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#I have issues with flashing lights when the lights themselves are actually flashing

anistarrose · 6 months

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This is my online accessibility (especially image descriptions) masterpost, which I update periodically whenever I find a new resource or guide. I worry this has the side effect of looking overwhelming in scope, so if you're learning about IDs and/or Tumblr-specific accessibility for the first time, I recommend you start with the first five starred posts. All post titles are clickable links!

*Why and how to write image descriptions (with examples linked)

*Accessibility on Tumblr for new users (has templates, also talks about how to tag for flashing lights to accommodate photosensitive folks)

*I see an image and want to describe it: a step by step guide

*Fanart-specific and Tumblr-specific advice for image descriptions

*How to describe screenshots of tags

Why a short ID is always better than no ID

I want to make my posts more accessible, but can’t write IDs myself: a guide

Google Doc full of template descriptions for memes

Online image to text converter

Describing skin tone and describing hair (heads up that the posts themselves are undescribed and were written with fiction writers in mind; potentially still very useful)

How to remember to write descriptions (spoiler: by putting yourself in situations where you see descriptions more often)

Related, a Google doc of described blogs (almost all the blogs linked earlier in this post have tons of described posts and resources too)

(In my opinion, writing IDs is easiest to learn by doing — but especially if combined with watching other people do so. So follow some described blogs!)

Why not to put image descriptions in small fonts/italics (also, some non-definitive thoughts on IDs vs alt text, and why "both" actually makes sense as an answer in many cases)

More on IDs vs alt text from a visually impaired Tumblr user

Alt text vs IDs vs Captions with examples

Brief Intro to Transcripts/Video Descriptions

The People's Accessibility Discord sever (a very friendly community for crowdsourcing image descriptions)

How to make your blog's colors visually accessible - one of the easiest thing on this list!

Other easy things: show love to artists who describe their work, edit descriptions into your original post when someone provides one in the notes, and copy-paste inaccessible (eg, small text or italicized) descriptions as plain text when you reblog!

Lastly, and maybe most importantly, how to continue writing image descriptions while avoiding burnout.

Let me know if any of these links break! I personally don't describe nearly as much audio/video (got those audio processing issues), so this list is sparse on those resources, but if anyone has good guides/blog recommendations for that too, feel free to add on!

#accessibility #image descriptions

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reallydumbdannyphantomaus · 8 months

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The Apocalypse Club

(ao3) (art 1) (art 2)

Valerie, Kwan, and Paulina find out Danny's biggest secret while Amity Park is invaded by a strange new ghost. Now, all four of them have to work together to save the day. ...If they can stop fighting each other first.

Hey!!! this is my @invisobang piece for 2023!!!! it hits in at about 15k words and i got to work with @minnowmarsh and @trolithfoxyflint for the amazing art that comes with it! now you crazy kids have fun reading :D

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

“How,” Valerie said when she could talk again.

Danny shrugged and looked away. His face was tinted green, though whether from nausea or the swirling portal on the wall of the lab, she couldn’t say. Kwan didn’t look much better, ashen gray, hair sticking up in all directions from how much he’d been pulling it. Paulina’s eyes hadn’t left Danny’s face since…

Well, since.

“Is that the most important question right now?” he said, rummaging in the desk.

Yes, she wanted to scream. But it wasn’t, and she knew it wasn’t, just as much as she knew that he was avoiding the question.

But she was a professional. She’d worked with… Danny… before. She could put aside her personal feelings until they were safe.

“What’s the plan?”

“We need allies,” he said, still not looking at her. “The only place left to find them is the ghost zone.”

“What?” Paulina said. “You want us to—to go in there?”

“What about our families?” Kwan said.

“Isn’t it super dangerous in there?”

“Look, your families’ best chance is if we get help. And you don’t have to come with me, but I think it’s more dangerous to sit here and wait.”

Valerie rolled her eyes. How was she ever friends with these two? Here they were, whining about danger, when they were missing the most obvious issue with this plan. “Where are we going to get allies in the ghost zone? The whole thing’s just full of ghosts!”

Maybe it was a trick of the light, but for a moment his eyes flashed acid green. Her hand snapped to the ectogun on her hip. “You’ve worked with ghosts before, Val.”

“No, I’ve worked with you before, and who the hell knows what you are.”

The words spilled out her mouth like poison, acid. She didn’t know if she meant them or not, but she did notice his full body flinch.

(She filed away the sore spot for future reference.)

“Jesus, Val,” Kwan said, running his hand through his already messed up hair.

She looked away. “Sorry.”

“Look, I have allies in the ghost zone. Even some enemies who, push comes to shove, will help me out if only so they get to kill me themselves. I’ve never seen or heard of this ghost before, okay? If it’s this powerful, and I’ve never heard of it, that’s a really, really bad sign. We need all the help we can get and we can’t afford to be picky about where it comes from.”

Valerie stared harder at the wall. Her skin crawled at the thought of making nice with ghosts. “Easy for you to say.”

“I’m working with all of you, aren’t I?”

Valerie’s eyes snap to meet Paulina’s, then Kwan’s. She’d forgotten, somehow, that Paulina and Kwan (and she, once upon a time) had always treated him and his friends like garbage. She’d forgotten that for all that Phantom was her enemy, she’d once used his cousin (or whatever that relationship actually was, who the hell knows anymore) as bait to capture and torture him.

“Fine,” she said. Deliberately, she dropped her hand from her gun. “So how are we doing this?”

The ghost zone was a lot… greener than Paulina expected. It made sense, in retrospect: green was the color of ectoplasm after all, but in her head she always imagined it to have more of a Sam Manson aesthetic. Black. Maybe some purple. But deep and dark and depressing.

(Last time she saw Sam Manson, Manson’s eyes were totally black and she was clawing at Paulina’s face, spittle flying from her mouth. Not a totally unexpected reaction, she had to admit, but there was no intent or reason, just pure feral violence.)

“So,” she said, “where exactly are we going?”

“The Far Frozen,” Fenton said, hands white-knuckled on the steering. “I have friends there.”

“It, uh, sounds cold,” Kwan said. “I didn’t bring my jacket.” More like a swarm of zombie-football players had tried to drag him down by his collar and he’d only escaped by letting his letterman jacket slide off.

“Frostbite’ll have coats.”

“And what is Frostbite?” That was Valerie, still glaring at Fenton like he’d pissed in her Cheerios. Paulina really didn’t understand what her issue was. Sure, Paulina was shocked to find out that Fenton was her beloved ghost boy, but she was more awkward than angry. Valerie seemed to take the whole situation personally.

“He’s a yeti.”

“A yeti? A dead yeti?” Paulina crossed her arms. “Are you telling me that yetis are real?”

“Look, not all ghosts were once alive. Sometimes, they’re the ghosts of beliefs or ideals or stories. Things we used to think about and believe in. Pandora’s here, too, along with a lot of pantheons, but they won’t tell me if they were ever alive.” Fenton’s lips curled up in a little smile and his face softened. “I’ve been trying to weasel it out of them for months.”

They lapsed into another brief silence before Fenton spoke again.

“Look, if you have any other questions… now might be the best time. It’ll be a bit before we get to the Far Frozen, and I don’t know if we’ll have any time after that.”

Paulina had a million questions, but she couldn’t think of one she wanted to ask right now. How? Why? When? That could all wait until after the day was saved. Her nerves were still twitching and she dug her fingers into her wrist to stabilize, remember the now and not two hours ago, watching Star, black-eyed and snarling with one arm bent out of shape, leap for her throat. She said nothing.

“Are we… just gonna stay in the For Frozen?” Kwan said. “Like, while you save the world?”

“Far Frozen, and yeah. That was the plan.”

“I’m not staying in some frozen wasteland so you and your ghost buddies can fuck up saving the world.”

Paulina couldn’t help staring at Valerie. What the hell was she talking about? Phantom—Fenton—Danny had saved the world plenty of times before.

“I was talking about Kwan and Paulina, Val. I know you’d never stay out of it.”

Valerie curled her lip. “Just so we’re clear. I have to keep an eye on you, anyway.”

“What is your deal, girl?” Paulina said. “If you two are our best shot at saving the world, being pissy at each other isn’t going to help.”

“Stay out of it!”

“The world is ending! We don’t have time for you to be stubborn.”

Kwan shrank back at their raised voices. “Uh, I don’t think this is a good time to fight, either.”

“Of course you don’t. Since when do you ever think for yourself?”

“Hey!”

“Shut up! Just be quiet, all of you. Jesus.” Danny turned around to glare at them, his eyes flashing green. “Valerie and I have worked together before even though she hated me. We can do it again.”

Paulina wasn’t so sure about him using “hate” in the past tense there, but Valerie was nodding.

“I can put my personal feelings aside to save the world, and fuck you for thinking anything different. But then, I guess you never thought much of me, did you?”

“What are you—”

“Seriously? You have to ask?”

Paulina bit her lip. When Valerie’s dad lost his job, Valerie lost everything. Including her friends. Like Paulina. No, she thought after a moment, I suppose I don’t.

Danny groaned from the front. “I changed my mind. No more questions. Let’s just… be quiet.”

Paulina had to agree.

The Far Frozen was, in fact, cold.

Kwan shivered in just his black t-shirt, but truthfully, his letterman jacket would’ve only helped so much. This was a bitter cold, a deep-winter cold that took three blankets, a hot chocolate, and fuzzy socks to banish.

Kwan really hated the cold.

“Great One!” the yeti in front of them said, arms (one of flesh and fur, the other of ice and bone) spread wide like he was offering a hug. Was it some kind of yeti cultural thing?

Fenton jumped up and embraced the creature. Apparently, it was just an offer of a hug.

“What brings you to my domain?” the yeti said once he put Fenton down. “And with such strange company as well!”

Fenton rubbed the back of his neck. “We need your help, Frostbite.”

Kwan’s teeth started to chatter. Valerie and Paulina’s arms were dotted with gooseflesh, alongside his own. How was Fenton not fucking freezing?

“Can we have this conversation inside?” Paulina said, rubbing her arms.

“W-w-w-with jackets?” Kwan’s chattering teeth brought out a stutter. Embarrassing. “Ma-y-be a f-fire?”

“Of course!” the yeti said. “Your fragile human bodies require excess warmth to survive. Please, follow me.”

The yeti, who introduced himself as Frostbite, led them to a cave where they were each presented with a delightfully warm coat, almost thick enough to banish the cold from Kwan’s bones.

(Almost.)

Valerie spent the whole trek glaring at Frostbite like she expected him to turn around and start biting the second she took her eyes off of him. She kept one hand on her blaster the whole time. Kwan couldn’t imagine going through life with that kind of paranoia. It must be exhausting.

The cave itself was almost cozy. It was decorated, had furniture and artwork and books like it was someone’s office. With a jolt, Kwan realized that it was an office. Frostbite’s, most likely. On the wall, there was a portrait of Phantom (Fenton?) standing victorious. What the fuck.

“What’s with the whole ‘Great One’ thing, by the way?” Kwan said.

“It is demonstrative of our unending love and gratitude for the Great One, who saved us all from subjugation at the hands of the villainous Pariah Dark!”

Valerie snorted. “‘Villainous.’ Like you’re not.”

Frostbite tilted his head in confusion. Kwan hated to admit it, but it was kind of adorable. “I am unsure what your meaning is. I assure you that we denizens of the Far Frozen have no villainous aims with any friend of the Great One.”

“I’m not gullible enough to believe you.”

Frostbite opened his mouth to reply again, but Fenton cut him off.

“Just ignore her, Frostbite. You’re not going to change her mind and we don’t have time to argue. A new ghost is attacking Amity Park, and we need your help.”

It all happened so fast.

All four of them escaped by sheer luck. Kwan managed to dodge the football team and hide in the bleachers next to Paulina, who’d nearly been bitten by Star and Sam in the bathroom. Valerie put on the Red Huntress suit as soon as she realized what was happening, giving her some protection against the spreading infection. And Danny?

Well, Danny could fly.

Danny stumbled upon the other three by chance, checking through the school for anyone who’d managed to avoid the plague, though he didn’t have much hope. He’d found Kwan, Paulina, and Valerie—two useless people and one who absolutely hated him.

Still, he couldn’t leave them there, unprotected. He grabbed Paulina and Valerie hoisted Kwan on her hoverboard and they’d raced to FentonWorks.

He’d intended to stay in ghost form the whole time, but he hadn’t realized that the infected were still capable of reason, at least on some level. That their attacks weren’t mindless. That his mom could hit him with an ectogun that would short out his powers, however temporarily.

And now three new people know who he is.

Three new people who he can’t trust in the slightest.

(What if they tell people? His parents? The school? The Guys in White?)

But he can’t worry about that, because the world is ending.

“I see,” Frostbite said after Danny had explained the situation. “This is… worrisome. If it escaped—”

“It? Frostbite, do you know what this is?”

“Mm. It sounds like Pestilence.”

Danny frowned. “Like… pesto?”

Paulina scoffed and whacked Danny on the head. “No, idiot. Pestilence. Like disease and stuff.”

“Yes. Considered by certain branches of Christianity to be one of the four Horsemen that herald the apocalypse.”

“One of four? You mean there’s three other horse-guys?”

“Indeed. The belief in this specific end of days has largely died out in the modern day, so the Horsemen became ghosts. However, they were so dangerous, so suddenly, that we ghosts banded together three hundred years ago to seal them away. If one of them is out…”

“...then the others might be out, too.” Danny rubbed at his forehead. “This gets better and better. What are the other three?”

“War, Famine, and Death,” Paulina said, counting them off on her fingers. Valerie raised an eyebrow at her. “What? Everyone knows that.”

“You are correct, Delicate One.”

“Um, my name’s Paulina.”

“None of those sound good.” Kwan scratched his head. “Also, why is Death separate? Don’t War and Famine and Pestilence all kill people? Does Death extra kill people or something?”

Frostbite shrugged. “How should I know? I’m already dead.”

“Can you be dead if you were never alive?”

“In any event,” Frostbite said, “your best chance is to put Pestilence back before any of the others break free.”

“And how are we supposed to do that, ghost? We barely escaped in the first place!”

Valerie had a point: they knew what they were fighting, now, but it didn’t solve the problem of we can’t beat this guy. Danny rubbed his temples. Maybe if he could get Skulker to work with them, Skulker would help convince the rest of the Ghost Zone and they might actually have a shot.

“Your best chance is finding the Panacea.”

Danny scrunched his eyebrows. “The what?”

“Panacea is, like, a mythical elixir thing that can heal any disease.” Danny, Kwan, and Valerie stared at Paulina, who was tapping on her phone. She looked up at them and rolled her eyes. “What? Everyone knows that.”

“Okay, so where’s this Panaderia at?” Valerie said.

“Patience, Suspicious One. Allow me to explain.”

“What the hell did you just call me?”

“The Panacea is hidden in the far reaches of the Ghost Zone, near Pariah’s Keep.” Frostbite pulled out the Infi-Map from his desk and rolled it out on the desk. “Legend tells that Pariah wanted it for himself, but could never get through its protections.”

“Protections? Like—ghosts and shit?”

“Not quite. The story goes that there are three trials one must overcome to obtain the Panacea. The first is a trial of courage. The second is a trial of compassion. And the third is a trial of truth.”

Valerie threw her hands up in the air. “What the hell does any of that mean?”

“The legend does not specify.”

“Of course,” Paulina said, “because when the world’s at stake, you want as much ambiguity as possible.”

“Quite.”

Courage, compassion, and truth. Well, Danny was decently brave. He spent half his time fighting ghosts, at least, and protecting people. It had to count for something. Compassion… he could probably work on that part, but he did care about people. That’s why he protected them. Truth?

That was a little stickier.

He lied, all the time. It was for a good reason, but he wasn’t sure the trials would see it that way. Maybe he would just have to tell the truth in the moment? Ugh, this whole thing was so complicated.

Maybe Valerie would do better at the truth thing. Though, she also had a secret identity. Whatever. They’d figure it out.

Lost in his thoughts, Danny didn’t notice Valerie approaching him until her hand wrapped around his arm and she pulled him away.

“Woah, what are you—” Danny squeezed his eyes shut as he was yanked back into the bright light of the outside. The snow sparkled in the glow that permeated the Ghost Zone almost like sunlight, but half as warm.

“If you and I are going to do this, we should have a plan.”

“A plan for what? We don’t even know what these trials will look like.”

Valerie’s hand tightened around his bicep. “So you just want to fly in blind? Hide behind me and let me figure it out so you can swoop in and ‘save the day’ or some bullshit?”

“That is not remotely what I—”

“Save it! You’ve been lying to me this whole time. For years. And I—I actually thought that you cared about me, which is the really stupid part.”

“I do care about you, Val.” Danny reached for her arm and she flinched back. He sighed and stared at the ground.

“No, you don’t. You can’t. Ghosts don’t care about anything or anyone. You just like the attention. You like the praise. You may have everyone else fooled but I see what you are. No more tricks, Phantom.”

Danny choked out a laugh. “And you wonder why I lied to you.”

Valerie sneered. “No, actually. It all makes perfect sense, ghost.”

His eyes stung, which was stupid. They really didn’t have time for him to go cry in a corner because Valerie didn’t like him. But his feelings didn’t care about the facts, and tears pricked at the corners of his eyes.

“Whatever,” he said, and he tried to ignore how his voice cracked. “Let’s just get through this.”

“Yeah,” Valerie said. “Let’s get through this and then never talk to each other again.”

He’d really thought he could talk to her, if she ever found out. He’d really thought he could convince her. That hurt the most, he realized: he’d always known she’d be mad, but after what happened with Dani, there should’ve been room for them to be friends as Valerie and Danny and as Red Huntress and Phantom.

He was the stupid one, it turned out.

“Okay. If that’s what you want.”

Valerie turned away. “It is what I want.”

“Okay.”

They fell into awkward silence.

“So—”

Distant screaming cut Danny off.

Somewhere along the way, wires had gotten crossed in Danny’s brain. Screams of terror and pain were usually a sign that people should stay away. If some did get closer, it was usually out of curiosity and panic would take over once that curiosity was sated. Danny, of course, ran straight for the danger every time.

So he wasn’t surprised, exactly, when one of the yetis, eyes dripping black, lunged for him. He’d run into enough fights that ducking out of the way of her claws was second nature. Beside him, Valerie blasted the infected yeti away. Of course. Valerie was just like him: she ran into danger.

“We need to get out of here!” She fired again at another yeti, snarling in the snow.

Danny reached for the electric cold in his chest, but it was still weak and flickering from the gun his mom had used. He was powerless.

“Danny!” Before he could blink, something slammed into him and he was speeding away from the yetis on Valerie’s jetboard.

“Wait—Wait!” Struggling to stand on a fast, open-air vehicle, he pulled himself up using Valerie’s shoulder and she shot him a withering glare. “We can’t just leave them there!”

“Us getting infected doesn’t help anyone, and you trying to play hero to get on my good side won’t work anyway.”

“I’m not—” The jetboard tilted to avoid a leaping yeti. “Why won’t you listen—”

“I did listen to you! And you lied. So I’m done with that.”

Valerie angled down to the cave entrance where Kwan, Paulina, and Frostbite were and jerked to a stop. Danny couldn’t stop his momentum and tumbled off onto the floor of the cave, landing at Paulina’s feet.

“Um, hi?” Paulina said.

“We have a problem,” Valerie said.

Apparently the “problem” was a horde of zombie yetis right on Valerie and Danny’s tail. Paulina thought “problem” was underselling it a bit.

One black-eyed yeti burst through the opening, only for Frostbite to slam his flesh arm into it, knocking it into another oncoming yeti. He then hit a panel on the wall and sealed the cave shut. Panting, he lumbered over to Danny, green goo staining his pristine white fur, grabbed the map-thing off the desk, and thrust it into Danny’s arms.

“Great One and friends, you must take the Infi-Map and find the Panacea.” The yeti looked down at the goo (his blood?) and groaned in pain. “I fear I shall soon turn as well.”

“Frostbite…” Danny said, reaching out one hand like he wanted to comfort him. And wasn’t it weird, to think of a ghost needing comfort?

