#Ughh I'm sorry guys for that bike

[kalolasfantasyworld]

Sunny bike ride ☀️

Kahonelle week day 5

I challenged myself to do all of the prompts in one: ocean, modern and color

@bceventshub

[mossy-mushrooms]

The dark harvest

Pt 8

"Ryu!" Calista calls out as she runs a bit to get to him. He looks over to her and the other two trailing behind her.

"Did the teacher hold you up or something?" He asks as he looks down at her "Oh yeah, you know the whole spiel about how the bell doesn't dismiss us, she does." As Calista said that Ryu groaned "Yeah no I get that, so annoying honestly".

"Let's not stay at this institution any longer than we need to" Mikey said as he patted Zane on the back to get him going.

...

As all four of them walked to the cafe Ryu hung in the back as he pushed his bike while he mostly listened to their chatter which then came to the topic of donomic, nothing better than hating one person together.

"Donomic talked to me before you guys came" The raven haired teen commented off handedly as he looks at the various houses and the little shops. "What??" Mikey immediately responded and the other two whipped their heads back to look at him. "Are you good? Did he threaten you??" Zane quickly chimed in But Ryu waved them off.

"I'm okay, he asked me my name. I guess he wants to look into me to see if he can make my life hell or something.. I doubt that he asked just so he can 'put a name on a face'." Ryu said as he made air quotes but the others still looked uneasy.

"Listen you have to avoid him as much as you can, do you even know why he treats everyone like the dirt under his feet?" Calista shakes him by the shoulders and he pushes her off slightly.

"Okay calm down, I get it he's some powerful prick because of his daddy, I heard the spiel more than once about other people from different towns" he sighs as he starts to push his bike again. "I know that he will try to get some kind of dirt immediately but he won't. It's outside of his range if I have any."

The other three teens look at him reluctantly as they starts walking as well.

"Let's get to the café yeah?"

....

"Isn't it cute??" Calista looks up at Ryu to gauge his reaction to the quaint café. Ryu  looks up silently at the café name " Café love letter? yeah it seems nice" he mumbles as Mikey passes by him to walk in first.

"Any recommendations? Since you seem to come here a lot" Ryu asks as they sit down at a booth in the corner of the cafe.

"Ah well I like the sandwiches! They have a lot of options actually" Calista chirps happily and Mikey adds on "I like the hot chocolate and the coffee" and Zane just looks at the menu.

....

As all of them eat they talk about the things they talk about their pet peeves.

"Oh I absolutely hate it when i say I don't like tomatoes and the person starts acting like I committed an unimaginable war crime!" Calista huffs as she leans back in her seat. "Right? Like sorry that my taste buds don't like it" Zane agrees with her as they vent about their frustrations.

"What do you hate Ryu?" Mikey asks as he tries to include him, Ryu looks up from eating his sandwich"oh uh... Hospitals." He mutters hoping they won't probe but that was just wishful thinking.

"Mm why?" Zane asks as he looks over at Ryu, "uh.. just a bad taste in my mouth.. especially the needles"

"I feel you I hate those, they're to sharp and ughh" Zane says but the black haired teen just smiles slightly "uh yeah.. something like that."

....

"Bye!" Calista waved as she and Zane went on their route to their homes. Ryu just waved "See ya!" Mikey yelled back as he turned to walk with Ryu.

They walked in silence as the sun started to set, that is until Mikey broke it.

"Want me to walk you halfway to your place?" Ryu looked up at him and shrugged "I mean do you want to go into the woods? I live in a lodge.." Mikey just stared ahead "I.. insist"

Just from that Ryu realised something was up as he saw how Mikey was trying to be calm, Ryu looked over Mikey's posture and saw how he was rigid.

"...Alright" they're eyes met and it was clear that Mikey wanted to tell him what it's about.

....

They broke through the forest line and stayed on the dirt path in an unsettling silence. "Uhm here look at this, Calista sent it to me" Mikey said but it was just the notes app on his phone. 'i think Donomic and two of his dudes' Ryu tries not to make a face as he looks up at Mikey.

"Right... Uhm if you want you can stay at my place it's getting dark" Ryu says as he tries to look out of his peripheral to see where donomic is. "Ah no need I'll head back after you're halfway to your place" Mikey continues walking again but he keeps his gaze ahead and Ryu follows suit.

....

"So see you tomorrow?" Mikey mutters awkwardly as he has his eyes trained on Ryu. "Uh yeah, text me when you get home so I know something didn't get you" he tries to joke but Mikey just knocks him on the top of his head.

"Don't joke with me man" he groans but then ruffles his hair "but yeah I'll shoot ya a text." Ryu waves to him as he gets on his bike. He started cycling back home through the dirt path.

