#Judo said he would take one for the team

[respectthepetty]

The raw chaotic energy of this scene is unparalleled.

i'm dead @ the chaotic proletarian solidarity of judo letting night and neon hide from loan sharks in his car in the middle of his sex work appt, and then proceeding to fuck her right in front of them bc ~she's paying him hourly~ i'm fucking LOSING IT over night and neon's traumatized reactions and esp night's high-pitched "thank you, thank you" while neon is fanning herself lmaooo whoever wrote this show must've had the time of their fucking lives

[ohnococo]

JJK MMA Fighter AU Headcanons

[Headcanons for Toji, Geto, Gojo, and Sukuna as MMA Fighters]

MMA fighter Toji Fushiguro, who keeps everyone on his training team shocked when he consistently makes weight because he eats whatever he wants until about a month before weigh ins. When he’s fighting he’s always lean and cut as hell despite said “fuck it” diet.

MMA fighter Toji is a light heavyweight, he could choose to fight as a heavyweight if he wanted, but he’d be at the lower end of the weight class and if he bulked up any more it would affect his flexibility.

MMA fighter Toji is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and holds the record for fastest submission. Absolute master of sneaky submissions, to the point that opponents will try to avoid being taken down by him at all costs. Suits him, if he doesn’t win by submission he’ll win by points alone because they’re too afraid to get in his (long) reach. He hates boring fights though, so expect lots of taunting in these cases.

MMA fighter Toji’s early fight record is a bit spotty, but once he hits his prime a few years in his record is nearly flawless. Except for one fight that gets brought up a lot more than he would like where he was knocked out cold. 

MMA fighter Toji comes from a fighting family, a boxing family specifically, but absolutely does not associate himself with them. When he was young and talked more shit he asked a few of them to fight him, but they either blew him off or refused to have an MMA match - it was boxing only or nothing. 

MMA fighter Toji gets his chance to fight someone from the Zen’in family eventually, and decides he won’t take them to the ground at all - he’ll box them. He wins by knockout in the second round. 

MMA fighter Suguru Geto is a middleweight. He sticks to his wheelhouse and you won’t find him moving weight classes or suddenly trying any flashy moves.

MMA fighter Geto whose background was initially in Judo, and early on he made the smart choice to supplement it with Brazilian jiu-jitsu. That paired with his strength and stamina make him a dangerous combo and he’s known for getting almost anyone down for a little ground and pound until he earns himself a stoppage win. 

MMA fighter Geto doesn’t have to make weight, he just stays at weight. Thanks to this he’s a frequent late call-in when other fighters have had to back out at the last minute. His diet is clean and measured and he has to be on rest for a good while to really indulge. He just prefers being a clean eater. 

MMA fighter Geto can get in his head sometimes about his opponents though, particularly if they’re known to be slippery on the ground and hard to get a favourable position against. His losses tend to be a result of hanging back too much and letting it go to judges' decision - in which case it’ll be his lack of striking that gets him. At his best, though? He’s fearsome and will hold a title at some point in his career.

MMA fighter Geto is neither a trash talker, nor a show off, so he doesn’t get quite as much press as other fighters. Some of his fans theorise that he’d have much more title shots and bigger fights if he were to play up his personality for viewers, but even more fans like and respect that he’s himself and is a purist in his fighting. He gets the job done, without bells and whistles.

MMA fighter Geto has excellent sportsmanship. Even if he’s a clear winner he doesn’t ever downplay his opponent’s skills or talk badly about them. Always taps gloves before a fight, and the second the person taps or the ref waves his arms to stop, he’s letting go and checking on his opponent. This behaviour earns him lots of respect and lots of friends among his peers. It’s beneficial in the end because lots of other fighters enjoy training with him, and Suguru is particularly good at incorporating new things he picks up seamlessly into his existing skill set.

MMA fighter Suguru Geto who, of his generation of big names, is most expected to become a trainer upon retirement. He’s always helpful to even the most inexperienced fighters during training, and generally has really great insights on fighting. 

MMA fighter Geto always gets dragged out to at least one place to celebrate after a win. His training partner Satoru Gojo insists on it. Though he doesn’t stay out late and will always end the night icing his muscles and drinking loads of water to recover.

MMA fighter Satoru Gojo is the poster boy for his company. He has sponsorships galore. He’s handsome, interviews well, keeps his nose clean as far as the public is concerned, and is an amazing fighter.

MMA fighter Gojo’s talent was noticed early, so he’s been in some kind of combat sport competitively since he was a kid. Judo, taekwondo, anything he could try he’s done for at least a summer. He later refocused on primarily Muay Thai and kickboxing.

MMA fighter Gojo is a lightweight in his early career, but as he gets older and bulks up a little Gojo moves up into the welterweight class where he really shines. He has an incredible reach thanks to his long limbs, which poses problems for anyone against him. 

MMA fighter Gojo is an all rounder - dangerous standing and dangerous on the ground, but if an opponent is strong enough they can carve out some points by holding him down so he doesn’t have the chance to get momentum on those powerful kicks. 

MMA fighter Gojo can eat whatever he wants and not put on weight, he never seems sluggish after his big meals or sugary treats either and no one understands how. He just seems to eat whatever he wants without consequence, although as he gets into his late 20s his manager and trainers are always on his ass about eating better. He listens… sometimes.

MMA fighter Gojo will taunt and tease loads before and during fights, but really does have good sportsmanship. He always taps gloves at the beginning of a match, compliments his opponent and hugs or pats them on the back post-match, and you won’t find him breaking rules. Say he mis-judges a punch and hits someone on the back of the head or his foot slips during a thigh kick and he gets them in the groin, he’ll feel genuinely bad and allow them all the time the referee can for recovery before the match resumes. 

MMA fighter Gojo parties hard after a match. Not necessarily drinking, but he’s going out on the town, dancing, being his happy loud self, eating all the things his trainers begged him not to in the lead up to weigh-ins. Even though his manager initially worried he would make a fool of himself, it actually only helps his image. Many fans will come across him in a bar or club after a match and get pictures with him. He’s just friendly and takes the time, even if he’s trying to unwind. 

MMA fighter Ryomen Sukuna whose only losses are disqualifications for times he got too carried away - if that even counts. No one has ever beaten him outright. Despite this he has some of the gnarliest cauliflower ear you’ve ever seen.

MMA fighter Sukuna who got kicked out of his first MMA company for poor conduct. 

MMA fighter Sukuna is a heavyweight that specialises in boxing and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu - the latter gives a lot of his opponents trouble because at this weight class they’re expecting a glorified boxing/kick boxing match and don’t know what’s coming once they’re on the ground.

MMA fighter Sukuna always has some viewers debating on whether he’s a fraud for how, despite winning, he’s always down on points in his scorecard. It’s only because he likes eating punches from opponents if only to show them that he can shake them off like nothing, and he gets his own points deducted for rule breaking. Punches to the back of the head, kneeing downed opponents, but he only does these things once in a match to avoid disqualification nowadays. The points don’t matter to him anyway, he finishes the fight when he feels like it.

MMA fighter Sukuna secured a spot on title cards from a young age, thanks to his impressive frame and even more impressive taunting in the press leading up to fights. 

MMA fighter Sukuna once dropped down two weight classes just to fuck up someone he doesn’t like on record. People count him out for the physical strain dropping so much muscle would have on anyone else, but this isn’t just anyone else, it’s Ryomen Sukuna.

MMA fighter Sukuna who, as he ages, has to teach new up and comers a lesson again and again. The more someone talks about him being past his prime, the harder they’ll fall. Though he’ll still talk non-stop about how early MMA was better, when you could fight anyone of any weight class and there weren’t so many rules around how to safely beat someone. 

MMA fighter Sukuna who, after yet another win, celebrates by drinking and feasting and fucking. Just pure hedonism. He’s had a few belligerent moments, and a few encounters of getting a little too hot and heavy in the corner of a club, but he’s just too popular as a sort of “heel” in the MMA world that organisers make any press around more illegal activities disappear. 

[lolliputian]

I think you are the most qualified person to ask this question since you write the tieflings so well: what Olympic sport would the tiefs complete in?

High praise indeed, Anon! Thank you so much!

Going through the list of events, I'm going to go through the adult Tieflings we see in the Grove. I'm also sticking to the summer events.

Zevlor is, of course, Equestrian, and more specifically eventing (which, I discovered, is basically a triathlon). Tilses would also take place in Equestrian, but she'd be focused on jumping. If the Hellriders aren't taking place in the equestrian events, it's a crime. Nuff said.

Rolan would be a swimmer. I think he'd would find swimming for exercise cathartic--the water resistance, the controlled breathing, engaging all your muscle groups to move through the water.

Lia would be a rower for a similar reason, engaging all the upper body muscles. I think she would do really well with a team, as well, and find a lot of fulfillment in it. Cal, in perhaps a surprising choice, would take part in gymnastics. His high strength score lends itself to strength based events. Imagine Cal taking on the pommel horse or the rings, holy shit.

Dammon, surprising absolutely no one, would take part in the hammer throw. But, before I remembered that existed, I also figured he would do well with shot put. Short bursts of power suit him.

Along a similar vein, Alfira would really excel at rhythm gymnastics as a form of artistic expression. Lakrissa, on the other hand, is a natural for archery, and in a modern AU would absolutely be that person doing trick shots on TikTok.

In canon, we know Bex is a great runner and that she was able to outrun the cultists. Thus, I can see her taking part in the sprinting events. Danis, meanwhile, I think would get the most enjoyment out of golf out of any of the events available. Outside of competition, I think he'd like the social aspect of it.

Komira is absolutely a Taekwondo girl--she was ready to throw down with the druids and strikes me as the type who wouldn't hesitate to fight for what she believes in. Locke's temperament, in contrast, reminds me more of a distance runner. He's much calmer than his wife.

So I debated between Asharak and Guex whom I thought would be a better fit for fencing--we see Asharak training the kids in fighting, and Guex using Main Hand Attack against Makeshift Training Dummy. Ultimately, I felt Asharak's temperament was a lot better for it and, frankly, that he would do well enough to compete on an Olympic level. Guex's event? Javelin Throw. We see him use potentially any weapon you sell Dammon against the Training Dummy if you defeat the druids (off the top of my head, I can't think of anyone who uses a javelin canonically otherwise minus maybe Cal). But I also think he'd like the challenge and feeling powerful without having to get into close quarters.

If we've talked Tiefling headcanon, you'll know I carry a headcanon that Okta is/was a monk and actively adventured until her pregnancy. Thus, she's a natural fit for Judo. Ikaron, too, does a physical event that requires a lot of control and precision: Boxing. Like Rolan with swimming, I think he'd find it cathartic.

Cerys would take part in the modern pentathlon. We don't know much about her backstory from the game besides her being a scout and the third leader option if both Zevlor and Asharak are killed in Act 1. Thus, IMO, she has to be extremely impressive in her own right. The pentathlon presently includes fencing, swimming, equestrian jumping, laser pistol shooting, and distance running.

Zorru and Yul are other canonical scouts. We know Zorru was able to make it Baldur's Gate presumably by himself, which means not only is he a good runner, but he has to be skilled at dodging obstacles, too. He's a natural choice for hurdles. Yul, we don't know enough about, but for the endurance required for scouting, let's slot him into cycling.

Kaldani and Rikka get to be our beach volleyball pair! I really wanted a duo that's seen a lot together in game, and they seem to get along well. I can see them working amazingly well at a team and being unafraid to work hard to win.

Damays and Nymessa were a little hard for me--I very much wanted Nymessa to be in breakdancing just to make Damays's head explode (at least the way I characterize them). But, in the end, I thought pole vault would be a good fit for her. Damays seems a fit for discus throwing.

Kanon strikes me as someone who would be really good at diving. We know he was a tailor in Elturel, and I think he'd appreciate the precision and artistry. Arka and Memnos? They get to be our tennis duos team. I think they'd balance each other well in the sport.

Pandirna absolutely has to be in weightlifting, all things considered. Let's hope she doesn't get in trouble for doping with Ethel's potions... Toron I think would be wrestling because wrestling cattle or something. Nadira would be sport climbing, because that seems to fit in well with her sneaking around devils and the like. (I can't remember at the moment how much of that is canon and how much of it was headcanon we came up with on the camp server.)

Eramis and Elegis I slotted into long jump and high jump respectively. At the time of writing this, this is based off vibes from each of them rather than anything in game that lent itself to this. Finally, Xeph, Rechel, and Amek get to be our synchronized swimmers, because we gotta have synchronized swimmers, and also I don't know where else to put them.

Hope you enjoyed the post!

[paladin-of-nerd-fandom65]

DC Comics Superhero OC: Chickadee, The Boy Wonder of Toronto

Co created by @confusedhummingbird and yours truly

Civilian Name: Henry Holland

Son of Natalie Holland, Captain within the Royal Canadian Mounted Police O Division and Lieutenant Colonel Terrence Holland, of the 32 Brigade Group of the Canadian Army

Age: 12 1/2 years old

Height: 5’0”

Weight: 77 lbs

Personality: Mature Minded and Intelligent with Tactics in the Field, Formal and Professional When Addressing Older Heroes and Civilian akin to a Military Officer, Determined and Steadfast, Stubborn in his Attempts of Leading a Team Efficiently, Has a Low Sense of Humor That He tries to work on, Doesn’t Like to Show Any Weakness of any Degrees in front of enemies and allies, Deep Down All of That, an Utter Fanboy of Nightwing in particular and if his guard is down, can be an excitable, passionate and cheerful. He’s begun to slowly open up more courtesy of being around fellow heroes around his age range.

Possible Junior Partner to Flying Fox II and Definite Leader of the Canadian based Titans North

(More Below the Cut)

History: Born to both a Soldier within the Canadian Army and what are commonly referred to as Mounties, Henry is a child that easily takes much inspiration from his parents’ works whom they take with honor and distinction. Though this comes at the drawback even in the present day of being usually with his aunt or a babysitter at home during days he’s not on patrol or at school due to the consistent scheduling his Mother Natalie has keeping her away from home. As for his father Terrance, there’s an element of tragedy to him which effects both Henry and his mother to this day; during a combat tour in a war torn Middle East as part of a US led coalition, Terrance’s platoon became ambushed by extremist insurgents and in the chaos that initially wiped out most of said platoon, Terrance was taken captive. For two weeks, the Lieutenant Colonel was brutalized and tortured for any sort of intel the extremists wanted yet through it all, he maintained a stern silence and refused to talk. Eventually the insurgents found their hideout under attack by a rescue operation from other Canadian and American troops, so they proceed to execute Terrance, rather gruesomely, so much so, the other soldiers had no choice but to simply take the dog tags and leave the body behind.

Natalie and Henry of course took the loss hard given how much of a good man Terrance was for them as a husband and father respectively but both maintained a firm and strong face at the memorial service, knowing at least they have together as long as they do. They’ll remain strong. Wanting to honor both of his parents for their many deeds to save, serve and protect others, being a lifelong fanboy of the first Robin, the Boy Wonder and later the leader of the Titans International, Nightwing, in addition to some encouragement and advice from the Flying Fox, the recent one to bear that mantle and with some self teaching in martial arts and police detective work, Henry decides to create and don a mantle of his own choosing for which he can patrol and protect the streets of his native Toronto, being a hero for the city the way his parents are for their county or entire country.

As for why the Chickadee, not only are the commonly found throughout Canada and have a degree of being an equivalent to the Robin birds of America, but when Henry was five, during one of the few times the Holland family was able to have a vacation, they took a hiking trek on Mount McKay. Whilst there for a photo for both Terrance and little Henry, two Chickadees perched gently on top of their heads to which made a perfect photo for Natalie to capture and a new nickname for Henry that his parents especially Terrance would refer to him. Hence naming his mantle as such serves a tribute to Terrance as far as Henry is concerned.

Skills, Equipment, and Abilities:

- Black Belt in Judo, Yellow Belt in Tai Tzu and Lui He martial arts

- Has Proficient Enough Knowledge in Using a Grappling Hook and Wires

- Ametuer level with the arts of Disguise

- Advanced Junior Training in Forensics

- Wing suit flaps built into his suit

- Can communicate in English, Francaise, Algonquin and 3 other Amerindian languages (Related Below, also two Jewish languages)

Occupation: Student at Robbins Hebrew Academy

Physical Appearance: Light Brown Hair, Peach tone skin with freckles on the face, Green Eyes and a Birthmark on the Back of his neck

Crime Fighter Uniform:

- Black Domino Mask, Advanced in meaning containing a Holographic Heads Up Display, featuring a Radar for contacts within 50 meter radius, Heart Rate Monitor, Proximity Sensor for incoming attacks, connected to ear piece for contact with teammates

- A White Cape that extends to the back of the legs with a Light Brown Underbelly, attached to it being a black hoodie which covers the back and crown of the head, leaving only the face open

- White Bulletproof Vest with Black Long Sleeves and Light Brown Highlights throughout the buttons. Has his Logo, a Red Chickadee Silhouette displaying its wings in a white circular background with a black circle around it, on the right side of chest

- White Fingerless Gloves with Light Brown Soles

- Black Utility Belt with a buckle having said Chickadee logo; contains pouches housing Grappling Hook, Magnifying Glass, Signal Flares, Smoke Pellets, Flashbang Grenades, Snacks including Toffee, and Spare Masks

- Black Kevlar Pants with Light Brown highlights on Knee Caps

- White Robin Style Pixie Boots with built in hidden Steel Toes, and White Soles. Made from a leather and Kevlar fabric blend that makes them extra sturdy and durable in harsh environments

Additional Facts and Trivia

- The Holland family are prominently descendants of Ashkenazi Jews who emigrated from Poland during the Interwar Period (1920-1939). While having Liberal leaning politics and values, the Hollands are Orthodox with their Faith, adhering in particular to Halakhic traditions and customs. Therefore Henry wears a black Kippah on his head even as Chickadee which his hood covers. Henry also has a Kosher diet based on said Halakhic Orthodox customs. He’s currently training in reading the Torah in preparation for his Bar Mitzvah. He’s so far made it to Shemot, also known for The Christian faith as the Book of Exodus. The Hollands are fluent in both Hebrew and especially Yiddish, the latter more promotional spoken between the two languages in that front.

