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yelena-bellova · 4 years

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Don’t Be Afraid: Poe Dameron x Solo!Reader - Chapter Twenty Two

Chapter Twenty Two: Plans and Proposals

Series Masterlist

Plot: The Resistance discusses how to move forward in rebuilding.

Warnings: blood, injuries

Word Count: 6.3k

A/N: Everything’s a mess but have no fear, the fic is here. Enjoy your escape into another world because Heaven knows ours is a flaming pile of garbage right now.

————

“What in the hell?” Poe mumbled as me, Shriv and him arrived at the fight. One of the pilots that Wedge Antilles had recruited slid across the floor. Teza Nasz stood next to us bleeding, but seemed unconcerned with her wounds. The ex-Imperial began to charge forward again but Jess reeled her back, begging her to cease the confrontation. Wedge went to help the young pilot up to his feet, his blood was still smeared across the stone floor.

“Poe Dameron,” Wedge called, “Y/n Solo.”

“Antilles,” Poe said, “What in the hell is going on?”  “Agoyo swung first,” a woman next to Wedge said. Judging by her age and the fact that she hadn’t left his side since we’d arrived, I took a guess she was Norra Wexley.

“I don’t care who started it,” I spoke up, “There’s no sense in fighting each other, we’re on the same side. Why did this even start?”  “You should care!” Agoyo shouted, rising back to his feet. His Phantom Squad uniform was stained now with blood.

“Identify yourself, pilot.” Poe ordered. Agoyo faced us, crossed his arms and took a defiant stance.

Poe impatiently repeated himself, “Name, pilot.”  “Pacer,” the young pilot seethed, “Pacer Agoyo.”  “Pacer,” Poe nodded, “You know who I am?”  “Poe Dameron.”  “No, I’m your commanding officer. And frankly, right now I’m not impressed with what I see. I understand you’ve come a long way to join us…”  Pacer answered that he was from Nuja and his late father was a Phantom Squad pilot. He’d come in his place.

“I appreciate your father’s service, and your willingness to join the Resistance,” Poe said, “But unfortunately, it looks like you’re not a good fit for this mission. You’re free to leave.”

Some of the gathered crowd let out gasps as Poe turned his back on Pacer. Even I was confused as to what he was trying to do. I watched Pacer shift awkwardly as my boyfriend tilted his head, he was waiting for Pacer to speak up.

“Poe...I mean, Commander Dameron. I-I want to stay, sir. Please. It’s just...”

“It’s just what, Agoyo?” Poe asked as he finally turned around.

The young pilot was no longer looking at Poe, his eyes were locked onto Teza Nasz once again. I could feel the anger radiating off of him, no one was this full of rage for no reason.

“Do you know each other?” I asked, taking a step forward to reiterate my presence.

“She murdered my brother!” Agoyo revealed, he raised his fists once again and took a step in Nasz’s direction.

“Agoyo!” Poe snapped, Pacer turned back but still wouldn’t meet Poe’s stare.  “Eyes on me,” he said, the pilot finally looked up, “You will stop menacing Teza Nasz, or I will have you thrown in the brig until you can cool down. Is that understood?”

Pacer looked embarrassed and slightly intimidated by Poe’s threat. Wedge put a hand on his arm and whispered something I couldn’t make out, whatever he’d said was enough for him to let Wedge pull him back. Poe then turned to Teza Nasz, “Well?”  “It’s possible I killed his brother, but I don’t remember. It’s possible,” the warlord said as she scanned the crowd, “That I killed all of your brothers. And cousins. And mothers and fathers and former lovers. It was my job.”

“Then why are you here?” I inquired, crossing my arms.

She looked jolted by the question I’d posed, “Because it was wrong. But I didn’t know it at the time.”  “You were young and ambitious,” Poe guessed, “So you joined the Empire.”

Teza nodded, “Mostly hungry, but yes.”

Never in my life did I think I would ever feel sympathy for an ex-Imperial warlord. Yet here I was, a little bit of my heart going out to the woman. She still intimidated me, but I understood her a little better now.

“You joined the Empire,” Poe finished, before turning his gaze to Wedge, “Just like you.”

“It’s no secret I attended Skystrike Academy,” he said to the crowd, his hands spread out with a shrug, “But I left once I realized what the Empire was doing.”

Poe nodded in reply before turning to Zay, “And your mother.”  “My mother was an Imperial officer,” Zay answered softly, “But she defected. She and my father. They died for the Resistance. Ask Leia. She knows.”

“Suralinda?” I called, hoping I wasn’t stepping on Poe’s moment by calling on one of his squad members.

“I didn’t give a care about either side much,” she said easily, “I was ready to sell Resistance secrets if it would get me what I wanted. Oh wait, I did.”

The shocked faces around her did not match with her laughter, “Relax, I came around.”

“And you?” Poe turned finally to Finn, who I hadn’t noticed was standing to the back of the group with Rey.

“Used to be a stormtrooper,” Finn answered as he came forward, “But now I’m rebel scum,” his fist hit his chest so loud, the thump echoed, “Until the end.”  We shared a small smile, he’d become one of the most devoted pieces of lovable scum I’d ever met in such a short amount of time. I was proud of him.

“My point,” Poe said as he turned back to Pacer, “Is that many of us have dubious beginnings, but it is how we end that counts.”

“My father was Darth Vader,” Mom’s voice rang out through the hanger, “Is there anyone who wants to question my loyalty to the Resistance?”

I’d never heard a more silent room, damn right…

“Now, is there anyone else with a grudge that needs airing?” Poe asked loud enough for everyone to hear, “Something that’s bothering them? Someone in this room that they can’t wait to knife once their back is turned?”

The tension eased up as a couple people laughed. Just as Poe was beginning to gesture for Mom to take the floor, a voice that hadn’t been heard yet rose.

“I got a question!”

The voice belonged to a bald, grey skinned man. Immediately you could tell that he was an older pilot, just as cocky as he’d probably been his whole life. This was going to be fun.

“Go on,” Poe acknowledged.

“What about you two?” the man wagged his finger at Poe and I.

“What about us?” I confusedly asked.

“I heard the stories,” he continued, “About what happened on the Raddus. To Holdo. I fought with Holdo. She was a good leader.”

My stomach lurched, but I tried to still appear calm as every eye came to rest on us. I felt Poe’s anxiety which only heightened my own nerves. I wanted to throw myself at the feet of the crowd and let them all have a free punch. I deserved it. But it wouldn’t do much good. Maz’s emotion provoking questions and Poe’s ‘we fix it’ answer played in my head at a dizzying speed. Everything I did from here on out was about trying to make amends for what I’d done. Just as Poe and I had promised Black Squadron.

“I agree,” Poe finally said.

“Me too” I immediately followed.

“You agree?” the veteran smiled cruelly, “That’s not what I heard, that’s not what any of us heard.”

He motioned to the rest of Phantom Squadron plus Wedge and Norra. Snap must have told them what had happened, he was right to have done so. They deserved to know what they were walking into, gut-wrenching details and all.

“You two are the ones who should be in the brig,” the veteran went on further, “Or better yet, tossed out of an air lock.”

There were quiet agreements coming from the crowd, I had to fight to keep the heartbreak from reaching my face. I’d disappointed so many people. One look at the tears I was holding back and Poe instinctively took over.

“You’re right,” Poe said loudly, garnering everyone’s eyes on him, “You’re absolutely right. We disobeyed a direct order, we got people killed, we undermined our commander, and led a mutiny. And if you don’t think that eats both of us up, that it haunts us every day, every minute, then you don’t know a damn thing.”

I blinked back my tears and watched him keep going, “And yeah, you could lock me up, throw me into space, but you tell me how that helps the Resistance? How that brings down the First Order? Because, trust me, if I thought my death would bring them down, I’d sacrifice myself in a heartbeat,” he snapped his fingers before pointing to me, “And Commander Solo already tried. She was willing to die at the hands of the First Order just so the Resistance could live.”  “Poe,” Finn said to my side, shaking his head in disapproval of the images Poe was painting.

Jess came forward suddenly, “Poe’s my squad leader and I trust him with my life. There’s no one else I want leading Black Squadron. Y/n too, she’s one of the best commanders the Resistance has got.”

“He saved our butts over Grail City just a few days ago,” Karé added.

“And he saved mine on Jakku,” Finn said, “Y/n did too on Takodana.”  “And mine on Crait,” another voice called.

“And mine.”  More and more people spoke up with instances where Poe and I had been competent commanders. It was overwhelming, I let a stray tear fall in gratitude. The belief that the Resistance still had in Poe and I was not deserved, but I had no choice but to accept it.. Poe’s head was ducked, it was hitting him just as hard.

After a moment, the room settled down and Poe looked to me. He was silently asking if I wanted to say anything, I shook my head slightly and let him take the floor once again. He had always been better at public speaking than me, he was altogether a more confidant leader even in his worst moments.

“We’ve all made choices. Choices that caused harm, led to destruction, even at times death. We are all responsible for our deeds. The great and the terrible. But if we define ourselves only by what we’ve done, only by our failures, then this Resistance, this spark? It dies here and now. We’re all here because we have a chance to change things. A chance to change the galaxy. A chance to change ourselves. But we have to make that commitment. That choice. A choice...”

He stopped, searching for the words to cap off his inspiring speech.

“A choice to be better,” Zay finished his sentence as she stepped forward. She was so young but was lightyears ahead of others with her passion for the cause.

“A choice to be better,” Poe echoed.

