#Molly Garrison

[nobodysdaydreams]

Name Meanings:

Molly - "bitter"/“star of the sea”/"beloved"

Maeve- “intoxicating”/ “she who rules”

Emily- "Rival"/"Laborious"/"Eager"

Abigail- "My father's joy"

Audrey- "strength"/"honorable"

Paige- "assistant"

Charlotte- "free"

[wwwjam]

Emmy the Robot stuff since 2020 dump part 10, should be all for the non-"infographic" pictures.

[nobodysdaydreams]

Garrison and SQ’s birth dad really need first names.

me: this is a background character who's in one scene, has two lines, and is completely irrelevant to the rest of the story. i am going to stop obsessing over what to name him and use the random name generator on behindthename.com. i am going to accept the first thing it gives me and move the fuck on.

behindthename.com:

[oldmen-enjoyer]

[Mr Garrison's Johnny]

Small correction on my part: Johnny Wardman is early 30s (32-33) but all of the stress in his life made him look so much older.

- He used to be a priest before running away for failed love life with Molly. Loverat is slang for adulterer, do with that information as you will

(He's shared custody with @requ1mearrow, co-author of the rest of AUs that come after White Lie)

[charthurlover]

VDL gang as roblox games!!

sorry for not posting, been more or less trapped in north carolina for the past few days, jst got home a few days ago, so i’ve been unpacking all my bags and sleeping!!

Abigail -

- Farm Life

- Islands

Arthur -

- Write A Letter

- 🌲 Cabin. [cozy vibe]

Bill -

- LGBTQ+ hangout

- LGBTQ+ Vibe

Charles -

- Zoo World Tycoon

- PAWS Pet Hospital 🐾

Dutch -

- make roblox games to become rich and famous

- Cash Tycoon

Davey -

- be dead forever simulator

- Resting Place ☔️🐸

Grimshaw -

- Arsenal

- Glory Kill Testing

Hosea -

- making scam calls to save your best friend

- Hunting Season [BETA]

Jack -

- become a server owner to get revenge tycoon

- The Graveyard [HEAVEN]

Javier -

- Bloody Zone [🩸]

- Mexico Simulator

Jenny -

- Natural Disaster Survival

- Try To Die

John -

- [Summer] Forgotten Worlds

- A Wolves’ Pack Alpha - Wolf RP 🐺

Kieran -

- Horse World

- Horse Riding Elite

Karen -

- [DRINKS!] On Tap 17+

- Big Bank Robbery [Story]

Lenny -

- NEED MORE DRINKING

- Bloody Baseplate [🧊🩸]

Mac -

- Ragdoll Death

- EVADE

Mary-Beth -

- Write a book!

- Library of Aletheia

Micah -

- Obby but You’re a Rat!

- Be a Snake

Molly -

- [🩸] Bloodburst

- Try to Die Obby!

Pearson -

- My Restaurant!

- Work at a Supermarket

Reverend -

- Church

- Church of the Ascension Catholic Parish

Sadie -

- kill npcs or something

- Weird Blood Game [UPD 20]

Sean -

- Irish Tycoon

- [SUMMER🏝️]The Garrison

Trelawny -

- MAGIC SIMULATOR

- Wacky Wizards

Tilly -

- Family Life 🏠 RP

- Life with a Family

Uncle -

- [RELEASE!] 💤NEED MORE SLEEP 2.0💤

- Farming and Friends

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

Young Adult Book Releases - June 2024

🦇 Good morning, my bookish bats. I hope you have a good book, hot cuppa, and sweet snack within reach! No TBR is complete without a few young adult novels, and plenty were released in June! Here are a few YA releases to consider adding to your shelves.

🩷 June 4 🩷 ✨ Looking for Smoke - K. A. Cobell ✨ Moonstorm - Yoon Ha Lee ✨ Now, Conjurers - Freddie Kölsch ✨ Heiress Takes All - Emily Wibberley & Austin Siegemund-Broka ✨ Two Sides to Every Murder - Danielle Valentine ✨ Wish You Weren't Here - Erin Baldwin ✨ Four Eids and a Funeral - Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé & Adiba Jaigirdar ✨ Annie LeBlanc Is Not Dead Yet - Molly Morris ✨ Past Present Future - Rachel Lynn Solomon ✨ Storm: Dawn of a Goddess - Tiffany D. Jackson ✨ London on My Mind - Clara Alves ✨ The Breakup Artists - Adriana Mather ✨ One Killer Problem - Justine Pucella Winans ✨ Lockjaw - Matteo L. Cerilli ✨ If You Can't Take the Heat - Michael Ruhlman ✨ Louder Than Words - Ashley Woodfolk & Lexi Underwood

🩷 June 11 🩷 ✨ Six More Months of June - Daisy Garrison ✨ Hearts of Fire and Snow - David Bowles & Guadalupe Garcia McCall ✨ Love, Off the Record - Samantha Markum ✨ How to Get Over Your (Best Friend's) Ex - Kristi McManus ✨ The Ghost of Us - James L. Sutter ✨ There Is a Door in This Darkness - Kristin Cashore ✨ The Wilderness of Girls - Madeline Claire Franklin ✨ Dead Girls Talking - Megan Cooley Peterson ✨ Icon and Inferno - Marie Lu ✨ Furious - Jamie Pacton & Rebecca Podos ✨ The Color of a Lie - Kim Johnson

🩷 June 18 🩷 ✨ Bad Graces - Kyrie McCauley ✨ Old Palmetto Drive - S.E. Reed ✨ Masquerade of the Heart - Katy Rose Pool ✨ With Love, Miss Americanah - Jane Igharo ✨ Hearts That Cut - Kika Hatzopoulou ✨ The Calculation of You and Me - Serena Kaylor ✨ All Roads Lead to Rome - Sabrina Fedel

🩷 June 25 🩷 ✨ Markless - C.G. Malburi ✨ We Shall Be Monsters - Tara Sim ✨ Children of Anguish and Anarchy - Tomi Adeyemi ✨ Crashing into You - Rocky Callen ✨ Six of Sorrow - Amanda Linsmeier

[walker-extended-universe]

Walkerverse Character Tier List

Hello Walker Family! I'm here announcing the beginning of the Walkerverse Character Tier List series!

