#She put so much time and effort into Damien that he is HERS
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Count On Mom ~Batfamily Imagine~
Summary: The kids try to get Bruce to get away from the computer. Luckily, there is always one person who can take his mind out of anything including Batman duties. You.
Author’s Note: Haven't posted much in a while and I kept seeing a lot of Batfamily stuff at the last convention I went to so here we go!
BatFamily Masterlist
Reader’s Pronouns: She/Her
Warnings: boob flashing, hint to smut
Side Note: This is a secondary blog. If you comment a question down below, I will not answer since this is not the main blog. Please send the question to my inbox if you want a response back!
Do not repost this anywhere!
Three of the batkids stared at their adoptive father as he had been stuck in front of the screen in the Batcave. None of the moved as they watched Bruce in some kind of trance.
“How long since he moved?” Dick asked Cassandra and Jason.
“A day,” Cassandra monotonous answered.
“I think he blinked a minute ago, does that count?” Jason asked.
“It’s official. Alfred called it. He said he’ll bake cookies if we can get Bruce to stop working,” Duke said as he walked into the batcave.
"Step aside," Jason said as he cracked his knuckles. "This will be over in no time."
As the kids began to try to get Bruce to move away, no effort was made to moving Bruce.
"I got an idea," Dick said as he took out his phone.
You felt your phone ring, making you put the groceries down onto the kitchen island so you could answer your phone. You had just gone to the store to grab some ingredients to make dinner for tomorrow's dinner.
“Hello?”
“Hey mom! Are you and Damien almost done with grocery shopping yet?”
“We just got home. Why?”
“We’re trying to pry Bruce off of the computer in the Batcave and Alfred said he’d make us cookies if we get him away from the screen.”
“I’m on my way,” you say with a chuckle at the end.
"Already began to bake the cookies. I know you'll be able to get him away," Alfred told you.
"Of course I can. That's my superpower in this family," you joked.
When you got to the Batcave, you saw your husband tiredly staring at the screen in front of him. The dark bags under his eyes from the lack of sleep made you upset but you knew there was one thing you could do that would always get his attention.
"Aw my poor husband," you say.
"You got this mom?" Jason asked you.
“Step aside kids and close your eyes,” you tell them as you walked over to your husband.
“What are you going to do mom?” Dick as as he covered his eyes. The rest of the kids quickly covered their eyes to avoid to see what you were going to do.
You climbed onto Bruce’s lap before lifting both your shirt and bra in front of him. Bruce quickly snapped out of his daze before looking up at you with a smile.
“Tempting me my love?”
“Maybe,” you smile as you pulled your shirt and bra down.
“Let me have my cookies and you can have me,” you whispered into his ears as you stood up.
“Okay kids. Enjoy Alfred’s cookies,” you say as you headed out.
The moment the kids uncovered their eyes, they watched in shock as Bruce already began to make his way towards you.
“Leave it to mom for getting Bruce to do anything other than his Batman duties,” Jason said.
"I wonder how she does it," Duke says out loud.
"Because dad's got it bad for mom," Dick tells him.
By the time Bruce got to you, you were eating your chocolate chip cookies that Alfred had made with Damien. You winked at your husband as you kissed Damien’s head.
“Alfred, why don’t you and the kids go out for a bit? It’s lovely outside,” you tell him.
“Of course,” Alfred said before walking over to get the rest of the kids. You began to head upstairs to your room, knowing that you had stirred something in Bruce.
“You coming Bruce?” You called out. You smirked as you heard Bruce’s fastened footsteps.
You let out a laugh as you felt him pick you up. You held onto him as he rushed over to the bedroom.
“I owe you some alone time don’t I?” Bruce asked you with a smile.
“Yes you do. Now, while everyone is out of the house, why don’t you make it up to me?” You asked him.
“I plan to," Bruce said before kissing you passionately.
#bruce wayne x reader#bruce wayne imagine#bruce wayne#batman x reader#batman imagine#batman#dc#dc imagine#batfam x reader#batfam imagine#wayne family adventures#alisonwritesimagines
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Reasons why Axel is best girl
Her name and design is absolute peak
This was a promo photo. The combat boots, the camo pants, the asymmetrical piercings, the camo paint and absolute feral energy in this photo.
There's a reason why she had so much hype before we even knew her personality. She exudes absolute girlboss energy and leaks with potential.
Her voice is incredible
Something about her dialect tickles my brain. Just listen to her speak especially in S2 E3 and you'll see what I mean. Her VA does an incredible job.
She's incredibly compassionate believe it or not
Her boot episode in S1 starts with her getting breakfast in the woods. She could have made food for just herself but took the time to find and cook food for the rest of her team.
S2 E2 consists of her helping her struggling teammates several times. Zee when he's taken too many hits and Damien after going through the 4 point tube.
You may think she does it out of necessity, but anybody could have gone and saved Damien, Priya especially. She's quick to inform them he needs medical attention.
She even admits that despite winning she doesn't approve of what Millie did. This is coming from the same girl that kicked a teammate overboard in the season prior. She genuinely cares about her team.
She's not very fond of Ripper, yet when she accidentally punches him in the face, she is quick to help him up and fix his broken nose. Her voice is incredibly soft as she helps him as well.
The way she handles Ripper's initial confession really sticks out to me. She doesn't lash out or mock him for having a crush, she calmly admits to being uncomfortable and gently tells him she doesn't feels the same.
She even apologizes. There's no need to apologize for not returning romantic feelings for someone. They're not entitled to your love. But she apologizes anyways despite Ripper never asking for one, because she knows that she hurt him and wanted to reject him as nicely and possible.
She recognizes Rippers development and sees how he's willing to better himself for her. He took the time to learn one of her hobbies for her and she realizes and truly appreciates that. She rewards his efforts by kissing him.
She loves Ripper for who he is despite his imperfections. She finds his stupidity to be attractive, and he's a bit insecure when it comes to impressing her, so she's quick to reassure him that she does in fact love him after insulting him and knocking him off their canoe.
There's these little blink and you'll miss it moments in the finale where when Ripper is getting hurt she's not too pleased and is there to comfort him.
Her confidence is unmatched
From the very beginning she's very sure of herself and her abilities. Her first line is her boasting about her survival abilities and how she's not afraid and how people should fear her instead.
She doesn't doubt her decisions. She kicks Ripper overboard in S1 and doesn't ever regret it, not even after she's been voted off because of it.
In S2 E3 she does a flip over a stump just because she can. Her only solo confessional is her bragging about how she was born for this challenge. She's fully confident in her skills and for good reason.
S2 E4 has a lot of these moments where she's so sure of herself not as a survivalist but also as a person. She was voted "most likely to make you regret stuff" in survival camp. She's not ashamed of that fact, she sounds almost proud.
When her love of poetry is revealed, she's not embarrassed, she sounds happy to be able to reveal that fact about herself. She knows that it's an interest not expected of someone like her, and she doesn't care.
She kisses a man on live TV despite being incredibly embarrassed and near uncomfortable with being put on the spot.
She doesn't change herself for Ripper. She is so sure of herself and she knows Ripper loves her for who she is. She's not embarrassed to show her love for him, and she's not afraid to still be her authentic self.
She takes bullshit from no one
When she stops Ripper from wasting his time and energy in the beginning, he lashes out. How does she respond? She growls at him. She's not gonna let some guy yell at her when she's trying to help.
Ripper refuses to have her lead the team despite majority ruling for her to be captain, so what does she do? She kicks him overboard for mutiny and refusing to cooperate.
Ripper taunts her for getting booted by waving his marshmallow in her face. She's already pissed, so she bites his hand and eats his own marshmallow straight from his hand. What a queen.
Ripper calls her and her team nerds in S2 E2 and she immediately snaps at him and intimidates him for his disrespect.
S2 E3 is when she and Ripper get stuck butt to butt, and it does slow her down a lot, but she ends up being in the pack getting carried by Caleb regardless. She's not really responsible for her teams loss. So when Chef puts her on the list of people on the chopping block, she immediately shuts him down because of how stupid that is.
Her split second Yuri moment with Emma consists of her intimidating her not to mess up the challenge. Emma does mess up, Axel falls, and Axel votes her off.
Her team loses for the 3rd time in a row by E5 and of course Chris relishes in their failures and rubs it in their faces. Axel is a blunt and honest person, but here she resorts to sarcasm because that's how done she is with his shit.
She's literally about to be eaten by a shark and she just turns and yells at it to back off, icon.
#total drama#total drama 2023#tdi 2023#total drama island 2023#td axel#total drama axel#taylor rambles#ripaxel#axeripper#Let me know if I missed something
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The Robins’ Animal Crossing New Horizons Islands:
Dick: Sunk all of his time and effort into finding his dream villagers and nothing else. His gameplay is 100% doing missions for Nookmiles and blowing them all on mystery island tickets. He likes the jock villagers and all the ones that look dorky (he has a lot of mice). His island is completely unfinished because he’s spent no time on it, there’s piles of materials everywhere and all of the houses are in random locations, but he has his Boys(tm) and that’s enough. Has guest rooms in his house for when his siblings come to visit his island.
Jason: Put a lot of time into terraforming the perfect island. It has a very natural theme and every home has a little nook it fits in like a cottage in the woods. Very calm little island. Has a mix of jock, normal, and peppy villagers because he built a house plot and let the game choose random villagers for him. The ones he wants to get rid of refuse to leave and he spends a lot of time building pitfalls around their property and hitting them with nets so they fuck off. Does not visit Dick’s island, and when he does, it’s to trample his flowers and leave.
Tim: The “Collector” player. Set up his island from the very beginning for max efficiency and speed. His pet peeve of the game is the absurd amount of useless menus. Never talks to the nooklings and only uses the drop off box, and doesn’t use the Nookstop terminal for anything but money deposits. All of the shops/the museum are in one line right beside his house and he’s constantly time travelling to get all of the seasonal bugs and fish. His island is a mess of workbenches and loose materials everywhere. He has a small handful of villagers he cares very much for, they’re all just random and he got attached. Visits Dick’s island regularly.
Steph: Cute, soft island theme. Put a lot of time into finding and growing all the flower types and is an expert at flower breeding, has a wealth of fruit trees and crops in neat little orchards and makes bank off the Nooklings. Sought out all of the cute villagers (and Cranston) from the mystery islands and made them a neighbourhood, and is absolutely ruthless to the villagers that move it uninvited. No one else knows how she gets them off her island so fast, and she will not give up her secret. Has caught every insect, does not care much for fish. Visits Dick’s island every now and then, takes things left on the ground.
Damien: His island is one massive Work in Progress because he’s trying to make one of those complex city designs and getting all of the items takes forever. Has collected every fossil because they kept popping up and getting in his way, and only catches the fish and bugs so he can listen to Blathers’ fun facts. Likes the smug and big sister type villagers the most, and puts any he doesn’t want on his island in “jail” (read: a complex maze of pitfalls and scary decorations). Spends a lot of time resource-grinding and has hundreds of everything. Visits Dick’s island so he can critique his design choices (and steal the tree furniture).
#batfamily#batfam#dick grayson#damien wayne#tim drake#jason todd#stephanie brown#batboys#dc#animal crosing new horizons#animal crossing#headcanon
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New Rehabilitation Patients - Five Month Aftermath
Current changes:
Niko/Sonic
Working on physical therapy to conquer his Tachophobia and get back to running.
Got eye surgery to fix his damaged eyesight.
Didn't want to lose the bangs early on, but they were too big so they were cut much shorter as a compromise.
Sonic never got back to eating chili dogs as his favorite food. And that's fine by him (cinammon rolls are so much better).
Sonic is personally in Occupational Therapy in an effort to fix all of that anxiety that was forced upon him.
Kyle/Tails
Ever since Tails began to eat more healthy, his fur began to appear a lot more softer and plush than way before.
Tails does a little flight training using his tails. He thankfully still knows how to fly previously, it's just that he wasn't able to.
