#and I also hc that Valerie was the one who started calling her that first

[lexosaurus]

this girl, for reference

[stealingyourbones]

Your asks are back! Im prolly gonna send a few tomorrow bc its late and i have many idea but an idea that Wont Let Me Go:

Danny gets caught by his parents. They dissect him and jazz is the one to free him, but he has to go. Now. But where does he go?

Gotham. The drs fenton went there once and caused enough chaos to be banned from the city or else risk arkham. Its the one place they might not find him.

Danielle goes with him. Maybe shed hunkered down in gotham for a bit, maybe shes passing by amity when sht hits the fan. Either way, its her and danny. They figure it wont be too hard to get by. Break into an empty apartment and hide out there until they get caught, couldnt be too hard, right?

Too bad the building they go for is the one jason stays in, as a civillian, and hes got every apartment on his floor so that the risk of a neighbor seeing him as hood is minimal. Jason has to figure out how these kids got into the apartment and who is making them spy on red hood.

He does this by giving them the one thing kids in need cant afford to turn down- free meals. He invites them over to cook and teaches them how, both to see what hes dealing with and give them those skills once theyre out of whatever situation theyre in.

This goes on for a while before jason had the horrifying realization.

Hes turing into Bruce. Two kids in need with black hair and blue eyes who tense up when vigilantes are brought up? Hes never going to live this down. Probably frantically texts dick(?) About how hes turing into bruce and then doesnt elaborate

Unbeknowst to him, theyve secretly been "treating" him by acting as filters/replacing some of his extoplasm so he can be sure of his control over his feelings. This doesnt necessarily make him 100% calm all of the time, he still gets angry pretty easily, but. Jason gets control of himself back.

As they get closer they start being significantly more domestic. Somehow nobody has crashed jasons apartment while theyre there (they dip invisibly) and jasons relationship with bruce has improved as he no longer has to worry about pit rage taking over. Hes trying to figure out how to break the news to bruce that hes a grandfather even though he hasnt officially adopted them yet.

Dani, on the other side of town, is gossiping with a cool girl at the library named barbara about how shes been trying to figure out how to tell her neighbor that Hes Her Dad Now.

(Danny doesnt call him dad. He cant, anymore. But theyre still family)

Jason decides to introduce the topic of them meeting bruce (because 1. even though its still rocky their relationship has improved and 2. He wants it to be on his terms) and dani bursts out with the "I have a GRANDPA???????" and from there on commits to calling jason her dad and bruce (unmet) her grandpa.

Bruce meets them first and is just. In awe. He has grandchildren. His emotional constipation vs his absolute adoration of the fact hes a GRANDPARENT fight fight fight.

When danny and dani eventually meet everyone theyre all like oh sick bruce picked up a duo this time nice to meet you. And they absolutely cannot comprehend it when bruce and jason walk in and dani goes to jason first. Nobody expected jason to take on bruces adoption tendencies but they should have.

(Also fun hc i couldnt work in naturally but i do fully stand by- the ectoplasm in dannys body does affect his injuries somewhat, meaning he heals naturally very quickly from most ghost fights. Why?

It heales based on emotional healing.

He doesnt really care all too much about the average cut from one of his rogues and they heal within the day, but a hit from valerie takes a few weeks.

The first injury his parents ever gave him still hurts.

He can barely move and cant talk for the first few weeks with jason. Only once he starts feeling safe with him do the cuts start coming back together.)

The casualness of “hi so glad your asks came back” [drops at least 1k worth of fucking stellar content that’s basically a fic] is just making me truly awestruck. God I’ve missed seeing y’all’s neat ideas.

I dont have any words that I can say that could describe just how wonderful this is so I’ll write a lil addition to it instead because I am in love with this sm.

Jason’s point of view when he’s slowly getting better and isnt afraid to meet his family because of the pit rage, has he explained that’s the reason he distanced himself? Do the bats just think that this is simply Jason finally getting the courage to reach out? Do they know that the Pit rage is stopping Jason and do they try to help him by using alternative means of communication? How much do they help and understand.

When Jason experiences his first injury. How much does it hurt? Valerie shoots him with an ectogun. How much is this man in pain for and does he have to fight pit rage inside him to not lash out and attack her after being injured?

And how does his core react to his new kids. This I NEED to know

[mylifeisweirdok]

Hello hi yes a moot (@dnpanimationstudioclone) and i have been rewriting our own versions of Valerie from danny phantom (does this surprise you? It shouldn't lol) so without further ado 🥁🥁

Valerie Rewrite

To start the hcs, her suit don't slim her out no more, shes got a full on body builder body, let her show it. She could've started weightlifting at first to help with rubble as Red, but later found it to be a good stress reliever. Shes competed in competitions and placed. Prefers the snatch events to the clean and jerk events, as snatch events resemble rubble more than the c&j.

At her first competition, she accidentally floundered her c&j move, costing her points (?), but an older lifter saw and gave her some tips; at her second competition she placed 3rd.

Extreme gym rat, sometimes moreso than sam. Like, she has so much protein powder. There's a cabinet in the kitchen purely for her shakers and powders.

When she can't sleep she exercises.

