#hotwire

[halfseaweed]

Flambae: You keep getting hurt because you think you’re unbreakable.

Robert: And you keep fixing me like I’m yours.

Flambae: You are.

[navincruise]

can you tell they're my otp for dispatch rn? ♪ we never dated by sombr spc veelscp.com pics from dispatch wiki n dispatch textbox made by me

[demigod-of-the-agni]

after many a quiet weeks... i'm happy to share the art i've made for @masters-of-zinejitsu's Elements of Sentiments Zine !!! i was so stoked to draw for hotwire... i've only had them for a few weeks but i'd die for them <33 save me, kai and pixal. save me. kai and pixal, save me

the first sketch + old exploratory doodle of hotwire outfits is under the cut (it inspired the pixal chibi later on i'm so happy i could cry bro UUWAAH TwT)

stay romantical, friends 💖🙂‍↕️✨

their aprons do retain some of the flame/circuit motifs of these concepts... mayhap i can draw them later, sometime....

[normalguytm]

Sighhhh art isnt arting right now

[unsaddie]

your father's scars

Hiii this is my first time publishing any fanfic writing and doing it on tumblr so this is my "do it scared" moment,, I super appreciate any comments!! I hope you'll enjoy <3

summary: Flambae tells Robert about his dad and the origin of his burn scars.

=========================

“You asked about my dad’s scars once.”

Robert redirected his attention to Flambae when his voice broke the silence. He wasn’t looking back at him, amber eyes still fixated on the pictures in front of him. 

They were standing in front of a wall in Flambae’s apartment, the man jumping to rambling on about the photos the moment Robert asked about them. To Robert, who for fifteen years owned solely one — the one where his dad held him as he pointed to something off-camera, both smiling brightly, the one that felt like hanging onto a piece of non-existent childhood, the one taken in a perfect moment to make himself believe in the lie it told for even a moment — the amount of them felt obscene. Sprinkled on the dark wall, from a distance they made him think of stars in the night sky, a small galaxy of memories brightening the room.

It wasn’t the only placement for them, either. If he would look away from the wall and fix his gaze on any part of the apartment, at least one photo would be in his vision. Seemingly the main source of decoration, memories surrounded them in many forms, be it the drawings Flambae received from his niece that stopped fitting on the fridge alone, mementos from trips, or gifts. Still, it wasn’t hard to tell that photos were his favorite.

Robert expected all of them to be of his family, maybe few with Prism. What he didn’t expect was that few of them included him, but despite their complicated relationship he shouldn’t be surprised. The photos were mostly of the entire team, one from Prism’s concert he got invited to. It’s not like they were being kept because of Robert’s presence specifically.

Some others caught his attention, like one featuring Dopple. Flambae explained it was when he was starting out as a hero, and Crypto Night was the first hero bar he was allowed into. Robert couldn’t help but notice how Flambae from the photo didn’t carry quite the same confidence, his happiness mixed with faint disbelief, like he wasn’t convinced this was actually happening. He never thought of it too much before, but suddenly Robert was really glad they managed to get Flambae unbanned from the bar.

Flambae liked to talk, that much was obvious to anyone, but when he told Robert about the captured moments, it felt a lot less like he was just speaking to hear his own voice. Instead, his face softened, eyes brightened by a glimmer when he was reminiscing, telling stories of people that impacted his life. (Robert wondered if there will ever be a moment when he looks like this talking about him.)

That’s why it was strange for him to grow quiet after a while. Robert assumed he was lost in the memories when his guest focused on the images, at first. Only when he spoke again did Robert look at him again properly, seeing his brows furrowed ever so slightly, lips losing their smile.

“I asked about his powers,” he corrected, raising his eyebrow.

That made Flambae turn to him, mimicking his expression, albeit with more irritation showing.

“Because of his scars.” 

Robert couldn’t argue. His eyes turned to one of the photos with the mentioned man; a big guy with short, curly hair and a smile that radiated warmth even from the still image. It would be hard to ignore the burn scars enveloping his arms and part of his neck, disappearing under his shirt. Having a good collection of scars himself, Robert wasn’t one to nag people about the stories surrounding them. Asking if his dad doesn’t have similar powers to Flambae was close to the same thing, though, apparent where the question came from.

“He’s a normie,” Flambae spoke again, back to looking at the photos. “Stupid one at that. I’m starting to think all of you fuckers have a death wish or something.”

Annoyed words were softened by care peaking through them. Robert saw Flambae’s jaw move as he bit the inner side of his cheek before taking a breath.

“I didn’t control my powers well as a kid, got emotional often. Not a great combo,” his lips turned in a frown. “He wasn’t ‘dad’ back then, he was a guy replacing my dad. A stranger pretty much, didn’t talk to him unless I had to. Thought he will be the same as that fucker, I guess.”

His eyes grew darker at the mention of his biological father, now honored by a title of just some fucker. Robert didn’t pry into why that was, as Flambae always spoke of his family with utter fondness. Clearly, the man wasn’t a part of it anymore, leaving only bitter ash behind, and Robert wasn’t going to make him ruminate on the aftertaste.

