#And Patty has to straight up tell him to either man up and confess or stop smoking or he's going to destroy his lungs

[crossover-enthusiast]

Hmm <- chronic hanahaki Spooky Month thoughts

[henrysglock]

Patty being the one who makes Henry want to be a better person is so funny to me because that bit specifically stems from the fact that she's dropping mixed signals re; unconditional love the same way his mother does. He's still got hope that she might be able to give him that love he craves from his mother, which makes him want to be a better person so he might be "worthy" of it. Patty gives Henry a healthier version of the mixed signals Virginia gives him. She's caring and accepting up until a point, and then she turns on him at the last minute, despite "loving" him and despite seeing that something is clearly amiss.

It's literally so funny (it kills the man) when you think about it, because with Mr. Newby/the attic attack, Patty just, essentially, leaps right from

"Henry, you're a miracle!"

to:

"Hm. Yeah. This was all Henry's fault. It was all definitely deliberate, too, and he's definitely stalking me/out to kill me for...??? reasons. Because he's Henry. IDK. Math is mathing for sure."

There's no:

"Henry was trying to stop me from going through with that plan to use his powers. Maybe there was a reason for that? Maybe he was trying to warn me that it's dangerous for us both. So maybe he isn't what's dangerous about this, maybe he's just a vessel for something else, something he struggles to control. Maybe that's why he straight up begged my father to get me out of the attic when he showed up to collect me as things went wrong."

despite her supposedly talking Henry through beating the Shadow in the attic. (Which...I don't think she ever actually helped Henry with the attic possession. I think Henry made that all up to save himself.)

There's also no:

"Holy shit, Henry just disappeared after this whole debacle? Last time I saw him, he was half-aware on the floor of the attic. Is he even alive? Does anyone know where he is?"

either, which is something we even got from Joyce and Hopper.

Joyce and Hopper care more about Henry's wellbeing after the attic incident than Patty does, because she veers directly into being terrified of Henry...despite her supposedly having confessed her love to him while witnessing him fighting off possession!

"2+2 = George Washington" type math going on here.

Patty tells Henry early on that whatever powers he has might be a miracle rather than a mistake, only to veer directly into "Henry's a monster. He's going to hunt me down and kill me" each time.

Mixed signals.

And then when she learns better, when Mr. Newby tells her about the Shadow and she goes to find Henry/makes plans to run away with him, all Brenner has to do is tell her about the Creel murders and she's suddenly against Henry again! Despite knowing about the Shadow and about the conditions Brenner had Henry under in the lab!

There was no:

"Did Henry have a choice? What really happened here? What were the circumstances? This doesn't sound right, it sounds like you might have your fingers in all this, Dr. Brenner. Was Henry cornered into this situation?"

It's just:

Mixed signals.

It's not solid love, and it never was.

(This is why Will's exorcism succeeded, too. He had unconditional love on all sides, regardless of the fucked up things the Shadow had him doing. Joyce and Mike didn't care that Will sent all those soldiers to their deaths, they just cared about helping Will. Jonathan felt guilty that he wasn't there to help handle Will. They were all afraid for Will, not of Will.)

[fakeloveaskblog]

I think you. should ask Janus to "slither" over to your house! But also give him options! Like, "would you like to join me for dinner at my house? Or do you prefer to just go on a walk? How about we go to a fancy restaurant~ My treat~. Or maybe just enjoy each other's company at a park? You don't have to of course!"

(Words: 2095)

Logan: "Ah yes wonderful tactics stranger! This will surely be useless in my upcoming attempt!"

It was nearing the end of the day. Janus was closing up. Meanwhile Logan was trying to calm his nerves by reminding himself that he was objectivly very cool. He had on one of his best sweaters to look extra good (it had the tardis on it!).

"Alright. Looks like we can go home and have an existential crisis about the passage of time" Janus said motioning towards the exit.

Logan took a deep breathe before grabbing onto the sleeve of his crush' shirt "Please wait just a moment. How long have we known each other?"

"I guess since I started working here...so around 6 months? Please don't tell me you’re quitting! Work would just become soooo much more enjoyable"

"I was actually wondering if you mayhaps would like to accompany me on a so called 'hang out' during our leisure time...Today...Or some other day! If you want to! You don't have t-"

"No! No I would hate to!- Love! I mean I would love to!" Janus couldn't stop himself from grinning.

Logan flapped his hands in happiness "Good! So would you maybe like to go to the park nearby or-"

"No! Yes! Yes!"

"Great!"

Logan walked out of the library and held the door open for Janus. After quickly locking they walked towards the park. It was a simple small one. Just some trees, lots of grass, lots of people smoking grass, a pond, angry ducks, even angrier swans and exactly 1 ice cream shop.

All Logan wanted to do was take his crush' hand. It would be hard to do even if he tried to because Janus was constantly fiddling with his gloves. He was barely even looking at where he was walking.

"....I'm sorry for the weird way I talk sometimes" Janus quietly confessed "With the backwards talk. I kind of lie when I get nervous? I think?"