But before he could make it even a bit further he suddenly hears a shout.

"Hey!" Ryu hears Donomic's distinct voice. He takes a breath in and pulls on the break, stopping his bike.

"Donomic? Why are you here?" He says as he turns to face where he heard Donomic's voice and his blood ran cold. There was no one that's when he realised, Donomic was supposed to be behind on the trail.

Not to the side of him in the woods. Ryu immediately drops his head low as sweat beaded at his forehead, his hands felt clammy as he tried to think of what to do now. 'am I fucked? Can I pass it off as actually talking to donomic?' he shuddered as he heard footsteps to his side. But then he also heard footsteps behind him, his possible saving grace.

"How'd you know I was behind you freshmen?" Donomic says as he gets near Ryu who was still keeping his head down. "Hey are you listening??" Donomic scoffed as he put his hand on Ryu's shoulder who just hesitantly looked up at him.

"Mikey.. told me you were behind us so.." the older teen looked at him with suspicion. "Why'd you look to the side if you knew?" Ryu gripped onto the handle bars and tried to keep his eyes solely on Donomic. "Ah well-" they both heard more rustling and cracking of branches.

Donomic's face hardened and he dropped his hand, his eyes looking over to the side so quickly it could've been missed. "You two. Head home, I'll talk to Ryu by myself." As Ryu heard that he looked incredibly confused. Just as he was about to protest Donomic grabbed the middle of Ryu's handle bars and pulled so that the bike would move forward.

"It's the echo, I get it." Donomic said suddenly but Ryu sputtered "echo? Uh- oh yeah I get confused sometimes where I hear stuff from yeah-" he shuts his mouth before he messes up.

The rhythmic crunching of the leaves in the forest beside the path never letting up.

"So um.. Why'd you come to the forest?" Ryu tried to keep up a normal conversation, "to talk to you"

"Oh uh about what?" Donomic looked over to him, his dark brown eyes cold and halflidded. "Why did you move here?"

"Uh.. my guardians say it's for work." He mutters "yeah is that so? Listen. You should keep to yourself outside of school" donomic said plainly.

"Uh excuse me?" Ryu made a face as he heard that. "Most people do. Don't- don't talk to the older people, most of them are fucking weirdos" Ryu just felt more confused, why was Donomic seemingly giving him advice?

"Why are you telling me this?" He squinted at Donomic, trying not to let his eyes wander at what is behind the older teen. "Because you haven't grown up here and I don't need some dumb kid going exploring where they shouldn't. Especially since your place is close to the grove." He puts a hand over his mouth to stop himself from saying too much.

Ryu hopped off his bike as they stood in front of the old gate doors. "Can we talk more in school? I want to.. know more" he chose his words carefully because he had an itching feeling that Donomic knew a lot more than he was letting on.

The older teen clenched his jaw but sighed "Fine. At lunch you will come sit with me nad we'll talk. after that you'll get out of my sight" Ryu put his hands up as the bike rested on his stomach "yeah you got it. Head home quickly it's dark now.." the the teen with slicked back hair just scoffed "yeah I'm not an idiot."

As Ryu closed his gate after getting in he watched as Donomic walked down the path and he couldn't help but glance in the forest trees.. The wretched gaunt creature now in the trees was stalking Donomic who kept his head down.

He shivered as he made himself look at Donomic again until he was out of eyesight. He went and parked his bike under the awning before heading into the once again empty dark lodge.

He sighed as he didn't even bother to turn on the lights as he made his way to the bathroom, the floor boards creaking and reminding him of his old home when he lived with his mother. He shook his head to rid himself of those less then pleasant memories of the trash and the disgusting creaky floor.

[rvrindousvpet]

Hey i couldn't find your rules but could you do ( lovesick high school Baji hc) 🥰

note : I'm sorry anon, but hehe i haven't establish/decided any rules yet. So for now i pretty much accept everything. But i only accept request for headcanons ^^ also of course i can do this, hihi as always I'm sorry if he's too ooc and if this is vv shitty 👎 I'm so sorry for the late update I'm a bit busy for thiis day and also the mse past few days

warnings : swearings !

character : baji keisuke x gn!you (gender neutral reader)

Lovesick High School Student Baji !

