was often around because he worked a nine to five job, but she talked to him in a way that would have earned you a spanking for being 'disrespectful'. In fact, there seemed to be very few rules in her household, something that made you in awe of and somewhat frustrated. After all, why couldn't you get to do what you wanted whenever you wanted and how you'd like it?

Macy's momma waved to you from her minivan, smiling. She was leant up against it, smoking, as she waited for you two to finish up and walk over. "Great to see you, Y/N!" She brought you in for a hug, already feeling very familiar. Her affection was a nice change of pace from your momma who you loved but wasn't oft to show it so demonstrably as your daddy. She gave Macy the same treatment with an added zealous kiss on the crown of her head. "Feel like getting some ice cream on the way?" She asked, going around to the driver's side. "I know we probably shouldn't spoil our dinners, but, what the heck, I say?!"

"Yay!" Macy cried, and your eyes widened as you looked at her in excitement. "Could we really?" You asked.

"Sure, why not? It's Friday, and you girls are always working so hard in school. You deserve a treat!"

It was hot as Hades, and so the line was unexpectedly short. Not long after you were on your way to the mall with three single scoop ice cream cones in hand, and the windows down letting in some much needed breezy air. "Any shops you girls want to look at in particular?"

"Oh, well, there's this jewelry store I wanna look at. How about you, Y/N?"

"I didn't have any I thought of, I'd be happy to just walk around with you."

Macy turned you, suddenly mischievous. "Ooh, what if we run into some cute boys from school?"

You paused in licking your ice cream cone, unable to stop your glance from flicking between your friend her mom, who seemed preoccupied singing with the song on the radio. "Oh, I don't know."

"Why not? I heard Tommy comes here all the time." Tommy was a boy in your class that Macy really liked. You just thought he was annoying, but his friend was a lot nicer you thought. You just never tried anything because of the conversation you recalled with your step daddy. He'd been pretty clear about how he felt about boys.

"Y/N!" Macy moved a hand in front of your face to get your attention.

"Yeah, maybe. We're just there to have fun though."

The first shop you went into was the one that Macy was set on. It was sort of girly, but had jewelry and earrings for every kind of piercing you could put in your ear. "Look at me!" She cried, looking from the mirror to you in a whole set of costume jewelry.

"You look so cool," you agreed.

Later on you found a case of different sunglasses and tried those on, striking ridiculous poses to each other. Marcy's momma was always near but didn't supervise you closely. She was sitting on a bench outside one of the stores you were in thumbing through a magazine with Grace Kelly on it.

Macy's hand came on you suddenly and she leaned in to whisper in your ear, "don't look now, but I think that's Tommy and his friend over by the hot dog stand. I said don't look!"

"How am I supposed to see them?"

She sighed. "Well, fine, but just don't make it obvious. I don't want them to think we're some kind of creeps staring!"

You refrained from telling her that was exactly what you were right now, but did as she bade. Inconspicuously you saw his friend was the one you had a small crush on, Danny. They were both pretty oblivious, talking and laughing and carrying on in their own little bubble.

"Should I go up to them and say something?" Macy asked. "What do you think?"

"I don't know—"

"You're right, too forward. maybe we should pretend to walk in front of them and not see them, and they'll say something? Then it was their idea."

"I guess." You didnt want to come off as a stick in the mud, but you kept hearing your daddy's words in the back of your head. If he knew you were even thinking of talking to boys he'd be furious with you. And with your momma for allowing it to happen. As if it was her job to guard you. Again you felt some resentment creeping in: Macy didn't have to worry about any of that. It just wasn't fair.

Your inner dialogue was interrupted as Macy tugged on your arm insistently, "come on, let's pretend to walk by them. Tommy better say something," she grumbled. You didn't have any reason to fight her on it and decided to just play along. Macy was pretty demanding when she wanted to be.

The boys hadn't seen you at first, but when Macy made a show of stopping to tie her shoes in front of them they finally noticed you. "Hey, it's, um, Mary, right?" Tommy spoke first, glancing between the two of you. "Macy," she corrected, smiling wider than you'd ever seen her smile. "And you're Tommy, right?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"We have a bunch of classes together. Actually, we sit near each other in home ec. This is my friend, Y/N, she in our grade too."

"Hi," you greet shyly, trying not to look at Danny for too long. He was even cuter up close!

"Y/N," Danny said, "I remember you. You're the girl who's super good with numbers!" He seemed very impressed by this, and you were tickled that he noticed you, even if it was for something pretty nerdy.

"Thank you! And um, you're really good in English."

"Yeah, maybe we should tutor each other," he laughs. He doesn't realize you latch onto this, desperately hoping it could happen. You could see it now.

Tommy's digging his hands into his jean pockets, swaying back and forth on his heel. "Well, I reckon we should probably get going. Got a movie we're seein' tonight."

"Without your folks?" You asked.

The boys turned to look at each other and laughed. "Yeah, our folks trust us, you know."

No, you didn't, but you nodded like you did.

"It's a real scary one," Danny added. "'The Bloodening', it's called. Have you gals heard of it?"

"Woah, that's a real creepy one!" Macy said, and you mirrored her expression as if you had any idea of what they were talking about.

"Yeah, so we better get goin'. Nice to run into ya though. You girls take care all right?"

"We will!"

"Thanks!" You said.

Macy turned to you afterwards and giggled. "Why did you thank them?"

"I have no idea!" You laughed.

After eating some Chinese for dinner, Macy's momma drove you back to their place. They lived in a quiet neighborhood with a lot of similar looking houses next to each other. It wasn't as nice as Graceland, far from it, but for ordinary folk you think it was pretty nice.

The first thing you did was get changed into your PJs. Macy's were a little blander than yours, and for the first time you felt a little ashamed at how you looked.

"What is that?" She giggled, eyes racing up and down your bunny pajamas. "It's so..."

"So what?" You asked defensively. your daddy had picked it out special for you and you hadn't the heart to tell him it wasn't quite your style anymore but you'd be damned if you let someone else make fun of it, even your good friend.

"Well, you know. It's pretty cutesy, right? Why'd you pick out one like that?"

"All of my PJs are like this," you shrugged your shoulders, turning around to brush your teeth, which as you'd learn was a mistake since you'd dig into a bowl of candy and popcorn for the flick soon.

"What do you mean they're all like that? That?" She asked incredulously.

"Yeah. My daddy picked it out for me and he likes it so I... like it."

You were met with some silence and you glanced in the mirror at Macy who was looking at you a little strangely.

"What?"

"I don't know, Y/N, that's sort of weird."

"What, like your parents don't buy you clothes sometimes?"

"Yeah, when I was little little, not now. Well, once in a while mom will take me shopping but it's pretty much up to me what I wanna wear as long as it isn't too racy."

Your brows furrowed as you spit into the sink, washing your mouth out. Was it odd that your daddy still picked your clothes out for you? Macy getting to wear what she wanted was an entirely new concept to you, one you didn't think would be possible until you were at least eighteen and could make your own decisions. Was this what other girls your age were doing?

"Sorry, Y/N, I didn't mean to make you feel any type of way," Macy said, realizing your quiet must have signaled you were upset with her and feeling self-conscious.

"You didn't," you lied.

"Well, if I did, I'm sorry anyhow. I mean, we're all brought up different, I guess... I guesss if your daddy still wanted to pick out your clothes for you that ain't got anything to do with me. Just thought it was a bit weird is all."

"Yeah..."

"Come on, let's go watch that movie! It's an action one. You like that kind of stuff?"

"Oh, yeah!"

"Momma's bringing in some candy and popcorn for us. Guess I should have said that before you started brushing your teeth," she smiled.

You followed her out to the living room as she set the movie up. It was a much smaller screen than you were used to, and it took some finagling to get it the way you needed it to see properly. As the movie started you began ruminating on all that had transpired earlier in the day and it became hard to focus on the plot. Just how different was your life made out to be, you wondered, and was all of it really for the right reasons?

The next morning you woke early to the sound of hushed voices arguing. Glancing to your right, you saw Macy was knocked out cold, drool lining her pillow. The time, which was visible on the nightstand in between your respective beds, read '6:05AM'. Thinking this might have been Macy's dad, you nearly went back to bed but you caught sight of a familiar looking Cadillac parked diagonally on the driveway. If you looked closer you could see slight squeal marks. you'd seen the car enough times to not have any doubt in your mind who it belonged to.

Your step daddy Elvis was here.

Walking quiet as a church mouse around Macy and further still to the door, you cracked it open a smidge to listen in on the heated discussion, knowing you'd be able to hear from your position; Macy said she listened to her parents all the time as voices carried easily up the landing outside her bedroom.

"...You can't just burst in here like this, Elvis...." This was clearly Macy's momma talking. "Yes, I know who you are, but it's unreasonably early and... that's nice you don't care, but what I'm saying is it's just not right... okay, I accept your apology, but please don't...!"

There was a slight crash and the sound of heavy footsteps thudding up the stairs. When you looked up it was your step daddy, eyes burning and fists clenched at his side. He looked like he'd just come back from his tour, wearing fancier clothing than he usually did while home. When he took notice of you by the door, he deflated some, although the ire in his eyes never disappeared.

"Girl, you are in a lotta trouble. Wait till I get my hands on you!"

"Elvis, daddy, please don't! I'm having a lot of fun here! It's my first time!" You begged.

"Your first—" his mouth open and shut like a fish. "What in blue blazes are you talkin' about, honey?!"

"My first sleepover," you replied morosely. And your last, judging by how upset Macy's momma sounded. The normally calm and collected woman sounded angrier than you'd ever heard her. You could just see her forbidding her daughter from talking with you again. You couldn't lose your best friend because of your daddy's temper, you just couldn't!

Elvis let out a deep sigh and turned his head and eyes skyward, as if asking for some divine intervention. "God help me..." He muttered, seeing your eyes tearing up now; it made him feel somethin' awful.

Looking back down at you and kneeling on one knee, he said, "I didn't realize how important this was to you, cupcake. I just wish your momma would'a let me in on what was happenin'. And you," his anger flared to life again, "how many times we talk on the phone and you ain't mention no 'sleepover, Elvis'."

"It was only last minute," you said, looking down.

"Uh huh." It was obvious he didn't believe you. You didn't know it, but you always had a tell of avoiding eye contact when you were fibbing, and Elvis had learned that early on.

"I'm sorry, Daddy." You ran into his arms to hug him in hopes he would calm down and go easy on you. Your touch was always soothing to him, and you were learning to use it to your advantage.

"Can't you see Daddy was worried, baby? I come home to find you not in your bed and your momma sayin' you went off with some people I don't know, never met... gotta understand it from my point of view, honey," he pulled you to arm's reach to look you in the eye.

"Yes, Daddy, I get it."

"You will," he said, raising a brow, "that lil' tush a' yours, cute though it may be, is gonna be mighty red when I'm through with it. I need you to be honest with me, darlin', and if that's the only way I'm gonna get it through that thick skull then I will."

Your eyes widened. Surely he hadn't meant right here and now?

Chuckling lowly, he mused your hair. "Not right now, honey. Later. When we're back in Graceland."

"You mean I can stay?"

He eyed you up and down for a moment, considering. "Oh please, Daddy! I'll do anything to stay! Please let me!"

"When you due back home?" He asked, scratching his chin.

"Only a few hours. They said they'd take me back early afternoon. Or Momma was gonna pick me up."

He pursed his lips. "I'll pick you up."

"I can stay?"

