#Active Valor Adventures

[icubuzz]

The attack on September 11, 2021 changed our country forever. There's more to the story the events of this tragic day and aftermath than what American tax payers have been told. Police officers reported seeing huge angels near the trees in Shanksville, PA where the plane went down. They are retired now. Learn more about the patriots who fought back that fateful day on the hijacked plane. https://www.nps.gov/flni/index.htm

911 brought us together, briefly, as we experienced the shock and trauma of the attack and horrific images. Father Judge was giving last rites on the street near Ground Zero in NYC when a person trapped in the upper floors, made the decision to jump out the window rather than burn alive. That person landed on Father Judge and crushed him. He died giving last rites. Remember them this 911 and tell your children. This year will be a turning point for our nation and world. It's up to each of us whether we turn Left or Right.

Homework: Read the Harbinger by Jonathan Cahn, a Jewish heritage atheist who came to accept Jesus and was led by the Lord to do the research that helped expose hidden mysteries in the Bible. Members of Congress including Obama made fateful decision and said words that brought chaos and "fundamental transformation" on our nation and world. Cahn's videos and interviews are on You Tube. Also see https://blog.loribella.com/inspired-benefit-celebration-share-page/?v=f24485ae434a

Shop.Loribella.com. Loribella.com. CelebrationDepot.com

[br3adtoasty]

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

UNIQUE MAGIC

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🦋 That drunkard butterfly has made its way to your window once again…

“Once upon a time-“ A tale was told, As the land and seas Was it age-old The mystical unicorns, it spoke of Of great triumphs, valor, and love The young colt sat and listened, spirit stirred To fly the nest, its wings spurred So set off, the fledgling did To adventure and bright future promised it glided around in circles, then abruptly stopped Alas, Its mirth did not last For the crane was netted Caught like a bass! By merry men, outlaws And bandits alike That wished for its fall That delighted in its plight Earthly, it planted its feet on the floor Disheartened, it’s forgotten its splendor Never again shall the crane soar Days spent gazing at the stars, body, heart, surrendered

It flew away… And what a dreary song! You should probably find some fun and uplifting activities to do after all that to clear your mind. Like painting, cooking, playing games… Ah! Of course, not in the presence of a certain killjoy of a classmate.

My OC for @marcoritasdorm !

[luckshmi]

Exploring Mars in the 12 Houses

Mars, the red planet, holds a prominent position in Vedic astrology. Known as Mangal or Kuja in Sanskrit, Mars is revered as the planet of action, energy, and vitality. Its dynamic and assertive nature imparts a fiery intensity to our lives, shaping our ambitions, desires, and endeavors.

It signifies courage, strength, and determination, urging us to rise above challenges and pursue our goals with unwavering resolve. Mars inspires us to embrace our inner warrior, empowering us to confront obstacles head-on and emerge victorious in the battlefield of life.

Mars governs various aspects of our existence, from our physical vitality and sexual prowess to our ability to assert ourselves and take decisive action. It rules over attributes like ambition, passion, and competitiveness, fueling our drive for success and achievement.

Mars, with its fiery temperament, resonates with the color red, symbolizing passion, power, and vitality. Its corresponding gemstone, the red coral, is believed to enhance Mars' positive influences and mitigate its malefic effects.

Mars is associated with the divine archetype of Kartikeya, the courageous and valorous son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. Kartikeya embodies the martial spirit and represents the triumph of righteousness over evil, serving as a potent symbol of courage, leadership, and protection.

1/ Mars in the 1st House: Mars in the 1st house embodies dynamic energy. Individuals are natural leaders, exuding confidence and assertiveness. Devotion is expressed through self-expression, taking bold initiatives, and leading with passion.

2/ Mars in the 2nd House: Mars in the 2nd house infuses vigor into financial matters. Individuals express devotion by actively managing resources, taking action to secure financial stability, and asserting themselves in matters of values and possessions.

3/ Mars in the 3rd House: Mars in the 3rd house fuels communicative prowess. Devotion is shown through assertive communication, taking initiative in relationships with siblings, and being proactive in intellectual pursuits.

4/ Mars in the 4th House: Mars in the 4th house brings dynamism to the home. Devotion is expressed through protective instincts, taking action to create a secure home environment, and passionately caring for family matters.

5/ Mars in the 5th House: Mars in the 5th house ignites creative pursuits. Devotion is shown through passionate self-expression, taking risks in artistic endeavors, and actively engaging in activities that bring joy and fulfillment.

6/ Mars in the 6th House: Mars in the 6th house channels energy into service. Devotion is expressed through taking action to help others, actively participating in routines, and asserting oneself to overcome challenges.

7/ Mars in the 7th House: Mars in the 7th house emphasizes relationship dynamics. Devotion is shown through assertiveness in partnerships, taking initiative to maintain balance, and actively working together to achieve shared goals.

8/ Mars in the 8th House: Mars in the 8th house dives into transformative experiences. Devotion is expressed through deep emotional connections, taking action to explore the mysteries of life, and facing challenges with courage.

9/ Mars in the 9th House: Mars in the 9th house fuels adventurous pursuits. Devotion is shown through taking action in spiritual exploration, passionately pursuing higher knowledge, and actively participating in philosophical discussions.

10/ Mars in the 10th House: Mars in the 10th house energizes career endeavors. Devotion is expressed through ambitious pursuits, taking bold steps in the professional realm, and asserting oneself to achieve recognition and success.

11/ Mars in the 11th House: Mars in the 11th house energizes social connections. Devotion is shown through actively participating in group activities, taking action to achieve shared objectives, and passionately supporting friends.

12/ Mars in the 12th House: Mars in the 12th house navigates spiritual realms. Devotion is expressed through inner strength, taking action in solitary pursuits, and actively engaging in practices that foster spiritual growth.

[gretavangroupie]

Valor - (Chapter 1)

Pairing: Jake x Reader, Daniel x Reader

Word Count: 17.1k

Warnings: Cursin', Smokin', Drinkin', Allusions to Drug Use. Angst: Struggle and Poverty, Emotional Manipulation, Cheating, Abandonment, Jealousy, Mentions of Violence, Mentions of Weapons, Mentions of Death, Allusions to Suicide, Allusions to Shady Activities. Smut: Kissing, Allusions to Sex.

Valor Playlist: Apple Music | Spotify

A new project in collaboration with my talented co-writer @gretavanmoon.

HER POV

You could hardly see out the back window, your entire life piled up to the roof of the car. You were thankful on days like today, that you had a car big enough to fit it all. Your every worldly possession, reduced down to a handful of boxes and trash bags, now occupying your backseat. You shifted into reverse and turned your body to look out the back window of your old ‘73 Scout. Your eyes peeked through the visible sliver of the rear window, but not before catching sight of the dress you were slated to wear just 3 months from now. That, however, was the reason you were packed into this car in the first place. 

‘Go ahead and try to leave. You’ll be back when you realize I’m as good as it gets for you.’ his words still echoing through your head as if they were being played through a loudspeaker. ‘You need me. You have nothing without me. You’ll never make it on your own.’ And that’s exactly what he wanted you to believe. He’d told you that so often you wondered if it was himself he was trying to convince instead of you. 

You were set to marry Peter the second week of July. The plans were made, invitations sent. But as you stopped by his office to deliver his plate lunch, what you’d walked in on was not the scene of a man ready to be greeted by his soon to be wife. No, it was a very different scene, straight from one of those Playboy magazines you could buy at the Quik-Stop on Douglas.

You can still hear the sound of the ceramic plate shattering against the terrazzo floors. The gasp of air that left the lips of his new bookkeeper, sprawled out across his desk. You can remember the way the peas scattered across the floor in every direction and the way they felt smashing under your shoes as you fled his office. 

You waited for him to come home that night. Your things were already packed away in bags and boxes by the time he finally meandered through the front door of the apartment. Then came the excuses. The begging and pleading that quickly turned vicious and accusatory. The ‘maybe if you put out more, I wouldn’t have had to look elsewhere’ lines, that you knew to be a load of shit. You knew Peter wasn’t one to shy away from clearing his conscience at someone else's expense. Your mind was made up before he ever came home. You knew you couldn’t stay here, not with him. Not after this. 

You aren’t sure why you brought the dress with you. You could have easily left it at your mothers, letting it hang in her guest room closet to collect dust and rot until the end of time. But you didn’t, you knew that bringing it would give you that reminder of why you were leaving. So with fifteen dollars of gas in the tank, and your Bruce Springsteen 8-track, you and your things began the trek towards Atlanta, ready to start again. Ready to live a life uninhibited. Ready to find an adventure. 

—

The chorus of ‘State Trooper’ played through the fuzzy car speakers as you popped a cinnamon hard candy into your mouth. Your eyes caught sight of the welcome sign as you crossed the Iowa-Missouri border in a blur. It had been quite a few years since you’d been back to Missouri. Actually, you hadn’t visited since your family moved in the third grade. It was an abrupt move, your parents pulling you from school midway through the year with little to no explanation. You were placed in the back of your parents' Taurus and the life that you had known flashed by in a matter of the five minutes it took to make your way from one side of town to the other. You liked Iowa though. You made friends there, had a life and were active in school extracurriculars. It’s where you met Peter, and fell in love, though now that part didn’t exactly fit the narrative of your happy story. 

As the song began to fade out into the next track, you heard it. The metallic grinding beneath the hood. The hell is that? You spun the volume knob down to zero, listening again for the noise, wondering if maybe you had just run over something on the freeway. As you passed mile marker 22 you heard it again, louder. Whatever it was had your heart pounding in your chest. You didn’t know the first thing about cars, definitely not enough to fix anything. Then it became more frequent. Persistent. Something was really wrong. 

In a panic you pulled off the road into the overgrown grass of the shoulder, pulling out your roadmap and unfolding it across the steering wheel. You tried to get a sense of your surroundings, knowing you’d crossed the border not too long ago. You pinpoint your location in search of the next town you’d come across in what you knew to be a collection of nearly abandoned mining towns. A bead of sweat collected on your forehead, the wind dying down as the sun began to set. The impending darkness adds another factor of stress to an already stressful situation. As your finger traced a line up the interstate, you saw the familiar name. The place just on your mind mere minutes ago. You don’t remember too much about Joslyn, but what you do remember of it, is that there was an auto repair shop, and you were in desperate need if you were going to make it to Atlanta. With an estimated thirty miles to Joslyn from your current spot, you started your car back up, and pulled back out onto the road, praying you would make it there without doing anymore damage. 

The metallic noise seemed to stay consistent, but with every mile that passed you knew the dollar signs were adding up. Of course you took the money stashed away for the wedding, he didn’t get to keep that. Why should he? Consider it severance. However, car repairs was not how you wanted to spend that money. You planned to use it for a deposit and first month's rent on an apartment, hoping it would be enough to tide you over until you found a job. 

You knew you had plenty of useful skills, you were near the top of your class in school. You planned to work with Peter at the accounting firm after you married, and you hoped you’d be able to find a similar position in your new city. You were snapped from your daydreams as you saw the sign welcoming you to Joslyn, however, the old decrepit sign, about twenty years past needing to be replaced, sent a cold chill down your spine. The way it barely hung on to the wooden stakes made you feel anything but welcome, and your instincts told you to turn back. As you limped your car further into town, you realized that the vibrant city you left all those years ago had been in steady decline ever since. Homes abandoned and pillaged, with broken windows and spray painted siding. Cars sat deteriorating in driveways that were barely visibly under the overgrown grass and trees. You had no sense of ‘home’ despite this being the town you were born in. You barely recognized it, until you saw Louie’s. 

Knowing you would find answers there, you pulled into an empty parking space, almost afraid to pull the key from the ignition, wondering if it would turn on again when you got back inside. You grabbed your fringed purse from the passenger seat, and pushed your sunglasses to the top of your head as you jumped down from the driver's seat. The gravel crunched beneath your feet as you walked towards the front door of the diner, seeing a few older patrons lining the bartop and scattered through a few booths through the large windows. 

The bell rang as you pulled the door open, alerting everyone of your presence. Ten heads turned to look at you all at once, and suddenly you felt like a spectacle as you stood there in your halter top and waist hugging jeans. 

“Take a seat anywhere ya’d like, hun.” a lady in a pink apron called out from across the room. Her voice was gruff and far deeper than it should be for a lady, you thought. You made your way towards an empty bar stool, leaving a space between you and an older man in a newsboy cap, sliding his fork through a piece of cherry pie. You gave him a curt smile as you settled on the stool and placed your bag on the counter. It smelled good, and you felt a small rumble in your stomach as you watched plates being sent to the window. If you’d had more time you’d probably enjoy a late lunch, but you didn’t, so you couldn’t.

The same woman approached you, handing you a laminated menu and gesturing a coffee cup towards you in silent question. You nodded your head and smiled, placing the menu down on the counter. 

“What’ll ya have, sugar…” she asked, pouring coffee into your mug from the yellow stained carafe. 

“Oh, I’m great with just the coffee for now, thank you.” you responded, seeing her eyes rake over you with curiosity. 

“Just passin’ through?” she asks, placing the carafe back on the counter. 

“Sort of. I’m on my way to Georgia, but I think I need a mechanic to look at my car. Started knocking when I hit the border. This was the first town I thought might have one.” you answer. 

The lady’s eyes flash over to the man next to you. He looks over at you and looks back at her giving her a slight nod. “Yeah we got one.” he says, twisting his stool to face you. “You’ll have to try and get it down to Ace’s, well Jake’s now I reckon. But he should be able to get ya fixed up.” 

“Would you be able to give me directions?” you ask, digging into your purse in search of a pen. You grab a paper napkin from the dispenser, and click the end of your pen on the countertop as he nods his head. 

“Yeah, so you’re gonna take a left out of the lot here, go down ‘bout 2 miles ‘er so, you’ll see a Church of the Nazarene and take that left there. Go up that hill ‘bouta ‘nother mile and you’ll see a dirt road on your right. His shops’ at the end of the drive there. Can tell him Bubba sent ‘cha, and he’ll help out a pretty lady I’m sure of it.”

You quickly scribble down his directions, and toss the napkin and pen into your bag. “Thank you. I–I really should be going, It’ll be dark soon and I–”

“Should finish your cup there at least.” the lady says, leaning onto the counter. “You sure you’re not from ‘round here, honey? You look awful familiar.”

“Not exactly.” you say, cutting the conversation short. You place a few dollars on the counter and grab your bag, “Thank you. For the directions. I appreciate it.” you say, watching the man tip his hat to you as you make your way out of the diner and back to your car. Jumping into the front seat you send up a quick prayer that she’ll start and as you twist the key you hear the engine roar to life. 

With the napkin sitting on your leg, you pulled out of the parking space heading further into town. The clock on the dash read 4:43, and you hoped you’d catch them before they closed up for the night. You saw the church he spoke of up in the distance, what was probably once a pristine white building, was now showing wear and tear with no one to fix it up. You took the left, the metallic clicking beneath the hood growing louder as you pressed forward on the gas pedal to climb the hill. With the windows down the sound was deafening, the cool breeze blowing through the window alleviated the sweat forming on your neck. In the dissipating sunlight you saw the orange dirt road and hesitantly turned to travel down its short path. A multitude of old abandoned cars littered the premises, and you wondered if that was a good sign or a bad one. You slowed your speed to a crawl, the clicking from your engine announcing your presence as you pulled closer towards the building. 

Your headlights lit up the front of the building, an old gray sheet metal building, flash rust covering most of the sign that read ‘Ace’s Garage’. Two men in old rotted patio chairs stood slowly as you put the car in park. You shut off the engine and took a deep breath as you jumped out onto the dusty dirt road.  

“Hi, I’m sorry, am I too late? I know it’s close to closing.” you murmured, stepping around to the front of the car. They both just stood there in their faded blue coveralls that looked like they hadn’t had a washing in some time. The taller man had his unzipped and the sleeves tied around his waist. A dirty white t-shirt beneath concealed what seemed to be a plethora of ink adorning his body. Neither of them jumped to respond to you, and your eyes searched theirs for any sort of answer as the shorter man begrudgingly flicked his cigarette to the ground and stomped it out with his dirty boot. “Closed at 4:30.” he says.

“Shut up Jake. No. We heard you coming ‘bout a mile away.” the other, taller man said with a curt smile. His dark disheveled curls were tied up in a messy bun that hadn’t been touched since he put it there this morning. Wisps of hair surrounded his head in a halo of sweaty dark strands. “Doesn’t sound too good. Sounds like you’ve got something going on under the hood.”

“It just started doing it about an hour or so ago. Right after I crossed the border. Never heard it before, and I have a long trip ahead of me so I figured I should probably get it checked out.” you reply, twisting your hands around the strap of your purse. 

“Could be a number of things…” he pauses, stepping over towards your car. He places a grease covered hand on the hood of your baby blue Scout and turns to look at you. “These Scouts are pretty good little cars, but they are notorious for having engine issues. Afraid to say you might be a victim of that. Though, maybe it’s just a bad wheel bearing.”

“Nah.” the other man, who you now know as Jake, says suddenly, stepping forward slowly with his arms crossed across his chest. He doesn’t say much, just places his hand under the hood and opens the latch. He steps up on the front bumper, and takes a look into the engine compartment, resting his tattoo covered hands on either side of the frame. After a few quiet minutes he steps down, and closes the hood staring at the taller man. “Collapsed lifter, but that’s the least of her issues. Camshaft is fucked.”

“When did you say it started doing this?” the curly haired man asks. 

“About an hour ago. I know it’s bad but, what’s that mean?” you ask nervously.

“Means you better call your husband to come pick you up.” Jake said, looking out towards the field in the distance.

“Husband?” you question, seeing his eyes travel to the diamond on your left finger. You quickly flip it around and look back to him. “Oh, I’m not married. I don’t have a husband. I don’t live here. I was just passing through.”

“Shit place to get stranded.” he quips, turning on his heel and making his way towards the door of the car. He spits towards the ground as he pulls the door open and climbs inside.

