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ghost-proofbaby · 2 years ago

Note

Director's Commentary for Shire please

I need clarification because you've already mentioned you always had the intention of writing a "fix it fic". Did you plan Mordor before Shire? Or did you just write Shire around the concept of Mordor? Did you leave any breadcrumbs that weren't picked up by readers? I need an itemized list, ma'am 👀

of course, love! so, short answer - no. mordor was not properly planned before shire but... long answer? yes.

i left a ton of clues, actually! they were very heavy in the set up, because instead of dropping obvious plot clues (which i definitely did), i mostly focused on making it clear these characters were 'built' to specifically fall into this situation of season 4. all the relationships, all the small moments, all the little details - they all add up to make gasoline for vecna's fire so to speak. this is probably more than you wanted, so i apologize, but it's fun because i kept a vague list for myself and this one has more details. <3 so yeah sorry this is stupid long and i got carried away but thank you for the question!!! shire is my baby and i'm always willing to give lame ass director's commentary

the name. i was stuck on the name until i realized i could break that quote into two story titles!! i think i specifically said that on tik tok, too. like before shire even broke 100 hits, i was over there going "👀 this is a secret tool i will use later"

shire started with an altered but still canon scene (dustin's return at scoops)! as well as alluded to the fact that the upside down existed because of steve changing! to show that i was following canon <3

in chapter 2, there's also a hint of something that will be happening in mordor. as i said, mordor wasn't properly planned, but i had an idea of how it would go down haha. actually, there two references? but one is unintentional so go figure.

chapter 3 once more referenced that the upside down was canon! starcourt still burned down, the events of season 3 occured, but willow was simply not involved... yet. obviously, robin involved her by informing her of what really happened, and planted the knowledge/fear of the upside down in her.

chapter 4 shows a brief flash of willow putting someone else's comfort above her own - when she downplays her hair to her mom. it's a big part of her character for mordor, obviously lol. also robin shoos away her mother and says she'll take care of her, alluding to how when trouble happens in the show, parents aren't involved. to hint that if trouble arose, willow's mom would be absent.

also in chapter 4! steve doesn't slow down. willow is the first to notice the danger and him nearly hitting the deer. she notices danger before him - he's an action-first, think-later type of person. again, crucial character points for mordor. willow is literally the first to sense vecna technically speaking. and speaking of steve, notice he doesn't want willow involved in the upside down in this chapter and is trying to scope out just how much robin involved her. when it comes to the russians, he was an open book. when it came to the upside down, he's ready to shut it all down and keep her in the dark. <3

7.. chapter 5 crucial character point - where as we established that willow puts others needs above her own, eddie is the first to put her needs over his (not getting the cigarette near her, the jacket, etc.)

8. chapter 7 - eddie refers to willow as multiple magic user names from D&D. she's the one later linked to the freaky wizard villain aha

9. their book choices. willow chose little women, which furthers solidifies the way she grew up so fast, the way she tries to fill a stereotypical role as a woman not only in society but her family (aka with her mother after parker passes. also, it was alluding to the fact that she's lost a sibling!) eddie's is about adventure, about being thrust into a journey. they were choices i felt fit who they were as characters best, alluded to the fic namesake, and also serve as a way to criticize how they approach responsibility. willow takes it with heavy shoulders - eddie is simply thrust into it. willow's fate has long been sealed, but eddie's was an ever changing opportunity, if that makes sense. one is doomed by the narrative not just from society, but by her past. the other isn't doomed yet. he still has a chance to escape it all, while willow is already involved with the upside down due to robin. i sound like a crazy person now haha. also when just used in shire, it shows that willow and steve won't be together but uh... that's an entirely different list, isn't it? also their conversation about it in 25. <3

10. also worth mentioning how often it is brought up that willow is a bad liar, but we see her capable of lying when it comes to bigger picture things (keeping the fake dating realistic, etc.). she does know how to keep a secret.

11. the difference in how steve and eddie treats willow when dropping her off. it was, one, to illustrate which one she would end up with (again, different list). but also how one is far more individually protective over her :-) that'll come into play later. simply put - steve has faith that willow can handle herself, and eddie trusts her but also chooses to still take precautions (from a distance or otherwise!)

12. eddie progressively makes willow more reckless. in the beginning of shire, she's very anal about her schedule and such. by the end of the story, when their first date is going wrong, she's better able to handle it. eddie, on the other hand, struggles with losing control. they change each other wildly. in shire's context, that's for the better. in mordor... it'll be an issue.

13. she goes from wanting no involvement in d&d, to being involved for eddie (first game - sternly won't play. by the end of the story, she is willing to help plan a campaign. specifically, she helps plan VECNA'S CULT. and vecna's return is her idea). another change, another demonstration of the subtle lengths you'll go for the one you love, until it's no longer subtle situations.

14. willow also criticizes the way the game involves making careful decisions through dice rolling! she's more aligned with steve's thought process of acting first, worrying about consequences later, especially when it comes to herself. it shows that underneath it all, although they switch roles from planner and the one who goes with the flow, those values were always there under the surface. which comes into play in mordor and the vecna situation!

15. chapter 16 - the first demonstration of willow being eddie's protector.

16. also chapter 16 - it's established that eddie is dustin's protector, which plays into his canon demise (in my opinion, at least!). and then chapter 17 - solidification of willow being eddie's protector as she physically will put herself between him and danger before dragging him away from it. also, eddie being dustin's protector again. haha. also, eddie acknowledging it. :-)

17. "I mean, you get this look when your friends get hurt - like you’d burn the world down for them."

18. "She would burn the world down for him - she’d drag Jason to hell and back herself if it meant the boy in front of her knew a moment of peace."

19. the use of second hand news being the first song they listen to together from rumors rather than her favorite song (the chain), most specifically the line that is quoted - When times go bad, when times go rough, won't you lay me down in tall grass and let me do my stuff?

20. “Ah, ah. Careful doll, or you’ll be number four.” - no comment on this one. but uh. major.

21. the ENTIRE ordeal with freddy krueger and nightmare on elm street. all of it. major breadcrumb.

22. “You’re distracted. What are you gonna do one day when there’s a freaky ghost invading our dreams and trying to kill us, but you didn’t watch the movie with me so you have no clue what to do to save us?”

23. the whole parker situation. obviously, i pulled real life inspo, but i always knew i was going to traumatize willow (as audrey put it). parker's death shapes who she is a person very fundamentally, and gives vecna an in for her mind. the thing is, i purposefully made it something that was pretty far back in the past, but still affected her deeply. she's had time to heal, but she didn't. there's so much to say about this little tid bit but it's rough, and sensitive to talk about.

24. willow’s favorite song being revealed to eddie. i really expected more people to catch that haha

25. willow having to choose between eddie and steve during their fight with jason.

26. willow’s d&d character has major clues! Spent a long time combing over that one

and then obviously, her headaches, her nightmares, the upside down visions, etc. that i brought back for the final chapters. like i said, so much of it was fit into the beginning of the story. i needed to set it up for mordor, but a lot of shire is just a love story. my entire point for shire was solely mordor - it was tell a nice love story that comforted me through a lot of rough times. i'm just lucky i got to have my cake and eat it too i guess lol <3

so i guess in a way, when you asked me if i wrote shire around the concept of mordor, the answer there is also no! i wanted shire to be able to exist without mordor, as well.

anyways. much love. brevity ain't the wit of this soul.

#thank u ily #director's commentary #shire #i didn't need to go into so much detail but i DID #i do not know how to shut up #no one perceive this #this list is actually between me and god #and i'm sure i missed some of my references but i got tireeeddd #i'm just full of foreshadowing

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erosofthepen · 4 years ago

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Hello! I hope you're doing well, happy holidays! Thanks for doing those really self-indulgent Dark Academia asks for me, I really appreciate it! I was wondering if you'd be willing to do a similar Imagine about which Lotr and The Hobbit Characters would most enjoy having a Cottagecore s/o. I really like Aesthetics, so I thought this idea might go well with the Academia one. Thanks so much, I hope I'm not bothering you with all these Aesthetic-themed Asks. Best wishes!

Happy Holidays! It’s never a bother to do these, I enjoy them immensely! It’s actually quite funny that you asked this today, because I spent maybe two hours watching cottagecore tiktok compilations on youtube today, so i’m most definitely in the mood for this! I hope you enjoy!

Lotr:

~Samwise

This one is a no brainer. Of course this Hobbit would absolutely love a Cottagecore s/o! He is a cottage core icon. Expect early mornings out in the garden, tending to the flowers and vegetables. He would probably teach you the different names and meanings behind all the flowers, and you can bet that he would then place said flowers behind your ear, kissing your cheek in the process. Such a sweet Hobbit. Afternoons would be spent baking all sorts of breads and pastries and cookies, and probably getting flour everywhere too! After dinner, you both would sit in gardens and sip tea or read to one another (Sam is very proud that he is learned in his letters). He would love everything about a cottage core s/o!

~Legolas

Legolas, in my opinion, is a very gentle elf, despite being able to kick-ass. He loves how nature-centered his s/o is, and adores everything about them. He would totally be down to flower pick any time of the day, and would most definitely end up weaving them into their hair, singing elvish melodies all the while. And given that elves are so good with animals, he might even attract some little bunnies or deer! For clothing, he would commission fabrics from the shire to Mirkwood for his s/o to ensure cottage core authenticity. Because everyone knows that the Shire is where cottage core was born. Legolas with a cottagecore s/o would make for a very soft couple.

~Faramir

The best man in Middle Earth, Faramir is perfect with any type of s/o. He’s incredibly sweet with a cottage core s/o, always making sure fresh flowers are delivered to them every morning. He is always looking for books or poems that give off cottage core vibes in the Gondor libraries, and when he finds one, he delivers it alongside a warm cup of tea. If you fall asleep reading, Faramir might bookmark your place with flowers, so when you open it up the next day, you are greeted with some lovely, fresh-pressed flowers. In return, his s/o would bake for him, and whether it’s sourdough or muffins, Faramir will savor every bite.

The Hobbit:

~Bilbo Baggins

Again, this is a no brainer. Bilbo is ✨soft✨, and will forever enjoy his books, his garden, and his cup of tea. However, he enjoys them better when his cottage core s/o is around. Both his s/o and him would bake nearly everyday, and would totally make and store jam for whatever fruit or berry is in season. Berry picking and mushroom foraging are daily hobbies, and picnics in the garden happen at least once a week. Bilbo is also a fashion expert, and will forever help his s/o with their outfits, and would probably like coordinating the colors to compliment each other. That’s just what he does.

~Fili

Ah, my favorite little lion dwarrow, who i’m pretty sure everyone in the fandom would die for. Fili is naturally very protective, so him having a soft and sweet cottage core s/o would triple his protective instinct. He’s very worried about his s/o going off on their own, so he always comes along for walks in the meadow or foraging in the woods. During picnics and such, he would find different flowers and ferns and braid them into his s/o’s hair, probably while they read him stories and/or facts about nature. Gifts are a big part in dwarrow culture, so expect plenty of pretty jewelry and such that matches with his s/o’s outfits and hairstyles. He would also probably make his s/o a special knife for foraging that is decorated with dwarrow runes and flower designs.

~Bofur

Bofur would absolutely love a cottage core s/o, and would love nothing more than living a quiet life with them in the forrest. Again, with dwarrow, there’s always going to be gifts involved, and I believe Bofur would make his s/o lots of little wood figures and carvings, bring pretty crystals or gems from the mines, and perhaps write a few songs in his s/o’s name. He’d love helping out with baking/cooking (though, he says he could never match his s/o’s skill when it comes to the kitchen), and there will certainly be times when Bofur steals all the sweets before they were meant to be eaten. He’s sneaky like that. I imagine while his s/o tends to the garden, he’d be off gathering/chopping wood for the fire. The dynamic of Bofur with a cottage core s/o is very sweet.

