#and like yeah its a good thing phoenix blew it up because. it would have killed so many people.

[the-valiant-valkyrie]

i feel like there's something so beautifully, terribly, ironically unfair about the contrast between prism and solaris.

incredibly talented women, both swayed by the power and resources zoraxis could provide for them. both so desperate to develop their separate technologies they were willing to be swayed to the side of a backstabbing corporate overlord- despite not even liking them. undoubtedly risking their lives for the sake of their technology- knowingly or otherwise.

having the project they loved so much ripped out of their hands. watching sheets of metal and bolts and rivets so lovingly fastened come undone in the blink of a flaming, volatile second. watching a little piece of you get torn apart and die, and knowing good and well that you should have died with it.

prism wanted a legacy. something that could surpass her- live on for a lifetime after her... and even after the robot agent project failed, she still got that, in the end. because she had it all along, and she just failed to realize it.

but solaris' dream was to propagate laser technology. it was a goal she could not reach without zoraxis' assistance. she wanted to push the boundaries of the potential of her craft. and she did. the death engine was- according to the agency- one of zoraxis' most lethal inventions. it was solaris' crowning achievement. decades- or perhaps even centuries ahead of the current scientific standard.

and phoenix destroyed it in under ten minutes. and she will never get that back. her ties with zoraxis- as far as we know- are cut. her reputation is probably badly damaged after her public association with the company. she will probably never be exposed to the proper conditions to build anything even technologically close to the death engine ever again.

the culmination of her life's work was ripped away from her, and where prism was left with introspection, solaris was left with nothing.

[cdrmiller]

post party, post eason fight.

*******************************

Marie sighed as she signed the nineteenth whatever-this-was in a row. Her excitement about the position she was chosen for had blinded her to the truth of her least favorite thing: red tape.   

“How many are there?” 

Luca’s face was scrunched in sympathy, his curls swaying as he shook his head. “I don’t know. But the captain isn’t around so that leaves…” 

“Lucky me.” Marie squinted at the direct message coming through with that one specific tone to mark it highest importance on her omni-tool. “What the fuck..” She shoved the data pad back into Luca’s hands. “Tell the Captain I’m off ship.” 

“Yes ma’am! Should I tell Mason?” 

“No!” He gave a startled blink and she said it again in a low, calm voice as she pulled on her uniform coat. “No.” 

She tapped her wrist as she turned away from him to send a voice message reply, ‘Stand down. I’m on my way’, then she took off at a run. 

She found her phoenix in the cargo bay where she had left him hours ago, putting his strength to use helping bring in supplies. The din was too loud, it was too crowded, and she didn’t have time. 

“ZEUS!” She was trained to know how to make her voice carry but didn’t hold out hope it would be heard above this volume, hoping his enhanced hearing paired with that one specific word would reach him. When his gaze instantly snapped to her, she jerked her head to the right and mouthed a word. Now.

************** 

Thankfully the C-Sec’s officer’s weapons were not pointed at Ethan Sinclair. But they were drawn, and that gave her reason enough to instruct them again to stand down. They were forming a wide, loose circle around the adept, and he looked at them under his long lashes, his lips turned up at the edges. He reminded her of a lion. A beautiful and smug lion, laying in the sun with its legs crossed, waiting for the poor defenseless antelope to take off at a run, just so he could have some fun before he destroyed it. She could feel the familiar hum of biotic energy emanating from him the closer she got. Her heart was telling her the officers were over reacting, that there was no danger to be found here. Her brain told her maybe she had gotten too close to the subjects to be the person responsible for bridging the gap between them and everyone else. She had let herself forget that not everyone saw them the way she did. That they were not still a weapon of destruction from an evil, traitorous organization that could turn on them at any moment.   

“Of course they called you. And you brought back up.” Ethan said pleasantly, giving a pointed look at the armed Alliance soldiers following Marie, but especially at Nico, who shrugged in answer. 

Marie signaled a stop to her unit before continuing on her own, her boots tapping in the tense quiet. “Yeah. It’s my job.” She stopped when she was so close to him that only he could hear what she hissed at him through clenched teeth. “It’s also standard procedure when I get a message that has ‘cerberus operative threat’ in the same sentence.” 

Ethan held out his hands, palms raised, and gave his best smile to the older, grizzled Sergeant, who was still watching him warily, before he looked back at Marie. “There’s no threat. I’m more dignified than that. It was just a simple misundersta- take one more step towards me son, and I’ll turn you inside out before you can say mummy.”  The young C-Sec agent a few feet behind Ethan froze, unmistakable fear in his eyes. Ethan’s gaze never left Marie’s, and his smile never left his lips. “Now that was a threat.” 

Marie rolled her eyes and directed her attention to the Sergeant. “What happened?” She could see through the sparking, unhinged door of the apartment. “It looks like a bomb went off in there.”

“We got a call about a disturbance from neighbors,” – Marie noticed the small scattering of people at different distances down the long hallway - “we arrived, found this,” - he waved a hand towards the door and the broken everything within – “and when we tried to question Mr. Sinclair about it, he got aggressive. I pulled his file and that’s when I knew to call you.” 

“There wasn’t a problem until someone tried to touch the goods.” Ethan replied casually, brushing invisible lint off of his collared shirt.  

Marie blew out a calming breath, trying not to let his arrogance get to her, like always. “Sergeant I can take it from here, thank you for your assistance. And he’ll compensate you for the apartment. All of it.” 

“We need to take him in Commander. It’s regulation.” 

She decided to pull out the icy, authoritative tone, because she was tired and getting a headache and wanted to not be dealing with Ethan Sinclair. “Nothing Phoenix related is regulation. As I said, I can take it from here, and I’ll handle the report. But if you would like to call the Admiral and ask him if that’s okay, be my guest.” 

The Sergeant frowned, weighing his options, and he finally gave the signal for his men to clear out. She waited until the officers had holstered their weapons and moved out of earshot.

“Ethan. I don’t know what’s going on with you or what happened, and I know you’re not going to tell me. But whatever it was, it can’t happen.” She motioned to the broken door and everything shattered inside. “This can’t happen. You all eternally exist on thin ice. You give them one reason to break that ice and you being able to walk around untouched and unbothered will be a completely different story.” 

He stared over her shoulder. “Should we get you an Alliance uniform Zeus?” 

Nico scowled, the only movement from his arms crossed, leg spread stance. He knew how Ethan worked and recognized the use of his best weapon. “Stop deflecting, Sabre.” 

“I need you to promise me you’ll do everything you can to smooth this over, and not let anything like this happen again.” 

“Are we done here?” His eyes finally fell back down to hers, and she knew it wasn’t an actual question. 

His voice, his stance, everything about him oozed bored. And it pissed her off. “Can you not be a fucking selfish asshole for one day in your life? It can hurt everyone, not just you. You have no where to go, and the Alliance may not be able to do much to you physically, but they can make yours, and every other one of the guys’ life actual hell.” She wanted to wipe the smug look off his face and since punching him wasn’t an option, she knew the words to throw at him. “Including Mason.” 

His eyes shuttered at that, his grin falling into a flat line. “How is he?” 

“You don’t get to ask me that. And you bet your ass I’m not going to let you fuck up everything I have worked so hard for to make all of your lives easier, just because you’re a selfish prick.” She turned on her heel, instructing an ensign to send her the report and she would take care of it on her way. 

“Is that a threat, Miss Miller?” his voice rose to keep up with her retreating form. “It would be a good one, if it wasn’t empty.” 

Marie slowly raised one middle finger over her shoulder. “Pretty sure you can’t take on both Zeus and Ajax at the same time, Sinclair.” 

**************

Marie leaned against one of the metal walls of the elevator that only she and Nico occupied, finally able to show the sudden exhaustion she felt. “This seems so out of character for Mr. Never-Let-‘Em-See-You-Sweat. Has it happened before?” 

Nico’s broad chest swelled with the deep breath, and Marie still wondered at the fact that her questions were sometimes answered now instead of slamming into an impenetrable wall. “Twice before. Ethan holds everything in. Until it has nowhere else to go.” 

“So, the first time…” 

“Ben.” 

She nodded, needing no more explanation. “And the second…”  

He leveled a flat look at her as the doors opened, and they both said the shared thought at the same time. 

“Mason.”

[twdmusicboxmystery]

TWD Holiday Special Clues

Hey Everyone! I watched the holiday special last night. I know not everyone can. At least not yet. (Not sure if they’ll air it eventually.) So I’ll report what jumped out at me from it.

The first thing is that I definitely noticed a “return vibe” running through it. But first thing’s first.

They mentioned “reuniting the Greene sisters” at least twice. Maybe three times. Chris said it in the intro. I’m paraphrasing but something like “Emily Kinney and Lauren Cohan are here. We’re gonna reunite the Greene sisters!” And then he repeated that again during the episode. So yeah. Side-eying that.

Then Emily sang her song, Up on the Housetop, pretty early. I wasn’t sure about this at first, but it did occur to me that they chose to have her sing a song about Santa returning stealthily in the night. And yes, I know that’s pretty weak on its own. I mean, it’s a Christmas special. Any song they sing is either going to be about Santa or the Christ child. But even so. It wasn’t Jingle Bells or anything more generic. They picked the song about Santa returning stealthily (he does that every year, after all) when and where no one was looking for him to be. I’ll talk about this more at the end.

(Just recorded this oon my phone, so not the best quality. ;D) 

 There were a lot of small things that MIGHT be clues, but also might not be. Things that we COULD read into but we really might be reaching. Things the actor (such as Josh McDermitt) said while telling stories about childhood Christmases, for example. I’ll skip those, for the most part, as they aren’t all that compelling on their own.

So then there were two 10-season things they did. They had the actors who play Ezekiel, Yumiko, Jerry, and Lydia sing a rendition of The Twelve Days of Christmas, except it was the 10 seasons of TWD. It was fun, and I want to read into some of the lines, but it’s hard to read into all of them. They basically picked one thing from each season, and they were all pretty random. They skipped over Beth entirely, and I’ll admit that IS kind of suspicious (I’ll tell you why in a minute) but at the same time they skipped over a LOT of important things, so I’m not sure we can call it a pattern.

So, for example, the season 2 line was “Hershel at his Farm.” That makes total sense because it encapsulates the gist of S2. So, if they’d stayed with that theme, you ‘d think s3’s line would have been about the prison or the Governor or Woodbury, right? They went with “baby Judith’s birth.” And obviously that was a big deal but it doesn’t exactly bring across everything that happened in S3, you know? So, kind of random. For S4, you’d think they would talk about the downfall of the prison, but they went with “look at the flowers.” 

So, they didn’t mention Beth or Grady at all for S5, and I find that suspicious bc Coda was definitely the biggest thing that happened in S5 with the biggest fan reaction. But again, they weren’t exactly breaking pattern here. For S5, they went with “Morgan Jones returns.” S6 was “Scary Saviors arriving” or something along those lines. (Understand I’m paraphrasing most of these because I didn’t write down exact words.) S7 was “Abe and Glenn in heaven.” S8 was Carl getting bitten. Sufficiently a big deal, of course, but there was also that burning Phoenix. Must not have been very memorable, lol. S9 was “Rick in a copter” and S10 was “Negan killing Alpha.” I think.

Not until they’d sung several more verses did the part about Morgan returning start to jump out at me. I mean, in terms of S5, that literally happens the last two minutes of the season. And yes, it was a big deal to the fandom, but it hardly represents all of S5, right? But using him as the “5th day of Christmas” part of the song automatically puts emphasis on it. If you think of the song, it slows down considerably and emphasizes “5 golden rings.” And for this it was “Morgan Jones return.” So it felt like there was a heavy emphasis on that.

So, an emphasis on the return of a character who hadn’t been on in a while before that. And of course there are all those DC al Coda parallels between Beth and Morgan. Just saying. Later in the special, they do another “return thing.”

Then they did an “In Memoriam” that covered 10 seasons of walker kills. This one was much more suspicious in a TD way to me. Like the song, they basically chose one iconic, epic walker kill to represent each season. And there are a lot more of these I think we can read into as Beth symbols. So, for S1, it was Teddy Bear Girl. For S2, Well walker. (Water.) For S3, that walker they killed when cleaning out the prison yard whose face slides off. The thing about this walker is that it’s wearing black riot gear. A lot like what the CRM soldiers wear. For S4, it was the Big Spot walker that falls through the roof. That one made me happy. For S5, that walker Daryl killed at Terminus with the crow bar. You know, the famous one whose face he caved in against the brick wall? 

For s6, it was the sewer walkers Maggie and Aaron ran into under Alexandria. Definitely side-eyeing that. For s7, they showed Winslow. And what was great about that is that it specifically showed the part where one of Winslow’s spikes when through Rick’s hands. (Stigmata, making him a Christ figure.) For S8, it was where Daryl was riding around on his bike shoot boxes with his gun that then blew up. He blew up one of the walkers that way. For 9, it was the walker that came up out of the river while Daryl was fishing (long hair after Rick left). And for S10 it was the walker horde hitting the electric fence before the Hilltop battle.

So yeah. We can definitely read into some of those as Beth parallels.

The end of the special had some weirdnesses in it, and my favorite TD reference.

First, Chris asked everyone to say what their character would bring to a holiday party. Lauren said Maggie would bring the turkey. Kaylee said Judith would bring the games. But we didn’t hear Emily or IRonE’s answers. I just thought it was weird because it cut very abruptly and we didn’t get to hear what their characters would have brought. I mean, it’s obvious they edit these, because they often jump suddenly to the next question and you don’t hear the segue. I don’t judge them for editing. They have to do this in a certain time frame, and there can lots of white noise when conducting zoom calls. But still, I have to wonder what, exactly, they’re cutting out.

So then Chris asks, again, as though he’s going to ask each person, with the show ending, who they think will be the “last person standing.” He didn’t say man, I don’t think, but the echo of Beth’s line was painfully obvious. And he asked Emily first. And who did she say? She said Norman, or Norman and Melissa.

So, she didn’t actually say Daryl, and the “Norman and Melissa” thing is pretty obvious given the spinoff. But we literally had them asking who the last “person” standing would be, and she said Norman/Daryl. Just saying.

Then Lauren did this mock, I-can’t-believe-you-didn’t-pick-your-sister thing and they all started laughing and Emily said something like, “just kidding. If I were writing the script, they’d kill all the walkers and Maggie would be queen.” I think IRonE answered the question as well, but I think what he said got lost in all the goofing around.

But yeah. Obvious Bethyl reference and they indirectly tied it to the spinoff. Just saying.

So, before I get to the final one, they they took Emily and IronE away and brought on Angela and Gimple. That part was kind of meh. Just nothing that really jumped out at me. Chris asked Gimple to give us some tidbits about the Rick movies. And Gimple did his usual, “we’re working on it but can’t say much” thing. So then Chris asked AK to talk about the bonus episodes. She talked a lot more than Gimple and Chris gave Gimple crap about that. But honestly, she pretty much just repeated what we already know from the episode synopses that were released: A Daryl/Carol episode, a Negan episode, with Hillary Burton, more on Eugene’s group, etc. So yeah. Nothing knew or exciting there.

They showed a very short clip of the table read from the episode where Daryl and Carol go their separate ways. I thought it was interesting that they used that particular moment. But I suppose they’re doing it to hype the spinoff.

Finally, they ended with Chris reading a TWD rendition of Twas the Night Before Christmas. Most of it was cute little rhymes about the various characters, but one part REALLY jumped out at me.

“And that’s when they saw it high up on a shelf:

A new walking talkie. Was it left by an elf?

They heard static and crackling but nothing made sense

The room became quiet, so SERIOUS, so tense.

Together they gathered, a closer look they did take

When a helicopter overhead made the entire house shake.

And then a voice on the walkie was heard so clear and so bright

It was Rick grimes wishing “Peace unto all and to all a good night.”

 Now, there were other passages I found suspicious as well. Stuff about Daryl and Dog, and Connie and Kelly receiving tons of cats for Christmas. You’ll have to tell me what part stands out most to you.

But here, we have a voice on a walkie, Rick in a helicopter, and a serious mention. Of course they were never going to put Beth’s name in here. It would be too obvious, but given the parallels between her and Rick, I know I don’t have to explain why this makes me happy. AND in the story, it’s happening on Christmas Eve. The return of a character they think is dead.

So I think it also works with the Up on the Housetop theme I mentioned at the beginning. As I said, I wasn’t sure about that at first, but after hearing their poem, it made me think I was barking up the right tree there.

So, because there was such a heavy “return” emphasis here, it got me thinking of the weirdness of having a holiday special at all. I hadn’t really questioned it before now. Just something fun to tide people over. Because Covid, you know?

But now it feels like a clue that THIS is the Christmas after which she’ll return. They’re doing it this year, where they haven’t in years past, because THIS is the year Daryl will get something from Santa Clause.

Also, about a week ago (before the special aired) @wdway​ sent me an article about it. It was obvious this was filmed early, not live, because the article actually talked about some of what would happen in the holiday special. And the part they talked about was where Emily said Norman would be the last man standing.

So what we found suspicious about that (apart from what I’ve already talked about here; the blatant echo of a famous Bethyl moment) is that the article ONLY talked about Emily and that question. It mentioned who else would be on and such, but the entire emphasis of the article was Emily and her answer to that question.

So it felt like the special was entirely geared toward featuring Emily.  

Thoughts?

[bloodfromthethorn]

Accident

Matty, usually, loves her job, but there are some days where she can't help but feel she just isn't being paid enough for it.

Part eleven of the July of Whump 2021 prompt challenge.

Also on AO3. 

..

For all its covert operations, thanks to the think tank cover, The Phoenix was still technically classified as a regular place of business. That meant a lot of things, like paying property taxes and having to report earnings to the state, but by far one of the most mundane outcomes was the need for an Accident Book. In theory, any time someone employed by The Phoenix was injured while at work they had to write a short report detailing the accident for the book, and every year or so, The Phoenix would have to submit their anonymised incident reports to the local council.

Of course, this posed something of a problem for a government agency trying to stay off the radar; even with identifying information taken out, someone was probably going to take note if a seemingly mundane think tank reported 18 gunshot wounds over the course of a single year.

The workaround, therefore, had been that any injuries acquired outside of the building – like, say, when agents were out on missions – didn’t go into the book, and instead it was filled with the much more minor things that occurred in the relative safety of the Phoenix. There were still a couple of things that had to be omitted, like Bozer getting stabbed, but mostly, the plan seemed to work out okay. With a whole block of science labs taking up a considerable chunk of the building, there were more than enough burned fingertips and electric shocks that weren’t suspicious to fill a passably convincing report.

That being said, Matty wasn’t entirely sure how she was supposed to play this one off as a standard workplace mishap.

“Okay, okay, stop. I’m going to need you to run this by me again. Start at the beginning.”

“Well, like I said, we had Sparky up on the table-”

“At the beginning, Bozer,” she cut in, shooting her two agents a firm look. Boze’s natural charisma was, as ever, unhindered by her glare, while Mac did his usual trick of falling back on his army training and acquired a blank expression to let any yelling wash right over him. Jack did the same whenever he was genuinely in trouble and it drove Matty crazy any time it happened.

“We were working on separate projects,” Mac explained in a much more level tone than Boze had managed. To be fair, that might have had something to do with the gauze wrapped tightly around his forehead. “I’m still trying to troubleshoot that luminogen work for the dev team – you know, the glowstick stuff?”

She nodded.

“Right. And Bozer-”

“I was trying to fix a glitch in Sparky’s programming.”

“You were trying to make him call you sir,” Mac put in with a snort. He sobered as soon as he caught Matty’s hard stare. “But, uh, yeah. We were both just in the lab doing our own thing. Then Boze called me over to take a look at something-”

“I needed a spare part of hands to rewire the circuit board while I updated the code, and you know how much Mac hates someone else messing up his wiring.”

“I wasn’t working on anything volatile, so I dropped what I was doing and went to help. All of my stuff should have been completely fine where it was.”

Matty eyed him critically. He didn’t look like he was lying, but then it was a little hard to tell how much of that was down to the concussion and the bruises swelling on the left side of his face. “But it wasn’t,” she concluded.

“One of the other lab techs came through when I was focused on Sparky,” he explained with a wince. “She didn’t know that I still had things running and she noticed that my nitrogen line was still live, so she shut it off.”

“Don’t we have standard practices in place so that doesn’t happen?”

“Yes, but she’s only been with us two weeks. She didn’t know any better.”

“Mhmm.”

“Honestly Matty, it’s not her fault. I shouldn’t have left an active reaction unattended without sticking a red form up. That’s the standard practice that’s supposed to stop this thing from happening.”

“But you didn’t fill in the form.”

“I didn’t think I’d be gone long and I was still in the same room. Besides, the team usually knows not to mess with anything I’m working on, whether I’ve put up a form or not.” He went to rub at his face, then aborted the attempt when his fingers brushed over the gauze, wincing. Bozer and Matty were both watching him carefully, but he didn’t start keeling over so it would have to be good enough.

Matty sighed heavily. Playing the blame game wasn’t going to get them anywhere; she just needed to know what happened. “Okay then. You and Boze were over with Sparky and a lab tech shut off a nitrogen valve. Then what?”

“Well, nothing, for a little while. I was using the nitrogen to keep the reaction system anoxic, so everything was already sealed. Even without the nitrogen feed, it should have been fine to just sit there until I came back to it. Only, it turns out that when you combine the fluorescent polymer our dev team synthesised with NMP – the solvent I was using – it drops a proton and turns acidic.” He rolled his eyes as he said it, as if judging his own mistake like either Matty or Bozer had any concept of how predictable the problem could have been, then regretted it as it sent him dizzy again.

“Let me guess,” Matty said to give him a moment to recover, “The acid burned through a seal?”

“A rubber bung I was using to act as an injection port,” he confirmed grimly. “The seal failed and oxygen got in.”

