#Mile High City stadiums

[premiermountaintransportation]

Tune in to learn about Denver’s top sports arenas and how Denver Sprinter Car Service by Premier Mountain Transportation makes game day travel simple. Read More: https://premiermountaintransportation.tumblr.com/post/758053863818477568/effortless-sports-event-travel-in-denver-with

[ohisms]

↪     𝑺𝑬𝑻𝑻𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑷𝑹𝑶𝑴𝑷𝑻𝑺 , updated .     (  a  collection  of  various  settings  meant  to  inspire  drabbles  or  be  used  as  prompts .   )

001.   the seaside ,  as the sun is setting .

002.   a cabin in the middle of the woods .

003.   a picket-fenced home in the suburbs .

004.   a dark bus stop lit only by street lights .

005.   a private jet miles high in the sky .

006.   a funhouse’s room of mirrors .

007.   an office building ,  bustling and busy .

008.   the back row of an empty movie theater .

009.   a run - down motel room .

010.   a loud house party on a suburban street .

011.   a university lecture hall during a class .

012.   the rooftop of a very tall building .

013.   a great ballroom during an elegant party .

014.   the back of a wailing ambulance .

015.   the wine cellar of a large mansion .

016.   behind the school’s gymnasium .

017.   a boisterous bonfire at the lakeside .

018.   an otherwise empty parking lot .

019.   the shady bar of a noisy , dark club .

020.  the grounds of an empty summer camp .

021.   a large hedge maze ,  easy to get lost in .

022.   a neglected or derelict treehouse .

023.   a spacious ,  light-filled meadow .

024.   an underground illegal fighting club .

025.   an abandoned scrapyard .

026.   a large penthouse overlooking the city .

027.    an apple orchard in the middle of spring .

028.   an empty playground with squeaky swings .

029.   an extravagant greenhouse .

030.   the base of a large waterfall .

031.    a spacious walk - in closet full of lovely clothes .

032.   a solemnly quiet hospital room .

033.   the dark depths of an abandoned mine .

034.   the deck of a fishing boat at night .

035.   the thick crowd of an audience at a show .

036.   a long ,  winding road .

037.   the scene of a violent crime .

038.   a fork in a hiking trail deep in the wilderness .

039.   a cramped dressing room .

040.   a dusty antiques shop full of relics .

041.   the street of an unfamiliar city at night .

042.   between the tall shelves of a thrifted book shop .

043.   a building abandoned during construction .

044.   a house without power or running water .

045.   a mysterious trail found in the woods .

046.   the back of a taxi stuck in traffic .

047.    the inside of an elevator that won’t move .

048.   fairgrounds during a large event  (or after hours) .

049.   a garden bountiful with flowers or produce .

050.   a childhood home or bedroom .

+   30  more  setting  prompts :    1 / 3 / 2024

051. the site of a horrible accident .

052. a closed pool , after everyone has left .

053. a home holding horrific memories .

054. by the side of a dangerously quick river .

055. a private hotel room .

056. a police station in the middle of the night .

057. a ferris wheel carriage under a sky of fireworks .

058. a lavish , invite - only party .

059. a public transit stop as rain is pouring down .

060. the back of a taxi going in the wrong direction .

061. the underworld .

062. a dusty , forgotten attic .

063. on the set of a television show or movie .

064. a lighthouse overlooking the raging sea .

065. in a post - apocalyptic bunker .

066. on a ship hundreds of miles from the nearest coast .

067. on the rooftop of a perilously tall building .

068. a tent pitched in the middle of the woods .

069. a crowded stadium during a football game .

070. the morgue during an identification .

071. an otherwise empty library during a late study session .

072. a place that feels familiar , yet you've never been here before .

073. a long hallway that seems to stretch on forever .

074. a signpost at the start of a hiking trail .

075. a bar or tavern bustling with life .

076. the dance floor of a masquerade ball .

077. inside of a car parked in a secluded area .

078. at the edge of a cliff overlooking a large lake .

079. inside a very old house with very old haunts .

080. the antiseptic interior of a space station .

[zaczenemiji]

hiii! req for kenji like imagine reader and ken are dating but he hasnt been able to talk to her alot since of raisng emi and ultraman, so after emi is gone what if he treats her to a little picnic date telling her about what happened and how sorry he is for kinda leaving her out in the blue

From LA, with Love

Kenji Sato x Reader

Word Count: 2,656

Genre/Warnings: Long-Distance Relationship

Author's Note: My longest one so far; sometimes I write without brakes 😩

MASTERLIST

"Breaking news from Tokyo: A baseball game at the Tokyo Dome was disrupted tonight by the sudden appearance of a kaiju. Spectators were evacuated, and the city is currently under high alert."

Your heart pounded as the screen switched to footage of the chaos. The camera panned over terrified spectators fleeing the stadium and a massive kaiju rampaging through the city streets.

At the corner of the footage, you spotted familiar landmarks in the background and felt a knot tighten in your stomach. Those looked like the pictures Kenji sent you for updates.

The newscaster continued, "Among the players was rising baseball star Kenji Sato—“

The sound of glass breaking was heard at the mention of his name. Your tea now spilled on the floor, shards of broken glass around it.

Your breath got caught in your throat. Your boyfriend was there, in the middle of the chaos and there was nothing you could do. You were literally 5,000 miles away on the other side of the planet.

You knew you should’ve listened to your gut when it told you to come with Kenji to Japan. If something bad happens to him tonight, you wouldn’t be able to forgive yourself especially when there was something you could’ve done.

Quickly, you grabbed your phone, trying to call him, but the call went straight to voicemail. Panic surged through you, but you tried to remain as calm as you could.

The news feed cut to shaky footage that showed Kenji at bat with the crowd cheering, but suddenly, screams filled the air as the kaiju appeared overhead. The camera focused on Kenji, his face a mix of determination and fear before he disappeared from view in the ensuing chaos.

That was all the media said that night. It’s not like LA News would take an extra mile for Kenji; so you desperately searched for more information. Unfortunately, updates were sparse.

It was currently 3 AM in LA and your mind raced with worry. Was he safe? Why hadn't he called you?

You didn’t stop looking for information. You’ve checked the whole internet, called hotlines you thought could give you an update, and stayed up til sunrise.

Suddenly, your phone beeped and you have never been this fast on grabbing it. It was a text message from Kenji, "I'm okay. Can't talk now. Please don't worry. I love you.”

You held your phone close to your chest, a temporary relief washing over. You clung to those words but uncertainty still gnawed in you. You had so many questions and no answers.

Little did you know, Kenji was not just caught in the chaos; he was fighting it as Ultraman, a secret he was yet to reveal. The only reason he told you he was going back to Japan was that he wanted to play for the Giants, his favorite team as a child.

It was a random day that he told you he wanted to go back to Japan, and immediately at that. At first, you were hurt, thinking about how it seemed so easy to leave you in LA when you had loose ends you needed to tie first.

Your job demanded your attention. You were in the middle of wrapping up a significant project that required your presence. Your boss was understanding but insisted you complete the handover to your replacement to ensure a smooth transition.

Then your apartment lease was coming to an end. You needed to sort through your belongings, decide what to keep, sell, or store, and handle the logistics of moving out. This was time-consuming, and you had to coordinate with movers and real estate agents.

Lastly, your family. You were born here in LA and only went out of the country for vacations. But with how Kenji decided to stay in Japan for good, you wanted to follow. You couldn't leave without ensuring your parents and siblings were taken care of and comfortable.

Communication with Kenji became difficult in the weeks that followed after the Tokyo Dome incident.

It was a late evening in LA and an afternoon in Japan. You sat by your laptop, staring at the screen, waiting for Kenji's call. The clock ticked past the scheduled time, and your heart sank with each passing minute.

Finally, your phone buzzed with a message, "I'm so sorry, I can't make the call today. Something urgent came up. I'll explain later."

You sighed, typing back a quick reply, "I understand. Stay safe. I miss you." But he never got a chance to explain anything.

Recently, some things urgent have always arisen around Kenji. It wasn't the first time a call had been missed, and you knew it wouldn't be the last.

You were left with nothing but to watch his games and interviews on TV. However, he didn’t seem like himself in all of them. LA’s pride, the Kenji Sato, seemed like a rookie in the Japanese stadium.

His games were all chaotic with some of them ending in fist fights. When the camera focuses on him, you see nothing but an exhausted man. You never saw him like that before which made you worry what the heck is going on over there.

You clearly had no idea, at all, about what was happening to him. The last time you had a call, the connection was poor, and his voice kept cutting out.

"...so much going on here... trying… keep everyone safe..."

"Kenji, I can barely hear you. Can you repeat that?"

“...wish I could talk longer... love you...”

The call dropped before she could respond, leaving her staring at the screen, feeling more alone than ever.

All of these: being kept in the dark, zero communication, and the constant worry were making you rush the things you needed to wrap up before heading to Japan.

There was a time, you told him that you were thinking of coming to Japan first to help him with whatever he was going through, and just be back to LA afterward to take care of the things you left.

But it’s complicated, he said, with things happening that could put you in danger—more than the kaiju attacks, and that it’s better to stay in LA for now. You knew there was something he wasn’t telling you and it scared you.

Kenji promised to explain everything when the time was right. He told him he loves you more than anything and that he’s doing this to protect you.

You didn’t understand anything but you trusted him, waited for him, and been patient with him.

Soon after, it started to seem like things were getting better for Kenji. The Giants were now back on their track and Kenji was back to his usual self, if not better. Communication has been re-established and not a day went by that he didn’t call you.

Before you knew it, the last of your loose ends had been tied and you were finally ready to fly to Japan. You received a message from Kenji, “Things are calmer now. I miss you. Can't wait to see you."

Your heart ached with longing. You had worked tirelessly to clear your schedule and now was finally the moment. You had your flight booked, bags packed, and said goodbye to friends and family.

At the airport, you paused before boarding, sending one last message to Kenji, "On my way. See you soon."

As the plane took off, you stared out the window, the city lights of Los Angeles fading into the distance. The hardest part was over. You were finally on your way to Japan to finally understand everything that had kept you apart, and to be there for Kenji in ways you couldn't before.

The bustling Tokyo airport was filled with the sounds of announcements, the rolling of luggage, and the chatter of travelers. Kenji stood near the arrival gate, his heart racing with anticipation.

He clutched a bouquet of your favorite flowers, his mind a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions. After months of limited communication and the constant weight of his responsibilities as Ultraman, he was finally going to see you.

He scanned the crowd, searching for your familiar face among the sea of strangers. His phone buzzed with a message, and he quickly checked it, “Just landed. Can't wait to see you."

Kenji's heart skipped a beat. Moments later, he spotted you emerging from the gate, eyes darting around, searching for him. Your eyes met, and you broke into a wide smile, your pace quickening as you rushed toward him.

He closed the distance, pulling you into a tight embrace as soon as you reached him. The bouquet was momentarily forgotten, dropped to the floor as he held you close, feeling the warmth and reality of your presence.

"I've missed you so much," you whispered, voice trembling with emotion.

"I've missed you too," Kenji replied, his voice thick with relief and love. "I'm so glad you're here."

You pulled back slightly, looking up at him with a mixture of happiness and concern, "What's been going on?"

Kenji sighed, feeling the weight of the past few months. "There's so much to tell you,” he replied. “But let's get out of here first. I want to take you somewhere we can talk."

He picked up the forgotten bouquet, handing it to you with a sheepish smile, "These are for you."

You took the flowers, your smile widening, “Thank you, Kenji. They're beautiful."

All exhaustion from your 11-hour flight was wiped away at this moment. You were thankful for the naps you took on the plane because you didn’t want to pass out at the moment of your reunion.

The two of you then made your way out of the airport, the chaos and noise gradually fading as you stepped into the relative calm of the parking lot. Kenji led you to his car, loading your luggage into the trunk before opening the passenger door for you.

As Kenji drove through the city, you took in the sights. You’ve never been to Japan before, your excitement mingled with curiosity. "So, where are we going?" You asked.

Kenji glanced at you, a small smile playing on his lips. "I thought we'd go to a park nearby,” he answered. “It's a quiet place where we can sit and talk."

You nodded, reaching out to squeeze his hand. "I've been so worried about you,” you said. “I can't wait to hear everything."

You arrived at the park just as the sun was beginning to set, casting a warm golden glow over the landscape. Kenji found a secluded spot under a large oak tree, spreading out a blanket and setting up the picnic he had prepared.

You sat down together, the peaceful surroundings providing a stark contrast to the turmoil of recent months. Kenji took your hands in his, looking into your eyes.

"I'm sorry for everything," he began. "For not telling you sooner, for the missed calls and the worry. There's something I need to explain."

You looked at him with eyes full of concern and love. "I'm here now, Kenji,” you said. “Whatever it is, we'll get through it together."

He took a deep breath, gathering his thoughts. "A lot has happened since we last saw each other” he started. “I've been dealing with something big, something I couldn't tell you about over the phone."

You watched him intently, grip tightening on his hands, “What is it?"

Kenji sighed, feeling the weight of his secret pressing down on him. "You remember the day of the game when Gigantron attacked?” He asked. “That wasn't the first time something like that happened. And I've been involved in every one of those incidents."

Your eyes widened in shock, but you didn't interrupt, letting him continue. "I'm Ultraman," he confessed, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I've been fighting kaijus to protect the city. And recently, I found myself responsible for raising a baby kaiju who needed my help” he continued. “I couldn’t risk telling anyone, and I didn't know how to tell you."

You sat in stunned silence for a moment, processing everything. "You've been fighting monsters and raising a kaiju baby?” You asked. “Why didn't you tell me? I could have helped."

"I didn't want to drag you into the danger," he said, his voice filled with regret. "But I realize now that keeping you in the dark only made things worse. I'm so sorry for shutting you out."

You looked at him, your eyes softening. "I wish you had told me sooner, but I understand why you didn't,” you replied. “I just want to be there for you, Kenji. We’ll face anything together."

Kenji felt a wave of relief wash over him. "Thank you for understanding,” he said. “I promise, no more secrets and I don’t want to be far away from you anymore."

You held your arms out and gestured for him to hug you. He rested his head on your chest, his safe place. Oh, how he longed for it in the last months when he needed it most.

You could feel his tensed muscles relax at your touch. You peppered his forehead with kisses as you ran your hand lovingly across his hair.

He craved your touches the most and now that he’s in between your arms, it felt as if a heavy weight was taken off his shoulders.

He had so much more to tell but he decided that they were stories for the coming days. There’s no need to rush; after all, you’re here now.

Getting back to his agenda for today, Kenji slowly leaned back. "I hope you're hungry," he said with a grin, placing a small bouquet of wildflowers in the center of the blanket.

On the blanket were an assortment of your favorite foods: sushi, fresh fruit, and homemade mochi. You looked at the spread with delight. "This looks amazing, Kenji,” you said. “You've really outdone yourself."

"I wanted it to be special," he replied. "You deserve the best."

The two of you began to eat, savoring the food and each other's company. Kenji watched you with a soft smile as you tried a piece of sushi. "I remember you loved this one," he said, pointing to a beautifully crafted roll.

Your cheeks slightly flushed from happiness, "This is why I love you!"

As you ate, Kenji told you about the peaceful moments he found in the chaos. He would ask Mina to flash pictures of the two of you together and it would instantly calm him. Even Emi was calmed by it.

You sat in front of Kenji, back pressed against his chest and you between his legs. You held the box of sushis in your hand. From time to time, you’d turn slightly to look up and feed him.

At times, he’d lay his head on your lap, looking up at you, admiring the face he loves. You’d put your hand on his hair, gently stroking it as he tells you all about Emi.

He told you someday he’d take you to meet Emi; he’s sure she would love you. But for now, he just wanted to spend time with you. He felt bad for having neglected you these past months.

After you finished eating, the two of you lay back on the blanket, gazing up at the sky. It was already nighttime by then and the two of you didn’t even notice the time that passed.

Above you, the stars began to twinkle. Kenji pulled you close, wrapping an arm around your shoulders as you rested your head on his bicep. The world around you faded into the background.

"I love you," he whispered, the words carrying all the emotions he had held back.

"I love you too, Kenji," you replied, your voice equally soft. It felt so surreal to hear it in person after months of only hearing it on calls. “More than you'll ever know."

Taglist is open! Comment if u wanna be tagged on future Kenji oneshots

@eternallyvenus @puppyminnnie @wattpadsuckssohard @sakura-onesan @reggies-eyeliner @buggs-1 @miffysoo @spencerrxids @stupidbutsmart @marimargirlies @mixvchelle @lannnu @lailuv21 @christiinee @abracarabbit @youngbananamilkshake @flutterfly365 @o-schist @brazilsho @arrozyfrijoles23 @finestflora @mmeerraa @mianbaobaoo @themourningfox

[pollymorgan]

Teacher Negan - The Football Game - Part 1

Warnings: A very large age difference and of course, smut

Oh, and very important: It's all fiction of course! Please, my dears, use condoms and don't go with old men! :-P

That my mother has to move several hundred miles away with my aunt to open a beauty salon, especially before the last year of my high school, was initially a big shock for me, but now I also see the advantages it brings. First of all, I finally get out of my little town, and there's also the immediate proximity to my cousin. Cassady is 5 years older than me, to be exact 23, but we have always gotten along great. Another advantage is that I no longer have to see my ex-boyfriend every day, since we are no longer in the same class. Plus, I still have almost the entire summer vacation ahead of me to enjoy life to the fullest, like now at this football game. If I were to say I love football, that would be an understatement, because it feels like every American does. For me, it's an absolute dream to live in the city of my favorite team. That's why I'm wearing the appropriate hoodie over my dress and, of course, the matching cap at the game.

The atmosphere in the stadium is absolutely insane and totally captivating. Even if my cousin doesn't really see it that way and only came along because of me.

Now we just have to push through a horde of men to get to our seats. And then hopefully it will start soon. Even though the game will really become secondary. Because the atmosphere alone is reason enough to be here.

Getting to our seats, however, proves to be more difficult than expected. We each have two large beer cups in hand and somehow have to get through this crowd. But the line at the drinks stand was huge, and I didn't want to spend the start of the game waiting in line. So we planned ahead. I almost managed to get to my seat unscathed, when suddenly this guy turns around in a flash. Everything happens so quickly that I can't react anymore, and so I spill half of the beer on him and myself. The tall stranger initially looks at me very angrily and is about to scold me, but then his look suddenly changes as his dark eyes meet mine.

"What the hell.. oh, sorry.. I didn't mean to spill your drink, ...can I offer you a new one? Of course, only if you're already 21.." He starts to grin, and his perfectly white row of teeth shines through his silver-black beard.

I'm still a bit overwhelmed by the whole situation and look bewildered at the large wet spot on his black shirt under his dark jacket. Guys my age are never dressed so well. Only maybe for a funeral or a prom, and I've never been to either.

"I'm already 22.." I say somewhat defiantly, and according to my fake ID, that wouldn't even be a lie.

"Perfect.." he concludes.

He turns around to hand me a full beer from the drinks available behind him. I take it gratefully, and finally my cousin and I can sit down exhausted in our seats.

Immediately she whispers excitedly in my ear, "Did you see how that guy looked at you? He's at least twice as old as you and basically undressed you with his eyes .. pretty cringe..".

I look at her innocently, "Cringe? I actually find him quite cute!"

"Cute?" she asks in surprise, rolling her eyes.

The stranger sits down in the seat right next to me and toasts us.

"Thanks," I say again.

"No problem, pleasure to meet you, i’m Negan!"

"Sam.." I stammer somewhat clumsily.

Then everyone turns back to their groups. After a while, I'm engrossed in conversation with my cousin again, but the guy next to me has put on such an intense cologne that it lingers in my nose the whole time. It smells so ruggedly masculine that it almost drives me crazy. Whenever I have the chance, I shyly glance to the right, but he doesn't look at me anymore. I'm strangely disappointed, so I try to push that thought aside.

The game is running fantastically. My team is winning, which makes me so euphoric that I even infect my cousin with it.

After the game, as we're getting ready to leave, someone roughly grabs my arm. I startle briefly, then look back into the dark eyes that send a pleasant tingling sensation through my entire body.

"Do you and your friend maybe want to come with us to a bar to celebrate the victory a bit?" he asks with a deep tone, and I feel my stomach vibrating at his words.

Suddenly, my cousin's voice snaps me out of my trance. "No, sorry, we have to get up early..".

I look at her puzzled.

"Um, actually... apologize for us for a moment!".

The stranger seems to be thoroughly amused by this situation.

I turn to her and whisper in her ear, "That sounds fun... come on, let's go with them!"

"With these guys?!" she says a bit too loudly.

Startled, I turn around, but he is engrossed in a conversation again and apparently, thankfully, hasn't noticed. After a seemingly endless discussion, we agree that I will go to the bar with them without her. But only with the promise to be reachable on the phone at all times.

Reluctantly, Cassady bids me goodbye with a hug and whispers in my ear, "Take care of yourself... and don't do anything I wouldn't do!" Since my cousin has quite a bit of a checkered past, I don't even feel guilty promising her that.

When I agree to go with them, the stranger firmly takes my hand to guide me through the crowd out of the stadium. I'm initially a bit shocked by this strange situation, but fearing to lose him among the crowd, I interlock my fingers tightly with his and let him lead me out of the stadium.

The three of us, along with another man, take a seat on the backseat of a large black Audi. The men in the car are engaged in lively conversation about the game. Fortunately, I understand quite a bit about football and can engage in some discussion without sounding dumb, even though everyone else present is probably 30 years older than me.

After a short ride, we park in front of a small bar.

As we enter, the smell of smoke and alcohol greets me. The men take a seat at a round table, and I excuse myself for a moment to go to the bathroom.

There, I take off my sweater and am quite glad that I'm wearing a short black dress underneath. I take off my cap and let my hair down, then adjust it and try to fix my makeup a bit. I take a deep breath a few more times, looking at myself in the mirror. Then I go back, determined. But the table is empty. Startled, I look around, a thousand thoughts racing through my head.

But then I hear someone call out, "Here we are!" The voice comes from the billiard table. Relieved, I see Negan sitting on a sofa in front of the others. I walk purposefully towards them.

Two are already playing, and the clattering of the balls drowns out the conversations in the entire bar.

Since the couch is already occupied, I take a seat on the armrest next to Negan. He unabashedly looks me up and down and then offers me a beer.

"You look damn good..." he says directly, making my heart skip a beat and my cheeks blush.

After the men finish their game, I challenge him. He accepts with a smile, probably not expecting that I practically grew up at the billiard table. As he takes his first shots, he realizes it's not as easy as he thought, which pleases me.

Watching him concentrate more on the game makes me proud, and he looks even better doing it. As he leans closer to make his next move, he unexpectedly gives me a rather strong pat on the backside.

"Hey, unfair move!" I protest immediately, which only elicits a tired smile from him, but sends a strong tingle down in my lower abdomen.

But I manage to win against him, albeit very narrowly, which clearly annoys him. Afterwards, he has to endure some teasing from his buddies. Resignedly, he sits back on the sofa, and I proudly perch on the armrest again.

During the next round with his friends, we engage in animated discussions about their gameplay and continue drinking our beer. After a while, Negan starts touching my bare shin. At first, he just places his warm hand there, but then he starts stroking it slowly. The touches of his large rough hands are so gentle that they give me goosebumps. I enjoy this feeling and what it does to me to the fullest. I'm disappointed when he lets go of my leg, but only to offer me a vodka shot that the waitress had placed on a large tray in front of us. The drink is much needed, as my mouth feels incredibly dry.

We clink glasses, and I down the shot in one go. The sharp alcohol burns in my throat and then warms my stomach, shooting straight to my head. I can tell that Negan is watching my every move closely.

As soon as I place the empty glass back on the table, he puts his hand on my thigh.

"You look so damn sexy drinking it all in one go, do you like swallowing other things too?" he whispers unabashedly.

I almost slap him out of reflex, but as I look into his grinning face and his lustful eyes meet mine, my whole lower abdomen tightens, and I can't help but smirk. We gaze at each other for a while, and then I decisively say, "Why don't you find out.."

Without warning, he pulls me onto his lap, and before I know it, I'm straddling him, and he immediately starts kissing me. His lips are incredibly demanding. I place my hands on his cheeks to try to control the situation somewhat, while I completely forget everything around me and simply ignore the stupid comments from others.

His fingers trail down my back purposefully, immediately gripping my buttocks tightly. Then he presses me firmly against his pelvis. Excited, I breathe against his open mouth as I feel his penis getting harder and pressing strongly against me.

Sensing my hesitation, he whispers softly, "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"Nothing.. it's just pretty big.." I grin, feeling a bit embarrassed.

He smiles contentedly and presses me against him again, then gently kisses the sensitive skin on my neck and says in my ear, "Oh, don't worry, pretty princess, I'll order a taxi for us now, and then we'll go to my place where I'll pamper you so much that your little pussy will get nice and wet for me, and then my big, hard cock can slide into you slowly and effortlessly. How does that sound?"

His deep voice and direct manner drive me crazy. I nod decisively and kiss him again. I then take his right hand off my butt and guide it under my dress, directly between my legs.

"I'm already so wet for you, feel it!" I reply somewhat shyly.

His fingers deftly shift my panties aside, while his eyes scan my face precisely, enjoying every reaction from me. Slowly, he skillfully glides his middle finger through my cleft, causing me to involuntarily flinch.

"You're such a naughty sweet girl!" he remarks amusedly, as his finger leaves my most intimate place again, moistening my lips with my wetness. He then kisses me again, passionately sucking my taste from my lips. "You taste incredibly good.." he says contentedly.

[thesharktanksdriver]

Weaving threads of friendship (mostly platonic)

Refer to this post.

As the people requested, Hobie’s partner meeting Miles.

This one is significantly shorter than my last one partially cause I think this is pretty straightforward

From the moment Miles Morales heard of Hobie brown he didn’t know exactly how to feel about him

It happened in passing as he and Gwen had swung through the city

The first time since the collider incident that he had seen her, months of wondering if she was fine

If she and the others had made it back safe

And now as they go around city just like he had hoped if she mentions him

He couldn’t help but feel a twang of panic

Feelings he’s harboured for the blond that had been simmering for a long while coming to a bubbling uproar

Didn’t help as he pushed the subject and got in response that she had apparently been living with him

An ugly seed of envy sprouts it’s way into his gut at that

He can’t help but feel ashamed of it

This was Gwen, of course she found someone. She was the coolest person he knows

Someone who could do ballet while fighting villains

Plus was apart of some kickass band in her dimension

He honestly wouldn’t have been surprised if she was selling out stadiums

And if she wasn’t currently, then he fully expected that for her future

He should feel happy that she found someone

Happy that she was in a good place

Yet it’s hard to ignore that sprouting envy as his emotions are already high enough as it is when seeing her again

It doesn’t help when he meets Hobie though

Having a moment to prove himself and then suddenly having it quite literally dashed open

With a guitar no less

Doesn’t help that he was cool as hell

The studded black leather vest

Spike Mohawk

Doc Martin boots

British accent

Silver gleaming piercings

Miles knew he couldn’t compare to him

And by god did it hurt

From the moment Hobie saw miles he knew knew he’d like the accidental Spider-Man

It might be due to the fact that Miguel did NOT want him apart of the Spider regime

On the fact that him being Spider-Man went against canon

But it also had to do with the fact that he recognized how he looked at Gwen

It’s how Hobie looked at you

Sure, he couldn’t see under the mask but it was very glaringly obvious to Brit

That was the gaze of someone who was in a deep passionate love

Something akin to fizzling fireworks that popped off in the night

Pop rocks exploding on your tongue on a humid day

Sappy romantic shite that he once never thought he’d think of

Until he rapidly found himself staring at you with that same expression

It makes him chuckle a bit thinking back

How glaringly obvious he was with his feelings yet you couldn’t accept the signs

Not until he told you face to face

Good times

With that look he also sees a slight sadness with it as well

Miles occasionally glancing at him and then back to Gwen

The slight bitter taste Miles held in his voice when addressing him

But what…oh

That realization almost makes Hobie burst out in laughter

Poor lad is probably running circles in his head for nothing

He’s definitely gonna have to tell him

One the tour of the HQ Hobie lingers close by to the newbie

Hands on his pockets as Jessica leads to way to Miguel’s sulking area

With the lame and inconveniently slow office floor elevator

A perfect example of capitalism

He pulls Miles aside with an arm around his shoulder, making Mikes give a noise of complaint

Until Hobie pulled out a Polaroid from an inner pocket of his vest

In it was Hobie with another person

Both staring up at the camera as he gave them a kiss

Miles looks to him in confusion

“I thought you and-“

“Gwenivere? Nah mate. S’ just crashin at my place cause home ain’t the best for her right now.”

“And that’s?”

“Yeah, my partner in crime so to say. Should meet them sometime, they’d like ya”

“Really?”

“Gwen won’t stop talking bout you.”

Hobie stifles a laugh at Miles’s face

The look of surprise and Fluster washing over the young lad as he shoots a glance at Gwen

Who all the while remained obvious to his stare as he directs it to the ground once more

Hobie grabs a new piece of tech as he does this

Pocketing it as he did with many other nick-knacks he’d found and swiped

To be fair, if it’s not nailed to the ground real nice then it’s free territory for grabbing

Or well…that’s what he tells others anyways

The piles of scrap pilled up in both his home and your room is a testament to that

As was the prototypes of his own dimension hoping bracelet

When you met Miles you couldn’t help but be extremely excited as the young Spider-Man sat down on Hobie’s worn and old ripped leather couch

Gwen often talked of him

So now seeing him in person is a extremely fun experience especially since he’s awkward in a way that reminds you of your past self

Conversation starts off slow at first

Stuff mostly revolving around his universe

What he liked

Etcetera Etcetera

But what really gets talk happening is when he brings up drawing

In a life in which your surrounded by musically artistic people it’s nice to have someone with a new passion

So it’s safe to say he quickly ends up showing you his sketchbook

Carefully showing you pages of graffiti tags

Mural ideas

And a few that had Gwen that he quickly flipped to a different page

You don’t comment on it but your grin alone tells him what he needs to hear

Speaking of which, Gwen is ecstatic that you get to meet Miles

She would not spot talking about it even before the whole “don’t tell mikes about the spider society” situation happened and was figured out

You definitely tease her a bit about it

And Miles as well

Buts it’s all in good nature

Miles finds you to be down to earth and Hobie’s translator of sorts

He doesn’t at all get British slang or can understand what Hobie is talking about so you help with that

Using an phrases and metaphors work better for his American understanding

He thanks whatever god there is for that cause sometimes he swears Hobie is making up shit just to confuse him

If you show him all the handmade gifts Hobie has made for you he gets a lot of creative inspiration

Especially since he’s always willing to step out of his normal medium

Show him how to make his own custom pins and he’ll return later with at least 15 plus a couple for you and Hobie

Their also really well drawn as well

So it’s a win win for everyone

At some point you secretly ask him to make some potential album cover art for Hobie and he is fucking ecstatic

He’s never done something like that before so he takes to trying it very seriously

Experimenting with styles

Trying new techniques

Eventually he settles down on a mix of graffiti and collage of news paper clippings

Cause apparently to him you both look as if your straight from newspaper clippings mashed together

Gwen can attest to this as well

Hobie ends up fucking loving it

And Gwen, Miles and Pavitr have to deal with the punk being all lovey dovey to you in a way they had never imagined Hobie to be

He’s peppering your face with kisses and swinging you around in a hug

You let out a small yell as he tosses you up and catches you

It’s honestly really sweet

“How did I once find him intimidating?”

“Eh, it’s not much of a surprise to me. You’d be surprised to find out how many Punk people are actually really sweet”

“I think it’s also cause you thought he was dating g-“

He eventually puts you down and pulls them into a hug

That quickly turns into him aggressively messing up their hair

“I take what I said back”

“Hey! Don’t mess with the hair! My beautiful natural hair!”

“Why am I even surprised anymore?”

Safe to say miles has become a new vital part of this group

And you wouldn’t have it any other way

[gasstationsoda]

I got the chance to attend the Kamala really in Atlanta today and this one was actually very personal for me.

Last night, my school alerted me that there would be an event near the campus, what they didn't say was that it was a rally in the same stadium I walk past every day and the same stadium where I graduated high school. It was honestly surreal to see these amazing people in the same place.

But what stands out about this location is that it wasn't actually Atlanta, it was Clarkston and my dad described it as the opposite of where Trump would hold a rally.

Clarkston, Georgia is the most diverse square mile in the country. It's also nicknamed "The Ellis Island of the South". A massive portion of the population are immigrants and refugees from all over the world. It's also a low income area. (Like I said, my graduation was there, and literally 99% of my school was on free/reduced lunch.)

Kamala could've chosen anywhere in the state to hold this rally, but she chose a small stadium in a small city famous for its diversity and acceptance of refugees.

[avaantares]

People who live in population centers often don't realize just how much the urban/suburban lightscape has robbed them of.

