#Phoenix is always calm cool and collected

[hederasgarden]

Today I’m thinking about a somehow equally nerdy navy medic with a crush on sweet Bob and Phoenix and hangman obsessed with trying to get these 2 to realise they like each other that’s all…

Hangman would be so amused, I think, and view it as his personal reality TV show. Maybe Rooster catches on because Hangman is staring awfully hard at Bob one day.

“Working on a crush there, buddy?" Rooster asks, tilting his head in Bob's direction. "It's okay, you can tell me. This is a safe space."

“Huh?" Jake asks before he shakes his head and rolls his eyes. "No. But someone else is," he says, drawing the other man's attention to the way you're leaning against the wall, openly staring at their WSO. You're watching him so intently that it takes you a few tries to find your straw with your tongue. It's almost endearing how inept you are.

Then the two of them end up working together to help you get the attention of a clueless Bob and oblivious Phoenix. After a few mishaps, Hangman decides a direct approach is necessary because as oblivious as his two teammates are, you’re even worse.

Pairing: Robert “Bob” Floyd x Reader x Natasha “Phoenix” Trace

Word count: 700

Rating: Gen. Humor and flirting.

Hangman first comes to you after you've finished the annual mandatory CPR training course for the pilots.

“Look,” he starts, leaning in close enough for you to get a whiff of his overpowering aftershave. Your nose wrinkles in disgust. “I get it, you’re a little inept at this whole thing but I’m here to help.”

“Okay, buddy...I think I know way more about anatomy than you do,” you tell him, packing away the CPR dummies. His friend with the mustache coughs and Hangman arches one golden eyebrow looking bemused. It takes you a few seconds to realize what you said. Before you have the chance to feel embarrassed or over explain yourself, he speaks.

"I get it," he assures you. "But I was referring to your little crush on Bob and Phoenix."

“That's not… what… you're crazy," you sputter, shaking your head. "You're way off base," you go on, internally freaking out because you'd been SO careful to play it cool and keep it on the DL. You were a consummate professional every time you interacted with Bob and Phoenix. Calm, cool, and collected. Smooth as butter.

"Uh-huh. There's no need to be shy, sweetheart. We're gonna help you get your man. And girl," he adds.

You're not sure if it's his insufferable smirk or the ridiculousness of the situation but your embarrassment fizzles out and you're left feeling more annoyed than anything else. Who did this guy think he was?

"First, Lieutenant Trace isn't a girl. She is a woman and an accomplished pilot to boot. Also, don't call me sweetheart. It's weird and creepy.” You poke him in the chest to drive home your point. "Also, you can tell Tom Selleck over there I don't need his help either."

“Woah, hey," the other man says, hands raised. "I'm just an innocent bystander here."

"What's your plan?" Hangman questions. "Stare at them some more?"

You scowl but before you can reply another voice interjects. “This guy bothering you?”

Your freeze at the familiar voice, your surprised expression mirroring Hangman’s. Phoenix’s dark brown eyes meet yours when you turn and oh god, she looks so effortlessly beautiful. You should reply with something witty and funny but it’s all you can do to stand there, slack jawed until you see Bob right behind her.

He offers you a bright smile and Phoenix touches your shoulder as she leans in to mock whisper, “Hangman’s not always the best at knowing when he’s not wanted. Like now for example.”

“What the hell is happening right now?” Hangman asks.

“As entertaining as it was to watch you obsess over this whole thing, I decided the direct approach was easier for everyone involved,” the mustached man says.

“Okay, Tom. You’re good people,” you finally say.

“It’s Rooster actually and I know. Such a good person,” he says with a wink, nudging Hangman.

“Bye, Bagman,” Bob says, staring at the other man until he finally leaves with Rooster.

“Now,” Phoenix begins, fingertips dancing down your arm to capture your hand in hers. “What’s this about you having a crush on us?”

[saintsenara]

Sirius/Ginny? I mean, canon setting is 🫣, but an AU where Sirius lives or time travel AU?

thank you very much for the ask, anon!

i've had to hear a huge amount about sinevra [a hot ship name if ever there was one] over the past year or so because @whinlatter is a paid-up believer in its viability. and i must say...

i'm convinced.

the first thing to get out of the way is that ginny's clearly got a wee crush on dear ol' padfoot. she spends several of the scenes which take place in the summer of order of the phoenix trying her best to get his attention - albeit in a way which prompts visceral flashbacks to being fifteen - by showering his bff [crookshanks] with affection and doing all she can to seem cool and fun.

but when this initial mortification is out of the way, there are hints of a broader platonic compatibility [at least from ginny's perspective, sirius is undoubtedly hard-pressed to remember her name during the canon timeline] that could very easily transition into something romantic if an author so desires - particularly in a scenario where they've both survived the war.

which we can see most clearly in the aftermath of arthur weasley being attacked by nagini:

"Your father knew what he was getting into, and he won't thank you for messing things up for the Order!" said Sirius angrily in his turn. "This is how it is - this is why you're not in the Order - you don't understand - there are things worth dying for!" "Easy for you to say, stuck here!" bellowed Fred. "I don't see you risking your neck!" The little colour remaining in Sirius's face drained from it. He looked for a moment as though he would quite like to hit Fred, but when he spoke, it was in a voice of determined calm. "I know it's hard, but we've all got to act as though we don't know anything yet. We've got to stay put, at least until we hear from your mother, all right?" Fred and George still looked mutinous. Ginny, however, took a few steps over to the nearest chair and sank into it.

ginny's acquiescence to sirius' point-of-view - even though she begins the scene taking the same line as fred and george - is really quite striking.

because - of course - it's due to her respecting his authority [noteworthy enough, since sirius' obvious depression during his confinement in grimmauld place reduces his authority status in harry and hermione's eyes].

but it's also due to the fact that she's one of the few child characters who ever really seems to get this idea of there being things worth - collectively - dying for.

harry - however terrified he is of voldemort and however dangerous he considers his mission against him to be - still fundamentally sees defeating the dark lord as something which is his responsibility and his responsibility alone. while he's upset to be excluded from the order in order of the phoenix, he stops caring about its work the moment he knows about the prophecy. he's shocked to learn that he must die in deathly hallows not just because this is shocking full-stop, but because he's never envisioned a scenario where he isn't the person delivering voldemort's death blow.

the divide between harry [and ron and hermione, to some extent] and the rest of the order when it comes to what the war is and what it means is a really interesting thread to unravel in all sorts of pairings [romantic or not]. and it's particularly interesting when thinking about his relationship - again, romantic or not - with both sirius and ginny.

it's striking in canon that the order never really seem to understand voldemort as anything other than a terrorist - which is to say, they never understand the more mystical aspects to the war and, especially, to his obsession with harry.

[many of the death eaters seem to be the same.]

this is the case for sirius. it always stands out to me how his only response to harry telling him about the vision he had of nagini attacking arthur is to ask whether he's told dumbledore - which directly contributes to harry's unwillingness to keep him informed about his occlumency lessons. he is similarly disinclined to tell harry anything about the prophecy - he may want harry to be told more about the order's operations than molly does, but harry doesn't learn anything which actually ends up being useful to his own battle against voldemort from him.

ginny, in contrast, is someone harry deliberately keeps at arm's length from the mystical aspects of his mission [even though, based on what she says to him at dumbledore's funeral, she's grasped these a lot quicker than sirius].

she is reduced to trying to do what the order does - running the hogwarts outpost of a conventional resistance movement while harry goes on his horcrux hunt [something harry never seriously considers to be worthwhile; he treats the story of her attempting to steal the sword of gryffindor as though it was all a laugh], while undoubtedly knowing that her contribution to the cause is minimal.

there are a lot of parallels there with sirius' experience in order of the phoenix. his depression is exacerbated by a feeling of uselessness - the only contribution to the order's work which he understands as worthwhile is an active one; he doesn't see the domestic aspects of the order's mission as valuable and he doesn't realise that harry needs his emotional support in grappling with the mystical side of his connection to voldemort.

i am really compelled by the idea of sirius and ginny bonding over this experience of being peripheral to what the war actually ended up being about, especially because each of them could offer the other the recognition that they did the best they could with the information they had [an act of forgiveness i think they'd be unable to offer themselves]. and i am compelled by the idea of this turning into something more.

i also think ginny would love a motorcycle.

[likeabxrdinflight]

Naturally I have a lot of thoughts about Azula's role in the live action adaptation. I'd say about 95% of them are positive thoughts.

First of all, I love that she is this baby-faced, squishy-cheeked kid (I know her actress is a little older than the character but that's okay.) At Elizabeth Yu's age, I also easily passed for 14-15, she just has a young-looking face and clearly hasn't lost all her baby fat. And that is perfect, actually. I've criticized the sharpness and angularity of the animated Azula many times over, she has always looked far too old for her canonical age. I've said it before and I'll say it again- it's a problem that so many people watched the original cartoon and thought Azula was older than Zuko. I can't even blame them for it, she's drawn to look 20 or older. So it is wonderful to see a version of Azula who looks closer to her canonical age. I think it really drives home the point.

That said, this Azula is definitely different than her animated counterpart in other ways. The animated Azula was (almost) always perfectly in control. She could become angry and snap at people- but it was fairly rare, Azula always seemed the image of perfect calm, control, and precision. She was deadly precisely because she was so cool and collected and did not get easily rankled. This was also part of what made her breakdown so shocking.

The thing is, the breakdown is not especially foreshadowed prior to season three. There are a few moments that show the chinks in Azula's armor, but most of them don't come until "The Beach," and then after Mai and Ty Lee's betrayal. I've always believed that betrayal was the real inciting incident for her eventual psychotic break- I've argued before that it sent Azula into what's called a prodromal state, which is like a sort of "pre-psychosis."

More on the animated version's mental state here

Point being, there's really only one instance in season two that suggests any flaws to Azula's cool exterior, and it's one of her very first scenes. You know the one: "almost isn't good enough." It makes for a very subtle build-up to the breakdown and her eventual fall. But it comes at the cost of depicting her predominantly as a capital-V Villain prior to it. You're not really supposed to sympathize with Azula until "The Beach," arguably not until "Into the Inferno." For most of the animated show's run, you're supposed to find her scary and threatening.

And this is done effectively- almost too effectively. She's an obvious foil to Zuko, and serves as such a good primary antagonist that they had to neutralize her in the finale by giving her the breakdown. It's like they knew there was no way a healthy Azula was going to be beatable during Sozin's Comet. She appeared to be an effortlessly talented fire bender, a brilliant strategist, and a more dangerous opponent than even Ozai.

Live action Azula does not have this same feeling to her. There is still something "scary" about her- we see her watching people being burned alive with little to no reaction, and her face is quite blank at Zuko's Agni Kai. She's still cunning and still willing to manipulate things to her advantage- we see this in how she plays Zhao. So if this version gets a season two I have no doubt that this Azula will still serve as a dangerous antagonist to the Gaang and I don't doubt this is still an Azula capable of bringing down Ba Sing Se.

But she's not quite the calm, collected character she first seemed in the animated version. This Azula is a little less hinged. She has more moments of snapping and losing some of that perfect control. She's more frustrated and feels more at the mercy of her father. She reads far more like the Azula we saw in "The Phoenix King," the one who talked back and protested that her father couldn't treat her like Zuko. That Azula, however, was about one bad night's sleep away from a psychotic break. This Azula, presumably, isn't there yet.

I can agree that something of her original character gets lost when you essentially start foreshadowing the breakdown from the jump. It's not gonna be a surprise to any new audiences. She's not gonna be quite the same. But it does humanize her much sooner than the original show did, and it asks the audience to consider her circumstances from the jump- is this a sympathetic character or not? I obviously think she is in the original, and I do think in the end she was meant to be. But it's much more of a debate. The live action show unequivocally says "yes" and does not make it a debate at all.