“Great One, you do not have time to worry about me. Help me by bringing back the Panacea and saving us all. You must go now, before I lose my rationality and attack you as well.”

Danny squeezed his eyes like he was staving off tears. “Okay. I—okay. I’m sorry.”

Paulina felt bad for the dork (hero), really, but they so didn’t have time for this. She latched onto his arm and yanked him away from Frostbite, who was starting to snarl. “Thank you, Mr. Frostbite,” she said. “Now let’s get the fuck out of here.”

“Everybody hang on,” Danny said, opening the map. Paulina tightened her grip as Valerie and Kwan grabbed on. “Take us to the Panacea.”

Frostbite jumped at them, teeth bared, and the map whisked them away in a green light. Paulina wasn’t sure what she’d expected, but this was not it. The sudden acceleration stole a scream from her throat, and the rush of air brought tears to her eyes. The last thing she saw was Frostbite’s icy arm, outstretched, and then she could see nothing but motion.

There was nothing to do but hang on for dear life, then all of a sudden they were standing again, in a cavernous hall. Paulina wobbled on her feet, then vomited.

A hand rubbed at her back, and she turned to see Kwan, awkward half-smile on his face. “You okay?”

The hall was massive and crumbling, stone pillars in pieces. A mosaic pattern tiled the floor, and she looked up to see a perfect reflection in the roof, except for a couple of holes where the swirling Ghost Zone peeked through.

“I’m fine,” she said. “Except for, you know.”

“Everything?”

“Yeah, that.” She bent over and spat a couple times, trying to get the taste out of her mouth. She’d lost her water bottle sometime in the multiple life threatening situations they’d been in in the past 4 or so hours, so saliva was her best option. “We weren’t supposed to be here. We were supposed to just sit there in that frozen wasteland and be safe. I can’t do this, Kwan.”

“But you have to, now,” Valerie said. Her voice was firm, but not unkind. “We’re all here, and there’s no half-assing this like you half-ass school, alright?”

“Excuse you?”

“We both know you could do just fine in school if you tried, Polly! You’re smart, girl. And we need smart on this mission, not smart trying to be stupid.”

Paulina stared for just a moment, then laughed. “Girl, that was the most backhanded compliment I’ve ever heard.”

Valerie rolled her eyes, but the corners of her mouth twitched like she was trying not to smile. “At least it was a compliment.”

“Setting our bar real low here, huh?”

“Paulina, when my dad lost his job, you all dumped me as soon as you heard. I lost everything, and then I lost all my friends. You’re damn lucky I’m not just cussing you out.”

The words were almost humorous, but there was a bite to Valerie’s tone now. Paulina couldn’t blame her.

“Listen, I wanted to say—”

“Guys!” Danny's voice echoed through the chamber. “I found something!”

Paulina swore as Valerie and Kwan both ran over to where Danny stood in front of a massive double door.

“Is that—”

“Yeah,” Danny said. “I think it’s the entrance. The trials are probably through here.”

“So,” Kwan said, pushing on the giant stone doors, “how do we—”

As he spoke, the doors lit up and slowly, slowly, rumbled open.

“Huh,” Kwan said.

It was dark inside. The glow of the Ghost Zone seemed to come to a complete halt, swallowed by whatever was beyond the threshold.

Paulina didn’t like it.

“Let’s all go through together,” Danny said.

Paulina nodded, grabbing Danny and Kwan. She couldn’t speak, her mouth suddenly dry. Why was she here? She wasn’t ready for something like this. She couldn’t save the world! Oh god, she needed to get out of here—

As one, they stepped through the door.

Kwan blinked.

“What?”

It was the Casper High cafeteria, except the Casper High cafeteria should be overrun with Pestilence’s zombies right now. But there was Dash and Paulina and Star (wasn’t Paulina back—where—what—what… day was it? Tuesday? Right, right. They had an essay due in Lancer’s class. Of course. Kwan had stayed up all night writing about… writing about…)

“Dude!” Dash said, waving Kwan over. “You ready to pummel Brantford tonight?” The last part of his sentence became a shout, directed at the whole cafeteria. Students applauded. Dash stood with one leg on his seat and one on the table, a true showman. Over in the corner, Danny Fenton, Sam Manson, and Tucker Foley rolled their eyes. Dash threw his milk carton and beaned Fenton (Danny?) in the head. Milk splashed down his head.

Something twisted in Kwan’s gut.

Dash let out a roar and ripped off his shirt, tearing it in half. The cafeteria screamed in approval.

Kwan grinned up at Dash. For all his flaws, Kwan loved this guy.

(black, black blood dripping from his mouth and eyes, Dash snarling, reaching for Kwan—)

Kwan jerked back and tore his eyes away. Dash didn’t notice as his best friend looked for the exit. Kwan’s heart pounded. It wasn’t real. Not real. Just a bad dream. Or was this…?

In the background, Valerie (his friend? not his friend? no, no, they’d dropped her because she’d lost everything, right? but no, no that was cruel, too cruel even for Dash and Paulina, that couldn’t be right) was sneaking out the door just as Danny Fenton gasped and rushed in the same direction.

Something wasn’t right.

“Hey dude,” Kwan said, “I gotta run to the bathroom.”

Dash didn’t acknowledge him. He was leading the cafeteria in the Casper High fight song.

Kwan ran after Valerie and Fenton (Danny), bursting through the cafeteria doors just in time to see them turn the corner. “Wait!” he said, sprinting toward their shadows. Rounding the corner, he saw the Red Huntress and Danny Phantom (Valerie and Fenton—Danny, Danny, it’s Danny, Danny wants to be called his name, remember that he has to remember that—it was Valerie and Danny behind the heroes, he knew that, though he wasn’t sure how he knew) fighting a ghost.

It was massive and ugly, all claws and teeth and glowing fur. Kwan couldn’t see any eyes, but he’d learned after years of dealing with ghosts that that didn’t necessarily mean that it couldn’t see. It had six legs and two jaws that opened in concert to let out an earsplitting screech.

Glowing green spittle flew out of its unholy maw and landed on Kwan’s letterman jacket. Gross.

The ghost slammed Danny into a locker with one leg and used another to pin Valerie to the ground. It lowered its face to Valerie’s, ready to take a taste.

“Hey!” Kwan said, throwing the first thing he could grab—his phone—at the ghost. It bounced harmlessly off its head, but startled the ghost enough that Valerie was able to slip out of its hold and Danny was able to knock it down. A flash of light from Danny’s thermos, and the ghost was gone.

“Are you okay?” Kwan said. Valerie’s suit retracted and Danny transformed back into Fenton. Both of them were bruised, Danny cradling his ribs, but they were upright.

“We’re fine,” Valerie said with a glare.

“Hey,” Kwan said, holding up his hands in surrender. “I’m just trying to help.”

“Yeah, right.” Danny snorted and looked away. Kwan could still see milk in his hair.

Kwan frowned. “Look, I know it wasn’t much, but I’m just a guy! I did what I could!”

“Yeah, you did. Probably saved our lives with that phone.”

“So what’s the problem?”

“You only care because we’re heroes!” Valerie got in his face so he could clearly see the bruise lining her cheek. “You wouldn’t care if we were hurt because your bestie decided he wanted a punching bag. Helping the Red Huntress and Danny Phantom isn’t a risk to you. It makes you a hero! You’re so cool for helping to save the day. But you’d never help Valerie and Danny because what if someone saw ?”

“That’s not…”

“Face it, Kwan. You’re a coward. Always will be.”

Then they were gone, and Kwan was alone in the middle of a destroyed hallway.

“Kwan,” Dash said, “we need you to be on your a-game for this. They’ve got a real beast on their D-line, and you’re the only one with a chance of keeping him off me. I don’t wanna spend the whole game with my ass on the grass, so I’m counting on you, okay?”

Kwan blinked. They were huddled on the field, in full pads. Dash was giving the pre-game directions. It was gametime. Wasn’t it lunchtime? Or… was he… what?

“Kwan!”

“Uh, yeah! Yes. I’ve got it. Big guy, coming right at me. Yep.”

Was he going crazy? Something was wrong. Something other than what Valerie and Danny had said to him.

(And it was wrong, it had to be. He wasn’t a coward. He faced scary stuff all the time—a hazard of living in Amity Park. He couldn’t be a coward.)

The nameless d-lineman stared him down, eyes black as pitch behind the grill of his helmet. Kwan took a deep breath as he lined up against him. He could do this. This was easy. He was made for this.

A flash of green in his peripheral vision caught his attention. He turned his head just as Dash hiked the ball, and his mark blew right past him, laying Dash on the ground while Kwan stood, dumbly staring at the green he knew had to signal another ghost attack.

“Kwan!” Dash ignored the hand offered by one of the other offensive linemen. “What the hell, dude?”

Kwan jerked back. “What?” He took in the scene: Dash, with a clump of grass stuck in his helmet and dirt on his jersey. The ball, being moved backward by the referee. His teammates, glaring at him. “Oh. Oh, sorry. Just—I think there’s a ghost over there?” He pointed at the green light.

“So?” Dash said. “There’s always a ghost. Leave it for Huntress or Phantom to deal with. We’ve got a game!”

“Yeah. Yeah!” Danny and Valerie could totally handle it. They were heroes. It’s what they did. And football was what Kwan did. Division of labor and all that stuff.

And the thing is that Kwan was really good at football. He was the best left tackle in the state, easy. His coach said he could be the next Tony Boselli—though, hopefully without the injuries. With his mind on the game, no one got even close to Dash before he’d thrown the ball.

The forest glowed again. Kwan ignored it. There were eight minutes left on the clock for the second quarter.

A piercing scream floated over the field. Kwan turned to see Valerie, in her Red Huntress gear, slam into the ground head-first before being dragged back into the woods like a limp puppet.

“Oh shit.” This was bad. Valerie was hurt, bad. She wasn’t half-ghost like Danny. She was just a person. She needed medical care, and fast.

Could Kwan help?

Should Kwan help?

Kwan shook his head. Head injuries were no joke; he’d heard it from Coach often enough. Valerie needed help, and she needed it now. There was no time to wait for someone else to realize the problem.

He turned to leave the field.

“What the hell are you doing?” Dash said, catching his arm just as he reached the sideline.

“She’s hurt,” Kwan said. “She needs help.”

“We have a fucking game to play.” Dash’s fingers curled in the grill of Kwan’s helmet and jerking him around so their helmets clacked together. This close, Kwan could see the faint line of Dash’s eyelashes, the bright blue of his eyes. He thought about apologizing. He thought about kissing him.

How long had he been in love with his best friend? More importantly, how long had he let his best friend be an asshole because he loved him?

“I’m an idiot,” Kwan said.

“You don’t hear me arguing! Now get back on the damn field.”

“No.” Kwan almost continued, almost listed everything wrong with Dash, all the times he’d put everyone else around him down, all the people he’d hurt, how he’d hurt Kwan, even, but Dash would never, ever hear him. He knew that now. “I’m outta here,” he said instead, ripping off his helmet and sprinting toward where he’d last seen Valerie and Danny.

The world vanished.

Kwan blinked, and he was back in the chamber, staring at Valerie, Danny, and Paulina. “A test of courage…” he said to himself.

It was just like the room they first came into: a little more together, more whole, but otherwise almost identical. Across the room was another massive set of double doors. He turned around and saw the door, the first chamber beyond it. He’d barely stepped inside. It couldn’t have been more than a second or two.

“Yeah,” Valerie said with an eye roll, “that’s what we’ve been say—”

Kwan cut her off by sweeping her up in a hug.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I’m sorry that I never stuck up for you. I’m sorry that I hurt you. I’m sorry that I was too scared to help you even when I knew it was wrong.”

Valerie froze, stiff in his arms. “What?”

“You were right, this whole time. I was a coward and a jerk and I’m sorry.”

Kwan could feel Danny and Paulina’s eyes on him, but for right now, all his focus was on Valerie.

“What the hell are you—”

“I was a really terrible friend to you. We all were. You were hurting and we all made it worse.”

Valerie pulled back. “You’re serious. This… you mean this.”

“Yeah. I mean it more than anything I’ve ever said to you before.

“You—do you think I’ll forgive you? Just like that?”

Kwan let her go. “No. You always could hold a grudge.” He looked her in the eye. “I still needed to say it.”

Valerie nodded, a rough jerk of her head. “Okay. Just so we’re clear. Not forgiven.” She looked off-balance and confused. It figured, since Kwan had very much just dropped this on her with no warning. Whatever vision he’d received, it seemed like it was limited to him and only him.

“That’s okay. Let me know if it changes?”

Valerie stared at him for a long moment, brow furrowed, before it smoothed and one corner of her lips curled in a smile. “Whatever.”

Kwan grinned. “I’ll get there.”

Paulina coughed. “Uh, not to break up a tender moment, but can we save it for after we get the magic potion?”

“Unfortunately, Paulina’s right,” Danny said. “Not that this isn’t great, but we need to figure out the test of courage. We’re running out of time.”

Kwan was pretty sure he’d already seen it, but he didn’t even know where to begin with explaining. Instead, he said, “Danny! You, too! I was also a jerk to you, when you didn’t deserve it and I knew you didn’t deserve it. I’m so sorry about that. I wanted to be liked but I—”

“Woah woah woah,” Danny said. “I… appreciate it, but we really don’t have the time right now, dude.”

“No. No, see, this is exactly the time. I think this is my test, okay? Well, some of it. Part two, or whatever. Part one was this weird vision thing that I had to go through like some kinda fucked up dream. And I think part two is—well, bringing it into the real world.” Obviously, he couldn’t bring the ghost attack and the football game into this real world, but realizing he was wrong? Taking responsibility?

He could do that.

“How is apologizing to us a test of courage?” Danny said, head tilted in confusion.

“I was scared of… something really fucking dumb, now that I think about it. And I hurt people because of it.” Kwan glanced at Paulina, who was looking anywhere but his face. “I’m not going to let it control me anymore. And I’m sorry that I ever did.”

Silence for a moment, like the room was holding its breath, then the entire chamber began to shake. The doors at the end of the room swung open and revealed another pitch black unknown beyond them.

“Wait. That was it?” Paulina said. “You’re telling me the Ghost King couldn’t get through these trials, but Kwan did it by saying I’m sorry?”

“Woo!” Kwan said, pumping his fists in the air. Take that, Mr. Lancer’s final exam. Who was going to achieve nothing in life now? Not Kwan, he passed the Trial of Courage. Official and capitalized. Helping to save the world and all that shit.

“Well, let’s not look this particular gift horse in the mouth. Are we all ready for the next chamber?” Danny said.

Paulina coughed. “Hang on, does anyone have a breath mint? My mouth still tastes nasty.”

“Oh, yeah.” Kwan fished in his pocket and held out a stick of gum.

“Thanks.”

“Ooh, can I have some?” Danny said.

“Sure, dude!” He grabbed three more sticks of gum, handed on to Danny, who grinned, stuck one in his mouth, and held out the last one for Valerie. “Val? You want in on this?”

Valerie stared at the gum like she thought it might bite her. “Yeah,” she said after a moment. She took the gum with her thumb and forefinger, delicately. “Yeah, okay. Thank you.” She cleared her throat. “Let’s get a move on.”

As they headed for the inky blackness at the far end of the room, Kwan felt something grab his arm. He whirled around to see Danny, hand curled around Kwan’s elbow.

“Thank you,” Danny said, “for, y’know.”

“The gum?”

“No. Well, yes, but that’s not—I meant for apologizing.”

“Oh. Oh! Yeah. Honestly, should have done it forever ago. Just kept coming up with excuses, y’know?” Kwan laughed. “An apology was really the bare minimum.”

Danny let go of his arm and started walking again. “You’d be surprised. I can’t remember the last time anyone apologized for hurting me.”

“Seriously?”

“Yep.”

“Dude, that’s messed—”

They crossed the threshold.

Paulina was much more confident going into the next chamber. These trials were easy! If all Kwan had to do was apologize, then compassion was probably something like saving a kitten and truth was something like—well, she was less sure about that one. Maybe just telling a secret? Or something?

Except—something was different. Last time, they’d walked in and immediately the chamber had brightened. Kwan apparently had some weird vision as part of his trial, of course, but none of that happened.

Instead, it was still pitch black, and she could no longer feel Valerie’s arm where she’d latched on, or Kwan’s hand. “Guys?” she said, and her voice was swallowed by the void. “Hello?”

“—see her haircut?—”

“—the look on his—”

“—honestly thought I liked her!”

Paulina’s voice, first a whisper, then louder and louder until she couldn’t hear her own thoughts. Her laughter, shrill and piercing, reverberated through the space. She pressed her hands over her ears, but it did nothing to block out the noise. Her head started to pound and hot tears leaked out of her eyes.

“Stop it! Stop it, stop it, stop it!” She was sure she yelled the words, but she still couldn’t hear over her own laughter.

“Why? Why should I stop?”

“It hurts. It hurts!”

“Aw, but that’s never stopped you before!”

It was so loud. A sudden, sharp pain in her ear and she could feel warm liquid on the hand covering it.

“Please! Please! I’ll do anything!”

Suddenly, silence. Paulina fell to the floor with relief. She pulled her hands away from her head; the right one was wet and smelled of metal. Liquid dripped from her ear—had it started to bleed?

“Anything?”

“Yes! Yes, please!”

“Entertain me!”

“I—what?”

In front of her, stark against the black of the room, Valerie appeared, then Danny, then Mikey, then Sam Manson, then Tucker Foley, more and more and more of her classmates, standing and blinking in confusion at her.

But she was with Valerie and—or was she? But Manson was definitely not—this couldn’t be real. Was this real? She stared at her hand. Was she real?

“Paulina?” Valerie said. She sounded like she was underwater. The black of the room turned into a hallway. Casper High. It was—Friday. There was a football game she had to cheer for. She needed total focus for that. If only the stupid voice would leave her alone.

“I said entertain me!”

“What the hell does that mean?”

Valerie stared at her. “It’s your name, girl. Are you okay?”

“Make jokes! Like you always do. I gave you your material and everything!”

Material? Paulina looked at the crowd, and realized that all of them were… well, losers. The voice just wanted her to make fun of them?

Nothing she hadn’t done before.

“I’m better than you, apparently,” Paulina said, ignoring the pit in her stomach. “What were you thinking with that outfit?” It was a dumb, dumb comment. Low effort. It was just—in that moment, Paulina couldn’t think of anything to mock. Nothing about Valerie seemed worth jeering at.

Valerie looked down at her—admittedly, fine—shirt and frowned. “Jesus. What is your prob—your ear’s bleeding!”

Sure enough, pus and blood painted the palm of Paulina’s hand, and she could still feel something rolling down her neck.

(“Still”? When did this happen?)

“We need to get you to the nurse’s office,” Manson said, crouching down beside her. Why was Paulina on the floor?

“Oh,” she said. Manson offered her a hand up, and she took it. “Thank you. Sorry, Valerie. Your shirt’s fine.”

A piercing screech, metal on metal, filled the air. Paulina doubled over, hands back over her ears.

“That wasn’t funny, Polly!”

She could feel hands on her arms, but her eyes were squeezed shut and she could hear nothing but the voice and its (her) hideous laughter.

“You just want me to be mean!”

“Duh! Mean is funny, right?”

Paulina opened her eyes just enough to see Valerie, Manson, Foley, and Danny in front of her, concern in the lines of their faces. Danny’s mouth was moving.

“Look! It’s the little tech weirdo. He names all his phones. Like, unironically.” Foley stood up and directed other students away. Danny moved past her to do the same on the other side of the hallway. “Or the ghost kid. His parents were already freaks, and now he’s an extra special kind of freak. Easy money.”

“Please. Please just stop.”

“Entertain me, and I will. Tit-for-tat, babe.”

Paulina felt a sob jump out of her throat. Why wasn’t she just doing it? It hurt so bad. She’d do anything for it to stop.

So why wasn’t she doing this?