Not just the stars and galaxies you should be able to see with the naked eye -- though that is also something that's almost impossible to see near cities due to light pollution -- but also the absolutely magical experience of seeing fireflies the way they should be seen. The way they can only exist away from man-made light sources.

Coming back from a historic small-town theatre I frequent, I have the choice between taking the interstate or the rural back roads. I almost always choose the latter, so earlier this evening I was driving out in the country for about 15 miles. That region is primarily farmland with a handful of scattered residences. It was around dusk, and -- friends, it was like the earth was covered in glitter. In the fallow fields and pastures, tens of thousands of fireflies sparkling, just this universal, unbroken twinkling everywhere you looked. The kind of light show that doesn't even look real because we're used to seeing just a few fireflies at a time, if we're lucky enough to have a large backyard or a patch of woods nearby. Or maybe you don't get to see fireflies at all because you're in a city and there's nowhere for them to lay eggs (in undisturbed fallen leaves, mostly), so you've only seen them in videos. But the fireflies were the only lights on this land before we put up our electric flood lights and streetlamps, and in these broad swaths of unlighted field and self-mulching fencerows, they're still thriving.

I watched this display in awe as I drove, slowing down at times to admire a particularly flashy area. And then I'd drive past a house with a billion watts of exterior security lighting, and... nothing. Not a glimmer in those yards. Maybe one lonesome flicker in the ditch by the road, a firefly that couldn't find the party or didn't make it to the darker areas for some reason. It's alone because there's no reason for fireflies to come to bright places; they light up to find mates, and they're obscured and blinded by the man-made lights.

The closer I got to my suburban home, the fewer fireflies there were along the road. When I came to the high school with its massive day-bright stadium lights that stay on all night (and which fill me with rage fully as incandescent for so many reasons), I didn't spot a single firefly for a quarter mile in either direction. Kids growing up in the neighborhoods around that school will never have the chance to watch fireflies in their own yards, or learn to scoop them gently from underneath to catch them without harming them and then let them crawl to the tips of their fingers to fly away again. When they grow up, they won't have any emotional association with fireflies that would inspire them to leave a few leaf piles along the fence in autumn, or to turn out the exterior lights at dusk and let the fireflies do their thing.

It saddens me that many (probably the majority of) people living in this era aren't getting to see how beautiful nature is when we just leave it alone. Instead of enjoying its natural state, we're spraying poisons on our lawns, and replacing native species with non-native ones because the yard looks more uniform that way, and throwing bagged leaves in landfills instead of letting them break down naturally and provide vital habitat for small animals and insects, and installing so many landscaping and security lights around our residences that you could stand in the yard and read by them in the middle of the night. Fireflies are actually threatened in some areas where they used to be common because of all these things.

If you live in a city or a lighted suburban area, I'd encourage you to try to get out to the country at least once and experience fireflies in force in their natural habitat. And if you're in an area where fireflies are native and you are in a position to, maybe leave a little pile of wet leaves for them in a corner of the yard. Turn out the lights in summer. Refrain from spraying pesticides on your grass.

Let the little guys light up the world for another generation.

[seeminglyranch87]

Taylor & Travis Timeline

September 2023 - part 2

September 18 - Sports commentator, Rich Eisen, posts a video to instagram of him making Taylor Swift song references during Travis' training (x). “Look what you made me do, @killatrav.” 

"The injury, one would think is delicate. He's been able to shake it off"

Travis replies

"Well played Rich... Well played 👏🏻😂"

September 19 - Taylor dine at Via Carota Italian Restaurant, NYC with Sophie Turner and friends (x). A diner shares her observations (x). Did Taylor receive a text from Travis? They later moved on to Temple Bar , NYC

Travis Kelce speaks with Kristen Cavallari on her podcast Let's Be Honest where they talk dating. Travis says he is not interested dating someone "high maintenance" but the "initial spark is always fun" and looking for a partner "based on how kind hearted and sweet like my mother is" and they need to "have some sweetness to you" (x)

“To really dive into a relationship with somebody I feel like it’s going to take at least, I don’t know, it’s going to take some time,” Kelce said. “It’s not going to be immediate because, the stuff I’ve been through, just in my past, I feel like you really gotta know somebody to take that step and really be committed and be in full-throttle. I can’t just meet somebody and just automatically think that forever is just a day away … I think it takes quite a bit of time for somebody to really get to know somebody and really get to find that affection and love for them.” When asked if feels any sort of pressure about settling down, Kelce said he is “living my life” and is hopeful that when the time comes, everything falls into place.  “I like to believe that all of that stuff will come genuine and natural and I won’t have to think about getting into that part of my life ahead of time, the stars will align, I guess,” he said.

September 20 - Jason Kelce, on the WIP morning show, is asked about the Taylor and Travis rumours, and he responds

"Its hard to answer because I don't really know a lot about what's happening in Travis' love life... but having said that, I think he's doing great and I think its all 100% true, and i hope this thing goes a mile - no I'm joking, I don't know what's happening."

(x 0:30)

September 21 - Travis, on the Pat McAfee show, says he thought it was "hilarious" how much traction the situation had, saying

“I threw the ball in her court... I told her I’ve seen you rock the stage in Arrowhead, you might have to come see me rock a stage in Arrowhead and see which one is a little more lit. We’ll see what happens in the near future”

So at this point it's obvious that arrangements had been made for Taylor to attend Travis' next game at Arrowhead Stadium, on Sept 24th. (x)

The Messenger publishes an article (x) Aol (x)

"She and Travis have hung out twice, and it's nothing serious. She thinks he is very charming, and they have been texting this last week," the insider exclusively tells The Messenger. "He is a little embarrassed at how much attention they are getting, but he has told her he would love to continue seeing her. Furthermore, the insider said the two are “seeing where things go.”

On Twitter:

September 22 - At his Kelce Car Jam (x), Travis is seen wearing a 'Vigilante Sh*t' friendship bracelet, given to him by a swiftie at the event (x)

September 24 - Chiefs v Chicago Bears, Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City. The Chiefs defeat the Bears 41 - 10.

The day Taylor and Travis broke the internet. Taylor enters Arrowhead Stadium with Travis’ friends (x) Taylor is seen with Travis' mum, Donna, in Travis' suite at Arrowhead Stadium. During the game, Travis gets a touchdown and Taylor reaction goes viral, as she's seen hi-5ing, chest bumping, yelling and banging on the glass. Notably, her reaction receives more airtime than the actual plays of the match and it makes international news. After the game, Taylor and Travis drive off in his convertible and have dinner together at the Prime Social Rooftop. After this, the two reportedly celebrate with the team and leave the venue between 1am and 2am. (x seemingly ranch origins)

Taylor & Travis leave Arrowhead stadium together after the game (x)

Travis & Taylor drive off together in a convertible - no security in sight (x)

Travis and Taylor were seen arriving at 8:45pm to Prime Social, KC and drinking together & showing lots PDA according to others present at the invite only occasion (x)

TMZ posts a photo of Taylor and Travis after the game (x).

Travis and Taylor were seen arriving at 8:45pm and showing lots PDA according to others present at the invite only occasion (x)

September 25 - Details come out about Taylor and Travis' night after the game. A source tells ET (x) (x)

"Travis bought out the restaurant for his family and team. Taylor arrived, wearing a denim dress, and was seen snacking, having some cocktails and dancing alongside Travis. The two were very affectionate with one another but kept things fun and lighthearted. Travis' teammates also showed up to the after-party, as well as his mom and dad, Donna and Ed. The party lasted until 2 a.m."

In another article ET report (x)

A source confirms to ET that the pair had spent some time together prior to their public debut at Sunday's game, telling ET, "Travis and Taylor have a lot in common and they are having a great time getting to know each other. They have similar values. She likes that he pursued her and it has been easy and exciting for both of them." Having just wrapped the first leg of her Eras World Tour, the source adds, "Taylor is enjoying some time off from touring and it’s been fun hanging out with Travis during this break. Taylor wants a guy that’s into his career, does his own thing, but is also supportive and understands her, and Travis fits those qualities."

Coach Reid of the KC Chiefs, when asked about Taylor Swift, jokingly says (x 5:57)

"I set them up."

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, a noted Swift fan who attended the Eras Tour at Gillette Stadium said (x) (x)

"Travis Kelce has had a lot of big catches in his career, this would be the biggest."

In the days following September 24th, the term 'the Taylor Swift effect' is used frequently to describe the unique impact Taylor has on culture, media, and football in particular. (x) (x) The official NFL tiktok and twitter pages change their name and image to reference Taylor's appearance at the game, also tweeting a video of the two of them with the caption "two goats".

September 26 - Taylor is seen leaving Kansas City in her plane "2 days after attending Travis Kelce's Chiefs game" (x)

People publishes an article (x)

"They're just hanging out, and there's no pressure," a source tells People after Swift attended the Kansas City Chiefs' game on Sunday

The source says the pair are still in the "super, super early days" of getting to know one another.

"They're having fun," adds the insider, noting that Swift and Kelce had met prior to her attendance at the game. "This was Taylor's first time meeting his mom and dad, and everyone was enjoying themselves. She was super chill and low-key hanging out with his friends and family."

September 27 - Ep55 S2 of the New Heights podcast airs. Travis and Jason mention that the podcast has reached 1 million followers on youtube (a big jump from the 800k followers they had the week prior). Travis addresses all the excitement around Taylor attending the game and expresses his gratitude that she was there, whilst still respecting Taylor's privacy. Jason fills Travis in on the "400% increase" in Travis Kelce jersey sales (x) (x)

Jason Kelce goes on the 94WIP Morning Show and responds to the media frenzy around Taylor attending Travis' game, saying (x)

"My reaction was exactly... this is exactly what I think is going to happen. She's going to go to the game and the world is going to lose their g*ddamn mind"

In response to another question about the nature of Taylor and Travis' relationship, Jason says (x)

"I would say with this one, it definitely seems like he is going above and beyond to be a gentleman."

Heinz debut a 'Ketchup and Seemingly Ranch' flavour after Taylor inspired the viral tweet with her choice of game snack. (x) (x) (x) Vogue also mention 'seemingly ranch' (x)

September 28 - Mark Cuban on First Take says Taylor should break up with Travis and date one of the Dallas Mavericks. Travis tweets a reply (x)

i.e. let me join the Mavericks for 10 days and she will be dating one of your players... he can and will fight

Jordan Schultz, NFL insider, says that Taylor plans to attend the Chiefs vs Jets game (at Metlife Stadium on October 1) to watch Travis play for the second time. (x) (x)

A video and photo is published by the Daily Mail of Taylor from September 24. She is seen with Travis' friends and family as they leave his house and head to the Chiefs game. The footage appears to be taken from a neighbours doorbell camera, hence due to its intrusive nature I will not be posting it.

September 30 - A tweet is posted stating that Donna, Travis' mum, confirmed "two weeks ago" that Travis and Taylor were dating. Presumably the Eagles vs Vikings game on September 14 (x)

Taylor is seen attending Inez Reynolds' birthday party with Blake and Ryan

Travis was rumoured to have visited Taylor at her NYC apartment this afternoon (x). Travis was seen returning to his hotel being dropped off by Taylor's security (x)

Later that day, Taylor went out for a girls night with Blake, Sophie, Melanie, Brittany, Ashley, Robyn Lively, and others at Emilio’s Ballato Italian restaurant in NYC (x) (x)

Travis went out for dinner with his team to Meduza Mediterrania. He is photographed returning to the team's hotel by 11pm (their curfew)

Go to previous update -> September 2023 Part 1

Go to next update -> October 2023 Part 1

Return to the timeline

[spacesapphi]

"Moving Forward, Spiraling Downward Chapter 12- Destruction"

Woo Goblin Destroyer!!! Very excited to be giving Sam some more focus in this chapter. I'd like to give thanks to luvfitz/moonferry for workshopping ideas with me for this chapter, and giving me some very good ideas for it! I hope you enjoy reading this one :)

CWs for this chapter include allusions to death, a car accident, and addiction

Summary: Goblin Destroyer finally landed it's very first gig in Zuzu City, much to the joy and excitement of Sam and his band! Shane offers to be the one to take the trio into the city and record the first real performance for the band. The night goes off without a hitch!… At least, until they get back home to the valley. Three mistakes were made that night, and these mistakes will alter the course of both Sam and Shane's life, in ways they will grow to regret.

AO3 Version Here

Tumblr Version Below the Cut

The radio was blasting, an ecstatic announcer reporting live from the afterparty in the Tunnelers home stadium. The team had scored a miraculous 22-1 win, a near impossible feat, especially for the semi-finals! Superfans of the team were losing their minds, Zuzu city abuzz with hundreds, if not thousands, of folks in bright blue and green costumes. It was a perfect night,  and no one could ask for more, especially a very, very excited Shane. This historic win paired with his 25th birthday? What could be better!

“I cannot fuckin’ believe that happened!” he practically screamed, holding his hands to his head in absolute joy and surprise. The adrenaline still pumped through him, not yet fading since they’d left the stadium.

“Language, Shane… Jas can hear you,”

“Sorry Ams,” Shane apologized, “But holy sh-... Yoba, that was insane. How do you even do that? Twenty two to one?!”

“No clue but I’m not questioning it!” Jason grinned, looking back at his friend through the rearview mirror, “Maybe they’ll get even more wins like that once you’re on the team!”

“Still haven’t even heard back from the arena league yet, they’re still makin’ their decisions,” Shane shrugged, a cautious excitement about him. He’d put in his application weeks ago, having high hopes for his dreams of going pro. Playing varsity gridball at ZCU was almost a guaranteed ticket to the minor leagues, and if he did well enough there he could be moved up to the major league, finally fulfilling that dream he so desperately worked towards all his life.

“You’ll get in man, don’t worry,” Jason assured, “They’d be stupid not to take you on, right?”

Jason looked to his wife sitting in the passenger seat next him, his smile falling quickly. She had looked so happy in the stadium, so ecstatic about the win. But now? She looked so worried, crossing her arms and staring at the dashboard in front of her, quiet as ever. He reached a hand to her shoulder, rubbing his thumb across it in a comforting motion, “What’s wrong, babe?”

Amelia huffed, shaking her head quickly, “I don’t like this route… I still think we should’ve gone the backroads,”

“Ams, that would’ve added 40 minutes to the drive for no reason,” Shane explained yet again, sounding exasperated, “This’ll get us back to your place the fastest,”

“I know that… it’s just-” Amelia looked out at the city around her. Every street corner was packed with partying Tunnelers fans, cars lined up for miles to go to bars and restaurants after the big win. The city was packed full, more-so than usual, and it made her incredibly nervous, “People act stupid when we get wins like this. It gets people hurt, I didn’t want to be on this road just in case.” 

“Babe, it’s gonna be okay,” Jason’s voice was soft and assuring, “We know what we’re doing, this is safe…”

“I’m not worried about your driving, I’m worried about other people!” Amelia groaned, “I just have a bad feeling about this,”

“Nothing is gonna happen, I promise,” Jason took her hand, giving it a soft kiss right on top. Amelia could just swoon, loving just how sweet Jay would get when he saw her get nervous like this. Making her feel comfortable and safe was a priority, and he’d waste no opportunity to let her know how much he cared, “We’ll be okay, Ams… Just trust me,”

Amelia nodded, looking just a bit more comfortable, her mind slowly easing, “Okay…”

“Come onnnn,” Jason drew out playfully, squeezing her hand tight, “We had a great night! You should be happy!”

“I am happy,”

“Then where’s that smile?” Jason asked, an air of silliness in his voice, “That gorgeous smile from my gorgeous wife that I can’t live without,”

“You’re so corny,” Amelia stifled back a laugh, only egging on Jason further, “Ahhh but you love me!”

Amelia shook her head, unable to keep a smile off her face much longer, “Yeah… I guess I do,” she mused sweetly.

 The look just melted Jason’s heart. He leaned over to give her a quick kiss on the cheek, “Love you, Ams,”

“Love you too, bluejay” she mused, holding onto his hand as he drove on, feeling just a bit safer by his side. 

Jason looked back to Shane, giving him a devious smirk through the rearview mirror, “And besides, if anything does happen, we’ll just blame Shane!”

“Very funny,” Shane rolled his eyes, giving Jason a sarcastic smile back. A high pitch laughter rang out next to him, little Jas in her carseat giggling away. Shane laughed, leaning over to look at her, “Oh yeah? Is that funny, Jassy?”

The baby squealed happily, grabbing tight onto the muffling headphones she’d been wearing at the stadium to protect her little ears. She wore the cutest little green onesie with “My First Tunnelers Game” written in bubble letters on the front, the team's logo in the middle. She continued to laugh on as Shane cooed and spoke in a silly voice to her, the two of them completely unaware of what was about to unfold. He felt a cold chill run through him when he heard Amelia suddenly scream, looking up to see the bright headlights of a truck barreling towards them, the hot glow of the lights burning his cheeks. Knowing he had not even a second to react, Shane threw himself over the car seat next to him, squeezing his eyes shut tight as he felt the impact throw them backwards, his head slamming against the window behind him, shattering it as the car flipped. The last thing he remembered was the sound of crunching metal, a shooting pain through his body, then everything going dark. 

Shane shot up from where he lay in bed, body drenched in sweat, heart beating so fast he feared he must be having a heart attack. He felt like he couldn’t breathe, clutching tightly at his chest, letting out choked coughs as he tried to hold back from vomiting. It felt all too real, like he was once again sitting in the back of that car. Within a few moments he began to crash back down to reality. He was in his room at Marnie’s. He was safe now. He put a hand to his left knee, rubbing a thumb over the deep scar that ran along the length of it. Every time he had that nightmare he hoped it would just be that. Only a nightmare. But without fail, he’d wake up and see that scar again, an instant reminder that it was very much real. 

The alarm on his radio began to beep obnoxiously, coaxing him to finally get out of bed. 7:00 AM, nearly time for work. Giving himself just a moment more to adjust, he forced himself up to get ready for the day. Dressed in his uncomfortable and horridly ugly uniform, he made his way out of the ranch, leaving long before anyone else awoke. 

Stocking the shelves in Jojamart was a monotonous and seemingly never ending task, but one Shane didn’t entirely mind. It was quiet, for the most part, and it was predictable. In a life full of the unknown, he was glad to have at least one thing that was consistent day-to-day. 

However, there was something different today. The normally content and happy Sam looked nervous, giving Shane awkward glances occasionally through their shift. It weirded him out, if he was honest. The hell was his problem? What was that kid's deal? Shane tried to ignore it, thinking it was just another quirk of his, but by the time their shift was coming to an end, he couldn’t take it anymore. The two finally left the store for the day, Shane giving him the side eye as they began the journey back to their homes.

“Sam, if you have something to say, say it,” he sighed, giving him a most exasperated look. 

“Oh it’s nothin’ man, don’t worry,” Sam spoke quickly, his voice almost warbling from nervousness. Yoba Almighty Shane was getting tired of it.

“Samson.”

“Okay!” Sam groaned anxiously, “Okay fine… I wanted to ask… you have a car, right?”

“... Yes?” Shane answered, looking more skeptical than ever, “Why?”

“Well… Goblin Destroyer landed a sweet gig last minute in Zuzu City tomorrow and we really need a way to get there with our equipment!” Sam blurted out, a nervous smile on his face, “The bus’ll be too small to carry our equipment and no one else can take us,”

Shane blinked slowly, taking it all in, “None of you guys have a car? I thought one of ya’s had somethin’. Doesn’t that Sebastian kid drive? And your mom?” 

“Yeahhh well..” Sam started, “It starts too late and it’s too late notice for my mom… and transporting three people, a bass, keyboard, speakers, and drums on a motorbike wouldn’t really work…” 

“True…”

Sam shoved a hand in his pocket, looking nervous yet again, “So… Could we use it? If it’s okay. ”

Shane thought for a moment. There was no way in hell he was entrusting his car with those three. It wasn’t like he didn’t trust Sam, but he hardly knew Abby and Sebastian, the latter of whom would be driving. Having those two in the car without him there to supervise, he wasn’t exactly sure how to feel. Though… he could always go with them. It was last minute, but it wasn’t like he had many plans for tomorrow anyways, just sitting and sulking mostly. Would they even want him to go? Would it make them uncomfortable? He looked at Sam’s nervous expression, visible through his entire body. His face, the way he stood, it was so obvious. Finally he sighed, and gave his answer. 

“Only if I drive,”

“You… wanna come?” Sam looked surprised, “N-not that I don’t mind! It’s great! I just didn’t think you’d want to,”

“That’s on you for makin’ assumptions,” Shane scoffed lightly, “Just tell me when and where,”

Sam scrambled to pull a piece of paper from his pocket, scribbling down an address quickly before handing it off to Shane. It took him just a second to decipher Sam’s chicken-scratch handwriting, but the moment he did, his heart sank just a bit.

“It’s some small venue right by the Tunnelers Stadium. We’re not startin’ til 8, but I think we should get there early since it’s gonna be wild in the city. Y’know, with the playoffs happening,” Sam shrugged. He took a look at Shane’s expression, seeing how pale he’d gotten, how his eyes dulled and glazed over, “... Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m-” Shane cleared his throat, “Yeah, I’m fine. Just have everyone meet up at the ranch tomorrow and we’ll pack up the car, okay?”

“Are you sure you’re sure?”

“Sam if you ask again I’m changing my answer,”

“Okay! Okay… Thank you,” Sam smiled, “I’ll see you tomorrow,”

He watched Sam run off, the young man suddenly having much more of a spring in his step. All he felt was such intense nervousness. Shane made the reluctant decision to skip the saloon that night, heading straight for home. His mind was far too clouded with thoughts of what he had just agreed to. He almost wanted to call Sam and tell him nevermind, that he wouldn’t be going after all. But maybe this would be good. Maybe he needed to do something nice on that day for once. Only time would tell if he would regret this decision.

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

As excited as Sam was for the concert, no one’s excitement could even come close to Marnie’s. The moment Shane told her he was getting out of the house, going into the city for an event as well, oh she went wild. She spent the entire afternoon leading up to the concert making the ranch house look sparkling clean, flitting around with such a spring in her step. Jas helped as well, just excited to see everyone in the house look so happy for once.

Sam and Shane leaned against the shop counter, Sam chattering away a mile a minute about what to expect for the venue, his first-show nervousness incredibly obvious to everyone around him. That on top of Marnie making such a fuss about things made him feel so nervous he could explode. 

“I am so happy you’re finally going to do something with friends!” she mused, trying hard to stifle the excitement in her voice. She looked to Sam, motioning around the house, “Make yourself at home, please! There’s food and seats in the kitchen, take what you’d like for the road,”

“Oh, it’s okay, I’m fine, really!”

“I insist, you and your friends are guests!” Marnie mused, “Our home is yours,”

“She’s just gonna keep insistin’ until you do,” Shane whispered, “She gets… excited about guests.”

“Yeah, I can tell,” Sam laughed nervously, drumming his fingertips on the counter, “Yoba I’m so nervous… Do you think I should check my bass’ tuning again? Just in case?”

“You’re goin’ to get yourself so worked up you’re gonna be sick, stop,” Shane huffed, “Everything is fine,”

“Exactly. Don’t get yourself worked up over nothing,” Marnie chimed in. She approached Shane, fussing over his clothes and hair to make sure they looked as presentable as possible. So much for not getting worked up over nothing. She tsked as she looked him up and down, not exactly sure how she felt about the torn jeans and leather jacket look, the clunky boots that went to his knees. It reminded her so much of how he dressed in highschool and college, the alt look something that wasn’t exactly her taste, “Oh Shane, do you need to dress this… dark? And with all the tears and rips?…   Wouldn’t you want to wear something brighter?”

“It’s a rock concert, everyone’s dressing like this,” Shane scoffed lightly, adjusting his jacket back to the way he had it, “I think it looks good too, right?”

“... Of course!” Marnie breathed out, “If you’re happy, I’m happy!”

“Sam, could we get some help out here?” a slightly frustrated looking Sebastian peeked his head through the doorway, pointing back towards the car, “Ab’s is strugglin’ to get the drumset in the back, we need an extra set of hands,”

Shane stepped forward instead, confusing Sam just a bit by the action, “I’ll do it, don’t need them breakin’ somethin’ in the car,” 

He left Sam and Marnie on their lonesome as he went to go help, Marnie immediately turning her attention to him, “So…! Goblin Destroyers, hmm? What inspired that?”

“Heh, Abby came up with that, actually!” Sam shrugged, “I dunno, just sounded kind of bada- cool.” 

Marnie let out a bit of a laugh, “No need to censor yourself, my boy swears so much he makes sailors look like saints.”

“Yeah, heh,” Sam put a hand to the back of his head, looking sheepish as ever. The nerves over the show were getting to his head, frustrating him deeply. He felt so confident about it in the days leading up to the event, being so incredibly excited for it all. But now? He was second guessing himself, running over little checklists in his head to ensure he had absolutely everything ready. But something still felt missing. Something important, too. He racked his mind, trying to figure out what it was, until finally-

“Ugh, we forgot to buy a recorder!” he groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. Of course they forgot something like that. Now they had nothing to record the show with, nothing to capture this milestone moment for their first ever concert. Marnie just smiled on, “Oh, Shane has one! You could use it,”

“Really?”

“Mm-hm!” Marnie nodded, “He had film classes in college, made all kinds of funny little movies with his friends back in the day. He should still have the recorder and some tapes. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind recording the show for you,”

“That would… be awesome, actually,” Sam perked up. Looks like things worked out after all!, “It’d be great to have someone who’s pro at it!”

“The recorder should be somewhere in his room, I think,” Marnie mused, thinking intently, “He has this big box full of… stuff., you can’t miss it. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if you grabbed it,”

Sam looked back towards the door, watching Shane and Sebastian struggling to fit the drumset in the trunk of the car, much too busy with that herculean task to overhear the conversation, “I don’t know… I think I should ask him first,” “Oh, it’s fine!” Marnie waved him off, giving Sam a confident look, “Like I said, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind! Besides, he loved making those little movies, I’m sure he’d feel honored to be the one to record your first show!”

“Well… if you say so,”

“His room is just over there, first door to your left in the kitchen, can’t miss it!” she motioned her hand in the direction of the room, sending Sam off on his way. Part of him still felt very nervous to be going into his room without permission, but if Marnie said it was fine then it should be… right?

Opening the door, Sam didn’t expect it to be as messy as it was. Compared to how it was just a week ago, the room was much better inside, but still quite indicative of someone struggling. Sam had guessed that Shane was struggling to some extent, seeing obvious signs of someone dealing with a declining state of mental health. But seeing this just made his heart drop a little. He felt bad for even being in here, especially when Shane didn’t know. He’d just have to be quick about it. He took a slow scan around the room to look for the box, finally catching a glimpse of a bulky camcorder sticking out of a cardboard box, exactly like Marnie had told him. He lifted it from its spot, grabbing what looked to be a blank VHS that sat beneath it, sliding it into a slot in the side. This was going to be perfect. 

If only he had flipped it over to see the label on the other side.

Stepping back outside, he found Sebastian waiting for him in the foyer, looking exasperated as ever. It seemed the first-show nerves were getting to everyone, “Come on, man, we’re gonna hit traffic, let’s go!”

“I’m comin’, don’t worry,”

Sam speedwalked his way to the car, gently setting the camcorder in a spare spot in the trunk before closing it all the way, climbing into the passenger seat next to Shane. His giddy smile faded quickly when he looked to his friend, seeing Shane sitting there, gripping the wheel with a glazed over expression, “You feeling okay, man?”

Shane nodded slowly, shaking himself out of it, “Yeah… I’m fine, just got lost in thought I guess,” he turned his gaze back to the window at his side, finding Marnie and Jas standing patiently at the side. 

“Are you sure I can’t go?” Jas asked, a bit of a whine in her voice.

“Show starts after your bedtime kiddo,” Shane explained, “Be good for aendi, okay?”

Jas nodded reluctantly and stepped to the side, letting Marnie take her spot. 

“You’ve got everything done right?” she asked, “for the concert and home?”

“Yes, aendi, I got it,”

“Evening chores done?”

“Mm-hm,”

“Errands run?”

“Mm-hm,”

“You fixed the cabinet in the foyer?”

“Yes, I got it under control,” Shane confirmed in an exasperated tone, “Don’t worry,”

“I’m just asking! I want to decorate it tonight and needed to know,” she huffed, giving him a smile, “Have a good night, schatz.”

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

The venue was much simpler than Shane expected. It was a simple stage sitting up against a brick building with graffiti on the walls, an empty field laying in front of it. As quaint as it was, it seemed perfect for the trio in his eyes. A lowkey venue in the city felt like the perfect first venue for a start-up underground band like Goblin Destroyer. Abigail and Sebastian had already gotten to work setting up their instruments and speakers, Sam taking a chance to inspect the venue and make sure everything was to his liking. That nervousness was still clear on his face, seemingly multiplied now that they were actually here. Shane couldn’t deny he was feeling just a bit nervous himself. 

The sky was beginning to turn orange, the night well on its way. The air was abuzz with noise, cheering from the Tunnelers stadium carrying over through the wind. It made him feel just a bit queasy, a knot forming in his stomach as he looked over towards the stadium, staring at it with a glazed over expression. He hadn’t been in this part of the city for a while, purposely avoiding it as much as he possibly could. Being here made so much come back to him, and it was entirely overwhelming. He flinched when he felt a hand slap at his shoulder, Sam approaching him from behind, Sebastian and Abigail trailing along, “Wanna help get things set up? People will be here soon,”

“Actually…” Shane started, pulling out his phone to look at the time. 20 minutes until showtime, “You mind if I leave to get somethin’ done first?”

“The show’s about to start, can it wait?” Abigail questioned, “What if you get back too late?”

“It’s important,” Shane assured, seriousness in his tone, “Look, I’ll set a timer and be back asap, alright?”

Sam nodded nervously, seemingly answering for the band, though he was nervous about Shane getting back late himself. Shane walked off on his own way, a clear mission in mind. First, he needed to make a stop at a little flower stand down the street. Then, there was something he hadn’t done in quite some time that he needed to do, something he needed to catch up on. 

The plastic wrappings on the flower arrangements crackled in Shane’s hands as he approached those old gravesites. He hadn’t been here in so long, feeling his heart twinge at seeing how much of a mess they’d become in his absence. He did his best to brush off all the dead leaves and dirt covering the headstones, placing the flowers down just in front of them, sitting himself onto the dirt. He folded his hands, sitting in silence for some time before he could muster the courage to speak. 

“I know it’s been a while… sorry,” he whispered, “It’s a long drive now, and I’ve gotten really busy recently. New job, new home and all…”

He paused as if waiting for a response, a response he knew would never come, “Jas is doing well. She’s such a smart kid, and she’s really going places. You’d be real proud of her.” he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes so he didn’t have to look at the stones in front of him, “If there really is some afterlife and you can see how I’ve been doing… I hope you can forgive me. I don’t know what my problem is, why I keep doing these things. I want to be better though, and I hope you know that I’m trying…”

The little timer on his watch began to beep, his time here already coming to a close. The sun was beginning to set over the city skyline now, and the concert would begin in just a few minutes. Standing from his spot, he gave the headstones one last glance, “I’ll try to visit again soon, promise…love you guys,”

The walk back to the venue was short, Shane’s mind buzzing with anticipation. Attendees had already begun to roll in, a mixture of city folk and people he recognized from the valley, all chattering away in the field in front of the stage, anticipating the event. Shane snuck backstage to meet back up with the band, finding Sam pacing around, a complete nervous wreck. He held his bass in his hands, staring down at the ground as he paced back and forth, feeling like his heart would burst from his chest any moment. He only stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder, Shane giving him a knowing look. 

“Stop gettin’ yourself worked up… It won’t help the performance…” 

“I know… I know…” Sam nodded, biting his lip. He peeked out through the curtains, seeing Abigails parents and Robin standing out in the crowd, talking to each other happily as they waited for the show to begin. He was happy for them, truly… but he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy. Maybe that was why he was so nervous. 

“What’s this doin’ here?” 

Shane’s question redirected Sam, snapping him out of that daze. He turned to see Shane holding up the camcorder, looking at it with an interested expression. Looking at it gave him such a sense of familiarity. He had one just like it at home after all!

“Oh… I was wondering if you could record the show? I heard you’re really good with that stuff,”

“I’m rusty for sure but… yeah,” A hint of a smile found it’s way onto Shane’s face as he hoisted it onto his shoulder, “I’ll see you after the show,”

Sam gave him a weak, nervous smile as Shane walked off, taking a deep breath to prepare himself. He had this, he could do this! With Abby and Seb here too, he knew the three of them could do this. He just had to get over this hurdle, this bit of nerves, and he would be just fine. 

Shane settled himself in the middle of the crowd, aiming the camera to get a good view of the stage, adjusting the lens for the best zoom and quality, ready at any moment for his cue. Switching it on, he could feel the humming of the inner machinery against his ear, the LED screen quickly flickering to life. Oddly enough, a message flashed onto the screen, warning him about “full memory” on whatever tape Sam had brought with him. It was odd, but Shane assumed he must’ve brought some junk tape along, something easily replaceable. He remembered buying dozens of them back in college, filming over old movies and tapes he found at thrift stores and yard sales to save himself the cost of buying new ones. He fumbled for the button to override the warning, steadying himself as the film began to roll. 

