#NO ONE SHIPS HER WITH SILAS
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mom told me just now that i should maybe pursue art đ girl dont remind me that its secretly my dream to live that hashtag aesthetic artist who sells prints and can live off that full time and own a house likeâŚ. sigh idk i dont want to be defeatist like ill never know unless i try and i do plan on trying and maintaining a small art career. hashtag side hustle small business. but like unless i somehow get a gazillion sales we have to be realistic and understand its not that feasible. doesnt mean i dont want it thoâŚ.
#âsilas what are you talking about. cite your sourcesâ im like if addie best studio on instagram was masc. okay you see the vision?#honestly like she gets me i fucking love lino printing and i love folk art. she issss one of my biggest inspirations#i also fuck with leigh ellexson even tho i only like her paintings and not her illustrations butttt the vibes are nice#anyways im thinking of opening an online shop posthaste⌠been thinking about it for years but shipping scares meeee#but like. im a damn printmaker i cant just have an edition of 30 prints laying around my house thatâs valuable real estate in my little room#so idk stay tuned for that. hard to feel encouraged that youll make sales when you get like 15 likes on instagram per post#and never done commissions and only sold a handful of items at the only market ive been to#like doesnt give a guy hope. but we power through.#sorry this sounds to depressingggg im fine i just think about it sometimes and my mom reminded me that i couldve gone that route.#i mean i still can#but im happy with a multitude of careers which is why im studying other things. so its okay
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GOLDEN TRIAL
Yandere!mafia x yandere!female!mafia x female!yandere x yandere!king x yandere!doctor x male!detective!reader
Summary: Its 1935 and you've been sent on the Liner Normandie to retrieve a stolen painting. You have six suspects and the clock is ticking â you only have four days before the ship reaches New York to find it. But soon, you find yourself caught up in something even more serious than you could have believed.
Warnings: getting hit in the head with a bottle, kidnapping, mentions of drugging, stalker behavior, light misogyny(?), guns, needles, violence
Word count: 11.7k
DAY 1 â Debark
The ship towers over you like a mad giant. Gray smoke rises from the two forward funnels. Itâs the biggest in the world, bigger than any man made object that can float. You shake your head. Focus. Youâre not here for pleasure. You continue your way over to the terminal. The agency sent you in hopes of finding the lost painting, no one else. You need to stay focused, theyâre counting on you.
Without questioning, you give the fake ID to the man behind the desk. When you had started out as an agent, you were always nervous that your covers would be blown and you would be found out. Nowadays, youâve noticed that if you look nervous, risk are that youâll be asked questions.Â
You walk over the gangway with your bag in hand. You have just above four days to find the painting â a very famous portrait of a woman with her head slightly turned to the viewer, wearing a big, blank pearl earring. It was stolen from the Mauritshuis in the Netherlands two weeks ago, and details have revealed that it has been taken to France, and will be moved to America on the SS Normandie. The painting itself isnât insanely big, but the fuss about itâs disappearance is. You have to find it at all cost.Â
Before you got here, you had time to take a look at the passenger list. There are six people you recognise, where of five could be your potential smugglers.Â
Silas Achilleos, a mob boss wanted by the police, and his second in command. A man like him was probably not interested in paintings, but he could have clients who did. And those could pay him heaps of money.Â
Edmund of Vesanus, a young king who likes the bachelor life. He surrounds himself with loads of women and alcohol, partying like nothing matters. He would take the painting because he doesnât want anyone else to have it. Heâs traveling with his doctor, a certain Karl Kry who you donât know much about.Â
Hedwig Carter, a young heiress whoâs father is noble, and who's mother is famous in the acting business is traveling with a young woman named Jerry Kim, someone you guess is Hedwigâs chaperone. Hedwig is known for getting whatever she wants with a snap of her fingers, and if she wants a painting ⌠she will get it. Jerry, however, does not have much information out in the open. Everything about her before she started to work for Hedwig is wiped away. You want to know who she is and where she comes from, and what she would want a painting for.
You walk down the stairs to your cabin on A-deck and start to pack up, using the second bed in the room to store your bag. After settling in, you decide to take a look around this magnificent vessel to get familiar with it. You make your way up to the promenade deck and give the open cinema by the stairs a quick look. You guess that theyâre going to put on movies once the ship reaches open water. If youâre lucky youâll see something interesting. And hopefully, you have the time to watch it.Â
The promenade is enclosed decorated with a gray floor, comfortable deck chairs and clear windows. A line in the tricolor fashion runs along the floor, as if to show where to walk. You walk on the line, flashing a little childish smile. Youâve left Le Havre and are on your way out towards the Atlanticâs open arms. The clock is ticking.Â
Your eyes lock onto someone walking towards you and you immediately realize that it is Hedwig and her chaperone, an east asian girl ⌠wearing pants and a long sleeved shirt. You donât realize how obvious it is that youâre staring until the woman opens her mouth and you realize that theyâve stopped right in front of you.Â
âWhat are you staring at, sir?â she asks, raising her eyebrows and putting her hands in her pockets. âIf you want to say something, do it.â
âNoâno, sorryâ, you say quickly, feeling your cheeks heat up. âI didnât mean to stare.â
âTell me, do you approve of women who wear pants?âÂ
It sure looks weird, but is it? When you think about it, aren't pants just pieces of the same fabric as skirts, just sewn differently?
âUh, I ⌠suppose so.â
To that, Jerry nods approvingly.
âI donât see why only men should wear pantsâ, she says.
âWell, I don't feel comfortable wearing themâ, Hedwig chuckles nervously and smiles softly. âBut they fit you, Jerry. They really do.â
âYou must be miss Carterâ, you say, as if you don't know, and shake her hand. âItâs nice to meet you.â
âNice to meet you too, please call me Hedwig! Who are you?âÂ
âIâm Axel Ainsworth, I'm in the art industry.â
Hedwigâs smile widens. âThat is very interesting, I love art. Especially portraits. Capturing humanityâs differences and details are magical. Donât you think so, Jerry?â
âIâm more for that new thing â surrealism, I think itâs called â where everything is here and there and weird to believeâ, Jerry says, shrugging. âBut portraits can be okay too, depending on what type.âÂ
Hedwig has turned her eyes to you, glued them onto you as if you are the only thing she could ever see. âAre you traveling alone, mister Ainsworth?â she asks.Â
You have remembered your entire forged background and learned it skillfully. Even your fake name rolls off the tongue as smoothly as if it was your real name. You're traveling alone because you're on your way home to your fiancĂŠ from a business trip.Â
âI seeâ, Hedwig smiles and turns to the woman next to her. âLet me introduce you to my chaperone, miss Jerry Kim. You're always welcome to sit with us during dinner. We'd be more than happy to accompany you.â
âI'm grateful to know that, miss.â
With that said, the two women walk away. You frown and sigh. Hedwig seems like a very sweet young woman, itâd be a shame if it was her who was the culprit. Her chaperone, on the other hand, gives you weird vibes. Something about the look in her eyes ⌠as if sheâs looking right through you, scanning you.Â
You continue down the promenade until you turn into the Winter Garden, a half moon-shaped room full of plants and lamps and big, wide windows, overlooking the special shaped bow that has given Normandie the speed it has. Passengers have already started gathering in the Winter Garden to talk to friends and family and watch how Normandie makes her way out onto the Atlantic. None of them resembles the men youâre looking for. You continue your way through the ship, eventually finding yourself in the smoking room on the embarkment deck, where you had stepped onto the ship. You had only glanced at the room before, but now when youâre standing in the smoking room â and very well the lounge since theyâre connected â you realize how stupid you must have been to miss it. There must be ten meters up to the ceiling, you think, and bigger than a concert hall. A long, grey staircase leads up to the outside deck. The art deco interior is modern and sleek, but the whip overall has a classic, conservative design that reminds you of the great liners of the old age. You sigh while thinking of the Mauretania and the Olympic, Britain's biggest rivals which now are laid up in Jarrowtown, side by side, ready to be scrapped. Thereâs something melancholy about it all, and at the same time something beautiful, starting as enemies and now ending it all under the same flag, together.Â
You shake your head. Focus. Your eyes catch someone standing by the windows, someone very familiar. Silas and his right hand man. You move closer, trying to hear what theyâre talking about.
âIâm not complaining, I just think that it is annoying that it has to take four days to get to Americaâ, Silas mutters and takes a whiff off his cigar.Â
âAny other ship would take double the time, sirâ, his second in command says apologetically. âI doublechecked.â
âI donât like being in one place for too long.â
âSee it as a vacation. Youâre deserving of it. Letâs enjoy some good food, alcohol and some company. Itâll do you good.â
âI donât like to be in one place too long. Especially when we know that they're on board!â
You furrow your brows. Who?
âNothing will happen.â
Silas hums and smokes again. Youâve stood by the windows a few meters away, pretending to be interested in the horizon. Silas turns his eyes to you.Â
âYou, sirâ, he says, pointing at you with his cigar.Â
You look away from the ocean. Both Silas and his second in command have turned to you, their dark eyes looking right at you.Â
âYes?â you ask.Â
âIs it true that the Normandie keeps her speed?â Silas asks. âNo matter the weather?â
âI believe so, sir.â
Silas nods in satisfaction. âGood.â
You decide to try to get some information out of him. You know who he is, but he doesnât know who you are, doesnât know that youâre out to get him. To him, youâre just another first class passenger.Â
âAre you in a hurry?â you wonder.Â
âYou could say thatâ, Silas sighs and turns his eyes out the window again.Â
You hold out your hand. âIâm Axel Ainsworth.â
Silas second in command gives him a short look before his boss shakes your hand. His grip is hard, firm.Â
âYou can call me Silasâ, he says. âNo need for a surname.â He takes another blow on the cigar. âWhat brings you out on the ocean like this?â
âIâve been on a business trip, but now Iâm going home to my fiancĂŠâ, you say, pretending to smile at the thought of your made up fiancĂŠ.
âWhat business are you in?â
âArt.â
Silas lifts one of black his eyebrows. âArt?â
His second in command straightens his back.Â
âYes, sirâ, you say.Â
âAre you a ⌠painter?â Silas wonders.Â
âGod no, I canât handle a brush even if my life depended on it. Iâm an art trader, I help people sell their paintings for the right price.â
âI see. Well, one canât do everything.â He blows a cloud of smoke. âHave you traveled on this ship before, Axel?â
âNo, itâs my first time. But Iâm not unfamiliar with the ocean, I used to travel a lot on the older ships in my younger days.â
âThen I suppose you have a favorite?â
You think for a second. âI did like that Cunarder, the Lusitania ⌠such a shame Germany sunk it.â
âYou never know which ships are safe or not, just look at that Titanic fiasco. They thought it was the safest ship afloat. Yeah, sure it was.â Silas shrugs. âWouldnât surprise if this peace of junk also sinks. Why wouldnât it?â
âWell âŚâ
Silasâs second in command taps him on the shoulder and whispers something in his ear. Silas frowns and nods before turning to you.Â
âIt was nice speaking with you, but I have some business to deal withâ, he says shortly.Â
âHave a good dayâ, you say.Â
Silas nods politely and leaves. You follow him and his second in command with your eyes until theyâve left the smoking room. He was nicer than you had anticipated.Â
Your next suspect, you find in the dining hall that evening. Youâve met up with Hedwig and Jerry in the reception. Hedwig is wearing a pink evening gown with pink gloves. Her honey blonde hair is curled and put up with hairpins. Jerry is wearing a dark purple, sleeveless dress, showing a couple tattoos. In her short, black hair, thereâs a little decoration that reminds you of a flower. She's wearing dark lipstick, in contrast to Hedwig who wears a Hollywood red.
âThey wouldnât let me in unless I dressed ladylikeâ, she mutters.Â
âI think that you look gorgeous, Jerryâ, Hedwig smiles and takes her hand.Â
âI guess that it isnât that bad.â
âI like your tattoosâ, you say. âWhere did you get them from?â
âA tattoo artist, of course.â She then twists her arm to show something on the inner side of her bicep. âOkay, I made this one myself.â
You step closer, seeing a small heart tattooed on her arm.Â
âThatâs cuteâ, you smile.Â
âThank youâ, Jerry smiles smugly. âHurts like hell though.â
âI can imagine.â
The stewards allow you into the dining room and â for what feels like the thousand time today â youâre amazed by the interior. Silver walls with golden ceiling and art decor wherever you could see. In the middle of the long dining hall, thereâs a gigantic, golden statue of a woman.Â
Hedwig and Jerry leads you to a table and sit down. Thatâs when you see your last suspects. Theyâre walking through the dining hall, dressed in tuxedos. The king canât be more than twenty years old. His doctor is a minimum of fifteen years older.Â
âYou son of a bitchâ, he says suddenly and looks at the table youâre sitting at. âHedwig?â
Hedwigâs eyes widen in shock.
âEdmund, what are you doing here?â she asks with a smile. âSit with us, please.â
The king and his doctor sit down at your table.Â
âGood eveningâ, the blonde doctor says and shakes yours and Jerry's hand before introducing himself. âIâm Doctor Kry.â
âNice to meet you, Iâm Axel Ainsworthâ, you say.Â
âThis is king Edmund.â
Youâre about to shake his hand, but Doctor Kry removes your hand.Â
âIâm sorry, but he doesnât shake peopleâs handsâ, he whispers.Â
âOh, I seeâ, you say.Â
The king gives you a bored look.Â
âItâs a pleasure to meet you, your majestyâ, you tell him politely.Â
âHow do you know Hedwig?â he asks shortly. âI havenât seen you before.â
âWe met todayâ, Hedwig smiles. âAxel, Edmund is my relative. Itâs been months since we last saw each other.â
âIâve told you to visit.â
âI know.â
âAre you that much of a hypochondriac that you need a doctor to accompany you while youâre traveling?â Jerry chuckles.Â
âWhat are you doing here, Jerry?â Edmund mutters coldly.Â
âSheâs my chaperoneâ, Hedwig explains.
âOh fuck me.â
âYour majesty, maybe you should think about your languageâ, Doctor Kry says. âWe are around others.â
Edmund rolls his eyes before looking at you in a bored manner.Â
âTell meâ, he says, âwhere do you come from, mister Ainsworth?â
You ramble your rehearsed background. Edmund nods along with you.