I'd be tempted to say it's not trusting the audience to read between the lines, but given all the Azula discourse...they might be right to take this more direct approach.

Anyways. Live action Azula also feels more like a real teenager. She's petty, she's irritable, she's desperate to remain in her father's favor and beat her brother in the artificial competition her father has set up between them and will go to any lengths to do so- lengths she probably wouldn't have in the cartoon. She has a strong drive to prove herself and to protect the image she constructs about herself as the "perfect daughter." But that image also feels far more fragile than it did in the animated version.

This Azula doesn't say that "almost [perfect] isn't good enough." She says that "it [perfect] isn't good enough." It's a subtle but meaningful difference.

(Side note- I think the reason this Azula is fine shooting lightning in the direction of her father, seemingly in defiance of his orders, is a direct result of the change to the Agni Kai- she watched as Ozai berated and burned Zuko for not giving him his all, versus in the original where Zuko's sin was in not fighting back period. So here she's showing Ozai her "all", she's giving him everything she has to prove she's capable of doing more than Zuko running drills and smoking out resistance rings.)

I like this change. I like this more desperate, more grounded take on Azula. She feels like a real girl in a horrendous home environment. This Azula was raised in a family where it's expected you be cool with setting people on fire in the throne room and where there's a tangible symbol of Daddy's love sitting beneath him at all times. This Azula was forged in the fires of competition and manipulation that's more subtle than the animated Ozai ever seemed capable of. (More on Ozai later, but he's a much more subtle character than his animated counterpart despite still being...pretty blatantly Evil). So I think it makes sense that she's not quite as calm and controlled and perfect as the animated version.

I don't know yet which version I'll prefer when all is said and done- she was ultimately a minor role in this season. Animated Azula is iconic and always will be, but there's a lot I've always been critical of about how she was depicted in the original show. I think a lot of us that love and empathize with Azula do so despite the way she was written, not because of it. This version might change things a little.

But it also might make it seem infinitely more cruel if she isn't given some kind of redemptive ending (or at least one that implies some hope for her.) The bleak ending of the original show might feel really bad for this more sympathetic version of Azula. So if they stick with that...I dunno. It could hit or miss.

For now, I like what I'm seeing. And Elizabeth Yu understood the assignment.

[liyawritesss]

ᖴᒪOᗯEᖇᔕ Iᑎ ᗷᒪOOᗰ - ᐯᗩᒪEᑎTIᑎEᔕ ᗪᖇᗩᗷᗷᒪEᔕ

Ｄａｙ ４ － Ｃｈｅｅｋ Ｋｉｓｓｅｓ

－ Well Earned Reward - Phoenix/Jaime Adeyemi - Valorant

－ In which you reward Phoenix with a kiss after a well fought sparring match.

－ Check out more prompts and other activities on the Flowers In Bloom Event Masterlist!

Phoenix was many things. An excellent shot, a quick thinker, and cool under pressure, not to mention a self-proclaimed king due to his confidence. It could be argued that he was among the best that the Protocol had in its ranks, considering he was amongst the first to join and would have more resources and time allocated to honing his skills.

What Phoenix was not, however, was smooth. Something of which Jett and Yoru would never let him forget so long as he lived, and coincidentally, were doing right this moment.

“Dude, they totally demolished you on that mat,” Jett says, hands smoothing down her hair as she smooths back the flyaways that had shaken from her ponytail, “and the second-hand embarrassment is real.”

“She did no such thing!” Phoenix retorts firmly. “I got a few good hits in, it was just a luck thing, man!”

“I don’t think luck is what had them pinning you to the ground three times in a row.” Yoru tutes, the blue haired fellow never missing a beat when it comes to reminding Phoenix of his arrogance.

“Two! It was two!” Phoenix corrects.

“Right,” Yoru replies, “the third time, they just threw you off the mat before pinning you.”

Perhaps Phoenix’s approach to the sparring session was one he made under false pretenses. It didn’t take rocket science to know that Phoenix was always out for self improvement in all categories of his profession, which more often than not stroked his ego a little too much. However this wasn’t about his ego; he could live with being defeated in a sparring match. It was who the match was with that dulled his usual champion spirit when it ended in his defeat.

“Yo,” came a voice from the end of the locker isle he stood in, causing Phoenix to look up and see you. He couldn’t help the faint frown that tugged at his lips, seeing the proud smile that graced your face in victory, “you know, I’m always down for a rematch whenever the gym is open.”

“Ha. Ha.” Says the dark skin man as he slips on his shirt adjusting the gold chain that lay hidden underneath his white tank top during the training sessions. “You’ve got lots of jokes, yeah?”

“Wasn’t a joke, pretty boy,” you reply, growing closer to him, the nickname that Jett had given him suddenly bringing a new, strange feeling to Phoenix’s chest that he wasn’t sure if he enjoyed or not. Yet, such a name coming from your lips tugged his frown into an upward position, “you’re a good fighter; but you can’t win at everything.”

Phoenix shrugs; he knows you’re right, however, and so the following hum of acknowledgement gives you what you need to step forward once more, closer to the taller man, and speak again, “You should be glad you’ve got some competition, though.”

“Is that right?” Phoenix replies, head tilted to the side, tongue darting out to do a quick swipe of his lips. His arms are folded across his chest as he analyzes you; despite the close proximity, his face portrays that of someone calm and collected. If only you knew the fire that was raging within him.

With a short nod, you make a quick dip to place a peck on his cheek, and it’s here that you feel the tinge of heat tha bubbles just underneath the surface of his skin, and it sparks something in your brain that you must suppress to save the other from embarrassment.

“For encouragement,” you say slyly, “if you want that rematch.”

You leave, and now Phoenix is torn between two things: wanting to impress you and wanting to demolish you at the next sparring session.

If you enjoyed, please leave a like, comment, and reblog for others to see! And don’t be shy to send in a request!

[headinthestaticsky]

The Dusk Calls For Me: Chapter 0: Home

December 2002, Phoenix, AZ 

I was sick of this abrasive heat, amongst other things. I was tired of living in a place that never truly felt like home. To feel absolutely sick to my stomach whenever my house came into view. And, I couldn't bear the thought of hearing my mother moan and complain about another thing I did. It was all so... smothering, almost too much to stand anymore.

It had honestly gotten to the point where I couldn't even-

"Fleur!"

Stand to hear my name anymore.

The second I heard my mother's voice, a deep pit formed in my stomach. The heft of which left me nearly frozen in my tracks, willing me with everything it could to keep me still. 

"Fleur, I know you heard me! Get down here now." My mom's voice called out again, sounding stronger than before. 

Begrudgingly, I got up from my bed, trudging out of my room and down the long set of carpet-covered steps. Once I reached the living room, I was met with my mother's usual, cold stare.

What the hell had I done now?

"What's going on?" I questioned surprisingly cool, though on the inside my heart was beating rapidly through my chest. 

My mother chose not to say anything at first, instead opting to reach behind her, grabbing at an unfamiliar-looking bag. "You know." She simply replied, her tone quiet but deadly.

"Not rea-" My sentence stopped in its tracks as my mother poured out the contents of the bag. Money fell out of it unceremoniously onto the table and floor. 

How could she have found it? 

"You wanna tell me how you got all this money?" Mom asked, eyeing me with great suspicion. 

"You went through my room?" I replied, my voice trembling as I spoke. 

"Don't deflect things... where did you get all of this?" She asked again, tension seeping through her voice. 

"Just... side jobs. Cutting grass, walking dogs, waitressing." I finally answered, my eyes still locked onto the few bills that had slipped onto the floor. 

Mom took in a deep breath, clearly (but poorly) trying to retain some level of calm within herself. "Now, you better be... truthful in your next answer. Because I've already been told what's going on." Mom explained, I could imagine the strained look on her face as she spoke. "Why are you saving all of this?"

I finally found the nerve to look up from the floor, my gaze met my mother's cold stare. "I just... want to see my father." I meekly answered, preparing myself for the inevitable, rage-filled blow that was bound to come my way. 

Mom scoffed quietly, the grimace that she had turned into a forced smile. "You're not going to." She spoke definitely, chuckling lightly under her breath.

"Yes, I am... it is my money, I can do whatever I want with it." 

Mom sucked in another breath, though this time around the calm she had made was crumbling before her. "You... always, have to be a troublemaker, don't you?" She gritted out.

"Wanting to see my father doesn't mean I'm a troublemaker, Mother," I replied sardonically. "And I doubt, seriously doubt that if Bella were the one doing this, you'd be this angry about it."

Mom couldn't even think of a reply. She just glared at me, her eyes full of pent-up anger. 

"Ain't got much to say now do you?" I asked her, finding a bit of satisfaction in her silence.

"You know what? If you think things in Forks are... so much better than they are here." Mom began, stalking me slowly. "Then I will give you the rest of the money for that damn plane ticket. But you ain't getting one back down here."

I should've been heartbroken at her words, distraught that she was so willing to just... leave me in a sense. But the only emotion that had consumed me was joy, pure joy.

Finally, I'd be able to see my father again.

"Fine," I spoke up. 

"Fine." Mom repeated. "Just... go." She added, turning away from me instantaneously. 

I listened to her without hesitation, collecting the money Mom had dropped. As I turned the corner to go up the steps my sister, Bella, caught my eye. Of course, she was listening in on us, Bella would never miss an opportunity to hear me get chewed out. 

I stared at her briefly before shaking my head at the ludicrousy of her behavior. "You got what you wanted sis," I spoke up plainly. 

"I'm finally out of here."

January 2003, Forks, WA

The airport was bustling with people, making it hard to find where my father could possibly be. No matter where looked or turned, I was met with the faces of strangers... damn tall strangers. 

I guess being 5'9 ain't as tall as I thought...

I moved as quickly as I could through the crowd, partially due to the fact that a lot of them were pretty disgruntled. The last thing I wanted to do was get in the crossfire of some of their foul moods.

"Fleur?"  A voice called out, not too far from me. As if the crowd of moody people began to clear like clouds. My dad finally came into view, looking at me with a bittersweet smile. I was quick to make my way over to him, completely overjoyed at the sight of my father.

"Hi, Dad." I greeted him, taking in a stuttering breath as I hugged him. "I missed you... so much." 

I could feel my dad's body shake slightly, a slight sniffle following soon afterward. "I missed you too petal." He admitted gruffly, quickly wiping his face one we had pulled away from on another. "Let's get outta here." He added, swiftly taking one of the bags I had brought with me.

I of course, eagerly followed him out. 

Though I had to admit, the strong, cold wind did make me falter slightly. Being in Arizona for so long definitely... lessened the resistance I had to Fork's usual bone-chilling weather. And well, I guess it didn't help that mom had refused to at least buy me some clothes that weren't tank tops and shorts. But, thankfully, my dad was wise enough to leave the heat on in the car, so I was able to dethaw pretty quickly. 

"So, how have you been?" Dad asked, breaking the brief silence the car had been filled with.

"A lot better than I've been in a while," I replied, smiling fondly at all of the familiar sites I had grown up with. 

It was as if this place had been preserved in a time capsule, waiting for me to return back to it again. The old ice cream shop, the reservation, and the beach where I spent all my time at. The sight of it all hit me with waves of nostalgia. 

"And... your mom?" Dad said, clearly reluctantly by the sound of his voice. 

"Well, you know how she is..." I muttered, turning toward him. "She's pretty much still acting the same," I added a bit more bitterly than I would've liked. 