Soon enough, Goblin Destroyer appeared on stage, the band decked out with fancy costumes made just for their grand debut. Sam stood tall and confident in the middle of the stage, announcing the band to the crowd with the biggest grin on his face, a sparkle appearing in his eye when they began to go wild, cheering him on before the first song even began. 

Listening to their band on tape was one experience, but hearing them in person was entirely unmatched. It almost made Shane wish he wasn’t the one recording, so he could just focus on the music and how it was making him feel. Standing there in that crowd, feeling the boom of the bass send shocks through the crowd, seeing the audience enjoying every second of the music, it brought him back to a much simpler time, a time where he was a much happier and younger man. Memories of sneaking off to shows just like these in highschool, breaking curfew just for the chance to listen to good music, the days of staying out far too late at these shows in college, it was all coming back to him. He felt like he had been transported back in time just by standing here, and he was enjoying every spare second of it. 

The show went on without a hitch, and the crowd was absolutely wild well after the curtains closed. Pausing the recording, Shane left his spot in the crowd to head back to the backstage area inside the building, finding the three friends huddled together on some old sofas, chattering excitedly about the show. They were off in their own little world, not even noticing that he had come back to check on them. It was almost adorable seeing how excited they were about their performance.

Holding the camcorder in his hands, Shane aligned his sights with the trio in front of him, focusing the lens with precision. Sebastian and Abigail discussed their performance, talking about the more technical aspects of it all, what they wanted to practice on in the future, all the while Sam looked to be planning some sort of prank, a devious look on his face as he attempted to get the steel-faced Sebastian to crack a smile with his antics. As the three of them burst into laughter, Shane couldn’t help but feel his heart grow warm. HeHe could tell the three of them genuinely loved each other, adored each others presence. He blinked, and just for a second, the scene in front of him changed. 

The trio of young adults he knew disappeared from the view of the camera lens, replaced by three people that could only be seen together in photos now. A much younger version of himself, Jason, and Amelia sat in those seats, the voices of Sam’s trio warping to match theirs. It made Shane feel like he’d seen a ghost, three ghosts at that. But when he blinked again, Sebastian, Sam, and Abigail sat there once more, chatting away like normal.

Abigail caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye, frowning when she saw his shell-shocked expression, “Woah, you alright?”

“Yeah I’m fine Amelia,”

“That’s… not my name,”

Shane felt his cheeks grow pink when he realized his mistake, shaking his head apologetically, “Sorry, I don’t know where I got that from…”

Sam motioned for him to shut the camera off, waving Shane to sit with the trio, “I’m sure it’s fine, now c’mere! We got somethin’ for you,”

Shane shut off the camera and placed it to the side, sitting down where Sam had instructed him. The man had such a cheesy grin on his face, his eyes crinkling in the corners. It made him just the smallest bit concerned. Was this another prank?

 “Okay… what’s this about, Sam?”

Sam placed down a small white box on the table with the saloons logo printed on top, pushing it over to Shane, “Open it!”

Shane gave him a skeptical look, fully expecting it to be some kind of prank, “Sam…”

“Just open it!”

With a shrug, Shane decided to listen, undoing the thin string wrapped around the box. Opening the flap on top, he revealed a small cake, candles and fancy red lettering reading “Happy Birthday!” on top of it. His breath hitched for just a moment, a confusing feeling running through him. He was unable to tell if he was excited or dreading it, unable to figure out how to respond. Sam looked so excited, so proud of himself for the gesture, “You didn’t really say anything about your birthday, so I figured you’re the kinda guy who doesn’t like to make a big deal out of it. But, I felt bad not doing anything, especially when you hauled us all the way out here for the show,”

“How did… how did you even know?” Shane asked, “I don’t think I told you it was today,”

“Morris made me n’ Claire sign one of those company cards!” Sam mused, pulling out a lighter and aiming it towards the candles, “Now all we have’ta do is sing!”

“Oh you don’t have to, really,” Shane immediately felt himself go pink in the face. For some reason he couldn’t explain, this part of birthday celebrations always made him incredibly shy. There was no exact reason, it just… did. 

“Just let him do it, he loves it,” Seb whispered, leaning over in his direction, “He does this for all of us,”

Much to his embarrassment, Shane sat and listened as Sam led his friends in singing ‘happy birthday’, the first time he’d heard it sung for him in a long while. As shy as he was about it, he couldn’t deny it made him feel just a bit warmer inside. He often had a difficult time believing people cared about him like this, believing instead that people were just being polite more than anything. But for Sam to go out of his way for this, on his special day too, it solidified for him that maybe he truly did care about him. Sam was a good friend, one Shane didn’t feel like he deserved, but one he appreciated nonetheless. 

The four of them sat in that backstage room well into the night, enjoying each other’s company, chattering away. The night had been a grand success in more ways than one, and they couldn’t be happier, Sam especially. He was surrounded by great friends, celebrating together, just enjoying the moment. He noticed how happy and lively Shane was especially. His eyes looked like they were sparkling and bright, he was so involved in conversation, laughing away with abandon. He was truly enjoying himself, just living in the moment. It made Sam realize that he couldn’t remember a time where he saw him like this before. This was the first time he’d ever seen Shane genuinely smile and enjoy himself in the eight months they’ve worked together. It was odd, but the good kind of odd. He hoped he would see this side of him more often. 

As the night wrapped up, the four of them loaded everything back into the car, preparing to head back to the valley. Fireworks shot into the sky over the tall buildings of the city, beautiful green and blue hues illuminating the city skyline. Sam thought it was absolutely beautiful, rarely seeing displays this intricate now that he was living in such a small town. Loud cheering carried through the air from the direction of the Tunnelers stadium, a clear sign that they had won yet again. Part of him was confused that Shane didn’t seem to care though, rather focusing on getting the car packed up. Didn’t he love that team? Perhaps it was best to leave that be for now. He respected that Shane could be secretive at times, as much as he didn’t understand it. 

Getting back in the car, Shane set his gps for home, choosing a long backroads route to the confusion of the young trio in the car. Sebastian frowned, leaning forward to look at the screen, “Why are you taking this route? That’s going to take forever,”

“Tunnelers won tonight, the city is going to be wild,” Shane explained bluntly, turning onto the main road towards home.

“Yeah but this add like… 40 minutes to the drive,” Abigail complained, “Is it really that worth it to-”

“This is my car and if I say we’re takin’ this route home, then that’s what we’re going to do. Got it?” Shane raised his voice, much to the shock of the passengers alongside him. He looked genuinely angry, frustrated beyond belief at the pair in the back. Sebastian blinked slowly, face frozen in surprise, “Damn… okay then, sure,”

Shane turned back to face forward, his mood soured just a bit. He sighed regrettably as he continued on the road, feeling bad about snapping like that. He didn’t feel comfortable enough with those two to explain his reasoning, but he hoped they understood he had a reason nonetheless. This time he was going to do the smart thing, whether or not his passengers understood. This time he was going to do things right. He turned up the volume on the car's radio and drove off into the night, off in his own little world.

By the time they had left the city, the backseat was finally quiet, both Abigail and Sebastian lulled into sleep over the course of the winding roads. Only Shane and Sam were wide awake, listening to the radio on a low volume so as to not disturb the passengers in the back. Sam was off in his own little world, as was Shane. Though Shane was thinking about much more serious things than the man in the passenger seat. He mulled over the night, about all that had happened. Just thinking about it all made it feel like there were words weighing on his chest, words he needed to get out in the open. 

“Thank you,”

Sam turned to him, looking confused as ever, “For what?”

“For all of this. Gettin’ me out of the house, invitin’ me to this concert… it was nice,” if one looked closely, they could see the smallest smile on Shane’s face, a truly content look, “My original plans for today were to lock myself in my room n’ get wasted. It’s… a hard day for me actually,”

He gripped the steering wheel a bit tighter, finally letting what was on his mind pour out for the first time, “Today’s my birthday, but… it’s also the day Jas’ parents died. They took me to the Tunnelers playoffs to celebrate, and we got in an accident on the way home. Me and Jas, we… were the only ones to walk away from it,”

“She was there?” Sam asked, a horrified tone in his voice. Shane just nodded in response, “When it happened I tried to cover her carseat, tried to make sure she was safe. Jumped out of my own damn seat for it, and…” he reached a hand down from the steering wheel, feeling that scar on his knee yet again, “My knee got fucked up and I had to give up gridball. I was tryin’ to go pro, got really close actually… I got accepted into the arena league a week after it happened and I had to turn it down.” 

“Don’t misunderstand me, I wouldn’t change my decision in that moment for anythin’ in the world,” Shane assured, holding up his hand for emphasis, “I would do it a hundred times over to keep her safe. But… I still lost it all that night. Absolutely everything. I haven’t celebrated my birthday in years because of it,”

“Oh shit- I’m sorry, is that why you were acting like that earlier?” Sam asked, his tone ridden with guilt and apology, slapping a palm to his face in embarrassment. Shane scoffed lightly and shook his head, “Don’t worry about it… it was good actually,”

“Really?”

“Really,” Shane affirmed, “This was the first year since it happened where I didn’t     feel like total shit. I actually enjoyed myself today, and that’s why I wanted to thank you. I barely thought about all of it, and I didn’t just feel like I wanted to die…. I’m happy, really,”

“Well… I wanted to thank you too,” Sam admitted, “My mom wasn’t able to make it for this one… and my dad is still deployed so he wasn’t there, and honestly he has a hard time with open spaces like that anyways… but having you come kind of felt like…” he blushed and cut himself off, “Nevermind,”

“Sam…”

“... it felt like I had a parent with me tonight, kind of.” Sam admitted with a mutter, “It was nice looking out in the crowd, seeing you with the recorder cheering us on. Tonight was awesome,”

“Okay, first of all, ouch. I am not that old,” Shane let out a short laugh, “Seriously, how old do you think I am?”

“Like… maybe close to my dad’s age?”

“Samson I’m going to kill you,”

“You’re not?”

“I’m thirty-one!” Shane scoffed, almost in a state of disbelief. Did he really look that old? He shook his head, trying to get the conversation back on track, “Anyways… I’m glad it helped. And yeah, it was awesome! You three are talented, kid,” 

He looked into the rearview mirror, catching a glimpse of the pair snoozing away in the back, “You’ve got some nice friends, too. Keep em close… listen to them, have fun. You never know when it’ll be your last chance to do that,”

“I will,” Sam assured, looking back at Sebastian and Abigail with all the fondness in the world, “I promise,”

The rest of the ride back to the valley was long, but enjoyable nonetheless. The excitement from the concert carried over the entire way, and Sam was entirely certain nothing would dampen this feeling, nothing at all. As of now, this was the best night of his life, and he felt like he was on top of the world. 

When the quartet arrived back home, Abigail and Sebastian went their separate ways from the group, leaving Sam and Shane to unload everything back into the Neilson family home by themselves. It took some time, but eventually the instruments were back in their proper spots, perfectly ready for Goblin Destroyers’ next band practice. Everything was back where it needed to be, except for one last item. Shane re-entered Sam’s room, holding the camcorder in his hands. 

"You almost forgot this!" Shane held out the item for Sam to see, “Where do you want it?"

Sam raised a brow, "That's not mine man, that's yours."

"... What?" Shane questioned. His expression melded into one of deep concern. He turned the camcorder to its side, seeing the clear initials “S.Y.” he had scratched into the plastic casing with a key years ago. It was his, "Sam where... Where did you get this? Tell me. Now."

"I told your aunt I wanted one for the show and she said there'd be one in your room! Grabbed that and a VHS before we left for the show."

No. No no no no no.

He quickly reached a shaking hand to the release button on the camcorder, pulling the VHS from its slot. He prayed that it wasn't what he thought it was. He flipped it over in his hands to see the label on the front, feeling his heart stop when he read the words scribbled in Sharpie.

"Senior Year Memories"

The final tape that had all the fun memories with him and Jas' parents, the outtakes of their films, the pranks they played, the tape with Jason's damn proposal on it. It was gone. It was all gone. Shane felt himself begin to tremble. He shoved the VHS back into the recorder, playing it back in the desperate hope that somehow he didn’t press record, that somehow the old videos would be intact. But the moment he turned it on, all he saw was the view of Sam and his friends on stage, introducing themselves for their first show.

"Shane? Shane, are you okay?" Sam asked cautiously, "What's wrong?"

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" Shane hissed out in a growl that would make anyone scared. Sam just shook his head, looking to his friend in complete bewilderment, "N-no, I-"

"You made me record over something important," Shane warbled, "It's.... FUCK-!"

He gripped the camcorder tight, feeling hot tears burn at his eyes. Shane was so angry, livid even. Sam cautiously reached out to touch his shoulder, trying to show a sign of sympathy, "Can you re-record it? I'll help you if you wa-"

"THEY'RE DEAD, SAM!" Shane screeched, throwing the recorder to the ground, destroying it on impact, "I'll never be able to re-record it again, the people in this, they're -.... They're gone. I can't get it back."

He held his head in his hands, doing that nervous laugh that verged on sobbing he always did when he got angry like this. Gritting his teeth to the point he feared they would break, he sucked in a deep breath, and spoke in a hoarse tone, "It's all your fucking fault..."

"What? Shit, dude I'm sorry..." Sam shook his head, his face showing genuine guilt, "I-I didn't know, I never would've grabbed it if I knew!"

"You didn't know because you didn't stop to think for a single second! You didn't ask, or even-" Shane threw his hands up, making a strangled, frustrated noise, "Why were you in my room in the first place?!"

"Your aunt, she said it was ok, I-" 

"My aunt? You should've asked me!"

"Ok... Ok, let's relax, man." Sam put his hands up cautiously, "It's gonna be okay man, I prom-"

"The hell do you mean it's going to be okay?! It's gone now, Sam!", Shane felt his face grow red and hot, his chest feeling ready to burst, "I've already lost them once, and now this-... How could you do something so fucking STUPID?!"

"I'm so sorry... I promise I didn't mean it, I'm sorry," Sam felt himself begin to tear up, those words like a knife in his chest. Shane didn't mean that, right? He was just angry, and angry people often said things they didn't mean. But it didn't make it hurt any less.

"Oh, you're sorry! Thank you Sam, that fixes everything!" Shane laughed nervously, giving him a wry, sarcastic smile, "Hey maybe I should go ask the motherfucker who killed them to say sorry too! Maybe that'll bring them back!"

“What do you want me to do?!” Sam suddenly began to look angry, the shock of being called stupid wearing off, replaced with a quiet rage, “I tried to do something nice! I invited you to our concert, your aunt said you'd have fun recording, we celebrated your birthday, man!”

“Is that supposed to make up for this?!”

“No! But you know I would never do or say anything to hurt anyone! So why would you say that to me?!”, his voice warbled for a moment, “I'm not stupid, Shane! And you don't get to yell at me like I'm a child!”

“Then stop acting like one!” Shane barked back. Sam looked like he was ready to cry, his fists balled up so tight his knuckles were turning white. The men just stared each other down, a deep anger in their eyes. There was nothing left to say, nothing they could think of at least. Shane just turned on his heel, storming out of the room and the Neilsons home, slamming the front door behind him. Jodi ran over to Sam’s doorway, an almost horrified look on her face, “What just happened?”

“I…” Sam started, a croak in his voice, “I think I just lost a friend,”

The ranch door could’ve blown straight off its hinges with how hard Shane slammed it open. He was livid, absolutely livid. Storming into the kitchen, he found Marnie sitting at the table, patiently folding her hands as if she was waiting for something. An open box sat in front of her, it’s contents not of much concern to Shane in the moment. She didn’t look very happy herself, but Shane didn’t seem to notice in his rage. 

“Did you tell Samson he could go in my room and grab my camcorder?” he demanded, trying desperately not to be so loud it would wake Jas. Marnie seemed to ignore him confusingly enough, a silent anger about her. Shane put a firm hand on the table, looking at her more intently, “Did you?”

“Why did you lie to me,” Marnie asked, her voice cold as stone. She didn’t look up, staring down at the table with such an intensity it could burn a hole through the wood. Shane’s brows knit together as he was left completely taken aback.

“Excuse me?”

Marnie pulled the box closer to him, allowing him to look closer at the contents. Shattered glass sat inside, the clear broken figure of a dancer sitting in pieces inside. The only part that wasn’t shattered into pieces was the base of the figure, gold lettering on the siding reading “Mona”, his mothers name. He’d seen this little figure only a few times before, recognizing it as a little keepsake of hers that Marnie now held dear. An old music box with a dancer on top, it’s tune etched into Shane’s memory from his childhood. It was incredibly important to his aunt. And now it was destroyed. 

“You told me you fixed that cabinet. I believed you,” Marnie hissed out, “And you know what happened the moment I put this inside? The shelf fell apart again. The shelf I asked you to fix,”

“Shit…”

“And then you want to walk into my home, yell at me like this?” Marnie asked, standing from her spot. She was shorter than him, but Shane still felt like there was a presence looming over him, a terrifying one at that, “Yes, Shane! I did tell him he could! I’ll let people go where they want in my house, thank you very much! Now what is your problem?!”

“He took a tape that had videos of trips, movies and Jason’s proposal on it. He had me record over it, it’s gone,” Shane grumbled out, “And you let him take it!”

“I didn’t think he would take a full tape. You should have checked which one it was before you fil-,”

“I should have checked first?!” Shane exploded, lunging close to her face, “You don’t think maybe you should’ve checked with me before letting him take whatever he damn pleased?!”

“Keep your voice down, Jas is sleeping!” 

“Why would you let him do that?!” Shane demanded, throwing his arms out wide, “Do you know what you just made me lose?! I’ll never get any of that back! That was so important to me, don’t you understand that?!”

“How is anyone supposed to know what’s important in that room?” Marnie barked back, “It’s such… a mess, in there. You’re not exactly the most organized man, Shane,”

“Oh is that what you care about? How messy my room looks? I can clean it up any day, but I can’t get that tape back. Why don’t you care?”

“Why don’t you care about this?!” Marnie pointed back to the box on the table, “That was your mothers! We have so little to remember her with as it is, and you lying to me led to it getting destroyed,”

“Holy shit, I didn’t lie! I thought I did fix it!... It was an accident, I forgot,”

“You forgot? I’ve been telling you all month about it! You knew that was important to me!”

“Well I guess no one in this house cares about what’s important to each other, then!”

The air felt like it had been pushed out of the room, both of them holding their tongues, trying not to lash out any further. They both understood that they were stubborn and quick to anger, and speaking any further would likely result in a fight someone could hear from the city. There was so much unspoken frustration the two had towards each other, so much they had been bottling up. But they wouldn’t get it out now. They couldn’t. Marnie took a deep breath to ground herself before finally responding. 

“I guess we don’t.”

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

Sam felt absolutely sick to his stomach. What should have been a good night, a wonderful night, had taken such a turn for the worst. He was heartbroken at the turn, but also so, so angry. How couldn’t he be? How dare Shane call him stupid, imply he was childish and immature? Sam wasn’t either of those things, that much he knew. No matter how angry Shane was at him, and no matter if he deserved it or not, he surely didn’t deserve this treatment. He sat on the couch, holding the VHS in his hands, miraculously unbroken after Shane had smashed the camcorder. Jodi sat next to him, a comforting arm wrapped around her son, worry etched on her face. 

“It’s not your fault… you didn’t know,”

“He’s right though, I should’ve asked,” Sam whispered, “Ms. Yoder was just so insistent that it was okay, I thought it would be…”

Jodi sighed, looking down at the VHS in his hands, “Why don’t we try to do something nice, hmm? I’d love to see how the show went!”

Sam looked off to the side, “I don’t know if I even wanna watch it anymore…”

Jodi took the tape from his hands, standing from her spot, “What’s done is done, Sam. Refusing to watch it won’t change anything… Why don’t we just try to enjoy it?”

He didn’t protest as Jodi slipped the VHS into a player, leaning back into the couch as she came to sit back down with him. It took just a few moments before the TV came to life, replaying the events of the night. Jodi watched on in pride, adoring how talented her son was, and how many people showed up to watch him display it. Oh how she wished she could’ve gone, to have seen the show in person. While the genre wasn’t exactly for her, she enjoyed anything that either of her sons put their passion and hearts into. 

The camera switched over to the afterparty, a recording of Sam with his friends talking about how it went, what their next plans were. They all looked so happy, so incredibly excited after such a performance. Sam wished he still had that excitement in him, regretting this feeling of dread that had replaced it. He was having a hard time enjoying the tape, as much as he truly wanted to. The knowledge that in his negligence he’d accidentally destroyed an important memory for the sake of his own, it ate him up inside. It truly wasn’t his fault, he knew it deep down. But he still felt awful nonetheless. 

The recording of the afterparty was drawing to a close, but instead of a prompt to rewind showing up, the tape kept going. Sam leaned forward in his seat, furrowing his brow as he stared at the screen. Where he and his friends had just been sitting moments ago, three new people took up space on the screen. The two people he had seen in that photo on the ranch… and a much younger Shane. He felt his heart nearly stop as he watched them chatter away, laughing with each other for just a few moments before the rewind prompt finally came up. It was just a few seconds, but just enough to shake him to his core. 

Quickly standing to grab the remote, he rewinded just a bit, pausing as soon as the trio were visible on screen again. That young Shane stared straight into the camera, a small, content smile sitting on his face. Sam moved to sit close to the screen, looking over every pixel of the still frame on screen. They felt so familiar. They felt like him and his friends, if he was honest. 

Part of him wanted to run over to the ranch, bang on the door and show Shane that there was at least something left over, a glimpse of the past still on the tape. Another part didn’t want to see him again for a long, long time. He simply ejected the tape and watched the TV fade to snow, both his and Shane’s memories disappearing from the screen. He just couldn’t bring himself to look at it any longer. 

[fan-a-saurus-rex]

A Way Back Home | Part 1

Plot: It’s been 4 years since visitors from other dimensions came and went. Since then things had been pretty quiet. You graduated high school and college, your new friend Peter beside you the whole time. The two of you were now living in an apartment together in queens. You knew he was Spider-Man, you knew all about everyone in his life forgetting him and the fact that he was Spider-Man. Now you would watch him leave everyday to stop crimes, while you worked your boring office job. But there was something you’d been hiding from Peter, a few things actually.

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader

Warnings: swearing, not much else

Masterlist and Requests/Prompt

* * * * *

You sat at your desk, fresh out of a last minute work meeting, when you suddenly heard sirens on the street outside.

“I gotta go…” you heard Peter say as he walked into room and opened up the window.

“Please be careful” you said

He smirked “I always am” he said as he jumped off the fire escape, swinging through the alleyway on his webs.

It was hard for you to watch your best friend go out into danger like that. It was even harder now that you had discovered you had feelings for him. You hadn’t told him, you wanted to but you figured he was still dealing with the loss of everyone in his former life, including his former girlfriend whom he rarely talked about. You decided to just keep your feelings to yourself.

One thing you couldn’t keep to yourself much longer was something that he could relate to much more than your feelings for him.

While you had been cleaning you found a weird spider climbing up the wall, something you’d never seen before. While trying to kill it, it climbed onto your arm and before you could brush it off it bit you.

You were extremely ill for the next few days, running a fever. Peter had taken you to see a doctor and they concluded that you were having a reaction to the mild venom of the spider bite. You were sent home with medication to keep your fever down. Within a few days your fever broke and you felt better, but soon some weirder symptoms started to become apparent.

You were stronger than usual, so strong that you lifted the couch in your living room with no effort. Things would stick to you and your senses were so strong that it was almost overstimulating. You could see clearer, hear things from miles away, and your sense of smell was so powerful that you could smell the perfume the lady next door wore. Food even tasted different and every time something brushed up against you you could feel it 100% more than you could before.

But the one thing that really got to you was that you could sense things before they even happened. You could sense Peter’s presence when he’d sneak back in late at night. You could feel him without being close to him, without touching him. You could feel his presence through the walls of your bedroom as he got ready to go to bed in the room next you.

You knew that Peter had become Spider-Man because of a spider bite and you feared that the same had just happened to you, even though you had no clue how a radioactive spider could have even gotten into your apartment.

You pushed yourself away from all of your thoughts and decided to go make yourself some dinner. It was dark now and things seemed quieter in the streets.

You made yourself a grilled cheese sandwich and sat down on the couch to eat, watching the news. Apparently the reason Peter had was left was because a creature from another universe had gotten through and was terrorizing Citi Field while the NY Mets were playing a game against the LA Dodgers. Sports fans had fled the area as the alien-like creature destroyed the stadium. Footage of Spider-Man assisting Dr. Strange and Scarlett Witch get rid of the creature flashed across the screen.

Since the discovery of the existence of the multi-verse, things like this had become more common. Crazy creatures and individuals coming through portals that seemed to manifest at random. The world had changed and it was all a bit much at times, especially knowing that the only person you had in life who actually cared about you was out there fighting them.

You were so lost in thought that you hadn’t heard or sensed Peter climbing back through the window. You watched as he shut the window and walked over to you.

“I see everything went fine” you said smiling

“About as fine as it could have” he said chuckling “that thing was nasty”

“It looked like a giant crab but without a shell” you said giggling

“And it smelled horrible” he said laughing again “I’m gonna go shower” he said.

You nodded and took your plate to the kitchen, rinsing it off and putting it in the sink. You decided you needed some fresh air.

You sat out on the fire escape, something you did when you were overwhelmed. After about ten minutes Peter joined you.

“You okay?” He asked.

“Yeah, just….thinking”

“About what?”

You sighed and took a deep breath. “Can we talk about something Peter?”

“Of course”

“Remember when I got bit by that spider and had a bad reaction?”

“Yeah, are you feeling sick again?”

“Um…not exactly” you hesitated “but I have been feeling…odd”

“Odd? Odd how?”

You took another deep breath and looked at him, then looked down at your feet.

“Y/n?”

You looked at him again. “Watch”

You stood up and put your foot on the brick wall of your apartment building. You hoisted yourself up and scaled the building with ease. You looked down at the confused man below you and then climbed back down to the fire escape. You sat back down beside him.

“How…how long?” He asked

“About a week” you confessed

“How did this happen?”

“I was wondering that myself” I said

“How did a radioactive spider get into our apartment?”

You had no idea. You knew there was no logical reason for something like that to be hanging around. Nobody knew Spider-Man’s real identity, except you, and you weren’t close to any research facilities that could be using radiation, at least none that you knew of. There were a lot of shady types living in the city, selling all sorts of contraband weapons and technology from other dimensions in the multiverse. But why would they have radioactive spiders? And why would they want to release one in a random apartment building in a nice part of Queens?

You looked over at Peter “you upset?” You asked

“Why would I be upset?” He asked confused.

“Because I’ve been keeping this a secret from you”

“I’m just glad you’re alright” he said “you were really sick, didn’t think you were gonna make it with how high your fever was”

You nodded “that was brutal”

“I got sick too, but not nearly that bad” he mentioned “having any other….symptoms?”

You nodded “I lifted the entire couch with one hand, my vision is sharper, I can hear everything, food tastes crazy good, touching things feels like electricity coursing through my body, and I can sense things before they happen. I can tell when you’ve come home, even when you’re quiet. I can…feel you”

“Still have no idea that spider got here” he said sighing

You nodded and looked over at him “I’m-I’m okay though”

He smiled “I’m at least happy about that. Don’t need to lose you too”

You smiled “I’m not going anywhere, well, except for bed. I’m exhausted” you confessed.

“Me too, come on” he said helping you get you up and going back inside.

You both went to bed shortly after coming back in. You felt a lot better telling him about your newfound spider abilities. You wished you could have told him about your feelings, but that could remain a secret for a bit longer.

Before falling asleep you wondered if Peter would help you control your powers and maybe let you help out around the city. You didn’t want to be an Avenger, you just wanted to help your best friend and spend some more time with him.

At around 4am, you were suddenly waken up by the sound of sirens and helicopters. You knew Peter would be leaving shortly so maybe now was your chance.

* * * * *

To be Continued….

[abirdie]

Gael Garcia Bernal: The Dear Heart Of 'Diaries'

Article from the Washington Post, 25 September 2004 (x)

By Hank Stuever

Gael Garcia Bernal: the Mexican actor, who is so very right now and here in town for, you know, just a day -- the whole thing with the big hotel suite and the half-eaten plate of fruit and dos publicistas tappa-tapping en los BlackBerrys over there. (Mujeres! Silencio!) He's promoting his new Che Guevara movie, The Motorcycle Diaries, and everyone who has seen it is going on and on about how saintly his portrayal of young Ernesto Guevara de la Serna is and how sumptuously the movie's 8,000-mile trek across South America unfurls onscreen and oh, btw, critics agree: Bernal's got Che's iconic, serious stare down pretty good.

Green eyes, we write in the notebook. (Big duh.)

Also can testify that Bernal is about 5 feet 7, though it long ago ceased to be news that the hotties of film are pocket-size. More notes: He turns 26 in November. He has a proud, long nose that sometimes blushes red when he laughs. He's wearing one of those Salvation Army-seeming plaid western-cut shirts that often turn out to be designer-label, a pair of deep blue vintagesque jeans and some scuffed lace-up boots the color of old asphalt. His hair is cut bubblegum-mishap short.

Awright, already, he's de-lish. Did we need to bring that dogeared copy of 501 Spanish Verbs with us? Of course not: Dude went to drama school for a while in London when he was a teenager; not long after he starred for six months in a Mexican soap opera called El Abuelo y Yo (Grandfather and Me), and this particular fact has dogged him in every interview. ("People think I did all these soap operas," he shrugs. "I did only that one. And it taught me a lot — it taught me I never wanted to do another soap opera.") When it comes to Spanish, he can bend it to his will, the way Nicole Kidman can do in English, with whatever accent directors like Walter Salles and Pedro Almodovar need him to speak in — Mexican, Argentine, Castilian.

During our interview, he spends an hour dissecting, in English, the current state of Pan-American politics, extolling his sensible, leftist-tinged childhood, and at one point he quotes from foreign-policy magazines.

We hold up our end of the conversation with such questions as:

"So, um, like, what do you do when you're not working?"

"When I'm not doing this?" Bernal asks, motioning around at the movie-star-with-movie-to-sell air particles of feature story nonsense. "I like to do all the things I cannot do as much. My common days are very different now. I would, if I could, I would be home" — Cuernavaca, just south of Mexico City — "and I would sleep until whatever time. Swim, play futbol. Read and go to lunches and the lunches become dinners. Visit family, organize a party for that night."

Halfway through the image of Bernal swaddled in high-thread-count sheets until whatever time, a half-theory privately knocks around in our pea brain:

Gael Garcia Bernal, or someone very much like him, is exactly why so many of us faithful, independent-minded filmgoers still cram ourselves into the creaky seats of dumpy art house cinemas, even as the years tick by and things like Netflix, the Sundance Channel and the nicer stadium-seating art houses came along to replace them. No, you want to see Bernal's movie surrounded by drabness, because you get a better transport to the happy, imaginative place that way. The stale popcorn, the Fandango.com ads, the bathroom with only two toilets. (Cineplex Odeon Dupont Circle 5, we mean you.)

We do it because we're always waiting for that next small-time heartthrob — male, female, or sometimes just the foreign scenery itself. It's the subtitles and the eyes. It's whatever we can't get from those American goofballs who do those blech movies that tend to be about guys who go on canoe trips where a horny bear in the woods tries to hump them. Or whatever.

Bernal would never do that to us.

Hollywood beckons and he rolls his eyes because it offers him roles like, uh, okay, here's the pitch: He's an undocumented leaf-blower yardman caught up in a caper that only Jackie Chan can make right, if only they could understand each other's Engrish, ha ha.

"I'm open," he says. "I am, I am. But so far in the U.S. what they have offered doesn't even get close to the kind of things that excite me. Nothing is quite right, so I think I'll just stick with what I'm doing. I have to stay … hmmm … congruent to myself."

And so that's why certain filmgoers are inclined to sneak off to his "small little movies" (as he calls them) in the middle of the afternoon, get the large Diet Coke and consider the combustion in contemporary Spanish-language cinema that the rare actor like Bernal can harness. You feel like you've just gone somewhere, talked fast, smoked cigarettes. They call him the Marcello Mastroianni of Latino film when they're not busy calling him the Marlon Brando of it.

All that smoldering, the aching of youth! One, please, for the 2:50 showing of Y Tu Mama, Tambien. (That hormonal breakout hit, a coming-of-age road trip from 2001 starring Bernal and his childhood friend Diego Luna — people mix them up, still.) Or the 4:45 showing of Amores Perros (from 2000, translating as wordplay for "Love Is a Bitch," a chronologically scattered tale of how one car wreck in Mexico City changes three lives). Or the 3:10 showing of El Crimen del Padre Amaro, from 2002, about the sinful lapse of a young priest (Bernal, natch) caught up in a small-town mess of church corruption. Its release in Mexico naturally put hard-line Catholics there in a state of non compos mentis, which both baffled and delighted Bernal.