“I had an, uh… panic attack, or some shit. I don’t really remember, but it was bad.” Explaining a memory obscured by smoke in his mind had him struggle for words, his posture tensing up. “Like, really fucking bad. Everything was too much and I was burning, I couldn’t hear mom yelling, or see anything– I was really fucking out of it, couldn’t get me to calm down, no water around or anything to deal with this shit, no one knew what the hell to do because fuck, I was about to burn some shit to the ground. He was there, but what the fuck was a normie supposed to do?”

Arms crossed on his chest, his fingers were digging into his biceps, an attempt to release some of the tension.

“And then he just… Hugged me.” His voice was softer, like he felt the embrace again, shoulders dropping. “A fucking normie hugging a fucking living fireball,” he chuckled humorlessly. “He kept holding me until I calmed down, didn’t try to pull back. Just held me until the flames stopped, told me it’s alright. I burnt the living shit out of him, obviously. And that bastard just said it’s fine,” he shook his head, an upward tug to the corners of his lips. “He was set on never showing how much the burns hurt. I almost believed him, sometimes.”

There was a sadness to his smile, something mournful in his expression. Robert thought he saw more light catch on the corners of his eyes.

“Flambae…”

He blinked away the glossy look before turning his gaze to him.

“I know, I was a kid, not my fault, yadda yadda,” Flambae waved his hand dismissively like he was swatting away an annoying fly. “I have a therapist for this shit, Robbo.” 

There was a moment of silence between them.

“I'm glad Golem was there,” Flambae spoke again, quieter, like he wasn't sure if he wanted to say it to Robert, or himself. “I don't want more people I care about walking around with scars because of me.”

‘Care about’. The words pulled at his heartstrings.

“I don't know if I would do much walking around,” Robert questioned, trying to keep his tone light. “You know, not many survive getting blasted with flames on their face.”

“You explode like three times a week bitch, a little fire wouldn't kill you,” the man scoffed, like it was a ridiculous thought despite knowing how close of a call it was. His seemingly indifferent expression was betrayed by a spark of doubt in his eyes, ill with the thought of a different ending to that outburst, of Golem being just a little too slow.

Robert looked at the photos again, his eyes focusing on one showing his family on a boat. He couldn't help but find it strange — although not in a bad way — to see Flambae look relaxed when surrounded by water. He always seemed uncomfortable at even the thought of it, but his dad’s arm was around his shoulders keeping him grounded, his sister lightly touching his hand, letting him forget about his anxiety. 

“You said he got you into arson, right?” He tried to get back to the less tender topic.

“Yeah,” Flambae smiled, this time lighter. “I thought he won’t want to see me again after that, you know. Or touch me at least, no one really likes to get that close to a kid that can burst into flames at any moment. But no, he acted like nothing happened. Despite everything, he was never scared of me…” He paused for a moment before continuing. “He even asked me to use my powers. To light up a candle for him, burn some trash, show him what I can do, he was never thrown off. Never telling me to stop, to hide.” His hand wandered to his pocket, fingers tapping on the phone inside of it. “I don’t remember when he first asked me to do it, but I still send him photos. Of the fires, I mean.”

Robert raised his eyebrows, briefly wondering how big the list of criminal charges made from their message history would be. Was it his dad’s way of checking on him, making sure to know if things go downhill?

“Always covered for me when I got in trouble for setting shit on fire, too. I didn’t get caught red-handed most of the time, but anyone could’ve put two and two together and figure that a fire was caused by the kid with fire powers. It didn’t matter to him, always finding ways to make people doubt they were right or at ease up on me,” he grinned at the memory, “and then giving me tips on how to not get caught.”

“Grade A parenting,” Robert commented with amusement.

“You fucking bet. One time, the school actually called him in on a fire I didn’t even start, but they were being real stubborn assholes about it. He was pissed. I could count on one hand the times I’ve seen him get actually mad—”

“Which hand?”

That earned him a blazing glare and a punch to the shoulder, Robert letting out a chuckle.

“Bitch,” Flambae huffed, although there was no real heat to his reaction. His eyes lingered for a moment longer before going back to what he was saying. “You do not want to piss him off. I thought he might kill a bitch. He acts all nice and proper, but he can pull some wild shit – did it way more often when he was younger, too.”

“Sounds like he’d have some interesting stories.”

“Some of them are fucking crazy. And he tells them so casually, too,” Flambae’s eyes narrowed on Robert in consideration. “You should join us for dinner sometime, maybe you’ll get lucky and hear some.”

He blinked in surprise at the invitation. Was Flambae often inviting friends to meet his family? He must have, if Robert out of all people got the proposition.

“Would they be fine with that?” 

“Fuck yeah,” Flambae gave him a reassuring nod. “They would like you.”

That statement made an unfamiliar warmth rise in his chest. It felt like a high compliment, something Robert wasn’t expecting to hear. It was a foreign thing to him, getting close enough with someone to meet their family, let alone be liked by them.

“You’d hit it off with dad,” he continued, “being basic ass normies and all.”

“He sounds like a cool guy.”

“The coolest motherfucker I know.”