Dad seem to notice the disdain I spoke with too, his eyes carefully flickering over at me curiously. "There's something else you're not telling me, huh?" He questioned.

"Is it that obvious?" I spoke with a forced chuckle. 

"You read like a book, Fleur."

"You got me there." I sighed. "Well, all I'll say is that Bella's kinda starting to pick up on our mother's lovely... traits."

Dad shook his head, clearly disappointed at the news I had announced. "That's a shame." He grumbled.

"Yeah, it is."

Another bout of silence came through after that. The only thing that could be faintly heard was the sound of the other cars rushing by us. 

"You know," Dad began, out of the corner of my eye, I could see him begin to smirk. "I heard you just got your license."

"Yeah, I did..." I replied, curious as to what my father was hinting at.

"Well, I thought, as a little homecoming present to you. I got you a car-"

"What?" I questioned him incredulously, sitting up from my seat. "Are you serious?"

"Now, don't get too excited," Dad said quickly, as to try and curb my enthusiasm. "It's a pretty old car."

I scoffed at him before letting out a chuckle. "Dad, a car is a car. You did not have to do that. What kind is it?"

"It's an old Mustang, a Fastback." He answered. "It's in the shop right now getting some last-minute repairs in. So, for now, I'll have to drive you to school."

"That is perfectly fine," I replied, leaning back into my seat again. "I have absolutely nothing to complain about."

"Glad to hear it, Petal..."

As we pulled into the driveway of our small but beautiful home. The nostalgia fully set in. The colors were exactly the same, and the grass, of course, was just as muddy and dead as before. 

"Just as you remember it?" Dad asked as we walked into my childhood home.

I nodded in reply, finding it hard to say much. 

"I cleared off a couple of shelves in the bathroom for ya. And, your room was pretty dusty so I cleaned it up for you." Dad explained as he placed my bags onto my bed.

"Thank you... it looks great." I muttered as I looked at my pretty much bare room. 

"Well, I let you get settled in..." He said, and though he tried not to sound awkward, his delivery still came across as such. After giving me a light pat on the back he left, quietly closing my door behind him. 

Finally, I'm back home...

[sweetwhispersofchaos]

Eject Ch. 2

Chapter 2 of my first fan fiction work. Rooster x Phoenix. Rated M mainly for language, a mention of a physical altercation, and some blood. There will be some steamy stuff later on down the road so 18+ only! Story and Story Cover Photo Edit by me Chapter 2 Notes: Rooster and Phoenix hash some things out before they leave for the mission.

The funeral had been full of pomp and circumstance. As it should. Rooster had never seen Maverick so distraught and wondered if this even came close to his emotions when his own father had died in his arms. He figured not but decided to stop that train of thought before he could feel much more remorse for the guy. If there was one thing to be said about Rooster, he knew how to hold on tight to a grudge and mean it.

Rooster stood next to Phoenix through the whole ceremony. She said nothing as she fell in line next to him, her gaze never leaving the casket in front of them. He glanced down at her, but she never reciprocated. At least not while he was looking. Her stoic face was always mesmerizing to Rooster. So calm, cool, and collected. She gave nothing away. Ever.

After the service was over, Rooster turned to speak to Phoenix, but she had already turned away from him, discussing something with Bob as they walked in the direction of the base vans that brought them to the cemetery. The snub seemed intentional. Rooster spoke briefly to Admiral Kazanskys wife, Sara, and hugged each of the kids, including the daughter he had the childhood kiss with. Tears threatened to leave his eyes. Of course, he was sad about the Admiral, but when he looked at Sara, he saw his mother. Rooster saw Carol Bradshaw, standing over his father’s casket, weeping uncontrollably, while holding his tiny hand. It was one of the few memories from that day that he still remembered. This was eerily familiar territory for him. It was time to bolt before things got away from him. He nodded his head or shook hands with several comrades he was familiar with, then made his way towards the vans.

Just before he reached the vehicle, Hangman stepped into his path, bringing Rooster to a dead stop. The cocky pilot had a look of mirth across his face that Rooster didn’t trust.

“So. New roommate?”

Roosters stomach jumped into his throat. Somehow that was never what he expected to roll casually out of the pricks mouth. How the fuck did this douche know about Phoenix being in his room? Play it cool Rooster, this is neither the time nor the place.

“No idea what you’re talking about.” He glanced down, then back up and stepped around the other pilot to continue walking. Footsteps followed him.

“Aw now, lying isn’t your strong suit, slow ride. Were you playing doctor and patient?”

Rooster snorted and kept walking, deciding that a sure-fire way to be scrubbed from this mission was to cause a scene at the Admirals funeral. He heard Hangman’s chuckle behind him as he climbed into the van behind Payback. That guy has a lot of nerve. But how did he know? He highly doubted Bob would say anything to the asshole. Shit. Shit. SHIT. He needed to speak with Phoenix. Know where her head was on this. See if she thought damage control was needed. As much as he felt for her, he didn’t want anything to hinder her career. She was too good at what she did to throw it away on him. He decided he would wait until her hop was over that night to ask her how she wanted to proceed with this new information.

Not long after the squadron arrived back on base, a Group Me message went out from Cyclone. All hops for the afternoon and evening were scrubbed. They were to meet him in the classroom at 6AM tomorrow for an important mission briefing. The message was vague and a little jarring. Something was up.

Rooster thought about his next move. No hop means that Phoenix was available to talk. But he didn’t want to just rush over to her room and seem too anxious. He needed to approach this as smooth and nonchalant as possible, so he didn’t give away his true feelings. Maybe a trip to the beach and The Hard Deck? Public. Nothing to fear right?

Before he could pick up his phone to text her, there was a knock at his door. When he answered he was greeted by his favorite smirk. She stood leaning against the wall next to his door, arms crossed, looking up at him.

“No flight. Wanna get out of here?” she asked coolly.

“You read my mind. Beach and Hard Deck? He replied almost too enthusiastically.

“Meet you downstairs in 10.” And she turned to walk back to her room.

10 minutes later she cruised casually down the stairs, a blue Naval academy tank top and tiny black shorts hugging her gorgeous frame. She already had her aviators on her face, backpack on her back.

She pulled her shades down her nose and looked over Rooster, wearing his usual Hawaiian shirt, shorts, and sandals. “Packing light?” she asked.

“I don’t need much. Ready?”

She walked past him to the door and gave him a “roger that” as she disappeared through the glass opening. He chuckled and followed suit. Rooster walked behind her to his Bronco and placed his hand on the passenger door handle, ready to open it for her. She raised an eyebrow, looking down at his hand on the door handle then looked up at him and the cocked eyebrow softened into a slight smile. “Thanks Bradley” she said, barely louder than a whisper, her eyes never leaving his.

His stomach jumped into his throat. They almost never used first names in their line of work. He could probably count on one hand how many times he had heard a coworker use his first name, and he’s not sure he had ever used hers. He knows her name well, but they have always just been Phoenix and Rooster. He took a cool breath and decided turn-around was fair play on this one.

“Oh, are we on first name basis now, Natasha?” he threw back, slight sarcasm biting her name as it fell from his mouth.

She continued to stare into his eyes, a slight look of confusion crossing her face, then she smiled and said “There’s always a first time for everything. And, for the record, it’s just Nat.”

He melted. Standing right there, holding the door handle to his truck. What on earth was going on here? He was searching her eyes for a hint of an answer. But she just continued to smile a thin, almost smug smile while looking into his eyes. The burning in his body was overwhelming. His vision was beginning to blur.

The level of restraint to stop what was about to happen just about knocked him off his feet. He could barely breath, being that close to her. First names were intimate. Standing this close, in civilian clothing, was intimate. Everything about this seemed too intimate. Rooster could tell she sensed that too because she took a step back so he could open the door. He waited until she climbed in before closing the door and sauntering over to the driver’s side. He was feeling a little taller than normal. As he slid into his seat, he looked over to see her resting her head back, face towards the sun, eyes closed, a slight grin on her face. Oh, to know what was going through that pretty mind right now. This was going to be an interesting afternoon. He knew he had to get to that beach as fast as legally possible and he peeled out of the parking lot, nodding his head to the radio, excitement boiling up inside of him.

*****

It was a Wednesday, so the beach was empty sans a few older people walking dogs or lounging in chairs. After he parked by the Hard Deck, he practically leapt out of the truck then made a quick jaunt around to Nat’s door. When he opened it, she slid out to stand face to face with him, mere inches away. She seemed flustered but let out a soft “Thanks, Bradley” before turning to grab her bag. There it was again, his name. It sounded so good coming from her mouth. He could feel his skin beginning to burn and it wasn’t from the sun.

They walked down the sand to the shoreline, finding a dry spot near a rock outcropping and decided that was a nice spot. Natasha set to pulling two towels from her backpack and placing them out on the sand. Rooster gave her a questioning look from behind his shades.

“I knew you wouldn’t come prepared.” She said with her usual raised eyebrow and loads of sarcasm.

Standing over her he couldn’t help but appreciate just how well she knew him. This may have been staring him in the face for longer than he realized. Had he missed the signals all along?

After the towels she pulled out a stainless steel water bottle and a small Bluetooth speaker then she knelt onto the smaller of the two towels and began connecting her phone to the speaker. Once an indie rock song kicked on, she looked up to Bradley, who was still standing, gawking at her.

“What was the word Bagman used? Perched?” she said, sticking her tongue out and laughing.

Ouch. Semi-low blow he thought. He made a scoffing face and began to remove his Hawaiian shirt before sitting on the other towel and wrapping his arms around his bent knees. “Happy now?”

“I don’t know. You were creating shade standing there. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.” She said with a playful punch to his arm.

He smiled then looked out to the crashing waves. Nat placed her phone in the backpack then sat back, stretching her legs straight out and resting her weight onto her hands behind her. They sat in companionable silence for a while, watching the water and a man playing catch with his large dog.

Nat broke the silence first.

“I want to ask you about something. I know it must be something serious, but I’m hoping you’ll trust me enough to tell me.” She was staring at him now, a look of apprehension resting on her brow.

“You want to know why Mav pulled my papers to the Academy?” he thought back to the first day of flying when he went full stupid behind the stick. She met him on the tarmac after and gave him a good lashing for his behavior. When she asked why he behaved so poorly with Maverick, he let slip that the elder pilot had pulled his papers. When she pressed, he told her not to worry about it then quickly retreated. Now he figured he would have to tell her. He knew he could trust her but it still seemed like an impossible situation to talk about. He was going to have to give her details of his past he had kept well hidden, even from her.

She sat, waiting silently for him to answer, so he continued. “You remember I told you my dad was Navy, right?”

“Yeah, something about he died when you were young right?”

“I was 3. And he wasn’t just in the Navy. He was a RIO on the F-14 Tomcats.” He paused and watched her face out of the corner of his eye. She seemed more confused now than before, so he went on.

“My dad was a RIO with Maverick. They were best friends. Like brothers. Mav was there when I was born” he took a slow breath and continued “I honestly barely knew my dad. He was gone to sea for a while then he and Mav were sent to Miramar.”

“Top Gun?”

He nodded and cleared his throat to prepare for the next part of the explanation, still staring out at the ocean. “A few days after my mom and I arrived in advance of their graduation, there was an…” he hesitated. “… incident. Mav flew through Iceman’s jetwash.”

“Admiral Kazansky?”

“Yup. And then they went into a flat spin. Mav couldn’t recover it, so they punched out. But dad hit the canopy and…” He trailed off and the silence that fell between them was deafening. “My dad died in Mavericks arms in the middle of the ocean.”