This boi is a big fucking tsundere !!! He is literally akkun ( in akkun to kanojo, if you haven't watch it, then you should cause it's fuckin cute :/ ) but the gang member version 🤔

hmm instead of him going to your house like shinichiro, for baji, it'll be you the one who came to his house in the early morning to go to school together~

If he ever saw you in his house with his mom or sitting around he'll be like "huhh?? what the fuck are you doing here? i told you that I don't want your annoying ass to come here right" well it might seem rude but that's just him ^^

Also you already knew that he didn't mean what he said, and yes it's true! He literally didn't mean what he just said because deep in his heart he'll go like "ahh they're so cute ! The fact that y/n is willing to come over here~ but they can't do this again no no, it might be too dangerous what if something happened to them on their way here, i have to scold them throughly so they won't do that again!!"

but he failed to do so because you just look so sad when he started saying that should stop come over, it's like you're a lil pup that has been kicked by him :( and also it's because he's weak to you <33

you guys won't go to school by riding his bike, instead you guys will walk together. It's because he can't handle if your body is pressed to him and if you're holding him while he's driving, he feels like he will definitely faint on the spot if that's ever happen and he can't risk to embarrass himself in front of you, his beloved one no no!!

he loves watching you skipping to the classroom cheerfully, he thinks it's cute- no it's endearing the way you hops around, ehem ehem he once think that you may perhaps be a bunny in your past life, and every time you hops or skidding around he never fails to imagine you with cute bunny tails and ears 😳

hehe yess, you guys are in the same classroom and sit next to each other.

baji would try to concentrate in the class but fails miserably cause he was too busy looking at his cute s/o who was busy writing down the notes

sometimes he'll mumble that you're too cute and precious for this world hehe, there would be times where you would catches him mumble around

"hmm? kei, what are you mumbling n' why aren't you focusing in class? ah! it's okayy, i will lend you my notes later so you can use it (. ❛ ᴗ ❛.) "

"hahh?! why would i want to use your notes? whatever just make sure you wrote it properly cause i can't read ya shitty handwritings"

what a big fat lie baji 0_o he literally thinks that your handwriting is the cutesy shit he ever seen and he desperately wants you to write 'y/n ♡ kei' and if you did and decided to give it to him, he'll grumble about how useless it is but! he'll definitely keep that paper on him allll the time untill it worns out :D

you must have an extra hair tie on you all the time! cause sometimes baji's hair tie will go missing mysteriously 🤔🤔🤔 definitely not because he lost it on purpose just to get yours ^^

lunch break !! he will always complain on how he didn't need your shitty bento box and he would rather eat plain bread, but either way he still finished it in no time so there's absolutely no issues~

hmmm should we take a look on what is going on inside his head while he's eating??

'how JUS HOW CAN I EAT THE LUNCH THAT Y/N GAVE TO ME??? ughh they're so fucking cute i might just bite their cheeks. why the fuck they're so thoughtful it'll be harder for me to maintain my expression?? this shit is so endearing, god i love them so much i might just die'

ah also! he once threatened chifuyu to punch him if he didn't give baji, the lunch that y/n gave to chifuyu earlier. of courses he did it when y/n is not there ^^ ( you can only give foods to him and him only !! no one else is allowed because they're not special enough to receive your heaven gifted food !! also cause he's jealous lmaoo )

p.e moment ! (idk if actually have this but idk )

i think it's canon that baji is actually really really good at basketball 😔🙏

but right before he goes to play, you suddenly appeared in front of him and dragged him to a bench...?

"kei! wait a bit okay?" you moved behind him, and then ! he feels your fingers through his long hair 0-o

you...you broke him, his head is just reeling, dizzy, warm because you decided to tie his hair from him :( because he is stunned instead of yapping around how annoying and how he didn't need this, he'll stay quiet this time because he's in tooo much sh0ck !1!1!!

'oH d-did y/n just tie my hair for me?? i mean i can do that but but they still decided to do it for mE? ahhh they're too kind for this world. must protect this babie !!! ahhh y/n what r u doing with my poor heart :(('

he feels so touched by it so he played the game with full concentration to make sure that he'll win it for you the love of his life

fast forward to after school, he will hold your hand while walking you to your house! well his reason is because ehem you kinda like to wonder around? so yeah he'll lost you and also you're vv clumsy so he hold onto you to make sure you're not harmed or hurt in anyway. he'll feel like his heart is ripping apart if that ever happened

lowkey hates the fact that he arrived at your house so soon. he wants to spend more time with his darling !!!

but he'll endure it anyway because he wants to look cool in front you

wants to bring out his dere side? sure! all you just need to do is hug or kiss him on ze cheeks and he'll be red as fuck and malfunctioning 😔🙏

he will also hide his face behind his hand, will turn around and groans out "for fuxk sake y/n why are you FUXKINg cute i just wanna keep you by my side forever." and will hug you tightly at that time and say how much he loves you and how he feels bad the way he treated you.

hmm wait for a bout a few mins and then he'll snap out of it! he'll push you away gently and say that you're a stupid annoying a brat and proceed to run away from your house !

uhh his room? well yeah he has your pictures pasted on his bedroom wall, as he quotes that he can sleep peacefully and how he need to your face~

will message you "goodnight stupid head and don't sleep too late" before he goes to Dreamland to dream about you !! cause he feels like seeing you today just isn't enough :(

bonus : remember how i said that he thought you as a bunny? well he saves your contact name as baby bun ♡ actually. don't ask me why i just had the feelings, and ofc you didn't know . he would rather die before you finds out bout it!

