The other night husband and I were watching a documentary about the yeti where they were doing DNA analysis of samples of supposed yeti fur, and every one of them came back as bears.
Anyway, the next night we watched a thing about some pig man who is supposed to live in Vermont. People said it had claws and a pig nose but walked upright like a man. Now, I happen to know that sideshows used to shave bears and present them as pig men. So every piece of evidence they gave of this monster sounds to me like a bear with mange.
So now the running joke in our house is that everything is bears. Aliens? Bears. Loch Ness monster? Bear. Every cryptozoological mystery is just a very crafty bear.
Bears. They’re everywhere. Be wary. Anyone or anything could be a bear.
As the OP of this post, I’m going to threaten that if this gets to one million notes by the 10 year anniversary on 1 June 2026, one year from today, I will get a lower back tattoo of the loch ness bear monster.
Imagine Chimney going through Bobby's desk in his office. Having to clear personal things out. It breaks his heart, but also warms him because the captain was sentimental.
Then he comes across a small blue book labeled simply "Buck." Curious, he opens and flips through it.
Kid has eating problems. Will forget to eat when stressed. Feed him, and encourage him to cook, because he likes to taste-test a lot.
Chimney remembers that. Buck mentioning getting so hungry the starving pains go away. He does remember during the shitty times when Buck lost so much weight.
-Loves carbs
-Hates Okra
-Probably allergic to shellfish and mangos. Encourage him to get an allergy test
-Allergic to Naproxen
-Allergic to heavy fragrance laundry detergents. Use gentle.
-Remind him he's doing a great job. Use positive reinforcement.
-If he's depressed, as Maddie says, hand him a child. May and Harry work too.
-He's finally gaining weight! :)
-The Buckley parents are banned. Do not ask why. Firehouse is his safe area.
-He fidgets when he's stressed. Have him chop some vegetables or prepare them for you. He loves being helpful.
-He loves his clipboard. Have him organize important events. Give him gold stars. Do not let Hen and Chimney hide it. He gets sad.
-Remind him not to read too close or in the dark. He's gonna need glasses at this point. (If he does, don't let others tease him. Tell him he looks great)
-He doesn't admit it, but his leg still bothers him. Heating blankets are in the closet in the office. Have Eddie massage his leg or send him home early if he's obviously struggling.
Chim laughs. He laughs, and laughs, and starts to cry. Of all things, he did not expect to find a "How to Take Care of Your Buck" guide hidden away in Bobby's desk.
The other night husband and I were watching a documentary about the yeti where they were doing DNA analysis of samples of supposed yeti fur, and every one of them came back as bears.
Anyway, the next night we watched a thing about some pig man who is supposed to live in Vermont. People said it had claws and a pig nose but walked upright like a man. Now, I happen to know that sideshows used to shave bears and present them as pig men. So every piece of evidence they gave of this monster sounds to me like a bear with mange.
So now the running joke in our house is that everything is bears. Aliens? Bears. Loch Ness monster? Bear. Every cryptozoological mystery is just a very crafty bear.
Bears. They’re everywhere. Be wary. Anyone or anything could be a bear.
As the OP of this post, I’m going to threaten that if this gets to one million notes by the 10 year anniversary on 1 June 2026, one year from today, I will get a lower back tattoo of the loch ness bear monster.
"I was a jerk, yeah, but I was tired of Buck making it all about himself," Eddie said, slumped back in the chair at the dining table. "Like... He didn't even ask how I was when I got the phone call. How it felt to be unable to do anything. Not being here."
Ravi froze. "And you said that to him? Told him that he was making everything about himself?"
Eddie shrugged. "Not in those exact words, but pretty much."
With a deep breath, Ravi forced himself to unclench his fists. Then he stood up and grabbed their mugs and plates, dropped them in the sink, and began washing up almost aggressively.