I've created a list of characters from Walker and Walker: Independence to put in a tier list ranking. I will be releasing a series of polls with all these characters (including pictures and brief reminders of their roles) to determine which Tier List ranking they get. Whichever option from S to F gets the most votes will become the official ranking of that character.

Here is the criteria I used to select the characters I'm putting in the poll series:

They must have a name on the imdb page

They must have a minimum of two appearances

I have to remember them, regardless of their appearance count

Single appearances that were special/memorable will also be included (ex: Uncle Willy, Minnie Jayne)

The rankings will be as follows:

S tier: Best character in the show, love them with all my heart, they can do literally nothing wrong

A tier: Beloved blorbo, one of my favorites, I'd want to be friends with them if they were real

B tier: I like them, but I have my critiques. A good character that I mostly enjoy

C tier: Mid character, not the biggest fan of them but I won't complain when they show up

D tier: I don't like them. I have many criticisms of their actions and personality. I may even dislike whole episodes because of them

F tier: Literally the worst character in the entire show. Hate them. Much dislike. I fastforward over them on rewatches.

I currently have pictures (for the poll and the complete tierlist that I will link when it is public) for 39 of the 120+ characters I put on the list, so that's where I will be starting. I will include the full list of all the characters from both shows below the cut along with the taglist.

The first poll will go up on Monday, September 23rd! Can't wait to see what you guys think!

@theladywyn, @jaredwalkertexasranger, @laf-outloud, @aborddelimpala, @mysterybeau, @sweet-sammy-kisses, @kickingitwithkirk, @rhl74, @peachparakeet, @dumb-fawkin-bitch, @loveforwomenstuff, @low-soduimfreak, @ihavepointysticks, @waywardmaslow, @arte-mishuntress, @the-slythering-raven, @deeranger, @duo-kun, @inafieldofdaisies, @not-your-housekeeper98, @nancymcl, @sammysnaughtygirl

Walker:

Cordell Walker

Liam Walker

Abeline Walker

Bonham Walker

Stella Walker

August Walker

Larry James

Trey Barnett

Geri Broussard

Cassie Perez

Micki Ramirez

Colton Davidson

Ben Perez

Dan Miller

Denise Davidson

Emily Walker

Todd

Gale Davidson

Stan Morrison

Clay Cooper

Clint West

Kelly James

Kevin Golden

Isabel Munoz

Bret

Trevor Strand

Ruby

Detective David Luna

Julia Johnson

Hoyt Rawlins

Twyla Jean

Sadie Yoo

Witt

Connie

Faye

DJ James

Keesha Barnett

Carlos Mendoza

Officer Randall

Dr. Adriana Ramirez

Sean

Serano

Earl

Mercedes Ruiz

Miles Vyas

Coach Bobby

Principal Heaney

Byron Santos

Garrison (GM)

Nate Smith

Tessa Graves

Crystal West

Cali

Rita

Lana Jones

Tommy Adams

Jaxon Davis

Grant McLawson

Neo

Mike

Horace

Alma Munoz

Fenton Cole

Shannon

Lorezno Munoz

Snyder

Oswald

Marv Davidson

Jim

Mr. Golden

Spider

William

Owen Campbell

Minnie Jayne

Maybelline

Mehar

Henry

Becca Furgeson

Joanna Rawlins

Cole Tillman

Rebecca Tillman

Walker: Independence:

Abigail Walker

Hoyt Rawlins

Kate Carver

Tom Davidson

Augustus

Calian

Kai

Lucia Reyes

Shane Davidson

Hagan

Chief Taza

Francis Reyes

Luis Reyes

Ruby

Nascha

Ethan (Pinkerton Detective)

Salty Dog

Molly Sullivan

Anna Maria Reyes

Cordell the Horse

Burlesque Dancers

Teresa Davidson

Matthew

Jacob

Otis Clay

Martha Sullivan

Griffin

Liam Collins

Eli McDowd

Charlotte “Charlie” Collins

Gil Santiago

Randall

Lily

Stella Rawlins

Wordell Calker

Olivia

Topsannah

Amos Acorn

Parker Briggs

Judge Parker

Kirby Smith

Andrew Jones

Judge Carter

[tagapagharaya]

I have not read To Gaze Upon Wicked Gods, so I cannot speak about its contents.

I can, however, speak about the utterly vile way people are talking about Molly X. Chang, a Chinese woman.

Can someone explain to me why they think calling a Chinese woman a comfort woman as an insult makes them the morally upright party in this situation?

The way this person, and others who echo this line, is using the term comfort woman as if it means traitor — in particular, a woman who betrays her own people to demean herself for the pleasure of their colonizers — is abhorrent and ahistorical.

Let me set the record straight: A comfort woman is a woman (or a girl, some as young as twelve-years-old) forced or tricked into sexual enslavement by the Imperial Japanese Armed Forces in occupied countries and territories (e.g. China, Korea, Taiwan, Burma, Indonesia, the Philippines), and even Japan itself, before and during World War II.

These women and girls were kept in "comfort stations" where they would be raped, physically abused and tortured by as many as 40 Imperial Japanese soldiers in a single night. Every night. For what reason? As "stress relief" for the soldiers.