- As stated above, leads a small Canadian branch of Titans, named Titans North, who as of yet are not yet officially affiliated with the well known Titans International but have so far managed to earn a small follow of supporters and fans across the Toronto metropolitan area and other localities throughout the state of Ontario. Often gets teased playfully by said teammates for being the youngest of them

- Among the Titans North, one member called Push-and-Pull, a 14 year old Algonquin female Metahuman with a compassionate and caring tomboy personality, possessing the ability to control and manipulate gravity with the palms of her hands (Similar to My Hero Academia’s Ochaka Uraraka) and Chickadee having a small budding crush between them or at least the starts of one in process ever since they first met

- Has a small hobby of playing video games, mainly on the console side. Not interested in competitive or online play as due to lack of friends outside his Titans North, he nonetheless has a fondness for games that are both sci-fi and military themed as befitting his background. Henry however finds himself woefully out of date when it comes buying the latest hardware; his most advanced console in possession being the DCU equivalent of an Xbox 360

- Trivia: Can in fact Successfully Curl his Tongue while the rest of his teammates can’t

- While an admitted fan of the first Robin (therefore also fond of Nightwing), Henry is rather very cautious and weary of the Batman himself. This can be attributed to his earlier childhood having been told of terrifying stories surrounding the Bat, a lot of them coming the earlier days when he worked solo and was regarded as an urban myth. As for Superman, Henry has a trust and respect for him. He’d probably however faint from excitement should he meet Nightwing in particular

- Is particularly interested and into the music elective in his school, more so in particular having a liking for classical songs and artists, mainly Beethoven and Salieri. Plays the Cello as his main instrument. While not intolerant and rather okay with more modern music, his playlist on his phone features mainly said classical songs and is working on working on compositions himself.

[fablesrose]

Ch 5 - The Tap-Out Job

Series Rewrite Masterlist 

Pairing: Eliot Spencer x Ford!Reader

Description: The team goes to Nebraska giving the client a fighting chance, quite literally, with Eliot in the fighting ring.

Words: 3586

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I only started taking projects I knew I could finish quickly. It was a nice side income, but I wanted to be available when Nate decided on a client. In fact, in my free time or in between my own jobs, I was helping him research. Trying to find douchebags and people who were screwed over. 

“Alright, six tickets to Nebraska, coming right up!” Hardison called when the time finally came.

Nate looked at him confused, “Six? But-”

“Thank you Hardison” I cut in.

Nate turned to me, “I don’t know about that…”

“Come on Nate, it’ll be fun! She’ll be helpful,” Sophie argued.

I grimaced a bit, because I wasn’t sure how true that would be. I wanted to be, absolutely, but I wasn’t sure of the reality of it.

“At the very least she can learn something,” Parker pointed out helpfully.

I smiled and pointed at her to help emphasize her statement. 

“It can even out the girl to boy ratio,” Sophie added on.

Nate sighed, but didn’t answer.

“Uncle Nate,” I said in a sing-song voice that I only used when I wanted something from him. “Come on, I’m already too deep into this, you can’t keep me out now.”

He looked at me and sighed again, “Fine.”

We all cheered and started packing.

The day after Nate met with the client, we started the briefing of our resident bad-guy: Jed Rucker.

“He runs a homegrown mixed martial arts league here in Nebraska,” I explain, “they have a very strong wrestling tradition here, so, supposedly, there's a lot of talent.” I took it upon myself to help Hardison out with the research and background info on this guy, since if I know one thing, it’s research. 

“Wrestlers have a good base for a blended training approach,” Eliot expanded, “they can go from that to jujitsu, kick-boxing, judo.”

“Rucker promotes fights,” Parker concludes. 

“And manages fighters, taking a cut every step of the way,” Hardison adds. 

“Yeah, you know, plus he’s not above fixing bouts and the Howorths found out,” Nate said, “We’ve dealt with some lowlifes, but when I heard about this guy…”

Hardison started playing some videos of fights on the tv of the motel room.

“That was a nice takedown. Good ground-and-pound,” Eliot comments, “He’s a little sloppy in a closed guard, but it’s a solid arm bar. I mean, you can tell this guy’s a wrestler. This ain’t the UFC, but these guys got skills.”

I admired him from my seat, impressed at his knowledge about all of this stuff. He was focused on the screen, studying the fighting and techniques. It was almost like I could see the gears turning in his head about it all, just behind his clear eyes. 

“Where’d you get these?” Nate asked.

“Online,” I answered, “These are viral videos.”

“See, Rucker doesn’t have a TV deal,” Hardison explains, “It’s pretty much a bare bones operation.”

“You call this a sport?” Sophie asked with a pillow covering her face. 

“Yeah, this is a sport,” Eliot rebuffed, “These are some of the best conditioned athletes in the world. Are you kidding me? It’s about precision, technique, skill.”

“Like cockfighting?”

“It’s not a cockfight, alright? Let me show you something, Hardison. Come on,” Eliot tapped him on the shoulder causing him to stand, he then asked Parker, “Can I borrow you?” 

He then instructed Parker, reminding her what he showed her before. He positioned Parker as if it were a fight, and Hardison laughed before playing along.

“There’s three phases to an MMA,” he paused while Hardison did some footwork to warm up, “to an MMA fight, okay? One, striking.”

Parker immediately punched Hardison solidly in the face, making me flinch.

“Nice,” Eliot praised. “Next is grappling, the takedown.”

Hardison seemed to get that this was more serious than he thought as Parker flung him to the ground.

“Exactly, alright. The third one is jiu-jitsu, try to isolate a joint.”

Parker switched to twisting around Hardison.

“Good, that’s a textbook arm bar. Put some pressure on it,” Eliot instructs, “there ya go, or a choke hold.”

Parker moved to what I assumed was a chokehold on Hardison who was clearly struggling. 

“Then the guy will submit by tap out,” Eliot finished after instructing Parker a bit more. 

Hardison started trying to tap out with little success, in various different ways that made me laugh. 

“These fights are won by inches. It’s all about leverage.”

“Sophie, he has a point,” I commented, “while you may not find it entertaining, there's a lot of work, training, that goes into this. They do deserve some respect.”

Eliot nodded at me in approval.

“No TV deal, you said, huh?” Nate brought the attention back to the task at hand, “Yeah, Hardison, what are this guy’s other interests, this Rucker guy?”

I took a look behind the couch to see he was still struggling with Parker, “I’ve got it, Rotary club, he’s got a golf membership.”

“Golf, huh?” Nate asked.

“Yeah,” Sophie jumped in, “I mean, this guy’s like a 1950s sitcom character. He plays a weekly game with the local businessmen. In fact, last year, he won the club championship.”

I looked at Eliot and nodded back towards Hardison and Parker, wordlessly asking if we should help him.

He shrugged.

“Did he?” Nate asked thoughtfully, “It’s time to hit the links.”

Nate stood up and left in his dramatic way while I attempted to convince Parker to let Hardison go.

I was a little surprised when Nate said he was going to play Rucker at golf, but once Hardison explained the rigged golf balls, I couldn’t wait to watch. I tagged along with Hardison watching the game through the camera attached to Parker. Hardison even let me direct a few of Rucker’s shots into sand traps. Nate won by a landslide soon enough, and with Rucker in debt to him, the plan was set. 

Nate and Eliot left for Rucker's gym to both collect the money Nate won off of him, as well as plant Eliot in Rucker’s sights as a fighter. They told me what was likely going to happen. That they were going to sort of jump Eliot to test him out a bit. It made me nervous despite the whole crew assuring me that Eliot would be fine. 

As promised, it all went well with the fight and then Eliot setting the hook for Rucker and the idea of a TV deal with Sophie. It was only then that I allowed myself to watch the footage. While I knew that Eliot was good, I had never seen him in action before. I watched the video Parker took to upload a couple of times in amazement. His actions were smooth and calculated. I had watched fights before, but I didn’t think I had ever seen such efficiency. Rucker was right about one thing, he fought like something wanted to get out, but the amount of control he practiced… I think that could be more impressive than the skill.

“Like what you see, y/n?”

I closed my laptop with a start. Eliot had come back from the gym quicker than I had anticipated and was standing right behind me. I turned to him with a sheepish smile, “I hadn’t seen you fight before…” I looked back to my closed laptop for a moment, “suffice to say, I’m impressed.”

“What, you doubted me?” Eliot had a spark of amusement in his eye, but I moved to correct myself anyway.

“No, I mean, I knew you were good, heard you were the best even, but I guess, I never really knew what that meant.”

He cracked a cocky smile, “Oh, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet, sweetheart.” He left the room to clean up with a wink that left me blushing, more than I’d like to admit. 

The next phase of the con went off with only a slight hiccup. Rucker wanted to meet with Sophie at the concert she claimed to be producing. The crew had it figured out quicker than I thought possible. I hovered around the production booth and backstage with a clipboard and badge that Hardison got me. It gave me a bit of a thrill being somewhere I probably wasn’t supposed to be, but as I’ve learned a couple times over, confidence is key. I wandered around and spoke to some of the workers, learning some of the ins and outs of concerts and filming while listening to Sophie set up the deal with Rucker. If anyone asked who I was, I said I was an intern.

Eventually, it seemed like everything fell into place. 

“Did you get all that?” Sophie asked. 

“Got it. Great job,” Nate replied, “We should be, uh, on our way home by this time tomorrow.”

“Awesome, while it’s not bad, I want something other than this mystery meat they call chicken fried steak,” I tossed my badge and clip board on a table before I met up with everyone else. 

“Have a good time wandering?” Parker asked.

“Yeah, I’m seeing why you guys like this.”

The next morning Sophie went to the gym to get the money. It all went downhill very quickly. 

“So, where are your partners?” I heard Rucker say through the comms, “waitin’ for you to blow me off?”

“Uh, I’m sorry, I don’t know what you’re…”

“Let me tell you why,” he continued, “Alex’s cousin Jimmy’s in the fight scene in South Dakota, and guess what? He’s never heard of Bill Wells.”

“Nate…” I said through comms.

“I know.”

Sophie laughed, trying to play it off, “Sweetie… I think you’re getting a little paranoid.”

“So, you think you can come to my town, huh? Us country bumpkins, right? Cause all we can do is kick ass.” He paused, “I’ll show you what us ass-kickers will do.”

“Whoa,” Sophie said as Tank started to advance on her. 

“Alright, leave her alone.” Nate and Eliot stormed into the gym.

“Look who’s here. Wells.” Rucker made Tank back off. “So where’s the rest of your crew? In the getaway car?”

I shivered in my seat in the van next to Parker and Hardison. 

“Yeah, alright. Parker, Hardison, y/n, break it down, we’re outta here. Come on.”

The three of us started to scramble putting everything away to ensure once they got out we could leave quickly. 

“Oh, you talk on a wire, huh? Pretty fancy.”

“Yeah, nothing but the best for you, Rucker.”

“Yeah, well we’re not all frauds… People do wanna see you fight. So, why don’t you take on Tank here?”

“I’ve got five seconds to kill our Monday,” Eliot responded.

The way this conversation was goin made me pause in our packing.

“No, no, no, not here, Tank,” Rucker said, “But, you know, you’re probably right. I’ve seen what you can do. But that’s the thing, you know. See, you’re favored, so I’m gonna need you to take a dive.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

“Come on,” I heard Nate mutter, and it sounded like they were walking away.”

“Fine,” Rucker called, “Go back to LA or wherever. It’s a shame you won’t be here next month when Jack Howorth’s house goes on fire… Or in six weeks when Mark has a car accident. But you won’t be around for any of that.”

“I’ll do it,” Eliot responded after a moment.

“You don’t have to do anything,” Nate responded.

“He’s right Eliot,” I agreed.

“Yeah, I do,” he rebuffed, “and then you lay off the Howorths.”

“You do what you have to do and they’ll be fine” Rucker explained, making my stomach churn, “But I’m betting it all on Tank here, so it can’t look like a fix. And, uh, feel free to use the gym. We don’t want anybody to think you’re not ready.”

They came around the corner where we were waiting for him. Nate had a look on his face as if looking for answers, his hands raised.

“What?” Hardison responded, “ What was I supposed to do? It was cousin Jimmy!” 

“He’s right, we couldn’t have planned for that,” Sophie conceded.

“Look, you know what I can do? I can retask a satellite, I can get level three NSA clearance, but I can’t hack a hick!”

“Alright, it doesn’t matter,” Eliot cut in, “What do we do now?”

“We could move the Howorths?” I asked.

“No, we’re not movin’ the Howorths,” Eliot said, “This is their home, that means something to people here.”

“Yeah, we can’t babysit them forever,” Sophie added. 

“Alright, we’ve taken out bigger players than this,” Nate said, thinking out loud, “There’s gotta be someway, uh, something that we can…”

“No!” Eliot interrupted, “No. I take the dive.” He said it like it was obvious.

“Are you sure?” I asked him, concerned how this could play out. 

“Give me some time, okay?” Hardison offered, “You know what? I found some funny business in Ruckers accounts, I can move some things…”

“Forget the fact that we got beat by Barney Fife, alright? This is the right move,” Eliot insisted, “Tactically, this is the right move. You all know that.” Eliot walked off, showing there was no room for discussion.

Reluctantly, we all followed. 

It was that night when Sophie and I went to check on Eliot. He had been in the gym for hours, training, working, preparing, I wasn’t sure what he wanted to call it. It was late, the patrons long gone, the streetlamps seemed to want to go to sleep, still he was in the ring boxing an invisible figure. 

“Hey,” Sophie called, getting his attention, “Listen, you, you don’t have to do this.”

“Nate’s gonna come up with something,” I assured. 

He shook his head nonchalantly, “I’m losing a fight, not diving on a grenade. I’ll be alright.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m not talking physically,” Sophie insisted.

“I think my ego can handle it.”

“Look, you told me it’s all about control,” she continued. “About knowing that you’re never going to be the victim…”

I turned to her, listening as I hadn’t heard this conversation. 

“And that’s what keeps you going right?”

Eliot stopped and approached us, “you think I’m upset because I gotta let this guy kick my ass?”

Neither one of us answered, as we just tilted our heads, allowing him to continue. 

“I learned a long time ago, you can’t control the violence. I can take the punishment. It’s what I do,” somehow he said it with a smile. “What I need to control is not out there… It’s here,” he patted his chest, “Always.”

Sophie just smiled softly and walked away. I stood there for a moment, tracing his sweaty features with my eyes. I then reached up and grabbed a hold of his gloved hand, giving it a tight squeeze. I nodded at him with a tight smile, trying not to get emotional for him, but I wanted to convey that I understood, maybe not all of it, but as much as I could right now. I followed Sophie soon after, but I could feel his eyes on me as I left.

Too soon, the night of the fight came. The crowd was cheering, but I only felt sick. Who knows what Rucker would pull tonight. I vaguely had in the back of my head the plan, but it wasn’t helping. The crew kept me in the back, away from Rucker since he wasn’t as familiar with me, and they wanted to keep it that way. I wasn’t complaining, I didn’t want to be in the fray anyway. 

I watched as the fighting commenced, Eliot and Tank exchanging blows. Eliot sure wasn’t gonna let Tank take the win easy. It wasn’t too long however, when I noticed Eliot getting dazed. I knew it was going to happen, but it didn’t make me feel better. I watched across the ring as Nate sniffed Eliot’s water bottle, and Sophie started arguing with Rucker. Reading Sophie’s lips, I caught the gist of it, she was telling Rucker that Eliot was a different kind of fighter. He doesn’t just do it for sport, that’s how he keeps alive. 

I could even hear her in the crowd when she said, “You’ve just made him more dangerous, you’ve taken the safety off the gun!”

Then Eliot seemed to lose control, he wasn’t gonna be losing this fight. Tank tried to tap out, but Eliot wouldn’t let him. The ref had to pry him off to let him loose. 

The doctor came into the ring, checking on Tank. Eliot sat in his corner, bloody, but otherwise calmed down. I stayed back in the corner, letting them do their work as the crowd was cleared out of the gym.

Rucker stormed the ring, “What the hell just happened?”

Nate shot right back, “What the hell? You could’ve killed him.”

“You know how much you just cost me? I’m gonna make you pay!” 

Hardison had to step between the two.

“Make me pay, huh?”

“We had a deal!”

“Hey, listen to me!” the ring doctor interrupted, “Tank is dead.”

Rucker quickly changed his tune, “No, no wait, wait.”

“You killed him,” the doctor pointed at Eliot, who when I looked at him now, almost looked distraught.

“Wait a second, are you sure?” Rucker asked him. 

“There’s nothing I can do.”

“Listen, he could just be out,” he insisted. 

“I gotta call the police,” the doctor said as he pulled out his phone. 

“No police!” Rucker shouted before turning to a whisper, “Listen to me. Listen, we can work this out. Keep it in the family. I’ll make it worth your while.”

“There were hundreds of witnesses!”

“They’re gone now.”

“Plus we’ve got a dead body, what am I supposed to do about that?! And also?” he continued, “we ain’t family.”

Rucker finally seemed to back off, “alright, alright, you’re right. You call the police, and I… I’m gonna call the athletic commission.” He hurried up to his office, where I knew he wasn’t going to make that phone call. 

I sat next to Hardison once everything was settled down, waiting for confirmation from Parker about the GPS and Rucker leaving. 

Hardison opened his phone to see the GPS tracker on his screen, “Looks like he’s headed to Iowa.”

“Make the call,” Nate said. 

I immediately took out my phone to comply. 

“What’s going on?” Howorth asked as he walked in. 

“Just give me a sec,” Nate replied, “Doc, you’ve got Tank right?”

“Yeah. Oh, he’ll be fine,” the ring doctor stood, calm as could be, “should come around in a few minutes.”

“Wait, wait,” Howorth stepped up to the ring, “he’s not dead?”

“Succinylcholine,” the doc raised a syringe, “it’s a mild paralytic. It only works for a few minutes.”

“Yeah, it was just enough to scare off Rucker,” Nate explained. 

“So, so Eliot wasn’t…”

“No, no. We found the drugged water bottle before the fight, switched it out with a clean one.” Nate explained. “Rucker’s not too original when it comes to this kind of thing apparently.”

“So, Jonny, you were in on this?”

The doc nodded, “Mr. Ford and his friends came and asked me for help. I told him around here, we always stand up for our own.” He looked around, “where’s Rucker?”

“The Iowa State Police just got a tip that a fugitive is headed into their jurisdiction,” I replied.

“And I’m pretty sure crossing state lines with a bag full of cash won’t look too good,” Hardison added. 