[seyaryminamoto]

my school works are piled up this past few weeks (graduating tingz) and i just started reading the deadlock novel it feels like i'm reading a sokkla fic every time Mcashe has a scene because they just give off the vibes skskskskksksks. BTW, what's your top5 fav scenes from the novel? PS: I'm smiling like an idiot while reading the novel ughh i hate myself

I KNOW, RIIIIIGHT?! *-* and don't hate yourself, my anon friend, I spent the whole novel smiling and laughing and losing my goddamn mind because I was having the time of my life xD enjoy this beautiful content as best you can!

I mean, frankly, Reunion already had all the Sokkla vibes I could've wanted/needed to ship these two like FedEx and I always knew I wasn't getting off this ride anytime soon. But gosh, this book... it gave me everything I wanted and MORE! Their dynamics are soooo similar to Sokkla team-up dynamics, two power couples kicking ass and taking names... oh, I just love it so much. I probably will end up reading the book a third time soon x'D

As for my favorite scenes, damn, this is tricky xD

KEYCHAIN! HE MADE HER KEYCHAIN!! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!!! God, it's just amazing how the book explains the "vintage" look for Ashe's hoverbike the way it does, and that they literally built it together *screams!!!*, but then he gives her that keychain for her birthday present, and the implications!! THE IMPLICATIONS!!! He gave her a keychain she's held onto for TWENTY YEARS?!?!?! Ships in the OW fandom have sailed far and wide with less than breadcrumbs: we literally have been granted a boon from the GODS with all this extra context for the little things in Reunion xD

Ashe going to hell and back to save her kidnapped BFF-for-whom-she-totally-doesn't-have-feelings-yeah-yeah-sure-Jan. I love the fact that McCree is, in a way, Ashe's damsel in distress and not the other way around xD Of course, it's what you'd expect from an Ashe-centric story, but it's still an amazing sequence, all around. Gotta highlight how she loves the way he smiles like a madman when they have that shootout at the end, and how he worries so much over Ashe's injury when he took an even worse one than she did (the Sokkla vibes in that particular situation were SO STRONG! I SWEAR!).

"Jesse McCree, are you trying to make me say you're handsome?" "Am I?" ... do I need to say more. That FLIRTING. These two were on fire already and they'd only known each other for like... weeks, at this point? x'D He has no sense of moderation, he's soooo into her and doesn't hide it at all. Ashe is so busy trying to plot all the crime and Jesse's practically like a shojo heroine, "oh I can feel it, this is how my love story begins!", basically xD

Finally I pick a not-McAshe scene... to bring up the one where Ashe picks up the Viper on her last moment in Lead Rose Manor. That moment was just... POWERFUL. The feeling of epicness in that scene just overwhelmed me when I was reading it xD

The ending of the book :'D the fully formed Deadlock Gang ready for business, down to the explanation for the Est. 1976 in the logo... *sobs* the fact that so much about the character design choices in these two characters is a shoutout to the past they share is just... *gross sobbing* oh, I just love it to pieces, I'm not even sorry.

Ashe's bike race to save B.O.B. x'D that whole situation was bonkers but I looooved how fierce she was about protecting her one and only buddy while growing up (AND THAT JESSE BLUSHED WHEN SHE TAUNTED HIM WAS JUST THE CHERRY ON TOP!). I appreciated learning more about the Omnic War and its consequences, how Ashe reflects on having escaped it practically untouched in virtue of her money and societal privilege while her new friends all faced many hardships to survive. But I can't help but also love that, however uneasy others could have been about the Best Omnic Butler, Ashe was so fiercely loyal to B.O.B. that she nearly broke Julian's nose herself over his ridiculousness x'D That's HER big omnic buddy and she's not about to lose him to anyone, not her shitty parents, not a bet in a race, NOTHING! (and it's so cute that B.O.B. is just as loyal to her, too *sobs*)

Ashe grabbing McCree's arm to explain things to him on their first heist and him being all "you gonna leave that there?" and only then does she realize her hand's still on him x'D what a McCree line, and he was absolutely enjoying the attention, he doesn't even pretend otherwise.