“Stranded?” you blurt out, catching the eyes of the taller man. 

“Daniel, get her out of the fuckin’ way.” Jake says calmly, leaning his head out the window as he starts your car.

He grabs your arm and ushers you out of the way as Jake pulls your car forward into the empty bay beneath the buzzing fluorescent lights. He nods, motioning for you to follow him towards the garage, the air dusty as your tires kicked up dirt. The car shuts off and he jumps out, his boots making a loud thud as they land on the dirty concrete floors. As you follow Daniel into the garage he stops, placing his hands on his hips as he watches Jake lift the hood once more. This time, he grabs a ladder and a work light, hanging it from the inside of the hood. You look around at the garage, noticing the side you occupied was slightly more messy than the bay on the opposite side. Tools scattered about but in a way that you could tell they were exactly where they were supposed to be.

As you turned further you noticed a tan cover hanging loosely over a car parked between the two bays, you didn’t pay much mind to it, as your brain was bouncing from object to object. Your eyes caught Jake’s as he peered up from the engine compartment, quickly flicking them back down as he examined the condition of your motor. You let out a sigh and leaned backwards, resting your weight on the covered car. Daniel snapped his head in your direction seeing you before looking over at Jake. He quickly turned back to you, and pulled your arm to stand up again. “Probably don’t want to lean on that one. Here, let’s go find you somewhere to sit.” he said, walking you further into the garage. You looked over to Jake again, seeing him concentrated on his task, a single strand of brown hair hanging long in his face. 

You followed Daniel as he led you to a plaid nylon folding chair, similar to the ones they arose from earlier. The once white fabric was now a dingy, dirty gray, stained with oil and grease. He offered you a sorrowful smile as he gestured for you to sit. “Thanks.” you squeaked, checking your wristwatch for the time. 

Daniel walked back over towards the car, peering in as Jake inspected the damage. You watched his back muscles flex as he placed his hands on the open hood, his white t-shirt pulling tightly against his back. You could see the shadow of a dark image through the white cotton of his shirt, a large tattoo must be under there and you couldn’t help but wonder what it was. It was almost as if he could feel your eyes on him as he turned around to meet your gaze as he continued talking to Jake. Jake turned around too, catching your sight and you knew that the news they were about to deliver was probably not what you wanted to hear. 

Jake unhooked the work light, and closed the hood, stepping down off the ladder and wiping his hands on his coveralls. He used the back of his arm to wipe the sweat from his brow as he looked over towards you again. They both began walking over towards you, stopping short as they reached you. You stood to meet them, watching as Jake shoved his hands in his pockets.

He was the first to speak, “I can fix it, but I will have to order the parts. Don’t see too many of these come ‘round here.”

“Oh, so it’s an easy fix? Good, maybe I won’t be here too long.” you said cheerfully.

“No. I didn’t say that.” he bites back. “I said, I can fix it.”

You furrow your brow at his harshness and turn to Daniel. 

He rolls his eyes and looks at you, “What he is trying to say is that you need some major work done. We don’t have the parts we need– he needs, to be able to do it, so he will have to order them. Only problem is that the delivery truck only runs on the 15th of the month.”

You look down at your watch seeing the tiny ‘2’ in the window. “And today is the second…”

“Right.” he says, kicking his shoe against the floor. 

“I can call and order the parts tomorrow when the supplier opens, can give you a proper estimate then, but I’m gonna warn you that this ain’t no cheap fix.” Jake says, flicking his eyes up to yours. There is a smudge of grease on his cheek that catches the light. Your eyes travel down his face seeing a scattering of tattoos that decorate the side of his neck, disappearing down into the zipped coveralls. 

“I have the money.” you sigh, fiddling with the strings on your purse. 

Jake nods his head, “Right, well, see you tomorrow.” he says, turning to head towards a set of stairs at the side of the garage. 

“Jake. The fuck…” Daniel shouts, causing Jake to stop and turn around. 

“What.” he answers, slowly walking back towards you. 

“What do you mean, what? You’re gonna have to drive her down to Wanda’s.” he says, “I can’t take her on the bike.”

“No.” he says, far too quickly.

“Jake, what else is she supposed to do?” he says, throwing his hands into the air. 

“Dunno. Figure it out I guess.” he scoffs, trying to retreat again, before Daniel grabs his arm. 

“It’s Wanda’s or here. Make your choice.” Daniel growls.

“Why do you care?” Jake barks back.

“How about you quit being a prick for a minute? You’re going to take this nice, paying customer down to the Motel, so that tomorrow she can come back and pay for those parts, and you can fix her car, hm?” he seethes into his ear. 

Jake rips his arm from his grip, and walks over to the dirty, stained wall, snatching a set of keys from a hook. “Fine. Let’s go.”

You scurry over to your car, attempting to grab the few things you’ll need for a few nights stay at a motel, before quickly jumping down and looking around for Jake. You hear an engine roar to life outside the shop, seeing Danny pointing towards an old, Green Ford truck. His headlights flash on, practically blinding you as you start to walk towards them, turning to thank Daniel for his kindness as you run off towards your ride. 

—

The ride to the motel was silent for the most part, the sound of the static coming across the radio the only noise filling the cab of the truck. You sat shotgun while Jake rested his wrist on the steering wheel of the old Ford, the sullied fingertips of his opposite hand rubbing across his unkempt mustache as he slowly made his way back through town. 

“You can ask me.” He finally spoke, his eyes dashing quickly back and forth from the rear view mirror and the road. 

You cleared your throat, suddenly surprised he spoke. “Ask you what?”

“Where you know me from. I can tell you wanna ask.” He answered, his voice only a tiny bit louder than the rumbling engine. 

Damn, he was right. He did look familiar to you, and so did Daniel. But your mind was so frenzied with the anticipation of finding out what was wrong with your car, and then the news that the damage was far worse than you thought, that you pushed the thought far from your mind. 

“I mean, you do kind of seem…”

“…familiar? Yeah. I remember you.” He mumbled, his eyes still never traveling your way. “You went to St. James Elementary, right?”

“Yes…”

“So did we. Probably why you recognize us.” Jake turned the wheel a hard right, forgoing a blinker as he flicked his eyes to the rear view again. 

Ah, that makes sense. You had started the first grade here many years ago, and made it to the third before your parents ripped you away and set off toward Iowa. But the more you thought about it, the more you remembered them. Both of them. But that was over twenty years ago, how the hell did he remember you now?

“Shit, that’s right.” You glanced to the floor, trying like hell to stretch your mind back to the tiny hallways lined with lockers, and the playground out back where many of your earliest memories were made. “I remember now, you were what, a year older than me?”

“Yeah. Danny’s a few years behind me.” Jake reached in his front pocket and pulled out his half-empty pack of Lucky Strikes, patting the box on the heel of his hand before he pushed the lighter into the dash, waiting for it to heat. 

“So wait, you were the one that climbed to the top of that old Sycamore that day at recess…couldn’t get back down when the bell rang so you jumped down and broke your arm…” your memory probably didn’t serve you all the way right, but you couldn’t have made up the tall-tale. 

The lighter finally popped free, and Jake raised his left knee to steer the truck while he grabbed the handle, shielding the wind to light the butt of his cigarette. You watched as he inhaled, then cranked the window the rest of the way down to let the smoke filter through. 

“I didn’t climb all the way up. Just halfway. And I didn’t jump, I fell.” He tapped his cigarette in the tray of the dash, not caring one bit that the residual ashes fell into the floorboard. You watched them flutter down before fizzling out completely.

You laughed at the memory, finding it hard to believe that you’d found yourself here again, remembering things about your childhood that you hadn’t even come close to thinking about in years. 

“It wasn’t funny.” Jake said stoically, puffing the cigarette again. 

“Sorry. No, it wasn’t. But, I remember being glad you didn’t get hurt worse than you did.” You replied, hoping to warm up his ice-cold composure. 

“This is you.” He mumbled as he pulled into the lot of the old motel, the truck lurching forward as he put it into park. You popped the door open and slid out of the old bench seat, slamming the door behind you as you rounded the side of the truck to grab your suitcase from the bed. Jake didn’t get out of the truck or offer to help you with your bags, but after his less-than-happy attempt at making cordial conversation, you didn’t expect anything less. 

You perked back up to the open passenger window, seeing that Jake’s eyes were still darting from side to side out the windows. Why was he so paranoid? 

“Thank you for the ride, I really appreciate it. You’ll let me know when the parts get ordered, and I can give you the cash?” You asked, really not knowing any other way to go about this. 

He nodded his head, biting his cheeks in. 

“Okay, let me go check in, and I’ll come back and tell you my room number so you can phone me.” You said, walking toward the check-in office. 

“I’ll just call and ask for your room.” He muttered, throwing the gear shift into reverse. 

“But, you never even asked me my–”

“I remember your name, Y/N.” He spat, spinning his head around to check his surroundings before he whipped the truck from the parking spot, kicking up dust as he flew back down the road. 

——

Upon entering the check-in office, your eyes had to do little to adjust, as there were barely any lights on at all. The stench of the room itself was like must and rotting wood, with just a hint of Borax and lemon-scented cleaner. You glanced to the large counter that spanned the room, leaving your suitcase behind while you approached it. After a minute or two of waiting, you let your palm gently tap on the bell that sat on the desk, ‘Ring for Service’ written on an old note underneath it. 

“Hi, hello. Could I get a single room for the next week, please?” You asked the gruff woman that finally limped her way from the back room. 

“HUH?” She all but yelled, squinting her eyes as she held her hand up to her ear. She must be hard of hearing. 

You cleared your throat to speak a bit louder. “I’d like a room for the next seven nights, please.” You spoke loudly, mouthing the words clearly as you watched her read your lips. 

“Only room I got’s a double efficiency.” She barked, grabbing a pen as she lifted the glasses that hung from a chain around her neck to rest on her nose. You snarled your nose up in confusion, remembering that you only saw another one or two cars in the lot. 

“I don’t need something that large, it’s just me, if you want to put me in something smalle–”

“Double efficiency.” She said, writing down some number into her oversized ledger book. “It’s $35 a night. I take cash upfront for the whole stay. Fresh linens every other day.”

“Thirty-five a night? Ma’am, isn’t that a bit high?” Your voice was raised on its own now, out of pure surprise at the price. 

“Either that or you ride down to the new Ramada an hour and a half South, and seein’ as how Jake brought you here, it’s lookin’ like the double efficiency for yeh.” 

You seethed as she scribbled the math into her book, her jaws gnawing together as she chewed on nothing. “Two forty-five rate plus sixty-seven tax gives us…” she tapped away loudly at her printing calculator. “Three hundred twelve for the week.”

You felt like throwing up. That took a good chunk from the cash you brought along, but thankfully didn’t drain you completely. Luckily, the money you’d saved up for the wedding was well above what you’d need to survive on, so it didn’t hurt too badly as you begrudgingly counted out the bills from your wallet. 

“Write your name and date here, signature here.” She pointed in her book for you to sign next to room number 7. She smiled a large grin as you laid out the bills for her, her mouth showing no more than a few teeth. As she gave you her best fake smile, you noticed her right eye was almost completely glossed over with a blue sheen. “Need a receipt?”

“No, thank you.” You chirped, wanting to get the hell away from this eerie woman and into your double efficiency as quickly as possible. 

“I’ll bring fresh linens day after. No guests. Here’s your key, don’t lose it, I only got the one. Shower takes a good five minutes to heat, and don’t be smokin’ none of that grass in the room. Stinks up the place.” She said at a high volume while she wagged her finger toward your face. 

You raised your eyebrows at the irony of the smell of the place, nodding her way as you grabbed the key from the countertop. She turned away, taking your wad of cash with her back to the room she came from. “Name’s Wanda if you need anything.”

It was getting to be dark outside now, the dull streetlights barely illuminating the sidewalk enough for you to see the room numbers on the front of the doors as you passed. 

“Five…six…seven.” You whispered to yourself as you dropped the heavy suitcase beside you to fish the key from your pocket. As you slid the key into the slot and twisted the old knob, you were immediately met with the same stench as you were in the lobby. Old and grimey. 

You brought your bag inside and quickly turned to lock the door behind you, sliding the hanging chain into place. You inspected the room, seeing the two beds with old brown comforters laid across them, a nightstand in between, and a single TV on the chest of drawers in the corner. It’ll do. The bathroom wasn’t much better, and it looked as though the calcium and lime deposits on the shower head could kill a man. 

You sighed a deep sigh as you listened to your stomach rumble, your decision to forgo a late lunch at the diner earlier now seeming like a bad idea. The apple you had stashed away in your bag would have to suffice. 

After unpacking a little bit of your clothing from your suitcase and hanging a few things in the closet, you decided to turn on the television and tuck in early for the night. You twisted the knob, watching as the light on the screen came to life, the high-pitched squeal of the staticy screen making your skin crawl. You adjusted the antenna, trying your best to get a better picture of what looked to be the evening news, but it was no use. But, some sound was better than no sound. 

You slipped your top and jeans off and folded them neatly over the bed, planning on wearing them again tomorrow to save on any kind of laundry you’d end up needing to do. An old t-shirt from an old high-school boyfriend would have to be your choice of pajamas for the night. You flicked off the light, and climbed into the starchy sheets, the pillow feeling rock hard under your head. You shook your head as you looked at the ceiling, wondering how in the hell you got yourself into this mess. 

This was supposed to be an adventure. A period of regrowth. A time to just live, find yourself again. Maybe join up with a new tribe of people, try new things, see where the wind would blow you…

But no. You’re here in your old hometown in a sticky motel, with a broken-down car, and no dinner. On the first day of your escape. You crossed your arms across your chest, allowing yourself a second to pout. For a split second, you contemplated going back to Iowa, back to your mother’s, back to the comforts of home, but you’d never return to Peter. Not in a million years, the scumbag. 

You twisted up your nose as your legs rubbed across the hard mattress and scratchy sheets, wondering who the hell the last people to sleep here were, or worse, if Wanda had actually even washed them when they left. 

—

The sound of three quick knocks on your door awoke you from what must have been a light sleep, the noise making your heart immediately pound. You hopped up, snaking across the floor quietly and peeking out of the peephole. You half expected to see a murderer standing at the door, but then, why would they have knocked? 

Must be Wanda. 

No, she doesn’t care about anyone but herself, apparently. 

You squinted your eye to see a ruffle of dark curls in the pale light, standing and swaying back and forth while he waited for you to open the door. 

“Daniel?” You whispered, pulling the door open wide enough that the chain lock pulled taut. “What are you doing?” You pulled the chain free, opening the door all the way. 

His eyes popped out of his head as he took in a quick breath, the look on his face completely surprised, and a little embarrassed. 

“Hey, um…I’m sorry, I…” he muttered, pulling his arm behind his head. 

“No, it’s fine, you just surprised me, that’s all. Is everything…” you pause, noticing he wasn’t shying away from his awkward stance. You suddenly felt the breeze blow across your almost completely uncovered lower-half. 

“Shit!” You yelped, pulling your t-shirt down as far as it would go over your legs. You bounced back into the room, pulling the comforter from the bed to cover yourself. “I’m sorry, I completely didn’t even…”

“No no, I’m sorry.” Danny admitted from the open doorway. “I just came to…”

You wrapped the linen around yourself, a complete cocoon now as you waddled like a mummy back over to him with a shy smile on your face. 

He laughed, his bright white teeth a contrast to the dark complexion of his skin. You felt the pit of your stomach fall at the sight. 

“I just came to see if you wanted to grab a late dinner with me, seeing as how you can’t drive to get anything, and there’s no such thing as room service in a place like this.” He said, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“Oh, no, Daniel, that’s awful sweet of you to offer. But, I had an apple, so I’m…all set…” you admitted, the pit of hunger in your stomach getting bigger as the minutes ticked on. 

He furrowed his brow. “You can…call me Danny, if you want. We aren’t complete strangers.”

You felt your eyes sparkle at him. Stop it, Y/N. 

You swallowed. “Okay, Danny…”

“An apple? That’s all you’ve had all day?”

“Yeah. And well, a few sips of coffee earlier…” you admitted, waving him off. “Truly, I’m just fine.”

He stood and stared at you a few seconds longer, his eyes slipping past you and into the empty room behind you. The light of the static-snowed screen reflected off his features, accentuating his face, his jawline, his lips…the tattoos that crawled up his neck…

“Okay, well. I’ll see you around then?” He stated more than asked, before turning on his heels and disappearing down the sidewalk. 

Shit. You were starving. And bored. And not sleepy anymore. And, after letting your eyes wander a little too long on him…you felt…

“Danny!” You called back, seeing him turn with anticipation. “Let me put some pants on?”

He grinned again, and began making his way back toward your door as you popped back inside to re-dress yourself. You quickly pulled your jeans and halter on, and took a second to fluff your hair without him seeing. You grabbed a light jacket and pulled it over your arms, and made sure to slip your room key into your purse before throwing it over your shoulder. 

You stepped back outside the door, catching Danny leaning against the wall smoking. “That was quick.” He said, blowing smoke into the air. You noticed it smelled different than what Jake smoked, it was sweeter and not as rancid. 

“Did you walk here?” You asked him as you locked the door, noticing that there were no new vehicles in the parking lot. 

“Hell no.” He chuckled. “I brought Ruby.”

“Who?”

As you rounded the edge of the building, you saw what he was referring to. An early model motorcycle, a little rusted and definitely dirty, but you could see the red paint peeking out from underneath the dust. 

You watched as he lifted his leg and straddled the seat, pulling his weight over to kick the stand up. He turned the key and revved the engine, walking it forward just a bit as you watched. He motioned with his head for you to hop on, of which you quickly denied. 

“No no, I’ll walk, it’s fine.” You muttered, the engine drowning out the sound of your voice. You backed away, crossing your arms nervously. No way you were going to hop on the back of a motorcycle with a man you hardly knew. In the dark in a strange town, much less. 

