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randomfoggytiger · 7 months

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"The Dead Are Everywhere, Scully"

(Fictober, Day 1)

*****

He wakes alone in a field, his body having shed its flesh and left only its bones. The words “putridity and liquescence” come to mind, or to the back of it; and he sits up, knowing he has something to do. There should be someone else here, he thinks as he stands.

His memory is as empty as this afterlife, fields of tombstones stretching around him with names he knows he should know but does not.

Skeletons, he thinks, skeletons are the link. He shovels out thought after thought, leaving open graves of dead girls, dead sisters, dead fathers, and dead mothers as he pushes the boundaries of his mind in pursuit.

And like a bright flash it comes to him: “So first they're going to eat, then they're going to drink, then they're going to dance--"

He moves away from heaps of upturned dust and decay into a happier time-- a gray, distant recollection of two souls swaying in sync, celebrating life and happy endings.

He needs to find his dance partner.

*****

She wakes entombed in choking sand. It sifts through her teeth, collects in her crevices, grinds against her joints. The soft gauze of her funeral dress-- hers or someone else's-- twists around her legs and arms as she bangs the sarcophagus lid for freedom. There is no pain since the nerves spreading from her spinal cord have dropped away; but there is panic and fear and failure, Death and darkness and defeat.

Death has captured her in unbreakable chains: immortality, the curse of eternal life. I won't let this thing beat me echoes, hollow, in the fruitless weight of nothingness.

“I can’t."

But there is another echo that spits out defiance: Yes, you can; and strength and courage and hope stir in its wake.

Her knuckles crack, her fingers scrabble at dangerous angles, her wrists snap; but she mentally chants over the sounds of failure-- I have the strength of your beliefs, Mulder you’re the only one I trust, I won’t let this thing beat me, I won’t let this thing beat me--

And the lid slides off and the wind rushes in and the sand blows away.

*****

They reunite in a graveyard, rain racing down the curved edges of their new perimeters.

“What are we doing here?” she calls across the distance still separating them.

“We’re having a dance, partner.”

“Mulder--” and both of them stop as the truth opens before them.

He breaks the silence: “Well, c’mon, Scully. I think we got a few twirls left in these old bones of ours.”

His infectious enthusiasm and her reluctant amusement finally meet in the middle.

“Which ones, Mulder?”

“You tell me.”

She does.

*****

It is only them, the rain, and the mud.

“Mulder, I don’t understand it, any of it. How did this happen?”

They slow, the rain pours, the mud thickens around their shifting ankles.

“I don’t think we’ll ever know, Scully. Once I would have said ‘I think it’s about fate.'” They carefully maneuver around the awful deaths that time conjures up. “And you later argued for free will over fate on a certain later Monday. But I think we were both right, or both wrong, or both right and wrong; because we’re standing in a place where neither fate nor free will has power.”

“Then what does, Mulder?” She almost drifts away before he draws her back.

“I think it’s a matter of perspective. That we’ll never know, really. But one thing we do know. That you and I are Mr. and Mrs. Spooky--”

“Mulder--”

“And that we’ve beaten the odds, Scully. That we’re here together. That we found each other. That it feels right even if this existence doesn’t make sense, or at least if it doesn’t make sense yet.”

She lets him freestyle them both a little while she thinks. “King Spooky.”

“Hm?”

“You and I alone, together. King Spooky and Queen of the Dead.”

He celebrates her move with a dip. “Now let’s shimmy, Queen Spooky. Get those little legs moving.”

She raised a perfectly poised pointer finger in reproof. “That was a debatable topic even in life.”

“You can’t dress up what Death has dressed down, Scully.”

“And ten to one you can’t dance to it?” she asks, remembering another of his phrases from another world.

“Well, I like to think that our perspective has managed to beat a few odds. Wouldn’t you?”

A thoughtful, settling silence: “Yes, it did.”

And they shake the cold from their bones in tune with the rain.

*****

Acknowledgements: Thank you to @baronessblixen, @welsharcher, and others who have encouraged me to start writing. This is take two; and I really, really like how it turned out.

Thank you to all the mutuals and anons who were so kind on my first fic (Son of Egypt); and thank you to @perpetually-weirdening for (probably not meaning to) getting the idea of immortal Scully stuck in my head.

And my thanks to David Duchovny for the line he wrote in Hollywood A.D.-- it made a wonderful title; and inspired me to wrangle my floating thoughts into one coherent story.

Tagging @today-in-fic and @xffictober2023 and @fictober-event

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oncorhynchus-nerka · 2 months

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VERY IMPORTANT a dam in the Netherlands, the weerdsluis lock, is directly on a migratory path for spawning fish. They have a worker stationed there to open the door for the fish, but they can take a while to open it. So to keep the fish from getting preyed on by birds they installed a doorbell. Only, the fish don't have hands to ring the doorbell. If you go to their website, they have a LIVE CAMERA AND A DOORBELL that YOU RING FOR THE FISH when they're waiting, and then the dam worker opens the door for them! I can't express how obsessed I am with this. look at this shit. oh my god.