“I don’t want to!” she wailed. What she must sound like. What she must look like. Surrounded by people who had every reason to hate her, bleeding and crying and talking to nothing. “Pick something else!”

“But you do it all the time.”

“I change my mind, then!”

Was it that simple? All along? Could she just—change her mind? Be a better person?

“No you don’t.”

“I don’t want to hurt people anymore!”

The noise, somehow, got louder. Paulina vomited. Something wet trickled from her other ear. She wanted this to end. But she didn’t want to hurt people to do it. Why did she only get two options?

“So you’ll get hurt instead?”

“No!” She curled in on herself, falling back to her knees and closing her eyes again. “You’re choosing to hurt me. You could choose not to!”

“And, what? That’ll make it better? You’ll forgive me and we’ll be best friends?”

If Paulina could think clearly, if she could do anything beyond speak the first thing that sprung to her lips, she might have lied. She might have said “Of course I’ll forgive you” so the stupid voice might listen to her. This, however, was not a choice she had the brainpower to make right now.

Instead, she said: “Of course not! You’re a fucking asshole.”

“Then why should I?”

“Because I’m a person and it hurts!”

“You’re a little late to that realization, querida. Wasn’t Valerie a person when you ditched her? Do you think you can be Valerie’s friend again after this? That you can prove yourself to her or something?”

“I can’t fix it! But I can stop making it worse!”

The noise stopped. Blessed silence returned.

Paulina looked up through tear-blurred eyes and saw Valerie, Danny, and Kwan crouched over her. She couldn’t hear past the ringing in her ears

“I’m sorry,” she said. Her throat ached. She must have been yelling, before. “I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”

The exhaustion hit her all at once. Her ears pulsed with pain as she continued to babble apologies. The ground shook beneath her and Kwan caught her before she could topple over. A hand rubbed at her back, soothing circles, and she curled into Kwan’s chest.

“Think ‘m gon’ sleep, now, mkay?” she said, and then she was out.

“Holy shit,” Danny said, collapsing next to Paulina and Kwan and brushing the hair out of her face. “Is she—is she okay?”

Kwan held his fingers over her wrists. “I think so. Her ears are bleeding, though.”

“What happened?” Valerie said. “Your trial wasn’t anything like this!”

“I don’t know! It’s not like I’m an expert.”

“Stop yelling,” Paulina said, shifting against Kwan’s chest. “I can’t really hear you anyway.”

“Polly!” Kwan said, naked relief on his face. “Are you okay?”

Paulina pointed to her ears. “I can’t hear you, querido. My ears—it was really loud. In the trial.”

Dried blood still stained her neck. Danny had a feeling that “really loud” was an understatement.

In halting sentences, Paulina explained her trial. The voice, the laughter, the deal for making the pain stop. Danny was impressed; he wasn’t sure he would have withstood it, in her position. He could understand, now, how Pariah wouldn’t have made it through the trials.

They asked questions throughout, which Paulina couldn’t hear. It got a little better when they spoke slower and enunciated, but it would be a struggle until her ears healed, Danny feared.

“Let’s go over what we know,” Danny said, counting off on his fingers. “One, in both of the trials, only one person was picked to do the trial. Two, neither of you remembered it was a trial while it was happening, right?”

Kwan and Paulina both shook their heads, though Paulina winced as she did it. “It felt real,” Kwan said. “Like—I knew something was wrong, but whenever I tried to focus on that wrongness, it vanished.”

“I knew it was a trial at first,” Paulina said, throat scratchy, “but when it got too loud, I couldn’t really think straight. Then I was in school, and I completely forgot about the trial thing, even though the noise was still there. I forgot it wasn’t supposed to be there.”

Danny wanted to apologize to Paulina, for getting her involved in this, but he had a feeling she wouldn’t exactly appreciate it. She looked rough. Dried tear-streaks on her face that she hadn’t wiped off yet, hair a mess like she tried to rip it out, blood trails from her ears. They were pretty sure she’d burst both eardrums during her trial.

(It was a little over-the-top, Danny thought, to torture someone in a trial of compassion. Paulina had her flaws, sure, but that didn’t mean she needed to be hurt to learn a lesson. Kwan’s trial had really lulled them all into a false sense of security.)

(He could see, now, why Pariah Dark could never make it through.)

“Three, the trials seem to pick people on purpose.” His eyes slid over to Kwan and Paulina. “I think it picks based on those who… struggle the most with the thing the trial is all about.”

“Huh?” Paulina said. Right. She could only kind of hear right now.

“He said the trials picked us because I’m a coward and you’re mean.”

Danny winced. “That’s not—”

“Oh. Well, duh.”

“So, if truth’s next, it’ll be you, right?” Valerie said, looking Danny up and down.

“Hey!”

“You’re the one with the big secrets here.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, did you forget that you have a secret identity, too?” Danny felt like Valerie was probably right, all things considered. His secret was, ultimately, way bigger than hers.

Still, she was getting on his nerves. He’d known she had a grudge against ghosts, especially him, but this was getting ridiculous. For fuck’s sake, she’d worked better with him on Skulker’s island, when she thought he was a full ghost.

“No, but my dad knows all about it. And so did you, apparently, though you lied about that, too.”

“Oh, wow, two whole people. Except that I told your dad, not you. And you never told me anything! I happened to find out on my own.”

“Uh, guys?” Kwan said.

Valerie rolled her eyes. “Okay, yeah. But we broke up because I didn’t want to endanger you. And now it turns out you can take care of yourself just fine!”

“Oh, so if you knew I was half dead, we’d still be together? That’s my fault now?”

“Of course we wouldn’t. But I lied to you to protect you. You lied to me to protect yourself!”

“Yeah! I did! Now think for, like, two seconds about what I needed protection from!”

“Guys!” Kwan said. “Could you stop?”

“You know what? Maybe you’re right. Maybe it will be me. But not because I lie more than you. Maybe these tests are meant for humans only.”

Danny felt his eyes flash green. “So that’s what this is about? You hate me because I’m a freak?”

“I hate you because—”

“Okay!” Kwan said, jumping between them. “I think this conversation needs to stop immediately, before you both say… even more things you will regret. Valerie, dude, I know we’re just now trying to maybe be friends again, but as your maybe-future friend: you’ve gotta lay off.”

Danny stared and blinked at Kwan a couple times. Was Kwan… defending him?

“You’re taking his side?”

“Yeah, I am. I think you both need to cool down, but you’re wrong about this. And I think you know it, too.”

Valerie huffed. “I’m not wrong.”

Danny was so, so tired. “Okay.” He turned away and walked over to Paulina, who was still on the ground, and offered her a hand.

She stared up at him before grabbing on and pulling herself up. “She is wrong. She’s just… stubborn.”

Danny sighed. “You heard all that?”

“Bits and pieces. I got the gist. Hey, do you think the Panacea will fix my ears?” Danny opened his mouth to reply, but Paulina kept talking. “Never mind. What I mean is: sorry you had to hear that. I know you care about her, you know? It must really suck to hear this stuff from her in particular.”

“Yeah, I knew she wouldn’t take it well, but I didn’t think she’d take it this badly. I mean, she was okay with Danielle!”

“I’ll be real with you, I only caught like half of that, but, uh, who’s Danielle?”

Oh, duh. Danny smacked himself in the face. “Right, sorry. Danielle’s my half-ghost cousin. Well, we call each other cousins, but technically she’s my clone. She’s her own person, and all that but—yeah. Anyway, the guy who cloned her is also a giant asshole and he was planning to melt her down to study her remains, but Valerie helped me save her.” This time, he spoke a bit louder, and made sure to enunciate so Paulina could try to read his lips too.

“Dude. You have a clone?”

“Yeah.”

“Someone cloned you?”

“Yeah.”

“What the fuck?”

Danny laughed. “Yeah, that’s about right. He’s a real fruitloop, that Vlad.”

“Hang on—not Vlad Masters?”

Danny laughed harder. “Yep!”

“What the fuck, babe!”

“You’re telling me.”

“Why?”

Danny started to answer, then thought better of it. It was, after all, a long story, and he had a feeling that, although she was great at faking it, Paulina was still only catching parts of what he said. “I’ll tell you when your ears are better,” he said, tugging on his own then pointing at hers to make his point clearer.

Paulina rolled her eyes. “Fine. But I’m holding you to that! This is some juicy, juicy gossip”—Danny flashed her a panicked look—“that I will take to my grave and never speak of again.”

Paulina kept talking as they rejoined Kwan and Valerie. Mostly jokes about how he should change his ghostly outfit (“Seriously, querido, you’d look great in a crop-top!”) or about him out-gothing Sam (“You went and died! Manson will never be that hardcore.”).

Maybe he and Paulina could be friends after this.

Valerie was sure she was right.

She was sure she was right as she and Kwan waited in stony silence for Paulina and—for the others to join them. She was sure she was right as they walked in a group, the other three linking arms while she refused Kwan’s hand. She was sure she was right as they crossed into the black.

She was less sure when the room stayed dark.

“Oh, you’ve gotta be kidding me,” she said. She worried at her lip for a moment, then yelled, “I’m the Red Huntress! Is that the truth this thing wants?”

“Uh, yeah,” Danny said. “I already know that, Val.”

Valerie grinned, just a little. It wasn’t like anyone could see her, and the fact that he was here, too? Vindicating. “Well, look at that. It’s both of us!”

“Yeah? It’s both of us. Together. In some strange room. In the dark.”

“Okay, well I said my big truth. You say yours.”

“What? Why?”

“We need to get through this trial, dumbass!”

“Trial?”

“Yeah, the truth trial. Obviously we’re both in it—wait. You don’t know it’s a trial! Ha, then this is totally your trial and I just got pulled in for… reasons. I knew it!”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. Why is it so dark? Where are we?”

Valerie waved him off, though he couldn’t see it. “Oh, that’s not important. What is important is that you need to tell the truth. Probably to me, which is why I’m here.” Yeah, that made sense. He needed to tell the truth about how he’d hurt her, how he’d hurt everyone, how he’d played hero to earn his fawning fans. He needed to stop pretending to be something he wasn’t. And she was here because she deserved to hear it directly from him.

“What truth? Again, Val, what are you talking about?”

“Stop calling me Val. We’re not friends.”

“What do you—”

“Did the trial make you forget? I know you’re a ghost.”

“Oh.”

“I destroy ghosts.”

“But… But I’m also a human.”

“You’re a liar, is what you are.”

“For good reason.”

“No, I’m a liar for good reason. You’re just a coward!”

There was a long moment of silence where Valerie could only hear her own heaving breaths. Then, softly: “Wouldn’t you be?”

“No!”

“Really? You wouldn’t be the slightest bit afraid that people would try to kill you?”

“No one would kill you.”

“You said you know I’m a ghost and then immediately threatened to destroy me.”

“That’s not what I said.”

“Oh? How was I supposed to take ‘I destroy ghosts’ then? A joke?”

“Stop trying to turn this around on me. You’re the one who needs to tell the truth!”

“What truth? You already know the secret!”

“I’m talking about the rest of it! How you lie and manipulate people, how you fake being a hero, how you ruined my life!”

“Is that what you think?”

“Yes.”

“Is that really what you think?”

“I don’t think. I know.”

“Gah! It’s impossible to talk to you about this shit.” There was a rustling sound, like he was walking away.

“Hang on! You can’t walk away; you still need to complete your trial!” She ran to where she heard him moving, tripped, and then she was falling, falling, falling…

…and landing with a thud in the same black void.

“She’s a ghost! And I destroy ghosts.”

“But she’s also a human!”

Was that… her? Back when they had been talking about Danielle. Danielle, who was human and ghost and just a little girl. Valerie and—they had saved her from Vlad, who was also human and ghost.

“Was this a trick, too? Was Danielle a liar, too?” she yelled. No answer. “Where the hell did you go? We aren’t done here!”

“Valerie?”

Valerie twitched. That voice—

There, bright and glowing against the blackness of the room, was Danielle.

“Valerie!” Danielle said with a grin, flying forward and giving her a hug. Valerie returned it with stiff arms.

“Hey, you… Uh, I’m looking for your… cousin. Do you know where he is?”

“Danny? No, I haven’t seen him in ages. I’m kinda off exploring the world, y’know? Anyway, how’ve you been?”

“I’m—good. Look, I really need to find him.”

Danielle floated up and shrugged. “Well, he’s not here, but I can help you look.”

Valerie nodded. “Thanks, kid. And, uh, would you mind changing back to human?”

“Huh?” Danielle landed on whatever passed for the ground in this featureless void. “Why?”

“It’s just—uncomfortable, is all.”

Something strange passed across Danielle’s face.

“Oh. Well, I mean, I’ll be a lot faster if I can fly.”

Valerie clenched her fists. “Fine,” she said through gritted teeth.

Danielle’s answering smile was tense as she lifted herself through the air. “I’ll let you know if I find anything.”

“Wait, if you leave how will”—Danielle zoomed away with an impressive burst of speed—“we find each other. Great.” Valerie groaned and slumped to the ground. “They just keep running away, huh?”

“Yeah,” Star said, “I wonder why that is.”

Star and Valerie were on a hill, watching the stars. Star was really good at finding constellations, seeing connections where Valerie saw points, seeing a picture where Valerie saw light pollution, so stargazing was always fun with her. She’d always loved space because of her name, she said. She wanted to know all about what she was named after.

The moon was full and bright. Valerie could see Star clearly, half-swallowed by the long grass. It was a cool, pleasant night. Peaceful, in all the ways Valerie was not.

(She was looking for someone. To do… something.)

“It’s ‘cause they know I’m right,” Valerie said.

“Are you sure?”

“Of course I’m sure.”

“Maybe that’s the problem. Maybe you need to be less sure.”

“What are you—”

And Valerie was falling again.

Detention with Lancer. Never fun, not even when he kicked his feet up and fell asleep. She and Phantom had both gotten it for skipping class to fight ghosts. The ghost himself was sitting in the back of the class, balancing his pencil on his nose and staring out the window.

After a long moment of silence, Phantom said, “You don’t have any questions for me?”

“Already know all the answers.”

“Oh yeah? Then why’d I fight Pariah Dark?”

“For attention.”

“I thought I would die.” Phantom’s tone was light, conversational. This isn’t a big deal to him, just a fact. “Like, all the way. I thought that suit was gonna kill me if Pariah didn’t kill me first.”

“You’re lying.”

The pencil fell to the desk with a clatter. “Why do you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Whenever I say anything you can’t argue against, you just claim I’m lying.”

“It’s because you’re a liar,” Valerie said without thinking.

“See! There you go again. Not addressing my actual point, just deflecting.”

Valerie opened her mouth to refute again, then paused. Calling the ghost a liar had become reflex. She didn’t have to think about anything he said if it was all a lie, after all. Then again… “But you did lie to me.”

“Yeah. I’ve been lying to everyone for years now.”

“So why should I trust you?”

Phantom shrugged. “Have I ever hurt anyone?”

“That doesn’t mean you won’t start.”

“You could say the same thing about literally anyone, though.”

“You ruined my life!”

“You told me you liked being a ghost hunter. That you like your life as it is right now. Was that a lie?”

Valerie grit her teeth. “No.”

“Then why are you so upset with me?”

“Because you lied!” Valerie yanked her hair in frustration. “Isn’t that obvious?”

“Not because I’m a ghost?”

“No!”

Valerie gasped even as the word came out of her mouth. Lancer grumbled in his sleep at the front of the classroom and shifted to the side. Phantom grinned at her, showing off the fangs in his mouth.

“Wait, no, that’s not… I’m also mad because of the ghost thing! Ghosts are evil.”

“Am I evil?”

Yes, she wanted to say, but her lips wouldn’t form the word.

“Is Danielle evil?”

Danielle, screaming, dissolving into goo, and Valerie put her there—

“No.”

“Are you angry? Or are you using anger to cover the hurt?”

“I—I’m not—”

And Valerie was falling again.

“One of these days, ghost,” Jack Fenton said, shaking his fist, “I’m going to catch you and rip you apart molecule by molecule!”

“She’s a ghost!” Valerie said. “And I destroy ghosts!”

“Ghosts are nothing but the imprint of a human consciousness manifesting in ectoplasm after death,” Maddie Fenton said, shocking the ghost on her table as it screamed. “They don’t actually feel anything.”

And then—

Frostbite slammed the door closed, even though he got infected. Even though he was a full ghost and shouldn’t have cared about them at all.

And Danielle flew away, young and eager to explore the world. A child, who’d never really been free before.

And Danny—

Danny laughing with her. Danny hiding with her from Dash and Nathan. Danny forgiving her for being mean in school. Danny begging her to help him save Danielle (a child, who’d done nothing wrong and Valerie had given her away to a man who would destroy her). Danny, just as invested in protecting that stupid flour sack for their grade. Danny, revealing her to her dad, smug little grin on his face. Danny, who could’ve died that day and no one would have ever known what he’d done for them.

Something ached in her heart.

“No,” she said, choking on a sob, as the scenery around her changed again. “No, I can’t be this wrong.”

She was in a lab, now. Jack and Maddie Fenton stood to her left. To her right stood two GiW agents. On the table in front of her, strapped down, was Phantom.

Was Danny.

“Ms. Gray,” one of the agents said, “we were so pleased when you brought us your capture. Such a unique specimen will fuel our research for decades.”

Valerie swallowed. Danny stared at her, uncanny green eyes boring into her own. He didn’t say anything.

“Decades?” she said.

“Of course! We’ll take it slow; we wouldn’t want to destroy it before we’ve learned everything we can. Not like some people.” He looked over at Jack and Maddie, who rubbed their heads sheepishly.

Decades. Decades as a test subject. If Danny was just a ghost, it shouldn’t matter. He couldn’t feel anything.

Right?

Valerie couldn’t look away from his face. He looked scared.

“No,” she said. Her fingers clenched into fists

“Hm?” the other agent said.

“No, I won’t let you do this. It… This isn’t right!” With every word she spoke, she became more sure.

Danny was afraid. It wasn’t a lie or an act. He was really, truly afraid.

“Valerie?” Maddie said. “Dear, you know it’s not a person, right? It can’t actually feel.”

“You’re wrong!” She stepped forward, pulled out her gun, and blasted away the restraints holding Danny down. “I’ve been wrong, too. This whole time.”

“It’s out!” one agent said, pulling his ectogun and firing. “Recapture maneuvers, now!”

“What did you do?” Jack grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. Danny flew around the room, avoiding the ectoblasts from the agents and Maddie. “What did you do?”

“The right thing,” she whispered. And she knew that, this time, she was correct, and it hit like a bullet to the chest.

Then she was soaring, ripped out of Jack’s grasp, flying through walls and agents until she was outside the building, in Danny’s arms, free.

He set her down on a rooftop across the city. “Thank you,” he said. “I couldn’t—”

Heaving sobs burst out of her. “I’m sorry! God, fuck, I’m so sorry.”

“I—Huh?”

Fat tears rolled down her cheeks. “I just didn’t want to admit it. For so long, Danny.”

“Are you okay?”

Valerie laughed. “No. I’ve been convincing myself that I was right and ghosts were all evil all the time because if they weren’t… if they weren’t, then what was I even doing?”

Danny’s face, inexplicably, softened. “Val—”

“And then I found out your secret, and all I could think was that you lied. That you didn’t trust me. And I knew why! But if I acknowledged it, then I had to acknowledge everything. All the—all the ways I hurt you. What if I hurt other ghosts that did—didn’t deserve it either?” Valerie hiccuped. “I—oh, God, I’m a monster.”

“You’re not a monster. You’re human. This is the kind of mistake that humans make. Me included.”

“I would have let Vlad destroy Danielle if you didn’t talk me out of it. I would have been fine with it!”

“But you didn’t. Don’t torture yourself over things you didn’t do. It doesn’t help anything.”

Valerie’s throat was sore, aching with each new sob, but she couldn’t stop. “I’m sorry. I made you a liar in my head so I could keep lying to myself. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

Danny’s arms circled around her, and she let her head hit his shoulder.

“Okay,” he said. “Okay.”

Kwan didn’t expect Valerie to come back crying.