Some of his key appearances have been as himself. Fresh from Y Tu Mama, he and Luna graced the Oscar ceremony last year, cleaned up in their tuxes, to present a small award, and Hollywood swooned. He was seen dancing all night at parties at Cannes. For a while he dated Natalie Portman (well, that's what the tabs reported) and you almost can't stand the fleeting idea of how gorgeous their children would have been. (Cancel that. They broke up.)

His movies are always in exotic, crumbly locations, and we are there, because Bernal is there: the back roads of the Mexican interior, or ascending to Machu Picchu as a soul-searching Guevara or click-clacking around the cobblestone streets of Spanish villas in transvestite stilettos seeking revenge against priestly pedophilia at a boarding school, as he does expertly in Pedro Almodovar's next surrealistic offering, Bad Education, which will open this year in New York. (It's scheduled to open in Washington in January. Sorry, kids. Delayed for possible Oscar-sensitive reasons of timeliness, and to not get in the way of Diaries. He's one of those stars: Two big projects colliding in the art houses of the world.)

If Salles' Motorcycle Diaries, which opens Friday, doesn't make you feel like an earnest college sophomore with a crush on the Marxist professor who teaches your Latin American history class, then we don't know what will. Predating the muss and fuss of the Cuban revolution, the film is an epic, richly hued journey into the formative years of Che, back in 1952 when he was Ernesto Guevara de la Serna, an Argentinean med student in his early twenties.

Ernesto takes a year off school to travel on a 1939 Norton 500 motorcycle with his best pal, Alberto Granado (played by Rodrigo de la Serna), across and up the South American continent.

Guevara, a devoted diarist as a young man, took notes about the people and places he saw, and the gulf between rich and poor (it helps to open his eyes when his rich girlfriend dumps him). The further Guevara and Granado go, the more Che becomes Che, seeing native people and their lives transcending the bourgeois notions of government and ownership and greed. By the time Che's working with lepers in the Amazon, Salles' movie (and Bernal) have reached a subtly beatific realm. In case you're not quite feeling it, Salles ups the noble-people quotient with black-and-white still portraits of the working-class people the young men encounter along the way.

"We prepared for four months," Bernal says of the research phase, and the crew shot the film more or less chronologically, following Guevara and Granado's original itinerary. "I read 1,001 books about the land and biographies [of Guevara]. We traveled. We practiced on the motorcycle three times a week. We asked permission from the gods, and also the local political and cultural centers…. When finally we started shooting, I wondered if we were prepared enough for this daunting task. We got on the bike and the road started to appear and things started to happen the right way, without you even noticing."

Bernal was born in Guadalajara and raised in Mexico City. Both his parents are stage actors. He has been thinking about Che Guevara for half his life — and even played the revolutionary in a two-part miniseries on Showtime about Fidel Castro, which he would appreciate it if everyone forgot. It goes back, for him, like most kids, to middle-school social studies class.

"It happens when you are about 12 or 13," he says. "When you grow up in Mexico you have a very strong connection to Cuba. As a kid you listen to this story, it's incredibly, incredibly exciting to hear. [The revolutionaries] changed Latin America forever and they changed the world. So you start early, identifying with where [Guevara] comes from, and identifying with his ideas in a way, and identifying with the struggle, and therefore you're able to agree with it or criticize it. Leftist ideas redefine themselves constantly. I think my generation is much more critical of what works in Latin American socialist movements and what didn't. There used to be a stigma that any leftist revolution had to come with violence. I don't think we believe that anymore," he says, mentioning Zapatistas in jungles who carry wood carvings of rifles instead of actual guns, just for the symbolism.

You think this sounds a little pinko coming from the mouth of a movie star? Well, you try embodying Che Guevara and see what you feel like talking about when it's over. When Bernal speaks of politics and the world, it's not with fire. He leans back. He almost whispers. It's seductive, in a way.

Early in the shooting, Alberto Granado, now 82, was visiting the set, Bernal says. And he offered this advice to the actor: "He told me, don't try to copy Ernesto's voice, or his mannerisms. He said, 'Use your own voice. All Ernesto was was a 23-year-old Latin American like you. Traveling around. Seeing things.' And I realized that what the movie needs is that universal experience. Granado was right. I have a right as does any person to tell the story of Che."

When it was over, months later, having lost weight to play the asthmatic Guevara as the trip takes its toll, Bernal found himself still wanting to travel.

When the film was finished, "I felt serenely confused, like in a serene state of almost understanding something bigger, and then not quite understanding it. All the time I felt like that," he says. "It redefined my priorities. I have moments where I understand what has happened to me, and then moments where I don't. I wanted to just get back on the road and travel to anywhere." (He sort of does that now, subletting apartments in New York and London, spending four months in Spain working with Almodovar on Bad Education, spending a little time back home in Mexico. He recently spent a month in Austin, shooting an independent film called The King in which he plays a character named Elvis — "the bastard child of an evangelist preacher," he says.)

He says he can't believe how hamstrung American actors arewhen it comes to saying anything political. He wonders if the United States has forgotten how to hold a real election, with real debates. He shows up in gossip columns lamenting the lumbering, impervious quality of American imperialism.

"The U.S. is a great nation that's becoming a war machine. But it is a great people, which can save it," he says. "Some of us fall into traps where we can't say what we think. But it shouldn't be this way. Actors are free. That's the nature of being an actor, to do anything you want to do, to say anything. It's why we're here. And if I were an American, I could be pigeonholed for what I just said."

He'd go on, but our lecture has to end here, for it is time to throw us out and escort in another reporter. It happens to be a student journalist from American University, and she seems excited to meet the Mexican Marcello Mastroianni, but trying to keep it all in check, remain cool.

She shakes his hand, ready and willing for her revolutionary inculcation in the hotel suite of Gael Garcia Bernal. She's exactly the age where a young woman's thoughts turn to putting that Che poster on the wall, and we envy her.

[tswiftcore]

Taylor & Travis: Simplified (1/2)

July 8, 2023:

Travis attends the Eras Tour in Kansas from a private box and trades friendship bracelets with fans (where he tries to meet Taylor after the show to give her a personalised friendship bracelet with his number on it, but fails).

July 26, 2023:

Travis reveals his failed friendship bracelet plan on his podcast New Heights, explaining, "I was disappointed that she doesn't talk before or after her shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings... " And, "If you're up on Taylor Swift concerts, there are friendship bracelet, and I received a bunch of them being there, but I wanted to give Taylor Swift one with my number on it.

September 16 - 17, 2023:

ESPN teasingly saturates Travis' report with Taylor Swift references, including, "Travis Kelce, at this point in time, is trying to Shake It Off and get back out there. He knows how much he's needed and that he's The Man. It was a little bit of a Cruel Summer for Travis Kelce with that knee injury but he can see the Daylight. He looks like he's Ready For It."

A day later, the jokes continue flooding in in the form of NFL commentary.

September 19 - 21, 2023:

Travis mentions some of his dating dealbreakers on an episode of Kristin Cavallari's podcast (high maintenance, must be humble and grounded, ideally kind-hearted and sweet like his mother, Donna), explaining, "You gotta have some sort of sweetness to you."

Then, Travis' brother, Jason, jokes about dating rumours on DeCamara & Ritchie, commenting, "I think they're doing great and I think it's all 100% true, and I hope this thing goes a mile - no, I'm joking, I don't know what's happening."

Finally, on an interview on the Pat McAfee Show, Travis explains that he threw the ball in Taylor's court by inviting her to see him play at Arrowhead Stadium. He told her, "Ive seen you rock the stage at Arrowhead. You might have to come see me rock the stage at Arrowhead and see which one's a little more lit."

September 24, 2023:

Taylor attends the Kansas City Chiefs game, observing from Travis' suite beside his mother Donna Kelce and wearing Kansas City Chiefs merch. After the game, Taylor and Travis were photographed leaving together in Travis' convertible, literally driving off into the sunset.

September 25, 2023:

A source explains, "They're having fun. This was Taylor's first time meeting his mom and dad, and everyone was enjoying themselves. She was super chill and low-key hanging out with his friends and family." The source also added that after the game, Travis rented out a restaurant for an intimate gathering with those same friends and family, with Taylor in attendance. "They were cute and normal, just hanging out and chatting. There's no pressure."

Taylor is pictured with her arm around Travis, reportedly wearing a denim dress.

September 27, 2023:

Travis addresses Taylor in his New Heights episode, commenting, "I'm enjoying life and I sure as hell enjoyed this weekend. Shout out to Taylor for pulling up. That was pretty ballsy. I just thought it was awesome how everybody in the suite had nothing but great things to say about her - the friends and family. She looked amazing and everybody was talking about her in great light."

October 1, 2023:

Taylor brings her friends along to MetLife Stadium for another of Travis' games - in attendance were Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Sabrina Carptenter, Sophie Turner and Antoni Porowski.

October 2, 2023:

A source reveals that Travis and Taylor are "still just getting to know each other. It's nothing too serious - he is a charming guy. It's more of a hanging out situation than dating."

October 6, 2023:

Donna, Travis' mum, explains on the Got It From My Momma podcast that, "I feel like I'm in an alternate universe, because it's something i've never been involved with before. Every week just seems to trump the week before. So it's really kind of wild, a wild ride."

Further, Travis addresses his romance with Taylor during a team media availability, explaining, "It feels like I was on top of the world after the Super Bowl and right now I'm even more on top of the world." And in terms of paparazzi buzz, "You've got a lot of people that care about Taylor, and for good reason."

October 12, 2023:

Taylor attends a Kansas City Chiefs game alongside Brittany Mahomes and Travis' parents.

October 14, 2023:

Taylor and Travis hold hands on the way to making a surprise SNL appearance in NYC, including an SNL afterparty at Catch Steak. A source explained that they were super affectionate the whole night, giving each other kisses.

October 15, 2023:

Taylor and Travis hold hands around NYC after dinner at the Waverly Inn

October 22, 2023:

Taylor attends a Kansas City Chiefs game, following the pregame party, wearing a bracelet with Kelce's number (87). A photo is taken where Taylor openly kisses Travis on the cheek. Swift does a secret handshake with Brittany Mahomes. Taylor and Travis hold hands as they leave the game together. Later in the night, the two are photographed having dinner at an Argentine steakhouse called 'Piropos' in Missouri.

[newstfionline]

Monday, July 8, 2024

Political unrest worldwide is often fueled by high prices and huge debts (NYT) Like a globe-spanning tornado that touches down with little predictability, deep economic anxieties are leaving a trail of political turmoil and violence across poor and rich countries alike. In Kenya, a nation buckling under debt, protests over a proposed tax increase last week resulted in dozens of deaths, abductions of demonstrators and a partly scorched Parliament. At the same time in Bolivia, where residents have lined up for gas because of shortages, a military general led a failed coup attempt, saying the president, a former economist, must “stop impoverishing our country,” just before an armored truck rammed into the presidential palace. And in France, after months of road blockades by farmers angry over low wages and rising costs, the far-right party surged in support in the first round of snap parliamentary elections on Sunday, bringing its long-taboo brand of nationalist and anti-immigrant politics to the threshold of power. The causes, context and conditions underlying these disruptions vary widely from country to country. But a common thread is clear: rising inequality, diminished purchasing power and growing anxiety that the next generation will be worse off than this one.

Texas coastal residents told to expect power outages, flooding as Beryl moves closer to landfall (AP) Beryl began lashing Texas with rain and intensifying winds Sunday as coastal residents boarded up windows, left beach towns under evacuation orders and prepared for the powerful storm that has already cut a deadly path through parts of Mexico and the Caribbean. Although Beryl remained a tropical storm Sunday as it churned toward Texas, forecasters expected it to regain hurricane strength in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico before making landfall early Monday. The storm was projected to come ashore near the small coastal town of Matagorda, about 100 miles (161 kilometers) south of Houston, but officials cautioned the path could still change. Texas officials warned the storm would cause power outages and flooding.

Argentine President Milei heads to CPAC in Brazil, snubbing Lula and escalating a political feud (AP) Given the choice between a far-right convention to bash his enemies and a presidential summit to discuss regional trade policy, Argentine President Javier Milei preferred the stadium packed with cheering fans. The libertarian leader was in Brazil on Sunday, preparing to headline the country’s version of CPAC, the conservative political action conference, alongside former President Javier Bolsonaro in Brazil’s southern city of Balneario Camboriu. In skipping the Mercosur trade bloc summit in Paraguay and sidling up to Bolsonaro just days after federal police indicted the right-wing populist in a scheme to embezzle Saudi diamonds, Milei delivered another harsh rebuke to Brazil’s left-wing President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, escalating a risky feud with his country’s biggest trading partner.

French leftists win most seats in legislative elections, beating back far-right surge, pollsters say (AP) A coalition of the French left that quickly banded together to beat a surging far right in legislative elections won the most seats in parliament but not a majority, according to polling projections Sunday, a stunning outcome that threatens to plunge the country into political and economic turmoil. The projections put President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist alliance in second, no longer in control of parliament, and the bruised far right in third. With no bloc securing a clear majority, France faces uncertainty that could rattle markets and its economy, the European Union’s second-largest, and cast a shadow of political instability over the Paris Olympics opening in less than three weeks. Final results are not expected until late Sunday or early Monday in the highly volatile snap election that redrew the political map of France even before votes were cast.

In Ukraine, Killings of Surrendering Russians Divide an American-Led Unit (NYT) Hours after a battle in eastern Ukraine in August, a wounded and unarmed Russian soldier crawled through a nearly destroyed trench, seeking help from his captors, a unit of international volunteers led by an American. Caspar Grosse, a German medic in that unit, said he saw the soldier plead for medical attention in a mix of broken English and Russian. It was dusk. A team member looked for bandages. That is when, Mr. Grosse said, a fellow soldier hobbled over and fired his weapon into the Russian soldier’s torso. He slumped, still breathing. Another soldier fired — “just shot him in the head,” Mr. Grosse recalled in an interview. Mr. Grosse said he was so upset by the episode that he confronted his commander. He said he spoke to The New York Times after what he regarded as unwarranted killings continued. It is highly unusual for a soldier to speak publicly about battlefield conduct, particularly involving men whom he still considers friends. But he said he was too troubled to keep silent. The shooting of the unarmed, wounded Russian soldier is one of several killings that have unsettled the Chosen Company, one of the best-known units of international troops fighting on behalf of Ukraine.

Heavy rains trigger landslides in Nepal, 11 killed, 8 missing (Reuters) Heavy rains triggered landslides and flash floods killing at least 11 people in the last 36 hours in Nepal and blocking key highways and roads, officials said on Sunday. Eight people were missing, either washed away by floods or buried in landslides, while 12 others were injured and being treated in hospitals, police spokesperson Dan Bahadur Karki said. At least 50 people across Nepal have died in landslides, floods and lightning strikes since mid-June when annual monsoon rains started. Hundreds of people die every year in landslides and flash floods that are common in mostly mountainous Nepal during the monsoon season which normally starts in mid-June and continues through mid-September.

In Rafah, We Saw Destruction and the Limits of Israel’s Gaza Strategy (NYT) The armed convoy of jeeps filled with reporters rumbled into a dusty Rafah, passing flattened houses and battered apartment buildings. As we dismounted our Humvees, a stillness gripped this swath of southern Gaza, near the border with Egypt. Slabs of concrete and twisted rebar dotted the scarred landscape. Kittens darted through the wreckage. Streets once bustling with life were now a maze of rubble. Everyone was gone. More than a million people have fled to avoid an Israeli onslaught that began two months ago. Many have been displaced repeatedly and now live in tent cities that stretch for miles, where they face an uncertain future as they mourn the loss of loved ones. As Israel says it is winding down its operation against Hamas in Rafah, the Israeli military invited foreign journalists into the city on a supervised visit. The military says that it has fought with precision and restraint against Hamas fighters embedded in civilian areas. But the death, destruction and mass displacement of civilians have left Israel increasingly isolated diplomatically.

An overview of Israel’s widening conflict (Bloomberg) Israel and Hezbollah, the powerful militant group in Lebanon, are lurching closer to all-out war even as Israel dispatches its intelligence chief to Qatar for talks after Hamas signaled broad agreement with a US plan for a cease-fire in Gaza. To the north, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that the US sees a grim “momentum” toward a wider war. Tensions rose as Israel killed a senior Hezbollah in an airstrike in southern Lebanon, and Hezbollah responded by launching more than 200 missiles and a swarm of drones at Israel. In Gaza, even amid the possible progress on a cease-fire, Israel ordered Palestinians to evacuate parts of Khan Younis, underscoring its struggle to stop Hamas from regrouping in areas that it previously attacked. And the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said that more than 38,000 Palestinians have been killed there since the war began.

Sahel States Form New Alliance, Break from ECOWAS, Align with Russia in Major Regional Shift (Daily Briefs) Military juntas from Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have formed the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), distancing themselves from ECOWAS and aligning with Russia. The new alliance aims to bolster regional cooperation and establish a joint investment bank, amid postponed elections and ongoing terrorist threats. The alliance, led by coup-installed leaders, accused ECOWAS of being influenced by France and postponed elections.

Kenya’s dramatic flooding sweeps away a central part of the economy: Its farms (AP) With dismay, Martha Waema and her husband surveyed their farm that was submerged by weeks of relentless rainfall across Kenya. Water levels would rise to shoulder height after only a night of heavy downpour. The couple had expected a return of 200,000 shillings ($1,500) from their three acres after investing 80,000 shillings ($613) in maize, peas, cabbages, tomatoes and kale. But their hopes have been uprooted and destroyed. “I have been farming for 38 years, but I have never encountered losses of this magnitude,” said the 62-year-old mother of 10. The rains that started in mid-March have posed immediate dangers and left others to come. They have killed nearly 300 people, left dams at historically high levels and led the government to order residents to evacuate flood-prone areas—and bulldoze the homes of those who don’t. Now a food security crisis lies ahead, along with even higher prices in a country whose president had sought to make agriculture an even greater engine of the economy.

Students Target Teachers in Group TikTok Attack, Shaking Their School (NYT) In February, Patrice Motz, a veteran Spanish teacher at Great Valley Middle School in Malvern, Pa., was warned by another teacher that trouble was brewing. Some eighth graders at her public school had set up fake TikTok accounts impersonating teachers. Ms. Motz, who had never used TikTok, created an account. She found a fake profile for @patrice.motz, which had posted a real photo of her at the beach with her husband and their young children. “Do you like to touch kids?” a text in Spanish over the family vacation photo asked. “Answer: Sí.” In the days that followed, some 20 educators—about one quarter of the school’s faculty—discovered they were victims of fake teacher accounts rife with pedophilia innuendo, racist memes, homophobia and made-up sexual hookups among teachers. Hundreds of students soon viewed, followed or commented on the fraudulent accounts. In the aftermath, the school district briefly suspended several students, teachers said. The principal during one lunch period chastised the eighth-grade class for its behavior. The biggest fallout has been for teachers like Ms. Motz, who said she felt “kicked in the stomach” that students would so casually savage teachers’ families. The online harassment has left some teachers worried that social media platforms are helping to stunt the growth of empathy in students. Some teachers are now hesitant to call out pupils who act up in class. Others said it had been challenging to keep teaching.

[samekoblogs]

Say Yes to Heaven (Say Yes to Me)

Written for Amorra Week 2023 @amorraweek2023 for Day 3: Political Marriage.

Rating: E.

Tags: Semi-Public Sex, Vaginal Fingering, Finger Sucking, Resolved Sexual Tension, Clothed Sex, Korra is 18, Sensory Deprivation, Praise Kink.

Summary: (...)does she fear him, or does she fear getting closer to him?

Notes: I don't know if I'll post other stories for the Week, so I want to thank you all for the support shown! Special thanks go to the organizers of the event, who had the commitment to planning an Amorra Week after all this time! Thank you so much, it's been a fun ride!

The fanfic is under the cut if you're more comfortable reading on Tumblr.