~Beorn

Beorn, the man, or bear, depending on his mood. We all already know that his Halls are the cottage core dream, complete with a humongous garden, giant bumblebee hives, and all sorts of animals, so it makes sense that this skin changer would be attracted to a cottage core s/o. They would spend much of the time storing honey, taking care of the bees, and making candles out of beeswax. There would be a great deal of woodworking (I mean, the interior of his house is practically all carved with norse-inspired designs), and I believe reading by the fire after a hard days work would be common. Baking would occur often, as well as playing chess with his giant chess set (I want it sooooo bad). He would be incredibly protective over his s/o (as his entire race was killed off), and would be wary of them going out alone. When he cannot come along, he sends one of his dogs with his s/o (in the books, his dogs were so smart that they could talk).

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daeronteaches · 4 years ago

Text

Articles in Sindarin

Indefinite articles in English are a and an, the definite article is the. All of the examples are taken from official writings by Tolkien, including Lord of the Rings, the Silmarillion, and other writings.

There are no indefinite articles in Sindarin. So any word without an article is indefinite by default. Meaning that ‘edhel’ by itself means both elf and an elf.

Definite articles in Sindarin are i for singular words, and in for plural.

So for example:

aran: a king

i aran: the king

in erain: the kings

Genitival article, Sindarin often expresses genitival articles by word order alone. As seen in:

Ennyn Durin: Doors (of) Durin

Aran Moria: Lord (of) Moria

If the second word is a common noun and not a name, the article en (=of the) is used. As seen in the following examples:

Haudh-en-Elleth: Mound of the Elf-maid

Cabed-en-Aras: Leap of the deer

Methed-en-Glad: End of the Woods

orthad en Êl: Rising of the Star

Conin en Annun: princes of the West

Sometimes this genitival article is shortened to e:

Narn e Dinúviel: Tale of the Nightingale

It is usual for the genitival article to get replaced by ‘in’ in plural. Sometimes i also gets used instead of en, but this is uncommon. En can be used for the plural too, though this use is seen infrequently.

Condir i Drann: Mayor of the Shire

Annon-in-Gelydh: Gate (of) the Noldor

Aerlinn-in-Edhil: Hymn (of) the Elves

Bar-en-Nibin-Noeg: Home of the Petty-dwarves

Haudh-en-Ndengin: Hill of the Slain

Ps. Please keep in mind the lenition with i and the nasal mutation with in.

Pps. The hyphens are unnecessary, Tolkien sometimes connects the Sindarin articles with a hyphen or a dot. I’ve also used hyphens, but this isn’t a rule.

#sindarin #articles

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sweets-fanfics · 4 years ago

Text

Retribution 2

Title: Tumbleweed

Wordcount: 4174

Warning: violence, slow burn

Tags: *crickets*

AN: I love my OC you can’t stop me.

)___________(

I shot up in my cot covered in sweat. The breeze flowing across the Heartlands where the camp was set up felt cool and instantly began to calm me. I ran my fingers through my hair trying to forget the nightmare I had just had of that night. The sun hadn’t risen yet but it had to at least be right before sunrise.

Birds chirped in the trees nearby. I glanced over my should through the planks of my camp to look at the overflow our camp was situated by. I took a long sigh as I regained composure and figured I wouldn’t be getting much sleep anymore and got up for the day.

Cripps who never seemed to sleep already had coffee brewing by the fire inviting me to take a cup for myself. He talks a lot, but not in the mornings. Cripps simply smiles and goes about his business.

I smile at Buster as he walks out from his spot under the wagon and stretches before walking up to me. “Buenos Días, mi amor.” I hum to him softly while scratching his favorite spot on the top of his head. The American foxhound bounced back and forth as is rubbed his head. He let out a small bark when he had his fill and went to go do whatever it is he does.

After enjoying my coffee the sun starts to peek over the hills that surround this valley. I looked around seeing that my campmates have not come back yet. I see movement in one of the tents and Hair climbs out and stretches.

“When did you get back...?” I blank again on her name but don’t want to be rude.

She sighs, “Yakira.”

“I was just about to say that.”

“Uh-huh. I got back maybe an hour ago. I couldn’t sleep.”

“You didn’t bring the other two?”

Yakira shrugs, “They were gone.”

I groan and start to grab my bag. “Well now I gotta go look for two middle-aged men,” I think for a moment, “Mr. B will be fine I just need to find Irish before he picks a fight. Stay in camp in case Irish comes. If he does just send Buster to get me.” She nods and goes to get coffee as I climb on to Willa and take off for Valentine.

The ride through the Heartlands is always beautiful in the morning. Pronghorn and Deer run past when I spook them from being to close. Buffalo glance as I ride past but stand their ground. Even the rabbits and squirrels seemed up an awake. I ride into the dusty town of Valentine in search of a certain Irishmans horse. I see the horse hitched at the saloon.

I stop and hitch Willa next to the big Shire, Irish unfortunately named “Riggy Tony” after his strange obsession with Italian food. He had once met a man from Italy who showed him this kind of food and now he names everything after an Italian dish. But seeing as I’m still teaching him to write he spells it all phonetically.

I give Riggy a pet as I step into the saloon and see the mess before me. The entire saloon is a mess. Chairs are thrown and broken. The mirror behind the bar is shattered. The bartender looks up from where he’s sweeping and his face gets red. “Oh no. No no no, You’re guy did enough mess.”

“What happened?”

“The Irish guy started beating some guys up-”

Before he can finish there’s a groan from upstairs and a body slams into the ground at my feet. “Oi, you think you could win a fight against me?”

I let out a long sigh. “Irish, we can’t keep doin’ this in every town.”

Irish appears over the banister directly above me and gives me a giant smile. “Josie!” He pulls back and begins his long journey to the stairs. His face is bright red from the alcohol and he’s barely walking and more like limping as he goes. “This wee lass in my boss!” He points to me and smiles at the bartender who is not impressed. “This little girl here is going to take down the O’Driscols with me and I’ll…” He stops to burp, “I will help her kill that damn Mexican gang.”

“Dear god, Irish, let’s go. We have ruined this man’s building enough.” I start to move him towards the door when I hear a loud punch sound and suddenly the overweight Irish man falls back trapping me under him. “What the fuck?” I somehow get myself up and see a giant angry man standing above me with a red face.

“Who the fuck are you?” He asks me.

“I feel I should ask that you jackass.”

“This low life tried to pickpocket me last night.”

“I’m sure he was probably going for your beer.” I try to calm him down before patting Irish on his forehead to wake him up.

“If he gets up again I’ll kill him.”

“For… pickpocketing?”

“He’s a garbage theif. You probably are too, you dirty greaser.” The insult wasn’t anything new. I’d been called it so many times before. Especially when I still ran with the Del Lobo. And wearing my mother’s white and blue blanket poncho across my shoulders probably didn’t help either.

I slowly stood up and dusted off my pants before calmly looking at the asshole and socking him so hard in the face, that he falls out of the saloon, down the two steps and into the dirt. Everyone near the saloon stops and walks over to see the commotion. And since the saloon is in the middle of town I’m pretty sure all of Valentine was about to see this man get his ass handed to him by a young girl.

“You dumb bitch.” He grumbles as he begins to get up and rub his nose. “You broke my nose.”

“Imma bout to break more you son of a bitch.” I threaten as he stands up and towers over me.

“Kick his arse.” Irish slurs from somewhere behind me. I roll my shoulders back and try to hold myself up more like I will kick this guys ass. I mean… I probably could.

He swings towards me and I duck and punch his jaw making the crowd cringe. A few more punches and I start to realize he might not hit me. Admittedly I get a bit cocky and punch him in the gut before turning and smiling at the crowd. As I spin around and wave I spot a familiar smirk amongst the crowd that distracts me long enough for the guy to grab my arm.

“Uh oh,” I mumble as the man turns me to face him.

“Got too cocky didn’t ya.”

“I mean… yeah, I’ll admit it.”

Just as he raises his fist another hits him knocking him out. I turn around to see Irish, still drunk, pat my shoulder before passing out. “Irish not again!” I groan and try to catch him only to have him slip and fall in the dirt.

The crowd begins to disperse as I struggle to wake Irish up. “Mrs. Espinosa?” I look to my left and see Arthur giving me a sympathetic smile. “You seem to need some assistance.”

“I don’t….” I look at Irish, snoring on the ground. “Yeah. Just to get him on the horse.”

Arthur smiles and grabs Irish’s shoulders while I grab his feet. “Your gang seems to have a lot of fun getting into trouble.”

“I didn’t think he’d get drunk on his way back from getting drunk.” I struggle to say as we put him on the back of Willa. She wines a bit but I give her a sugar cube and calms down. “What are you doing so far North?”

Arthur reaches into his bag and hands me a piece of folded up paper. “From Hosea, says you would know what it is.”

“You didn’t peek did you?” I give him a suspicious look as I unfold the paper and see the name of the marshal he had talked about. And a list of towns he frequents.

Arthur holds his hands up, “Ain’t my business.” I smile and put the paper in my bag. “However,” He starts, “If it’s about revenge… I don’t think it’s the best idea.”

“What do you know?” I say a bit too bitterly and instantly regret it. “Sorry, Mr. Morgan.”

“Don’t be. You’ve gone through a lot last year. It’s okay to be angry, but revenge is past anger.” He awkwardly pats my shoulder but I can tell it’s an attempt at comforting.

“I’ll do what I must, Mr. Morgan. But I’ll think about your words. Tell Mr. Matthews thank you for me.” I climb onto Willa.

“You gonna need help with him?”

“Nah, I got help at camp. Hey, is Dutch sure about Micah?”

Arthur shrugs and scratches his chin, “You know I always agree with Dutch… But I don’t know about Micah. Why?”

“I kicked him from my gang after a week because he had an issue with my authority. But also because he would always come back with stuff for the camp that was suspicious. I didn’t like the idea he might be killing folk. Just keep an eye on him. Especially since you have Women and Jack in camp.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“Oh, also, I’ll be moving camp down near tall trees while I do a job. In case y'all need me to steal a score from ya again.” I wink jokingly as he rolls his eyes.

“Yeah, yeah.” He waves me off as I ride down the road and out of Valentine towards camp.

____________

As I stopped in camp Cripps sighed and tried to help with Irish. I stopped him and smiled. “I got this.”

I pushed Irish off of Willa making him fall into the mud from the overflow. Irish yelps and sits up looking around scared. “What the hell was that?”

“You dumbass. Cripps, grab me a bucket of water.”

“Uh… Josie?”

“You heard me.” Cripps sighs and walks away. Irish and I continue to stare each other down until he returns a minute later.

I take the bucket and pour all the water over Irish who cringes in disgust. “How dare you? I have been goin’ four weeks strong without baitin’...” He’s cut off from me chucking the bucket at him.

“Go wash and sober up. The camp is gonna move temporarily.”

Both Irish and Cripps look at me with a mixture of surprise and annoyance. “Are you wanted?” Cripps asks.

“No. I have some work to do down in New Austin and I’d rather bring you all with me. We aren’t doing anything right now anyway.” I think for a moment, “We can set up near that big ranch down there. Mc… something.”

Cripps sighs but starts getting camp taken down. Irish is still sitting with the bucket in his hands. “But.. that one new lady is gone..”

“Jen has been in the gang longer than you. And knowing her, she’ll find us.”

Irish grumbles on the floor a bit longer before getting up and going to his work to help us move.

