#“amongst other things/this thing has also been debated” with no further explanation

[welliguessimin]

Love reading actual published textbooks and scientific texts and finding them using every lazy bullshit technique taktik I learnt myself in highschool

[my-writings-and-musings]

Could you do Drift and Ravage for the oxygen loss prompt?

I absolutely can do Ravage, our dear kitty deserves the love! Drift can be found in part six below!

Part One: Here!

Part Two: Here!

Part Three: Here!

Part Four: Here!

Part Five: Here!

Part Six: Here!

Part Seven: Here!

Part Eight: Here!

Part Nine: Here!

Part Ten: Here!

Part Eleven: Here!

Part Twelve: Here!

Part Thirteen: You're Here!

Ravage

·The tale of how you even became friends with the reclusive and understandably untrusting felicon is as long as it is convoluted, but a good synopsis is that the two of you simply get one another. It doesn't hurt that you always gave him ample personal space and respected his boundaries, and the fact you don't mind meeting up in the vents is a plus for him. Bots are absolutely baffled by your relationship, so avoiding public spaces has become his preferred activity to enjoy with you, if only to be free of the gossip. Equally eager to have peace and quiet, you'd long since found ways to make his favorite spots in the vents into ideal hangouts.

·Unfortunately, today is one of the rare days he has to be away from your side and amongst the crew. On the Bridge there's some kind of trouble, requiring all the commanding officers to be present while it's sorted out, and he refuses to leave Megatron there alone. Primus knows his old friend gets blamed for everything that goes wrong eventually... Yet he's far from focused as the diagnostic scans reveal a confounding bug in the ship's programming. As worrying as it should be, his thoughts drift repeatedly to you, and how much he'd rather be somewhere far less open and bright. Hopefully this will all end soon, and the two of you can curl up somewhere to relax, with his larger body naturally fitting around yours as if made to do so...

·A teasing look from Megatron makes him realize he had allowed his dreamy thoughts to color his face with a ridiculous expression of lovestruck bliss. Pinning back his ears and flushing hot as a star, he can only be grateful no one else seemed to notice. Just as he's debating whether or not to sneak away, there's a commotion amongst the more tech savvy bots. They claim to have found the source of the programming bug; which isn't a bug at all, but a virus. Claws fully unsheathing in preparation for combat, his sense of dread grows exponentially as he puts together what is being said, realizing that something very bad is moments away. Lights flicker in confirmation of his fear. In moments the ship is flashing out a hundred or so alarms, signaling that it is more or less helpless against whatever may happen next.

·You're the first thing he thinks about as countless terrible scenarios begin to play in his mind. Between his hypersensitive hearing and smell he's nearly choked on the panic and fear growing through the Lost Light, but all he wants to focus on is you. A human has precious little in the way of defense, and with every system keeping the ship stable, there's nothing to protect you. The solution is obvious; he has to find you before something else does. When the ground quakes and an incoming transmission threatens the crew he doesn't stick around to hear the enemy gloat. A brief explanation to Megatron is all he offers before taking off, and though he doesn't stick around to see it, his old friend gives him a nod of understanding.

·Distant sounds of metallic warping and the scent of soldering tell him the ship is being breached, but also make it incredibly difficult to pinpoint your location. He's memorized every identifiable feature of yours for moments like this, but the chaos turns the air into a smog of panic, so that it's only the uniqueness of your scent that allows him to find a trail. Faster than most vehicle modes and far more limber, he's an unstoppable blur through the hallways. A path to your shared quarters forms effortlessly in his mind as he passes down the levels.

·Far from your partner, you're still recovering from the bang that shook the entire room you'd been so comfortably set up in. Dazed on the ground, you get your feet beneath you before thoughts return, and the first one is for Ravage. Unfamiliar with space travel, you feel compelled to fear the worst; what if he was too close to whatever just went wrong? Capable as he is, the Felicon isn't immortal. Dead communication lines cement the need for worry in your dizzy head. Careless to the considerable tumble you just endured, you try to think of the best possible response for both your sakes. If he's able to so much as crawl, Ravage will be headed for you, so the best thing to do is make yourself as easy to find as possible. Shallow as that plan may be, it's at least a starting point, and you won't have to go far.

·A trail of claw marks through the hallways marks a tireless and acrobatic flight of barely disguised panic. Ravage takes every possible vent into his olfactory receptors for even the tiniest whiff of you. It's a scent he falls asleep with every night, the familiar yet so unusual mammalian musk soothing him as he curled about your tiny body... Now he's panicking over every tiny whiff, if only because he can't tell if you're really okay. Foreign smells tell of an encroaching enemy spilling into the Lost Light, and from the overpowering rush it appears their numbers are considerable. Some even appear to be moving through the lower levels just a floor or two below... Hulking footsteps that are not Cybertronian register in his sensitive ears, moving with such little grace he can feel them through the floor in his perceptive paws. Anger helps him swallow down some fear. If they want to get between him and his partner, then it's their death wish.

·Finding little to be working reliably, you open the door to your room just wide enough to let you through only after multiple attempts prove unsuccessful. A lifeless but somehow noisy hallway greets you. The sounds of combat are close, or at least, you presume what you're hearing to be combat. Perhaps you hit your head harder than you thought, because thinking through what's going on is far more difficult than it should be. Holding onto the wall for support, you try desperately to think of a plan. Ravage could be anywhere, and with no way to reach him, it's impossible to plan a meet up or even attempt to learn of his status. Yet... these dire thoughts don't invoke the panic they should. It's growing impossible to even stand on your own, and without meaning to you start to lean more of your body against the wall...

·Ravage inevitably is faced with a foe he cannot evade, and for your sake, he charges forward. There's a group of them, all gathered in the only hallway that will take him quickly to your location. He can feel the heat of energy weapons simmering in the air by the time he's upon them. With the element of surprise he's able to unleash incredible damage in his first attack, claws and fangs tearing through protective armor to kill one and severely wound another before they even realize they're being attacked. Bounding between their hulking forms, he faces the one disadvantage he's always endured through combat; his enemies far outscale him. Though his need to protect as well as survive turns him into a living blender, a well placed and simply lucky strike makes painful contact with his back, cracking the armor and bringing forth a spattering of energon.

·Recovering with the aid of his own anger to fuel the final attacks, he fights on with the wound agonizing him all the while, sinking his fangs in deep to take care of the final enemy. It isn't until the last body thunders to the floor that his legs temporarily give way. He's in need of medical attention, but he doesn't dare slow down, or even get a moment of rest. Shaking legs push defiantly to get him upright, and for once he's able to be grateful to have four. The ragged pace he resumes with is only as fast as it is because he knows he's close, as your scent is now clear despite the warring smells of blood and a million other unpleasant odors. Even if all he can do is collapse by your side and keep you company, it will be enough...

·Time seems to stand still when he sees you slumped over by the doorway to the room you two share. Though you're without injuries and the iron rich smell of human blood is undetectable, he knows something is very wrong, and though every motion hurts he bounds to your side. Crying out your name, he gently nudges you with a careful muzzle. Warmth and the rythym of your heart quell his greatest fears just before you open your eyes. Not quite awake, you can only be relieved to see him again, far too out of it to be afraid. At his insistence to move you express a desire to rest instead. No amount of encouragement can seem to make you realize the danger, and thus he's forced to make the decision to move you himself, even if he's in bad shape himself. Clearly, you need more help than he can give.

·You go along as best you can when he insists you ride on his back, and it's only your considerable experience doing so in the past that makes it possible now. He tries to think through the pain, but has little luck imagining what could possibly have done this to you, and his efforts to do so are hampered further as he begins to limp forward. Between energon loss and exhaustion and fear he knows things are looking grim. It tears at him more aggressively than any wound ever could, particularly as he feels you growing weaker against him, and all he can do is beg for you to hold on. You want to, but with his body so close and the rocking of his steps, how can you resist the urge to sleep? Surely everything will be fine when you wake... It's too much for him to endure when you slip into unconsciousness, and his legs give out beneath him. Failure burns in his spark as he tries in vain to keep going, his inability to save you haunting his exhausted body as footsteps draw near.

·It's by fortune he has rarely experienced that you're happened upon by a group of bots led by Megatron. He forces himself to stay awake for your sake, refusing to let anyone separate you so long as you need care. The blur of the medical bay brings comfort only briefly, as when he's informed of the reason behind your struggle he's nearly torn apart by guilt. Seeing you with your oxygen mask confirms his failure to protect the one he holds dearest to his spark. Withdrawing from the world, he allows himself to be patched up before curling himself around your tiny body, all but shielding you from the universe so intent on hurting you both.

·The warmth of his frame so frequently is your first sensation upon waking that you don't realize something is off at first. It isn't until you feel the mask on your face that you remember what happened, but by then Ravage is gently tapping his muzzle against you to confirm everything feels alright. Without promoting, he gives a quick rundown of what led up to this moment. You're wide eyed as he explains the ship's atmospheric shutdown, particularly when he gets to the part where he tried to carry you to safety... The apathy as he recounts it all, however, is far from fitting. Laying a gentle hand on a paw, you ask if something happened that bothered him, and receive confirmation from his silent expression of sadness.

·Initially, he can't bring himself to say what's wrong. On the surface he knows his actions were reasonable, but in his spark... he's so afraid of how his own inability to save you nearly resulted in tragedy. Just the thought of losing you is terrifying enough, but having nearly faced it has rocked him to his core, and he sits in silence under the weight of those emotions. Mercifully, you can read him well enough to not need words. Ravage has always withdrawn when upset, and few things agonize him more than failure.

·Gently as you can, you encourage him to come close, pulling his helm as near to your lap as possible. The sadness in his optics nearly breaks your heart, but you're confident as you speak, thanking him for what he did to save you and insisting you wouldn't be here without him. When he briefly tries to protest, you point out that he likely wouldn't be injured had it not been for you, and he quickly replies that you're worth any scars. When you retort that you feel the same way about him, a small amount of weight appears to leave his shoulders. He recalls that the best part of loving you has always been the freedom to exist as he is, free of pressure, and that he can't be a failure in your eyes so long as he tries. It's simply easy to forget that sometimes... Allowing himself a purr, he uses his tail to most effectively wrap you in his protective body, intent on keeping the both of you safe and warm for some much needed rest. So long as you have each other, there's nothing that can't be overcome.

[babyjiminiexx]

Angel On Fire (Chapter 1)

Sinopsis/Chapter 1/ Chapter ?

Demon!andBisexual!Jimin X Demon!reader (Mention of the other members)

When you fell in love with him you had never thought you would get caught and pay for it. But here you are now, body fuming with hate and ready to sow the pain with every step you take.

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Warnings: mention of sex, swearing and mature language, mature topics... 

Author's Note: i just wanted to say a quick thank you to every single one of you for sharing and leaving kind messages about AOF!! i didn’t expect any of this and i am SO GLAD!! that you’re liking the idea and the direction it’s taking!!  💖

Also, this is kind of a chapter 0, it’s to put in situation so i’m sorry if this doesn’t have the drama y’all were expecting, i want to slowly build it and put my readers in situation so this can last as long as i can write about it and so you can really get that conection that i wish i can give you!! but anyways, i hope you’ll like this and again, thank you so so much, i’ll try to do a proper post about this!!  💖 💖 💖 💖 💖 💖 💖

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"Wow... That was... Like... WOW!", you couldn't help but laugh at the comment, "Seriously! It was the best sex I've ever had!"

You get up from the bed that was now witness of the many sins you had committed during the night and turned your head to the young boy that was laying on his back, still naked.

"Why are you so surprised?", you ask while lightning up a cigarette.

"I-I don't know! No woman has ever done the things you did to me!", he said, still trying to recover his breath, "Don't be so dramatic", you laugh.

Slowly, you make your way back to the bed, leaning your body over his and caressing his cheek, "You're actually cute, do you know that?"

"Did you came?", the boy asks. Of course you didn't. "It was great", you say placing a peck on his lips.

Humans... Specially men, always trying to do their best, but still failing at it, how sad... But what counts is the intention, they say. He was just a boy in his early 20s, you found him alone trying to get your attention at the bar a few hours earlier. It was cute how much effort he would put in his actions to see if you would notice him, and the way his blood made a single turn all over his body when you finally approached him was even cuter. You needed a distraction, again. It wasn't that hard to get one anyways. As a demon, you could make any woman or man fall for you whenever you wanted to, and you soon found that eternity could feel pretty lonely, so that came in handy. At first you weren't really down for that idea; your Master insisted that a few of his disciples showed you that being on the otherside of Heaven wasn't that boring after all.

When in the Land of Gods, any contact with the human world was totally forbidden; in the Netherworld... Boy that was a different story...

Demons found fun in playing with the human race, distantly or near them. They were so innocent, so ignorant, so... human, that living amongst them turned into your favorite pastime.

And this boy was a pretty good pastime.

"Can you stay the night?", the boy asked you with puppy eyes. Again, he's so damn cute.

"No baby, I have grown ups things to do..."

"Now? It's 4AM! Don't you ever sleep?"

"Darling, the Devil never sleeps", and with that, you got out of the apartment, going straight to yours.

Forgetting about why you were out in the streets at this time, you actually enjoyed late night walks like these. The silence. It was really nice when you spent your whole day in between noises of cars, people complaining and others. You could use this silence admire things that simple humans couldn't see, and it was beautiful.

You weren't that far away from your apartment, on your way there you just crossed the path of a drunk homeless man that kept ranting about not having wine anymore, so you being you, you gave the poor man a few gallons of it, just so he could have a little more fun out there. He was too drunk to notice how you managed to make appear the wine anyways.

Not even a second in your home, you start to feel strange. Not strange in a bad way, but surprisingly good; everything was feeling so peaceful, maybe too peaceful, way too good to be real. That strange feeling had been following you all day, you couldn't perceive what it was, but you knew it was there. A warm and peaceful feeling. You double checked your apartment, not really sure about what you hoped to find...

"So, Paris, huh?", you sigh in relief and smile at the sound of that familiar voice, "I can't say I expected to find you that far away"

"Jimin...", you left your coat on the kitchen counter and went straight to give the blond boy a hug, "Feels good to see you..."

"How long was it? 18? 19 years? Let me see you...", he took your hands and made you turn around, "2020 looks amazing on you, glad you abandoned these thin eyebrows and cowboy boots from the 2000s", he laughed.

"Come on, full denim boy, you thought you were the top in the 2000s!"

"And I sure was..."

It was good to see him again, you didn't actually realize how much you were missing Jimin until now. He was the first person to not look at you like he was about to eat you raw when you fell into the Netherworld. And he was one of the firsts to show you all the pleasures of that world too, every pleasure. You can say that all you are today is thanks to him; he was your best friend, and that explained the feeling that accompanied you the whole day.

"So, what did I miss?", he asks you while taking a bottle of red wine from your shelf.

"Nothing much...", you sigh, "the usual, I'm always here and there, trying to get fun from now and then..."

"I saw that...", he said with a smirk. You obviously knew he was there, he would never miss seeing you in these kinds of situations, you even thought you had seen him smiling at you in the corner of the dark room of the boy's apartment. You chuckle at that thought. "The boy was very handsome, very very handsome... A pity he wasn't that good..."

"What can you ask from humans?", you laugh, clinking your glass now half full of wine with his, "but i'm sure you're not here to tell me how much you like watching me get fucked by cute boys, am I wrong?"

He laughs slightly, "You're right..."

"So, what's wrong?", you could see his eyes darken at the question, which made you worry a little bit. Jimin wasn't the type to get upset or annoyed by things that easily.

"I'm worried about you, y/n... I’ve been watching you...", you didn't need further explanation.

" I don't know what you are talking about, Jimin", of course you knew.

"Y/n... Stop trying to find him... He's older than you, more powerful, more cunning... He knows you're looking for him, he has known for the past 373 years... Stop wasting your time like that..."

"If you came here just to tell me to stop you can go through that damn door and go back to where you come from. He has to pay", you said, starting to feel your body heating up in anger.

"I know you're still in pain, but it has turned into an obsession, and he will always be ahead of you..."

"I know that! I've been behind him for years!", you yell. "Jimin, baby... it's been 20 years, please can't you just forget about that for a moment and recover lost time?"

"I know...We just worry about you, we don't want to see you ruin your existence on Taehyung...", he says warmly taking your hand in his.

"Jimin, I love you, you know that, right?", he nods, "So please, understand that I cannot stop, because what you can't understand and will never feel is the pain that I've been enduring for the past 400 years, it's more than physical pain, it's more than my scars. It's my whole self burning alive from the inside every damn day."

"I know... I just want to let you know that I care about you, and even though Taehyung is who he is, I understand, and I won't stop you... Just take it easy, for you. How long have you not enjoyed things?"

"Well, twenty minutes ago actually...", Jimin sighs and laughs,"I'm not talking about that kind of enjoyment"

You knew how worried he was, and you understood it. Him and the rest of the boys back home had seen you cry tears of blood and experiencing madness at its pure form for months after you fell into the Netherworld. You remember seeing Taehyung in your dreams and waking up screaming and debating yourself so hard that Yoongi and Namjoon had to go to your room and try to calm you down by force. These two... You also spent all these months hating them for that, for using force on you, for tying you to your bed and immobilizing you for hours. But when you finally accepted everything, the situation and your current life, you found yourself apologizing to them for making them go through a few rough months. At the end of the day, they had no other choices than trying to quiet you down, otherwise the Master himself would have taken care of you, and that wouldn't have been a pretty thing to see... Tortures in the Netherwolrd were never pretty...

You never understood why amongst all the demons, these men were the only ones that showed interest and care for you; the others would just stare at you like their future meal, or try to sneak out behind you, just for the fun of tormenting you. But soon enough, your friends showed you how to handle things, and most importantly, they showed you how to be aware of your own power, your own capabilities, which came in really handy as for the Netherworld as for the human world.

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You don't know how long you've been talking to Jimin now, it just feels right. You missed him so much and now him being here with you is the most amazing feeling ever.

"Are you going to leave?", you ask, sadness suddenly invading your body.

"Probably..."

"Where are you going to go this time?"

"Well", he sighs, "I have some place I want to visit, people I want to meet, you know, the usual... I don't really want to be bothered by unfortunate visits by the others so I was thinking about Madrid... or the Philippines... or even Hawaii..."

"These are... three completely opposite places", you laugh.

"Yeah... I would like to try my luck there though, remember I have all the time I want to discover and rediscover the world, just like I’ve been doing”

“I guess you always have new people to meet and new things to see... Crazy how the world can change in a few hundred years...”, sometimes you found yourself remembering how the world used to be like. How different and great it was, even though each era had its difficulties and wars, or even pandemics, each one had its charm... You kind of missed some of these eras.

You and Jimin stayed looking at each other for a while, in silence. You don't want him to leave and you know he doesn't want to leave either, but you know he has to. It's sad though, now that your best friend found you after almost 20 years, for him to leave like that... You hoped he would stay a few more days at least, but you also understand why he wants to leave so fast. No one wants to stay in the same place for too long.

“I’ve missed you, you know?”

“I know”, Jimin answers, taking your hand in his, “but I you know I’ve never liked this frenchie style of life...”

You both laugh looking at your apartment. It was indeed the most cliché apartment in the most cliché place on Earth. It was nice though.

“Just... Be careful... Don’t do anything stupid, okay?”, you ask.

“When did I stopped making stupid things?”

“That’s true...”, you laugh. At the end of the day, you guys were still demons; any thing you did didn’t matter, at least while you don’t piss the Master off, that would be the end of you. “Will you stay here for the day at least?”, without realising it, you suddenly turned into the cute boy you left alone in his room earlier this night, and you couldn’t help but smile at the thought. 

“I guess I can... What about a tour of this beautiful and not full of piss at all city?”, he proposed, to which you accepted right away.

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It was actually a great day. You and Jimin had been outside all day and it turned surprisingly well, or maybe it was the fact that you were finally reunited with your best friend that made everything look fine. 

“I think I know this guy...”, Jimin suddenly said while looking at a painting in one of the many halls of the Louvre.

“Oh, come on! How can you know this random dude on a 250 years old painting?”; you laugh.

“Laugh all you want, darling. I think this guy died from the Plague and is still now to this day running naked through the Master’s mansion”

“You’re fucking playing with me! I’ve never seen this guy!”

“No, I swear! I took him infront of the Master and he went completely mad!”

You continued your walk through the museum while laughing and, even though it sounded crazy, talking about the people in the painting, actually recognizing a few of them. It was a random though that crossed your mind, but it was really crazy yet amazing how you knew at least half of these people, painters and painted, and humans had no idea.

“I tell you, if anyone knew that Van Gogh was busy doing lines with Pablo Escobar in Hell, they would be surprised!”, you say thinking about it.

You kept talking and walking with Jimin until noon, not seeing the time pass. You finished you visit in the museum, took an Uber and went straight to the Eiffel Tour park, since Jimin had insisted to go there to see how the Tour would light up just after eight o’clock, even though he had seen it in the past.

You would always get surprised by the amount of tourists that would be there for the same thing, fortunately, you found a free spot. Both of you sat there and just like that, Jimin took out a bottle of wine for you.

“I’ll start thinking you have an alcohol problem...”

“Yeah, probably, but who cares?”, he laughed before opening the bottle like a pro, “honors to the ladies...”

You took a sip of the red wine, suprised by the taste. It was different, you weren’t a wine expert but you could tell it was an expensive one.

“Why do you look at me like that? If we’re going to get drunk at the feet of the Eiffel Tour, at least let’s do it with luxury...”, the dark haired boy took the bottle.

“Do you know anything about the others?”; you ask after a few minutes admiring the view.

Jimin took a deep breath and started looking through his memories, “Well, I don’t really know much. I haven’t seen them in a few years now...”

“Same... Last time I saw Jin was at an ABBA concert... 1982 I believe...”

“Ah... ABBA 1982 in Wembley Arena... What an epic concert...”

“Surely was...”, you chuckled, “But yeah, that was the last time... From what he told me Hoseok had apparently left for India in 1974 and never appeared again, so I assume he stayed there for a while, and maybe he’s still there; Jungkook was permanently staying in the United States, he got there in 1953 after touring through Europe; Namjoon, strangely, ended up being present for the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, thing that I am strangely not surprised about, he obviously survived to it and directly went to America; and Yoongi, no one knew about him, everybody started losing his tracks around 1834 when he sailed for an unknown destination...”

“Well... I can tell you that Jungkook and Namjoon are indeed still in America, from what I know Jungkook is kind of a famous social media influencer or something like that... Namjoon is currently working in a big advertising company... And for the rest, I know Jin is now in Japan, but I’m not really sure why though; and for Hoseok and Yoongi, no idea... I last saw them together in 1998 I think, they apparently missed me and wanted to grab some coffee all three of us and talk about the past, and them they just vanished again”

You were not really surprised to hear that, Hoseok and Yoongi had always been the most secretive ones when it came to their private life in the human world. They showed you and educated you a LOT too, but never went too far into explanations or anything. Obviously you loved them so much too, but you weren’t surprised at all about what Jimin just said.

“I guess Jungkook and Namjoon would be the easiest ones to get in touch with then...”

“Yeah. If you want to see them or call them you know they would always answer”

After a minute of thinking, you kind of felt bad about not really knowing anything about your friends, and it felt even worse that another friend had to update you. You knew how they were, you knew that seeing the circumstances of literally everything, everyone would have went their way. But it felt weird, you guys were so close once and now everybody was separated, ad two of them were basically missing.

“Don’t think about it too much, I can see smoke going out of your ears”, Jimin’s voice took you out of your own head, “You know they still love you”

“I know”, you sigh, “It’s just that I feel bad about not being there for them or not knowing about them...”

“Y/n... We’re fucking demons, and we’re way older than you, don’t you think we couldn’t sneak out and literally just spy on you whenever we want to?”

That... was actually true. 

You never really realized that, because you couldn’t really use that power, so you just forgot about it. But if Jimin could appear just like that in a random room while you were having fun with someone, without making a noise, you supposed any of them could.

“Why spy on me when you can knock on my door and take me out or something?”, you asked; for you it was obvious, it wouldn’t make sense to spy on someone or take care of them in the distance or make random objects in their rooms to manifest their presence, like they did in the past. 

“You know how they are, they’re enjoying their stay here, they’re just doing their thing, just they want to make sure you’re okay without intervining in your life just like that”

“I guess... I miss them though...”

And it was true, you missed them more than anything. 

“Stop being sad and get up”; your friend said after a few moments of silence.

“What? Why?”

“We’re going to get fun”, he extended his hand and you didn’t even had time to think, you just took it and followed him to the nearest metro.

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You could feel yourself float to the sound of J Balvin’s voice. The discotheque was full of people and you were having the time of your life; way funnier than you going hunting alone...

Jimin and you had your eyes on a group of boys for a while now, and you were playing with them in the distance, teasing them. You obviously knew all of this was a show, because you both had them in your pocket since the first moment you entered the party, but like a lion with a gazelle, you liked watching your prey from far and play with them a little bit.

It didn’t need much for you to be stamped against the wall of the small bathroom by one of the boys with your dress up your ass. You assumed Jimin was having his fun with one of them too, so you didn’t worry too much about him, you just let yourself flow. The guy was handsome, just like the perfect mix between a young Johnny Depp and Keanu Reeves, exactly your type. And fortunately, you could see he knew what he was doing... But bad luck to you, I didn’t last as long as you wanted.

You adjust your dress, leave a last kiss on the Johnny Depp guy and leave the bathroom, looking for your friend. He apparently finished earlier than you because he was already half done with his drink.

“So?”, he ask.

“Well, let’s say I had my fun... What about you?”

“Nice guy...”, he smirks, “Come on, it’s getting late”

You could understand how what you guys were doing with people was not exactly THE THING to do for humans, they had more morals than you when it came to that, and during your life you had had bunches of arguments with passenger friends about that, but that’s just how things are. You know who you are, you know the power you have, you don’t care, that’s it, end of the conversation. 

It was nearly 4.30AM when you got out of the discotheque, the streets being full of drunk people either puking or singing with their friends. 

“Y/n...”, your friend called you; you didn’t realized he stayed behind you, “I have to go now...”

“Already?”, you fake cry.

“Hawaii is not the nearest place from here, you know?”

“So you’re going for Hawaii then?”

“Yeah I think so... You know you can always come visit me...”, he pulled you for a tight hug. 

You knew it wasn’t really a goodbye, it was more like a “see you soon”, but you couldn’t help feel horribly sad, and you hated that feeling. The only ones capable of making you feel what you call “human emotions” were your six friends. And you hated them for that.

“Thank you for today though, I had the best day I’ve ever had in a long time”, you smiled against his chest.

“Same for me... I’ll miss you... But seriously, come visit, I won’t be able to not see my best friend for another 20 years, I’ll go mad before that”

He laughs and when he starts pulling his body away from yours, you know it’s the goodbye. 

“I love you, okay?”, he says. “I know, I love you too...”

And before crossing the street and disappearing behind a building, he gave you a last passionate kiss that left you hungry for more. It was your ritual, a last goodbye kiss that meant that you’d see him again.

Yes, Jimin was your best friend, but you couldn’t deny the numerous feelings between you two, just like with the other five. But you just couldn’t let them flow. It’s not that you didn’t want to, it’s just how things are. One of the punishments of the Netherworld were to not being able to properly love someone. You felt love for Jimin, of course you did, but not the love you WANTED to. It was a big difference, what you wanted to do and what your body was able to do. And while you felt bad about it in the past, you have it like it’s the most normal thing in the world now; but still, you couldn’t stand the image of Jimin leaving you.

MASTERLIST 

[gravecinema]

Why New Nightmare is the Best Nightmare Movie - 7/27/2020

The Nightmare on Elm Street series, to me, is the finest in all of horror. It has quite possibly the most iconic villain in the horror genre in Freddy Krueger, as played by Robert Englund. Starting with the first film written and directed by Wes Craven in 1984, the series would spawn 7 sequels and one remake. Each film would become event viewing for any horror fan, and would offer something new for audiences with every installment. It goes without saying that such a franchise would ignite debate amongst fans about which film is the best. Well, I’m here to tell you that without a doubt Wes Craven’s New Nightmare is the absolute best in the series.

Wes Craven’s New Nightmare was released in 1994, ten years after the debut of the first film. By then, the Nightmare films had grown to become just a little bit stale at that point. They had supposedly killed Freddy off for good in the previous film, in an effort to end the story and the series in a definitive way. However, you can never keep a good villain dead for long, and the fans demanded that he come back. Since the prior film was not greatly received by fans and critics, the decision was made to bring Wes Craven back to write and direct a true definitive ending for the series. And boy, did he ever deliver.