"Oh I know" Logan replied.

"You kNOw?" Janus' voice went up a tone.

"It is very noticeable but it is also quite charming if I may say so myself" It took a moment before he carefully added "Besides I have read that compulsive lying and also vitiligo can come from great stress or bad...events so even if I did not find it charming I wouldn't hold it against you either"

A small smile played on the edges of Janus' lips "Thanks"

"No need"

He took an impressively deep breathe before he stopped in the middle of the road and dramatically grabbed onto both of Logan's shoulders to stop him. He stood on his toes to make himself taller and stared into his love's eyes.

"I do not think you are also charming at all!!!" Janus very loudly announced.

Logan let up into a chuckle. He forced himself to keep eye contact "Well thank you"

Janus let go of him and kept walking very very quickly to try and distract from his red cheeks and heavy breathing. That was flirting right??? He had flirted??? He had done it??? He'd flirted??? The little voice in his head that he was starting to think was his self confidence trying to break through to him would be so proud!!!

“So would you perhaps like an ice cream in these trying times?” Logan asked. He was walking with his hands clasped behind his back.

“Oh right I would definitely love something high calorie that would just make me even more gross”

“Somehow your thick layer of sarcasm was the part of that sentence with the least falsehood in it. We can share one? Or if you get uncomfortable eating desserts in front of other people we don’t have-”

“SNAKE!” Janus interrupted him. 

He ran out into the grass of the park and hunched down to gently pick up a slippery snake. It was small enough to keep in one hand. He was repeatedly hitting his other arm against his leg and putting his fingers in uncomfortable positions.

Logan happily sat down next to him. Janus ungraciously shoved the snake right up near his face.

“It’s a baby northern watersnake! It’s not venomous I promise. It hunts fishes in the water. Isn’t that cool? It’s also one of the few species that doesn’t lay eggs! It can even put out musk to protect itself!! It’s so-”

He realized how much he was ranting and immediately forced himself to stop. He stopped his arm as well. He was so annoying.

“I apologize. Sometimes I just run my mouth and I do these stupid motions”

Logan boped his nose “The only stupid thing about that is you assuming I wouldn’t want to hear you rant. Or see you....stim...? I literally flapped my hands 5 minutes ago. I do not judge”

Janus shrugged at the stim question “My mother did always say that my father has adhd but that was in an insulting way. When I have done research on adhd I relate to a lot of it but it’s not like I have a diagnosis or anything”

“Bitchass mother” Logan mumbled under his breathe “I do not have diagnosed autism either but I do still now I have it.....Besides....Not to brag but I have both a deegre in both psychology and medicine so I can basically diagnose myself anyway”

Jan was already too overwhlemed to ask how the hell he had had the time for 2 bachelors deegre only to end up at a library.

“Anyhow we don’t have to talk about psychology...now...............maybe one day though” Logan did a little robotic evil laugh “For now maybe you can infodump about that snake, then we can get a shared ice cream and then I can infodump about glorious star trek. How’s that for a plan?”

His crush took a deep breathe before nodding. He stood up and cupped the snake in his hands. “You want to go to the pond don’t you little guy? Want to hunt and murder a few fishes don’t you?”

He turned to Logan and shuly said a few more facts while they went to the pond. He patted the snake on it’s head before carefully setting it down among the plants at the water’s edge.

The friends sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the snake as it looked for prey. (Though Logan spent most of the time adoring Janus’).

When the snake caught a small fish and swallowed it whole Janus broke out in happy flaps. He let out a happy squeal while pointing at it. Logan nodded back at him. He mimicked his flapping. 

He’d never seen Janus’ smile that brightly. Logan took his hand. Intertwining their fingers. They stimmed together until Lo pulled in his hand making his crush stumble into him. 

Jan sat with his head leaned against his chest. He looked up at Logan with blushing red cheeks. He forced himself to move back even if he didn’t want to.

“Sorry”

“No need” The nerd assured.

He stood up and held out his hand to help Janus up. They didn’t let go of each other’s hands as they walked towards the ice cream shop.

“To piss off homophobes” Janus lied up the explanation while motioning for their hand holding.

“Of course”

They ordered a scoop of lemon ice cream and sat down by the tables outside. Janus had taken off his gloves.  Their hands laid on top of each other. 

“Do you also have that experience where” Logan stopped to take a bite of ice cream “You categorize your life into what you were hyperfixated on at the time? For example I remember that when I met Patty I was into Doctor Who and right before then I was enjoying Sherlock Holmes”

Janus shrugged. He didn’t want to say that he had a hard time even remembering most of his life clearly “I can see the Doctor influence” He nodded towards his tardis sweater.

Logan’s eyes lit up “Oh have you seen it??? The ninth and fifth doctors are my favorite! Though as a bi man I can not ignore David Tennants’ everything”

“I have seen exactly 0″ 

“Well that is not a problem that can not be fixed! When I met Patty she hadn’t either- maybe because we were 12- but I show-”

Janus choked on his ice cream “12? Oh wow. For some reason I had assumed you were older”

“Oh no. She moved towns and started in my class. It was almost love at first sight. I stole flowers from my neighbor and invited her to see the movie everyone in town was talking about....Kung fu panda”

He broke out into a laugh.

