#and keeps fucking with lilly at every opportunity

[razzle-zazzle]

Whumptober Day 16: Necrosis

Swamp (pond) + "No, I can't feel anything"

3271 Words; Coleverlord, 7 and 2 years pre-canon

TW for drowning, attempted filicide, near-death experiences, emotional manipulation, repeated use of bugs as symbolism

AO3 ver

“Lilly, what were you thinking?”

The words were spoken in a low hiss, almost inaudible to Cole as he approached the kitchen. He came to stop just before the doorway as his mother’s voice filtered out into the hall.

“That’s not—I’m only doing what I have to.” She said, sounding strained, and Cole shuffled forwards nervously. He leaned around the frame and peered through the doorway.

+=+=+=+=+

The rock overturned, shedding light on the creatures below.

The afternoon sun shone bright overhead, while the soil beneath the mud was soft and damp. Cole stared as a particularly large roly-poly crawled along the underside of the rock. A centipede scurried away from the light to another rock to hide under, and Cole shoved his hand into the dirt—there!

Cole yanked the worm out of the dirt and held it, looking it over as it wriggled. The eight year old left the rock upside-down as he stood to go find his mom, intent on showing her his prize.

+=+=+=+=+

The waiting room smelled vaguely floral, in a way that Cole wasn’t sure was from perfume or cleaning products. There weren’t many other people here besides him and his dad—just another visitor talking quietly with the receptionist.

Cole wasn’t entirely sure why he was even here. It was a weekend, and he had dance practice in two hours, and there wasn’t really much to do here in the waiting room—which added up to one bored thirteen year old. Still, his dad had insisted, and there wasn’t much else Cole could do; it got him out of the house in a way that his lack of friends couldn’t do.

(The garden pond had been empty for years now.)

Eventually, a nurse came along, standing before them with a warm smile. It scrabbled at the back of Cole’s mind, and the nurse twitched before sliding their eyes away from Cole and onto his dad.

“She’s ready for visitors, right this way.”

+=+=+=+=+

She had been acting kind of… different, lately, though Cole couldn’t really pinpoint when the changes started. But it felt like she looked at him less, or kept ending conversations early. She was going on more of her trips, too, and telling him less about her adventures when she got back. It felt… Cole frowned, then shrugged, leaning to look around one of his mom’s prized rose bushes.

(It felt cold, like a whisper in his mind. But when Cole reached out for his mother so she could banish that shadow creeping up his back—

She turned away.)

+=+=+=+=+

Both of his parents were backlit by the setting sun through the window over the sink, casting shadows that reached the door. They moved like a dance—constantly responding to each other, movements made in tandem. Cole had never seen his parents dance like this, though, all tense and angry.

(And he was the cause of that, wasn’t he?)

“By trying to drown our son?!” His dad’s voice was low, trembling, on the verge of spilling out to a yell. Cole had seen his dad upset, and disappointed, and worried before—but never quite like this, never quite so unsteady.

+=+=+=+=+

There she was, kneeling by the pond she had dug a few years ago. She was wearing that sunhat dad had gotten her for her birthday, the one that Cole had helped him pick out, with the shiny fake beetle settled among pretty fake flowers along the band. She was humming, a tune Cole recognized from one of dad’s songs, and Cole grinned.

“Momma, look!” Where a year ago Cole would have run right up to his mom without hesitation, now he approached more carefully.

His mom’s gaze snapped up from the dandelion she had been carefully digging out to him, eyes wide for a moment before they narrowed. “Cole.” She greeted, not unkindly—she hadn’t called him her little Pebble in a while. Cole was sure it was because he was almost nine—his mom must have thought him too old for baby nicknames. She smiled, but made no further movement towards Cole. The dandelion in her hands twisted slightly.

+=+=+=+=+

The halls of the place had the same vaguely floral scent as the waiting room, but with a more chemical undertone. So probably cleaning products. Ants marched a spiral under Cole’s skin, cobwebs at the edge of his vision. The nurse picked up the pace.

Finally, with his dad’s hand on his shoulder, they made it to room 424. The nurse scurried off, and Cole’s dad took the first step through the doorway, to the room beyond.

After a moment, Cole followed, shadows thick around his ankles.

(Cole still hated going out to the garden if he could help it.)

+=+=+=+=+

“Look!” Cole proudly showed off what he had managed to find, opening his hand so his mom could see the worm in full. “That’s another one for the compost bin, right?” He wasn’t sure why it felt like his mom was drifting away, lately, but she was still his mom. She’d always love him—of that he was sure.

“Oh, that’s nice of you,” His mom agreed, then, “but the compost bin has enough worms.” She gripped the stem of the dandelion a little tighter, and added, “Why don’t you put the worm back where you found it? We wouldn’t want it to dry out.”

+=+=+=+=+

“That’s not my son!” His mother argued, gripping the counter with enough force to crack it. “That—that’s not Cole.” She repeated, her whole body wound up like a spring. “That—that thing—can’t you see our son is gone?”

(What had Cole done wrong?)

“Lilly…” Cole watched as his dad reached out, hand ghosting over his mother’s shoulder before retreating. “My love, you’re not well.” He sighed, muttering something Cole didn’t catch.

Cole flinched back as sudden pain spiked in his head. The shadows creeping into the hall seemed to melt, something clawing its way towards his parents. They didn’t notice the motion, didn’t react to the creeping crawling clawing in their shadows—

+=+=+=+=+

“Oh.” Well, it was still a cool worm, so it wasn’t like Cole had really wasted his mom’s time. “Okay.” He turned around to go find that rock, worm in hand. His mom watched him go, and her gaze felt like a shadow scurrying up Cole’s neck.

Cole returned to the rocks to find most of the revealed critters had either gone further into the dirt or under other rocks. Cole hummed as he scraped out a small depression in the soil with his fingers, then he gently set the worm into it. “Eat lots of dirt and keep the soil healthy, okay?” He covered the worm with loose soil, patted it for luck, then slowly reset the rock so that the spot was covered again.

+=+=+=+=+

His mother smiled warmly. She looked different than Cole remembered, much of her strength lost to illness. She also seemed… shorter.

You’ve gotten taller, Vessel.

Oh, yeah that.

Cole glanced at his dad, who nodded towards Cole’s mother. After a moment, Cole approached, something squirming in his chest. His mother opened her mouth to speak—

Only to be cut off by a cough that made her shoulders heave and shake. Cole’s chest itched, a little like a burn but not quite.

How far the mighty have fallen.

+=+=+=+=+

Cole wandered around for a bit, poking at the soil between the rocks and looking for weeds to pull, dirt on his hands and knees getting smeared onto his arms and shins—somehow. It wasn’t like he was trying to get covered in dirt, it just sort of happened. Much to his dad’s chagrin and mom’s amusement—though the last time Cole had unthinkingly tracked mud into the house, his dad fretting and asking him to please go wash his hands before dinner, his mom hadn’t said a thing.

As Cole wandered around, he ended up somewhere behind his mom, who had moved on to inspecting her roses while Cole began to dig at the soil where he was sitting. After digging and covering a few holes, his mom had ended up standing by the pond again, bending down to look at the water while Cole hummed.

+=+=+=+=+

His mother pulled back sharply. “I’m fine.” She said, harsher than Cole had ever heard her talk to his dad.

(Why didn’t his mother want him anymore?)

“Lilly,” His dad was speaking through grit teeth, “I came home to find you drowning Cole in the pond.” He grabbed at her arm. “You’re not well.” His expression softened, for a moment, and he stepped forwards. “My love—”

“Don’t call me that.” Cole’s mother snapped, shadow clawing up her back. Cole’s head pounded.

+=+=+=+=+

“Cole?” His mom’s voice floated over to where Cole was, soft and… nahh, Cole was just imagining that uncertainty. His mom fought dragons; she could never be uncertain!

“Yeah?” Cole asked, looking up from the hole he’d been digging—and then moving to put the soil back real quick before standing up.

“Can you come here?” His mom wasn’t looking at him, instead staring at the water. Cole stared at the floral print of her shirt—old and faded from time; she’d had that shirt for as long as Cole could remember and often wore it when gardening—at the sunlight on her back. It looked much warmer than the shadow he could feel clinging to his—even though the sun was beaming down onto Cole all the same.

+=+=+=+=+

His dad’s hand on his back prompted Cole to shuffle forwards, close enough to the bed for him to see his mother clearly. There was a chair there—one of his dad’s jackets was slung over the back. It was the only chair, but Cole took it at his dad’s prompting.

The shadow in his mind raised Its hackles. Cole stared at his mother—he wasn’t sure what else to do. He hadn’t seen her since…

(rough rock against his shins cold water around his chest and head and arms face pressed into the mud chest burning—)

Shh, hush now.

The memory fled to the back of his mind. Cole shifted in his seat as his mother and dad greeted each other.

+=+=+=+=+

Cole stood as his mom’s words registered. The shadow at his heels hissed, cold around Cole’s ankles. For a moment he felt held in place, before he shook it off. “Yeah, Momma?” He walked over to stand at his mom’s side, a thin line of stones separating him from the pond. “What’d you need?”

One moment he was standing next to the river-smooth rocks lining the edge of the pond, his mother kneeling next to him. And then he was under the pond water, his legs folded under him as a heavy hand pushed him down by his shoulders.

+=+=+=+=+

Cole stumbled back, away from the door and the way his parents were moving together like a dance except wrong, away away away until he was in his bedroom and the kitchen felt like a distant memory.

Light from the setting sun filtered in, hazy through the thin curtains. Cole flicked the light switch, but it did nothing to banish the shadows dancing at the corners of his vision. His head swam, and he swallowed hard.

(What was wrong with him?)

+=+=+=+=+

Cole sputtered, palms smacking against the mud at the bottom of the pond as he tried to push himself out. The hands on his shoulders only pushed harder, impossibly heavy against his back. Cole squirmed, holding his breath as he tried to—to wiggle free, or push himself up—

The mud at the bottom of the pond was very soft, and very slick. Tiny fish scattered away from Cole’s thrashing, and he couldn’t breathe—

Momma where are you come help—

Cole struggled, but the hands on his back pushed down harder, his nose inches away from the mud at the bottom of the pond. Why wasn’t—where was—his mom had just been right there, how was he—

Momma, I’m scared.

+=+=+=+=+

“And how have you been?” It took Cole a moment to realize his mother was talking to him. Something about her words made him uneasy, isopods scuttling around his organs. His dad had stepped out of the room at some point, though Cole had no idea why.

“Fine.” Cole answered, not sure what else to say.

(She’d said he wasn’t his son.)

“That’s… good.” Was his mother getting nervous? Well, that wasn’t unusual—Cole had that effect on people.

(“You’re a freak.” An upended milk carton soaking into his hair and shirt—)

“Are you… doing well in school?” His mother asked. “I…” her lips pursed, “heard you got into a fight.”

“They started it.” Cole responded, pulling his legs up and folding them in front of his chest, resting his chin on his knees. Worms wiggled up his spine. “I finished it.”

(Between talking to classmates and being left alone, Cole preferred being left alone.)

+=+=+=+=+

Cole gasped, water rushing in as he inhaled against his will. He tried to kick his legs, but couldn’t quite manage it with how they had buckled under him. Cold water rushed down his throat, burning into his lungs—

Cole choked. The hands on his back leaked cold shadows that crawled all over his body, whispers slinking around behind his eyes like roly-polys under the rocks. He was too tired to thrash, now, his chest burning burning burning as cold spilled out from his core. The hands on his back pulled back, for a brief moment, then shoved down with such force that Cole’s face was pressed into the mud, cold water crawling up his legs towards his ankles.

Momma, I ‘ m      s c   a      r e d—

.

.

.

The heavy shadows at his back shifted. Cole drifted, not quite aware as something burst into the water and grabbed his shoulders. The new hands yanked, and Cole came up out of the mud and then the water, hair plastered to his forehead.

Cole stumbled backwards, warm arms wrapping around him. Someone was talking, but Cole couldn’t quite hear it through the rushing in his ears and the shadow clawing up his chest and the whispers in his throat. Something inside him seemed to shift—

Cole vomited, hacking up water. His chest burned, muddy pond water dribbling from his lips down his chin onto the rocks before him as he coughed and coughed and coughed.

+=+=+=+=+

His head hurt. The shadows swirled, cascading across his room. It sounded like whispers. It sounded like too many ants marching along, every footstep magnified so that he could hear it. Cole rubbed at his arms, brushed still-damp hair away from his forehead—it wasn’t enough. There was something creeping up his back and arms and neck and chest, something clawing at his ribs from the inside.

Cole stumbled back, legs catching on his bed. He laid there, staring up at the ceiling, at the way the shadows interlaced with the light of the setting sun.

The shadow creeping up his back curled around his shoulders like a blanket made from the twitching legs of a thousand house centipedes. Like a spider, something crawled along the inside of his head as whispers blinked in and out of Cole’s vision.

There is nothing wrong with you, Vessel.

Cole blinked. He glanced around, looking for the source of the voice—

His head wrenched to the side as if pulled by some invisible hand, locking his gaze on the mirror on his closet door.

+=+=+=+=+

The smear of colors that was the world started to resolve itself; Cole’s dad was staring at him, hair ruffled and chest heaving.

Cole’s head hurt. Water had soaked into all of his clothes, cold and heavy. His mom said something sharply behind him, and Cole’s head twisted to look back at her of its own accord.

Her hands were soaked, and her shirt must have been splashed at some point, splattered with wet spots. There was mud on her knees, and her sunhat had fallen off at some point, some of her hair having fallen loose from its bun.

+=+=+=+=+

His mother smiled. It was clearly strained. Cole stared at her, a million ants marching around in his skull. Shadows clung to the walls like cobwebs, slowly dripping down and reaching for his mother. He wondered why his dad had stepped out of the room—was his mother really doing that much better, now that she didn’t have to look at him?

Well. Better being a relative term—she was still sick and slowly dying, but at least she could look at him without wanting to shove him in the nearest body of water.

His mother looked away, her breaths coming in stuttered and shaky. So… not doing better, then.

Of course not. Get away from her, Vessel. She will only bring you to ruin.

His mother grabbed for her panic button, shadows clawing at the bed from all sides. Cole’s head pounded in a distant sort of way, millions of skittering spiders creeping under his skin. He wrapped his arms around his knees, curling up tighter as though it might somehow save him from the crushing pressing in on all sides—

And then his dad’s hand was back on Cole’s shoulder, and Cole was being led out of the room while his mother struggled to breathe through painful-sounding coughs and her own panic. Cole let himself be shuffled down the hall, chest wound tight the entire way to the waiting room.

His dad looked pained. “She had been doing so well…” he mumbled, not quite low enough for Cole not to hear.

Cole grimaced. His head stopped throbbing, the ants and the spiders and the centipedes and the worms and the isopods and the bees and the flies coming to a rest, shadows receding to the very edges of his vision.

It clawed at his brain, hissing reassurance while Cole sat in the waiting room. His dad had gone back, leaving Cole alone except for the receptionist, who was busy with her computer and didn’t really count.

(He preferred to be left alone—though, in truth, Cole was never alone.)

+=+=+=+=+

Cole’s dad gave him one more smack on the back, and Cole coughed up spit and water. His dad’s hands were also wet, but they weren’t heavy against Cole’s back.

Something tickled at the back of Cole’s head. His eyes slipped closed, the world blurring around him as shadows danced across his vision. His parents were—they were saying stuff to each other, but Cole couldn’t make out the words. His father’s tie became a smear of color against his suit.

Cole slumped forwards, shadows filling his vision.

+=+=+=+=+

His eyes looked… funny. Not quite right. There was something fuzzy in Cole’s head, something slithering around inside his skull, leaching out from his eyes to cradle his head. Cole tried to look away, but his head wouldn’t move at all.

(Cold mud against his face and water in his chest—)

Shh, hush now.

The memory retreated back to the eves of Cole’s mind, hidden under crawling shadow as Cole continued to stare at his reflection. The voice in his head crooned, a lilting melody filling Cole’s ears.

You have done nothing wrong, Vessel.

The voice… it sounded right. It felt like flies buzzing inside his skull, but—

Cole’s head pounded, but the pain was distant, now. The lingering burn in his chest faded, and Cole watched, disinterested, as the shadows in his reflection shifted into a smiling face. His worry melted away.

The sun had set to the point where barely any light was filtering into Cole’s room, now, and he could hardly see his reflection in the gloom. But two glowing points in the mirror grinned at him, shadows carding through still-damp hair.

Cole’s eyes slipped closed, shadows filling his vision.

[mrschristensen]

Kinktober Day 3 (10/03): Exhibitionism starring A.J.

Kinktober Masterlist

WARNINGS: smut (READ AT YOUR OWN RISK), female s/o, dom A.J./sub s/o exhibitionism, semipublic (nobody actually sees), cockwarming, praise, pet names (baby, good girl) lmk if I missed anything!

synopsis: While at Lilli’s with the gang, A.J. and his beautiful girl get down in style, and in “secret.”

WC: 621 words

It was right out of a movie. A.J. met the love of his life when she was introduced as a new member, and the first member to be female. It was a nice change, for sure, but he couldn’t help but be immediately drawn to her. He was absolutely captivated by this goddess of a woman, tempted to know more, to see more, to feel more. Any opportunity that came up, he took it. And, within the span of a month or two (because who could resist his charm?), they got together.

And, right after yet another successful heist, it couldn’t be more blissful. It was the usual plan: Go to Lilli’s, have a few drinks, and party. So there they all were, laughing and chatting over drinks in their private upstairs area, with his beautiful girlfriend on his lap. He wore his usual suit and, of course, his hat, and she wore a nice black dress he bought for her so they could match if they wanted to. She usually didn’t wear dresses, since—in all honesty—she hated them, but she wore them for special events and occasions. Today, of course, was one of them.

It started out as just a few touches, since they always have to be in contact with each other somehow. Whether it be holding hands, arms, anything they could find purchase on, it didn’t matter. He’d whisper praises to her, like “You’re so gorgeous,” or “You rival every woman in the universe, let alone this building.” He was a romantic, and a huge one at that, so it was pretty common for him to be giving her words of praise and worship. He just did because he could, and he liked to; he reveled in her reactions.

From what was once simple touches ended up with his cock inside of her, seemingly okay and normal. However, the two of them knew otherwise. Somehow, she lasted so far, though it was annoying that he wasn’t moving whatsoever, but she could feel her control slipping, and fast. She was trying her hardest to restrain herself, to not let out a noise of pleasure or do anything that could give away what was really going on. And he found out pretty quickly.

“Awh, c’mon, baby. You can take it, you’re my good girl,” he murmured with false sympathy, kissing her jaw before leaning back in his seat and chatting with the boys again. In all truth, and both of them knew it, she couldn’t. It was taking all of her efforts to keep herself under control right now, and each second passing only added more difficulty.

The guys definitely noticed something was a bit off, since she was usually pretty talkative, and all she was being right now was quiet. Every time she opened her mouth to try to speak so far, though, A.J. would subtly thrust up into her, which she instantly silenced herself. If she didn’t, she would’ve let out the most pornographic noise that would escape her lips. Not voluntarily, of course, but she couldn’t control it. All he was doing was being an absolute dick. Literally.

But it didn’t matter in the end, because they ended up fucking each other’s brains out when they got home. No disturbances, no nothing. Just one another. However, A.J.’s phone vibrated with a notification on the nightstand after they were done, and he checked to see what it was. As if right on time, it was a text from the gang’s group chat: “We ain’t that stupid. Y’all are fucking nasty.”

He couldn’t help but chuckle, knowing damn well what and who they were referring to. And he didn’t mind one bit.

[dirtbikehandler]

One year ago today luke was in a tragic motorcycle accident that would have him lay unconscious in icu till his organs began to fail on Jan 9th 2021 and I withdrew care. Here is my eulogy for him.

Who has seen how I met your mother? If you haven’t please go home and watch

this delightful series it was favorite of ours.

In the pilot episode ted is having a date with robin. Ted has created the olive

theory based on his friends and the perfect couple Lilly and marshall. Marshal

hates olives and lilly loves them. In teds mind this creates a perfect balance in a

relationship. Someone always has another to give the olives to when they don’t

want them. Luke hated olives, but more significantly Luke and I shared a

complimentary balance that I had never experienced in my life. Where one was

weak the other was strong. We learned from each other and made each other

better. I hope everyone can find someone to give their olives to.

Luke also hated green peppers… If you are expecting an anecdoete about green

peppers. I don’t have one. I just always thought it was weird.

And I truly loved every weird detail about the most perfectly imperfect person I

have ever met.

Circling back to Ted and robins dinner. There is a blue painted French horn on the

wall of the restaurant. Ted thinks it looks like a smurf penis, but robin says she

would like it for her apartment. As they are leaving Ted convinced of his love at

first sight for robin, and likely bolstered byu the olive theory, runs back into the

restaurant ceases the French horn and gives it to robin. She keeps it for rest of the

series.