“Ah come on, it’ll take you twenty minutes to walk there.” He yelled over the purring, again tilting his head back for you to climb in behind him. He slowly pulled the tie from his hair, letting his elbow-length waves fall before re-gathering it, and twisting at his neck again. He gave you another side smile, raising his eyebrows as he playfully revved the engine again. 

Fuck it. 

You bashfully stepped forward, hiking your leg up over the seat to fit right in behind him, the seat forcing you to press against his back a little more closely than you were comfortable with. And to make things even more awkward, you weren’t sure what to do with your hands. You let them drop to your thighs as he walked the bike forward a little again, turning it before he caught pavement and took off down the road without warning. 

You squealed loudly, your unfamiliarity with riding on the back of a motorcycle startling you completely. Without hesitation and in fear of falling off, your hands wrapped around Danny’s torso, and your feet fell in behind his on the racks. 

“Oh shit!” You yelled as he took off down the road, your arms gripping him tighter as you tried to get your balance. You were positive if you let go for even the tiniest second, you were going to eat rocks. 

“You alright back there?” He asked, turning his head slightly. 

“No, not really! I feel like I’m gonna fall!” You admitted, the wind whipping your hair in all directions. 

“You won’t fall, I won’t let you.” His left hand came down to grasp your fists gathered across his chest, and slowly pushed them downward toward his stomach, instantly making you feel leveled out, and a ton more balanced. He patted your hands there, telling you to leave them. 

Then his hand found your thigh, running his hand along the outside seam of your jeans from your knee to right below your asscheek. What the fuck? Before you could slap the hell out of him, he gripped up under your leg, jerking your forward on the seat to press your chest hard against his back. 

Instantly more centered. 

“Is that better? Still feel like you’re gonna fall?” He asked through the wind. 

You gulped, the rush of the past 13 seconds making your head spin. But he was right, you no longer felt like you were going to topple over. 

“No, yes…it’s better…” you choked out as he began to pick up speed. 

“Good. Hang on.” He ordered, speeding up significantly as you barreled down the dusty pavement. And hang on you did. The wind across your face was literally taking your breath away, and making your eyes water. You blinked away the tears as you focused, truly getting your bearings and relaxing your body against Danny’s to get a feel for the bike beneath you. You took a breath and let your body fall into his back a bit more, the motions of his flexing back muscles pressed up against you as he lifted his foot to switch gears. 

What the hell are you doing? What is happening?

After a whirlwind two or three minutes, you were slowing down and pulling into the parking lot of Louie’s, the same diner you had stopped into earlier for directions. Danny slowed the bike to a crawl and walked it forward before lowering the kickstand. You instinctively pulled your feet to the ground too, only the tips of your toes reaching the dirt below them. 

“Don’t tell me that was your first motorcycle ride…” he said as he leaned his body weight to one side, standing all the way up on solid ground. You followed his action, letting your shaky legs hop off the bike with the help of Danny’s strong hand. 

“Yeah, uh. It was.” You tried to sound nonchalant, like it was no big deal, while on the inside, your body was screaming with nervous adrenaline. You patted your hands over your hair to calm your flyaways, trying your best to keep your cool girl composure. 

“No shit? Well, if I’d have known that I wouldn’t have taken off so quick. You felt like a natural once you got your balance…” he flitted his eyes your way as you began to make your way to the door. 

You gave him a shy smile back. “Are they um. Are they still open? It’s getting late…” you glanced at your watch, finding it to be 9:20pm. 

Danny swung the glass door open, frowning as you walked inside before him. “Oh, yeah. They’re open ‘til midnight. And it’s pork chop night, I never miss pork chop night.”

You walked inside the now neon-lit diner, finding many of the same shady-looking characters as you had seen earlier in the day. You nodded toward the man who gave you the directions to Jake’s, of which he returned with a curt smile. 

“Bubba!” Danny exclaimed, forcefully throwing two hands to the back of the man’s shoulders, startling him from his coffee. “Save any pork chops for me?”

“They’s a few back there, I’m sure. Ain’t too many people in today.” He answered, turning back to his coffee. “Geraldine! Danny’s here for his special!” The man yelled across the bar, moving sideways to see if he could see in through the opening in the wall to the kitchen. 

Just then the same woman in the pink apron waltzed through the double-swinging saloon doors, putting on a giant smile as soon as she saw you and Danny. She made her way around the bar, taking Danny’s face between her hands and squeezing his cheeks. “Evenin’, honey.” Her gruff voice said as she swatted his face. 

“Evenin’, Geraldine.” He answered, obviously this was a woman he respected. She turned and found her place again behind the bar, reaching into her apron pocket for her pen and order pad. You and Danny walked to a booth in the middle of the restaurant, and you moved to sit down before he stopped you. 

“Hmm-mm, let me sit there. Wanna see the door.” He said, grabbing your shoulders to scoot you sideways to the opposite booth. 

“Okay…what for?” You questioned. 

“I recognize this one from earlier today, hardly touched her coffee. You make it to Ace’s, honey?” Geraldine interrupted without making eye contact with you as she scribbled something down on her order pad. 

Danny cleared his throat and looked to you, raising his eyebrows. 

“Oh! Me! Yes ma’am, I barely made it, but uh. Got it there before it could die on me. They’re going to fix it right up.” You answered, feeling silly for having to practically yell your business across the diner to answer her. You watched the man you now knew as Bubba turn in his stool, holding the same flat smile as he did when you first came inside. 

“The normal, Danny?” Geraldine asked. 

“Yes please, thanks.” He replied, poking his wrapped silverware onto the tabletop. 

“And for the lady?” She went on. 

You looked down to see no menu in front of you, so you decided to go with your gut. “Um, I’ll have what he’s having?” Your tone was questioning. 

Geraldine smiled. “Pork chop in gravy, mashed potatoes, carrots, and peas, sweetie.”

“Oh, perfect. All but the peas, please.” You replied, watching as Geraldine nodded and made her way back into the kitchen. 

“Why don’t you like peas? They’re good for you.” Danny said, stretching his arm across the back of the booth behind him. You swallowed hard, recalling the memory of the peas rolling across the floor of Peter’s office. The smell of them smashed against your shoes, still fresh in your mind, and easily makes your stomach turn just from the thought. 

“Never been a fan.” You answered, resting your chin in your hand. 

Danny pursed his lips together, leaning in now across the table toward you. You watched as a tiny strand of hair fell in front of his eye, his tongue stuck to the back of his teeth as he inhaled. “I would’ve eaten your peas, Y/N. Tsk tsk.” 

You looked at him in amused confusion, unsure of what his angle really was. After being around him only a grand total of maybe an hour the entire day, you gathered that you could hardly tell if he was joking or serious at any given time. But his overall demeanor was kind, and playful, and he had invited you here tonight, so you intended on learning him better. 

Just while you were here, of course. 

Suddenly two steaming black coffees were placed in front of you, the aroma bringing your senses back to life again. “Cream, sweetie?” Geraldine asked, placing a tiny metal pitcher full of the milky liquid in front of you and turning away before you could answer. 

You poured the cream in, stirring it together until it was mixed, and you blew on it before you took a slow sip, Danny watching your every move intently. 

“Something I can help you with?” You asked him, commenting on his unwelcome stare. 

He snarled his top lip as he shook his head and readjusted in his seat. You took a second to look at him, hoping to maybe intimidate him right back. His dark waves still balled up at his neck, the loose strands falling as curls in front of his face and behind his ears. His tightened jaw and cocked eyebrow letting you know he was still sizing you up. His old black Ford Motors t-shirt stretched tightly across his buff chest and arms, the worn holes around the collar letting you know it was well-loved and worn-in. 

“So. Elementary school. You were there…” he finally spoke up, lighting another sweet-smelling smoke. 

“St. James, yeah. I think you were a couple of years behind me.” You answered, sipping your coffee. 

“Mhmm.” He hummed, taking a puff. “You left in the middle of the year.” 

“How do you remember that?” You asked, realizing he would have only been in the first grade when you left. 

“Because suddenly we didn’t have enough people to have even teams for kickball. You left and we were a man short. Had to ask Willie Addams to play and he couldn’t run for shit. Had the coordination of a fuckin’ baby giraffe.” 

You giggled at him, almost spitting out your coffee. “Ok, how do you remember that?” You pressed. “You were like 6.”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Jake says I have the memory of an elephant, whatever the fuck that means. Anyway, enough talk about zoo animals. Where were you really headed, Y/N? Before you got stuck here with us…” He leaned again, and you noticed his eyes began anxiously darting around, just like Jake’s had done earlier. 

You purposely waited for him to make eye contact with you again, finding it rude that he was looking everywhere but at your face after asking you a question. When he finally did, you answered. 

“I was heading to Atlanta. From Salvation, Iowa.” You replied honestly. “Why?”

“People don’t normally just casually cruise back through their hometown unless they’re looking for something.” He said dryly, taking a sip of his coffee. The white ceramic mug looked tiny in his giant inked hand. 

“Well I’m not people. I wasn’t looking for anything, I just—”

“So you were running.” He raised his eyebrows again, knowing he had struck some type of gold from the obviously surprised look on your face. 

You stayed silent for a beat. He laughed through his nose. 

“I wasn’t running, I was…just, getting away. It’s different.” You tried to dismiss his prying questions, wanting nothing more than for Geraldine to bring you a heaping pile of mashed potatoes so you wouldn’t have to go on about your wasted adventure with a man you hardly knew from Adam. 

“But you left home for a reason, right?” He went on. “If people plan to move, they usually bring along more than a couple suitcases and their old wedding dress, Y/N. You’re telling me you left your makeup vanity and trunk and sofa at home?” 

Fuck. You didn’t wanna talk about this. 

When you stayed silent again, he laughed in satisfaction. “You were running.”

You leaned in close. “Look, if you want to know every detail of my life, you’re gonna have to do a little more than invite me to dinner, Daniel.” You spat. 

“What if I already planned to do a little more?” He inferred, sitting back against the booth and running his hand along his slicked-back hair. 

You choked back. “That’s an awfully forward thing to say to someone you just met.”

“I didn’t just meet you. I knew you in the first grade. And I know I was upset when you weren’t there to play kickball any more.” His eyes began scanning the windows again, jumping back and forth as he spoke. Your heart began racing at his words. 

“Why do you care, Danny? About what I’m doing here?” You asked, truly wanting to know. 

He shrugged, taking another draw of his smoke. “You seem like a fun little challenge. I like challenges. Mysteries. Cracking codes…”

You scoffed. “Well, you sure as hell ain’t cracking anything of mine.”

“Yeah? We’ll see about that one.” The side of his lips curled up as you caught onto his flirtation.  Danny let his smoke hang between his lips as he rubbed his hands together, his fingernails still dirty from the workday. 

You were simultaneously turned off and turned on by his strange way of coming on to you; you knew that was what he was doing, but in some odd way, it was charming. You felt safe with him, even if his way of flirting was nothing like anything you’d ever seen before. 

In the nick of time, Geraldine brought your plates over, setting them in front of you with harsh thuds. “Alright one sans peas, one extra peas. Refill of coffee, and I’ll be back in a bit to check on ya.” 

“Thank you, ma’am.” Danny muttered. 

You held his deep gaze as you unrolled your silverware from the tight napkin, and dug directly in to the mashed potatoes without hesitation. He licked his tongue across his teeth as he followed your motions. The two of you ate in silence, and you let yourself enjoy the hot meal in front of you, wondering if Danny would let you forgo the motorcycle ride, and just walk home. 

After a basically wordless and slightly awkward meal, Danny sat and watched as you finished off your coffee, still pushing a pea around the plate with the end of his fork. 

“Good pork chops, right?” He finally asked. 

“Might be the best ones I’ve ever had.” You replied honestly. But you had been so hungry, you might’ve thought shoe leather sounded appetizing had you waited any longer. That apple was long gone. 

“I wouldn’t steer you wrong.” He growled, another sly smile creeping to his face. He stretched his neck, the thin lines of the spider web tattoo bulging over his artery. “What are your plans for the night?”  

You placed your napkin and silverware on top of the empty plate, pushing it back a bit to fold your arms across the table. “Sleep.” 

“Well that doesn’t sound like any fun.” He laughed, and if you didn’t know him any better, you would’ve thought he really didn’t believe you. 

“What? That’s really all I’m doing…what else would I do?” You asked sternly. “I don’t know anyone, I don’t have a car, this podunk town doesn’t have much to offer, Danny.”

He sighed as he put his elbows on the table, the sleeves of the tight shirt pulling against his biceps. You took a second to glance at his arms, tanned and bronze from the sun. The black-lined and barely-colored tattoos that covered his arms instantly piqued your interest, but you couldn’t let him know you were looking. In your three-second glance, you noticed the set of dice on the inside of his wrist, some type of messy writing along the inside of his forearm, and a tiger’s face peeking out from under the short sleeve of his shirt. And that was only the few your mind comprehended. 

“You’re right. Ain’t much here. But it can be a good time if you know what you’re looking for.” He raised his eyebrow in question. 

You shook your head. “Not me, thanks. I’d rather not have my face hanging on missing posters around town next week.”

“Why would you say that?” He was taken back. 

“Because you haven’t stopped darting your eyes to the door and out the windows since we got here. Your body language is forcibly relaxed, you’re a little on edge, and I think you’re kind of paranoid. I don’t know why, but you don’t seem like you feel safe in your own town, Danny.” 

He huffed an exasperated laugh. “Of course I feel safe here, why would I live here if I didn’t?” He said defensively. 

“How did you know what room I was in?” You asked, craning your neck sideways. “Jake left before I checked in today. Did you ask Wanda so you could keep tabs on me?”

You clicked your tongue as his eyes bulged from his head at your words. “That’s what I thought. Oh, and you have a switchblade knife stuffed in your boot.”

“How do you know that?” He muttered. 

“Saw it when your pants hiked up when you got off the motorcycle.” You pushed the plate a little further back on the table, and grabbed your purse to make your way to the cash register. You pulled a few crumpled dollars from your wallet and tossed them onto the table. You stood and came to the edge of the booth, leaning down close to Danny’s face to whisper. “If I didn’t know any better, it’d seem that you’re the one who’s running, Danny.”

You gave him a displeased look and turned, snaking your way through the empty tables to pay Geraldine for your suppers. “Thank you, sweetie. Y’all have a good rest of your evenin…” Geraldine said as the cash register dinged closed. You gave Bubba another nod before making your way to the door. You glanced back to Danny, who was still sitting stunned in the wooden booth. 

“You takin’ me back to the motel, or what?”

——

This time, finding your balance on the motorcycle was easy, like you’d been doing it for a hundred years. Danny hadn’t said a word since you left the diner, only offering Bubba and Geraldine a quiet “goodnight”. You pressed your front against Danny’s back, leaning into him as you wrapped your hands around his lower abdomen and sturdied your feet behind his. You let the shyness from earlier drift away, feeling more confident now that you’d spoken your piece to Danny. 

As he picked up speed down the busted pavement, you let your mind wander a bit. 

Ha, he thought he had you pegged. Thought you were another dumb female he could trick into his bed. Pshh. Asking you your plans for the night… please. Though going back to your room alone sounded less than exciting now that your stomach was full. And you were more awake than ever…and he had kind of offered…

No. No way. You didn’t know Danny. 

‘It can be a good time if you know what you’re looking for…’

No. Horrible idea. Sleep. 

Shower, and sleep. 

Just as you made your mind up, you felt Danny’s hand run along the outside of your leg again. What is he doing? He wasn’t cautious, he was confident. Like the motion was the most natural thing he’d ever done. You could feel the heat from his hand radiating through the denim of your jeans, and though his touch was unwelcome, you let it happen. Why were you letting it happen?

He didn’t need to pull you forward into him like he had earlier, you were already pressed against him as far as you could get. You watched as his shoulder flexed as his arm reached back and down to your leg, his fingers gliding lightly over your thigh while he steered with his other hand. Shit, the heat of his touch…

You let your chest press into him just a little closer, and the contact made your nipples instantly stand at attention. Your choice to not wear a bra tonight was silently working against you. But damn, you couldn’t deny…this man was attractive. Very attractive. And you already couldn’t deny the physical chemistry between you, his hand so nonchalantly petting your thigh while his other gripped the handlebar. 

You felt him take a deep breath, his grip tightening on your leg muscle. You realized your other hand had been resting gently on his stomach, holding on tightly as he navigated the bumpy streets. In an act of pure confidence, you let your thumb drift a few inches down, and loop into the hem of his jeans, your other fingers gripping onto his leather belt. With your motion, his hand tightened again, his thumb swiping back and forth as he let his hand drift further back. 

Your mind was frenzied, suddenly your stomach felt tightly wound with an unknown and unwarranted anticipation. Danny removed his hand from your thigh, and kicked his right foot a couple times to shift the bike down. He gripped the bars and turned, and suddenly you were in front of your motel room door. Damn, you hadn’t even noticed you were here already. 

He pulled the kickstand down as he shut off the bike, and you quickly pulled your hand from the way-too-intimate place near his groin. He stood and stepped off the bike, and you followed behind. You cleared your throat as you resituated your purse on your shoulder, suddenly feeling exposed. You pulled your jacket over your chest, and reached into your bag to find the room key. 

“Thanks for the ride.” You purred. 

“Thanks for dinner, I was supposed to pay, you know. I invited you out…”

“No, no. It’s my pleasure, seeing as how you thought of me, and all.” You answered, making your way to unlock the old doorknob. You felt Danny follow behind, walking you to the door. He had shoved his hands in his pockets, and his closed-off demeanor returned, quite the opposite of the confidence he dripped on the bike. 

You unlocked the door and pushed it open, flicking on the light inside. Danny stood in the threshold as you dispensed your purse on the table. 