“Don’t laugh at me Janny! It was an incredibly tactical decision. You see I knew she liked animals and the kung fu panda is a panda”

Janus doubled over the table while continuing to laugh “Me throwing popcorn at myself during my first hangout almost seems cool in conparison”

“Popcorn is usually hot. Not cooled down” Logan corrected. “Though to be honest the start of our relationship was sort of what you can call a ‘mess’ since as you already know both of us were foolish enough to think Patty was a guy. So suddenly I had to come to terms with liking guys. Until she told me she was a girl. So then I was straight. Until I met Thomas but that is a whole different story. It was like some people say a rollercoaster”

“Am I rude for finding that funny?”

“Yes incredibly and frankly you should be dragged to the guillotines right now”

Janus leaned closer to him with a sly smile on his face “Aw ~darling~ I didn’t know you could be sassy”

Logan did his best to hide how the nearly choked on his own spit “Yes I can indeed be if I want to. Just like how I have been able to have adequate facial expressions and voice tones and also eye contact during our whole hangout. Normally I only have a lot of expressions and tones if I am talking about hyperfixations or my wife”

“You don’t have to do that around me”

“Really? It does take a lot of energy to try and appear ‘normal’ but I was afraid of coming across as rude”

“Darling I find you lovely either way” Janus was going to pour up the biggest glass of fucking wine when he got home. He was a flirting machine!

“Oh okay” Logan relaxed his shoulders and started looking at a point right next to his shoulder instead of at his eyes. “Want to hear about Star trek the next generation? It’s the one with Data in it”

Janus squeezed his hand “I definitely have a very good idea about who that person is. Yes please tell me”

Logan went on a very very long infodump which Janus happily listened to (and did his best to reply to even though he didn’t know much). He was sure he would never get tired of hearing him talk. The ice cream nearly melted because they were both too busy with what he had to say.

“-And that is why the poetry actually have significance” Logan concluded after nearly half an hour.

“Well that sure sounds like an interesting series”

“I can show you it? Soon? I have it all on dvd”

“It’s a date- I uh I mean like planned thing not like romantic I mean-” Janus babbled out.

“I am aware of what you meant” He checked his watch “It is probably a good time for me to depart. It’s my turn on laundry today. I will get to categorize socks!”

“Wow. Sounds like a party”

Logan excitedly nodded. He stood up. Janus did as well. They looked down at their still connected hands. Jan was about to let go and simply leave but to his surprise Logan pulled him into a hug.

He leaned down and moved his arms around Janus’ waist. In return Jan quickly stood up on his toes and buried his head into his love’s shoulder. He breathed in his scent. Coffee and strawberry jam. He closed his eyes, taking in the moment.

“Janus, You are so special to me” Logan murmured while holding onto him as hard as he could.

“I- I love- I love being around you” He whispered back. Too afraid to say the truth.

Logan tried to memorise the way it felt to have him this close before letting go and taking a step back “Well I will see you tomorrow then”

“Can’t wait!”

[toutorii]

Broken Pieces Chapter 3

Warnings: Mild language. Small mention of abuse. Unedited writing. 

Broken Pieces Masterlist

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Once we escorted Percy to where Chiron and Mr. D were, I had to go help someone in the infirmary.

"Good luck kiddo," I whispered to Percy. The poor thing looked terrified. I walked to the infirmary, only to be greeted by Luke Callestan.

"The hell did you do this time, Luke?" I asked.

"I fell off of a pegasus." He answered sheepishly.

I shook my head and treated his wounds.

"So, hows the new kid?" He asked while I checked out his purple wrist.

I shrugged, "He's in shock, denial, scared like hell. Pretty normal after finding out your mom died."

Luke nodded wordlessly. We sat in comfortable silence while I wrapped my hands gently around his wrist, a glowing light peeked from the cracks of my fingers. I let go of Luke, while he moved it around to test it out.

"Are you sure you aren't a child of Apollo?" Luke asked.

"Luke, two men can't biologically have a child. Do I need to give you some sex ed?"

"Gods no! It's just, you're a talented musician, and you have healing powers, who else has that?"

"Um, a lot of minor gods?"

"Oh," yeah, oh. See, at camp, if you are the child of a major god, you have a low chance of getting claimed. And it's an even lower chance if you're the child of a minor god. Cause there isn't even a cabin for Hades, much less than any of the other gods that don't have a throne on Olympus.

"Why do we even make our lives revolve around them?" I looked at him with a questioning glance, prompting him to go further.

"I mean, look at you, you've been at camp how many years? You've come back from two quests alive, and you've been nothing but faithful to the gods. And what do you get? Being crammed into the Hermes cabin, having to deal with new campers, and having no clue who your godly parent is."