Before I tie in the blue French horn I need to tell you something that may shock

you. Luke was very stuborn. It took ten years to get him to fold and stack the

kitchen towels correctly….

In case you are wondering (demonstrate folding stacking towel)… and on october

28th at 9:36 pm luke got it right

You see I’m stuborn too. About 10 years ago I ceased the opportunity for love off

that restaurant wall, even though luke didn’t see it right away. I did some crazy

things to get his attention and like that blue French horn, I gave him my heart.

And he kept it. He kept it till the end of our series.

Luke was my place to go back to. My port in a storm. My partner in crime. My

partner in recovery.

My carpenter. My hater of all things morning and waking up. Giver of olives, and

keeper of my blue French horn.

I only hope I was half the things to him that he was to me.

Luke left an indelible mark on the heart of anyone who got to know him. His

boundless compassion was evident in his love of animals, and anyone that needed

help. If you were fortunate enough to be touched by luke, you forever have a part

of luke with you. I encourage you to channel him when you need to, when some

some situation is requiring spiritual prinicpals that you don’t think you can

muster. Listen to what luke tells you and be the voice of reason and compassion.

Unless you are building something or working on plumbing then luke will tell you

to cuss like a fucking sailor, often and repeatedly. The more fucks the better the

bird house is going to be at the end.

I have to remind myself that I am not the only one feeling an incalculable loss. So

just for today, I am not alone, I open my heart, my mind, my eyes and ears to you.

I hope to share laughs and tears with you. I hope To hear stories, songs, poetry,

where you are. Or whatever you would like to do. I hope everyone takes a chance

to come up here and share something. Every thought is important to me no

matter how small, as we celebrate Paul Luc Luke Vendette.

[talesofphantombandits]

Zero to Six ~ I’ll Fight to be Apart of this Family - Edited Version. Part 5.

Characters: Four X Zero (OC)

Summary: Zero was the first person to be ‘saved’ by One, she was his first honorary Ghost. Her knowledge in tech meant she got the role of ‘Hacker’ she recruited new team members, looked for missions and locations and made sure every security measure was looked at. You know normal hacker spy stuff. But her tough up bringing meant that if needs be she could fight, she was maybe even better than some people on the team knew. But due to One’s protectiveness over her she had to stay hidden, she was more of an actual ghost than the rest of the team was. This didn’t mean she couldn’t have her fun though, over the months of being with the full team she had formed quite a passionate love/ hate relationship with the handsome Four. Who knows what sparks would fly if they were ever to meet. Warnings: Slight swearing, some suggestive flirting in later chapters.

Tagg list: (I know this is a edit of my original story but if anyone wants to be tagged let me know.) @raylan-c​, @angelic-demonss 

“Are we just not going to discuss the stranger in the room? why is the bartender here?” Four smirked at Zero. She in turn just raised her eyebrow at the blonde haired beauty, daring him to continue. “And why is Five giving her first aid?” 

The room went silent, everyone was looking at Zero like she was the enemy, and in a way she was. This group of people were the closest thing she had to family and yet she was an impostor, an outsider who’s voice was the only thing the team had ever heard that’s the only thing they knew her by. She hoped One would forgive her for what she was about to do.

Zero coughed away any last nervous about coming clean. "You know for what you guys do, you are all so dumb sometimes."

Zero in return heard a hiss, her head snapped to the direction it came from. She was faced with One, his face and neck had gone completely red with how angry he was.  A look that told Zero to shut her gob if she knew what was good for her. 

"What?!" Was she really that surprised? It was One after all, did she really think he’d just let her spill the beans right here, right now when he’d kept her away for so many years. 

"She, she just stumbled in here after the bar fight, and the doctor couldn't resist helping her." Zero looked from One appalled, to Five who was just as taken a back as Zero was. Her eyebrows furrowed as she gave a concerning look between the both of them. 

Zero couldn't help but clock onto the suspicious glare that Two was giving her. She definitely knew the truth, she was an incredibly smart woman and Zero wouldn’t be shocked if she didn’t know the moment she walked into the room. She looked back to One who she could tell was getting more and more worried over the glances everyone in the room was giving Zero.

"Your name was Lilly right?" One asked marching up to Zero and grabbing her hand, but Zero shrugged it off "Come on I'll take you home."

Everyone was looking at One like he'd lost his mind, the team was supposed to be a secret so why would he offer to take a stranger home? The air was so thick in the kitchen that even a knife wouldn’t cut it.  To make matters worse Four was starring Zero down with such ferocity she thought those ocean blue eyes she’d only seen in photo’s would melt her to the ground. She just raised her eyebrows at the man again, more threatening this time. Zero was brought back by the tug on her arm, she hissed back at One but jumped down off the counter anyway. As she slowly made her way pasted Five she quietly thanked her for being there to help her as best she could for the night. 

“Who is she One?” Three pressed on, One looked like he would explode any moment, the man who never seemed to make such stupid mistakes had nearly revealed one of his biggest secrets. “No one, she’s no one. Just a normal bartender.” Zero stopped abruptly which also dragged One to a stop as his hand was still around her arm.  When he whipped around she took the opportunity to strike the man straight across his dumb face. 

One looked at her shocked, she herself was in shock at what she had just done. Had she actually just assaulted him? The man that had saved her life all those years ago, gave her food and shelter, she owed him everything and she had just straight up assaulted him. She looked at her hand that now slightly stung in shock, as did everyone else in the room.  One’s shock only lasted a couple of seconds before his face turned stony cold and once again he latched onto Zero’s arm and headed towards the door. 

After everything that just happened Zero couldn’t help but still be memorised as she approached Four, he was breath taking, a beautiful sight to look at. It was almost like looking into the blinding sun that eventually you had to tear your sight away from, in case of damage to the eyes.

She felt a wave of sadness overcome her suddenly, she had been so close to Four actually knowing who she was, she’d been close to the whole team knowing it was her. God even one normal conversation with him probably wouldn't have satisfied her enough but it would have been a start at least. Yet One just had to take even that away from her, while she was grateful for everything One had done for her, he was still in turn hurting her.  What she really needed was a real family and she had found that in these guys but One was always in the way.  If her only way was to fight to be apart of this family, then so be it.

"Hurry up" One snapped out angrily, there was definitely going to be consequences for hitting him and she knew it. But she was done being alone.

Zero looked back at Five who was still in shock and what looked like awe, she seemed to blink back to a little normality when she caught Zeros eye again. She gave Zero a ‘You’ll be okay’ look and a little nod, Zero was happy to know that she at least had Five to rant to afterwards when everything with One had settled. 

As Zero got closer and closer to the little blonde shit leaning on the door frame she swore she could see him smirking at her, she had to also fight the urge to slap him into next week as well, he’d just seen it first hand so he should be scared. But as she crossed the thresh hold of the hotel kitchen his hand that was hanging by his side brushed against hers and it felt like lightning shooting up her arm, across her shoulder and up the side of her neck.  She tried not to show the shiver it sent down her spine but the urge was taking over her. She met his eyes again and to her surprise she saw the same reaction but he quickly hid it.  A sudden desired to leave struck her so she decided to just keep walking after One, who had steamed ahead of her.

Once outside she felt like the mist in her mind had cleared a little, but as soon as she saw One angrily waiting beside his car she suddenly felt all the anger rush back. "What the actual fuck One?!" She screamed marching her way to the passenger door.

He opened up his side of the car. "Shut up and get in the car." He said calmly which scared her more than if he had shouted it at her, he got in the drivers seat but slammed the door shut which made her jump in turn. Zero just huffed, not wanting to get in more trouble than she was already in.

"Where are you taking me?" She sighed defeated.

"Home." He said shortly.

"Why?, why did you do that?"

"Do what? A better question is why did you hit me?!" He didn't look at her but she could tell with every word he spoke he was getting more angry.

"Okay in my defence, you were being a dick! you make me think I was finally becoming apart of the team, which then you revealed was just a ‘mistake’ I think you’d also feel like punching someone if you thought you were finally getting the family you deserved just to have them ripped away from you in the same moment!" I tried so hard to not to scream my lungs out at him but the more I spoke the harder it got.

"You knew that they weren't suppose to meet you! Why are you suddenly surprised. I told you when we first made the team that this was how it was going to be and you agreed!" One spat back.

"I did agree! but I was still in a bad place at that time and I wasn’t looking for friends let alone a whole family, I didn’t know that I was actually going to find a sense of security in these group of strangers did I!” The tears started to stream down Zeros face, she could taste the saltiness of her tears with every drop. “I want to go back! I want to complete the rest of the mission, I’ve come this far there is no way I’m bailing out now, just to go sit in that apartment manning the coms by myself for the rest of eternity." 

"No." He deadpanned, which made Zero even more angry. Had he not listened to anything she had just said to him? Did he not see just how much this mattered to her.

"One I’m not afraid to knock you out and drive there myself, I think I just proved that back in the kitchen." He just raised his eyebrows at her, like it was a challenge. "Come on One! why are you doing this to me? Why are you keeping me hidden? What do you gain from it."

"Because your job is best done in a flat somewhere, anywhere. Where no one can trace you."

"Bullshit!" Zero screamed which made One forcefully pulled the car over to the side of the road, the suddenness of the stop made her surge forward a little but luckily her seat belt prevented her from travelling any further forward.

"Please just tell me the truth." She said quietly, by this point she was drained physically and emotionally. "Why do you keep me away? and I don't want any of your bullshit. You and I both know I can do my work in any environment."

"I just want to keep you safe." One kept his focus straight ahead, staring out of the windscreen into the darkness.

"What do you mean? Since when have you ever cared about anyone's safety on this team?" I asked confused.

One had few rules, but one of the main rules that One lived by was if anyone gets stuck on a mission they are to be left behind. The team can never be exposed, so if one of them gets left behind because of capture or injury then it's just the price the team has to unfortunately pay.

"You were the first person I found." He slowly turned his head to look at Zero, this was the first piece of real emotion she’d ever seen from the man. She just looked at him confused and rightly so. 

"Why does it matter who came first? I thought you weren't meant to care about any of us?"

"I’m not." He shrugged now trying to seem like he wasn’t intrested in the conversation anymore, hoping she’d drop the subject. "But you were the first member of the team, You were in a very bad situation when I found you. I do actually have human feelings you know and I guess, In a way I grew fond of you."

Zero didn’t know what to feel, was she actually touched by this? She’d known One for a few years now and this was the most emotion she’d ever seen the man show, although she did think of him as closed off and cold he’d still saved her so in some way she rested him. "So why keep me away?"

"I didn't want you to ever get hurt, It would hurt too much to leave you behind if you got stuck. But it's a price i'd have to pay."

"Then don't, what you’re saying is that deep down, somewhere in that cold heart of yours you do actually care for this team you’ve created. So change the rule. We all need to be there for each other, especially now." I said reaching out to him.

"You know I can't do that. The mission comes first." His voice grew cold again and she knew she’d never see his vulnerable side again, shrugging off her hand he turned away to stare back out into the darkness.

"Then at least take me back to the team. I can work at the base, I don't want to be alone anymore One." He looked at her dead in the eye. "I’m starting to go stark raving mad staying in those apartments by myself not seeing anyone for years on end takes a toll on a person."

"You're hurting me more by keeping me away from them."

They both sat there for a moment in silence as Zero watched the cogs in One’s head turn, she thought if she pushed enough maybe, just maybe she’d get her way for once.

"Fine.” Did he just agree? “But I’m warning you now, if you get left behind on a mission, or injured I’m not coming back for you." He started up the car again, eerily calm It always annoyed her to no end that she could never figure this man out.

"I've known that since day one." He didn’t say another word as he turned the car around and sped off.

When they reached the base she was shocked to see just how many old and broken down planes One had collected over the years. "You’re still collecting them I see"

"Even got one or two that actually work." He mused.

It may have seem like a childish thought given the circumstances but Zero honestly couldn’t wait to explore every single aircraft in the graveyard. One had made it up the long dirt road by the time Zero came back to her senses, the car stopped and she could see a big crate in front of her and standing outside the only door was a great big dog. 

"Hey boy it's fine, she's with me." The dog then ran to One’s side and he started to pet him affectionately.

I just scoffed, raising my eyebrows at him. “What?” 

“So the dog gets your affection but we don’t?” Zero grabbed her chest, gasping pretending he’d hurt her heart but One just rolled his eyes at her and told her to stop being so dramatic. He then guided her up to an aeroplane that had a cartoon of a ghost with three lightning bolts shooting out of its hand near the entrance.

Zero laughed to herself. "I like that!" Pointing to the symbol.

"It’s in honour of you and your spooky shit." She looked at him shocked. “Don’t say I never do anything for you.”

She let him walk ahead of her so she could get her bearings, what came next was going to be a big shock to her system.

"One, you're back! I’m going to need you to spill, who was the bartender? Come on you’re never nice to anyone! Let alone giving a stranger a ride home." As soon as Zero heard that annoyingly sexy British accent she stopped dead in her tracks.

"I'll let her tell you herself."

Then there was silence. It finally hit her that she was about to meet the only family she’d ever known.

She was mostly scared because all she wanted was for them to like her, which she knew they already did but now, seeing and being with them in the flesh she didn’t want to mess their connection up. Especially with Four. She couldn’t deny that her and Fours connection even just through coms was a strong one, she just didn’t know what that connection meant yet but she was definitely excited to find out, she just hoped her feelings for him aren’t one sided.

She took a deep breath to calm herself, then rounded the corner.

"Hey guys." She smiled at all their awestruck faces, she gave a little awkward waving but internally scolded herself afterwards.

Everyone but Two looked at her in shock, she just had to laugh, that woman was too smart for her own good.  "Well darling, the anticipation is killing us." Fours dark eyes were trained on Zero as he leaned on the table, she swore in that moment her legs turned to jelly.

"Well if you'd actually let me speak you'd find out sooner, wouldn’t you monkey boy." Her words seemed to snap something in him as he shot straight.

Everyone else just laughed as the realisation of who they were meeting struck them. She just smirked at them all, finally she could be in on jokes, eat with them and just get to be around the people she cares about most in this cruel world.

"Zero?!" Three said enthusiastically, bounding towards her and scooping her up into a bear hug.

She felt like all the air was being squeezed out of her but she didn’t mind one bit. "Glad to see there are actually some smart people around here.” She chocked out. 

“Three can you please release Zero, you’re literally suffocating our only hacker.” One said annoyed while he was fiddling with some magnets. 

Three let her down and she just smiled, patting him on the shoulder to let him know she was okay. "Sorry! Sorry, I’m just so excited to finally meet you mami!" He proceeded to kiss both of her cheeks.

She just laughed at how adorable he acted in person, Three had always been one of her favourite ghosts. He wasn’t the smartest and most of the time made the worst decisions but he was sweet and funny and wouldn’t waste a single second if you were in trouble, he’d be by your side. 

"Well dam." Four was leaning with his back against the table, arms crossed and staring Zero down. Her eyes travelled to his and she couldn’t bring herself to look away.

Someone in the room, Zero couldn’t tell who coughed awkwardly which snapped both Zero and Four out of their intense staring competition. 

“So, the new mission?” 

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

Top 5 Character Deaths That Made Me Side-Eye the Writers

There are a lot of character deaths in TWDG... obviously. It a series about the literal dead walkin’ around and eating people, so as you’re playing, one of your favorite characters is bound to meet such a fate. To give this series credit, it does have quite a few well-executed deaths that, while I hate them, they have a purpose in the story that works. 

The best example of this is Lee’s death-- we all hate that Lee dies, but it’s well-done. It serves its purpose, it acted as both a shock and a slow-burn for the player, and left us all an emotional mess. 

However, we’re not talking about the “good” deaths today. No, we’re talking about the character deaths that are poorly executed, cheap, lazy, and just plain dumb... they’re the deaths that make me side-eye the writing team and wonder what the fuck happened there. 

By the way, it was reeeeeeal fun narrowing it down to only five deaths, because it seems like for every great death, there’s at least two bad ones.

5. Mariana and her death that ruined ANF’s potential story

I’ve talked at length about Mariana’s death and how much I hate it. Like, I get it TWDG... you love your sudden deaths and you’re so edgy for killing off a child character because you’ve never done that before... but maybe consider things a little further before pulling the trigger?

Yeah, killing off Mariana the way they did got a reaction outta people when it happened, and we got the burial scene if you stayed with Clementine... but you didn’t consider the future of this storyline? You pretend you did by name dropping Mari when it’s convenient, but then throw it out the window when it comes to characters like David or Gabe.

Listen, I know that ANF is a mess and what’s the point in telling the mess that it’s a mess? Well, I’m still annoyed at the writers for wasting the biggest opportunity for this game’s story, something that could’ve saved it from being a mess.

And I get it, you gotta make a death quota, so instead of killing Mariana off... why not kill Kate off instead? Oh no? We don’t get the stupid love triangle that no one actually enjoys or is engaged in?

Instead of this dumb story about Javi falling in love with his sister-in-law but oh no David’s back.... we could’ve had a story about Javi losing Kate and being left to care for two children by himself. Mariana and Gabe are all he has left, and he going to do whatever he can to keep them safe all while the three of them are mourning Kate.

Then David comes back, and he immediately takes these kids away from Javi.

There is no stupid storyline with Kate, but an actual conflict between two brothers who were never on the same page and two kids caught in the middle.

Plus, Mariana herself as a character really could’ve brought something to the table. She could’ve brought out a lot in David’s character since she seems to be more like Javi.

Her death is just... annoying. It’s frustrating when you know they could’ve told a better story with her alive, something ANF desperately needed.

My side-eye is one of disappointment and annoyance.

4.Luke and his easily preventable drowning

Ugh.... where to even begin? 

Luke really just gets butchered as a character throughout the second half of S2, and the writers end up demolishing the set up they placed at the beginning of the season for a Luke vs Kenny thing. 

Why? Well, Luke vs Kenny was the initial ending they were gonna go with, but because this season went through all kinds of bullshit, they scrapped that and replaced Luke with Jane... and it’s so dumb.

Hell, it kind of ruins a lot. Not only did it ruin Luke, a character that many players loved, but it forces the new character of Jane, who we only get two episodes to get to know, so they can fade Luke out. 

But that’s not all. 

His death is so... ugh. It’s stupid, okay? Stupid and easily preventable, but noooo... we gotta kill Luke off for reasons because all we know is that S1 killed off a lot of characters and we’re gonna do that again but worse because we failed to understand what made those deaths impactful in the first place. 

Lots of character death and despair = good game. 

Yep, uh-huh. Okay. 

So we all know that Luke’s leg is hurt, yeah? Great, so you’d think that the group that has an injured man and a new born baby would be extra cautious and go around the frozen lake. Yeah, Arvo says that it’s safe but let’s not take any chances. 

But no. We gotta go across like a group of dingdongs and whattya know-- the ice begins to crack beneath Luke’s feet. Now, even here, we coulda got him outta there safely... if Bonnie wasn’t a dingus. 

Think about it. If we shot the walkers who were coming towards Luke with all their weight, he could’ve slowly scooted away, even if he’s already fallen through. BUT NO. Bonnie either guilts Clementine into going towards him, adding more weight to the already fragile ice as Luke tells her to stop, or Bonnie will go over there herself... and she’s a full grown woman soooo her weight breaks the ice. 

Good job, you dipsticks. 

When you have to make your characters into morons in order to move the plot along and kill off characters....maybe do some rethinking, yeah? 

 3. Mitch and his shock-value death

This death is so dumb... so incredibly, dumb. Even now, I can’t help but give full side-eye to the writers every time one of them tries to justify this death. 

I’m sorry, but this death didn’t have the impact you wanted it to have. And because there’s always someone who says, “Mitch didn’t die for shock value, you just can’t tell the difference between a good and bad death” lemme tell you a thing. 

What was the point of killing of Mitch? Well, according to those who worked on TFS, it was to show that Lilly and the delta are serious. This is when shit gets real, and when Lilly is established as a bad bitch who will do whatever it takes to get what she wants. We should be scared of her now. 

Except no. 

This scene doesn’t tell me that Lilly is a bad bitch. It tells me that she has good reflexes, and going off her reaction after killing Mitch.... I’m not fucking scared of this dumbass. If anything, this scene says more about Mitch than it does Lilly. It says that Mitch is also a dumbass for running at her like he did. 

Y’know what would’ve been more impactful? If Mitch didn’t immediately get stabbed in the throat, but instead, actually got her on the ground and struggled with Lilly. Then, Lilly gets the upper hand and when you think she’s about to send Mitch to the cart, she fucking murders him in front of everyone to prove a point. 

There’s no remorse, it’s slow enough for Lilly to actually process what’s happening and show that she does know what she’s doing. That would scare me. That would show me that these people aren’t fucking around and they’re willing to kill some of them if that means getting the rest for their army. 

You still get your shock value death but it actually does something other than kill a character off. 

I’m really supposed to believe this is the same Lilly who can order to have Louis’ tongue cut off? 

But it doesn’t end there. No, no... there’s another part to Mitch’s death that annoys me, and it’s how insistent everyone was that his death is going to have a greater impact on the second half of the story. It had a purpose within the story, we did it for a reason.

