#*shoves Andrey out* Miss us?

[wyattjohnston]

kinda hope they catch us - andrei svechnikov

summary: 3 times the engagement was a secret and 1 time it wasn't.

word count: 1,698

note: this is a fic written for @isconnormcdavidok as part of a server exchange run by @mp0625 💚

It never ceased to amuse Eva that seeing the other WAGs was like seeing a friend you hadn’t seen in months. It had been 2 days since the last home game, and yet it would still be all hugs, kisses and tell me what I’ve missed. Some of them weren’t at the game so Eva could talk about dragging Andrei along to Christmas with her folks, at least. Everyone else would get a somewhat rehearsed story about her plans for starting the New Year off on the right foot.

It was only ever so hard during the holidays when everyone always expected a big, grand tale every time they saw each other.

And only more so of a big deal because she was keeping a secret.

A large secret.

A secret taking up quite a bit of real estate on her left hand.

1.

Eva sighed at the line up of cars in the driveway and on the street outside her parents’ house. She had tried so hard to not be late for once, and she thought she was doing an excellent job.

Andrei assured her that they were, actually, only fifteen minutes late, which was the most on time Eva could ever remember being and her family would hopefully be impressed by that fact.

They made their way to the front door, arms so loaded with presents that she had to awkwardly press her nose to the doorbell because neither of them could free a hand to let themselves in.

A nervous buzz zipped through Eva’s body, her body bursting to tell her family news they’d been waiting to hear for what felt like forever, and she had her mouth open to spill it as soon as the door opened in front of her—except she was grabbed by the arm, her cousin letting out an exasperated “finally”, and hauled into the living room where the entire family was waiting.

Eva looked at Andrei, about to ask him if this was all his doing, to ask if he’d planned this, only to be met with him staring back at her and about to ask the same thing.

There wasn’t any time to work it out between them, though, because Eva’s sister was pulling her husband in front of them all and announcing that she was pregnant. Eva’s left hand got suddenly heavier.

It didn’t matter, though, that it had to put their plans on hold—and there was no question that that had to be the case—Eva used the now empty couches to unload presents from her arms, taking the ones Andrei was carrying.

“We’ll still be engaged tomorrow,” she whispered to him, the pressure of his hand on her upper back settling her.

His laugh was deep but soft when he said, “I know, Zolotse. I know.”

Eva joined the line to celebrate her sister and the pregnancy that she had all but given up on ever happening.

No effort was made throughout lunch to hide the new engagement ring, not intentionally on her part, anyway. Andrei holding hers hand throughout lunch, or when everyone moved back to the couch after, was the norm so nobody thought anything of it. He just so happened to be hiding the news they’d been so eager to share.

2.

Eva always made an effort to watch Andrei’s home games; she’d very much grown to enjoy over the course of their relationship, having met Andrei very early on in his NHL career. There was a nice rotating cast of significant others and kids who appeared at games, too, and Eva’s relationships with them had become some of her most cherished.

“Are you going to take your coat off?” Courtney asked, tugging at material as she passed Eva. “And gloves?”

Eva balled her hands up and then shoved them under her thighs. Her ring caught on the glove which in turn caught on her jeans, but she wasn’t going to let the cold get to her.

“Are you coming down with something?” Gracia asked, concerned enough to put her hand against Eva’s forehead. “It doesn’t feel like you have a fever.”

“I’m just really cold. I haven’t been able to get warm all day.”

“Jesus Christ, you’re twenty-three not eighty-three. Can you start telling us when it’s about to rain?”

Eva rolled her eyes, insisting that she wasn’t sick or old or anything else. She was cold.

There was a period of time before the game started where people were seeming to give her a wide berth; Eva was unsure if it was because they thought her contagious or if she looked generally unhappy about being at the game. And she wasn’t unhappy to be there; she made that very clear when Nykki finally sat next to her.

“Are you sure? You’re a little grumpier than usual.”

“Because nobody will let me be cold!” Eva protested. “I’m just trying to get warm.”

During the first intermission, a blanket from the team store was delivered. It was mortifying.

Andrei, when they were both home after the game, found it amusing at least, when he saw it laid across their bed where she was waiting for him with the covers tucked up under her chin.

3.

The boys were, yet again, off in a road trip. This time, just for one game in Toronto before they flew back for New Years’ Eve. Eva was out to brunch with most of the younger cohort of WAGs, ready to start ringing in the new year even if it was a day early.

Before she left, she’d spoken on the phone with Andrei as he was rushing out the door to get on the bus for practice.

“I think I’m going to take the ring off,” she had said, spinning the ring around her finger as she spoke.

There was a beat, much thicker than Eva had been expecting, before Andrei asked in a thick voice, “You what?”

“Nobody knows yet, right?” she asked, unsure if Andrei had told any of his teammates. It wouldn’t be a big deal, but she would have expected him to tell her. “Taking it off until you get home won’t be a big deal.”

Another beat followed, and Eva was expecting him to tell her that people already knew, that he was nervous to do so. She was opening her mouth to say that she wouldn’t bother if people already knew—because everyone would definitely know before she left for brunch—but Andrei beat her to it, sounding even more dejected.

“Zolotse… You don’t want a ring? You don’t want to be engaged?”

“Oh, god. Andrei. No. That is not what I mean!” Eva said in a rush, her voice becoming more and more high pitched with each word.

“What you mean?”

“If I take it off, we can tell people tomorrow! Together!” she held her left hand to her chest and bit the inside of her cheek as her eyes started to water. “Andrei, baby, I just want to tell people together. That’s all.”

Andrei asked her softly, a couple more times before he had to leave, to promise him she was telling the truth.

It put a bit of a damper on heading out to brunch, because she found that, even though it had been her idea, taking off the ring was a struggle. Still, she put it delicately on her bedside table, and headed out to see her friends.

+1

Hiding the ring was easy when her hand was securely in Andrei’s as they walked into the New Years’ Eve party. She was filled with nervous energy, and even though the ring was hidden she found herself looking at everyone as if they would be able to tell with just one look at her.

Not that they had up to that point.

They weren’t without drinks for very long as someone seemed to have been tasked with holding a tray right near the doors. Eva, without any input from Andrei, led them straight to where Martin and Nykki were standing off to the side—they were the first people they wanted to tell, after all.

There were handshakes and hugs the second Martin and Nykki noticed their arrival.

“Did you find the non-alcoholic wine?” Nykki asked, gesturing to Eva’s champagne flute and earning a furrowed brow in response.

“No? Why would—no, that’s not what I want to talk about. We have something to tell you.”

“I fucking knew it,” Nykki shouted, immediately turning to Martin and excitedly smacking his chest. “I told you she was pregnant?”

Andrei choked on his drink.

“Pregnant?” he asked, hurried and panicked.

“What the fuck?” asked Eva. “Where the fuck did you get that idea?”

“You’re obviously keeping a big secret.” Nykki’s tone was more accusatory than Eva expected. “You’ve been weird since Christmas, and you were really sick at the game on Saturday, and you’re not drinking—”

Eva cut her off to exclaim, “I had three mimosas at brunch yesterday!”

“They weren’t orange juice? What have you been hiding from us then?”

“This fucking dwarf planet I’ve been wearing for a week?” Eva pulled her hand from Andrei’s to hold it out to Nykki and Martin. “That somehow nobody has noticed? It has gravitational pull.”

Nykki grabbed Eva’s hand so rapidly that Eva was startled, but she let Nykki inspect it closely whilst Andrei and Martin had a silent conversation over Nykki’s excited screaming. It drew the attention of everybody nearby.

There was a lengthy conversation once more of the WAGs gathered, how did he do it? When did he do it? Why didn’t you tell us? And Eva had to try and convince them that she hadn’t meant to—aside from the brunch—it had just ended up that way. Not one of them believed her in the moment.

Her hand was being passed around the group, everyone admiring the ring and asking questions Eva didn’t know the answer to, so Eva caught Andrei’s eye here he was holding court with the boys and nearly melted at the softness of his smile. At the pride behind his eyes. At the love that emanated from his entire body.

[ilyasorokinn]

(day five) halloween, hockey style (andrei svechnikov)

note, this is part of my mini halloween series, so for the rest of the series, check out this masterlist. none of the fics in this series are connected, so they can be read as standalone. another note, this fic is part of the "mr. and mrs. svechnikov" series. check out this masterlist for more. pair, andrei svechnikov x reader summary, halloween falls on game day, which means theo and anastasia are spending their halloween at the arena. lucky for them, some of the staff put together something special for all the canes kids. warnings, kids/children word count, 634 words

(gif not mine)

Anastasia and Theo were very upset with their dad.

They knew he had work but they didn't understand why they had to go with him to work, "Why do we have to go? We want to go trick-or-treating." Theo whined.

"I know you do, but we're going to the game tonight." You told him calmly as you helped Anastasia put her shoes on,

You and a few other girls who had kids had been in talks with a few of the security guards and had been planning a little activity for the kids after the game since they were missing trick-or-treating.

Theo pouted all the way to the car, completely unaware that his costume was safely tucked away in the trunk behind him.

He sulked all the way to the arena and the look didn't once fall from his face, "So I take it Theo isn't too excited about missing trick-or-treating." One of the girls commented with a laugh as you both watched Theo sulk.

"Not really." You shook your head, mentally hoping that the plan you had would bring joy to his little face.

"He'll be happy. There's no way he won't. Seeing his dad dressed up as a big inflatable dinosaur? He'll love it." She bumped your shoulder softly.

-

After the game, you left all the kids in the care of your most trusted security guards while everyone got into their costumes, "So, how'd he take it?" Andrei asked as he got into his dinosaur suit.

"We better hope this works." You told him.

"Right." He nodded. You helped him inflate his suit before you all took your places on the rink. Practically everyone on the media team was down on the ice.

You could hear their confused little voices as the security guards led them onto the ice but once they saw all their parents and closest adult friends on the ice dressed up in costumes, they all ran onto the ice.

Theo and Anastasia ran up to you. A few of the parents weren't in costume so they could lead their children around the trick-or-treat circle.

"You tricked us," Theo stated.

"What? Did you think I wouldn't take you trick-or-treating? What kind of parent would I be?" You joked, "So, what do you say, Spider-Man, do you think we should get some candy?" You asked.

He pulled down his Spider-Man mask and grabbed your hand while Anastasia, who was dressed as her favorite princess at the moment, Rapunzel from Tangled, grabbed your other hand.

You led both of them around the circle as they collected candy from each person. You finally got to Andrei, who couldn't stop smiling. He couldn't really move his arms, so you helped them grab a handful of candy from the bowl in front of him.

"Dinosour." Anastaisa pointed.

"That's right." You gave her a high-five.

"That's papa." Theo pointed with a laugh. You laughed with him before leading him to the next player who had an equally funny costume.

By the end of the night, they each had 2 big bags full of candy. With their bags of candy safely stored on the highest shelf in your cup cabinet, you finally got Anastasia and Theo tucked into bed.

You and Andrei settled on the couch, eating some of their candy while you waited for your snack to heat up in the oven, "During the game, I thought Theo was gonna throw one of his big tantrums."

"Well, thank God he didn't," Andrei commented as he shoved the mini Snickers bar into his mouth.

"Why? Cause if he did, you know we would've come home and not gotten candy?" You raised a brow.

"Well... yeah." He nodded.

"It's like having three kids." You shook your head.

"Hey! At least I know how to count to 100."

-

my taglist: @mitch-slap @kolsmikaelson @ashleymarine @typical-simplelove @rosesvioletshardy @laurenairay @kidlnthedark @bowen-power @lam-ila @catahshart @stars-canucks @drei-mrssvechii @iwantahockeyhimbo @2manytabsopen @owenpowersglasses @calermakar08 @hamilton160 @pierrelucduboiis @sammysworldddd @mista-svech @paintlavillered @hyppeln-agnes @samanthasgone @hockeyboysarehot @nicoleloveshockey @thedukes-56-5 @tkachukswife @hockeyunits @sidcrosbyspuck @dumbxblond3 @kaydenissleepy @Yagetintoit @seventieswhore @MichelleKirby30 @jamieeboulos @Coffeeandteaandflowers @bibella8swan @cuttergauth @boqvistsbabe @sophia-bordeleau @jayda12

add yourself to my taglist!

thank you for joining me on this journey of five days of halloween! i had a blast writing these small blurbs! i have a special series like this planned for christmas. if you liked any of these fics, follow me or reblog this. and with that being said, love you lots <3

[writing-in-april]

Solaris

Spencer Reid x Female!Reader

This is vaguely inspired by @imagining-in-the-margins part 9 of Here To Misbehave - go check it out it’s amazing!

Warnings- NSFW, public sex, oral sex (male receiving), fingering, swearing

A/N- There are real quotes from the movie in here but may not be in cinematic order, I got them from a quote website. Also the real Solaris movie is not 5 hours and is 166 minutes (it just feels ridiculously long).   

Masterlist

 Italics are Spencer’s translations.                                      

Spencer and I rarely had a chance to have date nights, because of our jobs we usually grabbed every spare little moment. Usually that resulted in spur of the moment 15 minute dates when we finally had some alone time away from the team. Luckily for our stressed out minds Hotch had finally put his foot down on letting the team have some vacation time. I still am not sure how he got Strauss to agree to a two week vacation.

The two of us now had two weeks to do whatever we wanted, so we agreed to a plan, Spencer would plan the first week and I would do the next. He had been tight lipped about all of his plans until we made our way to the car and he finally broke. He confessed that we were going to see an old film he loved- a Russian film to be exact from 1972 called Solaris.

Spencer always planned out the quirkiest dates, while most people would be put off by movies that I couldn’t even understand or bookstores that were filled with academic books, it made him even more special in my eyes. During the entire ride to the cinema he gave me various facts about this obnoxiously long movie we were about to see (5 hours to be exact), letting me in on all the knowledge he kept up in his gorgeous brain.

“Did you know that the film was written Andrei Tarkovsky and Fridrikh Gorenshtein to attempt to give sci-fi films more emotional depth? They viewed western works in the genre as shallow due to their focus on technological inventions.”  He rambled out at impressive speed as we pulled up to the small rundown cinema. Spencer often planned out dates here because they willingly showed foreign and obscure indie films, which he found more appealing over mainstream blockbusters. Plus the yellow tinged cinema lights and old time ticket booths gave off a vintage vibe that we both reveled in.

We made our way up to the ticket booth, my heels making Spencer slow his lanky strides significantly. I could tell he really wanted to sprint to get inside as quick as possible, he hadn’t seen this film in forever and it was one of his favorites. We finally reached the gate where a obviously bored teenage worker took our money and seemingly rolled his eyes at the movie we said we were watching. To a teenager what kind of couple would consider an old Russian film as a romantic movie. We grabbed our tickets, egregiously priced soda and a large popcorn that was probably going to be confiscated by Spencer halfway through the movie.

The theatre was completely empty, not surprising considering how obscure the film was. Spencer picked out seats right in the middle which gave us the best view of the large screen. I sat down in the plush red velvet vintage seats plopping down my soda into the cup holder and letting myself get comfortable. Spencer sat to the left of me already claiming the popcorn for himself as we snuggled up to prepare for the 5 hour movie we were about to watch.

The film started right on time, there weren’t any commercials (for once) and Spencer leaned in close to me to begin translating the film once he realized there were no subtitles. He seemed almost giddy to translate every word that I was undoubtedly missing that I was sincerely glad that the theatre hadn’t turned on subtitles. I loved seeing Spencer happy over quirky things. Though instead of being focused on the translations my mind fixated on how seductive the situation was.

I wondered if he knew what he was doing to me, his lips were a ghost around the shell of my ear as he quietly translated the Russian film. He always carted around an innocent persona wherever he went, not letting it get sullied by his work or the countless amounts of books he read.

“You're human. Each in your own way. That's why you argue."

I could feel the wetness steadily pooling in my panties as he continued to speak, being blissfully ignorant of the naughty thoughts running rampant in my head. Only he could make a sci-fi movie from the 70s about fictional planets sound sexy.

“Who was it? She died 10 years ago." 

“What you saw was the materialization of your conception of her.”

“Incidentally, consider yourself lucky. After all she's part of your past. What if it had been something you had never seen before, but something you had thought or imagined."

His endearing innocence was almost painful, I knew he was missing the cues of my flushed cheeks, wriggling thighs, and heavy breathing. It wasn’t like we weren’t intimate as a couple but even when he was dominate I was usually the one to initiate sex. He always told me that even though we had been together for a long time he got caught up in the fact that someone wanted to fuck him. That conversation usually turned into me showing him how much I fucking loved him and how he could be shy just not insecure in our relationship.

I decided that I would have to be the one tonight to coax him into doing something in public. I had confessed before that It was one of my kinks but this would be the first time I would attempt to do it with him.

I grabbed his hand that was situated on my upper thigh and slowly dragged it up the coarse fabric of my jean shorts. Once his nimble fingers caught on the button Spencer’s brain restarted and he pulled away slightly in protest. He was feebly trying to pretend that the idea of fingering his girlfriend in a theatre wasn’t the hottest thing in the world.

“W-we shh-ouldn’t be doing this y/n!!!!” He whisper shouted at me meekly. I gripped his hand harder keeping it in position as my other hand undid the button of my shorts.

“If you’re really uncomfortable I’ll stop, but I just find the idea of doing something so risqué exciting. Don’t you?” I shot right back at him with a coy smile and I knew I had him right where I wanted him. He still looked hesitant but started to move his hand under my shorts on his own. I gasped quietly as his fingers bypassed my shorts and snuck right under my panties. His full attention was on me now totally forgetting his previous job of translating the film for me. He finally breached my folds feeling just how wet he had gotten me just from translating an obscure Russian film.

