#young cave looks weird to me i feel like he needs to be an old haggard man

[bee-rosmyth-art]

you probably saw this coming, but… could you lease draw Cave Johnson?

And a bonus Caroline for you 👍

I had this thought a little while ago that Caroline came up with the "married to science" joke as a way to spur unwanted advances... which Cave thought was hilarious, and ended up using almost any time he introduced her for the next couple of years.

#cave johnson #caroline portal #portal 2 #my art #young cave looks weird to me i feel like he needs to be an old haggard man #he still has so much optimism here #rip

[pigfacedbitch]

HIIII I'm a big fan of your work and I really love it your writing is amazing , this may be a weird request and if your uncomfortable you don't have to do it , it's fine I completely understand, so it's like merlin and Arthur and the reader and they are all soulmates and it's there first time meeting each other . Thank you in advance

Modern! Reader Gets Transported to Albion

idea : modern world! reader gets transported to Albion and meets Arthur and Merlin. unbeknownst to you and the prince of Camelot, the three of you are soulmates.

type : imagines

word count : 0.7k

pairing/s involved : Arthur x Reader, Merlin x Reader

warning/s : almost drowning, panicking

here is my masterlist!

Note : MY FIRST REQUEST! Whoever you are, thank you for reading my works and I might've changed a little bit in your request. Also, I apologize that it took so long, school has been keeping me busy. I hope you like it! 😊

You've always been a fan of BBC Merlin so when you had the chance to take a trip to Europe, you did.

You went to all the locations where they filmed the series like Château de Pierrefonds and Chislehurst Caves. The last destination is where the Lake of Avalon is; Forest of Dean.

Luckily you are alone, giving you the chance to fully enjoy the beautiful sceneries and serene atmosphere.

It made you feel a deeper sense of nostalgia and melancholy— how the precious characters you loved dearly died and were 'buried' there.

With one last selfie, you were about to walk back to you car when you hear it. A faint voice, filled with sorrow and longing.

"(Y/N)... Save us."

It's coming from the lake.

Something glimmers on it's shore, a sapphire drop necklace with golden chain. When you attempt to pick it up, the world begins to spin.

Suddenly, you were underwater.

Panic builds in your chest not because you can't swim, but an unseen force seems to harshly pull you down no matter how hard you try to stay afloat.

"Help me! Please, someone—"

Air runs out from your lungs when a pair of bulky arms grabs your body and begins to swim you to safety.

"Don't worry, I got you."

I heard that voice before.

The stranger easily carries you to ground, draping a large cloak on your shivering body. Rubbing your eyes for better sight, you look up...

Bradley James?

"Are you alright?"

No. You're certain that Bradley doesn't look that young anymore, keeping up with his latest activities online.

"I told you to be careful, Arthur!"

Turning your head, you see Colin Morgan run towards the two of you with a worried expression on his face.

He looks younger too.

"Ah, Merlin. Fetch the horses, she might need medical attention. May I ask for you name, my lady?"

Arthur? Merlin? Wait... Oh my God.

Realization hits you hard when both men stare at you expectantly, waiting for your answer.

The way they speak, their clothes, their appearances... it's exactly the same in the show you binge-watch every Christmas season.

Am I in the show? That's not possible...right?

"W-Where are we?"

"Camelot."

Shit.

You expect someone to go 'You just got punked!'; that would've been better than two men (who you have a huge crush on) staring at you, confused.

You waited for a moment but nothing happens.

This is real. I'm actually in Albion.

Fear and anxiety creeps into your system, as many questions form in your head. Did I die? What's going on? What season is this? How can I ever get back?

Due to the overwhelming emotions, your breath shortens and keeled over.

Bradley, or Arthur (You have no idea anymore), quickly catches you and gently carries you to his horse.

"We must make haste!" was the last thing you heard before you blacked out.

Merlin, on the hand, knew this would happen. In fact, he dreams of you.

He sees you in vague images, like old memories— happily kissing his cheek, witnessing him use magic, encouraging him to do another trick, etc.

He already etched in his mind your pretty face, your melodious voice, your playful grin— everything about you.

Then Arthur shares the same experience, dreaming about a woman who's description mirrors yours.

Kilgharrah told him that the woman of their dreams will arrive soon from faraway land and will play significant role in the prophecy.

However, the dragon didn't specify how. He only said—

"(Y/N) is your soulmate, Emrys. She sees you and Arthur in a light no one else ever will."

Soulmates are uncommon, even for druids. Only a few were blessed, to have something so wholesome and pure.

So when he heard your cry for help, he is ecstatic. You have finally arrived. His soulmate... and Arthur's.

He wryly smiles at this. Funny how he shares, not only his destiny with the prat, but also you.

The trip to the castle was faster than they anticipated. Arthur told him to call Gaius and meet them in his bedroom.

It caught the attention of everyone. The prince carrying an unconscious woman in his private chambers will surely stir gossip.

But Arthur didn't care, and Merlin didn't know if he should be proud or worried.

The court physician said you are healthy, they only have to wait for you to wake up. He left to attend other matters; leaving the three of you alone.

"This is her." The prince laughs in disbelief, incognizant of what Merlin knows. "The girl in my dreams, I can't believe it!"

Merlin tries to hide his smirk, Arthur can be so adorable when he's clueless.

"Nor can I, sire."

#bbc merlin #emrys #arthur pendragon #bbc merlin imagines #bbc merlin headcanons #merlin x reader #merlin x reader headcanons #arthur pendragon x reader #arthur pendragon x reader headcanons #arthur pendragon imagines #bbc merlin imagine #merlin x arthur #arthur x merlin #merthur #soulmate au #colin morgan #bradley james #bbc merlin preferences

[theartfuldodger26]

Do you see Tom Riddle as a pretty boy or a handsome man?

Perhaps I'm missing some sort of modern slang as to what each means, but I'll reply literally. Anonymous (or others) feel free to correct/enlighten me if I stray off topic.

I don't see why he can't be both, especially considering that we get to experience young Tom as well as older Volmemort in the books.

He was a pretty, good looking boy when he was younger, and remained a handsome man for a while, until his magical experiment and the Horcrux making caught up with his appearance. I still HC that Bellatrix finds him more attractive in his gaunt, skeletal appearance than before, but that's probably just me.

In the fourth book, while he's still a semi-human creature, before the ritual that gives him back his body, Frank, the gardener of his family estate, demands he turns and "faces him like a man!"

"But I am not a man," Voldemort replies, "I am so much more than a man [but why not, I will face you]"

What Voldemort might have meant with that is up for debate. Perhaps all he means is that he is a man (as in biological male who identifies with the male gender), but he is also so powerful and, to use the expression Voldemort himself loved as a child, so SPECIAL, he's also in a class of human on his own.

Also, later on we find out that he has fathered a daughter, so apparently he does have normal urges that men have. He's not above lust, sex and even maybe being fond of another human (Bellatrix and Delphi).

In addition, when Dumbledore and Harry make it to the cave that Voldemort chose as the hiding place for the Locket Horcrux, we find out that Voldemort values magical power above all, and that HArry's magic, that of a young, average (maybe even a little beyond average), won't even register in his book compared to Dumbledore's. To me this seems to suggest that Voldemort is quite happy to be "old", "mature" and, to his eyes, "wise". And it's not hard to see why he thinks this. He used to be a little boy at the bottom of the social ladder. He might have been "pretty", something that, in older times, was associated with "good families" but he was still an orphan people just ignored or even pitied. Now he's surrounded mostly by younger witches and wizards, and he's their leader.

To sum up until now, I think Voldemort is happy to be a man of a certain age and standing, rather than a boy.

However, he wants to be more than that. He wants to be special, extraordinary. And not just with his deeds, but also with his appearance. He doesnt even want people to speak the name he chose for himself, a name that he likes and is proud of, as it sums up his grandiosity and goal in life (to flee death). Altering his appearance and making it bizarre and unique is also part of this need. By looking like a snake, he's finally special in every way: the way he acts, looks, talks, they're all unique to Lord Voldemort. He's not just a man, any man, he's The Dark Lord.

But I digress. The key for me is a (common, I think) headcanon, where Voldemort suffers from some flavour of body dysmorphia as a young boy. I'm not an expert on the condition, so by no means do I claim to know what I'm saying, just sharing how I feel about him. I think he DOESN'T LIKE BEING ATTRACTIVE, especially after he finds out he looks identical to his father. To some degree he finds his "pretty appearance" useful, since, sad truth be told, we're all inclined to treat a good looking person better and pay more attention to them, and in his early days of near starvation and abuse this was useful. But he hates it, deep down, as he hates everything about himself from those days.

Not only that, but he actually doesn't find himself attractive. He thinks he's too pale, his hair annoys him because it's too curly and needs some work in order to look presentable, his cheekbones are too high, he's too thin and boney, and the list goes on and on with things only he finds weird and unattractive. All part of his deep-seated self loathing that is in the root of all his actions, covered up with illusions f grandeur.

And so he sheds every bit of his old appearance that's possible to change, from his eye colour to the shape of his nose. In fact, now I think of it, in Goblet of Fire he says he'll be "Settling for his old body for a while", suggesting he's planning on further transformations in the future, when he has more time with Harry dead.

TLDR: to us, semi-biased readers, he's both. In his own eyes, he's neither.

Also this gave me an idea for a minific, so I may post a drabble at some point, inspired by this.

Thank you, Anon, for an interesting question that made me think and allowed me to put some ideas in order. And that it sparked a fic! ;)

#tom riddle #voldemort #lord voldemort #harry potter #bellamort #bellatrix lestrange #writing #delphi riddle

[autumnslance]

I've been hunting around for the answer to this question, and got pointed to you by a couple of friends, so I hope this doesn't sound too weird, but I've been trying to figure out how Y'shtola shows affection (particularly for the WoL) as truthfully up until ShB, I... uh... thought she didn't like the WoL at all or as a coworker at best? So, I'm trying to figure out what cues I've missed, and playing through again hasn't helped much... again, sry to bother!

Y'shtola's tough to read, so I totally get where you're coming from.

And as I got rather long (No surprise! It's me!), below a cut it all goes.

I have to note that many in fandom see the adult Scions and twins in earlier parts of the game as not caring about the Warrior of Light due to the initial surface level interactions and hard to read behaviors that were 1) hastily written (I feel ARR texts needed another few editing passes and VA takes they had no time for) and 2) are meant to be open to interpretation.

If one is reading the canon text with an open mind to seeing how characters grow and change (not to mention the shift in writing style as a new lead took over from Stormblood on) it’s harder to say after ShB and EW especially that the Scions don’t care, when community and love (in any and all forms) is a major point of this story of hope and how the day is saved multiple times due these friendships.

Not to mention how often through ARR, HW, and StB the adult Scions are often sidelined or sent off on other missions by the narrative to deny the WoL their aid while also explaining why they can’t help in combat situations against non-primals before we had the Duty Support system. Y’shtola vanishes post-Titan until after Garuda, after the Banquet is gone for much of HW MSQ until late 3.0, is nearly killed by Zenos in early 4.0 so out of action, and then is among the first Scions to fall to the Exarch's Call and is the last of the core group we pick up at 5.0’s midpoint.

Despite how often she and some of the others are gone, or the unevenness of some of the writing over time, I wouldn’t say she or any of the Scions dislike the WoL ever, nor actually do treat WoL as a servant or as a weapon of destruction; in fact, that attitude is specifically given to Alphinaud, and to some degree Alisaie, as part of their coming of age stories in ARR/Coils and HW as they transition from spoiled noble brats to conscientious young adventurers.

Also, clicking on everyone before, after, and in between quest steps comes in handy; it’s a habit to get into early in this game and especially in replays, as a LOT of characterization, background, and lore moments come from those optional dialogues that are easy to miss. There are a lot of great moments with all the doomed Scions in the Waking Sands, for instance, that are easily skipped if you ignore the common room and just rush in and out of the Solar for missions. It adds to play time, but it can be highly worth it to get extra on each character (in ShB it’s necessary with Emet-Selch and all the lore he offers).

But to get at Y’shtola and how she shows affection for everyone—not just WoL but in general—we’re actually going to have to start with our grouchy cave witch: Master Matoya.

Y’shtola’s amazing magical talent was realized early, and as such she was given directly to Matoya to raise as an apprentice when Y’shtola was only seven years old. In 6.1 quests, when accompanied by Y’shtola around Sharlayan, she specifically notes neither she nor Thancred ever attended the Studium as youths, as they were under the care of masters of their respective fields. Matoya is also credited, according to Alisaie on her first meeting the elderly archon, that Matoya is the one who’s said to have “tamed” Y’shtola.

So let’s look at Matoya. If you visit her cave after 6.0 to find Y’shtola hanging around, Matoya says:

“Like old Louisoix, you lot set out to save the world. Like him, you believed your cause with all your heart. And like him, you succeeded. The spineless wretches of the Forum could stand to take a cue from your example. Now, as Shtola would tell you, I tend to be sparing with my praise. But for what you’ve accomplished, you have my respect and admiration.”

And in all of our interactions with Matoya, that “sparing praise” is true; she’s caustic and grumpy and acts as if she is imposed upon every time we visit. However, if she really didn’t want anyone in her cave, well, we couldn’t get there. She’d change the magic lock. Throw us out. Overwhelm us with brooms and poroggos.

Instead she lets Alphinaud come and go freely to study throughout Heavensward’s patches as he seeks a way to help Estinien, keeping an eye on him, but letting him figure things out on his own as she lets him have run of her library and resources. She aids during the Alexander questline (though is never seen). Time and again, through MSQ and sidequests, Matoya is there for sharp, clearcut, logical advice and magical knowledge and resources. Even in Stormblood’s Namazu Tribe quests, you at one point take your fishy buddy to Matoya for information. Her response to the WoL is one of my favorites:

“Had anyone else shown up on my doorstep with a Namazu in tow, I would’ve had my poroggos deal with them. I’m still not quite sure what you’re about, but if it gets you to stop fighting every other god or dragon for a spell, it can’t be all that bad.”

Coming from Matoya, that is close to a declaration of care for the WoL’s well-being as we’re likely ever going to get.

Especially when you consider the sidequest available from one of her poroggos. It starts as an aether current quest inside the cave, but the chain continues until we discover a hidden broom under a ruined bridge, a broom in which Matoya has locked away all of her most precious memories and feelings for Y’shtola. Matoya tasks the poroggo that when she inevitably dies, his final act of service shall be to lay her body to rest alongside her hidden broom.

This is the woman who raised Y’shtola from the age of seven.

I said a lot already in my Ultima Thule post about the similarities and differences in Matoya and Y’shtola; where one is a misanthropic hermit, the other goes out into the world to help people and protect the star from dangers, even as she seeks knowledge of life’s mysteries. It’s a rather important difference, though the influence of Matoya’s caustic upbringing is writ in Y’shtola’s every ilm.

The first meeting in the Limsa Lominsa introductions, Y’shtola is labeled as “Cultured Conjurer.” In her early interactions with the WoL, and other NPCs such as the young pirate who gets in trouble, she acts as one would expect an adventuring healer to; friendly concern and relief when one is uninjured, making sure folks know Sevrin and the WoL are OK. She is certainly interested in WoL’s abilities, both combat and aetheric, but even in these early interactions she’s outwardly pleasant. If anything, she’s less brusque and sharp-tongued with strangers and new acquaintances.

Some of her easy irritation is seen in the infamous Feast preparations on the way to Titan; Y’shtola is irate at what the Company is putting the WoL through to test them and all the fetch quests they impose. She praises WoL for their patience and stoicism and humoring the Company, realizing only a bit later the WoL isn’t familiar enough with these heroes to understand why they did all this.

But Y’shtola is not effusive in her praise and compliments; though freer with them than her Master, she is still reserved and understated. Her wit is very dry commentary. She is not afraid to be stern when needed, but that would again be due to the influence of her upbringing; it’s easier to be forthright and caustic than it is to shower affection. But Y’shtola obviously tries to do the latter more often than her teacher.

The most effusive praise I can think of is in Heavensward, as the Excelsior prepares to leave for Azys Lla, when she says the WoL is “the beacon of hope towards which all men drawn” after all the WoL has accomplished so far in Ishgard and Dravania (and even in that verbal spar with Estinien, she tries to warn him of the Eye, and as you escape the Flagship upon Midgardsormr, Y’shtola is the one to ask “Where is Estinien?”).

This usually reserved praise remains true through much of the MSQ; again, she seems to allow her snarkier side and dry wit to come out around the Scions, because among her closest comrades, she is understood to be straightforward but still caring. She challenges people to do and be better (such as her argument with Merlwyb that Yugiri spies on in the ARR patches), and she challenges her Scion family most of all. In ShB there are her snappy comments at Thancred about his ward, but after, in speaking to her she is certain of his heart and willpower; the man she knows is a good one, who needs to confront his feelings and is refusing to while also not talking to his friends about his struggles. Y’shtola was trying to help in her own way—effectiveness and timing aside—and it is reminiscent of how her own Master would have done it; the comparisons to Matoya are strengthened not just by Y’shtola borrowing the name under the Floodlight.

EDIT: Speaking of Rak’tika, some other friends noted: If Y'shtola didn't already care, her first meeting with WoL in Rak'tika wouldn't have been so horrified when she was told it was WoL and not a sin eater she was seeing. She's notably upset, and then works to solve the issue, demanding answers of Urianger (who stonewalls), and then does in fact tell WoL her concerns, once Plot has been dealt with; people forget that scene as it’s not in the Unending Journey.

It does take Y’shtola time to show her vulnerabilities to the WoL, to entrust them with some secrets or take them into confidence. But that all comes rather late, for her to loosen up, to joke more, to be openly vulnerable, after everything the Scions have been through together.

It also does not help that Y’shtola’s more reserved interactions can be read as bids for reciprocation; if one were to meet her at the same level of energy, friendly coworkers it is. If one shows more friendly interest, her own level of interaction would also change—but that works in games with interactive dialogue paths that an on-rails MMO like FFXIV can’t provide as easily as a single player like Mass Effect or Dragon Age, where interactions with party members change their reception of the PC character, even to the point of OCNPC romance.