âIâve always wanted to visit that placeâ, Doctor Kry says. âIâve heard that it is a beautiful city.â
âIt isâ, you say.Â
âAnd now youâre going to Americaâ, Edmund says. âWhat were you doing in France?â
âI was on a business trip.â
âWhat type?â
It strikes you as odd. He doesnât sound interested, but still he asks you curious questions.Â
âIâm in the art businessâ, you say.
âWhat for?â Edmund wonders.
âArt is beautiful and should be getting what it is worth.â
âI like artâ, Doctor Kry. âI would do anything to see the Mona Lisa.â
âWhy didnât you visit it when you were in France?â Hedwig wonders.Â
âWe didnât have time ⌠Edmund didnât want to go there.â
âWhy should I squash together with other people to see paintings?â Edmund scoffs. âIf I want to see a painting, I get it for myself. Thatâs that.â
âBut do you like art, your majesty?â you ask.Â
âEveryone likes artâ, Edmund replies nonchalantly. âThatâs what gives life meaning.â
âHave you read a certain story, Edmund, called âThe Picture of Dorian Grayâ?â Jerry asks with a teasing smile. âThought that itâd fit you.â
The story is about a man who wants nothing more than to remain youthful ⌠to the point where he has a painting of himself where all of his sins can be seen. In the end, the picture is as gruesome as can be, but Dorian himself is as youthful as he started.
âOh, shut up, Jerryâ, Edmund mutters angrily. âOne day, Iâll teach you manners, believe me.â
Jerry smirks.Â
You eat dinner together with the young king and the doctor. Afterward, to soothe your aching stomach, the five of you walk up to the outside promenade deck to get some fresh air. You strut under the lifeboats, under the stars. Above you, a big luminous sign spells out the name 'NORMANDIEâ, casting a soft light on you. Doctor Kry has lent his blazer to Hedwig, and youâve tried to offer yours to Jerry who refused before you had the time to open your mouth.
âLadies, I think itâs time for you to retreatâ, Edmund says, sounding sweeter than before. âItâs starting to get late.â
âThe evening is youngâ, Jerry insists.Â
âIâm tiredâ, Hedwig yawns. Â
âJerry, be a good girl and bring Hedwig to your cabinâ, Edmund grits. âPlease. Iâm not fighting with you again.â
Jerry rolls her eyes, removes the doctorâs blazer and tells you goodnight. Hedwig gives you and Edmund a hug. Her flowery perfume clogs up your nose, dulls your head for a moment. The three of you wish the girls a pleasant evening and continue walking.Â
âHedwig is a stupid girlâ, Edmund says, strolling slowly. âOne canât help but want to take care of her.â
âShe seems very sweetâ, you admit.Â
âShe is. Just very naive. Iâve promised her father that Iâm going to take care of her whenever I meet her.â
âHer chaperone is ⌠interestingâ, Doctor Kry remarks.Â
âGod, yes, I hate her!â
âWhat is it about her that you donât like?â you ask curiously.Â
âI do not like girls like her. Did you see her tattoos? She often walks around in manâs clothing and I donât think itâs fitting for a woman â especially someone that is close to my relative. I donât want her influencing Hedwig.â
âI donât think you have to worry, your majestyâ, Doctor Kry says calmly. âI think Hedwig is going to be okay.â
âIf thereâs one thing Iâm glad for, it is that Hedwig is predictable.â He groans. âI need a cigar. Letâs go to the smoking room.â Edmund turns around to give you a look. âAxel, are you joining?âÂ
âI donât knowâ, you reply. âItâs the first day, Iâm still tired from embarking.â
âDonât tell me that youâre going to bed now.â He looks at his expensive watch. âThe clock is ten. Stay one hour.â
You give up and follow them to the smoking room. Maybe it is for the best. If you want to get close to them, youâll need to spend as much time observing them as you can.Â
Sitting with them in the smoking room, you find that Silas and his second in command aren't here among the other men. You frown, thinking that they would be here since they were earlier.Â
When youâre allowed to leave, two hours later, your mind is fogged up by smoke and whiskey. You make your way through the empty corridors to your cabin, closing and locking it behind you. Tiredly, you sink down on your bed and sigh out. You have observed them, and talked with them the entire day, and yet you havenât figured out who could be hiding the painting. They all seem interested in art. They all could have taken it.Â
There's so many questions. What kind of doctor is Kry? Where did Jerry come from and why is there no information about her? Why would someone like Hedwig hire her as her chaperone? And who is that person that Silas doesn't want on board? Is there someone you haven't accounted for, someone else that can have stolen the painting?
You hide your face in your hands and groan. Three days left.
DAY 2 â Sea
You wake up early, get ready and head out into the corridor. You lock the cabin door behind you, feeling the handle to make sure that it is locked and make your way to the Winter Garden to have a cup of coffee. The large windows give you a wide view of the calm ocean. The sun rises up from the blue water in a magical sense that has you hypnotized. It's all so very quiet and relaxing.
After your cup of coffee, you stretch your muscles, and contemplate going down to the swimming pool to take a few laps, to warm up your muscles and clear your head for the day's work. You pay the purser and make your way down to the swimming pool on D deck. The tile walls are covered with art that reminds you of ancient Greece and the new, abstract type of paint. The pool itself was formed as a long rectangle with curved corners, green steel ladders, and a steep and a shallow part. Throughout the shallow part, there were thick, dull spikes, likely to stop children from going out into the deep end.Â
Despite being the early hours of the first morning on board, someone is already in the water. Doctor Kry.
âGood morningâ, he says. âYouâre up early.â
âSo are youâ, you reply.
âI always need to clear my head before starting the day.â
âWhat about the king? Is he swimming too?â
âDon't kid around. He doesnât wake up until nine. I wouldnât be able to get him out of bed before that anyways. Heâs a very deep sleeper and hates getting woken up.â
You feel your heart skip a beat.Â
âWhere do you have your cabin?â you ask.Â
âOn the promenade deck, one of the suites. A-54.â
Bingo.Â
âWhy do you ask?â Doctor Kry wonders.
âI was just thinking that since the king doesn't want to be disturbed, choosing the right cabin place is important.â
âDid we choose a good cabin then?â
You nod, despite not knowing a single thing about cabin placements. The only thing you're aware of is to be as far away from the noisy engine room as possible.
Perhaps if you asked the purser, you could get the number of the other cabins. He, if anyone, should have the passenger list.Â
You glance back at Doctor Kry who's still hanging by the side of the pool. This is your time to investigate him. You slowly get into the water.
âSuch a shame that you didn't get to visit the Mona Lisaâ, you say as you start to swim. âIt's a very pretty painting.â
âSo I've heardâ, Doctor Kry says slowly.
âMy favorite painting is âthe girl with the pearl earringsâ, have you had the opportunity to see it?â
He's quiet for a second.
âI haven'tâ, he says, sounding low. âI guess that, an art trader like you, must be troubled by its disappearance.â
âOf courseâ, you answer. Â
At this point, a detective and an art trader don't seem like different things, especially since both would be looking for the same thing.
âCan I ask you something?â you wonder.
âIt dependsâ, Doctor Kry says. âGo ahead.â
âForgive me for being nosy, but why doesn't his majesty like Jerry?â
âHe is very old fashioned. He doesn't think that women should be dressed in pants or have tattoos. Edmund is very self centered, yes, but he's also very possessive of the ones he holds dear â example being miss Hedwig. As you may know, his parents were murdered by enemies to the monarchy and ever since, the only relatives that have been in his life have been Hedwig and her family. They're very close in age too â Hedwig being eighteen and Edmund nineteen â which has been a very important thing for him. He sees her as a friend, maybe his only friend. So having someone that could potentially blemish his friend and only family is a threat to Edmund.â
âThen why does Hedwig have Jerry?â
âI don't know. It could be because of a teenage revolt. Jerry is different to everything that Hedwig has ever known ⌠and now that she's eighteen she might want to try something new.â
âDo you think that Edmund is worried about her? Because of Jerry?â
âI wouldn't say worried, because the only thing the king worries about is himself, but I think that there's something along those lines. I think that he sees Hedwig as an extended part of himself rather than her own person.â
You nod carefully.
âI wonder where Hedwig found Jerryâ you say. âHow someone like her could get the job as Hedwigâs chaperone. Do you know where she comes from?â
Doctors Kry suddenly laughs.
âYou ask an awful amount of questions this early in the morningâ, he says and gets out of the water. âI'm sorry, I don't have more answers for you, Axel.â
You look up at him, where he stands on the tile floor. He looks down at you with a small smirk.
âYou remind me of a little boyâ, he says and lowers his eyes onto your physic. âYou're awfully trained to be an art trader. One could think that you were an Olympian.â
âShouldn't a doctor be pleased that I am taking care of myself?â
âI am. You look good, healthy. Just found it humorous.â He wipes away a few drops of water trying to go into his blue eyes. âI suppose that I will see you later. Goodbye, Axel.â
âGoodbye.â
You decide to do a few more laps around the swimming pool before getting up and drying yourself. Tomorrow morning, you will sneak into Edmundâs and Doctor Kryâs cabin to see if the painting is in there. But for now, you need to go to the purser.Â
You change into your suit. In the front pocket, you keep a little commonplace book to take notes. You make your way back to the pursers office. The man behind the desk gives you a service smile and asks how he can help you.Â
âDo you happen to have the passenger list?â you ask. âI would like to know where some peopleâs cabins are located.â
âWhat is your name?â the purser wonders.Â
âAxel Ainsworth.â
âWho are you wanting to find?â
âHedwig Carter and Silas Achilleos.â
The purser disappears into his office. You wait impatiently, suddenly feeling watched. Carefully, you glance over your shoulder, but the only ones in eyesight are two men who are conversing. The purser returns. You fish out your notebook, ready to note it down.Â
âMiss Carter has cabin B-23 and Mister Achilleos has cabin A-11.â
You write it down. âThank you.â
With that said, you leave to go to the staircase. Youâre not sure where to go, so you decide to take a stroll down the enclosed promenade while thinking. Doctor Kry knows more, you think, but he doesnât want to tell.Â
You sit down on one of the deck chairs to write down what you have gotten to know, so that you wonât forget any important information. You write down the suspects' motives to steal the painting, Silasâs weird enemy, their relation to each other â which only connects Edmund, Kry, Jerry and Hedwig â as well as the answers that you have gotten from Doctor Kry earlier today. Who has the painting? Your first instinct says that Doctor Kry doesnât have it, because heâs not interested in that painting. Had it been the Mona Lisa, things would have been different, but this painting doesnât interest him. That doesnât mean that the painting couldnât be in his room, though, because Edmund could still want to have it.Â
You stand up after a while and continue walking. Your eyes fixate on something in the distance. A woman dressed in pants talking to a man in a suit that seems to be hiding in the corner of the promenade. You frown.Â
What does Jerry have to do with Silas's second in command?Â
You want to move closer, but you donât want to expose yourself. Youâll have to change the relations in your notes, because thereâs clearly something more than youâve been led to know.Â
What if Jerryâs lack of background has something to do with the mafia? It would explain her tattoos ⌠that or being a sailor. But because of what you've just witnessed you can most likely scratch the latter. A shiver runs down your spine. If Jerry is dangerous, then Hedwig could be too. You stop in your tracks. Hedwig? Really? Edmund said it himself, she's a stupid, naive girl. Could she be dangerous?
You walk up to the open deck in the stern of the first class accommodations where you find a few kids playing something reminding you of curling. You sit down on the zig-zag benches placed out on the deck and watch them. They notice you looking and ask you to join them, so you do. You decide that maybe you can pleasure yourself in a harmless children's game for a few minutes, and continue the mission after.
When lunchtime rolls around, you make your way down to the dining hall. It's emptier than yesterday evening. You find Silas and his second in command sit by a table. Silas notices you and waves you over. Your feet bring you to him.
âSorry to cut our talk short yesterday, Axelâ, he says politely and gesticulates at the chair in front of him. âSit down. Let me buy you lunch.â
And so, he does. You sit down and try your best not to glance at the second in command whoâs black eyes burn through you. Your stomach twists.Â
You both get lamb, something you have eaten many times before. Still, it tastes better at sea.
âWhat did you say that you were here for again?â Silas asks suddenly as heâs cutting his meat.
His voice sounds different from yesterday. You clear your throat to make sure that your voice wonât shiver.
âIâve been on a business tripâ, you say. âAnd now Iâm going home.â
âYes, yes, I know that. What I mean is that you didnât tell me why you were in France. What kind of business trip was it? What did you do? I know that you were there for art, but what do one do on an art business trip? You have to forgive me for being curious.â
âI was meeting some people from the Louvre.â
âI see. About what?â
âArtâs future, how to make sure they donât break or smudge or get tainted by the sun. And how to protect them. You must have heard about âthe girl with the pearl earringsâ missing?â
âYes, of course. Isnât it weird that someone would steal that painting? Why not a Monet painting? Or the Mona lisa?â
âI donât know. Maybe taking one of them would be too big of a deal. Maybe the one taking the painting thought that since it isnât one of the most cherished, theyâd have an easier time taking it ⌠that the commotion about it would die out sooner or later.â
âPerhaps.âÂ
Youâve noticed that you havenât heard the second in commandâs voice at all, beside the talk he had with Silas yesterday. He doesnât speak to anyone else than Silas ⌠and Jerry. You still donât dare look at him, scared that he will see right through you and know that youâve seen him talk to her. You wonder what they were talking about.
âDid you have a good time yesterday?â Silas asks.
âYes, I didâ, you reply.
âDid you meet someone?â
âNo, I didnât. I chit-chatted with some people here and there, but kept mostly to myself.â
âYou do good in that. You never know who you can trust on a big ship as this. You never know who wants you good or not.â
âWhy are you traveling, Silas?â you ask innocently. âYou said that you were impatient to get to America. Is there a reason?â
âOf course. Everything has a reason. But I donât think I can share that with you. At least I shouldnât.â
âWhy not?â
Silas turns his black eyes to you and smiles slightly. His hungry gaze makes you freeze. He had seemed so sweet yesterday, but you finally see a slice of what makes him so terrifying.Â
âBecause someone like you shouldnât know thatâ, he smiles.Â
âI understandâ, you say and take a piece of food into your mouth, to avoid speaking further.
