#Oscar I KNOW you can do this. fuck team orders. do your thing. and WIN

[things-methinks]

HOW about an Oscar win and Lestappen podium at Spa?

[mcnyoom]

So I am going to ramble some more about my Oscar goes apeshit in Baku predictions because it has grabbed my by the lapels and shaken me around.

So we start with Hungary. First win, big win, this is awesome, but he seems generally unenthusiastic. Haha, we all say, typical unemotional Oscar. Boo, the media says, you should have prioritized Lando, that’s not a real win because team orders.

And then we have spa. Solid, p3 that became p2, but —a theme that will develop— unrealized potential with Oscar chasing someone down and not quite making it on the last laps. Will-he-won’t-he, and it seems he won’t. He’s clearly not pleased in post race debriefs.

Zandvoort. Everyone knows the McLaren is the fastest car by this point, and Lando has the race of his life. A 20 second gap to second, and Oscar spends most of the race chasing Leclerc for third, so close but yet so far. Another race ended by chasing someone down and not quite making it. Media calls it a SPECTACULAR drive by Lando (it was!) and overall a disappointing weekend for Oscar, who at this point is probably gnashing his teeth off camera somewhere.

And so we come to Monza!! This weekend is Oscar throwing his elbows out in a big way. He’s making a statement, and the statement is fuck your team orders, fuck being “second driver” and fuck this narrative of Oscar being the guy who can’t quite pull it off. Except, yet again, he doesn’t quite pull it off and is stuck, yet again, behind Charles Leclerc. In the cooldown room after, when he says to Leclerc “I didn’t think you’d make it to the end, or I did but I thought you’d be slower” what he’s actually saying is “how the fuck did you do that, you fucking bastard”. Points for self restraint, but you can see in post race interviews he’s pissed.

This is Oscar, so there’s still calculation here: when he’s mean about Lance to the media afterwards? It’s funny, but also, he’s trial running a much sharper persona than we’ve seen so far. I’ve described it in tags before as heading in an Alonso direction — he doesn’t mind having a little villain arc!

The problem with Monza is he didn’t win. Gauntlets thrown, papaya rules in the wind, and he’s still only p2. That’s frustrating (and possibly embarrassing) in a big way, especially in light of people who still say his first win was gifted. So now we have an Oscar that’s getting more comfortable being the bad guy, doing dramatic bold things to get what he wants, and he still hasn’t quite got it.

So I think he’s gonna go fucking insane in Baku.

[cutielando]

hungary 2024.

okay, we need to talk about the Hungarian Grand Prix.

i've seen a lot of people all over the internet saying how Oscar didn't deserve the win and that he stole it away from Lando, that Lando shouldn't have let Oscar past, all kinds of theories.

first things first.

BE HAPPY FOR OSCAR.

it's really unfair towards him that everyone is overlooking his win, not celebrating him for the amazingly talented driver that he is, and are instead pitying Lando, talking about mistreatment from the team and so on (both of which are true and fair, but it seems like everybody is overlooking the fact that he won his first F1 race in his SECOND season).

I am a Lando fan, I was at the race as well, and I am just as sad that I didn't get to watch him win, but let's not forget how compliant Oscar has been ever since the start of the season when it comes to Lando's races.

he has sacrificed many of his races in order to help Lando defend his position and has not once complained about it. he has been nothing short of a stellar team player without complaints. i can imagine the way he must have been feeling, knowing the team was prioritizing Lando in races, which is not a great conclusion to come to.

Lando knows how much Oscar has helped him, and he knew that if he hadn't let him past, he would have lost his support and help down the road. he would have found himself fighting for results by himself, which is not something you want when you're close in the championship. he knew he needs Oscar, that's why he ended up obeying to team orders.

now we arrive to the real root of the problem and the real bad guy. McLaren.

i understand that they wanted Oscar to win, to give something back to make up for the situations he had been put in, but this was not the way to do it. had they wanted Oscar to win "fair and square" they should have pitted him first. he would have come out behind Lando, and then they would have pitted Lando and he would have come out behind Oscar, thus creating Oscar P1 and Lando P2 from the very beginning.

the audacity of Will to say those things to Lando over the radio, the audacity to straight up blackmail him into giving away a win to Oscar was so not the way to speak to someone who has been with the team for 6 years and committed at least 3-4 more years of his career to the team. it's not fair towards Lando because the situation was not his fault, it was the fault of their strategy team.

don't ever blackmail someone into doing your bidding when you've put them in the wrong spot ON PURPOSE and the entire situation is your fault.

the sole fault here lies with McLaren. Lando and Oscar have no fault in this. Lando should have never been given the opportunity to lead the race in the last stint when everyone was aiming for an Oscar win. the strategy failed, the blame lies with the team orders.

McLaren, I love you, I love your drivers, and I'm a papaya girl through and through. BUT GROW THE FUCK UP AND GET YOUR ACT TOGETHER.

We deserve better.

Lando deserves so much better.

Oscar deserves so much better.

With that being said, don't let this take away the joy of winning a race from Oscar just because you made a mistake.

He deserves the win, he should feel that indescribable joy of winning. He deserves to be happy.

He’s a winner, let’s celebrate him accordingly. 🧡

[chilling-seavey]

What an exhausting race omg. I have so many emotions right now I'm just going to word vomit them all onto my blog.

Firstly: OSCAR SLAY. Little guy did so well from turn 1 :') I actually had a dream last night that he won this weekend and the fact that it came true is kind of creepy so amazing. The stress to get todays win though - oh my God. The fact Oscar felt like he had to apologize...my sweet boy, let me hug you.

It was crazy today to be a McLaren fan and to be one who's equally adoring of both drivers. My heart went out to Lando so strongly because everything lined up in his favour near the end, he saw this as his moment, and yet the team seemed to be pitted against him. I could empathize so strongly with his frustration on the radio, his attitude, his reluctantly to give the position back to Oscar. He made a fair point in saying 'well you should have pitted him first then'. The only part I didn't agree with or, rather, made me upset with him was his subtle few digs at Oscar ('then tell him to drive faster' type things). That made my McLaren 'mom' heart hurt ngl. But truly, Lando was really faced with an unfair ethical dilemma today and, honestly, I wouldn't have faulted him for not giving the place back at all. But, the moment he slowed down to let Oscar past, I shed a tear. That must have been so fucking hard for him but it really does show a lot for his character. He can be brash and a little cocky and a little reckless and, hell, selfish to no end at times, but he's a good guy and that was only shown today. He gave up his second win for Oscar to have his first. That must lay heavy on his heart and I commend him so strongly - for not only doing that but also for putting on a smile as much as he could muster throughout the post-race celebrations. (Woohoo champagne pop!)

And on the other side of my team, my lil Oscar. We knew it was only a matter of time before he won; it's easy to see his skill. Part of me thinks this was a disappointing way to win his first race - having to just battle over the radio with engineers and teams and struggling to know if you were just going to be 'gifted' your place back. I can see that the strangeness of this win lingers on Oscar's heart too. Was it worth it? But then I look back at the rest of the race; how he led for so long, how he performed so smoothly, so brilliantly, and was only about to have the pay-off taken from him by his silly team orders, and I understand that the call was the right one for his sake. It was a win he deserved, albeit a strange one. Hell, Lando deserved a win today too, but as we know well, there can be only one. This day just leaned more in Oscar's favour. I hope Oscar doesn't focus on the melancholy of the reality of it too much; it's a moment for him to be selfish and proud 🧡

My boys are now tied for wins...so bring on Belgium to see who breaks the tie ;)

[httpiastri]

ngl im pretty pissed at lando

i think this is my first (and probably last) post about this because i have so many feelings and i know i cant waste more time diving into them because i will just cry more and waste time and-

i understand that lando was mad. i understand that he was furious with the team – so was i – and that excuses 99% of his actions in my mind. he's allowed to be bitchy on the radio (which he wasn't really, tbh, he was mostly quiet lol), he's allowed to act strangely and espECIALLY when the team doesn't give him any straighforward orders (should've been a "lando. you will let oscar pass. end of discussion." instead of "hey... think of all our morning meetings together..." and the other emotional blackmail).

BUT. the thing it doesnt excuse is him ignoring oscar on the podium. im getting more and more furious over this the more time passes and the more times i re-watch the clip, because what. the. fuck. ?!?!??!!?

yes you're upset at the team, but it's not oscar's fault. in no way does oscar need your anger. like, i know lando is better than this! he can handle his emotions, he's not a little baby. oscar already had his first win not feel like a win; he didn't get to celebrate on the radio, he wasn't overjoyed in parc ferme. the least you can do is douse your friend in champagne to make him feel better!!!!

and like to me there's just nothing that excuses this. no "he didn't wanna break his trophy" (solution: wait and let osc put it down, then do your champagne pop and attack him) and no "he was upset" (solution: grow tf up, this isn't oscar's fault!!).

it's all based on the fact that lando is more mature and smarter than this. if it had been another driver, maybe i wouldn't have been surprised. if it had been another pairing, i probs wouldn't have cared. but lando this isn't just anyone, this is oscar. your osc, your osco. he didn't deserve to be standing there on the podium, seeing both lando and lewis walk away from him.

[amillionmillionvoices]

your last snippet made me cry! That ending 🥹😭

So from the list of prompts, this one caught my eye: “you caught me doing something dangerous and flipped out”

But against popular belief, I think, Rebecca is the one doing something dangerous… 💜

Thank you so much for the prompt!! So this got wildly out of control through no fault of my own and now is Proper Fic Length so I put it on AO3. Hope that's okay, and I hope you like it! <3

TW: violence (fist fight), blood, canon-typical references to suicide, panic attacks.

--

and all this devotion was rushing out of me

They lose.

Not badly, but they lose—it’s a brutal, dirty game and no matter what they try, what new plays they enact, Nate seems to know everything. They score one goal and West Ham score two and it’s over before they have time to get their feet under them.

The locker room is mostly silent, a stirring of disappointment, and anger at the way Ted had reached out for Nate’s hand, and Nate slapped it away. It’s not a good look for anyone, either team, but there’s the added twisting of a knife, Rupert crowing somewhere on television, and it hurts.

He doesn’t blame the team, mostly himself, but then Rebecca is there, gives a short but heartfelt speech about how proud she is of everyone and how well they played and how it isn’t over—it’s one loss, and yes, a hard one, but they still have time to win the whole damn thing and show the world what they can do. What she knows they’re all capable of.

Ted smiles, proud of her, for how far she’s come, when she looks the team over and says, “Right. No moping. We’re going out and drinks are on me,” and then the team start talking again, congratulating each other on good plays and heading for showers, and Rebecca pauses a moment to look at Ted, to give him a small smile and a nod.

Later, when they’re alone, he knows they’ll have to process, but they’ll do it together the way they’ve done everything else and that warms him somewhat.

They find a club nearby, not one of their usual haunts, and after the first round of drinks he can tell the boys are lighter. Feel less weighted. They talk about everything and nothing and there’s karaoke and Colin butchers My Heart Will Go On so badly (and, Ted thinks, on purpose, because he knows Colin can actually sing) that it becomes comical, everyone laughing together. It feels good, and the drinks keep coming and a few kind folks come up to him and say it was a rough game and they did great and fuck West Ham, and that makes him feel good, too. A bit guilty, but it’s nice to know there are fans in their corner.

And, if Rebecca sticks close to him all night, her hand on his leg under the table, that helps, too.

He’d wanted to win so badly, win it for her, but there’s no trace of disappointment in her eyes, just pride, and a love for him he’s only just starting to accept, starting to realize isn’t conditional.

They’ve been together six months, quietly, only the team and their friends know and today is not the day to announce it to anyone else, but he’s fine with that. Fine with their quiet little bubble. The way he knows they’ll go home together and hold each other and in the morning it’ll all look brighter because they’re together.

They sit at a back table with Keeley and Roy and Beard, chatting over the music, Rebecca’s thigh pressed to his. They spend a few hours just wandering from topic to topic, everything light and teasing. Roy seems tense still, however, so he isn’t surprised when Keeley finally nudges him out the booth, saying something about taking Oscar the Grouch home for a bath and “maybe a blowjob” and Ted chokes a bit on his whisky and Beard raises one eyebrow and Rebecca laughs at the way Roy’s ears, even in the darkness of the club, are obviously red.

“You’re a fucking menace,” he grumbles to Keeley, who just smirks and kisses his cheek and drags him away.

Rebecca looks at their drinks and decides refills are in order, and squeezes Ted’s knee before she slips out of the booth, and he watches her, sees her lay a hand on Isaac’s shoulder at the bar, knows she’ll be fine for a moment. With a nod to Beard, he slips out the back door.

He just needs a moment of quiet, space to breathe. His chest still feels a bit tight, and though he isn’t anxious, he quickly realizes maybe alone isn’t the best place for him right now.

So he’s grateful when Beard steps out behind him, listens as he rambles for a moment about missing stars and club smells and then admits,

“I wanted to win it for her.”

continued on ao3

[sid471]

An OBJECTIVE look at James Ironwood

A much needed TL;DR: Ironwood’s story is sad. But it doesn’t excuse his actions just cause we’ve known him longer.

So I’ve made it.... abundantly clear on many many posts that ever since the end of volume 7 and into volume 8, I’ve hated General James Ironwood. I’ve made SOME posts “throwing him a bone” but I usually end up still emphasizing his flaws. So... Here’s a post where I DON’T focus solely on his flaws. Here’s a look at Ironwood’s actions from his introduction in volume 2, to now. And I’ll try to be as, well, objective as possible.

So James’ first appearance is in episode 2 of Volume 2 where he talks to Ozpin and, briefly, Glynda. He clearly has some history with Glynda, maybe a romantic relationship that I personally support 😗... Well I mean not NOW but I did. So Ironwood seems to be a bit of a 3rd wheel to Oz and Glynda, Glynda dismissing him and his compliment and Oz not being PARTICULARLY happy with him and his army’s presence in Vale and after a bit of arguing, James says the infamous line, that’s even quoted in his theme track, “Do you honestly believe your children can win a war?” James bringing his army to Vale, and then later going behind Oz’s back to the Vale counsel to get permission to protect the kingdom, and also get Ozpin in the Counsel’s bad graces? He... meant well. But it was still a betrayal of Ozpin’s trust. Which is ironic considering trust is Ironwood’s whole... thing.

And it also tells us something interesting. He UNDERESTIMATES the capabilities and potential of humans. I know that may sound a bit like I’m reaching but think about it, Atlas mostly sends soldier bots to take care of Grimm attacks instead of humans. And even when he DOES send human soldiers, they rely on surprise attacks to get the job done, like the Ace Ops arresting RWBY and friends at the beginning of Volume 7. And when they DON’T have surprise attacks, Atlas’ huntsman lose. The Ace Ops lost to RWBY, they basically lost to Penny in a 1v4 fight, which Harriet admits in saying “Good work would’ve been capturing Penny.” So yeah they lost, Clover lost to Tyrian and Qrow, which I know is a different scenario but still if he were among the best of the best he would’ve either recognized the bigger threat in Tyrian, or would’ve been able to hold them both off, or, 3rd option, would’ve retreated and let Qrow and Tyrian have it out then come back to arrest them both, or the remaining one considering Qrow vs Tyrian, when we get it again, is GONNA end in a death. Fair Game bias aside, everyone blames Qrow but Clover also could’ve been smarter in his final moments. 

In fact EVERY major Atlesian we’ve seen has lost a fight at least once. Winter lost to Qrow in Volume 3, if you count that AS a fight, and Cinder in Volume 7, Ace Ops lost to RWBY and Penny, Clover, as mentioned, lost to Tyrian and Qrow, Watts lost to Ironwood, and Weiss has, notoriously, lost a lot of fights but among the first was against Banesaw, the White fang lieutenant in Volume 2, and most recently, Rhodes lost to Cinder, if you count him. Whyyyy? I’m personally of the belief that it’s because of Atlas’ over reliance on its tech, and I know I’m not the only who thinks this 😗. Atlas has the best Tech on remnant and can easily create robosoldiers or mechs to protect the pilot while also allowing the pilot to still fight. What use is training humans to fight when they have mechs and robots to do it for them? 

Phew. That was a little off topic. I’m sorry, anyway, so in volume 3, James brings Penny to Vale to participate in the Vytal festival which, speaking of trust, he didn’t tell anyone about. I understand not making it public knowledge. Soldier bots are one thing but a robot that looks like a little girl? I don’t think that woulda sat right with people. So, yeah not making it general knowledge, makes sense. But not trusting your 3 closest allies, and FRIENDS, in Oz, Glynda, and Qrow? Like Glynda said, it’s time to stop talking about trust and start showing it. That aside, things go decently well. No DIRECT signs of any conflict *looks at Cinder* and the festival goes well until the one on one finals. Yang attacking a “defenseless” student, in James’ mind, is horrible yes, but people’ll move past it, especially cause he disqualified her. But then shortly after that, Pyrrha, Ozpin’s chosen one for the Fall Maiden’s power, dismembers Penny on national TV. That is a huge blow for both the festival and him personally.

Continuing with Volume 3, while he’s calling for reinforcements, the robosoldiers that’re in his plane with him are hacked and cause him to crash land. Also a hit to him personally, HE ordered these be created and the fact that they were so easily turned against him and the people he swore to protect? Yeah... Kinda get it. Although, something else interesting in Volume 3, when he DOES rendezvous with Qrow and Glynda, Qrow immediately turns his sword into Scythe form for the first time in the show. And James’ immediate reaction? “Qrow! This wasn’t my doing!” and preparing his gun for a fight, before turning around and realizing that Qrow actually just saved him from a Griffon. This is........ interesting. Why would he assume a colleague he’s worked with for so long would suddenly be turning on him? I dunno. Just seems a little... paranoid wouldn’t ya say?

Volume 4, we see a new side of James. We see that he cares for Weiss, at least somewhat. More than Jacques, but granted a squirrel cares more about the Schneeblings than Jacques. But yeah, James has some pretty sweet moments with Weiss in volume 4, standing up for her at Jacques’ party, offering her a place at Atlas academy, he’s a pretty stand up guy to Weiss. But, big picture? This volume shows the signs of his paranoia being something serious. He completely shuts down Atlas. In his own words, “No one in. No one out. Not without the Counsel’s permission.” now, he knows about Salem. But he doesn’t know what she’s CAPABLE of, as implied by Qrow last volume. So, from James’ perspective, this DOES seem like the safest course of action. But this is exactly what Salem wants. Separation. Anxiety. Paranoia. FUEL for the Grimm. And this is the first sign of a common theme of James inadvertently playing into Salem’s hands.