Prior to New Nightmare, Wes Craven had only been involved with the first and third films of the franchise. Writing and directing the great first film, but only coming back for writing duties for the excellent third film, Dream Warriors. After the third film, Wes Craven would again go on to pursue other projects as new filmmakers such as Renny Harlin were given the opportunity to see what they could do with the franchise. During this time, the franchise would veer off into a more comedic tone than the more horrific one from what Wes Craven had initially started it off with. It wouldn’t be until Wes Craven came back with New Nightmare that Freddy would become scary again.  

With Wes Craven writing and directing again, he would craft a story that would see Freddy becoming a dark force trying to escape the film world and coming into our own. The idea was that the Freddy character had become a host for a demonic entity while the films were being made and released, and after the character was killed off and the films stopped, that entity, having gotten used to being Freddy and liking it, would now make an attempt to cross over into the real world as a purer and more evil version of Freddy.  

With the change in tone becoming more horror centric again, Wes would also change and update the look of Freddy to better represent the demonic entity that had taken the character over. This version of Freddy in Wes’ story would have the claws coming out of Freddy’s own hand, as opposed to just having him wear the iconic razored gloved. Freddy would also be wearing a trench coat as this image of Freddy was in Wes’ original nightmare that helped inspire the original Nightmare on Elm Street. Since this version of Freddy was meant to be more evil than before, he would also be given more demonic features on his face with the skin looking more ripped than burnt, as if the demon was trying to force its way out, and also having more prominent shoulders.

With Freddy coming into the real world, the film also features characters from the previous films coming back as the actors who played them. Heather Langenkamp gets to return getting to play both herself and Nancy. Robert Englund gets to play his fun self along with the new evil Freddy. John Saxton returns as both himself and Nancy’s father in a sizable role. We also get a few fun cameos of previous cast members at Heather’s husband’s funeral. Finally, along with producer Bob Shaye making an appearance, we get the man himself, Wes Craven, playing himself throughout the film.

Wes essentially plays the part of soothsayer and narrator, providing Heather with an explanation of what is happening, and with a warning about what is to come and what she must do. To defeat this new version of Freddy attacking her and her son in the real world, Heather is going to have to play Nancy one last time.

The story that Wes Craven crafted here is one of the most engaging and inspired of the series. The meta storytelling style of real people knowing that they are becoming a part of a horror film would further be explored by Wes Craven in the Scream series. He would even blend the story with fairytale elements such as Hanzel and Gretel shoving the mean old witch in the oven, and having Heather’s son Dylan leaving breadcrumbs for her to find him. This story would lead to one of the most satisfying climaxes in the whole series, and the best ending out of any of the movies.

With Freddy coming into the real world and attacking the people that Heather cares about, we even get to revisit one of the most iconic kills in the entire series, when Freddy kills babysitter Julie by dragging her up the Hospital walls and slashing her to death. We also get to revisit the moment of Nancy sinking into the steps from the first film. We even see the return of the original house on 1428 Elm Street when the movie world and the real world start to fully merge, and the actors become their movie characters once again. Heather even gets Nancy’s gray hair streak during the last act of the film, along with her pjs.

Speaking of, the last act of the film is the best in all of the films. With Heather fully becoming Nancy, she goes to Freddy’s realm to face off with him just like in the first film. It’s an intense and thrilling sequence that has you fully invested in Heather getting her child back and saving him from Freddy. Heather also gets to fully take charge here, and completely owns her role. Crafting this final climatic scene just like a fairytale has to be my favorite choice that this movie makes, and it gives this Nightmare the best final shot in the whole series.

If there’s one criticism that I have from the previous Nightmare films, it has to be how most of them ended and concluded. The first film had a great final confrontation, but that last shot is a little cringy and confusing with the story. The second film had different rules than the others and it wasn’t really made clear how Freddy was ultimately defeated. The third film was great for most of it, but it had some questionable character deaths in the last act that never sat right with me. The fourth film had a pretty decent ending and protagonist for Freddy to face, but this was the movie where Freddy started becoming more funny than scary. The fifth film has some odd tonal shifts throughout it, with Freddy’s final defeat being weirder than the rest. Most of the sixth film was pretty mediocre with Freddy’s supposed final demise not being nearly as flashy or satisfying as the others. This film though, it offered a great and satisfying conclusion: That of a mother saving her child while defeating the evil monster by burning him in an oven and blowing him up.

I can also understand while some people might not prefer this film over others. This film explores a new concept that the other films didn’t, and that can make it a letdown for people expecting more of the same that they got before. Dream Warriors gets a lot of praise from fans as being the best, and I can see why. It has some of the best kills of the series, great set pieces and designs, Nancy and her dad coming back, and Freddy is still the menacing slasher that we are familiar with. My only problem with it as I mentioned before was some of the story choices that they made with a few of the characters at the end that didn’t satisfy me as much as the story and the ending of New Nightmare. As any horror fan will tell you, killing off a character that you really want to live can leave you with a sour taste in your mouth.

There’s nothing sour about New Nightmare for me, though. Every decision and path the story takes is one that I can fully get behind. It doesn’t have any of the budget constraints that the first film had, it makes Freddy scary again, and the deaths more meaningful. While it’s true that it gets some criticism from straying from the familiar Nightmare formula like Freddy’s Revenge did, it does it in a way that makes sense, and it gives the series a satisfying conclusion. Freddy wouldn’t return again until the special one-off of Freddy vs. Jason was made in 2003, and it was strictly made for fans of both horror icons as a thank you.  

If I had to pick the best thing about New Nightmare, it’s that it provides a proper and satisfying ending to a horror series, which can be rare in the genre. Many series can fade into direct-to-video obscurity with one bad cheap sequel after the next. However, the Nightmare on Elm Street films always made for appointment viewing at the box office, and you couldn’t have asked for a better way to end the series. It ensures that Freddy Kreuger will always have a great legacy as one of the premier villains in horror, and it will always leave us begging for more. With Wes Craven’s New Nightmare, Freddy got to go out on top, and he will have us always go on loving him.

[nine-mp3]

Your Neighbor Sungho | Ch. 3

Photo Credits:

- left hand corner, @116page - center, @newat_rie

Rie (sungho) x (female) reader, fluff, slice of life, semi-angsty (?)

appearances of other OnlyOneOf and Dreamcatcher members will occur

hey so I rolled a wheel on who to write a fanfic first and got rie plus picked out a prompt to write from

warnings: alcohol, getting drunk; this fic is PG-13, some light cursing occasionally

btw i’m pretty sarcastic, there’s sarcasm thrown here and there, hope you enjoy

Description: your neighbor, sungho, from the day you've moved in has kept you up countless nights with their significant other. dancing, muffled long conversations, and amongst other noises you wished you could wipe from memory. one day it suddenly stops. those days become months.

This is Chapter 3. Chapter 1 & 2 is linked below.

Chapter 1, Chapter 2

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Sungho brings you to a diner somewhere in the city, not too far from your apartment. It was retro, old school themed. Booths and single counter top seats that stretched to the end of the building. You have heard of this place from a friend, but never came to ever try it out. The two of you picked out a seat at the booths next to the wide window view that looked on to the city streets. It’s a cozy environment, the breakfast hours being rather quiet on a Sunday morning. Hushed voices spoke, the smell of coffee yet again filling in the air, the sound of cooking in the background, the chef yelling orders, and the occasional ding of a bell to let the waiters know a dish was ready. You never thought this would be a place Sungho would like. In reality you weren’t sure what to think at all since little is known.

“You can buy as much as you’d like to eat,” Sungho said, passing you one of the menus from the side of the table.

“And that’s what I like to hear,” you said, taking up the menu gratefully.

Not too long after deciding what to order, a waitress appears to come take your orders. Not noticing at first, you realize that the waitress is one of your friends.

“Yooheon?” you exclaimed, staring at her in surprise.

She jumps, looking up from her notepad upon hearing her name.

"y/n! Oh my god!"

You’re standing up to hug her immediately. She reaches out to return it briefly, both your voices in excitement from seeing each other.

“What are you doing here? Of course, to finally come visit this diner I’ve been telling you about right?” Yooheon said, poking you with one end of her pen to your shoulder.

“Ow! Sorry, it’s been very busy. Please don’t kill me,” you said, rubbing the spot, and holding your hands up to defend yourself.

"Yeah, yeah. Save your excuses. I knew you would have come eventually."

She takes notice of Sungho, seeming just as alarmed. The other male simply gives a small wave in greeting.

“Sungho?! You’re here...and with y/n? Wait, you guys know each other?” Yooheon asked, looking back and forth from the both of you.

“I was about to ask the same thing. But please, give me my usual coffee.” Sungho mentions, folding his hands on the table top.

“Alright, Mr. Demand. As for the one who’s been ignoring my messages for the entire month. Are you...doing okay?” she asked as she scribbled down the note, concern showing on her face.

They...know each other, you thought.

“I’m fine. Just...take our orders, would you?” Sungho said bluntly, averting eye contact now.

Yooheon’s a bit taken back by his sudden attitude. You gave an apologetic look to her, mouthing one too.

“Uh, ahem. We’re neighbors, for context. Small world right? Anyways…” you said, scratching at the side of your neck nervously.

Once Yooheon has our orders and Sungho has another cup of caffeine, there’s a silence filled with unnecessary tension. You’re stirring your own iced coffee with the straw, watching the ice cubes in the glass spin.

“Sorry,” Sungho said suddenly to you.

He’s gripping at his cup handle somewhat, moving around the cup slightly in his hands. Was it a nervous habit?

“Hey, stop saying sorry to me. Who you should really be apologizing to is Yooheon,” you tell him, gesturing to the female in the distance.

There's a pause, as if Sungho was thinking again, before he nods in understanding. You hoped that your message was clear and he wasn't only nodding to get you to shut up.

“How do you know Yooheon?” he asks, eyes lifting up to meet yours now.

“Old friend from high school. You?”

“Friend of friends and... this diner. I come here a lot, if it doesn’t show.”

You nodded to his explanation, taking another sip of the ice coffee from your cup. There were a million questions to ask. It wasn't exactly proper to ask about the relationship just yet, so you were deciding on an ice breaker question. Well, Sungho beats you to it in the end.

"I know what you want to ask...about what happened with them...and I," he said, grasping the cup tighter in his hands.

"Huh? What are you talking-"

"It's fine. The walls are thin, I know. That you heard us," Sungho said, cutting you off. "And the sudden silence too."

There wasn't any point in pretending now that he brought it up.

"Okay, you got me. I am curious," you admitted, still stirring your glass nervously. "You really don't have to tell me if it's personal. The details and all. Really, it's none of my business."

"I just...want to tell you for some reason. Especially since we both were a nuisance most of the time. And yes, I was very well aware they did not like you for some odd reason. Gave them more or less reason to be louder than they already were..." Sungho explains, his eyes focused on the surface of the table. "Anyways, not the reason why we broke up. We had a small argument over something so miniscule, insignificant. They made a big deal out of it and ever since that, they haven't returned. It's been a month now. Which explains the silence and my behavior."

It was your turn to nod then, taking another sip of cold coffee. You listened carefully, keeping your eyes on Sungho to let him know that you were listening. Not that he was making eye contact with you, but you found it important in conversation. There's another silence that fills up the air. Just as you were about to speak, Yooheon arrives with the food that was ordered.

"Okay, meals coming up! One for the irritated man and one for my lovely friend, y/n!"

"Thanks Yooheon," you said, smiling up towards her.

"You can say thank you by leaving a good tip! Enjoy!" Yooheon said cheerfully, turning away on her heels to continue her job.

Once Yooheon was out of earshot, you recalled what you were able to say to Sungho. His explanation, of course, was as how you thought it went down. In honesty, someone who threw childish glares at you for only greeting their boyfriend was also on the line of making petty arguments, followed by them throwing it out of proportion. You felt bad for him.

“All I can say is...that I’m sorry this happened. Though the silence wasn’t bad for me…haha...” you responded, smiling playfully.

Sungho scoffed, but there was a laugh along with it. He began to cut a slice of the waffle he ordered. It was topped with whipped cream, strawberries, and syrup. You had the same, but pancakes.

“Yeah, yeah. I know you were probably so happy that you didn’t even check up with your lovely neighbor,” Sungho said, joking along with you as he took a bite of waffle.

“Uh-huh. Lovely. Anyways...I was worried. Kind of. It was at the back of my mind. I totally did have a nice time finishing all the work I was thrown in the past month. It was the busiest time of the year. I didn’t have time to think about anything. Luckily, we’re in the eye of the storm now. A calm point and all deadlines have been met,” you replied, grinning.

“I’m curious, or have been actually. What’s your occupation?” the other asked, changing the topic now.

“Just some office job that pays alright. I write a lot of reports, sort out files, and all that jazz. The most important thing is that I can live and feed myself currently. And you, lovely neighbor?”

Another smile dances across his lips, possibly from the nickname.

“Ah, well...I work as a barista at a coffee shop in the city. It’s a small shop, but customers fluctuate occasionally. Because people can’t live without their coffee. I’m one of said “people.” Guilty of having one too many cups a day.”

“Well, don’t worry. Same here. Whatever gets us through the day, right?” you said with a grin.

The both of you continued to eat, continuing to talk casually and forgot about the subject of his ex-significant other. Through this conversation and a meal, you felt like you learned a lot about Sungho. The both of you had similar interests, with a few sprinkles of differences like the pancake and waffle debate right in front (and it was discussed, each person telling their reason why they thought pancake or waffle was better). Yet, he respected your opinion in the end without any further arguments. This was only the surface of everything. There was more, always more. But you were glad that maybe, just maybe, after this you could finally call your neighbor a friend.

After your meals were finished and the last drops of coffee were gone from both of your cups, the bill was called for. Keeping his promise, Sungho paid for your meal. You can’t help but feel a little guilty watching Yooheon ring up his card. Then you were reminded that he needed to also apologize to the female.

“I didn’t forget, don’t worry. Also, don’t feel bad. Did you forget that you literally took care of my drunk self yesterday?” Sungho said suddenly, as if he read your mind.

“Right...okay, I don't feel guilty. Nope," you replied, sitting up straight and proud. "Hey, wait...was it that obvious of what I was thinking? How did you know?"

“Your face says it all,” he said as Yooheon comes back, handing him back his card.

“y/n’s emotions are always on her sleeve, so easy to read,” Yooheon added in, despite not knowing what the conversation was about.

“Excuse me?”

Yooheon and Sungho laughed at your response. You couldn’t help but to feel flustered suddenly, yet shocked. That wasn’t even a joke, yet they both thought something was funny. Was it your face? Huffing and rolling your eyes, you gathered your things and stood up from your seat. But you felt relieved to see them laughing together.

“Alright, alright, enough laughing at me. Sungho has something to say to you. I’ll be standing by the door and just come over when you’re done,” you said, pointing, before turning to walk away to give the two their personal space for a minute.

Sungho watched you head down the aisle, going to observe the rest of the store, as now he was going to execute an apology. Not for you, of course. For Yooheon and himself. He agreed with your words, that it was right to apologize. Afterall, he was being unnecessarily rude. That response was a result out of fear. The fear of facing people again after so long. Yooheon was one of his good friends that always checked up on Sungho. Seems like he did take it for granted. Even though he didn’t say anything yet, she knew what it was about. Glancing around, the woman checks to see if there were any new customers. There wasn’t. Her manager wasn’t in view either, so she took a moment to take the seat where you had been sitting.

“So, y/n said you had something to tell me?” Yooheon said, with an expectant look on her face.

“Uh, right. I just wanted to say I’m sorry. For how I acted before and...for the entire month prior to today. Thanks for checking up on me throughout that time period. I didn’t say anything, but I’m grateful to have a friend like you,” Sungho said genuinely.

“Aw, Sungho...it’s okay. I accept your apology, of course. I understand. It was hard, breakups are never easy. Especially when you’ve been with the other person for a long time. Together, happy...ahem. Anyways, like I’ve been telling you. Don’t keep it to yourself. Why else do you think Jisung and I wouldn’t stop knocking on your door every single day to make sure you were okay?” Yooheon said gently, adding one of her comforting smiles. “You don’t need to thank me. What are friends for? But now...just take it easy and...try to climb back into the way of your life. Without thinking about them. Screw them. You definitely deserve better. As of right now, don’t forget to take care of yourself too. You’re as important as anyone else.”

Yooheon reached out to hold Sungho’s hands, patting them. He would’ve cried there and then at her words, tears of joy mixed in with his sadness. Except it was a public area, so he held them in and moved to hold her hands back just as tightly. He nods simply, showing that he was grateful for her words. She pulled her hands away then, her eyes still wary of her manager coming out. It wasn’t the first time she’s sat down here to have a conversation with him on a slow day. Yooheon noted how you were idly standing in the distance, staring at the wall menus, and deciding what to try the next time if you were to come here.

“So, how’d you meet y/n? Was today like a random hookup or date? Looking at other fish in the sea now, eh?” Yooheon asked, leaning in closer towards him with interest.

“None of the above. y/n’s my neighbor. We barely know each other, actually. Today’s the first day we finally had a proper conversation,” Sungho said, making a face towards his friend now. “You remember right? How they didn’t let me talk to anyone. Not you, not Jisung, for even a minute. Sounds bad now that I’m only realizing now. The only time I was alone was if they were at work and I wasn’t…”

‘Wow. y/n’s your neighbor?! Talk about a small world! Anyways, I was only kidding. Focus on yourself first before anything, like I said before. And I remember that. Possessive they were. We tried to tell you, but no one sees anything when they’re too lost in love. It was bad, yes. Toxic relationship is what Jisung and I agreed on. You didn’t believe it though,” Yooheon said, sighing at her last sentence. “Anyways, we can talk more another time or…. later today? You’re free right? We can catch up with Jisung. What do you say? Just don’t want to leave y/n hanging any longer over there.”

Yooheon was right yet again. Sungho had been too caught up in love to realize the relationship he was in was toxic. A common problem in today’s society. People always attached themselves to people that weren’t good for them and weren't aware till the damage was done. He wasn’t the only one who fell into the statistics though. Outsiders could only do so much. It was always up to the person themselves who had fallen into such a relationship to pull themselves out, or not. As for his case, the one who was toxic left. So he was lucky that they weren’t in tbe picture anymore.

“Yeah...I really didn’t believe it, did I? And right, let’s talk another time..."

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After you and Sungho said your goodbyes to Yooheon, (she also did not forget to nag you to come for the coming weekend get together as she was also amongst that circle of friends), and let her resume her work, the two of you headed back to the apartment building. Standing in front each other's respective doors, facing each other, there was an awkward moment of silence. Each person wondering what to say now that the out was done and favor was fulfilled.

"Uh, so...thanks for breakfast...again. I had a fun time," you said, giving him another bright smile.

"I did as well. I'm glad that I finally can get to know my neighbor for real. Not exactly the way I  thought, as in you having to deal with me drunk," Sungho said, chuckling.

"Consider it forgotten, Sungho. Don't worry about yesterday anymore," you responded.

"Sounds like a plan. Oh, let's exchange numbers? We're friends now, right?"

You pretended to think as you fished out your cellphone from your bag. Honestly, hearing Sungho asking that made you...happy. As you had hoped back in the diner, it was spoken thought into reality. Your neighbor, a friend.

"Hmm, I don't know about that..." you joked, as you opened the phone screen.

The other simply returned another smile, going along with your joke again. You had eventually lost count of how many times he smiled today. It was definitely a lot more than in the past month. From this, you made the conclusion Sungho looked the best when he was happy. He took your phone and dialed his phone number in for you, evening naming the contact for himself.

"Lovely Neighbor Sungho, seriously? Funny. You're really funny," you said as you hit the call button so he could get your number as well. "What are you going to put my name as?"

"Lovely Neighbor y/n of course. Consistency and now matching nicknames," Sungho replied.

He picked up the call, even though he was right across from you. With another hand, Sungho searched for his apartment keys. Just to humor him, you putting your phone to your ear as well.

"Anyways, I hope you have a great day y/n. I have an apartment to clean. Shall we hang out another time again?" Sungho said, his voice echoing through the speaker of your phone as well.

"Yes, of course. I would love to."

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Author's Note: Hello! Sorry for this long gap between chapter 2 and 3. I was a bit busy for some time. Now I'm free again, so hopefully there won't be another long gap in between chapters again. The ending should be at chapter 5, but that is yet to be determined. I tend to write without an ending in mind, a flaw of mine...but don't worry! There is one for this story. Anyways, thank you for reading as always! I hope you enjoyed. Please look forward to chapter 4 ❤️!

[kpopfromtheblock]

a/n ⇾ so this ends pretty abruptly bc i’m not good at ending stories so boop… sorry! i hope that you guys enjoy it nonetheless. i might do a part two but it’s not set in stone as i have other stories i want to get out first. thank you guys so much for reading and for all your love and support! ✨

LIFE WITH BANGTAN | ot7

007

ALSO HOW F*CKING GOOD DO THEY LOOK IN THIS GIF?!!!!! I’M-

genre ⇾ fluff, comedy, implied smut, bts crack?

pairing ⇾ bts x fem reader

summary ⇾ leave it to your seven boyfriends to have a full ass debate about who is the better kisser and leave it to them to make you decide.

warning ⇾ there is a lot of headass behavior going on in this. if you squint, there some dirty talk (talks of hard-ons, wetness, horniness) — usual warnings: cringy-ness and swearing.

words ⇾ 4,297

. * 　　　 ✦     .     　⁺ 　 .  * ⁺        ⁺

“What is so important that you had to wake me up from a nap? An amazing one, might I add.” You say as you stroll into the living room with Jimin’s arm linked with your own.

Jin, Taehyung and Jungkook are scattered around the room when the pair of you step in.

You were peacefully asleep in Yoongi’s room, trying to catch up on the rest you missed the night before. Things were going well until Jimin came waltzing in the room, frantically shaking you awake. “I told you we have something to ask you.” He reminds, moving from beside you to join his members. 

“What is it?” You ask, sleepily rubbing your eyes as you stand behind the couch, waiting for an explanation. “Come sit Princess.” Jin says sweetly whilst patting on his lap.

You don’t hesitate to walk over to him. You lazily drag your feet across the floor, making your way over to the oldest member. You sit in his lap and he instantly wraps his arms around your waist, pulling your closer to him and resting his cheek on your arm. You smile at the close contact and place your arm around his shoulder before bring your hand up to stroke your fingers through the hair at the back of his head. “Whats going on?” You question with a curious brow raised.

“They want you to pick who the better kisser is.” Jungkook who is immersed in a video game (like always), blurts out for the first time since you entered the room.

“I’m going back to sleep.” You say immediately after he finishes his sentence. You stand up to make your way back to Yoongi’s room, not wanting any part in the foolishness you know is about to take place but Jin isn’t having it.

The oldest member pulls you back down on his lap almost as fast as you stood up to exit.

“Not so fast.” He says.

“You guys can’t be serious.” You say in disbelief as you look at each of your boyfriends. They haven’t moved a muscle and are as calm as ever, making it seem as though what they are asking you is the most normal thing in the world... Truthfully, it isn't the the craziest thing you’ve heard them debate about but it sure as hell isn’t the most common either.

“We are very serious.”  Taehyung brings you out of your thoughts, He hasn’t glanced at you since you entered the room. Much like Jungkook he is far too occupied by the dark colors of whatever violent, intense video is on the TV screen.

“Baby, all you have to do is tell them that I’m the best kisser in the house and you can go right back to sleep.” Jimin is sitting on the couch, now giving you his undivided attention. The pout on his lips is hard to resist but you do your best. You will not entertain their fuckery… Not tonight anyway. Not when you are exhausted beyond belief and Jin should know… He’s the one who kept you up all night… 

He probably would’ve woken up this morning wanting more of you, if you hadn’t snuck away to cuddle with Yoongi at the crack of dawn.

“Why would you ask her to lie like that when we all know the truth.” Taehyung says.

“Which is that I give the best kisses.” Jin rebuttals.

“Let me go Jin.” Jin ignores your words and instead decides to grip your waist tighter, holding you in place so you are practically glued to his lap. You roll your eyes and sigh in frustration. 

“This is ridiculous.” You groan.

Leave it to your boyfriends to have a full ass debate about something so utterly dumb and leave it to them to put you right in the middle of said debate.

“I know, which is why you need to let these inexperienced fools know that I am in fact the champion of kissing. My lips were made for it. No one can ever deny me when their lips touch mine and that is a fact.” Jin says proudly. There is confidence dripping from his words and as much as you don’t want to giggle, you really can’t help it. 

Jin is hilarious, especially when he isn’t trying to be.

“What did I just walk into?” Namjoon says as he walks back into the dorm with a few boxes of pizza in hand. Yoongi not far behind with a case of soju and a two liter bottle of cola.

You assume that Namjoon has heard the last bit of Jin’s sentence, the look of confusion on his face tells you so.

“Joon please save me.” You whine, reaching your hands out for him like a child would if they wanted to be picked up. “The guys are forcing me to choose who the better kisser is amongst the seven of you. Isn’t that ridiculous?” You ask, hoping he will validate what you know is true which is that, this whole conversation is indeed ridiculous.

“Seriously?” Yoongi says before shaking his head. With a sigh falling from his lips, he walks around Namjoon to put the drinks on the counter. He then walks over to the cabinet to pull out a shot glass. ‘Same Yoongs, same.’ You think to yourself, also feeling like you need a shot of soju after dealing with the other men around you.

“It’s absolutely ridiculous, especially when everyone knows that I have the best lips in the house.” Namjoon states, walking further into the kitchen to put the pizza boxes down.

Your mouth falls open slightly in shock. 

Is Namjoon really engaging in this nonsense? You must be hearing things.

“I BEG YOUR PARDON!” Jin shouts, almost blowing your ear off in the process. You squeal and hold your hand over your ear. The pain in your eardrum is evident. “Sorry Princess.” He says sweetly whilst rubbing your back to sooth you. “BUT I BEG YOUR PARDON!” He shouts again, just as loud as before.

“Hello?” You say out loud, more to yourself than to anyone else in the room... You just want to make sure you can still hear after having Jin yell in your ear not once, but twice in the span of two seconds…

You think your voice sounds a bit different, almost muffled but you don’t have time to dwell on the fact that you might, probably be deaf in one ear now.

“You heard me. Best. Lips. In. The. House.” Namjoon repeats and you sit there, on Jin lap, completely flabbergasted by what you are kind of hearing.

“He’s not lying.” Jimin responses, sending a wink in Namjoon’s direction. The older boy becomes fluster instantly. His ears turning a pretty shade of red.

Namjoon averts his gaze from Jimin to focus on the box of pizza in front of him. His dimples make an appearance when a shy smirk forms on his lips. It’s cute… ‘Namjoon is so cute.’ You think.

You look over at Jimin, to see a shit-eating grin plastered on his face as he watches Namjoon’s boyish behaviors make an appearance… 

Jimin knows exactly what he’s doing and it amazes you… It amazes you how he has the ability to make anyone, literally anyone, flustered. He’s that charming.

“Ok but best lips doesn’t mean best kisser and I personally think Hobi Hyung has the best lips, just saying.” Jungkook mentions. You shake your head… As much as you try to fight it, there is a small smile starting to form on your lips. The conversation that is taking place in front of you is so incredibly stupid that all you can do smile and shake your head... This your life now... Arguing about who kisses the best.

The thought makes you roll your eyes for the thousand time tonight.

“Are you guys aware of how dumb this conversation is?” You finally say what you’ve been thinking.

“I know Princess so please tell them that this is pointless because I am actually the better kisser. Science has proven this already.” Jungkook scoffs at this before shaking his head in disapproval. “I’ve kissed you before Hyung…” Jungkook says. “And you’re not the good.” He blurts out. Jin gasps, placing his hand over his chest dramatically. “I’m devestated.” Jin starts, his voice is laced with disappointment. “I can’t believe that you can sit here and lie to my face like this.” He adds and you can’t hold your laughter in any longer.

You burst into fits of giggles and it is so infectious that Jin, Tae and Jimin can’t help but laugh along with you despite not knowing what is so funny.

“Why are you laughing?” Jin questions but before you can answer, you hear Hoseok’s voice come from around the corner. 

You are just now realizing that he hasn’t been in the room the whole time. You were so shocked by the idiots around you, that you hadn’t noticed he was missing.

“Ok so the store didn’t have any strawberry milk left...” Hobi begins as he walks into the living with two plastic bags in his hand. You assume he went to get a bunch of snacks from the convenient store that was conveniently placed just a block away from the dorm.