âYou have to excuse my man hereâ, Silas says and nods at his second in command. âHeâs the shy type. He goes wherever I go, so you have to get used to him.â
âIs he your bodyguard?â you wonder.Â
âYou could say that. But Iâm always prepared in case someone wants to attack me.â
He opens his blazer, showing you a revolver tucked into the fabric. You have your own in your suitcase. Walking around with it feels too risky, but maybe youâll have to go get it. In case anything happens.
After lunch, youâre left with a weird feeling in your stomach. You have talked with him for an hour, about everything between heaven and earth ⌠and yet it feels like you have been having two conversations in one â one on the surface and one real.Â
You walk to your cabin and press down the door handle and walk into the room. The first thing that strikes you as odd is that thereâs a new smell in the air. A flowery scent. You can swear that you have felt it before. Without a second to waste, you open your bag and pick up your gun, putting it in your suit. Quickly, you turn around, realizing something. Didnât you lock the door when you went out this morning?
That evening, you spend dinner with the two girls and stay in the smoking room with Edmund for what feels like an eternity. Edmund wants to play a deck of cards with you. He seems a bit more relaxed than yesterday and even smiles a bit.Â
After your games against Edmund, you decide to retreat. You walk down the long, dimly lit corridor. The narrow spaces feel almost ominous at night time, although barely any daylight reaches here at daytime either. You glance over your shoulder every tenth step, hesitating, can't help but feel watched. Your hand reaches for your gun, but before you have time to get it, someone reaches up behind you and smashes something heavy in your head. Everything turns black.
DAY 3 â SEA
âHe's waking up.â
Your eyes feel like lead, and your head is even heavier. It takes a few tries to open your eyes and when you finally manage to, you want nothing more than to close them again. For a few seconds, you wonder if you're dreaming. They're all here, looking down at you. You look around and notice that they've tied your hands and feet, and left you on the floor at the end of the bed, with your back against the footrest.
You catch a glimpse of the clock on the wall. Just a bit past one in the morning. The third day has begun. You have been blacked out for three hours.
Your head is pounding, making it hard to think clearly.
Jerry bends down, grabs your chin and turns your head back and forth to inspect the damage caused on your head.
âHe'll liveâ, she says and gives your cheek a quick, but harsh, tap.
âWell, well, Y/Nâ, Silas says, smirking. âYou're a bit nosy aren't you?â
The mention of your name causes you to twitch and widen your eyes. In your dulled stage, you wonder if you've heard wrong, but the smirk in their faces confirm that you have, indeed, not lost your hearing.
âSo, you were the agentâ, Silas continues and shrugs. âI gotta admit, I was hoping that it wasn't you.â
âYou were smart-â, Doctor Kry starts.Â
âBut not smart enoughâ, Edmund cuts him off sharply with his arms crossed over his chest. ââArt dealerâ, yeah, sure. A detective dealing with art. That's not the same, Y/N, if you didn't know that.â
Silas picks up something from his pocket, a small commonplace book.Â
ââSuspects are all interested in art, could be any of themââ, he reads out loud. ââJ involved with S? Talked with SIC.â Jerry? Involved with me? Talked with my second in command? You seem to have it all written down.â
âI was involved with Silasâ, Jerry says. âI know his second in command very well.â
âHowâHow did you ⌠know?â you ask, baffled. âWere you all in on it?â
âNot from the start, noâ, Doctor Kry says. âI only knew Edmund and had met Hedwig before. I didnât even know Jerry, Silas or his second in command.â
You quickly realize that Jerry is the linking chain between them. She linked Hedwig, Edmund and Kry to Silas and his second in command.Â
âI had already been informed and knew that there would be someone on this ship out to get meâ, Silas says. âI heard that Jerry was on board and caught up with her. She told me that she and Hedwig had met you. It was her that thought it was weird that you asked all of us about art. My men dug, and found out your real identity. My men saw you speaking with the purser, hearing you ask for our cabins and decided to tell it all to me and my second in command, who told Jerry ⌠who told the others.â
âYou have more men?â you ask and canât hide how shocked you get.
âOf course. You donât think I would go on board with only one man? Do you think I'm stupid, darling? You, on the other hand, probably should have had someone, at least.âÂ
âAwfully inconsiderate of your bosses, don't you think, to send you all alone?â Jerry says.
âYou were looking for this, werenât you?â Edmund asks and pulls out something from a wooden box behind him.Â
You stare at it with wide eyes. The painting.
âWhoâWho had it?â you canât help but question, gulping between the first word.Â
âMe, of courseâ, Edmund says with an offended, yet proud scoff. âIt will do nicely in my castle.â
âNow, little Y/N, you knowâ, Silas says. âAre you happy now? Your mystery is solved.â
Your head hurts too much to answer. Youâre not sure if youâre happy. You have learned where the painting disappeared, but youâre tied and hurt, and in the enemiesâ grasp. A mixed bag, so to say.Â
âI canât watch the bloodâ, Hedwig suddenly says and stands up from the armchair she's sitting on.Â
She has been the only one that hasnât smirked at you and seems genuinely apologetic that you're here, but you don't trust that damsel in distress look anymore. She pushes through the others to reach you with a wet handkerchief in her hands. Carefully, she kneels down in front of you and wipes the wet cloth against your forehead. She wipes away the dried blood gently.
âWhat are you going to do now?â you spit, coming your head to the side. âThrow me overboard?â
âNot exactlyâ, Silas says, smiling menacingly.Â
âNot yet, at leastâ, Jerry says, grinning.
âIf I don't meet my contact in New York, people will know that something has happened to meâ, you say coldly. âThey'll hunt you down.â
âOh, will they now? I didn't realize that we had stolen their golden boy.â Silas's cruel smile widens. âWell, Golden Boy, plans seem to have changed.â
You glare at him in confusion. Silas pets your head twice and you hiss at the painful touch. Whatever they hit you with, it must have caused a gigantic bruise.
âSeems like we have to keep you for a whileâ, he says. âBut you will have to stay in here, Iâm afraid. You probably understand that we cannot let someone like you wander around the ship.â
You glare at him.
âDo you really think ropes will stop me?â you ask. âI'll be out of here in no time.â
âI would very much like for you to see what we do to you if you decide to break free.â He gives you a testing look before turning to his new companions. âOh, and one more thing âŚâ He picks up a familiar revolver, spinning it around his hand. â... thank you for the free gun.â
You want to curse at him, but keep quiet for your own sake.
âIt's late, the ladies should head to bedâ, he says, gesturing for Hedwig and Jerry to leave. âWe need to keep someone here to make sure that our little Golden Boy won't free himself and run around, causing trouble.â
âI can take the first shiftâ, Doctor Kry says and golds up a syringe filled with a translucent liquid.
âDo not harm him, you hear me?â Silas tells him warningly. âI want him alive, coherent and unharmed.â
âWhere am I supposed to sleep?â Edmund questions angrily. âIn this cabin? Now that I'll have people staring at me?â
âYou and Doctor Kry will take Y/Nâs cabinâ, Silas says.
âAre you fucking kidding me?â
âStop being so spoiled, your majesty.â
âWon't that be suspicious?â Silasâs second in command questions. âIf they see the young king exit and enter someone else's cabin instead of his own?â
âNo one knows his cabinâ, Silas says as if things were obvious. âBesides, we're in New York tomorrow anyways. It won't be a problem.â He turns to the others. âScatter.â
The five of them walk out, leaving you and Doctor Kry alone. The doctor sits down in one of the two armchairs in front of you with a long, tired sigh. In his hand, he twirls the syringe.
âWhat is that?â you mutter.
âSomething that will make you go to sleep if you're trying to escapeâ, Doctor Kry says simply, as if he was talking about watering flowers.
âWhy did you hit me in the head if you had that instead?â you ask bitterly.
âBecause it wasn't me, it was the second in command and Jerry.â
âDid you lie down in the swimming pool? About not knowing where Jerry came from?â
âNo, Y/N, why would I? I told you that I didn't know anything. I didn't get to know until this afternoon.â
âAnd yet you're quick to jump the wagon to get me killed. I thought doctors were supposed to be nice.â
âIâve never said that I was nice.â
âWhat do you gain from this? Why do you want to engage in collusion with people like this? What kind of doctor even are you?â
âStill, with all these questions ⌠look, Y/N, itâs late. Youâd do good in trying to get some sleep.â
âOn the floor? With my head pounding in pain? With my hands and feet tied?â
âSuit yourself.â
Thereâs a deadly silence after that. You listen to the sounds the Normandie creates, and somehow wishes that she could save you, but youâre trapped within her, thereâs nothing to be done. You rest your head back onto the edge of the footrest and sigh heavily. Doctor Kry looks at his syringe as if it is the most interesting thing he has ever witnessed.
âI'm thirstyâ, you say after a while.Â
Doctor Kry stands up, walks over to the dressing table where a crystal carafe is waiting and pours you a glass. He returns to you and holds the glass to your lips, making you drink. You gulp it down and breathe heavily. Doctor Kry returns to his armchair.Â
You don't know how long you've been sitting on the floor before you start to fall asleep. You thought that you wouldn't, not in this position (figuratively and literally) but you somehow fall asleep.Â
âWakey wakey, Golden Boy.â
You feel someone poke your head to the side multiple times and open your eyes to see Jerry hold a stick in her hand which she's using to poke your head.
âIt's morningâ, she says.
You groan groggily. She imitates you and chuckles.
âDid you have a pleasant night?â she teases.
You decide not to answer, not to humor her further. Your eyes draft onto a silver tray on the table.
âYes, that's your breakfastâ, Jerry says and lifts the tray, putting it on the floor in front of you before sitting down.Â
She picks up a piece of toast and holds it to your mouth. You take a bite, feeling more humiliated than ever. If only you knew that this was where you'd end up when you stepped on board in France.
âWe will be in New York tomorrowâ, Jerry says, holding the toast to your lips. âAnd we'll sneak both you and the painting past your contact.â
âIt's just a paintingâ, you say cluelessly. âWhy do you all want it so much?â
âIâm not particularly interested in the painting, but I know that Edmund and Hedwig are.â
âWhy?â
âArt nerds.â
âIs it even selling for much?â
âIt is â if you give it to the right consumer.â
âAnd you? What do you gain from this?â
âThe thing isnât about what I gain, it is what I lose ⌠in case I let you roam freely. I donât trust what you will do with the painting or itâs contents. Plus, you know who I am. If you wouldnât have stuck your nosy head in everything, you wouldnât have any problem with me.â
You suddenly realize something.Â
âJerry, I need to go to the bathroomâ, you say. âI havenât been to the bathroom since before you knocked me in the head.â
She sighs heavily. âAlright, come here.â
Before pulling you up on your feet, she unties them. You stumble, almost falling on Jerry.Â
âWatch it, big boyâ, she warns you. âIf you knock me down Iâm kicking you between your legs until you canât have children.â
âIf you hadnât tied my feet, I would actually have blood in them. I canât feel them.â
She unties your hands bitterly. You make your way into the bathroom and catch a glimpse of yourself in the mirror. Hedwig had wiped away some of the blood, but there were still traces of it in your scalp. You sigh heavily. What should you do? Finally, your hands and feet are free, but you arenât yet. And â after a quick look around â thereâs no way out. The only way out is through the door which Jerry is guarding.Â
You could perhaps get out by defeating Jerry, but you have something against fighting women. But, then again, she had knocked you with â what you guess was â a glass bottle. You look around for something that can help you and lay your eyes on a metal bar over the bathtub, used to pull one up. Without a second thought and will all your might, you rip it off. You give it a few squeezes, feeling if it could be strong enough to be used as a weapon and trying to find a comfortable, yet strong, grip.Â
You open the door quickly and swing the metal bar towards Jerry. She tries to grab it out of your hands but you push her off and knock her to the ground with the bar. You're not sure how hard you are hitting her, but it's enough force to keep her down. Quickly, you make your way past her and storm out of the cabin, almost crashing into the opposite wall in the corridor. You look around quickly, trying to think of where to go. After what Silas said, that he has more men than just his second in command lurking around, you're not sure who you can be seen by. You need to find an officer. You need to get higher.
Shit, the painting!
Your heart is beating loudly in your chest as you scurry back into the cabin. Jerry is lying on the floor, unconscious, and you almost feel bad for knocking her, but you know that it had to be done. It was her or you. Quickly, you open the wooden box and fish out the painting, tucking it under your arm. You can't hide it in your cabin, not when they know about it. You have to dispose of it somewhere safe.
Every step you take is careful, planned and mortified. You clutch the painting tightly, as if it is life itself.
Moving through the long corridor, you're certain that someone will jump out behind a corner and knock you out, like yesterday. Adrenaline is pumping through your veins, almost making you nauseous. You continue through the corridor, over to the hall with the staircases. Your suit has dried blood on it, you look (and feel) manic, will anyone take you seriously?
You freeze as you see a pair of eyes on you. Kry. His blue eyes seem to darken as he notices you, and the painting.
Quickly, you throw yourself into the elevator, and press a random button, wanting the doors to close before Doctor Kry reaches you. And they do, but when you look at the display beside you, you're going the opposite to where you need to go. New plan, you think, I have to sneak into tourist class â or third class, whatever gets you furthest away.
While standing in the elevator, you take a look at the painting to make sure that it hasnât been damaged in this mess. You turn it around to inspect the canvas and notice something stuck in the corner of the wooden brackets. Carefully, you reach your fingers in and pull out a folded paper. Tucking the painting between your arm and your waist, you unfold the paper to find a list of names and locations ⌠some of which you recognize. Theyâre all wanted criminals and you guess that the ones you donât recognize are criminals as well. And the locations âŚ
Your body goes cold and stiff. For a few moments, it feels like the entire world has stopped spinning. This is suddenly more serious than you could ever expect. Quickly, you put the paper in the pocket of your black pants.