It all depends on how one reads it and feels about these characters. What clicks and what doesn’t. And for many, Y’shtola is harder to click with than others due to her reservation and sharp wit.

So if in ARR, HW, and StB she reads as a cordial coworker, that’s a valid reading; she’s as polite and friendly and concerned as one would expect a healer to be. She’s also dry, prone to understatement, and not afraid to be sharp-tongued when called for. She praises, but reservedly, as that’s her upbringing.

She doesn’t have Thancred’s snarky charm, or G’raha’s enthusiasm, nor the interplay of Papalymo and Yda. Each of the Scions are given very broad personality archetypes meant to be interpreted openly. One can even read Thancred as not caring about WoL as more than a coworker at first despite his effusive praise and honeyed words, as so much of it is a front he puts up, and his actual affection for WoL as a friend also arguably shows later (or, if going back to “bids for interaction”, it’s easier to exchange favorable energy with Thancred, but I don’t think that he’s actually much more open and able to reciprocate than Y’shtola, given his emotional stunting under the charm that takes him until ShB to work out, hence my own wolnpc ship with him taking so much time to sort).

I did present this question to my FC for some input, as Y’shtola IS a tough cookie to crack, and unlike some Ancient scientists I could name, I am willing to ask for outside ideas and perspectives to help me examine my own as I draft. One thing noted by certain multi-cultural friends is the cultural context one can read Y’shtola in; in an American context, she does seem very reserved and professional early on; polite, but very much how one would see a friendly coworker. In a British context, one friend considers her rather “chummy” in her pleasant politeness and dry, understated humor when interacting with her throughout MSQ.

For those of us who read the Scions as Found Family, we see Y’shtola as the poised older sister of the group, the supposedly responsible adult in the room who is really just as prone to shenanigans as the rest, in the right circumstance. 

And there are many who make the Mom jokes about her; some because they find her desirable and she is actually among the older Scions (despite her claims), but also because she does, as a healer first, have that Mom Friend demeanor, though it is more evident in ShB when she can joke back at the WoL’s silly responses to her concerns.

Anyway. Y’shtola isn’t a social showoff; with magic, sure, but in personal interaction, she holds quite a bit of herself back for awhile, and her ingrained responses due to her upbringing are to be reserved with affection and praise, while quick with wit and straightforward in her speech, not pulling punches. She will be cordial with acquaintances and new people, and shows the concern for others one expects of a healer, but she’s not going to gush the way others might.

This is a lot of words. I like Y’shtola, and get her lowkey approach and humor, so always considered her friendly, but was glad to see her caring clarified in ShB and EW, alongside the other Scions. But if her and other Scion friendships with WoL don’t quite gel for others until arriving on the First, that’s perfectly understandable.

#Final Fantasy XIV #Y'shtola Rhul #Master Matoya #Character analysis #Scions of the Seventh Dawn #lore #backstory #A Realm Reborn #Heavensward #Stormblood #Shadowbringers #Lyn Prompts

[adora-but-ginger]

Final Moments

pairing: poe dameron x gn!reader

summary: everyone is told that they’re going to die eventually, but it’s weird knowing it’s coming within a day. at least poe’s there with you.

word count: ~1.7k

warnings: um basically both major character deaths, angst, more angst, like guys this does not have a happy ending

masterlist

a/n: i don’t know what compelled me to write this. i suggest listening to as the world caves in while you read this, it really sets the mood--i know that this is a sad one, so please don’t read it if you’re not in the mental space to! self-care is important, please take care of you! 

edit: if literally one person asks for a happy ending version of this, i will write it

also don’t repost my stories, because that a. is not cool and b. makes you a loser

(credit to gif owner)

When you were young, the elders of your town used to tell you about their life in old age. You watched them grow old as you did yourself, watched them live their lives in harmony with one another, and you yearned for something like that, knowing the life you had lived was worth it, was full.

So, when you realized that there was no way off of this ship, well, it had hit you like a sack of bricks.

It was weird, you had to admit, the feeling of knowing death.

You knew the risk of a mission like this, of getting caught, of your cover being blown. You were taken onto a First Order ship after the transmission of battle plans was traced back to you, back to your dodgy alias that you, in retrospect, should have spent more time on.

But at least you weren’t alone.

You were sent on this mission alongside one Poe Dameron, who went undercover with the luxury of a trooper helmet (he was the poster boy after all), and once they found you, it was not difficult to locate the faulty trooper in the bunch.

You both had been taken under custody and thrown in a cell of white to live out what little time you had left, and maybe it was a newcomer who had been sent to deliver you to your new home, or maybe it was by the grace of the Maker themselves, but you two had been stuck in together.

You two had known each other for a decent amount of time, though you couldn’t pinpoint just how much time that really might be. He was the head of Black Squadron, a squadron which you managed to get a place in yourself. You had grown quite close over that time, to the extent where you might even call him a friend.

It was hard to have friends in a war.

You had fought well together, like a ‘well-oiled machine’ some would say. You could undergo maneuvers without a word being exchanged, you were the ideal dream team when it came to pilots. So, it was a bit unnerving to hear that you two would be sent undercover. Thinking about it now, surrounded by walls of white that looked back at you with a metallic sneer, you knew that the mission was doomed from the start.

His heavy breathing drew you out of your trance.

“I keep thinking that there’s some way we can get out of this.” Whether said shaky breaths were from the pain of breathing through cracked ribs, tears, or a mixture, you couldn’t tell.

“We’ll try to escape this, don’t you worry flyboy, we always do.” Another thing that was weird--he was always the optimist in these situations, not you. But if he needed you to be his happiness, then you would do it.

You would do nearly anything for him, and you reckoned that he would do the same.

You felt the back of his head lean against the back of yours and thought that he might have closed his eyes. Mirroring his actions, you felt comfort in knowing that you weren’t alone, as kriffed up as that sounded. After all, to die whilst lonely is to die with the worst pain of all.

“I don’t think we can, Black-six” your callsign. “The Force was never one with either of us after all, huh.” His voice held something you had never heard before, a pang you decided you didn’t like.

“The Force has always been between the both of us, Poe. You can’t lose hope like that now, you out of everyone know how hope can mean all the difference.”

You could hear a sound that mixed between a chuckle and a scoff. “You sound like Leia.”

A beat bounced in the small space around you.

“Do you think she knows?” You called out to the air in front of you.

Another beat followed before he answered. “Yeah, she has a way of knowing these things. Especially when it deals with her son.”

Ah yes, Kylo Ren. He was the one who personally wanted to execute the both of you, which to some extent was an accomplishment in itself. You two managed to get on the nerves and radar of the newest Vader-reject, a thought which was quite amusing to you. You could joke about it now, you had to joke about it now, because it wouldn’t be much of a laughing matter when the red humming of his saber would be pointed at your throats.

Your breathing had started to quicken, and he must have noticed this, as you felt his hand reach behind his back to grasp yours. You yourself were never one for physical touch, but this was an exception, he was an exception. You could feel the shake of his hand as he held it, the warmth spreading throughout your wrist and arm.

You squeezed.

He squeezed back.

A tear silently slipped down your face at the reality of the situation at hand.

You guys weren’t going to make it out of this.

And you knew that the Force coursed somewhere between the two of you, it had to, because when he spoke again that charm of his had returned. Yeah, maybe it was all for show, but you were okay with that.

“Say we do make it out of this, yeah? Say we make it out and we win the war, what would you do?”

You didn’t quite know what to make of his question, so when you felt the squeeze of his hand again, you shrugged. “What do you mean?”

He took a deep breath of the filtered air. “I mean what would you like to do? I personally always wanted to go back to my home planet, visit my old town, say hi to those who remember me.” He paused. “What would you do?”

It took you a minute to respond, and when you did, it came out quiet. “I don’t have a home planet to return to.” You could feel your eyes fight with threatening tears. “I think I would like to find one though, a new home. One with beautiful sunsets, that’s for sure, and a comfortable climate would be nice. Find myself a hut, settle down and have some animals to accompany me.”

You could feel him cock his head to one side. “By yourself?”

You shrugged again. “I mean, I’ve never really had anyone before, so I don’t see why not. It would be nice to have someone there too, I guess I’ve never thought about it before. I don’t have anyone though, I’m not that close to anyone really.” A cough erupted from you, rattling your sore bones. They had harmed the both of you before they threw you in this white-walled prison, to prevent any resistance.

“Well, when we get back, I’m going to go back to my droid and you’re going to go find that person. Friend, partner, begrudging enemy, whatever, yeah?”

You shook your head in response. “No thanks, I’m not that good at making good impressions with new people.”

He turned his head towards yours and you could almost feel his pain, both emotional and physical. His voice could just barely be heard over the pounding in your ears and head. “I’ll do it, I’ll watch the sunset with you. On Yavin IV, they’re luxurious, you would love it.”

You turned your head to match his. “You promise?”

You could hear the bittersweet smile as he spoke. “With my everything.”

“Poe, I don’t want to die.”

Not soon after your words was there a pounding into the door that held you two captive, and for a small second hope visited again. It was drained instantly as the horde of stormtroopers marched in, ordering you two to get up. Tears streamed down your cheeks, and once you had been moved to a standing position you noticed Poe’s face was blotchy, tears running down his too.

He continued on like you were conversing at the caf after a day of flying. “Bee-Bee always wanted to see us together. We’ll have a little room for them in the house. They won’t have to joke anymore when they call us their parents.” A pressure against your back made its presence known, the tip of the blaster searing into your clothes and skin. You shared a panicked look with Poe, and he grasped your hand even tighter, it now slightly shaking.

“Separate yourselves.” The modulator that the trooper spoke through was low, and in response, you side-stepped closer to Poe.

You chuckled sourly. “What are you going to do, kill us?”

It was ironic at this point.

As you were escorted out of the room, you saw that you two meant enough to have a guard of troopers, which you knew would root a little pride in the both of you. Your footsteps echoed in the empty hallway, save for your group. “I’ve always wanted to have a library, could we have a library, Poe?”

"We’ll have a magnificent library, full of books from every corner of the galaxy.” You walked closer to whatever would wait for you at the end of this. It was terrifying, but you had begun to accept it.

You shut your eyelids momentarily, letting a wave of cold wash over you, and that’s when you heard it. Your name.

Your actual name.

Sure, you had nicknames and callsigns in the resistance, but you never told anyone your official name, and that’s when any remaining walls you had fell to ruins.

“I don’t want to die either.”

Another squeeze of his hand. You continued speaking through both of your fears. “And we’ll steal an x-wing, for you, your favourite one. You can fly it anywhere and everywhere. It’ll be yours.”

You came to a halt. The doors hissed open before you, and you turned your body to face his, him doing the same. “We’ll have dinner by the stars every night.”

You were being pushed into the room now, and you knew it was happening soon. Kylo turned the attention to him and started speaking, words muffled by unimportance. He dragged the two of you forward with nothing but a raised arm and you closed your eyes, holding onto Poe’s hand like it was your last hope.

“Together?” He murmured, just so you could hear.

The saber ignited.

“Together.” You reassured.

#poe dameron #poe dameron x reader #angst #major character death #so much angst #fanfiction #star wars #star wars sequel trilogy #star wars self insert #star wars sequel fic #star wars fanfiction #poe dameron x you

[late-to-the-magnus-archives]

God of Cowboys and Fools - Chapter Two

“Untie me!” I command.

Arthur Lester gives me a look so dry it could crack my lip again. “No.”

He dares! “I command you!”

“And then you’d what? Attack me?” says he.

I hadn’t considered that. “No. What I want from you must be given freely.”

Written for the @malevolentmadnessmixup event! Art by @futuresoon.

>>> READ ON AO3 OR BELOW <<<

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

Chapter Two

I think gods aren’t supposed to go dark. I don’t know for sure; I know so little, honestly, having existed for about four hours now. But this? Going dark feels wrong. Anathema. The antithesis of what I am.

You know what doesn’t help? That damn voice yelling at me. Swinging between My glorious King and You stupid shit, basically, with varying phrasing. Whatever. I ignore him and open my eyes.

Huh. Where the fuck is this? It’s a fucking cave? I’m in a cave?

No, a mine, says the voice, sounding disgruntled.

Well, I’m disgruntled, too! I'm the one tied down.

It is indeed a cave, dug from the earth, lit with deep yellow torches along the walls. I’m on a table or something equally uncomfortable, and I’m strapped tight. Every movement I make echoes, like my shadow is mimicking me a moment too late. Experiment proves I can’t pull any of these stupid fucking human limbs free, and I cry out in frustration. “Fuck!”

“You didn’t say please,” comes a crisp (English, my weird memory asserts) voice.

I look. There is Arthur Lester, backlit by torchlight. He stands by the wall, before a table piled with indeterminate tools, arms crossed, hood back, studying me out of arm’s reach.

Which doesn’t matter, because my arms aren’t doing anything. “How dare you!”

“I’d heard the King in Yellow met an unpleasant end today,” said Arthur Lester, not moving, not bowing, not doing anything he should for one who knows so much. “The aetheric resonance has sent the Dreamlands into chaos. The vacuum is unbelievable. I was just debating going to sleep for a thousand years or so until it blows over… and here you are, claiming to be him, and pitiful about it.”

“Pitiful!” I’ll tear his face off. In fact, he should know. “I’ll tear your face off!”

“No, I don’t think you will,” he says, and comes over.

I snarl with everything in me and struggle against the ropes.

Calm down, my King. If you convince him you’ll work with him, he’s more likely to let his guard down.

But he’s trapped me! Tied me! How dare he! “I am a god!” I snarl at him.

“A god who needs a shave and some water,” says Arthur Lester, leaning over me. This close, he has a face I can’t quite understand; he’s young and old at the same time, face lined, but somehow appealing in spite of that. The solid blue-gray of his eyes is incredible. He looks like a man not to fuck with, like someone who would wear that exact same expression if he slit my human throat… but under all that cold-hearted self, there is something beautiful.

This man has power. Everything I hoped for is confirmed.

Don’t jump to conclusions, says the voice.

Shut up. “What do you plan to do?”

“Well. Mostly, figure you out,” Arthur says. “You’re not human, in spite of the flesh you wear, but you can’t possibly be a Great Old One, either. For one thing, my attack wouldn’t have landed.”

“Then why did you do it?” I say, because that makes the action illogical.

“Because you fucking scared me,” he says without a trace of arrogance, and touches my chin to tilt my head back and forth. “Where did you get this body?”

“I don’t know.” He can see that? “How do you know it isn’t mine? It’s mine now!” I add, in case of larcenous ideas.

He smirks and touches my desert-dry lips.

That hurt! My lip is split. It’s sharp and surprising; I cry out, and I taste blood.

“Because you fit into it like a grown man into a suit meant for a child,” he says, and walks over to his table with my blood on his fingers. “You’re spilling out all over. It’s a miracle the damn thing hasn’t burst open like some kind of horrible flower.” He fucks around over there, clinking glass, then returns with a glass of water.

I stare at the water. Lick my split lip (ow). “Oh.” Don’t like that. “That sounds ugly.”

“It is. Drink.”

My face grows… so hot. So hot, burning. Ugly! I don’t want to be ugly. I’m not ugly! I’ve never been ugly!

Have I?

Never, great one, the voice assures me, and I think it's sincere.

“Calm down,” says Arthur Lester. “You look like a fucking boiled tomato.”

“I’m not ugly,” I tell him.

“The body isn’t. Drink.”

I knew I wasn’t. “No. What is it?”

He sighs. “It’s water. Your body was already dehydrated. Just drink.”

I wouldn’t, says the voice.

Tell me what to do, will you, voice? “Gimme.”

Arthur Lester reaches under my head and lifts, supporting it as he touches the glass to my lips.

So this is drinking! Oh, I like drinking! The water is cold and tastes divine, and my whole body seems to respond with pleasure, demanding, absorbing. I make a happy sound.

“What an odd thing you are,” says Arthur Lester.

I glare at him over the glass (though of course, I keep drinking. My water. Mine.)

“Whatever you are, you’re a mystery,” he says, “and here’s where I have to decide whether it’s wiser to cut my losses and kill you, or take the risk and do some investigation.”

Tread carefully, my King.

I lick my lips. The glass is empty. “I have finished my water,” I say.

“Yeah, you have,” Arthur says, looking amused.

How dare. “You’d be a fool to harm me. I came to you because I need help, and I will trade for it.”

“You informed me in front of two dozen men and at least half a dozen women that I was your slave,” he says dryly.

Will my face ever stop burning? “I… thought that would guarantee your help.”

He stares at me. “Why the fuck would you think that?”

“Why wouldn’t it? Who I am, established. Who you are to me, established. Then I could ask you for what I need, and you’d give it!”

He stares harder. Leans in. “Funny question,” he says. “What’s the first thing you remember?”

I blink. “First thing?”

“Ever. In your life.” His robe brushes my tied wrist, my hand. I’m surprised at how soft it is; it looks rough.

“Uh,” I say.

Don’t tell him the truth!

Well, what else am I supposed to do? “Waking up in the desert.”

“When?”

“Today.”

His eyes go enormous, and I realize that the blue-silver disks have a dark limbal ring, stunning and beautiful. “You’re a fucking baby,” he says.

I growl. “I am no baby,” I inform him, this foolish human wizard who has what I need. “I am older than your sun, older than your seas! I was before this galaxy began its drain-swirl toward entropy and its fucking crunchy end!”

“‘Fucking crunchy end,’” he repeats, absolutely deadpan.

I stare. “It’s going to!”

“I’m aware. I just. Kind of expected that to end a little more poetic, after that beginning.”

I hiss.

“Calm down. I won’t kill you now. I’m too curious. What do you call yourself?”

“I am the King in Yellow!” I pronounce deep in my chest.

“You’re not, though,” he says gently. “You’re objectively not. If I were to hazard a guess, I’d say you were… part of him.”

I gasp, but not because of what he said. His words brought it back.

Sharp, tearing, burning, terrifying, painful, searing, torn from self and safety and sanity to some wailing incompleteness, mewling and pitiful and powerful and galactic, leaking and weeping and innocent and cruel.

