#annabelle's great and all but i would probably fight her if i met her in a denny's parkinglot

[anniebaxterthefuture]

Had it been any other day of the week, and if Annie weren’t already feeling completely humiliated, she might have found herself distracted by Elias looking down at her. He was tall, handsome, cheeks dimpling in a way that always made her heart stutter in her chest. For one, fleeting moment he’d been wearing her favourite of his smiles – they were all exceedingly gorgeous, but she couldn’t help but find herself endeared by the shy, timid smile that he so often wore in her presence. She wasn’t entirely sure what it was about her that made the boy nervous, his nature always so bright, yet ever so slightly guarded. 

As it was, she found herself pouting up at the brilliant boy, her chest aching, breath shaky as she failed to fight back tears. She hated herself for getting so upset over a boy, particularly one she’d never actually met, but that didn’t stop the tears from spilling down her cheeks at Eli’s question. 

“I’m great,” she assured him, lower lip wobbling as her mouth curved downward into a frown that would put Florence Pugh out of a job. 

She choked out a watery, half-hearted laugh as Eli backtracked, his face scrunching up cutely. The urge to reach up and pinch his sweet little cheeks was fleeting, her unwavering attraction to the boy taking a backseat to her current heartache. 

“It’s okay, sugar,” she mumbled, averting her gaze from his. 

She knew how stupid she probably looked, sitting alone in a gorgeous dress while everybody else had fun, celebrating the arrival of the New Year. Guilt washed over her as she realised Eli had abandoned Matty to come check on her, shame burrowing deep in her gut as it dawned on her that she’d inadvertently spoiled a second person’s night. 

“It’s not important, seriously. I don’t wanna be a buzzkill or anything,” she shrugged, bringing a hand up to clumsily wipe at her cheeks.  

She threw a silent prayer up to both God and her father for the waterproof mascara she was currently wearing, grateful that it wasn’t about to make a mess of her perfect look. The last thing she needed was some low quality iphone photo of her with black streaks trailing down her cheeks making headline news. Honestly, she wouldn’t put it past some moron to see Eli standing in front of her and put 2 + 2 together and make 6, no doubt concluding that he’d just broken her heart or something entirely nonsensical and bizarre. Jaw-droppingly gorgeous as Elias Hewitt was, she was fairly certain she was the last person who would ever catch his eye romantically, and even more impossible to comprehend was the idea that he could ever break anybody’s heart. 

Her phone buzzed again on the table, and a foolish spark of hope coursed through Annie’s chest as she snatched it back up, eyes searching for some sign of Troy lighting up her screen, ever ready with an apology. Her optimism was wasted on the man when a text from her father filled the space instead, a simple Happy New Year, Darling. Have fun with Jackson, little dove. x that should have warmed her heart, but only made her feel even worse for having deceived her parents. 

Swiping the text away, she tossed the phone back down, the device clattering harshly against the wood and to the edge of the table. As entitled as she knew it looked, in that moment she hadn’t a care in the world for her possessions, her mood soured by the night, the New Year announcing itself to her in a way that felt cruel and taunting. 

“Elias,” she announced suddenly, abruptly turning her attention back to the pretty boy in front of her. “Do you think I’m ugly?” 

For a million reasons, it was an utterly stupid question. It probably seemed as though she was desperately fishing for compliments, certain that Elias would be the one to offer them up on a silver platter, but Annabelle’s confidence had taken a beating and, feeling downtrodden and insecure, she wondered absently if she was the problem, and not Troy. He was, after all, a model – it was his job to be gorgeous and desirable, which meant that he also recognised it in others. Perhaps she wasn’t to his tastes after all. 

“I mean, hypothetically, if you were supposed to be going on a date with me – would you bail? Would you take a quick glance at me in person and think fuck no and run for the hills?” 

“Happy New Year!”

Cheers rang out around A Novel Idea as 2024 arrived. Immediately, Elias felt a hand slide though his hair and he easily let himself be pulled into Matty’s kiss. As his lips touched the other man’s, there was that age-old fear that rose up in him, worrying that, somehow, word of this innocent little tryst, platonic as it was, would get back to Ferrari. The team he drove for was built on the foundations of traditionalism, and one of their drivers getting caught kissing another man would, in their owner’s eyes, send those foundations crumbling to the ground. The prancing horse did not need to make political statements apparently, and for some reason Eli’s sexuality would be a “statement” if he opened his mouth about it.

It was easy for him to remember where he was though, and the anxiety in his chest eased with the reminder. A Novel Idea was a safe space, he’d come to realise. Billy didn’t invite people to his party that he thought would go running their mouths. There were no NDA’s to be had, but Eli trusted the people here. Maybe that was stupid and naive of him, but true nevertheless.

He felt his lips turn upwards as he laughed against Matty’s lips. Eventually pulling away from the other man, he gave his best friend a bashful smile, still finding ways to be embarrassed about Matty’s easy love. The other man had quite literally been inside him before, yet Eli continued to blush when it came to the more chaste displays of affection of the other man.

“Happy New Year,” he told his friend, snickering once again when Matty leaned in for another, cheeky kiss that ended up being more of an open-mouthed mess as they both failed to keep their laughter at bay.

“Down, boy,” he warned playfully. He smoothed a hand down the front of Matty’s shirt, looking back up at his friend and raising his eyes when he saw the pointed look he was on the receiving end of.

Tilting his head to the side in confusion, he couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow, silently questioning his friend. In return, he watched as Matty’s expression shifted to one of exasperation, prompting Eli to shake his head, puzzled. The two of them had always been rather adept at these silent conversations, particularly when they were younger and a well-timed quirk of Matty’s lips across the dinner table had Eli twitching in his seat, excusing them both so they could trample upstairs and end up tangled together in Eli’s bed.

Right now though, he wasn’t sure what his best friend was trying to tell him, until Matty nodded over Eli’s shoulder.

Narrowing his eyes, he let his eyes linger on Matty for a second before he glanced over his shoulder, following Matty’s eyeline. Realising what - or rather who - Matty had been looking at with absolutely no subtlety, Eli felt his heart pick up double time. 

“Quit it,” he said, trying to catch Matty with his elbow. His friend expertly dodged the jab, and continued to nudge Eli in Annie’s direction.

He’d seen her enter the book store earlier on with Jax, his jaw nearly hitting the floor after taking in the dress she was wearing. It would probably show up on his post mortem under ‘cause of death’, that dress would. She looked nothing short of bloody ethereal, forcing Eli to decide that there was simply no way he could approach her tonight. Besides, she was with Jax and as much as Eli openly adored his teammate, he couldn’t help but feel like there was a distance between them now. Not only because of Jax’s time out after his mid-season crash, but also due to the clumsy slip of the tongue Eli had allowed to happen when he’d gotten a little too tipsy at the Ferrari Gala, where he might have implied that he was glad to see Asher go. He didn’t think Jax was too pleased to hear that.

Right now though, Annie was on her own, and looking none too pleased about it. In fact, she looked downright miserable, the sight tugging on Eli’s heart strings.

“Matty, I can’t,” he protested when his friend gave him another shove from behind.

Still, embarrassed as Eli was to entertain the idea of stumbling his way through a conversation when Annie looked like Aphrodite reborn, he couldn’t really leave her looking so sad, could he? If anything, he could approach her and offer to go seek out Jax. With a sigh, he flashed Matty a defeated look.

“Okay, okay, I’m going!” He held up his hands as he eventually walked away from Matty, noting that Simon had made a beeline over to him to wish him a Happy New Year. At least he wouldn’t be the only one leaving the shop with red cheeks tonight, he noted. 

As he quietly approached Annie, she seemed to sense his presence before she saw him. Or rather, she had mistakenly thought it was Jax who was hovering worriedly nearby. He jumped a little with the ferocity she slammed her phone down, struck into silence so by the time he’d found his voice again, she’d already realised it was him.

Her smile was thin and watery, not at all like the usual trademark Annie Baxter grin she gave him, the one that was sure to reduce his insides to a mess of playground-flutters and molten heat. He tugged one corner of his mouth up in an answering smile before it faded as quickly as it had arrived.

“Hey,” he greeted her, gaze softening into concern. “Annie, are you okay?”

He immediately screwed his face up in regret.

“Sorry. That wasn’t a Michael Jackson reference. I’m genuinely asking.”

[lctmebesurprised]

👏👏👏and👏yet👏 another 👏another👏 thing👏that👏i👏noticed👏about👏heaven👏and👏how👏it’s👏bullshit👏👏👏

Watch the beginning of this clip and tell me how you feel about Annabelle and the other angels treatment of Charlie and making him feel low about himself for not kissing ass and being an extra so called ‘goody goody’ like the others are. 

And I can hear you say, ‘But Deb, this is the sequel, it doesn’t count!’ 

TBH Adgth2 DOES have it’s issues, but Charlie’s character arc??? It isn’t one of them. He still retains the good, soft that he became from the first film while still being a rough on the outside, smooth talking guy that he is. He WOULD be bored to tears in heaven. He never really got to live out the life he always wanted and there’s nothing really FOR  him up there that’s supposed to make it paradise. the premise of charlie wanting to leave heaven for some earth bound time and soaking it up as much as he can is probably the most accurate thing when it comes to his character. 

now back to MORE of the tea i decided to spill today

Annabelle after gifting and congratulating and honoring the dog that murdered him and tried to murder Anne Marie: “I only hope that our other angels who have YET to distinguish themselves-” She says with an obvious inflection and tone to distinguish and shame Charlie from the others. “-Soon follow your shining example.”

WHAT DO YOU MEAN CHARLIE HASN’T???? DISTINGUISHED HIMSELF???? HE OBVIOUSLY HAS. SEE HERE. FROM MY POST EARLIER TODAY

HE DOESN’T NEED TO DISTINGUISH HIMSELF TO SHOW THAT HE’S A GOOD ANGEL AND A GOOD PERSON. HE’S ALREADY DONE THE MOST HONORABLE AND PURE HEARTED ACTION ONE CAN DO FOR ANOTHER PERSON AND DIDN’T RELY/HAVE ON THE GET OUT OF JAIL FREE CARD TO GET IN THAT EVERYONE ELSE HAS. 

Here’s the thing. Charlie is surprisingly humble about his angel hood. 

I know he puts on the normal jokey bravado on earth ‘lolol yeah im an angel aren’t i so cool’ but he knows and feels like he doesn’t have to prove himself to others about his angel hood and you know what? He’s right. He shouldn’t have to. He’s one of the one and ONLY angels that genuinely deserves eternal paradise. And he even mocks others for going so far out of there way to impress Annabelle. What’s the point? You’re already dead. You’re already in heaven. There’s no where else to really go except to compare yourself to others and stuff up your own and Annabelle’s ego. 

CHARLIE’S OBVIOUSLY NOT HAPPY OR RESTFUL IN HEAVEN AND INSTEAD OF BEING LIKE ‘What can we do to make this someplace you could be happy’ SHE’S JUST ‘HOW DARE YOU NOT BE HAPPY IN HEAVEN, EVERYONE ELSE IS, WHY AREN’T YOU? IT’S PROBABLY BECAUSE YOU’RE NOT JUST AS HOLY AS WE ARE’

Charlie has an ego himself to cover up for his more worse or broken parts of himself, so he can recognize when people are just making themselves seem holier than thou. Which is something Annabelle does often AND USES TO TRY AND MAKE HIM FEEL LESS ABOUT HIMSELF. 

The dog that murdered him that she was just singing praises for for kissing her butt a lot??? That dog just stole Gabriel’s Horn and made it so NO NEW DOGS CAN ARRIVE IN HEAVEN AND THEN TRIED TO TAKE IT DOWN TO CAT SATAN AND HAS BEEN WORKING WITH CAT SATAN THE ENTIRE TIME.

And Charlie jumps at the chance to retrieve it because it means he’ll be away from everything in heaven that was driving him nuts and what’s the first thing Annabelle says to him when he asks to go???? 

“Well maybe you CAN do something besides making a nuisance of yourself.”

EXCUSE ME

And then after that, she still doesn’t trust him on his own down on Earth and makes Itchy, who just arrived in heaven, go with him. 

Which, is understandable because it is Charlie, but at the same time, NO FAITH. IN THE BOY. HE WOULD’VE THE DONE THE RIGHT THING EVENTUALLY. IT JUST TAKES HIM LONGER THAN OTHERS. 

Charlie doesn’t mind Itchy coming along at all because Itchy is his best friend, but it’s unfair to Itchy WHO JUST ARRIVED IN PARADISE AND EXPECTED TO, I DON’T KNOW, GET SOME WELL DESERVED REST IN PEACE.

Also ANOTHER THING, is that she always calls Charlie ‘Charles’ which is something he hates being called, yet, immediately calls Itchy, ‘Itchy’ instead of his full name ‘Itchiford’. Which is just another sign of disrespect she shows to him. 

And Annabelle obviously KNOWS Charlie’s jumping at the chance for service on Earth to experience living again and MAKES HIM AND ITCHY INVISIBLE AND UNABLE TO TOUCH OR INTERACT WITH ANYTHING EXCEPT THE HORN WHICH CAUSES CHARLIE TO GO TO CAT SATAN IN THE FIRST PLACE TO GET THE EARTH BOUND COLLAR THAT WILL MAKE HIM ‘ALIVE’ LIKE AGAIN. 

I’M JUST SAYING. ALMOST ALL OF THE ISSUES IN THIS MOVIE WOULD NEVER HAVE GOTTEN SO BAD IS IF ANNABELLE WASN’T SO DAMN EGOTISTICAL AND NARCISSISTIC AND DIDN’T THINK OF AND TREAT CHARLIE AS SOME LOWLY WRETCH UNDESERVING OF HER AND HEAVENS TIME FOR NOT PLAYING HER REINDEER GAMES. 

CHARLIE EARNED HIS PLACE IN HEAVEN. THAT’S MORE THAN ANY OTHER OF THE OTHER DOGS HAVE TO SAY UP THERE AND INSTEAD OF BEING HAPPY AND AT REST, HE’S DISRESPECTED AND MOCKED FOR NOT BEING ABLE TO BE AT PEACE AND NOT ENJOYING THE STANDARD ISSUE HEAVEN THAT EVERYONE ELSE DOES. IT’S BULLSHIT

[eldritchteaparty]

Chapters: 12/20 Fandom: The Magnus Archives (Podcast) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist Characters: Martin Blackwood, Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Tim Stoker (The Magnus Archives), Sasha James, Rosie Zampano, Oliver Banks, Original Elias Bouchard, Peter Lukas, Annabelle Cane, Melanie King, Georgie Barker Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Fix-It, Post-Canon Fix-It, Scars, Eventual Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, I'll add characters and tags as they come up, Reference to injuries and blood, Character Death In Dream, Nudity (not sexual or graphic), Nightmares, Fighting

Summary: Following the events of MAG 200, Jon and Martin find themselves in a dimension very much like the one they came from--with second chances and more time.

Chapter summary: Jon and Martin talk things out after their encounter with Annabelle at dinner.

Chapter 12 of my post-canon fix-it is up!

Read above at AO3 or here below.

Tumblr master post with links to previous chapters is here.

***

Martin finally pulled his hand away. “We should pay.”

“I did.”

“Oh.” He still couldn’t bring himself to look at Jon. “I didn’t see.”

“I know.”

“Thank you.” It seemed like the right thing to say before he did, but afterward it hung awkwardly between them.

“Do you…” Jon cleared his throat. “Do you want to leave?”

“Sure.” He didn’t want to stay.

Now that it was later in the evening, it was cool enough outside that he didn’t feel terrible for jamming his hands into his pockets as they walked to the tube station. He took the window seat on the train, staring out into the darkness of the tunnel as if he were watching scenery go by. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to talk, or even that he was avoiding an argument; after all, arguing seemed to be one of the few ways that he and Jon actually managed to communicate with each other. It was that he still didn’t know what to say.

Jon surprised him by speaking first.

“You’re angry.”

“Yeah. I’m angry,” he answered.

“You have every right to be.”

“I mean—I’m not angry at you.” He finally looked at Jon, who was eyeing him with skepticism. “All right, I’m not just angry at you. I’m angry at the whole situation. I’m angry at her. And I’m—I’m angry at me.”

Jon nodded.

“And I feel stupid.”

“You’re not—”

“I am. And I’m sad,” he added. “I’m sad I can’t fix this.”

“It’s not your job to fix it.”

“It’s not yours, either. But that doesn’t seem to make a difference.”

Jon didn’t answer him, and he went back to looking out the window. They didn’t exchange any more words until they were almost at the front door of the flat, where Martin finally knew what he wanted to ask first.

“When did it happen? When did you—know it was back? Was it after Hill Top Road?”

Jon unlocked the door and opened it, waiting for Martin to go in before he answered him.

“It was. But not right away—it was that next week. I don’t even know if that had anything to do with it.”

“Ok. Ok. So that next weekend, when—and that haircut, and this—this stupid date—” Jon recoiled. “All of it, it’s all been, what—a distraction?”

“What?” Jon started to step toward him, then stopped. “No—no, it wasn’t.”

Martin drew in a breath and swallowed. “But it wasn’t real.”

“It was.” There was a kind of desperation in Jon’s face that Martin hadn’t seen for a while—like he had something to prove. “It’s what I could give. I don’t know how much time we have, and—”

He couldn’t hold it in. “Jon—why didn’t you just tell me?”

A moment passed, but Martin was determined to wait for an answer. Jon finally gave it.

“Because you were happy.”

“Happy? I was worried sick about you most of the time.”

“That was still better, though, wasn’t it?”

“What do you mean?”

“When I was—” Jon paused. “You liked taking care of me. You liked that I had to rely on you. You liked that I couldn’t—

“Don’t.”

Jon didn’t.

Martin was suddenly conscious that they had never moved away from the front door. Jon’s last point had knocked some of the energy out of him, but going to sit somewhere else didn’t seem right. He sat on the floor instead, leaning against the back of the couch. Jon reciprocated, leaning on the wall behind him. It was dark in the flat, they hadn’t turned on a light, but they could still see each other well enough from the lights outside the window.

“Look—at least I knew it was wrong.”

Jon sighed. “It wasn’t—it wasn’t wrong. I did need you. And it—it was sweet. I’m glad I have you. It was just—”

“I know. I know what it was.”

In the quiet that followed, guilt that had lain dormant until then writhed its way down to his stomach. It settled in, weighing heavy inside him until Jon broke the silence again.

“Earlier, what you said—you were right.”

“About what?”

“That I should have tried harder to tell you.”

“Jon—I was upset.”

“You weren’t wrong.”

“Yes, I was.” Martin sighed. “I mean… I know you tried to tell me. Well, now I do. But I would have listened if—honestly, I just thought you were going to apologize again or feel bad for everything, and—”

“And you didn’t want to hear that.”

“No, I—” Martin stopped. I didn’t want you to feel that was what he started to say, but he was interrupted by the recollection of his mother, telling him to go put the kettle on to make a cup of tea. He’d grown to hate it right along with the oolong, the way she avoided having to talk with him about anything that might have really mattered, replacing it with something that only roughly resembled comfort.

Words he’d once spoken to himself came back to him. At best, it’s a plaster. At worst, a muzzle.

He was exactly the same as her. The guilt that had awoken started to twist its way back up, into his chest and around his lungs.

“Martin, you’re not—it’s different. You’re not the same.”

“Jon!” Martin’s face flushed. “That’s not suddenly ok now, you know?”

“I’m sorry,” Jon mumbled. “I didn’t mean to. It’s not—it’s harder to control than I remember.”

“Yeah. Great.”

It got quiet again; Martin distractedly tapped his fingertips on the floor, looking up at the ceiling.

“Ok, so… what else? What’s it—what’s it like?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean—ok, so do you need to read the statements?”

Jon took a small breath. “Yes.”

“Is it—” He forced himself to look at Jon. “Are you ok? I mean… I know they used to really take it out of you.”

“I’m…” Jon met his eyes, which seemed just as hard for him. “Sometimes they do.”

“Ok. Will you—will you check in with me if you’re reading one and I’m not around?”

“Martin—”

“Look, I’m not asking for a promise. I’m just—I’m just asking if you will.”

“I don’t know.” Jon returned to staring at the floor. The answer hurt, but Martin was relieved for the excuse to break eye contact.

“What about… have you compelled anyone?”

“No.”

“Could you?”

“Yes. Well, probably. Depending on the person.”

Martin nodded. “How hard is it to—know something?”

“It’s, um… not easy. Not as hard as it was at first—before—though. And more things… slip through.”

“Accidentally.”

“Yes.”

Martin realized the muscles in his shoulders and neck were starting to cramp from how he’d been holding them. He exhaled and leaned back against the couch when something occurred to him. “What about Melanie?”

Jon looked up at him again. “What about her?”

“You’ve been sending her after dead ends, haven’t you? That’s why she hasn’t found anyone to talk to. You knew she wouldn’t.”

Jon didn’t answer.

“So that’s a yes?”

Jon nodded reluctantly.

“Good.”

Jon sat straighter, looking at Martin again. “Really? I wasn’t sure if you’d—I mean, I know you want them to know about… about everything.”

“Yeah, I do, but—but everything’s different than I thought.” He couldn’t keep the tinge of resentment out of his voice, but he pushed ahead. “They still need to know, but… it’s different. I’m glad she’s safe.”

The gratefulness he saw so plainly reflected in Jon’s face did two things. It made Martin want to go to him, to bridge the short distance between them and put his arms around him, and try again to convince him everything would be ok. It also stirred the guilt that had begun to recede quietly back into his subconscious, pushing him to think further through everything that had happened, what he might have missed, what he might have done. Those thoughts were coming faster now that he was over his initial shock. They had more to talk about.

“Jon, I’m—I’m sorry I stayed to talk to Annabelle tonight.”

“Are you?”

He hadn’t expected that bit of harshness, and he tensed up at the words. “Well, I—”

“Never mind,” Jon stopped him. “I know why you did it.”

Martin sat back again. “I am sorry, though. I mean, I’m sorry it hurt you.”

There was another short round of silence.

“Jon, why do you think she came to talk to us? Or—talk to you, really?”

“It’s obvious, isn’t it?” Jon slumped back against the wall. “She won and she came to gloat.”

“Has she?” Martin asked. “I mean—yeah, we’re here, but—this wasn’t exactly what she wanted. It’s not what she wants in the end, anyway. And gloating, I mean—that really doesn’t seem like her.”

“We have no idea what seems like her, Martin.” The pure bitterness in Jon’s voice was almost a welcome break from the sadness that had dominated his tone until then. “That’s really her whole deal.”

“Maybe.” Martin kept pushing. “Still—I just think—do you really think she was trying to—call a truce? Whatever she said?”

“No,” Jon answered. “I think she came to see the look on my face when she told me they didn’t need me anymore.”

“I don’t think so.”

“No? You don’t think the Fears will find their way out of here eventually?” It was not meant as a legitimate question.

“Ok—I don’t know, but—” Martin tried to choose his words with care. “Yeah. It seems possible.”

“Therefore, she came to gloat.”

“But Jon—” He could feel the frustration creeping into his voice. “I mean—she has to know you won’t just accept that. You’re not planning to let it go, right?”

“Of course not.”

“Exactly. And she has to know that. It’s almost like—it’s almost like she was trying to push you to do something. To not let it go. Why?”

Something about Jon’s demeanor changed; he stiffened slightly, or shifted his balance, and Martin’s thoughts began to converge. The way Annabelle had talked about time—of course she was right, the Web didn’t care, and so she didn’t either. It was very clear her own life didn’t matter to her, any more than it served the Web.

So why would she show up and deliberately remind Jon that if he did nothing, the entities would escape?

It brought to mind something Jon had said earlier, something he had ignored in the moment.

I don’t know how much time we have.

“Jon, what have you been doing?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, when you’ve been staying late in the office. When you’ve been working here, writing. What have you been doing? If I open that drawer”—he gestured vaguely behind him toward the desk—“what will I find?”

“I’d prefer you didn’t,” Jon said quietly.

He measured his words carefully. “I’d prefer you tell me.”

Jon shrank into himself; he wrapped one arm around his chest and pulled his knees in, and brought his other hand up to his mouth.

“Jon.” Martin couldn’t stop the slight shake in his voice this time; he hoped he was wrong. “Please. Tell me what you’ve been doing.”

“All right.” Jon spoke from behind his hand. “It’s—it’s a ritual.”

It wasn’t the answer Martin had wanted to hear, but it was the one he had expected. “To start another apocalypse?”

“I—” Jon was breathing harder, and Martin could see the effort he was making to push through his words. “Yes. Not—not exactly the same, I could do it faster, and there would be less—”

“How? From memory?”

“No. Well—some. Some of it—there are a couple of—of Leitners—”

“Jesus Christ, Jon!”

“I only used ones that were safe—”

“Safe? Do you realize that a giant fucking eyeball fear monster is telling you which ones are safe?”

“I meant that I could control—”

“I don’t believe you.”

There was a beat of silence. “Martin please, I’m—”

“No, I mean—I literally don’t believe you. I don’t believe you could do it.”

“Martin—”

“Look, I get what happened before. I didn’t agree, but I get it. You’d lost everything. They used you and they took everything that mattered to you. They took Sasha, then Tim, and then Daisy, and you had to watch what it did to all the others—”

“And you,” Jon said.

“—fine, yes, but—Jon, this is not that. This is—they’re all here. They have a chance. And whatever you think happened before—this is a real choice. And they care about you, and you care about them. I just—I don’t think you could do it. I don’t believe it.”

Jon face slid down into his hand until his eyes were covered. “I don’t know. I don’t want to. Probably I couldn’t. Probably I won’t. But I wish I could. If it gets bad enough, maybe I can. And I need to—to be ready. I just can’t—I just can’t let them—”

The quick hitch of breath that followed made Martin forget what he had been about to say, if he’d had any words. He crawled to Jon’s side, slipping one arm around his back and the other around his chest, awkwardly trapping the arm Jon had wrapped around himself. Jon’s face ended up pressed against Martin’s throat, where his breath continued to catch as he fought to stop crying.

Martin wanted to tell him it was ok—that it would be ok, that they could still fix it—but he remembered the last time Jon had finally broken down that had only made him withdraw again. He was starting to really understand that it wasn’t ok for Jon, and probably never would be. He couldn’t bear to think what that meant for him, especially not right then, but he knew enough to not make that mistake again.

He said the only comforting thing he could think of that he was sure about, that he had been sure about for a long time now.

“I love you.”

Jon reached a hand up to Martin’s neck, where he pressed the pads of his fingers firmly against his skin.

“I’m here.” Martin spoke softly against Jon’s hair. He could tell Jon was still struggling, still trying to gain control, but he seemed to have relaxed a little; his body wasn’t quite so rigid as Martin held him.

***

Eventually Jon was calm. They’d shifted so that he rested with his back against Martin’s chest, and Martin’s back was against the wall. His arms were around Jon’s waist, and Jon’s arms rested comfortably on top of his as he leaned back into him.

“So.” Jon’s voice was raw. “I’ve finally become a monster.”

“No.” Martin pressed his mouth gently against his ear. “You haven’t.”

“Yes, I have.”

“No. I mean—I still don’t think you could do it, but—now that we’re here, and we know what’s out there—you don’t want them to get out again. That would be terrible.”