...I mean, it has an impact on Willy and his arc for the second half. 

But that’s it. 

Oh... oh, what’s that? Oh, you were referring to those throwaway lines about Tenn? “He was screwing up again, just like when he got Mitch killed.”

OOOOOH.... I see, that’s what Mitch’s death was really amounting to... some lines dealing with whether or not AJ shot Tenn. Well, I guess I was wrong. Mitch’s death wasn’t just shock value. It really had a big purpose. In fact, Mitch’s death has the biggest impact on the series. Fuck Marlon and Brody’s deaths, and Lilly and James, and hell, fuck Tenn’s death, too. They’re meaningless compared to Mitch’s death. You did it, guys. You really did it. 

....Okay, I’m done. I’m just... salty, I fully admit. 

Being serious again, Mitch’s death is probably the worst in TFS as far as unpreventable deaths go and the real reason I side-eye the writers is because they tried to tell us it was going to have this huge impact in the future and it just... didn’t. 

2. Nick and his offscreen death.

I’m sorry, but what the fuck happened here? Why- what are you- how the hell did this happen??

I’m actually baffled. 

Someone wrote this. 

They set up at the end of ep3 that Nick is shot.... then ep4 comes and we find him like this. I just... did someone on the writing staff not wanna do their job that day? Someone was working on the story and at the last minute forgot Nick was a character, so they were like “Eh, he’s not important anyway, and it adds to the shittiness of everything so we’ll pretend this was 100% intentional.” 

Nick was one of your more interesting characters and you really thought killing him off like this was the way to go, huh? 

Like, his first death is shitty, but in the very least it kind of makes sense. 

But this? 

This is horrible. If I wrote this, I’d be embarrassed. 

I just... I’m so tired of S2 right now. 

This is at #2 because it’s just lazy, bad writing. At least with Luke, Mitch, and Mariana, we got to see their deaths and they had some, even if just a little, impact on the story afterward. 

But Nick? 

Nothin’.

Even Luke, who is the closest person to Nick, name drops him maybe twice? It’s just.... nothing. 

And yeah, you can come at me with the “oh well not every death has to have meaning!” 

This is a story, okay? This is a story crafted with characters who have arcs by people who wanted it to be a success, and usually that means having satisfying conclusions.... or, intentionally unsatisfying if that acts as a natural conclusion to their story or is a reoccurring theme. 

Nick’s death is just the writers falling flat on their faces and hoping no one would notice. 

1. Sarah and both of her shitty deaths. 

Ugh. UGH.

Okay. 

I’m not even side-eyeing anymore-- I’m fully glaring.

I don’t have to tell you how shitty both of Sarah’s deaths are. We all played S2, we all know that no matter what you do, Sarah dies in ep4. You can try to save her, she lives a little bit longer, and then falls to her death... and both deaths have her being devoured alive by walkers. 

Now, this is enough to annoy me. First off, I guess my choices don’t really matter. Sure, you can justify this as one of those “sometimes you can’t save someone, no matter how hard you try” ...and fine. Sure, if they had bothered to execute that point well, then great. 

But I disagree that the writers had that in mind when they were killing Sarah off. 

In fact, I know what what going on in their brains-- “God, can’t wait to kill Sarah off! Give us any reason to do it! She’s so damn annoying!”

The writers have openly admitted that a lot of the team were just waiting to kill Sarah off, waiting for any reason, so when the major part of the community who take everything at surface level because why think? kept complaining about Sarah, they jumped on the opportunity to kill her off.... but the deaths are dumb.

Listen, this isn’t like when the writers planned on killing Lee off. You can plan a death and even be excited about it because you’re excited about the story and execution of it all. You can be excited to see the heartbreaking end of this character’s story that you crafted because you know you put everything you had into it.

These deaths were lazy and the product of a team who didn’t care about the character. Sarah dies and no one cares. 

Sure, you leave her to die the first time and Jane does her thing about how you can’t save everyone, she talks about Jaime, and then Luke exposes himself as the fake Luke by agreeing that leaving Sarah behind was probably the right thing. Like what?

Now as much as I hate that first one, the second one is even worse. 

For some reason, Sarah is standing in the corner while they’re trying to fight off the walkers instead of being inside with Rebecca... y’know, where she would be if this was logical. 

Then the deck breaks and Sarah falls, trapped under a pile of wood. Jane, despite being the one who sees Sarah as a liability, goes down there to try and help her after Clementine begs her to. 

But because the writers don’t know what they’re doing, Jane gets hit by a random piece of wood and can’t get Sarah out in time, leaving her to be eaten alive by walkers. 

Then AJ is born and no one cares about Sarah ever again. 

I just.... 

Could’ve had an interesting story arc with a character who just lost her father in such a gruesome way, a character that already deals with anxiety and other problems that you never bothered to explain other than “she isn’t like Clementine” and you could’ve had her grow. 

But I guess that would’ve taken effort.... and screen time away from Kenny, and god forbid we ever do that. 

---

Honorable Mentions

-Ava falling to her death in the most comedic way possible, made even more hilarious by David’s two seconds of mourning. -Omid.... because hope is dead. Do you get it? Hope? is dead? Because Omid means hope? Do you get it?? -Honestly you could put most of S2′s deaths on this list because oh my god. -Ben because I’m still a salty bitch.  -I also wanna add Louis and Violet’s deaths on the bridge mostly because they die, Clem is sad for two seconds, Tenn says sorry, and then no one cares. Yeah, yeah, they mourned off screen and I call that lazy bullshit. -Hell, throw Tenn’s death on here, too, for similar reasons-- no one but Louis/Violet and AJ seem to care. Even Clementine is like “whatever” after it happens. 

---

Y’know, picking this one seemed like a good idea at the time, but by now I’m just annoyed by all these dumb deaths. So, what are your thoughts? Are there any deaths that make you question the writers that didn’t end up on the list? Do you agree or disagree with my list? Lemme know, we can have a friendly discussion about it. 

Have any suggestions for future T5F’s? Feel free to send ‘em in! :D

---

Next week’s T5F Top 5 Favorite Louis Moments

[solitaria-fantasma]

The Zoo, Part 3!

We resume at the weird love potion stand- off between Nosca, Honk, and Koira.

Koira began creeping towards Honk, one paw at a time, as if moving slowly enough would keep her invisible. Honk was not phased.

“Actually many birds find humans incredibly attractive.”

“I think Nosca is in trouble.”

Honk pried open the potion bottle with his creepy, toothy tongue.

“Oh, we are GOING to make a poor decision.” 

The lid of the potion bottle fell off, and Koira - after failing a will save - tried to dive after it.

Honk took the opportunity to leap into the air and dump the entire potion over Koira before dropping the bottle and flying out of the room.

Koira is a dumb bitch who got her magic from eating flowers, and thus, found the floral scent of the potion too tempting to resist, and immediately began licking it off of herself.

“Um…weird question. What is Koira’s sexuality?

“Colors.”

Dynamite had already run ahead and Nosca just hasn’t noticed that the Paladin is covered in love potion

“So the edges of your vision are tinged pink now.”

“Oh fuck she’s going to love that.”

Nosca finally noticed Koira dosing herself in love potion every few steps and salvaged a ratty towel from the many storage rooms around us to dry her off. The DM had her roll animal handling.

Finally dry(ish), Koira now smells like roses.

Things Honk has eaten so far:

42 copper pieces

8 silver pieces

6 gold pieces

1 tripwire

14 mango slices

The next room we found was an absolutely MASSIVE ballroom, covered in a thick layer of undisturbed dust…which is weird, because literally every other room in this dungeon so far has been swept clean by the zombie staff.

Nosca began using Prestidigitation to clean off all the columns and floors, just to see the craftsmanship underneath.

Koira sees only pink, now, and her perpetually-wagging tail is just kicking up the dust that Nosca hasn’t cleared away yet.

Dynamite is pissed off we aren’t killing things anymore.

The DM dropped some lore on necromancy and how it’s viewed in the setting as a reminder that yes, we HAD been hired to kill the necromancer living here, regardless of how nice their zombies were.

Honk’s Player: “Honk would like to poop on the floor and leave through the side door.”

Nosca, who just finished cleaning the entire ballroom with Prestidigitation: “You bASTARD-“

We found some stained glass windows in the next hallway, but the real beauties were in the tower up ahead; two towering, colorful depictions of a hooded figure offering a potion to the moon, and a goddess of said moon.

Koira was immediately enamored with the ‘striking green eyes’ of the goddess window….and they seemed to follow her around the room.

Me: “I give the goddess window one last tail wag, and then I follow Nosca.”

DM: “She winks at you.”

Player 1: “STOP SIMPING AFTER WINDOWS!”

We found some finely-dressed zombies in the next hallway. Nosca hesitantly fixed the half-tied tie of one. Honk tried to untie his shoes.

Another zombie came down the hall, saw us, and stammered out “Y-you’re awake!” Aha! Some plot!!

The flustered talking zombie gestured us inside a VERY nicely decorated room with more stained glass, a throne, and a ‘very familiar figure’ oh my gOD I know who this NPC is oh boy oh bOY OH BOY-

It is taking literally all of my willpower not to metagame but I was sO EXCITED for this part!!!

This NPC - Lilia (“Lilly”) - is indeed a necromancer, but they are also a very old friend of Koira’s; they come from the same nomadic mountain clan, though they both left to pursue their own quests.

Dynamite flopped dramatically in a nearby chair, disgusted with all this ‘emotion’ going on. A zombie offered her a goblet of (barely alcoholic) grape juice.

There was apparently supposed to be a guide or two waiting to explain things when we woke up in the dungeon. Whoops!

“I have some people to give a stern talking to when they become unlive again.”

The actual necromancer we were sent after (Lin Shi) is still somewhere else in the castle….and apparently he only eats mangos?

“He may be the master of mangos, but he’s not the master of me.”

Lilly has been there for three years, attempting to learn necromancy from Lin Shi, and she is VERY disappointed to have only been given a level one workbook of stuff she already knew (bc she bribed the librarian at the mages college while there to give her Forbidden Information) and a single verbose zombie to talk with.

“See, he’s kind of wanted by…the….government…”

“Kids are stupid and he’s an adult now, so it should be fine, but it’s not fine, because it was a felony.”

“I guess we’re asking to speak to the manager now.”

Lilly, to Nosca: “You’re from the mage’s college, right? You know that rumor about the two students who summoned a dragon for their final project senior year? That rumor?”

Nosca, not liking where this is going: “Yes….?”

Lilly: “Yeah he’s one of them. The other guy died.”

“Everybody watch your feet. The dog’s gonna be on the floor for a while.”

Dynamite got up from her chair just to faceplant in Koira’s fluff. Nosca pet them both while trying to strike up small talk with John, the verbose zombie.

John was adverse to making small talk, but when Nosca offered him actual, alcoholic, not-just-shitty-grape-juice beer, suddenly he was interested in conversing.

“You can see there are tears in his dry, dry eyes, and he savors every drop.”

John the zombie, trying to describe alcohol to a dog who can’t drink it: “Have you ever had bread?”

Koira, excitedly: “Oh, yes! I have had SO much bread.”

John the zombie: “It tastes like bread.”

“Koira’s going to start fantasizing about this ‘liquid bread’ while staring at the ceiling.”

After about 20 minutes, we heard a door slam somewhere in the castle (“like a toddler after being told ‘no’ to anything”).

Lilly came back to the room, swearing up a storm in her native tongue, which only Koira could understand.

Lin Shi refused to speak with us, and we’re once again in search of a compromise.

Dynamite: “Do you people have some rule against swearing?”

Lilly, gesturing emphatically at Koira: “You can’t swear around the dog! She’s too pure!”

Koira, choosing wisely not to mention that she could hear Lilly and her potty mouth parade coming from a mile away: :x

Eventually, Lilly suggested that we could try talking to Lin Shi ourselves. Koira was gung-ho to try - after all, who can resist a dog? - but then, tragedy struck...Lin Shi is allergic to dogs.

“As long as your mom doesn’t ask, I won’t have to lie!”

Honk stuck his tongue into a magical keyhole on Lin Shi’s library door that had melted many lock picks in the past, and takes 15 points of necrotic damage, and got disadvantage on strength ability/saving throws for 1 hour.

Nosca: “Honk, no! Koira, can you heal him?”

Koira: “Uhh….I can get him legally married in the eyes of a deity of his choice?”

“Wait, you can TELEPORT?!”

Turns out Honk has a Bow of Misty Step that he can use three times per day, so he teleports to the other side of the door and opens it for the rest of the party.

Honk immediately alerted Lin Shi, who was already in the library, and Nosca, who failed to look for traps, tripped an arrow trap the moment she stepped into the room. Dynamite saved Nosca by kicking her knee in and yanking her down to the floor, but Honk was on his own.

“We’ve been trying to reach you regarding your castle’s extended territory.”

“Wait are yOU NAKED?!”

“I only have bracers and a cloak, so I guess so!”

Lin Shi tried to Mage Hand Honk off of his desk and by extension his notes, but Honk is a big goose full of coins, and was too heavy.

Lin Shi then tried to intimidate Honk out of his library, but Honk is immune to being Frightened via a racial ability, and tossed one of the notes into a nearby bunsen burner. Now we’re rolling for initiative.

Honk burned another note since he rolled first, and I’m pretty sure we’re all going to die.

Honk’s Player: “I just want to say, you guys don’t have to back Honk up. He’s allowed to have consequences.”

Dynamite has a randomized wild magic effect that activates whenever she rages, and blinded Lin Shi on her turn. She then downed him with one attack.

“He lives on MANGOS what were you EXPECTING?!”

It took Lilly and Nosca healing simultaneously to make sure this guy didn’t actually die.

“I want to let you know he did fail a death save.”

“Ooooohhh, we did NOT endear ourselves to this man.”

While waiting for Lin Shi to wake up again, Nosca found a crawlspace beneath the library floor that lead to another, smaller library, in which were shelved a whole truckload of high-class necromancy books and notes.

[hefiights-arch2]

Deep breaths were taken, hand continuing to rub over her belly as the wave of pain began to subside - for the moment. She’d knew it would be back, in approximately a few minutes, perhaps less. That was something to keep track of.

Gaze lifts to Deeks as he entered the bathroom, a small smile settling on her lips as she could see him figuring it out without her having to say another word. She leaned into his touch as his warm hands cup her face, butterflies fluttering hard in her heart - it was finally happening, they were going to have the little girl they’ve been waiting for for the past nine months. And all the fears that Kimberly held previously, before Deeks had been locked up in prison, were destroyed; he was here, he would be right by her side as she brought their child into the world.

“I’m alright,” she told him, her voice soft. “And yes. There’s no other place I’d rather be right now.” Home births were common, if not becoming more regular than hospital births, and Kimberly had all of the confidence in Lizza to help with the delivery. If the two women weren’t close before, the last nine months had turned them even more into sisters; it was Lizza who was there when Kimberly took the pregnancy tests, and it was Lizza who stood by her side as support when Kimberly reluctantly went to the hospital for a second confirmation. Lizza was more than capable of helping Kimberly through all of this, and the detective couldn’t have been more grateful.

“Our little girl has some timing, huh?” Kimberly jested, laying her head on Deeks’ shoulder as he lifted her into his arms. She stole a kiss from him, one of many more to come throughout the day, and muttered, “I love you, too. So much. You’re gonna be such a great father.” She had always known, given how he treated her boys as well as his own adopted daughter Lilly. She knew that Deeks hasn’t had the chance to be a parent to a newborn, but she also just knew that he would be such a good dad. And she was so happy to give him that chance.

The contractions came and went as the minutes turned to hours, although it did feel as though this time around the labor was happening much quicker than her previous pregnancies. Perhaps it was because her body had done this before and was ready to get it over with - the latter portion of that could be said for their baby girl as well. But with each contraction that she had, as the pain grew more intense, Kimberly couldn’t help but begin to feel like…like something wasn’t right.

She laid on the bed, sweating and trying to breathe through the intensity, all the while holding Deeks hand, sometimes squeezing as hard as she could when a contraction hit her. Sonny had woken up by this time, but he couldn’t stay in the room for very long when his mother became to groan and cry out in pain. Kimberly didn’t blame him at all.

But that gave Kim an idea, the brunette seeing an opportunity to get Deeks to leave her side - only for a few minutes. She wanted to talk to Lizza alone. She knew that Deeks could probably sense her concern, though a part of her was hoping that maybe he’d just think it was the labor pains; nevertheless, she didn’t want to worry him anymore than he already was.

“Honey,” she said, half watery hues glancing at him. “Could you go make sure Sonny’s alright? I know Kole’s here but I’d worry a lot less if you talked to him.” That wasn’t to say anything against her brother at all, because genuinely she would feel better though it didn’t matter who checked on her youngest, as long as someone did and that he was okay. But also, she just really didn’t want to voice her concerns in front of Deeks.

    𝙰𝚂 𝙷𝙴 𝚆𝙰𝚃𝙲𝙷𝙴𝙳 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙻𝙰𝙱𝙾𝚄𝚁 𝚄𝙽𝙵𝙾𝙻𝙳 ,     he decided he had all the respect in the world for women who went through this.   men,  they had the easiest fucking job in the world.   they knocked the woman up and just survived the nine months.   the women,   they were fucking queens.    and his girl,   god he was falling in love with her all over again.   even more with every strain she suffered,    as every contraction hit.

    he was growing worried though,   he could see Lizza and Kim communicating silently,   the two females using the bond they’d built but Deeks had faith things would be okay.   he was leaning once more on the god he’d abandoned.        [     𝙷����𝚂 𝙼𝙾𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚁 𝚆𝙾𝚄𝙻𝙳 𝙱𝙴 𝙿𝚁𝙾𝚄𝙳   /     𝙷𝙴𝚁 𝙻𝙸𝚃𝚃𝙻𝙴 𝙱𝙾𝚈 𝙱𝙴𝙻𝙸𝙴𝚅𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝙸𝙽 𝙶𝙾𝙳  ]        but he had total faith in his girl.    she’d been through hell,   fucking hell she was with him .        ❝    of course baby   .  .  .    back in a minute .    ❞        he leans over,  pressing a gentle kiss to her sweaty forehead as he lifts from the bed.

      he flexes his fingers to release the numb sensation that had spread over them,    whilst he healed better than most.   his girl had some strength,     and it made him proud.   seriously fucking proud and all he could hope,   was his little girl was just like Kim.   then he’d know,  that she would be okay.     because her mother was.    whilst he was all fire and violence,   Kim was calm and sunshine.

   he smiles as Lilly runs into his arms,  giving him a hug and asking questions about the woman,  she too saw as mom.   His head nodding in Kole’s direction as he asks where Sonny headed off too.   He knew Kim’s true motives,   wanting to talk to Lizza alone,  and well,  he wasn’t going to begrudge her.   at all.

@melsworldofmuses​​​  –  continued from here  –    deeks  &  kim  !!

[melyaliz]

Remember me pt . 8

Master List

Fandom: My Hero Academia

Summary: Bakugou has to remind his wife why she married him after she loses all her memories of them ever meeting. 

Pairing: Bakugou x OC 

Notes: I was thinking of maybe doing some My Hero Academia requests? Idk life seems to be slowing down a little. 

All Masterlists @melyalizarchive​

Connect with me! AO3 / Website / Pinterest / Newsletter 

DONATE or REQUEST

-0-0-0-0-0--Bakugou--0-0-0-0-0-

“So what’s up with you and metalhead?” Kirishima asked as the heroes slowly rode the bus they had been given back to the large glass building. Bakugou, who had been peacefully resting, peeked an eye open glaring at the redhead who was smiling at him.

“Who?” The blonde knew who he was talking about. But he wasn't about to let Kirishima know he knew.

“The girl with the Gojra shirt.”

“Nothing.” eyes closed, head resting back angst the headrest as if that was the end of the conversation. However, with Kirishima it never was.

“You guys talked, did you get her number?”

That comment didn’t even deserve a response. Or the weird way his stomach clenched when it was asked.“No, why would I?”

“Because you like her” Kirishima poked him in the side or tried too but Bakugou swatted it away never opening his eyes.

“I don…”

“Tell me you at least you got her number.”

“Why do you care?” that one had a bit of a bite to it. A warning to back off.

“You didn’t! Bro…” disappointment lanced in the red head’s voice. As if Bakugou had just told him he was giving up on becoming number one or something. It was just some girl’s number.

“We are only here for a few more weeks--” Bakugou started to reason but was once again cut off.

“Oh look there she is, you can ask her out now.”

Bakuoug’s eyes opened looking out the window to see her talking to a few of her coworkers. Well, he assumed they were coworkers since she regularly talked to them. One of them, a guy, leaned forward annoying close to her to tell her something that made her laugh.

Something inside him made him hot. That same feeling he would get in high school when Deku would steal the spotlight. Would do something that would make everyone think he was better than he was. He wasn’t better. And neither was this guy.

As the bus stopped letting everyone out he walked out and stepped up to the group.

