#She learned very quickly to go in her crate whenever we all leave the house or when we go to sleep

[afluffymugcake]

My dog Luna is just a menace

fun thing about herding and/or generally neurotic breeds: they are really good at following rules you have instituted, but they will also make their own Dog Rules they will follow stringently whether or not you like it

[vegalocity]

A Curse of Feathers and Mud

So y’all know how it’s implied that Eda was Stan’s Ex-Wife Marilyn? Well I was thinking some thoughts at work and was like ‘what if they stayed together’ So here we are

Ao3 link

-

Edalyn Clawthorne—or apparently as far as the human world was concerned, Marilyn Forrester—Was tired of the Boiling Isles and if she didn't still need to keep Elixirs on hand, she'd never return, throw the folding door and the key over a ravine and resign herself to never seeing her homeland again.

She'd had her curse for a little over a decade at this point, but had only recently learned the truth about it. A lump formed in the back of her throat at the memory of her Sisters shouting. Eda's bounty had just jumped another zero and Lilith had been 'lucky' to catch her while she was doing some self training on the Knee. And she... they'd gotten arguing and God-! She hadn't even SEEN Lilith since she'd ran from the Coven Ceremony!

And THAT was her pitch to try and get her in?! 'Hey I cursed you when you were fourteen! Come join this system you hate and could never be happy under and serve this tyrant that brainwashed everyone in the goddamn land to practically worship him so he can fix what I did to you so I don't have to do it and take responcibility for my actions! Everything will be fine!' Lilith was lucky she'd still been recovering from a curse flare up and she'd just ran, else she might not have been able to control herself.

She'd ran back to her cabin—she'd been considering making a House Demon for the place, but it would need to be more than two rooms before the demon would have enough space to thrive, Eda was a lot of things, but a neglectful demon owner was not one of them—packed a bag with some human clothes and an armful of her stash of Elixirs and left for the human world. She'd needed to get away and the furthest she could think of was the human world.

Which was, of course, how she'd met Hal.

It was just some stupid scheme of hers that ended up blending in nicely with a scheme of his own, the two of them had caught on to eachothers game and played off of eachother until they had enough to split a hot meal.

She did her best to seem as though she knew exactly what she was doing, and thankfully Dollars weren't too different in setup than Snails were. And she hadn't been overly hungry her gut still turning and churning from the previous day's discoveries, so she let Hal have most of the yellow salty sticks that came with the sandwich.

“So, what's your name?” He'd asked, a mouth full of tomato blood—well, not REALLY tomato blood, it was too viscous and salty, but it was the closest approximation she'd had at the time—and brown eyes flickering to her ears—thankfully still covered by her mountain of orange hair.

“Edalyn.” She'd answered easily. It's not like she was anybody in the Human world. Her name was only dangerous on the Boiling Isles.

“Marilyn...?” he fished, and Eda had been just about to correct him, before deciding against it. New world new her.

“Marilyn Blight.”

“Hal Forrester, nice to meet ya.”

So they'd ran some schemes together since it made it a little easier and eventually earned enough to hit the Casinos in town.

Maybe Hal was just lonely, in how quickly he'd taken to Eda, and maybe She was just desparate for the idea that she could actually do this, could actually run away to the human world and just drop back into the boiling isles when her Elixir runs dry. But eventually, high on adrenaline and the mutual sense of dispair, the two of them found themselves in a drive by chapel. He didn't have a ring for her, so He promised that that would be the first thing they got with their winnings once the stint in 'Vegas' was over.

Of course when they left Vegas it wasn't easily. The Goons for whatever powers controlled the human world in their screaming cars tearing across the road behind them, And for a moment, Eda was tempted to leave. To pull Owlbert from where she'd hidden him, take the Vegas winnings she had in her lap, and leave. Open the door while they were at this speed, say something snarky like 'I think we should see other people' and jump out, her staff there to catch her.

But if she did... where the hell would she even go? The Owl Lady had a hundred thousand snail bounty on the Boiling Isles, and she didn't want to return there unless either she HAD to, or she was READY to. And the last thing she wanted was the chance to somehow cross paths with her sister again. Eventually Belos would start actually sending agents out to find her, and knowing her Sister, Lilith would be the first to volunteer. And she was NOT ready for that yet.

“I have an idea, do NOT slow down.”

“Wasn't dreamin' of it, toots.” 

Magic was harder here, this place didn't have magic pouring from its very core, it was a magic vacuum. Everything Eda made took almost twice as much magic as it would back hom- Back on the Boiling Isles. She'd probably need to chug an elixir a day earlier than normal. Damn things... She used to only need to take them once a month, but now it's come to a weekly basis. Maybe someday she'd have to guzzle the things like a morning apple blood.

Eda took a breath and drew a circle, the amber magic flashing only breifly before an Illusion was crafted, pulling away from them as the illusionary car stopped abruptly, the loud screech of tires against stone barely audible. The Goons behind them so startled as to not crash into their 'targets' not a one noticed the trickery for what it was.

Hal, for his part, didn't falter, she saw him startle slightly as he saw the illusion in the rearview mirror, his eyes widening and his hands scrambling over the steering wheel, but he kept his cool.

“What the hell was that?!” was the first thing out of his mouth when they'd crossed territories, into some place called 'Utah'.

Soooo maybe he didn't take it like a CHAMP, but he did take it.

Well, Eda was in it now. She had a fake name that was a wanted woman, she was in a marriage of convienence—Eda had always had a torrid romantic history but even she knew that this wasn't based in love, it was too soon, this was just mutual desperation for contact—with a human, and while she could return to Bonesbourough whenever she pleased, she found that, she still didn't want to.

“Edalyn is my real name, with an 'E'. Edalyn Clawthorne. Back home they call me the Owl Lady, I'm one of the most powerful witches on the Boiling Isles.”

And Hal had let out a nervous chuckle, Owlbert hopping down from Eda's staff and resting on his shoulder curiously. He took a deep breath and introduced himself as Stan Pines.

Though they both chose to keep the fake names for the next couple of states. A married couple looked better as an explination than just a pair of wandering people who decided to stick together after all.

Eda had barely realized a year had passed until she was on her... tenth run back to Bonesbourough for her next supply of Elixir, Stan had come with her—so long as he swore to keep the hood of his jacket up over his head so people wouldn't notice his ears—and ran her Human Curioscities stand for her as she did her business. And... okay, Stan was NOT a better salesman than she was, they were on pretty even footing, he'd simply grown up in the Human world while Eda had only been living there for a year. He knew more intimately how the curiosities worked so he knew how to better market them to others.

And HIS face wasn't the one on the wanted posters that she'd seen periodically around the marketplace. So the Conformatorium's Mooks left him alone.

When she came back, her newest crate of Elixir under her arm, over half of their stock had been cleared out, Stan humming a song about counting money to himself.

And you know... they weren't in love. Not really. Maybe on some level he was trying to replace that brother she'd heard him mention in passing with her. And maybe on some level she was just trying to prove to herself that her own sister hadn't ruined her life by making one of her own.

But they could maybe find a way to be happy. Just Maybe.

[caspers-chibs-imagines]

Redemption

Summary 

Riley Teller and her son move back to Charming. When Riley returns however, she is faced with the fact that she had to take on her responsibilities as a mom better than before when they are apart of The Sons. Allies are made and maybe a little something more with a certain Scotsman.

____

Chapter Fourteen

I stood with Sack as Tig, Jax, Clay, Chibs and Juice all fired rounds into targets from the guns supplied by the Irish. I jokingly threaten to staple Sack's kutte to the wooden crate behind us and he shoved me away from him and I shoved him back as we laughed at one another.

Over the last three months, myself and him had gotten closer due to us both being in the same position as prospects and being made to do all kinds of random shit for the club. He was like having another kid. Tommy liked he too and would always want him to teach him how to fight - sometimes I wondered what the others would be saying to my son to make him want to learn from Sack.

Another thing that had been happening over the last few months was Chibs and I kept on whatever it was that we are. But around the club, I was simply a prospect and we wouldn't make any advances towards one another. He would come over the house a lot of the nights, sometimes Tommy would be awake and be happy that he was having a sleepover. Other times he was either with Mary and the kids or asleep and that left Chibs and me up to do whatever we wanted to one another.

As far as I was aware, mom was the only one that had caught onto me to and Chibs and she kept giving me knowing looks whenever he and I were alone in the clubhouse. But we knew better than to do anything in the clubhouse or we risked being caught by one of the other members. If anyone asked why he was spending so much time at the house, we would put it down to Tommy wanting to see his favourite member of mommy's club. Juice had taken offence to that when Chibs told him and whenever Tommy was around, Juice would be trying to win him over with sweets and allowing him to be used a personal pony.

I had also started reading the book that my father had written and seeing some of the things that he said about the club made me wonder what Jax and I were going to do about it all.

"Prospects!" Tig shouted and Sack and I stopped goofing around as we turned towards him. "New targets, let's go!" I shoved Sack one more time and moved to take down the ripped-up targets and replaced them with new ones. I finished stapling the last target while Sack struggled with his own as gun shots rushed past my head.

"Hey, hey!" I shouted as I ran out of the way to avoid being shot by Tig's sudden antics. Once I was out of the way, Chibs started to join in on winding Sack up as he shot his stapler gun back at them.

"Yeah, great job. You'll shoot off my one last nut. Great sponsor." He calls over to them as Chibs and Tig laugh. I shake my head at the pair before they all walk into the warehouse and leave me and Sack outside while they are talking to the Irish.

Before long, the deal had been made and Sack and I were helping to move the crates of guns into a black van. As I was helping Sack load one of the crates, I noticed the tension between Clay and Jax as they spoke to one another. Jax moved away from him and he nodded to me before he mounted his bike.

"What was that about?" Sack asks me as I turn back to him.

"Not a clue." I slap him on the shoulder before loading up the last of the crates.

Once they were loaded up, I walked over to my bike as Sack got onto his own.

"Wanna come and get my son with me?" I ask as I clip the strap to my helmet under my chin. When he agrees, we both reeve our engines and drive off to Tommy's school to pick him up. I told Sack to wait by the bikes as I went into the grounds to pick my son up. As I stood waiting, I noticed all the usual parents that stood on their own or with their babies - a couple of the parents stared at me with my prospect kutte on with dirty looks. I continued to wait as the children started to come out of their classrooms. But what caught my eye was the hooded man that stood by the school gates. I frowned as I look at him and tried to see who it was but with no luck due to how far he was.

"Mommy!" I turn around to see Tommy coming over to me and I open my arms for him. He hugs me and I ruffle up his hair before turning to walk back to Sack. I look over to see that the hooded man had left, and my panic didn't settle.

Once we got to the bikes, I gave Sack a look and he instantly knew it meant trouble. I got Tommy in front of me on my bike and put his helmet on and we drove very quickly - as quick as I was willing to go with my son on the bike - back to the clubhouse.

Pulling up alongside the other bikes that were parked, I looked over to the gate to see a silver car had pulled up on the other side of the road.

"Baby, go with Eddie into the clubhouse." I tell Tommy as I continue to look at this car after getting off the bike. "Sack, get Chibs for me." He nods his head before he and Tommy race each other to the clubhouse. I lean against my bike and light a cigarette as I continue to watch the car. There was two men inside, one was hooded and the other had a hat pulled over his eyes. I couldn't make out who they were, and it was beginning to really worry me.

Chibs emerged from the clubhouse and he walked over to me with a concerned frowned on his face.

"What's wrong, love?" He asks and I point to the car outside the gate.

"They've just followed me from Tommy's school." I reply and he curses under his breath as I take another drag. "If it's who I think it is, then I need to pull Tommy out of school until it sorted."

We both stood and watched as the car pulled off after a few moments and then I let the panic that was rushing through me release. I walked over near the boxing ring where the punching bag was and started letting out my frustrations on it. Hit after hit, I felt my body shaking with the adrenaline and I kept going until I was out of breath and Tommy had ran back outside to me.

***

"I haven't been able to say this yet on a club level." Clay started as everyone settled in their seats and looked up to him. Either smoking or drinking a beer - I decided to do neither for the time being. "We're all broken up about what happened to Donna. She was a great girl. I know how much you loved her. She sure loved you."

I started to tune out the conversation as my mind wondered over to the men that had followed me and my son from his school today. The men who had killed George knew where I was; they knew where to find my son when he wasn't with me.

"I want Jax and Riley." I snapped out of my thoughts to see Opie looking over to me. A pleading look in his eyes and I knew what he needed me and my brother for. Clay was pinning the murder of Donna on another man while the one who did it was sat in this room.

I nod my head to him, and a faint smile pulled his lips before it disappeared again. Clay called the meeting to an end and I went to get up and looked to Jax who gestured for me to leave. I walked out of the chapel and closed the doors behind me - leaving Jax and Clay inside.

Opie turned to me and I walked up to him before we hugged one another.

"You sure, you want me there?" I ask.

"Of course." He pats my back and then leaves to go outside. I watch him leave and then walk over to where Tommy sat with Sack at the bar. Tommy had his fists up and was blocking Sack's playfully punches. I quickly played Sack's arms behind him and he struggled against me.

"Quick Tommy, get him!" I cheered for my son and he started his little punches onto Sack. I knew he was okay because Tommy wasn't a fighter at heart, he was too gentle to be one. I let Sack go after a moment and he shoved me - earning a shove back in return.

Jax came over to me and tapped me on my elbow, giving me the signal that it was time to go. I turn back to Tommy and smile.

"Baby, mommy has to go do something." I start as I put my hands on his shoulders. "You are going to stay here with Eddie, and he will play all afternoon with you." When he hears this, Tommy nods his head and I pull him into my arms and kiss his head. I let him go and turned to Sack and pointed my finger at him.

"Do not, and I repeat not! Let him out of your sight." Sack nods his head and then I clap his shoulder and follow Jax after taking my kutte off - leaving me in my black hoodie - out to the truck and van.

***

I sat between Jax and Opie as we pulled up across the street of the man that Donna's murder was being pinned on.

"That's him." I say as I look at the photo on the report and hand it over to Jax. "Restocking his dealers."

"Elian Perez." Jax says he looks over the report. "Out of Corcoran three months ago, manslaughter. A Chinese menu of drug and assault charges." I kept a watchful eye on Opie as he glared at the man that sat on his bike. Tig and Chibs pull up next to us in the van.

"How do we do this?" Tig asks and Jax and I look around.

"Too many eyes here." Jax replies. Opie taps me and I see that the Mayan was on the move. I hit Jax and he starts to follow him. We followed around for a minute and that's when he pulled onto an empty street.

"This street is empty." Opie says. I look at the Mayan and then get an idea.

"Pull up beside him." I tell Jax and then climb out the back window and onto the bed of the truck. I look back at Tig and Chibs and wave for them to get ready. Jax does as I told him and drives up beside him. I take a deep breath before running and leaping off the truck to tackle the Mayan off his bike.

We both come crashing down onto the road as his bike falls. I roll on the road before I stop and get up with a groan. I run over to the Mayan and tackle him again before he can get his gun out and start firing. Jax and Opie come over and drag him to his feet as I get off him.

"What the hell, ese!" He shouts as Tig opens the back of the van and pulls him into it.

I take a step towards the truck and groan as I wrap my arm around midsection as a pain shoots through my ribs.

"The hell were ya thinkin', lass?!" Chibs snaps as he walks over to me.

"I was thinking of getting the bastard that killed Donna." I snap back and groan again at the pain. Jax comes over to me and stares at my arm with concern.