“And the polymer is pyrophoric,” she finished for him. When he shot her a startled look, she shrugged. “I do read the reports I get sent Blondie. The spontaneous fire problem was one of the things they wanted you to take a look at, right?”

“Yeah. I hadn’t got to that part though.”

“Evidently.”

Boze jumped in to spare Mac the effort of defending himself. Now that the actual chemistry stuff was out the way, he knew the rest of the story. “While all this was happening, we were having a few problems with Sparky. The code was disagreeing with his logic boards, and it was making him fritz out pretty badly. He nearly took Mac’s fingers off when he sat up without warning.”

“And scared the hell out of us both,” Mac agreed.

“Yeah. Thank god Jack wasn’t in the room. We’d still be trying to get him down from the rafters.”

Matty cleared her throat and the pair of them snapped back to attention. Well, as at attention as Mac could reasonably be sitting up on one of the examination tables in the med bay.

With a cowed look, Bozer continued. “We were trying to work out what had happened, so we got Sparky going through a few movements. Because we weren’t finished, we didn’t bother getting him down off the table, so when he stood up completely…”

“He was a nine foot tall, eight hundred pound accident waiting to happen,” Mac finished. He gave a single shoulder shrug when Matty raised an eyebrow at him. “What? Even I’m willing to admit this whole thing was stupid.”

She’d more or less pieced together the rest of the story by now, but she still felt she should hear it for herself. Proper protocol and all that. “Alright. Then what?”

“We were trying to get Sparky back down when the reaction system blew,” Mac said. “We were far enough away that we weren’t at risk of burns, but Boze got a facefull of dye and Sparky got knocked off the table.”

“And onto you.”

He grimaced faintly, casting an offended eye at the sling supporting what had recently been a very dislocated shoulder. The expression did nothing to soften the bruises scattered across his face. “Yeah.”

Beside him, a slightly discoloured Boze swayed to knock their uninjured shoulders together. “Sorry, man,” he said, not for the first time. “Can’t help but think this is my fault.”

“It wasn’t. My reaction, my boom. Besides, you’re the one who’s going to be glowing in the dark for the next two weeks.”

“Yeah, and I’m sure the ladies will love it. You’re the one with the busted up arm.”

“It’s nothing, really. My shoulder pops out all the time.”

“You say that like it’s comforting and I gotta tell you man, it really ain’t.”

Matty’s gaze flicked between them. As much of a mess as Mac was, and despite the fact that Bozer was a lot more green than he had been when he’d arrived at work that morning, they’d both been signed off by medical with minor injuries. In theory, it was exactly the sort of thing that should go in her accident report, and yet she had a sneaking suspicion this particular story was going to raise a lot more questions than she was really willing to answer. It was funny – Mac had a habit of bringing that feeling out in her.

“Okay,” she said. “Okay. I think I’ve got the picture. I’m not even going to pretend I understand how you managed to configure such a comedy of errors, but I trust that you’ve both learned how to avoid this problem in future?”

Like two boys caught doing something they shouldn’t, they both nodded quickly in unison. She couldn’t quite bite back her smile. “Alright then. Bozer, you’re cleared to work for the rest of the day should you wish to. Mac, you’re off rotation entirely until that concussion clears up, then it’s light duty to let your shoulder heal. I’ve called Jack to come pick you up.”

That certainly got his attention. “You called Jack? It’s his day off!”

“I’m well aware. But you can’t drive with that arm and as your nominated next of kin, he’s left standing orders to be informed every time you get injured. He should be here any minute.”

Bozer was snickering to himself, while Mac’s expression had folded into something between desolate and sheepish. Matty had had a hell of time getting Jack to calm down and listen when she’d first called to tell him Mac was in medical and evidently Mac had some idea of the helicopter parenting about to rain down on his head. Maybe that would be the thing to actually make him realise the seriousness of his own actions.

“Great,” he muttered sarcastically, just as Matty heard the door to medical swing open so forcefully it cracked against the wall. With a dry smile, she stood back and waited to see the fireworks.

[kprciffdw]

Ratchet and Kim Possible Chronicles: The Solanian Revolution-Finale

They arrived at the Planet Koros. As soon as they landed, they spotted the Biobliterator. Kim: "Look! There it is!" Ratchet: "Yeah, that's it, alright." Ron: "So…how are we going to bring down that evil machine?" Ratchet: "Good question, Ron. None of my weapons would even put a dent in that thing." Clank: "Hm…perhaps a much larger form of weaponry will get the job done." Ron: "And where are we going to find that?"

Clank looked around for a bit, he then spotted a massive Ion Cannon. Clank: "How about that?"

Ratchet, Kim and Ron looked over and spotted that cannon as well. Kim: "Uh…that'll do." Clank: "If you could get me inside the command center, I can override the targeting system and take control of that Ion Cannon." Kim: "Sounds like a plan." Ratchet: "Come on, let's hurry before that Biobliterator leaves for Veldin."

The entire group rushed off. They scurried through the entire area as fast as they could, fighting through one robot hoard after another. There was no doubt that the area was heavily guarded. The fight was intense, they knew that their enemies were really going all out, but so were they. There were always new surprises around every corner, they couldn't let their guard down, even for a second. They kept going until they were able to reach the massive cannon. There, Clank gained access to the cannon's controls. Directly next to him was a screen displaying Nefarious' transmission. Dr. Nefarious: "Agent Clank?"

Clank aimed for the Biobliterator. Dr. Nefarious: "What's going on here? What are you doing?" Ron: "Go for it, Clank!" Clank: "After all those Holo-films, there is one thing you should know by now: do not mess with Agent Clank."

And with that, Clank shot at the Biobliterator and blew it up completely. Nefarious shouted out in anger. Ron: "Alright, Clank!" Kim: "Way to go!" Ratchet: "That's the way to do it!" Clank: "Incoming call from the Phoenix."

Displayed on the monitor was Sasha. Sasha: "Nice shooting, Clank. There's no telling how many people you just saved." Kim: "All in a day's work." Sasha: "But it's still not over." Ron: "Aw, man! We're still not done yet?" Kim: "Of course, just when you think it's this easy, a much harder challenge comes around." Ron: "That entire run through was easy!?" Kim: "Obviously not, but blowing up the Biobliterator was." Ron: "Oh! Right, yeah, that was the easy part." Sasha: "Al just finished decoding the data disk. Nefarious secretly constructed a second Biobliterator, a new model that's even more dangerous than the one you just destroyed."

Just then, the Kimmunicator went off. Kim pulled it out. Wade: "I'm afraid it gets even worse. After finding out about that Biobliterator, I was able to locate it and scan its power. From what I was able to find, it's very powerful, those devices that I built will have very little immunity to that massive machine." Ratchet: "Where is it, Wade?" Sasha: "Nefarious has a master control center on Planet Mylon. Wade was able to confirm it being there, guarded by an entire robot army." Kim: "And here I thought the stakes were raised to the max on this planet." Wade: "I have also confirmed that Nefarious is also there from the tracking device you guys had placed on him." Ratchet: "Then we had better get moving." Sasha: "Be careful, guys. This time, they know you're coming." Kim: "Doesn't matter; we're so ready for them."

They left the cannon and rushed back towards the ship as fast as they could then left for Mylon.

They arrived at the Planet Mylon. They landed and got out of the ship then looked out at the entire facility. Ratchet: "This is it, guy; the final confrontation. Are you ready?" Kim: "Oh, I know I am." Ron: "So am I." Clank: "Yes, let us put a stop to this once and for all." Ratchet: "OK, then, let's go."

They ran out towards the facility as fast as they could. Along the way, they ran into lots of robotic Tyhrranoids. They were indeed a lot tougher than their organic former and then some. A few times, they needed to use Wade's newly modified Holo-Tyhrranoid to get through.

It was a tough fight through and through which indeed lasted throughout the entire area, perhaps their toughest fight yet, which is to be expected. This time, they really needed to work together. It was truly a matter of deciding the fate of the Solona Galaxy and there really was no room for errors.

They were eventually able to reach Nefarious and the Biobliterator, but he warped out before they even had the chance to react. Ratchet: "(grunt) Dang it! We're too late!"

The Biobliterator flew off. Dr. Nefarious: "(laugh) Dah! Lawrence! Get this thing off of me!" Kim: "We have to go after him."

Just then, one of the drop ships arrived and opened up. Sasha transmitted to them. Kim: "Sasha!" Sasha: "Get in!"

The group ran into the drop ship, it flew off. It took them to a far off small group of islands. As they were arriving, the drop ship opened up. They spotted the Biobliterator below them. Al: "There it is! Nefarious already initiated the launch sequence. If that thing gets into space, Veldin won't stand a chance!" Ratchet: "That's not gonna happen!" Kim: "Not if we have anything to say about this!" Ron: "So…are we going to land or do we have to…"

Kim grabbed Ron by his shirt collar and jumped out of the drop ship along with Ratchet. They were free-falling all the way down, with Ron screaming all the way.

They managed to descend to where they stood before Nefarious. He took notice of them immediately. Dr. Nefarious: "What!? You guys again!?" Kim: "It's over, Nefarious, we're putting an end to your evil plans right here, right now!" Ratchet: "That's right!" Dr. Nefarious: "(growl) You miserable brats! You will pay for your insolence!"

Just then, Ratchet pulled out his wrench and tossed it at Nefarious, he dodged it and it struck a control console, destroying it. Ratchet: "Sorry, Nefarious, your flight's been canceled."

Nefarious screamed in anger and was shocked again by the shock emitter. He reached out from behind him, grabbed it and with great force, was able to remove it then tossed it at the group. They were able to dodge, except for Ron. It almost hit him but Rufus was able to catch it. Rufus: "Ta-da!" Kim: "That's fine. We don't need that thing anymore, anyway. We're bringing you down right here." Ratchet: "Although Wade did enjoy hearing you scream and gripe every single time the shock emitter went off."

Nefarious tried to call for Lawrence again but all he got was a voicemail. So he proceeded to fight the entire group himself. The fight was short and seemed a bit too easy. After the brief fight, Nefarious fell to his knees. Dr. Nefarious: "I am defeated! I have no choice but to throw myself of your mercy." Kim: "Wow, that was easy." Ratchet: "Huh, who knew? I mean, uh, that's right, Nefarious! Your reign of terror is finally…"

But then, Nefarious lifted himself off the ground and flew away. Dr. Nefarious: "Suckers!"

The group was caught off guard. Ratchet growled in anger. Kim: "Figures. It's hardly ever this easy."

Ron ran after Nefarious. Ron: "Get back here, Nefarious!" Rufus: "Nefarious!" Kim: "Ron!"

Kim ran off, Ratchet followed. Ratchet: "Save me some of the action, Ron!"

They chased Nefarious out into a massive field. They fought several more robots as they continued their fight against Nefarious. The mad robot shot out a devastating laser at them several times during the fight. They soon ran over a massive bridge towards another island as they continued to chase him down. They fought more robots as they ran across. Soon enough, the Galactic Rangers arrived to help out with the fight. The group seemed very pleased to see them, but they knew they had to keep going.

They were eventually able to catch up with Nefarious. He brought forth one devastating assault after another. He was seriously not going easy on him, but the group also put forth a really tough fight. Within a good amount of time, they were able to bring him down.

After being brought down by the group, he called for Lawrence again, who came this time. He ordered Lawrence to "begin the transformation" and with one click of a remote, the Biobliterator transformed into a massive mecha. The group stood by, surprised as this was occurring. Nefarious and Lawrence warped into the mech and began shooting at the group. Just then, Qwark came flying in on his shuttle, much to everyone's surprise. Kim: "Qwark?" Ron: "I don't believe it! Qwark actually came!" Ratchet: "We're not going to be able to defeat that thing on the ground. It's time to take to the skies." Kim: "You go ahead, Ron and I will handle the rest of these robots from here." Ron: "We are?" Ratchet: "OK. Kim? Be careful." Kim: "You, too, Ratchet. Return to us safely." Ratchet: "I will."

He got into a craft and took to the skies. 

He and Qwark worked together to take down the mech. It was indeed a very tough battle and the mech was very, very durable. It took them a while of shooting at the mech, but they were able to bring it down. Nefarious, grief-ridden from being defeated, had Lawrence warp him out before the Biobliterator exploded.

After the fight, Ratchet returned to the ground and reunited with Kim and Ron. They celebrated their victory together. Qwark watched them from above and then flew off. They looked up at Qwark and watched as he was flying away. Ron: "I can't believe Qwark came out of hiding and helped us to beat that thing." Kim: "I know. That's…very shocking." Ratchet: "Thanks, Qwark. You did more than I expected you to."

Later on, Ratchet, Clank and all of their friends attended a star-studded premiere of the latest Secret Agent Clank film. Kim and Ron, however, sat out of it because they refused to see another holo-film until Ratchet is to be placed on a better role. Instead, they sat together someplace nearby. Ron: "This has been some adventure, hasn't it, KP?" Kim: "I'll say it has. We get to go back into space, visit another galaxy, meet all kinds of strange, new aliens and most of all, see Ratchet again." Ron: "Yeah…so…KP…about you and Ratchet. I was wondering something." Kim: "What? What about me and Ratchet?" Ron: "Do you still…you know…like him?" Kim: "Of course I like him. He's a great guy. He's fearless, quick on his feet, an excellent pilot, a really good mechanic and a really great fighter. I've never met anyone like him before. He's…all around amazing." Ron: "Yes, all of that is true, but do you still…really like him, like as in really, really like him?" Kim: "Ron, what are you getting at? I don't know why…wait a minute, are you asking me if…I'm still in love with him? Like seriously? Ron, I already told you, we talked about this. We decided to not have a serious relationship with each other." Ron: "But why not? The both of you had a good thing going on. Why the sudden change? It is because you think it's wrong to be dating a space alien or someone who's a completely different species from you? Is that it?"

Kim sat by and hesitated for a bit, she then turned her head away and looked down. Kim: "It's just…it just…seems strange for me to be going out with someone who isn't a human being. Yes, I like him and we care about each other a lot but…I just don't want to be seen as a weirdo for dating a space alien." Ron: "So what? Why should you even care about people that see you as a weirdo for that? They don't know you and Ratchet for who you guys really are. You still have feelings for him! I know that! You can still be with him regardless of what either of you are. Don't let anyone stand in the way of that!"

Kim looked back at him for a few moments, then looked away again. Kim: "I…I'm just not sure…I can…besides…he…he's probably let go of his feelings for me…so…I should move on…"

Ron looked at her, sad.

Later afterwards, Ratchet and Clank had dinner with Kim, Ron, Wade and the Possibles in the ISSF to celebrate the victory against Dr. Nefarious. They ate, chatted, laughed and had an over all good time. The twins and Wade spent more time observing Clank. He seemed much less uncomfortable with them as he began to enjoy being with them. They were able to stop observing him as some amazing, alien robot that had intrigued them so much and start seeing him as a friend. Ratchet spent some time chatting with Kim and her parents for a good bit of time. They were then planning to return to Earth. Ratchet and Clank said their goodbyes before leaving to go back to the Phoenix. From the starship, Ratchet watched as the ISSF left the galaxy and returned to Earth. He had a huge smile on his face as he continued looking out the window. Ratchet: "See you again…Kimberly."

                                                   The End

[royallyprincesslilly]

Title: Captain America Vs. Superman  {Part 1}

Chris Evans X Reader X Henry Cavill

Warning: Cursing, Drug Use (Weed), Adult Suggestive Conversation

Word Count: 5.9K

Note: Guyyyyyyyyys! Aaaaah! I finally did a one shot. Holy S&*& me, a one shot. Alexa play “I’m Coming out.” Hope you guys enjoy this. It was inspired by this.

 This will be posted in two parts as this has tipped into the 13k realm. Soo I guess that means it’s technically not a one shot then. Damn.

I know this is not what I should be working on, but I had this idea dn had to get it out.

**Loosely edited**

**Loosely Proofread**

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Well, I have a cape," Henry boasted.

"Who needs a cape when you have a shield? Which I have," Chris countered.

"Who needs a shield when you're bulletproof? Which I am, Henry continued.

Chris smirked.

"I can lift Thor's hammer that means I'm worthy always have been, always will be," he bragged with a cocky shoulder shrug.

Henry snorted and shook his head.

"I was sent to Earth to be its salvation and savior, I was born to be worthy of an entire planet and species," Henry finished exhaling a breath on his fingernails before rubbing them on his white button down shirt. He then looked at Chris as if to say, "beat that."

The two of them stood there in the kitchen of your home going back and forth. It had always been like this throughout your seven-year friendship. You met Chris through work as a casting agent and then met Henry, and in Hollywood, everyone knew each other. Everyone interacted, and it didn't take long for Henry and Chris to strike up a friendship. They both had so much in common.

Over the years the friendship between the three if you strengthened and it wasn't long before you three were referred to as the three musketeers where you were Chris was, and Henry wasn't too far behind. That only made the rumor mill go wild with crazy ideas that the three of you had a progressive relationship. Of course, it wasn't true, but that never stopped a rumor.

Although you were their friends, you were also human and red-blooded, you were not immune to the beauty either of them held. You were not impervious to the sex appeal that rolled off of them. You recognized they were attractive men physically, and because of your friendship, you knew they were equally as attractive inside.

For the last few months, your hormones had been going crazy, and nothing you did or how far you went from them could calm you down. You kept dreaming of them and ogling over their bodies, and you were mortified the first time you masturbated with thoughts of them. It was a job and a half to pretend everything was fine and normal when all you wanted to do was sit on one of their faces with the other's cock balls deep in your mouth.

"Doesn't this get old guys? Seven years and still comparing whose is bigger?"

You shook your head and walked past them into the kitchen toward the fridge and took out the bottle of tequila you held in there. Not bothering to take a glass down, you took the bottle to the head and blew out in an effort to cool your flaming taste buds.

"You do realize that neither of you are the actual characters, right? You're not Captain America, and you're not Superman. You are mere men playing roles," you reasoned.

Both of them looked to you as if you'd popped their hubris filled bubbles. You shrugged and took another mouthful of your favorite liquor and hopped onto the counter across from them.

Henry approached you and took the tequila bottle from you and took a few gulps of his own before he spoke; "Where've you been for the last four days?"

"I took a Hollywood break. I went for a little retreat in Phoenix."

"What's in Phoenix?" Chris asked, approaching your other side, taking the outstretched bottle from Henry before you could take it back. He took a swig but didn't grimace. Your eyes dropped to his still tequila dampened lips, and you sucked your own bottom lip into your mouth as you felt your temperature rise a slight bit.

You cleared your throat and yanked the bottle from him and took several gulps before lowering it.

"Maybe slow down a little Y/N," Henry cautioned.

You looked to him and stared into his heavenly blue orbs and got lost.

"Y/N, you all right?"

You looked away and stared out in front of you for a long while.

"Yeah, I'm good. Netflix or poker?"

You hopped off the counter, walked to the living room, and plopped onto the couch. Chris and Henry soon followed and sat on either side of you, Chris held the deck of cards, and Henry held the chips. You smiled.

"Don't act like a girl when I beat both your asses and take you for everything you're worth."

Chris and Henry laughed in unison.

"Care to put a wager on those huge cojones you're bragging about?" Chris asked.

You smiled a mischievous smile because you may have just figured out the solution to your problem.

"I would. Whoever wins gets an IOU of their choice, anything they want must be done no matter what," you proposed.

Both Henry and Chris looked at each other, no doubt thinking the way you worded it was peculiar and specific. You didn't speak; you just allowed them to make their own decisions while looking as innocent as possible. Chris was the first to agree, followed by a reluctant Henry. You smiled to yourself hoping tonight you were lady luck. You situated around the coffee table and began playing.

After the first game, Chris took the early lead, but by the fourth game, Henry was in the lead with you staggering behind them both. It was all part of your plan. Every win they became cockier and cockier, and every win they drank more and more. You knew they both could hold their liquor but they both had limits. You needed to push those limits. If you remained in the back, they would never know what hit em when you took the lead which is what happened in the sixth game.

When all was said and done after the tenth game, you were the sole winner holding all their chips and the prize. You tried to keep a straight face you didn't want to give away the fact that you'd finessed them without them even suspecting a thing.

"I regret the day I taught you all my tricks," Henry said.

You and Chris laughed loudly for a long time before Henry joined in. As your laughter slowly receded, you finished the fourth bottle of tequila and sighed out.

"All right, I'm a man of my word, you know. You get your IOU, but you don't get to hold onto it for weeks and weeks. You gotta use it within this week your deadline is next weekend," Chris demanded.

You smirked.

"No problem, I already know what I want."

Chris and Henry looked at you and then each other.

"You do. All right then what is it you want? Henry asked.

You reached for the last bottle of tequila opened it and took a few gulps hoping it would steel your nerves and get rid of the nervousness in the pit of your stomach.

"Both of you."

The room filled with silence, and the two men looked at each other confused etched across their features.

"Uh, both of us. What does that mean? What do you want from both of us?" Henry questioned in his prime and proper British accent.

You felt a new wave of confidence and bit your bottom lip as you looked to Henry first.

"Your hands, your fingers, your arms--,"

Looking across to Chris you continued; "Your lips, your mouth, your face--,"

Looking back and forth between the two, you finished; "Your tongue."

Henry and Chris looked dumbfounded as they stared at you. Neither of them spoke or blinked hell you didn't know if either of them were breathing anymore. You sat there looking at the both of them trying to read them, but they were unreadable. After nearly four minutes of silence, they looked to each other. Chris sucked in a breath and rubbed across his face groaning.

"Jesus, I must be drunk because I don't think I heard you right."

"Yeah, me either."

"You both heard correct. I said what I said, and I meant what I said."

"To break through this tequila haze; say that again," Chris pleaded.

You took a deep breath and released it in a rush. Yes, this was probably random as fuck and completely unexpected but was it really that farfetched? You took another drink from the tequila bottle and began again.