Tails tried to return to engineering, but found that his new passion was becoming writing, so he stuck with that. He does still enjoy engineering, but it's no longer the only thing he does.
Rose/Cami/Amy
Amy's discuise had never come off, mainly due to all of the enchantments, but she honestly doesn't mind. It's a good look for her.
Amy sometimes does physical therapy with Sonic, but most of the time she doesn't.
Amy is the only member of the trauma siblings to not be severely traumatized I some capacity... Except for one case.
Amy is in grief counseling for obvious reasons.
Damien/Shadow
Probably put under the more extensive treatment out of everyone. Shadow still had his old and new past clashing to the point that they had to deal with both traumas.
It took a good two months to begin to erase Starline's programmed in fake memories, but they do have the tendency to show up under very high stress.
Shadow was instructed to keep his body relaxed and try smiling when he genuinely means it. Since then, his ears and mouth position have remained mainly looking on-edge despite not actually being so.
Shadow also got surgery for his eyes, with the accidental side effect of them lighting up green when he uses chaos energy.
Shadow is undergoing magic therapy despite usually claiming he doesn't need it.
Collective Group
Whether they want to believe it or not, their attachment to Starline lingers, despite him being dead.
There have been a few cases of auditory or visual hallucinations of Starline in the facility, but never both at the same time. Usually it's his voice or the platypus staring at them from the open door or over them when they're trying to sleep... It leads to a lot of panic attacks.
All of them are in therapy.
#sonic#sonic au#text post#digital art#sonic fanart#heliophobia au#tachophobia expanded universe#🌸mine
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pincera (part 5)
Summary: pincera- Latin, ‘cup-bearer, one who mixes drinks’ || He has a bad feeling about this.
Pairings: Damien/DA, Celine/Mark, Celine/Will
Tags: Alcohol, Bootlegging, Adultery, WWI, Fights, implied Overserving, Abusive Parents, Autistic!Seer!DA
Parts: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4
find it on ao3 | donate to my kofi
@opprose @statictay @volbeast @otterlyinluv @flerpdederp @hapikiou (and if anyone else wants to be tagged lmk!
Damien doesn’t make an exceptional habit of lying.
Every now and again, perhaps, a white one here and there, but nothing excessive, nothing harmful. He’s known enough people in his line of work that will lie about every last thing just to get ahead, and it leaves an awful taste in his mouth; how would he really be able to serve anyone if he insisted on keeping the truth from them?
All this to say… he holds his tongue when Mark and Celine announce their engagement.
It’s not really a lie. If he doesn’t say he thinks they’re a bit too volatile to make a good match, well, that’s discretion. He doesn’t have to say that Celine is willful and Mark is self-absorbed; he doesn’t have to say that when Celine’s need for independence clashes with Mark’s need for attention, it’ll end in tears-- or, at least, a big fight.
He can think it, but not say it, and it’s not a lie. Even if it doesn’t feel quite right.
So, he gives them his best smile over the dining table. “I never expected-- at least, not so soon. Congratulations.”
“Well, it was some time coming,” Celine replies, glancing at Mark. He’s beaming, holding her hand on the tablecloth; she, herself, smiles, a soft thing so unlike her, but not unwelcome. “We thought it’d be best before Mark signs his new contract.”
“They can’t enforce any bachelor clauses should I be married first. Besides,” Mark continues, “I didn’t want to wait any longer. We’ve known each other forever--”
“And goodness knows everyone’s been talking about it forever,” Damien finishes for them, discomfited by their affection. He doesn’t dislike affection, per se, but he’s certainly not used to it; not from his parents, and not from Celine and Mark. “Well, I’m happy for you. Have you told anyone else?”
Celine gives a dry chuckle. “No, not quite yet. You’re one of the least likely to make any sort of scene of the issue. Father will be apoplectic, and Wil… you know how he gets about celebrations.”
Yes, indeed-- Damien can party, but Wil can give him a definite run for his money. “I would imagine you’d want to build up to such a thing,” he laughs. “You won’t get much in the same vein from our local legal eagle, but they’ll be sure to gift you flowers. They’re a mite too busy for a party right now, anyway.”
“A shame.” Mark’s watching him, a stare oddly like Celine’s yet tempered with his own gleeful grin. “I’m sure you’d love to bring them along to our engagement dinner.”
They’ve been together far too long. Heat rises in his face, but he’s put far too much effort into learning how to ignore Mark’s jabs to give up and show it now. “They’re your friend as well as mine,” he replies, coolly. “Surely it’d be uncouth to relegate them to simply being a plus one.”
“It might tear them away from all that work. Should you be the one to invite them, that is,” Celine says. She’s less outwardly gleeful than Mark is, her smile restrained to only the corners of her lips rising, but her eyes shine above her glass of water. “For us, perhaps not, but for you, little brother…”
It’s a bit low-- and a bit rich-- for her to trot out that old line, considering she’s barely a few minutes older, but he takes a breath. No more rising to the bait. “Well, I’m honored to be the first to know, at any rate. You…”
He looks between them, just for a moment. Hands clasped, adoration in their eyes-- the whole picture looks perfect, a handsome and well-matched couple. In his gut, however, he feels something deeper. Something festering far beneath the facade, so deep that even Mark and Celine haven’t noticed it yet. He’s not an exceptionally anxious man, but it feels, already, that it will end in disaster.
How could he say so, though? They’re simply too happy.
“You’ll be very happy together,” he says, instead, and gives no more thought to his misgivings.
The thoughts hardly bother him at all again-- at least, until the wedding takes place.
Or, rather, they begin to stir as he checks his mail one day. Among a few different correspondences, a bill for services or two, is a deep scarlet envelope; it’s far finer paper than the rest in the pile, and fine penmanship loops out his name across the front, a black stain on blood red.
He knows before he even opens it that it’ll be a save the date, but his foresight doesn’t spare him any discomfort as he opens it up. In fact, it only grows deeper as he reads down the cream cardstock, the same neat handwriting giving out the address and date.
The date, right above the RSVP. Not even two months from today, hardly four from their engagement dinner.
They’re going too fast, he thinks, sliding the invitation back whence it came, stomach twisting. They’d said as much, hoping to get in front of Mark’s new contract, but he hadn’t expected it to be this fast. Barely a year ago, they weren’t even going together, not a flirtation in sight that couldn’t be chalked up to friendly teasing, and now…
Could it be that they’re aiming to be... honorable?
As the thought comes, a laugh bubbles up with it, half hysterical and half nauseous. Reckless as both of them could be, Celine and Mark both were too intelligent, too calculating, to be careless. Besides, if Celine ever found that she were with child…
No. She’d never allow it, not once, and being honorable to spare her parents the shame was something she would never do.
Could it be that they’re simply that in love?
… Yes, and little exists to discredit that theory, if he looks back. No news of any fights, of any grievances, and any time he sees them both together--
Well, it’s like they always like to call him. They’re moony over each other, in the way all new couples are-- at least, Mark is traditionally moony and Celine her own, more subdued brand, but moony nonetheless.
He could refuse to show, out of principle, or go to either of them with his misgivings, tell another friend so he has backup when he tries to call it all off, but he can’t. Wrong as it feels, perhaps he’s the wrong one; it isn’t even his relationship, so how could he possibly have a say?
He sends in his RSVP, and tries to ignore his discomfort, even when he holds his sister’s arm and steps out onto the runner.
( “Father isn’t coming,” she’d said, the very morning of the ceremony, bustling here and there. “So you’ll be walking me down the aisle.”
He stood in the entryway, dumbfounded. “I can’t say I expected a promotion from honored guest,” he manages, working around his already-prepared script. “I just came in to wish you the best.”
“Well, congratulations on the promotion.” She gave him a considering stare. “Your bowtie is a bit crooked. I don’t much like the tradition, but I want you to do it. I would even if he did want to come.”
He couldn’t help a grin. “I guess the red dress was pushing the more conservative guests a bit too much, then?”
“On the nose.” She finally gave him a smile of her own. “Between that and the alcohol and the jazz, someone’s going to leave on a stretcher, anyway.”)
So, he walks her down, arm in arm, towards Mark’s smiling face. Where what could have been his place in the wedding party, Wil stands in his best; he’s considerably less enthused, eyes only for Celine, his small smile edged bittersweet. Just as it soothes his aching stomach, the thought of someone else with misgivings reinforces the doubt.
He ought to say something. He’ll have a chance to, gauche as it may be to interrupt the ceremony; there’s a line in the proceedings specifically for that.
“You look about as nervous as I feel,” Mark quips when Damien takes his hand to shake, leaning in to keep the rest of the congregation from hearing. “Did something happen before the ceremony?”
His eyes drift over to their mutual friend, not in the wedding party but seated on a decorated white bench, eyes shining even as they fidget in place; Damien shakes his head. “What? No, sorry. Celine just sprung this role on me, I wasn’t really prepared.”
Not a lie, but hardly the whole truth. Still, Mark gives his hand another firm shake, clapping him on the shoulder. “Good on you for stepping up, anyway. Not that she’d give you much choice,” he laughs.
Damien echoes the laugh, managing not to flinch when it rings hollow to his own ears, and gives Celine’s arm over to him. She shoots him a questioning look, but he waves it off with something a bit more confident before retreating back to his seat.
Mark sounds flowery in his vows, a typical thespian, and Celine remains curt, and no one else seems to care-- or even notice-- that they don’t really match.
No one except himself, and Wil, but once drink and music got involved, the concern faded from his features, lost in a whirl of light and laughter amongst the other partygoers.
It’s been too often for him to discredit it, so it remains, doubt swimming in the pit of his stomach every time he hears mention of his sister and brother -in-law. Little even happens between them for a couple years, just the newness of their honeymoon stories, helping them move into Mark’s towering manor, settling into a life together.
When he gets a call in the late evening hours, the only shocking thing is that it’s Mark on the other end and not his sister.
“Mark? To what do I owe the pleasure at…” He looks to the looming grandfather clock nearby, ticking away. “… Nine-thirty?”
“Celine took off,” comes Mark’s answer, tinged with lingering heat. “We had… some words.”
As he’d always imagined they would. Damien bites back a sigh. “I see… I’m surprised you called me, though, considering. Aren’t you worried I’ll take her side?”
“It’s a risk, but you’re level headed. Wil isn’t, and you’re closer to it than our other acquaintances-- besides, you’re fun to drink with.”
Drink at a party, perhaps, but drowning sorrows is an entirely different experience, and not one he’s particularly knowledgeable of. Still, if a friend is asking for his company… “I suppose, if only for a bit. I do have to be at the office tomorrow.”
“A hangover has never stopped you.” He hangs up right after, but the slight smile in his voice worked well enough to ease his worries.
Mark’s in the den when he arrives, ushered in by Benjamin. Mark keeps a neat appearance as much as he can, and remains neat for the most part, but his hair sticks up oddly, anger in the tight lines around his face. In one hand, a glass of brown alcohol sloshes, half-full; the suspected culprit, one of Damien’s experiments, sits mostly-empty on the coffee table before him.
“I hope that wasn’t full at the start of the night,” Damien comments lightly as Benjamin steps away with his coat.
“It wasn’t. I’m not that out of sorts.” Mark sits up a bit, smoothing back his hair with a hand. “I took the time to make a drink, actually. I brought that over for you.”
As Damien approaches, sinking into the couch cushions, he notes the glass once more-- indeed, it holds a sliver of lemon peel, the slight scent of something green, herbaceous. “I appreciate the thought. So… what happened?”
Mark scoffs, shaking his head. “It was hardly anything. I proposed a vacation for the both of us after my new feature wraps, but she wants to go off somewhere in the middle of the woods! I could take her anywhere, give her anything, and still she wants the middle of nowhere.”
“I see…” Damien takes the time fixing his own glass to properly construct his response. “Well… you know how Celine is. She likes to follow her own path-- whether or not we understand it, ourselves.”