Jumping to Volume 7, we don’t see him in 5 or 6 😗, James is still hella, HELLA paranoid, but he’s still happy to see Qrow and happy to have new allies. Now this is where we get a little dicey because volume 7 is a.......... divisive volume 😓. I’m gonna talk about JAMES’ perspective of events. Not necessarily my thoughts because... well... I’ve done that already lol. Many times 😓. So JAMES’ perspective on Volume 7. James sent the Ace Ops to investigate a stolen air ship and arrest the ones responsible for... ya know... stealing the air ship. So the Ace Ops do. And then they go back and take them to James’ office, and it’s the general’s old friend Qrow and his niece’s team and her friends, and a mysterious young man. We can see that James is happy to see Qrow, especially cause of the hug :3, and he’s especially happy to see Oscar, the new Ozpin. He trains Ruby and her friends with his Ace Ops, and allows Winter to help Weiss. And he DOES start to relax more. He starts to, dare I say it, let loose. He allows some lenience, he lets RWBY have the night off. Ruby going to Robyn’s celebration, Yang and Blake going on a double date with Flynt and Neon, and let’s the boys and Weiss have a movie night. He even gives RWBY and their friends their huntsman licenses. These are really great things to do :3

But where things start to crumble is after he announces that Amity is ready, which is a whole speech full of half truths, that he didn’t tell any of his allies about once again, to lure out Watts. It works, they fight, he wins, and we see THIS face.

This is a man who is completely CONTENT. He is happy in this moment. He’s arrested a man who’s always, by his own admission, been a pain in the ass, he has Clover, Qrow, and Robyn on the way back with Tyrian Callows, everything is great right now. He KNOWS that Ruby and her friends lied to him because Oscar told him, but he can sort that out with an honest conversation right? In my opinion, THIS screenshot is Ironwood’s last GOOD moment in the series. That thought process of everything is great goes to shit when he sees the Black Queen piece that Cinder left expressly to fuck with his head. And THEN he gets irrational and, once again, plays into Salem’s hands. He directly ORDERS the divide of the people. He plans to abandon Mantle, leaving them to die in the process, and he plans to completely sever Atlas from all of Remnant basically by launching it into the atmosphere to keep the Vault safe. That only ACTUALLY accomplishes one thing, being keeping the vault, which IS important. But it isn’t more important than keeping the people, ALL of the people, calm and prepared to face this threat, like he did at Beacon. He should have remained calm, like an experienced military official should, and made an announcement to all of Atlas and Mantle saying kind of what he did in Volume 3. “Grimm are all over the kingdom. You can either stay and protect your kingdom, or save yourself. No one will fault you if you leave.” 

Ironwood has a thing with fear. He doesn’t want to admit he’s afraid of Salem. As evidenced both times he’s shot someone....... interesting 😓. In the last episode of Volume 7, The Enemy of Trust, this exchange happens. Ironwood: You still think I'm afraid? Oscar: We all are. It's what we do in our fear that reveals--Ironwood: That's easy for you to say!

And then later, in the first episode of Volume 8 Divide, he shoots and kills Sleet once he says... Well... His last words “And what’s this about martial law? Have you lost your damn mind?! Are you that scared of what-- “ And notice, Ironwood shoots after Sleet goes to say “Are you that scared of what might happen?” And he IS right about one thing. It IS easy for Oscar to say “It’s what we do in our fear.” Because Oscar is child who can AFFORD to be afraid. James doesn’t have the luxury. He’s denying his fear because he’s the general. He’s James Ironwood. He can’t AFFORD to be afraid. If he’s afraid, everyone is going to be afraid. And, well, he can’t have that. That would attract the Grimm. He thinks he HAS to have a level head at all times for the sake of the kingdom. But James even generals in the military have feelings.... and sometimes need therapy to talk through some shit 😶. But... well... Maybe too late for that 😶😓.

In conclusion: James Ironwood is indeed a tragic character. A character who has taken A LOT of blows. A character who has always been paranoid. ALWAYS been ready for an attack. But even though he’s always been ready, he still wasn’t PREPARED. He wasn’t prepared for the sheer strength and AMOUNT of Salem’s forces. If he was more calm and more rational, he could have prepared better. He could have had Mantle and Atlas united against Salem, and that’s what can beat Salem, like Ruby said. James Ironwood is a tragic character, he has had it rough. But that doesn’t mean we should overlook his OBJECTIVELY horrible actions through out these last 2 volumes. Like ya know... Murder.

Phew .-. This is DEFINITELY my longest post. This better get attention I didn’t do all this for nothing >_>

[youllneverknowrac]

Oscar Diaz-No Sharing

Written for a follower on wattpad

Enjoy guys! <3

~

It was your senior year, the year everything was suppose to be perfect. You already had the somewhat perfect life, at least in your own opinion. You were the top cheerleader and your boyfriend of two years just made captain on the varsity team. You had straight A’s and amazing friends...See? Perfect. That was until Oscar Diaz got out of jail and walked into your life a few weeks ago.

You met him the last weekend before school started back up at a party that you attended after a argument with your boyfriend. His party to be more precise. One thing led to another and somehow you ended up in his bed. Your boyfriend long forgotten as Oscar thrusted into you, his lips making sure to cover every single inch of your body. After that, you were hooked. The two of you meeting up almost every night for a secret rendezvous.

“What are you thinking about?” Oscar asks softly as you lay your head on his chest.

“Hm? Oh nothing, just the game tomorrow.”

“Damn I forgot you had a game tomorrow.” Oscar frowns, hating that practices and game days took up so much of your day,”You gonna come over after? You can stay the night.”

“Our first sleepover?” You smile as you sit up in the bed, the sheet falling into your lap and exposing your bare chest,”Sounds fun.”

“Well on one condition.” He smirks as he takes in your freshly fucked body,”You gotta bring your little uniform and put on a show for me.”

“You’re so lame.” You giggle as you throw the rest of the sheet off of you,”I’m not saying no, but I’ll let you know tomorrow.”

“Why? Plans with your little boyfriend?” Oscar asks, his mood completely changing,”You still letting him hit?”

“What? No!” You scoff as you search for your underwear,”I haven’t slept with him since I met you. Why are you even bringing him up?”

“I’m bringing him up because he’s obviously the reason you can’t give me a straight answer about tomorrow.” He says as he reaches for

his boxers and pulls them on from where he still lays,”I don’t know why you can’t just leave his ass.”

“Oscar.” You sigh softly as you pull on your underwear, followed by your t-shirt,”I’ve been with him for so long, I can’t just break it off for no reason.”

“Oh so I’m not reason enough?” Oscar asks with a raised eyebrow

“I didn’t mean it like that.” You say with a shake of your head as you stride over to the bed and straddle his lap, your hands on either side of his face,”You’re more than reason enough, but he’s not going to see it like that. I don’t want everybody to know that I did him dirty. Just give me a little more time and I’ll do it. I promise.”

“How long?” Oscar says with a scowl

“Few days, a week tops.” You shrug as you rest your forehead against his and let him hear what he wants,”Look we have a dinner planned with his family tomorrow after the game and then after that me and my little uniform are all yours. So lighten up Spooooky.”

“Aight, fine.” He says with a small smile,”I can’t wait till you’re only mine.” He adds, his hands sliding down to your ass and roughly squeezing it,”Never sharing you with anybody again. You’re only gonna be my girl.”

“Your’s.” You agree with a smile and pull your shirt off once more so you can remind him of that fact.

~

*Why are you ignoring me?* You read the seventh message from Oscar popping up on your screen before you glance at your boyfriend in the drivers seat who had picked you up this morning.

*Can’t talk right now. I’ll hit you up later.* you quickly reply before blocking his number and deleting the evidence. Already knowing that you’ll get a earful about it tonight, Oscar hating when you blocked him.

“We still on for tonight?” Aaron asks as he focuses on the road in front of him.

“Yeah. Totally.” You smile as you look over at him.

“Maybe I could sneak in tonight.” He offers hopefully.

“Oh...I don’t know. I think Sara was spending the night.” You lie with ease,”Sorry. She asked me yesterday.”

“Seriously babe?”

“Seriously what?”

“We haven’t done anything in weeks, I mean even the last time you kissed me was like a week ago. Is something going on?”

“Nothing’s gong on.” You groan,”I’m fine. Everything is fine, but I already said yes to Sara.”

“Then what’s up? Why have you been distant?”

“I’m not trying to be, I swear. I’m sorry if I’m coming off that way.”

“Do you still love me?” He asks, his eyes glancing over at you,”Cause it doesn’t feel like it lately.”

“Yes. Always.” You tell him, which wasn’t a lie. He was your best friend before he was your boyfriend, you’d always have love for him. He was your first everything which is why you feel like the shittiest person in the world right now.

“I love you more.” He reply’s contently with your answer and grabs your hand to press a small kiss to the back of it.

I’m the worst person ever. The thought replaying over and over again in your mind as you stare at Aaron with a sad smile as he continues the drive to school.

~

“Yeah! Let’s go boys!” You cheer as the football game resumes after half time. Your red and blue uniform ironed to perfection, your white sneakers a blinding white, and Aaron’s jersey number painted on your cheek.

“Yo! Y/N!” You hear a all to familiar voice yell from the sidelines,”Aye, turn your ass around ma!”

You slowly turn around and take in the scene before you, Oscar along with the core 4 seated in the first row of the stands. You offer a small wave with your Pom-Pom before turning around and trying to calm your nerves down. Of course he would show up here, you’ve been ignoring him since this morning. This was his way of getting innocent revenge, he knew him being here would make you squirm at the thought of Aaron possibly finding out about you two. You shake the thought and get back into your over preppy robotic persona with the rest of your squad. You try to focus on the game but every few minutes you catch yourself glancing back at Oscar.

“Winning touch down by Mr.Aaron Cardenas!” The announcer shouts, the crowd going crazy as the home team wins a while later. You shout out in victory and do one final jump before your boyfriend comes over and picks you up.

“Did you see that?!” He asks out of breath as he spins you around one time.

“I did, good job.” You smile and wrap your arms around his neck. His face inching towards yours for a kiss,”You’re all sweaty.” You object and turn your head to the side, Aaron not liking this and setting you back down.

“It’s never been a problem before.” He says,”What’s going on Y/N?”

“Nothing, I already told you.” You say with a small reassuring smile,”Just go hop in the shower so we can get going. I don’t want to keep your parents waiting.”

“No, you’ve been being distant so I’m going to ask you again. What’s up? And don’t lie to me, we’ve known each other for far too long. Just be real with me Y/N.”

“I can’t tell you Aaron. At least not here, so please can we just hurry and go with your parents.” You tell him quietly as you look at anywhere but him.

“No.” He says with a shake of his head,”I’m done tonight. If you can’t be honest with me then what’s the point of us being together. It seems like we both need some time for our selves.”

“Aaron I.” You begin to object but get cut off by him.

“Stop.” He says with a sigh,”Hit me up when you actually want to act like a girlfriend, or don’t. I don’t care at this point.” With those final words he picks up his helmet and bag from the ground and heads for the locker rooms. You can’t help but get teary eyed as you gather the rest of your things, not bothering to shower or change. You just wanted to get out of here and fast.

“Where you think you going? Walking past me like I’m a fucking stranger.” Oscar smacks as you walk by him as he leaned on the hood of his car with his arms crossed,”You still ignoring me?”

“I’m going home.” You reply as you stop in your tracks and slowly turn to face him with tears in your eyes,”Can I please do that? I know you’re angry, but can we just do this tomorrow?”

“Get in the car.” He says as he pushes himself forward and snatches your bag,”Lets go.” He demands and tosses your belongings in the back before sliding into the drivers seat. A small huff escapes you as you walk over to the car and climb in. You didn’t really feel like walking anyway.

“Go on then. Take me home.” You say after buckling up.

“Nah.” He says with a shake of his head as he reaches into the back seat and grabs a rag,”And take that stupid shit off your face. You’re my girl not his.” Oscar orders as he tosses the rag into your lap.

“If you’re going to be a dick just let me get out right now.” You warn as you reach for the door handle.

“Chill. I’m just saying that I don’t want to see his fucking jersey number on your face.” He says as he stops your actions by pulling out of the parking spot.

“Yeah well he’s not a issue anymore, you obviously know that since I’m currently in your car and not with him.”

“Is that why you’re crying?” Oscar asks with a raised eyebrow.

“Yes.” You say as you wipe at a fallen tear with a shake of your head,”I feel like shit.”

“He found out about us?” He asks confusedly

“No. He just said that I was being distant and acting weird so he dumped me.”

“I don’t really see the problem ma.” Oscar shrugs,”You were going to break up with him anyway.”

“Yes Oscar but I still feel like a horrible person.” You snort,”You wouldn’t understand...and I don’t want to talk about it anymore.” You add as you pull down the visor and begin to rub at your cheek with the rag.

Oscar doesn’t reply and opts for turning the radio on instead so you can recompose yourself. It’s not until the car is parked in the driveway that he speaks,”You gonna be okay?” He asks, annoyed at the reason you were upset but keeping it to himself so he could try to help you feel better.

“I’m okay.” You nod,”I just needed to get that out...and I did. So let’s go in, yeah?” You sniffle offering a small reassuring smile. You don’t regret what you had going on with Oscar because what you two shared was special. He made you feel things that Aaron never could, how could you regret that? The only thing that you wish you could change was how the whole relationship started. It’s to late for that though, now it’s time to live in the present. In the present with Oscar,”It’s our first sleep over and I promised you a little show. You don’t want to miss it, do you?” You smirk as you hurry out of the car, the older Diaz brother hot on your heels.

~

“Who’s girl are you?” Oscar asks sleepily as the two of you cuddle under his sheets after a few wild rounds.

“Your girl.” You reply with a lazy smile.

“Hm, that’s right.” He grins as he nuzzles his face into your neck,”Say it again.”

“I’m your girl. Only yours.”

“Yeah, my girl.” He says as he let’s his eyes close, the two of you dozing off moments later, this being the first night of many for you two.

[immortalbeigewizard]

Rewatched RWBY 8 eps 1-5, a couple things:

The Hound is gooey

I appreciate how the story isn’t punishing scavenging during a disaster

The writing team did a really good job this volume showing and not telling that dust isn’t just a combat thing

I am Concerned about what will happen to the crater if Atlas falls

Qrow choosing murder instead of alcohol is a win in my book for the sad bird man

I also appreciate how they are showing that Penny embodies the spirit of what the maidens are supposed to be, protectors of the people, and not just keys for the relics

I love all of the Happy Huntresses and I would die for them

I love how even though Penny has to be serious in the Grimm apocalypse she’s still loves her friends

Nora I love you but please get some therapy

Ren I love you please get therapy

PENNY

Can Rooster Teeth stop hiring actors who are so good at doing tortured screams of pain please?

I need Robyn to know I love her

Fuck Jacques Schnee you Mike Pence looking bitch

Marrow please defect already Marrow

Ironwood is amazing as a complicated villain and I just know that people aren’t going to get that he’s a bad guy and I’m not going through this discourse

OSCAR NO BABY NO WHY THE POOR FARM BOY NO WHY CRWBY WHY DO YOU KEEP HURTING HIM

Hey Oz? Can you take control of the body now ? Oz? Please escape Oz

Also good job writing team pointing out that Oscar does an Oz impression in order to try to establish control of situations

Salem’s tiddy window isn’t cushioning the torture CRWBY, I’m not anti tiddy window but I’m not less upset with or without tiddies.

Hazel what the hell is your deal dude you’ve got a weaker explanation for being a villain than Mercury or Tyrian. Dude why the fuck are you torturing a child. What the fuck. What the fuck.

Jaune I love you’ve grown from Vol1 you have become such a good and well rounded huntsman keep up the good work

Thank you Barbara and Arryn for bringing the bees this season

Grimm River

[justmemewriting]

The Sister (Javier Peña x reader) Part 13 - celebrations

The next day, you, Javi and Steve left early to go to the press. To be exact, you were going to 'El Espectador'.

You were really nervous because you knew you were going to receive a lot of anger from your superiors for this. But you also knew that this was the only way to receive a reaction from Escobar which was what you needed to continue your investigations.

All you were hoping for at this point was that you wouldn't lose your job because your job pretty much was the only thing that kept you going at the moment.

"Are you guys sure that this is the right thing to do?" you asked them one last time. You were sure that you were willing to do everything it takes to catch Escobar, but you just had to make sure that they were too.

"We can either play politics or we can do the job," Steve told you.

"Well, we were never any good at playing politics anyway," Javi confirmed. You nodded in response.

It was now or never.

You arrived in the office of one of the head publishers. After politely greeting him, you handed him the photos that El Paisa took while Javi explained the story to him.

"What do you think?" Javi asked him in Spanish.

"These photos are worth looking into. And believe me, I'm going to," the man paused and placed the photos on his desk. "If it's true, this is going to cause a shit storm, you know?" he said in English. After that he left his office.

"Well, fuck president Gaviria," Javi told you and you nodded.

What you were doing felt wrong, but you knew that on some level it was the right thing to do.

"Fuck La Catedral," you answered and smirked at Javi and Steve.

"And fuck Pablo," Steve added.

————

Just a few days later, the story about Escobar killing the two men made the news. The story actually blew up more than you had expected it to. This was the closest you had ever come to a victory in your hunt for Escobar and it felt great. It was a small light in the darkness that you faced everyday.

When you arrived at the Embassy in the morning people were already watching the news as a reporter informed the public of this new investigation against Escobar. So were you. It felt great knowing that things finally began to change when it came to Escobar.

You noticed that people were cheering and went over to Steve and Javi to congratulate them. People gave them whiskey, vodka and other gifts in order to congratulate them on the big win.

But did they give you anything? No. If you asked any of the men in the office, they'd tell you what a great job Steve and Javi did, but they certainly wouldn't mention you.

Maybe it was because you were a woman. It probably was because you contributed to the win just as much as Javi and Steve did.

After a few more quiet hours in the office, you were called into the Ambassador's office. Turns out you got suspended until further notice. At least you got some recognition for your work here. Even if it wasn't in a positive way.

The three of you went into your shared office. Steve and Javi still insisted on celebrating the win even though they also just got suspended.

Javi offered you a drink, but you declined.

"C'mon, (Y/N). Celebrate our win with us," Javi told you.

"I already told you that I'm not in the mood to celebrate with you," you told him, but he just wouldn't listen.

You decided that you finally had enough for the day, you grabbed your jacker and got up to leave.

Before you left you said "But you know what? Have fun celebrating your win. You deserve it," you told them and with that you quickly left.

Javi and Steve just shared a confused look. They probably hadn't even noticed that not a single person had congratulated you on the win or told you what a good job you had done.

After having left the office, you quickly searched for Oscar hoping that he would drive. Lucky for you, you quickly found him and he told you that he was happy to drive you.

Once you were in his car, he must've realized that something was up.

"Are you ok, (Y/N)?" he asked you gently. "Shouldn't you be celebrating right now?"

"I'm just not really in the mood," you told him.

"Why's that? You guys scored a big win today. So why aren't you out celebrating with the others?" he asked you.