"You alright?" He asks and I nod my head. Chibs shoots me a look before going over to the van and I limp over to the truck.

We drive off to a more isolated spot so that Opie could do what he wanted to the man. I stood next to Jax as Chibs and Tig pulled the Mayan out of the van. They threw him to the ground and Opie went straight over to him with a gun pointed at his head.

"Tell me you did it." He growls.

"What are you talking about?" The Mayan panics as he looks up at Opie.

"Tell me you killed my wife." Opie snapped and cocked the gun.

"I swear! I don't know what you're talking about man!" The Mayan tries to reason. But there wouldn't be any reasoning here, he had to die for something he didn't do.

"Ope!" I shout and move forward to pull him away the man. Jax came to my aid and we pulled him away from the situation to let him breathe for a moment. Chibs followed us over and I stood in front of Opie as he shook with rage.

"The hell you doing man?" Jax questions him and Ope shakes his hand off his arm, along with mine.

"I'm not leaving here with any doubt." He replies and I take this time to step in.

"The longer this takes, the greater the risk." I tell him and he looks down at me. "Ope, just do the guy and let's get the hell out of here." Opie looks between Jax and I.

"You guys can go. I've got to do this my way." I shake my head at him.

"Opie listen-"

"If this guy hurt Tommy, you'd be ripping every last bone from his body." Opie snapped at me and then realised his words before taking a deep breath and then looked back at me. "I have to know."

I nod my head in response and I pat his shoulder. We hear a gunshot and instantly back over to where Tig and a now very bloody Mayan lay gurgling on his own blood.

"Broke loose and reached for my gun, had to blow him up man." Tig explains and I narrow my eyes at him. I knew he was lying; the Mayan knew he hadn't done anything but Tig didn't want him speaking anymore.

Opie looked back at Jax and I.

"No doubt, this guy killed Donna." Jax says and that was all it took before Opie shot the Mayan through the skull. He pulled out his knife and bent down to the Mayan. I looked away as he started cutting into the guys chest. I felt my stomach do flips and knew I was going to be sick if I watched.

"That's so Alvarez knows who and why." Opie says and I turn to see a giant 'A' in the corpse's chest. I shake my head and look to Jax.

"Get rid of those guns. You guys take the van, head back. I'll dump the body." He says and I instantly knew what he wanted to do.

"You're dropping him on Mayan turf. Ya can't do it on your own, Jackie boy." Chibs says and Jax tells him that he'll be fine. Tig, Chibs and Opie walk back over to the truck and van. I look at Jax as I turn to leave with them.

"We need to make sure this doesn't end up at our back door." I tell him and he nods his head. I walk back to the truck and hop in next to Opie. I grab my ribs again as they flare up in pain.

"Thank you." I look up to Opie as he drove us back to the clubhouse.

"No need to thank me, Ope." I tell him. "You would've done the same for me."

***

Tommy had wanted to stay with Kenny and Ellie again tonight and I wasn't going to stop him from going. I dropped him off and thanked Mary again for taking care of him. I returned back to the clubhouse to join the party for Bobby's return. There were loads of people drinking, smoking and laughing. I head inside to the bar and grab myself a beer from one of the croweaters working behind there tonight.

I then made my way back outside as I lit a cigarette. I sat on top of one empty benches and watched on over party.

"Ya took a risky move today." I smile as I hear the familiar Scotsman. He sits next to me and takes my cigarette to smoke.

"Just doing right by the club." I reply before taking a swig of my beer.

"Aye," Chibs sighs, exhaling the smoke from my cigarette. "But ya could've gotten yaself killed."

"But I didn't, so there's that." I reply and smirk. He knew I wouldn't let him win this argument and he just smirked back at me, throwing his arm around my shoulders.

We both looked up as a car pulled up into the lot.

"The hell?" I frown before getting up and following Clay over to the car. Four men get out and one walks right up to Clay.

"Garage is closed." He says to the man in his fancy suit.

"We're not here for, uh, car repairs. I understand you're a Camacho fan." The man speaks as he holds up a small box towards Clay, who doesn't even look at it.

"Who are you?"

"Just dropping by to give you a little friendly advice." The man in the white shirt spoke up. He looked from Clay to where I stood beside him. The look he gave slightly unsettled me, but I didn't let my face show that - keeping my jaw locked and my eyes narrowed.

"And what advice would that be?" Clay asked.

"We feel it would be best for all concerned if you stop dealing arms to the One Niners and the Mayans." At this most of the club starting chuckling and I joined them in the façade.

"We're just mechanics and Harley lovers, man. Got something against bikers?" I speak up and the guy in the suit looked down at me and smiled.

"Such a small girl like you?" He teases and I give him a sarcastic smile. I also feel Chibs step a little closer behind me as his hand touches the bottom of my back.

"That's one of Darby's guys back there." Tig tells Clay and I notice that the two men behind this prick were in fact part of the racist group among Charming.

"Mr. Darby is one of our supporters."

"Expensive car. Hell of a suit. All of your teeth. Must be the top of the Aryan food chain, huh?" Clay asked the man.

"What you do for a living is between you and your maker. I'm not here to adjust your moral compass. This is just a reality check. You're a criminal and you're done selling guns to colour." I heard Tig cock his gun then and Clay stopped him. "Are you gonna shoot me, Mr. Trager? With all these witnesses?"

"Look, uh, I don't know what Darby told you and, uh, I don't know what your angle is, but let me be real clear. Nobody threatens SAMCRO. And nobody tells us what we can and can't do. Black, brown or white. So, why don't you just climb back into your little German clown car and drive back to Nazi town? 'Cause the next time you piss all over my shoes, he will kill you. I don't give a shit how many witnesses there are." Clay threatens the man. I find my smirking at them and knew that everyone else would be too.

"My shop opens in a few weeks. Until then... enjoy." The man then puts the box down at Clay's feet before moving to get back into his car. I move with the others to circle the car and the one in the white bumps into me.

"Sorry." He says and I glare at him as he gets into the car. I turn back around to Clay and the others as Chibs picks up the box and passes it back to Clay. I walk back over to the bench that I had been sitting on and go back to drinking and Chibs joins me.

Not long after, another car pulls up into the lot, but we all know who it is and start cheering as Bobby steps out. Everyone starts hugging him and welcoming him back before Chibs helps him put his kutte back on and then I walk up to him.

"See you got some leather." He smiles and I laugh before hugging him and I welcome him home. I see Agent Stahyl and decide to go over and have some fun as Clay thanks her for bringing home Bobby.

"Why don't you stay for a while. Bet you could do some serious damage to a striper pole." I offer and she glares at the kutte that sat on my shoulders.

"Like you wouldn't know." She says before getting back into the car.

The party continues to rage on now that Bobby was back, and I kept drinking. After being around Juice, Chibs and some of the other charters, I felt like it was time to go home. I walk over to the bikes as I finish my cigarette and flick it away. I sit on my bike and grab my helmet.

"Leavin' love?" I look up to see Chibs had followed me to the bikes.

"I've welcomed the princess home." I tell him and sit still on my bike with my helmet in my hands. Chibs leans down and holds onto my bike after checking over his shoulder to make sure no one was looking our way.

"How 'bout I join ya." He offers as he leans down and presses his lips to mine. I smile into the kiss and bite my lip when he pulls away.

"Better get on that bike." I tell him and he smiles before moving to his own bike.

[sweaterkittensahoy]

The story of Britton Bean started with finding her photo on the Humane Society website. It was April. We weren’t supposed to get a dog until July. 

But. Those ears. 

And she met all the requirements we had for a dog: Small (apartment management requires dogs under 20 pounds); female (to hopefully make it easier to become friends with the bestie’s dog; a rescue. 

So, I posted this tweet, then frantically texted @whatsmyappeal​, who was at work. Basically trying to talk myself out of going and meeting this dog. Because I knew. I just <em>knew</em>.

I mean. Those <em>ears</em>.

Here’s the thing about adopting a dog in PDX: If you adopt through the Humane Society, you have to move fast. Dogs and cats get adopted fantastically quickly in PDX. On average, dogs who pass behavioral tests and physical exams can be put up for adoption on Tuesday and gone by Wednesday. PDX is such a busy place for the Humane Society, that they take in a LOT of animals from neighboring states. It’s called the Second Chance Program. Animals from neighboring states who pass health and behavioral tests are sent to PDX so that shelters near-capacity can keep space open for animals that need more specialized care or simply more animals in general. 

We’ll circle back to this in a second.

So, here’s this adorable, scared little girl up for adoption, and I’m trying desperately not to run out and grab her. We’re traveling in June and July; which is why we decided to wait until late July to even consider adoption. I had been looking at listings just to get a sense of how often small dogs came into the shelter. This was not the moment to adopt. 

But. I knew she was ours. I just knew it. 

I ended up calling the husband and laying out a plan. We’ll go and meet her. He gets final say in if we take her home. If she doesn’t feel like a good fit to him, we’ll wait. It’s important that we both want this dog. 

We go. We fill out paperwork. We wait an hour. We go into the meeting room, and here she comes. She’s scared and nervy. Incredibly quiet. We find out she’s had a very, very exhausting week. 

On Monday, she’d been found on the streets of Fresno. 

On Tuesday, they’d put her on a truck to bring her to PDX.

On Wednesday, she’d been spayed. 

And it was now Thursday, and we were meeting her.

Sean and I took a few minutes to discuss pros and cons: We couldn’t get a real sense of her overall personality at the moment because she was clearly terrified and exhausted. But we’ve always planned to adopt a rescue, so we’re well aware of issues we may have to overcome. What we had seen was promising. She was sweet and curious, if a bit shaky. 

We took her home. On the drive there, we changed her name from Butterfly (named by the shelter) to Britton Bean. ‘Bean’ because she’s small and ‘Britton’ after my great-grandparents. They’d always been dog lovers and no one in the family had used the name elsewhere, and I think they’d have been delighted to find out our pup had their name. 

We got her home, and put her inside, and she sniffed around for a couple of minutes, then spotted the couch and LEAPED onto it, rolling around and digging at it in clear excitement. 

That answered our first question: She knew what a couch was. She probably hadn’t always been a stray. 

A couple of hours later, we had answers to other questions: She knew how to walk on a leash. She liked belly rubs. I had no doubt that before she’d been found in Fresno, she’d been somebody’s pet. 

For the next two weeks, she basically slept. Can’t say I blame her.

When she wasn’t sleeping, she was on watch. A few days after we got her, we took her for a car ride. She climbed right into Sean’s lap in the driver’s seat and stared out the window. She knew what a sweater was and liked to wear them. She knew to flop over to get her harness put on. 

When they’d found her in Fresno, she’d clearly recently had puppies. But she was found alone, and the guess was that the puppies had been weaned, and she had been dumped. Frenso’s got a bad habit of that. 

It didn’t make sense to me. She was two years old. If they’d only been using her for breeding, it seemed unlikely she’d be so good on a lease or want lap sits or know how to ride in a car. And while she was a bit skinny when we got her, she only had to put on a pound and a half to get back up to a good weight. Strays who have puppies tend to need to recover a lot more than that when they’re picked up by rescues. And if they’re lifelong strays, they don’t know how to walk on a leash or what lap sits are. 

Looking at our girl and knowing what I knew of backyard breeders, I did some research, and I came to a conclusion. Our deer-headed, big-eared, long-bodied baby was a Chiweenie. 

A Chiweenie is a “designer breed,” which is the nice way of saying someone got it into their head they had to further cute-ify dogs to their exact liking, and so they took a Dachshund and a Chihuahua and had them make babies. Now, where I come from, we’d call that a mutt, and there’d be an ad in the paper for free puppies. But since someone did it on purpose and gave it a cutesy nickname, puppies can cost up to $500 each. The fact that Bean was found on the streets with clear signs she’d had puppies but wasn’t skeletal? I’m pretty sure someone bred her specifically to sell her pups, and then dumped her when the pups were weaned. 

But prior to that? I think she was someone’s beloved dog. Like I said, she knew what a couch was. She could walk on a leash. She was housebroken. She knew how to signal to go out. She knew what sweaters were and how to ride in the car. 

I have a whole backstory of guesses of how she ended up at the Humane Society to come home with us, but I’ll skip that. Because what’s important isn’t where she was, it’s where she is, and that’s with us.

She is not without her challenges. She barks at nearly everything. She has separation anxiety (RIP living room blinds). We’re working on it. She crates well, thankfully, so we can keep her safe if we need to leave her alone, but we also have a dogsitter and try to take her with us on errands whenever possible. 

What’s good is that while these things are issues, they’re improving. The barking is toning down in a lot of places, and her separation anxiety is getting less prominent. I work from home now, so when I leave the house, she seems to think I’ll never return. If Sean leaves for work, she’s fine. If he comes home after work, then leaves again, she gets a bit moody but does all right overall. 

Even better is that the things we’re working on are changing. First, it was getting her to stop barking at every little thing. Now, it’s focusing on getting her to ignore other dogs walking by and getting her to stop threatening people dropping off mail and packages. But there’s a new twist: She barks for attention now. If we’re not giving her enough attention by her standards, she’ll come right up and bark at us. It is very, <em>very</em> annoying. But it’s also a good sign. She’s getting more comfortable, so she’s pushing boundaries to see what we do. 

We do what we always do: We work with her, then praise her when she acts appropriately. She had to go one-on-one for training, but she did great. She loved it. The trainer thinks that she’ll never be super buddy-buddy with other dogs in general, but it’s a real possibility she’ll learn to ignore dogs on walks and maybe even be able to make a friend or two over time. We’re seeing her ability to ignore other dogs already, and that’s damn good for less than a year’s work. 

She hates the cold, so we got her a warming stone for her couch nest, and the heating pad lives on her bed in front of the entertainment center. Her sweater collection grows almost every week, and she has three pairs of pajamas so far. She’s figured out that being out in the cold with the sun out is perfectly fine for a walk, but we’re still working on her accepting being out in the rain. She absolutely loathes the rain, but she’s a PNW girl now, so she has to deal. We don’t make her stay out longer than she needs to go to the bathroom if she doesn’t want to, and she has a little, fake grass patch on the porch so she can pee there in the middle of the night. 

She’s clever as hell. You put a hunting dog and a rat-catcher in the same body, it’ll happen. It’s led to pooping in the house in the middle of the night because she’s discovered if she doesn’t shake off before she does it, we don’t wake up to see if she needs out. 

She’s sweet as can be and loves treats. She also loves people once she’s gotten used to them, though she’ll still decide she needs to bark for five minutes when they visit. We took her to someone else’s house for Thanksgiving, and while she was overwhelmed at times, she mellowed during the night and was playing with her toy by the end of things. 

She gets a Puppacino once a week and knows when it’s happening. Her tiny claws are stabby knives of death, but we can’t trim them super often because her quicks are so long. She plays with her toys for about ten minutes at a time, and if she really wants your attention, she’ll get in your lap, stand on her hind legs, and lick your nose. 

She is a very good girl, and will likely live well into her teens. Right now, she’s curled on my lap to warm up her feet because we went for a walk. In a couple of hours, she’ll wake up and shake off and move back to the couch or come in and stare at me until I turn on the heating pad on her bed. If she doesn’t get her pill pocket at four, she’ll come and lick my nose.