“See how wet I am Spence? It’s all for you.” I purred, grinding my hips onto his hand to try and gain some delicious friction. He seemed to be in a trance his only goal to please me, his gorgeous fingers started to circle around my entrance teasing me ever so slightly.

“Spencer stop teasing if you aren’t prepared to be punished” My threat got through to him and he slowly entered his middle finger making me quietly moan out. I grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him into a heated kiss to muffle my moans. The kiss was all tongue and teeth as he curled his finger to hit my g-spot which made me gasp into his mouth.

“More Spence-“

He thankfully listened to my plead and added another finger, my walls stretched around them giving me pain added with pleasure. To give me even more stimulation his thumb found my clit running in tight circles. I was approaching my orgasm almost embarrassingly quickly, Spencer knew my body better then I did at this point. Both of my hands pulled at his hair trying to force him as close as possible to my body. I screwed my eyes shut as I was shoved off the proverbial cliff. I could hear the faint sounds of Russian scientists from the film in the background which only added to the high, the idea of getting caught just made it so much better.

Spencer continued to stimulate my clit until I rode out my high, he then turned back to the film. He was trying to hide the fact that he was rock hard from watching me fall apart in a matter of minutes on his fingers. An evil idea snuck inside my brain, he had given me an orgasm but I wasn’t done with him yet. After I had recovered My hand moved over from my lap and gripped his thigh mimicking his earlier position. He hadn’t started translating the film again and was uncharacteristically silent. I waited for a few minutes before I enacted my plan the only thing I was doing was slowly inching my hand up his thigh.

“Start translating the film again pretty boy” I whispered while pawing at the button on his pants, I wanted to repay the favor of a mind blowing orgasm. He looked at me with slight hesitation when I dropped down to the floor but he was to far gone to stop me at this point.

“Y-yoou want to destroy that which we are presently incapable of underssstanding? Forgive me but am not advocate of knowledge at any price."

I smirked to myself as I freed him from the confines of his slacks and boxers, his translations had become a stuttering mess and I hadn’t even touched him yet. He was already painfully hard, the head was an angry red with precum dribbling down. I firmly gripped him relishing in the little gasp that already escaped his mouth.

“Spencer we are in public, your going to have to only translate if you want me to touch you at all” My voice took on a deadly sinister tone reserved for unsubs or Spencer when he was being particularly subby.

He nodded and I fully immersed myself into giving him the best blowjob of his life. I slowly dragged my tongue up his length savoring every time he choked on his words, his thighs were tensing and his hands were white knuckle gripped around the arm rests. My mouth then finally fully enveloped his length finally giving him the relief he was looking for. As I began to take him further into my mouth his quiet whispers jumped an octave, he didn’t let himself moan, he knew what kind of punishment he would get if he dared to break my rules. The head of his member hit the back of my throat and spit started to drool out of my mouth, I looked up at him menacingly, daring him moan out.

“Remember Tol-stoy? His suffffering over the impossibility of loving mankind as a whole? How much time has passed since then? Somehow I ca-nn’t figure it out. Help meeee-Fffuck! Y/N!”

He whimpered out, I smirked around his length in satisfaction- I had broken him. I evilly released his length with a pop, he whined pathetically in protest at the loss of stimulation.

“If you had just followed the rules baby boy maybe I would’ve let you cum” I teased while sliding back into the theatre chair and turned back pretending to enjoy the rest of the movie. He still hadn’t torn his beautiful caramel eyes away from me, it almost looked like he was going to cry.

“Please Y/n I’ve been so good until now! I made you cum earlier, please please!!” He was unashamedly begging now, I quirked my eyebrow in surprise, he usually didn’t beg this fast. I leaned over to whisper in his ear mirroring his position from earlier.

“I’ll let you off easy this time pretty boy- but- when we get home you better put in the work and please me. Understand?” His head bobbed up and down eagerly, he was relieved he would actually be able to cum tonight. I dropped back down to my previous position in front of him and took him back into my mouth, he immediately went back to translating the film not wanting to get edged for the second time that night. One of my hands gripped his hips while the other felt underneath his boxers and caressed his balls, I could tell he was close. He came soon after in hot spurts down my throat, I swallowed every drop while I looked up in awe at him savoring how I made him fall apart. Spencer’s breath was ragged as he came down from his salacious climax, I tucked him back into his slacks and once again sat back into the plush velvet seats.

“Holy fuck” he said uncharacteristically after he snapped out of his reverie.

“Shh, Spence I’m watching the film!” I said cheekily, he glared back at me with a glint in his eye. I could tell even though he initially protested he thoroughly loved our carnal adventure. Spencer resumed his translating and I was surprised that we were only around halfway through the movie.

Once the movie was over we passed through the cinema as quick as possible ready to continue the nights adventures at home as promised. We got into Spencer’s Volvo and he stopped to stare at me for a moment before we left the parking lot. My eyebrows furrowed as i looked at him curiously wondering why he suddenly paused.

“See, I love you. But love is a feeling we can experience but never explain. One can explain the concept. You love that which you can lose: Yourself, a woman, a homeland. Until today, love was simply unattainable to mankind, to the earth. Maybe we are here to experience people as a reason for love." I recognized the quote from the movie we had just seen, and even though we said declarations of love often this one felt a little more special.

“I love you too Spence” I said through my watering eyes. He gave me a loving smile and started the car so we could go home to continue the night.

—————

[bigbrotherlouis]

i’m obsessed with joel farabee and morgan frost and you should be too: a primer

hello! welcome! recently i have become infatuated with morgan frost and joel farabee for a lot of reasons but mostly because of that one post that i spent like twenty minutes searching various blogs for that said “people are freaking out about sexualising hockey players, meanwhile joel farabee is one instagram comment away from telling morgan frost he’d suck him dry.” in my head rent free. hit a girl up if you have the post.

anyway! frosty and beezy:

[hard cut to me whispering “oh my god even their nUMBERS are friends” i’m fine.]

this is more like about vibes and less about facts, so you can google if you want to know more about their, like, bios and stats and stuff that’s not 99% rpf or conjecture. this primer is just the things that make me scream. however, that being said, they do play well on a line together and both are very good players.

joel farabee is american, from new york i believe but his dad is from philly, and falls neatly into the category of BORN TO BE A FLYER. longtime fan, hugely excited to play for the team, brings it up all the time.

morgan frost, from ontario canada, was not.

a real, actual tweet. he tweeted this with his WHOLE chest and then joined the flyers like three years later. i adore it. another real actual tweet i adore:

sweet, sweet joel. he misses his buddies :( no doubt including morgan because they are, by all appearances, obsessed with each other. i’m trying not to keep  using the word obsessed in this primer but it’s hard because they are. morgan’s a year older, a first round draft pick in 2017 and joel’s a first round pick in 2018, but they didn’t start playing together until 2019, i believe, because joel played for a college team in boston. side note: he also captained team usa and wore a number 28 in honour of claude giroux and i am absolutely not okay about it.

e! mo! tion! al! incidentally, frosty wears danny briere’s number when he plays for the flyers, which. take from that what you will. iykyk. their NUMBERS are FRIENDS. HERITAGE SOULMATES. joel’s been called up to play on the flyers (and did really well in the playoffs!) but we’re still waitin’ for morgan to come along too but the coaching staff hasn’t recognised the raw power of true love yet so.

at this point, you’re probably saying “sasha shut up about their fucking numbers and talk about why they’re obsessed with each other” but good news! i do not need to do that because the official flyers media has done that for me! (x) i’d recommend watching it because it’s a lot packed into a neat 100 seconds, but notable moments include the voice over saying “joel farabee and morgan frost have found that going at it together has its benefits” within the first thirty seconds. that is a real direct quote. i can’t believe it either. there’s also a lot of light homoerotic bonding over playing chel, them sitting across from each other  on their beds, the admission of being ROOMMATES (oh my god they were roommates), this shot of them sitting with their mouths wide open on either side of their dad,

and also joel wearing a hat with a canadian maple leaf on it, despite being from the the united states. wonder where he got that from. please watch the video.

when they’re not playing chel or, you know, going at it together, they’re being horny in each other’s instagram comments. there’s honestly.... so many of these that i can include but we’re just gonna go with my favourites.

when i say i think about this comment on a picture of morgan with isaac ratcliffe, a fellow flyers prospect on a daily basis, i mean it. i’ll be just doing my thing, minding my own business, and MORGAN MAKES ME VENMO HIM JUST TO TALK will pop into my head, completely uninvited. king shit for morgan to do and king shit for joel to admit on social media for the world to see, but joel admitting things he maybe shouldn’t is a running theme. 

cool. TOTALLY not flirting or anything.

joel. also both their exhibitionist streaks should be explored in fic more i am JUST sayin.

ok but bee you were lookin. like you can chirp but you were lookin, don’t lie. 

when ur in love with ur roommate but ur both hockey players so u can only communicate that love via chirping when he’s with the boys :(

what’s it called when you vibe really well with someone and also live with them and also comment on their shirtlessness and also maybe kiss them on the mouth a little? d... da... dating?? can’t be it.

morgan is a little more composed in the comments and mostly just posts inside jokes i cannot comprehend, or compliments. it’s still cute.

this was on a playoffs pic where joel’s wearing #28 love 2 see it love a supportive boyf always

this one was of joel with a fish he caught and i’m sorry but i did not want it on my phone.

but morgan can’t hide his affection for long. (me, in the distance: TWENTY EIGHT TWENTY EIGHT TWENTY EIGHT!!!!!!!)

there’s more comments but they’re boring and this is long, mostly joel chirping  morgan for wearing baseball or football stuff. however! they are also on twitter where they keep each other humble after incredible goals, like bros do,

this is DEFINITELY flirting. like, blatant. it’s like that kind of flirting when you’re thirteen and you don’t know what to do with your body so you just kinda steal your crush’s stuff or insult them because all attention is good attention, right??

but when push comes to shove, beezy is always gonna look out for his boy (because they are in love):

some important pictures of them together, for your pleasure: 

this is so DUMB and i love it

friends supporting friends!!!

this is them meeting their hockey dads :) so cute :) joel is promising g that he’ll have morgan back by ten yessir he will be respectful of boundaries and curfew. jake is high fiving morgan on getting some. this is facts i just call em like i see em.

and finally!

is this allowed?????  is this allowed???? it’s hard to tell but i’m pretty sure that’s joel on his knees for in front of morgan and i just??? how is that allowed???? it’s been five days and this picture has RUINED me. someone write me an essay to have on my desk by morning, stat.

also v unrelated but here is a video of morgan frost reading, proving he’s the smart one in the relationship. that’s not saying much but, hey! at least there’s proof he can read.

obviously different ships capture people in different ways but there’s something about them to me, personally, that is just so captivating. there’s a lot of potential for different fic vibes, and joel in particular always has a really fun voice to read (and also to write). they definitely have chemistry, they’re pitted against each other so there’s a good-natured rivalry going on, CLOTHES SHARING AND HERITAGE SOULMATE NUMBERS, and, like, they just genuinely seem to enjoy each other. someone PLEASE write more fic for them or by god i’ll have to do it myself.

ok that’s everything for now, i believe. they’re in love and don’t care who knows it and i’m obsessed. (however, i’m also obsessed with joel farabee and andrei svechnikov together, for which i have a one-picture argument for here.)

(p.s. anything not linked i screenshotted myself thank youuu for reading have a good day and remember: morgan makes joel vemno him just to talk 😌)

edit: hello. i wrote this on election night as a way to take off the edge of my nerves and it is not as funny or screechy as i wanted it to be so i’m going to add some now.  

[ebaeschnbliah]

THE  NEW  RUSSIAN  HOLMES

EPISODE SIX:  HALIFAX  PART ONE  (on to PART TWO)

Outtake:  CREATOR OF A LEGEND

________________________________________________________________

Directed by Andrey Kavun - Igor Petrenko as Sherlock Holmes - Andrey Panin as Dr. Watson

Episodes:   1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8

A charming guy with a suitcase full of money, who calls himself Mr Ebenezer Buckley, vistits the national bank at Saxe-Coburg Square, where the notes soon get changed into gleaming goldbars. 

But luck doesn’t last long for Mr Buckley. 

TBC below the cut  (with a lot of pics and all the spoilers)  …

The moment he leaves the bank, policemen rush in on the Square, take hold of Mr Buckley and shove him into an already waiting, closed carriage. To the utter shock of the bank employees and onlookers, the man’s face is beaten to a bloddy mess when he falls out of the carriage not long afterwards. Mr Buckley only has time to whisper one word before he dies ..... Halifax ....

The new client ...

Jabez Wilson vistis Baker Street 221b and has a very weird story to tell. Daily, for two months now, he had copied the Encyclopaedia Britannica, neatly page by page, ordered by an organisation called ‘The Red-Headed League’. A somewhat strange job but very well payed. Mr Wilson quickly grew to love it.  

Then something unexpected happened. From one day to the next ‘The Red-Headed League’ vanished without a trace. The rooms were closed. There was no explanation whatsoever, not even a notice in the papers. What Mr Wilson finds though, is a story about an extraordinary talented detective who lives in Baker Street 221b. In his desperation he spontaneously decides to pay a visit to that detective. 

(And Mr Wilson is not alone, because seemingly a lot of people had read that story too, liked it and wanted to meet detective and author in person ... which leads to an outburst of rage by Sherlock Holmes and Mrs Hudson. But that’s a story for another post  (Outtake: CREATER OF A LEGEND). :)))  

Despite the cheering crowd in front of his windows, Sherlock is amused and faszinated at the same time by Wilson’s story. What an intriguing little mystery!

When Sherlock learns that the red-headed vendor has a small flat at Saxe-Coburg Square, the already raised interest of the detective increases even more. John notices immediately how the gears in Sherlock’s head suddenly start turning ever faster and faster. He knows very well the signs, when the extraordinay mind of his friend begins to align seemingly disconnected dots, when he starts to play with possibilities and formes theories ....

On the way to Saxe-Coburg Square ...

Sherlock wants to investigate Wilson’s flat and the surrounding area. The three man take a cab and set out for Saxe-Coburg Square. When the cab stops, suddenly shots are fired at them.

Although the attackers are policemen, the doctor strikes back without hestitation and is able to chase them off. Fortunately Jabez Wilson, the obvious target of the ambush, survives the attack. John cares for the wounded man and later takes him to hospital, while .....

... Sherlock experiences the vague feeling that he’s missed something very important.

Sherlock Holmes pays a visit to Scotland Yard

It really is no easy task to convince Inspector Lestrade that the crime of the century is about to happen very soon .... nothing less than an attack on the National Bank at Saxe-Coburg Square. Sherlock suspects that parts of the police force will be involved on a big scale. He is also convinced that none other than the mysterious master criminal Moriarty is behind that bold plan.  (Allow me to be a little capricious)

Finally Lestrade agrees to organize an ambush to catch the culprits in the act ... ‘but only to prove to you that all of this is just another opium-induce delusion’. 

Dr Watson joins Sherlock Holmes, Inspector Lestrade and his men at the National Bank and then ..... they wait.

Sherlock uses the time to examine one of the late Mr Buckley’s forged bank notes. The man is no stranger to the detective. Ebenezer Buckley, also Timothy Trout, also called ‘Halifax’ (because of his big dream to go to Canada some day) had some extraordinary talents. He was a magician and illusionist, but also someone who liked to play with life. ‘Maybe he would have become an artist some day’, Sherlock muses.

His disposition for perfectionism made Halifax also into an excellent forger. And when he had to go to prison, he met someone there who decided to use that special talent for his own sinister plans. 

So Halifax changed one prison for another and put his talents into the new job. 

And the criminal mastermind was very pleased ....

Finally the long wait is over ....

When the tea starts to vibrate in its cup, Sherlock Holmes knows that  (T-REX sorry, couldn’t resist :)))  ... that the burglars aren’t far away anymore.

The vaults of the National Bank have indeed been breeched ....

... but the burglars are able to escape through their own tunnel. Inspector Lestrade, Holmes and Watson take up the pursuit. 

The unexpected interruption ...

Their ride gets stopped abruptly. A row of policemen blocks the street. Lestrade is furious but all his protest is in vain. The royal cartiage has priority over everything else. 

Sherlock and John exchange the carriage for a tandem bike. The somewhat bumpy ride comes to a sudden end rather soon though .... (‘Tandem Pursuit’)

An apalling discovery ...

While Sherlock and John continue the pursuit by foot, Lestrade still uses the carriage and catches one of the three burglars. He follows the tandem’s ‘path of destruction’ and finds the second one. To his utter shock and disbelieve he has to realize that Holmes’ assumptions had been right .... the burglars are indeed policemen in disguise. To say that Inspector Lestrade is beside himself with rage is an understatement.

Meanwhile Sherlock and John have cornered the third and last burgler. Inexplicably the man is already dead when they catch up to him. 

The mysterious death of three burglars ....

Dr Watson is sure that he’d missed the man with his gun. And indeed ... no gunshot wound can be found on the body. Why then did he die? 

A quick postmortem examination provides the answer to the mystery: poison. What’s more, the toxin must have been administered even before the break-in had been executed. And it will turn out later that all three burglars lost their lives due to the same poison.

The arrest ...