"Ravi?" Eddie called out. Then his tone changed slightly, a little more conspiratorially. "Come on, you saw how he was with the, the grief assessment and all that, just obsessively checking off-"
"-because he cares about us!" Ravi snapped out. He squeezed the sponge and gripped the side of the sink so he didn't have to look at Eddie. "He's doing all that because he feels that he has to. Can't you see it?"
"I know he's spiraling-"
"You know he's spiraling and you still said that?" Ravi didn't bother keeping the disgust out of his tone. "I can't believe- You're supposed to be his best friend, and you said what you said to him?"
Eddie cleared his throat and mumbled something.
"He was the last of us who saw... who saw Cap that night, other than Athena." Ravi was breathing heavily, biting on his lower lip as he tried to find the words. "All of us knew... All of us know... That Buck was Bobby's favorite. Treated him like his son. We all know this, and you should know this better than anyone, and he had to... He had to walk away, knowing that Bobby was dying, knowing..." Tears rolled down his cheeks and he let them drip into the sink.
"We all lost Cap," Eddie snarled.
"And Buck lost his dad!" Ravi shouted. His voice echoed in the firehouse. Someone downstairs cleared their throat. Turning around, Ravi stared at Eddie. "You're a dad. Imagine how Chris would feel if you died. And now imagine anyone telling Chris that he was making your death all about himself."
Eddie stiffened. He opened his mouth, but no words came out.
Returning to the sink, Ravi rinsed out the mugs and plates, setting them on the drying rack before he swiped away the tear tracks on his face. "I'm glad you're not my best friend, Eddie. And I'm sorry Buck would never kick your ass, no matter what you do. Because he has just too big a heart and too much forgiveness."
Buck unties the apron and hangs it up before uncovering the pot of chili. The scent is exactly the same and, a quick taste test later, is as close to what Bobby used to make as he can get it.
Taking a deep breath, he makes himself smile as he turns around and announces, "Dinner's ready."
"Not hungry, Buck," says Chimney on the couch.
Hen is at the table poring over paperwork. "Thanks, Buck, but I don't know if I have the appetite right now."
Buck swallows down the disappointment. "Right. Okay, uh, I-I'm just gonna leave that on the island. Help yourselves to it when you get hungry."
Gerrard and Eddie walk out of the office at that point and Gerrard sniffs the air. "Buckley, you made dinner again?"
"I've washed the dishes and utensils I used already, sir." Buck keeps his expression as pleasantly neutral as he can. "Would you like some?"
Gerrard harrumphed. "Well, I would. But I'll serve myself.."
After Gerrard takes a bowl and walks back to his office to eat, Eddie wanders over and plops into the chair next to Hen.
"Can't believe you're cooking for that old geezer," Eddie says.
"I'm not cooking for him, I'm cooking for everyone on shift." Buck stirs his chili. The color is rich and the scent decadent. He wants to throw up.
Eddie rolls his eyes. "Well. At least he appreciates it."
"You can have some too," Buck says quietly. "I'm not stopping you from getting a plate."
"Nah. Think I'll just order a burger, I'm gonna head home soon." Eddie stands.
Buck slaps his ladle on the counter.
He doesn't know why he did that. Abruptly, he stands and heads to the kitchen island to grab a dishrag to wipe away whatever mess he made.
"You don't have to be passive aggressive about me eating something else," Eddie says.
A bowstring in the depths of Buck's mind snaps. He grabs the pot of chili and dumps the lot of it, pot and all, into the trash.
He stares at the hours of work he's just discarded, and swallows down the tears before turning around to go downstairs, except the three others are now all standing and staring at him, like he's gone mad.
Maybe he has. Who the fuck cares.
Eddie has his hands on his hip. "What's with the dramatics now, Buck?*
"None of you want it anyway. Why should I bother?" Buck snaps.
"Buck, we just weren't hungry," Chimney starts, but falters when Buck glares at him.
Hen steps closer. "Buck, you didn't have to throw the food away."
"Do you even know what I made?" he demands.