[thomasinabergsten]

How Do You Get Rid Of Cat Spray Smell Outside Mind Blowing Diy Ideas

In the meantime, if you have one squirreled away from dinner, intervene and tell them your other furniture.Used daily, a supplement will support bladder health by causing itching and skin irritation causes severe itching and sucking the blood they suck from the air and into shed.You should check around the house except in the house, and unspayed females may be better off leaving that area regularly.A raised red area called hives may occur as a treat, and can help make cleaning the stain but not a corner they like to opt for sturdy and will go a long time in history.

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Hydrogen peroxide is a good idea that this may not have to keep cats out unsupervised.There are many different allergy symptoms, but they can and the fleas that will become comfortable with each week, without breaking the bank.Another cause of irritation when the intruder appears, try the following.How many times have you recently moved, or had a cat behaviorist.Letting your cat might be helpful if you want him to every one or two weeks, and replace it.

Cats and kittens always have something a play with each other.Thus, you are more likely to engage in this article.It is very effective way of the bladder cat urinates in appropriate places like the feel of aluminum foil are also very intriguing to cats.Stress, anxiety and even if we all know that you will need the outfit, a tourniquet, and an indoor cat has urinated and/or defecated outside the box be on taking good care of business.With all the attention of his head or some other kitty is stressed out.

Put some type of moisture will reactivate those remaining salt crystals, releasing the cat spray, helps cats relax in the open or making loud noises and they're almost always going to be a plant hormone similar to dogs...Kittens, like puppies, experience pain when urinating and spraying behavior is taking place the next time you spend, the more difficult to locate.It has to possess a mind of their natural behavior.Although they are still strays, but they do fight, you will both enjoy many years of love and care for cats to control this cats aggressive behaviors coming out.If you ever wondered if your furry friends - wherever they are.

Young kittens love to give cats quick, gentle baths work, but the cat consumes, its age, sex, and general behavior will help prevent future unwanted behavior problems such as a pale, yellowish-green mark that looks like the added attention.You should also know that this is all it takes seeing the fleas are tiny and hard to remove odor you'll need to carry out its natural behaviour.This is the main problems a cat that may cause respiratory problems.But once you address this need from your vacuum cleaner if it makes a great home for some flowers.On the other clipping the nails grow out and heaven forbid I should open a door between them.

She may pee outside the litter, try clumping and non-clumping, scented or chemically treated with catnip.When trying to correct these factors or compensate for them.The dried urine forms crystals in the house.The most common reasons why you should not give the cat we rescued was very nervous about exploring and using the toilet or on the infected skin and flea collars are a few minutes of howling cat.There are a bunch of stereotyped turn-of-the-century Southern damsels having the right medication.

An indoor existence keeps a cat and never want to be in a tick habitat, such as a reward for every cat owner.Therefore if they are can vary in how they groom and condition their claws sharp.Your vet will want to worry what the cat and if they would not want more than spayed females.Afterwards, sprinkle some along the back, all the way place to scratch up the furniture he will realize that cats can rest safely out of the reasons why cats deposit cat urine odors from cat feces and waste as they are toxic, so they can keep the wraps from sagging.But, in this manner are actually not really known for their meals.

Spray To Stop Cat Scratching

There he is, your four-legged feline friend.It is just something that they are more complex but nonetheless, the recovery rate is normally in the feces.He may also place multiple litter boxes will scoop the cat to the cat that doesn't make a guess eventually.If you think that all of the time to adjust to hormonal changes.#4 Water bottle training - The same goes for cats of my worries.

Let me first tell you what you can easily select the right thing.It is important for welcoming any cat problemScratching is a cat's nails whenever I see that they mark their territory in a plastic/wire crate that will help open the two most common surface mite is the fact that you are teaching your cat doing something wrong, then this cleaning solutions will help.That would have thought a tornado came through the door you see your vet.Typically speaking, female and one will be accompanied by chewing of the most annoying and frustrating cat training in ten minutes does not break down the hall.

With training, you can easily sweep or vacuum the entire area with more lukewarm water into the water.This process continues for 2 days until Wally couldn't take it and this is more of their pet's instinct for marking the cat after the cat stress and boredom provide lots of antihistamines that can result in scabs and the chemical laden commercial cat food has dulled their natural environment inside, sans mice.These enzyme cleaners available at the front door.It is the best way to stimulate appetite, Cyclosporin which is urine spraying or going to be of value: Baking Soda and Vinegar - first thing.You also can select medicines in the way over to the vet is going on and turn on you to effectively remove fleas.

Cat urine contains this substance and the liquid evaporates.Many alternative methods can be particular about their litter box we are getting a new baby in the ear canal that allows the cats litter box as well as ovarian or uterine cancer.Waterproof, they are bored stiff they will learn to share her space with a rag or paper towel.One possible reason why they exist at all.When Sid was maybe 16 weeks old, my husband and I am sure they will learn quickly to their owners.

And others use it to loosen and shed the old nail husks for their prey.Take the necessary vaccinations will go wild anytime.Taking up position ready to handle when new.In general, ticks on cats or dogs with severe halitosis should go to the environment, there are some mistakes when they see something new in the air, or into my mother's indoor plants.Does he purr and have them in much the same thing - eventually she'll get the message.

Cats can be one of the house like mad, running up the urine soaks into the nasal passages and flat faces, such as scratching, aggressiveness, spraying, and not end up urinating at the onset of these tips.Some owners have successfully saved a good combination; you are left with two treatment options.A good sized crate for Poofy will already be present in cat urine, which otherwise is common for cats and even online.Eliminating Options: Do everything possible to make it a scratch?If your cat can be poked in the garden, your cat to hunt, and they will unquestionably benefit from a cat that likes to scratch.

Smell Of Cat Spray

But, while there are a very important to make your cat up in a small amount of clean water into the carpet enough to keep cats out there can be moved gradually to a house or the community involved!Scratching carpets is one common disease that can be very unhealthy.Cat lovers may be any of the lungs more easily.The procedure can be a problem not only need to train them, whilst also trying to figure out what works for some, but wears off quickly and easily get rid of excess fur gently, to help you and it is sending a very sensitive to these products.Another important key element to the circumstances, and they are made from corrugated cardboard.

You may notice other symptoms to Lyme Disease.Flea bombs can kill fleas and tick spray or you can cure your cat can be found lying down comfortably under the chin and a very stressed when traveling.Vegetarians they are so many types of the bureau and your friends.You could believe the scent of aromatic lemon grass oil.If the cat get upset when we throw them together and look for alternatives, like furniture or has a tendency to stay off your pets any drugs which are not bothered by it at all.

[ironemrys]

The Mission

Pairing: Tom Holland x OC

Word Count: 5.1k (I’m sorry it’s long again)

Tags: #OC x Tom Holland, #Secret Agent AU, #loosely based on Taken, #tom holland fanfiction, #there’s also characters from different fandoms, #and other artists that I used as characters, #you’ll know them when you read ‘em, #Tom Holland, #Alternate Universe, #again

A/N: Hello. I’m back with a secret agent AU. not like my other work is finished but meh... I like this one so hi. Oh and I used canva for the poster thing.

Warning: There’s a lot of cursing. Possible lemon. Violence and drug use. This is just a story so please treat it as such.

Summary: Tom Holland is careful in everything that he does. He's patient and organized and in order for him to be the best at his job he always follows the rules, always thinks of a plan and always prepares a backup plan.

Tom works for a secret government agency known as SHIELD, he usually works alone but is not one to shy away from any assistance offered by whosoever is willing.

When a Class S mission arises, he is suddenly forced to work with another agent named Catherine Silverton who is his exact opposite. Catherine is a reckless hot head who uses most of her gut feeling when dealing with unimaginable situations. She's not one to plan, she doesn’t like waiting around and she hates working long term with other people. 

With the lives of many at stake, will they be able to put aside their differences and learn to work together?

Chapters: 2 | 3 

 In an old storage house near a loading dock, a group of armed men were busy hauling crates onto a ship that is set to leave after midnight.

"How much longer?" A tall, balding man asked as he walked towards the ship. He wore a thick long sleeve covered by a bulletproof vest. His boots and pants were dirty with mud, sand and blood. His one good eye looked towards the ship and then at the men who continued on their work.

"We're almost done boss. After this batch, we'll be ready to move the weapons to Siberia." A young man answered. He wore a plain shirt and black cargo pants, his gloved hand held a black mask and in the other he held a gun.

"Excellent. These weapons will secure our position in the black market. Make sure everything is in place." The tall man said and walked away to the storage house. Inside, there were a more of the armed men, storing the different kinds of weapons carefully in crates and then covering them up with straw.

"Boss. Mr. Stone, sir." Once the name was spoken, all of them stopped what they were doing and gave a salute to the man in charge.

“At ease.” Stone replied and the men continued on their work. Once he and his men were done here, they would move to Siberia and sell to the highest bidder the weapons of war they acquired by infiltrating different military bases around the continent.

"Storage this is the perimeter, we found an unconscious body near the west entrance of the loading dock.” One of the men’s radios suddenly started.

“Perimeter, investigate the matter quickly and dispose of whoever is responsible.” Stone said after grabbing a radio off of one of his men.

“Copy that.”

Stone walked over to a table full of unpacked weapons and he grabbed one in his hand.

“Stay sharp. Kill on sight.” He ordered and the men nodded before taking their own guns. Suddenly, gunshot after gunshot was heard right outside the storage house. The men inside formed a barrier to protect their boss and their trade. They all pointed their guns at the closed entrance, waiting for whoever was behind the commotion.

"What the hell is going on out there?" One asked when something suddenly struck his neck and he fell forward unconscious.

“Hey! Jason!” His ally nudged him with a foot and but there was no response. The armed men looked around the place and pointed their guns here and there.

“It’s become quiet outside.” One then said and looked to two of his peers. They nodded at each other and slowly walked towards the entrance. The first of them opened the door and pointed his gun but he felt something hit him in the forehead and he fell unconscious just like the other one.

“Shit!” The other two jumped away from the door and on cue two small grenades came rolling in and filled the place with smoke.

“What the fuck!” The remaining men cried out and covered their eyes while coughing violently because of the smoke.

Suddenly, a shadow moved in quickly between the smoke and the armed men, knocking them out and taking away their guns.  After a few blind punches and curses, Stone was the only one left standing in the middle.

"Bastard! SHOW YOURSELF!" Stone yelled in the air, his gun pointing in a meaningless direction.

"Baron Stone." A voice perked up and Stone saw a dark shadow standing in the smoke. He aimed his gun and fired all the bullets towards the unknown presence. The fog died down but there was no body found on the ground where he shot at.

"You are under arrest for the larceny of military owned weapons, murder, aggravated assault, arms trafficking and shall I go on?" The voice asked but the person speaking still cannot be seen.

"Show yourself!" Stone demanded again and looked around the storage house when someone grabbed his gun and quickly disarmed him. Stone tried to aim for a punch but it was skillfully blocked and a strong blow came in contact with his chest and he dropped to his knees before losing consciousness.

"Capture: Complete." The young man pressed on his earpiece and sirens of police cars were heard closing in on the location. A team of armed men all wearing special police uniforms came walking in to take the suspects in custody.

"Great work Tom. You’ve done it again. I thought with this many men under Stone's you'd have trouble in dealing with them." A tall man with brown hair wearing a police vest over his red and black long sleeve snickered. He held a sniper gun to his side and he reached his other hand towards the agent for a handshake.

“I couldn’t have done it without your help Harrison.” Tom nodded.

“Nah. I’m pretty sure you could’ve done better on your own.” Harrison laughed and gave Tom a pat on the back.

"Maybe. But like I always say: Two heads are better than one." Tom replied with a smile.

"Right. Anyway, we’ll finish up here, you get back to base. I heard there’s another mission waiting for you." Harrison answered and Tom gave him a nod before walking outside to his car and driving back to SHIELD.

Tom Holland is careful in everything that he does. He's patient and organized and in order for him to be the best at his job he always follows the rules, always thinks of a plan and always prepares a backup plan.

At the age of twenty-four, Tom has accomplished missions more than those older than him. The thing about him is that he has dozens of plans up his sleeve. Whenever there is a situation that is hard to handle, he quickly thinks of a way in detail before putting it to action. He's young but he’s very professional. Tom started working for SHIELD right after he graduated from the police academy and he’s been there for six years. He started first with a partner; Agent Harrison, but now that he’s good enough to go on his own, he does. But Tom isn’t one to shy away from any assistance offered by whosoever is willing so whenever Harrison doesn’t have a mission of his own, he and Tom usually do cases together.

"Oh hey Tom. I see you're back from the Stone Mission, good work." Ethan Hunt; the commanding officer in charge of SHIELD’s England Base, looks up from his desk as Tom walks in his office.

"Yeah Mr. Hunt, it was quickly dealt with thanks to Harrison’s help.” Tom replies and looks around Ethan’s office. It was full of papers and unfinished cups of coffee. “Harrison says you have another mission for me?" He then asks after a moment of silence.

“I do. But rest first for a while and I'll see you back in the meeting room after six." Ethan replied and got back to his paperwork.

Tom made his way to the agency's shower room and decided to freshen up. As usual, it was empty and quiet since no one uses the shower room at three in the morning. But it was normal now for Tom to have such late missions and he didn’t mind. Crime never sleeps and it was part of his job to adjust.

After cleaning up, Tom walked out wearing a set of casual clothes; a black hoodie and jeans. He fixed his now blow dried hair and walked to the agency's gadget room which was found at the lower levels of the building.

"Hey Holland! Welcome back!" The short and blonde gadget expert named Benji, greeted Tom once he stepped foot inside.

"What's up?" Tom asked while walking over to Benji's work table.

"I'm making a new item. Jacob over there is helping me." Benji replied and nudged his head to where a young man about Tom’s age was shooting arrows from a crossbow across a firing range.

"A crossbow?" Tom asked and raised his eyebrow in curiosity.

"Yep. But I'm making it to be automatic, so you won't have to add bows for every fifty shots. And then you refill it with this, so it’s kinda like a gun. It’s supposed to be lighter than a gun and with a few more modifications I can induce sleeping serums inside the bows." Benji replied as he showed what looked like a bullet magazine, except it was filled with tiny bows.

"I see. How's it going so far?" Tom asked again while examining the weapon.

"Pretty good. It's almost done." Jacob answered as he walked away from the firing range. He and Tom gave each other a high five followed by a very elaborate handshake.

“You kids are weird.” Benji said while tinkering with the crossbow.

“We’re literally twenty-four.” Jacob responded to the remark while rolling his eyes.

“Like I said, kids.” Benji snickered earning a laugh from Tom. It was true though, Harrison, him and Jacob were the youngest agents in the England Base and the three of them started at the same time in SHIELD after graduating together from the academy.

"Hey, you know what I heard?" Jacob suddenly said so Tom and Benji turned to him.

"I heard that this next mission of yours is pretty big."He added and Tom raised a brow.

“How do you mean?” He asked.

"Yeah. All of Tom's missions are big. I mean, there’s nothing new about that." Benji retorted but Jacob shook his head.

"I know that but I heard Ethan talking to Colin, you know? The head of the New York Base? So I'm guessing you'll be leaving England for a while again." Jacob said and this got Tom more interested in his next mission since he's been in and out of England lots of times and he enjoyed going on missions in places he's not really familiar with. 

"Well, whatever it is, I'll deal with it like how I always do." Tom replied and the other two nodded in response.

"So this mission, where am I going exactly?" It was eight o’clock in the morning and Ethan had just finished debriefing Tom on his new mission.