A small hand came to rest on his left bicep, and he looked down at it, staring at her tiny hand on his muscles, trying not to cry, or become angry, or both.

“Oh Bradley, I’m sorry.” She whispered. He nodded then looked back out at the ocean and continued. “Mav became a pseudo dad to me after that. And even Admiral Kazansky to an extent. But Mav, he was there for everything. Well, as much as he could be. My mom and I moved back to Texas, where she was from, so I didn’t see him often, but he called, sent letters and birthday cards, came to my baseball games and stuff when he could. I always called him when I had a big hit or a good date.” He chuckled at that thought. “Mom and I would make trips to see him occasionally as well. I remember watching him fly, meeting a bunch of the other pilots that my dad flew with, and taking tours of carriers. I fell in love with planes and knew from an early age this was what I wanted to do. Mav even set up for me to take a ride in a World War II plane when I was a teenager. It was incredible. I was head over heels in love with being in the air. Mav made sure I was taken care of in his own way. Then as I was getting ready to graduate high school, I find out just weeks before I walked across the stage that he pulled my application to the naval academy. That was it, I was left scrambling to find ways to get where I wanted to go without his help or approval and without so much as a god damned explanation. My mom was even dismissive of it. I think secretly she didn’t want me to fly, so she was ok with a regular university. Until Mav showed up here, I hadn’t spoken to him since the day I received my commission. He called but it was a very short conversation. I think my mom kept sending him updates on me and shit. God love that woman she couldn’t understand why I didn’t just do something else. She just didn’t get it.”

He stopped talking, reeling from his word vomit, and realized her hand was not only still resting on his arm, but her thumb was now rubbing small circles across his skin. He was too exhausted from the emotional roller coaster he just spewed from his mouth to even worry about her show of affection.

“How come you never told me all of this before?” she asked

He wondered if she would ask that. He contemplated his next response, treading carefully. “After my mom died, I didn’t really talk to anyone much. Kept my head down at school, kept quiet at training, I just wasn’t in the talking mood.” He paused, glancing over at her. She was obviously waiting for more. “Especially after I joined the Navy. I didn’t want any of this standing in the way of my progress. The less people knew, the better. I even asked the Admiral to keep it quiet. He agreed he would do the best he could.”

“So you don’t trust me?” she removed her hand from his arm, a small look of disappointment crossing her face.

“It wasn’t about trust. It was about survival.” And not getting too close, he thought.

They sat again in silence then she spoke, going back to the original point of the conversation.

“So, Maverick never told you why?”

“When I asked, he just said it was in my best interest but wouldn’t give me anything else to fucking go on.”

Her hand slipped away from his arm as she rolled up onto her knees, angling her body to face him. She began speaking carefully “So, um, is that why you tend to be hesitant behind the stick. Your dad?”

He only nodded. He knew he was scared. Did he love to fly? HELL YES. But it scared the shit out of him. Everything in the sky reminded him of how fast he could meet the same fate as his father. Being in the plane meant being closest to his dad. But often, flying with that ghost in his cockpit meant flying distracted and fearful.

“Why not try talking to him again? This mission is too serious to be dicking around up there with that big of a chip on your shoulder. I told you I’m going, and I want you to go too. But this has got to stop.” She was firm with her statements. He knew she was right, but he wasn’t going to let go of it that easy. He just looked back to the sea and chose to refrain from response. Now or never, time to change the subject.

“There’s something we need to talk about.” He said, as he peered over the top of his aviators at her. “It seems you were spotted leaving my room a couple days ago.” He watched her waiting for her cool exterior to switch to panic, but it didn’t.

“Hangman. He’s such a prick. You know he’s just going to mess with you about it to get into your head, right?”

“Wait. You knew?” he exclaimed as he pulled his shades off to look at her directly.

She took hers off in a mocking manner to stare him in the eye then sarcastically said “Yes. I saw him and walked right by him as he started to say what I’m sure would have been something of the utmost assholery. But I guess the slamming of my door stopped him.”

Well that wasn’t what he was expecting at all.

“So, you’re not concerned about this?” he asked.

“Why would I be? He’s an idiot and nothing happened. Frankly Hangman’s probably jealous. He’s always been a little irritated that I wouldn’t reciprocate his flirtatious advances back in flight school.” Shock overtook Bradley’s face. “Wait, I’m sorry. What did you just say.”

“You heard me, and I am NOT repeating it. It’s vile. Please don’t regret my telling you.” She smirked and he let out a chuckle as he placed his aviators back on his face. He stood and held his hand out to her.

“Come on, let's go for a walk.”

She replaced her own glasses and stood then she froze. She slowly looked down at their joined hands. Bradley looked down, then with a sheepish grin and some stuttering, removed his hand from hers and held it out as an invitation to walk. They walked past the first set of rocks and continued down the quiet beach.

They walked in and out of the surf in companionable silence for a while. Bradley didn’t know what she was thinking but he was struggling between just blurting out his feelings or ignoring the tension all together until he might explode. They couldn’t afford for things to go sour between them. It was literally a matter of life and death. They had to trust each other in the sky. A relationship could ruin that. Discussion of a relationship could ruin that. They had to talk about this, but it had to be done in a very diplomatic manner. He needed to choose his words very carefully.

Bradley stopped near a second rock outcropping, finding a flat bolder and having a seat on it, with his feet and lower legs resting in the moving surf. He looked at Nat, patted the spot on the smooth surface next to him, and watched her as she came to a seat next to him, her own feet moving around in the water aimlessly.

Deep breaths, Rooster. You can handle this.

“I think we need to talk. But I don’t want things to be weird.”

She chuckled a little then nudged into him with her shoulder playfully. “Aw, are we going to have the talk” she teased.

He didn’t laugh though. And the smile on her face faded slightly as she stared at him.

“Look, I know it seems like something is happening here.” She started. “But I don’t know what that could be in the world we live in and frankly, this mission is too important for anything else to distract us. We just” she paused, inhaling, and exhaling slowly “we just can’t afford to let some attraction, probably just a lust filled attraction based on the fact we haven’t seen each other in so long, get in the way of the danger we face. What happened the other day. We had just faced a difficult situation. It was scary for both of us. I was on good medication and needed some help. Something like that makes people do weird things. But I don’t think we need to worry about it. We have enough to focus on right now. No need to complicate things.” Her words rushed out one right after the other, as if she was trying to convince herself that what she was saying was the full truth.

He couldn’t help but feel disappointed. He knew she was right. Always the voice of reason. It was one of the many things he loved about her. He did not want to be the reason her career was derailed. It hurt that she thought his feelings weren’t real though. That the attraction was just a matter of convenience versus something real.

Bradley decided that was all the discussion that needed to happen. It was all out in the open and obviously that was as far as she wanted things to go. He stood up in the surf, walking around her legs in the water, back up onto the sand and said over his shoulder towards her “I could use a drink. How about you?” and then he made back towards the direction of the Hard Deck as she followed suit.

He placed his hands in his pockets as he walked, and she remained a couple of paces behind him. The tension between them had gone from something flirtatious to something gloomier. He wasn’t sure about her, but he had a small wound on his heart that he now had to hide, for the sake of their jobs and the mission ahead.

*****

After retrieving their items from the beach, they walked to the Bronco to deposit the bag and then made their way into the bar. It was almost empty sans a few older patrols wearing veteran ball caps and swapping war stories over beer. Nat made straight for Penny at the bar, sliding up onto a stool and placing an order for two bottles of domestic. Rooster needed to drown his sorrows in his favorite past time, music. He made his way over to the old piano near some windows and sat down. He began tinkling on the keys, playing nothing in particular.

A bottle of beer appeared on the back of the piano, and he looked up at Nat while still plunking away.

“Where did you learn to play piano? I’ve never asked.” She said as she came to rest in a chair at a small table next to the instrument.

“Both of my parents played.” He said, removing his hands from the piano and taking a large swig of his drink. As he sat the frosty mug back down, he continued explaining. “My mom put me in lessons as soon as I was old enough. We played at home together all the time.” He felt so sad. The pain in his chest trying to crush him. “One of the few memories I have of my dad happened a couple of days before he passed. When my mom and I came to visit at Top Gun. I’m not sure where we were or anything, but I remember him sitting at a piano and playing his favorite song: Great Balls of Fire. And my mom sitting next to him. I played a slow version of the song at her funeral.” He trailed off, a look of sorrow on his face as he took another long draw from his glass.

“Could you play me something?”

He gave her a sad little smirk and nodded, turning back to the piano. His hands came to rest on the keys, and he sat for a moment, thinking of what to play. Then he looked down and began to play the opening refrain of “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” from the Toy Story movie. He looked up and saw she had a small grin. He looked back at the piano and began to sing.

You've got a friend in me You've got a friend in me When the road looks rough ahead And you're miles and miles from your nice warm bed You just remember what your old pal said Boy, you've got a friend in me Yeah, you've got a friend in me

He didn’t dare look up at her. He just swayed as he played, having a little fun with a fun song.

You've got a friend in me You've got a friend in me You got troubles Then I got them too There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you We stick together, we can see it through Cause you've got a friend in me You've got a friend in me

As he continued to play and sing, he felt her come to rest on the bench next to him. He slid over some and she began to sing with him. He never looked over; afraid he would slip on the music.

Some other folks might be a little bit smarter than I am Bigger and stronger too Maybe But none of them Will ever love you The way I do It's me and you, boy

And as the years go by Our friendship will never die You're gonna see it's our destiny You've got a friend in me You've got a friend in me You've got a friend in me

As he finished, his hands stilled on the keys, and he continued to look down at them. A breathy voice next to him whispered “I’m sorry. You will always have a friend in me too. But. That’s all it can be.”

Without looking up he responded, “I know.” I just wish it didn’t hurt so damn much, he thought.

After what felt like an eternity of them sitting in silence at the piano she spoke “I called an Uber. It’s here. I’ll see you in the morning, yeah?”

He nodded as she stood, placing a hand on his shoulder, then she made for the exit. As she left, the melody of “Yesterday” by the Beatles rang out across the bar and he fought the urge to let tears roll down his face.

[tealmaskmybeloved]

Rating the Loyal 3 TCG Cards

Disclaimer: I am not a TCG player or expert, I'm just rating these based on the art and the vibes. If you disagree, that's fine!

I'm gonna be raking them on a scale of 1 to 10, as well as my explanations for my rankings

Also Pecharunt will get its own post because of the image limit :(

Anywho, here we go! :D

Twilight Masquerade Set (Regular Prints)

LOOK AT THEM! MY BOYYSSSSSS!!!!

Ok ok ok so I really like the art for these guys, it set this whimsical feel like "YEAH WE'RE HEROES" except they aren't so hehehehehebebe

The only reason I'm docking points is that the art doesn't go above and beyond, which isn't too big of an issue for me. And because Okidogi's card being fighting type instead of poison like the others throws me off a little.

These do gain points for being my first cards of the Loyal 3 so :D

Also I like Fezandipiti's purple aura it has especially around its feet and wings it just reminds me of when Kieran punched the shrine

(Rip to the Toxic Chain Kieran Theory. You will forever live on in my heart.)

Let's see, what else? Ooh!

Okidogi whipping the chain around like the good boi he is is also really cool. Idk why I just like seeing him do it. I tried doing it myself, accidentally smacked myself in the face.

Munkidori looking all smug as always is also pretty funny. He's just like HMMMBDHDBDBDB

Score: 7/10 (points added for the vibes, points docked for the standardness of the art. It's okay at least)

Twilight Masquerade Set (Rare Illustrations)

SO PRETTTTTTTTYAHDHFHDHJSJDHDHDHDBFHFHDHDHFHF

All 3 have their own style to them. Okidogi is all rugged and has that tough feel to him (especially in the art)

Munkidori is wistful and gentle, sitting on that tree it's just very calming.