In the mornings, they were forced to do backbreaking domestic labor for the Imperial Japanese garrisons, and at night they would be raped, beaten and tortured. They were given little food and kept in unsanitary conditions. Venereal disease was rampant. Many comfort women became infertile because of sexual violence and venereal diseases. Many women became pregnant during their enslavement, and were still not exempted from the nightly rapes. Many women miscarried and were not given medical attention.

I would remind you that the term comfort woman includes girls, some as young as twelve-years-old.

The level of dehumanization was so extreme that they were treated as inventory.

Comfort women are victims of colonial violence.

To this day, the Japanese government denies that the comfort women were sexually enslaved. Thousands of comfort women never received justice or reparations for the physical, psychological and emotional suffering they were subjected to.

The narrative that comfort women were volunteers or professionals, that they were treated well and compensated fairly, that they got rich from it, is historical revisionism peddled by the Japanese right-wing to deny its war crimes. This exact narrative is used to deny the victims of colonial violence justice.

So to see the term comfort woman used as an insult against a Chinese woman (of Manchu and Hui descent, no less) and to pretend it means she's "in love with her ancestors' colonizers and betrays her own people because of it (through her writing)" — an "Imperial Japan dickrider," if we're being crass — is vile and disgusting.

What do these people think they're accomplishing exactly? How are they criticizing an alleged "colonizer romance" novel by parroting the misogynist and racist historical revisionism of a real life former colonial power to demean a woman of color?

[remuslupinsdaughter]

Molly Shelby

Chapter four

Ok so this is a fic from years ago that I’ve decided to sort of change up and develop, imagine Tommy Shelby had a daughter before he went to war, she’s around 12 now.

I have no idea where this is going but let’s find out where my silly little mind goes with it.

It had been a few days since Molly was made housebound, she spent most days either in the shop with her dad and uncles or at home with her aunt Polly. Today was one of the days she was at home, she was reading in the living room with Polly, “I need to go to the market, Scudboats just outside, you need anything you tell him” she said, Molly nodded, she knew scudboat well, he’d been around her entire life and was like an extra uncle to her.

Molly finished her book and stood up from the sofa, she pushed the door open and saw Scudboat stood there, “alright miss Shelby” he said tipping his hat, Molly laughed, “just getting another book” she said and went to her dads office which had a large bookcase filled with a hundred books easily. She skimmed the shelves deciding what to read when she heard the door click, she paused, aunt Polly can’t be back yet it’s not even been half an hour? She thought, she then heard a loud thud, she silently placed the book on the shelf then quickly but silently tiptoed to her dads desk, grabbing the gun he kept in his spare drawer, she ducked under the desk and gripped the handgun tightly.

She heard talking from voices she didn’t recognise, then suddenly a voice she did recognise, it was one of the maids “who are you? What are you doing here?” She asked, then there was gunfire and a scream, then another thud, Molly screwed her eyes shut, her body trembling. “We need the girl, she’ll make the leverage the boss needs” one of the men spoke, then the office door opened, Molly froze, she covered her mouth with one hand. The men stalked around the office, their feet right in front of her hiding spot, Molly held the gun with both hands, clicking the safety off as quiet as possible, but not quiet enough. “Well well, who do we have here” one of the men said, in a blind panic Molly fired, one of the men dropped, the other cursed and ran. Mollys chest heaved with panic as she sunk to floor.

Arthur and John were laughing as they stepped through the door, “shit” Arthur said, “Arthur where’s Molly” John said, “search the house!” He said, they both searched rooms yelling her name, “MOLLY” “MOLLY” “MOL-“ Arthur cut himself off as he burst into the office, Molly was hugging her knees, blood splattered on her face, still clutching the gun, at the sound of footsteps she drew the gun pointing it at Arthur, “JOHN I FOUND ‘ER” he shouted, putting his own gun down and raising his hands, “hey its ok mol, put the gun down” he said softly, Mollys hands shook and tears welled up in her eyes, John sprinted into the room, stopping dead when he saw the situation unfolding in front of him, “shit” he said quietly, “John, go to the garrison and get Tommy, then send Finn to find Polly” Arthur said trying to keep his voice as quiet as possible, his hands still raised, John nodded and ran back out the room. “Molly please put the gun down” Arthur said, Molly shook her head, tears spilling down her head, “I can’t”.

There was a crash of doors hitting walls making Molly jump and point the gun in the direction of the noise, Tommy, quickly followed by John ran into the office, “Molly look at me” Tommy said crouching to her level, Mollys eyes shifted to meet his, “that’s it, there you go” he said, keeping his voice soft and low, ���you remembered I keep that handgun in my desk drawer ey? That was quick thinking, you get that from me” he said, Molly nodded, “you need to give me the gun Molly, can you do that? Just pass it to me” he said, holding his hand out, Molly nodded again, her body still trembling, she passed the gun to Tommy, he took it, clicked the safety back on and passed it to Arthur.

“Come ‘ere” Tommy said moving over the dead man’s body and scooping Molly up, Molly gripped him tight, burying her face in his coat, her body shaking as she sobbed, “it’s ok, shh shh it’s ok” he soothed wrapping his arms around her, “they killed the maid” Molly said through sobs, “I know” he said, standing up, Molly moved her head from his shoulder and looking around, “wait where’s Scudboat, dad he was outside, dad they killed him” she said panicking, “they didn’t kill him, they knocked him out and tied him up, he’s ok, he’s just got a sore head” Tommy said, Arthur removed his coat, “we need to get you outside, don’t want you seeing anything else” he said, softly covering Molly with the coat so she couldn’t see, Tommy moved quickly, getting Molly outside.