Prefers sweet to spicy but will have her moments when savory just Hits Different

Loves emotional music, anything that makes her feel will be put in one of her playlists. It doesn't have to be good music, just music that can feel good. She always has earbuds in when shes in her civies, or a speaker going.

Doesn't play many video games but likes puzzles. Cross words, actual puzzles, rubix cubes. Things that make her think but not too much.

Has not only a nightly skin routine but a morning one. Sticks to these fairly well, also prefers korean skincare to american

Also, she needs a character arc.

Canon freshman val is extremely bitter, v hypocritical, fairly rude and overall mean.

Barring phantom planet from existence, lets say there's a bbeg that comes in early sophomore year that forces her to realize who rude she became after her dad lost his job, even before as a A lister

She reevaluates how she's interacted with the trio, specifically sam

Internally she's freaking out, cause the few people who treated her normal and loosely tolerated with her anti ghost propaganda she had treated like shit

She withdrawals for a few days, causing danny (the bloody hearted fool) to seek her out, where they don't have a come to jesus per say, more like a small slap by reality

Sam and tuck show up near the end of the convo, and ask her if she wants to change. This is her official first step to being a nicer human

From there, she starts treating the underlings nicer (finally puts Nathan in his place and calling him out on being a lowkey stalker). She briefly defends a few students from dash, also calling him out. Danny asks her to leave him n dash alone however, cause if the bully has no outlet he will explode (and it'll protect the students, adding to his Big O). She reluctantly does.

After they graduate high school, before sam starts train hopping, the quartet regularly meets up to haunt (ha) a few known teenager places. The nasty burger can only be eaten so many times when you have 3 very picky eaters. They explore abandoned buildings on the outskirts of town for fun not ghosts. They poke around the gas stations and alleyway shops. Since amity has such a low crime rate, shops are more open to stragglers and alleyways offer good temporary places for food carts

A few months after the reality slap, the hair incident as it is dubbed, occurs. So val and danny are fighting bbeg # whatever, and she gets hit in the back, and since shes tired the nanobots in her suit have to leave it. Later on in the fight, she dodges another blast, but since the hole in the suit is there, her hair is kinda out hanging and a good chunk is melted and hit. She doesnt realize until the battle is over, when she's back home and sees a mirror. Sam finds her a few hours later while she's having a mini breakdown, cause her hair was a big part of her emotionally, it took a long time to grow out that far. Sam helps her calm down, offers tuck and his mom to help care for whats left. While val is cleaning up, sam texts tuck and gets them ready for an emergency braid sesh. They finish her braids late in the night so the girls sleep over (thank goodness for weekends) and then the next day they all wake up and decide to do a self care day to take care of their skin n whatnot after the stressful yesterday. They even finagle danny into it (cause hes the worst at taking care of himself) and this establishes her trust in the trio after a shakey past relationship.

Trust has officially been built.

From here, danny pulls her into the group not taking no for an answer. She is used as a meat vs veg referee multiple times before calling them out on their bullshit and they also realize its time to grow up partially

She continues to grow into a well rounded individual who extends an olive branch to everyone, but has a lighter at the ready whenever. She sought to meet everyone in her grade. This helped her many times; a band kid covered for her while a ghost attacked the school, the nerds helped her with homework. When they graduated high school, she'll encounter people on the street and strike up a conversation. This doesn't mean she remembers their names, she absolutely sucks with names but will remember the brand of x product they're allergic to they mentioned once.

Before the end of her arc, (think 3/4) val ends up trusting the quartet enough to tell them she's red, and they have to tell her about phantom. After this convo she feels extremely betrayed cause they know how hard she's been working towards being more civil and they just didn't tell her she had been actively hunting and hurting a close friend. Not only that, she's betrayed cause they didn't trust her with the information prior, and they were right not to. She becomes withdrawn and only after a not-so-big-bbeg comes through forcing them to work together that she sits down and talks through her emotions with them.

What if when shes doing her character arc, she realizes Red doesn't have to be all fighter, she can use Red to start up a sense of community. So as Red, she starts helping out homeless folk and strays, maybe fills in a pothole or two; enough for the general population to start leaning towards community work too. Publicity for Red has never been higher, and more n more community spaces pop up.

After her stunt filling up some potholes, she's approached by various community members to help with various tasks; she helps clean up a playground, she helps install some sculptures, she promotes a soup kitchen. After a while, a reporter approaches her and does an interview, starting her media face. Realizing she needs a pr team but cant have one she opts to study communications and Becomes her own pr team.

Once shes officially grown, as Red shes more likely to ask questions than shoot, but still is less than pleased with ghosties. Red becomes more personable to the public, becoming a reliable ghost hunter and eventually starts doing press conferences after big fights. Still a vigilante but now has a social media account on the big ones (twitter, tiktok, and instagram) but also on amity's app, Amity Undead/"you've been ghosted." The app is similar in setup to twitter and tumblr mobile, however the og function was to send out ghost warnings, so like the "home" page is mainly the fentons phantom and red all giving alerts. The next page is like sightings of non harmful ghosts, the page after is the social part. Since red and phantom were part of the og posters, they have a decent sized following each and regularly do collabs when things calm down enough.