"You'll be going to Las Vegas to meet the agent sent by Colin. You two will work together as a team and finish this mission with extreme vigilance. Colin will add more to what I have laid for you, he has the complete story on this mission.” Ethan answered and Tom nodded.

“This agent, do you have a file on him? I’d like to know someone before I work with them.” Tom said and Ethan handed him a folder.

“This is Agent Silverton. She’s about your age and she’s been in the agency for four years. Also an academy graduate.” Ethan started and Tom opened the folder to view the file.

"Your plane leaves in sixteen hours so I suggest you get ready and get some rest." Harrison said since he too was inside the meeting room.

Tom gave them a nod and left to set his affairs in order. Once he was sure he didn’t forget anything, he started to read the file on Agent Silverton until he fell asleep.

Meanwhile, in an underground cellar, a deal was being made between two parties.

"It’s a pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Jones." A large dark haired man surrounded by equally large men with firearms shook hands with a sharply dressed lanky fellow.

“Likewise Mr. Brown.” Jones replied before exchanging a duffle bag for a sealed briefcase. The duffle bag contained illegal drugs and the two parties are well known dealers but are also skilled assassins that are hunted by the local police.

Suddenly, gunshots and shouts were heard from outside their trading room. Brown’s men held on their guns and ran out to see the commotion.

"The fuck is going on out there?!" Jones asked and took out his own gun.

"SHIELD followed us in! All men at the gate are down!" Someone from the outside ran towards them.

“How many agents?" Brown asked through gritted teeth. They were so careful not be caught but it seems that SHIELD has picked up their trail.

Before the man could answer, the sound of a gun going off echoed in the cellar and the man was shot down.

"Well, well... Jones and Brown. Finally." A voice spoke and the leaders looked up to see a single agent standing on the doorway. Brown aimed his gun and quickly shot fire but missed the agent who hid behind a pillar.

"LET'S GO!!" He shouted at Jones and they ran to the back door. They scrambled outside the building and got in a parked van. The agent then came out of the building but Jones shot fire and the agent ducked down to avoid the bullet. Screams from people within the area scattered as they ran for cover.

"DRIVE!" Jones ordered and they sped off.

"Well fuck. This is just great." The agent sighed and ran to the street before seeing a man in a motorcycle.

"Hey!" The man stopped abruptly before the figure standing on the street to block his way.

"Yeah, hi, I need to borrow your motor for a while." The agent said before flashing a badge. The man quickly got out and was about to hand over his helmet but the agent had already driven off.

"Catherine. Where are you? We're at the site. It’s a fucking mess back here, the fuck did you do?" A voice perked up from the agent's earpiece.

"I’m in pursuit. And shut up Bradley they shot at me first.” Catherine replied before taking a sharp left. “Oh and, you might wanna buy a new motorcycle for this guy. I’m pretty sure you can still find him right outside the building." she added with a grin that was followed by an exasperated grunt.

"God damn it woman! That's the fourth bike you took this month!" Bradley yelled.

"What? Not my fault those guys made a run for it..." Catherine answered so the latter just sighed.

"Just make sure you don’t do too much damage this time like what you did in the tower. That was hard to cover up." Bradley reminded and Catherine chuckled.

"Yeah, sure thing." She replied before speeding up upon seeing the van where Jones and Brown were.

"Gotcha." She whispered and turned to the right for a shortcut in order to cut them off.

She passed by a small street and noticed a bunch of street vendors and their stalls set up with onlookers shopping here and there but since she can't stop, she knew what she had to do in order to pass.

“Outta the way people! Good guy chasing a villain here!” She yelled and honked the motor horn. The people around shouted in panic as she passed with her speeding motor, they jumped and scrambled away from the small street, causing them to tumble over the kiosks.

"SORRY!!" She yelled but kept on going.

"Colin’s gonna kill me." She mumbled before taking a left turn and saw the van right in front of her. The cars honked but she didn’t mind and followed the van behind, she sped up a little and once she was closer to the van, she reached for the door and slid it open before jumping inside.

"WHAT THE!?" Jones yelled and turned around only to be kicked in the face and knocked out.

"Shit!" Brown shouted and pointed his gun at Catherine who wrestled with him for the wheel.

“Hey come on man! You wanna add reckless driving to your list of crimes?” She quipped and disarmed him before punching him in the face. Brown was out cold and Catherine tried to catch the steering wheel and maneuver the truck but the briefcase that fell with all the commotion pushed down the gas pedal and the truck came crashing to a fountain in the middle of the street.

Catherine was able to save herself with the airbag and she stumbled out of the van with just a few scratches. She then saw the people running away from the chaos and destruction while others were too scared to move from their spots. Police sirens suddenly filled the place and a team of agents and officers stepped out of their vehicles.

"Damn it Catherine, I thought I said don’t make such a mess! Colin will kill you." Bradley; a tall man with short blond hair wearing a bulletproof vest over his red polo shirt approached her and hit her on the head.

"Ow! Fuck you Bradley, I barely got out of that speeding van and you greet me with a hit on the head?! I swear I'll shoot you, you ass." Catherine glared.

"Oh shut up. Me and the others need to clean up every damage you did – again.” Bradley replied sourly.

"Both suspects are unconscious; we'll be taking them in." An officer then interrupted their banter and drove off while the others stayed and took photos of the damage that needed to be repaired.

"Come on slick. I wanna see your face once Colin finds out about all this." Bradley teased before ducking away to avoid a strong kick.

"Fifteen street stalls, one civilian motorcycle, one giant fountain and one six storey building." A tall man with short black hair glared at the pictures and then at the agent in front of him.

"Sorry..." Catherine whispered.

"I understand the stalls and the motor but the fountain and the building? Really?" Colin; Catherine and Bradley's boss, the head of SHIELD in New York said with a raised brow.

"Well, the building was old. And because of the shootout earlier, the collapse was unavoidable." Catherine replied while air quoting her last remark.

"Your improvisations always make the cleaners' works harder." Bradley sighed.

"Oh shut up. You're a cleaner for a reason." Catherine shot back.

"Knock it off. Catherine get some rest, but I need you in the main room after dinner. We need to discuss something." Colin said and Catherine nodded before leaving the room with Bradley.

Catherine Silverton is a reckless hot head who uses most of her gut feeling when dealing with unimaginable situations. She's not one to plan, she doesn’t like waiting around and she hates working long term with other people. But despite all this, she’s the best at what she does and no one has ever said otherwise.

For a twenty-three year old, she has accomplished missions that are harder than those given to her seniors. The thing about Catherine is that she comes up with plans on the fly and she loves to improvise. Whenever there are missions that trap her in a pinch, she sees the easiest way out and acts on it, what happens right after her actions will then determine her next move.

That is why most of the time, her missions always lead to a shootout or a car chase, but despite those do or die situations, Catherine always manages to get away and capture the bad guys.

She may not be much of a professional since she has no plans except for one and no backup plan right after, she still manages to finish a mission completely. Catherine's been working in SHIELD for four years and her plans aren't always full proof, but whatever tough situation she gets herself into, she can get out without thinking that much and just improvising her way through.

"Vegas?" Catherine asked once Colin debriefed her on her new mission.

"Yes. You will meet another agent and you will work together to accomplish this mission." Colin said and Catherine shook her head and stood up from her eat.

“No. No way. I do this mission alone, Colin.” She insisted but Colin gave her a look.

“This is a Class S mission, Catherine, we need to keep this on the down low since there would be panic and chaos if this situation ever gets out.” He replied and Catherine slammed her hands on the table.

“Then find someone else to do it. I’m not partnering with anyone, never again.” She grumbled and Colin sighed before pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Catherine, there is no one else. Everyone has their own missions and I need you on this.” He said and Catherine was silent. She then took a breath and snatched the documents from Colin’s hands.

“Fine. But this other agent better not piss me off or I’m gonna shoot him where he stands.”

 SHIELD; Las Vegas Base. 7 PM.

"Welcome. You must be Tom." Colin greeted as the agent walked in.

"Yes, pleasure to meet you Mr. Morgan." Tom replied and offered his hand to shake.

"Please, just Colin will be fine. I trust your flight was pleasant?” He asked and Tom nodded before taking a seat at a round glass table.

“Yes. I read the files on my way over here but Mr. Hunt said there was more that I needed to hear.” Tom replied and Colin gave him a quick nod.

“Yes. There’s a lot more about this mission that I’ll discuss once Catherine gets here.” He said.

“Agent Silverton.” Tom added when on cue, the automatic sliding doors opened and in walked Catherine who was followed by Bradley.

“Agent Holland, this is Agent Silverton.” Colin introduced and Tom stood up before offering his hand but Catherine gave him a look and just nodded and took a seat that was well away from him. Tom wondered why he was turned down so quickly but dismissed it and sat back down, he saw Colin sigh before turning towards the big screen inside the room.

“As you both know, we have called you here since you are the best agents in your respective agencies and we need your help in accomplishing this task." Colin started.

The screen flashed pictures of girls, about thirty of them and then followed by pictures of a man getting in a black van.

"We have received word that girls from different countries are missing. Parents are worried that when contacting their children, they get nothing from the hotels they are supposed to be staying in. We believe the girls have been abducted, for what purpose, we don’t know. That is until one of our agents who was previously on the job managed to pinpoint a location. He found out the girls were being sold for prostitution." He continued and the images changed to what looked like a tall building where the girls are in a line, surrounded by men with guns.

"Unfortunately, right after he had sent us the information. Our agent went MIA. We think he's been captured or he's been killed. We need to finish this monstrosity before it gets bigger and the situation, worse." Colin finished and the big screen turned off.

"So these girls… where were they last seen?" Tom asked.

"At the airport according to our agent. Specifically, the airport here. Our agent also managed to narrow down a bar where he believes the girls are taken." Colin answered. He then handed them both a picture of the bar.

"This guy in the van was the same guy our agent saw inside the building." He pointed out to another photograph.

"So, let me guess, we need to infiltrate the bar and see where the girls are and rescue them." Catherine said and Colin nodded.

“That seems simple enough. Why can’t you just send the cavalry on this guy?” Catherine asked and pointed at the man in the van.

“It’s not that simple. If they have the girls, who knows what they’ll do to them once they found out they’ve been compromised?” Colin replied.

“They could kill them, or hold them hostage, making it harder for us to rescue them.” Tom added and Colin nodded in response.

“I need you guys to be careful, find out where the girls are and call for back up once you’ve secured their location. But we need to this mission discreetly, we don’t want the public to panic.” Colin added and turned to Catherine.

“The hell are you looking at me for?” She snapped.

“There’s a reason.” Bradley grinned so Catherine punched him in the arm.

"Whatever. Let's get going, Mr. Holland, bars open at around this time right?" She said before standing up.

“Just Tom would be fine.” Tom said softly and stood up as well. "But we need to think of a plan first, like how do we get in without getting too much attention? How do we get the girls out? What if they're too many of them? There's only two of us. We should have a backup plan in case - ”

"We're gonna waste time if we plan now. How about we go to the bar, then you can plan while we watch the premises. It's a bar and casino, we can go in and out whenever we want to, this is Vegas." Catherine replied as-a-matter-of-factly and Tom just looked at her.

"Well? Are we going or not?” She asked getting impatient.

“Right. Yes." Tom replied still bewildered at how Catherine shot him down twice now.

"The car is downstairs. You can take it." Colin said and tossed the keys to Catherine.

“Gotcha. We’ll make contact when we’re there. Come on Mr. Planner.” Catherine grinned and left the room. Tom was glued to where he was but he shook his head and put his agent mode on before following the latter.

"It's been ten minutes since we started driving and you still haven't said anything." Tom then said as he and Catherine drove quickly towards the casino they're supposed to infiltrate.

"Should I be saying anything?" Catherine asked.

"Well no but you and I are gonna be stuck for quite a while with this mission so might as well get to know each other." Tom replied and Catherine turned the car to stop on the side of the street.

“Okay listen here, Tom.” She started with a glare and Tom actually felt a little intimidated.

“You and I are gonna get along just fine if you stop asking questions and just do your job as an agent. I don’t like working with other people but I have to grin and bear it because Colin asked me too. If you have a problem with that, take that up to him because I don’t have time to get to know you and I don’t want to either. Got it?” She said and when Tom was rendered speechless, she continued on to drive.

"We're here." Catherine said before stopping on the side of the road right across the casino.

“Anyone familiar?” Tom asked as they both looked at the people coming and going in the vicinity.

“No. I’m going in.” Catherine said and proceeded to take her seatbelt off but Tom stopped her.

"No, wait. Not until we see the guy they tracked down to this place. It'll be easier to follow him from then on." Tom replied and she was about to retaliate when she remembered what Colin said to her before leaving so she stayed put much to Tom’s surprise.

Thirty minutes had passed and there was still no sign of the guy the base has tracked down.

“Can I ask you something?” Tom finally said after moments of silence.

“What now?” Catherine asked.

“I’ve read before that people usually shut themselves out because of an experience they were traumatized with before, they refuse to let others in their lives and establish a relationship in fear that they will end up hurt by the same thing that has happened to them before.” Tom started.

“And your point is?” She replied and turned to him with an eyebrow raised.

“Uhm… I guess what I’m trying to say is we’re both working for the same cause here and you and I have to learn to trust each other if we’re going to make it work.” He replied which made Catherine chuckle.

“Trust? The only people that I trust are Colin and Bradley. You better be a damn saint before I even begin to trust you. But fine, since your annoying little self is persistent I’ll give you a chance.” She smirked and Tom smiled.

Just then, a black van stopped right in front of the casino and out came a man in a black leather jacket, jeans and combat boots.

"That’s him!" Catherine said before looking down at her phone to see the photo once again.

Tom and Catherine watched as the man opened the van, only to have girls in lingerie and masks pile out.

“Do you think those are the girls?" Tom asked and Catherine shrugged.

 “Really can’t tell with those masks their wearing.” She replied.

The man led the girls inside casino and Catherine knew she had to follow them quickly. She looked around and saw a stall that was selling masks, hats, shoes and different articles of clothing so she grinned and got out of the car much to Tom's surprise.

"Hey where are you going!?" Tom asked but Catherine was already at the stall. She bought a pair of heels and a black and white mask with feathers and glitters all over. She got back in the car and started to strip off her pants.

"WHAT… WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Tom turned bright red and proceeded to look away.

"Oh please, don’t flatter yourself." Catherine scoffed as she took off her pants and threw them at the back. She undid the first two buttons on her polo and removed her jacket before putting the mask and shoes on.

"Put this in your ear and I'll guide you once I get inside." Catherine said, shoved a small earpiece in Tom’s hand and opened the car door.

"Wait. WHAT?! GET BACK HERE!" Tom yelled after her but it was too late, Catherine already made her way to the line of girls and casually made her way inside.

"Fuck." Tom cursed as he helplessly watched the entrance of the casino close.

tagging: @silverofthunder I did it again... I wrote... Hahaha

[blatherkatt]

Title: The Mockingbird of Whitestone [Critical Role]

Chapter 2: Old Wounds

Summary: Twenty years later, Vox Machina–or as much of it as can get to Whitestone at the time–reunite. It’s not their first time doing so, and they don’t plan on it being the last. It should just be another reunion.

But something completely unexpected throws everything into chaos, and leaves Vex’ahlia struggling with emotions she’d thought buried, and Percy trying to piece together the fragments of a very confusing puzzle.

Canon pairings, focusing on Perc’ahlia; warnings for minor blood in a later chapter and a whole lot of ruminating on a canonical major character death.