I tore. I tore away from god. I—

“Whoa. Easy,” says Arthur Lester, his silver-blue eyes so wide, his hands up as though in surrender, or shock. “Easy there. What the fuck did I say?”

“Part of him?” I choke out, and this human voice breaks, and these human eyes leak, and I don’t know what’s happening, except that it’s bad. “I am all that’s left of him.”

“All right,” he says evenly, calmly, clearly trying to work through it. “All right. Okay. This is a lot. Hold on.”

Easy for him to say! “Untie me!” I command.

Arthur Lester gives me a look so dry it could crack my lip again. “No.”

He dares! “I command you!”

“And then you’d what? Attack me?” says he.

I hadn’t considered that. “No. What I want from you must be given freely.”

“And what is that?” he says, eyebrows high.

“Instruction.”

Arthur Lester laughs. “Instruction?”

“Why is that so strange?” I snarl. “Yes! Instruction!”

“For what?” he yells.

“How to live forever!” I yell back.

Arthur Lester sighs. “Okay. Wow. Wow. Hold on.” He turns away. “Wow. Hold on.”

Why is everyone confused by this? “You’re immortal!”

“Some say,” he murmurs, facing the torches.

“And I need to be! What is the problem here?”

He turns. “Where did you wake up?”

I frown. “I don’t know. Far away. It took me hours to come to you. To find you.”

He frowns, too. “How did you find me?”

“I woke with your name in my head, and I could see you like a star on the horizon.”

He stares.

Fool! says the voice.

Fuck you, voice. I’m doing what I have to here.

“That carries all manner of problems,” Arthur Lester says.

“Why?” I demand.

He proceeds to count off his fingers. “One, why the fuck did you know my name when you woke up as a piece of a god? Two, why the fuck did you know where I was as a piece of a god? Three, why the fuck do you think you know what I can offer you as a piece of a god?”

Do humans speak entirely in questions? “I know your name because I know magic, and I know power, and yours is on the wind,” I say.

“The wind,” he repeats, deadpan.

“Yeah.”

A moment passes. “Yellow, what in fuck does that mean?”

“I don’t know! You asked a question and I answered!” Why does it feel bad that he didn’t like my answer? “And don’t call me Yellow! I am H’aaztre, the King in Yellow, the Unspeakable—”

“You’re a piece of him,” says this infuriating man, and his voice is low and rough, and his face is tight. “I’m not going to call you his name. You’re not him. Answer the rest of my questions.”

Why did that hurt, too? I don’t know! I don’t know! “Then what are you going to call me?” I bellow.

“How the fuck should I know? Pick a name! And answer my damn questions!” he bellows back.

Fine! I can answer his questions! “I knew where you were the same way you know where the fucking sun is, okay?” I snap, and I don’t know why I’m feeling ways about all this, but I am. “I feel you!”

He stares. “That’s not good.”

“Yes it is! I found you!” I have to sniffle. My human nose is leaking! What the fuck?

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” he says, pulls out a handkerchief, and dabs at my eyes. Then he holds it to my nose. “Blow.”

This brain knows how to do that. So I do.

(At least the voice is silent throughout. This is embarrassing.)

“My third question?” says Arthur. He snaps the handkerchief out with one sharp shake, and suddenly, it’s clean and dry. He tucks it back into his robe.

Why I know what he can offer me. “Because you’re the most powerful. I know you’re the one who can tell me what to do.”

“What to do about… living forever?” he says.

“Yes,” I say.

He stares.

“This is a body I’ve created,” I say. “I made it from pieces. From the cultists who were there, who sacrificed themselves in… whatever took place. I don’t really know what took place. I don’t fully remember. But I put body parts together, and I know it isn’t stable. I can feel it. It’s aging. It’s vulnerable to disease. Something fucking stupid like sunlight can harm it. I need your help.”

He stares harder. “You’re mortal?”

“I have to assume so! I’m in a fucking human body!”

You damn fool.

Oh, shut up. You’re not here, in this situation, dealing with my troubles.

Arthur opens his mouth, exhales so sharply that his cheeks puff like a child’s, and then he turns around and goes to the table behind him.

“Hey!” I say. “I answered you!”

“I need some fortification,” he says, taking up a flask, and proceeds to chug.

[chapter three] [masterpost]

#malevolent #malevolent fic #malevolent au #god of cowboys and fools #malevolent madness mixup #john x arthur

[animews]

“wolfwalkers (2020) is a beautiful piece of queer cinema that delicately reflects on the coming out of queer youth in this essay i will- except that i actually write the essay”

sorry in advance for the weird way this is structured i wrote it as a literature assignment to copy the writing style of virginia woolf. which. made the writing a little weird and overly formal so!!! just ignore that lmao

also to anyone who says “wolfwalkers isnt an anime why ru writing about it on an anime blog” HUSH. maybe it’s a cartoon to you, but it is like an anime to ME.

-o-

Wolfwalkers (2020) should, all things considered, be a typical coming-of-age story. But I think it’s not about coming-of-age, but instead coming out. A girl emerging from the closet, rather than from childhood. Wolfwalkers’ queer themes kept me up for a while, joining my late-night musings about stem cell ethics and the Lovecraftian horror of the Bee Movie. So here’s my thoughts. Make of them what you will.

First, let’s talk about werewolves. Werewolves are known to be general personification of “other”, so they’re a common metaphor for queerness. The separation of “wolf” and “man”, the monstrous coming to light and destroying the normal. They’re savage beasts that spend some time in human form, outcasts from society feared by the surrounding population. Whether they’re mindless and beastly or intelligent and misunderstood is up to interpretation, as Wolfwalker illustrates.

With that out of the way, let’s get started. Here’s our protagonist, Robyn Goodfellowe. Her father, Bill, has been summoned by the Lord Protector to hunt wolves. Said wolves are preventing the destruction of their forest home, which, as I am sure you agree, is truly baffling and without reason. For safety reasons, Robyn remains confined to her new home, as Bill informs her that it is “for her own good”. This will come up again later.

Of course, we would not have a story if Robyn stayed indoors, so we follow her as she sneaks into the woods. Her innocence is clearly shown here: she displays no signs of fear of death, confident that the world revolves around her. Therefore, the Robyn who accidentally shoots her precious bird is one at the beginning of her journey: a flower not yet bloomed, eyes closed to the harsh truths of the world. As she watches her bird fall from the sky, a mysterious, wild-looking girl scoops it up and runs off.

Here we take a break from Robyn’s dilemma to meet our antagonist, the religious leader of the town. It must be said that the title of Lord Protector fits him better than a simple name, unyielding and high-minded as he is. Here we see another staple of the queer narrative: religion. The Lord Protector is single-minded in his hatred of wolves: he wants them gone, and believes firmly that such action is God’s will. I don’t believe I must describe the long-held hatred of the Homosexuals by the Christian Church, but if that is something with which you are unfamiliar, feel free to visit your nearby conservative old-timey church and ask. Inherent in many religious folk is the “righteous anger”, the certainty that there is a holy mantel placed upon them to rid the world of the vermin gays, and this is certainly what the Lord Protector represents in this story.

The Lord Protector, angered at the presence of A Female, assigns Robyn to scullery duty, an appropriately womanly task. Robyn gets no support from her father, who believes it will do her good to act more like a woman should. If she conforms to the standards given to her, she won’t have any need to worry. Robyn, unswayed, escapes yet again into the forest to find her bird.

Robyn, not a particularly nimble individual, quickly gets herself caught in one of her own father’s traps after finding her bird (in the distance, a voice yells something about symbolism). Along comes a young wolf, and a scuffle ensues. After a stray bite on the arm, Robyn is set free from the trap, and follows the wolf into its secret cave, wherein it reveals its true form: the wild girl from before, named Mebh.

Mebh is a wolfwalker: she turns into a wolf when asleep. She quickly heals Robyn’s bite, and after a few mishaps, the two quickly make friends. Robyn’s preconceived notions of wolves go out the window: the wolves mean no harm. They’ve been planning to leave the forest to find safer lands, and are waiting for Mebh’s mother to return: she’s been asleep, her wolf-form missing.

There’s a particular scene here, in the middle of the movie, that really got to me. Robyn takes a brush and combs out Mebh’s hair, gently removing the forest debris; she then tucks a saved flower behind her ear. The vulnerability of letting someone touch your hair is not one to be taken lightly. Such a gesture is intimate, offered between close friends, family (or pack, rather). And to slip a flower behind one’s ear? What other indicator of blooming love might there be? This marks Robyn’s progression, as she begins the next step of her journey. As children, Mebh and Robyn believably reach this place in their relationship quickly, beginning their childhood friends to lovers (slowburn, 200k, last updated 2020) love story. They say goodbye, and Robyn runs off into the sunset, eager to tell her father her discoveries.

Predictably, Bill is furious at her breaking the rules, as well as disobeying the Lord Protector. He refuses to listen to Robyn’s pleas, dismissing her claims as “childish stories”. Such language is incredibly similar to those that a queer child’s parents would say under a situation where they are questioning their identity. They’re punished for breaking society’s rules, occasionally for fear of mistreatment by society, or because they disobey the religious conventions. Their exploration of their identity is dismissed as stories, false and made-up. Queer people don’t exist, and if they do, they’re evil and you’re not one of them, they say. You’re just tired, or hallucinating, they swear.

The next morning, Robyn goes to the scullery, as previously instructed. Bill yet again informs his daughter that this is for her own good, before leaving her to slave the day away. Exhausted and hearing mysterious voices, she escapes yet again to see Mebh in the forest (paralleling classic love story format), and ends up promising her to help find Moll, her mother.

You may observe yet another deviation from the typical girl’s coming-of-age path that Robyn has declined to follow: the absence of a male lead. Men instead appear as antagonists, through the Lord Protector, and to an extent, Bill. Thus, the movie further establishes itself as a less male-focused story, focusing instead on the girls (one might refer to the Korean word for girl: 어린애- female child: not a teenager but a child, innocent in their understanding and exploration of gender, as Robyn is here, on the cusp of discovery, still androgynous in the conduction of herself, unaware of who she is). As a fellow wolf (or is it Woolfe?) once mentioned, a problem in fiction is the absence of women and their inter-relationships: in this work, we are exposed to girls at their core, wild and genderless, before society attempts to corral them into their proper gender roles.

Robyn returns home to sleep and is shocked to awaken in wolf form. At this moment her father discovers her: a wolf perched atop the sleeping body of his daughter. Another aspect of queer adolescence emerges: fear of discovery. When one has watched their family openly condemn their kind, can they trust their promised unconditional love? If one’s family recognized them as “the enemy”, would they be accepted? Robyn wrestles with this as she stares her father in the eyes and runs into the streets for fear that he will kill her, runs haunted by the fear that he would raise his sword even if he knew it was her. With this, she finds Mebh in the forest and demands answers.

Mebh, confused, insists that she healed the transforming bite, but is distracted by the prospect of teaching Robyn the joys of wolfing (as children do), and so I shoulder the burden of explanation in her place. While the reason for Robyn’s wolfification could be the failure of Mebh to properly heal the bite, I would urge you to consider that Robyn, unconsciously recognizing the bond that she held with Mebh, created the wolf within her even after healing. Rather than getting “infected” by Mebh (as so many believe queer people do), the wolfwalker was within her all along, merely brought to the light.

While trying to sneak back through the gates, wolf-Robyn is discovered and a hunt ensues. To hide, she sneaks into a secret passage in the castle, and stumbles upon Mebh’s missing mother, Moll (alliteration abounds), trapped in a cage. Moll begs her to tell Mebh to flee the forest and stay safe, unknowingly paralleling Robyn’s father. Robyn, out of time, fails to free Moll, and rushes home to ‘wake up’ and turn back from wolf to human, refusing to sleep for the rest of the night.

After another day of grueling work in the scullery, Robyn has lost hope. Her safety hinges even more on her compliance, as her father has been demoted for failing to kill the wolves. Mebh, worried that Robyn hasn’t yet returned, sneaks into town to check on her. Appalled, Robyn begs her to return to the forest and leave without her mother, breaking her promise to help free Moll. Robyn, broken, has forced herself to grow into the role that the world assigned her, becoming exactly what her father and the Lord Protector wanted her to be. In this, she reflects the queer youth forced to stifle their identity to reflect their family’s and society’s expectations, simply to maintain a normal life.

Just then, the Lord Protector holds an announcement. He reveals a chained Moll, restraining her with the help of several soldiers. Seeing her, Mebh is enraged, and after an emotional scuffle with Robyn, who desperately tries to stop her, she jumps onstage. Moll bites Robyn’s father to stop him from catching Mebh, Mebh runs to gather her wolf pack, swearing revenge, and an enraged Lord Protector shouts for all troops to set the forest on fire and drive out the wolves (much like homophobic religious folk attempt to invade the safe spaces of queer people in an attempt to “eradicate” them). Robyn, stunned, can do nothing but watch her friend fight against her father.

Finally, Robyn chooses to side with the wolves (embracing her inner girlboss, etc.), standing against her father and freeing Moll. After a tearful reunion with Mebh and her now moll-ified pack (do you get it? do you????), tragedy strikes: Bill shoots Moll, who collapses. This is not dissimilar to the actions of many parents of queer children, who hurt people not only because of preconcieved notions of danger, but because they fear their children’s “corruption”. Robyn, heartbroken, shifts into wolf-form and runs off, in a twisted coming-out of sorts. Finally, Bill chooses to accept Robyn as both his daughter and a wolfwalker, at which point his own bite takes effect, helping him defeat the raging Lord Protector.

Moll is healed, the pack moves, and the story ends with Robyn and Mebh falling asleep, then running ahead in wolf form. The ending expresses Robyn’s final transformation and acceptance of her wolf-self not as an alter ego but merely as another part of herself, just as queer youth learn to accept their queerness as a intrinsic, unchangeable quality.

The movie isn’t groundbreaking in the way that most people crave queer films to be. The queerness isn’t explicit, and there could be arguments made for a “friendship movie”. But this movie isn’t about that, to me. For someone who has seen so few movies where queerness as an exploration isn’t punished, where the “bury your gays” trope isn’t implemented, where the main characters are children without themes of inherent corruption… I won’t lie, it made me cry. 

It’s just. Isn’t it beautiful to see such a simple movie about love between girls? Isn’t it lovely to know that cinema is allowed to be like this? Wolfwalkers (2020) is many things, a stepping stone and a soft touch, a children’s movie and a mature film, a work of art and a labor of love. all that, and most of all, it is deeply, intrinsically, queer.

#wolfwalkers #movies #cartoons #queer love #animated movies #wolfwalkers meta #meta #long post #honeyspeak

[being-of-rain]

Some thoughts on my Classic Who watchthrough, the second half of season 21. I’ve got really behind on these thoughts, whoops. I’m still hoping to get through them all before the end of the year!

First of all, before I forget- why on Earth does the cover of the Planet of Fire DVD have the random heat suit right in the middle, but no Turlough on it anywhere??? Bizarre. You know I love the glimpses of genuine drama and character depth in this show, so I adore Turlough in his final story. The way he keeps secrets and sabotages the Tardis at the start, it’s just like old times. It’s so much more impactful because we’ve seen him grow and change, so reverting back like this feels like something big. Then the way he and the Doctor’s friendship is pushed close to breaking point is great to watch, when they’re forced into a situation where the Master turns up and lives are hanging in the balance, and the Doctor tells Turlough “if you're holding back anything that will aid the Master, our friendship is at an end.” This is a real soap opera for Turlough, I didn’t realise this was such a family drama. And then at the end he makes a choice to face his past! It’s just so good. Every day I pray that Doctor Who gets a bit more experimental with its companions so we get more character journeys like Turlough’s. Oh, and he goes to save Peri’s life while he’s busy with his own stuff too, good on you Turlough. Peri has a pretty strong start! Like a lot of companions, she feels like she gets a bit more generic as her time in the Tardis goes on, but her first story paints an interesting picture. I have to say I agree with her step-father that her plan to join a bunch of strangers for international travel at such a young age was a bad idea... though I guess that’s more or less what she ends up doing in the Tardis anyway. Though to be fair I thought she adapted to it very quickly- One of the first things she does when waking up to find herself on her first alien planet is to find a way to fend off the Master by threatening a Tardis component he needs and fight his control of Kamelion. Her accent is very much under development though huh. Isn’t the story that Nicola Bryant tricked the BBC into thinking she was actually American? How. I’m a big Dr Who fan who’s been binging through this series at break-neck speed, and even I forgot that Kamelion was onboard the Tardis by the start of this story. I can only wonder if casual viewers at the time remembered him at all, like a year after he was last mentioned, especially when his reintroduction here was so sudden. Maybe he was a massive pest of a roommate though, judging by how much satisfaction Turlough takes in disabling him with a vindictive “you’re finished Kamelion!” The Master reminded me of a wild west preacher in this one. I don’t remember seeing much of this story as a kid, except for the one cliffhanger when Peri opened the box in the Master’s Tardis to find the Master was shrunken inside. Iconic. Also, I know the set for the Master’s Tardis is basically always the Doctor’s Tardis with a black makeover, but the implication here is that he modified his central console to look the way the Doctor had modified his to in The Five Doctors, which is hilarious. Finally, the Doctor really says that he’s going to change his ways after Tegan leaves, then the next story kills Kamelion and the Master pretty easily huh. Damn dude. He also gets to say “obey me” at one point when trying to control Kamelion, which felt so weird but fit with the idea of a darker series.

I didn’t have a lot of notes written for The Caves of Androzani, probably because I’ve seen it many times before. Though this is somehow the first time I’ve noticed the way Peri’s accent slips in it. I know it’s a really solid story, but tbh the serial isn’t going to make a list of favourites for me. Bleak stories with basically no likable characters just aren’t really my thing. My favourite bit is naturally the part three cliffhanger. What a phenomenal moment. Maybe it’s because of how grounded and well made the rest of it is, but the Cave Beast really does stand out as particularly fake-looking. But I also thought that about the Myrka in Warriors of the Deep. Surely two of the least convincing monsters in Classic Who? I can suspend my disbelief pretty easily for most of the things in this show but I struggle with them.