Eventually, she has to come to terms with how she treated Danny as phantom while they dated, making her look into herself (specifically her sexuality). While trying to accept her actions, she realizes shes part cupioromatic, and she immediately goes to sam about it, who shows her its ok to be that way. Sam and Val research it together and help val come to terms with it (remember, this is illinois in the early 2000s anyone who ain't hetero is gonna have Some internalized homophobia)

Speaking of, how does the quartet get together? Well, it starts once val started her arc, and they all grow closer. Fighting the world with each other tends to make you a bit closer. Once they graduate, val and danny attend college online, while tuck and sam forgo it all together. Tucker already has a name for himself in the back walls, (a hc black market online for tech) so he just uses that to make the bulk of his money, putting up a front of creating a small coding firm for the IRS (cause ain't nobody sane gonna mess with them). Sam does her thing with finding train hopping, and at age 19 leaves Amity Park to grow.

Since Val and Danny both attend college (val in communications, danny in engineering and precise machinery) they hang out often, using each other as a study buddy to create a somewhat schedule for themselves. Further on in their college career, they realize they're Extremely close, and Val has to tell Danny about being cupio. He takes it as  well as sam, and shows her its ok to be lgbtq; he himself is pan afterall. Val decides to tell tucker, since sam and danny both know now, and he also supports her, stating that he's loosely bi but prefers no label, just that he likes who he likes. This prompts the three of them to all look at how they've all interacted in the past, and realize that all three want to date the others (in varying degrees, in d&v's cases) so the next time sam is in town, they all decide to talk about it in tucker's apartment.

Its a bit of a confusing process that changes a handful of times, but eventually lands on t romantically dating all 3, d romantically dating s&t and platonically dating v, s romantically dating d&t and platonically dating v, and v platonically dating d&s and romantically dating t. It takes them a while to get used to this arrangement, more than a few rough patches to realize communication is Key, but once they settle they realize they could've never come up with a better solution.

Queen Dorothea comes by eventually to congratulate the four of them and offer to make their union bands, a ghosty version of marriage. Its traditionally taken up by the siblings of the union holders, but since v&s&t are all only children, dora and jazz have a blast designing them.

Danny and Val want rings, danny a thinner black band that has a more gothic tone, with black and green zone stones. Val has a thicker band has the black stones of danny's ring but with a dark grey metal holding them in place with fleur de lis embellishments along the band. (Kinda like this:)

Sam and Tucker opt for bracelets instead. Sam has a bunch of layered zone-bark braided bracelets, one for each of them-danny's has star charms and black zone gems, val's has miniature baptisma flower charms and a muted red center stone, tuck's has mini acacia leaf charms with zone stones that colors "glitch" in earth light, and her own was braided in a pattern that looks like train tracks with a charm from each of theirs plus one for her: a hebrew script saying home. Tucker's bracelets are 2 gold wristlets, each inscribed with a symbol for each of them, inlaid with gemstones and covered in mini hieroglyphs describing each of his union-partners. Sam's symbol is a thorny vine which is intertwined with Val's baptisma sprigs, danny's is a star rising above the horizon that is the girls' vines. (Again, kinda like these but use your imagination)

When Val and Danny graduate, the quartet go on a "honeymoon" ei they go to the ghost zone to explore. Val is extremely off put by the idea but says nothing, letting her partners enjoy their time. This comes to light when they visit dora, who approaches her while the other three are off doing something Ghostly and val confides. Dora snitches, saying her brother would never allow his partner to be uncomfortable. Big feelings come out. The trio realize their mistake and offer to cut it short, but val says she'd rather continue going through the zone meeting Danny's entourage. They take val through a much safer than originally planned route, showing val the great calm and peaceful parts of the zone, and val finally understands why the others like it so much. When they make it back to earth red appears much more ghost friendly, still a fierce protector but more empathetic to the regulars and the non threatening ghosts.

They all move in together about a year after the college graduation, each of them saving up enough to help with the deposit on the house. Tucker still covers almost all of the bills, but danny (and later sam) covers groceries and the like. Val does most of the chores since she doesn't have a job other than Red.

She enforces self care weekends on the rest of her quad once they all get together properly.

Is the second best cook but the best baker. Like previously stated, she's got a sweeth tooth so sugary beetles chase after her lol

The only one of the quartet who can legally drive. Tucker failed his test too many times, danny doesn't need it, Sam didn't need it before she left and has too much going on after she came back and recovered, so Val took it up.

Her room is the second biggest and the only one on the main floor of the house, cause the rest of the quartet couldn't handle listening to her midnight exercising sessions. She has display cases for all her trophies from weight lifting and karate, fake vines on her ceiling, a closet without doors, and lots of quilts. More quilts than blankets. No she cannot sew; for the life of her she can't.

Not all of her equipment fits in her room, so she has a small portion of the garage dedicated to her bigger weights and mats and whatnot.

Once she went to state competition and took Tucker with her; they were both approached by a very pretty person and both struggled™️ when flirted to directly to their face (pre union). Val went on to tie with said pretty person while lifting and had to do an extra event to split it, they ended up doing some weird flexible one and Val won because of her time as Red. Afterwards pretty person gave val their number and they're still good friends to this day and get a meal together if they go to the same competition.