"Yes, sweet thing, you can stay."

taglist: @everythingelvispresley @dkayfixates @animalloverthingsss @suspiciousmindsxo @iloveelvis @18lkpeters @doll-elvis @ccab @elvisalltheway1 @satninroses @dkayfixates @darkmoviesquotespizza @jaqueline19997 @louisejoy86 @myradiaz @velvetelvis @sillybookmarks @alllriseabove @livelaughelvis @blog777e

#elvis presley #elvis #elvis fans #fanfic #fanfiction #elvis fanfic #elvis presley x you #elvis x you #elvis the king #elvis x reader #elvis presley x y/n #elvisaaronpresley #elvis x y/n #elvis presley x reader #elvis presley fanfiction #miniseries #a papa bear story #fluff #70s elvis #big daddy elvis #protective!elvis

[honey-beann]

Sooo does this mean we can get some nines fluff? plssss?

Sweet, and Soft, and Gentle

Nines x Reader

Well, this certainly isn't the fluffiest thing I've ever written, but here's a little fic that I wrote randomly last night because I am weak to whatever the hell this trope is haha. I hope you enjoy!

Word Count: 1,643

The front desk assistant walked quickly into the bullpen, looking a little bit nervous as he cleared his throat slightly, catching the attention of everyone there as he did so (much to his chagrin).

Today was his very first day without the desk manager present after she had called out sick, and of course that also had to be the day that an unexpected visitor with an almost unbelievable reason for coming in waltzed her way into the office, asking for someone that the poor assistant had never once heard anyone ask for before.

So now, here he was, walking as quickly as he could without causing alarm in an attempt to stay ahead of you so that he had the opportunity to ask the many precinct workers if they happened to know anyone by your name.

Sure, you had requested one man in particular, but he just couldn't imagine what someone like you could ever need someone like him for, so he opted instead to announce your presence to the entire room in hopes of someone you actually knew telling him that it was okay if you came in to visit without a supervising attendee present.

"Sorry to bother you guys, but I have someone by the name of-"

"Nines?"

Your voice was a little quiet and hesitant as you spoke, as if you were worried you might be in the wrong place.

Immediately, all eyes shifted from the front desk assistant to you, including a pair of steely gray orbs that had notably not been watching the man standing at the front of the room prior to your voice being heard.

To everyone's surprise, the android who went by the very same name you had spoken stood up, abandoning his coat on the back of his chair, which he left two entire feet away from his desk as he made his way over to you.

And that alone was a shock.

Nines was the office neat freak, and regardless of weather, when he moved away from his desk he always put that jacket of his on, no matter how brief the trip away would be.

And to leave his chair out of place?

It was almost unthinkable to imagine he would do something like that. Hell, he even begrudgingly pushed Gavin's in when the detective left it sitting away from his desk.

But here Nines was, walking toward you, a stranger to damn near everyone in the office, as if nothing else in the world ever had or ever would matter more.

You let out what appeared to be a sigh of relief at the man's approach, smiling tiredly up at him as he offered you a faint grin, one that touched his eyes far more than it did his lips.

"Button."

He said as he grew closer, causing nearly the entire office to look around at one another in surprise.

Had Nines just used a pet name?

You blushed a bit but took a few steps forward, meeting the android closer than you would have otherwise as he reached down to cup the side of your cheek, allowing you to lean into his touch contentedly.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of this sudden visit?"

He asked gently, causing you to shrug your shoulders a bit in response, cheeks still pink with embarrassment.

"I uh, I had to make a delivery next door and thought I would pop in to say hi, but then I learned that I wasn't actually on your guest list yet so I tried to back out of it, except I didn't want anyone at the desk to think I was just some weirdo who had been trying to get in randomly so I decided to ask if someone could escort me in to say hello... Kind of a dumb idea in retrospect..."

You sighed, gaze cast downward as the android in front of you raised a brow at your words, clearly confused about something, but more than patient enough to allow you to finish your thought.

"I'm sorry for bothering you at work."

You continued softly, refusing to make eye contact with Nines until he tutted and used two of his fingers to lightly push your chin upward, all but forcing you to look him in the eye as he spoke.

"Listen to me, Button."

He said almost sternly, though his eyes were alight with a slightly smug amusement,

"You're never a bother."

You sputtered a bit at the kindness of the android's words, but had very little time to reply before Nines was turning towards the desk assistant.

"Why couldn't you find her on my accepted visitors list? Is the system down?"

He asked, his tone full of a nearly unkind sternness far different from the one he had regarded you with as he spoke.

The assistant blanched.

"To be honest Detective, I never checked... During my training I was told that you never got visitors, so I had assumed that you just didn't allow for them..."

Nines scoffed, turning his attention back towards you, expression as apologetic and soothing as ever,

"It was only a misunderstanding."

He said gently, tucking a few loose strands of hair behind your ear as he glanced back toward the desk assistant,

"One that I am sure will be remedied in the future."

That sentence was damn near growled, and the assistant was quick to nod before rushing off under the guise of work.

Strange, considering his lunch break was only three minutes away.

Nines however, could not have cared less about how much he had undoubtedly frightened the young man, and instead leaned forward, bumping his forehead lightly against your own as he sighed, murmuring a quiet apology before you shook your head and stood on your toes in order to press a sweet kiss against his lips.

Nines seemed a bit surprised at this, but grinned nonetheless, reaching an arm around your back and using it to tug you closer before he gently applied a downward pressure, urging you to stand normally as he leaned further forward to better accommodate for the height difference the two of you shared.

The entire room watched on in awe save for a few pairs of exasperated eyes, which remained mostly trained on the screens in front of them.

But to everyone else, this was far too jarring to even imagine looking away from.

It just didn't make sense.

You were sweet and soft and oh so gentle, everything a city like Detroit could've eaten up and spat out in a second.

And Nines was well...

Nines.

Even those who were closest to him would call him unyielding at best, and occasionally outright cruel at worst.

No one had ever seen him bend to the will of anything.

So why was he quite literally bending down to press his lips to yours as you all but melted into his touch, obviously soothed by his typically threatening presence?

The entire precinct watched on in shock as you smiled against the rk900's lips, pulling away after a few seconds to plant a gentle kiss to the very tip of his nose as he chuckled quietly, his eyes rolling ever so slightly in a way that made it obvious how much he enjoyed your foolish expression of adoration.

"You have a very interesting way of saying hello, little one."

Nines said softly, his hand moving to cup the back of your head as he regarded you with amusement, eyes following the gentle curve of your smile lovingly.

You blushed a bit, but couldn't help but grow giddy beneath his gaze, mouth opening slightly to comment,

"Are you not a fan?"

You asked, watching as Nines all but scoffed before shaking his head,

"No, I think I prefer the way you go about things presently over anything else you might come up with."

He teased before planting a soft kiss against your forehead and pulling away, glancing towards the bullpen full of officers and detectives who were staring shamelessly at the two of you.

Usually, he would roll his eyes, or even laugh if he caught the entire room watching him like that, but this time he ignored them completely, glancing down at you and offering his arm before speaking again.

"How about I take you out to lunch to make up for all of the confusion, hmm little one? Make coming to visit a little bit more worthwhile?"

You grinned and nodded in response, grabbing his arm and taking a few steps towards the exit alongside him when you suddenly stopped, gasping lightly as you realized that Nines was missing something he would typically consider important.

"Your jacket!"

You announced, dashing over to the garment before knocking the chair it had been hanging on back into the spot against his desk with your hip thoughtlessly, your smile dangerously close to contagious for all who watched as you rushed back to the man who remained standing near the doorway, amusement evident in his expression.

"Thank you, Button."

He said genuinely as you grew closer, holding his familiar white jacket out to him,

"Whatever would I do without you?"

You laughed cheerily at that, and everyone watched as you took Nines' arm once more, walking out of the building and into the warm afternoon air side by side.

The room was silent for a few moments afterward, before murmurs began breaking out around the office, until finally everything got quiet again after Gavin piped up rather loudly,

"Who the hell was that?!"

He shouted, a confusion that nearly everyone in the room shared evident in his tone.

But still, not everyone had been left in the dark, and three men sitting at their respective desks spoke up in accidental unison to prove it, all of them sounding mildly exasperated and reasonably amused.

"His wife."

#dbh x reader #c: nines #nines x reader #rk900 x reader #dbh nines x reader #dbh fics #dbh x reader fluff

[1-800-local-slut]

Sapphic Secrets

Morgan thinks Elle has a boyfriend. He missed the mark just a bit.

Elle Greenaway x Black! Fem! SSA! Reader

This takes place before the last one shot I wrote about Elle, you can read it here!

Warnings: Elle gets teased a bit, this is short because I'm literally half asleep right now but I wanted to do this, I'm working on something for Reid sent around this same time so I kinda tease it here, Elle is head over heels for reader, I think for Elle I'm gonna make the BAU readers its own thing if that makes any sense, reader and Elle kiss at work, fluff, not proof-read, we die like men

(I'm so in love with this woman it's unhealthy, like I can't explain. I can't believe she isn't in the show but she's like so...aughhhh I need her biblically. I'm literally about to become an Elle page 😭)

༻༺༻༺༻༺༻༺༻༺༻༺༻༺༻༺༻༺༻༺༻༺༻

"You got a boyfriend?" Elle rolled her eyes at the question, smiling at the message that she just finished reading.

'I packed lunch for you this morning, left it in the fridge in the break room. Make sure you heat it up properly.'

"What?" She asked, her neck snapping away from her phone.

"Elle has a boyfriend." Morgan chuckled to Spencer, who was sliding his lanky self into his desk chair.

"What's your proof?" Elle found herself challenging. It wasn't a lie, she didn't have a boyfriend. She had something else, something (or someone, but she kept that to herself) way better.

"You're smiling at your phone. I've never seen you smile so hard." Elle raised a brow in a chuckle. If it was any other day she would have had a meaner remark. Today though, she was in a good mood.

"That's your proof? Please, what type of profiling is this?" She laughed and glanced over at Reid. Elle grinned at Reid who smiled down at his desk. Reid seemed pretty pleased himself lately. It seemed like love was in the air for the BAU. Like Cupid shot all of his arrows and struck all of them square in the chest.

Gideon was overheard ordering a gift for a lady friend, Hotchner and Haley seemed closer than ever, Derek was being Derek, Spencer basically skipped in on cloud nine earlier this week, JJ was talking to a sexy barista, and Garcia was in a very committed and happy relationship with herself. Maybe the mutual happiness the team shared wasn't permanent, but Elle was sure to relish in it.

The sound of a heels clacking broke Elle from her thoughts. Turning, she saw her standing behind Elle's desk. Hands behind her back, her curls were styled into a high puff. Her edges were slicked down perfectly. Her lashes were full, her new mascara that she told her about worked perfectly. Her lips were a deep, matte red as well. Elle wanted to test if it was kiss proof.

Would it smudge if Elle pressed her lips to hers thousands of times? Would it stain Elle's face, messing up her own carefully done makeup in the process?

"A boyfriend? I hope he doesn't distract you from your work, Agent Greenaway." Elle rolled her eyes, hearing the playful lit in her girlfriends voice.

"You too?" Elle asked, taking a sip of her coffee with a raised brow. Her girlfriend nodded down at her.

"See? I'm not alone here." Derek doubled down playfully.

"Your basis is that I grinned! Gideon would find better proof and there isn't any to be found." She couldn't stop laughing. Not just because of some light teasing from her good friend. No, because the source of her happiness for the past few months was standing right behind her.

She wanted to blush and giggle with her the way she did a few weeks ago. Sadly, she was at work. Not in her apartment eating maroons that they got from their little trip to New York.

A shuffling noise was heard, and Elle saw her girlfriend holding a brown folder. Holding it up, she shook it gently. Even a new case couldn't kill her good mood.

Reid and Morgan got up at the same time, the group making their way towards the briefing room. Elle noticed a bright grin on Spencer's face, quickly tapping away at his cell phone and it made her happy for him. It was good that Reid was maybe talking to someone. Or maybe it was his mom, who knows? Either way she was happy to see the young man smiling.