He’d kind of figured she’d get the trial. She’d been so sure it would be Danny that Kwan thought it had to be her. Like, cosmically or whatever. And after Paulina’s… whatever that was, he knew it would more than likely be intense. But ever since her dad had lost his job, Valerie had lost her softness, too. She didn’t cry when she was upset anymore. Instead, she got angry. She got even.

But when the light flashed on, Valerie was huddled on the floor, hugging herself, sobs heaving from her chest. Her face was dark and splotchy, dark stains of mascara trailing down her cheeks. Time was Kwan would have run to her, put his arms around her, rocked her back and forth. But this wasn’t that Valerie, and he wasn’t that Kwan.

He walked slowly, and knelt beside her.

“Valerie?”

“Oh God,” she said, choking through her sobs. “I—I really messed up.”

Kwan couldn’t help but turn his head and stare at Danny, holding Paulina up across the room. If she meant what he thought she meant… well, he couldn’t exactly argue.

“Yeah,” he said. She looked at him, tears still dripping from her eyes. “What are you gonna do about it?”

Valerie lifted a shaking hand and wiped at her eyes and cheeks and chin. “Ugh, nasty.” She looked tired more than anything. “Yeah. Yeah, I gotta do something, right?”

“You should probably start with walking. I don’t think he’s gonna come to you.”

Kwan stood with her, holding her elbow as her knees started to tremble. He glanced over her real quick, looking for any injuries like Paulina’s, but whatever had messed her up seemed to be more mental than anything.

That didn’t stop her from almost collapsing when she took her first step, grabbing on to Kwan’s hand at the last moment.

“Val!” Danny said, making an aborted gesture like he wanted to come over to help.

“I’m okay,” she said. “Just give me a sec.”

Kwan didn’t quite buy it, but she was determined. He kept his arm out, just in case she fell, but with each step she became steadier, almost normal by the time she reached Danny and Paulina.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I was wrong about you. About everything. And I knew it, see, but I didn’t want to face it. So I just kept lying to myself. And I hurt you because of it. And I’m sorry.”

Danny froze, staring at Valerie in disbelief. “Oh,” he said.

Kwan looked over at the door at the far end of the chamber. He awaited the tell-tale rumble, the sign that they’d finished the last trial and the door was opening, but nothing came. Confused, he stared at Valerie, who shook her head.

“I don’t think I’m done just yet,” she said, sitting down in front of Danny. “I’ve done a lot of talking since this started. Said a lot of things… things that I regret. I haven’t listened, much. I think I need to listen, now.”

“Listen to what?” Danny said. “Like, what am I supposed to say?”

“Anything you wanted to tell me.” Tears spilled over her eyes again and her voice broke. “I’ll believe you. I swear.”

Danny laughed, just a little. “Even if I said the sky was green?”

Valerie pointed at one of the holes in the ceiling that revealed the swirling Ghost Zone outside. “Isn’t it?” she said.

Kwan couldn’t help but laugh at that, too, just as Danny and Valerie fell into giggles. Paulina mostly looked confused, but Kwan didn’t really have a good way to explain it to her right now. He waved her off.

“Well, I guess—Vlad’s a half-ghost, too. I thought you should know that.”

“Oh, uh, I already did. Know that, I mean”

“You did?”

Kwan held up his hands before they could get any deeper into that discussion. “Wait, wait—the mayor?”

“Yeah. He wants to kill my dad, marry my mom, and make me his evil half-ghost apprentice. So. It’s uncomfortable at best but sometimes I egg his house.”

“You egg his house?”

“After he cloned me, I figured all bets were off.”

“He cloned you?”

“Jesus, is that where Danielle came from?”

“Who’s Danielle?”

“My cousin. Well, technically, yes, she’s my clone, but that’s weird so we just call each other cousins.”

“Yeah,” Kwan said, feeling faint, “that makes the situation much less weird.”

Danny shrugged. “It’s just my life, dude. You get used to it.”

“Hang on,” Valerie said. “I don’t think we can gloss over the fact that Vlad Masters wants to murder your father, marry your mother, forcibly adopt you, and clone you, and the proportional response is egging his house?”

Danny rolled his eyes. “It’s not proportional but I’m not rich enough to do much more than be petty. If I reveal his identity to anyone then he’ll reveal me, too. Mutually Assured Destruction, and all that. Only so much I can do outside of that.”

“Okay. Okay. Shit. This is crazy. I hate this.”

“Tell me about it. How did you know Vlad was a ghost, anyway?”

“Oh, uh, I flew back to check on him after Danielle. And he was. Monologuing.”

Danny laughed again. “Of course he was. He’s such a little loser. You know his cat?”

“Yeah, Maddie—oh shit, that’s your mother’s name.”

(What the fuck, Kwan thought. What the fuck the mayor was so creepy.)

“Yeah, heh, well, the cat was my idea.”

“What?”

“Yeah. I told him he was so lonely and pathetic that he should stop trying to get my mom to love him since she never would and instead fill that hole with a cat. I still can’t believe he listened to me.”

They broke down into laughter again. Kwan thought it sounded a little hysterical, but he figured they deserved to go a little crazy.

After they calmed down a bit, Valerie wiped at her eyes. “What else?”

“Huh?”

“I mean, is there anything else you want to say to me? Stuff to tell me?”

(Kwan actually wanted to spend a little more time on the whole the mayor is an evil ghost thing, but this wasn’t his show.)

And Danny talked.

He talked about walking into his parents’ portal, thinking it was broken. About turning it on while he was still inside. About how much he sucked with his powers to start. About Ember McClain (she’s a ghost?) and Spectra (she’s a ghost?) and the Lunch Lady. About how scared he was, fighting Pariah Dark. About how much fun it was to fly. How funny it was to mess with Vlad.

Sometime, in the middle of all this, the door opened. Kwan and Paulina both felt the rumble, both looked at the door, but Valerie and Danny were too engrossed in their conversation to notice. Paulina opened her mouth to say something, but Kwan shook his head. The fate of the world didn’t rest on them moving immediately. Thirty more seconds wouldn’t matter.

After another minute, Paulina raised her eyebrows at him, jerking her head at the door. Kwan bit back an instinctive retort. She wouldn’t hear it anyway, and she wasn’t wrong. They couldn’t wait forever.

“Uh, guys?” he said, when there was a slight lull. “Not to interrupt, but the door’s open.”

Valerie and Danny’s head whipped around. “Oh,” Valerie said. “Right.”

Kwan winced. They’d been having a good time! Getting along! He’d been hoping for that since the beginning of this mess and now that they were there, he had to break the tender moment up. Unfair.

Necessary, but unfair.

“We’re done, right?” Danny said. “I mean, this last one should be the Panacea?”

“Should be,” Valerie said. “Unless we fucked up somehow. Or that legend was wrong.”

Kwan peered beyond the opening, but just like every other time, it was pitch black. They’d only find out for sure by walking in.

“Hang on a sec,” Danny said, eyes squeezed in concentration. Before Kwan could ask what he was doing, a bright white light engulfed the room.

When Kwan could see again, there was Danny Phantom, standing in place of Danny Fenton.

“Woo! Finally!” Danny said, floating up and doing a couple flips.

“Wait,” Kwan said, “could you… not do that before?”

Danny laughed. “Of course not, dude, or I’d’ve been in ghost mode the whole time. Ghost Zone is dangerous and all. That gun really knocked the wind out of me; I only just got the connection to my ghost half back.”

Kwan had been kind of avoiding thinking about Danny’s ghost half because he wasn’t really sure what to think. He didn’t have a problem with it, not like Valerie did, but it still felt… weird. How could someone be half-dead? Wasn’t it, like, painful?

Watching now, the grin on Danny’s face as he unleashed a bright explosion of ectoplasm like a firework over their heads, he knew there was nothing to worry about. Danny was half-ghost. Danny was happy about it.

It was good enough for him, Kwan decided.

He glanced over at Valerie. A smile played around her lips. Paulina was cheering beside her, elbow resting on Valerie’s shoulder. In a moment, they’d all link arms and walk through the last door, a truly united front.

Kwan cheered with Paulina as Danny landed. Valerie’s almost-smile became a grin. Danny bowed, a huge sweeping motion.

He could get used to friends like this.

“If we walk through this door and there’s another trial,” Danny said, looping his hands through Kwan and Valerie’s elbows, “I’m gonna be so pissed.”

Kwan and Valerie laughed, but Paulina groaned. “I can’t wait to find this stupid Panacea so I can stop missing all the good stuff! Stop being funny while I can’t hear!”

Danny couldn’t help laughing again as they stepped over the final threshold.

Immediately, the room lit up. Danny raked his eyes over the other, making sure none of them were shaken up or hurt like they’d been before, but they all looked the same.

“No trials?” he said, just to be sure.

“No,” Valerie said. Kwan shook his head.

Paulina rolled her eyes. “I still can’t hear you.”

Danny gave her a thumbs up, then pointed at her, and shrugged.

She giggled. “Okay, yeah, I’m good. No trials or anything, if that’s what you’re asking.”

With that settled, Danny examined the room for the Panacea. At the far end, raised on a pedestal on a dais, was a white, crystalline bottle, glowing just slightly.

The Panacea.

Kwan whooped and raced toward it. “Wait!” Danny said, afraid of another trap.

Kwan made it to the dais, but stopped at Danny’s shout. “Sorry! I got excited.”

“Yeah, I get it, but we need to be careful.” Danny floated up next to Kwan, Valerie and Paulina right behind him. “Maybe… Maybe you should all step back.”

“What?”

“Danny, no!”

“What’d you say?”

“Listen! I’m faster than any of you. If something gets triggered I’m more likely to be able to get away.”

“But—” Valerie started to say.

“Am I wrong?”

“No—”

“Look, I appreciate it. Really, I do, but I think it’s best if I get the thing. Just in case.”

Danny couldn’t exactly explain why, but he was absolutely certain that he needed to be the one to grab the bottle. Everything he said was true enough, but there was something else niggling in the back of his mind that said he was the only one who could do it. He couldn’t let anyone else touch it.

“What’s going on?” Paulina said to Kwan in what she probably intended to be a whisper but was loud enough for everyone to hear. Kwan pointed to Danny, then to the rest of them, then pointed to the other side of the chamber.

“Yeah, that doesn’t really help,” she said, “but thanks, querido.”

“Are you sure?” Valerie said, steady gaze meeting his own.

Danny swallowed. “I’m sure.” He wasn’t sure why he was so sure, but he was.

She bit her lip, then nodded and stepped back, pulling Kwan and Paulina with her. That trial really had changed things; just ten minutes ago, Valerie would never have listened to him like this.

Once they were far enough away, Danny took a deep breath and grabbed the Panacea.

It came off easily, but before they could take a moment to celebrate, a bright green box formed around him.

Of course it did.

Danny reached out to touch the green wall, and a painful zap had him yanking his hand back. So no walking through. Ugh.

“Oh, come on!” Paulina said, tearing at her hair in frustration. “We passed your stupid trials! Just let us save the world!”

“Don’t worry, dude!” Kwan said. “We’ll get you out of there.”

It hit Danny all at once, a certainty that he knew exactly what needed to be done.

Valerie had already run up to the trap, Kwan and Paulina close behind, and was examining it. Probably looking for a way to get rid of it.

She couldn’t, though. Not like that.

“Val! Take the Panacea!”

Valerie, sharp as ever, narrowed her eyes at him. She’d already caught on. “We aren’t going to leave you here, Danny.”

“You have to.”

“No way!”

“What’s happening now?”

Kwan pulled out his phone, typing something before showing it to Paulina. She gasped. “Are you stupid? We’ll figure something else out. Don’t go playing martyr on us now.”

“No, listen! You have to. This is my trial, okay?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Every trial picks something that we suck at, right? Well, this one picked me.”

Kwan frowned. “I don’t—”

“It’s trust. I—look, I’ll be honest, you three are not high on my list of people to trust with my secret. Or, at least, you weren’t.”

Valerie opened her mouth, then winced. “Okay, yeah, that’s… fair.”

“But how can this be a trial? No one else’s trial took place in the real world!” Kwan stopped himself, furiously typing on his phone to show to Paulina. “This is the real world, right?”

“It’s real,” Danny said. He knew it like he knew he needed to grab the Panacea, like he knew exactly what needed to happen next. “This trap won’t go away until we put the Panacea back. But when we put it back, it’s gone forever. We’ll never find it again.”

“So, if we get you out…”

“We lose the Panacea.”

“No, no, no! We’ll figure something else out. There has to be another way.”

“Guys, guys, chill. You just have to bring it back when you’re done, okay?” Danny held out the Panacea through the force field. It passed through just fine. “I’m not offering to stay here forever. Just until you get back.”

None of them moved to grab the bottle. “But… but how are we supposed to fight the ghost without you?”

It was a fair question, and Danny wasn’t sure how he would have answered it yesterday. But the Panacea would be Pestilence’s ultimate weakness. And they’d faced plenty of stuff on their own today.

Danny wiggled the Panacea. “You’ll figure it out. I’ve got faith.”

(He was lying, just a little. But this wasn’t the truth trial, and what was faith without a little doubt?)

Valerie hugged herself. “I don’t know that we can,” she said. She straightened. “But we have to anyway, right?”

“Pretty much,” Danny said with a laugh.

“Do you have, like, snacks? For while you wait? Do you even need to eat?” He opened his mouth to respond, but Paulina shook her head. “Never mind, I can’t hear you anyway. Just… be careful?”

He couldn’t do much else, trapped as he was. He smiled and gave Paulina a thumbs up.

Kwan reached out and took the bottle. “How come you get to know it’s a trial, anyway? I didn’t know what the hell was going on.”

“How the hell should I know?”

“Fair.” Kwan started to move away, then paused. “We’ll figure it out. Promise.”

“I know,” he said. (Did he?)

“See you soon.”

Danny’s palms were sweaty under the suit. “See you soon.”

And they left.

Waiting sucked.

He was more bored and more anxious than he’d ever been in his life. Sure, he’d talked big about trusting the others. He even meant it. But he’d lost his phone somewhere in this whirlwind of a day, so he had no idea how much time had passed. An hour? Two hours? A day?

Okay, it definitely hadn’t been a day, but still. He worried. Valerie could hold her own, and Kwan could throw a decent punch, but was that enough against a veritable army? Even with the Panacea?

He wasn’t used to sitting aside and letting other people save the day.

(It was the right choice. It was the only choice. He hated it.)

He drummed his fingers on his knee. He tried a few breakdancing moves, fell, and laid on his back for ten minutes. His bladder started to ache. He thought about pissing through the barrier, but he couldn’t risk the chance that it would instead ricochet. He squeezed his legs together. He sang Billy Joel songs at the top of his lungs until his throat started to hurt.

“Jeez, you are not a singer, my guy.”

Danny’s head jerked up at Kwan’s voice. There, crossing the threshold, were Valerie, Paulina, and Kwan, hair and clothes a little messed up, but looking perfectly fine.

“You’re back!” He stood up and attempted to meet them, only to slam into the barrier, zapping himself once again. “Ow.”

“Of course we are,” Valerie said, a smirk in her voice. “Never a doubt.”

“This Panacea stuff is amazing.” Paulina pointed to her ears and wiggled the bottle. “Fixes everything. I love hearing and sound.”

Danny laughed, relief tingling down his spine. It worked. They did it. They won.

“Thank fuck,” he said. “Now get me out of here.”

“Hm, I don’t know,” Paulina said, tapping at her chin and frowning. “This stuff is pretty cool.”

Before an icy hand of fear could grip his heart, Kwan and Valerie were already yelling at Paulina.

“Polly!”

“Come on, girl.”

Paulina giggled, waving her hand. “Sorry, sorry. Wrong crowd.” She passed it through the barrier.

He snatched it out of her hand and placed it back on its pedestal. The barrier fell, and the room rumbled once again. As Danny stumbled to his friends (yeah, they were friends, weren’t they?), the chamber collapsed in on itself, leaving just the four of them, floating alone in the Ghost Zone.

“Guys,” Danny said, “I have to pee so badly.”

And they collapsed on each other, laughing. It didn’t help the burning in his bladder, but he could wait a minute or so more.

All four of them had split with little fanfare, exhausted from the day's events. He'd sent a quick text to Sam, Tucker, and Jazz, promising to explain everything tomorrow, and promptly fell asleep.

Jazz drove him to school and he gave her a rundown on the way. She smiled at him. Patted his shoulder. Said she was proud of him for making such a hard choice.

“Wasn't much of a choice,” he said with a shrug.

“That still doesn't mean it was easy. You did good, Danny. And now maybe you've got some more people, too.”

“Yeah,” he said. “Maybe.”

The thing was, Danny had watched The Breakfast Club once, with Sam and Tucker. At the end, Sam looked over at him and said, “Bet they go back to school the next day and never talk to each other again.”

Tucker blew a raspberry at her. “Boo!” he said. “You're no fun.”

“Yeah,” Danny had said at the time, “They're all friends now. They aren't just going to give it all up to go back to how things used to be.”

“They spent one afternoon together in detention,” Sam said. “How life changing could it be?”

Danny pointedly did not think about that conversation as he walked up to Casper High the day after Pestilence's defeat. He didn't think about it as he pushed open the front entrance. He didn't think about it as he opened his locker. He definitely didn't think about it as he saw Dash shove Mikey to the floor.

Business as usual.

“Hey.”

Danny jumped, smacked his head on the locked door, and turned to see Paulina standing behind him.

Paulina giggle. “You good, cariño?”

“Don't sneak up on me like that!” Danny rubbed the stinging at the back on his head. “You'll give me a heart attack.”

“Can you get a heart attack?” Paulina tilted her head. Danny thought for a moment: his heart didn't actually beat in ghost form so theoretically...

“...Don't ask me that.”

“Hey, Fenturd! Leave Paulina alone.”

And there was Dash, looming behind him like Skulker, but only half as scary. Danny managed not to flinch as he turned to face him.

“I started talking to him, Dashie.”

Dash blinked in surprise. “Well,” he said, “he still shouldn't bother you.”

“He isn't.”

“Oh.”

Dash stood for a moment, mouth open, like he couldn't believe any of this. Danny could hardly believe it himself. But then Paulina rolled her eyes and said, “Seriously, Dash, that's enough. You can go now.” She punctuated her sentence with a dismissive wave.

“I—what?” Dash shook his head. “No, no, this doesn't make sense. Polly, are you—are you still possessed?”

Still possessed. Did Dash think that Paulina had been under Pestilence's spell? Or did he think she was somehow under Danny's spell? What exactly did everyone else think had happened yesterday?

“Just because I want to talk to Danny and not—”

“But he's a loser—”

“Don't talk about him like that!”

Dash's mouth flapped like he wanted to speak but no words came out. “I—you—what did you do to her, you little freak?” He turned on Danny, who had pressed himself into his locker, caught in the middle of this argument. Grabbing Danny's collar, he hoisted him up, knocking his head against the locker door again. Ow.

“I didn't do anything! Maybe Paulina just grew up!” Danny had never been good at keeping his mouth shut. Even now, when the obvious answer was to just get this whole thing over as soon as possible, he still had to sass Dash.

Paulina's perfectly manicured hand wrapped around Dash's wrist. “Seriously, Dash, he didn't—”

Dash ignored her, shoving her off. Paulina stumbled back, then hit the ground with a thud.

“Get off of him!”

And there was Kwan, pulling Dash off of him, arms looped under and around his shoulders. Danny sank to the ground, rubbing at his head. To the side, he saw Valerie help Paulina up before they both turned to glare at Dash.

Despite the twinge in his scalp, despite the stares of the rest of the school, despite his own lingering exhaustion, Danny couldn't help but smile. Take that, Sam. The Breakfast Club lives.

“Kwan?” Dash pulled away as soon as Kwan loosened his grip. “What the hell are you doing?”

Kwan ignored him and turned to Danny and Paulina. “You guys okay?”

Before either of them could respond, Dash shoved him. “Hey!”

“What is your problem, dude?”

“You're the one who suddenly came at me!”

“Yeah, because you were hurting Danny and Paulina.”