“Hey Olive”

She turned her face breaking into a smile as she saw him. “Hello, Bakugou. Beautiful weather isn’t it?” He knew her overly formal way of speaking was her lack of knowledge in the Japanese language but it still bothering him a little. She was obviously not a very formal person with her coworkers.

“I’m back for the weekend, I’m taking you to dinner.” Right to the point. He had never been one for small talk.  

“I’m free Saturday,”  she didn’t even bother asking where or when

“6 here,” he nodded. With the plans made he walked off not bothering -daring- to look back. However, he was able to catch that annoying guy ask about the interaction.

“What did he say?”

“Nothing important”

“It looked important,” one of the girls said her voice hitching in that weird squeak sound that girl would get when they were telling each other secrets.

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Bakugo was dealing with two issues that were making his life a living hell.

Ok maybe that was a little dramatic but… making his life hard

One was sleeping next to Olive.

Sleeping next to someone you are physically attracted to and have had an intimate relationship with before is normally fine but as the days wear on, your body starts to crave them. It’s as if no matter how much you remind your bain it's your body that you have to fight. It knows that the warm body next to it makes it feel so good. It wants those feelings again.

And it had been a while.

in fact, besides that odd mission that took longer than it should plus healing after this might be the longest they had ever gone without having sex.  

His body burned next to hers and the fact that he couldn't touch her was slowly starting to eat him alive. He kept telling himself he was stronger than this. That he could keep his sexual urges at bay but in the dark of the night where all he could do was feel the warmth of her body surrounded by her scent, it was madding.

One night she had moaned in her sleep and reached out her fingers brushing his torso. So touched starved and horney he was wide awake in seconds and so hard it was almost painful.

He was getting in a lot more late-night workouts.

Which just lead to him being more tired and grumpy. Everything seemed to irritate him now.

Which led to his second problem

Trying to get everyone to show up at the same place at the same time.

Trying to organize his old classmates was like herding cats. Not only did the conversation derail at every glimmer of an opportunity but their lives were so busy just getting that many heroes to have a few hours off was near impossible.  

It could also be partly (mostly) his fault. If he was being REALLY honest with himself. (Self refection seemed to be an ongoing theme since this whole fucking issue had happened.) Bakugou may not have really wanted them to be there. He hated the idea of everyone knowing what was going on in their marriage. Their problem was unique and kind of intimate and he hated the idea that somehow he may have failed Olive.

So he was dragging his feet.

That was until she came back from therapy with puffy red eyes unable to look at him. The moment she walked into the apartment he was instatly clued in knowing something was wrong because she didn’t even greet Dolemite who came crying up to her in excitement at her being home. He could hear her mumbling something and then a soft wet laugh.

Shit.

He was looking over the reports on her case again. Pouring over each detail as if something would pop out at him. There was still nothing -besides the American angle- that seemed to link the two of them. But he couldn’t give up, if he focused harder, kept looking something would popup.

Or that was what he was telling himself until something else demanded his attention. Something much worse walked into the living room. Olive, looking completely defeated.

“Oh shit” she mumbled, catching his gaze a look of surprise on her face, “ you're not at work?”

“No, I only went in for a few hours.” he decided now was not the time to work on her Japanese. The way she looked. It made him sick. He wanted to go right over to that therapist and pound him (or her) into the ground. How dare they make Olive cry like that.

Looking away she coughed, “I’m going to wash up” she mumbled wiping the back of her hand across her face.

“Ok” he watched her go as the door closed behind her he heard her let out a choked sob. It shot through him like a bullet. Worse than any punch he had ever taken. Worse than anything he had ever felt.

He had thought it was getting better.

Apparently not.

He knew he should just leave it. Just let her work out whatever leftover emotions she was dealing with from Therapy. She obviously wanted her privacy closing the door and not making eye contact with him. But he couldn’t help it. Getting up he walked up to the door leaning against it leaning against the door. His back to it trying to see if he could hear anything.

It was muffled but her voice was loud enough fro him to catch a few phrases.  

“I can’t do this Lilly” her voice was soft. “I just want to be happy. I just want to stop missing him.”

“Do you think you were the all sunshine and roses the first time around?” Lilly was obviously on speaker muffled by the door. “You need to stop putting those impossible standards on yourself”

“But I’m not just hurting, I’m hurting him too.”

Him, she meant Bakugou. He frowned, his heart pounding. She was crying because she was hurting him. As if he needed to be protected. It was almost laughable

“He’ll get over it” was Lilly’s soft voice. “He’s a big boy”

Olive let out another sob saying something about unfair and something else he couldn’t make out. Bakugou’s fists clenched angrily, feeling them grow hot small pops erupting in his hands. He didn’t care if it was planned or not, he was going to find that memory querk guy and beat him to a bloody pulp for making Olive feel like this.

His phone vibrated and he looked down to See Kirishima saying he just got off.

Letting out a low growl he shot off a text to the group,

Whoever can make it show up the rest of you losers can just die.

Olive came out 10 mins later. She had washed her face and she looked much cleaner and less, distressed. Finding Bakugou on the couch she smiled waving at him.

“So I was thinking maybe we go out for dinner? Do something fun?” she looked as if she hadn’t just been having a mental breakdown in the bedroom. All smiles and sunshine. That was his girl. A fighter, never settling for anything less than the best. Nothing could keep her down for long.

“Well good because we are meeting some people for dinner and drinks.”

This time her smile reached her face as she lit up. “Really who!?! Is it Kirishima?” she quickly switched to the Japanese trying to get in as much practice as she could.

“ Among a few others yes,”

Letting out a squeal she turned, “What would I wear? Is it a nice dinner?”

“Cute, not fancy.” walking past her he lead her back into thei bedroom. Her bouncing behind him like a puppy into their shared closet all smiles and giggles. Grabbing a black dress that he loved her in he handed it to along with a red leather jacket.

“Thank you Katsuki,” she said looking at the clothes. Nodding he turned to grab his own outfit. He could hear her rushing toward the bathroom to change and probably put some makeup on.

“You have 30 minutes to get ready” he called after her as the phone in his pocket blew up with texts on who was coming and when they would be showing up.

Let’s just get this over with. He thought as he quickly changed going out to the bedroom he jumped onto the bed looking over the texts waiting for Olive to finish up. 45 minutes later Olive appeared. He was about to give her shit for taking so long but when he saw her standing there he just about had a heart attack.

Dressed in that cute little black dress he had forgotten how good it looked on her. Hugging each curve giving just enough cleavage to show off but not enough to be scandalous. The little heeled booties make her legs look amazing.

Oh god.

Her makeup was done all smokey and her hair had a bit of a messy curl in it giving her a bit of a rocker vibe. It took all his will power to not pull her onto the bed and just take her right there.

He wanted to so badly

“Too much? ” she asked fidgetting with the hem of her leather jacket. One he had gotten for her a few months ago after watching her admire it in a shop window.

“ No, ” he said, getting up, “ let’s go. ”

“I’m kind of nervous” she mumbled following him out. Her English words clean and clear giving off her true emotions.

“ You said you wanted this, ” he said looking at her continuing in Japanese so that she could get as much practice in. Their friends English ranged from ok to nonexistent so she needed to be ready, “ And it’s not like they don’t know you.”  

“I just… yeah” she muttered her gaze looking away from him. He instantly regretted teasing her.

“ These are kids from UA, all proheros now. And they like you. ” he paused fighting back a smile at the memories of her meeting them all for the first time, “ Probably more than me. ”

“I doubt that ” was her response as she bit her upper lip.

“ Stop that, ” he said, shoving her slightly with his shoulder. She turned confused. “ Worrying ,” he pointed to his lip to indicate he saw what she was doing.

“ Ok .” she nodded as they walked, their hands kept brushing finally she just reached out grabbing his. He looked down at her fingers wove into this and he felt painfully aware of how it made him feel. How he wanted to just pull her closer to him. Take her away to somewhere quiet, alone. Make her remember him. Remind her body at least of how it loved him. But he didn’t just walking with her. Feeling like they were marching toward their death sentience.

His friends better behave.

To say Bakugou had two problems was putting it lightly

-GET TAGGED- 

Master List Story Tag: @0hmydeku @inumorph @it-jinxed-us @myraticm

[nautilusopus]

I wrote a whole fucking review for Pokemon Shield but google ate it so I'm putting it up here and making it longer.

Pokemon SwSh is bright and shiny, but has many small systemic problems that ultimately pile up into a larger Not Fun whole. I know the easy criticism is to bring up Dexit, which I'm not happy about for a variety of reasons, but I still think they could've made a fun game in spite of that. Instead I'm going to bring up other problems the game has in the hope of having some of the game's other issues actually recognised before fans and critics alike fall into the same trap that I did. Dexit is honestly just the tip of the iceberg.

First, the good:

Trainer customisation has improved, and I'm always a sucker for the little things. Clothes are affordable once more AND come in a variety of designs, something I felt was a problem with Gen 7, and the player character model actually has facial expressions. This makes the world just a bit more fun to interact with when you're no longer a blankly-staring robot child. I often find myself spinning/doing the Leon pose just for fun because it’s nice to watch your character do something quirky and expressive like that, in the same way people are endeared to Wind Waker or BOTW Link more than Twilight Princess or Majora’s Mask Link despite both of them ostensibly being blank slates.

The curry minigame is fun even if I don’t quite understand how fanning works yet (and also another opportunity to see said facial expressions). Just a tad heartbroken I can’t import my team from previous games to play with them in camp. 

Marnie's a neat concept for a rival, and one that I've personally wanted to see in the Pokemon series for a while. I'll avoid speaking about it too much for spoiler reasons, but I think most people will wind up liking her as well.

The game looks nice. Not like, astounding or anything, but the cities and towns have a lot of atmosphere baked into their design.

Lotta bangers in the soundtrack, and the presentation of gym battles as a World Cup-esque deal, complete with hyped up audience, brings a fresh, exciting take to the Pokemon League. I like the way the music changes as the battle progresses, and enjoy the little in-universe details, like the champion walking around with all his sponsors on his uniform. 

WOOLOO

MY BOY TOBY FOX OUT HERE DOING GOD’S WORK, THIS SHIT SLAPS BEST TRACK 10000/10

Now for the bad:

The game feels very small and unfinished. It constantly implies cool things are happening in the background, but you never get to participate yourself, or even see them. The closest you get is your rival showing up with a news article explaining that a fun thing happened and was resolved in the time it took you to walk 100 feet. It makes the main questline feel flat and tedious, and something tells me maybe we were supposed to get to participate in literally anything, but there just wasn't time and they had to get the game out for the holiday season.

This pairs very badly with the second thing, which is that there really isn't very much to do in Pokemon SwSh. Most of what you wind up doing is backtracking. The Wilds are a neat idea in theory, but in execution they're kind of the worst part of the game. They're also, unfortunately, the biggest. It feels like there's really only two areas in the entire game -- the empty cities/towns with nothing really in them, and the giant, open-world-esque Wilds. 

The Wilds themselves are nothing to write home about. Pokemon catching is gated off by level, but all areas of the wilds are available simultaneously. This means if you care about filling out the dex, you'll find yourself constantly walking back and forth between town and the same areas of the Wilds you've already been to, checking things off a list. There's less a sense of exploration, and more just a sense of wandering in circles occasionally checking the weather. And if you DON'T care about the dex, then there's literally no reason for you to constantly return to this gigantic, lovingly-modeled wasteland ever again, making the game feel even smaller as you hop from empty town to empty town, and there’s even less for you to do as a result.

The game is piss-easy, even for a Pokemon title. EXP share is always on because this game shares the same engine as Pokemon Let's Go, meaning you will be disgustingly overlevelled if you make the mistake of exploring the Wilds in between gyms the way I did, and remain that way for the entire game. I found myself throwing the fight against Opal a little bit just to hear all her dialogue. Otherwise you just oneshot everyone and everything, and all the fights start to feel samey very quickly. 

Also, barren postgame. Like 30 minutes tops.

Maybe I’m a fool for expecting writing from a Pokemon game, but after Lillie from Sumo/USUM I went and got my hopes up, and Hop absolutely does not deliver. I don’t hate him like some do (Hugh is still absolutely the most annoying rival and no one will ever unseat him), but he just feels like many many missed opportunities. He feels extra redundant given Marnie’s presence on top of that. 

Bad Pokemon designs. This one’s a personal gripe so it’s at the bottom of the list, but I feel like it’s still worth mentioning that I abandoned the shit out of my starter and am left with nothing to replace it with. Greedent is now my new least favourite Pokemon ever. Fuckin FNAF-ass lookin motherfucker.

As sort of a smoking gun exemplifying my point, I have 53 Revives just from wandering around in the Wilds forever. And I have 3 Hyper Potions in my entire bag and no other healing items, because the game has given me no reason to go back into town and buy anything because there’s nothing in the towns, and it’s never required me to heal because there’s really no significant battles to have either, in the story, or ones you would seek out for your own reasons. 

On a personal note, I’m 7 badges into this mess and I still haven’t finalised my team because I can’t even find 6 designs I like that also result in at least a somewhat decent type coverage (or at least flashy variety of colour). To those of you that know me and my True 100% Run, that’s fucking unheard of for me. 

Overall, disappointed. It's not terrible, but given how robust every other mainline title was, this is a big downgrade. Not worth $60. I've played more fleshed-out romhacks. This game reminds me more of Coliseum/XD than Gen 8's big debut. Mostly I just feel bad for the friend that bought me it. 

This would just be kind of a bummer on its own, but coupled with the fact that 1. half the damn Pokemon aren’t in it and Game Freak has openly stated they plan to keep doing this and 2. in spite of that the game still felt unfinished, making you wonder what the hell they spent all their time making (Gigantamax maybe? Why? You can’t even do it in-game for the most part. At least Mega Evolution was readily available. Not to mention it won’t even be available next game. Stop making up gimmicks just to discard them), it makes me seriously concerned for the future of the franchise. 

[mybodyfails]

hi hi hiii. finally back home from berlin, caught a few zzz’s, still sleep deprived, but i’d do it again in a heartbeat!

i‘m gonna ~try to do bullet points here, but you know me... probably not gonna happen. sorry, you have to deal with my longwinded ramblings now, i‘m posting this mostly to remember it all for myself.

let me preface this with a quick disclaimer, these kind of events are usually not really for me, too awkward, too cringy, i’m shy as fuck and socially incompetent in general... but druck has had such an impact on my life, it was a no-brainer for me to go.

biggest shoutout to @lapalooz (with no access to her real tumblr, get on that!) for making the waiting time not only bearable but enjoyable with her engaging presence! aaand i’m pretty sure i wouldn‘t have made it to the meet&greet (aka hi&cry) if i didn‘t have the amazing @matteounterdruck by my side. thank you tina, so much!!! you really kept my spirits high and taught me how to release nervous energy through dancing! lmao ❤️❤️❤️

okay. let’s start at the beginning. the exhibition of and appreciation for all the fanart was one of my favourite things when we walked into that location. druck really said this show is as much about YOU as it is about US and just how lovely is that???

the q&a wasn‘t as bad as it could‘ve been... i just wish it would have been a bit longer though! they seemingly were prepared for the ‚why did amira‘s season end after 7 eps‘ question, but tua being honest and saying fuck yes, i wanted 10 eps for her too... iconic.

surprise surprise, the two people i truly didn‘t expect to be there were milena and michi. and then they were! and they were whispering to each other a lot <3 and michi was the most adorable awkward person to ever exist. you can tell he really is such a shy and private person, and i think seeing that spelled out right in front of us like this made it all the more special that he showed up at all! the things he ~did say were really witty and charming though, so there‘s that. 💕

the bloopers were so good, it was moving to see how much fun they had on set and that their friendships aren’t contrived in the slightest! all i kept thinking was “i can‘t wait to reblog the gifs of that to my tumblr“ haha. SO WHERE‘S THE VIDEO @DRUCK?!

for someone who went in there expecting to have a complete breakdown i was actually okay...ish when we watched the ep (i was so relieved to finally see amira again!) and david‘s film... until the cast went up on stage during anselm‘s second song and mile was stood there, tears streaming down her face, leaning on lukas for comfort. oi, that broke me. :(

quick shoutout to the person behind me who was crying in the club as they say, no, actually it was full on SOBBING. in my mind i just kept going ~SAME~. and, you know, anselm‘s songs didn‘t help the cause either... what a mess.

now on to the meet&greet. if you’re not interested in the people behind druck, or you think meeting them in person is weird or whatever - then this part is not for you and you’ll want to x out of here right now, please spare me the comments, i‘ve already had enough negativity in this fandom for years to come, whew.

i‘ll put this under a cut, just to be extra sure.

you know, i‘ve grown so attached to these characters over the last 1.5 years and it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to say thanks to the actresses/actors who made them come to life. for real though, i think really looking them in the eyes and saying THANK YOU was the best thing about the whole experience for me.

this‘ll be chaotic, i’m just gonna list everything i remember off the top of my head, please bear with me.

first of all: best. cast. ever! every single one of them was lovely in their own way... some of them are really high energy people (keep in mind we went in reallllly late, they had been doing this for hours at that point!)... think anselm, tua and mile. they just carried everyone else with their energy!

anselm was as warm and welcoming as i expected, yet it still surprised me how confidently he handled the whole situation (unlike me rip)... i literally blurted out “you‘re such a good host!“ to him and he sounded really flattered when thanking me. he just has the best vibes <3

naomi... oh my god. i was really shocked to even see her at all which was only right before it was our turn with her group. she made a little sarcastic remark about how she “can‘t wait to be tagged in alllll the pictures“ lmao. just leave it up to her to make me fall in love in real life too. :(

i don‘t know if they did it in all of their pictures, but her and hassan were hugging it out in the background of ours like the laura/mohammed crackship that they are. loved that! lmao

speaking of hassan though, i only had the BRIEFEST interaction with him bc how does one cope with all that beauty up close?! one doesn‘t, that‘s how. damn.

i lovelovelove that they kept the five girls together for the photo op, now the pictures ended up looking like we‘re part of their squad!

tua was the life of the party, she made the whole room dance and sing along when ‘geiles leben’ came on (that was when most people had left already bc we went in so late)... it was such a special moment!!! she was also really confused whether to speak german or english to us, bilingual queen!

lea gives the BEST hugs that was so unexpected for such a tiny person, she REALLY goes in wow.

jobel... all i remember is that my face was literally buried in her hair while we were hugging and she smelled amazing!

and lilly omg... lilly! my favourite bean, so easy to talk to, the best aura! she was kinda stretching her legs out when we got to her (l m a o) and kept thanking us for waiting so long (which... a few of them said that... and i always replied with a hä?! thank YOU for doing this for so long!) and rolled her eyes just at the thought of the aftershow party they had planned and told us she‘ll only drink water though! lmao

mile as i mentioned earlier was being so motivational, yelling “we‘re gonna do it! we‘re gonna get through all of you!“ in between again and again, probably more for herself than any of us haha. we did end up talking about food with her, which... you know. foodies amongst each other. ;)

found a whole new appreciation for louis... who poured so much of himself into carlos oh my god. chill. quick witted. hilarious!

so now i left lukas for last. as i briefly mentioned before, i didn’t go up to him after romeo&juliet, but this time i did (there really was no other option when you were there, that would‘ve been rude lol) and i wasn’t let down. at all. he was one of the few people who actually properly introduced himself and that is SO nice, one of the things i’ve always loved about people who are in that kinda position, you know? he is just the sweetest sweetheart, we all know it, he’s proven it over and over. he ran across the room bc some fans forgot their photos at their table, that’s how considerate he is. while we were waiting for our pics to be printed, he came over and hugged us AGAIN and made it a point to say goodbye. MY HEART. 💕

oh, also... we noticed that the mile/flo/louis/lukas group was the most organised with the whole picture situation... they had a ~system going y‘all. lmao

okay. i think this might be it for now. OOF. if anyone actually read all that... you deserve a cookie. i know i promised coherent thoughts, but this is. what you’re gonna get. oops?

if i remember other bits and pieces i‘ll put them in my tags or whatever.

i‘m gonna see myself out now.

[darkpetal16]

Apologies if these are out of order! For the Anon with 5+ questions about Bleach!Lilly. 

Anon your excitement really put a smile on my face and some of your ideas were pretty funny so I wanted to share. 

To show my gratitude for your excitement, here’s some pieces of the Bleach story I am still working on: 

Lilly’s zanpakuto: 

I placed the sword in the white sand and took a seat in front of it. It was a black blade--it had darkened to this morbid color the moment I touched it--and it gleamed with an almost malicious aura.

This almost made me want to pout because I liked to think of myself as someone who was not morbid or malicious. Most of the lives I lived I was a relatively good guy! 

Run the genocide route just a few times and you’re marked for life, I thought ruefully, shaking my head.

What else was there to do when cursed with immortality, though? It was bound to happen, I wasn’t that self-disciplined. I thought, perhaps, if I played the role of the villain that maybe my punishment--my karma--would be permanent death.

Nope.