"I want you both."

"I--I got that part," Chris began.

"Yeah me too, maybe the part about--parts you should repeat," Henry clarified.

You smirked and pinched your lips.

"I want your hands, your fingers and your arms Henry and I want your lips, your mouth, your face Chris, and both of your tongues."

Henry sunk back into his seat and grabbed the tequila bottle from you and chugged a few gulps. As soon as he lowered it, Chris leaned over and took it from him to echo the same actions. You sat there looking between them thinking you'd broken them. Just when you thought someone was going to speak, they took another swig of tequila.

After about five minutes, you lost your patience.

"Come on, guys. This can't have been that farfetched or that crazy."

"You're kidding, right. You're drunk. This is the tequila talking. It has to be," Chris surmised.

"I'm not drunk."

They both got up and paced the room, leaving you seated on the floor.

"And yes this is crazy. Y/N, are you hearing yourself? Where is this coming from?" Henry questioned stooping in front of you arms crossed with a desperate look on his face.

"We've been friends for seven years, and I trust you both--,"

"So this is an experimentation type of thing then, you'd rather it be us then two other people you don't trust," Chris interrupted.

"No, this isn't experimentation. This is me wanting the two of you because for the last few months I've been looking at you way past platonic," you blurted out.

Both of them gaped at you. You were starting to regret saying anything.

"So you mean you want us, want us at the same time?" Henry clarified then looked at Chris.

"Months? You've wanted this for months?" Chris asked.

"Yes. It's taken over almost everything. I needed to get out of town to get a grip, but that did nothing."

Henry stooped down before you.

"You went to Phoenix because of us?"

"Is this really so unbelievable guys? Is this so unfathomable?" You asked making a circle with your finger at each of you.

They remained silent, both deep in their thoughts as they gazed at you. Chris looked to Henry who looked back at him and spoke some unspoken language. They both sighed out. Chris stroked his beard, and Henry rubbed his forehead then raked his fingers through his black curls.

   “No,” they spoke in unison.

   You perked up and looked between them.

   “So—you want me too?”

  Both of them stood and walked across the room, standing as far from you as possible. You stared at them expectantly.

   “You’re beautiful Y/N; you know that,” Chris spoke.

  “Everyone knows it,” Henry filled in.

   “That is not what I asked. I asked if you want me too?”

   You stood, giving them a full view. Their eyes never left your face though.

   “There is a line that probably shouldn’t be crossed. We have been friends for a long time; if we crossed that line then our friendship wouldn’t be the same,” Henry explained.

  “Why not? We’ll still be the same people. You two will always be my best friends, no matter what.”

   You stepped closer to the both of them and didn’t stop until you were only a few feet from them both.

   “I’ll ask again. Do-you-want-me?”

   They stared at you, and you could tell you were wearing them down. Chris groaned out, and Henry breathed exasperatedly.

   “Of course, we want you. We’d have to be dead not to. You’re perfect beauty and brains.”

  “All right then,” you finished closing the gap between you. You put your hand on both their chest and trailed it down the center of their body over their hard abs and to the top of their pants. Once your fingers touched the buttons to their pants, they both leaped back and away from you. You groaned and dropped your head back.

   “Uuugh, what is your problem?”

   “We should think about this. We’ve all had quite a bit to drink. So we should stop, think and really figure out if this is a good move or even something we really want sober,” Chris reasoned.

   “That last bit specially directed to you. Things look differently when we’re sober,” Henry added.

  You watched them both make their way to the threshold of the living room.

  “Wow, so this is what rejection feels like.”

   “We’re not rejecting you. we want what’s best for you and want you to be sure what you really want before any lines are crossed,” Chris explained.

   “We care about you Y/N, we’d never do anything that would end up hurting you,” Henry added.

   You looked between them. Any other woman may have thought this was sweet, and they were being considerate and perfect gentlemen, but you right now stuck with your sexual frustrations and needs for both of them felt as if they were chickening out or trying to let you down gently. No matter the case, you were annoyed. You rolled your eyes and sighed.

   “Fine, go, think, sober up, do whatever the hell you want.”

 You walked to the tequila bottle and drank some more.

   “You know the way out. good night.”

   You walked away toward your bedroom, leaving them there. You were horny and frustrated, and since they wouldn’t help, you had to turn to your vibrator yet again.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 One day passed no call and no Chris or Henry, then two, then four, and by day five you began to panic. You hadn’t seen them or called them because of humiliation beginning to set in. They didn’t call; they didn’t stop by; they were absent from your lunches and your apartment. Usually, when they were in town you always had dinner together, and more times than not lunch as well. It was cold turkey, and your mind was beginning to overthink. You wondered if you’d crossed a line, if you’d taken too big of a risk with voicing your wants, you wondered if you’d freaked them out and their only answer was to avoid you.

  By the time Friday came, you were a huge ball of anxiety, fear, and doubts. You must have pulled up their numbers in your phone fifty times only to exit out without dialing. Half of you felt like you should call and apologize and downplay what you said and blame it on the alcohol like Jamie said. The other half went super aggressive and said fuck them they’d be damn lucky to be in the situation you’d offered. Needless to say, you were a mess. You tried to go about your week like normal, and for the most part, you were successful. You kept yourself busy, and it helped because you didn’t have a moment to yourself. Idle hands did the devil’s work after all.

  You groaned and stretched back in your office chair. It was eight o’clock on a Friday night, and you still hadn’t left work. You still had a few more things to tend to before you were comfortable leaving, and you weren’t in any rush to get home to the quiet and your thoughts. With your eyes closed, you took several calming breathes trying to find the energy to finish up. After a few minutes, you sat back up and continued. The sound of your phone chiming brought your attention away. You looked at your phone and saw two new unread messages.

  You took up the device and saw Chris’ name on your screen. You hovered your thumb over the message and felt your nerves spike, and you didn’t know why. You shook it off and opened the message.

  MSG Chris: Dinner tonight?

  You narrowed your eyes at the message as if it were actually him. He had some nerve, you thought. Ignore you for a week and then out the blue send some vague message like you were some random woman after the dick. You kissed your teeth and rolled your eyes, dropping your phone back on the desk and focusing again on your work.  You ignored the urge to pick it back up and willed yourself to focus. Your phone chimed again and again, and still, you ignored it.

   “I don’t know who you think you are, but you got me all fucked up if you think this is goin’ down like this.”

 Another five minutes passed and in came another chime. You took a peek and saw the message preview read, “Don’t play hard to get now.” You kissed your teeth again and took up your phone and looked through the messages.

  MSG Chris: Not gonna answer me?

MSG Chris: Come on Y/N, don’t be like this.

MSG Chris: Don’t play hard to get now, you know you want to come.

  You focused on the word “come” and wondered if he was playing on words and was being fresh. A smirk tickled your lips until you couldn’t hold it in anymore. You sighed and shook your head.

  MSG: Whatever, I don’t play hard to get, I am hard to get.

MSG Chris: I don’t doubt that for one minute. So, dinner tonight?”

MSG: I already ate.

MSG Chris: Liar. I drove by your place your car isn’t there. That means you’re still at the office. Stop what you’re doing and come eat.

  You rolled your eyes.

  MSG: Why are you driving by my house anyway aren’t you avoiding me like a heathen avoids church?

MSG Chris: LMAO. I’ve never avoided you. Come to dinner. I’ll let you choose the restaurant even that Hibachi place you know I hate.

MSG: You only hate it because the owner likes Superman better than Captain America. Don’t be salty.

MSG Chris: Whatever. You wanna come or not?

  Again, your eyes darted to the word “come.” You bit your bottom lip and heard your stomach growl. The decision was made already.

  MSG: Fine, but it’s the Hibachi place you hate.

MSG Chris: I wouldn’t expect anything else from you. Thirty minutes enough time to get there?

MSG: Make it an hour I still have some stuff to do.

MSG Chris: Thirty.

MSG: Excuse me? You’re not my daddy.

MSG Chris: Make it thirty, and I will be.

  You widened your eyes and read the last message again and again. The defiance in you was tempted to purposely show up past thirty minutes, but the curiosity in you wanted to get there early. You sat there for five more minutes before you got up and prepared to leave.

  The drive wasn’t too bad, especially for a Friday night. You expected horrible back ups, but you were pleasantly surprised to find it moving. It took you fifteen minutes to get from your office to the restaurant when normally it would have taken twenty or more. You sat in your car and looked at yourself. You reapplied your lipstick, took down your hair and spritzed yourself with perfume. Once you walked inside, it was thirty minutes on the dot.

   “Y/N, welcome back!”

  You smiled brightly at the owner and hugged him.

   “You know me can’t stay away for too long.”

 He laughed and pulled his wife forward.

   “Hi Y/N, happy to see you.”

   She kissed your cheek and hugged you tightly. You loved this place the food was good; the atmosphere was easy going and the people were friendly what more was needed. The ritzy restaurants in this town were nice and everything but nothing compared to a place that made you feel like family.

   “Go ahead to your table. I’ll send someone over to begin shortly.”

   “Thank you.”

  You walked away, making your way to your table. It was the same one you always sat when you came here, and it was always held open in case you came by. You stepped up the three steps and saw the two heads at the table and felt the butterflies begin. You straightened your back and held your head high and walked over. As you slid into the opposite side, you could feel Chris’ smugness. You ignored it.

  “This is new, you following directions. I like it,” Chris teased.

  You looked to him and then across to Henry. They looked good. Henry’s hair was coifed to perfection leaving a few of his natural curls free the way you liked, and he was clean shaven. He looked like he’d put in effort. You looked over to Chris and took in his perfectly groomed goatee and brushed back locks and fought back the urge to suck your bottom lip into your mouth.

  “I’m just hungry,” you retorted as you looked away from them. You heard both of them chuckle and fought back a smile.

  “Welcome back, guys. What’ll it be tonight?”

   You looked up into the face of the waiter and smiled warmly. You then looked at Henry and Chris.

   “Do you two know what you want?”

   Chris licked his lips, and Henry briefly bit his before they answered in unison overlapping each other.

  “I know just what I want.”

   “Oh yeah, I know.”

   You looked between them. Something in their words and voice brought a chill up your spine, a good chill.

   “I’d like the shrimp shumai, edamame, the vegetable gyoza, Miso soup, and the Lobster, Shrimp, Scallops and Filet Mignon Hibachi, instead of the rice another serving of noodles please,” you requested without looking at the menu.

   “So, your usual then?”

 You looked to Henry and narrowed your eyes at his teasing. He pinched his lips and looked up and around as if he’d heard something.

   “The usual for the two of you as well?”

   Henry and Chris nodded.

   “Also, a lot of sake please, keep the sake coming,” Henry added.

   “Sure thing guys. We’ll begin in a little while,” your waiter said before she walked off.

   “Busy week?” You asked, tackling the awkward silence head-on.

  “It actually was, I read for a few parts and did some voice-overs,” Henry explained.

   “And you?”

   You looked to Chris, waiting for his explanation.

   “When is my week never busy? The life of the Captain is never quiet.”

   You snorted.

   “God, give it a rest already,” Henry said.

   You laughed and covered your mouth and tried to hide your amusement.

   “What about your week?”

   “Yep, busy, busy, busy, work, work, work.”

   They nodded and then silence befell the table again. This was pathetic you thought to yourself. Things between you were never awkward; there was never silence between you, one or all three of you couldn’t shut up. Thankfully your table cook arrived wheeling his cooking surface over. You straightened your back and smiled a greeting. He prepped the ingredients, and you watched not ballsy enough to look Chris and Henry’s way.

   When the chef began his cooking show you paid attention; this was after all one of your favorite things about this place. You giggled at the chef’s silly antics and acrobats with utensils and ingredients. When he tossed a piece of food around you caught yours easily in your mouth and watched Henry and Chris do the same. Halfway through the show, you looked to them. The warm glow of the fire gave them an even more attractive look. The red in Chris’ beard and hair was more evident, and he looked gorgeous.

   The glow of the fire intensified Henry’s eyes so much his pupils weren’t even visible, all you saw was blue. You loved his eyes. You bit your bottom lip and looked over the two beautiful male specimens across from you fully appreciating what other women had seen all this time. You nearly kicked yourself when you thought this was new for you when they’d been gawked at and thought of this way their whole lives. Henry glanced over to you and held your stare. He licked his lips, and your eyes dropped to his kissable lips. You wondered what they tasted like, were they naturally sweet, or did they taste like the woods smelled, musky, masculine, and fragrant.

   Feeling his gaze, you looked to Chris, who was already staring at you. The air in the room became thin, and you found yourself struggling to catch a breath. The pounding of your heart in your ears drowned out any other sound, and you felt your temperature rise. You looked to his hair, and the urge to sink your fingers in it was overwhelming. He always looked put together; you desperately wanted to see him unkempt. You clenched your thighs together, needing pressure on your lady parts. You were already wet. You looked away and cleared your throat just in time to see the end of the chef’s show. You clapped and smiled, Chris and Henry soon joined in.

   With your plates full and your food on the table, you dug in. The deliciousness of the meal was enough to distract you from everything you felt and wanted. The only thing on your mind was the food; you didn’t even bother looking at Chris or Henry. When they began the small talk, you took part in it because a silent meal was more awkward than anything else in the world. They talked about trivial things in the industry and their plans for a vacation when things calmed down in their careers.

   Soon the three of you were bantering and laughing like normal, and you were grateful for it. It showed you that maybe you hadn’t ruined your friendship.

Several hours and several tokkuri of sake, the three of you sat at the table enjoying your desserts. You put another spoon of your Mochi in your mouth and licked around the spoon absentmindedly. When you looked up, both Henry and Chris watched you. You put the spoon down and took a deep breath.

   “We weren’t ignoring or avoiding you Y/N,” Henry began.

   You looked at him and contemplated his words.

   “Uh-huh. So what exactly were you doing then?”

   “Thinking,” Chris responded.

   You nodded and took another spoon full of your dessert.

   “Mmm. You needed a whole week to think. Okay.”

   Your passive aggressive words and demeanor spoke for itself.

   “Did you expect a rushed answer? I’m sure any other man would have leaped at what you asked--,”

   “I didn’t ask you for anything actually,” you interrupted.

   They both watched you. Henry nodded.

  “You’re right; you didn’t ask for anything. Maybe that’s where we should start. What do you want Y/N?”

   Silence. You knew Henry would be the one to cut to the chase. He’d always been like this. You licked your lips slowly and sucked your bottom lip and held their gazes. You thought if you wanted to play this game but looking at them you knew they wanted to play it.

   “I want you—both of you,” you answered, looking back and forth between them.

   “The question is, are you done thinking? Do you want me too?”

   It took them a few minutes before either of them spoke.

   “Yes,” Henry answered.

   Your heart pounded faster. You looked at Chris.

   “Yes.”

  The butterflies in your stomach began again. You should have been excited and happy with the admission, but you felt nervous.

   “We need ground rules,” Chris the practical one said.

   “Of course, you need rules,” you teased and rolled your head back. Sighing, you sat back up and looked at him.

 “Okay, what are they?”

   “You can change your mind at any time.”

   “I won’t. What else?”

   “This can’t ruin our friendship—at all,” Henry added.

   You nodded wholeheartedly agreeing to that point.

   “Any time you’re uncomfortable you say something,” Chris added.

   “One time unless it’s agreed upon,” Henry blurted out.

   You and Chris looked at him, and he looked between the two of you.

   “I just want it out there we’re not expecting more than you want to give,” Henry explained. You smirked and nodded.

   “Anything you want to add?”

   “Nope.”

   “Nothing?”

  “Nothing. This is simple for me. You two seem to be the ones who are more hung up about it,” you quipped finishing the last of the sake. You’d lost track how many you’d had.

   “Okay,” Chris said.

   “My place, yours, yours?” you asked.

   “Whichever makes you more comfortable. Tomorrow night?”

   You looked at them again and tried to quell any disappointment rising. Yes, you thought tonight would be the night, but you’d have to wait yet another day. You thought more about it and tried to look on the bright side; you’d be able to prepare properly. You’d waited months for this and actually wanted it to be the best it could be—that you knew it could be. You bit your bottom lip again and nodded.

   “Tomorrow night, my place,” you finished.

   Both of them nodded. You noticed they both tried to look as calm as possible, but they were failing miserably. You smiled and cleared your throat.

   “I’m exhausted now. What do you say we get outta here? Give you two some more time to chicken out.”

   You teased and gathered your things before you slid out the booth.  You walked ahead of them to the exit and felt them behind you. As you stepped out into the night air, you straightened your back and walked to your car. You stopped at your door and looked back to them knowing they’d followed you to ensure you got there safe. Your perfect gentlemen. You smiled.

   “All right, good night.”

   You got into your car and started the engine. Before you rolled off, Henry tapped on the window. You revved it down and smiled.

   “What time is good for you?”

   You stared into his captivating eyes and felt a deep want for him. You leaned closer and caught the scent of his cologne. He smelled like the one you bought him a few months ago. You licked your lips pressed your thighs together again.

   “Sunset, I’ve always loved to look at you in the sunset. I wonder how you’ll look naked in it.”

   Henry’s pupils dilated, and you watched his Adam’s apple bob as he gulped. You looked to Chris who was close enough to have heard what you said. He looked as if he also felt how you felt. Hot and bothered.

   You backed out the parking lot and made your way home making a mental list of everything to do tomorrow.

Part 2 to be posted soon.

TagList:

@sarahboseman  @texasbama @heyauntieeee @airis-paris14 @thiccdaddy-mbaku @wakandas-vibranium @wakanda-inspired @theunsweetenedtruth @ashanti-notthesinger @reignsxjackson @halfrican-heat @ambthegamer @simplyyamberr @dramaqueenamby @muse-of-mbaku @sisterwifeudaku @mejustme06 @stressedgyal @ilcb7 @leahnicole1219  @destinio1 @maliadestiny @drsunshine97 @blowmymbackout @purplehairgawdess @thehuntoyobun @wakandamama @wakandawinning @profilia @zxddy-panther @h-challa @babygirlofwakanda @misswakanda2018 @ororowrites @hutchj @myfavemarvelfanfics @lavitabella87 @afraiddreamingandloving @autumn242 @purple-apricots @skysynclair19 @hersheyskissesss @blue-ishx @blublubleu @90sinspiredgirl  @tchallaswife @tchallamakesmeh0lla @turn-thy-paige @blackchickfics @blackpantherismyish @inlovewithmakeupcomicsanimelove @naturally-bri @flawlesslybeautiful14 @qweentbh @lunaerly @theoutereffect @twilight-sapphire-lover @pupyluv247 @stark-red19 @cockyboysandsugarism @maverickabull @madbadsiren @aykanna @myaw731 @ruruly20 @mixedmelanin @brittyevans @bezzywazhere @laketaj24    @taint3dvirgin @soulsparker @theresnomoregoodones @syreanne @loveandcigarillos  @heyauntieeee @heybriheyyy @wakanda-bcth @uhlxis  @maliadestiny @dadinhas-heat @yaachtynoboat711 @geeksareunique @bultalongthewayside @ajspencer1892 @captiansaveasmut @imaginewhoever @terrablaze514 @starsshines-blog @scrumptiouslytenaciouscrusade @darkandlovely94 @sithlordslut @wavyyc @naturalistamisslyn @nigarachi15 @madamslayy @blackandfair @kreolemami @mylastnameisthe-fish @kaykay0829 @chaneajoyyy @tequilajay27 @blacklotus-of-the-black-kingdom @slimmiyagi @im5ftbutmythroat66 @jaeee-http @madhatterhelsing @sunflowerpsalms @wakanda-shit-is-that @deliciousstreetkidcroissant @jecourt @vebner37 @disneysdarlingdiva @melaninmarvel @alanastormborn @dolphinpink310 @wonderbell @ohleucothea @queentearra @bitchbetterhavemydinner @fentybabyy @kaykay4454fan @priya212 @kitkit1690 @chrismarcs @beautycomesindifferentformsworld @blackpantherimagines @ovohanna24 @sweetpeachjones @kslo000 @nubian-queen18 @omgsuperstarg   @airis-paris14 @sisterwifeudaku @mejustme06 @stressedgyal @ilcb7 @leahnicole1219  @destinio1 @drsunshine97  @blue-ishx @inlovewithmakeupcomicsanimelove @prettyprincessushio @treeondrea  @ursapharoh05  @blackpinup22 @kaytauru @big3gocandykahn @kissingpineapples @ilcb7 @wildaboutchrisevans @dadinhas-heat  @fitfineandstayingalive @misspooh @michele-onel @gorjiss @blacklotus-of-the-black-kingdom @muva-milaje @limbo-limbo-limbo @awkwardlyabstract @blxck-brxndie @chrismarcs @meeky-imagines @inlovewith3 @metalarmlover @mellowjellow6 @scrumptiouslytenaciouscrusade @sweettea-and-honeybutter @thatrandomhetaliachick @missdeerstalker15 @ursapharoh05 @treeondrea @ovohanna24 @marvelheaux @romanceoftheeveryday @mufasathatniggatho @cltex84 @sweetbearcolorgarden @msincognito67 @blackpantherimagines @mosagram @lunaerly @mar-ta-3 @ljstraightnochaser @lewatigress @akimi-youngblood @beezywazhere @bekahdean87 @teechallas-blog @jasmindaughteroftheworld @cocooned-butterfly @emoniclark22 @chereedrop619 @theblulife @niggarachi15 @drsunshine97 @ursapharoh05 @msincognito67 @missdeerstalker15 @wakandamama @great-neckpectations @stressedgyal @avenger-marvel-fan @arieljamiyla @avenger-marvel-fan @vibranium-soul @monae-boss @queenxchallaxkillamonger @amirra88 @ jaeee-http @omg-itsnadi @fonville-designs @sydneebleu

[mistydacat]

Cursed || A Felinette Story || Chapter 1

Who would've thought that a seemingly ordinary Thursday afternoon, a letter would arrive in the mail that would change their life?