"Alright, I'll tell you. I don't know if this sounds stupid, but it doesn't really feel like this is my win too. I did just as much as Javi and Steve did. For some reason, no one really seems to acknowledge that. I had to work harder than all the other men to get into the DEA, because people always doubted me and my skills immediately just because I'm a woman. Javi and Steve never had that issue.

I'm just sick of people immediately assuming that my work isn't as good as theirs just because I'm a woman. So, I don't really feel like celebrating right now. And I know that it's not Steve or Javi's fault, but I don't think that they even noticed that the praise was only directed at them," you rambled.

"Oh," Oscar told you. "Obviously, I don't know what that feels like since I haven't experienced anything similar. But you shouldn't forget that your work is worth just as much as theirs is and that you are as important to the team as they are."

"Thanks, Oscar. That's really sweet of you. It's dumb of me really. I'm not even doing this for the praise or anything. It's just that it'd be nice to have my work recognized just as much," you told him and shrugged.

"You know what? If you're up for it, I'd like to invite you to have a drink with me at the bar tonight. You and I can celebrate the win together. So, are you up for it?" he asked you.

"Hell yeah," you told him and smiled.

Oscar and you decided that you'd go to the bar across from you apartment building.

You had to say that Oscar was being super sweet. He paid for your beer, and it was really nice to get to know him.

At some point you thought that he might be getting a bit flirtatious with you, but you honestly weren't sure.

Oscar had just finished telling you the story of how he completely embarrassed himself while he was training to become and officer which nearly made beer come out of your nose.

"It's getting pretty late, so I probably should get you him," Oscar told you.

The two of you then walked to your apartment building and Oscar insisted on accompanying you to your apartment door to make sure that you were safe since you had a bit to drink.

"Thanks for the lovely evening, Oscar. You really cheered me up," you told him once you unlocked the door.

"It was my pleasure. Would it be alright if I were to ask you out on a date some time?" he asked you sweetly.

You hesitated for a second, but then said "Sure, I'd love that."

"Alright, we'll talk some more about that tomorrow, okay?" You nodded.

"Good night,"

"Good night, (Y/N)" he told you.

And with that you disappeared into your apartment.

——

The next day at work was pretty uneventful. You did have your date with Oscar planned, though which was at least one thing to look forward to.

The day was slow and there just didn't seem to be enough work to do which is why Steve decided to go and get some lunch with Connie.

"(Y/N), you want to join Connie and me at lunch later?," Steve asked you.

You looked up from your desk and noticed that it was only Steve in your office.

"Well, actually I already have plans. But maybe next time," you told him.

"What kind of plans?" he asked you curiously.

"A date."

"A date? With who?"

"With Oscar."

"That officer that's been driving you?"

"Yes, exactly. He's actually really sweet."

"But what happened to you and Javi? I thought you were going to talk to him?" he asked you.

"I know, but I realized that I shouldn't wait around for Javi to maybe like me back. If he did feel the same, he would've told me after I talked to him about the kiss. Now there's somebody who actually likes me, so I thought 'why not go for it?'"

"So, you're over Javi?"

"I'm not. I'm just saying that I got tired of waiting around. So, I'm going on date. That's not forbidden, is it?"

"Of course it isn't. It's just a shame about you and Javi, though. I really thought-"

"Me too, Steve. I did too."

"Alright. Be careful, though,"

"I always am"

"And if you want to come over later after your date, Connie and I would love to spend some time with you,"

"Thanks, Steve. I'll definitely keep that in mind," you told him.

If you were being honest, you were actually really nervous about your date. One reason why is because you hadn't been on one in a few years. What if you made a complete fool out of yourself?

Another reason was because while Oscar was really nice, you weren't sure if that was something you wanted to pursue. You obviously still weren't over Javi and it somehow felt wrong going on a date with Oscar then.

You were glad that you had Steve because you knew that he'd always support you. Even though your relationship hadn't been the best one when you first arrived in Colombia, you and Steve had grown really close over the past few months. Knowing that you could always count on Steve really helped.

Now, you only had to go on that date. Who knows how that's going to turn out.

[warsmith-38]

How I would do RWBY Pt. 0

Disclaimer: It is easier to improve what already exist than it is to create something new. Boy howdy do I know that. That being said, I believe that RWBY has more than its fair share of flaws and this is how I would do it differently if I was behind the reigns. This is just a collection of my opinions and ideas which in the end will probably amount to nothing. I felt the need to do this because my brain just decided ‘nah motherfucker, you ain’t thinking of anything else from now on’ and this is the end result for nothing else would satisfy my rage.

I wouldn’t quite call this a complete re-haul, but more rather a rework with some of my own brand of polish. It’s not a compete rebuild from the ground up in a different world with different concepts and themes, but how I would go about a second go around with the series from the base that is already there. If a detail is missing from my musings then assume it is either unchanged or removed, depending on context.

If some of my complaints were addressed after I stopped watching, I honestly don’t much care. If it takes longer than 4 seasons to fix what I view as fundamental problems, then it’s far too little too late for me. I paid scant attention to the series post my stopping point and liked little to none of what I saw.

Please do not take this as a specific attack on anything other than the writing of the show itself. This is not directed or targeted against anyone, regardless of position or feelings on the topic at hand. If you ignore what I just said and decide to take this as an insult, then I say that you need to be more self-secure in your tastes and interests.

Things I would remove + reason why

Silver eyed warriors as a concept- it’s more or less the same concept as dojutsu from Naruto. It’s the fucking sharingan (rubygan). It’s not quite chosen one level, but crap like this is the blight of good protagonists. It’s fucking eugenics that makes you awesome not your own skills or training but on your bloodline. No need for personal development or life-changing hardship when you have a built in power that can be cultivated like a fucking bumper crop.

Maidens- Wasn’t intended originally and only made the overall story more cluttered with power creep and plot device. It’s a similar problem as above. No need for training or anything if people can just kill the person who has the power currently and take if from them. Which, at that point, why do you want that power if you’re already strong enough to kill and take it from the person who has it to begin with? It’s something someone just shouted out and they rolled with it because it sounded cool in the moment.

The Relics- McGuffin dragonballs that serve as plot device and little else. A story can be told without needing to monotonously race for Excalibur or the holy grail. Considering the Maidens, I doubt that the relics were intended in the first place and as such if you can’t tell a story without throwing something in after a few seasons because you realized that you didn’t have a plot, then you’re not that good at telling stories.

Oscar- The show didn’t need more main protagonists when what was already there wasn’t being given enough characterization to begin with. For that matter-

Quite a few characters- The cast is cluttered and convoluted enough as is with seemingly important characters getting the shaft in favor of yet another new character that would barely do anything. Time and effort seems to be put into one-off schmucks that would be better served making the story not need poochie the dog, let alone several. Character integration is not ‘create a character to do one thing and then pretend they don’t exist’. There’s already plenty of characters than can be used wherever.

The overt shipping bait, especially if it’s just going to be taken up or abandoned on a whim- I don’t mean relationship building, I mean the obvious baiting of a relationship that, in the end, might not even happen. All it does is dumb down characters and character arcs, draw out pointless scenes, and make the fans have conniptions one way or another. People are pissed off whenever things don’t go their way with shipping so the only winning move with these people is not to play their game. Looking at you Klance and Zutara. Either don’t do anything or have a fucking plan and stick to it and not make complete swerves when fans get uppity. If it genuinely matters to you, then pretend whatever ship happens at whatever point, I don’t care.

Changes to the world that I think would go over better-

Everyone has a level of aura with a naturally high level generally meaning that they might be able to unlock a semblance. A semblance is unlocked through some sort of specific event, typically a stressful one IE: Yang and Ruby are caught in the woods by grimm and Yang gets frustrated and scared at not being able to defend her sister before getting angry and her rage mode semblance unlocking. Not everyone who unlocks a semblance goes into combat schools but it is a requirement for acceptance into most of them. Having the potential to unlock a semblance seems entirely random but has a higher chance with genetics.

There are two types of semblances: 1 is hereditary like the Schnee glyphs, changing only slightly, if at all, through the generations. 2 is a random personal power like Yang having her rage mode as compared to Raven’s portals. Whichever you get tends to be random with the occasional exception depending on genetics and the specific semblance.

Every 1 in assumedly 10 people who have semblances have the potential to have two semblances, often times, but not necessarily, being one hereditary and one random. The process of unlocking the second semblance involves immense emotional distress and in some cases might not even happen for the individual who has the potential, period, thus skewing data. This gives an enhanced type power but isn’t protagonist exclusive. It shows a higher than average power capacity, but isn’t a gamebreaker to the same level as a fucking kekkei genkai or getting the powers of a fucking demigod. A good amount of characters would only have one semblance and be considerable badasses despite it and even be able to beat a couple of the few that have two.

Establish Menagerie as the official Fifth Kingdom, the newest of the great kingdoms. Maybe not the singularly strongest or most influential, but make it so Menagerie and its people, the faunus, have a considerable role in the world’s affairs, if even from an isolationist standpoint. Don’t have them as even a semi thriving entity that isn’t a kingdom because that only begs the question as to why the kingdoms are so important to begin with then.

Make the White Fang a faunus supremacist group that has very little support, if any, from the faunus people as a whole. Faunus right issues are history for the vast majority of the world and the White Fang as a whole is only using the problems in Atlas with the SDC as a means of trying to gain power. There are actual faunus rights groups trying to make things better for their race in Atlas and other marginalized areas but the White Fang dislikes them on the grounds that they go against their goal and it makes them look even worse.

Fucking pronounce names correctly, I mean, Christ. Weiss, the word, is pronounced like ‘Vice’. It’s an actual fucking word. It’s the German word for white. It’s like saying tor-till-uh not tor-tee-ah. Blake is Bella-doe-nah not Bella-dawn-uh. Shit like that. No you don’t need to put on a heavy accent to say these words but pronouncing things so inaccurately just makes you look like an ignorant rube (no, that was not a pun). I don’t fucking care what your reasons are. Why use these words in the first place if you’re not even going to try to say them right?

Ozpin is order to Salem’s chaos. Ancient demigods of both archetypes vying for power across the ages and the innocent peoples of the world be damned in the crossfire. Neither are entirely good nor evil but both are not exactly helpful to the free peoples on the world and the continued livelihood thereof. Their progenitor god created them to try and guide humanity in a balanced way. That seemed to work at first, but then failed like a bad marriage and they waged war ever since like a bad divorce. The grimm are a creation of Salem’s to test humanity and make then stronger through conflict. Ozpin ranges from the lawman to the fascist fairly duplicitously. The two can only be permanently killed by each other but neither wants to get too close to the other because of that exact same reason. If killed by other means, they will resurrect after a fashion no worse for wear.

Overt changes to (and complaints about) Ruby Rose- It is a crime that the titular character has so little actual character beyond just being ‘Hyperactive Anime Protagonist #235’. Most of her (few) character traits are tell not show, and of course she’s got the fucking rubygan bloodline ability crap. She has next to nothing that isn’t allotted by default to most anime protags on the grounds of the stereotype. For the main character to have less character than any of the members of the fucking B-team is a travesty.

1. Give her a clear rebellious streak, a distinct problem with authority, and a headstrong attitude. Daddy doesn’t want her to be in danger, so she decides to become a huntress. She’s told to stay put, so she hunts down Roman. She’s told that she needs to stay home and recover, so she sets out on her own not thinking about the exact consequences. Make her the impetus for the team’s involvement with the problems of the world in the early seasons. Make her a driving part of the plot, not just being along for the ride or because someone else said so.

2. Give her blood knight tendencies. Make her VERY willing to get into a fight with the bad guys, not just fights in general, but fights against bad guys. Nothing over the top, but enough that she has a scene or three where she says “Shut up bad guy, skip to the part where we get to kick the crap out of you,” or something of that nature. Hyper combative characters are fun and ethical.

3. Give her more traits as a mechanic and weapon nerd. Include scenes of her fixing everyone’s weapons for fun or being able to analyze an opponent’s fighting style based on the type, design, and/or wear & tear of their weapon, make her a polyglot of weapons that can be at least proficient in using just about any weapon. Come to think of it…

4. Anything that could give her actual character traits. They don’t even have to be all that major traits, just give her enough so that we actually have a character with more definition than printer paper. She’s the main character, the titular character at that. This isn’t a video game with a blank-slate protagonist. If the main character isn’t even really a character, like, at all, then what’s the fucking point?

5. Convert silver eyes power into a second semblance for white fire vision that kills grimm like nothing else. Gotten as a hereditary semblance from Summer. Which is also why Summer was specifically targeted by Salem on the grounds that it makes her just a little too dangerous for her long-term plans. This makes it so she isn’t just the fucking chosen one, but still has a clear definitive reason to be involved against the big bad because, y’know, dead mom. Yes, this kinda goes into the whole ‘bloodline is what determines importance’ thing I wanted to be rid of, but it’s only a chance two generations instead of a massive lineage of nonsense and keeps more of the onus of involvement on Ruby herself.

6. Give her a very clear motivation that’s deeper than surface level. ‘Oh, I want to do the right thing’ is a flimsy as balls motivation especially compared to the rest of her team that has that AND an actual reason for thinking that way. Why does she want to be the good guy? What happened in her life that makes her this motivated to doing the right thing? Yang has her desire to find her mother (which, come to think of it, doesn’t necessitate being a good guy), Blake has wanting to make up for being a terrorist, Weiss has her desire to step out from under the shadow of her family’s reputation, even fucking Jaune, the b-team protagonist, who wants to live up to his family reputation, has a proper motivation to be involved in the story. WHY is Ruby involved beyond ‘I’m the main character’ level reasoning? As much as admitting it makes me wish to commit Sudoku, even SAO has better main character motivations. Good god, I need hooch after typing that.

Overt changes to (and complaints about) Yang Xiao-Long- Her arc was mostly fine, barring some of the pacing. Raven being a maiden undercut the message of ‘screw that deadbeat bitch, go to your real family’ by making her important to the overall world state and confirming a measure of later relevance but that’s more a flaw with Raven than Yang.

1. Keep her motivation about getting strong enough to find her mother but add in the clear desire to kick her ass for leaving her and Tai. Of course it’s more about just getting the answers to her questions, but the ass-kicking should also be a major component.

2. Amp up the rivalry between her and Mercury. Mercury was designed as an opposite to Yang, I mean for fuck’s sake, look at him. Consider their respective backstories too; both raised in a single father home yet one was supported and loved (if a little neglected) while the other was horrifyingly maimed and abused. Punch vs kick. It works.

3. Make her more protective of her little sister, explicitly going along with her personal crusade to keep her safe (safer, rather). If she’s supposed to be the good older sister, maybe just maybe, something more than lip-service to that idea should be done. Hell, maybe she can be overprotective like their father, or even the exact opposite, not really giving a shit and then learning to give one. That might lead to a little tension and growth between the two of them.

4. Make her semblance consistent. Is she supposed to have super saiyan rage mode or is it energy buildup and dispersal? Is it supposed to be both? Just make it rage mode, for the sake of fuck, and don’t flip-flop. Speaking of…

5. Give her anger issues. Flesh out her being the kind of gal that would start a fight in a nightclub when she doesn’t get what she needed with little justification. This would stem from abandonment issues from Raven, Summer (inadvertently), and Tai and her general thrill seeking personality. This could lead to tensions and dramas until she overcomes it and learns to use her aggressive feelings and not let them use her.

Overt changes to (and complaints about) Blake Belladonna- Shitty-kitty is shitty, here’s why.

1. Do something with the hypocrisy of being, more or less, princess of Menagerie, a world power albeit a minor one, and joining a band of terrorists that do more harm than good for the people they claim to represent. It’s like a trust-fund baby joining some charity organization in Africa for a few weeks, doing jack-shit to help, joining some jihadists, and then acting like she’s Mahatma Gandhi.

2. Make her arc less about running away and fighting Adam, more about realizing that running is for assholes and try to find her team to at least apologize for cutting and running like she did. Doing that and stopping Adam are not mutually exclusive. The friend thing should be the priority. As it stands she is almost rewarded for abandoning her team just to focus on her own problems.

3. Make her arc involve going from ‘There’s no such thing as pure evil’ to ‘Okay maybe some people are just too evil to work with’. Some people are too far gone and, despite still having good traits, will only ever continue to do evil things and don’t deserve the benefit of the doubt. Not everyone has some sort of good motive beneath the surface and, even then, does that matter when the only action they do is objectively evil? Still, y’know, save who you can, like Ilia.

4. Have Belladonna not actually be her last name. If she’s the daughter of a the chief of Menagerie, the closest thing the faunus have to a unified racial leader, then how the unholy shit does nobody recognize her name? She is, again, princess of Menagerie, yet nobody recognizes the name in a grander context. Have ‘Belladonna’ be a cover name so she can hide her identity better so that she’s using what should be a very recognizable real name in a tournament that is broadcasted worldwide. Her real family name could be “Nightshade” or some shit like that.

5. If she’s supposed to be ‘The quiet one’ maybe actually have her be quiet and not make big speeches every season or have loud arguments with her team. Just a fucking thought. If she’s still supposed to do that, then make her ‘the opinionated one’ or ‘the kind of mean one’ or even ‘the one who doesn’t shut up’. Blake, as seen, or rather heard, is not the quiet one.

6. Have her actually fucking interact with Ruby. Maybe they have a two-person book club. Maybe Blake teaches Ruby to meditate or something. Anything, anything at all would be fine, anything more than nothing at all. Blake’s whole interaction with the team shouldn’t just be through Yang and cursory scenes with Weiss.

Overt changes to (and complaints about) Weiss Schnee- You can’t solve racism with like two scenes.

1. Make the racism thing a much more gradual decay rather than more or less disappearing after a single conversation. Hell, make jokes about it, ‘oh, no, one of my best friends is a faunus,’ stuff. It’s hard to unlearn an upbringing of hate, but she’s trying type stuff.

2. Involve her at least a little with the White Fang plot. It only makes sense that the heiress of the company that still more or less has slave labor is at least semi-involved with the plotline involving terrorists that want that company destroyed. Make her subject to assassination attempts at a young age, or even have her been kidnaped at a young age and held hostage, getting her scar in the process.

3. As evident by some of the intros, her rival was supposed to be Emerald. This could be serviceable, at the very least. The street rat pickpocket that had to learn life lessons the hard way and was taken in by the baddies VS. the rich heiress born with a silver spoon but raised by a dickhead. There’s potential there and it is a crime that it is not explored in the slightest. Even Yang and Mercury had a minor fight.

4. Like Yang, make her semblance consistent. Is it supposed to be summoning or physics altering magic symbols? These are two completely different powers, it’s not like super speed also giving super reflexes or whatever. Just make it one or the other, don’t bullshit us on these things. Or, hell, make it a second semblance she gets during the course of story.

5. Emphasize her loneliness. Make the main onus of her personal arc be about how she goes from this prickly, spoiled, opinionated, brat to a warm and caring friend who only wants the best for everyone. Yes, this might be the main intention in canon, but I feel it could have used a little more refining.