____________

The move was easier than I had expected. Next thing I knew we were set up northeast of the big ranch. Irish and Yakira were a great help for once and with their help, we were able to be done by nightfall.

“I’m going to ride to Tumbleweed, see if I can find who I’m looking for.” I walk out of my tent in my white button-up tucked into me black tight pants and Pedro’s worn Gambler hat and brown leather coat with sheep wool on the collar. Sometimes I swear I can still smell his cologne.

“I would feel better if you take someone with you,” Cripps says, looking up from his work.

“I don’t really need those two to go. They are probably exhausted.”

“Well, take someone.”

I sigh and look around the camp. I see Jen’s Shire named Thena and smile, “I’ll take Jen.”

Jen peaks her head out from behind the wagon and frowns. “What?”

“Let’s go cause trouble.” I smile.

She thinks for a moment before sighing, “Fine.”

Cripps sighs, “At least I know she’ll have your back.”

We hopped on our horses and started for the small town in search of this Marshall. Jen is usually the quiet type. Despite no accent, she’s from France. Her Dark hair is always braided behind her back. She towers over me and like most of the gang is older than me. I wanna be tough like her one day. But I know I have a long way to go.

I met her right after I started my gang. It was just me and Cripps until one day when I was out somewhere alone. I had been searching for a certain elk to hunt for Cripps when A grizzly found me instead. I had thought I was going to be gutted right then and there but at the last moment there was a shot and the bear dropped on top of me.

When the bear was dragged off of me that’s when I met Jen. She didn’t say hi when she met me she immediately scolded me for not looking at my surroundings. I call her my best friend, but I’m pretty sure she’s just worried I’ll get myself killed. She’s been with the gang ever since. As I thought back to how we met I accidentally stared at her which got me a “The fuck you do now?”

I blinked and shook myself out of it. “Oh, sorry. I was thinking about the day we met.”

“Yes, the day you were almost killed by a bear.”

I chuckled, “Yeah, that.”

“It’s very strange to me that you were once married and a mother.”

“Well I’m still a mother, and my late husband and I were only married for maybe eleven months before he was killed. I know marrying at 17 probably isn’t the best idea in the world. But at the time it seemed right. We both wanted to get out of Del Lobo and we thought, why not together?” I looked down and petted Willa.

“I’m sorry if I made you sad.” I hear her mumble.

“You didn’t. It’s been almost two years. I’m 19 and very mature.”

Jen rolled her eyes. “No, I can guarantee you are still an immature, short, brat.”

We stopped our horses out said of Tumbleweed as I looked at her, “You just like insulting me sometimes.”

She shrugs and smirks at me hopping off of Thena. We both walk under the beating sun into the dusty town. There are about two clumps of small rectangle buildings and then the big saloon in the corner. A butcher stand is set up in the middle town where a butcher is chopping on a giant piece of meat. I walk up to him with some fake confidence and smile. “Hello sir, I’m looking for a Marshal Tom Davies?”

“I don’t know none of that. Might wanna ask the Sheriff.” He points his thumb behind him at a standalone building with the word ‘Jail’ written on it.

“Thank you, sir.” I smile and walk over with Jen behind me.

“You almost looked actually confident that time.” She jokes on the way.

“Har har.” I roll my eyes.

I open the door to the building and here a man yelling. “Please! You’ve got to help me.” The man begged.

“I can’t help you, mister. It’s way outta my jurisdiction. My job is to stop folks from getting shot on these streets, you know that.” The sheriff replies. I stop a moment in a happy shock of seeing that the sheriff isn’t a grumpy old white man.

“But… but she’s my wife.” The old man says again, “She’s my goddamn wife. They’ll do terrible things to her, you’ve got to help me.”

The sheriff eyes Jen and I and gestures to us, “Well maybe these two can help you.”

“Oh, sorry I’m just looking for…” I begin to say before I’m cut off.

“What can these two girls do?”

“They got guns and don’t have a badge so they can probably do more than me or you.” The sheriff jokes. “Besides, why not? I’m assuming they are bounty hunters.”

I glance at Jen before we both nod. “You’ll help?” The old man asks. “I’ll pay… handsomely.”

“Uh… sure, why not.” I give in.

“Thank you. Allison is a wonderful girl. Quite a bit younger than me, you’ll see. But better that way for wives I’ve found.” Jen and I both look at him unimpressed. “Anyway, outlaws took her I believe. Towards that way.” He points out the door as he opens it.

“Alright, we’ll go have a look. But first… Sheriff..”

“Freeman.” SHeriff Freeman answers.

“Yes, I’m looking for a Marshal Tom Davies?”

“He is in another town on business. He usually comes threw town tomorrow. But for now, help this man out.”

__________

“I hope that man’s wife isn’t as creepy as he was,” I say to Jen as we near a tiny pueblo styled ranch. “There are so many men here for one girl.”

We hop off our horses and walk up to the guard. “Get outta here!” He yells.

“You guys kidnap a girl named Allison?”

The reply I got was a shotgun fired in the direction of my head. Only Jen pulled me out of the way and shot him with her pistol. Probably proving my theory of why she sticks around. I pull out my repeater and get to work while Jen uses both her pistols. We shoot our way through at least 30 men before we are at the doors to the small farmhouse.

“Hello? Is someone kidnapped in here?” I say as I open the door with my sawed-off out.

“He sent you didn’t he? He sent you. Well, I’m not going back to him. I can’t” The blond lady says as she hides behind a man with orange hair the goes to his shoulders with matching orange facial hair.

“We’re in love.” He says to us as he holds a hand up. “Leave us be. I’ll give you all we have. It ain’t much but it’s somethin’.” He walks forward and I’m able to see his kind face better and his blue eyes begging Jen and me. “Help us escape. Please.”

“I’m not going back,” Allison says pacing the floor. “Cliff, you swore. You swore I wouldn’t have to go back.”

“They’ll have to kill me first,” he says to her calmingly. “Come on ladies, have a heart.”

I sigh and put my gun back in its holster. I can hear Jen follow suit. “We better hurry then.”

“Oh, thank you.” Allison cries.

“Let’s go. There is a carriage and money outside.” Cliff grabs her hand and leads her out.

“He would have sent men to follow you. They’ll know you’re trying to help us.”

“Well, then we better be quick,” I say as I hurry after them. “I’ll ride with them on the wagon, Jen, follow on the horse just in case.”

“Oh god, it’s a massacre,” Allison says, glancing at all the bodies. I pretend to not pay attention. “This is all my fault, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t think about that now.” Cliff urges her. “They knew what they was gettin’ into.”

We see a handful of men riding over the hill towards us with their guns out, “That’s my husband. Sending killers after killers.” Allison says in anger.

“I ain’t too sure what you saw in the man.” Cliff jokes.

“Very amusing.” She hums back.

We rode past Tumbleweed and up to the train tracks where a train was passing by. “Come on. We gotta get around this train!” Cliff yells.

I pull out my repeater and start taking out as many men as I’m able while Jen gets the others. Cliff is able to make it around the train and we are able to get away and shoot down the rest of the men chasing us.

Cliff stops the cart and groans, “How many more of them will we have to kill.” He climbs into the back of the wagon and pulls out money.

“He won’t stop. He’ll keep saying you kidnapped me and soon some other sucker will come and kill us.” Allison sighs.

“No.” Cliff turns on his heels and takes the woman’s hands. “We’ll go… somewhere hot. Like Columbia, or Australia.”

He hops off the wagon and stands before Jen and I. “Here. Thank you.” He says handing me the small wad of cash. “Tell him we drowned, or got hit by a train.”

“Tell him to go hang himself,” Allison yells to us as Cliff climbs up to the wagon. “Tell him to leave us alone.” She takes her loves hand and smiles at him, “Cliff, isn’t all so romantic?”

He smiles at her before yanking the reigns and making the wagon move.

Jen rolls her eyes at them as I hand her share over. She looks at it and walks to Thena without taking it.

“Wait, Jen…”

“Keep it. You’re saving for the boy’s birthday aren’t you?” She gives me a warm smile.

“Thank you,” I say softly. I put the money in my saddlebag and climb onto Willa. “Let’s go rent a room at that saloon. We can corner the Marshal tomorrow.” She nods and we ride off down the desert.

_____________

I clutched my mother’s letter tightly as I sat in front of the Blackwater dock. I had just gotten off of the boat from Saint Denise where I had come in on the train from New Mexico. The rain fell hard from the sky and I was barely able to fit under the small overhang by the town sign as I tried to figure out where to go. The town wasn’t quite as populated as Saint Denise or Santa Fe but there was still a good amount of residence. There seemed to be a camp towards the edges of town that looked pretty crowded as well. I wondered if they were a gang or more like a family. They seemed happy and kept to themselves. Even in the rain they laughed and chatted with one another.

Thunder rolled across the sky suddenly making me lookup. I sighed tugged Pedro’s coat on a little tighter.

“Not a fan of thunder?” A gruff voice with a western accent asked from my left. I spun my head to face him quickly and began to reach for my pistol which he noticed. “Shit, I’m sorry.” He held up to gloved hands.

He was a tall broad man. He had blue-green eyes and sandy-colored hair. His cheeks and chin were covered by some scruff with a small scar on his chin. He wore a thick blue coat and funny enough, had on basically the same hat I wear that belonged to Pedro. “I didn’t mean to scare ya.” He grinned.

“You… didn’t. I was just thrown off.” I say before looking back at the map.

“You’re carrying a lot of guns.” He gestures to the bolt action rifle and pump-action shotgun on my back. Along with my pistol and sawed-off in my gun belt. I smile since he might even see the more guns I have on Willa. “You steal ‘em?” He smirks.

“I earned these if you must know.”

“How old are you?” He leans on the map board and crosses his arms. Droplets roll off the edge of his hat.

“I’m almost 18,” I say proudly. “I’ve come to start a gang.”

He huffs a laugh. “18 and already starting a gang, huh?”

“Wouldn’t be my first one.”

He gets serious and looks at me. “What?”

“I was raised in a gang. I’ve returned to kill them.” Why was I so openly telling my plan to this guy? Maybe it was his kind-looking eyes. Or the way he really is listening to me.

“What they do to ya?” He asks in a sincere tone.

“They killed my husband and my father.” I look down at my shoes.

“Bastards.” He huffs. “Hope it ain’t my gang.” He says trying to lighten the mood.

“You’re Del Lobo?” I ask.

His eyes get a bit wide at the name. “Wait a second. You want to take out Del Lobo? Alone?”

“Of course not alone. That’s why I’m going to make a gang. A gang of the strongest people to help me on my quest.”

The man smiles at my enthusiasm. “Well, ya got spirit. People will follow that.” He stands up straight and puts a hand out towards me. “Name’s Arthur Morgan.”

I grin and shake his hand, “Josephine Espinosa. But just call me Josie, white people tend to pronounce my full name wrong.”

He laughs as our hands shake for a bit too long. “Great to meet you Josie.”

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teamhook · 5 years ago

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A Chapter A Day... Savage Heart CS AU

A love story between a pirate and his savior. An innocent, beautiful, selfless woman meets a man with no manners, no formal education and not even a last name. Will Emma fall in love with Killian once she discovers that beneath his tough exterior lies a heart-wild, but a heart of gold? This is a Captain Swan AU

Beta-ed by the awesome @ilovemesomekillianjones

Cover by @xhookswenchx

|AO3| |FFN| previous chapter

|AO3| |FFN| current chapter

Chapter 26: New Friends and Allies

Emma keeps a steady pace after leaving Rufio behind. She'd almost turned back on several occasions but if she did, she may never see her family again. She would remember the route taken and beg if needed to go back to retrieve the boy. Killian wouldn't deny her.

