#also when its done and maybe even a bit before ill be workin on the multi

[kurthorton]

I have a practice test for the next stage of my license today and im Nervous

[jornthur]

“Unshaken” Chapter 10

Originally posted: June 8, 2020

Arthur Morgan x Reader, Slow-Burn Romance

Summary: You save a mysterious man who is dying on a mountain. Finding out he has Tuberculosis, you use your knowledge and skills with herbs and natural remedies to save him from death and help nurse him back to health. As he slowly starts to recover, you can’t help but wonder: Who is this man? Why had you found him the way that you did, beaten and ill? Only time, patience … and perhaps love … will tell.

•••••

The first mile was peaceful, and Arthur looked around as the wagon strolled down a narrow dirt path through the thick forest. The trees were tall, the hilly landscape like the huge waves of the ocean. His heart almost skipped a beat when he recalled those monstrous walls of water when he was on board that ship. Never again was he ever going on another damn boat as long as he lived.

He took in a deep breath, the smell and feel of the fresh forest air overcoming and relaxing his senses. It felt so good to be out in the wild again, he had to admit. He’d actually found himself missing the familiar scent of wilderness, reminding him of all those nights when he’d been out on his own, hunting, camping, whatever the hell he felt like doing.

Arthur almost laughed to himself then.

He was still here … still alive … still breathing … And the rest of the world believed he was dead, including his old friends — or what was left of them. Anger began to simmer deep within his gut at the thought of Dutch, Micah’s betrayal, what they’d done to him and John, the rest of the gang. He squeezed his eyes shut, lifting his hand to tug at the brim of his new hat, trying to find comfort in the new gift. All he could tell himself was that Marston was safe. The boy was an idiot, sure, but when it came to his family and their safety, Arthur knew nothing would stand in John’s way.

A gentle gust of wind hit him, blowing back his hair and cooling what little heat had begun to grow in his cheeks from the anger he felt. Arthur let out a sigh, allowing the cool feeling to seep into his skin. Looking around, he took in the surrounding views. He knew he was somewhere far north of Roanoke Ridge, but he’d never been up this far before Y/N and Austin had taken him in.

The place was beautiful, he thought, taking in the towering trees around them. He’d learned a few interesting terms from Y/N’s herbalist books. He’d been drawn to those bookshelves of hers many times while he’d been cooped up in that cabin, if only to avoid dying from boredom rather than Tuberculosis. Turned out he’d ended up drawn to the knowledge.

There were so many kinds of trees he could now identify�� Spruce, Cedars, Pines, Oaks, and very many Sequoia trees. These trees were extremely tall, forming a thick canopy of leaves far overhead, the sunshine piercing through them in rays, hitting the ground with glowing warm light.

The air smelled so fresh as well, and Arthur took in another deep breath, relishing the real cool feeling in his lungs and the fresh and unique smells around him. There was so much plant life growing up here, all kinds of colorful flowers and foliage dotting the thick green grass everywhere. Damn, this area was gorgeous.

Arthur reached up again and stroked the feather on his hat gently, the bristles soft as, well, a feather. He gripped the crown and took the hat off, lowering it to his lap so he could examine it further. The black leather was worn, but genuine, and he could tell it was made from real cowhide, examining the hundreds of skin pores scattered all over. He ran a finger over the brown braided leather tied around the crown of the hat, similar to how his father’s hat had the looped rope. The texture was rough, but also soft, little furs sticking up here and there from years of use.

Then Arthur looked at the feather, and he squinted, his brows drawing down tight as he stroked the thing with the tip of his finger. It was that of a great-horned owl, a primary feather from the wing, the black and gold colored stripes giving away its identity. He wondered, then … why an owl feather? Maybe it was just something her grandfather hadn’t thought much about, but sometimes a certain kind of bird feather in a cowboy’s hat had a meaning behind it.

Thinking back, he recalled Y/N telling him that her grandfather hadn’t lived ‘the best life.’ That he’d been some kind of wanderer. Arthur found himself being curious as to what exactly she had meant. A wanderer?

What kind of life had the old man lived that had her hesitating to tell him the whole story? And what of the feather?

A cough escaped him, and he lifted a had to cover his mouth, clearing his throat then.

Austin looked over at him with curious eyes, “You alright, cowpoke?”

Arthur couldn’t help but give a small smile as he turned his head to face the young man, narrowing his eyes at him, “I’m just fine, little feller, how ’bout yourself?”

The brother narrowed his eyes in return, showing that he was clearly offended by the term Arthur had used on him, “I ain’t ‘little.’”

Arthur laughed, “Why, sure you is, little feller. As long as you call me a cowpoke, I’ll keep callin’ you little. Sound fair?”

Austin grunted, “Not really.” He reached up to scratch at his cheek, then added, “But you kinda do strike me as a cowpoke.”

“Well, you strike me as little, boah,” Arthur said with a grin, his voice a low rough tone as he patted his chest with an open palm, “And it’ll be much worse if you ain’t careful, son.”

Austin grunted, letting out a huff as if he wasn’t amused with Arthur’s teasing in the least.

Several more moments of silence passed, and Arthur gently placed the hat back on his head.

��So she decided to give you our grandfather’s hat, huh?” Austin asked, his voice sounding a bit sour as he cracked the reins again.

Arthur looked over at him, noting the expression the boy had on his face. He didn’t look angry, exactly, but from his eyes Arthur could tell there was some kind of story. “What do you mean?” He asked.

Austin let out a long sigh, “Well, I know she told you it belonged to our grandfather, and he weren’t the best man when he was alive. I never wanted to touch the damn thing after he died.” He lifted his eyes to meet Arthur’s, “Kinda feels weird that you’re wearin’ it, s’all.”

Arthur took that moment as a chance to find out what he could, maybe the brother could give him some of the information he’d been wondering about. “Who was he?”

Austin let out a sarcastic laugh, “I don’t think that’s for me to say. If she didn’t tell you, I don’t think I should be the one to do so.”

Arthur’s natural instinct would’ve been to reach out and choke the bastard to get the information he wanted. It was a feeling he was used to whenever assholes gave him a hard time, but he could respect the brother for looking after his sister.

Another curious thought occurred to him then, and he couldn’t help but ask, “What were y’all doin’ before you found me up on that mountain?”

He could see Austin freeze up at the question, and the young man turned his gaze over to look at him, “You mean that night? We were travelin’ back from Emerald Ranch. Y/N needed to do a trade for some of the supplies we needed for the horses. We have a few contacts scattered here and there for supplies we need that we can’t get up here, and sometimes we need to travel a ways to get them.

“We were supposed to arrive home sometime in the late evening, but we ran into this strange man on the road. He looked odd, short gray dreads, green bandana around his head, weird old clothing. Said his name was William.”

Arthur stilled at that.

“But anyhow,” Austin continued, not noticing that Arthur had suddenly froze, “he was camping out on the side of the road near Moonstone Pond, and he had all these strange plants he seemed to be workin’ with. Of course, it grabbed Y/N’s attention and he invited us over, so she and I stopped to chat with him for a while.” Austin chuckled as he recalled the memory, “What was supposed to be a small chat ended up bein’ a two-hour conversation. I didn’t really listen to what they were sayin’ since I was wrapped up in a book I’ve been readin’. Eventually I had to pull her away since it was gettin’ late.

“When we were just about to leave, she mentioned a special plant that grew over by O’Creagh’s Run, must’ve been somethin’ they were talkin’ about earlier. I was about to say no, but she gave me this look. She has this thing that she does with her eyes, drives me crazy ’cuz I can’t turn her down when she does it.

“So we headed over there, and I stopped the wagon by the small lake so she could explore the area. I just hung out under a tree with my book to pass the time … That’s when we heard the sounds.”

Arthur lifted his head and narrowed his eyes, “Sounds?”

“Gunshots, shoutin’ — We was goin’ to leave the area as quickly as possible, but — well, Y/N could hear the struggles, fighting, a man in pain, and she couldn’t stop herself.” Austin paused, as if he were deep in thought, “We saw someone runnin’ away from the mountain before they disappeared into the trees. I didn’t really get a good look at the man, but it looked like he had dirty, long blonde hair … someone you knew?”

The fury that suddenly welled in Arthur’s chest didn’t surprise him in the least damn bit.

Micah.

That damned rat.

The rat that weaseled his way in and ultimately destroyed the Van Der Linde gang in such a short amount of time.

Twenty goddamned years of loyalty and service to Dutch, and the old fool had decided to listen and believe someone who’d just joined the gang not half a year ago, a man who’d only been out for himself in the end … Just like Dutch …

“Arthur?”

Austin’s voice interrupted Arthur’s thoughts and snapped him back to reality. “Yeah, sorry ’bout that, kid. Just thinkin’.”

Austin seemed to have picked up on Arthur’s mood, no doubt from the gravel Arthur felt in his throat from the emotion that had just been about to take him over. He couldn’t dwell on such things, not right now. What good did it do?

At that moment another thought occurred to him, “You didn’t want Y/N takin’ me in, did you?” He stated it as fact since he knew the answer, but he found himself wanting to hear what Austin’s response would be.

The boy chuckled darkly, looking straight ahead at the narrow dirt trail. “Honestly, when we heard the gunshots, I thought it was going to be a trap, an ambush of some kind. But Y/N … When we reached that mountain and found you laying on that rock, it was like she didn’t care about anythin’ else in the world but you.” He cleared his throat, “The whole time I was worried that she was going to get herself killed, being so close to a stranger. I feared that something terrible would happen, like you would have a knife hidden on you, or a friend of yours would come leaping out of a hiding spot and shoot her dead.” Austin lowered his head, looking down at his lap as if lost in thought, “To tell you the truth, I don’t know what I would’ve done had that been the case. Y/N is my whole world right now, and she matters to me more than anythin’ else in my pathetic life.”

Arthur’s eyes softened, almost finding himself sympathizing with the poor boy, but he continued to listen.

“When she insisted on taking you to our cabin, I nearly lost it. Watching her take you in and nurse you back to health every day, I couldn’t help but fear for the worst. I still thought you had something evil planned. Some monsters would go to any length to take advantage and trick people like us to get what they want, even if it’s hurtin’ one of their own.”

The boy was smart, Arthur admitted to himself. There were definitely men like that out there, and he should damn well know.

“But when she mentioned you had Tuberculosis, and I began seeing the signs from you, how truly sick you were — I guess … Well, I guess I noticed how stupid I was bein’ at that point — but I was too proud to admit it.

“After you showed your skills with the gun, I realized you could’ve killed us both whenever you wanted long before that point. The thought was scary, of course, but finally seeing that all you needed was a gun or your bare hands to take us both out and you never did? Well, I guess you can say my stupidity wore off a lil’ bit at that point.”

Arthur grinned, amused with Austin’s confession at how much of an idiot he had been for all the trouble he’d given him.

But could he fully blame Austin? The boy was just looking after his sister, and Arthur couldn’t do nothing but respect him for it. “Don’t hurt yourself too much over it, boah. You’re just lookin’ after her, I understand. In fact,” he leaned back and rolled his shoulders, stretching out the tension in his back, “I kinda like that.”

Austin acknowledged his statement with a small nod and a smile. “I love her, I really do. She’s family, and the most wonderful person I know.” He narrowed his eyes at Arthur and teased, “If you ever hurt her, though, I’ll make sure to shoot you square in the chest, got it?”

Arthur threw back his head and laughed at the threat, “If you say so. But don’t you worry — I ain’t got plans for that.” The fact that the young man had the courage to actually threaten him was truly entertaining, and Arthur couldn’t help but note how much smaller the man actually was compared to him. Arthur had a good six inches on him in height, and a whole lot more muscle, despite the fact that he was still sick. The boy worked hard, but they clearly didn’t eat enough for him to gain a whole lot of meat on his bones. He was about as contrasted as he could be compared to Arthur.

He was grateful Austin had finally swallowed his pride down enough in order to ask him how to hunt. They truly did need it, and he would do his best to teach them. It was the least he could do for him and his sister after everything they’d done for him.

The next several moments were quiet, minus the sound of Lily’s hooves hitting the ground and the tittering of birds high up in the trees.

“So what’s it like livin’ up here?” Arthur asked. “It don’t seem too bad.”

“It ain’t,” Austin replied with a shrug, “It was tough for the first few months, but we managed. Built ourselves a camp, then eventually built ourselves a cabin — then the stables for the horses and other animals.” He cleared his throat, “Of course it’s been hard, what with my lack of huntin’ skills, but Y/N absolutely loves it. She enjoys bein’ surrounded by all the wildlife and plants.”

