Ford's glasses being too tight after he makes some adjustments to keep them from slipping (although it's very cute when they slip, he doesn't think it's "practical") and the frames are painfully digging into his skull. He's in a pissy mood for hours before you put the pieces together. He resists when you tell him to take his glasses off, but, as always, he eventually concedes. As you begin massaging the sore spots behind his ears he all but melts, almost purring at how good you feel.
One thing leads to another, and he ends up holding his glasses dorkily at a distance in front of his eyes so he can watch without putting them back on his sore head. The way the lenses distort his face is so fucking funny you have to stop because you can't quit laughing at him lmaooooooo
AAAAHHHH this is so cute I needed this thank you!
Ford and Reader effectively re-enacting Androcles and the Lion every other day is very funny to me.
Silly drabble under here:
He gets pain all the time from his various issues and it makes him super cranky some days, but he doesn't tell anyone and he doesn't try to help himself, so he just sulks around by himself all day and takes it out on others without really meaning to do so.
But you know why he's doing it. You can tell that he's hurting somewhere, and you're aware that he won't admit to it for whatever reason. So, you have to delicately try to convince him to go along with your plan to help him, whilst trying to convince Ford that it's his idea in the first place, otherwise you know for a fact that he'll refuse.
You have to tell him that his glasses are wonky, that they don't sit level on his nose and that he won't be able to pour out his samples equally while he works, which will in turn affect his results. And he doesn't believe you initially, but every time he gets up to do something, you over-fill one of his beakers just a touch, and when he comes back to sit down, you draw his attention to the 'mistake'.
Ford becomes even more frustrated. He gets himself worked up. But you soothe him, and you tell him "Give me your glasses, let me see if I can figure it out for you," and he does. He trusts you to be his eyes for a moment.
So you put on a little show of trying to level them out, even though they're perfectly horizontal already, and you slide your fingertips underneath the arms to fiddle with them. But while you're there, you let your touch come in little concentric circles and your adjustments move into a very light massage.
You assure him that you're checking for abnormal movement in the arms that might occur from him moving his head, but Ford shivers and relents, even though he wants to go back to work. The glasses tilt more and you use the excuse to inform him that they're definitely shifting, so you take them off completely.
And Ford complains, because of course he does, but he doesn't actually stop you. He stays perfectly still, and your fingertips work gently into the indentations that the tight arms have left behind.
Over the course of the next ten minutes, you massage the space behind his ears until his eyes fall closed of their own accord and as soon as they do, you take it as silent confirmation that he's accepting your command of taking a pause in his work.
You move to stand behind him and from there, you begin to rub up the sides of his head. Your fingers work into his hair, halfway between the reddened marks of his glasses' arms and the edge of his hairline above them, and Ford gradually starts to relax.
His breathing becomes slower and his shoulders lower as the tension begins to drain from them. He sits back in his seat and his hands fall into his lap, all soft breaths and gentle hums of enjoyment. You don't say a word; you're far too focused on giving him the nicest scalp massage of his life, and he doesn't seem to care enough to notice that you're tricking him into having some time off.
Eventually, it turns into a full on head massage. You run your fingers all throughout his thick hair and drag your nails carefully across his scalp (mindful of his plate scar), and he enjoys every second.
He tilts his head back like he's a lap cat, relishing in the contact, and practically purrs beneath your hands. The furrow in his brow lessens and his facial muscles ease up, and he seems to calm down.
"It's okay to admit that you're in pain, you know," you murmur after a while, running the tips of your index fingers over the spot behind his ears in tandem. "I can't help if you don't tell me."
Ford mumbles something indistinct, a groan of "I can take it" and you smile again, though it's a little sad around the edges. He's often like this, too hard-headed to admit when he's struggling and too proud to accept that might be in need of another's assistance.
But that's alright. You know him well enough to recognise when he's misbehaving and you're capable; you can step into save him from himself if he needs it. If he won't take care of himself then you'll force him into it without allowing him to realise that that's what you're doing.
It's better that way, anyway. Like this, you know he'll actually get some relief. If you leave it up to him, he'll tell you that he's done what you've advised without actually doing it. He's his own worst enemy, and you don't mind making sure he's cared for.
And as is his nature, Ford's willingness will disappear as quickly as he's let it come about.