Marinette sure didn't.

So she was surprised when her parents called her down from her room, claiming that a letter had arrived in the mail for her.

At first, she was confused. It couldn't be from any of her friends; they could just text her. Who would send her a letter?

It must be something super important. Marinette thought to herself. People were only sent letters these days if it was an invitation to some sort of fancy event. Though, she supposed schools sent out letters sometimes as well.

Marinette tried to rack her brain for anything she could have done that would have been worth sending a letter home for, but came up with nothing. Maybe Lila had come up with another lie to get her into trouble again? However, she hadn't been in school for a while, so that didn't make sense.

But one look at her parents' faces destroyed that theory, much to her relief. They were smiling at her.

So now, she was back to confused. Instead of further dwelling on it and jumping to conclusions, like she usually did, Marinette decided to just ask.

"A letter? Who is it from?"

"Do you know that art school that's not too far from here? Lycée D'Arts en Hausse?" Her mother asked.

"Yeah?" Marinette responded, unsure of where this was going.

Her dad handed her the letter with her name printed on it. A similar envelope lay on the counter, opened. She could just make out her parents' names on it from where she was standing.

She opened up hers and began reading. 

Miss Marinette Dupain-Cheng,

We, Lycée D'Arts en Hausse's talent scouts, have found the exceptional work you have done as a designer. We have seen the world-renowned rock star, Jagged Stone's new album cover, and the Pigeon Feather hat you skillfully created for a recent Gabriel fashion show. We have unanimously agreed that your talent is something we would happily accept at this school.

Attached to this letter is a pamphlet that features some of the many things Lycee D'Arts en Hausse offers to its design students.

If you think that this school is fit for you, you can send an email to lyceedartsenhausse@gedsb.fr so we can book you an interview and start the school transferring process.

Sincerely,

Lycée D'Arts en Hausse

Marinette jaw dropped.

"No way," she breathed out, looking wide-eyed at her parents.

"It's your choice if you go or not, of course. I know you'll probably miss your friends, but you can always meet up with them on weekends and after school. You could even arrange to spend your lunch hour with them if you'd really like to," her mother said, offering her a comforting smile.

"This could be an excellent opportunity for you to get a head start in the fashion industry." Her father butted in.

Marinette, still in shock, could only nod at her parents. She was still trying to process what was happening. 

She weighed the pros and cons. On the plus side, her dad was right, this would be a great opportunity. She could go to class with other young designers like her and have a professional teacher. She would probably learn things that she wouldn't have been able to teach herself!

But, on the downside, she was moving to a new school. At her new school, she could get away from Chloe and Lila, although they don't really bother her as much as they used to. She didn't know anyone there, and, unlike what would happen if she transferred at the beginning of the year, she would be the only new student. People had already established their friend groups. What if no one wanted to talk to her? Or worse, what if there was someone ever more awful than Chloe and Lila? What would she do then?

"Marinette?"

Marinette blinked back into reality, created by her parents' worried faces.

"Sorry, I'm just... taking it all in, I guess."

Their expressions relaxed. "You can take a few days to think it over if you'd like. This is a big decision." Her mother comforted.

"Thanks, Maman. Thanks, Papa." She kissed both her parents' cheeks. "I love you both so much."

"We love you too, sweetie." Her mother smiled.

»»————- ⚜ ————-««

Marinette went up to her room. She felt that she needed to ask Tikki for her opinion, then she would video call Alya and ask for her advice.

"I'm so happy for you, Marinette!" Tikki beamed.

"Do you think I should go?" Marinette asked her.

"It would be a pretty significant change for you, but not necessarily a bad one! Think of all the new experiences you'll go through!" The kwami of creation cheered.

Marinette sighed. "I don't know. I guess I'm just..."

"Nervous?" Tikki finished for her.

She nodded.

"You have to go through changes in your life, Marinette. It's inevitable. But it makes you a stronger person." Tikki assured her.

"You're right." The young designer smiled at her. "I'm still gonna call Alya and ask for her opinion, though."

Tikki nodded. "Go ahead!"

Marinette unlocked her phone and texted Alya.

ThatOneDesigner: Hey, I need to talk to you about this super important thing.

Alya responded quickly.

ThatOneLadyblogger:???

ThatOneLadyblogger: What is it??????

ThatOneDesigner: Can I call you?

ThatOneDesigner: Sure.

Marinette hit the call button and watched as Alya's face filled the screen after she accepted.

"Hey girl, what's up?" Asked Alya.

"So... I don't know how to say this, but..." Marinette started.

"But what?"

"There's this super awesome arts school that liked my work and offered me a spot there in design!" She blurted out quickly.

Alya gasped. "Oh my gosh, Girl! That's so awesome! I'm super excited for you! Did you respond to them yet? Do you know when you're gonna start? I'm soo jealous! Oh my gosh, tell me everything!"

Marinette smiled at her best friend's reaction. How could she ever have thought she would react otherwise?

She quickly filled Alya in on all the details she knew of.

"-So, I called you to ask for your opinion." Marinette finished.

"Girl, there is no way I am letting you pass up this opportunity! Do you really have a reason not to go?" Alya told her.

Marinette pursed her lips. "Well, I was scared of what you'd think. I didn't want it to seem like I was abandoning you."

Alya let out a fake gasp. "How dare you think so lowly of me!" She yelled dramatically, striking a classic 'woe-is-me' pose. "What kind of best friend would I be if I wasn't extremely over-supportive of you going to this school? Marinette, you should be ashamed! Ashamed, I tell you!"

Both girls simultaneously burst into a fit of giggles, which then erupted into roaring laughter. They didn't stop until they were struggling to breathe, tears forming in the corners of their eyes.

Things always seemed a hundred times funnier when they came out of the mouths of your best friends.

"You know what would totally be awesome?" Alya began after (mostly) recovering from their laugh attack. "You should definitely introduce me, Nino, and Adrien to any new friends you make at your school. That way, we could have one giant friend group! Also, I'll need to run a background check and approve of all your new friends. I don't want you to befriend anyone that could potentially hurt you."

Marinette laughed. "Alya, I don't even know if I'll make any new friends."

"There is no way anyone could meet you and not instantly want to be your best friend. Literally, our whole class loves you, except Chloe, but I don't think she loves anybody. You'll make tons of new friends."

"Alya, you know what? I think I'm gonna go."

Alya squealed. "I knew I could convince you! But you have to call us every day and have lunch with us at least once a week. Also, if you're not busy, we have to meet up on weekends."

Marinette rolled her eyes playfully. "Obviously. Those are all given."

"I can't believe you're gonna go to a fancy art school!"

"Why do I feel like you're more excited about this than I am?" Marinette teased. 

"That's because I am. Overly-supportive best friend, remember?"

Marinette laughed again. Talking to Alya had really hyped her up for the move.

"I've gotta go help my mom with some stuff. See you tomorrow?"

Marinette nodded, giving her friend a little wave. "Bye!"

"Byeeee!" Alya blew a kiss at the screen, then hung up.

»»————- ⚜ ————-««

The next few days went by rather quickly. Marinette had come home from school on Friday and told her parents that she had made her decision. The next thing she did was send an email to the school telling them that she was interested in enrolling. They sent their response back rather quickly and scheduled an appointment for her, which she attended a few days later.

They mostly just gave her a tour of the building and introduced her to some potential teachers. She met the principal, Mme. Ambroise, who had seemed to be a very kind woman who genuinely cared for each one of her students.

A week later was her last day at her current school, Collège Françoise Dupont, and boy was it emotional. 

Her classmates gathered around her, offering their goodbyes and wishing her good luck. Some have even brought gifts. Rose had handed her friendship bracelet with her name on it, and a quick glance showed that the entire girl squad had one as well.

Mylene, Rose, Juleka, and Ivan had also gotten Luka to help them make her a song that she downloaded and vowed to listen to on her first day. Nino had also made a few remixes of it, so she had a variety.

Nathanial had drawn a portrait of her as a half-phoenix, to represent rebirth and starting over.

Alya had gotten her a set of brand new charcoal pencils, and Adrien had gotten her the prettiest sketchbook she had ever seen. It had the Eiffel Tower on it, which he said was because he had heard her say it inspired her. He and Alya had thought that since she would be starting at a new school, she should have some new supplies to really start off fresh. 

The gifts really touched her heart, and when it was time to hug everyone and say their last goodbyes, half the class was almost in tears.

»»————- ⚜ ————-««

Marinette was very tempted to collapse onto her bed the second she got home and contemplate her entire life, but she needed to get her things ready for the next day.

She emptied her backpack of all the workbooks and papers from her old school, but then she decided to dump everything else out so she could clean her bag. There were a lot of crumpled up papers and even if you stray pencils.

Once she was done, she put in her pencil case and a few other supplies, along with the new sketchbook and pencils she had gotten.

When Marinette was done, she realized how much spare time she had since she didn't have any homework to do, and decided to clean her room. Tomorrow was a new beginning, why not start off with a tidy bedroom?

She cleaned up and put away some stray fabrics, yarn, and thread. She also took the time to hang up the art Nathanial had given her.

Marinette stared at her walls, hesitating. Should she take the pictures of Adrien down? 

This was supposed to be the start of a new era for her, right? Adrien didn't seem to have returned any of her affections, so maybe she should move on?

No, what was she thinking!? Just because she was moving to a new school doesn't mean she was giving up!

But at the same time, what if she met someone else? Adrien was clearly uninterested, maybe she was thinking these thoughts because she had already partially moved on. She had even gotten over her stutter. 

Marinette's hand hovered over one of the pictures, then she shook her head. She would just wait and see if her feelings changed the next time she saw him.

»»————- ⚜ ————-««

Marinette spent the rest of her day helping her parents in the bakery and working on a leather skirt. She didn't usually work with leather, as it was one of the more finicky materials to sew, so she was getting some practice in.

Marinette went to sleep early that night, grateful that Hawkmoth had decided not to release an akuma that night. She hoped that maybe tomorrow she'd actually get to school on time. »»————- ⚜ ————-«« 

Cursed Masterlist

Read it on Wattpad

Read it on AO3

mistydacat Masterlist

[zephyrbcll]

In these four walls my thoughts seem to wander

Zephyr wasn’t going to deny that he was a flawed person. He knew he had shortcomings and he could even name some of them if prompted. He was a hothead, he was jealous and possessive, he didn’t enjoy sharing, he was impatient, he was prone to thinking he was right and making decisions for others, he was a little entitled and yes, he’d heard the word controlling before.

That said, Zephyr also insisted that he had good qualities, thank you very fucking much. In this case, he was supportive even if he wasn’t sure how happy he was about it.

No, he was happy for Remus. He knew that Remus wanted to be a teacher and while Dumbledore’s attitude left him a little suspicious about the man’s motives, the fact that Remus would be able to achieve something he wanted mattered to Zephyr. Besides, he thought it would be a good change of pace for Remus to take the job even if he doubted early morning classes would go over well.

So he was happy for Remus, and he’d support Remus in going after what he wanted to achieve his dreams, just like he was also proud of Remus and certain that he would do a good job.

The problem was, it also sucked.

Zephyr wasn’t sure if there was a precise time when he’d gone from wanting Remus to feel at home in the house to actually calling it home, but by the time Katie arrived, Zephyr made sure to check in with Remus about all the updates he was doing in order to make sure that Remus would feel welcome and ‘home’ was a word that generally meant wherever the other would be. 

The house wasn’t supposed to become ‘home’ because Remus’ flat blew up, but that was the way things worked out and besides, Remus still had other options and Zephyr still made a big deal out of asking Remus to move in as a counter to Remus asking if it was okay.

So maybe the circumstances weren’t perfect, but it was the perfect outcome for Zephyr, who’d been waiting for Remus to move in for months, doing his best to wait patiently for Remus to be ready because the last thing he wanted to do was rush Remus. His boyfriend, his cat, and his baby all in one place appealed to something inside of Zephyr and even if Remus spent more nights with him than not, it was nice to have it be official.

Needless to say, Zephyr was happily picturing spending the rest of his days sharing a roof with Remus and he got to experience that certainty for all of about three and a half months before he found out about the job offer.

He was happy for Remus. He was glad that Remus was getting another shot at being a professor and he knew that Remus would be good at it, Zephyr was proud of him. It just sucked to think of him moving out and living somewhere else again. Living together wasn’t supposed to be temporary, it was supposed to be permanent.

Two days after Remus told him about the job offer, Zephyr was finished feeling sorry for himself and had decided to do what he did best, which was fight.

Losing wasn’t exactly a concept that Zephyr was at peace with, he was absolutely certain that if given enough time, he could beat anything that got in his way and he was prepared to pitch a fit if that’s what it took to make sure that he was heard. 

Before that point, however, he had to do some listening of his own, which started at the radio station. He talked to the others that worked on air, then he hit up the pubs to talk to the bartenders since they always seemed to be a good source of gossip, and both places led him back to Hogsmeade, where he talked to a select group of individuals that lived not too far from the edge of the village.

After that, he wrote a letter to Hogwarts. Considering the fact that Dumblefore was supposed to secretly be in charge of an illegal group of vigilantes and running a school and also serve as part of the government to some degree that Zephyr always managed to forget since the man seemed to have multiple titles, he expected to get the runaround. Instead he was treated to a return owl later that day that assured him that he had a lunch appointment for the next day.

While Zephyr didn’t ask about it, he had a hunch that his connection with Remus and Dumbledore’s eagerness to have him on the staff was a large part of just why it was so damn easy to get a meeting with the man. Really, there was no reason why it should be that damn easy to get hold of the man, but Zephyr wasn’t going to argue about it because this just meant scheduling was one less thing he had to fight about.

“Mr. Bell,” Professor McGonagall stated when he arrived the next day. “You’re early.”

“Professor McGonagall,” Zephyr responded in kind, a well ingrained respect for women making sure that Zephyr minded his manners. “Believe it or not, I’m actually pretty punctual.”

“I’m sure. I’ll show you to Professor Dumbledore’s office. This way.” Something about the pinch of her lips made it seem like she wasn’t swayed either way by him being early or on time, but since she was showing him to Dumbledore’s office and not having him wait on a bench somewhere for the next twenty minutes, Zephyr didn’t think it was too much of a problem.

Following her through long corridors and up moving stairs, Zephyr thought it was some sort of mind game to expect students to remember where everything was and he wondered absently what happened if a student was ever pushed or throwing off the staircases while they were moving, if there was some sort of safety measure in place or if they’d simply fall to their doom. 

What floor were they even on? 

“Here we are, Mr. Bell,” McGonagall stated as she stopped in front of a large statue and Zephyr wasn’t stupid, he didn’t need to see a door to figure out they’d made it considering it hadn’t been that long ago that he was crawling through portraits and sneaking around through secret tunnels hidden behind statues in this very castle. 

“Thanks.” Despite the fact he was quite a bit taller than her (which wasn’t unusual, he was taller than most people, thank you very much), Zephyr had the feeling that the deputy headmistress viewed him the same as she would an unruly first year that wasn’t appreciative in the least of the trouble he’d found themselves in, but he meant what he said and for reasons she likely didn’t know. “Seriously, thank you.”

“Good luck with your meeting.” She told him, still sounding as if she had better things to do than escort an American visitor around. “Fizzing Whizbees!”

About the moment that Zephyr had to wonder what candy had to do with the conversation, the statue began to twist to reveal a staircase and McGonagall turned to walk away, apparently not too worried about what he would do once Dumbledore was finished with him. He didn’t know if she was always so abrupt or if she had some aversion to Americans, but Zephyr was endeared to her and grinned at her back before taking his way to the steps.

The closer he made it to the top, the more focused Zephyr became on his mission, the encounter with McGonagall having bolstered his confidence and his determination not to take ‘no’ for an answer. Daisy had told Zephyr once that he wasn’t someone you won an argument against and he planned on proving her right on that.

The door was partially open when he made it to his destination and Dumbledore either heard him or had something that alerted him of the presence of others because Zephyr hadn’t made it halfway to the door before he heard a voice say, “Come in.”

Good thing, too, because Zephyr hadn’t exactly been planning to knock.

“Professor Dumbledore, I want to have a word with you.” Zephyr started as soon as he entered the room, pushing the door shut behind himself and hearing it slam a little harder than he’d necessarily meant to. While there was certainly plenty in Dumbledore’s office to distract a guest and prompt them to stare, Zephyr kept his attention focused on Dumbledore like a man on a mission, not even giving the Phoenix off to one side more than a cursory glance.

“I know you want Remus as your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Fuck, I know you wanted him before the start of the year and I get it, he’s fucking brilliant and from the sounds of it, he spent enough time tutoring back when he was in school that he might as well have been a teacher. And it’s just the first four years, right? After that, they go to someone else, so he gets the beginners, the kids that need to have a good teacher and not someone that will shit on them the first time they don’t get something right and Remus has a good understanding of the basics and hell, he’s a better wizard now than he was when he was in school.” Zephyr ranted, opting to ignore the chair in front of Dumbledore’s desk in favor of pacing, waving his hand through the air to emphasize his point.

Dumbledore, for his part, didn’t say anything. Instead he sat with his fingers steeped beneath his chin, half moon spectacles appearing in danger of slipping off his nose as he watched Zephyr with what seemed to be an amused, indulgent expression that went unnoticed by its recipient.

“And yeah, I know I wasn’t in school with him, so how the fuck can I say I know he’s better? Simple fucking logic, people get better at things over time and not only that, but I trained him. We went out and worked on spells together, on wandless and nonverbal magic and you know what he did? He worked on it. He’s dedicated and hardworking and so fucking smart, he sounds like he swallowed the textbook, I know this and I’m sure you know it, too.” During his rant, Zephyr never seemed to stop for breath until he came to a pause before Dumbledore’s desk, staring at the man intently and finally getting around to the point of his visit.

Sucking in a deep breath, Zephyr rolled his shoulders and continued, “I understand why you want him here, but here’s the thing. You don’t need him here. Not all the time. Look, I did my research. Professor McGonagall lived in Hogsmeade until her husband died last year in one of the Death Eater attacks. She taught here without actually living here for years, so I know there’s precedent for it.

“And yeah, I know she’s deputy headmistress and you can say that’s special circumstances, she was married and all that, but these are special, too. Remus and I have a kid, okay, he should get to see her grow up instead of just visiting on weekends. I know she’s not the only one either, I hear you had a professor once that lived in the Leaky Cauldron with his wife, so you can’t say that Mcgonagall gets away with it before of her position. And even if she did, you already have a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor living in the castle. You don’t need Remus here, but Katie and I, we do. We need him.”

There was silence for a moment, a slight note of desperation having crept into Zephyr’s voice by the end. There wasn’t any reason that Dumbledore should insist on Remus living in the castle unless he was up to some trick and the fixation the man showed in hiring Remus as well as the way Remus reacted to the first job offer left Zephyr with the worry that Dumbledore had an ulterior motive, the uncertainty leaving an unpleasant taste in his mouth.

“Ah.” Dumbledore said finally. “You must be Mr. Bell.”

It was at that moment that Zephyr realized he’d forgotten to introduce himself, but he didn’t falter in his stance.

Lowering his hands and gesturing towards the chair, Dumbledore smiled kindly as he said, “Why don’t we chat, dear boy?”

[axelsagewrites]

Fred Weasley*Afterlife

Ship(s): Fred x reader, platonic!maruaders x reader

Request: nope

Warnings: Death

Masterlist HERE

Wattpad HERE

People were trickling in here one by one. Occasionally we’d have a bigger burst of them. The only job up here was too great them.

Sure, people die all the time but there are different sectors they send the newbies too. You can travel through the sectors but the older the sector the fewer visitors. They try to put you in a sector with people you mention in your paperwork.

Because of the number of people and sectors work was normally slow but I still preferred this job. I’m always meeting new people as a greeter.

Our sector is separated from the muggles and only squibs can visit with special passes. This meant when tragedies happened, we had less inflow than the muggle areas. Tsunami’s and other natural disasters cause a spike in numbers. The world wars must’ve really screwed the muggle sectors over.

Recently though we’d been hit hard. The wizarding war was going on. Voldemort was a prick and now he’s making the job harder. Every time there was a battle it was even worse. Luckily processing alerts, us when their queues getting long. Man, I'd hate that job.

The red light started flashing meaning we had a rush come in. the rushes normally lasted a couple days because of the paperwork and formalities. Someone told me it was a battle at Hogwarts or something like that. Everyone was scared and confused.

To get from processing to greetings they have to go through something like the floo network where they show at a random greeter in the sector, they’ve been placed in. I only had one more before a break. Thank merlin.

I sat in my swivel chair with my feet on my admittedly too messy desk when the fireplace lit up blew and suddenly there was Ia tall ginger standing in my office, gawking at everything. I kinda stared at him for a few seconds till he noticed me. Before he could say anything, I stood up “I’m (Y/N) and you are,” I held my hand up and his file materialised in my hand. He jumped, “Fred Weasley?” He nodded, “Perfect. Have a seat,”

“What is this place?” he asked as he took a seat at my desk.

Dropping his file onto my desk, I sat down, “They didn’t explain it to you?” I asked as I opened my computer. Thank merlin for computers. If I had to handwrite this id go insane.

“Well kind of but they were pretty um busy,” he looked down.

I nodded, glancing at the cause of death on his file, “Hogwarts?” I asked and he nodded, “Okay so basically you’re dead. Standard questions include, where am I? who are you? Can I go back? And what about my family? So basically, you’re in the afterlife. I’m (Y/N), I’ll be your greeter. My job is to make sure you understand, and things run smoothly. You’ll have a meeting with me about every two weeks for the first few months. No, you can’t go back. I’m not death, I don’t make the rules. And finally, any dead family members you can travel around the afterlife to meet and you can watch over the alive ones if you choose,” I said. His mouth was partly open, and he was just staring at me, “Simple really,” I said.