Fezandipiti is all regal and badass like a Phoenix or something I'm just like YES BITCH SLAY

Score: 10/10 NO DOWNSIDES EXCEPT I DONT HAVE THESE RAGGGGHHGGGH

Night Wanderer Cards

(Regular)

HFHHFHFHHFHFHFHHD these are probably my least favorite out of all of them

Don't get me wrong, the card art is pretty and I like the textures on the Toxic Chain (looks pretty edible) also I like how they use em in the art

But I just don't know how I feel about em. :/

(It might be the dark typing coloring that's hindering it, idk)

Also I can't really tell what they're doing in the art so :(

If you like em, that's cool! But I'm just eh? I'll probably still get them anyways for my collection (I'm gonna get EVERY CARD VARIANT NO ONE WILL STOP ME MWA HA HA HA)

Score: 6/10 (Textures look dope, dark type coloring looks eh)

Night Wanderer Cards (Ultra Rare)

THEMMMMHEBDBHDBRHEHBE

Ok so these are where the card art kind of fall flat, you know?

Don't get me wrong, they're still pretty cool, but it just seems like the company just pulled their 3d models and slapped them on an Instagram AI preventing fliter background.

I still like em, but the art does feel eh especially compared to the others.

Score: 5/10 (for reasons I said above)

Night Wanderer Cards (Special Illustration Rare)

Funky lil guys :D

Ok these ones I like a lot more than the Ultra Rare ones, these ones have a lot of charm and evil vibes to it, which I love.

The Toxic Chains in the background are pretty dope as well, I personally see it as a thing like they're still under Pecharunt's control even after all this time HDBHDHEHEHEHEH

Plus the wonky angles and perspective is pretty fun

Also it gives me ideas for a drawing so :)

Score: 7/10 (Not perfect, but I still like it)

SUMMARY

Twilight Masquerade Set (Regular): 7/10

Twilight Masquerade Set (Rare): 10/10

Night Wanderer (Regular): 6/10

Night Wanderer (Ultra Rare): 5/10

Night Wanderer (Special Illustration Rare): 7/10

This post will be updated should new cards be released.

[oc-siblings-bracket]

OC-Siblings-Bracket 1.8

info down there because these posts are long ↓

Justice & Liberty "Libby" Lawson by @attorneybout

Info:

okay so these!! aren't as fleshed out as riley and kiara they're kind of just silly little guys mostly.

libby, 17, is one of kiara's friends, alongside trinity and kat (collectively known as the cool bitch club). libby is very like… calm and chill most of the time she's just vibing mostly. the kind of guy you'd see in a group chat. absolutely hates that she was named liberty eagle lawson that's right her middle name is eagle she's living a nightmare. she was literally born on the 4th of july the universe just said "hey fuck you. get america'd" and she hasn't lived it down yet. anyways the group of friends i roleplay with that i use her in jokes that she would kin sans and tbh…. probably right. she's usually pretty calm but if anyone hurt her brother she'd kick their ass

justice, 10, is just a silly little guy!! just a little silly! he's one of riley's best friends and he looks up to her even though she's only 2 years older than him. he's really silly goofy, very optimistic, tries to see the best in everyone, and overall he just wants to help people whenever he can!! he's like a blorbo to me.

they're actually half siblings! they share a dad. their dad used to be… not distant, and not away on purpose, but during his first marriage, when he had libby, he would bite off more than he can chew and end up promising things that he couldn't deliver, fully thinking he would be able to. it's what led to his divorce. since then, though, he's worked on bettering himself and is a much better father to justice than he was to libby when she was younger. she's not entirely unaffected by this but she can at least appreciate that he's improving.

they also! have a cousin, who's a lawyer. a defense attorney. and justice especially really looks up to him because he also wants to be able to stand up for people and defend people in need like that and justice i think really just wants, at his core, to help people who need help, like one of his main interests is superheroes because that's their whole thing really.

anyways fun facts!!

justice has a really cool racecar bed

libby helped justice try to paint his racecar bed and it didn't go very well but they both have fond memories of it

libby and kiara honestly probably met through justice and riley

libby is really into activism. in a sense both siblings have a strong sense of justice and aim to help those who need it

i mentioned earlier that they had a lawyer cousin but i didn't mention said cousin is phoenix wright of ace attorney fame

libby actually convinced her high school to unionize. her logic is that teachers are evaluated on the grades their classes get- so if a teacher is being unfair or necessarily harsh, the students can go on strike by refusing to do any assignments, forcing the teacher to fail ALL of their students and then get poor evaluations and probably fired. it's been surprisingly effective and she's very proud of the student union

libby is the kind of person who says "stealing from walmart is always morally correct"

justice hasn't been exposed to the nuances of stealing so he doesn't agree but i think once he's been exposed to how companies kind of fuck people over he probably will stop seeing an issue with, like, shoplifting a bottle of water from walmart

libby is a lesbian

justice hasn't had time to fully realize his gender yet but when he gets older he'll realize he's genderfluid i think :3

libby image made using https://picrew.me/image_maker/362653 justice image made by my good friend mar (theowlcastle on tumblr)

Dust & May by @ecleticelectriceccentric

Info:

Dust is the Vessel of the Holy for the Path of Righteousness, a cult/religion. This necessitates that he be excised of all sin and made ready for possession by the Holy- via torture. Also he’s trans and has taken to reciting the Bible-equivalent as a coping mechanism.

May-Salvation-Come-to-this-Wretched-Thing (goes by May, named by the Righteous) is a were-Tasmanian Devil, taken in by the same church. She, too, must be exorcised.

She’s about four years older than him, and they were thrown in the same basement. She became his primary caretaker, and they basically adopted each other. She fervently hates the Righteous, but is determined to protect him at all costs.

When May was about fourteen, the ‘exorcisms’ went too far, the Tasmanian Devil took over, and May died. She then possessed Dust as a ghost and promptly broke them out.

Dust doesn’t remember how he got out, or how May died, and May doesn’t want to tell him. May thinks he should hate her, she hates herself for everything, but can’t bear to lose him.

If they advance I’ll give more Lore :>

[bradshawsbaby]

Hii love🥰

The way I can relate to procrastinating in terms of packing😝… How about holding hands during a stressful situation with out beloved hannix🥰?

Packing is always my least favorite part of going on vacation 😂 Hope you enjoy a little Seresin family fluff!

She wasn’t stressed. She was one of the Navy’s most elite fighter pilots. She’d flown countless missions that would turn most people’s hair white. She knew how to remain calm, cool, and collected under pressure and she didn’t let anything frighten her.

She was not stressed.

But as she and Jake sped along the absurdly crowded streets of San Diego, getting stuck at more red lights than she would like to count as yet another contraction seized her, Phoenix could feel her torn fingernails—when had she started biting them?—digging in sharply to the skin of her thigh.

“Hey,” Jake murmured, snagging her attention as they rolled to yet another stop, just a few blocks away from the hospital. His green eyes softened as she looked up into them and he reached across the center console to take her hand in his, squeezing gently. “It’s going to be okay.”

physical intimacy prompts

[uneccesary-feelings]

Going through the Ace attorney investigations games… I love the interactions miles has with everyone. Any chance that leads to making Miles look shocked and unable to keep his cool calm and collective self together is SUCH a wonderful thing to see XD

Also I should say, I love Miles Edgeworth and seeing him being surrounded by people who care about him make me so happy.

Also also, how often Phoenix Wright is mentioned but never by name? SO happy. Always makes me smile. without fail.

I’m currently on the 2nd game and…. One thing I was looking forward to the most looking into the investigation games is so I could see Sebastian’s character growth. (And to give an excuse for Miles to adopt another kid.)

[mountphoenixrp]

We have a new citizen in Mount Phoenix:

          Erik Elliott, a 22 year old son of Apep.           He is the stage manager at Divine Twin's PAC.

FC NAME/GROUP: Choi Beomgyu / TXT CHARACTER NAME: Erik Elliott  AGE/DATE OF BIRTH: October 28, 2000 PLACE OF BIRTH: Toronto, Ontario, Canada OCCUPATION: Stage manager at Divine Twin's HEIGHT: 180 cm  DEFINING FEATURES: gray eyes, dark brown hair with a reddish tint if seen under the sunlight, porcelain complexion with cool undertone  

PERSONALITY: Those who are acquainted with Erik describe him as well-mannered, caring, and inspiring. He has a knack for supporting and motivating others, making them feel like they are capable of anything. Excelling at adapting and self control, he finds it easy to communicate and make friends with people from all walks of life without being influenced by others’ opinions. He appears to always be a good listener and a reliable friend. He is passionate and serious at pursuing his interests, mostly in performing art, making him a capable singer and performer.  

If one has the chance to get closer to Erik, they would pick up the intensity, sometimes borderline obsession underneath his friendly, harmless facade. When it comes to protecting what he deems his, whether belongings, friends, or ideas, Erik is exceptionally fierce and unyielding. Once he sets his eyes on something, he tends to mentally and physically dissect it, leaving no stones unturned. If he likes a dish, he will use all sources he could get to find out every ingredient and how to make it. When he’s interested in someone, he will not stop digging until he reaches the deepest, darkest side. Most of the information collected  is for his own entertainment and benefits. It would take quite a lot to have a sneak peek of what he knows, what he thinks, and what his next move will be. 

Erik sometimes becomes a victim to his own high expectations. When the outcomes of his doing do not match the ones in his head, it will take him longer than most to forgive himself. The tendency to keep his true thoughts and feelings a secret adds to the self-pressure, making him irritable, over-judgmental, and emotionally explosive at times. There is also this jealous streak that he strives to keep hidden, and when he decides to hold grudges, that probably would last a lifetime. 

HISTORY: Trigger warning: mention of infidelity, mention of death

Erik Elliott, formerly known as Asher Elliott, is his mother’s secret weapon. 

A reward Sarah gained after years of being Mike’s mistress, little Asher was a great threat to his reputation as a successful, well-respected businessman. Mike knew he should have known better than keeping the infidelity after his marriage, he could not help himself. And while he had his doubts about Sarah’s faithfulness, she got sufficient evidence to prove the opposite. Eventually, Mike agreed to pay generous child support in exchange for Sarah’s silence, repeatedly asking her to keep herself and the child as far away from his wife and son as possible. 

Little did Mike know that what he suspected was right. Sarah had been seeing another man, the same reason for why she could not tell exactly who Asher’s father was. Since the mysterious man was quick to disappear from the crime scene, Mike and his lucrative business became the sole target of her revenge.           

Asher was born on a new moon night in October. Like the darkness coating the city’s sky, he arrived in peace, calm and quiet. However, he quickly became as fussy as a colicky, hyper-sensitive child could be. Whenever his mother started to get comfortable with the thought that things were going well for him, Asher brought home a brand new problem. Despite that unpredictable temper, he had a brilliant mind. Right at the first day he went to school, Sarah constantly pushed her son to do his best, to always come out on top in every school subject and activities she made him participate in. Together with his surprising ability to focus on learning, as a result, Asher never failed to be among the most exceptional students of his school. 

Her son’s excellence and great potential prompted Sarah to send him to London earlier than planned. To keep him stay under Mike’s radar, Asher celebrated his 11th birthday with a new name, Erik, and a new mission from his dear mother. 

In tears and pent-up anger, she told him the whole story about the man who was supposed to be her husband and his father, Mike. She told him how Mike betrayed their years of love to marry a wealthier woman, that he should have been the heir of Mike’s fortune, and that it was the right time to start taking back what belonged to him.  