NSFW content below.

~~~

“I’ll never get used to this.” 

Korra sags on the plush sofa she’s sitting on, her bored eyes traveling over the crowds of high-ranked public personalities passing by. None of them approach her luckily – she can’t deal with having the same conversation again for the bazillion time while the press tails her at her every step.

The ballroom shines from the illumination of a dozen electrical chandeliers decorated with crystal pendants. Reds, greens and blues apparels traverse the hall, mingle with each other, form and leave groups like oil that floats in the water following its currents. The chitchat and the heat produced by the lights would make for a comforting atmosphere, if it wasn’t for the tension that kept gnawing at her shoulders despite her attempt to ignore it.

She had to behave, Tarrlok warned her. A few more public appearances and the Council will be ready to announce the engagement to the press.

Too bad the novelty of galas long wore off and she would gladly spend the evening at Air Temple Island babysitting the kids for Pema.

Bolin, her one shoulder to lean on most of the time, hums sympathetically at her. 

“It’s not that bad though,” he says, putting on an encouraging smile. “We can see each other outside of training at these parties.”

“Wouldn’t you prefer to eat out together to this?” she asks, gesturing at the packed hall.

“Of course I would,” Bolin says. He’s fidgeting with his hands on his lap, petting Pabu’s head from time to time. “It’s just… I’m glad me and Mako can be here for you, and in the end, I don’t care if we aren’t having fun. I want to be a good friend to you, regardless of where we are.”

“You are being a good friend, Bolin,” Korra reassures him, brushing his arm. She gets past his mention of Mako. “Really, don’t worry about me. I’m doing fine all in all.”

It’s Tarrlok’s comments ringing back in her head from time to time that make this situation unnerving.

Maybe they’ll be popular enough to be crowned ‘Couple of the Year’ by every tabloid of Republic City.

Korra scoffs at the memory of those words, at how much malleable the rest of the Council had been when the motion had been presented and approved. Back then Korra had thought the Council was comprised of reasonable people when the Pro-Bending final match hadn’t been canceled. What a bunch of spineless fools, the attack at the stadium should have been proof enough that the Equalists had violent intentions in mind and public commotion in the future. Even as sheltered as she is, she saw it from a mile away. And yet… here she is. Forced to play their game on their behalf, just to keep peace. She wouldn’t back out, not with how much is at stake, but she wishes, now more than ever, that peace could be achievable by fighting, not by stepping back and arranging her life, her entire future. Is this punishment for having retired from Tarrlok’s task force? Is this what her refusal and fear led her to? If she had been brave enough when the situation asked for it, would that have spared her from this?

Perhaps it wouldn’t have made any difference. Tenzin feared an escalation since the attack at the stadium and, for how much unbearable he is sometimes, deep down Korra knows her airbending master is usually right. And this marriage could save lives. 

Perhaps she didn’t fight enough. Perhaps, if she had known what the future reserved for her, she wouldn’t have been such a… coward. A coward.

Korra gulps down a sip of her champagne. It tastes sour on her tongue, with the regretful thoughts clouding her mind and blocking out the sounds from the reception.

Likely sensing her ill mood, Pabu hops over to her lap, squeaking to get her attention. Korra rubs the fire ferret under his cute, little muzzle, the fur there white and soft. How she wishes she could have brought Naga. But a polar bear dog is too massive of a pet and, she has to admit, she’s not as well-behaved as Pabu when it comes to big crowds.

“Korra?”

She blinks, brought back from her musings by Bolin.

“Sorry, I wasn’t listening,” she mutters, trying to not let it show on her face the longing veiling her heart. “Did you say something?”

“I just said that… we could get us something to snack on,” Bolin proposes with a cheery smile, extending his arm to pat Pabu on his back.

Korra shakes her head.

“I’d like to but,” She looks around, trying to spot some journalists among the guests. “I can’t be seen with you for too long at this event.”

Or even at the next ones, maybe not until the union will be officialized. She frowns with disappointment, unsated vexation forcing her to press her tongue against her palate. Her betrothed is nowhere to be seen, and she’s supposed to wait for him already like a good wife. She’s no wife, she didn’t plan to be, her whole life had been devoted to training, her sole wish was to be the best Avatar she could ever aspire to become. Marriage never had been in her foreseeable plans. What will she tell her parents? She left the South Pole to learn airbending and, right now, she’s not close to bending any air and instead betrothed to a man that promised to take away her ability to ever bend again the three elements she mastered, let alone air. Part of the accord is that he, under no circumstance, can take away her bending, and she doesn’t doubt he has enough honor to carry out that term of the agreement – he gave her proof of that at Aang’s Memorial Island. Spirits, how she wishes that night never happened.

“I know we can’t do much about it,” Bolin sighs, his green eyes searching hers. “I’ll bring you something from the buffet then. Anything you particularly want on your menu?”

“Y’know, you wouldn’t be so bad as a waiter,” she jokes, with a sly grin. Bolin snorts, and she clings to that carefree sound, just as much as she clings to Bolin’s presence altogether. She doesn’t know how she would have distracted herself otherwise.

Then Tarrlok – damn Tarrlok – steps in between them, with his shit-eating grin and his sickening stench of cologne.

Annoyance comes back at the center of her chest in full force anticipating what’s about to come.

“Avatar Korra, I’m pleased to see you are mingling with the guests. And such in an intimate way too,” Tarrlok says, looking at Bolin with an affable expression holding a hint of disdain. Bolin cowers a little under that gaze, and it makes her loathe Tarrlok just a tad more than she already does. “Shouldn’t you be doing this with your companion? You came at the event together, after all…”

Korra juts out her lip. She disregards Bolin’s hand tightening around hers.

“Yeah, what about that? What about my companion, who’s nowhere to be seen?” she replies with bite. She doesn’t care if other guests will turn their heads in their direction. She’ll speak her mind however and whenever she likes.

Tarrlok doesn’t falters, doesn’t do much more than briefly lowering his eyes with a patient smile, as if she is being the unreasonable one, when it was her they gave up like a sacrificial lamb. The fact she was trying to adapt to the situation didn’t undermine the vileness of their actions, nor did her increasingly intruding thoughts about… about…

“Why, your companion is delightfully securing himself a place in the high society. He’s charming them all with his rather eloquent way of speaking.” Tarrlok places a hand on her shoulder. It’s not an amiable gesture, since his fingers are resting firmly on her clavicula. Pabu hisses quietly in her lap. She wouldn’t stop the fire ferret if he jumps on Tarrlok’s perfect hair and scratches that smug expression from his face. “You should try to show some of your charm too, Avatar Korra. The public goes into rapture when your speeches get heated.”

“My speeches…?” She tries to stall when Tarrlok gently but forcibly makes her get up from the sofa. Pabu scurries over to Bolin’s lap the moment she’s forced to, squeaking disgruntled. “This isn’t a press conference.”

“It doesn’t mean that you can’t spare a few words for a different type of audience,” Tarrlok insists, dragging her along.

Korra shoots Bolin a desolate glance. He looks back helplessly at her. Tarrlok didn’t even acknowledge his presence, as if he was just some passerby boy from the streets. Unimportant. Unwanted. A sensation Bolin must have grown painfully familiar with in life.

Korra glares angrily at Tarrlok. She shrugs away his hand from her shoulder and plants one foot down to halt his saunter.

“I accepted the agreement for peace’s sake. Not to be Amon’s little tick,” she challenges the councilman with bitter venom flooding her mouth.

“And you shouldn’t be, Korra. The role of the dutiful wife doesn’t suit you, between you and me.” Tarrlok smiles, as he so much did when he feigned to be on her side. Instead, he had been always looking left and right for a way to exploit her. He found one and, still, he wouldn’t leave her alone. “You’re not meant to be on his side. You’re meant to pose a threat to Amon. And you can do that by staying closer to him.”

“I understand this,” she manages out between her teeth. 

Or maybe I could be a threat to you, her mind warns, loud and fiery.

“Then, this is your chance to start doing your part,” he says, nodding with his chin toward the mildly dense crowd gravitating around a single man. Tarrlok nudges her forward, enough to bring her a little closer to the side of the ballroom where Equalist’s masks are hovering in between the maskless faces of intellectuals and businessmen and women. “Don’t you agree?”

Korra represses her urge to frown back at Tarrlok. She pushes into his hands her flute of champagne.

“Keep it warm for me, will ya?” she recommends, bitingly sarcastic. She then makes her way through the guests. The crowd parts as soon as she’s recognized as the Avatar. Whispers reach her ears in between some snippets of conversation. She presses forward relentlessly, mumbling excuses until she’s face to face with Amon’s second-in-command, the Lieutenant.

The man, him too in formal attire for the occasion, stops her as if she’s some kind of menace, or unwelcomed heckler. His stare doesn’t soften even when he recognizes her. Korra doesn’t wish for it to do so, their history of electrocuting and kicking each other’s asses – mostly her kicking his ass – isn’t something she intends to forget this easily. Especially the part in which it was her who mostly kicked his ass.

“Avatar. State your business,” he says, cold and professional.

“Getting around you, since I’m your boss’ companion for this gala,” she responds, drily. “In case even he forgot this.”

The Lieutenant nods at her, unblinking behind the goggles. She doesn’t believe for one second that seeing her doesn’t cause any emotion in him.

“Amon thought it would have been best for both of you to first sort out your most urgent affairs,” he says.

“Lucky for Amon, all my affairs are sorted out,” she says, proceeding to get past the Lieutenant. The man, however, doesn’t leave her be and escorts her to his leader, watching meticulously her every movement. It stresses Korra a little, but it’s a beneficial kind of stress: at least, she knows what to expect from a circumspect Lieutenant.

Amon is flanked by two equalist fighters whose identities are hidden under layers of uniform. They’re meant to be his guards beside the Lieutenant. Amon is the only Equalist present who donned himself up for the gala. He’s wearing a double-breasted black coat rather long on the tail. A burgundy sash is fastened around his middle as décor, on the hem of it the Equalist’s symbol is embroidered in white and golden threads. He didn’t leave his mask at home, so the ghostly whiteness of his public face reflects the gala’s lights, the hood of the coat furtherly hides his features. He’s elegant, no doubt, but still too recognizable as the leader of the Equalist, whose masked visage is disseminated across the city. Mere weeks ago, wanted posters had been plastered on all the newspapers. Once the agreement was sealed, their propaganda posters came back in full force; Korra must suppress a shiver every time she happens to meet those papery eyes in the streets.

Amon is conversing with Mr. Sato and what she guesses is one of Sato’s clients or close friends, judging by the warmness of Asami’s father. Korra still can’t believe that Mr. Sato seems a good candidate for being an Equalist sympathizer, when taking into account that he sponsored their Pro-bending team. Perhaps she’s jumping to conclusions, but him being so at ease around the equalists doesn’t sit well with her.

Amon’s mask turns toward what she presumes is her direction. He’s the first to notice her approaching, followed by his two interlocutors. Korra meets his stare right away, despite the slight heat spreading in her stomach. He still has this effect on her, since that terrifying encounter at Memorial Island.

“Miss Korra, it’s good to see you,” Mr. Sato salutes her, almost making her regret having suspicions about this man.

“Good evening, Mr. Sato,” she says, glancing then at his friend slash client. “You too, sir…?”

“There’s no need for sir, Miss Korra,” said man replies, taking her hand in one of his. He has Earth Kingdom’s features and a color palette to his clothes that matches them. “I’m simply honored to meet the Avatar.”

Korra shakes his hand politely, while Mr. Sato smiles friendly at the man.

“I told you Jing, that you would have your chance to meet her. He’s a big fan of yours, Miss Korra,” he adds, almost in a confabulatory manner.

“I’m happy to hear this,” she says, more sincerely this time. After quitting Tarrlok’s Task Squad, she feels like she has no supporters at all left.

Korra looks over to Amon, who’s been silent from the moment she appeared. Steadying her shoulders, she puts a hand on his forearm, gentle and discreet. It’s what she’s meant to do. It’s what she has to do. His muscles flex a little under the smooth texture of his coat. Her heart speeds up for a second, going back to a mostly normal pace once he finished bending his arm as if to welcome her hand there. As if this is a natural gesture for them. They did this at previous parties. Yet, the gesture doesn’t feel familiar enough for her. Will it ever be? Does she want it to be?

“Gentlemen, will you excuse us for a moment?” Amon says. Korra quirks an eyebrow at him. “I must discuss some private affairs with the Avatar.”

“Of course, sir,” Mr. Sato replies, raising his flute. “The gala is far from over and there will surely be more chances for us to talk. Right Jing?”

“Yes,” Jing says, nodding. Maybe with too much nodding.

The Lieutenant makes a move to follow them, but halts when Amon raises a hand.

“There’s no need for your presence, Lieutenant. Rest.”

The Lieutenant’s blue eyes stay unmoving on Amon. Korra can see from his stance alone, tense and rigid, that he’s thoroughly unhappy about that order.

“Yes, Amon.” He obeys nonetheless.

Amon takes his leave with her, guiding them through the room under the arched portal decorated with abstract patterns which leads to the doors. A doorman opens one for them. They’re out of the suffocating hall within a couple of seconds, and already the air feels cleaner, fresher. Since they’re no longer in the spotlight of the city’s elite, Korra leaves the man’s side, puts half of a foot distance away from him. The phantom touch of his arm brushing near her chest remains and gives her the chills.

“Private affairs?” she parrots him. “What do you want from me, Amon?”

She says his name as if just saying it could reignite the fire of her bravado and keep it ardent and at her disposal for a fight.

Amon clasps his hands behind his back. He appears much bigger, with his chest in full display like this. Korra tries to focus only on the holes of the mask shrouded in semi-darkness.

“Your behavior made it seem like you wanted something from me,” he replies, no fire, no discernible tone either. Just his voice stating a fact. “However, you presume too much. I don’t want anything from you.”

“Why are we here then?” she inquires, deeply furrowing her brows.

Amon’s head moves imperceptibly, his hood does too.

“An agreement was made, young Avatar,” he says, moving to one of the elongated windows along the hallway, which gives a view of the nocturnal landscape of the metropolis. “I have every intention to honor it and adhere to the terms presented to me. I don’t consider you my enemy much more than I did before, so don’t expect your hostility to be met with equal hostility.”

“I accepted that agreement too, you know,” she responds, joining him at the window to keep challenging him head-on. “And you’re not making it easy for me, if you leave me alone for the evening when we’re supposed to be seen together.”

“We already fulfilled that part of the agreement at this event, and at other events in the past,” he replies, after a second of pause.

If there ever had been one time she wished she could agree with this man, this is the one time.

“Tell that to Tarrlok,” she grumbles. “Just to be clear, it’s him that sent me looking for you. Just to be clear.”

It needs to be said, to put a barrier between them, however thin it might be proven to be. She already tried to build as many barriers as she could in the past, and despite the unfortunate end they met, she can’t give up. She can’t give up on getting a grip on herself.

Amon is surveying the faraway city lights, their reflections trembling over the sea’s waves.

“This phase will be over soon,” he says. “There will come times when the agreement won’t weigh as much as it does now.”

In the subsequent silence, Korra quietly urges those times to come soon, so she won’t have people breathing down on her neck and dumping expectations on her she wasn’t supposed to have. She then finds herself mulling over his words more carefully. The agreement does take its toll on her, but on Amon? Does it too, judging by his way of wording?

“What part of this weigh on you?” she asks, quizzically and much more accusatory when she resumes speaking. “You seem perfectly happy to be treated as a normal politician instead of a terrorist.”

“Not this part, of course. It certainly is advantageous to me and my movement,” he replies with unfiltered honesty. There wouldn’t have been any point in denying such an obvious fact anyway.

“So what?” she pries.

Amon’s eyes rest on her. Korra can make out their elongated shape, being bathed as they are in the moonlight, shining and as azure as marine gemstones. They have a pensive quality to them, which puzzles Korra together with his lack of a quick response. She had never been this close to him to see his eye color. It reminisces so much those of her nation. 

“I didn’t picture myself being a spouse,” he says in the end.

Korra clicks her tongue, dejected.

“Count me in,” she huffs. Maybe it could have been a nice thought in, let’s say, at least five years into the future. Right now, the perspective makes her nervous, and the sure fact that one day she will be married to Amon… it makes her queasy inside. Weak at her knees. Like the invisible bond marriage would put on her feels a little too much to bear, a sensation too strong unlike anything else she experienced. Much like the fear of him. Much like the weight of his icy stare on her own eyes and face. “Though, I guess… now it’s inevitable. I am in too deep to back down.”

“There will be the agreement’s terms to abide by,” Amon says, with the inflection of someone who’s starting a speech. “But, there will be also the marriage’s rules to abide by.”

“What do you mean?”

“Our rules. Rules made by you and me, to assure a peaceful coexistence,” Amon clarifies. 

Korra nods. That makes sense, of course.

“Okay, rule number one,” she says, raising her index. “Don’t make me go search for you again, I hate it.”

Mostly because of Tarrlok. A minuscule part of her, however, is embarrassed by the fact she had to search for Amon this evening and, on top of that, put a hand on his arm of her own volition to pretend something is going on between them. As if they’re really a couple in the making, or… something. She isn’t good with subtlety, it doesn’t bode well with her in general. She feels not herself, a liar, when hiding behind an act. She recognizes though, that it’s necessary to do in some cases. Such as this one. 

“I thought you would have enjoyed some time for yourself,” he says, and it sounds… thoughtful, almost. Korra isn’t sure if she’s projecting emotions that aren’t there on him.

“Well, I did,” she says, sincerely. “I wished it could have lasted longer, but alas, I did.”

“It won’t be the last time it happens,” he says, his words more akin to a promise than whatever she ever heard coming from his lips. “Do you have other rules in mind?”

“Right now, I guess not.” She takes a moment to think of activities and boundaries a normal couple should know about each other. Or basic info, now that she’s at it. It isn’t that she hasn’t any questions to ask him. It’s the opposite: she has far too many to choose from. “I had been wondering… how old are you?”

“Older than you are. I was a teenage boy I remember, when I heard the news of your reincarnation.”

Korra hums.

“So, you are a man,” she murmurs.

She swears Amon’s eyebrows furrow behind the mask, judging by the lines around his eyes.

“Yes. I am a man,” he confirms. Although there’s a questioning tone in his reply, which prompts her to stammer out an explanation.

“I-I always saw you masked, you could have been a woman with a very deep voice for all I know. Not that I would have had any issue with that,” she says, her cheeks warming a bit. It sounds a little stupid this thought she had, now that she’s exposing it out loud. “You’re in disguise even now. But I guess I’ll see your face, eventually.”

“Eventually?” he repeats, and Korra is starting to feel like she’s under some form of interrogation, which turns her tone quieter, her words more mumbled.

“Well… y-you know. Maybe we’ll be living together, in the same space in, in the future. To keep up with the façade. You’ll have to bathe at some point, or change clothes.”

She desperately keeps her attention focused on his pearly white mask to not conjure up images of a domestic life she’s nervous about having.

Amon stays silent for a couple of seconds.

“It makes sense,” he agrees. He was probably thinking she was an idiot and debating if he should say it. She doesn’t care if he considers her an idiot. Why she should? Her heart, however, begs to differ. Its beating is a little too quick for comfort.

“Just…” She thinks of Mako and Asami, and a shadow falls on her heart. “Just how much older than me are you?”

“Too old to be betrothed to you,” he says. As if this fact troubles him… makes him ashamed. Not at the Council, but rather at himself. His tone indicated such and he made no effort to hide it.

“Oh…” She doesn’t know what else to add to that. “Well… you didn’t choose to want me,” she says. Even as she feels inadequate inside, ashamed of herself for a totally different reason. She should be relieved that he sees the wrong in this forced arrangement, and she is in part. There has been a time in which she wished she had been enough for Mako. But she isn’t. Asami is enough for Mako. Now that the Council had made its decision, she’ll never be enough for anybody. They took her chances away from her. She looks up at Amon, her... future husband. “So, it’s alright.”

She tells this to herself too. That it’ll be alright. She’ll be enough in other ways. After all, her number one priority is being the Avatar. Everything else… is second thought.

“I didn’t choose to want you,” Amon agrees with her, repeating her exact words. “Never, I could have thought I wanted you.”

“Neither did I. After all, you…” She takes a quick breath. “You said you wanted to destroy me.”

Coldness runs down her spine, cooling her blood in its path. How small had she had been in his grasp, under his stare, he had seemed much more imposing shrouded in the deep shadows of the memorial. That experience brought with it the realization that her enemy is a man, tangible and real, not volatile and uncatchable and unchallengeable as the nightmarish Amon of her dreams. She can fight a human being, a man. Break his jaw with a jab. Touch his arm with a gentle hand. He can be spoken to and reasoned with, and her chest swells with a deep, powerful sensation, that prompts her to exhale softly. She had been thinking about it ever since. Perhaps even too much to admit it, without feeling her fingers tremble with the urge of closing them into fists, to suppress a surge of discomfort at the thought of someone finding out that she had been humanizing her adversary ever since, much more than it’s healthy. She tried to go back to the person she was before the ambush, but to no avail. Fear changed her. For better or worse, she can’t decide. Not when Amon’s presence puts her in a state of unrest.

“Yes,” Amon says. She hears the rustle of his hood, he’s no longer facing the window: he’s facing her. “And I should have remained on that path.”

His blue eyes are piercing in hers, through hers.

She gulps – she can’t help it, just as she can’t refrain herself from relying on her bravado to prevent her voice from abandoning her.

“If you think I would have made it easy for you to—”

“It wasn’t a threat, Avatar. I bore no killing intent towards you, and I always knew that our paths were meant to collide with each other. I never desired for them to converge at such an unfortunate meeting point,” Amon interrupts her, speaking with a grave tone. “It shouldn’t have happened like this. It shouldn’t have happened at all.”

“L-look,” Her voice trembles while she combs her hair with one hand. “I’d have preferred too if we could have battled each other tooth and nails.”

“Do you?”

His inquiry freezes her. He’s not letting her express herself, which is weird, not at all like him.

“W-what?”

“I remember a terrified girl, yet too stubborn to give in to fear and surrender. The last time I saw that girl, it had been weeks ago.” Amon draws nearer to her, not so suddenly to make her step back. “What did it change?”

“Change?” Korra sputters, indignantly. “What was supposed to change? Just because of that stupid agreement, you think I’m less wary of you? Or because you’re not trying to be intimidating on purpose, suddenly I’m not scared of you? Guess what asshole, I still am.” And she has no issue in admitting it to him, while her palpitating heart is making a steady climb to her throat. Her cheeks are hot as hell. “But I don’t want my fear to define me. I don’t want…”

She grabs the fabric of her dress, over where her heart is threatening to consume her breath. It’s a contest with herself she has been losing ever since, not willing to admit her defeat time and time again when she wonders, asks herself cornered by her own judging mind: does she fear him, or does she fear getting closer to him?

A phantom touch grazes her chin. She thinks she’s imagining it. Her eyes shoot open the moment she recognizes the feeling of skin against skin, the heat of someone else’s hand. She stares at Amon’s chest, much nearer than it had been mere seconds ago.

“This?” His question is a whisper. It makes her skin prickle where he’s barely touching her. “You don’t want this?”

She can’t speak. Mouth agape, her words are no more. She feels like she never learned to speak at all. She can only stare at the eyeholes of Amon’s mask, blue glinting back at her.

When he retreats his hand, a soft, whistling sound barely audible to her reaches her eardrums. It was his breathing, passing through the mouth slit of the mask.

“I will take my leave,” he says, his voice feels much louder to her than before, like a booming thunder shaking the darkness. “That was inappropriate.”

“Then why did you do it?” she asks before he could even think of giving her his back.

Amon’s face is slightly tilted to the side, an indication that he might not be looking her in the eye.

“To prove a point.”

Korra narrows her eyes.

“Oh y-yeah?” she sasses him. “To-to whom? To me, or to you?”

Amon stays mute. He always has words in his mouth worth three lifetimes, and now he chooses to be silent?

“It doesn’t matter anymore,” he declares, tries to turn away from her.

Korra grabs him by one flap of his collar. It’s a habit she has when her nerves get the best of her… she didn’t expect herself to fall into that instinct with Amon too.

“Y-you…” she stutters, close to his figurative mouth. “Don’t you dare. Don’t you dare run away on me. I didn’t. So you don’t get a chance too.”

She bares her teeth, her heart is beating so loud she feels its thumps in her gums. It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter anymore, as Amon eloquently said. No emotion she feels for him will ever be right. Fear isn’t what the Council, Tarrlok and the city expect from her. And neither is this urge she once felt for Mako. So why bother? Why bother hiding the real nature of her feelings and thoughts? No one bothered to care when they gave her up to what is supposed to be her enemy and number one fear. Too bad for them that Amon stopped being that a long time ago.

She grabs him by the remaining flap of his collar. Their chests are brushing against each other, Amon makes no move to back away, or press forward. His icy blue eyes are scrutinizing her, definitely larger than they normally are. He can’t feel him breathe, despite their proximity.

“Is this what you want?”

Too focused on her stubbornness and spite mixed with dizzying physical reactions, she almost missed him asking.

She nods, slow and unsure at first.

“Yes,” she says, to make her decision final.

For a couple of seconds, nothing happens.

It’s a pregnant pause before disaster. Before jumping over a line inside the jaws of uncertainty.

When Amon’s hands find her waist, his warmth filters through her dress despite his touch being light and respectful. He climbs up her torso, until his palms rest on the sides of her neck. She shudders all the way, keeping her eyes trained on his. He’s cupping her face, warming it, his fingers massaging her scalp, his thumbs caressing her cheeks.

Korra relaxes her hold on his flaps at his touch. It’s simple, yet it feels so intimate, unlike anything else in her everyday life.

She presses herself against him, giving in to that temptation she felt for Mako a lifetime ago. She kisses him on the slit of the mask, the next thing she has available for a mouth. It’s entirely different from that kiss with Mako. That had been impulse, newborn envy, and no thought. She had thought about this for a long time, trying to deny these thoughts even existed. Now they exist, and they are reality. This kiss is exciting, it’s unordinary, and it shouldn’t have ever happened. Yet it’s happening – and she loves it. She loves the smooth texture of the mask on her lips, she loves the quickening breaths transpiring through the slit, she loves how one of his hands buries itself in her hair.

She reaches to the side of the mask, trying to find a way to get it off or unclip it.

Swift as when using chi-blocking, Amon snatches her wrist.

Korra is startled. He doesn’t appear angry and he’s not trying to hurt her either, his hold is solid yet not harmful. The message, nevertheless, is clear: don’t remove it.

“I want to kiss you for real,” Korra protests, staring deep into those heated glaciers, trying to convince him, to be incentivizing. “Don’t you want it too?”

Amon’s fingers curl furtherly around her wrist. He makes her put it down, his glare regaining a placid light.

“Yes,” he says, a whisper that makes her yearn for that kiss even more. “Step back against the wall.”

Korra obliges. She didn’t expect though for Amon to stalk her every step back toward the wall farthest from the windows and the hall of the gala, his almost predatorial stance giving her goosebumps. The training ingrained into her body urges her to correct her own stance and prepare for an attack. That instinct is snuffed out by the hand Amon raises to cover her eyes during her last step.

Her back meets the wall and Korra can’t help the exhale escaping her. She’s blind, darkness overcoming her eyesight, so she strains her ears to figure out what’s going on.

She hears the rustle of fabric, the sound of leather being manipulated.

It’s her sense of touch that informs her of what’s happening next. A breeze fans over her lips, causing a shiver to run down her inert arms.

She parts her lips, craving him like water, like oxygen. Lips brush over her upper lip, soft and inviting. He gives her a chaste kiss that makes her heart skip a beat, that devolves into one full of greediness and want, so much of it. Korra closes her eyes, leans into his warmth, into the caresses of his lips and tongue. She feels around to find leverage on the man’s shoulders, deepening the kiss to the point she becomes breathless, lightheaded – and still wants more. 

Amon descends lower, tracing her jawline with his parted mouth, leaving kisses under her chin where her skin starts to prickle with pleasant goosebumps. She inadvertently exposes more of her neck, which grants him better access to it. Every touch of his lips on her tender flesh is amplified when she can’t see a thing and has only the feeling of his mouth, his nose and the faint brush of his cheek telling her he’s showering her with an attention that’s a bit overwhelming at times for how much pleasurable it is.

When Amon’s deft fingers push a little aside the collar of her dress to press kisses on her claviculae, she feels a sudden want for him to go further. Lower.

“W-wait,” she says, gently pulling him away. “Help me get the surcoat off, p-please. I’ll keep my eyes closed.”

Korra undoes the morbid belt around her waist, before reaching for the lower part of the surcoat. Amon helps her lift it over her head so she can slip out.

“Are you sure about this?” Korra stops her fingers over the first button of her dress upon hearing his voice. “You don’t need to overdo it.”

Somehow, that makes her neck and jowls hotter. Is he looking out for her? Does he think she feels obliged to do this?

“As long as no one busts us,” She smirks blindly up to where she guesses his face is. “We can do whatever we want. Can’t we?”

She doesn’t know a whole lot about erotic stuff or whatnot, but she’s eager to learn, to give in and discover more.

“Reckless girl,” he whispers, as he goes back to cover her eyes.

Something jolts in her stomach at his light reprimand, like a handful of embers caught fire in it.

Korra gulps, flattening her shoulders only when no more reprimands follow.

She unbuttons the first button, the second and so on. Her own nails and fingertips against her skin fill her with a never experienced anticipation tugging at her ribcage.

She rests her hands over where the last button is, at hip height, unsure where she should go next, if she should say something to the man she’s baring herself for. It’s not usual for her to be this… shy.

Amon’s stronger, larger hand covers hers, in a gesture of reassurance she guesses. It has this effect on her and it surprises her how well it works on her, how the nervous beating of her heart subsides as if it had been cradled by someone’s loving arms.

It seems Amon can tell when she’s ready and her mind completely made up, because his hand rises to her chest at the right time. His fingers skim over her sternum to her bosom, feather-light touches leaving streaks of shivers in their wake. He palms through the bra, her flesh plies so easily under his touch and she trembly exhales.

She puts her hand on his arm when Amon slips a hand under her bra to grope at her breasts, his mouth lowers from her shoulder to her chest and he- he takes her nipple into his mouth. Korra can’t help the small noise of surprise at the wet heat enveloping her, which soon morphs into a hum of appreciation as he suckles on it, slow and sensual and with the added scrape of teeth rendering her all too sensible, all too happy to place her other hand at the back of his head to spur him. His hair is on the longer side, soft thick locks that she treads along with her fingers. She wonders about its color, how it would feel to press her nose and face against it, and butterflies flutters in her stomach. Would it be possible such a scenario with him? With a man so reserved, so elusive? She hopes it is – she hopes this gentleness he’s displaying is just the superficial part of a whole thing. 

Her unconscious smile broadens when he moves to mouth at her stomach, her abdomen solid with muscles. He doesn’t stop there, goes further to where the dress barely covers the hem of her panties. Amon lifts her gown, the fabric pooling up her thigh exposes her leg to the air. Him, caressing the inside of her knee up to her inner thigh, mouthing at her jugular with faint breaths heating up her skin and agitated blood, is leading her mind to places she didn’t know it could go. He’s inching closer to her groin, contracting the closer he gets.

He hooks the hem of her panties, sheds them. Just as with everything that came before, Amon isn’t fretful, or impatient, which is better than okay for her. She’s glad he understands, thus sparing her from having to admit her inexperience. He takes his sweet time stroking her thighs, before he reaches her wet sex. She gasps, tensing for a split second before willing her muscles to ease back, the tender circles he traces around her labia aiding her.

Tension is tying her groin into a knot, mostly tolerable at the moment. That could change soon however, if he keeps this up.

“Korra.” She’s stunned by the sound of her name rolling down his tongue, in severe syllables. “Open your mouth.”

“Ye… yes…” she says, while her blood seems to be rushing to her cheeks, but much more of it is taking the opposite direction, plunging into her loins.

Feeling his digits smoothing over her lower lip, Korra parts her mouth more to take them in.

“Good girl…” he praises her – praises her – with a hushed, husky tone of voice. Korra is dumbfounded at first, giddy as soon as his words sink in. “Now, wet them.”

She nods, swirling her tongue around them. A saline taste hits her tastebuds, one she recognizes from the sporadic night she spent pleasuring herself. She sucks on them more eagerly, more excited and pleased, coating his fingers thoroughly with saliva.

Amon hums above her, a light rumble in his throat that sounds like approval, like satisfaction. So she seductively pops her lips while he slips his fingers out.

A few more motions around her sex and she feels him prodding at her entrance.

“Are you ready?”

“Y-yes,” she replies, limbs trembling from anticipation.

He pushes delicately into her, Korra takes a quick breath as he does. His digit slides easily inside and it makes her shudder, the thought a piece of him is inside such an intimate part of her, the fact he might be looking at her every movement, every expanding of her chest and widening of her lips, all of this is so hot to her.

Amon pumps inside her, slow and deliberate to spread her, the longer he does the more Korra opens her legs. His thumb brushes against her clit, causing her to buckle her hips, an incandescent gush of arousal slithers in her pelvis once his touches become intense.

Her breath itches, a delighted sound bubbles in her throat at the second finger he pushes inside and curls inside of her stimulating her inner walls in a way that makes her throb and moan softly. Amon seems to suppress a growl close to her ear, his powerful body is pressed flushed against hers as he pumps into her faster, harder.

She wets her lips swollen from their kisses, trying to speak.

“What a-about you?” she manages to ask.

“Don’t think about it,” he says, soft-voiced, his timber hoarse. “Is this good?”

“Yes, please.” It’s too late to stop that plea and, she realizes, she doesn’t care. “D-don’t stop.”

Pleasure is steadily mounting in her tingling, boiling core and she doesn’t ever want him to stop. Korra wraps her arms around his neck, she feels the hard muscles of his chest against her turgid breasts.

Amon breathes out against her hair, she almost misses the trembling in his breathing.

“Beautiful…” he purrs. Korra can’t believe at first she heard that coming from him, she just can’t fathom it. He suspires over her lips. “You’re so beautiful, breathtaking…”

Those words sink deep in her, cutting like a blade, tender and warm and enthralling like the embrace of a hot spring. They wash over her in a wave. And they echo.

Beautiful.

Beautiful.

Breathtaking.

She never knew she craved to be called that by anyone. Yet it brings such unbelievable joy to her. Such desire.

“A-Amon…” she calls him, she reclaims him with another frenzied kiss that’s met with unbridled need. He’s stroking her labia up to her pulsating clit, smearing her fluids to bring her to her peak. She’s close, so very close, her insides are coiled up in need, her heart is mercilessly hammering into her ribcage and ears, his tongue sliding against hers, him rubbing her clit, it’s too much.

It all comes crashing down on her in a hot, white flare. Her body arches, spams, her moan consumes itself against Amon’s assertive mouth.

She slumps, panting hard, and there’s an arm latching around her waist to keep her erect. Korra leans forward and lets her head fall against Amon’s shoulder, her arms embracing the expanse of his back.

He’s no longer covering her eyes; instead, that hand is now stroking her hair free from the hairdo. She can’t take a peek at his face from this angle, but she wouldn’t even try to. if that isn’t what he wants, she’ll wait.

She buries her nose into his coat, taking in the smell of his cologne, stark and crisp, the gentle rise and fall of his chest. She feels like she might belong here, where she is now. Perhaps she will, if things play out as they should. She hopes so.

“We should refresh ourselves and go back to the gala,” Amon says when she has come down enough to form coherent thoughts back. And the gala isn’t at the forefront of her mind.

“Let’s… do it again sometime soon… ‘kay?”

She has still the most delirious smile pulling at her lips. She wants him to say yes – she needs him to say yes.

Amon caresses the back of her head in a loving manner, he leans with his cheek on her wavy hair.

“I share the same sentiment,” he says, gracefully. Wishfully.

It makes her heart and soul soar.

[elmaestrostan]

I feel like these sorts of articles coming out before tomorrow night are just inviting bad luck, but I guess they’ve got to drop them to print before we drop the ball.

Text under the cut (because ya girl did a Times free trail just for a Unai article and keeps putting off having to ring them to cancel it)

No one ever doubts home advantage. Playing at home gives teams an edge and if it doesn’t help at all then there is something seriously wrong. The home and away win-loss record of the reigning champions Denver Nuggets basketball team is particularly stark, at 9-0 and 5-7 respectively this season. It is hard to find a team that so heavily relies on home advantage but then again, it is hard to find a top-level club that is situated so close to the stars.