Arthur found himself suddenly more invested, wanting to know more about Y/N and her passions. “And her garden?”

“She’s been in love with flowers since she was a tiny thing. When we came up here, she brought a few supplies that belonged to our mother, and she got to work on that garden right away.” He let out a small laugh, “What started as a small batch of flowers and herbs turned into a small estate of all kinds of plants. She’s been finding different herbs all over the place and replanting them here for the past three years. Every month it gets larger and larger. I’ll admit, it looks pretty damn beautiful.”

Arthur grinned. “That is does,” he agreed with a nod. It did indeed, Y/N’s garden was a pretty good size, and the colorful shrubbery was a marvel to look at, truthfully. He’d been able to see it out through one of the windows as he’d been recovering on that couch all that time …

“So how are you feeling, Arthur?” Austin asked, breaking the silence.

Arthur turned his head to look at him, “What?”

Austin lifted a hand to point at his chest, “Your TB, you were coughing a bit earlier, just checking to see how you’re feelin’ now?”

Arthur rubbed his own palm over his chest, “I’m just fine, you’re sister’s got some healin’ magic goin’ on with those herbs of hers.”

The boy’s laugh was loud and sharp, “Y/N has a talent with nature, that’s for damn sure. I swear she may be Mother Nature herself.”

The two men’s laughter echoed through the trees as they travelled further down the trail. A squirrel skittered across the ground, and Arthur watched it disappear into the thick foliage on the other side.

More time passed, until finally they reached a small clearing. Arthur lifted his finger to point over to a small grassy area. “That’s a good spot to start.”

Austin pulled back the reins until Lily stopped, bringing the wagon to a halt. He looked over to where he was pointing and lifted a brow, “Really? Doesn’t seem like the kind of spot wildlife would be, it’s too open.”

Arthur gave him a bewildered look. “Wildlife don’t always need to be in a particular spot in order for you to track ’em, Austin.” He said, his drawl annoyed, letting the young man know through his tone that what Austin had stated was completely idiotic. He got up and climbed down out of the wagon, walking towards the small patch, “This area’s got plenty of plant-life, tellin’ you it’s a good spot to start pickin’ up trails.” He narrowed his eyes as he placed his hands on his belt, turning his head as he took in the surrounding forest. “It’s perfect for grazin’, plenty of cover ’round here if they need it.”

Austin crawled out of the wagon, grabbing his carbine repeater. It was smart — even though they didn’t need it for killing today, it was better to be safe than get caught off-guard by any wild predators. He walked over to Arthur, and Arthur began walking slowly across the grass, looking down to examine the dirt. “Now whatchu wanna do is look for any signs, footprints, fur, dung, broken branches and whatnot.” He took several steps forward, crouching low so he could see better.

Austin did the same, crouching to help look around for anything they could pick up. “So look for those things, got it.” He said, crawling low to the ground.

“You also wanna be quiet as possible, don’t wanna draw any attention towards yourself or you’ll scare off anythin’ nearby. Same thing can be said about your gun.” Arthur looked over his shoulder at him, “You ever use a bow before, boah?”

Austin shook his head, “Only a couple times when I was young. We got one up by the cabin stored in the shed. Another thing that belonged to our grandfather, but I never touched the damned thing.”

Arthur huffed, amused at the other man’s stubborn nature. “It’s a useful weapon, kid, it can be used to make quiet kills so you don’t frighten off any wildlife in the near vicinity.”

The young man just let out a grunt, “I ain’t touchin’ that thing.”

Arthur just shrugged at the boy’s pride, “Up to you, but I highly suggest you start learnin’ how to use it.”

Over the next several minutes, they examined the grounds, both of them crawling quietly through the tall grass.

“Arthur?”

Austin’s whispered voice reached Arthur’s ear, and he turned to see him waving his arm, gesturing for him to come over. He made his way over, and once he was beside Austin the kid pointed at a few small hoof prints in the soil. He smiled, “Good job there, feller, now see if you can follow them.”

The boy nodded and did just that. Over the next half hour, Arthur continued to help him by pointing out other signs, such as crushed grass, a couple broken branches, and bits of fur here and there. The last sign was several strange marks on one of the trees twenty yards away. ‘Tree rubs,’ of course.

“This way,” Arthur whispered, leading them quietly through a few tall bushes.

Finally they reached a new wide-open clearing. This one had a small pond directly in the center, and in the distance, Arthur spotted the white-tailed buck grazing on some of the lush green grass at its feet.

For a moment, Arthur froze, recalling all the dreams he’d been having. The buck looked so similar to the one in his dreams; the size, the coat, the large antlers it displayed. Every single detail was precise.

Austin sat beside him, and Arthur felt rather than heard the boy lifting his gun.

At that moment, a doe and two young fawns appeared from behind one of the large boulders, the three of them approaching the large buck.

Arthur grabbed the barrel of the gun before Austin could aim the thing.

He watched as the doe came over to the buck with the two young close behind her, and the creatures nuzzled each other lovingly.

It was a sight that Arthur found himself lost in, and he couldn’t help but think of his own family, what was, what could have been, what might have been … If he’d only chosen a different life for himself …

What the hell was wrong with him?

“What the hell are you doin’, Arthur?”

Austin’s voice echoed his thoughts, snapping him back out from his mind. Arthur cleared his throat, “Let’s leave ’em be, kid.” He was going to leave it at that, but then he added “We promised Y/N, remember? Just trackin’.”

Austin gave him a strange look, but after a couple of moments he seemed to decide not to argue with him. “So what now?”

Arthur gazed at the family of deer a few seconds longer, then he flicked his gaze over to Austin, “I don’t know. I reckon we should head on back,” he turned to face the younger man, “You suppose your ready to travel back?”

Again with that strange look, what the hell was Austin seeing? Had Arthur suddenly grown his own pair of antlers? What was running through that boy’s mind?

Finally, he answered, “I guess so, I think I learned plenty today.” They both stood quietly and started heading back towards the wagon. Austin tucked the gun strap over his shoulder, reaching up to scratch at his cheek again. “I’ll admit that was actually quite fun. Thanks, Arthur. You’re a pretty great tracker, in all honesty.”

The compliment felt strange, Arthur thought, especially coming from Austin of all people, but he supposed he would take it. The boy was grateful, having learned something that would be incredibly useful for him and his sister when it came to their survival. “It ain’t no cake walk after this, boah. We still got a long way to go, trackin’ requires a lot of patience — an eagle’s eye.”

Austin nodded, giving him a small smile, ���I suppose that makes sense. A lot of patience — kinda like fishin’?”

Arthur let out a genuine laugh at that, “I guess you’re right.”

2 Weeks Later …

Birds tittered high up in the trees, singing there own unique songs as the sun’s rays bore down on your back. The weather was absolutely gorgeous today, you thought to yourself as you knelt in your garden. You were in a cheery mood, humming softly as you pruned several of the herbs and flowers. You looked over your shoulder to see that Arthur was still relaxing on the porch swing, working on something in his journal. Writing or drawing? You had no clue, but you were going to leave him to his privacy.

The last two weeks had been quite the ride.

Arthur’s body was improving, his skin and muscles filling back out with each passing week. Even though his blood still showed signs of leftover Tuberculosis bacteria, it was clear his body was slowly but successfully fighting it off. You continued to give him treatments every other day, and he still took daily doses of honey per your instructions.

But despite the fact his body was getting better physically, you knew the herbs and medication still had a large impact on both his physical and mental state, so you still urged him to be cautious with his actions so that he didn’t overwork himself too much. It was crucial for him to stay in a calm state so his mind and body wouldn’t somehow become unstable.

He’d been sleeping a lot better. Every night you woke up to check on him, and Arthur was sleeping peacefully every time. Truly, it made you happy to see him so relaxed now. Ever since you’d sung that lullaby for him so many nights ago, that nightmare of his hadn’t seemed to come back. Though you still wondered who this John was, no matter how much it bothered you, you didn’t want to risk bringing anymore pain to Arthur.

For the past several days Arthur had been on his feet helping out around the cabin, whether it was doing chores or hunting with Austin, he managed to keep himself busy throughout the day. He was regaining the muscle and healthy tone he’d no doubt once had before, his face, eyes, and cheeks becoming full once more, and he was beginning to gain a tan from being out in the sun so much now.

Ever since you had given it to him, not once had Arthur ever taken off his new hat. Unless he was asleep or bathing, the thing rarely ever left his head.

It really did look good on him.

You had to admit, the man was absolutely stunning. Whenever he worked or did any kind of physical labor, you couldn’t help but watch those muscles in his body sometimes, how they moved and flexed beneath his skin, noting the healthy shine of sweat on his face, his neck, his forearms, and God help you, but sometimes he went shirtless when he worked, and it was all you could do not to throw yourself at the man. Push him to the ground and take him there and then —

What on earth was wrong with you? You shook your head hard, trying to perish those dirty thoughts from your mind. You weren’t exactly a plucked flower, but you’d read enough romance novels to give yourself plenty of naughty imagination.

Letting out a sigh, you plucked another dead leaf. There were so many scars across his body, old and new, but one stuck out to you the most. You recalled the scar you’d seen on Arthur’s chest, just above his left pectoral. There was no doubt it was a gunshot wound, the scar tissue around it having sunken down into the ruined flesh. It had long since healed, but the skin there was still pink, still soft, so it hadn’t been too long since it was inflicted on him. Again you wondered, what had happened to him? Who’d shot him? Why? The thoughts of possibility raced through your head, but going off his nature and what you’d seen of him thus far, you couldn’t come to a conclusion or even imagine why anyone would want to hurt that man.

Reaching out to crush another dead leaf, you smiled to yourself.

Arthur was strong … indeed he was a fighter.

You’d slowly been getting more and more comfortable with the thought of Arthur going out with Austin on his hunting trips, allowing them to start traveling out as far as they needed to go. Food was getting low, and finally you’d told the two boys that they could start hunting for game if they wished. You were proud of them both, for keeping to their word and staying safe.

You could tell your brother was improving with his skills thanks to Arthur, just last week they had managed to bring back a boar, and Arthur had told you that your brother had managed to track it down on his own, but Austin had admitted that he’d missed the first few shots, and Arthur had to kill the boar himself. The two had slowly been getting along, you’d noticed. It was more than refreshing to see.

Arthur had been helping Austin out with his aim several times over the last two weeks, the two of them practicing down by the stream in the late evenings.

You would stay back and watch to observe every chance you got. Honestly, you secretly wished it was you Arthur was teaching. To show you how to handle a gun, how to aim it, how to shoot. You had no idea how to use a weapon, so you picked up whatever you could from the two of them.

Your brother had recently started working with your grandfather’s bow, which confused you at first, since he’d always insisted on using his own carbine repeater. But then he’d explained to you that Arthur had told him it was a stealthy hunting tactic in order to capture more game.

Finally, you’d understood. Winter was slowly approaching, and it was more than important to learn how to use a much quieter weapon, especially when wildlife was so much more scarce during the cold parts of the year.

But — despite countless hours of practice — Austin hadn’t managed to get the hang of it, which worried you somewhat. Poor man, each time he tried aiming an arrow, the thing would wobble in his grip and the shot itself ended up with the arrow landing on the ground only a few feet away. No matter how Arthur instructed him, it seemed hopeless. At one point Austin had nearly thrown the thing into the stream, shouting something about how the bow wasn’t working properly. But Arthur had tested the thing for himself, and of course it worked flawlessly when he’d used it, the arrow finding its mark perfectly on one of the trees he’d been aiming for..

You’d found yourself strangely drawn to the weapon, you had to admit, though you weren’t quite sure why.

The bow itself was very beautiful. The long round limbs were made of dark maple wood, painted with some kind of glossy coating to protect the wood from wear and tear. The handle was wrapped in finely engraved black leather strips. There were several more curly engravings that ran along the weapon itself, and two small metal owl heads were placed at each end, the beaks holding the tight silver bowstring.

A part of you really wanted to try it out for yourself at some point.

The two men were planning on going on another hunting trip today, so it was going to be another quiet evening alone at the cabin for you. Strangely enough, even though you finally felt comfortable with them both being gone, you still weren’t quite used to it.

“How you doin’ there, Y/N?”

Arthur’s deep voice nearly had you jumping out of your skin. You leapt to your feet and turned around to face him. “Arthur!” Your voice cracked, and you cleared your throat, “I didn’t hear you comin’ over.”

Grinning, he let out a soft chuckle, “Sorry bout that, honey, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“You’re fine,” you said, waving off his apology.

He looked over your shoulder at the plants behind you, “So what’re you doin’?”