Shortly before he left to attend this prestigious school in London as Sarah requested, Erik found out the truth. 

Since he started to collect memories, Erik had already noticed how lights in a room tended to dim slightly when he entered, then got back to normal when he got out. Back then, the difference was too insignificant to draw anyone’s attention. Yet since he turned 10, there were constant inexplicable problems with the light system of his house. Lights kept going out, then coming back out of a sudden, without any telltale sign. Several calls to several mechanics all came fruitless, and Sarah had to give up in frustration. The same incident, though in less frequency, happened in Erik’s classroom. 

At the tender age of 12, Erik left Toronto, bringing with him the petty triumph of being the only one to know the answer. 

Despite the peaceful life with his great aunt and her dog in London, Erik did not escape the pressure from his mother. Ironically, his ‘rival’, his ‘half brother’, the reason why he had to cross the ocean without knowing when to come back, was also the best of a friend he had ever had. They took turns to be the best and second best at school, with Erik more often being the latter. Sarah was never happy with his results, even when he became the president of the performing art club. 

Time spent at his best friend’s manor told Erik that his situation was not much brighter, but no matter what happened, his best friend always glowed. In the literal sense of the word. Despite him trying to absorb the other’s light, it only dimmed at best, which did not stop the friend from seeing clearly in the darkness he created. Erik was convinced that he, by following the lead of fate, had discovered another truth, and another lie of another mother. Another dirty secret buried so deep yet so shallowly, it never failed to make Erik laugh. 

The bright side of the story came when his best friend’s mom, a woman Erik grew to cherish more than his own mother, left a letter that offered the answer he had been looking for. 

Demigods, of course. Erik had always known both his friend and him belonged to something beyond human, but the revelation still came as a great surprise. Knowing his friend moved to a magical island called Mount Phoenix, he considered following suit. A few months after the funeral of his friend’s mother, the invitation to enroll sent by Phoenix University arrived as the final push he needed. 

After a perfect lie crafted for his mother and great aunt, telling them he would move to the US for university, Erik packed his bags, and ran away from London, never wanting to look back.       

PANTHEON: Egyptian CHILD OF: Apep POWERS: 

Darkness Manipulation: Able to manipulate darkness and absorb sources of lights (lamps, candles, etc.), casting darkness into a room or a whole building. Duration of the power effect depends on his physical and mental conditions. 

Night Vision: Able to see clearly in the dark

Darkness Empowerment: Able to gain supernatural strength and speed during the night 

Shapeshifting: Able to shapeshift into a serpent, particularly an Egyptian cobra. This power has yet to be discovered. 

STRENGTHS: 

He is innately skillful at adapting to his surroundings, allowing him to quickly blend in and get along with others. 

He excels in detecting lies and gathering information about whatever and whoever he’s interested in knowing. 

He is a man of his word (even though he rarely makes promises) 

He is a capable performer, and also shows minor talent in drawing and painting.  

WEAKNESSES: 

He usually sets incredibly high expectations for himself and others, leading to chronic stress and bursts of anger at times. 

He’s prone to physical injury, which often takes a longer time than usual to recover.

He tends to get lethargic and physically weak during daytime. 

[johnbrownnn]

Paris Hilton always ways keeps things cool calm and collected and often ignores her haters but when it comes to her son, all bets are off! The new mom recently shared adorable snaps of her son Phoenix with her fans on Instagram. Her precious baby boy can be seen in a cute matching Burberry set as his mom holds him while they pose for the camera. While fans showered her with love and other moms commented sweet messages, there was also a flood of trolls who made jokes about Phoenix’s head. However, Miss Hilton has caught wind of some of the negative comments and had this to say: “There are some sick people in this world. My angel is perfectly healthy. And yes, of course, he has been to a doctor, he just has a large brain.” RELATED: Paris Hilton Slammed For Vacationing In Maui With Her Family Amid Wildfire Crisis RELATED: Congrats! Paris Hilton & Husband Carter Reum Have Welcomed A Baby Boy Via Surrogate! More On Paris Hilton As we previously reported, Paris and her husband, Carter Reum, quietly welcomed their first child together, Phoenix Barron Hilton Reum, on Jan. 16, 2023, via surrogate. The couple lwho married in late 2021, kept their baby news under wraps but eventually announced Phoenix’s arrival on Instagram eight days after his birth. She said at the time,“From the moment I laid eyes on him, my heart felt so full,” she said on her iHeartRadio podcast, This is Paris. “I feel like my life is so complete now. I always wanted to be a mom,” she added. While speaking with Glamour UK, The former reality star explained that she opted for the surrogate route due to on past trauma. The entertainer experienced sexual abuse at the Utah boarding school Provo Canyon at age 16 which left her afraid of the medical exams that go along with pregnancy. “I’m just so scared. I think, again, leading back to Provo of even being in a doctor’s office, just all of that. The shots, the IVs that they put in,” she shared. “But I want a family so bad, it’s just the physical part of doing it. I’m just so scared … childbirth and death are the two things that scare me more than anything in the world,” she previously said. Paris has been more than thrilled to become a mother and has called her son a “perfect addition to our ever-growing, beautiful family.” Press Play Below For More: [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CzHIyYE-rE[/embed] Source Source link

[unravellingsilencehq]

“Oh, Merlin, tell me, does THE SCHEMER get what he deserves?” He is in THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX & OPEN to finding out. 

— he walks through the world as ;

name → furkan polat pronouns → he/him identification → cis male year of birth → september 1951 - september 1952 face claim → kerem bürsin blood status → pure-blood sexual orientation → homosexual (gay) occupation → member of the accidental magic reversal squad in the department of magical accidents and catastrophes at ministry of magic future information → uncle of fred, george, ronald, and ginvera weasley further information → based on fabian prewett

— he is best described as ;

The SILENT observer, waiting for the right moment to join in. He is ONE HALF of the duo known for their FUN and PRANKS. A PROTECTOR who watches over those closest, LOVING yet CAUTIOUS to intervene unless necessary. The CALMING breeze coming from the ocean, the deep breath taken to STEADY a racing heartbeat. A DEFIANCE that grows steadily as they welcome CHANGES without hesitant.

— his story starts with ;

Although only by minutes, Furkan is the youngest of the Polat brothers. He followed closely behind his brother and destined best friend, GORKEM POLAT [brother]. Being the first born children to the wealthy Polat family, they were the perfect sons to such a prestigious family line. From a young age the boys were taught all about the Sacred Twenty-Eight and what it meant for them to navigate the social circles properly. Furkan was known to be the quiet one, observing from the sidelines, the brains behind their elaborate pranks, and would prefer to listen in on a conversation than participate in them. He was calm, cool, and collected. The same could not be said for Gorkem, who was his complimentary opposite. Gorkem was the social one, most often being the leader of a conversation at whatever society party their parents dragged them off to, leaving Furkan the opportunity to comfort their little sister MIRAY WEASLEY [sister] and quietly encouraging her to spread her wings.

As similar as they are, Gorkem and Furkan grew to favor different interests and acquire different skill sets that allowed them to create flawless and elaborate pranks on themselves and the neighboring children. They were often found with their heads bent together, giggling, as they raced through the house. While the boys were the masterminds behind it all, they always allowed Miray to join in on the fun and never left her feeling lonely. With Gorkem taking to the skies on a broom in his free time, Miray watching from the ground below, Furkan would find himself wandering into his mother’s greenhouse and watching her as she worked. Being a healer in a shop in Diagon Alley, Furkan witnessed first hand his mother would brew potions, snipping at particular plants as she worked. His kindness grew as he watched her, wanting to help those in need as she did. He began to care for the injured animals and gnomes he would find around their home, quietly working the way he saw Eloise work with her patients on the rare day he accompanied her to work. He absorbed all the information given to him about healing and herbology and was excited to explore those studies when the Hogwarts letters arrived, ready to advance his abilities.

It came to no one’s surprise when Furkan was sorted into Hufflepuff, joined only moments later by Gorkem. Knowing his twin would still be by his side settled any nerves Furkan had about entering a new phase of life. He stuck close to Gorkem’s side as they settled into new life but slowly he began to extend his friend circle as Gorkem started to make more and more friends himself. The first friend he found was GIVA PATIL [close friend], a Ravenclaw in their year, who had been a study partner for an assignment in History of Magic. Another friend he found on his own had been during his second year, DELILAH GOLDSTEIN [best friend], a fellow Hufflepuff he had grown close to one evening in the common room as he picked her brain regarding a DADA essay they had due the following day. The understanding and kindness Delilah had shown him reminded Furkan closely of Miray and he welcomed the comfort of her friendship. Despite gathering different groups of friends, Furkann often found himself mingling with Gorkem’s friends whenever they threw their infamous common room parties. But most had only become acquaintances of his as he enjoyed the tight knit group he built on his own.

When Miray finally joined the boys during their fifth year, Furkan was ecstatic to see her welcomed into Hufflepuff. Standing nearby whenever she needed, but watching proudly as she branched out and started making friends of her own. He continuously left an invitation open for her and her friends to attend any of their parties. With both siblings off doing their own things, Furkan found his focus shifting to his new friend, WALDEN MACNAIR [potential love interest]. Having been grouped up for a class project in Transfiguration, neither of them had any interest in the other. But Furkan bit the bullet and put in the effort to meet up with Walden to work. The more they got talking, the more they found they had in common. An unusual friendship grew between the boys and over the next few months, Furkan found himself slowly falling for Walden. It seemed that feelings had been mutual when Walden asked Furkan out, with the promise of keeping things quiet. It wasn’t Furkan’s idea of a perfect relationship but he went with it, hopeful things would one day come to light. But two years later, he found that nothing hadn’t changed and he felt it best to break things off with Walden at graduation; even though his heart wanted anything but space.

Doing his best to push the heartbreak behind him, Furkan applied for the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad at The Ministry of Magic. As a member of the squad, he was left researching the reversal spells to many victims of uncontrollable magic. He was often working hand in hand with Oblivators and Healers, becoming quite well known throughout the Department as the years went on. He enjoyed the work he did, glad to see so many familiar faces around the Ministry including his old classmate JILLIAN STEWART [friend] and his sister’s then boyfriend ARTHUR WEASLEY [close friend/brother-in-law] as they passed in the atrium. When he thought everything had been going good, he was left with a shock from his parents when they requested the twins’ presence for dinner one evening and announced their disownment of Miray. Gorkem, ever the loud mouth, immediately began shouting at them for being so cold, while Furkan could only look at them in disbelief. He knew their parents had been involved in the Twenty Eight but he didn’t think they believed the rhetoric the rest of society had been spewing. With Gorkem’s agreement, Furkan penned a letter from them both to send to Miray and Arthur, showing their support for whatever the couple wished to do.

Being the compassionate older brother he was, Furkan happily agreed to be one of the witnesses of Miray and Arthur’s elopement. It had been at the celebratory dinner afterwards that Arthur spoke to Gorkem and Furkan about a group called the Order of the Phoenix. Furkan had noticed things shifting while at the Ministry but he didn’t realize it had become as bad as Arthur said. Gorkem joined up without hesitation with Furkan right behind him. It had actually been Furkan’s suggestion that his brother go undercover, knowing some of his old school connections would help him go undetected. Personally, he didn’t want to know how close to the front lines his twin was but if anyone could get away with spying, it would be Gorkem. Trying to focus on the happiness brought on by welcoming his nephews, Bill, Charlie, and Percy, into the world, Furkan is still anxious about this Dark Lord and his followers. Seeing how chaotic things had been only years ago, he had an unsettling feeling about their silence. With his ears open to any whispers happening at work, Furkan can only hope Gorkem is bringing more information from enemy lines that can end this brewing war one and for all.