Dash blinked, like that hadn't occurred to him. It probably hadn't. Sometimes, Kwan thought that Dash didn't realize that everyone else in the world was a person, too. That they all had thoughts and feelings of their own. To Dash, everything was all Dash all the time.

(It wasn't entirely true, Kwan knew. He remembered a different Dash, eight years old, crying over Old Yeller and pretending he wasn't. Swiping at stray tears and yelling it's just dusty it's allergies don't laugh even though Kwan was crying, too. He doesn't know when exactly the pretense became reality, but he'd lost his Dash a long, long time ago.)

“Sorry Polly,” Dash said, not even looking at her. “But she’s acting weird. Fentonio’s using his parents’ ghost stuff to control her or something!”

“He is not!” Paulina yelled.

“Do you have, like, proof, or are you just pulling this insane theory out of your ass?”

They had long since attracted a crowd. Danny had slipped over to Valerie and Paulina at the front of the mass of students, and behind them stood just about every person in the school. Even Mr. Lancer, who by all rights should have been stepping in and stopping this, was standing by and watching. Like he was curious how things would go.

Asshole.

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying you need to back off of Danny and everyone else!”

Dash straightened up and pushed up his sleeves. “Oh yeah?” he said. “Who’s gonna make me.”

The crowd around them went wild, frenzied kids hooting and hollering at the prospect of a fight. Kwan made eye contact with Danny, Valerie, and Paulina. Paulina pointed at Dash, rolled her eyes, and faked a gag. Valerie gave him a thumbs up. Danny mouthed sorry at him. Behind them, Lancer hid his face behind a book.

Kwan wasn’t stupid. He knew what Dash was asking for. He knew Dash thought he’d win the fight, easy. He’d always won before, after all. Except—Kwan had been stupid in love with him. And a Dash who won was way happier than a Dash who lost.

The truth: Dash was a quarterback. Decently strong, for sure, but his main job was throwing the ball around. Kwan was an offensive lineman. His main job? Throwing people around. When the playing field was level, when Kwan didn’t pull his punches, there was no competition.

If Dash had thought about it for more than a minute, he would’ve realized that there was no way he was stronger than Kwan. But he’d long since lost that kind of self-awareness.

Kwan could be sad about all the ways Dash had changed tomorrow. Today was for kicking his ass.

Dash pulled his arm back to throw a haymaker. Without pausing to think, Kwan sidestepped the attack and swung an uppercut, hitting Dash square on the jaw with a nauseating click.

Dash flopped to the floor, mouth hanging open. Blood dripped down his chin; he must have bitten his tongue. For a moment, he froze, staring at Kwan in shock.

“You’re an ass,” Kwan said, “and I’ve been an ass right next to you. But I’m sick of it. Paulina’s sick of it. Everyone else in school is sick of it. I’m not holding myself back just to make you feel better. And I’m not gonna let you keep being a dick, either. So I suggest you stay down.”

Dash opened his mouth to say something, but Kwan cut him off. “I don’t wanna hear it,” he said. “Just… grow the fuck up, dude.”

And he walked past his oldest friend, bleeding on the ground, toward the cacophony of students and his 3 new/old friends.

“Jeez,” Valerie said, giving him a playful smack on the shoulder, “you’re so dramatic.”

“That was… public,” Danny said. The students started to disperse, heralded by Mr. Lancer. Lancer looked over at Kwan, nodded in something like approval, then shepherded people into their classrooms, leaving the four of them alone in the hallway just before the bell rang.

Kwan scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, sorry about that. Sorry you got in the middle there.”

“No, no, I mean… thanks for stepping in, but are you guys gonna be okay?” Danny’s eyes flicked between Paulina and Kwan.

They looked at each other. Paulina giggled. Valerie shook her head with a smile.

“Yeah, dude,” Kwan said. “We’re gonna be just fine.”

#danny phantom #my writing #my fic #invisobang 2023 #invisobang #paulina sanchez #valerie gray #kwan

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loveephia · 1 year

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"Aw, you're blushing like a rose." With yaku

i hc yaku as someone who gets flustered easily (reader teases him so he blushes)

[ I wish there was more content abt him :’) ]

ROSY CHEEKS | yaku morisuke

prompt: "aw, you're blushing like a rose."

content: (🦷) tooth-rotting fluff, you guys are in a play (beauty ajd the beast) here for nekoma's school festival, you're the princess, but yaku is just a background character, you practice your lines on him, and he's blushing hard, reader also has short hair here, kuroo and yamamoto make a short appearance.

⚠ warning/s: none.

note: yk i once had a yaku phase, and you're right. it's criminal as to how little content he has. yaku was a challenge to write as well, SOOO I HOPE THAT THIS WAS A GOOD PIECE!!! ENJOY READING ANON!!! :D

"what.." you muttered in disbelief at the casting for your school's play, "the beauty and the beast."

you got the female lead, belle.

"how is this even possible?!" you mentally screeched. at most, you expected to be a simple background character! like, y'know, one of the girls that fawn over gaston? even tree number four would've been alright!

"ah.. i really can't anymore." you grumble, massaging your temples with close eyes. "what are you talking about, y/n?" yaku morisuke, your kind and caring upperclassmen, asked.

"o- oh, yaku!" you stutter, not expecting to be checked up on. "i got the female lead when i was aiming for an insignificant character." you explained, followed by an irritated sigh. "..how am i supposed to balance my studies now?"

yaku gives you a reassuring pat on the head, despite you being around the same height or so. "i'm sure everything will work out alright! if ever you're having trouble, just come to me, and i'll help."

your eyes sparkled tearily, hands clasped in complete and utter gratitude at the boy's offer. "thank you, yaku!"

yaku's heart skipped a beat at your adorable expression. he flashed you a charming smile. "don't mention it!"

time skip.

this is the first rehearsal nekoma will have in costumes. it's just so that the costume crew can know whether or not there's an issue while wearing said costumes on stage.

you were all pampered up in belle's famous yellow dress. your hair was styled (still, by special request, kept short), there was a light touch of makeup on your face, and the dress itself was unexpectedly comfortable to wear. now you don't want to say this out loud, but you actually looked.. quite ethereal right now.

"the costume and makeup crew really outdid themselves.." you twirled in front of the mirror.

once you exited the dressing room, all of your schoolmates' eyes were on you.

"uwaaah! y/n looks so pretty!"

"that's y/n?!"

"y/n, please be our manager—!"

yamamoto was harshly pulled away by the ear (thanks to kuroo) before he could completely recruit you.

you were feeling uneasy from the amount of attention on you, so you shuffled over to yaku, who looked at you in complete adoration. "yaku, help, they're all staring at me." you mumbled just loud enough for the libero to hear.

yaku sighed before stating a firm, "you're all scaring her, y'know!" everyone then went off to mind their own business.

"thank you." you said. yaku shook his head. "like i said, just come to me for help."

"oh! by the way," you brought two scripts into view, "i've been busy clearing out all of my homework, so i only got to memorize a few lines. do you mind helping?"

"no, not at all." yaku smiled at you, accepting your request.

oh, poor yaku. if only he knew how red his face would get at your words, would he have turned you down sooner.

time skip.

"it's true that he's no prince charming, but there's something in him that i simply didn't see.." you read from the sheet of paper, all the while acting out a face of endearment. yaku had to pause for a moment, just to admire you.

"..yaku?" you called out, bringing the boy out of his thoughts. "right—! sorry." he bashfully apologized.

"y'know yaku, your face is really red right now." you giggled. "wait, really?" he asked, confused. sure, he was feeling warm, but he thought it was just the temperature!

you nod at his confusion, caressing one of his rosy cheeks. "aw, you're blushing like a rose."

that got yaku even more flustered!

#haikyuu fluff #haikyuu!!#haikyuu x y/n #hq x reader #hq x y/n #haikyuu headcanons #haikyuu imagines #hq hcs #tooth rotting fluff #hq #haikyū!!#haikyuu nekoma #haikyuu #haikyu x reader #haikyuu yaku #yaku x reader #yaku x you #yaku x y/n #yaku morisuke

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tigerdream42 · 5 months

Text

Hazbin Hotel Rant

In the pilot for Hazbin Hotel, Angel Dust remarks that he "has a reputation to uphold" and that it would crumble if people found out he was trying to "go clean." You wanna know what that says? Angel is afraid of potential repercussions for trying to find a healthier way to cope with his afterlife and heal the wounds from his past. People who've dealt with the same thing Angel's going through can understand his fear. It's not easy to kick an addiction, especially if you're using it to cope. Still, Angel has Charlie, Alastor, Niffty, Cherri Bomb, and the fandom by his side. He might feel alone at times, but he's got support. We're all here for ya, Angel. Some comments on "Use Me Up" by PARANOiD DJ are from people who have dealt with or still are dealing with a similar situation. They say the song's like a beacon of hope, an inspiration. One person said it feels like they've got someone by their side saying, "Hey, you'll beat this. I know it's rough, but it's better than being chained to something that'll kill ya." And the replies to those comments are just as uplifting as the song itself. Everyone's sharing encouragement and kind messages, it's such a positive thing! Other adult TV shows can actually gloss over or sugarcoat stuff like abuse or addiction, which just tells me that the creators are scared of covering serious topics, and they'd rather pretend they don't exist or treat them like a fucking joke. Vivziepop is seriously brave for exploring sensitive stuff like this so thoroughly, and she has my respect. I can say the same for the voice actors and everyone creating songs and animatics for Angel Dust. The songs depict his situation uniquely, and the animations are so well done! The official music video for "ADDICT" is beautiful yet tragic. It shows the reality of Angel's afterlife and the glitz and glam he hides it with. There's a scene where Angel's dancing on a catwalk as part of a show, and flashes of Angel having nightmares or something show up throughout. They only last a second or two, but the contrast is striking. Just goes to show that fame's not all it's cracked up to be and that celebrities are still human, no matter how popular they are. These lines from ADDICT sum up addiction so well, it's heartbreaking: "I'm addicted to the sorrow, when the buzz ends by tomorrow. There's another rush of poison flowing into my veins, giving me a dose of pleasure that resides by the pain." It doesn't matter what someone's addicted to, be it substances or something else, addiction is a double-edged sword. It'll numb the pain for a while, but that only means you'll hurt even worse when it wears off. I love it when a fictional character can shine a light on real issues just by being themselves, it's such a beautiful thing. I really hope Hazbin Hotel doesn't get obliterated by censoring when it airs in January, that would suck. Besides, it's supposed to cover mature topics like abuse, addiction, etc. That's why it's rated Mature in the first place.

Author's Note: Damn, I didn't realize how sad this was until I read the whole thing while proofreading. I'm actually tearing up, holy shit. I'm gonna fucking sob during the angst scenes in Hazbin Hotel, I know it. My spider boi doesn't deserve so much pain. No one does. I wouldn't wish that nightmare on my worst enemy, no matter how badly they hurt me. That kind of anguish could easily drive someone to do drastic things.

#hazbin angel dust #hazbin hotel #rant #long post #tw abuse #tw addiction #angel dust's story is so sad-

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evandarya · 2 years

Text

How (Not) To Get Adopted By Bruce Wayne

An Incomplete Guide

{Chapter 1}{Read on AO3}

Chapter 2

As soon as Bruce got to his study he called Leslie. The phone rang three times before she picked up.

"Hello, Bruce. I take it you met with Danny, then?" She asked, sounding amused.

"You could have told me he was a metahuman."

"Oh, good, so it's not just me." She sounded genuinely relieved.

"Why would it be just you? With the way his eyes flash." It had been hard to miss the way they changed from icy blue to toxic green with his emotions. Not to mention his reaction speed when he had caught his social worker’s pen, which was either superhuman or trained. "What are his powers?"

"He claims he isn't a meta, but I know he heals about twice as fast as normal."

"Just that?" He asked. There was a hesitation on the other end of the line. "Leslie, is it just that?"

"He won't let us do blood work." She said quickly. "And his vitals are off. Lower than normal. I haven't heard of anything else."

“A metahuman with unknown powers, anger issues, and a history of fighting. Great.”

"Sounds like you have your work cut out for you. Good luck," She said before hanging up the phone.

Bruce sighed and booted up his computer. He had some actual work that he needed to do and case files that he should go through, but the mystery of Danny Fenton weighed on him. on a whim he typed Danny's name into the search field.

He waded through half a dozen LinkedIn pages and irrelevant social media blogs before he found anything related to the teen.

It was his Facebook, but it was set to private, so he could only see the boy's profile picture and the most basic of information. He knew he could use the Bat computer to see the whole profile, but that seemed like an invasion of privacy. He had already pushed Danny too far.

Bruce clicked on the picture. It was three kids, barely teenaged, with their arms thrown across each other's shoulders. On the right was a girl in dark clothes and black hair pulled up into a high ponytail. On the left was a dark-skinned boy in khakis and a red beret. In the middle was Danny, a bright smile stretched across his face. It was from a few years ago, the Danny in the picture looked to be about twelve or thirteen. There was a knock at the door and Bruce quickly closed out of the browser just as Alfred entered the room.

"Lunch, as requested, sir," Alfred said, setting the tray down on the side of his desk.

"Thank you, Alfred. How is he?"

"Surly, but given the circumstances, I'm willing to overlook it. I am concerned, he seems far too small for his age.”

“He had admitted to skipping meals, and from the looks of him, it’s a common occurrence," Bruce said, grabbing a chip from the plate.

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Alfred said. The butler seemed to take hungry children in his house as a personal affront to his character.

"I have no doubt," Bruce said with a smile. Knowing Alfred, he'll have Danny up to a reasonable weight in no time. Alfred excused himself with a bow and headed back down to the kitchen. Bruce ate his lunch quickly, too aware of how Alfred would get about everyone's eating habits with a malnourished charge in the house.

He spent the next few hours elbows deep in W.E. work, reading over propositions and financial reports, all the boring work that has to get done, but no one wants to do.

There was a soft knock on the door after a while and Alfred let himself in. "Master Daniel is settling into his room, sir, and it is almost time to retrieve Masters Tim and Damian from school."

"Thank you, Alfred."

"Forgive me, sir, but perhaps it would be prudent to inform the boys of the new resident before they find out for themselves?"

Bruce paused before meeting Alfred's eyes. "Yes, you are right, of course." He stood from his desk, stretching out his back as he did. "I guess I'm doing the school run today." He said, stepping past Alfred and heading down the hall. "Is Danny settling in alright?" He asked.

"As well as can be expected. He travels light, it seems. He doesn't seem to have a winter coat or much of a wardrobe to speak of."

"Seems like a good excuse for a trip to the mall once he gets a bit more acclimated to being here."

"Indeed, sir, if he's amenable."

"That is the question, isn't it."

Bruce took the Tesla to pick up Tim and Damian, playing in his head the conversation he didn't know how to start. He waited in the pickup line at Gotham Academy, where both his boys attend, or… all three of them now if he counts Danny.

He shook his head. Danny wasn't his, he was fostering him to keep him out of juvenile detention or jail. Or if Danny was a meta like he suspected, something worse.

"Hey, Bruce, is Alfred alright?" Tim asked, sliding into the passenger seat, a deep furrow between his brows.

"Everyone is alright, Tim, don't worry." Bruce didn't realize how seldom he did the school run if Tim's immediate reaction was “something's wrong”. He'd have to do better. "Have you seen Damian?"

“He was talking to the art teacher,” Tim said, studying Bruce’s face for a minute. “What did you do?”

“What do you mean?”

“You have your ‘I just made a decision that is going to affect everything in your life without consulting you.’ face on.”

Before he could respond Damian opened the back door. “Father. Is Pennyworth well?”

“Bruce did something,” Tim said. “I don’t think we are going to like it.”

“I got a call a few days ago from Dr. Thompkins. She had a patient in foster care she was worried about, so I went to meet him today,” he said.

“You adopted another kid,” Tim accused.

“Father, you have not, have you?”

“I haven't adopted anyone. I agreed to foster him for a month to keep him out of a juvenile detention center.”

“What’s his name?” Tim asked, pulling out his phone.

“Daniel Fenton.”

“Wait, do you mean Danny Fenton?” Tim asked.

“Do you know him?”

“I know of him," Tim said. “But we’ve never met. He has a Wayne scholarship for gifted foster kids. He had to move from Chicago to take it. I think he’s a Freshman.”

"Sophomore, actually," Damian said. "He’s in my art class, but he doesn’t talk to anyone.”

Bruce hummed in acknowledgment. It wasn’t surprising, given what he knew about Danny, but he was hoping for a little more information. The car fell silent as they drove with Tim typing on his phone and Damian reading a library book. Or it was until Tim swore under his breath.

“Language. What did you find?”

“His parent’s death certificates, cause of death is listed as Blast Injuries.”

“From an explosion?” Damian said.

“You’d think so, but I can’t find any police reports or news articles, not even social media posts about any kind of explosion in Illinois.”

“Coverup?”

“Maybe? I’d have to do some more digging to find out. Maybe with Oracle’s help…” Tim said, trailing off in thought.

“No. Danny isn’t a suspect, so we don’t need to treat him like one.” Bruce said. “Doing that would cause him to shut down even more.”

“How should we treat him, then?” Damian asked.

“Like a wet, feral cat.”

***

Danny was laid out on the insanely huge bed in the insanely huge room he had been given to stay in. Seriously, it was bigger than the room he shared back at the group home. He could almost hear Sam’s voice telling him to “Eat the Rich”. Danny sighed and rubbed his eyes. He’d probably never see her again, or Tucker. They’d probably never want to see him again. Before he could get too far down a spiral he pulled himself off the bed and crossed to the desk. He had some math work to get caught up on before he had to go back to school tomorrow.

He had just finished his final problem when there was a knock at the door and Alfred called out.

“Master Danny, dinner is ready. Masters Tim and Damian are excited to meet you.”

Danny sighed. He didn’t want to meet ‘Master’ anyone. He wanted to be left alone, but he could hear Alfred shuffling quietly outside the door so he got up and followed the butler down to the dining room, where Bruce, Tim, and Damian were already seated, leaving the last set place for him right next to Bruce. Wonderful. At least the food looked and smelled amazing. Alfred had made some kind of chicken and rice dish with three different vegetable sides, as well as a cheesy pasta dish.

“Good evening, Danny. I’d like to introduce you to my sons. This is Tim and Damian.” he said, gesturing to one and then the other.

"It's nice to meet you, Danny," Tim said with a smile.

"Right, same." Danny took his seat at the table and pointedly ignored the awkward silence that fell across the room as everyone served themselves. It wasn't long before Wayne spoke up.

"Damian says you two are in art together. What kind of projects do you do?"

Danny shifted in his seat, mixing up his rice before answering. "Abstract mixed media."

Wayne brightened at that, a small smile spreading across his face. "I'd love to see some of your work."

"It's not very good." He said, not taking his eyes off his plate.

"Yes, it is," Damian said, surprising everyone at the table. "The teacher has a noticeable bias toward classical styles and realism and grades accordingly. Your skill and passion is evident in your work and you should be proud." Danny stared at the younger boy for a few moments before looking away with a mumbled thanks.

Thankfully that seemed to be the end of Wayne's attempts to get him talking as they lapsed into silence again for a while until Damian brought up a dog he had seen on a shelter website.

Danny ate as quickly as he thought he could get away with and contemplated his escape. Every house was different. Some houses wanted everyone to wait until the head of the house was done eating before anyone could leave, and others wanted you to ask if you could be excused. Getting it wrong could mean upsetting Wayne. Well, in that case…Danny gathered his dishes when he was done and simply walked out of the room towards the kitchen, surprising Alfred in the process.

"Ah, Master Danny. You could have left your dishes, I would have gathered them." He said, setting down his cup of tea.

"'S'all right," Danny said. "I can take care of myself." He set the dishes by the sink and rinsed them off. He could feel Alfred watching him, but the man didn't say anything. Danny loaded his dishes into the dishwasher by the sink before turning around. "Thanks for dinner." He said before heading out of the kitchen and up to his room.