You turned to look down at the herbs you’d been working on, “Oh, well I was just pruning some of the plants.” At his questioning look you added, “Sometimes some of the leaves or stems die and I need to take them off, otherwise it could cause disease and the nutrients inside the plants are wasted trying to feed what’s no longer alive. When I get rid of the dead pieces it allows them to focus on keeping the rest of the plant strong and healthy.”

Arthur nodded, though you had the feeling he was only pretending to understand what you were talking about in order to make you feel better, going by the confused look and his face; his eyes narrowed, his mouth her in a small grimace. “So these herbs,” he cleared his throat, “them what you used to treat my TB with?”

His curiosity nearly had you taken aback. Honestly, you hadn’t really expected him to care enough to ask such a question. “Yes,” you said, your voice soft as you looked up at him, “I — I gather pieces from them from time to time and make several elixirs and medications from their properties.” You pointed to one of the plants, “That right there is Ginger, it’s used as an antioxidant, which can help take care of some of the negative effects caused by most bacterias.” You pointed to several others, giving the names and explaining what each of them did.

By the time you’d named a few more, you looked back at Arthur, and his brows were drawn down tight, his hand rubbing at the side of his temple as if he’d gotten a headache. You nearly laughed, “I’m sorry, Arthur, I tend to get carried away sometimes.”

Arthur lifted a brow as if he were actually amused, “I can tell you really enjoy your work,” he said, a wide grin stretching those lips of his, “It’s really amazin’. You should be proud, honey.”

You lowered your eyes, feeling a blush creep into your cheeks, “Thank you, Arthur. I honestly wouldn’t know as much as I did without my mother’s journal. She taught me so much.” You voice nearly hitched, and you blinked several times in order to keep any tears from welling.

Arthur reached out and laid a warm hand on your shoulder in an effort to comfort you, “I’m sure she’d be real proud of you, Y/N.”

You couldn’t speak, so you just nodded in answer.

Several moments passed, and Arthur spoke again, “Austin mentioned to me that you ran into a man named William?”

Your head jerked up that that, surprised. “He told you about that?”

Arthur nodded, “The night you saved me from that mountain, told me you met an herbalist the same day. Quite a character.”

Your brows lifted, “You know him?”

“Yeah. Met him a few times, a long while ago, before — Well, before all that shit went down.”

“Language, Arthur!”

You both laughed, and he tipped his hat to you.

He was truly adorable, you thought as you smiled at him. You lifted your gaze to look at the hat. “So, how you liking your new hat, Arthur?”

Your question had him letting out a laugh as he ran his fingers across the leather brim. “Keep’s the sun outta my eyes, like you said,” he teased. His eyes softened then, those beautiful sapphire-emeralds seeming to stare directly into your soul. “Thank you, Y/N.”

His grateful smile alone nearly overwhelmed you, and you quickly spoke your next words before you found your idiot-self getting lost in his gaze. “I’m glad you like it. My grandmother made that hat for our grandfather when they were both young. It was … meant to stand for something … but he didn’t do it justice with the life he led. It needs to be worn by a good man. Someone like you.”

Arthur’s expression seemed to change at that moment, and you couldn’t help but notice the softness in his eyes suddenly grow hard.

•••••

A good man.

It was all Arthur could do not to lose himself then and there. To take the hat off and give it back to her immediately, to leave and never turn back even once. Dammit, he didn’t deserve to be here. He didn’t deserve the treatments he’d been given, all the hospitality, the food and shelter that Y/N and Austin had so generously given.

He wasn’t a good man, and he damn well knew it.

It was the second time she’d called him that, and he nearly had to bite his tongue. But what could he possibly say to her at that moment? That he wasn’t the man she truly thought he was? That he’d been a liar? A thief? A ruthless killer?

An outlaw …

Arthur did his best not to squeeze his eyes shut from the sudden pain that welled in his chest. What the hell was wrong with him? There was nothing he could say or do to get past the ache in his heart from those words.

For once, he was extremely grateful to hear that sill boy’s scratchy voice calling out to both of them.

Y/N smiled, looking over Arthur’s shoulder, “Austin, how are ya?”

Austin came jogging over, his face and clothes covered in dust and dirt from whatever work he’d been doing earlier. He stopped a few feet in front of them, “I’m doin’ just fine, sis,” he panted, nodding at Y/N and meeting Arthur’s gaze. “Hey, Arthur, so you ready for our next huntin’ trip?” The young man asked him, a naive yet excited smile spread across his face. Over the past two weeks he’d learned to enjoy the trips, getting to learn something new from them each and every time.

Arthur shrugged with a small chuckle, “That depends, are you?” He nodded at the dirt covering the boy.

Austin scratched his cheek, “Yeah, sorry about that, sir.” He brushed off the dirt from his clothes, “It ain’t nothin’, Just noticed the two of you over here and I wanted to see if you were prepared to head out.”

Over the last several days, Austin had grown the strange and somewhat annoying habit of calling him sir, and Arthur didn’t really know why. Was he trying to show some sort of respect toward him? Maybe after acting like such a dumbass over the past month, he might’ve thought addressing Arthur in that way would gain him redemption? It felt odd, and Arthur really wished he wouldn’t call him that, but he’d go along with it if it made the younger man feel better.

“Well, Austin,” Arthur said, clearing his throat, “Ready when you are, then.”

“Dandy! I found an interestin’ new spot I think we should go check out a ways up north, the wagon’s already loaded up and ready to go.” Austin stated, pointing over toward the stables where the coach stood, with Lily already attached to it. The boy was quick, Arthur thought. He must’ve been busy getting everything prepared while he and Y/N had been working on their own tasks.

Arthur lowered his eyes. On one hand he didn’t want to leave Y/N so abruptly, but on the other he needed to escape the tension that had suddenly risen in his gut from her words. A good man … how could he follow up that line with any further conversation? It hadn’t angered him, but he was tired of hearing it — from anyone. He gave a single nod, “Let’s head out, then.”

As Austin nodded and headed off toward the wagon, Arthur looked back over his shoulder to meet Y/N’s gaze, “We’ll be back soon, honey.” He said softly, winking and giving her a small grin. He hoped she wasn’t disappointed, but he needed to get out of there. Clear his head.

But she didn’t look upset. No, instead her eyes absolutely glowed as she gave him another one of her beautiful smiles. “Y’all stay safe, Arthur.” After a slight moment of hesitation, she returned his wink, “You keep Austin safe now.”

Her teasing helped the tension ease away somewhat, and he let out a chuckle, “Don’t you worry, I’ll keep him in line.”

With that, he headed over to join Austin on the wagon.

•••••

“So where we headed?” Arthur asked as Austin steered Lily up the narrow trail through the tall sequoia trees. He and the younger man waved farewell to Y/N with her returning the gesture as they disappeared around a large rock.

Austin lowered his hand, pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket. He unfolded it and handed it to Arthur, “There’s this new place I wanna check out, passed by it a few days ago while ridin’ Butch. Seemed interestin’.”

Arthur took the map and held it up, looking over a simple drawing of directions. They appeared to lead up north towards the larger mountains, further into the forest.

The kid pointed at a thick scribble he’d made on the paper, “That area right there, it’s right at the foot of the mountains between the trees. A small area of tall grass. I saw a family of elk there a couple times. If we can spot them again, I’m sure we can bring back enough food to last us for a month.”

What he said was true, one elk could last them quite a while. If they managed to kill one, they’d be set for weeks. Arthur folded the map back up and handed it back, “You seem to know what you’re doin’,” He said with a light laugh.

Austin shook his head, “Only a little, sir, it’s why I thought it best for you to come along on this one.”

Arthur shrugged, “You’ll get the hang of it soon enough, kid,” He reached out and patted the man’s shoulder. “I’ll look after ya.”

The younger man narrowed his eyes, “I don’t need no hand-holdin’, Arthur.”

Arthur’s heart suddenly skipped at those words, his smile dropping from his face as his eyes grew flat.

Those words … when had he last heard those exact words —

A memory flashed through his mind … Lenny …

He flinched, lowering his head as he reached up to tug down the brim of his hat, hiding his expression from the brother. The pain was almost unbearable … coming back to bit him in the ass once more.

The loss of his friends, of his family — it had only been a couple months, and the agony still felt just as sharp, as though it had only been yesterday when his life had completely fallen apart.

… What life, though?

Arthur nearly wanted to laugh at himself from the thought.

His family had meant everything to him, the bond they’d shared more real than anything else in the world.

But Arthur would be lying to himself if he’d thought what they had was any kind of real life. He’d spent the majority of his chasing a dream for a life he weren’t even sure about, along with the rest of the gang who’d followed over the years. He’d failed all of them. Hosea, Lenny, Kieran, Sean, Grimshaw, Mac, Davey, Jenny … they’d all had their own lives snatched away from them so abruptly.

They’d never had the chance for the life they’d so desperately fought for.

And the others … Charles, Sadie, Tilly, Mary-Beth, Uncle … Karen, Swanson, Trelawny … Where were they now?

The wonder of their whereabouts prodded his mind like a hot poker every single day. Even though he tried so hard to move on in hopes that they would do the same and lead normal lives, it was extremely difficult to do so. He only hoped they were all safe. They all deserved so much more after all the shit they went through in the gang.

And Jack, Abigail, John …

Arthur lifted his eyes to stare up at the sky, the sun’s bright rays peeking through the small clouds.

‘You’re my brother.’

Those words echoed through his mind, and he allowed himself a sad smile. He thought back to Sister Calderon, the words she’d spoken echoing in his head. ‘Take a gamble that love exists.’

Arthur wasn’t the religious type, but deep inside his heart he prayed for the sake of John and his family, for their safety, so that they may go on to live the lives they’d damn well earned.

John Marston. The man was a goddamn fool, but he loved Abigail and Jack, and Arthur knew he’d do anything to protect them. 

They were safe.

He knew, deep down in his heart something told him. They were out there.

Time passed by quickly, and finally the wagon stopped. Arthur felt the seat lift as Austin hopped out, and he shook himself out of his thoughts, realizing that they’d arrived at the foot of the mountains. Arthur looked around, taking in the small grassy clearing. He raised a hand to lift the brim of his hat, looking up at the base of the mountain, a tall cliff that encircled half of the area. The other half was enclosed by the thick forest of trees that towered over them, their green and multi-colored coming-autumn leaves providing cool shade to the tiny meadow.

“We’re finally here,” Austin said cheerfully as he rolled his shoulders, stretching out the stiffness in his limbs. He walked behind the wagon to grab his carbine repeater.

Arthur examined the area closely. Indeed, it was a great area for wildlife of all kinds. Plenty of grass, soft ground, perfect temperature, and shelter. He narrowed his eyes, noting a small cave opening at the base of the cliff. It was too small for a bear or cougar, so it was probably just a family of deer, he thought. Still, they had to be cautious. It was an unexplored area. He looked over his shoulder as Austin approached him from behind and stared at the gun he held, “You need to get a handle on that bow soon, kid.” He said teasingly.

“I know, I know, and I ain’t a kid!” Austin snapped, “I’ve been tryin’ but I’m just hopeless with the damn thing!”

Arthur nearly laughed at the blush that crept into Austin’s cheeks as he looked away, unable to meet Arthur’s gaze.

He really had been trying his best, Arthur did notice, but the bow was turning out to be the boy’s natural enemy. Either he weren’t a good teacher, or the bow was truly hopeless for him. Where was Charles when he needed him, Arthur thought almost sadly.

Arthur shook his head at the thought, then threw his hand up in the general direction. “Lead the way.”

Austin gave a small but nervous nod, stepping forward and leading them both across the grass towards the cliff. They crept slowly and quietly, staying low to the tall grass to avoid being spotted by any of the nearby wildlife. There were small sounds here and there as Austin examined the grounds, but they were mostly from squirrels or small rabbits. Since Austin only had the gun with him, they weren’t going to risk scaring off any larger game by shooting and possibly missing smaller targets. Arthur had taught him to be careful with such things.

Gradually they got further and further away from the wagon, and Austin led Arthur towards the foot of the cliff. “There,” the younger man whispered, pointing toward some hoof-prints that had been left behind in the ground. They created a trail, and the two men followed it, making their way around the cliff. Finally, the tracks stopped at the base of some large rocks that formed a small ramp towards the top of the cliff. Austin began to climb, and Arthur followed behind him, as quiet as they could possibly be.

Suddenly a small rock bounced down from atop the cliff, landing in the small meadow below, and Arthur looked up, spotting a small glimpse of large antlers just over the peak. “There’s one,” Austin whispered next to him, having seen them as well.