She rides the horse in full gallop as long as she can. Later she switches to a trot and a few walk breaks in between. She pays close attention to her surroundings, admiring the view.

She had never left Misthaven before. Her mother had offered to send her on holiday alongside Milah countless times but she had never accepted. She enjoyed her time with Cora preparing to be the perfect wife for August.

Emma wanders away from the road and into the woods. She needs to find some water for both of them and maybe if she is lucky she can find them something edible. Maybe she should let her horse lead. Survival instinct must kick in at some time. There are horses in the wild and they survive perfectly fine on their own.

She's afraid to get lost in the woods and there is also a possibility she will be recaptured if she stays on the main road.

The scenery is beautiful. The trees seem to almost reach the sky and the wildflowers are vibrant and fragrant; it looks like a rainbow layout on her feet. Her thoughts drift home. She follows and the horse is grazing on some grass. She looks around the trees and shrubs and notices a path. It seems like a well-traveled trail. She doesn't want to disturb the horse, but slowly approaches him to not disturb his meal. She ties his rope to the closest tree.

She walks toward the trail and keeps glancing back to make sure the horse is there and no one is following her.

Emma followed the trail and keeps walking. The further into the woods she walks the more calming and beautiful it is. She has never walked for so long and soon she stops dead in her tracks. There is a deer drinking water from a creek. She is so enthralled and slowly kneels down to avoid the deer's attention. Then without a warning, she hears a swish pass her right ear and hit its target as the deer slumps to the ground.

She is standing there blinking away the disbelief. She turns to look at the perpetrator and yells at him. "You could've hit me!"

"I never miss."

"You never miss? Are you crazy?" She notices the wolf standing next to the man. The silver wolf snarls at the offensive comment made at his master. Emma steps back slowly.

"Don't worry. He is gentle, he is just hungry." He pats the head of the animal that locked his one black and one red eye with her.

"Yes, he looks very sweet."

"He is." He smiles at her. "Just don't make any sudden moves around him." He walks towards Emma leading the way for the silver wolf close behind him.

Once he reaches her he guides his pet to Emma and slowly extends his hand for her to place hers on his. She does so slowly. The wolf slowly nuzzles her palm and licks her.

"He likes you."

"I just hope he doesn't like me enough to eat."

"Oh no, he is domesticated. Well at least as much as he can be. I rescued him as a pup."

She looked unsure.

"I do apologize for scaring you."

She tries to play it off. "I was not scared I was just surprised; I was admiring the beauty of nature."

"I agree with you, nature is beautiful. I missed it so much, I gave up my life in town to find solace in a little cabin, not far from here. I have always been more of a hunter than anything else."

"Oh, and what life did you give up?" she asks genuinely curious. They walk as he guides her.

"Well, I used to be a lawman in a town not far from here."

"But you missed all this and you left," she says as she pointed to the scenery.

He simply nods his answer.

She suddenly stops, "I left my horse back there, I think." She points to the opposite direction they were headed.

"Then we should go get him. I'm sure we will find him." He changes direction. "I don't mean to be rude but you don't seem to belong here. I'm sorry I don't have the best people skills."

"I know. You almost killed me with that knife. And you are right, I don't."

"I already told you, I never miss. So, tell me how is it you got here? Of course, if you don't mind me asking." He has noticed the wedding band on her hand.

"I was taken on my way to visit my parents by some men."

"What? Are you alright?" He looks her over to assess injuries. She doesn't appear to have any, but she does look dirty.

"I escaped with the help of a friend. I was on my way home but I didn't want to tire my horse and I may be a little lost now." She admits her predicament with a nervous chuckle.

"I could help you go home. I could also look into the men that took you. Do you remember where you were held?"

"I just want to get home."

"Alright, then we will go retrieve your horse and get you home. Where is home?"

"Thank you. What should I call you? Maybe, crazy man that almost killed me?"

"Graham Humbert."

Emma thinks she recognizes the name but fails to recall from where."And what should I call you?"

"Emma Jones, I'm from Misthaven."

"It is an honor to meet you. Now let's get you home."

Emma stops. "Wait, what about the deer? You said that you were both hungry." She points at him and the wolf.

"We still have enough back home for a couple of nights and besides we need to get you back to Misthaven. It will not be long before you are reunited."

Killian loses his death grip on the ransom letter; Tink bends to pick it up.

"Killian, are you sure? She looks at the letter and hates that she cannot understand its contents.

He gives her a grim smile and nods his confirmation.

"What are you going to do?"

Milah's ears perk up to listen to the answer to the question. It is the moment of truth. She knows he will pick his ship and realize that Emma means nothing to him.

"Isn't true love more important than a few planks and a sail? TInk, she is my home. I will do whatever is needed to get her back."

Milah can't stop herself, "You are willing to give up your ship for my nitwit cousin? Are you crazy? She is not worth it, she doesn't love you. I love you. Let them keep her and we can be together."

"What are you still doing here? Shouldn't you be with your husband?" Tink snarls at her.

"TInk, I have to go see Archie. I have to hurry, time is of the essence. As for you Milah, you need to go home to your husband. I'm going to go get my wife," he says as hope finally fills his heart.

"Are you truly willing to trade your ship for her?"

"Aye, without a second thought, I would and I am."

"But you love that ship; you cannot trade it for her!"

"Milah, I love my wife. I think I may have loved her since I first laid eyes on her. I was just too stubborn and too angry to see it."

Milah blinks back tears as she storms out of Killian's home after hearing his decision. If he thinks he is going to have his happy ending with her cousin he is wrong. She subconsciously walks to the same road Emma had been taken from as a fury engulfs her entire being. Emma had everything growing up and now she has taken her love.

Milah startles as she hears footsteps approaching her. She looks up to see a man walking toward her and she wipes away her tears. He looks like he has lost something.

"Excuse me, Miss, do you live around here?"

"No I don't, my cousin does." She points to the direction of Killian's house.

"Why do you ask?"

"I have been tasked with finding a kidnapped woman and I was curious to know if there had been any witnesses to the act but so far I have not found one."

"Oh, you must be the Sheriff. Sheriff Nottingham, if memory serves. My husband went to see you. My cousin is the one that was taken."

"I see. I'm sorry."

"No worries, I will be giving my husband glowing reviews on your search for her."

"Your husband seems very fond of your cousin."

"He feels guilty."

"Ah, for her marrying the pirate," Nottingham spits the word. "You don't seem too distraught over her disappearance."

"Why Sheriff Nottingham, are you accusing me of not caring for my cousin?"

"I never said that, but there is something there, and dare I say it, Mrs. Booth, I find you to be a very interesting woman. I feel I should keep an eye on you."

"That is good to know." She smiles coyly as she walks away. She knows that he may come in handy.

@hookedonapirate @kmomof4 @searchingwardrobes @seriouslyhooked@profdanglaisstuff @let-it-raines @revanmeetra87@snowbellewells@hollyethecurious@kymbersmith-90@branlovestowrite@thejollyroger-writer@shireness-says@ilovemesomekillianjones@thisonesatellite@thesschesthair@winterbythesea@stahlop@resident-of-storybrooke@superchocovian@lfh1226-linda@artistic-writer@thislassishooked@shardminds@winterbaby89@xhookswenchx@ultraluckycatnd@gingerchangeling@laschatzi@wellhellotragic@xemmaloveskillianx@courtorderedcake@pirateherokillian@optomisticgirl@darkcolinodonorgasm@sherlockianwhovian @andiirivera @djlbg @nikkiemms @jennjenn615 @scientificapricot @officerrogers @imlaxdris71 @therealstartraveller776 @kday426

#Captain Swan #teamhook SavageHeart #cs ff #CS Crew #CS Mafia

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centuryofdean · 5 years ago

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When Lightning Strikes - Chapter 9

Author Disclaimer:: The Hobbit, Middle Earth and its characters are not mine. I take no credit. The story line and even some dialogue–also not mine. Instead I claim my Original Character Laurel and the adjustments to the story line.

Summary:: From when Laurel Took was small she dreamed of a man. Every time she dreamed of him, he could not see or hear her. Over time they are able to communicate–but he’s been dreaming about her too. Finally after years of anticipation Laurel takes the leap and kisses him. Only for her to wake up and dread the real world. Then lightning strikes and she finds herself in a familiar place, with a familiar face.

Rated:: M for Mature. Please do not read this story unless you are 18+ At this point in the story there isn’t much, but later on the M rating will come into effect.

Warnings:: Language and Violence

Pairing:: Kili x OC (Laurel)

Laurel

How was I supposed to tell him I was scared to love him? If something happened to him I would waste away like my mother. The ache in my chest was replaced with something more when he was kissing my neck. If it hasn't been for the fact that everyone was mere feet away I would have probably turned around and jumped on top of him, only to regret it later. No matter how much I tell myself I can't put myself in that position, I know deep down I am already there.

Once he finally fell asleep I threw the blanket he gave to me cover him and myself, curling into him. Almost as if he sensed my movement, he turned onto his side, letting me fit in the crook of his neck. He threw an arm over me and pulled me closer, sniffing my hair. A sigh of contentment filled me, this is where I was meant to be.

Suddenly he grasped my bottom and gave it a squeeze.

Oh Kili.

I was woken by someone kicking my leg. It wasn't a light kick either. With a rub to my eyes, I squinted against the rising sun to find Thorin standing above me. It was difficult to try and untangle myself from his nephew. Kili's leg was wrapped around me along with his arm. Surprisingly the prince was a heavy sleeper, as he did not wake when I pulled his arms and leg off of me to get up.

Thorin was still standing before me, watching intently.

"Did you need something," I asked somewhat bitterly.

"A word with you," he muttered with distaste.

I rose, stretching as I followed Thorin a little ways out away from everyone. We came upon the stream, where he bent down and splash water on his face and drink lightly. When he rose and wiped his hands on his pants I stood a little straighter. Even if I didn't care for him he was still a king, right?

"You are not of this world," he started as if it were a rehearsed speech. "You will come with us to the Lonely Mountain, so we can return you to your world. If it fails and you cannot be returned, you are to go stay with the Hobbit in the Shire. He has agreed it would be the best for you."

"Okay," I sighed.

"You are not to get close to Kili."

A harsh laugh left me, "It's already too late for that. He knows me better than anyone in my world, and now your's."

"I have seen how he looks upon you," Thorin spat. "He is infatuated. He is heir to be king if something happens to Fili. Dwarf kings do not mate with Halflings."

That jab didn't hurt at all. Halfling. If it weren't true I would have been insulted.

"Alright," I muttered, "anything else?"

"This journey will be long and hard. If something happens to you I will not lift a finger for your aide. I will not be stopped by some mere girl that cannot take care of herself."

A scoff left me as my arms crossed over my chest.

"King or not Thorin Oakenshield," I spat out, "I won't stand here and let you insult me just because you don't like that I'm not a dwarf. I can take care of myself plenty out in the woods. It seems you have forgotten, so let me refresh your memory. I saved your ass and everyone else's from three damn trolls just a few days ago. "

A look of disgust passed his face. "If it not for Kili I would leave you here," he muttered, "for if I left you, he would stay as well. Your words run wild and you speak of things you do not know. You have no place among us."

Did he seriously forget already? It was at least a day ago that I shot the trolls with arrows. At least a day ago I put out a fire lit under a spit of dwarves and cut half of them out of potato sacks. Things I did not know? What I knew is that he was a pretentious--

"Whatever. I didn't plan on trying to pursue Kili anyway, so don't get your trousers in a twist," I muttered.