Jon shifted slightly; Martin impulsively tightened his grip, then made himself relax again.

“To be clear—I don’t think you’re responsible for what happens a hundred years from now, or a thousand years from now—and I’m definitely not in favor of ending the world over it.”

“Martin, it just—it doesn’t matter how long from now it is. If it’s ten thousand years from now and they escape, and poison a thousand dimensions—more than that, maybe—if I could have ended it, it’s my fault.”

Martin tightened his grip again, this time deliberately.

“Maybe there’s another way.”

Jon turned so his forehead was against Martin’s cheek. “Martin, I know you want to think that, but—”

“Yes, and I know, the world doesn’t care what I think.”

“I should never have said that.”

“I mean, it hurt—but it was true.”

“I’m sorry.”

“That’s not the point. The point is—I still don’t think Annabelle would have turned up just to brag. I think she needs something. She doesn’t want you to have time. I think she’s trying to push you into acting, and maybe—maybe, if you did, it would all turn out the same. But worse, obviously.”

Jon’s fingers, which he had been absentmindedly brushing over Martin’s forearm, were suddenly still; Martin realized that possibility hadn’t occurred to him.

“But maybe—if you don’t, but if you keep trying—keep looking for it—maybe there is another way. One she’s scared of. A path she doesn’t want you to take.”

“Hm.” Martin could tell Jon wasn’t sold on it, but he had heard him, and that was enough for the moment.

“Jon?”

“Yes.”

“I’m—I’m going to tell them soon.”

Jon nodded. “I understand.”

He kissed Jon lightly on the forehead, and slid his hand up to his chest, where he slipped his fingers into the gaps between the buttons of Jon’s shirt. He could feel the scar, his scar, through the thin fabric of Jon’s t-shirt; beneath that though, around it, he could feel the rise and fall of Jon’s chest.

“Jon.”

“Yes?”

“Let me know if you’re reading a statement and I’m not around?”

Jon sighed. “All right.”

[snoopdoggkun]

Entry Exams Suck

@taiyuu-high-oct

"Okay students!" some woman with leaves wrapped around her body screamed, jolting Popi out of her day-dream. "For your entrance exam," the woman continued, "you will have to run into here," she gestured to the thick woods behind her, "and collect these dolls that are scattered around the place." The woman held up an old, stinky, rag doll that has most likely been your sleep paralysis demon before. Despite its unpleasantness, Popi is determined to steal at last one. It would be perfect for her collection! And because, you know, you only live once, might as well steal annabelle from Green Giant. "After collecting your share, you will meet me and Buckskin at the other side of the woods." What were they running here? A daycare? Just as the two turned to walk away and let the hooligans run loose, the shorter turned. A sick smile cracked upon her face, making her look less like the Green Giant and more like the Grinch, "oh, and you can steal." So theres the punch line. Whoops sounded from the group of hero-hopefuls, and people already began to make pacts. Popi stood in the midst of the chaos, waiting for the 1 minute timer to hurry up, so she can get her grubby little hands on those grubby dolls. That was until she felt a second pair of grubby hands tap on her shoulder. Craning her neck to see the offender, she was met with a dreary boy who had terrible posture. He had big eyes and a dark spot in the center of his face.

"Will you join our group?" he spoke up after realizing the shorter girl was not going to greet him.

"Yeah, yeah, will you?" Only then did Popi notice the second party. She had wild, blue hair that shifted into a hot pink at the ends. Fully turning her body to face them, she shrugged her shoulders, "alright."

"Great!" the strange haired girl chimed, entangled both hands with Popi's, "you can call me Kutou! And this guy's name is Oh. What's your name? Hmm?" Popi took only a second to respond, obviously dazed by all the energy being thrown into her face, "Popi."

Kutou immediately squealed, "kyaa! Your name is sooo cute!"

~

Two introverts with one extrovert is a mess, that much is obvious. Not only were Oh and Popi generally passive, Kutou was an action seeker and demanded they go after others because, "it'll be fun! Whoop!" So here is where we find the odd-trio, stuck in a tree with a group of hoodlums surrounding them at the base.

"Shouldn't we try to get out of here? I would like to have one of those dolls," Popi said absent-mindedly, fingers tangled in Oh's tendrils. "Can you like, not do that?" the boy said, gingerly taking hold of Popi's arm and pushing it away.

"I got it!" Kutou, who had been unusually quiet piped up, "we'll jump off this ledge, and run away!"

....

Oh blinked.

Popi sneezed.

"We're 30 feet in the air," the two deadpanned, no emotion showing on their faces. Kutou visibly deflated, folding into herself and huffing, "well, what do you suggest we do?"

Oh stared down at the hooligans, looked around, picked at some bark.

"Um, hello?" Kutou peered over at him.

"Hmm? Was I supposed to make a plan or something? Do it yourself."

The two got into a match of bickering and Popi about lost it. This was another type of pointless. Girl only came for that damn doll and now she's ganged up with two dunces and they're about to be murdered by the other applicants now climbing up the tree. "I'm going down," she spoke through the two's argument before jumping down the tree. Yolo. Once reaching the base, she counted the amount of hoodlums. In front of her stood 4, nearly grown men, with matching quirks. They all shared the same punch quirk, but had to be recharged after one punch. Despite the very obvious strength gap, Popi has a third eye for finding the dumbest people on the planet, and she just found them. Darting behind one before the other three could react, she touched his now sweaty back, causing his fighting stance to falter. He found himself unable to move his legs, but rather his ears were going buckwild. She had switched his legs and ears. By then, he was screaming and alerted the other three.

Popi found herself surrounded by them, but didn't let herself falter. She went through the trouble of signing up for this hell hole, so she might as well get in. Two grabbed hold of her hands, but were quickly contradicted the action by doing the same move as earlier. Three down one to go. The remaining boy seemed to be the leader of the bunch. He was the strongest, judging by his build, and probably the smartest. Before Popi could think, he had slammed her back into a tree. Winding his fist back, the smaller girl took this chance to duck down and wedge herself out of the space between him and the tree trunk. He had caught her with his foot and held her down with his other foot. Before he had the chance to send her into last week, a tranquilizer buried itself into his wide back. Falling back, Popi felt the pressure in her chest dissipate. Looking up, she was met with Kutou holding out her hand, “man, and I thought I was reckless!” The grey-haired girl took hold of the hand and boosted herself up. “Thank you,” she said as she dusted herself off. Punching her arm slightly, Kutou chimed, “no problem, squirt!”

Squirt?

“Hey,” Oh alarmed the other two, “I found some dolls.” He took one of the bags from the offenders. It was huge and definitely held more than it could handle judging by the stretching seems. There had to be at least 50-60 dolls. Before they could all celebrate, a voice sounded through the dense forest, “attention to all applicants, there are five minutes left. Repeat: five minutes left.” The three looked to each other. Frick.

Darting off to reach the end, Popi thought of how she made some ok friends. Getting into Taiyuu might be easier than expected.

[sorry if I wrote too much and the grammar mistakes rip]

[aka-willow]

Flight

gif

Words: 1817

Characters: Willow Wren, Peter Parker, Ned Leeds, Natasha Romanoff, Steve Rogers

Prompt/Tag:

“call me now. it’s urgent.”

“What did I do wrong?”

Summary: Willow receives visitors at school

Timeline: February 2016

Song: Flight - Hans Zimmer

A/N: passed 300 views on Ao3! what?! like i know that’s not a lot but it’s a lot for me lol

—————————————————————————–

I wanted to skip school the next day—I hadn’t slept all night and I still had to get up early to shower in the locker room before school. I probably would have skipped if I didn’t have in-school suspension, which had to be the stupidest thing I’d ever heard of. Like… I’m already here, aren’t I? At that point, just let me go to class.

So, I dragged my ass to school, cleaned up in the locker room. I didn’t even bring a backpack to school that day, just my phone, and a charger. And a sharpie as a writing utensil. Off to a great start, per usual.

I ran into Peter and Ned in the hallway and they were surprised to see me there that early. “Hey, what’s up?” Peter asked. “Did you get number two on the algebra homework last night because Ned and I got two different answers. I texted you but…”

“Yeah… uh… no, sorry,” I said. “I forgot to text back.”

“Wanna go over it at lunch?” Ned asked.

I sighed. “Look, guys. Um… I got in-school suspension. Three days. I won’t be in class today.”

“What? What did you do?” Peter asked, his forehead crinkling with concern. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

“I got into a fight with Annabel,” I said. “After school.” I glanced down at my phone lockscreen. “I don’t really want to talk about it.”

“Jeez, okay,” said Ned. “Wanna hang after school then?”

I can’t. I can’t do this anymore. “Sure,” I said. “Text me.”

We parted ways and I walked to the guidance office, where I’d be spending the rest of the day. It was a beautiful, sunny winter day, which made the whole thing seem even more depressing. I’m going to have so much work to make up. And we were doing review for the biology unit test in class today. Shit. I’ll have to get the notes from Ethan. In guidance, I was faced with another awesome Captain America VCR tape. “So, you got in-school suspension. You messed up…”

Jesus Christ.

“They’ll be sending your work down to you shortly,” said one of the guidance counselors.

“Great,” I said, completely deadpan. “Um… could I borrow a pencil?”

She frowned and handed me one from the colorful mug on her desk, a chipped D.A.R.E. to Resist Drugs and Violence pencil, and I took my time getting up and sharpening in the electric sharpener by the door. I can’t sit here all day. Physically. I’m gonna fall asleep, and then I’ll get another day tacked on.

I miss… I miss how things used to be.

Eventually, a manila folder of work was dropped off at the guidance office and I cracked it open, trying to decide if it was even worth doing any of it at this point. Even though my first term grades were good, I was barely scraping by now, and I didn’t have much hope for the third term, either.

Around nine, I had filled the margins of my Spanish homework with doodles and I was coloring in the spaces with a sharpie when the phone rang. I heard my name through the receiver. “Willow?” the guidance secretary asked. “They want you to report down to the main office.”

You’ve GOT to be kidding me. At least this is more interesting. “’kay,” I said, closing the folder, standing up quickly, almost excited for anything to break to monotony. But something felt wrong, and I couldn’t place what. As I walked down to the main office, my steps echoing in the empty hallway, my stomach began to clench. What is it now? How could things possibly get worse?

I became hyperaware of every noise, the sound of the heating escaping the vents, conversation in a nearby classroom, my own heartbeat. Calm down. You need to just calm down.

I paused outside the main office door and then opened it, as I forced the rest of my paranoia back. “Hi?” The office was silent except for the receptionist writing on a Post-It, and what looked like a dad in one of the waiting chairs, typing on his phone.

“Willow?” the receptionist asked, looking up.

“Yeah.”

She nodded her head down the hallway. “Conference room.”

“Do you know what this is about?” I asked.

She shrugged. “Why the hell would I know?”

Fair enough.

My feet heavy, I trudged down the carpeted hallway to the conference room, the same one I had met with Officer Dunphee in only a day ago. Is that what this is about? Does she have something to share with me? Or am I in more trouble?

I paused again in the hallway, trying to hear who was in the room, if anyone. Something is wrong. I know it.

“You saw it, too. We can’t risk it anymore.”

“I know. It’s just… is this the right way?”

I recognized the second voice, a male, and tried to run it through the catalog of all the other men I knew in my life. Marty’s dad? Principal Morita? The list was small. I opened the conference room door and decided to get the first word in. “What did I do wrong?”

Time seemed to grind to a complete halt. There were only two people in the conference room. A woman. Red hair. Wearing all black. And the man. It took me a few precious microseconds to deconstruct it, but I knew the face because I had stared at it so many times before.

Captain Fucking America.

“Willow?” the woman asked. “Do you want to sit?”

At that moment, I had a decision to make and as each fraction of second ticked by, as my heartbeat was reduced to a slow drone in my ear, I made it. Whatever this is, you need to run. It was a split-second reaction as I pivoted and sprinted back down the carpeted hallway, flying out of the main office as I heard the chairs scrape the conference room floor and the woman say something to the man. The “dad” sitting in the main office lunged for me as I ran for the door and I opened my palms and struggled to control my power, pushing him back just long enough for me to get out.

Comms chattered outside, I heard vehicles idling. The adrenaline seemed to dial my senses to a ten and I heard it all. It’s happening. They came for me.

I sprinted down the hallway, my mind racing, trying to get out of sight as footsteps pounded behind me. I can’t take them on. I need to get as far away as possible, right now. This is a fight I know I can’t win. “Hold on!” the woman yelled, but I heard heavy footsteps gaining on me and I turned, my hands pushing outward just as a projectile redirected from my chest and wind shot past it, back down the hall. They were going to shoot me.

With dawning horror, as a tide of wind pushed through the hallway, I ran for the auditorium, pushing open the stage doors and running for the camera perch, just somewhere to hide and regroup. I opened my wings, but I didn’t have enough room to gain momentum and get up there, and after a few failed hops, I was still on the ground and running out of time.

The ladder. I climbed the ladder up to the rafters just as the doors opened and a flashlight surveilled the space. I laid down as flat as I could against the rafters above the cameraman’s perch, praying I wouldn’t be seen, that they didn’t have heat goggles or something like that. I was still trying to process everything, what this meant, why?

You know why.

The flashlight clicked off and the door shut. I heard talk of calling in SHIELD to secure the room. Of course. That’s who’s outside.

With shaking hands, I pulled out my cellphone and pulled up Peter’s number. Pick up, please just pick up. It went to voicemail and I waited three agonizing seconds for the beep. “Peter. It’s me. Call me now. It’s urgent.” I then paused and reconsidered. “The really bad thing I said might happen has happened.” Is this really it? “Um… I have to go now, and I don’t think I’ll be able to be in touch for a while. Can you tell Ned? Please? Um… and Jessica Jones. Alias Investigations, her number is online. Bye. Thanks for being my friend.”

I hung up and powered my phone down, slipping it back into my pocket just as the auditorium doors opened again. SHIELD agents this time. Lots of them.

I still have a mission. I need to find Doctor Turner and get rid of that book. Dulce, New Mexico.

I can’t get caught now. Not yet.

I shimmied along the rafters, as quietly as possible, each creak and groan sounding like gunshots in my head. The comms chattering down below were beyond distracting as someone relayed instructions. I continued to move, an inch at a time until I reached the ladder to the roof access. Easy now.

I stood, praying I was out of sight and gave the trapdoor a push. It didn’t budge. I tried again. Nothing. Finally, I put all my weight into it and on the third try it screeched open and immediately the agents below went silent. Light filtered in and I was suddenly illuminated in the dark auditorium, cold air filling the rafters.

Before I could think of all the possible consequences, everything that would happen once I made this decision, as the chatter picked up and another projectile nearly struck me, I jumped up onto the roof and began running, as fast as I could, opening my wings, not caring who saw now. The edge of the roof approached fast and I jumped off, letting myself fall towards the ground until I angled myself and swooped upward, rapidly gaining altitude. I looked down and saw a plethora of black SUVs outside MSST, and the same people from the conference room standing outside, staring straight up. I was too high to be caught now.

Something was approaching from where the sun was—I heard it cutting through the sky and saw its shadow—and without a pause, I narrowed my span, shooting through the sky, as fast as possible, aiming for the clouds that I hoped to lose them in. If they have someone in the air, they know what I can do.

I breached the clouds and passed through the white vapor, ducking and weaving as fast as I could, knowing now that I could never go home. The wind bit at my skin as I charted a new course, my limbs numb with adrenaline, my vision blurred. Gooblin’s in upstate New York. The fire tower. I need to get there.

They found me. I can’t go home.

[crazy-little-cool-cat]

Hand in Glove - Chapter 8 | Ben Hardy x OFC

A/N: Since I couldn’t post a sneak peek this time without ruining everything, I figured I might as well just post the entire thing and be done with it. Kate, my muse; Julia, my soulmate; Alex, my love - this one’s for you.

Word Count: ~2.2K 

Warnings: Angst. 

Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7

It wasn’t cold, but Annie was shivering. Storming out on Ben wasn’t the smartest choice she made, but she felt trapped. She didn’t know if she wanted that baby. Their baby. Ben, on the other hand, made it clear that he’s all in. All it took was one bright smile, and Annie knew. She knocked on the door again, constantly looking over her shoulder. When the door opened, she heaved out a sigh of relief. After driving around for just over two hours, she was glad she could finally stop running.

“Hey!”

“Hi. You’re not busy, right?”

“No, no.” Rami stepped back and motioned Annie inside, closing the door behind her and leading her to his living room with a hand on the small of her back, “this is a surprise.”

“Things turned to shit.” Annie collapsed on the plush cushions, “can I just… hang around here a little?”

“Wanna talk about it?”

“Is there any point to do that?” Annie’s voice was barely over a whisper. Rami shrugged silently. “I’m pregnant. I think he wants to have this baby. I fucking know he does.”

“Makes sense. He’s ridiculously crazy about kids.” Rami scratched the side of his neck. “And, you know, he’s batshit crazy about you since that damn wedding.”

“This is not the reaction I was expecting…” Annie’s whole face scrunched up in confusion.

“I was briefed about it all,” Rami chuckled, “if you really thought those three gossips would just keep it to themselves you need to get your head checked.”

“Solid point.” Annie nodded solemnly. “Still, I can’t have a baby with someone I’ve just met a few months ago.”

“Says who?”

“Me.” Annie groaned and threw her head back. “I’m not some cookie-cutter girly girl.”

“Oh, believe me,” Rami chuckled, “no one ever presumed you are.”

“I don’t want marriage and a hoard of kids,” Annie closed her eyes, “I don’t want to be the lonely, bitter wife that stays home and waits for her husband all day.”

“Ben wouldn’t want to turn you into one of those, you know.”

Annie’s phone kept buzzing in her bag. She knew who was calling. She knew he was probably going out of his mind at her silence. She hated putting him through it all. She also hated the situation that caused her to run away.

“So, what’s your plan?”

“I was hoping to just crash here tonight? Hide in plain sight, you know?” Annie realised how pathetic she sounded, “figure out the rest of it later.”

“You’re more than welcome to,” Rami smiled softly, “are you hungry?”

“I could eat.”

###

“She’s at Rami’s?!”

Ben couldn’t help but scream at this point. He was up all night, replaying what had transpired with Annie, trying to understand what happened. He tried calling Annabelle, but she wouldn’t pick up. He sent around a million texts. No reply. He even drove around the places he knew she likes to go. No sign of her or her car. Then, his phone rang and he couldn’t answer the call fast enough; only to hear Gwilym say that Annabelle had ended up at Rami fucking Malek’s place.

“Ben, calm your tits, mate.”

“Don’t tell me to calm my fucking tits, Gwil,” Ben snapped, “I was up all fucking night!”

“I know, we all were.”

“Only to find out that she’s literally in the last place I’d ever…” Ben barked out a laugh, “she’s so fucking brilliant.”

“She was always a master of Hide’n’Seek.”

“That tiny little -”

“Watch it,” Gwil warned, “that’s the mother of your unborn child you’re talking about.”

“I’m calling Rami.”

“I strongly advise you don’t do that,” Gwil quipped, “she needs some quiet time.”

“She dropped a bomb on me, man!”

“On all of us.”

“I need to talk to her.”

“You will, in time.”

“How are you so calm about this?!”

“I’ve known her for her entire life. I know she’ll come around.”

“When?”

“Ben, I really have to hang up now.”

“Of course you do.”

“Don’t call Rami.”

“I won’t.”

“Do I need to send Joe over there to babysit?”

“Fuck off.”  

###

“You can’t avoid him forever,” Rami finished the last of his coffee and hurriedly stuffed things into his bag, “or the rest of the world, for that matter.”

“I’m not planning on avoiding him forever.”

“It’s been two days, babe.”

“Did you -” Annabelle looked absolutely bamboozled, “did you just call me babe?”

“Sorry, force of habit,” Rami grimaced and chuckled, “usually the only girl I have around here is Lucy.”

“I still don’t know what the fuck am I supposed to say to him.”

“The truth would be a great start!”

“Really, Rami?” Annabelle tossed a throw pillow at his head as he passed by her, “you did not just say that.”

“I did and you know I’m right. You can’t stay here forever. Lucy will get suspicious.”

“Just say that you’re kicking me out then!” Annie laughed for the first time in two whole days.

“Never, you are such an emotional delight.”

“Motherfu -”

“Leaving now!” Rami interrupted her and shut the door.

Annie leaned back down with a huff. She reached for her phone, turning it on. She couldn’t handle the constant buzzing and notifications lighting up her screen. She just needed everything - everyone - to stop. Now that she felt calmer, she was ready to gauge the damage she had done.

###

There was a very tense, awkward silence during lunch. The four boys sat around their usual table in the catering tent. Gwil and Joe tried to keep up appearances and break the tension with some banter and jokes. Rami and Ben, however, have not spoken to each other since Ben found out his girlfriend - his pregnant girlfriend - is hiding at Rami’s for the second day, now.

“Can we please discuss the elephant in the room?” Gwil said, looking from Ben to Rami.

“There’s nothing to discuss,” Rami started, pushing his food around, “she’s at my house. That’s that.”

“You really think that what you said makes perfect sense?” Ben scoffed, “or are you really just a bloody idiot?”

“Ugh,” Joe groaned, “here we go, again...”

“She doesn’t want to see you yet!” Rami rolled his eyes and dropped his fork, “get over it.”

“Rami…” Joe glowered.

“No, seriously! Ben’s out here throwing a tantrum because he knocked up his girlfriend,” Joe was about to interrupt but Rami held up his hand to stop him and carried on ranting, “and she needs some time to think about the fact that he’s thrilled about having a child with a girl he’s known for just a few months!” Rami held up four fingers, “Four. Months. Can you blame her for wanting to just -”

“You think I’m thrilled?” Ben snickered, “you fucking owl with your goddamn huge fucking eyes -”

“Ben!” Gwil smacked him.

“Oh, so now you don’t want that baby?” Rami raised an eyebrow and sipped his soda.

“No, I do!” Ben hissed, “I’m fucking scared but I still want this to happen!”

“Okay,” Rami nodded, “but what she wants is to be able to think without you pressuring her! As long as that’s the case, she’s staying with me.”

“No. No!” Ben looked at his three best friends, “she’s my girlfriend. She’s hiding over at your house.”

“She needs time!”

“But I need her!”

“Ben -”

“No!” he felt he’s at his wits end, “I haven’t slept in two days. At all. Her phone is off, I can’t reach her,” Ben’s voice broke, “I know where she is and I can’t fucking do anything about it. Because you,” Ben pointed at Rami, “won’t let me see the mother of my own bloody child.”

“Ben,” Rami smirked wickedly, “what if she doesn’t want to have your bloody child? Huh?”

“Did -” Ben’s green eyes widened in sheer horror, “is that what she said? She said she doesn’t want it?”

“No, you asshole,” Rami picked up his fork and stuffed his face full of Ravioli, “she didn’t say anything about what she wants. That’s why she needs time to think.”

Gwil frowned at his phone, completely detached from the entire fight. He opened his mouth to speak a few times and snapped it shut.

“Annie just texted me,” Gwil blurted out. His mouth agape, his green eyes shining with hope, Ben looked at his girlfriend’s cousin in utter shock. “She said you should check your phone.”

###

Annabelle didn’t know how her life got so out of hand. She felt like it was slipping out of her control and it terrified her. After trying to think about the entire ordeal and getting nowhere, she figured she might as well just talk to him. 

Ben wasted no time when his workday ended and he went straight to Rami’s doorstep. They stood outside on the stoop, so Ben could have a smoke. They have been going on and on for about an hour now, with no conclusion. Annie looked at her red Chuck Taylors, stuffed her hands in her oversized hoody’s pockets and shook her head, disappointed with herself.

“I honestly can’t believe you want this… this…”

“Baby? Yeah,” Ben inhaled a deep cloud of smoke and blew it out, turning his head away from Annie, “Me too. But I do.”

“This can’t be happening.”

“Why not?”

“Because we’ve been in this relationship for, what, four months now?” Annabelle felt like screaming at his stupid, beautiful face. “Because we don’t even live together, Ben! Because -”

“So, move in with me.”

“Are you even listening to yourself right now?!”

“Annie, your entire heap of shit is already at my house. You’re there every night.” Ben was losing his patience, “come to think of it, we do live together.”

“Shut up.”

“I’m serious. Stop paying rent for a flat you no longer live in.” He pointed at her with his cigarette, “it’s fucking wasteful.”

“And what,” Annie mocked, “we’ll get married, have our baby, I’ll be your happy little housewife while you’re never around because of your fucking job?”

“Other than that middle and last parts, yeah,” Ben dropped his half smoked cigarette to the floor and stomped on it to put it out, “sounds good to me.”

“Fuck off.”

“Annie, what do I need to do for you to finally be okay with the fact that I fucking love you?”

“You love the thought of me, you don’t love me.”

“Oh, great, you’re spewing shit out of your mouth again.”

“Ben, I will never, ever, be that girl,” Annie could feel rage bubble up in her veins, “I don’t want marriage. I don’t want to be the wife that sits alone all day and waits for her husband to come home after he fucked his mistress.”

“Mistress? Have you gone utterly mad? What are you even on about?”

“I don’t know, Ben!” Annie’s voice rose about two octaves, “listen to me. I am not what you want me to be.”

“What do you think it is that I want you to be, exactly?” Ben threw his arms out to his sides, “I won’t even dream of proposing to you, if you don’t want me to. I don’t care about any of it,” he glared at the tiny little ball of anger in front of him, “I don’t want to fuck anyone else but you. I’m not sure I ever will.”

“Of cou -”

“Shut up and let me fucking finish,” he growled, “you are so infuriating, you know that? Annabelle, I don’t love the thought of you. I love you, alright?”

“I can’t give you what you want and -”

“You can give me you. That’s literally all I want.”

“And that?” Annie pointed at her belly, “do you want that?”

“I do.”

“What if I don’t?”

“Then that’s totally up to you. It will make me so, so sad,” Ben pulled her to him, “but it’s your decision, bottom line.” He cupped her face in his hands and tilted her head up so they could finally look at each other’s eyes, “Annie, I would never force anything on you.”

“I just don’t know…”

“Is that what you’re afraid of?” Ben could see Annie build her walls up, “Annie, stay with me, here. I’m not going to hurt you.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Ben.”

“What?”

“Don’t say you’re not going to hurt me because you don’t know that.” Annabelle put her hands on his wrists, “you might hurt me. I might hurt you.”

“You’re right.”

“You say you love me now,” Annie’s thumbs rubbed circles on Ben’s skin, “but what if you just stop one day?”

“That would be impossible, be realistic.” They both giggled softly at that. “Annie, I love you.”

“People will talk about this.”

“Let them. I really don’t care about these people.” Ben pressed his forehead to Annie’s, “this is ours. Not theirs.”

“I know.”

“I couldn’t function these past two days, Annie,” he chuckled, “it’s like everything depends on your existence around me, now.”

Annie nodded slightly and sighed. She knew exactly what he meant, because she felt it too.

“I fucking love you, do you not understand that?”

“No,” Annie smiled, “I mean, I do. I fucking love you, too.”

TAGLIST: @ramibaby @xgoingdownx @clara-who @violetpond @sweeterthancheese @drummerqueenrmt @westansstuff @rogerinamainbitch @justgivemethekeys  @blondecarfucker @cheeseedreams47 @rogerspoison 

[hwu-adventures-blog]

Family life- A Premature Surprise

First part of a series focusing on Beatrice Morse (MC) and Ernest Sinclaire as a married couple raising a family so where do you start that? at the birth of their first child. 