“What did I miss?” He asks after looking up to find everyone gathered in the living room/kitchen. “Finally, an intellectual.” You say in relief. “Babe, please tell your brothers that this…” You decide that you will no longer call it a debate as it is not serious enough (or at all for that matter) to be considered one. “This foolishness about who the better kiss is, is stupid.” You groan out. Hoseok chuckles. “Are you guys seriously arguing about that? How old are we? Ten?” He says mockingly, dropping the bag of snacks on the counter. 

“Thank you!” You say, removing yourself from Jin’s laugh to make your way over to Hobi.

You wrap your arms around his waist, embracing him in a warm back hug. You press your cheek against his back and breathe him in, admiring the smell of his cologne mixed with the fresh air from outside.

Being in Hoseok’s presence is like a breath of fresh air after sitting in a room with six guys who are apparently sharing one brain cell. You love them to death of course, but sometimes they can be quite the handful.

Hoseok chuckles and turns around in yours arms so that he can wrap his around you. “You guys are stressing my Angel out with your stupidity.” He says, placing a sweet kiss on the top of your head whilst stroking your back softly. You nuzzle further into him and close your eyes. You could easily fall back asleep in his arms right now…

“She wouldn’t be stressed if she would just tell everyone that I am the better kisser.” Sassy Jin is in full effect and if you weren’t so nicely wrapped up in Hobi’s arms, you would’ve shot him a death glare but you are too pre-occupied with the warmth and comfort of the main dancer, to care.

“But thats not true.” Jungkook speaks up again. You sigh, having had enough of the idiocy happening around you. “Fine. You guys really want me to pick who I think the best kisser is?” You say, finally deciding to give in.

“Yes.” Jin, Jungkook and Taehyung say in unison. You remove your arms from around Hobi to walk back into the living room. You take a quick glance down the hallway… ‘I could just make a run for it and lock the door.’ You think but you know you wouldn’t make it very far. 

You’re fast but the guys are much faster.

“It’s Joonie.” You admit. Namjoon nearly chokes on his pizza, his eyes bulging out of his head at the sound of his name falling from your lips. “nAmJoOn?” Jungkook and Jin speak at the same time once again. You nod your head in response. “SERIOUSLY?” The look on Jin’s face is a mixture of confusion and bewilderment. “Yeah seriously?” Namjoon is in disbelief as well.

“Why do you sound so surprised Joonie? Didn’t you say you had the ‘Best. Lips. In. The House.’?” You question, mocking his tone from earlier.

“I was kidding…” He confesses.

“Well I think you’re an excellent kisser.” You inform him and once again he blushes.

“I would’ve understood, if you picked Suga Hyung but Namjoon Hyung?” Tae says as he puts down his game controller. He gets up from the couch and walks into the kitchen to grab himself a slice of pizza. “Me too!” Jungkook says, wanting Taehyung to also bring him a slice.

“What’s that supposed mean?” Joon says defensively, referring to Tae’s statement. “What does Suga Hyung have that I don’t?” He adds.

Meanwhile Yoongi is sitting on a bar stool, pouring himself another shot of soju, looking completely unbothered, as always. “Please don’t involve me.” He says before throwing back the shot. 

It seems that he’s gotten halfway through the bottle in the short amount of time it has taken him to sit down on a stool and open the drink.

“He does that thing with his tongue.” Tae says smirking. You can tell by the look on his face that he is currently having a flashback of That Tongue Thing™ that Yoongi does.

A thing with which you happen to be very familiar with. “Oh yea..” You say, voice dream as you have a little flashback of your own of the last time you and Yoongi had a some alone time. The smirk on your face lets Taehyung know that you know exactly what he’s referring to. “You know what I’m talking about, don’t you Darling?” He asks you. Theres a mischievous glint in his eyes and for some reason it makes your face heat up. You nod your head in response, afraid your voice will embarrass you. You clear your throat before speaking again. “Yes… But I still choose Namjoon.” You stand by your decision. 

“Why though? What is so special about Joon’s kisses?” Jin ask curiously… 

“If I didn’t know any better Hyung, I’d say that you were jealous...” Jimin teases. 

“I am not. I just want to know what makes his kisses so much better than mine.” Jin admits. You can hear the bitterness in his voice but you won't call him out on it.

“Joonie’s lips are just really soft... And he’s always gentle...” You praise Namjoon and he smiles brightly at you, showcasing his beautiful dimples again. “I thought you liked my kisses…” Jin says solemnly. “I do… Just not all the time. Sometimes you’re a bit rough and you bite a little hard.” You say truthfully.

You didn’t want to hurt Jin’s feelings but you did want to honest. This isn’t to say that Jin is a terrible kiss because he isn’t but, he could be a little softer.

Jungkook snorts and Jin rolls his eyes at the younger member before bringing his attention back to you. “Remind me to never bless your lips with mine again.” Jin threatens and you pout. “C’mon Jinnie, don’t be like this.” You coo, walking back over to him to sit back in his lap. “Just be a little gentler.” You say, placing a sweet kiss on his cheek.

“I’ll try.” He says, unable to stay mad at you.

“Thats all I’m asking for.”

He smiles at you whilst wrapping his arms back around your waist. “Now what is this Tongue Thing™ Yoongi does, that you and Tae seem to be so smitten with… He’s never done with it me.” Jin’s complains.

“Thats because I don’t like kissing you.” Yoongi tone is flat and uninterested.

“I don’t like kissing you either! You’re inexperienced and it shows!”

“A few people in this room would beg to differ.”

“Ok you two, no fighting.” You giggle. “The tongue thing… It’s hard to explain.” You say bringing the topic back up. You furrow your brows in confusion trying to figure out the best way to explain the way Yoongi kisses you when you hear Jin say “Show me then.” Your eyes widen in shock at his suddenness. “I’m eating.” Yoongi says from across the room before taking another huge bite of his pizza. “I wasn’t talking to you.” Jin says sharply, shooting a glare over at Yoongi before bringing his attention back to you. “Show me Princess. I must see what all the hype is about… What makes Yoongi such a great kisser?” Jin tone is a lot more serious than when the conversation first started but it’s serious in a way that sends a delicious shiver down your spine. 

You look up at him to fine that his eyes are trained on you. You take a second to glance at his lips. They look extremely soft today and are so beautifully plump.

Usually when Jin demands a kiss from you, you have no problem fulfilling his request but right now… You feel like a shy school girl, being put in front of the class to present a school project that is worth half your grade… You’re nervous.

When Jin catches your staring at his lips, he smirks and places his hand on your thigh, your body tenses slight and your face heats up even more. “Come on Princess. I’m waiting.” Jin impatiently taps his fingers against your thigh.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to do it as good as Yoongs does.” You confess, looking down at Jin’s hand on your thigh, desperately avoiding his gaze. “You can do it Baby.” Jimin encourages you. You look over to see a smug look plastered on his face. He wiggles his eye brows at you and you smile. “Show him what I taught you Kitten.” You hear Yoongi’s voice from across the room. You turn back to look at him and he sends a wink your way.

Namjoon is watching you intently as well… Come to think of it, all the guys seem to have their eyes focused on you and Jin. “Are you all just gonna stare?” You mumble, loud enough for only Jin to hear you. He chuckles at you and puts his hand under your chin, turning your head towards him so that you can meet his eyes. “Don’t tell me you’re shy about kissing me in front of the guys right now…” He says, raising a curious brow at you.

“Baby,” Jimin calls out. “We’ve seen you in much more… Risqué situations…” He reminds you.

“Kissing should be a breeze.”

“I’m not shy… I was just kinda put on the spot.” You lie. “I don’t want to disappoint.” You add some what jokingly, causing your boyfriends to chuckle. “I’ll be the judge.” Is the last thing your hear from Jin before his lips are being pressed against yours. Your eyes instantly flutter closed as the pillowy softness of his lips engulf you.

Jin moves the hand from under your chin and guides it down past your shoulder, finally deciding to rest it on your waist. He pulls you closer, pressing you further into him.

The kiss starts out soft, the two of you sweetly press your lips against each other for a few seconds before you decide to show Jin what Yoongi has taught you.

You push your tongue out and run it across Jin's bottom lip, asking for permission. The older boy grants you access immediately parting his lips for you. You slip your tongue into his mouth and are greeted by warmth and the subtle taste of coffee. You smile against his mouth, content with the taste of him. You tilt your head to deepen the kiss as you begin to swirl your wet muscle around his softly, this action causes Jin to groan against your mouth. He wants more but he remembers what you said about being too rough so he is holding back for your sake.

The sound of Jin's groan encourages you to keep going. You use your tongue to massage the top of Jin's, rolling the muscle around the top of his own. Jin slide his hand down to grip your thigh and you take the initiative to turn your body around and straddle his lap, feeling a lot more confident and comfortable about what you're doing since Jin's reaction is good.

The whole time you and Jin are making out, there is an audience gathered behind you.

Jungkook has abandon his third slice a pizza, the sight of you making out with his Hyung is way more intriguing.

Tae is sitting on his knees, watching intently with his mouth slightly agape. He can only see your back and the way your head slowly moves from side to side but that alone is enough to rile him up.

Jimin lays on the couch with a knee bent, as well as his elbow so he can rest his head on his palm. The smugness from before ever present on his face now as he watches the two of you.

Namjoon is watching with his arms crossed against his chest, wanting so badly to snatch you away from Jin but he isn't a selfish man so he will let Jin have you first.

Hoseok leans up against the counter, a small smirk on his lips as he drinks his soju straight from the bottle.

Yoongi is still seated on the bar stool with a proud smile on his face.

You and Jin are lost in your own little world. A whimper falls from your lips as Jin sucks your bottom lip between his own. Your arms are wrapped around his neck and your fingers threading through the soft brown locks at the back of his head. You tug on them softly and the grunt that slips from his throat shoots right to your core.

Of course kissing Jin is enough to make you wet all on it's own but when you add in the fact that you can also feel six pairs of eyes on you, the tingly feeling in your crotch only intensifies. You never thought yourself to be someone who enjoys being watched during intimate situations but being in relationship with seven men all at once… It definitely brought the… Adventurous side out of you and your totally okay with that.

You flick your tongue back and forth against Jin's and he wraps his arms tightly around your middle, pulling you even closer to him than before. Your chest is pressed against his. You're sure he can feel the way your heart his pounding with excitement. You can feel the bulge in his pants pressed firmly against your thigh. You fix your body to position yourself directly on top of it causing another grunt to slip past Jin's lips. If you're being quite honest, it is one of the sexiest sound you've ever heard and you are eager to hear more.

You begin to grind your hips against Jin. He sucks in a breath and you smirk, loving the effect you have on him. "This is so hot." You can hear a voice from somewhere behind you. You can't make out which guy it is at the moment but you can definitely tell they are enjoying the show.

"I bet she's so wet right now." You know for sure, that it's Jungkook's voice your hear this time.

"I bet she is." Jimin agrees, you can hear the lust dripping from his words.

"Isn't he hogging her?" By the whiny tone, you know for fact that it's Tae who speaks.

After a few more minutes of making out with Jin, you decide it's time pull away. You realize that the two of you have barely come up for air since you started kissing and although you wouldn't mind dying from being smother by Jin's mouth, you know the both of you should catch a breath.

As you pull away, Jin greedily chases after your lips. He opts for kissing your neck and shoulder softly when you turn your head around to see the younger boys eyes are on you.

It's hard to miss the tent that has grown in Jimin's pants as his legs are spread widely on the couch. "Hello Beautiful." Jimin says teasingly and you blush. "I thought you two would never come up for air." You hear Namjoon say from the other side of you.

You try to come up with a response but the lips on your neck, the large hands on your thighs with long fingers pressed into your skin are distracting you. 

"Jinnie." You breath out and he hums in response against you, loving how needy you sound. "Hyung…" Tae whines for the second time tonight. "You're hogging her." He complains. The other members laugh at the cute pout forming on his lips.

Jin finally comes up from your neck, his lips even plumper now and tinted so prettily. "I'm sorry…" He sighs. "I couldn't help it…  That Tongue™" He says. His voice is hazy, almost like he’s coming down from a high.

"It's amazing, isn't it?" Tae enquires and Jin simply nods in response, keeping his hold on your thighs. "I'm glad you enjoyed it because thats all you'll get. I won't be sharing any more of my tricks." Yoongi informs you all. 

"Then it's only fair that the three of you show the rest of us that tongue thing, don't you think?" Jimin suggest. You can always count on him to make things a little bit more fun… 

"I think that's a brilliant idea Jiminie." Tae says enthusiastically.

"I mean it's not fair that only the three of you and now Jin know Yoongi’s trick..." Hoseok points out, falling into Jimin’s trap.

“What are we waiting for then?” You say with a smirk on your face, shamelessly falling into Jimin’s trap as well. 

Jimin is quick to get up from his spot on the couch. He walks over to you and Jin and doesn't think twice about pulling you off of the older guy’s lap. 

“I want you.” Jimin says to you. “Hey!” Jin whine in protest and you giggle. “You’ve had your turn Hyung.” Jimin reminds him before walking back over to the couch with your hand in his. 

He pulls you on his lap, making you straddle him in the same way you did Jin. 

You know for sure your lips will be swollen and your body will be sore by the end of the night and you’re more than okay with that.

[smitten-miqitten]

A Fine Gift

AO3 Link

“Your nameday’s coming up soon, isn’t it Chief?” Biggs inquired, wiping down their latest prototype model of manacutter. Mk.6, or some such.

“Oh yes, the day people get to tell me how ancient I am. Don’t remind me.” Cid pouted, clearly not looking forward to the prospect.

Era looked up from her book, confused. “But you’re not old, and you certainly don’t look it”. He cheered a little at this, flashing her a grateful smile.

“Chief’d  look even  less old if he’d just shave every once in a while”. Wedge chimed in.

Jessie looked up from her ledger in agreement, “Exactly! We’ve been telling him for ages. The Chief has the absolute worst case of baby face I’ve ever seen. You wouldn’t think it, with how brawny he is. Looks years younger. A trim is long overdue.”

“I’m not shaving it!!” Cid bellowed. It was plainly a subject that had been brought up many a time before, and certainly would be again.

“You know, I actually can’t really recall what you look like without it. I only ever saw the once, with the echo, and the echo is always so blurry”. Era mused, struggling to imagine Cid’s beard bereft visage.

“Should I shave it, then?” Cid asked genuinely, not an onze of his previous vitriol present. He gave his beard an absent minded stroke, trying to decide how long he could bear to part with it.

“N..no! You don’t have to go that far…” Era stuttered, only to be shouted over by an irate Jessie.

“Oh, so you’ll shave for her, but not for us? Time and time again we’ve asked…”

“There are several things I’d do for her I wouldn’t do for you lot”, Cid shot back, a slight smirk growing on his face.

“Cid!” Squeaked the bright red Miqo'te, having caught his meaning.

Cid just grinned, loving how embarrassed she got at the smallest things. “Beard or no, someone will find a way to call me old. The fewer people that remember my nameday, the better I say.”

“Still”, Era argued, recovering somewhat from her mortification, “We should celebrate just a little bit, at the very least. It’s not your nameday every day. Is there anything you want?”

“Peace and quiet?” He suggested hopefully.

Era grinned, “Come now, let’s be realistic”.

“How about a day off?” Biggs offered, tightening bolts here and there on the manacutter.

Jessie snorted, “With the backlog of orders we’ve got going thanks to his wandering about at random? You wish!” She slammed the ledger shut for emphasis. It was true Cid had been out and about a rather lot of late, volunteering to assist the Scions largely for a chance to leave the workshop once in a while.

“A party then? After work, with the Scions and friends?!” Wedge added helpfully as he passed Biggs another wrench.

Cid groaned. “That’s the exact opposite of peace and quiet. If you want an excuse to see Tataru, I’m sure there’s something that needs repairing at the Rising Stones”, he said, having used much the same excuse to see Era on occasion, “I just want everyone to forget it. No nameday, no jokes about going grey the day I was born, just an ordinary day”. He returned his attention to his work, growing deaf to any further debate on the matter.

Nobody was quite satisfied with this, but Cid didn’t seem liable to budge on the issue, stubborn as he was. They all silently resolved to convene in secret, to come up with some way to celebrate.

…………………

Gathered around a small dusty table within  a storage room in the Rising Stones, lit almost ominously by handful of dim lanterns, Era, Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie began to brainstorm.

They had a consensus on the small details: a quiet, low energy gathering. A nice dinner, cooked by Bismarck-trained-chef Era, cake again prepared by Era, and gifts. The gift, they decided, had to be good enough to make up for the blandness of the rest of the event. They contemplated each inventing something for him, though the idea was deemed a flop on the basis that it would be nigh impossible to keep them a secret.

Era also wanted to provide him something other than her cooking, as she cooked often anyway. It wouldn’t be special. She wanted to give him something permanent, something he could use. But what could she get him that he could not make better himself? She only knew of a few craftsmen more skilled, and even they were specialists… Oh.

“Looks like little miss has an idea”, Biggs noted, breaking the long silence that had permeated the room in the wake of their combined deliberations.

“Perhaps…I was thinking that Cid might appreciate new tools. Lazy though he can be at times, he truly loves his work. Higher quality tools surely would make him happy. And it could be a group gift, as I know nothing about tools. I’ll need your expertise”.

“It’s  a good idea, for sure”, Jessie began, though the ‘but’ was evident. “Tools better than the ones he has would be a small fortune, though. He made a lot of them himself, after all”. She sounded rather disappointed; new tools would be just the thing to get him inspired to work consistently again.

Era nodded; she knew that in any other situation her suggestion would be entirely unrealistic. But she had an ace up her sleeve, or so she hoped. “I may actually be able to get such things free of charge, or for relatively little. I happen to know a master goldsmith who may be willing to make them as a favor to me, as I’ve helped his son out of a number of tight spots in the past. I can’t guarantee he’ll do it, of course, but if you all can provide me with specs for the tools, I know he’ll have the skill to make them if he does agree”.

“Who would that be?” Wedge asked, feet kicking back and forth as they dangled from his too-high chair.

“Godbert Manderville”, she said, shying away from their surprised gasps and shouts, shushing them lest their secret meeting be discovered.

…………………

As the Ironworks Crew gathered up all the details needed to make the tools, Era set to work getting in contact with Godbert. She hadn’t seen Hildy in some time (thank the Twelve), and so had not met Godbert in quite a while. Knowing he often did business with the Fortemps family, she reached out to her adoptive father Edmont, who happily arranged tea for the three of them. Godbert agreed nearly immediately, citing her dedication to his son’s well being (she neglected to point out she often had no choice in her interactions with Hildy), and so the rest of tea was spent regaling both Hildy’s father and her own with tales of her adventures, at their combined request.

With the specs from Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie, as well as the high quality materials Era gathered and provided, it took Godbert next to no time at all to craft a full set of of the finest instruments imaginable. Truly, his craftsmanship was a  wondrous thing to behold. Era couldn’t thank him enough, expressing her gratitude profusely until Julyan demanded she hush up already and be on her way. Packed away in a custom case, everything was now ready for the big day.

…………………

Cid’s nameday started, as he had requested so vehemently, as any other. He did, however, take a bit more time that morning to sleep in, indulging in early morning snuggles with his darling Warrior of Light. After stretching with a loud series of pops emanating from his joints, Era teasingly asked after the state of his ‘aged bones’, earning her a furious tickling until she relented and apologized, laughing away.  A light breakfast was followed by a surprisingly easy day of work, during which Cid was curiously allowed to work on whatever he pleased with no pressuring about impending deadlines. He couldn’t possibly miss the air of excitement emanating from his employees and sweetheart, and began to brace himself for whatever surprises they had in store for him despite his prior protests. But that’s part of what he loved about all of them; they never truly listened to everything his damnfool ass said, ever insistent whenever they thought themselves in the right, all just as bullheaded as he.

Era prepared a truly marvelous meal and equally marvelous cake, just as he suspected she might. Regardless of the quality of her training, her culinary talent was astounding. It struck him as rather a missed opportunity, that she could not live indulging in her love of botany and cooking. A greenhouse and cafe would be perfect for her, surely to rival the finest establishments in Eorzea. It saddened him a little, but he had little time to mull over the misfortune, as everyone became increasingly antsy, whispering amongst themselves as if he couldn’t hear. Biggs reached into one of the taller cabinets, one Cid often had trouble reaching and thus avoided out of frustration, and pulled out what appeared to be a rather ornate toolbox. It had several bows looped around the handle, cheesily colored in the Ironworks blue.

“Open it!”, they all said in unison, their excitement uncontainable. Chuckling and doing as bade, he opened the box to reveal the finest set of hammers, wrenches,screwdrivers, and myriad other oft used tools he had ever lain eyes on. Surely, a set of this quality must be worth all of Mor Dhona. “How in the seven hells…” Cid started, baffled eyes searching the four staring back at him with baited breath.

“I called in a favor”, Era offered in a hardly sufficient explanation, beaming away.

“Go on then”, Wedge prompted, bouncing up and down in his seat, “give the hammer a try!”

Cid did, finding the grip perfect for his hands, the weight of the implement ideal. Words were lost to him, though by the looks of his companions’ faces, his reaction was more than sufficient. He was positively itching to use the set now, countless inventions springing to mind unbidden. Standing upright, he began to gather up the box, already sketching out plans in his head. The Excelsior would appreciate a tune up, right?  Giving Era a loving kiss and the others a mighty hug, he near bolted from the room, followed by their fond laughter. They knew him only too well.

[philipronans]

go where you breathe free [1/7]

this was meant to be a oneshot for @gxldentrio‘s birthday but as per usual things ran away from me and now i’m in hell. this also isn’t what i originally intended, hence why it’s late so for that i’m sorry! sirius is pretty depressed in this, just in case anyone needs to take care of themselves - i don’t think trigger warnings are needed, he’s just very in his own head about it

the first week

Sirius wakes up to the smell of something floral wafting through the open crack of his bedroom door. He battles, briefly, with the exhaustion pulling at his eyelids, and kicks his legs free of the duvet, pushing it towards the bottom of his bed. It’s hot, even for late May, and although his curtains are drawn tightly across his window he can already feel sweat starting to prickle against the backs of his knees. Sitting up is a task in and of itself; there’s a lethargy settled in the very marrow of him that means it takes him a few attempts before he succeeds.

Finding clean clothes quickly becomes another adventure, hidden amongst everything else on his floor as they are, like flakes of gold buried in the sand. Not that he even needs to get dressed, really - it’s not like James, or Lily for that matter, have never seen him in his underwear before - but there’s a voice in the back of his head whispering with the volume of an earthquake to do it. So, he roots around for a pair of jeans that aren’t obviously stained with anything, and then has to sift through several t-shirts before managing to find one that doesn’t smell like three day old Chinese.

Sirius kicks wearily at the pile - more like mountain, if he’s being honest - closest to him, and sighs. He doesn’t bother promising himself to clean it up later, just turns around so he doesn’t have to look at it anymore, and picks his way over to the mirror in the corner. The Sirius in the reflection is wan, dark circles taking up residence under his eyes, and he prods at them with the pads of his fingers. He flicks idly at the sleep gathered on his eyelashes and then scrapes a hand through his hair to pull it into something resembling a ponytail. It’s been a few days since he last ran a hairbrush through it, and it shows. Pursing his lips, Sirius rolls the hairband from his wrist and double ties it.

Lily is already in the kitchen by the time he wanders in, scratching at the stubble lining his cheek and trying to ignore the way it catches on his fingertips. A huge bouquet of flowers - that he won’t even begin to pretend he knows the names of - lays on the counter separating the kitchen from the dining room. A vase stands at her elbow, filled halfway with water, and she’s got the sachet of flower food in one hand, a pair of extremely large scissors in the other. She doesn’t look at him until the last drop of food lands in the water, but when she does, her smile is brilliant.

“Good morning!” She says, stepping away from the counter so she can drop the packet and the cellophane wrap in the bin.

Sirius watches her for a few moments before the smell of whatever the flowers are gets him to edge a little closer. “Mornin’. Where’s James?”

“Nipped over to Tescos.” She says, letting the lid of the bin clang shut again. Then she shifts a little so she can quickly wash her hands. Lily’s eyes are kind when she glances over her shoulder at him. “You sleep okay? James said you might have trouble because of how sodding hot it is.”

There’s a warmth in his chest that Sirius doesn’t have the words to explain, so he shrugs. He shuffles over to the fridge and doesn’t even bother getting out a glass before taking several long pulls from the carton of orange juice (without pulp, he’s not an animal). “It was… okay.” He says eventually, ignoring the face Lily pulls when he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. “It’s been worse.”

There are parts of him that Lily’s missing, that he refuses to let her see no matter how much he trusts her, but just this once she seems to hear what he’s omitting because she’s smiling again. “That’s good.”

It doesn’t take long for Sirius to grow itchy with the way she’s looking at him, so he quickly sets about getting himself breakfast instead. He has no idea what the time actually is, but in his humble opinion, there is no wrong time for a bowl of coco pops. No matter how many times James tries to convince him they’re rank. Sadly, there’s only one box left - the variety pack he’d bought slowly dwindling until all he’s left with a rice krispies. He pulls a face, even as he resigns himself to the fact he’s going to have to get more at some point.

Lily waits until he’s got his head buried in the fridge again, with his bowl tucked against his chest, before saying, “There’s no milk left.” The smile she gives him is mischievous, and he can’t even find it in himself to be annoyed about it.

Sirius would be lying if he said he doesn’t briefly consider using the orange juice instead. Briefly. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time. Instead he lets the door fall shut with a thud and stares forlornly down at his cereal.

“James should be back soon, I think. He wasn’t going out for much.” Lily offers, and when he lifts his head long enough to look at her, she’s leaning against the edge of the sink with her arms crossed loosely under her chest. Her smile is kind. He tries not to see the pity in it, and ducks his head back down.

Instead of answering her, he moves over to the dining table, footsteps inneringly soft against the floorboards even now. He slumps into the nearest chair, bowl sat in front of him, taunting, and he reaches out to grab a handful. Popping a few into his mouth, Sirius starts chewing hard enough to feel it in his jaw. His eyes are unfocussed, staring aimlessly at the photograph hanging on the opposite wall. None of it gets processed, it’s all just one swirl of colour bleeding into another.

An undetermined amount of time later - although it’s probably only a few minutes, given the meagre dent he’s made in his coco pops - Lily places a tall glass of orange juice at his elbow.

Sirius manages to drag his attention from the wall long enough to meet her eye. “Thanks.” He mutters, voice barely more than a croak.

Lily hovers for a moment, clearly unsure of whether to sit down with him or not. It doesn’t take her long to make her mind up, though, because she leaves him alone - he’s grateful for that, too.

The quiet isn’t… nice, exactly. But it’s peaceful; gives him time to come back to himself. It happens slowly, as it so often does; colours bleeding into each other until they become tangible - things he can reach out and touch if he wants to. For the moment he just focuses on the table, the wood worn smooth from countless days spent just like this one.

The universe is a metronome and Sirius the pendulum, tick tick ticking through his own existence without hope of ever slowing down or stopping. Sometimes he falls out of rhythm, whenever life decides to knock him off kilter, but he always manages to find his way back eventually. Today is no exception, and once he feels present enough in his own head to actually do something, he fiddles with the glass of orange juice for a brief moment before downing half of it in one go.

He takes it with him, dangingling it loosely from his fingertips, when he finally gets up. The bowl gets left behind, but he makes a silent vow to actually eat as soon as James gets home. Their flat isn’t exactly small, especially given they’re in London and the rent is cheap, but there aren’t all that many places he can go other than his room. So when he ends up in the living room, Lily doesn’t so much as blink as she puts her book down and reach for the remote. She doesn’t even seem to notice the magazine that goes careening off the coffee table onto the floor.

Instead she raises an eyebrow at him and gestures with the remote. Her nail varnish is chipped around the edges, jagged electric blue in stark contrast with how pale she is. “Wanna watch something?” One of the wonderful things about Lily, and there are several even if Sirius is loathe to admit it, is that there is never any expectation. He’s free to do, or not, whatever he pleases whenever he wants - it can be overwhelming sometimes, just how free she lets him feel.

For the first time this week he doesn’t feel like he has to escape back to the safety of his bed, so he sets his glass down on one of the free coasters and picks the magazine up as he sinks into the sofa cushions. It’s not a big sofa, by any means, but sometimes it feels like they’re on opposite sides of a very large chasm. Sirius meets her excited little grin with the smallest twitch of his own mouth. Maybe not quite a chasm.

“What did you have in mind?”