Then Elle felt a slight tug on her sleeve and she turned, letting Morgan and Reid pass her bye. Pulling her to the side, Elle blinked trying to meet her girlfriends eyes. Instead, she saw her girl was scanning the room for something.

"JJ, can you take this to the briefing room for me? I need Elle's help with something real fast." The woman called the blonde, who was fixing her headband into place as she walked to the briefing room.

"Sure, are you two alright?" JJ smiled, taking the folder out of her hands.

"Yes, we'll be there in a few moments." Elle nodded, feeling the heat of her girlfriends body. She just realized how closely behind her she was standing and it made her heart flutter.

"Alright, see you two in minute. Don't take too long, Hotchners gonna want his coroner there." Examining the folder, she took off. Her eyes quickly flooded the pages and absorbing as much information as she could.

Without a word, the taller woman started to walk down the hall. For some reason, she gave Elle small glances only but mostly kept her eyes focused. The two stopped at an empty conference room and with a click the door flew open for the two.

"Is something wrong?" Elle asked, shutting the door behind them. Her heart jumped a bit, anxiety building. No way she was actually jealous. It was all jokes, nothing serious.

"So, a boyfriend?" She asked teasingly, leaning against the table. There was a beat of silence, and then they broke out into a fit of laughs.

She was over here worrying like she didn't know nothing could crack her level headed girlfriend. She was always even tempered, even face down with the weirdest unsubs. Her work persona at least. She was a lot more animated at home.

"Really? I was here worrying you were mad at me!" Elle exclaimed, swatting her on her shoulder, only for her hand to be caught. She was pulled into a tight but comforting grasp.

One arm wrapped around her waist and the other holding her hand they were almost dancing. Oh God, she didn't want to deal with a murderer right now. She wanted to return to her apartment with her and spend the day cuddling amongst other things.

"Here I was scared I was the side piece. So who is he? Is he cute?" Her voice low and teasing, before she pressed a kiss to Elle's nose.

"He's so handsome, you wouldn't believe it. He even has a nice ass." Elle teased before using her free hand to pinch her soft, plump backside.

"Man, I'll have to kick his ass."

"Gross, you sound like a dude."

A soft hum was her response before her lips were enveloped in a passionate kiss. For twenty seconds their lips were pressed together before they pulled apart.

"So what was this all about?" Elle asked, pushing her hair out of her eyes. Her girlfriends eyes rolled up to the sky as if she was deep in thought. Elle tilted her head in confusions while she waited for some sort of response.

"You look good, I wanted to kiss you." With a shrug, she smiled down at her as if it was basic knowledge.

"Funny. I had the same thought." Seizing her by her shirt collar, she went in for kiss number two.

Work be damned, this was her number one priority at the moment.

#black reader #x reader #fem reader #x black reader #elle greenaway x fem reader #elle greenaway x black reader #elle greenaway x reader #elle greenaway #criminal minds #pls send requests #live laugh love elle greenaway #their lesbians your honor #their in love your honor #fluff #criminal minds fluff

[gallifreyanhotfive]

Do you have any recommendations on Dr. Who books/audio format things? I haven't watched the show in a bit because Moffat wasn't my thing and I can't seem to find the old stuff. (If you have any advice on where to find that too I would be very grateful) Following your blog has been a nice reminder of why I liked the show so much. Hope you have a good day!

Aw thank you! Depending on your location, you can find classic who episodes either on BBC iPlayer or Tubi (with ads).

As for books/audios, I'll try to keep this brief as I could write an essay on this.

For books, my favorite author is Kate Orman. Orman writes wonderfully, and my personal favorite is The Year of the Intelligent Tigers. I also really liked Goth Opera, Camera Obscure, History 101, Autumn Mist, Lungbarrow, Divided Loyalties, Somewhere Never etc etc etc etc (so many more but I'm forcing myself to stop here). You can often find free versions of basically every novel (at least all I've looked for) on the internet either as pdfs or epubs or whatever. The Internet Archive is particularly useful. Some examples:

And now for the audios! I personally have sold my soul to Big Finish. I have literally hundreds of recommendations. They do have some audios for free, such as those that came from the Paul Spragg Memorial Competition. You can also find a lot of them (up until Zagreus I think) for free on Spotify. There is also almost always a killer sale going on on the website on top of that too.

As for my recommendations, it's pretty dependent on what Doctor or companion you want to listen to. They even have series centered on UNIT, Romana's Gallifrey, Benny Summerfield, and a ton of other things (including a Masterful special that just had a bunch of Masters fucking around and finding out). I'll put in some of my favorites, one for each Doctor, from what I own (which is far from everything, but I do my best).

One: The Sontarans. It was the first time the Doctor had ever encountered the Sontarans, so he was unfamiliar with them. It takes place during Dalek Master Plan, so Steven and Sara are there.

Two: Lords of the Red Planet! It's a good Ice Warrior origin story and has Jamie and Zoe in it. :)

Three: Terror of the Master. I had pre-ordered it as soon as I heard about it. Three....Delgado Master....what more do you want from an audio? It's narrated by Jon Culshaw.

Four: The Wrath of the Iceni. It was a brilliant historical with Four and Leela and Boudica. Leela gets quite a lesson in this one, first being mad at Four for not helping Boudica and then at Boudica for being cruel.

Okay now we are getting into my favorite Doctors (5-8), so these decisions are going to get difficult.

Five: The Kingmaker! Shakespeare spikes Five's drink to get him absolutely wasted to sneak on the TARDIS, the TARDIS gets hiccups as a result, leading to Peri and Erimem being separated from the Doctor. Shenanigans ensue.

Six: Doctor Who and the Pirates. Six and Evelyn have a really meaningful discussion with one of her depressed students. The third part is a musical!

Seven: The Shadow of the Scourge. Benny Ace and Seven against 8th dimensional eldritch abominations. Seven gets turned into one of these insectoids, and body horror ensues.

Eight: Oh dear I can't choose. At the moment, probably the Great War from Dark Eyes 1. Eight meets Molly and is still grieving here. He is very much doomed by the narrative.

War: The Neverwhen. Lots of the War Doctor is good if you like Time War horror, but this one has a lot of time-as-a-weapon and is well written.

Nine: Battle Scars. A nice short story about that one family Nine saved from the Titanic mentioned in the episode Rose. Has a really fantastic girl in it and a Nine dripping in PTSD.

Ten: The Time Reaver. Ten and Donna! There's this gun that basically slows down time for a single person, so that a few minutes for everyone else is centuries for them. Ten is a self sacrificing dope.

Eleven: The Geronimo boxset is the best in my opinion, but I haven't been able to listen to many of these yet.

Twelve: Another one I haven't managed to buy a lot of yet, but Dead Media is amazing. It's written to sound like a podcast with adverts and everything and is set during his time at St. Luke's. And I cried at the end.

Anyway, I'll shut up now. This was so much fun! Thank you!

#will clarify anything and everything if you want me to #doctor who #classic who #dw #dr who #new who #big finish doctor who #big finish audios #big finish #first doctor #second doctor #third doctor #fourth doctor #fifth doctor #sixth doctor #seventh doctor #eighth doctor #ninth doctor #tenth doctor #eleventh doctor #twelfth doctor #edas #vnas #pdas #target novelizations #doctor who expanded universe #dw eu #doctor who eu #the master #kate orman

[vee-beeee]

Book Jockey

HELLO

This is totally based off a quote from parks and rec

this is def a crack fic

Premise: Basically, your worst enemy works at the library and you need to check something out for a case.

Connor and Nines are VERY confused, but they've got the spirit

Warnings: curse words lol, being a little mischievous, paper book libraries exist and Connor and Nines cant pull everything from the internet sometimes because i say so, a lil half-assed plot in here

Connor and Nines x reader

╰┈➤---------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Detective, why are you hitting your head on the steering wheel?"

You sighed and turned your face -that had previously been smushed on your vehicles steering wheel- to look vacantly at Connor. His eyebrows were furrowed in concern, and he was leaning forward slightly to look you in the eyes. You groaned and sat up fully, pushing yourself further into the seat, and grabbing some strands of your hair to stare at them instead of the android.

"I just don't like this library Connor." you closed your eyes, dropping the strand of hair, and you could almost hear his confusion from next to you.

"I thought you enjoyed libraries detective" a firm voice from the back of your car made itself known and you opened your eyes to gaze out on the dreaded building.

"I usually do Nines, but someone who works here absolutely sucks." out of the corner of your eyes Connor nodded his head, and then he turned to ask you a question that you never thought you would here out of his mouth.

"Like Detective Reed levels?"

You chocked and whipped your head to look at the android in shock, while he gave you a small smile. You beamed back at him and rolled your eyes away from him "Think even worse". Connor's smile faded as he winced and turned to look at Nines, who gave him a half-hearted shrug, turning to stare at the back of your head. Finally you sighed and started unlocking the doors.

"In and out. No eye contact, no distractions" you breathed, and looked at the boys. Connor gave you a sympathetic look and nodded, while Nines gave you a steely gaze and said nothing. Connor turned to look out the front window of the car, and started giving your group a rundown of this little mission.

"We're just here for that disc, it contains information invaluable to the case" you inclined your head towards Connor, and noticed his LED silently flashed when he looked at his counterpart. They exchanged a brief glance, and then you were out of the car and on your way to the library.

You wonder what they said. Sometimes their telepathic communication was unfair.

(They were talking about being as quick as possible and helping you get through this, but Nines would kill Connor if they spoke like that out loud)

As you slowly reached the front door, you looked through the glass and sure enough

standing right in the middle of everything at the check-out counter

was your worst nightmare.

And so, like a normal person that wasn't afraid, you spun a full 180 degrees and started to walk away.

"Actually I changed my mind. We can find the info somewhere else."

Connor immediately called after you and grabbed your elbow, effectively stopping you from going anywhere with his impressive strength. He turned you around, and forced you to look in his eyes.

"It'll be okay detective. We'll both be in there with you-" he paused and looked at Nines, whose LED flashed yellow and red as the next words came out of Connor's mouth "-we could always just us do it ourselves, but it would look a little weird. 2 androids looking at books" he chuckled and scanned at your face, trying to read your body language.

As soon as Connor said himself and Nines could go in there alone, you felt a pang of guilt. Placing both hands on your chest, you deeply inhaled before exhaling. Connor moved the hand that was on your elbow to rub gently on your back, and you looked at both the boys telling yourself more than them,

"I can do this."

Then you were bursting through the doors!

Annnnddd then immediately ducking down a random isle to avoid being seen.

Connor sought out and greeted the nearest employee, (who seemed very annoyed at the sight of him) and started to try and chat up the elderly women on where their video section was. You leaned against a bookshelf and sighed once more, closing your eyes. You listened to the RK800 talk to the woman, trying to pay attention to where you would be heading.

And then a hand was reaching out to yours.

And holding your pinky finger.

Eyes fluttering open, you slightly turned to your right and saw Nines waiting with you, eyes staring at a random book on the shelf as he silently caressed your fingers with his own.

You gently took one of his digits in your hand and squeezed a couple times, copying him by gazing at the rows of books in front of you.

He squeezed back.

Eventually Connor finished his conversation and made his way to your little pair, and informed you both were the old archives were. You smiled at him, thankful that he had some people skills out of the lot of you, and you all swiftly set off into the basement of the library, making sure to not be seen by that dreaded employee.

You all took the elevator down to the basement, and started your search for this precious disc. As you were looking through one old box, slightly coughing from the dust and grime that had built up, you felt a presence next to you.

"Is there a particular reason why you despise that women?" Connor came up next to your form and started digging into the bin adjacent to yours. You shook your head as you started to explain to him.