“Welcome to the Mile High City, 5,280ft above sea level” greets visitors to Denver, and opposition players frequently bemoan their struggles to last the game due to the high altitude.

Aston Villa are not even the highest club in the Midlands — that honour goes to West Bromwich Albion — but if Unai Emery’s side defeat Manchester City on Wednesday evening then they will equal a club record of 14 consecutive home league victories set between December 1930 and October 1931.

It is a tall order, of course, to outwit Pep Guardiola but there is an optimism around Villa Park that naturally develops as momentum grows. The more Villa win, the more the fans expect it — and that expectancy is felt by the team. It may seem as if the stadium has emerged almost out of nowhere as a particularly tough place to go but Villa Park was ripe for a sustained spell of significant rowdiness.

Andy Townsend, the former Villa midfielder, has been waiting for it to reignite ever since he was part of the infamous League Cup semi-final second leg in February 1994 against Tranmere Rovers, in which his team overturned a 3-1 deficit to reach the final after a penalty shoot-out. Ron Atkinson, the Villa manager, called it the most dramatic match of his coaching career and it was notable for the intensity of the home fans.

“I don’t know how many were in the stadium that day, probably 40,000, but it felt like 70,000,” Townsend says. “It felt like a giant stadium. We were 3-1 down from the first leg, against a team from the league below.

“I understood that day the sound of Villa Park. Even today it makes me feel tingly just thinking about it. There was an expectancy, not just about cheering, but cursing, screaming when you made a mistake. When the goals went in and then we won the atmosphere felt huge, it felt like the club I knew I was joining and had heard about.

The Holte End provide particularly vociferous support to Villa, and sport psychologist Barnes attributes this factor as a “negative appraisal” for visiting teams

The Holte End provide particularly vociferous support to Villa, and sport psychologist Barnes attributes this factor as a “negative appraisal” for visiting teams

JAON SUPER/AP PHOTO

“I’ve been to Villa Park with Emery in charge and have felt something similar. There is an expectancy. They can be a hard crowd because they had success years ago, they have won the European Cup [in 1982]. You feel like it’s a mature and knowledgeable crowd. They have been through some rubbish times and they couldn’t see the tunnel, never mind the light at the end of it. Now, they are progressing and there is a tangible feeling that something is happening.

“When that ground is full, it has a very special atmosphere. There is no doubt that emphasising the importance of being good at home is huge. I don’t know how Emery goes about doing that. What I am seeing, rather than individual tactical parts, I am seeing the tempo and speed.

“They are a match for anyone all over the park with the intensity in their game. I am seeing a running power and desire to run as long as they can. At home I have witnessed an intensity and urgency that means the crowd are all behind them and give energy back to the players.”

That relationship between the fans and the players cannot be underestimated, because not all noise is helpful.

• Premier League title race: where the top four can win (or lose) it

“The type of noise at Villa Park is positive and encouraging rather than getting on the team’s back and piling the pressure on,” Dr Luke Barnes, a lecturer and sport and exercise psychologist at Leeds Trinity, says.

“It’s about the interpretation of the noise, seeing it as positive about things that can be achieved and gained rather than worrying about what might be lost or a negative threat. It can be quite subtle.

“The role of Emery is to shape the appraisal and present it to the players and the staff. He will emphasise the history of the club, the goal of playing in Europe, of having a positive focus. It’s about not worrying about social judgment.”

Emery has an excellent track record across his career of making home advantage count. This was to be expected when the Spaniard was in charge of Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal but his record at home with Sevilla, Valencia and Villarreal was above the league average across all seasons.

“There is a contrast between Villa under Emery and Steven Gerrard,” Barnes says. “From the psychology point of view, you think about the strong, clear social identity and team cohesion and everyone uniting behind a shared sense of purpose and a common goal. This creates a feel-good factor and contrasts with a team such as Manchester United, where it feels like everyone is pulling in different directions.

“You think about teams going to Villa Park and the Holte End in full flow is very challenging. For away teams it is very daunting and about a negative appraisal. We call it a threat appraisal. It can become a self-fulfilling prophecy in the sense that the away team reduce their performance.”

City’s Jack Grealish is suspended for Wednesday’s match against his former club

CLIVE BRUNSKILL/GETTY IMAGES

Is the sound of Villa Park enough, though, to unsettle City, the Treble winners?

“There needs to be due diligence on the opponent but Emery should also be conscious of not changing a winning formula in terms of the way they approach games,” Barnes says. “They should go through a series of steps to get to a psychological state to compete. Players like John McGinn and Ollie Watkins who are used to playing at Villa Park will give a sense of robust confidence. A set routine that is proven is something I would encourage them to stick to, rather than make changes in line with the opponent.”

It is not all about the noise when it comes to home advantage. The silence is important, too. In the NFL, the home fans want to allow their own quarterback to hear the calls made by the coach and then in turn be able to convey instructions to the team. If the home fans do their job properly, the visiting team’s quarterback has to tap out the snap count in the huddle with his feet like Gene Kelly.

There is a potential paradox in football where the more famous the fans’ impact, the more likely the stadium is to be infiltrated by interlopers or tourists who come to be entertained and do not contribute to the atmosphere.

Ironically, given the raucousness that sets Newcastle United fans apart, after the win over Chelsea two weeks ago the club’s co-owners Mehrdad Ghodoussi and Jamie Reuben posted on X, formerly Twitter, that noise levels had dipped.

“What a team #nufc we need to give these guys more support in the stadium, we need to be louder, we need to be the 12th man,” Ghodoussi said, with Reuben adding: “What a team and yes we need to match the intensity of the players with our support.”

This begs the question of whether Saudi investment and the desire to attract tourists ends up spoiling the best thing about the club

A variety of studies have shown that referees are subconsciously swayed by the ferocity of home support. That makes Villa’s present streak all the more impressive because VAR often rights the emotional wrongs. José Mourinho certainly thinks so. In 2005, Chelsea’s players admitted they were unprepared for quite how potent Anfield could be on a European night and they lost the Champions League semi-final to Luis García’s so-called ghost goal.

“Anfield is a magic place to play, it is a beautiful place to play,” Mourinho told beIn Sports years later. “They can even score goals that the players don’t score, like happened in 2005. It wasn’t García that scored the goal, it was the crowd that scored the goal, but now it isn’t possible with VAR and goalline technology.”

[echantedtoon]

Love Doesn't Do Encores Ch26 The Semifinals

(See if you can spot the Juno song reference. The song lyrics Piers and Marnie sings is from Feel Invincible by Skillet. Link to the song is below. Also apologies for this taking so long to get out, it's a lot longer than other chapters so it took  while. ALSO IMPORTANT! What do you guys want to see Piers and the reader do for Christmas??)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sf9NSd_2avA

What felt like a dream was really two days that went by fast. The first day was mostly missed because you fell asleep a little bit after you all got on the train, having been exhausted still from the previous day from all the hard lifting, deep cleaning, and staying up late to pack everything up for your trip in the early morning, AND having been woken up very early in the morning to catch the train. You had fallen asleep just a few minutes after sitting down holding your bag with Silver inside in your lap before waking up around near the end of the day. Thankful the others had just let you sleep for a while. The second day went by as usual and you all were back to traveling as you usually did on these trains. At least it wasn't high in the sky with the windows open like in those Corviknight taxies. Well two days turned into three and three turned into day four as the lot of you were sitting there. Hop was sitting next to you on his phone as you chewed on some kind of trail mix energy bar made of oats and berries to satisfy your hunger. Silver poked his head out from the bag and feeling generous you let him have the rest of the bar before he disappeared back into your bag. You yourself  had just been sitting there until Hop finally spoke up.

"We're finally headed to Wyndon!,'' Hop cheered spooking you for a moment blinking as he continued looking at Gloria, "There's a lot I want to check out there! There's that big tower and the monorail and Wyndon Stadium! Where the whole of Galar....No. The whole world is gonna be watching us!! You get it, right? You and me are gonna make our match the greatest match that ever was!!"

"HECK YEAH!," Gloria agreed totally fist pumping with him!

"What's Wyndon City like anyways?" You couldn't remember it too well from the games.

"Oh! Here!'' Answering your question Hop quickly took his phone and you watched patiently as he tapped the screen a few times before turning it to you and the picture on the screen was what looked like a town square with a corviknight statue. "This is the entrance to Wyndon City! It's the largest City in Galar at five hundred miles and where most of the operations of the League ensue." Five hundred miles!? That was just a little bigger than New York City! He swiped to the next picture which was the base of some building. "And that's Mr. Rose's tower! Where most of the companies he manages operates." Another swipe and this time it was of a GIANT pink stadium! Jeepers! If you thought the Motostoke Stadium was large then Wyndon Stadium was GIGANTIC!! Definitely the kind of stadium a giant city would have. "And that's Wyndon Stadium where the top Challenger will battle against all the gym leaders and then hopefully the Champion!"

"What happens when the top Challenger loses to one of the gym leaders?," you asked as Hop pulled his phone away.

"Then they're out of the challenge for good. And then whoever gym leader wins gets to Battle Lee for the title. And THAT has always been Raihan...And Kabu once I think. And they've always lost to Leon anyways."

Ah! So Gloria would have to remake her way through all the gym leaders again! That part you did remember about the game...Still. You couldn't shake the feeling that you were forgetting something very VERY important..Oh well. No matter anyways. Your journey was almost over anyways.....And somehow that still didn't make you any happier. Well soon after four days turned into seven days and it reached December Twenty Second. And early in the cold morning you were sound asleep leaning against the window clutching silver in your bag when you were again all of a sudden shaken awake roughly by the others for you to get up and reluctantly you did..Again. The sun wasn't even out at this time which meant it must've been very early morning again. You were barely able to heave the heavy bag over your shoulders as the three of them ushered you out the door and into the cold. The feeling of the frost and still falling snow hitting your face immediately made you jolt wide awake now going through the standard train station and then out the doors into a winter wonderland outside. You ended up shivering and pulling your hood over your head, tucking your hair into the hood with it. The others were all bundled up as well looking around as the fairly still early dark morning still blocked their view. Click! You blinked and held up your hand to your eyes as a sudden light hit you all in the form of Victor's flashlight. He shined it around you all before it landed on a road sign with the number ten.

"So this is Route Ten?," Hop asked seeing the sign through the snowflakes dropping, before looking up the path and the faint hill you'd all have to walk on, "It's like a wall made out of snow! Bet there'll be Ice Type pokemon crawling out of the woodwork in a place like this!" He turned back to Gloria. "Come on, Glory! Reckon we'll be able to train ourselves up to new heights here before the Champion Cup starts? "

Gloria nodded gazing through her scarf covered face at the hill. "Sure will. If we don't turn into icicles first."

"I believe in myself and the pokemon on my team, and I know we'll get loads stronger. So....." He smugly smiled before giving Gloria a playful push before running off. "I'm off! See you in Wyndon, Mate!"

..And Gloria ran off after him again into the dark snow. "HEY!! GET BACK 'ERE!!"

.....!?

You felt a sinking feeling in your guts watching them disappear into the darkness. "HEY!! YOU TWO COME BACK HERE!!"

You and Victor caught up to them half way up the hill as they heaved for breathed winded up running uphill through the snow. Victor scolding them before leading the way with his flashlight. By now it must've been at least six something in the morning. Your feet felt like they were weighed down with heavy blocks of ice as you trudged uphill through the snow, the lights of the train station disappeared downhill and through all the snow coming down. You shivered and rubbed at your arms trying to warm yourself up. Hopefully Silver is warm in that large backpack of yours. You all walked and walked up hill breathing heavily, as the sky slowly changed from dark to just cloudy with snow clouds and snow continuing to fall down around you. Up and Up and up you all climbed....before getting to the very top and the sight astonished you. From at the top of the hill you all looked out at the sight of a GIANT brick wall going as far as the eye could see. The horizon blocked off my what must've been hundreds of skyscrapers and some kind of spiraling tower. IT. WAS. HUGE!! A real city alright! From your place upon the giant hill you could see all the shiny buildings lit up in the early winter morning light making it look almost heavenly. It was beautiful. 

"All right! Wyndon City!," Hop suddenly cheered pointing to it, ''This is the place where I become a legend at last!! You get it don't you, Mate?" He asked turning his head to Gloria again. "After all I'm about to become the new Champion of the Galar Region! That's it! I'm headed straight for Wyndon Stadium!!" He exclaims started to trudge through the snow again. "C'mon! Don't waste too much time, Glory! You should head there yourself!"

"OH RIGHT!!" Gloria suddenly started trudging carefully down hill behind him. "We have to register before tomorrow!''

"Tomorrow?," you asked following after them.

Gloria nodded in front of you. "Tomorrow's the Challenger Matches ta see who gets ta be the one to compete in the Champion Cup on the Thirty First o' this year! They wanna decide the winnin' challenger before Christmas! That's the day after tomorrow!"

" If we don't register before today's over we'll be considered forfeit!," Hop added.

Oh. Well that WAS a problem. You four ran down hill through the snow trying not to fall over which was hard for you and Victor having heavier bags than the rest of your group. The closer you came the BIGGER the brick walls were. These walls were at least four times taller than the walls of Hammerlocke! The first one to reach the entrance was Obviously Hop, followed by Gloria as the two disappeared through the entrance, followed by you and Victor breathing heavily from the cold and crisp air. Through the archway you four went and stopped on the other side and stared at what astonished you. 

"Holy SMOKES!!"

IT WAS MASSIVE!! The city square was just like in the picture Hop showed you days earlier, but all covered in Snow that continued to fall around you. ...And REALLY NOISY!! The square in front of you had the corviknight statue surrounded by smaller bird pokemon statues, Loads of tall houses with Sky scraped seen towering further behind them, at least five streets leading off into even more streets, a faint train sounding off somewhere, and LOTS of black dots flying through the sky. You had to squint through the snow to see but it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out they were Corviknight Taxies. At least ten to fifthteen of them at the moment flying about above you- MMMUUURRRFFF!! You yelped when Gloria suddenly pulled you back and you realized why when a MASSIVE horse-..Er. Horse looking pokemon walked right in front of you carrying at least four people all bundled up in winter wear as you stared. The orange and black horse pokemon shook it's tail as it trotted past, some kind of collar and logo around it's neck, as it passed. 

"Hey. Isn't that a mudsdale?," you asked gesturing to it as it walked away down a specifically marked lane. Like a bicycle lane.

"OH THAT'S RIGHT!!" You turned to Victor. "Wyndon City's the biggest one in all of Galar. That means they have more than one transport systems here."

You blinked. "Really? What kinds?"

Victor gestured to the retreating mudsdale. "There's the subways and train cars, and of course regular cars. But those are used more further into the city where there's MUCH more people. But there's trained musdales and taxies that can take you around some parts of the city too. In fact they're some of the most popular transportations. Other than the monorail of course. It's all in part of the effort of combating the energy crisis."

Well that was certainly a way to do it! Hop pointed forward. "Come on! The first thing we should do is head to the stadium! The sooner we sign in the more time we'll have to explore the city! We might even see Lee here! All participants in the Champion Cup are supposed to be here before tomorrow!"

You nodded at the idea. "Great!" Your f/c eyes scanned around the place through the snowflakes. "So uh...Which way to the stadium?"

Everyone paused.."Uh...I'm not sure." Hop lowered his hand also looking around. "Never been here before so I'm not sure where to start."

"I think I've got an idea!" Smiled beamed gesturing her hand over on the other side of the square and you four looked over to where she was-....OH NO!! Sitting there near an alley was a parked taxi and a corviknight who cawed out before unfurling his massive wings to flap and shake all the loose snow off of him that had fallen over his ink black body. "How 'bout we jus' catch a cab there instead of wonderin' about like a couple headless pelippers?"

"Glory you're a genius!" Hop quickly agreed before making a 'follow me' motion. "C'mon! If Lee's here then we might be able to catch up to him!"

You didn't want too but reluctantly followed with a groan. You hated heights! Hopefully this'll take just a small trip. Whelp! Thirty minutes later with you death gripping your bag to yourself all buckled up and cold wind hitting your face, with the others looking out the windows in amazement at the city (you couldn't bring yourself to look outside until you landed), you all finally landed with a thud outside a VERY VERY BIG pink building. As you all filed out,(you will wobbling noodle legs like after every other time you get into these darn taxies-) you noticed that there was a whole lot of stands being set up around you all leading up to the entrance to the building which caused a shadow to fall around almost everyone. 

"...Hey, what's all of those for?"

Hop hummed looking around. "They must be setting up some merchandise stalls to sell things before the semifinals tomorrow." He pointed out one particular stall towards the right with a blue and white them. "Looks like Nessa's selling some of her brand items this year too. Pretty good last minute Christmas present. C'mon Glory." He nodded to Gloria. "Let's go in and sign in real quick." 

"I'll stay here." Victor retreated further into his coat with a sour look. Oh right. Your forgot he hated the colder weather. "I wanna take some pictures o' the stadium and stands. 'sides we're not allowed in unless we're registered challengers." He had a good point. You guys weren't probably allowed in unless you worked for the league or were a challenger. "Hurry up n' t-t-then come back as fast as ye can! I wanna get ta the hotel as soon as possible!"

The two nodded and off they ran towards the stadium up the many stairs. You opted for getting back into the taxi to wait for the two. And after Victor took a nice round of shots, he also joined you in the taxi to await Hop and Gloria's return. Both of you all bundled up as best as you could waiting in the cold before they FINALLY returned. Both bounded over towards the taxi and got it, Gloria asking the driver to take them to The Rose of Rondelands. You didn't know what that was but it sounded fancy. Regripping the seats as you took off you opted to talk to Hop sitting next to you, to distract you from the high distance. 

"S-So how'd it go?"

"I'm all sorted and ready to battle Gloria on the biggest stage of them all! We saw Marnie in there too. It looked like she was waiting for someone."

"Really?"

He nodded. "But it looks like Bede couldn't make it. Hard luck. Somehow I didn't think he'd just take being disqualified lying down. You know what I mean? I guess it is what it is." He smiled. As if the thought of Bede not coming around (Gloria-) you all pleased him, and you had a feeling why. But little did he know Bede would be making at least one other performance soon. 

"Oh, I wouldn't put it past him not showing up just yet," you said in a casual way, "You know. We went through a whole lot of surprises this year. And the event isn't until tomorrow right? There's still time for him to make an appearance."

Hop hummed but you could tell he didn't like the idea from the frown formed on his face. As the corviknight flew you all eventually landed in front of a LARGE and FANCY looking building. Piling out you looked up at it and followed the three on into the building. The inside lobby was MASSIVE and fancier than the inside. Golden accents decorated most of the things around you all with the floor so polished you could see your reflections in it but the warm air from the place was more than welcome to your cold skin. Passing all the fancy furniture you all approached the front desk as the man behind it smiled. 

"Welcome to the Rose of Rondelands, Ladies and Gentlemen," he greeted the four of you with a big smile, "Here we pride ourselves on offering five star service that is beloved throughout the world. How may I help you this fine day?"

"We would like two rooms for the night please?," Hop asked.

The man smiled more. "But of course! Say. Would any of you fine folks be registered for the semifinals tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Two of us actually. Why?"

"Oh! Marvelous! Then we might've been expecting you two!" You all exchanged confused glances as the man hummed a cheery tune and opened a book in front of him on the desk. He skimmed through it a bit flipping some pages before stopping at one. "Ah. Here we are. Challenger Reservations bought and paid for by the Marco Cosmos company for Challengers Three and Four. Names marked as a Ms. Gloria and Mr. Hop with extended company. We've been awaiting your arrival here. Provided you are the people who are listed here?"

"Really!? That's great!"

"Indeed. But I'll have to ask for identification please. Can't have anyone swindling free rooms now." Understandable. You waited patiently as Gloria and Hop went digging through their packs and pulled out their league cards to show the front desk man. After confirming that it was them the man handed the two back their league cards with a smile. "It's all cleared!" With a snap of his fingers a young woman with blonde hair stood up with a smile. "I'll have Daisy escort you all to your rooms."

You all followed the woman into one of the golden doored elevators and up, up, up you all went to nearly the top floor. But instead stopped at the twelveth floor. When the doors opened back up you four followed the woman down the long, long fancy looking hallway and stopped at a door presenting it to you and Gloria and the one across the hall from you as Hop and Victor's. You went inside and it was BIG!! You looked around the fancy looking single room with soft rugs, a giant window view, queen sized bed, fancy furniture including a golden chandelier, AND A LITERAL FIREPLACE!! A small fire was safely inside it behind safety bars giving the room a cozy holiday feel contrasted to the snow still falling down outside. Gloria had the same 'WOW!' look you had as you all looked around the room before her eyes landed on a small gift basket filled with goodies she bounded over too. 

"Look at this!," she called over to you and held up the pretty looking basket to you, "Complimentary stuff too! This is shapin' up ta be a real sweet deal!"

You nodded. "Sure will!" You smiled at your reflection in the mirror as the snow continued to fall. It would be fun. You'd get to spend the last nine days left of the year until the thirty first when Gloria won the championship match and you got to go back to your mother. ....And her rules. ..And a college degree you didn't want now that you thought about it. You loved music but not the angle. Leaving your friends and Silver behind- CHIRP!? You blinked and looked down only to find two eyes peeping out of the bag staring at you. Silver squirmed around in your bag obviously wanting out. "Oh sorry!" You quickly placed the bag down and out crawled Silver in that little hoodie of his. Shaking himself out he looked around the place before stopping at you. "Glad to see you were ok."

"I can't wait for tomorrow!," turning your head you saw Gloria flopping herself down on the giant bed smiling. "Hop's gonna be bloody brilliant out there!"

You nodded again. "I'm sure both you guys and Marnie's going to be fantastic! I know it's still pretty early in the day today, but maybe we should have a small break before tomorrow."

Gloria nodded agreeing and held up something black. Took you a moment to realize that it was a TV remote. "Let's order some chow n' get some grub! I bet a lot of good flicks are on 'night!''

You agreed and let your worries melt away joining her in watching some movies and ordering some of the food from the hotel as the hours passed. Eventually hours passed as you enjoyed yourselves but soon the sky darkened and yawns were exchanged signally it was time to retire for the night. After all you both had a big day tomorrow. Retiring to sleep Gloria taking the bed and you once again resorting to your sleeping bag with Silver curled up next to you to await the following morning. Surprisingly you had no dreams that night as you slept before waking up to the sounds of Gloria walking around. Which was also surprising since you usually were such a heavy sleeper. With a yawn you pushed yourself up from the sleeping bag and blinking the blurry sleep away as Gloria paused in her movements of tying her boot noticing you had sat up.

"Mornin'!," she greeted with a smile.

You nodded back with a yawn stretching out your arms and back. "Good morning. What time is it?"

"Nearly seven thirty in the mornin'. The matches don't start till nine o'clock but you woke up before I could wake ye up myself. So it'll help save time."

"Oh yeah. The semifinals!" You blinked now moving to get up from the sleeping bag, stirring Silver to poke his head up with a curious noise at your movements. "Where's the others?"

"Waitin' for us in the lobby. There's already a taxi waitin' for us so ya better hurry!"

That got you to scramble up, almost tripping and falling on your face as you scrambled about. Throwing on your clothes and coat and quickly making yourself look presentable as fast as possible before rushing after Gloria who by now had finished tying on her boots, and was zipping up her own coat against the cold as she called out to you to hurry. With Silver scrambling at your heels you quickly ran out into the fancy hallway closing the door behind you. The three of you made your way to the fancy elevator and got in, Gloria pressing the bottom floor button and with a ding sound the doors slowly closed around you. It was a smooth trip down to the lobby and as soon as you stepped into said Lobby, it was easy to make out the two bundled up forms of the two boys. It was hard to miss with Victor bundled up more tighter than a lock, and Hop impatiently tapping his foot before seeing you two approach and perking up towards you both. 

"There you are! We've been waiting all morning!," he said obviously nervous throwing his arms out towards the both of you. "The taxi's not gonna wait forever y'know!"

"I know, I know. I'm sorry," Gloria apologized. "But we're here now."

"Then we should leave now." Victor interrupted gesturing for all of you to go out to the awaiting taxi. "The sooner we get to the stadium the sooner we get back into somewhere warm." 

You couldn't agree more. Bracing yourselves the four of you walked out towards the entrance. Silver gave off a noise when you all of a sudden picked him up and whilst carrying him shoved the small hoodie over his head to help keep him warm. If he was insisting on following you around then he was going to keep this on. Sure enough to their word there was a taxi waiting for you all in the parking lot the corviknight perched on top of the taxi and the driver turned towards your party as you all approached.

"Gym challengers?," He asked from his spot on top of the giant bird pokemon. With nods you all answered and he gestured to his pokemon. "I was sent by Mr. Rose to take you all to Wyndon Stadium. Hop on!"

Not wanting to stand out in the cold much longer, you all climbed in. First being Victor and then all of you. he wanted to quickly get out of the cold you guessed. As soon as you were all settled he took off. You gripped slightly harder onto Silver as he sat in your lap when you all took off and flown through the air with a giant caw from the corviknight. You hated this part of any journey and definitely wouldn't be missing THIS when you went back. You swore as long as you lived you'd NEVER live in any high places or took any airplanes anywhere!! It felt like an eternity when in reality it might've only been twenty to thirty minutes for you all to arrive at the stadium. And the first thing that hit you other than the sounds of the corviknight's wings and the whooshing air was the fact that there seemed to be the faint sound of something you've grown familiar too now. The sound of a GIANT crowd. Despite your better judgement, you dared to have yourself peek over the edge of the window....and your jaw dropped for two reasons. 1. YOU WERE SUPER FREAKING HIGH AND COULD BE DROPPED ANY MOMENT WHY DID YOU FORCE YOURSELF TO DO THIS OH GOD- 2. THERE WAS MUST'VE BEEN THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WALKING AROUND ON THE STREETS LOOKING LIKE SWARMS OF TINY ANTS MAKING THEIR WAY TO WHERE YOU ASSUMED THE STADIUM WAS!! Slowly you retracted your head back in and leaned back firmly against the seat, getting a light feeling in your feet from what you just saw. Pleaselandsoonpleaselandsoonpleaselandsoon- You got your wish when the driver's voice back up. 

"We'll be landing within the moment shortly!! Everyone please hang on!!"

You didn't have to be told twice as Silver gave off a loud noise as you suddenly pulled him to you upon decent, squeezing your eyes shut as you did. Feeling the sudden stoop the metal taxi gave as you felt it suddenly descend. YOU HATED THIS SO MUCH!! The sudden decent was all of a sudden stopped when the sound of a crowd suddenly got louder and with a loud metal thud and jolt you felt yourself be put back down on firm solid ground. THANK ARCEUS!! You wanted out as soon as you can so you made to stand quickly but surprisingly it wasn't you who excited the taxi first. With a gasp, Hop's eyes suddenly went wide as plates and a smile appeared. You've seen that smile before. He only smiled like that when he saw-

"LEON!!" Faster than you had EVER seen them move before Hop practically THREW himself out of the taxi, sending the door open with a loud metal slam followed shortly by Gloria and Victor. ....You blinked before shaking your head and looking out the window. And your eyes were met with a surprising sight. Right outside the taxi...was LEON!! The purple haired man was laughing all jolly and was hugging and ruffling the hair of the three younger kids who had run out to cling to him like he was Arceus himself in the flesh. Hop in particular was staring at his brother with glee in his eyes. "I knew we'd see you here sooner or later!! Did you come all the way here just to see us fight!?"

Leon gave off another loud but happy round of laughter and nodded firmly as you managed to slowly step out of the taxi at last. "Of course I did! I wouldn't miss watching you both battle for the world!"

You blinked and looked around you. You all were directly in front of the doors in front of the VERY big Wyndon Stadium. Around you all blocking the LARGE crowd of hundreds of people was more security making a space big enough for the taxi to land and made sure to keep the crowd of people pointing, shouting, or taking pictures of the Champion standing there as you blinked and looked around. Eventually slowly walking over to the small group with Silver still in your arms. You weren't really used to the loud sounds of a city yet, but it wasn't as loud as you expected. Yet at least. Faintly the merch stands in front of the stadium could be seen past the loads of people. 

"Alright! I'm totally pumped n' ready for the show!," Hop confirmed holding up a fist to Leon who placed his hands on his hips raising a brow. 

"Well then I suppose we should all head on in and get you set up! There's only an hour left until the semi finals start so it'll be a good idea for you two to on ahead and get ready."

"Right!" Hop turned to Gloria. "Come on, Glory. We should head to the locker rooms."

"I'd better go find a s-s-spot in the stadium," Victor added as his twin sister nodded and the two began rushing off towards the stairs. "S-S-So I c-can get some good pictures o-of t-their battles."

Victor blinked when Leon patted his shoulder. "Don't worry about that." Leon smiled widely. "You're being treated to the V.I.P lounge and watching the semifinals with me this year!"

Victor eyes widened as you smiled. Ah. That's the Leon you know. "No way! You're serious!?"

Leon chuckled and nodded. "Yep! I've already promised myself to make sure you three would experience a Champion Time and nothing can be more so than joining me to watch the matches. Besides, I couldn't let you sit out in the stadium knowing how much this isn't your type of weather."

"A-Alright! That sounds amazing!"

With a smile you turned towards the ever growing crowd yourself. There was TONS of people here. If you wanted to get a good seat you'd better go get one. "I think I'd better go and get a seat then." You finally spoke finally catching the attention of the Champion who perked up seeing you again. "Wouldn't want to miss out on seeing those two battle it out." Although you already knew who was going to win, you still wanted to be supportive and watch their matches, which meant getting a stadium seat before the giant crowd over took them all....Though Silver might not take the cold so well-

"Y/n!" You blinked snapping over to Leon who smiled back at you holding Silver. With a giant smile he gestured his hand out to you. "Wow! It's been such a long time! I see you've been taking care of that pokemon real well! He looks like a real healthy drizzle!"

....You smiled and nodded back. "Thanks. But he has a name now. Silver."

Leon blinked at Silver who chirped out an answer when you spoke his name. "Silver huh?...Hmm. I think that name suits him real well." he complimented you.

"Thanks. How have you been?" Your eyes scanned back over the crowd. "Seems you really stirred up quite the crowd."

He chuckled and waved a hand. "Well I do try to make everyone as happy as I can as Champion. OH! But while I have the chance, I also wanted to thank you for all the help you gave Mum. It can be a chore for her trying to do everything herself since Gran and Gramps aren't always in the best shape to help."

Your face gave a look of surprise for a moment. "Wha- How'd you know about that?"

"Hop and I talk to each other on the phone all the time. Same with Mum and I. They've all said some really good things about you and how helpful you were!"

You stood there for a moment before chuckling bashfully. "Well it wasn't a big deal. It was the least I could do for how much she helped me out." You then pointed one hand towards the stadium. "I better go get a seat before they're all taken by the crowd."

"Hey! Why don't you come join us?," Leon offered have you stare at him taken aback.

Before you held up a hand. "What!? Oh no! Leon I couldn't ask that of you, you know that. It wouldn't be fair to everyone else around here." As if to get your point across you gestured to the crowd and Leon looked to where you were pointing. You didn't want to just take him up on his offer no matter how nice it was. It wasn't fair to everyone else who couldn't have this chance. "It's much appreciated though. It's fine really."

"But I insist." you paused as he turned back to you with a giant smile. You opened your mouth to protest but he held up a hand.  "You've helped my mother a lot. You've helped to keep my little brother and his friends safe. And from what I've been told from the incidents in Stow-on-Side and Spikemuth, you've also risked your safety a few times as well to do so." You still stared at him as he returned his hand to his side. "Part of being a Champion is being able to know people. You've done a lot and haven't asked for anything in return or taken advantage of the fact you've been around my friends and family. That's the signs of a good person. And the least I can do to repay that kindness is making sure you have a Champion Time like the rest of us." He smiled friendly to you. "And I can promise that none of the others would mind either."

You rose a brow confused. "Others?"

He nodded. "All the gym leaders come to watch the semifinals and stay until the end of the year for the Champion Cup! And now I'm extending that invitation to you and Victor here. So how's about it?"

You hesitated for a moment. Wow..This was...REALLY nice for Leon to offer you, and you really did appreciate it. But...You didn't know. Was this allowed for him to do? After all it wasn't fair to everyone else. ...But then again, the warm air would probably be better for Silver instead of standing out in the cold, and it was offered to you when you didn't ask. So it would probably be ok to accept. Plus you might get to see some of the other guys you've met! Like Alister! And Nessa!

So after a moment you smiled. "You know what? I'd love to join you guys!"

Leon smiled widely. "Great!" With a turn he made a 'follow me' motion with his hand. "Follow me! You guys are gonna really like the view!"

Victor didn't need anymore encouragement to follow and after another look to the crowd, you followed behind them too. Leon walked right up to the doors with security and after telling them you both were with him, they let you pass and on into the warm stadium. THANK GOODNESS!! Victor gave a loud sigh at the feeling of warmth washing over him as you all continued to follow them along. The inside of the stadium looked exactly as you expected it would have, with lots of security running around with other workers carrying papers, or cleaning supplies, or something along those lines as you both followed Leon past the register desk and to an elevator. Once there he hit a button on the panel outside it and with a ding it opened. You both followed him in and after he hit another button from the inside, the door closed with a ding sound and up you three went. You looked around the small elevator as it went up, up, and up and it made you nervous for a little bit. Still a bit whiplashed from the wild ride here in the taxi. ...Wait...Did that mean Raihan was gonna be here too- Ding! You have a small jump at the ding the door gave and the door opened to a floor. As Leon stepped out you and Victor followed him again and when looking around, you noticed this floor had a hallway leading both ways with lots of doors on either side of them. More workers were there too walking up and down the halls as you followed the Champion, walking past you or going in or out of the many rooms. But you all were going to one room in particular. Leon lead you to one door that was being guarded by two security guys who instantly snapped their attention to both you and Victor behind Leon.

Leon waved them off with one hand and the other grabbed the doorknob as he turned back to both of you with a smile. "Are you two ready to get the best view in the whole stadium?" After receiving your enthusiastic replies he chuckled. "Well then welcome to the Gym Leader's Suite!" With one mighty push, Leon pushed the door open and walked right in. "Hey, Everyone." He called back into the room. "Sorry I'm late!"

"Leon. Don't tell me you got lost again! I thought one of us were gonna have to rescue you like last time.," came a woman's voice that sounded familiar from the inside, "I swear sometimes you're more confusing than a spinda."

You both slowly shuffled in as Leon chuckled a bit embarrassed. "C'mon, Nessa. That's a bit harsh." Shaking his head he smiled behind him as you brought up the rear. "I got a bit distracted on the way here and invited some friends over." 