But there is no time for Sherlock Holmes to expound his theories. Inspector Lestrade arrives at the scene with some of his men and arrests Holmes without any explanation. Dr Watson has no chance to intervene. 

The execution order ....

After putting Holmes into a cell and giving his men the dressing-down of their lives, Inspector Lestrade retreats into his office. But there is no time to relax or think things through. The phone rings and from a superior instance he gets the unambiguous order to execute Sherlock Holmes ‘when trying to escape’. What now?

Meanwhile at Baker Street ...

Lestrade’s officers aren’t the only ones who get a proper dressing-down. Mrs Hudson thinks that John hasn’t nearly done enough to protect and support his friend. ‘He wouldn’t leave you! He would help you out!’ And while cutting the cabbage furiously, she threatens to go to Scotland Yard herself. 

‘Suspecting Sherlock Holmes of commiting a crime is as ridiculous as suspecting you of exhibiting bravery’, she tells John, who isn’t quite sure if this had been a compliment or not.

John would have come too late ....

Lestrade enters Holmes’ prison cell and Sherlock knows immediately what’s going on. He might die today.  (When trying to escape)

Thankfully Inspector Lestrade is not a man who follows orders blindly. Not even when those orders come from the highest level. ‘I always decide everything by msyelf’ he will tell Sherlock later.

The inspector and the consulting detective prepare to leave the police station as unobstrusive as possible and then go undercover .......

°

TBC .... on to PART TWO

Outtake:  CREATOR OF A LEGEND

Links to watch the series can be found HERE

A big thank you to @spiritcc  and everyone who made it possible to watch and understand this wonderful Sherlock Holmes adaptation. 

°

January, 2021

[reh-ldjen]

Ice skaing with the RE:H Cast + Eve and Raphi

Note: In the Argent Games Discord we talked about how the cast having their time while Ice Skating. I will also add my baby Raphi into the scene. Iscari Agent is in my headcannon called Erik. There is some subtle shipping.

I am sorry if I some grammar mistakes. English isn’t my first language.

Word count: 1683

Now have fun reading the fluff <3

Cold night with a full moon perfect time to ice skate. Well, that’s what Raphi wished to do. The child would shut up about it until we do it. She was never Ice skating and she really wanted to do it. Heath and the Mavvars were excited about it. Saorise not so much. The reason is that the Mavvars are probably going to destroy the ice rink. Even Andrei wanted to join the fun. What everyone would do for the little princess.

Everyone puts their ice skates on. The Mavvars were late. Raphi steps on the ice of the big rink while Eve holds her hand. After 3 feet Raphi wobbles a bit. Eve stabilizes her. Raphi fears falling on the ice and hurting herself.

Heath saw that and offers to teach her how to ice skate. ���Would you like me to teach to skate?”

Raphi eyes brightens and she screamed “Yes”

Heath takes her hand and off they went. Heath turns around still holding her hand. He explains” Push yourself forward with one foot and the other one glides for you.” Raphi looks at her feet and push her right foot on the ice. Heath “Good. Now we have to do it with the other one” Raphi gets more excited as she skates more.

Eve sees that they are doing quite fine and she skate around to look how everyone is doing. She sees the Gols enter the rink. Andrei seemingly gliding over the ice. Without moving? How does that work?... I shouldn’t question it.

Then something black flies past Eve. She almost fell but didn’t. She searches for the speedy one. It was…Zhang, who just did an axel. The Gols didn’t seemed surprised. Andrei seems to be proud of him. Saorise even clapped for him.

Eve skates to Saorise. Eve” Looks like everyone is having fun.”

Saorise” For now at least…” She seemed worried. “…until the Randal and his people arrive”

Just then Heath got loud” What are you doing Markus!”

Markus just took Raphi away from Heath“ I’m just taking her highness away from the crime scene”

Raphi tilts her head, not understanding what he meant

“Wha-” The Heath got body slammed by none other than Randal. Randal quickly skated away from his crime and went to greet Eve.

Eve” Did you really needed to do that” pointing at Heath

Randal” Hey, it’s his fault for not putting his guard up”

Eve stares at Randal” What if you hurt Raphi if Markus didn’t get her away from him”

Randal” Sorry, I will be nicer to him next time and sorry for being late” He got down give Eve a kiss on the cheek. “Now I have to greet somebody else” and off he goes again.

He skates to Raphi without stopping and just picks her up. The Iscaris look very worried about the little miss. Eve noticed that Saorise was whispering to Erik. He got closer where Raphi was. She probably ordered him to make sure Raphi doesn’t get injured.

Eve now noticed some newcomers at the entrance. Jasper was holding to Morgan and she hold on the railing. Seems like they didn’t know how to skate. But they were in good care. Dorian and Nik were beside them. Looking out for them.

After that, the Mavvars entered. All of them were rushing on the ice. When Eve looked around, she noticed Andrei and most his Gols are outside of the rink. Now even some of the Iscaris are going outside. Away from the Chaos.

Eve went to search her daughter. Then heard a loud thump. When she looked who fell. It was Randal holding a scared Raphi up in the air. Eve ran up to them worrying that Raphi is hurt. She grabbed Raphi and hold her tight to her chest. Eve looks at her daughter’s face. The little one was very scared and was about to cry. But she was not hurt. “It’s alright. Mommy is here.” Eve said while petting her head.

Eve looks at Randal. Randal was shouting at Jack” What the heck Jack! You could hurt the kid!”

Jack was shoving ice at everyone and Randal was also a target. That surprised Randal and let him fall.

Jack is apologizing profusely. “I am so sorry Randal. I didn’t mean to hurt her.”

Randal gave out a command“ Guys make him regret this.” Randal stands up and the Mavvars stares at Jack.

Eve ”You better run if you want to survive”

Jack ”sh---”

He skates away like the wind and the Mavvars follow close behind. Hearing Jack screaming makes Eve kind of happy. Raphi has also calmed down. She started to talk “What will happen to big brother Jack?”

Eve” Since bullying everyone at the rink, he gets punished.”

Raphi” But he said sorry” looks very worried.

Eve” Sometimes an apology is not enough. But don’t worry he is gonna be fine”

After saying that she kissed her daughter’s forehead. Markus got closer to them. With a smoothie in his hand?

Eve says to Markus” Could you take her out of the rink and let her rest?”

Markus bowed and grinned” Everything for her Majesty”

Raphi let her Mother go and skates to Markus. She holds on the end of Markus’ coat. Seems like Heath’s lessons have worked very well. Now thinking about it where is Heath? Eve looked around the rink.

Heath was still laying on the ice. Crying on the inside. Everyone seems not to notice him, beside of Saorise standing beside him. Eve skates to them.

Saorise to Heath “Now how long do you want to lay on the ice?”

Heath “I don’t know. It’s nice and cold”

Saorise looks disappointed. Eve feels bad for Heath. Eve grabs Heath arm and help him up.

Eve “Just let us get out of here”

Heath is sulking. But he was happy that Eve is holding his hand. The 3 of them get out of the rink. Eve went up to Markus and Raphi, who was drinking hot chocolate.

Eve” From where you did get that hot chocolate?”

Raphi” I don’t know”

Eve” What do you mean? Markus?”

Markus is taking a sip from his blood smoothie also avoiding Eve’s gaze. “I left her for a few moments, and she got it already”

Eve” Sweety can you describe the person, that gave you the chocolate?”

Raphi” He was a tall man. He worn a lot of Black clothes. When I asked his name. He said I didn’t need to know.”

There was only person who could said that. Eve’s sire. He was always like that. Her worries are now gone. The only thing now is the Mavvar who are basically on a rampage right now. Shouting and chasing Jack.

An announcement was made.

“I ask you to leave the skating rink. We need to smooth the ice soon.”

Eve looks at Saorise and they both acknowledge that the Mavvars are probably not leaving the rink. The others have stepped out of the rink. They both were right. The Mavvars didn’t leave yet.

They were still chasing Jack. Markus enjoyed the few. He is an excellent ice skater, but he was not perfect. He got distracted and ram into the railing. With the speed he skated he easily flew over it and landed on the other side with his face on the floor. Everyone laughed.

But that soon stopped for the Mavvar. Some Worker went onto the ice and asked for them to leave the rink. Most of them left but Randal didn’t want to. The worker needed to chase him out. It wasn’t easy and Randal only got out when Eve said so.

As soon as it was done. The Mavvars went on the rink immediately. Raphi also joined them. But before Raphi stepped on the ice.

Eve gives the Mavvars a warning” Now if something happens to my baby, I will have your head, got it?” She smiled

Mavvars in synch “Yes, ma’am”

She goes down to Raphi eye level. “Now have fun sweety and if you feel tired tell them, ok?”

Raphi smiled at her mother and nodded.

Off they went.

“Hello, nice to see you all here”

Eve turns around and sees QuingYing and her lover. Eve greeted them.

“It’s also my pleasure to you see too. I hope you have a great time in Hollywood”

“Yes, we have. And the others seem to have fun too. ”

Eve“ Yes.”

They smiled and went into the ice rink, not worrying about the Mavvars.

The two lovebirds are in their own world now.

Raphi is having fun with the Mavvars. Eve notice that they were slow and gentle with her. Some of them were looking at her and quickly turned away. It seems they took the warning seriously. Saorise went of with her agents. Eve skates around the rink some more.

Zhang is off doing his tricks. Raphi is amazed by his tricks. Not long Zhang was holding her left hand. I.A was holding her right hand. Raphi was Eve’s daughter, but she couldn’t break it. It was to cute. Dorian and Nik skate pass Eve talking happily. Eve gets to the railing. Resting. As she gets closer she heard how Aleusha laughing her heart out.

Aleusha ”I can’t believe that you really did that. That was really stupid”

Jack” It was an accident. I didn’t want Randal to fall or even for Raphi to get hurt.”

Eve” You are lucky that Raphi didn’t get hurt or you would have been dead”

Jack got scared and hid behind Aleusha. That made Aleusha laugh.

Eve” Relax I was just joking. Beside after you fell over railing it was forgotten.” She leaned against the railing.

Looking at the rink where her lovely daughter is. She was now dragging Lazarus around the rink. I seemed uncomfortable, but he didn’t want to be here he would have left already. Some Vamps are close to them just in case. Eve isn’t worried she trusted him.

It was a nice and exciting night for all the vamps in Hollywood.

-

Here is Jen. I wish everyone merry Christmas and hope that everyone is having a great time even in the current circumstances.

[takadasaiko]

Love Me Twice: Chapter Two

FFN II AO3

Chapter Summary: Dr Lomay assesses the damage done by the failed memory manipulation and Tom Jacob Phelps is not thrilled that no one will give him a straight answer about what happened to him.

----

Chapter Two

It had been hours since Chen had arrived, Dembe not too far behind him. He'd left to check on Agnes who had been safely tucked away with his daughter and granddaughter. The little girl was fussy and agitated at being uprooted from her routine, but safe. It was more than could be said for her father. Dembe's silence said more than any vocalized judgement could have.

Or perhaps it was just the truth of the moment. Red had made a judgement call in which he didn't have expertise to make. "He's stubborn," Dembe said quietly, his first words in hours.

Reddington loosed a long breath. "I'm aware. That's how we landed in this mess."

"I mean that he will pull through. He's stubborn. He will not leave her."

Those dark eyes were fixed on him, wisdom beyond his years in them, and Red swallowed hard. "I hope you're right," he admitted very, very softly. "For her sake."

A knock came at the door and Dembe moved to open in. Dr Chen stood on the other side. The man looked tired. "We've stabilized him."

"Wonderful news. How soon can we -?"

Dembe swivelled, not bothering to hide his discomfort at the question. Chen was the one that answered. "I think you should see for yourself."

"He's awake then?"

Chen didn't answer, but motioned for Reddington to follow after him.

Lomay was still onsite and working with her patient. She had him following a light as Red and Dembe entered, his gaze struggling and his jaw tightly clenched. She looked over and frowned. "All the answers we promised," she said softly and started for the door, her voice quiet as she spoke to Reddington. "He's confused and agitated. Please don't make it worse."

"I'll do my best not to," Reddington promised and was left with a clear path to the bed.

Tom's dark blue eyes did their best to focus on him as he drew closer. There was something hard in them. Something he hadn't seen in many years now. Only the slightest bit of confusion managed to creep in just behind the walls. "You're Raymond Reddington."

The statement stopped Red in his tracks. "I am," he answered carefully. "Do you know where you are?"

The injured man was studying him intently as if he were looking for any sign of the answer that was expected. Anything to give him an edge.

He had no idea where he was, that much was clear.

"Do you know what day it is?"

"Your doctor asked me the same thing."

"That's not an answer, Tom."

The confusion finally won out, breaking through that dangerous glare and Tom tilted his head slightly against his pillow, jaw setting in a small tell of irritation. Any other day Reddington would have been in his element with the balance of knowledge in his direction, but not now. There was something very wrong in what was unfolding, and Tom's slow, guarded response only made it worse.

"I don't know who that is."

"Tom Keen. That name doesn't ring any bells?"

"Should it?"

Reddington looked back to the door where the doctors lingered with Dembe, but his attention was pulled back around as Tom started trying to sit up in bed. He reached out, ready to guide him back down, and Tom's hand flashed out, catching him by the wrist. His grip was surprisingly strong for the obvious pain that he was in. "Where the hell am I?"

"Easy. It was the alias you gave when I hired you." A truth. And one that seemed to help ease some of the fight or flight instinct.

Tom eased back against the pillows again. "You hired me?"

"Yes."

"And then what? I can't remember."

"You were injured. My people are taking care of you."

The machine sounded an alert that the pain medication was being pushed. Tom was already fighting it. "McCready. Does he -?"

"Everything's been taken care of," Reddington assured him and he hated hearing the strain in his own voice. Tom didn't seem to notice, though. He was losing focus as the medication flooded his system. His eyelids drooped and the tenseness in his muscles eased as he was pulled back to sleep.

"He's lost time," Lomay said quietly from behind him, her voice tense. "How much, we can't be sure."

"Years." Before Elizabeth had met him. Before he'd become Tom Keen. This man - Jacob Phelps, he supposed - thought he belonged in a world where Bill McCready was still alive and hiring him out as his best operative. "Can it be reversed?"

"I don't know. This isn't my area." Lomay pulled in a breath. "We believe it's prudent to treat his injuries. Let him rebuild his strength. Eric and I will consult with Andrei and his people, but we don't believe it would be wise to allow them direct treatment at this time. They could easily do more harm than good."

"Understood," Reddington said quietly, his mind spinning. With effort, he shoved it down and turned a sharp look on Chen. "Fix this."

He didn't give the younger man a chance to respond before stalking out of the room.

                                                  ---------

His world was in fragments. Pieces of memories that felt like they were just out of grasp. A voice. A name. A pair of blue eyes that reminded him of the sky and the retreating laugh that left him cold when it was gone.

Everything hurt. He was in a hospital of some form or fashion and every time he opened his eyes they asked him a million questions. What day was it? He didn't know. What was his name? He had no idea which one they wanted. Age? Twenty-four. That one he had. That one they could gauge for themselves.

Or not. The one answer he gave them seemed to be what caused them the most pause.

"Let's try this," the lady doctor said, her voice irritatingly gentle. "What year is it?"

He squeezed his eyes closed, the throbbing just behind them intensifying. "Two-thousand…. Eight." Right? That sounded right.

"What's the last thing you remember?"

"A list of really pointless questions," he snapped.

She jotted down a note in a file. "Okay. I'm going to say a few names and I want you to tell me if you know them. Can you do that for me?"

The longer this went on, the more suspicious he became. He had the vaguest memory of someone coming in and telling him he'd been injured on a job, but he couldn't recall who it was or if he'd even said how he'd been injured. He certainly hadn't been given a chance to reach out to Bud or call in an extraction. This wasn't how St Regis operated. He should be in his own medical facilities in Upstate New York, not wherever the hell he'd been dropped. None of this made any sense and he was tired of playing this woman's game on her terms. "How about this? I give you an answer, you give me one."

She considered that a moment before giving a brief nod. "I think we can manage that. First name -" she looked down at her file - "Elizabeth Keen."

"I don't know who that is. My question: full list of my injuries."

To her credit, she didn't hesitate as she flipped through her notes. "GSW to the left shoulder that someone dug out before we saw you. Three stab wounds to the left side, one that nicked your lung and was torn more by exertion. And, of course, memory loss. That's the reason we're going through these questions."

"Concussion?"

"No."

"Then how -?"

"It's my turn." He blinked at the tone. "Agnes Keen."

"I don't know any Keens. Happy? If it wasn't a blow to the head, how am I missing time?"

"That's complicated."

"Didn't realize there were rules to this."

"I'm not at liberty to answer that one. Next -"

"No."

"I'm just trying to help you."

"Then get me a phone."

"I can't do that."

"There's a lot you can't do, isn't there?" he snapped and was halfway on his elbows when the pain ripped through him and sent him tumbling back. Black spots danced across his vision.

"... Keen? Mr Keen, can you hear me?"

"Told you. I don't know any Keens," Jacob muttered as his eyes slipped closed again.

                                                 ---------

Best he could tell he'd been there at least a week. Maybe longer. He could feel at least some of his strength returning, but as it did he found that they were keeping him sedated when there wasn't someone in the room peppering him with questions. All that did was solidify his original suspicion that he was in unfriendly territory. They'd done this to him. Why was still up for grabs, but if he was going to put money on it he would bet that they were fishing for specific intel and burying the lead in the neverending line of questions every time he pried his eyes open. If they didn't get it - or even if they did - he wouldn't be useful to them much longer. He needed to get out.