I turned to my computer since his e-file had shown up. “How do I know if my families alive?”

“I can look it up,” I mumbled as I filled some basic stuff in, “but we need to do some stuff first.” I went through a list of standard questions and organised everything. “Okay so we do give you a job assignment at first but that’s just to keep your mind off…other things? Either way, you do that, but you can quit after a month and then you can work or not. It's whatever really. you’ll be assigned a house or flat. You only get to move if you’re family size increases or you follow the standard moving system. The computers just generating your accommodation and you’ll get your job assignment some point this week. Understand?” Fred slowly nodded. “You’ll get used to it. Any questions?”

“My family. How do I- “

“I’ll pull it up,” I say as I click on the family section, “how many years do you want to go back?”

“Um, I don’t know. 10 I guess?”  I nodded and typed in the information. “I have brothers and a sister. I wanted to check on them,”

“Coolio. Well, this is either good or bad news,” I said, turning to look at him, “They're not in the system.” I said which made his face scrunch up, “They’re alive. Theirs no parents either so they're alive as well. Only deceased people show up on this. I can look up any deceased pets and request for them to be sent over here,”

“No that’s okay,” Fred looked down at his lap. “Is it bad that I wanted one of them to be dead?” he whispered.

I took a deep breath, “I get it. I was 19 when I came here. Its been 20 years and I’m the only one of my immediate family. It’s hard because you want them to be happy, but you also want them here. There is a place for you to go watch over them but try not to get sucked in,”

“Can I go there? I-I want to see them.” Fred’s eyes were watering up. Most people were sad coming here but this time I completely got it. Id fell in that loop of endlessly watching my family. “Please?” his voice cracked.

“Okay,” I nodded, standing up. “Follow me,”

The standard viewing areas were normally extremely busy, but we had one in our office for newbies. Fred was hesitant to step onto the cloud floor “You need to trust me,” I said, stepping onto it, “See?” He nodded and copied me then we walked down the corridor till we found an empty section.

Once we got to a free one, I walked in and shut the door, Fred follows me. “This is your ID number and password,” I handed him a piece of paper, “Type it in there,” I pointed to the screen. He nodded, taking the paper and quickly punching in the numbers, “Okay now go to the menu, click watch, now you can scroll through and pick. Families automatically added but we can add more people at your request,”

Fred had already clicked on one before I could finish. “Why can’t I see anything?” He asked, frantic.

“Copy me,” I stepped into the screen. A wave of cold then a hot flashed ran over me then I was standing in a shoddy looking house.

A second later a pop was heard, and Fred was beside me. “George!” He said, rushing over to a boy who looked just like him? “Why can’t he hear me?”

“Because you’re not there. We’re watching,” I said. “He’s your twin?” Fred nodded, “Is this all your family?”

Fred looked around the room and nodded, “Yeah,” he gulped, “Mum, dad, Ginny, Ron, Charlie, bill…” he stared at one boy, “Percy. He finally was coming back,” he started to cry.

“I’ll let you be alone. I'll wait in that room okay?” Fred nodded.

Fred took a while, but I didn’t mind. When he arrived back his eyes were red and puffy. “How do you cope?” He asked.

“You just have too,” I shrugged, “this is it. You don’t get sick here, you don’t die here, I mean you can dream in your sleep,” I don’t mention ghosts and angels, not wanting to get his hopes up, “You kind of have to find a new family while you wait for your old one,”

“That’s sick,” he said, the words sounding venomous, “They’re my family,”

“And they're alive. And you're dead! If life isn’t fair death is a whole lot worse,” I snapped.

Fred went silent. “How long have you been here?”

“17 years,” I whispered.

“Your family?”

“Alive and well. Hell, even my grandparents are kicking it. One healthy family, I guess,”

“How did you die?” Fred asked. My eyes widened. “Sorry, it’s just I- “

“It's alright,” I said “People don’t normally ask. Have you heard of the order of the phoenix?” I asked and he nodded, “I was a part of that. my friends were in hiding and I had been on a mission. I got home early and wanted to surprise them. I was going to go to my family but-but I didn’t,” I took a deep breath, “but when I got to Lily’s the door was open. James was already dead. I went upstairs and everything went so fast. Lily hit the ground as I walked in., he didn’t see me at first. He was going for the baby. I did what I had to do- “I was rambling, “There was chaos for a few seconds then silence. My heartfelt like it had been stretched like gum and next thing I knew I was at processing,”

“I’m sorry,” Fred said after what felt like an eternity.

“It's not your fault. Hell, you were probably a baby,” I tried to chuckle, “For so long I regretted it. I wanted nothing more than to go back and tell myself to go see my mum. I ended up here every day for hours just watching. Watching is the bit that hurts. On birthdays and special occasions sure. I got to watch my brother’s wedding last week,”

“I-I don’t think I can do this,” Fred stammered.

“I still don’t think I can. But I do. I wake up every morning and I keep going. I’m here for you Fred. I will help you,”

Turns out I was there for him more than I thought. He moved into my apartment complex and was just down the hallway. He met my friends and it turned out he knew Lily’s kid. Sometimes the table looked quite awkward because of how the age system worked. Sirius and James didn’t look like a pair that would be friends.

Years and decades went on and Fred and I started dating, something I never thought I would do in the afterlife. We’d both died so young without partners that it made it easier. As years went on more people joined us. My grandparents, a couple of his aunts, even my old dog.

Fred, James, and Sirius were at work but had agreed to meet me and Lily on our lunch break. As we waited Lily broke into a smile. “What?” I glanced over my shoulder.

“That’s Molly,” She said, “I need to go say thank you. Come with me,”

“what?”

“Please?” She said, grabbing my arm.

I sighed, “Fine okay,” I followed her.

Well, this was one way to meet my boyfriends mum. She looked frantic and puzzled than she saw Lily, “Ginny? No dear what- “

It's Lily,” She cut her off, “It's okay. Sometimes faces get confusing when you first arrive.” Molly’s face crumpled, “It's okay. Ginny’s alive and well,”

“How do you know that?” She snapped.

Lily looked at me. I held in a sigh, “I saw her the other day while you were sleeping. Harry will be with her,”

“How do you know this? How can you see her?”

“Did processing not explain this?” I asked. She shook her head, “You had Karren, didn’t you?” Molly nodded. I turned to Lily “we have got to get her fired,” I whispered. Lily nodded profusely.

“What’s going on? Fired from- “

“Mum?!” I looked to see Fred, James, and Sirius. Fred rushed over, “Mum!” Fred wrapped his arms around her.

Molly engulfed him in a hug, running a hand over his hair, “It’s really you Fred. It’s you,”

“It's me, mum,” I could hear him holding in sobs.

Eventually, they pulled away, “You haven’t aged a day,” Molly said, wiping tears away.

“I did always want to stay young forever,” he joked. Molly laughed. Fred looked over at me, “Mum this is (Y/N). They work at processing,”

“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Weasley,”

“You too dear. How do you know each other?” she asked.

Fred put his arm around me, “We’re dating,”

“You can do that here?” she said.

I couldn’t help but chuckle, “Yes. Let us show you around. Their nothing to worry about,”

[lolainblue]

Phoenix -- Chapter 15

Jane wrapped her arms around my neck and stood up on her tiptoes, drawing me into a heated kiss. She sighed as I deepened it, her palm coming to rest on my cheek, her fingertips brushing the ridge of my cheekbone. With a sigh of my own, I pulled her closer, feeling the firmness of her underneath the thin fabric of her sundress as I flattened my palms against her back. There was strength in that tiny frame, I could feel it as her muscles shifted with her movements. I was lost in the dichotomy of it when Jane pulled back.

“Jared?” she whispered, her voice slightly dreamy.

“Mmm hmmm,” I mumbled as I attempted to reconnect my lips to hers. Jane, however, was determined to ask her question.

“Why did you do all this?”

“What do you mean? I just wanted to give you a good birthday,” I mumbled as I trailed kisses against her shoulder…

Jane took another step back, forcing me to stop. “I'm serious.”

“Jane, I'm not sure what you're asking me. I really just thought it would be a great surprise for your birthday. I wanted to do something really nice. Make this a birthday you'd remember.”

“But why?” Jane frowned and I could hear the distrust in her voice.

“I don't understand. Two minutes ago you were thrilled. What's the problem?”

“Are we okay?” She stepped back into reach again, placing her hands over mine. “You don't have to prove anything, you know. I knew what I was getting into with you. I don't expect you to fly to the other side of the world for dinner with me every time you think I might be lonely.”

“Jane...” I took her hands in mine and pulled them against my chest. “It's your birthday. The first one I've been around for. It's special to me too. It's not just because I thought you might be lonely.”

“I'm sorry. I don't mean to spoil things. I just don't want you thinking that you have to prove anything to me, or that this is some sort of competition. There isn't anyone else in my life right now. I meant it when I said I hadn't had time. That hasn't changed. I just thought you were worth trying a little harder for.”

I smiled and wrapped my arms around her waist, giving her a quick cuddle. “I know. I could have just sent a card or some more flowers, but as I said, I wanted this to be special too. And I missed you.”

Jane seemed to relax at that, her arms finding their way back up to my shoulders. “I missed you too. This really was a wonderful surprise. Thank you.”

“You know, I was doing some thinking on the flight here. I realized you had just turned twenty-one right before we met you in that diner.”

“About a month before, yeah,” she confirmed.

“You were still a baby, practically.”

“We were all so young then,” she pointed out. “Not that we're old now but... God. It seems like it was so long ago sometimes, you know?”

“You've only gotten better with age, Jane. I hope you know that.”

She gave me a misty-eyed smile. “You too.”

“Happy Birthday, Janey,” I told her. “I'm glad I got to spend it with you.”

“I am too.”

We fell back into each other's arms after that, that familiar warm desire filling me as our lips fused and my fingers tangled in her curls. Jane seemed to sway with every breath, a gentle rhythm that increased the more rousing our makeout session became. Her fingers again feathered across my face, mapping it, until she slipped one between our lips, holding mine closed while her head fell back.

“Let me put some music on...” she said in that same dreamy voice, her eyes opening slowly before she turned to engage her music player. I started moving a little with the music, and when she turned back to me her lips curled up in a smile and she seemed to be stifling a giggle.

“What?”

“Nothing,” she said quickly, trying to settle down but I could tell the giggle was still there. “You just... you look so...”

“Damn sexy?” I supplied, finding myself grinning back at her. “Hey, how about a stripper for your birthday?” I started unbuttoning my shirt and rolling my hips with the rhythm of the music.

“You are so ridiculous...” she laughed.

“Hey, I am a professional. I used to be a stripper you know...”

“Liar. You were not a stripper.”

“Sure I was. But it was a long time ago...”

“You move like you're standing against the wall at the seventh-grade dance with the rest of the chess club. There's no way anyone paid you to do that.”

“Ouch!” I clutched my chest and pulled a face. “These hips...”

“Should be put to far better use,” Jane supplied, pressing back in against me, her eyes crinkled with mischief.

“Oh, but I have something in mind, birthday girl,” I said, taking her hand and leading her across the room.

“I bet you do.”

I shrugged mysteriously before sitting Jane down on the end of the bed. Once again moving with the music I resumed unbuttoning my shirt, tossing it playfully over her head once I had removed it. She laughed as she pulled it aside, but her eyes grew wide when I dropped to my knees in front of her.

“Oh, I think I like where this is going...” Jane purred, flattening her hands on the mattress and leaning back as I moved into position.

“I thought you might.”

I placed one hand on the outer side of each ankle, rolling them across her skin as I traced my fingertips up the back of her calves, our eyes locked on one another. When I reached her knees I placed a kiss on each one before parting them, my fingers then sliding up the downy soft skin of her thighs while I moved in closer to her. Jane watched with heavy-lidded eyes, her delicate lips slightly parted. When I reached the curve of her hips and my hands found the silky material of her panties I paused, rising up and leaning in to taste that luscious mouth. Jane reached for my head, sliding her fingers into my hair as if to anchor me to her. I had other plans, however, and as I began pulling her underwear down her shapely legs I pulled back myself, leaning away as I maneuvered pink lace over her pointed toes and out of my way.

I pulled Jane a little closer to the edge of the bed with a tug on her thighs, carefully tucking the skirt of her dress up over hips, and then set in to tease her. Her skin was even softer under my mouth, and I enjoyed the way she whimpered when I caught it between my teeth. The longer I lingered there between her parted legs, her scent filling my nostrils, writing promises on her skin with my tongue, the more she opened up to me. There were fewer freckles here than on other parts of her body, her skin almost milky in its smoothness, private territory that was perpetually hidden from the sun, there just for me. It wasn't easy to not give in and simply take her right then – I could almost feel how good that silken pink orifice I was so carefully avoiding would feel wrapped around my already aching erection, but where would have been the fun in that? Any guy could give her a quick fuck. The last thing I wanted to be to her was just any guy.

I blew gently across Jane's core, casting my eyes up just in time to see her head fall back in pleasure. I grazed my fingers over her slick mound and I watched her, her tongue moistening her lips, her chest rising and falling in deep rhythm as I let the tension build. With a whimper she slid forward, wiggling her hips enticingly, but I had no intention of being hurried. Sticking to my leisurely pace I began to delve slightly deeper into her folds, peppering the swell of her stomach with kisses, knowing how badly she wanted me to move those kisses lower.

'Please....” Jane whined, giving those hips another shimmy.

“Well, since you asked so nicely...”

I drew my tongue lazily through her folds, giving a little attention to the ripe bud their apex. As I continued to torment her I was awarded with appreciative moans and pleas for more. By the time I breached her with a single probing digit she was a needy mess, her hair wild from being tossed, her fingers in her mouth as she struggled to maintain control.

“Oh god, Jared...” she whined again as I filled her with another finger before sucking her clit between my lips. I had to take my free hand to anchor her hips down, she was squirming so much. She mewled and purred as I continued, ramping up the intensity of her vocalizations, filling the candlelit room with their sounds until her pleasure finally spilled over. The muscles in her legs were twitching as I removed them from shoulders and stood up in front of her.

After the way she had just come I expected her to look a little dazed and loopy but, even though she was breathing hard, Jane just grinned back at me, mischief in her eyes, and pulled her dress off over her head. I went to finish disrobing too, racing to get a condom out of my pocket before pulling my pants off, but Jane was too far ahead of me. She only had to unfasten her bra, and she flung that at me like I had thrown my shirt at her earlier, then hopped on the bed on her knees. I realized there was nothing shy about Jane in the bedroom, she didn't mind showing her eagerness. It was a huge turn on for me.

Once I was ready I joined Jane on the bed, kneeling in front of her, placing my hand behind her head and scooping her lips to mine. I tried to press her back against the mattress but she didn't bend, instead placing her hands on my shoulders and giving me a little shove.

“I wouldn't be naughty if I were you,” I playfully admonished her. “We still haven't had the birthday spanking portion of the evening.”

“I'm not...” Jane trailed off and then shook her head and rolled her eyes. “I just want to be on top this time. Lie down.”

“What if I don't want to?”

“Now who's being naughty?”

I turned around so that my back was against the headboard and sat down instead, pulling Jane into my lap. It must have been acceptable because she didn't argue, letting me run my thumb over her swollen lips before stealing another kiss. As she reached between us to guide me inside her I placed my hand behind her neck, pressing our foreheads together. I couldn't resist watching her face as I filled her, her body intimately molding itself around mine, and she closed her eyes again as pleasure overtook her.

I couldn't keep my eyes off of her as she moved with me, her hips circling and retreating, little sighs escaping her lips. I smoothed her hair away from her face, watching some of her wildness dissolve, feeling something far more intimate charge the air between us. Once again I couldn't get over the wonder of having her in my arms, this strange, gentle, and fierce creature. I didn't know if I was just drunk on lust or if it was really something more, the lines all blurred when I was with her.

“Jane....” I whispered, feeling dizzy, not knowing what I needed to say but knowing I needed to say her name.

Jane kissed me again, nibbling at my bottom lip. I knew then that I needed to get control again, my skin was singing and everything was throbbing along with my rapid heartbeat, not just the part of me that was currently sliding in and out of Jane's sweet quivering depths. I grabbed her hair and pulled back on it, causing her to expose her throat which I then devoured with a savageness that surprised me. It wasn't enough. Whatever wild thing that been quelled in Jane was rising up in me, and I grabbed her waist, throwing her back against the bed before moving over her.

I entered her again with a growl, driving my hips forward with a primitive hunger. Jane gasped and drew her legs around me, absorbing this assault with the same enthusiasm she had shown all evening. Her cries became frantic as I went on, and she slipped her hand between us, searching for the tense junction of our bodies. It seemed to me that she was always impatient like that, ready for the finish, and this time I wasn't having it.

I pulled out and spun her around, intending to come in again from behind, but I had tossed her so carelessly onto her back previously that we were already near the edge of the bed. The new change in position pushed Jane over, her hands ending up on the floor to break her fall, the rest of her still on the bed, laid out in front of me. I realized that this effectively took her hands out of the equation, unless she wanted to end up face down on the carpet, and so I seized the opportunity. I brought my open palm against one of the firm globes of her bottom, a resounding smack echoing off the walls.

“I guess now we're up to the birthday spankings,” I joked before repeating the process on the other side. Jane squealed and laughed, but much to my relief did not try to wriggle away. I repeated the process again, one on each side. “Well, that's four. Only twenty-eight more to go.”

“You wouldn't,” Jane said, attempting to balance on one hand as she tried to put the other between us.

I moved her hand out of the way. “Try me.”

I brought my hand down again, a little harder this time, and Jane made a noise I couldn't quite decipher. I rubbed the reddened skin the blow had left behind, waiting for a reaction. She eventually turned and looked back at me, biting her lip uncertainly before placing the hand that she had been trying to shield herself with back on the floor.

“Twenty-seven,” she said shakily.

I couldn't really tell what she was getting out of this, if she liked it or not or was simply curious, but I could hear the uncertainty in her voice. Still, something in my veins surged in excitement. I decided to proceed carefully. I connected three more times, more softly than the last one. I noticed Jane's breathing had sped up and her head was all the way down now, her hair brushing against the floor. I tried again, twice, and a bit firmer, and apparently I had hit some magic medium because the next sound out of her was definitely a groan of pleasure.

I massaged her skin again, noting how red it already was, owing I'm sure to her fair complexion. “Twenty-two,” I pointed out before proceeding, this time going for five before stopping. This brought a long whimper out of her but she still hadn't tried to move away or stop me.

“Seventeen,” she finally panted out, and I thought I caught a note of defiance in her voice. I figured we'd test the waters all the way and went through the next ten in rapid succession, making sure to hit the last two on the same place.

“Oh god...” Jane wailed, breathing so fast now her shoulders seemed to shake. From the reaction I was getting I was a little surprised that she hadn't happened on this particular activity before, but she seemed to be as surprised by her own reaction as I was. I suppose having a guy smack your ass while he's pounding away isn't exactly the same thing as actually being spanked. We'd talk about it later but I was certain she was in novel territory here. “Seven,” she asserted once she had calmed down again.

I took my time through the next five, making her count back to me after each one. When we were down to two I brought her back up on her knees. I trailed kisses down her spine as I kneaded her abused backside, listening to the pleasured little sounds she was making. I pulled up again without warning, my hand connecting for the final two blows before plunging my cock back into her. She shouted and grabbed the carpeting underneath her, instantly coming apart as I drilled her as fast and hard as I dared. In minutes I was surrendering too, spilling with a groan felt like it should have made the lampshades rattle. Jane collapsed as soon as I finished, causing both of us to tumble to the floor where we lay spent for a few minutes before I eventually got up and tossed the condom I had been using into the trash. I grabbed my briefs and pulled them on before sitting back down next to Jane.

“You okay? “ I asked as I helped her sit up.

“Uh huh,” she slurred, a smile already creeping in at the corners of her mouth. She gave herself another minute to catch her breath and then crawled across the room, grabbing something from a bottom drawer before getting up and walking toward the bathroom. “Wait there,” she instructed.

Jane emerged again a few minutes later in fresh underwear and a Pink Floyd t-shirt, her face and hair freshened up. She grabbed and a few cold bottles of water from the fridge and the cake off the table, and walked back to where I was sitting on the floor in front of the bed before sitting it down between us. She handed me a water and then happily stuck her fingers into the cake and tore off a piece, turning it so that the newly mangled side was facing her and the fresh one was facing me. She made a few happy purring noises as she took a bite. “Wow, this is really good.”

I grabbed a piece myself, and after I had sampled it I had to agree. “Sorry about the lack of utensils,” I apologized.

Jane shrugged. “It's kind of fun this way.”

“Are you sure you're okay?”I asked again. “I kind of got the impression that the spanking thing was new for you.”

Jane shrugged again, and this time I'd swear I could see her blushing, the first hint of shyness I had ever seen out of her in the bedroom. “Yeah. I am and it was but...” She grinned and dropped her eyes. “I'm good. And so were you.”

I reached over and drew up her chin, sliding back in for a frosting flavored kiss. “You know, I can go grab that box that Roger sent....”

Jane gave me a playful shove. “Don't push your luck.” She took a long swig of her water. “God, I hope I don't wake Marisol. She probably thinks I'm some crazed sex fiend over here.”

“Maybe I'll send her some flowers.”

“It probably wouldn't hurt.” Jane slid the cake forward and scooted in next to me, tucking herself under my arm. “I had a really great day today. Thank you.”

I pulled her against my chest. “I did too. I wish it wasn't going to be so long until we got to see each other again. But I've got the VMAs, and then Japan....”

“Hey, we knew what we were getting into with this. Let's not get too caught up in what we can't have and just enjoy the time we do get to spend together. Maybe I can fly out and see you next time.”