Someone cleared their throat, making my attention flip over to see Gandalf standing. He gestured to his left, revealing the rest of the dwarves. It appeared everyone came to listen in on the thrashing I was receiving. Kili looked more furious than myself. None the less I passed by each of them and back to where my things were. I wasn't going to stay where I wasn't welcomed.

After all my things were gathered I went back to the castle of sorts that the elves lived in. I was welcomed politely, even offered food. As I sat at the small table eating fruit everyone else came in to start eating as well. The mood was very somber, no one really speaking. At least all the food was fresh and plentiful.

Elrond joined the hall at the larger table with Gandalf. "Morning guests," he stated. "Tonight the moon will be perfect for reading the map you have brought. This time tomorrow you will be able to continue on with your journey with new knowledge and purpose."

Most of the dwarves cheered, starting new conversation soon after.

"Tell me Laurel," Elrond continued lightly, "why do you feast on the flesh of nature?"

I wiped at my lips, ridding myself from the juices of an apple. "Animals? Well because it is food," I stated confused.

"Elves value all life," Kili offered, "they will not maim animals unless their lives are in danger. Eating creatures is absurd to the elves."

"In my world it is very common for us to eat meat. There are farms dedicated just for it. I don't make a lot of money, so I hunt for food mostly, even have a small vegetable garden," I replied.

"Do you like it," Elrond asked interested.

"Yes, especially deer. Very clean and healthy meat."

Throughout the day I practiced using my newly acquired bow. It was beautiful. The string was very flexible, but easy to pull. I could not really test the distance it could shoot, but it did pack quiet a wallop. Though I did not hit my target every time, I was able to come pretty close. As long as my target in the future was big enough I would be able to strike fatally until I could make my aim more acute.

Kili didn't speak to me at all, instead he just watched me and followed wherever I went. It was sort of annoying, but I did not say anything to him about it.

Occasionally another dwarf, usually Bofur or Nori, would sit with me in the clearing and tell me stories of other adventures they had gone on. I told them of different things in my world.

"They are called airplanes. Huge machines that travel people or things from far distances. They travel in the air like birds," I explained.

"Amazin'," Bofur seemed dumb founded.

As night started to fall, the dwarves gathered back to where they first had a fire the night before. I was contemplating on if I should ask if there was a room inside I could stay in. Obviously Kili wasn't in a good mood, so trying to sleep next to him again probably wasn't in my best interest. Food was brought out here this time. I don't know how much longer I could just eat bread, fruit, and vegetables. This night I did not share wine, instead I drank water and ate my food in silence. Thorin and Gandalf both were missing from the group once more.

After finishing my food I read from my book of herbs again. It was marvelous, holding drawings of the plants and a description of what they can help with. Only a fourth of it I already knew from my grandmother, the rest was new to me. Maybe my mom was an elf and so was grandmother, she did look quite young.

Kili whom sat next to me elbowed me lightly, offering me something that he had just bitten off of.

"What is it," I asked before accepting it.

"Dried meat, go ahead," he nodded, "you can have the rest."

The meat was spiced like jerky, but tasted good either way. I thanked him quietly and continued to read from my book.

"What is that," he asked, pointing to the writing I made out of wet charcoal.

"This is English writing."

"It looks confusing."

"The elvish writing was confusing," I stated, "this way I can study from it. This here is what we call California Poppy in my time. 'Infuse it with water and it will make the drinker fall asleep.'"

He leaned in closely to watch what I was pointing to. For a while we sat by the firelight reading from my book, his arm draped around me lightly. Slowly I found myself curling into him like it was story time. We went through all the pages together, coming to the end where blank pages were for me to add things if I wanted.

"Show me how you write your name," his voice was soft in my ear. I printed my name clearly so that he could see. "Write my name."

I did the same for his not really knowing how it was spelled. So I simply wrote Kili out for him to see. The conversation around us grew into a mess that I stopped paying attention too, just background noise. My face rose so that I could look up at him. I felt his hand raise and play with my braid. "I am sorry about what Thorin did this morning. It was not right," he stated.

"It's fine," I murmured letting my head fall back against his shoulder as I shut the book. "I understand what he's saying."

Kili didn't respond, instead he wrapped me up in his arms and gave a soft squeeze. We rose together and moved to where we slept the night before. Without question I settled down next to him and did not fight it when his arm was thrown over me and pulling me to his chest.

"I do not know why you fight me Laurel," he sighed into my hair, "but for now I will allow you to fight me. Soon I will grow tired and not allow it."

Without our horses we were due to walk the rest of the journey the next morning. I made it a habit to stick to the back of the troop so that I didn't have to be anywhere near Thorin. Bilbo tended to float back and forth between the front and back to talk to me. If what he said earlier was true, then he was probably a distant cousin of some sort. It was odd to think that this world I was in was actually the past. There was nothing of this written in any books that I knew of.

By time we stopped for our first break I had to sigh in contentment. Never have I walked that much before in my life. It was very tiring.

Placed between Kili and Fili I did more work going through my book and checking the herbs that were packed in my bag. Most of them were dried and folded into cloth and tied. Some of the more rare things were placed in small glass vials of water, wrapped in cloth so they would not break.

Kili rose to disappear into the woods for a while. Once he was out of sight Fili elbowed me, glancing around at everyone and their positions.

"Tell me Lady Laurel, what do you see in my brother," he asked quietly, blue eyes alive with wonder.

It was one of the first times I actually looked at Fili. It was odd how the brothers were like complete opposites. Here is Fili the older brother with his long blonde hair, and braided mustache and beard. Bright blue eyes that would make women weak at the knees. From what I have seen Fili was usually the more serious of the two.

Then there was Kili, the younger brother with long black hair and lack of actual beard. His light brown eyes were full of mirth and fun. His nose was formed perfectly with his cheeks to scream perfection. Just thinking of his scruff against my skin had me closing my knees as they quivered.

"I see a lot of things in him. Though he is usually in a light mood of fun and laughs, he can be serious. I always find he is kind and selfless," I thought aloud, "he is strong and fights well I've seen. He talks fondly of family and friends. Kili does have a way of charming me, and I do find him quite attractive."

Fili laughed, throwing an arm around my shoulder to pat my back. "Do not let him hear you say these things! He already thinks too highly of himself, you would only make it worse."

"Why doesn't he have a beard and mustache like you," I wondered.

"Ah, he was never fond of the longer hair. He is still young for a dwarf, as he grows older he will become accustomed to it and start his braiding."

I eyed the clasps that kept the braids of his mustache together, "I've seen men braid beards in my world, but never mustaches. Your clasps looks like the one Kili put in my hair."

"He braided your hair? Put one of his beads in it did he?"

My brows furrowed, I did know that braiding was very important to them. Braiding the hair of a dwarf woman surely meant something to them I figured. "Yes," I trailed off, fingering it once more.

In turn he pulled me closer, leaning in and whispering in my ear. It sent shivers down my spine unwillingly. It was just because of the fact that it was hot breathe on my ear, but startled me none the less.

"I'm sure you understand that braiding the hair of a dwarf maiden is meaningful," he started softly, "it shows that he is interested in you as a mate. Putting our family bead in the braid says he is very interested. It is bold considering Thorin forbade the relationship. You do look very lovely none the less."

A soft giggle left my lips, charming woman must run in the family. I looked up to see that Kili returned, he was standing next to Bilbo talking, starring daggers in my direction. Why on Earth would he be in a foul mood now? He was just fine this morning. The feeling of Fili retreating from my proximity sent off alarms in my head.

He thought Fili and I were probably flirting together. Shit.

Just as I was thinking of throwing off Fili's arm, he removed it himself, coughing and looking away awkwardly. Kili didn't return to us for the rest of our break and left for the front of the troop while we continued on towards what they called the Misty Mountains.

"Well," I sighed kicking a rock while Fili and I brought up the rear, "seems we've pissed him off."

"Nonsense," Fili waved away, playing with yet another knife I haven't seen on his person before, "he is just jealous at the moment. By the end of day he will be talking to you again."

"I hope so," I sighed, "he's one of the greater friends I have. Especially here. There is nothing to be jealous of."

The dwarf next to me nudged me with his elbow once more, pointing ahead of us, "I don't know about that. I find your company likable, Ori, I think has taken a small liking to you as well.

"If I hadn't known about your attachment with my brother I would find an attachment to you I think. Do not worry about Kili, he usually has always been the jealous type. Though it is only the second time I have been the one he was jealous of."

Previous Chapter << Chapter 8: Sweet Apple and Wine Dances

Next Chapter >> Chapter 10: Pruned Gardens Bring Curious Deer

#the hobbit #kili x oc #the hobbit fanfic #the hobbit fanfiction #kili x reader #kili durin #fanfic #fanfiction #when lightning strikes

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starlessskies94 · 6 years ago

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Wanted (Arthur/FemReader)

So this is the new one-shot I was working on for Arthur Morgan/Female Reader. Where the reader is a wanted bounty and Arthur is the bounty hunter. It was a random idea and it kind of got away from me and end up over 3k words! I hope anyone who reads it enjoys it because I’m still extremely nervous with reader inserts so I hope it’s okay as I spent soooo long writing this damn thing! Enjoy <3 Also thank you to the lovely @reddeadmort & lovely @shethenightwolf that both inspired me to start writing for Arthur Morgan you guys are awesome! I apologize in advance for any typing errors but I’m tired and wanted to get this posted. Hope its okay <3

If there was one thing Arthur Morgan both liked and disliked; it was bounty hunting. It was good honest work with a pretty decent pay out but sometimes the bounties themselves were a pain in the ass to catch and keep hold of. He’d gotten the tip off in Strawberry, a couple of Law men waiting on a train to Valentine to track down the new bounty and turn them into the Sheriff. Simple. Easy.

And Arthur was determined to get there first.