The constant sedation was his biggest problem. Even when he was awake he was groggy, and even if he could manipulate the interrogation to keep it going long enough to clear his head he wasn't sure he was capable of fighting his way out. He could probably take the doctors, but he had no idea what was on the other side of that door. No, he had to outthink them. Good thing he'd always been good at that.

He took the latest round of questions as long as he could, fingers carefully groping for the IV that pushed the medication into his veins that put him under as the doctors left. More names, dates, questions. They were obsessed with these people: Elizabeth and Agnes. There were others that popped up a few times. They asked him if he'd ever worked for Raymond Reddington or if the name Berlin meant anything to him.

Jacob heard the telltale sound of the machine to the side pushing medication and he tightened his fingers around the tube under the sheet. "I take it we're done?"

Dr Cho offered a small smile as he stood. "You need rest."

"When you're done with me, what do you plan to do?"

"You're safe here. We're not going to hurt you."

Funny, he sounded like he almost believed that. Jacob forced his breathing to even out and his eyes to slip heavily closed. All the signs that he was being pulled under. He waited, listening to the retreating footsteps, and then he waited some more. Finally he let his eyes slide open carefully, peering out into the room from beneath dark lashes. He was alone. Good.

His injuries were far from healed and he felt them pull as he reached to remove the IV from his hand. He unhooked the equipment using all the tricks he'd learned as a teenager when he'd decided he was bored of the medical wing after an injury in the field. It remained silent as he made his way gingerly to the window, pulling at the heavy curtain there to get an idea where he was.

It was dark outside. Well that was a plus. The fact that he was on the second floor didn't help his escape though. Alright then. Hallway it was.

Jacob padded his way to the door, bare feet silent against the tile floor, and he supposed he should at least be grateful his captors had left him in a pair of sweatpants and t-shirt. He might want to find a pair of shoes before he made his way out to the street, though. That way he didn't draw too much attention.

The hallway was blessedly empty and he took off towards what looked like a stairwell. The sound of a respirator drew his attention to a partially closed door. He wasn't the only person they were keeping here. Interesting.

He pressed his fingers lightly against the door, letting it swing open a little more to see a woman in the bed. Jacob inched forward to get a better look. There was something about her, but he couldn't quite catch hold of what it was. Dark hair spilled out across the pillow, eyes closed, skin pale, and the respirator forced air into her lungs. His gaze traveled down to see a ring on her left hand. He didn't know he was reaching for the limp fingers until he touched them and he felt his breath catch.

And just like that the spell broke.

Jacob jerked his hand back, hissing in pain at the quick movement. He had to get out of this place. Nothing made sense here and if he didn't get out right then, they would probably decide he wasn't worth the effort to keep alive even if they hadn't gotten what they wanted from him. He didn't know this woman. She wasn't his problem. Right? Right. He forced himself to turn away and start for the door, back to his original goal: the stairs.

Everything was quiet as he entered the stairwell. He leaned against the wall for a moment, his energy spent quicker than it would have been if he were healthy. It didn't matter. The first step was getting out, then he could call for backup. Then he could -

The door at the bottom of the stairwell opened and slammed shut, the sound reverberating against the concrete and Jacob froze where he was. His dark gaze latched onto the equally surprised doctor that stood at the bottom of the stairs. He turned, ready to spring back in the direction he came as quietly as he could, but the sudden movement sent a shock of pain through him and he found himself back against the wall, knuckles white as they grasped the railing.

He must have blacked out for just a moment because the next thing he knew hands were on him and he found the doctor standing with him. Chen, he thought. He was pretty sure that was his name. The man looked worried as he tried to steady him.

"You shouldn't be out of bed. Just a moment. Let me get some help." His hands left Jacob's shoulder and dark blue eyes cracked open just enough to see the phone he was pulling out of his coat pocket. That was it. That's what he needed.

Jacob steeled himself, letting instincts honed by years of training drive him as he swung around. His right elbow connected with the doctor's jaw, catching him by surprise and slamming him back hard enough to knock him out. He eased him down against the steps, not wanting to draw more attention to his location, and snatched the phone. A quick press of his thumb against the reader opened it up so that he could adjust the settings so that it wouldn't require a password moving forward. He pocketed the phone and drew in a steadying breath. Okay. Now he just needed to get out.

Adrenaline helped to dull the pain in his left side and shoulder to get him down the rest of the stairs. He pushed the door open, emptying out into a hall. Left was clear, but a guard was making the rounds to the right. He instantly drew his gun, but that was confusion that flashed across his face. That was useful at least.

"You shouldn't be down here," the guard called out, lowering his gun without holstering it.

Jacob pressed a hand to his side and leaned heavily against the wall. "Listen, I got kinda turned around. I just…"

The guard moved forward, more at ease now and the weapon was no longer trained on Jacob. "It's alright. Let's get you upstairs. Dr Chen was on his way to see you. He can -"

His movements were quick. As soon as the guard touched him, ready to help him back up to his room, Jacob's hand flashed out and grabbed the gun. He turned it, firing three rapid shots into the other man, and watched him slump to the floor. He stood there for a long moment, his entire body trembling under the strain of the quickly dissipating adrenaline rush, and he winced as he pressed his empty hand against his side, blood already soaking through his shirt. Great. Just what he needed. He had to get out of there before anything else went wrong.

Jacob stumbled his way down to the hall and found a door leading out the side of the building and into an empty street. It was later than he'd realized, most people in bed, and he pushed himself along. He exchanged the gun for the less conspicuous phone in case anyone did happen to drive by. Bloody fingers clumsily dialed a number.

It rang once, twice, three times before finally connecting to the expected dead air on the other end.

"Bud. It's me. Something went wrong. I need an extraction."

There was a long pause before a voice that was definitely not Bill McCready's spoke. "Jacob?"

"Gina? Where's Bud?"

"What are you doing calling this number?"

"I don't have time for this. Something happened… I don't know what. I've lost time and I -" He doubled over, loosing the grip he'd had against his side to catch himself as he half collapsed against the nearest solid object, leaving a trail of blood streaked against the vehicle. Great. Just great.

"What do you mean you lost time? What the hell are you doing calling here?"

"I don't remember," he managed. When had it gotten so hard to breathe? "I just… The job's blown. Whatever the job was. Listen, I need an extraction. Tell Bud -"

"Where are you?"

He pushed himself off the car and looked around. "I don't know. DC, looks like? I don't know."

"I traced the call. I've got you. Find a place to lay low. I'll have someone at your location in ten minutes."

"Kay," he breathed out, stumbling towards an alley and sinking back against the building. He wasn't going to make it any further than this, but at least it was out of the general pathway if anyone decided on a late night stroll.

"Jacob?"

He blinked hard, trying to focus. "Yeah?"

"Don't die."

A rough chuckle escaped him. "Trying not to." Then everything went black.

                                                 ---------

TBC

Next Time: Red discovers that Tom is missing and tracks him down to St Regis while Tom looks for any answers he can find.

Notes: Hello hello! It's Friday again. I hope everyone is staying safe and well!

Thank you for all the lovely reviews and responses! It's great to see names I've seen for years back in the review inbox as well as some new ones. You guys are fantastic! 3

This week has been really good for finding answers to some of the questions I hadn't quite sussed out for this story yet. I keep a longrunning set of notes with plotpoints and various other details for stories like this to help keep everything straight. One of the reasons I was so hesitant to start posting (even over 20K into it) was because I didn't have those answers, so it feels great to have found some of them along the way as things start falling into place with the writing.

For those that don't follow me over on Tumblr I'm releasing a sneak peek every week in the form of AU gif sets of at least one scene in the upcoming chapter. They're a lot of fun to make. You can find them over at .com and just look up "Love Me Twice" in the search for my blog and you should be able to find them. Those are posting every Tuesday.

[harringtown]

redemption will comfort you so | part I

hello friends!! new chapter fic alert!! 

requested by anonymous

Steve Harrington AU in which the reader is a Russian assassin in the base who helps the gang escape. With nowhere to go and in need of a place to hide, Steve takes them in. But with years worth of baggage to unpack, a happy ending will have to be fought for. 

part 1/?

find the rest here

this starts when robin and Steve are with the Russians, but we’re gonna pretend the alarm hasn’t gone off yet!! sorry for massacring the Russian!! I used multiple translation sources to try and make it as accurate as possible and did research to the best of my ability so I apologize for discrepancies! 

-

A killer needs a code.

It was one of many lessons Andrei taught you over the years, but it was the most important one. Without it, you’d be no different than the heartless, sociopathic monsters the other governments unleashed on their enemies. You’d have lost your soul like the others. 

Russia didn’t make monsters. They made killers. And good ones, at that.

Your code consisted of only two points: no children and no innocents. You couldn’t afford to harbor any more reservations; Andrei even thought your reluctance to hurt a child was too soft. 

But the code was yours, scratched onto the white wall beside your bed at age 14. Four years later, it had cemented. It was yours to live by - it was yours to preserve your humanity.

“Если они вам нужны mертв, сделай это сам,” you spat. If you want them dead, do it yourself. You weren’t an executioner. You worked from the shadows, invisible. Being ordered to walk into a room of people tied up and end them was an insult. You were better than that.

Besides, if you took the time to follow Andrei’s orders, you’d miss your window of escape. Between the shifts, when Andrei and the others gorged themselves in the cafeteria. You’d snag a cart, make it to the elevator, and be far away from the Russians and Hawkins, Indiana. You’d be far away from who you were; far away from what they’d turned you into.

No child wishes to be an assassin. Your dream, the dream you had before being turned over to become someone else’s weapon, was to come to America and go to school. Go to the beach, sit under the sun, close your eyes without fear.

“Ah…Но они особенные,” Andrei said, wearing that sickening grin. You resisted the urge to smack it off his face.

But they are special. Your stomach turned.

You’d already done all the preparation to leave. Belongings tossed down the garbage chute, sleeping meds dropped into the coffee pot the men would inevitably drink from. You had a few hours to get the hell out of here. Wasting them by torturing someone stupid enough to get caught wasn’t a priority.

At least, not until you saw who it was they wanted to you kill. A boy and a girl, already beaten within inches of their life, not much older than you. You peered through the small window, hands curling into fists. Anger flared in your gut, hot and sharp.

Children. Innocents.

“Нет, я не буду,” you said, nausea pooling in your gut. I will not.

Andrei’s grin soured and he unlocked the door and pushed it open, shoving you in.

“Ты будешь,” he said just as the door shut behind you.

You will.

-

The darkest blood on your hands comes from the first life you took. Two years into training, two years since your parents relinquished you to what they’d always referred to as ‘the evil men’. But despite how evil they perceived them to be, it was they who let themselves get dragged into the depths. And it was only by giving you up - you, a frail, scared 10 year old - that their debts would be forgiven.

Their lives for yours. Parenting at its finest.

It was the final test. The only one that actually meant anything, you discovered later.

Her name was Nadia, and she was the only friend you’ve ever had. But just as your parents had to make a choice to stay alive, you had to make a choice, too. You or her. Life or death.

Nadia, who’d never shown weakness in the years you’d known her, cried when you lifted the blade to her neck. All her strength fell away like a marionette with clipped strings. She stared up at you, both of you panting and bleeding and aching from the fight, and there was no anger in her eyes.

“все в порядке, cестричка,” she said. It’s alright, sister.

Life or death. She closed her eyes, and you gripped the blade tighter.

You chose life.

-

The pair - tied back to back on a chair - whipped their heads toward you when the door slammed shut. Both had been beaten, but the boy’s injuries outnumbered the girls. Blood caked the bottom half of his face, but even with the hurt he must have been feeling, the boy smiled.

“Oh, shit! They’ve got kids, too? That’s just fucked up!” He said, in a far better mood than he should be. You frowned. High. They were high.

Jesus, Andrei.

“Isn’t child labor….like…illegal?” The girl asked, brows arching. The boy snorted a laugh. You pursed your lips.

“Somebody call the cops!” The boy announced.

How could you be expected to kill them? Apart from their clear youngness, they appeared just to be a giggling pair who were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“Are you here to kill us?” The girl asked, not seemingly alarmed by the prospect. That, too, was new. Not that you were ever up and close with your targets, but even then, the fear was tangible. Those people knew what was coming, and they were afraid.

The first kids your age you’d seen in almost two years, and of course, you were supposed to kill them. You looked between them, both bloody and beaten and barely holding on.

There wasn’t really any choice to make.

“No,” you said simply. You locked the bolt on the door.

“Am I tripping?” The boy asked.

“Obviously,” replied the girl. Both collapsed into giggles, and you raked a hand through your hair, frustrated.

“Shut up, or we all die here,” you snapped. The pair clamped their mouths shut, eyes on you.

“Andrei will be back in five minutes. If you are not dead on the floor, we are all dead.”

“Nice,” the boy said. You narrowed your eyes, and he crinkled his nose, trying to raise his hands in apology, only to be stopped by the restraints.

“Do not move, and do not speak,” you ordered, moving to both of them and undoing their shackles. You’d just gotten the girl free when the alarm went off. Both of them jumped, that familiar fear filling their eyes. It tugged on your belly, but you knew better than most that fear could be both a weapon or a paralytic. You needed the weapon.

“Shit,” the boy hissed, pushing himself off the chair shakily. He caught the girl, the two supporting each other’s weight.

You crossed to the small window and looked out; the base resembled a disturbed ant hive with uniformed guards darting back and forth.

“Пиздец,” you cursed. Damnit.

You turned to face the pair, who’d been somewhat sobered by the alarm. You opened your mouth to tell them to follow you when the door burst open and two children ran in, one wielding one of Andrei’s favorites: the electric stick. A young boy with curly hair screamed as he ran at you and you ducked easily, reaching out to yank the stick away before he electrocuted you or himself. Another scream followed, but the boy stopped at the opposition of the older pair.

“Dustin, chill it with that thing!” The boy exclaimed.

“Steve, she’s a Russian!” Dustin explained, as if it weren’t blatantly obvious, and lunged for the stick. You lifted it out of arms reach.

“Yeah, and she’s trying to save our ass! Try not to kill her before she does that!” Steve said.

“Oh,” Dustin said.

“Yeah, oh.”

“Isn’t she a little young to be a Russian?” A young girl asked.

“Pretty sure they have baby Russians,” said the older girl, sarcastic even in the face of chaos.

“We can talk about this later,” Steve said, “maybe for now we can get the hell out of here.”

His words dragged everyone back to reality, and within seconds everyone was on their feet and behind you at the door.

“I will keep them from following,” you said. The boy frowned.

“What?”

“You will get out safe. I promise.”

He shook his head.

“No way. We can’t just leave you here. What happens when they find out you didn’t…”

“Kill you?” You asked. He nodded sternly.

“Kill me. Or, torture and kill me,” you said with a shrug. 

Steve looked to his friends, and back at you, the gears turning in his head.

“Come with us,” he said suddenly.

“What?”

“Come with us. These people, they’re…”

He was giving you the out you’d been waiting for, the one you’d almost taken for yourself. But it was different to run by yourself - only your demons to keep you company. How could you saddle someone else with them? Risk the lives of these kids who were already in a world of trouble? You were poison. Deadly. But you didn’t want to be. God, you didn’t want to be.

“Come with us,” Steve said again, his voice soft. You met his gaze, searching for an inch of doubt; you didn’t find any.

So, you nodded.

“Follow me,” you said, and opened the door, new allies behind you.

[heylookafanfic]

A Dish Served Cold: Chapter 1

Pairing: Jay Halstead x Reader, Hank Voight x Reader

brief summary: Hank Voight was the most ruthless man in Chicago. It’s practically a death wish to hurt anyone he loves. When a former inmate is released from jail, they go for his weak spot to seek revenge.

Author’s Note: Hey howdy ho! This is my 1st story ever so please show it some love if you liked it and also, don’t forget to tell me if you want a part 2 because I’m itching to write a 2nd chapter but only if this chapter does well.

word count: 2,079 words

requested: Nope, original! (send in those requests!) warnings: kidnapping, being held at gunpoint, copping a feel, death of a loved one, finding out a loved one died

Jay Halstead had not only been your partner but your childhood best friend. You consider yourself lucky that the universe would keep the both of you close for so long. Not only did you get to work with your best friend but your boss, the notorious Hank Voight, was your godfather. Hank became your godfather before you were born.

*Flashback*

Your father was his partner and best friend and when news got around the CPD that Officer Y/L/N and his wife were expecting, Hank was the first one to know and consistently check up on your mom when your dad was working overnights. While they were planning things for your birth, your parents knew that if anything were to happen to them, Hank would go to the ends of the universe to keep you safe. It was a no-brainer to make him your godfather.

One day, they invited him over for dinner to ask him. He nearly choked on his wine when they did. That was possibly one of the best moments of his life, especially knowing that he’d have a kid in his life, although it wasn’t his biological child. When you were born, he couldn’t believe his eyes at how precious you were. From that moment, his mission in life was to ensure that even the smallest of threats would never even find out about you. He chaperoned every school field trip, cheered you on through your sports phase, attended every birthday party, dance recital, and school function. Jay was intimidated by him because although you two were best friends, your uncle made sure it stayed that way by keeping him in check.

Flash forward to your 8th grade year, you had the perfect life. Perfect grades, a tight knit family that supports you through everything, and an amazing friendship in Jay. What could be better than that? The evening you left for soccer tryouts was an evening you’ll never forget. In the middle of doing drills, a CPD vehicle rolls up to the parking lot of your school’s field. A man hops out of the driver's seat and talks to the coach.