“Especially when they find the little surprise in his trunk,” Parker laughed. I recalled how Parker went and picked up a bunch of firearms with the money Nate won off of Rucker in golf. That’s a lot of guns to find in a trunk. 

“That should hold him off until the IRS gets down here,” Nate commented. 

“The IRS?” Howorth asked.

“The money that Rucker makes from these fights,” Sophie began, “well, it’s all in cash.”

“Yeah, and he wasn’t too good about reporting that income,” Hardison finished. “You see, all we had to do was flag the government about the tax evasion.”

“Rucker won’t be coming back to town anytime soon,” I smiled at Howorth, proud of the crew and what they could accomplish. 

“He doesn’t have anything to come back for,” Sophie added, “He literally bet the whole house on Tank.”

“So all that money’s gone?” Howorth asked.

“Well, you see, not exactly,” Nate said. 

Hardison made a bunch of online bookies that Rucker placed his bets with, he explained. Meaning that they had access to the money. 

The doc examined Eliot, “you took a hell of a pounding. We should get you a CT scan. You could have internal bleeding.” 

I sat down next to Eliot, looking him over, hoping he was okay.

“You let yourself get hammered like that on purpose,” Howorth commented, handing him an ice pack, “that’s a hell of a lot of punishment to take.”

“That’s what he does,” Sophie answered. 

Eliot nodded, only making brief eye contact as he held the ice pack to his shoulder.

Once everything was settled, we were able to hand the gym over to the Howorths, encouraging them to be better for those that wanted to be in the sport, to help them. They were excited, and ready to take up the challenge. But for us, it was time to go back home, we all needed some rest I thought, one more than the others. 

Tags: @isoldeahlstrom @kniselle

[wenclairfamily]

Summary: It's the much anticipated "Wednesday" prequel that finally gives the origin story to television's greatest couple; in this dark comedy thriller involving romance, stalkers, pirates, fencing matches, giant monsters, and murder! *Click "Keep Reading" to read the first chapter for free right now!

On a large yacht that was resting comfortably in the water near a resort, many rich teenagers were partying above deck. One male teenager however stood on a small podium before his peers while holding up a large stuffed jackalope shaped creature. The lead teen smiled as he said, "My fellow Preston Prep peers... tonight we don't just celebrate our football team's victory over Cemetery High... but also that we stole their ugly mascot! Now lets party!" All of the teenagers on the yacht cheered, and continued to party. One other teen however walked over to the lead teen as they said, "Are you sure we should have stolen the mascot of Cemetery High Chuck? I mean, you know how crazy some of the people from that school can get when we screw around with them." The lead teen: Chuck, smirked as he said, "Relax. We've got nothing to worry about when it comes to those creepy and kooky characters."

Meanwhile, coming towards the yacht in the distance... was a pirate ship sailing across the ocean. As the pirate ship moved towards the yacht, a teenage boy named Gomez Addams stood at the front of the ship looking proud. He wore a white shirt with black coat, along with black pants, black boots, and a white bandanna tied around the top of his head; while his uncombed hair flowed in the wind. As Gomez saw the yacht coming into view, he made a huge happy smile. Gomez then turned around and looked at a group of teenagers behind him all dressed in black sailor uniforms. As Gomez looked at his crew with a big smile he said, "My friends; the time has come for us to seek vengeance against those that would do us wrong! For if our enemies of Preston Prep think they can take our jackalope, then we shall retaliate by taking their ship!" Then Gomez pulled out from behind his back: a sword, and then lifted the sword to the sky while a big grin was going across his face. All of the other teens in Gomez's crew took out swords and various other weapons, and then lifted their tools to the sky as well.

Meanwhile all of the rich teenagers on the yacht looked confused as the pirate ship came towards them. Meanwhile on the pirate ship, Gomez stood at the wheel as he yelled, "Thing, fire the canons!" Then suddenly the living hand: Thing jumped up and quickly lit multiple fuses attached to canons around the ship. As the fuses began to quickly spark: all of Gomez's crew smiled, while all of the rich teenagers on the yacht looked very confused. Then Gomez pointed his sword forward and yelled, "Once more unto the breach dear friends!" Then in a fiery explosion, the canons shot large canon balls at the yacht damaging it. Then the pirate ship crashed into the yacht causing many of the rich teenagers to panic.

Gomez, using a rope from his ship, then swung towards the yacht. In an instant, Gomez flew above the teenagers on the yacht, and then did a flip in mid-air as he came down towards his enemies. Gomez then had his feet hit two rich teenagers' heads on the way down, and then put one hand on a fallen teen's back as he kicked several more teens down. Then as two rich teenagers ran at Gomez with their fists out, Gomez made a big happy grin as he judo flipped them to the ground. Gomez giggled, and then yelled, "Now Fester!" Then Gomez's brother Fester jumped onto the yacht and began to shoot bolts of electricity from his hands, shocking many of the rich teens. Then Fester looked at Gomez as he pleaded, "Come on Gomez. Let me shoot them in the back!" Gomez smiled as he excitedly said, "No Fester, we must ensure everyone here lives so that they can spread the tale of our glorious victory today!" Then one teen tried to run at Gomez with a baseball bat, but then suddenly Thing sneaked up from behind him and threw several sparklers down his pants. The teen immediately screamed as he ran off feeling pain under his pants. Gomez then laughed as he said, "Oh Thing. You trickster, you!"

Many of Gomez's other crew members then began to throw sparklers, small sticks of dynamite, and stink bombs at the rich teenagers. Meanwhile two co-joined female teenagers were throwing scorpions all around the yacht, causing more rich teenagers to scream. Gomez looked impressed as he said, "Why Flaura and Fauna, you two are in excellent form today." Flaura smiled as she said, "Really. Is my form excellent enough to maybe go to the school dance with you?" Then an angry Fauna said, "Back off sister. I called him first." Then Gomez proudly said, "Why Flaura and Fauna, don't you know? Gomez Addams' heart belongs to no one!" Then suddenly a group of large muscular teens angerly ran at Gomez as they yelled, "Get him!" Gomez's eyes then went wide with excitement, and he made a giant smile while saying, "Oh, the course of chaos never did run so smooth!"

Then as the large muscular teens ran at Gomez, Gomez instantly judo flipped one teen, but then grabbed his legs and twirled his body around while using it to hit several other teens. Then three teens ran at Gomez with baseball bats. However Gomez spun his sword around, and in a blur: he cut the baseball bats into many pieces. Then another teen ran at Gomez with a large chain in his hands. However Gomez quickly slid his body under the teen, grabbed his chain in a blur, and then Gomez quickly tied up the teen up in his own chain. Then eight of the largest teens surrounded Gomez and tried to body slam him. However Gomez dug his sword into the floor, and then while holding onto the sword's grip with one hand to balance his body, Gomez launched his feet up and spun around while kicking every teenager in the face. Instantly all of Gomez's opponents hit the ground knocked out. Then one last teenager ran at Gomez screaming angerly. However Gomez simply smacked the front of his head hard into the other teenagers' head, and knocked his opponent out. An incredibly satisfied and smiling Gomez then proclaimed, "I came, saw, and overcame!"

Meanwhile Fester just rolled his eyes and simply said, "I still think it would've been more fun if we just shot them all in the back." Then Gomez saw one last teenager, the leader of the rich teens: Chuck trying to run off the yacht. However, Gomez quickly cornered Chuck with his sword out and yelled, "Stop right there fiend! You have dishonored me this day by stealing the mascot of my institution. From here on out, you will live the rest of your days knowing you have a blood feud with my family." Chuck meanwhile looked confused as he said, "A blood feud with your family? Gomez... I'm your cousin!" Gomez then had the tip of his sword come less than an inch from Chuck's neck as he said, "Indeed. So for that alone... I will allow you to keep your ship... or rather what remains of it." Then Gomez turned his head and yelled, "Now Thing!" Then Thing quickly lit a fuse, and within seconds: an explosion came from the center of the yacht. Gomez's crew quickly jumped on board their pirate ship, while all of the rich teens left on the yacht screamed in terror. As a smiling Gomez stood proudly on the exploding yacht, he held out his arms as he passionately proclaimed, "Cry Havoc, and let slip the dogs of war!"

***

The next day, Gomez was sitting in a limo looking upset while facing his mother. Gomez was sitting in a suit, with his hair well combed now. Gomez's mother meanwhile had a look of disappointment go across her face as she said, "Now Gomez... we have a lot to talk about; especially with all of these charges that were recently brought against you." Gomez then glared at his mother as he said, "Mother, I assure you I committed acts of bodily harm to far more people than were filed. I swear." Then Gomez's mother angerly said, "That's not the problem Gomez. The real issue is... you let them all live! You do realize when you start a job, you need to finish it. You know if your father were still with us, he'd agree with me... but unfortunately he's still serving his fifteen year sentence in maximum security prison." Then a confused Gomez said, "I thought it was just a ten year sentence."

Then Gomez's mother casually said, "He extended it by causing a few riots. Your father actually wanted to stay there longer, since he finds the environment so pleasant and comfortable. But the point is Gomez, you haven't been acting like a son of mine for some time now. You don't even shoot your enemies anymore like your brother does. Outside society has made you too soft. So to sharpen your mind and skills, for your final year of school - I'm sending you to the perfect place for regular people like us... Nevermore Academy. I have a friend of mine named Obsidian who serves on the board. She pulled some strings and is allowing you to enroll mid-semester. While there, I'd also like to introduce you to her daughter. Obsidian and I have talked quite a great deal, and we think her daughter would make a fine wife for you."

Gomez suddenly looked very frustrated as he said, "A wife!? Mother, don't you know? Gomez Addams' heart belongs to no one!" Then Gomez's mother used a stern tone as she said, "Nonsense. You're too unhinged Gomez... and not in a good way. You need a woman to settle your spirit. Plus, Obsidian has already promised to babysit any future grandchildren of mine once a month for a year if we ask, as long as you at least go on one date with her daughter... which you will do, and then you will marry her." Gomez rolled his eyes and then said, "But mother, aren't arranged marriages too much of an outdated custom now?" Gomez's mother then crossed her arms as she said, "Ridiculous. Arranged marriages are an Addams family tradition! We've been doing it for centuries, and there hasn't been a divorce yet! ... Just a few untimely deaths. Now then... would you at least promise to go on one date with Obsidian's daughter and see how you feel about her?" Gomez sighed, and then said, "Very well. What's her name?" Gomez's mother made a happy smile as she said, "Why her name is Larissa Weems."

***

Outside of Nevermore Academy in a large garden: a giant mutant Venus Fly Trap looking plant was emerging from the ground. The mutant plant had huge vines popping out of its' body that were starting to move towards an average height teen girl with brown hair. The brown haired girl backed herself into a corner, as fear and anxiety went across her face while saying to herself, "Breathe Francoise. Breathe. You can't let yourself get too shaken up or traumatized." Then suddenly, the brown haired girl: Francoise found the mutant plant's vines were starting to tie her up. Francoise then closed her eyes as tears started to appear. Then suddenly Francoise heard a female voice say, "Oh Ptolemy, stop throwing such a fit." Then Francoise turned her her head and saw walking into the garden was Morticia Frump. Morticia walked with a calm demeanor wearing a knee high black dress, while her hair was nicely combed with two long braids going down her upper body (with two ribbons attached to her two braids).

The mutant plant then made a roaring sound causing Francoise to look more scared. Morticia meanwhile took out a sword, and grasped it firmly as she simply said, "Alas, I suppose you're in need for some good pruning." The mutant plant then immediately shot several vines at Morticia. Morticia however made quick fluid movements as she dodged and ducked away from each vine thrown at her. Then Morticia made quick slashing movements, and her sword cut away many of the attacking vines (including the vines holding Francoise, causing her to be freed). Then just as the mutant plant shot many vines into the sky, Morticia cut a hole near the large stem of the mutant plant. The mutant plant made a piercing scream... just as a smaller mutant plant burst out of the large mutant plant's stem. The large mutant plant then calmed down and quickly shrank in size, as a smiling Morticia said, "There, there now. That wasn't so bad." As Francoise felt a bit more calm, she now looked very confused as she said, "What just happened?" Then as Morticia looked calmly at Francoise, she said, "Oh, our school plant: Ptolemy was just giving birth."

As Francoise continued to look confused, she asked, "Is that normal around here? Giant plants giving birth?" Morticia smiled as she picked up the small baby mutant plant and said, "Only in the fall season. The headmaster said I could keep Ptolemy's offspring once it was born. I think I'll call her Cleopatra. Oh, I'm Morticia by the way. You must be new here. I saw you trying out for the school fencing team last week." Francoise nodded her head as she said, "Yeah. I'm Francoise." Then Morticia immediately shook Francoise's hand while saying, "Well it's a pleasure to finally make formal introductions with you. How have you enjoyed Nevermore Academy thus far?" As Francoise looked at her surroundings briefly she said, "It's a school... that's certainly full of surprises."

Then suddenly the two teenage girls heard another female voice say, "I knew I'd find you here Morticia." Morticia turned her head and saw a petite red haired teenage girl wearing a purple dress walking towards her. Morticia made a small smile as she said, "Francoise, allow me to formally introduce you to one of my esteemed peers. This is Raine. One of Nevermore's most accomplished seers. If you're ever looking for something you've lost around campus, Raine can be quite helpful at foreseeing where you'll find it." Francoise held out her hand as she said, "Hello there." Raine shook Francoise's hand, and then Raine's eyes suddenly glowed while saying, "Ah, yes... your future husband is currently working for the sheriff in town. You should stop by the police station in Jericho sometime." Francoise then stepped away looking a bit startled as she said, "Um... okay, I guess. Anyway, I should get back to my dorm room. Nice meeting you two."

As Francoise walked away, Morticia glared at Raine while saying, "So how did you know I'd be in the garden Raine? Did you foresee I'd be here?" Raine gave Morticia a warm smile as she said, "Well I know you'd be here because spending time in the garden helped me calm down too when I first got my visions." As Morticia put her new baby mutant plant in a pot of soil, she glared at Raine while saying, "Did you use your powers to learn that I just started..." Raine put her hands up for a moment while saying, "No, no. Larissa told me. She said you wake up often in the middle of the night believing you're going mad... and not in the fun way. You know you could have talked to me about it." Morticia turned her head to the side, looking slightly embarrassed as she said, "It's not quite the same. Raine... you see visions of just the future. I however see visions of both the future and the past. I see images of both what I experienced long ago as a child, and of myself looking into the mirror and finding that I am an old woman. It is... confusing and difficult to endure."

Raine looked up at the sky as she said, "They will make more sense in time Morticia. The past is past, and as for the future... well you may eventually find comfort in seeing what is to come. For me, the picture is still incomplete... but the day I saw a vision of my future self marrying a kind man with telekinetic powers... that's when I knew I could stop worrying." Then as Morticia looked down, she said, "But I've read the research. Visions for the future aren't completely accurate. So how do I know what visions of days to come are certain or not?" Raine paused for a moment... and then handed Morticia a pendant as she said, "Morticia... this pendant has mystical properties... which includes the ability to help you see and make a strong connection with a possible future in your life." As Morticia put the pendant around her neck, Raine continued with saying, "I want you to have it. Maybe it will help you with your visions going forward."

Then suddenly the two heard a male voice say, "I can help you with anything you want going forward Morticia." Morticia and Raine turned their heads and saw a tall teenage boy with long blonde hair walking towards them while holding several dead flowers in his hand. Raine looked very annoyed as she said, "Garrett Gates, what are you doing here? You don't even go to this school!" Garrett smiled as he said, "I just thought I'd give Morticia these dead flowers from my lawn. They smell of your favorite pesticide." Then suddenly from around a corner of the building, an African lion sprung out and immediately tackled Garrett to the ground. Garrett immediately screamed, while a calm Morticia said, "Garrett, you're such a lovely creepy boy, and I'm so glad you've enjoyed our conversations we've had at the home improvement store about insecticide and weed killers; but my sweet Kitty has always been a reliable judge of character for me. So if he doesn't approve of you, then we simply cannot be." Morticia's lion then got off of Garrett. Garrett then stood up and began to walk away as he pleaded, "I'll prove myself to you soon. There is a connection between us. I know it's real. You must know it's real too."

As Garrett walked away, Raine giggled while a smiling Morticia gently patted her lion. Then from nearby, a teenage girl with white hair walked towards Morticia and smiled as she said, "I see Garrett Gates just had his heart broken again today." Morticia smirked as she said, "It he keeps coming back, is it really broken Larissa?" Morticia's friend: Larissa then began to look slightly worried as she said, "I don't know how you put up with that boy always stalking you Morticia. Haven't you tried calling the police?" Raine then raised a hand up briefly while saying, "Actually I have on Morticia's behalf; but they've honestly been no help. Guess being the son of the richest man in town has its perks." Morticia maintained her calm demeanor as she said, "I'm certain Garrett will eventually find another girl that will appreciate how revolting he is. As for Garrett's father, I'm sure he takes his role in guiding his son's actions very seriously."

***

In the living room of a dark mansion, Garrett Gates was punched in the stomach by his father: Ansel Gates. Ansel then hit Garrett in the back, causing Garrett to fall to the ground. With hatred in his eyes, Ansel said, "What the hell do you think you're doing chasing after an outcast Garrett!? Those people took land that rightfully belonged to our family and built their filthy school on it." As Garrett slowly stood up, he spit some blood out of his mouth, and then said, "That was hundreds of years ago dad. Plus... Morticia Frump is different. She's beautiful, kind, and a kindred spirit." Then Ansel punched Garrett in the face, and angerly yelled, "Her kind are the scum of the Earth. And now I have to pay off the sheriff again thanks to those stupid complaints that scum keeps making. My God Garrett, what good are you if even scum doesn't want you?" Then Ansel kicked Garrett in the chest and knocked him into the nearby wall. As Garrett fell to the ground hurt, Ansel's wife walked into the room with a disturbed look on her face. Ansel then casually glanced at his wife while saying, "Clean up your son." Ansel's wife had a few tears in her eyes, but then calmly nodded her head as she said, "Yes dear."

***

Gomez sat with his mother in a limo as it slowly approached Nevermore Academy. As Gomez looked out the window, he said, "My, what a dark and dreary penitentiary." Gomez's mother rolled her eyes as she said, "It's not a prison Gomez. Don't treat this like your vacation to juvenile hall when you were twelve. This is a proper school." Gomez then simply glared at his mother while saying, "There is nothing more confining than the prison we don't know we are in." Gomez's mother sighed, and then said, "Well the sooner I find Obsidian and introduce you to Larissa, the sooner I can turn you into a proper man."