— he is a LEVEL 7 WIZARD & readied for war ;

[indynerdgirl]

How to get Top Gun: Maverick into the Run Verse, A Thought Process

(Because I love both of these so much and I need them to exist together somehow. I hope you don't mind me playing a bit in your sandbox @themonkeycaball! 😆)

First, the overly complicated way:

It's implied canon that in the MCU Stark Industries designed and developed the F-22 Raptor (see screenshot from the first Iron Man movie of said model of the YF-22, the prototype that became the F-22, outside Stark Industries in the scene when Tony goes to SI to give his press conference after being rescued).

In real life, the F-22 was designed by Lockheed Martin. Lockheed also designed & developed the F-35 Lightning II. So it's safe to assume that in the MCU, SI also designed the F-35.

It's also safe to assume, within the context of the Run Verse, that Darcy could have easily worked with Tony on the project (though timelines in the Run Verse might need to be fudged a bit because IRL the F-35 was developed from the early 90s to the early 2000s with the first working prototype flying in 2006).

The F-35 has three variations, one each for the Air Force, Navy, and Marines. And they're now starting to fly the F-35 at TOPGUN.

Between her work at SI, her work with SHIELD, and her (assumed) military connections in general (from working with Tony on Jericho & other projects and Rhodes), she could easily become a military liaison for SI in the future.

As a SI military liaison with knowledge & probably expertise about the F-35, Darcy could end up at TOPGUN as a civilian instructor like Charlie was in the original Top Gun movie (assuming that was ever a real thing at Top Gun).

She happens to be at TOPGUN at the same time as the training for the special mission is happening, she meets Lieutenant Natasha "Phoenix" Trace, they become friends, Phoenix introduces her to everyone else, and now the Top Gun: Maverick crew is in the Run Verse.

Now the much shorter, easier way:

Darcy went to high school with Natasha and they were good enough friends that they stayed in touch after school (mostly through social media but they do call or text each other every once in a while). Darcy happens to be in California when Natasha is called back to TOPGUN so they arrange a meetup at The Hard Deck. The rest of the crew is there as well, Natasha introduces Darcy to everyone, and now the Top Gun: Maverick crew is in the Run Verse.

Bonus - Darcy's reaction to everyone:

Hangman - Can't stand him at first, really wants to punch that smirk off his face.

Rooster - They totally hit it off as friends. Same taste in music and she geeks out with him over his old Bronco.

Bob - Reminds her of Steve and she immediately joins the 'protect Bob at all costs' squad.

Fanboy - Like with Rooster, they totally hit it off as friends. They communicate almost exclusively in pop culture references which confuses everyone else.

Payback - Takes her a bit to figure him out, but when she finds out he also has a love of mechanical engineering they really hit it off as friends.

Coyote - He's a bit aloof at first because he really doesn't know what to make of her whirlwind energy. She eventually wins him over by introducing him to one of his idols, Rhodey.

Maverick - Reminds her of both her dad and Rhodey. Turns out he actually knows Rhodey, they met years ago when Maverick was part of a pilot training swap with the Air Force.

[flanklurker]

Hii!! just wondering if you could do a chamber x fem or gn reader where they are dating but chamber gets jealous of another agent in the protocol <33

Heeheehoohoo this wasn’t sitting in m y inbox for months no no (frimsosorrybutireallyhopeyouenjoy)

Chamber x fem!Reader: The Jealous Type

Vincent prided himself on keeping his cool. He really did. Staying calm and collected was how he survived so damn long in the heat of battle.

Why then was it that he had to consciously, consciously tell himself to relax his grip on the fine bone china mug of coffee?

Could it have been anything to do with a very, very charming new agent throwing his weight around in the common rooms? Surely not.

“Ah,” Harbor called out from across the table as you dragged your sorry bones through the kitchen. “Miss Y/N. Good of you to drop in nice and early—perfect timing! I was just about to get a pot of something on.”

Oh, thank the fuck god.

“That would… that would actually be amazing, I owe you one man,” you hummed as you took a seat at the kitchen counter.

“Pleasure is all mine! Pick your poison.” He nudged a box of teas and coffees across the table towards you with an easy smile.

Looking through, you grabbed your ol’ reliable from the kit and held it up for Harbor’s appraisal. “This okay?” You cocked your head towards him.

“Excellent choice, I’ll get it going.”

As the pot heated up, Harbor worked quickly, grabbing all the mugs from the counter. You noted idly that he seemed to be familiar with which agents were likely to be up early—Brim, Skye, Reyna and Sova’s mugs were all taken out and arranged ready for the agents to come in. Bloody impressive for being in the protocol what… ten days at most?

“I can see you’ve already worked out the lay of the land huh, Harbor.” You nodded towards the cups.

“Well, I can’t well make friends and influence people if I step on their toes before the day even begins,” he chuckled. “I had to learn that with Reyna the hard way.”

“Oh?” You raised an eyebrow. Reyna was not known for being the most… approachable, morning or otherwise. You tended to stay away—you’d heard the shouting at Jett and Phoenix before, and that didn’t exactly inspire confidence in you. Not at 5.40 in the morning.

“Look, let’s just say I assumed the whisky pump had been left out from dinnertime by mistake, and I picked the wrong time of morning to put it away.”

At this, you snorted. “Idiocy. Everyone knows Reyna has Frangelico and other, more ‘expressive�� liquors at dinner time.” You really laboured the ‘expressive’.

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Harbor’s eyes widen. You could almost catch a “speak of the devil” under his breath as the devil herself stalked in, beelining for her modern mug.

Harbor played it off easily, humming lightly to himself as he grabbed the hissing kettle. You on the other hand, sat as still as possible, lips pursed and trying not to draw any attention to yourself on the off chance she’d heard anything.

“This is ready?” you heard her ask your colleague, jerking her head towards the pot as she picked up the mug.

“Piping hot and ready to go, as per usual. House blend today, which I’m sure you’ll appreciate.”

Reyna hummed approvingly, grabbing the pot and wordlessly pouring herself a drink. As she turned around, you couldn’t help but make eye-contact with Harbor as you heard the crank of the infamous whisky pump. You struggled to keep a straight face, and Harbor’s conspiratorial gleam wasn’t helping.

You managed to keep the giggles under wraps until Reyna had left the kitchen, at which point the pair of you dissolved into chuckles.

“Jesus Christ Harbor, that was a close one. A little more warning, please.”

“Hey, how was I supposed to know she would arrive at exactly 6.39 this morning.”

At this point, Harbor grabbed the pot, made a show of checking it for any whisky, and hopped down beside you with his own mug.

“Dude, let me,” you shooed him away from pouring and grabbed the jug. “You had this before?”

“Always down to try new things,” he shot back with a wry smile.

You raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t come complaining to me if you don’t like it then, you were the one who made it.”

He chuckled and gratefully accepted the cup.

Conversation flowed easily as the two of you kicked back, musing on your past lives and ambitions in the protocol. Unlike Harbor, you’d had a while to get used to your radiance, and were able to offer a few tips on how not to overdraw your own energy resources. Harbor, on the other hand, was a wealth of facts and stories from hunting artifacts in the field. He was able to shed a little bit more light on some of the curiosities you had, like the bowls of colourful sand you always lingered on on your deployments in Morocco.

“Oh those? You have a keen eye for these things. From my understanding they’re actually textile dyes—once you activate them with water they take to the fabric like nothing else!”

“Guess we’d have to steer clear if you needed to flood the area,” you poked back.

It wasn’t until your beloved popped around the corner that you remembered you were actually due for a mission today.

“Vincent! I’m so sorry, I meant to be in the meeting room like twenty minutes ago to go over weapons.”

Your partner raised an eyebrow. “Yes, mademoiselle, it took me an extra five of those to convince our dear leader that you were not in fact one for tardiness, and that there was a good reason for your absence.”

“Shit no that’s totally my bad, Harbor and I got caught up yammering about architecture and I completely missed the time.” You shot Chamber an apologetic look, not quite managing to catch his eye.

At this point, Harbor took the moment to chime in. “Well I’m sure Brim can’t expect a lovely lady like this to hit the briefing room on an empty stomach?”

Harbor’s smile was warm and genuine, but his eyes were a little shrewder than you’d initially noticed.

Chamber seemed quiet for a second, moreso than you’d usually expect for his usual morning charm. If your eyes didn’t deceive you he seemed almost taken aback.

“My good friend, my intention was to ensure she arrived on time, and have refreshments come to her without cutting into her time to prepare.”

A little deterred by your partner’s more serious demeanour, you started up from the chair and grabbed the mugs.

“Whelp, this has been a great chat, Harbor, but I definitely have to dash now if I don’t want Brim to be permanently on my ass at 7am.” You swung by Vincent, placing a reassuring hand in the small of his back as you manoeuvred past him to the door.

“No need to apologise, Miss Y/N, though I do hope to continue our chats soon pending the outcome of the mission.” Harbor gave the pair of you an easy smile and settles back against the counter-top. “Do take care on your mission today, yes?”

Chamber grabbed your hand. It wasn’t harsh, but the gesture was sudden enough to surprise you as he gently tugged you out of the room.

“I assure you, my friend, she is in very good hands,” he said over his shoulder as Harbor gave a cheery wave (hah).

As soon as he’d closed the door, Chamber started making a beeline for the briefing room.

“Woah woah, why the sudden professionalism Vincent? Is Brim mad?”

“You mistake my haste, ma Cherie. I prefer to be punctual, and assume you were similarly inclined.”

You pulled back. “I hate to do this now, but I get the sense this isn’t a Brim thing, is it?”

“Don’t be silly ma chou, I just don’t want to be late.”

Yeah… he really wasn’t meeting your eyes, was he.

“Vincent, stop. Look at me. Something’s gotten to you hasn’t it.”

Obligingly, he stopped, but wasn’t turning to face you.

“Vincent…”

“Now it has gotten to this point, I feel exceedingly foolish, mon bebe.”

“My love, when we started to know each other, properly, I made a promise to you and you made a promise to me, right? You remember how that went?”

Your partner sighed, and turned to face you. His jaw was set and there was a vein, a little more pronounced than usual, popping from his forehead. With great effort, he forced his eyes to meet yours, and there was more frustration and concern there than you’d seen in a while.

“Oh, my darling,” you said softly, and moved forward to wrap him in a massive hug. “We talk about these things right? I promised you I’d listen, and always be there to hold you like this.”

“…’m feel so stupid for even letting it get to me,” he mumbled into your shirt. “…wasn’t even your problem… thought I was past this unbecoming behaviour…”

While you could only glean little snippets of what he was saying, you started putting two and two together in your head. “Ahh,” you say quietly.

“And I knew when I made this commitment—when we committed to each other—that I wouldn’t be the one captured by your gaze.”

“Vincent, I promise you, I’m not that—”

“No no, mon ange, you have this magnetic draw. You’re too kind, too well-meaning to see it, but of course people are going to be interested in you. I knew that, I prided myself on rising above it but still…”

“I’m really not convinced that Harbor is interested in anything more than being friends.”

At the mention of his name, you felt Chamber’s body twinge a little.

“No mon amour, he had that look in his eyes. I know it all too well, it is something I’ve felt myself on a number of occasions.”

“Shhh shhh,” you gently traced your fingers through his hair and around the nape of his neck. “Shhh, you know that kind of thing doesn’t faze me at all though right? He’s barking up the wrong tree.”