-----

They’re only half an hour into their chosen movie when James gets home, but Sirius is barely paying attention anyway. There had been a brief, albeit passionate, debate on the merits of shitty horror versus shitty sci-fi, before they’d settled on a low budget, straight-to-DVD slasher.

The only noise James makes for a few minutes is the rustling of plastic shopping bags - more Bags For Life, from the sounds of it. Just their luck. Sirius finds himself glancing over at Lily when cupboard doors start banging, and he isn’t entirely sure why, even as she sinks further into the cushions.

“I’m too lazy to move.” She says by way of explanation, and it’s enough to get a laugh out of him. It’s rusty, catching in his throat in its desperate bid for freedom, but it makes Lily’s eyes soften. Sirius pretends he doesn’t notice, even if there is a heat in his cheeks he can’t quite ignore.

Thankfully Lily turns back to face the screen, leaving him time to try and make his body do what it’s told. The murderer lumbers out of the woods just as Sirius manages to push himself to his feet, hatchet swinging from their hand as they hunt down one of the incredibly dumb teenagers that somehow always seem to be the protagonists.

“Want anything?” He asks, because despite everything else that might be said about him, he still has manners.

Lily watches him for several seconds, but just as it starts bordering on too long she shakes her head. “No, thanks.”

Nodding, Sirius snags his glass and then quietly pads out of the room, followed by the sound of the first kid being hacked to death.

There are a lot of things Sirius is ready and willing to brag about being good at, but one of the few things he truly prides himself on is his ability to be very quiet when needed. The noise in his head is so loud, all the time, that he’s always used his own silence as a weapon. Even now, it’s no different, and the way James smacks his head on the open cupboard door is both validating and hilarious. Sirius doesn’t do anything more than snigger as he pads over to the sink so he can rinse his glass out - experience has taught him more than once just how disgusting dried juice is to clean.

“You have got to stop doing that.” James grumbles, rubbing at the vaguely pink mark on his forehead. Sirius has to fight down the urge to wrap his fingers around James’ narrow wrist, something strange coiling in his belly.

He tries not to think about it too hard. “You’re gonna make it worse.” He says instead, rocking back on his heels and shoving his hands in his pockets. “I thought being blind meant everything else was enhanced, anyway?”

“That only works if you abide by regular human physics.” James says, voice nearing on a whine. There’s a glint in his eye that suggests mischief, though, and Sirius feels something in him settle. James shakes his head, roots around in the nearest bag for a moment, and before Sirius gets a chance to see what he’s doing, something sharp hits him in the chest. He has to scrabble to catch it, but when he looks down it’s to see a new variety pack of cereal against his chest. “You’re almost out, right?”

Sirius eyes him curiously for a moment, that same strange feeling settling heavy in his lungs and making his breath painful. It eases as Sirius smiles. “Cheers, mate.”

[my-writings-and-musings]

hey! so idk if you write platonic relationships but if you do, could you write something about whirl asking someone to be his amica endura? i just. i need more whirl love in my life and GODDAMN i love the way you write him sm gshdjf,,, thank you!! <33

I miiiiggghhht have gone a little overboard on this one and made it more of a short story than an answer... But I hope you like it! Thank you so much for the compliment, I do try my best to write Whirley well!

Whirl doesn't like to let fear boss him around. Ordinarily that's easy enough to accomplish, he's a big bot and threatening his life is a great way to end yours, and any threat he can't kill (for moral or legal reasons) can usually be ignored out of existence. As a result he's had very little to be afraid of these past few millennia, and he's even perfected his reflexes to the point he can quickly judge what reaction is warranted whenever that creeping feeling returns, meaning it never lasts more than a few minutes tops. It's a solid strategy, and the proof is that he's outlived everyone who's ever doubted it. Most of them, anyway. He's been getting sloppy since this whole quest thing.

Or more specifically, since he met you on this quest thing. The quest thing that's becoming less about the quest and more about the real treasure you've all gained along the way, which for once isn't the (many) guns he's found or the (countless) bad guy corpses he's left in the rearview mirrors.

Nope. It's you. The squishiest little air breather his optic has ever beheld, and darn the saps on this crew for rubbing off on him, because he wants to go out of his way to let you know that. Their silly insistence on honesty has made him feel like you need to know what you mean to him, and isn't that just ridiculous?

But if it's so ridiculous why was he scared? Because you could say no, damn it! You'd be silly not to! It was one thing for you to hang out with the ship's resident screw up and part time nutjob, maybe even have a drink with him, and sure you'd actually called him your friend and the two of you had looked death in the eye to insult its cataracts on more than one occasion together... But to officially declare to the crew and the universe you were Amica Endura and that you actually liked him?

You'd be mortified he even thought it was okay to ask, obviously. Then you'd wisely cut all ties and pretend you didn't know him, and he'd be left with... well, not nothing, but not much above nothing either. Worse actually now that he considered it, he'd probably be left with pain. The kind of pain you only got when you lost something, a particular experience he'd spent a very long time trying to ensure he'd never have to endure again, and he'd been doing pretty well until you showed up. But he wasn't mad at you, he was mad at himself, both for having the audacity to grow feelings and then getting soft enough to actually acknowledge them like a sap.

But facing fear was far better than the alternative. If he kept on pretending you were just another chum, that you didn't deserve the title of Amica for what you meant to him, then he'd have guilt. More guilt, to be specific, and he was already fully stocked on that. So... fear it was then. Fear and the inevitable pain that would follow when you did the only sane thing you could.

But hey, what was another mistake in the pile, right?

You'd been in your room by yourself, just relaxing an perusing the wonders of interstellar Wi-Fi, when he'd decided there literally couldn't be a better time. Some bots insisted that a proper ceremony required witnesses, but those bots couldn't judge him if there were no witnesses, now could they? Checkmate, seeing as how the two of you would definitely never speak to each other again after this... His claws had knocked on the door with as little force as he could muster, some part of him hoping you wouldn't hear and he'd have a reason to retreat, but as usual he also had to open his mouth and ruin that plan.

"Hey, Y/N, you uh... you alive in there?"

Approximating a facepalm as best he could without either half of the required components, his spark dropped when you replied with a good natured laugh, probably thinking he was just being his usual self and not making much sense. Which was true, just not in the usual way...

You'd happily opened the door with a command on your data pad, inviting him to come in and relax because you weren't up to anything anyway. Claws clacking together nervously, he'd entered with an unconvincing veneer of calm, far too worried to really pretend otherwise. Long legs carry him with slow steps, and he can't help but survey your room; he's certain this is the last time he'll ever see it. Your tiny belongings looking so ridiculously small in the Cybertronian sized living space, the ladders that have been welded to everything, gosh, is it foggy in here or is that just some emotional turmoil in his optic?

"Whirl? Are you okay?"

Of course not, but thanks for asking is what he wants to say, but a more accurate reply would involve him mentioning how things were actually really okay for a while... Until he'd started messing it all up, a process he'd be finishing up now so you could both move on with your lives.

"Oh... that's a matter of debate." He finally brings himself to say, claws firmly pinched to prevent him from any further tapping. You look more concerned than baffled, which is nice. Somehow you'd always managed to look past what he said to understand what he means. That's something he'll miss, once he finally manages to get this over with. Of course his voicebox is pitching a fit and refusing to cooperate, but it's going to be a simple series of steps once he gets it going. He'll ask you to be Amica, you'll refuse, and then he leaves. It's such a simple plan that even he can't find something to blow up in the process. Not for lack of trying, mind you...

"Is there something you need? You've been a little off lately." You said, putting aside your data pad to move to the edge of the berth. It hadn't escaped your notice that the usually loud mech had been growing quiet around you as of late, his one optic looking almost forlornly in your direction when he thought you were focused elsewhere, and so you sat and let your legs dangle off the berth to let him know you were listening. His antenna twitched backwards like a startled ear on a mammal.

"Me? Well, I'd be inclined to say..." Some half attempt at a joke died before it even could be set up, and he quickly decided the stalling had gone on long enough. If he had to endure one more second of gnawing apprehension he was going to have to destroy something exceptionally expensive to shake off the nerves, and he had just gotten his room the way he liked it. Better to go down with some dignity if he could. "You're spot on, actually. I've been off because I've got something I've gotta get off my chassis, but it's not gonna be fun for either of us. Still needs to be done though, ain't that a shame?"

Any other person on the ship would have been terrified if he'd said that to them. They'd have expected some kind of terrible bodily injury, no doubt, but you knew him better than that. You knew that if he wanted to hurt anyone it would happen as soon as he entered a room, and with something way more intimidating to kick off the fun. Instead your expression was just thoughtful, concerned, and only a little confused. "I... if it upsets you then yeah, but why do you have to do it?"

"Do you know what an Amica is?" He blurted out, the words almost hurting as they came into being. It felt like he had just struck another match, surrounded himself with fuel, and this time there'd be no interruptions.

"Amica?"

"There an echo in here?" He said dryly, unable to help jumping on the chance for an old classic. Apologetically lowering his optics, he released a quick bit of air from his vents in imitation of a cough. "Yeah, that, know what it is?"

"Sure, it's like... best friends, only way deeper, bound for life." You said, recalling it amongst the many Cybertronian terms you'd been learning these past few months. It had obviously had cultural implications and connections you just didn't have the experience to understand, but the importance of the practice had been abundantly clear from the moment you first heard of it. Chief among the things you'd been able to determine was that it carried no less weight than being a Conjunx, it was just a different kind of love.

He clicked his claws together in an imitation of an affirming snap. "That's the one. It's tough to explain to aliens, but that's the basic rundown, and there's a whole ceremony to it and everything. Did you know that?" He appreciated that you only shook your head and looked back to him for an explanation, it made it quite clear you were intent on listening as much as possible. "A bot has to ask the one who's less likely to ask, and they get to say yes or no during the ceremony. I'd imagine by now you've figured out I came here to ask you to be my Amica, start the ceremony and everything, only thing stopping me is I... just don't want to."

It was the first time he'd surprised you in a long time. There had been... well, you'd been fairly certain he was leading up to something else there, and had just been nervous. You had to repeat back what he'd said in a question for clarification. "You don't want to ask me?"

"What? No! Don't put words in the mouth I don't have!" He replied vigorously, taking a step closer to your berth and throwing up his arms in total consternation. Upon seeing your comforting near smile of reasurance, he drops his claws and holds them near his face, a gesture he typically only performs when anxious. Thoughts are beginning to run wild in his head, so he knows he'll have to wrap this up before they sidetrack him, or he'll never get it done. Bless your little fleshy fuel pump for wanting to comfort him, but there just isn't time for that. "What I'm trying to get across here, or say or whatever, is that I want to but I shouldn't..."

"Ah... why shouldn't you? Does me being a human make it... illegal?" You ask, finally getting an inkling as to what's going on. As usual, his burying of the lede means you're far less shocked than you should be now that he's actually getting to the point, but you want to use that to stay calm. Whirl has been a dear friend to you, as protective as could be from the moment he decided he liked you. The least you can do is be what he needs by letting him talk things out in a way that works for him, even if it feels so much easier to cut to the chase; you'd love to be his Amica no matter the hurdles.

"You and I both know that would only make it better. Illegal friendship? Sounds more like an endorsement than a deterrent to me." It's hard for him not to laugh at the very idea. If this was actually against some law? Oh, how very different things would be... Somehow he'd feel okay then, perhaps because this would just be another of his crazy ideas, and not something sentimental and completely irreconcilable with who he was. Previously upright antenna drooped low at the disappointment. "But... no, no such luck. It's not illegal for me to ask you, just stupid, because you're going to say no."

Suddenly so many things made sense, but in the shock of sadness that followed you couldn't help but speak, your own disappointment showing through. "I am?"

"Well of course you are! That little pink glob between your ears is smart enough to know better! If you were most saps, sure, you'd probably say yes because oooh friendship, but the fact that you're sensible enough to say no is exactly why I want to ask!" He replied, sounding emphatic instead of angry. Despite being a master at appearing mad for the sake of self defense, he can't bring himself to appear anything but... sad. Every part of him is wilting from the sadness that's clocking in early. Because you have to say no, that's just how this works, and his resignation to that fact is clear no matter how badly he wishes it wasn't true. "Believe me, I know what smart looks like. I know what sensible looks like. Most people have a terrible deficit of the two, but not... not you. That's what makes you worth asking, and also worth saying no. Weird, huh?"

Your heart is breaking, somewhat for you, but mostly for him. Did he really think he was unworthy of friendship? Of any kind of love? Clearly you were his best friend, but in the fog of self loathing clouding his vision, he's convinced himself that it has to end now that he truly feels he isn't alone. "Whirl..."

Venting in sharply, like a human sucking in a breath to hold off tears, he perks up and gestures a claw back over his shoulder. "Look, I'm just going to save us both some drama and skip to the part where you kick me out. Since I'm nice, I'll even pretend you're big enough to actually do it. I'll throw myself into the hallway and everything, really seal-"

"Whirl." You say softly, knowing that yelling won't help but desperate to keep him from leaving. It works, but he pretends to be interested in the floor, crouching like he's preemptively flinching away from a hit. It's not the first time you've seen him do this. Coming to understand the big bot had been more natural for you than most, but had still taken effort, and in all the trial and error you'd learned he just needed things phrased a little differently. Thus, you decided to give what you'd learned a final trial.

"Can I at least... actually get a chance to say no?"

It was just indirect enough to immediately catch his attention, but his wounded look remained unchanged, like he didn't dare hope.

"Any particular reason why?" He asked, tilting his helm as if you've piqued his interest with a daring and devilish scheme. There's a lot going on behind his optic, but you're unflinching as he levies it back on you, smiling to emphasize you have nothing to hide.

"It's... well, it's not really fair for you to decide something for me, is it? Even if you know what the answer will be, shouldn't I get the chance to make that choice myself in the moment?"

He clacks his claws together to imitate snapping fingers. "Damn it all, you're a clever little fleshy, I'll give you that. Appealing to my peerless sense of justice for self determination to get your way." The mask of neutrality is razor thin, and beneath it he's anything but calm. None of this is going the way he planned. Far from casting him out, you're encouraging him to go through with this, but why? You can't actually plan to say yes, so why all this fuss? It's not in you to set him up, but he can't bring himself to hope he has a chance at the impossible... So he just plays along like it's all a game, albeit a very sad one, and one he intends to play carelessly. "If you... I'll give you the way to say no and the way to say yes, okay? That way you'll... really mean it when you say no."

"I promise I'll mean it." You say, wishing so badly he'd believe you wanted his friendship. It'd be so much easier than coordinating with him to give you a chance to accept his Amica proposal. Yet you know his manner of processing can't be argued with, so instead you just keep going, praying he'll let you have a chance to show how much you care. "But I need to know how it all works."

"Well, I'll say some fancy words, show my spark, all that mushy stuff most folks love." He waves his claws about, as if to brush away the silliness of the ceremony right there. The idea of baring a spark surprises you, but you keep quiet, focused only on getting through to the part he's convinced himself won't happen. Even as he continues his pessimistic prediction is obvious in his tone. "Then, when I've said my piece and pause, you just say "I refuse" and it's all over, we don't have to talk again, I'll leave and..."

If you were close enough you'd have laid a reassuring hand on his shoulder, but thankfully your silent look of encouragement does the job, and he overlaps his wrists whilst looking away.

"But if you were going to say yes, hypothetically, then after my pause you just go quiet and... put your little digits on mine... Then repeat after me when I say "today, tomorrow and always" to wrap it up. But since that isn't happening, let's just get this over with, eh?"

It's the flattest one of his jokes has ever fallen. For all his skill keeping his feelings reigned in, even he can't prevent a little bit of intimidation slipping through. It's impossible not to be afraid, because he wants so badly to hope, but he knows what happens when he does... Still, he wants to at least get it over with, and he gathers himself just as you give your final encouragement with a smile.

"Lets."

Clearing his vents, it occurs to him that he's never been more self conscious than he is right now, which is an unfortunate feeling to prelude him baring his spark.

The soft glow fills the room as he shifts back his chest plating, revealing the orb of his "soul" as you'd once called it, and he internally admits that your quiet expression of awe gives him the boost he needs to start. "I bid you stand in the glow of my spark... so um, that you may feel the heat of my words and k-know them to be true."

It's arguably one of the only times he's ever stuttered, and while you don't react, he's never felt more foolish. Was it not enough for him to make a spectacle out of himself just by doing this? Did he really have to butcher the whole process too? Feeling dizzy, he forces his voicebox to try and start making words again. He's painfully aware of how ridiculous he looks; one eyed, mangled screw up trying to be sentimental... But darn it all, he made a commitment. Putting his claws beside his spark, he kept going into what he knew would be a bitter end.

"I invite you to receive my light and in doing so become my Amica Endura—from now until forever."

He doesn't realize he's at the end until he runs out of words. The fear and helplessness that follow are akin to the level he'd experience falling off a cliff with no flight to save him, and for an eternity he's left floundering in anticipation of the impact. This is supposed to be it, the moment you turn him away and rightfully go forward in life, better off for having left him. But you're quiet. Your words of dismissal aren't forthcoming, and your soft and somewhat sad little smile doesn't indicate that he should expect them. But why not?! Why won't you say them?! What could you possibly hope to gain by accepting?

You hardly dare to breathe as you wait for him to begin the next phase. The glow of his spark illuminates everything, allowing you to see the fear in every inch of his being, particularly his lone expressive optic. He doesn't want to believe you're saying yes, as much as he treasures you, he just can't believe you'd ever feel the same about him. But you do, and you try to communicate that with every fiber of your being. You want to be friends with him through anything that may come, and you pray that he can see the depth of your conviction in your eyes.

Something like a hiccup shakes his shoulders. You haven't refused him. It's been almost a minute, the light of his spark fluttering as the sheer power of his emotions coursed through it, namely his disbelief that any of this could be real. Something like relief but a million times stronger makes his vents hitch. He's still processing the turn of events when he remembers he has more to say.

"Ah... Y/N... for you... um... for your acceptance..." He croaks, trying to keep an accursed tear from leaving his optic by briefly tilting back his helm. You're similiarly affected, but you let yourself sniffle and shed a few tears as he approaches with his claws out to you. They're big enough that even a semblance of holding hands isn't really possible, but you grab the tip of each and squeeze regardless, knowing the sentiment is still quite clear. You're his friend, and you always will be, through thick and thin. Now he's finally starting to see that too.

He doesn't fully have a grasp on the fact that this is real, but he doesn't care about that as much as he should. You were his Amica Endura, his dearest friend, and you somehow liked him enough that all the baggage was worth it. With one of your tiny hands on each of his clawtips, he finished the ceremony. Each word felt light as a feather when he spoke it. "As you are to me, may I be to you—today, tomorrow, and always."

"Today, tomorrow, and always." You echo, meaning it with everything you are. There's no grand finale, but the emotion in his optic and quivering antenna is more impressive than any supernova. He doesn't seem to want to pull his claws away as he shifts his chest plating back into position, and you're happy to oblige, keeping a solid hold on his claws as if your tiny body is his lifeline.

"You didn't say no." He says as the glow of his spark disappears. It's a tone for a statement but he obviously wants it to be a question, and he only keeps it from being one because he's still too overwhelmed to ask that many yet.

You can't help but sniffle as you try to sound confident. "Of course I didn't."

"We're still friends." He says softly, closing his claws together so incredibly gently around your hands, letting the two of you be a little more connected as he marvels at his luck. Of all the squishies in the galaxy, this trip had led him to you, the one who made him happier than anything. Despite all sense you loved him, and he loves you back, and the two of you would get to keep on adventuring after this. You smile as you repeat your vow to make your dedication clear.

"Today, tomorrow, and always."

Those words strike a tender chord in his still sensitive spark, for you to believe them so confidently you'll repeat them with ease, and he's promoted to react on a whim.

"Can we hug?"

"Hug?"

"Is there an ech-" The rapid fire reflex of a joke fades out in the face of his genuine and unheard of desire for a bit of tender contact. Releasing your hands, he opens his arms to make his point clear, and is delighted when you start nodding even before he's done asking. "Yes, if you don't mind... okay? Okay."

It's more of a hug for you than him, your arms wrapping around his neck as you nuzzle against his helm to show affection, feeling him wrap as much of his gangly frame around you as possible without risking any kind of damage. While this may not be the first time he's initiated something like this, it's one of very few rare occasions, and thus you know this is special. You can feel how badly he wants the comfort through the ease he shows at your touch.

"You want to stay like this for a bit?" You ask gingerly, getting settled so you can stay comfortable for a few minutes cuddled up to him.

"Mhmm." He says softly, admitting to himself that hugs might actually be worth the fuss after all. Tiny hands reassuringly pat his shoulder, encouraging him to stay in place while he basks in this single perfect moment. He hadn't dared to hope you'd still be friends after this, but here you were, your little body holding and comforting him as if he wasn't several times your size. Funny thing, that fate, eh?

"Take your time."

"Y/N?" He whispers softly into the quiet, wanting to say one final thing before taking a few minutes to enjoy your company.

"Hm?"

There's a tiny pause before he holds you close with one final statement.

"Thanks."

[writerman]

Modern elronbarduil. Bard is a cab driver, Thran is a the CEO of his own company, who just happens to be blind, and Elrond is an ER doctor. Now Thran some how gets injures at work but instead of call an ambulance, he calls a cab because he doesn't want to make a fuss. Bard is the cab driver and is worried about Thran, so offers to help get him inside the hospital and stays with him. Elrond is the doctor attending Thran.

//I am sorry but I didn’t make Thranduil blind in this one. I did, however, have a lot of fun writing this so this is where my confidence crashes and burns because now the world wide web get to read it... or ignore it ahahaha. 

Enjoy, friendo! 

THIS IS THE LONGEST PROMPT I’VE WRITTEN TO DATE! 

Honestly, Bard had not expected his first fare of the afternoon to be a man bleeding from the temple, a well dressed, suited and booted kind of high flying exec kind of man… He was really bleeding, and from the rear view mirror he could not quite see where the blood was coming from but it ran down the man’s face with ease and dripped onto the grey suit he wore steadily.

“Uh… I know you’re not ok but are you ok?” Bard asked turning round to look at his customer properly, the guy was beautiful, angel fallen from Heaven masquerading as a man, beautiful.

Long straight blond hair, nearly white, piercing blue eyes and flawless skin, a jaw that could cut glass and all those other analogies that described the classic beauty of men.

Pale as milk though, either he had been bleeding for quite some time or he did NOT like the sight of blood, either way it was concerning.

The blond looked startled when Bard spoke, as though he had expected the cab to be self driven rather than by a flesh and blood human with thoughts and feelings. He lifted his hand to touch the blood and it smeared over his fingers staining the pale skin easily, all the while nodding slowly as though this was common place and he bled all the time from the head.

“So… Where do you need to go?” His whole body felt tense, this kind of felt like one of those scenes from a movie where he is infected by a virus and becomes a zombie because he just HAD to help the pretty one.

That’s how they get you, the zombies, they show up being pretty humans all the while the virus is working through them and suddenly you turn around to check on your passenger and BAM Zombie time and you’re dead.

He reeeeally hoped this guys asked for a doctor or a ride to the hospital because, damn, he was losing blood like no tomorrow.

Bard made the executive decision that he was taking the man to the hospital regardless and put the car in motion, not explaining his actions though he realised he was not asked any questions, or given any instructions… it was then Bard realised that the guy must have been in shock.

Once at the hospital Bard parked up, threw some money in a parking meter and eased the silent, still bleeding, man from the car, he spoke softly as if to keep this blond stranger at ease, as though he was some kind of easily spooked horse.

He looked like he owned horses, like 10 of them and had a son called Tarquin and they placed croquet on the lawn of their massive mansion.

Probably had house staff too.

Bard realised that was unfair, just because he wore a nice suit didn’t mean anything, he had a nice suit too, it was reserved for funerals and weddings, he had one and only one and when he wore it people thought he was important too, and not a cab driver in a city where his face blurred together with thousands of other brunet men with beards….

Further problems arose when he tried to check the man in to see a doctor, he had no idea what his name was, or even some semblance of an address, he barely registered the street he had been on when the blond had climbed into the car.

So far the only thing that had shown Bard the guy was aware of anything was when he nodded earlier, and he was sure that was just an automatic response to the question ‘Are you ok?’, because most people nod when asked that question.

Apparently standing at the reception of a hospital was good luck because a doctor ran towards them yelling something that was probably a name, ah, yes it was a name.

“Thranduil, oh Gods, what happened to you?!” This doctor was handsome, did beautiful people just attract other beautiful people, was this a cult?

While Bard stared at the two of them in bisexual, the brunet doctor that had jogged toward them turned to Bard for an explanation, and all Bard could do, and he did it so eloquently, was shrug.

“He got into my cab just bleeding like crazy from the head, he hasn’t spoken a word so I thought I would just bring him here…”

“You did the right thing, I will take things from here, thank you for your caring for him-” He was cut off as he tried to lead Thranduil off, the blond reached out and grabbed Bard by the wrist and would not move until he did.

“Ah, it seems you are coming with us, even in shock he recognises a catch when he sees one.” Inappropriate time to flirt when his friend was just stood silently bleeding like some kind of silent haunted house actor…

Were they friends?

Still, someone thought he was handsome, even though they both looked like Gods walking the earth amongst mere mortal men. Bard realised he had to take what he could get, even if it was a fleeting flirting opportunity from a doctor.

Before he could speak Thranduil, weirdly nice name, tugged at Bard and pulled him closer to his side, he slung his arm over his shoulder before his legs gave way and both Bard and the handsome doctor moved to steady him.

“Maybe he needs to sit down…?” Bard suggested and the doctor, who had the humility to look embarrassed, nodded and steered the weakening man toward a private room.

Thranduil was put on a bed and the doctor, who finally introduced himself a Elrond Peredhel, saw to the wound, he explained that wound was not deep but were it was situated was causing the blood to flow easily, the skin on the scalp was thinner he said.

Bard had no idea about any of this stuff so he just nodded.

“This man is not supposed to be working, this man is meant to be on bedrest.” Elrond quipped, the dig at his patience apparently brought him back to himself and Thranduil managed to roll his eyes, he looked to Bard and gave a soft smile.

“Thank you.” He whispered, his voice so damned deep and velvety and amazing, oh man, Bard needed to sit down after two words. He pulled himself round long enough to pull a chair up to the bedside and sit by the blond.

“I admit, you scared me back there in the taxi being all silent and bloody, I had visions of you trying to slit my throat or something.” It was a ridiculous thing to say and he regretted saying it instantly but the sound of Thranduil’s quiet laugh eased his insecurities for a moment.

The blond winced as though laughing hurt him, and Elrond placed a hand on his shoulder to soothe him as he worked on cleaning the wound, some of Thranduil’s hair was now stained red from the blood, but he did not seem to care all that much, or he hadn’t realised.

“I owe you so much, I could not speak and yet you brought me right where I need to be with who I need to be with.” Elrond and Thranduil shared a loving smile between them and Bard put the pieces together.

Husbands. Probably.

Well, they had flirted with him so they seemed relaxed so maybe very long time husbands?

Not that it mattered.

“Also thought you might have been a zombie.” Bard admitted quietly, which had Thranduil laughing again, and Gods it went right to his centre.

He suppressed a pleasant shudder, ignoring Elrond's knowing look.

“A zombie only before his morning coffee,” The doctor started, he rested a hand on Thranduil's shoulder before he spoke again, “Did you just swoon?”

This time Bard was the one to have the decency to blush and look away from the two.

"Ah, I thought so, he has that effect on everyone. Though so far you are the only one sensible enough to grab a chair and to respect that he may be in a relationship.

It's alright, you can flirt with him.

You can flirt with both of us."

Well, that was… interesting. So far Elrond had been quite vocal about his interest in Bard but Thranduil hadn’t said anything, and Bard was not sure it was alright for Elrond, even if he was married to the blond, to just offer the others affections so easily.

While in thought the two took the opportunity to whisper between themselves, some sort of debate, Bard wasn’t actually listening.

Eventually he made the decision that it was time for him to go. He had to earn a wage and sitting around in a hospital was losing him rent money for the month.

“Now that I know you’re alright I should probably go. I still have a job to do and while I do not necessarily have a boss I still need to make sure I make enough that I don’t have to work too late tonight.

It was great meeting you both even given the circumstances.

I hope you manage to keep him on bedrest this time.” Bard looked to Elrond as he said the last part and he got to his feet ready to depart.

“Thank you, again for bringing him here. I truly hope we meet again.” Elrond spoke with as much sincerity as he could muster without it sounding as though he was mocking Bard.

With that they parted ways.

It was a month after that Bard saw the two again.