“You were right. I did ask Wanda what room you were in. And before you get freaked out, it wasn’t because I was trying to keep tabs on you. Not in the way you’re thinking, at least.” He said, glancing side to side down either way of the sidewalk before he stepped inside the room just a little. “Y/N, look. You’re right. This town can be dangerous. It ain’t a five-star city. There is a lot that goes on behind closed doors here. So yes, I wanted to know where you were because—”

“You want to keep an eye on me. I get it. I owe you and Jake money, still.” You quipped, unsure of how to feel about that. 

He nodded slowly, leaning his shoulder on the doorframe as he crossed his flexed arms. “Well, yes, but…It’s more for your well-being, Y/N. That’s all. There are some…shady creatures here.” He mumbled, stepping a little further inside. 

You slowly sat down on the bed, feeling the stiff mattress squeak beneath you. His steps were heavy as he came further inside, slowly, his eye contact making you feel like you were going to forget how to breathe. You leaned back on your arms, the gritty brown comforter rough under your fingertips. “Are you one of those…shady creatures?” You asked, barely above a whisper as you found him standing almost directly between your legs. 

He lifted his almost completely-inked hand and pushed away a tiny strand of hair that had fallen across your forehead, brushing it back to join the rest of your hair. Your heart rate picked up at his subtle touch, his calloused and dirty fingertips just barely grazing the side of your face. “Guess it depends on who you ask…” his words were slow, his bottom lip biting slowly into his mouth as he spoke. 

Your breath caught in your throat, and you instantly felt the same chemistry as earlier begin to ravage your body again. He was towering over you so close, your legs pressed apart by the outsides of his. His knees touched the edge of the bed, and you could tell his hands were arguing with his brain about touching you again. Somewhere. Anywhere. 

He pushed your hair back again, drifting his hand down your cheek and finally to your chin, his thumb and pointer working as a team to slowly crane your neck up to look him in the eyes. Your hands were begging you to rake your nails up underneath his tight t-shirt, just to get a feel of what was beneath it. But you didn’t. 

“You’re different, aren’t you, Y/N?” He finally whispered. 

“Mmm, what do you mean?” 

He furrowed his brow as he lightly squeezed your chin between his fingers, his eyes studying every detail of your face. 

“I dunno…you just have something about you. Can’t quite put my finger on it yet.” He bit his lip again. You felt a ragged breath escape your lungs, and you hoped to god your body language wasn’t reflecting how you felt right now. 

“But, I intend on figuring you out.” His thumb drifted up a bit, barely ghosting over your bottom lip. It took everything in you to not pull it into your mouth, reach your tongue out and taste him, but you stopped yourself. Can’t go there tonight, as much as you really wanted to. 

Against every coherent thought, your knees pressed in toward each other, searching for some type of relief, causing Danny’s body to move in a bit closer to you. A low laugh left his chest as he continued to brush his thumb over your lip, pressing a little harder when you made him fall into you. “A fuckin’ gem, aren’t you?” 

You swallowed, unsure how to answer. Or how to think, for that matter. This gorgeous man standing between your legs in your hotel room, you barely know him at all…but already you felt like you could grip the soft cotton of his t-shirt and yank him down into the bed beside you, and have your way with him until the sun came up. Because, what do you have to lose?

“Will have a ride for you tomorrow. Get some sleep.” He muttered, his eyelids hooded over his deep brown eyes as he peered down to you. You watched his Adams apple jerk as he swallowed, regaining the same composure you were begging yourself to find. He stepped back and turned to exit through the still-open door. “Lock this behind me.”

And before you could gather even the simplest thought, he was gone. 

—

You stood naked in front of the scratched and lopsided hanging mirror in the bathroom, waiting the long five minutes for the shower to heat, just as Wanda had said. Your skin was still flushed from the close intensity from Danny just a few short minutes ago, and your heart rate was just now slowing from the interaction. 

Shit. You aren’t supposed to feel these things…you just left Peter. You were on the search to enrich your life, go wild, not add drama and danger to it…

But, you had set out in search of an adventure, could this be it? Could this strange, gritty, already confusing mechanic be your ticket to letting loose? You’d never had those young years to explore yourself and sow your oats; Peter was one of your very first serious boyfriends ever, and one of only a handful of partners you’d had before that. Half of your mind was terrified from Danny’s words of warning, and the other half of you said fuck it, chase it. Why not? What do you honestly have to lose at this point? 

You stepped into the now steaming shower and began to suds up the plain white bar of soap that was wrapped up on the countertop. You let the hot streams of water calm your muscles and your nerves as you ran over the events of your crazy day. 

‘Will have a ride for you tomorrow…’ 

What did that mean? You chalked it up to he would probably be picking you up again in the morning to go back to the garage to give a down payment, or something. Either way, you’d wake up to a new day, and you were already hoping it’d be just as eventful as today. 

——

The growling sound of an engine outside the motel startled you from your daydream as you watched the picture on the television blur and scatter back and forth. A glance at your watch told you it was 10am exactly, and you walked to the peephole to see who had pulled up. 

It wasn’t the person you expected to see. You unlocked the door and swung it open, the still misty morning air chilling your face. 

“Jake, morning. What are you—”

“You ready to sign your quote? I’m ordering the parts today.” He interrupted as he slammed his truck door shut. 

“Yeah, yeah. Just let me grab my bag.” You stepped back inside, slightly confused; you fully expected to see Danny pull up on his motorcycle to whisk you away again. 

You stepped outside and locked the door behind you, and you and Jake both hopped up into the truck. Jake was silent again, and you were coming to realize he didn’t speak unless it was completely necessary, or unless spoken to. He was a man of few words, but you gathered that he probably wasn’t being outwardly rude, just was his nature to be quiet. You hoped, at least. 

He reached down and cranked his window, the air blowing his freshly-showered scent around in the cab of the truck. The scent of Brut after-shave tingled in your nose; you’d know that smell anywhere. It made you look his way, seeing that his skin was actually visible now that he wasn’t covered in grease and dirt. His hand gripped the tree, shifting it to third as his speed leveled out on the road. 

His hands were completely covered in tattoos just like Danny’s were, and they crawled up his wrist and forearm, all the way to his shoulder and into his neck. His cutoff t-shirt exposed his chest and side, also covered in a swirling piece of art that was laced with deep reds and blues. There were hundreds of them. And you were willing to bargain that each and every one had a story. 

His ever-present cigarette hung between his lips as he stayed focused on the road, his shoulder length locks whipping around in the wind. You hadn’t seen him like this yet…clean, natural, and normal. His demeanor was the same as it was yesterday, straightforward and no-nonsense. 

“That’s yours, if you want it.” He gestured between you on the bench seat, pointing to a large biscuit wrapped up in wax paper. “I couldn’t eat two.”

“Oh, that’s nice of you. Thanks.” You began to unwrap it and tear off little pieces, bringing them shyly to your mouth. “Didn't poison it, did you?” 

He huffed what you think was a laugh through his nose. “No. If you died I’d have to steal the part money from your purse, and I don’t want to do that.” Was that his attempt at a joke?

You giggled, again unsure how to take him. 

“Where’s Danny? I figured he’d be the one scooping me up after last night.” You asked, taking another bite of biscuit. 

His head shot your way, his eyes narrowed. “Last night?”

“Yeah, he picked me up on his bike, we got some food at Louie’s. Said he’d be back today.” Now that you thought about it, he never actually said he would be the one picking you up, just that there would be a ride for you here today. 

“Ah, so he took you on a date.” Jake muttered, his voice low again over the radio. 

“No, it wasn’t a date. He just invited me to eat with him. Knew I shouldn’t walk through town to get food by myself. He was being thoughtful.” You suddenly felt defensive of Danny. 

“Thoughtful. So, a date.” Jake responded, blowing smoke out the window before flicking the cigarette onto the road. 

“So what if it was?” You decided to play along. “What would it matter?” 

He shook his head with a mock laugh. “Danny is a nice guy, but he doesn’t take women on dates. That I can assure you.” 

You felt offended. “So, what, just a one night stand kind of guy?” 

Jake let a one-syllable laugh fall from his lips as he raised his eyebrows, shifting back down to make the tight turn up the hill to the shop. “Guess you could say that.” 

Why was he always so vague? 

Just as you were nearing the shop, Jake reached his arm across the bench seat and across your lap, leaning almost all the way onto you to crank the window all the way down. He rolled the handle quickly, his bicep muscle flexing hard right in front of your eyes. 

“Oh, sorry, I could have done that–” you sputtered. 

“It’s a son of a bitch to roll, requires a little bit of elbow grease.” He said before throwing the truck in park and shutting off the engine. “I’ve got your paperwork ready, all you have to do is sign for the total and put half down. Rest will be due when it’s fixed.”

He was halfway out of the truck and still talking, so you clambered your way out, too, to make sure you caught the tail end of what he was saying. The two of you walked into the shop, vehicles already pulled into the bay with the hoods popped. Loud music was coming from an old radio on a high shelf, an old Johnny Cash song bouncing off the walls. 

“Daniel, can you please turn that fucking shit down? Jesus Christ!” Jake yelled. 

You watched as Danny’s curls emerged out from underneath an old Cadillac, his feet pushing him out as he laid on a creeper. He gave you a quick tiny smile when you made upside-down eye contact. 

“When you open the shop on time and get in here when you’re fuckin’ supposed to, maybe I’ll consider your goddamn propositions, Jake. I mean shit, we live here.” He rolled all the way out and stood from the creeper, watching as Jake slowly ascended the old metal stairs on the side of the building. “I’ve been the only one here since fuckin’ 7:00. Why the fuck would I turn my music down if I’m the only one getting my fuckin’ hands dirty?” Danny spat. 

You looked up onto the lofted area of the shop, watching as Jake topped the steps and walked across, flipping Danny the bird from above before looking to you and switching his middle finger to his pointer, signaling for you to ‘come here’, and follow him up the stairs. 

You hopped into action, making your way to the staircase to follow Jake to the top. When you got up there, you looked around to find this was the office area. Tons and tons of old papers stacked away in messy piles, collecting dust and dirt. Boxes that held forgotten parts, shelves filled to the brim with old 3-ring binders, dusty photos on the wall, and in the center of it all, an old wooden desk with a chair that had seen better days. You watched as Jake pulled the string hanging from a single fluorescent light, plopping into the chair as the light buzzed to life. 

He pulled on a pair of thin wired readers, peering down to a ledger that looked similar to the one Wanda took your room reservation in. He was fingering through a parts manual and double checking his work on a calculator, so you took a second to look at a few of the black and white photos hanging framed on the wall. 

One, a larger photo, hung right in the middle of the rest. It was a man in a white tank top, dirty as can be, a pair of old slacks pulled up to his belly button. He was leaned with his back against an old black Chevelle, a cigarette hanging from his lips. He wasn’t smiling, just standing stoically with his arms crossed across his chest. He looked strikingly exactly like Jake, except the photo must have been taken when the man was a bit older than Jake is now. 

“Jake, this man looks just like you…is he—”

“Was. My father, yes.” He said, voice flat. 

“Handsome…” you muttered. “Was this his shop before it was yours?” 

He nodded, still looking to his ledger. “Yeah. Ace.”

You pulled your eyes from the photo, walking slowly back to the desk. “Ace…Ace’s garage. How long has he…been gone?” You wanted to put the words right back into your mouth as soon as they left it. It wasn’t any of your business. 

“He died the day before my eighteenth birthday. You wanna come sign here?” Jake said, extending a pen out for you. 

Damn, Jake. That’s heavy. 

You walked over to take a look at the estimate, seeing that the price was actually not as much as you thought it would be. “So half now, half when it’s done?” You reiterated, signing your name across the slip of paper. 

“Yep.” He responded shortly. 

You reached into your purse and pulled out the white envelope of your cash, counting it out in hundreds and fifties. As you slowly counted out loud, you took special care to run your fingers over the stiff new bills, making sure none stuck together. In the middle of them all was an old fifty dollar bill, a giant red “X” drawn across the President’s face. 

“Someone didn’t like Grant, I guess.” You laughed, trying to break the awkward silence as he watched you count. 

When you were finally finished, you gathered the bills up and handed them to Jake in a nice neat stack. “Thanks.” He said, taking the cash and stuffing it in a till box before shoving it in a safe. 

“Thank you. Hey, think I could use your restroom really quickly?” You asked, feeling like your bladder was about to burst with shitty motel room coffee. 

He threw his glasses down onto the table and pulled the light off, giving you a funny look before leading you back toward the stairs again. “Only bathroom here is mine and Danny’s, probably ain’t the cleanest.” He said as he quickly jumped down the steps. 

“It’s no problem.” You answered. How bad could it be?

He led you underneath the loft and through a door, into a dark hallway with multiple doors. “Last one on the left.” Jake hit the wall with his palm before walking back into the bay. 

This must be the part they live in. As you passed by the other doors, one was closed, and the other was cracked open to reveal what looked to be a messy bedroom. A mattress on the floor covered in disheveled blankets, liquor bottles on the makeshift nightstand, and clothes strewn about. 

When you finally reached the bathroom door, what you found inside was nothing short of disgusting. Although he had warned you…

One light bulb hanging from the ceiling, the sink full of hair and stained black from the grease off their hands, a completely black toothpaste tube that didn’t have a lid, flattened toothbrushes that were missing half of their bristles…

The list went on as you looked around in utter disgust. Men are so gross.  You were positive the place had never been cleaned. 

You swallowed and held your breath as you opened the broken toilet lid, finding it less-than-desirable with a ring in the bowl. You shuddered at what you were about to do, but if you didn’t pee right now you were going to have to resort to the woods out back. Would probably be cleaner out there, actually…but at least there is toilet paper. 

You tried not to think too hard about it as you quickly relieved yourself, using a small piece of toilet paper to touch the lever handle to flush. 

“Ew ew ew ew.” You mumbled, deciding to not even wash your hands at the risk of dirtying them further. But even if you had, your drying options were toilet paper or their stained to hell bath towels hanging over the rod.

You were entirely grossed out, and decided to get back out to the bay as soon as you could. You flicked the light switch and reentered the hallway, noticing that the closed door across the way was opening at the same time. 

To your surprise, a woman emerged from the room, slowly closing the door behind her. She had to be about ten years your senior, at least. 

“Hey, Sug.” She murmured, rubbing sleep from her eyes. When she turned to face you, you noticed what she was wearing. 

Danny’s black Ford Motors t-shirt he had on last night. 

Your stomach dropped, suddenly it hit you exactly why he wasn’t the one picking you up this morning. 

You gave her a tight smile and a simple “Good morning” as her keys jingled in her hand. Her makeup was definitely left over from last night, and she was carrying a pair of red high heels. 

“I haven’t seen you ‘round here before…” she said, her voice still raspy with sleep. 

“Oh, I’m…I’m a customer. They’re fixing my car. Just was…using the restroom.” You explained. 

“Oh honey, no one’s ever just a customer…” She winked, before leading the two of you back out into the bay. 

Whose room did she just come from?

—

JAKE POV

Fuck this god damn piece of shit Chevrolet. 

Two weeks you’ve been working on this fuckin’ truck, and in those two weeks you had gotten barely anything accomplished with rebuilding the motor. And now you had another to do on top of it.

Isn’t it supposed to be Fords that have engine trouble? American muscle my ass. They’re all shit. 

You stepped up onto the step ladder and peered back down into the belly of your newest arch-nemesis, cursing at its guts with every turn of your wrench. You look down to the floor spitting before turning your attention back under the hood.

Come on Ace. What is wrong with this son of a bitch? Help me out…

You glanced over to Danny, watching as he walked outside to empty his stomach again after the late night he’d had. Out all night drinking with his latest piece, stumbling back into the shop at 3am. Then he was back up at 7? You weren’t sure where he got his stamina…maybe he just didn’t sleep at all. 

As you compiled the list of parts you’d need for Y/N’s engine last night, Danny swung by your office to tell you he was leaving, only to peer over your shoulder and see her name at the top of the Quote sheet.

“She’s a fuckin’ smokeshow…” 

“Can you please try not to sleep with this one? She seems like a decent human being… You don’t have to sleep with all of them you know.” you’d joked. 

“Jesus, Jake. I’m not that bad of a person. Cut me some slack. Just cause you haven’t gotten laid in few months doesn’t mean you have to shit on me…”

You’d pushed up from your chair and slammed your hands into his shoulders, pushing him back against the wall behind you, but his height was no match for you. 

“Fuck you, Daniel. Just…listen to me. I saw her making eyes at you…Don’t fuck this up for us.” you said. 

“Did you really?” You’d watched as his gears began to turn. “What was her room number?”

“I don’t fuckin’ know, Danny. You’re not going to her motel. Just leave her be.” You tried your best to warn him nicely. “Like you told me, she’s a paying customer. We need her to pay us…”

He sighed when he realized. “Shit. You’re right, damnit. Okay, okay. I won’t go.”

But, from the conversation you had with Y/N on the ride in this morning, you realized the fucker lied to you. He went anyway and she was clearly all about it. 

You wanted to warn her. You tried to tell her that Danny was a one night stand type, that he didn’t wine and dine like the regular guy would, but apparently she didn’t listen, either.  

As a bolt finally popped loose, it fell into the engine, tipping you over the edge of insanity.

Fuck! This! Truck!

You jumped off of the ladder and went over to the fridge under the loft, grabbing a cold Budweiser from the dirty shelf. You held the neck of the amber bottle on the edge of your toolbox, smashing your fist down on the lid, effectively popping it off. You tilted it back, letting the cold beverage run down your throat as you swallowed. Nothing like a breakfast beer. 

Just then, you heard the shop door close and two sets of footsteps making their way out. All you could do was watch as the perfect storm brewed right in front of your eyes. How the fuck was he gonna explain this one... Y/N, Danny, and whoever his woman of the night was, all waltzing into the middle of the bay at the exact same time. As you caught sight of the woman you let out a scoff. 

Fuck, Danny. 