He allows you to keep it up for a solid twenty minutes or so before he seems to come back to himself. He sits upright in his seat, his consciousness returning, and clears his throat.
His hair sticks up in all directions and when he looks at you, he'd appear maniacal—if not for his hooded eyes and flushed cheeks. Those give away the relaxation that has crept into his body and they tell you that his pain has passed, smoothed away by your loving touch.
"I should get back to work," he says, his voice slightly hoarse. "I have— there's a mountain of samples to study, I can't afford to get behind."
"Sure," you reply softly, reaching up to smooth down the bird's nest on top of his head. "But I was wrong. It's not that your glasses aren't level, I think the arms are too tight. See how much better you feel without them now?"
Ford regards the pair where they sit on the table, a look of contemplation on his handsome face. "I could've sworn that I measured them correctly before I altered them, but.... Perhaps you're right."
You know you are. But Ford is the type of man who has to come to his own realisation about these things. Far be it from him to take anyone else's word at face value before his own.
"Change them before you do anything else," you advise gently. "You're not going to get the work done if you're distracted by pain."
And of course, he doesn't. He doesn't have the time to leave his studies and fiddle around with his glasses all evening instead of counting out griffin cells for the thousandth time, but you hadn't really expected him to anything of the sort.
Instead, you return to keeping him company and you watch with fond amusement as he uses his glasses like they're a lorgnette instead. His dark eyes are magnified even more so though than usual when he holds them at a slight distance from his face, but you don't mind his clever adaptation.
A compromise is still a win in the complicated world of caring for Ford.
Absolutely LOVED reading about Ford’s outburst, and it hurt so much to see him shrink back after Guilford smacked him.
Patiently waiting for someone, preferably Ford, Areyto or Kira, to paint the walls red with whatever’s left of that asshole lmaooo
Ford has been so deeply suppressed in this house. He doesn't have much inner strength to pull on when it comes to defiance, and is too terrified of the day the siren will be ordered to take his own mind from him.
I was abt to ask if you think ford us the jealous type but then I remembered your hints for the next installment of mtb so instead I will ask how much so does that carry into an established relationship. is he breaking out if his comfort zone to do pda because someone gave reader a look he felt threatened by. ridiculous man
In my humble opinion, Ford and his emotions work like a man trapped behind glass walls and that extends to this scenario too.
For example: Ford and Reader are in a secure, established relationship.
He sees you talking to someone else, who is quite clearly flirting with you and trying to pick you up. Ford knows in his heart that you have no intention of doing anything or succumbing to that flirting, but he feels threatened by the imagined potential.
Ford feels his negative feelings rise and his knee-jerk reaction is to respond (ie: go and put his arm around you or play Billy Big Bollocks) but instead of doing that, he runs head first into the glass wall of self-consciousness in his head and freezes up.
On the other side of the wall, he can see everything he wants: To make a scene of claiming you in front of this person so that they know he's got them beat and for you to fawn all over him instead.
But Ford panics. He can't get past that wall. What if that person is younger than him? Perhaps you would secretly prefer a younger spouse and you're only entertaining him to make him feel better. What if that person is (in his perception) more attractive than he is? Perhaps you've been making do with his six-fingered ass and your interest in him was for the novelty and nothing more.
He doubts himself and his security instantly.
So, rather than go over and make a fool of himself by trying to do something like PDA when you (in his eyes) inevitably will confirm all of the above and reject him, he seethes. He wants to go for the PDA angle but it makes him uncomfortable and he doesn't really know what he's doing, so he thinks he'd only make himself look stupid. Instead, he gets mad about his fake scenario and grabs out for the only beating stick he thinks he has: His intelligence.
If he can dominate this person intellectually (and he can, that's a safe bet) then he comes out on top and proves himself worthy in the only way he really knows how. He lays claim by making the other person look stupid.
And at least if you do leave him, then you're leaving him for a stupid person and he knows he's better than them in that aspect which will make him feel marginally better about it all. Maybe he can't beat them in attractiveness or sexual prowess, but he can beat somebody by being smarter than they are.
So, Ford goes to your side and ignores the other person. Doesn't say hi, doesn't even nod at them. He waits for them to continue the conversation and waits for a prime opportunity to interject with something he Knows More About.
Because that way, he's in control.