The sinister looking sword remained stock still--not like I expected it to move, really--while I continued to give it a stink eye for its appearance.

I better not have an evil spirit inside, I thought. I’m a happy, bubbly, hero! Not a damn villain.

Only one way to find out, though.

I reached forward with my spiritual energy and forced my consciousness inside the spiritual energy that resided inside the sword.

<cut out> 

“This is a really morbid mindscape,” I observed with narrowed eyes, walking through the black gunk. “Ugh… don’t give me villainous powers, please.”

Then red eyes gleamed beneath the sea of black, and a wicked smile stretched underneath it.

“Damn it,” I cursed, now realizing I did indeed have the evil sword.

<LOT of cut out> 

Lilly requesting new minions. 

“You’ll be happy to know I’ve picked out a new lieutenant,” I chirped, folding my hands together behind me. 

Genryūsai looked up from his caligraphy, dark eyes assessing me. “It’s good to know a hundred years of nagging pays off.”

“I told you I was waiting,” I dismissively returned, taking a seat across from his floor table. “He won’t be with me for very long, though.”

“Hm?” Genryūsai’s attention returned to whatever he was writing. As always, my oldest student was pristine and meticulous in everything he did. His back was kept perfectly straight, and his captain sleeves were tied up to prevent them from dipping into the traditional ink slabs on his desk. He only ever sat on seat cushions—he hated chairs with backs, as he believed they were handicaps for those who couldn’t maintain a proper posture. 

I pouted at this blatant show of disinterest. I knew I still had his attention—he’s been hounding on me to get more people in my squad for over a century since the last of my members switched to different divisions.

Not everyone had the stomach to work with me, apparently. Although Mayuri only left because he wanted to focus more on research, and not at all because I bothered him.

What a fun fella..

Genryūsai knew me better than most, though, and he knew the best way to get under my skin was to not give me the attention and reactions I so craved.

Cheeky trolling bastard.

I was so proud of him.

Some kind of showing of interest would be nice, I thought, reluctantly handing Genryūsai the file of my future lieutenant, and squad members.

Genryūsai silently accepted the folder, setting it in his lap as he opened it and began to peruse through my choices. 

I finally got my anticlimactic reaction when he quirked an eyebrow at my choice of lieutenant. “Sōsuke Aizen? He graduates next month, but his grades aren’t particularly impressive.”

“I want him as my lieutenant,” I stubborn said. “He’s going to become the fifth division captain.”

“You’re third division,” Genryūsai idly pointed out. “You have no say over who rules over fifth division.”

“Shinji has been keeping an eye on Sōsuke for a while,” I said. “Shinji will try to take Sōsuke soon enough.”

Although Shinji’s watching Sōsuke because his instincts are tellin’ him that Sōsuke’s ba-a-ad news. He’s not wrong, but I’d be damned if I let this chance pass up.

Sōsuke Aizen was inevitably going to become a captain. Shinji’s division was the most likely one out of the bunch, since Shinji wants to keep an eye on Sōsuke and by consequences, he’ll get caught by Sōsuke’s trap. 

Which sounded like a hell of a lot of fun. 

For over a thousand years I was waiting for Sōsuke to hurry up and appear!

He tricks and outplays everyone, catching everyone by surprise.

For an old troll like myself I live for shocking people, and getting shocked. Sadly, very few have been able to get the drop on me since coming to Soul Society, though.

With Sōsuke as my lieutenant, though, I had a good chance of falling for one of his traps!

Super~!

“Not very nice of you to swoop in, then,” Genryūsai mused. “Certainly unorthodox to choose a lieutenant as a student instead of someone with proper experience.”

“I’m unorthodox.”

“Very true,” he agreed. “And these members of your squad… Gin Ichimaru, Kaname Tōsen, and Sajin Komamura. Komamura? Ah, are you taking him under your wing, then?”

Sajin Komamura was our resident werewolf. Genryūsai took a special interest in him when the two first met, and offered to sponsor him into the academy. Sajin, humbled and grateful for the opportunity, accepted it.

Unfortunately, the poor baby felt so horribly self conscious about his wolf-like appearance. He refused to go anywhere in public without wearing gloves, a helmet, and every inch of his fur covered. 

Which was such a shame! He was our resident furry, after all, and with all that fur he easily ranked top three as Best Cuddler, and top five for Best Boi. 

Poor pupp—er—poor fella.

Gin and Kaname were obvious choices. Sōsuke was already working hard at trying to recruit Kaname to his side, undoubtedly, and Gin wanted to stay close to Sōsuke to extract his Ultimate Revenge on Sōsuke for attacking his waifu, Rangiku.

Who unfortunately wasn’t graduating, yet, but I already put her in the file as wanting her the moment she did graduate.

Genryūsai hummed and tapped his fingers, needlessly drawing out verbalizing his decision to try and needle me. 

To combat this obvious attempt to annoy me, I started to whistle. 

Off-key.

“Fine,” Genryūsai immediately cut in. He knew if the whistling didn’t work I’d start belting out renditions of I Like Big Butts.

Quick as can be, he stamped his approval and I took my leave after blowing him a kiss.

<Cut out> 

Lilly monologuing and reflecting before meeting her minions. 

The barracks for the fifth division was one of the prettiest, and most feminine.

This was because I literally made it with my own two hands and decided to practice my woodworking skills.

Hey, I had thousands of years to kill before the story finally rolled around. Picking up odd hobies were a necesssity to keep myself from starting wars out of sheer fucking boredom.

Unsurprisingly after a while I used my skills on my division barracks. 

Every single post and wooden wall had some kind of woodworking design hammered into it. Most of it was flowers, or feminine-esque designs because it was so not want Genryūsai would want one of his bad ass military divisions to look like.

To this day, over a thousand years since I made the change, Genryūsai would still wrinkle his brow as he glared at the flowers every time he had to visit the barracks.

He even had the audacity to swap out all my pretty artwork for standard, uncultured, plain ol’ wood when I went out on a mission.

In retaliation, I gave the first division a fabulous hot-pink make over.

What followed next over the next century could only be described as an incredibly petty war between student and teacher.

It was hard to claim that I won just because I got my flowery barracks because my cunning student got me to promise not to decorate the other barracks without their captain’s permission.

So many wasted opportunities to make people misery went out the window because of that.

But I got my pretty barracks.

And inside my pretty barracks I eagerly awaited my new minions. 

The barracks had a main greeting room where meetings were intended to be held. It was a decently sized room fashioned like a traditional japanese main room. The floorings were made up of tatami mats, the doors were shoji (room dividers). On its walls hung artwork I had collected over my many, many years in the Soul Society. Some painted by myself, others by friends. A few were prizes I had stolen off the corpses of our enemies, and a couple were actually bought legally. All of them centered around tranquil environments—snowy mountains with a red sunset behind them, a stormy ocean, a field of flowers, and so forth. 

At the center of the room was a long rowan wood table—all the wood in the barracks were cut and carved from rowan trees—and some soft seat cushions. One seat cushion was placed on one side, and there were four opposite of it.

I prepared some ikebana, and a lovely tea party to greet my new squad members. The red tea was kindly provided by Unohana when she went out to forage for medicinal herbs, and I baked a rich chocolate pound cake, alongside orange scones, and lavender cookies. 

As I took my seat at one side of the table, I hummed a merry little song to myself. 

Soon, they would arrive.

While waiting for them to arrive I did another check over of myself. My captain’s jacket was kept neat—Genryūsai would throw such a temper tantrum (and not the funny kind) if it was anything less. I kept the sleeves cut off for better maneuverability, though. My pink hair was long, shiny, and well-groomed.

Not a speck of dirty was to be found on me, nor anything to give me a less than completely awesome first impression. Even my Evil™ sword looked spick and span in its black tabard. 

Although it still gave off a rather malicious aura if someone looked at it long enough. Even though I tied a cute little pink ribbon around it and everything! 

Stupid Evil™ sword.

Ah.

I felt their presence the moment they entered the barracks. One of them, likely Sajin, felt distinctly unsettled and nervous. 

It didn’t come as any bit of surprise that Sōsuke took the lead in entering first, uttering a polite, “Excuse me.”

The shogi doors slid open and I finally got my first good look at the future captains. 

Sōsuke Aizen, currently only in his fifties had the appearance of a young man in his early twenties. His scholarly chestnut brown hair was carefully styled to give the impression of soft and innocent. He had a pair of thick black rimmed glasses that helped convey the same tone. Even his expression went on to underline this!

What a smoother fucker. Honestly impressed. If I didn’t know better, I would have immediately categorized him in the moe-bishie section.

This only heightened my excitement at being tricked by him later on. What surprise would he have in store with my addition to the story? The fact that I couldn’t accurately predict what would come with his interference put a big smile in my heart.

It was that same feeling you get when you watch a fantastic movie and it reveals a plot twist you never expected, but made it all the better.

Next to Sōsuke came Gin, who was actively working on coming across as a little creepy and malicious. Or maybe not actively. Maybe he hated being next to Sōsuke so much a little bloodlust leaked out. 

Gin had a strained—and very clearly fake—smile on his face. 

Made me want to pinch his cheeks and stretch out his smile until it didn’t look so painful to look at.

Standing a bit further away from Gin and Sōsuke were Kaname and Sajin. Kaname instantly struck me as absurdly focused. He had an aura of: Don’t approach me, bitch. He definitely didn’t become a shinigami for the fun of it. 

He was either going to hate me more than he has ever hated anyone in his life, or he was going to adapt to my insanity and relax. Dare I say it, he might even have fun if he did so.

Standing the furthest away was our fwuffy boy, Sajin. He was the tallest of the bunch, and bulkiest. Every inch of his appearance was covered in either cloth or armor, and he reflexively kept a glove hand on the hilt of his sword. His appearance and stature might have been intimidating to some, but his spiritual energy was twitching in a clearly nervous fashion. 

I put a big grin on my face. “Welcome home, minions!”

<Cut out>

Lilly training her new minions. 

“Come on now, minions! Surely you guys can kill hollows faster than that,” I encouraged, sitting in the air as I watched the four of them struggle against a few dozen hollows. 

To be fair, this was before any of them had reached bankai, and none of them had worked together before. 

Which was why I (secretly) snuck them into Hueco Mundo for some good ol’ fashion hollow purging. 

Not a lot of people knew I could open portals between the three (four if we count Riddlefucker’s palace) worlds. Genryūsai would prefer if I kept that information on the need-to-know basis. He would rather the research team found their own way into Los Noches without having to rely on me.

Apparently he said I was too fickle. 

Me!

What a silly student I had.

Still, I tried not to get on his bad side too often, so I respected his request for the most part. Hence why I had to sneak these fellas here and lie to them about it being a random spot I found in the Soul Society. 

Although I don’t think Sōsuke believed my lie, he didn’t question it (yet). 

And now they were fighting off hordes of hollows with the teamwork of bickering teenagers. More than once they nearly bumped into one another, or another was accidentally caught in the crossfire. None of them were hot headed, so it didn’t lead to some hilarious shouting matches, but damn were they petty. Especially Sōsuke and Gin. 

Poor fluffy boy accidentally used a hado on Sōsuke, and Sōsuke “accidentally” returned the favor.

I wish I had brought popcorn, I thought, watching Kaname accidentally(?) kick Gin and use him as a launching pad.

Oof.

Sajin, poor baby, coincidently leapt up as Kaname was leaping up and collided into him. Since Sajin used a lot more force in his life off, Kaname was sent flying into Sōsuke who then collided hard enough in the ground to leave a crater.

And—yep, that’s definitely a glare Sōsuke tossed the apologetic werewolf.

“I know I said that we’d only be here until it was time for dinner,” I casually put in, “but change of plans. We’re camping out here until ya’ll can fight for at least a five hours without killing each other.”

A moment of stunned disbelief flickered over their faces as they all turned to look at me. There was even a touch of resentment in Sōsuke’s eyes that made me want to cackle.

I folded my legs together and blew them a cheeky kiss. “Have fun, minions.”

<OH SO MUCH Cut out>

Lilly meeting Orihime as a child.

“You see, Hime-chan, I have a ship,” I said. 

“A ship?” the small girl repeatedly cutely, big eyes looking up at me in wonderment. 

“Yes, dear. A ship I intend to make sure sets sail. And you, my dear, are on board this ship,” I went on. “Do you understand?”

“I’m going to help you sail a ship?” the child tried to guess.

“Yes,” I told her with a smile. “Yes, you are.”

<Cut out> 

Lilly advising how misbehaving captains should be punished.

“You know if you really wanted to punish these two boys you could just make them strip, and do a dance on a pole for their fans to see,” I wisely pointed out.

“Sensei,” he sighed. “No.”

[geniejackman]

Harry Potter: What the Movies Got Right

Because the movies get a lot of shit for the ways that they differ from the books, here is a way too overly-detailed list of moments from the Harry Potter films which IN MY OPINION improve upon the source material.

Sorcerer’s Stone:

The Norbert Storyline: Cutting out the whole midnight hand-off of Norbert to Charlie’s friends story-line was a good move. It slowed down the plot in the book, and come on, how were Charlie’s friends able to sneak into Hogwarts in the first place? There are literally entire chapters of people trying to figure out ways around the schools security.

 Chamber of Secrets:

Nothing to add, the book and movie are almost entirely one and the same (Sure wish they’d followed through with this on some of the other movies. Lookin at you Half-Blood Prince).

-ONE THING THOUGH; at the end when Harry tricks Lucius Malfoy into freeing Dobby and you can hear him start to cast ‘Avada Kedavra’ at Harry. It’s a small and HILARIOUS addition. Like, really Lucius? The killing curse? At this little twelve-year-old, right in front of Dumbledore’s office, in broad day-light, over literally nothing? I heard somewhere that this was because Jason Isaacs thought he should say some spell but nothing was scripted, and Avada Kedavra was the only one he could think of. But it’s just really funny to think about Lucius legit about to murder a kid in public over losing his house-elf.

 Prisoner of Azkaban:

-Aunt Marge’s Big Mistake: I love that Marge blows up and floats out of the house, rather than just bouncing off the walls like in the book. Hysterical!

-Lupin scenes: Lupin talking about how Lilly “was there for me at a time when no one else was” and how she had a gift for finding beauty in people “even and most importantly when that person could not see it in themselves”… just… fucking David Thewlis man. Actually, all the Harry & Lupin conversations in the movie have this sweet parental energy that was mostly there in the books, it just feels so much more potent here thanks do Dan & David’s incredible chemistry.

-Harry’s Patronus Lessons: the powerful memory that finally gets him to cast the spell is thinking about his parents talking with him. Kind of an understated change from the books, but it helps to underscore that the memory doesn’t need to be big or even all that happy, just emotionally poignant.

 -“WHY DON’T YOU RUN ALONG AND PLAY WITH YOUR CHEMISTY SET?!?!?!?”

-Snape protects the kids: Even though Snape was being a dick the entire time in the Shrieking Shack, he still acts as a HUMAN FUCKING SHIELD between the kids and Wolf Lupin and even takes a blow to the chest while protecting them. Book Snape was unconscious the whole time. Also, Movie Snape is so much more sympathetic than Book Snape, fight me. More on this down the line.

 Goblet of Fire:

-Really scraping the bottom of the barrel here, because there ain’t much.

-David Tenant is fun as hell as Barty Crouch Jr: I mean, there isn’t much fleshed out motivation in the character in the movie besides being bat-shit-fucking-crazy, but hey, it’s fun to watch! Also, I love the added detail (which I believe was improvised by Tenant) of Jr’s lip twitch and how this gives him away when he’s pretending to be Moody in front of Crouch Sr.  

-Cedric’s bravery: It’s a very small thing, but in the book when Cedric and Harry realize something’s off in the graveyard, they don’t really react much, or even say anything. When Harry’s scar stars burning, my man Cedric has enough presence of mind to draw his wand, ask Harry what’s wrong, takes a defensive stance, and shouts “Who are you? What do you want?” bravely to an approaching Pettigrew. Guy spends his last few moments being an absolute champ. Hollywood did you wrong Robert Pat.

 Order of the Pheonix:

-The DA training sequences: They’re wonderful and full of teen-whimsiness and the score makes me happy. Seriously, go listen to the ‘Dumbledore’s Army’ track, it’ll make your day! https://youtu.be/fZane0CwAGg

Harry’s cheesy one liner which somehow still manages to be great: “Every great wizard has started out as nothing more than what we are now, students. If they can do it, why not us?”

-Neville’s Character growth: “We’re gonna make them proud Neville. That’s a promise.” Man, I really wish there had been scenes of Harry and Neville talking about their families in the books. There’s so much that they share in terms of past traumas. I like that they bring it up in the film, even if it’s a very quick scene.  

-Fred and George: It’s been said before, but the scene with Fred and George comforting a young student who’s had the Umbridge hand-slicing treatment is UNPRECEDENTED and I LOVE it. This helps show them as more than just loveable jokesters.

-“Neville Longbottom is it? How’s mum and dad” “Better, now that they’re about to be avenged!” FOUR FOR YOU NEVILLE LONBOTTOM, YOU GO NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM!

-Possession: I’m gonna be honest, this movie is my next-to-least-favorite of the adaptations. I’d be prepared to write it off as a bad movie altogether if it weren’t for the way they decide to end with the Ministry battle: In the book, Voldemort finishes dueling Dumbledore and starts possessing Harry, who tells Dumbledore to kill him. Possessed Harry says: “Kill me Dumbledore, death is nothing compared to this. Kill me. And I’ll see Sirius again.” This moment is really quick, and it’s not really made clear until the next book that Harry’s love and grief in this moment is what drove Voldemort out. In the movie, the scene gets more time and attention and shows Voldemort possessing Harry, forcing him to remember his worst memories of losing people he loves. For anyone who’s ever suffered from depression or anxiety, the way these horrible memories overwhelm Harry is shockingly familiar. But then, Ron, Hermione and the others come running in. The sight of them makes Harry remember all of the best moments with his friends: “You’re the weak one. And you’ll never know love, or friendship. And I feel sorry for you.” HOLY HELL. All the tears. Just all of them. I fuckin love this moment. Congrats Possession scene, you single-handedly saved this movie for me.

Half-Blood Prince:

Oooooh boy. Full disclosure, I kind of hate this movie. It’s just… it’s not ABOUT anything. Like, SO much was changed in Order of the Pheonix to make it tonally different from the book, AND YET: Sirius’s line in the OOTP film about how “we all have light and dark inside of us” is so cliched and not from the book at all, but it PAYS OFF and shapes the theme of the movie at the end when Dumbledore reinforces “It’s not how you are alike. It’s how you are not.” So yeah, not really from the book, but it’s at least trying to have a theme. HBP the movie is a mess. Instead of having a central theme, the main idea for the movie appears to be: “stuff is happening”.

-Despite this, there were one or two instances of “stuff is happening” which the film added that built positively on the book. One of those is, hear me out, the Burrow attack. HBP the book is pretty void of any action until the very end, and this addition (nonsensical as it is. Did they ever explain how the Death Eaters were able to break through the Ministry’s protective charms to get to the Burrow?) gives us some pretty cool visuals and some much needed tension. Too bad it’s totally meaningless as we see in the first few minutes of Deathly Hallows Part 1 that the Weasley’s have completely rebuilt the Burrow. Cause, ya know, magic.

-Draco on the Hogwarts Express: “Hogwarts. What a pathetic excuse for a school. I think I’d pitch myself off the Astronomy Tower if I thought I had to come back for another year.” HA! Oh the irony.

In general, the characterization of Draco is so much more engaging here than in the book. The fact that the movies are less exclusively only what Harry thinks and sees gives us opportunities to see more into other characters perspectives. Draco’s experiments in the Room of Requirement really add a lot to the characters emotional struggle. And boy howdy does Tom act the HELL out of the bathroom cry scene. Really makes you wish they’d followed through on that redemption arc in DH part 2 (more on that later).

-Last but not least; Slughorn and the Lilly fishbowl. HOLY SHIT is this scene powerful. Not only is it an incredibly touching story, but we get to see the parental and emotional aspects of Slughorn’s ‘collecting’ of promising students over the years. And the sadness of Slughorn’s unfinished sentence; “the day the bowl was empty… was the day that your mother….” Just, damn. I both love and hate this moment, because it adds something positive to HBP and that makes me mad because I guess I can’t totally hate it now.

 Deathly Hallows Part 1

-Opening montage with Hermione Obliviating her parents. In the book, Hermione tells the boys about how she did this in order to make them see how much she’s already sacrificed to their cause. But damn. SEEING it really makes it even more devastating.

-Hedwig’s Death. Damn, just typing those words hurt my heart. I really liked that Harry lets her fly free at the beginning, only to have her come back during the sky battle to save Harry. It’s sad in the book having her die in her cage, but they really amped up the cry factor for the movie by having her sacrifice herself.

-“Hey losers! He isn’t here.” Goddamnit, Neville just keeps wracking up those ‘Biggest Badass’ and ‘Best Character Growth’ points. It’s great foreshadowing for what’s to come with his hero moment in the Final Battle.