As I scanned over the crowd, there were smiles and nods of approval. One person even clapped. Wedge said something I couldn’t hear but it had roused laughter from the people around him. After that, everyone started to break off in their own groups and conversations.

“Hey,” I touched Poe’s arm, “I’m proud of you.”  The corners of his mouth quirked up slightly, “They’ll want to hear from you too at some point.”  “You’re better at rousing a crowd than I am,” I complimented, “Besides, according to Zay, everyone already knows what they need to about me.” I shot him a wink as he chuckled, “I’m gonna go talk to Mom.”

I broke away, surprisingly my mother wasn’t surrounded by people for once. I had a hunch she was waiting for me.

“Not too bad,” I said as I approached her, “We’re not a fleet but we’re not nothing.”  “It’s hope,” she replied knowingly, “That’s more necessary in a war than a fleet. Although, a fleet would be nice.”  I smiled, attempting to mask the pain I’d been trying to hide all day. It had broken me down in the ship with Poe, but I couldn’t fall apart a second time in front of people.

Mom, as usual, sensed it. “I miss him too. I could use him right now.”  “He’d just want to run headfirst into the fight,” I chuckled sadly, remembering stories of my father charging into battle with little to no plan.

“You’d be surprised,” Mom raised an eyebrow and smiled nostalgically, “He was a better general in the war than you’d think. Now,” she squeezed my hand warmly, “Let’s get to work, Commander.”  I was thankful for the snap back to the present, that’s where I needed to be. We went around gathering the people Mom wanted as her new leadership team, including our gracious host, Yendor.

“Commander,” Mom called out to Poe, he abruptly ended his conversation with Zay to join us, “I would like you all to join Ambassador Yendor and me for tea. There’s much we need to discuss, and little time to do it.”

————

We made our way into what was formerly Yendor’s library, it had now been converted to a war room. There was a large round table in the middle of the room with a holo readout that contained inventory lists of our resources, people and supplies. It was shockingly low, all of it.

“Hey,” Rey greeted me quietly as I stared at the lists, “How’d things go with Maz?”

I puffed out my cheeks and exhaled, “Not great.”  “She can’t help?”

“She won’t help,” I turned away from the holo and began to stroll the room with her, “I don’t pretend to understand how Maz works. She usually speaks so cryptically but what Poe and I got was a flat out rejection.”  “Maybe she’ll still find a way to come through,” she suggested as we planted ourselves in a corner of the room.

Rey hadn’t been there, she hadn’t heard Maz’s callous words. How she’d simply sat back in her lounge chair while we were struggling to keep our heads above water. “You’re much more hopeful than I am.”

A smile flashed across her face, “Someone I know told me something about the people I place my hope in. They won’t always disappoint me.”   “You have to be careful who you take your advice from,” I teased, bumping my hip into hers.

 After sharing a laugh, Rey’s expression sobered quickly. “Y/n, there’s something I didn’t get to tell you about my visit with Luke. It’s something that concerns you.”  “What is it?” I asked, pushing off the wall we were leant against.

“He told me that when you-“  “I’m sorry,” Wedge interjected, tapping me on the shoulder, “Y/n, we’re about to start.”  Damn everything, I wanted to hear what Rey had to say. What Uncle Luke had told her. It could’ve been something to do with his vision, something about my future. But there were more pressing matters at hand and I needed to prioritize.

I sighed frustratedly before pointing to Rey, “We will finish this conversation.” I turned with Wedge to go join the group, trying to put the subject of my uncle’s post-humous words anywhere but the forefront of my mind. I spotted Poe and headed for the empty spot next to him. He was, shockingly, in pleasant conversation with the veteran pilot who had wanted to throw us into spaces moments ago. I only caught the last thing Poe said.

“It’s a deal.”  The large man gave Poe a hearty pat on the back, sending Poe stumbling forward. I caught his arm and steadied him, “Do I want to know what bet you just made?”

“A race,” he answered in a low tone, “That I’ll win. If I weren’t the better pilot, he’d get to shave my head.”  I shot him a disapproving glance but didn’t get time to voice my thoughts as the room went hush. Poe had never been in the habit of betting credits like a normal person. But then again, he never lost if it involved flying.  

“I’m glad you’re all here.” Mom’s voice echoed in the large room, all attention was given to her, “I know many of you came at great personal cost with small hope of success. I can’t promise that we will survive this. That we will all still be alive tomorrow, or the day after. But I can promise you one thing. I will fight beside you until the end.”

“If I may,” Norra Wexley said after a few seconds of silence, “Everyone in this room knows what they signed up for, General. This isn’t our first battle, although it might be our last. We’re done with ‘homes.’ We’ve made our choice. This,” Norra gestured to our team, “This is our home now. The Resistance is our family. And just like you, we’re ready to die for it.”

Mom looked touched enough to cry, but instead ducked her head, “And the rest of you? Is that how you all feel?”

A resounding chorus of agreements came from each person around the table.

“Then we have work to do. Yendor?” 

The aforementioned Twi’lek came forward, he looked almost regal. “Welcome to Ryloth,” he greeted us, “Like Leia, I thank each of you for all that you have sacrificed. We are all here for the same purpose: to stand against the tyranny of the First Order. Those of us from Ryloth know a thing or two about standing against tyranny. I and my children and those who are part of the Ryloth Defense Authority offer you all we have, but as you can see, we are few.”

“You called the Resistance’s allies from Crait, did you not?” General Rieekan addressed Mom, “Others will come.”

She frowned as she remembered the disappointment on Crait. “So far the only allies we have been able to reach are the ones you see in front of you. We suspect that the First Order has been rounding up and imprisoning those sympathetic to the Resistance, and we think that they’ve figured out how to block our frequencies, but we aren’t sure. We can’t rely on reinforcements. Not at this point.”

There was more discussion about the subject, it was made clear that General Rieekan was unaware of just how large a threat the First Order had become. Contrary to what he thought, they were 100% capable of taking prisoners.

“Besides, what do they need?” Wedge asked, “A few local governments to look the other way, a few dark holes to lose people in. It’s not hard.”

“Speaking of local governments,” Charth, one of Yendor’s children, spoke up for the first time, “you should all understand that while Ryloth welcomes you in your time of need, there has been a complication.”

“Complication?” I asked.

“The First Order has come to Ryloth,” Mom answered, “Not because of us. As far as we know, they aren’t aware of our presence here.”

While it was worrisome, I was secretly relieved for personal reasons. I couldn’t sense Ren’s presence on the planet. Charth went on to explain that the First Order wanted to tithe their shipping lanes to raise money to rebuild the ships they’d lost, ironically, fighting us. It felt good to have put the tiniest dent in their fleet.

“I suggest we act quickly,” Mom went on, “Given our time and our limitations, I am most concerned with rebuilding our forces, giving us another week, another month. A foundation. I had hoped for time to find more leadership, but...I want ideas.”

“Ships,” Poe answered quickly, pointing to the holo inventory list that detailed our ships, “Is this up-to-date?”

“Yes,” Rey answered from where I’d left her, “I saw Rose account for the arriving ships before we met here.”  Poe nodded to her before turning back to the table, “I see a handful of starfighters, a few transports, a yacht. It’s not a fleet, and we can’t fight much less expect to win any kind of battle against the First Order with equipment like this. We need ships.”

“I agree. How do you suggest we get these ships?” Mom asked.

“We could steal them,” Norra suggested, “The First Order’s actively building fighters. You just said so,” she finished, gesturing toward Charth.

“The rumor is the Corellian shipyards are running continuously to meet the quotas,” the Twi’lek confirmed.

“Then we go to Corellia,” Poe said with a clap, as if it was an easy task.

“Too high-profile,” Wedge said, “And we don’t have enough people to stage a raid.”

“Send me in with a handful of pilots and I’ll get your ships for you,” Poe continued his urging, these were the moments where he needed to slow down.

Mom shook her head in rejection of the idea, “Wedge is right. We can’t risk the few pilots we have to liberate a handful of ships. We need a more strategic plan.”

She waited a beat, expecting Poe to argue that he could get the job done. I was proud of him for staying resigned, he was actively trying to do better at following orders.

“Bracca,” Shriv spoke up, “It’s just a thought.”

I’d never been to Bracca, but Pacer explained that it was a junker planet. Not exactly what we were in search of.

“It sounds like a waste of valuable time,” I commented, hoping Shriv didn’t take too much offense, “Time we can’t spend stealing junkyard scrap, we need functional ships.”

“Bracca has become the place that the First Order sends any and all claimed New Republic ships to be decommissioned and junked,” Finn countered from nearby, “It’s bound to be a treasure trove of the kind of ships we want. Parts, too. We could fix up those X-wings out there. Besides, beggars can’t be choosers, and let’s face it. We’re beggars.”

Connix entered the room, out of breath. “A message came in on the Millennium Falcon,” she announced, looking to my mother, “From Maz Kanata. She said you’d want to see it immediately, or I wouldn’t have interrupted.”

Poe and turned to each other in confusion, what did Maz have to say that she didn’t say to us?

“Can you patch it through?” Mom asked.

After Charth helped Connix connect, Maz’s face replaced the inventory list in the center of the table.

“Greetings, Leia.” Maz greeted loudly as she looked around the room, “I see you’re doing well collecting your allies to you.”

“We would be better if you had joined us.” Mom replied, I had a feeling she was trying her hardest to be polite. After Poe and I had recounted our encounter with Maz, Mom was just as confused and slightly offended.

“Ah, of course, of course,” Maz said passively, “But the ways of the Force are mysterious, and it was not my time.”

“I hear you have news for us, Maz,” Mom continued, trying to propel the conversation forward.