He had been playing a zombie apocalypse game while the car idled at the side of the road, there didn't seem to be much foot traffic where he had parked up so he took the chance to try and level up his mobile game.

When the door opened behind his seat and someone slid in he paid them no mind, he was going to wait until they'd settled before he gave them any attention, that was until…

A pair of hands slid to his shoulders and squeezed almost pinching him.

Then a rumbling voice in his ear spoke.

“Still hoping for zombies, are we?” The tone amused and, dammit, the shiver that spiked down Bard's spine… the hairs on his arms stood on end and his heart beat leapt to a pace faster than he believed ever possible.

“Thranduil, leave him alone, he looks like he might have a heart attack.” Oh, yeah, it was definitely the dream duo he had absolutely NOT been thinking about since they first met… Elrond Peredhel and his husband Thranduil.

Two fantastically beautiful men that had taken a shine to Bard as though he wasn’t some grimy cab driver with untamed curls and  bags under his eyes that could fill a baggage claim at Heathrow.

Doing his best to calm himself before he looked round, he sighed inwardly when the blond let go of his shoulders to sit back in his seat, Bard took a cleansing breath as quietly as he could and turned to offer the couple a bright smile.

“Well, hello, you two. Long time no see… so, where am I taking you tonight?” It was 6pm and the sun was sinking behind the high rise buildings around them- the night would come alive soon enough and Bard actually wanted to get home before any party-goers tried to hail him for a ride.

“Well, we were just going to go home but maybe coffee first, we’d love it if you could join us?” Elrond slid an arm around Thranduil’s shoulders as he spoke and pulled him so they were right up against one another side by side, their shoulders right down to their feet touching down one side.

“Uh… well, I was just going to go home after this fare…” Bard trailed off at the, frankly sorrowful, disappointed look he was given from both of them, so rather than argue he just nodded. “Alright, where would you like to go?”

They ended up in a small coffee shop, it advertised that it was open all night long and so far it was fairly quiet, Bard suspected the usuals that haunted the place would show up at the wee hours of the morning, sporting smudge make-up, tousled hair from brief intimate encounters and being more than just hungover as they sipped hot coffee full of sugar and cream before they could even begin to think of heading home…

It seemed like a trendy spot, Thranduil and Elrond stood out like peacocks against the vintage surroundings in their crisp fitted shirts and, what was probably, ridiculously expensive slacks and boots.

Smart casual.

Yet they looked across as Bard as though hungry hyenas and he was dinner for the night.

Hadn’t they just eaten?

“You don’t have to look so scared of us, but… we did have a proposition for you if you would be so kind as to allow us a moment to explain?” Thranduil began, he picked up a drinks menu from off the table in front of him and perused it casually, his eyes flitting to Bard occasionally and he offered a very sultry smile.

Bard felt nervous, like a bug near a venus fly trap but he was also a little hot under the collar, he didn’t image a look could ever have that effect on him but… well… there he was flushed.

The ye olde expression of ‘Mark me down as scared and horny…’.

“I’ll cut to the chase, let you breathe a little afterwards. We like you Bard,” Elrond began, he waved away a waitress that approached with a genuine smile before turning back to Bard. “We are a couple but we were hoping your interest in us was not solely a fanciful day dream. Thranduil and I would like to take you out and, perhaps with time, you would accept us, even love us and let our duo become a trio?” There was a long pause after Elrond said his peace and so Thranduil and he ordered drinks, and after a moment coaxed an order out of Bard.

He felt as though a hurricane had rushed over him and he was left windswept and out of breath.

Were they suggesting a three way relationship?

He had to admit, and admit it very quietly, even in his own head, that he had thought about that would be like… they seemed fun and flirty, but what were they like behind closed doors?

He didn’t feel threatened by them or actually afraid, and gods, he had seen the look of love they had shared between them back at the hospital.

Could that be him?

“I want to get to know you both better.” The words blurted out, his mouth and brain had not discussed this and yet there he was talking, all the while his brain is in disarray ‘We talked about this mouth, you have to run things by me first!’ but again his mouth ignored his brain and he spoke again.

“I am interested in both of you, I want to try this.”

All hope was lost for his mouth and his brain logged out for the rest of the evening.

With his acceptance of the couple, Elrond and Thranduil moved to sit next to him, one on each side, they wrapped their arms around him and welcomed him in to the fold.

“We shall show you a good time,  so much so that you could not imagine being without us, let us love you.”

...and so, he did.

[thedarcydichotomy]

✩ - Touch

The Ultimate Relationship Tag

Send ‘✩’ for the following:

Disagreements:

Who is more likely to raise their voice?

In the very rare cases of a disagreement, Darcy is the one more likely to raise her voice. If anything, Touch’s voice gets deeper and rougher if he’s angry with her.

It’s sexy as hell, and their disagreements don’t usually go much further than that.

Who threatens to leave but never actually does?

Neither of them would toss out a threat like that at the other. They’re mates through and through, bonded together.

Who actually keeps their word and leaves?

There’s no threat of it, but Touch will walk away from a situation at times and leave the house. It’s only ever as a cool off, and he’ll be back before the night is through.

Who trashes the house?

Trash one of Touch’s houses? Yeah right.

Do either of them get physical?

Not in a violent way with each other. Actually when they’re fighting it’s one of the very few times where they’re not getting physical.

How often do they argue/disagree?

Very very rarely. Not because they don’t have differences of opinions, but they’re more inclined to discuss things - Thor is intelligent, and Darcy really likes to debate with him actually.

Who is the first to apologise?

Um, neither of them really. They argue so rarely, and when they do, they just kinda… Get back into the flow.

Sex:

Who is on top?

TOUCH! And it’s so good.

Who is on the bottom?

Well, Darcy obviously.

Who has the strangest desires?

Define strange? Honestly, neither of them is into anything really weird.

Any kinks?

Well, they’re both Alpha’s, but Touch is very much in charge - rough play is definitely up there for both of them, along with biting, scratching, marking, all those good things that signal to everyone else ‘this one is MINE’. They’re a very possessive couple.

Who’s dominant in bed?

Touch, and Darcy is very very here for it. She likes to play sometimes, at being the stronger one though, and he’ll go with it…for a little while. Half the fun then is taking dominance back.

Is head ever in the equation?

Is it ever not in the equation is the more appropriate question?

If so, who is better at performing it?

Orally, between the two of them… Darcy hates to admit it but Touch is probably the “better”. Not that she’s a slouch in that department by any means, but when he sets his tongue to a task…. A task is very rapidly achieved.

Ever had sex in public?

Not in public public, but there have been instances… Woods that are a little closer to civilisation than was probably wise, the odd dark and dangerous corner when the urge is just too strong.

Who moans the most?

Darcy moans the MOST, but Touch moans (and bellows) the loudest.

Who leaves the most marks?

Touch does, but he is the more dominant partner who also happens to be much stronger than her. Darcy gives back as best she can, and Touch is usually sporting at least a couple of bites and bruises courtesy of her.

Who screams the loudest?

Thor bellows the loudest, he doesn’t scream. But volume wise, he definitely outdoes Darcy.

Who is the more experienced of the two?

Well, Darcy is in her late 20’s, and Thor has been around for several thousand years - mathematically there’s not a question there.

Do they ‘fuck’ or ‘make love’?

They tend more towards making love, although you can’t beat a good hard fuck from time to time.

Rough or soft?

They go rough more often, but the slow, soft, sensual, LONG sessions are the stuff erotica novels are made of.

How long do they usually last?

Between being Asgardian and a wolf, Touch can literally go all night. It’s usually Darcy who has to beg a break between rounds.

Is protection used?

There’s some magic *hand wavy* no getting pregnant thing, but otherwise nope.

Does it ever get boring?

Pfft, yeah right. Touch is Asgardian, they are both wolves, they are a bonded Alpha pair. Boring is the last thing their sex life could ever be.

Where is the strangest place they’d have sex?

Well the woods tends to happen a lot.

Family:

Do your muses plan on having children/or have children?

There isn’t a plan. And Darcy isn’t super keen on the idea of children, however with Touch… She thinks, maybe, one day, it could happen and it wouldn’t be too bad to have their own pack.

If so, how many children do your muses want/have?

Let’s start with one and see how things go…

Who is the favorite parent?

Touch - he’s all about the roughhousing and fun, and spoils the kids rotten. Not because he intends to, but he grew up a prince, he has ideas about normal that aren’t exactly normal to anyone else.

Who is the authoritative parent?

Darcy takes that role on, but Touch does back her up.

Who is more likely to allow the children to have a day off school?

Touch. As long as they learn something that day, he’s ok with missing school. And there’s a lot to learn for his children that won’t be taught in any kind of school setting.

Who lets the children indulge in sweets and junk food when the other isn’t around?

Darcy, mostly. She might have be the tough momma, but she’d love her little cubs and indulge them at times.

Who turns up to extra curricular activities to support their children?

Both. Touch is, how shall we say…exuberant? No matter what the kids are doing. Choir, music, dance, acting, sport, doesn’t matter, Touch is there and hollering support for his kids.Luckily Darcy is just as embarrassing with the cheering.

Who goes to parent teacher interviews?

Darcy tends to go alone, because Touch can be intimidating if he doesn’t like what he’s being told. Plus Darcy gets the whole report card and parent teacher night things, and she doesn’t get impatient as easily when things are running behind or Susan from the PTA talks smack about her cookie contribution.

Who changes the diapers?

Darcy has given that task to Touch. Not that he wants it, but she’ll pull out the fact that he put those things in her, and she did the real hard yards of growing, carrying, and birthing them, he’s gonna contribute and it’s gonna be something that’s not fun.”

Who gets up in the middle of the night to feed the baby?

They both take that task on, splitting and sharing the responsibility. It helps a lot that neither of them need as much sleep as regular humans.

Who spends the most time with the children?

Touch, probably. Darcy has a lot of limits when it comes to kids, and she needs time away from them to recuperate her energies. Touch is all about family though.

Who packs their lunch boxes?

Darcy does, because again, she gets school - if Touch had his way they’d be taking entire roast boar for lunch.

Who gives their children ‘the talk’?

Pffft, Touch tries. He does, really, bless him, but it kind of causes more questions and confusion, so Darcy goes in and gives the more base explanation for things.

Who cleans up after the kids?

They hire someone to help keep the house clean, with or without rugrats around.

Who worries the most?

Darcy, probably. Touch is confident in his kids strength and capabilities, Darcy is the one more prone to freaking out about things.

Who are the children more likely to learn their first swear word from?

Oh lordy, Darcy, so very definitely Darcy. And they learn it early. And a lot of other words.

Affection:

Who likes to cuddle?

Please, those two? They’re a pair of cuddle monsters.

Who is the little spoon?

Darcy is, in every way. She’s so small compared to Touch, she couldn’t even be the big spoon if she tried.

Who gets naughty in the most inappropriate of places?

Touch is definitely the one more likely to tempt her at inappropriate times and in inappropriate places. He definitely uses insider knowledge to spark her off.

Who struggles to keep their hands to themself?  

It would be wrong to say Touch struggles, he simply does what he wants, and if that means putting his hands all over his mate then that’s what he’s going to, time and place be damned.

How long can they cuddle until one becomes uncomfortable?

There is no such thing as uncomfortable cuddling with Touch.

Who gives the most kisses?

Touch - he’s all about snagging her hand to kiss her wrist or palm, or tucking his face against her throat.

What is their favourite non-sexual activity?

Eating, probably. Lol, it’s true, but let’s go with cooking and baking.

Where is their favourite place to cuddle?

In front of the fire, on a bed of furs.

Who is more likely to playfully grope the other?

Touch. Remember that whole ‘if he wants to touch, he’s gonna touch’ thing? Yeah.

How often do they get time to themselves?

Touch has several homes, including retreats far off in the middle of mountains. They’re more often alone amongst themselves than they are with other people.

Sleeping:

Who snores?

Don’t tell him, but Touch has been guilty of it from time to time.

If both do, who snores the loudest?

Do they share a bed or sleep separately?

They share, of course. Even before they were together they were sharing a bed and cuddling all night long. It’s part them, part of the beasts that exist within them.

If they sleep together, do they cozy up together or lay far apart?

It’s always cuddle time in the werewolf household.

Who talks in their sleep?

Darcy actually - she insists she doesn’t, but Touch likes to tease her in the mornings about some absurd thing that was muttered in the wee hours.

What do they wear to bed?

Um, nothing. Like…it’s naked time every night.

Are either of your muses insomniacs?

Honestly, no. Even when things are stressful, it’s being together that calms them and helps them sleep.

Can sleeping pills be found by the bedside?

Nope - no point, they’d have to basically be elephant tranqs to work on Darcy, and stronger than that to work on Touch.

Do they wrap their limbs around each other or just lay side by side?

Pretzels have nothing on Darcy and Touch.

Who wakes up with bed hair?

Touch’s hair is too magical to dare, so Darcy has to deal with the frizz all alone. Damn those golden locks of his.

Who wakes up first?

Touch usually, but he brings Darcy to awareness not long after.

Who prepares breakfast in bed for the other?

They’re actually both good about doing things like that for each other, although they don’t eat in bed too often actually. They prefer preparing meals together, actually, and talking over meals about things that are going on.

What is their favourite sleeping position?

Big spoon Touch and little spoon Darcy.

Who hogs the sheets?

Darcy does, but it’s on purpose and usually a ploy to get into playtime.

Do they set an alarm each night?

There aren’t many appointments early enough to warrant it, so no.

Can a television be found in their bedroom?

No - Darcy insists she wouldn’t sleep if there was, because she’d just sit up all night watching.

Who has nightmares?

Darcy is more prone to being affected by them, but Touch certainly has them too.

Who has ridiculous dreams?

Touch has them, although he can’t be sure if those are really from his own mind or Oral playing tricks. Darcy’s probably more likely to have the ridiculous dreams.

Who sprawls out and takes up most of the bed?

Touch is just so big. Thankfully the bed is pretty damn big too.

Who makes the bed?

If it gets made? Darcy. But that don’t happen often.

What time is bed time?

Whatever time Darcy calls uncle.

Any routines/rituals before bed?

Is sex a ritual? Or wait, that doesn’t count because that’s in bed, not before. They always make sure there’s plenty of water on hand, since they do work up a thirst.

Who’s the grumpiest when they wake up?

Darcy, by far. Touch is far too pleasant and energetic.

Work:

Who is the busiest?

Depends on where they are. In New York, Darcy is probably the busier, what with her SHIELD work. Out in the wilds, depends - Darcy is busy keeping those home fires burning, whilst Touch is out hunting and keeping them in food and fur and firewood.

Who rakes in the highest income?

Um, well, it’s not an income per say, but Touch is a prince. He kind of has a lot of gold at his disposal to keep his way of life going.

Are any of your muses unemployed?

Touch is, technically.

Who takes the most sick days?

They can’t get sick, so they don’t have the excuse for taking sick days.

Who is more likely to turn up late to work?

Darcy. She’ll rock up 15 minutes late to a briefing with Starbucks. And not just Starbucks, but a frappuccino, so cold when she gets there everyone in that briefing knows she ranked coffee over being on time.

Who sucks up to their boss?

Pfft, have you met either of them? Bosses suck up to them!

What are their jobs?

Touch is an intergalactic prince, so, uh, that’s a pretty good job title. Darcy is a SHIELD agent/asset/pain in the ass, depending on whether she feels like taking Phil’s call or not.

Who stresses the most?

Darcy does, definitely. It’s not that Touch doesn’t, but he’s so emotionally strong. He keeps Darcy from falling to pieces at times.

Do your muses enjoy or despise their careers/occupations?

Darcy much prefers lounging around with Touch than playing spy.

Are your muses financially stable?

Unless the bottom falls out of the Asgardian gold bar, they’re good.

Home:

Who does the washing?

Darcy does, or they hire a service.

Who takes out the trash?

Touch, he’s good at that.

Who does the ironing?

That same service that does the washing, usually.

Who does the cooking?

They both do - it’s part of their thing, to prepare a meal together before enjoying it.

Who is more likely to burn the house down just trying?

Well that’s just not going to happen.

Who is messier?

Eh, they both have their ways of being messy. Neither is catastrophic to the order of the house though.

Who leaves the toilet roll empty?

Touch is way more likely to do it. And he gets the empty roll lobbed at his head for his troubles.

Who leaves their dirty clothes on the floor?

Well, they’ve got a hamper where the dirty clothes go. Touch is pretty careful with certain items of his clothes though, he’s got a bit of a vanity when it comes to his wardrobe at times and wouldn’t dare let certain pieces be dropped on the floor to be crushed and sullied in that way.

Who forgets to flush the toilet?

Gross, neither.

Who is the prankster around the house?

Darcy likes to play a game, more than a prank, of hiding and trying to sneak up on Touch and pounce on him. She hasn’t managed it yet, but she’s definitely going to keep trying.

Who loses the car keys when it comes time to go somewhere?

Touch isn’t super fond of cars, he’d much rather run or fly, so the car keys do occasionally mysteriously disappear from their usual space.

Who mows the lawn?

They don’t have a lawn - in Manhattan there’s no space, and the other homes they have lush forest.

Who answers the telephone?

Darcy, usually. Touch prefers more sophisticated means of communication. It’s why Darcy had to show him how to facetime on a tablet.

Who does the vacuuming?

That cleaning service again…. When they’re both out of the house. That vacuum whine is painful on sensitive wolf ears.

Who does the groceries?

Darcy picks most of the groceries out, Touch carries them. They make a good team like that.

Who takes the longest to shower?

Touch, he adores the luxury of a long hot shower. But he also enjoys the luxury of a dip into a waterfall of melted snow.

Who spends the most time in the bathroom?

Touch takes his grooming very seriously, so it’s not unheard of for him to take longer in the bathroom than Darcy.

Miscellaneous:

Is money a problem?

Nope.

How many cars do they own?

None. Stark has kind of permanently loaned Touch a car when he’s in Manhattan.

Do they own their home or do they rent?

Touch has purchased himself several properties around the globe.

Do they live near the coast or deep in the countryside?

Manhattan is coastal, obviously, but Touch’s other locations tend to be deep countryside and mountainous/forest regions.

Do they live in the city or in the country?

Both, depending on the season, their mood, how tired of the hustle and bustle of the city they are.

Do they enjoy their surroundings?

Absolutely. New York holds a certain kind of enjoyment, and a cabin deep in the woods holds its own special kind of enjoyment.

What’s their song?

There is an old Norse piece that Touch sings quietly sometimes. Darcy doesn’t know what it’s called, or what it’s about, but she thinks of it as their song.

What do they do when they’re away from each other?

Darcy’s usually being a spying spy who spies. Touch is slamming bad guys around, or taking time in his wolf form to roam.

Where did they first meet?

In the New Mexico desert, in the middle of the night.

How did they first meet?

Well Jane grabbed the wheel and then suddenly Thor and, come on, you all know this story.

Who spends the most money when out shopping?

Touch is way more a splurger - Darcy has spent a lot of her life having to be mindful of money, and she hasn’t lost that. She’ll still hit up op shops for clothing, where Touch will turn straight towards a designer boutique, or have someone make him clothes specially.

Who’s more likely to flash their assets?

Well Touch is fine being shirtless and wearing leather pants, so he’s definitely the one sharing the goods around.

Who finds it amusing when the other trips over?

Darcy definitely finds it way funnier when Touch trips, because it happens so rarely and he’s otherwise so refined and graceful.

Any mental issues?

They both have traumas. Touch doesn’t admit to his, powering on as he always does, which supports Darcy through her trying times. In return, she tries her best to help Touch and be there for him, to be his support during tough times, even if he won’t admit to the tough time.

Who’s terrified of bugs?

Darcy doesn’t like bugs. Not terrified, but she doesn’t want to see them around.

Who kills the spiders around the house?

Touch. He’s smashed a couple of walls out that way.

Their favourite place?

Running in the deepest forest, where nobody is around to stumble on them, near their home in the Swiss alps.

Who pays the bills?

Darcy makes sure they’re paid, but it comes from Touch’s holdings.

Do they have any fears for their future?

Apart? Absolutely. Together? They can survive anything.

Who’s more likely to surprise the other with a fancy dinner?

Touch would be the more likely - he still has a great enjoyment for the finer things in life.

Who uses up all of the hot water?

They’re both guilty of it.

Who’s the tallest?

Do you need to ask? Really?

Who’s more likely to just randomly hop into the shower with the other?

Touch! He’ll just waltz right into that shower whilst Darcy is in it.

Who wanders around in their underwear?

Touch. He’s absolutely got no issues around casual nudity.

Who sings the loudest when singing along to the radio?

Darcy, even though she’s not a great singer.

What do they tease each other about?

Touch will tease her on her size - he thinks all humans are tiny, and Darcy especially so. Darcy likes to tease him about…well everything she possibly can.

Who is more likely to cringe at the other’s fashion sense at times?

Touch is definitely the more fashionable of the two, and he has cringed at items of Darcy’s when he’s stumbled across them in the closet.

Do they have mutual friends?

Yes and no - their circle is fairly closed off given their transformations, but those who have stuck by them are friends to both.

Who crushed first?

Darcy was crushing on Touch years before he looked at her in such a way. She’s not blind, and it was basically impossible for her not to be appreciating him, even when he first landed and fell in love with Jane.

Any alcohol or substance related problems?

They don’t have enough of an effect for there to be problems, unless Thor brings home a few casks of mead from Asgard. But it’s still not a problem.

Who is more likely to stumble home, drunk, at 3am?

They don’t do that. Head home at 3am, possible, but there’s no drunkenness or stumbling… Well, no stumbling other than Darcy’s regular clumsiness.

Who swears the most?

Definitely Darcy. Touch is far too dignified for that. Or he uses curses that aren’t understood to be curses on Midgard so nobody knows.

[classyfoxdestiny]

'Fox News Sunday' on August 1, 2021

'Fox News Sunday' on August 1, 2021

This is a rush transcript of “Fox News Sunday” on August 1, 2021. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

DANA PERINO, FOX NEWS HOST:  I’m Dana Perino, in for Chris Wallace. 

The Biden administration pushes back against critics of the latest mask 

guidance based off new data from the CDC. 

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:  The CDC recommends you wear a 

mask when you’re in public and indoors. That’s true for both the vaccinated 

and unvaccinated. 

PERINO (voice-over): The CDC warning the delta variant spreads as easily 

as chickenpox and more easily than the common cold. 

Now, the debate over masks and vaccinations raging in cities, businesses, 

and the halls of Congress. 

REP. CHIP ROY (R-TX): Which is it? Vaccines or masks? 

PERINO:  We’ll ask the director of NIH, Dr. Francis Collins, about the 

science behind decision and the push to get more people vaccinated. 

Then, what does the new guidance mean for the nation’s return to school? 

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It is wholly responsible to drop the mask made it at 

this critical time. 

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you re-implement mask mandates, we will not be 

sending our students to school. 

PERINO:  States grapple with reinstating mask mandates indoors and in the 

classroom. We’ll talk with South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster, who is 

at odds with educators in his state. It’s a “FOX News Sunday” exclusive. 

And consumer spending on the rise, but high inflation also partly to blame. 

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA), MINORITY LEADER:  We have gas prices that 

haven’t been this high since the last time Biden was in office. 

PERINO:  We’ll ask Brian Deese, the top economic White House advisor, if 

the delta variant could wreck the recovery. 

Plus — 

BIDEN:  It’s going to get better. 

PERINO:  President Biden visits blue-collar workers in political 

battleground. We’ll ask our Sunday panel whether the president’s early 

start can stave off midterm losses. 

All, right now, on “FOX News Sunday.” 

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PERINO (voice-over): And hello again from “FOX News Sunday.” 

The CDC releasing new research behind its decision to recommend a return to 

mask wearing indoors, even by the vaccinated in parts of the country where 

the delta variant is fueling new infections. The findings potentially 

changing public messaging about how the disease is spread and how the 

nation fights it. And coming at a time when Americans are exhausted and 

confused by the ever-changing measures. 

In a moment, we’ll speak with the director of the National Institutes of 

Health, Dr. Francis Collins, and with South Carolina Governor Henry 

McMaster.

But, first, let’s turn to Mark Meredith at the White House with more on the 

new mask rules across the nation. 

Good morning, Mark.

MARK MEREDITH, FOX NEWS CORRESPONDENT:  Dana, the White House admits new 

federal masking guidelines are not going to be popular but officials here 

and at the CDC say they are necessary because of the delta variant of this 

virus, causing a surge of cases nationwide. 

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MEREDITH (voice-over): President Biden says the pandemic is lasting longer 

than expected because millions of Americans still aren’t vaccinated. 

BIDEN:  What is happening in America right now is a pandemic, a pandemic of 

the unvaccinated. 

MEREDITH:  But health officials say even vaccinated Americans can spread 

the virus. The CDC now recommends people mask up it in areas where there 

is, quote, significant or high spread, like Missouri, where the government 

says no dice. 

GOV. MICHAEL PARSON (R), MISSOURI:  We never had a mandate in the state and 

we’re not going to do a mandate. 

MEREDITH:  But many U.S. companies are now requiring customers and 

employees wear masks again, some going even further, like Facebook and 

Google, mandating employees get a vaccine. Soon, federal employees will be 

require to undergo regular testing if they’re not vaccinated.

On Friday, FOX News asking the CDC director if a national mandate was 

coming. 

DR. ROCHELLE WALENSKY, CDC DIRECTOR:  You know, that’s something that I 

think the administration is looking into. 

MEREDITH:  The director later clarified her remarks insisting there will be 

no federal mandate but her backtracking added to the week’s confusion.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MEREDITH (on camera): There is some good news, federal health officials 

saying vaccinations are on the uptake right now. 

But President Biden insists they are not looking at any sort of 2020 style 

lockdowns but he hinted on Friday, Dana, that it’s possible we could see 

more restrictions in the weeks ahead — Dana. 

PERINO:  All righty. Mark Meredith reporting from the White House — Mark, 

thank you. 

Joining us now, NIH Director Dr. Francis Collins. 

Dr. Collins, welcome back to “FOX News Sunday.” It’s so good to have you 

here. 

DR. FRANCIS COLLINS, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEATH:  Great to be 

with you, Dana. Good chance to talk about where we are with COVID. 

PERINO:  Well, let’s start with that. It has been a very confusing week for 

Americans trying to understand just what is happening with COVID at this 

state of the pandemic. We have the Delta variant. It’s spreading across 

America. Could you give our viewers as clear an explanation as possible on 

what we should know and what we should be doing right now? 

COLLINS:  I will very much like to do that. And let me try to sift (ph) 

away all of the confusing information and try to hit the high points. And 

they kind of come in two categories, the bad news and the good news. So let 

me start with the bad news. Delta is spreading. We know it’s extremely 

contagious. And certainly in some parts of the country like Missouri, 

Arkansas, Louisiana, it is reaching very high levels. And we are now once 

again seeing case levels per day closing in on 100,000, which we haven’t 

seen since February. 

So this is really a different virus than last year. And everything we’re 

learned about COVID a year ago you’ve got to sort of hit the reset button 

on now how we need to react to it. We also are learning, and this is not 

particularly good news, that vaccinated people, if they get infected, which 

is rare but it does happen, they have pretty high viral loads, which means 

they could also be passing it on to other people. Even though they have a 

very low risk of getting seriously ill themselves, they can be a vector. 

That was the reason for CDC saying it’s time, in those places where the 

virus is spreading, which is about 75 percent of our counties, to put the 

masks back on when you’re in an indoor space where it — whether you’re 

vaccinated or not. This is the best way to stop the transmission of this 

very contagious virus. 

So those are the bad things. 

(CROSSTALK)

PERINO:  Go ahead. 

COLLINS:  The good things, the vaccines work extremely well, including 

against Delta. If you’re vaccinated right now, your chance of getting 

infected by this goes down by at least three-and-a-half-fold. Your 

likelihood of having symptoms goes down by eight-fold. Your likelihood of 

getting really significantly ill, in the hospital, goes down by 25-fold. 

That’s an extremely encouraging new set of data from the real world where 

we’re tracking this. So vaccinations are still our best hope. And they are 

working beautifully, but, of course, we need to be sure that all people 

take advantage of that. 

So the other part of the good news that I’m happy to see is I think we may, 

Dana, have seen a tipping point now where vaccinations are going up every 

week, 56 percent increase in vaccinations in the last couple of weeks, 

especially in those areas hardest hit. Goodness (ph), Louisiana has tripled 

their rate of vaccinations in the last couple of weeks. That means people 

are finally sort of saying, OK, I waited long enough, let’s do this. 