1821

Ernest Sinclaire was exiting parliament, about to get into the carriage to go home when he heard his name being called. “Mr Sinclaire!” he turned around to see Mr Bartholomew Chambers catch up to him, “I forgot to ask how is Mrs Sinclaire?” “she’s in good spirits” “she must be full of excitement with the baby coming along” “when I left her a few weeks ago she was feeling a little under the weather and tired from lack of sleep but she suspected it was because she was carrying another person” Ernest said “she’s written letters almost every day reassuring me that she’s positive that everything will be just fine when the baby arrives” “how long until she’s due?” Mr chambers asked he’d always been kind about Beatrice always asking after her, they’d become good friends since she first met him at a dinner party Ernest had held himself on the first night of the London season in 1816 “she’s seven months gone so we have a few months to wait until our child makes an appearance” “hopefully all will be well” Mr Chambers said “it should be- Beatrice is overall healthy and getting plenty of rest as she should be. I’m glad I’m able to make it home before the day comes” Ernest said to his friend “are you not worried about the birth? you know childbirth is dangerous” “I know more than anyone- but I have every faith in Beatrice that she’ll get through it unharmed- even with her condition” Ernest said confidently and truthfully “she’s tough even with her blood condition- I’m sure she’ll be alright” chambers agreed “I suppose you want to be getting on the road if you want to make it before evening” he added “I probably should. I’ll send you a letter to invite you to Edgewater at some time soon” Ernest said they nod at each other and Ernest climbs into his carriage and sits with a leather suitcase. The suitcase carried a small teddy bear he had acquired to gift the baby when it arrived in two months and the book Persuasion by Jane Austen for his wife who had always intended to read the book but never got round to it. Ernest sighed with relief. It was time to go home and see his wife and spend some time together in the peaceful setting of Edgewater estate.  

Ernest stepped out of the carriage half expecting to be greeted by his wife and her grandmother almost immediately but instead he was greeted by no such thing, only a brief silence that ended by shouting when was getting his suitcase out of the carriage. “Mr Sinclaire!” Mr woods exclaimed out of breath he’d been running “Mr Woods- why are you out of breath?” ”it’s Lady Beatrice sir- she’s in labour” the footman, Mr Woods speaks Ernest’s suitcase hits the ground with a thud and he  ran into the house, up the stairs, hearing the cries of pain echoing down the halls along with the voices of Miss Annabelle Parsons and the maid Briar trying to comfort his wife, he raced down the hall Ernest remembered the conversation with Mr Chambers merely hours ago as he did “she’s seven months gone we’ve got a few months until our child makes an appearance” “hopefully all will be well” “it should be-she’s healthy and getting plenty of rest as she should be- I’m glad I’m able to make it home before the day comes” “are you not worried about the birth you know childbirth is dangerous” “I know more than anyone- but I have every faith in Beatrice that she’ll get through it unharmed- even with her condition” “she’s tough even with her blood condition- I’m sure she’ll be alright”  Ernest ran faster reaching their bedroom the quickest he’d ever done, he pushed the door open.

“Beatrice” he said glancing over the elegant room but quickly focusing onto his brown haired, emerald eyed wife who was sweating and very red in the face and looked exhausted “Mr Sinclaire, you should not be in here- you need to leave” the doctor in the room, doctor Wainwright scolded him he was the doctor who had treated Beatrice since she was a girl in Glovershire so he knew what he was doing with her “Ernest- how was your trip to London?” Beatrice ignored the doctor and Ernest noticed she was clearly in a lot of pain ‘of course she’d think of my wellbeing before her own’ he thought “it was pleasant but it shall have to wait” Ernest replied keeping a straight face despite his fear “are you well?” “in a lot of pain” she replied “that’s normal” Dominique, the dowager countess says  “I think I need to leave the room- childbirth is not a man’s business” “no Ernest- please, don’t go” Beatrice said her voice shaking “Beatrice, my child, it’s man’s duty to wait whilst it’s a woman’s to giver birth” Dominque said to her granddaughter “please?” Beatrice asked the doctor and the midwife “I think doctor Wainwright, it would be a great comfort to her if Mr Sinclaire was in there for a while” the midwife said to the doctor who pauses upon seeing that Beatrice is in much more pain that she should be he sighed “he may stay but he’ll have to leave the room before you start pushing” the doctor agreed Ernest hurried over to his wife’s bed she reached out her hand and he took it squeezing it reassuringly “this shouldn’t be happening Ernest--it’s too early” she said “I know- Beatrice I know” he replied “are you mad at me?” she asked worry in her eyes “why would you assume I’d be mad for something beyond your control?” he asked “you might assume it is not yours from experience” “Beatrice- I know it’s my child, you have my undying trust in you and I know you’d never be unfaithful- and whatever rumours there may be- and there is a probable chance there will be rumours I know they are not true- as do all those close to you” He said grasping her hand tighter she cried in pain again before stopping and breathing slightly “so do we” Briar spoke up speaking to her childhood best friend from the corner of the room where she was holding towels and checking a pot of hot water “all those who don’t believe the child’s heritage will have us to answer too” Annabelle agreed before getting a glare of disapproval from the Dowager countess. A quicker wave of pain hit Beatrice before stopping and Beatrice breathed out again shaking with fear even more now as she realised it won’t be long until- “I’m scared Ernest” Beatrice said pain and fear visible in her voice and with tears in her eyes as she looked at her husband “I don’t want to leave you without a child again and-” she pauses “I don’t want to die” Ernest’s heart broke at his wife’s words, he’d never seen her this scared before and he could do very little to help her except with trying to be of some comfort to her. “ Beatrice I promise you everything will be fine- you will not die and neither will our child- even if anything happens to either of you, we’ll get through it, together” Ernest said comforting her, brushing a strand of hair from her sweat covered head- she let out a whimper of pain and out of the corner of her eye she sees the doctor nod at the nursemaid “Lady Beatrice it is time to get this baby out” the nurse said “Mr Sinclaire you need to leave the room now” the doctor said Ernest nodded “I’ll see you in a bit- I’ll be waiting outside” he squeezes her hand once more, placing a kiss on her forehead “I love you Ernest” she said her voice weak “I love you Beatrice” Beatrice let go of his hand reluctantly- and Ernest walked out of the room shutting the door as his wife screamed out in pain behind him.

Twenty minutes later and Ernest was waiting with Edmund Marlcaster, Beatrice’s older step-brother and prince Hamid, a prince of the Ottoman empire and a friend of Beatrice’s who had come to stay in England, listening helplessly to the cries of pain from his wife “she will be fine Mr Sinclaire” Edmund said placing his hand on Ernest’s shoulder “what if-” “if this is the same Beatrice who fought her stepmother from ruining her father’s wishes to make her the countess of Edgewater she’ll fight through this” Hamid agreed there was the sudden crying of a a newborn from the room, echoing down the hall and Ernest let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding- he was a father and all seemed well with the baby at least. There was a creak and the door opened- Ernest turned around to face the door as the doctor walked out of the room “doctor Wainwright- is everything as it should be?” Edmund asked “you have a healthy baby boy Mr Sinclaire” Doctor Wainwright said to Ernest “a boy?” Ernest questioned “you may hold him if you wish to do so” Doctor Wainwright said “I would like that but what about Beatrice?”  they hadn’t mentioned Beatrice- and surely they’d have let him know if anything happened? so why hadn’t they mentioned her wellbeing? “there were some complications with the birth” the doctor said to the young brown haired man,  Ernest’s heart stopped in panic “what happened?” Edmund asked on behalf of Ernest “she lost a lot of blood during the final stages of birth due to her Haemophilia” the doctor said “is she? Has she?” Ernest manages to get only those the words out “she is very weak and in need of rest- however as long as she does not do anything drastic straight away she is expected to make a full recovery” the doctor said “she’s always been a strong willed person ever since I delivered her 25 years ago” he reassured Ernest. Beatrice did not like doctors- and if possible she wanted the same doctor that had treated her throughout her childhood and Ernest was not going to argue with a four month pregnant woman. “I believe she’d want you to meet your son” Ernest follows the doctor into the room and sure enough there was his wife, pale, sweat covered, laying on the bed sleeping peacefully. He sat on the soft bed besides her and kissed her forehead “I’m proud of you my darling Beatrice” he whispered before the nurse gently handed him a small bundle- his son. “I believe she’d want her son to be held by someone even if she could not” the nurse smiled at Ernest  as he looked down at the baby squirming in the cream blanket, fair skin, Beatrice’s nose and his mouth Ernest felt suddenly protective over the small child, the baby squirmed in the blankets “hello my son” Ernest smiled at the baby boy “he looks very much like his mother” Annabelle said smiling from where she was sitting keeping Beatrice company “quite rightly so” Ernest said “congratulations he’s the most beautiful baby�� Briar said from the corner preparing the cot for the little child she smiled at her best friend’s child “he’ll grow up into the perfect heir for Edgewater” the dowager countess agrees from besides Annabelle. “may I have a some time alone with my wife and child?” he asked the women agreed and exit the room. Ernest turned to his wife knowing that she could still die even if the doctor said she’d be fine, he spoke gently “we’ve come so far for this my love, do not fail on me now, do not give up and take a turn for the worst. our child would like to meet their mother- they are the most wonderful thing in the world to me well, the second most wonderful after you of course” he says there’s a whimper from their son “are you tired? you can go to sleep. I’ll be here when you and mama awake” he smiled at his son and gently moved over to the old cot a few feet away from the bed and puts him down. Ernest sat back onto the bed next to his wife and waited for her to wake. 

Beatrice opened her eyes later that evening, Ernest had barely moved from his wife’s side- the only time he had was to check on their son in his cot and to let Briar in with the bottle of milk for the baby.  “Ernest?” she asked weakly “Beatrice” he looked down smiling warmly at her “is everything well? is the baby alright?” she looked at him panic in her voice as she tries to sit up “don’t move too quickly- there’s nothing to be alarmed over Beatrice, we’ve got a healthy son” “a boy?” She asked “a boy” he smiled at her, delight evident in his eyes “can I hold him?” she asked quietly Ernest got up and walked over to the cot a few feet away picking the sleeping child ever so gently and climbed back onto the bed, passing him to his wife. she struggled too hold him because of her being so weak from exhaustion and from blood loss so Ernest leaned over and helped his wife hold their son. Beatrice gazed down at the child and Ernest could see the motherly instinct and the love in her eyes for their son- something he saw in his own mothers eyes when he was a boy “Vincent?” she suggested softly not even looking at Ernest. Vincent, after her father, a kind and honourable man, a man he was also very fond of and Ernest knew that Beatrice loved her father so dearly even though the time she had with him was so short- it was the perfect way to honour his memory “Vincent” he smiled in agreement his wife looked up at him beaming from ear to ear at his agreement to the suggestion and leaned over to kiss him on the mouth it was only for a brief moment and when they broke apart three words left her lips “I love you” she whispers to him Ernest smiled at his wife and child. He was uncertain of the future, of whether his son’s claim as the heir would be doomed due to rumours, of whether there would be any rumours about his wife’s fidelity, of whether he’d have to confront Duke Richards about unsavoury remarks about the birth of his son in the future but he replied with the one thing he knew for certain as he sat there in the master bedroom one arm around his wife and the other supporting his wife in holding his son. Their first moment as a family.  

“I love you too. Both of you”   

part 2 here    

[faegents]

Sleeping Beauty Pt 4

The final installment of Sleeping Beauty. Thanks again to @agent-annabelle, without whom this story probably never would have happened, and thanks to @the-roanoke-society for tagging that one Aurora gif with Aly’s handle that kickstarted me attempting to transition this over to Magic & Mischief territory instead of Fairy Lights. Enjoy!

It wasn't until he was well away from her room that she took in a sharp intake of breath. Her eyes opened as she felt her heart begin pounding in her chest. What had happened to her? She remembered pricking her finger on some old spinning wheel- how did that even get into her room in the first place?- and then nothing.

Jospehine felt the magic severed as the spell was completed. With an excited gasp, she ran towards Alessia's chambers, followed closely by her sisters.

"Your Highness? Where is he? Where's the Prince?"

"Wh-what? What Prince? What happened?" She carefully sat up in her bed, a hand to her head. "There was a spinning wheel and then nothing, and-and...I'm here."

"The curse, your Highness." Titania tried to explain.

"You were cursed at birth by a fae man, but we..." Saoirse began. Josephine elbowed her in the stays, and glared.

"But I put a safeguard into his spell, that you would be awakened by true love's kiss. The prince that your parents arranged for you, he kissed you! And here you are! Awake."  She knew about Kieran's curse. But they had added a safeguard? A man she had never met was her true love? None of this made sense to her. If they knew she would wake up someday, why hide it from her?

"Forgive my confusion but, if this Prince's kiss woke me, then why isn’t he here? From what I know of magic, it only takes a few moments for a curse to break and wouldn't he want to be the first thing I see?" Her brows furrowed. "And besides, how could a man that my parents picked, a man I have never even met, be my true love? Do you really think that actually makes sense?"

The three women looked confused. But there was no time to ask questions, as one of the guards burst through the door to see the miracle for himself.

"She's awake! The Princess Alessia has been awakened!" He shouted to his fellow soldiers joyfully.

Alessia's head snapped to the door. How annoying. Were guards always this annoying?

"Yes. I am. And you are being very loud right now and I find it hard enough to think at the moment." Her eyes flashed with anger. Her senses were still overly sharp after waking.

The soldier straightened and bowed to her.

"I apologize your highness..."  She wasn't used to this at all, the titles, the reverence...

"Go away! All of you!"  The soldier quickly took off. He had news to deliver to her father.

***

Meanwhile, Kieran was thrown to the ground at Frank's feet.

"We found this one knocking about the Princess's chambers, as if he owned the bloody place..." the guard said, digging an iron-cleated boot into Kieran's back, forcing him to bow.

The king's face was colder than ice, his voice clipped and hard.

"What were you doing in my daughter's bedchamber?"

"Paying my respects." Kieran hissed, in pain from the iron on his arms and legs. He could feel the burns spreading, but he refused to struggle. All his spirit was gone, leaving him with cloudy grey eyes, a telltale sign of grief among his kind.

"Your respects?" He spat out. "Why would you-" Frank had moved down from his throne and pulled Kieran's head up to look him in the eyes. That cloudy grey... Being in his daughter's room...

"No. You can't be..." He turned to one of the guards to send him up to Alessia's room. If this was what he thought, Kieran had much to answer for. Pulling him upright, Frank stared him down. There was fire in his eyes and voice low.

"I will only ask this once, and I advise you to answer truthfully. Did you kiss my daughter?" Kieran knew that even the truth wouldn't save him at this point.

"I did. I had to say goodbye...had to...had to say goodbye..." He knew nothing of Josephine's safeguard to the spell, as far as he knew, Alessia was dead.

Frank’s eyes were filled with fury. If this, this monster had kissed his daughter and she was awake... The sound of quick footfall caught his attention. He held his hand up, silencing everyone. The look on the guards face told him everything he needed to know. Frank threw Kieran to the ground.

"You know what awaits you. I made you a promise eighteen years ago. If you ever came back here, I would make sure you regretted even showing your face..." With a wave of his hand, the guards dragged Kieran off to the dungeon.

"I just wanted to say goodbye...I'm as good as dead without her anyw-" He rolled onto his side, curled up in agony. His broken sobs echoed through the great hall as he was dragged off.

***

She felt a pull at her heart. There was only one person she wanted to have woken her up with a kiss of true love, but there was no way... Unless... Unless he had flown with them and he sneaked into her room! But what were the odds of that?

Alessia was still reeling from everything, or maybe it was just because after waking up, everything felt foreign to her. The only thing she could think to do was to confront her father about thinking that he could find true love for her. She made her way down to the great hall, not even aware of what was going on many floors below her.

Daniel was summoned to the throne room, where he and the king and queen wait for Alessia.

When he sees her, he is sure that he's never seen a woman more fair, but she was upset.

Once she entered the throne room, she stormed up to her father. He was the cause of all this. "How dare you. You presumed to find my true love when you don't even know who I am!" She caught a glimpse of Daniel. He was a very handsome man, but... There was nothing there between them.

"How could you possibly-!" She cut herself off with a shuddering intake of breath as a hand went to her chest. It was too much stress so soon after waking, and it was taking its toll on her.

Daniel looked concerned. "Your Highness, you are still recovering. Perhaps have a chair brought for her that she might rest..." He knew immediately that he stood no chance with her, but that would not stop him from helping her find the one who had awakened her.

***

Down in the dungeons, the guards grew tired of their new sport, and retired for the evening. The cool, damp dungeon air on the burns caused Kieran to tremble violently from the cold and shock. Just as he was on the edge of consciousness, a shrouded figure stepped into the cell. He unveiled himself, revealing the Ser Thomas, one of Frank's most trusted advisers. He too had grown up alongside Kieran and the king. And if Kieran remembered correctly, Thomas had risen to power almost as soon as he himself had been cast out of the inner circle.

That couldn't possibly be a coincidence.  Kieran glanced up at him, the betrayal and acceptance evident when he hung his head in exhaustion and pain.

"Look how the mighty have fallen." Thomas sneered. Kieran didn't react, he was too miserable to care. Thomas continued his triumphant little speech. "You know, I used to be so impressed by you. But then the King began to place more and more trust in me as his confidant. And look where it's gotten us...You became the villain I could never have framed you to be. Thank you for that. You signed your own death warrant by cursing the princess. And your lands are slated to become mine once I decide to end your miserable existence." He laughs. "I think I could get used to seeing you like this, all trussed up like a bird for the roasting spit."

***

Up in the great hall, Alessia was on her knees. She couldn't find the energy to stand up. Her mother had come down beside her. Slowly she lifted her head. "Where is he?" Kieran had to be here. He had to be.

Frank didn't respond.

"Father, where is he?" Another wave of pain came over her. Tears were pricking at her eyes. Frank looks away from his daughter. Her return would not stop his plan now.  Alessia turns to her mother, depserate.

"Mama please! Please tell me where he is!" Her cries echoed through the room.

“Frank, you know. Please- tell her…” the queen begs

"No.”“Frank, where is he, what are they doing to him?” Patricia asked aghast.

“Finishing what he started. The penalty for cursing and attempting to kill my beloved daughter is, well, death.”

“He woke me up! He broke the curse, you can’t do this…Father please...”

Down in the dungeons, Thomas prepared to end this. Kieran was completely unaware of the revelations occurring upstairs, and he hardly put up a fight when Thomas unhooked the shackles from their anchors, and dragged him over to the tank of red, stagnant, iron-tainted water that they had been force-feeding him earlier. Thomas sighed deeply.

"My turn to have a little fun."

And with that, he plunged Kieran into the water face-first, holding his head under the surface for a few seconds at a time. He waited until Kieran began to instinctively struggle before pulling him back up. Dripping and sputtering, Kieran begged for him to stop, crying out in alarm when he feels himself being forced into the water again. It burned, filling his mouth and nose, and getting in his eyes. If he wasn't blinded before, he was now.

*****

“You don’t understand the first thing about ruling, Alessia, you won’t be able to find your happy ending with Kieran, of all people.” He told his daughter sternly.

“You don’t know him. Father, I love him, please, help him…” Alessia begged, clinging to the hem of his robes.

“Your Majesty, I can’t marry your daughter.” Daniel said, watching the display, looking both relieved and upset. He would not force the princess to marry him. But that still left the issue of Kieran. If the king would not have him brought out, they would search the dungeons.

“You will do nothing of the sort. You have no authority here, Prince.” The sneer was unmistakable.

“Darling, please, you are breaking your daughter’s heart.” Patricia pleaded. Her begging was met with a harsh slap across the face.

“No. The traitor will die. And if Daniel will not marry you, Alessia, then my most trusted man, Ser Thomas, will be your husband.”

“No. No, that is worse than allowing her to be with Kieran…” Daniel said. “Ser Thomas is no better than a common criminal.”

At the insult to his friend, the king draws a dagger and swiped at the young Prince, catching his throat with the tip of the blade. Daniel staggered back, clutching his wound, immediately going pale.

“No!”

“Frank, what are you doing?” Patricia shrieked, horrified as her husband kicked the fallen man over without so much as a second thought. Alessia knelt beside Daniel, in tears. Kieran was missing, and the only sensible man around here lay dying at her feet.

“Daniel? Daniel, look at me…”

“You have to fight.” he said, gripping her wrist. “Rescue your fae, and get out. You have to get away from here. As long as Ser Thomas is alive, you’re in danger. My father will see this as an act of war...I’m sorry.” Alessia shook her head, in denial, but the foreign prince was dead. Her father was a murderer.

“Alessia, my dear girl. You don’t have any idea what goes into ruling a kingdom. This was necessary.”

“No, no it wasn’t, he was innocent.” Alessia insisted, discreetly stealing the prince’s dagger from his belt. “You killed him in cold blood.” Her father took her free hand, and helped her up.

“No. Enough of this, darling. Will you-”

Whatever he was about to say was interrupted as Alessia swung at him with the blade.  He caught her wrist in time, but he failed to account for the dagger his wife was holding. He fell to the ground beside Daniel’s still form, and both women took off sprinting towards the dungeons. They could deal with the aftermath later. They had to stop Ser Thomas and save Kieran.  

***

Kieran was dragged from the trough again, and set aside like a discarded toy. He could hear footsteps in the hall, but he couldn’t see.  For a moment, he thought he could hear Alessia shouting at Thomas. But slowly, the world faded around him. Unbeknownst to him, Ser Thomas met his end at the hands of a very angry queen, while her daughter worried over his bedraggled form. Her work done, Patricia called for the healers to get Kieran sent up to the recovery rooms.

***

Kieran doesn't wake for three days. By that time, he was stable, and Alessia was on her feet again, still with her mother’s help.  He can't see, but he hear someone moving beside his bed, and feels cool, gentle fingertips spread some sort of poultice over his eyelids.

"W-who's there?"

"Rest, master, you’re hurt." That voice...

"Sinead..." he choked out.

"I'm here, master. Please, rest. They are doing their best."

Alessia was kept mainly in her own chambers. Her mother was wary of her righteous wrath after the treatment of her true love. And with the diplomatic ties between the two kingdoms under strain, she had her hands full. The Prince’s body was to be sent home to be buried. His father, the king still had not released a statement regarding his next move. But Alessia refused to be kept down, and four days after waking up, she went to visit Kieran.

Kieran heard the door open, and felt Sinead leave his side.

"Who goes there?" He demanded, still on edge. His wounds were still tender, and he hadn't the strength to defend himself should his visitor prove hostile. She quietly moved closer to his bed.

"It-it's me..." Her voice started to tremble. "I've missed you so much..."

Kieran froze. "Then I am dead. You- I saw you fall, and Sinead was shot. The curse...Alessia..." he said haltingly. "Am I forgiven now?"

"Kieran," she moved the few steps closer to be at his side, " you are very much alive. And so am I. There...There was a curse you placed on me when I was a baby, yes, but one of the three fae that watched over me had put a countermeasure on it. That I wouldn't die. Only a sleep-like death and I would be awoken by true love's kiss." Tears started to fill her eyes as she gently took his hand. "You kissed me and woke me up. I suppose that can only mean one thing."

His hand is shaking, but he gripped hers tightly in spite of the pain. Her free hand gently stroked his cheek as she pressed a soft kiss to his lips.

He returned the kiss, humming softly. He opened his eyes, and there she was, alive and rosy-cheeked, just as he remembered.

"Alessia..." he whispered. "I see you, it's really you..." The princess gave him a watery smile.

"Of course it is. Oh, Kieran!" She threw her arms around him as she peppered him with kisses. "I knew you were my true love, you had to be... The can’t keep us apart anymore. I love you."

The sudden movement hurt a little, he couldn't bring himself to care. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her down beside him where he could more easily hold and kiss her.  

"This is a miracle..."

"It really is...Here I was, thinking that I would never see you again, when you are the one I am meant to spend my life with." Alessia cradled his face in her hands, placing the lightest of kisses on his forehead.

"You were dead, I thought you were, at least. There was no point in fighting them at the time. I should've fought, I might have gotten to see you sooner..." he said. She shook her head, her fingers started to trace his features.

"My father was...not himself. And Thomas was plotting with him. They’re both dead."

“And what of your prince?”

“He...He’s gone. Father killed him after he discovered that it was you who woke me up, and not Daniel.”

“Alessia, I’m sorry.”

“You’re not at fault. But I certainly don’t know what to do now...The people want me to be their queen now, but I can’t. Not after all this.”

“Then run away with me. Be my queen. We’ll have our own little kingdom in the forest where no one will ever find us or hurt us again.”

“I think I like the sound of that…”

“Then that’s what we’ll do.”

And they did. After making arrangements with the remainder of the court, and doing her best to negotiate reparations with Daniel’s kingdom, Alessia and Kieran finished making their plans. The first full moon after she was woken up, they were married in the presence of the queen and her court. Shortly afterwards, they stole away from the castle and returned to Kieran’s mountain fortress, where they lived out their days in peace.

[kittymaverick]

It’s been a year, folks, and you know what that means!

Yep, a MCF commentary again. And bear with me as I once again did not buy the game this time and am relying on 123Pazu. This is what happens when you no longer have a working credit card anymore. Spoilers under the cut as usual.