“Yes!” Maz exclaimed, “Did Dameron and your daughter tell you of the list?”  “A rumored list of First Order political prisoners and dissidents,” Mom answered.

“It’s not just a rumor anymore. I’ve seen it. Well, parts of it.”

Everyone began to talk amongst themselves, Mom silenced them with a wave of her hand, “How?”  “A rule I live my life by: If you have anything worth stealing,” Maz said, “Someone will eventually steal it.”

“Someone stole the list?" Mom asked with a lightness to her voice.

“Fortunately, the thief who has acquired it is an old acquaintance of mine.”

“Will they give it to us?”

“Hard to tell. Nifera can be mercurial. She likes games,” Maz answered with in a playful tone.

“We have to play a game for it?” Mom raised a brow.

“Not exactly, but then again...” Maz went on, “She’s holding an auction at her birthday party. Invitation-only to the party, and the auction will happen sometime during the event. List goes to the highest bidder. You know how thieves are.”

“When and where?” Mom asked, we were finally starting to get somewhere.

“The party will be held on Corellia, in Coronet City,” Maz explained, “As for when, you’ll just have to be ready to move quickly when the information comes in. I should know soon.”

Poe and I connected the dots at the same time and shared a smile before he addressed the group, “As long as we’re in Coronet City, might as well pick up some ships.”  Mom muttered something I couldn’t hear, but I made out the word ‘Force’. She turned her attention back to Maz, “Maz, you said it’s invitation-only? Can we-”

“I’ve already taken care of it,” Maz waved a hand, “Two invitations secured. One for a handsome but unscrupulous profiteer from Canto Bight, his wife and his junior business partner, and one for the ambassador of Ryloth and guest. It’s the best I could do under the circumstances. You’ll have to improvise.”

“Who’s the profiteer from Canto Bight?” Poe questioned with a scrunched brow, “There’s no one like that with the Resistance.”

“Well, of course not, Dameron. I made him up. Pick someone, whoever you like. But,” Maz said with a devious smile sliding across her face, “I was thinking of you when I said he was handsome.”

Maz flourished her sentence with a wink, my entire body went rigid as I tried to contain my laughter. I rubbed a hand over my mouth to conceal my grin. It became harder to hide when the veteran pilot Poe had been talking with slapped him on the back and said, “The little woman has you there, you are a handsome man.”

“Thank you, Maz,” Mom jumped in, “We accept the invitations.”  “Leia,” Rieekan quietly said, “How do we know this list is even real?”

“Who said that?” Maz asked, leaning forward in the holo, “Hmm...it’s real because I just confirmed it’s real. Didn’t you hear me? I’ve seen it.”

“You said you saw a partial list,” Rieeken corrected, “So even if we concede it’s real, how do we know it’s useful?”

“It doesn’t matter if it’s useful or not” I strongly stated, “There are good people being kept prisoner for doing nothing more than disagreeing with the First Order. We have to help them.”  “They could be friends and family,” Norra supported me with a firm nod, “Y/n’s right. We should help them.”

“And we will,” Mom confirmed, “But Rieekan has a point. Our funds are limited. Before we commit to spending them at some thief’s auction, we should know more.”

 “We could just steal it,” Shriv suggested, “I mean, the list is stolen. We could just steal it again.”

“Is that really the best idea?” Poe asked.

“We’re talking about stealing ships, aren’t we?” Shriv shrugged, “What’s the difference?”

“Lifting a few First Order fighters is payback,” Norra said.

“I’d rather not turn the Resistance into a den of thieves,” Leia sighed, “But we’ll do what we have to do.”

“You’ll have to pay the reserve to be allowed into the auction,” Maz noted, “After that, it’s up to you. But if you get caught with your hand in the biscuit bin, there won’t be a nice trial and punishment, you know. These people will kill you.”

“Fun,” I whispered under my breath.

“Your friend sounds charming,” Mom said dryly.

“Meh,” Maz shrugged, “Rich, yes. Charm? Charm was never her strong point.”

“I still think we should see who and what is on this list before we commit to any action,” Rieekan objected once again, “Maz, can you share what you have?”

“It will come over encrypted,” Maz said before a sudden noise interrupted her, “Have to go, hope I see you in Coronet City. Especially you, Dameron. And wear something nice. This Canto Bight fellow is quite dapper, I hear,” Maz blew a kiss to Poe, “Tah!”

She disconnected and I leaned over discreetly to my boyfriend, “Looks like I’ve got competition.” The comment earned me an elbow in my side, it was well worth it to watch his face change ten shades of red.

“Did we get the partial list?” Mom asked Connix.

“She just sent the invitations,” she answered as she searched her data pad, “No list yet.”

“Thoughts, while we’re waiting?” Mom asked our group.

Eventually, with a little more discussion, it was decided that Shriv would take command of a squadron and head to Bracca. They were to collect as many star fighters as they were able to. Wedge had pulled Mom and Poe into a conversation where I overheard him proposing he should be the one to go to Corellia and get the list. Mom was just suggesting we wait and see the list when Connix announced it was transmitting. The holo appeared, branded with the First Order logo. Sure enough, there was a partial list of names and last known locations under the title ’Subversives’.

“Hey, Poe,” Finn said as he came to stand with us, “You’re finally on someone’s most-wanted.”  I quickly scanned down the list to see Poe’s initials with the word Crait next to it. A chill ran down my spine, I’d always known with our reputations that we were both high on the First Order’s kill list. But knowing and seeing were two different things and seeing his name made what we were doing feel all the more real. My own initials rested at the very top of the list, I wasn’t sure if it was organized by most wanted. If so, I knew exactly who wanted me dead that bad. I’d always feared for Poe’s life more than my own, but Crait had been a sobering experience. It had shown me just how much I didn’t want to die.

The tips of Poe’s fingers brushed the back of my hand lightly, just enough to let me know he was there. Had we not been in a room full of people, I would have been seeking comfort in his arms.

“This is an assassination list.” Norra’s voice broke my thoughts, “This is why we can’t find our allies. They’re hunting them down, one by one.”

“Well, they’re not going to get us,” Finn said confidently. I wished I was as steady as he was in the moment.

We looked over the rest of the list, it included the names of those currently detained and those they were planning on arresting. Next to their initials were their reason for arrest, which all sounded ridiculous. Something as simple as questioning a directive would get them imprisoned.

“So Maz’s friend can decode these names for us?” I asked, finally having drained the fear from my voice.

“That’s my understanding,” Mom said quietly, her eyes were still scanning the list.

“It’s smart,” Wedge observed, “The auction list, I mean. Offer enough information to make people think that someone they know is on the list but with no guarantees.”

“People will pay their last credits for even the possibility of finding their missing loved ones,” Norra added.

“When it could all be a false hope,” Snap voiced the , fear we were all trying to ignore, “Foolish people and foolish dreams.”

“Nothing foolish about hope,” Rey mumbled from nearby, I turned and we shared a knowing smile.

There was more talk and guessing as to who the initials might belong to. There were titles like senator and diplomat all the way to celebrities and athletes. Those thought dead now stood a chance at being alive. Poe turned to Mom to ask if we would go through with the plan. She suddenly appeared much older than she actually was, trembling and silent with her eyes glazed with tears. Poe and I were on each side of her instantly.

“What is it?” he asked with a protective hand on her shoulder, “Are you okay?”

“Mom,” I whispered, holding onto her waist, “Talk to me. Do you need to rest?”  She looked up with tear streaks painting her face, her lips curved into a smile. “It’s the list” she said in disbelief, “I-I never knew. I thought he was gone.” 

“Who?” Poe asked.

“An old friend,” she said as she patted our hands in reassurance that she was alright. We cautiously let go and went back to our spots next to her, keeping a close eye on her. “And if I’m reading it right, he’s being held on Coronet City."  As we discussed the possibility that it could all be a trap, it began to feel less like one. Mom now had another fire lit under her at the thought of being reunited with her old friend and though it was risky, it felt like a chance we needed to take.

“So we’re going after the list?” Poe asked after a moment.

Mom looked around the room and gauged everyone’s reactions. For the most part, we’d reached an agreement. “Yes, and the ships. And if you can, Senator Casterfo.”

“Leia,” Yendor said, shocked, “Do you think it could be?”  She gave a single nod. Whoever this person was, he meant something to a lot of people.

“And if we can’t?” I asked, hating to be pessimistic and dash my mother’s hope, ”What happens if it’s not him?”  Mom let out a heavy breath, “Then I’m a fool. But it doesn’t change our mission. We rescue those prisoners, anyway.”

I wanted it to be the person she was searching for. She needed a win after all she’d been though the past week. We all did.

Shriv confirmed that he had his team together to go to Bracca. Charth said that he would join Poe at the party with the invitation for the Ryloth ambassador. Wedge and Norra volunteered to go to Coronet City and retrieve the ships we needed. As Poe dismissed them, the pressure amplified. Three teams with three missions and the survival of the Resistance resting on their backs. While I still had doubts and there were a million ways any one of the plans could go wrong, I had faith. More than that, I had hope. I was so wrapped in my thoughts, I didn’t even realize there was a conversation happening next to me until Mom bumped me with her cane.

“Where’s your head, Commander?” Mom asked, Poe was beside her watching me carefully. Probably to make sure I wasn’t ready to fall apart, but I was far from it.

“In the future,” I answered firmly, “With the Resistance thriving.”

Mom smiled proudly, “Good answer.” She turned to leave, but Poe’s call of her name stopped her.