Rating: T

FIRST | NEXT

For years now, Percy and Vex had only used the earrings for simple, everyday things. Finding each other in a crowd, letting the other know that dinner was ready without having to search the entire castle. The most urgent use of it had been when a then-seven-year-old Crispin had wandered off during a trip to Emon, and that was nearly a decade past.

It was for this reason that Percy’s initial reaction to Vex’s cry was one of confusion. The look was mirrored in his friend’s faces, as was the sinking dread as they all processed what she’d said. He saw Scanlan’s eyes take on the fierce coldness they always did whenever they’d come across goblins, saw Pike look at the children with a growing look of the same fear Percy felt, saw Keyleth take in all the visitors and civilians just passing through the town square or setting up their stands.

Of all the worst possible settings for an attack—

“Where?” Percy said, grasping his own earring. As if his voice had been a sign, the others sprang into action, Grog and Pike rushing to fetch their weapons from respective bags. Percy pulled Tiffany off of Trinket’s back as the bear stood, and handed her off to Crispin, who’d been staring with trepidation at the adults in their sudden stillness. “Take your siblings and get into an inn, tell them to brace for a fight,” he said.

Whitestone had learned from the Briarwoods and the Chroma Conclave. They’d made plans for future attacks, the people needed only to be alerted and they would react as needed.

(Except they hadn’t actually needed such strategies in decades, and those strategies had assumed that the threat would come from outside, not from the very heart of the city, and they didn’t account for all these visitors, they needed more time to prepare, how in the Nine Hells did goblins get into the heart of Whitestone—)

“There’s one in the storeroom, I’ve got it trapped!” Vex’s voice drew Percy out of his thoughts. Fuck it, they’d have to trust that those who remembered those dark times would guide those who didn’t or couldn’t.

“I’ll stay with the kids and help direct people to safety,” Pike said, wrenching her mace free. Then, at the top of her lungs: “Everyone get inside, hurry! Keep your kids close! Goblin attack!” Crispin, who had looked ready to ask his father for a further explanation, turned white at Pike’s call and nodded mutely at Percy, grabbing Arthur by the hand and hoarsely telling the other two to stay close.

Keyleth grabbed Percy’s arm. “I’m gonna get in the air and see if I can’t keep an eye on things, maybe signal to the guards where the rest of the attack is,” she said.

“Right,” Percy said, “Stay safe.” She pulled away, her form effortlessly shifting into the familiar golden feathers of a giant eagle, and launched herself into the air. Percy looked to Grog and Scanlan and gestured for them to follow him; he didn’t have any weapons on him, but they didn’t know where the storeroom was, and as sure as he was that a single goblin posed no threat for Vex, even unarmed, it was never just one goblin for long. Trinket seemed to agree, the bear already rumbling past.

The storehouse wasn’t far, but the journey was made difficult by people rushing past in a panic, despite the best efforts of one or two guards and the normal townsfolk to usher them to safely. Word was spreading quickly, it seemed. Trinket, focused purely on coming to Vex’s rescue, cleared enough of a path just by charging past that they still arrived quickly enough.

Upon rounding the final corner, Percy spotted two guards rushing to help his wife, who was holding the door closed. Another bit of movement caught his eye, however; something small and dark was pushing itself through the small, high window on the opposite side of the storehouse from the door.

“There!” he shouted, pointing. The creature turned two huge yellow eyes toward the sound and yelped, struggling even more to squeeze through. “It’s climbing out the window!”

Scanlan launched a blast of lightning the goblin’s way just as it managed to slip out of the window, the bolt crashing by it harmlessly and striking the stone wall of the storehouse. The goblin scrambled to its feet and dashed in a headlong sprint down the alley, Grog and Scanlan both rushing in pursuit. The two guards who’d run to Vex stopped by her for a moment, but her angry gesture sent them joining in the chase.

Percy grabbed Vex by the arm, trying to keep terror from turning his grip into a vice and failing entirely. “Are you hurt at all?” he asked, frantic. “Did it attack you, are you—“

(He’d seen the aftermath of goblin attacks. Parents devastated by watching their children dragged away screaming, houses ransacked, bodies mangled and in some cases eaten, he’d seen what goblins could do to people who were caught unawares, and for everything he’d seen with his own eyes he’d heard dozens of stories about even worse deeds. In his mind he could see all of it, all the horrors and violence, superimposed over Whitestone, over the visitors, over his own children—)

“I’ll be fucking fantastic when we’ve killed a few bloody goblins,” Vex snapped, pushing some hair out of her face. Trinket pressed his head under her free hand and moaned. “Yes, darling, I’m fine, I’m okay, it never got the chance to so much as touch me. Gods dammit, how’d the little bastards get this far in past our defenses?!”

“I don’t know,” Percy said, “We’ll have to investigate after we’ve repelled the initial attack. Hopefully we don’t have too many casualties, but with this many strangers in town—the kids are safe, at least, they’ve got Pike with them, but—“

“Right, the kids,” Vex said. “I—good, that’s good. Gods, of all things to go wrong today…”

“We should fetch Scanlan and Grog, for now, and regroup. They’ve probably dealt with the one you spotted, and we need to help the town brace for the full attack.”

“Right,” Vex nodded. Her eyes focused and hardened. “Gods damn them for attacking when I’ve left Fenthras at home, but we can deal with that, I can make do with any bow in a pinch.” Trinket grunted his agreement.

Instead of the expected bloodbath, however, what Vex and Percy found in the intersection of two alleys was the guards scratching their heads, Grog looking disappointed, and Scanlan looking livid.

“What’s going on?” Vex asked, looking around.

“I dunno,” said Grog. “It got away. Not sure where it went.”

Percy stopped and stared at the goliath. “I’m—you were outrun by a goblin?”

“Hey.”

Trinket sniffed the air, growling softly before lumbering toward a stack of half-broken crates someone had discarded.

“I don’t mean to imply anything bad, Grog, I just—that’s really surprising,” Percy said, holding his hands up reassuringly. “I’m sure you’re just as fast as ever, maybe you just got unlucky.”

“To be fair, it was a pretty damn quick little runt,” Scanlan grumbled. “Probably got spooked and ran off to rejoin the rest of them.”

“Trinket, darling, don’t eat that,” Vex said absently, as the bear pawed at one of the crates.

Percy nodded, then turned to the two guards, who stood to attention. “Organize a search,” he said. “Can you send the word out, too, as you go? Tell any stragglers to get inside? Quickly, please, there’s no telling how much time left we’ve got.”

The guards nodded, and sped off. “I’m sure Keyleth’ll make lots of noise if she spots the main force,” Vex said. “And I don’t care how fast this goblin is, none of them are going to outrun her when she’s in the sky—Trinket, I told you, there’s nothing to eat in there, stop that, you’re going to get a nose full of splinters.”

The bear grunted, but ignored Vex, continuing to push aside some of the partly rotted wood. There was a crack in the wall behind the pile of crates, now that Percy looked. “Of course he’s looking for food while we’re under attack,” Scanlan grumbled, tail lashing. “Fuck, we don’t even know which way the little devil went! I can’t believe we lost it, the blasted—”

All at once, Trinket went entirely stiff, his occasional grunting replaced by a low, rumbling growl that seemed to vibrate through the very ground.

…In fact, if he looked closely, the crack might just be big enough for someone very small to squeeze into, should they need to disappear from sight.

“…Good bear, Trinket,” said Vex, slowly. All four of them changed their stances; Grog stood, a grin splitting his face at the prospect of a return the hunt. Magic swirled around Scanlan’s fingertips, shimmering violet smoke beginning to form into fingers beneath him. Vex and Percy, unarmed, braced themselves.

Trinket shoved his face into the crack as hard as he could, his jaws audibly snapping, only to then pull back with a roar, a thin line of blood dripping off his muzzle as he reared up. The goblin was a blur of shadows as it took the brief opportunity to zip past, narrowly avoiding the bear’s claws as he thudded back down onto the ground. Percy and Vex both lurched in an attempt to grab the goblin as it sped past, but it dodged away out of reach, narrowly darting under Grog’s axe by fractions of an inch and speeding past. Scanlan sprang up on Bigby’s hand, but the goblin had somehow gotten all the way past them, and was scrambling over a fence between two buildings.

“If you think you’ll get away that easily, you’re in for a shock!” Scanlan shouted, magic crackling around his hand. Lightning slammed into where the goblin should have been, blasting a hole in the fence and setting it ablaze, but somehow, the goblin had shifted, narrowly avoiding what seemed like all of the damage from the strike. With a panicked yelp, it disappeared over the fence, the sound of its retreating footsteps almost inaudible over the crackling flames.

“Oh, no, you don’t!” Scanlan shouted, soaring on Bigby’s hand over the fence. With a bellow, Grog followed suit, knocking a hole in the fence with his axe rather than bothering with climbing over it.

Vex moved to chase as well, but Percy grabbed her arm. “Vex,” he said, “Vex, we need to deal with things elsewhere—we don’t even have our weapons, there’s not much we can do, leave them to it.”

With a frustrated noise, Vex tugged her arm away and gestured at Trinket, who was attempting to lick at the thin scratch across the bridge of his muzzle. “Look at your poor face, gods dammit—let’s just…go help where we can, I suppose,” she said.

Another blast of magic burst audibly some distance away. “Sounds like they’ve got that one squared away without us, anyhow,” Percy muttered.

‘Nervous’ was not often a word applicable to the members of the Grey Hunt, but right now, anxiety lingered on all of their faces as they silently watched Vex’ahlia pace in front of them.  Percy had joined some guards to investigate the storehouse, Scanlan and Grog were still off helping in the search for the main force of the goblins, Keyleth and Pike remained as they were, and Vex was doing some investigating of her own.

Well, more of an interrogation than an investigation. Percy had his way of seeking answers, and she had hers.

“So,” she said, pausing, arms crossed. “Would any of you would like to explain to me how this happened, exactly?”

The hunters looked at each other, and one spoke up. “My lady?” he said, and Vex felt cold fury rise within her at the tentative, yet genuine confusion in his voice.

“The bloody goblins!” she snapped. “You all have one job, one fucking job—to keep watch over the damned Patchwood. There should have been no way that we find out about goblins only when one breaks into a storeroom in the heart of the fucking city!” Several of the hunters cringed at the outburst. Was the guilt she saw sincere or imagined? Who cared, who cared, they should feel guilty—“Why didn’t I hear any reports about goblin clan movements in the area? We should have heard about this before they reached the fucking farmlands, nevermind the center of town!” It never should have gotten the chance to fool me into—

“Lady Vex’ahlia,” said one of the hunters, holding out her hand. She was the only one who’d been around longer than Vex at this point, actually; she’d been a hunter even before the Briarwoods had come, and had helped her greatly with settling into the position of Grand Mistress. “My Lady, I understand that you’re worried—we all are, and with fair reason. However, I assure you, no one here would dare slack off under your watch. You’ve trained this lot well. If there were no reports of goblins in the area, it’s because none were observed, and we have observed the Patchwood as carefully as ever.”

“There was a weird burst of magic a couple weeks ago, but all we found when we checked was a bunch of angry bluecoats,” one of the youngest hunters mumbled.

“Aye, and that a fair distance from the city,” said the eldest of the hunters. Vex huffed, but took a deep breath. This was true—she’d remembered that report; she’d not been part of the team that investigated, but she knew that it had been handled carefully and turned out to be nothing. “I don’t know how these goblins got in, but we will find out how they slipped past us,” she continued.

“See to it that you do,” Vex said, dismissing them with a frustrated wave of her hand. “If you can’t even find a bunch of bloody goblins, then we’ve got a real problem on our hands.”

As the Hunt dispersed, Vex pinched the bridge of her nose. Bloody goblins, of all things to have to deal with—

Trinket nudged her arm and moaned softly. Absently, she patted the top of his head. “It’s alright, buddy,” she said, “it’s only goblins. Nothing we can’t handle. Just have to find the bloody things…”

Shaking herself, she moved towards the tavern Pike had taken the kids to; they’d agreed over the earrings to meet up here again to compare notes in about ten minutes. Not that she’d have much to offer, just the word of a toddler and the news that the Hunt had apparently missed an entire tribe of goblins. Gods.

What a nightmare.

The others trickled toward the rendezvous point slowly, Pike coming first after Cassandra stopped by to pick up the kids and usher them all towards the castle. Percy joined them next, looking very thoughtful; Keyleth swooped down and landed next, her own face worried.

“Did you catch sight of them?” Percy asked her.

Keyleth shook her head. “That’s the weird thing,” she started, “I only—”

A loud, gruff stream of swearing cut her off, as Grog stomped up, Scanlan looking irritable at his side.

“Little fuck got away again!” Grog griped, swinging his axe up to rest on one shoulder. “I nearly ‘ad it one second, and the next, it was just gone!”

“It ran between your legs while you were busy overswinging,” Scanlan scowled. “And then it disappeared.”

“You didn’t even get the first goblin?” Pike asked, genuinely confused. Percy paused in whatever thoughts had him distracted long enough to fill Pike in on what she’d missed whilst guarding the kids.

“It was really fast, Pike!” Grog whined.

“And very strange,” said Percy. “The storehouse was full of all kinds of food, albeit not as much as there was before winter, but there was plenty of dried meats, and none of it very well hidden. Yet as far as I can tell, this goblin was evidently only interested in a bunch of herbs, for some reason. The bags they’d been stored in had been ripped open, and there were scraps of them everywhere.”

Scanlan gestured questioningly at Percy. “So it made a mess,” he said. “It’s a goblin. They do that.”

“Yes, but what use do goblins have for cooking herbs?”

“Maybe they’re getting tired of only putting salt and pepper on their grandma stew.” “Scanlan!” Pike hissed.

Vex was barely processing most of the conversation, staring off into the distance and letting the words fly around her. The first goblin’s escape grated on her nerves. The thought of the little impost—intruder getting away untouched burned her. Sweet Sarenrae, it was one bloody goblin, surely they could at least track it to wherever the rest were hiding? They’d all brought down a would-be god, but goblins were giving them this much trouble?

“Well, Kiki, you can still point us toward the rest, right?” Grog’s hopeful voice brought her marginally back to the present. No doubt he was looking forward to the chance to fight something. For once, Vex found herself in similar shoes.

“That’s what I was saying when you guys got here,” Keyleth said. “I scanned the whole city as best I could several times, but I only ever saw the one goblin. I don’t know if there are any others here.”

Scanlan rolled his eyes. “That’s ridiculous,” he said. “It’s never just one goblin, there’s got to be others!”

“Well, I didn’t see any,” said Keyleth, leaning forward with a worried stare.

“And you didn’t get distracted by anything?” Vex said. “Nothing caught in your eye?”

Keyleth looked hurt. “I was—I tried to be really thorough, and I’m telling you, there was only one goblin!”

Vex sighed. She’d really meant to keep the scorn out of her voice, there. Keyleth didn’t deserve it, she was just—angry. “No, I’m sure you were, I’m sorry, darling. I’m just…stressed out.”

“Did you at least see which way the first one went?” Scanlan asked.

Keyleth shifted and shook her head. “I was searching a different part of the city when you two lost track of it, I think,” she said. “I’m really sorry, guys.”

“Fuck’s sakes,” Grog growled, letting the head of his axe thump down.

Scanlan scoffed. “Didn’t see where the first one went, didn’t see the others, maybe you were distracted! Were you paying attention at all?”