“Alright, get your gun ready,” Arthur whispered back as they approached the top. His heart was racing, but he forced himself to calm down as they reached the top of the plateau. The elevated area was covered in thick foliage, and the two men hid behind the thick shrubbery as they made their way over to a large rock that provided solid cover.

Austin slowly and quietly cocked the gun, peering over at the large creature nibbling on some of the grass by the cliff-edge. It was a huge bull elk, appearing to weigh at least seven hundred and twenty-five pounds. The creature was definitely large, larger than any Arthur had seen in a long while. The creature was magnificent, he thought. The meat on its bones could definitely keep them fed for weeks.

He looked over at Austin, noticing that the boy was breathing hard, creating too much noise. “Calm yourself,” Arthur muttered, “Elk can hear very well, take a deep breath and let it out slow.”

Austin did as he was told, closing his eyes as he did so. “Alright,” he whispered, then he slowly began scooting forward. He crouched carefully, propping the barrel of the gun on the tip of the boulder.

A small loose rock was knocked off as the weapon was adjusted, landing with a small crack on the hard ground. The elk snatched its head up, its ears perked in their direction. It looked over toward their spot, and before Arthur could stop what happened next, Austin quickly stood from behind cover and fired the repeater.

It was so quick, the kid having not given himself the proper aiming stance, and the recoil shot him backwards, the bullet missing the elk as it pinged off the one of the rocks several feet away. The creature jumped, bounding off quickly in the opposite direction. Austin lifted his gun and fired a few more rounds as it fled down the cliff.

“What the hell are you doin’?!” Arthur grabbed the man’s firing arm as the elk disappeared into the forest below, Lily whinnying and rearing in the wagon as the creature sped by her.

The boy grunted from the small pain of his fall, “I’m sorry, sir,” he grimaced as he stood slowly, “I thought — I thought it heard us, I wanted to try and get it before it ran away —”

“Of course it heard us, you goddamn fool!” Arthur snapped, anger boiling in his blood. “But it didn’t see us! Now the whole damn forest knows we’re here.”

Austin lowered his head, no doubt feeling ashamed from his actions.

“All you had to do was stay still,” Arthur growled, snatching the firearm from Austin’s grip. “Start headin’ down to the wagon. Ain’t no hope of gettin’ anything out here now.”

The boy didn’t say anything, only giving a small nod as he turned away and headed towards the rocks. It was more than clear the man knew he’d made a mistake, and Arthur was more than upset with him. The next few moments were quiet as they started making their way down the way they’d came.

As soon as they reached the meadow, Arthur halted in his tracks, placing a hand to Austin’s chest to stop him, “Hold on.”

Austin looked at him questioningly, “What is it, sir?”

Arthur didn’t answer as he skimmed his gaze over the tall grass. Something wasn’t right. It was way too damn quiet …

Just then, a massive wolf lunged out of the shrubs from behind, jumping up and catching Arthur on his left shoulder, its sharp teeth sinking deep as its claws caught his flesh.

“Arthur!” Austin yelled.

Arthur shouted in pain as the force knocked him forward, his hat falling away as the heavy weight of the wolf bore down on his body. The gun was knocked out of his hands, and he hit the ground hard. His heart began to beat fast as sharp snarling noises pierced his ears, sharp claws digging deep into his shoulders, Arthur cried out as his flesh was torn open, and he began to struggle, trying his best to flip onto his back. He wasn’t going out without a fight.

The massive gray wolf was unbelievably strong, but Arthur managed to grip the wolf’s head, crushing its skull between his hands as hard as he could until the wolf let go, jumping off his body momentarily. He looked over to see the gun lying on the ground just a couple feet away.

Arthur flipped himself over just before the beast made another attempt and leapt back onto him, its teeth bared for another bite as it aimed for his throat. But Arthur barely managed to block its target by taking hold of the wolf’s neck with a single hand, using the other to try and reach for the gun. Blood was seeping from his neck and shoulders, and his heartbeat began rushing throughout his entire body as the sharp teeth gnashed and snapped just inches away from his face, getting closer as his strength grew weaker.

He let out a loud guttural sound and gathered all the strength he had left, finally managing to grip the gun and swing it through the air, using the butt of the handle to knock the large beast off of him. He staggered to his feet, aiming quickly as he fired the weapon, hitting the wolf square in the chest just as it rushed towards him again. With a loud whine the thing fell to the ground dead, and Arthur’s head whipped around as he heard more growling.

Two more wolves had crept out of the bushes and had cornered Austin near the cliff. The kid looked absolutely terrified as the beasts stalked toward him, his body having frozen entirely.

“Austin!” Damn him if he was going to let another person die on his watch.

Arthur’s gaze began to spin as he aimed at the wolves. He cocked the weapon, but he was seeing damn near triple of everything around him. He was losing blood fast, and he nearly collapsed as he began to feel light-headed. With no other choice, he let out a hard huff, and with everything he had left he lurched across the grass and lunged forward, pushing Austin aside just in time right before one of the the wolves ran towards them.

The heavy creature tackled Arthur’s body hard, causing him to collapse again as the weapon was knocked out of his hands once more. The butt of the cocked gun hit the ground and went off, a sharp whine echoing through the trees as the stray bullet miraculously hit the other wolf. It ran off, leaving a heavy trail of blood in its wake.

As the last wolf held Arthur to the ground, he thought this was going to be it. He had nothing left, he felt absolutely nothing, his mind having completely turned off as his own blood seeped out onto the ground beneath him, his weak limbs refusing to move as his vision began to dim.

Suddenly, another gunshot went off, and he felt a heavy weight fall onto his body. It was soon pushed off, but he found himself unable to care as his heartbeat started drumming between his ears.

Arthur looked up at the sky, his breathing barely audible as he struggled to take in any air. Everything had happened so damn fast … He could hear someone calling out his name. A man’s voice, but who? A blurry figure appeared over him as a dark red haze began to creep in around his vision, or was that just his imagination? Something hard pressed into his shoulder, and the pain shot through him like a lightning bolt.

Flashes began going through his mind, each one followed by his slowing heartbeats.

Two crosses, placed side by side …

… A large buck, lifting its head as it gazed off into the distance …

… The sun, setting just over the horizon.

Arthur thought of watching the sunrise … the last time he’d had this ethereal feeling … back wherever he’d been. A sunrise, now a sunset …

He felt his body getting lifted … was he finally leaving?

Just before he closed his eyes, a long howl echoed through his head.

•••••

— To Be Continued

[voidselfshipp]

The Copper Wars

Chapter 3

Tw:MC gets triggered.

By the time it was night jerico had finished the blueprints for his New invention.

A thirty feet tall robot, called The Forge, he couldnt wait to make It,but first he should change,and Grab something to eat,maybe even go to town and see whats up.

He took a quick shower,and changed,walking to the kitchen with his cats following behind him

--Hey guys whats up--jeri said non chalantly.

The mercs couldnt help but stare, he was wearing tight black pants,a dark green sweater, his hair tied in a bun while some stands fell loosely on his face.

--We uh...we were just about to eat-- engie mustered up, Serving the food.

--Nice, oh also! Ill go into town, anybody wanna come with me?

The men , except for pyro,soldier and heavy looked at eachother,before an argument broke out about who should accompany him.

--ya should let me go!, im super fun to be around!

--What ye goen ta get is this little shite talking yer ears off-Demo said drinking from his beer.

--Oh yeah? Well ya cant even stay still!youre drunk off ya ass!

--Id offer myself,I could use a break from workin'

--Ja!so would I!

--I zhink I could use some fresh air zoo

Jer stood there thinking--What if all of Us go?we could also use it to know eachother.

The mercs look at eachothern,and with grumpy looks they nodd.

And so, after eating off they went to town.

When they arrived the place was absolutely bustling with life,in the main plaza there was music playing, and jerico really wanted to dance!

The tune was so catchy!, and it reminded him of how much he and his dad would dance.

He took a quick look to his companions,but he could tell nobody was onboard.

So he just,stands there, pouting and his arms crossed.

Until a hand softly poses on his shoulder,he looks at engie who smiles and lends out his gloved hand.

Jer suddenly smiles, a huge smile on his face as he takes It.

The rest couldnt help but feel their chest warm up,he had a beautiful smile.

The music changes to a more softer one,and engie sweats bullets as jeri puts his arms around his neck.

--oh shit sorry i--

--No no,its alright uh aint used to dance with a Man thats all

--Theres always a first time,though if you want you can go back with the rest

--Its alright...this...this is fine

Both danced slowly,hesitant and unsure,but eventually they warmed up,and absolutely Killed it!.

Jerico was having so much fun.

Suddenly the texan Man dips him in, and he hugs his neck as jeri feels hes going to fall.

Engineers arms hug his waist,and with red cheeks they got back on their feet.

The texan knew hed get teased by scout, but seeing his companion happy made him feel giggly like a schoolgirl.

While walking through the local feria,jer fidgeted as he saw the stalls,so Many Many pretty things!.

He ran around, scout following him as he also got excited by all the things people sold.

--anyzhing Catching your interest?--spy sneaked behind the New merc, his french accent made a shiver run down his spine.

--Beejeezus!you scared me!

--my most sincere apologies,but please answer

Jeri just shrugged--Nothing really I mean they are pretty but,nothings like...'wow I want to buy that',besides you dont need to get me anything

--Consider it a welcome gift,if you need anyzhing or change your mind,let me know,our revoir

And the frenchman left.

While the rest were exploring,jeri sat on the empty stage, he then saw a Man,struggling to get his kid to calm down, the same Man was trying to play something on his guitar to no avail.

So he approached the dad, and asked if he needed help.

--You can try

Unaware of his team watching him, he sat on the floor with the kid,And softly played the guitar.

Jeri smiled,the kid mumbled things in what could be understood as spanish, and an idea appeared on his face.

--Hoy voy a hablarte

De mis héroes, que me vieron crecer

Desde el león que se hizo rey

Hasta la princesa que rompió la ley--He sang,gaining the kids attention--

Si me preguntas a mí

De ellos aprendí

Que hay personas por las que vale la pena derretirse

Que todo es posible, incluso lo imposible

Las virtudes a veces están bajo la suficiente

La belleza esta en el interior

Recuérdame aunque te diga adiós

Debo dejar de ser algo que no soy

Llorar me tranquiliza los problemas de la vida

Elimina de tu vida si elimina tu sonrisa

Hay una lágrima por cada risa

Eres más valiente de lo que crees

Porque tenemos que crecer

La segunda estrella a la derecha todo recto hasta el amanecer

Aférrate a aquello que te hace diferente

Si esperas el momento oportuno, era ese

Ohana significa familia, familia estar juntos siempre

Que tu alma libre esté

Que nunca es tarde para ser joven--his team had Walked closer.

The kid slowly calmed down as he sang, and quietly joining him.

Jer had a huge smile on his face,pouring his heart and soul as he sang with the kid who did the same,enjoying the music-- Boo

Sigue nadando

Sigue nadando

Quiero ser cómo, tú

Hakuna matata

Vive y deja vi bibidibabidibu

Hay un amigo en mí

Tan blandito que me quiero morir

De ellos aprendí!

Both ended their singing and the kid started to giggle and laugh, jerico gave the Man back his guitar and watched them walk away, with a warm feeling on his chest.

--recruit is good with little kids--heavy said.

--back in my home I had a lot of siblings,you end up learning I guess

And they spend the rest of the night enjoying the town.

Once back at his bedroom, just as hes about to sleep, he notices a pacage on his desk.

How...how did that get in here?

He got out of bed and Turned on the desk lamp.

--Que carajo...?--(what The fuck?),he then opened the small box to find a beautiful book,with carved details,painted gold.

'Since you too design things I figured this would suit you best.

Spy'

Said the note on the wrapper of the box.

He smiled and left it there,already too tired.

He then when back to bed, and fell asleep with his cats on his chest.

The morning sun filtered through the old blinds,jer hears his alarm go off,smacking the button of his alarm with a groan.

Suddenly he jumps as loud noises and shouts reached his room.

--la re puta madre!--he cursed sitting Straight,vica stands on their two back feet and with his front paws Cling to his unbuttoned shirt.

Jer picks them up,as illa jumps on his shoulder,and he walks to the source of the noise.

--Can I know what the fuck is going on?--Jerico asked,grumpy and a bit anxious.

--zhis idiot tried to Cook a pie,and somehow left zhe fork inside of it--medic said looking at scout.

Suddenly, scout screamed at the top of his lungs to defend himself,with a stupid argument.

Jer jumps back and hugs his cat, who purss and licks his hand.