“I know that,” Mark replies waspishly, “but I thought once we married she’d be more interested in time together. She only just returned from a trip like that. I’m happy to have a little time apart, but…”
He takes a long drink. Once he swallows, he turns to Damien, eyes pained. “Do you think… do you think we were a mistake? That it was never going to be…?”
It’s the best chance he’ll ever get to speak his mind, right in front of him. A direct question from someone wanting the truth.
When the truth would destroy a marriage and ruin two good reputations in the process, not to mention break their hearts. Could he really be so cruel?
His stomach churns around the alcohol in his stomach, and he must look away from Mark. Hopefully, it only looks like he’s choosing his words. “No, no, I don’t… I think you’re strong personalities, yes, but I don’t think it’s always going to be… I think you’ll both be alright. Just give her space, and you’ll have your time together, too.”
(He regrets it so much later on, after everything. He should have told him the truth, should have been honest from the start about it. Maybe it would have spared everyone the pain and death and misery.
At the time, though, Mark’s relieved smile felt like the right outcome.)
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Sazerac
--
50ml/2oz rye whiskey
10ml/2 barspoons simple syrup
2 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
10ml/2 barspoons absinthe, to rinse the glass
lemon peel, to garnish
Stir all ingredients (save the absinthe) in a mixing glass with ice. Rinse a chilled rocks glass with the absinthe. Strain the drink into the glass and add the twist of lemon.
A complex creation, an acquired taste-- strong and almost hallucinogenic, but remarkably similar to the Perfect Manhattan. As long as you don’t look too close. Best to come clean about the ingredients-- one wouldn’t want a tragic outcome later.
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Chapter 48
Glass Shards
Warnings: Lady whump, broken ribs, punctured lung, suffocation, no anesthesia, beating, drowning (the water kind)
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Merridy tried to open her eyes, but her eyelids were too heavy. There was blood on her tongue, and a pain in her chest, familiar, and yet worse than ever before.
“Stay with us. Hey, stay with us. Merry, is that right?”
She didn’t know that voice. It scared her. Merridy doubled her efforts to open her eyes, only to find a stranger looming over her. Deep black hair, and ice blue eyes, and a blue dress sprinkled with blood. That was strange. The woman didn’t seem to be bleeding.
Cold.
Merridy couldn’t speak. She couldn’t even scream as the cold crept deeper, numbing the pain in her chest and burning inside her at the same time. Nothing happened as she gasped for air, the bit she managed to suck in barely enough for a whimper.
Damien.
Her hand twitched, empty save for the fabric under her fingertips. He wouldn’t leave her alone, would he? But he wasn’t here, the realization enough to momentarily drive off the fog that had settled over her thoughts.
She had promised to protect him. What if all her efforts had been in vain?
Her attempt to get up wasn’t more than a weak struggle. The woman put her hand on Merridy’s shoulder, not applying much pressure, but enough to hold her down.
“Don’t move. The healer is…” She broke off as the door sounded. “He’s here.” The relief was clear in her voice. “Everything will be fine now.”
How could everything be fine if Damien wasn’t here? Merridy was so tired, but she couldn’t sleep without knowing whether he was safe. If only it wasn’t so hard to keep her eyes open.
Muffled voices. Talking about her, not to her. About blood, and broken bones, and needing to be quick. A shimmer of auburn came into her field of vision. Merridy smiled. He hadn’t left her alone after all. He would watch over her while she slept.
She blinked, and it wasn’t Damien above her. His brother’s hair was too long, his beard too short, no hint of the familiar kindness in his eyes. Merridy was too weak to react to the panic flooding her as Damien’s brother grabbed her shoulder and hip.
Where before his wife had been, now a stranger sat, his fingers all over her. It was like her nightmares, and just like in her nightmares, she couldn’t get away. Damien’s brother held her down while the stranger brought a blade to her skin. Merridy whimpered as the metal cut into her chest, blood running down her stomach, ice cold where it should have been warm. Fingers prodded her side, moving along the cut, slipping under her skin. Digging deeper.
Every bit of air her lungs held was put into a scream as her world turned black.
* * *
Damien stumbled a step back, his foot almost slipping off the quay. The man followed, giving him no chance to get away from the edge.
“Should have stayed in whatever hole you were hiding in.”
Before Damien had time to catch his breath, a knee slammed into his stomach, so hard his legs buckled. He tried to catch himself, but his hand found nothing where the ground should be. In a desperate attempt to keep his balance, he threw himself forward, only to collide with a foot aiming for his shoulder. The kick shoved him over the edge, his shins scraping along the stone of the quay as he fell into the ocean.
Dark water closed over him. His scream turned into a stream of bubbles, taking precious air away from him, towards a surface that was out of reach. He had learned to swim, decades ago, but between his missing arm and his clothes rapidly soaking up the water, he sank like a rock.
Damien kicked his legs, the movements slowed by the weight of his clothes. It was barely enough to keep him from sinking further. As his lungs began to burn, his panic grew. He fought harder, kicking and thrashing, until his hand slammed against something. The shock of the impact let another series of air bubbles rise. The wall!
The stones were slick and overgrown with algae, but they were also rough; rough enough for him to cling to it. His boots scraped over it as he pulled himself up, slowly, way too slowly. He was running out of time. Water filled his mouth, the taste of salt washing away the blood. His movements became erratic, kicking the wall, digging his nails into the crevices between the stones.
So close, so close, so close so close so close.
The moment his head broke through the surface, he started to gasp. Water ran down his throat, making him cough and almost sink again. He clung to the wall, trying to catch his breath. The water left his vision blurry, but he didn’t need to see to know that the quay was too far above him. No chance of him climbing out, and he didn’t dare to call for help. If those men were still around, they might just decide to finish him quicker instead.
Despair filled him as his gaze cleared enough to look around. He was at last fifty steps away from shore. A distance that had seemed like nothing when walking, but now was insurmountable. He wouldn’t be able to swim that far.
Briefly, he toyed with the idea of using his magic. The risk of teleporting to a location he couldn’t see was preferable to straight up drowning, but he didn’t have the strength for it. The small spark of magic within him kept slipping away as he struggled to keep himself above the water. It wouldn’t be enough for something as difficult as a teleport.
No. The only chance he had was to keep to the wall. The cold already sapped his strength, making his muscles stiff and his teeth chatter, but no matter how small his hope of success was, he had to try. He couldn’t give up.
The saltwater burned in his scrapes and cuts as he pushed himself forward, his head dipping underwater the moment he had to let go of the wall. He fought his way back to the surface, a tiny bit closer to safety, but still impossibly far away.
Another push, another dip, and another, and another. Damien gasped for air, spitting out water. His fingers hurt, stiff from the cold and bleeding where the rocks had scratched them. His feet slipped off the algae, making the submerged parts of the wall slippery. Warm traces of water found their way down the coldness of his cheeks.
Merry.
* * *
“Come on. Breathe.”
Merridy didn’t want to. It hurt too much. The fire in her lungs, and the ice in her chest, and the sand in her throat.
“Breathe, dammit.”
Someone pushed down on her chest, and she gasped involuntarily. Liquid filled her mouth and nose, dripping down her face. She coughed, struggling to breathe, unable to stop now that she had started. Everything tasted like blood. Smelled like blood. It clung to every breath she took, making her feel nauseous.
Hands were still all over her. Holding her. Touching her. Pushing her this way and that. Something tingled in her chest. People spoke in hushed voices. She didn’t bother trying to understand their words. With her face pressed against the cushions, she cried, wishing for it all to end.
When the hands finally retreated, Merridy was completely exhausted. She had no strength left to draw back from the touch on her face. It was soft and gentle, but it wasn’t Damien. He wasn’t here. Why wasn’t he here?
A piece of cloth dabbed at her face, wiping away her blood and tears. Merridy finally opened her eyes, looking from the hand to the one it belonged to. It was the woman with the black hair. She grabbed Merridy’s shoulders, pulling her up and leaning her against the cushions.
“It’ll be easier to breathe if you sit.”
The woman. Valadan’s wife. Josephine.
“Here,” she said, offering Merridy a blanket. “You’re shaking.”
Merridy took the blanket with trembling hands, pulling it closer. Her limbs barely obeyed her will, so she didn’t wrap herself into it, only draped it over her bare chest. Hiding behind it. It did nothing to warm her.
“How do you feel?” Josephine asked.
Merridy didn’t reply.
“Your name is Merry, is that right?”
It wasn’t, but she didn’t reply to that, either.
Josephine sighed. “You… one of your ribs broke. It punctured your lung. The healer—Elijah—fixed you up. Said you lost quite a bit of blood, and it will be sore for a few days, but the danger is over.” Her smile looked strained. “But Merry. He found traces of older injuries. Lots of bruises, and some older cuts, and…” She broke off, a mix of sadness and concern on her face. “Do you need help?”
The question didn’t make sense. Hadn’t they just healed her?
A shadow fell over her, making her wince and cower deeper into the cushions. From the false safety of her blanket, she dared to look up. Valadan looked so much like Damien. The same auburn hair. The same hard lines around his mouth. The same purple eyes, fixed on her.
“Did my brother hurt you?” Valadan asked bluntly.
Merridy stared at him as if he had grown a second head. “W-what?” she finally stammered. “You… you attacked us.”
“That was… fuck.” He ran his hand through his hair. “It was an accident. I’m sorry.”
An accident. He had hit Damien. Shoved him. Damien, who hadn’t even tried to fight back. The memory of that forlorn, hurt look on his face brought tears to her eyes. She knew she had tried to protect him, but everything afterwards was blurry.
“I mean before,” Valadan clarified. “Someone hurt you. Was it him?”
“He’d never hurt me. Where is he?” When no one replied, her tears spilled over, her stomach twisting in fear. “Please? Where… where’s Damien?”
“Calm down. I told him to stay away while I got the healer. I guess I’ll—” A knock on the door interrupted him. “Guess that’s him.”
While Valadan turned around, Josephine sat down next to Merridy.
“Here. Some water.”
She handed her a glass. It was a fragile thing, with thin walls and a floral pattern. Merridy stared at the way it broke the light, wondering if in another life, Damien had made something like this.
The sip she took burned in her throat and tingled in her nose. Merridy lowered the glass as voices sounded from the entrance.
“You did what?”
Valadan’s shout made her flinch. In his anger, he sounded exactly like his brother, but unlike Damien, Merridy didn’t trust him. Her grip around the glass tightened, the water rippling as she trembled.
“It wasn’t… it was Peter! He pushed him off the quay. There was blood, and we thought… he thought… didn’t you—”
Whatever else the man stammered, it was drowned out by a slam as Valadan punched the wall. Merridy flinched, pressing herself into the corner of the sofa, a sob caught in her throat.
Off the quay.
She didn’t even know if Damien knew how to swim! And even if he did, he was still weak, and wearing clothes, and… and…
The sob broke free, shaking her and making water spill over the blanket. Valadan looked back over his shoulder. In his eyes, Merridy saw the same fear that took her own breath away. It hit her that Damien had been wrong.
Valadan didn’t hate him.
He turned away, pushing the man aside as he ran out the door.
“You should leave,” Josephine said, her tone as frosty as her touch had been.
Merridy looked up, but Josephine’s gaze rested on the man. He raised both hands in a defensive gesture as he backed off, pulling the door closed behind him.
In the silence that followed, all Merridy could hear was the rushing in her ears. Her head spun, as if she couldn’t breathe again. Water dripped down her wrist. Water, and something warm. Merridy only felt the pain when Josephine reached for her hand, forcing it open. The glass was broken, shards embedded in her palm. Josephine pulled the shards out and wrapped a piece of cloth around Merridy’s bleeding hand.
“It’s going to be okay,” she said as she pulled Merridy into her arms. “It’s going to be okay. He’ll save him.”
Merridy sank against her and started to cry.
And if THIS was a BTHB entry, it would be Punctured Lung <3
[ID: The top image is a banner covered in colorful glass shards. Across it is written the title of the story, glass shards, in a white to bright cyan gradient with a black outline. The font looks like written with a broad paintbrush. All other images in this post are purely ornamental lines. End ID.]