"She actually used to work at the DPD. She was always annoyed at me, and even complained to Fowler about me multiple times. She just had it out for me." you brought a hand up to tuck a strand of hair behind your head and took a glance at Connor, whose LED was fully yellow. He tilted his head as he looked, a gesture that was meant to convey he was listening, and you continued with your story.

"Then one day she filed a serious accusation against me, saying I messed up some important paper work. It wasn't true, but I still got in trouble at first. They eventually found out it was her that tampered with it and she was fired, but she sure went out with a bang. Then I heard she started working at this library and I've avoided it every since." You felt Connor staring at you, but you couldn't meet his gaze. The memory of her screeching at you brought you down, and you shut the lid of the box you were looking though with a small slam.

And then a body was wrapped around you.

"I'm sorry Y/N. I wish I could fix it, but the best we can do is get out of here quickly."

You nodded at his words, sighing as you wrapped your hands around his own and basked in the comfort he provided you.

After almost 5 more minutes of digging through dusty CDS and old news papers, Nines had been the one that found the disc you were looking for. Crowding around him, you and Connor shared a glance over Nines back as the android read out the title of the disc and its contents.

"That's the disc alright" you muttered, looking at both boys. Connor straightened his tie and looked away from you, and guiltily gazed around the room.

"We need to check it out."

Ohhh, that's what you forgot about.

You looked at both RK units, who shared a sympathetic look, and you exhaled, grabbing the disc from Nines and slowly trudging towards the elevator to the top floor.

It needed to be you to do it.

It was a longggg elevator ride.

You had told both boys that you understood and it was okay, but Connor still apologized. His explanation was that only you could use your library card (because you were a human, they weren't used to androids checking books out yet) and they wished they could do it for you. You had sighed at the explanation, remembering that androids still had a few restrictions.

Which was garbage.

When the doors were open, you were meet by the sight of that lady sitting at the center desk, blissfully unaware of who was marching towards her. Reaching the desk, you took a breathe.

"I need to check this out please" your voice wavered, but you held firm as you slid the disc over to the person at the desk.

As she tilted her head up, surprise bloomed over her features, and she scanned you head to toe before smiling smugly in recognition.

"Oh y/n, so good to see you. Are they finally teaching your department how to read?"

The world went quiet and you heard Nines slight scoff, but was hidden under a cough, and Connor was instantly at your back. If that lady saw the reaction, she didn't say anything and just continued staring into your soul with a huge smirk.

She continued her work and hummed as she checked out the disc, turning to her computer before clicking around a minute.

And then she grinned, and evil expression. And you knew she was planning something.

"I'm sorry, but this says you have a couple overdue books." immediately your eyebrows raised, and your face morphed into one of skepticism.

You always returned your books on time.

Your boys knew this, and took a chance to glance at each other with confusion.

"One of those books seems to be titled MYSTERYS OF THE MALE BODY" her voice slowly raising as she read out the name of this secret mystical book that was overdue. Your mouth fell open, basically hitting the ground, and you felt Connor grab your hand. Nines was at your side, and sharply glaring at the lady.

You made a decision in that moment.

"RUN GUYS RUN GRAB THE DISC GO GO" you yelled, knocking over a couple books that sat on the counter as the librarian protested, quickly standing up in her chair in shock. Nines instantly understood and grabbed the disc and also took ahold of a confused Connor, you three making a made dash to the door. Connor started yelling "we'll return it" as you and Nines grabbed your accomplice.

And then you saw a cart, filled with books waiting to be put on the shelves.

Looking very tippable

You ran over to it and shoved it over as hard as you could, screaming

"PUNK ASS BOOK JOCKEYS"

Your group burst through the doors, hearing the beeping of the security system and ran all across the parking lot to the way to the car, where Connor slid into the drivers seat and instantly took off.

You were breathless and beaming, chuckling to yourself.

Connor and Nines joined in on your giggling, everyone a little in shock at the little stunt you pulled.

You felt a tap on your shoulder, and Nines was giving you a small smile

"Punk ass book jockeys?"

And then Connor was laughing again, combing a hand through his hair.

So the trip went pretty well. You got the disc after all.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HII HOPE YOU ENJOYED READING

This is literally based off a qoute LOL

sorry for spelling errors and plot holesss as always

also im not sure how i feel about the whole plot with the angry librarian but oh well

#dbh connor #dbh connor x reader #dbh rk800 #detroit become human #dbh nines #dbh rk900 #dbh rk900 x reader #dbh hank

[ohthatstragic]

Coming to a Realisation - p.m

a/n: thank you to the lovely anon that requested this because i got to use this yummy gif....... rooster might be a bit OOC in this BUT, i had a lot of fun writing it, especially from a third person perspective :3 i hope you like it anon, i tried :,( < 3

i made it so the reader was around 28 i believe, i hope that's okay!

also pls don’t repost or translate any of my work.. i don’t give you permission to do that.

pairings: maverick x reader, dagger squad x reader

warnings: disapproving rooster, throwback, age gap, mushy cute moments between you and mr pete 'dilf' mitchell

wc: 2,496

the request: 'What do you think about the dragger or dagger??? (idk which one it is) squad would think about Maverick young fiance (yes fiance because Maverick got over his “im too old for you” phase). Like canon Mav is 57-60ish and the reader is 21+.' read it in full here

the songs i listened to whilst writing this: yebba's heartbreak - drake, yebba, i'm kind of obsessed with this song and i'm not ashamed

The hustle and bustle of the crowds in The Hard Deck echoed in laughs, cheers and shouts as you shuffled through the sea of drunk people, packed so closely together like sardines in a tin. You knew what you were getting yourself into all that time ago when you first started dating the highly decorated captain, Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell. The pair of you had worked through many ups and downs in your relationship, and the hard work had certainly paid off. Your gleaming eyes bounced down to the stunning and sparkling diamond ring that sat happily on your finger. Working your way through the crowd, you finally reached the well-known dagger squad who had warmly welcomed you when Maverick had first introduced you to them. However, there was a certain moustached pilot who didn't match the happy cheers like his peers. Bradley 'Rooster' Bradshaw.

"Hey, Mav, finally found a woman your age yet?" Rooster taunted.

"Don't you think it's funny how you were twenty nine when she was born?" Rooster pestered.

Rooster wasn't very approving of your relationship with his God-father, and he certainly made it known. If you had a dollar for each time the pilot made a dig or insulting joke about you and Maverick, you would definitely be quite wealthy by now. "Hey, Y/N!" Phoenix grinned merrily as she caught your eyes, her arms opening to wrap you in a big hug. Your lips instantly curled up into a grin as you looked at her, happily accepting her advances. As she enveloped you with her warm arms, you squeezed her tight, resting your head upon her shoulder for a brief moment.

"Phoenix," You smiled, your voice catching the attention of the other aviators that sat around the pair of you. "You look great." You added with a widening smile. Her eyes fell from yours to the ring on your finger, her hands catching yours to bring it up to her face.

"Each time I see it, I swear it gets bigger," She laughed with a soft shake of her head. "Have you decided on a date yet?" Phoenix inquired, stepping back to grab her bottle of beer from the side of the pool table.

"Not yet, but we really want to have the wedding in the late spring time." You beamed, casting your gaze aside as you spotted Hangman, Coyote, Bob, Fanboy and Payback with big smiles on their faces, making their way over to greet you.

"There's the future Mrs Maverick!" Hangman cheered as he raised his arms in the air in a  celebratory fashion, squeezing past Phoenix to wrap an arm around your waist to pull you against him in a hug. You slid your arm around his back and hugged him back, letting out a shy laugh. "How's it goin' with the old man?"

"It's really great, actually," You said, looking up at the blonde aviator as he released you, his other hand bringing the bottle of beer up to his lips to take a swig.

"Well, if he does anythin' stupid, you know where to find us, Y/N. We'll kick his antiquated ass for you." Hangman assured you with his signature shining grin. You rolled your eyes at the man and patted his chest playfully.

"He wouldn't dare, because he knows I'd kick his ass first!" You laughed, turning to receive a welcoming hug from Coyote and Fanboy as Hangman and Phoenix chuckled at your reply. The two naval aviators wandered towards you with big grins, their arms coming to engulf you in a hug. "Hey Coyote, Fanboy!"

You hugged them back with a squeeze, smiling at them as they released you. "Congratulations, by the way! Sorry we weren't able to make it to your surprise party." Coyote sheepishly looked away from you, a hand flying up to rub the back of his neck.

"Oh, guys, don't worry about it. As long as you make it to the wedding, we'll be happy." You fanned a hand at them with another smile, dismissing their apology. In truth, you were just glad they were here. You know how dangerous and taxing their job can be.

"We'll be there, we wouldn't want to miss the chance to see Maverick cry." Fanboy laughed, as did the whole group of you all.

"Cry about what?" Your beloved fiancé's voice sounded from behind you and you instantly turned around to face him, your hands flying to wrap around his middle. Peering up at him, you couldn't hide the megawatt grin that spread across your cheeks. "Hi, sweetheart," He chuckled, pressing a kiss to your nose. The comforting smell of his cologne filled your nose as he pulled you closely against his chest, pressing another sweet kiss to your lips this time. "Are they being nice to you?" He asked with a laugh.

"Yes, of course, honey," You jokily scoffed at his question, capturing the attention of a brooding Bradley. He sat behind you and the squad with Bob and Payback, rolling his eyes at your reply.

"C'mon, Rooster, let's go say hello," Payback said, nodding toward the circle of people just in front of them. He didn't reply, staring daggers into the back of your head. "Don't piss Mav off." He added, and that seemed to motivate Rooster a little more. Despite all the past events that happened, he learned to love Maverick like a father. In all honesty, he was protective of him now, and he only believed that you were here for a good time, not a long time. It was too... weird for him.

"I think she seems nice," Bob said, earning a glare from Rooster. He quickly made himself busy with scratching the label of the beer with his nails.

"Fine," Rooster groaned, standing up and brushing a hand down his middle to perfect his appearance. Bob and Payback stood up as well, sharing a worried look between each other. "Let's go." He said quietly, watching you sit in his God-father's arms.

A quiet 'ahem' came from behind you and Maverick, and your fiancé's arms fell down your arms slightly, his fingers tightening on your biceps as he saw Bradley. "Hey, Payback, Bob!" You grinned, having not seen Rooster yet. They both hugged you, and as the pair of them leaned forwards to envelope you, you saw Rooster. You knew how he felt about your relationship with Maverick, and you were praying he had come to say hello and not poke holes in it. 

"Y/N," Rooster greeted you with a lack of emotion. He didn't smile at you like the others did, no, he stared at you, attempting to wear your guard down and find out who you really were.

"Hi, Rooster," You smiled, feeling a little uncomfortable under his hard gaze. Out of everyone, you wanted Rooster's approval the most. He was the closest thing Maverick had to family, and it mattered a lot to you that he liked you. You shuffled in Maverick's arms, your fingers anxiously beginning to fiddle with the sleeves of his leather jacket. Your fiancé noticed your nervous habit take hold, and he quickly spoke to break the awkward silence that had fallen upon the group of you all.

"Another round, guys?" Maverick questioned, raising his brows as he glanced at the aviators surrounding him. They all nodded and said a chorus of pleas and thanks. "Alright, Y/N, can you help me?" He looked down at you, his hand coming up to rub your arm in a soothing manner. Maverick's voice hauled you from the tense staring competition with Rooster and you suddenly felt at ease as you nodded at his question, his roughened hands slipping down to interlock with yours. "Let's go." Leaning down, he murmured against your ear.

Rooster watched you and Maverick walk away, a quiet scoff leaving his lips. Phoenix sighed at him, her eyes rolling. "Bradshaw, what is your problem?" She groaned, folding her arms tightly against her chest in an expression of irritation.