1. Okay, from that creepy Annabelle thing in the mirror alone, I’m glad I’m not playing this game because this thing would give me nightmares. Yeah, you heard me right. I can sit through the entirety of the Ravenhearst mindfuck but I can’t take a creepy smiling woman in a mirror for a few hours. I’m weird like that. And maybe so is the Master Detective. 2. Surprisingly this time, MD has a personal stake in this! They are actually a friend of the missing person! I didn’t know you had friends, MD! “Excuse you I do so have--” Honestly, I half expect them to have all died or be involved in tragic circumstances. I also expect you to have met half of them through your cases. “...You’re not wrong...” 3. The MD has nice tastes in trench coat and shoes. The hat not so much. “HEY.” 4. A manor that has been empty for two centuries and the locals call it evil. And your friend thought it was a good idea to reclaim it? “I never did exactly have friends who have the best decisions...” 5. Pazu: Hm, the black smoke [...] not a good sign. Me: Yeah, for sure. don’t breathe that stuff in, MD. “Too late. My soul’s been stained black.” 6. “Someone’s hiding in the guardhouse--” IT’S VICTOR. “...Can you not--” VICTOR. 7. Car crash is in the way. Time to find another way in. “For the first time in my career, I can’t go through the front gates.” For the first time in your career, you’ve been forced into making a wiser decision. 8. ...You’ve been to a detective academy?? “How else do you think I got my badge?!” ...There’s a detective academy??? 9. PERSON IN THE CLOSET. “Hey, I’m just here to help!” For once people are hiding from you. That’s refreshing. “...I think she might have locked herself in there.” ...Wonderful. 10. Scary entity took your friend. Good luck getting her back. “...I did say my friends never were the best decision makes...” 11. Hey shouldn’t the interior designer leave like right now-- too late. “DAMMIT.” 12. Hey, hey look. That looks like a raven feather-- *Smashes glass* Right, I’ll shut up. 13. *Takes one step* *Car comes charging* OKAY, THAT’S NEW. “Yeah, cars usually drive away from me...” I bet you a chandelier is going to try to fall on your now. 14. Hidden key behind crazy contraptions-- You sure you still want to friend your friend here, MD? “...I want to say no, but friendship demands me to say otherwise. 15. ....You know honestly with this family tree thing in the van, your friend seems awfully... unhinged. “At least it’ll be someone I know this time...” 16. What is it with you and finding weird doll contraptions? “Guess I keep winding up finding them.” ... Really? MD Sarcastic? “I have to have a coping mechanism somehow.” 17. Hey remember to block the door in case it close-- “...Oops.” Oh look a bunch of mirrors-- SMASH THEM SMASH THEM ALL. 18. “I should probably clean this shining--” DON’T CLEAN ANYTHING THAT CAN BE A MIRROR. 19. Wow that flower vase puzzle is super unintuitive... Pazu: Let’s never speak of the puzzle again guys. “I agree.” 20. If a mirror is found in the dungeon, you leave it IN the dungeon! 21. “Not today, Alistair!” Have you seriously taken up to just mocking the bird now??? 22. Oh yes, a pretty black mirror. “Hm, there’re locks on here.” And you are of course going to unlock it. Haven’t we been through this-- AAAND the MD has walked into the mirror. I repeat, the MD has walked into the mirror! “I WAS PULLED IN!” YOU DESERVE IT! 23. Mirror-verse officially canon in the MCF universe. I wonder if that means-- “NO.” I haven’t even-- “NO.” ... “NO.” 24. Okay we just need to get out of here and-- AAAAHHHH CREEPY DANCING ROBOT AAAAAAHHHH. “I really don’t want to--” JUST DANCE WITH IT AND MAKE IT GO AWAY. 25. That thing eats souls. I hope you are prepared. “I can think of several somewhat-dead people that will fight for the right to torture my soul though, so the shade’s welcome to fight for it.” 26. Eleanor: Hello? Hello?! Oh finally, we found her. Aaaand yet it’s going to take a while for us to find how to get her out of there. “Just a moment Eleanor! I’ve got... a lot of puzzles to solve first!” Be glad she can’t really hear you. 27. Eleanor: I knew it was you. Who else would go through all this for me? “To be fair, I go through a lot of things for a lot of people.” 28. MD, why do you have black powder? “No reason.” No really, why do you have it? “...” Have an itch you just need to fulfill? “You know I have a great love of setting things on fire.” 29. Eleanor: Okay, so I prick my finger and touch the mirror, and we hope for the best. “Sounds about right.” Oh I wouldn’t be so sure. It’s only been what, 2 hours of gameplay so far? There’s still at least the third act-- Eleanor: IT DIDN’T WORK! HOW? See, I told you! “I hate it when you are right.” 30. Eleanor: We should look around and try to find some answers. “And hopefully stumble into some friendly ghosts. I’m good at doing that.” Finally, one of your misfortunes is going to help us for once. 31. Gemma: Please set me free, then I’ll tell you the truth. “Okay.” Gemma: Okay thanks I’m gone have fun opening the box. “That’s not exactly telling the truth!” 32. Eleanor: So, I’m not Gloria’s true descendent. I’ll be honest, I was wondering what Gemma’s role was soooo this isn’t a huge surprise. Eleanor: Guess we’ll need to find Gloria, but how? “...” Hey MD? “Time to look for more dead people. 33. Camille: OH it’s you! “...Who are you again?” To be honest, I forgot about her. 34. OKAY MIRROR OUT OUT OUT Gloria: Destroy the mirror! “I actually agree with her for once.” 35. Wait, that’s it? No end credits scene, nothing coming back to haunt us? I like this no strings attached approach. Overall comments: I’m... not sure if this a good game in terms of one that’s in the MCF series. On one hand, there was nothing too glaringly weird or off in the plot, but that said it’s not the most gripping. In fact it sort of lacks all grip. That and some of the puzzles being incredibly unintuitive made even just watching someone play a bit of a chore...

[nomdeguerreblogs]

Some Thoughts About S4

Thanks to the anon who prompted this mini-thesis because. So. Many. Thoughts.

Tommy faces the morning sun and closes his eyes to regret and grief. Another series dawns…

Let’s start with the big question: ‘Is John Shelby Going to be Bumped Off?’ Short answer, I think so. I’ve vacillated a lot tbh, because being so spoiled it feels massively telegraphed, to the extent that it could be deliberate misdirection. Although that the evidence for it in the trailer is far from conclusive for people who casually watch the show is kind of proof in itself I think - there is still meant to be a question mark. But when you combine Esme weeping in (I’d bet on it because of her height and the necklace) Lizzie’s embrace; John and Esme’s absence at the family meeting; the Watery Lane bts shots without him joining the swagger; the wearing of black at that family meeting and elsewhere; that John and Esme haven’t had terribly much to do together since s1 and now are heavily featured; and Joe Cole not spending so much time on set it’s feeling ominous. Sure, it could still be smoke-and-mirrors. The tweeds of the promo pic suggest he goes country (the absence); and the black dress Esme’s in from that promo is the same as the one she’s wearing in a scene with John when he’s clearly very much alive. Her tears could be shock for his near-death (there are the scenes outside the hospital) or the untimely demise of one of their children. I don’t think the black is a ruse though, they all seem too united in anger at Tommy, and it’s not for our golden wrapper Harry Kirton at that point. The trailer heavily suggests that at least one of them will die, and wise money would be on John. At least it looks like there might be relatable grief this time.

About the family meeting, it is nice to see them in the gambling den again. I am terribly pleased Johnny Dogs and Charlie Strong are there too. But my favourite bit of the entire trailer is Finn’s Look™ at Tommy. They’ve come a long way since “that’s why you should never pretend to be me.” As if Finn ever had the choice to depart that shadow. I’ll miss Harry for whatever reason he’s leaving, he looks like a baby F. Scott Fitzgerald with that parting.

The Michael, Arthur and John scene with the policemen is likely a follow-up to s3. They are either being walked to the noose or a sentencing. They clearly all make it, past that point anyway.

Paul Anderson can break me with a twitch of his moustache and the dribble of a tear. Please never kill off Arthur, SK, I beg. Or Linda, I like her and that revolver was so cheering…

Michael and Ada don’t appear much in the trailer, but I think in combination with their ‘ranking’ in the s4 promo pic (and the comparative luxury of both’s outfits in said image), that’s because they’re still going to be the ‘legitimate’ side of the business - Chief Accountant and Head of Property and Acquisitions. Here’s hoping they share a plot, it could be enormous fun.

Polly facing the gallows must be her follow-on scene from the cliffhanger; she has the same hairstyle and blouse as 3.06. She clearly survives to do other things, which is great because SK needs her for balance. She’s the heart of the family, after all. The scene of her dressed in a fabulous floral kimono-type thing, taking a moment, is overlaid briefly by the zoetrope of the Edwardian (Victorian?) woman, perhaps representing something she once aspired to be, spinning round and around and it seems Polly herself will be sent reeling this series. She has a couple of quite different hairstyles - is there an element of disguise? Also the holster.

Speaking of hair, Charlie has a Peaky cut lmao. Tommy’s mini me. Perhaps nits were a problem at Arrow House? Tommy continues to have Dodgy Taste™ in artworks.

Adrien Brody appears to be another threat from Northern Ireland by that accent. Knowing SK, he’ll be ‘establishment’ of some kind as well; Tommy is always working against ‘them above,’ being as bad in order to survive ergo badder by the series, and there’s no other character we know of yet that could fulfil that role. But hell, Brody could be dubiously linked to the US government and have a legacy accent. He seems to be reprising Sabini in a murky tunnel at one point.

Alfie isn’t looking any healthier, or happier. Is the beach where that machine gun enters the country? Bravo the Woody cameo!!! I am desperately keen for Tommy and Alfie to have a fight on wet sand it would be hilarious.

Speaking of the machine gun, I LOVE the styling of that shootout! First time Peaky’s felt like a Western since s1 and I am digging it deeply.

ALSO pumped about the boxing match which I’ve been looking forward to since that ticket surfaced (date: 12 February 1926, Golliath vs Gold). Jack Rowan’s character is a bit of dark horse, though I’m guessing he’s the ‘Gold’ of the ticket bc his opponent is a fair bit bigger - he’s victorious in the ring, as well as there with Aidan Gillen’s character who is still thankfully lovely despite the hair - what ARE they there for? Anyway, that’s a publicly demonstrative thing Tommy’s doing with the gunshot at the end of the fight - it’s a message surely. The massive Union Jack AND Saint George’s Cross on the wall feel significant, especially possibly in conjunction with an Irish villain.

The girl under the bridge… I’ll come down off the fence and say I think that’s Charlie Murphy. I’d bet on it. One of my favourite mutuals (who’s very good at these things) swears blind it’s Lizzie, but there’s something about the profile where the cheeks meet her mouth and that tiny bump in her nose. Her hair looks longer than Lizzie’s s4 bob too. It is better than comparing Gaite and Annabelle’s breasts. Anyway, we’ve found our love interest of the series. Jury’s out on whether she’ll be the only one or one of two or three; my anxiety about Lizzie is unabated and May’s in s4. It would be the first series since one to not give Tommy three ladies. *sigh* *crosses fingers* The scene itself calls a bit to Ada and Freddie in 1.01, who met in the tunnel to hide their relationship. We’ll see; whatever it is it’s more intimate than the ‘hands’ bit of the s2 promo or the drunk snogging of s3. I’m just not that interested any more. At least it doesn’t look like she’s a queen on Tommy’s ever-more-acquisitive series of bedpost notches.

That scene in the cell with Arthur? No idea. And the tunnel-walking with gun raised in the lighting that seems designed against intravenous drug use is also a mystery. Though it looks like Victoria Baths to me and there isn’t even a whiff of May so at least that bit of plot is probably not facing reprise.

Cautious optimism abounds for a series that looks to be bringing all those chickens home to roost. There was no emotion that wasn’t pain or fear and after s3 that is apt and deserved. Here’s to the bleak midwinter!

[eldritchteaparty]

Chapters: 18/22 Fandom: The Magnus Archives (Podcast) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist Characters: Martin Blackwood, Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Tim Stoker (The Magnus Archives), Sasha James, Rosie Zampano, Oliver Banks, Original Elias Bouchard, Peter Lukas, Annabelle Cane, Melanie King, Georgie Barker, Alice "Daisy" Tonner, Basira Hussain, Allan Schrieber Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Fix-It, Post-Canon Fix-It, Scars, Eventual Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, I'll add characters and tags as they come up, Reference to injuries and blood, Character Death In Dream, Nudity (not sexual or graphic), Nightmares, Fighting, Spiders

Summary: Following the events of MAG 200, Jon and Martin find themselves in a dimension very much like the one they came from--with second chances and more time.

Chapter summary: Spiders. Also some unexpected information gives *some* of the archive staff renewed hope.

Chapter 18 of my post-canon fix-it is up! Read above at AO3 or read here below!

Tumblr master post with links to previous chapters is here.

***

“Martin.”

Martin lay in the bed, bleary eyed. Despite how early it had been, he’d fallen asleep almost as soon as he’d laid down after his conversation with Melanie in the hallway bath; he hadn’t even gotten undressed, just crawled under the covers in his clothes. He stayed still, not sure if he’d actually heard Jon say his name or if he had imagined it.

“Martin,” Jon said again, and this time he knew it was real.

“Jon?”

“I need you to listen to me.”

“What are you doing? Why are you—” Jon sounded like he was somewhere near the bedroom door, and Martin couldn’t see a thing. “Turn on the light.” He started to sit up.

“Wait.” Martin froze. Jon had an edge of concern in his voice that made Martin much more nervous than if he were yelling. “Don’t—don’t move. Just listen.”

“Jon, what’s going on?”

“I—I’d rather not say just yet. It’s probably fine.”

“Oh, god damn it. Can you—can you at least—” He sputtered out. Arguing would make this take longer, and that didn’t seem like a good idea.

“You’ll—you’ll be fine. I’m being cautious. Will you trust me?”

“I—do I have a choice?”

Do I ever have a choice?, he thought, but didn’t say out loud.

Jon sighed. “Yes. If you need me to tell you, I will, but—yes.”

Oh. Martin hadn’t expected that answer, and somehow it made not knowing easier. “It’s fine. I trust you.” He knew it came out sulky, like a child agreeing to a chore, but that was the best he could do in the moment.

“All right. Move to my side of the bed, but—stay under the covers.”

“Jesus.” Martin slowly and cautiously did as Jon said, half expecting to make contact with something in the dark, or to feel a weight on the bed, but there was nothing.

“Now—put your feet on the floor. Try not to move the covers too much.”

He swung his feet around under the blankets, slipping them out until he was sitting on the edge of the bed. He kept his hands in the air, not wanting to touch the quilt.

“You’re doing—you’re doing great, Martin. Now stand up. Slowly.”

The drop in his blood pressure reminded him that he had just been woken from a deep sleep; despite standing slowly as Jon asked, he had to concentrate to make sure he stayed steady.

“Now walk toward me—normal, but—slow.”

Martin sighed.

“Please,” Jon said.

“All right, all right.” Martin walked slowly toward the doorway; his eyes were starting to adjust, and he could see the outline of Jon in the dim light from the hallway.

“Stop.” He was probably about five feet from Jon.

“Jon—what is—" Despite the darkness, he was pretty sure he would have been physically aware of anything between him and Jon at this point.

“One big step. One big step, and then—”

Only partially conscious that he was doing it, he looked down.

“Oh shit.” Although he couldn’t see the floor directly in front of him, the hallway light was just bright enough to see a thin, broken line that cut across the floor near the corner of the door frame.

That line was moving. Crawling, in fact.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit.” Martin cleared the remaining distance between himself and Jon in a single leap, heart suddenly pounding. “It’s spiders, isn’t it—shit, shit—”

“Martin, my—”

“Oh. God.” He hadn’t realized how hard he had grabbed for Jon, and he immediately loosened his grip; Jon, still facing the bedroom, continued to hold Martin. “Is that it? Just that? Or is it—”

“I think—I think that’s it. If she were going to do worse, I think she would have done it already.”

“That’s not actually all that comforting.” Martin took a moment to breathe in Jon’s arms and let his heart slow before he looked down at the floor again. Now that he was in the hallway and could see better, he realized the line of spiders was moving away from their room, not into it. He couldn’t help himself; he turned back to the room and flipped on the light.

“Oh.” There were at least a dozen crisscrossing lines of small black spiders moving back and forth across the room; they were on the floor, the walls, the bed. They were walking right over where Martin’s sleeping body had been lying until just now. After a moment he was able to trace their origin to a single spot, a corner of the room where the ceiling and the walls met. They appeared to be coming down from the room above them, although the crack they entered through must have been very tiny.

“Come on.” Jon put his arms around Martin’s waist again, gently pulling him back from the door. He hadn’t quite turned away when they heard a voice down the hall.

“Jon? Martin? Are you all right?” He looked to find Sasha in the hallway, with Georgie not far behind. “We heard shouting and thought we’d—Wait, what is that? Is that—ants?”

Martin noticed that as the line of spiders drew away from their door, they broke off in two directions—one line went into Sasha’s room, and the other went into Melanie and Georgie’s room.

“It’s spiders,” Jon said, in the same calm voice he’d used when waking Martin. “Get everyone else from the—”

“The Admiral,” Georgie said, panicked, and ran to the door of their bedroom. Martin started to shout at her to wait, but Jon put a hand on his chest.

“It’s all right.”

Georgie screamed from inside the room.

“Jon, she doesn’t sound—”

“Georgie?” Melanie burst into the hallway. “Geo—”

“He was eating them.” Georgie came back out, cat tucked under one arm while she brushed furiously at various parts of him with her available hand. “That’s disgusting.”

Martin exhaled, relieved.

“What is going on?” Melanie looked into the room Georgie had just left. “Oh my god. Spiders aren’t supposed to do that.”

“No,” Jon said, continuing to move Martin back toward everyone else. “No, they’re not.”

Elias and Tim had joined the group by the time Jon and Martin reached the middle of the hallway.

“What the hell.” Elias walked past Georgie and Melanie’s room, peering in as he did; he threw open Sasha’s door when he reached it and did the same. He looked back at everyone else as he reached Jon and Martin’s door. “That—that is weird, right?”

“Yes, that’s fucking weird,” Melanie answered. “Jon, this is—this is her, right? The woman that—”

“Annabelle.” He merely acknowledged her name, carefully lending no weight to it. “Yes. Well—I can only assume. She’s—she’s good at concealing herself, but—this seems like a clear message.”

“What’s the message? That she doesn’t like us?” Melanie asked, having turned to swipe at Georgie’s arms as she continued fussing with the Admiral. “Too bad. Let her show her face instead of this nonsense, and we’ll see how she likes us with my boot up her ass.”

Martin stifled an incredulous laugh; the thought was ridiculous. He was reminded that Melanie knew virtually nothing about Annabelle.

“What?” Melanie asked, annoyed. “Did you ever try it?”

“I—I can’t say that I did.”

“Hm. Maybe you should have.”

“Elias.” Everyone looked up when Jon said his name; Elias was walking toward the stairs that went up from the foyer.

“I’m going up to get rid of them.”

“Is that safe?” Sasha asked.

“Well—” Elias spoke more quietly this time. “Allan’s up there too, and since we haven't heard anything from him—I figured it was ok.”

“Yes,” Jon said. “It’s ok.”

“I’ll go with him,” Tim said. They watched as the two of them disappeared up the steps.

“Back to the sitting room then?” Sasha asked. “Until, um—that’s done?”

Martin walked slowly, letting everyone else go ahead so he could have a private moment with Jon. “They really don’t get it.”

“No.” Jon shook his head. “Are you surprised?”

“No,” Martin said, “and I’m glad they don’t. I’m just thinking—that means that message was for you. Us.”

“Yes.”

“Ok, so then—why? What is she telling us?”

Jon shrugged. “That she’s aware of what we’re doing. That she knows where we are, and that we haven’t accepted her—truce.”

“OK, but—” Martin swallowed. He still hadn’t bought into her offer, but Jon’s interpretation seemed otherwise valid. “Why didn’t she do worse? That was—that was almost nothing. From her, that was a joke.”

“I’m not sure she could do worse, actually. Not here. Not without me knowing, and possibly exposing herself. She’s likely still recovering.”

“So you think she’s letting us know that she’s still weak? Why would she do that?”

“Who knows. It’s not like it’s made her vulnerable.”

Martin frowned. “That’s not like her, Jon. She’s nothing if not deliberate—she’s always had a reason for everything. If that’s true—if that’s the best she can do, or even if she just wants us to think that—she’s let us know on purpose.”

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying—I still think she’s trying to push you.” He rushed ahead, trying to get the words out before Jon could tell him he was wrong. “If you know that she’s still getting stronger, that it will get worse, that might push you to act too soon and—”

“Martin,” Jon said, taking him by the hand. “If that is the case—if she’s pushing me—what would you have me do?”

“I’d have you wait,” Martin said. “Just wait. Don’t do what she wants. Whatever comes out of this—give it time.”

“Wait?” Jon repeated. “Give it time, while she gets stronger and murders all our friends? Or worse?”

“No.” Martin tried to sound confident, although he could feel his argument slipping. “No. We’d protect them. You’d protect them.”

“How?” Jon asked. “I can’t. Not after a certain point.”

“But—”

“Never mind. Let’s say we could protect them,” Jon continued. “What about everyone who isn’t them? Everyone she can already reach? Well, her and the Web and the other fears. What about Carlos Vittery and Oliver Banks and—”

“Bad things happen,” Martin said. He knew now that he had lost, but he kept talking. “No, it’s not good. It’s wrong. It’s still terrible. But bad things happen even in a world with no entities, with nothing to live off the fear, with just—”

“Not these things.” Jon turned Martin’s hand over, enveloping it on both sides with his own. “These things—they’re my fault.”

Martin lowered his head. There it was—the conviction he could never shake.

“Martin, look. I don’t know that we have an option other than waiting. I have no intention of—of ending things, not right now. It doesn’t solve anything. It doesn’t stop anything. It doesn’t save our friends, not in the end. It doesn’t save you.” Jon traced the tendons on the back of Martin’s hand lightly with his fingers. “But I will never—never—let them out again. And when it comes to that—when it’s time to choose—”

Martin nodded, but did not look up again.

***

As it turned out, it was incredibly easy to destroy the spiders. Tim and Elias had discovered a massive nest in the room above the one Jon and Martin were staying in. Elias had grabbed a supply of insecticide from the attic and they had started to spray, prepared to run when spiders inevitably scattered, but that didn’t happen; they hadn’t diverged from their path at all. That was when Tim and Elias had realized the spiders weren’t just walking out of the nest, but also into it. They were coming back to the second-floor room from one of the bedrooms below, re-entering the nest, and waiting until they received some silent cue that it was time to leave again. The two of them had then stopped and watched as every single spider, without fail, returned to the nest to die in its turn.

“Fucking creepy,” Tim said, after he had recounted it, “but it did make things pretty easy.”

“So,” Sasha said, as they once again found themselves on the floor of the great room. “I take it no one wants to go to bed just yet.”

“Not anymore,” Melanie said. She leaned over Georgie’s shoulder to rub the Admiral’s ears as he sat contentedly in her lap.

“Martin, are you ok?” Sasha asked. His face reddened as everyone turned to him.

“Yeah,” he said. “Yeah, I think so.” He’d almost forgotten about the way he’d left the group earlier that evening.

“Do you mind if I ask some more questions, since we’re here?”

“We’re fine,” Jon said, and she redirected her attention to him. Martin was grateful.

“All right. Let’s start with Annabelle. She came here from the other dimension, right?”

“Yes.”

“And so did you—part of you, and Martin, also.”

“Yes. That’s—yes.” Close enough.

“And that’s it? Other than the entities?”

“Yes. I—I believe so. Well, also the—the body.”

“Right. Do you know how that all worked?”

Martin recognized Jon’s expression; it was the one he made while trying to simplify something complicated that already made complete sense to him. “We were connected to them—the entities—us to the Eye, Annabelle to the Web—in such a way that when they were expelled, we were too. Or really, they were expelled, we were dragged along with them.”

“Just the three of you were connected like that?”

“Yes. Our connections were—very strong.”

Sasha nodded. “What about the dimensions themselves? What do you know about them?”

“Not much. I only—saw them, for lack of a better word—for a moment. Or—the equivalent of a moment. Time doesn’t really—never mind. It was—it was a lot. Even for the Eye.”

“So there were very many of them. Dimensions, I mean.”

“Yes. More than I can attempt to describe. Infinite doesn’t—it’s too simple.”

“Are they all like this one? With versions of us, I mean, and—”

“No.” Jon clearly found the idea absurd. “Well—some of them are. But so many more are—different. I think. Different people. And—not people. And then—”

“You know who loves this shit?” Elias sat back on his hands, oblivious to his interruption.

“Um—who?” Sasha asked, after realizing he was waiting for an answer.

“Allan. Allan loves this. He can talk about it all day.”

“Talk about what exactly?”

“You know, alternate universes, wormholes, interdimensional travel—I mean, this is pretty much his thing.”

“Oh my god.” Tim smacked his own forehead with an open palm. “Go get him.”

“Right now?” Elias grew hesitant. “It’s pretty late. Maybe we could—”

“We both know what kind of hours he keeps, and anyway, his light was on when we were upstairs. He’s awake. Just—go get him.”

Elias looked at Jon, who shrugged. “It’s entirely up to you,” Jon said.

Elias hesitated a little longer, then stood up. “All right. Ok.” He disappeared up the stairs.

Sasha turned to Tim. “Care to explain?”

“Allan’s a physics professor. Theoretical physics. And he’s brilliant, and he does love this shit. I mean, he doesn’t really do it at work, it’s not the sort of thing that gets funding unless you’re Stephen Hawking, but—anyway, he’s obsessed with it. Manages to bring it up every time I’m around him. I can’t believe I didn’t think about it.”

“Oh. I suppose maybe he could tell us something helpful. That is, if he doesn’t think we’ve collectively gone mad.”

“Oh, he absolutely will, but he’ll pretend he doesn’t,” Tim reassured her.

Several minutes later, Allan was there. He fit a certain academic stereotype almost perfectly, at least in appearance; roughly the same age as Elias, he was completely grey, and had several days’ worth of beard growth that would have driven Martin crazy. Although barefoot, he was still dressed from the day in a pair of khakis and a rumpled polo shirt, and Martin suspected he might end up wearing them the next day as well if nothing interfered.

“Hello, everyone.” He stood outside the group, awkward but cheerful enough, given the time and circumstances.

Elias stood next to him and pointed out each of them in turn. “So this is Jon, Martin, Georgie, Melanie, Sasha, and—you know Tim.”

“Wonderful,” Allan said, following Elias’s lead in stepping carefully between Jon and Martin to join the semi-circle they had formed on the floor.

“So what has Elias told you?” Sasha asked.

“Not much, only that you are all engaged in a deep conversation regarding the nature of the universe itself, and I thought, it’s only 12:30 in the morning.” He smiled, but the expression quickly faded as he looked around again at the group. “I see we’re tackling the easy questions tonight.”

“Here’s the thing,” Sasha said. “We’re dealing with something that—well, frankly, isn’t all that believable, unless—unless you’ve experienced some part of it.”

“I’ll play along.”

Sasha took a few seconds to gather her thoughts. “All right, here goes. Several months ago, a number of very powerful entities from another dimension entered ours, and—they live off our fear. And Jon and Martin sort of—well—versions of them came here, too, and now they’re both of themselves, and they experienced all of this in that other dimension and—well, if we don’t find a solution, then—um—humanity is doomed.”

Allan looked around at the group again; he had a very different look on his face this time. “I’ll admit that’s not exactly what I was expecting—” He looked at Elias, who nodded slowly and then shrugged. “All right. Let’s start with these entities. Tell me about them.”

“Jon, you’re probably the best one to—”

“Yes, all right.” Jon cleared his throat. “Like Sasha said, they are extremely powerful. Just to give you an idea—some people in the other dimension thought of them as gods. They aren’t, of course, but—they aren’t exactly part of our reality, either.”

“So—they had their own dimension as well?”

“No. They were from our dimension—the other one. They were born there, and they co-evolved with us, I suppose. But not really with us, it was—it’s hard to describe. They weren’t—physical, maybe that’s the way to say it. Not in any sense I’m aware of.”

“Hmm.” Allan furrowed his brow. “I assume you mean you couldn’t see them, or touch them. In that case, how did you—well—know about them?”

“We didn’t, for a long time. Most people never did. They acted through things—people, animals, objects—and then, later, I—”

“Jon communicates with them,” Tim interjected.

“One of them,” Jon corrected him. “Insofar as they are separate. And—sort of.”

“Really?” Allan asked. “What’s that like?”

“It’s, um—” For a moment, Martin really understood what Jon had to accomplish when asked to explain things; he could not imagine any single way to sum up Jon’s relationship to the Eye. “Well, for one, I can—I can know things. Things I couldn’t know otherwise.”

“Really?”

“Ask him something,” Elias said.  

“All right. Is my research assistant going to show up in the morning?”