Eventually her suit is redesigned once more. The suit is red until the bust, where it begins to be a black taper that encircles her waist and up, with extremely understated black vines along the outer seams that become red at the color change, so understated it's just bold lines from the public's view until you get really close. It has sharper lines across the face and visor, and the gloves have reinforced knuckles to have the ability to punch ghosts. The suit also adds miniature embossings, looking a bit like explosions. Her board also gets a touch up, becoming longer and wider so she can sit on it in the sky on slow days.

As her arc progressed, she would incorporate more beads and fun touches to her hair, eventually using wooden beads in a nice mid length braided style.

(https://pin.it/4bDwG9N)

In her civvies, as Val, her fashion sense drastically changes. I hesitate to use the term bohemian cause its just romani culture (which is closed practice i think?) but i feel like she would like the free flowing and flowers of that fashion niche, so once she and sam get their heads together and research it properly, val ends up buying romani inspired clothes from romanian companies that are sustainable. Her fashion style is rather mixed beforehand, very athletic with arty elements before settling. She still throws in her own elements, artsy and hippie stuff here n there, athletic stuff occasionally. She has an eye for making them clash in a good way.

Don't let her fashion choices fool you though, she is fierce when crossed and is quick to burn bridges. Even after her arc she is a bit hot headed, but friendly enough to the general population.

While Red and in her mid 30s, a bbeg comes through and wrecks havoc; danny comes in and saves the day but val gets hurt Badly. A civilian finds her and gets her to the hospital, where she is unmasked. Afterwards, their house is barraged with reporters aiming for an interview. Sam has to threaten charges for them to leave. After it calms down for a bit, the public mostly is okay with her being Red; some people still give negative backlash against her being there but its not like they can stop her.

After recovering partially, she's out on a brief patrol when a ghost with meh powers comes through trying to cause chaos. Sam came with her, so they face it off together, before being sucked into the thermos the ghost does end up cursing Sam to be "a dreaded creature of night" aka a vamp. However, with meh powers comes meh curses; she ends up with slightly sharper teeth, an aversion to garlic, the craving for iron and coconut milk, and slightly stronger and faster reflexes. Val blames herself a lil bit for this but Sam honestly finds it pretty cool. Val buys sam her first iron fish to boil to bring up her iron content.

Thats all for now, I forgot to grab photos of my val redraw so early tomorrow after work I'll snag those.

[talesofphantombandits]

Zero to Six ~ Chapter Eight.

Hellllllooooooooooooo, am here! Sorry this took a while again, another busy week. All the support I’ve been getting is just so nice, I love all you’re comments. Also a HUGE Thank You to @raylan-c​ For the two wonderful Collages that you made (I’ll try incorporate them in here somewhere) and also the HC that you keep coming up with <3

Enjoy! If you want to be tagged just ask <3

warnings: Swearing, mentions of panic attack.

Tags: @i-am-sarah​ , @whothefuckstolemykeds​ , @drowsyrrog​ , @culturefiendtrashqueen​ , @rogue-barnes-16--main-account​ , @alliwantfromyouistomakelovetome​ , @valerie-weasley​ , @sueeatstheworld​ , @bleona2808​ , @pippin248​ , @myfatbottomedgirls​ , @httpfandxms​ , @cooliosmosh​ , @speckles-s​ , @walking-disgrace​ , @itsmeaudrieee​ , @fight-the-freaking-fairies​ , @irrelevant-pumpkin​ , @captain-sparkles-who​ , @podcasts-8-my-heart​ , @foulvintagenature​ 

Gif credit: mrbenhardys

______________________________________________________________

The elevator dinged signalling that I had reached the apartment. This was probably extremely stupid of me but I wanted to help out, I’d been useless for too long.

The doors opened, I raised my gun so I was armed and ready. Two guards turned at the noise of the ding, before they could even raise their weapons I shot them both in quick succession.

“ZERO GOD DAM IT.” One shouted at me. 

I didn’t listen, I wanted to concentrate on getting to Four and the dictators brother to get them both out safely.  

“We’re stuck on the stairway.” Two informed.

Bullets where ricocheting off every wall, I’d finally located Four but he was across the other side of the stairs. Getting to him would be extremely hard seen as the space between us was an open area. I decided to focus on helping Two and Three who were trying to get up the stairs.

A guard came bounding across the landing, Three totally unaware. I stepped out in front of the guy. Everything felt like it was in slow motion I raised my gun and just as he was about to make contact with me I shot him.

He crashed into me, I felt a sharp pain in my side. As we hit the floor hard he went limp. I groaned at the weight.

“Zero!” Three shouted concerned as he threw the guy off me.

“You okay?” I just nodded my head. “Thank you! I didn’t even see him coming, you probably just saved my life.”

“Yeah well no need to get soppy now, we still have a mission to complete.” I patted his shoulder and went back to my spot against the wall protecting the two that were trying to make a clear path to the zip line.

“Guys, I got a bad idea.” Seven said.

One chimed in sounding nervous. “What do you mean you have a bad idea? You’re only suppose to have good ideas.”

“I have a really, really bad idea.” I rolled my eyes.

“Get on with it Seven, It’s like hell in here.” I said wincing as a guard took a shot at me.

“Am improvising okay, You all might want to grab onto something.” 

I looked up and caught Fours eyes, I just shrugged at him.