“What you said, about the First Order being on Ryloth,” he said, “Do you think it’s safe for you and Rieekan and the others to stay?”

She shook her head, “No. But there is no ‘somewhere safe’ for us anymore. We’ll stay as long as we can, monitor the missions and give tactical support.”

The fear was gnawing away at my stomach at the thought of the First Order figuring out where we were. I didn’t want us to get hit just as we were gaining a little bit of ground. “What happens if the First Order finds us?”  Mom sighed and patted both our arms, “Then we do what we always do, fight.”

Poe and I were left in silence, a few conversations continuing softly as people left the war room. It was a heavy thought Mom had left us with. But it caused another surge of determination to run through me, failure wasn’t an option.

“You good?” Poe asked, sliding a hand up my lower back.

“Yeah,” I replied, looking up to meet his wondering gaze, “C’mon, we’ve got work to do.”

“Hold on, speedy,” he laughed under his breath as he pulled me back to my spot, “We’ve got an important matter at hand.”

I narrowed my eyes in confusion as he took hold of both my hands. I quickly looked around to see that we were the last two people in the war room.

“It seems like I’m in need of a wife,” he said, referencing the invitation, “And I was wondering if you would do me the honor of…wait.”  Poe dropped to one knee, keeping my hands locked with his. The sincerity in his eyes made my heart flutter as we took advantage of a few seconds of intimate silence. “Y/n Solo, will you do me the honor of being my wife for the evening?”  “Poe Dameron,” I grinned, “I would love to be your one night wife.”

He let out an exaggerated exhale of relief, clutching his chest as if he’d thought I would decline. I laughed and began to pull him up, but he stayed planted on the ground.   “I think you’re forgetting something,” Poe said teasingly, squeezing my hands before releasing them. He reached around to the back of his neck, undoing the chain that lived permanently against his chest. He collected his mother’s ring in his palm and grabbed my hand again.  “Poe,” I protested hurriedly, “I can’t wear-“  “Yes,” he argued with a content smile, “You can. Even in a fake marriage, this is the only ring I’d ever consider giving you.”

I went silent as he slid the ring onto my fourth finger. It fit too perfectly, like it was made for me. I knew the history of who’d worn it before me and I hoped that had she still been alive, Shara would have approved of me. I had to remind myself it wasn’t a real proposal, no matter how much it felt like one.

Poe and I smiled softly at each other as he rose to his full height, pulling me into his arms for the hug I’d longed for since we’d arrived. I dug my head into his shoulder and took a deep breath, inhaling his comforting scent and trying to exhale every anxious thought I had.

“We need to get going,” Poe murmured, reluctantly pulling back from me.

“No, just a little longer,” I pleaded as I tightened my grip around him, “Please.”  Poe responded to my request silently by sinking back into our embrace, his warm palms seeping through my clothing to my skin. He face found its favorite place buried in my neck, pressing a few light kisses against the skin. My hands fisted the orange fabric of his flight suit. It felt like the galaxy had frozen time momentarily for us to simply hold each other. Just a few more seconds, I told myself, then we’d come back to our problems.

————

A/N: If you only knew what a chaotic trio there will be in next week’s chapter...😂 I’m not even going to mess around with adding the taglist because I know tumblr will mess it up again so I’ll place it in the comments. Hope you enjoyed! 🧡

#poe dameron #poe dameron x reader #poe dameron fanfic #poe dameron imagine #poe dameron fanfiction #poe dameron x solo!reader #star wars #star wars imagine #star wars fanfiction #star wars fanfic

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clingyduoapologist · 3 years

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The Christmas Party: Part 1

It was almost too easy.

As Dream walked across one of the winding nether paths, he couldn't help but smirk behind his mask. It had been less than a month and a half since Tommy's exile, and Dream had already started to notice how his little 'holiday' was beginning to affect him. He was quieter, for one thing, which had kinda thrown Dream off when he had first noticed it, but he wasn't complaining. He was calmer, too. Much less high-energy. But the most significant change? The kid was at his beck and call, obeying every command and believing anything that Dream would tell him.

But it wasn't perfect.

He still fought back, resisted. It was rare, but he would refuse an order, talkback, behave like his old self every now and then.

And it pissed Dream off.

That's why he was on his way to Logstedshire. He hadn't visited for a few weeks, and besides needing to check up on the kid, he'd had an idea. As he arrived at the portal and stepped through, he pushed his mask to the side of his face and pulled down his hood. Right now, he needed sincerity.

Or at least, needed to fake it.

_____________________________________________________________

Tommy was pacing around the front of his tent. He had never been a pacer before. In fact, he distinctly remembered loathing whenever Wilbur would shuffle aimlessly around whatever room he was in, rambling on and on about freedom or society or...

He pushed the thoughts of Wilbur out of his head.

The pacing had started about a month ago. Tommy found that whenever something didn't have his immediate attention, he would walk back and forth, spewing out whatever thought popped into his head. He had laughed the first few times he noticed himself doing it, but nowadays, he barely gave it a second thought.

Today though, he was quiet, content to wander around Logstedshire and keep his thoughts to himself. It wasn't really like he had anyone to talk to anyway. Ghostbur had been gone for three days now, and he was starting to suspect that he had forgotten to deliver the invitations.

Am I really that forgettable? Is that why no one visits?

Tommy's thoughts were interrupted as he heard the familiar distorted rumble of the nether portal. Someone was coming. He quickly brushed the dirt off his tattered clothes and made his way to the shimmering gateway.

"Hey, Tommy? How's my main man doing?" Dream asked. Tommy couldn't help smiling. Dream was a sight for sore eyes. He wore his usual green hoodie, with his ax and sword hanging from his belt on either side of him. But today, his mask sat on the side of his face, revealing his deep green eyes and sandy hair.

Tommy's smile fell. "You haven't visited for three weeks, man. No one else comes around anymore and, well..." Tommy trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence.

Dream stepped towards Tommy, putting his hand on the boy's shoulder, and spoke.

"I meant to come, really. But I got held up. Eret needed help with king-stuff, and Tubbo isn't exactly making things easier for us."

Tommy turned at the sound of his friend's name.

"Tubbo? How is he causing probloms?" he asked.

"Well, L'manburg rebuilding efforts are still underway. He had called on Eret for some loans, but they're having a hard time paying them back and, well," Dream glanced at Tommy, "Boring politician stuff. That's beside the point. Thing is, I have some good news."

Tommy perked up. "What is it?"

Dream turned to the path through Logstedshire and started walking. Tommy turned to follow. "You know, you've been on your best behavior lately, and I want to make it up to you for not visiting for a while. L'manburg's having a Christmas Party to try to ease some tension with the monarchy, and since Eret's busy, I have to pick a new plus-one."

Tommy stopped dead in his tracks, realization dawning on his face. "You mean..."

"Yes Tommy," Dream said, turning to face him, "I'm allowing you to attend the party, so long as you stay on your best behavior."

In reality, Eret had finished dealing with the loans about a week ago. But, he had been ordered to remain in the castle as a precaution. Having him there would only complicate things, and Dream didn't need any complications in his little experiment.

_____________________________________________________________

Part 1 is out!

Now that I have a few more followers on here I want to start posting some short stories. They'll be mainly Dream smp so if you like this stick around! I'll be posting Part: 2 in a few weeks. Any and all comments or constructive criticism are welcome! Hope you liked it!

#Ok #Part 2 will be the only other part btw #I just thought it would be too long if I just posted it at once #plus I haven't written it yet lmao #hope you like it #dream smp #dream-smp #dream smp fanfiction #dream smp au #tommyinnit #tommy exile #dreamwastaken

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kenttsterling · 2 years

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Bryce Young MIGHT check one box of manyfor #Colts! Is Chris Ballard the guy to rebuild? Hoosiers get lucky #iubb! Women today! #Pacers lose minus Haliburton

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#Bryce Young Colts #Chris Ballard record #Colts Ballard #Indiana standings #Pacers Haliburton #Spurs Pacers #Youtube

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anewkaiju · 3 years

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Rain & Sunshine (a Premier League write up)

It's hard to say for sure whether my understanding of the game is developing, or if I'm just getting really good at consuming the right things. Last weekend, when I discovered that the North London derby would be taking place the following weekend, I made a note to myself to read up on this storied rivalry. Up to this point, I've spent a lot of time dwelling on the kits of Arsenal and Tottenham but considerably less time on the other aspects of these clubs. Having watched both clubs play a few times each so far this season, I was pretty aware that Spurs were coming in on the heels of back to back 3-0 defeats after starting with three straight victories right out the game and that Arsenal had opened the season with a string of losses but seemed to be crawling forward. Simply put, these teams were meeting one another at a pretty interesting time.

On Friday of last week, the Athletic put up a video breaking down the derby. They had their Arsenal writer and their Spurs writer on to discuss how each club got to the point where they are. The Arsenal writer acknowledged the the mammoth amounts of money that went into their new stadium, the departure of Arsene Wenger and the search for an identity since but still finished by saying "there seems to be a plan." For his part, the Spurs writer highlighted Tottenham's own wildly expensive stadium and the fact that the pandemic prevented fans from attending matches which in turn really fucked with Tottenham's cash flow. He talked about the coaching carousel of the last few years and how now Nuno Espirito Santo's preferred style of play doesn't work with the personnel that he's been assigned. Harry Kane was mentioned once or twice. Perhaps, most crucially, the Spurs writer from the Athletic kinda sorta said that Tottenham does not seem to have much of a plan.