You weren’t exactly the most innocent of souls. In fact you weren’t innocent at all and that was exactly why you had such a bounty on your head. It wasn’t a large amount by any means but you were still eager to pay it off all the same. Taking into account, the fact that you had also returned the horse you’d stolen. You were hoping the sentence wouldn’t be as serious as you were expecting. You couldn’t help but laugh. Of all the things to be wanted for. Horse theft wasn’t really the most impressive of crimes. Still; you’d almost earned enough to wipe your slate clean. Planning to stay away from Valentine just long enough to collect the rest before returning into town to pay what was owed. You kicked away the embers of your dying campfire with the heel of your boot, then prepared your bow for another morning of hunting the forest for more pelts to sell. You’d already caught a glimpse of a fine looking deer that seemed promising. Maybe if you were quiet; you’d pick up her trail again. But as you moved to search the forest floor for clues; your quiet morning was crudely interrupted by the stomping of cantering hooves. A black Shire horse huffing to a steady halt as a tall stranger quickly dismounted. His heavy boots thudding upon the dry ground before he began striding purposely towards you. “Excuse me Miss...Are you Y/N L/N?” He asked gruffly; tipping his head back to look at you from under the brim of his hat as his large calloused hands rested upon his belt. You eyed him warily, taking in his appearance. Tall, rugged. Definitely handsome with a strong jaw dusted by a dark layer of stubble. Straightening your stance you took a deep breath in a feeble attempt to feign confidence against this man before you answered with an unshaken voice. “I might be.” You challenged. “Depending on who’s asking.” The man’s lips seemed to twitch as he looked to hold back either a laugh or an amused smirk. Damn maybe you weren’t as intimidating as you thought. It was clear just by looking at him that he wasn’t here for a nice chat and had obviously been sent by someone to take you in. You were honestly a little surprised the Sheriff would sink to the level of sending Bounty Hunters after you for stealing a horse. Perhaps this man could see reason, maybe you could explain things to him and he’d let you go? It was certainly worth a try. So striding up to stand face to face with him; you push for your courage to hold just long enough as you stare him directly in the eye. “Look Mister...I don’t know what the Sheriff told you but I haven’t done anything wrong.” You reason. “So maybe you could just pretend you never saw me right? I’ll keep outta your way, I promise.” The man stands unconvinced but he does smile. That you hadn’t been expecting. He sighs deeply; his blue eyes breaking contact with yours as he glances down at his feet before looking back at you in earnest. “Madam I’m paid to do a job and you see, if I don’t do that job; I don’t get paid. You understand? So why don’t we make this easier for the both of us and you come quietly huh?” You had considered it. You really had. You were so close to earning the rest of your bounty to pay for your freedom. But there was no way you could see the Sheriff or any other Law man taking the time to let you explain that, before throwing you into a jail cell to either rot or wait to be hanged. No, you still needed time. You needed to get away. Though it seemed the Bounty Hunter knew exactly what you were planning to do even before you did. Because no sooner had you turned to run, you found your legs bound and your body hitting the ground with a dull thud. A pained groan leaving your lips as you twisted against your binds. The man held back a laugh as he moved to turn you to face him. His overbearing silhouette blocking out the morning sun overhead. You winced when he leaned over you to tighten the ropes. “Sorry Miss but I did warn ya and you ain’t the first bounty to try running off on me.” He mumbled. And if you didn’t know any better, you could’ve sworn he was actually amused by all this. It was an easy guess that you weren’t the first bounty he’d brought in but were determined to be the first to talk your way out of it. “Please Mister; I have the money to pay my bounty! Well most of it, I was going to earn the rest today.” You pleaded. Slowly sitting up to better face him as you continued to pull at the ropes around your wrists and ankles. “If you want the payment I can give it to you. It’s yours! Just please let me go!” He seemed conflicted. Running a hand over his stubbled chin and cracking a smile. You looked as confusion flashed in your eyes, watching this Bounty Hunter openly laughing at you with his hands on his hips. “You seriously expect me to believe that you’re carrying nearly a thousand dollars in that satchel o’ yours lady?” He laughed. At this you were taken aback. A thousand dollars?! That wasn’t right. Your bounty was forty. Since when had horse theft carried a thousand dollar bounty?! There must have been so sort of mistake; perhaps this Bounty Hunter had stumbled upon the wrong bounty and thought you were someone else. But that couldn’t be right when he’d asked for you by name. You sat quietly. Defeated as you gave up pulling at your binds. Which didn’t go unnoticed by the man watching you. Faltering for just a moment as he pulled a large piece of paper from the satchel he was wearing and holding it lowly for you to see. You couldn’t stop the shocked gasp that escaped you; for there you were. Face to face with yourself. WANTED. DEAD OR ALIVE. Y/N L/N. REWARD $1000 Slowly reaching out, your every move tentative as you took hold of the poster. Your blood running cold at the sight of you. Along with the list of crimes were apparently wanted for. “Guessing you ain’t ever seen nothing like this before? Am I right Miss?” The man asked softly. He almost seemed sincere. “Y/N. Call me Y/N.”

“I’m Arthur. Arthur Morgan.” He returned.

Arthur had never had this happen before. A bounty that didn’t know they were wanted. And what’s more you didn’t seem to know anything about the crimes you had supposedly committed. He caught the surprise on your face as he went to sit down beside you. His forearms rested on his bent knees; blue inquisitive eyes glancing down at you.

“Well Y/N, don’t think I’ve ever come across a bounty that didn’t know they were wanted before.” He said. “Most of em’ either run or try ‘ta kill me. Some are even proud of what they done. You really got no idea about any of this?” He watched you; your watering eyes darting across the page at the bold writing. Silently shaking your head at his question. “I stole the horse...” you croaked. The tears in your eyes more from frustration than sadness. “But I gave it back.” “And this one.” You pointed to the crimes listed, Arthur’s gaze falling from your face to the poster held between you. Reading them quietly to himself. PUBLIC DRUNKENNESS & ASSAULT. “That quiet drink I had in Rhodes, turned not so quiet when that Ranch hand wouldn’t take no for an answer. So I broke the bastard’s arm.” You said matter-of-factly as if it were the most nonchalant thing in the world. But Arthur didn’t reply, instead he let you continue on. Your attention drawn back to the paper in hand. Fingers softly running along the printed letters. “This one; now this one ain’t my fault.” The Outlaw leaned close; closer than he realized when he could feel your hair wisping against his cheek. It was soft and he could smell a hint of lavender. He stopped himself; instantly coming back to his senses as he read on. FRAUD/HANDLING OF COUNTERFEIT GOODS “Those bank notes were counterfeit and I knew that but I stole them from a con man in Saint Denis so he’d stop scamming people.” As you explained that you’d planned to destroy the fake notes but had been caught with them before you had the chance; Arthur had to wonder if perhaps it’d been Trelawny you’d stolen from. However given his current situation he thought it best not to ask any more about the con man in question. He had to smile though, you were definitely unlike any woman he’d met before. And certainly unlike any bounty he’d tracked down in the past. But the amusement was short-lived at the sound of your disgusted scoff as you scrunched the poster into your clenched fists. Your hands shaking in the apparent anger that came aflame in your wide eyes. Your nostrils flared as you spat bitterly at the offending words you’d read. “Murder?! I killed those O’Driscoll’s because they were robbing a stage coach full of women and children! Was I supposed to just do nothing?!”You roared furiously, the skin of your fingers turning red as you ripped up the poster into shredded pieces. “Colm O’Driscoll is a goddamn monster! I know exactly what he and his men are capable of! And I’d kill every last one of those bastards if I could!” Arthur was taken aback by your outburst; the anger that exploded from you at the simple mention of Colm O’Driscoll. It reminded him of Sadie. That raw fury for the gang that had clearly hurt you in some way. Maybe killed a loved one? Or tried to harm you. Or god forbid had hurt you and you’d somehow managed to escape them. The man knew himself what they were capable of. After suffering at the hands of Colm and his men. So in that moment he made a decision. Some may have called him a fool for it. To waste such wealthy pay out but that didn’t matter to him. Unsheathing his hunting knife and reaching across with his other hand to take your wrists and cutting away the rope that bound them. “Wait-what are you doing?” You asked timidly. “You’re a good woman Miss Y/N.” He replied, slicing the ties around your ankles before taking a firm grip of your hand and pulling you to your feet. “And any enemy of Colm O’Driscoll is a friend of mine. I know what that son of a bitch is capable of too and I ain’t gonna be the one to stop you helpin’ decent folk that need it. So go on Miss, get outta here while ya can. I’ll send away any other Bounty Hunters I see.” Arthur could see you were both confused and cautious at his unexpected actions. But in all honesty he found himself quite intrigued by such a woman as you. For one that at first seemed so sweet and timid to only then learn your striking readiness to kill in order to save an innocent soul. The Outlaw was trying to live an honorable life; always choosing to do the right thing. Or help a stranger in need; no matter what was requested of him. He’d gladly do it with an open heart. But sometimes the choices were not always clear to him. And people like you, Charles and Sadie; were the ones he truly admired. The people could do good or the right thing without even taking the time to think about it. It was a natural instinct he wished he could have himself. You stood frozen for a moment; rubbing soothing fingertips around your irritated wrists and watched him carefully. But he was sincere and genuine in his offer to let you go. A chance you clearly weren’t willing to let pass by as you turned on your heel to dart back down your intended trail into the forest. Though to his surprise you stopped. Those piercing eyes turning back to take one last glance at him as you smiled warmly. “Thank you, you’re a good man Arthur Morgan.” His lips twitched a second time at your words as he fought away a knowing smile and the readied words he always uttered on the tip of his tongue. “Aw you don’t know me Miss; go on get! Before I change my mind.” He chuckled. You nodded and he fixed those blue orbs your way until he couldn’t see you anymore. Shaking his head at the events this strange morning had brought him before finally deciding to call it a day. Mounting his horse; giving the gelding a loving pat on his neck then led him back into town.

As the weeks passed, Arthur found he couldn’t get you out of his head. His mind replaying that morning over and over. Rereading everything he’d written down in his journal as he remembered it. Those same striking features and piercing eyes staring back at him from the page. The sketch was one he was secretly proud of. In his opinion it did you more justice than that damn wanted poster ever did. And every town he rode into since, he’d always taken the extra time to tear down anymore he saw. Settling into the seat of his saddle as his gelding plodded into Valentine, now calmed from the hard ride over from Van Horn. Arthur looked for a good place to hitch the black Shire; allowing the beast the well-earned rest he deserved. He was making his way down the main street when he caught sight of the Sheriff sat outside his office; cigar in one hand, coffee cup in the other. Waving his arms about dramatically to his deputy who sat beside him. “Strangest damn thing I’ve ever seen my whole life.” He bellowed. His Deputy hanging on his every word. “I send four Bounty Hunters after this woman and not even half an hour after the last one leaves, she walks in like she owns the place, pays off her own bounty in full then leaves without saying a word!” Both Law men throw their heads back in laughter as Arthur trots on by them. A knowing smirk on his face as he takes a guess at exactly who they were talking about. He reaches the Saloon, hitching his Shire beside a beautiful bay mare; a Tennessee Walker he thinks at a glance, before turning heel and heading up the steps. He’s greeted with the usual ambience of the Saloon before the rowdy patrons show up to disturb the peace with their nightly games of poker and heavy drinking. He debates whether to sit by the table for a meal or by the bar alone for a quiet drink but his decision his made for him when he spot a very familiar face sat alone by the window. His scuffing boots against the wooden floor grabbing your attention as you turn in your chair.

“Arthur Morgan!” You announce to the room as he pulls up a chair beside you. “Didn’t think I’d ever see you again!”

“I could say the same to you Miss Y/N L/N.” He greets warmly. “How have you uh…”

“Been? I’ve been good I suppose.”

“Really? You sure about that?” He challenges, that same amused smirk on his face. “You haven’t run into any O’Driscolls recently?”

He watches your face scrunch up in feigned thought, your lips widening into a grin that he can’t help but find endearing.

“I don’t think I know what you’re talking about Mister Morgan.”

Arthur glanced over his shoulder to check the crowd before leaning in close, his arms rested on the table between you. His gruff voice dropping to a rumbled whisper.

“Really? Because I’ve seen that horse you got hitched outside Y/N and I ain’t blind. Don’t think I ain’t noticed the green bandana tied to her reins. We both know she ain’t yours.” He accused but you didn’t falter. Seeming to appear a lot more confident than the last time you met. Leaning back in your chair cockily, with a bright smile shining back at the Outlaw.

“She is mine…Now. Figured you can’t rightly steal something from someone if they’re dead.” You smirked. “And that O’Driscoll was very very dead when I stole his horse.”

At this Arthur laughed loudly. You had a point he supposed. And if he was honest he was rather glad to hear you hadn’t changed all that much. In fact he even found himself imagining how you’d fit into the gang, even if only for a moment. You and he were strangely similar and he found a deep respect for you and the things you had done. Especially your impressive skills when it came to killing O’Driscolls; he could imagine the delight Dutch and Sadie would find in someone that hated Colm as much as they did.

The sudden screech of your chair legs broke his train of thought as he looked to see you fumbling through your satchel before turning back to face him.

“I gotta admit I was hoping I’d see you again. I wanted to give you this.” You said sliding a clip of bank notes across the table towards him. Arthur’s eyes widening as he took the pile and counted the amount. “And don’t worry this ain’t counterfeit, I promise.”

“Y/N there’s over five hundred dollars here! I can’t take this.”