@dont-touch-my-soup @starrysky-whumpfics @kixngiggles @starlit-hopes-and-dream
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Happy
TW: Gun, Implied death/murder, Blood, Slight gore
It was a rare sight to see Darkiplier smile. In fact, seeing him in any emotional state at all was relatively new, even to Warfstache. Especially to Warfstache. Despite all efforts, the reporter could never seem to make Dark even crack a smile (though he still tried again and again every day). Now, however, the usually numb-looking being was chatting with the others, making small talk, smiling, chuckling. Their skin even looked alive. It made them look like…someone else, though as to who, he couldn’t put his finger on. All he knew was that they wore the face of an old friend, one far older than the friend they usually were.
Mayhaps, he woke up in another dimension again. With how jumbled everything was, it could have very well been the case. No use questioning how. Apparently, while thinking, his eyes remained on Dark. The now human-looking being moved their head as if to say ‘come over here.’ Who was Wilford to refuse an invitation like that? They were friends, after all. Sure, Dark didn’t always react fondly to his ideas. Well, to be honest, they never did; but friends don’t always agree, right? The reporter made his way to Dark. People around him made way for him. They stared at him, as he went, with expressionless faces. Their gazes followed Warfstache, even when he reached his friend.
“You know, Will,” Dark began, though, it didn’t sound like Dark at all. It was lighter, softer. A cadence he knew from somewhere.
“If you wanted to speak with me, you could have asked,” he said with a soft smile.
“You know I prefer to play the long game, ol’ boy,” Wilford’s voice came out different, less slurred than usual. He didn’t question it, though. Every now and then, his voice would slip into its former pattern. It wasn’t an unusual occurrence, though it still felt odd whenever it happened.
“It’s always games with you,” Dam-Dark chuckles, his smile seeming to widen.
“They could get you in trouble one day, you know,” their voice was a playful warning, laced with warmth. A kind of warmth that could only come from–
“Damien? Well, it’s about time I found you.”
“You found me, did you?” Damien asked.
“So your game is hide and seek? Wouldn’t I need to hide for that?” he retorted.
“But, you have been,” Wiford laughed, as if the mayor was telling a joke. He had to be. The reporter could have sworn that the mayor was the one who had started this game…how many years ago? He couldn’t really remember. Time was just a flash of quickly moving events, too many to keep track of. The mayor just stared at him, worried.
“Now, where is Celine hiding?” Wilford asked like it was a casual question between friends.
“Will,” Damien’s smile quickly faded into serious concern as he leaned in and responded, “She’s asleep,” in a low voice. A light echo could be heard from the mayor.
“Well, do you know when she’s waking up?” the reporter’s voice was full of denial.
“I’d very much love to see her again.” He missed their nights together. The dancing in the back courtyard. Their conversations under the stars. Them going behind Marc’s back–
“I think you would know,” Damien said, sudden condescension filling his tone. His face was then blank, yet full of rage. In a blink, the mayor was unconscious on the wood floor. The once clean, polished floor was covered in a puddle of blood around Damien. Looking at his hands, Wilford found a gun in his hand. But, he didn’t kill him. He couldn’t have.
“Hello, old friend,” another familiar voice said behind him. Turning around, Wilford saw Marc. He was dressed in his silk robe. A bullet hole could be seen out of his right temple, a never ending waterfall of blood flowing out of it. How was—he had watched the actor fall to the ground. Marc made his way in front of Wilford, grabbing his gun.
“Have you forgotten?” the actor leaned the barrel of the gun to his bleeding temple.
“Or are you just too afraid to remember?” he pulled the trigger, the sound of the gun jolting the reporter awake.
Gonna be posting these late and out of order, so apologies in advance.
#markiplier#mark fischbach#who killed markiplier#wkm#william j barnum#mayor damien#actor mark#wilford warfstache#darkiplier#markiplier fanfiction#egotober 2023#arden writes#tw blood#tw gore#tw implied murder#tw death#tw gun#tw implied violence
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*˖ ⊹ ──────── lore dump.
this is just a little collection of explanations about where my characters currently are physically, emotionally, career-wise, etc. it's mainly for me to keep myself straight with my ideas and their development but uhhh also to make sense if i drop any of it in a post. that's all ! read or don't read at your discretion ! don't matter to me.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── alistair castillo.
i really don’t imagine his life changes much from day to day to be totally honest………. there is nothing new happening in his life he’s still just being a menace upon new york and giving people sick ass tattoos.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── brady ackerman.
he’s been wound up in a lot of different projects and probably running himself into overdraft; busy filming the next season of his show, and also alongside it trying to finish out a manuscript for the next book he’s supposed to be writing, all while flying all over the world in just a handful of weeks. hasn’t touched down in new york for more than a few days in the past 2 months but hey at least he’s successful right. right guys. right. haha. he's not tired at all. don't look at his dark circles for too long.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── caleb williamson.
christmas is a pretty big time for his little side gig selling rare records online, so that picked up quite a bit even as his music lessons kind of trailed off as kids went off on winter holiday. it’s also just been rly quiet for him because obviously christmas didn’t go very well as family dinners never really go well at the willamson/michaelson house and then luvena has been either away or rotting in her room so there’s not really been much for him to do if levi and trinity arealso preoccupied (with each other? idk i dont god mod 👀. ) he did do a really successful new years eve show i think that he’s proud of but mainly it’s just been his little side hustle and now as lessons are picking back up.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── clementine bailey.
so clem is still in the process/paperwork of buying the diner, all the bank loans and everything like that but she is now effectively in charge of it which has definitely been ! a big deal ! her and loren moved into a new apartment and clem has yet to even unpack most of her boxes because she’s spending a lot of time at the diner going over all the financials and trying to teach herself how to handle the back end of a business instead of just the front half. it’s A Lot and she’s definitely Stressed and crying a lot and everyone has been getting 3am baked thumb print cookies, but don't even worry about her !
*˖ ⊹ ──────── damien clarke.
christmas is always the best but busiest time of year for retail so i imagine damien has been putting in a lot of extra effort to make sure that it’s special !! he did some big holiday toy drives alongside some local charities, but since the christmas rush has kind of fallen off and times are slower he’s now just trying to get through the pile of bookkeeping and administrative stuff that he needs to worry about. i have been playing with the idea of him running a very limited indie comic publishing thing out of the back office of his shop, having started with the one done by him & honey and now kind of expanding to artists who maybe don’t have the funds or ability to afford printing and stuff themselves but………… idk the logistics of that yet so it’s definitely just an idea in his head that’s in the early stages. he’s having fun with it. honestly he's having a great time.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── eli russo.
again i don’t think his daily life has much variation. working security at a show venue a few evenings a week and still coaching the Youth ™ w/ boxing a few days a week… sometimes he does do like 14 hour days which is a bit unfortunate and his schedule is all over the place which is bad for the brain that can barely remember what day it is on a good week but you know!!! his memory has been slightly improving thanks to all of the puzzles & all that stuff!!! so like good for him!!! go off king!!
*˖ ⊹ ──────── elijah guiterrez.
again i just brought him here so i don’t really think things have been particularly outstanding in his life. just him and carmen doing their little school thing idk. he’s working as a TA in among all the other school stuff he’s doing i suppose.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── esther thomas.
lowkey i think she’s started dropping off from doing auditions all together… like she’s so bored of them, and getting anywhere in the snow and cold is rough, so while she hasn’t admitted it to anyone or even necessarily herself she’s just like. not been looking. kind of giving up on her dream but doesn’t want to admit that because then that means her parents were right. but like really she’s resigned herself to the bartending life. otherwise nothing new.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── grace bao.
she’s been stuck in this hellish domestic civil lawsuit at the moment that’s eating up practically all of her spare time because the judge and the defense are assholes and she has gotten competitive about it, alongside all of her Daughter Responsibilities for her parents and their millions of holiday and new years parties. grace does nothing but work, eat, be miserable at charity dinners, work some more, and maybe sleep right now. that’s her whole social life.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── jackson ruíz.
construction is fairly seasonal work so while he’s still working he’s not as busy as he usually is, and also it’s winter and everything is depressing, so he’s definitely been deep into hermit “i haven’t seen you in a week” mode. especially with giselle kind of flying out to conferences and stuff there hasn’t been much reason for him to get out of his apartment. he’s in a Depression Era but hey ! it happens !
*˖ ⊹ ──────── kal sekh.
i think the news of eren’s diagnosis has had quite an effect on kal, especially having to keep it a secret from everyone and also because she doesn’t want as much support for it as he feels like he should be giving, so he’s slipping a little bit into old habits again and overworking himself into the ground so he doesn’t have to rly stop and think about what’s happening. double shifts and insomnia are back baby !!!!!!!!!
*˖ ⊹ ──────── kas peters.
just came out of a period where he had a few different mural commissions going on all at the same time and he was much busier than he’s usually used to so now he is simply basking in the fact that he doesn’t have to worry about funds broke-ass artist bitch but also that he doesn’t have anything to do. just kind of vibing. fucking around with his art in his room. fucking around w/ gabriella’s emotions. you know how it is. no cares in the world for this guy.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── minji kyung.
around new years she had the opening of her studio !! so she’s been very busy, not really making art but she’s been spending a lot of her time at the gallery/studio. this is a really big change from her because she’s kind of lacked purpose or a project for a really long time that i imagine she’s just really happy and really excited ??? but also probably very daunted because she feels like she doesn’t belong or doesn’t have the skills to do it properly yano.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── reid baker.
he took a little vacation time off since his work is also pretty seasonal to go back and visit his parents on the farm, but mostly his life has been no different except he’s been shovelling snow off the central park steps instead of just being a glorified gardener. honestly he’s pretty chill he doesn’t have the braincells to be anything except chill.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── sebastián dominguez-herrera.
this bad boy went on tour !!! first it was america, and following that he did a few shows in europe & south america. he’s also been working on his next album in between, but he’s at a bit of a stand still with that one because he isn’t feeling ~ inspired ~ and he’s kind of groggy and thinks he’s sick all the time because all the travelling + the winter that he’s not really used to. drama queen never experienced seasonal depression before and hes getting a little taste of it.
*˖ ⊹ ──────── wren noor.
i think wren is starting to actually reconsider the kinds of things she wants to do with her life and the degree she already has now… i think maybe she’s looking into online courses at other universities where she might be able to finish her masters but also is considering a career change totally… she’s been spending way more time on the roof with her telescope and getting excited about that stuff again as she heals, but definitely is still cautious,,, anyway she's been doing her research.
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South Park Headcanons: Pip & Damien Edition!
Pip
-He didn’t know there was more than one type of tea before he was sent to London, where Pocket introduced him to the variations for throughout the day (like a strong black tea in the morning, and chamomile in the evening). He was very excited about this.
-One of his biggest fears is thunderstorms. He doesn’t mind rain on its own, he quite enjoys it, but the rumbling and flashing of thunder and lightning makes him jumpy. If he’s alone and the storm continues on, he will eventually start to cry. His fear worsens as the storm worsens.
-When he was living back in England (before he became a gentleman or met Estella), he caught scarlet fever. He survived by the skin of his teeth. This has left him with some prolonged respiratory issues, but they’re not too bad, since he was around 7 years old when he got sick.
-He has various burn scars from when Damien blew him up. He also has a bite mark scar on his arm from when he was turned into a zombie (s1ep7). He’s also got a few from when he cracked his head open (namely, the Unaired Pilot).
-Although the other 4th graders don’t really appreciate his efforts, he has stayed apart of the school’s dodgeball team out of pure enjoyment. The kids don’t make fun of him as much during the games, as they don’t want to be on the receiving end of his surprisingly strong throwing ability.
-He still practices archery when he can with a bow he found behind Jimbo’s Guns, but fencing is a bit harder to do, since finding a proper sword to do so is a bit difficult to find in a place like South Park.