I just sat there, taking in what he was saying. I never really thought I had a bad life. I mean, my stepmom was awful, she used to hit on my dad and me all the time. And I found camp when I was 5, so I could escape her for summer. And the only reason he married her was to hide my scent from monsters. So when I found camp, he divorced her and kicked her out of our small apartment a year later. So I don't really remember her much. Then when I was seven, he met Fineas Laurel, a really good guy that became a really good family friend. About a year later, they started dating. They got married when I was 12, and adopted my precious little sister, Sofia, a year later. So my family life is great, and the two quests I went on weren't traumatizing or anything. I mean, the four people I went with, hated me and only had me come along because I had healing abilities. And on the first one, they tried to sacrifice me to save their own asses. The second one I blocked out of my memory, cause it was so bad. But I have no clue why exactly it was so bad. And being crammed in the Hermes cabin, well I don't really know a life in camp that I wasn't crammed in that incredibly small cabin. I guess to an outsider my life isn't that great, but in reality, I'm one of the lucky ones.

"ellooo. Phoebe? Earth to Phoebe" Luke's voice snapped me out of my trance.

"My life isn't bad, Luke. And what complications I've had, I don't blame on the gods. Even they don't have control over everything. The only thing is, why are you trying to turn me against the gods?"

"I just think the whole thing is stupid." I couldn't disagree with him there.

"Well, I'm gonna check up on the kid. He's playing Pinochle with Mr.D."

<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>

As I walked on the porch of the big house, I saw Mr. D fill his goblet with wine. Percy's jaw dropped. I almost laughed. But the poor thing must've been so confused.

"Mr.D, your restrictions," I warned casually, looking at the ongoing game. Mr.D looked up at me before saying,

"Dear me." He looked at the sky and yelled, "Old habits! Sorry!"

Thunder boomed.

Mr. D waved his hand again, and the wineglass changed into a fresh can of Diet Coke. He sighed unhappily, popped the top of the soda, and went back to his card game.

Chiron turned to Percy. "Mr. D offended his father a while back, took a fancy to a wood nymph who had been declared off-limits."

"A wood nymph," he repeated, still staring at the Diet Coke can like it was from outer space. It was almost comical.

"Yes," Mr. D confessed. "Father loves to punish me. The first time, Prohibition. Ghastly! Absolutely horrid ten years! The second time-well, she really was pretty, and I couldn't stay away-the second time, he sent me here. Half-Blood Hill. Summer camp for brats like you. 'Be a better influence,' he told me. 'Work with youths rather than tearing them down.' Ha.' Absolutely unfair."

Then he looked at me, saying, "Who are you, my mother, Penelope?"

"I have no comment to that sir."

"Wait- I thought your name was Phoebe?" Percy asked. I smiled nodding.

"He has a problem with names."

"No, I don't Patricia. I'm fantastic with names. You just have a weird one, Percy."

Percy's head shot up, filled with confusion.

"Sir, my name isn't Patricia or Percy."

"Well, what is it?"

"Phoebe."

"Bah, Perry is a better name. Isn't there a pony named Perry the Pony or something."

"Perry the Platypus, sir."

"See, Polly is a better name for you instead of Patty."

"W-wait" Percy butted in, stammering, "y-y-your father is..."

"Di immortales, Chiron," Mr. D said. "I thought you taught this boy the basics. My father is Zeus, of course."

I just shook my head. Watching Percy wrack his brain to figure out who the hell Mr.D would be.

"You're Dionysus," He finally said. "The god of wine."

Mr. D rolled his eyes. "What do they say, these days, Grover? Do the children say, 'Well, duh!'?" "Y-yes, Mr. D."

"Then, well, duh! Percy Jackson. Did you think I was Aphrodite, perhaps?"

"You're a god."

"Yes, child."

Ah yes, the epitome of conversation.

"A god. You."

Mr.D just started at the child, probably sending a silent threat of, "If you test me, you get turned into a dolphin."

"Would you like to test me, child?" he said quietly.

"No. No, sir."

The poor kid looked terrified.

Mr.D turned back to his card game. "I believe I win." "Not quite, Mr. D," Chiron said. He set down a straight, tallied the points, and said, "The game goes to me."

"Ooh, good hand Chiron," I said, congratulating the man.

Mr.D looked at me like he was gonna vaporize me, then looked at Chiron, before he gave up, sighing through his nose, already used to losing to the centaur.

"I'm tired," Mr. D said. "I believe I'll take a nap before the sing-along tonight. But first, Grover, we need to talk, again, about your less-than-perfect performance on this assignment."

Grover's face beaded with sweat. "Y-yes, sir."

Mr. D turned to Percy. "Cabin eleven, Percy Jackson. And mind your manners." He walked into the Big house, Grover following miserably. I felt bad for the satyr, he just had the worst luck sometimes.

"Will Grover be okay?" He asked Chiron and me.

I nodded, "Old Mr.D isn't really mad. He just hates his job."

Chiron continued saying, "He's been ... ah, grounded, I guess you would say, and he can't stand waiting another century before he's allowed to go back to Olympus."