Please check on the fish doorbell once in a while :)

#self #last night i kept stimming thinking about this LOVE IS AO REAL. AUGH #i dont like damming but this is a step in the right direction AND it gets the public involved #i love that! more public interactions like this in ecology please! thats how you bring change! thats how you make ppl see the beauty in life #marine biology #ecology

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ibtisams · 6 months

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We are very close to a temporary 5 day ceasefire in order to exchange women and children hostages and allow aid into Gaza.

I hope everyone continues to put pressure on their local representatives and urge them to call for a ceasefire to ensure the Israeli government allows this to happen. If you’re from the UK, US, Canada or Australia here is a linktree with resources on how you can call/email your local reps

#sorry the first link is behind a paywall but I use that website that gets around them #and I first heard this news from aljazeera but I know how you all feel about them apparently so I didn’t link it 🤍#even if it is only temporary it is something and it is a step in the right direction #it is definitely one of those things that I will have to see to believe though #palestine #🦢

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bishy437 · 3 months

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he won

bonus:

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1982brucespringsteen · 1 year

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some good news!! the spanish state's ministry of equality has finally passed one of the most progressive trans laws on the planet, shielded free and universal access to abortion and banned conversion therapy and genital surgery for intersex babies, among a lot of other feminist policies. the minister of equality irene montero gave a speech thanking spain's lgtb and trans associations for helping her draft these legislations. couldn't be more proud!!

#spain #trans #ill always prioritize queer&trans revolution over reformism but man. man these are good news #these are gonna make people's life so much more comfortable #i was lucky enough to live in andalucia where we have THEE most advanced regional legislation on trans rights #so i didnt have to fight too many people to access hrt and to change my name on legal docs #but other ppl on the spanish state have been suffering so fucking much #and yeah this law doesnt cover non binary people or migrants but the door is fucking open. its a step forward #and after this terrible terrible week #after the antitrans antisemite game & brianna's murder and so many rampant transphobia #it feels nice to get a win #to have someone in power be so unwaveringly supportive #the queer community in the spanish state is NEVER gonna forget this. never #anyways!!!#felicidades gente trans española!!!! nos vemos en el registro civil dkkskdkkdkxkdk #mine

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idlesuperstar · 6 months

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this speaks to me on a molecular level

#spock #leonard nimoy #star trek tos #the deadly years #cinemaocd and I are rewatching original trek to get us through the winter #because nothing cheers like 1960s pop colours #and space husbands #ok so this ep they did everyone dirty with the extreme aging apart from spock who looks fucking fantastic #also len does the BEST old person acting of the bunch #never mind the subtleties of having to make jim step down #it's a classic ep #my wee gifs

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wardingshout · 4 months

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Zelda goes mushroom girl

#tloz #a link to the past #zelda #link #my art #I was happy with that first one but for some reason decided it still needed a companion piece so I spent way too long on that second one...#I don't think there was any time during the progress where I was happy with it but hfduhdfu at least I got to Attempt drawing moss hell yea #I also at some point sat in Pyu's art stream and said I enjoy drawing legs As I was being murdered by the infamously impossibe (imo) squat.#it's ok I had fun !! but I need to learn how to let doodles be doodles or I'll never finish stuff at this rate dfsuhfd #if everything in my tloz tag looks like it was drawn by different people uuuh 2023 was art crisis year ngl......#I'm falling back into my old ways rn though #anyway I think about these two a lot I think they're both stone faced and awkward ppl in different ways but they try rly hard to be friends #like I like to think it starts out so incredibly awkward and a bit sad bc they keep stepping over each other's toes accidentally the harder #they try but idk they find comfy middle ground idk in my brain they have a very interesting friendship I wanna get around to drawing it #in a proper way that might make sense....#if I don't write 200 tags I will die maybe it's bc I grew up on dA or smth #and yes I know how to find 1 (one) type of mushroom /I/ am not mushroom girl unfortunately smh

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egophiliac · 5 months

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this started as a reply to someone (a million years ago) (I am so sorry) and then very quickly got out of control, as these things do. so...uhhh....here's everyone else at Playful Land!

sorry

#art #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland spoilers #twisted wonderland episode 7 spoilers #twisted wonderland book 7 spoilers #(like barely at this point) (but it's there)#stage in playful land #stage in playfulland #i keep coming within thirty seconds of posting this and noticing something i've screwed up #so chances are good i'll wake up tomorrow and realize i forgot to draw fellow's ears or something #i just think it'd be funny if there was a malleus-shaped line that was just THE step too far #(especially because leona would get SO mad about it)#leona and kalim and vil? yeah no problem the investors are VERY good at covering their tracks #malleus though. hmm. ...hmmmm.#i mean. the commission on him alone...#but no. the risk isn't worth it.#...but WHAT IF

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originalaccountname · 3 months