You make your way through corridors you havenât been in before, through doors youâre sure youâre not allowed through. You canât help but look around at the new environment. Despite being one of Normandieâs lower classes, the attention to detail had been given to every centimeter of the ship.Â
Focus!
Youâre not sure where youâre going, but you need to find someone that can help you. You consider giving it to a random passenger and ask them to give them to an officer, but in your entire training, you have been told not to pull innocent civilians into your job. They could get seriously hurt and it would be completely your own fault.Â
You make your way through tourist class, making sure not to be seen by anyone. If Silas have more people than you thought, why wouldnât they be in multiple classes? Youâre not even sure why the painting have caused this big of a commotion, but thereâs no way you can give up the painting now â not after everything youâve gone through. Your head is still pounding from the glass bottle and your heart beating out of your chest by the sight of Doctor Kry. He knows that youâre roaming freely, and soon, they all will know ⌠and they will look for you. Silasâs words still ring in your ear; âI would very much like for you to see what we do to you if you decide to break freeâ â well you surely donât. But where can one run where the space is limited? Itâs not like you can grab a lifeboat and sail your way to safety. The sea can be just as dangerous as the people youâre dealing with.Â
You look around for someone in black uniform, desperately wanting to find someone to help you before you get a bullet through your head. Finally, you find a steward carrying a metal tray. Like lightning had struck through you, you barge forward and grab his arm.Â
âSir, you have to help me!â you hiss and pull him into an empty corridor.Â
âWhat are you doing-?â he gasps.Â
âPlease listen and listen quicklyâ, you whisper in pure panic. The words fall out of your mouth incoherently, but you somehow manage to create the sentences you need for the steward to listen to you. âI have to get to the Captain! Like ⌠now! Itâs really, really urgent! Please, just trust me!â
You look around with wide eyes, heart now pounding in your throat. The steward nods in confusion and signals for you to come with him. Youâre not sure why he decides to trust you, but youâre ever so grateful for it. He takes you through hidden passages used for staff so that none of the paying passengers will have to see them, up a couple of steep stairs and through some more doors. You hug the painting tightly against your roaring chest. Every corner makes your heart stop, terrified that someone will stand on the other side and knock you out the second you turn.Â
The steward points at a door with a golden sign on it â âOfficersâ quartersâ. You pound on the door until youâre sure your knuckles bleed. A stern looking man in neat uniform opens, giving you a dark look.Â
âWho are you?â he questions. âWhat do you want?â
âIâm Y/N L/N, Iâm an agent of the crown and this is the missing painting that has been all over the news ⌠you have to keep it secure until we reach New York.â
The officer looks confused as he takes the painting in his hands and lets you into the quarters.Â
âYouâre bloody, what happened to you, sir?â
âThereâs six passengers â Mr Achilleos and his man, His Majesty Edmund of Vesanus, Doctor Karl Kry, Miss Hedwig Carter and Miss Jerry Kim. They knocked me out and kept me in a cabin the entire night. Theyâre working together. They want this painting âŚâ
⌠and probably my life by now.
â ⌠keep it safeâ, you beg the officer and feel your voice quiver. âPlease. If i canât meet you at the harbor when we dock tomorrow, please give it to my contact â I will write down his name â and tell him that he can find further information on board the ship.â
âI will tell the captain about the passengers, they will be taken care of and kept in arrest until we reach land where the police will deal with themâ, the officer says.
âThank you. A lot. Really.â
âYou can stay here if you want.â
You feel for the note in your pocket and shake your head. âI have to do something first.â
The officer nodded. On shaky legs, you open the door and walk out into the corridor again. The steward is long gone and youâre alone in an unfamiliar corridor. You suddenly feel exhausted and decide to stay close to the door for a few moments to catch your breath, as if the officersâ quarter was a safe place.Â
The note has to be hidden somewhere across the ship so that your contact can find it in case you donât make it out alive. The note is more important than the painting and can, under no circumstances, go in the wrong hands. These names have to reach your contact. The group will look for the painting in belief that the note is still there, so the note has to be hidden separately so that they wonât find it.Â
You make your way through the corridors slowly, making sure not to be caught with the list of names on you. In a weird, panic filled daze, you make your way through corridors, through lounges and dining halls where you hide the note. Underneath a chair, stuck to the corner. You deice to find your way back to the officersâ quarters and somehow find yourself out on deck. The wind is grabbing at you, pulling you left and right. You have a hard time keeping yourself on your feet. No one else is outside and you suspect it has to do with the fact that itâs early in the morning and the dark gray sky above you threat of rain.
âY/N, donât move.â
You turn to see the second in command with a gun in his hand.
âIf you shoot me you'll ruin your lifeâ, you say to him as confidentially as you can muster, but you can't help but worry if he's going to pull the trigger.Â
âDo you think I care?â the second in command questions with a scoff. âI serve my boss until my last breath, I couldn't care less about other trivial matters. Where's the painting?â
âYou don't care for the painting. Ask me instead where the note is.â
His eyebrow twitches.
âYou know about the note, huh?â he says, eyes narrowing. âSeems like I'll have to get that out of you.â
âWhy don't you have your boss do it? Or is he in arrest?â
âDon't worry about him, he always comes out on top. Come with me now or I will shoot you-â
âShoot me then. The note is hidden and the painting is with trusted people.â
âIdiot. Do you think I was born yesterday? If I shoot you, I can't get the note. You may be stupid, but i dont think youre careless enough To sacrifice yourself for such a trivial thing. Get over here. Now.â
You're unarmed and alone, but if there's one thing you've been taught, it is to not give up without a fight. Your eyes catch onto an officer patrolling the upper deck and whistle. As the second in command takes his eyes off of you, you dive head first into the swimming pool. From his perspective, you don't think â wish â that he sees the man above him. The water wraps around you like a cold blanket and for a few seconds you can't even feel the wetness, only biting cold that almost makes you gasp under the surface. Somewhere, you think that you can hear a gunshot and see something whooshing past you in the water. And then another, and another. And then nothing.
You don't return to the surface until you're sure that the bullet rain has stopped. Your burning lungs gasp for air and you grip the ladder to your left. The second in command has been wrestled down on the deck by the same officer you saw. A smile tugs at your lips as the second in command glares at you from the floor, smashed against the planks.
âSir, are you alright?â the officer asks, panting.
âI'm okayâ, you reply, panting heavier.
An ice cold wind cuts right through you.
âGo insideâ, the officer tells you.
âY/N!â the second in command shouts as you've started to walk. âDon't forget that there are more. You barely know half of the people we have on board. Don't think for a second that you are safe!â
You pretend not to hear him and make your way inside for warmth. Unsure of where to go because of the second in commandâs words, you return to the officersâ quarters.
That evening, you make your way down to the arrest. There are still two questions you havenât gotten an answer to. You've gotten your gun back from a steward and have tucked it in your blazer. Nausea is eating you up from the inside as you walk into the room, watching the cell and its habitants.
âLook who it isâ, you hear Jerry snicker. âChange your mind, Golden Boy? Do you want us out?â
You don't even bother to answer.
âThe painting is in a safe place, and so are the noteâ, you say. âI suppose that Jerry, Silas and your second in command wanted the note and not the painting ⌠and Edmund and Hedwig wanted the painting ⌠but what did the Doctor want?â
âMe?â Kry asks coldly and walks over to the bars with his arms crossed. âWhat I wanted?â
âYesâ, you reply.
âYou, of course. Imagine, my own little lab rat that I could do whatever I wanted with ⌠no one would even bat an eye if both you and the painting disappeared.â
âYou won't get any of it.â You let your eyes wander over the six people. âNot the painting, not the note, and absolutely not me. Jail is what you will get.â
You can hear Hedwig start to sob in the corner of the cell. She has sunken down along the wall with her head hanging between her knees, body shaking with sobs. Edmund sighs and walks over to her side, grabbing her shoulders and trying to pull her up on her feet.
âDon't cryâ, he says quietly. âWe won't go to jail, I will make sure of that. I won't allow it.â
âDid you just come down here to revel in our misery?â Silas asks you.Â
You're not sure why you came down here. Did you want to make sure to yourself that they were behind bars? Or make you feel more powerful? Or even just get to see them?
âYou do know that we will have our revenge, donât you?â Edmund says and looks at you. âThis is not the end.â
âI hope that you like being a dog, because that's what you're going to be, leash and allâ, Silas scoffs.
âTattooedâ, Jerry adds on with a tilted smile. âMarked. Would Golden boy like that?â
You ignore her, and walk over to the cells bars, eyes glued onto Hedwig.Â
âWhat were you doing in my cabin?â you ask.Â
She freezes, looking cluelessly at you through her teary eyes.
âWhat?â she asks in shock.Â
âYour perfume was all over my cabinâ, you say coldly. âWhy were you in my cabin?â
âI-Iâm sorry, Y/N!â she cries and runs over to the bars, reaching out for you.Â
You back away.
âIâm sorry, I-I ⌠I looked through your things. I couldnât help it, I just ⌠I really, really wanted to hold you. I didnât take anything, I promise! Please believe me, Y/N, I just wanted to- ⌠it doesnât matter. Forgive me.â
You donât answer. Maybe Hedwig isnât as sweet and innocent as you thought.Â
DAY 4 â End of voyage
After your hell night last night you couldn't be more grateful for the somewhat pleasant night you had. Every single sound and movement woke you up, preparing you to see one of the six criminals or their acquaintances. And since a ship is in constant movement and makes sounds only God knows about, you barely slept for an hour straight. But at least you were in a warm bed.
You can't eat anything during breakfast. You stare at the sandwich and steaming coffee in front of you with a twisted stomach. The room is filled with passengers, like normal, but the bright room canât be more dark and sinister. It is as if someone has drained it of color. Any of the smiling guests can be one that want to put a bullet through your skull, and is waiting for you to rise from your chair and follow you outside.
When a waiter comes over to your table, the coffee has stopped steaming.Â
âGood morning, sirâ, he says politely and places a silver tray with a silver cloche on your table.Â
âWhat is this?â you ask in confusion.Â
âA gentleman told me to give this to you. He has paid for it and everything.â
With that said, he smiles and walks away to continue his job. You glance down at the dome looking metal and feel your heart sink. Although you donât want to, your heart reaches out to pull it away and reveal whatever is lying on the silver tray underneath. Youâre not sure what you are expecting but a small, folded paper is certainly not it. As if on autopilot, you open the paper to see only a line.Â
âWe will be waiting for you when we dock, you wonât get past us. We are watching you.â
You were right. A knot appears in your throat. Your legs go numb. You will be killed.Â
The air is hard to breathe in and you have to get out before you suffocate. You get out on the deck with the lifeboats hanging above your head and lean against the railing. In a few hours, Normandie would dock and you would be caught. Youâre not sure that the steward who had helped you before would be able to save you, and you donât want to put him in more danger ⌠but you canât step off the ship in New Yorkâs harbor. The lifeboat above your head gives you an idea. A stupid, right out ridiculous idea âŚÂ
You look around you before your shaking hands release the lifeboat from its holds. You have been taught the most outrageous things to rescue yourself â including lowering an ocean linerâs lifeboat. The davits slowly bring the lifeboat downwards and you climb in, lying down to avoid being seen. Your body trembles with fear, unsure of what this will bring you ⌠or where it will bring you.Â
There's nothing on the ship that you should bring with you. There's no guarantee that the lifeboat will reach the harbor safely, but its a try. The painting will be more secure with the steward.Â
You feel a âthumpâ from when the lifeboat hits the waves underneath you. You see how Normandie towers above you, the black steel never seeming to end. A pair of heads stick out from the side and something hits the water beside you. Quickly, you cover your body with your arms and legs, curling up until all vital organs are covered. Hitting you with bullets on this distance are harder than one can think, but not impossible. The second youâre sure that they canât reach you, you get up and start to paddle. If the men tell a steward about the missing lifeboat, theyâll steer their ship over here to get you.Â
Your arms quickly grow sore. From now on, youâre entirely alone. Thereâs no one to save you in case anything happens and you will have to find your way to land by yourself. But it's better than being on board the ship.
The sea around you feels abnormally calm. Thereâs no distinctive sounds apart from the waves hitting the side of the lifeboat.Â
You sit for a moment, taking the time to think. This case has been different from all the others you have done. More personal than you could ever have anticipated. Youâre not sure why, but something with this case told you that things wouldnât be over if they got their way. It was more than just materia, they want you too ⌠to use as they please. Doctor Kry was right. Who would bat an eye if you disappeared along with the painting? They wouldnât call it a kidnapping, it would be a disappearance that could be explained by the painting. And now they have none of it. Not the painting, not the list of criminals and not you. Pretty successful, you think. Maybe you succeeded this mission after all?Â
You hiss as you touch your sensitive head. Youâll have to find a doctor in New York.
Hours go by. You row, you rest, row, rest, row, rest. Throw up. Damn if you have gotten a concussion, you think, but itâs probably just the sea air making you nauseous.Â
How things had turned out. You thought that you would have had to deal with one or two criminals ⌠not six. Ad how Silas had seen right through you âŚÂ
Itâs over now. It will be over soon. Is it over?
You continue to row.Â
in the distance, you see a fishing ship pulling up their net and you wave with your arms in hope for them to see you, which they inevitably do. Your exhausted, cold body is picked up and wrapped in an old blanket.Â
âWhat were you doing out in a lifeboat like that?â one of the old sailors asks. âWhich ship has sunk?â
âItâs the Normandie!â another one says as he reads the name on the wooden planks. âHas the Normandie sunk?!â
You tell them that it hasnât suck â in fact, itâs steaming on better ad stronger than ever â but that an accident had happened, which resulted in you all alone in a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean.Â
They give you a yellow rain coat that you use to hide in and join the sailors to New Yorkâs harbor that evening. In the distance, you see the different ocean liner piers. Cunard-White Star Line, United States Lines, HAPAG, Italian Lines, Swedish-American Lines ⌠and finally, Compagnie GĂŠnĂŠrale Transatlantique. Normandie was towering above all the other liners and you stood there on the pier, looking at it. Four days ago, you had been standing in the harbor at Le Havre and been excited to step on board. But now, that you are looking at it from afar, in the dim lights, thereâs something unsettling about the her. It looks like sheâs apologizing to you for everything that she allowed to happen between her walls. You almost start to cry.Â
You turn around and walk without giving the ship one more glance, hoping that it will be the last time you get to see the Normandie.Â
You meet up with your contact in a small warehouse that following morning and tell him what you have hidden on the ship. He promises to retrieve it. He already has the painting and has secured it, had gotten it from the very steward you had left it with.Â
âI have something else tooâ, he says and gives you an apologetic look.Â
âWhat?â you ask and watch him closely as he takes out a paper from his pocket.Â
âIâm sorry, Y/N.â
You open the paper and feel your blood go icy cold. The handwriting is unfamiliar, but the nickname you see written in black âŚ
âThought you could lock us in? Think twice, Golden boy, weâre already out. Weâll find you, be so sure of that. Donât think that we will let you slip away. You will look good in a leash.