Everything poetic McCree says or does... meanwhile Ashe's like "um yeah I don't care about poetry I want money", right until his poet soul totally smashes her square in the heart with the KEYCHAIN!!! But damn, I swear I thought McCree would hold back a lot more, and yet there he was, saying things like Calamity was brilliant and mysterious... you could practically hear B.O.B., Julian and Frankie going "I can see what's happening..." in the background xD

The conversation about what they wanted to do once they were loaded with all the cash they could possibly want. That one was a real number on my heartstrings. It ties up to what I said earlier with Ashe finally being in touch with people who are completely removed from the ridiculous social circles of her parents and her school, people who really lost a lot in the war. But where Julian and Frankie seem to look at the past a lot, I loved that Jesse is basically just thinking about the future. The fact that he says he wants to chill out in a farm and that this is what he wants in life... many, MANY, shippy wheels have turned in my head since I read that <.< maaaany...

WHEN JESSE NEARLY FALLS AND ASHE CATCHES HIM!!! UNDERRRATED AS HECK!!! The fact that he's taunting her about fear of heights, then he nearly plummets to his death because ironies are beautiful xD and Ashe pulls him back to safety only to say that she's not afraid of heights but afraid of ~FALLING~??? I mean, okay, sure, maybe I'm reading too much into that line... or maybe I'm not <.< either way, the truth is I just love how absolutely broad of interpretation that scene and that DIALOGUE are :> ehehehe.

Oh, their first encounter. The fact that it's so cute and fun, and that it's this low in the list tells you how GOOD this book was x'D "You've got an awful lot of grit for a rich girl," first words he spoke to the love of his life xD then how they talked and laughed together about the crazy stories he shared (she was crying of laughter for the first time in her life! precious girl!), and then how she sat in the car thinking about the strange feeling she was left with after meeting him... they seriously had a meetcute in prison, how can a ship get any better? xD

WHEN HE COMES BACK TO HER WHEN THEIR FIRST HEIST GOES WRONG!!! That Ashe expects him to just leave after she falls off their getaway vehicle, but Jesse saves her and goes "pfft that's just not my style", basically... *sobs* without realizing it she ends up picking up that particular philosophy of his, saving her friends no matter the cost...! Honestly, though, the fact that every time something like this happens it hits Ashe like a truck racing downhill with no brakes because she's NEVER been cared about by anyone but B.O.B. and she's completely new to friendships and bonding with people... and in the mean time, Jesse immediately is "ride or die" with her because that's how he rolls... beautiful relationship dynamics between characters who influence each other for the better are just beautiful :')

A silly one here: Jesse enjoying the good life in Lead Rose. That description of him looking like a marshmallow in the CHAISE LOUNGEEEEE!!! (the one he references in their in-game interactions *CRYING SO MANY TEARS*), was just too cute to bear x'D Ashe just jumping back into work mode... while he was just thrilled to be a marshmallow in a towel xD

... So, um, I went overboard because I love this book a little too much for my own good :> what can I say? When things I love are good, I go wild xD There's probably more scenes I loved, but these... thirteen? XD are the ones that came to mind.

I think one of my favorite things now is reexamining Reunion with all this extra context in mind. The first time I watched that cinematic I, of course, fell in love with these two outlaws because how could I not? But while subsequent rewatches revealed a lot of things I didn't pay enough attention to the first time around, the book has done even more than I could imagine possible for a short that was already as shippy as could be xD

Ooookay so, shippy ramblings about Reunion, coming up! (simply because I have to put these down SOMEWHERE XD and your ask was a good idea for that, anon!)

First off, Jesse very much staged the whole rodeo in Reunion. He sent the tip to Ashe, he wanted Echo's crate specifically. He thought they could work together, basically, despite knowing it was entirely possible that those hopes wouldn't pay off. This train, according to the wikia, was a government train, so Jesse is very much telling Ashe to give a finger to the government for all he cares, all he wants is one (1) crate.

Ergo, Jesse, for all his "nice guy bountyhunter" deal, doesn't disapprove of Deadlock's actions. If anything, he counts on them to be exactly what he needs in order to get what he wants. He practically trusts Ashe to pull off the train heist disaster perfectly and only steps up when it's time to collect Echo.

Then the wacky shoot-out happens, it's veeeery charged (the UST is so thick, I swear...), and Jesse wins. He ties up Ashe, floats her off on the payload with the rest of the gang, and he sets Echo free. He's helping her out very nicely and everything, but the context in question is... he received the recall notification thingy XD Winston called him back to Overwatch, and Jesse...

... Jesse doesn't want to go back.

Jesse says "they want me", and the displeased tone of his voice, paired with the look on his face when he says that line, speak for themselves.