“Y/N! Come here kiddo”

You jogged to the two men

“This is Officer Olynski with the Chicago Police Department. You need to go with him, okay?”

“Why? My mom is picking me up at 7:30” you asked

“Hey Y/N, I’m a friend of your dad and your uncle Hank. Your uncle wanted me to pick you up early. Is that cool with you?” Officer Olynski asked

“Um, okay I guess?” you responded

You grabbed your gear bag and hopped in the back seat.

The ride to your house was quiet other than Al’s walkie-talkie.

“What’s going on?” you asked

“Your uncle will tell you all about it when we get to your house” he said

Only a block away from your home, you could hear police sirens wailing. It wasn’t just one, it sounded like multiple. Butterflies started settling in your stomach. As Olynski pulled up to your house, you could see police tape surrounding your yard and multiple police cars parked in the front.

“What’s going on?” you asked with a shaky breath

Hank comes out of the front door and walks to the car. Opening the back door, he slides in the back with you.

“Uncle Hank, what’s going on? What happened?” you asked

He had looked like he just cried. You had never seen him like this.

“What happened?!” you shouted

He and Al gave each other sad glances.

“Kiddo, I’m so sorry”

“What do you mean?”

The car went quiet

“Your mom and dad died” he said

Everything went silent. Nothing made sense. This had to be one giant prank, right? The world seemed to slow down, time stopped and you felt lightheaded.

“Y/N?” Al asked

You sat there and still couldn’t process the news. Your uncle hugged you and sat in the back with you for what seemed like forever. The two of you cried together but Hank knew he had to be strong for you. From that moment, his duties of godfather began and he didn’t miss a beat hopping into action.

*Present Day*

You had a great job with an even better crew to work with especially because Jay was your partner. He had always made it a thing to walk you home after any event. 8th grade formal? High school homecoming? Soccer practice? Even at your parents’ funeral, he was there for you through all of it. Ever since childhood, making sure you got home safely was his number one priority.

It had been a long day, considering you just finished a 12 hour shift. Chasing after the bad guys,

You were in the locker room, packing up before clocking out. As you're stuffing your uniform in your duffle bag, a voice calls out.

"Y/N? You in here?"

"Yep, right here"

Jay appeared from behind the row of lockers.

"Hey, you ready? I wanted to stop by Molly's real quick before we head home. That okay with you?"

"Yeah, I'll be out in a sec" you said

He shot you a smile and left to clock out.

You grab your duffle bag, close and lock your locker and leave.

"See ya Trudy!" you said walking past the front desk

"Have a good night kiddo! Don't forget, I need those reports by Tuesday" she said

"Noted!"

Jay was in the front of the precinct waiting for you as usual.

"It's about time!" he joked

The two of you were on the way to Molly's. Tonight was fundraiser night and neither you nor Jay were ones to socialize but everybody there is practically family so stopping by for a few minutes wouldn't hurt.

"Remember in 1st grade when you got mad and put glue in Chris Henson’s hair because he didn’t pick you for kickball?" you asked

"Of course! The kid had it coming" he chuckled

"Looking back on it, it’s funny how we got pissed off over stuff like that as kids”

"See, and this is another reason why I’m thinking about not having my own kids one day. The kids gonna get my mischievous gene and get in a fight, I’ll have to do the drive of shame to their school and then I’m gonna have to play bad cop”

"You really thought that deep into that situation? " you chuckled

"Oh - hey, I need to stop by Mike’s real quick and grab some cash"

"Good call, I forgot the bar is cash only tonight”

Stepping into Mike’s Convenience Store, you heard the bell above the door chime. The cashier gave you two a quick “Hello” and you head to the back to use the restroom while Jay used the ATM. 4 men walk in moments after and one stands behind him. Thinking that they were waiting to use the ATM, he didn’t think much of it. The machine dispensed his cash and he quickly puts it in his wallet. It was eerily quiet despite the broken store radio playing static.

One of the men walks over to the door and locks it. Jay was on high alert. “Shit” he thought to himself. Suddenly, another man, this one stockier than the others, pulls a gun from the back of his pants.

“Jay Halstead” the man said menacingly

He sighed and turned around

“This moment has been 4 years in the making, my friend.” the man said holding Jay at gunpoint

“Listen, I don’t want any problems” Jay said

“Shut up! I’m gonna talk and you’re gonna listen”

All he could think about was you. If you walk out of the bathroom, you’ll be in the wrong place at the wrong time and if anything were to happen to you, he could never forgive himself. He hoped that by some circumstance, the door would jam so you’d be safe.

“Do you remember me?” he asked

Jay shook his head

“You really don’t remember me, do you?” he asked again

Jay got a good look at the man’s face. It still didn’t ring a bell.

“Let me introduce myself then. Andrei Romero. You arrested me at the corner of Beacon and Oxford about 4 years ago. There was a warrant out for my arrest because I was tied to a double homicide involving one of your officers.”

That’s when it hit him. October 7th, 2015. The day his partner, Erik Steele, was killed on duty. How could he forget? That was the worst day of his life. He and Erik were dispatched to do a welfare check on a house when neighbors heard screaming. Erik knocked on the door but it was cracked open. Guns drawn, they carefully went in and announced themselves. Still no answer, Jay searched up stairs and Erik searched downstairs. Just as soon as Jay gave the all clear for upstairs, 3 gunshots were fired. He ran downstairs and saw Erik on the kitchen floor with a bullet hole in his neck and blood quickly painting the tiled floor red. There was nothing he could do for him but begin basic first aid, call for an ambulance and wait.

“Sounds familiar” Jay said gritting his teeth

“You were also there when Voight interrogated me. He told you to leave but what you don’t know is, after you left, Hank threatened me with jail time if I didn’t confess to who did it. He knew I was innocent. He got me sentenced to 4 years for a crime I didn’t commit. 4 years of my life...gone. My wife and kid? They wanted nothing to do with me and-”

You walked out of the bathroom and walked to the front of the store.

“Jay, how much did you withdr-” you spoke

Unknowingly, you walked right into your worst nightmare

“Look what we have here. Officer Y/L/N.” the man said

Your legs went numb and your feet got cold.

“This just gets even better! Don’t be shy, join us.”

You looked at Jay and he shot you a glance as to say “just do whatever he says”. Romero’s men quickly patted you down with one of them trying to cop a feel.

“You son of a-” Jay flinched

Romero shoved his gun back in his face.

“Have some decency fellas” Romero said slyly

You yanked your arm from one of his men and stood next to Jay

“Officer Y/L. Godkid of Mr. Hank Voight. Don’t you think it’s pretty risky being out this late? There’s a lot of people who love to use you to get to your godfather.” he said

“And why is that?” you asked gritting your teeth

“You don’t know what Voights been up to huh? He’s been hiding things from you, thinking you’ll never find out but karmas finally catching up to him and I’m sorry but this starts with you”

“She has nothing to do with this! Leave her out of it!” Jay shouted

He grabbed your hand, gripping it tight.

Romero’s men stepped forward as he shifted the gun towards you

“You can make this real easy or extremely hard Y/N. Either come with us or-”

He shot a bullet at the ATM

“-the next shot won’t be a warning” he continued

Jay looked at you with fear written on his face and shook his head. Although Hank is your godfather, Jay vowed to protect you too after your parents died and when Al paired you two as partners in your rookie year at CPD.

You looked at Jay and took a deep breath. Letting go of his hand was one of the hardest things you had to do. Hank had taught you enough basic self-defense to take care of yourself so, you knew you’d be fine. When Jay wouldn’t let go of his grip, you wiggled your hand out of his.

Romero’s men grabbed you and held you at gunpoint.

“Tell Voight we stopped by won’t you Jay?” Romero said with a wink

“Oh, and if you want to play ‘hero’? Don’t. You do, and they die” he continued

You didn’t get a chance to look at Jay before you were carried off into their van.

Mike’s Convenience Store was empty and so was Jay. His partner - no, best friend vanished before his eyes and he knew that statistically, the first 48 hours that a person is missing were critical and after 48 hours, their chances of being killed/ never being found doubled.

Y/N’s 48 hours started now.

Author’s Note: Thanks for reading!! This is my 1st story ever so please show it some love if you liked it and also, don’t forget to tell me if you want a part 2 because I’m itching to write a 2nd chapter but only if this chapter does well.

[shels-kpop-main]

Zeus and Hera: The Reunion (The Pantheon AU)

The third chapter in the tale of The Pantheon’s favorite power couple.

Word Count: 4165

Warnings: Sexual Content (18+ only!), Gun Violence, Language

Zeus missed his wife. She had moved out so quickly, and with so little warning. Hera had packed up her boxes and had them all carried to a spare room down the hallway. She thought that was what she had to do. Because her husband had ordered the death of her brother, and she was supposed to be heartbroken.

But she wasn’t. She was a little bitter about not getting to deal with Hermes herself, but the bulk of Hera’s feelings were directed inwardly. She hated herself for being glad that her brother was gone. She hated herself for hating him. She hated herself for being a terrible person. How could she face Zeus, who knew her and loved her like no one else, and tell him she was a monster? So she gathered her things and left.

Zeus wasn’t quite the same without his partner, his best friend--his Hera. Sure, he did the same things, kept up the same routine. But he was off. He wasn’t happy. And he wasn’t the only one that felt Hera’s absence. Without a queen present, Mount Olympus grew quiet, somber.

Nine months passed before they saw each other in person. But Zeus still had a job to do. His duties needed completing, no matter the state of his personal life. So he went about his work, efficient and calculating as ever.

On occasion, Zeus’s work would coincide with Hera’s.

He traveled to Southern Romania to negotiate terms with a faction that was willing to submit to the Pantheon. He brought two Nymphs with him, as well as several Furies to serve as bodyguards.

The meeting was set to take place late at night in an empty warehouse. The two Nymphs went to scout the location as Zeus and the Furies waited outside. When the Nymphs gave the all clear, Zeus and his guards went in.

Zeus knew the moment he sat down in front of the man, that something was wrong. The gang’s leader, in his mid-forties with a heavy gold chain around his neck, looked nervous. Not nervous like he was sitting across from Europe’s most powerful arms dealer. More like nervous, because he was planning something.

Perhaps it was the way his eyes flitted from Fury to Fury, then around the room as if waiting for something. Perhaps it was the fact that he hadn’t pulled his right hand from his jacket pocket since Zeus entered.

The negotiations went as planned, with Zeus coolly outlining the terms of their agreement. The man agreed to all of them, a little too easily for Zeus’s taste. Finally, the Olympian had to say something.

“Andrei, if you were going to try to kill me, why do it after all the talking?”

The man named Andrei looked at Zeus in surprise. His eyes widened, and Zeus was almost amused at watching him consider his options.

“You could’ve done it twenty minutes ago and saved us both the time,” Zeus added, putting out his cigarette directly on the table. Andrei blinked, trying to calm himself. 

“I thought I’d offer you the chance to give us a fair deal,” Andrei answered, glaring. Zeus leaned back in his chair.

“The deal I’ve offered you is more than fair.”

But Andrei wouldn’t be convinced. He pulled the gun from his jacket, and held it level to Zeus’s eyes. The Furies behind Zeus immediately drew their guns as well, and Zeus wondered to himself where the Nymphs had gone. He glanced above Andrei at the elevated walkway, and saw them, each at the ready with sniper rifles.

But they were in the wrong position. Andrei had made Zeus sit on the side of the table opposite to where he came in. The Nymphs, having no way of knowing this, had set up on the wrong side of the table. Any movement now would alert Andrei’s men, and the risk of the situation going south would increase.

So Zeus lowered his gaze to the opponent in front of him.

Hmm. Beretta, 92FS. Not bad, Zeus thought to himself, tilting his head to look at the pistol.

“How about I shoot you, and the deal doesn’t happen at all?”

“Do you think that would be wise?” Zeus asked, remaining calm. But a small bead of sweat rolled down his neck. It had been a while since he’d stared down the barrel of a gun.

“I think I have more men here than you do,” was Andrei’s quick answer, delivered with a smirk. “So maybe I just kill you.”

And he clicked off the safety switch.

Before Zeus could shove the table into him, and duck as the gun discharged, a shot rang out. Andrei’s head jerked back as the bullet ripped through him, causing him to keel over where he sat. The Furies took their cue to gun down Andrei’s men, and in seconds, Zeus was standing in front of six bodies.

After looking behind him to make sure the Furies were uninjured, Zeus looked around wildly, searching for the source of the fatal shot to Andrei’s temple. He knew it couldn’t have been the Nymphs, because of where they were stationed. No, the sniper had to be positioned somewhere to his side, and slightly behind him.

Zeus scanned the walkway that ran around the perimeter of the second floor, and soon his eyes landed on a surprising sight.

Hera was just starting to dismantle her rifle, twenty feet above his head. Just as she emptied the cartridge, Hera looked down at Zeus. The two locked eyes for just a moment, and in that moment, they had an entire conversation.

I miss you. I love you. I still care about you. I’m glad you’re safe.

All of these things passed between them without a single word uttered. Hera slung the duffel bag over her shoulder, and exited the building.

Zeus wasn’t long after her, though, and caught up when she was nearly to her car.

“Hera,” he called, his voice urgent. She didn’t turn around, and pulled out her car keys.

“Hera, please.”

Something about the tone of his voice made her stop. Hera waited as Zeus closed the distance between them, and turned to face him.

“What are you doing here?” He asked, shaking his head. He hadn’t seen her in nine months, yet here she was, in front of him. Just after saving his life.

“Just looking out for my own,” she answered simply. Zeus thought for a moment, unsure of what to say first.

“I’m glad to see you,” he offered. Hera almost smiled. Truth be told, she was glad to see him, too. But she couldn’t find the words.

“Do you hate me?” Zeus asked suddenly. Hera was taken aback. How could she ever hate him?

“No,” she answered. “I love you.”

It was music to Zeus’s ears. He could have dropped to his knees, or cried, right then.

“Then come home,” he replied, nearly pleading. Hera’s features softened for a brief moment before hardening again with resolve.

“I can’t,” was her simply reply. And she got in her car, as Zeus asked Why not? She left him standing there, in the quiet darkness. As Zeus walked back to join the Furies and Nymphs, he rubbed his face. He wasn’t reeling from the attempt on his life, from having a gun pointed between his eyes.

Hera had been there. Hera cared about him enough to save him. She had been watching over the whole time. And then, her admission.

She still loved him. So it wasn’t over.

But that was three months ago.

…

Hera spent much of her time away from Mount Olympus. She was a machine, going on missions and completing them with robot-like efficiency. She lived out of suitcases and safehouses, occasionally treating herself to a nice hotel.

A year after the death of her brother, Hera returned to Olympus for a bit of rest. She had grown weary of travelling, and missed being at the heart of the Pantheon’s activities. Not to mention, it had been a while since she checked in with Athena, Artemis, or Persephone. And God knew those three needed looking after.

She arrived early one morning, just as dawn broke over the mountains around Olympus. She sent her bags to her room ahead of her, and took the opportunity to reintroduce herself to the palace.

Hera wandered by herself through the outer halls, inhaling the sweet smell carried over from the gardens. She strolled through the Grand Hall, illuminated with brilliant gold light from the sunrise. She pulled her hair from its tight ponytail as she made her way to the gardens. She had missed all the flowers. The vibrant, jewel tones contrasted with the rich, earthy colors of the grass and soil.

“You always did like lilies.”

Hera looked up from the flowers to see Zeus standing a few feet away, smiling. He looked good. Relaxed, in jeans and a button-down shirt that was rolled up to the elbows. His hair had grown out just a bit.

Hera wanted to go to him, to throw her arms around him and announce, I’m home.

But she didn’t. Instead, she stood and offered him a polite smile.

“You’re up early,” she commented, nodding towards the sun, just barely visible above the horizon. Zeus chuckled.

“So are you.”

“I just got back. I thought I’d take a moment to myself before everyone wakes up.” “Ah. Well, I’ll leave you to it. My apologies for interrupting,” Zeus said earnestly. He turned to go, but Hera spoke again.

“You’re not,” she told him. “Interrupting, I mean.”

Zeus smiled at her again, but didn’t move closer. Hera looked down at the Stargazer Lilies in front of her, and pulled one from its stem. She walked up to Zeus, and took one of his hands. It was the first time she’d touched him in a year.

Zeus’s heart beat rapidly as Hera lifted his hand to hers, and placed the lily in it. Zeus looked at her hand, curled loosely around his. Then, back up to her.

“Come home,” he begged her. “Please.”

Hera looked up at him, her eyes growing wet.

“I can’t.” She sounded like she regretted it. Zeus frowned, starting to despair.

“Why not?”

Hera didn’t answer.

“What is it that you’re not telling me?”

Hera looked up at him, still unable to admit her feelings. She couldn’t even forgive herself, so how could she ever ask Zeus to?

“Leave it alone, Zeus,” she answered. “It’s a stone that’s better left unturned.”

But Zeus wasn’t giving up that easily.

“So you’re going to be a ghost forever? Come back for two weeks, disappear for two months?” He asked, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. Hera shook her head but didn’t answer.

“I’m sorry I hurt you.” Zeus’s voice was hard, but his eyes retained a softness about them. Hera was on the verge of tears, and squeezed his hand back before letting go of it altogether.

“You didn’t hurt me,” she replied, shaking her head. But she felt herself pulling away again, too ashamed to admit the truth.

“I should be going.”