Once they got outside Tommy put Molly down and cupped her face with his hands, “are you hurt?” He said checking her over, suddenly Aunt Pollys voice could be heard, “what the fuck happened?” She shouted, Tommy took out a handkerchief and tried to wipe the blood of Mollys face, Molly smacked his hands away, “what did you do?” She asked, her voice trembling, Tommy just looked at her, “dad what did you do? They wanted me for leverage” tears started to spill, she hit him in the chest with her fist, “WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO OR TAKE THAT MADE THEM TRY TO TAKE ME DAD” she screamed, hitting him repeatedly, Tommy restrained her, holding her close to him, “I’m sorry, i know I’m sorry” he said as Molly sobbed, for the first time in Tommys life, Polly saw fear in his eyes.

Polly moved to her niece who’s sobs had reduced to sniffles, “come on sweetheart” she said taking ahold of her shoulders, “clean this up” Polly said, “I’m taking her to the garrison come there when you’re finished” she said before leaving with Molly.

[gabykatttt]

Velvet and Veneer in one day in Horrorland

Chapter 3

Velvet woke up with the sound of knocking on the front door.

Ugh I’m coming Velvet said letting out a yawn and stretched before answering it.

Velvet began to unlock the door and opened it. No one was there.

Velvet looked down and saw to tickets on the front porch.

What the hell who would send us tickets for Velvet thought grabbing the tickets and closed the door locking it.

Who was at the door sis? Veneer asked eating his toast.

No one maybe just a wiredo pulling a prank on us Velvet replied letting out a sigh.

What’s that on your hands? Veneer asked.

Well someone left us two tickets and I don’t know where this theme park is Velvet said sitting on the chair.

Veneer grabbed the ticket from Velvet’s hand and read it

It saids dear Velvet and Veneer come to join in a horrifying terror experience Horrorland where nightmares come to life better beware you’re in for a scare Veneer said placing the tickets on the table.

Who would give us tickets to go to a theme park? Veneer asked.

I don’t know little bro it’s probably Poppy and Viva pulling pranks on us again Velvet said eating her cereal.

It could be them Veneer agreed drinking his coffee.

Velvet took a look at the tickets one last time.

Well we better get ready sis Veneer said finishing his coffee and placed it on the sink.

Okay brother Velvet said finishing her bowl of cereal placing it on the sink as well.

In Horrorland

I gave the twins the tickets to come to Horrorland your highness the horror said bending down.

Good job my little horror the queen said.

Is there anything else I can do? The horror asked.

Make sure that everyone is ready before those twins come they won’t suspect a thing the queen said.

Yes your majesty The horror said exiting the building.

Are you sure this is a good Idea Amy? Garrison asked.

Yes I’m sure Amy replied getting up from her seat and left.

I have a bad feeling about this Garrison thought following Amy.

You’re never getting away with this Brittany and Molly said tied up into chains.

Aww I already have Amy said smirking evilly and left laughing.

That demon queen is dangerous why is Amy the queen of Horrorland? Molly said asking.

Cuz Amy is doing this after Slappy got destroyed once again Brittany said struggling to get out but no use.

I hope those twins don’t come here it’s a trap Molly said to herself.

Not to mention Amy will sure try to bring the dummy back to life Brittany thought worried that Slappy would come back to life

[retrograderesemblance]

@faithhearted

She didn't come here often to pay homage to her parents' bones beneath the earth, but she'd few options for loitering with the auction taking place inside the garrison.

It was disdain she felt, her nose scrunching in annoyance when she read the name of her father, the name of her mother, on their headstones. She'd been the one to find her father passed, she'd been the one to hear her mother's breathe her last rattled breath, but none of that mattered, the tears she'd shed as she clung to her mother's lukewarm hand, rigid in death, crying tears out of sorrow or relief, she still wasn't sure all these years later. That was a long time ago though, and it didn't change the way the sounds shifted in the churchyard as the townsfolk piled out of the garrison.

Molly rose, moving her hands across her skirts to brush the grass from her dress, walking nearer to the doors. She saw Maarten DeJong walking quicker than most of the rest, a look of annoyance in his own visage, but it told her nothing except that he hadn't been the one she was looking for.

In the end, no one verbally gave her word of who it was to purchase her brother's tavern from the Crown's control, but when a familiar figure emerged from the doors of the garrison and met her gaze, she knew it was him, and newfound rage welled within her veins.

Somehow this was worse than bearing witness to the attainder nailed to the door of her home, now no longer hers.

She'd turned, her heading the tavern, not seeing the man again until he stepped into the main hall some time later.

"This your idea of a quip?" She snapped, tempted to throw a glass, to throw a chair, to enact some form of violence like she might have when they were children. She was behind the bar, preparing for her shift set to begin in the next hour when the tavern opened; the auction had been practically at dawn. Anna was upstairs with the children.

"You purchase the tavern so you have the pleasure of sacking me yourself? Fuck you, Roe."

[antidrumpfs]

President Joe Biden’s fiery Thursday night State of the Union speech was bad news for the preferred narrative from pro-Trump commentators that Biden is a dementia patient on the brink of death. So they responded by baselessly claiming he must have been on performance-enhancing drugs.

OutKick’s Clay Travis, 9:44 p.m.: “What drugs have they shot him up with tonight? This is not how normal people talk.”

Right-wing cartoonist Ben Garrison, 9:45 p.m.: “They really jacked up Joe with the drugs tonight- think there's a IV bag under his jacket?”

TownHall’s Kurt Schlicter, 9:49 p.m.: “Maybe the paramedic who called into @HughHewitt this morning and told me Biden would be on cocaine was right!” 

Podcaster Monica Crowley, 9:53 p.m.: “Biden, pumped full of god-knows-what drugs to make it through this pack of lies, blasts Pharma.”