Just then we all heard a cracking sound.

“THE POOL!” Two shouted and began to run back down the stairs.

“NO NO BACK BACK.” Three screamed wild eyed. 

Just then Seven took the final shot, the pool burst open. A flood of water came crashing down from the roof. Some how Four had managed to get the asset into a safe place then proceeded to sprint under the stairs just in front of me.

This was going to be a close call, I didn’t have much time. Four reached his hand out and was yelling at me to jump.

Just as the water reached my feet, I sprinted forward and leapt. Luckily he caught me, both crashing to the now wet ground under the stairs. At least we were safe from getting swept away.

The surge of water rushed through room after room taking anything in it’s path that wasn’t tied down. The glass all around us shattered and water went spluttering out.  From the outside the tower probably looked like a giant waterfall.

“You okay?” I didn’t even realise that I was still on the floor beneath Four, He was clucking my waist.

“Yeah am fine, thank you for catching me.” I looked up into his green eyes.

“Any excuse to touch you love.” He smirked, moved his hand from my waist. “Zero, you’re bleeding.” I looked at his hand to see the tiniest spot of blood.

“Don’t worry, it’s just a scratch, I can’t even feel it.” I put on my best smile. 

We both sharply turned our heads to someone grunting, they then let out a little scream.

We scurried forward to the edge of the staircase just in time to see Two get carried away by the water.

“TWO!” I shouted ready to lunge after her, but Four caught my arm just in time.

We both watched in horror as she got dragged further and further away. Closer to the blown out window.

My heart stopped for a moment. “You’ve drown the whole freaking team!” One gritted his teeth.

When the water had all but drained I rushed forward, helping Two up. “Thank god.” I mumbled.

Three was safely securing the asset into the zip line when he decided now would be a good time to take his frustrations with how the mission went on the poor soul.

He started punching him. “Three come on stop.” I said.

Me and Two tried our hardest to get him to calm down but it wasn’t until One came that he eventually stopped.

When the asset, Two and Three were safely flying to the other building I secured myself to the line.

I looked around, noticing that someone was missing. “Where’s Four?” 

“Not my problem, now go.” One said un bothered.

“No am not leaving until he gets here safe!” I started to reach up to undo the harness.

One rushed forward and covered it so I couldn’t unstrap myself.

“One let go, am not leaving him!” I said through gritted teeth.

“You are going to do what I say, the rules are if someone gets left behind we don’t wait.” He was all up in my face and angry now.

“Your rules are fucking stupid.” I spit in his face.

“I don’t care what you think.” suddenly he let go of the top and pushed me off the building.

“NO!” I screamed, the wind battered my face as I flew across the skyline.

Tears had began to fall down my cheeks making them freezing with the wind whipping at them due to the speed I was flying at.

I didn’t wait for anyone when I landed. No one would have noticed anyway as Three had continued his assault.

I ran as fast as I could to the car that Five was waiting at. She was shocked by the state I was in, I told her everything and she was just as concerned.

“Three bullets.” I heard a soft voice come over coms.

“Four we’re moving.” One said.

“Just go, I can’t get across.” He said softly. “They cut the zip line.”

“Four, please.” I sobbed.

“Don’t worry Darling, I’ll be fine.” I could hear the strain in his voice and I knew he was lying.

“Am sorry.” One said, which only angered me more.

“It’s just bad luck.” A ring of shots was heard. I tuned to Five, she just seated me in the car then turned to wait for the others.

When the rest showed up we were off. The further away we got from Four, the more my heart broke.

The tears had stopped now, all that was left was a sizzling anger that was mostly directed at One.

Suddenly something crashed on top of the car, we all insistingly ducked.

“Was that a bad guy?” Three asked.

We came out to an open stretch of road only to be barricaded by a police car.

The sudden stop made us all jolt forward.

Shit.

The tension in the car was high, but that rouse even higher when the asset started to shout at the cops that he’d been kidnapped.

“Am going to kill him.” Three mused.

“Am going to let you.” One sang back.

luckily something else drew the cops attention away and they got back in their car, speeding off.

Three pulled out, following behind them.

Suddenly out of all the commotion going on in the car, a distant explosion could be heard over coms.

I was close to having a panic attack, thinking about all the situations Four could be in right now. We were just running away, leaving one of our family members to suffer by himself. I was enraged.

That’s when I realised something. 

I loved him.

We hadn’t known each other for that long, well we had but not in person. But some how he’d sneaked his way into my heart. No matter how many times he bullied me or we fought. And now I was never going to see him again, I was never going to be able to share my feelings with him.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when giant metal bars literally came raining down on us. Massive explosions erupted behind us, blocking the police cars.

“I made it across.” I sighed in relive, Thank god. “Southwest side.”

“Where are you? NO-” Suddenly Four was cut off.

I sprang forward in my seat, clutching onto the headrest in front of me.

I heard grumbling then a massive thud, and groans of pain.

“Stop the car!” Seven spoke up.

“No!” One said. “ Am not stopping the car. We’re leaving him.”

“We aren’t leaving him, You’re leaving him. You son of a bitch!” I screamed.

“He’s on his own.”

“STOP THE CAR!” Seven shouted.