Overt changes to (and complaints about) Cinder Fall- If she’s supposed to be Ruby’s chief rival and foil then she needs a lot of work to even be close. She shouldn’t be nothing but the rival, but at that same time she should have that be a considerable part of her characterization and role in the series. I feel the best way to do it is to have their similarities highlight their differences in both character and design. Basically, make her the Vergil to Ruby’s Dante.

1. Make her Ruby’s age. Being the same age as Ruby while initially outclassing her, and even veteran hunters, provides risk and contrast between the two. Throw in an evil sadistic streak compared to Ruby’s happy-go-lucky personality to further the contrast and you’ve got a good little yin-yang thing for them. It also shows just how bad someone can turn out if raised to be a killing machine.

2. Keep her using the bow/twin swords as a comparably simple weapon in contrast to Ruby’s, even in universe, overcomplicated Scythe/Sniper rifle. Both weapons are long range marksmen’s weapons as well as vicious close combat weapons but are still very different in essence. Also make sure she keeps the red with black and gold color scheme is contrast with Ruby’s Black with red and silver. Even minor visual cues can work to the rival schema.

3. Make her one of the people who have two semblances. Pyromancy (pyrokinesis? Fire bending, she has fire bending) and dilated perception (bullet time) so that Ruby’s super speed and the dilated perception cancel each other out, adding a little extra tension to the fights now that both parties’ signature abilities are moot points against each other.

4. Make her competent. She kills Ozpin and Pyrrha and then she either fails or draws every fucking fight she has afterwards baring nameless jobbers here and there. Even before that, she needed help to take down Amber and even manages to fuck that up. The more failures she has and the less intimidating she is. Too much of that and she’s just a jobber that makes you wonder why she was ever seen as intimidating in the first place. When that happens then Ruby beating her is just the status quo and not a triumph of any sort.

5. Make her Ruby’s long lost fraternal twin sister. Incredibly cliché, I admit, but siblings make the best rivals, especially twins. Once again, it’s all about adding the similarities and the contrasts. In this case it creates the ‘there but for the grace of god go I’ idea with the two of them. Ruby seeing it as how evil she could have turned out and Cinder seeing it as how weak she could have been (Eventually becoming how good she could have had it because I’m a sucker for redemption arcs) Who said that?

Overt changes to (and complaints about) Team JNPR- JNPR was fine-ish but the over focus on Jaune and the underutilization of Ren + Nora early on are both issues. B-team should not get jack shit before the A-team gets the lions share.

1. Downplay Jaune’s screen time. I doubt this is a particularly controversial statement. Jaune is not the titular character. This is (technically) a shoujo not a shounen. It’s supposed to be about the girls more than the guys. It kind of undercuts that idea when the guy (the side guy at that) gets the lion’s share of characterization, attention, and growth before the girl (the main girl) does.

2. Make Ren and Nora actual characters earlier on. Comic relief is all well and good, but either extend that to the whole team or make these two characters more than just comic relief in the early parts of the story. Make them, y’know, actual characters. They ain’t gotta be all that important, but they do have to be actual characters.

3. Make Pyrrha’s deathflags less blindingly obvious. We all knew Pyrrha was going to get clipped. The self-sacrificing type, all the musical and visual cues throughout, being based on Achilles, and ‘oh she just confessed to the boy she likes’. Homegirl was waving deathflags like an insecure redneck with the confederate flag. When you foreshadow obvious things that much it’s not a surprise to the audience when it happens and the reaction of the in universe characters seems overdone. If it’s not supposed to be a surprise then, whatever, but that’s clearly not the case if you’re going for just shock value. It’s fine for a character to die, but for the love of Jaysus you got to do something with it more than ‘this character’s sole purpose is to die for the angst and to up the stakes’. Pyrrha was just a plot jobber.

4. Make them a little more independent in the overall plot. Give them their own full sub-plots, have them go on their own little adventures, have them do things completely separate from RWBY that has plot relevance but not overtaking the main story in grandeur or importance. B-team gets B-plots and are cool in it of themselves.

Overt changes to (and complaints about) Qrow Branwen- Take or leave this, I just felt the need to include this because reasons.

1. Just make him Dante from Devil May Cry. Just make his personality the same as Dante from Devil May Cry. Make him stylish and cool but low-key a massive dork. He’s too cool to drink or smoke or anything harsher than PG-13. This series could use a guy like that, says I.

2. Make his semblance something that makes sense and isn’t just an angst generator. How do you even quantify ‘bad luck aura’ as a power? Make it short range teleportation as a connection to Raven’s portals. Make it so that he can direct the bad luck at will. Do SOMETHING with it that isn’t just an excuse for mostly pointless character angst.

3. This technically also counts as a Raven change but whatever. Make the Branwen family old nobility and not a loser bandit tribe from nowhere. Or at least make it so they used to rich or something. They come from a family that had a good amount of cash and even a chateau in Mistral. After the money dried up and the chateau ransacked by grimm, the Branwen twins had differing opinions on how to proceed. Qrow fully integrated into the hunter thing while Raven ran away and became a bandit, using it as further excuse to skedaddle on Tai and a recently born Yang.

[charmspoint]

What do you think about the rest of the second year students?

If I tell you my fav jjk characters in no particular order are nobara maki inumaki yuuta gojo geto and choso and that i love them all so much that they are constantly shifting places in that line up to the point where im hardly ever able to tell who i love the most would that answer your question?

I love first years but second years are my fav squad by far i wish we got more of them and im looking forward to the movie so! much! More under cut cuz this bitch got stupid long

I love Maki so much, it’s actually her story line with Mai that got me actually invested into jjk. Like before that i was liking it but when i read that i was like OWO I NEED MORE NOW. I just love like....normal siblings storylines, like legit ask me about Choso i love Choso so much for this exact reason but we are talking about Maki now. I love how her background with Mai is very complicated and you can’t really call one or the other right. Like of course Maki has every right to leave an abusive household on her own terms and Mai has no excuses in wanting her to stay in said abusive household just so they can be together but you can also understand how abandoned and thrown away Mai would have felt at that moment. Like sure theyd probs treat her a little better then Maki because she can actually see curses but they also still clearly treated her badly and as a servant because her technique is weak. You can understand how she would have felt betrayed by being left behind by the only person who should have been on her side in this horrible situation. I just really love Maki and Mai and by god i hope they get to met again and talk and work together MAKI AND MAI TEAM UP PLEASE. I’m not sure can their relationship ever be really good i feel like there's a lot there to work through but i also really want them to start working through it. Aside from that I just love her cuz shes Maki and she’s a badass. I love women who are so fucking driven and ready to fight their way to the top when the world has given them crappy cards. She’s a fighter and she’s a survivor. She’s made from tough stuff, she has survived being fuckin set on fire. I LOVE her redesign its so fuckin good like holy shit i already thought she was cool but now she looks like 10 times cooler the cape the fuckin cape. Anyway i like her a whole bunch i hope her and megumi work something out about the zenin clan and id also like to see more of her thoughts from her about that whole situation. Because she’s not able to prove herself and win over the clan like she wanted to :(. But i guess that doesnt really matter anymore with the whole situation going on. She has already proven herself to be tougher then Naobito and by god i hope she puts Naoya into the ground, actually i hope this is where her and Mai will team up and put him into the ground together.

I also really love Yuuta, like he has the same soft boy protag vibes as Yuji but he also looks fucking depressed and anxious 90% of the time which just makes it all the better??? Like i love Yuji, but Yuuta has been through so much shit, he’s been terrorized by a curse of his own making for years, Rika had probably hurt a bunch of people because of him and like you can see it in his face, that dudes a wreck, have you see his fucking eyebags he hasnt slept in 25927 years and i love him so much. He’s so kind and caring and god if i dont love characters who go absolutely stupid feral for their friends. When the fanbook came out and it was like his biggest stress atm is not being with his friends i was like ;-;. I’m just a sap, I love him, I love how much he has progressed from this anxious stressed out kid to someone who can act calmly and tactically and even offer valuable advice to his underclassmen, he has grown so much! It’s just nice to see him coming into his own and becoming more confident into himself and his power. I’m really fucking sad hes gonna be separated from the squad again after JUST saying he doesnt want to be away from everyone again. Anyway his oscar worthy performance in Shibuya really fuckin got me like, the whole time i was thinking ‘noooo Yuuta wouldnt do this nooo its gojos student they are basically step brothers by teacher he wouldnt do this’ BUT i wasnt sure! I still felt like him becoming all fuckin feral for his friend was perfectly in character and also like really thematically interesting from the stand point of two protagonists clashing together. But honestly im glad he was just putting on an act, idk would my heart be able to handle villain Yuuta for long ;-; Another thing I like about Yuuta is Rika, like man I LOVE Rika, half of my upcoming curse!Gojo au is based on what Yuuta and Rika are. I was SO fuckin hyped to see her return like I was as hyped for Rika’s return as I was for Yuutas. Sure we don’t know if that’s ACTUALLY Rika or something else but god I hope we find out soon. Anyway I absolutely LOVE Yuuta’s n Rika’s dynamic like im feral for this shit. 1. Big monster girlfriend and smol human boyfriend 2. Master and servant allusions 3. THEY ARE AN ACTUAL PARTNERSHIP. Like sure Yuuta is in control but Rika is the one lending him her power and basically agreeing to play along, he needs to earn the strength to wield her. Like they aren’t on completely equal terms and boy would I love if they were cuz completely equal curse sorcerer partnership would be so! Cool! But they are the closest thing to that. Like she isn’t a shikigami like Megumi has or anything like that, her and Yuuta feel like actual partners who depend on each other’s strengths and cover each other’s weaknesses and I DIG THAT SHIT SO MUCH. Would I have loved if they developed a truly equal partnership and that Rika didn’t have to go? Yes. Am I happy with what I got? Also yes. Yuuta monsterfucker king. That whole ‘This is true love’ bit, amazing I love him.

 Panda is the only second year I don’t passionately love ajkkjbj sorry Panda but you’re just Panda. Like I like him, I like the concept of him, I like how he obviously sees himself as not the same as the humans and doesn’t really understand them and I would love to see him explored more, his third core, his relationship with Yaga who’s basically his dad, his relationship with other sorcerers, but I’m not feral about him like I’m about Maki and Yuuta. I think he’s a neat character and a funny joke and I love when he and Toge interact they are prank bros its cute. But that’s p much all I feel about him hjvbjhbj sorry Panda

[hopes4gf]

Thievery and Mischief- (a descendants/marvel crossover)

After the tour, I decide to pay a little visit to my friends at Auradon Prep, Tia and Tavian, my favorite twins from Louisiana and drama club captains.

”Yo, Adri! What’s up?” Tavian says.

”Long time no see, how y’all doing?” I ask.

”Good now that there’s some peace and quiet,” Tia says, looking up towards the top of the stage.

”Not my fault you guys are so boring,” A voice says from the rafters.

I look up and see a guy with large wings, almost like a bird’s.

He stares at me, his eyes widening and suddenly he swoops down. 

“Holy crap, you’re Adri Ababwa. I’m a big fan,” The guy says now standing in front of me.

”Nice wings man,” I say.

”Thanks, I grew them myself. Mutant powers y’know?” Angel says.

”Mutants?” I ask.

”My dad is a fairy, my mom is a sorceress. I’m Angel, by the way,” He says.

”Angel...by any chance are you the Bell twins’ cousin?” I ask.

He nods.

”They talk about you all the time, I see why now,” I say.

”It’s rare to see mutants in families. Some have wings, have claws in their hands, can shapeshift, that’s probably why I look up to you,” Angel says.

”Cause I can shapeshift into a tiger?” I ask.

”Exactly,” Angel says.

Tia and Tavian stare at us confusedly.

”Power talk,” I say.

The bell rings and the twins collect their things.

”Ooh, Tia! When’s the next time your mom can make me some of her famous gumbo?” I ask.

”If you come with me now, we can stop by her restaurant,” Tia says.

I turn to Angel.

”Wanna come?” I ask.

”Sure,” Angel says.

————

After meeting Angel, I learned some things about mutants and their abilities. This lesson was pretty enlightening and made me feel like I wasn't alone with my curse.

Later, I get a call from a number I don't recognize while walking through the gardens. I pick up the phone.

"Hello?" I say through the phone.

"Hey, Adri. It's been a while," A familiar voice says through the phone.

I recognize the voice to be Stefani, or Lady Gaga through the phone.

"Oh my gosh, Stefani! It's such an honor to talk to you again," I say happily. 

I sit under the usual gossip tree to take the call.

"I know. Anyways, darling, I have a little project for you. You're someone who I love and hold dear as an artist, so I want to collaborate with you on a couple of songs for a movie I'm producing a soundtrack for," Stefani says.

"You want to collaborate with me for a motion picture soundtrack?" I ask.

"Mark Ronson is also gonna help and a couple of people from my team too. I was also looking in the credits for your album and I saw your boyfriend did the mixing for a couple of songs. I was hoping you and him might want to tag along on this," Stefani adds.

"I'm sure he would e happy to, but for now all I can say is yes to you on my own behalf. I would absolutely love to," I say with a smile.

"Great! I'll text you meeting details on Friday," Stefani says.

"Great!" I say.

I hang up the phone and giggle. I feel like screaming for joy. So many great things are happening! I guess that's what happens when you hit rock-bottom, you only go up from there. And now, everything is looking up.

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

I walk to the gym where I find Jay with Lonnie and the rest of the fencing team.

”Take a break, boys!” Lonnie says, blowing her new captain’s whistle.

Jay spots me by the doors and walks over with a smile on his face.

”Hey, babe,” He greets.

Before he can kiss me, I put my finger over his lips.

”We have songs to write for Gaga,” I say with a smile.

Jay’s smile drops.

”Gaga? As in, Lady Gaga? Grammy award winner, Gaga?” Jay asks.

”She just called me and she wants us to write her songs for a movie,” I say.

Jay smiles widely and lifts me of the ground, hugging me tightly. 

“Jesus, why didn’t you tell me sooner? That’s great! What if we win as Oscar or a Grammy or even a Teen choice award? I’m so proud of you,” Jay rants.

I laugh at his reaction to the news.

”Why is Jay smiling like that?” Lonnie asks, coming up to us.

”We get to write music for Lady Gaga,” Jay says proudly.

Lonnie’s jaw drops.

”Congratulations! You deserve it for making such good songs for her album,” Lonnie says, patting Jay’s shoulder.

”Nah, the real mastermind is Adri. Her lyrics and her voice made the songs much more beautiful,” Jay says.

I blush softly and punch his arm shyly.

”Shut up,” I mutter.

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

After Jay’s practice, we follow Lonnie to Coach Jenkin’s office.

”There's my favorite captains!” Coach says.

“Oh shush, we know we’re good,” I say with a smirk.

I first bump Lonnie.

”Speaking of Captains, I got word of your schedule changes,” He says, pointing to me and Jay.

”Even though these changes have been made, I still think you’d be able to advise your teams. Especially you, Jay, since Ben is out of action,” Coach explains.

”Are you promoting me?” Jay asks.

”I’m making you Captain of the Tourney team, Jay,” Coach says.

Jay’s jaw drops.

”No way,” Jay says in shock.

“Looks like things are looking up, JJ,” I say with a smile.

Jay’s mouth morphs into a smirk.

”Damn right,” He says.

Coach gives us a soft smile.

”You guys can celebrate or something, but on Monday, I expect you all to adjust,” Coach says.

”Yeah,” We all agree.

Suddenly, the announcements go off.

”Adri Ababwa, please report to Fairy Godmother’s office,” The announcement says.

”Did you get your skateboard taken again?” Jay asks.

”How many times are you gonna get that thing confiscated?” Lonnie asks, rolling her eyes.

”It’s in my locker, chill. I have no idea,” I say, getting up from my seat.

I walk through the door and walk to the office.

I walk into the headmistress’s office and I see Mal and Ben with Fairy Godmother.

”Long time no see,” I say to Ben and Mal.

”Glad you’re here,” Ben says, hugging me.

”We called you here because Mal has a proposal for you,” Fairy Godmother explains.

“Rogers stepped down from his position,” Mal says.

My smile fades. Steve Rogers? Family friend, Avengers, Steve?

”Steve stepped down from Captain? Why?” I ask.

“He and Tony had a dispute after Voltron in Germany. I’ve tried to keep a temporary position since Uma came into the Isle, but we need more troops. I think you’d be the best for it because of your powers and experience. And plus, you're already trusted on the court,” Mal explains.

”Mal, I’d be honored to. But I have to find a way to fit it into my schedule. The only free time I have is around now,” I say.

”So, then you can clock in at 5 and finish at 8,” Ben says.

”It's an intensive training role. You’d pick up recruits, train them, and go to the dungeons,” Ben says.

”Not bad,” I think.

”Fine, I’ll do it,” I say.

”Thank you so much,” Mal says with a smile.

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

I walk into the base of operations and spot a familiar face. Bucky Barnes, Steve’s best friend, and newest Avenger.

”Hey, metal arm,” I joke.

”Thank god you’re here,” Bucky says, spotting me.

He gives me a side hug.

”What the hell is wrong with Steve?” I ask him.

”Steve doesn’t agree with the new laws set by Rhodes and the Marshall. Since Sokovia, they wanna add restrictions on our powers because of the explosion and because of that telekinesis girl,” Bucky says.

”I mean they did destroy the city too,” I mention.

”The reason for Tony’s nightmares,” Bucky recalls.

”He has nightmares?” I ask.

”Yeah, if Loki ever comes back, he’ll have a malfunction,” Bucky says.

”Let’s hope that his arc reactor surgery saves him,” I say.

Bucky laughs, remembering he doesn’t have a heart.

”Anyways, let me show you around. So, this is the center of the base, here we have our tanks, our fake grenades, our armory, and training center,” Bucky explains.

”And the troops?” I ask.

”I think that’s your job to cause the first commotion,” Bucky says, handing me a grenade.

”Watch this, grandpa,” I say, taking the grenade from his hands. 

I toss the grenade into a group of guys.

They all huddle near the grenade trying to cover it and push each other away.

”Hey! What the hell are you sons if bitches doing? If you see an enemy grenade, you take cover!” I yell.

”The hell is this bitch?” One of the guys asks.

”Bitch? I’m not anyone’s bitch, and for the record, I’m your new Captain,” I say.

The troops all mutter and scoff at each other.

”Go home, kid! You’re kidding yourself if you think you’re gonna train us,” Another guy says.

”What’re your names?” I ask the guys.

They both look at me like I’m dumb.

”I’m Jack. This is Lio,” Jack says.

”I’m promoting you,” I say.

They both look at each other in shock.

”Both of you are now my Lieutenants. You’re gonna spend the majority of training by my side. Whoever are Lieutenants, you’re demoted. If there’s anything I know about being a soldier, you’d fight any fight or anyone to make it to the top. As I train each of you, you must be following my direct orders only. I will watch you all carefully and see if any of you demonstrate proper soldiers' skills. That will determine if you are my second in command. New recruits will all be promoted in place of older ones. As long as you keep up with your task, you’re safe. Any bullshit, you’re out, understand?” I say.