"Mount Olympus," Percy said. "You're telling me there really is a palace there?"

"Well now, there's Mount Olympus in Greece. And then there's the home of the gods, the convergence point of their powers, which did indeed used to be on Mount Olympus. It's still called Mount Olympus, out of respect to the old ways, but the palace moves, Kiddo, just as the gods do." I explained to him.

"You mean the Greek gods are here? Like ... in America?"

"Well, certainly. The gods move with the heart of the West." Chiron answered.

"The what?"

Chiron furthered explained. "Come now, Percy. What you call 'Western civilization.' Do you think it's just an abstract concept? No, it's a living force. A collective consciousness that has burned bright for thousands of years. The gods are part of it. You might even say they are the source of it, or at least, they are tied so tightly to it that they couldn't possibly fade, not unless all of Western civilization were obliterated. The fire started in Greece. Then, as you well know-or as I hope you know, since you passed my course-the heart of the fire moved to Rome, and so did the gods. Oh, different names, perhaps-Jupiter for Zeus, Venus for Aphrodite, and so on-but the same forces, the same gods."

"And then they died."

I snorted. Chiron silenced me with a look before continuing, "Died? No. Did the West die? The gods simply moved, to Germany, to France, to Spain, for a while. Wherever the flame was brightest, the gods were there. They spent several centuries in England. All you need to do is look at the architecture. People do not forget the gods. Every place they've ruled, for the last three thousand years, you can see them in paintings, in statues, on the most important buildings. And yes, Percy, of course, they are now in your United States. Look at your symbol, the eagle of Zeus. Look at the statue of Prometheus in Rockefeller Center, the Greek facades of your government buildings in Washington. I defy you to find any American city where the Olympians are not prominently displayed in multiple places. Like it or not and believe me, plenty of people weren't very fond of Rome, either America is now the heart of the flame. It is the great power of the West. And so Olympus is here. And we are here."

"Who are you, Chiron? Phoebe? Who ... who am I?"

I gazed at him with sympathy, being thrown into the world of gods is a lot for anyone.

"Who are you?" Chiron mused. "Well, that's the question we all want answered, isn't it? But for now, we should get you a bunk in cabin eleven. There will be new friends to meet. And plenty of time for lessons tomorrow. Besides, there will be s' mores at the campfire tonight, and I simply adore chocolate."

"Bleh," I said under my breath.

"I still can't fathom how you don't like chocolate, Phoebe."

I shrugged. Chiron rose from his wheelchair. Turning into the half-man, half stallion I grew up with. Percy looked like he was about to combust. I laughed slightly at the bewildered expression on the child.

"What a relief," the centaur said. "I'd been cooped up in there so long, my fetlocks had fallen asleep. Now, come, Percy Jackson. Let's meet the other campers."

I helped him up saying, "So uh, it's a lot isn't it?"

"uhhuh"

"Don't worry kiddo, the first time I met Mr.D, I accidentally thought he filled his goblet for me, so I took a sip of it. I quickly found out it was weird tasting fruit juice. I still don't think he's forgiven me."

Percy looked at me with an open-mouthed expression that said, "Huh?", "How?", and "What the hell" at the same time.

I chuckled, "I was five, and I didn't know any better."

He just nodded, his mouth still hung open, so I said in a British accent, "Now, now Percy, close your mouth, we are not codfish."

His face filled with relief, probably because something finally made sense to him. "Mary Poppins?"

"Of course."

With that, we followed Chiron, who was waiting for us to follow.

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A/N: Wow she updated! :0 Anyways, I hope you like this chapter. Just so you know, I don't own any of the characters or plot, except for Phoebe, Her dad, Fineas, and Sofia. But I will try to update more frequently. And just to let you know, I will be doing the entirety of the Lightning Thief. And I'm going to try and do the rest of the series. Cause I have a plan, but at the same time not really. I mean, I know how I'm going to end The Last Olympian. But its the in-between I'm worried about. But I hope you enjoy it!

[willykappymarnsmatts]

Kiss and Make it Better

-Mitch is broken and Auston’s the only person who can fix him-

-Angst and fluff-

-Auston x Mitch-

•••

They lost. Really badly. It was game 70 and they were fighting hard for a spot in the playoffs. They almost beat Edmonton, too. It was tied at two in the last minutes of the third period. Auston got the puck on a breakaway, but was tripped by McDavid, earning no call. Mitch chased him all the way up the ice and was two feet away from him, the net to his back. Conner took the shot and it was going wide, but Marner got his stick on it, long enough to just tip it into his own net.

The Scotiabank arena went silent, 20,000 Leafs fans’ hopes of a trip to the playoffs dwindling with each loss.

All the guys went into the locker room hanging their heads after the third loss in a row. Mitch’s eyes were especially bloodshot. When he got into the locker room he went straight to his stall, sat on the bench, and put his head in his hands after throwing his helmet on the shelf, knocking down a glove.