"I don't have a problem," He grumbled, shoving past her to plonk himself down on a barstool in the corner of the bar. The female aviator followed him in a hot pursuit to find out what was making him act like such a dick to you.

"Are we really gonna do it like this?" Phoenix huffed, a hand coming out to gesture at his poor behaviour. "Maverick is finally happy, why can't you see that and be happy for him too?" Her brows knitted together as her eyes searched his face for an answer, or at least a sign as to why he was acting like this.

"You're not seeing what I'm seeing, Phoenix," He said coldly, glaring up at her. "Y/N doesn't love him, she's just here for a good time, not a long time." Rooster finally said, shrugging limply as he looked up at Phoenix. She frowned at him, as Payback and Bob suddenly stood by her side. "Bob and Payback agree with me."

"What?" Phoenix scoffed, turning to look at the two aviators expectantly.

"That ain't true, Rooster, and you know it," Payback groaned. He rolled his eyes at the younger Bradshaw, a short frustrated puff of air escaping his lips. "We're happy for Mav, believe me, but the age gap is just a little too big, I mean what the hell do they have in common?"

"I don't know why you guys are so bothered by something so insignificant," Phoenix shook her head, her frustrated voice making Bob glance at her. "They truly love each other, and Rooster, you would see it if you actually made an effort to get to know Y/N. All you do is fuckin' sit in the corner and sulk, glaring daggers at them all night." She complained. Rooster averted his gaze to the table, avoiding Phoenix's intense stares. Deep down he knew his friend was right, he hadn't even got to know you and he's already made assumptions based on something so small. "You know what, sit here and grumble about Mav finally finding someone, I don't care." She finally huffed, turning around on her heel and storming off to find Hangman and you and Maverick. Payback and Bob stared at each other, not knowing their next move.

Rooster's fingers drummed against the wooden table as he debated whether to get up and make an effort, or continue his little pity party. "She's right, Rooster." Payback spoke quietly, placing a hand on his shoulder. Rooster's eyes shot up to look at Payback, his fingers slowing down to a gentle tap as he gave a single nod.

"C'mon," Bob mumbled, nudging Payback with his elbow as he edged away from the table, advancing towards the ruckus blaring from the squad behind them. Rooster was left alone to simmer in his thoughts, his eyes slowly lifting to search for your figure in the sea of beige uniforms. He spotted you with Maverick of course. Bradley couldn't help the roll of his eyes, grinding his teeth as you threw your head back in laughter at something Hangman said.

His eyes stopped on Maverick as he watched a natural smile spread across his tanned cheeks, his teeth poking out happily beneath his lips. As Phoenix and Hangman walked away from you two, you turned around to face Maverick, your hands coming up to snake around his neck, pulling yourself as close as you could into his arms. A soft giggle left your lips and Maverick grinned down at you, pressing a tender kiss to your lips. Rooster looked away at the sweet moment you shared with his God-father, the guilt ripping into him as his thoughts pulled him away to a long time ago.

a year ago

Rooster stood beside Maverick, his arms reaching up to twist a spanner against a bolt in the plane that his God-father was rebuilding. He had forgiven Maverick about Goose's death, finally letting go of the resentment he held so close to him. It made him miserable, and he just wanted to rid himself of it. Rooster had seen the light in Maverick's personality and it gave him hope for the future of their relationship.

"Alright, now you're gonna want to replace that old cylinder with this new one," Maverick grunted as he bent down to fetch the aforementioned part, his white tee dirtied with grease and mud. Bradley looked down and hummed in reply, his greased up fingers taking the cylinder in his hand. "So, just gently twist it, and it should just pop out." Bradley did so, and it popped out with a soft click. "Nice, good job." Maverick grinned, the overwhelming feeling of pride and proudness swept over his figure.

"Thanks, Mav, so what now?" Bradley chuckled, his moustache twitching upwards as he glanced between the new cylinder and Maverick's focused features.

"You click the new one back into place where the old one was," He replied, pointing at the empty space. "You know, you're much better at this than Y/N," Maverick laughed and Bradley felt his body go tense at the mention of your name. He tried to push aside the venom that bubbled at the back of his throat as he did as Maverick said, the satisfying click of the cylinder sliding into place echoing in the hanger. There was a moment of silence.

"You're still together then?" Bradley asked, his face hardening.

"Yeah, she's a really nice girl." Maverick smiled. His mind filled with memories of the two of you, the sound of your raucous laughter echoing in his head.

"Surprised she hasn't left you for the next old man," Bradley said through gritted teeth, and he instantly regretted it as he watched Maverick's smile falter.

"Well, I hope she isn't leaving any time soon." Maverick replied, trying to swallow back the lump in his throat.

Rooster looked back up to where you and Maverick were stood, his eyes welling up with regretful tears. Maybe he was wrong. You looked at Maverick like he was the last man on Earth, and Bradley noticed that as you gazed up at him, your mouth opening to let out a series of laughs as Maverick pressed ticklish kisses against your jawline. You did love him, and Bradley saw that now. It was the way you made Maverick grin, the way you made him hold you so close to his body that he was afraid you were going to crumble into nothingness, and the way he stared at you with nothing but pure love and adoration in his tired, blue eyes.

"Pete!" Bradley heard you giggle, your hands splayed across the back of his neck. A lop-sided smile picked at the corner of Bradley's lips as he observed the pair of you act like you were the only two people in the bar. He watched you melt into Maverick's kisses, his soft and tender touches, and the way you nuzzled your nose against his. He was a fool to think that you were only here for a fun time and not a long time. Maverick deserved someone as sweet and as loving as you, he'd been alone for long enough.

It warmed Bradley's cold heart as he continued to watch you two.

relationship mav is growing on me...

my masterlist

how to request something

tag list:

@hlstead

#top gun maverick imagine #top gun one shot #maverick x reader #pete mitchell x reader #top gun imagine #pete mitchell x y/n #pete mitchell x you #top gun #top gun maverick #maverick x you #dagger squad #top gun x reader #top gun fluff #tgm #pete maverick mitchell #pete mitchell #top gun fic #top gun fanfiction #top gun maverick fic #top gun maverick fanfiction #hangman x reader #rooster x reader #dilf pete mitchell #captain mitchell x reader #captain pete maverick mitchell #maverick fanfic

[pathogenic]

Penance

Felt like writing for DD again. Featuring Damian and my self insert.

The lights for prayer were lit, the cat-o-nine-tails was prepared with holy water, salt was brought in for the wounds, a prayer book was before Damian as he sat down.

Penance was a key part of following the Light. Some, like Damian, took well to it and suffered for those who could no longer suffer. Today he suffered for the Lord of Hamlet, a man he could not convince to come to these sacred halls. Blood such as his was to be shed if he wanted to stave off corruption, but he shied from the whip, he shied from pain.

The first lash normally stings the most, but years of scar tissue have dulled the nerves on his back. It was more like scratching an itch for him at this point. It didn't even break skin, instead it left it red and angry.

"In the Light we find salvation and proection," He said, "it illuminates the path to holiness and wellbeing..." It was the first page of the prayer book. He read it enough to where he didn't need to open it, but it was there nonetheless as a focus.

"Damian?" A voice called, breaking his concentration. Normally he would be irritated at such an intrusion, but not with this voice.

"Your lordship." He said. "You came?"

"Not for penance, no, I wanted to check on you." Lord Haydes said as she stepped into the room, her arms folded behind her back.

"What for?" He asked. His voice was not harsh, but instead soft, inquisitive.

"I heard that you encountered a siren out in the cove." She said. "You raised your weapon against your companions against your will."

There was the quick snap of his flog against his back. It was fast and hard enough to break skin.

"I was worried you took this personally..." Haydes said, watching the flog raise.

Snap

"I know you're deeply devoted. I was worried you were punishing yourself here..."

Snap

"I wanted to say there is no need. I already spoke to those you adventured with, no one is blaming you."

He laid the flog down with a heavy sigh through his nose. "That is not why I am here." He said firmly. He rose to his feet. "I am here for you."

"F-for me...?" She asked."The maids informed me of the episode you had last night. Your body is not your own is it?" Damian asked. Haydes gave a nervous laugh.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"You began to change. You lost yourself for a brief while before you remembered who you were and came back into being. A miracle, but each day you stay out of the Light, you risk losing yourself more. I am here shedding blood so the Light may grant you sanity and help keep you together." He said. There was a shiver from Haydes.

"Why?" She asked.

"Because I believe in your cause. This hamlet can be purified, but we need you to see it through. We need you to be well." He said. "If you'll let me, I can walk you through how to performe penance if you'll let me. You need not fear the pain." He said. He was experienced, he knew how to make it feel like a kiss.

Hesitantly, Haydes shuffled her feet before looking at the door. "Perhaps another time." She said. Damian shrugged. He wasn't expecting a miracle.

Instead, he knelt back down, turning towards his altar again. "I will see you soon, my Lordship."

#Darkest Dungeon #Hi I have brainworms again

[oyasumi-ashurii]

Okay, so it might be a little hard for me to cohesively put all my thoughts and feelings into why I care so much about Final Fantasy VIII, but because of the 25th anniversary and seeing a lot of you talk about your love of the game I'll try the best I can. So here's my embarrassingly and extremely long personal history with the game and why it will always be my favorite.

Before FF8 I was mostly a Nintendo kid. Mario and Zelda were all I really knew, and as a hyperactive as I was I didn't really have the patience for anything story-heavy that took a lot of reading. Though I did I get a PlayStation later on I hardly bothered with anything other than Spyro or Crash. Anything similar in graphics to FF7 or 8 was mostly foreign to me too, with maybe the closest being my cousin having the first Resident Evil and I was far too young and too scared to bother with anything like that. So you can imagine the complete and utter shock kid me had going to my uncle's and seeing him play FF8 for the first time. I don't think it had been out too long but he was already on disc 3 in Esthar and, bless his soul, he let me play his save for a while. Being able to fly around the map on the Ragnarok?? The realistic proportions and animations in battle?? The absolute BANGER of a soundtrack?! All of it had me excitedly begging my parents to buy me the game. Nine year old me didn't know roman numerals, though, just that it was called Final Fantasy with some weird lettering. I had no idea of Final Fantasy as a series and I didn't know it was the eighth game or that there were eight of them at all. I couldn't remember what the cover looked like either and my uncle not long after that was going through his own personal troubles so I wasn't able to visit or ask him. We didn't have internet at home until the early 2000s (it was AOL dial-up too, jesus, I don't miss that) and my parents were strict about internet use, so I was stuck. My dad did eventually buy me an FF game as a surprise when I was eleven, and lmao can you believe I was genuinely upset because it was Final Fantasy VII?! That being said, I have an INSANE amount of love and respect for 7. Considering how much easier I think the materia system is to understand for newcomers, having it as my first, full FF experience was a bit of a blessing lol. FF7 hit me in a different way than 8 did, and maybe I'll make a post about it sometime.

So other than the brief times on the internet (I was only allowed on for an hour or two before I was kicked off) and reading gaming magazines I had hardly any access or knowledge about FF8 until years later. I knew the characters briefly and read some small stuff here and there about the world, but that was it. Even so, I STILL loved it. I would draw them (I've drawn most of my life, and I still do occasionally as a fun hobby), write about what I thought they were like, so, so much of me embarrassingly obsessing over it and driving my small group of friends in school bonkers (oh lordy I just remembered my preteen username I had used on an FF forum and now I'm cringing.) You get it. So why did I cling to the game so much, even though I barely played it? Why did it mean so much to me? Because around the time I was twelve I was deeply depressed, and throughout my middle school and early high school life video games and their stories were the only joy and comfort I had. I'm not going to go into much detail because it feels too personal to write on tumblr about and I'd rather not think back too much. If you want the gist it was at a moment in time I was mostly on my own. I felt isolated and alone, and due to growing up in and around strict, conservative circles I struggled with feeling far behind my peers, so my personal and school life suffered. Things got better though and I'm happy in my life now, so that's really it.