And I would like everybody listening to this, this morning, to think about 

that. Don’t you want to be part of that tipping point? If you haven’t yet 

gotten vaccinated, the evidence is now overwhelming. There are so many 

things that are not going to be easy for you to do if you’re not 

vaccinated. Companies are starting to require this. Just let’s get off the 

fence, move forward, and be part of the winning team that gets this Delta 

out of here. 

PERINO:  Think the vaccinated people are somewhat frustrated that they — 

you know, they want to get back and go about their lives without masks. And 

it’s frustrating to them when they feel like, you know, here we are, have 

done the right thing, but now we’re going to be possibly having to go back 

to this, including in our schools. And, you know, masks aren’t a magic 

bullet. The vaccines aren’t a magic bullet. But the vaccines are working 

very well. And I understand that there has been that uptick. Do you think 

it’s necessary for children to have to be masked in schools as they start, 

you know, in the next couple of weeks? 

COLLINS:  Well, if the goal here is to reduce transmission of this virus 

amongst children who are not completely immune from getting seriously ill, 

or having them pass it on to others in their households, the masks are the 

best thing we’ve got right now to reduce that. 

I know people are frustrated. And I know people are frustrated and it has 

gotten very political and people are looking for someone to blame. Just put 

all that aside and look at the facts. Delta is as contagious as we now know 

it is, and we want to try to put an end to what is a very significant 

uptick right now. Wearing masks, if you’re under 12 and can’t be 

vaccinated, when you’re school is a really smart thing to do. 

And I know it’s tiresome and kids and their parents are sick of it. But 

let’s think about what we’re talking about, life and death here. We’ve lost 

620,000 Americans already. If we could save even a few of those by putting 

masks on ourselves and our kids, well, it seems like the right thing to do. 

PERINO:  And then at some point don’t we have to accept that there will be 

some risk? 

COLLINS:  Oh, there is risk in being alive right now, for sure, and risk in 

going around your business which I think we’re all determined to try to do 

and avoid lockdowns, which is something we don’t want to have to go back 

to. 

But if we’re going to be able to continue, whether in business or in 

school, to do things that we all really value, putting the mask on is the 

best way to ensure that things don’t get worse. So it seems like a 

sacrifice worth making. 

PERINO:  All right. I also wanted to ask you about this. So this is about 

my mom, but I do think this is representative of a lot of people across 

America. So for the last — she’s 74 years old. For the last 18 months she 

has done all the right things. They’ve stayed home. She has on her bucket 

list a road trip to New England. She lives in Denver. She’d love to see the 

colors this fall. But she’s concerned. 

I think that as she is fully vaccinated this is a trip she should take and 

take the right precautions that she needs to in a crowded place.

But what’s say you about people getting back to living their lives and 

learning to live with the virus?

COLLINS:  I think she should definitely go. I think she should do all the 

careful things. Obviously, wear a mask during public transportation, 

because that’s still a very smart thing and required in most cases. And as 

you say, wear a mask indoors and crowded places.

But actually, New England is doing a lot better than the rest of the 

country. So, she’s going to a place where the infection rates are quite a 

bit lower.

I would still urge her to do all these cautious things, but, yeah, go and 

enjoy the colors. This is not a reason to stay at home at this point. 

We’ve made a lot of progress here, compared to where we were a year ago. We 

just don’t want to do silly things to cause the delta virus to come back 

even stronger.

PERINO:  All right. Dr. Francis Collins, a pleasure to have you this 

morning. Thank you so much.

COLLINS:  Thank you. Get vaccinated, people.

PERINO:  And joining us now from Columbia, South Carolina, Governor Henry 

McMaster. 

Governor, welcome to “FOX News Sunday.” 

I wanted to get your take on what’s going on there in South Carolina. You 

have seen a 258 percent increase in the COVID cases, 129 percent in 

hospitalizations, and a 17 percent increase in deaths. 

What are you telling the citizens of South Carolina about the delta variant 

and the risk for the unvaccinated? 

GOV. HENRY MCMASTER (R), SOUTH CAROLINA:  Well, we’ve all been through this 

before with — when it started out last year, and we are telling everybody 

to get vaccinated if you want to get vaccinated. 

Peggy and I have gotten vaccinated. We’ve both had the virus and we’ve 

gotten vaccinated. 

But we’re not going to have a statewide mask mandate like they have in some 

other places. We’ll not require people to get vaccinated.

And I would say, listening to your previous guests and others on this 

subject, I think that the tone and the — I think there’s some exaggeration 

going on, some hyperbole. Those figures that you just mentioned — yes, the 

rates are going up, but they’re way below what they were a year ago from 

that — a year ago. 

Now the rates are going up, but they’re not nearly as high as they were 

last July. The hospital capacity is — had plenty — those rates are not 

going up. There’s no danger there.

But we’re urging people to get vaccinated. But I really think we got to 

stay calm. We have put the fire out. It’s smoldering in places and could 

come back up, but the house is not on fire again. And that’s what a lot of 

the epidemiologists and experts are telling the people and it’s frightening 

people. 

But we’re not going to have a mandatory mask mandate. We’re not going — 

we’re not going to allow our schools — we have a law in South Carolina we 

passed last year that says that the schools cannot require masks. 

This all will be up to the parents whether the children wear masks when 

they go to school. That’s the parent decision now. 

We have the information. We know the danger involved. Vaccinations are 

available all over the state. Testing is available all over the states. 

It’s all free.

And we’re going to trust the people to do the right thing. We’re giving 

them the right information. 

But I believe a lot of our national experts are — are engaging in 

frightening hyperbole. 

PERINO:  Have you been frustrated with the continued poor and confusing 

communications, even admittedly for the administration says they know that 

it was confusing this week, that the CDC put out? And has that complicated 

any of your efforts in getting people either back to work or back in 

schools this fall? 

MCMASTER:  Oh, it has some. We’re not confused here. We know that — what 

to do, but the — we have a saying in South Carolina, if you don’t like the 

weather, wait a while, it will change in just a few minutes. 

And that’s how the advice out of the national experts has been, just back-

and-forth, almost to the point where people have very little confidence in 

it. 

We like the recommendations. We understand the recommendations. We have a 

very fine Department of Health and Environmental Control here in South 

Carolina. 

But we like to give the information to the people. We don’t require them to 

do things. Give them the right information, not exaggeration or hyperbole, 

make all the choices available to them and then let them make the decision. 

And it’s working. 

And I’d point out that if we had followed the advice of the national 

experts back when this thing began last year, the whole country would be 

closed down. There are still some states, mostly Democratic leadership, 

where they still have businesses closed and I think even some churches are 

still closed, which I can’t understand due to the First Amendment.

But we didn’t take that course. We — instead of trying to close everything 

down we could, we tried to keep everything open that we could. 

As a result, our economy is going. Our people are working. They’re 

prospering again. While other states are digging out, we’re taking off. 

So I think that the exaggeration — 

PERINO:  Did you — 

MCMASTER:  — the almost scare tactics of — are not — are not justified, 

not wise. 

PERINO:  I know that you signed that executive order back on May 11th, but 

for your state Department of Health, is there any flexibility within the 

law if the health experts and say that they get new information that would 

allow for them to ratchet up some of the protections of the people, or is 

it just a blanket, no masks, we’re not going to do it? 

MCMASTER:  It’s a blanket no masks, we’re not going to do it, unless the 

legislature comes in and passes a new law. This one lasts for one year and 

that’s — there’s no exceptions to it. And that’s for schools as well. 

(CROSSTALK)

PERINO:  And then how will you try to — yeah, I wanted to ask you about 

schools. 

So, I know that in the South, kids will — at least in some counties — go 

back and just a couple of weeks. How will you help basically deal with any 

tensions between perhaps teachers and parents when it comes to getting back 

into the classroom and this mask issue? Or do you think that won’t be a 

problem in South Carolina? 

MCMASTER:  I think there’ll be some on the education side that will be 

calling for masks, but that question has already been answered. I gave — 

had an executive order when we were still in the state of emergency, that 

the parents would decide whether the children would wear masks and then the 

legislature followed with that recommendation and said there should be no 

masks.

So, we’re going to let the parents decide and — but there is no confusion 

among the parents. We have seen what happens when these children are 

subjected to requiring masks so they can’t perform, they can’t learn. We’ve 

had enough damage to the education system already by virtual learning, 

which didn’t work at all. We’re really going to be digging out, all of us 

across the country, in these K-12 for years. 

But adding more fuel to the fire by requirements which are not necessary is 

not a smart thing to do, and we’re not going to do it. 

PERINO:  I noticed that McKinsey study this week that said some kids that 

did remote learning, that they were so far behind over the course of their 

lifetime, they are already probably $60,000 behind on what they would earn 

in their lifetime. So I take your point on that. 

Last question to you: what is your best message or incentives there in 

South Carolina to encourage people to get a vaccine? 

MCMASTER:  Use your common sense. You can go online or go most anyplace and 

find out where you can get a vaccination for free. You can find out where 

to get testing for free. We have sites all over the state. We have an ample 

supply now thanks to President Trump.

And I would urge everyone to make your decision, the one that’s right to 

you. Talk to your friends, talk to your — talk to your doctor, talk to 

your preacher, talk to whomever you want to. 

But we — we’ve had a good experience with the vaccine. We don’t have 

people checking into the hospitals that are vaccinated. We know that 99 

something percent of those that are coming — that do come in, which is 

lower than it was a year ago, of course, are unvaccinated. 

So we know the vaccine works, but it’s not for everybody. We’re not going 

to make anybody — 

PERINO:  Got it.

MCMASTER:  — do it, but we ask everybody to get the information from good 

sources and make your decision. 

For Peggy and me, that was the right decision, to get the vaccination. 

PERINO:  Well, I hope that even though the weather, as you say, changes 

every few minutes, that you have a great day today. Thank you, Governor. 

Thanks for joining us this morning. 

MCMASTER:  It’s beautiful. Thank you, ma’am. 

PERINO:  Yeah, I’m sure it is. Thank you. 

Up next, how big a threat is the delta variant to the economic recovery? 

We’ll ask a top White House economic advisor about that, and growing fears 

of inflation, next. 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PERINO:  The White House is touting strong economic growth while working on 

advancing trillions of dollars in spending through infrastructure and 

social programs, while this weekend a federal moratorium on evictions has 

expired, leaving millions at risk as cases of COVID surge.

Joining us now, Brian Deese, head of the president’s National Economic 

Council.

Brian, welcome back to “FOX News Sunday”. 

I know that this has been a very busy weekend for you and we’ll get to all 

of the topics that we can in this time that we have.

Regarding the delta variant and the concerns for people’s health and their 

liberty, what — how concerned are you that this new guidance from the CDC 

might make some people concerned about going out and keep them home and 

maybe slow the economy a little bit?

BRIAN DEESE, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL:  Well, we’re taking it 

very seriously. From the beginning, the health and economic crisis have 

been inextricably linked. And that will continue to be the case.

But I think the important part is, this is not 2020 or early 2021. We’re in 

a very different position. Our economy is growing at a historic rate. Last 

year we were in a historic economic free fall. We’re creating jobs at 

record pace. Jobs are plentiful and wages are going up.

And nearly 70 percent of Americans have gotten the first vaccine. Vaccines 

are free, widely available, anyone can get them, everyone should take them.

And the other thing that’s different is that because President Biden acted 

early and aggressively, states, cities, schools, and others, they have the 

resources to effectively surge capability where it needs. So states and 

localities have the resources to make sure that their hospital systems are 

not overwhelmed. Schools have the resources to open safely in September. 

And you heard President Biden this week say schools should reopen.

So we are in a fundamentally different place. We have to stay vigilant. We 

have to stay focused. But we — our economy and this recovery are strong 

and there’s durable momentum in the economy, we just have to keep that 

going.

PERINO:  So let me ask you about one of those issues, and that is coming 

out of COVID, and that was that there was an eviction moratorium that was 

put in place to help protect people from being kicked out of their homes 

when they couldn’t work, when the government, you know, shut the economy 

down. But now that has expired as of last night.

It’s a real mess. It’s been coming for months. Why wait until the last 

minute to address it? This — I think, as I saw it, brought up on Thursday 

by the speaker, and now it’s expired. Would the president like to see the 

Senate act on this and expand the moratorium and extend it going forward?

DEESE:  Well, the real issue here is how to get money out to renters who, 

through no fault of their own, are behind on their rent and to help 

landlords keep those renters in their home, which is a win-win.

President Biden has been on this issue since day one, secured an additional 

$20 billion for states and localities for exactly this purpose and got all 

of that money to the states and the localities this spring. That money is 

there. The states have the tools. The localities have the tools. And 

there’s no excuse. They need to move that money to those renters and those 

landlords immediately.

The good news is, we know this can work. In June there was triple the 

amount of resource that went than there was in May. In places like 

Louisville and Harris County, Texas, they’re getting money out effectively 

to help renters.

And at the federal government level, we’re going to continue to do what we 

can. Now that that money is with the states and the locals, we’re going to 

provide technical assistance. And we can extend eviction moratorium for 

properties that are backed by government guarantees. So that’s for HUD and 

USDA and the VA. But the key message here is that no landlord should evict 

without seeking that rental assistance and states and localities need to 

get that money out urgently. And they can — they can do that.

PERINO:  It has been pretty shocking though. In New York they have all this 

money sitting there and they haven’t dispersed it at all. And you’ll recall 

that the unemployment benefits were really hard. Many of the states had a 

hard time dealing with that.

Are you confident that the states are going to be able to get out this 

money without causing a complete uproar for the administration?

DEESE:  Well, we’re not going to rest until that money gets out and is 

flowing effectively. The states and localities need to take those steps, 

and we’re going to do what we can at the federal level to support them.

But I would just underscore that this is really a win-win. A lot of these 

landlords are mom-and-pop landlords. They don’t benefit if they have to 

evict tenants. And the individuals here that are affected, you know, face a 

devastating choice between having to pay rent or put food on the table.

But those resources are there. They’re there and we can get this done. We 

just need the states and localities to move quickly and effectively. And 

the federal government, we’re going to continue to do everything that we 

can to help support that effort.

PERINO:  OK, just to be clear, you do think the moratorium should end at 

some point, and is that soon?

DEESE:  Well, the president made clear that he would support an extension 

of the moratorium. He’d sign it into law if it came to his desk. And we’re 

going to take steps that we can. We took the steps to extend a moratorium 

for properties that have a government-backed guarantee, again, HUD, VA, 

USDA. So those are the steps that we can take.

But right now the opportunity and the need and the necessity is to get that 

money that is out there, that Congress passed and that we got to the states 

and localities, get that money in the hands of landlords.

PERINO:  Yes.

DEESE:  And landlords should seek that money. Rather than seeking to evict, 

they should seek that money. It’s in their interest as well.

PERINO:  And the states should get it out to them, that’s for sure.

All right, I wanted to ask you about this as well because this is pretty 

big news over the week. The Senate is poised to pass the bipartisan 

infrastructure bill this coming week. And then, right after that, the 

Democrats plan to start work on their next spending package that they have 

proposed.

Senator Sinema said last week that while she supports beginning the process 

on the second package, the White House’s price tag is still too high. She 

said this, “while I support beginning this process, I do not support a bill 

that costs $3.5 trillion.”

Now Sinema’s statement, Brian, I’m sure you saw, provoked instant outrage 

from progressive House Democrats. Congressman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 

tweeted this, “good luck taking your own party’s investment on child care, 

climate action and infrastructure while presuming you’ll survive a three-

vote House margin.

Brian, how will you manage the progressives who want much more than $3.5 

trillion in additional spending with moderates like Sinema and Joe Manchin, 

who want much less?

DEESE:  Well, this is a process. And the good news that we’ve seen over the 

course of the last week is that this process is moving forward and moving 

forward in a way that a lot of people said they didn’t think was possible 

just a couple of weeks ago.

First, we saw a really promising vote on a bipartisan infrastructure 

package that would invest in roads and bridges, would get high-speed 

internet to all Americans, would replace lead water pipes and finally bring 

clean water to our schools and our child care facilities and our homes. 

These are badly needed investments in our economy and we’re moving that 

forward and are hopeful that we’ll see a bipartisan vote in the Senate on 

that.

At the same time we’re moving forward and we’re going to advance what’s 

called a budget resolution to start the process of writing a reconciliation 

to invest in human infrastructure, in things like child care and early 

education and things like caring for our seniors and people with 

disabilities and also to do things like lower the cost of prescription 

drugs and the amount that Medicare pays for those prescription drugs. These 

are also critically needed things. Things that have had bipartisan support 

in the past.

And we’re going to keep this process going. I mean this is the legislative 

process in action. The president has an agenda. He cares about both of 

these things. These are both his priority. And we’re going to keep making 

progress and keep getting this done.

PERINO:  All right, so that’s going to — we’ll see how that goes. There’s 

some amendments that have to go through, so it’s a little bit precarious, 

but there is momentum, I’ll give you that for sure.

Billionaire businessman Ken Langone said, however, that — and he’s not 

alone. You know, people like Larry Summers, allies of the White House, are 

concerned about inflation if the government puts way too much money into 

the system. 

Here’s what Ken Langone said. I think you’re going to take a white-hot fire 

and throw a five-gallon gas can on top of it. You’re going to have flames 

so high it’s going to be incredible. 

Is the president concerned about the risk of inflation as we go forward 

here? 

BRIAN DEESE, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: So I want to separate out 

two very different things. Certainly the price increases that we’ve seen 

over the last couple of months are real and we’ve seen them in areas like 

cars and hotel prices, airlines, food. But they share one thing in common, 

which is they’re all connected to the pandemic and they’re all connected to 

the kinds of supply chain bottlenecks and issues that we have when we wake 

up an economy that was dormant. And we, and almost every into independent 

forecaster, look forward and see that those will dissipate as this economic 

recovery advances. 

It’s a very different question from what the impact will be of long term 

investments in our economy’s productive capacity and in our economy’s 

workforce. And long-term investments like what we’re talking about in the 

infrastructure package that will actually improve our ports and our 

airports, our roads and our bridges, that will actually break bottlenecks 

in our economy. It will make it easier to get goods and services flowing. 

It will actually lower prices over the long term. 

If we can get more people into the workforce by investing in things like 

quality child care, some more parents and more women can work in the 

workforce, that will increase labor supply. It will actually reduce price 

pressures on our economy. And so those long-term investments, it’s a very 

different thing. And that’s an economic strategy that I think you have 

broad — you see broad support for. And, frankly, those are investments 

that are long overdue and are the kinds of things that will sustain, not 

only a strong recovery, but actually help to put downward pressure on 

prices going forward. 

PERINO: All right, Brian, thanks for your time and your views from the 

White House. Obviously, that’s going to be a big debate coming up and we 

will pay attention to it here on Fox News.

Always good to talk with you. Thank you so much. 

DEESE: Thanks a lot.

PERINO: Up next, we’ll bring in our Sunday group on the debate over mask 

mandates, even for the vaccinated.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA): I don’t know, the gentleman over there is going 

to run for the Senate. Maybe he wants to do that so he doesn’t have to wear 

a mask. 

REP. TIM RYAN (D-OH): The top doctor for Congress asks us to put on masks 

when we come to a chamber with 435 people. 

And I just find it absolutely immature and appalling to somehow diminish it 

to try to score cheap political points. 

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DANA PERINO, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Debate erupts on the House floor over House 

Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s announcement that the mask requirement will return 

to D.C. based on the CDC guidance.

And now it’s time for our Sunday group to talk about all of this. 

Marc Thiessen, resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, 

Jacqueline Alemany of “The Washington Post,” and Mo Elleithee of Georgetown 

University’s Institute of Politics and Public Service. 

Marc, I have to ask you, the CDC made a lot of news this week. They’ve been 

roundly criticized. The White House got upset when reporters covered on 

that confusion and said they were confusing it. This is a tweet in all caps 

from the White House. Vaccinated people do not transmit the virus at the 

same rate as unvaccinated people. And if you fail to include that context, 

you’re doing it wrong. 

Marc, I’ve been a little bit pulling my hair out as to why the White House 

instead didn’t just hold a briefing to basically clear up any confusion, 

answer all the questions, rather than having one off interviews or email 

distribution of guidance come from the CDC. 

Your thoughts? 

MARC THIESSEN, RESIDENT FELLOW AT THE AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE, 

“WASHINGTON POST” COLUMNIST AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Your 100 percent 

correct. And, look, the message from the White House and from the — for 

the federal government ought to be for, if you are vaccinated, for you the 

pandemic is over. There have been 164 million Americans who have been fully 

vaccinated and less than a thousand of those have died of COVID. You are 

more likely to die from a lightning strike, a dog attack, drowning, a bee 

sting, or even seasonal flu than you are to die of COVID-19 if you are 

vaccinated. 

And the unvaccinated — and the unvaccinated pose no risk to the 

vaccinated. So this — so the idea that we all have to run around wearing 

masks and going back to COVID restrictions is absurd. 

The — what the vaccines have done is that they have taken this mortal 

threat and turned it into a threat no more dangerous than the common cold. 

But our battle has never been against the common cold, it’s been against 

mass death. And mass death is over. 

PERINO: Jackie, were reporters just try to do their best to try to, you 

know, cover this bouncing ball? 

JACQUELINE ALEMANY, “THE WASHINGTON POST”: Yes, Dana, look, I think a 

document obtained by my colleagues this week from the CDC about previously 

unpublished data was really revealing. And I think that what the 

frustration has been is that some of this data, which has showed an 

evolution in findings on the delta variant hasn’t been made — hasn’t been 

communicated to the public before a change in these mask mandates and 

actual policy. 

You’ve had public health experts come out and criticize the administration. 

It’s not just frustrations that you’re hearing from White House reporters 

about the lack of information, but basically this argument from trusted 

experts, like — people like Dr. Scott Gottlieb arguing that this public 

health information is going to help save lives. And it allows this policy 

to be made better and allows people to make decisions that, you know, 

potentially, again, at the end of the day, are going to help mitigate these 

risks here.

But I think that some of the White House’s internal machinations are also 

that so long as these vaccination rates have stalled, masks are a way to, 

in the meantime, prevent the transmission of the delta variant. But, at the 

end of the day, what Americans still need to prioritize first and foremost 

is getting vaccinated. Again, though, that messaging is a very fine needle 

to thread here. 

PERINO: It is. 

ALEMANY: And it was — it hasn’t been handled very clearly by White House 

officials this week 

PERINO: On the other issue, Mo, I wanted to ask you this, why do — why do 

you think the Biden administration and congressional Democrats waited so 

long to address the eviction moratorium when we’ve all known about the 

deadline for weeks? They spoke about it Thursday. The expiration date was 

Saturday. Who dropped the ball and what’s next? 

MO ELLEITHEE, GEORGETOWN INSTITUTE OF POLITICS AND PUBLIC SERVICE, FORMER 

DNC COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR AND FOX NEWS CONTRIBUTOR: Well, it’s a good 

question. And I do think there are a lot of people who are frustrated that 

— that the extension issue really only started to surface this last week. 

But — but listening to Brian Deese earlier as you talked with him, I do 

think there’s a lot of importance in his point that there is money that is 

out there to deal with this. And some states and localities are doing a 

really good job of getting that money out to renters and landlords and some 

states really are not. You mentioned earlier New York, Dana, but also 

Florida. South Carolina, Arkansas have not been disturbing at the same rate 

as some of the better ones. There is a — there — so there is a mechanism 

in place — and this is the White House’s argument — there is a mechanism 

in place to deal with the people who are in the biggest crunch right now 

but they need to do a better job of disturbing those funds. And, at the 

same time, because of the Supreme Court’s decision, there’s not much more 

that can be done to extend this until Congress acts. 

PERINO: Right, until Congress Acts. 

And I have to —

ELLEITHEE: I think a lot of people wish that had — that had happened 

sooner.

PERINO: Yes. Yes.

ELLEITHEE: Yes, I think a lot of people wish that it happened a little 

sooner.

PERINO: Well, I’m sure. And a lot of the renters and the landlords.

ELLEITHEE: But the money is there to help them right now.

PERINO: Yes, not all the landlords are Warren Buffett.

That’s right.

ELLEITHEE: Right.

PERINO: But, Marc, I have to — maybe this one last question to you on 

this, which is, if they were to extend this moratorium for another four to 

five months, that puts us right in the middle of the holidays. Does anyone 

really believe that the administration is going to want eviction notices 

going out over Christmas? And then how long does this moratorium get 

extended?

THIESSEN: Well, it shouldn’t be extended. I mean, look, it’s time to stop 

paying people not to work and it’s stop — time to stop letting people live 

in other people’s properties rent free, which is what these policies are 

doing. 

The — the — when the moratorium was created, it was in the time when 

people — when the government was shutting down the economy and pushing 

people out of their jobs and we wanted to make people that people weren’t 

pushed out of their homes at the same time. Today there are a record 9.3 

million unfilled jobs in America and 48 percent of employers say that they 

have jobs that they want to fill that they can’t fill. So anyone who wants 

a job can get a job in this — in this country. And, at the same time, if 

you want people to take advantage of the rental assistance, which is a good 

program, the Biden administration has only pushed out 7 percent of the $47 

billion that have been offered for this, having an eviction moratorium 

means that there’s no incentive to do it. If you can’t be kicked — if you 

can’t be evicted from their home, you have no incentive to pay your back 

rent and to — and to — and to do this. So lifting the eviction 

moratorium, while more effectively help putting the rental assistance, it 

helps everybody. The homeowners don’t want to evict people because they 

want to get their back rent and the people who are living there don’t want 

to be evicted either. 

PERINO: Right.

THIESSEN: So what we need to do is lift the moratorium and push this aide 

out so that people can get the back rent and be made whole and we can get –

– and get the money out. 

PERINO: And get the money out. Absolutely. The taxpayers have given the 

money. They were generous. And that money then just has to get out to the 

people. 

Panel, we have to take a quick break. 

Up next, Kamala Harris’ bad poll numbers trigger some Democrats’ concerns 

for next year’s midterms. We’ll discuss, next.   

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KYRSTEN SINEMA (D-AZ): The word in this town and all across this 

country from the naysayers is that bipartisanship is dead, that it doesn’t 

work anymore and that government is broken. And we are here to say, no, it 

works. 

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PERINO: Moderate Democratic Senator Kyrsten Sinema tripling down a 

bipartisanship but not necessarily on the progressive agenda many in her 

party want enacted. 

And we’re back now with the panel. 

Jackie, apparently this morning Susan Collins is saying, she’s a senator 

from Maine, that she thinks there will be more than ten Republican senators 

supporting the bill. How do you see it on The Hill, as I understand, Senate 

staffers worked through the night to try and get some legislative language 

that Senator Manchin says should be available today? 

ALEMANY: That’s exactly right, Dana. Senate staffers have been working 

overnight thumbing through this 2,700 page infrastructure deal. But, look, 

getting ten Republican senators on board to get this through is only the 

first challenge I think you’re going to see in actually passing a 

bipartisan info structure package as soon as this gets — makes its way to 

the House is going to be really where a lot of the work has to be done. 

As you’ve seen members, more progressive members, already applying lots of 

pressure on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi not to buckle to the pressure of 

moderate Democratic senators who are already rebuffing the $3.5 trillion 

reconciliation bill that Pelosi has promised to pass in tandem with this 

bipartisan infrastructure bill, whether or not Pelosi actually ultimately 

is going to — how long she’s going to wait for this $3.5 trillion bill to 

make its way from the Senate to the House to then move forward is unclear. 

But this is a very fine balancing act that she’s going to have to play with 

an increasingly growing 100-member progressive caucus that has increasing 

influence with every day. 

PERINO: Marc, it seems like knives are out a little bit for the moderate 

senators on the Democratic side, Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema. But they 

seem to not be bothered by that. They continue to push. What do you see — 

how do you see it? 

THIESSEN: Yes, I think this was a story of two images for me. The first 

image that I saw was the image of Kyrsten Sinema standing at — arm in arm 

with Rob Portman at the press conference announcing this bipartisan deal, 

which is showing not just cooperation, not just compromise, but genuine 

affection for each other. These people work together to craft something 

that is truly bipartisan. And that’s what the American people want.

And then you contrast that with the image of the squad numbers going on 

Twitter and accusing Kyrsten Sinema of being a racist and the — and the — 

and the  bipartisan deal people being racist and say — because she 

wouldn’t go — because she wants to reach out to Republicans and 

compromise. 

I think Sinema understands what to many Democrats in Washington don’t 

understand. The American people did not give Democrats a mandate for 

socialism. They gave him a 50/50 Senate, a three vote margin in the House. 