”Yes ma’am,” The Troops say.

I grab a sword from a barrel and I throw it at Lio.

”Get to work,” I order.

The troops go to their assigned positions and Lio and Jack come towards me.

”Who the hell are y-“ Lío starts.

”Bro, that's Adri Ababwa,” Jack explains.

”The artist?” Lio asks.

“Yeah, I’m a huge fan and I’m so fucking sorry about the way I acted earlier,” Jack apologizes.

”It’s fine, I don’t take shit personally. At least anymore,” I say.

”Bruh, you called her a bitch,” Lio comments.

”Shut up,” Jack mutters.

”Listen, I can already tell you two are friends. So please make this easy for me and shut the fuck up and listen,” I say honestly.

”You know you remind me a lot of Rogers,” Jack says.

”We’re friends,” I say.

”You’re friends with Steve Rogers?” Lio asks.

”Yes, now listen up. We’re gonna do some tactical work. You’re gonna go through the grass here with your rifles, your gonna shoot three birds and bring them to me. Got it?” I order.

”Yes ma’am,” They say.

They then pick up their rifles and crouch through the grass.

They miss every shot when birds pass by. One of them lands on Lio’s head and he coos the bird. I roll my eyes at his action. Then, Jack shoots two birds at once. My eyes widen at his shot. They fall into the grass and he picks them up. Lio shoots a bird and it falls slowly.

”That's one big bird,” Lio comments. 

As it falls to the ground I notice it’s not a bird. 

“Are fucking stupid? That’s a human, not a bird!” Jack shouts. 

I run quickly under the person and they fall in my arms.

”Angel? Jesus, are you okay?” I realize.

The metal winged man winces in pain. I realize his hip is bleeding.

”Lio, what the hell is wrong with you? You shot him in the ribs,” I say.

I place him in the grass and reach for Jack’s medkit. He hands it to me and I open it up. I take a pair of tweezers and some alcohol.

”Sit still,” I advise.

I pry the bullet from his hip slowly and Angel grits his teeth from the pain. The bullet comes out cleanly and I put alcohol on the wound and wrap it up.

”Can you fly?” I ask him.

”Sure,” Angel says.

He uses his wings to fly up straight.

”Now who the fuck mistook me for a hunting duck?” Angel asks.

Jack points to Lio.

”Come on, man,” Lío says exasperatedly to Jack.

”Terrible shot,” Angel comments.

Then he takes the gun from Lio’s hand and shoots a bird. The shot is clean and the bird falls quickly to the grass.

”That's how you shoot,” Angel says, picking up the bird from the grass.

He’s good. And he’s got those wings too. 

“Hey, Angel? You got anything to do after school?” I ask him.

”No,” He scoffs.

”Would you be interested in being a troop?” I ask him.

”What?” Lio and Jack ask.

”Well, I’ve got nothing else to do,” Angel says.

I smirk and pat his shoulder.

Later, I give Angel his new uniform and make him another Lieutenant. We continue tactical shooting until sunset.

I then search the premises of the base and look at the other troops. They whisper and smirk as I pass by. Some troops, practice grenade launching, shooting positions, fencing. I think to myself:

”Maybe this is something Jay would be interested in hearing.”

I smirk to myself as I think about how successful Jay has been so far in his time in Auradon. I walk into the training center and spot Bucky talking to a troop.

”Hey, how was your first day?” Bucky asks.

”Could’ve been better, but it means progress,” I say with a soft smile.

”Good to know you’re a hard hitter instead of a soft princess. Kind of like your mom,” Bucky says.

”Don’t mention me and my mom in the same sentence, you 100-year-old soldier. That’s like putting you and Steve in the same sentence about ice,” I say, rolling my eyes.

”Shut the hell up,” Bucky says punching my arm with his regular fist.

”You ever punch me with your vibranium arm, I will kill you,” I warn.

Bucky laughs and leaves me alone.

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

One day at school, Angel and I decided to sit together at lunch. We talk about training and new things I could teach the troops. As we talk about ammunition I spot Jay talking to Ruby Fitzherberg, Rapunzel’s daughter. I see her pressing upon him and twirling her blonde hair. Jay uncomfortably tries to walk away.

”Oh god,” I say, rolling my eyes.

”God what?” Angel asks me.

”Jay is with Ruby,” I say.

”Ruby? The girl who slept with five guys at once? You better scoop your man before she gets him,” Angel advises.

”How do you know that?” I ask.

”What? I’m gay. Of course, I know,” Angel explains.

My eyes widen at his words.

”Huh?” I ask dumbfoundedly.

”I said what I said, I’m gay,” Angel says.

I blink in confusion and stand up from the bench. 

I walk over to Jay and Ruby and sling my arm around his shoulder. 

“Hey guys,” I say.

”Adri! Nice to see you after you dealt with Angel in the theatre,” Ruby says.

”You were there? I didn’t see you or hear your annoying voice,” I say with a smirk.

”I was just asking Jay whether or not he likes my new hair,” Ruby says flirtatiously towards Jay, ignoring my words.

”Um, it looks the same,” I say.

”That’s what I said,” Jay agrees.

”Come on, I cut it 4 inches!” Ruby says playfully hitting Jay’s arm.

”Excuse me, can you not put your hands on him?” I ask her.

”Why not?” Ruby asks.

”It’s super clear that he’s uncomfortable,” I say.

”No he’s not,” Ruby replies bitterly.

Ruby turns to Jay.

”Adri, can we go?” Jay asks.

”Gladly,” I say through gritted teeth.

I grab Jay’s arm and we walk back to my table.

”Who’s this?” Jay asks, seeing Angel.

”This is Lieutenant Angel, the guy Ruby was talking about,” I say.

”Jay. Jay Farr, I’ve heard quite a bit about you from Adri,” Jay says.

”I’ve heard a lot about you too,” Angel says.

”Anyways, you saw what I saw right?” I ask Angel.

”Um, obviously. Ruby has absolutely no self-control. Hey, I’m gay by the way and if you ever and I mean EVER dump her, you’re either getting a Louboutin heel to the face or a date with me,” Angel says.

I scoff at his remarks.

”What? He’s hot,” Angel compliments.

”Thanks, man but I have plans with this girl so...no thanks,” Jay says, wrapping an arm around my shoulder.

”Like I was saying, Ruby thinks she is all preppy and cool when she’s totally out of line for that shit,” I say to Angel.

”What did she do exactly?” Jay asks, peeking in the conversation.

”She was flirting with you- anyways I try to be sane one...”

”And you’re complaining why?” Jay asks in between my words.

Angel snickers to himself. I glare at Jay.

”You. Are. Mine. End of story,” I say through gritted teeth.

Jay laughs to himself after I speak. 

“Jeez, you’re jealous! I didn’t actually think you’d slide into the conversation because of that,” Jay laughs.

”With your tendencies, it was so obvious that you were uncomfortable but when I walked over you played into it! It was so clear,” I say frustratedly.

Jay continues to laugh at my responses. I look over at Angel and rolls his eyes.

”She feels like your toying with her and she doesn’t like it,” Angel blurts out.

Jay stops laughing and his smile drops. He turns to see me.

I play with the underside of my nail, trying not to look at Jay.

”Is that true?” Jay asks.

”I don’t know. Maybe I just feel like at any moment you could be suddenly interested in some other girl who’s better than I am,” I mutter.

Jay puts a hand on my thigh and I turn to face him.

”Baby, why would I make plans with you if I didn’t love you or care about you enough to stay with you?” Jay asks.

I blush lightly and shrug.

”It’s because I think your worth every minute of my life,” Jay says sincerely.

I smile softly and I kiss his cheek.

”That's cute,” Angel says.

”Shut up,” I giggle.

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

A month later,

”Tell me something, boy. Aren’t you tired try to- Fuck what rhymes with that?” I sing, stopping mid-way to think.

”Void?” Stefani suggests.

”Damn it, why is it so hard to write a love song without having the word love in it?” I ask exasperatedly.

”Cause it’s impossible?” Jay suggests.

”It is possible. We’ve just got two weeks to figure it out,” Stefani says, sitting back down in her chair.

Jay puts out his hand for me to pass him the guitar.

”How about we just repeat a couple of lines?” Jay says, receiving the guitar.

“Tell me something, boy, aren’t you tired of trying to fill that void?

or do you need more?” He starts.

”Aint it hard keeping it so hardcore?”  Stefani finishes.

”Yes! That’s it,” I say, writing it down.

We’re about to finish the last song of the motion picture and we’re almost done. But the lyrics keep falling apart.

”Maybe Bradley should just come in here and help us,” I suggest.

We call in Stefani’s co-star, Bradley and he sits.

”What’s the dilemma?” He asks.

”We need more ears. So, how about it?” Jay asks.

Jay hands Bradley the guitar.

”Shit, I’ve only been in classes for a month,” Bradley hesitates.

”You can do it,” Stefani says confidently.

youtu.be/MUX4ZWkDS-s

Bradley starts to strum the chords of the song. I hand Stefani our brainstorm journal and they both look at our lyrics.

They sing the parts of the song effortlessly. At one part, Stefani improvises and nails the part.

They finish and Jay and I clap.

”That was movie magic at its finest! Now, let’s record it, mix it, and then off we go,” I say.

We all get up from our seats to start working on our parts.

Jay and I lay down the mixing and Bradley and Stefani record. And just for fun, Stefani plays a piano version and we end up recording that too.

Later that night, we come home absolutely exhausted.

I plop onto my dorm room bed and sigh. I look up at my ceiling and see the moonlight peeking through my curtain. The bed sinks and I turn to see Jay lying there next to me, looking at the curtains.

”Long days at work, huh?” Jay asks me.

”I took off training to do that, so, yes,” I say.

We both paused in silence for a minute.

”Hey,” Jay speaks up.

”Yeah?”

”Do you think we’ll get nominated for anything?” Jay asks.

”Probably,” I say, thinking out loud.

”You know. I’m glad you asked me to start making music with you. It’s like something I can remember about you...like our own special thing, you know?” Jay says.

”Yeah. By the way, Stefani was the one who asked for you. Not me,” I say.

”Really? I didn’t think that would ever happen,” Jay says in surprise.

I chuckle at his reaction. I turn to my side and wrap my arm around his body. He does the same, pulling me closer to his chest by gripping my waist.

”Baby, where do you see us in the next year?” Jay asks.

I furrow my brows in confusion.

”I mean. Do you think we’ll be together after senior year next year?” Jay asks.

”I mean, we’ve had no problems with our career schedules so far. Sure we had the situation with Lonnie but luckily I’m that wasn’t real,” I say.

Jay laughs at my recollection.

”I’m sorry for that,” Jay chuckles.

”I know. Anyways, I actually believe we could be traveling, making songs, doing couples interviews and photoshoots, and maybe I can have you come to Agrabah and convince my parents to help us get married?” I suggest.

”Married? You wanna marry me?” Jay asks.

”I mean, we need a new heir in the bloodline. And I don’t think Aziz wants to settle down or rule the kingdom yet,” I say.

Jay chuckles to himself for a minute. He scoops down and places a kiss on my forehead.

”Why can’t we do that now then?” Jay asks.

My eyes widen at his words. I blink twice adjusting to his reaction.

”You wanna do all that now?” I ask him.

”Why not? If that means I get to spend the rest of my life with your crazy ass? Definitely,” Jay agrees.

A smile morphs on my face and I jump up to get my phone.

I dial my mom’s number.

”Ma, it’s Adri. We’ve gotta make some plans...”

3,858 words

[revisionaryhistory]

Three Days ~ 65

~*~Sebastian~*~

I turned back toward the others. Sam was looking at me, "You're hopeless."

I looked around, hoping she was looking at someone else, "What? Why?"

"Three weeks ago with the good luck kisses and Reese Cups you were ridiculous. This week... hopeless. You're a big soft squishy marshmallow of a boyfriend. I expected more."

I went for a confused look, "Do we know each other well enough for you to ride my ass like this?"

She smiled, "Apparently."

I held up a finger in Scott's direction before he could say anything. Everyone laughed.

We talked, laughed, and drank until the ref blew the whistle. Like earlier I was between Sam and Mallory. Sam leaned closer, "Too far?"

I knew she was referring to her teasing after Emma left. "Oh hell no, perfect." I sat back enough to include Mallory. "Thank you. I'm much more comfortable in front of five hundred people than in a small group. Expectations are different. You fucking with me lets new people know I’m just a guy here to watch his girlfriend play volleyball."

Sam looked at Mallory, "See, hopeless."

Mallory smiled, "Yeah, but cute as hell."

“Am I imagining the southern accent? It comes and goes.” I looked between the two of them and they indicated I wasn’t imagining. “Southern accents are trouble.” I shook my head, took a drink of my beer, and watched them win the first set.

Emma ran over, "Hungry. Would you order me something, please?"

I gave her a thumbs up and I had plates of appetizers ready when they got to the table. After losing. I slid off the stool, giving it to Emma, standing behind and to the side. I reached around her to eat while my other hand kept in contact with her. Touching her back. A slide across her shoulders. Anything for the contact. When Emma was finished eating, she leaned back, using me as a backrest. I leaned in and kissed her temple, my hidden hand on her hip.

I can't explain my want for contact. Before we met, before I saw her, before I heard her voice, I knew the feel of her touch. Her hand on my arm. Since that first touch, I've always wanted it. Maybe it's because touch was the first thing I knew. Like if the first thing you're attracted to is someone's smile you always remember the first one and want to see it again. I've never been touch hungry like this. I don't mind, kind of like it actually, and I'm not all in trying to overthink the why. It's just different. Hopefully, the relationship outcome will be different too.

Mallory's voice saying, "Barbie Bitches at ten o'clock," drew me out of my thoughts.

Emma said, "They're really not that bad."

Mallory snorted, "Yes, yes, they are."

There was a group of five heading our way. Three women and two men. I'm going to go ahead and guess the bleached blondes are the Barbie Bitches. There is a natural blonde in the group, so I could be wrong. The men were lagging a little behind. The one with short black hair had a full beard and the other had shoulder-length brown hair with a couple of days growth of beard. I don't feel jealous or insecure, but I am aware these are men she knows. Possessive. Protective. Proud. Definitely wanting to mark my territory, I guess her using me as a pillow does that. If she sits up I may have to kiss her. Tragic.

One of the guys recognized me first. He elbowed the other and nodded. I went on talking with Nick about the best flavors for chicken wings. I’m partial to teriyaki. Hot sauces aren't for me. I like flavor over burning the shit out of my mouth.

The five reached the table, hugs and handshakes for those nearby. Emma leaned forward and the hand I had on her hip magically moved to her shoulder when other eyes locked on me. Beside me, I heard Sam mumble, "Hopeless."

I looked at Sam and laughed, giving her a silent thank you. I realize someone in my line of work not liking to be the center of attention seems strange. Work and personal are different. Meeting her friends is personal, but the first minutes when they're recognizing work me is uncomfortable. I wish it wasn't. I don't like it.

Emma did the introductions, "This is my boyfriend Sebastian." I do like how she gives me a title. It feels like a diversion, setting an expectation. There's no question who I am. I'm not Sebastian with a dangling "the actor."  I’m Sebastian "the boyfriend." That makes me uncomfortable too but in a much more fun way. She pointed as she gave names. "Justin, Caleb, Rose, Tammy, and Toni."

There was no way in hell Toni and Tammy weren't the Barbie Bitches. I was right about the hair too. I waved, "Hi, nice to meet you. Everybody work with Emma? Teachers?"

They told me what they taught. Toni and Tammy are English, Rose is Physics, Caleb is History, and Justin teaches programming and robotics. I looked at Rose, "I got a zero on my physics final." They laughed and I shrugged. "In my defense, of the eight seniors, the highest grade was a fifteen."

"You had a shitty teacher."

I widened my eyes and nodded in agreement, “Yeah, he gave us shit about the scores. I told him they said more about him than us. Finals were over, I didn't care."

Everyone started sharing stories from being a student or things students had done. Turned into a competition between the high school and elementary teachers for the most inappropriate comments and behaviors. High school was funny because they knew what they were doing, elementary because they didn't. I felt embarrassed for the mom who got the call her vibrator had made it to show and tell.

The game going on behind us was in the last set. Emma took off for the bathroom. When she came back, she went to the middle of the high school teachers, thanking them for coming. She was a good hostess.

Toni glanced at me before turning to Emma, "Are we really supposed to pretend he's not Sebastian Stan?"

Several things happened all at once. On one side of me, Samantha said, "Yes." On the other side, Mallory groaned. In front of me to the right, Tammy nodded her agreement with Toni. A little to the left, Emma said, "No."

Guess who I want to hear more from?

"You don't have to pretend you don't know who he is. But first and foremost, he's a person, so we're not going to talk about him like he's not right there." Emma looked at me with a smile. I was uncomfortable again. However, her protectiveness is hot.

Tami grimaced, "Sorry."

Emma hugged her to soothe the rebuke, "He scrambles my brain sometimes too."

I want to scramble more than her brains right now.

Tami looked at me as Emma headed around the table. "I'm sorry, Sebastian."

I waved away the apology, "You can ask me anything you want about work when they're warming up. The rest of the time I'm here to watch my girlfriend play."

It was Justin who did the fist pump, "Yes!"

I laughed.

Caleb faked a cough, "Fanboy."

"And not ashamed."

I had a fan. Sweet.

I'd taken Emma's seat when she left. When I started to get up she shook her head. She stood right up on me, laying her hand on my thigh. I lifted my arm over her, my hand landing on her ass, and my fingers going under the leg of her shorts to run my fingertips along the curve of her ass. My other hand, which was already under the table, moved her hand from my thigh to my crotch. I never stopped talking with Dawn. Beside me, Sam turned her back to me and leaned against the table, blocking anyone else from seeing. She’s definitely my favorite.

I was torn when the other game was over. I would miss our under the table fun, but the sooner the game was over the sooner we could go home.

Jeff walked around the table, heading toward the court. He pointed at me, "Your last good luck kiss sucked. Do better."

I jumped off the stool, grabbed Emma, dipped her low, and kissed her slow and deep. It felt very good. Reluctantly, I set her back on her feet. I looked at Jeff with my eyebrows raised.

Jeff grabbed Emma's arm and pulled her toward the court. "Much better. Thank you."

I turned back to the table to find all eyes on me. I shrugged with my hands up, "Taking one for the team." I took my spot back on the stool.

Justin leaned onto the table, "I have questions about stunts and drone shots." That conversation went on for a while. I could talk all day about that shit because it’s not directly me.

Toni wanted to know about Evans. Nia asked about gossip sites.

"I don't go there. Anybody can pretend to know anything and people will believe it if they want to. Even random guesses are going to be right sometimes. A friend had something real show up. It's best to ignore it. It'll go away with the next scandal. A lawsuit confirms and calls more attention." I could tell Rose had a question, "Go ahead."