His breath hitched as hes barely able to say--scout shut up!

His broken voice is enough to make the whole Room shut up and look at him.

--leetle Man feels bad,whats up?‐-heavy tried to Grab his shoulder but jeri stepped away.

--Scout give him a glass of vater-medic approached jerico softly, guiding Him to sit on the table--...how jou feeling now?

The New merc drinks the glass of water as he brokenly tries to steady his breath.

Vica sits on his lap,and illa jumps on the table, purring into the hand thats holding his head.

--I...I think im alright--jeri straightened his back--sorry,shouting And and loud noises make me anxious, try and Keep it quiet for now please?

--Ja, Ve'll zry, oh, by zhe vay,breakfasts ready

Engenieer was so kind to make the New merc breakfast with some home made applepie(without the fork inside of it)

Jerico Drank his tea, while his carts sat besides him curled up in a ball.

--So,jerico right?--engie said

--Yeah,whats up?

--Why dontcha tell Us about yourself huh?

Jers hand buttonned Up his shirt as he finally realized he was still in his pjs.

--Well,i moved in with my dad when I was a teen,worked in a bakery--scout chuckled condecenfingly--wich means I can make better pies than scout,and I Will not leave a fork inside of it,a part time artist, when I was like....twenty I did my phd in Steam powered engenieering,and when I could id go learn blacksmithing in one of my dads Friends house,nothing much

--nothin freaking much?!--scout said surprised-- you learnt blacksmithing and you think thats nothing much?

Jeri laughed snorting--well yeah blacksmithing is pretty cool

The Bostonian boy sunk in his chair and hid his face with his cap, as his cheeks Turned Pink.

--Oh and engie,I have the blueprints done,we can get to work in the wiring after this

--Alrighty then!

The rest of the breakfast was spent in quiet chatter, and jerico went to take a shower, closing the courtain.

The warn water hit his body and his shoulders and back relaxed.

He stretched his neck and washed his hair.

After the bath, he changed and went to Grab the blueprints and the notes he'd made in the notebook spy gave him.

He Walked to the door of his room,feeling excited to make this proyect of his into reality.

[katsudekuheadcanons]

9) Baking on a rainy day, high fives, a first kiss sounds really cute!

THIS CAME OUT A HECK OF A LOT LONGER THAN IT WAS SUPPOSED TO OOPS. But here. :3 sorry if it feels a bit rushed toward the end... T 3 T --The phone call was awkward. A forced phone call to Izuku's phone,  from none other than his childhood friend. And Izuku knew it was forced because he could hear Mrs. Bakugou telling her son what to say in the background. "Tell him." she said, probably attempting to whisper. "Tell him to come over..and quit being such a grouch, Katsuki. " she added in. Izuku had to stifle a laugh as he listened silently, waiting for Katsuki to actually speak up.  "Deku" After about three quiet minutes,  he spoke. What a surprise! "Come the fuck over." It was more of an order than an invitation. And before the freckled boy had a chance to ask any questions, the phone was disconnected. If it wasn't a cell phone call- Izuku was sure it would have been hung up with a slam. A distressed sigh escaped his lips and ran a hand through his curly locks. "What am I supposed to do?? Why is Kacchan's mother making me go over there" He cant help the worry that had taken over him, and he paced about his room. Great. Katsuki's house. What a way to spend a Saturday evening.They weren't on terrible terms anymore, but they definitely weren't /perfect/. They could at least hold a conversation with out yelling at one another now. And they walked home together sometimes... but they haven't necessarily 'hung out'. Another sigh left him, and he tucked his phone away in his pocket.  Well,  if he was going, he may as well get it over with.  Katsuki wanted to make it a quick visit too, he was sure. He'd never invite Izuku over just because-- and it was evident now that for whatever reason,  his mother was the one who wanted them to meet.  "I'll just see what Kacchan wants-  And then I'll come home." ~~Fuck. Fuck. /Fuck/. Izuku was coming over.  Katsuki shot a look at the clock ticking away on the wall.  It wouldn't take him too long to walk over, despite the rain fall. It was only drizzling, so it wouldn't slow Izuku down.  "Mom. What the fuck??" Katsuki growled,  as he watched his mother grab hold of her umbrella.  She slipped on her high heeled shoes, and swung a light jacket over her shoulder before making her way to the door.  "Why the hell would you invite Deku here?! When you're leaving,  what the fuck??""You invited him, brat~" she sing songed, and set a hand on the door knob. "Don't be such a baby. Do you think your mother is stupid? Take advantage of this! " she demands to her son,  before heading out of the house.  Shit. Dammit. Fuck. What did she mean by that?  The ash blonde leaned himself against the wall of his living room.  His bottom lip jutted out in thought,  slowly starting to realize what she meant.  Oh."No fuckin way." He stated,  before standing himself up straight.  "No fuckin way mom noticed somethin like that." Katsuki decided he may as well tidy up as he waited to get his mind off of things,  and it wasn't long before there was a knock at the front door.  In that moment,  Katsuki swore his heart jolted to a stop.  His breath shortened in his lungs and he shot a death glare at the door.  Almost as if he was hoping to scare off his guest with out having to communicate at all... of course it didn't help.  There was a short pause,  before another knock followed; this time it was louder. His mind started to race all over as he inched himself toward the door.  What would he say? For what reason did he even have Izuku come over?  He had to think of something before he got to the door. He had to figure it out. Had to think.  Had to plot-- "Kacchan!" Izuku called.  "Please let me in, its down pouring!" Katsuki paused as he reached the front door. He swallowed thickly, as his hand hesitated to open it. He could easily ignore Izuku and continue on with his evening. Eventually Izuku would get tired of standing in the rain and he'd just go home. But then he could also catch a cold. Izuku is dumb sometimes, so he wouldn't have taken an umbrella for a short walk. Katsuki couldn't let Izuku get sick. "Kacchan!" The voice jolted Katsuki from his thoughts once again and he grumbled, before grabbing hold of the door knob. It swung open with a crash against the wall and it would have bounced back shut, if Katsuki hadn't stopped it with his foot. "I heard you the first time- be patient, damn." His red hues narrowed and looked down at Izuku who was a shivering mess. And at that site, Katsuki swore he hated himself. Why didn't he just open the fucking door? Now Izuku was soaked. "A..are you going to let me in or not?" He questioned then, frowning. The ash blonde, pressed his lips shut,  and took a step to the side.  His eyes watching Izuku's every movement.  The way his hair stuck to his face from the rain, the way his clothes dripped, how he took awkward steps because his shoes were also soaked through... it was sort of cute. Shaking away the thought,  Katsuki kicked the door closed. He followed Izuku in, and the silence was becoming a bit awkward. "Why did you want me to come over?"  Finally it was broken,  and the freckled boy turned his attention toward his childhood friend.  There was a bit of shyness in his gaze. "Uuuh--" Katsuki paused momentarily. "Uh... to help me bake somethin." It /sounded/ like he made it up on the spot, but who the hell would care? Although now he had to figure out what exactly he was baking. "To /bake/?" Izuku's eyes widened slightly,  before he nodded and looked down at his wet clothes. "Thats unlike you Kacchan, is this some kind of prank?" He smiled crooked. It was that uneasy,  unsure smile that Katsuki really disliked for many reasons. "No- no seriously!  I gotta bake somethin and Im not fucking good at it! So thats why I wanted you over. ""Your mom made you call me" Izuku stated. "But.  Let's get it over with,  okay..? Um.. I'm sure you want to get this done as soon as possible. " Katsuki's brows knitted at that. It hurt to hear that Izuku felt he wasn't wanted there... because that wasnt true. "Sure. But I'm gonna give you some dry clothes first.""What??""Just take the damn offer!"~~Now that Izuku was in a dry set of clothes, (Katsuki's shorts and hoodie), the two of them could get started.  Izuku's cheeks were flushed red wearing them. It felt weird.. but nice. They had only shared clothes one other time,  and that was when they were children.  Katsuki however,  regretted his choice of allowing Izuku to use his clothing.  Because God /dammit/, he looked really cute wearing it. The sweat shirt and shorts only showed off how much smaller Izuku was than Katsuki, despite not looking much different standing side by side.  Sure Katsuki was taller,  and more built,  but he never realized how much."What are we making?" Izuku questioned, finally looking up at the other. Katsuki's gaze was disturbed then, and he lifted a hand to rub his neck. His eyes darted around the room. He had to look anywhere but at other. "Uh.. Apple pie. My mom wants it for dessert tonigt.." A lie. But a good one, he hoped. They had the ingredients for one so how hard could it really be? "I gotta recipe." With that, he made his way to the kitchen counter and started to dig through the small box that held his mother's different recipes. "You dont seem like the type to enjoy baking, Kacchan" Izuku commented,  trying to keep things calm.  They were having a decent conversation so far... no yelling.  No annoyance.  Just talking- about pie and baking! Perhaps it was the start of something... something normal.  A genuine friendship, possibly. The chances were slim,  but Izuku could be hopeful couldn't he?  He never hated Katsuki, and lately they had been on good terms.  The latter hadn't even bullied or talked down on Izuku for a while.  Izuku could almost safely say that his childhood friend was becoming nicer.  Not to others per say, but to him personally. It felt good.  It gave Izuku a tickle in his stomach.  "I never said I / enjoyed/  it. It just has to be done. " Katsuki replied,  and held up the recipe he was looking for. "And here it is- lets start workin on this and get it done. Maybe by the time we're finished the rain will stop."  He offered a slight smile before setting the paper down on the counter.  Was he actually trying to make conversation? Izuku could hardly believe it, but thats what it seemed like. He wouldn't let the opportunity slip from his fingers and he nodded; his green curls bouncing a bit as he did. "I hope!" And he smiled. It was genuine, and there was no hint of unsureness to it. Katsuki could swear his heart stopped. The sight of a smiling Izuku was so rare to him, and it was precious.  Something he'd treasure for the rest of his life if he were able.  "Read off the ingredients, Kacchan. I'll start to gather them." Katsuki blinked, waking up from his daydream. (He had been doing that a lot that day. He needed to stop). "Yeah,  yeah. First things first is obviously the apples".~~"What the fuck?!" "It doesn't look right.." Izuku muttered."Seriously,  what the fucking shit??" Katsuki growled, as he stared at the pie they had baked. It was cooling off on the stove top,  but the top crust had sunken in, and the inside was liquid instead of caramelized.  "What the hell did we do wrong??" He questioned,  grabbing hold of the recipe. It looked like they did everything right.  So why was it coming out that way? "Maybe we mis-read a step" Izuku mumbled,  as he lifted a hand up to play with his lower lip. "We should give it another try.. this time Ill read the directions and you add ingredients! Its still raining anyway-  it'll be a fun way to pass the time.." Suddenly, Izuku's voice grew unsure.  Katsuki shifted his gaze to the other,  and felt a wave of something (happiness was it?)take over him. Izuku said it would be fun to pass the time baking with Katsuki. That meant he enjoyed it the first time. That meant he didnt want to leave yet. The blonde felt his cheeks redden, and he piped up finally.  He couldn't let Izuku be doubtful. "Sure- why the hell not. Im no quiter. We're gonna make this damn pie right,  no matter what. " he smirked,  and started to gather the ingredients once again.  The second time around seemed to be going more successful, in more ways than one.  To both their surprise they were talking. It started off about the pie- but it slowly moved away from that.  Katsuki swore they were having fun. Izuku laughed a few times. Katsuki was finding it easier to joke around with him, and it was refreshing.  Izuku couldn't remember the last time he / laughed/  with Katsuki... it felt warm. It made his heart pound in his chest,  and his stomach do flips. They continued to work on the pie, and it wasn't long before it was in the oven. The duo wasted time waiting for it to bake by telling stories.  They touched back on a lot of their past memories together, majority from when they were young. They avoided any of the bullying memories as if they didn't exist and focused solely on the times they played or went by each other's houses. Katsuki was surprised that they actually did so much together.. he had forgotten about the peaceful times between them. Finally the timer went off,  and it was time for the moment of truth. Izuku watched eagerly, as Katsuki put on the oven mits and went into the oven.  The crust wasn't caved in so that was a good sign. But the real confirmation of their success would be in the filling.  "Ill bet its okay!" Izuku chimed,  as he watched the pie. They waited patiently together for it to cool.  "We'll see. If it isnt right,  we're going to the store for more god damn apples and we're makin it again" Katsuki stated and he picked up the knife. "Ready?""Ready!" As the knife sunk into the pie, a grin formed on Katsuki's face. He finished cutting the slice and it was perfect.  The inside was caramelized just right, and the apples were soft. "Fuck yeah!" Katsuki looked at the other quickly. "Look at it! "Izuku smiled wide, seeing their sucess. Apparently adding too many apples and not enough sugar was their downfall last time. "We did it Kacchan!" He laughed again and lifted a hand up, waiting. "Ill bet it tastes as good as it looks! "The blonde glanced at the raised hand and lifted his own up. He slapped their hands together for a satisfying high-five,  though his hand lingered there. He still couldn't take his eyes off Izuku. Especially because he was smiling now.. it was such a tender smile, Katsuki never realized how warm it made him feel. How much he actually longed to see it. And he didn't realize how nice it was to be the cause of it.The freckled boy looked puzzled,  as Katsuki stared at him.  He tilted his head slightly,  and as he went to move his hand away it was grabbed. Fingers laced and suddenly... he was being tugged forward. It all happened so fast after that.  Their bodies were closer than they'd ever been.  Izuku's eyes widened,  as Katsuki's  feel shut.  Their lips collided together only for a few moments before it was over. Katsuki pulled back relatively quickly,  looking just as surprised as Izuku did.  "K..Kacchan you..." his cheeks grew dark red at the realization.  "..Shut...shut up, Deku." "...Kacchan why did you-""Don't,  Deku!""You k.. kissed... kissed me!" It was finally said. And the two stared at each other in silence for a few moments.  "... why did you..?" Izuku said softly.  Katsuki thought it should be more than obvious as to / why/, but Izuku seemed confused.  He appeared to be looking for some type of reassurance,  and he was holding himself back from reacting. Katsuki stayed quiet for a few moments before parting his lips to speak.  "I'm..." his voice grew quiet.  "..I think I... love you. " ".. you /think/..?" Izuku didnt sound too pleased with the answer.  He definitely sounded confused and weary. His brows furrowed,  and he huddled into himself. It was that look that Katsuki couldn't stand.  The look that displayed his fear. The look that was especially for Katsuki in the past.  "A...Are you...making some kind of joke?" At that, the ash blonde stiffened up.  That was the last thing he wanted. This wasn't a joke, it was real. And he had to make sure he displayed that."No-- no its not a joke. " he lifted a hand up to touch his forehead.  God, he hated being bad with words.  "Its not a joke- I said it wrong. I meant that I.. agh..  I.. really.." It really wasn't like Katsuki to mix up his words,  but when it came to Izuku nothing made sense. He couldn't form a sentence,  and it was killing him inside. "I love you,  okay? I love you-- and I'm absolute shit at trying to put this into words.  I dunno when it started-  I dunno what made me want to tell you right now.  But I did.  And I fucking kissed you, and I did it because I love you.  This isn't a joke- Im serious! " There was silence between them then. Izuku's green hues stared intently into Katsuki's red ones. They stayed like that for a few moments before Izuku spoke. "....Kacchan.. I... I also have feelings for you.." it was weird to admit.  " But!"Katsuki blinked, waiting eagerly. He felt his heart palpitating fast. "..I can't trust you fully yet. I'm sure you know why.." Izuku played with his hands then. "I need you to show me." Katsuki swallowed hard,  but nodded a bit.  Of course Izuku couldn't trust him all the way. He knew the reasons as to why,  but it still hurt. It fucking sucked. But Katsuki's not a quiter. He took in a deep breath, before closing the distance between them."I'll prove it. I don't care how long it takes.  I don't care if its years or whatever.  I'm gonna show you and prove it. Im different than I was.." Izuku's, face softened as he listened.  He gave a gentle nod before reaching out to lace their fingers together.  "I know you are." They kissed again, this time it was mutual. Their lips moved together slowly, before parting. Katsuki then pulled the other in for a firm hug. It was going to be a journey together. It was going to be a bumpy road, it was going to be hard, and it was going to be long. But it was worth it. To be able to see Izuku smiling as bright as the sun, just for him. It was worth everything to Katsuki.