The match itself on Sunday was just a lot of fun. As it went on, one of the television announcers kept saying that this was the scene of the rebirth of Arsenal, the renaissance of Arsenal, and at one point I think he called them Arsenal 2.0; it was all a blur, really. After not scoring in play all season, Arsenal hammered home three goals in the first half. The young roster looked positively electric. They reminded me of some of my favorite imperfect NBA teams from years past like the Darius Miles-led Clippers; squads that were on high on potential but that couldn't always get it together. The last time that I wrote I said that I felt bad for Ryan from Stadio for being a Pacers fan since he's also an Arsenal fan. All that I meant by that was these last two seasons finishing eight must have been hard since Arsenal usually compete for top four finishes. Setting those two eighth place finishes aside, there's a lot to really admire about Arsenal. For starters, according to Wikipedia, they have the most diverse fanbase of any football club on the planet. They have also had some really great kits like the bruised banana shirt (which I recently saw listed on Depop for $550) and this year's alternate (which I still maintain will look fire when paired with navy blue socks.)

It must just be weird to think about a club like Arsenal rebuilding in the first place. Are roster rebuilds common in the Premier League? Do teams blow it up? My suspicion is that this not the case. It seems like the unfathomably wealthy clubs stock talent so that they are prepared for any and all tournaments and then everyone else is left hanging on to whatever they can find while hoping that the youth can develop. My NBA-addled mind looks at the work that Arsenal has put in so far and their recent transfer activity and says "there seems to be a plan."

While the derby got a bunch of graphs here, I also enjoyed the matches on Saturday! Manchester City versus Chelsea already sounded like an awesome matchup, and that was before I discovered that City's schedule for the week was Chelsea, PSG and Liverpool or that one time Pep Guardiola and Thomas Tuchel got together for some hanging out that was so intense it intimidated everyone else in the bar. The match itself did not disappoint. I feel that I finally saw the City that everyone is always talking about. They were a joy to watch at times.

Speaking of joyous occasions, Manchester United lost to Aston Villa. As with in recent weeks, I found myself actively rooting for a Man U defeat. At around the 80th minute or so with the score still even, I sighed a little bit because recent weeks were fresh in my mind. "Time for the dumb, fucking smash and grab," I thought to myself. It was such a pleasant surprise to see that not take place. It was almost as nice as the Villa kits (which, not sure if this is a hot take or not but I think these away kits are even sharper than the claret and blue. The subtle pinstriping on the shirt really puts it over the top for me.)

Stepping into this week, I'm most curious to find out whether or not I'll see the City team that I saw take on Chelsea again. I'm also curious to see what shakes out on Attack on Titan but this isn't the blog for that.

#arsenal #tottenham hotspur #spurs #derby #premier league #soccer #Manchester City #pep guardiola #thomas tuchel #hanging out #aston villa #kits #nba #clippers #darius miles #attack on titan #chelsea

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ballplayersxo · 3 years

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Coaches I need fired:

-pacers coach - a report said he mistreats his staff and his players hate him especially Sabonis (my husband)

-pelicans coach - he really isn’t motivating that team, they seem to be sick of him and he has called out the team to the media several times. Old skool tactics ain’t working on the new skool. He can retire.

- blazers coach - enuf is enuf the man has under archived with the best roster the blazers have ever given him and apparently the front office wanted to get rid of him but dame and cj defended and protected him several times. This should be his last season! He would do well for the pacers, a young skilled and rebuilding team.

-bucks coach-esp if they make another ecf but not finals - makes questionable decisions in crunch time consistently, is undermining Giannis prime, he is a great coach but I think he is too stuck in his own ways, I think he would be great for the blazers tbh.

- potentially brad Stevens- I know he has had some bad luck and that his players love him so much but coaching changes can reignite a team especially a young hungry one ! I wish they were coached by thibs (Knicks coach)

Wizards- the man has cabbage for brains, only reason he employed is because of russel Westbrook. A whole ass waste man. Makes bad decisions and let’s Russ do some sicko shit that loses games sometimes. Also has questionable offensive schemes. He needs to hang it up quick. I wish the wizards had ty lue, he would have had them boys on 🔒

Retirement: I love pop so much, that man has earned his rest, he a winner through and through. I hope he takes an early retirement. Well deserved. The Spurs are young and scrappy they need a Nate McMillan type coach, a hardcore but friendly motivator!

Thoughts?

i agree with the blazers cause he’s been there long enough, it’s 100% time to move on. bucks yeah he probably has to go too but idk if it’s mike or the roster is just always shit & giannis can’t perform when it matters. brad? yeah it’s quiet for him. idk much but ik celtics fans HATE that nigga 😭 you’re probably right about the other teams but i haven’t given them much attention so

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checkered-madness · 5 years

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Fallout OC Interview: Al

Saw a post that tagged that anyone can do it so here’s my courier, Al!

Rules:

1. Choose an OC.

2. Answer them as that OC.

3. Tag 5 people to do the same.

1. What is your name? "Alucio Lucas, I prefer to go by Al."

2. How old are you? "I'm 22 years old."

3. What do you look like? "Uhh.. I have Sandy blond hair with darker roots, Green eyes with brown rings around the pupils, I’m kinda skinny, around 5′7 and I wear big clunky Glasses."

4. Where are you from? Where do you live now? "I was from Lee Vining California, I am currently living in Novac, Nevada."

5. What was your childhood like? "Well before all that... I'd say it was fine, My dad was in the NCR and we moved down to southern California then some crazed nutjob from the Brotherhood of Steel went up and killed him! A year after that after Me and My mom were taken by the legion and after her death I was adopted by this nice woman that's a Doctor in this settlement...Can we stop right here? I don't want to talk about it anymore."

6. What groups are you friendly with? Are you allied with any factions? "I support the NCR and I'm good with the Followers, I try to help them with getting supplies whenever I can, I have alot of respect for their goals, and I say The Kings are okay, I don't like the Pacer guy but I really like their leader, He's cool and I guess I can say The Boomers after getting on good terms with them.”

7. Tell me about your best friend. "Uhh out of all my friends, I'd say who is my closet Friend is Garth, He look out for me when I was released from Doc Mitchell after I was shot in the head.”

8. Do you have a family? Tell me about them! "Well my surviving family I know of is my younger sister, She was separated from the legion raid when we were 8 and 6, when I went to the Mojave at 18, I found she was living there and we got to reunited, It was the best thing ever for me at the time."

9. What about a partner or partners? "uhhhh do you mean the romantic ones? If so, I ain't interested in dating anyone."

10. Who are your enemies, and why? " The legion, They can all rot..."

11. Have you ever heard of The Brotherhood of Steel? What do you think about them? "Ehhh yeah... They all isolate themselves in a bunker and they think we're all not capable of having technology, I think they’re a bunch of nutjobs there, some of the members are okay though."

12. What about The Enclave? "All of what I heard of, Some nutjobs that think "THEIR BRINGING AMERICA BACK!" They have their fancy technology stuff, Think their all pure?"

13. How do you feel about Super Mutants? "I met some nice ones but man I don't want to get into fights with them!"

14. What’s the craziest fight you’ve ever been in? " I guess that giant ass robot scorpion in Big MT? There’s other stuff but That’s one of them that takes the cake.”

15. Have you ever fought a Deathclaw?

Yeah.. There’s that time when we cleared the quarry, We all had to go somewhere high to take care of them.. They were tough ass bastards I don’t like fighting them, I rather stay away and never do it again.”

16. Do you like fighting? "To be honest, I rather avoid it, But if I see legion then I will put them down along with some other major scumbags, If it's like a fist fight or something like that, If someone hits me it kicks in."

17. What’s your weapon of choice? "This rifle called Medicine stick and this 9mm pistol I got off of Benny."

18. How do you survive? Your wits, your charm, your skills, brute force, some combination? (a.k.a. what’s your S.P.E.C.I.A.L?) "Well I am a fast runner, I can try is defuse the situation if I can,and my Strength is average.”

19. Have you ever been in a vault? What do you think about them? “Yeah, I have. They have this creepy feel to them and alot them have messed up experiments.. Especially that vault Garth was from..(Vault 11)”

20. How do you beat all the radiation around here? Has it affected you? "Well I take Rad-X when we do get into radiated areas and bring gas masks

21. What’s your favorite wasteland critter? "I’d say Molerats are cute.."

22. What’s your least favorite wasteland critter? "Cazadors and NightStalkers, I rather stay away from venomous demons!"

23. How do you feel about robots? "ED-E is a adorable little guy, I don't like those Gutsy though and I don't really like securtrons but I do like Victor."

24. How many caps do you have on you right now? "Why?"

25. Nuka Cola or Sunset Sarsaparilla? "Sarsaparilla all the way! But Victory is the only Nuka cola drink I actually like though."

26. Do you do chems? "No way I'd touch that crap! Med-x and Stimpaks and any other medically types are the only ones I'm fine with."

27. Do you ever think about the Pre-War world? "um yeah sometimes I do, I think about when looking at places and reading stuff from the past."

28. What’s your deepest regret? What would you do differently? "Well... I wish I was still in the Settlement when it was raided or at least came back sooner so I could of at least save my adoptive mom but I guess I shouldn't dwell on it anymore.."

29. What’s your biggest achievement? Or what do you hope to achieve? "I guess I would say me aiding the NCR, Being part of planning the attack on The Fort and taking down Lanius."

30. What do you want for the future? For yourself? Your friends? The world? "I guess rebuilding, everything becoming a better place."

I’m not good with this so whoever sees this and it interested in doing this too, You’re tagged!