Fox contributor Mollie Hemingway, 9:54 p.m.: “Plot twist: It was Joe Biden's cocaine in the White House!”

RealClearInvestigations’ Mark Hemingway, 9:57 p.m.: “The rushed jittery pace of this speech is the drugs, right?” 

Fox host Greg Gutfeld, 10 p.m.: “Think we found out who that coke belonged to.”

[nobodysdaydreams]

Thank you tmbs fandom for voting in my polls🥰

Happy to announce that based on the results the character names in my fic (since they don't have real ones in canon) will be...

Kate's Mom: Beatrice Wetherall (Apparently none of us in the fandom can agree on what her name is, but this is what won the poll).

Dr. Garrison: Molly Garrison (Apparently this one is already popular in the fandom. Sorry Katie. I will (if I get there) use your head canon for something else).

SQ's Biological Mom: Evelyn Pedalian (There was no poll for this. The name Evelyn means life, mother of life, desired child, island in the water, little bird, and strength. So it's pretty much perfect).

SQ's Biological Dad: Niles Pedalian (There was no poll for this, but one of Niles' name meanings is "People's Victory" which is the same name meaning as Nicholas' name, so...symbolism).

Finally, I have (slowly) begun to comb through SOS chapters to change the names the friends call each other to their first names while referring to them by their commonly known names most of the time to make it easy to keep track of the characters. However, I kept my head canon of Curtain calling his friends by their last names in order to distance himself from them, minus a few choice instances where he slips up and calls them by their first names for angst related reasons. So have fun with those. I also might have missed a few lines, so if you notice I need to edit anything, feel free to message me about it. It's a tedious process, but that's what you get when you procrastinate on character names.

Thanks again everyone, you guys are the best 🥰

[mareastrorum]

WIP Wednesday: TF&TS (Alfield)

Here is a scene from an early chapter of a longfic I am working on.

Fanfic Summary: Mollymauk Tealeaf survived the encounter with the Iron Shepherds, but a short time later, a spirit had begun hunting him, claiming that he stole his body. This Campaign 2 AU begins with Episode 26 and continues on from there.

This fanfic will be posted on AO3 starting in July. (OH GOD, THAT'S SO SOON. OH NO.)

Alfield was still in the process of rebuilding since the last time the Nein had stopped in town. They had arrived via the Amber Road shortly before dark, then briefly met with Bryce Feelid and had made their way to the Feed and Mead. Bryce joined them after a meal. It was kind of nice when people were grateful for their work, even when they got paid for it anyway.

Beau was also happy to indulge in the free drinks offered by the other patrons. Molly snuck some coins into their pockets as they walked away, but eventually he was tipsy enough that the only reason they didn’t return the coin was the awkwardness.

“You doing alright, Molly?” Beau prodded. She almost followed up with an instinctive disclaimer that she didn’t care, but, well, she did. Why was it still so hard to remember to be nice?

Molly hummed a question back, but didn’t wait for her to elaborate. “We’re finally back on the road, so I’m celebrating!”

Beau raised a brow. “Celebrating being on the road?”

“Damn right,” Molly replied as he lifted his tankard in a toast. “Staying in one place for two weeks was far too long.” Beau rolled her eyes, but tapped her own against his and took a drink. The others joined, if they could reach, but the rest on the other end just lifted theirs and sipped. “To adventures and low profiles!”

Beau snorted and took a second drink. After the fiasco in Shadycreek Run and then running into Cree again at Zadash, she couldn’t blame Molly for wanting to slink into anonymity. However, he also was the most ostentatious of the Nein. If anyone was going to be recognized on sight, it was going to be Molly.

Jester, Fjord, and Nott discussed getting past the Wuyun Gates with Bryce at the other end of the table, though Beau had little to add. Bryce was pretty cool for letting the open discussion of mail fraud go by. Most Watchmasters had a stick up their ass about that sort of thing. But now that she thought about it, Molly, Nott, and Caduceus probably didn’t have any papers. Beau flipped through her notebook quickly to see if she had anything that might be useful for forging.

“Hey, Molly, Caduceus, do you have like, papers for traveling?” Beau asked as she looked up.

Molly shrugged affirmatively. “Oh, sure. Had to put some together at the carnival ages ago. Plenty of Crownsguard found it thrilling to pester us whenever we got near the garrisons or the capital.”

“Ah, I don’t know what that is,” Caduceus answered with a smile.

Beau sighed. “We’ll figure something out. Molly, gimme yours and I’ll see what we can do for Caduceus. We can probably copy what you have and just switch some stuff around to fix it up.”

Molly fished in what seemed to be an endless number of pockets in his coat, then handed off the papers. His eyes didn’t have pupils, but Beau got the sense that he spaced out a moment afterwards.

“What papers do people need for traveling?” Caduceus inquired.

“Just bullshit for leaving during a war,” Beau answered as she looked them over. “It’s usually checking for spies and deserting soldiers. We’re so far from the front lines that it’s probably not that big of a deal.”

After a brief review, Molly’s papers were actually decent forgeries. They had all the right seals to permit travel across the Empire with the carnival. The band had traveled in a circle around the Silberquel Ridge, though it seems they skipped large cities like Rexxentrum and Zadash. Beau started scribbling notes of what the Nein should include for any papers they might forge.

“That reminds me,” Molly started with a subtle drawl, “Mister Caleb, I’ve got a bone to pick with you about your book.”

Beau rolled her eyes yet again without looking up. She knew that Caleb had gifted a book of fairy tales to Molly. She’d been rather surprised to find out that Molly had not only accepted the gift, but actually read it. Or part of it, anyway. She had thought the day spent at the Valley Archive in Zadash would have put him off reading for a good while. Or forever.