It broke Auston’s heart to see his best friend in so much agony. Willy kept looking between the two boys, knowing Auston’s fondness for Mitch, in an act the opposite of subtle. Auston sat down next to Mitch, their knees bumping through their pads, and put an arm around him. “Hey, Mitchy,” he whispered, “nobody blames you.”

Auston’s touch allows Mitch to pick his head up and run his hands through his sweat-soaked hair. The pain in his eyes makes Auston want to cry. “Get changed and we’ll go home.” He tells the broken boy in his arms.

He keeps an eye on Mitch while he changes. It looks like the slightest blow would shatter him. Hockey is Mitch’s life, so he knows how much it’s killing him, blaming himself for the loss.

Once Auston’s changed he sits at his stall, with a mix of yearning and protectiveness over Mitch. Ever since he’s laid eyes on him, he’s wanted him. Willy and Patty know, but at this point so does everyone else. He doesn’t know that Mitch feels the exact same way, and has for just as long as Matts.

Mitch walks out of the arena with his hoodie over his head, Auston keeping his pace. They climb into the car in silence. Mitch looks between his feet and Auston’s hands on the wheel. He so badly want a kiss from him to make him better. His crush doesn’t move his eyes from the road until he hears a sniffle from next to him. Auston’s the only person Mitch has ever cried infront of, and only when he was in drastic amounts of pain.

“Hey, hey, Mitchy,” Auston says frantically, looking between his friend and the road. He wants to pull over and hold him, but they’re down the street from Mitch’s building, so he decides against it.

“I lost the fucking game! I’m the worst hockey player ever! I’ve gone seven games without a stupid goal-wait, no, I scored the game winner for fucking Edmonton!” Mitch explodes once they’ve parked outside his building, tears streaming down his face. The sight breaks Auston’s heart.

“You are such a goddamn liar, Marns,” Auston says softly. “You’re the best player in the NHL, even if nobody else can see it I can. And, hey, look at me,” Mitch looks into his eyes, Auston meeting his piercing blue eyes bloodshot and his face soaked with tears. “We did not lose because of you. Our games a team sport, no win or loss in one guys fault. Now, stop, it’s hurting me to see you like this.”

At those words Mitch’s heart does a little flip, somehow through all the pain. Auston looks past Mitch, at his building. “You gonna be okay alone tonight?” He asks, his voice laced with concern.

“I, umm, yeah, I’m just gonna go to sleep,” Mitch replies flustered.

The guys say goodnight and Auston drives away once Mitch steps into his building. His friend’s words relieved a bit of the weight off his shoulders, but he’s still kind of upset. When he gets up to his apartment he crawls under his bed covers once he’s changed and scrolls through Instagram. His heart skips a beat when he sees Auston’s latest post, a picture oh Mitch getting a piggy-back from him, both boys in a fit of laughter, neither looking at the camera. ‘@marner93 , my #MCM’.

He likes the photo and leaves a comment, then continues to scroll. The Leafs latest post is the final score, which lessens Mitch’s good mood. He scrolls through the comment, aware of the fact that it’s probably a mistake. Some read ‘great effort’ and ‘tough loss’, but most are targeting the heartbroken athlete.

He’s supposed to be used to it, but he’s allowing the words to get to him. With a no-goal stint and a mistake so drastic, he begins to believe the hateful comments. His heart hurts as he sees how disappointed the fans are in him. He’s letting Toronto down.

Maybe Auston was wrong. If there’s a shit player on the ice, he’s gonna mess it up for the rest of the guys. He starts to silently cry again, thinking he’ll never get out of his dry-stint. He throws his phone at the wall as it begins to ring, not knowing its Auston, pretending he doesn’t hope it is.

•••

When Auston got home there was a weight on his chest. Mitch is a really sensitive guy, but nobody really knows it except him. The way they are around each other, they’re kind of blind to not see the amount of feelings between the two.

He walked inside his apartment, locking the door and throwing the keys on the kitchen counter. Matts grabbed an apple and threw himself onto the couch.

There’s nothing good on tv, so he scrolls through Instagram. He sees his recent post and smiles at the joy on their faces. Then he reads all the disgusting comments about his best friend, wiping the grin off. He runs a frustrated hand through his hair and calls Mitch. He doesn’t pick up. Still no response a second, third time.

A voice inside his head reasons he might be asleep. He doubts it, but he needs the rest too. They have the second game of a back-to-back tomorrow. Auston yawns, throws the apple core in the garbage, and heads to the bathroom.

•••

He next morning, there’s no call or text from Mitch. They have practice this morning, so he’ll see what’s up when he goes to pick him up. While he’s brushing his teeth, he gets a FaceTime from Willy.

When he picks up he sees him and Kappy lying side-by-side on Willy’s bed.

“Hey, lovebirds,” Auston chirps, earning the finger from Willy. Kappys never really cared, too in love with Willy.

“Has your boyfriend talked to you? He was really upset last night and we saw the comments on the final score.” Asks Kappy.