Seven then pulled his hand gun out, pointing it out of the window right at Three’s head. Ones late reaction was to also pull a gun on Three.

“Don’t you dare stop this car.” One shouted angrily.

The car screeched, violently spinning to turn the way we just came.

“He got there first.” Three said agitated.

“Am not doing this again! am not leaving him behind.” The tension in the car was so thick that a knife wouldn’t cut it.

I just breathed heavy and tried to keep the fresh tears at bay.

I looked at Seven, relief passing over my face as he gave me a little smile. He then got out the car and proceeded  to set up his gun on the edge of it.

I stumbled out, looking up to Four’s location. The guy was beating him good, they were only on a tiny, very unsafe looking ledge.

“Come on Four fight it! we’re coming for you.” I tried to be calm at the sound of painful grunts each time the man landed a blow. “You still need to knock me on my ass remember, you can’t do that if you don’t come down from there.” 

I heard a pained whimper which sounded like he tried to laugh. It broke my heart.

Suddenly the guy pushed him and Four went flying over the edge, I felt like I was going to have a heart attack. Luckily is foot got caught on the orange material. 

I gasped.

“Seven please.” I whimpered.

Chapter Nine

[icenerdsnerd]

here’s what i promised with Josee and her daughter Oralie

I had this idea last night where, several years after the race, Josee ends up a single Mom with a little girl, and the whole premise of this story i’m never gonna write is that this girl, when she’s older, tries to get her Mama back on the ice again

This girl is named Oralie, a French name for golden; idk if it’s pronounced Ora-lee or Ora-lye, but either way, her Mama calls her Ora 

Ora’s like, 14 when the story is set, and she has her Mama’s dark eyes and dark chestnut hair, the fringe of which she pulls back but the sides she leaves out, in that modern style girls wear now 

(Like. This story would take place in like 2033 or smthn like that but that’s her hair okay shush) 

Ora is p much a mini version of Josee – while she’s adorable, she’s hot-headed, knows what she wants, will do anything to get it, and can be wicked and diabolical at times – but is a little mellower than her Mama

Like with all my Mom-Daughter duos i’ve written (Scarlet Overkill and Lucy Wilde, Valerie Da Vinci and her sextuplet daughter ocs of mine), Josee and Ora are close, but they fight a lot more than my other duos and that just comes down to their hotheadedness 

But Josee spoils Ora and does a lot for her, and since Josee is pretty much all who Ora has, and Ora’s all who Josee really wants to have in her life now, they’re really tight

Ora was born pretty much straight after Josee’s sudden fall from the grace she managed to rise to after the race 

Four years after the race, Josee and Jacques were facing two significantly competitive teams in Canada, not at the Olympics (if Josee and Jacques had tried for the Olympics again, i think they would’ve gotten the gold just to add to the angst of Josee suddenly just falling ahaha) 

The two teams pushed Josee to train harder than she ever had before; when she wasn’t competing, she was pretty much training, not making time for anything else 

Jacques tried to talk her out of training so hard but she refused to listen to him

At one competition one night, Josee and Jacques were facing both of these tough teams, and were facing all sorts of insults and shit from the cocky female member of one team

Josee did her best to keep from killing her right then and there, going out to compete with Jacques

While out there, she tore a ligament or her ACL or something and Jacques ended up carrying her off the ice without the grace he usually used 

I’m no physiotherapist but it was probably from excessive training, but i know if you tear your ACL you’re pretty much fucked up for a year, like, you’re out for the rest of a football season at least 

I honestly don’t know how Josee got away from Jacques and the medics but i want to add this old hc that Josee has killed another girl because LIKE why not 

The cocky female from one other team started taunting Josee in like a locker room and Josee, already in so much physical and psychological pain, tried to attack her, grabbing a folding chair and trying to hit her with it, following her to a balcony, where the female member fell over the balcony 

(she fell. Josee didn’t get to hit her off. And security cameras proved Josee didn’t do it, but probs should’ve been charged with manslaughter but fuck da police) 

All Jacques could hear from another room was Josee screaming every time she moved her leg, and no one ever heard the cocky female team member scream while she fell from the balcony 

And the tragedy that arose from the incident, and the other tough team winning, eventually shoved Josee’s recovery to a tiny article in a Quebecer newspaper

And Josee never ended up touching the ice again; both her injury and the balcony incident scarred her so much, she couldn’t bring herself to ice dance again

She cut herself off from the ice dancing world, using her share of their gold medal winnings to sustain herself and eventually Ora 

One of her last times she spent with Jacques was a steamy night fuelled by her pain, which was where she conceived Oralie 

(idk if Ora knows Jacques is her father) 

But Josee eventually pushed Jacques away, leaving her and Ora alone for some time, before she ended up letting Jacques back into her life: on the condition he never tried to convince her to ice dance again

Btw Josee was like 24 during the incident so she probs could’ve gotten back on the ice pretty quickly

For most of Ora’s life Josee doesn’t have to worry about the child-of-a-has-been-star-wanting-to-do-what-their-parent-did trope 

MOST ahaha

Like. Ora knew her Mama was an ice dancer and had seen some of her performances, and Little Ora, like very little, was like “I wanna be like Mama!” but Josee was like “haha whatever” 