“Oh—well—that’s the future. I can’t know that because—well, I assume because it hasn’t happened, and therefore doesn’t actually exist. But”—he thought for a moment— "she didn’t show up today. In fact, the last time she came in was Monday.”

“Ok. From the past, then—what street did I grow up on?”

Jon paused, concentrating. “Technically there were several, but you’re thinking of Church Street. You stayed there a bit longer than the others, and it was the one you liked best. There was a park nearby where you learned to ride a bike.”

“And what was the name of our dog when we lived there?”

Jon concentrated again, a little longer this time. “There wasn’t one. But you had—rabbits. Hm.”

Martin decided to intervene, as he was pretty sure Jon would keep going until he hurt himself. “Ok, look, this does take a toll on him, and tonight’s already been hard enough.”

“I’m fine.” Jon looked at Allan, who was regarding him with renewed interest. “Anything else?”

“That’s more than enough. I’m—I’m quite impressed.”

“Oh,” Elias said, “also we found my body in the tunnels under the Institute the other day. Well, not my body, but—you know, my body from the other dimension.”

Allan looked at Elias with concern. “Ok, I’m—I’m not sure what to do with that, but—ok. We’ll come back to it. So these beings, they’re not from another dimension, and you can’t physically interact with them—not directly. But you—and maybe others—can interact with them, say, mentally, and they can influence the physical world.”

“Yes,” Jon said. “Yes, I think that’s fair.”

“What I’m getting at is that everything that makes up the universe—everything we are aware of—is classified as either matter or energy, and the two are equivalent in a sense. Well, there’s also evidence of dark matter and dark energy, but—never mind about that for now. And although there’s been no evidence of it, it isn’t impossible that there could exist some sort of life form that, rather than being made up of physical matter, is made primarily of energy.”

“Oh. That’s what a lot of people think ghosts are,” Melanie said.

Allan nodded. “Of course, there are some problems with the idea of energy beings. For one thing, energy, as we define it, is always associated with motion and change. Light, for example, which has no mass, transmits energy as a function of its momentum alone—but it must always be moving. Or we can define potential energy, which does not require momentum, but is always associated with a physical body. And for energy itself to be sentient in any way—well, it’s not clear how that would work. If there were sentient energy beings, they would be so different from us that it’s unlikely we would recognize them at all, except through the ways in which they interacted with the physical world. That sort of goes along with what you’ve said so far, as I think about it, but—tell me, when they left the other dimension and traveled here, was there any sort of medium involved? Some sort of physical matter?”

“Yes,” Martin said, surprised that he knew an answer. “The tape.”

“The tape?” Tim asked. “What tape? Like—sellotape?”

“No, like cassette tapes. The actual tape inside them. There was—”

“You didn’t mention that before.”

“Well look Tim, there was a lot to explain, ok? And that was—”

“It’s fine,” Tim said. “Go on.”

“I’m not sure I follow,” Allan said.

“Yes. Tape. Um, so—there was a crack, a gap, in our reality that led to the—the space between the dimensions, so to speak. That seems to have been a natural occurrence—”

“It’s possible,” Allan said.

“—but the tape, that was—that was something Annabelle did. The recordings on the tape were—relevant to the entities. It allowed them to bridge the gap without destroying themselves. It was—I honestly don’t know how she—”

“Annabelle put spiders in our upstairs guest room, by the way,” Elias said. “That’s why Tim and I were up there earlier.”

Again, Allan looked at Elias with concern. “You’ve been having a time of it, haven’t you?”

“Pretty much,” Elias said. “Sorry for not mentioning it sooner.”

“Quite all right,” Allan said. “This does explain some things. Just so long as you know you could have told me.” He looked at Elias a little longer before turning back to Jon. “Annabelle, she’s—one of them?”

“No, but she—she serves one of them.”

“So she is a physical being that they act through.”

“That’s—yes.”

“All right. So let’s see—this gap existed, the physical medium of the tape was placed there—how did they get to it?”

“Well—I suppose—we destroyed their other physical means of attachment to our world, and they were forced out the only way they could go. Into the gap.”

“How did all of that happen, exactly?”

“Well—you have to understand, there was an apocalypse, things had shifted, time and space didn’t necessarily—” Jon sighed. “Gas main. We blew up a gas main.”

“Oh.” He now gave Jon the same look of concern he had given Elias earlier, and the conversation momentarily quieted.

“This is—this is good,” Sasha said. “I mean—it’s good to have another perspective on this. Thank you.”

“Well, quite honestly, I’m not sure what to make of it, but—” He stopped. “You all really believe this, don’t you?”

“Yes,” Sasha said. “And if you don’t mind humoring us a bit longer—well, the reason we’re all in your house, and perhaps this is obvious, but—given that we do believe these entities are here, we’d like them not to be here.”

“Understandable. It would be bad for us, wouldn’t it?”

“Yes. So let’s say that we were able to—push them back toward this gap again, somehow. Would there be a way to—direct them? Make them go somewhere specific?”

“Hm.” Allan rubbed his hand over the stubble on his face. “Without really knowing more about them, but assuming we’re on the right track—I’m guessing we’d need access to the tape. Think of the way a wire conducts electricity. If they are sentient in some way, maybe they could choose their path along it, but—”

“I see.” Sasha frowned. “Jon, is that—is that even a possibility? Getting to the tape?”

“No,” Jon said. “I don’t—I don’t think so. Not for us.”

“Right.” Sasha, who had been crossing her legs, moved to stick one of them out in front of her. She took a moment to flex her foot, and then straighten it again. “Ok, what about this? And please understand, I have no idea how any of this works and I’m only throwing out ideas—could we move everything else? Like us? And leave them here? I mean—Jon and Martin came here, and Annabelle came here, and—the body.”

“Maybe,” Allan said.

“What—really?”

“Well—assuming this is all true, then it’s already been proven that physical matter can be transported from one dimension to another, because—like you said, it’s been done. Of course, the situation would be reversed from what we were just talking about. If energy requires matter to move across dimensions, matter most likely requires energy. In fact, I’m certain it would. Moving across dimensions is not the same as moving across space, of course—but the principle would be the same.”

“How much energy?”

“I can only assume enormous amounts.”

“Like—I don’t know, a nuclear bomb?”

“Well, how much mass are you talking about?”

“Humanity. The world.”

“A nuclear bomb would be a mere drop in the bucket. It would barely register.”

“Hm.”

The group fell silent again. Martin didn’t really know how to feel about any of this; he imagined the others were feeling the same. Allan’s thoughts on all of it made sense, at least as far as he understood them. In the end, though, it didn’t really present any new options, did it? Messing with the tape was almost certainly impossible given that Jon, even when his power had been at its height, was lost within seconds of trying to know its path. And the way Allan had described the amount of energy required to move everything else and leave the entities behind—even if they had some idea of how to do it, that was just too much, right? Could that much energy even exist?

“I might have a way,” Jon said quietly.

It only took Martin a moment to understand what Jon was suggesting.

“No,” he said firmly. “No. Absolutely not.”

“What just happened?” Tim asked.

Neither of them responded.

“Please,” Sasha said. “If there’s something—obviously we need to consider anything very carefully, but—if there’s a possibility—any possibility—”

“I could start another apocalypse.” He met Martin’s eyes; Martin looked back at him in disbelief.

“Ok,” Sasha said. “I have to say, I’m not sure how that helps.”

“When I—started it, before—when I said the words, and they—” Martin could see how hard Jon was working to hold back the misery of it, to hide the guilt and the torment he’d carried with him since that day. Martin’s instinct was to reach for him, to stop him before he crumpled under the weight of it, but at the same time he wanted it all to come out. It wasn’t that he wanted Jon to hurt; it was that he wanted them to see it, to understand how stupid this was. He wanted Jon to break now, just a little, so he wouldn’t destroy himself later. “When they entered our world, in that moment, the sheer amount of power they brought with them—it was—”

Martin lost it. “And what, you’re going to control it? Jon, that’s insane. Even the idea is—”

“Jonah did,” Jon answered. “Jonah controlled it, before he—where do you think that ridiculous tower came from? Jonah Magnus, king of a ruined world. Do you think the Eye gave a shit about his ego? Jonah made that world, Martin. He laid out the domains, preserved his own place in them just so he could—”

“Jon—"

“—and if I take his place in the ritual and retain the role of the Archivist, I believe I could—”

“No. Don’t even say it. It is way, way too—”

“All right,” Sasha broke in. “Stop. I’m sure I’m not following all of this, but you are talking about deliberately starting an apocalypse and—somehow using it? I take it the apocalypse wouldn’t actually take place, then?”

Jon considered. “Well, it would, but everyone would be—somewhere else. If I succeeded, no one would ever know it happened. And the entities would be left here to burn themselves out.”

“And if it failed?”

“If I failed, then that would be it,” Jon said. “There would be no going back. The opportunity would only exist for a moment.”

“That does sound incredibly risky.” Martin was briefly relieved; surely that would be the end of it. “But on the other hand—”

“What?” Martin’s desperation tumbled out of him. “You can’t be serious. It’s too much. It’s too dangerous.”

“Just—listen, Martin. Please. No, actually—all of you, listen. We are making no decisions tonight. We don’t understand this well enough. But if this is even a possibility, I think we have to consider it. It’s the only option we’ve come up with so far that doesn’t end with spreading the fears or sacrificing literally everything in our world. Everyone else—what are your thoughts?”

Uncomfortable silence pervaded the group; Melanie was the first person to speak. “I don’t know. It sounds like a lot could go wrong. And don’t take this the wrong way, but—it puts an awful lot of— pressure on Jon.”

“Yeah,” Georgie said. “I agree. I’d want to be a little more certain about—well, a lot of things, but like— what does that even look like, moving everything to another dimension? I mean, given what happened with Martin and Jon—well, if we didn’t just blow ourselves up or something, we wouldn’t want to crash land on top of a world filled with our own doubles, for example. Or end up somewhere worse.”

“Yes,” Sasha said. “We’d need to know a lot more—as much as we can. Allan, is there—is there any way to—I don’t know, check on any of this?”

Allan looked like he had been run over. “Keeping in mind, of course, that this is all very—um—”

“Yes. We know.”

“—I’m willing to do what I can. It sounds like the place to start would be wherever this supposed gap is. Do you happen to—”

“Yes,” Jon answered. “Hilltop Road. In Oxford.”

“All right. I’ll go in the morning. I’ll cancel my classes for tomorrow. I’ll take anyone else with me who wants to go. We’ll stop by the university and pick up some equipment on the way out. Let’s say 8 am.”

“Thank you. That’s—that’s very helpful. Anyone else? Any thoughts?”

Elias shook his head.

“Tim?”

“Well, just that—” He looked around at everyone, then shook his head once. “Never mind. It will wait.”

“Fair enough. All right. I know tonight has been a lot for everyone. Too much, really. We should sleep. Is everyone comfortable going back to their rooms?”

There was another bout of silence, and again Melanie was the first to speak. “I am if Georgie is.”

“Why not,” Georgie said, standing as she carefully balanced the Admiral in her arms. “I sort of doubt this one would let us sleep through another midnight buffet. Ugh.”

“Jon? Martin? What about the two of you?”

Jon reached for Martin’s hand; he didn’t pull it away. “We’ll be all right.”

“Martin, I’m sorry for—”

Martin turned away, and Sasha let her apology drop off. He heard Jon say something quietly to her, then accepted Jon’s encouragement to get to his feet. Sasha would have to forgive him later. He could tell they were still talking, although their words had become indistinguishable to Martin. He could hear Tim’s voice; somewhere behind him, Allan and Elias were having an exchange.

“Come on.” Jon’s voice, close to him. Martin’s body ached as if from a low-grade fever as they walked. It was a relief when Jon shut the door of the bedroom behind them, turning off the light that had been left on earlier. They faced each other in the dark.

“Martin—"

“No.”

“I know how you feel about this.”

“Yeah. Yeah, I guess you do. It just doesn’t matter.”

“Please.” Jon reached for him; Martin allowed him to turn his head, but would not let his eyes follow even though neither of them could see. “What if this—”

“Don’t. Don’t you dare. Not you.”

“All right.” Jon kissed him. Martin responded simply because he needed it; he needed the comfort. He wanted Jon close to him, and always would. He was too exhausted to fight it.

“Can you sleep?” Jon asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Just lie with me, then?”

He nodded, his forehead pressing against Jon’s in the dark.

Jon held him, and Martin lay awake for a long time.

[smolpyromaniacpirate]

We’re The Weird Ones?!

Chapter 3                   

My father was always a nice but strict man. He enjoyed joking around from time to time, but he always put duty above fun. He was a calm man either way, so he rarely got angry if I didn’t do my daily training routine. Mother was another story. She was the kindest soul I’ve ever met, and she was smarter than any too. She was the only one keeping my father in line, I would go as far as to say that my father feared her when she was irritated, which was often.    

My father tells me every day that I look like her. He says I have the same intelligence and same kindness, which I always retort that he was just saying that because he’s my father. But he insisted. My mother didn’t stay for long, she died after my 10th birthday, when she was alone at home… when me and my dad were jogging, that’s when she had a heart attack. She has always had a poor health, so the doctors weren’t surprised of its suddenness.        

My father and I changed after that. I don’t know if it was for the worse or not… but I know we were never the same happy family we were before.        

My mother. I miss her a lot. What would’ve happened if we didn’t go jogging? Would she still be alive? Would we still bake cakes together? Would we… be the happy family we were before? Mom…        

“Hey. C’mon wake up.” Someone nudged me, and I jolted slightly, opening my eyes wide. There was a woman near my bed, resting her hand on my forehead. She seemed… young. “Are you okay? You were whimpering in your sleep.” She seemed honestly worried. And I failed to respond. Her hand was cold and soft on my head… which was weirdly comforting. She furrowed her eyebrows before noticing she was still resting her hand on my forehead and sharply pulled it away, like she had touched burning coal.        

“Sorry, I was just checking if you had a fever.” She explained, her eyes shifting away from me. “Yeah, it’s fine.” I sat up again, yawning and stretching. Wincing slightly once I realized that wasn’t a good idea, my stomach wound seemed to stretch too. The girl glanced back at me, and she seemed to hesitate. “Be careful. It’s still healing.” She warned, her tone threatening rather than concerning.        

I nodded, already figuring that out by myself before relaxing once again. We both stared at each other for a few seconds before I smiled. “Uh… what’s your name?” Her brows furrowed deeper, as she scowled at me. “Or don’t tell me… I prefer you don’t tell me.” I nervously continued, rubbing my arm once she crossed her own. “It’s Emily. I’m the leader here.” She spoke with authority, but her young looks betrayed her.        

“I’m-“ “Annabelle Blackwood. I know.” She interrupted. I bit my lip, realizing this girl was hard to talk to. “Y-yeah…” I nodded awkwardly. “So… uh- how old are you?” I asked, and I had no idea she could frown more. “I’m only here because Madeline couldn’t come.” She ignored the question, finally uncrossing her arms and sitting on the bed. “Madeline?” I asked, sitting upright. “The doctor. She was supposed to change your bandage, but she had other things to do, so I’m doing it for her.” She explained, eyeing my stomach, where the wound was.        

I nodded and smiled at her. “Oh okay.” She kept eyeing the wound. I gazed at her curiously, wondering what was going on inside her head. “Do I… just take my shirt off then?” I tugged my shirt a bit, motioning what I meant, and she snapped out of it. Glancing at me startled. “What?” “Do you want me to take my shirt off?” I repeated, and her cheeks seemed to flush ever so slightly.        

“Y-Yes.” I nodded at that and pulled the shirt up, leaving it beside me as the bandage was now visible. The blood seemed to be oozing, so no wonder I had to replace it. I hoisted my body up with my elbows and waited for Emily to do her thing, but she seemed lost in thought again. Only this time, she wasn’t glancing at the wound.        

“Hey. You okay?” I asked, and she ruffled her head, face turning red as she began unwrapping the bandage. I could see the wound now, it was closed, but you could still see that the hole was massive. The stitching was good though, and I felt like the beam probably hadn’t reach any of my organs, which I was grateful for. Madeline, whoever she was, did a great job at it.        

“Tell me if it hurts or something.” Emily ordered, as she took a few wet nappies from a small box and began cleaning around the wound. The blood seemed dry though, so it took a few rubs to make it disappear. Emily looked very focused, so I didn’t bother her. But she was the first to break the silence. “I’m 22.” She said, her eyes never leaving her work. I smiled and gazed at her. She peeked at me and once she saw I was looking, turned back to cleaning the blood. She was rather… cute when she was flustered.        

“I’m 19.” I replied, making her twitch, the hand slightly grazing the stitching of the wound. I winced silently, and she apologized hurriedly, her hand grasping mine on instinct. “I’m sorry!” She squeezed my hand, her other with the nappy as she resumed cleaning. “I was just surprised. You look older.” I laughed slightly at that, making my whole body shake as she stopped what she was doing, scared that she might hurt me. I muttered an apology.        

“Well, you surprised me too, I thought you were younger.” I could see her bite her lip as she finished the last spot of blood. She finally sat up straighter, and grabbed clean bandages from the bag resting near the bed. “Sit up.” She ordered, and I did so, trying hard not to strain the stitches. Her gaze got distracted once again but this time she snapped out of it herself.        

She wrapped her hands around my torso and draped the bandage around the lower part of my abdomen, where the wound was. Her hands were still cold, which made me shiver at her touch. She perked up slightly but returned to wrapping the wound with multiple layers. Finally finishing, she met my gaze. We were standing rather close due to the intimate moment of her replacing the bandages, but our gazes didn’t waver.        

“I like your freckles.” I commented, realizing how random that was. But her cute freckles were quickly hidden by the bright blush on her cheeks, as she pulled away from me and stood up. She reached for the bag and swung it over her shoulder. “Meet us in the kitchen.” She informed, before leaving the room without any other words.        

I smiled. Finally putting my shirt back on, I stood up from the bed, fighting the urge to stretch. I grabbed my coat that was resting on of the chair and quickly put it on, finally ready to leave this room.        

I had no idea what day it was today, it was around mid-day, I knew that much, but I had no idea how long it had passed since the car crash. As soon as I stepped inside what I thought the kitchen was, I was greeted by the smell of food, and the grumbling of my stomach agreed.        

I didn’t take more than two steps before someone bumped into me. I almost had the instinct to fall, but whoever bumped into me was so light, that it felt like it was just a strong wind. “Oh no! I’m so sorry!” I looked to my side to see Sarita, she gasped slightly once she met my eye. “I didn’t hurt your wound, did I?” She started to panic, frantically inspecting for any sign of blood.        

I shook my head, slightly laughing and ruffled her hair. She sighed contently. “I wasn’t really paying attention.” She muttered, her arms fighting some sort of urge as they curled into her chest. As soon as I smiled at her, she seemed to no longer resist to the urge as she hugged me contently.        

She was so short that it was almost comical, her head only reached my stomach, but that didn’t seem to bother her. Finally pulling away, she coughed awkwardly before pulling me further into the kitchen. “Everyone was waiting for you, Emily told us you were fine now.” I nodded at her words, not resisting her dragging. When we turned a corner, I could see a dinner table, one of those that family use for Christmas dinners. It was so large that I didn’t find it surprising to see quite a few people seating around it.        

The only off-putting thing was the two guns on the table. “Hey, she’s here.” An elderly woman said, pointing at me with an open palm. Her skin was oddly pale, and behind her, where she sat, was a man, clenching his hands around her seat as he glared at me furiously. I could see I wasn’t wanted here by this man.        

Emily sat at the farthest seat on the table, looking quite disconnected from everyone. But once she glanced at me I saw her sigh inaudible. I could see Bill, sitting close to the elderly woman, his hands gently resting in front of him, one on top of the other. For some reason, it brought me a sense of comfort. He smiled at me encouragingly.        

“Go on sit. Don’t be shy.” Bill offered, standing up and pulling a chair for me. Both the elderly woman and the man behind her seemed to not appreciate this gesture as Sarita helped me to my seat. After Bill sat down, Sarita sitting next to me, I thanked them both.        

“Where’s Jamie?” I asked, glancing around as I searched for him. “He went to the bathroom apparently. There’s a few people missing.” Emily responded. I quirked an eyebrow at this. Bill seemed to be eager to continue. “Well, you already know Em and me-“ “It’s Emily.” “This is Evelyn and Alan.” He pointed at the woman in front of me and the man standing. Neither replied. “This is our house. We’re an honest family.” Bill continued, but Alan growled barbarically as Evelyn seemed to click her tongue at Bill.        

“You’re a family?” I pointed to all of them, but Emily shook her head ever so gently. “No no, Miss Evelyn is the mother of Alan and Billy!” Sarita replied from my side, her legs seemingly swinging from her childish eagerness. And the oddest thing happened. Evelyn beamed at the girl, almost as if she had always been this optimistic. “Yes, that’s right dear.” Evelyn replied, only staring at Sarita. And the girl giggled. Alan pouted as Bill laughed nervously.        

“Though, I’d like to think that everyone in this house is our family now.” Bill held his hands as if praying. I swore that Alan could not turn redder. “Stop with this bullshit Billy! We only took them in because it benefitted us.” Alan pointed accusingly at his brother. “I did it with good intentions.” Bill didn’t seem bothered by his brother’s outburst. “Well you ain’t the owner here little bro!” Alan laughed, his voice raspy as he stomped towards the apparently younger man.        

“Enough!” Emily stood up, her hands banging strongly on the table. Sarita jolted as Evelyn sat there, ignoring everything that was happening. The two brothers stopped as Alan regained his composure, still standing behind his mother. Emily sat back down, slowly as she dared anyone to try something.        

She finally glanced at me, groaning in displeasure. “We have Madeline, the doctor, and Alex. Both left to help someone but they’ll soon be back.” She started again and I nodded. “We also have Junior, but he’s been gone for a while, we don’t think he’s coming back.” She looked down at the table in melancholy.        

Then, Jamie seemed to pop out of a second door near the hallway I had come from. He rubbed his hands on his shirt before he glanced at everyone. His eyes finally landing on me. “Thank god you’re okay.” He rushed towards me and pulled me into a tight hug. I hugged him back reluctantly as he pulled away, ignoring everyone’s eyes on us. Sarita cooed ever so slightly as Emily coughed purposely.        

Jamie embarrassedly apologized as he stood near me, a protective arm holding my chair. Almost like what Alan was doing to his mother. “Before we agree to help you…” Emily continued, eyeing Jamie with distaste. She didn’t seem to like him very much. “You need to give us information about you.” Emily’s expression turned serious, she examined the gun by her side for only a few seconds before turning back to us.        

Jamie groaned and squeezed my shoulder a bit. “I’m Jamie Rodrigues. This is Annabelle Blackwood.” He pointed at me. Emily seemed to furrow her eyebrows at this, as well as Bill. Sarita listened attentively. “We don’t know much about this kid here.” Jamie pointed at the smaller girl beside me. She smiled nervously at the attention as they waited for her introduction.        

“I’m Sarita Farah Diaz.” She carefully announced. Evelyn seemed to nod enthusiastically. “I was searching for my Mamma down on the road. She said for me to wait at the camp, but she took so long, I thought something bad had happened to her.” Sarita chewed on her nails. “Have you seen her?” She inquired desperately.        

“What’s her name sweetie?” Evelyn asked. “Lolla! She’s very pretty and has long brown hair. She had my baby brother on her belly too.” Sarita explained. And I could see from her expression that she was trying to recall for any useful details. “How old are you dear?” Bill added. “I’m 10! But- my Momma! S-She went to get some ice cream I think, I’m not sure.” Sarita’s voice grew in volume.        

“Who else was in your camp?” Emily inquired. Sarita seemed to shake her head in frustration. “I don’t know! Papa was there I think, but he didn’t care so I left him.” Her voice seemed to carry a bit of anger. I tried to calm her down with a hand on her shoulder. She noticed this and backed down slightly, her eyes almost watering. “I’m sure your mother isn’t far then.” I replied. Sarita took a deep breath and smiled at me, grateful for my words, she looked a bit hopeful now.        

“And you two lovers?” Alan asked, his tone mocking. Jamie chuckled slightly, squeezing my shoulder tighter. “We aren’t-“ I tried denying it but Jamie interrupted me. “We were practicing shooting some targets down at the old Willow river.” He started. This seemed to perk everyone to their senses. But still Emily glanced at me as if a bit worried, but if she was, she didn’t show it for long as she paid attention to what Jamie was saying.        

“I’m a police officer, fought in the war too. Ann is the daughter of my boss actually.” He laughed a bit as he continued. “While we were taking a break from all the shooting we encountered some weird people. They wanted to attack us but we managed to get in the car and run away.” Jamie hesitated. “And how did you meet Sarita?” Emily asked. “We found her on the road, I almost didn’t see her but luckily I managed to turn the wheel in time. And that’s how we had the inconvenient car crash.” Jamie replied, as if he was telling a joke. My stomach itched slightly once the memories came back.        

“How did you not get hurt then?” Alan interrogated. “Lucky I guess…” Jamie shrugged. Sarita leaned towards me, as if she wanted to say something, but she didn’t. Instead, she grabbed my hand and squeezed it for comfort. I rubbed circles with my thumb to soothe her.        

“So, you’re both together?” Emily tried bringing the subject back. I went to reply but Jamie’s grip on my shoulder strengthened as a warning. “Yes.” He answered. Emily only shook her head. “No. I want to hear it from Annabelle.” She pointed at me carefully, her eyes digging deeper into Jamie’s skull. I could feel Jamie start to get angry, shaking ever so slightly as his nails started digging into my shoulder. He was obviously warning me to go along with it, and I didn’t want to find out what he would do if I didn’t.        

I nodded nervously as Emily’s frown grew. She hesitated to continue but the subject seemed to drop as Bill started to explain the rules of the house. Along with some cynical remarks from Alan.        

“So how can we help you?” Bill asked, after summarising the rules. He clapped his hands together and smiled brightly. “Well I want to find my Momma.” Sarita replied, crossing her arms on top of the table. Bill nodded as Evelyn did the same. “I want an explanation at what’s happening!” Jamie seemed to demand. Bill nodded his head at him as well though Emily seemed to not like Jamie’s tone. “I just want to find my dad. He might be searching for me.” I replied and Bill nodded at me too.        

“Sarita sweetie.” Bill started and Sarita glanced at him attentively. “We will do our best to find your mother, okay?” And she smiled happily. “Annabelle.” He turned to me and I nodded my head slightly for him to continue. “We’ll find you father no biggie. If he’s really the sheriff of the town maybe he’ll find you first.” He laughed and I smiled grateful. “Jamie… Yours is really easy to answer.” Bill glanced at him.        

I could see Emily cross her arms from the corner of my eyes. Jamie seemed to detect that she was the one who was going to answer this for him, so he fully turned to her. Bill sat more comfortably. “These people you said that attacked you… They’re dead.” She explained. Jamie blinked ever so slowly, trying to process what she said as I raised both of my eyebrows in question. “These people died and came back, they aren’t smart like us. They only want to eat, they’re cannibals. That’s why, if you’re bit“ I swore she squinted her eyes at Jamie. “you will turn into them, which means we have to kill you before you do.” Jamie jolted, shivered and then made a disgusted face. “That’s…” “Sick.” I finished for him. We both exchanged looks, happy to agree on something.        