She smiled, "Fanfiction."

I returned the smile, "What about it?"

"Love it? Hate it? Any favorites?"

I finished the last of my beer, considering how honest to be. I went all in. "I'm human. I got curious. For about a week. It doesn’t bother me. If a character I brought to life feeds someone's creativity I’m flattered. There are good stories and good writers out there. One of those could write a script, hell, for all we know someone who won an Oscar used to write fanfic."

"Real person stuff?"

I bobbed my head back and forth while looking at Dawn. "Still fiction and no more me than Bucky is. The imagination and amount of time spent on me is still flattering. All that's a step away. Now, the thirst tweets. Those are the things I wonder if people realize I see that. Fanfic is about an imagined version of me. Tweets and comments on Instagram are directed to me."

Caleb jumped in, "I bet you get the same things live at photo ops and shit though."

I nodded, "Some people lack boundaries."

Cindy said, "You looked uncomfortable reading those thirst tweets."

"Sort of." I laughed, "I wasn't embarrassed by content, just reading them out loud."

There were a few more questions before the whistle blew for the start of the game. I said, "Boyfriend time" and turned around.

It was another nail biter of a game. They lost the second set. All of us were screaming and clapping. It was a lot of fun. I liked this, being the spectator while hanging with her friends. I’ve always liked going to things and being the support person for friends. Fuck knows I’ve asked that from them enough. What I didn’t like was that this place didn't have Reese cups and the deck was too high for a between set kiss. Piece of shit dive bar.

They won the final set with a rejected spike by Becky and Nick. The team jumped in the air and hugged. So did Sam, Mallory, Scott, and I. I moved out of the middle to get to her first. In my head, I could hear Sam calling me hopeless.

I walked toward the opening to the court and met them, handing out words of praise. Emma stepped onto the deck and crossed the short distance into my arms. I kissed her head, "You did good."

"Thank you." She left my arms, kissed me, and took my hand. "It was a fun game. And I didn’t hurt myself."

We headed back to the table talking about plays and laughing. Emma sat down and pulled a beer from the bucket. I leaned my elbows on the counter behind me between Emma and Mallory, stretching out my back to reverse the hunching over during the game. I watched her profile as she talked with her friends. I could stand here looking at her all night. It didn't take long before I saw her energy drain away. Her smile shrank and her eyes lost their sparkle. I stood up, tucked a piece of hair that had escaped her ponytail, behind her ear, and waited until she turned her head like I knew she would. "You're tired." Not a question. She nodded. I turned to Mallory, "You ready?"

"Anytime."

I put Emma's bag on my shoulder. Emma stood up, "We're heading out."

Several other people said they were too. It wasn't late, but it was a weeknight.

I waited while they hugged their goodbyes. Mallory was back to me first. I slung my arm around her shoulder, "She's like a hostess saying good night to her guests."

Emma heard me and smiled. She joined us and I put my arm around her too. "Nice to meet everybody. I’m sure we'll do this again. Have a good night."

The three of us walked around the building to the CRV. I put in the code, opening the passenger and rear door, closing it behind them. I could see Mallory put a hand on Emma's arm and while I could tell they were talking I couldn't hear them. I walked a little slower around to the driver's side.

They didn't stop when I got in. Mallory was telling Emma about the questions during warm-up. When I turned to back out, Emma looked at me, "I'm sorry you were uncomfortable."

I smiled, "It was fine."

Emma's hand went to the back of neck, "I don't like you being uncomfortable. My friends making you feel that way."

"I don't enjoy it either, but it's part of being with you. You get my fans and a lot of other bullshit. I get your friends. I got less uncomfortable as they got used to me." I took her hand from my neck, kissing it before laying our joined hands on my leg. "I did like you going protective. You handled it well."

Emma barked a short laugh, "I wasn't ok with them objectifying you."

Mallory added, "I call them Barbie Bitches for a reason."

I laughed, “I’ve survived worse.”  Emma leaned over and kissed my cheek. “See, all worth it.”

“Emma, you know they’ve sent out shit. Your room is going to be Grand Central tomorrow.”

Emma sighed. I thought to say something but wanted to hear from her first. I wasn’t surprised by her response. “You can stay at home if you want.”

“Without you?”

“Yeah, I have to get packed up but you don’t have to go.”

“Nope.” It was never an option. “What sort of an asshole would I be if I’m not willing to deal with your co-workers dropping by your classroom. I promise you what you’re going to have to deal with will be much worse.”

“I get that, but to be fair, there’s not been much fall out from your fans.”

From the back seat I heard, “There will be. Probably is, but you don’t have an online presence to know.”

I nodded backward, “What she said.”

“I don’t know how your fans react to girlfriends, but I was a huge One Direction fan. Fans were brutal to their girlfriends. One released a cookbook and they left shitty reviews bringing her rating down on Amazon. Death threats to one if they broke his heart. They went all the way back in their social media and dug up shit. Hopefully, your fans are older.”

“Not always.” I guess this is when we’re going to talk about this. Maybe having a friend who’d been a fan would be helpful. “I won’t say fans cause breakups, but they don’t help. It’s complicated. There’s more nice than ugly, but a lot of time the ugly is really ugly.  Like you said, trashing her career, her cookbook because of who she’s dating. Girlfriends don’t always react well. Friends don’t always react well. The men, me, don’t always react well. I’m good at hiding when I don’t want to be seen, but I don’t understand people who can hide whole relationships for years. Hell, we’ve already been spotted having lunch. Two weeks in. I don’t know what the right answer is, because I haven’t found it.”

Emma jumped in,  "On the plane home I went looking around. There is a blog with all your relationships. Chronologically."

I'm sure I looked horrified. Because I was. "I don't want to know that. I don't want you to know that."

Emma grimaced and shook her head. "I didn't read any relationship stuff. I'd have to give you my high school and college diaries to equalize the invasiveness." She faked a shudder and Mallory laughed. Emma continued, "I was looking for fan reaction. There were links to Instagram posts, Twitter threads, and other blog posts. They have lots of opinions."

"Yeah, I know."

"You can't win." She pointed at herself, "Neither can I."

She’s not telling me anything I don’t already know. "And you're still here. Are you crazy?" This was a legitimate question.

Emma reached over to play in my hair again, "Only about you. I'm going to focus on what I can do something about. You and I. I'm too curious to not look, and I can't promise it won't get to me, but at the end of the day I get you." She leaned across the console and I met her for a kiss. "Also going to keep my shit on private."

Mallory spoke again, “I know it’s totally none of my business.”

I interjected, “Wouldn’t be discussing in front of you if we weren’t ok with your opinion. Sometimes outside opinions see things better. Especially if you watched a fan meltdown before. Thank fuck I’m not in One Direction.”

“Can you sing?”

“Not in a way anyone wants to pay to hear. Maybe a charity karaoke or something.” I liked injecting laughter into a not funny conversation. I worried about this. I worried about Emma get drug through shit.

“I think you have to find a balance. You can’t do something because of fans, but you can’t avoid things either. Fans don’t react well to being kept in the dark, but they are quick to be pissed by baiting or what they think is rubbing their face in something.” She put her hand on her chest, “For me, and remember I was seventeen, I didn’t care about casual dates or whatever, but if it was serious and they were being spotted everywhere it was different. Then it becomes fans creating their own stories if they don’t have the real thing. Some fans got pissed when they could see what was going on, but being told nothing was going on. Felt like they were being lied to or treated like crazy fans. Again, with balance. How much are you ok with revealing versus how much fiction is tolerable. Emma’s right. You can’t win.”

I waited until we got to a stoplight and turned to look at Mallory, “Now, you’ve given me things to think about.”

Mallory shrugged, “I think you play to the sane stable fans. The others are going to create chaos no matter what.”

“Ummm.” I was full of thoughts.

Emma chuckled, “Will you be filling me in on these thoughts.”

“When I’m done overthinking and sorting through them.”

They went back to talking and I tried to leave all the thoughts behind. They needed to simmer. I’d look at them later. When we reached Mallory’s place I jumped out and ran around to the other side of the car. I pulled Mallory into a hug. Initially, she tensed and I was afraid I’d entered unwanted affection territory, but she quickly relaxed and hugged me back. I’d just surprised her. “Thank you for everything. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Emma was smirking when I got back in, “What?”

“I think you get comfortable with people before they’ve totally adapted to you.”

I knew what she meant. “I hug too quick.”

“No, no, no. Not too quick. It’s just fun to watch the reaction because getting used to talking to you is very different than being in your arms. You up close is better looking than you a few feet away. Your blue eyes. And your arms and chest feel . . . mmm.” She shimmied in the seat, “So good.”

“That may be just you.”

She started laughing. Hard. “I don’t think you believe that.”

She was right. I started laughing with her, “I do know I can cause a reaction. Not gonna lie, it’s fun.”

“I can’t wait to see you with a group of fans..”

“It’s a mind fuck. Prepare to deflate my ego. I can get a little out of hand after events.”

“Really?”

I nodded, “Part of why I take friends with me when I can. Hours of screaming, crying, and shaking fans. Being told your gorgeous and they love you. The stories about what something I’ve done has meant to them. It’s all pretty heady shit.”

“Plus all the hugs and inappropriate comments from beautiful women.”

Well, I walked myself into this. Luckily, I could tell she was teasing me and not taking it seriously. “You know how visual I am.”

“You just bring all that pent-up sexual energy home to me and we’ll work it off.” She patted my thigh. “And if you’re getting too cocky we’ll go to a Pearl Jam concert and you can feel the love rolling off fifty thousand plus people all at once.”

Comparatively, I ain’t shit.

[maximows]

Against the Odds - Chapter IX

Nobu,

MASTERLIST (mobile) AO3

Warnings: smutty SMUT, fluff, so much love, chaos, smoking, drinking (but not in a negative way) and swearing

“You ready?” Chris asked, opening the car door. As always, he wanted to open mine to maintain his Prince Charming reputation.

“Yeah, let’s let the world know.” I said as he left and walked around the car to let me out.

We had managed to keep out engagement quiet for months and decided to officially announce it during tonight’s Oscars. I had been nominated again and since we had decided to attend major events together, we thought it was a perfect occasion.

We were a month away from sending out invitations and we took the Oscars as an opportunity to go through our friends and colleagues again and decide who to invite. Although we did have a list and most of the invitations had already been filled out, be had some spare ones for people we might have forgotten about.

“I love this dress, by the way.” Chris said as he offered me his arm. “In a different way than last year, but still does things to me.”

I was wearing a strapless, golden Elie Saab dress with a long cut along my leg. Even though it was floor length, it wasn’t heavy at all. It had some golden pieces attached to it at the top through my waist to my thighs which disappeared around there to reveal a light pink tulle material which was semi-transparent.

“Wait till you see my wedding dress...” I gave him a wink. “I’ve finally chosen the cut.”

Chris smirked. “Don’t worry, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you in a wedding dress since last year.”

We walked up to our spot and Chris put his hand on the small of my back. I know he hated the cameras flashing in front of him and I loved him even more, because he only came here today to support me. I was trying to cut the photo call short, but they wouldn't let us. All I could do is serve them looks and glance at Chris sometimes. The word I would us to describe him was “gorgeous”. His beautifully styled hair and beard, which by the way, he doesn’t have to do anything to maintain... He looked back at me with his light blue eyes and smiled. And I smiled back. “Whatcha lookin’ at, doll?” he whispered.

“My fiancé.” I said, right before we were asked to move. We separated to do solo shots.

Be did actually cut those short, because we had arrived late, so the production team rushed us to move to the theatre. We sat in the front row. “Is this the right time to tell you that I’ve had a crush on Leonardo DiCaprio since I saw him in Romeo and Juliet?” I asked, after Leo came up to me to congratulate on the nomination. “And that he asked me out on numerous occasions?” We had met a few times during some occasions and he did hit on me hard, but the real Leo was a different person to the actor I fell in love with years ago. Also, I was nineteen when he first did and he's 16 years older. And he vapes.

“It’s the worst possible time and I hope he saw the huge diamond on your finger.” Chris mumbled and glared at Leo who sat down with his mom. “Because there aren’t many men I feel threatened by.”

“Is this why you got such a big one?” I raised my eyebrow, toying with the ring. “You jealous idiot.”

Chris smirked. “How dare you call your future husband an idiot?” he faked outrage.

I leaned in to give him a kiss on the cheek. “I love my jealous idiot aka my future husband.”

The show soon started and we watched it in silence, making comments sometimes. Chris loved the musical format at the beginning, mainly because there was a short clip from The Avengers and he was included.

We kept making casual small talk, mostly on ideas for the wedding.

“Do you want to film it? Like, hire someone to do a video?” Chris asked when another break was coming to an end.

“Sure, but I want it to be someone who doesn’t normally do wedding videos. I want it to be more original.” I said, looking around the theatre. “I’m hungry. They had snacks last year. I want snacks.”

Chris reached into his pocket and pulled out on the these small Oreo packs. “Hannah mentioned that you might get snacky, so I came prepared.”

“Perfect human being.” I sighed, looking him in the eyes.

For the rest of the show, I was holding on to Chris' hand. My movie didn't win any awards, before my category came up. I was very displeased, because I was really sure of the “Original score” award. It was putting more pressure on me and I could feel it. I had to readjust myself in the seat a lot, because my back was tense.

Chris noticed me squirming in my seat and started to rub his thumb against my hand. “Calm down, baby,” he whispered as the presenters came out. “You’re going to win and you’re going to do great.”

“I’m not, Chris.”

“You are. And I’m right here, I’ll help you up the stairs if you need that. I’m here with you.”

I saw the footage from my movie, Sweetest Heavens, appear on the screen and waited for the camera to focus on my face. I smiled and thanked God that my hand clutching Chris' was out of the shot.

“And the Oscar goes to...” Eddie Redmayne said as he opened the envelope and slid out the card. “... Emilia Dawson, Sweetest Heavens.”

I went blank for a moment, but realised what had just happened when I saw Chris stand up and clap for me. I still couldn’t believe it was happening, but figured that he stood up for me, so it wasn’t only my imagination. I got off my seat and gave my fiancé a quick kiss on the cheek before heading up the stairs. “I knew it.” He whispered as I pulled back. I just grinned widely, mouthing “I love you" as I headed up the stairs.

“Congratulations,” Eddie said, handing me the surprisingly heavy award. “it is very well deserved, Emilia.”

“Thank you so much.” I had to hold back tears already.

I walked up to the microphone, clutching the statue firmly. People were still clapping (Chris was one of the few who were standing up, dork), so I was guessing that the route from my seat to the microphone took less than 10 minutes (but it felt like forever).

“This is surreal... First of all, I’d like to thank the Academy, because you make these,” I held up the Oscar for a second. “Uh, this will be the only rehearsed part of my speech, because the win was so unexpected. I’d like to thank everyone who was involved in the production of this beautiful movie, especially Taylor, Stuart, Marie, Alexa, Helen, Jerry, Steven, Elle, Lisa, Pilar, Sara, Hector and Michael. It was an incredible journey making this masterpiece with you and I hope we find a way to work together again soon.” I said, looking at the crew in the crowd. “Also, Hannah, my agent, who has been a third parent to me for the last few years and has never failed me. Now, I’d like to thank my real parents for supporting me even when they had all the rights to think that acting was “just a phase” for me, for giving me the benefit of the doubt when I moved out at a very young age and for still putting up with me and being the best parents a girl could have. Also, thank you for staying up so late in the UK to watch this, even though you have work tomorrow.” I waved at the camera, knowing they were watching. “And last but not least, I’d like to thank my fiancé... Chris, they won’t give me enough air time to fully express how grateful I am to have you in my life and to be a part of yours. Thank you for everything.” I said, looking down at him. We were both holding back tears. Chris bit his lip as he grinned at me, when I took my last look at him, before going backstage.

Someone from the production team said that they would keep the award for me until the end of the ceremony. I gave it to them and grabbed a tissue from a box on the table. I walked up to the make up lady and asked if she could check out my face and give me a little bit more powder, because I was all shiny already.

“Hi there.” I heard Chris behind me and I immediately shot out of the chair to wrap myself around him. “Congratulations, Dawson.” He mumbled into my shoulder.

“Chris, I can't believe it!” I almost shouted. “How the hell...”

“I fucking told you!” he cheered. “I’m so proud of you, baby.”

Someone told me to go to the press room for the break in order to give some interviews. Chris waited just a few feet away from me and watched me answer questions. I was still a bit overwhelmed, by this whole situation, but tried to keep a clear head.

After the ceremony, a few tabloids asked me for interviews and they were straight up asking about Chris, who was already waiting in the car for me, completely ignoring the fact that I had just won the most important award in this industry.

“So when did this happen?”

“A few months ago actually.” I answered, fiddling with the ring on my finger.

“Are there any plans for the wedding yet?”

“Oh, we don’t know yet,” I straight up lied. “We’re just enjoying the engaged life for now, we're both a bit too busy to plan a wedding right now.”

I was very proud of myself for lying about the wedding. I do know that paps tend to follow me more around my birthday or other important dates they can figure out, but I never thought they could just stalk me the moment my wedding appeared in the picture. Chris is a very private person, while I’m more casual about it, but neither of us want any leaks around a special day like that.

Chris escaped the car as he saw me walk towards him. He took off his jacket and, God, Chris in a white shirt and bowtie did things to me. He opened the door for me as I said. “If anyone asks about our wedding plans, tell them we don’t have any yet.”

“Sure, they don’t need to know.”

“And they'd be really surprised to know that we had already planned most of it.”

“That’s an overstatement.” He joked.

We arrived at the Vanity Fair After party just as I changed into my another outfit in the car. Chris had a vital role in the process, because my dress was very hard to take off. “I gotta be honest, I’d rather take that dress off you under different circumstances.”

I was now wearing a black jumpsuit with a lace top. It was much more comfortable than dancing in a dress. I left the dress in the car, which was supposed to go to the Elie Saab boutique now. “I didn't bring any other shoes,” I said as Chris took my hand. “I might require a foot rub later.”

“Anything for my winner.” He smiled.

We went through the photo call again, saying hi to a few people on the way. Chris clearly forgot that there’s also photographers behind us, because his hand kept creeping down my spine to grab my butt. I didn’t complain. We’ve been silent about each other for the last two years, so we might as well put on a show tonight.

Jeremy walked up to us and we talked a little bit about the movie we're starting in a few weeks.

“Are you going to bring Ava with you? I'm coming with Emily, I can be your babysitter.” Chris suggested.

“Evans, there’s no way I’m leaving my only child with you,” Renner laughed. “You’re the fun uncle who does the most dangerous stuff with the kids.”

“Oh, come on. Emily, back me up on this.” Chris turned to me.

I just shrugged. “You did hang you nephew from the tree by his leg.”

“He asked me to!”