-Harry and Hermione’s dance. I know some people have called this scene unnecessary and awkward, but here me out. The dancing itself is, in my opinion, EXACTLY how awkward fools like Harry and Hermione would dance, and the moments where they slowly change from depressed and dead-eyed to light-hearted and goofy, it shows you that despite all the hardships they’ve gone through, they’re just kids. A little awkward, a little uncertain, but still able to enjoy the small things in life. Also, the little moment where they linger for a moment all serious after the dance always played to me like “hey, you know how Ron just stormed out after accusing us of having a thing? Maybe there’s a possibility that we actually do… nah.” It’s a nice little moment.

-Scabier’s creeper moments with Hermione. That scene in the forest when she’s put up the enchantments so they can’t see her, but he can smell her. It’s a great acting moment between Emma and the dude playing Scabier (even if this should have been Greyback).

-Draco at Malfoy Manor. Small but touching scene; when Draco is brought in to make sure the Death Eaters have caught Harry, he does the same thing in the book where he claims he “can’t be sure”. In the book, Draco says this while refusing to look Harry in the eye. In the movie, he looks Harry dead in the face and looks scared to death while asking “What’s wrong with his face?” Just… the concern and fear dripping off of him is DELICIOUS. (AGAIN WITH THE REDEMPTION ARC!!! THE POTENTIAL WAS THERE WARNER BROTHERS!!!!!)

-Hermione Tortured. Not really all that much was changed for this scene, but Bellatrix carving ‘mudblood’ into Hermione’s arm and the way it evoked Holocaust concentration camp victims was a stroke of genius.

-Dobby at Malfoy Manor. Way to give this ‘lil dude a moment to shine! Specifically; “of course I can, I’m an elf!” “Dobby never meant to kill anyone. Dobby only meant to mame or seriously injure!” And then… the death scene. I love that in the movie, Dobby gets a longer farewell. “Such a beautiful place… to be with friends. Dobby is happy to be with his friend. Harry Potter.” UGH! At least give me some warning before you rip my heart out.

 Deathly Hallows Part 2

-Snape vs. McGonagall; I’m torn, because I love the scene in the book where Harry defends McGonagall against the Carrows leading into the scene where she confronts Snape, but I also really love this big dramatic scene in the Great Hall with the “How dare you stand where he stood?” and McGonagall dueling Snape. Alan’s expression as Maggie steps up is PRICELESS.

-Harry and Malfoy in the Room or Requirement; “Why didn’t you tell her? Bellatrix? You knew it was me.” Yeah Warner Brothers, why didn’t he tell her? Gonna maybe follow through with this redemption-arc you seem to be building up? No?? OKAY THEN!!!

-Snape’s death scene. Changing the setting was a stroke of genius. This scene is wonderfully done and we all know it.

-The Prince’s Tale. Okay, I feel like I’m going to take some flak for this. At first, I wasn’t thrilled with how much was cut out of Snape’s flashbacks concerning his friendship with Lilly and their falling out. But when you really think about it, they cut out all of the really gross stuff. For instance, it’s never implied that he enjoys bullying people for fun, he doesn’t call her a mudblood, he isn’t shown being toxic towards Lilly and jealous of James, never has the moment where he asks Voldemort to kill Harry & James and leave Lilly for him, and in general is WAY less problematic than in the books. This might be an instance of a ‘less is more’ win in favor of the film. I know, I’m as shocked as you are.

-Malfoy’s Redemption: So this might be confusing for some folks since this wasn’t in the final cut, but here’s a link for what they originally had in mind for Draco’s redemption arc: https://youtu.be/hS5Z2YbyePg

I am SO MAD that this was left out of the final cut, since it’s so obviously built up in part 1. Also, it would have been a HUGE improvement on the source material since Draco effectively has NO character growth there. This moment, where he makes a huge stand by yelling “POTTER” (also, GREAT inverse from the way we’ve become accustomed to hearing Draco sneer at Harry by invoking his surname over the years), throws him the wand, and runs back to join the fray, is a great addition to the series. I really wish the filmmakers had stuck with this plan.

 Incredibly long ranting list over.

[thelillykane]

oh, this way and that way 

LOGAN AND VERONICA AU WEEK. Day 1: Come back to me. Always. 

Veronica attends 09er infested private school, but it’s not as bad once Logan transfers in. (title taken from a mary oliver poem titled, “how do i love you?” which you can read here -- it’s the third poem down & a great poem that makes my heart warm!! i love poetry anyway moving on)

“Veronica’s one of the scholarship students,” Angie Dahl faux-whispers, spitting the word ‘scholarship’ out as if it just became of one of the seven deadly sins to be poor. 

The new guy swivels around to give Veronica a hard, thorough once over before twisting back to Angie with an expression of pure glee. 

Just what I need, Veronica thinks, rolling her eyes heavenward. Another shit-for-brains Dick Casablancas.  

“But, Angie,” the new kid says, adopting a loud, scandalized tone, “Isn’t that the girl who’s beating you out for valedictorian?” 

// 

Veronica doesn’t normally do this. Rich kids come and go at Neptune Academy and they all seem to know each other beforehand and they all definitely hate her. Veronica’s stop bothering with their names or their appearances-- just gives them her patented remember-this-moment-because-you’re-gonna-regret-it smile and a quick one-liner that goes right over their little airhead brains. 

But this kid is different. 

This kid had made Angie Dahl wilt. Made her cry in the bathroom for an hour after Chem class if Carrie and Susan were to be believed (and usually they weren’t but this was just so. good. that Veronica allowed it). 

Veronica’s never been able to do that. And she’s tried -- many, many times. 

Point is. Veronica’s impressed. And she’s not a particularly easy person to impress. And this is the only reason why she goes out of her way to sit next to Logan Echolls in the library, trying to find the most efficient way to tell him that she’d been impressed, without actually having to use the term ‘impressed’ or compliment him in anyway. 

(She’s done her research. And if she hadn’t he was the only thing the school was talking about anyway. Logan Echolls, son of THE Aaron Echolls. Arrogant. Psychotic. Total jackass. The usual. He doesn’t need any ego buttering from her).

She takes too long thinking of what to say (and god, she misses Lilly. Lilly would’ve known exactly what to say and what body language to say it with, if only she wasn’t 2000 some miles away in New York) and Logan takes matters into his own hands.

“Did you come to ask for an autograph?” 

The kicker is, he doesn’t even look away from the computer screen when he says it. Okay. Fuck you, Logan Echolls. 

She doesn’t think about what Lilly would do this time -- because Lilly probably really would fuck him -- instead, she leans forward and puts honey into her voice, “I just wanted to be closer to you.” 

Logan keeps his eyes on the screen and doesn’t react at all. There’s no laughter, no squirm, no nothing and then, slowly, Logan rises from the computer and turns to look at her. 

“Bessie, if the milks not free, I don’t drink it.” 

Really, it’s no wonder Veronica punches him in the face.  

// 

If her mom had been in town Veronica would’ve been grounded over the whole thing, and she would’ve gotten a lengthy lecture on how important Neptune Academy was for her future prospects, but since her mom’s in Arizona visiting family and her dad never wanted her to go to private school anyway, Veronica’s able to give Lilly the play by play over the phone that night. 

“It didn’t hurt nearly as much as I thought it would,” she says, after Lilly is done squealing and professing her love. “Maybe because he still has chipmunk cheeks.” 

“I can’t believe you finally decide to punch somebody in the face and I miss it.” 

“Maybe he’ll pitch it as a movie to his dad and you’ll get to see it on the big screen.” 

There’s a pause on the other end of the line -- which is hardly unusual, Lilly gets distracted by everything -- and then, “Wait, who’d you punch again?” 

“Some new kid. Movie star parents, thinks he’s god’s gift to women-”

“Veronica,” Lilly cuts off, impatiently. “Are you telling me you punched LOGAN ECHOLLS in the face?” 

As Lilly tells it, Logan and Duncan had been friends from way back when the Kane’s used to live in Los Angeles, but then the Kane’s moved back to Neptune and Logan’s parents travelled a lot for Aaron’s filming schedules and so they gradually fell out of touch. 

Lilly’s beyond delighted that she fought with him and by the time Veronica goes to sleep her cheeks hurt from smiling so much. 

// 

They fall into a rhythm. 

Logan antagonizes Veronica; Veronica antagonizes Logan back.  

They do it with smiles and cutesy giggles and friendly waves so the administration doesn’t feel the need to intervene over it. 

It’s effortless. 

And fun. 

By default, Logan turns into the person she interacts with the most at school, whether it’s by sharpening their claws against one another or by hissing insults about their classmates to each other while they’re in class. 

She doesn’t think much about it. 

// 

Logan misses a day of school, which quickly turns into four. 

Veronica doesn’t care, except that she’s irritable from the distinct lack of mental stimulation, and every time someone says something painfully stupid (which is often) there’s no one to glance over at and roll her eyes with. 

She’s punchy in the worst way when she gets home and her parents are more than happy when she announces she’s going to bed. 

They’d be less happy, she thinks, if they knew that Logan fucking Echolls was sitting at her desk, snooping through her belongings. 

“What are you doing?” She hisses, snatching her notebook out of his hands and smacking him sharply on the arm with it for good measure. “And how the hell did you get my address?” 

“School directory,” he says, wiggling his eyebrows, which is such bullshit because their school doesn’t even have a directory-- too many rich kids going whose parents don’t want anybody to know where they live. “Speaking of, and be honest, how much better would your life be if you were indifferent to me?” 

“So much since I’m really struggling,” Veronica quips back with a winning grin. “But, seriously, where’ve you been?” 

“Can I tell you a secret?” 

Veronica rolls her eyes. Logan’s secrets are always trivial, inaccurate observations like when he’d told her shoe was un-tied even though she was wearing zip-up boots. (That she’d looked on instinct anyway was beyond the point). 

“If I say no will you go away and leave me alone?” 

Logan smiles faintly, rolling his thumb over the cuff of his long-sleeve shirt. “We’re moving back to L.A.,” he glances up at her from under his eyelashes, waits for the news to settle in across her face. “Tomorrow morning, actually. So, you know, this would be a good opportunity for you to confess your love me.”  

“What, like you want me to make you promise that you’ll always come back to me?” 

“Oh, come on, Ronnie, you know I only want you.” 

“Jesus, you’re insufferable,” but Veronica laughs as she says it, feeling warm and bright and trying not to think about why. 

[theresnoturningback]

Back on the Horse [RUSIM]

Summary: I guess I need to start adding these from now on, huh...

“Aasim is restless after the things he saw back at the Delta. Fortunately, Ruby is there to help”

This is a continuation of “After the Dare”

A/N: I’ve come to notice that I‘ve done one rusim fic per episode. (”A Little More than A Crush, for “Done Running“, “After the Dare” for “Suffer the Children” and now “Back on the Horse” for “Broken Toys” ) and all these rusim one shots are correlated as if they were parts of one big fic. I don’t mind that at all, but I just wanted to say that was not the original plan. Anyway, I finally finished this [not so] little fic. I’ve been talking about it for more than a month but it’s finally done and you can read it, tell me what you think, please (I crave that sweet sweet mineral, validation, constructive criticism).

Big thanks to @3amgameover and @areallyyellowmango who helped me edit this junk so it could be readable. You guys are amazing friends I owe you my life. 

Word Count: 4334

‘Okay. It’s done, The wound is clean and it looks we’re on the right path to healin’...just don’t start pokin’ it again and you should be just fine’ Ruby said patting Omar on the shoulder.

‘Finally’ He sighed,  rolling down his pant leg,

She gave him a sympathetic look.

‘I know it hurts and the whole process would be much faster in other circumstances, but I’m running low on supplies, we’ve been out of painkillers for a long time now, I’m sorry…’

‘It’s really okay, Ruby. You’re doing more than enough. You’re a real angel’ His words were contrasted with a pained expression, result of the friction of the jeans against his freshly treated wound, but he quickly disguised it with a faint smile.

‘You’re too nice. I’m just trying to keep you guys alive, is all’ She returned the smile, blushing slightly. She’d never got used to people praising her.

A small knock on the office’s door announced Aasim’s entrance. His look was deplorable. The shade of his face was a sickly pale and it seemed he carried the weight of the past events in his eyelids. Ruby was aware he had gone through several sleepless nights.

The morning after Clementine, AJ and Violet came back with their captive friends, she stopped by his room after seeing Louis and Omar, who needed to be treated urgently.

That morning, she entered his room with a cup of herbal tea and left it on his desk. She wanted to hug him and thank the heavens he was back, but the man sitting in the bed wasn’t the same she kissed  back at the greenhouse. He was broken, silent.

She examined him in silence. No wounds, no bites. Just a couple of bruises on his arms and back. Since Aasim wouldn’t talk, she had to guess it was a product of the Delta manhandling him.

She visited him every day at the same time. He’d barely touch the herbal tea she left for him and didn’t showed up for lunch or dinner the following days. She realized insisting would do no good in that situation, so she gave him some space and time to open up when he considered it right.

And even though, seeing him like that hurt her greatly, she couldn’t hide a relieved smile when she saw him across the room.

He was finally there.

Everything on Ruby’s mind vanished as she hurried closer to Aasim. They looked  at each other for a couple of seconds, speaking without words the things they hadn’t been able to say out loud yet.

Omar cleared his throat, to inform them he was also there.

‘Omar, be sure to come back tomorrow. That wound needs daily cleanin’ okay?’ Ruby said without taking her eyes off of Aasim. A loud wince made her turn around ‘And for the last time, don’t touch it, you’re gettin’ it infected and I’m not in the mood to be chopping legs’

The stern look in her eyes made him stand up as straight as he could and nod obediently before limping out the door.

Ruby sighed after walking Omar out. Aasim hadn’t moved from where he was standing. His stare was lost somewhere on the horizon, making Ruby’s concern grow by the second.

She silently led him in and sat him down in an old treatment bed.

‘Aasim’ She began with caution ‘Talk to me, please...’ His shameful stare lowered to his fidgeting hands. His silence only brought more pain to the small room.

The state Aasim was in made her doubt in her own abilities, and she took the opportunity to examine him again. Maybe there was some kind of internal wound she wouldn’t  be able to treat.

‘Lie down, please, and lift your shirt, you know the routine’ He obeyed in silence.She started feeling his abdomen and chest thoroughly. Just like before, every organ was in their right place and there were no broken ribs. There were no signs of internal or external injuries. He was overall healthy. After checking his pulse, she realized his heart rate was a little elevated, but that was to be expected, given the circumstances.

Even when she knew she should be happy about his good health, something was still not right, and the fear of not being able to helping him was growing fast inside her.

She helped Aasim sit back up. Desperate for him to speak, she reached down to his wriggling fingers and interlaced them with hers.

‘I thought I lost you out there’ She whispered, pouring her heart in her sorrowful words.

The back of her left hand felt the soft impact of a single teardrop. Another fell close to the first one. Soon, Aasim found himself sobbing bitterly against the woman he loved.

She had never seen him cry before. Not like that, at least.

Years ago, he had confided in her that she was the only person at Ericson’s who’s ever seen him cry.

It happened months after  the outbreak started. A cut on his left side, product of an arrow graze during shooting practice in the woods, sent him straight to the nurse’s office. Ruby had been learning the basics of  health, under Ms. Martin’s tutelage.

When Aasim entered the nurse’s office and saw Ruby ready to stitch him up, he couldn’t help but cry in anticipation of the pain he was about to feel.

‘Don’t worry’ Ms. Martin said with a soothing voice ‘Ruby is a quick study and she has practiced a lot. I promise you won’t feel a thing’

Just as she said, Ruby’s hands breezed through her task and finished long sooner than the boy expected.

Ms. Martin praised her work and considered it a success.

‘That wasn’t so bad, now, was it?’ Ruby smiled kindly at him as she finished up.

He shook his head.

‘Thank you, Ruby. You are very good at this’ The redhead blushed notoriously at his words ‘Just don’t tell anybody I cried over a needle’ He whispered sheepishly

‘Don’t worry, I won’t, but just so you know...you are very brave.’

Her words invaded his thoughts several hours after leaving the nurse’s office.

That was the first time Ruby had seen him cry and it never happened again.

Until now.

And even now, it was different: The first time, Aasim was a frightened boy, weeping over uncertainties of the future. Now, he was a scarred young man, letting his feelings overwhelm him in the privacy of that very same room.

She embraced him in a tight grip as tears of sympathy rolled down her cheeks.

‘I can’t sleep….’ His cheek trembled as he struggled to speak ‘I’ve written over and over all the things I heard, all that I saw…’ His voice broke in the last phrase, ‘Whenever I’m about to fall asleep, I wake up in that cell, and Omar is there with me...and Louis…’

Ruby didn’t know what to say. She figured it was best to let him speak ‘I told him so many times to stop being a trashmouth in front of Lilly and…’ He shook his head and sniffled, ‘No matter how much we shouted at him to shut up, he was - he was much louder...And when Lilly told those guys to hold Louis down, I knew something fucked up would happen. They kicked him down and held his head back. They punched him every time he tried to break free from them.  I begged them to stop. I hit the cell bars to call their attention. I told them Louis didn’t mean anything of what he said, but they couldn’t listen to me. He never stopped yelling, he looked like a cornered wild animal...His angry shouting turned into shrieks of pain right after they... ‘ He pulled away from Ruby to look at her straight in the eyes ‘After they cut a chunk of his tongue...’ Ruby shut her eyes close to erase the vivid image Aasim was painting ‘ They gave Lilly what they managed to take out and she just...dropped it in front of him before stepping on it. She said she’d feed some walkers with it and she’d continue to take parts of him just like she had just done...She threatened to leave him fingerless if she needed to...Then, she turned to us. She made me look at Louis as she warned us not to follow his example, or we’d meet a fate worse than his. Then they took Louis out of his cell and we didn’t see him for a couple of hours. We didn’t even dare to talk to each other’

By the time he finished speaking, he had already stopped crying altogether.

Ruby wiped the trace of his last tears with her thumb. She rested her hand on his cheek as she pressed her forehead against his.

‘There’s nothing you could have done in that moment. Not you, not Omar…not even Louis himself. Evil folk like that Lilly motherfucker, they love to do as they please with people who can’t defend themselves, but sooner or later they all get their punishment. She’s dead, Aasim. She can’t hurt us anymore’

The boy’s surprise quickly turned into bitterness

‘I wish I was the one who killed her. It’s what she and the rest of her fucked up crew deserve. A slow painful death.’

‘I don’t like you talkin’ like that,’ She muttered, half scared, half mad.

Aasim looked away in an attempt to avoid her pitiful eyes, but as she made him look at her once more, he didn’t see pity, but determination and reassurance.

‘You are brave, Aasim. Don’t let them take that away from you’ The boy frowned at her words ‘You made it out of there alive. You helped our friends, you helped Louis escape that horrible place...and you came back to me’ She smiled, trying her best to hold back tears. Aasim tried to return the gesture, but found it impossible.

‘Back in that cell...coming home was all I had in mind. I couldn’t stand the idea of not seeing you again.’

‘And once you came back, you took your time to finally talk to me.’

Aasim looked at her with guilt eating him up inside. Ruby regretted her remark right away.

‘I just needed some time… but now I know I can’t deal with this alone, I thought you could help me, like you always do.’

‘I’ll try to do my best…’

‘Thanks.’

‘Let’s see this through a medical point of view, okay? What have you been going through, physically speaking.’

‘Well, I think I might be going paranoid over the lack of sleep. I  haven’t had a good rest in days, and when I manage to finally close my eyes, all I have are vivid nightmares, right before I wake up, I feel my head being crushed... I’m hungry but my stomach churns at the thought of food. I feel like I’m going crazy with each passing day’

Ruby sat down beside him and held his hand. She leaned against his shoulder.

‘We’ll fix this, I won’t let this change you’

He closed his eyes, reaching for a spec of peace inside his mind. Being like this with her was more than he could ask for at the moment. He rested his cheek on top of her head as she idly traced the back of his hand with her fingers, silently looking for a way to help him.

‘I had to be strong back there...and I can’t let anyone here see me like this...but I trust you’

She felt a slight warmth climb up her face and made her lips curl upwards.

‘You don’t have to pretend you’re not afraid. I promise you nothing has changed since that night at the greenhouse’

He opened his eyes at the contact of her lips against his skin, right under his earlobe.

With a nervous sigh, Aasim gave himself the courage to resume the events that the raiders interrupted when they attacked the school.

He brought her face closer to his and sweetly placed a kiss in the corner of her mouth. He felt her smile against his lips before she kissed him back, now for a longer period of time.

She let out an embarrassed chuckle as they pulled away. She was still not used to having Aasim so close to her like that.

She was well aware the past days had been heavy to say the least, but she had received so much, she almost felt guilty for being happy.

Then it hit her, she was so busy taking care of everyone the last couple of days that she forgot to tell Aasim how excited she was with Ericson’s latest acquisitions. She decided this was the perfect opportunity.