As I got a little older I had played other FF's and RPGs in between that I also fell in love with (especially Kingdom Hearts) and funnily enough horror games, but I still didn't get my hands on 8 until I got it on my fifteenth birthday and I was over the moon. That night and many nights and weekends after that I played every single bit of that game. I had printed walkthroughs and a guide of the junction system, with overly-detailed notes I had scribbled down and highlighted. I had written down all the rules of triple triad, weapon upgrades, item refinements and what you get from monsters, side-quests, all of it. I had never went all in into a game before, but I did it because I wanted to experience the game that gave preteen me comfort everything it had to offer. And I remember vividly when I finished it I cried until I was almost out of breath.

But you know, I didn't get emotional because of the nostalgic school-like feel and inspired real-world setting, or the overall main plot with magic, sci-fi and sorceresses. It wasn't even the deeply interwoven love stories, the theme of fate or the gameplay either, though I grew to love all of those things dearly with time.

It was because I was a socially-awkward and lonely fifteen year old girl that watched an equally as awkward seventeen year old boy overcome his own deeply-rooted fears and trauma and come out at the end of it all on the path to healing.

And I knew I'd be okay, and ever since then this game has and will always be that reminder and comfort for me.

Thanks for reading.

#ash.personal #ff8 #final fantasy

[wonderlandleighleigh]

Midge and Lenny are out with their friends and run into each other? Maybe post Carnegie? (Love all your writing by the way, thank you 👏🏼 living for anything midgelenny)

(thank you!!)

"Shy, Shy, Shy, what are we doing?"

"We are going to a very classy bar," he promises. "To celebrate my divorce and the end to our little tiff, Mrs. Maisel."

"Which is all well and good, but I know and you know that you-know-who tends to hang out at this very classy bar sometimes when he's feeling flush and we should not be here because he played Carnegie Hall a few months ago so he is definitely feeling flush."

"You worry too much," Shy waves her off as he scores them a table and flags down a very flirty waitress. "Hello, darling. Can we get a bottle of scotch to split?"

"What kind would you like, Mr. Baldwin?" the waitress asks, swishing her skirt a little.

"Is Lenny Bruce here tonight?" Shy asks curiously, looking innocent.

"Shy," Midge warns.

"Oh, yes, he's at the bar with some friends," The waitress tells them helpfully.

"Then whatever kind Lenny Bruce is drinking," Shy tells her. "Actually, bring us every bottle of that stuff you have."

"Shy!" Midge hisses.

"He hasn't returned your calls in months, it is now almost February, that man deserves to be dried out."

And soon, there are five bottles of moderately nice scotch sitting at their table, and Shy is pouring some into their glasses.

"Look, if he doesn't want to talk to me-"

"Oh, please," Shy groans. "Midge, you did exactly what he told you to do. You started really working again, you tried to get a hold of him, and he's pulled a disappearing act. Don't you want to get his attention?"

Midge considers the scotch in her glass and lifts her chin. "Yes. Yes I do." She raises a glass to Shy. "To you, dear friend. On the eve of your very messy, very public divorce."

"Why thank you," Shy laughs, clinking his glass with hers and then taking a sip.

"Has Reggie called you back yet?" Midge asks.

"He had his valet leave me a message," Shy tells her. "A very brief 'fuck yourself.'"

"Yowch," Midge winces.

"I've earned it," Shy shrugs. "He'll come around. And I'm getting the band back together. I'm thinking about a tour again."

"Count me out," Midge tells him.

"Oh, I will," Shy chuckles. "But I expect you to be very nice to me on Gordon Ford next week."

"I will be very nice to you, I promise," Midge tells him. "Only jokes about how many show business secrets your hair holds."

Shy laughs at that and they drink some more, until they hear a very familiar "What do you mean you're out?!" from the bar.

"Oh, here we go," shy chuckles, pouring them more scotch.

"Should I hide the other bottles under my skirt?" Midge asks playfully.

"Like he wouldn't dive under the table to look for them," Shy jokes back, and they both laugh.

It only takes a moment for Lenny to wander up to their table.

"Lennyyyyyyyy!" Shy grins. "What a surprise to see you."

"Hello," he says awkwardly. "It seems you've stolen all of the decent affordable scotch in the building."

"Stole?" Shy asks innocently. "No, no. I'm paying for it. Why, did you want some?"

"This is a little unfair, don't you think?" Lenny asks with an awkward laugh, turning to Midge.

"Just about as unfair as nine unreturned messages, and avoiding me at every club you work at," Midge shrugs.

Shy drains his glass and sets it down, taking a breath. "I saw some old friends a little ways away. I am going to go say hello." He pats Midge's hand, and eyes Lenny judgmentally before slipping out of his seat and disappearing into the lively crowd.

Lenny takes a breath and slowly takes his seat as Midge hands him her glass, and he takes a sip.

"It's a dirty trick, Midge," he comments.

"If it makes you feel any better, it wasn't my idea," she tells him, taking the glass back.

He doesn't respond.

"You could give a girl a complex, you know," she tells him. "Another...complex. For a second I thought you might have died, but then I saw you had a gig at the Troubadour and I was relieved for a second, but then I just felt...hurt, all over again, so..."

Lenny still doesn't respond.

"I'm working again," she goes on. "I...you were right. That's what I wanted to tell you when I called. Nine times. Which I know is a lot but...I wanted to tell you that you were right, and I was an asshole for turning down the Bennett gig, and thank you. Thank you for the verbal dressing down."

"Yeah," he says quietly.

Midge stares at him, before picking up one of the bottles and handing it over. "You obviously don't want to be here, so...here you go."

He stares at the bottle, the neck held in her perfectly manicured fingers, and then looks at her.

"This is my giving you an out, Lenny," she tells him. "Take the booze, and you'll never hear from me again."

Lenny stares at her, confused. "What are you-?"

"Look, it's obvious that you feel like we made a mistake," Midge explains. "Or you would have returned my calls."

"That's- not-" He shakes his head. "I don't-I don't want an out."

She looks equally confused. "Then why did you ignore all of my messages?"

"Because I am fucking terrified," he blurts out, staring at her. "Because the last time I felt this strongly for a woman was...never."

Midge's confused look turns to shock. "I-"

Lenny fumbles over his next words. "And I didn't know...how to...And I'm....a mess. I'm a fucking mess, Midge. You knew that. You saw me that morning outside of your apartment. You found that bag. You know."

Midge settles her elbow on the table and her cheek against her knuckles, gazing at him as he keeps going.

"You and your Hudson River view, and your aprons and your...expensive uncomfortable shoes," he tells her. "That's not- I have no business- you shouldn't-"

"Shouldn't what?" Midge asks softly. "Come on, Lenny. We're past that."

"Are we?"

"The second you didn't ask for my help getting my corset off," she tells him. "That's when we crossed that line."

"The clasps aren't rocket science, you just squeeze in and unhook," he rambles.

"Lenny."

"This cannot work," he tells her. "We cannot work."

Midge sighs and sets the bottle of scotch, using those same fingers to stroke his jaw gently. "Yes we can. And you know we can, or else Miami wouldn't have happened. And that night after the raid wouldn't have happened. You know what I think?"

He does his best not to lean into her touch, but mostly fails. "What do you think?"

"I think you're afraid of what happens if we do work," Midge tells him. "You, Lenny Bruce, are afraid of a little fucking happiness."

He doesn't respond, but he doesn't meet her eyes either.

Midge takes a breath and slides her hand down his neck before pulling it away, and takes another sip of whiskey. "I need to go find Shy. He's a free man, and there's no telling what he might do."

Lenny nods. "Yeah. Yeah."

"Think about what I said, Lenny," she requests, as she gets to her feet.

She's two steps away when he reaches out and takes her hand in his, his fingers holding hers.

Midge gazes back at him for a moment and squeezes his fingers. "Don't break my fucking heart, Lenny." She slips her hand free of his and walks off, leaving him with the five bottles of scotch.

#fic #au #tmmm #Midge/Lenny #Midge x Lenny #Shy Baldwin

[mimisempai]

You are loved

Summary:

Gavin is hurt and Nines is very angry… how to make Gavin understand that he needs to take better care of himself.

Notes:

Don't mind me… just need a dose of sweet Nines and Gavin

On AO3 Rating G - 864 words

"Stay still and let me take care of you," Nines said coldly and pushed Gavin to sit on the edge of the bed.

Gavin grunted, "I'm fine, tin can! It's just a fucking scratch, stop making such a big deal out of it, aouch!"

Nines had just touched the spot where Gavin's shirt was stained with blood and raised an eyebrow at Gavin's reaction, "It's just a scratch, right? Show me."

Gavin started to protest and Nines interrupted him, "Right now!".

After a moment's hesitation, Gavin began to lift his shirt and couldn't hold back a wince as the shirt peeled away from the wound.

"Gavin, you've got to be kidding me, it's more than a scratch! Don't move!"

Nines rushed to the bathroom and returned with a wound care kit.

"But what happened? And don't lie to me, I'll know right away, got it!?"

As Nines prepared the supplies to treat the wound, Gavin told him that what was supposed to be a surveillance turned into a chase and that the suspect was armed.

"Let's just say I got in the path of one of his bullets."

Nines didn't let Gavin's defensive tone faze him and said coolly, "You got lucky, a few inches to the right and you'd probably be dead." Before applying a disinfectant pad, he continued, "This is going to hurt." 

Gavin couldn't hold back a hiss of pain as Nines applied the pad. He instinctively grabbed Nines' forearm, digging his fingernails into the skin, which retracted. Once the brief moment of pain passed, he released Nines' arm from his grip.

His gaze fell on Nines' tense face as he continued to tend to his wound.

He got up, went to the kitchen and returned with a glass of water and a painkiller which he handed to Gavin, still without a word.

Once the glass was empty, Gavin set it on the nightstand and pulled Nines to him, "Nines? Talk to me."

Nines mumbled something through his teeth that Gavin didn't understand.

He pulled him to sit next to him and said softly, "Can you repeat that please?".

Nines looked up at him and Gavin saw his LED that was red.

"I'm so mad at you! You're always so reckless!"

"But Nines, I wasn't risking anything, I-"

"Shut up! Just shut up! Do you realize I almost lost you," his voice breaking at the end of his sentence. 

"I'm sorry," Gavin replied.

Nines shook his head, "The worst part is that I know you'll do it again, because that's who you are. Because you are passionate about your work. Because you follow your instincts. But this time it's different because I wasn't there!"

Gavin shook his head, "But you knew that sooner or later we would have to work separately, that we couldn't always be on the same cases."

Nines sighed in exasperation, "Yes I know that, but today I was faced with it in a real way. I...I couldn't protect you."

Gavin nodded and scooted back until he was sitting against the headboard, then held out his arm to Nines. "Come here."

Nines snuggled against Gavin, resting his head on his chest, listening to the rhythm of his heart, as if to feel that he was truly alive and safe with him.

"Nines, you won't always be able to be there to have my back."

Nines breathed, "I know, I know..."

After a moment, he whispered, "The most horrible thing I can think of is a life without you, so please don't force me to live it. Next time you take such risks, think of my pain if you were gone. It's probably selfish, but if it will make you care more about yourself then I don't care!"

Gavin kissed his hair and replied softly, "I'm sorry, old habits die hard and... and I still have trouble realizing sometimes that I have someone in my life who cares so much about me."