He moved to hand it back but you refused. His heart betraying him as it skipped it beat the moment you placed your hand on top of his.

“I owe you. It’s half the reward for my bounty. You didn’t have to let me go.” You explained quietly, fearing someone might overhear. “I still don’t get why you did but I’m grateful. After I left, I got some work and earned the rest to wipe the slate clean. But you gave up a lot of money Arthur. And I pissed off a lot of Bounty Hunters when I paid my own bounty. This is my way of saying thank you. There ain’t a lot a decent folk around here but you’re one of em’.”

Arthur had to think for a second, his callous hand slipping from your grasp and rising to rub at the base of his neck.

“Aww Y/N you don’t know me.” He said shyly. The same words he’d uttered so often to every stranger that had assumed his good intentions. They didn’t know him either. Instead only seeing just a fraction of the man he truly was.

“But I’d like too.” It surprised him when you leaned forward to gently press your hand against his forearm. Your eyes shining like your smile and he found himself smiling back in return. Incredibly astounded by how brazen you were being but even more shocked in himself to find he was flattered by it.

“Well then Miss L/N…How about we stay here a little longer and I buy us dinner?”

#arthur morgan x reader #Arthur Morgan #red dead redemption 2 #red dead 2 #red dead redemption fam #Red dead redemption fandom #Arthur x female reader

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kalynnmariesillygoose · 3 years ago

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I'm just gonna answer all of them for fun 😊

🔥: cakes

🧵🧶: learning lots of new instruments, like sax, cello, flute, etc.

🛏️💭: I really love the simple country house from My Neighbor Totoro, or the attic space Kiki lives in over the bakery

🎀: baking!

🧺: I love to do charcuterie picnics, I find it easier to chat when you're just picking at smaller things and matching new things together

☘️💧: rainy days reading

🌲🏡: dark wood overgrown with ivy, colorful door, white frame windows, big garden all around, set back in the woods in a bright little clearing, white and green on the inside with lots of books and knick-knacks, like cottagecore meets light academia meets goblincore

🧥👗👚: oversizes, soft fabric jumpsuits layered over sweaters, plus bun and a headscarf tied in a bow, which I call 'farmers market outfits'

🍄: both, and I have a long way to go either way

🌱: writing when I'm in the groove, otherwise scrapbook-style art journaling

🍰☕: too many to count between tumblr and instagram

🐝: neurosis 😉 frog stuff, cool sticks, books, local art

🏫📚: some of both, depending on the name. I've always liked Ivie, which feels both old and unique/nature themed. I feel like nature names can have a vintage feel if they are less common. Like Persimmon, Hawthorn, Violet, Opal, Prairie, Hemlock, Fawn

🌿: both again! I love cows and cats and chickens, but I also love deer and hedgehogs and field mice and foxes.

🌾: the shire, hands down

🌸🌻🌷: berry picking! Washington is riddled with wild raspberry and blackberry bushes

📝📬: I'm pretty eclectic, so I also love dark & light academia, mid-century modern, goblincore, fairycore, witchy/spiritual vibes, and sometimes a splash of modern or classical art vibes

cottagecore asks 🌱🧺✨

hearth: cakes, cookies, or pies?

loom: what is a hobby you’ve always wanted to try?

dream: if you could live in a house from a studio ghibli movie, which would you choose?

gingham: sewing or baking?

basket: what do you bring on picnics?

dewdrop: do you prefer rainy days reading by the window or sunny days dancing in the garden?

cottage: what does your ideal cottage look like?(pictures optional)

clothesline: what is your favorite staple of cottagecore fashion?

toadstool: gardening or foraging?

sprout: what is your favorite creative outlet?

tea party: favorite cottagecore blogs?

honeycomb: do you collect anything?

library: do you prefer old fashioned names (adelaide, myrtle, ernest, etc.) or unique names (bug, thorn, sage, etc.)?

moss: woodland animals or farm animals?

dandelion: would you rather live in the shire or the hundred acre wood?

garden: berry picking or flower picking?

letter: do you have any other favorite aesthetics?

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checkmarch79-blog · 5 years ago

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Those Useless Trees — The Valley Oak

A couple of days ago my friend Mike and I decided to go for a hike in Malibu Creek State Park. Having celebrated a friend’s birthday the previous night into the following morning, a good moderately strenuous ramble seemed like just the thing. We were both awed by the park’s stunning vistas as well as its many magnificent valley oak trees, the largest oak species in North America and a species found only in California.

Inside the Malibu Creek State Park

The 3,324-hectare park, although opened to the public in 1976, of course, has a much older history. The first humans to arrive in the area where likely the Chumash, who established the village of Talepop (or Ta’lopop) within what’s now the park. About 3,500 years ago — thousands of years after the Chumash settled the area — the Tongva arrived from the east and the Malibu Creek, which drains the Santa Monica Mountains, became a sort of border between the two nations. Downstream the river flows into the Pacific Ocean at an estuary the Chumash referred to as “U-mali-wu,” meaning “it makes a loud noise there.” The Spanish, who arrived in the 16th century, recorded the name as Malibu.

Languedoc?

Although neither Mike nor I had ever been to the park before, we’d both seen it in many films and television series. The striking Goat Buttes, in particular, have served as a popular setting in Hollywood fictions. Before reading a sign informing us that the outcroppings were in the series, M*A*S*H, I was reminded by the chaparral-covered prominences of a childhood summer spent in Languedoc. After learning that the semi-arid oak landscape had been used to evoke green, temperate Korea for eleven seasons of the long-running Korean War comedy, I was struck by how unlike the scenery reminded me of any I’d seen in Korea, which I visited last summer. Of course, come to think of it, the cast of that show’s hairstyles seemed suspiciously ’70s for a war which took place from 1950-1953.

Coast live oaks on a hill

The valley in which we stood was carpeted with brittle, yellow grasses and scruffy oak trees. Most of the oaks in the oak savanna were coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia), also known as California live oak, those familiar oaks which during the rainy season fleetingly give the landscape of rolling hills on which they often grow the appearance of the Shire. Elsewhere in the park, there are stately sycamores and the southernmost grove of redwoods. There are, naturally, many varieties of native fungi and fauna as well, and during our visit, we observed a small herd of mule deer, various lizards, a covey of quail, a couple of rabbits, a California tarantula, a gracefully gliding heron, a red-tailed hawk, a flock of pigeons, and several other birds which I didn’t recognize.

Some of the oaks obviously unlike the others. They were taller, their silhouettes patchier, their branches droopier than the dome-like coast live oaks, the canopies of which spread out like gauzy green umbrellas over the gently rolling hills. As a child growing up in Missouri’s Little Dixie, I roamed the forests and knew my red cedars from my red maples, my black walnuts from my bladdernuts, my corkwoods from my dogwoods, my pawpaws from my possumhaws. I don’t remember learning most of their names and characteristics, though, and because of that, I hoped — however unrealistically — that I’d over time somehow simply absorb a similar knowledge Southern California’s trees. Having now lived in Southern California longer than anywhere else, I have unfortunately found that I have to make an effort to learn them.

I observed the oaks that were not coast live oaks. Whereas the leaves of the coast live oak are small, shiny, prickly, and look a bit like those of a holly shrub, the leaves of these oaks were lobed and looked almost leathery, faintly fuzzy. The leaves were clustered rather than spread across the branches’ tips. The bark was sort of silvery brown and almost uniformly wrinkled whereas the trunks and branches of the coast live oaks appear contorted and gnarled. It was clear that these were not coast live oaks — but I was no closer to identifying them than I had been when Mike had asked me what they were and so I turned to PlantSnap, an app which has, since downloading, successfully identified about 30% of the plants I’ve used it to recognize. It also identifies fungi — but with a track record like that, I wouldn’t use it for foraging unless I was completely OK with a painful death. This time the app proved successful, however, notifying me that the tree was most likely a Quercus agrifolia, or valley oak (it was) or, perhaps, a staghorn fern or loquat (it was obviously not). Valley oaks are also known as robles, as in Paso Robles.

I was struck by the appearance of the valley oaks acorns, which were considerably longer than those I was accustomed to. They provide food for, among other animals, acorn woodpeckers, California ground squirrels, California scrub jays, and yellow-billed magpies. Historically, they were also an important food source for the Chumash, who never developed agriculture as they were able to live comfortably off of what they foraged and hunted.

Mule deer eating valley oak leaves

The woody parts of the valley oak support California gall wasp, red cone gall wasp, and Chionodes petalumensis. As we approached a beckoning oak woodland, we stopped to watch a large family of mule deer, one of whose members spent a great deal of time standing on his hind legs and helping himself to the leaves of a large tree.

The roots of the valley oak have intimate symbiotic associations with many of the region’s mycorrhizal fungi which are essential to their survival — and one of the main reasons Southern California should favor the planting of native trees over imports like the pepper trees, goldenrains, jacarandas, bottle brushes, &c which, although drought tolerant, are simply incapable of slotting into an ecosystem which evolved over millions of years without them.

The valley oak is endemic to California, where its range stretches along the valleys and foothills of San Diego County in the south to Sikiyou County in the north. They live to be up to 600 years, which means that the oldest trees were alive during the fall of Constantinople, the invention of the printing press, the domination of Central Asia by Tamerlane’s Timurid Empire, and closer to home, the rise of the Inca and Aztec empires.

Until it fell on 1 May 1977, the tallest valley oak was the so-called “Hooker Oak,” which stood until then in Chico. Because its trunk had a massive diameter of 8.8 meters, its age was at the time estimated to be over 1,000 years old. However, once dead it was determined that the tree owed its girth to the fact that it was in fact two specimens, both of roughly 325 years of age, which had long ago grown together into one. It appeared in many films where it proved a natural in its many roles as a tree.

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), co-starring the Hooker Oak

The current tallest valley oak is the so-called “Henley Oak,” a specimen which towers 47 meters above the floor of the Round Valley in Covelo. It is named after Thomas J. Henley, a one-time Superintendent of Indian Affairs notable for opening the region to European-American settlers in defiance of a federal order which had promised the land to Native Americans, resulting in a great deal of regrettable bloodshed between indigenous Californians and immigrants. The tree is believed to be more than 500 years old, meaning it sprouted from an acorn and was possibly producing its own well before the first Spanish galleon, San Salvador, sailed along the coast.

The Henley Oak (source unknown)

Mike and I turned back after reaching Rock Pool, and again we crossed the valley featured in M*A*S*H. This time, surprisingly, I did find myself somewhat reminded of Korea — or at least of Korean (and Chinese) landscape painting. By this time, the sun had set and the gold hour was transitioning to blue. The oak woodland seemed to be climbing up the base of the improbably steep sandstone hillsides. Tipping the scales of perception, perhaps, was the presence of a Korean family attempting to take photos of a toddler with the scenery as a backdrop.

Korean landscape painting? Oak woodland at the base of low mountains

I sometimes have a physical sensation of being pulled into the woods and the longer I looked at the trees, the stronger the pull seemed to grow. I had to fight the urge to enter the forest because the park had officially closed the moment the sun sank behind the horizon and currently, there is no overnight camping because in June, 35-year-old Tristan Beaudette was shot to death in the tent he was sharing with his two young daughters. Since then, rumors and other reports of gunfire in the park have emerged both following the murder and stretching back to 2016 and there’s an ongoing investigation.

Vacant campsite under a canopy of oak trees)

Hopefully, the murderous gunman will be caught and peace and campers will again return to the park. It looks like a really wonderful place to pitch a tent for a weekend, perhaps do a bit of forest bathing, or even just contemplate the scenery. As we continued toward the exit, the crescent moon (which had hung in the sky throughout our day) was now shining brightly and bats were flitting about in search of a meal. We hurried our pace and left the park without incident.