Zeus was too tired at that moment to fight.

“Right.”

And Hera left him in the gardens, fighting back tears until she could make it to the safety and comfort of her room. But the sparsely decorated suite did little to soothe her. It didn’t look like her home, and Zeus wasn’t there. And as Hera cried for the first time in months, she found herself wishing, more than anything, that Zeus was there to hold her.

…

After doing her rounds with Persephone, Athena, and Artemis, Hera opted to blow off some steam in the firing range. It was her third day back at Mount Olympus, and she desperately needed to get back in her element.

So naturally, she decided to shoot something.

Hera didn’t bother to change into tactical clothes before heading to the firing range. She simply went to her room, grabbed her other TEC-9 from her bag, and left again. She strolled into the cement room twenty minutes later, relieved to find it empty.

…

“Athena?” Zeus called from his desk. Athena’s head poked through the doorway.

“Yes, Majesty?”

“Do you happen to know where the queen is, at the moment?”

Athena thought for a moment. “The last I heard, Poseidon was complaining that she wouldn’t share the firing range with him this afternoon.”

Zeus considered this, smiling to himself. Of course. After a moment, he pushed himself out of his chair and strode past Athena.

“Push my meeting with Alastor to tomorrow afternoon, please.”

“Yes, my lord,” Athena replied, pulling out her phone.

Zeus started off down the hallway, his determination growing with each step.

He pulled the door open slowly, not wanting to startle Hera. But she was facing away from him, firing at the target on the opposite end of the room. From the looks of the poster, she had been there for a while.

Zeus had to stare at the woman for a moment.

Hera was breathtaking in a long, black dress with loose sleeves and an empress waistline. Her hair was pulled back into a low bun, and she frowned in concentration as shots rang out, one by one.

At that moment, Zeus was struck with a memory. When he and Hera were training, he found her in the same place quite often. Working on her craft. Fifteen years later, her posture and form were still impeccable. And it was clear that her talent with a gun hadn’t lessened with time, either.

Zeus waited for her to set her gun down on the counter before walking towards her. Hera pulled the earmuffs from her head, and set them down next to the firearm. It was then that she glanced up at the sound of footsteps and saw Zeus.

Hera knew exactly why he was there. So she didn’t move; she just waited for him to approach. Zeus stopped a few feet short of her, exercising the minute amount of restraint left in him. Hera waited as he stared at the floor next to her, trying to find the right words.

Finally, he broke the silence. It relieved both of them.

“We’ve got to talk about this,” Zeus started, looking up from the floor at Hera. She sighed, and put her gun into its holster on her waist.

This is it, she thought to herself. The day I really lose him.

“Not now,” Hera replied, shaking her head. Trying to push back the inevitable for just a little while longer. But Zeus wouldn’t have it.

“Then when?” Zeus asked. There was no acid in his tone; he just sounded defeated. “The next time you decide to come home, in six months maybe?”

“I’m doing what I have to do,” Hera snapped, and walked around the booths and into the open range. Her heels clacked on the cement floor, followed by the soft thuds of Zeus’s steps.

“It’s for the best that I’m away for a little bit,” she continued as she reached up to pull down the target poster. Zeus squinted at her, but followed again as Hera made her way back across the range.

“How is it for the best? Why can’t you just come home?” He questioned. Something inside Hera snapped. She whirled around to face Zeus, causing him to nearly run into her.

“You killed my brother,” she hissed at him through gritted teeth. Zeus’s expression hardened. It was a look of steel resolve, and Hera knew right away that he saw through her.

“You hated him,” Zeus reasoned, not flinching in the slightest. “You hadn’t spoken to him in nearly a year.”

“He was still my blood!” Hera almost shouted it, but Zeus didn’t back down. The immovable object to her unstoppable force. And even as her point was repeated in the angry echoes in the chamber, Zeus stood firm.

“Do you want me to apologize? Because I’m not sorry he’s dead,” Zeus told her. “And do you want to know what I think?”

Hera scoffed, and turned on her heels to leave again. But Zeus’s voice rang out behind her, strong and clear.

“I don’t think you’re sorry, either.”

Hera stopped in her tracks, breathing heavily. Her fist tightened around the target poster, still in her hand. She was shocked, yet completely unsurprised. He had figured it out.

Of course.

“What?” Was all she could muster. She wasn’t offended at the sentiment. Just bewildered that he had said it to her.

Hera turned to face Zeus, who was strolling up to her. His mouth was a hard line, but his eyes were still soft. His posture wasn’t threatening at all.

“You heard me,” he confirmed with a nod. Hera blinked. She felt herself closing up again. How was it that, even after he had outed the truth, she still couldn’t bring herself to face it?

“Do you know what you’re implying?” Her words were venom.

“Yes,” Zeus answered curtly. Hera’s breath hitched in her throat, and she stepped up to Zeus, getting right in his face.

“How dare you,” Hera muttered, her breath tickling his lips. Zeus was admittedly a little scared, but he was in too deep to back down. And he knew he was right. He just had to wait out the storm.

“You hated him just as much as I did,” he told her, eerily calm. “You hated that your parents let him get away with murder. You hated that he always saw himself as superior. You hated him after what he said in the hallway.”

“You don’t know anything,” Hera hissed. Zeus shook his head.

“Hera, why won’t you just admit it? Even to yourself. Stop this torture and come home?”

“I can’t.” A few tears welled up in Hera’s eyes. Zeus couldn’t help himself but to reach up and take her face in his hands. His thumbs brushed the tears away, even as they were quickly replaced.

“Why?” Zeus pleaded with her, his face inches from hers. “You can tell me, love. Just tell me.”

“If I say it,” Hera began, her voice barely louder than a whisper, “You’ll see what kind of person I am-- a terrible person. I’m rotten.”

Zeus shook his head, closing his eyes as if to block her words.

“You won’t love me anymore,” Hera told him, even as tears flowed freely down her face. But her expression was still one of anger.

“No,” Zeus’s eyes snapped open. “That’s not true. I will never stop loving you.”

“Yes, you will,” Hera insisted flatly. “Because when you told me he was dead, I was relieved. I was glad he was dead. And I was envious that you ordered the hit before I could.”

Zeus didn’t even blink.

“I love you.” It was quiet. Inaudible to anyone standing more than a foot away from them. But Hera heard it. Her eyelids fluttered, and she studied his face for any sign of hesitation. But she found none, because there were none.

“Even if I burn in hell?” Hera asked in a low voice. Zeus nodded, still cradling her face.

“If you do, we’ll burn together.”

The words had no more than passed Zeus’s lips when Hera grabbed him by the back of the neck. And as her mouth collided with his, it was all he could do to keep them both upright. Hera had thrown herself against him with reckless abandon, intent only on kissing him. Everything else was pushed to the periphery.

Zeus reacted almost instinctively, reaching up and holding Hera by the waist. She could feel his hands through her dress, warm and firm. They held her steady, even while they swayed together on the spot. Hera reveled in the taste, the smell, the familiarity of Zeus’s embrace. She had everything she needed, once again.

She had her husband. He had said he loved her. He had heard all the ugly things she’d been holding back for a year, and he said he loved her anyway. And Hera could tell he meant it. She could feel his intent in every touch, every brush of his tongue against her lips.

Hera felt his love as he backed her up against the wall. Zeus heard it echoed back in the gasp he pulled from her as he hiked up her dress. And Hera continued to feel it, every emotion she had kept bottled up in the year she spent without his love. Without his touch.

She was keening by the time he knelt in front of her, still pushing her dress up around her hips. Hera could only grab his hair in response, and Zeus made quick work of her underwear. They pooled around her ankles, useless to the activity at hand. Hera tugged Zeus’s hair, guiding him to where she wanted him first. And Zeus was more than eager to oblige.

When his lips met Hera in that warm, aching place, she struggled to choke back a cry. But as Zeus worked his mouth over her, she found she no longer cared about anyone hearing. So she whined and gasped while Zeus took her further and further. At one point, he reached up and threw her leg over his shoulder to better reach the swollen bundle of nerves at the apex of her thighs.

Hera was seeing stars by the time Zeus pulled off of her, wiping his mouth on the back of his hand. Hera hadn’t come, and Zeus knew this, so he let her push him over onto his back. He watched her in amazement as she straddled him, still holding her dress up around her waist.

Hera felt Zeus’s grip on her waist tighten as she slid down onto him in one slow movement. She watched with unadulterated glee as his lips parted, remembering just how good it felt to take him. The familiarity of it was comforting, but Hera still felt a rush as she began to move on top of him. How was it that he could make her feel this way, all these years later?

Hera and Zeus both knew the answer to this. It was a feeling, shared between the two of them as they writhed together, moaning and gasping there on the firing range floor. It was the shared certainty that they would never allow themselves to be apart ever again. The renewed hope that they could still have a life together after so much had gone wrong.

They were interrupted quite suddenly by a loud series of knocks on the firing chamber door. Hera didn’t stop moving, though, and Zeus was happy to ignore the noise. But then, sharp as a blade, the voice of Poseidon came through the door.

“Come on already! What’s taking so long in there? I’ve got a new gun, I want to play with it!”

Zeus and Hera were of the same mind on how to handle the situation. They drew their guns in unison from their respective waist holsters, and fired at the door.

The shots echoed loudly through the chamber, and bullet casings clattered to the floor.

“Alright, alright, Jesus,” Poseidon muttered. “Not like anyone else needs range time.”

But there were no further complaints, so Hera and Zeus continued their reunion uninterrupted.

Zeus saw stars as he came undone, grasping at Hera’s hands, thighs, hair, whatever he could reach. And Hera couldn’t help but throw her head back as she came right after him, seeing her own set of constellations on the ceiling. But when she looked down at Zeus, breathless underneath her, she saw only one thing. Her best friend, her husband. Her Zeus. And he was smiling at her like the sun rose and set on her face. For all intents, and purposes, it did.

…

“Are we really about to do a walk of shame?” Hera raised an eyebrow at Zeus. The latter god chuckled and shook his head.

“It’s only a walk of shame if we’re ashamed,” he answered. Hera hummed in agreement, and leaned against the wall with one hand while fastening the buckle of her heel with the other. Zeus saw her twisting uncomfortably, and walked to her.

“Here, let me do that, love.”

He knelt on one knee, gently holding Hera’s ankle and bringing her foot up to rest on his knee. His fingers worked swiftly to slide the buckle into place and fasten it. When he finished that, Zeus turned his face to press a kiss to the inside of her knee. Hera watched him carefully, smiling to herself.

“Please tell me we’re going back to our rooms, and not to the offices,” she remarked, her eyes glinting. Zeus smiled up at her; he was never one to deny his Hera. Besides, she had called it their rooms. Not his rooms—theirs.

“Yes, I think we have a lot to catch up on.”

They left the firing range side by side.

Taglist: @deacytits, @anotheronebitesthedeaks, @rogers-sweatbands, @briarrose26, @lovehelpmewrite, @zodiacal-dust-and-curls, @lv7867, @dreamer821, @happy-at-home, @doyoudobroadway

[tysonbearie]

this weeks newsletter is here!! this week the spotlight shines on the underdogs

Weekly Recap:

Last Man In voting has concluded, and the winners are forward Jeff Skinner (Atlantic), forward Gabriel Landeskog (Central), defenceman Kris Letang (Metropolitan), and forward Leon Draisaitl (Pacific).

The IIHF World Junior Championship ended with a 3-2 regulation gold medal victory for Team Finland. Team USA was awarded silver; Team Russia took home bronze.

On Saturday, the Los Angeles Kings hosted “90’s Night,” during which they used glowing pucks. The glowing pucks originally debuted in 1996, but were later discontinued at the end of the 1997-98 season.

The Montreal Canadiens announced on Monday that goalie Carey Price would be opting out of All-Star Weekend. Price is currently recovering from a lower-body injury and the organization felt he should take the time to rest instead. He will be replaced by goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

All-Star Weekend will be hosted by the San Jose Sharks January 25-26. The NHL has partnered with Adidas to produce eco-friendly jerseys made from marine plastic waste materials. The jerseys will feature team logos for the first time.  

On Tuesday, Mike McKenna became the seventh goaltender to start for the Philadelphia Flyers this season. McKenna was claimed from waivers last week from the Ottawa Senators, after being previously acquired (by Ottawa) in a trade with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Blue Jackets have issued a statement as to why they opted to sit goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky; Bobrovsky apparently acted in a way that the organization did not agree with that is unrelated to his upcoming free agent status and they will not be saying anymore about the incident. Bobrovsky and the organization have since ‘cleared the air,’ and Bobrovsky may start against the Capitals on Saturday.

Rick Nash will be retiring from professional hockey after 15 seasons. Nash’s agent released a statement on Friday that cited lingering concussion symptoms and post-concussion syndrome as the reason for his sudden departure.  

Play of the Week:

On Sunday, forward Jesse Puljujarvi of the Edmonton Oilers beat out goaltender John Gibson of the Anaheim Ducks with an absolutely astounding no-look backhand pass. It was by no means a pretty play, but it was impressive in its execution. The Oilers went on to shutout the Ducks 4-0 in their own arena.

Players to Watch:

Goalie Jonathan Quick of the Los Angeles Kings recently became the 5th American born goalie to tally his 300th career win. Quick has 300 wins and 58 overtime (OT) losses in 576 games played so far in his career. He has started in 30 games this season, winning 7.

Defenceman Robert Bortuzzo of the St. Louis Blues has tallied 1 goal and 5 points in 24 games played this season. He has a career total of 13 goals and 47 points in 300 games played. Bortuzzo recently signed a three-year contract extension with the Blues.

Forward Travis Konecny of the Philadelphia Flyers has 11 goals and 24 points in 44 games played this season. He has a career total of 46 goals and 99 points in 195 games played. He was selected in the first round of the 2015 NHL Draft (24th overall). In his rookie season (2015-16) Konecny was awarded the E.J. McGuire Award of excellence by the NHL; this award goes to the prospect who “best exemplifies the commitment to excellence.” He is the first recipient of this award.

Prospect Watch:

Forward Alexandre Fortin, who went undrafted in 2015, has 2 goals and 5 points in 14 games played this season with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League; he has 3 goals and 6 points in 24 games played this season with the Chicago Blackhawks of the NHL. Fortin played for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 2014-17, during which he accumulated 52 goals and 135 points in 173 games played.

Defenceman Philippe Myers, who went undrafted in 2015, has 7 goals and 24 points in 36 games played this season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the American Hockey League. Myers played for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 2013-17, during which he accumulated 29 goals and 92 points in 203 games played. Myers was also a part of Team Canada during the 2016-17 World Junior Championship, though he was taken out early due to a concussion; the team went on to place second and bring home silver.

Defenceman Jeremy Lauzon, drafted 52nd overall by the Boston Bruins, has 1 goal and 6 points in 18 games played with the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League this season; he has 1 goal in 15 games with the Boston Bruins of the NHL. Lauzon played for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 2013-17, during which he accumulated 35 goals and 130 points in 200 games played. Lauzon was also a member of Team Canada during the 2016-17 World Junior Championship; he tallied 2 goals and 1 assist in 7 games played.

Team of the Week:

The Detroit Red Wings, an Original Six team founded in 1926, who are currently 8th overall in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference and play out of Little Caesars Arena. The team was originally known as the Detroit Cougars form 1926-30; they were the Detroit Falcons from 1930-32. In 1932, they changed their name to the Red Wings. The Red Wings have won the most Stanley Cups (11) of any NHL franchise in the United States, most recently in 2008. The Wings previously played in the historic Joe Louis Arena from 1979-2017. They have the very distinct and recognizable tradition of throwing an octopus on the ice for luck during playoff games. The NHL has yet to successfully prevent this from occurring. Notable alumni include Brett Hull, Steve Yzerman, Ted Lindsay, Sergei Fedorov, Gordie Howe, and Nicklas Lidstrom.

Outside the NHL:

The National Women’s Hockey League All-Star Weekend will take place at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville February 9-10.

The Canadian Women’s Hockey League All-Star Game will take place at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on January 20.

The American Hockey League All-Star Classic will be hosted by the Springfield Thunderbirds January 27-28.

Weekly Thoughts:

From fistfights between teammates, to frankly dangerous slashes aimed at opposing players, to players yelling at coaching staff during games, to CEOs taking cheap shots at top performers, frustrations are piling up this season. Perhaps after All-Star Weekend teams will be rested and ready to go.

The St. Louis Blues can’t seem to catch a break this season. The Blues are currently 6th in the Central Division of the Western Conference and it’s taken its toll on the team. On December 10, defenceman Robert Bortuzzo and forward Zach Sanford exchanged blows at practice.

On January 11, Florida’s Keith Yandle delivered a horrifying slash to the stick of Calgary’s Sean Monahan, barely missing his arm/hand. Monahan had just released the puck for what became the game winning empty net goal.

On January 9, forward Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche took his frustration out on coach Jared Bednar on the bench. MacKinnon later apologized and Bednar said that it hadn’t bothered him at all.

In December, Dallas Stars CEO Jim Lites had some choice words about the Stars top scorers Tyler Seguin and captain Jamie Benn. Lites called their performance ‘f-cking horsesh-t.’ When asked Benn responded “I don’t play for him. I play for every player in this room, the coaching staff.”

It’s clear that struggling teams are becoming increasingly frustrated as the season continues. Every team wants to compete for the Stanley Cup, but not every team has had the season they hoped for. With the trade deadline fast approaching, we might see some big moves from the teams at the bottom of the league. There have already been some big names appearing in trade rumors this season, and it’s going to be interesting to see how accurate those rumors are. It’s also going to be fun watching teams start to prepare for next year with new acquisitions.