Nines straddled him and took his head in his hands, " Then just remember that. And it's not only me who cares about you, there' s Tina, Chris, Connor and even Hank, don't roll your eyes, it's true. And Fowler too. Gavin, there are more people than you know who care about you and would be devastated if you were to disappear. I hope one day you realize that you are loved and not just by me."

Gavin wanted to look away because he was embarrassed, because the devotion he read in Nines' eyes was too much, but Nines wanted none of it. He leaned forward and whispered against Gavin's lips, "Trust me, you are loved."

Then he closed the distance and captured his lips in a long, deep kiss. When they parted so Gavin could catch his breath, Nines barely gave him time to breathe, and whispered again, "You are loved." before kissing him again.

He repeated it again and again until Gavin surrendered and had no choice but to believe him.

Yes, he was loved.

_________

Still not beta'd

Still not my native language

Still hoping you'll enjoy this story  🥰

Still thanking you for bearing with me 😝

Reed900 masterlist here

#detroit become human #detroit evolution #detroit reawakening #gavin reed #nines rk900 #nines dbh #reed900 #gavin900 #gavin x nines #nines x gavin #reed900 fics #established relationship

[meowww-ffxiv]

Long, long ago, in the times of antiquity where they were about six months into their mutual acquaintances, Mordred had looked Theodore dead in the eye after one night too many fooling around with men who robbed him blind by daylight, and asked, "Don't you think that you're addicted to sleeping around 'cos you're lonely? No? Maybe you crave physical contact? D'you not think that maybe a hug or three can fix you better than whatever you got from those one-night-stands?"

"A hug or three will not fix me, Mordred. I don't even know what is wrong with me," Theodore had replied. "And it is not an addiction. It was a mutual agreement to spend some time making others happy for a night."

"Okay," Mordred had answered. He'd gotten more physical with him after that -- a tug on his sleeve here and there, handing Theodore mugs of coffee or tea in the morning and allowing their hands to brush, ruffling Theodore's hair, cutting his hair for him, helping him shave when their mirror was (once again) broken. He'd bumped their heads together the way cats liked to do, his dark hair velvet-soft under Theodore's hands. He'd let Theodore mess with his ears, demanded he spoil him by brushing his tail...

The aching cavern of loneliness in Theodore's chest that did, in fact, often lead him to the bottom of a beer mug and then into some passable-looking man's straw pallet did shrink after a few months. It drove Theodore mad that Mordred was right. It made him feel something between rage, exasperation, and a terrifying amount of love that he cared enough to try.

"You fixed me," Theodore admitted to him at some point after these times of antiquities had passed and they had gotten to know each other too well. "How did you even know to?"

"I did not fix you," Mordred replied. Then he pouted and rattled a bag of candied almonds in front of Theodore. "I can't open this."

Theodore sighed. Nuts of most kinds made Mordred cough, though none as vicious as whatever that date was from Ala Mhigo that he'd nonetheless bought in an excess quantity because Alphinaud and Alisaie liked them. He opened the bag for the cat anyway, poured the treats into the polished bronze dish Mordred had placed on the table between them, then got up to get a pitcher of water and two goblets.

The other Scions in the vicinity watched him with amusement that Theodore ignored. Was it not the norm by now, that he dogged Mordred's footsteps, that he let himself be pulled and led about, complaints aplenty but never quite unwilling, to the nine hells and the seven heavens and back again?

Mordred was already coughing by the time he got back. Theodore poured him water, did not bother do it for himself yet, and watched in fond exasperation as Mordred downed the drink in one gulp.

"Are you feeling better?" the cat asked, after a moment of companionable silence. He squinted at Theodore, not quite smiling but ears perked, head tilted.

"I was never otherwise."

"You said the same when we first met," Mordred replied. His ears flicked down. He stared into the now-empty silver goblet, eyes trained at the bottom. "You said you'd lost your standing with the Wailers and would soon have to vacate the barracks, and that you had nowhere to go at that moment. I asked if you were alright and you said, so airily, 'I was never otherwise.'"

Theodore's memory was agonizingly excellent, but even he had not remembered the context so clearly. When Mordred found him -- that was the truth; he found him, they didn't exactly meet -- he had been...somewhere. It was a haze of menial tasks Theodore barely had the energy to complete, the sun's light dull on his skin, the nights too cold, every brief flash of clarity and happiness confined to a bed, a stranger's body against his, gone by morning. Theodore had feared wine, feared what would show if he was inebriated, and stayed away from the sweet seduction of alcohol.

...Upon reflection, it wasn't like he was able to cut out other kinds of addictions, was he. Mordred was right to call it that, and Theodore could not find it in himself to hate him for it.

But everyone after Calamity had been like that. Most of them. Those who didn't have obligations they needed to stay sober for. Theodore, without family, creed nor cause, had borrowed the two latter. When it had not been enough, he had turned elsewhere to keep the worst of the void in his heart at bay. It had reassured him to continue until...well.

"I'm fine now," Theodore said, because otherwise Mordred would start brooding for real. "All thanks to your excellent ministrations."

"I did not fix you," Mordred repeated. They were close enough that when their eyes met Theodore knew he could see his face clearly. Mordred's voice was low and his expression was soft, in the way it almost never was, and absolutely never was to anyone else except Theodore and perhaps a certain miqo'te with red hair and red eyes.

Mordred said to him, "I wanted to give you a chance to be alright again."

"You should not discredit your own role in my," Theodore cleared his throat, embarrassed, acutely aware that although they were alone they were seated in public with strangers' ears not far away. Why must Mordred say the sappiest most undoing things so easily, anywhere? "Thank you. I am happy we are friends."

"You shouldn't discredit yourself in the strides you've made," Mordred countered. He put the goblet he had been clutching back on the table, and watched as Theodore refilled it without being asked. Fondness bled from him, from his smile and his gleaming eyes, his flicking tail. "That hunched-over lancer I saw lounging on that bench in Gridania six years ago, talking so blithely about his life having just fallen apart, would've never faced the despair and lived. But here you are."

Theodore's mouth felt dry. The hundred thousand words he'd read of all kinds of prose, all kinds of poetry -- he could not muster even a one in response.

He said, "Here I am."

Mordred picked up the goblet again. He looked at it for a moment, then poured half of it into the other, until-now-untouched goblet, and pushed it at Theodore. He would've questioned him for the strange action, but then realized he was still clutching the pitcher.

"You're so weird," Mordred huffed. Unlike Theodore, he was not at all embarrassed about sappiness. Theodore would always envy him for this. "Always saying the rawest stuff in public, and using all the time we have in private to yell at me."

The indignation jolted Theodore out of his stupor. "I never yelled at you," he retorted. Then remembered that yes, in fact, he had just shouted at him a few hours ago, but that was because Mordred was also shouting. "It was-- a mutual disagreement. I was raising my voice to be heard."

"I've always heard everything you said," Mordred replied sulkily. "But I ain't doing it."

"It is just one portrait, Mordred. Just the one. Everyone had theirs done except for you. Would you not even do it on Count Edmont's request?"

And just like that they were back on it. The endless bickering, their shared familiarity laid bare as Mordred shook his little fist in Theodore's face and said things like I hate sitting around doing nothing; I can't even twiddle my thumbs or the painter'd yell at me! and Theodore thought to himself, yes, you did mend me. You poured gold into the cracks until I am changed but made whole.

But out loud he said, You sat for hours watching the aetheryte crystal spins and you can't do it for a portrait? Excuses, excuses.

#theodore pentaghast #meowdred surana #mon writing #what is love. what is love but the desire to make someone else well and the determination to follow through on it #so anyway 3 years ago ish i made theodore as a joke. he had a bowlcut n a weird relationship w/ mordred #because i was using him to work thru some things when it came to mordred #now he's #idk. he's something

[pikipekarmy]

REMOTE RAIDING

This is. Well, let’s just say that as I did it, I did not know it would be so brief an opportunity. 

Here is the tale of the first time I ever participated in a remote raid. Just like my earlier tutorial on how to win raids, it relies on an ecosystem that may be about to vanish, thanks to some new changes to the game. These changes were announced literally fifteen minutes after I completed the experience I’m about to relate.

So I was watching a channel on a Discord I’d recently joined, where people were trying to coordinate enough people to do a five-skull Legendary raid. I’m still not a very strong player, I don’t have a wide or deep bench for raiding, so I am uncomfortably aware I can’t really contribute anything. So I watched the more advanced players fill a lobby, and coordinate sending invites, and I wrote a message asking for an invite if there was a space left but then deleted it. Too shy, I don't know these people well yet, I really genuinely don't have any good raiders, I'd just take up a space and be annoying, I won't do it.

And then I watched the raid coordinator reappear in the channel saying “where are you guys”, and the “i didn’t get the invite yet” responses trickled in, and then suddenly the raid coordinator’s there saying “wait a minute I backed out but you all got in????” and then several minutes of no response, and then the others saying “oh no” 

The invites hadn’t arrived, so the coordinator bailed from the lobby with 20 sec remaining, and at 19 sec all the invites went through and the other five joined, and went on to do the raid. 

The coordinator was locked out and missed the whole thing. 

Everyone was very sorry about it but it was too late.

Fortunately, there was another gym nearby, and most everyone was willing to do a second raid. And with remotes, it wasn’t that big a deal. 

So I got up my nerve, noticing not everyone could come back, and asked if there was a leftover space, and there was! So I bought a remote pass, which I’d never done before, and sure enough! In I went!

This time there wasn’t a glitch. There were only four high-level players, and me, but that was enough. I got every one of my guys fainted and rejoined in time to finish.

And then I threw ball after ball at the raid reward critter. I used my technique, with a nanab berry and a curveball, nine times, and did really well because I wasn't outside with wet numb fingers and my screen getting snowed on-- it's amazing how much easier this game is to play from indoors, really. With five balls remaining I switched to using Golden Razz berries, and I missed once which was horrible, but I did manage to land four curveballs on the thing. With one ball left I sadly put a final Golden Razz on, and thought, well, what’s hilarious is that I’d had a daily research task to land Three Great Curveballs in a row and I’d been about to delete the damn thing after a thousand broken streaks, but I just managed five in a row like twice on this guy. Raid rewards have HUGE target areas, as I’ve mentioned before. So even if all I get out of this is the experience, at least I've completed my ridiculous research task, that's worth it for the story.

And then on the last ball, it stuck, and I got my Lugia.

We were still chatting in the channel when the news broke that they’re jacking up the price and reducing availability of remote raid passes. I was especially sad, as I’m going to be spending the summer in a rural area with very few gyms nearby, and had been thinking that you know, I don’t spend a ton on entertainment, and if I’m in the middle of nowhere not spending money in bars, it wouldn’t be like. Crazy to drop a couple bucks on Pokecoins now and then, to get some remote raid pass packs to do stuff like this once in a while. Raids are fun, less frustrating than PVP, and while it’s going to take me a long time to get a good enough crew to be able to do much on my own, if I have these generous supportive more advanced friends who are willing to let me tag along once in a while, well that’s a pretty decent little occasional pastime, and with the remote passes even if I don't have time to get off the farm and into the city much I can still have fun in this game, and--

Well now I’m not giving Niantic my money, but they almost had me there, for a minute. Almost!!!

(I haven't talked here yet about my sole experience with the Elite Raids, for which you have to be in-person, and which were a shitshow. Commitment to in-person experience my ass.)

#pokemon go #you know you're really a PoGo player when you start to hate Niantic #the salt is tremendous #it'd be one thing if they were improving stuff #but i'm never going to bother with an elite raid again #not if i have to drive half an hour to get there #but maybe they'll make something cool? #i have very little faith in this but i can be optimistic #pikipek army

[thegreaterlink]

Reviewing Star Trek TNG - S4E8 "Future Imperfect"

My last review was posted like... nine months ago.

Time flies when you're lazy.