‘I have an idea,’ Her smile widened with excitement, as she finished scheming a last minute surprise, ‘It might help you get better.’

‘Should I...be concerned?’ He raised an eyebrow.

‘I don’t think you have any particular phobias with what I’m about to show ya.’

‘I don’t have any particular phobias. Period.’ He corrected.

‘Well, excuse me, but you forget I’ve read everyone’s files here,’ She laughed before kissing his cheek and walking towards the door. She extended one hand out for him. Aasim looked at her with curiosity.

‘Where are we going?’

‘You’ll see in time...but for now it’s a surprise.’ She took a piece of cloth out of her pocket and blindfolded him with it.

‘Ruby…?’

‘Don’t worry. I’ll be here the whole time. Just take my hand and follow my voice.’

The redhead led him through a familiar path

‘You don’t need to blindfold me if we’re going to the greenhouse,’ He said smugly.

‘That ain’t where we’re goin’...but it’s close,’  She chuckled.

Once Ruby stopped Aasim, she let go of his hand.

‘I want you to listen and tell me everything you hear.’

‘Is this a game?’ He raised an eyebrow under the blindfold.

‘Yes, something like that.’  

The boy took a reluctant step back.

‘Don’t worry, It will be a nice surprise, you’ll see.’

‘I trust you’ He reminded her.

After that statement, Aasim put the rest of his senses to work and started listing every sound or noise he could catch.

‘I hear...Willy, yelling’ He muttered a little annoyed that even from a distance, the boy could be inconvenient.

‘Okay, fair enough,’ She chuckled, not expecting that answer ‘What else?’

He felt the wind suddenly pick up with speed, wrapping them both in a warm breeze.

‘I hear the wind making the leaves at the treetops dance’ He beamed, taking in as much air as his lungs allowed him. He hadn’t appreciated nature in a long time. Ruby smiled along, seeing her strategy already giving results.

‘Only you would talk about the wind like that.’

‘You have no idea’ He mumbled as his mind wandered back to the music room, where he kept his journals and record books and the dozens of poems he had scribbled thinking of her during long sleepless nights and quiet early mornings.

‘I don’t even know what that means.’

Aasim shrugged.

‘It’s okay, it can be another surprise...for your birthday, maybe?’

‘I’m not sure when my birthday is… Is anyone really sure about those things anymore?’

‘Not really, but we can choose a day and play pretend.’

‘I like your enthusiasm, but you really need to focus now.’

‘Alright, sorry.’

‘Last chance, really concentrate, what do you hear?’

In the distance, he could listen to a sound he hadn’t heard in a long time.

‘Nickering?...Neighs?’ Ruby grinned as Aasim got closer to the answer ‘Are those...horses?’

The girl let the blindfold loose and walked him near two horses that were grazing peacefully nearby the greenhouse.

‘Christmas came early this year!’ She clapped excitedly, while Aasim watched the two animals in awe

‘Where did you get those?’

‘Oh, nobody told you? We took them from the Delta the night of the rescue. We also burned their supplies as a distraction, but that was all Willy’s idea.’

‘I would have kept the supplies instead of the horses.’

‘Are you kidding me? Horses are good help huntin’, scoutin’ and besides, they’re adorable.’

Aasim hadn’t considered the many uses of a horse when he made his previous comment. He looked at Ruby. Judging by her twinkling eyes, he assumed that she was the one in charge of their caretaking.

‘Do they have enough food?’

‘They’re all set. They’re healthy and well fed’ Ruby nodded without taking her eyes from the animals.

‘That’s good to hear’

‘When Clem told me I could keep them, I felt so happy, I immediately called dibs on the stallion… that’s the light brown at the back.’ She pointed, ‘A real beauty, that one.’

‘What’s his name?’ Aasim asked.

‘Oh, I’m not sure if I want to name him…’

‘Why not?’

‘I don’t want to get attached to him, you know, if anything happens…’

‘But it seems you’ve already grown fond of him.’

The girl nodded thinking of the past days.

‘He was quite the challenge. A real fighter. I see why the Delta had him.’

‘I think you should name him anyways, since I’m teaching you how to shoot arrows, it might be a good idea to acquire the confidence of shooting from a running horse. You said it yourself. They will be a great help.’

‘I can see you haven’t forgotten about our plans...okay, I guess I could name him.’

‘How about, uh...Cinnamon Roll...or Peanut,’ Ruby cringed with every name he suggested, ‘Chestnut...Toffee?’

‘Aasim, darlin’ ...are you hungry? Those are all food names.’

‘I, yeah,’ He sighed, embarrassed ‘I haven’t eaten in a while, as I told you...but I guess starting to regain appetite.’

‘If you want to get better, you better start eatin’ you hear me?’

‘I’ll try.’

Ruby wasn’t convinced with such short promise.

‘I’ll bring you food myself if it’s necessary.’

‘I wouldn’t mind that at all.’

She tried to shake off Aasim’s flirting by going back to the previous topic.

‘How about...Big Brown?that’s basically what he is.’

‘And you can call him B.B. for short.’

‘I actually like Big Brown. It’s powerful. Calling him B.B would reduce him into a puppy.’

‘It was just an idea.’ He shrugged.

Ruby walked towards the closest horse. A black mare, not as big as Big Brown, but just as beautiful.

‘Come meet her,’ She beckoned him before she started braiding the horse’s mane, ‘She won’t bite...if you don’t provoke her, that is.’

As soon as Aasim took a step forward, the mare nickered and he froze at the animal’s sudden low guttural sound.

‘Are you sure?’ He hesitated shifting his look between the horse and the redhead.

‘Come on, you big baby, she’s just greetin’ you. She knows you’re not a threat’ She reassured him, walking closer to him. She extended Aasim’s arm to the horse’s muzzle.

‘It’s been years since I was this close to a horse’ He breathed, amazed.

‘Aren’t they majestic?’ She left Aasim to get familiarized with the mare, so she could continue brushing her mane.

‘I was braidin’ Big Brown’s mane this morning, and thought I’d do the same for your own horse, too.’

Aasim looked at Ruby with incredulity.

‘My own horse?’

She chuckled, ‘ Yes, I’d prefer it if she was under the care of someone responsible, like you. What do you say?’

‘What do I say?’ He echoed, still at loss for words.

‘You can name her Blackberry...and call her B.B for short,’ She winked jokingly

‘Blackberry...It’s not half bad, actually. It describes her perfectly, too’ He petted the horse caringly, ‘ Welcome home, B.B’

Ruby admired the scene. Aasim’s smile flourishing as bonded with B.B like that was something she didn’t expect to see so soon.

‘Do you want to help me braid her hair?’

‘Oh, I...I’ve never done it. I wouldn’t know how to do it.’

‘It’s simple, I’ll show you. Just practice on me first.’

‘Why can’t I practice on B.B?’ He questioned as she let her hair loose and stood in front of him, facing the horse.

‘Because I haven’t brushed that part of her mane yet and she has more dreads than Louis. She joked before looking back at him with an innocent smile ‘Besides, it’s been so long since I’ve fixed my hair into a braid. I’d be nice to have someone do it for me...you, for example.’

Her subtle flirtatious comment made his heart skip a beat. He brushed some strands of her red hair aside and kissed her softly. She cupped his cheek with one hand, smiling slightly as they pulled back.

‘You’ll have to excuse me if I pull your hair accidentally,’ He whispered, still close to her face.

‘It’s fine. I’ll be fine,’ She gave him a soft peck before focusing again on what she was doing.

Ruby modeled the instructions on the horse’s mane as she explained them as concisely as she could. Aasim tried to follow,  but had to restart several times.

‘This is hard’ He huffed, at the brink of frustration after the fourth try.

‘It doesn’t matter if it’s a little crooked, honestly...I don’t mind’ Ruby reminded him. She had finished braiding B.B’s mane by then.

‘I want to do this right’ He replied, gathering back concentration.

Some minutes later, Aasim could finally say he was satisfied with the end product. It was gorgeous in its simplicity. Ruby ran her hand down her new hairdo.

‘You’re beautiful, Ruby’ His words escaped catching them both off guard.

‘Thank you’ She blushed as her heart raced inside her chest.

B.B’s neigh made them snap out of their trance. Aasim laughed.

‘Don’t be jealous, you’re pretty cute, too’ He said patting the animal on the back and she nickered in response.

Ruby walked by them and came back with a old basket of small wildflowers that varied in color from white to yellow.

‘AJ and Tenn picked them up this morning. Tenn said they wanted to thank me for takin’ care of them, bless his heart.’

‘That was very thoughtful of them.’

‘I wasn’t sure what to do with them, they look nice in the basket, but I want everyone to see how pretty they are...so,’ She took one flower and poked it through the horse’s mane,

‘We can make B.B. even prettier with them.’

Aasim followed her lead, and soon the thick, messy mane was covered in small flowers

Seeing the final result, Ruby turned to Aasim and hugged him tight.

‘I’m sure B.B will help a lot through these bad times...and whatever you need, I’ll be here, too.’

‘Thank you’ He smiled, hope in his eyes.

‘Okay, then, wanna race?’

‘Race?’

‘Yeah, with the horses.’

‘I’ve never actually…’

‘You’ve never ridden a horse?’

Aasim shook his head, a little embarrassed. Ruby didn’t laugh.

‘How does the master archer expect to teach me to shoot arrows while riding, then?’

He shrugged.

‘I hadn’t considered that idea until now.’

‘Then you better start learning. Get on the horse’ She commanded, arms on her hips.

‘Wait, now?’

‘Yes, now’ Ruby walked in front of B.B and held her head to keep her still.

‘Alright’ Aasim hesitantly walked closer and stood beside the animal. He looked at Ruby, looking for direction.

‘Hold the reins. Lift your left foot into the stirrup and use your right leg to spring. Lift that leg, so you don’t kick B.B….and mind your balance.’

The boy followed the instructions and would have been a perfect mount if it wasn’t for the fact that he came down with a thud onto the animal, startling her a little.

‘Next time be sure to settle gently okay?’ Ruby reminded, as she tried to calm B.B down.

‘Okay.’

‘Now you’re on the horse. How do you feel?’

‘Uh…a little uneasy.’

‘Perfect, you’ll get used to that. Sit up straight, we’re going to walk.’

As Ruby guided B.B. and Aasim around the space, she’d give him tips and other pieces of advice to improve his riding skills. Aasim quickly got used to his horse, and despite his beginner mistakes, Ruby could see he had great potential.

‘Let me grab Big Brown’ She came back as quickly as she went, now on the back of her horse. Aasim admired their form and agility as they approached him.

‘Teach me how to do that’ He simply said. She smiled, noticing her excitement was contagious.

She taught him how to make the horse go and stop. With a little difficulty at first, he managed to guide B.B around the place.

‘Enough for today. They need to rest, and so do you.’

Ruby got off Big Brown and helped Aasim. They led the animals closer to a makeshift water trough, so they could drink.

‘Hey Ruby....’

‘Yeah?’

‘With everything that happened, we never- I never really, formally, asked if you wanted-’

‘Are you trying to ask me out?’ Ruby giggled.

‘I mean, I know labels aren’t a thing in this world but, you know-’

Ruby shut him up with a kiss.

‘I would love to be your girlfriend’ Aasim wrapped his arms around her figure and rested his cheek against her temple.

‘I only wish we could have done this sooner’ He whispered thinking on all the time he wasted wandering alone between all his questions and insecurities inside his mind..

‘I know....’ She answered, not really sure what to say ‘But we’re here now. You’re here. That’s all that matters to me.’

During the golden hour, she seemed more beautiful than ever. Especially now he could call her his girlfriend.He pulled her closer slowly and kissed her once more, forgetting for a moment the dreadful moments lived back at the Delta.

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

Top 5 Reasons Doug’s Pretty Great

It’s hard to believe that it’s been nine years since the first episode of S1 was released. I can still remember be a wee little lass first discovering it on youtube and becoming obsessed. At the time, I had no where to play it myself, so I watched as many playthroughs as I could until my family got an xbox. 

While the first episode in this series has a lot of memorable moments, the one that always stands out in people’s memories is the moment where you’re trying to escape the drugstore as walkers pound away at the door and windows, and you realize that both Carley and Doug need your help or they’re going to die. 

But... you can only save one, and whoever you don’t help, they end up being eaten alive by walkers and you get to feel bad about it for the rest of the episode. 

I bring this up because it’s interesting to look back nine years ago and see that... well, not a lot of people saved Doug. Which is crazy, because now the stats are pretty 50/50 with Doug even having a bit of an edge over Carley. That definitely wasn’t the case back then because the stats were more along the line of 20/80.

Why? Well, the writer’s didn’t exactly do the best job of showing how great Doug is in ep1, especially compared to Carley who has more interactions with Lee and more screen time.... which is even funnier because they did actually think they did a good job and were surprised by the results after the episode’s release.

Even back then they had a habit of making imbalanced routes then denying the imbalance... something they never grew out of. 

I guess they were a little butthurt about it since Doug is a favorite among the team given that he’s actually based on a real person, Doug Tabacco, an IT guy they worked with. This got to the point where Telltale never missed an opportunity to tell everyone to #SaveDoug over Carley.

I also love that they use the Stranger to guilt trip everyone who saved Carley by having him be like, “Doug was in a worse position! >:( You only saved Carley because she was a pretty girl!!” just.... real subtle, guys haha

Now, I’ll be the first to admit that more often than not, I choose to save Carley over Doug for many reasons, but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate Doug and enjoy having him around in the off chance I do save him. So I thought it’d be fun to talk about Doug as a character and why he was pretty great as a little tribute, y’know? 

5. Doug’s a pretty funny dude

Now, I wouldn’t exactly call twdg a comedy, y’know? It gets dark, then manages to get even darker at times, but if the game was nothing but doom and gloom, it’d get boring and become unenjoyable. 

While other characters do get a laugh out of me from time to time, I enjoy the humor that Doug brings to the group, even if it’s not intentional and just the way he is. 

Even from the beginning, Doug had me chuckling with the fact that this nerdy dude didn’t want to bring profanity to Lee’s ears when talking about Larry, so he’s just like “ He's kind of a dick... pardon my french,” like Doug.... it’s okay, you can call him an asshole, no one will judge hahaha.

Then there’s the biscuit scene that I think we all know and love. Helps break the tension of meeting these weirdo’s who own a dairy and are totally not suspicious or anything. 

But it’s not even just that Doug is funny, he’s also a character that gets you to crack a smile when he’s talking about something he’s passionate about, or when he’s proud of the alarm he rigged up, or when he’s being adorably awkward. 

One of my favorites is in ep3 when Lee goes to ask Doug if he has any chalk, and he goes into this spiel about charcoal-- “You know, a piece of charcoal is a suitable alternative, depending on your marking surface. Since we're on the subject, did you know that while chalk is traditionally known to be calcium carbonate, what's often used in classrooms is actually made of gypsum, thanks to favorable domestic mining conditions?”

And Lee’s response is just-- “Doug, I did not know that.”

“Happy to be of service.”

It’s just really funny... and it makes you feel better after all the implications about Doug’s mental health in the episode... like you gave him a moment to flex his knowledge and get excited about it. 

But yeah, what can I say? Doug makes me laugh and he brings a bit of light to the groups constant shitshow. 

4. Doug saved the group’s ass at the St John farm

And he did so with a laser pointer. 

I always hate it when Doug/Carley leave the group at the St Johns and remain absent for most of the episode, though I chalk that up to the writers trying to make the different routes easier on themselves, y’know? 

But, at least they come back to save the day. 

In Doug’s case, he’s not comfortable with guns like Carley is, so he’s gotta get creative when it comes to getting Lee’s attention and stopping Andy from hurting Duck and Lee. 

That’s where his fancy little laser pointer comes in. 

We first see him with it during the walk to the farm, but then see it in action after Lee escapes the barn and is nearly blinded by the light. Doug claims he was doing morse code before Lee tells him and Ben that these assholes cut off Mark’s legs and tried to feed them to the group. 

Now, here’s the thing... If Doug and Ben had done what they were told and stayed at the motor inn over night, things probably wouldn’t have turned out so good for the group. Doug is the one who shines the laser pointer in Andy’s eyes when he’s got ahold of Duck, giving Lee the advantage of attack. Without that, if Lee tried anything, he would’ve ended up like dingdong Kenny with a bullet in his side. 

Also there’s just a lot of bravery from Doug, y’know? Like as soon as he finds Lee and knows the situation, the first thing he asks is what can they do to help, and he sticks around to do what he can.... even if it is just to point a laser in someone’s eye. 

No one gives Doug enough credit for savin’ the day, y’know? And if you have any doubt, even Lee says, “I never thought a laser pointer would be the thing that saved our lives.”

3. Doug’s friendship with Lee

Speaking of Lee, his friendship with Doug is underrated. The two have chemistry and work off each other well in the scene’s they’re in. While it’s not as strong as Carley’s in ep1, saving Doug and having around in ep2 & ep3 lets you see it at it’s best, y’know? 

After Lee saves his life at the drugstore, Doug is shown to mourn Carley and asks Lee why he would pick him, lamenting that he wished he had picked her over him and you can tell that Doug feels that he owes Lee a lot for saving him. Hell, he even says as much when Lee tries to give him food in ep2-- “Why don't you keep my share today. I know I said it didn't matter why you saved me and not Carley, but... I owe you a lot more than half a day's rations."

Also, I love this one line from Kenny when you’re on bad terms with him and they’re talking about going separate ways where he’s basically like “We all know Doug’s gonna stay with you because you saved him that ONE time >:(” and on top of it being such a bitchy Kenny line, it also shows that every can see that Doug is a loyal friend to Lee and would want to stick with him where ever he decides to go. 

One thing that I think people tend to overlook, though, is how concerned Lee is with Doug’s mental health in ep3. There are implications that Doug might be suffering with depression due to the situation of the walkers, bandits harrassing and threatening them, and believing that he isn’t useful to the group, stating that he feel pretty worthless. Lee asks Clementine if he seems sad, and hell, he even talks to Lilly about it.

In fact, speaking of Clementine, Doug is real sweet with her, too. Of course, he gives her those batteries for her walkie, but he also asks about how she’s doing as they’re leaving the dairy. Hell, 8 years later, Clementine still remembers him by name and how sweet he was when fucking dingdong Lilly can’t remember his damn name. That says a lot. 

Y’all know how important Clementine is to Lee, so he wouldn’t have grown as close to Doug if he wasn’t a genuinely good person who treated Clementine with kindess. 

I dunno, there’s a lot of trust and care between the two and it’s a relationship that I truly love. I just wish we could’ve seen a bit more of it but y’know...#2 happened. 

2. Doug saved Ben’s life

Yeah, I think we all saw this coming...

Look, doesn’t matter what you think about Ben, okay? Not what we’re talkin’ about. We’re talkin’ about Doug saving Ben’s life, which unfortunately meant ending his own.

Still haven’t forgiven Lilly for this one. Though I’ve always found the difference between Doug and Carley’s death’s interesting. With Carley, Lilly intentionally kills her after Carley tells her off. But with Doug, Lilly was aiming for Ben and even when Doug pulled him out of the way, she still fired the gun... even though she didn’t have a clear shot and ended up hitting Doug. 

Then she tries to play it off like it was an accident which, yeah I guess it was but that doesn’t change that you were intending to murder this 6ft tall child. 

It’s just... I dunno, man, it’s sad. I always feel more sorrow for Doug’s death, but more anger for Carley’s? Even though both make me angry, it’s just different characters, different things that led to their deaths, different feelings. This is the first real “Fuck you, Lilly” moment for me and she can spend the next 8 years wandering around for all I can. 

Doug didn’t deserve this shit. 

But, the reason I put this at #2 because it really says a lot about Doug as a character. The second he saw Lilly aim that gun, he yanked Ben out of the way. He could’ve gone into shock, he could’ve just yelled “no!”, or he could’ve gone at Lilly instead.... but no, his first instinct was to grab Ben and move himself in front and it really fucking sucks that that’s what killed him. 

And y’know this isn’t the first time Doug has put himself in danger to save someone. I already talked about him saving everyone at the dairy, but can we not forget how he and Carley met? She was gonna get eaten by walkers then our big hero Doug came in and saved her?? Didn’t know her or anything, just saw her and her crew getting attacked and did what he could to save any survivors?? 

Like... no one talks about that because it’s so played off and never brought up again and I need everyone to remember this, okay? 

Doug selflessly putting himself in danger to help those around him? Fantastic. Beautiful. Love that.

1. Look, Doug himself is just #1. His personality, intelligence, everything.

Wow, Doug’s personality being the #1 reason he’s so great? Who woulda thought?

Well, ME woulda thought because obviously.

Listen... in case you haven’t gather this from the previous four entries, Doug is an intelligent, awkward, caring, selfless, funny, and brave man, okay? He’s likable, he tries his damnedest to pull his weight for the group, he shows actual loyalty and kindness unlike some people, and when he tends to avoid the constant Lilly and Kenny conflicts, he does his best to step in when things take a serious turn, hence the Ben situation. 

No to mention the dude is smart. 