“Maybe. Emma should have sent Marisol my schedule. I know she has yours.”

“I'm sure she did. And maybe we can make the Kathmandu thing work too. I know you'd have a blast and I've never brought a friend along before.”

I felt that in my stomach. “Friend?”

Jane's shoulders tensedl. “Jared, you know what I mean.”

“I didn't think we were just friends.”

“I didn't say just friends. I said friend. You're still my friend.”

“I thought I was more than that.”

“You are, Jared. How am I not making myself clear here? Being a friend is a valuable thing. We can be so much more to each than that, sure, but we have to be friends first. If not, what kind of a relationship do we have? If we aren't friends, at the end of the day, aren't we just fucking?”

“We are not just fucking.”

“I know that.”

“Then I don't understand why you can't at least call me your boyfriend.”

“Because that comes with some responsibilities I'm not sure I can fulfill.”

I set my water bottle down with a grunt. “And we're back to thinking I'm a whore.”

“Wow. Are you always this cranky after sex?”

“Jane, I don't see why you can't see how crazy I am about you. If we can still be friends and date, then why does being my girlfriend come with so many stipulations in your mind? I want a word to tell people you're more than someone I order pizza with on the weekends sometimes. The details of that relationship are our business.”

“It's not the stipulations that I think it comes with that are the problem.”

I sighed. She was probably right. I was pushing not just because I wanted to be able to talk about her, but also because I wanted Jane to be mine, completely mine, not available for someone else to come along and scoop up. “I promise I won't expect anything from you that you aren't willing or ready to give me, Jane. Can we just at least make it semi-official that we are indeed dating? You can be my girlfriend who is keeping her options open and we'll just shorten that to girlfriend when I introduce you to someone.”

Jane laughed. “You are so damn stubborn. I have a stubborn boyfriend."

"Almost as stubborn as my girlfriend."

@thepromiseofanend​ @msroxyblog​ @nikkitasevoli​@llfd1977​@mustlove6277​@fyeahproudglambert​ @little-poptart​ @snewsome756​@guccilowell​ @monicasanoli​ @lady-grinning-soul-k​ @pandaliciouz​

[prodigyduck]

That Time I Almost Got Mercedes Lackey Killed...

So let me tell you about Gen Con 2018 and how I almost got Award-Winning novelist Mercedes Lackey killed...

 To get the story started, you'll need to know that I am acquainted with New York Times Best Selling Novelists Larry Dixon and Mercedes Lackey. If you are unfamiliar with their work:

 * Misty is the author of over 100 fantasy novels. She also has a successful superhero series under her belt. And despite being in her 60s, does not look like she is going to stop writing anytime soon.

 * Larry is also an author, who has collaborated with Misty on several Valdemar novels. He is a fantastic illustrator. Both are avid bird enthusiasts. Remember the giant eagles from Lord of the Rings? Those are thanks to the film and footage taken by Larry. The same footage has been used by Weta Workshop to create the griffons in the Narnia and Warcraft films.

 So, anywho...

 Larry recently succumbed to an old shoulder injury he received during his days as a volunteer fire fighter. It was pretty bad. He had limited mobility, had to wear a sling, and could not lift more than 5 pounds for risk of tearing his shoulder out of its socket. As it was only three weeks from Gen Con, and they had already promised their fans they would be there, Larry asked if I could drive Misty to Gen Con and watch over her during the convention. They were also going to be sharing a booth space with my favorite independent film crew Zombie Orpheus Entertainment; for whom Larry has been doing script writing recently.

 Previous to this, I was not planning to attend Gen Con this year. Financially, 2018 has not been a good year for me. I have been making enough money to pay my share of the household bills and groceries. But I have not been making enough to save up for extra fun things like vacations or conventions. Ah, the life of a freelancer! So, getting asked to go to Gen Con was made me very happy. Knowing that the room and expenses would be covered helped greatly! All I really needed to do was acquire a badge and save up as much money as I could for the next three weeks to have a little extra spending cash for the dealer room.

 In the three weeks leading up to Gen Con, I had managed to accumulate about $300 of extra spending cash. Not bad, but not nearly as much as I usually have to spend in previous years. However, the week before we leave, Rogue Genius Games drops $1,500 on me for recent sales of my newly-released Super Powered Legends Sourcebook. Suddenly, all of my financial worries for Gen Con vanish! Yay!

 Sunday -- four days before Gen Con -- my friends marc and Tom drop me off at Larry and Misty's home so I can spend the next day helping with packing and sorting. About 10 AM Monday morning, we have a tsunami roll through the area and it knocks out the electricity. Given the rural area, the power does not get turned back on until 4 AM the following day. Needless to say, we were able to get nothing done with no power available. Tuesday is a mad rush to get everything done that we had not done Monday. Books are packed, posters and art prints are signed, Larry is trying to put EVERYTHING in the Ford Flex -- and I do mean everything! He wants us to take a giant printer, camera tripods, and several Go-Pros for ZOE to use. My foot goes down at 3 PM. Nothing more is going in that vehicle and we are leaving. Larry is literally trying to give us more stuff as we are backing out of the driveway. Bye, Larry... bye!

 Once we get on the road, everything goes smoothly! We have driven through St.  Louis, Missouri around 9 PM and stop at a Motel for the night at 10 PM. The next morning, we awaken at 11, get some breakfast, and go. According to the GPS, we are only three and a half hours from Indianapolis. And, thanks to smooth traffic, we get there in that time. Check in to our hotel, I go and grab my badge from the VIG Lounge, deliver some buttons I made for BJ Hensley, and all is good!

 Thursday, everything goes great. I escort Misty to all her seminars. At the first one, I get to meet the authors of the Expanse! When we get to her autograph signing time, she lets me know that I am free to do what I want for the rest of the day, and I go through the dealer room. First day of Gen Con done! That evening, Misty lets me know that she only has one seminar to attend at 4 PM the next day and that she will otherwise be at the ZOE booth until then. I am otherwise free to do what I want until 4.

 Then Friday...

 Misty's 9:00 alarm goes off and she re-sets it. But she does not get out of bed. Seeing she wants more sleep, I make quick use of the bathroom, dress, and make my way out. It's 10:00 Misty is still asleep, as far as I can tell. I am standing in line to sell some miniatures at the CoolStuffInc booth when Larry calls me at 11:30 to tell me that Misty has had a stroke and my stomach drops to my feet. She is currently at the hospital. I run back to the room, and try to answer all the doctor's questions that I can. I pack an overnight bag for Misty, which is grabbed by her ZOE handler, Judy, and taken to the hospital. Otherwise, I am in the hotel room alone for most of the day, fretting and worried. I get calls every couple of hours for updates. At 4, I am coaxed out of the room by Larry, who convinces me to put on my game face and help show the con that we are still there for the fans. The show must go on.

 I still can't help but feel like shit because I was not there for Misty when she needed me.

 I finally get some food -- my first in the day -- about 9 PM.

 Saturday, I am awoken by a phone call. Misty is okay. I was NOT a stroke. In fact, it was a toxic reaction to the outgassing of the new room we were staying in. The hotel wanted to impress Misty with its newest-refurbished room, not realizing they needed to let it vent from all the paint and redecorating. And given we were 11 stories up, none of the windows are able to open for outdoor ventilation. But, Misty is otherwise okay. I am up and out to the ZOE booth. The show must go on. We are here for the fans!

 I have a curtain call for the Gamers: LIVE! show at 11:40 AM. At 11:20, Misty calls me to say I should gather my things in the room, as the hotel will be moving us to a room that is not so... newly refurbished; one that has already undergone its full outgassing period. I am internally screaming my entire way to the room, throw everything into my suitcase on the bed, and run all the way back to ICC 500, where the show will be. I am pouring sweat from what should have been a 30 minute round-trip done in 15 minutes. But I am there for the show!

 Obviously, I sucked, because I have no improv skills -- especially when compared to the comedy talent of the ZOE crew -- which is why I quit acting during my Jr. High School years. But where I missed out on improv, I excelled at artistic comedy; holding up quick illustrations of goblins going "pew-pew-pew" after Owen Stephens suggested the villain of the show was a space ("SPACE!") goblin. Close to the end of the show, Satine Phoenix and Rudy Rootenburg appear, along with the rest of the Maze Arcana crew, and steal the show. This is the first time Satine and I have meet in person. We have spoken many times over private chat; both being fans of tabletop rpgs and both being professional artists. She gave me the biggest hug.

 At that moment, I realized something... I was no longer sweating (thank the gods!), but I was no daisy either. Also... Satine Phoenix is a fucking ANGEL! She just... radiates... positively, joy, compassion, love... all the things that are good and wonderful and being a human. I really hope I get to meet her again, maybe for more than 5 minutes.

 After the show, I return to the (new) hotel room to find Misty there with several of her author friends. They are laughing and talking about the experience Misty just had. As Misty describes it: "I have never been to Woodstock, but last night I went to Woodstock! Those hallucinations were something!" She went on to describe seeing a woman with brown hair and an astronaut suit standing in between the paramedics who took her from the hotel room. She saw visions of the actors from ZOE, and all the different characters each of them played, having a rave. In the MRI, she saw a sheet of  red blood cells covering her. As the MRI machine made a noise, the sheet got closer and closer to her face. Misty was aware that if she blew her breath at the sheet, it would be pushed away...

 Yeah... she has new material for her next several novels.

 By Saturday afternoon, Misty is back at the ZOE booth, signing books for fans and telling the story of what happened to her to each one. All of them are crying, glad that their favorite author is not dead. I am sitting next to Misty, putting on my brave face and trying not to break down, either... I still feel like crap for not having been there for her when she needed me. but she's safe. She's smiling.

 The rest of Gen Con goes smoothly. The drive back goes so smoothly that we get Misty home in one day (apparently I have my father's endurance for long-distance driving). I call my friend Marc and ask if he is willing to pick me up. I really want to sleep in my own bed. It's been over a week, and I want to be home. Marc does, indeed pick me up, and I recall all of this to him on the three-hour drive home.

 It's 2 AM on Tuesday when I get to sleep in my own bed. At this point, I am really glad that I had the forethought to wash my sheets before I left for Gen Con. I was tired of smelling my own body odor. I slept so good that night.

[orionsangel86]

A retrospective look at the Season 12 wishlist.

Back shortly after the season 11 finale I wrote out a wishlist of all the things I wanted for Season 12. Looking back at that list (here) It’s funny to see what I wanted with hindsight now that season 12 is over and season 13 is only a week away. I thought I would revisit my season 12 wishlist to recap the season and where I went wrong (and right!) before I post a wishlist for season 13.

Wish 1. Castiel gets his emotional arc resolved - This is a big one. As a Cas girl I was left unsatisfied with Castiel’s arc this season, HOWEVER, we KNOW from previous Dabb episodes that he loves to explore Castiel’s emotional story and I have no doubt that this will continue into season 12. Our angel still has a story ahead of him (hopefully ending in the love of a certain green eyed hunter.)

In Hindsight: Ah yes, my big number one on the wishlist was all about Cas getting his emotional arc resolved. Did he get this? Well, kind of. I don’t think any of us could have predicted that Dabb would give us THREE Castiel heavy episodes exploring his emotional past, present and future in ways which blew our collective meta brains out. Cas got lots of love this season and its why season 12 is now one of my all time faves. Where we are now is unknown in some ways for Cas but in other ways his past is clear. He has finally reached the transformation part of his character journey, and season 13 will bring us a Cas rising from the ashes like a beautiful phoenix shrouded in flames.

Wish 2. SUPERBRITISH - I am not going to stop going on about this. This is my land, My green and (fairly) pleasant land. The British are coming to Supernatural and I cannot stop being excited about it. Can I please have ALL the TFW in London head canons please? From traffic jams and silly accents to discovering the glory that is a bacon roll from Gregs on a Sunday morning whilst suffering a horrendous hangover.

In Hindsight: LOL. Yeah right. Am I disappointed? Totally. The British Men of Letters were for me, totally underwhelming. There was no trip to England, there was no grumpy Dean stuck on the M25. At the end of the day they served their purpose. They brought home the fact that hunting is not black and white. That sometimes it is humans who are the most monstrous. Honestly right now I just hope we don’t revisit it. I think its best that this story line gets dropped from now on. *sigh*

Wish 3. Awesome female characters continuing to kick ass - I adored the use of female characters in the finale. They all lived, no one female was a sexy lamp (sadly that role was given to Castiel) and no one got forced into unnecessary make out sessions. The women are smart, sarcastic badass queens who will RULE this show come October, and I for one, cannot wait. 

In Hindsight: Can I hear a cheer for the WAYWARD SISTERS! Hell’s YES! I mean, they have granted us what we wanted with the Wayward Sisters in season 13, but did we actually get this in season 12? Well, Lady Toni turned out to be a psycho, who died. Her British badass knuckle duster lady also died. Alicia and Tasha both died, so did Rowena and Eileen. It actually wasn’t a GREAT season for the girls. This is what happens when you give Bucklemming too much control over the main plot I suppose. *sigh*. So whilst the Wayward Sisters announcement definitely counts as a win, overall I can’t say this wish has been ticked off. 

Wish 4. Men of Letters vs Grand Coven - Yes this is a big one and I am hoping is the main story arc going forward into season 12. I want to see more of the Grand Coven of witches and their European battle with the Men of Letters. I am expecting more awesome women kicking ass thanks to this potential storyline.

In Hindsight: LOL. Again. Wasted. Potential. *sigh*

Wish 5. Mother Mary and family time - Mary’s reveal was pretty amazing especially since I think we were all expecting it to just be her ghost or a vision or something, but nope, Mummy Winchester is back on the scene and I can’t even begin to imagine what they are planning to do with this. All I am hoping for is that Mary’s influence will help Dean to accept certain parts of him that he loves to keep repressed (effeminophobia and his bisexuality being the big ones). Mary coming back will hopefully start to truly break down and destroy John Winchester’s toxic influence over his sons. I also really really want her to meet Cas and say the words “Thank you for watching over my son.” YES.

In Hindsight: Ok so this one I think gets ticked off. Mary’s purpose was to get Dean to let go of some of his major hang ups, to finally get some really heavy stuff off his chest, and to break down John Winchesters toxic influence. Also for Dean to finally take his mother off that pedestal he’s been keeping her on his whole life. I think the show, and 12x22 particularly, did an excellent job with this. We didn’t quite get a bisexual reveal, but the subtext was thick and heavy (12x11 was glorious). Mary also mirrored Cas continually throughout the season as two people both looking for their place in this little family dynamic and having Mary accept Cas as “one of my boys” really was the icing on the cake for any Cas fans out there happily sipping on hater tears.

Wish 6. Sam gets some distance from Dean, some other friends, maybe a girl, and definitely a dog - I think it is safe to say that Sam isn’t dead. Probably just shot in the arm or leg or something. I want him to be taken to England by Lady T and face the Men of Letters. I hope that they will warm to Sam (and his wonderful moose charms) and that Sam will get to bond with his British companions away from Dean (because Dean always steals the side characters away and bonds with them more than Sam ever does - except for Eileen). Maybe there could even be love in the future for Sam - either by bringing back Eileen or developing a decent and believable relationship between Sam and Lady T (I don’t want her forced into the love interest role, I think she is far too good for that already, but if she becomes a regular throughout the season like Rowena is then potentially a relationship could blossom slowly between them. It could work. I have been hoping for love for Sam for some time now and I can see the potential in this).

In Hindsight: Urgh so this is a yes and a massive NOPE at the same time. Bucklemming managed to ruin Lady Toni in the second episode of the season and then killed off Eileen in 12x21 (seriously fuck those assholes). I guess even the THOUGHT of shipping Sam with someone now gets a girl killed in this show even if she doesn’t go near his killer dick. Poor Sam. On a more positive note he DID get some distance from Dean in 12x22 and symbolically the toxic co-dependency has been broken. So that is one major point to mark off. (I didn’t actually even wish for that as I doubted it would happen myself!) Shame about him still not getting a dog though. WHY CAN’T YOU GIVE SAM A DOG DAMMIT! Sam has definitely moved forward in season 12 to a healthier place, though I think he still has far to go compared to Dean. Hopefully we will see him reach his full potential in season 13.

Wish 7. Lady T is a well developed, fully rounded, likeable character and not a sexy lamp or boring love interest - I already love her. I want to know more about her, her motivations, her back story, how she became a woman of letters, I want her to be a worthy adversary to the Winchesters before becoming a trustworthy ally. I want her to continue to take none of their shit, to put them in their place and therefore earn their respect. I also really want to see her face of with Rowena. That would be awesome. England vs Scotland right there! Potentially I would accept her becoming a love interest to Sam only if it was done right. If it was done in the subtext throughout the season and is only a very very tiny part of the storyline. It would have to be major slow burn. No forced kisses like in CACW (did you guys see that? what the fuck was that?). Only then, would I accept any sort of romantic sub-plot between characters.

In Hindsight: *ugly cries into pillow over how off the mark this was*

Fuck you Bucklemming.

Wish 8. More screen time for Dean and Cas = DESTIEL - Well obviously. It wouldn’t be a proper supernatural wishlist if it didn’t have Destiel written in big letters somewhere now would it? After all the build up in Season 11 in the subtext I am still convinced that this is going somewhere. The season finale has NOT destroyed my positivity at all. In fact it has only added to it. (come ask me about it if you want more info). At the end of the day, Dean and Cas are going to have to save Sam. This means spending time together trying to FIND Sam in a completely unknown city (hence my excitement over them renting a car and getting stuck on the M25 before ending up lost in somewhere like Surrey… Oh the fanfiction potential! I can practically taste it! I have faith in Dabb to bring us more destiel moments. he has always been good to us.

In Hindsight: *stops crying*

*jumps around in glee*

*remembers the end of 12x23*

*cries again*

Do I even need to talk about it? Every good wishlist should include destiel, but I NEVER would have predicted what they gave us. I NEVER would have seen it coming…

Mixtaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaappppppppppeeeeeeeeeeeeee

But seriously though? With the pining over each other in 12x09, the angel/human love stories and human weakness of 12x10, the LOVE CONFESSION of 12x12 and the MIXTAPE (among other amazing moments) in 12x19 where do I even START with season 12 destiel?!? The fact that they have ended it like they have KNOWING Cas is coming back… I mean… it is BEYOND ANYTHING I COULD HAVE DREAMED UP. There is a reason we call it season fanfic 12. Holy crap it was glorious. I’m marking this a big YES for the wishlist.

Wish 9. Following on from the above… HUNTER CAS - Dabb brought us the wonderful episode Hunteri Heroci which had Cas try out his hunting skills (and save the day I might add). We know Dabb loves Cas. I have every reason to believe that Cas will get more time as a Hunter. I want him in MOTW episodes. He will be soooo good in MOTW episodes please please PLEASE let this happen! (especially if the MOTW episodes are set in BRITAIN because the boys are still out there dealing with the MOL and the Grand Coven…. I see them dealing with ghosts that are 1000 years old and haunting freaking castles… it will be glorious.)

In Hindsight: Does “Agent Beyonce” count as Hunter Cas? Because I want to count it. It may not have been on the level of Hunteri Heroici, but I loved his grumpy married couple bickering with Dean at the start of the season, the lumberjack comment? That was genius. Give us more stuff like that SPN PLEASE.

Wish 10. More funny episodes - More witches doing ridiculous things to the boys. Give me ACTUAL MOOSE SAM WINCHESTER PLEASE! Give me the kind of silly witch stories we have been reading about in fanfics for far too long… come on show, its season 12! What have you got to loose?

In Hindsight: Well, 12x11 was witches and was pretty funny whilst being equally heart breaking. Plus it gave us the wonderful end scene of Dean riding Larry to his hearts content. None of us are gonna forget that in a hurry. I think it counts. Even though I am still royally pissed off that they killed Rowena. *sigh*

We do have a Scooby Doo animated episode in season 13 though which again I never ever would have considered possible but heyho, they love to surprise us.

Wish 11. Beach Episode - This is purely for @elizabethrobertajones. Maybe once they are done in Britain, they’ll head off to the med for a true European beach experience… They’ll be fine as long as they have Cas with them. He speaks all the languages. He can order the cocktails and ice creams. ;-)

In Hindsight: I TAKE IT BACK. NO BEACH EPISODES EVER AGAIN. Sometimes I swear Dabb lurks on Lizzy’s blog to read the kind of stuff we are dreaming up just so he can grant our wishes in the MOST PAINFUL WAY EVER. Cas DIED on a beach. All Dean wanted was to visit a beach once in his life, but they KILLED CAS on a BEACH. WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO US DABB? WHY?

*continues sobbing into pillow*

Stay tuned for my Season 13 Wishlist... Once I stop crying...

[wbwest]

New Post has been published on WilliamBruceWest.com

New Post has been published on http://www.williambrucewest.com/2017/06/16/west-week-ever-pop-culture-review-61617/

West Week Ever: Pop Culture In Review - 6/16/17

  Hot on the heels of the poster reveal last Friday, we got a teaser trailer for Black Panther during the NBA Finals. And it did very little for me. Yeah, I know. Every other Black person I know is, as they say, “hype” for this movie, but I just have never cared about Black Panther as a character. And I know comic book movies require suspension of disbelief, but Michael B. Jordan plays a villain named KILLMONGER! That’s probably the comic bookiest name I’ve ever been forced to take seriously. It certainly looks colorful, and it’s gonna make all the monies, but I’m gonna need to see more before I get too excited.

Let’s talk about Black Panther for a minute, though, as I think people are conflating his comic book success with his appearances in all other media. At the moment, there are currently 3 Black Panther comics on the stands: 1) Black Panther, 2) World of Wakanda, and 3) Black Panther & The Crew. Also at this moment, the latter two have already been canceled. I’ve seen people online saying that Marvel should rethink their stance, considering all the views the trailer has racked up in its week online (22.6 million as I write this). I get what they’re trying to say, but it’s a faulty argument. Their assumption is that people are clamoring for all the Black Panther they can get, when it’s really just this one movie to which they’re looking forward.