***

Morticia and Larissa were walking near the edge of the school as Morticia calmly said, "So for the Poe Cup tomorrow, I was thinking we could all dress up as black cats. All of our costumes are supposed to have an Edgar Allen Poe theme to them, and his story: The Black Cat was a favorite bedtime tale of mine growing up." Larissa smiled as she said, "I'm sure the team won't mind. After all, you've led Ophelia Hall to victory in the Poe Cup the last three years, and are already captain of the fencing team, and leader in the Nightshade Society." Morticia looked at Larissa with warm eyes while saying, "You give me too much credit Larissa. Leaders are nothing without their right hand. And you've been there right beside me, being my trusted confidante through all of my trials and tribulations. My name may be on all the trophies, but rest assured: people will remember the two women that achieved great fame and victory in this era of..."

Then suddenly Morticia found her body shaking, and her eyes became very wide. Morticia suddenly saw flashes of herself as an adult looking into a cracked mirror in a living room while saying, "I know you're behind me mon cherie." Then in the vision, a male voice from behind her was heard saying, "Tish. That's French! You know what that does to me!" Then just as a male figure began to touch her, Morticia suddenly regained her senses and saw Larissa standing by her side. Larissa looked concerned as she said, "You had another vision, didn't you?" Morticia nodded her head as she said, "Yes. The visions of my past, and my ancestor's past have become easier to cope with. But when I see visions of what must be the future... they confuse me." A curious Larissa then asked, "What are you seeing of your future?" Morticia took a deep long breath, and then said, "I'd rather not say. Raine has given me a pendant that is supposed to help me make a better connection with the days to come though. So perhaps I shall gain clarity soon."

Suddenly the two women heard a car honking sound. Then they heard Larissa's mother from far away yell, "Larissa, get over here!" Larissa then turned to look right at Morticia while saying, "Ah, yes. Speaking of the future, my mother wants to introduce me to the son of her good friend. She says he'd make a wonderful husband for me." Then Morticia kept a calm face, while smiling as she said, "Well good for you. I wish you all the best Larissa." Then Larissa looked slightly worried as she said, "Well... I mean... Nevermore Academy's rules are if two students of legal age did get married, they'd have to live in a special room in the teacher's quarters. So if that did happen... we'd no longer be room mates. Wouldn't you miss me?" Morticia shrugged, and then said, "Well I'd rather neither of us miss out on seizing our destiny." Larissa had a slightly annoyed look on her face while saying, "For someone so insightful Morticia, there's still so much you miss." Then Larissa quickly walked away, while Morticia remained where she was looking confused.

Then just as Morticia walked away, Gomez stepped out of a nearby limo, followed by his mother. Larissa and her mother then quickly approached Gomez and his mother. Gomez's mother looked very happy as she said, "Obsidian, good to see you old friend. How's the body burying business going?" Then Larissa's mother smiled as she said, "Oh, you know. The Fall season is always when business is slow. But when we get close to Valentine's Day, there's always tons of people offing their spouses to make room for the new sugar baby they're going after. Anyway Gomez, this is my daughter Larissa." Gomez simply nodded his head, and said "How do you do?" Larissa made a very false smile as she said, "Quite well. I must admit, you are more grotesque than my mother described you." Gomez then made a genuine smile while saying, "Flattery will get you many places." Then Gomez's mother looked very happy as she said, "See. She's insulting you already. You're perfect for each other."

Gomez looked slightly annoyed again, but then looked directly at Larissa with simple kindness while saying, "Perhaps we could begin our courting tomorrow morning?" Larissa nodded her head while saying, "Agreed. Perhaps we could take a walk by the nearby river in the early morning. After that... would you care to be my date to the school's special annual dance tomorrow evening?" Gomez nodded his head and simply said, "I vow that I shall go on one date with you tomorrow morning, with the possibility of a second that evening." Then Gomez's mother leaned over and said, "Perhaps before your first formal date, you could ask Larissa to give you a tour of the school." Larissa smiled as she said, "Oh yes. I'd love to check out... I mean, check up on my room mate who is training with our school fencing team right now." Gomez suddenly looked excited as he said, "Fencing!? Oh, give me a foil and show me to your school's greatest champions. I will defeat them all and become their new king in mere minutes." Larissa looked slightly confused, but then said, "But of course. Right this way." Then as Gomez and Larissa walked off, Larissa's mother looked at Gomez's mother while saying, "Ah, those two will make a fine pair... as long as you deliver me the dowry you promised in full on their wedding day."

***

On the side of a road, a young man stepped out of police car. From nearby, Ansel Walker approached the young man while keeping a straight face. Ansel Walker then stopped near the young man as he said, "Sheriff Walker." The young man: Sheriff Walker, nodded his head as he said, "Mister Gates." Ansel then handed Sheriff Walker an unmarked envelope while saying, "As requested, here's my monthly contribution to your campaign, along with the extra amount for the agreed upon favor." Sheriff Walker briefly glanced in the envelope while saying, "Yes. That shall do quite nicely." Then Ansel kept his eyes away from the sheriff while saying, "Just remember when you win the election and become mayor next month, don't forget your friends that helped you." As Sheriff Walker put his envelope in his large coat pocket, he said, "I will... but don't you start pushing how far our friendship can take you. You know there's only so many paper trails I can erase before I have state and even federal authorities coming in and asking me questions." Then Ansel finally made a little smile as he said, "And I'm sure if something like that were to happen, you'd have plenty of answers... considering you'd also be protecting yourself now." Ansel then walked away, while a nervous looking Sheriff Walker got back into his police car. Then Sheriff Walker quickly drove off.

Meanwhile Ansel began to walk towards his nearby mansion, when he saw Garrett coming out the front door. As Garrett approached his father, Ansel angerly said, "Where are you going? Off to that scum school that's sitting on our land?" Garrett looked a bit nervous as he said, "No. Just... taking a walk." Then suddenly Ansel and Garrett noticed Raine appeared far away in their view, and was starting to walk towards them. Ansel had an angry look in his eyes... but then glanced at Garrett while saying, "You've been in that school. Tell me. Are all the records I discretely acquired on their students correct? Is that girl one of the Nevermore's only two individuals that can see into the future?" Garrett nervously nodded his head, and then said, "Yeah. That's Raine. From what I heard, she can see glimpses of the future at times, but it's never a full picture." Ansel then smirked as he said, "Well if she could, she wouldn't be walking by here right now." Then Ansel suddenly gave Garrett an angry look, while yelling, "Go!" Garrett suddenly looked scared and then ran away.

Then just as Raine was about to cross paths with him, Ansel suddenly acted like his leg was hurt, and he fell to the ground while screaming in pain. A concerned Raine ran over to him and said, "Oh my gosh. Are you okay sir?" As Ansel pretended to be in pain, he said, "It's my leg. Oh. It's an old war injury acting up. Please. Could you help me to my house. It's right over there." As Raine helped Ansel get up, she said, "Oh, of course sir. Don't worry. You'll be okay." Then Ansel and Raine slowly moved towards the front door of the mansion. Then once the two got inside the mansion, a sympathetic Raine asked, "Okay. We're here. Anything else I can do for you?" Ansel then made a big grin as he said, "Just let yourself be knocked out." Then Ansel suddenly moved fast, grabbed a large baseball bat, and hit Raine in the head with it. Raine then hit the ground knocked out, while Ansel wiped his hands clean on a rag. Then Ansel's wife walked into the room with a shocked look on her face. Ansel then casually glanced at his wife while saying, "Put her in the vault downstairs." Ansel's wife had a scared look in her eyes, but then calmly nodded her head as she said, "Yes dear."

***

In a large room at Nevermore Academy, Morticia was wearing a full fencing suit with a helmet covering her head. Morticia was facing another opponent, and with a few strokes, she hit them. Morticia then took off her helmet briefly, and looked at 12 other students surrounding her while saying, "Remember everyone. It is important to not extend your arm for as long as possible. Don't anticipate the moment when an opening will occur. Let the moment come to you." Then as Morticia put her helmet back on, Larissa entered the room with Gomez (who was already wearing a full fencing suit). As Gomez proceeded to put a fencing helmet on, Larissa rolled her eyes and said, "Come now. What are you trying to accomplish here?" Gomez smiled as he said, "Victory. For war gives the right to the conquerors to impose any condition they please upon the vanquished."

Once Gomez had his fencing helmet on, he stepped forward into the middle of the room as he said, "I, Gomez Addams, newest student of Nevermore Academy, challenge any would be champion of this class to a duel. And to the victor, go all the spoils and privileges the ruler of this small army would have." Morticia (still wearing her fencing helmet) turned to look at Gomez while saying, "I see that with men: events of importance are still the result of trivial causes. To answer your question, I am the captain of Nevermore Academy's fencing team. Do you wish to challenge me for my title?" Then Gomez happily said, "It is war's prize to take all vantage." The Morticia chuckled and said, "Well... to whom God will, there be the victory."

Gomez and Morticia then took fencing stances, and then moved their bodies forward prepared to duel. Gomez and Morticia instantly had their foils strike at each other. Each individual found themselves moving forward several steps multiple times, only to find themselves moving back several times. The two began to strike with repetitive movements, constantly attacking and blocking the other. Over time, Gomez began to put more effort into moving his entire body with great speed. Morticia meanwhile made many simple fluids movements as she defended herself from Gomez with no display of strain. At one point as they battled, Morticia calmly asked, "Ready to give in?" However Gomez loudly proclaimed, "I'll fight, till from my bones my flesh be hacked!"

Then suddenly Morticia extended her arm and had her foil move towards Gomez. Gomez quickly ducked, but the tip of Morticia's foil suddenly hit Gomez's helmet. Gomez then extended his arm, but due to Morticia trying to dodge, the tip of Gomez's foil hit her helmet. Gomez and Morticia then quickly lifted their foils, and each pulled off the others' helmet in the same moment. Gomez and Morticia suddenly paused for a second as they saw the others' face for the first time. Gomez suddenly felt his heart race, as he found himself unable to move. Morticia in the same moment also saw herself freeze briefly, unable to understand why. Both Gomez and Morticia then quickly attempted to hit the other with their foil again. Morticia made quick fluid movements against Gomez's attacks. Gomez was able to stop Morticia's attacks several times, but soon found his eyes beginning to focus just on her face.

Then just as Gomez began to lose concentration in mid-lunge, Morticia saw an opening, and then extended her arm and had her foil's tip hit Gomez in the chest. Gomez immediately froze as he looked up at Morticia's face with both confusion and amazement in his face. Morticia then smirked as she lifted up her foil and said, "I came, saw, and overcame." Then Morticia turned to her fellow students who all cheered for her. Meanwhile Gomez remained standing in the same position as he longingly watched Morticia. Larissa then walked over to Gomez as she said, "Are you all right?" Gomez nodded his head as he said, "I am. But... who was that?" Larissa made a little smile as she also longingly watched Morticia while saying, "That's my room mate... Morticia Frump." Gomez then made a big smile as he said, "Morticia... what a dreary name."

***

In his mansion, Ansel was walking up the stairs from the basement. Ansel then walked into the kitchen where he saw Garrett was getting some food. Ansel didn't make eye contact with Garrett as he proceeded to get his own food. Garrett then had a nervous look in his eyes as he said, "So, dad... um... we got a phone call earlier. It was one of those Amber Alert calls. Apparently one of the students from Nevermore Academy went missing... and it was Raine. Since we saw her just this morning, I just wanted to know if you heard something about..." Then Ansel turned to look at Garrett with anger in his eyes while saying, "If you know what's best for you, you'll stop wasting my time with pointless questions!" Garrett quickly nodded his head and then rushed out of the mansion. Ansel meanwhile continued to look angry as he headed back down to the basement.

Once he reached the lowest level of his home, Ansel went over to a heavily locked door, and then opened it. Then Ansel walked into a room where he saw sitting before him was a beat up looking Raine who was chained to the wall. Raine had tears in her eyes as she said, "Please, let me go. I promise I won't tell..." Then Ansel suddenly yelled, "Tell!? The only person you're gonna tell anything to is me! I want to know everything about the future! Tell me every secret about the other scum at Nevermore who can see into the days to come like you! I want to know the names and intimate details of anyone that will one day be capable of stopping me and my family!" As Raine began to sob she said, "It doesn't work that way. My visions simply happen on their own. I can't just conjure up specific details of the future on a whim." Then Ansel suddenly began kicking Raine very hard multiple times as he screamed, "Well maybe what you really need is more motivation!"

Raine then began coughing up blood, as her eyes closed. Ansel then groaned in frustration... until he saw that Raine's shirt had become undone. As Ansel looked at Raine's more exposed body, he glared down as he said, "Just about the only thing you scum have in common with us real people are your bodies... and for all the terrible things your kind did to my family, I deserve some form of compensation right now." Ansel then began to take off his clothes, and soon after began to peel the clothes off Raine's body. Then Ansel's wife walked into the room with a mortified look on her face. Ansel then casually glanced at his wife while saying, "Give me a blanket and a pillow. I want to have some comfort while enjoying myself here." Ansel's wife had a distraught look in her eyes, but then calmly nodded her head as she said, "Yes dear."

***

Very early the next morning, Morticia was walking by the river before the sun had begun to rise. As Morticia walked by the river, she was taking roses she saw growing in ground, and immediately cutting off their petals. However Morticia's activities halted when she saw nearby was a funeral that was in the middle of its' proceedings. Standing around an open grave was a small crowd of people. However Morticia saw standing at the back of the crowd was a well dressed Gomez. Gomez then turned his head, and instantly his eyes locked with Morticia's. As the moon still shined in the sky, Morticia's face became pale as the moonlight touched her skin. Other people in the funeral crowd also began to find themselves glancing at Morticia, while Morticia began to slowly walk towards Gomez. Wanting to act like she was invited to this event, Morticia quickly put some of the roses she picked (which had all their petals cut off) in a vase that was sitting on a table. Morticia then quietly stood next to Gomez, as another individual in the funeral crowd began to give a eulogy. However as the eulogy concluded and a coffin was lowered into the ground, Morticia and Gomez found their eyes consistently trailing back to the other.

Eventually the rest of the funeral crowd began to leave, as Morticia looked directly at Gomez while saying, "Apologies. I didn't mean to intrude, but... I've never been to a real funeral before. I mean I've read books and seen pictures... but I never dreamed it could feel so... magical." Gomez smiled as he said, "It's quite all right. The funeral was for my cousin Balthazar. His home is coincidentally near the school. Still, I'm quite surprised they let me attend considering I've been suspected of staging his alleged suicide." Morticia suddenly looked excited as she said, "Is it true?" Gomez laughed a bit, and then while grinning he said, "I would never directly shorten the life of any tormented man... but I may have played a part in causing him to become quite mad. Honestly, I didn't think my methods I tortured him with were that effective." Morticia chuckled for a moment... but then composed herself slightly as she said, "We have already dueled and had one conversation now without making formal introductions. We certainly cannot acknowledge we've actually met until we do. So with that being said... I'm Morticia Frump."

Morticia then held out her hand. However Gomez leaned his head forward, gently kissed Morticia's hand once, and then said, "And I am Gomez Addams. It is a pleasure to finally meet you properly for the first time. Might I ask Morticia, what is a girl like you doing wandering around a dreary place like this so early in the morning?" Morticia smiled as she said, "I like to find any roses I can that are growing near the school, and prune away all those awful petals. All that bright color makes the land surrounding the school look so cheery." Gomez nodded his head as he said, "Indeed. You are doing a great service to the community. I too like taking long walks in the morning. However I prefer to do it when it's raining with lightning and thunder." Morticia looked very excited as she said, "Oh, I do love walking in the midst of a powerful storm. All the rain and wind pushing against my body. And in those rare circumstances where I can be electrocuted... oh, the surge of pain and power coursing through my body; feeling my heart nearly stop... it's the most beautiful sensation one could ever experience." Gomez's eyes lit up in admiration as he said, "I never thought I would meet someone else who understood..."

Then suddenly the two heard a roaring sound in the distance. An excited Gomez then said, "Well what do you know? I believe that's thunder. It may turn out to be a pleasant morning after all." Morticia suddenly looked worried as she said, "Oh no, that's..." Then just as the sun began to rise, Morticia's African lion suddenly appeared from nearby and was running straight at Gomez. Gomez's eyes immediately lit up as he said, "My, what a magnificent creature." Morticia began to look more worried though as she said, "Gomez, you may need to run because my pet..." Then suddenly Morticia's lion stopped right in front of Gomez... and began to gently lick him. Gomez laughed and began to pet the lion as he said, "What a ferocious feline you have here. Mmm. And his breath smells of postal service workers. You certainly have a feisty one here Morticia." Morticia stood with wide eyes of amazement while saying, "Umm... yes. Kitty sure is full of surprises." Then suddenly the two heard Larissa's voice say, "Morticia?" Gomez and Morticia turned their heads and saw Larissa walking towards them with confusion in her eyes. Gomez looked a bit nervous, but then smiled as he said, "Hello Larissa. While I was waiting for you, I bumped into your room mate. You certainly surround yourself with fine company. Shall we go on our date now?" Larissa smiled as she said, "Lets."

Then Gomez and Larissa began to walk away together... but as they did... Gomez found his head turning back to look at Morticia one more time. As Morticia watched Gomez and Larissa walking away, she found a few tears coming from her eyes. Suddenly though Morticia found her body shaking, and her head jerked up. Morticia suddenly saw flashes of Gomez at various adult stages of life. Then for an instant, Morticia saw the backs of two young children hugging an adult Gomez as they said, "Hello father!" A confused Morticia then said, "Father?" Then Morticia saw multiple images of adult Gomez at various ages jumping back and forth between one another, with the one thing they all had in common was Gomez lovingly walking towards Morticia as he said, "Ma femme chérie." Suddenly Morticia could see her regular surroundings again. As Morticia looked shaken up, she said, "Ma femme chérie? Why that's French for... my darling wife."