One of the only things I really knew about The Twin Dilemma going in was that it was rated the worst Doctor Who story a few times in DWM polls, so I was interested to see what I’d think of it. And now that I have, honestly I feel like I’ve seen worse? Maybe it’s because I’ve absorbed a Lot of Who EU content, and that really raises the bar for what could be considered the worst Doctor Who story. Plus I didn’t really find it boring, which is a crime many other stories commit, but perhaps that’s just because this is the first time I was watching it. I think ultimately a lot of the story’s bad reputation comes from the Doctor’s madness ...which is fair. I think the show doing something different with the Doctor was a very good decision, especially after the Fifth Doctor, and I like how Six explicitly references in the story that his personality is a reaction to Five. And that sort of thing can be done very well, as shown by the Twelfth Doctor. But I think the show made a few big mistakes with Six (and I’ll always say that none of them were Colin Baker’s fault, who was clearly very talented and did the best he could with the scripts he was given). All the mistakes basically come down to the story not really making clear what Six’s personality actually is. The biggest crime of the story is his bouts of madness, like (infamously) strangling Peri, which don’t actually reflect nothing about the character, and don’t mean anything in the story at all. They’re just things that happen... for shock value I guess? Compare to Twelve in Deep Breath, whose extreme moments like leaving Clara without the sonic and taking a coat from a homeless man still felt tied to the character’s newly prickly pragmatism. At the end of Twin Dilemma the Doctor announces that he’s “fully stabilised,” but that doesn’t make a great character introduction when it doesn’t make very clear which extreme bits of his character are staying and which are just going to be ignored with no consequences. Then there’s two things that make the mess worse: firstly, they end the series like that. Maybe they thought that would make people curious about the next series, but personally I think showing the main character at his most unlikable then telling people to come back next time for more of it is a bizarre choice (Again, Twelve’s Deep Breath was better for being at the start of the series, and letting the audience explore the character further soon after.) Secondly, the next season clearly doesn’t have a strong idea of the character, because despite announcing him to be stablisied, Peri goes on to say that he’s still unstable quite a lot next season, and he definitely keeps a lot of his unlikable qualities. In short, in order to make an ‘unlikable Doctor’ work, the Dr Who writers needed a strong idea of what they were going to do with him, and they simply did not.

Anything about the rest of the story? The Doctor being mean meant that the times he had sweet moments with Peri and Azmael stand out. Him saying “brave heart Tegan,” was sweet as well, and so was Peri smiling at the end when he announced “I am the Doctor whether you like it or not.” Tbh one of the things that seemed the most out-of-character to me was when the Doctor calls the Tardis hideous! I bet he felt awful about that later. Something I didn’t like about the story was the way it used the word “alien” all the time as if it made sense to use when the main character is a different species, and sometimes as if the word meant ‘enemy.’ Very bad vibes! I hate it. Something I did like in the story was how Peri could still be very competent even though she was overwhelmed by the Doctor’s changes. One of my favourite moments in the story is when she teleports into the Tardis, a policeman in there points a gun at her and tells her to stop, and she just ignores him because she’s got more important things to deal with like worrying about the Doctor. Amazing. So yeah, that’s the end of Five and the start of Six. Close to the end now!

#my thoughts #five #turlough #master #kamelion #peri #six

[limetimo]

RAB 1-6 June

Live Fast, Die Young, Leave a Pretty Corpse by Anonymous Regulus survives the cave, two years later Sirius discovers a muggle fashion model who looks a whole lot like him, funny that :D Absolutely lovely!

From the Bottom of a Black Lake by ffleabagg123 You know that common sentiment that it's super sad that Sirius never lived to find out what Regulus did? Well, here he did and it's fucking even sadder. Emotional Hurt/Comfort

We Don't Die Like Heroes by Anonymous Regulus walks into a prank and whoopsie, everyone thinks the explosion killed him. It's not permanent but it definitely makes an impact. Brilliant writing!

Tell Me How To Be In This World by TabeaOrNotTabea Adult Harry the fater of 5 has a weird damned day when James and Lily Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and 4 Death Eaters show up as fresh as the day they died. Lots of feels!

It’s All Over Twitter by marauders_4_life Regulus only has a tiny little appearance, Sirius gets outed as trans on twitter

My Soul is A Mistress I Shall Not Heed  Regulus didn't die in the cave and decided to live the rest of his life rightfully suffering in hte Azkaban. His Daemon does not agree and leaves. Much later it turns out Voldy isn't as dead as they hoped and the human and daemon reunite to put Voldy back six feet under. Ft. Sirius and his deamon.

Harry Potter and the Prisoners of Azkaban by Trex_patronus YOOO! Regulus scuttered away to Azkaban to punish himself and hide from his former co-DEs, and then he gets Sirius as his cell mate, and then they escape to catch Pettigrew and protect Harry! ♥

Good Old-Fashioned Loverboy by TakeSwimingLessons Regulus runs away to live with uncle Alphard. Turns outrunning away from a curious James Potter is even harder than running away from his parents.

when you were mine by battlehamster Regulus on house arrest in single dad James' house also they're former high school sweethearts and univetably falling in love again ♥♥♥

just lovers (like we were supposed to be) by zeppazariel fake dating! must be one of my favourite tropes :D

i walk with dead people by thissucks Regulus Sees how people die, Bartylus

e cineribus ad astra by nitrogenoxygen Regulus the Potion Master in stead of Snape

all those shadows by Anonymous Regulus tries to yeet himself off the Astronomy tower so that his parents can't force him to join DEs, thankfully Sirius is there

Not Slytherin, Eh? by spoodle Ravenclaw Regulus! :D

The Best Mistakes by orphan_account more focused on Harry and Sirius' bond but Regulus plays a major part in here and also gets a portrait

unbreakable heaven by battlehamster James is pining after his friend with benefit!

Potions, Incantations, and ... Mandrake Leaves? by ImpishPyxie The 3 future animagi are trying very hard to keep the Mandrake leaves under their tongues but their boyfriends, friends and yummy deserts are making it very hard! :D

My Mere Monstrosity by theandrogynousdragon When Sirius told Snape how to find Remus on the full moon, Severus baited Regulus to go there instead. Now about two years later Sirius finally finds out the price of his "prank"

what's my prat brother doing here by jamestheswiftiepotter James is getting his wisdom tooth removed and his secret boyfriend is chaperoning. Very sweet!

do you have some sort of authority kink by jamestheswiftiepotter watching his prefect boyfriend reprimand people gets James hot under the cover!

are you even capable of feeling a casual emotion? by jamestheswiftiepotter TENNIS.

take the bloody kidney by jamestheswiftiepotter Sirius needs a kidney. Unlike him, James isn't too proud to go tell Regulus (who's his ex).

Help! I Need Somebody (A Little Help From My Friends) by INeedMoreSleepLmao Regulus and his friends! I love this so much! Written in the POV of the people that Regulus befriends.

In The Shadows of Flashing Lights by ifyouwvntto I loooove driven, ambutious James! I love the brand of a little petty bitch Regulus is in this!

The Break and the Fall by allalrightagain Peter and Regulus grow friendly. They both lose themselves in the war.

The Brotherhood of the Horcruxes by homoamphibians Regulus doesn't die and goes horcrux hunting with his brother instead

lifeless things (nothing beside remains) by nyxveuss time travel baby! with a fancy time loop on top!

The Secrets of Regulus Black by Josiem Secrets. Regulus has them. Could the Marauders mind their own business plesase?

Diptych by pansysnarkinson softboy Regulus is exposed to Riddle's diary

melodrama by moonymoment james is alive, regulus wishes he was dead, and neither will stop until Voldy is dead for good.

living in the red by Anonymous Regulus and Lily share a safehouse and grow close! There's more to it but that's the gist. Very lovely

Remember to Hate Me by brightened instead of Lily, Snape befriends Sirius. It's a beginningof a tragedy but for divverent reasons than canon Lily&Snape. Regulus is very much a side character.

not a reg fic but the ghost of you, it keeps me awake by Graceless_Lady what if James didn'T die but was held prisoner under the Lestrange Manor and they found him around OotP??

#regulus black #fic rec

[g-hua]

I haven't been here in years... But I think I need a place to vent and talk and all that.

My foster dad passed away back in 2016, and it was kind of a big blow since I was still studying and had to drop everything to pick up the slack... At the same time, a lot of bad things happened...

My ex, who was living with us, left after being in a relationship for 6/7 years, and I found out through his step mom that he was a huge creep and had been cheating on me with a 15 year old (we were both already +15).

My foster brother stole money from my foster mom, his bio mom, after cheating on his wife with someone almost my age (me and my foster brother are 18 years apart) and divorcing her. He stole half of the money my foster dad left her, took out a 10k loan with her as collateral, and another 20k loan with his ex-wife as collateral before disappearing with the money and his new girlfriend. I was left to pick up the pieces of my foster mom and his ex-wives' heart. He also made me work for him for free out of spite for a year and was telling everyone he was paying me while overworking me and telling everyone I was a bad worker. It made finding jobs until everyone heard about what he did before running away really hard. I only found out then what he was saying about me.

Doing all this was really tiring, and I didn't have time to keep up with friends or for social media, so I drifted away from all of my friends and was unable to find most of them again... I also felt like telling them about all these problems was too much and would burden them. I didn't tell anyone that my foster dad had passed away, much less the rest.

I ended up accidentally isolating myself pretty badly... So much so that I've only been able to reconnect back with two or three friends, one because I remembered his steam ID and was able to gather the guts to say hi years after adding him back and the other because I saw an email they sent to me asking to reconnect while I was cleaning an old email address inbox. The third friend I only reconnected because the first friend invited me to hang out with the two of them while he was in town.

Still... It's really hard now to keep in touch with them... I feel like an awkward burden that doesn't know how to socialise.

I also had to deal with a lot of health stuff...

It took a one week stay at a mental hospital to finally be diagnosed as AuDHD after 16 years of being told it was just depression/anxiety and being heavily medicated with SSRIs since very young. I ended up in the hospital because I was having a really bad meltdown and didn't know what meltdowns were or how to deal with them. No one ever diagnosed me because I was pushed so badly to mask with verbal and physical abuse. It only started to crack after my foster dad passed, and there was no one else left to hit me. I got medicated properly, but I'm still on a waiting list for CBT...

I was also tricked by a psychiatrist into doing HRT. I'm AFAB and NB, and most of my dysphoria is chest related, and when I finally gathered the courage to come out after over a decade and go to a doctor she lied to me and said that it was the law that patients had to go through a certain period of HRT before getting a mastectomy. She pressed me against a wall, saying I needed to do HRT to get surgery and change my name/gender on my ID, and kept lying about how it wouldn't affect my body all that greatly if it was just a few months. I caved and believed her. She did all the work herself (she was a psychiatrist), bloodwork, and prescribing the T. After a few months, I didn't feel good and even more dysphoric. I was gaining a lot of weight without any major diet/exercise changes. My neck looked weird. I tried to contact her about it, and she ghosted me. When I contacted the hospital, I found out she had retired. After going to another hospital, I was told that there was no such law and that there was something up with my thyroid. It took +2 years to reverse the health related damage she did, and I nearly needed surgical intervention to my thyroid gland... I've had to start everything from scratch because she never diagnosed me with dysphoria, even though she should have had to get me on HRT and change my birth certificate. The hospital doesn't have any records on me and a few handfuls of other patients, a few of them minors. She took everything with her when she retired.

The pandemic also messed up my immune system pretty badly. I had a lot of sinus problems and got sick easily for a long time after the lockdown and mask rules were lifted here.

So, life hasn't been easy... At all... I feel really behind on everything. I'm lucky enough to have my boyfriend even though we're LDR. We're both dealing with stuff, and we started dating right as the pandemic hit... It toppled everything... I feel like I got in such a hole, and it would have been much worse without him... I lost the will and confidence to do so many things I enjoyed doing before. Art was the biggest blow. I miss art. I miss it so much and don't know where to restart.

Right now, I'm just... Waiting... Slowly picking myself back up from burnout, waiting to be called for CBT so that I can handle life better, so that I can go back to finish HS, so that I can follow the field I always wanted and was always denied which was restoration. Everything has to be so slow for me now so that I don't relapse... Even enjoying things has to be slow. It's really hard for someone like me who spent their whole life pilling things on my back and constantly toppling over and pushing myself back up. I feel like I lost a little bit of me every time I fell, and that's why I'm in this state now.

So, I guess this is it for a first post. I mean, it's my blog, I'm supposed to write about these things too, right? I feel like I should have a justification for how weird I am. So, this is it.

#vent post #trauma dump #my brain feels like mush

[arty-shadow-morningstar]

Con Man's Daughter

Posting this because there isn't enough biodad! John Constantine content.

[Masterlist]

(Part 2)

-----

I feel like this should be a Damianette story or just platonic relationship after Jon got aged-up to seventeen and Damian wanted a friend his age but doesn’t want to admit it.

So basically there is this big bad in Gotham using magic that Batman was fighting at the time and enlisted John Constantine to help out.

John realizes that the villain is using a Miraculous.

“Oh. I think I know how he gets his powers. And lucky for you, Bats, I know an expert on this special brand of magic.”

And he did the smart thing and called up Marinette who at the time was already Guardian and was looking for other lost Miraculouses like in the Treasure Hunter AU I wrote.

He calls her at a really bad time. She was in the process of being chased by the guardians of the place. Monsters and evil spirits.

“Hello, Dad. What do you need and can you do it quickly?”

“Hey, sweetheart, it’s me. How is my little cupcake up to these days?”

“You called at a bad time.” Gunshots.

“WAS THAT A GUN I HEARD? WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU, YOUNG LADY?!”

“Somewhere in Japan. Getting a Miraculous. And why can’t you call me to check in on me and not ask me to help you with whatever mess you got yourself into.” More gunshots sounds and it was telling that Marinette was using a gun.

“Where did you get a gun? And don’t you have school?”

“It’s summer break. Don’t worry Maman and Papa know. Well, the fact that I am in Japan anyways.” Marinette sounded a little out of breath. Roaring and horrifying sounds at the other end. “Can we do this later?”

“As it happens, there is a villain going around Gotham with what I think is a Miraculous.”

Swears on the other end.

“Oi. Watch your fucking language, young lady.”

“How about a No and move the fuck back, old man. I am coming over right now.”

“Old man? I am not that old-” as a magic blue portal opens up in the Bat Cave.

And a red Chinese dragon comes out with someone riding it.

Its rider was a black-haired girl. She had a trench coat similar to Constantine's. I imagine her with a fedora. Like Carmen Sandiego style but not red. Sometimes red but only when she has to steal it from a museum or high security places and she leaves a name card with the name Carmen Sandiego. A sword strapped to her back and a dagger to her thigh.

She had a gun in her hand which she used to shoot the monsters as it was halfway through the portal and yelled out the spell to close it.

“Brilliant entrance but you are in lots of trouble, little lady. What were you thinking about going to another country unsupervised? And isn’t there still a butterfly problem in Paris?”

“One, I wasn’t unsupervised. I had Tikki, a billion years old being and a sort of god. Two.Well, it got boring trying to track Hawk-bitch down. And I found this legend about a guy with a Miraculous who disappeared in the temple and thought hey, more miraculous could mean another edge to defeating Moth-man.”

More bickering and John grounding Marinette who was acting very nonchalant about it.

Okay, at this point, I should say that Batman and Robin are in the background trying to make some sense.

Batman is surprised to find out that Constantine has a daughter who is also involved in magic like her Father but an apparently more specialised kind called the Miraculous. He is a little miffed that he didn’t know about John having a daughter. He did consider it weird at first that she had a slight french accent unlike her father’s Liverpool accent although she pronounced some words like he does.

He also connected some dots that she is also the Parisian heroine, Lady Rouge who Wonder Woman introduced to the League a while back and had declined to join the Young Justice or Teen Titans until everything in Paris was resolved.

Damian on the other hand was suspicious of the new arrival and came to the same conclusion as his father about the daughter thing.

Batman after a few minutes, clears his throat.

The Constantines stop arguing.

“Bonjour. Batman. Robin. Pleasure to meet you. I am Mari Constantine and yes, I am this homeless looking man’s brilliant daughter.” “Hey”

“Well, Mari. Your father thinks you can help us with this new criminal turning Gotham upside down. Literally in some cases. He said that you might be able to help us.” Batman said as he pulled up zoomed in picture of the Miraculous.

Mari looks through the Miraculous grimoire and tells them all about it and power-ups, basically the most effective thing to defeat the guy is to get the Miraculous off them. Plus a spell that would make the Miraculous ineffective if casted within a certain radius of it.

“Thank you for the information, Mari. Constantine, let’s go.”

Mari made to follow them.

“You young lady are grounded and staying here.”

“I don’t need another supervillain using the Miraculous which are my responsibility as Guardian to retrieve them for their own misuse and wreaking havoc on the city. And what if there is an akuma in Paris? I can’t go there if I am grounded in the Batcave although it is a cool place to hang out.”

“You can portal back to Paris but you are not going to follow me. Understood?”

“yes. crystal”

“Good. After me and Batsy get the Miraculous, you can do your Guardian duties.”

Damian snickers. Until Batman cut his mood short, “You are staying behind too. Robin.”

“But Father, why? I am much more capable than Constantine.”

“Hey!” Both father and daughter.

Damian is staying behind too because of the Miraculous power or other reasons and keeps an eye on Mari.

Damian stays behind and there were some protests about mari mad about having a babysitter and Damian doesn’t want to be a babysitter. Despite the two of them being around the same age.

“I got an eye on you so no funny business.”

“Okay, Dad, I am not going to have sex with Robin.” Mari said with a shit- eating grin. Robin definitely didn’t blush.

“I hate you sometimes.”

“I love you too, Dad. Go save the world. Byee.”

John eyes her suspiciously because she is not one to give up that easily usually.

He casts a spell to watch her as they leave. and which she totally knew about.

“So...I have one question.”

“Tt, ask and don’t bother me anymore.”

“Is Batman Bruce Wayne?”

Damian looks up, totally caught off guard.

“I am going to take that as a yes.”

Puts sword at her neck. “How did you find out?!”