That, in my humble opinion, isn't the sequence of expressions you'd expect from someone who intends to return to the group where he thrived, had the time of his life and found his true calling. To me, he actually looks irritated about the recall (the sequence of expressions during that line is much better when you watch the full thing x'D), as though he REALLY doesn't want to return. He's not against Overwatch, I'm not quite saying that, otherwise he wouldn't have set Echo free and told her to go back at all... but this isn't remorse. It's not "Oh, I'm not good enough for Overwatch anymore". Nope... this is "My time with them is over and I don't plan on going back unless I have no choice", as far as I can tell.

If OW2 does bring him back into the fold and he's a perfectly chill and happy guy about it, I'll seriously be surprised. I mean, he could have set Echo free and, once his business is over, returned to Overwatch with her, he could have been in the Paris cinematic if he'd done that...

But he's not there.

Which outright says he didn't do that :> oops.

Basically, I think Jesse's reaction in Retribution (where he's markedly the most morally correct one of the bunch, and he's the former outlaw :'D) tells you his displeasure with Overwatch ran very, very deep. And someone can very easily say he felt the same way about Deadlock and that's why he left them for Overwatch... but that's conjecture. His displeasure with Blackwatch (and, in consequence, Overwatch), however, is FACT. And the previous conjecture falls flat pretty quickly considering he's perfectly fine with Ashe's train heist, even sets it up himself, from what the story suggests, so... how ~appalled~ was he over her choices and actions? Not appalled at all, if you ask me, and after you read Deadlock Rebels, you actually understand why: Jesse trusts Ashe.

From the first moment she enters the same prison block he's in, he's drawn to her. He wants to impress her, he absolutely enjoys her company and making her laugh (just as much as she enjoyed laughing at his wacky stories), and he's plain thrilled that she comes back for him when she does. Ashe manages the gang with inexperience but she's always willing to improve, and you see Jesse sticking with her through thick and thin, supporting her at the best and worst times alike, always putting his faith on her and constantly watching out for her (he protected and shielded her from attacks with his own body sooooo many times *sobs*). Ashe starts out intending to keep most profits for herself, and Jesse doesn't care much at first... but then she starts to share profit equally between their team. She works on her own bike herself, her own ride, and she plans and solves problems as best she can, to a point of even going overboard with planning too much. She's wild, reckless and takes insane risks... and this guy loves every second of it. The matter of morality regarding the actions of a criminal gang is, of course, something to think about... but as far as the book goes, Ashe mainly targets her own family, their specific brand of bullshit, and in the process she ends up helping lots of people and even saving lives that might not have been saved otherwise. I'm not going to put my hand on the fire here and say Deadlock never ever did anything absolutely wrong to people who didn't deserve it... but for a criminal gang? They're honestly the most wholesome one the OW team could have come up with, if you ask me.

So where you see Jesse is very much antagonistic with Reaper/Reyes, where he loses his temper with the guy's choices, he doesn't ever do that with Ashe. Overwatch ARE supposed to be the good guys... so how weird that Jesse McCree, reformed outlaw, ends up so disappointed with these guys when he was actually thrilled with Ashe's managing of their gang, as far as we saw. So much so that, when it came down to it, Jesse McCree, 20 years later, still counts on Ashe to give him a hand (without her full awareness) with a little operation to help out an old friend of his. Also worth pointing out: he doesn't want to fight at all, while Ashe, of course, does. Deadlock for life, is what Jesse said... and he's not Deadlock anymore, hasn't been for who knows how long. Worse yet... his tattooed arm is gone. It's like all his ties to Deadlock have been severed.

And even so, he came to Ashe and hoped she wouldn't want a shootout with him. Even when he knows she might be beyond unforgiving because of the betrayal (he has seen directly how outraged she was about a certain someone betraying her in the book...), Jesse goes back anyway and hopes it won't come to this.

THE IMPLICATIONS, MAN!!!

Carrying on: Echo is surprised that Jesse shows no intentions of going back to Overwatch. She asks him what he's going to do... and what does Jesse say?

He puts his cowboy hat back on (the symbolism in this short, I swear...), and when she asks him what he's going to do, he tells her "I've got some business to attend to."

THE MUSIC PICKS UP.

AND THEN HE CLIMBS ON THE BIKE HE BUILT WITH ASHE.

YOU GET A DELIBERATE CLOSE-UP TO THE KEYCHAIN.

THEN THE CAMERA PANS UP TO FOCUS ON THE PICTURE, TORN AND TAPED BACK TOGETHER, THAT ASHE CARRIES ON THIS BIKE, A BIKE WHICH, LET'S BE REAL, IS BASICALLY A MCASHE BABY CHOPPER/HOVERBIKE HYBRID, AND AS SHE PUTS IT LATER, IS...

HER

BIKE!!!

When Jesse says he has business to attend to, he could pick up any bike he wants (since it'd stand to reason that the other guys Ashe came in with would have bikes of their own). He could escape on horseback for all we know xD so there are lots of options... but no. He takes HERS. Right after saying he has "business to attend to".