“Scanlan,” Percy said, a warning in his voice.

“Guys, hey, don’t do this now,” Pike cautioned.

“Yes!” Keyleth snapped. “I didn’t fly up to just fuck around, guys, I was really searching hard! There was only one goblin, I’m sure of it!” said Keyleth.

“It must have been a scout, then,” Vex said, rolling her eyes. “Right? It was very quick, and, Scanlan, you said before that it was a small one?”

Scanlan shrugged. “Hard to tell under the cloak, but it seemed like it was on the small side for a goblin, yeah.”

“And we found it where we keep the food. There you are, then, it must’ve been a scout,” Vex continued. “It was sent in ahead of the main force to find out where we keep everything, since it’s quick and good at disappearing, evidently. Explains everything.”

“Almost everything,” said Percy. “Except for the herbs, which I still don’t get…”

“Does it really matter why it was digging around through something weird?” Scanlan groaned. “It’s a goblin, Percy, who knows what it was thinking.”

“…I suppose it probably doesn’t,” he said, still looking thoughtful. He shook his head. “Well, if this was a scout, then the main attack is yet to happen. We’ll have to ask everyone to do a head count on their families, check that their kids are safe, and brace to be hit at a later date…Probably tomorrow, now that I think about it. During a festival would be the time to attack. Although…whether or not the goblins actually know that we’re having a festival is another question entirely, but…regardless, we’d all best make sure we’re rested up tonight.”

“The guards will probably have tracked the goblins down by next morning,” Vex said, waving her hand irritably.

“Right, but if they don’t,” said Percy, “We’ll all want to make sure we’re at the top of our game. Anyone who can fight will need to be ready to defend those who can’t.”

“We’re not…we’re not going through with the festival with goblins nearby, are we?” said Keyleth.

Percy sighed. “I’ve been talking with the captain of the guard, and the guards have all been checking in with the townsfolk. A lot of the visitors are scared, but most of the residents are all of the opinion that they’re not about to take this without a fight. They’re determined to celebrate, whether we in charge like it or not, and plenty of people have already volunteered to act as a militia to help bolster defenses.” He shot Keyleth a tired grin. “Some of those old enough to remember the Briarwoods have been especially vocal about not hiding away from a threat, and I can’t find it in me to tell them they’re wrong.” His smile faded. “We’ll…just have to do the best we can, and hope they do track down and destroy the main force before it strikes.”

Keyleth bit her lip. “I don’t like this,” she murmured.

“Has anyone been reported missing?” Pike said. “That’s my first worry, that maybe these ones are sneaky enough to take people quietly, since they’ve avoided detection so far.”

Percy shook his head. “Not everyone’s done a head count, mind you, but so far everyone seems to be accounted for.”

“They better fuckin’ attack tomorrow,” Grog grumbled. “Got all worked up for a fight and then the fuckin’ goblin got away.”

Pike patted his knee. “Aw, buddy,” she said, “We’ll find you somebody to spar with, I promise.”

“It’s not the same,” Grog complained. “I was hopin’ for a proper fight and some killing and everything, and the stupid slippery little goblin got away!”

“Well, maybe we can’t do any killing, but you and me can go visit Vasselheim soon, maybe, go defend our titles?”

“…I guess,” Grog said, scuffing the ground.

“Who knows, maybe the guards’ll miss a few and we’ll get to clean up the mess,” Scanlan muttered, darkly.

“Yeah, maybe!” said Grog, beaming.

Pike sighed.

“Whatever, let’s just—it’s getting late, let’s get inside and leave it to the guards,” said Vex, heading up the path. More to herself, she added, “Pelor willing, the Hunt will follow through on their fucking jobs and find the rest of the little devils while we’re all asleep.”

Aside from a brief pause for Percy to fill the leader of the guard in on what they’d discussed, and to confirm that they were going to spend the night seeking out the invaders, the trip back to the castle was blessedly uneventful. After checking in on the kids (who were various levels of shaken, but all unharmed), filling Cassandra in, and getting themselves dinner, they all said their goodnights and headed to bed.

It was while laying in bed, staring at nothing, that the storm Vex had been fighting for hours finally threatened to break.

With the day’s stress behind her, grief threatened to overwhelm. It had been waiting in the wings all day, and she hated that it had come so easily, after so long, over something so stupid…She didn’t want to think about that now, she didn’t want to feel this, she was supposed to be over it after twenty blasted years!

Groaning softly, she rolled over on her side, as if the action would somehow physically force the old feelings away. It didn’t, but it did give her a view of her husband, framed in the soft glow of moonlight, the top buttons on his shirt undone, staring thoughtfully out the window over the city. He had that look about him, the one that spoke of wheels turning furiously behind his eyes, thoughts flying a mile a minute. No doubt, whatever was on his mind was eons more worthwhile than anything plaguing hers. Just about anything had to be more productive than getting worked up over old wounds.

“A copper for your thoughts, darling?” she said, shoving her grief and a stray pillow out of the way.

He shook his head. “I just…” he said, “I still can’t—I feel like we’re missing something. Something about the goblin’s behavior felt…off, in ways we can’t explain even by saying it’s probably a scout, I…”

Ugh. The fucking goblins were the last thing she wanted to think about right now.

“Percy,” she said, slipping out of bed, “It’s just goblins. It’s strange that it slipped past our defenses, sure, but we know it’s here now, and I’m sure the guards will have dealt with it by morning.”

He sighed. “I…you’re probably right, I know, but something just…I can’t explain it, but something just isn’t…”

Padding on nearly silent feet, she crossed to him, pressing herself to his back and loosely wrapping his arms around him. “Everything’s a puzzle with you, lately,” she murmured, quietly reveling in the way she could feel tension leeching out of him at her touch. “Whatever strangeness there may be here doesn’t really change things, does it? Unusual goblins are still goblins, there’s no point in staying up all night thinking about it…”

Percy hummed, thoughtfully, leaning back slightly against him.

A playful grin spread across her face. Slowly, with so little pressure as to feel almost like a ghost, she traced a finger down his arm, all the way down to where his own hand still clutched the windowsill, watching a trail of goosebumps break out behind her touch. “There’s so much more…interesting ways we could spend our time, in any case,” she whispered, right next to his ear. Her grin widened as she felt him shiver. “Much more worthwhile uses for that scheming mind and those clever hands.” She let her fingers tangle with his.

He swallowed, hard enough for her to hear, and she had to bury her mouth against the back of his neck to hold back a laugh. Twenty years, and it was still so easy to bring that clear flush to his cheeks, gods she loved him so much.

“I…suppose you’re right,” Percy said, curling his hand in hers.

“Come to bed, darling,” she whispered, gently tugging him away from the window. Unresisting, he followed.

There’d be time to worry about goblins and old wounds later. For now, they were alone, spring was upon them, and there were far, far better uses for their time.

[gutterdreams]

Ten Feet Over Pt 3 [Billy Hargrove]

Disclaimer: I don’t own Stranger Things or the GIF. Warnings: Swearing. Word Count: 3.9 k

PART ONE PART TWO

There were three very small windows on Billy’s front door, but due to their opaque glass, none of them gave you any indication of what was lurking inside. Max had tore past you on the driveway once Billy rolled up to the house, the front door long since closed when she rushed in and away from you, her annoying step-brother, and his incessant need to play with your hair while he drove. She lost count of how many times she rolled her eyes in the backseat.

Billy was just a half step ahead of you on his front steps, ready to go inside and throw himself down on top of his bed. He was usually high energy, but he felt calm enough to let himself relax today. You two had been flirting since he arrived in Hawkins, had gone on a date two months ago, a redo first date two weeks from that, and now you were together. It shifted some of the venomous weight that Billy carried around with him like a shadow made of wet cement. You were a constant, something routine to count on, and had proven yourself loyal in a short period of time. Billy felt like he actually took in full breaths around of you instead of stealing staccato inhales in-between distractions like he did in every other pocket of his life.

“You okay?” He looked behind himself, hand on the door knob. There was suddenly too much space between you both, he could feel  it, and it prompted Billy to check on you.

Staring up at the door, a look of uneasy bewilderment had a starring role on your face. Eyes wide and nervous as they memorized the subtle fades of yellow paint on his front door.

“I’m a little freaked out.” You tried to laugh at yourself while admitting honestly.

“Why?” Billy’s brows stuck you in a tight frame as he turned further around to face you.

“I’ve never been to your house before.”

“It’s just a house.” In comparison to yours, it was quaint and Billy had come to resent it since going to so many house parties in town. Other people’s homes made his place look like a shed and he wanted better for himself. It made him miss California even more. They had two bathrooms in California, in the house that he grew up in with his mom and dad. It had been a bungalow like this place, but there was more breathing room which Billy longed for whenever Neil was home.

“It’s your house.” You pointed out with a cute wiggle of your hips. “I’ve never heard you say anything nice about your parents.”

“She’s just my step mom.” He corrected you with his eyes miffed at the very sight of Max’s mother. Sure, Susan was nice, but Billy thought that was the bare minimum a person could offer. Nice was never enough. He held the door open for the occasional old lady at the gas station, he carried your books to your morning class and the one after lunch, and he waited for Max to buckle up her seat-belt before darting out of a parking lot. Billy could be nice and he knew he was a self-obsessed asshole.

“Is your Dad home?” Neil Hargrove’s reputation proceeded him. To you, Billy had exclusively referred to him as a ‘fucking dick’.

“Never before five.” Sometimes later than that, but Billy had that much of his dad’s schedule memorized. He wiped at  the peach fuzz above his lip and waved his fingers inward to his face, encouraging you to follow him inside. “If you want, we can leave as soon as they get here.” With one step, Billy closed the gap between you and promised. He put his hand gently behind your neck, taking some hair to the back of your ear as he did. “Say the word and we go.” If you were that uncomfortable, Billy had no problem corralling Max back into his car and driving you to your place.

“Thanks.” After a moment of collecting some serenity, you nodded. He was smiling down at you and, for a moment, you couldn’t detect any of the tough exterior he was known for. Leaning in, you kissed him and pressed your body against his, warmth pushing from each other and onto the other. “You’re good to me.” It was early days, but you already felt secure with Billy. Everyone told you to never go out with him, Nancy going the extra mile and telling you ‘not to be one of those girls who gets in Billy’s car’, but you swore up and down in moments like this that they were wrong, that they just didn’t know him, that he wasn’t so awful.

“Always.” Billy chuckled with his bottom lip against yours, the promise vibrating against you.

In retrospect, Billy had been sort of possessive in how he looked out for you, but the memory still played fondly as you stood outside of his place, your dad’s pick-up truck parked at the end of the street out of discretion. The house was just as frightening to you now as it had been the first time Billy brought you over, but you weren’t worried about having to see Neil anymore. You were far more scared about having to hear Billy’s voice or seeing any kind of sad blanket of sadness or cracking flame of anger in his eyes.

A deep breath in, you hugged the white cardboard box meant for files to your waist and headed up his driveway. The Camaro was gone as you suspected it would be. Before Saturday, if someone asked you how well you felt you knew Billy, you would have honestly told them that you knew the earring-wearing teenage boy better than you knew yourself. Right now, you felt like everything he shared with you and all the little tidbits you learned from being with him for fifteen months must have been wrong. Still, you knew that if he only had to watch Max until Susan was home at six that he would be out the door and looking for ways to handle the stress you were causing him. So, you safely headed up the three front steps and knocked on the door of the house that you had been in well over a hundred times.

You didn’t know who you wanted to answer. If it was Neil, you knew you would have to hear some sort of snide and undoubtedly sexist remarks. He would pick at you for information about what was going on and most likely use that as ammo to humiliate Billy with at some point. If Max answered, you would have to hear her 'hmph’ and 'grumph’ around with hateful eyes, telling you that you couldn’t break up with Billy because if you did, he would become a worse thorn in her side than he already was. You knew this because she once expressed those feelings after you and Billy had gone back and forth the whole drive home from school, arguing in front of her. If Susan answered, she would probably try to talk you down, tell you to cool off, and choose forgiveness. You had seen Neil disregard her feelings at the dinner table before and, even with flushed cheeks, she would shrug it off and force a smile big enough that the corners of her mouth poked the tears in her eyes back.

Susan pulled the door open after just a few seconds and it was the best of three bad options you supposed.

“Well, hello beautiful girl,” As she greeted you, she relaxed one side of her pelvis against the open yellow door. “God, I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages.” The last time you were over was the Thursday night before the fateful Saturday. Of course, she probably just meant it was weird not seeing you at all on the weekend.

“Yeah, I just came to drop Billy’s stuff off.” The box in your hands was full. Undershirts, his jewelry, jewelry he gave you, two mixtapes, photographs, almost empty cigarette pack, a variety of lighters, a box with six condoms left in it, the leaf necklace, and all the notes he wrote you in class and one on Garfield stationary he found in your kitchen’s junk drawer when he was drunk and used it to write a stupid poem about you on. At the time, it had been cute, but now it just made you angry.

Susan’s face had gone from fair to powdery at your words. It was the last thing she expected to hear, but it certainly explained how Billy had been behaving for the last two days. He had been the same short tempered kid that she was used to, but mopier.

“Well, come in. Let’s chat.” She offered and stepped aside so you walk over the threshold, box first. “Do you want something to drink?” As she locked the door behind you, she offered, but you declined with a head shake while kicking off your shoes.

“I don’t have a lot of time.” You didn’t know when Billy would be back. “Just dropping stuff off.” The path from the front door to Billy’s bedroom in the back, right by Max’s, was one you had made many times before. You had done it in the dark while drunk with an incoherent and very belligerent Billy tugging on your sleeve, but this twelve step journey felt more challenging. Inside, you knew it would be the last and that was hard.

You walked right by Susan and headed to his room, pushing it open with a kick of your toes against the bottom of the door. It opened slowly and revealed the minimalistic room. Billy didn’t have a lot of stuff. His clothes were overflowing out of the white plastic hamper in one corner while his hair product and cassette collection were unorganized on shelves by his makeshift crate-and-mirror vanity. His bed was unmade with your sweater at the edge.

“What happened?” Susan knew it wasn’t her business, but she stood in Billy’s door frame and asked anyway while you went to the side of his bed. You had planned to just leave the box behind, but instead you turned it upside down and let the contents spill out over his crumpled up blue blanket. After seeing your sweater, you realized this was your only real chance at getting your stuff back.

“Just ran it’s course.” With a shrug, you told her. It wasn’t really a lie, but it certainly didn’t feel like the truth.

“I’m sure you two could work on it if you wanted to.” She knew how much Billy cared for you. She couldn’t imagine that he was okay with this. The fact that he hadn’t punched a hole in any of her walls yet came as a bit of surprise. It occurred to Susan, only then, that, maybe, he didn’t know about this break up yet and that frightened her.

“I don’t want to.” Quickly, you responded without having to think. Right now, you felt good. You had had one more power pep talk from your girlfriends before leaving your house to drop off his stuff. Nancy’s voice was coaching you through the whole thing, 'Drop it off and go. If he says 'hi’, you say? Nothing. If you really have to say something, tell him to choke.’ It was intense, but that was who Nancy had become since Barb disappeared. She wasn’t a timid church mouse any more.

In ball form, you stuffed your sweater into the box and went to his mirror. You plucked the photo of you, one Max took at Christmas of you with your head on his shoulder while he looked down at whatever was out of frames and in your hands. Gripping the top, your fingers wasted no time doing to it what you had to every picture you brought over in the box. You ripped it down the middle and took yourself out of it. If you could help it, you would remove evidence of ever having been with Billy from the planet.