You stepped in and blinked at what you saw. The room you were all in was almost as big as Gloria's hotel room but less fancy. Warm thankfully, with some couches, a table with a few chairs, a big flat screen TV, and over in one corner was some kitchen stuff. By kitchen stuff there was a counter with a few cabinets, a sink, full sized fridge, microwave, and a coffee maker. And within the room around you was all ten gym leaders!! Ms. Opal was sitting at the table with a cup of presumed tea with Kabu who seemed to be meditating or asleep by the way he was just sitting there eyes closed and arms crossed. Gordie had been standing by the fridge leaning against the wall, but looked up from his drink when the door opened. Melony standing with him. Nessa sitting on the couch next to Bea, and across from them on the other couch was Raihan glancing at you with a surprised look with Alister sitting next to him on the opposite side of the couch. Milo was the closest one standing to you all looking to have been in the middle of eating some kind of doughnut in his hand when you walked in, and last but not least there was Piers. He had been the only one visibly standing and looking out the window as the stadium was filling up with people, but had side glanced over his shoulder just seeing Leon before turning back to the window before he could see you walk in behind him. Disinterested in whoever Leon brought with him. Oh if only he knew. And...HEY! It was the three trainers of Raihans. Sebastian, Camilla, and Aria. The triplets were encircled around the fridge most likely getting something to eat also.

''Good morning," Victor greeted politely and a bit more confidently than you as he waved. "It's really nice to meet all of you."

You were going to say hi as well. Most probably to Nessa since you've spoken to her before or maybe Ms. Opal and ask how Bede was doing. Or....maybe Raihan if you were feeling a bit more brave. But it was one soft voice that interrupted all thoughts.

"Y-Y/n." 

A lot of everyone around you (you included-) looked surprised as ALLISTER of all people spoke out and you watched in surprise as he slowly scooted himself off the couch until his feet hit the floor. With a turn of his head towards you he slowly walked towards you...and you smiled. 'y/n. Piers instantly paused. His electric blue eyes going wide all of sudden...before he blinked and looked over his shoulder. And his brows instantly shot up upon seeing YOU of all people standing there next to Leon.....YOU!? HERE!? WHAT WERE YOU DOING BACK HERE?! WITH LEON!? HUH-

"Hey, Allister." You greeted and to everyone's surprise you instantly lowered yourself to sit on your knees finally placing Silver down to your side to be eye to eye with Allister. This seemed to make him more comfortable to talk with you as he slowly walked up to you now being closer to his height. "Wow. You look great! Did you grow taller from the last time I saw you?"

He instantly nodded his hands into fists in front of his chest. "Uh huh. L-Leon s-s-said I grew three inches this year!"

You gave a small gasp. "No! That's so cool! You're growing up fast. Soon you're going to be even taller than him."

"Y-You think so?"

You nodded again smiling wide. "Oh yeah. A big strong person like you? I bet you'll be the tallest person I know!"

That seemed to make him happy as he smiled from behind his mask at you before reaching around to his pokeballs. You watched patiently as he fumbled before holding up a pokeball. "I-I made a new f-f-f-friend! W-Would you like to meet him?"

Still smiling you nodded. "I would love to meet your friend, Allister." You gestured to Silver next to you who chirped when you acknowledged him. "I want you to meet my friend too. Allister this is Silver. He's been with me for a while now. Say hello, Sil."

In response Silver have off some kind of noise towards Allister who stared for a moment. "H-Hello..." Before turning back excitedly to you. "H-Here! Y-You're gonna really like him!" You knew that you would either way. Everyone was now staring at you two in surprise. Even Kabu had opened his eyes to peer over at what was going on. A flash of bright light from Allister gave way to something white, floating, and very pretty. And you smiled wider realizing what exactly what it was. Floating there by Allister in all it's white glory, was a Froslass. "I m-m-met him w-w-when it snowed by the stadium. He really likes playing hide and s-seek with us."

"Ooh.  He's absolutely beautiful." You turned to the pokemon, and as if he was another human, you greeted him. "How do you do? It's very nice to meet you, Sir."

The pokemon blinked at you seeming to be taken a back a bit but made some noises while smiling proudly at itself. Allister slowly pointed at him. "H-He s-says you're v-very polite and i-it's n-nice to see s-s-someone recognize h-h-his looks."

You chuckled. "Well thank you! I'm glad he thinks so." Slowly you stood back up to stretch your legs still smiling. "I'm glad to see you're making new friends to play with. Are you here to watch the semifinals too?"

Allister nodded again before pointing over to the couch. "B-Bea's going to take me to the h-h-haunted houses in the c-c-city for Christmas."

You glanced from him to her and smiled. "Well doesn't that sound great!" You waved to her. "Hi. I don't think we've met. Or seen each other really."

Bea seemed to still be staring at you totally bewildered but it was nessa who spoke up next. "Oh yeah. I remember you." More surprised glances were sent between her and you as she gestured towards you. "You were Sonia's friend with the sobble! Er.." She glanced between you and Silver who shook off snowflakes. "Well, it looks like he's not too much of a sobble anymore."

You gave a couple laughs before reaching over to pat Silver's head. "Nope. My lil guy's practically all grown up now. Takes a lot of love and care and food, but Silver's worth it." You waved a hand to her. "But it's good to see you too Nessa. Hope things been well. My friend showed me your new line in the ads." You added remembering Gloria showing you a magazine with an article of her. "I really like the 'Sea Emerald Delight' dress."

She smiled your way before turning her gaze to Raihan who blinked at her. "I told you. Green dresses will look good on anyone all year round." the Dragon Gym leader rolled his eyes in response and stood up. 

You also shook your head...but paused feelings eyes on you. And it wasn't just the others around the room. Your head turned over towards the windows and you paused seeing Piers staring right back mouth a bit agape, brows raised at you. You both stared at one another for a moment before you went back to smiling, crossed your arms, and rose a brow back.

"Hey, Hot Pink. Long time no see." You greeted taking a few steps towards him. 

Leon stared for a long moment before leaning towards Victor. "Psst. Hey. Did she just use a nickname on Piers?"

Victor sighed before shaking his head. "I'll catch you up on everything later."

You stopped in front of Piers smiling and raising a brow. "You're here to watch Marnie compete right?"

Piers seemed to finally snap out of whatever surprised trance he was in when you stopped in front of him. "Uh..Y-Yeah!" he seemed to straighten up a bit going back to that blank neutral look. "Yeah. My whole team's 'ere to cheer her on."

"Ah." You nodded. "I'd expect nothing less from you all. It's real sweet of you to be here to support her." With a small smirk you asked. "So....Raihan tell you any interesting stories about me lately?"

Piers rose his brow at you for a moment.....before a smile split across his face and a small chuckle escaped from his throat. "Well I dunno." With a hum he faked thinking back and a hand came up and tapped his chin his eyes looking up. "A woman with a shiny drizzlie suddenly pullin' the hood-..I mean wool over Rai-Rai's eyes and then running off like a spooked rapidash. .... Nah." he looked back to you with that smile. "Must've been a different woman who told him to tell me hi."

You chuckled and you would've said something back if a voice didn't startle you. "Oh I'm sure it was her.~'' You jumped with a yelp and backed away from the taller guy that walked up to you two. Raihan smiled that fanged grin of his as you blinked at him. "You laughed for a whole half hour straight over the phone and then again when I told you about her guard-pokemon." His gaze shifted from Piers to you as you blinked. "Hey there, Sassy.~ Wasn't expecting you to come rolling up here with Lee! You have a knack for hanging out with famous people?"

You blinked a moment before raising a brow. "Not really. Leon just offered to be nice and I didn't want my water type out in the freezing weather."

"Aw. And here I thought you came all the way to see me.~" He faked sadness making you roll your eyes. Piers was interested in your interactions now, glancing between you both. "Y'know if you're free sometime that dinner date's still up for the taking!"

"No thanks."

"You never really gave it a thought? Really?" Raihan asked blinking surprised for a moment as you shook your head no before he smiled and leaned down closer to you making you lean back. "Well that's a first I've heard. Usually I'm something people can't get off their minds.~ You've certainly been on my mind for a while.~"

.......You reached for a nearby magazine. "Uh huh. I'm ....flattered I guess but dude. You might as well be flirting with a rock." 

Behind you all Nessa gave a small snort which Bea slapped her shoulder. "Aw. I guess you're right. But I can see why Piers likes you a lot.~" He gave that smirk that could've made anyone swoon. You raised your magazine. "You're like a short cute firecracker making my heart explo-HMPH!?"

Piers yelped when you all of a sudden you grabbed his arm and pulled him in front of you. With you now half hiding behind him now, you brandished your rolled up magazine like a sword....A harmless sword but something to ward him off non the less. Raiham blinked having been bonked harmlessly by you. You scowled using your Piers-Shield and Magazine-Sword to swing at him a couple times. Piers blinked wide eyed at you not sure what was going on.

"Bad Gym Leader! Down!,'' you firmly said scowling swinging at him, "Go to h0rny jail!"

"Wha- Jail??" He asked but held up his arms from your harmless magazine attack. "H-Hey! I was joking, Sassy! Seize fire there!"

"Silver help!!"

Raihan's eyes suddenly went wide before snapping his head when he heard a loud chirp and stumbled back when Silver eye narrowed starting walking towards you. "Hold it hold it hold it!!" Raihan held up his hands to Silver and ended up having to literally jump over the couch he was previously sitting on and stood in front of the lady gym leaders to avoid Silver who now stood between you and Piers and the couch. He narrowed his eyes at Raihan and gave a loud chirp. "Geez. You weren't kidding when you said he was protective."

Piers stared out blankly...before slowly turning his eyes to you as you peered around from behind him at Raihan....His lips quivered. And suddenly a smiled pulled at his face. "SNRK!!" Everyone looked at Piers as he turned his head away for his bangs to cover his face. One hand coming up to cover his mouth as his shoulders began trembling as a couple snickers escaped him. 

Feeling him shake from his snickers you looked up at him...and frowned at him. "Oh don't you dare-"

"PFFFFTTT!!! AHAHAHAHA!!" Too late. The flood gates opened and you stood up as Piers turned and leaned over. His hands coming to clutch his stomach as a torrent of laughs left his body as you frowned and crossed your arms. "AHAHAHAHA!! S-S-SO- *GASP* I F-FINALLY SEE IT M-MYSELF!! Hehehehehehe-"

"OH haha it's very funny! I just love it when Raihan flirts with me!"

"Really?!"

"NO!!" You shot at Raihan who....somehow...didn't look mad or anything.

 Instead he gave a knowing look between you and Piers who continued laughing in his state. Everyone around you looked surprised. Even Kabu and Ms. Opal who usually never showed any emotions as Piers continued smiling and laughing which ....was so out of character for someone like him. One moment he was his typical quiet self watching through the window waiting to see Marnie, and the next he was laughing like his funny bone was hit by a ton of bricks....More exchanges were made between everyone.

"....Seriously," Leon looked at Victor again, "What did I miss?"

"Trust me, Lee. It's a looong story."

"Uh....H-HEY!!" Leon clapped his hands a couple times to gain everyone's attention back onto him again, thank goodness, as Piers started to slowly come down from his small giggle fir. "I don't everyone's been properly introduced. Everyone." He then put an arm around Victor. "This is Victor. He's been Hoppy's friend for years! In fact his sister's competing in the semifinals today."

Victor waved and Raihan was the first to wave back. "Oh yeah. I remember seeing you with Lee's Little Bro. I'm guessing that girl who looks like you is the sister."

Victor nodded and Leon looked back to you still giving Piers a frown as the long haired finally leaned himself up into a standing position. He gestured over to you his other hand reaching to rub his neck. "And this is a newer pal of mine. But I guess a couple of you already met Y/n already. She's been a real big help lately." You perked back up hearing your name....but waved politely at everyone. "Now that we're here, has anything excited happen yet?"

Bea shook her head. "Nah. The matches don't start for another forty five minutes or something, Lee. For once you made it early without getting lost on top of the stadium again."

"Ah c'mon. You too, Bea?" Leon shook his head and sighed. "Well anyways, while we're waiting what's everyone's plans for Christmas while you're here? I'm thinking about taking Hoppy and his friends to the Christmas fair later this week."

You smiled at the small exchange before shaking your head with a sigh. Well at least the attention was finally taken off you for the moment...well all attention except for one guy in the form of the long hair rock star who went back to his neutral look except now just the smallest of smiles were curled up from his lips. "So, we ended up meetin' again after all." You blinked looking at him as he slightly smiled at you, tilting his head with a raised brow. "I gotta be honest, I really wasn't expectin' you to just walk on up with our Undefeated Champ in tow. I guess you're full of surprises." His blue eyes glanced over to your shoulder and he paused smile disappearing for the moment. Silently his hand came up but didn't make any move to touch you. "How's uh...How's your shoulder been?"

You blinked. "Oh. This?" You asked looking at your shoulder too but shrugged when looking back too Piers. "I'm perfectly fine! It's like it never happened." To make a point you rolled your shoulder and stretched your arm out. "No soreness or anything. And...Piers it's perfectly ok." He blinked surprised when you gently reached out to push his hand back to him. "You don't have to worry about me because it's not your fault." He looked down to your hand as you patted his shoulder before pulling your hand back. Piers was a genuinely nice person. You didn't want him feeling responsible for you when he already has the entire town of Spikemuth and Marnie to worry about. "You've been more than kind enough to me anyways. Besides you already have enough on your plate as it is. How's Spikemuth doing?"

Piers still stared at you for a moment, blue eyes looking down at his hand for a moment flexing it open and closed, before looking back to you. A sigh escaping his nose before his hand grabbed onto his choker again. "It's actually going a lot better now than I expected."

"Really?," you perked up. Well this certainly WAS a surprise.

he nodded closing his eyes for a moment. "After Marnie and your group left I realized I..I h-had to at least try to sort things out. You were right. I had to start taking more responsibility. And even if it's not the best solution it is something. " Blue eyes opened at you slightly to peer at your surprised face. "My crew and I's taken to start cleaning the streets and fixin' things up with Leo's assistance. There's still barely any power, and we had to pause progress because of the snow...and we're not that fair to being done yet, but it's a step in the right direction."

"Piers!" you smiled widely full of happiness. "That's amazing! I didn't expect you to actually ask Leon for help though."

"I didn't. Someone reminded him of the power crisis affectin' us down in Spikemuth and been sending us supplies and things to fix up the place."

Someone reminded Leon of Spikemuth's crisis? Who could've-.....OH!! You're mind flashed back to that meet up you and the others had with Leon and Sonia. And how you might've asked about the power crisis. That must've been when you accidentally reminded Leon of Spikemuth's situation and Leon being the kind man he is, of course helped as Champion. Whoops. But hey! It looks like what you did turned out to be a good thing in the end for everyone involved. You glanced back outside the frosty window and by now the whole stadium had been filled up with some snowflakes still falling down but not as much as yesterday. From down before the green battle field was speckled with white. And...well you really didn't MEAN to say the comment out loud. You were just talking to yourself anyways. Not to piers or anyone else, but for a moment forgot he was standing right next to you also returning to look out the window with you. It was such a pretty view even if it wasn't a landscape or anything really beautiful like that. And to think this would be one of the last things you'd get to experience before you went back. Not being able to celebrate with any holidays anymore, no more traveling, no more hanging out with friends or Silver, or having freedom or privacy. Heck. You probably wouldn't celebrate Christmas with anyone. No offense to them but you doubted that they would say no to hanging out with Leon on Christmas and you didn't feel like tagging along this time. After all they deserved to spend some time with him after not seeing him for so long. Well you guessed you could spend it with Silver watching movies at the hotel. And that's when the comment spoke from your lips. Soft enough for just you....and Piers to hear.

 "Heh. Well at least your home's better than mine." In an instant his eyes snapped over to you still keeping that neutral look but his brow raised quickly taking not you hadn't noticed him glancing at you yet. "Bet Christmas is really nice with all your friends."

"Yeah it is." You flinched and snapped to him as his eyes pierced through the glass. "It's Marnie's favorite holiday, and mine. But not 'cause of the fancy lights, or the food, or preasents. It's getting to see Marn-Marn so happy and smile. ...I'm not the best gym leader, my town's state is proof of that. But sometimes..." You stared at him as he sighed. "Sometimes I think I'm not a good big bro but then...I see her smile. ..And I can rest easy knowing that at least I'm doin' something right." You watched as he turned his eyes slowly towards you. "What's Christmas like where you're from then?''

....Your head shook before you returned your now crestfallen eyes downwards to the glass, not even able to look at your own reflection. The fabric of your coat felt rough as you ran your hands over your sleeves. Piers rose a bold brow, clearly taking note of the sudden change in mood so fast. ".....I don't remember. My mom never celebrated Christmas since I was just twelve." The rock star blinked at you, fully turning his face to you now. "I never had any gifts or christmas tree or stockings...Yeah. I GET that's not what Christmas is about. It's about spending time together and stuff. " You scowled down at the glass your fists digging into your sleeves' fabric. "But would it have hurt her to at least get me a candy cane? A sweater? A small card?! I GOT!!...." Your body deflated along with your face. ...That's...That's right......As long as you could remember it was always your dad or friends when you had them that got you a couple gifts. "....I never got anything from her." And you never did get anything again after that. Your mother became so obsessed with working and making you work and study that you....You never got to experience much of anything. Holidays lost meaning. Easter, Christmas, Halloween, YOUR BIRTHDAY!! ...They all just became regular days filled with you either working or studying enforced by your mother. Even small celebrations like proms and school dances were a 'Waste of time!' because.... because...

 "You should be studying for college! I won't be able to house you forever! Who's going to take care of me when I'm old!? I put so much work around here to keep a roof over your head! Be happy you're learning to take care of yourself like a responsible young lady!! And don't you even THINK about dating until you graduate college or do anything stupid like party!! I didn't raise you to do such horrible things! Once you get yourself settled then we can find you a husband with a respectable job and stable life! You had terrible tastes from those games rotting your brain! When I have grandchildren I expect them to be raised better than that! ...Well don't stare at me like that! Don't you have the night shift tonight! I swear you're such a heavy sleeper!"

Piers stared as your arms flopped to your sides. ".....She n-never did want to celebrate holidays. T-There was a-always some k-kind of money problem..."

"...She never wanted too...Or did she not just ever let you?," Piers asked softly and you froze, your reflection's face mirroring the giant bomb that was just suddenly dropped onto you by Piers as he watched you. But his head immediately lifted up high as he saw the telltale signs of your eyes becoming shiny, and not in the sparkly kind. More like the 'Im about to cry' signs showing. AW RAPIDASH CRAP!! Great going Piers! You just goofed up again as always. Some gym leader you were for making a girl cry. He wanted to smack himself and groaned. What was he thinking!? Instead he...reached up a hand, hesitated for a moment when you didn't respond from the movements, and then gently grabbed your shoulder. Of course you jumped at the touch and snapped to him wide eyed to him. "Hey. Come off it now. Ya shouldn't cry now. Look at this. Your mum's not 'ere is she?" No..Of course she wasn't. She was back in the other world. That shouldn't be relieving to think about but it was. "Ya can celebrate Christmas now with your mates however you want can't ya?"

.....Sniffling you shook your head no and reached a hand up to wipe at your eyes. Embarrassed that you'd have to start crying now. PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER Y/N!! THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A HAPPY TIME FOR EVERYONE!! "I-I'd l-love to...But I can't?''

"And why not? Those kids seem to 'ave taken a real shining to you." He slowly let go of your shoulder and looked over his shoulder at everyone. No one was looking at them. Thank goodness. Everyone seemed too busy talking with one another or eating to even bother noticing you. Not even your pokemon who at the moment was letting Allister rub his head curiously. Guess that was a relief. "Heh..And I can see why."

"B-Because they're all spending Christmas with Leon," your gaze turned back down sadly. "As much as I'd like to spend the holidays with them, I can't just invite myself with them all the time. Besides they deserve a chance to just hang out without me being tagged along with them, especially with their own family...And you heard Leon. He said we was taking them. Not me. I can't invite myself onto something that I wasn't even invited too."

"What about your dad? Dontcha have any other friends to hang out with?"

"No!," you shot back at him but somehow no one noticed again. "I don't! Because of my mom all my friendships sort of just...faded when when I didn't hang out with them and then they went off after highschool to who knows where! My dad's gone and my mom is...a-also...gone. ...I don't know where they are. Heck! I didn't even have Silver until Leon gave him to me this year! I-....I haven't had anyone for a l-long t-time ok?" You let out in a shaky voice and looked back away staring back out the glass. YOU WERE NOT GONNA CRY!! "I'll be fine! I was fine then and I'll be fine now, Piers."

You might've not meant to sound so harsh towards Piers but to his credit the pale man didn't even flinch when you had snapped at him. Why? You had no idea, but another silence resumed where you two slacked and he went back to looking out the window himself. 

".....Hey. Y/n?" You hummed but didn't look away from the glass as Piers spoke your name. "Have you ever been to a concert?" he asked not looking away from the glass. "Like a REAL live concert? Not what you walked into back with the shoulder incident."

...You looked back to him raising a brow and sniffling again. No. What kind of question was that? Of course you've never been to a concert! Your mother would've never allowed it! But you answered with a shaky, "N-No. I...I haven't. ..W-Why?"

He still didn't look up from the glass when he asked you, "I'm doin' a concert for the Wyndon Christmas Festival and Parade this year. Figured it'd be a great chance to get Spikemuth more attention. As of right now we'll need all the help we can get. ...How'd ya like to come and help me out a bit?"

You stared at him mouth agape suddenly and eyes blown wide at the sudden offer. Unknown to the both of you Raihan seemed to be giving a knowing smile towards Piers not that either of you noticed. "Wait...You want ME to have front row seats to your concert? Are you serious?"

Without looking at you still he nodded again. "Yeah. It'd be a nice change of pace to have someone like you around, and who knows. You could help out if another speaker ends up busted again."

You turned to him and was about to answer but someone interrupted you over the intercoms. "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN OF ALL AGES!!" That caught everyone in the room's attention as they turned to the window with you and you watched the crowd instantly starts roaring with delight as the voice continued. Leon coming to walk up and stand next to you. "WELCOME TO THIS YEAR'S SEMIFINALS OF THE WONDERFUL AND GRAND POKEMON LEAGUE GYM CHALLENGE!!! TODAY THE THREE LUCKY CONTESTAINTS THAT MANAGED TO MAKE IT THIS FAIR SHALL COMPETE TO SEE WHICH ONE OF THE LUCKY TRIO WILL HAVE THE CHANCE TO COMPETE WITH GALAR'S GREAT GYM LEADERS TO COMPETE FOR THE TITLE OF GALAR'S NEW CHAMPION!!" The crowd roared even MORE as the speaker continued on and Leon next to you smiled and crossed his arms. "PLEASE WELCOME GYM CHALLENGER GLORIA FROM POSTWICK AND MARNIE FROM SPIKEMUTH!! CHALLENGERS PLEASE REPORT TO THE FEILD FOR BATTLE!!"

You noticed immediately Piers perked up next to you and his blue eyes laserfocused on the field as one young girl with black hair walked out onto the field. That must've been Marnie! But then...Where's Gloria? Leon seemed to notice that too and rose a brow, turning his head back towards the area where Gloria was supposed to appear as Marnie reached the middle of the field. That's really strange. She should've come out onto the field around the same time Marnie did. Your face nearly pressed into the cold frosty glass as you leaned over to stare at where Gloria was supposed to appear...and slowly she did appear. Which made you sigh in relief..unlike Leon who's brows rocketed up on his face seeing Gloria. Head staring down at the ground as she slowly made her way over to the center field where Marnie was already waiting as the crowd cheered them both on for battle. The two looked like they exchanged a few words on the field before the intercom speaker spoke up again as the referee walked onto the field with them.

"CHALLENGERS PLEASE GET IN PLACE!!" Both turned and slowly walked to their placed on the field. Here we go. "POKEMON AT THE READY!! LET THE BATTLE BEGIN!!"

And you all watched as the battles took place. First Round was Marnie's Liepard vs GLoria's Raboot. Gloria won. Second round was Marnie's scrafty vs Gloria's raboot again. Marnie won. Third round was Morpeko vs Roselia. Gloria won. Fourth round Toxicroak vs Corviknight. Gloria won again. Final round match. Which meant it was time to dynamax as the man over the intercom had said with excited the crowd to no end. You had ended up wobbling when both sent out their dynamaxed Corviknight and grimmsnarl and almost fell back on your behind, luckily Leon had caught you by the arm and pulled you back up to stand with them.

"Thanks!," you told him once you were back on your feet and he nodded before turning back to the battle.

"C'mon Marn-Marn," Piers spoke just enough for both of you to hear but you did end up glancing at him when he placed his hand onto the glass face becoming more focused onto Marnie's battle. "You can do it."

You hadn't noticed the attentive look Piers had been giving the entire battle too focused on watching Gloria work her way through. But now that did, Piers wasn't the only one cheering her on. You blinked as...horns?? Began sounding out, and you too a moment to peer downwards through the glass below. They were kinda hard to spot at first but there was at least a giant spot of twenty or thirty people near where you watched blowing horns of dark magenta and cheering loudly.

"HEY, MARNIE!! HEY, HEY!! HEY, MARNIE, HEY!! HEY, MARNIE!! HEY, HEY!!  ROCK 'EM, SOCK 'EM!! THAT'S THE WAY!!  HEY, MARNIE!! HEY, HEY!! HEY, MARNIE, HEY!! HEY, MARNIE!! HEY, HEY!! LET THE DARKNESS SEE THE DAY!!", Team Yell cheered very rather loudly along with those loud as heck horns.

You weren't expecting them showing up here, but then again it made perfect sense. These guys went as far as to attempt to stop trainers (and most likely succeeding since there was only three challengers competing-)  for her and acting as bodyguards of sorts, they would totally be here to cheer her on. You somehow managed to stay up standing during the dynamax battle which ended in Marnie's Grimmsnarl winning against Gloria's corviknight as both in flashes of bright red light returned to their normal height. The crowd cheering in victory in Marnie's fifth round win. But considering Gloria had won three out of the five rounds it was clear who had really won. 

"THE MATCH BETWEEN THE FIRST TWO GYM CHALLENGERS IS OVER!! THE WINNER IS GLORIA FROM POSTWICK!!" The crowd roared as the winner was announced. Next to you Piers let out a sigh and leaned his forehead against the glass. Poor Piers. He must've wanted Marnie to win and it did guilt you a bit knowing that she wouldn't have won anyways, but in the end Marnie did do a really good job getting this far. "THERE WILL BE A TWENTY MINUTE BREAK BEFORE THE FINAL MATCH BETWEEN THE LAST CHALLENGERS!! PLEASE EXIT THE FIELD FOR REPAIRS!!"

As the two girls began walking off the field Piers turned silently removing himself from the glass and scooting past other around you gathered to watch through the windows, made his way through the door. You blinked watching him go. "Hey, Piers." He paused with the door open. "Tell Marnie I really enjoyed watching her battle." ....he nodded silently, hair shaking with his head, before silently leaving and closing the door behind you all. Most likely on his way to go see Marnie. She'll be fine, she has her big brother to help her.

You resumed your position of standing at the window arms crossed next to Leon but this time Silver joined you having to stand on tiptoes to peek out the frosty glass. Everyone else had either sat back down for the twenty minute wait or started to talk to one another. You stood there mind blank for a long moment watching the employees of the stadium rushing around in the cold for the repairs. As you continued to stare and watch Leon had left for a moment, only to return and making you blink when all of a sudden a cup from held in front of you, the smell of hot coco hitting your nose. You blinked looking at it before towards Leon who smiled holding his own drink, which you accepted after a moment with a smile.

"Hey. Thanks," you said smiling again and accepting his gift to you.

"Of course! Everyone could use a cup of hot coco this time of year," he said before taking a sip from his cup. 

You also took a sip of yours, the hot but sweet sting of coco and peppermint hitting your tongue,...before you looked back to him. "Hey. Shouldn't you go check on Gloria after that battle?"

he paused for a moment before shaking his head and jabbing a thumb behind him. "Victor already went to make sure things are alright." You looked and noticed Victor was gone...Huh. Neither was Bede now that you were looking. Wouldn't he be with Ms. Opal? "He said he'll be back before the next match but I have to remain here. With the Chairman and Oleana unable to make it here it falls upon the Champion to make sure the semifinals go smoothly for everyone." He turned back to the glass watching the display below. "Which means keeping tabs on what's going around the field, but I'll hopefully be able to meet up with the both of them after their match."..He smiled. "Besides. Wouldn't want to be late to cheer them both on!"

You couldn't disagree with that...Although it was a bit strange the Chairman wasn't here. Not too long after Victor had return, the repair crew had finished, and the voice from the Intercom returned. "THE FINAL MATCHES BETWEEN THE LAST TWO CHALLENGERS SHALL NOW COMMENCE!!" Once again the crowd roared and everyone in the room turned their attention to the TV or got up to come over to the window with you and Leon. Your f/c eyes focusing on the two that were walking onto the field, Hop and Gloria met at the center of the field and just like with Marnie before they seemed to exchange a few words. "CHALLENGERS PLEASE GET TO YOUR PLACES!!" Both turned and walked to their places. Here you go. "POKEMON AT THE READY!!" Leon recrossed his arms taking another sip from his drink focused. "BATTLE BEGIN!!"

And thus it began. First round between the two was Hop's wooloo vs Gloria's Raboot. Hop won. Raboot must've been too tuckered out from Marnie's battles. Round two was between Gloria's roselia and Hop's snorlax. Hop won again. Ouch. That roselia would definitely need a look from Nurse Joy thanks to the massive body slam it received knocking it out cold. Third round was pincurchin vs Gloria's frosmoth. Huh. You didn't know she had one. Must've gotten it from those abandoned rotomi boxes at the center. Either way she won. What surprised you on the fourth round that both tossed out full grown corviknights. Hop must've gotten his from a rotomi box too. Either way Gloria won again. Both were completely tied now. But now was the fifth and final match. You decided to reach one hand out to hold onto something in order not to fall over as both dynamaxed their corviknight and rillaboom. Your drink emitted ripples as the two duked it out making the entire stadium shake and shiver until at final last. Gloria won. Just like you knew she would, and both pokemon soon returned to their natural original sizes in more flashes of bright red. 

"AND THE VICTOR OF THE SEMIFINALS, THE CHALLENGER WHO HAS WON THEIR WAY THROUGH ALL OF THE MANY HOPEFUL TRAINERS IN THE GYM CHALLENGE, IS CHALLENGER GLORIA!!" You decided to chug down the rest of your drink as Leon still stared ..before turning around, and you noticed. Blinking you quickly swallowed down your beverage before following after, Silver immediately trailing after and Victor bounding up right behind you two. No doubt Leon was on his way to meet up with the two, and you were going to them too.

As you three went back down the hall you eventually piled into the elevator again and you watched in anticipation as Leon once again pressed the button to take you all downwards. Once again the doors closed and you descended back downwards towards the bottom. The battle didn't take too long to get there, as you excited you all had another surprise in the form of a crowd. Not too big not too small. Around fifthteen or so newsreporters or people with camera immediately shoving themselves into Leon's face and your's and Victor's by default. Leon said nothing pushing himself through the crowds you and Victor following ignoring the other people pushing themselves into your faces as your bodies pushed past and flashes of the camera made you blink. Eventually someone grabbed your arms and Leon pulled the both of you to safety within a group of security who made a barrier between the three of you and the reporters still calling out to Leon right in front of a different elevator. Sighing in relief you thanked Leon to which he nodded and turned back to the other elevator expectantly. You weren't sure what he was waiting for at first until the elevator let off a ding sound, and the door opened. Your face went from smiling to concerned in an instant when Gloria and Hop came out. Only that...Gloria didn't look too good. She looked...really nervous. One hand clutching her shirt and the other grabbing Hop's who looked to be doing his best to be comforting her. Behind you the sudden loud voices of the reporters and camera flashes became more frequent. Oh no- Gloria froze. A deer in headlights look completely taking over her face as she stared at them crowd. Hop gave them all a light frown and increased his hold on Glory pulling her closer slightly. You blinked as a cape swished in front of your face as Leon did his famous Champion pose.

"Gloria!," Leon greeted and Gloria flinched her eyes darting to him, distracted for the moment as he walked up to her arms out welcoming. ''That was incredible. Brilliant! Honestly there were tears rolling down my face before I knew it. And you were amazing Hoppy! Absolutely stunning work out there by you!" He smiled wide. "To think that the two of you set out together from the same town, built up the greatest teams, and arrived here at this point to throw everything you had at one another. That birning desire to win! Those moves filled with undefeatable passion! It was battling at it's very purest in every possible way! Even though there were some trainers who weren't sure whether you were fit to be endorsed for the gym challenge at first."

"That was you, Lee," Hop pointed out.

His brother chuckled. "Well then all the more reason! My team members and I will give everything that we've got in us to defeat our challenger! And the challenger before us might well end up being you, Glory! In fact that's precisely what I'm hoping for!"

"That's right, Glory! The real challenge is what's coming next-" Hop paused. The force upon his hand where Gloria gripped increased making him look at her and the fact she looked about ready to faint at any moment made him quiet. "Uh.......A-And I'm completely exhausted!" He looked back up to Leon. "I just want to head back to the hotel and rest." He made a not to subtle not at Leon which Leon followed. "You know, Lee. Just away from prying eyes for a while."

Leon to his credit seemed to catch on really quick to what Hop was saying and quickly agreed. "That's not a bad idea, Hop.best to refill your energy stores first. Say! Why don't we get dinner together?" He offered seeming to perk Gloria's attention a bit as he smiled. 

"I wouldn't say no, but...you never care at all what food tastes like, Lee. And..." He turned to Gloria with a questioning look and it took her a moment to nod yes to him. "...A night like this deserves more than rubbish takeaway so at least pick something good.  How about that curry place you told me about?" he looked back to leon. "Curry's Glory's favorite dish. I'm sure it'll help."

Leon nodded in agreement. "That sounds like it'd be the best place for her-..I mean. To celebrate with her. *ahem*.." He slowly leaned down to try and look her in the eye. "Psst. Hey, Glor." She blinked at him. "You taking things alright there?"

.....She nodded. "I-I think I j-j-j-just wanna go back to t-the hotel, Lee."

He gave a concerned look at her before he nodded and straightened up. "I have things to take care of here and a meeting with the Chairman after, but it's still early in the day. You two head on back to the hotel and I'll meet you there around four. Ok?" Hop nodded for the both of them. "Right...Hoppy, I think maybe you should take her back to the hotel now. I try to keep the press back for a bit." Leon paused for a moment before looking at you and Victor and gesturing towards Gloria as Hop turned her away. "I know I shouldn't ask any more of you..but could you make sure they get back to the hotel alright? There should be a taxi waiting for all of you out in the front." You nodded before grabbing Victor and pulling him along Silver still at your heels as Leon turned back to the cameras with a smile. "SO! I understand you folks have some questions?" 

It was an immediate reaction from most of the press to turn their attention to Leon as you all left. It didn't take long at all to catch up with them as you literally dragged Victor along with you so he could keep up with your pace to catch up with Hop. Gloria still kept her head down with Hop speed walking his way through the stadium and out the door with a few press still on his heels. In a moment of quick thinking, you forced yourself and Victor between the both of them and the people with cameras following after giving them a dirty look as you shooed the three along and out the stadium doors. .....Where a TON more people were waiting. Whether they were press or not you didn't care, you ended up letting go of Victor and stepping next to Gloria's side to block her side view off from any of the other thousand people cheering out. Thank GOSH you walked out to the waiting taxi within a circle of security ready to go. ...You never thought you'd be happy to get into a flying taxi but you'll make an exception for this. 

"It's ok. It's ok," you assured Gloria speed walking her over to the giant metal Taxi. The cold nipping at your face. "You'll be fine. Just get to the taxi." Once getting to the taxi you immediately grabbed the door swinging it open and ushering everyone it. Gloria, Hop, and Victor before you scooped up Silver in your arms and hopped in yourself. The door slamming shut behind you. "HEY DRIVER!!" You shouted quickly shuffling over and plopping yourself into your seat. "THE ROSE OF RHODENLANDS!! AND STEP ON IT!!" ...You never thought you'd say this again, but THANK GOODNESS you guys were able to take off into the air again. You weren't even bothered too much by the sudden take off this time. Just immediately looking at Gloria who by now had stopped crushing Hop's hand, but was leaned back in the seat breathing heavily as if she had just ran a marathon. Hop patting her shoulder with a concerned look.

"Are you alright, Glor?," Victor asked dawning the same concerned look as everyone else as he took in his sister's state. 

.....She eventually nodded. "Y-Yeah...I-I hate b-b-big spotlights." She glanced at Hop for a moment before looking back down. You could have sworn a flash of what looked like guilt flashed on her face for a moment but you couldn't be sure. "I-I just r-really wanna get back to the hotel."