“Opened up Google Maps and saw that we are under Wayne Manor. Connected the dots. Also I already knew when Dad made a bet with me once to find out Batman’s secret identity but he never did confirm it for me. And can you please not tell your father about this? I don’t feel like being interrogated by the Bat in the future yet.”

“Father must know about this.”

“I saw you looking at Scarlet here. An animal lover then? You can give her some belly rubs. She deserves it after helping me outrun those monsters.”

His silence was brought. To pet a dragon.

One thing after another and he ends up bringing out his pets-Jerry the turkey, Goliath the dragon-bat, Titus- and her introducing him to her other pets like a hellhound, griffin and other mythical creatures who mostly roam free but come to her when she calls for them and also the kwamis, at least the ones who came with her.

After 30 mins have passed, “So Robin how do you feel about disobeying our fathers?”

“I am in.”

“Depends. Are we going after the (villain's name) ?”

“Yes.”

Awesome montage of them getting rid of the spell John casted and flying out of the Batcave on their respective giant flying pets to the villain’s base.

Meanwhile, their fathers are not doing so well and are trapped in a death trap. John can’t say the spell because the villain made him unable to talk.

“At least, the kids are staying put.”

Cut to Damian and Mari jumping off their pets and onto the roof. Taking out the guards posted there and going into the building all sneakily and also taking out the guards that come their way.

They dropped into the room where their fathers and the villain is.

“Why am I not surprised?”

Villain starts an evil monologue about his mastermind plan to which Damian cuts it short by trying to cut him down with his katana. Mari goes to deactivate the death trap.

They are evenly matched with Damian’s training and the Miraculous.

Mari steps in as Damian was about to be killed. Taps on the shoulder of the villain and when he turns around, gives an awesome right hook that knocks him out.

Takes away the Miraculous and curses him. Wiped the dude’s memories of it.

“When I said stay in the Batcave, I meant stay behind at the Batcave. What point of being grounded, don’t you understand?”

“You mean, Oh, Mari, light of my life, my wonderful daughter, thank you for saving my ass. You are the best.’ by that, right?”

-----

Mari and Damian exchanged numbers and email addresses.

As she was about to leave the Batcave, “It’s been nice meeting you, Mr. Wayne.” and leaves with a wink.

John ‘ungrounds’ her for the look on Batman’s face.

-----

After this, Marinette and Damian become friends who bitch and vent to each other about their alter egos and various villains of their respective cities. (In codes, just in case) They also share updates about their pets and love of drawings.

They have that type of friendship where they trade favors. Mari calls Damian to Paris sometimes to help out with the akuma of the day and Damian sometimes calls her in when Bruce doesn’t let him go investigate a case so he can sneak out by magical means or as back up for when his brothers were too annoying to deal with.

It’s summer break so no missing school.

John and Bruce are aware of their friendship and some of the shenanigans the pair gets into behind their back.

-----

-----

Right. how this all started...

John and Sabine first met when the latter was still in college somewhere in France. John was tracking down a demonic entity which was targeting Sabine for some reason and she was the next target.

John saved her life and exorcised the demon. There was a heat of the moment thing and they had a one-night stand. There were a few more flings and hook-ups after that night.

And nine months later, Marinette Cheryl Cheng-Constantine was born.

When Sabine first found out, she called John to come over and he thought that it was a call for another hook-up and was very surprised to find out that it was not and that he was going to be a father.

They both like each other but do not want to be in a relationship together so they both remained as friends and John agreed after some strong-arming at the very least to meet his daughter before he goes to do his job. And pay for child support. And help Sabine during her pregnancy.

Pregnant Sabine was someone you don’t want to mess with. And John has never met a demon or anyone scarier than her.

He was at first not into meeting his child and there was a self-pity party he threw himself with how the child was going to live a bad life because he was the dad and how he destroyed every good thing in his life.

That’s why he is going to meet the baby once and leave maybe a letter and the occasional birthday present and stay out of their life. Forever.

The day Marinette was born and it took one look into her eyes for the HellBlazer to fall under the spell and all of his plans to stay out of her life to burn away.

At first, he tried. He really tried but he couldn’t do it.

Lasted 4 months before he came back, wanting to place protection spells on her and sigils around the house to keep away the forces of Heaven and Hell and other entities so they won’t use her against him as a bargaining chip.

Sabine calls him to babysit. He could have refused and Sabine would have easily found a babysitter. He moans and whines about how he is a great mage and not a bloody babysitter. Sabine retorts that it is actually called parenting since he is Marinette’s father. He grumbles but in the end, agrees.

The great John Constantine is wrapped around the little girl’s finger.

He was around for some of Marinette’s firsts. Her first word was “John”.

It made him cry. He wasn’t a good man and he doesn’t deserve someone this precious. His daughter doesn’t deserve someone like him as a father but fate made it that way and what can you do about it.

After an exhausting week of doing the usual and coming back from Hell, he saw that Sabine had sent him a video. It was Marinette taking her first steps.

Chas swears that in all the years that he has known John Constantine he has never seen the man look so happy.

------

When Tom came into the picture, John was there to take care of a toddler Marinette while Tom and Sabine went on dates.

Insert John threatening a much bigger Tom while holding a baby Marinette with wide eyes and hugging a teddy bear with the same coat as John’s. (It was something Sabine brought on a whim and to tease John when he came around.)

Tom is supportive and treats Marinette like his own flesh and blood.

John resolved to leave for good now that Tom would be there to be a father figure for Marinette.

That plan fell into the drain the moment he was going to leave for what was supposed to be the last time before Sabine pulled him back and knocked some sense into him.

His face was a big giveaway. Sabine knows that despite his claims of being a terrible father for Marinette, he was a good one and damnit she was going to make sure that Marinette would get to know her actual father.

Tom later made an awkward talk with John about how he was not going to replace John’s role as Marinette’s father.

Marinette was the flower girl at Tom and Sabine’s wedding. John was there too.

During bedtime, John would read her stories and use his magic to make it come to life. Although he would feel a little drained afterwards, it was worth it to see her smile.

Sometimes he told stories about his tamer adventures. (After cutting out some of the inappropriate bits)

------

When Marinette was about 5 or 6, Sabine was out on an errand and Tom was at home with Mari and helping her with her homework. There was a crash downstairs at the bakery. Tom went down to check it out to find John lying on the ground.

With a weak cough, he said, “Close the door. Close it.” Before losing consciousness

Tom did before a man with pitch black eyes slammed against it.

Thankfully John had installed heavy wards around the bakery when it first opened.

They held against the demon on John’s tail. Tom brought John inside and unsure of what to do, grabbed a rolling pin on the counter.

The man outside started pounding on the glass door and every time his hands touched the door, light glowed outwards, showing the invisible magic barrier around the bakery. Sparks and steams fizzled with every pound.

Despite the reddening and burns of his hands, the not-human didn’t slow down.

“ʝօɦռ....ʏօʊ ӄռօա ȶɦǟȶ ɨȶ'ֆ օռʟʏ ǟ ʍǟȶȶɛʀ օʄ ȶɨʍɛ ɮɛʄօʀɛ ɨ ɮʀɛǟӄ ȶɦʀօʊɢɦ ȶɦɛֆɛ աǟʀɖֆ. օռƈɛ ɨ ɢɛȶ ʏօʊ,” He laughs, the sound sends chills down the large man’s spine, “ȶɦɛʀɛ ǟʀɛ ֆօ ʍǟռʏ ȶɦɨռɢֆ ɨ ɦǟʋɛ քʟǟռռɛɖ ʄօʀ ʏօʊ.”

Tom knew that Marinette’s father was a con man. Come on, Master and Practitioner of the Dark Arts and Occult. But he was a good father nonetheless despite all his flaws and Sabine liked him enough so that was good enough for him.

Before today, magic was just the sleight of hands and use of fancy tools to sell the illusions. Now, with a could-be-a-demon knocking on his door to get to the father of the girl he sees as his daughter, he’s not so sure.

“Tom? Qu'est-ce qui se passe? (What’s going on?)” A little voice came from the stairs, “Dad!” Marinette padded across the floor to the body of her passed out father.

She shook him awake and there were a few soft slaps to the face.

“Dad, what’s happened?”

John mumbles, “Demon…. possessing some rich guy….. Exorcism…. Doesn’t like me very much…Don’t worry...wards going to hold.”

John manages to stand before falling down and Tom catches him before he hits the floor. He has a concussion. Tom turns to Marinette, “Go, Hide and don’t come out until It’s safe.” which she did

Unfortunately, a while later, Sabine returns from her night out and the demon upon seeing Sabine. “ɛӼƈɛʟʟɛռȶ..”

The demon possessed Sabine and the previously possessed dude hit the sidewalk with a thud.

“ɨռȶɛʀɛֆȶɨռɢ....” The voice coming out of Sabine didn’t sound like her mother which scared Marinette a lot. “օքɛռ ȶɦɨֆ ɖօօʀ օʀ,”the demon pulled a knife out of thin air, ,“ȶɦɨֆ ɮօɖʏ ɢɛȶֆ ɨȶ.”

Tom hesitated until the demon put the knife on Sabine’s neck and put enough force for a thin line of blood to be shown.

He opens the door and the demon knocks him out. Stepping over his unconscious body and looking down on it, “ʄօʀ ȶɦǟȶ, ɨ ǟʍ ɢօɨռɢ ȶօ ʟɛȶ ʏօʊ ʟɨʋɛ ʊռȶɨʟ ɨ ǟʍ ɖօռɛ աɨȶɦ ʝօɦռ, օʄ ƈօʊʀֆɛ.” and cackles. The sound was so wrong and unnerving and little Marinette tried very hard for her sobs not to be heard.

Too bad the demon had super hearing. “Come out, my little blossom. Maman is home. Why don’t you come out and give me a hug?”

It sounded so much like her mother and she nearly believed that it was her mother and not some entity in control of her body.

But she knew better from John’s stories of dealing with demons and how they would use the voice of loved ones to lure them out and into a trap. (Definitely not something one should tell as a bedtime story but Marinette was very different and had an unconventional childhood with John Constantine as her father.)

Wait...she got struck with an idea but she wasn’t sure if it would work.

Before she could do anything, the door of the cabinet she was hiding in was opened and she was dragged out.

The demon lifted her a few feet above the ground by the collar of her dress.

It heard Marinette saying something. “աɦǟȶ ǟʀɛ ʏօʊ ֆǟʏɨռɢ ƈɦɨʟɖ, ֆքɛǟӄ ʟօʊɖɛʀ?”

“Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii, omnis legio, omnis congregatio et secta diabolica.” Marinette was now screaming the words at the top of her lungs. She repeated the spell over and over again with fierce determination.

John, being his paranoid self, taught her the spell for an exorcism, just in case. Demons spared no one, not even a girl.

It screamed “NO….” as Sabine’s body contorted in strange angles before a dark shadow seemed to be dragged down into the ground. It made a desperate attempt to possess John before it was pulled away and disappeared. There was no sign that there was a demon attack.

After John woke up, he managed to piece together that his 5-years-old (Sorry 5 and a half) daughter sent a demon back to hell.

He was a very proud dad. (He was a tad worried about the consequences from this event and demons hold one hell of a grudge. He wanted his daughter to live a very safe and happy life. The bakery’s wards also need an upgrade.)

He also got the job of explaining what he actually did to Tom. And lots of reassuring.

Sabine, on one hand, was not happy that Marinette knew how to do magic. That is until John told her that he did it just in case so she can protect herself and later it was agreed that Marinette can learn some Magic spells and charms to better protect herself and when she is older, she can decide if she wants to continue or not.

----

(Part 2)

#bio!dad john constantine #maribat #damientte #damainette #platonic daminette #maybe? #minor swearing

[ukiyokki]

mars reads too much dreamnotfound fanfiction for their own good

a dreamnotfound fanfic recommendation list by your resident dumbass (me)

this took way to fucking long... i’m tired

below is a (very extensive) list dedicated to all my favorite dnf fics, ranging from quick one shots to 100k+ word monstrosities that devour the storage on my computer, forever incomplete masterpieces to ongoing works of art, you get the idea. i provided links for each fic/series for your reading pleasure. there will be no smutty/nsfw fics on this list, that’s just not my vibe lmao. this list goes in no particular order, and i’ll update it from time to time when i feel like it. now, without further ado, let us begin.

Heat Waves (complete) by tbhyourelame

(wtf else did you expect, looking at a dnf rec list?) amazingly well written, and while it’s not my favorite dnf fic it’s damn near close. in the midst of a brutal heatwave, a suffering dream comes to terms with the fact that he is desperately in love with his best friend. everything i could say about this fic has already been said by nearly everyone who’s read it, so if you haven’t yet caved into the hype, just go for it. you won’t be disappointed.

Gonna be around (completed) by georgescatcafe

(mc irl) my favorite dnf oneshot to date. just read it, i don’t wanna spoil for you :)

Inferno in the Sky (ongoing)by zairielon

(star wars au) an ongoing star wars au currently clocking in at almost 200k words. need I say more? everything about it absolutely slaps, each chapter is amazingly written, and it’s just good. also, can we just appreciate dream and tubbos dynamic in here? 10/10, amazing, must protecc. oh right, a summary: george, an exiled padawan turned engineer, must return to the jedi temple after attacks on it from an unknown assailant threaten the safety of himself and the other jedi.

Like Magic (ongoing) by KangarooKen, NotGra55 (Gra55)

(harry potter au) the unofficial official dnf harry potter au. we watch the young unlikely wizard pair grow up together throughout their years at hogwarts as they battle good old fashioned wizard racism. beautifully written, incredibly fun and suspenseful, and just an overall blast and a half.

GeorgeNotFound, Son of Poseidon, and the League of Minor Gods (ongoing) by Clichewho_69, Cygnvs, Trash_Kinggg

(percy jackson au) percy jackson au? check. “road trip” (technically quest but u get what i mean)? check. enemies to friends to lovers? check. this fic follows the plot of the lightning theif (albeit loosely), but everything is explained enough where you don’t have to read percy jackson to understand what’s going on. basically after moving to the usa, george gets taken to camp halfblood where he learns that a) gods exist. b) he’s the son of poseidon and c) he needs to prove that he didn’t steal zeus’s master bolt.

Protected (completed) by aenqua

(royalty/camelot au) my favorite piece of dnf media of all time. dubbed the official dnf camelot au, where dream is the heir to the throne and george is a servants son with a secret that couldp get him killed. these childhood friends grow up together and learn trust, love, and acceptance. (that summary did not justice to the masterpiece that is this fic) here’s the directors cut

The Hunter (completed) by HederEgo

(mc irl) a choose your own adventure fic with 13 different endings, where dream the hunter must kill george and stop him from beater the ender dragon. enough said.

The official dream team cowboy AU (series)(ongoing) by antsu_in_my_pantsu

(cowboy au) cowboys and outlaws horses and shit. and the big gay. it’s a cowboy au, what else did you expect? fucking yee haw (all seriousness this is a great read, i loved it so so so so much and i can’t wait for the final chapter to release).

This is a Drista moment, let's just accept it (completed) by Qekyo

dnf fic from drista pov. considering its unique perspective, it’s perfectly done. beautifully showcases a sibling relationship through drista and her memories/moments with dream, and it just works, y’a know? also drista supremacy.

Dear Dream (completed) by Qekyo

(wwii au) i don’t cry when watching/reading anything sad. translation: i’m a heartless bitch. however, this fic is the only exception. it caused me to cry so hard my mom walked in my room and asked if i was ok. ‘nuff said.

TECHNOlogical Wingman (completed) by Closeted_Bookworm

techno is the autocorrect ai on dreams phone, and he gains sentience. interesting concept, and the author fucking nailed it. great fic.

It Was Only a Fic (ongoing) by imagineitdear

dream starts reading a dnf fanfic (we’ve all been there buddy).

Teacher’s Pet (ongoing) by niyuha

(teacher au) in which dream is a high school english teacher and george is the new comp sci teacher in room 297.

Saltwater Secrets (ongoing) by earlgay_milktea

(mermaid/high school au) a great example of the shear amount of variety in fics this fandom has to offer. when i started reading dnf fics i would have never thought i’d find one about a mermaid george hopelessly crushing on his human friend, who happens to be his schools star swimmer. yet here i am, and i am far from disappointed.

Smash My Heart (incomplete) by dontrollthedice

george and sapnap are commentators for duper smash brothers tournaments, and george develops a crush on an up and coming smash streamer named dream.

roleplaying in the dark is harder than it seems (completed) by Alienu

laser tag. 10/10

solar system (completed) by quartzfia

(mc irl) george vists dream in pandora’s vault.

Ramblings of a Lunatic (completed) by jungkooksfic

ahh communicating through a notebook left on a shelf in a bookstore- what a perfect way to start a relationship.

Paint me like your French Girls (It's Charcoal, Actually) (completed) by Turtle_ier

(artist au) george is an art student, and dream is a model.

00:00:00 (completed) by isleofdreams

(soulmate au) 00:00:00 is the moment you meet your soulmate, as indicated but the clock ticking down on your wrist until the moment you meet. i’m not a fan of soulmate aus; this fic is the exception.

Blue Skies Smilin' At Me (completed) by kivy

(artist au) i don’t usually cry while reading stuff, but this brought me damn near close. george is a painting conservator and chats it is with the ghost of the artist if the painting he is working on. they fall in a love.

Current Location (incomplete) by hendollana

(influencer au) george simps for a hot american instagram model. who knew he’d actually follow back?

The Withering (series) (series ongoing, 1 work completed) by App1e_Juice

(mc irl) lore and world building and fight scenes and everything i crave. what’s not to love? something starts making the plants and crops around dreams village wither, and must team up with new friends to find the cause of the mysterious disease plaguing the land.

Minecraft, But You Can't Leave (complete) by facadecake

(mc irl) dream and george are sucked into their own private minecraft world together and must beat the game to escape.

Free The Game, Beat the End (incomplete) by goatgoatwasfound

(mc irl) a glitch in minecraft causes thousands of players from around the world to be trapped inside minecraft, with only one way of escape- beating the ender dragon. first dnf fic i ever read, and it’s still 10/10 for me.