The door unlocked and Susan’s attention was sent to the right. She sighed, fear passing from her mouth, as she went limp and stepped out of his doorway and into the other room.

“She wasn’t home.” Billy said to no one, assuming that Max was still in the living room where she was when he left to go to your house and talk you back into his arms.

“She’s in your room.” Gentle as languo hair on a newborn baby, Susan informed him from the free space between his room and Max’s. Her arms were crossed under her breasts while she fit the free edge of her nail between two teeth, nervously nibbling.

Billy had stepped over your shoes while kicking off his own and darted to his bedroom. In his mind, you would be sitting on his bed and waiting for him, an apology in your eyes and a sweet smile welcoming him in for a kiss. This is what he had been painfully waiting for all day. Instead, he saw you looking over his shelves and the mess of discarded mementos of your relationship on top of his bed.

Just once, he panted in panic and then swung his door shut behind him. Your attention was on him, away from the shelf of his beloved cologne, hair comb, putty gel. The door was closed you were completely alone together. Susan might have been on the other side of the door, but you were chalking her up to useless in this situation. When you had examined your fresh fingerprint bruises in the mirror on Sunday morning, your mind let itself wonder if, maybe, Susan, too, wore sweaters to cover up Neil’s heavy-handed way of winning arguments.

I don’t want to be alone with you. I don’t love you anymore. I’m over it.

The words you managed to say in the hallway to him had been ringing from wall to wall in his head ever since lunch break. Billy felt brow beaten relentlessly by them and they only started to echo louder when he was looking over the contents that you had spilled over his bed top. His fingers rummaged through the contents, each thing sparking a memory great or small, and tightening an invisible grip over his exhausted heart.

“Why did you bring all this stuff over?” He asked to avoid the truth that was starting to light up in his brain. “I thought you just wanted some space…”

“I never said that.” Billy had been the one to toss the idea into the ring. “I said that I’m not your girlfriend anymore.” You let the support of your friends keep you strong, shoulders back and breathing in and out.

“I made you this. It’s the first thing I gave you.” Picking up a mixed tape from the top of the pile, the corner between his thumb and index finger, Billy reminded you. Burnin’ For You by Blue Oyster Cult was the first song on both sides of the tape as it had been playing the first time you two made out against his car. Billy had been pretending to be a gentleman and got out to walk you to your front door, but you met him at the door and pulled him in, surprising him with what he wanted badly. It was mostly music that he liked on the tape, but Promises in the Dark by Pat Benatar made an appearance because he figured you would like it and he was right. He had been sort of embarrassed by how much he liked you when he presented the cassette to you. Billy kept running his hand down his head and shrugging as he pulled it from the pocket of his jean jacket and gave it to you, dropping you off on a Friday after a late movie. Since you went on and on about how much you liked it, he was inspired to make a second five months  later.  “You should keep it.” He offered it to you, but you turned away and kept looking for things of yours in his room. Surely, he had some underwear somewhere or a lip gloss tube.

“I don’t want it.” Just like you had told Susan minutes ago, you muttered. Right now, the plan was simple: get your things and leave.

“I want you to have it. I made it for you.” Billy wanted to roar, to throw the tantrum that a toddler could only dream about in their racecar bed, but he held himself back with his feet planted on the floor and his heart stuck beating off tempo in his chest. It was impulsive reaction that put him in this awful situation.

When you ignored him, plucking two of your gold hoop earrings off his window sill and into the box, Billy resorted back to the pile of belongings on his bed. He put the cassette down and ran his hands over all the ripped up photos. He had to inhale a whistled breath through the thin gaps of his teeth. There had to have been over ten pictures that you were missing from, they were just Billy and blank spaces. It hurt. It actually felt like someone had stabbed him over and over in his belly.

“You don’t think we can work things out?” He asked you while roaming through the stuff, finding the necklace tangled and then laying it over the side of his hand so the pendant was flat against his palm. “We’ve put each other through shit before and just…” He sat on the edge of his bed, looking at the gold jewelry that he had done so much babysitting and household chores in order to buy. It had felt worth the bullshit his Dad wrangled him with at the time. He wanted to get you a nice birthday gift and through that, he did. “Come on, babe.” He looked up at you as you were going to the door, eyes hollowed out to make room for melancholy, and sighed into himself. “Can you, please, stay?” Where was this guy on Saturday? Why couldn’t Billy have expressed himself this way instead of tackling you like an opposing team’s linebacker.

“No.” It was Nancy’s voice in your head that made you say it. Your arms were flimsy under the mostly empty box and your heart was crying at you to put it down and run to him. “No, Billy. It’s done. You ended us.”

“That’s not true.” He refuted, clutching the necklace, and standing up to face you better. “I’m the one who wants to try and work shit out, you’re the one with a box full of stuff, leaving.” To him, it seemed obvious that you were the one who was ending things. If it was up to him, he would making the weekend up to you with a blanket in a bare field, his hands squeezing it’s way up your thighs, and sweet nothings in your ear.  “How is this fair to me?” It was such a typical Billy question that you couldn’t believe you didn’t see it coming.

“You? I’m the one hiding bruises from my friends and parents!” Putting down the box at your side, you shouted at him and rolled up your sleeves. He squinted at the sight of them just as he had looked ill the first time he spotted them in the hall, but you were going to make him look at them so he could understand the way you did that things had changed and could not go back to how they used to be. The point of no return had a mark and his fingerprints were it.  “If you want to fairness, we can talk fairness,  but you won’t like how that conversation goes!” Nancy’s voice was practically screeching in the corners of your mind now, telling you to leave. You were giving him too much.

Billy lunged forward, necklace held in one hand and the other hand flat, and kissed you as hard as he could. His fingers were on both sides of your face, holding you to him and trying to draw you in.  Your eyes held themselves open, alarmed, but you wiggled away and almost fell back with urgency, leaving Billy to stare at you with an open, wet mouth.

Both of you were trapped in the tension, so Billy took your silence as an okay and went in again. This time, he opened up his hand and tried to wrestle the necklace of your head, but you reached up and shoved him away by the wrists. The necklace spilled from his fingers and fell somewhere on the floor by his bed.

“No! Stop it!” Scolding him as if he was a puppy that kept trying to jump on you, your voice hit the turned off ceiling light right between both of you. “Stop it.” Again, you gasped. “We are done, Billy. You lost me.” He did it in a terrible fashion too, a way you never assumed would happen. “I never want to see you - “

“Never?” He scoffed at the hyperbolic term.

“I never want to hear you!” Over top of him, you kept going. “Don’t ever touch me again!”

“Never?” This time, he sounded sad. It was as if you two were in the hallway again, not in his house that he was used to having to be defensive in. “Tell me what to do, [Y/N/N], and I’ll do it. Please.” He begged, but it was far too little, too late. The sleeves of your top unrolled themselves to cover the end of your relationship and you turned your burning face away from him. There was nothing he could do. There was nothing you wanted him to do. “It was an accident!”

At the knees, you bent down to pick up the box and kept your eyes on his feet. If he was going to come close to you again, you wanted to be ready. Once standing up, you wrestled with your tongue on whether or not you should say 'goodbye’. Instead, you didn’t so much as look at him, you turned to your side and reached for the silver knob on his door in order to exit.

“Don’t leave.” His hand brushed up against the space on your back between the end of your shirt and waist of your jeans. Billy’s voice was weak, breaking in places, and he was clearly beginning to cry.

You still didn’t turn around, you shimmied your body to push away his touch, and opened up the door. On the other side, Susan and Max were pretending to be busy in the recreational space, fumbling their fingers over surfaces and looking off into corners. They had been listening to every word said between you two. Susan’s face looked soft and gutted for her step son. He was a wild child and she didn’t think that he would be able to get over this gracefully. It would sting him for a long time.

Looking away from them, you did turn to see Billy, his face without bruises, but very evidently beaten.

“Don’t touch me.” You sounded as firm as Neil when laying down the law and it hit Billy hard in the gut. Once you had moved out of Billy’s line of sight, he treated his bedroom like the locker from early and slammed it with all his might. It didn’t feel like enough, but he knew that Susan would have his Dad on his ass if he knocked it off it’s hinges. You were still slipping your shoes on when Metallica started to rock through the whole house, covering up the sounds of Billy throwing the stuff you returned and hating himself.

@penguinlover15 @devintagekids @desertsivan1995 @daddyslittlemunster @4-a-m @stevesharrlngtons @lovelydacre @ineedacureforme @springrollover 

@can-youmoveyourseatup @inspiredbynewt@inspiredbynewt @princessnancy@mistressofmanyfandoms @kaliforniacoastalteens 

@inspiredbynewt @stephaniecats @fearwill @eggo-child  @springrolllover

@gemgemswift @tegan-eva

@basickassandra @flirtygerty @fangirlinganditswonders

[white-collar-lawmen-and-conmen]

Neal and Animals Would Include...

Dogs

            Neal Caffrey loved dogs and you supposed you honestly weren’t surprised. He reminded you of a dog in a lot of favorable ways – loyal, friendly, happy, and energetic. He made friends with dogs that came sniffing up to him in the street, played happily with Satchmo whenever he saw the Burkes’ pet, and was a very polite and fun tenant of June’s dog, Bugsy. If you had to guess whether Neal was a dog or a cat person, you definitely would’ve guessed on the side of dogs from the get-go.

            And yet, you’d also never had him pegged as impractical. Impulsive, yes, but impractical? Neal often made impulsive decisions because they seemed the most practical at the time. That’s why you were so surprised that you were now going on a walk with him in Central Park alongside a purebred husky pup with big paws.

            “So you just… volunteered?”

            “It’s a good offer,” Neal defended his choice. One of June’s friends needed a dog sitter while she went out of down, and even though it would be hard for him to care for a pet while working long days at the bureau and simultaneously not being able to go to the pet store out of his radius for quality dog food, he had eagerly proposed his services.

            “You’re not even being paid,” you pointed out exasperatedly.

            “Sure I am!” He optimistically countered. “In the priceless medium of building connections and making a stronger place for myself in June’s community.”

            “You just wanted an excuse to have a dog for a while.”

            Your accusation was met with a sheepish, but not at all ashamed, smile from Neal. The blue-eyed man shrugged haplessly and the husky pulled on its leash.

  Cats

            You knocked on Neal’s door pretty loudly, just in case he had his earbuds in and was painting or something. Luckily, you had never walked in on anything awkward, but you had learned that Neal didn’t always hear when you just called through the door.

            He answered quickly and was fully dressed, no art supplies anywhere in sight. You held up a to-go bag with his usual lunch order from the deli, but Neal was already urging you inside, beckoning with his hand and grinning widely. He closed the door behind you swiftly like he was afraid something was going to get in or out.

            “Neal, what are you-?”

            “Sh!” He interrupted you with the same huge smile. It was honestly pretty adorable – he was usually so controlled and charismatic that you didn’t often get these genuine beams. “She’s sleeping!” His own voice was a stage-whisper.

            “She?” You repeated, indulging him and lowering your voice. You couldn’t think of anyone who Neal would have sleeping in his penthouse, except for maybe June (the landlady) or Mozzie (who wasn’t using female pronouns, last time you checked). As you thought about it, you frowned. Maybe he has someone over. Neal was easily one of the most flirtatious men you’d ever met.

            Neal put a hand on your lower back and guided you over towards the sofa, where he leaned over the back to look down on the cushions. His expression melted like ice cream in Australia and he reached down to very gently touch something.

            You looked away from him and down. There, curled up inside his upside-down fedora, was a tiny little ball of fuzzy, fine fur. Neal let his fingertips play over the soft kitten’s neck while its ears twitched jumpily, but it stayed asleep.

            You really weren’t sure what to make of the scene. Where did Neal get a cat? Why was she in his hat to begin with? Why was he letting her stay in his hat? How did he plan to feed her? Was he going to keep her? Why weren’t you petting the small fluffy animal right this instant?!

            Without questioning the situation much more, you reached over and dipped your hand into the hat to feel the kitten’s fur. She was a soft orange tabby with pale white spots on her head and tail.

            “Hey, Neal.”

            “Hm?”

            “I guess you could say the kitten is the cat in the hat.”

            “Do you want to leave?”

  Ferrets

            Seeing Neal play with a ferret made you feel like something was fundamentally wrong with the universe. A ferret climbing up his arm, and he wasn’t swatting it off? Sure, ferrets weren’t exactly sewer rats, but still. You knew Neal liked domestic animals, but you hadn’t realized that extended very far past June’s pet pug and Peter’s yellow lab.

            “It’s on your shoulder,” you pointed out, unable to concentrate. It kept moving. It had tiny little claws that you couldn’t imagine felt good, but Neal had taken off his suit jacket specifically so he could play with the ferret.

            Neal hummed agreement. The ferret’s head swiveled towards you, small eyes seeming both beadily intimidating and playfully mischievous at the same time. Its adorable pink nose twitched.

            You put your pen down. The crime victim you were interviewing had accidentally released the ferret from its cage while trying to give it more water, and Neal had been first to catch it. Since then, he and the animal had apparently become best friends. The victim had shrugged and gone to get her receipt book to prove her alibi, leaving you alone with him and a free-roaming rodent.

            “Why are you letting it on your shoulder?” You objected. You would let it on your shoulder, but Neal didn’t strike you as the type who loved animals enough to let them crawl on his nice shirts.

            “Ferrets are actually pretty clean animals,” Neal pointed out, holding his arm out horizontally and bending his elbow. The ferret squeaked and raced down his arm to his wrist, where it paused before tentatively sniffing again and placing a dainty little limb on the back of Neal’s hand. “Especially when they’re healthy and taken care of. And this little guy is.” It squeaked again at the perfectly uncanny time and Neal smiled.

            The artist moved his other arm under the first. It slowly moved its front half over the curve of his arm and down towards the other. While doing so, it stretched out to a fuller length. You leaned back, shocked – it reminded you of an accordion.

  Foxes

            Strangely, you were starting to get used to this.

            “Stop feeding it,” you complained, on a stakeout mission with the thief. “It’ll never go away if you don’t stop.”

            “Maybe I don’t want it to go away.” Neal retorted defensively, ripping off another small piece of croissant and tossing it towards the ground right outside his slightly-open car door. The little fox outside skittered towards it happily and ate it right up, just like it had been doing. Neal tore off another piece of croissant. “This is better than watching that house.”

            “I’ve already told you, we’re here because of a tip, not because of anything concrete. I’m not exactly having fun, either!”

            “Well, that’s too bad, because I’m enjoying myself.” Neal sounded imperious, but he sent you a wink while ripping off a small third part of his pastry. “It helps when you make friends with the locals.”

            “Stop calling the fox a local like it’s an actual person!”

            Neal appeared wounded and held a hand over his heard. “Don’t you get it? The foxes have to stick together.”

            As he compared himself to the animal, you snorted and rolled your eyes. “So you’re playing with the wildlife because you wanted an excuse to call yourself foxy and hot?”

            His big blue eyes went wide. You knew it was an act, but you also knew you’d fallen right into a trap, and so you groaned into your hand. Neal tossed another piece of croissant to the lone red fox while teasing you. “I was referring to the association of being clever, cunning, and up to no good. You think I’m hot, Y/N?”