S.Aâ
You fold the paper just as quick and breathe out a shaky breath.Â
âDonât worry, Y/N, you will be protectedâ, your contact promises. âIt will not be any problem, I assure you.â
With the six peopleâs contacts and power, you doubt that your protection will do much, but you nod. The painting is safe and the note is safe. They may have escaped jail and are looking for you, but you succeeded with your mission. And that is all that matters.
#yandere#yandere x reader#yandere x you#yandere imagines#yandere drabbles#yandere oc x you#yandere mafia#yandere oc x reader#yandere fics#yandere stories#yandere doctor#yandere king#yandere female#female yandere#yandere rich girl#yandere oneshot#yandere ocs#yandere ocs x reader#male reader
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Honestly, Ryan wasn't even a bad companion he just wasn't utilised properly. His YouTube channel should've been a central part of his character. Maybe have him been the one to record everything. Maybe have him actually know Two Girls Roaming in Praxeus because he watched their videos or gets filming tips from them. His relationship with his dad should've been threaded throughout s11 so his appearance in Resolution stuck. Maybe he shouldn't have forgiven him in the person-forgives-neglectful-parent-because-family-can-do-no-wrong trope but chosen Graham as his new father figure so that 'call me grandad' actually hits harder. Maybe have Thirteen be his father figure instead, building on the way Ryan tends to follow her instructions the most out of the fam. His feelings about Grace should've been in the spotlight. Maybe have him find Grace in the alt universe. Maybe have him be the one to try and kill Tim Shaw. Maybe have him be the one dream about Grace in Can You Hear Me. Maybe take the Graham scenes and replace him with Ryan.. y'know.. Grace's whole grandson...? Maybe also address the fact his mum died and bc his dad left he was left all alone as a child??? And that should've been his Can You Hear Me nightmare instead of throwing in the dregs unprovoked?? His mechanic skills should've been a key trait too. Maybe have him fix the ship with Thirteen in Tsuranga instead of Yaz. Maybe have him, Tesla, and Thirteen talk about the joy of building and fixing things. Maybe have him go with Nevi and Silas in Orphan 55 to work together on mechanic stuff but also show Ryan's longing for a father-son relationship like theirs. (And make Yaz fight the dregs instead bc wasn't she the one with police training...).
His feelings for Yaz and Bella could've been sorted out properly. Maybe have Ryasmin for a few eps but stop bc space-time travel overcomplicates things or to set things up for Yaz' coming out and Thasmin. Maybe address the fact Bella likely died on Orphan 55 and have it cause tension between Ryan and Thirteen bc she refused to help her. And Ryan's Blackness. Maybe have Ryan be the one to disagree with the plan and try to help Rosa instead. Maybe have him explain who she is to the others instead of having the only Black guy in the cast not know who Rosa Parks is.
There was so much potential man. So so so so much...
#i guess this is why the girls do fanfics and au and alldat#fine i'll do it myself#ryan sinclair#chibnall era#doctor who#nuwho#new who#doctor who series 11#doctor who series 12
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Not sure if ive already done this. But.
Predictions for COMIC 7
CHARLES DARLING WILL BE THE FINAL ENEMY besides Helen. Trust me on this one I swear they wouldn't have brought him in if they didn't have plans. ALSO the mother of the Mann triplets (Bette Mann neĂŠ Darling) was RELATED TO HIM HE'S RELEVANT. I'm so convinced he's the one Helen made a deal with and he's going to make a grab for Mann Co.
We'll get to see Bilious Hale in a flashback and find out what happened to him. Bilious Hale, oh guy who punched coal out of mines and sat on John Wilkes Booth while other people shot at him, my beloved. I hope they don't reveal he was a bad father or anything.
A woman is nice to Ms Pauling for once and she gets a smooch. She deserves it. Hopefully it won't be a smooch from Helen (DAMN YOU 4CHAN LEAKS), the old lady's had her hired since Pauling was in her mid teens.
WE GET HORSEMANN LORE! this is just wishful thinking on my part the Horsemann makes me insane. Shout out to Silas Mann fr. If he doesn't show up, I hope they at least acknowledge or reference him. I swear they had plans for him back in 2010. Which they then immediately abandoned in favour of developing Mann vs Machine.
Spydad reveal. Pretty much a given. No need to elaborate. I hope Scoutâs mother shows up I love her.
Demo gets something important to do! He's only been there for comedic bits so far really, so I think he deserves some Serious Plot Stuff.
Build up to and cop out on Pyro face reveal. The whole thing of Pyro's character is the mystery, so I think the funniest way to go about a face reveal would be for us to only see the team's reactions and have them all react very differently e.g. Scout vomits, Demo gives them the thumbs up, Spy starts taking horrified notes, Engie looks vaguely lovestruck, Saxton Hale expresses annoyance that they aren't actually *insert obsucure species of something here* like he thought.
CONAGHER LORE!! By which I mean Engie shows up and has a chat with Fred about Radigan and immortality and whatnot. Fred has to have been spared from the bloodshed for a reason, right?
Classic Medic shows up! Or they confirm he is dead. Or they confirm he is Pyro which is a funny theory I read once but sincerely doubt. Maybe they'll pull a Bea and have him have been a girl the whole time.
I have a crackpot theory that Helen/Elizabeth is actually Bette Mann (again, mother of the Mann triplets), and while it's unlikely to be true, it would genuinely be so funny if I'm right so WATCH THIS SPACE. My main reasoning is Helen started her Australium search the year the triplets were born, aka the year Bette DIED, and also Bette is a nickname for Elizabeth. Also also it adds to my theory that she will team up with Charles Darling, who is, as I've already said, related to Bette.
Olivia gets to do something important also. Saying this bc she's mostly been a prop so far. I'm manifesting a sideplot where she summons the Horsemann to beat up Charles Darling for her.
Merasmus returns! Last we saw he was arrested, but Jay Pinkerton really likes his Soldier/Merasmus interactions so chances of him coming back are high.
There will be a joke like "geez it feels like it's been seven years since we beat grey mann" and a panel where everyone just lets that process before going back to plot stuff
Chances are, a new comic after so many years means there will be new writers, and the fandom has changed quite a bit since the last one. There will be SUBLIMINAL SPEEDING BULLET SHIPPING. There will be MORE FOCUS THAN IS REALLY NECESSARY on Scout. SOMEONE WILL THEY/THEM PYRO which sounds great actually you know what I forgot where I was going with this godspeed.
ZHANNASOLDIER WEDDING FINALE!!!
#tf2#team fortress 2#tf2 comics#tf2 comic 7#charles darling#tf2 charles darling#bilious hale#tf2 bilious hale#ms pauling#horseless headless horsemann#tf2 silas mann#spydad#scouts ma#tf2 demo#tf2 pyro#tf2 engineer#fred conagher#radigan conagher#classic medic#cmedic#bette mann#tf2 bette mann#tf2 elizabeth#tf2 administrator#olivia mann#merasmus#boots n brawn#zhannasoldier#east meets west#what ship name are we using lads
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What your thoughts on other bill ships? Like Kryptos/Bill or Stanley/Bill. I love your Wasting Away Again in the Goldilocks Zone fic on ao3 and this is my first time using Tubmlr, so Iâm not sure how it works here, so sorry if I sent this wrong place đ
u found the right place
I don't ship him with any of the Henchmaniacs (except for saying an eye-bat is his ex because it's the funniest possible option), but I think he's hooked up with half of them. I'd say "casually hooked up" but I don't think there's anything casual about it, the Henchmaniacs are fueled by petty drama and rancid vibes.
I acknowledge Kryptos is easy for ships because he looks like he could conceivably be the same species as Bill and we know so little about him you could give him almost any personality, but i'm not interested in it myself. Especially since it feels like a lot of what I've seen with Kryptos/Bill goes for "Kryptos is the one nice guy in the gang and Bill is tsundere for him" and that doesn't do anything for me.
I occasionally contemplate "wouldn't it be fucked up if Bill hooked up with Stan so he could pretend he's with Ford and Stan knew but still went with it for some reason (idk why, maybe Stan's super lonely, maybe Bill's currently wearing a smoking hot human body, the point is we want DRAMA so any excuse will work)" but outside that, nah. I think Stan and Bill would be VERY fun partners in crime and they're GREAT to bounce off each other, but I prefer them platonically, I don't feel a romantic or sexual spark between them.
You wanna know what Bill ships I'm fascinated with?
Bill/Trembley. it's GOTTA be one sided though, Bill's gotta be head over heels for this weirdo like a teenage girl for her first celebrity crush while Trembley never even notices
Bill/the howling void he totally lied about not dating in TBOB. Here I am 15,000 words deep into writing their entire relationship start to finish... I was literally already writing about Bill dating a black hole, who happens to howl, prior to TBOB; so the book just took my OC and made her canon??? yeah sure fine I'll take it, damn.
Bill-possessing-Silas/the 100-something wives he stole from his cultists according to thisisnotawebsitedotcom. weeks after that reveal this is still the funniest & most fascinating thing to me simply because Bill had ABSOLUTELY NO REASON to do that, truly enthralled by his potential motives, I cannot believe this triangle is married
Bill/the shaman. I just think something was going on there. I can feel it. The shaman taught him a bit of magic, how often do you think that happens to Mr. Trillion-Year-Old All-Seeing Eye? Probably not much!
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After many, many years of not having played any Fire Emblem, I asked my friend to recommend me a game to start with, and he recommended me Fates. I have been playing it for the past few days on the holiday and safe to say, I'm hooked xD absolutely obsessed with unlocking support events more than progressing the story AHDFKAJHFAK
I am still early in the game so no spoilers, please!
Anyway, as a humble shipper and inhaler of character interactions, I love plenty of the friendship/etc dynamics I've seen so far. Orochi is currently my favorite, she has such a wonderful fun auntie vibe,,, her playful personality is delightful and I am obsessed.
I shipped her pretty hard with Silas at first because I unlocked their support story first (he is another big favorite of mine), and I was pretty sure I was going to marry them until,,, well. Until I unlocked her support stories with Kaze and fell head over heels with their dynamic.
So far, as far as romantic synergy goes, they definitely take the cake for me and I,,, well, I couldn't resist and married them right away KJAHGFKAJGJKA
i havent even unlocked all of the units yet đ they were simply too perfect for each other, dont look at me. Anyway, because of my luck, i found out they are apparently one of the rarepairs in the franchise and have,,,, no ship art, no fics, no nothing. NOTHING!!
So I have hereby claimed myself as ceo of Karochi and am going to start my own kingdom //silly
I have more stuff cooking as far as fanart goes, stay tuned for more gay rambling in the (hopefully near) future.
That's it, thanks for coming to my ted talk xD
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Reasons Why I Think TFP Jack is Underrated:
Welcome to my organized bullet list of why I think Jack is cool. I used to think he was boring too, but now I think he's the goat and here's why:
-He has Main Character Energy, but he's more snarky than most cliche main characters
In fact, he is a petty king:
-He doesn't wanna be on Team Prime at first, but eventually accepts it...
...He then proceeds to BURN Airachnid's ship to the GROUND with a stupid survival kit for babies
-HE DEFEATED THE ALIEN SPIDER QUEEN WITH NOTHING BUT A LIGHTER AND A POCKET KNIFE, BRO
-HE WAS DONE WITH HER BULLSHIT LOL
-Plus he tricked Silas by pretending to beg for mercy, when really, he was stealing his walkie talkie.
-Jack is boring, BUT the fact that Jack has nothing special about him IS his superpower; Miko has the Apex Armor and her brave personality, Raf has genius level computer smarts, and Jack has PURE SPITE. It's beautiful.
-He has zero skills, but he'll figure out how to defeat his enemies anyway, SOLEY because he's tired and doesn't get paid enough for this shit.
-For example, in one of the Titan Magazine comics, Jack literally kicks Silus in the balls
Evidence:
Iconicâ¨
Apex armor? Cybertronian technology?
Screw that. How about I KICK you in the balls?l
-A true legend
-He's also a mess though, and I relate so hard
-He's so petty he talked two aliens into helping him cheat at street racing to piss off his classmate
-His romantic subplot is treated like a complete joke, and I love that. Normally, the Main Character⨠is awkward, but gets the girl in the end. Not Jack, though. Nope. He just constantly looks stupid in front of Sierra, nothing ever happens between them, and Arcee is just watching with popcorn as his life falls apart. It's hilarious.
Also, if I'm correct, isn't the last time we see Sierra when she sees Arcee's homoform, and thinks Jack has a girlfriend, and then Jack is like "She's my momđ
." And Sierra's all like: "Your mom looks good in leatherđ...on your bikeđđđđ..." Maybe I'm wrong, but if that's the case, it's funny. Jack is a simp and it gets him nowhere.
-His sarcasm works perfectly with Arcee's sarcastic attitude.
-Also Tailgate is voiced by Josh Keaton (Jack's voice actor) in the flashbacks, so I headcanon that Jack reminds Arcee of Tailgate, and that's why she has such a soft spot for him.
Tailgate and Arcee's dialogue had the same vibe as her and Jack's
Also, it gives more context to why she was so scared to lose him when Airachnid showed up. It would've literally been like losing Tailgate all over again.