Why don't you come a little closer? (completed) by lifeofandoms

george gets stood up by a date, and Dream pretends he’s the date to save george from the embarrassment. simply adorable.

lightning bug (completed) by saintachesP

(band au) while on tour, dream realizes his feeling for george.

Hold me closer (completed) by Treesofmyheart

(mc irl/dsmp) i just,, really like this trope.

Dizzy on caffeine (completed) by GleamingGreenGoggles

(coffee shop au) best dnf coffeeshop au i’ve read. periodt.

living a life of crime isn’t always easy (series) (completed) by itisjosh

(mafia/assassin au) stockholm syndrome except it’s not weird.

Inhibitions Make Interesting Situations (completed) by Ship_On_The_Sea

i pissed myself laughing. it’s just a dream and george being hilariously dense, flustered idiots. serotonin central.

thy eternal summer shall not fade (completed) by gracequills

(high school au) that moment when you recite shakespeare to your crush in your ap lit class instead of confessing (hate it when that happens).

All is Fair in love and Football (ongoing) by graciegirl2001

(college au) #1 favorite college au. in which george is a cheerleader, and dream is the football teams rising star player. this one gets extra points because of the amazing karlnap moments sprinkled throughout. *chefs kisses air*

online love (completed) by andbutso

(high school au) online classes go zoooooooom

Can’t help falling (completed) by isleofdreams

dream re-learns the guitar to sing to george on his birthday. beautiful. fluffy. amazing

dance in the rain and my arms (completed) by lazy_kitkat

george is a rain god, and dream is a wind god

Weather Boy (completed) by DaintyDiizzle

wouldn't you like to know, weather boy? (where dream can control the rain)

The color orange (completed) by anon

(mc irl) dream describes the colors of a sunset

Family Mode (completed)by Strawberry_flavoured_tears

they’re dads :,)

Breathing Room (incomplete) by papercranes

(band an) an amazing band au. the mad lad author wrote original songs for each chapter. above and beyond, mad props :). unfortunately, it’s incomplete

Piece of Clay (completed) by carbonbrine

(artist au) george is a sculptor and his sculpture comes to life- but oh no he’s hot.

Try (completed) by Not4typicalwriter

(royalty au) george must choose a suitor, but none of them are up to dream, his head knights, standards. or dream is hella jelly. also protective dream is perfect

When the Roses Bloom (completed) by HederEgo

(royalty au) close second for my favorite fic. go to royalty au for a quick serotonin bost. it’s all fluff and flowers and crushes, and i love it. criminally underrated.

Heavenstruck (ongoing) by dontrollthedice

george is dreams guardian angel, and dream want to find out more about him and his past life. bittersweet :,)

Bang and Burn (completed) by App1e_Juice

(spy au) george accidentally falls for target number 1 on sapnap’s secret agency’s hit list. this ones great, i love me a spy au :)

Can I get a uhh… (completed) by lemonskies

dream keeps pulling up to the drive through mcdonald’s that george works at drunk.

Pretty Stranger (completed) by anon

when looking for dream in the terminal, george sees a cute guy and decides to flirt.

Take my Hand (completed) by latinbias

(royalty au) another royalty au? poggers. surprise twists? double poggers. love this a lot.

seconds, minutes, hours, lifetimes (complete) by meridies

ROAD TRIP ROAD TRIP ROAD TRIP ROAD TRIP *inhales to compose herself* roadtrip au. unrequited love, ignored feelings, longing, pining, you know the drill. absolutely love this one, its the best roadtrip au i have ever read, in any fandom. (maybe cause i identify with it a little too much, but thats not important. whats important is that you read this fic. right now. im waiting).

Message redacted (complete) by justyouraverageloser

(text fic) dream asks for a girls number and realises hes been given the wrong number. however, an unexpected relationship starts to form between him and the stranger on the other end of the line.

the waves (completed) by anon

(mc irl) this fic was written by the same anon who wrote the color orange, which is up there on my fav dnf oneshot list. dream and george know they have a higher purpose. they don’t know where they came from, or why they are seemingly the only humans in the world, or how they feel about eachother, or even where the skeletons come from, but they are sure of one thing: they have to beat a dragon.

The Dream Doll (completed) by PeppDream (Pep_Pizza)

(voodoo i guess) i’m a real big fan of fics with really out there or unique concepts, so naturally this one makes the cut! i really liked it, it’s really sweet and made me think a lot about what matters to me in the world. george finds a strange doll in an antique shop, and would really like to just stuff it in a drawer and forget about it. sadly (?), the doll has other plans.

last updated February 6th, 2021

#dnf #dreamnotfound #dream not found #dreamnotfound fic #dreamnotfound fanfic #dreamnotfound fanfiction #dnf fic #dnf fanfic #dnf fanfiction #dnf fic rec #dreamnotfound fanfiction recommendations #dreamwastaken #georgenotfound #i’m ok i swear #i read too much fanfiction #i should probably go to bed

[cloudenthusiast2]

To be a human - Scaramouche x reader - Part 7 (Final)

You knew committing to a relationship with Scaramouche would be no easy task but you loved him dearly and unlike others, you believed he wasn't evil. But as a mortal and the devoted protector of your village you were too much of a good person, too much of a human compared to him and your differences slowly start to show.

Previous: Part 6

Length: 4000 words

Trigger warnings: blood, mentions of loss

A. note: Scaramouche is my favourite character in the game and I really love him. But I couldn't help and feel awful when he said those words in Inazuma. Look, I don't think that Mihoyo is gonna let the huge opportunity slip and not make him playable (for which we need to have at least a tiny bit of friendship with him and well, right now mc straight up hates him) but in case that does happen, in case he doesn't get a redemption arc, I made one myself. I wrote this to redeem him in my own, and hopefully your eyes as well. I hope you enjoyed reading this story of that little bastard as much as I enjoyed writing it.

It was fair to say that Scaramouche was stunned by the sight of the local people.

Certainly not because he suddenly grew fond of them. It was rather because the way they appeared out of blue when little Yu gave them a sign. She let out three short whistles and the forest came to life in front of the harbinger.

Old men and woman, little children and whole families walked towards them. It was clear even for Scaramouche that they looked uneasy and hostile. They surely wouldn’t have appeared in front of the fatui if it wasn’t for Yu.

The sixth harbinger was astonished.

Because they would trust someone, especially a child so much.

Because there were so many of them.

He counted the people walking towards Yu. Way more than he’d thought there would be.

These people were injured, dirty and exhausted. But they were alive. And all because of one person.

‘Impressive’ he thought to himself.

Yu talked to them, explaining why the fatui was there and promising that they’re not in danger any more. The people seemed less at ease in his presence now but the harbinger still felt the piercing gazes. If looks could’ve killed he would have been dead in an instant.

He knew they all blamed him for the things that had happened. Maybe they even thought he was the one who made the abbys attack their village.

But Scaramouche got used to these types of glances during the years and he did not care about them any more. All that mattered was that they were able to help.

He stood behind little Yu who was still clinging onto her doll. Scaramouche stared at the bloodstains on the toy as she asked the people of Qingce to help find you.

The thought to promise them money crossed his mind but the instantly threw it away. He just somehow felt that it would be very wrong.

These people won’t help him because he can pay them. They won’t help because Yu asked them to either. They will help because you had been guarding them for years.

Mentioning your name caused them to stir up, to get loud and the all of a sudden the whole crowd was ready to go and search in the mountains.

It was obvious how much they loved and respected you. Maybe even more than Scaramouche used to, he realized.

Yu turned to him and nodded.

‘I think we can go now.’

‘How are you going to search everything?’ the harbinger asked as he crouched down to the child. It wasn’t needed since he wasn’t much taller than her but it felt like the right thing to do.

Yu’s eyes wandered to the hat. She reached out and gently touched it.

Scaramouche normally would’ve ended the person who messed with his hat but when the child did it, he somehow felt no urge to do so.

‘It’s because so many people are watching’ he explained to himself. But it still felt a bit weird not being annoyed.

He cleared his throat so Yu would focus on him again.

‘We know this place well’ she answered, letting her arms fall back to her side. ‘We will split up and warn each other if we find something.’

‘My people are out too.’

‘Then call them back.’

The harbinger glared at the child. She really was fearless, wasn’t she, huh. First touching his hat and now disrespecting the fatui.

‘You know…’ he crossed his brows as he began to speak but Yu quickly cut him off.

‘Everyone is afraid of them. And they’ll just be in the way. They don’t know the mountains, do they?’

Scaramouche clenched his teeth together. But he had to admit that the girl was right.

He stood up and walked towards the agents standing by a nearby bridge. They were there since the people appeared to make sure they don’t try to do anything to their harbinger.

He gestured to bring them closer then stood and crossed his arms.

‘First, I want to know how a big group of fatui agents were unable to find anyone when there was a whole village hiding in the forest’ he questioned them with a glare.

The agents were bowing already but now they bowed even deeper.

‘F-forgive us, our lord!’ a pyro agent answered. ‘They’re locals and we…’

‘Spare your apologies, I don’t care.’

Scaramouche closed his eyes for a moment and let out a sigh. He really didn’t care, he only snapped at them to let out a little frustration.

‘Call back everyone from the mountains. And let these people do what they want. Anyone who disturbs them in any way shall be punished.’

‘But my lord…’

‘Do as I say!’

Scaramouche turned his back to them and the agents hurried away. He watched as the people of Qingce split up and began their search in the forest, around the destroyed village.

He looked up to the mountains. Clouds hid the most of them, they were so huge, so high. And there were so many places you could be.

Was is it even possible that you were alive?

Scaramouche never lied to himself and this was the first time he wanted to. He simply just didn’t want to accept the small chances of finding you. He wanted to feel hope.

‘You better be alive, Y/n’ he muttered to himself. ‘For your own sake.’

For his sake.

*

‘Have you taken a look around in that cave too?’

‘I haven’t but I can go if…’

‘Stay.’

Scaramouche climbed to the cave and looked into the hole. It was smaller than it seemed from below and inside it there was absolutely nothing.

He quietly let himself down. He jumped on a bigger stone on the path under him, the bells violently jingling on his hat.

Little Yu asked nothing. It was obvious from the harbinger’s expression that he found nothing.

The air began to feel a little chilly in the mountains. The sun was getting ready to go down and let the moon take its place.

They’ve spent their whole day with searching. They’ve found absolutely nothing so far.

There were a lot of traces left behind the abbys order and the monsters. It was also clear that the fight continued outside of the village as well. Corpses of dead monsters bordered the narrow paths.

But your body was nowhere to be find.

Scaramouche looked up to the sky. The first star had already appeared. And with that, their last piece of hope started to slip away.

‘We haven’t looked there yet.’

The harbinger snapped out of his dark thoughts and glanced at the child in front of him. She pointed at a smaller mountain nearby.

‘That’s very far away from the village’ Scaramouche claimed. ‘We’d be just wasting our time.’

‘Then where do you want me to go?’ Yu asked.

The man let out a sigh. She was right, they’ve already looked through every bush and searched every rock on this mountain.

He started walking towards the other one without saying anything, and Yu silently followed him.

In the valley below them, lots of figures were moving and changing places. The locals still haven’t given up even though it was getting colder and darker with every passing moment.

A red dot appeared. Then another. They started lighting torches.

Scaramouche felt like choking. He touched his throat and fastened his steps.

He tried to banish the horrifying thoughts from his head but his desperate tries were unsuccessful.

You’re dead. They’re only going to find a cold body and not you. You’re dead and it is his fault.

He shook his head to quiet the voices and to get back into focusing on his search.

This made him realize that he hadn’t seen little Yu in a while. Scaramouche stopped and turned his head to check on the girl.

She was behind him a few meters away. Her movements were too slow to keep up with the harbinger’s.

‘Are you coming or not?’ The man growled at her. ‘Hurry up.’

‘Sorry…’ She was out of breath, quietly panting. ‘You can leave me behind. I know I’m just slowing you down.’

Scaramouche rose his brows at the young child who was not even tall enough to reach the ground from a bigger rock. Was she really that aware? What should he do now? Just leave her here? He was willing to do that, to be honest. The sun was about to completely disappear.

Yu grabbed the side of the rock. She let her feet down, trying to get down safely but she was too tired – the little girl stumbled and fell.

Scaramouche didn’t even realize he was reaching out – but a moment later he found himself holding the child in his own arms.

They stared at each other, the sixth Fatui Harbinger and the kid from Liyue. It was impossible to tell who was more surprised, the one holding or the one being held.

But it was the man who found his voice first.

‘Don’t think I’m gonna carry you like this to the other mountain.’

‘I didn’t think that’ she answered quietly.

Scaramouche cleared his throat and opened his lips. But before any other words could’ve come out of his mouth, a sharp whistle cut through the air.

They both jerked their heads up.

The sound was coming from below, south to the village.

The whistle was repeated – two short, two long ones.

‘They’ve found her’ Yu said.

*

Scaramouche had no memories of how he got down from the top of the mountain.

All he remembered was the crazy pace of his heartbeat. The darkness invading his head. That terrific feeling clenching his heart, incredible, deep fear he’s never experienced before.

There were many people standing in his way in front of a big cave. He pushed them away as he rushed to get closer.

It was dark. Everyone stood with a torch in their hands. He heard the whispers but the words were incomprehensiblenext to the loud beating of his own heart. There were figures but they were blurry, everything was blurry…

Until he saw you.

You were laying on the ground. Your body completely still, your chest not rising nor sinking. Your clothes torn, bloody.

There was so much blood.

He stumbled and fell on his knees in front of you. A local turned to him and spoke but he understood nothing. His hand was shaking as he reached out to touch you.

You were… cold.

He forgot how to breathe and just stared down at your body. Your messy hair hid your face and that just didn’t feel right.

Why was this happening?!

Everything was supposed to become alright after they’ve found you!

How dare you be dead, how dare you not wake up to his touch, to his wishes, to all wishes around you…!

‘Balladeer!’

He snapped out of the blurriness when someone grabbed his arm. An old lady with a serious look tried to pull him back.

‘Let go of me!’ he hissed, pushing her away. He groaned when the grip became stronger instead on his arm. Pain in his heart and body blinded him as he shouted. ‘I said, let go of me or else…’

‘Please stay out of the way of my people’ the lady asked in a calm tone. ‘She needs serious help.’

‘What help can you provide when she’s dead?!’ he screamed at her in a hoarse voice. ‘You stay away from her!’

‘Please calm down. Y/n is not dead… yet.’

Scaramouche slowly closed his eyes. The words echoed in his head.

She’s not dead. She’s not dead. She’s not dead. Yet.

He took a deep, shaking breath. The cold air in his lungs cooled him off a little.

You were alive. But also, only barely. He finally understood what that meant. But he couldn’t let himself feel any relief nor fear…

He was a harbinger, he was part of the Fatui under the rule of the almighty Tsaritsa. He was Scaramouche, the Balladeer who simply could not allow himself to show any vulnerability in front of mere mortals.

Even if it was about you.

Even if he wasn’t the same person any more.

‘Bring a healer’ he said in a lower tone.

‘We don’t have any vision bearers among us’ the lady answered. ‘But we’ll do everything to keep her alive.’

Scaramouche nodded and stood up. It took a lot of strength to tear his eyes from you but he forced himself to do it and turned around.

‘Alert my people and tell them to give you all that you need’ he told the locals as he fixed his hat. ‘Tents, medicine, food, everything.’

The people stood there in silence for a few seconds, not knowing whether to obey him. They only moved when the old lady from before thanked him. Then they finally set off towards the village.

Scaramouche wanted to turn back and take a glance at you one more time to make sure you’re really there and not just a hallucination. But suddenly little Yu appeared in his sight and that made him stay.

‘She’s alive’ the girl whispered. The mask she had worn so far finally broke and her expression was an expression of a little child. She seemed tired, sad and a little happy. ‘I’m so glad… Scara.’

The harbinger nodded and closed his eyes for a moment. His heart was still beating fast with fear but those heavy weights on his shoulders finally started getting lighter.

He felt something touching his hand and he opened his eyes to the sight of Yu holding onto him.

This type of physical connection was very far away from what Scaramouche would tolerate coming from a human but he felt way too tired to resist. He just let the little girl clench his pinkie and they both watched silently as some helpers grabbed your body and moved it to a safer place.

*

You felt like something that had been sitting on your chest for a while finally moved. Something even bigger, a huge, scary type of darkness slowly left your body.

It left you with the first breath you were aware of taking in a long time.

You let out a small sigh. And opened your eyes.

There was a fabric cover above you.

You were in a tent, safe and sound. Alive.

The first thing you noticed was the temperature. It was warm, welcoming and comforting. Lot of soft blankets covered your body which hurt badly but the pain was dim.

You tried to look around but your head was too heavy. You could barely tip your head to the side.

But the sight was worth it.

Your breath was taken away one more time. You just stared in silence and you could feel your eyes widen in shock.

‘You’re awake.’

Scaramouche closed the book he was reading and looked at you with a straight face.

‘Finally.’

He put the book down with a slow movement.

Mixed emotions invaded you. You fell from relief to happiness to fright in a span of a few seconds. You were alive and Scaramouche was here with you, but – why did he seem so distant? Was he still angry at you even after everything that had happened?

You almost let fear overrun you. Almost.

But your gaze fell on his hands and he couldn’t hide his true feelings from you any more. His hands were visibly trembling as he still held onto his book.

Little did you know he could have not read a single word written in the last couple of hours. He just sat there and watched over your sleep, not dozing off for even a second himself.

The shaking of his hands became even more obvious and he couldn’t hold himself back any more.

He moved closer and placed his trembling palms next to the sides of your body. He looked down on you from above and as you stared back at him, you could clearly see something that wasn’t there before.

The usual cold, emotionless blur was nowhere to be found in his dark eyes. Instead, there was pain. And a lot of it.

‘How dare you do this to me?’

During the years of your relationship, he’s grown to be comfortable in your presence but he never ever showed any signs of vulnerability in front of you and you just accepted that it’s probably never going to happen.

It was shocking, almost scary seeing him like this.

The desperate expression on his face softened and he let his head plop on your shoulders.