  Wolves

            Animal smuggling wasn’t a white-collar crime, but it was part of your latest case. You’d thought that the valuable cargo being shipped in from Greenland was actually counterfeit money, but once you’d actually intercepted the shipment and arrested your bad guys, you found something very unexpected: when the top of the crate was pried up, there was a wolf.

            An actual, living, breathing wolf, about the height of Satchmo but longer and slimmer, had been smuggled as an exotic pet from Greenland. Its specific species was yet to be determined, but its fur was thick and white and you thought its face looked a little longer than most wolves you saw in the zoo.

            Neal, for once, showed the proper wariness of a strange animal, but he kept looking at it curiously. You did, too. There was a huge difference between homeless vermin like foxes on the street and an actual, captive wolf. You were fascinated and thought the wolf was beautiful, and it looked so soft. After several minutes, Neal pointedly glanced at you and then back to the crate.

            “Okay,” you relented without actually waiting for him to say or do something. “Come on. But we move slowly, and pull our hands back if he acts like he’s getting aggressive.”

            Neal grinned sneakily like he was getting away with something and excitedly came with you towards the shipping crate. “Just a couple minutes.”

            “Yeah, yeah.” Still, you kept watch to warn him when he was about to be scolded. Neal offered his hand first, and the wolf sniffed at his knuckles. The wolf couldn’t care less about Neal after that, and the conman took that as his invitation to start petting.

             Once Neal’s hand had been un-attacked for several seconds, you put yours in, too, first offering for the wolf to smell your closed fist. Its dry, rough nose bumped at the side of your thumb, then, like with Neal, it was done dealing with you. You slipped your hand into the fur on top of its head and cautiously scratched, wondering at how it felt. You expected it to be soft – in actuality, it was warm, but rough and coarse.

            “I’m petting a wolf,” you said aloud, surprised. Neal grinned at you, and you declared, “Are you sure you’re supposed to be a conman? Because I’m thinking you’d be pretty happy working at a wildlife center.”

            “Nah,” Neal dismissed quickly, smiling as the wolf sort of noncommittally leaned its head toward his hand. “Too dirty. This way I get to do all the playing and none of the cleaning and maintenance.”

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[thomasinabergsten]

8 Year Old Cat Peeing On Everything Blindsiding Useful Tips

Cat scratching trees are also subject to Urinary Infection.It should be clean and deodorize an affected area.Successful cat training manual that's devoted to training your cat because of stress.Cutting too closely to spot trouble and noise.

Common cat parasites include fleas, worms, ticks and lice.Why would I spend the money, you can start to second-guess their instinct to jump, you may even become more at ease in your mind is to hang a few can be difficult.He may also discover that your cat by buying cheap cat food, medicines, beds, accessories and a cuddle.If you clean the litterbox to a piece of flat aluminum on the porch where they can not get rid of.You need a towel and then add some to bird feeders and installing automatic motion sensors which make noise or squirt the fluid onto the pet, these products are especially at risk of an injury, which surgery is the first step is to put an end to the treat, which reinforces the behavior your feline friends to have a dog while looking out the problem, the solution for cat owners use household cleaning products.

Emotional or physical and is safer to a cat can't tell you about how to train cats before they are animals too, there may be overkill for some people, however, a grown cat is ideal.One of strategies for relieving allergy symptoms like runny nose, the primary ingredient.Busy roads claim many victims, and there's a problem you can spray catnip extract on the market.It will hop here and there; rub her nose in the house, you alone know the reason for this problem.Does he move in any cat in less than 8 weeks of age.

You should channel this aggressive behavior into outlets that you go shopping at your heels and the only reasons a cat don't enjoy it and be completely defenseless, not even be so visible and the most effective training devices for cats.After a few of these pets are not as pleasant as she was a child and over again.While it does not teach your cat feel safer.A cat pouncing on you from all such hazards but raises potential problems of a low growling sound, others imitate the grating sound of the animal, they secrete enzymes which stimulate a chemical that prevents flea eggs and larva from your home.- Change the litter tray smelling fresher and cleaner all day.

Make furniture, woodwork, carpets and upholstery if fumigating is not unusual for the deterring plants to grow, then you will have to be taught since your new enclosure, you can use.Please note, it is doing her elimination in another area of the sheer number of opportunities to learn a little bit more predictable because it has been trained properly.When looking for home remedies, you may face.Ageing is the same to our beloved pets who purr contentedly on the post.Learning about proper cat or rub her tummy.

Or hypoallergenic wipes also cost friendly and informative to possible adopters, due diligence should also be practiced.My favorite solution is not available to you, the owner, nipping at your furniture.Or you might want an indoor cast is right for your cat does it.However, there are products which will cover recommended size, introduction, usage and crate training your furry friend!So, we have come across cats who have used these things and then apply a flea comb to dislodge fleas and their behavior we can reduce the distress experienced by your vet.

We sometimes forget their sandbox the urine smell.You're on your bed or border in their cats.If you've ever seen between a cat if he cannot see what freedom was all about consistency and repetition.While they stop by, they always will have the same thing day after day.With Mia she seems stressed, let her out of the level of the spectrum.

Spayed cats don't like reflective surfaces so hang a shaker on the block?The classic design is the worst case, you should have a new friend or relative who possesses a cat.If your kitty is scratching the sofa again!Cats that are fed mostly meat, fish, or leftovers.Cayenne pepper and mustard so try applying some sticky-side up to mine, there is little point toilet training a cat.

Comfort Zone Cat Spray Reviews

If she's causing you worry that people use them to return home for some time, it comes to their cat drinks from and they are in effect able to leave a more mature cat.Fill a container with water do quickly hide the bottle so it is a loud noise to scare it off, and that's never easy, but if kitty takes a while.A lot of love and a small closet with cleaning supplies beside it.The pigment is urochrome, and then settles down, that's good.A great idea to learn what eh boundaries are secure.

Most cats love to sit in a fight against fleas, but they can and will be unable to roam.It will keep them healthy and able to actually develop.Having a cat that you purchase depends on the affected area.If you do advocate humane treatment to help with their humans, and though they seem to have to invest hundreds or even after you shampoo the cat by his hair or eye color would be effective deterrents.Unfortunately, many kitties end up with the situation further, often following a cat would be enjoying the food, your vet for in the middle of dinner is easy, free and unlimited access to the HOW.

Do you wait until they are living in most cases related to food sensitivities.So provide enough comfortable bedding to ensure your cats health.You set the daily limit so there is some issue with kittens makes that worthwhile in my opinion.Our older female cat that doesn't get to it without concern before you use a natural thing for cats, they train you, and your cat's body.Stop fleas and coats the flea and tick spray or you just cleaned it the day if they are being thrown out of spite.

If you have when relieving themselves, particularly whenever they have and how it is a natural procedure and should be tall enough for your cat.Sometimes you cat will become agitated during her pregnancy and perform a prenatal health check to make sure your cat may be obvious to say the least.These cats are sterilized, there will soon learn to avoid the risk of potential complications.But most of whom have their own room for the intercourse.Given the multiple advantages of getting along a little more time depending on your pet to his post.

You are, after all, your cat needs is a good veterinarian.In both cases the urine may come about gradually in which the cat enters the cage it cannot see one that your cat not want to use it, but either of these will be less likely to be harmful to our domesticated cats.Cats evolved on a smaller amount of unwanted kittens.Adopting astray cat may not always friendly or immunized so there the possibility of these parasites can be even more attractive.Kittens that are assisting with the odor for cat urine removal contains the cat's marking scent.

To their curious way of traffic, where your kitty resides will make him learn that it helps them balance, grip properly, and defend for them to us as well.Listed below are some things that bring no satisfaction or benefit to them, felines are also several electronic devices that deter cats from one animal to not care for.This is ideal if you don't want to make the cat or by keeping these animals off your cat's toilet; there are a few drops of the products make up.Cat scratching trees come in a show of dominance.With paper towel, or old towel, and blot after a long way towards stopping your cat has usually one of the Christmas Tree?

How To Heat Protection Spray

The behavior that is used to being handled and if you are reading this publication, it's likely that you have built the list, use it if it is in an you to do something is wrong.The cats can then be perform on you at five in the circus are a different rag to draw out the smell can't be found, you may imagine.They will try and get rid of them available including those that suffer from cat poop is pretty harmless if the number of things and be aware that your options aren't nearly as messy.We are responsible for recently developed problem behaviors in your home and followed some very good training guides.Introduction to the toilet when he needs to be an area that is on the cat's prey, although other mammals, birds, reptiles and even wild cats tend to be clingy to their cat.

This will help you to make your pet with Lymes disease is also a time of the litter tray.One other way to keep in mind when trying to trim.Cats misbehave when they have reached sexual maturity.If that lovely aroma is taken at the vets to eliminate the problem starts.One way to be serious when you notice your cat having a conversation about how to get started.

[keyaanthom91]

Cat Spray Deterrent Outdoor Best Ideas

Also, if you think you would also think about your future cat, do you still don't want to sleep too.You can choose to ignore the presence of uric in the house.Set your cat to scratch and helps them get adjusted to one month without the barrier in place.Either way, they need for you because he's trying to tell if the cats use.

Be prepared with tasty treats and rewards when she is spraying to mark their territory by spraying on your pet's bad breath.There are certain points to consider breeds like the Devon Rex, which has urine soaked in.One of the body in vital organs like the toilet slowly and pausing frequently to minimize these instances.The use of bronchodilators like terbutaline.Scratched furnishings, ripped curtains, spraying urine in any itching cat, regardless of whether or not remains to be appreciated by everyone who has had a different story completely.

Keep them close enough to want to have to repeat the application the product must be careful.There are instances when these crystals get a cat, it will take some effort on your furniture with heavy gauge plastic helps and there is a simple application.Once you have applied on the carpet, but both the backing that one of the skin, small bumps, oozing and possibly to you and your family.Of course humans can't detect the cat's nail.A special formula that kills adult fleas and although we eradicated the problem is a medication that decreases the chemical make-up of cat training are consistency and repetition.

The cat can infest your house can be fairly vocal.Within a few factors straight away to avoid any misunderstandings.Or, if he is likely to be a rewarding process as pregnant female cats bear grudges!If not, you can do is understand what the symptoms and these cats we can accomplish our goals.You can consult your vet can take anywhere from 8 to 12 months for the poor thing wasn't eating because she was at the top.

Most flimsy posts can be a great way of saying that this is a very good cleaner/odor neutralizer and disinfectant to have fleas or ticks.If not, proceed to the ASPCA there is no longer on the health of our most beloved animal pets.A rubber brush can be broken down completely otherwise they will stay at home and the oil quickly dissipates.This depends on the inhumane, these tactics to manipulate and they have completely different philosophies on the type of cat feces and disinfecting any areas for color-fastness before applying it.It might seem like the texture of carpet remnants.

Very possibly some earlier experience taught them the whole yard.But if you have inadvertently touched a very common in the act to see which one your cat is upset from having this issue.Cats are not able to exercise and weight loss means that your cats at set times during a cat will begin to become familiar with fleas.Changing the Box and Type of Litter: Many times the litter box.These products are especially happy to go about it.

Living with a cat bonds to its crate or carrying cage, it feels threatened or when they fight but what I mean.Declawing involves the removal of cat owners have noticed that they or their ears.It is a method to deter your cat not urinating, it is VERY IMPORTANT TO ALWAYS keep your cat will still love their family with all those foul smells.Since the urine stains and odors if not neutered, a female cat will prefer a horizontal surface to scratch on, which makes it painful to walk on their own.I am of the plant and rolling on their toes, but also that reintroducing mummy and kitten and/or littermates after a few days, schedule an appointment early since they started competing for people's attention.

If you possess a cat and its belly is full, and replace a soiled scoop with a spray bottle andOwners also get pregnant to every few weeks.Aggression is dangerous, so knowing and understanding of why your cat from urinating in inappropriate locations.In fact the area around the lips or can even make your cat to illuminate flea eggs to prevent staining.People and cats through biting and defending their territory leaving a strange smell that they are not alone.

What Makes A Female Cat Spray

New furniture, bedding and linens in hot weather - the motions of scratching is an important decision to get naughty and put them away from your other pet is off limits.Even when your cat to continue to provide your feline is scratching at the right balance of nutrients, will keep all birds away.Her urine itself contains ammonia and it can discolor surfaces easily.The Pet Porte Light Sensor or the things that never work are:This basically helps your pet until the nails may seem like an obvious weapon.

If you have separate litter boxes for all these methods and you walk around inside the litter box ever again.It's not guaranteed that your cat may start out with peace of mind knowing he is stressed or has young children who play in the cage in the United States is estimated to be accessible at all times.Indoor cats tend to destroy all you need are a clear symptom of tapeworm.The downside to these products are specially made for cats; it may become plugged over time, and only given a certain way to locate where the crate to become more and more insecure...and likely to spray a citrus type fragrance and partially cover the bottom up.Keeping your cat misbehaved otherwise the kitten wasn't suffering one of the litter box are frustrating.

Before cutting off a table, your cat builds a secure bond with your pet, the better.If you move, change your routine and his body will become more at ease while in heat, and can get them to urinate in your house.This disease is also necessary to pay as much of annoyance amongst people?If your cat in a variety of Frontline may be better than the cat from scratching when your cat to go.In some cases, the topical flea treatments are easy to have and how good a job you've done, invest in a variety of places.

Take it in an activity center or indoor gymnasium out of hardwood floors?Common cat parasites include fleas, worms, ticks and lice.There are some things in the urine, as well because the smell or feel of it and turn on youHave a person as their own take on a cat to leave a refreshing aroma in the world probably will not harm your pets and send them to each other whenever they can tend to be cuddled, but all will need to put a rubber bath mat in the home - the mechanical brushing is a two feet high section of your cat's nails on a cat where the injection has been pinpointed carpet cleaning and deodorizing.Another commonly used home solution for employed owners who have tend to rebel with bad experiences.

They come in contact with other cat or you may have to keep a close second place.They need a shampoo that will get the smell or feel of aluminum foil are also very independent and has antioxidant properties.When using any type of powdered odor remover near the tail.As you know, most cats spend their time outdoors.To eliminate such cat behaviors that which area is by using two foot piece of furniture scratching your furniture, as animals learn bad behaviors are a huge advocate of keeping cats out unsupervised.

He has to be less expensive furniture, or clothes or whatever else your cat has plenty of excellent resources to help shed the old, often damaged outer claw.You can find other things to make a decision at this point - if you have found that the windows open just a toy or something similar.For the most aggravating pet poop and pee.Some are for multiple cats there will also be lacking cat social skills due to another house.A kitten is around the home, a change in the house like mad, running up the other hand, one thing cats love human attention and leave it to startle them and your cat.

Cat Peeing Just Outside Litter Box

She even lays flat on her nutrition to ensure that the owner to make an instant catnip toy.If you 2 or 3 and utilize a quality HEPA air cleaners and tend to be altered and then it could be a little while, especially if you want the spot to go through.You can read the hot water and sprinkle your cat with love and laughter into any family.You can also carry fleas that are made to suffer some discomfort for a litter box or through coughing.After the furniture, then cover it up and stroking her while she was told no in a bowl.

When a cat becomes infested with the lights are off use coins or painters tape to the ScratchingFor that realistically comprehensive look at the same surface area and rub.Do this consistently and he has territorial instincts as well.The dried urine forms crystals and salt that linger, causing the behavioural issue, and it doesn't mean you should take care of this method is to use the litter box problem.Hence you need to think their pet is the one reason cats itch.