“Oh really? I hadn’t noticed. He hasn’t spoken a word to me since I dropped him off. Oh, and, he’s not my boyfriend!” Austin points his toothbrush towards the camera and mumbles around a mouthful of toothpaste.

“Maybe not, but you wish,” Willy chirps.

Auston doesn’t argue. The guys continue talking, Matts nodding or shaking his head for the most part while he washes his face and shaves. “Alright, gotta go pick the kid up. See you on the ice,” Auston says and hangs up.

•••

Austin drives as fast as he can without getting pulled over to Mitch’s house. He knows he isn’t gonna get buzzed up, so when he gets there he uses his own copy of Mitch’s keys to get into the building and then his silent apartment.

Auston makes a beeline to his friend’s bedroom, not bothering to knock before stepping in.

Mitch has the covers pulled up over his head, but Auston recognizes the lump under the blankets. “Marns,” Auston says gently, fondness dripping from his words. Mitch whimpers under the covers as Auston sits on the edge of the bed. “What’s going on, man? We’ve got a game tonight, and practice in 15.”

Mitch’s blue eyes and messy hair peek up at Auston from under the covers. “I’m not going,” he says defiantly.

Auston restrains himself from running his hand through Mitch’s hair. “Marns, I saw the comments last night. People really suck, but people are also li-“

“No!” Mitch shoots up, revealing his bare chest and strong arms to Matts. “Everyone’s right! I fucking suck! Aus, I don’t wanna- I cant go.”

“Mitchell Marner. Every hockey player goes through this shit. But you’re so much better than every hockey player. You’re fucking fantastic. You make plays that shouldn’t even be possible. You’re also the best goddamn friend in the world!” Auston’s yelling, but he either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care. Mitch’s eyes aren’t as sad as they were a second ago, so he continues. “Mitchy, you’re the best thing to ever happen to me. You make garbage games fun. Just being around you puts me in a good mood. You have that dumbass smile on your face all the time. And-“ he cuts himself off, almost accidentally confessing his feelings to an awestruck Mitch.

“And what?” Mitch asks so quietly it’s almost a whisper.

“No, it’s, don’t worry,” he stands up, glancing at Marner’s eyes. The tears are gone. “Just get up and put some clothes on. If we don’t leave now Babs is gonna have our asses.

Mitch doesn’t move. “Aus, what were you gonna say?”

“Nothing! Don’t worry about it.”

“Auston Matthews,”

“Marns, get-“

“Aus, fucking tel-“

“I like you!”

Mitch goes silent. “I like you Marns. I like you a lot.”

Mitch gets pissed. “Who the fuck told you?! Look, Matts, it’s not funny to play with someone’s feelings like that. It’s just a stupid crush,”

“You think I’m joking? You actually think I’m kidding. Mitch, you’re clueless.”

“You’re an asshole. You’re-“

Auston lunges at Mitch and kisses him, hard. One hand is on Mitch’s shoulder, the other on the wall behind him. Mitch freezes for just a second, then his arms reach around Auston’s waist, pulling him close. Auston’s hands come up into Mitch’s hair and he kisses him and kisses him and kisses him. He’s wanted to do this for three damn years.

Auston pulls away. “Do you believe me now? You’re fucking incredible.”

“You fucking suck,” Mitch giggles and kisses him again. Auston kisses him back and pulls away to stand up.

“We have to go now,” he starts, but Mitch pulls him by the wrist back onto the bed. Auston laughs. “You’re adorable.” He runs his hand through Mitch’s hair and licks his own lips, then stands up and throws a shirt at Mitch. “If we don’t leave right now we’re dead meat.”

Mitch groans but pulls the shirt on over his head, not bothering to change out of his sweatpants or even brush his hair. As the boys walk towards the door, Mitch grabs Auston’s hand, looking pleased with himself. Auston licks his lips, glancing at their intertwined fingers. “You’re coming over after practice for fuckinh sure.”

[kiss-my-freckle]

Silver & Gold

James Maddox & Victor Fokin. Imposter father vs Imposter husband. 

How Tom could repay his debt to Ressler for saving his life. 

Southern Cross: “And my love is an anchor tied to you - tied with a silver chain”

This isn’t Ressler and Liz, this is Ressler and Red. That’s why Red shows up to offer assistance to Ressler in Thrall’s episode, and they scene cut Pattie Sue to our Red in the car with Fagen. Ressler assisting Red in clearing his name. I think it’s working in this direction. Silver linings and silver platters. Golden blood and a golden chain. 

“Silver linings.” 

The first use, Cooper said it to Ressler when Gale was after Liz. 

Ressler: I’m loyal to the task force. Cooper: I know, which is why this terrible situation may have a silver lining. Ressler: Gale. Cooper: You’re free to work with him full time. He thinks Reddington’s feeding Keen intel on criminals. That in exchange, she’s keeping him a step ahead of us. And you need to keep it that way.

Ressler will no longer be loyal to the task force. Not when he finds out Agnes is his daughter. When they pull the Rederina-Keenler baby reveal, it’ll put Liz back in the same position as S2. Ressler let her go once, it won’t happen again. For the same reason Red thought he lost her once, he won’t lose her again. 