Tanya. The woman that lived in that house down on Robertson, hardly any personality at all, great tits, and apparently she was a panther in bed. Or so you’d heard. She was nice enough, and Danny always ended up bringing her around every couple of months. You didn’t dislike her, but you sure as hell didn’t want to be her friend, either. You didn’t trust her as far as you could throw her, and last you heard, she was involved with some folks you didn’t need to be associating with. 

You paused with your beer in hand, sticking the other in your pocket as you watched the scene unfold. Your fingers twirled around a lug nut as your eyes followed Tanya, walking directly up to Daniel, wrapping her long skinny arms around his neck, and pulling him in for one last long, and especially involved, goodbye kiss. This wasn’t her typical goodbye, and you knew she was marking her territory in front of Y/N. Which is why you laughed, knowing that she wouldn’t hear from Daniel for at least a month. However, it wasn’t lost on you, the tense nature of Daniel’s body as she kissed him. His eyes open wide and looking across the bay towards Y/N.

Your eyes drifted directly to Y/N, watching as her face fell into utter disbelief. Her jaw fell slack for a second before she clamped it shut again, obviously feeling something unexpected from the sight in front of her. Whatever little daydream she had dreamed up between the two of them had all just come crashing down.

You noticed she suddenly felt out of place, bringing her embarrassed eyes to meet yours in question. You smirked, raising an eyebrow as you sipped your beer as smugly as you could. You shrugged your shoulders and raised your beer bottle in the air towards her as you watched her face flame red.

Hate to say I told ya so, baby. 

—

HER POV

You have got to get out of here. 

But where the hell are you gonna go?

You let your feet carry you out the bay garage door out into the heat of the day, wanting to be anywhere but inside that damn building right now. Why did it matter? Why did you care?

The moment you and Danny shared last night was anything but fantastic, but it was still there. It was intimate, though he had done nothing but skim his fingertips across your face. 

You didn’t care. It’s no big deal. 

But why did he look at you while he kissed her? And why was Jake so amused by it?

You stomped across the dirt parking lot to your Scout, flinging the door open to dig around and find anything that could offer up a distraction. You unzipped a suitcase, finding all of your clothing still neatly folded and tucked away. Underneath a pair of old ratted bell bottoms, you pulled out your ticket to diversion from Danny for the rest of the day: Maya Angelou’s complete collection of poems. 

Perfect. 

The book was worn around the edges, you had read it so much as a kid. You practically had every poem memorized. 

After replacing your folded clothing neatly back in the suitcase, you decided you had to make your way back inside at some point…you knew they had a full workday ahead, and it would be rude to ask for a ride back to the motel at this point. 

You slammed the door shut, shielding your eyes from the bright sun directly above. The shadowy silhouette of Tanya was walking toward you as you walked toward the building, still barefoot and wobbly as she crept across the dirt and gravel toward the road. You swallowed hard, knowing an interaction was unavoidable at this point. 

“Catch ya around, sweetcheeks.” She said as your paths crossed. She let her body come close to yours, her shoulder bumping into your chest as she stumbled. “And just so ya know, the tall, dark, and handsome one?” She pointed her finger tip into her own chest. “Mine. Got it, Iowa?”

You snarled your nose up to her at her display; you could still smell the liquor on her breath from last night. Her eyes were hazed and obviously still high on whatever it was she was doing the night before. 

“No worries on my end.” You said blankly, wanting to get the hell away from her while simultaneously wanting to punch her in the face for assuming you wanted Danny. 

You kept walking past her back into the shop, walking on the other side of the truck Jake was working on to stay as far away from Danny as you could. You didn’t want to risk him noticing that you even cared. 

You sat down in one of the ratty, dirty lawn chairs alongside the wall where Jake was working, getting as comfortable as you could before opening your book. You wanted to get lost in the words, letting them bring you back down to earth in a way only poetry could. 

You glanced to Danny as he stepped up on the wall of shelves on his side of the bay, reaching high above his head to turn the knob on his radio up to a higher volume. He hopped down, a giant cheesing smile across his face as ‘Fortunate Son’ blared from the speaker. Jake slowly raised his head from under the hood of the truck, shaking it from side to side as he stared Danny down. You realized then that’s why Danny put his stereo up so high, so that Jake physically couldn’t reach it. 

You flipped the pages of your book for the next half hour or so, letting Maya’s words take you to another planet entirely. You listened to the sounds of their socket wrenches and power tools as they worked away, providing a surprisingly relaxing background sound. 

“Whatcha reading?” Jake’s voice was barely audible over the loud noises around you. You closed the book cover, holding your fingers between the pages to keep your spot. 

“Maya Angelou’s poems. Kinda corny, I know. But–”

“The caged bird sings with fearful trill

of the things unknown but longed for still

and his tune is heard on the distant hill

for the caged bird sings of freedom.”

Your jaw fell open as Jake finished reciting Maya’s most famous poem to a tee, not faltering over any word and pausing at the most perfect times for the poem to hold its structure. 

He hadn’t pulled his focus away from what he was doing until he realized you didn’t respond, then grinned a smile so big it made your heart stop. 

“How did you…? You know Ms. Angelou?”

“My mom loved her. Read me her poems as a kid before I could even walk. I don’t remember the sound of my mom’s voice, but those words stuck with me.” He said, only glancing up to you every few words as he kept focused. 

You were floored. This was not something you expected from Jake, let alone for him to open up about his explanation as to why he knew of her work. You felt a warmth in your stomach…maybe there was something sweet under his tough exterior after all. 

After a bit, the shop telephone started ringing. You looked to both of the guys as they worked, realizing neither of them even noticed it was ringing. Maybe the phone doesn’t work? A couple minutes later, it started again, ringing and ringing off the hook for so long the shrillness started to irritate your ears. 

“Do you want me to go get that, or what?” You asked. Jake scoffed an exasperated sigh, hopping backwards off his step stool as he pulled his red towel from his back pocket of his coveralls. He wiped his hands as best he could as he rushed up the steps to answer it. 

You glanced to Danny, watching as he leaned over the hood of the car he was working on, wiping the sweat off his brow with the back of his arm. You hadn’t made eye contact or spoken since Tanya left a while ago, and you had to admit, it pissed you off a little. After last night’s…moment… he at least owed you something, right? 

Once he noticed Jake was all the way upstairs, he confidently walked over your way, twirling his own towel in his hands. “You gonna let me buy you lunch today?” He asked. 

“Why should I do that?” You answered blankly, not looking up from your book. 

“Because I’m hungry, I know you’re hungry, and you bought dinner. It’s only fair.” He was so matter of fact. 

“Are you not meeting back up with Miss Red High Heels for lunch today?” Shit. Your attitude ended up getting the better of you. 

“Who, Tanya?” He asked, pointing his thumb behind him. “Fuck, no. She’s just–”

“A good lay?” You inquired, pulling your eyes up to him finally, flicking your eyelashes in the most sarcastic way you could. 

He let his arms fall to his sides in defeat. “Listen, Y/N. Just let me take you to lunch, please? I promise I’ll be the perfect gentleman.” He finished the end of his sentence with a smirk and a wink, instantly making your insides swirl. What the hell is he doing to you?

“Alright, I guess. But only because I’m hungry, not because I want to hang out with you.” You gave him a side smile as you agreed. 

You watched as he leaned his elbows down on the side panel of the truck Jake was working on, resting his chin in his hand. 

“Mmm, I bet you do want to hang out with me though, especially if you let me a little further into your motel room after…”

“We gotta close up.” Suddenly Jake was bounding down the stairs, his steps heavy as he barrelled toward you and Danny. “Close it up, let’s go.” He slammed the hood of the truck down as soon as Danny had backed off of it enough. 

You stood from your chair in surprise. “Why, what’s wrong?”

You watched as Danny shoved his towel into his pocket, his expression immediately turning into alarm. 

“Fuck, was it Teddy on the phone?” He asked Jake as he ran around, closing the lid on his tool box and wheeling it under the loft. 

“Yeah, it was fuckin’ Teddy. Hurry up.” Jake hastily walked to the bay door, pulling on the long chain to lower the large garage doors down to the ground with a slam. 

“What’s going on? Who is Teddy?” You asked in a panic as they ran around you like chickens with their heads cut off. 

Danny closed all the doors on the vehicles in the bay, and threw a large black tarp over the motorcycle he had propped up on a block. They tossed all the rogue tools into the appropriate boxes, shutting the lids as they did so. 

What the fuck is going on?!

Anxiety began to creep into your chest as you watched them rush around in a panic. 

After a few minutes of fury, they met in the middle of the bay, in a fit of panted exhaustion and sweaty skin. They stood with their hands on their hips, looking around the shop. Jake pulled his Lucky Strikes from his pocket, nervously lighting one up with a zippo he pulled from his pocket. 

“Fuck!” He muttered as the smoke left his lungs. “Did we miss anything?” He asked Danny rhetorically. 

“No, how long do we have? Do they want a game?”

“Yeah, they want a fuckin’ game. They’ll be here at sunset. Shit.” Jake answered, both of their eyes still darting around in shifted motions. 

Finally, at the same time, their eyes landed on you standing before them in complete and utter shock. 

“Have her help you set up, then take her back to my bedroom. Lock the door.” Jake finally commanded Danny. 

“No, are you fuckin’ stupid? I’m taking her back to the motel, she’ll be safe there.” Danny argued. 

“No, god damnit! She’s staying here where we can keep an eye on her, the last thing we need is fucking free collateral, Danny. She stays here and hides.”

“Hides?! Wait, what the fuck–” your heart began pounding. 

“If she’s here, they’ll know we’re hiding something, Jake! They aren’t stupid! If she’s back at the motel at least she’s far enough away—” Danny was raising his voice to Jake now in opposition, their chests almost touching as they spat in each other’s faces. 

“Daniel, are you fuckin’ mental? You know Wanda isn’t trustworthy anymore. And Tanya was just here! You know Bubba found out who she’s been hanging around. And she saw Y/N! You think it’s a coincidence that two hours later, we get a call from Teddy?! Are you fuckin’ stupid?” Jake slammed a screwdriver across the floor, letting it bounce and glide across the concrete until it hit the wall. He stepped away from Danny, walking toward the back of the bay to continue what he was doing. 

“I told you to stay away from that fucking crowd, and what did you do? Bring one of them back with you to fuck into the mattress all night.” Jake yelled, and you watched as Danny lurched his way toward him. 

But before Danny could make it, Jake turned and held his elbow out, catching Danny’s body across the chest. “Don’t fucking come up on me like that Daniel, I swear to god. Go set up the fucking table, or get the fuck out of my shop. Take your pick.” Jake spat into his face. 

Danny begrudgingly backed away, his hands balled into fists. “I’m not leaving you here alone.” 

Jake’s demeanor instantly softened. “You better fucking not.” He mumbled, licking his lips. Jake motioned with his eyes for Danny to retreat to the back, just like he had asked. 

Danny breezed past you as he walked, catching your arm and pulling you along as he did so. 

“Come on, need your help.” He muttered. 

You ripped your arm from his grasp, flinging it away with as much force as you could muster. 

“Danny! Tell me what the hell is going on or I am leaving!” You yelled in his face, purely enraged that they were leaving you 100% out of the picture, while deciding what to do with you. 

He sighed, eyes darting around again. “I promise you, I will explain everything soon. And I promise, I will take you on that lunch date.” His hand came up and brushed your elbow, while the other pulled your hair away from your face. His touch was so gentle, while he had just been seconds away from a brawl with Jake. His eyes bored deep into yours, somehow soft while yours were filled with fear. 

“We’re gonna keep you safe. I’m not gonna let anything happen to you, you hear me?” He was gripping hard at your shoulders now, talking like he was hyping himself up instead of you. “I need you to trust me. Do you trust me?”

“Danny… I–I don’t even know you…” you mumbled, your fight or flight beginning to kick in as the sounds of Jake banging loud things together in the bay echoed off the walls. 

“Yeah you do, you know me. You knew me a long time ago.” His eyes shot to Jake again, still loudly throwing tools into containers. Suddenly his face was close to yours, his grip on your arms now almost an embrace. 

“I’m not a bad guy, Y/N. I swear I’m not. I’m just…” he winced as he searched for the words. “Listen, I like you, and even though you’ve only been around a day or two, you’ve been the only thing on my mind since the minute you pulled up at the shop, okay? You...you make me nervous. And people don’t make me nervous.” He licked his lips as his hands gripped the sides of your head. “But right now, I’m asking you to trust me. If not completely, just until tomorrow, okay? Please?” He pleaded. 

Fuck, did you have a choice?

You threw all caution to the wind as your mind fought against every red flag presenting itself. You nodded quickly. “Okay. Okay, shit.” you finally agreed. 

Danny’s expression fell straight to relief as he gripped his large, grease-covered hands over yours, pulling you back to their living quarters in a hurry. 

“Then let’s go. We don’t have much time.”

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[simmerlibby]

TS4: Generational Ties Challenge

Hello everyone! My name is Libby, and I’ve been an avid player of The Sims 4 for six years, starting when I was just 14. Now at 20, I’ve accumulated approximately 7500 hours delving into the vibrant world of The Sims 4 – yes, that’s quite a marathon! My passion for the game inspired me to craft a challenge that mirrors the way I play. I’m thrilled to share this challenge with you and would love to see your gameplay experiences, so please feel free to post any screenshots of your journey!

Generation 1: The Valiant Guardian

In the heart of StrangerVille, you stand as a symbol of steadfastness and dedication. Your readiness to engage with the StrangerVille Mystery is a testament to your deep-rooted love for kin and country. With your loyal dog by your side and a sense of brotherhood that strengthens your resolve, you are set to unravel the enigmas, embodying the spirit of unity and determination in every step of this intriguing adventure.

Generation 1’s Traits

• Bro: This Sim is all about camaraderie and brotherhood. They’re the one everyone counts on, always ready with a joke or a helping hand.

• Dog Lover: A loyal dog at their side, this Sim understands the unspoken bond between human and pet, nurturing a friendship that’s as steadfast as their spirit.

• Active: For this Sim, fitness transcends a mere pastime; it’s ingrained in their very existence. Constantly active, they embrace each day with a jog at dawn or a spontaneous exercise routine.

Generation 1’s Aspiration

StrangerVille Mystery: Motivated by a desire to safeguard their family, they are resolute in uncovering the hidden dangers that lurk within the town.

Generation 1’s Career

Military: In uniform, they serve with distinction, embodying the courage and resolve that are the hallmarks of their character, driven by a deep commitment to the ideals of unity and protection that resonate within them.

Goals for Generation 1

• StrangerVille Savior: Uncover the secrets of StrangerVille, completing the mystery that shrouds the town.

• Military Ascension: Climb to the top of the military ranks, showcasing unparalleled dedication and valor.

• Nomadic Legacy: Relocate your family three times, each move marking the birth of a new family member and a new chapter in your legacy.

• Peak Condition: Excel in the Fitness skill, ensuring you are in prime physical condition, and master the Dog Training skill, which mirrors the strong bond with your devoted canine friend.

Generation 2: The Family's Keeper

As the eldest child and the unifying force among their siblings, this Sim has known a life of constant change. From one base to another, they’ve gathered a mosaic of experiences but yearned for the one thing that eluded them: stability. Now, with a worldliness that belies their years, they seek to create a steadfast home—a sanctuary where roots can delve as deep as their love for family, and where their children can soar to new heights, nurtured by the legacy of excellence and the strength of their shared bonds.

Generation 2’s Traits

• Neat: This Sim is the epitome of order and cleanliness, finding peace in the meticulous care of their surroundings.

• Family-Oriented: Family is the anchor of this Sim’s life, and every action is infused with love and dedication to their kin.

• Loves the Outdoors: Their backyard, a personal sanctuary, resonates with their deep love for nature, offering solace in the gentle whispers of the wind and the soothing rustle of leaves.

Generation 2’s Aspiration

Super Parent: Embracing the heart of family life, they are the guiding force in their children’s lives. With every action, they shape a future of kindness, discipline, and love, ensuring their legacy thrives through the character values they instill.

Generation 2’s Career

Freelancer: Adapting to the flexibility of a freelance career, this Sim tailors a life that bends with their family’s needs, aligning seamlessly with their values and aspirations.

Goals for Generation 2

• Scholastic Excellence: Guide all children to achieve A+ grades and engage in extracurricular activities, fostering a legacy of academic and personal growth.

• Super Parent: Achieve the Super Parent Aspiration by fostering a home where love, learning, and guidance are the cornerstones, empowering the next generation to continue the family’s enduring legacy.

• Siblings’ Keeper: Maintain a close-knit relationship with each sibling, making it a priority to visit them at least once every week to preserve the enduring connection of the family.

• Skilful Steward: Achieve expertise in both Gardening and Handiness to craft a home that is not only sturdy but also warm and inviting.

Generation 3: The Free Spirit

In the pulsing heart of San Myshuno, where the city’s rhythm beats incessantly, resides a Sim who has boldly navigated their own path. Eschewing a legacy steeped in academic excellence and the weight of family expectations, they have chosen the unassuming role of a Salaryperson. And now, as they navigate the complexities of an unexpected pregnancy, they find their resolve and desire for autonomy more vital than ever, affirming their commitment to live life strictly on their own terms.

Generation 3’s Traits

• Nosy: This Sim’s inquisitive nature stems from a childhood with little privacy, leading to a blurred understanding of personal space.

• Outgoing: This Sim’s sociability is a response to their sheltered upbringing, seeking out friendships that offer the peer connection they’ve always craved.

• Cat Lover: Their feline companion is their confidant, the one “child” they’ve always wanted.

Generation 3’s Aspiration

City Native: As a city native, San Myshuno is not just their home but their playground, a stark contrast to their homebody parent’s lifestyle.

Generation 3’s Career

Salaryperson: This Sim enjoys the simplicity of a straightforward desk job, which provides the financial stability they need to embrace a free-spirited lifestyle amidst the vibrant hustle and bustle of city life.