-He’s not very prideful, but always keeps his hair well groomed, taking special care to wash, brush, and style it to his liking. The other boys make fun of him for it, saying it makes him look like a girl, but he lets their comments slide, if only for his hair.
-His newsboy cap was a late gift from his mother. He received it after she and her husband had already passed on. This is his most prized possession, and he would be devastated if anything happened to it.
-When he died, Butters was the only one to show up to his funeral and burial service and is one of the only recurring visitors to his gravesite.
-As he ages in Hell, his final height reaches 6’6”. He’s slim and lanky, but still moves with a gracefulness that he pays no mind to. His hair reaches the middle of his back, and he sometimes ties it into a loose ponytail that sits between his shoulder blades.
Damien
-His nails grow in naturally black and sharp like his father’s.
-He puts up a tough front, but he’s actually quite sensitive, which is why it’s difficult for him to make friends. Very few have seen this vulnerable side, Pip being one of them.
-During the plot of the movie, his relationship with his father was very strained, since Satan chose to spend more time with Saddam than his own son. This rift caused Damien to resent his father for a long time, but their relationship is on the mend after Saddam was killed (again).
-Damien pretends he hates when Kenny shows up in Hell but is actually relieved and excited that he has someone his own age to play with (and someone to pay attention to him) for a while before Kenny revives.
-He fucking hates Saddam. And Chris. Not as much with Chris, but he still does, as his father goes right back to ignoring his existence.
-His favorite music includes a mix of Sammy Hagar, ICP, Stormtroopers of Death, and Metallica. He secretly listens to Frank Sinatra after Pip introduced him to it.
-When he was younger and his powers were just awakening, his favorite thing to do as a toddler was to set anything and everything on fire. As he gets a bit older, he claims he just likes to set things ablaze, but this is just a cover for him not fully understanding how to use his powers still. For example, he could point at something with the intent to flip it, but will set it on fire instead, and claim “that’s what I meant to do the whole time!”.
-Damien’s learned to be more compassionate with the help of Kenny and (more so) Pip, but it still takes a long time, considering the way and the place he was raised.
-Out of the hundreds of sentry dogs his father has as apart of his army of evil, Damien’s favorite is a young three-headed hellhound named Luci, who he sneaks out to see at night, even though no one’s supposed to interact with the dogs to keep them war-ready. His heart melts for the dog, and she’s able to bring a smile to his face on even the hardest of days.
-He doesn’t do much when it comes to styling his hair, but he does what he can to keep his sideburns looking good, as they make him look more “badass”, as he claims.
-When he becomes an adult, he stands at 9’1”, and is built like his father, just without the goat legs and red skin. He has a full beard and black horns that grow straight upwards and is able to summon a pair of bat-like wings and a spear-tipped tail on command.
-He can speak fluent Latin, but no one knows it.
Dip
-As children, Pip teaches Damien how to ballroom dance (as per Damien embarrassedly asking him how after watching him). It takes him a while to learn, but he eventually gets the hang of it, and turns out to be quite a good dancer. (During their wedding reception when they’re older, their first dance is the same one Pip initially taught him, and to the same song they learned with).
-During the events of the movie, Damien spends a lot of time up on Earth to avoid Saddam and his father and spends most of his time in the movie theater. They reunite during a showing of “Asses of Fire”, and later bond over ideals of La Resistance, being the outcast, and an unstable parental presence. They grow close by the end of the film.
-Satan has an “earth house” that he and Damien occasionally move to when the devil wants to live somewhere with nicer scenery. When they are residing on the surface, Pip comes to live with them, much preferring to sleep under their roof than the dilapidated roof of the orphanage on the outskirts of town.
-Pip is always amazed by Damien’s powers, but his fire entrances him the most. Even into adulthood, Pip will sit and watch as fire dances across the other’s fingertips as if it was his first time witnessing it.
-Damien still calls him “Pip”, but not in a negative way. He saves “Phillip” for more delicate situations, good or bad.
After being made fun of for so long, Pip becomes slightly self-conscious of his heritage. When he’s with Damien, the demon encourages him to use more British phrases and dialogue to help him regain confidence and pride for his heritage.
-When they marry, Pip takes Damien’s name, only because his family name has brought him nothing but bad luck and a bad image back home, and since he was the last living Pirrip, he felt it right to end the namesake, but without ending it in death like all his brothers and his father.
-Their love language is physical touch, going all the way back to when they were 10 years old with gentle pats on the back and high-fives. As adults, they even go as far as (mainly Damien) carrying the other around their home, even if they’re just doing some menial task. To know that the other is physically there is what reassures them most.
Feel free to add more in the comments or reblog!
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I was saving this theory for a later chapter but someone brought up how Melinda says "child" instead of "children" and so I'm gonna say it now.
So this could be excused by maybe Melinda ages more gracefully than Donovan, but I've noticed how much... Older. Donovan looks than Melinda. And like, I could see Melinda having a kid Damian's age, but a teenager? That's pushing it.
So it makes me wonder if Melinda is perhaps Donovan's second wife.
But why? Why would Donovan get a second wife and a second son? If he had a son already, he wouldn't need another wife even if the first one died. And I'm assuming the first one died because Donovan is the head of the conservative party; it wouldn't look good for the head of the conservative party to toss aside his wife for a younger model.
Well, look at how Melinda acts. This isn't someone who was just in an unhappy arranged marriage. This is someone who was deeply hurt by Donovan. And the negative thoughts she has are in completely different speech bubbles than her positive thoughts about Damien. Further, the thoughts she has are almost... Cartoonish to me? "my precious precious precious treasure", "how I adore you", "how he disgusts me", "my treasure, my curse". To be honest, when I first read the chapter and saw the dark thought bubbles, I thought Anya was reading someone else's mind.
So I'm about to jump the shark here but: I think Melinda (and possibly Donovan's first wife) were test subjects of an off shoot of Project Apple, the goal being to brainwash people into hating or loving whatever the scientists wish. This would obviously be useful for a war effort to ensure the war keeps going. Also, I think Donovan specifically chose his wives as test subjects to see how far he could push this: if he could make a mother hate her child, how easy would it be to make a country hate people they already dislike?
But also, this is clearly a failure (so far). Melinda loves her son. She still has the negative thoughts but she also just as equally (if not more) has thoughts of how much she loves her son. Which is great for Melinda, congrats on loving your son so much you can't be completely mind controlled.... But if Melinda keeps resisting the brainwashing, I wonder how long it would take before Donovan decides third time's the charm.
But anyway, putting aside the mind control theory for now: I know people think Melinda is evil and doesn't like Damien, but even if she isn't being mind controlled, I think she loves her son. She is trapped in an abusive marriage and obviously that spawns complicated feelings about the son who is, in a way, what traps her--but I think her first thoughts are her true thoughts. Damien is her precious treasure. She hates Donovan and she hates the part of Damien that is Donovan's, but she also loves Damien.
And it's definitely not healthy--Damien can tell that his mom is holding back from him: he chooses to talk to Jeeves and his brother before reaching out to Melinda, and he's surprised Melinda even came for him. But at the same time, he also allows himself to cry in front of her. If his father had been there, I don't think Damien would have ever let himself cry, even if it was "just because he wanted to see the museum." And the sad thing is, I think Damien can tell that his mom switches between hating and loving him, but he's too young to understand that his dad is that switch. He doesn't understand that mentioning Donovan is what makes his mom flip from doting and loving to being cold, because to him, his dad is the best person in the world--why would anyone hate him?
Rei and Melinda should start a support group of "mothers trapped in abusive marriages and have complicated feelings about the children they love who are fathered by the men they hate." Heck, they even have the "also our youngest child takes after us more than their dad" in common.
Huh, a real possibility, I'd like to see that. The second wife part is highly likely, but I think we'd need to actually meet Demetrius first, depending on what he looks like we can deduce if he looks like Melinda or not.
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SECRETLY SUPERNATURAL!HAVENFALL’S FINEST X READER [HEADCANNONS]
I know this would never happen, but imagine the crew of Havenfall’s finest dating you before you found out about their cryptid-ness and them actively keeping it a secret.
I know that keeping something that big would destroy a relationship but just ignore that and enjoy silly headcannons.
JD
-Ignoring the fact they wouldn’t even try to hide it lmao.
-Would defiantly make jokes and drop many hints about what they are/the supernatural, so much so you’ll feel dumb for missing the signs when you do inevitably find out.
-They’d (with humourless snark) describe their dad as “The Devil”, you’d take it as metaphorical but oh honey, if only you knew.
-You venting to your therapist that you think your partner might be a satanist, with all that pentagram stuff you are defiantly in your right so you can’t tease me I swear JD-
-Them making puns like, “A deal with the devil, Hm?” Or “The devil on your shoulder is telling you to make them some food, please babe I can’t cook- I mean they can’t cook-“
-I think you’d find out the quickest with JD, Hell (no pun intended), I think JD would be the one to spill the beans no matter who you date.
DIEGO ESCALONA:
-Dinner dates would be hilarious and extremely awkward, let’s start and end that there.
-But in all seriousness, he’d feel really guilty for keeping a secret that big from you, but would be so worried that you’d leave him over it.
-Would try to keep his vampiric habits multiple planets away from you.
-Him trying not to roll his eyes so hard they get stuck when you inevitably and unknowingly force him to watch twilight, or something similar to that.
-You’re plan to force him to eat some veggies after doctor lettuce makes you eat nothing but salads every time you’re together doesn’t exactly work, but he won’t tell you that.
-You making fun of him for talking like a old man, and he just has to sit there like 😀 “Haha, it’s just a habit of mine.” *sweating intensified*
-If you like drama (hard same.) than I can imagine that the way you’d find out about him is if Antonio disrupted Havenfall, like kidnapping your sister or smth, and he’d have to tell you.
MACKENZIE HUNT:
-“Honey, I woke up last night and you weren’t in bed, is everything alright?” “Yeah, just had to go outside to uh, check the mail.” Mackenzie smiles nervously as she inconspicuously throws her ripped shirt in the trash.
-Bro I don’t know why this is so funny to me, but the idea of Mackenzie accidentally growling infront of you and you being like “WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT???” While laughing and her just being like 😀 “Haha, oops.”
-After you ask her why she kind of smells like a wet dog after a swim at the diseased lake she puts extra effort into concealing her wolf smell.
-Her pretending to work out a lot more than she actually does to justify her 💪🏽✨S T R E N G T H✨💪🏽
-I adore the story idea of you getting kidnapped by Damien’s pack or something similar and getting referred to as Mackenzies “partner” and you’re so confused until Mackenzie just fucking bursts in as her hot werewolf self like: weres my wife föckers
RAZI NASSAR:
-Okay, not as bad as JD, but I can see him also not making a huge effort to hide it.
-All the magical puns, so many.
-He’d %100 use his magic during sexy times, heightening your pleasure farther than any human could.
-We saw in his POV that he uses magic when cooking, so you will get the tastiest meals made to perfection by his magical fingertips.
-Like Diego, he’d be sitting there trying not to die when you also inevitably make him watch Aladdin, he’s just sitting there with you snuggled on his chest trying to remember all the things he loves about you to try and push through.
-“How is your apartment bigger than the damn bowling alley?! That’s not possible.” “Magic.”
-I think you’d find out when Jonas tries to brainwash you and he has to use his magic to save you.
BONUS: HIFL MC:
-Okay, I know she isn’t supernatural but I love the idea of both of you discovering this world together.
-Like, anything could happen, you get attacked by sirens or jumped by harpies.
-Imagine both of you trying to solve some supernatural mystery type thing but not knowing Havenfall’s finest is supernatural.
-Razi getting increasingly concerned when his favourite employee shows up smelling like centaur or some shit.
-I literally can’t stop laughing at the thought of you two defeating the big bad only to find out about Havenfall’s finest and being like, “We could have asked for help this entire time??? We almost died for no reason???”