Look, I could be wrong. I could be dead wrong. I can absolutely be digging around and going INSANE because nothing I ship EVER gets this much content.

But we literally get a guy saying he has "business" to take care of, and the cinematic focuses exclusively on elements that, even BEFORE Deadlock Rebels, all point towards Ashe?! You could easily say that taking her bike is just the final nail on the coffin, his last trolling idea to mess with his one true love... but that picture is right there. That picture, with them in their youth. The picture, btw, was bigger than just them: B.O.B.'s hand is there. The top of the picture is uneven, suggesting Ashe probably tore it to shreds in a fit of rage... and then specifically put together THEIR PART. And then she taped that to her bike's dashboard. Meaning, she carries the goddamn memory of Jesse with her EVERYWHERE SHE GOES. And she does it WILLINGLY.

Which, in turn, answers why Jesse expects MAYBE Ashe wouldn't go full-on hostile when they meet: this trolling cowboy knows exactly what he means to Ashe. He's not surprised when he sees that picture on the bike. He doesn't toss it away, which he could have, if he were saying "we are history now, forget it gurl" (and let's be honest, what a dick move that would have been @_@), he doesn't flinch after noticing and then goes "yeah, no, I'm picking another bike".

NOPE. The familiarity with which they talk, the way he hopes she'll just let him walk away, the fact that she DIDN'T change the keychain and bike in all those years and he's not even SURPRISED...

Jesse knows how much she loves him, point-blank. He's completely aware of it... and he's very much okay with it.

So much so... that I'm something of a 90% sure that the business he intends to deal with is ASHE HERSELF.

And no, I don't mean he's going to go on another shootout with her... I mean, evidently, that Jesse wants to come home. That he's tried the life of Overwatch, and he's decided to leave it behind. He's turned bountyhunter now, vigilante, pretty much... but he comes back to Ashe all the same. He's come back for the first time in who knows how long (going by Ashe's expressions and sarcasm with the "you promised you'd write" line, it miiiiiiight be they haven't seen each other since he got recruited into Blackwatch), and he expected a peaceful encounter, no less.

A good question to ask here is... what did Jesse hope would happen, if the encounter HAD been peaceful? He would've released Echo, sent her away to her business, and stayed behind anyway because he had business to deal with. Which business? :'D why... the business that would've been standing right in front of him.

There's no other, logical reason why this cinematic would put Ashe and McCree's picture into focus right when McCree says what he does to Echo. There's no other reasonable choice why McCree would turn his back on Overwatch quite so firmly. We know he had two important ties in his life: Overwatch and Deadlock. And Overwatch stole him away from Deadlock for a VERY long time. Well over half the time Deadlock has been in operations, as far as I can tell. He picked Overwatch over Deadlock once before... and now, it seems he's picking Deadlock over Overwatch instead :')

The follow-up short, Roadtrip, doesn't do anything to change my mind. The trolling jerk, Jesse McCree, hovers past Ashe's payload, where she's just... complaining, as she hovers xD going by what I know of the game and that map, the payload may just be en route to the gang's hideout, so that, I'd say, could explain why she hasn't climbed off it or escaped in any way (which she reasonably would have, if Jesse was trying to, I don't know, send her and her people to the authorities).

My point here is, however, that Jesse is headed the same way the payload is. If his destination is the same one, he'll beat it there for sure. Maybe, yes, he'll go away and drive well past the hideout... but maybe that's exactly where he intended to go.

Maybe, in the end, Reunion is about a man who's finally coming home :D

In addition, goes without saying, Ashe's rant about how everyone falls to pieces over Jesse showing his "stupid mug" (uh-huh, stupid, ANGELIC mug, we know what you really think, girl xD) ends with her saying she should have "put a bullet in him the minute he showed up".

Which begs the question of why didn't she.

Then, of course, she says she hates McCree when he drives past her while listening to some really ridiculous honky-tonky-sounding music x'D I cannot even help but imagine him deliberately picking that radio station or whatever it was just to annoy Ashe when he drove beside her, and so that she can get extra pissed when she retrieves her beloved bike, turns on the music and it's just more honky-tonky stuff x'D but anyway, the thing is she shouts after him, tells him that's her bike and says she hates him. B.O.B. wordlessly speaks for us McAshe shippers by giving Ashe the most "sure, Jan" side-eye in the history of side-eyes, and Ashe notices and is outraged enough to knock B.O.B.'s little hat right off his head again.