“Yes. It’s the end of the world as we know it. It’s been going on for almost two months now.” Bill added. “What?! Two months?!” I asked, and Bill simply nodded. “Since we’re in a small town we got the word too late.” He continued. I bit my lip, trying to understand if this is even reality. “How did this happen?” Jamie asked.        

“A disease I believe. Some kind of weird Virus. We all have it.” Emily answered calmly. “After we die, the virus takes effect and we’re no longer us.” “And you die if you get bit too.” Alan included roughly. “Pappa talked about this.” Sarita said, all of a sudden in her own world. “He said the undead would come and kill the sinners.” “Sarita-“ Bill tried. “I’m not a bad person, I didn’t do anything wrong!” Sarita whimpered. “No one’s saying that darling. I know you’re a very kind girl.” Evelyn tried calming her down. Sarita breathed and shoved her head in the nest of her crossed arms, I caressed her head for a bit and turned to Emily.        

“This is all very sudden.” I sigh and she nodded. “We should all eat. Mother helped with the cooking today so I bet it’s going to be delicious!” Bill stood up and started to bring the food that I had a whiff of before. Evelyn seemed to ignore what he said but despite that, we all ate well, even Sarita cheered up and complimented the food.        

Jamie sat down and only made small talk, he whispered to me a lot, apologizing about earlier and telling me that everything would fine. Alan didn’t say a word, only grumbled under his breath to criticise his brother. Evelyn spoke generously to everyone but she obviously shinned when talking to Sarita, while Emily only spoke when necessary, mostly just watching everyone. Bill was noticeably the most talkative as he tried to include everyone in the conversation, keeping the topic light.        

We all finished the food quickly, but Emily seemed to want my attention as Jamie kept pulling me towards him. After we settled in, Billy helped us with our rooms and offered to stay watch for today along with his brother, who complained dramatically. But it was night now, and I dreaded that I had to share a bed with Jamie.        

“Annabelle.” Emily called, trying hard to catch me when Jamie wasn’t nearby. Jamie though, was very attentive, so he quickly noticed it and scowled at her. “What do you want?” He asked but she glared at him before ignoring him. “I want to see how your wound is.” She mentioned and I nodded, happy to have an excuse to move away from Jamie. The young soldier only seemed to get angrier as he tried to protest that he should go too. Bill came to the rescue, asking Jamie help that he couldn’t refuse, so he finally left us be.        

“Thanks.” I replied to the girl. She simply pulled me along to another room (How big is this house?) and closed the door. “Jesus, he’s persistent.” She mumbled, groaning as she sat on the bed. “Are you really going to check on my wound?” I asked. “No. Maddie will be here soon.” She answered, a soft smile coming to her face. It was the first time I saw her smile, which was already weird in the first place, but the smile suited her better.        

“I want to ask you, and you have to answer truthfully.” She rose up from her seat and carefully approached me. “Are you and Jamie in a romantic relationship?” She asked clearly. I took a second to breathe cautiously and then to lick my dry lips. Telling her the truth might help me, but Jamie really didn’t do anything wrong. And I’m scared of what he might do if I don’t obey him. “Yes.” I replied as clearly as she did. She seemed to examine me for a second, but the door knocked, interrupting whatever she was thinking of. I could hear a different voice from the other side of the door, a feminine one.        

“Em? Are you in there?” The voice asked. “Yes.” Emily replied. The door opened gently as I glanced at who it was. A tall girl stood there, her clothes seemed slightly ripped but oddly professional. She looked mature and very graceful. “Oh! Is that Annabelle? Are you feeling better?” She quickly rushed towards me, her hands reaching for the hem of my shirt as she pulled ever so slightly. The dressings of the wound were still there and Emily looked away for some reason.        

“Are you Madeline?” I asked and she chuckled lightly. Her voice melodic, she had the voice of someone who knew how to sing. “Very nice to meet you. And did Emily replace your binding?” I only just noticed, but she had an accent, only a slight bit of British accent. “Yes.” I replied. Madeline glanced at Emily and seemed amused at the way the girl was avoiding the scene. “Is it alright?” I asked. “Yes, besides the poor procedure of replacing the bandage everything seems fine.” Her tone was playfully as she stared at Emily. Finally letting my shirt drop she smiled at me. “Emily talked a lot about you.” I commented, smiling back at her. “Only good things I hope.” The doctor laughed again.        

Emily finally turned, noticing how Madeline had stopped investigating my wound. “Is Alex here too?” She asked. “Yes. They’re in the kitchen I believe, talking to Billy.” Madeline replied. “Alex?” I inquired, feeling out of the conversation. “They’re one of the best in the group. They went with me to help out a patient.” “They?” “Alex feels more comfortable with that pronoun.” Emily explained and I nodded understandably. “So, tell me, why is a cute girl, such as yourself, in this horrifying mess?” Madeline asked.        

I laughed at her attempt as Emily seemed embarrassed for her. “Your boyfriend didn’t tell me much. He kept rambling about the sick.” “My boyfriend?” I asked. “Jamie.” Emily replied and I did a silent gasp. Emily seemed suspicious of this but remained silent as Madeline waited for my answer.        

“We were just practicing some shooting…” “By we, I assume you and your boyfriend.” Madeline interrupted, Emily seemed to glance at her quizzically, as if she wasn’t sure what she was getting at. “Y-Yes. But then we some of those sick people. And they tried biting us but Jamie managed to get us in the car and we left.” I explained. Madeline nodded and Emily sighed.        

“And that’s when you got into the car crash, I take it?” Madeline asked, I nodded. “Have you asked this boy, Jamie, how he survived with no scratch?” Madeline seemed to be asking this to Emily, but Emily thoughtfully placed a finger at her chin, something that made me smile. “Yes. He simply said he was lucky. But I don’t believe him.” Emily glanced at me in hopes that I had reacted poorly. But I bit my bottom lip and looked away.        

“I might just be theorising but…” Madeline placed a hand on her hip and turned to me. “There’s something you’re not telling us luv’.” She finished, and I gulped drily. Emily paced towards me and I – out of instinct – stepped back. Until I had my back against the wall. Emily threateningly slammed the wall beside me, making me shriek.        

“Now Em, calm down.” Madeline leaned towards the smaller girl, placing a territorial arm around the girl’s waist. The other didn’t really seem to react to it. “If we can’t trust you, you’re out.” Emily warned, and I gulped once again. Madeline shook her head and gazed at me, her eyes stern.        

“I do believe we need to know the full story luv’.” She added. My knees shivered from peer-pressure. I wasn’t sure if telling them was the right thing, but I really needed a friend right now. My father is possibly gone, the only person I know here besides my dad is Jamie, and I’m scared of him.        

Oh, that’s right. I’m scared of Jamie. I’m scared of the things he would do to me if I disagree with him. “Annabelle!” Jamie’s voice suddenly broke my train of thoughts, the burst of the door and the groan from Emily. He was here, and I wasn’t sure if I was happy to see him or not.        

“I knew you were up to no good!” He growled at Emily, but the girl avoided his eyes, as if she was disappointed. “And you? Really?” He pushed Madeline and Emily away from me and pulled me close to him. “Jesus, Ann did nothing wrong.” Jamie seemed to mutter and Madeline glared at the boy, but after a quick blink, she gave him a soft smile.        

“We apologize Sir. Please, it’s almost night, you two should get some rest.” Madeline gave him an apologetic wave and Jamie scowled at her. But he said no more, he gently grabbed my shoulder and dragged me along to our room. But before we left, I spared a glance at both Emily and Madeline, our eyes meeting as I thought that maybe, I should’ve told them.    

[ourloveisforthelovely]

Angels 2

A/N: smut and other goodies. 

Words: 2,099

_____________________________________________________

Emilia followed Cas out of Annabelle’s room as a nurse walked in to check on her.

“Its all right.”

Cas said tenderly placing a hand on the small of Emilia’s back to get her to leave the room. He guided her into a waiting room where Sam and Dean sat waiting. Emilia turned and looked to Cas.

“So you are joined with the Winchesters?”

Cas nodded.

“Yes and I would like you to help me keep them safe.”

Emilia looked to Sam and Dean before busting into a fit of giggles. Dean raised an eyebrow.

“What’s so funny?”

Emilia smiled looking at Dean.

“Nothing dear. Its just ever guardian that has ever been assigned has ended up drinking or not right in the head any longer.”

Dean winced.

“Well that sounds about right. So do you have a name?”

“Emilia.”

Dean smiled looking her over. She wasn’t a bad looking angel by any means. Emilia was petite and only reached Cas’ chest. If Cas wasn’t giving him the biggest go to hell look, Dean wouldn’t have felt the least but guilty about checking out her hips and behind.

“And she’s the best for the job.”

Cas said matter of factly. When Emilia looked to Cas her shoulder length curls bounced framing her angelic face. Her face went pink as she looked away from her fellow angel. Dean meanwhile, looked at Sam raising an eye brow at the clear chemistry between the two.  

“Aren’t you just precious.”

Emilia whispered with a smile. Cas’ ears went pink as he nervously rubbed the back of his neck.

“Its true. We should get going.”

Like Cas she didn’t understand the concept of “personal space.” There had been many times that one of the brothers were having a nightmare to wake up to Emilia sitting in bed with them lovingly stroking their hair telling them everything was going to be all right. Dean never got used to that and kept telling her the same thing he did about personal space as he did with Cas. Sam meanwhile, enjoyed Emilia’s company. Emilia and Sam developed a bond like Dean had with Cas and for once it was nice to have a female’s company that he didn’t have to worry with.

As for Cas and Emilia….nothing had really changed or evolved. Emilia would follow Cas like a puppy doing anything that he asked her. Anyone with half a brain could see the two angels were head over heals for each other. When Cas would go away to look for God or do other missions, Emilia would be moody and worried until he came back.

“Why don’t you tell him how you feel?”

Sam asked one afternoon. Emilia looked up from the book she was looking at. She reached up swirling a piece of hair around her finger.

“Because Sam I am not good enough for him.”

Sam frowned sitting across from Emilia taking her hands in his.

“Why do you say such things?”

Emilia shrugged.

“Sam I have known Castiel  for many years. He’s a great solider and needs someone of equal greatness.”

Sam rolled his eyes as Dean walked in.

“Emilia you are good enough for Cas. He is in love with you too. You should see how he looks at you.”

Sam said soothingly. Emilia smiled clearly not believing what Sam said. He sighed running a hand through his hair.

“Would you bond with him if given the chance?”

Emilia blushed furiously again.

“Of course”

She said with a little smirk. Sam chuckled at the grin on that angel’s face as the door opened as Cas walked in followed by another female angel.

The look of disgust on Emilia’s face made Sam freeze as he turned to look at the other woman who looked angry as well.

“Really Commander we are using guardians now?”

Cas looked up still not liking that Hannah persisted on calling him Commander before looking to Emilia who looked upset as well.

“Yes I think Emilia is perfectly qualified for her role. She is a very good addition.”

Emilia was so busy glaring at Hannah she didn’t even see Balthazar walk in and wonder over to her. He watched her for a moment before putting two and two together. With a chuckle he reached down wrapping an arm around her waist.

“Ignore her love. Hannah has had a stick up for some time. Come sit with Gabriel and I. We love guardian angels.”

Emilia let Balthazar lead her to the couch where Gabriel sat. She sat down between the two to angels as Gabriel looked her over.

“Look who it is!”

Balthazar said with a grin at Gabriel.

“My favorite angel.”

Gabriel said with a smile as he reached out kissing Emilia’s hand. What Emilia didn’t see was the look of jealousy that Cas was shooting her from across the room.

“Boys.”

She said with a smile as Gabriel turned looking at her with a grin.

“Tell me sugar are you still all hot over my brother?”

Emilia nodded removing her hand from Gabriel’s with a smile. Even though he was charming and handsome, Gabe was no Cas.

“Sadly.”

Balthazar grinned innocently.

“He loves you darling?”

Emilia rolled her eyes as Balthazar looked truly offended that she didn’t believe him.

“He loves you darling”

Emilia laughed hard at that as she looked toward Cas who was watching them with a frown on his handsome face.

“Please! He’s too busy drooling over Hannah.”

Balthazar rolled his eyes now.

“Who would drool over her? She has a charming as death.”

Cas meanwhile, watched his brothers with a scowl. Would Emilia want a lover like Balthazar or Gabriel? They were too wild and being faithful probably wouldn’t happen. Cas growled angrily.  The urge in him to claim Emilia was driving him wild. He needed to bond with her. Cas needed to feel her body under his. He needed to hear her cry his name as he made love to her. He had been in love with her for so many years and had the only right to have her.

“That is the face of a jealous angel.”

Gabriel said as Cas walked over. He frowned at his brothers giving them his best bitch face.

“Emilia I need to speak with you. Alone.”

He held out his hand ignoring his brothers smirks. Emilia reached up taking Cas’ hand as the led her into her bedroom. She half expected him to just bring her in here to talk about the newest move against Raphael.

“So which one is it?”

He said coldly. Emilia titled her head to the side looking confused.

“I’m sorry?”

Cas frowned taking off his trench coat and blazer before rolling up his sleeves.

“Which angel Emilia? Balthazar or Gabriel? Which are you interested in?”

Emilia’s mouth dropped.

“You’re kidding right?” Why would you eve think of that?”

Cas glared at her hard.

“I don’t joke Emilia. You were awful close.’

Emilia rolled her eyes again.

“Castiel I don’t get you sometimes! I am not interested in either of them! I am interested in you! I love you Commander. You just can’t seem to see it.”

When he didn’t say anything Emilia continued….

“Hannah has told me for year that I am not good enough for you and I am starting to believe it.”

Cas frowned again before pulling Emilia into his arms. He leaned down pressing a long kiss to her lips not pulling away. Cas kept his mouth close to hers hovering between kissing and whispering.

“You’re plenty good enough. I’ve wanted to do that from the moment I met you. The moment I first saw you in heave I knew you were to be my soulmate. So many things have just kept us apart. But not anymore…I am having what’s mine and claiming you. No more as Dean says pussy footing around.”

Cas’ hand trailed down her body giving her behind a swift slap.

“You’re perfect but if you ever make me jealous again you won’t like it. I’m possessive.”

Emilia jumped slightly from the shock but quickly recovered snuggling herself tighter in Cas’ embrace.

“I didn’t see you as the type to like S&M.”

Emilia whimpered against his lips as Cas began to removed her clothes.

“There’s a lot you don’t realize about me baby. I’m claiming you now.”

Emilia whimpered as Cas picked her up putting her on the bed with that calculating expression on his handsome face. He carefully took off his tie before wrapping it around her wrists and spreading her legs.

“I want to taste you first. You’ve smelt like honey to me from the time we first met.”

Emilia cried out the moment his tongue came in contact with her aching pussy. He gave her a few tentative licks before pushing a finger inside. Emilia struggled with her hands bound together fighting the urge to touch her lover.

“Cas please.”

“Castiel”

He said firmly.

“Now what would you like darling?”

He asked his voice softening a few octaves. Emilia whimpered.

“I want you inside.”

Cas rose up snapping his fingers leaving him nude before her. He carefully reached down undoing her hands.

“When I claim you it customary at that point you are mine and I am yours. I’ll be able to feel everything about you…your emotions, needs, wants, and desires.”

When he said the word desires Cas began to circle her clit with his finger. Emilia cried out bucking her hips against his.

“Please Castiel…I want to be yours.”

He chuckled as he began to push in as delicately as possible. He wanted to make sure he didn’t any more pain than necessary. Emilia cried out as he pushed into he innocence making her feel incredibly full.

“I’m going to move now.”

He whispered in his commanding tone that made Emilia want to swoon. As Cas began to move, Emilia had to focus so she wouldn’t lose grip on reality. She couldn’t finish this quickly! Not after she spent her whole life lusting for this angel.

“You’ll have me for eternity.”

He whispered pressing a loving kiss to her forehead. Emilia’s hands were in his hair yanking him down for another long passionate kiss.

Cas groaned knowing he wouldn’t make it much longer. The thought that he was about to claim her was driving him harder and harder to orgasm. It didn’t help that Emilia was crying his name with each thrust of his hips. Feeling her tighten and trying his name was almost drug like to Cas.

“Emilia…I need to claim you fully….when I finish inside of you its done. I won’t be able to take anything back.”

“I wouldn’t want you to my love.”

Emilia moaned as her own orgasm began to flood over her. Cas managed a few more thrusts before coming hard. This however, wasn’t any orgasm. He felt as though part of himself was ripped away and placed into her for good. Cas was almost positive that she was feeling the same way as well the moment she pulled him down for another kiss.

The kiss was more passionate than any they had shared while making love. This was the first kiss after being bonded. In a human sense, it was like a groom and bride’s first kiss as husband and wife. Now she was his and he was hers. Nothing no one could do would tear away what they had or change anything in the slightest.

At the moment all of the negatives in their world was ripped away and replaced with a glowing, calming happiness that only bonding could cause. 200 years of pinning one for the other was finally gone and an eternity of tender devotion was ahead.

Emilia put the thought of the war in heaven and cunt faced Hannah in the other room out of her mind. Instead she focused on the angel whose arms she was wrapped in.

“I love you Castiel.”

“I love you Emilia.”

to be continued…

@greenappleeyes

[survivormarmoreal]

Episode #9: "we're here for the messy bitch game play right" - Annabelle

Tribal was f*ckin wild. Like didnt see that coming and Nicole we literally never talked so dont come for me. 👏

So far Nicole’s attempt hasnt affected anything. And plus Sharky took more of the heat and more blood on his hand and I did for coming up with the Nicole vote. Like im scream team to the end but like it works better for me if people dont see me as a huge threat right now unlike Sharky. I think i might be in a good spot and with an advatage with this immunity hopefully i can win.

Well... I refuse to be booboo the fool right now. I have conflicting information currently about who voted me so guess what? I am not gonna trust anyone LMAO. Everyone is denying and pointing the fingers at others and its fucking pissing me off. Like just own up to voting me so i can have a clear target my fucking god. Like goodbye see you soon!

from my confessional cause i just went off in it LOL about the last tribal: i know brian and sharky did not vote me nate and bryce are being fishy maynor seems non exsistant keaton is literally opening his big mouth and getting himself in more trouble i trust anna enough and nick thinks he is "iconic" for an idol play like boi con-fucking-gratulations that you can do something many have done before you

Like, im so done with these people, just let me play my idol in peace smh

So I basically threw this challenge. I just put myself for most of the positives and I put Keaton for most of the negatives. With a few random answers sprinkled in. I get so nervous about really trying on Touchy Subjects because Im worried about revealing my alliances and stuff. This way I just look cocky. And Keaton and I are already on bad terms so me putting him for the negatives might piss him off but probably not anyone else. Ugh

ok so me snapping and voting matt is really annoying KJFHDSAKJFDHS idk why i did that! i was crazy back then... so current thinking is that me/matt/keaton voted matt. and then nicole did keaton and everyone else did nicole. i dont think anyone suspects me but like they woudlnt tell me if they do FJKASDHFKJ apparently matt thinks that nathan did it and anna thinks that it was keaton and maynor and im just like :| FSAJDHFKD. also this comp is about to ruin me like my answers are def gonna make ppl hate me and plus i wrote myself for some good ones which i never do but idk im just really feeling myself so cant wait for the crushing weight of reality to knock me down a peg or two when i get like "next voted out" "doesnt deserve to be here" AFJKSDFHKAJ but maybe not... anyways i recently got obsessed with shakira again like.. im thriving

https://i.imgur.com/5o6sz3j.png when i tell u i screamed JKDFASHKJAD

Okay so Touchy Subjects ALWAYS blows up my game. Like I got all the ones that make people target you. Running the Game. Biggest Snake. Physical Threat. I even somehow managed to get "Trust the Most" and "Best Liar". HOW!? And now I'm super worried because if I wasn't on everybody's radar before I sure am now. And I have no idea who I can trust after those rogue Matt votes. I even feel slightly sketched out by Nick. He's acting...weird. And he keeps telling everyone there is a war between me and Keaton. Which I guess is sort of true because Keaton is throwing my name out there. And obviously I would rather him go. 

everyone is so extra JKDAHSKFJ matt making a post about how the ppl who are lying and saying they didnt vote him are personally effecting him are terrible like.. ok sorry for not exposing myself get over it u got 3 votes one of which were ur own and maybe if u were more active and didnt reply with one word responses no matter how hard i tried to get u to speak i wouldnt have thrown the vote on u. im just like so over his entitledness that ppl confess to him like who do u think u are KJFHADKJFDH. i feel like maybe im being too mean so if matt reads this after the game im sure ur just in ur feelings or w/e and u did say u had personal stuff going on but like thats not an excuse to go on tirades in the tribe chat when no one but u cares.

keaton is the worst person ive ever met (and i know zach :s) weird of him to choose white ppl saying the n word as his hill to die on but um i got the cannon ready to aim and hes going :airplane: to jury.

OK, so basically Annabelle wins immunity!  Good for her, but she's literally not doing enough for me to feel beyond happy for her kjHD... like she's nice and I like her, but at the end of the day, I really don't think she's doing much to propel herself and she's just getting kinda lucky... considering the first and now second immunity have been somewhat luck based... ya....

Keaton's the name being thrown into the mix already (it's only 9:11pm), and I really am fine with that this time around!  I like him, but I think he's just someone who can easily go now and it not be bad for me in the future.  He's already thrown out Sharky's name and basically called out Sharky to his face, so I'm kinda shaking in my booties.  As long as it ain't me, I'm happy enough to listen, but I just don't want any big surprises like the Matt votes, again.

Sharky has been thrown out as the biggest threat in this game right now, and while I think it's very apparent to everyone, I can't have him going anywhere right now.  No fucking way.  I love the shark man.  He's my favorite... he cannot go anywhere... I need him!!  So buh-fucking-bye, Keaton!  I may like you, but it's not enough to keep you.

Keaton is trash.

Let me elaborate on my previous confessional. So first Keaton tries to call me out for mentioning his name which I didn't do (I did admit to it to save the drama so thats partially on me) but he tries to call me out in public after the vote. Gross. Then after the challenge he starts gunning for me hard. He wants to claim I was doing the same but I wasn't gunning for him very hard. Because i didn't care if he went. He wasn't an ally but he wasn't a threat either. until he started trying to tear me down. Also let's be clear this all started because EVERYONE thinks he's rude and annoying. Then he tries to come for me in pms calling me out for spreading lies. Which again I NEVER DID. So I straightened him out on that. Then he tries to do the "If I don’t get you out now I never will and then we all lose." which is BULLSHIT. Don't get mad and angry with me just because I'm playing better than you. CHILDISH. Then in the tribe chat he says "As a player he can burn. As a person he's enjoyable." IS HE TRYING TO MAKE ME HATE HIM!? First of saying I can burn makes me want to really drag him. Also bro you and i don't talk you don't know shit about me as a person. You did that just to feed this "Feud" thats going on. STFU. Bye. Whichever one of us goes I'm glad I won't have to talk to his KIRBY LOOKING ASS anymore. I wish Marie had stayed.

Okay I can't lie I'm super nervous about this vote. I just don't trust anyone. I'm talking to Annabelle now and was like "I'm down to vote for anybody" because I'm not sure where she's at and I want her to know I am a vote for her.

Well. Good thing is that i wasnt dragged with with what Nicole said which is good with me. I didnt get any touchy subject which is also great. My two best allies Sharky and Keaton both did which means they’ll be targeted before I do. Which is awesome. Me and Nathan dont want to see Keaton go so we got Annabell and Bryce to be with us for a 5 person voting block thats going after Matt. Thats right, Matt is going home. Keaton plan was to try and distract Sharky and fight with him and have both of their names on the chopping block. This means that Matt wont see this blindside happening. And if Sharky has an idol, he’ll waste it cuz he won’t be getting any votes. Its gonna sbe wild af. Be ready.

Its been very quiet this morning. The plan has been set so im hoping that nothing else shatters the plan. The idol search doesnt like me as it likes Nick. Only thing i found was an advantage for next immunity which was an extra point butnit was touchy subject so i kinda threw it cuz said my name for the ones i felt where really bad. And i want to give a shout out for host Drew. You are an amazing and cool person.

OK, so Nathan has been going behind me and Sharky's back to target Matt... and I'm just shook to my fucking core.... bless Annabelle's big heart for telling Sharky because it gave us some room to snap hard.  I know Matt has an idol, and I cannot wait for him to pull it out at tribal.  I think that Nathan is thinking very short term and thinking him not telling me and Sharky is just some move he can make on his own, but as the Touchy Subjects' results showed us, Nathan thinks he's running the game but Sharky is actually doing it.  Getting this info... what a fucking legend...

Annabelle doesn't want to be screwed because of this whole situation so Sharky wants to avoid voting Nathan out but I lowkey don't care.  Nathan keeping me out of the conversation makes me lose all trust in him.  I know I'm not the target, but it doesn't change the fact that he's trying to run the game behind my back.  It's not going to work, sir.  It won't.

Ok... I'm angry, but I'm going to have to control that anger and turn it into making the best decision for my game and that will be to work with Matt and Sharky till the end.

Brace yourself this is going to be a LONG ONE. So last night I basically went to Anna and tried to save my ass because I really haven't been sure how genuine our alliance was because of our history together. She basically kept saying she was in a tough spot and this and that and so I outright asked her if she was considering voting for me. And she was like absolutely not. Which is such a relief. HOWEVER! She confesses that Nathan has created a secret plan to vote out Matt. He specifically told everyone not to tell me and Brian about it. EXCUSE ME? Aren't we in an alliance dude? So thats really pisses me off. But supposedly they have the majority for this plan. So that means I don't have to worry about myself as much. But I don't want Matt to go. Especially after this proved that he's one of the only ones I trust. So I'm thinking out of 9 votes we have 3 we can maybe use the steal a vote or something to try and get a majority. CUT TO THIS MORNING. I tell Brian about this secret plan and Brian tells me Matt has a freakin idol!!! So now we can use his idol and even if there are 5 votes left Matt/Brian/Myself control that vote then. Now the tough part...I need the vote to stay on Keaton because if it goes to anybody else Anna is going to think I screwed her over. And I promised her that her telling me wouldn't bite her in the ass. I also need this to stay TOP SECRET because if anyone finds out I leaked the plan they are going to come after me and I love Matt but I don't want to destroy my game to save him. So we need to have Matt use his idol and all 3 of us need to vote for Keaton.

God these people. I am VERY sure I am getting votes tonight and it's ok. Why? Cause I have an idol fuck these cunts. If not the WOOO love a minority!

i'm playing a super dangerous game right now but it's ok hopefully it works out we're here for the messy bitch game play right and i also just like play better in chaos so let's keep it that way once the game gets boring people will think of me.

Y'all I'm feeling real shitty about this week. I still feel super in danger. i feel like everyone is lying to my face. But I'm also worried for Matt. Luckily he has an idol so he'll be safe but the fact that he's catching votes at all is concerning. I hope it's Keaton going out but you just truly never know. This could be my time.

So it seems Matt might be an option for the vote but the questions I have are: Do I trust Matt enough to tell him he’s getting votes? Am I willing to make an early move? How will this will effect me moving forward? And when thinking between Keaton and Matt... I think I know my decision…

The shit hit the fan. Somehow Nick knows the hidden real plan that it was going to be Matt tonight. Keaton keeps lying to Bryce that he’s doing Sharky but Bryce is the number we have to have majority over Matt. Keaton is being sketchy kinda. Hopefully the plan goes according and Matt goes because last time he was doing a witch hunt for those 2 votes. Im going to be drinking at tribal tonight. Shit is too stressful.