-Jack is Team Prime's designated Good Ideas Guy
It was Jack's idea to hijack the spacebridge to send him to Cybertron
It was also his idea to drain the dark energon out of The Nemesis when it came alive and froze everyone
-I'm probably just projecting, he has generalized anxiety disorder vibes
-I feel like he prefers a comfortable, predictable life because he gets nervous easily
-He's always the first to freak out, and overthink, and Arcee always has to calm him down
-And she's so patient with him it's so sweetđą
-I agree the writing behind his existence is meh, and a lot of the cool stuff about him is probably unintentional, but I don't care, so take that!
Anyway, the moral of the story is:
Jack is just an angry little harmonica boy. Leave him alone. He's trying his bestđ
Thank you for coming to my TedTalk.
#JackDidNothingWrong#WellActuallyHeDidEverythingWrongButThat'sOk#He'sStillLegendary#transformers prime#tfp#tfp arcee#tfp jack#jack darby#rants#rants n rambles#timll talks#tfp airachnid#tfp mech
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for the polar history recap posts, iâm dying to know more about lillieâŚdeeply tragic and iâve also heard something about the nickname âoozeâ and i desperately need to know more about that
LILLIE đđđđđđâ¤ď¸â¤ď¸â¤ď¸â¤ď¸â¤ď¸
denis (also spelled dennis) gascoigne lillie was born in 1884, making him 26 when the terra nova set off for antarctica. he was trained in natural sciences at cambridge (although he didn't do too well on his exams) and was appointed as the ship's biologistâmeaning he did not form part of the shore party in the hut in at cape evans, but remained on board the ship during the winter, studying antarctic marine biology including whales, plankton, and deep-sea creatures like sponges (like the one pictured above). his nickname "ooze" comes from his job as biologistâooze refers to a specific kind of biological marine sediment that got pulled up in seabed dredges which lillie would then examine.
in silas's diary on the voyage south, he describes lillie:
Lilleyâ"Hercules'" or "Sequins" is rather a dreamer and asserts he can remember his former existences in this world. Much fun can be got from him if handled properly.
lillie was noted by other members of the expedition to be a bit of a crackpot, asserting that he was a persian and a roman in his past lives. and more than that, possibly:
Lillie had decided that he was not the marrying type, claiming that he had evolved beyond it. In later years Scottâs young Norwegian skiing expert Tryggve Gran recounted that as they crossed the Equator on the Terra Nova Lillie had revealed that he was a woman trapped in a manâs body. âWhen I see a naked man I blush,â he allegedly said as the others sprawled shirtless on the deck in tropical sunshine, âI am split and I canât help it. Luckily I understand myself and have the control to avoid doing anything wrong.â Gran was a notoriously unreliable source, and it is hard to imagine anyone having the courage to say that under those circumstances; but perhaps Lillie did.
(from sara wheeler's cherry)
usually i would not recommend anyone trust anything that comes out of gran's mouth, but honestly i do buy this, because, well... vibes.
anyway, on the terra nova, lillie was notable for his talent at caricature, and several of his rather hilariously cruel drawings appeared (copied by wilson) in the south polar times, including this one of birdie:
while the shore party was in antarctica, lillie spent two winters in new zealand studying whales, fossils, and anthropology:
Lillie has been fossilizing & is off next month for 5 months whaling with the Norwegians. He is looking very well & very happy and is âa dear little chapâ to use Scottâs expression.
âpennell's diary, may 18 1911
after returning to england, taking the long way round on board the terra nova to continue his marine research, lillie took up residence at cambridge again, alongside deb, silas, priestley, and griff, to work up the scientific results from the expedition.
lillie also spent a lot of time with atch and pennell in 1913, frequently accompanying them to dine and see theater in london. he also drew (probably on board the ship) the caricature of them as the "antarctic lovebirds":
during the war, he was a conscientious objectorâa "conchie," refusing to go to the front. it was an incredibly difficult position to maintain in the face of widespread societal opposition. he found solace in a continued and deepening relationship with cherry (who was also not at the front, though in his case for health reasons) as sara wheeler describes in her biography of cherry:
Currently working as a bacteriologist for the military, Lillie had been one of the few visitors at Lamer during the bad months in the middle of 1916. They became unusually intimate (âI should love to see your chubby cheeks againâ), and after one weekend Lillie scrawled with typical irreverence in his note of thanks that, âIt was only my body which left you, for my ultimate Reality still walks behind your Bath chair and meditates about the many paths of your lovely garden. With love.â
and god i just need to copy these entire sections from the wheeler in here because they make me want to sob:
In September 1916 he had been transferred to the pathology lab of a military hospital in Bournemouth, which he loathed (âno nice cliffs or sea birds, only sand banks and orange peelâ), and was appalled to learn the next year that Cherry was poised to become engaged to Christine Davis (âbeing unconventional and as near to nature as I can get, it seems all wrong to me that you should have to tie yourself up for the sake of Societyâ), but he strove, generally, to be optimistic, whereas Cherry was permanently resigned to his destiny. In August 1917 Lillie returned to Lamer for a week. Writing in advance with details of his train to Hatfield, he concluded that, âif a motor does not turn up the wings of joy will waft me those four-and-a-half miles bag included. So donât worry.â They had a wonderful time together. âI do hope,â Lillie wrote when he was back in horrible Bournemouth, âyour throat and the rest of you continues to get well and worthy of the sunny spirit which I see under the label ACG.'
though things seemed to be going as well as they could for lillie, shortly before the end of the war in early 1918, he suffered a nervous breakdown and landed in the notorious bethlem mental institution, known as bedlam. he was there for three years, and cherry was barred from visiting him.
he emerged for a short period of time in 1921, seemingly recovered, and took up lecturing in biology again at cambridge, but by the end of that year had relapsed and was institutionalized again.
frank debenham, writing to expedition agent j.j. kinsey in 1927 to solicit funding for SPRI, gave him an update:
Poor old Lillie is in less happy circumstances, the last I heard of him was that he was never likely to get out of Bedlam, a rather ghastly end up for poor old "Ooze's" brilliant promise.
lillie spent the rest of his life in institutions, and lived until the age of 78, dying in 1963. that was four years after the death of his friend cherryâwho, despite constant attempts, was never allowed to visit him.
per UK law, lillie's medical records will be sealed until 2063, 100 years after his death, but a post on bethlem's official blog about lillie briefly notes that he was "depressed, delusional and suicidal."
the post also notes, importantly, that his breakdown had nothing whatsoever to do with his antarctic experiences:
The content of his medical notes suggests that the state of mind that brought him to hospital was entirely unrelated to his experiences of 1910-1913. Indeed, they report that âon the whole he felt better during this timeâ.Â
OK, let's end on a nice note. here's a picture of him having a nice time at silas's wedding (i think) with his best friends. RIP lillie, i hope your next life is going well somewhere out there right now đĽ˛đ
(also another good writeup on lillie with some lovely art can be found on @worstjourney's patreon here!)
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Cowboy Like Me | d.d. | 6
Din Djarin x princess!reader
Word Count: 2.4K
Warnings: Nothing really, honestly. Din is a simp still
Authorâs Note: I got to use my favorite fic trope in this chapter :^) gif source is unknown so if you find it, tell me!
Series Masterlist | Talk to Me!
The Sanctuary
âWe need to restock on supplies,â Din explained as they entered the atmosphere of Sorgan the following morning.Â
If she questioned his excuse to land, she didnât say a word about it. She just nodded, tucking her feet under herself in the seat of the cockpit.Â
He tried to get her to go to bed in the hull the previous night, but she insisted on staying up there with him and Grogu. Even if they sat in silence âher reading with the kid in her lap âit was a comfortable silence. He enjoyed just having her there beside him. If they wanted to talk, they couldâŚbut they didnât have to. And Din appreciated that more than she would probably ever understand.Â
With the newfound knowledge of why she left, Din was determined to keep her as far from Silas Credence as he could. The helmet hid his anger well, and he was thankful that she could not see how genuinely livid he was about what had happened to her. It didnât matter that he didnât know her well âno one had the right to touch her like that. Which settled the dilemma he had been facing since he met her: he wouldnât be delivering her.Â
Maybe he was developing a habit of keeping quarries instead of collecting their bounty.
The credits didnât matter anymore âthough he wondered if they ever really did. She was willing to give him everything she had, and on that first day, he had considered taking less than what her mother had offered. If they really mattered, he wouldnât have even paused to entertain the idea.Â
No, the credits didnât matter. The only thing that mattered was her.
âWhere are we?â She asked as the hull opened, revealing the greenery of Sorgan.Â
Din liked it here. It was peaceful; quiet. He would have stayed if he wasnât a Mandalorian; if he didnât live a life that constantly put people in danger. He had almost left the kid here; if it wasnât for Gideon and his desire to capture Grogu, he would have. Deep down, Din was glad he kept Grogu with him. Even if it meant keeping the child from living a normal life, Din cared too much for the foundling to give him up again.
âSorgan,â he offered as an explanation, stepping off the ship and into the fresh air.Â
She was hesitant, one strap of her bag held tightly against her side. Smiling softly under his helmet, even if she couldnât see it, Din offered his hand for her to take. Maybe she knew he was smiling; maybe it was clear in his body language âit didnât matter, really âbecause she returned the smile as she took his hand to exit the ship.Â
As the door of the ship closed, they stood there for several seconds with her hand still in his. Perhaps he imagined it, but he swore he felt her grip tighten just barely before she released his hand. However, she stuck close to his side as they made their way back to the village he had helped train so long ago.Â
âHow did you know to stop here?â She asked as they walked, looking up at him. In the morning sun, she practically glowed; it took far more willpower than he had not to stare at her.Â
âI came here with Grogu a while back,â Din explained, trying to keep his eyes on the path in front of him. âThey needed â,â
âMando! Mando! Itâs us! Itâs Stoke â,â
âAnd Caben! Oh, stars âitâs great that youâre back!â
Two men hopped off their transport, tripping over themselves with excited grins on their faces. She looked between Din and the two men, brow raised as she tried to hold back her amused smile.Â
âFriends of yours?â
Din simply shrugged as Grogu giggled in excitement, recognizing the two krill farmers. âJust in time. We need a ride.â
Both farmers looked between each other, bright smiles on their faces still, before they motioned for Din and her to join them on their transport cart. He climbed aboard first, motioning for her bag. Once that was handed over, he reached out once again for her hand, intending to help her up. While he didnât think she couldnât manage it herself âshe was clearly capable of more than she let on âhe wanted another excuse to touch her. Even if it was just her hand.
As he pulled her up, however, the droid controlling the transport lurched forward âthrowing the two off balance. Din fell backwards onto the cart, unable to catch himself. However, because he instinctively reached out to steady her, she fell forward and landed on top of him. His hands gripped her hips without much thought, and her hands braced against the armor covering his chest though.Â
For several moments, the two were tangled together on the back of a transport cart in the middle of the woods. Her eyes were wide as she stared up at him, and Din swore he could feel the warmth she radiated through his armor. Though, maybe the heat was just from him. Her fingers slid just barely up his chest plate, brushing against the fabric that was exposed just below his neck. The touch was light, accidental, but Maker âit was enough to stoke the fire inside him into an inferno.
âYou two good back there?â One of the farmers asked âmaybe Stoke; Din couldnât focus on the voice to figure it out.Â
âY-yeah,â she stammered out, making the first move to pull away. His grip tightened just slightly âjust enough on her that it was noticeable, he was sure âbefore he released her. She stood on shaking legs, regaining her composure and her balance, then extended her hand to him.
Din took it, pulling himself back up. However, this time, she dropped his hand almost immediately and looked away from him. If he turned on the heat signature tracking in his helmet, he could be certain it was because she was flustered. But he didnât need to âbecause he felt the same. The way she looked at him âeyes full of stars and surprise, pressed against him âhe knew she felt it too. There was no way she couldnât.
*****
The village people greeted Mando with genuine excitement, with the children immediately rushing to take Grogu to play. She was pleasantly surprised at such a warm welcome, and she couldnât help the smile that remained on her face the remainder of the day. They were a simple people, content in their farming and their livelihoods.Â
It reminded her of the moisture farmers on Senex, when her father would take her with him to interact with the people of her planet. Her father âLeox of Senex âmade a point to meet anyone and everyone he could, wanting to be the peopleâs senator the best he could. It was always an important lesson when she went with her father; she became a staple in his travels through the villages and towns. And she loved that time with him dearly, because it was always him and her. Her mother rarely joined them, insisting that it wasnât necessary. She learned a lot about her father on those trips; and even more about her mother in between the lines.
As far as she was aware, people liked her father quite a bit. When he passed, they mourned and thousands of people attended the funeral. More people offered her condolences over her mother, though her mother felt rather removed from the whole ordeal regardless. Silas Credence had offered his apologies, kissing her hand with a superficial smile, that day.
She wished she had known then what was planned for her.
But that didnât matter anymore. She wasnât home on Senex. She was on Sorgan, with a Mandalorian and his little green child, and a small village who were genuinely delighted to see them. The food was good, the weather was lovely, and she could stretch her legs out in front of the fire without fear. And truly, she could not ask for anything nicer before he inevitably returned her.
âOmera has an actual place to sleep this time around for us,â Mando announced as he sat beside her at the fire pit. âLast time, we slept in a barn.â
âA barn still wouldnât have been the worst place Iâve slept in the last week,â she reassured, though she couldnât look at him.
After their fall that morning, she couldnât focus when she was around him. The feel of her body pressed against his was ingrained into her memory now. Even through the armor, he was solid and warm, and when he squeezed her hips âMaker help her, all she wanted was to stay there forever. She was certain he had done it on purpose âthere was no reason to tighten his grip on her for any other reason than desire.Â
âThe kid is back there now, asleep,â Mando continued, leaning forward towards the fire. âWhen youâre ready, Iâll show you where to go.â
She nodded, pushing herself off the ground with a satisfied stretch. He watched her while she lifted her arms over her head then stood himself. As they moved through the village to their lodging, she wondered when he last slept in a bed. It must have been before she arrived; she couldnât imagine he slept in the cockpit of the ship all the time. And she thought about if he took his helmet off to sleep âhe had to, right? It would have been uncomfortable otherwise.Â
He wouldnât be able to while they were on Sorgan, of course. Unless there were separate rooms and he locked the doorâŚbut she didnât want to be separated from him. The cockpit and hull were barely twenty feet apart; a separate room felt like miles.Â
âWhat are the sleeping arrangements?â She asked, looking up at him finally. They were so close, arms brushing just barely as they walked.