He'd have to find the laundry room at some point. There was a limit to how many days in a row he was willing to wear the same pair of jeans, and he was quickly approaching it, but that was a problem for future Danny. Present Danny wanted a shower and sleep.

Unfortunately, Present Danny was only able to get a shower and dressed in sweats before there was a knock at the door. He pulled it open a crack to see Bruce standing in the middle of the hallway. Danny pulled the door open the rest of the way and leaned against the door frame.

"Can I help you with anything, sir?" Danny didn't miss the small, pained look that crossed the man's face.

"Danny, are you settling in alright?"

"Fine. The room's bigger than some of the houses I've lived in. A great example of wealth distribution." Danny crossed his arms over his chest.

"That's… ah. Hmm." Wayne hemmed, and Danny raised his eyebrow. "About dinner." Danny shifted his weight. "Next time, just ask to be excused. You won't be told 'no'."

"That's it?" Danny asked. He'd been punished for less than that before. There's no way that's it. But Wayne was nodding.

"That's it. Have a good night." Wayne walked away down the hall. Danny waited until Wayne turned a corner before he closed the door and leaned against it.

"Twenty-nine days to go." He whispered into the empty room.

#danny phantom #danny fenton #batman #dc comics #crossover #fanfic #tim drake #damian wayne #bruce wayne

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nerdwhoauthorinserts · 6 days

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Herb-based random Selfship Ask game!

Works basically the same as any other Selfship ask game! Just send in the word correlating with a question and specify what fictional other/Self-insert/Self-ship you're asking it about! (Anywhere I say 'You', you can put yourself or your self-insert, lol.)

If you want to do this for yourself, just reblog! (Remember, practice reblog karma.)

Basil - If you and your F/O had an all-expenses paid trip to anywhere in the world/your F/Os source world, where would you go on a date/honeymoon?

Bay Leaf - What do you and your F/O do when you need to wind down after a long and stressful day?

Chamomile - What is something your F/O loves about you?

Cinnamon - *Flash doodle prompt!* Draw your selfship doing something involving fire! (Roasting marshmallows, dinner by candle light, sitting by the fireplace, etc.)

Chia Seeds - Is there anything you've learned/improved upon since being with your F/O? (Maybe you had anger issues and learned to deal with them after starting to selfship, for example?)

Chili flakes - Who out of you and your F/O(s) is more likely to be arrested defending the others' honor?

Cumin - Has your F/O ever put themselves in danger for you? How about vice versa?

Dandelion - Does your F/O believe in 'wishes coming true'? Maybe not wishing on a star, but do they believe in making wishes?

Dill - Has there ever been a moment where your F/O embarrassed you? How about vice versa?

Eucalyptus - *Flash doodle prompt!* Doodle or sketch your F/O in a casual outfit or in pajamas you think they'd wear!

Fennel - How's your F/Os venting skills? If you start venting to them, do they listen? Do they actively participate in the conversation?

Flax seeds - Do you and your F/O want kids? Why/Why not?

Ginger - On a scale of 'Rodger Rabbit and Jessica' and 'Batman and Catwoman' how much of a power couple (Or power throuple/etc) is your Selfship?

Jasmine - How did you and your F/O meet?

Lavender - How was your relationship with your F/O at first? Was it love at first sight? Did you hate each other at first?

Nutmeg - What do you do to comfort your F/O when they need it? What about vice versa?

Oregano - What is your F/O's love language? How often do they show their love this way?

Paprika - Who of you and your F/O(s) is the 'hypeman' of the other(s)?

Parsley - *Flash doodle prompt!* Draw you and your F/O as if you were the F/O, and they the selfshipper!

Peppermint - Can you two pick up each other's signals right away, or are you two just enigmas to each other most of the time? Maybe you even have a few secret code words that mean something for your partner?

Poppy seeds - *Flash doodle prompt!* Draw yourself and your F/O(s) asleep together! Aww... are you guys all tangled up together? Just in each others arms?

Rose - How passionate is your F/O? Are they the type to make big grand gestures of love, or do they show their love in smaller ways?

Rosemary - How well do you two know each other? Are you two confident that you would win a couples game show?

Sesame seeds - *Flash doodle prompt!* Draw you and your F/O taking care of a pet together! (Or, draw them with a hypothetical kid, perhaps?)

Spearmint - Do you two get up in the mornings at around the same time? Do you do your morning routines together? Why/Why not?

Sunflower seeds - What is your favorite moment involving your F/O(s) from their source?

Thyme - What fairy tale would suit you/your S/I's story with your F/O the best?

Turmeric - *Flash doodle prompt!* Draw a 'Draw the squad' or otherwise draw a meme of some sort with you/your S/I and your F/O(s)!

Vanilla - *Flash doodle prompt!* Draw you and your F/O doing something that looks suggestive, but is actually entirely innocent!

#minors dni #minors dont look #minors do not interact #not for minors #nerdwhoauthorinserts #f/o ask game #f/o ask meme #selfship ask game #selfship ask meme #proship dni #proshippers dni #proshitters dni #self ship community #f/o community #reblogs allowed #reblogs welcome

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isfjmel-phleg · 5 months

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The latest installment of my unintentional series of analyses of narration in 1990s solo comics of teenage heroes (Part 1: Tim & Kon & Bart and Part 2: Grant): Ray, who has two solos.

The 1992 miniseries is short on narration. It usually occurs very briefly at the beginning of each issue to set the scene. But what there is a lot of are thought bubbles for Ray, which keep the reader on track with his running commentary on life, and first-person accounts from the characters themselves. At the beginning, Ray relates his life story to a cousin he has just met, he first learns a piece of the truth about his past from his dying foster father/uncle, and his actual father tells various versions of his history which may or may not be true. The subjectivity of these stories is important to the narrative, with its themes of hidden truths and being kept in the dark (both literally and figuratively). None of these narrators are fully reliable, for various reasons.

Ray's understanding of his past is limited by how little he knows and what he can or can't remember, and the visuals sometimes juxtapose what actually happened with his hazy memories. (He says he can't remember what happened to end his eighth birthday party so abruptly; the art reveals that he had a flare-up of his powers when a camera flash went off.)

Thomas Terrill, the uncle whom Ray believed was his father, tells a story on his deathbed that is presented as his own history but is in fact about his brother. Yet...he never really says that he did or experienced anything in this account. Every sentence begins with a verb, no specific pronoun subject. Things like "Quit...didn't want the burden...wanted a normal life...a family." Never "I quit..." Because he didn't. This is a story about Ray's real father, a completely different man.

...whose own accounts range from claiming that he is "not of this world" and that Ray is thus half-alien (a blatant lie) to a more detailed and relatively plausible-sounding scientific background of how he acquired his powers. He doles out information as he finds it convenient, and the frustrating inconsistency establishes him as less than trustworthy.

Narration is more at the forefront of The Ray 1994, the longer-running series. In previous analyses, I've focused on the association of the narrator with a guiding/parental voice for the young protagonist. Ray's stories are frequently told in first-person, usually by him. Like Tim, he is telling his own story because he doesn't have a solid parental presence in his life and thus has to be his own guiding voice. Of all the young heroes whose solos I've read, Ray is the most introspective, more so than even Tim. He's constantly in his own head, observing, overthinking, getting emotional. The greater thoughtfulness can be partly credited to the fact that he's older than the protagonists of comparable books--eighteen and later nineteen, technically a young adult although still a teenager. But his upbringing has left him very internally-focused too. He has grown up isolated, spending his time reading and watching TV and tinkering with computers. There were very people around to talk to, and even fewer with whom he could open up. Interacting with the outside world is strange and foreign, so he has a very active inner life instead.

And yet he still longs for connection, which is where the narrative device of the earlier issues comes into it. Ray met Dinah Lance one (1) time, developed a crush on her, and has started writing her unsolicited letters in which he pours out his soul to her, relating every detail of recent adventures, every difficult emotion and insecurity. Even as he overshares, though, he self-censors sometimes to put himself in a better light (as in his account of his encounter with Kon, which opens the series). The letters are very revealing of his character and allow the reader to not only get in his head but understand how he wishes to be perceived. The letters to Dinah come to an end for plot-relevant reasons, so the narration style takes a different turn, but always we are given access to Ray's thoughts so it's as if he is narrating indirectly.

The lack of a third-person narrator for Ray's POV underscores how lacking he is in guidance, as I said earlier. His father is a recurring, unwelcome, intrusive presence (he can read Ray's thoughts if he chooses and shows up at inconvenient times, like on the bus) who comes to scold and criticize and belittle, and Ray repeatedly rejects these attempts at mentorship. "You're not really my dad," he keeps saying. "You haven't earned it." As caught up as Ray is in the mess created by his father's lies, he refuses to let him set the tone for his life or identity.

But Ray isn't the only narrator of this series. Sometimes Dinah narrates, and we learn how she feels about this infatuated teenager who persists in writing to her. Not only does it provide insight into her character, it clarifies actions she will take and acts as a counterpart to Ray's limited perspective.

Another issue is narrated through an account written by Happy Terrill as a young man in 1941, recounting his acquaintance with a mysterious young man with an inexplicable earring (a time-traveling Ray!) and how he acquired his powers. Again, this allows us to better understand Happy, who has evidently always been a self-important jerk--a trait only exacerbated by his becoming the Ray. So much hubris.

Later on, third-person limited narration shows up for Joshua Terrill, who is too young to have thoughts introspective enough for first-person but whose perspective needs to be given for him to make sense. Joshua is just a child and in need of the guidance represented by a third-person narrator commenting on his actions--but the narrator doesn't comment. Only reports his thoughts. Like Ray, Joshua is alone in the world, no thanks to their father.

But the most surprising narrator is in a very late issue: a version of Bart Allen as an adult. This is jarring; Bart doesn't narrate normally. He thinks in pictograms. It's weird getting introspection from him, even twenty years into his future, and he comes across as a completely different character. But the narrative point here is less to develop Bart's character and more to reveal how badly future!Ray has gone downhill through the commentary of a close friend who has (mostly) maintained his moral compass where Ray hasn't. Future!Ray's thoughts and narration aren't a thing anymore because he's no longer self-reflecting. He has sold out to money and power and has left behind his essence in the process.

By the end of the series, the narration has more or less ended. Happy tells his final version of "the entire truth" (or is it?), another very subjective account designed to make himself look the hero despite his questionable actions. And Ray...he's finally reunited with a mother who now knows that he's her son. Things are about to change for him. He doesn't need to narrate his own life totally alone anymore.

(And he won't. Never again. The comics quit caring about his POV from here on out.)

#comicsposting again #RT: born with the light #I know this isn't going to mean much because no one else has read this #but *I* have and there are so many thoughts and I am going to make that everyone else's problem :P #so thanks for humoring me

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no-fear-queers · 7 months

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Here's Something About Me

(Idk I'm bored and thought y'all might wanna learn a little more about me.)

Okay, so hi(?)

I'm no_fear_queers (it's the same on Instagram), but you can call me Ellis. Nicknames I accept are Eli, Reg, Reggie, Frank and Frankie. (These are coming from the middle names I gave myself. Which are: Reginald and Francis. And no, I will not be telling you what my last name is.) Now, Shrimpy -which is the nickname I'm using on Instagram- is a nickname given to me by a friend when we were freshmen in high school. And I'm only comfortable with my friends calling me Shrimpy. I was given this nickname due to the fact that I'm shorter than all my friends. (Well, shorter AND scrawnier.)

As of September 23rd 2023 (the day I'm writing this), I am 21 years old. I am an introvert with social anxiety, depression and multiple sensory issues I will not be elaborating on.

I'm transmasculine and agender. My pronouns are they/he/it. Although, I've been having a slight pronoun crisis for the past few months. But at the moment, I'm pretty content with they/he/it with more of a preference for He/Him.

I'm unlabeled, queer, angled aroace, and ambiamorous. My unlabeled and queer labels are referring to my aesthetic and sensual orientation. (Seeing how I experience aesthetic and sensual attraction.) The ace and aro identities I identify with are grey-aegosexual and proxyromantic. I'll get into what those two terms mean in a second.

I won't give too long of a list of things I don't like. Mostly because my dislike list is pretty long. The things I dislike the most -besides conservatives and queerphobia of any kind- are bright colours, bright lights (especially when they're flashing lights--mostly due to a sensory issue), sweet potatoes, rom-coms and weddings. (Mind you, I don't outright HATE weddings. I just don't like them. Especially since I'm not much of a people person.)

My favourite shows are NCIS, Bones, Criminal Minds, Bob's Burgers, Futurama, Supernatural, Creeped Out, A Series of Unfortunate Events, Kitchen Nightmares, Hell's Kitchen, and Hotel Hell.

My favourite movies are The Bob's Burgers Movie, Renfield, Demonic, Smile, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. (Mind you, I like watching horror movies in general but there's only ever been like the two I've actually enjoyed watching and liked more than others.)

My favourite colours are black, red, grey, blue and green.

My favourite video games are Left 4 Dead, Left 4 Dead 2, Skyrim, Cooking Champions, Terraria, Minecraft, Animal Crossing New Horizons, The Sims 3 and The Sims 4.

My two favourite things to do are write and play video games. And my favourite holiday is Halloween.

Anyway, on to the definitions I promised:

Grey-aegosexual is a microlabel for ace-spec people who partially relate to aegosexuality, but experience it infrequently or very weakly, and may not feel they fully relate to the aegosexual label. One may very rarely enjoy or get aroused by sexual content or specific people, but only under specific circumstances, and are otherwise sex-neutral or sex-repulsed.

Proxyromantic is a form of romantic attraction in which one has a connection with a romantic orientation, or with the concept of romantic orientations, but does not have the will and/or the ability to figure that romantic orientation out for themselves. Proxyromantic could also be considered a microlabel under the term quoiromantic, the main difference being that one feels as though they have a romantic orientation and understands the concept of romantic attraction, but they don't have the will and/or ability to figure it out.

(This turned out to be longer and more of a mess than I had originally planned.)

#queer #queer community #angled aroace #agender #it its pronouns

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silverstarfics · 11 months

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Here’s my fic for @thunder-pride lesbian day in which Kayo and Gordon are disasters and Penelope is just very confused.

AO3 link

The first twelve years of Kayo’s life passed blissfully unaware of all the complicated aspects of identity. She had a vague idea of romantic love and had already decided that she wanted nothing to do with the notion for a number of reasons but mostly because the idea of kissing a guy was gross.

Besides, she had to put up with enough boys at home where her brothers were loud and annoying and did disgusting things like dare each other to eat bugs or (even worse) Grandma’s cookies. The boys at school were even worse - at least her brothers could be nice. So, no, she was quite happy by herself thank you very much.

And then Gordon chose to watch Pirates of the Caribbean for movie night and she was introduced to Elizabeth Swann.

Kayo wasn’t sure if she wanted to be with her or be her. She was everything; beautiful, clever, feisty, could handle herself and okay, so maybe the idea of kissing Elizabeth Swann sounded quite nice actually. This posed an issue because girls weren’t supposed to want to kiss other girls… were they?

She stuffed her mouth with popcorn to give herself an excuse not to talk and proceeded to ignore those feelings, which worked brilliantly until several years later when a certain Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward smiled at her for the first time and a swarm of butterflies immediately materialised in her stomach.

Oh no.

In her defence, she wasn’t entirely oblivious. She had come to accept the fact that she was attracted to women even if the idea still scared her. She was different enough already, what if this was the final straw? Sorry, you’re too much. God, no. There was a reason why she’d tried to repress her feelings for so many years with the exception of one high school party featuring underage drinking and fumbled hands in a dark room with one another sworn to secrecy.

Unfortunately, her sexuality was the one thing she couldn’t run from, as was fast becoming clear as her vocal chords spontaneously decided to strangle themselves. She opened her mouth and let out a curious squeak.

There was a flash of something in Penelope’s eyes. “Are you quite alright?”

“I…”

John had once rambled about event horizons. It was the boundary around a black hole beyond which no radiation or light could escape; a point which no longer affected the observer. Kayo absently wondered whether she could fall into her own event horizon if she internally cringed any harder.

Um, hello? Voice? Brain? Form words, please.

“You’re nice. I mean, it’s nice. To meet you.”

Oh my god. Kill me now.

Penelope frowned.

“I don’t mean that you’re not nice,” Kayo hastily amended. “I’m sure you’re very nice. Not that I’m assuming. We don’t know each other yet. But I’d like to get to know you.”

Stop talking, Tanusha, oh my god.

“As friends. Not in a weird way.”

Oh yeah, totally saved it.

Penelope’s expression twitched as she attempted to refrain from laughing. “I look forward to getting to know you too. Something tells me that we’re going to make an excellent team.”

Kayo bit back her immediate question of what exactly do you mean by that? She imagined physically clawing back the words, locking them away in her chest where they couldn’t embarrass her. God knew she could already feel heat prickling across her neck which couldn’t be blamed on sunburn.

She wiped her hands against her jeans – oh my god, did my handshake seem weirdly sweaty? – and fixed a neutral expression on her face. Penelope’s gaze remained fixed on her and for a brief moment her world consisted entirely of impossibly blue irises until her heart sort of hiccupped and she was jolted back into the present. Oh god, why couldn’t she stop staring? She tore her gaze away and spied a distraction… or, you know, a victim. She had never been so glad to see Gordon in her life.

“Have you met Lady Penelope?”

It was miracle that her voice managed to remain steady. An even greater miracle was the way Gordon also forgot how to speak and promptly resembled a ripe tomato. Somehow, he made an even greater fool of himself than she had. At least she’d managed to stay on her feet. Really, it was Gordon’s own fault for wearing those stupid sandals everywhere; he’d worn down the soles so much that they caught on the slightest rough surface and sent him head-over-heels, such as right now.

“Careful!” Penelope caught him before he could faceplant. “Are you alright?”

“Oh, hey.” Gordon grinned wolfishly at her. “Looks like I fell for you.”

Yes, Kayo silently cheered. This is great! Keep embarrassing yourself! Make me seem like I’ve got my life together in comparison.

There was a brief silence in which Gordon slowly registered what he’d just said. That stern warning from Grandma that his mouth running faster than his brain would eventually get him into trouble suddenly seemed very real. He jolted backwards with a strangled yelp.

“I mean, uh, I- Thanks. I… have to go.”

“What a coincidence,” Kayo said sunnily, grabbing his arm before he could bolt. “So do I. We have… that thing.”

“Right!” Gordon nodded frantically. “That super important thing which we should definitely go and do. Like, right this second.”

Penelope stared after them, utterly bemused. “It was lovely meeting you!”

“Likewise,” Kayo called over her shoulder as Gordon dragged her out of the room.

Nothing was said until they had fled to his bedroom and closed the door behind them. Gordon flopped facedown on the floor and spread his arms like a grieving octopus, complete with a desolate wail. Kayo dropped onto the bed and drew her feet up to sit cross-legged. Maybe the sheer act of sitting in the lotus position would have calming properties even if she didn’t meditate.

“So,” she ventured after a few seconds of silence. “That could have gone better.”

Gordon made a vague, pitiful sound not unlike a dog when someone trod on its tail. Kayo was torn between laughing and screaming. She tipped onto her back and stared up at the ceiling with a heavy sigh.

“I’m a useless lesbian,” she declared.

“I’m just useless,” Gordon mumbled into the carpet.

She rolled onto her front and propped her chin in her hands. Gordon made no attempt to move from the floor which was a bold decision give his room could be considered a certified biohazard. Kayo could spy at least five wrappers and a mouldy plate from here alone.

“It’s fine,” she decided aloud. “She probably meets lots of people every day. I doubt she’ll even remember us by this time next week.”

“Really?”

“Nope. We suck.” Kayo buried her head in her hands with a slowly dawning sense of utter humiliation. “People make first impressions within seven seconds or less of meeting someone. She’s never going to forget us and not in a good way.”

There was another pause.

Gordon let out an exaggerated groan. “You know what I love about you, Kay? Your eternal optimism.”