Keaton is idoled out in a 6-3 vote.

[itswomanswork]

TAS 539: Brand Building EXPERT Reveals Powerful Formula used in Top Brands

What does it take to get your message out there and build an audience? How do robust and successful brands get built? You’ve come to the right place! On this episode of The Amazing Seller, you’ll hear from brand-building expert, Annabel Mendez. In her conversation with Scott, Annabel explains brand building, where to start in the process, how to make your brand stand out from all the rest, why customer service is so important, how to create compelling content, and so much more! If you are ready to get to work building up your brand, this is a great place to start!

What is brand building?

What is brand building? Why should sellers like you spend your valuable time and energy on this particular aspect of your business? Branding is telling the story of your brand. It’s also the way that your customers interact with every aspect of your business from packaging to logos. What is the status of your branding? Does it need a fresh take? If you want to build your reputation and expand your reach, you’ve got to make sure your branding is on point! To hear more about brand building and what it takes to get your business to the next level, make sure to listen to this episode of The Amazing Seller.

Customer service is EVERYTHING!

When was the last time you gave your business to a company that you knew had terrible customer service? More likely than not, you wouldn’t! At the end of the day, everyone judges a brand based on how they’ve been treated. How would your customers describe your brand? Would they say that you have great customer service or would they say that it’s just average? A great way for you to make sure your brand stands out in a good way is by giving it all you’ve got when it comes to customer service. Make sure to listen to this episode of The Amazing Seller to hear Annabel Mendez and Scott talk about why customer service is so important!

Why content creation is so important.

Think about the last brand you explored on the internet, chances are they have a YouTube channel, a Twitter presence, a Facebook fan page, a blog, or all the above! Why do successful brands go through all the trouble to create content for their customers to engage with? It makes you feel more connected to the brand! When you find resources that are entertaining and educational, you’ll find yourself going back to that resource time and time again. As a business owner, you want people to have that reaction to your brand and the best way to do that is by creating worthwhile content. To find out how to create that type of content, make sure to listen to branding expert, Annabel Mendez on this episode of The Amazing Seller!

Don’t get overwhelmed!

All these great ideas and brand building tips and be a little overwhelming. If you want to succeed, you’ve got to fight through the draw to be overwhelmed and focus like a laser beam on one or two action steps that you can take today. As Scott is fond of saying, you need to “Chunk it down” into bite-size pieces so you can set yourself up for long-term success. What will be your action step for the next week? The next month? What is your plan to get started and take action? Don’t assume that it’ll happen, it won’t! Plan it out and hold yourself accountable. Enjoy more helpful tips and insights about staying on target by listening to this episode of The Amazing Seller!

OUTLINE OF THIS EPISODE OF THE AMAZING SELLER

[0:03] Scott’s introduction to this episode of the podcast!

[4:30] Scott welcomes his guest, Annabel Mendez.

[6:15] What is brand building?

[11:00] Where to start with the brand building process.

[18:30] How can you make your brand stand out from all the rest?

[23:00] Consider how your branding will impact your customers.

[28:30] Customer service is EVERYTHING!

[33:00] Draw your customer in, show them that you care.

[36:30] Why content creation matters.

[43:30] Tips you can use to get your brand out there.

[49:00] Do you have to be passionate about your brand to be successful?

[55:00] How to connect with Annablee and closing thoughts from Scott.

TRANSCRIPT TAS 539

TAS 539: Brand Building EXPERT Reveals Powerful Formula used in Top Brands

[INTRODUCTION]

[00:00:02] Scott: Well, hey, hey, what’s up, everyone? Welcome back to another episode of The Amazing Seller Podcast. This is episode number 539 and today I am excited because I have a…

Read full transcript…

Click Here to Download Transcript …brand-building expert on who is going to reveal a very powerful formula used in top brands. These are brands that you probably heard of before and if not, well, I’m not sure how you haven’t but you probably have, Pampers, Covergirl, Olay, The Art of Shaving, PBS, Logitech, some pretty big names there, right? Now, she’s also worked with some smaller brands but used the same principles when building these brands. And the crazy thing is, is a lot of these things aren’t as massive as you would think but they are important. So, the four things that we’re really going to be covering is branding essentials, branding strategy, brand visuals, and brand messaging and execution. Now, her name is Annabel Mendez.

I was introduced to her at Sellers Summit and actually it’s funny because she had just started listening to the podcast about a week or two weeks before I actually met her and she was like, “I really love it how you’re talking about branding now more than just go find a product and sell it because there is a lot that you can do with branding and you will also start to get brand loyalty which is another thing that we definitely will talk about in this conversation that I had with Annabel but what I really wanted to do here is have her on to go through a lot of what big brands talk about but also how we can take this and apply it to our brands. Now, you guys know we’ve been talking about brand building for a while now for at least the past 12 to 18 months and I’m going to be talking about it even more, list building, how to talk to your list, but then also how to represent your company as a brand. It all ties together.

[00:01:57] Scott: Now, whether you have a brand right now or you’re just starting your brand, well, this will help you because if you’ve already started a brand you can always add this stuff in but if you’re just starting from scratch, well, then you can start from the beginning and then start to implement some of this stuff. The one thing I don’t want you to do though is get hung up on one of these things and be like, “You know, I can’t figure out my logo, so I can’t launch.” You’re going to hear us talk about that and why you shouldn’t just stop that you should spend a little time on it but then you should just push through, take some action as you guys always hear me saying and get it to market. Because if we have a brand that’s all polished but we haven’t like gotten any product out there, we can’t really get the ball rolling. We can’t get any feedback or any of that stuff. But if you’re just starting or if you have a brand and you want to tweak it and you want to add some more branding stuff to it, this will definitely help you. Now, this episode will be 539 so the show notes, the transcripts can all be found at TheAmazingSeller.com/539.

The other thing I want to do here is I want to remind you that if you are just starting and you don’t even have an idea of the brand part yet, well, then I would definitely say go check out Product Discovery Bootcamp because this is ground level. This is where we are digging to really create our foundation, the brand in a sense, and Product Discovery Bootcamp allows us to do that and this way here you can get started on the right foot. So, I’m going to put a little shameless plug in here and I’m going to have you go check out TheAmazingSeller.com/Bootcamp and that will take you there. It’ll give you all the details. That’s where I would start and then we can start to add these branding elements to our strategy moving forward. So, definitely go check that out, TheAmazingSeller.com/Bootcamp and you’ll get all the details there.

[00:03:44] Scott: Now, one other thing before we jump into this conversation that I have with Annabel, I wanted to say that the audio is not 100% where I like it and I was doing a little bit of testing. We actually shot this on video and I wanted to try to do that, so I could also possibly publish it on YouTube or at least clips from there, but the audio isn’t 100% how I like it. So, in the future, I’m going to be doing things a little bit differently and I’ll probably be recording my audio track differently than the one that we’re using here like you’re going to hear today. It’s not terrible but it’s not up to my standards but that’s okay because I’m going to let you guys to get the value from this conversation, but I just want to let you guys know I’m aware of it, but I am working on it. All right. So that’s it. All right. So, let’s get going here. Let’s listen to this conversation that I had with this branding expert, Annabel Mendez. Enjoy.

[INTERVIEW]

[00:00:50] Scott: Hey, Annabel. Thank you so much for coming on the show. I’m super excited to be able to dive into this branding topic that I know that you are very excited to talk about because that’s your specialty and you and I met at Sellers Summit and you had said, “I really like it that you’re going to this branding direction. I’ve actually been doing that for years now.” So, I said, “Well, we got to get you on the podcast,” so welcome to the show.

[00:05:02] Annabel: Thank you. I’m really excited to be here and like you mentioned, I love brand building. It’s one of my passion areas and for me, I learned a lot from you on the Amazon side because I’m a newer seller, but I’ve been doing brand building work for the last 15 years.

                                                            [00:05:19] Scott: And so, what I love about this is Amazon has become the drug if you will of like starting an ecommerce business like and what I mean by that is it’s become easier to actually launch products, get products up on Amazon or a platform for that matter but the branding stuff kind of took a backseat for some people, not everyone. What I want to talk about because moving forward it’s getting harder, there’s more competition, there are people just launching products to launch products. They’re not building a true brand. I really want to dig into what you feel will be used today that will work but also work in the future and I think it comes down to the basic principles of brand building so maybe what we could talk about first is like what is brand building? Like what does it mean? Because I had someone the other day go, “I brand my products. I put my logo on there and so I’m a brand, right?” I’m like, “Not necessarily.” So, maybe we could talk about like a brand and what it means, and we’ll talk about some of the bigger brands that you’ve worked with but also like what’s it mean for people that are just starting a brand.

[00:06:27] Annabel: Right. And I think one of the key pieces about brand building is that you have to separate the brand from anything else, so it actually becomes like its own person and it has a life of its own. It has an identity of its own. It has a touch, look, and feel in everything about it. It’s separate from the individual and I think that’s where a lot of people when they go aim to just selling a product, they don’t really define it as a being. They kind of just keep it as a product but what happens there is that when the customer comes to buy something, they don’t know the difference between Product X and Y because you’re a shampoo and they’re a shampoo so who cares as long as it does the basics. So, the actual concept of branding and brand building was started at Procter & Gamble where the founders 170 years ago said, “We’re going to start brands,” and the reason why they did that is because they wanted to differentiate themselves from the competition.

They wanted for that product that when people saw it that they said, “I trust them. I want to buy from them. I know exactly what that experience is going to be like.” So, it’s not just slapping a name or a label on a product. It’s actually the full experience that you give to consumers. In the past when you would go and buy a product on the shelf, there’s a concept at Proctor that was first moment of truth and second moment of truth. Your first moment of truth is winning that customer at the shelf so when they see you they want to recognize you. For example, Tide has a very particular orange color that if you saw it, you know immediately this is the Tide color and they use the Tide color absolutely in everything that they do across the board because you want to have that consistency in the brand. You want to make sure that when they see you in the store shelves, when they see you online, when they see you on a Facebook ad, you’re recognizing that brand throughout and people know exactly what to expect.

[00:08:25] Annabel: The benefit with that is that if they bought you once and you always deliver the same experience, when they come back and buy you a second time it’s going to be exactly like how it was the first time and that’s how you start building loyalty which is something that is extremely difficult to achieve, and I know that’s one of the biggest frustrations of sellers on e-commerce that people aren’t necessarily coming back to their product. They’re just coming back to whatever is on the Buy Box, whatever is ranking high, but if you’re able to achieve and build a brand, that happened to me the other day with mailers, those little pop mailers.

[00:08:58] Scott: Yeah.

[00:08:59] Annabel: They all look the same, but I’ve bought from several companies and there is one in particular with a quality that’s just a little bit nicer. It has a little perforated band and so I looked them up and I looked at that specific brand and now when I reorder packaging, I go back to that brand because I know that their quality is going to be better than the other ones and they just did both extra things to…

[00:09:22] Scott: It is. I’ve experienced the same thing but there are also some things that I don’t really care about like if it’s maybe a zip tie. It’s a zip tie that I’m going to use in my garage. I might just look at – but then again I might get them, I’ll be like, “These are junk. These are dollars store zip bands. I want to get the ones that are made better by zip tie or whatever the brand name is so I’m going to go back to those.” I might fall off and try something to see if the quality is similar. If the quality is not similar, I’ll go back to the brand but like you’re saying like there’s a lot of products. Tide is a great example. It’s funny. I just have seen my daughter walk across with a Tide bringing in the laundry room. So, I’m like it was Tide. I knew it was Tide because of the orange color. Immediately I knew it so it’s kind of funny that you used that example. But again, and I know the people that are listening they’re like, “But that takes a lot of time to brand.”

Now, we could argue about that which we probably should because there are different levels I think of branding and all of that stuff and it will take time to develop up that loyalty, but I think your first shot at doing that is when someone does buy your product, you make that experience seamless and really all the way through everything is going to be the brand or on point as far as the brand goes. So, like if someone’s thinking to themselves like this is great and all, Tide, I mean they’ve been around for years. They’ve spent millions if not billions of dollars like educating people about branding. I don’t want to take years to do that. So, where do you advise someone that’s either just starting a brand or has a current brand and they want to start creating this brand building process?

[00:11:02] Annabel: I think one of – there are three principles that I work off when I think about brand building. One of them is uniqueness and so you have to figure out like what is going to make your brand unique and it’s necessary just have to be about the product. So, coming back to those little zip ties, zip tie is like not a very complicated type of product but when the product is delivered, you have a little card in there that says, ���Hey, thank you so much,” in your tone of voice of the brand. So, some brand is like maybe you want to be the cool zip tie that say, “Hey, thanks, dude, for buying my product. It’s amazing like we hope that you come back and buy again,” whatever it might be. That’s a touchpoint. That’s like a point of conversation where you’re building the brand. So, one piece is like uniqueness. Like you have to think about do I sound different than everybody else? What am I doing that is not like my competitors? Is there something else that I can do with my packaging, etcetera?

So, there’s very little things that you can do to start tweaking that, a thank you email, the color of your zip ties. Maybe you want to make yours colorful. Nobody else has color in there. So, those are like smaller things. The other piece is like relevancy. So, once you figure out like who your target market is, can they relate to you? Can you have a conversation with them? And the third piece is consistency and consistency is what the big brands never miss and what the small brands always miss that isn’t that difficult. So, my tip here is to build brand guidelines and what is brand guidelines? These brand books that are created by the huge brands, thousands of dollars, major agencies create these books for them but as a smaller seller, you can have your own brand guidelines that are going to help you with absolutely everything that you do.

[00:12:58] Annabel: So, the key to get started with your brand guidelines is can you define your brand in three words? Because those three words you’re always going to use them to say let’s say my brand is caring, authentic and fun. So, as you do things you say, “Is this a fun color that I’m using? Does it show that I care?” So, you’re always measuring against those three words absolutely everything that you’re doing. If you can’t summarize your brand in like three words, you’re overcomplicating it and you’re not staying true to what’s really important for your brand. So, you start off with that in the brand guidelines as they come up. The other thing to include in your brand book is your logo. Logos are very important, and you want to make sure that you have a logo in a horizontal format, a logo in a vertical format, and a vertical in a square format. And you keep those three things together and you put do’s and don’ts. How can those logos be used?

Let’s say you have a logo that has blue and somebody wants to put it against a background that’s yellow and you don’t want that. You put that on your brand guidelines, “I don’t want it to be used in this way.” Brand guidelines are used not just for you but with the vendors that you’re working with. So, let’s say you’re working, you hire a graphic designer. The easiest thing to do is to grab your brand guidelines and say, “These are my brand guidelines, this is where you can play, and this is where you can’t take the brand.” The other thing that’s super important to include in there is your fonts.

[00:14:30] Scott: Ah, yes. I agree with that.

[00:14:32] Annabel: Fonts are critical because maybe you don’t care about fonts and I know a lot of people don’t care.

[00:14:38] Scott: I do. Yeah, fonts.

[00:14:39] Annabel: But the mind starts recognizing that. The more consistent that you are with your fonts, the more that people say, “Oh you know what, this is Scott’s product,” and when they start and the mind is smart like even though it’s playing in the background, when something is off they’ll recognize and they’ll say, “This is probably a knockoff,” or it’ll trigger something like it’s not what I’m used to. You want to create that familiarity with it and then most people should have three fonts actually and this is not something that a lot of people know. You have a font that’s for your headlines so those are your titles. Think of your main product title, your main title on your website. Then you want to have a second font which is your subheader and your subheader provides a little bit more information about your product or it’s a sub-tab on your website. Then your third font is your body font and body font is what you’re going to write a lot of text with. And what you want with a body font to be like is something that’s easy to read.

So, your headline is your attention grabber, bolder, thicker, your subheadline maybe not so much, and then your third one is what you’re going to be writing a lot with. Granted, like for example in a platform like Amazon they don’t really allow for certain fonts to be changed. That’s part of it but in your imagery think about the photos that you’re showcasing, there should be your headline font, your subheadline, and then any other little points that you want to put consistent across all of your photography, across all of your product line. And that way you start training the customer to say this stuff belongs to that brand. The other thing is when you’re picking colors. For color consistency, the best thing to do is to pick colors that have a Pantone. Are you guys like use…

[00:16:31] Scott: Yeah. Pantone, I mean, again it’s like a color wheel in a sense that certain colors go together and there are actually websites out there that allows you to kind of plug-in one color and it will give you that palette or that Pantone palette. Maybe we’ll try to link that up in the description or in the show notes. But, yeah, I think that’s important too like…

[00:16:48] Annabel: And that’s critical for printing because what happen sometimes is that you come back shocked when they print a certain package or when a factory prints your logo and then you’re like, “Oh, but that’s not really my color,” and that’s because different printers have different systems but in the Pantone system it’s very consistent across printers. So, it’s easier to nail the color versus when you come up with some random color and then, which happened to us in one of the brands. One of the brands has like a light-yellow color that somebody made many years ago and a T-shirt got printed and it came out like egg yolk yellow. But in order to ensure that like using Pantone’s will help your brand look consistent and when you’re printing from different vendors, that’s the best way for everything to look really nice and sharp.

[00:17:40] Scott: Okay. All right. And those are small details but like you said those small details over time start to allow customers to recognize that it’s the true brand, it’s your brand. Even just the style of the font, if you’re a fun brand, you might be a fun style font. If you’re more of a serious brand, you might have more of a serious font like there are certain fonts for certain types of businesses and I know that firsthand. And logos I think also are pretty important. Now, what if someone’s already created a logo and they’re like, “Now I’m starting to listen to this and Annabel’s making a lot of sense. I want to re-create my logo,” like is it worth doing or is it not? I mean, if they’ve already started a brand and they’re already starting to get or they do rebrand, how would you address that?

[00:18:30] Annabel: I mean, brands are always refining and there are logos for every price point. If you’re trying to position your brand to be a premium product and people know when they see something whether it looks premium or not, if your product is not there, then you have to figure out a way to get it there and, in those situations, I would say rebranding is a way to go because you’re trying to command a higher price point than competitors. If you’re not in the premium market, you can stay with the logo that you have as long as some principles are not being violated. For example, there are some people who try to squeeze a logo into a very tiny spot to the point where you lose all resolution. That’s a logo that’s not working for you, it’s not working for anybody. You just have something on there that’s a graphic. You can’t even call that a logo because if it’s not being recognized by a customer, it’s not a logo. You have a graphic at that point and you want to modify that.

And the game changed really when mobile came out because up to that point nobody, not even the big brands were thinking about logos in very small dimensions but if you take a look at your product on a cell phone which is where a lot of people are doing searches and shopping and that logo you can’t tell whether it’s a little man on a horse or it’s a blotch on there then it’s time to change your logo and upgrade it to something that is easily readable on a mobile phone. But I mean these are all questions that every small business owner has because it’s an additional investment like you’re trying to buy inventory, you’re trying to build a website, you’re trying to pay for advertising, and then on top of that, you have to worry about the little details of a logo.

[00:20:25] Annabel: But that’s something that can evolve but always keep it at the top of your mind to have something that’s crisp, something that people are able to see at a very minimum and ensure the consistency. As you start getting more sales, as you start getting more traction then go into the second phase which is like refining the logo because a lot of times people go in and they’re like, “No, no, no I hate this logo. I want a completely different look,” but what happens is that you’re not transitioning your past customers into the new brand which is something that you also have to be very careful about that you don’t completely scrap everything especially if your brand is already doing well and people relating to it. So, there’s where you want to do modifications.

[00:21:15] Scott: Yeah. The other thing I would like to mention here is like different fonts. I just want to talk about that really quickly. A lot of people like the fancy scrolly type stuff and a lot of times I find that hard to read. If it’s hard to read even if it’s like kind of big but kind of small because the logo a lot of times aren’t that big. It’s not like a big giant header, you need to make sure that you’re seeing that font at all different sizes and I would stay away from personally those script-y things that are hard to read. They might look elegant and all of this stuff but if that is going to be hard to read especially at smaller sizes, I would personally stay away from that but that was just a little side tip. I see a lot of people they get hung up on the fonts that they want to use, and they love it and they’re looking at it on like their computer monitor and all blown up. They’re like, “That looks amazing,” and all of a sudden you shrink it down. You’re like, “What does it say?” So, you don’t want that either. You want it recognizable in the certain fonts that you’re using in the logos.

I think also going into like your branding, even the packaging, if you’re going into premium products I mean look at Apple, if you buy an Apple product you get that box, you feel like that box, you don’t want to throw away because it’s so darn nice. It’s like it’s an amazing box, it’s put together. You pull apart. Everything has got so much detail in it. Now, I’m not saying that you have to go to that extent but I’m saying if you have something that’s like a piece of cardboard that’s really flimsy or something that’s more rigid, it almost gives you a sense of better quality because of the material that is being used. Business cards, same thing, if you get a flimsy little business card that’s printed out in your inkjet printer or you get one that’s actually made a little bit glossy, it feels just nicer. So, just little details like that I think can go a long way.

[00:23:03] Annabel: Right. And their senses, now that you mentioned the boxes and flimsy, you have to consider all the senses when you’re doing branding. That’s something that a lot of people don’t do. So, for example, it’s like, “Well, but my brand is not edible so why should I care about the taste?” But visually so many things are connected that you also want to double check to see is there anything here that might trigger disgust or joy or considering scents as well? A lot of times people don’t but if your product smells like cheap plastic then it’s going to trigger that like all these things are coming into play so try to see if there’s anything else that you can do. Maybe you air out the products. Maybe you package them in a different container that has a different scent to it. The touch, is it a soft touch? Is it something that is hard or rough, but all these things start to come together as your brand evolves.

So, one of the things to always consider is a brand is never done. You’re always going to refine it because your budgets are going to be different. Taste, people’s tastes are going to be different. What people liked a couple of years ago is not necessarily what they like today. And so, the brand, you also have to think about it as that living being that needs to continuously be worked. And one of the hardest things to do to start a brand I feel is finding that persona. Your customer persona like who are you trying to serve. That’s something that you start getting a hang of as you continue to sell to people, as you continue to research because, in the beginning, everything’s a hypothesis. You think that that’s the person who’s going to buy and sometimes it takes customer number 1,000, customer number 5,000 to realize who is that person and what do they want from my product?

[00:25:01] Annabel: So, for example, when I’m ordering packaging, it’s kind of interesting because if you buy 100, it cost, I’m making these numbers up, it cost $1,000 and if you buy 10,000 it cost $1,800 so it’s not even, it’s exponential. It’s not even linear how you purchase but usually what I do is I’ll buy a quantity that isn’t so great even though it’s cheaper because I know I’m going to make changes on what’s on that package. I just know it like there’s no way to mail it first time right out of the gate so there’s no point in blowing the budget either to try to get all these things perfect. And as you go along, you buy the smaller quantities. You try to find printers and services. I mean, now with the Internet it’s awesome because you can go to printers that’ll do an order of 100.

Just a few years ago because of the printing process, minimums were 10,000, 50,000 just to get a box printed. Not now. You can find certain solutions so even though per piece the cost is very high, total, the cost is lower. You use it, you test it, you share it with customers and that way you continue the refining process. So, I think that’s a trap that a lot of people get stuck with because next thing you know you have 10,000 boxes, 50,000 boxes.

[00:26:24] Scott: And you want to use them because you paid for them.

[00:26:26] Annabel: You paid for them and then you realize they don’t really work for you.

[00:26:30] Scott: Yeah. We call that minimum viable product. It’s like get something to market. It doesn’t have to be perfect because one thing I do see people get paralyzed in as far as like even the things that we’re talking about is like, “I’m not really sure my logo. Oh, I’m not really sure on the font.” We need to get the product out of the door. We need to get it in customer’s hands so yes that stuff is important. I’m not going to argue with that, but we also have to give ourselves some deadline to say, “Listen, like we have to get this done because if we don’t get this done, no one’s going to see it anyway.” So, we have to get it to market. But like you’re saying, instead of doing 1,000, do 500 or do 300 so that way there when you do go ahead and go through that first quantity, if you want to modify the packaging, modify the logo, whatever, you don’t have 10,000 of them out there that you’re like, “I’m stuck with those. I got to get rid of those or I just got to scrap them,” and you don’t want to do that either.

One thing I want to mention here is we’re talking a lot about like tangible stuff like things people can touch and feel and smell and give you a sense of what the brand is about. The one thing that I want to highlight here for a lot of people and they don’t realize how important this is and I think that you’ll agree with this and I think a perfect example is Zappos. Zappos built a brand around selling shoes.

[00:27:48] Annabel: Yes.

[00:27:49] Scott: And they weren’t even their brand of shoes. They were just a company that you went to, to buy shoes. Why are they so darn successful? It comes down to they created a customer experience that no one else was willing to do, period.

[00:28:06] Annabel: Absolutely.

[00:28:07] Scott: So, it’s customer service. There’s another guy he’s actually a guy that I’ve been talking with privately about his brand and he’s doing like $300,000 a month and the reason why he’s doing so well, and he believes it is because he has just phenomenal customer service, customer journey. Let’s speak on that a little bit. What’re your thoughts on that?

[00:28:32] Annabel: Customer service is everything. It really is and going back to the trust, so we talked about the orange on Tide and being very unique but if you’ve ever tried calling one of those numbers, if there’s ever a problem with their products, they will respond, and they will either send you a voucher for a new product or try to do everything to make sure that that experience is a favorable one for every customer. And I think that companies that take that very seriously and don’t ignore their consumer complaints and go above and beyond for customers are the ones that at the end of the day they win. Just I think it was about a month ago I got the rare opportunity to listen to Warren Buffett talk at a conference that I was at. I mean, it’s impressive to see Warren Buffett live. I mean he’s 88 years old and he was talking about a lady that she was recently divorced, and this was many years ago and she opened up a little furniture store.

And he said that her couches were no different than any of the competitors. The mattresses that she was selling were no different than anybody else’s but her customer service was what set her apart and she would go above and beyond for all her clients and years later that was a company that Warren Buffett bought from this lady for millions and millions of dollars because it’s really about the value that you add to your customers and it was like everybody else’s. Recently, I placed an order from a Chinese manufacturer which I had never done because my products were all made here in the US and I went to your episode on how to contact a manufacturer, create the email. I created my eight steps. I started with 20. Only eight of them actually responded. That’s phase one of the customer service.

[00:30:26] Scott: Recruiting process.

[00:30:27] Annabel: Journey, right? So, all those people who didn’t respond they’re out. Of those eight, some of them responded right away. Some of them kind of trickled in so those people are ruled out so how quickly you respond to a customer is important too, how thorough you respond to the customer. And then from there, I narrowed it down to one which wasn’t the cheapest. A lot of times people think, “Oh, you’re going to go with the cheapest.”

[00:30:52] Scott: No.

[00:30:53] Annabel: They weren’t the cheapest. They have the exact same product as those other 20 that I’ve started with, but they had the most thorough responses. They had fast response time. They answered immediately anytime I would send an email. I had the sample within three days and that’s who I went with. And a lot of times when you see several of these products online you think, “Oh, but I’m one of the many,” but your customer service is really important. That’s part of the brand experience and how you speak to the customer is really important too. I think people want to be heard, people want to feel like you care, and people want a solution to the problem that they have.