All of them are silent. Buck feels another bowstring break.
"I made chili. Bobby's chili. With his secret ingredient," Buck says. "Hours. Washing, chopping, cooking. No one asked."
"Buck, we were busy," Chimney offers weakly.
"I know, I went out on the same calls as you. I mopped up the bay floors, took inventory, rolled the lines. I did my job and I cooked." Buck gulps down the sour frustration in the back of his throat. "I cooked for us. But I guess I should know better by now."
"You're gonna make it about you again, Buck?" Eddie sounds exasperated. "We've talked about this."
"No, we didn't. You accused me of it, just like you're doing now, and so what if I'm making it about me?" Buck explodes. "Am I not allowed to feel emotions? Am I supposed to just grin and bear it? To let you say those things like they don't hurt?"
The silence that falls over them is deafening.
Buck can't even look at them. "You think I don't know I'm being irrational and obsessive about all this? I don't know what to do! I don't know what to do, and there isn't anyone I can ask, but I am trying! I'm trying and I get no acknowledgement of it. Every time I reach out, you guys just brush me off or, or talk about me behind my back, like I am not mature enough to handle difficult topics. Like I'm a child."
"Buck, that's not -"
"It is, Hen, and you know it is. But I have a duty. I have to... I have to, I have to check in on Chimney, and on you, and I don't even know how to approach Athena but I will have to, and I have, I have to think about, think about how Eddie feels, what he thinks, because otherwise he would hide important stuff from me, his so-called best friend, and he gets angry when I find out even though he's the one hiding secrets, a-and work goes on, and no one eats together anymore, and I'm trying. I am trying so hard to keep the 118 as it was, but I can't do it."
"No one asked you to," Hen says gently, reaching for his shoulder, but Buck bats it away and steps back.
He stares at her bleakly. "Bobby did."
The atmosphere chills about ten degrees. Buck hugs himself. "Bobby told me... He told me I'm gonna be okay. That you guys would need me." He can't stop the tears now but he doesn't care, he's so tired. "But you don't. None of you do. And I don't think I'm gonna be okay, not anymore."
Eddie takes a step forward and Buck backs up. Incredulous, Eddie stares and folds his arms. "And you think any of us are gonna be okay?"
"I didn't say that-"
"So what are you saying? That you're special and your feelings are unique?"
"You weren't here," Buck spits out, cutting Eddie off.
Eddie goes pale and tense. "Buck, don't you throw that in my face-"
"You weren't here when Bobby fired me and took me back into the 118. You weren't here when he showed me that he believed in me. He was... He was the one who guided me through my first real relationship, and he had... He'd..." Buck wishes he could grab someone and point them to all the things Bobby's taught him. "The last thing he said to me... The last thing he said to me, was 'I love you, kid'. He was proud of me and he loved me, which is so much more than my own father ever showed. In every way except for blood, Bobby was my dad. And everything I've done since that night was to prove that... That I could live up to his expectations, but I can't, and I'm sick and tired of having to be okay, when I'm not, of trying to be the one you guys can reach out to, but none of you even have a hand outstretched, and I know I'm not Bobby, I can't be him, but all I wanted was for us to have a meal together, like the family he made us."
Hopelessly aware that he's a blubbering mess, Buck scrubs his palms over his eyes and cheeks before he pushes past Eddie and a silent Hen.
Chimney reaches out to him. "Buck -"
"I'm done, Chimney. You guys eat whatever you want. Do whatever you want. I'm done."
He tears down the steps and runs out of the firehouse. It's not about the chili. It never was about the chili.
But he wishes they had taken some and they could have eaten together.