Goals for Generation 3

• Unexpected Parenthood: Experience an unforeseen pregnancy and maintain a distant relationship with your child, emphasizing independence over intimacy.

• Wellness Whisperer: Master the Wellness skill with your cat for serene, solo rejuvenation. This pursuit of personal well-being is your path to a harmonious life, shared quietly with your purring companion.

• Urban Explorer: Fulfill the City Native Aspiration by immersing yourself in the rich tapestry of experiences that San Myshuno presents, from it’s towering skyscrapers to it’s colorful street markets.

• Spice District Settler: Embrace the vibrant life in a cozy apartment in San Myshuno’s Spice District, your home until you reach the wise age of an Elder.

Generation 4: The Artful Heart

In the ceaseless rhythm of San Myshuno, a Sim forges their destiny with bold strokes of creativity. An Art Lover, shaped by the absence of a parent, finds solace and expression in the canvas’s embrace. Their heart, a mosaic of passion and yearning, seeks a Soulmate to fill the void and share in the vibrant tapestry of city life. As a Painter or Freelance Artist, they channel their deepest dreams into art, crafting each piece as a beacon for the one who will complete their world.

Generation 4’s Traits

• Art Lover: This Sim discovers inspiration and allure in each color and brushstroke, igniting their creative spirit.

• Creative: As a wellspring of imagination, they not only breathe life into their art but also harbor an earnest desire to share their creative expressions with the world, transforming the vast expanse of our shared reality into a canvas that reflects the depth and vibrancy of their artistic vision.

• Romantic: Hopelessly devoted to the pursuit of love, they dream of a muse to revel in the rich splendor of life’s palette.

Generation 4’s Aspiration

Soulmate: With a heart yearning to fill the void left by an absent parent, this Sim seeks a love profound enough to complete their life’s tapestry of passion.

Generation 4’s Career

Painter or Freelance Artist: Blending their fervent passion with a clear vision, they masterfully wield the brush to encapsulate the emotions of life, creating a portfolio that forges a profound connection through the artful canvas.

Goals for Generation 4

• Family Expansion: Embrace the vibrant tapestry of family life, as you welcome the laughter and energy of at least four children into your heart and home.

• Soulmate Aspiration: Embark on a heartfelt quest to fulfill the Soulmate Aspiration, weaving the threads of romance and art into a bond that completes your life’s masterpiece.

• Painting Skill Mastery: Elevate your craft to new heights, achieving mastery in Painting that reflects your deep commitment and artistic prowess.

• Celebrity Status: Ascend to the echelons of fame, securing a three-star celebrity status that honors your exceptional and widely acclaimed paintings.

Generation 5: The Environmental Visionary

Inheriting your family’s legacy, you stand at the crossroads of personal ambition and a commitment to meaningful change. Whether as a Politician or an Eco Innovator, your dedication to crafting a sustainable future is steadfast. With charisma and a heart attuned to the environment, your leadership is a tribute to the creative spirit instilled by your parent, who honed your need to make a difference in the world. Your home stands as a sanctuary, echoing the enduring legacy you’re advancing, and sparking inspiration for generational transformation. Each of your actions crafts a narrative of hope, laying the groundwork for a brighter, greener tomorrow.

Generation 5’s Traits

• Ambitious: This Sim is passionately committed to scaling the summits of success, not just for personal glory but as a homage to their forebears’ aspirations. They are steadfast in their pursuit to forge a legacy that will pave the way for a brighter, more sustainable future for all ensuing generations.

• Outgoing: With a magnetic charm, they draw others into their grand vision for the future.

• Green Fiend: In homage to their heritage, they possess an innate talent for fostering growth, whether in the garden or within the bonds of kinship.

Generation 5’s Aspiration

Master Maker: This Sim is motivated to create a future that marries innovation with environmental stewardship, galvanizing a network of creators to build a world that is both sustainable and brilliantly inventive.

Generation 5’s Career

Politician or Civil Designer: Whether shaping society through policy or protecting the planet, their career reflects a commitment to leaving a lasting impact.

Goals for Generation 5

• Skill Mastery: Attain proficiency in Fabrication and Logic, exemplifying a synthesis of innovative creation and thoughtful reasoning.

• Aspiration Achievement: Fulfill the Master Maker aspiration, steering both family and community towards a future of innovative sustainability and collective creativity.

• Family Reunions: Host three gold-level Family Reunions, celebrating the unity and achievements of the generations.

• Career Accomplishment: Complete either the Politician or Eco Innovator career, driving change and leaving a sustainable mark on the world.

[deconstructthesoup]

Decided to finally revisit my Fantasy High class swap AU, Closer To Fine, and I've ironed out their journey to fit with Junior Year:

Riz: Stays a School of Illusion wizard throughout the story, though his thing of being a wizard in part to prove a point comes to a head in JY, when he's the only person in class who doesn't have the money to afford spell components---and he also has to worry about scholarships on top of that. Not only is he joining every school activity, but he's also doing whatever job will take him, and he's definitely stretching himself too thin.

Adaine: Stays a College of Creation bard throughout the story, but she does take two levels of wizard in JY due to her finally accepting that she's the Oracle---not the Elven Oracle, just the Oracle. (Adaine's Furious Fist is a bard and wizard spell in this story, btw!) She also struggles with inspiration and writing songs due to how stressful school has become---not to mention, she also has to worry about her own financial troubles---which leads to her both falling behind in class and having a hard time with her label. Knowing that she's a bard and has Fig's fame in this story, I figured it would be interesting to balance learning how to be a kid after leaving a shitty situation with the pressures of being in the public eye, especially when you're still struggling with anxiety.

Fabian: Stays a Swashbuckler rogue throughout the story, but becomes a Fiend/Pact of the Blade warlock in Sophomore Year after he meets Bill in Hell. His arc in JY is about how he's struggling to balance wanting to make his own name for himself while still showing his father that he's beginning to appreciate what he did for him, and his warlock pact and powers reflect that---his spells are more unpredictable if he's feeling in conflict with Bill, and they're easier to manage when Fabian thinks that he's doing something that'll make Bill proud... and yeah, he definitely feels some self-esteem issues when his spells get better the more he acts like a Seacaster. I always love it when a warlock's patron is their estranged parent.

Gorgug: Starts out as an Eldritch Knight fighter in Freshman Year, switches up to be a Samurai fighter in Sophomore Year after he reconnects with his birth parents and stops letting his fear of not being good enough get in the way of what he does, and multiclasses into a College of Valor bard in the middle of Sophomore Year with Adaine's help. His JY arc was harder to figure out, since the canon one is so specific to him being a Barbarian/Artificer, but I decided that it's still about him learning how to be his own kind of adventurer and combining the skills that come from his biological and adoptive parents, just in a different light. No longer just a protector, now something that's freer and wilder and more him. (Also, I just love the idea of him having enchanted drumsticks that can turn into swords. And him fighting with a magic drumset that he can summon at will. Fighter bards are so cool.)

Kristen: Starts out as a Zealot barbarian in Freshman Year, switches up to Wild Magic barbarian after trying out Yes!/? and realizing that it doesn't work for her (almost rejecting religion entirely), and multiclasses into a paladin once she makes the decision to have Cassandra as her deity---specifically, an Oath of Redemption paladin. Her arc in JY is not only learning how to properly deal with a god that works for her while balancing her own mental health struggles (ADHD queen, we stan), but also about balancing her own rage and deciding to lean more into a pacifist stance of reaching out and finding comfort in the unknown and unpredictable... which is difficult to do, seeing as she's Porter's student and he's in charge of her MCAT, and he wants her to be an angry Zealot instead of what she's got going on.

Fig: Starts out as a Trickster Domain cleric in Freshman Year, multiclasses into an Alchemist artificer in Sophomore Year after becoming close with Ayda and realizing that she likes experimentation and learning way more about how truly weird and wonderful magic is, and switches to a Light Domain cleric in Junior Year. She still gets the Gilear curse, though it's her Blesses that have a backlash and not Bardics, and I think she decides in part to worship Ankarna because, well, as an Archdevil, she's a peer of Asmodeus now, and the time in her life when she really needed them has passed. They're cool with it, though.

[babiebom]

Abigail Headcanons

I had wrote some of these for my old blog but forgot to save them so i forgot what i wrote and now I have to start over haha

Tw: cursing, brief sexual mention, cheating(not abby), some canon info may be wrong lmao

Is between 5'4-5'8

Mostly because she does give off tall goth mommy vibes but also gives off short angry troll vibes(I'm 4'11 I'm allowed to say this)

I think she's like 22-24

It's stayed at some point that she takes online college classes right? Or am i insane?

I do 100% think she's the wizards daughter I mean it does line up and if she's not then wtf

It's more than just the hair

But even then like isn't it said that she only dyed it ONCE and the color just never went away?

Like I feel like its one of those things where she had to activate the trait for it to show up

Like Idk if you've seen Barbie in a (and a?) Mermaid Tale but like

Barbie(her name isn't barbie but i cant remember what it is) doesn't show any mermaid traits at all until shes a certain age then she does things to trigger it(like going in the water and being able to breathe or her hair turning pink.)

Or traits that have been there already now making sense(her being obsessed with the water and surfing)

For Abigail, she just needed to dye her hair that specific color in order for it to stay in that state

And she has other abilities like being able to see the Junimos when literally no one else but the farmer and the wizard can.

And her love of adventure and the unknown

And i think she is a witchy girl along with Emily

Also the fact that Caroline hung out near the wizards tower then got pregnant with Abby

I think she still hangs out there sometimes or maybe its a mod or maybe I'm delusional(this one is a fact)

N e ways i've gone on too long about this

I think she would study for something like archaeology or something or like game development.

Does play video games as much as she can

Does rage quit

Gets angry when she dies

Though its canon that Abby and Seb would end up together if not with the farmer(I think?)

Highkey a toxic gamer but her outbursts are funny so it's allowed

I think she likes games like Undertale, the Sonic games, Mario, hates Valorant with a passion but still plays even though it only makes her angry

I feel like her feelings for him are shallow

Not in a bad way

But in a theres no one else for me to realistically end up with or crush on type thing

Like unless she's going to date one of the girls(I think Pierre is homophobic) Seb is her only choice

I do sorta ship her with Haley tho (goth gf x pink gf)

Does wish to be in the adventurers guilde but i also think she would be terrified

Also realistically I feel like she knows it wouldn't work out for long. Though she does sometimes go in the upper(lower?) levels of the mines.

100 percent prefers her mom to her dad

I think if she ever found out about the wizard possibly being her father it would make her be the most torn she has ever been

Because on one hand she does love pierre hes the man that raised her and I dont think she would accept cheating AT ALL and it would hurt her to know hes not her biological father

But on the other hand she would find it cool that theres a reason for her weirdness

Like theres a reason she can see the weird creatures in the forest when no one else can(to her knowledge)

Theres a reason for her longing to venture out and explore the unknown

And the wizard is pretty freaking cool seeing as she hangs out next to his tower often

Either showers everyday or once every 3 days there's no in between

Probably does want to travel at some point, maybe when she has her own money to spend.

If pierre wanted her to take over his store when he gets too old she would refuse

Is sorta sad she doesn't have any siblings, but at the same is glad because she only has to worry about herself

Learned to play the drums as a way to let out her anger

Has an okay voice when singing, but doesn't know how to properly hit notes without fucking up her voice

[indignantlemur]

hello, I was wondering what your head cannon was on the ahm tal? Also may I ask what your head cannon was, if I didn't already, about the andorians in the andorian incident?

Thank you.

Hello again! <3

We'll start with the Am Tal, I think. This is another long one, so details below the cut.

PART 1: The Am Tal

The Am Tal (or Ahm Tal) is effectively the Andorian secret service - their equivalent to the Romulan Tal Shiar, the Vulcan V'Shar, and Earth's Section 31. Canon lore on them is sparse, naturally, but what is there tells us this:

The organization was founded in 1935 on the Andorian colony world of Cimera III. After the founding of the United Federation of Planets, the Am Tal often collaborated with Starfleet Intelligence and the Federation Intelligence Service, both officially and behind-the-scenes, but at all times the Am Tal operated independently of both. Am Tal agents working black-ops would sometimes pass on information to those more visible agencies as "anonymous sources." The Am Tal did not confine their activities to Andorian territory, contrary to what Federation Intelligence Services/Starfleet Intelligence once believed. They performed whatever operations were deemed essential to the welfare of Andoria and her people throughout the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, up to and including black-ops and wet work. They were regarded as brutally efficient, ruthlessly determined, and they were feared almost as much as the Tal Shiar. A "boogeyman" among the intelligence services, foreign spies, double agents, terrorists and others they deemed as threats would simply "disappear" when the Ahm Tal were around. Andorian citizens often attribute such incidents to the Ahm Tal, and they are often right. [sources: Alpha and Beta canon; LUG: The Andorians: Among the Clans, All Our Yesterdays: The Time Travel Sourcebook; Decipher: Aliens]

We also have an excerpt of a fantastic speech from LUG: The Andorians: Among the Clans from a politician regarding the Am Tal. As I harvest canon lore from multiple resources and try to make the jumbled mess make sense, I don't strictly adhere to ATC's lore, but I've always loved this detail:

"I think it tragic that we deny the existence of the Am Tal simply because the Federation doesn't understand what the Am Tal is. They are the most valorous heroes of our age. They die, silently, by the hundreds, saving our lives, protecting our freedom, defending our honor. They mutilate themselves for us. They focus their passion toward noble results. We should honor them. We are not obligated to explain them. Their real names must never be known." - Oshuvas Idrani, public address, Tarsk, 2268 They are noted scientists. They are wealthy merchants. They are adventurous pirates. They are Starfleet officers. Am Tal operatives are everywhere, the "seekers of secrets" and the sworn protectors of Andorian interests. The [Andorian government] denies their existence, despite the fact that 100 members are Am Tal and that the other 200 not only believe in them but want them shut down. [source: LUG: The Andorians: Among the Clans "Am Tal: The Art of Secrecy"]

Starfleet Intelligence does not manage to confirm the existence of the Am Tal beyond rumour and hearsay until the late 24th century - TNG era, that is.

To help put all of this in context, in Emigre the current year as of the most recent chapter (Ch 47) is 2174.

From this we can conclude a few things.

The Am Tal are very good at what they do. Despite the fact that the average Andorian citizen is well aware of the Am Tal as an entity protecting Andoria's interests, Starfleet Intelligence (and the Federation Intelligence Services branches) can't pin them down for at least another hundred years. That is some impressive operational security from the Am Tal's side of things.

Am Tal operatives are perfectly willing to undergo radical surgeries, including removal of their antennae, for deep cover operations - regardless of whether or not these procedures are reversible. They cultivate a ruthlessness and cold efficiency in their operatives that, frankly, sounds a hell of a lot cooler than Section 31 ever did.

Am Tal are spread throughout the quadrant and have an extensive spy network. They sometimes leave 'anonymous tips' for Federation Intelligence Services (FIS) and Starfleet Intelligence (SI) when they catch wind of something outside of their purview that the Federation might want to look into. No word on whether that courtesy extends to the Vulcans at the time of Emigre, however.

Anyone could be Am Tal. They're not all super soldiers or secret agents slinking about in highly visible uniforms, and their propensity for radical cosmetic alterations means that they slip under the radar with shocking ease. In short, literally anyone anywhere could be an Am Tal informant or operative, and there really isn't a good way to tell for sure.

From there my headcanons are as follows:

The Am Tal are a vast and far-reaching network of spies, informants, assassins, deep cover operatives, and citizens from all walks of life. They recruit anyone, regardless of Clan or status, who can meet their stringent requirements for loyalty, ruthlessness, and competence, and who are willing to make the sacrifices necessary to serve Andoria.

There are many different kinds of Am Tal operatives as well, and a broad array of skills are required to serve Andoria and her people. Not every operative is a fierce warrior or possesses genius-level intellect, though the organization will certainly go out of its way to recruit such individuals if it can. Their ranks include merchants, scientists, engineers, freighter captains, shipyard workers, domestic service employees, clerks, media specialists, and more.

The Am Tal do not as an organization shy away from black-ops and wet work when it's needed, but it is not their first choice for dealing with problems. Their biggest priority is actually information-gathering, collation, analysis, and dissemination. A wealth of knowledge - particularly knowledge no one else wants one to have - wins wars as surely as a knife in the dark can topple nations. Moreover, dead men tell no tales and while death is certainly an option, Am Tal would much rather extract every ounce of information possible first before considering more final alternatives. They're not always picky about how they go about this, but finesse over brute force is the Am Tal's preferred modus operandi.

Part of the reason behind Am Tal's success is their operatives' willingness to do whatever it takes to preserve their covers. If they even suspect they're at risk of discovery, they disappear - and with their propensity for surgical alterations, quite effectively at that. Faking their own deaths is common, especially to estrange themselves from relatives who might pose problems in the future. In extreme circumstances, compromised operatives will self-terminate in such a way that their bodies and identifiers are destroyed as completely and thoroughly as possible. This is meant as a last resort only, and officials within the Am Tal are careful to neither condone nor discourage the act.

During the Earth-Romulan War (2156-2160), the Am Tal had limited success in gleaning information about Romulans, which was more than anyone else in the Federation had managed - but even so, it was hardly anything at all. Their file on Romulans and the Romulan spy network is threadbare at best in the current year, but it's all the Federation has to work with beyond the Enterprise incident reports.

The file, such as it was, was left anonymously on the Section Chief of Starfleet Intelligence's desk early one morning. Upon the isochip's discovery, the security footage or digital logs for the entire building were pulled, but upon review there was simply nothing there that shouldn't have been. Everyone involved agreed that the footage and records must have been tampered with, but no one could figure out how.

There are a number of Clans on Andoria (and its colonies) which have some association or another with the Am Tal, but not one of them have a provable tie to the shadowy organization. Rumour and hearsay at best are all that countless investigations have turned up. That doesn't stop the general population from making a few assumptions, however - better safe than dead is a rule to live by, on Andoria. Clans that have garnered such a reputation are generally treated with caution, since one never quite knows *who* exactly they are speaking to once Am Tal factor into the equation, but so long as the Clan's members are law-abiding citizens that's as far as it goes.