He makes a smartass remark about something they've gotten incorrect or he outright corrects them. Ford stands there with his arms over his chest, shoulders back, gaze pinning this new person down, and annihilates them to make himself feel better about his perceived shortcomings.
Of course, this intimidates the other person no end and puts them right off, and they mumble to you that they'll see you around before they make a quick exit. Meanwhile Ford stands around looking stormy and pleased with himself (despite the fact that he's going to pieces internally).
You, who know him inside and out, tell him "hey, down boy. That wasn't a very nice thing to do, we were just talking." and Ford feigns ignorance because obviously he does, he's not going to give himself away even though he's already been caught. It's a family trait, after all.
Ford intends to play it off with a Very Cool and Totally Laid Back remark about how you're simply imagining things, but it comes out as more of a "well if you like stupid people so much why don't you marry them?" and he sulks a bit.
You, again knowing what he's like, think it's highly amusing and take secret pity on him. You get him back to somewhere private and Safe™ and rather than lay into him, you drag him down for a thorough kiss until he's bright red and satisfied that your interest still lies solely with him.
"You're an idiot...." you mutter against his mouth. "But you're my idiot."
When you have a chance, could you hit us with a Ford headcanon that you have that you maybe haven't posted about before/in a while that you aren't sure ppl know of? Nothing super controversial bc god knows its all too heavy these days. maybe just a little silly one.
Im always on the hunt for a goofy hc or two for Ford. Makes him seem a little less intimidating, a little more human. Like, the stripey pj one or that he somehow still has those tiny green shorts but only wears them in private or on the off chance Reader requests to see him in them (jk but also not really)
Ooh this is cute!
I have a couple:
When he first came back, he'd regularly sleep fully dressed (with his shoes on too) so that he was always ready to get up and go at a moments notice. But as he settled into the knowledge that he was safe, he invested in matching sleep sets/pyjamas because they're a luxury and it makes him feel nice. You will get to see more of them in the new fic.....
He doesn't like wet foods. It's a texture thing. Caused him all sorts of problems in the portal and he'd force himself to wolf down whatever was available if he was starving, but now he's back he won't eat things like soup or stew or yoghurts because he doesn't like how they feel in his mouth. There are exceptions but they're rare.
He hates jelly/jell-o. Absolutely loathes it. Will go on and on about the evils of it because see above.
Ford loves sweet things in general. I think that's canon, but I like to imagine that he adds sugar to stuff that doesn't need it. He's got a bad diet in general to be honest.
He composes piano pieces in his spare time. Sometimes he'll hear a note in the way someone speaks or hums a song, or he listens to the birds in the forest, and he makes it into a tune for himself. He'll turn it into a full piece if he gets time.
He talks to animals/non-verbal anomalies as though he's talking to people. He'll have whole conversations with them like they can answer him back and if they meow or growl, he'll take that as them replying. Sometimes, when no one is around, he baby talks them too. He absolutely never does it in front of others and he'd deny it to the ends of the Earth if he ever got caught.
He never gets sick, but if he does then he turns into The Worst Person Ever. You know how they say men always act worse when they're unwell? Well, Ford is like that times ten. He doesn't know how to cope with it because he likes to power through. His brain wants him to work but if the flesh is unwilling, it drives him mad. He's super sulky and cranky.
Insane driver. I covered it briefly in DD, but he's just nuts. He isn't a bad driver, he's excellent actually, but supremely fast and impatient. He puts his Bronco through hell and limps it back to Stanley to get it fixed up. He'll complain the whole time like "I didn't even do that much! You fixed it last week, there's no good reason why it shouldn't be able to keep up!" and Stan is like listen man you can't tank this thing at full tilt while you're riding the clutch and burning rubber. Ford just doesn't get it. Stan hates him for it.
Horrible cook, even worse at making tea and coffee. This will come up in the next chapter of Fordian Slip. Everyone says 'cooking is just science' but that pisses Ford off. It is not science. If it were, he'd be amazing at it. It's witchcraft, and a type of witchcraft that he's unfamiliar with too. Because, again, if it were regular witchcraft then he'd probably be pretty good at that too.....
Hates horses. Stinky, flighty and unreliable. Don't get him started on them.
I know people think of him as being very straight-laced all the time, but I think Ford enjoys using recreational drugs on a very rare occasion. He used them in the portal once or twice and he smoked weed at college. He doesn't enjoy slowing his brain down when he's using it, but he does enjoy slowing it down when it's his enemy. If he's struggling with his mental state, he might be partial to a joint or two.