***

In the basement of Ansel Gates' home: Raine lay on the floor completely naked, while locked in chains attached to the wall. Raine's face meanwhile looked possessed as her hands moved quickly while writing many notes on sheets of paper, along with also making several drawings using colored pencils. Raine was breathing in and out heavily as her hands began to move at almost inhuman speeds while her writing and drawing continued. Ansel then walked into the room, and smiled as he saw the many notes and drawings on the floor. As Ansel picked up many of the papers, he said, "Excellent. I knew with enough motivation you'd finally sing like the freak canary you are. Now what information do we have here about the future of outcasts at Nevermore?" Suddenly Raine's eyes widened, and her voice sounded more raspy as she said, "Death and doom is coming. Death and doom is coming. In 30 years and eight days from now, I will die... and then Rowan... oh my God, my future son Rowan is going to die at the hands of a Hyde. Oh God, my son. How can I mourn for the death of a child who has not been born yet!?"

Meanwhile Ansel's eyes were focused on the notes he was reading. Ansel smirked as he said, "Nice. Very nice. You've written up and even drawn full size pictures of what the most dangerous students in Nevermore's future will look like, along with detailed family histories. You've even written up statistics on all their strengths and weaknesses. Oh, this is like winning the lottery!" Then Ansel's wife walked into the room carrying a brown coat, while having a sad look on her face. Ansel then casually glanced at his wife while saying, "Put the outcast scum in that coat, and then dump the cheap beer all over them. When the police or whoever find her, they'll think she was just out getting drunk." Ansel's wife had a painful and hesitant look in her eyes... but then calmly nodded her head as she said, "Yes dear." Ansel then walked out of the room, while Ansel's wife began to unchain Raine, and cover her body in a coat. However as this occurred, Raine grabbed one drawing from the floor (that Ansel had failed to notice), and quickly put the drawing in a pocket of the coat.

***

Morticia was beginning to walk into town as she headed towards the main cemetery of the town. There was a light rain outside, but Morticia looked very pleased as her skin and clothes were beginning to become wet. Morticia then stopped, and starred at many of the graves from afar. Morticia sighed, and then said to herself, "I always dreamed I wound find a nice boy to be buried alongside one day... but what do I do when I have visions telling me who that must be. It is like choosing between wanting to read the words of a script, against following my heart... but what if my heart is wrong?" Then Morticia heard a male voice behind her say, "My heart can't be wrong when it thinks of you Morticia." Morticia then turned her head and saw Garrett walking towards her, holding a fencing foil (with a bow) in his hand

Morticia looked a bit startled as she said, "Garrett... what are you doing here?" Then Garrett smirked as he said, "I've been following you and memorizing your typical route for days now. I wanted to pick a spot and time where we'd likely be alone. I know you like fencing, so I bought you a new foil as a present." Morticia looked a bit unsettled as she said, "Garrett, as flattered as I am to have a boy stalking me, you need to know that..." Then suddenly Morticia's eyes widened, and her head jerked up. Suddenly Morticia saw a vision of the near future that involved Garrett angerly running towards her inside of Nevermore Academy while holding a sword out. Morticia suddenly looked frightened, and both in her vision and in reality, she yelled, "No Garrett! Stop!"

Meanwhile nearby, Gomez and Larissa were walking down a sidewalk near the cemetery while Gomez was holding an umbrella. Suddenly the two heard Morticia's yelling, as a concerned Larissa said, "Is that Morticia?" Gomez then saw Garrett in front of Morticia, as a scared Morticia (still having a vision) yelled, "Stay away Garrett!" Garrett meanwhile looked confused as he said, "But why?" Then Gomez glared at the scene while saying, "No man should torture a woman that does not welcome it." Then suddenly Gomez pulled a fencing foil out of his umbrella and ran towards Garrett. Meanwhile Morticia saw in her vision, a crazy looking Garrett was swinging his sword towards Gomez. Morticia looked frightened as she said, "Stop this!"

Meanwhile in reality, Gomez ran at Garrett with his foil out. Garrett quickly noticed this, and immediately stopped Gomez's foil with the foil in his hand. Gomez immediately began to swing his weapon several time at Garrett, but Garrett fought back by block blocking Gomez's attacks, all the while Garrett also tried to hit Gomez. The two young men each tried to lunge forward at the other, but each was able to dodge the others' attack. Meanwhile Morticia saw both flashes of reality, and flashes of her vision where an angry Garrett was attacking Gomez in the middle of the night with his fists. In Morticia's vision: Gomez looked like he was slow to reaching his death, causing Morticia to be frozen in terror as she yelled, "No! Stop!"

Then in reality, Gomez was finally able to knock Garrett's foil out of his hand. and knocked him to the ground. Morticia then snapped out of her vision, and saw only reality again. Garrett looked scared, while a heroic Gomez point his foil down at Garrett's face while saying, "This dreary woman has asked you to leave young man. Do as she says, or your throat shall meet my weapon!" Garrett looked confused and frustrated as he said, "What the hell is wrong with you!? I didn't mean any harm." Then Gomez smirked as he had the tip of his foil stop right near Garrett's throat while saying, "But I do. So make your next choice carefully." Garrett then reluctantly walked away as he said, "We're still meant to be together Morticia. You'll realize it one day."

Then once Garrett was gone, Gomez put his foil back into his umbrella. Gomez then looked at Morticia with concern while saying, "Are you unwell Morticia?" Morticia then made a grateful smile as she said, "Only now that you're here. Thank you Gomez. That threat you made at Garrett was so... alluring to hear." Then Larissa walked over to the two, cleared her throat, and then said, "Well Gomez... shall we continue our date now?" Gomez quickly nodded his head and said, "Ah, yes. Of course."

Then Gomez and Larissa began to walk away together... but as they did... Gomez found his head turning back to look at Morticia once more. However as Morticia watched Gomez and Larissa walking away, she found herself beginning to get light headed. Suddenly a fog of smoke began to surround Morticia's body as she said to herself, "My senses... are beginning to feel so strange. What's going on?" Then Morticia heard a female voice say, "I believe I can explain that." Then Morticia turned her head, and looked confused as she began to see a female figure that was hidden in the fog. A confused Morticia then asked, "Who are you?"

***

Francoise was walking out of Nevermore Academy with an umbrella in her hand, when she saw a figure beginning to walk towards the school. Then Francoise realized the figure was a disturbed looking Raine, who was walking towards the school wearing nothing but a coat. Francoise suddenly looked very concerned as she yelled, "Raine!" Then Francoise ran forward, just as an exhausted Raine fell to the ground. As Francoise tried to hold Raine up in her arms, she said, "Raine, where were you? We called the police, but no one could find you. What happened!?" Raine however had wide eyes and a scared look on her face, and her body began to shake as she said, "I've seen death and doom. Death and doom. I've foreseen the end of my life, my son's life... and the end of Nevermore Academy!"

Then Raine pulled a drawing out of her coat pocket, and handed it to Francoise. A confused Francoise saw the drawing was of a dark man in a Pilgrim outfit standing near a girl in a dark dress and braids, while an image of Nevermore Academy burning was behind them. As Francoise looked at Raine she said, "What is this?" Tears appeared in her eyes, as a crazed Raine yelled, "The future! Nevermore Academy will one day meet it's end at the hands of Joseph Crackstone... and the one who will claim to be the daughter of Morticia Frump and Gomez Addams!"

***

As Morticia stood surrounded by fog in the cemetery, she saw a shadowy female figure walk towards her. Morticia still looked confused as she said, "What is happening here? I demand to know your name!" Then suddenly emerging from the fog was a girl in a black dress and dark braids. The girl then glared at Morticia, and while keeping an emotionless tone to her voice she said, "My name is Wednesday Addams... and I've traveled from beyond to assist you in this important turning point of your life... mother."

TO BE CONTINUED...

*Author's Note - Welcome everyone to this very special limited series that aims to give you all THE origin of Gomez and Morticia's love story. Great amounts of time have been taken to make this series not just align with the Wednesday TV series, but to also borrow/adapt from every incarnation of the Addams Family (to help make this story also feel like a prequel to any incarnation of the famous fictional gothic family). For those that are unfamiliar with me, I have slowly become well known in the Addams Family community for my "Wenclair Family" blog on Tumblr, and for my incredibly long lasting Wednesday and Enid fanfiction series: "The Passion of a Moment". If you have not read that series of mine yet, but you liked this story, I highly encourage you check it out.

Also, special thanks to artist @emeriart for creating the main cover picture used for this story, and three other pictures that will be used throughout the series. Also, special thanks to @annietheartsyartist for doing the majority of the additional art. Be sure to check out their work on social media. Anyway, be sure to come back next week as we delve into the next chapter of this very special prequel tale.

[leviadraws]

Hey Levi, Is it alright if i ask for some Terurei and Kokoyuri HCs?

oh gosh oh gosh, sure sure I'm totally normal about them /lh

This is err, really really long (like 2.8k words lol), so under the cut. Sorry in advance for rambling. Also, I’ve kinda realised that these are less head cannons and more a brief simplified plot line haha.

Terurei: This is post DRA until SDRA2.

Learning to work with others as a team has been really hard for Rei, she's had to learn to not belittle others as much and learn to bite her tongue a little when people said silly things. Initially, Teruya (and Kinjo to some extent) were the only ones who'd know that she doesn't always mean the things she says or the harshness of her tone. She really appreciated his patience while she got the hang of it.

At the start of forming the Kisaragi foundation they needed to secure investment from important people to stay afloat amid the collapse. Which means Rei had to stress the importance of what they were doing without insulting anyone, and Teruya had to silently gesture or mouth "be nice!". When he could tell she was getting to the end of her tether, he came to distract the investors with some figures to give her a break.

Just as Teruya covers Rei in social situations, Rei covers him if he makes little mistakes in the field. She'll have extra contingencies in place so he doesn't take all the flack.

Training under Kinjo was hard for the both of them, and when the foundation was still small they'd often spar together. Initially Rei was better but as he got taller beating him got harder. The first time he won he put out his hand to help her up and she just dragged him down, out of pettiness. They still spar on occasion, while he’s taller and stronger now, she’s learnt judo just so she could throw him over her shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The look of surprise of his face when she succeeded had her burst out laughing, it was the first time in ages he’d seen her laugh like that, and he couldn’t help but laugh too. They were just there, laughing in the empty gym.

The first time Teruya had shot someone was to save Rei, someone had caught them off guard and swiped the gun out of Rei's hands. Teruya scrambled for it as it hit the floor, and shot it before they could hurt anyone. One shot in the chest, just like Haru. He couldn't stop seeing his friend, he just broke down. Rei, just held him for a while in silence until he stopped shaking, they haven't mentioned it to anyone else.

One time the coffee machine broke at the office and Rei just went out of commission, face flat on the table, unmovable. Teruya managed to procure a new one and as he walks in she rushes over, grabs it, says "I love you", and immediately rushes to the counter to get it working. Teruya just stands there, red as a beet and there's a few whispers in the room from onlookers. Everyone kinda assumes she was talking to the coffee machine considering her state, but that doesn't stop him from being flustered for the rest of the day.

After the events of THH they (+Kinjo) had a visit to their old dorms at HPA. It's in the hope of triggering some memories that had been lost to them. Teruya finds a lot of photos that were taken with him, Haru, Satsuki, and Kiyoka, (and a couple that are the whole class, and also a couple of them all dressed up weird rehearsing for a play. He keeps the ones of Rei as a witch to show her later) that he keeps and frames in his office. Rei finds a giant teddy bear in hers that says "Happy birthday! From class 79b". Kinjo informs them that the whole class chipped in to get it for her birthday, he neglects to mention that Teruya had spent many sleepless nights getting that exact one at a good price after Mikako had come to him with the idea. Rei takes it back with her, it's dusty and worn but it's still cute. Afterwards, she notices that one of the bears paws has a rainbow embroidered onto it, was that custom added…?

Rei thought a nice thing to do would be to bring Teruya coffee on days he stressed towards the end of the tax year. It’s the one time of the year he stays at the office later than she does and it really wears him down. It turns out her coffee is way too strong for him and he was sent to the infirmary thinking he was having a heart attack. She brings him tea and some miso rice instead now.

Rei isn't good at handling feelings or relationships so when Minako and Midori invite her out for drinks they pester her about it. "He spends a lot of time in your office", "Why don't you bring me tea Mekaru", "I didn't know you could smile like that". It made her realise that perhaps she is treating him differently to the others she knew. That realisation was hard for her, she still has abandonment issues and doesn't want to lose what they already had. So she buries it for a while so she can properly think it over.

Teruya is more in tune with himself, and figured it out pretty early on. He's not sure when it started, but he has pretty low self-esteem since the killing game and he's not gonna act on it because to him she's so smart and beautiful and he's just.. him. She couldn't possibly see him that way.

Things get a little awkward on occasion after that, they'll work together and they'll accidentally brush hands, or hold a gaze a little longer so the pause is noticeable. Teruya always breaks it off first, he comes up with an excuse and leaves the room in a hurry. Rei is smart, but she's not very socially smart, so while she does question it she doesn't come to the right conclusion and just thinks he's has forgotten something. But then she'll ask him the next day and he has no idea what's she's talking about for a second. She starts to doubt then, perhaps he doesn't really enjoy the times they're together.

Minako is a terror, she got it out of Rei when they went out drinking and she /knows/ from how Teruya looks at her. So she plays a little prank on them, they need to go pretty far for their next scout and she has to book them somewhere to stay in the safe zones on the way. She purposely books one room with one bed and doesn't tell them. It's a …very awkward exchange that results in them alternating sleeping in the car. Rei says it should just be her, as Teruya is too tall to comfortably sleep in the car, but he insists. Rei had some stern words for their receptionist on their return.

Rei is the first to confess, it was by accident while they were on a mission and things go south. He gets hurt, there's so much blood and no not again, she can't lose someone she's close to again no nonono. She panics, and it all just comes spilling out. He's pretty delirious at this point from the pain, she doesn't even know if he can hear her, she doesn't care. She needs him to know, he's important to her, she can't lose him, she loves him.

He gets patched up at the hospital, once she's allowed to see him again she just sits and waits by the bed. She's asleep from exhaustion well before he wakes up. Once he wakes, he sees her there. She's a mess, she looks exhausted but she still looks so beautiful to him. He isn't sure if what he remembers from before was real or just a delusion so he just sits there quietly and lets her rest a little. When she wakes up he just smiles over at her "See? I'm not goin' anywhere". She pulls him into a hug out of relief and just sobs there for a bit quietly. Like how she did when he'd first shot someone, he just holds her until she stops shaking. At some point he musters up the courage to say it too, he knows now what he remembers actually happened.

Of the two of them, Teruya is the better cook. Rei has always been of the mindset of as long as it's edible, fast and nutritious who really cares, but Teruya likes to makes things look nice and got loads of local dish ideas from his trips with his dad that he likes to make. Occasionally he's a little too ambitious and it all turns to a mess, but he tries. If it goes badly, Rei just smiles and then orders something in for them.

They laugh a lot together, Rei has chilled out a lot and makes small sarcastic remarks that has him grinning, and Teruya gets really excited about the little things and can't wait to show her. He notices that she sticks up for him when she thinks he's out of earshot, and he just can't stop smiling for the rest of the day.

I could go on forever but Imma stop there haha

Kokoyuri (Every time I get someone asking about something kokoyuri I remember I ran a wheel of fate for SDRA2 with a Yuri protagonist that I /really/ wanna do some stuff on but the DRA one went so close to canon that I haven't shown them because I'm worried people will think I've rigged it lmao)

I'm gonna go with some HPA AU this time, so they're both 16 and all that.

There's kinda a mutual fascination there, it's really difficult to see what Kokoro is thinking when her expressions are so muted and her voice so flat, the only real way Yuri knows how to connect with others is through stories of the stuff he's been through, facts from his talent, or through compliments. Compliments don't seem to work at all, rather they either fly over her head completely or she just looks a little annoyed that he would derail an interesting subject with something so inane.

However, she really finds his stories fascinating. He's been through a lot of trauma for someone his age and yet he tells these stories so nonchalantly, as if it were totally normal to be kidnapped 40 odd times. She can see in his eyes that he's going through a lot when he recounts them, he's just gotten really good at masking it.

She finds him really easy to talk to, he listens to her ideas and thoughts intently, and he gives really insightful feedback. He seems against her harsher experiments when women are involved than men for some reason. He gently tries to coax her into doing having men as test subjects rather than women, and she can't help but wonder, why? Why would there be a difference?

“Idolising someone is just as dehumanising as demonising someone, in some ways, the way you treat women is the same as the way you treat men”. Yuri is shocked at first, outraged. So much so he leaves the cafeteria where they were chatting. She’s caught off guard, she’s always valued being able to speak her mind with him. Perhaps Emma was right, there are some truths better left unsaid.

Kokoro struggles to realise guilt for what she had said, but she knows that she needs to apologise. She goes to ask Yoruko and Emma for help, as she needs to understand the rage and hurt in his eyes before she attempts an apology.

Meanwhile Yuri is conflicted, hurt, confused. How could Kokoro say something like that? They’ve talked so much, how could she ever think that his adoration towards women, towards her could be dehumanising? But at the same time, he knows Kokoro can’t lie, and he knows the uncomfortable looks some girls shared when he compliments them.

And so he wonders, isn’t he just, lonely? Having never had the opportunity to connect with peers before he only knows how to act how the servants in his household do, or talk endlessly about his life and hobbies. And even if his classmates think he’s a little weird isn’t being remembered for that better than nothing at all? But it’s not like that with Kokoro, she’s interested in what he has to say, how his experiences have affected him and responds in turn with really interesting points and questions. It’s the first time he’s really been able to interact with someone as an equal.

They both come to apologise after school that day, it’s awkward and messy (mostly on Yuri’s side, as he starts to ramble), but it’s sincere and they agree to be friends again.

And things are so easy for a while, Yuri introduces Kokoro to his flight path AI that he’s been training for his final project at HPA, and Kokoro shows him some tricks to read people better, small fidgets and tells that will help him read the room. It helps him communicate with the rest of the class better, and in turn he helps explain to her why some of the class act the way they do, to know times when to be honest and times where it is better to be a little quieter.

She hasn’t told him, or the rest of the class yet that they’re kinda her test subjects for her final at HPA. That she’s studying the emotion and thought behind each persons actions day-to-day. Though she does talk to him about her research when he asks, she feels lighter being able to discuss it with someone, she’s convinced this must be happiness.

He starts to notice that she has her own tells, but so few compared some of the others in their class. She’ll sometimes hide behind her iPad when she’s trying to change the subject to something else, or if she’s unsure about something. He finds it kinda cute.