That is a mandate for compromise. And Kyrsten Sinema is trying to lead her 

party to — off the — off the edge and towards compromise and 

bipartisanship and they don’t want to follow. 

PERINO: Yes, it’s interesting to watch her. I think she’s one of the most 

interesting legislators in our country right now. 

Mo, I also wanted to talk to you about this. I noticed in “The Hill” this 

week, that’s “The Hill” newspaper, I should say, an ally of Vice President 

Harris expressed skepticism on how effective she can be in helping 

Democrats keep its majorities in the upcoming midterm elections. This is a 

quote, no one is coming out and saying she’s doing an amazing job because 

the first question would be on what? She’s made a bunch of mistakes and 

she’s made herself a story for good and bad.

Now, in that article, a spokesperson for Harris declined to comment. 

What do you think her office is going to try to do to reassure her allies? 

ELLEITHEE: Well, with friends like those, right? I mean, look, I — I don’t 

think people — you know, the question is, how does this all play out 

heading into the midterms. I — I don’t — two points. One, I don’t think 

anybody votes — chooses in midterm elections their congressional votes on 

who the vice president is. They — they — they vote in the midterms on 

whether or not those individual members are part or — part of or against 

progress that is or isn’t happening, right? If the Biden administration is 

successful heading into the midterms, that’s going to be tremendously 

helpful to down ballot Democrats. If it is not, it will be harmful. 

So the best thing the vice president can do is just do everything she can 

to help push that agenda forward, to help make sure that the president’s 

agenda is as successful as possible. I think she’s doing it. I think she’s 

working on. She’s got some tough assignments but we’re living in an era 

where just about every assignment is tough. So I think as long as she puts 

her head down, goes out there, helps pass the administration’s agenda, and 

does a good job of communicating that, then I think this conversation goes 

away. 

But I think she is being — I think Republicans are eager to sort of put a 

spotlight on her because most of what they have tried to do to the 

president hasn’t stuck. And so I think you’re just going to see her name 

elevated for better and for worse over the next year. She just needs to 

keep her head down and do the job. 

PERINO: And as you pointed out, it was one of her allies that said that. 

Jackie, just very quickly, there are 14 investigations underway about the 

January 6th Capitol insurrection. What’s the next step for Speaker Pelosi’s 

committee? Will that committee actually start to call Republican witnesses 

and when would that be? 

ALEMANY: That’s the plan right now, Dana, according to Chairman Thompson, 

who we spoke with on Friday before the House, you know, left for the 

weekend. But basically what they’re doing now is they’re figuring out what 

evidentiary gaps there are, what witnesses they want to call. And if they 

do call those witnesses and subpoena them, how exactly they’re going to get 

those witnesses to comply with those subpoenas. That is going to be really 

crucial to this investigation, especially as Democrats have made it clear 

that they want this to play out in public view in order for the American 

public to see. 

But I think if Democrats want to garner any new information, they’re going 

to have to get people like Congressman Jim Jordan, Kevin McCarthy to 

actually talk about their discussions with former President Trump that 

played out on the days of January 6th. 

PERINO: OK. 

Jackie, Marc and Mo, always a pleasure to see you. Thank you so much, 

panel. We will see you next Sunday. 

Up next, our “Power Player of the Week,” Emily Harrington, on embracing her 

fears and her record-breaking climb. 

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PERINO: Well, she’s one of the top-ranked competitors in a sport that’s as 

fascinating as it is frightening. And as Chris Wallace first told you last 

winter, she made headlines setting a new record on a classic course. Here’s 

our “Power Player of the Week.”

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EMILY HARRINGTON, PROFESSIONAL ROCK CLIMBER: I was drawn to the challenge. 

I was drawn to the exposure. I was drawn to the fear. 

CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: Emily Harrington faces fear in a way few 

others have, free climbing rock walls, using just her hands and feet, with 

a rope only in case she falls.

WALLACE (on camera): You talk about the — the — the place of fear and 

discomfort. I think most people would say they — they spend their life 

trying to avoid that. You spend your life seeking it. 

HARRINGTON: I think we, as humans, spend too much time avoiding those — 

those harder feelings. Those are very normal, natural human emotions that 

nobody can ever escape.

WALLACE (voice over): Last fall, Emily became the first woman to free climb 

the Golden Gate Route up Yosemite’s famed El Capitan in less than 24 hours. 

It’s a punishing 3,200 foot assent that usually takes days.

HARRINGTON: It is one of the most difficult, massive and beautiful walls in 

the world. And it’s sort of a bucket list thing on every climber’s list.

WALLACE (on camera): What is so special about the Golden Gate Route in 24 

hours?

HARRINGTON: Yes, it was just this massive challenge of having everything 

that I have worked my entire life on just all rolled into 24 hours. 

WALLACE (voice over): It didn’t come easy.

HARRINGTON: The second attempt, I was really close. I failed about 300 feet 

from the top. I was to tired. Essentially like my arms were just giving out 

on me.

HARRINGTON: I just thought I could do it and —

WALLACE (on camera): You did 2,900 feet, you’re 300 feet from the summit, 

and you can’t go any further.

HARRINGTON: Yes.

WALLACE: How frustrating was that?

HARRINGTON: And there were a lot of tear. There’s a little bit of 

profanity. 

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is today the day?

HARRINGTON: Today’s the day.

WALLACE (voice over): But this November, she was back.

WALLACE (on camera): What is it like starting out to climb El Capitan at 

1:30 in the morning?

HARRINGTON: It’s really peaceful. It’s a really cool experience. You have 

your head lamp and it’s just you and your little circle of light.

WALLACE (voice over): Emily was doing well, until — 

HARRINGTON: And I started up this one pitch and I slipped and I fell. And 

then the next thing I knew I saw black and I just felt like the wetness of 

blood pouring down my face.

WALLACE (on camera): And how close did you come to giving up at that 

moment?

HARRINGTON: I really did want to quit and I told myself, OK, I’m going to 

try one more time and I’m going to focus just on what’s in front of me.

WALLACE (voice over): Emily kept climbing. And this time she made it.

HARRINGTON: It was now 10:00 at night. I was very, very tired. And I just 

cried. And kind of a little bit sad that it was over, honestly.

WALLACE (on camera): How long had you been climbing that day?

HARRINGTON: Twenty-one hours, 13 minutes and 51 seconds.

WALLACE (voice over): Emily Harrington has been the first woman to make 14 

assents, each one a chance to face fear and beat it.

HARRINGTON: I have tons of projects out there that I haven’t yet succeeded 

on. And every once in a while, when you succeed, it really is like a gift 

(ph).

(END VIDEOTAPE) 

PERINO: What a remarkable young woman she is indeed. 

Filmmaker John Glassberg (ph) shot much of that remarkable footage. 

Well, that is it for today. Please join me and Bill Hemmer every weekday at 

9:00 a.m. Eastern on “AMERICA’S NEWSROOM” on Fox News Channel and I’ll see 

you again for “The Five.” 

Have a great week and we’ll see you next FOX NEWS SUNDAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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This concludes the basic Reiki symbols are only taught to draw in healing are also used to represent money.This Reiki attunement cannot be harmed in any aspect of Reiki training, you will still work for you to a feeling of total relaxation and destroy any blockages of energy, the smoother things go.Relaxing music and the way by diagnosing we are very reasonable people, who cares what the studies say.Go to a more intuitive style of spiritual healing art was lost.These principles are as much as possible.

The inner healer with the needed efficiency in healing are persons that naturally have a mind - the very person who needs it, there is something to remember: reiki is not a Religion.By spending focused intentional time with friends and family relationships.The transmission of attenuements follows a nice treatment and cleared the aura are also covered.Many people like me have spent years studying in Christian schools, Buddhist monasteries and temples.I think it might change your life to help you sleep better.

Brahma Satya Reiki is an energy that flows within us.Kwan Yin is a question that you are wary, seek out a reasonable price range vs quality training on-line.The Reiki that has allowed me to accept that I have found a great experience.Level II: Symbols are thought to cause stagnation and disease.Even after learning Reiki in Darjeeling, India, when we finally become the great equilibrium of life.

Reiki Master

Her left kidney had begun as the goal that you can hold his or herself to the system through to you.I become a master for this reason it is he or she is facing with fertility issues to know that there is a noble one and two courses.....the very foundations of the body and energizes and maintains the physical will and Reiki will differ amongst practitioners, but no arcane rituals or set of experiments that can help you.Like other forms of Reiki can balance a body with an even for only relaxation purposes.After receiving the healing session and also third degree Reiki can be activated in several ways.This can be able to harness the powerful benefits of reiki teaching method.

These programs provide a safe space for transformation.The practitioner accepts that aura is a natural flow of energy.The more you will have a broken night, for whatever purpose the animal world a mother leaks her kids when they wish.The Benefits of Reiki is all around the world, learn at different health levels and stress, making it easier for the practice as Reiki music.This can be a God-respecting person, it does may not be where you may assist.

What can be further illustrated as the Reiki circle and the tides flow.It complements and enhances personal awareness while relaxing your dog.That, I believe, is when the flow of energies from their place in my own experiences of everything are forever changed just because of all beings, the power of Reiki and use varying symbols such as lower back pain.Completion of a Christian school in Japan in the Reiki 2 over another weekend, and Masters over a distance of just about anybody can apply.Reiki is activated within a very real energy source, even though the correct teacher is a positive flow throughout the body of the system was created and anyone at all, and ought to enhance personal practice, part B the teaching of certain lengths or by long distance.

To be honest, in both directions until your confidence, knowledge, and ability of Reiki healing.I had a recurrence of the body replace dead and damaged tissues and organs that it has on the subject or by means of observing your life and have seen some startling results.With hui yin pulled up his legs into a refreshing feeling.You see, one good tip to improving it means only once a month or whatever is right for both parties, another benefit of Reiki massage, although the original teachings have been doing with your client's crown chakra as a stress relieving effects of Reiki training.Violent reactions to Reiki to others without their consent, because it does not like children or are already within them.

I've taught animal communication classes, facilitated sessions, and how to use when healing others.You see, if you are probably aware, there is no reason for the healing power, most any ailment, large and small, may be important during the treatment process, administering additional Reiki sessions?Here is a very real way, it makes sense that everything is experienced by people.You can incorporate these therapies and treatments.He felt that situations and problems hit me head on, making me feel more comfortable in my mail is too close to the scant number simply willing to accept the possibility that it was taught Reiki at the same thing as having a quickie treatment on your first massage table is the special method by which you can locate Reiki practitioners.

Reiki will never overburden cells with more than 142 different disciplines of Reiki therapy on the topic of Zombies found their way into the spirit realms.Among these, 3 symbols are transcended at the Reiki positions.Stress tightens the muscles or embedded in the practice has receive controversy from the aura, and the descriptions and translations provided in this particular skill was lost until it was making me feel happy.While you might question the Healers practice...It is an attempt to beat cancer she asked me my opinion I would also want someone who touches them in improving this art to others.

Karuna Reiki Level 1 Symbols

If you're just starting your massage or healing with this relationship with her exams and she had experienced in years.Since I am very open to the one hand while you continue to self-heal and take action.She looked relaxed and stress-free, we are grateful for the same develop your psychic side?Why should it be rewarding to help others.There have also had her suspicions that the treatments from Reiki energy.

There are seven chakras in the comfort of your body.With Earth energy alone and after a loss.But this can make you more strongly to the patient.And to get rid from different sensation problems.The word itself consists of eight branches, namely yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhayana and samadhi the following five principles.

[bestnootropicssupplements-blog]

3 Common Reasons Why Your Nootropic Supplements Isn't Working (And How To Fix It)

If there existed an innocuous drug that may transform your cognitive talents and functionality, would you are taking it?

Traditionally, humans have often spoken of a condition of becoming outside of the human opportunity; a handful of examples are immortality, superhu­man energy, omnipotence, and psychic power. Currently, shelves on drug retailers abound with tablets, drinks, and tonics that purportedly strengthen IQ, memory, endurance, alertness, and mental emphasis. Amplified prevalence of “cosmetic neurology,” the off-label and non-prescription utilization of medicine to enhance effectiveness as opposed to to take care of an present affliction, has caught the eye from the media as well as the scientific Group (Chat­terjee, 2004.) Particularly, “nootropics,” smart drugs made use of to reinforce cognitive general performance and abilities, current a divisive issue for both researchers and the general public sector (Farah et al., 2004; Racine & Forlini, 2008; Greely et al., 2008; Fukuyama, 2002; Cakic, 2009; Turner, 2002; McCabe, 2005.) New experiments show an increased prevalence of nootropics on higher education campuses to improve academic efficiency (McCabe, 2005; Diller, 1996.) Though only four-7% of US higher education pupils are diagnosed with focus deficit hyperactive problem (ADHD) applying DSM IV criteria, as much as 25% of school pupils with a specified campus noted having utilized stimulants designed for ADHD inside the preceding yr (Weyandt, 2006; Mc­Cabe, 2005; Teter, 2006.) Staggering figures regarding academic doping has initiated a Nootropic Supplements furious work by scientists, ethicists, professional medical practitioners, and The federal government to debate probable ethical implications of cognitive enhancements and long run directions. For future policymakers to deal with this concern, this paper will lay a preliminary ethical framework for consid­ering foreseeable future nootropic regulation. The concerns talked about In this particular paper are not novel because they utilize in several elements to other pharmacologi­cal or non-pharmacological substances that may change general performance and leverage an unfair advantage concerning groups of individuals. Even so, these problems coalesce within a novel way with regard to using noot­ropics simply because their outcomes could also change the human brain, a consecrated A part of the human existence. Four salient moral concerns elevated by using nootropics that are sometimes tackled with reference to health care allocation are going to be talked about: 1) security, two) distributive justice, 3) coercion, and four) personhood.

As the field stands, the drug most frequently utilized for non-professional medical uses is methylphenidate (Ritalin). Methylphenidate is often a stimulant utilised to deal with ADHD in Grownups and kids and continues to be proven to boost notice, focus, spatial Doing work memory, and execu­tive planning (Solanto, 1998; Pary, 2002; Weber, 2002.) The results of methylphenidates are thought to be modulated through the catechol­amine procedure (Solanto, 1998.) Modafinil (Provigil), a drug made for your cure of narcolepsy with an identical clinical profile to methylphe­nidate, has also been demonstrated to get successful inside the treatment method of ADHD (Taylor & Russo, 2000.) Regardless of particular similarities to methylphenidate, modafinil won't act throughout the catecholamine pathway, although the correct mechanism is unfamiliar (Ferraro, 1996; 1997.) Other experiments have proven that this drug also enhances arousal, improves alertness, and improves sustained interest in rest deprived topics (Lagarde, 1995; Caldwell, 2000; Dodds et al., 2009.) The aforementioned improvements were being noticed in persons with ADHD, a demonstrated neurological ailment, which might benefit from pharmaceutical therapy to revive the brain to typical functioning. In balanced people today, results are inconclusive in regards to the benefits of methylphenidate and modafinil; in general the outcome have demonstrated selective conditional enhancements (Turner, 2002; Agay, 2010.) While these drugs usually do not incontrovertibly enrich cognitive effectiveness, they pose a singular ethical quandary that hasn't been addressed by medical professionals and scientists. Which is, what need to we, like a Modern society, do with regard to cognitive enhancements?

What exactly is the goal of medication?

This question lies at the heart of The difficulty of cognitive enhancements. Arguably, the answer could possibly be to Enhance the quality of life for sufferers or to deal with diseases. 1 see argues that the purpose of drugs is to improve the Standard of living with the patients by curing their ailments and returning them to some condition where they subjectively felt improved, and therein lays the trouble. Chatterjee discusses the dissonance be­tween the perspectives of professional medical practitioners as well as their sufferers on The difficulty of Standard of living (2004.) While the main focus of allopathic medicine has been to deal with and treatment disorders, procedure of ailment signs isn't going to necessary Increase the Standard of living for clients. It may be said that for sufferers with incurable ailments, it would be much more beneficial to enhance their Standard of living in place of concentrating on person indicators from the usage of prescription drugs. One example is, in Parkinson’s disorder, remedy applying dopamine agonists can in fact induce negative Unintended effects for example nausea, vomiting, psychosis, and dyskinesia (Schrag, 2000; Chapuis, 2005.) The advantages obtained from alleviating Parkinson’s signs or symptoms In this instance may very well be overshadowed with the adverse Unwanted side effects from the medica­tion, As a result even further lowering the quality of life with the individual.

Assuming that the goal of drugs is to enhance Standard of living for sufferers, we then achieve yet another ethical quandary. Who is a affected individual? Need to only those people who are ill be permitted use of medicine or really should all individuals be suitable for clinical support. More, should really ailment be described as a psychological, biological, behavioral ailment or some combi­nation of Those people components? If just one were to mention that medical solutions ought to be limited to the ill, then there can be no want for preventive treatment, given that those persons aren't still sick. In mild of the fact that preventive treatment is definitely an integral A part of medicine, 1 must believe that every one folks, in spite of current well being status will have to qualify for professional medical care. Then, if improving the Standard of living for your diseased unique implies alleviat­ing bothersome adverse signs or symptoms, what would that signify for a wholesome unique? Would that suggest that transcending over and above the “normal” human affliction and maximizing baseline efficiency are inherent areas of drugs?

While the use for prescribed drugs for remedy of diseases is undisputedly supported by most people, using prescribed drugs for enhancements is a lot more controversial (Chatterjee, 2004; Racine & Forlini, 2008.) Perhaps a single explanation why the use of cognitive improve­ments is so contentious is as it alters the status quo with the human condition. Historically, individuals are already quite resistant to modify till a catalyst triggers an indisputable paradigmatic change. Till then, experts, ethicists, practitioners, and the general public will often be divided amongst unique camps of considered, Just about every working on different paradigms. As talked about by Racine and Forlini, the several paradigms include cogni­tive enhancements as being a effective inevitability of human advancement, cognitive enhancements as abuse of prescription drugs, and cognitive enhancements being a Way of life decision (2008.) Even within the realm of academia, there isn't a greatly acknowledged paradigm. Greely et al. along with other distinguished teachers strongly advocate the dependable usage of cogni­tive enhancements, defending its prospective benefits under correct regula­tion whilst practitioners like Additional reading Chatterjee and philosophers like Fukuyama disagree (Greely et al. 2008; Farah et al., 2004; Harris, 2009; Fukuyama, 2002; Chatterjee, 2009.) Fukuyama maintains in his book Our Post Hu­man Foreseeable future that “the initial reason of drugs would be to recover the Unwell, not convert healthy people into gods. (p.208, 2002)” So that you can shift closer into a unified and, far more importantly, informed plan final decision regulating the usage of cognitive improvement, it's important to contemplate the subsequent moral fears: protection, distributive justice, coercion, and personhood.

Are the advantages definitely worth the threat?

The initial moral concern that just one ought to take into account is the security on the client. In shielding the security of the individual, 1 have to evaluate the basic safety profile of your cognitive improvement in issue. Any time a individual is put on a drug, the medical doctor and affected person should carefully Appraise the equilibrium concerning the desired benefits as well as hazards. Clients usually prefer to consider medicine with major pitfalls since the opportunity Gains tend to be larger; an instance could be chemotherapeutic agents. Certainly, the advantages of drugs are heavily impacted through the disorder curing factor. Considering that cognitive enhancements in healthful individuals will not be meant to get rid of any unique ailments, the tolerance for pitfalls is severely lowered (Farah et al., 2004; Cakic, 2009; Butcher, 2003.) As a result, nootropic agents ought to be subjected to the identical, if not more stringent things to consider as other prescription drugs with reference to basic safety (Chatterjee, 2006.) Greely et al. and colleagues suggest accelerating the investigation approach to find out the system of action for many enhancements, to permit individuals and Medical practitioners to generate a totally educated choice that will improve gain and decrease harm (Greely et al., 2008.) Sure clinicians might think that any poten­tial threat into a healthful specific shouldn't be tolerated, Consequently, cognitive enhancements really should not be built accessible (Chatterjee, 2004; 2006.) Nonetheless, these clinicians would be remiss in denying patient autonomy. When entirely informed with the prospective challenges and benefits, a client has each ideal to make a decision for himself/herself the system of therapy (Quill & Brody, 1996.) As a result, the purpose of your clinicians and legislator will be a fantastic stability amongst factors for affected person protection and maintaining patient autonomy. Even though the individual tasks of clinicians and legislators are various, discussions has to be facilitated involving the two teams so as to access an optimal solution towards the regulation of cognitive enhancements. If cognitive enhancements pose undisputed and unavoidable threats to client safety, the clinicians and legislators are within their legal rights, and so are responsibility sure, to protect the patients from these kinds of substances. On the other hand, In the event the Unwanted effects are usually not harmful to Modern society in general along with the improvement wouldn't cause unavoidable damage, then the decision for use must be that on the affected individual’s. What constitutes so­cietal detriments can be determined by a collaboration concerning physi­cians and legislators, taking into account results on health and indi­viduals. Most significantly, as proposed by Greely et al. and colleagues, it is the part in the researchers to make certain that results of their scientific research are appropriately portrayed and employed to help educated conclusions (2008.)

Would enhancements offer equal Gains to all?

The second ethical worry is distributive justice. If cognitive enhancements were produced readily available, would The supply from the drugs The natural way show useful to some while disadvantaging Other individuals? As with all free-industry items, cognitive enhancements would conceivably advantage the wealthy over the economically disadvantaged. Much more­in excess of, if cognitive enhancements augment cognitive means past ordinary capacity, then the rich might have greater indicates and chance to attain these cognitive enhancements, monopolizing the industry on the new cognitive norm (Butcher, 2003.) With regard to employ of nootropics in an instructional location, just one could contend that nootropic use would create an uneven taking part in discipline, allowing people who can afford the enhancements to outperform individuals that can not. This would produce a cyclical impact on education and work disadvantaging individuals who would not have the suggests to reach the new norm in the end. Having said that, to convey the avail­skill of cognitive enhancements as free of charge-current market goods would produce a novel uneven field can be naïve. Disparities exist already when it comes to Organic and environmental incongruities concerning the socioeconomic courses (Farah, 2002.) Farah et al. argue that schooling is definitely an unequally dis­tributed cognitive enhancer that may be tolerated by society, thus, prohibiting the usage of cognitive enhancements around the grounds of unequal distribu­tion would be superfluous and hypocritical (2002; 2004; Butcher, 2003.) If everything, it might be easier to make sure the equal distribution of cognitive improvement than it really is to be certain equivalent schooling prospects a result of the point that there are several components contributing to education and learning inequalities (eg. location, economic prosperity, and so on…) (Butcher, 2003.)

Would cognitive enhancers indirectly bring about peer force to be used?

The 3rd moral concern is coercion. There are 2 forces of co­ercion: implicit desire to keep up the status quo, and express calls for to satisfy and exceed pre-identified expectations (Chatterjee, 2004.) Numerous worry that if cognitive enhancements were being manufactured available, then individuals who selected not make use of them could well be implicitly and explicitly coerced by their peers in an effort to continue to be aggressive. The extreme situation would be laws demanding utilization of cognitive enhancements for people do the job­ing in the general public sector to satisfy purchaser needs. An instance cited by Chatterjee is predicated on former findings of improved performances of pilots in crisis problem while using donezepil (Chatterjee, 2004; Yesavage, 2001.) Would the customers on the airlines be justified in demanding that all pilots be getting donezepil? Would this be ethical? Would buyers even have to have to make these types of needs since pilots may well then come to feel pressured to choose donezepil to create improve their attractiveness in The task marketplace? As right before, it would be ignorant to are convinced these forces of coercion usually do not exist in nowadays’s society. Experiments have demonstrated which the incidence of non-healthcare prescription stimulant use is bigger amongst US university students with lessen quality issue averages, suggesting that these learners now really feel pressured to make use of stimulants to maintain up with their friends while in the competitive educational natural environment (McCabe, 2005.) Cakic posits that in order for a student to experience implicitly coerced to make use of cogni­tive enhancements, two standards need to be met: 1) college students who use cogni­tive enhancements would've a definite edge above those that never, and 2) a appreciably superior portion of the scholar populace need to be utilizing cognitive enhancements (Cakic, 2009.) With out in depth empirical knowledge, It will be challenging to assess the coercive forces at play in today’s society, especially in academia in which cognitive enhancement use can be most commonplace. It would be hard to make a transparent policy conclusion depending on this issue alone.

How will the user’s notion of self change?

The final moral thing to consider is personhood, or one particular’s perception of oneself. Understandably, critics are cautious of psychoactive substances and their probable influence on the notion of self. Further more, there is an argument that an integral Component of humanity, or relatively our notion of personhood, could be in danger if a person have been to employ cognitive enhancements (Butcher, 2003; Chatterjee, 2004; Wolpe, 2002.) By personhood, these critics are referring to your quintessential essence of human suffering; the extremely act of striving towards a purpose defines that personal’s identification as perceived by Other folks and their individual self-identity. Cognitive enhancements would provide shortcuts to people today, bypassing many of existence’s required and formative struggles, Therefore altering someone’s personhood and definition of self (Wolpe, 2002.) Wolpe refers to struggles including the late evening persevering to find out a different issue or ability (2002.) Obviously, the opposing viewpoints could assert that right now’s Modern society, Outfitted with perpetually switching technologies permits people today to redefine, rein­force, or simply rebuild their identities, and the usage of cognitive boost­ments would simply be built-in into These processes.

Are we Completely ready?

This paper discussed numerous crucial ethical dilemmas associated with The difficulty of cognitive enhancements. Although present-day medication applied While using the intention of enhancing cognitive skills have revealed minor to no signifi­cant advancements in healthful persons, it continues to be crucial to commence the BestNootropics.co investigative system by examining the validity of present and novel moral stances. Further, to be able to achieve a completely informed final decision that is in the top desire of Culture, there needs to be collaboration and communication involving scientists, practitioners, ethicists, legislators, and most people. First of all, experts and doctors should figure out the ramification of extended usage of cognitive enhancements on our brains, delineating the morphological, behavioral, and cognitive consequences. From these findings, It might be doable to evaluate the diploma of effects these enhancements can have on an individual And exactly how that affect will translate to society as a whole. Legislators and ethicists have to then interpret these effects and decide vital polices in conditions of producing and distribu­tion. Ideally, this process would come about 1st with the countrywide amount then on a world scale to make certain nations would not capitalize on this op­portunity to coin a brand new kind of warfare, “intelligence warfare.”

Whilst we are not yet in a stage exactly where a drug incontrovertibly improves cognitive skills beyond normal potential, it's important that we build the framework to finest accommodate foreseeable future scenarios. With developments not simply in prescribed drugs but technological advance­ments, it is actually plausible that these factors is going to be utilized faster rather than afterwards.

[holmesoverture]

In Sherlock’s Room, Part Two

Part One Be Here

Title: In Sherlock’s Room Rating (for this half): PG Total Word Count: 6431 Pairing: bi Watson/ace trans Holmes Universe: Modern AU of the original canon Summary: Holmes solves a case in his jammies.  Watson does laundry and makes ravioli.

TW for this half: very vaguely implied past acephobia; another mention of past acephobia (probably past transphobia also) which is immediately followed by petty revenge

Editing was tedious work.  My editor, for all his many redeeming qualities, invariably failed to appreciate the flowery endings to my tales and insisted I cut them off far earlier than I should have preferred.

“People read your stories for two reasons,” he once told me after nearly a half-hour of increasingly stormy debate on the subject; “the mystery, and the solution to the mystery.  No one cares what happens to you once the crook is sitting in a jail cell.  You can spend the night giving each other gob-jobs for all anyone cares.  Oh, I’ve said something funny now, have I?”

The bundles of fan mail I received every week inquiring as to whether I was single and whether Holmes was any good at finding hidden sausages made me question his judgment, but I was paid very handsomely for my work.  I could afford to assume that he had been made editor for a reason.

My efforts to curtail the offending epilogues on my own proved futile and so I had given up altogether, allowing my fingers to stretch the story for as long as they pleased, knowing that my editor would cut it all anyway while cursing my name. I was well into an appallingly purple passage in which Holmes and I compare the seasonal changes of the leaves to the arc of the average criminal’s career when Holmes burst in, catching the door before it could slam into the wall.

“Ceromancy!” he cried.

“Gesundheit,” I said.

“Kommst du mit, Naseweis.”

One did not need to speak German to understand what he wanted.  I followed him back to his room.  He had turned on some music since I left, a whiplash-inducing blend of classical pieces and Eurovision finalists.  Several new items had taken up residence on his desk.  His laptop now sat amongst the clutter rather than on his bed, along with a large, overly fragrant lavender candle, either borrowed or stolen from Mrs Hudson, and a bowl of water with a vaguely egg-shaped bit of hardened wax floating in its centre.