Later this month Chris, Dodger and I moved to Utah to film Wind River. Dodger loved the constant presence of snow. He would dive in or lay on his back and just play and it was the cutest thing on this planet. We actually got him a few sweaters which made him look adorable and he became the star of my Instagram account.

I had to do some training for the movie, including gun training. Chris and I found a gym nearby and went there together to work out. I mostly did cardio, while he did heavy lifting. I was a bit curious why, since he didn't have a Marvel movie this year, but I never really asked. I watched him lift weights while I ran on the treadmill. God, that was some view. He was laying on the bench, his biceps bulging every time he lifted. Wait, why is my mouth watering?

I looked around the gym. It was pretty late and Utah, so it was empty. I switched off the treadmill and walked up to him, holding my towel against the back of my neck. “Chris, let’s go.” I ordered.

“But I’m not done.”

“Chris,” I winked at him. “Come on.”

He finally realised what I was talking about and stood up. We were really enjoying our lives after engagement.

We spent 6 weeks in Utah. Chris left for a few days to film a video game commercial. Apparently, Chinese companies are not only willing to pay Hollywood actors a lot of money for a 2 minute commercial, but they also move production to the US, so their star don’t have to go to China.

Two days after he left, he sent me a text saying:

I have a photo for you, which I know you will love, but I kind of want to be there to see your reaction. What should I do?

What’s in that photo?

Me, in my clothes for the shoot. Actually, there’s a few photos.

I feel like this is either going to be very hot or very weird. I’m guessing you’d like to be there if it’s hot and could get me bothered.

So, do you want it?

He sent me a few photos in a row, all of him wearing military gear and uniforms. I honestly could feel my blood boil after I looked through them. He was wearing the vests, boots and they put some dirt on his face, but also his hair was perfectly styled apart from that one loose strand on his forehead.

How soon can you come back, my intended? And will they give you these clothes?

During the Civil War press tour we actually got paired for a few interviews together. The studio never consulted this with us, probably hoping that us appearing together would give the movie more publicity (like it didn’t have enough of it already). One of the appearances was Graham Norton after the London premiere. The photos from the event were already out and I couldn’t stop laughing at Chris for looking at my cleavage like he was still breastfeeding.

“We haven’t had sex in like 2 days and you looked so good in that dress, please don’t blame me.” He whispered as we were in the car on our way to the BBC studios.

“There’s people who have sex once a month and you’re complain about a 2-day break, Chris.” I laughed.

“Yeah, but these other people aren’t engaged to you, so…”

“Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Emilia Dawson,” Graham said as it was my cue to come out. I walked up to him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He then announced Jeremy and Chris. “So, Chris Evans, this is your first time on the show. How did this happen?”

“I have no idea, they never let me do the UK shows for some reason. I guess I’m just not the best ambassador for the US.” He shrugged.

“Well, that ship has sailed.” Jeremy joked.

“Jeremy has been here a few times, but Emilia has been here over 5 times now. The first time you came here was in 2010, when you were 18.” Graham said. “This is a photo from the first time you visited.” He showed a photo of me. It just screamed 2010. I was promoting one of the first American movies I did.

“Yeah, there it is. I think I still have that skirt.” I smiled, analysing the photo. “That was actually the first time my mum thought that I made it. Because I was invited to one of her favourite shows.”

“Well, your mum has a great taste.” Graham smiled sweetly. “Anyway, this is Chris’ fifth Marvel movie, Jeremy’s third and Emilia’s second, right?” We all nodded. “How does it feel to step off the Marvel set and move on to another, smaller movie?”

“Well, Emily and I have just finished a movie in Utah, which was then completely covered in snow, and I still don’t know if I prefer Atlanta in June or Utah in March.” Jeremy said. “But to be fair, those are the sets where you really feel your surroundings, you know what’s going on, that’s the beauty of indie films. With movies like Civil War, you often don’t know what’s going on around you, because we use a lot of CGI or it’s just a secret, so…”

“Jer, we’re here to PROMOTE Civil War.” I laughed, before he went too far with his rant.

“Oh, right,” he pretended to remember. “I mean, being on the set with these guys is really fun, we spend a few months together, thankfully everyone gets along, so it’s pure joy.”

“Clearly, some of you are closer than the others.” Graham whispered, covering his mouth with his card.

I rested my hand on Jeremy’s shoulder. “Yeah, Jerry and I are really close.” I said, knowing he meant me and Chris.

Chris cleared his throat. “I thought it was suspicious when you said you were just practising sex scenes with him.” Everyone started to laugh. I was really glad we could talk about us while not really focusing on our relationship that much.

“Emilia, I’m sorry he didn’t start with this, congratulations on the Oscar!” Graham cheered and was followed by the audience. “So how has life changed for you?”

“Umm, it hasn’t really... I actually moved for work soon after the Oscars and haven’t been home for the last two months, so I didn’t really get to enjoy it properly.” I explained.

“And where have you decided to keep it? Because Kate Winslet keeps hers in the bathroom, so is yours on display?”

“I haven’t seen it in quite a long time to be honest and I’m not even sure where it is...” I laughed nervously. “Do you think they can make a replica if you lose one?”

“I put it on the fireplace when we came back.” Chris said.

“Riiight, yes! Yeah, he’s right. It was there when I left.” I nodded.

“Oh, seems like we’re getting an inside look into the Devans household.” Graham joked, making both me and Chris narrow our brows at the ‘Devans’ thing. “In case any of you have been living in a cave for the last few months and don’t know that, Chris and Emilia are an engaged couple, congrats.” He turned to the audience who started to cheer for us.

“Devans? Really?” Jeremy questioned.

“Yeah, I’ve never heard it either.” I shrugged. “I don’t know if I like it.”

“It should just be ‘Dodger’s parents’ or ‘Dodger’s roommates’.” Chris said. “Devans sounds like a name some woman gave her child, because she felt Devon was too mainstream.”

I really enjoyed being on a talk show with Chris. After that conversation Graham didn't really mention our relationship. I think he had only done it earlier to use his opportunity as the first host to ever have us both on the show.

Right after the Civil War press tour ended, we came back to reality, which for us meant a lot of wedding planning. We really wanted just a ceremony for our families and friends. Turned out we had much more friends and family than we expected. The initial goal was nothing more than 30, but it was the number of family members we had to invite. In the end, we managed to close the list at 50.

Planning was a nightmare, especially until the end of May when we were both away and couldn’t get anything done. Up to a point, we were trying to organise everything by ourselves, but by January, we had hired a wedding planner. We just told her everything we were expecting and she would send us emails asking for confirmation. The moment we hired her, we decided to go in all the way and thought we could get married somewhere abroad. Chris wanted Italy, but I won with Norway, mainly because there were no free venues in Italy. But also, because I threatened Chris with a blowjob embargo, if we were to get married there.  

Because we were trying to keep the wedding under wraps, we tried not to be seen in some places, so we wouldn’t raise suspicions. The cake samples, for example, were brought to our house, along with flowers. Claire, the wedding planner, also brought our guest list and asked us to make a draft of the seating arrangements.

“I like this one,” I said, chewing on the white chocolate covered raspberry cake. “but I think it might be too sweet for some people.”

“I love it and we should take it.” Chris said. I glared at him, narrowing my eyebrows. “What? It’s our wedding! The cake should suit us, not anyone else.” He continued with a full mouth.

“Would it be possible to make it vegan?” I asked the baker. “I never asked, but I’m guessing that a lot of our guests are vegan. We definitely should have asked.”

“Oh, come on. We'll just put ’Might contain gluten’ signs everywhere.” He shrugged.

“It will taste differently, but I can make it vegan.” The baker said, writing something in his notebook. ‘I’ll try to have it done in about three days.”

“Ok, thank you,” I said. “Claire, can we have the catering company prepare vegan and vegetarian options?”

“Yes, I’ll call them right away.” she nodded and left the kitchen to make a call.

“Chris, not everyone is like you,” I raised my eyebrow. “Now everyone will switch back to eating meat, after being vegetarian for a while, because they feel like they’re turning green.”

“Oh, that was low.” He mumbled.

They all left soon, after making final decisions. We chose flowers and napkins for the tables. Chris said that the napkins looked dangerously similar and he didn’t see a difference in colour.

Since tomorrow was Chris' birthday, we had a dinner reservation at Nobu. Chris thought we were going alone, but I actually had invited some of our friends to join. Scott made the reservation, so they could come in earlier and be there when we arrive.

“I’m going to walk Dodger, but I’ll be back in like 30 minutes, so don’t shower without me, alright?” Chris winked, taking Dodger's lead and opening the door.

“30 minutes on the dot, because we don’t have much time.” I smiled and rushed upstairs to our bedroom. I already knew what I was going to wear. It was a tight, off-shoulder black dress that reached around the middle of my thighs. I’ve worn it a few times already and I knew Chris liked it. I paired it with nude suede high heels, which were also among Chris' favourites. I had a whole section of clothes Chris loved.

I undressed to my underwear and laid down on bed. Chris had only been gone about 5 minutes, so I opened Instagram and scrolled through the main page. I’ve had this urge to post something about our relationship for a while, but knowing that talking about us during the Oscars and the recent press tour was already pushing Chris’ buttons, I didn’t want to bring this up. I got rid of my private Instagram a while ago, when people found out about it and started sending new countless requests. I didn’t really feel the urge to share stuff with people all the time, but like everyone else, I wanted to share some moments with other people. Just once in a while.

Chris’ birthday was a perfect opportunity to do that. We'll see.

I checked the time and it was way past the 30 minutes I gave him. I went to the bathroom to wash off my make-up. Chris was still nowhere to be seen, so I went back to the bedroom and found my phone. I connected it with our home sound system and played Beast of Burden. I untied my hair and brushed it, before taking my underwear off and entering the shower cabin. I stood in the hot water, trying to wash off sweat off my body. It was unbearably hot today and I could only wish it gets cooler when we go out.

I poured some shampoo on my hand and wanted to wash my hair. “Lemme help you.” I heard Chris’ voice behind me. He was leaning on the door frame, watching me.

“I think I can handle washing myself, babe.” I teased, spreading shampoo on my top of my head, before I started rubbing it in. In no time I head Chris slide the glass door to the side and join me in the cabin.

“I insist,” he whispered into my ear, before wrapping his arms around my waist and kissing my shoulder. I smirked and tilted my head to the side in order to give him access. “That's more like it...”

I took a step back, pushing my butt into his crotch. Chris grunted as he looked down at his dick pressed against my ass. He leaned on the wall behind him and wrapped his arm around my waist to pull me down on to him. “I can’t believe my luck...” he whispered, palming my cheek and kissing and biting on my shoulder. “I’m marrying the most beautiful, the sexiest woman in the world.”

I turned around to look up at his face, wet hair and flushed skin from the hot water. I ran my fingers along his collarbone tattoo and placed my lips on it, while my hand travelled down to his abdomen. “How much time do we have?” I asked.

Chris smiled and lifted me up only to turn us around and push me against a wall. “Not enough.”

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him in for a kiss. We kissed playfully, biting on each other's lips and tongues, Chris moved his lips to my chin and then neck. His fingers let go of my thigh only to sneak up to my pussy and rub his thumb against my clit. “I wish we could just stay here.” he breathed out, his lips on mine.

“You always wish we could stay in, old man.” I ran my fingers through his wet hair.

Chris' two fingers slipped into me and I gasped, throwing my head back. “Mm, you are so ready for me, baby girl.” He whispered against the skin of my neck. I whined as he moved in and out, still rubbing his thumb against my clit. “Tell me what you want.”

I brought him closer to my body, slamming my lips against his. Chris pulled his fingers out of me and reached out to the handle and turned the water off. He opened the shower and carried me through the bathroom and our bedroom to the study. My pussy brushed against his shaft and it made me moan quietly every time. He laid me down on the cold glass desk and sat on the chair. I felt his lips on my thigh. “Chris, please, just fuck me,” I groaned as his beard brushed against my skin. “Please.”

“When have you become such a cock slut, huh?” Chris whispered and licked my clit quickly, making my hips shot up.

“Probably the first time you fucked me, daddy.” I moaned, putting my hands over my breasts and playing with my nipples. Chris saw what I was doing and bent down in front of my pussy again only to spit on it. He slammed two fingers back inside me and started to move them painfully slowly. He put his hand next to my hip and leaned on it, curling his fingers inside me to hit the right spot. “Please, do it faster, let me cum, I’m so close...” I squirmed under his touch.

“In a second, baby girl, just a second.” he whispered. His thumb hit my clit every time he buried his fingers inside me. At one point I couldn’t take it anymore. I felt the built-up tension release on to Chris’ fingers. “Mhm, yeah.”

He took his fingers out and licked my come off them. “You’re so sweet, baby girl,” he said, stroking his length. “I’m gonna give you what you want now.”

Chris grabbed my calves and placed them on his shoulders. I watched his eyebrows narrow as his tip brushed against my entrance. His chest was still covered in water drops and his hair was damp. A lose strand of hair was sticking to his forehead. He finally lined his cock against my pussy and grabbed a hold of my hips to keep me from falling off the slippery wet surface. He pushed into me, his lips slightly opening.

I felt him fill me up completely and gasped as he stretched me out. “Mmm,” I moaned when Chris started to move slowly inside me. I was still so wet from the orgasm he gave me and now Chris was picking up the pace. He closed his eyes and bit on his lip, completely lost in the pleasure. The way he looked was enough to send me over the edge and to add his cock moving inside me, hitting my g-spot... I came for the second time today, but Chris didn’t stop. He grabbed a hold of my both legs, took them off his shoulders and turned me to lay on my side. A lot of objects set on the desk fell off as he pushed me rapidly, but he then continued to pound into me while also rubbing my clit to make me come even faster.

I couldn’t bear the overstimulation. I shut my eyes as we both came. Chris let out a low grunt as he thrusted into me for the last time. We were both panting, not able to catch our breaths. Chris turned me to lay on my back again, without pulling out. He leaned down and gave me a passionate kiss as he lifted me off the desk. “We need another shower,” he whispered against my lips. His cock slipped out of me and it made both of us moan. He looked down at the mess we made around my abdomen. I giggled as he lifted me up and carried back to the bathroom. My whole body felt like it was made of jelly, I couldn’t move my legs and still wasn’t able to stabilize my breathing.

“If sex with you is so good at 35, then I can’t imagine what it was like to fuck you 10 years ago.” I breathed out.

We obviously didn’t make it to the restaurant on time, but we only had a 20-minute delay. I was very surprised, when I noticed photographers as we arrived at the restaurant. Chris grabbed my hand as we escaped the car and smiled, “Do you think we still have our sex looks on?”

“I hope we do.” I said. Chris stepped in front of me to pave the way through the small crowd of paparazzi. I watched the back of his arms, the well-defined muscles that I gripped to keep myself close to him. Those two sizes too small Henleys he wears are really going to be the death of me.

We entered the restaurant and immediately went in the direction of our lounge. “Isn’t a lounge too big for the two of us?” Chris asked right before noticing people at our table. “Oooh, so that’s happening.”

“Yeah, we really would have stayed at home if I hadn’t made plans with them.”

Scott and his boyfriend, Adam and his girlfriend, Sebastian, Anthony with his wife and Chris Hemsworth were all sitting, waiting for us. I said hi to all of them, while they wished Chris a happy birthday. Scott walked up to me and we hugged, “Stella is here.” He whispered. I felt my muscles tense at the sound of her name.

“That explains the paparazzi,” I forced a smile as he let go of me and we sat next to each other. “Is she sitting at a table nearby?”

“I don’t know, I saw her at the bar and we just said hi to each other. We haven’t had any contact with her since last year, when Chris and her went out once.” Scott explained. I tried not to look around the restaurant. It was pointless anyway, the lounge was in a secluded area and you could barely see anything.

Chris and I agreed that I wouldn’t drink, so I could drive us back home tonight. By agreed, I mean Chris begged me, because he hates being driven around by strangers and he really wanted to drink tonight. Which is why everyone was getting shitfaced – apart from me.

My fiancé kept his hand on my thigh the while time we sat at the table. Because all of our companions have been invited to our wedding, it became the main topic of our conversation.

I actually spoke to Shaletta about getting married abroad. Unfortunately, she was on Chris’ side when it came to the location. Anthony and her got married in Dominican Republic, so she preferred Italy.

“I told you it’s a better idea. If you want to make our guests travel to Europe, at least make sure the conditions are bearable.” Chris shrugged and took a sip of his drink.

“Chris, do you think I want to get married on the North Pole?” I asked, “You clearly haven’t even gone though the places I’ve sent you, even though we have already booked the venue.” I snapped.

“So, why are you getting married there, if Chris doesn’t want it?” Seb asked.

“I’m a simple man, Seabass.” Chris shrugged. “My dear fiancée threatened me with a blowjob embargo, to put it in her exact words.”

Everyone laughed at his words, which made me a little bit mad, because I didn’t want it to look, like I was forcing him to do something. Chris noticed my lack of enthusiasm and rubbed his palm against my bare thigh. “No, but I gotta be honest, I would marry her anywhere. If it wasn’t for the fact that our families would murder us, we would’ve eloped a long time ago.”

“Yeah, Mom would be livid.” Scott agreed. “Lisa is a sweetheart, but she can kick ass when she has to.”

I tried to move the topic to something lightly less stressful and we ended up talking about the upcoming presidential election. Of course, Hemsworth and I were excluded from the conversation, but at least we didn’t have to worry about Donald Trump becoming president of our home countries.

“Em, have you thought about getting an American citizenship?” Adam asked.

I raised my eyebrow. “You’ve just finished talking about how a reality TV star has a real chance of getting elected as president, so here’s your answer.” I laughed. “No, to be honest, I haven’t given it any thought yet. The most important thing for me right now is to get married to this guy here and take at least a month off afterwards.”

Chris grinned and wrapped his arm around me. “True. Everything else is just supposed to provide fun for our guests.”

Thankfully, we didn’t have to leave our lounge to order new food and drinks, because at some point I saw Stella walk quite close to us. That was when Chris noticed her, because apparently, Scott only told me about her. Chris noticed that I got a bit uncomfortable and suggested we moved someplace else.

“She’s just your ex, love,” I smiled and put my hand on his cheek. “I’m fine.”

I actually got used to the fact that has dated a lot (at least for me) of women in the past and I’m bound to see or hear about them at some point, so I might as well just try to ignore it. I never considered myself to be a jealous person, but as it turns out, I just never met anyone I cared about enough to be jealous.

The Chrises, Adam and Sebastian went outside for a smoke, while the rest of us stayed behind. We were all leaving, but no one wanted to stand outside with the photographers, if it wasn’t necessary. I handed Chris his sunglasses, cigarettes and a lighter. When he asked me to keep them in my bag the only reason why I didn’t say no, was because we were celebrating his birthday.

After paying the bill for our table, the rest of us left. As I stepped out, I noticed Chris smoking a cigarette by my car. Without saying a word, he reached out his hand to me and placed it on the small of my back. “Thank you.” He whispered.