=========================

This is a scene I had in mind but don't see it fitting to any of my current fanfic ideas, so I decided to test the waters and make myself post it-- Need to fight that fear of posting lmao, especially since I need to figure out how to write characters better before working on longer fanfics fwejknf I'm open to critique but pretty please don't be too harsh thank youuu

Hope it turned out alright! And thank you so much for reading, I appreciate it a ton <3

[ruthirlcartoon]

[fuck-yeah-oppositeshipping]

I was talking in a server I’m in about how I view Oppo so I figured I’d copy and paste it + clean it up a little bit and archive it on here! Long post incoming o7

In the fics I was reading oppo was often a secondary pairing to bruise, which was my preferred ship while I was in and out of the fandom in jr high and high school. So I got a little taste of them every once in awhile, which sparked my interest in the pairing. Upon getting into the fandom for realzies at some point my preference shifted to them entirely (and I went from being a Jay + Cole head to a Kai + Zane head). Their dynamic, or at least the potential of their dynamic, really appeals to me!

Kai and Zane have a lot of unspoken subtext around their relationship, their dynamic is never named (like how Cole and Jay are best friends), and is something you kinda of have to go looking for. Which I think is why it doesn’t get as much attention as other core 4 ships. Sometimes I wish it was more popular, but with popularity comes The Horrors.

All the way back in season 1 when Kai says that he doesn’t miss their home, he misses Zane. The “I envy you” scene from Kai: Master of Fire. Kai being being so outwardly affected by Zane’s death. Ice Emperor Zane only having a reaction to Kai’s name out of all the names that Lloyd says. All of these carry the implication that Kai and Zane are closer then most people think. I’m actually compiling a list of all the Oppo moments I can find via rewatching the show atm for this reason

Oppo also has rather contrasting personalities which makes them fun to work with. My brand of characterization has them covering each other’s weak points, where Kai is more impulsive, Zane is more calculated. Where Kai is socially/emotionally intelligent, Zane is more analytically intelligent. Zane gets overstimulated easily, whereas Kai is typically under stimulated. I even have their pet names be on opposite ends, Kai tends to use more informal stuff, like babe, or something silly, like honey bunches of oats. Whereas Zane gets like fancy with it and will lean on the side of darling or love/my love. I also have Kai call Zane gorgeous a lot, no particular reason I just found it personally fitting agshdhd

I tend to have them be all about each other, they have a very deep connection, and get each other in a way that’s different from everyone else. Their the type of couple to make everyone late for something because they spent 15 minutes saying goodbye to each other. They have their own set of cues for each other, bother verbal and nonverbal.

I also usually portray them as being fairly physically affection, not always in the traditional way, but I think they like being physically close to each other. Sitting next to/standing close to each other, being very touchy, even if it’s just for a short amount of time, resting their forehead against each other etc etc

As with every relationship they’re not free from conflict, the contrasting personalities thing can cause strife, as can Zane’s problems with over stimulation and Kai’s problems with under stimulation. ADHA vs. Autism hostility if you will. Wether or not they resolve these conflicts in a productive manner entirely depends on what I feel like characterizing in that moment. They are either very good or very bad at resolving conflict it depends on the day.

I don’t have like super concrete labels for them, gender wise I am pretty privy towards gender-fluid for Kai and nonbinary for Zane but it does differ on au and context. Sexuality wise I usually make Kai just like general mspec or queer, and uh I’m realizing I don’t have a standard sexuality hc I use for Zane, oh well ahdjdjf

I also like including Pixal in the dynamic, very big fan of Hotwire and firewall, and I wish we got more kai/Pixal and kai/pixal/zane episodes, I think there’s a potential for a very fun dynamic there. How exactly I go about that also depends on au and context, but I am very partial to Pixal accidentally getting infected with feelings for Kai because Zane has a crush on him and then she proceeds to get mad about it.

I’d need to be asked a specific question to pull more thoughts from the vault but ye, Oppo overview complete

[rusted-fairy-wings]

Ho Rusty doth thee has't any hotwire thoughts

Cappy why are u using ancient speak on me…. ?

hmmmmm…. I will try to conjure some for you…. Because they’re so fucking silly. Like actually the funniest Kai ship to me /pos. Like their episode in Rebooted will never not be funny to me.

I think it’d be silly if P.I.X.A.L. had to update herself when they first started dating because he was so warm he would overheat her systems. They cuddle and she’s got all sorts of error warnings because he’s too fucking warm.

I also think she worries a lot with his tendency to run headfirst into things, especially when they’re younger. So whenever they regroup after missions if they were separated for any reason she very thoroughly makes sure he’s unharmed and not hurt.

Also Kai absolutely adores her hair. It’s nothing like human hair. At all. And he loves playing with it because the texture and feel is unlike any other. Cuz I hc her “hair” to be very different from Zane’s, so he hasn’t felt anything like it before. So whenever she’s stressed he gives her a scalp massage and plays with it.

Also they’re ridiculously petty. She will not tolerate any of his bs and they will get into petty fake arguments lmao. Because it’s silly

And here’s some text posts that give me Hotwire vibes :)