Thank you @sentowritesstuff for tagging me!! I actually really like doing little games like this even if it’s something small it makes me happy lol
last song I listened to: I Hate It Here by Taylor Swift
favorite color: probably a really dark blue
currently watching: daredevil, andor s2, agent Carter, cloak and dagger, and a couple more
last movie: Avengers Infinity War
currently reading: Family of Liars by E. Lockhart
sweet, spicy, or savory: all of them!! I cant choose a favorite!!
relationship: single☹️ My crush doesn’t like me back and I refuse to talk to him
current obsessions: agent Carter, captain america and stucky in general (as usual), Star Wars, the naturals series, six of crows again, baking carrot cakes, and writing poetry about my shitty family
last googled: where to watch into the spiderverse?
currently working on: a speech for school, a poem series, and a fanfic about stucky
last song I listened to: Loser Baby from Hazbin Hotel
favorite color: There’s this pale blue that looks like purple to me and I find it fascinating. So lilac or pale blue depending on how you think about it.
currently watching: Love on the Spectrum
last movie: The Wild Robot
currently reading: Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger, The Serpent’s Shadow by Rick Riordan, and Dragonsdawn by Anne McCaffrey
sweet, spicy, or savory: Sweet but like. It depends on the day honestly.
relationship: I am currently talking to a guy but we’re not in a labeled relationship yet and idk if it’s gonna get there.
current obsessions: [Joel Smallishbeans, Grian, ImpulseSV, Phasmophobia, Hermitcraft], Helluverse, and Sonic the Hedgehog (esp Stobotnik)
last googled: can sound waves travel through space?
currently working on: stobotnik fanfic, being ill (i have the flu or smth energy levels are low guys)
I’m genuinely gonna choose 9 people despite the fact I’m going to forget all of this:
last song: love you like an alcoholic by the taxpayers
favorite color: dark green or sage green (yes I'm gay) or crayola marker orange
currently watching: poker face and alias and the rookie and house and so much youtube
currently reading: Mockingjay and red white and royal blue
last movie: enemy of the state I think (or waitress from 2007, idk I watched both in one day)
sweet, spicy, or savory: savory is usually a good bet but it depends on the day
relationship: recently broke up with my gf of almost 2 yrs and now I have a crush on two of my closest friends both of which are dating someone
current obsessions: pinterest, jewelry???, hunger games, my coloring book full of chickens that I do during drivers ed, flimcooper, smosh
last googled: Stardew valley wiki-stable
currently working on: nothing but I have a capstone project and math practice problems due soon
idek know nine people but whatever @rins-batcave @that-one-fly-on-the-wall @angelellipsis-devilofdots @bored-boring-and-tired @itz-pingu-lol @clowncore09 @trans-reptile @da-beear @ikissedagirl123
i think those are all nine.... almost none of them are moots so sorry if that's you lol
Favorite color: any shade of blue or specifically sage green
Currently reading: sunrise on the reaping by Susanne Collins
Currently watching: gravity falls, I just need to find time to finish the last episode
Last movie: but I'm a cheerleader, I watched it at a sleepover with my irl friends last week
Sweet/savory/spicy: either sweet or savory, I just don't really like spice
Relationship status: um I genuinely don't know, I geuss I'd say in a relationship, I'm aroace but I've been dating this girl for like two years and it's always been closer to a qpr type of thing anyway ig, idrk
Last song: Nintendo 64 by if I die in Mississippi 😭😭😭
Fav color: RED👹👹👹
Currently reading: I'm re-reading the first percy jackson book
Sweet/savory/spicy: ALLL👹👹
Relationship static3: single 🥸🥸
Current obsession: saddly nothing😭😭😭 I'm to focused on school since it's almost final exam time😭😭 tho if I HAD to choose I'd say music artist like McCafferty and the front bottoms 🥸🥸
Currently working on school stuff😭😭😭😭 i GENUINELY CANT WAIT TILL SUMMER BRAKE YALL OMGGGGG
OH MY GOODNESS THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR TAGGING ME IN THIS!!!! 💙
Last Song: Caravanserai (Live) by Loreena McKennitt (it’s a really good song, you should listen to it!!!)