#flash forward to several years later when they get married and Penny totally makes a speech about their first meeting #i had too much fun writing this but shh #thunderbirds are go #thunderpride #thunderpride 2023

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beevean · 11 months

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(Feel free to ignore this if you don't want to talk about IDW Sonic! /gen) I don't know if you've seen the solicits for issues 63 and 64 yet, but... yikes. I'm happy Silver is getting more focus, but it honestly feels as if they're just going the Archie Sonic route with him being kind of a literal dumbass jumping to conclusions left and right? In itself I don't mind that, I think it does suit Silver to immediately undertake action without thinking things fully through, but it's how the other characters (are going to) react to it. The fact that the solicit for issue 64 already says "Awkwardness ensures." is promptly giving me second-hand embarrassment, and it hasn't even come out yet! I really don't want another situation wherein everyone is going to jump down Silver's throat (*flashing back to Sonic dragging him by his quills through the town towards Antione in the hospital*) because of the narrative presenting him as an idiot who accuses others without proof and like a dumbass (even if Silver is right; I'm pretty sure it's already confirmed the blue cat dude is Mimic in disguise. I'm not sure if IDW Sonic the comic can be trusted for the others to put a genuine apology towards Silver when this comes to light.). It honestly makes me kind of sad that Silver might get reduced to just being The Dumb Overeager Guy Being Rude To Others And Who Everyone Thinks Is Stupid in this way, not to mention all the weirdness of him getting in the way of the Diamond Cutters and being an overeager fanboy despite having been perfectly able to work together with Whisper at the end of the Metal Virus arc (and, you know, being an immensely powerful psychic and stuff). The comic already went this route in issue 8, why are they dragging it up again despite having shown things that can definitely be interpreted as the contrary in issues 26 and 28?

Just something that has been on my mind ever since I read those solicits, and wanted to get off my chest😅

Stuck in the past with no clear directive, Silver decides to spend some time with the Diamond Cutters and their new member. But he’s too busy being star-struck over Whisper to notice that he’s interrupting their training! Elsewhere, Sonic takes Blaze sightseeing so she can enjoy her vacation.

This issue is all about Silver the Hedgehog! First, he's incredibly suspicious of the Diamond Cutters' new member and he jumps to a conclusion that leads him to some hasty accusations. Awkwardness ensues. Then, Blaze comforts Silver as they bond over being away from home and in Sonic's world.

I'm honestly surprised that they even remembered that Silver is a Whisper fanboy. Remember when people shipped Silvisper and Blazangle, before Whispangle fused together? Good times lol

Yeah, this plot is going to be cringe in the real sense of the word. I hate when the story is about characters making fool of themselves, and Silver is about to be a uwu cute but annoying idiot in #63, and a Mr. Conspiracy Theory (who was actually right all along) in #64? Miss me with that.

Remember when Silver kicked the entirety of Sonic's ass and came close to murder him in cold blood? I do. Silver is not an edgy murder machine and sure I can believe he's happier now, but come on, do something more with him than turn him into the cute child of the group!

Also didn't Silver already have a conversation about being stuck in the past in the 2022 annual, with Espio? A much more interesting interaction since the two have only been paired together in Rivals 2 of all things? Ah, but then again, if they're rehashing Archie, sure why not :V yay can't wait to see Sonic being an utter jerkass to Silver <3

And why oh why did you have to remind me of how awful Tangle's apology to Whisper was 😭 I hate that scene so much

... I hope they'll show Sonic and Blaze having fun on Frog Forest. I love Frog Forest 🥺 please just have two characters having fun on their own

#fans don't look #i don't talk about idw anymore because the latest arc has been boring as all hell #but yeah i still dislike it lol

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apparitionism · 1 year

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Run 11a

Well. Where were we? I keep having to reintroduce this story because it takes me so long to get to and through each part... in the large, it’s about the ethics of the use of advanced technology in athletic competition. But in the more-important small, it’s also about a Myka and a Helena trying to work out their own ethical differences, with regard to both that technology and a whole host of other issues, including their romantic past and possible—but not assured—romantic future. In the previous part, these two would-be ethicists seemed to have found themselves at the put-up-or-shut-up point, in that Helena had just asked Myka “What now?” There are a lot of answers to that question, and this part commences some forward-and-back time-shifting in order to explore them... I did a lot of that in part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7a, part 7b, part 8, part 9a, part 9b, and part 10.

Run 11a

Myka stood next to Steve, as tall and strong as she knew how to stand. For once, he needed her support: a tiny but significant wrinkle of solemnity creased his brow, marring his usual placid air yet fitting the momentous nature of this, his wedding day.

Fitting, too—in both senses—was his bespoke tuxedo, which rendered him even more handsome than usual... Myka allowed herself to feel a little pulse of handsome of her own, for her dark suit, a softer echo of his, was equally bespoke, its smooth silk an expensive privilege against her skin.

The suit’s so-careful design, its so-intentional function, made her think of Deceits... a slightly incongruous thought, and yet: as they had turned Myka into A Runner, this suit turned her into A Best Person. She allowed as how she was always going to have needed some help with that latter. In this case, she welcomed the augmentation.

The wedding was a bigger event that she had thought it would be, and she’d remarked on that to Steve when suit-fittings and other prefatory activities seemed to escalate. “Bigger than I’d thought,” he agreed, “but Liam’s parents said ‘go all out,’ with the checkbook to back it up, so we did. Who turns down a party?”

Who turns down a party. Funny that he would put it that way...

****

When Helena had asked “What now”, Myka had enjoyed a flash of certainty... because the moment their hands had touched, everything had seemed so very obvious. And based on that, “what now” had to in fact be a question about where, not what, for how could they not be on the same page of escalation?

An instant later, the where answer struck her just as certainly: “We’re actually in a hotel,” Myka said. “Right this minute, that’s where we are. In a hotel.”

Helena didn’t say anything.

The lack of reaction gave Myka pause. “And it has rooms?” she offered, but with less conviction.

“My plane boards in less than two hours,” Helena said. A stolid utterance. Unmoved.

So much so, in fact, that Myka’s initial response was to snap to match it, adopting a correspondingly aloof “If you’re unmoved, then so am I” stance—but no. That was counterproductive. Helena just wasn’t convinced yet, and who could blame her? All right, then: Myka would have to do more to establish her truth. “Are you saying we need more time than that?” she asked, trying for light, yet feeling her grip on certainty slacken. Trying harder, she said, “But also, people sometimes miss planes.”

Wrong response: Helena’s jaw took on a clench; her lips, a press. (Her jaw. Her lips.)

“I’ve told my father I’ll be home soon,” she said. “He told me I should come round.”

Myka couldn’t quite locate the genre of wrong into which her “people sometimes miss planes” play had fallen, but she did know that she had always been on the same continent—in the same country, even—as her father. And “he told me I should come round” sounded less like an obligation than that “should” suggested, more like... something sought? As if Helena were pleased by, yet defensive about being pleased by, having been told to “come round.”

How could Myka even begin to think of putting herself in the way of that?

But she had to think of it, so she did think of it, because what she sought was right here, right now—her breathing matching Myka’s as it always did, always had done, even when they could not bridge such expanses as a broken-glass-hazard hallway, or a dangerously not-quite-deserted elevator lobby—with no guarantee she ever would be again. And even now, Myka was sure that if she pressed, Helena would be moved. That inadvertent hand-touch, with the generating jump it had delivered to Myka: Helena had to have felt it too.

Had to think, had to have felt; so much had to, and so Myka fell, fast, into a consequent, seemingly inevitable, had to: she had to try the touch again—try it this time deliberately, moving her hand to Helena’s, moving her hand against Helena’s—and there again was the jump, the rush, and Myka’s heart jumped and rushed too, because surely now—

—but Helena flinched. She withdrew her hand. “Don’t,” she said.

This simple slip of my skin on your skin unfolds an entire world and you say “Don’t”? A world-destroying prohibition. “Don’t now? Or don’t ever?”

“Don’t now,” Helena said. “I can’t speak to ever.”

Was that a reprieve? If so, it was far, far less of one than Myka wanted. “Can I speak to ever?”

“I’m sure you can.”

Those words, overlain with a slight satirical cant, were reminiscent of Helena’s historical didactic streak. Intentionally? With hope, Myka re-inquired, parodically dark: “May I?”

That got a half-smile. It seemed a break... into which Myka placed, with some sadness, “You don’t believe me.”

“I want to believe you,” Helena said, the half-smile reducing by half. A quarter-smile... too fractional. Not really a smile at all. Not anymore.

The diminishing hurt Myka’s heart. “But it’s risky,” she said, adding, “that want?” As if it were a guess and not a statement of absolute truth.

“Yes. I see what you’re doing.”

Well, this should be illuminating. Or something. “What am I doing?”

“Illustrating why you were correct to reject the risk of believing me. Offering an object lesson.”

Oh. Oh. Because Myka had herself said “don’t.” And she had pressed on to “don’t ever,” and she had meant it, and this... was this revenge? Or was Helena willfully, self-protectively, misinterpreting? “And if I am? Offering that... lesson,” Myka said, hoping for some sign.

“Effective,” Helena said. She raised her glass to her mouth and drank. An emphatic swallow.

Myka watched Helena’s throat. Wine in her mouth, descending; what followed. What used to follow. Not a sign, but a reminder: why she was here right now. “And if I’m not?” she asked.

No answer.

“Because I’m not,” Myka said. Helena’s face gave her nothing to go on, neither encouragement nor warning, so she went forward with what she could: “Don’t go. I can’t say it any more plainly.”

“But I am going. I can’t say that any more plainly.” And yet her hard mouth softened—or was Myka only wishing it had?—as she continued, “Dan Badger will call me, you said, so it’s likely I’ll come back.”

“To AAI,” Myka said. She left the now-obvious, cutting corollary—“not to me”—unvoiced.

“Yes,” Helena said. It seemed painfully final.

****

“What is taking him so long?” Steve murmured to Myka, as they stood together. And kept standing. She had walked out first, followed by Steve; Liam and his best person (who was in fact not a person at all, but Rita Hayworth, the couple’s red Afghan hound) were to have emerged next, leading into the true start of the ceremony. But there was as yet no sign of either of the pretty pair.

“His hair,” Myka assured him. “Or his tie. Or Rita’s ears. You love how particular he is.”

“Making me wait,” Steve fretted, that brow wrinkle becoming more pronounced. “At the literal altar.”

“First, we’re in a hotel ballroom, not a church, so not literal. But second, anticipation isn’t so bad.”

She had meant it to mollify, but he gave her a brief, sly smile, its sunshine sneaking through his solemnity. “Isn’t it?” he asked, also sly.

In the moment, she was glad to have distracted him this little bit. Still, if they hadn’t been the focus of several hundred people, she might have given his shoulder a shove. Gently, of course; he wasn’t Pete. As it was, she murmured, “This isn’t about me.”

****

Helena had risen from the bar stool, then leaned down, choreographically perfect, to heft her carry-on bag (elegant, so elegant). As she bent her right arm up to position the bag’s strap over her shoulder, her jacket strained close around that curling biceps. The tight convexity of muscle, another reminder that was not a sign, called out to Myka, and Myka called back: “Wait!”

That did gain Helena’s surprised attention: a prize now, one that Myka wanted to hoard. “What?” Helena asked, and Myka similarly wanted to salt away that slightly breathless question, regardless of whether its slight breathlessness signified annoyance or something more meaningful.

Wavering internally, for the briefest of worries—was she really going to try to call this into being?—she blurted, too fast, too unmeasured, “I have to go to a wedding.”

Helena squinted. Myka found the confusion betrayed by that squint perfect. If she could perpetuate that perfection... “This minute?” Helena asked.

She wasn’t quick enough to come up with any way to perpetuate it. “Of course not,” she said.

“Well, not your own, I hope,” Helena offered.

Whatever Helena was trying with that, it seemed altogether too lightheartedly possessive, given how she had been ready to leave things. But fine: “Why would you hope I wouldn’t have to go to my own wedding?” Myka asked.

“Are we speaking in the realm of the hypothetical or the real?”

That seemed not lighthearted but absurd. “This airport seems pretty real to me. You’re making it that way.” As opposed to the dream it could be if you would just let me get a room.

“I’ll accept that,” Helena answered, as if she’d heard the thought and wanted to affirm Yes that is what I am rejecting. “So this wedding is real as well?”

Nice dodge of why it matters what realm we’re speaking in... or maybe in the end it doesn’t matter at all. Myka sighed. “Of course it’s real. My good friend—best friend—Steve is marrying the man he loves.”

“I’m sure you have a reason for conveying this information,” Helena said. But not as dismissively as she might have done, standing there in her bag-on-shoulder impatience.

Could Helena truly be curious? Was Myka’s flash of an idea actually going to work? She said, “I also have to be in the wedding.”

“That information as well.” Still impatient... but Helena was nevertheless still not moving.

“I need a plus-one.” Myka said. She didn’t, not really. “I’d feel foolish if I were the only person in the wedding without a plus-one.” She wouldn’t, not really. But she paused, waited... because maybe Helena would stop willfully misunderstanding and take the opportunity. Because that would mean that she wanted an opportunity.

But no. Helena said nothing: no taking. Thus no wanting? But Myka, hopeful because Helena was still not moving, began a new push, a true push, with, “Would you consider being my—”

“I can’t.” Helena forced her words over Myka’s, as if letting her finish would be a disaster.

For the length of an inhale—just that—Myka felt herself on the edge of bursting into world-changing tears, unleashing a new violence that would lead her to beg answers from Helena to the most important questions. Tears, violence—but then she exhaled. Fortunately? The small, not-quite-steady question she settled for was, “Why not?”

Helena didn’t answer immediately. Was she trying to hide a truth? Or working out how best to express one? “Because I like this look in your eyes,” she finally said.

How was that a reason to say no? “I’ll have this look”—whatever it is, Myka added internally—“at the wedding. I promise.”

“But for how long after?” Helena asked.

Myka could tell her words weren’t intended a real question; rather, they seemed a fatalistic statement, resigned to the idea of some inevitably horrible result. Some let-down of a look in Myka’s eyes.

In their first iteration a horrible result had been—in retrospect—inevitable, or very close to it, but Helena certainly hadn’t wanted to head it off then. “Since when are you this person?” Myka asked, and her utterance was a question.

“Since,” Helena said, and then she stopped—punctuation. She smiled a beatific smile and continued, “Sainting.”

Sainting, Myka fumed internally. I am going to kill everyone at AAI, starting with Dan Badger and working my way down, and I will die jailed, yet content.

But she couldn’t sustain anger; her fume dissolved, forlorn: And also lonely, but apparently lonely is just going to be the baseline.

“It’s for the best,” Helena said, seemingly taking Myka’s hesitation for... hesitation.

“That isn’t what you thought before,” Myka reminded her. If only she could impress upon Helena the renewed importance of every single instance of that “before,” if only, if only, if only... but there was no opportunity, for:

“No, it isn’t,” Helena agreed.

And then she left.

****

When at last Liam began his walk down the aisle, with Rita gliding next to him, he did chime absolute perfection: the tie, the hair, the elegant dog... whatever had made him make Steve wait, it had been worth it. Myka knew that for truth, because Steve, regarding that perfection, wore exactly the dazzled disbelief Myka would have wished for him, if she had known how to wish it, so many law-school years ago.

Standing both as witness to the marriage coming into being before her and as necessarily excluded bystander, Myka found herself prompted to consider what “marriage” really was: Steve and Liam’s in particular, but also marriage as such. For the two impossibly beautiful men here at the non-altar, it was a sign of faith in the future, a belief that the future would be like the past... or, no, a wish that the future could be like the past; that a lovely past, their lovely past, could presage and motivate a lovely future.

She herself suffered from the belief, but she rejected the wish. She clung to a contrary hope: that a disastrous past could motivate—or at least not impede—a diametrically opposed future. That might not be marriage. But it might not not be marriage either. Steve and Liam’s beautiful achievement gave her the space to believe in possibility.

****

As she watched Helena disappear into the airport, Myka had, for that strange, estranging stretch of time thought on how she might leave the bar, go to the hotel’s front desk, hand over her credit card, and let herself disappear, for a day or two or three or a week, taking time out of time, sitting and settling in to mourn her inability to ever, ever, ever do the right thing at the right time where Helena was concerned.

When she had initially approached Helena in the bar, she’d felt the lift of renewed and renewing power, as if her side hustle—no, her main hustle!—really was running the world, as if she could bend any circumstance to her will, as if her presence and her perseverance would certainly, obviously, be enough to convince Helena to stay. Really stay.

So much for power. So much for bending anything at all. Pathetic, she berated herself, and her “disappear” thought was pathetic too: What, seriously, her rational, punitive side asked, would you do in a hotel room, for a day or two or three or a week or any time at all? Sit there?

If she was going to sit somewhere, it should be her desk at work. She could sit, blessedly calmly, at her desk at work. Sit calmly at her desk and work, with no overlay of worry that someone uniquely disconcerting would invade her space.

Be thankful for that.

****

“You seem like you’re alone,” Pete greeted her as she entered her—their—space.

She’d hoped it would be late enough that he’d be gone, but all right, he wasn’t. She tried to not resent his presence... she didn’t quite succeed. But she was able to say, with reasonably good humor, “I’d be lost without your powers of observation.”

“Seriously. You totally would. But also, what’s the story? I’d say what’s the story morning glory, but you look way too droopy to be one of those.”

“They get droopy at night,” Myka informed him. “Morning glories. And it pretty much is night. So why are you still here?”

“Aha, so I got it right the first time: what’s the story, morning glory?”

“When Dan Badger calls Helena, she’ll take whatever job he offers.”

“And?” he prompted, clearly ready for excitement, titillation, outrageousness—something to whisper and shout about every time he got near the elevators.

She hated feeling sorry that she couldn’t give him that reward. “And that’s the story, morning glory.” She had a vague thought that she should try to qualify that with a joke about how he wasn’t droopy and so wasn’t really a morning glory at this time of day. It was beyond her.

“FYI, that isn’t a story at all,” he said, as if that was really going to be news to her. “Stories have beginnings, plus middles—”

“Plus ends. Yes, I know.”

The minute she said “ends,” his demeanor downshifted. “Aw, man. What happened?”

“I don’t know,” Myka told him, honestly.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

She knew he meant it sincerely, but all she could manage was, “I don’t know that either. I’ll work it out later.” She felt he needed a boon, so she asked, “How’s Kelly? Are you two engaged yet? When’s the wedding? I like weddings.”

He perked up a little. “You do?”

Obviously she was not yet recalibrated for reality. Anybody’s. But why bother? “Yes,” she said. “In fact I have one in a couple of weeks.”

“You’re getting married?!?” he exclaimed, downshift entirely reversed. “I’m pretty sure that’s the story, morning glory!”

Okay, there was reality, right there meeting the road. “Not the story, because not my wedding. Why do people keep thinking it’s mine?”

“People? Who’s ‘people’?” But he knew. She could see it in his rising eyebrows.

He was altogether too quick sometimes. “Never mind,” she said. “Never mind about weddings at all. Just tell me some work to do, and I’ll do it.”

Now he snickered. “Oh, I’ll tell you some work to do. That’s really why I’m still here. And trust me, you’ll laugh when you hear what it is.”

“I could use a laugh. Hit me.”

“We’re supposed to rejigger the Mechanical Aids guidelines.”

Okay, maybe she wasn’t only not recalibrated to reality, Pete’s anyway, but also untethered from it entirely, because: “That isn’t funny.”

“It is when you hear the reason: they’re worried somebody’s going to try to claim they need Deceits—or something like ’em—as an aid. I gotta say, it’s times like this I can’t believe how lucky I got, you being a lawyer. You know how many back-and-forths I used to have to do with Legal before anything got finalized, back in the pre-Myka beforetimes?”

“I’m not a lawyer,” Myka said, and uttering those words for the second time this day did hurt... but she had to be honest: she was at the same time delighted. For did she take pride in consistently saving Certification and Compliance from having to go back and forth? Of course she did. She’d always thought, and now she had some real confirmation, that this was why she’d got her AAI job in the first place: to make this department work more efficiently.