Eric Brightwell is an adventurer, writer, rambler, explorer, cartographer, and guerrilla gardener who is always seeking paid writing, speaking, traveling, and art opportunities. He is not interested in generating advertorials, cranking out clickbait, or laboring away in a listicle mill “for exposure.”

Brightwell has written for Angels Walk LA, Amoeblog, Boom: A Journal of California, diaCRITICS, Hidden Los Angeles, and KCET Departures. His art has been featured by the American Institute of Architects, the Architecture & Design Museum, the Craft & Folk Art Museum, Form Follows Function, Los Angeles County Store, the book Sidewalking, Skid Row Housing Trust, and 1650 Gallery. Brightwell has been featured as subject in The Los Angeles Times, Huffington Post, Los Angeles Magazine, LAist, CurbedLA, Eastsider LA, Boing Boing, Los Angeles, I’m Yours, and on Notebook on Cities and Culture. He has been a guest speaker on KCRW‘s Which Way, LA? and at Emerson College. Art prints of Brightwell’s maps are available from 1650 Gallery. He is currently writing a book about Los Angeles and you can follow him on Ameba, Facebook, Goodreads, Instagram, Mubi, Twitter, and Weibo.

Click here to offer financial support and thank you!

Source: https://ericbrightwell.com/2018/09/18/those-useless-trees-the-valley-oak/

#read more #see more #check it out #interesting #learn more

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mariatramp56-blog · 5 years ago

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Those Useless Trees — The Valley Oak

Inside the Malibu Creek State Park

Languedoc?

Coast live oaks on a hill

Mule deer eating valley oak leaves

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), co-starring the Hooker Oak

The Henley Oak (source unknown)

Korean landscape painting? Oak woodland at the base of low mountains

Vacant campsite under a canopy of oak trees)

Click here to offer financial support and thank you!

Source: https://ericbrightwell.com/2018/09/18/those-useless-trees-the-valley-oak/

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bestjournal-blog · 6 years ago

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Dancing With The Stars Season 9 7 Days Two Outcomes: Who Went Home?

Insanity workout is the new revolution for home health and fitness created by Shaun T. And this is a real reality, simply because numerous people have seen genuine outcomes in just sixty times, without being forced to go to fitness centers or to take diet tablets. This plan is a new brand name established of workouts that changed people's life. Now, I bet you ask yourself who is this Shaun T and why you should consider into thought his plan? Tom Bergeron rehashed final night's motion and present judges' standings. And then. the men's part of tonight's DWTS week one season 9 elimination began: Louie Vito and companion Chelsie Hightower and a fantastic read and partner Karina Smirnoff had been proclaimed secure to dance once more. I'm not truly shocked; they're both adorable young thangs, after all.

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Snowboarder Louie's smile on the dance flooring seemed like the ultimate representation of deer in headlights: he danced like a truck was about to hit him. Louie received some pretty hefty praise from the judges, even if he did get called a "little dancing hobbit" by Bruno. I guess Louie can dance all the way to The Shire with a rating of 19, and with a extremely fantastic impact on the team salsa.

Aaron Carter Oh Aaron

Tom Delay. Truly? Does this imply we can expect a parade of disgraced politicians now? Is Jim Traficant that much powering (once he gets out of prison, of course)?

Donny Osmond - Whilst this entertainer might not be the very best dancer, he has a huge enthusiast base, and carries on to entertain the audience. Kym Johnson will pull out all stops to make his Charleston exciting. Plus, he's extremely energetic on Twitter in purchase to develop his enthusiast foundation and encourage votes. He and Kym will move on to 7 days five. The Dancing with the Stars 2009new solid grew to become large information on the political entrance when Tom Hold off was picked for Period nine. Tom Hold off has now absent from former House vast majority chief, and one of the numerous Bush administration officers to face scandal, to a actuality star.

Aaron Carter Bulge

Do you want to remain in-the-know? Then sign up to get my articles individually delivered to your in-box. Just click on SUBSCRIBE, and you'll remain up-to-the-moment with your preferred actuality exhibits and stars. Of course, your E-mail will never be shared with anybody else. Mya and Dmitry Chaplin/Quickstep/Samba - Len known as the dance a disappointment simply because he couldn't discover something to criticize. Bruno discovered it like champagne, light and sparkly. Carrie Ann praised the synchronicity. Mya's Samba was set in the 70's and outfitted with fringe. Carrie Ann called it unbelieveable. Len said she was on fire and Bruno stated she did an incredible Samba. Rating 29 & thirty for a total of fifty nine. The evening finished with Melissa and Mark tied for first location with Mya and Dmitry. The scores had been flip flopped all over the place. Followers and judges had been surprised when i was reading this and his partner Karina Smirnoff landed on their own in the base two. But in the end, it was fan preferred Chuck Liddell who recieved the most affordable mixed judges and fan votes. Chuck danced his final dance to the Texas Two Stage.

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Aaron nick carter and aaron carter Carter Dancing With The Stars

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, who did his very best to gather votes via a Fb support team page throughout Season 8, failed to exploit the immediacy of Twitter. Melissa Joan Hart - Melissa continues to improve with every 7 days, and her expert dancing companion Mark Ballas continues to push her in workouts. Unless of course she has a total catastrophe, do not look for her to go home in 7 days 4.

Aaron Carter Chris Crocker

Melissa Joan Hart and Mark Ballas - Not a especially memorable performance, but that may be due to the reality that Mark Ballas was a little under the climate. But I hope it was good sufficient to maintain Melissa Joan Hart in the competitors simply because she appears to be taking pleasure in herself - and I think she's able of turning in some fantastic performances - supplied she's offered the correct dance fashion. Rating: 23. If nothing else, Ashley inherited 1 thing from his well-known father, George: the smile. He did a decent job with the footwork, but it really didn't do a lot to stand out from the crowd. With a 4 from Bruno, Ashley finished with a 15. He also was last in his group salsa. He's just not exciting, and I'm truly not certain he wants to be there; for that purpose, he ought to be the male contestant to leave on Wednesday. I would see myself, hopefully, with some CDs out. You know, creating some CDs, going someplace, and being able to perform for people. I really image myself someday like that. I want to write more tunes, cover more tunes. Just maintain working at it.

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shirecorn · 3 years ago

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Real Life Reference!

Actually I'll elaborate. When you can arrange transportation, whatever age you are, reference is pretty much only limited to what you're willing to do to get it.

I know you think you can get by with just google images, because you've made it this far, right? But seeking out real life reference actually makes things easier for you, not harder.

Say I want to study shires horses.

I don't know anyone with shire horses, so I'm out of luck, right? WRONG!

You know those big draft horses that pull carriages in fairs and parades? Where do you think they go the rest of the year?

Odds are they belong to people who built their business around horse-drawn carriages, and they have a home base where they live normally.

A business is going to be both easy to find and easy to contact, you just have to know what to search

[ID: google search for "shire horses near me." The results are pages to see horses for sale. End ID]

No, I'm not looking to buy.... Rent gives me the same result... so what about:

[ID: google search for "shire horses for weddings." The results include business pages like "Horse Drawn Carriages - Shire Horse Wedding Transport." End ID]

Now we're talking. These are business that have carriage rentals.

Shire carriage rentals

[ID: a google search for "shire horse carriage California." The word California is in quotation marks. The first result is for "socalequine.com. End ID]

Putting a word in quotations tells google that their results need to have that EXACT phrasing, which helps you find what you're looking for.

I clicked the first link and found it to be a directory of southern California carriage business.

[ID: a website with a green background that lists names, addresses, and contact info for several carriage companies in southern California. Some of them list breeds such as clydesdales and shires. End ID]

From here, you can pick out business and contact them.

Other sources for shires

Carriages aren't the only business that have Shires, there's also breeders and rescues, all of which will have contact info

[ID: a google search of "shire horse stable California." The results include directories to find shire farms, and individual breeder websites. End ID]

That's a LOT of businesses to contact and ask if you can come over!

Reaching out for opportunities

In general, people like young artists and opportunities to educate and do outreach, so if you send enough emails, you're likely to get a positive response. Some farms will do tours as part of their business model, so book one of those if you want.

Introduce yourself! Tell the business who you are and what you want. You want a few hours to sketch, photograph, videotape, or just watch the shires either in their stalls or doing exercises. You don't need to ride them or anything.

You can also ask where and when their next public event is, and show up to a pumpkin fest to follow the hayride around the block to sketch them while they work.

You can apply this to any animal!!!

Dalmations? Look up dalmation rescue. Koi fish? Find a koi garden! Arabian horses? Arabian rescue or breeder. Horses in general? Visit a local stable/barn where people board dozens to hundreds of horses. I just walked you through shires to show my thought process and journey for figuring out how to look.

Wild animals

Some things are best when you pay for them

[ID: A google search for "wolf rescues in California," a webpage for Wolf Mountain Sanctuary with information about booking tours to see and interact with wolves, and a web page for Grand Canyon Deer Farms, advertising tours to interact with and feed captive deer. End ID]

Zoos and wild animal rescues depend on visitor fees to take care of their animals. You can offer to give free art or photography to farms and domestic animal breeders, but most places just really need your money.

It is truly in the best interest for you as an artist and the animal rescue to pay for the tour. You're investing in yourself and in the animals you want to capture, so it's worth budgeting and saving up for. I promise it's not a waste of time.

Some businesses will have promotions and discounts for say, a class field trip, or a homeschooling day. It's never a waste of time to ask what you can take advantage of. Everybody knows artists are poor, after all, ESPECIALLY young kid artists with puppy eyes.

Taxidermy

Need your subjects to sit still? Being dead helps

[ID: Two taxidermy bull moose fighting in the foreground, with shirts and hunting gear for sale in the background. The second image is a taxidermy showroom with dozens of African animals in various poses.]

It's surprisingly easy to see taxidermy for free. Big hunting stores (such as the chain Bass Pro Shop) will have taxidermy on display that you can walk in and study. Universities (ESPECIALLY) science universities can have hallways full of stuffed birds and wildlife, so reach out to them to find out if they can point you to some.

Big name taxidermists will sometimes have showrooms where they display and sell their pieces. Search up "taxidermy showroom" to find one near you. Contact them for hours or fees if it applies.

County, state, and national parks with visitors centers will almost certainly have taxidermy in their lobbies. Some even have skeletons! Some places are free to visit, others charge a fee that goes towards taking care of the wildlife in the park.

Any of these places might also lease and rent out taxidermy to you as an individual or as an art class. People like you and want to help you where they can, I swear.

Natural history and science museums often have halls full of taxidermy and you can linger however long you like.

You never know until you ask!

Most of the time, you'll probably get no or a very short response when you ask to visit businesses for free. This is where emails are perfect because you can write one up and then tailor it to each place.

Introduce yourself, ask if your visit would be possible, and then go into details.

Talk about who you are, what you're doing, a project you're working on, and how to find out more about you and your work. If the person you ask can't help you, they will often know someone who can, so always ask for tips on where to look next.

The world is full of opportunities, you just need to reach out and take them.

Look up local equestrian, farming, birding, or wildlife groups on facebook and ask "hey does anyone know where I can go to study [x]?"

And who knows, maybe your backyard is exactly what a different artist needs? Connect with people and become a community. After all, that's what art is all about.

TLDR: if you want to draw something, look up local businesses, breeders, rescues, and museums and reach out for some real life reference.

Being an adult is fun you can literally look up "where can I see wolves" and fucking go there

Anyway today I'm gonna be studying shires it's called introspection

#how to study #how to study art #art tips #how to get reference #how to draw horses #how to teach art #art class #shire screams

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