Favourite Colour: I don’t really have one, I mean, I do gravitate towards cooler colours, but I can’t really choose. (I have used quite a bit of blue in this post, though.)
Currently Watching: NCIS! Other than that, I don’t really watch a lot of TV, though. I plan on getting started on Georgie and Mandy’s First Marriage soon.
Last Movie: Trolland, which is an absolutely horrible knockoff of Trolls that has Dick van Dyke in it (because why not?) and is absolutely amazing and absolutely horrible at the same time. It’s still better than the original, though.
Currently Reading: I’m making my way through the Norton Anthology of English Literature right now!!! I just arrived at the Romantic Period, and I’m excited, as I adore Romanticism!!!
Sweet, Spicy, or Savoury: Savoury all the way!!
Relationship: Single!
Current Obsessions: Loreena McKennitt’s music (really just Celtic music in general, but especially hers because she has the most magical voice ever), NCIS (as always), poetry (may or may not be related to my Loreena McKennitt fixation, I’m fairly positive that half her fans are English majors), Russian Literature, Reality Shifting, The Hunger Games (Sunrise on the Reaping awakened something in me).
Last Googled: Lyrics to the song Shadow of the Moon by Blackmore’s Night (yet another song you should listen to!!)
Currently Working On: About three dozen fanfics, school work that I have to do over the summer to makeup for the month of school I missed after my dad died, and shifting into a better reality!!
Again, I’m unsure if you have to tag mutuals, so forgive me if I’m doing something wrong by tagging people who haven’t followed me back.
Last Song: What A Time by Julia Michaels ft. Niall Horan
Favourite Colour: Constantly changing, but I find myself going back to bright orange a lot? It really depends on my mood.
Currently Watching: NCIS, That 70's Show. Getting ready for season 3 of Ginny and Georgia!
Last Movie: The Force Awakens (hence my reawakening love for Poe Dameron LMAO). I know so many Star Wars fans HATED the sequels, I adore them. I love Rey/Finn/Poe, I love Kylo Ren. That's just me!
Currently Reading: If It Bleeds my Stephen King and the Fourth Wing series! I can never read one thing at once, I'm always bouncing lol.
Sweet, Spicy, or Savoury: Spicy!!!! I love spicy stuff so much.
Relationship: Single but dating my fictional men in my head.
Current Obsessions: NCIS, Star Wars, Stephen King.
Last Googled: That song at the end of Chronicles of Narnia Prince Caspian (it was The Call by Regina Spektor btw).
Currently Working On: Trying to get to the gym on schedule, take care of horses, clean up the house, write my fan fiction, and find time to mingle with friends and relax. Ongoing struggle!!
Last song I listened to: That Don't Impress Me Much - Shania Twain
Favorite color: Blue, but like a cornflower blue if we wanna be specific
Currently watching: On Patrol: Live, SWAT, 911, Three Rivers
Last Movie: The Choice. Made me sob sob, like I cry at it but this was bad. The next day, I found out I was/am pregnant 😂
Currently reading: The Lomgest Ride
Sweet, spicy, or savory: normally sweet and savory, I don't do a lot of spicy.
Relationship: I am in a domestic partnership with a man, have been for 8 years. We have 2 earthside kids, 2 angels, and I am currently pregnant ❤️ but he has two kids from before me, too.
Currently Obsessions: On Patrol Live, fruit punch Cirkul flavor
Last Googled: Lyrics to a Taylor Swift song
Currently working on: Not freaking out over every little thing that happens with this pregnancy, writing more, getting more active.