It wasn’t the reward she’d wanted, wished for, dreamed of, to end her day, but it was what she had. In her first Helena aftermath, she’d had her anger but no job; in this one, she had a hollow where her anger had once been, but she did have a job. She had work to do—useful, valuable work.

So she put her head down and did it.

TBC

#bering and wells #Warehouse 13 #fanfic #Run #part 11a #AU week #apologies for having returned yet again to an old structural trick #but I needed to goose myself into thinking a little harder #and as I mentioned with regard to those appreciation week pieces #sometimes it takes an intellectual puzzle #to start (and keep) the gears turning #however slowly and laboriously they end up going

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everydaydg · 3 months

Text

That wierd time manga was on the 3DS eshop

Available only in Japan and France

Dokopon Choice

While looking for MH Stories on hshop (not gonna sugarcoat it, that was what I was doing)

I ran into something that caught my eye... a strange name Ive heard of every MH game on the platform so something was off when I saw a name I didnt recognize.

MH Flash... huh?

It coudnt be a game considering it was literarly 75MB and there were like 7 different volumes

looked it up and realised that was a manga... I thought it was going to be some sort of tie in bonus, like a series of 3D videos, because I never heard of anything like the 3DS having actual manga publications but...

No that wasnt the case actually, it was just a whole issue of Monster Hunter Flash

The menu did leave me asking some questions. it didnt look like something capcom themselves made, instead a platform that was made by a third party which lead to the question

"are there more of these?"

yes. there were.

And so I present to you one of the neatest things ive ever ran into while looking into the 3DS's catalogue

The French and Japanese eshop's selection of digital manga!

"どこぽんちょいす" - "Dokopon Choice”

Sadly its french equivalent had no such name holding everything together

No this is not homebrew, no this isnt a joke. This happened.

Where do I begin...

The 3DS has a neat history with ebooks

There were two services that provided ebooks on the system, these being: HONTO for 3DS and Dokodemo Honya-San. both exclusive to japan.

Honto had a more general ebook line up. no manga

Honya-San was kinda like that but you also had a whole lot of manga baby

So where does Dokopon Choises fit into this?

Well Dokopon Choise was the name for standalone releases of things found on Honya-San

Imagine it this way, in Honya-san, releases are treated like DLC

Through Dokopon its treated as its own app.

Purchases of Dokopon apps and Honya-San books are treated as separate so you could end up buying the same thing twice (its actually aknowledged on every dokopon release on the eshop, be careful that you dont buy the same thing twice by accident)

Both were managed by Librika, a digital book distribution company

That leads the question as to why I didnt make this post about Dokodemo Honya in general as that service has alot of things to talk about

Well Honya-San didnt make it out of japan... The only one that got out of japan was Dokopon Choise which is why I want to focus on it.

its an incredibly neat oddity for the system

Some day Ill have to do more propper research on HONTO for 3DS but for now lets focus on the french manga

So Japan makes sense but... France? why france of all places

Well from what ive read, apparently out of most countries in Europe. France had the largest audience for manga, which made something like this profitable.

Even then because of the small selection that made it over, it mostly feels like a small experiment more than anything

The french eshop had the following series:

Nisekoi

Professor Layton

Little Battlers Experience

Rock Lee (Manga spinoff)

Blue Exorcist

Monster Hunter Flash

Inazuma Eleven

Beyblade Metal Fusion

Beyblade Shogun Steel

List of series originally found on GBAtemp by user "Asia81"

I did go ahead and verify this list and indeed. this was everything that came out of this in france.

All of these with various amounts of volumes released. I believe the series with the most volumes on the service was that of beyblade metal fusion at a whopping 11 Volumes

What an odd bunch. France never got Dokodemo Honya san in any shape or form. only these series.

I wonder if the experiement worked out in any way.

Something I find wierd is that some of the ones here never got a Dokopon release in Japan. They most likely were stuck on Honya San

I sadly dont have any pricing information on these, there is alot I havent been able to find about the french releases... I hope some day more about these comes to light

So what about Japan? well to start, the selection was waaayy bigger

98 volumes of multiple series made it into the eshop. Thats quite a substancial increase.

(The following list is comprised (mostly) by the localised names of the series for the sake of making it easier to read. Romaji will be provided for some so they are easier to look up

and so you can see a few familiar names -w-

its also organized in order of release on the service)

The JP selection was:

Attack on Titan

Love's Reach

Magi

Detective Conan

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Screaming Lessons

DRAGON BALL (colored version)

Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha ViVid

Monster Hunter Flash

FAIRY TAIL

Yozakura Quartet

Chihayafuru

HUNTERxHUNTER (colored version)

Sweet Devil Laugh - 甘い悪魔が笑う

Today, Our Love Begins (Kyō, Koi o Hajimemasu)

Grandpa Danger

Kuroko's Basketball

Kitchen Princess

Hiyokoi

My Little Monster (Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun)

Hell Girl

Hell Girl R

Thermae Romae

Stardust Wink

MONSTER HUNTER EPIC

Ro-Kyu-Bu!

Lotte's Toy!

Spice and Wolf

Ayakashi Hiougi - あやかし緋扇

The World God Only Knows

Monster Hunter Orage

1st grade, 5th group, Ikimono-gakari - 1年5組いきものがかり

Kings of My Love - Oresama Kingdom

Hozuki's Coolheadedness - Hōzuki no Reitetsu

Kenichi the Mightiest Disciple - Shijō Saikyō no Deshi Kenichi

Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches

BLACK BIRD

Space Brothers - Uchū Kyōdai

We Were There - Bokura ga Ita

Tonari No Atashi - 隣のあたし

Shugo Chara!

Kids on the Slope

Inazuma Eleven

Lucky☆Star

Super Mario-kun

Blood Lad

Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya

Sgt. Frog

Gakuen Basara

Nobunaga Concerto

Mushishi

Monster Hunter Play Manga

To Love-Ru (color version)

Prince & Hero - Ouji to Hero

Jimikoi

2.5D Boyfriend - 2.5 Jigen Kareshi

iShoujo - i・ショウジョ (color version)

I”s

Aoha Ride - Ao Haru Ride

Ane Doki

Ichigo 100% (color version)

Tokyo Ghoul Remastered Edition

Hatsukoi Limited.

Nisekoi

MY GOD thats alot more stuff than the french eshop

Something I would like to note is that these were sold as multi packs on the eshop. Tonari no Atashi has a Vol.1-10 pack which retailed at ¥4,400

The prices for the packs with multiple volumes are all over the place but they tend to float arround ¥1,800 to ¥5,125

Price depends on the amount of volumes offered and the series.

Jimikoi and 2.5D boyfriend were the cheapest of the entire lot at ¥400 and ¥880 respectively

And the most expensive release was in fact Tokyo Ghoul Remastered at a whopping ¥7,000 for Volume 1-14

Source

The list here did not include prices because most of these had multiple... multi packs like dragon ball.

Dragon Ball had like 1 pack for every arc and that would have been a pain to keep up with. maybe some other time I will go ahead and organize that info.

Something I found interesting is how the file size for the JP manga are considerably bigger than that of the french releases, most likely due to the french releases not being in multi packs.

The French releases were 75 MB a pop. No multi packs to my knowledge.

While the japanese releases often go over 200 MB. Most likely due to having most of the volumes in one singular download.

Keep in mind that the list here is only for what was on Dokopon Choise. Dokodemo Honya-San had even more things... but sadly due to the nature of it being a digital platform and its downloadable content not being shown on the eshop... I cant find more info on what was on the service...

Most I have is tweets of people talking about the service.

I found a tweet that showed how JOJO was on the service, ive seen tweets mentioning people reading nichijou on the service too

Photo by Twitter user: TOUTO_jojoDR

Original Tweet

I also sadly I cannot check on the application itself due the service shutting down and no clear archive of this stuff being out there. some day ill find a way to look more into this

Dokopon Choise got new releases from 2013 all the way to 2016.

Last release being Nisekoi in Japan.

I sadly dont have data on when they released for french audiences, I just have data on the JP releases.

All of the releases under Dokopon Choises were removed from the eshop in January 31, 2019

Source

and subsequently, Dokodemo Honya-San got removed in 2020

Users could buy manga up to February 28, 2020

And they could redownload their stuff up to July 30, 2020

Source

Luckily for anyone who purchased content on the 3DS, they had a chance to move their 3DS library to their web library.

Honya San wasnt only on 3DS, same as HONTO, it had a web client under the name Dokodemo Bookstore

To my knowledge it seems like users who still have the app, on their 3DS, with downloaded books can enjoy them just fine.

And despite Librika merging with MEDIA DO in 2019, it seems like Librika still operates their digital bookstore to this day on mobile platforms.

What an odd piece of nintendo history isnt it.

I thought I was going to make a short post for once but no I ended up having to do a bunch of research for this. Because if I didnt... who was going to talk about the damm book services on 3DS.

I think making the list of manga on the service was the worst part.

But yeah! I recommend giving these a shot! even if you dont understand japanese, its still really cool being able to show off manga on your 3DS outside of the homebrew manga reader.

Ima leave this off with two silly tweets about boobs being uncensored on the release of Dragon Ball on the platform lmao.

"What the Hell! The 3DS is increasingly becoming a wonderful piece of hardware that creates special fetishes in children!!"

That is going to live in my head rent free for a month LMAO

#Dawg why the fuck is Ro-Kyu-Bu here #get the fuck outta here #Anyway hoo boy! man this was a joy to research #Its always fun finding out fun things on handhelds like this... even if that list of titles was an absolute pain in the ass to write.#I would have added release dates but man I was so tired by the end of making the list lmao #Did you know librika was also responsible for distributing manga on the PSP's PSN #I found that out while looking into them hahaha #3DS #anime and manga #ebooks #nintendo 3ds

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suspiciouslackofclowns · 2 years

Note

Do you have any autistic steve headcanons? Or any tidbits about steve to share lol i really enjoyed the lil steddie drabble u did!

Always!! I’m a sucker for autistic Steve, I love him so much hehehe

One of his special interests is dinosaurs, specifically dinosaur toys. He collects them religiously and his fav dino is the dimetrodon, so if he ever finds one of those at the store he freaks out and has to buy it. It goes in a special spot on his dresser

He masks a lot, but he has a tendency to let it slip when he’s around the kids, Robin, and Eddie. He’s a lot of fun when he cackles uncontrollably and makes crude facial expressions, and they love him for it because that’s Steve. Not whatever facade he wears normally

Polos and jeans are his go-to because he has sensory issues, turns out. Eddie discovers this when he plays around with dressing Steve up in one of his outfits and he barely lasts a few minutes with all of the rings and layers and belts

Steve likes to collect rocks. If he’s taking a walk through the woods, he can’t help himself if he sees a particularly smooth rock or a funky looking stick, he has to take them home.

In addition to that last one, I think that he got scolded as a kid for filling his room with junk from the woods on his walks home from the bus stop. His dad probably drove him down to the quarry and made him watch as he dumped all of his favorite treasures into the water, never to be found again, and little Steve could do nothing but stand there and cry.

It takes him a while after he eventually moves in with his s/o whether it be Billy or Eddie or both to feel comfortable and safe enough to start collecting again. I like to think that his partner(s) would encourage him to grab pretty rocks and cool sticks, and maybe even gift them to him when they find some themselves.

Steve loves loud noises and flashing lights. He enjoys the hell out of the first Corroded Coffin concert that Eddie invites him to because of it

His comfort movies are Back To The Future and Jaws, which are the only movies that he watches unless someone else insists on something else. Usually Dustin

Eddie enjoys sitting there and listening while Steve recites every line of dialogue perfectly, almost unaware that he’s doing it. He also enjoys the fact that Steve lets his guard down so much when he’s watching his favorite films

When Steve gets excited, he has a tendency to bounce on the balls of his feet and clap his hands. He only does it sometimes, seeing as he masks so heavily in public, but damn is his happiness contagious

His safe foods are mostly comprised of pasta, so that’s practically all he knows how to cook

He eventually gets more comfortable being himself around the people who love him, because these people really love him — not like his parents or Tommy H. “loved” him, but truly and deeply. Without wanting to change aspects of him to make him easier to swallow

Steve laughs his goofy laugh all the time when the kids or Eddie come into the store. He lets his blunt side show when he’s chatting with Robin, knowing that she doesn’t automatically assume that he’s uninterested in what she’s saying, and she continues to ramble on as usual. He actually allows himself to get excited when his special interests are brought up in conversation now

Like I briefly covered in the steddie drabble, he utilizes vocal stims a lot. Either whistles, pops his lips, or clicks his tongue among various other things. Some of them are actually tics, but he doesn’t know that

It takes some time, but he eventually learns to embrace the autistic weird Steve regardless of who he’s around. He collects pretty things from the woods, talks about dinosaur facts and Jaws and Back To The Future without fear of rejection, and his friends love him for it

Autistic Steve is the most interesting, funny, and smart Steve that there is :)) change my mind

#steve harrington #autistic!steve harrington #st hcs #sorry I went a little ham #you got me excited w this one #ask

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shinyacademy · 1 year

Text

The Picnic Method

Hey Trainers! I’m back with a promised update about “The Picnic Method” for shiny hunting in Paldea. For those of you interested in trying it out, let me warn you that the picnic method is very time consuming. It was something I thought I could bang out in one hour and so far that has just not been my experience. However, it does work! So buckle up and let’s learn the picnic method!

First open your map and find out where your Pokémon outbreaks are. You’ll generally see a picture of a Pokémon with a flashing red symbol under them. I’ve found that there are usually about 3 on my map at any given time. Pick one: this will be the shiny you are hunting. For this hunt I picked Gastly because they are very obviously different from other Gastly when shiny and because my wife loves them, so I could surprise her with a new friend. ✨

Like in the picture above you will see a bunch of Pokémon swarming. Now move away from the swarm and knock out at least 60 Pokémon sequentially. It’s easiest to do this in Let’s Go mode where you send your Pokémon out ahead of you. Just watch their HP and typing because if they come back to you, you will have to start your count over.

Once you’ve hit 60, walk back to the outbreak and observe the hoard of Pokémon. I strongly recommend looking up the Pokémon you are hunting for even if you’re familiar with their shiny form so that you have a fresh reference, especially if their shiny form is really subtle. Gastly is easy to spot - I knew to look for a dark purple body and light blue spectral energy. Once you have looked through the entirety of the Pokémon gathered, if you don’t see your shiny it’s time to picnic! As you can see here, I tried to picnic but it said I was too close to someone. Eerie… because no one else was around. 😱

Once you have your picnic going all you need to do is pack up again and repeat the process. So once you leave your picnic you go look through the new Pokémon in the outbreak. If you see your shiny, SAVE and then go for it! If you don’t it’s time for another picnic! Note that you don’t need to do anything during the picnic except unpack and pack back up, but I do like to say hello to my Pokémon too.

Be vigilant and check any Pokémon that also might spawn around you. There is a small chance that one of these might be shiny instead of your target (more on that in another post).

Again it’s important to note that in Paldea although Pokémon appear shiny in the Overworld they don’t actually sparkle until you enter battle, which is why it’s so important to know exactly what you’re looking for. Trainers, I couldn’t imagine trying to do this hunt with a Pokémon like Gengar! It would be so easy to miss! I found my target Pokémon in about two hours of continuously picnicking. I personally love Shiny Gastly! Such a pretty color combination.

My wife loves premier balls and I was taking a little bit of a risk here to get her Gastly in one (remember that some Pokémon have moves that can KO themselves so the faster catch is the better catch) but luckily everything went without issue. Din, now grown up into a Drakloak, was eager to help.

A successful picnic! Some trainers like to count the number of picnics it takes them. I don’t do that because I’d almost certainly lose count but let me say again that this method does take some time! Your odds of encountering a shiny without any other power ups and without completing the Pokedex are about 1/1028 and while those odds don’t sound great it’s actually about 75% better than normal odds, so it’s quite good! Just stay vigilant and you can be one of the first trainers to have shiny Pokémon on your team in Paldea. Stay shiny everyone and happy hunting!✨

#pokémon #shiny pokemon #shiny hunting #shinyhunters #pokemon #pokémon scarlet #pokémon violet #paldea #gastly #shiny gastly

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tenebraevesper · 7 months

Text

Sonic Cyber Revolution Snippets (Entry 35: Speeding Through Stardust)

Once again, I would love to thank the talented Emerald the Lynx:

Context for the first image:

Both Shadow and Touka were on high alert when their surroundings had suddenly changed and Tails and Warren vanished. Instead of being in the city, they found themselves in an ice-themed area with northern lights appearing above the mountains. They could also see platforms around them lined up with crystals and gems. Unknown to either of them, they had actually found themselves in Twinkle Snow, a Zone from Sonic Advance 3.

''Where are we?'' Shadow asked, taking a look at the area. Next to him, Touka hugged herself, shivering.

''I-I have no clue, but it's really c-cold here,'' she said, lamenting the fact that she didn't have any leggings to wear under her shorts. She then shook her head, trying to ignore the coldness. ''Wait, where are Warren and Tails? They were with us just a moment ago.''

''I guess we got ourselves trapped inside an AR Field, the same kind Sonic, Tails and Knuckles found themselves in,'' Shadow said, assessing the situation. ''Tails and Warren probably ended up in a different AR Field.''

''Great,'' Touka sighed, arms folded across her chest. ''I hope they at least ended up somewhere warmer. In any case, we need to get out of this snow area. I'm sure that this is Dr. Eggman and Dr. Starline's doing.''

''Don't worry, I'll get us out of here,'' Shadow told her, snapping with his fingers. ''Chaos Control!''

However, nothing happened. There was no flash of light blue light, nor did they find themselves outside the AR Field. Shadow was stunned in regards to the fact that Chaos Control had somehow failed, but he quickly snapped out of it, realizing that something was interfering with his power. He growled in annoyance, with Touka giving him a knowing look.

''I suppose that the two Doctors had also figured out how to block your Chaos Control, we'll have to find a different way out of here,'' she said.

''Hmph.'' Shadow, admittedly, was still irked by having his powers blocked. ''I don't really see an exit, unless you want me to create one by force.''

''I don't think that would be a smart idea,'' Touka replied. ''We are still inside an AR Field, and overloading it might cause it to collapse and then we would be trapped in it for good.''

''Then the only thing that we can do is to explore this snow area,'' Shadow replied, with Touka nodding in agreement.

''Yeah, and maybe I'll get a bit warmer if I keep moving,'' she said, shivering. ''Seriously, couldn't the Doctors sent us to some tropical area?''

Shadow just shrugged in response, a bit amused that Touka's main issue was that it was cold and not that they were trapped. Fortunately for him, he didn't have to share her plight.

Context for the second image:

''That covers three out of three…'' Starline observed, raising an eyebrow. ''May I know your plans for Silver and Shadow? These two struck me as the more powerful ones of the team.''

''I had assumed that you would finally want a challenge of your own, Dr. Starline,'' Eggman said, grinning knowingly at the platypus.

''M-Me?'' Starline was starstruck when he realized the implications. ''S-Sir, I don't know what to say-''

''Well, you can choose to participate in eradicating two powerful hedgehogs and prove your worth, or just sit back while I do all of the work,'' Eggman told him off-handedly. To his amusement, Starline quickly protested.

''N-No! I never said I wouldn't accept your offer, Sir! As a matter of fact, I am honored that you consider me for this task,'' Starline bowed with a flourish. ''I will go and immediately prepare everything for the assault. I already have several contingency plans on mind, if you wish to hear them…''

''No, no, I'd rather see those contingency plans in action,'' Eggman said, clearly not in the mood to listen to Starline's rambling. ''You may go now.''

''As you wish, Sir,'' Starline responded, strutting proudly out of the room. However, just before the door closed, they could hear loud squealing coming from the hallway, resembling that of a screeching fangirl who just shook her hand with her idol. Ferra and Metal Sonic rolled their eyes in unison, with Ferra then asking Eggman.

LINK to Emerald the Lynx:

LINK to the Chapter:

#Sonic Cyber Revolution #sonic the hedgehog #shadow the hedgehog #dr eggman #dr starline #metal sonic

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