As he falls, he realises, shit, she’ll be able to see the emotion in his eyes when he’s talking to her. He can’t have that, she’s his first real friend he really doesn’t want to lose that and become all alone again.

So he starts avoiding her eyes when they talk, talking a little less and avoiding bumping into her. Their other classmates notice, and notice that Kokoro almost seems… down? She’s talking less and her sentences are shorter and more curt.

Kokoro isn’t sure if she feels hurt, or simply misses the status quo they had. But either way she wants to resolve this. She manages to catch him one day after school, it turns out he’s pretty fast when he wants to be. She wants to know what she’s done to cause this change and how it can be fixed.

She holds him by the shoulders and asks him to look at her, to which he reluctantly obliges. When she looks at his eyes this time she sees a wide variety of the emotions rattling through his head. She’s able to decipher some of them from practice, but there’s a good few that she doesn’t understand. And yet, they feel, light to her.

Meanwhile this is like ten minutes of absolutely unbearable silence for Yuri and his mind is just racing and she’s so close that he just blurts out that he thinks she’s beautiful. It’s not like his normal pickup lines at all, it’s just ungraceful word vomit and he’s cringing on this inside the moment he realises what he says.

Kokoro is just stunned for a second, she’s unsure how to process this. Some of the emotions she reads make a little more sense now. She’s not quite sure how she feels herself, these things don’t come to her naturally with her condition so she’s going to need time to work this out properly.

He’s happy with this response for now, it’s far better than all the terrible scenarios that ran through his head in those ten minutes. So they agree to take things slow, to keep it to themselves for now and see where it leads them. He may even be able to slip in more compliments and look for signs of those tells that she was telling him about.

Little do they know that the entire class was spying on the exchange, the whole school knew the next day.

Phew! Sorry that these aren’t really head cannons, but I had a lot of fun writing them so I hope you enjoyed reading them! If you’ve read this far, thanks! Please feel free to add your own or tell me where you think I’m totally off

[kirisaki-daichi-scenarios]

aftermath of manager betraying the boys p4

part 1 here, 2 here, 3 here

It’s Friday. She’s about to leave home for her afternoon shift at the bookshop, slipping her shoes on just as the door swings open.

“Honey, I’m home!” Her husband of one year tosses his rucksack to the side, and wraps his arms around her waist, “have a nice day at work, yeah?”

Leaning into his embrace, she turns her head to kiss his cheek, “you need to stop acting like you’re in a sitcom.”

Then, quietly, knowing how much he hates the topic, she adds, “how was the physio?”

“Fine.”

One final kiss to her forehead and he walks away with the limp he’s had ever since Yamazaki’s foot made contact with his spine. He can’t play judo anymore. He sees a physio once a week, and yet there’s been barely any progress since the appointments began. He was a man whose motto was “push through the pain”, but you can’t push through chronic pain. A man who lived for judo, and now all he lives for is his pain meds in the morning.

(And she never snitched. Gentleman than he is, he didn’t push her, but he wanted her to. He said that if they told on Hanamiya and his gang, they’d be expelled and she wouldn’t have to worry anymore.

“Look at what happened when you told the headmaster about their behaviour on the court,” he had said.

But she was looking at it. She is still looking at it, remembers it every day, every time she looks at him and his limp. And so, she had sworn to break up with him if he ever dared to snitch.

God she’s vicious. Undeserving. Hanamiya was right.

——

Excluding a group of children who screamed her ears off over a new instalment of some shoujo manga, her shift passes without a hitch. Outside, it’s dark and dreary. Drizzle batters the windows. But the shop itself is cosy, more so when you’re at the counter in a thick jumper. With one hand, she’s updating the shop’s blog on next week’s offers. With the other, she’s bringing her thermos of hot chocolate to her lips. It’s a lovely evening, with no customers to bother her. And, in just one hour, she’ll be on her way home, and Friday’s are movie nights.

“Excuse me, ma’am, could you direct me to the crime section?”

She hadn’t heard anyone enter. She flinches at the sound of a voice.

“Yes, it’s just on-“ she looks up. Pauses.

It’s not fear, it’s not dread that flits across her face: it’s horror.

How ironic. This was all because she snitched on them, but Seto must have told them where she worked.

—

In their first year of high school, she and Seto sat together in almost all their classes. Any group projects, they did together. Lunches, they spent together. His being there was the main reason she’d agreed to being the team’s manager. And, until the very end, when she was walking to the headmaster’s office with that damning USB in her skirt pocket, she’d still been thinking that Seto was a good guy. Yes, he’d ignored the hostility the team spewed - but that made him guilty of apathy, not cruelty, right?

It took hearing him laugh as he watched the others beat her boyfriend up for her to realise that he was just like the rest of them: entertained by violence.

Why she’d thought he’d keep his promise - when she asked him not to tell anyone where she worked - even she didn’t know.

—

“Ma’am, you still there?”

Hanamiya leans over the desk, and grins at her. It’s been six years since they last saw each other. He’s a little taller now, dressed far more formally than he used to be (black suit, sleeves cuffed, and a long black coat like the Grim Reapear), and his tone is formal though relaxed - but that big Hanamiya grin hasn’t changed.

There’s no one else in the shop. Yet, even if there was, this situation would always feel like Her-and-Hanamiya.

“The crime section, yes,” she shoves her hand below the desk so he can’t see them shaking, “take the stairs over there. The crime section will be on the other end of the basement.”

“You know, my eyesight’s not great. How about-“

“Fuck off.”

The grin slips off his lips.

He straightens his back, looks around - looks at each and every CCTV camera on the floor - then turns back to her.

“What would your boss think, if he knew you were a) speaking so rudely to a customer and b) refusing to support a customer with an eye disease. I have glaucoma, don’t you know?”

He’s a cunt. He’s a lying fucking cunt. He’s a disgusting piece of shit, whom her mother adored. She insisted that Hanamiya was a good sort, based on how kindly he helped her around the house when the team would stay the night. She with her glaucoma, that she fought with so valiantly until she died of a heart attack. Hanamiya knows she’s dead. The whole team attended the funeral with their beloved manager, letting her cry on their shoulders, holding her hand, offering her tissues. Hara even completed her memorial speech for her when she couldn’t.

And Hanamiya also would tell her boss about her behaviour. He’d tell the tale in such a way there’d be no arguing with him; her boss would fall in love him with, and she’d be unemployed by the end of the day.

For someone who warned her what happens to snitches, with her now husband’s blood across his palms, he sure is comfortable with being a snitch himself.

So she gets up slowly, holding onto her chair as tight as she can, so her fist doesn’t make contact with Hanamiya’s mouth. Steps away from the desk. And, keeping her eyes fixed in front of her, committed to ignoring him, walks towards the stairs with Hanamiya in tow.

“We should hang out sometime,” natters on Hanamiya, “reminisce the good old days. How’s that bloke of yours? Are you still with him after we… redecorated his ugly mug? Not that there was much to like originally. You were just desperate.”

“Don’t talk about him like that,” she snaps. she’s fair game, but her lover is the only good thing in this world, the only sun shining.

Hanamiya continues. “If you were so desperate for some male attention, we could have pimped you out to someone. There was no need to cause such a fuss just to get some judo moron to sleep with you. Does he even sleep with you? Back in the day, it was the male students who got along best with him, wasn’t it? Big fan of the male first years-“

She can’t bite her tongue any longer.

“You’re grown ass adults now,” she spits. “Just because you’re realising you peaked in high school, and the rest of your lives will be spent as angry depressed salarymen in shitty marriages with angry depressed kids, doesn’t meant you need to take it out on me.”

Hanamiya pauses, as if surprised - or mock surprised. As she turns the corner to the crime section, she hears wolf-whistling and applause.

“She’s still got it,” says Hara, referencing the times the team used to perform rap battles while watching each other practise shooting.

She won everytime. She was the “rap battle queen”, and when she got a 3-pointer from the bench, after coming up with a lethal bar about Matsumoto’s hair - or lack of - she was deemed the queen of the team full stop. Those were the good days. Yamazaki, ceasing to clap, has a solemn look in his gaze like he’s thinking the same thing.

The rant has given her some more confidence. Even knowing that the crime section is the only part of the bookstore that has no cameras on it, and that that’s probably why they chose it, she still feels better. They can’t do their worst in a public location. And it’s only forty minutes until she can close up shop, head to the local police station, only a five minute walk away, and tell them that she’s being followed by an obsessive boyfriend and his friends, could she please stay at the station till they walk away. As long as they don’t find out her current address, or anything about her husband, she’ll be alright.

Thirty-nine minutes now.

“It really has been a while.” Before she can think to push him away, Hara wraps his arms around her, his weight pressing her into the corner, and whispers in her ear, “I missed you, you know?”

“Leave her be, Hara,” Yamazaki sighs.

“Jealous much,” replies Hara, but he does let go, adding, “you’ve put on weight. No more basketball to keep you fit, ey? I was the same way for a bit. After you happened.”

38 minutes. Just 16 two minutes left to go.

“You know, you’re the reason Zaki didn’t get to his first choice university. Because you gave him a record.”

“Sucks to be him,” she retorts, just as Yamazaki mumbles, quietly,

“That’s not true. My parents sorted it out.”

“But it could have been true,” interjects Hara, “which is why someone should be showing more remorse.”

Hara hasn’t changed, that much is clear. He argues with the same pointless, childish, circular arguments that he’s had since he was in high school, whose logic never had to make much sense as long as he had it in his mind that he was superior to whoever he was arguing with. Even his hair colour hasn’t changed. And these stupid remarks now aren’t much different to the times he would pull her ear or punch her in the arm. Time has killed much of the malice he used to have towards her, leaving nothing but that same demand for attention. Plus - a confusion as to why he wants that attention, like a bully who targets their crush.

Had she not snitched, would she have ended up like this too - forever trying to return to the days of high school? Or was it because she snitched that the rest of them got stuck in the time loop, clinging onto the life they lived before they realised they weren’t above the law?

There’s no juvenile laws to protect them anymore. Plus she doubts that their parents would be happy to get them out of trouble, now that they’re adults who’ve been given everything they need to have a successful future. They’re not going to hurt her, really hurt her, in a situation where they could face the consequences; they must know she’ll go straight to the police.

They can’t hurt her but they also can’t leave her be.

With this in mind, she starts to speak.

“When I said I did it for your sakes, I meant it. It wasn’t from the moral high ground that you perceived it to be. I genuinely meant it. You’ll never know how many times I thought about throwing away the USB and carrying on as if the team’s - our team’s - behaviour was normal. I barely slept for the nights leading up to that final day, and I barely slept afterwards. To this day, part of me feels guilty. I threw up in the headmaster’s office when I showed him the clips. He thought it was because I was so disgusted - but it wasn’t. It was just, when you watched the videos,” her voice cracks, “you could tell we were all friends. I was watching those videos thinking what a horrible person I was to betray you all like that. I was-“

She takes a shaky breath. Her eyes are burning as she fights the urge to cry.

No one else speaks.

“The worst part of it is, I was never planned on doing it. I started recording during practice, after matches, whatever, because I wanted to make a film of us. I was going to present it to you all at the end of our third year, as a memento of our time together.

But the more time I spent editing, the more I realised what you - we - were really like. We were so cruel. I’d never realised it until I was watching us as pixels on a screen. God, the things we said - honing in on people’s physical weaknesses, with no respect for the actual game, and ignoring the fact people could actually be crippled for life thanks to one stupid basketball match. Jokes about beating people up for fun that became actually beating people up for fun. Comments on how you’d make people pay for going against you, that got increasingly explicit and violent over the course of the year. Or that time a guy yelled at me after a match, and you were with me, Zaki, you overheard. Yes, he shouldn’t have called me a bitch - but you could have killed him if Seto hadn’t showed up to help me pull you off him. What future would you have had then?

The entire fucking team was edging closer to doing something that would be in your records for the rest of your lives. Practice after school was less about basketball and more about honing this pack mentality where all that mattered was violence with no consequences. What I showed the headmaster was the mild stuff. I deleted the really incriminating bits, like Furuhashi holding a knife to someone's throat to school, or Hara waterboarding one of the health committee kids.

We didn’t need any of that. Hanamiya, with your brains, you could have developed any sort of team, you could have learnt any skill you wanted. Why did you have to pick hurting people? Kiridai could have been a really good, genuinely good basketball team. You guys were all so talented!”

Tears fall to the carpet as she stares down at the floor, her fists clenched, her voice growing quiet.

“And I loved every moment I spent with you all. I loved every single one of you. I loved pre-match prep, running around an unknown school to figure out where the toilets were, scouting out opponents in stupid disguises, playing streetball at dawn in an area I would never have felt confident to walk around with you there, or team sleepovers at my house where we’d fall asleep together on the sofa. I still dream of you all now, and I wake up crying, knowing that I was the one who ruined it. I’m sorry.” She looks them each in the eyes as she says this; her voice is loud again, and resolute, “I’m sorry. I was naive, I was self-righteous, and I ruined everything.

I’m really fucking sorry.”

She wipes the tears off her face one final time, and says, “The shop will be closing soon. Hanamiya, I directed you to the crime section as requested. If you want to make any purchases, I’ll be at the counter but please make them in the next twenty minutes. Thank you.”

She walks away.

No one calls her back.

[evolutionmmachi-blog]

Evolution MMA / Alliance Jiu Jitsu would like to congraulate Mark Manalad on his Black belt!

Evolution MMA together with Team Alliance Jiu Jitsu would like to give a huge congratulations to Mark Manalad on recieving his well deserved black belt.

Mark has been training and rolling in the art of Jiu Jitsu for 18 years and has become one of one of our best students and family members!

Recieving his black belt from the best Jiu Jitsu instuctors in the nation.

Taking the one on one camera roll with his Jiu Jitsu team, classmates and now students

How the new Jiu Jitsu Black Belt Started his journey and continues his Jiu Jitsu rise.

Over 18 years ago I stepped foot in a Naperville Judo school to sign up. The owner asked why I want to practice Judo. I told him I want to learn some form of martial art. He looked at me and said you probably like the Jiu Jitsu school in the back of the building and told me to go there. I was a little confused but followed his directions. That is where I met Jeff Neal and Brian Bishop and was introduced to Carlson Gracie Jiu Jitsu and fell in love with the art. I met Jason Sullins when he taught class at Overtime MMA and connected with him right away and he has been my coach ever since. He is the one who gave me the nickname The Mad Hatter! The art demands a lot of respect and will be a humbling experience every time you step on the mats. The biggest thing I’ve a gained during my journey are the great relationships with all of my brothers and sisters who love the art as much as I do. That is the one thing I am most thankful for. Thank you all for being part of my Jiu Jitsu journey and developing my game. Thank you Jason for promoting me to black belt. Having you as a coach and more importantly as a friend is truly a blessing. I want to thank my wife Jeanette and my daughter Mya for supporting my Jiu Jitsu lifestyle. I also want to send a special thank you to my coaches and teammates at Alliance Jiu Jitsu and Levels Jiu Jitsu.

It has been an honor and will continue to be an honor training, teaching and rolling with You Mark!

The whole team Thanks you!

OSSSSS!

[kariachi]

Have some digimon au fic, featuring that Chosen team I threw together last year. Team is having a get together at the Jones farmhouse (as opposed to the O’Toole one) and Ezekiel is chilly.

~~

“Cocoa?”

“Thanks, Mrs Jones.” Trying to ignore how strange it felt to be calling someone that, Ezekiel accepted the mug with a smile, holding up under his chin and letting the steam thaw him. These weren’t the coldest temperatures he’d ever experienced, but back home it was an easy twenty-four degrees Celsius while there in Connecticut it was sitting at ten. His team was fine, for them this was considered chilly but not cold, and Aequcedramon was loving it, but he’d been raised poor in the Outback and didn’t appreciate it when the temperature dropped below sixteen. As such he was fine with sitting under a quilt on the porch, huddled around a warm drink, while the others got in their outdoors time.

One would think the months they’d spent camping in the Digital World would have been enough for them, but no. No, apparently he was the weird one.

As Casey’s mom slipped back into the house- and it gave him a little thrill to realize she hadn’t made cocoa for any of the others, as a middle child misunderstood by his family it wasn’t often he got something ahead of anyone else- Monette broke off from Casey and Gazimon’s sides and essentially pranced back to the porch.

“Knowledge,” she crooned, draping herself over his shoulders, “we’ve been talking.”

“Not about hockey I take it?” He was pretty sure it was hockey season, was hard to miss it when half your friend group played the sport.

“At first about hockey,” she admitted, “you know Case is looking for the Sabres to make it to the playoffs this year? The Sabres.” Ezekiel made a commiserating noise. His supply of concern for hockey began and ended with whatever games Casey and Monette were in, but he’d learned in the past five years that it was easiest to just play along like he knew what they were talking about. Hadn’t even heard of the sport before they met. “But no, actually, we were talking about how it’s a travesty you, Mari, Strabimon, and Auqucedramon don’t know how to ice skate.” Oh. Oh, and now he looked back into the yard, there were Gazimon and Casey approaching the rest of the team.

“Do we need to know this,” he asked, already knowing what the answer was going to be and almost dreading it. He was not the outdoorsy sort, but knowing he had friends that wanted to show and teach him the things they loved never failed to warm him. Seemed like every year they met up and every year there were another three things somebody wanted to share with the rest of the team, and every year they all ran with it.

“It can’t hurt to,” Monette said. Technically it was a lie, there were plenty of ways they could hurt themselves learning, but the same could be said of the judo moves Marian and insisted they all learn, or the stretches Casey taught them, the time Ezekiel himself had dragged them all out to rob a museum. His mom hadn’t been as impressed as he’d have liked, but Casey’s aunt had bought them all a cake to celebrate. “Not like, right now or anything, but say in January? You guys can all come out here and we can teach you. Then you can take us home with you and we can all thaw out.” Ezekiel hemmed.

“It’d be easily over thirty-five C back home,” he pointed out.

“So we’ll thaw quickly, and bring cold drinks.” They really had thought about this. Taking a long draw of his cocoa, he shook her off and rose from his seat, flashing a grin at her when she immediately grabbed the quilt and draped it about him.

“I’ll talk about it with Auqucedramon, for now though, I’m heading in. It’s already bloody cold enough out here…” Grinning back, Monette gaze him a quick hug and shepherded him towards the door, shouting back to the others.

“We’re heading in! You guys coming?”

“Sure, just a minute-!”