#well they lived close to the Arizona border so that's were the Legion came in #But man I want to do this again with my lone wanderer so bad now #oc interview #Fnv #FONV #fallout #fallout new vegas #Fallout NV #courier six #courier 6 #fallout OC #Alucio Lucas #Garth scribner #mentioned #I'm usually embarrassed of my writing but here I go #Yay more oc lore though

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shadesofjanuaryblues · 5 years

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Chiberia

Chicago.

Chicago. One of the greatest cities. THE Windy city.

Also known as Chitown, Chiberia.

I live here. Not directly in the city, but about 30 minutes out west, in the most basic middle class town. It doesn’t fall into the small-town category, but it isn’t a big town either. But basically, you go to the grocery store, and there is a 43% chance of you running into someone you know.

Well, let’s start from the beginning. I’m an immigrant.

I am pure-breed, one hundred percent Lithuanian. Born and raised. Well, I guess, “halfway” raised. I came here when I had just turned thirteen. Straight into the school-year. Eighth grade.

The middle school I went to wasn’t big. Everyone knew everyone. Obviously there were the popular, the “independent” friend groups, and of course, the not-so-popular. But I’m not here to describe the social pyramid of the American school system.

All you have to know, is that I was placed in an ESL class, which was created to help out students who have a hard time with English. This helped me gain two friends, which gave me a little comfort to go through the school day without having to cry in the bathroom during lunchtime. Hell, I was glad to have someone to borrow a notebook from.

Going back to the whole ESL thing: my family stumbled into the office of the school, merely 2 months after moving here, me having absolutely zero English skills and having not formed any because I was only surrounded by my Lithuanian speaking family, we were told that I was not going to be able to repeat 7th grade, and that I was going to be placed straight into the next school year. Of course, our pale flustered faces were accompanied by my second-hand cousin, who had attended that school as well, earlier on. Anyways, they put me in a class - for immigrants. FANTASTIC resource, don’t you say? Except the biggest problem was that my ESL teacher’s second language was not Lithuanian, it was Spanish.

Now you say, “so many people go through these classes, they learn English, like even you, you’ve been here for, what, eight years already? I can’t even tell that you have an accent!”

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Heard it all before. Yeah, truthfully that class did help me. Not to learn English, but to complete my homework. That’s it. Meanwhile I was in an English class learning the same stuff as the other eighth graders were. History? A bunch of foreign words and gibberish. Science? Oh man, don’t even get me started. Even PE? CONSTANTLY hearing shit I did not understand. Like pacer test? Do you know how much nerve it took for me to ask a fellow classmate what the fuck that was and how do I do it? To literally make a fool out of myself with my “broken English”? Even math. Slopes, fractions, functions? I had not even heard of those terms when I got there, and in eighth grade they weren’t learning it anymore, they were perfecting it. So many hours spent by my kitchen table crying.

One advantage American kids had, was that they could ask their parents. I couldn’t.

Well, in other words I did, but they didn’t know.

And the purpose of this whole written rant isn’t for me to shit on Americans. Not at all. It’s for you, the reader to realize or relate to the struggle immigrants have to go through. And many other issues that I’ll cover later, but this would be the first.

Comes the age 15, I had befriended a fellow Lithuanian, a year earlier, who helped me ENORMOUSLY with my English. Not only the formal language, but the slang as well. This friendship was beneficial to us both, because at this point she had been living there for eight years, and having moved here at an earlier age, her Lithuanian was getting rusty.

Anyways, at 15 I started setting up my first bank deals with my parents. In person I would introduce myself as their daughter, the translator. I was learning new banking terms in English and Lithuanian on a weekly basis. By the phone, I talked on behalf of my mother, I mastered the art of lowering my voice and sounding more formal, knew my mother’s social security number by heart before I had even really looked at mine.

By sixteen I was handling most of my family’s bills, loans, car payments. I was answering most of their formal calls. Later that year my parents opened up a trucking company. With the help of some Lithuanian representatives, and myself, the company was running. I went over all of the contracts that were signed in terms of buying a truck, leasing a trailer, safety and all other regulations (not going to get into detail). Then, I got a temporary job at another trucking company in the summer solely to learn how to dispatch.

I had to learn how to dispatch so I could teach my mother. My mom’s English was still very weak at the time and she was scared to go and learn it herself.

In other words I had no choice. I spend my summer mornings waking up crabby as shit, going upstairs to make phone calls with cocky dudes with egos breaking through the roof. “Illinois to Alabama, one pick, one drop. Potatoes. 750 miles, rate 950”. See at that point I was taught to shoot double, then lower it to the most reasonable price. “Where’s the pickup? Loose potatoes? (Requires a paid wash afterwards, therefore rate should always be higher- waste of money and time), I’ll take it for 1500”, “HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHa are you out of your mind, where have you even heard of prices like this? 1000, take it or leave it”.

Approximately 70 calls a day with one successful, if it’s a good day. Sometimes I’d be on that computer for over 10 hours.

My mom learned, she started dispatching, things got a bit easier. I only had to handle the “bigger” things. Claims, detentions and other shit like that. Stressful as hell, burned out most of my patience out by the age of 17.

At seventeen, I started rebelling. I wasn’t happy with my life, but I also felt fucking invincible. By then I had earned a bit of social acknowledgement, I guess everyone saw me as the bitch I was portraying myself to be. Reckless and bad as fuck.

Street racing, going 120 on the highway to the city and back, drinking in the forest in the car. Coordinating who’s throwing a party on what weekend, sneaking out and coming home hammered, only to sleep for a few hours and go about my day like nothing ever happened.

This lasted a whole year, shit more than that. I made a lot of good and bad memories, been places I really shouldn’t have been, but I don’t regret any of it. But guess where I ended up on Halloween night the year I turned 18?

Cuffed to the fucking wall at a police station.

Wow.

Who would’ve thought, what a surprise!

I’m not quite comfortable going into detail in writing, but if you know me then you know the story, and if not, ask me about it in person, I’ll be happy to tell you.

The one thing I want to put on the table is that it wasn’t drug affiliated, and not criminal.

However, I was facing jail time. But hey, I was lucky enough to get those charges dropped, and that was the biggest lesson I could ever have.

From that point on, I went to my court dates, reevaluated my life, and started rebuilding. I had to switch schools, which introduced me to new people, ended up cutting some off, and befriending new ones. Graduated, started going to the local community college. I was working the whole time, trying to make spending money, still helping out my parents with all the financial stuff. In college I was undecided, tried out a couple different options, they didn’t seem to work out.

Not this brings up another issue I have with the way society has been built.

HIGHER EDUCATION.

I ended up picking something I felt I had an interest in, and not what my parents thought would be good for me. I enrolled in the architecture program. I was doing great, I was able to keep my focus, I wanted to improve and was eager to learn new things. Finished off the first semester. Through sweat, sleepless nights, and tears – ended up with all A’s. That significantly brought my GPA up.

By the second semester, I was ready. I was excited, because at this point we were actually starting to be able to create. This had to be my favorite part, because I consider myself relatively creative, I constantly have random ideas flowing in my head. It’s kind of like slight madness.

Anyways, when we started, my architecture program coordinator was teaching one of the classes. By that time I had already formed a professional relationship with her, she was very helpful and gave enormously valuable advice. Every project we did, I put my heart and my soul into. There weren’t any major guidelines, yet I kept being told to simplify my work. I kept being told to change it up, almost so I would blend into the other projects hanging up beside mine. I talked to my professor, she complimented my creativity, she said she hasn’t seen this much creativity and thought in a very long time, yet I still had to change it, and simplify it.

I don’t blame her, or anyone, really, but I felt myself get more and more suppressed. I felt like I had to fit into a basic box that’s been designed by someone else. I accepted it, decided to move forward. Life is all about compromise, isn’t it?

But then, in the middle of my somewhat peaceful life…

….I found out my mom was having an affair.

It’s almost like being practically the head of the family, I finally stepped a couple steps down and within a few blinks everything went to shit.

Wow, I can’t even describe you how I felt, truly broken. Like even worse, I felt like family was ripped out of my hands.

I tend to rely heavily on friends and family, and these two really are the only thing that kept me alive throughout all those years. And just like that, it’s gone.

The day I found out, I had been driving to the mall with my mom. I was putting a song on thru her phone, when a text message came in. I recognized the number, I had asked her about it roughly 4 months ago. She told me it was nothing, just some stupid guy hitting on her, and that she blocked his number. During that car ride, looking out the window I realized that all those evening yoga classes weren’t really even yoga after all. Shit hit me hard. But what I managed to blurt out was “I’m going to pretend I didn’t see this, so that we have one good last day, and I will deal with this tomorrow”.

Fast forward over the next month or so, listening to my mother’s lies, and my dad’s psychosis trying to vent to me, I lost my mind. Actually, this time. I lost it. I dropped out of school after numerous failed attempts to show up. I would park up, get my backpack and tell myself “okay I’m going to go in one minute”, on repeat, until the class ended and I would take my ass back home, shameful and full of hatred. My anxiety and depression peaked at this point. I went to therapy, refused drugs, decided to continue going to therapy until I got somewhat stable. My friends pulled me out of the hole, forcefully, very unpleasantly, but I am eternally grateful for them. Took a very long time to heal, but I healed, I got back up, and I started moving forward.

Shortly after my father found out my mom was having an affair, he switched his life around trying to win her back. I respect him for that, however it didn’t work. The house went on sale. The house got sold. Dad (who is actually my stepdad but has been raising me since I was 3 years old), was moving in with his friend. I didn’t like that friend at all, he was an alcoholic and quite inappropriate at times. Mom? Off with her new husband. Greta with her dog and cat? Choose.