When she’s 14, Jacques ends up taking her to school a lot, and Ora ends up asking him more about his and her Mama’s ice dancing days

Jacques is reluctant to tell her at first, not knowing if Josee would approve and not wanting to damage their repaired relationship (platonic bc Josee wouldn’t let anything else happen (ffs)) 

But eventually Ora knows a lot about ice dancing and her Mama’s feats and ends up asking her about them, telling her what she knows

Josee’s like “yeah we did that” at first but then it clicks that Ora might want to ice dance – which she does – and she’s like “NOPE” 

Ora does say she wants to ice dance, just like her Mama, but Mama won’t have it; in a heated argument, Josee forbids Ora from ever setting foot on ice

Ora won’t say no so easily – just like her Mama!! – and so she begs and begs and begs Jacques to take her to a skating rink 

Jacques eventually does and Ora goes out on the ice, and since she has the blood of Canadian ice dancing royalty in her veins, she’s a natural 

She does like ice dancing, and wishes her Mama was here to see her out there, but doesn’t think she could do it as much as her Mama

But she definitely wouldn’t mind seeing her Mama skate again, and not on a video

And so when Jacques takes her home, and Josee’s idk where, Ora goes and buys a set of skates in her Mama’s size 

They’re real pretty, they’re the same pink as her race unitard, and have gold laces 

And she gives them to her Mama who is pretty much livid 

Before Josee can get too mad at her, Ora says she shouldn’t have given up so easily, asks why, and Josee’s like “because sometimes it’s best to give up” 

Jacques arrives with a bag Ora accidentally left in his car and he gets dragged into the commotion

Soon Ora admits she went to an ice rink with Jacques and Josee almost kills him with her yelling, but Jacques says Ora’s right, she shouldn’t have given up

Again, Josee forbids Ora from setting foot on ice

In a few weeks Ora does her best to convince her Mama to ice dance at least ONE more time 

(side note: she also puts a toe on an ice cube she dropped on the kitchen floor and is like “oh noooo, i set foot on ice” bc she’s a little shit like that) 

Josee isn’t willing to do that but does talk to Ora about it, and Ora is happy to listen

Ora also works out that Jacques is her Papa but says nothing to either of them 

But EVENTUALLY, somehow, Josee does ice dance again 

Either Ora finally convinces her and goes to the rink with her, or Josee just turns up missing one night but Ora finds those new skates she got her are missing 

I like the second idea actually 

Ora and Jacques arrive at the rink and see Josee in all her glory because she’s still got it!!! she could get an 11/10 even after all these years

And when Josee finishes one of her routines she remembers off by heart Ora reveals herself in the rink’s darkened bleachers by giving her a standing ovation, and then climbs down the bleachers and ambles onto the ice in her converses to give her Mama a hug 

Jacques comes down from the bleachers and rejoices with Josee too 

Josee doesn’t go back into ice dancing, mainly bc she doesn’t want to, not just bc she’s like 38 by this stage (she could still kick ass shush) 

Ora still isn’t interested in competing in ice dancing, and Josee is glad, ‘cause the last thing she wants to do is get all Renee with her (and from what Jacques told her about her Grandmama, Ora knows Renee was bad news) 

But they do go down to the ice skating rink on weekends and Ora unlocks all those skills being the daughter of Canadian ice dancing royalty has bestowed on her

And things are good

Fin

[mysteryshelf]

BLOG TOUR - Facials Can Be Fatal

DISCLAIMER: This content has been provided to THE PULP AND MYSTERY SHELF by Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours. No compensation was received. This information required by the Federal Trade Commission.

Facials Can Be Fatal by Nancy J. Cohen

Facials Can Be Fatal (A Bad Hair Day Mystery)

Cozy Mystery 13th in Series Five Star Publishing (February 22, 2017) Hardcover: 286 pages ISBN-13: 978-1432832827

Synopsis

During the frenzy of the December holidays, the last thing salon owner Marla Vail needs is a dead body slathered in a green facial mask at her new day spa. The victim, Valerie Weston, was a major donor for Friends of Old Florida, a historic building preservation society. Marla’s stylists are scheduled to work backstage at their upcoming gala fashion show, but Val’s demise might put a crimp in their plans. Hoping to salvage her reputation, Marla determines to track down the suspects. As she learns more about Val, she realizes the benefactress might have stumbled onto secrets others would kill to keep. She’d better prepare for a body count that has nothing to do with hot stone massages and everything to do with murder.

Interview with the Author

What initially got you interested in writing?

I’d always been interesting in writing, starting out with poems and short stories and travel journals. Then I decided to write a full-length novel. I bought a book called “Structuring Your Novel” that took me step-by-step through the process. I also read Writer’s Digest magazine for many years. Seven books later, I finally sold my first manuscript. That one was Circle of Light, and it won the HOLT Medallion Award.

  What genres do you write in?

I started out writing science fiction romance and then switched to cozy mysteries.

I’ve published eight romances and thirteen mysteries to date, two novellas, and one non-fiction instructional guide titled Writing the Cozy Mystery.

  What drew you to writing these specific genres?