Further to that point, I think he's a very mellow stoner. He calms right down and becomes agreeable/relaxed in a way that it's impossible for him to be when he's sober. He gets sillier and giggly. Very cute. He's smoked with Stan before.
If he is in a relationship, he's more tactile. Not in an overt way, but in his own secret way. He'll press his ankle to yours under the table, he'll find an excuse to touch you as he passes by, he'll pick invisible bits of lint off your clothes. Just any excuse to touch you. I think he's touch starved, so he doesn't know how to ask outright for the contact and he'll come up with excuses to get what he wants.
He can dance. Not in the same way Stan can, but more classically. Waltzing in particular. One of the universes he landed in used waltzing to communicate, so naturally, he learned. He's never done it properly, but he can.
He likes finding new music. He's not really one for watching lots of different movies but he picks up on the soundtracks and he asked Mabel to show him how to use something like Spotify, so he can find them whenever he wants to have something on.
Ford keeps several secret spots in the forest mapped out for himself that he doesn't share with anyone, and when he's feeling low he takes himself to them. Sometimes, he'll tell the family that he's going out to do work but he'll just walk into the forest and be in nature alone for hours doing nothing. He isn't looking for samples or on the hunt for creatures. He just wants to be reminded that he's on the right planet. He does it at night, too. Lays in the grass and watches the stars, maybe he'll even take a telescope. It's nice to be reminded that he's home.
That's all I have right now but there are probably plenty more :)
Ford wearing tank tops around you on hot days just to tease you
*falls to my knees* OKAY LISTEN
because I was thinking about this and like...... Beyond the matter of him exposing his scars and tattoos and what that represents, the pure nosebleed-level hotness I can picture in my head is making me chew on my bars rn.
(Setting the below in mtb)
Ford in a white vest, the front of it just slightly lower than it ought to be because the material is a touch too tight over his chest (he really didn't do that on purpose, he's just big boned, he swears), steely chest hair poking out the top and around the bands on his shoulders..... UGH. A hundred points extra if it's one of those slutty little fishnet vests instead.
He's..... idk..... chopping wood in the backyard let's say, preparing for the evening fire he always likes to read in front of (it's 100 degrees out there, he's not gonna have a fire tonight, you know that and so does he, but you're not going to bring that up rn).
You can see each and every muscle group flex under his skin with the swing of his axe; his arms are exposed, the curve of his biceps highlighted by the perspiration that's building on his skin and soaking the fabric. He's sweating and grunting and really he's chopped enough enough wood at this point to see the entire household through the next four winters, but who's going to stop him? You? No chance.
So you observe him for god only knows how long out of the kitchen window and after a solid hour of watching him work up a sweat, he heads back towards the house. He's flushed and soaked (and frankly, so are you), and you scramble to make yourself look busy when he returns to the kitchen.
He greets you and you return it, and you offer him a cold glass of water because "oh doctor pines, you must be exhausted, you've been out there working soooooo hard!" and Ford smirks and says something smart about keeping active in his old age. He takes the glass from you and downs it easily in one go, and the entire time you're watching him not-so-subtly like:
You're both playing games with each other. Ford knows you're watching him (and he's doing very well at playing along, he hopes you're proud of him for that) and you know he's showing off just to get a rise out of you. It's fun to toy with each other in that sense and you're sure that if the temptation were less, you'd be able to keep it up all day, but as it is.... Ford looks too good and you're too tightly wound to let this drag out.
So you politely suggest that if he's so warm, perhaps he ought to cool off with a shower or something, that always helps you when you're feeling overwhelmed.
Ford nods sagely and takes the suggestion to heart ("I think you're right, my dear. I'm awfully hot under the collar this evening.") and just after he's finished his water, he glances over the rim of the glass and looks you up and down. It's after a moment of very blatant checking-you-out that he makes the suggestion that you're looking rather flustered yourself, perhaps you should consider one too.
You agree, but you warn him that Stan has already been on your ass for pushing up his water bills by showering at their place instead of your own, and you'd hate to get into trouble again..... So perhaps this time, you and Ford should share the responsibility and kill two birds with one stone.