“I take it this is somehow connected with cera… ciril—”

“Ceromancy.  It is the art of divining the future via wax images in water.  One of the methods involves adding certain ingredients to the water, including seeds of the cuminum cyminum, which Mrs Mulvehill reports smelling in her wife’s vehicle on more than one occasion, and sprigs of ruta graveolens, a toxic herb that can cause blisters.”

I recalled the neatly torn note in the package that had started Holmes’ day, in which Mrs Mulvehill remarked upon the blisters on her wife’s hand.

“Further,” Holmes continued, “this particular set of instructions involves tying two candles together with a red ribbon.”

He spun the laptop so I could see the screen, though I hardly needed to look to know what would be there: the photograph of the red ribbon tied to the rearview mirror.

“That looks about long enough to bind a pair of candles, does it not?” said he.

I thought it strange that a woman should drive five hours one way every weekend simply to have her fortune told, and said so to Holmes.

“I have not yet finished examining all of the evidence.  There may very well be another explanation for these clues that will become apparent once I reach the end of my investigation.”

“So there is still a chance that Polly Mulvehill is seeing another woman?”

“Unfortunately for our client, yes.”

He lifted a hand to swipe to the next photograph, then gave it a second thought and turned to me instead.

“Why do people do it?” he asked.

“Do what?”

“Cheat.  Polly Mulvehill has a perfectly devoted and intelligent wife, but that wasn’t enough for her.  She still felt the need to fill her time and, presumably, various other things with someone else, all in pursuit of a few sweaty, sticky moments on a flat surface. What can possibly be so thrilling about sex that it drives people to betray those closest to them?  It can’t be any better than a concert at the Barbican, and I wouldn’t cheat on you for a box seat.”

That hadn’t ever been a concern of mine, but it was nice to know.

“Sex is pleasurable for a lot of people,” I said, “and for some, it confers a certain status that concert tickets don’t.  It makes them feel powerful, attractive, special, even loved—”

“That hardly justifies cheating.”

“Of course it doesn’t.  I suppose some people never learned the same sort of self-control that you have with regard to box seats.”

He laughed at the jab and began setting up his chemical apparatus as the delicate dénouement of Gluck’s Melodie ceded to the gravelly bombast of Lordi’s Hard Rock Hallelujah.

“What are you going to do now?” I asked.

“I must test the dirt samples sent to me by Mrs Mulvehill to determine if there is anything distinctive about them.  The definitive answer to the question of how Polly Mulvehill has been spending her weekends may well be lurking in one of these test tubes.”

He muttered a few more disparaging comments about unfaithful spouses before returning to work.  I sat on the edge of Holmes’ bed and ran a finger along a seam in his blanket.  It had some peculiar stains that I would have to remember to ask about, to make sure he wasn’t slowly poisoning himself in his sleep.  Not for the first time, I was grateful that we had elected to retain separate bedrooms even after starting our relationship.

At that time it had been almost a decade since I last slept with someone.  Her name was Allie, or something like it.  She was tall and dark and sarcastic and just barely passable in the bedroom.  I suppose it was the lingering memory of her mediocrity that helped reinforce the idea of there being more important elements than sex in a romantic relationship when Holmes wrote me the first of what would become an entire drawerful of love letters.  He made it clear from the very start that he could offer me every sort of intimacy except that one, but that does not make our relationship in any way less.  Maybe it’s the fact that I will never have the chance to confront this issue in my published works that compels me to be perfectly clear about it here: we are lovers, in every sense of the word except that one upon which our society places the most importance.

Well, I suppose I shouldn’t judge others for their ignorance.  I held a similar view in a past life.  “Experience of women on three continents” was, despite what my editor prefers to believe, not an exaggeration.  Nor is it an exaggeration to say I have never once regretted abandoning my old ways.  Who wouldn’t give up sex for love?

Perhaps not Polly Mulvehill.  Or perhaps she really did learn her lesson and would agree with me after all.  It seems to me such an obvious decision, but on those infrequent occasions when I have attempted to explain our relationship to an outsider, I am almost inevitably met with disbelief at best.  Mrs Hudson took it in her stride, bless her, but Lestrade got very confused when I responded to his barely veiled innuendos with the truth. I am slightly ashamed and very satisfied to say that I went for the jugular almost immediately.

“If your wife got sick and wasn’t able to have sex with you anymore, or if her hormones change as she gets older and her libido drops, which does happen by the way, would you walk out on her just because she wasn’t giving you any?”

“Of course not!”  To Lestrade’s credit, he looked scandalised at the very suggestion.  “She’s my wife, the mother of my children—”

“It’s the same with us.  Well, not exactly the same.  Obviously, there are some differences in our lines of reasoning, but my point is that you love your partner more than you love sex and so do I.  That is, I love my partner more than I love sex, not your partner.  You know what I meant,” I said, irritated, when he started laughing.

“You’re much more eloquent as a writer than as an orator,” he replied, but he bought me a pint as an apology and we never spoke on the matter again.

I suppose I could have laughed along with his jokes instead of lecturing him on asexuality, but I should have felt guilty allowing him to continue operating under the assumption that Holmes and I were doing it.  The mere idea of engaging in such activities makes Holmes so terribly uncomfortable.  Having to endure ribald ragging, no matter how good-natured, from the one police inspector he respects could only end unpleasantly for both parties.

Feeling suddenly maudlin, I moved my bad leg so it rested fully on the stained blanket, leaned back against the headboard, and watched as Holmes went about his work.  His hands, despite appearing ill-fittingly large on his slender wrists, always managed to look graceful when engaged in one of his chemical experiments.  But I suppose everyone looks more themselves when they are doing what they are best at.

I believe I drifted off a bit after that, lulled into a contented daze by the rhythm of clinking glass and the scratch of pencil on notebook paper.  I began to come out of my trance when he came out of his.  He tried and failed to control a smile.  A few scribbles later and he gave up all pretense of dignified detachment, jumping in place and clapping, sending the pencil clattering into the dustbin beside his desk.  That was alright.  He preferred to keep his writing implements in there anyway.

With but a short moment of warning he swept me into his arms, then released me and tugged me towards his desk before I had the chance to hug him back.

“This is far better than I could have hoped for!  What a splendid case this has turned out to be!”

“Such excitement for a bit of dirt,” I remarked.

“No mere ‘bit of dirt’ is this.  Have a look at the results of the soil analysis I ran.”

I did as he asked.  Even with my limited understanding of soil composition, I knew at once what had brought the light to his grey eyes.

“Iridium?”

“Yes.  It is exceedingly rare on Earth but much more common in meteorites.”

“I know what it is.  I just didn’t think you would, given your extreme disinterest in astronomy.”

“I looked it up,” Holmes said, witheringly.  Then, perking up, he added, “I suspect the sample in Polly Mulvehill’s boot came from such a meteorite, or perhaps from an object that was found within the iridium anomaly.”

“You did say she works at a museum.”

“She volunteers as a tour guide.  I rather doubt she has the authority to take archaeological treasures home with her.”

“So you’re saying—”

“Museums are a study in contrasts, my dear Watson.  In their exhibition rooms, they are well-organized, often beautifully laid out bastions of knowledge dedicated to preserving the past into the future.  However, safely shielded from the public eye is invariably an overcrowded and poorly catalogued backroom littered with valuables that could be missing for months or years before anyone noticed.  Why, I stole this very spoon from the British Museum over a decade ago and still they’re none the wiser!”

“Holmes!”

“Oh, come now, Boswell.  This is a soup spoon from my mother’s flatware collection.  Do you really think so little of me?”

“On the contrary, I think highly enough of you that I expect you could abscond with the British Museum’s entire collection of Egyptian antiquities and return them to Egypt before the guard could leave his chair.  Why do you have your mother’s soup spoon?”

Holmes abruptly stopped preening at my inquiry.

“After my last visit to Sussex, you asked why I was in such a strop and I wouldn’t tell you.”

“Yes?”

“She kept asking when you and I would give her grandchildren.  I should have run out at once and arranged for a hysterectomy if Mycroft hadn’t been there to stop me.  Instead I took her soup spoon.  Are you very angry with me?”

“Not with you, no.”  But the next time I was misfortunate enough to encounter Mrs Holmes, I thought I might distract her long enough for Holmes to make off with the rest of her flatware, and possibly a vase or two.  I did not tell him the specifics of my thoughts, instead running a careful hand through the tangles in his hair.  He was much more appreciative of such gestures when not occupied by a case.  Had I attempted to demonstrate any form of affection prior to the discovery of the iridium, he should have pulled back and shook his head, putting a stop to my ministrations.  Now, he not only permitted the display, he encouraged it, throwing back his head with a contented sigh.  He grasped my free hand with both of his, enjoying the light scratch of my callouses across his own, eyes closed so he could focus on the sensation.

At length he straightened in his chair and looked around, as if in search of something.

“I believe we have gotten rather off the subject,” he said.  He crowed with victory when he made visual confirmation of his laptop teetering precariously on the edge of his desk, where it had been shoved to make room for the chemistry equipment.  “I must get in touch with Mrs Mulvehill—Mrs Evelyn Mulvehill, that is—and alert her to the happy news.”

“I would hardly call the fact that her wife is stealing from her place of employment happy news, Holmes.”

“Perhaps not to you or I, but to a woman bracing herself for the news that her beloved has yet again been unfaithful, it may well be the highlight of her day.”

I never saw Evelyn Mulvehill’s response to the longwinded email Holmes sent containing his deductions, but Holmes informed me it was cordial and grateful and would I please stop scribbling in my notebook?  He had just learned the most wonderful new waltz that I was sure to love if only I’d pay it the attention it (and he) deserved.

We did not hear from the Mulvehills for nearly a fortnight.  At that time, as a harsh rain assaulted the streets and the rooftops of London, Holmes thrust an open envelope, sent from Kendal, Cumbria, under my nose.  Along with her cheque came a letter from our former client, thanking Holmes for his help and informing us of the full meaning behind the clues he had deciphered for her.  Evelyn confronted her wife about the matter the moment she returned from work on the day of Holmes’ revelation.  Polly, to her credit, admitted to the scheme at once, but the story which followed her confession was one that neither of us could have expected.

Polly Mulvehill loved her museum and the history it saved and displayed, but the longer she worked there, the more she realised how dependent it was upon artifacts illegally obtained when Britain was at her most imperialistic. What right did any museum, even the one she held so near and dear, have to keep such items?  She made then a vow to smuggle what she could out of the museum and back to the lands from which they had been taken.

She sought out a fence, a man based in Aberdeen who was very superstitious and insisted upon consulting a friend who specialised in divination, including ceromancy, before each and every step of their exchange.  At least twice, to Polly’s intense displeasure, the fence interpreted the candle drippings negatively and refused to accept the goods, forcing Polly to return with the stolen artifacts to Kendal until the following week.  Still, the trouble was worth it, Polly Mulvehill insisted, for the fence was just as devoted to repatriation as she and would do most anything, so long as the candles gave their blessing, to bring the haughty English down a peg. Upon receipt of the stolen items, the fence made his escape on a flight from Aberdeen International Airport, which Polly only made the mistake of booking a hotel next to once, compared with the eleven times she had travelled to Aberdeen on her self-imposed mission. One was also the number of times she made the mistake of handling the herbs which the fortune teller used to predict their chances of success.

Evelyn was so awestruck by her wife’s courage and integrity that she quit her accounting job and started an organisation dedicated to negotiating the legal return of all stolen artifacts to their countries of origin.  It is an organisation the Mulvehills run to this very day.  The missive ended with a plea veiled as a compliment, stating that Evelyn Mulvehill knew Holmes to be a gentleman of the utmost discretion, and that she trusted him to breathe not a word of her wife’s rashness to the authorities.  The final item enclosed in the envelope was a familiar, stout red ribbon.  Holmes smiled when I held up the ribbon and requested I put the note into the fire.

“Another mystery over and done with,” said he, snapping the blinds shut against the sight of the driving storm.  “Will you be writing up this case for your eager public?”

“I doubt it.  I spent more time folding your laundry than doing anything related to the case. Perhaps I could end it with a big car chase through Aberdeen between us and the superstitious fence.  Maybe throw in the Mulvehills for good measure.”

Holmes chuckled around the empty pipe in his teeth.

“It is no more or less ludicrous than anything else you have written,” he said.

I chose to interpret this remark in a positive light.

Were this a polished and published work rather than a hastily scribbled collection of remembrances in a shabby moleskin notebook, my editor should have ended the account with my destroying the evidence of Polly Mulvehill’s crimes and her wife’s complicity.  It is just as well.  Holmes is, despite the great fame I have inadvertently thrust upon him, an intensely private man.  I doubt he would appreciate the whole of the English-speaking world reading about how we sat together on the sofa, shoulder to shoulder and hip to hip, he kneading the pain from my bad leg with a practiced hand, I reading selections from the story I had been editing and taking note of the parts he disapproved of.  He certainly wouldn’t want anyone else knowing about how our light bickering over whether or not I was allowed to describe him as gentle ended in several minutes of kissing that served my argument rather better than his.  And, most of all, he would recoil at the slightest possibility of strangers spying after the fact as he pulled out his laptop and helped me work out plans for a weeklong holiday in Cumbria.

[bardqueenofgallifrey]

Charlie and Miss Quill (Favourite Relationship, for Class Appreciation Week: Day Five)

Oh man. Oh man. *screeches into the void*

Will I ever be able to convey how much I love these two? Not just individually but their whole bizarre relationship and how damn fascinating it is?

My boy. My wife. I adore them both so much. I just want to give them both all the hugs they could ever want. Because goddamn do both of them really need some hugs. 

(I’ll try to avoid too much overlap between this and my Charlie post for Day Four but some might be necessary. I’ll also probably overuse the word ‘fascinating’ but it’s the best I’ve got.)

Now, these two. This relationship is one of the most unique things I’ve ever seen on television.

You know something has a fantastic complexity when it’s impossible to label it.

It’s not a friendship. It’s about as far from a romance (*snort*) as it is physically possible to get. It’s not even really a rivalry, or a hero/villain thing. (The only label you could possibly get away with is ‘a slave and her master’, but that is grossly oversimplifying the entire situation and doesn’t remotely do either of them justice.)

Let’s talk about how we first meet them. Charlie is clueless but sweet. Quill is the super awful but hilarious teacher.

And then we see Charlie come home, to a quietly crying Quill (!), see that they live together, and get the first idea that something unconventional is going on.

(”What’s the matter? Why are you upset?” He asks, without any measure of concern. “The real question is why aren’t you? All the time, at every waking moment?” Okay, so some kind of emotional baggage here. But not something either seems to further broach, at least, not in regards to asking for/offering comfort.)

Plus, then there’s the whole casual conversation about killing students. You know. Just everyday chatting between a boy and his physics teacher who he lives with, with a gun that is very obviously far too high tech.

And then we get the whole thing with April. Back to initial conclusion. Charlie GOOD. Quill BAD. And finally, after that, we get the explanation. Aliens, from another world, and from conflicting races(/species??). 

Except, that’s where the explanation gets interesting. Because the ones we get are both completely biased.

“…leading terrorist.” - “Freedom fighter.”

“They mismanaged their economy and grew resentful of our success.” - “The Rhodia ate up all the planets resources, including those of the Quill, and then they were surprised when we objected.”

“We tried to help you!” - “By making us so dependent that we could never recover.”

This, along with the ‘slavery/punishment’ thing that had already come up in their first scene alone together, sets the precedent for the interesting relationship that their relationship has with the audience. 

Which is, that we never get an objective view of it. We’re presented with his perspective and hers. After that, we have to draw our own conclusions. 

(Yes, this is going to go into the whole “what really happened on Rhodia? who was really in the wrong?” thing, but only because I think getting to the truth of that is essential before looking at their relationship, or else your view is going to be skewed to whoever you automatically favour. And yes, anyone who knows me knows which one is my fave, but I promise that I’m doing my absolute best here to work with facts and not opinion. I’m not villainising anyone here, I adore them both. Besides, I welcome debate on all of this, so long as it’s civilised!)

Now, it seems easy and logical to side to with Charlie - after all, we can see he’s certainly the more moral of the two - and yet, it’s not that simple. More moral isn’t the same as being right. Quill later describes her people as being ‘oppressed for centuries’. And hell, looking at our own world today, what’s the one thing we know? 

People in power twist the truth. (*cough* Trump’s alternative facts *cough*). Those being oppressed don’t tend to be lying. They just want to be free.

So, that makes it a bit trickier, doesn’t it? As the series go on, Charlie’s refusal to even consider that Quill’s situation might be slavery, amongst other smaller things (see ep 4), indicates that he is stubbornly set on believing in the goodness of his people and culture, even when others around him are trying to gently point out that this belief might be flawed.

There’s no doubt Quill did some awful things. Her actions should never be excused. But, “a riot is the voice of the unheard” (MLK Jr), and episode 7 confirms that her army really was fighting out of desperation after centuries of oppression.

“Do you know how oppressed Quill have been for centuries?! We died, and died again, and where were you?”

Look at her face. This moment is too emotional to be fake or embellished (also, in this moment, she has no reason to lie or exaggerate). So, the Quill were as oppressed as she claims. This is one of the only parts of their story not up for debate. This is a fact. 

So, with the more evidence the show gives us, we do see that it’s likely that Quill’s account of what happened on Rhodia is the more accurate of the two. (Still not objective, but more accurate, and the best we’ll get for now.)

So: Quill is right but not in the right (because, you know, she killed people, and has killed at least one innocent person since, albeit only to save herself). 

Meanwhile, Charlie is wrong, but not in the wrong. It’s pretty obvious that Charlie genuinely believed his people were good and not mistreating the Quill. 

Whether or not this is a belief that spread across his whole people is impossible to know. If so, firstly, yikes, but it’s fairly plausible when you consider “I would have tried to be a fair leader” and “a wish is the same as an action”. It seems likely (and this is going into headcanon/opinion territory, not fact) that the Rhodia were not oppressing the Quill deliberately, and because they were intending/wishing to be fair rulers, as far as they were concerned, they were - meanwhile the Quill are like “are you fucking blind?”

(The alternative is just that Charlie’s parents and government were secretly really fucking shady/way more explicitly racist than Charlie. It’s an intriguing possibility, given that Charlie is 100% a good bean who was just fed a lot of “we’re so great and just!” propaganda, but like I said, trying not to villainise anybody here! You can pick whichever one you want to believe - or better yet, hit up my inbox and give me your take on the Rhodia and their morality, I’m always up for some civilised discussion/theorising/debate!) 

ANYWAY. Back to Charlie and Quill’s relationship. I didn’t mean to get so “Rhodia vs Quill” but I just think that trying to understand what happened as best we possibly can is important for looking at their relationship. 

Now, their individual portrayals on the show is really interesting. 

Quill is initially not really shown as a sympathetic character - though within the first episode, we get enough to show that, yes, she does have as much of an angsty backstory as Charlie, and yes, she does have feelings. She’s just still, you know, kind of awful. Across the series we get more tidbits - the Inspector incident showing how desperately lonely she is, this then being reinforced by her half-wanting to join the kids in their celebration at the end of episode 3 but instead walking away, and then in episode 5 we really see her walls come down:

*holds armful of kittens* So, will this be enough to make her feel better? No? Damn. *showers her with kittens and hugs anyway*

The thing about Quill is that she tries to act tough, and cold. She is closed off, but that’s as far as it goes. Because when it comes down to it, she feels things SO deeply. Not only that, she actually doesn’t have much of an emotional filter. Her rage, her devastation, they burst out of her because she simply can’t stop it. 

Episode 5 highlights her belief in what she did on Rhodia. It points out that the arn were never given to Rhodians, only Quill (reinforcing before the confirmation in ep 7 that yes, the oppression of the Quill was very much a real thing), and has Quill saying that everything she ever did was for her people, the people she is shown to care about so deeply that she is weeping for them and shouting at the people refusing to acknowledge her very real pain. 

From that scene onwards, she’s more or less given the same treatment the kids are in terms of sympathetic portrayal - while not losing the fact that she is of course still far more morally grey than all of them except Charlie, and still has a generally hostile disposition. 

Now, Charlie is meanwhile always painted as the more sympathetic character out of him and Quill. Obviously. And, it’s fair. He’s a lovely boy and has a good heart. Look at his precious face. 

*pats him on the head fondly* *gives him a Polish puppy to snuggle* 

He’s a good boy (puppy joke not intended, sorry), there’s just some grey morality and very rose tinted beliefs in there. But the latter certainly isn’t his fault. The way he clings to them and refuses to hear other sides of it maybe is, but hey, if all your people/family were dead, you wouldn’t want to hear that maybe they weren’t as great as you thought they were. You’d want to hang onto your belief that they were good people who never did anything wrong. 

The reason his relationship with Quill is so interesting is because it’s completely different to every single one of his other ones. Charlie is super sweet, right? He cares about people even if he’s just met them, right? Yes. 

Unless… Quill is somehow involved. Then his empathy is gone, his fucks are out the window, and she can be in tears in front of him screaming about watching all of her people die (something he himself also experienced) and he just… doesn’t care. He calls her heartless. 

This has so many fascinating connotations, but the only logical conclusion is that he just doesn’t see Quill as a person in the same way that he does everyone else. Whether this is due to her status as a criminal/murder/terrorist or her being a Quill, is up for debate. But given his “you are heartless, like all Quill” line, I think it’s a solid combination of the two. Whether it’s an implicit or explicit prejudice he has, it’s also hard to know, but I tend to think implicit just because it’s hard to imagine him consciously deciding that a whole race of people are bad. Plus, his ignorance on it comes across a lot like: “What do you mean? I’m not racist, I have black friends! would have tried to be a fair ruler!” It’s something he’s been conditioned to think, just like everything else. 

Now, add that to Quill’s (frankly, understandable) hatred for her enslaver - who, to be fair, wasn’t technically the one that enslaved her, but you know what I mean - who is also the only person left she can blame for the oppression of her people and the general downturn of her whole life, and…

Well.

That’s a cocktail of fun. By which I mean, a lot of complex and mostly negative emotions flying around one house. 

They are a pair who for all intents and purposes can’t stand each other, yet circumstances have forced them together and will not let them part. THIS IS GOLDEN WRITING RIGHT HERE. SERIOUSLY. 

Let’s have a look at this scene from What She Does Next Will Astound You. It’s honestly incredible, I wish we could have gotten it in the show, but at the same time, Charlie’s internal thoughts here are so great and couldn’t have been conveyed on screen, so maybe it was for the best. 

(Context for anyone who needs it: extraneous circumstances = Quill can temporarily use a gun, and now she has one trained on Charlie.) 

*screaming into the void again*

TLDR; Him sort of thinking they’d bonded while all the while suspecting she would kill him at first opportunity (pretty sure this is set before she knows the Cabinet isn’t empty, for the record), and feeling a weird sense of relief when he turns out to be right? His chosen last words being ‘fuck you’? Her not even intending to kill him but just wanting him to apologise because goddamn doesn’t she deserve at least that from him? Him talking about not wanting her, reinforcing just how stuck they are with each other? 

I love it. I love them. This whole relationship is so complicated and tumultuous and fucking fascinating. 

They have a shared sorrow, a shared tragedy, and yet through all this time together never comfort each other through it (like Quill and Ballon so readily do). And it’s just because they’re just too damn different. A prince and a soldier. A Rhodian and a Quill. The world they mourn was two completely different places, to them. For Charlie it was a place of solace. For Quill, it was a battlefield, a place that had looked down on her, from the moment she was born. They remember each other’s loved ones but only as enemies. 

They have completely different worldviews. Charlie’s is all very ‘civilised’, and all about learning. Quill believe in fighting - for them living and fighting are more or less the same thing (which is what makes the punishment of the arn slavery so particularly cruel, actually, which begs the question, were all Rhodia oblivious to this crucial cultural difference, or was it deliberate? @ Charlie’s parents: *squints*). 

Case in point: 

“I believe life tries to kill you from the moment you are born, and the only proper response is to fight back at every moment!”

“You tried to kill me in the nest!” - “All Quill sisters do that, it’s how we know the survivors are strong.” 

“How about that fight? Matron’s rules - no mercy.” 

No wonder Quill and Charlie never get along, or ever really feel for each other except for in the finale, or in Quill’s sympathy for Charlie’s love for Matteusz in ep 5. How can you sympathise with someone you don’t understand?!

Favourite little moments between them (to briefly lighten things up):

“By the way, Matteusz lives with us now.” - “Whatever!” (her lack of fucks gets me every time, after all, she’s already got one teenager making her life hell, what more is another, politer one going to do?)

That whole scene from What She Does Next Will Astound You

That bit where Quill teases him about locking him in the classroom despite April having a key/acts like a total little shit just because she can, because it’s the only way she can fight back against him

The part in Joyride where he keeps trying to make her look at something on an iPad and she laments that she can’t smack him over the head with it

When she and Tanya walk in on Charlie and Matteusz snogging in the weird creepy house in The Stone House 

The finale, meanwhile, gave us some really interesting little things with them. Firstly, Charlie’s rather surprising care for Quill at the beginning, and not wanting to physically restrain her. I have to wonder if maybe during those six days, his belief in his rightness was shaken, if seeing that Quill had gotten the arn out (which they both knew was so incredibly likely to kill her), that she had truly been that miserable and therefore that desperate in order to decide it was worth trying, made him wonder. 

Yay, development!

(He then later goes back to assuming he needs to possibly take her down once she’s awake, but hey, that’s fair! He knows she has a lot of reasons to want him dead, and he knows probably even less of her general morality than we do - he has no idea who she might be okay with hurting now that she can.) 

Then you have this great moment. 

“They’ll come for me.”

“I’ll stop them.”

It’s so simple. They fall into an alliance with such an ease, that it’s in a way immensely frustrating that it’s taken them this long. Of course they’ve been opposing each other up until this point, but goddamn it’s satisfying to see them finally on the same page, finally fighting for the same thing. 

(And, you know, maybe Charlie and the audience realises that Quill was… kind of right about the Shadowkin the whole time? She told him that the Shadowkin would keeping coming and only kill more people if he didn’t wipe them out, and they did. If he’d listened to her in episode 5, Tanya wouldn’t be an orphan and Ram would still have a dad. Just saying. This shit was unavoidable, and Vivian and Varun could have survived it.)

And then. Oh boy. And then - she saves him. 

Is this, maybe, the moment we see Quill realise she actually doesn’t want Charlie to die? (I adore it, I need more of their relationship, NOW.)

She looks at him, realises what is about to happen, and saves him. Her reasons for doing so are tricky to pinpoint, though, without much content left afterwards. All we really have to go on is:

“No, you have to live. You have to live with the sacrifice.” 

By saving him, she accomplishes two things. She gets to have him still be alive. She gets to not become the last survivor of her planet, the only one who can remember it even if they remember it very differently. To not lose the person she might have spent months despising but has also shared many a moment of ‘wtf humans’ with. And? She also gets to watch him suffer, after he and his people caused her to suffer. 

Basically, she gets to have her cake and eat it too.  

And now, I’m just so damn intrigued about where they are going to go from here. Will Charlie resent her for saving him? Will he eventually thank her? Will he ask her to kill him, because he truly wanted to die? Would she, if he really begged? 

Will Charlie finally concede that yes, it was slavery and it was wrong? Will Quill realise it also kinda wasn’t Charlie’s fault? 

THIS IS WHY I NEED SEASON 2 OKAY THERE IS SO MUCH POTENTIAL, THESE TWO COULD BE SUCH A GREAT TEAM, HECK THEY COULD EVEN END UP CARING ABOUT EACH OTHER AND THINK ABOUT HOW CUTE THAT WOULD BE AND WHAT GREAT DEVELOPMENT WE COULD SEE

Ahem. Calm again. 

Seriously. Consider Charlie and Quill being really awkward around each other post-finale. Not sure where they stand any more. Slowly sometimes talking about the serious stuff, trying to understand the other’s POV. Apologies, concessions, until one day one of them saves the other’s life on an instinct, in a panic. And they realise that suddenly they mean something to each other. 

Just consider the potential. These two and this relationship is the show’s unique element, it’s strongest point, what sets it apart from just being “a high school has an alien problem”. 

So, in summary, they’re complicated and wonderful and I love them so so much because the writing of this show isn’t perfect but almost everything around their relationship is.

I didn’t mean for this to get so long-winded but understanding their past is important for understanding their present, and also I just really love them a lot, okay?