[celestialallstars]

Episode #13: “baaa louder.” - Zach

So after that tribal I feem good and bad. On one end, I think it was the best case for me to use it for vote reveal and it showed Bryce/Zach up, Rhys is out and yeah. On the other, I regret voting Rhys out now because it will give Michael and Chloe an excuse to force rocks in F8 unless some serious minigames are done. SO I am going to ask Michael/Chloe to F3 maybe? Not sure yet but I think now if I ever do reach the end, I am gonma probably use this vote as a reason to win since I feel if I didnt make the decision to say anything, I would have possibly left. AND everyone got exposed? Miss me on that revote

girl im going home

so tribal happened and like. period. it was really sad + like i love rhys and seeing him go was upsetting, but like.. it's the game. no hard feelings! but i'm so frustrated with so many people. it's less of the game but more of how they acted, and thats why bryce and i snapped and leaked literally every little thing we know. like my issues were like... chris' main point was vilifying bryce & i for targeting him, but like, that happened AFTER loris slept. and??? they had a plan since i lost immunity to split on bryce/rhys. like yeah be mad at me for the shadiness of the mitch vote per se (albeit it not being super shady imo), but like... call that out initially. don't act like im in the wrong for the vote TONIGHT when the alliance was always so cliquey. then chloe got... idk. arrogant? like i snapped at her (wrongly so) but my annoyance with her is not deep, its just that she is like 'oh yalls voted me' but its like... ok. we thought you leaked. and even if you didnt (which she didnt), they legittttt WERE VOTING BRYCE ANYWAY LIKE . IT DOESNT MATTER. STOP VICTIMIZING YOURSELF. YOU WERE SHADY YOURSELF. but i cant be too mad because they didnt know about the 8 person alliance (supposedly) and i suppose with the info they DID have, they made a good decision. though still dumb i hate it but its my fault too who cares im perfect. jared is just so slimey. and stephen like??? saying 'i said to u dont fk me and you immediately snitch to bryce' BUT YOU HAD A PLAN TO BLINDSIDE ME AND MY ALLIES LIKEEEE STOP JUST SAY YOURE SNAKEY. LIKE IM OPENLY SNAKEY. ILL SAY IT. BUT DONT VILIFY ME???? HELLO?? like its the pot calling the kettle black.

i'm overdramatic just because im IN the mood to go off. or, was. i snapped (wrongly so) tonight. i want anyone who reads this to know its not personal and i love all of u dearly but . im frustrated and i want a good edgic rating LOL

loris frustrates me because he legit is a goat. he can deny that all he wants but there is a literal 0% chance i vote him at this rate to win. i dont know why. he just.. isnt playing for himself. whats NEW. jk... love u. IM JUST frustrated.

on good news, i got a super idol. period. aint telling anyone. like i love bryce but i dont want him to expect me to use it on him because . it wont be good for my game. im playing for myself and myself only. like... period. tho i hope him and i can manage to survive a bit but i dont think thats likely.

im not reviewing this i just am writing whats in my feelings so its more authentic LOL

anyway this game was super fun. despite being stressful and straining, the call was super enjoyable and this org has been one of my favs, and this night has made it sm better. so period. no regrets, just faggotry.

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i'm a flop.

Everything seems so messy tonight. Rhys has approached me about me, him, Michael, Bryce nd Zach workin together but like... they seemed so actively against me sooooo idk what's going on there it feels like a trap. They suggested doing Chris which does kinda sound real but that could be part of the trap idk im very nervous. I just kinda said I would go along with the plan but I don't really intend to do that. I don't think Chris is the move for me this round, Rhys doesn't speak to me which is why I'm also nervous the alliance came from nowhere. To my knowledge the votes are gonna be split 3-3-3 in case of an idol, which I hope gets flushed. Idols make me nervy. Hell I didn't even know Jared had an idol that fucking snake, but it's fine cause he played it on me.

(((((aj note --- this confessional above is obviously from last round but its 2am and i want to go to sleep so idk))))))))

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Last night was an absolute mess and I feel I missed a lot of what went on so I need to watch the post tribal live stream to see if I can try to make more sense of what went down. So far I gathered Jared is a snake, we been knew and Bryce is a leaker. However the leaking shit got pinned on me YET AGAIN. WHY THE FUCK DO THESE BITCH ASS HOES KEEP PINNING SHIT ON ME. FUCK U BRYCE

I just, everything's a mess. All the alliances i doubt are going to work, Jared isnt long for this game, me or Stephen may follow him out, and the rest will likely see some combo of Loris/Michael/Chloe in the end. I dont know, suddenly feeling hopeless about all of this and like, pretty unhappy at the moment. I knew it would be hard but like I literally am struggle to have clear thoughts and with this and outside life factors I'm just feeling lost at the moment.

hi i'm less mad so ignore my above confessional LOL. thank u for tuning in.

except u loris. baaa louder.

Whew hunny last night exposed a lot of fake ass bitches but we really been knew they’re fake. I’m feeling confident about the next few rounds because I think people see myself and Chloe as numbers and people they need to bring on board to make plans work. Part of my strategy this game is to sit back and let the bigger players come in and try and make the big moves everyone wants to feel like they’re making a difference and everyone wants to build their resume by making big moves and as long as I can maintain my threat level I think I’ll be safe and I can have a bit of Influence in the game as people scramble for my vote.

WELL! That was an interesting tribal!

Shortly before tribal, it came out that a secret group of 5 was made to blindside Chris. (Zach/Bryce/Rhys/Michael/Chloe)

I obviously didn't want that to happen, and neither did Chris or Jared. Bryce leaked it to Jared, and Jared told me and Chris. I made the INDEPENDENT decision to confront Zach about this, because I'm not asking for permission to make moves sorry. The only issue is that Zach immediately went to Bryce, even though I asked him not to fuck me. Bryce went to Jared and Chris, and they went back to me. WELP! That just hurts my strategic relationship with Zach even more than the vote already would have.

Chloe and Michael were doing what they could to keep the votes off Chloe, luckily, my move with Zach ensured that they failed! WOO!

I don't want to make the same mistake as Matt though. I may have a decent majority now, but I don't want to burn my bridges with Zach and Bryce. I stayed out of the drama last night (mostly) and I'm gonna keep talking game with them. I might not be able to fully repair things totally but I'm confident I can do better than the other 5.

I'm gonna go over my relationships with the remaining castaways since there's finally a small enough number for me to feel like doing that:

Chris: My closest ally, we tell each other basically everything. I'm worried about going to Final Tribal with him though. He's played well in every facet of the game and literally won "Who do you want to see win" in Touchy Subjects. If I don't get a chance to take him out at the end, I think I can mount a strong argument against him. but I'd only feel comfortable making that move if I was already immune and definitely going to Final Tribal.

Jared: My second(?) closest ally, though I now know he has kept a TONNNN of secrets from me and on top of that he's a threat to win. Luckily, with all the info coming out from last round, I don't think I'll need to worry about Jared being at Final Tribal.

Loris: With Rhys gone, Loris has officially taken the title of "person I kinda wanna maybe side with but he's talked about voting me out so we're not cool". I kinda wanna weaken Bryce and Zach (or maybe vote them both out) before taking a shot against him, I just hope he doesn't realize I know he's after me until it's too late.

Michael: I really don't know where I stand with Michael LMAO! He voted with us last round but never informed us about the plan to get Chris out. He said he was "going to" but I don't believe that for a second. In fact, I think if Chris hadn't revealed what Bryce had leaked there's a chance he may have gone through with it.

Chloe: I kinda love Chloe. I wish I never accidentally turned the majority alliance against her. She's fun to hang around with AND someone I think I could beat in the end. It's like a win-win. Except I don't think she wants me anywhere near the end.

Zach: Out of the 3 people out of the loop at the last vote my relationship with Zach was the strongest. That having been said, neither of us were really sharing much information with each other after Mitch left and I feel like there's really not much further we can go together. Him and Bryce are both good options to be targeted at this vote.