-Overall 10/10 comedy between you two snarky fuckers quoting tumblr text posts like: “Bro do vampires drink through their teeth like straws?”
#havenfall is for lovers#razi nassar#diego escalona#mackenzie hunt#Jordan Davies#JD lovestruck#Lovestruck#Hifl#hifl fanfiction#hifl headcannons#Havenfall is for lovers headcannons#Antonio Vasquez#vanessa helsing
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I always end up being a little late for these things, but I wanted to do something real quick for Autism Awareness/Acceptance Month. I myself am neurotypical, but as a writer, I'm making an effort to diversify my characters as much as possible, so I'd like to introduce two of my characters who are both on the autism spectrum. This is Damien and Katie. They're step siblings, and even though I'm still learning how to portray them accurately, I think they're a great example of how people with autism aren't all the same.
Damien's autism is displayed much more openly than his sister's. He was diagnosed with ASD at a young age and grew up with a strong support system because of that. He has a special interest in baseball and other sports, and he also experiences physical tics due to having comorbid Tourette's. Even though he was well-supported and received ABA therapy that helped him learn how to communicate and regulate himself in a healthy manner, Damien faced a lot of bullying as a child, and Katie often had to stand up for him. Despite this, Damien remained a very happy and lighthearted guy, and as an adult he uses his experience to connect with and help children dealing with the same things he did on the special needs baseball team he volunteers for.
Katie had a very different story. Like many young girls with autism, Katie began masking her symptoms when she was very young. She learned how to imitate reactions and emotions she saw in other people even when she didn't really understand them. Because of this, she remained undiagnosed throughout all of her adolescence, and most people simply interpreted her behavior as her being standoffish or rude. She has a bit of an RBF. She dealt with a lot of turmoil surrounding this, growing frustrated when she struggled to relate with others and manage her own emotions effectively, often describing herself as feeling like an alien trapped on earth. She found an outlet for this frustration in studying boxing which allowed her to stim in a way she had previously not allowed herself to and quickly became a special interest for her. In highschool, she also made a connection with her best friend and partner, Ronnie, who was one of the first people who took the time to connect with her in a way that no one ever had before. Katie felt that Ronnie was the first person to ever get her, and she says she was the first person who ever made her feel "human". It wasn't until her late 20's when, after a particularly revealing conversation with Damien and Ronnie ("Wait? That isn't how everyone feels?"), that Katie received a proper diagnosis and began to properly understand that there was nothing wrong with the way her mind works.
These two are both characters from one of my current WIPs, Diamond in the Rough, and again, I'm obviously still learning. I'm hoping to put a ton of research into this project so that I can give it the accuracy it deserves. I love Katie and Damien very dearly, and I hope I'll be able to do them enough justice that one day people can relate to them and feel as celebrated as they deserve to be.
Happy Autism Awareness Month!
#katie#damien#my art#traditional art#autism#autistic characters#autism acceptence month#autism awareness month
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Part 4
Gross! Super gross!
Filled with disgust, Damien stared at the twitching and wriggling thing that was held in front of his nose.
These losers were completely insane, if they believed, he would want to eat this slimy worm!
Never in his life! However hungry he might have been! He rather gnawed off one of his hind paws than eating this thing!
"Come on. Just a bite. For Aunty Vicky."
No.
"Look. Here comes a flying, super yummy little wormy just for you!"
No and no again!
His spines raised defensively as he turned his head to the side in disgust.
Never ever!
"GAAAaaaah! Why don't you eat that crap yourself if you find it so tasty!" he scolded loudly and angrily to himself.
It sucked that no one understood him!
Stupid transformation! Stupid hedgehog voice bands! And stupid losers with their even crappier slop!
"Ooooooz," Vicky called out, slightly whining, to her roommate, who was busy making dinner for their little apartment community.
" I don't think your little friend wants to eat his food."
"Still not?" asked Oz, giving the two a thoughtful look. He himself had also tried multiple mealworms half an hour ago without success.
According to his internet research, hedgehogs ate insects. Because of the proteins that were important for them.
So he had gone to the nearest pet shop and got some fresh food for the little guy.
But even Vicky - despite her best efforts to convince him - obviously did not manage to get the little guy interested in one of the supposed "delicacies".
Which worried him. After all, the little hedgehog should have been hungry by now.
Maybe it was time to try something different?
Pondering, he tapped the floor lightly with one foot.
As far as he had read, hedgehogs could also eat eggs and meat.
"Vicky?"
"Yes?"
"Would you be so kind and set the table already? I want to try something else that I hope our little guest will like better."
It was worth a try.
"Sure no problem!" grinning she let the wriggling earthworm slide back into the small plastic bucket and put the tweezers aside in order to start already bringing the plates to the table.
"Thank you! And please tell Brian and Amira that dinner is in 15 minutes," he called to his friend before Oz gave the small hedgehog, who was still in a bad mood, a quick glance.
"Well… let's see."
Fortunately, it didn't take very long to fry up a few strips of bacon and scramble some eggs to go with it.
Oz watched his spiky guest slowly toddle closer across the kitchen counter, sniffing the air with interest as he approached the plate of cooling crispy fried bacon strips.
Oz had just slid the finished scrambled eggs into a small bowl when he noticed how the little guy already wanted to help himself to the meat.
"Wait! Don't!"
What the fuck! Annoyed Damien, hissed at the hand and its owner, who simply pushed him away from the good looking and delicious smelling meat!
What was wrong with this noob?
Damien tried to snap at the cheeky guy to bite him, but the other had already withdrawn his hand and just ignored his angry insults!
Huffing, the demon let his tail hammer on the kitchen sideboard.
"This is still way too big like this. You'll end up choking."
The nerd, to Damien's amazement, began cutting the strips into smaller - for a hedgehog - bite-sized pieces and then crumbling them over the fluffy yellow scrambled eggs.
"Here, this should do it," with a friendly - and oh so idiotic - smile, the weakling pushed the small bowl of food towards him.
It smelled quite wonderful!
Damien decided to dig in before the noob changed his mind.
Oz propped his elbows on the countertop as he smiled and watched the little guy greedily gobble up his specially cooked meal.
So unbelievably cute.
The animal seemed to notice that he had been watching him, because the little one looked up at him in annoyance before positioning himself so that he could only see the back of the little spiky ball.
It seemed that the small animal still didn't liked him very much.
But… at least he finally ate.
To be continued!;D
#prickly love au#monster prom au#monster prom damien#damien lavey#oz yellow#monster prom oz#damien transforming into an angry small hedgehog#monster prom#ozmien#oz x damien#damien x oz#vicky schmidt#traditional drawing#my art#do not reupload#Damien wants real food and I can't blame him for it#Why do I have the feeling that Amira and Vicky definitely had a dare which one of them had the guts to eat a worm.#Brian wasn't in for it. He isn't very fond of worms.
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Abigail “AJ” Hayden
“I hate this house. I hate these people.”
“Being raised by cold eyes taught me not to cry.”
“I exist too much, I feel too much, I think too much. Reality is crushing the life out of me.”
✵ Pinterest Board ✵
✵ World: The Amazing Spider-Man ✵
✵ Faceclaim: Alexandra Breckenridge ✵
✵ Full Name: Abigail Joy Hayden ✵
✵ Nickname: AJ ✵
✵ Birthday: January 10th, 1995 ✵
✵ Abilities: ✵
She is extremely talented when it comes to anything computer-related, whether that be physically taking them apart and putting them back together or dealing with software and coding issues. She is also very good at hacking and has used it to get into (and out of) trouble on more than one occasion.
✵ Relationships: ✵
Damien Hayden (Father, Estranged)
Adelaide Kelley (Mother, Estranged)
Nisay Khim (Ex-Step-Father, Estranged)
Eve Khim (Older Half-Sister, Estranged)
Peter Parker (Friend/Love Interest, Alive)
ﾟ･:†┏┛ Backstory ┗┓†:･ﾟ
AJ was born as a result of an ongoing affair that her mother had behind her husband’s back. When AJ was born and her mother’s husband found out, he immediately divorced her and left his family behind. For the first few years of AJ’s life, she was raised by her mother who split her time between her apartment where she took care of her older daughter Eve and AJ’s father’s apartment where she took care of AJ. She was technically also raised by her father, since she lived in his apartment, but he was barely around. It wasn’t until she was around four years old, and her mother just stopped showing up, that her father even tried to put any effort into raising her. Even then, he did a pretty terrible job of it. He was an addict and he worked odd jobs to put food on the table or get money to feed his addiction, but he never could hold down an actual career. And, to make matters worse, he never even wanted a kid, so AJ’s presence in his apartment never did anything but annoy him. As she started to grow up, his resentment for her to grew and he became emotionally and verbally abusive to her. For a while, that was as far as things got and AJ could usually escape by locking herself in her room until his anger died down.
But things changed one day when AJ was nine years old. Usually her father would leave her money if he was going to be gone for a while, but he forgot to on this particular day. By the time evening came around, AJ had already eaten the few bits of food she could find in the fridge and she was starting to get hungry, so she stole some money out of her father’s nightstand. She snuck down to the corner store, bought herself some food, and returned the change all before her dad came back home. But when he came back the next morning, he immediately noticed that some money was missing. He had been drinking and he was already having a terrible day, so this was the last straw for him. He stormed into AJ’s room and started to throw her around and before he realized what he was doing he had thrown her through the window. The glass broke and cut up her face, but she was lucky they lived on the first floor. She landed on the sidewalk, managed to stand up, and just started running. She didn’t stop until a cop approached her and took her to the hospital. She told them everything that happened, they sent someone to arrest her father, and someone from CPS came to talk to her. They tried contacting her mother, but she said she wanted nothing to do with AJ and willingly terminated her parental rights. With her father going to prison and with her having no other living family, AJ was placed in a group home until they could find her a better placement.
AJ stayed in that group home for several months, during which she ran away on more than one occasion, before she was finally moved into an actual foster home. After a year in this foster home, her father was released from prison and a CPS worker came to talk to her. She claimed that her father’s rights technically hadn’t been terminated and that he still had a chance to get her back if he proved he was clean and he wouldn’t pose a threat to her again. AJ ran away from her foster home that night. They found her and brought her back and this began the cycle of AJ being bounced between half a dozen foster homes. Sometimes her father would try to visit her and she would run to get away, and sometimes she ran away just because she could. Then, the summer before AJ started high school, she was placed with a new family. They were the first family not to force her to visit with her father, so she decided to stay. No longer busy with the constant bouncing between foster homes, AJ could finally just do things she enjoyed. She tried a dozen different hobbies until she realized she liked skateboarding and that she really enjoyed hacking. She got really good with computers and, one day during her sophomore year, she hacked into the school’s system to play a prank. They realized it was her and she got sent to detention where she met Peter Parker for the first time. They became good friends after that first meeting and, little by little, AJ realized she was falling for him.
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What a time to be a wrestling fan!
It's the biggest non-Wrestlamania wrestling weekend of the year, with 3 major shows and a ton of intrigue surrounding the main events of at least 2 of those shoes. As such I thought I might do a little preview for all three shows, attempting to predict what's going to happen in every match in as economical a fashion as I can.
I'll preview these events in chronological order and the matches on each card in the order they were listed on Wikipedia. Full disclosure, I think that Clash at the Castle had already got underway before I started transcribing these predictions (that I recorded on my mobile phone as I was out and about on Friday) into this blog.
WWE Clash at the Castle
Bailey, Dakota Kai & Io Sky vs. Bianca Belair, Asuka & Alexa Bliss
The heels need to go over here. It could have gone the other way had Sky and Kai won the Women's Tag Team Titles on RAW, but they didn't and this group still doesn't have a big win to hang their hats on. Belair hasn't taken an L since Extreme Rules 2021 as far as I'm aware, and she didn't take the pin in that match, so she can be on the losing side here,. Asuka or Bliss can take the pin. One of those two should also turn heel (I'm getting soon-to-be-heel vibes from Asuka right now) once they've distanced themselves a little from this programme.