âYou take the bed; Iâll be on the floor.â
âYou donât have to keep doing that,â she pointed out, frowning as they approached the small hut. A drape covered the entry, but that was all. âI donât mind sleeping on the floor, nor do I mind sharing a bed if thatâs what itâll take to get you off the floor.â
She stepped inside, setting her bag in the corner by Groguâs pod, which was closed and locked up safely. Mando followed close behind, setting his pulse rifle beside the bed.
âFine.â
Truthfully, she wanted to assume he wanted to share the bed; it was big enough for two. But she didnât want to offend him; didnât want to make a fool of herself if she was reading too into his treatment of her. So she took a pillow from the bed as well as one of the many blankets provided and tossed them to the floor.
âWhat are you doing?â Mando asked, having sat down on the bed to remove his boots.
âMaking my bed.â
He was silent for a moment, then stood again. She watched him gather the pillow and blanket back up and throw them on the bed, then motioned for it. She swallowed hard, trying to calm the sudden nerves that were sparked by his silent statement. Heart beating fast, she made her way to her side of the bed and sat down to remove her boots. Neither of them had sleepwear as far as she knew, but she would be fine to sleep in her clothes. Though, she needed to wash them sooner or later.
When she pulled her legs up onto the bed, criss-crossing them before her, she watched as Mando started to remove his armor. It was a slow process âthe straps, the buckles, the gauntlets all took time to take off âbut by the time he slid his boots beneath the bed, he was left in only his flight suit and helmet.Â
She couldnât help it âthis was more than she had seen of him in the days they had spent together. And more so, it might be the most sheâd ever see of him. His back was to her, setting his armor nearby for easy access, and her eyes roamed over his back. Even through the material of the flight suit, she could make out his shoulder blades and muscles, contracting and moving as he continued prepping for the night. When he turned, facing her finally, she gave him an appraising look âstill unable to help herself.Â
âWhen was the last time you took off your armor?â She asked, uncrossing her legs to pull her knees under her chin.Â
âYesterday.â
âNo you didnât,â she argued, brow furrowing as she watched him curiously.
âWhen I used the âfresher, yes.â
âOh.â
She hadnât considered him showering âyet now she was imagining him in there, water cascading over the planes of his back. There wasnât enough of him to imagine, of course. She didnât know what his face looked like, or his hair color. What did his eyes look like? Were they cold, like he tried to act? Or were they warm, like he really was?
When he finally sat down beside her on the bed, she said, âCan I ask you something?â
He glanced over at her, nodding once.
âWhat color are your eyes?â
He stared at her silence, as if considering his answer. She wondered if she was even allowed to know that; maybe he was going to lie to her.
âItâs okay if you canât tell me. But you have to answer another question for me.â
âAsk your other question,â he murmured, looking away for a moment. âPlease.â
She watched him still, unable to control the disappointment that bloomed in her chest. But she understood; it wasnât fair of her to ask.Â
âAre you still going to deliver me to my mother?â
Another bout of silence spread between the two, and she suddenly panicked, fearing that everything she felt was one sided and unrequited. That his treatment of her was simply a way to break down her walls and make her more pliable; less willing to fight. She felt tears pricking the corner of her eyes.Â
But then, his bare hand took hers and she looked up at him. She hoped their eyes met; hoped she was looking into whatever warmth may be there for her.Â
âNo.â
âââ
Taglist (OPEN): @r4iner @sgt-morgan @mingeniee @darling1darling @teriolan-blog @venusfalling @double--take @sunshine96 @demisexuallover @mxtokko @ellesvoid @waddafaknik @c-ms1ut @kokoirne
#din djarin x reader#din djarin#din djarin imagine#the mandalorian imagine#the mandalorian x reader#mando x reader#the mandalorian
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Favorite non cannon Bonnie ships ranked:
this is just my opinion so don't come for me, but I based this ranking on character interactions, certain plot elements, and overall potential
bonnie x me - because I will treat her right, she's a baddie (not even atrocious styling could deny that face card!!), and we're already married in my head so..
jk.. but actually:
klonnie - this one grew on me when I heard joseph himself shipped them. it just makes sense that he'd be drawn to bonnie considering she's not just any other person to him. her bloodline has direct ties to his family and she's gone head-to-head against him multiple times. klaus is calculated asf from the moment we meet him so he'd probably go into their relationship trying to play with her head and keep her close as a potential tool for his own agenda (in a keep ur enemies close kinda-way), but he ends up falling for her along the way. bonnie's level-headed and mature nature would balance out klaus's more irrational chaos - maybe in a similar way klaus works with cami in the originals (my fav cannon klaus ship).
2. stefonnie - this one isn't talked about enough. remember in s1 when elena set up that dinner between her, stefan, and bonnie. elena was so set on bonnie liking stefan when they first got together. the early seasons really seemed invested in laying the foundation of stefan x bonnie with how protective he is of her. it seemed like their relationship should have only grown from there & there's no reason why it was just abandoned. plus, there's so many parallels between their plotlines: in s5 they both spend the summer indisposed (stefan drowning the whole time and bonnie being dead) and no one noticing. they couldve meaningfully bonded over that shared trauma. the otherside literally exists because bonnie's ancestor was cheated on by stefan's (original face, doppleganger?) whatever silas is - with her handmaid Amara.. so many stefonnie parrallels go ignored by the writers!
3. bonkai - one of my favorites. i wish we got more of a romantic or seggual payoff from these two bc the built up was certainly there for a darker romance kinda vibe. similar to the other villainxprotagonist couples in this show but no epic romantic payoff for bonnie i guess.. the actors' chemistry with each other in these scenes carries the ship for me & in the hands of writers that gaf about these characters it couldve been epic.
4. bamon - i know this one comes from the book & it's a fan favorite, but this actually feels more out of left field than stefonnie for me. that's not to say i don't like it. the second half of the show was for bamon and the writer's knew it. that's why they had to keep reinforcing that they're 'just friends' or else their chemistry would have turned tvd into the bamon show..
5. bonnie x katherine - i love the idea of a bi bonnie (clearly). lots of fans pair her with nora but i hate everything about the heretic storyline and the characters so i prefer katherine. they didn't interact much, but hear me out, katherine has always found herself paired with a bennett witch (emily in the 1800s, bonnie's cousin) and i think they'd be cute. i love katherine the most when she's not obsessing over the salvatore brothers or jealous of elena so i think pairing her with bonnie would offer a refreshing perspective of her character.
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meaning, at some point during gideon the ninth, harrow the ninth, nona the ninth, or one of the in-universe short stories, a character on page either alluded to or explicitly mentioned/feared/joked about the possibility, either present or future, of this pairing
sources:
ianthe + augustine: harrow, htn (smh harrow. allow a girlboss to try to manipulate a myriad-old lyctor with her feminine wiles in peace, please)
harrow + palamedes: gideon, htn (on one hand i hate it, on the other hand harrow would also hate it and would have a very funny reaction to hearing gideon say it so)
camilla + coronabeth: judith, as yet unsent; nona, ntn (i have questions if you voted for this but ok)
ianthe + silas: gideon, gtn (gideon was so funny for this)
pyrrha + juno: palamedes, ntn (if you voted for this i don't agree, but i understand)
g1deon + cytherea's corpse: harrow, htn (i mean, sure, maybe that was actually the case in practice, but it wasn't the Intention, so i think it counts)
palamedes + cytherea: gideon, ntn (lmao)
judith + camilla: coronabeth, as yet unsent (great work, jodybeth! masterful deflection on both sides)
ianthe + a bunch of skeletons in hell: babs - second hand, according to ianthe, htn (honestly she might enjoy this. it'd remind her of harrow at the very least)
#the locked tomb#nona the ninth#alecto the ninth#gideon the ninth#harrow the ninth#harrowhark nonagesimus#gideon nav#griddlehark#cytherea#ianthe tridentarius#camilla hect#palamedes sextus#coronabeth tridentarius#jodybeth#augustine the first#juno zeta#pyrrha dve#judith deuteros#naberius tern#gideon the first
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đŠ Simblr question of the day: Choose a sim of your own that you consider your/a fave, then choose one sim from three (or more!) different simblrs, now imagine what those sims would be like in a room together? Who's walking out first? Who's staying the longest? Who would get along? Who wouldn't get along at all? Elaborate as much or as little as you'd like :) (p.s please feel free to share this to others, anon or not, and feel free to use the hashtag " SQOTD "! I love seeing everyone's answers and reading them makes my day ~ đ ) (p.p.s I saw you ask for the best friend ask, be on the lookout for that sometime soon :))
Oh my gosh I have so many ideas I'll have to put them under a cut!
Brunch Date
First up we're going BIG! I'm talking time to ship up every single member of the York family to go and meet the Alegria family by @matchalovertrait! Wouldn't be too massive of a trip though since we're mostly all in Tartosa.
I suspect Devin and Dulce would get along. I think Aaron would probably be a bit too pompous for Erick to maintain a conversation with. I'm guessing Noemi would probably not mind talking to Calista since they're both family and career women. Angel would probably be the one helping Joey make sure Alfred and Rilian are having fun.
Supernatural Hang out
Sending my werewolf Samir, his boyfriend Reece, and the Knightstone's to try and make friends...
They would be meeting up with Caleb and Morgan by @marcishaun, as well as Lou and Lux by @ethicaltreatmentofcowplants.
As well as Priscilla, Tony and Moumou by @eljeebee and the Bohan family by @aliengirl.
First up Moumou (who's a cat if you didn't know) would be surrounded by all the younger sims. The youngest would probably just all be sitting there making imitation cat noises. I like to think Silas would be interested to meet Carina and Orion and have a million questions about how they manage to look both human and alien at the same time.
Blue would tell Adam how he carried a pregnancy and Adam would storm off in horror for several reasons. First off Adam doesn't want more kids. Plus he's hot headed. Then of course Adam hates UFO aliens getting humans pregnant and would probably feel like the tale hits to close to home, even though Rhea and Blue made their kids with love. Suzanna however would be fascinated to learn about the process.
Priscilla would likely try to cheer up Caleb about being a vampire while Tony would probably try to impart some wisdom about being a human in love with an immortal to Morgan.
Let's be real Samir would probably sit there brooding the entire time but Reece would undoubtedly be chatting at a million miles an hour with Lou and Lex to try and learn all he could about real werewolves.
EDIT: I forgot my main point which is I think most of them would enjoy talking about plants and gardening and nature.
Animal Get Together
Cluckton would be hanging out in a park with Matilda from @sharona-sims...
Le Chat by @akitasimblr, Nougat by @kissalopa and Daisy by @lauralovelysims
They would get up to mysterious animal things
Universes Collide
Amiyah and her siblings by @deardiaryts4 are invited to the Chopra Homestead!
I would invite the other Rahul but I think things could get awkward if Amiyah's parents show up considering her Cassandra is best friends with the woman who married and then divorced Rahul...
I think Amiyah would spend the time trying to teach Savannah and Mercedes how to dance and would probably give them several make overs. Cassandra would find it fascinating to meet these alternate universe Rahul offspring where as Rahul would probably be a bit creeped out.
Casual Drinks!
Sending Joey to meet the infamous Ben Ben by @slightly-ludic for a night on the town! You know Ben needs a drink after that Jungle Adventure!
Of course we're also inviting Astrid by @simmerbeans and Stan and Milena by @stargazer-sims.
A lot of the talk would revolve around travel and what different countries are like. I think Astrid would love talking to Ben and Stan, Joey would do his best to comment on the conversation but secretly be eyeing up whatever single ladies are in the bar. Of course Joey and Ben would say some dopey stuff earning them eyerolls from the other three. I think the younger ones would benefit from time with Stan and Milena though, get some life lessons.
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Recently became obsessed with cowboy au's again so I did what any reasonable person would do and made a silly Clone Wars au for pure self indulgence.
Please enjoy my silly little headcannons and maybe one day I'll actually write the thing (I've said this several times before...but one day!)
â˘Usually with modern au's I try to justify why Jango has so many damn kids but not this time. The man just does okay? Also he's not attracted to women so like..who knows! My favorite plot point is Jango just has a bunch of kids and no one knows why and they just have to accept that
â˘Jango/Myles supremacy. They're married, thank you. Silas is their third wheel that's just always sorta there.
â˘Good dad Jango! Always good dad Jango. I just love him okay? It's like a little treat for myself.
â˘Ages are like...semi...cannon? For the clones the alphas are all adults, as are the commanders. After that, Rex, Kix, Jesse and whoever else I deem to be in that like age range- are 18/19/20. Domino squad, are teenagers. Tup, Dogma, Wooley, Comet are like..ranging from preteen's to 8. Boba is the baby at 3 years old. Don't ask me about Omega or the bad batch please I haven't decided what I'm doing with them yet, probably gonna make them Arla's kiddos like the other modern au of mine. These are also like..just a general guidelines of ages I haven't really fleshed anything out.
â˘Boba LOVES animals. It's a good thing they live on a farm. He just..befriends all of the animals even the ones that he isn't supposed to (raccoons) Jango nearly had a heart attack. Boba was fine though, just a little grumpy that Jango took him away from the raccoon.
â˘It's a miracle Boba knows how to walk because he's just constantly being carried/demanding to be carried. If he has the option to be in someone's arms he will be. Spoiled little thing. Honestly all of the Fett kids are probably spoiled, but they like to tease Boba about it cause he's the baby.
â˘Real talk though, I think Boba is a little sweety. He just loves his aliit(family) so much and wants to spend all his time with them.
â˘Mando'a is a language because I said so. Mandalorians are still a culture. That's just my go to for all modern au's tbh.