‘Scara’ you whispered. Your voice was hoarse and dry but it was your voice. You were able to speak.

The realization of how unlikely your survival was suddenly hit you and your eyes teared up.

‘Scara, I… I really thought I was gonna die…’

‘Then you’re stupid’ he answered, speaking into the blankets covering your shoulder. ‘You should know that you can’t die without my permission.’

You laughed through your tears. They streamed down on your face, straight into your ears. But even that felt so good. Crying was a sign of being alive from the very beginning of life and you never understood that so much than at that time.

‘Don’t… leave me ever again.’

You didn’t event think, the words just left your mouth.

‘Don’t worry.’ Scaramouche finally got himself together enough to sit up and at least pretend that he was alright. ‘You have successfully proved you’re not capable of taking after yourself so now I’m definitely stuck babysitting you till the rest of our lives.’

His movements said otherwise though. The way he caressed your cheek to dry the tears up showed that he’s not just stuck. He wantsto stay.

Just what kind of thinks did he go through in the past days? – the question occurred to you.

To think about it… why did he even come back? How did he hear what happened? And your people?! Were they safe?

So many questions echoed in your head and you couldn’t even put most of them into words that made sense. So opened your mouth and quietly asked:

‘What happened?’

‘I want to know the same’ he said. ‘What happened? How did you get so far away from the village? How are you alive in the first place?’

You thought back to the night. Pain stabbed you instantly and you had to close your eyes for a moment to calm it.

‘I don’t remember much. But I think the abbys wanted to take me with them. Is that… possible?’

‘I heard all kinds of things about them’ Scaramouche nodded. ‘It is very possible. Continue.’

‘There isn’t much to say… Obviously I tried to resist but there were too many of them. They probably realized I would be just a burden. I remember a mage knocking me out. But they didn’t kill me…’

‘Well, given your injuries, they must’ve thought there’s not a lot of time left for you. It really is a miracle that you’re alive.’ Scara stated. ‘And you were in that wet cave for an entire day too. You were nearly dead when we found you.’

‘We?’

You stared at him and your heartbeat dropped.

‘You mean…’

‘Yes’ he sighed. ‘That people of yours.’

He went silent for a moment then rolled his eyes.

‘They helped me out… I guess.’

‘So they’re all alive and safe?’ you asked and couldn’t help but laugh in relief. ‘That is so amazing! Thank you, Scara!’

‘Thank yourself, idiot’ he snorted. ‘You were the one who kept a whole abbys army away from them after all.’

The harbinger shook his head.

‘I hate that you were so reckless to do that… but I have to say I’m impressed. We should spar again sometimes.’

‘Aren’t you afraid you’re getting your ass kicked?’ you grinned.

‘I compliment you one time and you get this cocky?’ he crossed his eyebrows. ‘I have to put you back into your place, I see.’

You laughed and as you were finally strong enough to move a little, you grabbed his hand. He had to oppress his smile with force.

‘And how did you know… we were going to be attacked?’

The question made his task much easier. The harbinger’s face turned back to being serious once again.

‘I have my connections’ he answered briefly. ‘But you don’t have to worry, the fatui had nothing to do with the attack.’

‘I would never think that’ you rushed to make your words clear. ‘I just… hope that my people feel the same.’

Scara shrugged. Then averted his eyes as he thought of someone.

‘I don’t know about the others but there’s one person who clearly does.’

‘Who?’

‘That girl… Yu or whatever her name is.’

You stared at him in surprise. You’d never thought the day would come where he mentions a child and doesn’t frown. And to think that it’s Yu as well! Yu who was normally wary of strangers and such a gentle child…

Just what happened to him? – you asked yourself again.

You searched for answers in his eyes but it seemed like there were things that even this new type of Scaramouche, this more vulnerable and open one wouldn’t tell.

But it was alright. Maybe you didn’t need to know. You were just happy to be there and experience it yourself.

‘How is Yu?’ you asked.

‘Alright’ Scara muttered.

‘Her mother?’

‘Oh, her… Well…’

He hesitated for a moment and that was enough. Every good and warm feeling was instantly replaced by cold ones and you found yourself sitting up in dread.

‘Please tell me… She’s not…’

‘Hey, don’t sit up! Lie back right now!’

When you didn’t obey, Scaramouche pushed you back with his own hands. He was right, your body started aching terribly from moving and the physical pain almost outgrew the pain in your heart.

‘Is she…’

‘Yu’s fine. Don’t worry.’

‘No! I need to talk to her!’

‘You won’t.’

You clenched your teeth together in despair and Scara flinched. He saw himself in you when you did that. Earlier this day his expression was still this full of pain.

‘Scaramouche!’ you said, calling him by his first name which he suddenly realized, he hated more than that stupid nickname. ‘I will go and talk to her and you can’t stop me!’

‘I…’

‘Just think about everything you felt while I was missing! I know you don’t want me to go away again but you need to understand.’

‘All I’m trying…’

‘Maybe I really am cocky to think that it was painful to you but if I’m not and it really was, then just imagine that Yu feels like that too right now. And on top of that, she has no hope whatsoever. She knows that her mother is dead and there’s no…’

‘Oh, to Celestia, can you shut up for a moment?’ Scara interrupted you harshly. Then he frowned and quickly continued. ‘What I was about to say is that under no circumstances should you get up with these injuries. But you can talk to Yu.’

‘I can…?’

‘Yes, idiot. I’ll call her over.’

You stared at him in silence.

‘You’d… do that?’

‘Yes.’

‘So… you won’t mind if she stays with us?’

‘I guess not?’

‘Not even for a long time?’

‘I said no, stop asking these stupid questions.’

You were speechless and just gazed at him without saying anything for a long time.

You had mixed feelings about the Scara you woke up to so far. But this had finally convinced you that he really has changed into something better.

A slow smile formed on your lips. It grew bigger and bigger and it completely lit your face up.

‘You’re grinning like an idiot’ Scara claimed but nothing, not even his salty remarks could take away your happiness any more.

‘Scara, I really love you.’

‘You better do.’

He stood up and turned away as quickly as he could to try and hide the blush on his face. He knew if you saw that, you’d be teasing him about it till the rest of your lives together.

You were still grinning “like an idiot” as he was rushing to leave the tent. But even though he was in hurry, before he’d stepped out, he made sure to turn back and say:

‘I’ll be back.’

#I #NEED #TO #SLEEP #aaa #don't forget to comment;))))) #cloudenthusiast #genshin impact #scaramouche genshin #scaramouche x reader #scaramouche angst #scaramouche #genshin x reader #genshin #genshin impact x reader

[amitlee]

I love you're writing ! And been wondering for a while if i could send an ask so here i am!, I was wondering if you could do young tommy and techno if ya haven't! <3 it would be adorable¡ Thank you for your time!!! :)

Treasure Unimaginable

Warnings: none

Summary: Tommy gets left with Techno and has attachment issues to Phil. Techno is left to comfort 7 year old Tommy

Thank you so much for the request, I hope you all enjoy it💕

———————————————————————

Phil walked down the hallway to Technoblade’s room. He and Wilbur had to go into town today and wouldn’t be able to take Tommy, so someone had to watch him. Phil knew Tommy had a hard time being away from his father, which is why he was going to tell Techno a little in advance. He knocked on the door three times. “Tech?” He called.

He heard a muffled noise telling him to come in and opened the door. He stepped over the threshold into the room, taking in the tidy appearance. Techno’s room was rather empty, his style being close to minimalism.

“Hey, Tech. You busy?”

Techno set his book aside and turned his full attention to Phil. “No. Why?” He asked.

Phil smiled. “I’m going into town with Wil. Do you mind watching Tommy until we get back? It won’t be long.”

Techno sighed, thinking about it for a moment before looking back at Phil. Phil was basically pleading with his eyes. Techno looked away quickly, but couldn’t find it in his heart to say no. “Yeah. I guess that’d be alright.”

Phil beamed, happiness radiating off of him. “Thanks, mate! He’s asleep right now, so me and Wil are gonna run. He’ll probably be up in half an hour or so.”

Techno grunted, picking his book back up and settling back down in his bed. “Alright. See you later, dad.”

Phil’s smile got even wider and he held himself back from emitting a happy trill. “See you in a little, son.” He closed the door and went to collect Wilbur.

If Techno was honest, he’d completely forgotten he was supposed to be watching Tommy until a small voice came from the hallway.

“Phil?” A sleepy voice called.

Techno sat up and yelled back, “In here, Tommy.”

After a moment, the thudding of feet was heard and Tommy carefully opened the door. He looked wearily at Techno, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

The seven year old was the embodiment of adorable. He had clearly just woken up, with his hair resembling a bird's nest, he had a blanket draped over his shoulders, and was holding onto a bear plushie.

Tommy looked around the room, noticing the absence of his father’s presence. He looked back to Techno, now a little more awake. “Where’s Phil?” He asked.

“He left to go to town with Wilbur. They’ll be back soon.” He watched as Tommy tried to understand and act tough in front of his oldest brother.

“Okay.” Tommy said with a wobbly voice.

Techno’s head shot up to look at the boy, he was still wiping his eyes, but there were tears coming out instead.

“Hey.” Techno said as gently as he could, which wasn’t very gentle but was a good effort, “Come sit.” He patted his bed.

Tommy looked between the door and Techno. His bed looked soft. What he lacked in room decor, he made up for in comfortable blankets, pillows, and even a few plushies.

Eventually, Tommy closed the door behind him and came to sit on the bed. Techno sat up to sit beside Tommy. They sat in silence. It was slightly uncomfortable. Techno was pretty sure he could hear his own blood running through his veins. “So.” He said, hoping Tommy had something to say.

He did. “Do you know when dad will be back?” Tommy asked, looking up at Techno with saddened eyes.

Techno smiled, “Miss him already?”

Tommy nodded.

“I’m not really sure.” Techno hummed, “It won’t be long, there isn’t much to do in the town. I’m sure they went for groceries.”

Tommy wasn’t satisfied by this answer, still looking for a time.

Techno thought on his toes, “They may have gone to the dentist. I think I heard dad talking about Wil needing to get a shot or two.” It was a complete lie, but if it made Tommy glad he was here instead of with them, it would be worth it.

Tommy’s eyes widened. Techno chuckled at the reaction, laying on his back. “Yeah.”

Tommy followed, laying next to Techno. They fell back into silence, this time a little more comfortable. Techno was actually just about to fall asleep when he felt something rest on his arm.

It was Tommy, he’d gotten closer so he could cuddle up next to Techno. Techno had no idea how to react, not very used to physical affection. His brooding personality and figure pushed the possibility of him being vulnerable into the back of his mind.

Images flashed through his mind. Him being a younger and having Wilbur practically attached to him at all times. Wilbur was a very affectionate person, while Techno preferred to show his love through gifts and acts of service.

He didn’t have much experience with giving affection either, so he was rather cross at what he was supposed to do to help calm his little brother.

He patted Tommy’s head gently a few times, awkwardly. This, surprisingly, got a giggle from Tommy.

“What are you laughing about?”

“It’s just so weird.”

“What’s weird?” Techno had thought he’d done pretty well.

“You!” Tommy said, without realizing what it sounded like.

Techno hummed. “I think you,” he poked Tommy’s stomach to emphasize, “are pretty weird too.”

Tommy giggled again, “Am not!” He said, snuggling closer.

“Are too!”

“Am not!”

“Are too!”

“Not!”

“Are!”

“Not! Not not not nohohot-“

The playful argument was cut off when Techno spidered around Tommy’s stomach. Making the child squeal and curl up.

“That’s a little weird. Do you hear something, Tommy? Tommy, where’d you go?” Techno made a show of trying to find Tommy. He lifted the boy up slightly by his hips, squeezing them gently as he went. He pretended to check under Tommy, to find Tommy, only to come up empty handed.

“Oh no, what’ll I ever do. Phil will be so upset I lost him.” Techno said. He wiggled his fingers over Tommy’s ribs, delighted by the sound of his slightly hysterical laughter.

Tommy was feeling much better, he’d never gotten to be playful with his brother like this. The tingling sensations were very pleasant, even though they were intense. His ribs had always been a bad spot, Phil had made sure to use it against him a few times.

Techno moved down to Tommy’s sides, gasping, “Tommy! There you are!”

Tommy’s giggles died down but became more hysterical at the playful tone Techno had acquired.

“That’s weird, you got all giggly all of a sudden. Is something wrong?”

Tommy laughed harder, “Yohohou’re tihihickling me!”

Techno slowed his fingers, “Oh. Am I?” The awkward atmosphere was completely gone, now replaced with a relaxing, loving feeling that swirled around the room.

“Yehehes.” Tommy said, catching his breath with a smile still stuck to his face.

Techno stopped his movements completely, now just resting his hand on Tommy's stomach. “My apologies.” He teased, poking his sides once more before retracting his hand.

“It’s oKAY, Tehehech.”

The peaceful silence encased them once again as the two calmed down. Tommy, even though he was content, couldn’t help but think that his father and brother weren’t here. It made the house feel empty and his heart a little heavier.

“Tech?” He called.

Techno looked down to make eye contact with Tommy, “Yes?” He answered.

“Can you do it again?”

Techno wasn’t really sure what he meant.

“Tickles, please?” Tommy asked. Techno mentally awed, the boy was still young enough that he had no idea of shame or embarrassment. The purity of the situation made Techno have a strong urge to protect Tommy from anything that may befall him. He promised himself that no matter what, he’d never let anything happen to Tommy. The bittersweet future would simply have to change for him.

“Sure. You want to hear a story?”

Tommy smiled, butterflies erupting in his stomach. “Yes.”

Techno smiled. “Long, long ago. There was a traveler named Rincewind. He went to the faraway lands of Anhk to search for buried treasure and guess what he found?”

“What?”

“A map.” Techno paused. He rested his pointer finger on Tommy’s belly, beginning to trace the outline of a simple map.

“The map was very big,” he circled up to Tommy’s ribs, tracing around the bones. Tommy giggled, wiggling despite trying to stay still.

“And in the center was an X,” Techno wiggled a finger in Tommy’s belly button quickly, eliciting a loud squeal followed by peels of laughter. He withdrew it and continued to make out the map.

“The X was the final destination for Rincewind. There he would find treasure unimaginable. But he had to get there first. First, he went over the sea,” Techno swirled his fingers to make the motion of waves. Tommy squirmed away, only to be caught and put back with Techno, “Ah ah ah, we’re not done yet.”

“Ihihit tihihickles!” Tommy giggled out, hiding his face in his hands.

“Oh! There’s the next obstacle, the cave of darkness.” Techno shot both hands into Tommy’s exposed underarms, wiggling his fingers softly.

Tommy screeched, “TEHEHECHNOHO! NAHAHAT THAHAHAT! GEHEHET HIM OHOHOUT OF THEHEHERE!”

Techno laughed with him, “Alright alright,” he withdrew his hands, leaving Tommy panting, “His visit to the cave was cut short, so he headed down to the treasure.”

Tommy giggled in anticipation as Techno began circling around his belly button, getting closer with each circle.

“’Finally’, Rincewind said, ‘I’ve waited years for this treasure. Delicious, yummy treasure.’ And he began to dig up the treasure.” Techno narrated as he slowly pulled up Tommy’s shirt to expose his belly button.

“And at last, he was able to dig into his treasure of,” He paused for dramatic effect, “raspberries.” He took in a large breath and blew a raspberry right over Tommy’s belly button. Causing the seven year old to fall into laughter immediately. He blew another, making Tommy buck his hips and begin squirming.

In the midst of the raspberries, he began to scratch at the sides of Tommy’s stomach. Tommy's laughter became intermingled with hiccups and his squirming became slower. Seeing this as a sign to stop soon, Techno blew one final raspberry, shaking his head into it and then pulling the boy’s shirt back down and patting his stomach.

“Rincewind decided that the treasure he found that day was his absolute favorite.” Techno concluded the story and gave a small bow.

———————————————————————-

GUYS I GOT RANBOO MERCH. THE GENDER MAN NOW HAS APPROXIMATELY $65 DOLLARS FROM ME SMH MY HEAD BUT IM LITERALLY SO EXCITED

Anyways…I hope you liked the fic! Thank you so much for the request and the compliments! They mean a lot 💕💕

#mcyt tickle fic #mcyt tickle #tickle fic #lee!tommy #lee!tommyinnit #ler!technoblade #Ler!techno #young!tommy #dsmpticklefic #dsmp tickle fic

[babyloposts]

MY HERO DAD-CANNONS

Summary: How my favorite boys would react to their child having a nightmare. Some single dad head cannons because my baby fever is back

Includes: Bakugou Katsuki, Midoriya Izuku, Kaminari Denki, Takami Keigo

Warnings: none, fluff, aged up characters, references to GN parent titles

———————————————————————

Bakugou:

He was up and down the hall as quickly as the first wail left his daughter’s mouth. He was desperately hoping that the screams were not from a villain trying to kidnap her.

He was relieved for only a second as he saw her safely tucked into bed as he left her earlier that night, but the worry came back as he saw her broken out in a cold sweat.

Careful not to startle her awake Katsuki rubbed her forehead gingerly removing the sweat and bangs from its place matted on the top of her head.

“Kid. Wake up.” His tone soft. The one he reserved only for her.

“Daddy?” Her brows furrowed and her eyelashes fluttered open to see a stoic yet comforting face.

“You okay? I think you were having a nightmare. Scared the hell out of me.” He chuckled, still soothing her as her breathing slowed.

“M-me too. I was so scared Dad. The monsters were trying to get me.”

“What monsters?” Katsuki feared the worst. What if she had seen a villain and they knew she was his kid. That could mean she was being watched and in danger. He couldn’t let anything happen to her.

“From the movie dad. The one I watched when hanging out with the Midoriya’s.” Bakugou’s face scrunched and his daughter winced in fear of being in trouble for watching a PG-13 movie.

“What’d I tell you about watching scary movies with Deku’s kid. Now look at you all scared with nightmares.” Bakugou scolded, but his expression softened. He was just glad she was safe.

“I’m sorry Dad. I won’t watch scary movies anymore. I don’t want any monsters to get me.”