When the Black Panther comic was relaunched last year, written by author Ta-Nehisi Coates, the first issue sold over 250,000 copies, which was a rare feat for 2016. Now, however, the book sells about 1/9 of that amount, and is still decreasing. Ya see, Coates was hot shit because of an article on reparations that he wrote for The Atlantic. Why someone thought that would translate into a successful stint writing comics is beyond me. Marvel struck while the iron was hot, though, and they were able to ride the Coates wave, but anyone who’s actually read the comic knows that he’s more about political drama than superhero action. People came to the table to see what he’d offer, but over time they’ve realized they’re not picking up what he’s putting down. Still, Marvel gave him yet another series, Black Panther & The Crew, which probably should’ve been called Black Panther and His Negrotastic Pals. I bought the first issue, but the book was canceled before I even had  the chance to read it, so womp womp. It could be argued that Coates wasn’t the right choice for the book, but I think a better explanation is that Marvel blew their wad too soon. They should’ve been launching these spinoffs in the wake of the trailer, not cancelling them. Still, the damage is already done, so it’s not like they can let them tread water until the movie is released. If anything, they’re gonna have to cancel and relaunch if they want to capitalize on movie buzz. The ship, however, has sailed for the books currently on the market because this trailer is not going to serve as the shot in the arm that some folks seem to believe it to be.

Fox has got the ball rolling on X-Men: Dark Phoenix, the follow-up to the disappointing X-Men: Apocalypse. It will be directed by Simon Kinberg, who has no directing experience by the way, and is slated to be released November 2nd, 2018. And the gang’s all here, with Fassbender, Lawrence, and McAvoy are all coming back. If you remember, they tried to act like they were on the fence about returning after Apocalypse, but I guess they love money too much. Meanwhile, they’re saying that Jessica Chastain is being pursued to play alien Shi’ar Empress Lilandra, who lets Xavier bone her every couple of years. Did I mention that Kinberg wrote X-Men: The Last Stand? Ya know, the LAST time they did the Dark Phoenix storyline?! THE ONE EVERYBODY HATED?! So they’re basically giving him do-over! Everything about this sounds terrible, but we’ll probably get another cool Quicksilver sequence out of it, this time set to La Bouche’s “Be My Lover” or some other disposable 90s pop song.

Normally, I’m all about those stories where they “get the band back together”, so I was definitely surprised when this video hit the Internet this week. I miss the age of the $20 million comedy, where Hollywood was cranking these things out monthly in the mid ’00s. Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story was one of my favorites, so I had high hopes for this thing, whatever it was supposed to be. Still, 13 years have passed since the movie, and this “return to the well” felt just as stale as Zoolander 2. Its saving grace is the fact that it’s only 4 minutes long (which still, somehow, feel like an eternity). I don’t even know where to start with this thing. The unfunniness of Stiller? The weak delivery from Christine Taylor? Or the fact that I don’t have a clue as to what the Hell Omaze is? Apparently it raises money for non-profits, but it’s far from a household name. I don’t know if this is the bold step Omaze needed to take to make a name for themselves. “Hey, look – we’re making a mini sequel to a 13 year old movie that didn’t need a sequel!” This thing seems dead on arrival, and I’d love to somehow be able to track the success/failure of this marketing initiative. Ugh, so much potential, squandered.

Bachelor in Paradise had its production suspended this week after accounts of “misconduct” began to surface. According to varying reports, Corinne Olympios from the most recent season of The Bachelor was involved in some pretty “heavy petting”, as your grandma would call it, with DeMario Jackson from season 13 of The Bachelorette. From what I heard, they were both drunk and tried to have sex. DeMario, unfortunately, couldn’t…”ready his soldier for battle”, so he “went downtown” instead. Corinne’s friend, who’s a producer on the show, told her that it’d look bad for her to be getting serviced on camera like that. A lot of other contestants reportedly witnessed the event, and said that the two were even seen canoodling together later that night. Then, Corinne started saying that she couldn’t remember the events of the night, and that she had never given consent for what happened. So now both sides are lawyered up, blaming the other for character assassination and worse. Oh, by the way, if you’re not familiar with Bachelor In Paradise, it’s a spinoff where the contestants are encouraged to get drunk and try to fuck. So…mission accomplished?

The format of the show was just asking for a controversy like this, and I’m amazed that it took this long for something like this to hit the Bachelor franchise. I don’t know anything about DeMario, but the one season of The Bachelor that I watched featured Corinne as the villain of the season. She was constantly boasting of her sexual prowess, saying things like “My ‘vagine’ is platinum.” Her tactic to win the show was to throw herself at The Bachelor early and often. Now, some folks are gonna interpret this as me saying she “deserved” this. If this was sexual assault, nobody deserves something like that. All I’m saying is that she was strategic in using sex to get what she wanted, and quick to cower when it didn’t work out as planned. Bachelor Nick Viall rebuffed all of her advances last season, and she’d end up pouting in her room, or taking a nap during the rose ceremony. She was notoriously immature yet manipulative. Word on the street was that she was up for her own show, but this little episode might’ve jeopardized the chances of that.

The most interesting part of this whole thing is that THEY HAVE THE TAPE! LET’S GO TO THE DAMN TAPE! How damning is that tape that it hasn’t been released yet? The production is most likely over for good, as the contestants have been sent home. The future of the show is in jeopardy because of this ordeal as there doesn’t really seem to be any coming back from this. The reality show fuck house actually turned into a fuck house. I guess their plan worked a little too well. If the show does come back, this is a watershed moment for dating shows, as nothing will be the same after this. Remember how talk shows changed when the Jenny Jones Murder took place? After that, they all became more staged, and Jerry Springer thrived in its wake. Now you can’t trust anything you see during daytime, while a show like Donahue couldn’t exist in the current climate. They’re gonna have to treat future iterations of The Bachelor with kid gloves, which isn’t what people come to see. When folks watch these shows, they wanna see if the contestants are gonna hook up. Now, they realize that standards and practices won’t allow that to be shown, but they still wanna see as much as the network will allow them to see. All these years after Joe Millionaire aired on Fox, folks don’t remember it for its janky premise (poor guy pretends to be a millionaire in order to find love from a pool of gold diggers), but rather for the scene of “Joe” (Evan Marriott) and contestant Sarah Kozer in the woods with some intense slurping on the audio. Lewd, yes, but boundary-pushing for 2003 and everyone was talking about it. The goal of these shows is to produce something to dominate the conversation for a while and, in that case, this whole thing has been a success. Still, there are serious matters at hand that need to be addressed, as folks are losing jobs (DeMario got fired for the allegations), and could also end up in jail.

After something like a year in teases, we finally have our release date for the DuckTales reboot: Aug 12th. The show will premiere on DisneyXD as an hour-long “mini movie”, and then be rebroadcast for the next 24 hours on the channel. Then,  the series will officially premiere on September 23rd, with 2 new episodes. As you saw above, we also got the new credit sequence and theme song. Some of the old fuddy duddies have taken issue with the remixed theme, but I love it. The most surprising thing to me is the new jacked Mrs. Beakley, but I figure there’ll be an in-series explanation for all that.

In the world of toys, Hasbro unveiled the full Netflix wave of Marvel Legends figures, and they look so great. In the beginning, I was scared these were gonna turn out to be exclusive to a particular retailer, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. We already knew about Daredevil, Jessica Jones, and Punisher, but the wave is rounded out by Elektra, as well as comic versions of Blade and Bullseye. As an added surprise, there’s a Build A Figure in the form of Man-Thing. That character means nothing to me, but I’ll be buying the whole wave, so someone give me a shout if you wanna buy Man-Thing off me. That’s right, I’m offering my Man-Thing in exchange for money. I think that might be illegal…

Song of the Week

This week’s song is Morgan Wallen’s “The Way I Talk”, mainly because I completely identify with it. If you’ve ever spoken with me, the first question people tend to ask is “Where are you from? You sound SOUTHERN!” Also, I spent more time than I’d like to admit trying to figure out if that actually was a sample from Spacehog’s “In The Meantime” at the beginning (verdict: inconclusive).

Things You Might Have Missed This Week

CMT is seriously considering reviving Tim Allen’s canceled ABC sitcom, Last Man Standing. They already air the reruns, so it seems like a natural fit.

An Injustice 2 eSports tournament will air on TBS in October. We’re really trying to make “eSports” a thing, huh?

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt has been renewed for a 4th season at Netflix. One of these days I’ll finally finish seasons 2 and 3…

Aisha Tyler announced yesterday that she will be leaving The Talk at the end of the season, due to her current commitments on Criminal Minds, Whose Line Is It Anyway?, and Archer. Plus, she’ll be directing an upcoming film. Yeah, that’s probably enough jobs for one person.

Someone named Anthony Padilla is leaving something called Smosh. Apparently it’s a thing on the YouTubes. If you’ve got a tween, they can probably explain whatever this means.

In an update to something I mentioned last week, Sony has revised their plans to sell clean versions of their movies. Since it was found that the plan violated union contracts, now Sony will only offer clean versions of movies that have been approved by the director.

ABC has renewed “Toy Shark Tank”, AKA The Toy Box, for a second season.

I took a trip down memory lane to talk about the old Toy Biz Customer Service hotline.

In a baffling move, Amazon is buying Whole Foods Market for $13.7 billion. I haven’t been as confused about a business deal since K-Mart bought Sears.

When I first started West Week Ever, I came up with a No Death Policy. Even though I get kinda negative on here, I still want it to be a positive place. I have a bit of an odd history with death, as I became acquainted with it at an early age, so I like to stay away from all that. Plus, there’s that problem where if you mention one death, you’ve gotta mention ALL the deaths, and ain’t nobody got time for that – especially if that death didn’t really mean anything to me. Still, when I created this feature, I always knew there would be at least 2 important exceptions. I wasn’t looking forward to them, but given their age and health, I knew it would be something I’d have to tackle eventually. Sadly, one of those deaths occurred last Saturday.

When I was growing up, there were few things I looked forward to as much as the 1966 Batman series, weekday afternoons on Fox 5. While I’d gotten the Super Powers Batman and Batmobile toys when I was around 4, I really didn’t know anything about Batman until I was introduced to that show. Hell, I remember how I used to think Batman could fly. I mean, he had a cape! All people with capes fly, right? Anyway, like any kid, I was mesmerized by the POW! ZAP! BIFF! of the fight sequences. I was on the edge of my seat for the end of episode cliffhanger. I’d tie a sheet around my neck, and shadow box along with the Dynamic Duo as they fought King Tut’s goons. I also had a next door neighbor, Brian, who was a few years younger than me (he was 7 when I was 11, as I remember him thinking that was cool), and he worshipped the ground I walked on. He’d come over, and we’d be Batman and Robin, fighting invisible goons with gadgets I’d made from Construx and jump ropes. My concept of Batman was formed by Adam West and Burt Ward, walking up the side of buildings with their Bat Ropes.

As I grew up, I was introduced to other depictions of the Caped Crusader. I started reading comics in ’92, around the time that the classic Batman: The Animated Series debuted. Those versions of Batman were totally different than what I’d grown up knowing. The environment wasn’t as campy, the world was a darker place, and Batman wasn’t doing the Batusi. Over the years, I’ve had even more versions of Batman that I’ve compared to West’s rendition, but I’ve come to appreciate him even more. While the world around him was wacky, West’s Bruce Wayne/Batman was solid. He was smart, calculating, and always knew more than the folks around him. Can you imagine a “Tower of Babel” storyline (the classic JLA story where Batman takes down the rest of the Justice League using contingency plans he’d set up for all of them), starring West’s Batman? I can, and it would be AMAZING.

It seems life wasn’t too shabby for West offscreen, either. According to several stories, he was quite the hit with the ladies, and even had an 8-woman orgy with Riddler Frank Gorshin. ZOWIE! While he never really achieved mega success with anything else, he still established himself as a cult superstar, with his turn in Conan O’Brien’s failed pilot Lookwell, as well as his role as Mayor West on Family Guy, which introduced him to a new generation of fans. Other actors who portrayed Batman went on to other things. For Clooney, Kilmer, and Bale, the role is just another notch on the IMDB profile, but West WAS Batman. With the exception of probably Kevin Conroy, no one else has been so closely identified with the role as Adam West. At the end of the day, he’s the Batman that I always come back to, and the one to which I compare all newcomers. Adam West, born William West Anderson (hey, look at that!), was MY Batman and I think we were all lucky to have him. No, he didn’t have the West Week Ever. I don’t think that’s enough of an honor to indicate what he meant to me. So, with that in mind, Adam West is the inaugural inductee to the West Week Ever Hall of Fame. Farewell, old chum.

[standbyphoenix]

River Phoenix, NATURE BOY by Dan Yakir (Sky Magazine, 1989)

On location in Tacoma, Washington, where he's filming I Love You To Death with William Hurt, Kevin Kline and, oddly, Tracey Ullman. River Phoenix, at 18, is the perfect, quiet professional. An Oscar nomination for Running On Empty, in which he, coincidentally, plays the son of 60's radicals, hasn't made him any more impressed by Hollywood. In fact, he lives on the opposite side of the continent in Florida.

The veteran of The Mosquito Coast, in which he played Harrison Ford's alternately confused and supportive son, and of the coming of age stories, Stand By Me and Jimmy Reardon. Phoenix was born by natural childbirth in Oregon and named after the river of life in Herman Hesse's Siddartha. His parents were then missionaries for an organization called The Children of God and befitting the hippie legacy that inspired his upbringing (and that of his brother Leaf, and sisters Rainbow, Liberty and Summer), he is a vegetarian, an incurable romantic and something of an idealist.

You grew up under rather unique circumstances. Do you feel different, enclosed in your own little universe? [Chuckles] "That's something I'm afraid of. I don't want to separate myself from the rest of the world. If the world's not doing too good, I'm a part of it - I'll be happy to take the blame. I'm along for the ride. But yeah. I feel different in a lot of ways because my beliefs aren't very typical. In fact a lot of people I talk to disagree with me."

What do they disagree about? "About the nuclear arms race, prejudice in South Africa. A lot of people I hang out with agree, but it's obviously not of universal appeal; otherwise things would change. But I don't think things can change overnight; a slow evolution has to take place. One of my beliefs is about harmlessness to animals. I don't believe in eating meat or using any animal by-products or contributing to suppressing animals - or people either". 

"One thing I'd like to do when I have the money is to buy thousands of acres of Brazilian rainforest and make a national park, so no one can bulldoze it an put up a McDonald's. I guess people find security in a Big Mac, but that's our oxygen! In fact, McDonald's claim they don't use cattle reared on cleared rainforest land. And it's a chicken shit approach - the mass slaughtering of animals."

You sound like an idealist, but we're living in a materialistic world. "Yeah, I try to stay away from that. I don't feel that I am attached to material things, though I have all the comforts that a lot of people don't have. I have the modern conveniences of a blender, a toilet, a shower. A lot of people have to do their thing in the gutter."

But you have much more than that at this point! "At this point, yes I have an automobile, a nice guitar - actually, a few of them, but they are not really extravagant. But, you know, up to three years ago, we, this family, were worried about paying the rent. It was after Jimmy Reardon that we first had financial stability. That's when we bought a car that wasn't old or used. One of our biggest dreams is to own a ranch, to have a base camp, where the kids can grow up in a nice setting. But right now we don't really have enough money to buy the place we want.

I'm not into the whole clothes thing: I live pretty simply. I feel there are different stages in one's life, and I might at one point decide to devote myself to a more spiritual road, giving up all material possessions ... Just moving out to the jungle some place and living like an ape man for a while. That's something that fascinates me."

You've done that, haven't you? "Not really, not out of choice. And it was more like a desperate situation. My parents did that, though. They dropped out in the late 60's and lived by faith throughout the 70's."

How difficult was that period for you? Did you feel resigned to being there with them or did you rebel? "No, no, no, we were always really tight and together in the beginning, you're just born into that reality and you accept it. I'm very thankful for my early childhood and growing up in the situation that I did in South America living around people who were really humble with a lifestyle that called for a lot of faith, without money. You couldn't be an asshole in that situation. You had to work with the people to survive. I learned a lot being very young, and I hope I don't lose that. Obviously I've lost a lot of my innocence. I was very naive when I first came to the States, and when I first came to Hollywood. But I guess I could look back years from now and see myself as very naive. It's all relative."

It's a strange coincidence that in your new movie, Running On Empty, you play a kid who has a deep conflict of interest with his parents. In Little Nikita, too, there's an almost unbridgeable gap between your character and his parents. "Yeah, a victim. That's something I want to get away from. But the two movies are really different. Running On Empty is about ex-radicals who blew up a napalm lab during the Vietnam War, and since then they've been running from the law, not for selfish reasons, but because of the kids - they wanted to raise us themselves, not to have us grow up in foster homes or in an institution. The thing is that we've had to live completely underground, moving often, using different names - always having to lie, in order to live a whole life, they have to lie for Danny, my character, and he has to lie to himself, suppressing his true feelings."

How did you manage to protect your individuality within your own family? "We all look completely different from each other and we all have our distinct things. Leaf was the family clown, the comedian - very witty and smart. Rainbow was the older sister and trend setter. Mom had to work a lot, so she took her place. I played the guitar ... I went off to my room a lot and had a real goofy side to me, really corny - laughing about stupid things, making fart noises with my mouth. A lot of inside jokes. Liberty was always the most physical, like an acrobat - nimble, strong, slender, a really beautiful girl. And Summer was the youngest, the baby of the family, with big brown eyes and blonde hair. She looks WASPy. Liberty and Rainbow have more of an ethnic look - Israeli or Italian."

There's never been rivalry among you? "No. We've been through a lot. We're a very emotional family, very expressive and out with our feelings. Lately, we've been trying to communicate without yelling all at once. It can be real havoc, but we're getting it down to a science, finally!"

How open is your family about sex? "Very open. I've always had a fair start on topics like sex. We talk about a lot of the taboos that so many families don't bring up and if they do, the go, 'Honey, I hope you're using birth control' and the answer is, 'Mom!' That's as far as they take it."

How does it affect you when people consider you a sex symbol? "To be honest, I really don't think about it. We moved out of Los Angeles to Central Florida and its really nice to get away from the publicity parties - not that I ever went; even in town, I was always an outsider. I didn't hang out with the movie star crowd. It's just so phoney and unreal and pretentious. I never fit in anyway...

"I guess I could play the role, but it doesn't appeal to me. When you ask what it does to my ego, I feel lucky that I don't think like that. I don't fantasize about them fantasizing about me. I don't even know that they do. The only thing that reminds me are the fan letters that I get and I get so many of them that I can't answer them; my aunt's started a fan service. Sometimes when I walk into a local store to get a bottle of orange juice and see myself on the cover of a teen magazine, I open it out of curiosity and cringe - what they write about me is so scary, so eerie and unreal. They just strip you of your originality. The sex symbol - that's what they're after and that's what they try to build around you."

Do you feel blessed, having more than your fair share of intelligence, look, and opportunities? "Yeah, I do feel blessed, I have a really good, solid background. Even when we went through hard times, we were honest about it. Our parents have treated us as equals. Summer talks and has a say just as much as my father - not that he's a wimp; it's just very equal. It's a pioneering effort, where we all concentrate on a common goal. I remember being in Venezuela and my dad was saying that we needed a home, a ranch, some property, and once we had that, we could do a lot of good for the world - build homes for the homeless children and for people with drug and psychological problems. Then it extends into the animal thing too. I feel that my family is very aware of the world and we would like to contribute to it and not abuse a position that we're lucky enough to be in."

How do you express anger? It can be taxing to be in a positive state of mind all the time... "I'm very spontaneous. We all harbour resentment and can try to contain it just out of courtesy for others. But at times things can trigger it, and then you're off. I'm kind of a neutral person in that, I don't get offended easily. I'm not a jealous or manipulative type, but I can be defensive at times. I guess that's when I might get angry - when people poke at my insecurities or reveal something that I feel I don't want to talk about."

What insecurities might these be? "Everyone has them, even if you're Paul Newman. When you're classified as a good-looking young man or young lady, you're under pressure to live up to that. That's something I don't care about really. I used to, when I was younger. I was looking at my hair and was very worried about how others viewed me and if I was good enough. I realize now that you can't mould an image or try to be something. Your work speaks for itself."

In Running On Empty, you play a kid who finds salvation in your own music. You write your own music. What do you write about? "Different themes, from mother earth to personality conflicts. I call it progressive ethereal folk rock, it's my own little world. I now have a band and last year we played eastern colleges in the U.S. But I'm not thinking about albums. I'd just like to play live and develop personal involvement with the audience."

You've said that you attach yourself more to people and feelings than to places and things. "Yeah, and memories too. My lifestyle is strange because I don't have a home. We've always moved around, so my only reference is the family, not a neighborhood or a school. My life is very spontaneous and floating."

You studied karate. Do you consider yourself a very physical person? "No, I'm probably more of a mental person than physical. I've probably got more of a musician's build than a gymnast's. Recently, I joined a gym and I was doing really good, feeling muscles that I'd never felt before - my arms are really skinny - and then there was this flu virus going around town and I got it! That was it for the health kick."

Do you express physical affection freely? "I'm very affectionate with friends, but at times I can be very reserved and very inward-looking, with a blank expression on my face. I could feel great in my mind, but people might think I'm depressed because I'm not showing emotion. I try not to be aggressive, but sometimes you just want to wrestle."

What kind of a relationship did you have with Harrison Ford on the Mosquito Coast? "Harrison was down to earth. I've read that he's cold, but he's actually very warm, it's just that in his position you have so many phoney people trying to dig at you that you've got to have a shield up. He's a very, very nice man, wise and practical. His ideals are very practical, logical. I learnt a lot from him. The biggest thing about Harrison is that he makes acting look so easy, he's so casual and so... sturdy. He seems like he'd be a really good dad. We dealt with each other on a very honest level. I understood where he was coming from, and I think he understood where I was coming from."