"That's probably a good idea...Hey. How about when we get back the four of us grab some lunch and watch some movies together?" You offered which made Hop smile.

"Yeah! We hotel has your favorite movie! We can totally have a great time before meeting up with Lee later!''

Hop's smile seemed to get her to relax a bit, and she gave a small smile. "Y-yeah. Sounds good."

You smiled at how she seemed to be calming down from her chronic stage fright, but your bad luck was far from over. Long story short, you four had arrived back at the hotel which thankfully didn't look very crowded but you took notice of Gloria pulling her hoodie over her head and pulling her scarf over her lower face. Most likely to disguise herself. You all landed and quickly scurried into the hotel. Thankfully not a lot of people were there....Except for a blonde haired woman reporter holding a mic and a camera man bolted right up to your group making you drop Silver when they pushed you out of the way and Gloria froze as a Mic was pushed right up into her face.

"CHALLENGER GLORIA!!," the woman beamed at Gloria's pale face. "Hey, Challenger Gloria! Got time for some questions?" Gloria didn't even get  chance to answer before a mic was nearly touching her face. "First question! You and challenger Hop were both endorsed by the Champion, making the two of you rivals in a sense wouldn't you say? How does it feel to have defeated your rival?"

The boys helped you back onto your feet from the fall as Gloria sputtered. "I-I-I m-mean...W-Well.." She shrunk into her scarf. "I-It d-doesn't q-quite feel r-real yet...I mean..."

"...Right." The woman ignored her look. ''Question number two! If you wanted to tell Challenger Hop something right now, what would it be?"

Her eyes widened and Hop's attention looked back over to her as you leaned back down to pick Silver back up. "I-......I-.....W-Well....I'd s-say t-that h-he was jus' the r-r-rival I k-knew he w-was..A-An' real smart-"

"Question three!" The woman cut the terrified girl off. Silver gave an angry chirp her way. Not that you blamed him. "Level with me, kiddo. Your honest thoughts here. Think you can win the Finals too?"

"I-....I-I'm n-not sure..."

"What do you mean?" She suddenly leaned forwards making Gloria flinch. "Do you not think you're strong enough? Or perhaps you're worried that you'll meet defeat at the hands of one of the gym leaders?"

"Alright! That's enough!" Gloria gave a small squeak of terror when all of a sudden Hop pulled her back and placed her at his side with a firm hand around her shaking shoulders. Giving a glare towards the two. "Gloria's already tired from battle! And you've been asking rather rude questions. We've got dinner plans with my brother so sorry, but clear off already would you?"

The woman's smile increased as the mic was then shoved at Hop. "Ah! The Champion's younger brother right? Tell me how are taking that bittersweet-"

She didn't get to finish. The blonde reporter woman gave a gasp when all of a sudden her hand with the mic was yanked away from the two's faces and her face looked up to meet your frown. "Back. OFF!" The woman blinked at your hard tone and you released her hand. "You're being rude. And it's clear they don't wanna be bothered. Take a hint and go interview one of the Gym Leaders instead."

The woman looked at you for a moment before backing off. "Yes, yes. I understand." She smiled again. "Looking forward to seeing the birth of a brand new star." You gave her a hard look watching them leave finally with Silver giving them a hard look as well.

"Phew...Famous people sure have it rough, eh?," Hop asked jokingly to try and cheer the shaken girl up...giving a frown when she didn't respond. "....Anyways. I hope Lee gets here soon. I could eat my own arm about now." he tried instead to change the topic. 

"It'll be a while before he gets here," Victor chimed in, "He still has to oversee the field repairs and stadium crowd. So it's going to be a while before he gets here. And it's still relatively early. I say we go back to one of our rooms and take a break for a little while and grab lunch before dinner time rolls around."

Everyone agreed and back to your hotel room you four went. Gloria seemed to calm down finally back to her regular self once you got back and sat down. Time went by as you four ordered room service and played some kind of action movie that made Gloria laughed. You were glad she had relaxed from her stage fright. A few movies later and empty plates, three thirty rolled around and Hop suggested grabbing their coats and heading down to the lobby to wait for Lee. You decided to go too, but not to join them. After all Leon had just invited them not you, but you wanted to see them off just in case more paparazzi showed up. With Silver following you all turned off the TV, grabbed your coats, left the dishes where room service could get it, and left to the lobby through the elevator. And in the lobby you all waited...and waited...and waited. Three thirty turned into four o' clock. Four o' clock turned into four thirty. And Four thirty turned into five o'clock. You all stood around waiting for an hour and a half by now. Where was Leon?

"This is absurd," Hop said. he had resorted to pacing back and forth as you waited, "Even Lee's never this late. Something's not right."

"Maybe he got caught up by the paparazzi or Champion duties."

He shook his head. "No. He always does what he says he'll do. As a kid he promised me he'd become Champion one day and he went and did just that. He ought to be able to keep his own dinner plans."

"We should be patient," victor chimed in, "Lee could've gotten lost and ended up on someone's roof again."

"ALL THE MORE REASON TO GO FIND HIM!!"

You were going to say something to calm Hop's worried self down, but a voice interrupted all of you. "Kid's sure got a mouth on him, huh?" All four of you turned over, and your eyes widened in surprise as PIERS of all people came walking over towards you all. Stopping at the top of the small flight of stairs. What was he doing here? "If you were that noisy durin' battle, you'd unleash a whole new level of power y'know."

"Oh pack it in, Piers!," Hop insisted one hand on his hip, "I'm seriously worried here! So I don't need your smug mug looking like you're having a go at me, even though you act like you're giving advice." 

"Judgin' by appearances? No wonder you lost to your mate." Hop paused and Gloria noticibly flinched.

"HEY!!" Piers visibly jumped hearing you suddenly yell and he blinked when you pointed at him. "That was pretty rude of you, Hot Pink! I don't appreciate it!" Piers...blinked when you then turned to Hop. "Hop. Don't be rude ok? I understand you're worried but let's not lose our heads alright?" Hop mumbled something and you turned back to Piers. "But what are you doing here?"

Piers resumed his regular resting face. "If you're lookin' for the Champion, I saw him headin' to Rose Tower."

"Rose Tower?"

"That's where the Chairman's headqourters are in Wyndon City," Hop said, "But he should've been done by now. Why would he go there?"

"Dunno what he's up to, but I ran into him at the monorail platform. He said to tell you that he had somethin' to do at Rose tower, so he'd be late to your dinner." 

"But why Rose Tower?," Hop asked crossing his arms, "What could he have to do there at this hour?" He then looked at Piers. "Piers, do us a favor. Take us to Rose Tower would you?"

"WHAT!?," Victor asked snapping to his best friend.

"Neither of us know the way," Hop reasoned back.

You sighed. "Well if you three are going so am I." You placed your hands on your hips. "Someone has to make sure nothing goes wrong." Earning you a disbelief look from Victor.

"You too Y/n!?"

"Sheesh. What rude siblings. Always so demandin' of others."...his eyes turned to you and you blinked back noticing him- he quickly looked away clearing his throat and turning his head up. "Though I s'ppose...it's a real problem for me too if the Finals are held up for any reason. And I don't really hate the two of you little runts. You were good enough to beat me after all."...All of a sudden he chuckled and a smirk appeared on his face as he looked back to you all. "So I think I'll invite Team Yell along, and we'll all have ourselves a bit of fun. Shall we?"

"Brilliant!," Hop agreed fist pumped, "You're the best, Piers! Let's cause a real ruckus!"

"HECK YEAH!! LET'S SHAKE WYNDON FOR LEE!!," glory agreed.

"Are you three bloody INSANE!?,"Victor asked grabbing his head.

You turned to Piers and nodded at him. "Alright, Hot Pink!" You smiled. "Let's see what you can do, Rebel Man!"

"NOT YOU TOO, Y/N!!"

Victor could only watch...and then follow with a groan as you three followed Piers when he turned and walked out of the hotel. You followed Piers out of the hotel and blinked when another person in a black and hot pink winter wear was there. In the form of Marnie and at least two members of Team Yell. She turned to you all piled out there before sighing under her breath.

"Man. Why am I here for this? I'm totally exhausted from that battle you, Gloria..." She looked at Gloria who blinked. 

"We decided that team yell will cheer you on, Gloria," Piers explained, "Let's help out together."

Gloria blinked at Piers then to Marnie...before smiling. You smiled too. That was....extremely nice of Piers to do! ...Sadly a voice you dreaded all too well spoke up.

"What a beautiful display of sibling love," you all looked over at the voice. And froze at the woman in high heels walking up to your group followed by a League worker. ..and you instantly frowned as Oleana stared down at Piers. "However it is entirely unnecessary."

"Ms. Oleana?," Hop asked vocally your group's thoughts.

"Chairman Rose is with the Champion in a very, very important meeting," She explained in that uninterested monotone voice completely ignoring Hop, "There is no way I'll let anyone interfere. After all only authorized personnel with the proper key can ride the monorail to Rose Tower. That means as long s Chairman Rose is in the tower no one can disturb him." She turned away from all of you to face the monorail entrance near the hotel. "I have hand selected a member of the league and given them the key. Chairman Rose does enjoy these kind of menial games after all. Tell me. Do you think you can tell the difference between normal league staff and the one I chose?" You GLARED as a smile perked on her lips as she smiled and walked towards the monorail entrance. "Good luck to you and your menial friends."

"Do you think you can find me?" Before anyone could do anything, the man turned and BOLTED away.

"HEY!! Get back 'ere ya bloody kook!!," Gloria shouted after him.

You glared down at Oleana as she walked into the monorail untrance and soon after pressing a button disappeared up the elevator like shoot. Marnie had been watching too and had turned to Piers. "What should we do?"

To his credit, Piers stayed level headed and replied instantly. "Tch. This isn't good...But I got this one!" He turned back to your group with a wide smile. "Team yell's yellin' will handle this!"

"No! This is brilliant!" Hop agreed...before taking off blindly. "I'll search around the front of the stadium!!''

"HEY!! HOP WAIT UP!!," Victor called out before running after him.

"Guys wait!,' you called for them holding out an arm....before growling under your breath and making a fist. OLEANA!! That....That....HORRIBLE WOMAN!! But-...You blinked. Wait a minute...of course!! Your eyes widened as the memories flowed back to you. THIS WAS A GAME MECHANIC!! Piers stared at your oddly silent face before raising a brow and looking at Gloria gesturing towards you. Gloria shrugged back. That's right. In the game Oleana tried to stop the player and Hop from reaching Leon by hiding the key with a worker and then they would team up with Piers, Marnie, and Team Yell in order to corner the guy and get the key..Which means that he was- You snapped to Piers. "I know where that guy's heading!"

His blue eyes widened at you. "Really? Where?''

You pointed. "He's heading towards the plaza! Call your team mates to get there as fast as they can!" You gave a determined glare off towards the plaza's direction. "We're going to show that ladder disguised as a human that we're not gonna be playing into her mind games!"

Piers blinked surprised at you for a moment before giving his own smug look in return whipping out his phone. "For now we should try to head to the plaza together right?" you nodded. "Alright. Let's all work together and head for Rose Tower."

With Piers dialing some number, you dawning a determined looked started to march off with Silver at your heels towards the plaza, Piers following you starting to talk now with someone at the other end. Gloria turned to Marnie who blinked and gestured for her to follow. "Let's go too. Trust me. Ye don't wanna miss the action when Y/n gets angry."

There was still lots of people walking around having been just after the semifinals but you pushed past everyone face determined through the cold stomping your way towards the plaza. Oleana may have thought she was smart, and yeah she was probably smarter than you. But there was one thing the woman didn't have that you did. Gamer's insight on the story and game play. So you knew EXACTLY where he was heading. Past hoards of other people, stop lights, mudsdale rides, stop signs, and a few slippery patches of snow you FINALLY came to the plaza. Pausing in front of the corviknight statue and looking around with your hands on your hips glaring. Piers pulled up beside you a moment later dwarfing you with his height and with girls trailing up after.

"BOSS!!," Piers turned over as a woman in Team yell gear strode up to him. With a sigh she saluted to the rock star. "We got here as fast as we could! We're already got our guys tailing the league workers 'round the plaze place!"

To her smile Piers nodded at her. "Good job!" Before he looked around with you. "There was a few visible league workers walking around and some team yell grunts you could see past the other walking people. "Let's find Oleana's league staff member. That bad one was wearin' those lame shades right?"

the woman paused...before humming and rubbing her arm. "Gee. I dunno Boss. All of them have tacky shades and dreads."

"Well what now then?," Gloria asked looking around. "That bloke could be anyone 'ere!"

"Working on it!" You frantically looked around eyes peering this way and that looking between all the visible league workers...until your eyes landed on one staring at your group. He seemed to flinch as you glared at him hard enough to crack a diamond...and you CHARGED towards him with the speed and power of a mudsdale ready to tackle him if needed. Your action made the man dawn a look of panic and as a result turned and fled. You thought you heard someone yelling your name behind you but in your anger you didn't bother to look back. You bumped and smacked into people getting looks thrown your way following the white dashing away until your broke through the crowd of people breathing heavily and stopping on the edge of a street as a bike whisked past you. Almost hitting you. You flinched pulling back and blinking as the biker yelled to watch where you were going. You paused...looking left and right as people walked around you. the sky was starting to get dark now making it harder for you to see everyone as lights of the city was the only source. Feeling dizzy and turning this way and that looking for the man. ...Until realizing he was gone. ...."RRRRRRR!! UGH!!" You glared at nothing and picked up a pile of snow next to Silver up into the air. GREAT!! He got away- !? You flinched when someone grabbed your shoulder. Whipping around, you saw that it was Piers in his black scarf and pink earmuffs looking at you calmly.....You stared at him before looking around one more time as the girls pushed through the crowds catching up to you two as well...Before frowning and looking back to him. "Piers. That guy is heading for the monorail."

"Are you sure?," he asked calmly.

You nodded. "I'm positive! You need to call your boys and tell them to get to the monorail station FAST!!"

Without questioning it he nodded and once again whipped out his phone as you turned to Gloria who panted from running. "Gloria! Call Victor and tell him to get himself and Hop over to the monorail station as fast as they can!" To her credit Gloria didn't question it either and pulled her own phone from her pocket. your head returned to looking around the place as the sky darkened more. "Now which way is the monorail."

"I know the way," you looked to gloria who calmly stared back before pointing left. "I was here with Piers yesterday. The monorail is in that direction." 

"Are you sure?" She nodded. "Do you think you can show us the way?" 

She nodded and began walking off. As you all began following her you heard Piers speak into the phone. "Team Yell go find Hop! We'll corner that league staff member at the station together!"

Following Marnie through the crowd and dark, you steeled your anger for now and tried to focus on just getting that key! Eventually you all reached the station and Marnie began jogging towards it. You still followed spotting to your right a head of purple hair and a familiar beanie. HOP AND VICTOR!! Hop was farther in front of Victor making Marnie and Hop the first one to go inside the station running past people followed by Victor, and the rest of you trailing after. Thank goodness the inside of the monorail station wasn't too crowded.

"Hop!," you called out making the boy yelped and whirl around to you breathing and walking up to him. You looked head and saw four men that looked exactly alike. And you knew exactly which one you wanted.

"Y/n!," Hop responded seeing you. "I'm sorry. We didn't get to see where he went." He apologized giving a sorry look. "We were too late."

.....You pointed right at him with that frown. And instantly the man on the far right flinched. "It's HIM!"

Everyone looked between you and the man. "...Are you sure?''

You nodded. "...Now...How are we supposed to get the key is the real question- !?" You paused again as Piers grabbed your shoulder and you turned to see his smile.

"You did a crackin' job cornerin' that bad league staff member, mates." He patted your shoulder a bit before letting go of you and walking forward a few steps in front of your group eyeing the men a bit in silence before speaking again. "Let me sing you a song fittin' of your rockin' deeds." 

...You blinked confused. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait. you're gonna do what?"

he didn't turn to you. "The only thing a humble singer can do is sing a humble song." he replied before inhaling and letting out a small breath. "Maybe I can't cheer someone on just with the tunes I play. Maybe my songs don't make anyone happy. Maybe I can't help." Marnie gave her brother  look. "But still the only thing I can do is sing. ..Sing my humble song."....In an instant blue eyes snapped open with the bite of a snake and it was a blur as Piers suddenly moved his arm- WHAM!! You all blinked when he slammed down a full mic stand (where did he get that thing?) and smirked at the four men like he was in a full battle with narrowed eyes and a smirk. "When you all get an openin'. Take it!'' Before you could ask what he meant, he held up a hand and snapped his fingers. "SOUND IT OFF!!"

W H A M!! You all jumped and whirled to the sight of one of the beefier Team Yell men heaved a giant stereo in (SERIOUSLY! Where the heck did they get those out of nowhere?!) slamming it too the ground before kicking it with his spiked boot. The stereo made a record scratch noise before all of a sudden rock noise came from it. Was Piers gonna sing-.....OH!! That's right! You glanced back to Piers who was already tapping his foot to the beat. RIGHT! Piers's song distraction while in game!

"Target on my back!~ Lone survivor lasts!~ They got me in their sights!~", Piers sang out amplified on the mic and it instantly grabbed your attention. The league men in front of you looking absolutely bewildered and not sure what was going on. "No surrender!~ No trigger fingers!~ Go livin' the dangerous life!~" What was singing going to do tho? You turned to Gloria when she tugged on your sleeve, before pointing behind you and you looked towards the entrance. Eyes nearly buldging out of your head as people were starting to walk towards the entrance hearing the music...then up towards the second floor balcony as a good twenty people were looking over and a couple had their phone out. It dawned on you....PIERS WAS BLOODY ABSOLUTELY FAMOUS!! Of course people would flock to him hearing his voice!! Marnie stepped closer to her bro and the mic. "Hey, hey, hey!~ Every day when I wake I'm tryin' to get up!~ They're knockin' me down!~"

"Chewing me up!~ Spitting me out!~," Marnie unashamed joined Piers leaning towards the mic and he didn't mind smiling and leaning back to give her room to join before taking back the mic.

"Hey, hey, hey!~ When I need ta be saved you're makin' me strong!~ You're makin' me stand!~"

"Never will fall!~ Never will end!~" WOW!! Marnie's voice was absolutely splendid as well! You guessed personality and blue eyes weren't the only thing the siblings shared. It was singing talent too!

"Shot like a rocket up into the sky!~ Nothing can stop me tonight!~" Piers took back the mic wholey all of a sudden as the beat picked up loud from the stereo. "YOU MAKE ME FEEL INVINCIBLE!!~ EARTHQUAKE POWERFUL!!~ JUST LIKE A TIDAL WAVE!!~ YOU MAKE ME BRAVE!!~ YOU'RE MY TITANIUM!!~ FIGHT SONG!! RAISING UP!!~" Piers's voice rang loud and proud echoing around the small station and people started moving from the top balcony towards him. here they come!! "LIKE A ROAR OF VICTORY IN A STADIUM!!~ WHO CAN TOUCH ME CUASE I'M!!~"

"I'M MADE OF FIRE!!~"

"WHO CAN STOP ME TONIGHT!?~"

"'M HARD WIRED!~"

"YOU MAKE ME FEEL INVICIBLE!!~ I FEEL, I FEEL IT!!~ INVICIBLE!!~ I FEEL, I FEEL IT!!~ INVINVIBLE!!~" 

Marnie stepped back fast back towards you as the crowd came thundering down the stairs. The league guys looked horrorified as they yelled, swept away from the crowd. NEVER underestimate the power of music!! ....But to be fair you guys were too. You barely had time to snatch Silver into your arms to keep him from being trampled by everyone as all of a sudden the singer resumed his blank face again as people pushed you all away inorder to snap pictures of him or call out to him. You held up Silver above your head to better step around and through the crowd towards the stairs again with the others. All of a sudden marnie pushed her way onto the stairs stumbling a bit, something that looked like a credit card in her hand. Straightening up, she turned back to you guys and held it up. SHE MANAGED TO GET THE KEY!!

"We got the key, Piers!," she called out to her brother, "We can take the monorail to Rose Tower now!"

"GLORIA!! HOP!!," Piers shouted through his mic, "All of ya! Now's your chance!! GO!! Get outta here!!"

All four of you quickly waded your way through the crowd and ran up the stairs behind Marnie. She ran up and slid the card through a small slit. With a ding the door opened and you and the four kiddos (and Silver-) crammed yourselves into it. With a whirl sound the doors closed shut behind you and up you went leaving Piers and his crowd of fans behind.

With a sigh of relief you took a moment to relax...before looking at Marnie. "Hey." She hummed and looked at you from her spot next to Victor. "Nice job getting the key. And absolute smashing job at singing!" You smiled widely. "I guess Piers isn't the only one with a beautiful singing voice." marnie looked down shyly but mumbled a thank you. "Oh hey. Do you still have that card key?"

"Yes."

"Here. Hand it over to me. I don't want ya caught with it."

She handed you over the key nd you pocketed it. Ok. Only one more obstacle to face now. Oleana. But first you had to get to her as well...And you already formed a plan. You five rode the monorail around the dark city and finally arrived. it was completely dark now and when the monorail stopped in was in front of a HUGE tower. The glass and metal looked dark blue in the dark other than the snow covering it in the middle of winter giving it a menacing sorta look. The door slid back open and you five piled out with hop in the lead. Running on the street in front of the building before stopping in front of the pathway to said building and looked up at it.All of you stopping behind him.

"So this is Rose Tower," Hop awed looking up wide eyed at it. You were all able to see your breath in the cold air. "Just how tall do you think it is? I can't even see the top up there in the clouds!"

"So what should we do?," Marnie asked. "Team yell is gonna have their hands full holdin' up those bad league staff members. They won't be catchin' up anytime soon."

"Yeah, Y/n!" Hop looked at you. None of you noticed someone else coming in through the monorail. "What should we do?"

"Let's go ahead!," you immediately said pointing forward. Get this over with.

Hop nodded. "Good thinking. Let's go collect Lee and get out of here! Without him there's no Champion for Glory to challenge in the Champion Cup!"

Marnie agreed. "You all cleared the way to Rose tower. Now all you gotta do is charge on ahead. " Her gaze looked up towards the tower. "An employee's an employee I guess...Seems that exec lady hid the monorail key to try and impress the Chairman. Chairman Rose's been keepin' the Champion holed up inside. Wonder what he's plottin'?" That was a very good point-

"Times like this." You all looked over as the sound of footsteps approached you in the form of Piers. When did he get here? "When tension and passion run high. Reminds me of Spikemuth in the old days. Some right wild concerts we had back then. But no encores!" his gaze turned from the tower to all of you. "Wait. You're still here? You better get goin'. I'll send some support your way with a yell."

Marnie nodded. "Gotta stick around to make sure my bro doesn't do anything crazy right? Come back if you need anything."

Hop nodded with a determined look to the twins. "Let's go guys."

Piers bowed as Hop took off with the twins right behind him. You made to go after them but paused...and looking behind you at the two Spikemuth siblings...You turned around and walked back towards them putting Silver down. Piers stood back up, and blinked in surprise as you walked right up to him. You two silently stared at each other for a moment, before you suddenly spread your arms out and delivered a hug to the taller man. Marnie's eyes widened in surprise as did Piers as he felt your Warmth pressed against his colder body completely frozen...And his full blown eyes slowly tilted down towards you. After a moment you pulled away and gave a genuine smile. 

"Hey. I know it's out of the blue...But thanks so much for helping out me and my friends." Your bright smile met him..and Piers...Piers felt himself gulp for no reason still wide eyed. "I don't care what anyone says. You're a really good guy and I can see why so many people rally around you." With another smile you turned and jogged a few steps away-

"Y/N!," Piers suddenly called out to you reaching an arm your way. You paused turning back to him. He silently stared at you for a moment looking down and his hand reaching to fiddle with his choker. "....Meet me at the plaza early in mornin' on Christmas. I'll have one of my crew pick you up before my performance."

You blinked but nodded. "Take Marnie and your guys and get outta here while you can. Don't worry. I'll make sure you all don't get in trouble. I promise." You then turned and ran after the others with Silver on your heels. Piers watching your form disappear.

Marnie silently watched you go..before looking at her brother then back to where you disappeared into Rose Tower. "So that's the gal that's been able to make you laugh so easily?...I like her." Piers gave a hum before sighing and closing his eyes. "So how long have you been seein' your new girlfriend?"

.....he suddenly snapped to her wide eyed. "W O T!?"

You had caught up to the three in the tower and the first thing you could say about the place was that it was DARK!! Just like outside at nighttime. The four of you looked around the giant metal place wide eyed. 

"Whoa! It's huge in here!," hop awed looking around as the four of you approached the elevator...you picked up Silver again remembering something and getting him ready. "What in the world is this place meant to be?"

"I h-have no clue," victor replied looking incredibly nervous around the place. "W-We shouldn't even be in 'ere! We're gonna be 'n so much trouble."

"Calm down, Vic!" Hop looked to Gloria. "Listen Glory. Don't know if you knew this already, but I've heard Rose Tower was built on a power spot. Yeah. You know what I'm saying. When we get up to the roof and have a bit of space we can dynamax our pokemon. Which is all well and good." He spoke as your four approached the elevator. "But less certain is whether this lift can get us to the top. Rose Towers has like a hundred floors, right-"

the doors flew open making Gloria and Hop gaso and jump back from the employee walking out of it. "You'll be leaving right now,so there's no reason to worry about the lift!"

"INTRUDER ALERT!! INTRUDER ALERT!!" You looked up as an alarm started blaring making Victor even more pale as Oleana's voice cut through the speakers like you were burglers!! "ALL STAFF ARE ORDERED TO HELP REMOVE THE INTRUDERS FROM THE PREMISIS AT ONCE!!"

the man chuckled. "See? If Ms. oleana says so, then it looks like this the end of the line-"

"Silver use water gun!"

A stream of water immediately shot out from the water pokemon's mouth past the kids who jumped out of the way and hit the man square on. He gave a yelp at the cold water hitting him all of a sudden and waved his arms about but you didn't let up until he ended up slipping to the ground soaked to the bone and sputtering on the floor.

"GET IN THE LIFT NOW!!" You ordered and immediately moved pushing the three kids forwards into the lift stepping over the man as the lift doors opened and then closed behind you. Once the doors closed you turned around and upon spotting the button panel pressed the top button. "The Chairman and Lee's at the top!" You said turning around. "We should head there." .....They stared at you. "...What?"

"WHAT!? WHAT!?" Victor threw his arms out towards the door as the lift began moving. "YOU JUST HOSED A BLOODY WORKER!! WE'LL BE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE!!"

"No we won't."

"HOW DO YOU KNOW!?" Victor yelled gripping his beanie. "WE'RE SO DEAD!!"

''Because it was self defense. that man was going to send out a pokemon after you all" They all blinked back to you as you looked behind you. "I'm not going to let anyone get hurt. Gloria. Got your Corviknight on you."

She blinked. "Uh...Y-Yeah. Of course. Why?"

You pointed towards the three other entrance ways in the lift which was big enough to house  corviknight. "There's gonna be some employees under Oleana orders coming through one of these three doors trying to battle you in order to force you all back out. Get out your corviknight and make him stand in front of the door I point at. Order him to scare the daylights out of the people when the door opens and I'll press the up button to get us moving again. If we do that then we can get there and to Leon faster."

"That's a plan!," Hop agreed. "Alright! We're nearly to Chairman Rose! Hold on, Lee! We're coming!"

Gloria brough out her corviknight and ordered him to do as you asked, and you motioned for her to make the scary big bird stand in front of the middle one as you stood by the button panel waiting to press it. Soon after the elevator stopped like you knew it would. You placed a hand on the up button as the elevator doors opened. CAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWW!!! Screams rang out from the elvator doors and you pressed the up button. Making you get moving again without any battles. PERFECT!! Then again to the left. A caw and more screams as the doors opened and you pressed the up button. And rinse and repeat to the door on the fair right! This was perfect! You four were almost there!!

"Looks as though we're nearly there, Guys!," Hop said looking up, "Look sharp! let's do this!''

You nodded. "Oleana's going to be waiting for us at the top. She's gonna have a couple pokemon to battle you guys with. Froslass, Milotic, Salazzle, Tsareena, and Garbodor. So get ready to fight those pokemon guys!" All three nodded to you and you increased your hold on Silver before walking up to join them as they stood closer to one another. Gloria returning her corviknight for the moment. "You stay on guard too, Silver." he chirped an answer back.

With new tenseness in the air you four stood guard close to one another. You all better get to leon fast! the lift kept going up and up and up. Until you all finally came to a stop. And the middle doors opened. Revealing a GIGANTIC room. And standing there in the middle of it with her back towards you was Oleana. All three kids paused for a moment before looking at each other uncertainly before looking at you and with your nod you all started forward. Slowly. Your footsteps echoed out in the silent and dark room as you all slowly made your way towards Oleana. Your hold on Silver increasing in case you'd have to defend these guys from the crazy woman. Eventually you all stopped a few yards from her. 

"....Glory. Stay on guard," Hop whispered and Gloria gulped.

"...Welcome to Chairman Rose's exclusive space. Here nearly a thousand feet above the earth. So you got through all of the special staff that I had ordered to stop you?," she asked and  you glared. "I would expect nothing less of the trainers handpicked by Champion Leon himself." She finally turned to all of you. "But I am afraid it is now time for you to go home...Because.." It was like she went from zero to crazy within a moment as her expression completely changed as she yelled to one of anger even you had to admit looked scary on her. "I will not allow anyone to disturb the great Chairman Rose! You shall be the first, Gloria!" Gloria's eyes went small and she suddenly backed up behind Hop and Victor as both boys took a stance in front of her. "If I beat you to pieces then the Champion will have no one to battle and thus lose heart! In that state, he'll listen to anything the Chairman says!"

"YOU'RE NOT GOING TO LAY A BLOODY HAND ON MY LIL SISTER!!," You snapped your eyes to Victor wide eyed. A glare you had never seen before on his face and there was only one way you could describe it. Pure Blooded Big Brother Protective Rage!! You had never seen Victor glare at someone with such hate as he held up a pokeball. "IF YE WANT 'ER THEN YA GONNA HAVE TO PRY HER FROM ME COLD DEAD HANDS!!" He growled out in a thick scottish accent. 

"AND MINE TOO!!," Hop chimed in also holding up a ball. "There's no way I'm gonna sit back and let you get anywhere near Glory after what she's been through!"

Oleana let out what could only sound like a rage filled scream and Gloria backed away. Out of instict you grabbed her and pulled her behind you too glaring placing Silver down as he growled. "AND ME TOO!! YOU'VE CAUSED ENOUGH TROUBLE FOR HER!! YOU WANT HER!? JUST TRY IT!!"

She let out another scream similar to the first and sent out the pokeball. Oh boy here you go. Both boys did too and it was Victor with a Bewear, Hop with his Rillaboom, and Oleana with her Froslass. Hop was first to make a move against Oleana as you stayed back and held Gloria's petrified form behind you as you watched them battle it out...Hop one. Oleana sent out her Milotic. Victor won. Oleana set out her salazzle. Hop won again. Oleana continued three more times...You watched with satisaction as both boys attacked her for the last time before her gardoder could even dynamax. Both boys fuled by the determination to protect the girl cowering right behind you as they both tag teamed Oleana down. Oleana let out one last scream of frustration....before deflating in defeat.

"*sigh*....I wasn't able to win. Oleana you really are a hopless woman. ARGHHH!!" She hands balled into fists as she looked at all of you. "This is inexcusable. What was I thinking? Any gym challenger who made it this far would be no pushover. Under normal circumstances I would have tried to delay you further.".....She inhaled and calmed a bit. "However all the necessary Wishing Stars have been collected. Do as you wish. There is nothing to be done now. Everything I did, I did to further the Chairman's own goals...

".....Heh." Hop gave a smug smile turning to Victor. "Typical Vic. You and bewear were unstoppable!"

Victor lifted his hand to return the bewear before huffing glaring daggers at the older woman. "NO ONE threatens my family."

"Whoa!," they turned to you as you strode up with Gloria, "Leon wasn't wrong about you being a top notch trainer too, Vic. Were you always able to battle like that?"

"Yeah! How else did you think he was able to help me practice battling when Glory couldn't?" Hop answered before ponting ahead on the fair side of the room and another door. "But enough chit chat. We gotta get to lee!"

Not wanting to waste time, you four raced past Oleana, you only pausing a moment in front of her to glare and shove the key card into her hand. "Here. You're lucky I didn't decide to hide your hey in one of the rooms for you to find. After all." You smiled so politely and spoke in a polite tone. "The Chairman loves menial games like this." Just like Oleana told you earlier.

Oleana's jaw dropped at the audacity of what you said before you ran off after the others. You four ran to the door on the fair side of the large room with Victor hanging onto Gloria's hand. BANG!! What sounded like a gun shot went off when Hop THREW the door open and your group charged in. On the other side was Leon who had whirled around in shock from the noise, and next to him was the Chairman who also looked surprised to see the four of you standing there panting and tired from the wild ride.

"Hop!?," Leon asked in shock looking over your faces, "And Gloria and Victor and Y/n!?...How-...What are you doing here?!"

"L-Lee, "Hop gasped between breaths releived to see his big brother, "You never showed when you were supposed too, so I got worried that s-something had happened.  Piers and Marnie and all those Team yell Oddballs...They helped us out to get here."

Leon stared not sure what to do for a moment but the Chairman interupted with a cough. "I must apologize to you, Hop, if we've made you worry at all." You looked to the older man. "There are times when adults just can't seem to have an honest discussion with one another. Sometimes our pride gets in the way."

Hop gave the Chairman a raised brow look but Leon stepped between them interrupting anything he might've said. "Never mind any of this, Hop. Glory. Everyone." He quickly said holding up his hands. "I'm sorry I made all of you worry so much. Let's head back to the hotel and we'll all grab dinner together. Ok? It's on me so you can order anything you fancy." Leon paused looking at Gloria for some unknown reason for a moment...before looking at the Chairman and in a stern tone said. "if you'll excuse us, Chairman Rose. And i do hope you'll watch this year's match. it's sure to be one for the history books."  Turning back to the four of you Leon held out his hands and began shooing the kids back. "Come on you three. You can tell me what trouble Piers got into this time over dinner."

You began to follow as Leon seemed to suspiciously herd them away a bit too fast to change the subject ..but eventually stopped..and turned back to the Chirman. Who had his back to you and looking out the window....You approuched him.

"One for the history books," he mumbled, "You still don't understand, Young Champion. We...No. I am going to change the course of history-"

"*AHEM!!*"

The Chairman paused...before turning his head to you as you gave him a frown and crossed your arms. the older man blinked for a moment before smiled. "Ah. Ms. Y/n. You weren't eavesdropping were you?"

"No." You lied but you didn't have time for what he said. You had something more important to do. But he seemed to sigh in relief. "I have something to tell you."

He smiled. "By all means my dear lady!" He turned to you smiling. "How can the Chairman help you?"

"By keeping your asistant on a leash!"

He blinked surprised at your words. "Oleana?" You nodded and he sighed. "My oh my. What did she do this time?"

"She. Threatened. My. FRIEND!!," you pointed at him and he seemed surprised, "Now look here, mr. Rose. I understand you're very busy but that assistant of yours is getting too troublesome for my liking! She just threatened to beat my friend from the challenge and personally I DON'T LIKE her treatment of my friend or Bede...In fact. I dont like YOUR treatment of Bede!"......He blinked. "You treated him absolutely horribly! Don't you have any idea how you made him feel!!" You...proceeded to go off on the Chairman. "You took him in and put so many expectations on him and then you let THAT WOMAN put so much pressure on him that he thinks he has to do whatever possible to please you or he's useless! And then have the audacity to through him out with NO WHERE to go and NO ONE to turn to!! By Arceaus what is WRONG with you two!> I don't have ANY idea what you two got into your heads but that treatment of those children better stop right here and now! If Oleana gets into her head to try anything off I'll personally make sure Officer Jenny takes her away in hand cuffs even if I have to sit on her to stop her!"....You leaned back away from his speechless form before sighing inrelief anf then glaring at him. "Mr. Chairman..If you want to truly help people then, start with making sure Oleana doesn't get in over her head and end up hurting someone."

The Chairman still stared at you for a long moment...before sighing through his nose and nodding. "...I see. ....Ms. Y/n, you have my word that I will talk to Oleana."

You rose a brow. "What about my friends? Are they in trouble for coming here?"

He held up his hands. "No trouble at all."

"And Piers and his crew?"

"Wouldn't expect anything less from him. *sigh* He'll be fine as well."

.....You nodded. "Thank you for your time mr. Rose. Have a VERY merry Christmas." With one last frown, you turned and stomped off after Leon with Silver at your heels.

Mr. Rose watched you go silently...before raising a brow and humming. "What a very strange woman. Very strange indeed...But also surprisingly fascinating."