Do I want to live with someone who makes me feel very uncomfortable and is quite unpredictable?

Or do I live with the man who is the reason my family, and my life has fallen apart? Whom I, in fact, fantasized about stabbing at the time?

I said fuck you to them both. Picked up more hours at my two jobs, with the help of my dad, I rented out a 500 square foot studio apartment. I worked a fuck ton, and I mean it. From one job to another in the same day, back and forth thru the week. Paid my bills, dad helped if I came up a few hundred bucks short. My diet consisted of solely the food I could get at the restaurant I was working at. If I worked there only 4 days that week, that means I was only going to be eating those 4 days, the next three, I’d get off my other job, if the time was right I would visit someone and eat what they gave me, if not I’d literally not eat. Cigarettes were expensive and they were my priority.

Slowly my dad got back on his feet, despite his deep depression that he simply wasn’t able to understand. He started out helping out more and more, at this point I was able to save a few bucks for myself. Those bucks were spent mostly on ramen and bottom shelf wine.

A while later, I got promoted at my job. I started being a manager at the restaurant I was working at, and then slowly went into accounting.

Quit my retail job, and have been relying on shifting from manager to waitress for the past 6 months.

I would go into detail about how difficult it is to be put in a higher position as a 21 year old white woman, working with middle age white men, but that’s just a buzzkill. Everyone knows “white men run this shit” and I have a HUUUGE problem with that, but it’s fine. Not going to worry about it.

So why, after all this time, this magical city that I’ve seen my best ant my worst moments in, suddenly makes me sick to my stomach? Why can’t I stand being here?

Is it a bad case of (literally all year long) January blues? Is it all the cold and the gray? Is it all the garbage on the streets?

Downtown Chicago is like a painting you hang up on your wall. “Like, wouldn’t it be cool to be there right now?”, or “okay, this is the building I’m going to live in”. Pure fantasy, baby. You drive to your minimum wage job that you hate, you see the Chicago skyline in between the clouds ahead. All it is – a reminder that you probably will not be able to live on the 92nd floor of that building, no matter how hard you try. Some of us will try our best, but we will not achieve great things. Chances are slim, so we definitely should still try, but prepare for the worst. Life is funny, it will never go the way you want it to.

I type this from my dad’s apartment, which I moved back into, with the hopes of going back to school soon.

A few more things I want to mention while I’m here:

1. Value your family, always. No matter how dirty they do you.

2. It’s okay to hold your life on pause, to fix and reevaluate, as long as you make progress after.

3. Don’t rush to move out of your parents, you will feel lonely. Like really fucking lonely.

4. Don’t max out your new credit cards if you don’t want to be paying the bill (I’m currently still working on this)

5. Yes, these new Nike’s will make you feel like a bad bitch, but you worked 10 hours for this amount of money.

6. Don’t take a fucking 5 year loan out on a car that doesn’t hold value, shit drops value by the minute. Worst thing to ever invest in.

7. Treat your friends to lunch, and make sure they feel appreciated, even if it’s Wendy’s 4 for 4.

8. Last, but not least: don’t fucking litter please.

#chicago #januaryblues #lifelesson #tumblr #immigrant #lithuania #blog #long #text #read #story #biography #anonymous

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nbatrades · 10 years

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Miami Heat Move Up In Draft; Acquire Shabazz Napier

On June 27th, 2014, the Miami Heat traded the draft rights of P.J. Hairston and Semaj Christon, a 2019 second round draft pick (Jaylen Nowell) and cash considerations to the Charlotte Hornets for the draft rights of Shabazz Napier.

When the King tells you to do something, you do it or so the story went, when one LeBron James caused a stir on Twitter. The multi-time NBA MVP, made his feelings known that Shabazz Napier was the steal of the 2014 NBA Draft and his favorite player in the 2014 draft class.

No way u take another PG in the lottery before Napier.

— LeBron James (@KingJames)

April 8, 2014

My favorite player in the draft! #Napier

— LeBron James (@KingJames)

June 27, 2014

Napier was a two-time NCAA champion and was fresh off a season that saw him nominated as NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player after leading the UConn Huskies to a National Championship.

In a coincidence — or not depending on what you read — the Miami Heat were focused on taking Napier in the draft, but faced a tough road to acquiring Napier with the 26th pick in the draft. Knowing that there was a possibility of a rival team taking Napier, the Heat braintrust of Pat Riley and co. scoured the league for a chance to move up the draft. The problem was that Miami’s infatuation with Napier was public, damaging their leverage in any trade.

Eventually, the Heat found the Charlotte Hornets who were willing to move down in the draft to acquire a shooter in P.J. Hairston. Charlotte had the 24th overall selection and drafted Napier for Miami. For the deed, the Heat sent the Hornets their 26th pick as well as two second rounders in 2014 and 2019.

Hairston was a promising talent with a checkered past. A former University of North Carolina Tar Heel, Hairston had been suspended by the NCAA after he was arrested on a drug charge at a traffic stop in 2013. The car that Hairston drove was under the name of felon Haydn Patrick "Fats" Thomas.

The NCAA suspended Hairston — who led the team in scoring during the 2012-13 season — and North Carolina refused to apply for reinstatement. With no other options, Hairston turned to the NBA’s D-League, where he played for the Texas Legends during the 2013-14 season in what would have been his junior season in college. He played well, averaging 21.8 PPG while shooting nearly 36% from three in 26 games.

Charlotte had a need for perimeter shooting and Hairston fit the bill leading to his arrival as Charlotte’s second pick of the draft behind Indiana University’s Noah Vonleh.

Miami had hoped to keep LeBron James, but the former MVP decided to return home to join the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Heat were forced to pivot and rebuild on the fly. Though stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh committed to stay, James’ departure left a massive hole in Miami’s lineup.

Entering his first basketball action, Napier joined Miami for 2014 Summer League. Playing for both Heat Summer League entries in Orlando and Las Vegas, Napier saw action in nine games. Napier had a rough performance, scoring 9.7 PPG on 27.5% shooting while having 3.8 assists per game versus 4.2 turnovers per game.

In a post-Lebron world, Miami got off to a 5-2 start after seven games. Injuries would derail their season. Wade missed 20 games and Bosh missed nearly half of the year after being diagnosed with a blood clot on his lung. Without Bosh in the latter half of the season damaged Miami’s playoff hopes as the team missed out on the playoffs by one game with a 37-45 record.

Napier had an inconsistent rookie season. Though he had a spot in Miami’s rotation through the first 20 games, his playing time was a rollercoaster ride. Napier even spent time in the NBA's Developmental League with the Sioux Fall Skyforce, averaging 19.5 PPG on 41.9% from the field, 5.0 RPG and 3.8 APG in four games.

Napier’s season ended early, as he had surgery for a sports hernia. He ended up with 5.1 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 2.5 APG and 0.8 SPG in 51 games (10 starts) and 19.8 MPG.

After his inconsistent rookie campaign, Napier played on the Heat’s 2015 Summer League entries in Las Vegas and Orlando. Nappier appeared in one game in Orlando where he recorded 14 points, four rebounds and six assists in a little over 17 minutes. In Vegas, Napier made appearances in three games and struggled, averaging 18.0 PPG on 34.9% shooting, 3.0 RPG and 4.0 APG in 25.1 MPG.

Soon after Summer League, the Miami dealt Napier to the Orlando Magic for a conditional second round pick in 2016. Looking to avoid the luxury tax, Miami also had the goal of keeping roster space open for guards Tyler Johnson and Josh Richardson. Trading Napier for future considerations enabled the Heat to save $4.5 million in salary and luxury tax savings.

After the Hornets acquired Semaj Christon on draft night, they dealt his draft rights on the same day to the Oklahoma City Thunder for cash considerations.

It didn’t take long for Hairston to have another off the court issue. He was charged with assault and battery after getting into an altercation with a high school basketball player at the Durham YMCA.

Seen as a quality shooter, Hairston struggled in Charlotte’s Summer League appearance in Las Vegas. Hairston put up 18.3 PPG, but shot just 33% from the field and 34% from beyond the three-point line.

After adding Pacers guard Lance Stephenson in free agency, the Hornets were expected to build upon the previous season that saw them make the playoffs for the first time in four years. Charlotte went 4-15 in their first 19 games. The team was 10-24 when they went on a 12-3 run to wind up seventh in the East with a 22-27 record.

After 61 games, the Hornets were still seventh with a 28-33 mark. Their playoff hopes would come crashing down with a 5-16 finish that brought the team down to 33-49. Though Charlotte had managed to put together a solid, top-five defense, their offense was not up to task, finishing third-worst in offensive efficiency. A major problem was outside shooting for Charlotte. The team finished worst in the league in three-point shooting percentage (31.8%).

Hairston had some minor injuries, but for parts of the season found himself outside of Charlotte’s rotation. When he did play, Hairston was a mess, jacking up long distance threes regularly while converting on a very low rate (30.1%). This was a problem considering Charlotte brought Hairston in to space the floor and keep the defense honest. On defense, Hairston wasn’t much better. He failed many times to stick with his man and had a penchant for falling asleep off the ball.

Hairston also displayed immaturity, failing to adhere to the responsibilities of an NBA player. He was benched one night for missing a weight training session and benched another for missing a practice. Overall, Hairston appeared in 45 games during his rookie season and amassed 5.6 PPG, 2.0 RPG, 0.5 APG and 0.5 SPG in 15.3 MPG.