I mean, he really took a random remote and was like, “Oh it’s universal, let me just program it to work on ALL the random TV’s across the street as a way to distract these walkers!” like dude.... you just know how to do that, huh? 

Or his fun little bell trap that alerts the groups of strangers and walkers? Oh, and remember when he fixed the RV by hitting it with a fucking hammer and was like “It works now, drive!” 

And have I mentioned that he bested Andy St John with a goddamn laser pointer?? 

Oh, also wanna add that I really like his voice acting, as well. He’s voiced by Sam Joan, who does a good job at selling Doug’s soft-spoken but intelligent nature, and knows how to pull off “dorky” when needed... and I mean that in a good way, when he’s talking about charcoal Doug is being a dork and I love him.

I mean... what else is there to say?

All that’s left to do is pull a Telltale and--

#SaveDoug

---

Honorable Mentions

-Doug is a pie guy, going off of that time he named all the different kinds of pie he could thing of and I feel that.  -He’s a very fashionable person. I want that weird polar bear deer thing shirt he wears in ep1.  -also, you can’t go wrong with socks and sandals, my dude.  -He had a crush on Carley and honestly, I feel that, too. 

---

There it is, there’s my whole thing about Doug. What are your thoughts? When it comes to that choice in ep1 of s1, do you save Doug or do you save Carley? Do you agree or disagree with any of my choices for this list? Or have anything to add? I’m always down to chat.

Have any suggestions for future T5F’s? Feel free to send ‘em in! :D

—

Next week’s T5F

[the-walking-memelords]

Allegiances: Chapter 9

Prologue | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 |Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 10

Series is rated M

Word Count: 4019

The day of reckoning has arrived and Clementine decides to spend her last day of peace with her friends.

Read it on Ao3!

Read it on Wattpad!

It’s almost time.

Her last day of peace. Once the sun set, all hell would break loose.

Might as well enjoy it.

The fall breeze played with her hair as she stepped out into the sunlight. The sun may be cheerful but gloom hung on the wind, infecting even the most optimistic member of the group.

“I have other stuff I need to do.” Louis argued with Violet at the entrance of the admin building.

“What stuff?” The blonde retorted, crossing her arms.

“Nothing, it’s just… it’s important.”

“Goddammit, Louis. Take this seriously for once in your life.” The argument grew more heated as Vi refused to back down.

“I’ve been taking this seriously for fucking days! Over a week!”

“So has everyone. Get over yourself.” Violet growled at the boy.

She watched Louis stomp away from Violet, his dreads swung in front of his face as he walked right past her. Deciding to give him some space, she went to get some answers from Violet.

“Hey.” Clementine caught the blonde’s attention.

“What’s going on?”

“We still got shit to do but Louis would rather goof off or whatever the hell he’s doing than help.” Violet let out a heavy sigh as she crossed her arms.

“He’s always been like this, finding every excuse to do as little work as possible and it’s fucking frustrating.”

“Do you want me to talk to him?” Clementine anxiously scraped a rock back and forth beneath her boot.

“Yeah, he seems to listen to you at least.” Her angry expression changed to an apologetic one once the words left her mouth.

“Sorry, I- uh… shit. I just want to make sure we’re ready. If you’re right and they find us… I don’t want to lose anyone else to those bastards.” Her voice caught in her throat. The stress of keeping everyone together was evident in the bags under her eyes.

“I’m not going to let that happen, Vi.” Clem assured her, determination in her tone.

“If those fuckers try to get at anyone in this school they’ll have to kill me first.”

“That’s one of the things I’m afraid of.” She confessed.

“I don’t want you to get hurt either, Clem. You’ve dealt with a lot of bullshit the last couple weeks but you never ditched us. You could’ve just left. You could’ve kept running from the war but instead, you stayed to help us. I don’t think I ever thanked you for that.”

“You don’t need to thank me for staying.”

Please don’t thank me for staying.

Those words caused an all too familiar feeling in her heart.

“I don’t want to go back to the way things used to be. It was killing me. I’m not sure how much longer I could have gone on.” A heart so empty of life it felt like it sometimes forgot to beat.

“I’ve never been in a group like this before. A real family.”

“You’re a part of that family too. We all care about you.” She smiled somewhere over Clem’s shoulder.

“But I think there’s someone who cares about you more than the rest.”

She followed Vi’s look to see Louis at the archery target. Brow furrowed as each arrow missed the wooden circle completely, sticking out of the dirt below it.

Clementine’s cheeks turned pink when she realized what Violet was suggesting. She opened her mouth, prepared to deny it all… but something was different. Her heart skipped a beat and for once, it wasn't out of fear. It was… hope.

“...Do you really think so?” She gave a nervous laugh as a smile tugged at her lips.

“Ah, so you do like him back.” Violet teased as she poked the blushing girl’s arm.

“Shut up.” She almost whined, her face growing warmer after revealing her secret, but inside herself, there was no denying how she felt about Louis.

He needs to know.

I want him to know.

“Ugh, it’s so cute I’m going to puke.” She joked, making a fake gagging noise.

“Marlon and Omar are out at the greenhouse and Aasim and Willy are working out some trap ideas so I guess I’ll go board up the back hallway since Louis isn’t going to do it. Can you see how the others are doing?”

“Sure.” She looked back towards Louis again.

“Don’t spend all your time on him, okay? I want to know if everyone has their shit together.” Violet wasn’t about to pass up an opportunity to privately tease her friend about her little crush.

“Go get him, tiger.”

“Violet, I swear to god.” Her face burned with embarrassment.

Violet held her hands up, smirk unfading as she backed into the admin building.

Clementine let out a groan as she pondered if that was a good idea or not. Looking over at Louis, still struggling with archery, she decided to find someone else before facing him.

According to Ruby and Brody, there was a lot of walker activity not far outside the walls than usual. It made hunting more difficult but maybe the dead would help keep Lilly at bay just a little. Mitch’s test bomb refused to go off meaning he would need as much time as he could get to figure it out.

The yard already looked like a war zone. Flipped tables creating barriers and narrow paths from the gate to the admin building. The rotten eyes of the decapitated walkers heads decorated pikes all around. Crudely painted banners and graffiti with messages such as “Leave or Die!” and “Fuck Raiders” among their other more decorative features were hopefully enough to at least make them look like more than a bunch of kids with sticks going up against a bunch of adults with guns.

“Hey, Clem.” a small voice came from behind her.

“What’s up, Tenn.” She greeted the excited boy.

“I wanna show you something!” He grinned ear to ear as he lead Clem by her hand to another one of the few unflipped tables in a shady spot in the yard. A few pencils were strewn across the boards surrounding a single piece of lined paper.

“Since you’re helping protect us from the bad people, I wanted to make you something, as a thank you.” The boy eagerly handed the page to her.

Clementine studied the little graphite figures, recognizing each member of the school standing in front of what appeared to be the admin building. The short girl with poofy curls standing in the middle appeared to be her, bow in hand with a proud smile.

Aw.

“It’s beautiful, Tenn.” A similar smile as depicted in the drawing spread across her face as she carefully folded it up into her pocket.

“I’ll keep it safe.”

The boy was pleased with Clem’s reaction. The grin on his face reminded her of AJ whenever he gifted her one of his masterpieces. Her blue cap loose on his head as he adjusted it constantly as he eagerly showed her the scribbled figures of the people he encountered in the Delta. Some she could kind of recognize, others were strangers. Her little boy gifted her many of his drawings. Clementine wished she had been allowed to keep them.

“I know a little boy like you. A lot younger, but he loves to draw, too.”

These two would be great friends.

“You do?” Confusion crossed his features.

“Where is he?”

“He’s… gone.” She took a deep breath, her smile becoming partially forced.

“But I’m going to see him again, one day.”

I will.

I will.

I promise.

“My sisters are gone, too, but I don’t like to think about it like that. I like to think about where they would be now.” His words caught her a little off guard.

“Sophie was really good at making stuff. She would build a place big enough for all of us and paint it too, and Minerva would be singing would be singing whatever new song she’d wrote.”

“Heh. That does seem like a nice way to think about it.” Her and AJ living free was all she could ever hope for.

Tennessee went back to his drawings as Clem thought about what it could be like if she really brought AJ to the school.

Clementine pictured what the school might be like on a nice summer day.

Relaxing on the couch under the sun, taking in the sweet breeze as she listened to the squeals and laughs of the AJ, Tenn, and Willy as they ran around in whatever game of make-believe they’d concocted. The others smiling and nodding whenever they passed by during their daily duties. She’d smile and wave back, resting her head on Louis’ shoulder as he wrapped his arm around her.

We could be happy here.

“Goddammit!” Louis exclaimed, swinging his bow in frustration as he plucked the arrows out of the dirt.

“Are you alright?”She asked. He glanced over with a small momentary smile before falling back into his downcast look.

“In a couple of months, or weeks, or days, or hours we’re going to be caught in the middle of a war we have nothing to with and a bunch of raiders are going come, burn down our home and steal or kill us.” He looked back down at the bow in his hand, biting his lip.

“And then It won't matter how much I sucked at this.”

“The raiders aren't going to burn anything or steal anyone.” It was disheartening to hear him on the verge of giving up.

“I’m not going to let that happen.”

“You sound like a one-woman army. Like you’re going to take them all down single-handedly.” He joked.

“Not that I’m doubting you could or anything. You are a certified badass after all.”

“Well, I have walked through many herds of walkers and come out unscathed.” She blushed at his praise.

“What’s a couple of asshole’s with guns, right?”

“Deadheads don’t shoot back.” He said flatly, not joining in on her joke.

“I’ve dealt with people who do, Louis.” Clementine pulled back the collar of her jacket, revealing the round scar where a bullet had torn right through her shoulder. He stared at it almost in horror.

“I was eleven when that happened. Haven’t been shot since.”

Well, not really.

But grazes don’t count!

“The fact that that might change soon is what terrifies me.” He leaned against the back of the couch.

“I want to be able to protect you, Clem. If something happened to you because of me… like at the hardware store…”

“Louis, what happened at the hardware store wasn’t your fault. Not to mention, you saved my life that day.” The look of pure rage on his face when he slammed Chairles into the head of that stranger was something she never expected from this soft boy.

“I… I’ve never killed someone before. I know that guy didn’t die… probably… but it’s the closest I’ve ever gotten.” His freckled face was scrunched in frustration.

“What if I need to when the fight comes and I can’t. If you got hurt or worse because I couldn’t kill someone… I-I can’t carry that for the rest of my life.”

Clementine’s heart ached as she saw him like this. Anguish in his watery eyes. Words on his lips he seemed to be biting back.

“I’m not going anywhere, okay? I believe in you. So believe me until you believe yourself, alright?”

“Easier said than done.” The light chuckle he produced didn’t feel genuine in the slightest.

Loud shouting sounded from the admin building startling the two. Louis squeezed her hand one more time before they wordlessly went to investigate. “Because you’re boring and your idea is stupid!” Willy yelled at a beyond frustrated Aasim. “Oh, I’m being stupid? You’re the one who can’t think straight. If you could hear yourself-” “Guys, what the fuck?” Violet stormed out of the admin building behind the arguing pair. “We were trying to work on the traps together but Aasim won't listen to anything I say!” The boy continued to raise his voice. “That doesn’t mean you have to scream at each other.” Louis crossed his arms. “I had the idea to use duffle bags full of bricks to drop on the raiders if they made it into the admin building.” Aasim explained. “But Willy here wants to use a giant idiotic swinging log to take out one raider at most.” Both boys looked to Clementine for a solution. “If we rig a bunch of duffel bags like mines above the stairwell they’ll have a hard time getting past without getting crushed.” She decided. “Practical, discrete, and deadly. That's what we go with.” “Mine’s all that too!” The young boy pleaded. “No, it isn’t.” Aasim continued to go after him. “It’s exactly something a child would come up with!” A swift punch to the gut to Aasim shocked the group as Willy quickly ran away inside. The boy groaned in pain and mumbled curses under his breath as he took a seat by the fire away from the others. “Great.” Violet growled. “We’ll all kill each other before the raiders get a fucking chance.”

“I have an idea on how to release some of the tension ‘round here.” The two of them plus Tennessee followed Louis to join their brooding friend by the fire. Here we go. “Hey, buuuddy, how’s it hangin’?” Louis greeted with a wide grin as everyone took their seats. “Dude, fuck off.” Aasim brushed him off. “Sulking in the corner isn’t going to help us fight off the raiders, or turn that frown upside down.” The freckled boy juggled his box of cards from hand to hand. “You get more annoying every day.” “Regardless, I’ve come up with a plan to make everyone feel better.” “What are we playing tonight, Lou?” The mullet-wearing boy asked. “Truth or Dare!” “You don’t use cards in Truth or Dare.” Violet pointed out. “You do in this version. High card asks, low card answers.” Louis insisted as he dealt a pile to each player, squinting suspiciously when he noticed Aasim glancing somewhere else. “If you want to ask Ruby to join, I don’t mind waiting.” Oh shit. “Shut up dude!” He panicked as Louis revealed his little secret. “I swear to God.” “You’ve got a crush on Ruby?” Violet teased the poor boy.

Aasim’s little crush became a running joke for the first half of the game, including a cruel dare from Clementine herself involving Aasim asking his dear, sweet Ruby for a kiss. A request that ended with him being promptly slapped in the face, sending the group of teens howling with laughter.

“I got this.” Louis said confidently as he drew the high card against Clementine.

“We’ve been pretty hard on poor Aasim here, teasing him about sweet Ruby. I think it’s time for us to mercilessly tease someone else about unrequited love.”

I don’t like where this is going.

“So.. Clem.”

Shit.

“Anyone here you… like-like?” Clementine didn’t know what was worse. The question, or the fact that Louis was the one asking. Her face began to feel warm and she prayed the others couldn’t tell how red it was in the dim evening light.

“Like-like? What are you, six?” Violet’s comment gave her a few extra seconds to think up a response.

“Seven, thank you.”

“I... uh.” Clem mumbled flusteredly.

Fuck it.

“Yeah.” She confessed, her face blushing more.

“I’ve definitely got feelings for someone.”

“Ha! Who is it?” Louis asked over excitedly.

“Not telling.”

Violet smiled at Clem with a knowing look, who in returned glared daggers at her.

“One more round.” Louis declared, his grin didn’t fade as everyone drew their next cards.

“Aasim! You’ve got the high card. And the loser is… Tennessee.”

“What’s something you never told anyone because you were afraid they’d make fun of you?” Aasim’s question made the nervous boy seem a little relieved that it wasn’t something worse.

“I think… I think walkers won’t always be around. They’ll go away someday.” The boy said hesitantly.

“The world goes in cycles, right? Stone age, Ice age, some other ages… So someday this age will end, and a new one will start.”

The group sat in silence for a moment, pondering Tenn’s perspective.

An age without walkers, like it used to be.

Such a world seemed like a lifetime ago, almost unreal. A world AJ had never known.

“Why is everyone looking at me like that?” The poor boy seemed to regret his words.

“Did I ruin the game?”

“I think that’s beautiful, Tenn.” Clementine assured him, sharing a warm smile.

“I never thought about it like that.”

“I think that feels like a good place to call it.” Louis collected his cards as everyone stood.

“We should finish our work, anyways. It’s getting dark.” Violet stretched as she stood.

“I’m going up to the bell tower to check our defences from up high. You can come with if you want, Clem.”

“Or you can hang out with me instead.” Louis poked her shoulder.

“There’s something I’ve been working on for a while and I want your opinion on it.”

Violet rolled her eyes and waved as she left the two alone.

Sorry, Vi.

---

“Is this another ‘Vacation?’” Clementine asked as they entered the mostly dark music room, a few candles casting a golden glow over the grand piano.

“Almost. Kinda. Sorta.” He laughed nervously as he leaned against his prized instrument.

“I want to show you something, but I need your help first.”

“Help? With what?”

Louis reached behind him, picking a specific key and pressing on it. The sound it made was far from melodic.

“Sounds awful, right? All we need to do is tune it.” He smirked.

“That’s why I need you.”

“You realize I know nothing about pianos, right?” How did he expect her to help?

“It’s easy, just take a seat and I’ll tell you what to do.”

She ran her fingers lightly over the smooth keys as she sat at the bench. There were so many. It was a mystery to her how Louis could know the sound each identical key made.

“Now press the A key.” He told her as he fiddled with the strings.

“Uh, which one’s the A key?”

“Y’know, the A key, next to the B key, after the G key.” He tilted his head as he pointed out each one. She pressed down on the key producing an off-tune note.

“Great! Now press the peddles while I make some more adjustments.”

Clementine followed his steps hoping she was actually helping.

At least he seems to know what he’s doing.

“Alright, now one more thing.” He stated.

“Blow on the strings.”

I stand corrected.

“It sound’s weird, I know.” He must have caught the suspicious look on her face.

“Cooling the temperature helps set them in harmony.”

Clementine stood reluctantly as she leaned over the body of the piano, blowing on the lines of piano wire before shooting him a glare.

“Great! That did nothing because that’s not at all part of how you tune a piano.”

I fucking knew it.

“But it was funny!” He laughed, his winning smile making her heart jump as always.

“I could have done something on like a molecular level, or maybe, it’s good luck to blow on strings.” He pressed down on the newly-tuned key, seeming satisfied with the noise.

“Okay okay, you got me.” Clementine couldn't help but laugh out loud as she scooted over, allowing him to sit next to her. There was a fluttery feeling inside of her chest as they sat so close on the short bench.

“It’s good to see you like this.” He said softly before turning his attention to the piano.

His fingers love elegantly across the keys. Playing a soft yet emotional tune. Louis seemed to become lost in the music, spilling his heart into the air with every note.

“What are you playing? -And don’t say ‘a piano.’”

“A song… that I wrote.”

He wrote this?

“What’s it called?”

It’s beautiful.

“I don’t know yet.” He shrugged, finishing off the last few notes

“There. First time played. We should mark the occasion!”

Louis pulled his knife out of his coat, carving an L into the wood before offering it to her. She carefully added her own initial to the left of his, also carving a little plus in between.

C+L

Clementine and Louis

“Are you done tattooing that piano?” He was only joking, but she wasn’t done yet. Something was missing here.

Clementine continued to cut into the wood. Her heart began to beat rapidly as she almost felt unsure of her bold and permanent move. Louis watched her movements in confusion before it began to dawn on him what she had drawn.

“Oh, uh… that’s a… that’s a potato?”

Really? That’s your first guess?

“It’s a heart! Yep, I see it’s a heart.” His face grew red as he tried to laugh off his mistake.

“That’s… super cool. Really cool.”

Clementine rolled her eyes playfully as her cheeks grew warm. Her hands nervously played with one of the buttons at the bottom of her coat.

“Hey, uh. I’m about to dig myself into a deep hole from which I’ll never emerge. Cool? Cool.” He loudly took a deep breath.

“Time to get serious.”

“Serious? Wow. Are you feeling okay?”

“Not really, nope. Mm mm.”

Clementine began to worry once more. It was clear that this was a side of him he never let any of the others see. The brave face falls and his smile drops revealing the struggling boy underneath. The people here have known him forever, longer than she probably ever would and they still failed to see through his facade.

“Thanks… for being here. Listening. Blowing on the strings. Coming to help me with my project even though you probably have way more important things to do, and… for everything I’ve had to work through, for myself.” He rested his hand on the bench beside her, their fingers barely touching.

“Everyone hears the jokes, the piano… and then they stop listening. But you didn’t.”

Clementine’s heart thumped loudly in her ears as she stared into his eyes. She didn’t want to wait any longer, her heart might collapse otherwise.

I have to tell him while I still have the chance.

“Louis I…” Her mind drew blank, all the words she had planned to say became caught in her throat. He looked at her expectantly with worry in his eyes as she struggled to say anything.

Clementine gave up on words. Looking into his eyes she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his. Louis tensed up for a moment in shock before melting into the kiss, lightly cupping her face with his hands as she slid one of her own to the back of his neck. Slowly, they broke away, pressing their foreheads together as they peered into each other's eyes.

I can’t believe I just did that.

“I think that saves me the trouble of actually asking you out.” He smirked.

“Which is good, ‘cause I was a little worried you’d stab me if I tried.”

Clementine buried her face into the collar of Louis’ jacket as a fit of giggles overtook her. A little lightheaded with giddiness, she wrapped her arms around his neck and sunk into the warm fluff of his jacket.

“I know what to call the song.” he said as she sat up, their hands locked tightly together.

“‘Clementine.’ Y’know, cuz I like fruit, and I like you even more so… there.”

“You are such a weirdo.” Clem giggled, shaking her head.

“Yeah? Well, apparently you dig that. So who’s the weird one now?” He teased.

“It’s both of us.”

Clementine’s response to that was cut off by the frantic calling of her name.

“Clementine? Clementine?!” Ruby’s panicked voice sounded from down the hall, finding them in the music room just as Clem and Louis stood from the piano.

“Ruby! What’s going on?” She asked, but she already knew the answer.

“There’s someone outside!”