And in Indiana Jones? Was he as supportive? "Oh, yeah. He was great. He was there to help me when I needed it. I would just look at him and would not mimic it, but interpret it younger. Mimicking is a terrible mistake that, a lot of people do when they play someone younger; it doesn't interpret."

Was it fun for you doing the movie? "It was thrilling! I did a lot of the stunts because I felt so much of the character and what he had to do was physical. It would have been lying to have someone else do the stunts."

What exactly do you do in the picture? "It's all non-stop action: running and jumping, twisting and turning, tumbling, picking, finding, keeping, saving from bad guys - all that kind of stuff. He's on and under a circus train, doing stuff. It's a very small part - only 10 minutes in the beginning of the movie. But I really enjoyed it."

And I Love You To Death? "It's about a pizzeria owner who runs around with women, until his wife - with the help of his cooks - tries to kill him. They try five times and he survives and they get together again. It's based on a true story. I play Devo, a cook who's just very mystical, into Eastern philosophy. I'm the middle man who helps arrange the extreme acts that happen in the movie."

Did you become friends with Kiefer Sutherland when you did Stand By Me? "I worked with him probably for a total of four days and my impression of him was that he was a very centered guy, very into character, so I can't even say I know him. He was very smooth ... he was that guy! "I remember being with the guys and feeling very destructive. I was taking dirt clods and bombarding his car and we just totally wrecked it. The other guys dared me to do it, so I did. They knew it was Kiefer's car: I didn't. When I found out, I was scared for my life." (Chuckles.)

What happened? "I saw him at the restaurant, and he goes, 'Hey, River, come over here,' and I was choked up. But I just went over and said, 'Kiefer, I'm really sorry .' And he goes, 'No, no, I'm just saying how're you doing.' But I wanted to confess and he said, 'Don't worry about it, it's a rental car, they washed it off. I was nervous, because I didn't know if he was going to pull out the switchblade and slit my throat or what."

The whimsical side of River... "There's a side of me that's selfish."

But wouldn't denying that side also be something of an injustice? "Yeah, but still, in this business, man, you've got to be very careful that it doesn't get out of hand. I don't want to get so lost in thinking about me and talking about me that all the time in interviews. It's so nice to unwind and just look at other things and get out of yourself. It's hard to detach myself from myself without neglecting myself. You know what I mean? I don't want to get in to the habit of thinking about my career because when it comes down to it, it's not really that important. I could die tomorrow and the world would go on!"

[au-universes]

Convoy Pt 5 (Convoy AU)

The convoy traveled across New Mexico, never once running into a cop. No cop in their right mind was prepared to mess with a convoy that big.  And it kept growing.  Truckers from all over the south came and joined as they traveled across New Mexico and to Phoenix, Arizona, where Sam was being held.  They not only beat Kevin’s previous record, they blew it out of the water.  Their convoy stretched across over a mile of the dusty desert road.

               It only took the convoy a few days before they reached Phoenix.  They were back down to their original size of 23 truckers and one cat, and they were ready to do all they could to beat Saruman and free Sam.  They parked their trucks in an abandoned parking lot a few blocks from the jailhouse and went about finding anything they could use as weapons.  They knew that the jail would most likely be crawling with cops, who would most likely have guns.  They needed to be prepared.

               It didn’t take long before everyone was armed with baseball bats, knives, brass knuckles, chains, and whips.  Everyone except for Kevin.

               “You know I can’t come with you,” Kevin said to Dean, who was armed with a rusty blade.  “I’m too old to fight.”

               “I can’t leave you here alone.  What if the cops find you?”

               “Hey, Dean,” it was Billy Ray Cyrus.  He and Nick had heard what was going on and decided to step in.  “We’ll stay behind with him.”

               “And besides, someone needs to watch the trucks,” said Nick.

               “Are you sure?” Dean asked.

               “Of course.  Good luck with Saruman.”

               “Thank you,” Dean said, then turned to the rest of the truckers.  They gathered around Dean in a semicircle, armed and ready to fight.

               “Ready Dean?” Cas asked.

               “Yeah.  Let’s do this.”

                 They reached the jailhouse at high noon. Saruman stood out front with Officer Kendall and Officer Malfoy, who was miraculously still alive after his car flipped over.  A good number of other cops from all over the state had also gathered at the jailhouse. Any cop who had beef with any of the truckers was there, including the infamous Sherriff JJ of Flagstaff.  It was their chance for revenge, their chance to set things right.

               Dean stared Saruman down.  A hawk called overhead.  A tumbleweed blew past.  The air was thick with tension.

               Dean raised his knife.  Saruman raised his gun.

               And they charged.

               The jailhouse was a bloodbath.  Truckers and cops alike were cut and shot and thrown to the ground.  Putin was the first to die.  He was shot through the head by a cop, but it was okay, because no one really liked him.

               Cas stayed close to Dean the entire time.  It was their job to find Sam and get him out of the building.  Only then would the fight end.

               Dean and Cas fought their way past cops and through the twisting halls of the jail, looking for where Sam might be held. They found him near the very back of the jailhouse, sitting alone in his cell.

               “Sammy!” Dean yelled when he saw his brother.  He ran towards him, and grabbed onto the bars of his cell.  “Sammy we’re here to get you.  Where are the keys?”

               Sam pointed to the opposite wall where a ring of keys was hanging.  Cas grabbed them and threw them to Dean, who went to work on finding which key fit. The sound of the battle was growing stronger every second, and Dean knew it wouldn’t be long before someone showed up to try and stop them.

               At last, the lock clicked open and Sam stepped out of the cell.  “How do we get out?” he asked.

               “Back this way, come on-“ Dean stopped in his tracks.

               Sheriff Saruman stood, gun raised, blocking the only exit from that part of the jail.  Sherriff JJ stood just behind him, holding her gun in a shaking hand.  She had not been prepared for this big of a fight. Saruman let out a low laugh that echoed through the hall.  “I’ve got you.  I’ve FINALLY got you.  There’s nowhere for you to run, no one to save you.  This is your end, Rubber Duck.”

               Saruman raised his gun and aimed it directly at Dean’s head.  A gunshot rang out through the hall, but it wasn’t Saruman’s gun that made the noise.

               Saruman fell to the ground, blood pouring from the bullet hole in the back of his head, his gun clattering to the ground.

               Dean, Sam, and Cas looked up from Saruman’s body to see Charlie standing at the end of the hall, gun in hand.

               “Charlie?” Dean asked, completely in shock.

               “Hey Duck,” she said, smiling.  “Miss me?”

               JJ let out a scream, then ran past the truckers, going deeper into the jailhouse.

               Dean, Sam, and Cas ran down the hall to meet Charlie.

               “What are you doing here?” Sam asked.

               “I thought you left for Mexico,” Cas added.

               “I did,” Charlie said.  “I was leaving because I wanted to find a stable life and find family and friends.  But halfway to the border I realized something.  I already have a family.  You guys, all the truckers fighting right now, well, you are my family.  I just wish it hadn’t taken so long for me to realize that.  So, if you’ll accept me, I’d love to be a part of your convoy.”

               Dean smiled.  “Welcome home, Widow Woman.”

                 The causalities were heavy on both sides. Many cops were killed or injured. The truckers also suffered heavy losses. Putin, Voldemort, and Tyrone had all died in battle.  Most of the Rhythm Fusions suffered bad injuries, including the governor, who, despite having a broken leg, claimed she hadn’t felt so alive in a long time. Sean and Nathan both suffered head injuries, and Ashley’s arm was still out of its socket.  Colin Creevey, however, was still jumping around, challenging everyone and everything to fight him.  He never seemed to run out of energy.

               After cleaning up wounds and putting limbs back into place, the truckers were ready to move out.  Sam had received news the Ezri had given birth to a boy, and they were both waiting for him back at their home in Dallas.  Sam set out right away with Jimmy, Steve, and the Rhythm Fusions in tow as back up.  He was finally going home to see his wife and son.

               “Dean, why aren’t you going with him?” Kevin had asked.  “I thought you wanted to be with him.”

               “I do,” he answered.  “But Sam and I talked about this.  I’m going to meet him in Dallas, but there’s something I need to do first.  Will you join Cas and me for one last trip across New Mexico?”

               Kevin smiled.  “I’d be honored.”

                 Dean and Cas led Kevin down the highway and to the diner they first encountered Charlie in.  They parked outside and got out of their trucks.

               “Dean?  Cas? What’re we doing here?” Kevin asked, his confusion showing across his face.

               “Kevin, if there is one thing I’ve learned from all of this, it’s that family is the most important thing in the world,” Dean said. “A very wise person once told me that family don’t end with blood.  I have Sam, yes, but I also have Cas and Charlie.  Hell, even the governor found her family again with the Rhythm Fusions through this journey.  Everyone has found their family, everyone except you.  You believe that your family disappeared when Harry died.  You never saw James again, and it broke your heart. Well, I did some digging and, well, why don’t you go inside?” Dean asked, gesturing to the diner.

               Kevin stared at Dean in confusion for a moment before turning to walk inside the diner, James’s Glide-In.

               “No!” yelled the man behind the counter when they stepped inside.  “I don’t serve truckers here anymore, you caused too much trouble for me last… last…” his anger disappeared as he stared at Kevin, confusion and recognition appearing on his face.  “Uncle- Uncle Kev?” he said, barely in a whisper.  He sounded like he couldn’t believe his own eyes.

               Kevin’s eyes filled with tears.  “James?  Is it really you?”

               James walked out from around the counter, and stood in front of Kevin.  “I- I thought you died when Harry died.  You’re dead.”

               “No, I’m- I’m not.  I’m here, James.  I’m here.”

               James hesitated before grabbing Kevin into a hug, tears streaming down his face.  “I’ve missed you, so, so much.  Oh my God, it’s you.”

               “It’s me, it’s me.  I’m here.  And I’m never leaving you again.”

               Outside, a dark purple cloud appeared above the diner. It expanded until it covered all of the south, then sucked Dean, Cas, Sam, Kevin, and many others out of their world and into the next.

By: Luci

[beeezie]

The Dragon Research Bureau

Neville Longbottom had only rarely had cause to regret his career path, but today was definitely one of those days.

He liked being an Auror. The war had been awful, but in a strange way, he thought that it had helped him find himself. It had helped bring out the ‘brave at heart’ thing that everyone was always talking about and that, as a first year, he’d thought could never, ever apply to him.

Being an Auror meant that he could continue to fight dark wizards without all the worst parts of the war there, too. No one was using the Cruciatus Curse on innocent second years, and half of his friends were not on the run from the Ministry. It was the best of both worlds.

Usually.

Today, however, was a different story, because today, he had been told that the job of going to talk with the Dragon Research Bureau had fallen to him.

Neville knew that there were reports – substantiated reports, even – of a few of the dark wizards currently at large training dragons as protectors. He knew that this meant that the Dragon Research Bureau was a Ministry resource the Aurors couldn’t not draw on.

What he didn’t know was why it had to be him.

Seamus Finnigan and Anthony Goldstein had both sniggered at the look on his face when he’d seen the note assigning him the task on his desk that morning, but they’d sworn up and down that the note was real. Harry had distractedly confirmed it, and though Harry had been so distracted lately that Neville wasn’t sure how reliable his confirmation was, he hadn’t felt like he had much choice in the matter. Doubting three of his fellow Aurors wouldn’t have been seen as acceptable by the Head of their office, whether or not he’d shared a dormitory with them for years at Hogwarts and knew the jokes they liked to pull. The secrecy sensor he kept on his desk hadn’t been vibrating, but still… they’d found ways around that before.

So he was off, heading to the isolated grounds somewhere in Wales that Dragon Research (understandably) preferred to their little office in the massive building the Ministry was housed in, hoping that he wasn’t being sent on a wild goose chase.

His fears were not allayed when he stumbled out of the fireplace into a dank, unnaturally bright room fifteen minutes later and was greeted by two harsh-looking wizards and a very accusatory elderly witch demanding to know what he was doing there.

“I – er – the Auror Office sent me,” he said, trying not to stutter. He knew that Dragon Research could be a bit paranoid at times, but this was just ridiculous.

Assuming he was actually supposed to be there, of course. If he wasn’t, he was going to kill Seamus and Ron. And Harry, for good measure.

“Name?” the witch asked. Her white hair was pulled back tightly in a way that put him in mind of Professor McGonagall. That did not help his nerves, either.

“Neville Longbottom.”

She glanced at one of the wizards, who scanned a list he was holding. Neville resisted – with difficulty – the urge to ask him exactly how many visitors they were expecting that day. After a prolonged moment that he was sure had not been necessary, the wizard nodded, and despite himself, Neville felt a rush of relief.

It appeared, however, that that was not enough.

“Wand,” the witch said, holding out her hand. She did not even bother to present it as a request.

After a moment of hesitation – this was definitely the Dragon Research Bureau, but Neville hated giving his wand up to anyone – he handed it over. She examined it.

“It’s Mahogany,” he said impatiently, ready to be done with this show so he could move on to the actual work he’d been sent there to do. The sooner he got to it, the sooner he would be done. “Phoenix feather–”

“Thirteen inches, inflexible,” she finished for him. She handed it back. “It’s a good wand for an Auror.”

“Yeah,” he said, trying to keep the sarcasm out of his voice. “I’ve noticed.”

She looked as though she was resisting the urge to smile, but the wizard with the list looked even grouchier than ever.

He was hoping that that would be it, but they still insisted on waving a probity probe in front of him before letting him leave the room that was undoubtedly created to be intimidating.

“Where do you want to start?” the witch asked as the two wizards melted away to return to their stations. She seemed to have relaxed a little, but not as much as he would have liked. This was the issue he had always had with the Dragon Research Bureau – they could be so paranoid and unfriendly to outsiders.

“Er –” He was caught slightly off-guard. “How about what dragons you think they’re likely to be using?”

She considered that for a moment, and he glanced around the room. The building itself rather resembled a greenhouse, and there were rows of long, solid tables with cabinets underneath them running the length of the room. Numerous magical devices he had never seen before in his life littered them, as did vials of what looked like dragon’s blood, toenails, skin, and other things he didn’t particularly want to think too hard about.

“Ahem,” she said, and he started, momentarily put in mind of Professor Umbridge.

“Sorry,” he said quickly. “I was just–”

“This way, please.” She turned on her heel and strode toward the door.

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes; this sort of woman had probably used some kind of spell to give her eyes in the back of her head.

They passed by the pens marked, ‘Chinese Fireball,’ ‘American Blacktooth,’ and ‘Swedish Shortsnout’ before coming to a stop in front of a pen labeled, ‘Common Welsh Green.’

“How did you wind up with a Chinese Fireball and an American Blacktooth?” he asked before he could stop himself.

Now she really did allow herself a small smile. “Patience, Mr. Longbottom,” she said proudly. “Patience and determination. We at the British Ministry of Magic pride ourselves on having the most complete collection of dragons in Europe.”

She waved her wand in front of the door, and the lock clicked. She opened it, and he jumped back involuntarily.

“Mr. Longbottom, we do know how to handle dragons,” she told him. Her voice had taken on a note of condescension.

“I know,” he said quickly. “I just–”

“The chances of you being seriously injured or killed on this visit are less than ten percent,” she continued, and gestured to the inside of the pen.

He didn’t find that statistic particularly comforting, but he stepped inside anyway. To his relief, he found himself standing in a surprisingly cool corridor, not the pen itself. She led him down the hall, and they passed several doors that were marked with numbers.

“Undetectable extension charm,” she explained just as he began to wonder how all of this could fit inside what had from the outside seemed to be a fairly small arena. “You didn’t think we only had thirteen dragons, did you?”

That was, in fact, exactly what he’d thought, but he had too much common sense to say so.

She stopped in front of the door marked ‘VI.’

“I believe,” she said slowly, “that your dark wizards are most likely to be using Greens.” He opened his mouth to ask why, but at the look in her eyes, he closed it again very quickly without saying anything. “The reason we think that,” she continued, “is that Greens are among the most common species in Britain, and are by far the easiest to train.”

Neville felt slightly heartened by her switch to the plural. Hopefully, that meant that Dragon Research had actually put a bit of time into this and were taking it seriously.

She opened the door and stepped inside the ring, and gathering all of his courage, he followed her. Dark wizards were one thing. Dragons were another, and he’d harbored a slight fear of them since his fourth year.

His first, absurd impression was that the sleeping dragon in front of him looked vaguely like Hagrid’s failed crossbreeding experiment with the Blast-Ended Skrewts, though admittedly he’d never seen a Skrewt sleeping.

“Did you give it a sleeping draught?” he asked curiously, and the women hushed him.

“No,” she said in a much softer voice than he had just used. “The amount of sleeping draught you would have to use to knock a dragon of this size out would be impractical and nearly impossible to administer.”

“Oh.”

She looked back at the dragon in front of them. “This is just an unfortunate coincidence. She should wake up soon, though, and I’ll thank you not to startle her. That would raise the chances of your being seriously injured or killed to - well, it would raise them considerably.”

He made a mental note to keep his voice even lower than hers was.

“So how do you immobilise a dragon like this?” he asked.

He’d apparently spoken too softly. “Pardon?”

He repeated his question, slightly louder this time, and she considered him.

That made him feel more than a little awkward, and after a moment, he said, “When the Triwizard Tournament was going on at Hogwarts, Harry used a summoning charm to get his broom and–”

“That would not work for the Aurors,” she cut him off. “I presume that most of you are not very skilled fliers, and you will be attempting to incapacitate the dragon, not merely retrieve an egg.”

She sounded altogether too dismissive of what had been a very cool piece of flying from Harry, but Neville knew better than to argue with her when they were alone in a pen with a potentially hostile dragon.

“What would you suggest, then?” he asked.

She frowned. “Well,” she said slowly, and it occurred to him that the situation facing the Aurors was not one that she was completely familiar with, either.

That made him feel better.

“The conjunctivitis curse is a bit… overused, but it is effective.” She shook her head. “But if there are wizards training these dragons, that is the first thing that they will likely try to ward against, so I would not necessarily recommend that.” The dragon next to them shifted, and a small flame blew out of its nostrils.

Neville took several large steps back. The very last thing he wanted was to be horribly burned by a dragon before he even got any useful advice.

“A sleeping spell would be best,” the witch said eventually. She did not appear to have noticed the dragon’s movement or his reaction to it. “If there are enough of you. I would not attempt a sleeping spell on a Green without at least four or five people casting it – and I only give you a number so low because I am assuming that to be an Auror you must be reasonably talented.”

Neville couldn’t help himself. The understatement was too ridiculous. He let out a laugh.

Thankfully, his laugh was masked by the dragon shifting again. When he glanced over at it, however, he saw that its eyes were open, and his laugh turned into a yelp.

To his relief, the yelp was masked, too, as the dragon sneezed. A flame passed just a few strides from where he was standing, and his heart leapt into his chest.

“Mr. Longbottom,” the woman said sternly. “How do you expect to fight a dragon when the sight of one makes you want to run screaming from the pen?”

He swallowed hard. “Well, I’m not running screaming from the pen, am I?”

She smiled. “No,” she admitted. “I suppose you’re not.”

He held up his wand, which he had been clenching tightly since they’d entered the pen. “Shoud I – er – fight it?”

The witch was surprised into an actual laugh. “No,” she said. “Of course not. One person should never fight a dragon. I just wanted to see how you would handle being near it.”

Neville stared at her. “You what?”

He had known that Dragon Research could be a bit eccentric at times, but this was absolutely insane.

“Better here than in the field,” she said. It occurred to him that in a strange way, she’d actually been trying to help.

Which was just strange all on its own.

“We’d better leave,” she said, glancing up at the dragon, which was beginning to move around in earnest. “She’s usually fairly docile, but she doesn’t like strangers.”

He moved toward the door as quickly as he dared.

As they circled around the corridor to a small office, she cleared her throat. “I don’t want to tell the Auror Office what their business is about,” she said, a note of hesitation in her voice. “But…” She stopped, and then started again. “I am not convinced that your office’s assessment of how the dark wizards are using the dragons is correct.”

He stopped dead. “Why not?”

She stopped walking, too, and leaned against one of the walls. “Because no dragon – not even a Green – likes to follow orders. When I said that they were trainable, I meant that they were most easily trained not to attack certain people. The dragon we just saw is unlikely to attack me, but if I told her to attack you, all of the work I have done with her would be wiped out like that.” She snapped her fingers. “Dragons are not crups. They do not like being ordered around.”

Neville cocked his head to one side. “Then why would they want to keep dragons so close by?”

The woman frowned. “Mr. Longbottom, do you know how many uses there are for dragon blood?”

He thought for a moment. First year seemed so long ago. “Er – spot remover, oven cleaner, and furniture dye?”

Her mouth pursed. “It is also an effective stand-in for human blood and can be used to poison unicorns, which makes harvesting their horns, hair, and even blood very easy - and does not carry the same consequences for your own soul.”

He swallowed hard. “I forgot those.”

“Mm.” She began to walk again, and he followed her. “It’s just a thought,” she said quickly. “I would not presume to tell the Aurors about their business.”

An hour later, he was back in the dank room, which was less uncomfortably bright than it had been. “Thank you,” he said, taking her hand to shake. “I never caught your name.”

“Diana Potter.” She shook his. “Good luck, Mr. Longbottom. Feel free to come back.”

“Er– I will.” He stepped into the fireplace, privately thinking that he would avoid going back there if at all possible.

When he got back to the office, Seamus and Anthony were eating lunch at their desks. “How’d it go?” Seamus asked around a mouthful of sandwich.

“Fine,” he said. "Just - just fine. Tell you what. Next time, I'll let you go."