Bryce: While I've personally known it for quite some time, for Bryce to outright say he didn't want to me in an alliance with me is kind of the most red a red flag can be. If I have it my way, Bryce will be the next person voted out. Granted, I'm saying all of this before immunity results and real strategic talks can begin, so my mind might change, but it's not likely.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPS6OykNvh0 its so sad im going home tldr: im gone chris can say 1000 words but if they all mean nothing whats the point. jared ruined  my trust in people forever. chloe is a goat hypocrite who aggravates me. stephen is alright not good not bad. rhys is my king and im so sad hes gone i legit love that man. zach is fake. michael is annoying. loris is being a goat but who cares. omg me taking 0 blame for anything bad that happened to me? more likely than u think!!

hi! so. I think I can win this game. my intentions for a while have been to get out someone I don’t see working with personally, rhys, and then attempt a flip on jared/stephen. i also very much have wanted to turn on Chris because I believe me and him are playing similarly in that we have positioned ourself well into the middle, and going to the end with someone who’s basically played the same game but more well-polished is not a good idea! i wanted to get myself this immunity so that I could talk to people about flipping without risk of being ratted and then voted out, which was almost what happened to chloe last round. im also starting to become aware of how me never attending tribal is making me fall under the radar in a way?? everyone is fighting each other and arguably making situations worse for themselves by giving an answer straight away, for example, bryce declaring his f2 with Jared in the call. though people can still slander me while I’m not there, what they say cannot be dwelled on for too long because I’m not there, putting me in a more favourable position than some of the other people here? I think? that someone said that I was playing the middle last tribal council and well.. they’re right so oops.

my ideal path to the end would be stephen and jared leaving the next rounds, and then Chris, although the order does not concern me right now. then I would be at final 5 with Bryce zach chloe and michael and then whoever isn’t immune out of bryce and zach can be voted out. perry. and then I’m gonna have to pray to god I win final immunity OR Michael or Chloe do but like that doesn’t feel likely to me. AND THEN I WIN!!!

ALSO. im in the final 7. I just need to survive one more round and then I’m guaranteed final 5... because no way in hell im playing that legacy on someone  else.. I am not letting THAT happen again.

Me nd Michael been talking, nd we’ve wanted to make a move for a bit now but crazy shit keeps happening. We needed to take down Rhys and break up the Rhys/Bryce/Zach trio so Bryce nd Zach are more useable. Now we planning on flipping on Jared/Chris/Stephen. My current target would be Jared because as much as I trust him and adore him I think he’s definitely running this bitch. Then Loris decides he also wants to flip nd he tells Michael that he wanted to exclude me but JOKES ON U LORIS I WAS ALREADY PLANNING ON FLIPPING U DUMB FUCK. Which was kinda obvious he was planning on excluding me cause Zach and Michael both messaged me about it and I knew Loris was involved in the flipping but he hadn’t messaged me about it sooooo. Don’t test me Loris I’ll make u be voted next.

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#FuckLoris

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GRIT YOUR TEETH, PULL YOUR HAIR, PAINT THE WALLS BLACK AND SCREAM FUCK THIS CAST CAUSE ITS MY GAME AND IM GONNA TAKE IT BACK 

So tonight the plan me chloe and loris are sailing to the majority alliance that voted together last time is that the votes will be spilt. And they will be but we won’t be joining we will be switching to Jared and eliminating the biggest threat in the game at this point. From there I’m thinking of flipping to take out zach or Bryce and continuing on the game switching to control the power in the game.

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Part of the beauty of this move to blindside Jared is that a lot of the blame for the flip is shared amongst both Chloe and Loris paired with Bryce and Zach being bigger threats means that my name will most likely still be out of peoples mouth I just have some major damage control to do to stop Stephen/Chris teaming up with Zach/Bryce and creating a 4-3.

A lot has happened.

Bryce and I's F2 imploded because of me, and even though we reconciled today I don't think I can truly work with him again. Best I can do is try to secure his jury vote.

I have deals with Stephen Chris Michael and Chloe, Loris will hopefully fall by the wayside next round.

The plan this time was to get Michael onside in PMs and gauge his interest for voting out Zach, reinforcing the "this is our shield strategy." He did the work from there. Yeet!

________________________________________________________________

Jared is voted out 5-2-1. He becomes the fifth member of our jury.

Watch Jared’s exit interview take place below:

[adambstingus]

11 Popular Songs You Didn’t Know Were About Super F*cked-Up Things

The other day, Every Breath You Take by ThePolice came on the radio.

My friend sighed, seemingly enamored by the lyrics, and said she wanted that to be her wedding song.

Uh, really? There’s somethingabout the hook that’s always seemed mad f*cking creepy to me. Every breath you take, Ill be watching you? Thats not a very reassuring thought, especially not one Id want to hear at my wedding.

When I got home and did a little bit of research, it turned out I was right — Sting even admitted it. The song is about a stalker. An obsessive, potentially dangerous stalker. Yet this wentunnoticed by my friend and probably countless others.

I mean, think about how many people actually had a song about an obsessive ex-lover gracethe soundtrack to their weddings. Whoops.

Here are 11 other songs you probably didnt know the true f*cked-up meaning of, either.

1. “Ring Around The Rosy” by who the f*ck knows

To be completely fair, I dont think anyone knows what the hell the song Ring Around the Rosie is about. What is a pocketful of posies?

However, upon some closer inspection, the song is actually about the Great Plague of London wiping out an entire f*cking civilization of people, hence the we all fall down.

Yeah, that means WE DIE. Yet we had no problem belting this song throughout kindergarten.

2. “Walk On The Wild Side” by Lou Reed

While some Millennials might not know the original version of this song, theyve probably heard the bassline more than a few times — thanks to Tribe sampling the song in Can I Kick It.

At first listen, the song sounds innocent, but if you actually take the time to listen to the lyrics — youll soon understand its anything but. With lines about “giving head,” andmany other questionable lyrics, it shouldn’t take too long.

3. “Island Girl” by Sir Elton John

“Island Girl” is a very tropical sounding song — much like something youd blast at the beach while out on a family vacation or something of that nature.

In reality, however, the song is about a Jamaican prostitute in New York City. “Island girl, what you wantin’ with the white man’s world?” With lyrical contentsuch asthis, youmight want to rethink playing this tunewith your grandmother and grandfather from Boca within earshot.

4. “Closing Time” by Semisonic

Most peoplethink this song is about leaving some place that will be closing shortly, most often a bar. In actuality, the song was written about the lead singer of Semisonic’s child being born.

So, with regard to the song’s title, “Closing Time” actually refers tobeing forced out of the womb.Now pour up another beer before lastcall!

5. “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” by The Beatles

Theres a lot of controversy stemming from whether or not the origin of this song comes from a painting done by Lennons son, Julian, or the titles acronym: LSD. Lennon adamantly denied that the song was connected to the drug, but, I dont know, make your own call on the matter.

“Follow her down to a bridge by a fountain, where rocking horse people eat marshmallow pies.Everyone smiles as you drift past the flowers that grow so incredibly high.”

Is thisa vividdepiction of an acid trip? You decide.

6. “Born In TheUSA” by Bruce Springsteen

Every fourthof July, upon sparking up the BBQ, I get my Independence Day playlist fired up, consisting of a large number of Bruce Springsteen hits, specifically, the most patriotic of them all, “Born in the USA.”

Right? Wrong. The songs lyrics actually critique most of Americas shortcomings as a functioning nation.“Got in a little hometown jam, so they put a rifle in my hand, sent me off to a foreign land to go and kill the yellow man.” Not all that endearing about our wonderful country.

7. “Under The Bridge” by Red Hot Chili Peppers

I sangthis song in the shower of my parents’ home for the majority of my younger years. With a title like Under The Bridge and a chorus crying, Take me to da place I luuuuuuhve, I thought the song was about going to your favorite little spot in the nearest national park.

Little did I know, the song is about the literal bridge where lead singer Anthony Kiedis would meet “with f*cking gangsters shooting speedballs under a bridge,” as he described it. The song is actually about his growing dependence on hard drugs. Errr, I guess I sort of missed the mark on that one.

8. “Afternoon Delight” by Starland Vocal Band

As a youngster, I thought the song Afternoon Delight was about doing something pleasant around noontime — maybe a stroll throughthe park or a picnic, perchance — with someone you like.

As it turns out, the song is really about a little matinee sex. “Thinkin’ of you’s workin’ up my appetite, looking forward to a little afternoon delight. Rubbin’ sticks and stones together make the sparks ignite, and the thought of loving you is getting so exciting.”

I guess itreally doesn’tsound too picnic-y, in retrospect.

9. “Cant Feel My Face” by The Weeknd

Granted, its a Weeknd song, so theres always a decent chance that its about drugs, “Cant Feel My Face” is one of the best-disguised drug records circulating throughthe pop airwaves today.

While it might sound like the result of infatuation or newly found love, Weeknds face is numb because of cocaine — which the song is really written for, at least toour knowledge.

10. “Back Door Man” by The Doors (and Willie Dixon, originally)

Although itprobably could also have a second sexual meaning, the true definition of a “Back Door Man” is someone who sleepswith the wives of other men, sneaking through the back doors, so to speak, without the husbands finding out.

11. “Captain Jack” by Billy Joel

“Captain Jack” was supposedly penned by Billy Joel fromhis Long Island apartment, after seeing the local youth buying heroin from a dealer named “Captain Jack.”

Although the hook says “Captain Jack will get ya high tonight,” the song actually expresses a strong anti-drug sentiment.

from All Of Beer http://allofbeer.com/2017/05/27/11-popular-songs-you-didnt-know-were-about-super-fcked-up-things/ from All of Beer https://allofbeercom.tumblr.com/post/161120687072

[jimdsmith34]

11 Popular Songs You Didn’t Know Were About Super F*cked-Up Things

The other day, Every Breath You Take by ThePolice came on the radio.

My friend sighed, seemingly enamored by the lyrics, and said she wanted that to be her wedding song.

Uh, really? There’s somethingabout the hook that’s always seemed mad f*cking creepy to me. Every breath you take, Ill be watching you? Thats not a very reassuring thought, especially not one Id want to hear at my wedding.

When I got home and did a little bit of research, it turned out I was right — Sting even admitted it. The song is about a stalker. An obsessive, potentially dangerous stalker. Yet this wentunnoticed by my friend and probably countless others.

I mean, think about how many people actually had a song about an obsessive ex-lover gracethe soundtrack to their weddings. Whoops.

Here are 11 other songs you probably didnt know the true f*cked-up meaning of, either.

1. “Ring Around The Rosy” by who the f*ck knows

To be completely fair, I dont think anyone knows what the hell the song Ring Around the Rosie is about. What is a pocketful of posies?

However, upon some closer inspection, the song is actually about the Great Plague of London wiping out an entire f*cking civilization of people, hence the we all fall down.

Yeah, that means WE DIE. Yet we had no problem belting this song throughout kindergarten.

2. “Walk On The Wild Side” by Lou Reed

While some Millennials might not know the original version of this song, theyve probably heard the bassline more than a few times — thanks to Tribe sampling the song in Can I Kick It.

At first listen, the song sounds innocent, but if you actually take the time to listen to the lyrics — youll soon understand its anything but. With lines about “giving head,” andmany other questionable lyrics, it shouldn’t take too long.

3. “Island Girl” by Sir Elton John

“Island Girl” is a very tropical sounding song — much like something youd blast at the beach while out on a family vacation or something of that nature.

In reality, however, the song is about a Jamaican prostitute in New York City. “Island girl, what you wantin’ with the white man’s world?” With lyrical contentsuch asthis, youmight want to rethink playing this tunewith your grandmother and grandfather from Boca within earshot.

4. “Closing Time” by Semisonic

Most peoplethink this song is about leaving some place that will be closing shortly, most often a bar. In actuality, the song was written about the lead singer of Semisonic’s child being born.

So, with regard to the song’s title, “Closing Time” actually refers tobeing forced out of the womb.Now pour up another beer before lastcall!

5. “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” by The Beatles

Theres a lot of controversy stemming from whether or not the origin of this song comes from a painting done by Lennons son, Julian, or the titles acronym: LSD. Lennon adamantly denied that the song was connected to the drug, but, I dont know, make your own call on the matter.

“Follow her down to a bridge by a fountain, where rocking horse people eat marshmallow pies.Everyone smiles as you drift past the flowers that grow so incredibly high.”

Is thisa vividdepiction of an acid trip? You decide.

6. “Born In TheUSA” by Bruce Springsteen

Every fourthof July, upon sparking up the BBQ, I get my Independence Day playlist fired up, consisting of a large number of Bruce Springsteen hits, specifically, the most patriotic of them all, “Born in the USA.”

Right? Wrong. The songs lyrics actually critique most of Americas shortcomings as a functioning nation.“Got in a little hometown jam, so they put a rifle in my hand, sent me off to a foreign land to go and kill the yellow man.” Not all that endearing about our wonderful country.

7. “Under The Bridge” by Red Hot Chili Peppers

I sangthis song in the shower of my parents’ home for the majority of my younger years. With a title like Under The Bridge and a chorus crying, Take me to da place I luuuuuuhve, I thought the song was about going to your favorite little spot in the nearest national park.

Little did I know, the song is about the literal bridge where lead singer Anthony Kiedis would meet “with f*cking gangsters shooting speedballs under a bridge,” as he described it. The song is actually about his growing dependence on hard drugs. Errr, I guess I sort of missed the mark on that one.