PART 2: The Andorian Incident!

The Andorians in the Andorian Incident are Commander Thy'lek Shran, Thon, Keval, and Tholos. As far as I know, we're never given the ranks of the other three, but I suspect Tholos was possibly a lieutenant.

Generally speaking, I have a few headcanons about these four, but I haven't really sat down and fleshed them out properly.

Shran is the most well-fleshed out character, having gotten the most screen time of the bunch. Where he's concerned, I mostly have headcanons about his departure from the Andorian Imperial Guard and subsequent poor lifestyle choices from a man who previously had been shown to be a competent and reasonable commander and negotiator. Something about that doesn't quite track, for me. It's generally agreed that he left the Guard out of guilt and shame for the fate of the Kumari, though I don't believe anyone else blamed him necessarily. The Marauder was a nasty piece of work, specifically designed to be a ship-killer, and it wasn't anything that anyone else in the quadrant had run up against before. It would have taken a miracle to save the Kumari once Shran's ship was the last one standing after the initial ambush. Certainly, there would be repercussions for the loss of the Andorian ambassador and the rest of the complement, but I don't think those repercussions would have been Shran's to bear, at least not entirely. He not only survived but saved as many of his crew as he could - and, more importantly, he lived long enough to negotiate a treaty in the ambassador's stead and be debriefed, despite his recklessness in his grief and the diplomatic shit-show that was the ushaan duel. The man has insane luck in the worst way - he has a weird tendency to be in the right place at the the right time, usually while he's also up to his antennae in problems and active firefights.

Tholos seems to be Shran's second in command, and he seems very comfortable following Shran into potentially volatile situations, from P'Jem to Corridan. That alone makes me think the two have known each other for years, or at least served together long enough to build up trust in the other's instincts. I headcanon Tholos as Shran's chief of security on the Kumari. Now, Tholos gets a bad reputation for creeping on T'Pol during The Andorian Incident which... fair. I personally think that the threats were empty, because something about Tholos' tone and word choice makes me think he's actually repulsed by Vulcans. His antennae, certainly, were not indicating any kind of fixation or arousal beyond sharp attention, which lends some credence to the idea that he was trying to provoke T'Pol, the other Vulcans, or the Enterprise landing party into giving something away. Since that didn't produce any of the desired results, he didn't bother with a second attempt, which a genuine creeper almost certainly would have. Remember that the Andorian squad was searching for evidence of a listening post, and as usual the monks were less than helpful. Provoking a response at this point - any response- would have been at least some kind of progress, since the Andorians had very clearly run out of momentum just as the Enterprise landing party arrived. Don't get me wrong - still creepy as fuck, but the possibility of tactical creeping makes me think that Tholos is the sort to actively look for weaknesses to exploit, maybe even habitually. He very well could be the sort who turns this on his own friends at times, with keen observations and cutting words that have become almost second-nature. In short, Tholos is an asshole but he's not that kind of asshole.

Keval, by comparison, we only see operating scanners and helping to search the monastery, which makes me think he might be a tech specialist or possibly an engineer. He doesn't get much in the way of screen time but even so Keval doesn't appear to be impulsive and we don't see any indication of a cruel streak like we do with Tholos. I headcanon Keval as a more measured sort of man, more likely to step back to assess rather than leap forward and react. He might be on the quieter side, as Andorians go, of a thoughtful disposition otherwise. When he's not searching Vulcan monasteries for secret lairs, I imagine he's the sort to enjoy tinkering with the systems under his care to improve their yield and efficiency when he has time.

Thon is the one we know the least about canonically, as he has no dialogue and is kind of just... there. He participates in the firefight, follows orders, and generally exists in the background. I'd say probably part of the Kumari's security complement under Tholos' command. I like to imagine Thon as an easy-going sort of guy, when he's not on a mission to suss out super secret Vulcan spy lairs, though he's by no means a pushover - the sort to enjoy wilderness hikes and hitting local dive bars.

[aifanfictions]

Path of Valor

Chapter 8: Jaskier's Misadventure

Their journey had been filled with moments of danger and triumph, but it seemed that trouble had a way of finding them, especially when Jaskier's big mouth was involved.

One sunny afternoon, the trio found themselves in a bustling market town, the streets lined with colorful stalls, merchants hawking their wares, and the lively hum of activity. Jaskier, always eager to embrace new experiences, decided to put his bardic talents to use and entertain the townsfolk.

With a gleeful flourish, he positioned himself in the town square, lute in hand, and began to strum a lively tune. His voice filled the air, and soon, a crowd had gathered, drawn by his music and charismatic presence.

The atmosphere was joyous as Jaskier sang songs of love, adventure, and merriment. (Y/N) and Geralt watched from the edge of the crowd, their expressions a mix of amusement and fond exasperation. Jaskier was in his element, his animated gestures and theatrical flair capturing the audience's attention.

However, as the day wore on, Jaskier's storytelling took a mischievous turn. He began to weave a tale of a legendary treasure hidden in the nearby woods, a treasure rumored to hold unimaginable riches. His words were laced with humor, and he assured the audience it was all in good fun.

Little did they know that his playful exaggerations would catch the ear of a group of unsavory characters lurking on the fringes of the crowd. These ruffians, hearing the promise of untold wealth, took Jaskier's words quite seriously.

As the bard concluded his performance with a dramatic flourish, the crowd cheered and applauded, and Jaskier basked in the adoration. But the moment was short-lived as a burly, menacing figure stepped forward, flanked by several other rough-looking individuals.

The leader, a scarred and grizzled man, pointed a finger at Jaskier and growled, "You there, bard! You're going to show us the way to this treasure you spoke of."

Jaskier, realizing the gravity of the situation, stammered, "Oh, you see, I was just telling a story, a fictional tale for entertainment. There's no actual treasure—"

But his words fell on deaf ears as the thugs closed in, their intent clear. They believed Jaskier was hiding the location of this imaginary treasure, and they were determined to get their hands on it.

(Y/N) and Geralt exchanged a glance, their instincts kicking in. They couldn't let Jaskier face these menacing individuals alone. With a shared nod, they stepped forward, positioning themselves protectively between Jaskier and the approaching thugs.

The leader of the group, unimpressed, sneered, "Stand aside, or things will get ugly."

Geralt, his voice dripping with warning, replied, "You're not getting anything from us. Jaskier's words were just a story, nothing more."

But the thugs were undeterred, and the situation escalated into a tense standoff. The crowd, sensing trouble, had dispersed, leaving the trio alone to face their adversaries.

With a sudden, aggressive lunge, one of the thugs attempted to grab Jaskier. But Geralt's reflexes were faster, and he intervened, striking the man down with a single, well-placed punch.

(Y/N) sprang into action as well, utilizing her agility and combat skills to fend off two more of the attackers. But the leader, though outnumbered, was formidable, and he engaged Geralt in a fierce, physical struggle.

As fists flew and blades were drawn, it became clear that the situation had turned dire. Jaskier, his initial shock giving way to determination, realized that he couldn't stand by while his friends were in danger.

With newfound bravery, he retrieved his lute, and, with trembling hands, struck a resounding chord. A shockwave of sound erupted, disorienting the remaining thugs and providing a momentary advantage for Geralt and (Y/N).

The leader, now off balance, was swiftly subdued by Geralt, and the last of the thugs were disarmed and incapacitated by (Y/N).

Panting and disheveled, Jaskier stood beside his friends, his lute still in hand. He offered an apologetic grin. "Well, it seems my storytelling got us into a bit of trouble."

Geralt, despite the chaos, managed a half-smile. "Your big mouth strikes again, Jaskier."

With the situation resolved, the trio decided to leave the market town, their encounter with the thugs serving as a reminder that trouble could find them anywhere. As they journeyed onward, Jaskier made a silent vow to think twice before spinning tales of imaginary treasures.

The bond between Geralt, (Y/N), and Jaskier had been tested once more, and they had emerged from the ordeal with a deeper understanding of the lengths they would go to protect each other.

Their path continued, each day bringing new challenges and adventures, and their unspoken connection remained a constant, a silent strength that bound them together in the face of whatever trials lay ahead.

NOTE! This story was generated by OpenAI

[ketyoulater]

Pinned post!

This is my main blog, I post about things I care about, that make me laugh, and that I overall want to archive because I like it :)

Things I'll post about:

- general Shitposts

- sex, probably

- Adventure Time

- various anime (I like many)

- ATLA/Korra

- Critical Role

- Arcane

-Valorant, Overwatch, Minecraft

- various indie games (I play many)

- being trans/queer

- art I like

- politics or social activism

All my blogs are pretty 18+ just FYI!

~Other blogs o' mine:

@grossngreen - art and such, nature-inspired, queer and weird

@bluntaboutit - queer + aesthetic blog, more nsfw content

@queers-ahoy - our flag means death brainrot

[manojchoudhary00004]

Unforgettable Camp Stay in Jaisalmer: Devi Desert Retreat

Introduction:

Immerse yourself in the mystical charm of Jaisalmer, where the golden sands of the Thar Desert meet the rich tapestry of Rajasthani culture. At Devi Desert Resort & Retreat, we invite you to embark on an extraordinary camp stay in Jaisalmer, where every moment is infused with enchantment and wonder. From serene desert landscapes to cultural immersion, let us take you on a captivating journey through the heart of this majestic city.

Camp Stay in JaisalmerExperience the Bliss of Camp Stay in Jaisalmer:

1. The Desert Haven:

Nestled amidst the captivating Sam Sand Dunes, Devi Desert Resort & Retreat offers a serene oasis in the heart of the desert. Our camp stay provides a haven of tranquility, where you can unwind and reconnect with nature. Imagine waking up to the soft hues of the rising sun, breathing in the crisp desert air, and being mesmerized by the vast expanse of golden sands stretching as far as the eye can see. This is the essence of a camp stay in Jaisalmer, and Devi Desert Resort & Retreat delivers it with grace.

2. Luxurious Tents, Unparalleled Comfort:

Step into our world of opulence as you enter your private sanctuary in the desert. Our luxurious tents are designed with meticulous attention to detail, offering a seamless blend of modern comforts and traditional Rajasthani aesthetics. Sink into plush bedding, adorned with vibrant textiles and intricate patterns that reflect the region's rich heritage. Each tent is equipped with modern amenities, ensuring a comfortable and unforgettable stay amidst the captivating desert ambiance.

3. Adventures in the Desert:

Indulge your adventurous spirit with a plethora of activities offered at Devi Desert Resort & Retreat. Embark on a thrilling camel safari, traversing the undulating dunes and embracing the majestic beauty of the desert. Feel the rhythm of the desert as you ride atop these gentle creatures, forging a connection with the land and its people. For those seeking a faster pace, hop on a jeep safari and explore the rugged terrains, discovering hidden gems and witnessing breathtaking vistas along the way.

4. Cultural Immersion:

Jaisalmer is a treasure trove of culture and heritage, and our camp stay provides ample opportunities to immerse yourself in this rich tapestry. Experience the vibrant colors and graceful movements of traditional folk dances, as local performers captivate you with their skill and artistry. Engage in soul-stirring musical performances, where the haunting melodies of Rajasthani instruments resonate in the desert air. Delve into the world of Rajasthani storytelling, as captivating tales of valor and romance transport you to a bygone era.

5. Culinary Delights:

No camp stay in Jaisalmer is complete without savoring the culinary delights of the region. At Devi Desert Resort & Retreat, we offer a tantalizing array of Rajasthani cuisine that will leave you craving for more. Indulge in aromatic curries, savor the flavors of traditional Rajasthani thalis (platters), and relish the mouthwatering snacks and sweets that represent the essence of Rajasthani gastronomy. Let our expert chefs take you on a gastronomic journey, tantalizing your taste buds with their culinary expertise.

Conclusion:

A camp stay in Jaisalmer at Devi Desert Resort & Retreat is a gateway to a world of awe-inspiring beauty, cultural immersion, and unforgettable experiences. Immerse yourself in the tranquil ambiance of the desert, engage in thrilling adventures, and embrace the rich heritage of Jaisalmer. Let Devi Desert Resort & Retreat be your guide as you create memories that will last a lifetime. Book your camp stay today and embark on a journey that promises to transport you to a realm of enchantment and wonder

[viratcab3345]

How Does Jodhpur Capture the Spirit of Rajasthan?

Jodhpur, often called the "Blue City" of India, is a vibrant blend of history, culture, and architectural wonders. It perfectly encapsulates the spirit of Rajasthan, offering visitors a chance to explore its royal past, lively traditions, and scenic beauty. This enchanting city stands as a testimony to the rich heritage and warm hospitality of Rajasthan.

The Majestic Forts and Palaces

One of the defining features of Jodhpur is its grand forts and palaces, which narrate tales of valor and royalty. The Mehrangarh Fort, a magnificent structure perched on a hill, offers panoramic views of the city and houses a museum filled with artifacts and treasures of a bygone era. Other iconic spots, such as the Umaid Bhawan Palace, showcase the architectural brilliance and regal charm of Jodhpur. Visitors can easily explore these landmarks using a reliable Jodhpur taxi service, making their journey comfortable and hassle-free.

The Vibrant Blue Houses

Jodhpur is renowned for its striking blue houses, a unique aspect of the city’s identity. The old city area, dominated by blue-painted homes, provides a picturesque setting that attracts photographers and travelers from across the globe. These houses not only add to the beauty of the city but also reflect the harmonious lifestyle of its residents. Navigating through these narrow streets is made convenient with an online taxi service in Jodhpur, allowing tourists to enjoy the sights at their own pace.

A Hub for Rajasthani Culture

Jodhpur is a cultural treasure trove, offering visitors a chance to experience Rajasthan's rich traditions. From folk music and dance performances to vibrant fairs and festivals, the city pulsates with life. The local markets, such as Sardar Market, are bustling with activity and offer handicrafts, textiles, and jewelry that showcase the artistry of Rajasthan. Exploring these cultural spots is much easier with the availability of convenient transport options.

Natural Beauty and Scenic Landscapes

Beyond its architectural and cultural attractions, Jodhpur also boasts stunning natural beauty. The serene Mandore Gardens and Kaylana Lake provide tranquil spots for relaxation. Visitors can also enjoy breathtaking sunsets and capture the picturesque views of the desert landscape surrounding the city. To make these excursions stress-free, hiring a Jodhpur taxi service is a practical option for travelers.

Culinary Delights of Jodhpur

No trip to Jodhpur is complete without indulging in its delicious cuisine. The city offers a range of Rajasthani dishes, such as dal baati churma, mirchi vada, and ghewar, that satisfy every food lover's palate. The bustling street food scene further enhances the gastronomic experience, making Jodhpur a haven for culinary exploration.

A Gateway to the Desert

Jodhpur serves as a gateway to the vast Thar Desert, inviting travelers to embark on desert safaris and camel rides. These adventures provide a glimpse into the rustic lifestyle and serene beauty of the region. With the help of an online taxi service in Jodhpur, visitors can easily plan their desert expeditions, ensuring a seamless and memorable experience.

Conclusion

Jodhpur captures the essence of Rajasthan through its historical landmarks, vibrant culture, and stunning landscapes. It is a city that leaves a lasting impression on every visitor, offering a perfect mix of tradition and modernity. With reliable transportation options like a Jodhpur taxi service, exploring this incredible destination becomes an unforgettable journey. Whether you're wandering through its blue streets or marveling at its royal forts, Jodhpur truly reflects the heart and soul of Rajasthan.

[palaceonwheels]

A Detailed Guide to the Palace on Wheels Train Route

The Palace on Wheels train route offers a luxurious journey through India’s most iconic destinations. This train is not just a mode of travel but an immersive experience that combines comfort, heritage, and culture. Let us explore the intricacies of the Palace on Wheels route, understanding why it stands out as one of the best ways to discover India’s treasures.

Introduction to the Palace on Wheels Train Route

The Palace on Wheels takes travelers on an extraordinary journey through India’s rich history and vibrant culture. Inspired by the royal carriages used by Indian maharajas, the train is a blend of traditional elegance and modern luxury. However, what makes it truly exceptional is the carefully curated route that covers a variety of cultural and natural landscapes.

Every aspect of the Palace on Wheels train route is designed to provide a seamless travel experience. From historic cities to serene wildlife reserves, this journey ensures an unforgettable adventure.

Understanding the Complete Train Route

Starting and Ending Point

The journey begins and concludes in Delhi, the heart of India. Delhi serves as the ideal starting point due to its rich history and vibrant atmosphere. Passengers board the train at the Safdarjung Railway Station, where they are welcomed with a grand traditional ceremony. At the end of the journey, the train returns to Delhi, completing a circular route.

Duration of the Journey

The Palace on Wheels route spans 7 nights and 8 days, offering a perfect balance between leisure and exploration. Each day is carefully planned to maximize the experience, with stops at destinations that showcase India’s diversity. This duration is ideal for travelers who want an in-depth yet well-paced journey.

Exploring the Key Stops on the Train Route

Delhi (Embarkation Point)

The journey begins in Delhi, a city that blends ancient traditions with modern innovations. Passengers are encouraged to explore Delhi’s landmarks such as the Red Fort, Qutub Minar, and India Gate before boarding. The warm welcome ceremony at the station sets the tone for the luxurious adventure ahead.

Jaipur: The Pink City

Jaipur is the first stop on the route and a treasure trove of history and culture. The highlights include:

Amber Fort: A stunning example of Rajput architecture, set against the backdrop of hills.

Hawa Mahal: Known as the Palace of Winds, this iconic structure is a marvel of intricate design.

Local Markets: Jaipur’s vibrant bazaars are perfect for shopping for handicrafts and jewelry.

The city’s charm lies in its ability to transport visitors to a bygone era while offering modern amenities.