Sheamus vs. Gunther
A Sheamus W wouldn't be the worst, but Gunther is the right call. Conventional logic suggests that either Sheamus or Drew needs to win in order to truly satisfy fans in attendance. Sheamus deserves something for the effort he has put into elevating middle material for who knows how long, but Gunther needs another big scalp. A W for Gunther does more for him and the IC Title than it does for Sheamus. Craft stories, not just moments. Even a quick hot shotting of the belt onto Sheamus and then back to Gunther would damage the effort that has been put into restoring the perceived prestige that has been built over the past couple of months.
The Judgement Day vs. Edge & Rey Mysterio
Finn Balor and Damien Priest should get the W because this stable is only now, FINALLY starting to get some momentum. They lost their last high-profile match - Edge over Priest in Toronto - so they come out on top here. Dominic costing Edge the victory ahead of an eventual full heel turn on his old man is a good way to go about this. The Dom tun feels both inevitable and hopeless, so you may as well roll the dice at this stage. You can't read water forever. It's sink or swim time, Dom.
Shayna Baszler vs. Liv Morgan
This one sucks either way. Liv wins clean and you're immediately undercutting Shayna's recent positive character development. Liv wins dirty and she looses the fans. Shayna wins clean and you've given up on Liv entirely, for now. Shayna wins dirty and both women look a little weaker or stupider but the story suffers. The best way to go is to rip off the band-aid as quickly as possible. Liv is young, give her a little break from the main event and rebuild her over the next 6-8 months. Just don't fumble at the goal line this time. This could be the last chance for a Shayna monster heel run and a big time feud with Ronda Rousey while they're both hot. Shayna wins, clean.
Matt Riddle vs. Seth Rollins
Give this one to Seth. His last win at a major show was the DQ win over Roman Reigns at the Royal Rumble in January and yet he hasn't lost any heat. Watching that one recently, the way it played out didn't put him over as much as I remember. The man is pretty much Teflon. You need to keep him at the top of the card because he is just that good. He can slide into the main event picture for a PLE or 3 when you need him to, or help elevate the tier below. This should be a luxury for WWE but feels more like a necessity at this point. Riddle can take an L here, particularly given this rivalry will likely continue into Extreme Rules.
Drew McIntyre vs. Roman Reigns
Roman has to win. Sorry, Wales (Scotland?). Roman's Title reign has to end in a way that makes someone new, not someone who has been hovering around the mid-card for almost 2 years, pinch-hitting in the main event. Drew deserves another reign at some point, just not now. The build over the last month or so has papered over the fact that there was almost no build at all up until then. The U.K. crowd will get over the "disappointing" end to the show. There are more fans out there than the ones in attendance and more fans will engage if the story is told properly. Besides, WWE aren't in Wales every week, they have more than enough time to reheat the crowd to ensure they sell out their next major event in that part of the world.
NXT World's Collide
Ricochet vs. Carmelo Hayes
Theoretically, this should be a banger. It's a strange use of Ricochet given the mini push he's had on Smackdown recently, but maybe that was more about the 2nd downfall of Happy Corbin? An L for either man isn't a great look. Hayes is brilliant but isn't quite ready for a move to the main roster; what would he do there? Ricochet can get his heat back on Smackdown with another W or 2, or by hanging out with Pat McAfee some more. Ricochet endorsing Carmello post-match could be on the cards.
Pretty Deadly vs. Gallus vs. Brooks Jensen & Josh Briggs vs. The Creed Brothers
Least enticing match of the entire weekend? Although there is that mixed tag on All Out. NXT might want Gallus to win here, so as to put The Creeds back in that chasing position. A better option is to keep the Creeds as the top dogs in the division. Throw a new challenge their way every week and when the time comes, make a new team by knocking them off. Schism are next on the dance card, right? This division is pretty weak right now.
Katana Chance & Kayden Carter vs. Doudrop & Nikki A.S.H
The main roster team should lose and then revert to their actual names before being given a better showing on RAW or Smackdown. Chance and Carter are fine here. Their promo saying how they had beaten all challengers on NXT lacked credulity but also spoke to the lack of thought put into this division. They're going to face Toxic Attraction once again after this. NXT need to build up some new teams while that feud plays out.
Blair Davenport vs. Meiko Satomura vs. Mandy Rose
Mandy is main roster-bound, surely. All three of Toxic Attraction will probably be on RAW or Smackdown by the end of the year. If Meiko is also headed in that direction then Davenport wins by default. It's not a bad outcome; there are plenty of good challengers lining up. Mandy should get a one-on-one rematch before she leaves. If Meiko is sticking around in non-developmental developmental, put the belts on her and let her do her thing for the next year or until she decides to hang up the boots really.
Tyler Bate vs. Bron Breakker
Bron wins. He is much further away from being main roster ready than most people realise. Also, he's going to look small when he gets there so will need to add some more interesting aspects to his character first. The incoming NXT UK talent should give him a handful more options to feud with over the next 6-8 months. Also, Apollo Crewes and Giovanni Vinci. Not sure where Tyler Bate goes after this. His character is interesting but doesn't scream "future face of the industry". Bate would make a good opponent for Carmelo Hayes, JD McDonagh or Tony D (conspicuous by his absence on this card), or an interesting foil for Grayson Waller. The NXT pecking order is hard to gauge.
AEW All Out
Tomohiro Ishii vs. Eddie Kingston
The brief history/hype package on Rampage was really good. Great match. Eddie wins.
Kip Sabian vs. Pac
A loss on return isn't a great look for Sabian but it's too early fo a title change. The match should be good. Hopefully it is competitive and both.
Angelo Parker vs. Hook
A really fun squash. Hook wins, obviously.
Tay Melo & Sami Guevara vs. Ruby Soho & Ortiz
Why? Intergender Titles are silly and not good silly. It's great that the talent gets a PPV payday but do we really need 15 matches on a single night show?
Bryan Danielson vs. Chris Jericho
It's pro wrestling blasphemy but I generally really like rather than love Danielson matches. Jericho matches have over delivered in 2022, Eddie Kingston and barbed wire aside. This one will be better than solid but has a ceiling. Danielson gets the win and moves back in the World Title picture. I'll explain further in a later prediction but AEW has made it really difficult for themselves with regards to that picture. It will be interesting to see how the Daniel Garcia piece of the puzzle fits here. He should side with Jericho for now, tease out the face turn a little longer. Jericho vs. Garcia at Full Gear?
Dr. Britt Baker D.M.D. vs. Hakaru Shida vs. Jamie Hayter vs. Toni Storm
I like this match. It's a bit of a no can't lose situation and a chance at a soft reset of the AEW Women's division, which has been a bit of a disaster, to be honest. Baker is a safe choice and is an all-around excellent performer. Shida is great and it would be fun if she swept in and won the (interim) Title after the other 3 and Thunder Rosa have spent so much time feuding amongst themselves in recent months. Toni Storm is slowly building a potential face-of-the-company type skillset. Hayter is the most interesting choice and the direction they should go. She'd be the least stale opponent for the returning Rosa. She should win that unification bout too.
House of Black vs. Miro, Darby Allin & Sting
Malakai Black and co. can't just keep losing and still be considered a threat to anyone. Sting can lose and still be Sting. Allin can cop a loss without losing too much heat. Miro shouldn't lose right now, but what can you do? Buddy Matthews will probably end up taking the pin and the feud will continue as HOB feuds tend to do. The match will be fantastic but I want more for everyone involved.
Athena vs. Jade Cargill
Cargill's run has been approximately 70% of what it could have been given some more competent booking. The lack of a compelling feud has been the main issue. This Athena programme threatened being that feud for "that bitch", but alas. Cargill should retain until (a) they build up the right succesor and (b) they know what she is going to do next.
Jungle Boy vs. Christian Cage
Or is it Jack Perry vs. Christian Cage? This hasn't landed as it should have despite solid work from all involved. The Luchasaurus stuff has been strange. If they think they can get more from the programme and want another go at getting Jungle Boy proper over they should extend the feud. Maybe have the big dinosaur man turn on Jungle Jack for real? Otherwise, put Jack Perry over and get him into a programme with another established heel. Jericho vs. Jungle Boys anyone?
Jay Lethal & The Motor Coty Machine Guns vs. Wardlow & FTR
The good guys obviously go over here. MCMG should probably turn on Jay and friends post-match. It's a shame they lost faith in Satnam Singh, or lost faith in Wardlow's ability to powerbomb Singh, because that was the hook for this match. The FTR and MCMG exchanges will be the highlight but I'm not sure where everyone goes after this. It's a shame MJF ruined the conclusion of Wardlow's last extended programme, but please give the big man something to sink his teeth into.
Casino Ladder Match
We've seen almost every combination of these performers in either singles or tag team action over the past 3 months, so it's difficult to get excited about yet another ladder match. It will be fun, no doubt, and the joker gimmick always holds some intrigue. It will probably be W.Morrisey and he will be the odds on favourite to win. Dante Martin getting a W because he's taken more than his share of Ls recently would be a plesant surprise. Whoever wins isn't winning the title.
The Acclaimed vs. Swerve In Our Glory
One of if not the weakest AEW Tag Team Title PPV matches ever. I feel bad for all 4 men; the booking of this division has become an afterthought. Swerve and Lee to win. Not enthused about whatever angle develops on the back of this.
Ricky Starks vs. Powerhouse Hobbs
I'm getting The Rock vs. Ken Shamrock circa 1998 vibes about this feud. Hobbs to win this match and potentially the feud but Ricky to be the breakout star. Starks looked strong on Rampage dispatching the entire Factory with ease. Hobbs is a beast and so much fun to watch. The feud should continue because there isn't enough space up the card for either man at the moment.
The Elite vs. Hangman Page & The Dark Order
The Elite are brilliant. Hangman is eternally endearing. The Dark Order are fun. Kenny and The Young Bucks will and it will be a great match. The Hangman interactions with Omega and Matt Jackson will be hot. The Elite melodrama will continue after this, which will be interesting because the Trios Titles will still need to be defended. Who will challenge for those belts? Do they get their own rankings? DO rankings still matter? Surely Adam Cole will be involved somehow, though he no longer has a team with him.
CM Punk vs. Jon Moxley
The first match was so unnecessary. You could have gotten to the exact same spot, with the exact same story beats without that match. now, if Moxley wins the Punk, arguably the biggest draw in the company, is ruined for the foreseeable future. If Punk wins clean then Moxley's first win means nothing. Also, it recontextualises all Mox's recent promos as the nonsense talk of a blowhard. Moxley won't cheat to win, so the best bet is to have Punk cheat or take shortcuts. Basically, Punk needs to turn heel. That's a tougher sell than it would be if the event weren't Chicago, but Mox and Punk can make it work. An MJF appearance is likely, in what capacity remains to be seen. MJF as a face doesn't really work long-term.
Finally, contemplating the immediate future of the AEW World Title picture, do they build Bryan Danielson vs. CM Punk for Full Gear? Danielson really needs to win the title on his next attempt, but that would make for another short AEW World Title reign; another reason they shouldn't have done the first Mox vs. Punk match.
Cheers.
#wwe#aew#nxt#roman reigns#drew mcintyre#clash at the castle#all out#cm punk#professional wrestling#bianca belair#wrestling#the usos#jon moxely#chris jericho#bryan danielson#mjf#bron breakker#sting#ronda rousey#shayna baszler#liv morgan#seth rollins
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Chapter 42
Glass Shards
Warnings: General misery and fear of infection
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A loud slam startled Damien out of his sleep, making him flinch so hard, the movement pulled on his stitches. Angry shouts were accompanied by a strange noise he couldn’t place. Curled up, with his hand pressed against his side and his face pressed against the ground, he tried to make no sound. He had to find out what was going on. What the threat was.
When he managed to open his eyes, he saw Merridy sitting in front of him. She had positioned herself between him and the door, her back towards him. Trying to protect him, even though she clung to her blanket with trembling hands.