I wrapped my arms around his waist and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “What for?”

“Just generally,” he sighed, breathing out the smoke. “For putting up with a big, old, drunk meatball like me.”

I giggled and nuzzled my face into his neck. Despite the cigarette smoke, he still smelled incredible. “I love you, I don’t have a choice.” I whispered.

Chris chuckled and pulled away from me in order to walk back to a bin and throw away the cigarette. On the way back he put a gum in his mouth. Even though he had drank quite a lot, he didn’t look like it. “Can I kiss you now?” he asked as he approached me.

“I’ll make an exception, because it’s after midnight and your birthday.” I nodded lightly. It didn’t take long for him to come up to me and place his lips on mine. He tasted him alcohol, cigarettes and a little bit of mint. I got used to his smoking habit a long time ago, I just didn’t want his to know that, because it would not be a great motivation to stop smoking once and for all.

Chris placed his palms on my cheeks and deepened the kiss by sneaking his tongue into my mouth. I moaned quietly as our tongues touched and I felt a tingly sensation. His arm wrapped around my waist once again, pushing me against his body. I felt his arousal against my lower stomach and grinned at the fact that he was ready again, despite drinking quite a lot. Chris bit on my lip and then pulled away from me. “We should go, before we fuck against the car with photographers behind us.”

I narrowed my eyebrows. I actually forgot about them and realised that we had just served them with a full PDA session. “Yeah, yeah.” I nodded. Chris opened the driver’s door for me and then walked around the car to get in himself.

Chris sang the whole way back (it’s a thing he does when he’s drunk) and tried to hold my hand, but I wouldn’t let him, because I use a manual gearbox and have to keep my hand free all the time. “’m gonna buy you a car with automatic gear.” He mumbled with his eyes closed.

“I’m contractually obliged to drive this for the next two months, until they offer me another one.” I said.

“But you wouldn’t mind if we got a Tesla, right?” he asked. Chris knew that the only car that could make me switch from Jaguar, was Tesla, because I have a thing for electric cars and he know they only come with automatic gear.

“You’re willing to buy a new car, just so you could fool around with me while driving?” I laughed at him.

When we arrived at home, Chris was already asleep in the car and Dodger greeted us at the door, barking in excitement. He barely opened his eyes to walk back home. I told him I’d come in a few minutes, but had to walk Dodger out now. The dog got a bit excited to see us and I decided I should go out with him just in case.

When I came back, Chris was lying on the sofa in he living room downstairs. He always falls asleep there, because there’s a nice, cool breeze coming from the open terrace doors. He took off everything except for his boxers. “Baby, let’s go upstairs.” I said, sitting down next to him and gently nudging his bare chest with my finger.

He groaned and slightly opened one eye for a second before closing it again. “Let’s sleep here tonight,” He mumbled. “The air is amazing here, it should be our permanent bedroom.”

“Fine.” I sighed.

I went upstairs to change into the slip I wear at night and grabbed Chris’ pyjama bottoms and a blanket.

“Chris, wear these.” I said, handing him the pants. He looked up at me and groaned, but then took the clothing. While he was changing, I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and grabbed some water for my fiancé as he will definitely need some in the morning.

“Have I ever told you that you look mesmerising right before bed?” Chris asked as I squeezed myself into the space between him and the back of the sofa. He had some trouble pronouncing “mesmerising”.

“Possibly,” I smiled and placed my hands on his hair as he moved to snuggle his face into my neck and cleavage. “Go to sleep, handsome.”

I woke up around 10am, when Chris was still soundly asleep. He moved down and his head was now on the same height as my stomach, with his arm around my hips. He pulled my slip up, so his beard was scratching my skin. He groaned lightly as I scratched his head, before reaching out for my phone.

Hannah had sent me an email earlier in the morning. I checked it out and saw a few articles with similar titles from Daily Mail, People and TMZ.

“Exes Chris Evans and Stella Smith unintentionally reunited at Nobu last night, where Captain America celebrated his birthday with new fiancée and friends”

“He cheated on me with Emilia Dawson, Stella Smith tells her friends”

“Chris Evans, Emilia Dawson walk into a bar – what now?”

I knew that if she sent me these articles, she thought I should read them, so I took a deep breath and opened the first one.

“... Smith arrived first, accompanied by a bunch of photographers, who were then surprised to see Evans and Dawson arrive about 30 minutes later. It is said that the engaged couple did not interact with Evans' ex, apart from a quick nod between Chris and Stella, when he was out for a smoke and she was leaving. It was visible that Emilia was quite uncomfortable knowing she’s somewhere there, but who wouldn’t be?”

“People from Stella's close surroundings have confirmed, that she’s been claiming Chris cheated on her with Emilia and they were still together when the Captain America actor and Dawson started dating.”

“... with Smith's new claims in the picture, we now look at the whole case in a different way. The cheating part would explain the tension between the exes during yesterday's outing. Apparently, the exes were even living together when the affair started.”

Great. Now I’m a homewrecker.

I came back to the email and checked what Hannah has written:

“Normally, I wouldn’t recommend that, but Chris’ and your movie comes out later this year and we don’t want another Angelina, Brad and Jennifer thing. I would suggest publishing a statement denying these allegations, containing some details, because if she’s actually been saying that, then we might be facing a bigger problem.”

Chris shifted and took a big breath through his nose. He stretched out his arms and looked up at me, with his sleepy, half-closed eyes. “Hi, sexy.” He murmured, before pulling my body close to his and scratching his beard against the soft skin on my stomach.

I smiled at him and found Hannah’s number, then simply texted her: “Do your worst.”

-

(Sidenote: I changed the name of one of Chris' exes, because I made her into a much bigger bitch than I thought I would)

@daybreak96 @coffeebooksandfandom @smilexcaptainx @betinalunardi @rollinsuh @lily2089@stella2445@hy-pocrite @l0rd-disick @beholdoritou @klaussstilinski@achishisha@givenchymercury @just-trying-to-survive-marvel @henry-cavill-gossip-girl @rock-titties @bombsandsparkles @marvel-fan23 @cap-just-said-language @blackaestheticislife @justsomemarvelspam @nerdchester17 @shyofaspark @cssrogersse@crispyearthquakezombie@ultragalaxy @bit-of-a-timelord @kingofallthingsz@morguleth@calicokitkat @areelphony@gemgemswift @donut-crazs@dontchawishyouknewhowtosalsa@kandomeresbitch @deafeningpsychicpandahands @severely-theoretic@chmedic @patzammit@winterssoliderss @metalarmlover @saturnki @coolkimchijoy16 @sammyjammy92@coolkimchijoy16 @peruvian-bae​ @avngersx

[bombshellsandbluebells]

Romancing the Flame (2/?)

Summary: When Emori’s brother is held hostage in exchange for a priceless, mythical jewel called the Flame, she teams up with sarcastic thief and treasure hunter, John Murphy.

But someone else is after the Flame too, and it’s a race to find the lost city of Polis and the jewel hidden inside.

To get there first, Emori and John will have to overcome booby traps, mercenaries, and their mutual mistrust of each other.

AKA my ode to the classic action/adventure films of the 80s/90s, packed full of as many references and tropes as I can manage. The title is a reference to the film “Romancing the Stone.” Official film poster here!

All my love to @infernalandmortal for editing and being just as excited about this fic as I am!

read on ao3

Chapter One

Chapter Two: The Deal

There was something about seedy bars that made Emori reckless. She’d like to blame it on the alcohol, but she’d only had one beer so far, and she knew she could drink half the men in this bar under the table. Maybe it was just the general sleaziness of the place – the atmosphere of crime and depravity hanging heavy over everything left the implication that you could get away with anything while inside.

Out in the real world, the law was a real threat, and one that Emori was cautious of. She’d long since learned the importance of staying inconspicuous and hidden, and normally she avoided unnecessary attention – but here she knew for a fact there was an illegal poker game unraveling in the back room, and that made her feel safe.

Normal grifts called for days of preparation and careful execution, but bar grifts were easy. They only required that she keep the mark drunk and horny enough not to notice what was happening – or just that she win the inevitable fight that broke out. No one was going to call the police in a place like this, after all, and she could handle a few bruises and cuts for the sake of some extra cash.

She does a lap around the place on her way back from the bathroom. By the time she reaches her table, she’s already zeroed in on at least three different opportunities.

Otan is exactly where she left him, staring morosely down into his own drink like the loser she often tells him he is. He looks up when she sits down.

“Hey.” She jerks her head towards the back corner. “Check out the dart game.”

Her brother follows her gaze to the two men in the midst of a game, then looks back at her with a deeper frown. Her excitement must be obvious, because he sighs heavily. “Hustling? Really?”

“It’ll be fun,” she says, her voice sing-song. She pokes at his shoulder, but Otan shrugs her off, grunting unenthusiastically in reply. “Come on, you know we’ll win.” Emori herself can probably hit the dartboard from where they sit right now. Otan, she knows, would hit the bullseye.

“I’m not worried about winning,” he argues. “I’m worried you’re going to start a fight, and we’ll get kicked out before I can finish my drink.”

Emori deftly grabs his drink from his hands and downs the entire thing. The whiskey is cheap and biting; it burns the back of her throat as it goes down. She slams the empty glass back on the table with a loud clink, and roughly wipes her mouth with the back of her gloved hand.

“There, drink finished.”

Otan glares at her. She smiles sweetly back at him.

They stare each other down, Otan looking for all the world like the human embodiment of a rain cloud and Emori bright and grinning, unwavering. Finally, with the kind of disappointed certainty that comes with having lost hundreds of similar arguments before, Otan sighs deeply in resignation and kneads at the rough, scarred skin of his forehead.

“Fine,” he says, and Emori laughs, delighted.

“It’ll be fun,” she promises as she tugs him out of his seat and towards the game. “Besides, it’s been a while since we’ve treated ourselves. We could use some extra cash.”

“You’re buying me another whiskey with it,” Otan tells her, then falls quiet as they reach the two men.

It’s easy to slip into the roles. They fit as comfortably as well-worn shoes.

“Come on, Em,” Otan says, gently tugging back the arm Emori has a hold of. She follows the movement, exaggerating her stumble a bit before she rights herself against her brother. “These guys are already playing.”

“Come on, O! I want to play!” she whines, slurring her words in a convincing charade of drunkenness.

The men pause their game and glance over at them.

Emori smiles at them and waves lazily. “Hey, you guys want to play with us?”

The two men look at each other in silent debate, and then eye Otan and her speculatively. They’re hesitant to accept Otan, she can tell, as people usually are – his sour expression and bulk might not be unusual in a place like this, but it certainly doesn’t do him any favors when making friends – but she’s laying the drunk, ditzy charm on well enough that they’re interested. One of them drags his eyes up and down her body.

“Ignore my dumb brother,” she slurs, emphasizing the last word. “I think you guys look fun! I want to have some fun!”

Otan tugs gently on her arm again. “They’re not interested, Em.”

“We didn’t say that,” the one eyeing her like a snack says quickly, and Emori hides a triumphant grin. Hook, line, and sinker.

He turns to at his opponent for confirmation, and the other man nods. “Yeah, we’d be up for a game.” His grin makes her skin crawl. “I’m Emerson. This is Dax.”

“I’m Emily,” she says, then slaps an uncoordinated hand against Otan’s chest. “This is Oscar.”

She steps closer to Emerson because the hungry way he eyes her makes him the better target. “I don’t know how to play,” she tells him, pitching her volume as if she’s trying to whisper but too drunk to manage it.

And he buys it. His grin stretches wider. “Don’t worry,” he assures her, placing an arm around her shoulders. “I’ll teach you.” He strokes down her arm, lower and lower, then switches to her back. It creeps dangerously close to her ass, and it's only years of practice that keep her smile in place. If they weren’t about to rob him blind, she’d have decked him the minute he touched her. Instead, she just giggles and leans in closer.

It’s all almost too easy.

Emori and Otan return to their motel room that night with their pockets heavier than they left. They hadn’t been able to raise the bet very high – Emori’s thinks the men had grown suspicious despite their flawless act – but Emori had treated herself to Mr. Grabby Hands’ wallet before they left.

“What’d I tell you?” she boasts as Otan unlocks the door. “It was fun, right?”

“Sure,” is all Otan says, but he’s grinning.

Emori is so high on their success that it takes her a moment to realize what happens when they enter the room. Something grabs her and shoves her face-first into the wall beside the door. Her nose throbs with the impact, and she has enough clarity to hope it isn’t broken, before she manages to take in the rest of the situation.

There are people in their room. One of them, clearly a man much stronger and larger than she is, has her pinned securely against the wall. She hears struggling behind her, but all she can see is the ugly paisley wallpaper of the room.

“Get off of me!” she shouts, straining against the arms holding her down. “Otan?! Otan!”

“Emori!” she hears him shout, before the distinct thud of someone getting socked in the face. She hopes Otan’s getting one up on their attackers, but she has a horrible feeling that it’s Otan who’s been hit. Her suspicious are confirmed when she hears her brother groan. Fear settles in her gut. She tries harder to fight back.

“You didn’t really think I wouldn’t find you, did you?”

The familiar voice coats her ears like tar, heavy, thick and vile. She freezes.

“Did you, Emori?” Baylis continues, and she chokes down a whimper. Even if she can’t see him, she can picture him perfectly in her mind – the cocky, feral grin, the hateful eyes. He probably still has the scar on his temple too. Baylis laughs, and she flinches. Her nose throbs sharply when she pushes it further into the wall. “Come on, we all know your brother’s an idiot, but you’re smarter than that.”

She wants to spit an insult. It sits on her tongue like ready ammunition, only the pistol’s jammed. She can’t get her mouth to say the words. They’d known it was a risk when they left, but they’d thought it was worth it. For months, she’d worried Baylis would find them again, and when it hadn’t happened, she’d grown passive in her sense of safety. She’d stopped worrying. She’d forgotten to be scared.

Now, the weight of that terror comes back all at once and locks her limbs tight and her jaw shut. She feels like a rabbit cowering in a trap, and she hates that almost more than the man behind her. Almost, but not quite.

“Turn her around,” Baylis orders, and the hands yank her from the wall and spin her around so roughly her rattled head spins. There’s definitely blood dripping from her nose.

Her imagination had been spot on. Sure enough, the scar is visible on his temple with his hair gelled back the way he always wears it, but she can’t even enjoy it – not when she sees the gun on his hip or the two large, heavily-armed men flanking him. Two others have Otan pinned, one with his arm tight around Otan’s neck. Her brother’s face is turning red with the strain.

He locks eyes with her and she reads her fear mirrored in them. Two men on Otan, one on her, two others waiting to act, and Baylis.

They’re fucked.

“Well?” Baylis barks. The man who has a hold of her tightens his grip. His nails dig into the skin of her arms. “You have anything to say?”

She tries to voice an apology, but her mouth fumbles around the shape of it. The words get lost somewhere in her throat. Baylis waits, his eyes locked on hers. Emori licks her lips and tries again. “I’m sorry.”

“Sorry?” Baylis mocks. “For what? For running away? For stealing my money? For this?” He gestures at the scar on his face.

“All of it,” she gasps. Anything to please him. She’d gotten in his good graces once before; maybe she can do it again. “I’m sorry for all of it. I’ll make up for it. I’ll – I’ll-“

Otan squeaks, and her eyes dart to him. It’s too small a sound for a man as large as her brother, but he looks small now. The man holding his neck is squeezing it tighter, and her brother flounders like a fish caught on the shoreline as he struggles for breath. She can see his fingers dancing and twitching in the air for something to grab onto, but he’s too well-pinned. He clutches uselessly at open air.

“I’ll pay you back!” she shouts, desperate.

“You will?” Baylis steps close to her. He’s at least a foot and a half taller than her; she has to crane her neck to look up at his face. But then he crouches, and she has a bewildered second to wonder what he’s doing before he digs a hand into her boots, searching. She tries to not to squirm at the feeling.

He finds the wad of cash stuffed in her right boot, and the knife stashed in her left, and then Mr. Grabby Hands’ wallet in her jacket pocket. He pockets the knife and thumbs through the wallet and the ball of cash. Then he does the same to Otan, pulling out the knives he keeps in each boot and his own wad of money.

“See, we already found the pathetic bit of cash you had stashed in your bags here. And with this,” he waves the money he’s holding, “and whatever you hid in the car you stole, I know you don’t have nearly enough to pay me back.”

“I’ll get you more money. You know I can.” It was, after all, why he’d brought her in in the first place.

“Oh, I know you will,” Baylis assures her, pocketing the cash. He pulls a folded-up piece of paper from his pocket and unfolds it, then holds it in front of her face.

The word “Polis” is written on it, which means nothing to her. Below it someone has drawn an infinity symbol.

She can’t help the incredulous laugh that bubbles out of her. “I can’t get you that,” she argues.

Baylis slaps her. Her nose protests loudly. She can see her blood on Baylis’s hand as he pulls it back. His grin is gone; now he just looks angry.

“It’s a symbol, you bitch,” he hisses. “For an ancient city called Polis. There’s a jewel there that’s worth more than the fucking queen of England. It’s called the Flame. That’s how you’re going to pay me back.”

It takes her a moment to connect the dots; she blames the distracting throbbing of her face. “You’re sending us on a goddamn treasure hunt?”

“Not both of you. I’m keeping your brother so you don’t run off on me again. You bring me the Flame, and I’ll give him back to you, safe and sound.”

He’s offering her a way to freedom, but it smells like bullshit.

“I need Otan’s help,” she tries. “You need to let him come with me.”

Baylis sneers at her. “You think I don’t know who the brains of the operation is? You don’t need him to find it.”

“There’s no way I can find this. Baylis, please,” she begs, “let me pay you back some other way.”

He moves towards her, and she thinks he’s going to slap her again. She braces herself for the hit, but instead, he grabs her face roughly in his hand and squeezes. His rough fingers dig into her cheeks. She can feel them pressing against the bone. “You either bring me back the Flame, or you find some other way to get me as much money as the queen of fucking England. Or you run off and let your brother die. Your choice.”

Emori locks eyes with Otan again. It’s easy to make her choice. “Fine! Fine, I’ll find it. But you have to give me a lead.”

Baylis lets go of her face, and she wishes she had an arm free to scrub the feel of him off her skin. She wants to throw up.

“I gave you a lead. Polis.”

“I need something more than that,” she pleads. “Look, if you want to get this jewel, then you need to give me something more.”

Baylis considers her as he folds the paper back up and tucks it in his pocket. Then he nods. “I got the information from a man named Murphy in The Dead Zone. Look for him.”

She thinks that’s it, but then he pulls out her knife. There’s no way in hell he’s handing it back to her, and that worries her.

“One more thing,” he says. Her stomach churns with fear, writhing like a pit of snakes. She tries to stop herself from trembling, but it’s hopeless. He’s already seen it anyways; there’s no use in playing brave. Baylis gestures with her knife at the scar she gave him. “I’m gonna repay you for this.”