8. “Afternoon Delight” by Starland Vocal Band

As a youngster, I thought the song Afternoon Delight was about doing something pleasant around noontime — maybe a stroll throughthe park or a picnic, perchance — with someone you like.

As it turns out, the song is really about a little matinee sex. “Thinkin’ of you’s workin’ up my appetite, looking forward to a little afternoon delight. Rubbin’ sticks and stones together make the sparks ignite, and the thought of loving you is getting so exciting.”

I guess itreally doesn’tsound too picnic-y, in retrospect.

9. “Cant Feel My Face” by The Weeknd

Granted, its a Weeknd song, so theres always a decent chance that its about drugs, “Cant Feel My Face” is one of the best-disguised drug records circulating throughthe pop airwaves today.

While it might sound like the result of infatuation or newly found love, Weeknds face is numb because of cocaine — which the song is really written for, at least toour knowledge.

10. “Back Door Man” by The Doors (and Willie Dixon, originally)

Although itprobably could also have a second sexual meaning, the true definition of a “Back Door Man” is someone who sleepswith the wives of other men, sneaking through the back doors, so to speak, without the husbands finding out.

11. “Captain Jack” by Billy Joel

“Captain Jack” was supposedly penned by Billy Joel fromhis Long Island apartment, after seeing the local youth buying heroin from a dealer named “Captain Jack.”

Although the hook says “Captain Jack will get ya high tonight,” the song actually expresses a strong anti-drug sentiment.

source http://allofbeer.com/2017/05/27/11-popular-songs-you-didnt-know-were-about-super-fcked-up-things/ from All of Beer http://allofbeer.blogspot.com/2017/05/11-popular-songs-you-didnt-know-were.html

[samanthasroberts]

11 Popular Songs You Didn’t Know Were About Super F*cked-Up Things

The other day, Every Breath You Take by ThePolice came on the radio.

My friend sighed, seemingly enamored by the lyrics, and said she wanted that to be her wedding song.

Uh, really? There’s somethingabout the hook that’s always seemed mad f*cking creepy to me. Every breath you take, Ill be watching you? Thats not a very reassuring thought, especially not one Id want to hear at my wedding.

When I got home and did a little bit of research, it turned out I was right — Sting even admitted it. The song is about a stalker. An obsessive, potentially dangerous stalker. Yet this wentunnoticed by my friend and probably countless others.

I mean, think about how many people actually had a song about an obsessive ex-lover gracethe soundtrack to their weddings. Whoops.

Here are 11 other songs you probably didnt know the true f*cked-up meaning of, either.

1. “Ring Around The Rosy” by who the f*ck knows

To be completely fair, I dont think anyone knows what the hell the song Ring Around the Rosie is about. What is a pocketful of posies?

However, upon some closer inspection, the song is actually about the Great Plague of London wiping out an entire f*cking civilization of people, hence the we all fall down.

Yeah, that means WE DIE. Yet we had no problem belting this song throughout kindergarten.

2. “Walk On The Wild Side” by Lou Reed

While some Millennials might not know the original version of this song, theyve probably heard the bassline more than a few times — thanks to Tribe sampling the song in Can I Kick It.

At first listen, the song sounds innocent, but if you actually take the time to listen to the lyrics — youll soon understand its anything but. With lines about “giving head,” andmany other questionable lyrics, it shouldn’t take too long.

3. “Island Girl” by Sir Elton John

“Island Girl” is a very tropical sounding song — much like something youd blast at the beach while out on a family vacation or something of that nature.

In reality, however, the song is about a Jamaican prostitute in New York City. “Island girl, what you wantin’ with the white man’s world?” With lyrical contentsuch asthis, youmight want to rethink playing this tunewith your grandmother and grandfather from Boca within earshot.

4. “Closing Time” by Semisonic

Most peoplethink this song is about leaving some place that will be closing shortly, most often a bar. In actuality, the song was written about the lead singer of Semisonic’s child being born.

So, with regard to the song’s title, “Closing Time” actually refers tobeing forced out of the womb.Now pour up another beer before lastcall!

5. “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” by The Beatles

Theres a lot of controversy stemming from whether or not the origin of this song comes from a painting done by Lennons son, Julian, or the titles acronym: LSD. Lennon adamantly denied that the song was connected to the drug, but, I dont know, make your own call on the matter.

“Follow her down to a bridge by a fountain, where rocking horse people eat marshmallow pies.Everyone smiles as you drift past the flowers that grow so incredibly high.”

Is thisa vividdepiction of an acid trip? You decide.

6. “Born In TheUSA” by Bruce Springsteen

Every fourthof July, upon sparking up the BBQ, I get my Independence Day playlist fired up, consisting of a large number of Bruce Springsteen hits, specifically, the most patriotic of them all, “Born in the USA.”

Right? Wrong. The songs lyrics actually critique most of Americas shortcomings as a functioning nation.“Got in a little hometown jam, so they put a rifle in my hand, sent me off to a foreign land to go and kill the yellow man.” Not all that endearing about our wonderful country.

7. “Under The Bridge” by Red Hot Chili Peppers

I sangthis song in the shower of my parents’ home for the majority of my younger years. With a title like Under The Bridge and a chorus crying, Take me to da place I luuuuuuhve, I thought the song was about going to your favorite little spot in the nearest national park.

Little did I know, the song is about the literal bridge where lead singer Anthony Kiedis would meet “with f*cking gangsters shooting speedballs under a bridge,” as he described it. The song is actually about his growing dependence on hard drugs. Errr, I guess I sort of missed the mark on that one.

8. “Afternoon Delight” by Starland Vocal Band

As a youngster, I thought the song Afternoon Delight was about doing something pleasant around noontime — maybe a stroll throughthe park or a picnic, perchance — with someone you like.

As it turns out, the song is really about a little matinee sex. “Thinkin’ of you’s workin’ up my appetite, looking forward to a little afternoon delight. Rubbin’ sticks and stones together make the sparks ignite, and the thought of loving you is getting so exciting.”

I guess itreally doesn’tsound too picnic-y, in retrospect.

9. “Cant Feel My Face” by The Weeknd

Granted, its a Weeknd song, so theres always a decent chance that its about drugs, “Cant Feel My Face” is one of the best-disguised drug records circulating throughthe pop airwaves today.

While it might sound like the result of infatuation or newly found love, Weeknds face is numb because of cocaine — which the song is really written for, at least toour knowledge.

10. “Back Door Man” by The Doors (and Willie Dixon, originally)

Although itprobably could also have a second sexual meaning, the true definition of a “Back Door Man” is someone who sleepswith the wives of other men, sneaking through the back doors, so to speak, without the husbands finding out.

11. “Captain Jack” by Billy Joel

“Captain Jack” was supposedly penned by Billy Joel fromhis Long Island apartment, after seeing the local youth buying heroin from a dealer named “Captain Jack.”

Although the hook says “Captain Jack will get ya high tonight,” the song actually expresses a strong anti-drug sentiment.

Source: http://allofbeer.com/2017/05/27/11-popular-songs-you-didnt-know-were-about-super-fcked-up-things/

from All of Beer https://allofbeer.wordpress.com/2017/05/27/11-popular-songs-you-didnt-know-were-about-super-fcked-up-things/

[allofbeercom]

11 Popular Songs You Didn’t Know Were About Super F*cked-Up Things

The other day, Every Breath You Take by ThePolice came on the radio.

My friend sighed, seemingly enamored by the lyrics, and said she wanted that to be her wedding song.

Uh, really? There’s somethingabout the hook that’s always seemed mad f*cking creepy to me. Every breath you take, Ill be watching you? Thats not a very reassuring thought, especially not one Id want to hear at my wedding.

When I got home and did a little bit of research, it turned out I was right — Sting even admitted it. The song is about a stalker. An obsessive, potentially dangerous stalker. Yet this wentunnoticed by my friend and probably countless others.

I mean, think about how many people actually had a song about an obsessive ex-lover gracethe soundtrack to their weddings. Whoops.

Here are 11 other songs you probably didnt know the true f*cked-up meaning of, either.

1. “Ring Around The Rosy” by who the f*ck knows

To be completely fair, I dont think anyone knows what the hell the song Ring Around the Rosie is about. What is a pocketful of posies?

However, upon some closer inspection, the song is actually about the Great Plague of London wiping out an entire f*cking civilization of people, hence the we all fall down.

Yeah, that means WE DIE. Yet we had no problem belting this song throughout kindergarten.

2. “Walk On The Wild Side” by Lou Reed

While some Millennials might not know the original version of this song, theyve probably heard the bassline more than a few times — thanks to Tribe sampling the song in Can I Kick It.

At first listen, the song sounds innocent, but if you actually take the time to listen to the lyrics — youll soon understand its anything but. With lines about “giving head,” andmany other questionable lyrics, it shouldn’t take too long.

3. “Island Girl” by Sir Elton John

“Island Girl” is a very tropical sounding song — much like something youd blast at the beach while out on a family vacation or something of that nature.

In reality, however, the song is about a Jamaican prostitute in New York City. “Island girl, what you wantin’ with the white man’s world?” With lyrical contentsuch asthis, youmight want to rethink playing this tunewith your grandmother and grandfather from Boca within earshot.

4. “Closing Time” by Semisonic

Most peoplethink this song is about leaving some place that will be closing shortly, most often a bar. In actuality, the song was written about the lead singer of Semisonic’s child being born.

So, with regard to the song’s title, “Closing Time” actually refers tobeing forced out of the womb.Now pour up another beer before lastcall!

5. “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” by The Beatles

Theres a lot of controversy stemming from whether or not the origin of this song comes from a painting done by Lennons son, Julian, or the titles acronym: LSD. Lennon adamantly denied that the song was connected to the drug, but, I dont know, make your own call on the matter.

“Follow her down to a bridge by a fountain, where rocking horse people eat marshmallow pies.Everyone smiles as you drift past the flowers that grow so incredibly high.”

Is thisa vividdepiction of an acid trip? You decide.

6. “Born In TheUSA” by Bruce Springsteen

Every fourthof July, upon sparking up the BBQ, I get my Independence Day playlist fired up, consisting of a large number of Bruce Springsteen hits, specifically, the most patriotic of them all, “Born in the USA.”

Right? Wrong. The songs lyrics actually critique most of Americas shortcomings as a functioning nation.“Got in a little hometown jam, so they put a rifle in my hand, sent me off to a foreign land to go and kill the yellow man.” Not all that endearing about our wonderful country.

7. “Under The Bridge” by Red Hot Chili Peppers

I sangthis song in the shower of my parents’ home for the majority of my younger years. With a title like Under The Bridge and a chorus crying, Take me to da place I luuuuuuhve, I thought the song was about going to your favorite little spot in the nearest national park.

Little did I know, the song is about the literal bridge where lead singer Anthony Kiedis would meet “with f*cking gangsters shooting speedballs under a bridge,” as he described it. The song is actually about his growing dependence on hard drugs. Errr, I guess I sort of missed the mark on that one.

8. “Afternoon Delight” by Starland Vocal Band

As a youngster, I thought the song Afternoon Delight was about doing something pleasant around noontime — maybe a stroll throughthe park or a picnic, perchance — with someone you like.

As it turns out, the song is really about a little matinee sex. “Thinkin’ of you’s workin’ up my appetite, looking forward to a little afternoon delight. Rubbin’ sticks and stones together make the sparks ignite, and the thought of loving you is getting so exciting.”

I guess itreally doesn’tsound too picnic-y, in retrospect.

9. “Cant Feel My Face” by The Weeknd

Granted, its a Weeknd song, so theres always a decent chance that its about drugs, “Cant Feel My Face” is one of the best-disguised drug records circulating throughthe pop airwaves today.

While it might sound like the result of infatuation or newly found love, Weeknds face is numb because of cocaine — which the song is really written for, at least toour knowledge.

10. “Back Door Man” by The Doors (and Willie Dixon, originally)

Although itprobably could also have a second sexual meaning, the true definition of a “Back Door Man” is someone who sleepswith the wives of other men, sneaking through the back doors, so to speak, without the husbands finding out.

11. “Captain Jack” by Billy Joel

“Captain Jack” was supposedly penned by Billy Joel fromhis Long Island apartment, after seeing the local youth buying heroin from a dealer named “Captain Jack.”

Although the hook says “Captain Jack will get ya high tonight,” the song actually expresses a strong anti-drug sentiment.

from All Of Beer http://allofbeer.com/2017/05/27/11-popular-songs-you-didnt-know-were-about-super-fcked-up-things/