Chamber, your beautiful, tired partner, mumbled something unintelligible into your chest.

“And hey,” you continued. “I don’t care how many people throw themselves at me, shamelessly or otherwise. In fact, I wish they wouldn’t, at all. Ever. However. None of that matters, not even for the split second it takes you to get from point A to B on your rendezvous, huh?”

At this, he let out an involuntary snort.

“And none of that matters, because at the end of the day, I only have eyes for you. I will only ever have eyes for you. No one interests me in the same way you do Vincent.” You paused for a second, because no matter how many times you said it it still felt as real as the first time.

“You are the only one I love, and I love you with my head, my heart, my body and my soul. We made a promise, you and I, and I intend to keep it.”

You felt him relax into your arms as you say this, and in that moment, you decide that maybe Brim can wait a little longer.

“I love you,” he mumbled through your shirt.

“I love you too, Vincent,” you smiled back.

---

“Your heart is thudding awfully fast, carino,” Reyna remarked from the corner couch.

“Am I that easy to read, Ms Reyna?” Harbor shot back a wry grin.

“You know, if you were interested in that one you could have asked absolutely anyone in the protocol about her. Always the same answer.”

“Barking up the wrong tree… I take it?”

Reyna took another sip of her god-forsaken whisky concoction. “Quick learner,” she remarked.

“Ah well,” Harbor mused. “Definitely worth a shot.”

[writercole]

The Perfect Ratio

Summary: The first time Bob sees his friend get drunk, they both get more than the bargained for. Words: 2116 Warnings: 18 +. Alcohol consumption, drunkenness, smut Credits: @princessmisery666 for both the idea and beta - Could not have done it without you, beautiful. None of it. A/N: This spilled out of me in no time at all. It was fun and light and sweet and hot and - adorable.

It was an odd thing, being friends with naval aviators. They were all cocky in their own way, some worse than others, but they all had hearts of gold and cared deeply about anyone considered their friends. The majority of them were calm, cool, and collected.

And then there was Bob.

He was adorable, with his glasses and big blue eyes. He was funny when he actually interacted with his friends, which wasn’t often. At least when she was around, it wasn’t.

When Y/N was integrated into their friend group, Bob was the last one to talk to her. When he did, he stumbled over his words and said probably three offensive things accidentally. Then she giggled and he felt a stirring in his chest, a warmth that spread outward and flushed his neck and his ears.

Bob thought she was perfect. Her kindness drew him into conversations that he would otherwise have avoided and her smile righted every wrong that had been done to him. 

But she was like that with everyone. She gave her smile freely, her kindness radiating off of her in waves that could be felt across all barriers. Bob let his hope slip from him every time she looked at Yale or Fritz or Rooster. He’s pretty sure he heard his heart shatter when she smiled at Hangman. But if that’s what she wanted, he’d support her. He just wanted her to be happy, in whatever form that took.

Penny threw a huge, private, Halloween party and Bob was relieved to see her let loose. She took shots with Coyote, danced with Phoenix, joked with Fanboy. A soft smile graced Bob’s face as he sat in the corner, sipping a coke and watching her enjoy herself.

When midnight rolled around, she stumbled over to Bob, spilling her glass of wine in the process.

“Hey, Robby!” she slurred, swaying on her feet.

“How much have you had to drink, honey?” he asked calmly, despite the irritation building in his chest that their mutual friends had let her get that drunk.

“Not enough to be seeing three of you,” she assured him, and the ‘yet’ went unsaid. “Just enough to be a little unco-unc-wobbly.”

“Alright, let’s get you home, then.” He stood and took his keys out of his pocket, wrapping his arm around her waist for extra support. 

“Hmm, whatever you say, Robby,” she hummed as she pressed into his side. “You smell really good.”

“Thank you but in your current state, I’m sure anything would smell good to you,” he chuckled, loading her up into his sedan.

“I’m definitely sober enough to know you smell like citrus and cedar and something else that’s just…amazing,” she mumbled as she buckled her seatbelt. With her breath fanning his neck where he leaned over her, it took a few more attempts to click it into place than it should have.

Bob slipped into the driver’s seat and started up the car, taking the quickest route to her house while she stared out the window. He found it difficult to keep his eyes on the road, always looking over to check and make sure she was still okay. 

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to throw up in your car,” she said, but the following hiccup made him believe otherwise.

He helped her up to her room, his arm around her waist and hers slung over his shoulders. She was babbling about how great Bob was, giving compliments that made his heart flutter. She flopped down onto the bed with a sigh, shrugging off her jacket while Bob helped with her shoes.

“I’m capable of taking off my shoeses, Robby,” she grumbled. 

He looked up at her with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. “You can’t even say ‘shoes’ right now, honey. I’m not sure I trust you to not fall over.”

He was surprised when she leaned down and pressed her lips to his, cupping his face so he didn’t go anywhere. She hummed when his lips moved against hers, kissing her back.

Bob gripped her shoulders and pulled away, squeezing his eyes shut a second longer to commit the feeling of her lips to memory. “Wait. Wait,” he whispered, “you’re drunk. If you really want this, you have to do this sober. I won’t take advantage of you.”

“Robby, I do want you,” she whined.

“God you’re gonna make this difficult,” he groaned, standing to get away from her soft pout. “Come on, time to sleep.”

He helped her to settle in bed, noting that her eyes were fluttering shut before she laid down, despite the steady stream of complaints falling from her lips. Bob got a bottle of water and ibuprofen, setting it next to her on the nightstand. His thoughts darted back to college when his roommate nearly choked on his own vomit and he settled in the armchair across from her, just to make sure she made it through the night okay.

She woke with a groan, her hands clutching her head as she moved slowly to sit up. The majority of the night was clear. She knew she and Nat had taken shots. There was a bit of a blur in the middle but she knew that Bob took her home. Wait - did she…

Her eyes flew open as she remembered that she kissed Bob last night. He was a gentleman about it but she tried to…”shit,” she whispered.

A noise in the corner caught her attention and she turned her head slowly to see Bob stirring in the chair. Panic rose up through her chest; what was she supposed to do now? What would she say? Should she acknowledge it? Ignore it? Just go for it again? 

“Morning,” Bob mumbled across the room, his voice rough with sleep. 

“M-morning,” she stuttered, tossing the covers off of her as she swung her legs to the side of the bed. Fighting through the dizziness, she stood, only then noticing the water and painkillers on her nightstand. She grabbed them and headed to the bathroom, tossing two pills in her mouth and downing them with the bottle of water. 

After she had freshened up, she stepped back into her bedroom to find it empty, Bob nowhere to be found. Her heart sank a bit but then she heard the coffee maker churn to life and she knew he hadn’t left. Yet.

She stumbled into the kitchen and Bob looked up, a soft smile spreading across his face when he took her in. Her hair was still a mess and her makeup was smeared but he still thought she was beautiful. “How do you feel this morning?” he asked quietly.

“Um, okay, I guess,” she answered, sinking down into the armchair in her living room. “Just a headache really.”

“Oh, that’s good. Once you eat, I’ll take you to get your car from Penny’s place,” he smiled as he set a mug of coffee down next to her.

Her heart fluttered under his soft gaze, her eyes not leaving his face as he backed away to sit on the sofa. He sipped his coffee - black, three sugars - and let the silence settle comfortably around them. Her eyes wandered, focusing on anything but the depth of his blue eyes. 

“About last night,” she started as she kept her gaze on the mug of coffee in her hand, perfect ratio of cream, sugar and coffee.

“Hey, it’s not a big deal,” he soothed, sitting forward and resting his elbows on his knees. “You were drunk and -”

“I wasn’t that drunk, Robby,” she interrupted.

Her eyes slowly lifted, catching the intensity of his wide-eyed stare. 

“What?” he whispered, a desperate but apprehensive tone in the barely audible word.. 

“I wasn’t that drunk,” she repeated as she set down her mug. “I knew what I was doing when I kissed you.” She crossed the room and knelt between Bob’s legs, taking his face in her hands. “I’m tired of being unsure. I’m tired of hiding. I felt something last night, Robby, something real.”

Bob didn’t say anything. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers, his hands wandering down her sides, gripping her hips. Their lips moved as one, but something was wrong, something didn’t feel right.

“Robby,” she said as she pulled back, “kiss me like you mean it or tell me to stop.”

“You might regret that,” he growled, locking his arms under ass and standing. His slender frame hid his strength, the lean muscles allowing him to lift her with ease. He carried her to the bedroom in a few long strides, dropping her on the bed. She giggled when she bounced, gasping when he climbed on top of her.

His eyes searched hers for any signs of hesitation, or second thoughts. All he found was two beautifully hooded eyes that did little to hide the lust-blown pupils. “Are you sure?” he whispered.

“Make love to me, Robby,” she answered before pulling his head down, threading her fingers behind his neck, holding him close and peppering kisses to his jaw. 

The groan he tried to suppress sent a jolt straight to her core. 

Slowly, he peeled away the little clothes she wore, and between tender but hunger filled kisses he lost his clothes too. The first stretch of his impressive size was something she’d never forget and hoped to repeat every chance she got. She’d asked him to make love to her and that's what he did; there would be time for rough and fulfilling fantasies, for now he needed to show her that he felt something too, that she wasn’t alone in her pining. 

Her needy whimpers pushed him closer to the edge and he thought of literally nothing else. He felt her walls begin to clench and his hand snaked between their bodies, finding the bundle of nerves that pushed her closer to a release.

“I want you to come for me, honey,” he told her, “come all over my cock. I’m right behind you.”

Her climax washed over her, a hoarse cry of his name echoing off the walls as her back arched and her fingernails dug into his shoulders. He spilled into her womb with a groan, thrusting inside her until he was overly sensitive. Bob let his head fall to her shoulder, holding his weight up on his arms until he was composed enough to pull out, a hiss falling from her lips as he did. He settled on his back next to her, reaching his arm under her shoulders and pulling her close.

“God, I’ve wanted to do that for so long,” he sighed contentedly as she settled on his chest.

“So what took you so long, Robby?” she teased, tracing abstract patterns on his chest.

“Seriously? I’d never stand a chance against the likes of Hangman, or Rooster. Hell, even Fanboy is better looking than me,” Bob scoffed.

“Firstly you are the perfect ratio of adorable and hot, that’s hard to pull off,” she teased, “but It’s not all about looks, baby,” she cooed. “You’re sweet. And kind. And considerate.”

“And awkward and anxious and scrawny,” he countered.

“And not a single one of them could fuck me the way you just did.”

He chuckled at that, pressing a kiss to her head. “I don’t know, they talk a big game.”

“And with the game that you have, you could be talking a lot more,” she laughed, “you should be talking a lot more.”

“I guess when you know you’re good, you don’t have to talk,” he shrugged.

“Now who’s cocky?” she snarked, nudging his chest. “Though you definitely have a right to be.”

“Nah,” denied Bob, wrapping his arms around her. “No reason for me to be cocky. Now you know what I can do, I don’t need to prove anything to anyone. Got all I need and want in my arms right now.”

“And what if I told you it was a one time thing?”

“Oh, honey,” he chuckled darkly, “you’re already addicted.”

“Am I, now?”

His fingertips dragged up her thigh softly, goosebumps erupting in their wake, a shiver traveling up her spine. Her hips bucked against his leg on their own and she stifled a whimper, squeezing her eyes shut and biting her lip. “Oh honey, that was just the free preview. Wait till you see what I can really do.”

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to handle that,” she panted as he rolled her to her back, groping her chest roughly.

“You can handle it,” he promised, “but I’ll take my time to show you, make you a hungry little cock slut before we leave this bed.”