[00:31:40] Scott: I think knowing the avatar as well like you said, knowing who your customer is. If I’m selling bass fishing gear, I’m probably going to find out that 80% of them are men and you might even have a certain age demographic that we’re going to be targeting. So, there are certain things that I would say to a guy that’s 50 years old that’s fishing in that language than I would maybe a woman that’s a new mom like there’s totally different language there. There might be different comedy or you know what I mean, like funny stuff or maybe there are things that you referenced in the market that only the market in bass fishing would relate to that would know about. I mean, us in the Amazon space it’s FBA like if I say FBA to someone off the street, they don’t know what that is. It’s our own language. We know what we’re talking about.

So, I think that’s important to know who that is and speak directly to that person. We talk a lot about it. Even on like my emails that I write or even on this podcast, I pretty much know who my audience is and I usually speak to that person or those people, but I try to think of myself and like me and you talking right now. It’s that conversation and I think you need to have that conversation with every single transaction because you never know when that person is going to buy from you again or maybe right now you’re thinking, “Well, I only have one product,” and they’re not going to buy another one, but you might have another product down the line that they would be interested in that you could eventually sell them. So, why would you not want to create that experience to be amazing right from the get-go?

[00:33:18] Annabel: Right. And to think that you only have one product, I mean that’s such a waste of time because really like what a lot of companies know is the money is made in the repeat purchases.

[00:33:32] Scott: 100%.

[00:33:33] Annabel: That’s where you can consistently be bringing in money and that’s why you want to build that loyalty. That’s why you want for people to come out and seek new, not your competitors because and depending there are some categories where the cost of acquisition for the first customer is ridiculous, but you know that they’re going to come back and they’re going to buy you two and three times because you’re the person who gets them. They feel like you know exactly what they want, what they need. They trust you and the e-commerce space people believe that it’s very separated from the sale. It’s very different like when you go into a store and maybe there’s a salesperson but on e-commerce, the equivalent is your photography, the language. You also need to evoke emotion. You can’t be totally cold. People want to feel a certain way and I think the brands that take it to that point where it’s not just like, “Feature one, we’re larger than everybody else. Feature two…”

No, it’s like, “Tell me a little bit more and get me involved like I want to know like you get me. I want to know that I had a rough day and your product is really going to help me with that,” or, “I’m really looking forward to this weekend fishing with my friends and I want to know that your product is going to make that experience that much better.” And I think you can’t block yourself and say, “But it’s only a fishing lure.” No, you have to be like really in love with that fishing lure, really in love with your product, and convey that to the person that’s buying it, so they know it’s not just the three-color fishing lure. It’s the ultimate fishing lure that’s going to help you achieve whatever it is. “Have you been trying to catch that fish, but you haven’t gotten a chance to yet? Let’s figure this out together. Here are some tips. Here’s like how or what else you can do.”

[00:35:28] Scott: Well, and I think that leads into like e-commerce people think of just their store. If you think about the actual stuff that can lead up to the sale and if you can start building that relationship whether that’s you or someone else that’s the face of the brand or even just the voice of the brand, and then you can reach out and like you said like maybe five tips that you should try this weekend on your next fishing trip to catch more fish or whatever it is or a story that you talk about which happened three weeks ago when you’re out fishing with your grandfather and this happened. So, it’s a way for you to connect with the audience, letting them know that your brand is really all about this market because you’re in love with the market in a sense or your brand is in love with the market and you’re going to do your best to educate them, entertain them, all of those things, and then that will eventually lead to that sale.

There is a company right now that does a great job at this in the fishing space and it’s called mystery tackle box I think it is and basically every single month, that’s a subscription service which is brilliant, and every month you receive a box of new lures to try out for – yeah. It’s a great model but they have a ton of content that’s published on their blog every single week that’s giving tips and helpful advice and stories and all that stuff. So, you want to come back to that to be able to kind of learn and also entertain and all of that stuff and you know that they’re kind of leading this space because they’re in it and it might not even be them. It’s them reporting from a tournament that someone was in or whatever but it all then leads back to possibly buying a subscription service of mystery tackle box that you’ll get every single month for $29.95.

[00:37:10] Annabel: Right. And when you’re small, one of the key like I get asked this all the time they’re like, “But I don’t have time. I don’t have time to write all that content. I don’t have time to go research.” And I think that there are several things that people can do. One of them is find contributors. There are people who already like in love with this and they have a lot of knowledge and they’re always answering like people’s questions on those Facebook groups and maybe you can incentivize them and say, “Hey, would you be willing to write some articles in exchange for product?” The other way is there are services like Fiverr and Upwork where you can go and find freelancers that might be willing to or they would write content for you.

The other key too that’s like a little trick is people don’t write every two weeks or every week. A lot of people what they do is you set aside one day a week or one day a month and you write 10 different little articles all at once and then you start spreading out the contents. So, think about when maybe there’s some downtime in your business and maybe it’s just once a year that you’re going to write all this stuff. You go, you sit down, and you start creating these little articles, these little posts and they don’t have to be super long. And if you’re not comfortable writing, you can do them in video. If you’re not comfortable in video, you can do in little pictures. I mean there are so many different ways to create content that if it’s something that you like and it’s something that you’re really into and you have people that you can source information from, it should be fairly quickly to do. So, definitely worth your time.

[00:38:57] Scott: Yeah. I mean, I think you just have to be aware of what’s out there and I agree with you like batching is huge. It’s been huge for me even with this podcast doing three episodes every single week for the past three years it’s all because I’m batching. I’m able to record a bunch in a row and then we break them up and then we distribute them. Same thing with YouTube now. That’s what I’m doing, more of that. But even in our new brand, our physical products brand, we’re actually doing the same thing. We’re planning, we’re thinking of the topics that we could create. What do people want? What have they been talking about on other groups that we should probably address?

But here’s the thing. If you’re not like good on camera or you’re not comfortable on camera or you’re not maybe good at writing. You could literally just take a microphone and you can go interview people that were experts at this stuff and then you can transcribe that, turn it into a blog post. You can even turn those audios into something on YouTube, on a podcast, whatever. To me, it’s never been easier than now to be able to get out there in front of your market with helpful content that can then lead them to your store which will then lead to a sale. It’s just never been easier than it is now.

[00:40:09] Annabel: And be patient too because sometimes people are like, “Oh, I’m not going to write those blogs anymore. Nobody ever reads them. It’s such a waste of my time.”

[00:40:16] Scott: Yes. Very good point. Very good point. Yeah.

[00:40:20] Annabel: Eventually people will start reading them and not just that. If you put your blogs within your website, it’ll start indexing them well. Over time, the more content that you have that you accumulate, you start becoming the authority in that area. Google starts picking them up. Traffic will be sent. You can start sharing some more of that content. So, in the beginning, I think that’s where a lot of people tend to give up because you don’t see it right away. You think, “Well, just my mom is going to read this. Totally not worth it.”

[00:40:54] Scott: Well, I think what people should do is commit to a certain amount of time, certain amount of episodes. If all you did, I mean, even this like even if you said to yourself I’ll do six months and I’ll do one a week or maybe you said, “I’m going to commit to this for a year and one episode or one post a week, that’s all I’m going to do.” So, now you’d have 52 pieces of content out there and you’ll probably find that with that one piece of content, you can probably create two or three other pieces of content that’s related to that content that you just posted. Just like this here, I’m recording this, and I will publish this on the podcast, one platform, and I’m also going to publish it on YouTube, another platform. And if I want to, which I will, I will post this on my blog which will also have show notes, which will also have stuff. So, I’ve got three places that this content will be placed that I potentially can have traffic from. So, it’s the same idea. You can just take that one piece of content and then distribute it out to different channels just by having it transcribed.

And again, like places like Rev.com, $1 a minute like they’ll transcribe and it’s like 99% accurate. It’s so easy. So, a lot of great things for people. And I think that building a brand is really about that. It’s about educating, entertaining like all of that stuff in your marketplace and then again once they get into your brand like you said, explain in three words what your mission is or what your experience is or what your mindset is for like when they experience your brand or just even your thoughts on the marketplace in the brand like just your positioning on it. You might be like, “You know what, I’m not going to be like those guys. I’m going to be like these guys come along with us.” I mean like look at the prepping world like people that they’re afraid that if something happens I got to have a whole bunch of food and all of my supplies ready. That’s a huge market. Now, some people would argue with that and go, “I’m not doing that like I’m not.” So, then you’re against those people, right?

[00:42:55] Scott: So, it’s like you can play that like, “Hey, if you want to be like us, come on over here. If not, that’s cool.” You build like a little tribe in a sense. So, there’s a whole bunch of different things you can do, and I think it just comes down to laying out some type of roadmap and plan and then execute like really like in one chunk at a time, not overwhelming yourself. Okay. So, to wrap this up, what are some last maybe tips or advice even maybe if it’s just a simple thing where people can wrap their head around like, “I want to start a brand or I’m already selling products, but I haven’t really created a brand,” like what would be your advice to them?

[00:43:33] Annabel: I think that going back to this roadmap is super important. You need to figure out what your brand is and what your brand is not. And once I take those three words, first I start off with many, many words. You can do a Google search for adjectives to describe and you’ll have a list of 100. Then you want to go through and you want to circle things and I say, “Okay. These three I can work with.” Once I have those three brands, the next thing I do is I look at my brand and I look at my competitors and I’ll do a line and I’ll put two extremes on that line so let’s say it’s like not care to caring. Where do I stand? Where do my competitors stand? Fun to boring. Where do I stand? Where do my competitors stand? And then you start seeing like, “Okay. I’m different enough from these other people.”

Once you have that part figured out then you go into, “Okay. Let’s start developing the logo,” and again you rank it against the critical words that you have, then your fonts against the critical words. Then you start going into, “Okay. If my brand were a person, what would they be like?” Start describing them. What would this like person’s or brand smell like, look like, feel like, all these little elements you start putting them together and I collect a lot of these things on a binder. I’m very old school. So, for a lot of people that are not like I have my little binder. I’ll show it to you right now. Very old school. Not super nice. Not super neat but here I have all the elements that are important to me and I write it down and I have my plans, and this is a little bit of the brand.

[00:45:30] Annabel: And I talk about who is my persona? What do they do? Where are they? What’s my communication plan? What are some critical dates for my brand that I want to hit? So, I have some of the basics like New Year’s, Valentine’s Day, but then I also have things that are very specific to my product which is like Grandparents Day, etcetera. I have this that’s more detailed. You can see I went through and I said self-improvement products. Fitness is really important in this time period, etcetera. I mean, we haven’t even touched reaching media, but media has editorial calendars as well and you want to be aware of that for like national themes. So, these are national magazine themes that I look at as well and I’m going to create content that relates to these things as they’re coming about.

[00:46:30] Scott: That’s smart.

[00:46:32] Annabel: But then I also have like my list of where do I want to be featured in? Because I have goals of where my brand could fit in and that’s how you start really becoming recognized is by using all these different outlets and having that calendar but that probably takes I think I have like 10 sheets worth of things and that’s it. That’s it. So, I keep it in the little binder. I review the binder once a week just to make sure that, okay, is there anything that I’m missing here? Are we not living up to the brand? We’ll be working on packaging and I put it against does it have the who, what, how of my brand. I’ll compare it and then like, “Okay. We’re on the right track. We’re not on the right track,” and I’ll write things down. I’ll write things like this worked. This didn’t work. Those again, I’m not doing again, but keeping it all in the same little binder. I keep all the labels that we’ve created also, and I track it and I say, “This was missing that. This is the other,” and that’s how I keep refining.

[00:47:36] Scott: So, what you would improve you make notes and this will work now but we want to improve this and all that stuff. I love it. I think it’s funny a lot of people are digital. We’re in the digital world but I think nothing beats – I have one of these in front of my – this is my last interview that I was on and it’s basically, I jot things down like all the time but pad and paper like I’ll do that too if I’m planning. I’ll walk away from the computer and I’ll just take my notepad and just go and start brainstorming or writing ideas, things that are coming to mind. And I can see it more visually when I do that stuff, when I map things out, and it seems more real I think when you actually put pen to paper and I just think it’s important. I think a lot of people are doing that.

But I think having those basic principles down and then building your brand off of those principles and then they kind of cross evaluating like say, “Okay. This is what we want here. This is it. Let’s see what the values are, let’s see what the mission is, or let’s see whatever. Let’s see the matches.” And if it doesn’t then we got to figure out why and we got to adjust and tweak. So, I love that. I think that’s a great idea and for anyone just starting, especially, let me ask you this one last question, what’s your thoughts on like if people are either just starting or they’re in their brand right now and they’re saying to themselves like, “I don’t know if I’m really just passionate about this,” do you think you have to be passionate about a brand to be successful?

[00:49:10] Annabel: It depends on your definition of success. If you really want a brand that, for example, if you want to be able to sell your brand in the future, the more passionate you can be about your brand the better off you’re going to be. This is not about making a few thousand dollars a year because for that you can probably just do it selling any product out there and just making sure you always have inventory and that your product is of a certain amount of quality. But if you’re looking to build a brand that you want to sell in the future, absolutely, because that’s the other thing too and we didn’t talk about it in this episode which is what would an investor or somebody who is looking to buy a company look for and what are those assets that you can sell as a product company? It’s very difficult to sell your zip tie company to an investor when there’s no branding behind it because what that tells to the investor is that there’s no uniqueness of that product and they can just go and buy zip ties themselves. So, when somebody’s looking to assess a business as a whole, these elements of branding are extremely critical for how they’re going to value your brand.

[00:50:32] Scott: That’s a good point. Yeah. I’ve always said like with your assets and stuff as far as like what the business assets are, not just financially but like your leverage, the audience you have built, a list that you have, vacations that you have, the content that you have that resides that continue to get you traffic. Like all of that stuff is huge. And it’s funny I just did a training on for YouTube that basically goes through like the three pillars and I talk about like having your home base where basically all of your content will reside and that’s where the experience will happen. People can buy there too but that’s where you control that experience and that’s an asset. It’s like if we get that asset built and we do what you said and what I said and get content there and we start getting traffic there, we have a real tangible asset now that we own and we control.

The other part of that was an email list that we can actually then take that and communicate with and talk about our products but also talk about a tip or whatever and then direct the traffic wherever we want. And then the third part was your external platform where you’re getting the attention in certain places where the market is. It could be YouTube, it could be Instagram, it could be wherever, and then directing them back over to our home base. And I just did that as a simple way to let people know like those are assets that you’re building that an investor would also look at and go, “Holy crap, this is stable. This is something that we can kind of measure some of the stuff that we have here,” and you’ve got a great set of assets here but maybe an investor says, “I see there are a few things that we can do to improve this that actually just with a few tweaks we can actually take this in three exit, because you already got these things in place.”

[00:52:14] Annabel: Because investors are looking to scale. You show them that you can build the base and that you have all these elements in place. What they’re going to do is that they’re going to inject that business with additional capital to grow it, but they can invest the business with additional feeling, with additional emotion, with additional the base of the brand. They’re not going to come up with that. You have to come up with that. That is your brand and that’s where when you mention if you’re passionate about your brand, that is going to just fuel that base even more and I think psychologically if you’re proud of something, you’re going to share it more and you’re going to want for more people to find out about something and you’re going to give it your all when you see something and you say, “Wow, you know what, we really nailed the look of this product or we really captured the essence of our brand in this piece of copy that we created.”

All that comes across and people want to relate to brands. It’s why you see some of these big box retailers starting to shut down because people want brands and companies that are more relatable than what they were in the past. Many times, not looking at price and going after, is this a story that I can relate to. The pendulum is swinging back to smaller boutiques, niche brands, brands that are like more human because people are kind of over it. They want to relate for as much as we’re separating ourselves from like brick-and-mortar and maybe going online, it’s also an opportunity for people to know even more about your brand. Before, it was only what was on the backside of the carton that told you about companies. Now, the About Us page on a website is the second most visited page after the homepage.

[00:54:02] Scott: Oh, I believe that. Yeah. That’s why I think incorporating your story, your mission, why you started your company, whatever, I think is huge. And I think also the show pictures of people that are involved in the business or the brand and that could be you. It doesn’t have to be you. It could be whoever else is maybe the entire team that’s behind the brand or if it is just you, you or if it’s you and your wife or husband or whatever, include those pictures. I know myself personally if I go on an About Me page and all I see is text, I don’t see an image, I feel like I can’t connect as well. But if I see the actual face to who the brand is I just feel a little bit more connected. I feel a little bit more as they are human behind it versus just a corporate-y feel.

[00:54:46] Annabel: Right.

[00:54:47] Scott: This has been awesome. So, I guess the last thing that I should probably ask you, are you cool if anybody wants to respond and ask questions?

[00:54:57] Annabel: Yeah. Absolutely. They can reach me at my email. It’s amendez@marketites.com. We’ll put it in the show notes for people to see and then they can also visit my website, Marketites.com, where I have a cool guide on building your brand on and off Amazon.

[00:55:13] Scott: Definitely, I’ll link that stuff up in the description and the show notes to this episode, so people can go and check that out. I definitely recommend that.

[00:55:21] Annabel: Always happy to help.

[00:55:23] Scott: Yeah. So, awesome. So, thanks so much. I appreciate it and keep us posted on anything new and exciting and we’ll probably have you back on and we’ll do a little update.

[00:55:31] Annabel: Awesome. Thank you. Bye.

[00:55:32] Scott: All right. Annabel. Thank you.

[CLOSING]

[00:55:35] Scott: All right. So, there you go. There is some brand building stuff there for you that you can sink your teeth into. One thing I do not want you to do is get overwhelmed thinking that you have to do everything because you don’t, but you do have to get started and whether you are just starting or if you are a current brand, but you want to change some things, maybe you want to do a rebrand, any of that stuff, you can take these elements and plug them in. But really the one thing that I want to highlight here is just being consistent all the way through the brand whether that’s colors, whether that’s the message, whether that’s the face of the brand or the people of the brand like I just think it’s important to stay consistent all the way through as best that you can. Now, that doesn’t mean it’s always going to play out that way and it doesn’t mean that you can’t pivot, you can’t make adjustments. You can but just I like to think about it as the user or the customer or the person entering your brand will have a similar experience going all the way through. Because that way there people know what to expect and it also seems like, I don’t know, like you’re a tighter company like you’re a tighter group or your whole team is on the same page and your products are on the same page and like everything just kind of makes sense.

The other thing I want to highlight is story. Whenever you can add a story or messaging or maybe it is your message, your brand message, whatever it is, make that thing stand out. Make that thing part of whether it’s your branding, whether it’s your, maybe it’s your email sequences when you’re building that list and we talk a lot about building the email list. That email list is a way for you to start talking about your brand and really start letting people hear how you feel about the market that you’re in. Like I said, if you’re in fishing, well, you’re going to be very passionate about fishing and there’s probably fishing language or terms that I don’t even know that you would start to use.

[00:57:34] Scott: Like, that’s a way for you to connect and then also allow people to enter the brand but also you can start leading them through how you want to really represent your brand and your products and services and messaging and all of that stuff. So, I just kind of want to throw that out there. It’s really important that you understand that, but you don’t have to know it all right now but definitely go back. You might even want to listen to this again. Definitely go grab the show notes, TheAmazingSeller.com/539. Take notes, highlight, print them out, whatever you need to do so this way here you can start to add these things into your business and your brand and moving forward it will definitely help you. That’s my opinion but I believe it will because I think that anyone that has a brand and you can make it stronger and just really give people a great experience, a great journey. I always like to look at that as a customer journey and experience. That is what they will remember.

All right. So, show notes, TheAmazingSeller.com/539, definitely go check out Annabel. She’s great and she’ll definitely get back to you so if you’ve got any questions, definitely hit her up, check her stuff out. I hope you guys enjoyed this episode. I had a blast recording it and really going through this brand building stuff. You guys know I’m starting to geek out on it and I love it so hopefully, you guys are too.

All right. So, that’s it. That’s going to wrap it up. Remember as always, I’m here for you, I believe in you and I’m rooting for you, but you have to, you have to, come on, say it with me, say it loud, say it proud, take action! Have an awesome amazing day! And I’ll see you right back here on the next episode.

[END]

Click Here to Download Transcript

LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE

www.theamazingseller.com/bootcamp

www.zappos.com

Mystery Tackle Box

www.rev.com

Amendez[at]marketites.com

www.marketites.com

NEW To The Blog and Podcast?

I created a Page Just for You called…START HERE!

If you enjoyed this episode share the love with your friends…Click To Tweet the show.

Subscribe To Be The First To Receive Updates and NEW Podcast Episodes

from WordPress https://ift.tt/2NG14Hd via IFTTT

[spryfilm]

“The Mummy” (2017)

Thriller/Action

Running Time: 107 minutes

Written by: Ben  David Koepp, Christopher McQuarrie, and Dylan Kussman

Directed by:  Alex Kurtzman

Featuring:  Tom Cruise, Sofia Boutella, Annabelle Wallis, Jake Johnson, Courtney B. Vance, Marwan Kenzari, and Russell Crowe

Jenny Halsey: You are a good man. 

Nick Morton: You don’t know that. 

Jenny Halsey: Yes, I do. There’s good man inside of you fighting to come out. You saved my life. You gave me the only parachute without thinking. 

Nick Morton: [taken aback] I thought there was another one!

This week sees the release of another recent Summer movie that was set up as an opener to a larger ‘monsters universe’, but this movie did not meet expectations at the US box office, although it did do better at the international one so more of these movies might be  on the way. Once again we see a  movie that was savaged by critics as well as rumours of Tom Cruise taking over behind the scenes. What is neglected in those stories is the fact that the director, Alex Kurtzman was out of his depth as a novice director so the production was having issues with a tight deadline for Cruise who had to go and make the latest ‘Mission Impossible’ movie – so him as a senior player had that right i believe.

On with the review…

Apparently shared universes are the new ‘in’ thing, they are supposed to give a studio the ability to run movies with similar themes parallel to each other without having the hang up of actual sequels – but of course not doing away with them entirely. This film is supposed to be the launch of a “Dark Universe” that links vampires, mummy’s and all sorts of other traditional Universal monsters together – you may have heard of this before, that’s because in 2014 Universal tried to launch it then with “Dracula Untold” (2014) starring Luke Evans and Charles Dance, directed by Gary Shore – it was met with not great reviews or box office so now Universal have decided that it never happened and have opted to re-launch the Universal Monster (UMU maybe?) universe with this Tom Cruise starrer “The Mummy” (2017). This first movie is something of an uneven trip, that does not always succeed, and in the end is really an enigma – it ends up being caught between genres not sure of what it wants to be, probably because it has too many masters.

The film centers on Nick Morton (Tom Cruise), a somewhat soldier of fortune attempting to plunder ancient sites for timeless artifacts then selling them to the highest bidder. When Nick and his partner come under attack in the Middle East, the ensuing battle accidentally unearths Ahmanet, a betrayed Egyptian princess who was entombed under the desert for thousands of years. With her powers constantly evolving, Morton must now stop the resurrected monster as she embarks on a furious rampage through the streets of London.

The last time the Mummy movies were remade was in 1999, when Stephen Sommers directed the similarly titled “The Mummy” (1999), that was a worldwide hit featuring Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, John Hannah and introduced Arnold Vosloo as the titular character. There were three films in the series and it ended up being extremely successful, if not a little uneven in places – but made out at the box handsomely. Sommers even had his own idea of linking the monsters, which he failed to launch with the Hugh Jackman starrer “Van Helsing” (2002), which was a major flop for the studio, so plans ended there – or so it seemed.

Now we have a misguided attempt from producers Robert Orci and Alex Kurtzman who came to fame as screenwriter’s for J.J. Abrams various film and television projects. Unfortunately for me these two are linked with one of the most over rated screenwriters working today, Damon Lindeloff. Between the three of them they came close to ruining the Star Trek, Alien and Lost franchises. It’s a wonder anyone lets them near their films, I know I wouldn’t. When it comes to the this new ‘Mummy’, they have attempted to mitigate the risks by casting Tom Cruise as a possible antagonist as well as having a special appearance by Russell Crowe as Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde. Even with these superstars as well as up and coming actress Sofia Boutella as the titular character, fresh of the hit “Kingsman: The Secret Service” (2014), they cannot save this movie from being nothing more than a diversion. It is such a shame because Universal and their monsters have a rich vein in not only scares but also great empathetic characters. One only needs to view the the early 20th century versions to see a well of greatness – in fact one could do worse than rewatching those true classics today.

Superstar Tom Cruise is trying something new, this is the first horror film, of a kind, that he has appeared in, as well as the first new franchise he has tried to be a part of since his role as Ethan Hunt. His success lies in his ability to commit to each role he takes, here he is a victim as well as an action hero, he seems to be the only one that knows what film he is in – he lends much humor to the film which is sorely lacking from everyone else, which is a missed opportunity. They try and give him a sidekick in the form of Chris Vail played by the excellent and underused Jake Johnson, who appears without any logic or reason as a ghost, much like the Griffin Dunne character in “An American Werewolf in London” (1981) – here it may have been better if he was the sidekick instead of the vapid as well as trope heavy Jenny played with vanilla essence by Annabelle Wallis. Boutella who vamps it up as the Mummy, looks like she belongs in this movie, much like Crowe who chews the scenery left, right and center round out the cast.

The film has been competently directed, but when you have the cast and crew as well as a big budget then things should really turn out more dynamic than this has. Looking at the credits, when a film has five people credited as writers something has gone wrong somewhere, so in the end this has a fairly standard plot for a mummy movie: Someone finds a sarcophagus, ships it back to blighty, the mummy escapes, curses everyone and is the finally defeated. The narrative too is fairly simple, particularly when there is a voice over explaining everything, as the plot moves forward. Somehow the people behind the camera have really managed to try and seem to make things complicated, have reigned in Cruise producing something that is a little bland – it has not committed completely to being a comedy, an action film, a horror or even a thriller so we have something that is stuck firmly in no mans land – this is something that happens more commonly these days with big budget films.

Don’t get me wrong this is not a bad movie at all, in fact I would say that it only just misses the mark for a Summer blockbuster. It is no fluke that Tom Cruise makes very good movies, with a quality that is not found with many other actors, directors or producers. Interestingly Cruise who is a producer in his own right does not have a production credit on this and I would argue that if he did it would have been a tighter more logical film without many of the plot holes. When you look at movies he has produced they are nothing if not logical as well as being extremely well thought out – look at “The Edge of Tomorrow” (2014), possibly one of the best Sci Fi films of recent years as well as being hellishly original (to a point) – maybe they would have been better off ditching some of the many writers and producers and getting Cruise involved behnd the camera as well.

Regardless of all that if you like a supernatural action film with some laughs then this could be for you. It is a good film for the family; with no real frights just a lot of action, and you may be pleasantly surprised. The next movie that will be appearing will be “The Bride of Frankenstein” in 2019, featuring Javier Bardem as the monster, that’s if this one has any life in it.

“The Mummy” is out on DVD & Blu-ray on 13th September 2017.

DVD & Blu-ray review: ” The Mummy” (2017) “The Mummy” (2017) Thriller/Action Running Time: 107 minutes Written by: Ben  David Koepp, Christopher McQuarrie, and Dylan Kussman…