Hopefully these teams will hit their stride and start performing better this season, but if they don’t there’s always next year.

Weekly Vocabulary:

Man-Advantage: When one team is penalized, and one of its players is sent to the penalty box, the second team maintains a man advantage for the duration of the penalty (major penalty) or until a goal is scored (minor penalty). If two penalties are called on one team there will be a two-man advantage. If more than two penalties are called on one team the man advantage is limited to two men. If both teams are penalized, there is no man advantage; it becomes a four-on-four.

Empty Net: When a team pulls their goalie in order to have six skaters (a man advantage).

Extra Attacker: A player who has been substituted for the team's goaltender on the ice.

Too Many Men: When one team has too many men on the ice during a shift change.

Own Goal: The act of a team unintentionally shooting the puck into their own net instead of their opponent's. For statistical purposes, the last player on the opposing team to touch the puck is awarded the goal.

Scrum: When players from both teams are piled up against the boards/goal posts, shoving and hitting at each other.

Delay of Game: Deliberately causing a stoppage of play; player is penalized with a minor penalty.

Coach’s Challenge: If a coach disagrees with a call on ice, he is able to challenge the call. This results in a video review of the play; if the coach was right and the call on ice was wrong, the goal is overturned, if the coach is wrong and the goal stands, that coach loses the ability to call a time-out.

Turnover: When the team in possession of the puck gives it up to the opponent; alternatively, the team who does not control the puck can force a turnover by ‘stealing’ the puck mid pass, or by taking it directly from the opposing player’s stick.

Face-Off: The two teams line up in opposition to each other. One player from each team attempts to gain control of the puck after it is dropped by an official between their sticks onto a face-off spot on the ice. A face-off starts every game and occurs throughout the game after every stoppage of play.

Weekly Trivia:

The Calder Memorial Trophy (not to be confused with Calder Cup of the American Hockey League) is awarded annually to "the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League." The winner is selected by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association at the end of the regular season. Players are eligible for the Calder only if they are no more than 26 years old by September 15 of their rookie (first) season. The Calder Memorial is dedicated in memory of former NHL President Frank Calder, who bought a trophy every year to present permanently to the outstanding rookie of the season. The award is now kept in perpetuity. The Toronto Maple Leafs lead all teams with 10 players who have won the Calder.

Weekly Standings:

Eastern Conference

Metropolitan Division

Washington Capitals -- 58 points

Pittsburgh Penguins -- 56 points

Columbus Blue Jackets -- 53 points

Atlantic Division

Tampa Bay Lightning -- 70 points

Toronto Maple Leafs -- 58 points

Boston Bruins -- 54 points

Western Conference

Central Division

Winnipeg Jets -- 58 points

Nashville Predators -- 58 points

Dallas Stars -- 50 points

Pacific Division

Calgary Flames -- 62 points

San Jose Sharks -- 59 points

Las Vegas Golden Knights -- 58 points

*Note: Information was obtained prior to 12pm on Saturday January 12. Information occurring after the 12pm deadline will feature next week.

[viego-build]

How to build on the Top Lane Like an LEC Pro

The top lane comes with a gruelling 1v1 where only the most powerful comes out on the top. Though many want to check their mettle playing with this function, it's a harsh and hard one to make sure. 1 single mistake could break or make the lane, and also continuous jungler disturbance makes these small errors all the more easy to create.

Between G2 Esports' Martin "Wunder" Hansen, Fnatic's Gabriël "Bwipo" Rau, Rogue's Andrei "Odoamne" Pascu, and many others, the LEC has an abundance of top lane talent, and watching them on the stage can teach us some invaluable lessons and show us the best Aatrox build. 

Aatrox Build as a LEC pro

The top lane is a surprisingly diverse role, with champion picks ranging all the way from Karma build to Aatrox build being viable, so long as you wish to play them. In general, however, you can categorise the top laners into one of two types: tanks and carries.

Tanks are the more reliable sort of toplaner. Whether you fall behind, win hard, or just go even, you'll always be an asset to your team as long as you can scale and bulk up. The top three picks at Worlds across all regions were of the tanky sort -- Ornn, Renekton build, and Volibear. In the late game, tanks are usually in charge of initiating team fights, soaking up damage and peeling for their mid and botlaners.

Carries like Aatrox build or Camille build may be less common in professional play, but they are arguably considered more fun by the average player. Rather than sit and wait until late game, top lane carries will win lane at any cost and snowball their way into the mid game. Their late game role is to either wreak havoc in team fights, often by taking out prime targets on the enemy team, or to split-push lanes.

Early Game

The top lane early game may just be the least forgiving of all the lanes. Any small error, such as wasting a Summoner Spell, missing a cannon minion, or forgetting to ward, can be exploited by a good player. This one mistake will inevitably snowball into a lost lane if you don't get any help. In order to win lane, you have to understand your champion's win conditions, the matchup you're playing, and the enemy Aatrox playstyle.

Manipulating the Wave

Aside from warding, another thing that will protect you from ganks is proper minion wave control. Think of top lane as consisting of three zones. The safe zone is near your turret -- here you can farm without fear of ganks, in most cases. In the middle of the lane -- the part that connects to the river -- you are in more danger, but still relatively safe. Being in this zone or near your turret means that your jungler has a relatively easy way to gank for you.

The deadliest spot is near the enemy turret. Here the enemy jungler has many ways to get to you, and you have a long way to trek if you need to escape. Moreover, it'd be nigh impossible for your jungler to successfully pull off a gank, unless they are willing to tower dive with you.

The most important terms that relate to minion wave control are freezing, shoving and slow-pushing.

Freezing involves attempting to "suspend" the minion wave in a particular location. Usually you will want to freeze the wave near your turret, which is both the safest zone for you to be in and the most dangerous one for your enemy. Freezing by your turret means your enemy is vulnerable to ganks, as they will be forced to walk into your safe zone if they don't want to miss out on priceless gold and experience.

Freezing can be difficult to accomplish, but it's highly rewarding. You freeze the wave by last-hitting minions, matching the damage that the enemy does to your minions, but making sure you always have one minion less than the enemy. If you ever have more minions than the enemy, the lane will instead push towards the enemy turret ever so slowly.

Shoving means killing the enemy minion wave as quickly as possible, therefore "pushing" your minions towards the enemy turret. Shoving is useful after the enemy toplaner has died or recalled. Your minions will die to the enemy turret before they can return, and that means that they will lose out on gold and experience. You should also shove the wave before you yourself recall, so as to avoid coming back to the lane with the enemy minions at your turret.

Shoving the wave is very simple. You simply need to attack the minions as quickly as possible, utilising both basic attacks and abilities.

Slow-pushing refers to two things. By default, you should always be slow-pushing, which means only last-hitting the minions, rather than attacking them at random. If you're always pushing, you will always be in the enemy safe zone, and therefore unsafe.

The second variety of slow-pushing is also called crashing, and it involves building up a large minion wave by killing all of the enemy minions besides melee minions. Since melee minions are tanky, they will occupy your wave for a long time. Eventually, another of your minion waves will join the first wave, and so on until you end up with a huge minion wave. This big wave will then"crash" on the enemy turret, forcing the enemy crew to respond. This can be a very helpful method for the late match, because it will either result in some favourable 4v5 team struggle, or it is going to wind up getting you that turret outright.

Aatrox build in mid and late game

Outside of Teleport plays along with a potential skirmish near top lane, so you won't be joining your staff until mid game starts. At that stage, you may have won, lost, or gone during the laning stage. If you won, you need to find it easy to keep to jumpstart your guide in staff fights.

Your part in the group struggles is greatly champion-dependent. As Aatrox build, then you are going to want to attempt and engage the conflicts or peel to your own team, whereas a transport ought to find key targets and attempt to kill them. Carries can also forgo team battling completely and split-push instead.

If you misplaced the laning stage, you might find it rather hard to rejoin the match, however there are ways to deal with. In the event that you were playing with a tank, then you may discover that you're still able to stay helpful to your group in staff fights by leading with usefulness. If you can not make yourself useful, simply try to catch up in farm and also prevent dying until you're doing.

If you are playing a winner who is a fantastic split-pusher, then you can look at doing this rather than engaging in each team struggle. Split-pushing involves moving into a side lane and draining waves to create pressure. By always pushing into the turret, you compel the enemy group to respond in some manner.

Normally they'll be made to send a participant your way to cope with you personally, but if you are a powerful dueller such as Jax, and you are ahead, they may want to send two or even longer to manage you. Though this sounds like it is bad news for you, this means your staff will get a significant advantage if they opt to team combat, push another lane, or even catch an objective.

Whether you need to split-push or group battle is dependent upon the particular match, the winners being played, along with the overall direction the sport has gone. By way of instance, when playing champions with amazing tide clear such as Aatrox build or Ryze, it is going to be significantly more challenging to stress a side lane.

Another problem in League of Legends might be that your staff can't acquire a 4v4 if they are quite behind. In case you skipping out to a staff struggle means your staff will automatically shed, as you are very ahead or they are really behind, then it is far better to steer clear of split-pushing and stick with the staff.

Particular winners are far better at split-pushing compared to others. A powerful, portable dueller with quick wave clear is your ideal option. This sort of winner can take care of the 1v1, push fast, and escape if need be.

With these suggestions, you ought to be equipped to have the very best lane than previously. We'll see you around the Summoner's Rift.

[dontdontwhatwhat]

My Comet Experience August 23 evening

I recorded audio which i will trade/gift so feel free to message me and also if you see an asterisk * next to a bullet point that means you can hear what I just described in my audio because I sat right on stage and it's sooo cool (like footsteps, singing, and slamming into the rail above me) 

(Sorry if I repeat myself from the last post I don't remember what I wrote then)

-I sat on stage this time!!! Alex was my pierogi boyyy and I said Hi Alex! And he said Hey!! And placed his hand on his chest and then proceeded to give us the basket to pass around and explain the rulesss. He was so funny I love him

-After the pierogis Nick C was just standing above me facing the orchestra so I went "Hi Nick!" And he had to look for me for a sec and then he asked how I was and talked about how the dumplings needed chutney or some sort of sauce... ok nick... lol It was a bit random so I just kind of smiled and yeahed it all (he's gr8 tho I love him) 

-Before prologue started Lucas was standing near my pit and he pointed to me (I'm assuming because I was wearing a Comet Tshirt) smiled, and wiggled/raised his eyebrows (literally died a lil)

 -Kennedy was on for Helene tonight! Her voice is very different from Amber's but I actually enjoyed her a lot! Her and Lucas definitely did not have the chemistry that he and Amber did though 

-Also Nick B's costume change into Bolkonsky is incredibly quick wow

-I'm really sad I missed Scott by a day because I'm seeing Dave twice now but anyways I made eye contact with him a lot 

-Private and Intimate life Paul hobbles in as the servant, and the first time I saw the show I thought it was hilarious because I was in the mez and couldn't see his face but this time noooo it was so scary. His eyes are literally rolled into the back of his head 

-Bolkonsky screamed NONSENSE instead of songstress? * 

-Mary pulls the young suitor from where I was sitting! He played into it and was great! * 

-During No One Else Natasha was holding onto the rail above me and made eye contact and held it with me for like 5 seconds while she sang!!!

-I think I said this in my last post but Andrey in the snow and the blue lighting is so beautiful and he's so handsome and she's so cute ugh i love it a lot

-Andrew and Brad sat on the steps by me and caressed each other and sang some of the lines in the beginning of The Opera * 

-I love the music when they announce Dolokhov and Helene so muchhh (also you can hear their footsteps as they run past me!) *

-Kennedy and Nick also did not have that chemistry Amber had but it was still great 

-Ok but in The Opera 1 Paul's change into the opera outfit??? How did it he do it in like 2 seconds??? and 2 he was standing right above me and he opened his mouth and made the loudest most high pitched scream I've ever heard I was thoroughly SHOOK * 

-Anatole’s Entrance is godly as usual

-I love the part where Andrey is getting injured at war i just think it's so cool for some reason?

-He's as handsome up close as at a distance... Lucas is a beautiful boy but when he sang "I never remove my smiling eyes from your face" he was right above me and he was starring into Denee's soul and his eyes were so wide and it was pretty scary tbh I was like whoa

-The whole seize me from behind thing happened right above me and I could hear Lucas kiss her neck * 

-THE DUEL

-I was so hyped for the duel it's one of my favorite songs to see live

-"Dear Andrey's betrothed" and Anatole's just like ehhh 

-Drink drink gonna drink tonight gonna drink tonight gonna drink drinkkkk Dolokhov's dance was performed right above me and wth is it 😂 it's bizarre I love it *

-lots of grinding, Reed's sparkly high heels omg

-Lucas and Grace come down into my pit... I've heard what happens and oh it happened. First Lucas's butt was literally in my face blocking my view of what he and Grace were doing (not that I'm complaining) but he was so close and so I touched his vest hehe ( i doubt he felt it really it was pretty thick) he whips her and then they switch places and Lucas is standing on the steps and unzipping his pants and Grace is down on her knees and then whoop the lights come on and he zips back up (you can HEAR the whips in my audio) * 

-When dolokhov got shot he fell into the rail and spit on everyone 👍 * 

-Dust and Ashes the main cast and ensemble stand in the rear mezz and some in the orchestra and sing 

-Ok so Kennedy's Charming was so good! She doesn't have the Angry voice Amber has but her version was amazing and her voice went so high like wow I was not expecting it 

-Intermissionnn 

-LETTERS

-Letters is my jam and then Paul sat on the steps next to me and I mouthed "Paul!" And waved and he smiled and waved back and we lip synced a bit together. He also had some sort of squeaking quacking thing whenever he would move his body it was probably supposed to be to the beat but he was off lol * 

-Also a guy had to get up and hand Natasha the letter and he played the part well too! He did like a courteous bow sort of thing after he gave it to her

-Preperations gets me lit ok and nick literally showers lucas with spit when he holds him against the rails

-Balaga is soooo much fun everyone where I sat got a shaker. Balaga is literally everywhere one minute he's in front of me the next he's in the rear mezz (what a madman). He stuck his tongue out at the people in the swivel chairs once or twice in front of me and he pointed at me and smiled big when he ran by 

-Ok I sat LITERALLY right underneath the Anatole and dolokhov kiss and... their lips did not touch?? Dolokhov was whispering something in his left ear and then he put his mouth super close like he was teasing him with a kiss but didn't and then dolokhov did like playful? hand motions by anatole’s chest and smacked his butt (last time i saw the show im pretty sure they did kiss though)

-Slightly disappointed but just being right beneath them during their dance is like the best thing ever so

-ABDUCTION

-I didn't have a glass so I raised my pierogi box and Brandt clinked his glass with my box and some others where we sat :) 

-Some people at the table beneath Anatole weren't raising their glasses so he yelled at them and forced them to raise them lol

-I love the abduction dance moves so much and idk if I mentioned it in my last post but CHEF BELTONS HIGH KICKS 👌👌👌 

-"May your numbers be numbered and counted..." Dave that's not the lyric but it's ok 😂 *

-Gelsey and Billy came into the pit and she sang in my face *

-Ok my best friend was sitting in the abduction seat and I'm not even gonna go into it because it was *no words* but @carnovalesque described it perfectly so thank you 

-Lucas's hair got so messy in Pierre and Anatole and his petersburg was on point 

-I love Andreys voice so much also he didn't punch/ shove Pierre he just jabbed him a few times in the chest 

-Dave struggled to find his sleeves and that made me happy because when I saw Oak he didn't 

-Only negative I really had was that Dave really didn't show much emotion, maybe he was just off tonight idk 

-But anyways I love the bows so much it's literally one of my favorite parts everyone has their own bow and their individual song music playing 

-The show was incredible and everyone was so good tonight!!! Sitting on stage was amazing but tbh if it's your first time I recommend NOT sitting on stage cause there's so much going on around you it's pretty hard to keep track of what's even happening, but if you just want to have fun then yeah sit on stage! and our audience was so enthusiastic it was amazing! the first time i went it was a matinee so it was pretty tame but tonight there was so much clapping, and cheering, and whistling WOW i had so much fun :)

[for-the-night-official]

Amethyst Scales and a Hardened Heart

You can read this on ao3 here if you’d like otherwise, on with the prologue!

(Note this could be read as racism and it has bullying. Be wary as this is a recurring theme)

Summary:

Andrei Schlange as you know him is cold, fierce, and always wanting to fight. Able to lead to the death of hundreds of people with no regrets and no way to trace it back to him. However, this wasn't always the case.

Hated for simply existing, he used to be weak, small, repressing any violent urges, hating the fact that he thought of hurting others. He was in pain, constantly torn between who he was and what society expected of him. He never really stood a chance in society, he was bound to be an outcast for the rest of his life.

Until he wasn't. Someone gave him a chance, someone made him strong.

This is the story of a child born into fear and hatred and how he grew to be one of the most trusted members in the guild.

Prologue:

It was always like this. No matter where he went, no matter how hard he tried, he was hated. Beaten, bullied, laughed at, ignored. He tried to be kind. Tried not to lash out. It hurt but he knew he would be proving them right if he ever fought back. It went against his personality, but he forced himself to bear with it. It hurt. Every punch, every jab at his looks, every smirk, every whispered rumor. All of it hurt so much. He was a child, he hadn’t done anything wrong. Nothing, it seemed, except exist.