[hereforthefunnyguys]

List of possibilities:

Yugi does gymnastics. WITH extra sparkles.

Atem does swimming and equestrianism in his spare time

Jonouchi does basketball (also considering water polo as an option?)

Honda, if this was the 4kids dub and we were in Murica, would be doing Murican football. But we are not. So he is doing weightlifting because I said so and someone here needs to be the Not Twink. Maybe also on the basketball team with Jonouchi?

Anzu does softball <3 She has threatened people with her bat before <3 She will do it again <3

Ryou's a cheerleader because I said so and I like the outfits and also cheerleading Should, in fact, be considered a 'real sport' so

Miho, if she were to be canonical in this universe, would do tennis. She has also threatened people with her racket before but it is unfortunately not quite as intimidating an effect as a baseball bat has.

Seto does Equestrian sports in his spare time and is otherwise doing Judo as well as swimming. Because he's Seto Kaiba and can do as many sports as he pleases, dammit.

Mokuba is in little league baseball. We are slowly training him not to fix games with his brothers money. It is a work in progress.

Pegasus used to do figure skating with Cecilia as his partner but is now an evil sports department manager. As is common and logical.

Ryuji does football/soccer because I mean come on guys just look at him. and before you ask YES in this universe the dangly dice earrings has been replaced with a dangly football earring. He is still wearing it on the turf despite it being the most massive hazard ever and someday he will end up with a torn earlobe because of it <3

Marik does volleyball because it lets him brag about how tall he is. Also just look at him, and then look at a womens volleyball league. Same people. Also he would look good in the short shorts.

Synchronized swimming for Ishizu. May or may not be using the Millennium Tauk to predict her opponent teams routines ahead of time. Why would you ask that what are you a cop its none of your business if she's had a fifteen competition straight win streak

Rishid be doing weightlifting. I mean come on just look at that dude hes gonna snap your neck in half with his bare hands and you would thank him for it. But he wont. Because he Cares.

In the event that we would count yami malik i think he deserves to do water polo. Blood in the water time. He can smell your fear and it is delicious and also none of his hair is fitting under that cap. His coach is monitoring his nails 24/7 just to make sure he doesn't like randomly grow six cm talons before the next game.

Shizuka does high diving <3 wow i sure do wonder where i got the canon basis for that one

TKB does wrestling and also boxes on the side for extra money. He is fully capable of doing gymnastics but does not do so professionally cause he thinks the costumes look dumb and cheesy. Also he craves violence but whatever he looks good with a broken nose

Mana does water polo because she craves violence and mischief

If we are to also consider priest set separate from Seto. Then probably dressage. He feels like a dressage guy take that as you will

BONUS: Grandpa Muto and Arthur Hawkins were on rival baseball teams in elden times and that was how they met and became friends.

going to make an evil yugioh au where they’re all jocks instead of nerds

[bengiyo]

The Eclipse Ep 4 Stray Thoughts

Back-to-back high school shows on Friday, and they're both good. Excited to see the new form of oppressive structural power we'll face today!

Really love the homoerotic energy of these Judo scenes. It's fun watching them knowing that Khaotung was better in their training, and that First was so nervous about injuring Khaotung.

Akk half undressed is framed well with Ayan's peeking. Me, too, Ayan.

Ayan needs a better way to secure this notebook.

Oh lord a pratfall kiss. This one was okay, but I am just not a fan of this as a dramatic tool.

A bunch of educators trying to gang up on a student by making him look incompetent in class is such a bad tactic. It makes him sympathetic to his peers, and the teachers look petty. Worse, Ayan is actually good at memorization and recall, so he's embarrassing them.

It's sad that Akk is being boxed in by this teacher. Akk doesn't like seeing people get hurt, and he's being told repeatedly to ignore the pain of others, lest it befall him as well.

Notable how few ads we have with this show. Hope this isn't a bust for GMMTV.

Ayan looks legitimately tired here. Khaotung and the makeup team did a great job here.

Ayan's premise of understanding personally how this school attempts to break people down is compelling. I think what scares him and Akk is that it might actually be working. Ayan looks like he's taken a loss.

Wow, that was a good scene. The way First plays Akk's fear is fantastic. Really loving the dynamic between Akk and Ayan.

I tell ya. Post-it notes are an integral tool to Thai BL.

All of us who said Khaotung should be lead were correct. Cut the check.

I like the dynamic between the prefect boys as well. Akk and Kan have a very different rapport, and it's fun. I hope we see a version of them when they aren't repressed. How does First manage to pull this out of every scene partner?

The look of hurt and frustration from Aye when his mom didn't support him got me.

Kan suggests that Ayan might be meeting a lover, and that's what makes Akk decide they must go in the cafe. Oh, boys.

Okay, what is this actual cafe. @heretherebedork I'm pretty sure this is the same one used in Antique Bakery???

I appreciate that they used a lot of girls and femmes to show that this is a diverse cafe catering to a queer audience. There are enough boys in the show.

Mmm. I'm not sure I approve of Ayan thrusting Thua into this situation with Thua's mom.

I'm curious how Kan feels about not knowing that something was wrong with Thua, and that it was Ayan who helped him.

I'm presuming that the Uncle was queer, and now this whole school must burn for driving a gay uncle to death.

Khaotung is quite vascular.

Oh, I think I'd be more upset if the uncle wasn't queer, but took the time to help build up a queer support system for his nephew.

Loving this version of Thua that will tell Kan exactly what's going on.

I think they found Louis's angles. He looks gorgeous here.

I like Kan and Thua repairing their friendship a bit, but I don't think it's enough to ease the longing between them.

Not surprised that this school would like about Dika's death. Really fucked up that they let students think he was a traitor.

I sometimes struggle with the romance of pulling someone from getting struck by a vehicle, because the levels of car violence in Bangkok are alarmingly high.

That kiss is going to lead to nonromantic things. I'm concerned about Ayan taking a picture.

However, that lip bite from Ayan was affective.

Curious where we go next with this show.

[kantosableye]

untitled law firm au part 1

this is a thing i’ve started writing scenes from because i have been just. having it on my brain. i’ve decided to set it in the us just to make research easier/draw from my own knowledge. more to come, but probably in the form of disjointed scenes.

------------------------

“Hey - Gary! Hey!”

Maybe Ash should have felt self conscious running down the courthouse hallway. Still, he chased after Gary until he turned, an eyebrow raised. “Do you need something?”

“Just to say hi,” said Ash. “I didn’t know you went to law school, I thought you were doing…some kind of science?”

“Biomedical engineering.”

“Wow.”

Gary shrugged. “I turned out to be pretty good at mock trial. Someone from Chicago was there and told me I should consider it. I’m more surprised to see you here. Weren’t you doing…” He paused. “Wrestling?”

“Judo, actually,” said Ash. “But I pulled my back pretty bad a few years after college, and my girlfriend at the time was a paralegal, so we both took the LSAT and… well, here we are.” He grinned. “How long has it been, anyway? 10 years?”

A bailiff behind them cleared her throat, and they moved off to the side of the hall. It was then Ash noticed the strange expression on Gary’s face. Gary was smiling, but his eyes had the same calculating expression as they had in the courtroom. “Sounds right,” said Gary. “You really don’t strike me as the law type,” he said. 

Ash recognized the tone in Gary’s voice. He had heard it years before, targeted at him or whoever else Gary refused to believe was on the same level as him. When they were younger, the disdain and snobbery practically dripped from Gary’s voice, but now, with age and training, it was hidden under what must have been a carefully practiced polite neutrality. “I was pretty good at mock trial too, you know. I led my team in law school.”

“What law school was that?”

What was this, direct? “Duke.”

For a moment, Ash could see he’d caught Gary off guard, and he had to fight a small laugh. Gary appeared to be recalibrating. “So when did you graduate? How long have you been practicing?” 

“About a year now.”

“I’ve been in five. Do you want some advice?”

Now, Ash couldn’t help but laugh a little. Advice - maybe Gary would have the tact to frame the barbs as advice, but he braced himself. He couldn’t think of any issues with the hearing that were his fault - he hadn’t chosen the expert, and he hadn’t given Gary much to object on. His suit would certainly come up, though.

“I’m sure you know your witness is a quack, and if you’re only a first-year associate you’re not going to be able to fight the partners on that.” said Gary, “You were gonna lose this one anyway, but you could’ve tried to qualify him better. You can’t be scared of the other party objecting – unless, of course, you don’t know the evidence rules…”

“I know the rules of evidence,” said Ash. He had known what was coming, and he knew what Gary was like. Still, he could feel the blood rising to his face, and one of his hands curled into a fist at his side, his knuckles tense under his skin.

“Mm-hmm.” Gary sounded skeptical. “And you keep staring at the judge like a freak. Did you just take ‘maintain eye contact’ completely literally?” He laughed at his own non-joke. “And please don’t get me started on…” His eyes flicked up and down Ash. “This,” he said, with a vague gesture.

“Knew it,” said Ash. “Okay. What’s wrong with my suit?”

Gary inhaled deeply. “I honestly don’t know where to start. Your tie knot is completely inappropriate, though I suppose I shouldn’t expect you to know how to tie a windsor knot. Clearly you didn’t bother to get it tailored, because your jacket is too small and your pants are too loose - you might as well be wearing sweatpants. At least they match each other, which is more than I can say for your socks - black socks and a navy suit? Really?”

At least Ash could respond to this one. “I-”

“Your shirt’s wrinkled, too.”

“-I care about the law and my client. I don’t see why it’s so important to care about something as superficial as clothes when we’re here to resolve a lawsuit.”

Gary put his hands over his heart. “That’s so sweet,” he said, the disdain clear in his voice. “Maybe you should go do something public interest. Wait, no, they’ll also tell you you have to at least put some effort into looking like a professional if you want a jury to take you seriously. Wake up, Ash, image matters, and it tells the court about you.”

This time, Ash didn’t have any sort of comeback. The only idea he had was to call Gary a snobby piece of shit, but he knew by now that Gary would seize on anything that came across as a personal insult as evidence of Ash’s lack of intelligence. So he met Gary’s eye and nodded. “Thank you,” he said, squeezing his fist to keep his voice from rising into a yell. “I’ll be sure to remember that so I can take you down next time.”

Gary raised an eyebrow. Then, slowly, he broke into a laugh. “Please! If it was anything you could even dream of taking me down on, we’d have already stipulated. You couldn’t do it in a custom Boglioli. You’re not bad for a first-year associate, but we’ll never be on the same level. That’s why I’m not worried about helping you.”

“Helping me,” Ash started, about to point out that Gary’s true purpose was obviously far from altruistic. But Gary was looking at his phone.

“Hey, listen, I gotta get back to the firm. But it was so great to catch up with you! See you at the next hearing!”

Ash felt like he had been hit by a truck, but he stood in silence, staring at Gary’s back as he left down the hallway.

[qqueenofhades]

#71 kastle if it hasn’t been done already?? thank you queen 🙌🙌

71. "Would you just shut up, please?"

It's been a while since she's seen Frank -- it always is, usually -- and for once, Karen hasn't been thinking about him all that much. Not forgotten, because she never does that, but just pushing him back to the corner of her mind that keeps things deep and dark and quiet. She has a life of her own, after all, and she intends to get on with it. Besides, much as she likes Frank, his appearances do tend to come paired with a lot of violence, drama, chaos, and very bad people trying to gruesomely murder one or both of them, and there is only so much you can take at once. Maybe, she thinks every time. Maybe this is the time he'll disappear and never come back. Perhaps she should want that. Her existence would certainly be a lot more peaceful if he did.

(And yet. And yet.)

It's spring in New York City, trees greening and buds blooming and everyone still optimistic about the Mets' chances this year, and it's at least six months since Karen has seen him. Her life is never exactly quiet, but quieter, and she, Matt, and Foggy are plugging along with the law firm and Foggy's half-baked ideas about asking Marci to marry him and move to Queens. Matt is appropriately horrified ("Queens?!?") and doing that Matt thing where he tries to control everyone in his life for "their own good," and Karen's getting tired of their half-serious arguments. Foggy deserves some happiness and a respite from the Murdock Nonsense Machine. Matt, if he's honest, has to admit that too, and probably does. Still. It's always been them. The idea of breaking up the dream team can't fail to be frightening.

Karen gets home later than usual that evening, clutching another bag of takeout -- she hasn't had the time to cook or shop, and her apartment is mostly devoid of food. She's digging in her purse, looking for her keys, when the shadows move and a man in a hooded sweatshirt steps out of them. "Hey," he says roughly. "Hey, Karen."

She reacts by instinct -- after all, she's a single woman who lives alone in New York, and that's even before the misadventure she attracts on a regular basis. She yells, seizes his arm, and vaults him into a makeshift-but-not-ineffective judo throw, whereupon he hits the deck with a whoof and a very startled expression. "Shit!" he splutters. "Shit, Karen, what the hell? It's me! It's me!"

"Frank?" Karen glares down at him, as her brain catches up with her reflexes and assures her that yes, she does know that voice, and no, it could hardly be anyone else. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

"Course not." Frank rolls over and gets to his feet, still looking slightly miffed at such a rude welcome. (Considering the ones he's given her over the years, he does not have any right to complain.) "Just, you know." He shuffles his feet, almost shy. "Back in town. Thought I'd drop by and see how... see how things were."

Back in town, Karen thinks. Implying, of course, that he was out of it for God knows long doing God knows what, and wants to drop by her apartment for a shower, a proper dinner, and some downtime before running off to God knows where for God knows why. Frank Castle is nothing if not deeply, singularly frustrating, and yet, he's looking at her with big brown puppy eyes and she can't summon up the heart to shoo him off like a nuisance stray. "Fine," she says shortly. "Inside, before my neighbors see you."

Frank, who doubtless wishes to avoid a reunion with the NYPD at any cost, takes the hint and scuttles inside, and Karen closes the door behind him. Her hands are shaking, which seems stupid, and for a very long and very awkward moment, they just stare at each other. Finally she says, "Why are you here, Frank?"

"Like I said." He looks confused. "Check in."

"You think that's what I need? You to just turn up on my doorstep out of the blue, make sure nobody has murdered me yet, and then go on your way?" Karen's voice is sharper than she intended, but she's tired of this dance, and the way they keep doing it in circles, over and over. "Of course, if you have some new psychopath after you, that only increases the odds that they'll go after me too, but I guess that doesn't matter to you, does it?"

It's unfair -- she knows it matters to Frank, matters perhaps more than anything else in his world, and for all her accusations, she too is terrified to think about the meaning of that -- but she's fed up, she's had a long day and a long week and a long everything, and she is torn between smacking him and -- well, not smacking him. Why, why can't he just be normal and why can't they just be normal and why can't he just, for once, stay. That's all she wants from him, when it comes down to it. That. This. Them.

"Well," Frank starts at last, sheepishly. "Madani might have called and said that there was a situation she could use my help with, and -- "

"Would you just shut up?" Karen doesn't care about his excuses, and there's always going to be one, some other mission, some other damned-fool idealistic crusade. "Please? Fine. You're here. You saw me. I'm alive. If you wanted anything more than that -- "

His eyes sear through her. He opens his mouth, wets his lips as if to speak, and stops. Then he takes a step forward, and then another, and almost without their own volition, his hands come up, cupping her head. Karen is sorely tempted to push him away, or knee him in the balls, or throw him on his ass one more time, just because it feels like she still owes him about a hundred. But then his mouth is on hers, rough and gentle and wet and hungry and devouring all at once, and there's nothing else she can do but whimper, and clutch at him with both arms, and kiss him back like the world is ending.

Time slows, stops, turns into molasses and honey the same hue as the evening light, the lengthening sunset. Karen doesn't know how long they stay there, like that. But then at last they break apart, and she can't breathe and doesn't care, and Frank is looking both slightly shocked at his own nerve and oddly proud of himself. "So," he says, smile crooked. "Still want me to go, Karen?"

"You are -- " She stops to make a funny wheezing noise, like a stepped-on soccer ball. "You are the worst."

He shrugs, unrepentant. "Yeah," the Punisher says. "I know."

(Of course he stays for dinner.)

(Of course he stays the night.)

(And maybe one day, at last, he will finally stay forever.)

[fic prompts]

[pillage-and-lute]

Pins and Needles: Part 2

Part 1, (here)

———- 🌷 🐺 🌷———-

“Oh my gods,” came a voice from over the counter that Geralt was currently under, sweeping up leaves.

“Uncle Lambert was right!” Ciri said, draping herself over the top of the counter so she could smirk at her dad. “You’re totally hiding from the twink tattoo artist.”

“He’s not a twink,” Geralt said, straightening up, dustpan in hand.

“Not what Uncle Lambert said.”

“Bertie hasn’t even seen him,” Geralt said, scowling. 

Unbidden, the memory of just how solid Jaskier had felt in his arms. How low his shirt was unbuttoned and how delightfully hairy his chest was. Not a twink.

“I should be concerned about how invested you are in my dating life,” he told Ciri. She was sitting on the counter now, battered combat boots thumping against the side.

Geralt didn’t exactly have a conventional relationship with his daughter. He’d been friends, although not terribly close, with her parents, and when they died and there was no one to take Ciri, he had. Lambert joked that it had been temporary insanity. Eskel said that Geralt had just experienced a bout of baby fever. Vesemir just smiled knowingly.

They all knew the real answer. It was orphan syndrome. A nasty mix of abandonment issues, trust issues, and the inability to leave other orphans to social services. All three of Vesemir’s boys had it, because he’d become their dad only after they’d each individually been kicked from every home the state could place them in. 

So Geralt had taken one look at the squalling, tiny baby, with hair so blonde it almost looked like his own. Geralt had gotten stiffed on the genetic spectrum, and through no fault or deficiency his doctor could find, had entirely white hair by 23.

Now, Ciri was sixteen, captain of her hockey team, and raking in the medals for Judo. Geralt took great pleasure in bragging about her at every PTA meeting, especially since it meant rubbing it in Suzanne ‘My daughter’s a piano prodigy’ Delmore’s face.

“If you’d been on a date since Aunt Yen then maybe I wouldn’t be so concerned,” Ciri said, popping her gum. 

Geralt winced. His relationship with the used bookseller down the street had been disasterous and short, but in the end, Ciri had been able to tack yet another name to her list of non-blood-relative aunts and uncles.

“We’re better as friends,” he said. “Move your foot, I need to get into that cabinet.”