The issue falls in the task force already being known to work with Reddington. Once Gale learned the truth in The Debt Collector, he put them before a grand jury. That trial may have went away, but the knowing is still there. The task force can only sweep it under the rug for so long. 

The second use, Ressler with Liz in The Capricorn Killer. 

Ressler: State Police are out there combing the woods. Wherever she is, we’re gonna find her. At least we got these two, right? Silver linings. Liz: Hey, if there’s anything good that happened today, it’s that we secured a witness who’s gonna testify against the man who killed Tom. Ressler: Like I said. Silver linings.

Forget about the man who killed Tom. Tom got himself killed. But Red took the witness and placed him somewhere safe, so that side is covered. 

“Silver platters.” 

This one led to the Harbormaster trial.

Ressler: Well played, Keen. I mean, look at it. Berlin’s gone. Tom’s free. Liz: He brought us Fitch. Ressler: Berlin handed us Fitch on a silver platter after he had a bomb strapped to his neck. Look, I’ve been thinking about what I said in the car, and - Liz: Don’t worry about it, Ressler. I’ll tell Cooper.

Tom somehow struck a deal and Liz ended up framed and on the run. 

This one, a framed terrorist.

Ressler: Gotta take a witness statement. Samar: Someone from Blackthorn? Cooper: A programmer who claims he saw Maddox with the timer chip. Liz: A month ago, but for some reason didn’t bother coming forward until after the company had already served up Maddox on a silver platter. I’m telling you, something’s off about this.

This one, the grand jury. 

Kate: I gave the authorities enough to put him away forever. But you and your team must disavow any knowledge of the task force. Liz: So you served Reddington up on a silver platter to the FBI. You did that for me. Kate: Not you, Elizabeth. I’ve already failed you. I did it for Agnes.

Red and Ressler struck a deal to make it go away, insert the storyline of Tommy Markin and Ressler’s father through Reven and Laurel. 

This one, Red struck a deal, but killed him and kept the island key.   

Mario: We’re all set. I’ll serve her up on a silver platter if you hold up your end of the deal.

This one, a frame by Red and his postman doppelganger. 

Red: That’s what he thinks he’s doing. In actuality, he’s delivering Ian Garvey to you on a silver platter. You just have to catch him in the act of killing me, not after he already has. Cooper: If I sign off on this, you’re walking in there at your own risk.

What’s interesting, falls into the aspect of Maddox and Fokin and whether Red’s true identity will be covered. Red having turned himself in to protect Liz, but also spoke of a second chance. Again, insert Red and Ressler because this is when Red first hired Fagen. 

Ressler: I used to think in terms of black and white. You were either a bad guy or you weren’t. I’m not sure about that anymore. Under the right circumstances, I’ve come to believe that even the best of us are capable of - almost anything. I only mention that because, well, I figure everyone deserves a second chance.

This goes back to Cooper’s dialogue about the best and worst of us and what Red is capable of. Acting as a sin eater for the past 30 years. 

Hope. Red’s hope for a second chance, Tom’s hope for a future with Liz. 

Cooper: Do we think the Apothecary lied? Liz: I don’t know. Aram: You know, he has to be okay. Cooper: There’s no shame in hoping for the best, even for the worst of us. Those dialogues also brought me to think about Ressler and Rederina.  What about their second chances? Perhaps their golden chains?

Aram and his grandmother’s ring. Ressler and Katarina’s necklace. 

Polaris. The North Star. 

 “And my love is an anchor tied to you - tied with a  silver chain”

This brought me back to James Maddox and Victor Fokin. Especially with Red having framed Ian Garvey for shooting Zarak Mosadek and my belief that Red framed Tom for Diane Fowler’s murder. 

Again, Ressler and Red. Those dialogues above. 

Samar: James Maddox - born August 1970. I don’t know. What do you think? Does this look like the face of a traitor to you? Ressler: Anybody’s capable of anything. You know that. Samar: Yeah, well, there’s a special level in hell for people who provide arms to terrorists.

Similar to Victor Fokin, FSB agent defecting to the U.S. This was the case Red wanted in order to get to Tom and his employer. He could’ve gotten straight to Berlin through the NSA kid, but he chose to take Fokin’s file for Liz. Same thing with Maddox and Fokin. Supplying arms. 

Gina: Fokin had information about the route Chechen guerrillas were using to move their supplies to their soldiers on the Russian border. The guy who hired me was making millions providing those supplies. His name is Raymond Reddington.

Red wasn’t the one who hired Gina, since it was Tom who killed Fokin. That trusted forger in Warsaw. I’m thinking Red had a bigger claim in this case than we think. Like perhaps Fokin's information would’ve also helped to clear Katarina’s name.

The truth, learned through Tom’s death. The truth, setting them free. 

Fagen: Living a lie was worse than prison. The day I confessed was the day I went to jail. That was also the day I was set free.