This was the fifth school he had attended, and he was only 11. It was his first year of middle school and he had hoped that, along with not only the new school but on a new planet to boot, he would be able to make some friends. Sure on the previous planet he had a couple friends, but they never stood up for him. It wasn’t like he blamed them, he completely understood. Who would help someone like him?

“Hey Andy! Why don’t you slither out of here?” He heard a high-five and a “good one” in response. He hated that nickname, and they knew it. His name was Andrei and one of the few things he was proud of. Instead of saying anything back, he ignored the bullies. Obviously any hope he had for this school was in vain. These people were no different from the others. He had been here for two months and he was being bullied mercilessly everyday. He loved learning but he hated the students. He didn’t feel safe at all. At times like this, he really hated his father, whoever he was, for giving him his Serdra heritage. If only he didn’t look like this, maybe then the others wouldn’t hate him so much.

“Hey! Snake! Did you not hear me? I told you to get lost already!” the voice from before said. It’s not like I can, Andrei thought. It was the middle of class. Even though the teacher had stepped out for a few minutes, it didn’t mean she wouldn’t come back. And when she did, if she found Andrei missing, he would get in serious trouble. Everyone looked at him with distrust in their eyes. They were just waiting for a reason to make their fears legitimate. It sucked, but it was his life. Everywhere he went he could taste their fears on his tongue. He could hear the whispers as he walked past. Be careful, mothers would warn their children. You never know when a snake will bite. Other times he would hear, Don’t trust a snake, they always lie and are looking for ways to manipulate you.

Andrei was shaken from his thoughts by a hit to the back of his head. Ignore it, ignore it, ignore it, ig-

Thunk.

His notebook was no longer in front of him. Instead, it had been shoved onto the floor. “Didn’t your father ever tell you it’s rude to ignore others?” the kid from before asked. He was the leader of the bullies, a stocky kid named Damien. He wasn’t the smartest, but he sucked up to the teachers enough that they liked him. How the teachers didn’t see that he was a prick, Andrei didn’t know. “Wait,” Damien said, smirking. “You don’t have a dad. I forgot.”

Andrei bit back a retort, keeping himself from saying the only reason yours stuck around is because he’s too drunk to see that he has a kid. It would’ve been nice to see his face, but talking back always made it worse. So, he bit his tongue and made himself continue looking down at his desk. Suddenly, his chin was yanked up sharply.

“Listen, I don’t know why you think you’re so far above us. You’re not.” From the corner of his eye, Andrei could see a couple other kids nod. He could feel his temper starting to flare. “You’re scum. Why you’re contaminating our planet is beyond me.”

A lot of things are beyond your understanding, he thought to himself, getting more and more angry. This always happened. Try as he might, he wanted to hurt this kid. He knew that violence never ended up working in his favor, but he wanted to hurt him so bad.

“What the hell did you just say?” Damien snarled. Andrei realized he said his thoughts aloud. Oh shit, he thought. “Listen here damned snake. No one wants you. Not here, not in this school, not in this town. Hell, not even on this planet. Your kind is a plague in this universe. You have no purpose but to be manipulative and con honest people out of their hard earned money. How your mother puts up with a half-breed like you is beyond me. She must have been really desperate to fuck your father. Did she need the money that badly? Your mom is such a who-” Before Andrei realized it, his fist had hit Damien. But, how dare he talk about his mother that way! She was the best mom he could ask for and she was no whore! This prick didn’t know what he was talking about.

“Andrei Schlange! What did you just do Damien?” the teacher screeched. Of course, the teacher saw him punch Damien. That was just his luck.

“Miss, he started it! He called my mom-” Andrei protested.

“Principal’s office. Now.” Her voice didn’t allow for any more arguments. Great. He was about to be suspended or expelled. Again.

And that’s the prologue folks! Chapter one will be up at some point, I have yet to devise an actual schedule. When I develop one, I’ll let you guys know about it. As always, reblogs and likes are loved, treasured, and adored but reposts are not. You see someone reposting our works, please let us know.-Tash

[560am-blog]

( andrwon eep @aumiliieu​ )

it really shouldn’t happen this way. and it shouldn’t happen this way because he didn’t spend so much time putting up layers for words to tear them down so quickly. and so gently.

and that’s the problem. when andrei says it it’s so gentle. it’s so slow too, not quick, not in the heat of bodies against one another or anticipation of it. it’s a little bit after. when both slow their hearts to a manageable pace, hyungwon manageable by position and andrei just manageable by heart. but andrei’s got leverage, hands pressed on either side of the bed and gaze unmoving. peeling without prying and looking without searching.

hyungwon’s phone is somewhere on the countertop and all energy to retrieve it dies down. not when he catches the look in andrei's eyes but because he catches his breath. slowed, almost erratic to the point where he found that to focus on instead of the eyes on him.

and he’s used to that. he’s used to cameras, eyes through cameras, judgement and expectations, piercing gazes and pitiful ones all the same. he’s memorized them and filed places where they go so they don’t reach his core. he does that with everything. but andrei’s, andrei’s is too much. and it makes him want to look away. he doesn’t have a place for it, nor a word for it.

“god you’re beautiful.” and if hyungwon’s body were so inclined, it might stiffen. and it wants to wants to show how much the words mean and that they mean nothing. that they resonate as nothing. but he doesn’t stiffen. he falls into the pillow, turns his head and pretends that all it is, is his face sinking, not his heart turning or anything like that. visible even in dark of the room because the kitchen light fitlers through the door and the penthouse windows let in the night.

“stop it.”  “stop what.” “whatever it is you’re trying to do.” “i’m just telling you the truth, you’re really something.” “you’d think that of everyone after a night like that.”

and hyungwon’s not crude, not meaning to be he’s just - cutting, tearing apart the sweet that he gets into something truthful. because things like this don’t always come so easily and softly and he’s trying not to fool himself. but andrei doesn’t flinch, doesn’t even move, if only once to look out in the direction hyungwon is. at the window, out the window, at the moon maybe before he looks back. all eyes all attention all words made to turn hyungwon into something.

“you’re really gorgeous, i’m sure you know, but I gotta tell you.” “don’t expect something back.” “not expecting anything.” and everytime hyungwon tries to search for sincerity, tries to mold words into it he always ends up short and with jagged pieces of hope. but this time, when he doesn’t hope or search of expect, he’s hit full force. when his eyes turn and see andrei smiling, shrugging, genuine. he doesn’t really have words for it, except that it does take half the breath out his lungs.

“you’re too much.” he doesn’t scowl though, doesn’t smile but doesn’t scowl. “right back at you.” “get off me.” he doesn’t make a move either, doesn’t squirm or reach or pull. “i can’t, I’ve lost my way back, you’ve trapped me.” 

he smiles. it’s small but it’s there. found it’s way up after all the doubt gets knocked one by one by the male still hovering above him. and if andrei sees it he doesn’t let on. he just stays over hyungwon, pressing small kisses to his face, cheeks, nose.

“stooooooop.” because hyungwon hates kisses. hates the intimacy. hates the permnancy of feeling lips on his skin for days and wishing for it. hates the thought that he might really truly miss these kisses as the glide over. and andrei stops, partially, lips on hyungwon’s cheek until they move up. up up up and hyungwon doesn’t flinch, doesn’t shrink, doesn’t shove when he thinks he should. instead he’s got lips pursed in something of a pout, small and only for the male grinning smugly before him.

“stop being so gorgeous.” “you’re unbelievable.” “and you’re---” “don’t.” “beautiful.”

there’s reason why it shouldn’t happen this way. reasons why hyungwon remains so strict and guarded. because he’s let a few in and let a few sweet words by and had them slice through. but andrei’s land like butter instead of a piercing passion it’s a soft simmer. taking over his body until he can’t turn enough to hide the flush on his cheeks. and boy can he feel it. and boy does he want to hide. 

“cute.” “don’t you dare.” “your secret’s safe with me.”

and for some reason hyungwon’s got the feeling it’s more than a secret that’s safe with andrei. but this is the beginning of one.

[crashingthenet]

1/6-1/12

Weekly Recap:

Last Man In voting has concluded, and the winners are forward Jeff Skinner (Atlantic), forward Gabriel Landeskog (Central), defenceman Kris Letang (Metropolitan), and forward Leon Draisaitl (Pacific).

The IIHF World Junior Championship ended with a 3-2 regulation gold medal victory for Team Finland. Team USA was awarded silver; Team Russia took home bronze.

On Saturday, the Los Angeles Kings hosted “90’s Night,” during which they used glowing pucks. The glowing pucks originally debuted in 1996, but were later discontinued at the end of the 1997-98 season.

The Montreal Canadiens announced on Monday that goalie Carey Price would be opting out of All-Star Weekend. Price is currently recovering from a lower-body injury and the organization felt he should take the time to rest instead. He will be replaced by goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

All-Star Weekend will be hosted by the San Jose Sharks January 25-26. The NHL has partnered with Adidas to produce eco-friendly jerseys made from marine plastic waste materials. The jerseys will feature team logos for the first time.  

On Tuesday, Mike McKenna became the seventh goaltender to start for the Philadelphia Flyers this season. McKenna was claimed from waivers last week from the Ottawa Senators, after being previously acquired (by Ottawa) in a trade with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Blue Jackets have issued a statement as to why they opted to sit goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky; Bobrovsky apparently acted in a way that the organization did not agree with that is unrelated to his upcoming free agent status and they will not be saying anymore about the incident. Bobrovsky and the organization have since ‘cleared the air,’ and Bobrovsky may start against the Capitals on Saturday.

Rick Nash will be retiring from professional hockey after 15 seasons. Nash’s agent released a statement on Friday that cited lingering concussion symptoms and post-concussion syndrome as the reason for his sudden departure.  

Play of the Week:

On Sunday, forward Jesse Puljujarvi of the Edmonton Oilers beat out goaltender John Gibson of the Anaheim Ducks with an absolutely astounding no-look backhand pass. It was by no means a pretty play, but it was impressive in its execution. The Oilers went on to shutout the Ducks 4-0 in their own arena.

Players to Watch:

Goalie Jonathan Quick of the Los Angeles Kings recently became the 5th American born goalie to tally his 300th career win. Quick has 300 wins and 58 overtime (OT) losses in 576 games played so far in his career. He has started in 30 games this season, winning 7.

Defenceman Robert Bortuzzo of the St. Louis Blues has tallied 1 goal and 5 points in 24 games played this season. He has a career total of 13 goals and 47 points in 300 games played. Bortuzzo recently signed a three-year contract extension with the Blues.

Forward Travis Konecny of the Philadelphia Flyers has 11 goals and 24 points in 44 games played this season. He has a career total of 46 goals and 99 points in 195 games played. He was selected in the first round of the 2015 NHL Draft (24th overall). In his rookie season (2015-16) Konecny was awarded the E.J. McGuire Award of excellence by the NHL; this award goes to the prospect who “best exemplifies the commitment to excellence.” He is the first recipient of this award.

Prospect Watch:

Forward Alexandre Fortin, who went undrafted in 2015, has 2 goals and 5 points in 14 games played this season with the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League; he has 3 goals and 6 points in 24 games played this season with the Chicago Blackhawks of the NHL. Fortin played for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 2014-17, during which he accumulated 52 goals and 135 points in 173 games played.

Defenceman Philippe Myers, who went undrafted in 2015, has 7 goals and 24 points in 36 games played this season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms of the American Hockey League. Myers played for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 2013-17, during which he accumulated 29 goals and 92 points in 203 games played. Myers was also a part of Team Canada during the 2016-17 World Junior Championship, though he was taken out early due to a concussion; the team went on to place second and bring home silver.

Defenceman Jeremy Lauzon, drafted 52nd overall by the Boston Bruins, has 1 goal and 6 points in 18 games played with the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League this season; he has 1 goal in 15 games with the Boston Bruins of the NHL. Lauzon played for the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League from 2013-17, during which he accumulated 35 goals and 130 points in 200 games played. Lauzon was also a member of Team Canada during the 2016-17 World Junior Championship; he tallied 2 goals and 1 assist in 7 games played.

Team of the Week:

The Detroit Red Wings, an Original Six team founded in 1926, who are currently 8th overall in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference and play out of Little Caesars Arena. The team was originally known as the Detroit Cougars form 1926-30; they were the Detroit Falcons from 1930-32. In 1932, they changed their name to the Red Wings. The Red Wings have won the most Stanley Cups (11) of any NHL franchise in the United States, most recently in 2008. The Wings previously played in the historic Joe Louis Arena from 1979-2017. They have the very distinct and recognizable tradition of throwing an octopus on the ice for luck during playoff games. The NHL has yet to successfully prevent this from occurring. Notable alumni include Brett Hull, Steve Yzerman, Ted Lindsay, Sergei Fedorov, Gordie Howe, and Nicklas Lidstrom.

Outside the NHL:

The National Women’s Hockey League All-Star Weekend will take place at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville February 9-10.

The Canadian Women’s Hockey League All-Star Game will take place at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on January 20.

The American Hockey League All-Star Classic will be hosted by the Springfield Thunderbirds January 27-28.

Weekly Thoughts:

From fistfights between teammates, to frankly dangerous slashes aimed at opposing players, to players yelling at coaching staff during games, to CEOs taking cheap shots at top performers, frustrations are piling up this season. Perhaps after All-Star Weekend teams will be rested and ready to go.

The St. Louis Blues can’t seem to catch a break this season. The Blues are currently 6th in the Central Division of the Western Conference and it’s taken its toll on the team. On December 10, defenceman Robert Bortuzzo and forward Zach Sanford exchanged blows at practice.

On January 11, Florida’s Keith Yandle delivered a horrifying slash to the stick of Calgary’s Sean Monahan, barely missing his arm/hand. Monahan had just released the puck for what became the game winning empty net goal.

On January 9, forward Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche took his frustration out on coach Jared Bednar on the bench. MacKinnon later apologized and Bednar said that it hadn’t bothered him at all.

In December, Dallas Stars CEO Jim Lites had some choice words about the Stars top scorers Tyler Seguin and captain Jamie Benn. Lites called their performance ‘f-cking horsesh-t.’ When asked Benn responded “I don’t play for him. I play for every player in this room, the coaching staff.”

It’s clear that struggling teams are becoming increasingly frustrated as the season continues. Every team wants to compete for the Stanley Cup, but not every team has had the season they hoped for. With the trade deadline fast approaching, we might see some big moves from the teams at the bottom of the league. There have already been some big names appearing in trade rumors this season, and it’s going to be interesting to see how accurate those rumors are. It’s also going to be fun watching teams start to prepare for next year with new acquisitions.

Hopefully these teams will hit their stride and start performing better this season, but if they don’t there’s always next year.

Weekly Vocabulary:

Man-Advantage: When one team is penalized, and one of its players is sent to the penalty box, the second team maintains a man advantage for the duration of the penalty (major penalty) or until a goal is scored (minor penalty). If two penalties are called on one team there will be a two-man advantage. If more than two penalties are called on one team the man advantage is limited to two men. If both teams are penalized, there is no man advantage; it becomes a four-on-four.

Empty Net: When a team pulls their goalie in order to have six skaters (a man advantage).

Extra Attacker: A player who has been substituted for the team’s goaltender on the ice.

Too Many Men: When one team has too many men on the ice during a shift change.

Own Goal: The act of a team unintentionally shooting the puck into their own net instead of their opponent’s. For statistical purposes, the last player on the opposing team to touch the puck is awarded the goal.

Scrum: When players from both teams are piled up against the boards/goal posts, shoving and hitting at each other.

Delay of Game: Deliberately causing a stoppage of play; player is penalized with a minor penalty.

Coach’s Challenge: If a coach disagrees with a call on ice, he is able to challenge the call. This results in a video review of the play; if the coach was right and the call on ice was wrong, the goal is overturned, if the coach is wrong and the goal stands, that coach loses the ability to call a time-out.

Turnover: When the team in possession of the puck gives it up to the opponent; alternatively, the team who does not control the puck can force a turnover by ‘stealing’ the puck mid pass, or by taking it directly from the opposing player’s stick.

Face-Off: The two teams line up in opposition to each other. One player from each team attempts to gain control of the puck after it is dropped by an official between their sticks onto a face-off spot on the ice. A face-off starts every game and occurs throughout the game after every stoppage of play.

Weekly Trivia:

The Calder Memorial Trophy (not to be confused with Calder Cup of the American Hockey League) is awarded annually to “the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League.” The winner is selected by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association at the end of the regular season. Players are eligible for the Calder only if they are no more than 26 years old by September 15 of their rookie (first) season. The Calder Memorial is dedicated in memory of former NHL President Frank Calder, who bought a trophy every year to present permanently to the outstanding rookie of the season. The award is now kept in perpetuity. The Toronto Maple Leafs lead all teams with 10 players who have won the Calder.

Weekly Standings:

Eastern Conference

Metropolitan Division

Washington Capitals – 58 points

Pittsburgh Penguins – 56 points

Columbus Blue Jackets – 53 points

Atlantic Division

Tampa Bay Lightning – 70 points

Toronto Maple Leafs – 58 points

Boston Bruins – 54 points

Western Conference

Central Division

Winnipeg Jets – 58 points

Nashville Predators – 58 points

Dallas Stars – 50 points

Pacific Division

Calgary Flames – 62 points

San Jose Sharks – 59 points

Las Vegas Golden Knights – 58 points

*Note: Information was obtained prior to 12pm on Saturday January 12. Information occurring after the 12pm deadline will feature next week.