“Was?” Caleb asked, an eyebrow raised. “It’s your book, Mister Mollymauk.”

“Yeah, but you gave it to me,” Molly stated matter-of-factly, “and one of the stories in it is wrong.”

Beau shifted her attention to Molly and Caleb. The carnie was going to argue with a Zemnian about Zemnian fairy tales. She grabbed her tankard and took small sips to hide her expression.

“Wrong?” Caleb replied, almost looking offended now with two brows raised. “How can one of them be wrong? They’re stories.”

Molly sat up straight and emphasized with his hands. “Your book has a story about ‘The Scorpion and the Frog,’ but it’s supposed to be ‘The Scorpion and the Turtle.’”

Beau focused intently on Molly’s face as she took a long drink from her tankard. It was possible that he was just pulling Caleb’s leg, but Molly actually looked serious. Well, as serious as Molly ever could be outside of a fight. And she faintly recalled that he had mentioned a fable about a scorpion back when he chastised Nott for some of the drama that happened during that Knights of Requital job.

Caleb’s brow furrowed as he pondered that a moment, then looked back at Molly. “No, you are mistaken. The tale is ‘The Scorpion and the Frog.’ It couldn’t be a turtle. The lesson is that one should not trust bad people because they cannot resist their nature, even if betrayal is against their interests.”

Now Molly looked offended. “That’s a terrible lesson. That’s the sort of shite the people in charge want the common folk to buy into. No, it’s ‘The Scorpion and the Turtle.’ The point is that sometimes you have to trust untrustworthy people, or else you’ll just be stuck alone.”

Beau stifled a laugh and took another swig of ale. Oh gods, Molly had not thought that through entirely. She said nothing though; she wanted to see how Caleb would handle this.

Caleb’s face fell to confusion as he thought it over. After a moment, he asked, “Well, what happens in your story?”

“The scorpion rides on the turtle to cross the river, then stings her, and they both die,” Molly explained confidently. “But it was still better to at least try, rather than stay where they were by themselves.”

“But the turtle could have crossed on its own, while the scorpion needed the turtle, ja?” Caleb inquired. “So the turtle did not need to trust the scorpion to cross the river.”

“Well… yes,” Molly agreed hesitantly, some of his confidence fading.

“And how did the scorpion sting the turtle when it is protected by a shell?” Caleb pressed.

Molly stared back at Caleb in silence, opening his mouth to speak, then closing it after saying nothing, and then his face seemed to express the various stages of grief over the course of a few seconds.

Beau exploded with laughter, nearly spilling her tankard, but she managed to set it on the table to save it, then leaned on one hand to try to calm down. She barely heard a “Fuck you, Beau,” but she could not collect herself to give her usual response. After giving her abs a good warmup, Beau managed to bring it down to quiet snickering and looked back at the two. Molly had a tight, frustrated grin while Caleb seemed quite amused and victorious with a small smirk.

“So who told you the version with the turtle?” Caleb asked.

“Ornna,” Molly replied while shaking his head. “Godsdamnit.” Caleb chuckled, but did not say anything further.

Beau snickered and went for another drink of ale, only to find she had finished it already. She looked over and waved at the barkeep, pointing at her tankard for a refill, but he pointedly turned away from her to help another customer. She frowned. “Yeah, he— uh… Crute? Yeah, Crute might be kinda sore about Jester breaking that window with her spell.”

“Oh, well that’s unfortunate,” Molly noted as he turned to look. He finished off his drink, then stood up abruptly. “Well, I’m in need of another drink, and his beautiful face is sure to cheer me up, so I’ll see about smoothing things over. Besides, we need three rooms, right?”

Bryce perked up at that, briefly looking over, “Oh, that will be covered for your stay. Please, let Crute know to see me about that.”

Molly squinted. “Are you paying for it, or is the Starosta?”

Bryce chuckled, “The defense fund is covering it as thanks for your prior defense of the town. We may be shorthanded, but the Crown has provided plenty to hire hands as needed.”

“Excellent!” Molly grinned wide and headed off. Of course he was happy to spend the Crown’s money.

“Molly, get us another round too,” Beau called after him.

“And, uh…” Caduceus began.

“And something for Caduceus!” Beau added. Molly waved her off and leaned over the bar to snatch Crute’s attention as soon as he reached it, though she could not hear the conversation at that distance. She shook her head and looked back at the others as a brief check before she went back to the papers.

“Like, see it see it,” Fjord said to Jester. Bryce had a hand over one eye, slowly shifting to cover both. Nott was looking at Jester with curiosity, and Caleb was turning red. Beau raised a brow. What were they talking about now?

“Like, penises?” Jester asked, waggling her eyebrows. “Wieners? I’ve seen so many penises.”

“Really?” Fjord seemed half-appalled and half-unconvinced. Beau smirked deviously. Oh, this would be fun.

“Jester, what’s the best penis you’ve ever seen?” Beau interrupted.

“Hold on hold on hold on—” Caleb suddenly jumped in as Fjord also tried to intercede.

The explosion of overlapping conversation was everything Beau had hoped for. Caleb attempted to divert the topic to voyeurism versus experience. Why was Caleb so interested in people’s sex lives? Fjord tried to pin the question on Beau instead. Jester clearly enjoyed the chaos, prolonging the discussion by answering every side question they threw her way, which only disoriented them even more. Nott just drank from her flask and admired the insanity. Caduceus looked so confused. Bryce was staring straight ahead and trying to pretend they weren’t there.

Oh man, neither Caleb nor Fjord wanted to know the answer. They were both totally sweet on Jester and did not know how to handle it. Well, it’s not like Beau could blame them either, she was adorable.

“Yeah, what’s your best dick?” Beau insisted once the distraction had gone on long enough.