â˘Jaster is the best grandpa EVER. He's the reason they're all spoiled. Auntie Zam ALSO spoils them rotten. Uncle Bossk does as well it's just a lot less. Hondo...is Hondo let's be honest here. They're spoiled sure but Jango would really like to know WHERE Hondo got everything from (he would not like the answer)
â˘I haven't figured out how or anything but Codywan IS happening. Same with Blyla (is that Aayla and Bly's ship name?? Gonna pretend it is-)
â˘In the vain of keeping ages semi cannon Fennec is 19 and a farmhand đ. She's like..not legally adopted but she might as well be. Jango's baby girl right there. Boba follows her around like a puppy and it only annoys her a little. She's definitely the reason he knows bad words let's be honest.
â˘I'm leaning towards most face tattoos are just birthmarks. As far as names go those are just their names. No one ever said Jango was good at naming things. Isn't there a comic in legends where they have a pet eel and it's name is just eel?
â˘Everything I know about 3 year olds comes from the times I have babysat actually 3 year olds and google. So in that spirit, Boba does have a paci in the art depicted below simple because I wanted to draw a pacifier- but Jango is also trying to ween him off it so he doesn't mess up his teeth.
This au has consumed me like..ugh I'm obsessed with it. There may or may not be a pinterest board just entirely dedicated to it. You don't understand how in love with this silly little au I am-
If you made it this far through the post- have some traditional art that may or may not get turned digital eventually! (There was one of Myles and Jango but I literally cannot decide on Myles hairstyle and couldn't erase it anymore for fear of ripping the paper so...)
Join me next time (maybe-) for when I inevitably think of more headcannons for this au.
In order: Jango and Boba, Jango braiding Fennec's hair, and Cody!
#star wars#baby boba fett#myles the mandalorian#fennec shand#my art#tcw fanart#traditional art#cowboy au#modern au#commander cody#starwars clone wars#tcw#jango fett#boba fett#is it still a headcannon if its your own au and you make the rules#me: making jango a good dad every chance i get#its like a reward#starwars cowboy au
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The Noble House of Lockwood
Lord Alistair Lockwood, his wife Lady Evangeline Lockwood, and their children: Silas, Byron, and Theodore Lockwood.
Lord Alistair Lockwood
Current head of the Lockwood Estate.
Wood Elf.
Extremely wealthy.
Member of the ruling council of Arborcea.
Takes great (too much) pride in his house, name, and family.
Has a short temper and is quick to bring it out on those who displease him.
Loves his [legitimate] sons, although he's not good at showing it, at least not in healthy ways.
Had an affair with a human woman ~27 years ago that resulted in Rook's birth.
One of the key players in placing Arborcea under Elven rule.
Very well-respected among the other nobles.
Stubborn and prideful, even arrogant. (His eldest son, Silas, takes after him in this regard.)
Despite his prominent place on the council, he hungers for more. More power, more wealth, more influence.
Very traditionalist/old-fashioned.
A strict father, but well-respect and even idolized by his [legitimate] sons.
Lady Evangeline Lockwood
Lady of the Lockwood Estate.
Eldest daughter of another of Arborcea's noble houses.
High Elf.
Her and Alistair's marriage was an arranged one for politics and money, not love.
Strongly begrudges Alistair for the affair that led to Rook's existence, and has not forgiven him yet. (26 years is a blink of an eye for an elf.)
Despite this, will forever and always keep up appearances of a happy and faithful couple. (Even when they are alone, she hardly ever shows her displeasure with Alistair.)
Was thrilled when Rook ran away, because it meant that there was no longer a constant reminder of her husband's infidelity and shame wandering the halls of her house.
Vain, and always fishing for compliments from everyone around her.
Cleverer than she lets on.
Her sons are her greatest love and pride. They can do (almost) no wrong in her eyes. (However, damaging the image of house Lockwood does count as wrong.)
Has tea gatherings with the other noble ladies where they talk shit about anything and anyone.
Very strict mistress to the servants and anyone in her employ.
Also a strict mother, though much more loving.
Silas Lockwood
The oldest Lockwood brother.
The closest thing to a "rebellious" kid the [legitimate] Lockwood family has.
Stereotypical "popular kid": has a ton of friends and is always the center of attention despite being a dick to most people.
Is rarely at home, usually off "adventuring" (aka, paying other people to do the real work, then let him come in and deal the final blow and taking the credit.)
Excellent fencer, but initially trained for dueling competitions for entertainment, not lethality. His style is kind of exaggeratedly showy because of this.
When he's not adventuring or dueling, he's usually in a tavern, slightly drunk and surrounded by "20 of his closest friends". (or "friends"... most of them are using him or he's using them. He's aware of this and doesn't care.)
Has his father's short temper and intense pride. Can never walk away from a fight.
Hates nothing more than losing/being humiliated.
Byron Lockwood
Middle child, often overlooked in favor of his siblings.
Most boring/practical of the kids.
Doesn't really know what he wants in life.
Doomed to always be out-shined by Silas or Theo.
Totally not bitter about it.
Currently engaged to the daughter of another noble house.
Wants to inherit the title of Lord Lockwood, and is offended that someone as irresponsible as Silas would get it.
Perfectionist. Expects the best from everyone around him at all times.
The only Lockwood kid with a "real" job. (Manages some of his father's interests in a handful of shipping companies based in Arborcea.)
Think of the stereotypical shitty boss: Greedy, ambitious, treats his underlings like tools not people.
Theodore "Theo" Lockwood
The youngest Lockwood brother.
His parents' favorite.
Mama's boy, has Lady Lockwood wrapped around his finger and he knows it.
Spoiled youngest child. Is used to getting everything he wants whenever he wants it.
Will get very upset if his desires are not met.
Has spent the last few decades attending various kind of universities for degrees in all sorts of things. (the perks of being an elf and super rich, I guess.)
When asked about his plans "after schooling", he just does a kind of vague handwave and starts rambling about "research projects", but can't give any straight answers.
Will probably end up as some kind of weird professor/research funder: Ultra wealthy, multiple PHDs, "inventor" (but really just pays people to invent things for him), more than a little bit of a jerk. All his future students will come in so thrilled to meet this famous guy who's done so much impressive shit, but end up leaving disillusioned about their idol.
Not as smart as he seems. More than possibly has paid his way through at least a few of his classes/degrees.
As an academic will almost certainly plagiarize most or all of his work.
#ts4#the sims 4#sims 4 CAS#ts4 CAS#adventures in cas#my sims#cas#ts4 fantasy#sims 4 fantasy#ts4 dnd#sims 4 dnd#dnd extras#the lockwoods#this is Rook's father his stepmother (I guess?) and his half-brothers btw.#the brothers are all older than him by quite a bit actually. Being elves they're going to far outlive him lmao.#but honestly given Rook's lifestyle even if he was a full elf I don't think he'd live that long. I literally can't picture him getting old.#but yeah. Rook is the best member of the Lockwood line and that's because he's a bastard not in spite of it.#Rook was supposed to face Silas in a duel and Silas was supposed to cheat and poison him but we had to skip that whole arc for pacing.#which I get it. The story turned out better bc of it but it would have been SO fun to have Rook see a relative for the first time in 9 year#none of them know where he went or what happened to him. They would certainly have OPINIONS about him being a pirate lmao.
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Hi this is where I talk a bunch about ocs :D
I dont have a lot of time lately to talk abt lore but i still think abt my guys whenever i have some chill time to myself, so here's some patch notes. This is also just me thinking out loud haha
CD:
ive been playing w some changes for CD and seeing if they stick :] gonna make the story slightly more complex and the sides of the conflict also different (for example I am going to make hades and talas full on enemies at first along with connon, caval and silas >:3 (and I am also making silas and his monster form two separate characters so the lion (hal) is now a mount instead))
Specifically what I've been thinking about is making Hades either a ship captain or a first mate for a rogue ship. The deal with Hades is that he comes from a renowned family from Redbridge and is a disgrace to them. In previous versions of CD they were artisans but that never rly clicked for me, and recently I have been reworking Redbridge into a naval empire to add some đ¤spice đ¤to the world, which would mean Hades' family is actually a naval captain family putting him next in line to be one of them but since his thing is being a disgrace he takes off and becomes a rogue. And instead of hating leviathans he fucking hates hunters instead. Conversely, I think with these changes Talas would also NOT be inclined to kill hunters (or at least not as often as he currently does). He'd pick fights with the naval fleet and other similar factions instead which is more like his character.
I also wanna try and bring back an older concept I had where connon's ship was able to both become fully submerged (like the subs in sunless sea where her character originated from) and this other idea I had where a ship could split in half into two smaller ships. Like if a catamaran could split into two and flank a vessel on both sides. But we'll see if I can make this work x)
Dragons (broken horizon + extinction):
I vaguely mentioned this a while ago as well but I've also been thinking abt my dragons and how I kinda want them to all be in one world/setting, which includes both my broken horizon guys (cer, jarek, octane, etc) and my extinction guys (alex, c, orion, etc) but I dont know how to deal with all of the conflicting lore and themes.
Because for extinction the big theme is there are people who can turn into dragons, and technically all of the dragons' powers are based on energy (for lore reasons). Meanwhile for my other dragons I have a few different elements or other ways of using fire (eg instead of using straight up fire/energy, my oc Jarek can breathe out gas only and ignites it with his mandibles).
I miss all my dragons a lot so I kinda wanted to make a world for them where I could have them Vibe and do different stories in so I thought about having a dragon-only universe but unfortunately Extinction has a pretty huge human element that I cant just eliminate.
It feels counterintuitive, i know the first logical choice is 'just let them be different things' but I genuinely feel like the right choice is to put them both together so the characters can interact and the whole story can be deeper because as it is both are really shallow and I would really like for them to work together so that's what I've been picking at for some months now (it's um. been real slow)
For these two stories I do have two different vibes though that I've been wondering how to weave together nicely bc they overlap for some characters. For broken horizon I had flying and aerial racing as a big theme (and some of the chars in extinction would be rly into that) and for extinction I had dragon arena fights as a big theme (and some of the characters in bh would be rly into that) both of these is another of the reasons why I wanted to put them both together bc it feels like they can fit very well I just have to find the right idea for them to click and then itll be smooth sailing -w-
I also wanted to talk abt this in hopes that talking abt all the dragons gets me to think more about them as well
I wanted to make this post bc I've been really busy lately and rly absent from here in general and I don't have as much time to draw (or even think abt ocs) anymore but I still wanted to keep posted about what's been going on in my head and hopefully get some eyes on it and maybe even some feedback if anyone is so inclined
If u read this whole thing thank u i owe you my life fr I hope u enjoyed reading abt my patch notes :D and hopefully sometime in the future I can get back to drawing concepts and stuff or maybe even writing stuff
#thunderclap#oc ramble#challenger deep#broken horizon#long post#whew this took so long to write and i dont even know if its gonna make ANY sense to anyone auuggggg#ive been thinking a lot about CD in my off time recently I want to make it GOOD i wanna make it COMPLEX i have a lotta good insp lately#so im hoping to make some good and much needed changes#and i also think abt my dragons a lot they just like. float at random in my head in cool scenes and i have no way to bring it all together#AND THAT MAKES ME MAD!!! THIS IS MY HOUSE!! I SHOULD BE ABLE TO MAKE IT FIT AUUUGGHGHHHH!!!!#i also think abt octane and alex being rivals a lot now it actually fits so much. radioactive bitches. fusion vs fission.#generation vs combustion. white and black. both still orange. please please i need this to work sooo bad#ALSO C AND ARC AND JAREK AND DIMA WOULD GET ALONG SO WELL I KNOW IT I DO AUGH
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â¤: Which character do you think is the most egregiously mischaracterized by the fandom?
for secret shanghai ofccc :D
Uhh hm. Ok so I donât think that the fandom on here mischaracterizes any of the characters horribly. (At least not since all of the books have been out.)
But in general (mostly based on tiktok/instagram/goodreads)âŚ
I think people ignore the complexities of Julietteâs character a bit and just paint her as a girlboss knifewife TM.
Iâve also seen people misread Roma as a bland cardboard cutout YA love interest TM. Which is. Not correct.
I have seen people who thought Benedikt and Marshall were straight and shipped them with Rosalind and Celia. Which is just completely baffling to me. Because how.
Then Iâve also seen some pretty weird biphobic mischaracterizations of Orion and generally some pretty shallow reads of his character that I donât love.
Pre fhh I definitely mischaracterized Oliver a bit. And I guess we do kind of make a couple tiny details of his character his entire personality now. But I donât think itâs really genuine mischaracterization since I donât think anyone genuinely sees him like that.
Ik I also mischaracterized Silas a bit pre fhh since I wasnât expecting him to be such a driving force in the plot or for him to stand up for himself like he did. I donât know that every characterization of him Iâve seen since fhh necessarily reflects that, but it was also something that he character developmented into so I wouldnât say itâs a mischaracterization exactly.
Not mischaracterization exactly but I have seen people who didnât realize Celia was trans? Which isnât bad because if youâre not reading super closely it can be easy to miss at first. But I donât love it when people still call her by her dead sisterâs name post OVE.
We thought Phoebe was taller than she actually is since sheâs described as short in flf but Iâm not sure that Chloe Gong actually knows how tall any of the characters are either. So. Oh well.
My irl friend thought Phoebe and Silas were both straight?????
Iâve seen people call Silas boring and clingy and say that he needs to set boundaries. The first two are incorrect. That is a declarative statement because Iâm right. The last one is perplexing because he did?? He literally put Phoebe in jail???
I think Alisaâs grief maybe gets glossed over a little bit, but honestly I donât think itâs covered in the books (more flf than fhh) as much as it could be.
This is more my interpretation so I donât know that this counts as mischaracterization exactly, but now that I think about it, I really donât think Phoebe cares about fashion or anything adjacent to that that gets ascribed to her sometimes. I think the vast majority of that is the front that sheâs putting on. I think this can be seen in the state of her room when Alisa starts digging through her stuff in fhh and also how she refers to what sheâs wearing as âfrivolousâ in the flf epilogue.
This isnât really an answer but oh well.
#chloe gong#secret shanghai#these violent delights#tvd#our violent ends#ove#foul lady fortune#flf#foul heart huntsman#fhh#rosalind lang#orion hong#juliette cai#roma montagov#benedikt montagov#marshall seo#celia lang#oliver hong#phoebe hong#silas wu#alisa montagova
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