Again... this is renowned outlaw Elizabeth Caledonia "Calamity" Ashe, sitting on a payload, groaning about the guy she once very much had feelings for (and that doesn't even begin to cut it, if you ask me x'D) and for whom she tooooootally doesn't anymore, that picture on her bike doesn't MEAN that, OBVIOUSLYYYY!!, and so, she sits up, complains and doesn't do much of anything to get out of her current situation, right? :>

So, summing up my current understanding of EVERYTHING, thanks to Deadlock Rebels and my obsessive rewatches of Reunion + Roadtrip:

Jesse deliberately sought out Ashe so she would indirectly, unknowingly, help him set Echo free from the government's clutches.

Jesse hoped for a peaceful encounter despite knowing he might not get one.

Jesse has no intentions of returning to Overwatch but was willing to perform one final act of service for them by releasing Echo so she'd go give Winston and co. a hand.

Jesse is NOT surprised to see that Ashe: 1. Didn't change bikes at some point in the twenty years since they built it. 2. Didn't swap the ignition key for a button, the way she says she thought to do it in the novel until he gives her the keychain. 3. KEPT THE POETIC AF KEYCHAIN, despite resenting Jesse for his betrayal. 4. KEEPS A PICTURE OF THEM IN THEIR YOUNGER YEARS PASTED ON HER BIKE'S DASHBOARD.

Jesse claims he has business to deal with: he doesn't clarify said business verbally, but every shot after he says those words focuses on elements related to Ashe... and then, along with the novel's context, it's elements related to their BOND. Everything in that shot, EVERYTHING, is connected to the two of them. Elements that weren't shown before or during their shootout, and that are only introduced in that final moment when McCree is off to deal with his "business".

Ashe doesn't climb off the payload or stops it (which, going by how McCree simply pressed a button, and Ashe isn't immobilized in the least, she easily could have done it too if she had wanted to). Suggesting that, wherever the payload is heading, it isn't anywhere dangerous for Ashe and her crew, ergo, she is 100% sure McCree isn't trying to screw her over by turning her in to the authorities or so (or, at worst, she's completely confident that, even if he is going to do this, she'll be able to get out of it easily).

Jesse drives in the same direction the payload is headed. Another hint that suggests he might intend to head to the Deadlock hideout and that, whatever business he has left to deal with, it involves them.

If his intent ISN'T to go to the hideout... Jesse is still guaranteeing that Ashe will come after him by stealing her bike, the 18th birthday gift he gave her, and the picture she keeps of them. That he takes that very bike practically serves as painting a target on his back for her to hunt down, and he KNOWS IT.

In short: Jesse will have plenty of business with the Deadlock Gang in his future, and going by how pleased he seems to be when riding the bike, he's perfectly happy to handle that business on his terms, whenever he wants to handle it.

Extra tidbit: there's nothing in Deadlock Rebels about Jesse's smoking habit, something he definitely did pick up at some point while in the gang because, hahaha, he IS smoking in the picture Ashe keeps of him :> Which makes me wonder why, of all pictures Ashe chooses to keep on her bike's dashboard, she picks one where he's smoking.

Then, it makes me wonder about the fact that Jesse deliberately starts smoking when he's standing right in front of her (and then he winks at her!). He tosses that cigar after things get kind of dangerous for him because B.O.B. does something, and then... then he goes back to smoking.

RIGHT WHEN HE'S CLIMBING ON THE BIKE.

Like... seriously...

*unintelligible fangirl screaming*

I could be looking too deeply into this. I know I could be. Maybe Blizzard just wants me to go CRAZY with little symbolism and hints charged with SO MUCH MEANING that maybe don't have as much meaning as I thought it did...

... But man, I've sailed into the depths of the shippiest oceans for many ships that have gotten actual breadcrumbs from canon. I've gone wild over ships that have zero opportunity to become a thing in canon continuity. I've written a nearly 3M words story based on a ship that is just UNEXPLORED AMAZING POTENTIAL and ngl, I love exploring it myself, so I don't even begrudge canon that much for not giving it to me anymore.

But the fact is, no ship in OW, as far as I've seen, has remotely as much content, hints and strong ties as McAshe does -- at least, no ships between heroes. We had a cinematic that was CHARGED with significance, with little gestures, with even the smallest facial expressions that carried soooo much more meaning than whole episodes or even seasons in TV shows. And then? We got a novel. A full novel depicting their origins and exploring their dynamics, how tight their friendship was, and how some strong feelings were certainly brewing there, even if neither one was ready to act on them yet (as far as we saw...).

Finally... I'll say I did start working on a Sokkla Western AU ages ago because the idea I had for one was pretty amusing. Then Reunion dropped, and I said "Why would I need to finish that story anymore when the Sokkla Western AU is RIGHT HERE?!"

And that's it, I will stop rambling now because this got insanely long x'D but thank you very very much for giving me this chance to go WILD on everything I can see, within all those canon hints, with these two *-*