THE PREMISE

Commander Riker’s birthday celebrations are interrupted by reports of strange sensor readings from Alpha Onias 3. He beams down with Geordi and Worf to investigate but they’re quickly knocked out by toxic gases. Upon awakening in sickbay, Riker discovers that sixteen years have passed (though he can't remember any of it) and he is now the captain of the Enterprise.

MY REVIEW

Sixteen years in the future. Assuming that Riker is roughly the same age as Jonathan Frakes, that would put him in his mid-fifties. And if we compare this "middle-aged" Riker to Jonathan Frakes circa mid-2000s...

Not bad. Still, anything beats that weird adult Wesley from Hide and Q.

Then again, if we use Riker's birthday slab as an indicator, then he just turned...

...six.

I guess he was born on a leap year.

Anyway, here we are in the future, where Dr Crusher chalks up Riker's sudden amnesia to a side effect of a dormant infection which he picked up on that away mission all those years ago. An infection which Klingons just so happen to be immune to... and I guess Geordi is just built different.

Dr Crusher recommends associational therapy, with the idea being that surrounding Riker with familiar people and things will help to jog his memory, starting with a trip to the bridge. Because a man fresh out of a coma with a massive gap in his memory is clearly fit to resume command of a starship. Good call.

Riker arrives on the bridge and finds it looking… exactly the same, since new sets ain’t cheap, but there are at least changes among the crew. My boi Data is now First officer, Geordi now has ocular implants so LeVar Burton gets to act without a hunk of plastic on his face, and more species like Klingons and Ferengi are among the crew.

But what concerns Riker is the most is Admiral Picard and Troi arriving on a Romulan Warbird.

That last one is explained by ongoing peace treaty negotiations with the Romulans, which Riker has apparently been leading ever since he rescued the crew of a damaged Warbird which wound up in Federation space. Evidently random acts of kindness go a long way towards stopping wars in this universe. The Enterprise is currently escorting the Romulan ambassador to Outpost 23 to wrap things up and get the treaty signed.

Yep. Here we are in the future, and it's bright. Nothing to fear, no one to fight... I can't believe we've come so far.

Then Tomalak beams aboard.

Future Picard and Troi try to reassure Riker – yeah, he did threaten to take the Enterprise's hull as a trophy last season, but that was one time – but he's still concerned, both by the massive gap in his memory and that he might have to reveal sensitive Starfleet intel to someone he probably can't trust.

With the briefing over and Riker’s memories still thoroughly gone, Troi takes him back to his quarters, where a mysterious child is playing his trombone.

"Hi, Dad!"

Ah. He has his father's... hair?

This is Riker's son, Jean-Luc (Chris Demetral). I remember being surprised that Troi wasn't the mother... but their romance is barely more than subtext at this point, so it's not that shocking. Jean-Luc's mother was actually a woman only known as Min, who Troi explains died two years prior. Even though they have zero evidence of her existing – aside from the child she supposedly birthed, I mean – and Riker can't find any trace of her in the ship's records. They don't even have any photos of her. I guess they had to make room for their... modern art?

I think I saw the Threads logo in there.

Christ, the last time I posted a review Threads didn't even exist it's been so fucking long

The computer's been acting up for a while now, come to think of it. I'm sure Geordi will be done with that diagnostic soon.

Still, I can at least appreciate the script's efforts to make us care about this kid. Riker adjusts pretty well to being a father, though that probably has more to do with Jonathan Frakes' natural daddy– I mean dad energy.

"I guess there's only one thing we can do. We've got to build some new memories!"

But Riker is still bothered that he can't find any trace of his late wife, though Jean-Luc says he's just not being precise enough, and pulls up some old home movies. It's here that we discover that "Min" is actually Minuet (again played by Carolyn McCormick for a single shot – that's dedication for you), that hologram lady he tried to bone way back in his babyface era.

Suddenly everything starts falling into place. And speaking of hologram romantics (or holosexuals, as I like to call them), Geordi calls Riker back up to the bridge.

It's here that the attempts to keep Riker gaslit, gatekept and girlbossed completely fall apart, as he calls out all sorts of holes in the facade, like Geordi taking more than a day to run a simple diagnostic, nobody being able to properly recall past events and even Data using a contraction.

Ha! I knew Lore was going to come back eventually! AND THEY CALLED ME A MADMAN!

...No? It's not Lore? Aight. Maybe next season.

"Would anyone else like to speak up? Or shall we end this charade?"

With the wool thoroughly pulled back from Riker's eyes, Tomalak reveals that the whole thing has actually been a hologram simulation designed to trick him into revealing Federation intel like, say, the location of Outpost 23.

You win this time, Lore.

Turns out that after the away team was hit with the gas, the Romulans intercepted Riker while he was being beamed up. They used their neural scanners to create a perfect replica of the Enterprise and its crew. Add a bit of ageing makeup and some bullshit about amnesia and badda bing badda bang, you’ve got yourself a pretty convincing future AU.

As for Tomalak’s OC, Jean-Luc, he was actually some random kid named Ethan who they had taken prisoner after raiding a research outpost on the edge of the Neutral Zone.

They throw Riker in a cell with him for a lil bit — just long enough for Ethan to tell him about a secret hiding spot elsewhere on the ship — so when the Romulans come back with the intention of taking the intel by force, Riker seizes the opportunity. One distraction and a few punches in the face later, and they’re on the run.

Ethan leads Riker through a convenient crawl space to a convenient forgotten room where some convenient blueprints conveniently tell them the location of the ship’s communication centre where they could send a message to the Enterprise. But there's a catch.

Ethan: The transmitter's on a voice-activated security system only.

Riker: Do you know whose voice activates it?

Ethan: Only Ambassador Tomalak.

...The fuck you say?

Yeah, the plot be thickening. Turns out the original simulation was just crammed inside of another one. So the Romulan ship fades away... as do the Romulans... and Tomalak... until Riker is left standing back in the cave on Alpha Onias 3... with only the boy remaining.

Credit where it's due, decent plot twist.

The boy, whose real name is Barash, reveals that his mother left him in the cave — which essentially functions as Holodeck+ by manifesting anything he wants — to keep him safe. But with his mother long dead and the Enterprise being the planet's first visitors in ages, he baited the away team down to the surface and intercepted Riker mid-transport while Geordi and Worf were safely beamed back up.

But with the game up, Barash drops the facade, allowing the Enterprise to finally get a proper lock on him. Fortunately Riker realises that the kid meant nothing by it and even offers him asylum on the Enterprise, prompting Barash to finally reveal his true form.

Ah... I think you've got the wrong set, my dude. This is Star Trek. Doctor Who is on Stage 4B.

Riker: To me, you'll always be Jean-Luc.

And so Riker has himself and the kid beamed up. Da end.

We're going to see a lot of these "waking up in a different reality" plots going forward, and while I'm usually not really a fan — you're mostly just waiting for the character in question to realise something ain't right and expose whatever tomfuckery is causing it — this one ain't half bad, since it was a bit more subtle about it and had some third act twists to spice things up. So yeah.

7/10 - The first of many.

We are so fucking back.

Previous Episode | TNG Masterpost | Next Episode

#star trek #star trek the next generation #star trek tng #star trek review #star trek tng review #jean luc picard #will riker #romulans #star trek tng s4e8 #future imperfect #reviews #series review #episode review #season 4

[redux-iterum]

Ok, we all get why you despise Greystripe... but Spottedleaf, Frecklewish, Mistystar, Rootspring?! Why... :'(

You know what? Just for you, I'll give you a brief rundown of my hatred on each character. Enjoy the anger under the cut!

Greystripe: Just...just look through this tag.

Blackstar: I've discussed this here and there, but the short of it is that the Clans seem to have completely forgotten that he was a willing assistant to two tyrannical leaders, got kicked out of his own Clan for being evil, and murdered a cat for the crime of being a half-breed. The warriors' reasons for disliking him are because he's from ShadowClan and he's a little grumpy, not for any of his actual fuckin' crimes. Add to that the fact that he's a gullible idiot who let some outsider nearly destroy his Clan based on lies that he should have been able to figure out were fake, and you have an idiot asshole who just hurts ShadowClan.

Spottedleaf: Aside from the creepy nature of her romantic tension with Firepaw (not -heart, -paw) and her obsession with him after her death, she doesn't have a damn thing going for her. She's, what, pretty? Smells nice? Keeps mourning that she never got to be with her True Love? She is a hollow character with "Firestar" as her only personality trait. Thistleclaw's manipulations are the sole interesting thing that ever happened to her, and you can guess for yourself why that's fucked up.

Leopardstar: Look. I get it. She's a popular character. Strong Female Hero, Queen of the River Clan, Blah Blah Blah. I don't care. She's an unpleasant bitch that let her Clan be walked over by Tigerstar (who we'll get to in a second) because she was "in love with him". And then she spends the rest of her appearances being an asshole. Fuck that. Why don't you do something beneficial to the other characters for once?

Frecklewish: Bearing in mind that I only read the Wiki pages of Mapleshade's Vengeance and Frecklewish herself, I can at least say that this character is awful. She forces her way into Mapleshade's business, to the point that she won't even leave her alone as she's giving birth, and does a complete 180 at the reveal and screams at her for "betraying" her and wants the kits she was previously obsessed with out. For why? Those kits not being her brother's, which Mapleshade never said they were? Bitch assumed and made it her business to micromanage the entire thing. She's not awful enough to go to the Dark Forest, but boy is she a fuckwad.

Tigerstar: Did you know he has a superpower? He has the magical ability to make everyone around him stupid as a rock so he can act evil and do horrible things and get away with them. If it wasn't for the fact that everyone just drops every IQ point they have where he's concerned, he would not have gotten nearly as far as he did in the books. StarClan gave him nine lives, Bluestar dismissed his dangerous behavior, EVERYONE bought his story about Ravenpaw of all people being a traitor, so on and so forth. All it would have taken is one person getting their brain back and asking a single question about what he was doing, and he would have failed and been killed. It's purely the writers getting him anywhere. It's bullshit.

Thistleclaw: I don't think I need to justify this one. He's a predator (which I still find a bad choice for the writers to have made), he's an asshole, etc. I'm disappointed that they failed so hard to make him dangerous in Bluestar's Prophecy that they had to backtrack and make him a monster in a side story, when there was no indication of that, like, ever.

Mistystar: Just read The Broken Code and you'll get it. For a recap, she just agrees with everything the obviously evil people say, to the point of almost letting Bramblestar run her Clan for her. She's unkind to her own Clanmates, refusing to let them back in even after it's clear that they didn't deserve their punishment. She's a terrible leader, made even worse by her going as stupid as she did and just doing whatever Bramblestar says. It's ridiculous.

Lionblaze: Boring. He is so goddamn boring. He's overpowered, so he can't lose any fight. He goes through the same Dark Forest arc Bramblestar did, and that goes nowhere. His personality is dishwater and I never had it in me to care about him, even back in the day when I was first reading the third arc. And let's not forget that he had so many kits that ThunderClan is one big incest clusterfuck now. I desperately want him to die.

Rootspring: God, did you see him in TBC? He's so self-pitying and whiny! He won't drop his crush on Bristlefrost (and the fact that she dies and he doesn't still pisses me off because she was infinitely more interesting) until she says she loves him back out of fuckin' nowhere. He's constantly going "weh, why do I have to have an embarrassing dad, why do I have to have powers, oh, woe is me, I have a lot to be grateful for and I refuse to acknowledge those things". God. It's pathetic. Grow some nads and quit complaining about your life, dipshit. Shadowsight has seizures and almost destroyed the Clans, and he's not bitching nearly as much as you are.

#a reminder that im not going to debate this with anyone #or at least respond to angry comments #let me rage in peace #ask #anonymous #readmore #i speak #rant