Going back to the drawing board, the Hornets got rid of Stephenson and acquired forward Nicolas Batum in separate trades. The franchise also picked up point guard Jeremy Lin in free agency and drafted big man Frank Kaminsky.

Hairston continued to find his name in the news. He was cited for speeding, driving with a revoked license, driving left of center and driving on expired tags. Hairston made five appearances in Orlando for Charlotte’s Summer League team. The 6′6″ wing produced 12.2 PPG, but was inefficient, shooting 29% from three and 33% overall.

Before the start of the 2015-16 season, the Hornets chose to decline Hairston’s team option for the 2016-17 season. This made the guard an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2016. Inconsistent play and behavior on and off the court were cited as major reasons for Charlotte choosing to decline the option.

Hairston was given a chance for some playing time after starter Michael Kidd-Gilchrist suffered a torn labrum in his left shoulder. With Kidd-Gilchrist out for the foreseeable future, Hairston started the first 43 games that he appeared in. Hairston made noticeable improvements defensively after the Hornets gave him the directive to focus specifically on guarding the top perimeter options of the opposition. Charlotte did well early on with Hairston on the floor as a starter, going 14-8 in their first 22 games.

Still, Hairston could not find his shot. He had a 31.1% three-point percentage after his 43 starts and shot just 36.3% overall. After Kidd-Gilchrist returned from injury, Hairston was benched. Before the trade deadline, Hairston was dealt to the Memphis Grizzlies in a three-team deal involving the Miami Heat. The trade sent Courtney Lee to Charlotte via Memphis. Charlotte was 27-26 at the time of the trade and looking to make a playoff push.

Hairston finished his time in Charlotte failing to provide the perimeter shot that he was touted for coming into the league. He appeared in 93 games, averaging 5.8 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 0.5 APG and 0.5 SPG. The Carolina product shot 34% from the field, 31% from three and 83% from the charity stripe in that time.

The 2019 second rounder that Charlotte acquired from Miami was dealt in February of 2015 by the Hornets to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a deal centered around Mo Williams. The pick ended up in the 43rd spot of the 2019 draft. The Wolves used the selection on University of Washington guard Jaylen Nowell.

Shabazz Napier on if he would have any impact on bringing LeBron James back to Miami (via Sun Sentinel):

“I don’t know if I’m bringing him back [to Miami]. I would love it. Me and LeBron’s relationship, he’s a great guy. I’ve been to his camps. Me and him chatted a few times at his camps.”

On his role when he starts in Miami:

“There’s always opportunity to do something great, and no matter if I was going to slide in as a starter or come off the bench, I’m still going to work hard. I’m going to compete. That’s who I am.”

On his mentality starting new in the NBA:

“The first thing that jumps off is the winning attitude. That’s one of the biggest things. When you compete at that high level, you want to win every single game. That winning attitude comes in the first day you arrive at that camp. On the first day you arrive to that organization, you want to work, and you want to prove that you can get back there.”

On having a chip on his shoulder (via ESPN):

“No, the chip never leaves my shoulder. It will never leave my shoulder. That’s what makes me who I am. And I was saying that not to belittle any other point guards. There’s a reason why they’re here. But I was just saying that because that’s who I am. I wouldn’t be Shabazz Napier if I wouldn’t have said that. I believe it, and I’m going to prove it.

“What I always learned was that whatever you put in is what you’re going to get out. If I don’t put in the work, it's not going to show. So there’s always a chip on my shoulder to prove to myself that I'm the best, and to do that, I’ve got to work hard.”

If he thinks LeBron will come back:

“I would hope so. He’s one of the best players in the world. So if me going there helps him come back, it just betters our chances of being a complete team.”

On a conversation he had with Pat Riley after a workout (via Miami Herald):

"[Riley] was just giving me a lot of advice about the NBA, and adjustments and understanding that when you come into this league, you’ve got to work at this to be the best, and that’s exactly what I want to be. He never sugarcoated anything. He just said you have to be ready to work at every opportunity whether I was with them or not. It was definitely something I cherished and appreciated. It was kind of buzzing around that I wasn’t going to last that long [in the draft], but he wanted to tell me the right things, and I was really appreciative of that.”

P.J. Hairston on what he told Hornets management about the off the court mistakes he made while in college (News & Observer via Charlotte Observer):

“There was nobody else to blame. I put myself in that situation, and I had to pay the consequence. It was up to me to turn it all around – that I was able to overcome what’s happened in the last 12 months.”

On playing in the D-League after he was banned from the NCAA:

“The D-League wasn’t my choice, but when I was there it was, ‘OK, this is your job now.’ I wasn’t playing against boys now; I was playing against men. I think that’s huge in getting me prepared for the NBA – playing against guys just as strong, just as athletic, just as quick as me.”

How he tightened up on the group of people that hang around him:

“I now have a smaller circle (of acquaintances), and I keep my family in that smaller circle.”

On his defense:

“I’m not a bad defender, but there are things I need to work on. On-the-ball defense is probably my weakest thing. But it’s not something I can’t fix.”

Miami Heat president of basketball operations Pat Riley on Shabazz Napier (via Heat.com):

“Shabazz Napier is a winner, he’s a two-time NCAA champion and he’s one of the elite players in college basketball. We feel very fortunate we were able to acquire him and we feel like he fits in extremely well. He has a high motor, high basketball IQ, is a great shooter and has great character.”

How Napier fits in coach Erik Spoelstra’s system (via Miami Herald):

“We’re very fortunate to have drafted Shabazz, and we feel very excited about him and what he can bring. He’s a two-time champion, high-motor guy, character guy, very quick, can shoot the ball, so he’s got a lot of qualities that fit with what [coach] Erik [Spoelstra] wants to do.”

How it was difficult to acquire Napier due to rivals knowing of Miami’s interest in the point guard:

“It’s very difficult when everyone knows you’re zeroing in on somebody.”

What the process is like trying to move up in the draft (via Palm Beach Post):

“It’s fun. It’s moving quick. You’ve got five guys working the phones and Adam (Simon) and Chet (Kammerer) and Erik (Spoelstra) and Andy (Elisburg) and Micky (Arison) and Nick (Arison) and everybody’s in this room talking to everybody on the phone. You feel like you’re on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at that particular time. Plus people are asking for this and asking for that — two first-round picks. It’s pretty exciting at that time. That’s what the draft is about for a lot of people. But we wanted this player, and the closer we got to our pick, I fell more in love with him. So you don’t want to get left at the altar.”

On picking so late in the first round of the draft:

“When you’re picking 26th, you never know what’s going to be there for that standpoint. So from that standpoint, we feel very good about adding [Napier] to the roster.”

On Napier competing with backup point guard Norris Cole for minutes:

“He’s going to compete just like Norris. They’re both cut out of the same cloth. Mario [Chalmers] is a free agent, so we’ve got to deal with that, so we’ll have some depth there at that position.”

On Napier’s competitive mindset (via ESPN):

“He’s a very competitive person, and I think competitive without a huge ego, too. He’s a winner. He’s talented and he’s skilled. You just have to watch him play the game and you can see the competitive level we all like.”

On questions of whether Heat forward LeBron James’ interest in Napier influenced the Heat’s decision in drafting the point guard:

“I know LeBron tweeted something out in the NCAA [tournament] about him. Why not. If LeBron and I have the same taste in talent, so be it. But he didn’t call me on the phone, or he didn’t make a point to me about it.”

Charlotte Hornets general manager Rich Cho on acquiring P.J. Hairston (via Hornets.com):

“When we made the trade to move back a couple of spots, with all the intel we acquired, we felt that P.J. would be there at 26, so we got some additional assets. P.J. was one of the best shooters in the draft. We followed him for a long time and did a lot of background work on him. He had a great year in the D-League in Texas and is a guy that really fills a need for us. Another thing we wanted to come away with in the draft was shooting, and he provides that for us in a big way.”

On his confidence that Hairston would be available at the 26th spot of the draft (via Hornets.com):

“We were pretty confident. We felt that Miami — when they called us to trade up — wanted Napier from all the background work that we had done. The next pick, Houston, we felt that they weren’t going to take P.J. We felt like moving back two spots would be beneficial. We could pick up a couple of assets.”

On being aware of some of Hairston’s prior off the court troubles:

“We’re aware of all the issues. We had a good interview with him, he came here a couple times to work out and we're comfortable with the situation.”

Hornets head coach Steve Clifford on drafting Hairston despite concerns off the court (News & Observer via Charlotte Observer):

“There are concerns always when there have been things in the past, but we did a ton of intel on all of these guys. Not one guy making one call. If we weren’t comfortable he can be a dependable, efficient NBA player, we wouldn’t have taken him so high.”

On Hairston’s defense:

“That’s not his strength yet, but he certainly has toughness and physicality and instincts. So there’s no reason why he can’t be a good defender.”

Hairston’s coach at North Carolina Roy Williams on Hairston joining the Hornets (via Charlotte Observer):

“I am happy that he will still play in state and for another Tar Heel, Michael Jordan. Life has given him another opportunity and he will take great advantage of that chance.”

Related Tweets:

Miami! Joining the #Framily- just got my @Samsung tab from @Sprint! http://t.co/ETAG7w4KFF

— Shabazz Napier (@ShabazzNapier)

June 27, 2014

Image Credit:

P.J. Hairston via Sam Sharpe/USA Today Sports

Shabazz Napier via Getty Images/Mike Ehrmann

#Shabazz Napier #PJ Hairston #Semaj Christon #2014 #Heat #2014*15 Season #Jaylen Nowell #Hornets

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