“My best dick?” Jester giggled.

“If it’s too hard, you can do top three,” Nott suggested with a snort.

All three women dissolved into a giggle-fest. Caleb turned red and hid behind a facepalm. Fjord sighed and resigned himself to the embarrassment. Caduceus watched, still lost.

“Okay, honestly?” Jester said, looking around quickly, then turning back and wagging her eyebrows dramatically. “I saw Molly’s when we were in the bath house.”

Beau had no idea what face she made as she momentarily closed her eyes and laughed, but she hoped it conveyed how much that was the most amazing answer Jester could have given in that context.

“Was it? We all saw it, but how did it compare?” Nott asked.

“Molly's was pretty good,” Jester answered noncommittally, though she gave a nod.

“In terms of just being giant or, like, well-proportioned? Symmetrical?” Nott kept pressing.

“It was really nice and it was a good color,” Jester elaborated sweetly.

The whole time, Beau was squinting to try to contain her giggling to a reasonable volume. Jester and Nott knew exactly what they were doing with this conversation. The faces on Caleb and Fjord were priceless. Especially when Nott suggested “giant.” Beau had not expected Nott to be such a shit-disturber.

Once they recovered some composure, Caleb and Fjord tried diverting the conversation again, and Beau could not catch her breath.

At that point, Bryce spoke up, with some moderate color on their cheeks, “Well, folks, I think this is my cue to get some rest. It’s been great catching up a bit with all of you. Stay safe.”

The Nein bade Bryce goodbye, though Nott threatened to kill them if they tried to pay for their drinks. Bryce looked a bit concerned and conceded, then left their coin at the bar anyway with a polite and slightly mischievous smile.

Molly was still at the bar, apparently making no progress with Crute. That carnie was nowhere near as charming as he thought he was, and Beau was pretty sure that he was just diverting Crute’s annoyance with Jester to himself rather than absolving it.

“I know this sounds petty,” Fjord requested with a low voice, also glancing in that direction, “but could y’all do me a favor and not tell Molly about this conversation?”

“What? Why?” Jester asked petulantly.

“Because I have to room with him and the nudity is awkward enough already,” Fjord answered flatly. Nott scrunched up her face.

“I mean, he’d probably use it as an excuse to show off more than he already does,” Beau agreed, stifling a laugh. “That wouldn’t be all that conducive to finding good jobs.” Though really, Beau just wanted to avoid the preening. It would never end. Molly did not need that sort of ego boost.

“Yeaaaaah, that might be trouble with some kinds of work,” Jester said thoughtfully, though she was clearly weighing whether she wanted to see the madness that would result from telling Molly.

“You could always tell him later, Jester,” Nott chimed in.

“I could!” Jester laughed.

“I don’t get it, but alright,” Caduceus added, still digesting the insanity that just occurred. He’d get used to their weirdness eventually.

Of course, Caleb just switched topics rather than answer, “Anyway, Jester, do you have a good sense of how Nott would fit in at the Menagerie Coast?”

Nott derailed the conversation completely to show off her “skin mittens” as Jester called them, and they were appropriately horrifying. Molly eventually returned with a tray of drinks (he was surprisingly graceful after so many drinks) and three keys for their rooms, insisting that he had smoothed things over with Crute. The side-eye that Crute kept casting their way suggested otherwise.

Beau shook her head with a smile and enjoyed her ale. These misfits were so much better than putting up with the snobs at the Cobalt Soul.

* * *

Fjord was immensely grateful that his and Molly’s room had twin beds. Caleb and Nott had offered to share with Caduceus since theirs also had twin beds, so it was just the two of them this time while the Jester and Beau had the room with a single bed.

Once the door was closed, Fjord saw to doffing his armor. It fit well, but loosening the snug pieces was always such a relief. Maybe he’d see about getting it refitted in Nicodranas.

“So, Fjord,” Molly started suddenly, “why did everyone keep looking at me while I was chatting up Crute?”

“Hu—what?” Fjord stumbled, trying to appear clueless. Shit, he already fucked that up. He stayed focused on getting his shoulder guard off, hoping that Molly would leave it alone.

“You all kept looking my way,” Molly repeated calmly. “Why?”

Fjord looked up at him to see the tiefling had a knowing grin, though still flushed slightly from all that drinking. Did someone already tell Molly? Or was that just the drink and he was being a brat? Fjord couldn’t be sure. “Well, you were taking quite a while, and we were keeping an eye out.”

“All at the same time?” Molly leaned closer, narrowing his eyes with suspicion.

“We didn’t all look over at the same time,” Fjord insisted, though he honestly did not recall. Godsdamnit, he did not want to deal with Molly peacocking around if he found out about that stupid dick conversation.

“You did,” Molly insisted with suspicion, though he still had his mischievous grin.

“Uh…” Fjord mumbled. “Well, I guess you did come up in conversation.” He was trying to stall for time, but no good explanations came to mind.

Molly grinned wide. “I did, did I? What about?”

Fjord dropped his hand from his shoulder as the armor came loose. Shit. He explained slowly, trying to come up with something to throw it off, but his mind drew blanks. “The subject of… of men’s genetalia came up, and given Jester’s background growing up in a, uh, where she did, Beau asked Jester what the best she had seen was.”

Molly stared incredulously, unblinking, arms crossed.

“She said yours, alright?” Fjord confessed as he lifted both his hands in concession. Godsdamnit. Molly was going to be insufferable about this for who knows how long. And walking around naked even more than usual. Maybe Fjord could convince Caduceus to room with him so he could room with Caleb and Nott.

Molly stared him down for several seconds. “This is payback for telling you my glass swords were magic, isn’t it?”

“What?” Fjord blurted out. “No, I’m serious.”