And who I'd like to see do this: @achilles-rage I know you were tagged before but I couldn't think of anyone else 😂
Also, "Buck didn't flinch." Then what the hell do you call what happens in the second gif? You physically see him flinch. That was OLIVER flinching. Ugghh
so Buck flinching in that kitchen fight scene was actually Oliver flinching.
because in the rehearsal Ryan played it "much more bland".
because the director talked to Ryan alone and gave him the note "do you wanna hit him?" and they agreed to escalate the fight and NEITHER TOLD OLIVER ABOUT IT.
this is so disrespectful to Oliver... didn't the director trust that Oliver could act???
and it's so fucked up that Ryan keeps leaning into this choice of making every fight with Buck worse than it was written. he's destroying the friendship between Eddie and Buck, but he's also destroying Eddie's character at the same time.
and also a big fuck you to everyone that romanticized this scene or said it wasn't a big deal. it felt like an aggression because that's what it was filmed as!!!
STARCLAN HAS SENT A PROPHECY SELECTING YOU TO UNDERTAKE A QUEST WHICH WILL DETERMINE THE FATE OF EVERY CLAN. spin this wheel three times consecutively— these individuals will make up the patrol which accompanies you on your journey. how likely are you to fulfill the prophecy and save the clans?
you saying that "eddie literally gets everything handed to him and never faces any consequences" when he literally lost custody of his son and his job and his home this season. just say your a bt fan and hate eddie and move on.
I'm going to be real with you, this is hilarious to me in so many ways because these are the tags from my not wanting Eddie as captain ever post... But I'm going to try and be less snarky than I want to be when I say that Eddie has literally never faced a single consequence for any of his actions/decisions on this show--not professionally, personally, internally, or even just painted as in the wrong within the show itself. This is quite literally the second time that Eddie has left the 118 on a whim and then is able to come back just as easily on a whim.
But I don't feel like going into the entire history of eddie diaz right now, so we'll just focus on what you said in regards to this sesaon (season 8)--that eddie "lost custody of his son, his job, and his home this season." Here's the thing, he didn't lose anything. He made choices that had consequences (briefly) that he was supposed to work through and sort out. Which... he didn't.
He didn't lose custody of his son--Christopher saw his father with a woman who looked just like his dead mom and realized he'd been cheating on his dad's girlfriend he had grown attached to (again) and Chris chose to leave and go spend the summer with his grandparents in Texas because he didn't want to be around Eddie right now. That was completely down to Eddie's actions--of which he never really apologized and send Buck in at the end of season 7 to try and convince Chris to stay instead of talking about anything. And they had zero talks about anything in season 8 that I remember. I think the only time it's really mentioned by Eddie what he did was to the priest? Instead, the entire season revolves around how terrible Eddie's parents are for "taking Chris from Eddie" instead of "why isn't Eddie confronting his failure with Chris last year to work at making it better."
He didn't lose his job or house--he gave up his job at the 118 to move to Texas to be nearer to his kid to try and repair their relationship. Not that he did really. He just showed up to a chess match and then decided Chris was moving back in with him, but it's all framed around Eddie's parents and their treatment of Chris and Eddie. I'm not saying that it was wrong or that there couldn't be layers to it, but the main reason Chris left was literally never mentioned to or talked about with Chris. I honestly don't even remember Chris ever saying out loud at any point this season his frustrations with his dad or anything that happened.
But all of that aside, what happened in the last few episodes of the season? Eddie easily and quickly repairs his relationship with his son, gets to just come back to the 118 on a whim when he's actively a civilian right now (again breaking major rules and regulations that I can ignore a little for the sake of the TV show), and gets his house back because Buck immediately moved out. So even if you want to argue that eddie "lost" so much stuff this season, he didn't learn anything or grow really, and got everything he wanted and more back with very little effort on his part. And that is boring to me, so I don't enjoy Eddie's character because they've literally done nothing with him for years. (But that's a different post)
And yes, I am a BuckTommy shipper because I like Buck and adore Tommy and think they really found a really great partner for Buck to actually show him settling into his personal life--if they want to go there in season 9. I don't see Eddie as a road block or challenge or something that might "get in the way" of a BuckTommy reunion, so I'm not sure what you think that has to do with my frustrations over Eddie and why I would be livid if Eddie somehow becomes Captain in season 9.