As a romance reader and Star Trek fan, I combined the two genres and wrote science fiction romance. Later, I based these stories on Earth in modern times to write the Drift Lords series and added mythical elements. But I was also a Nancy Drew fan and loved lighthearted mysteries. I ended up putting mysteries into my romances, so it was a natural progression to try a straight mystery at some point.

  How did you break into the field?

I joined Romance Writers of America and attended local chapter meetings. Here I entered a critique group that vastly improved my writing. I met my first agent at a Florida Romance Writers conference. This agent marketed books four through six, but it was book seven that sold. I wrote four futuristic romances for Dorchester before switching to mysteries and landing a contract with Kensington. Thus began my Bad Hair Day series featuring salon owner and hairstylist Marla Shore. I still belong to a critique group with FRW members today.

  What do you want readers to take away from reading your works?

Entertainment, escape, a sense of humor, a touch of romance, and an urge to get the sequel! I want them to love Marla, my hairdresser sleuth, and to consider the continuing characters as their friends. I want them to close each book with a smile on their faces. Coming from the romance genre initially, I believe in HEAs (Happy Ever After endings) even for my mysteries.

  What do you find most rewarding about writing?

Fan response is by far the most rewarding aspect of writing for me. I write for my readers. As long as they want more Marla books, I’ll be encouraged to write them. I like to think I’m giving people a few hours of pleasant escape from their problems. I want to give them the same experience I seek as a reader. Hearing back from fans that they love my books and can’t wait for the next one is highly gratifying. I am humbled and honored by their support.

  What do you find most challenging about writing?

It’s very hard to concentrate lately with so many distractions. I’m tempted to glance at email or check in at Facebook when these can be time sinks. Finding quiet time to write seems harder than ever before. The pressure to produce more and faster and to spend hours marketing your work seems much greater. Authors can lose focus and forget why we started this career. We love storytelling, and that has to remain our priority, but it’s not easy with social media merely a click away. I spend more time on marketing than on writing, and that can be frustrating.

  What advice would you give to people wanting to enter the field?

Follow the 3 P’s: Persistence, Professionalism, and Practice. Keep perfecting your craft and make sure your presentation is as professional as possible. Join local writing organizations and attend conferences and workshops. Learn from other authors by getting hooked into the writing community. Have a presence online and start building your platform. Get acquainted with social media sites and be prepared to market your work. Set daily and weekly writing goals and stick to them. It’s the only way you’ll finish a book. Don’t worry about edits until you are done.

  What type of books do you enjoy reading?

I love genre fiction. My favorites are historical romance and historical mysteries, science fiction/fantasy, and cozy mysteries. I look for humor, romance, and an escape to another world in the fiction I read.

  Is there anything else besides writing you think people would find interesting about you?

I have a Master’s Degree in Nursing and worked as a registered nurse for ten years. Considering possible career paths, I almost auditioned for a professional ballet company. But I’d always loved writing. Barbara Cartland is who got me started reading romance, and Jill Churchill attracted me to cozy mysteries. I’m also a foodie who enjoys cooking classes and dining on Caribbean cruises.

About The Author

Nancy J. Cohen writes the Bad Hair Day Mysteries featuring South Florida hairstylist Marla Vail. Titles in this series have made the IMBA bestseller list and been selected by Suspense Magazine as best cozy mystery. Nancy has also written the instructional guide, Writing the Cozy Mystery. Her imaginative romances, including the Drift Lords series, have proven popular with fans as well. A featured speaker at libraries, conferences, and community events, Nancy is listed in Contemporary Authors, Poets & Writers, and Who’s Who in U.S. Writers, Editors, & Poets. When not busy writing, she enjoys fine dining, cruising, visiting Disney World, and shopping.

Author Links:

Website: http://nancyjcohen.com

Blog: http://nancyjcohen.wordpress.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NancyJCohenAuthor

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/nancyjcohen

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/91508.Nancy_J_Cohen

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/njcohen/

Linked In: http://www.linkedin.com/in/nancyjcohen

Booklover’s Bench: http://bookloversbench.com

Newsletter Sign-Up: http://nancyjcohen.com/newsletter/

  Purchase Links:

Amazon HC Amazon Digital

Barnes and Noble

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Participants

March 1 – Laura’s interests – REVIEW, EXCERPT

March 1 – Island Confidential – INTERVIEW

March 2 – Community Bookstop – REVIEW

March 2 – Books, Dreams, Life – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

March 3 – Brooke Blogs – GUEST POST, EXCERPT

March 3 – 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, &, Sissy, Too! – SPOTLIGHT

March 4 – Texas Book-aholic – REVIEW

March 4 – Readeropolis – REVIEW

March 5 – Cozy Up With Kathy – GUEST POST

March 6 – The Pulp and Mystery Shelf – INTERVIEW

March 7 – A Holland Reads – CHARACTER GUEST POST

March 8 – The Mysterious Ink Spot – GUEST POST

March 8 – StoreyBook Reviews – SPOTLIGHT, EXCERPT

March 9 – The Book’s the Thing – REVIEW

March 10 – Celticlady’s Reviews – SPOTLIGHT

  Have you signed up to be a Tour Host?

Click Here Find Details and Sign Up Today!

Additional Banners

BLOG TOUR – Facials Can Be Fatal was originally published on the Wordpress version of The Pulp and Mystery Shelf