Sawai Madhopur: Ranthambore National Park

Sawai Madhopur is home to Ranthambore National Park, one of India’s premier wildlife sanctuaries. Key activities here include:

Safari: A guided tour through the park, offering chances to spot tigers and other wildlife.

Flora and Fauna: The park’s biodiversity makes it a haven for nature enthusiasts.

This stop is perfect for those seeking adventure and a connection with nature.

Chittorgarh

Chittorgarh is steeped in tales of valor and romance. The main attraction is:

Chittorgarh Fort: A UNESCO World Heritage Site, known for its grand architecture and historical significance.

The light and sound show at the fort brings its history to life, making this stop a memorable experience.

Udaipur: The City of Lakes

Udaipur’s beauty is unparalleled, making it a highlight of the journey. Attractions include:

City Palace: A majestic complex that offers panoramic views of the city and its lakes.

Lake Pichola: A serene spot for boat rides and stunning sunsets.

Cultural Performances: Traditional Rajasthani dances and music add to the city’s allure.

Udaipur’s romantic ambiance makes it ideal for couples and families alike.

Jaisalmer: The Golden City

Jaisalmer is a city that seems to emerge straight out of a fairy tale. Key experiences include:

Jaisalmer Fort: A living fort that houses shops, hotels, and ancient temples.

Camel Rides: A unique way to explore the golden sand dunes.

Desert Camps: Enjoy cultural performances under a starlit sky.

This stop offers a perfect blend of adventure and cultural immersion.

Jodhpur: The Blue City

Jodhpur is a city of vibrant contrasts. Highlights include:

Mehrangarh Fort: A massive structure with a museum that showcases royal artifacts.

Local Bazaars: Perfect for purchasing textiles, spices, and handicrafts.

Jaswant Thada: A beautiful marble cenotaph built in memory of Maharaja Jaswant Singh II.

The city’s blue-painted houses provide a stunning backdrop for photographs.

Bharatpur: Keoladeo National Park

Bharatpur’s Keoladeo National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site renowned for its birdlife. Activities include:

Bird Watching: Spot exotic species in their natural habitat.

Guided Tours: Learn about the park’s history and ecological importance.

This stop is a paradise for nature lovers and bird watchers.

Agra: The City of the Taj Mahal

The journey’s final destination is Agra, home to the iconic Taj Mahal. Highlights include:

Taj Mahal: A symbol of love and one of the Seven Wonders of the World.

Agra Fort: A UNESCO World Heritage Site that offers a glimpse into Mughal history.

Local Cuisine: Agra’s sweets and savory dishes are a must-try.

Agra provides a fitting conclusion to the cultural odyssey.

Onboard Luxury and Experiences

Accommodation

The train’s cabins are designed to reflect royal grandeur while offering modern comforts. Features include:

En-Suite Bathrooms: Equipped with premium fittings.

Personalized Butler Service: Ensures a seamless travel experience.

The luxurious interiors make the train feel like a palace on wheels.

Dining Options

The dining experience aboard the train is exceptional. Highlights include:

Gourmet Meals: A mix of regional and international cuisines.

Elegant Ambiance: The restaurants, “The Maharaja” and “The Maharani,” offer a royal dining setting.

Passengers can savor dishes inspired by the destinations on the route.

Cultural Performances

Cultural immersion is an integral part of the journey. Passengers can enjoy:

Onboard Shows: Folk dances and musical performances.

Offboard Activities: Cultural events at select stops.

These experiences deepen the connection to India’s rich traditions.

Highlights of the Train Route’s Unique Features

The Palace on Wheels train route seamlessly blends luxury, culture, and history. With its meticulously planned itinerary, the route ensures that every traveler finds something to cherish. Whether it’s the architectural wonders of Jaipur, the natural beauty of Bharatpur, or the romantic vibes of Udaipur, this journey offers a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

[kukda-please]

Why Stay at a Luxury Resort in Chittorgarh?

Chittorgarh, with its rich history, stunning landscapes, and majestic forts, is an ideal destination for travelers seeking both adventure and relaxation. Staying at a luxury resort in Chittorgarh allows you to immerse yourself in the grandeur and elegance this city is known for. Whether you are on a family vacation, a romantic getaway, or a solo retreat, Kukda Resort provides the perfect setting for a luxurious experience.

Kukda Resort stands out as a top-tier destination for those who want to enjoy luxury and comfort while exploring the heritage of Rajasthan.

The Allure of a Luxury Resort in Chittorgarh

1. Stunning Architecture and Design

Kukda Resort boasts a harmonious blend of traditional Rajasthani architecture and modern design. The intricate details, grand facades, and opulent interiors reflect the rich heritage of Chittorgarh while offering contemporary comforts. Staying at this luxury resort in Chittorgarh feels like stepping into a world of timeless beauty.

2. World-Class Amenities

When you choose a luxury resort, you expect the best in comfort and convenience. Kukda Resort delivers on this promise with top-notch amenities, including:

Spacious and Elegant Rooms – Lavishly furnished rooms with modern amenities and traditional decor.

Swimming Pool – A pristine pool to cool off and relax under the sun.

Spa and Wellness Services – Rejuvenate your mind and body with professional spa treatments.

Fine Dining – Indulge in delicious cuisines at the resort’s restaurants.

3. Exceptional Hospitality

The hallmark of any luxury resort is its hospitality, and Kukda Resort excels in this area. The attentive and professional staff ensures that every guest's needs are met with warmth and efficiency. From personalized services to thoughtful gestures, the team at Kukda Resort goes above and beyond to make your stay memorable.

Activities to Enjoy at a Luxury Resort in Chittorgarh

1. Relax by the Pool

Enjoy a leisurely day by the pool, soaking up the sun and sipping on refreshing beverages. The poolside ambiance at Kukda Resort provides the perfect setting for relaxation and rejuvenation.

2. Indulge in Spa Treatments

Pamper yourself with a luxurious spa session at Kukda Resort’s wellness center. The spa offers a range of treatments, including massages, facials, and therapies designed to relax your body and refresh your mind.

3. Explore Chittorgarh’s Historical Sites

Chittorgarh is home to the iconic Chittorgarh Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Staying at a luxury resort in Chittorgarh puts you in close proximity to these historical wonders. Explore the fort, temples, and palaces that tell tales of valor and romance.

4. Fine Dining Experiences

Savor a culinary journey at the resort’s fine dining restaurant. The chefs at Kukda Resort craft exquisite dishes that showcase both local Rajasthani flavors and international cuisines. Enjoy your meals in an elegant setting that enhances the dining experience.

Why Kukda Resort is the Top Luxury Resort in Chittorgarh

Luxurious Accommodation

The rooms and suites at Kukda Resort are designed for ultimate comfort and elegance. Each room is adorned with stylish furnishings, modern amenities, and thoughtful details that create a luxurious retreat for guests.

Scenic Views and Serene Ambiance

Set amidst lush greenery and scenic landscapes, Kukda Resort offers a tranquil escape from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. The serene ambiance and breathtaking views make it the perfect luxury resort in Chittorgarh for relaxation and rejuvenation.

Customizable Experiences

Whether you are planning a wedding, a corporate retreat, or a family vacation, Kukda Resort offers customizable packages to suit your needs. The resort’s dedicated event planning team ensures that every detail is taken care of, creating a seamless and enjoyable experience.

Proximity to Major Attractions

Kukda Resort’s convenient location allows guests to explore Chittorgarh’s top attractions with ease. Visit the historic Chittorgarh Fort, the beautiful Vijay Stambh (Victory Tower), and the serene Gaumukh Reservoir. After a day of sightseeing, return to the comfort of your luxury resort.

Planning Your Stay at a Luxury Resort in Chittorgarh

Best Time to Visit

The best time to visit Chittorgarh is between October and March when the weather is pleasant and ideal for outdoor activities. During this period, you can enjoy the resort’s amenities and explore the city without the discomfort of extreme heat.

How to Book

Booking your stay at Kukda Resort is simple and convenient. Visit their website here to check availability, browse accommodation options, and make your reservation.

Tips for a Luxurious Stay

Pack Comfortable Clothing – Light and breathable fabrics are perfect for exploring Chittorgarh.

Plan Ahead – Book spa treatments and dining reservations in advance to make the most of your stay.

Explore Local Culture – Take time to explore the rich heritage and culture of Chittorgarh.

Unplug and Unwind – Take a break from your devices and immerse yourself in the luxury experience.

Final Thoughts

A stay at a luxury resort in Chittorgarh offers the perfect blend of relaxation, adventure, and opulence. Kukda Resort provides world-class amenities, exceptional services, and a serene environment that ensures an unforgettable experience.

Whether you are planning a romantic getaway, a family vacation, or a special event, Kukda Resort in Chittorgarh is the ideal choice for a luxurious and memorable stay. Book your escape today and experience the best that Chittorgarh has to offer.

[babehhlubis]

Worms of Valor is a slot game developed by Yggdrasil Gaming, featuring an exciting and unique theme involving worms as the central characters. The game is based on the popular "Worms" franchise, where these quirky creatures engage in battle and embark on adventures. Expect to see various humorous elements, with a fun mix of military and cartoon themes that bring the worms to life in a playful, engaging environment.

How to Play Worms of Valor Slot

Set Your Bet:

Before spinning the reels, you need to set your preferred bet amount. You can adjust the bet size by using the + and - buttons below the reels to increase or decrease your wager.

The game offers a variety of bet sizes, so you can choose a level that suits your budget.

Spin the Reels:

Once you’ve selected your bet, hit the Spin button to start the game.

You can also use the Auto Spin feature to automatically spin the reels for a set number of turns, allowing for a more hands-free experience.

Match Symbols:

The goal of Worms of Valor is to land matching symbols on adjacent reels, starting from the leftmost reel.

Symbols include the worms themselves, weapons, and various other military-themed items that contribute to the battle-ready atmosphere.

Wild and Scatter Symbols:

Wild Symbols: These symbols substitute for other symbols to help form winning combinations. They can greatly increase your chances of hitting a payout.

Scatter Symbols: The Scatter symbols trigger special features like Free Spins or Bonus Rounds, providing additional ways to win.

Key Features of Worms of Valor Slot

Wild Symbol:

The Wild symbol in Worms of Valor can substitute for other regular symbols to help create winning combinations.

Wilds can also appear stacked on the reels, making it possible to cover an entire reel with Wilds, increasing your chances of winning big.

Free Spins Feature:

The Free Spins feature is activated when you land a certain number of Scatter symbols on the reels.

During the Free Spins round, you can spin the reels without betting more money, giving you the opportunity to win more without spending additional funds.

There may also be multipliers applied during Free Spins, increasing your potential for larger payouts.

Worms of Valor Bonus Round:

The Bonus Round is an exciting feature where the worms can engage in battle or take part in other fun activities. This round can yield extra rewards, such as multipliers, extra spins, or additional Wild symbols.

In some versions of the game, this bonus feature can also include progressive jackpots or prize picks where players choose from different options to reveal cash prizes.

Military-Themed Symbols and Power-Ups:

The game’s symbols reflect a military environment, with the worms equipped with various weapons and accessories. These symbols can trigger special effects during gameplay, such as extra Wilds, expanded reels, or even increased multipliers.

The military gear and power-ups also add to the unique theme of the game, providing both entertainment and potential for bigger wins.

RTP and Volatility:

Worms of Valor has an RTP (Return to Player) of around 96.1%, which is a typical rate for modern video slots.

The game features medium volatility, which means you can expect a balance between regular small wins and occasional larger payouts.

Tips for Playing Worms of Valor Slot

Check the Paytable:

Before starting your spins, review the paytable to understand the payout structure of the symbols. This will help you understand which symbols are the most valuable and how the special features work.

Trigger Free Spins:

Focus on landing the Scatter symbols to trigger the Free Spins round. This is one of the most lucrative features in the game, giving you a chance to win without placing additional bets.

Manage Your Bankroll:

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[cobaltpanther]

I was bored so I said if I got 5 likes or more I'd compose a detailed post of both of my OC D&D parties and I got 7 soooo...

SOME CONTEXT: Both of these parties are original characters created BY ME for purely creative/de-stressing purposes. They both exist in Exandria of the Critical Role universe, specifically on the continent of Wildemount. For the lore nerds, the Shieldmaidens are active between 828 and 838 PD (Post Divergence), while the Headstrongs are active between 848 and 850 Post Divergence.

Obviously this is an amorphous AU canon where the events of Campaign 3 get resolved nice and neat, maybe the whole "moon's haunted" subplot isn't prevalent, idk. I came up with these characters before C3 started on that tangent, so just keep that in mind!

First post will be the Shieldmaidens, and I'll do the Headstrongs sometime after when I'm not all tuckered out.

Shieldmaidens:

Solveig Lynstad (She/Her, Mixed Heritage (Fallen Aasimar/Half-elf), 7th level Hunter ranger/7th level "Sublime Nomad" homebrew fighter)

Has a big "Kiera Knightley playing Aragon" kind of vibe, with an "autumn ranger grunge" aesthetic and an edge of Eastern European proto-pagan, paleolithic weirdness.

Her dad was a fallen aasimar and her mom was either an elf or a half-elf, so she's a mutt with no real preset 5e racial/species traits. She's a nature girl with crazy high perception, nature, and survival skill bonuses, and that's about it lol.

Born in the Greying Wildlands, but adopted by a half-elf diplomat and raised in Gwardan on the Menagerie Coast.

Has prophetic dreams and visions that are nature-oriented and really difficult to interpret. They seem to be leading her towards some kind of big destiny involving saving a nation and slaying a dragon or some shit. She wasn't paying attention.

Sheds embers when she fights (they don't light anything on fire but man it looks cool as hell) and her fighting style is based around locking the fuck in.

Queer af and there's no sliding scale. She's either completely confident with herself and her physicality or she has NO IDEA what she's doing.

Josephine "Josie" Davenport (She/Her, Quarter-elf bard, 14th level College of Valor)

Think Karen Gillian, playing an elf, raised by dwarves.

Extended family is a clan of Dwarves, heavily viking/skellige inspired, that defend the northern Menagerie Coast (near Gwardan) from sea monsters and pirates and shit.

Her mood board is "North Sea and Plaid".

Big drinker.

Boy crazy.

Kind of a klutz and an impulse shopper.

Angry but objective-focused in combat.

She's spicy, and flirty, and fun, and very much the face of the party.

Best friends with Solveig since they were like eight. They know each others' strengths and weaknesses and the tragic parts of each others' backstories. People who knew them both called them the Fire and the Flood (not foreshadowing or prophetic titles AT ALL >.>)

Olivya "Olive" Audouin (She/Her, 6th level Human cleric, Community Domain/7th level Swarmkeeper ranger)

Brunette "Odette Yustman-looking indie halfling aesthetic schoolteacher" vibes from this one.

Plucky, persistent, maybe a little naïve sometimes?

Cottagecore aesthetic. Likes beekeeping, birdwatching, making jams and jellies.

Her swarm appears as a flock of butterflies with leaves for wings.

She doesn't worship or represent a deity, but has like a "pantheistic" faith that honors nature without associating it with anyone. She didn't go full druid because of her connection to her community, rather than nature itself.

She was initially raised in Odessloe in the northern Dwendalian Empire, but eventually moved to Felderwin.

Grandmother is a noblewoman who is toxic af and places unrealistic expectations on her grandkids. Olive was raised by her after her dad died, but eventually went to live with her mom and stepdad in Felderwin, and was much happier there.

She was a schoolteacher before becoming an adventurer, working predominately with halflings in the town of Felderwin. Her desire to make her community better and undermine local corruption led her to Agronomist June Wiston, and she became one of the half-elf's undercover inspectors in the Marrow Valley.

She's nature-oriented, but like woods, and orchards, and hedgerows and shit. Big nature was always on the horizon, and she wanted to see and experience more, but her responsibilities at home kept her busy.

Gets it BAD for Solveig because of her whole "representing the sublime in nature" vibe.

Karin Matswick (She/Her, 8th level Shifter Samurai fighter/6th level Swashbuckler rogue)

Initially the youngest of the group until (REDACTED) shows up.

Meets up with the rest of the party as professional adversaries - Karin is working as a saboteur for the rebel faction the rest of the party's been hired to track down - but she decides halfway through a swordfight that she'd rather get a drink, and a few drinks and a bathroom conversation later, she switches sides.

Fidgety af, energetic, curious, confident in her abilities but not THAT much of an ass about it.

BIG on platonic physical affection - hand holding, hugging, stroking, hair brushing, etc. She kind of does the tiger "headbutt/head rub" thing, but will also, like, headbutt and punch people to show affection too.

Is notorious for having absolutely zero game. A recurring theme is all of her romantic interests being unrequited or not meant to be.

Is a tattoo artist in her spare time and can even do a few of those magical gemstones tattoos from CR C2 that Orly could make.

Her main questline is recovering her family's ancestral katana - a Vestige of Divergence that empowers shifter and lycanthrope abilities - from some rando who killed her grandmother and swiped the sword off her while she was dying.

Ginseng (She/Her, Firbolg werebear barbarian, 14th level Path of the Totem Warrior)

Big butch werebear that just happens to be a firbolg. Think less "cow person" and more "Pangoro meets that bear from Brave".

Gets her name from chewing on a ginseng root like a cigar.

Grumpy af, strong silent type. Does her best to do no harm, but also takes no shit.

She knew Solveig's dad from way back in the day and is the last thing she has to biological family. They're not...close, per say? They just share a kind of shorthand and cohabitate well.

Doesn't put up a tough front to hide her feelings. She really just is that grumpy most of the time.

Can't go full "hybrid form" werebear because of the nature of her condition - a corrupted physiology from the Savalirwood combined with several (involuntary) transfusions of werebear blood. She can occasionally go "super saiyan" when she goes into a rage and turn into a huge black grizzly bear, but its like once every 5 long rests or something. I never quite figured out the mechanic.