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Dazai, in Fifteen, described the act of living as "we breathe, eat, fall in love and die". Through that statement and a few subsequent incidents, like telling Oda planning someone's death was romantic, flirting with nearly every girl he sees, and his fixation with finding someone to commit a lover's suicide with, we can conclude Dazai is a deeply romantic man. Therefore, the REAL tragedy of soukoku as a pairing is that Dazai is a very romantic individual and will not, cannot let those feelings out with Chuuya of all people, due to the mostly antagonistic nature of their relationship. In this essay, I will-

#half-joking #listen i know it'd be cute and we can absolutely create the situation for it to work #but come on that first step is gonna be absolute hell to get past #dazai somehow manages to try something and chuuya starts yelling in both embarassement and ''ARE YOU FUCKING WITH ME?''#solution: make a contest out of it #bsd #skk #soukoku #apparently i talk sometimes

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homolobotomized · 7 months

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zoro's inability / unwillingness to conceptualize a world without / after luffy in fics already feels like coughing up a ten pound blood clot and then i remember he says shit like this in canon and i actually pass out from blood loss and die

like genuinely why would he say this to me .

#op #one piece #zoro #zolu #zoluposting #shut up homo #HE CANT KEEP GETTING AWAY WITH IT!!!#hi guys since ure here 😁 read step 1: die by ao3 user swordsmans NOWWW

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the-rainbow-of-doom · 5 months

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(This post was sponsored by a 1+ hour commute)

#I'm so frustrated how little time and energy i have after a day is done #i didn't win the fight against depression to have lofe ruined by THAT now #lacking time and energy to go on job hunt.. it's all very small steps only #a part time job would be marvellous but what flat can be paid with that #maybe also my anxiety is stopping me from getting a new job. what if i get fired. what if it's horrible there. ahh.. i need more courage #mine capitalism #anti-capitalism #work

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thecoolertails · 9 months

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too many books written by people who don't read books and only read fanfic. to counteract this there should be more fanfic made by people who don't read fanfic and only read books

#my posts #edit:#if you reblog this arguing against shit i never said please know that i hate you #and if you read this post as 'books are better than fanfiction' you don't get it.#either read it again and figure it out or ask a question or move on and say nothing #bc every time someone starts jumping to conclusions and projecting shit i don't believe onto me i take one step closer to becoming the joker

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impunkster-syndrome · 11 months

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Neuralink is going to be eugenics by the way.

It's focused on "curing" disabled people.

There are implants that work for some. But he is expicitly trying to "solve" autism and schizophrenia. He does not want disabled people to exist.

Musk is not a friend to disabled people or animals.

It is going to be eugenics and marketed as cures for disabled people.

Edit: This post is going around. The person who currently has the implant is physically disabled. I wrote the original back when the articles about it mostly mentioned autism and schizophrenia. This is coming for physically disabled people first because we are seen as more expendable.

#neuralink #disability #ableism #neuropunk #Getting one step closer to Geneco

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lynxgriffin · 12 days

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Eldritchrune - Attack of the Killer Queen

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Story Setup Eldritchrune Masterpost

The Fun Gang finally arrive in Queen's lair, and attempt to take her on! But it's far from easy to battle an ancient, dark god...especially one so steeped in acid!

PHEW dang this part took me WAY longer to finish than I was expecting, but finally, as many have asked, we have the Queen boss battle! Next part will be up tomorrow!

#lynx art #eldritchrune #deltarune au #cw: acid melting #cw: eye horror #cw: ear horror #kris #ralsei #susie #noelle holiday #berdly #queen #I swear this scene went through a TON of extra steps to finish #from longer roughs to get the action right #to doing all the acid effects #so I'm just glad it's done!

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sage-nebula · 2 months

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Oh my god, they did it. The mad lads actually did it.

THEY TOOK A YEAR OFF FROM RELEASING A NEW POKÉMON GAME!!!

#for the first time since like 2015!!!!#just the one year but baby steps!!!!#i'll take what i can get!!!#pokemon #pokemon legends za

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poorly-drawn-mdzs · 25 days

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The girls are here!!!

#dungeon meshi #maizuru #inutade #izutsumi #benichidori #hien #Was this the Kabru episode that really shows off how perceptive and fascinated by humans to be a foil to Laios"s monster obsession?#Sure was. Was the funny comic I made not yet quite relevant for where the anime is currently at? SURE WAS.#Funny comic will be next week. This week is for THE GIRLS!!!#Tade is adorable and a lot of fun to draw. I really love her friendship with Izutsumi.#speaking of...IZUTSUMI IS FINALLY HERE!#Initially I wasn't going to draw Beni and Hien but I would hate to let the few fans they have.#So here's some Beni and Hien. For all five of you Beni and Hein fans.#Makeup girls are wild because they'll be like 'I'm getting ready to go out!' and then take 60-90 min in front of the mirror.#I adore the bonus comics where Ryoto Kui does the step by steps of how characters do their makeup and hair.#I personally know very little about those things so it's cool to see how thought out it all is.

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