And Ford concurs. Wholeheartedly and passionately. If his brother wants to keep their costs low then Ford would be a truly terrible housemate if he allowed anything to the contrary, wouldn't he?
play wresting with ford (...or stan tbh!) would be so fun bc they are probably super strong - also hot???
I think play wrestling with Stan would be a lot more fun, because he's going to wind you up and reap the rewards. He knows exactly what to do to overpower you, but still leave you with enough room to get back at him. Stan strikes me as someone who's very good at the teasing give-and-take.
Ford would go one of two ways: he either just wants to win the match and pins you down with no way of getting free and then gloats about it, OR he turns it into a full on training session. He doesn't quite twig that you're doing a Duncan Norvelle style "Chase me! Chase me!" bit. It would take a couple of tries and some heavy handed coming onto him before he realises the angle you're going for. As soon as he figures it out, though, he gets all flustered and lets you do whatever you like. Bonus points if you tell him how strong he is and fawn over him a bit.
Just wanted to heap praise on you for latest chapter. You literally write Ford better than the original show did in my opinion. You balance his flaws with empathy for what he’s gone through and his trauma so SO well. Like the way he spoke would totally trigger me. Getting yelled at and tossed around like that always sends me in total flight or fight with even people I deeply trust. Then basically calling them stupid the same day?! If you didn’t know what he went through you would feel totally betrayed and discarded, if not unsafe. Like it’s easy to see all of his worst defense mechanisms and know why it would be hard to be around him in those moments. AND YET it’s so totally treated with empathy and understanding because we the readers know it’s ptsd. We know that he is remembering an entity that abused him that has the power to possess people and make deals with them in a way no human could do. The possibility he could wake up and the people he loves are just not them, or a liability, must always be on the back of his mind. When I read the page in the book of bill of him trying to make a connection after years of isolation the day before bill contacts him it totally breaks my heart because he really has almost no adult experience making healthy friendships, much less relationships. Like how often has he really repaired relationships with people who are not family or McGuckett. Like if someone ever shoved me like that I would be furious but in this situation I’m just desperate for him to finally explain!!! Anyway… just wanted to say he was unbearable and heartbreaking this chapter to me personally and you absolutely deliver writing I am always desperate to drop everything and read when I see that notification.
Thank you! That really means a lot!
Ford is a very special guy to me. I'm very invested in his character and personality, and how it's been shaped through his life experiences. It feels very rare to see a true exploration of the depth of his suffering and it doesn't get more than touched on in canon (although I think this is fair enough because the show isn't about him), so I wanted to examine him properly in the interpretation I get of him.
To me, Ford is a deeply tragic guy. He's really been through an awful lot and things like that leave irreparable scars on the psyche. Given that his emotive functioning is shockingly low too, I think it would bleed out of him in unpleasant ways and that's an important factor not to gloss over. He is an unlikeable victim, but that doesn't make him less of a victim.
My personal reading of him is that he desires love and acceptance, but no matter how hard he tries, he's never quite 'right' for people. A part of him always has to be changed to make him digestible. Even with his own brother. I think that's really sad.
With MtB!Reader, they're meeting him where he is. They know there's some bad wiring in his brain, they know something is up with him, but they're not going to treat him differently because of it. They love him for what he is and what he isn't.
But obviously, things in life are messy. People react and they hurt each other even when they don't mean to. Ford may not truly be hurting them because he means to do so, but in no way does that lessen the hurt he causes. That pushes us into a very grey area of what is acceptable and what isn't. How much can you take when you know the perpetrator is sick but they're still cutting you open? Reader is very understanding, but they're not a punching bag and nor should they be. It makes it very hard to know how to deal with that sort of thing.
I wanted MtB to deal with the cycles of that. It's a cycle I'm very familiar with and I know intimately, and it's one I've listened to from the experiences of those close to me. Hopefully, as it progresses, you'll be able to see more of what I mean. How trauma passes from one person to another, how it infects us and those we love, how it can destroy and bond.
It's a dangerous thing that deserves empathy, or else we just pave the way to create new victims in the future.
Ultimately, MtB isn't about catching a space disease. It's about literally catching PTSD from someone you love deeply. It's about how if you don't do something about your trauma, you will give it to someone else eventually.
The holes of psychological wounds are often filled with double-ended blades. When you hug someone with one, you tend to get stabbed yourself. This is life. We can only do our best to ensure we have dressings on standby.