Ciri obediently swung her foot aside so he could grab the florist’s foam. “That’s why you should go ask out someone else...like the cute tattoo artist.” Her eyes went wide. “Oh, can I get a tattoo.”

“Absolutely not. Wait until you’re nineteen.”

“But I can get one at sixteen with parent’s permission,” she made puppy eyes. “Dad, it’d be so cool.”

“Nope.”

“C’mon, why not? And why nineteen, why not eighteen?”

Geralt smirked. “Did you know that your Uncle Eskel has a tattoo?”

“No,” Ciri said, leaning forward.

“Mmhm,” Geralt said. He began selecting flowers from buckets for his next arrangement. Something nice, maybe with some tea roses.”

“Oh, c’mon Dad, you have to tell me now!” Ciri hopped off the counter and got her apron off the peg. It had been a gift from Lambert. Geralt’s own was a simple denim apron, and her’s was the same, except it had “Don’t flirt, I’m a minor” embroidered on the chest.

“Well,” Geralt said, handing her her own block of florist’s foam. “He was eighteen, and he was really into Gwent.”

“That card game? The one that used to have that super weird animated tv show?”

“Oh yeah, we all were huge fans, but Eskel was the biggest. Which was funny, because Bertie and I beat him every time.”

“Oh my gods,” Ciri said. “Does Uncle Eskel have a Gwent tattoo?”

“Yep,” Geralt said, snipping off a too-long stem. “On his thigh. It’s pretty big, too, that’s why he only ever wears those ugly cargo shorts or long pants.”

“That’s hilarious!” Ciri said. “But what does it have to do with me?”

“There’s a lot of personal growth done between eighteen and nineteen,” Geralt said, trimming a leaf. “And I don’t want you to get something you regret. But when you are nineteen, I will happily pay for your first tattoo.”

“Really?”

“Mmhm. I don’t want you going to a cheap placing and getting some horrible blood disease.”

Ciri beamed at him and Geralt smiled to himself. He was a very cool dad.

“Why don’t you get a tattoo?” Ciri asked.

“Why would I?”

“It would look totally cool.”

“I don’t even know what I’d get,” Geralt said. He examined the flower placement. It was even, but maybe too even, he swapped a couple of the taller flowers around.

“You’d get to talk to the cute tattoo artist, I bet he’d have some suggestions.”

“I like wolves,” Geralt said. 

Ciri rolled her eyes. “Dad, like every guy with a tattoo get’s a wolf. Be original.”

“Trees are nice,” Geralt said.

Ciri groaned. “Even worse than the wolf. Maybe you should go over to the shop, see what sort of art he does. Can I get a piercing?”

“What? Oh, yeah, if you want. What sort?” Geralt was a little taken aback by the quick switch, but Ciri was sixteen and had ADHD, so he was pretty used to it.

“I want an industrial.”

“Which one’s that?”

“The bar, through the top,” Ciri gestured. 

Geralt fluffed out some petals. “Yeah, definitely. I’d much rather you get any cartiledge piercings done by a professional.”

Geralt, in his moody teenager phase, had gotten plenty of piercings, several on his right ear and all the way up his left. Most of which he’d done himself with a needle he’d boiled to sterilize it. He shuddered to think of Ciri trying it. Geralt had lucked out and not shattered his cartiledge, but there would be no risks taken with Ciri’s perfect ears.

“Cool,” she said. “Can we go right now? We usually close for lunch about now anyway.”

“I’m not sure they take walk ins,” Geralt said. He did not look cute enough to go see Jaskier right now. 

“We can ask,” Ciri said. Taking his hand and tugging him across the street.

———- 🌷 🐺 🌷———-

I imagine that in this world Gwent is like a mix of Yugioh and Magic The Gathering. 

Tag List!

@jaybeefoxy  @sweetiepieplum

[lokigodofaces]

Anti-Sex Bed

Characters: several Loki variant OCs, Mobius M Mobius Word Count: 2818 Description: Several Loki variants compete in their respective sports in the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics. And, naturally, they must destroy the cardboard anti-sex beds. Warnings: mentions of sex (there is no sex whatsoever here), crack fic My Fanfiction Wattpad, Quotev, Ao3

“The madmen really did it. They really built beds from cardboard. All to stop sex,” Basketball Loki says to his variant, Volleyball Loki. With another variant of themselves unleashing the multiverse, infinite Lokis came into existence. Some of the less well known variants are all gathered in Tokyo in 2021 for the Summer Olympics. It took some time, figuring out how to get them all together. It also took some convincing of the International Olympic Committee to allow some of the sports played in the group of variants to be part of the Olympics. But it is all worth it, for them all to compete in the Olympics together, even if they can’t compete showing their own faces.

“Why are they doing this again?” Volleyball Loki asks.

“To stop sex, I just said so.”

“I know that, but why? Why do they think the idea of a bed collapsing under people is going to stop anyone. You don’t need a bed to have sex, and I’m sure there’s at least one person that likes the idea of the bed breaking underneath them.”

“I like the idea of the bed breaking underneath me, only not in a sexual context,” Basketball Loki says, standing up on the bed. “How many jumps do you think it will take to break?”

“Three at the most. It’s cardboard, the most flimsy material they could’ve used. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of the beds would break under the pressure of someone sleeping,” Volleyball Loki responds, watching as Basketball Loki starts to jump. One, two, three. “It’s still standing?”

“Clearly.”

“Does it feel damaged at all?”

“Not at all.” Basketball Loki jumps higher and higher, hoping to gain more force. “Want to join?”

Now intrigued, Volleyball Loki steps onto the bed and jumps along with Basketball Loki. “Nothing, really? Let’s time our jumps, land on the bed at the same time. One...two...three...jump!”

Nothing. The bed still stands, even after Basketball and Volleyball Lokis try several more times.

“What are you two doing?” Softball Loki asks as she walks into the room. “Or is there no difference between three and fifteen hundred?”

“You heard these are supposed to break during sex. They were apparently designed for very rough sex,” Basketball Loki answers. “Want to join?”

“If not, get some others of us to help, please. I am very interested in what we need to do to break this supposed fragile bed,” Volleyball Loki adds.

Softball Loki leaves the room to soon return with all the present Loki variants: Trampoline, Judo, Cycling, Skeet, Rifle, Pistol, Equestrian, Fencing, Kayak, Karate, Taekwondo, Archery, Gymnastics, Diving, Skateboarding, Climbing, and Surfing Lokis.

“I get the feeling someone should be fired if this is an anti-sex bed,” Pistol Loki says, seeing the unharmed bed and the two Lokis jumping on it.

“Anyone want to join us?” Volleyball Loki asks. Soon enough, as many Lokis as they can fit are on the bed, all jumping together. Jumping in time to try to create more force at once. They switch out Lokis every couple minutes so that everyone has a chance to break it.

The bed still stands.

“Someone definitely needs to be fired,” Pistol Loki repeats, now that the bed has proved even more durable.

“Everyone off, I want to try some things,” Trampoline Loki shouts. All the Lokis jump off and Trampoline Loki starts jumping a little on the bed. Then he starts doing his routine for the Olympics on the bed.

Nothing.

“I’ll get up with you,” Gymnastics Loki offers. They start doing their own routine alongside Trampoline Loki’s. Multiple flips and twirls and jumps are performed on the completely undamaged bed.

“What in Asgard is this made out of?” Trampoline Loki asks.

“Cardboard.”

“I’m beginning to doubt that, Gymnastics.”

“Anyone else have ideas?” Gymnastics Loki asks.

“Judo, Karate, shall we?” Taekwondo Loki asks in answer to Gymnastics Loki. He stands on the bed, joined by Judo and Karate Lokis.

“What exactly are you going to do?” Volleyball Loki wonders aloud.

“Well, we’ve been wondering which of us would win if we all stick to our respective sports,” Karate Loki admits. “May as well learn on top of a cardboard bed in the hopes that it will break underneath us.” The three get into their beginning stances and the fight begins. All three of them get hit a fair amount, and all fall onto the bed at least once before getting back up. In the end, Judo Loki wins.

But all three lose to the still standing bed.

“This is becoming ridiculous,” Fencing Loki states. “Get off, I’m going to weaken the structure with my sword, then when we jump on it it’ll break.” The martial arts Lokis jump off the bed and Fencing Loki goes to work. He repeatedly stabs the bed all over, easily slicing through cardboard. When he is finished, he jumps up onto the bed.

“It...it should be broken now.” He jumps harder. “Anyone want to help?” Basketball, Volleyball, Trampoline, Gymnastics, and Diving Lokis all jump onto the bed to help Fencing Loki.

The bed still stands.

“Keep jumping. Maybe I can help weaken the support,” Softball Loki says, pulling a softball out of her pocket dimension. As the other Lokis jump, she repeatedly pitches the ball at the legs of the bed, hoping to get at least that toppled over.

It’s as if the bed doesn’t even notice the high velocity ball being repeatedly thrown at it.

“Maybe it will help if the puncturing object is still in the bed,” Archery Loki suggests. Once everyone is off the bed, she starts firing arrows at the bed wherever she can get them to pierce. Satisfied, she jumps onto the bed to find no consequences. “Could you get back on?” The jumping team of Lokis assembles. They jump away, all in vain.

The bed still stands.

“Everyone off. Pistol, want to help?” Rifle Loki says as they summon their .22 rifle.

“Certainly,” Pistol Loki says as she summons her .22 pistol. The two stand a foot away from the bed and fire until the magazines are empty.

“Let’s try jumping again,” Rifle Loki tells the other Lokis, many of which getting on the bed and jumping to no avail.

“Higher caliber?” Pistol Loki suggests, pulling out a .44 magnum from her pocket dimension.

“Worth a try,” Rifle Loki agrees as they summon a .50 BMG. Once everyone is off the bed again, they begin firing. These firearms have larger magazines, allowing more ammunition to be fired. Additionally, they are much more powerful firearms. The other Lokis watch as cardboard goes flying, expecting this to be the end for the poor bed.

But the bed still stands, looking much better than they expected.

Once again, several Lokis pile onto the bed and jump, hoping the gunfire weakened it enough for them to break it by jumping. Their hope is misplaced.

“Skeet, your shotgun will distribute the force over a wider area,” Pistol says. “Maybe that’s what we need.”

Skeet nods and conjures his 12 gauge shotgun. “Step back behind me,” he demands.

“You aren’t going to fire next to the bed?” Kayak Loki asks.

“That’s not how shotguns work, Kayak,” Skeet Loki says as Pistol and Rifle Lokis roll their eyes. “Rifles and pistols fire bullets. Singular projectiles. Shotguns fire shot. Lots of tiny metal balls that disperse, tearing the target to shreds. But they won’t disperse enough if I’m practically touching the bed.” When he finishes explaining, Skeet begins firing.

“I don’t see a lot of ‘tearing the target to shreds,’” Kayak Loki says, pointing to the still intact bed.

“Can we step back and wonder how we got into this?” Skateboard Loki asks. “Someone decides that athletes can’t have sex, so they order carboard beds because surely they’d break. So that meant we had to try to break the bed, but obviously none of us wanted to use sex to do so. And here we are now, Skeet shooting the bed and nothing happens.”

“Do you have any ideas?” Equestrian Loki asks.

“Yes, but I am starting to have my doubts it’ll do anything. Anyone want to assist in carrying the bed?”

If there is one thing universal about Lokis, it’s that if there is random chaotic destruction with little consequence to be done, they will do their part. Skateboard Loki leads the others to a tall staircase, at least twenty feet tall. Once they see the railing, the Lokis all know what Skateboard Loki plans to do. Luckily, he shouldn’t be able to hurt himself too much. Skateboard Loki runs up to the top of the stares, conjuring his skateboard. In a moment, he is sliding down the railing, once again, a twenty feet drop. He lands on top of the bed. The wheels can’t roll on it, so he topples to the ground.

“Are you hurt?” Judo Loki asks, more out of politeness than concern, not being worried for Skateboard Loki’s Asgardian body.

“Only slightly more damaged than the bed, it seems,” Skateboard Loki answers as Archery Loki helps him up. “Any other ideas?”

“Move the skateboard. I doubt this will do anything, but I may as well contribute with my sport,” Cycling Loki shouts from the top of the stairs. Skeet Loki grabs the skateboard and hands it to Skateboard Loki when he gets to his feet. The Lokis watch as Cycling Loki runs back a ways, out of their sight. He comes back a second later, speeding along on his bike, flying into the air when he gets to the stairs. And then he lands very violently on the bed, him and the bike falling down.

As you can probably guess, the bed still stands.

“How is this bed not broken yet?” Cycling Loki asks as Skateboard Loki helps him and the bike up.

“Move the bed to that building over there,” Climbing Loki responds, pointing to a nearby building. “The bottom half is relatively climbable. I’ll climb up and let go.”

And soon enough, Climbing Loki is at the top of the climbable section of the building. The Lokis all know he’ll survive, likely without injury. The perks of being Asgardian. They all watch as Climbing Loki plummets onto the bed.

“This isn’t particularly good at cushioning your fall, if any of you were curious. But still very much intact.” Climbing Loki looks around at the Lokis in front of him. “Where is Diving Loki?”

“Get off the bed, Climbing!” Diving Loki shouts from the very top of the building.

“What in hel are you doing?!” Karate Loki shouts up at them.

“Dive two thousand feet onto that bed!” The Lokis all know Diving Loki is mad enough to do because they each are themselves. Once Climbing Loki gets off the bed, Diving Loki jumps. It takes noticeably longer for them to hit the bed than Climbing Loki did.

The bed doesn’t receive any noticeable damage.

“What in the name of the Norns is wrong with this bed!” Diving Loki shouts.

“Maybe the answer isn’t a Loki landing on the bed,” Equestrian Loki starts. “Did any of you ever hear the story Midgard tells about us and a horse?”

“Hel no!” Basketball Loki shouts. “We are not letting you do that!”

“Dear heavens, no, I’m not going to have sex with my horse!” Equestrian Loki responds immediately. “I am going to ride my horse and we’ll jump on the bed.”

“Then don’t allude to that myth!” all the Lokis shout, or slight variations of this phrase.

Regardless, the Lokis take the bed to the stable. Equestrian Loki gets onto his horse and rides around with him for a moment before riding towards the bed and urging the horse to jump on. (No, you cannot argue this is the closest the Lokis got to having sex on the bed. If you do, I’m sure Equestrian Loki will find a way to our universe to kill you. And you would deserve it).

And it seems that the anti-sex beds can hold the weight of an Asgardian and a horse at once without breaking.

“If the designer were trying to make an indestructible bed, they would have succeeded,” Gymnastics Loki starts. “But they well and truly failed at making a flimsy bed.”

“Maybe force isn’t going to be what breaks the bed. Which, yes, makes it a worthless anti-sex bed, but I’ve gone beyond that and want to just break it now. But what if we weakened the cardboard and then stood on it. It would surely break.” Kayak Loki reasons.

“What do you suggest?” Equestrian Loki asks, returning from leading his horse back to the stable.

“I believe it is time for Kayak and I to use our sports,” Surfing says.

“Shouldn’t we have Basketball and Volleyball do something before we soak the bed, if we’re insisting on using sports to break it?” Softball Loki asks.

“Hey, we were the ones that roped you in,” Volleyball retorts.

“Have you ever watched a basketball or volleyball game? Jumping is important, and we’ve been jumping on the bed after each of you attempt to do anything. Besides, if a shotgun does nothing, I doubt a basketball or volleyball will do anything,” Basketball adds.

“Fair enough,” Softball says. “I was hoping to put the bed under a hoop and watch you jump onto it to dunk a basketball.”

“Oh, I’m sure it will be a team building exercise sometime this week for us. You’re welcome to watch.”

The Lokis then go to the kayaking revenue. Kayak Loki conjures a paddle and pushes the bed into the river before jumping on and paddling away. “Surfing, how do you think this will go?” Rifle Loki asks.

“Well, the bed is slightly better than a bed made of paper. The cardboard will soak up the water and lose its durability. The bed could get destroyed underneath Kayak now. If not, it should break if someone stands on it,” Surfing Loki explains.

“Yes, it’s also supposed to break under the pressure of sex. I’m starting to think that’s not the case,” Trampoline responds.

“Only starting now?”

Kayak Loki paddles up to them and jumps onto shore. “Should be wet enough now.” He pulls the bed onto dry land and stands on it. Nothing happens. They start jumping. “Anyone that wants to join may.” Soon the bed is full of Lokis.

Despite the laws of physics, that bed still stands.

“Is it going to be any different if you surf on it?” Fencing Loki asks.

“The waves might be helpful. But I doubt it’ll do much.” Despite their doubts, the Lokis find themselves at the beach, Surfing Loki riding out on the bed towards the deeper ocean. When he gets to where the bigger waves are, he stands and surfs across the water on the wave. Which brings him back to the shore with a very much intact bed. Even after the Lokis take turns jumping, the only difference between now and when they first started is the wetness and holes from bullets, arrows, shot, and a sword.

“How about we all admit that none of our sports can destroy these beds,” Surfing Loki starts. “I have a friend, he’s a driver for NASCAR. I’m certain he’d love to assist us with his car.”

The next day, after all the Lokis are finished competing and training, they go to meet Surfing Loki’s friend. “How did you meet him?” Taekwondo Loki asks.

“He’s obsessed with jet skis. I see him all the time when I surf. Honestly, if jet ski sports were more common than they are, I am certain he would abandon car races and move to jet ski races,” Surfing Loki answers. “And here he is.”

A sleek race car rolls up to them and stops. “Loki, how am I not surprised that you called me to help you destroy something for the sake of destruction?”

“Well, Mobius, it’s not my fault someone decided we needed to sleep on ‘flimsy’ cardboard beds. They were practically begging for this to happen.”

“And yet you haven’t managed to break it? Or the rest of you Lokis?”

“No, we have not,” Diving Loki answers. “But running it over may do some damage.”

“Alright, let’s put it out over there, and I’ll speed over it.” Mobius responds.

“Fair warning, we have done everything from using it as a surfboard to putting a horse on it. Don’t be surprised if your car doesn’t break it,” Gymnastics Loki warns.

“If I can’t break it, then this bed is indestructible.” Mobius gets into his car and revs the engine. “KACHOW!” he shouts as the car goes zooming off to the bed. The car goes over the bed and decelerates to a stop. Mobius steps out of the car and looks behind him. “Less of an anti-sex bed, more of a sex-proof bed.”