“Listen, you’re normally a decent liar,” Molly reasoned as he put a hand on his chest, “and I love the appeal to my ego, but c’mon. That’s not believable that you all happened to have that conversation while I was dealing with Crute.”

Fjord felt slightly annoyed that Molly thought he was so deceitful—and secondly that he was also bad at it—but that was easily buried under shameless gratitude that it still achieved what he wanted. And it meant he didn’t even have to put on an act anymore. “Really, Molly. You could ask any of the others, even Beau.”

“Aha!” Molly exclaimed as he pointed at Fjord. “You’re trying to set me up to piss off Beau!”

Fjord sighed in exasperation, “Fine, don’t believe me then. The rest would still back me up.”

“No, no, you’re not getting me that easily,” Molly crowed as he walked over to his side of the room. “You need to work on your pranks, Fjord, that was just uninspired.”

Fjord shook his head and mouthed “thank you” to the sky at whatever deity had been watching over him just then. He went back to removing his armor and hoped th— no, Molly was already stripping to nothing. Shit.

* * *

“Hey, Jester.” Beau prodded as she did her evening stretches. “Do you still have a crush on Fjord?”

Jester was already curled up in the blankets on the bed. Their room only had one, but it was large enough that they had plenty of space to share. She had been sketching in her notebook, but she sat up with a coy smile. Jester adored girly talk, and while it wasn’t always Beau’s top interest, a thought had occurred to her.

“Mayyyyybe,” Jester drawled coyly. “Why? Did he say something about me?”

Beau took a moment to think of how to phrase this. She was still trying to become comfortable with correcting her own social stumbles, and it was difficult to sort out how to be gentle about pointing out others’ mistakes. She preferred being an asshole about it, but she didn’t want to be an asshole to Jester.

“Well, uh,” Beau tried to couch it with some of her own awkwardness, “Isn’t it kind of, you know, messed up that you basically said Molly’s dick is better than Fjord’s to the entire group? I mean, that’s gotta wound his pride, even if it’s just based on looks.”

“Oh, shit, I did huh,” Jester said as her eyes went wide and her mouth hung open a bit.

“Yeahhhh.” Beau nodded, waiting to see how Jester would react.

“Um, well, ac-tu-al-ly,” Jester enunciated slowly for emphasis, “you know, some dicks are good for one thing and not another, and there’s definitely some…”

Beau had thought of several ways this conversation could go, but an in-depth analysis of penises based on Jester’s observations at home had somehow not made the cut. She had never had any interest in them beyond bored curiosity, and Jester was apparently an expert. Beau listened for about a minute before she truly could not stand to hear more about dicks.

“Y—you know what,” Beau interrupted, still trying to be polite and only half-succeeding, “I kinda didn’t think about how this conversation would proceed, and now I’m thinking we should just, y’know, not talk about that. That— That’s on me, that’s my bad. Totally my fault.”

Jester had been earnestly listening to Beau speak, but as she had continued, that soft smile had turned into a pointed, impish grin. Oh, shit.

As the conversation turned worse, Beau could only sigh.

I did this to myself, godsdamnit.

* * *

“Man, everyone got really awkward during that conversation about dicks,” Caduceus noted as he, Caleb, and Nott got ready for bed. Their room had twin beds, and Caleb had intended to share with Nott so that Caduceus had one to himself. Unfortunately, all of the beds were too short, so Caduceus was setting up his bedroll instead so that the others could each have their own.

“It was a strange conversation,” Caleb agreed, a little flushed and stubbornly not making eye contact with the other two while he looked over his spellbook. Nott inspected Caleb’s face and posture closely. She seemed to be trying to piece things together, but Caduceus had the feeling that she had not quite caught on. But she was certainly going to try to help anyway.

“Don’t worry about what Jester said, Caleb,” Nott said matronly. “I’m sure your dick is great for a human’s, probably one of the best. Jester’s just biased towards tieflings.”

Caduceus watched as Caleb’s face flushed to melon pink and then a tomato red as Nott spoke. Caduceus said nothing, but the embarrassment reminded him so much of Clarabelle teasing Colton. It was harmless fun, and would probably do Caleb a bit of good. He needed silly types of humility, not the self-sabotaging depreciation that he seemed to prefer.

“I would very much like to stop talking about this please,” Caleb replied flatly, still refusing to look at either of them.

Caduceus knew that he was much older than any of the Nein by several decades, but that younger brother instinct was kicking in. He could give into temptation sometimes.

“I’m a bit confused about what makes one dick better than another dick,” Caduceus commented to Nott. It wasn’t really a lie, but that wasn’t the point of saying it either.

“Welllllll…” Nott drawled excitedly as she clapped her hands and rubbed them together, preparing herself for a lecture.

“TIME FOR BED!” Caleb blurted suddenly as he threw his blanket over himself and faced away from them.

Caduceus chuckled a bit and let it alone. He shrugged good-naturedly at Nott and bid them both goodnight. He missed his family greatly, but he wasn’t lonely with this group. He felt certain he had the right companions for his quest.

[mercurygray]

Joan Warren or Annie Winters barbie doll?

I'm going to be a little controversial with this one:

Annie Winters is not going to be a Barbie. She's going to be an American Girl Doll. (Move over, Molly McGuire. There's a new sheriff in town.) She comes packaged with a novel about growing up as a teenager in the 1940s. Outfits include a plaid shirtwaister dress, hair ribbons and mary-janes, and a button-down shirt, a pair of trousers, cardigan sweater, and penny loafers with ankle socks. She comes with a record player, several fan magazines featuring the Paragals, a math textbook and notebook, a pair of her brother's paratrooper wings, and a garrison cap.

[ askbox meme: if your original character came packaged as a barbie…]