“It’s okay. I promise I won’t let any monsters get you. They have to go through me first, alright squirt.” She nodded and gave Bakugou a small smile, knowing she was safe and in the most capable hands of the #2 hero.

Bakugou smoothed her hair back and placed a kiss to her forehead. “Love you squirt. Sweet Dreams.”

“I love you too Dad.”

———————————————————————

Midoriya:

Izuku is no stranger to weird dreams, but he had never expected his One for All induced visions to transfer to his daughter as well.

He wouldn’t even know if she hadn’t been weeping by his bedside at one in the morning.

“D-daddy.” A small voice warbled out next to Midoriya. His eyes shot open not expecting to see a teary eyed five year old only a few inches away from his face.

“What’s wrong Bubby?” Izuku quickly sat up in bed and moved to the edge of the bed, scooping the crying child into his arms.

“I had a bad dream.” She whimpered as he wiped the tears from her eyes.

“Aww I’m sorry.” He hugged her tightly to his chest rocking slightly to soothe her. “Do you want to talk about it?”

She nodded slightly before starting. “I was so scared Daddy. You were there and somebody—a bad man—stole your quirk away from you. He was too strong. And nobody would help you. Not even All Might. And I was too little to help you, Daddy and I’m so sorry.” And just like that the tears were flowing from her tear ducts again.

Izuku shushed her and started back trying to soothe her again. “Don’t worry, I’m right here, okay? I’m not going anywhere.” He brought his daughter back to her bedroom and tucked her into her Princess themed bed. “Are you comfy?” She asked and she nodded.

Izuku gave her a kiss to her temple before getting up to move to a bookshelf on the far side of the room. “Would you like to hear a story?” She nodded and Izuku climbed into the side of the bed and wrapped his arm around her.

Midoriya read the story book to her that were more kiddie versions of some of All Might’s best missions (even in fatherhood he was a total fanboy).

His daughter was knocked before he was even halfway through the book, the tales of heroism and safety lulling her into a peaceful sleep. Although she was peaceful and very cute Izuku had realized his grave mistake far too late.

His daughter was the lightest sleeper he knew. It would be almost impossible to remove himself from the bed without waking her up.

He tried several times to stand from the bed without causing her to stir, but ultimately failed and gave in to the reality that he’d be spending the night on the edge of a twin bed.

It wasn’t the most comfortable thing in the world, but Izuku would give up anything for his little girl, even the comforts of his own bed, to make her feel safe.

———————————————————————

Kaminari:

It took a lot to get Denki up, which wasn’t always a good thing having such a young child to look after. He was finally awoken by the third kick to his ribs by a little foot in bed.

“Ouch, what the-?” Denki whipped the blanket down to reveal a small body in the fetal position hunched against his side.

“Wha- hey Little Man. What happened? Why aren’t you sleeping in your big kid bed?”

The small boy was unmoving, pretending to be asleep to prevent being bothered or moved from his comfortable position.

“I know you’re not sleep, Buddy. Tell me what’s wrong. Please?” Finally Denki’s son’s head poked up from his arm shields and showed off his pouty face.

“I don’t want to sleep in my big kid. It’s too dark and scary in there. I don’t want to have bad dreams.” The child’s eyes started to water.

Denki sighed. “Bud, I thought we agreed that when you turned four you’d stop sleeping in Papa’s bed and sleep by yourself.”

“I don’t want to anymore. I’m scared. It’s too dark and you are too far away.” He whined. Denki knew that he was the age where he needed to start being able to self-soothe and sleep by himself, but he couldn’t deny his son. He was a good kid, maybe with a bit of separation anxiety, but all around he was pretty easy.

Denki’s nanny would probably scold him for babying his son, but he didn’t care. It’s not like Denki liked sleeping alone anyway.

“Bud, you can’t sleep down in the covers like that. You’ll get way too hot.” A small smile spread over Denki’s lips as his son shuffled his way up onto Denki’s chest with his arms wrapped around his neck in a death grip.

Denki chuckled once the grip loosened and rubbed his son’s back as he slipped into sleep. “Can we try sleeping in your big kid bed tomorrow night?” Denki whispered.

“I’ll try Papa, but no promises.” Denki chuckled and closed his eyes in content.

“That’s okay Buddy. I love you.”

“Love you too, Papa.”

———————————————————————

Takami Keigo:

Keigo really hoped that an intruder wasn’t in the house right now. He knew it was irrational to think, but stranger things have happened, plus he was already worked up from the last patrol he went on last night where he fought a surprisingly difficult villain.

Stealthily Kei climbed out of bed and sent a feather flying into the kitchen where the noise was coming from to scope out the intruder.

When he heard a high pitched scream and low thud he was actually more relieved than worried.

He rushed from behind his bedroom door out to see his son sat on the ground in front of the open refrigerator.

“The hell are you doing up? It’s 2 AM!” Keigo whisper yelled to ensure he didn’t bother the neighbors.

“Sorry Dad. I was hungry.”

“What are you still hungry for? You basically ate a whole chicken by yourself for dinner. At this rate keeping up with your eating habits cost more than the rent.” Takami chided, but he couldn’t be too mad, his son was a growing boy and they needed their sustenance.

“I’m sorry Dad. I just woke up and wanted a snack that’s all.” That’s what he said, but the glossiness in his son’s eyes gave him away.

Keigo bent over to pick up the food that had fallen out of the fridge and grab a carton of ice cream out of the freezer along with two spoons. His son watched his father intently as he moved to the kitchen island to sit and patted the stool next to him.

“Come sit down and have your snack.” Keigo sighed. Reluctantly his son sat down beside him and grabbed a spoon scooping into the slightly freezer burnt cookies and cream.

“So tell me what’s really going on. You wouldn’t tear up just from me knocking you on your ass earlier.” His son’s eyes grew wide, surprised that his dad had noticed that small detail.

“There’s nothing wrong.”

“I know when you’re lying to me Kid. So just go ahead and tell me.” Kei said wrapping an arm around his son’s shoulders.

He took a deep breath before finally caving. “I... I had a dream about Baba. When they died.” Keigo’s usual cocky demeanor faded away and his eyes softened as he recalled the painful memory.

“Wow.” Keigo said as he cleared his throat. “That uh... hasn’t happened for a while. I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault Dad. I just wished... I don’t know. I just miss them a lot.” He began to tear up again. Keigo sighed. It has been almost seven years since his significant other died tragically from cancer. Their son was just a kid then. What Five year old can really comprehend that and grieve a parent properly. Since then Kei’s been doing his best as a single Dad, but maybe he should have talked about them more.

“I know you miss them Kid. I do too. I miss them everyday, but you remind me of them. You’ve got the same face and spirit they had, so it’s like a little piece of ‘em is always with us. They’re in you.” Keigo’s grip tightened around his son’s shoulder and he left a comforting rub up and down his forearm.

“I know sayin all this isn’t going to bring them back, but just know they’re always in your heart and they loved you very much.”

“Thanks Dad.”

“No problem Kid. Just finish your ice cream and get to bed. I don’t want you late for school in the morning.”

His son nodded. Keigo stood from the island and ruffled the hair of his son before depositing his dirty spoon in the sink. Before he made it all the way to his bedroom a voice rang out behind him.

“I love you Dad.”

Keigo smiled softly. “Love you too Kid.”

#babylowrites #bnha #mha #hawks x gender neutral reader #hawks x gn!reader #bnha hawks #mha hawks #hawks headcanons #dad hawks #dad headcannons #bnha bakugou #mha bakugo #bakugou headcanons #dad bakugou #bnha deku #mha deku #midoriya headcanons #dad Izuku #bnha fluff #mha fluff #my hero academia #my hero headcanons #bnha denki #mha kaminari #dad Kaminari #denki headcanons

[robinofgothamcity]

♡ prompt: a kid appears in the past, claiming to be yours.

♡ pairing: jon kent (superboy) x fem reader

♡ lyric inspiration: “I will follow you way down, wherever you may go. I will follow you down, to your deepest lows. I will always be around to wherever life takes you. You know I’ll follow you.” 

♡ note: not checked for grammar or spelling mistakes 

✨  you were walking in with Damian, blabbering about something that he could have cared less about as you approached Jon. the two of them had to head over to the Batcave to talk about a mission that went sideways a few days ago and you were too bored to not tag along with them. 

✨  while you weren’t much of an active hero, you did get called in from time to time to help the Titans or Jon when they needed it, so it wasn’t a secret to you about their identities. Jon more than Damian was more opened to tell you who he actually was and you found comfort in the idea that he trusted you that much baggage. 

✨  “what are we gonna do later? i’m not really in the mood to be going home. everyone has been getting on my nerves lately.” you asked the pair. Damian rolled his eyes as Jon smiled, “you can watch movies back at my place! i’m sure my dad wont mind,” he said with a small blush. 

✨  Damian wanted to groan, feeling the strong sense to cringe at Jon’s foolish attempt to ask you out on a date. you agreed, hugging the taller boy as he fell stiff at the touch. Damian groaned but this time out loud. you gave him a look before dismissing him. 

✨  all of you arrived to the cave, greeting Alfred before heading down to the cage. you had offered to make yourself and the boys coffee while they talked in the cave. Alfred was making small conversation about how your day was and if Damian was doing alright in school. while he knew Damian was smart, he knew in social settings, he wasn’t the greatest. 

✨  finally, you finished making all of their coffee’s and put them on a tray before heading downstairs. you heard noise from the top of the stairs and being careful with the coffee, you zoomed downstairs to try and figure out what was going on. you set the coffee on the small table outside of the cave and opened the door to see Jon and Damian basically fighting someone around the cave. 

✨  you looked at the girl, who looked no older than nineteen, trying to save her own ass as her eyes gleamed red. once you caught her attention, she immediately ran to you, “MOM! THANK GOD!” she yelled. Jon without hesitation ran to protect you but the girl beat him to you and engulfed you in a hug. 

✨  “first off, I’m not your mother and I have no idea who the hell you are,” you screamed as Jon and Damian took her off you. Damian restrained her as you and Jon looked at her, “who are you and who/what sent you here,” Damian threatened as he took the pocket knife he had in his sock and put it against her throat.

✨  “I’m Lois Kent, daughter of ( your name ) and Jon Kent,” you looked at Jon before you started laughing hysterically. you tried to calm yourself down as Lois continued to explain herself, “I’m from years into the future. I was sent back in an accident by Uncle Damian and my dad,” she yelled, trying to get Damian to release her. 

✨  Jon, who had yet to speak word, bent down to her height, “why should we believe you? you very well could have known our identities and made up a stories to ambush us,” Jon said. “run a DNA test if you’re so concerned,” she replied. you gave Damian and Jon a look as Damian asked you to grab her while he called his dad and even Clark to come down to the cave. 

✨  “we can start on the DNA before our dads get here but until then, you’ll be restrained to the chair until we get the results,” Damian practically spat as he grabbed ropes and cords before sitting her down on Tim’s computer chair, “you have a lot of nerve making up such a story,” Jon whispered to her as she groaned, “you make up some crazy story pretending to be our kid and even giving yourself my mothers name to make it even more believable.” 

✨  she sighed, “I’m not lying! I was working on a project with Uncle Damian and you when Uncle Damian accidentally opened up a portal that sucked me back into the past,” she explained, “you named me after grandma because you always said you’d name your first daughter after her.” Jon remained silent, knowing what shew as saying was true. Jon, years ago, made a pact that he would name his daughter, if he had the opportunity to have one, to name her after his mom. 

✨  “and why should we believe you? outside of the DNA test, how can you prove that,” you said walking up to the both of them. she sighed, happy that she was no longer getting lectured by Jon, “I know that you asked mom out after a movie date. the song both of you claim to be ‘your song’ is ‘Follow You’ by Imagine Dragons and that you used to sing it to me as a baby,” she confessed. 

✨  you immediately looked to Jon and stood in disbelief. both you and Jon loved that song and always sang it whenever he picked you up to hang out. “dad always tells me that he always thought you were too good for him and that you deserved to be with someone else but you always end up smacking him in the back of the head when he says that. plus, you always said that you love his small accent,” she continued. 

✨  before you say anything, Damian grabbed three small tubes and asked all of you to spit in them. Damian watched the three of you spit in the tubes and in the back of his mind, he could start to see the similarities in Lois’ facial features and they looked eerily reminiscent to you and Jon combined.  

✨  “our dads should be here soon but until then, don’t make a move!” he yelled before moving back to lab and computers. you sat next to Lois as Jon continued to question her, “how old are you?” you asked her, “seventeen. you guys always say i look older than i am. say, since I’m in the past, how old are you guys?” she asked. you looked to Jon, “we’re also seventeen but we’re not saying anything else,” you stated. 

✨  finally, Clark and Bruce walked in, pure panic written on their faces. Clark and Bruce saw the three of you sitting down together and almost immediately, Clark could sense she was a Kent. given, she looked like both you and Jon, she did have some facial features that looked like Lois. 

✨  “have you ran a test? Bruce asked Damian. he nodded as he showed the three tubes on the table as the spit was being ran through the system, “she claims that her name is Lois. named after his mom,” Damian murmured. Clark felt the pang in his chest. if the DNA test rang positive that she was your kid, he felt proud that Jon named his daughter after his mom. 

✨  you got up from your chair and grabbed the coffees from the table outside, “here, the coffee was supposed to be Damian’s but I’m sure you could use some,” you offered it as you held the cup in front of her with a straw sticking out. Lois smiled, taking a sip, “it’s nice seeing both of you so young. dad always says both of you had me so young but he doesn’t regret a single thing,” you gave her a look, “how young do you claim we had you?” you asked. 

✨  Lois laughed, “well, if you’re seventeen now, expect me to be here when you’re both nineteen.” Jon let out a belting laugh as you stood in your chair mortified at the answer, “nineteen? that’s two years from now!” you whispered to yourself, “I mean, both of you are already married by then,” she continued to say. 

✨  Jon now stood mortified what she was saying. he hadn’t even confessed his feelings to you yet and two years from now, both of you were married with a kid on the way? as you both were talking to her, the results pinged up on the screen, alerting Bruce, Clark, and Damian. 

✨  the three of them looked at the screen in surprise. she was telling you the truth. the DNA matched closest to you and Jon. Clark couldn’t even lie to himself, seeing his feature granddaughter made him emotional. she looked happy, healthy, and beautiful. he was glad Jon had chosen you to be his wife. he always thought you were the perfect fit for his son. 

✨  “the results are in,” Damian screamed to the three of you. you looked to Jon in nervousness, “you’re the parents,” Damian said, now a bit more seriously. Jon looked at you as you had tears in your eyes, “you’re our first daughter?” you whispered to her as Lois now had watery eyes and nodded in agreement. 

✨  Clark walked over and smiled at the three of you as Lois perked up, “grandpa!” she yelled as you started to untie her. as soon as she was let free, she engulfed the three of you and smiled, “it’s weird seeing all three of you so...young!” she repeated. you smiled, “say, that’s Uncle Damian right?” she asked. you nodded as she released all of you.

✨  “GODFATHER!” she yelled, running to Damian. Damian flinched as he heard the name. Bruce couldn’t help but start laughing. he never imagined Damian getting such a title.....like ever. “do you think we’ll have to try and send her back or do you think future us will do that?” Jon asked his dad. “I’m sure all of you in the future are going to figure that out. until then, I guess enjoy time with your daughter?” 

✨  you walked over to Lois, “well, we should get you something to eat. Bruce mentioned that Alfred finished cooking dinner so I guess as parents, you need to eat,” Lois agreed as she walked over to Jon, “weird that they have kids,” Damian said, “don’t forget you’re her godfather,” Bruce mentioned. Clark laughed at the banter as they followed you three. 

✨  over the course of dinner, Lois kept mentioning small parts of her childhood and how all of you turned out. Damian had a kid but had yet to marry the woman with whom he had them with. Bruce as well had found someone down the line to marry and had one more kid after Damian. 

✨  after the dinner, all of you landed in the living room, trying to figure out a way to get Lois back home but within those few minutes, the same portal that brought Lois into the past reappeared. you and Jon stood up immediately, grabbing Lois and putting her behind the two of you. 

✨  three figures stepped out. the future you, Jon, and Damian. all of you were much older than you were now but as soon as your future self saw Lois, you ran to her and engulfed her with a sigh of relief, “I swear I’m never gonna let you do any experiments with Damian and your dad,” you whispered as future Jon and Damian stared at their younger selves. 

✨  “hey dad,” future Damian and Jon said nervously. the two of them shook their heads in disbelief as they gave them slight head nods before leaving before it got any weirder. Jon looked to his younger self, “have you asked her out yet?” he asked. young Jon shook his head no, “don’t worry kid, you will. I’m sure she told you already but don’t worry, life gets so much better with her,” older Jon said as he looked to you and Lois. 

✨  your older version looked to you and smiled, “the movie date both of you have is one you won’t ever forget. trust me, Lois and Jon are the best thing to happen to us. just don’t be scared when you get surprises in a few years,” you joked as you took Jon and Lois’ hand. 

✨  Damian had been staring down his older self down, probably judging and figuring out ways he could improve himself now so he wouldn’t look like that in the future. Lois gave you and Jon a hug, “I’ll miss you guys but like I said, we’ll see each other soon,” she whispered as you nodded and tightened the hug. 

✨  the four of them walked back into the portal as Damian sat down on the couch with relief, “well, don’t yall have that movie night to get too?” Damian said grabbing the remote and insinuating to get out of his house. you flipped him the middle finger as you grabbed your backpack, “you still wanna?” you asked Jon. 

✨  Jon nodded, “of course, we can pick up dinner on the way,” Jon said as he stared at you with heart eyes. now that he saw the future that was ahead of him, he knew this ‘movie night’ he asked you on was a major point in both of your lives and he didn’t want to miss it.

✨  after telling Damian goodbye, Jon grabbed your hand and kissed the back of it, “horror? or comedy?” he asked softly, “horror!” you said back excitedly. 

#dc #DC imagines #dc imagine #dc x reader #DC comics #jon kent #jon kent imagine #jon kent x reader #jon kent x y/n #superboy #superboy imagine #superboy x reader #superboy x y/n