When the noise returned, she winced, a quiet whimper on her lips as she shifted closer to him. Someone started to speak; not close or loud enough to understand the words, but clearly in the same building. The tone was strangely calm, not matching what he had heard before.
The noise returned a third time, and something clicked. Horses, upset by the noise, and someone trying to calm them down. Which was no fucking wonder, considering they were in a stable.
“Merry.”
She flinched when he reached for her arm, her eyes wide and panicked.
“It’s okay. They’re bringing horses in.”
It took a moment for his words to sink in, but then her shoulders dropped in obvious relief. Damien pushed himself up, watching with concern how she bent forwards, her face contorted in pain. Her awakening must have been just as sudden as his.
“Come here,” he said, leaning against the wall and extending his arm to invite her to come closer.
When she did, he put his arm around her, careful to keep his touch light. She was trembling, still clinging to the blanket with one hand. When she rested her head against his shoulder, Damien reached around her, to pull the blanket higher.
Together, they listened as the noise calmed down. With all the horses, it wasn’t as quiet as it had been before, but not in an unsettling way. Someone shouted from outside, the word ‘dinner’ all Damien could make out. A door was pulled shut, then the footsteps of multiple people started to fade.
One pair of footsteps didn’t fade, though. It came closer instead, approaching closer to their box than anyone had so far.
Merridy sat up straight. While no longer as scared as she had been before, she was clearly wary, and yet again in a spot that positioned her between Damien and the door.
“Sorry for the commotion.” A face appeared above the door, fiery curls framing pale, freckled skin. “Some of them merchants have less— by the Seven, are you all right?”
“Yes.” Merridy’s voice was steady, much to Damien’s surprise. “Thank you, Robin. They’re the stablemaster,” she added, turning towards Damien. “They helped me set all this up.”
She gestured vaguely at the box. While it wasn’t exactly a luxurious camp, it must have taken some effort to pile all the hay and spread the blankets, especially with how exhausted she must have been. He was grateful that this one thing she hadn’t had to do on her own.
“Thank you.” Damien raised his arm, half tangled in the blanket, in a rather pitiful excuse for a greeting. “I’m Damien.”
“Nice to meet ya.” Robin smiled broadly. “As I was saying, some of them have less brains than a field mouse. Scared them horses good. But ya won’t have to deal with them until they leave in the mornin. Just came to tell ya that dinner’s ready, but ya know what? I’ll see if I can get ya something. Ya look like ya need it.”
Before either of them had time to object, Robin was gone. Merridy leaned back against Damien with a quiet chuckle.
“They’re nice but… rather energetic,” she mumbled.
Damien couldn’t help but laugh. His laugh quickly turned into a pained hiss as the movement pulled on his stitches. Merridy watched him with a concerned frown, leaning against the wall instead of him. When she raised her hand to his chest, brushing her thumb over his collarbone, Damien closed his hand around hers.
As promised, Robin returned with a bowl of stew, handing it to Merridy over the door. “Sorry, just one spoon. Two’s hard to explain, ya know? Just leave the bowl here somewhere when ya done. And before I forget, them merchants? They usually set up their stalls after dinner. If there’s anything ya need, might wanna take a look.”
Once again, they hurried off before either of them had a chance to reply. Damien shook his head, balancing the bowl on his knees as Merridy settled down beside him.
“Here,” he said, offering her the spoon.
Merridy took it, but made no attempt to start eating. “I’m not very hungry.”
Neither was Damien, if he was honest. The fear of what it would mean if his wound got worse left him feeling sick.
“Just a bit,” he coaxed her, pushing the bowl towards her.
To his relief, she started eating. Slowly, and with an obvious lack of enthusiasm, but that was so much better than nothing. When she stopped after a few bites, he didn’t comment on it, merely took the spoon from her. Now that it was his turn, he couldn’t blame her for not finding her appetite.
The stew was probably good. He didn’t taste any of it. “Will you go look at the merchants?”
Merridy hummed what sounded like an agreement.
“What do we need?” Damien asked, poking around listlessly in the bowl. He forced himself to take another bite, and it came easier than the first.
“Soap. I need to wash our clothes, and the bandages. Most of your clothes were intact, but they’re dirty. They didn’t ruin your spare boots, either.” She gestured to the heap of fabric in the corner of the box, most of it stuffed in the open backpack. “Some of our dishes are gone. The second waterskin as well, but there’s more important things.” She started what might have been meant to be a shrug, but sank against the wall mid-motion. “If you want to shave, we’ll have to find a new razor and stuff, too.”
His clothes. His boots. If he wanted to shave. The spoon scraping in the bowl was the only sound as Damien tried to find the right words to phase his next question.
“What about the hair brush?” he asked about the object he had wondered about the previous night.
Merridy sighed. “Gone.”
“And your clothes?”
“There’s enough of them left.”
Lowering the spoon, Damien furrowed his brows. This was getting him nowhere. ‘Enough’ might as well only encompass what she was wearing right now.
“There must be more missing than a few dishes. What did they break for the rest to fit into one backpack?”
“Doesn’t matter,” she whispered.
Damien wanted to disagree, but then he remembered the things she had taken with her. Objects that had clearly meant a lot to her. Memories of people long gone from her life. There was no way to ever replace any of that.
“Merry…”
“I’ll check out the merchants,” she said, grabbing her purse and getting up.
Her movements as she hobbled towards the door were stilted, her free hand wrapped around her torso. Damien watched her with concern, cursing himself. Would have been a great idea to think before opening his mouth.
He stabbed the spoon into the stew, as if their whole situation was the stew’s fault. Everything in him screamed to run after her, but it was clear that she needed a moment alone.
Damien had just finished the bowl when someone came running back into the stable. He eyed the door warily. Someone else would be just as much a cause for concern as Merridy.
It was her—barely pausing to pull open the door, then sinking to her knees. She dropped a hair brush and two bars of soap, before she started digging through their pack.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing… there’s… aha! She’s wearing blue stones, so perhaps… but if not…” Coins jingled and she struggled to her feet. “Gotta be enough.”
Without any further explanation, she stormed out of the box. The only thing stopping Damien from going after her—besides the risk of falling over before he’d make it out of the stable—was the fact that she hadn’t seemed panicked. Not even worried. If not for the permanent state of pain and exhaustion that haunted them both, Damien would have said she had been excited.
Realizing that there was nothing to gain by staring at the half-open door, Damien directed his attention towards the pile of their belongings. A second purse lay on top. It contained clearly more coins than the small one Merridy had taken with her—and something else. Damien pushed the leather aside, revealing several golden rings, most of them adorned with colorful gemstones.
While he wouldn’t claim to remember everything they had packed, he was sure he would remember those. Merridy had told him she had sold all of her remaining loot before their departure. Damien took one of the rings out, inspecting it more closely. There was nothing special about it. He touched the gemstone, nudging it with his magic, wondering if it was enchanted. Nothing.
When he was about to put it back, he saw something on the inside of the band. A pattern in the gold—no, something clinging to it. Something flaky and dark. Blood.
Damien dropped the ring the moment he realized where she must have gotten it. He wiped his hand on his pants, as if the blood were sticking to his fingers instead. He couldn’t believe she had dared to get close enough to the dead bandits to pull their rings off.
For the first time, he realized that his sword surely hadn’t magically appeared in its sheath, either. While he had been out, she had picked every last bit that could be useful out of the bloodbath he had left her. How could he ever make it up to her?
All his worries were momentarily forgotten when Merridy returned, out of breath, but smiling. She held something in both hands, placing it in front of him, looking at it as if it were a priceless treasure. Damien watched her sit down with much the same expression.
“So. I went. To the. The general goods. Merchant first.” She bent over, gasping for breath. Damien wanted to beg her to calm down first, but she already continued, “Got some. Soap.” She waved her hand in the general direction of the two bars. “But then. I saw the. Herbalist. I was almost too late. She already wanted to close up. That’s why I hurried so much.”
Merridy tapped the object in front of her—a ceramic jar, a plain piece of linen tied over the opening. Slowly, it dawned on Damien what the jar might contain.
“I asked her for something against infection. And described to her the salve the healer left us in Caldeia. She had something, but of course. As these things are. It was super expensive.”
“So you traded… one of the rings?” Damien guessed.
Merridy’s smile widened. “Yeah. She wore those earrings. And a similar pendant. I thought. It was worth a try.” She took a few deep breaths, slowly calming down. “I think it was an okay deal for both of us. The ring might have been worth more, but there’s no way I can sell them here.”
Her expression softened as she laid her fingers on the jar, a hint of uncertainty in her gaze. “Want to try it right away?”
Damien nodded, the lump in his throat preventing him from speaking. Something burned in his chest and behind his eyes. Hope, he realized. That wild, desperate hope she had given him from the very first moment on when she had refused to leave him behind.
He pulled his shirt over his head and leaned forward to allow her to unwrap the bandages. There was no need for him to look at the wound to know that it hadn’t improved. Every heartbeat pulsed around the stitches, the skin hot under her touch.
“I’ll try a small spot first, all right?”
When he nodded, Merridy opened the jar and took a bit of the salve on her finger. Damien hissed through clenched teeth as she touched the upper end of the wound with it, earning him a concerned look.
“It burns,” he said, forcing a smile onto his lips. “It’s okay. I was just surprised. Go on.”
She continued, but kept looking up and meeting his gaze as she did so. Damien leaned against the wall, eyes half closed. Now that he knew what to expect, it wasn’t so bad after all. Nothing compared to the alcohol, or the stitches themselves. Still, he was more than grateful when she was done, putting a fresh piece of fabric over the wound and rewrapping the bandages.
“Can you give me the brush?” he asked as soon as she had helped him back into his shirt.
When Merridy handed it to him, Damien nudged her. “Turn around.”
She did so, but looked back over her shoulder. Damien raised the brush, setting it onto the ends of her hair.
“Tell me when you need me to stop,” he said. Her hair was a mess, and he had no second hand to hold the strands while brushing them.
She raised her hand, placing her fingertips next to the brush. When she tried to reach higher, she winced, letting her hand sink again.
“You should rest,” she mumbled, but she was clearly torn, looking longingly at the brush.
“I’m not tired.”
He already felt better. He knew it couldn’t be because of the salve; not after such a short amount of time. It was more likely it was due to the first proper meal in two days, as well as the hope that filled his heart. Hope he owed to her.
“You’ve done so much. Let me at least do this.”
He started to brush, moving across her back, barely touching the tips of her hair.
“Okay,” she whispered, already melting under his touch.
With a smile, Damien continued. He worked his way up slowly, trying his best to cause her as little pain as possible. Even when he got stuck on something, Merridy didn’t complain, and after a while, Damien gave up on apologizing. Him suddenly speaking seemed to startle her more than the tugging on her hair. She seemed to be only half awake, if at all.
As Damien kept working, she kept slumping towards him. When he finally nudged her towards the wall, so he could prop her against his leg, she barely stirred. How she managed to stay relaxed when the brush kept finding new tangles was a mystery to him.
By the time the brush met no more resistance, Merridy was long asleep. Damien threw the brush towards the pile of their belongings, before carefully lowering her onto the ground. Pulling the blanket over both of them was a struggle, but then he lay next to her, watching her face, relaxed in sleep.
His exhaustion had long caught up with him, but he didn’t regret a single moment of the past hour. Under the blanket, he searched for Merridy’s hand, interlacing his fingers with hers, so he could close his eyes while still knowing she was there. A good night’s rest, and if he was lucky—and by the gods, he hoped he was—the morning would show if the salve was truly working.
[ID: The top image is a banner covered in colorful glass shards. Across it is written the title of the story, glass shards, in a white to bright cyan gradient with a black outline. The font looks like written with a broad paintbrush. All other images in this post are purely ornamental lines. End ID.]
@dont-touch-my-soup @starrysky-whumpfics @kixngiggles @starlit-hopes-and-dreams
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