#automatic sleeve wrapping packing machine

[machinefactory]

5 gallon water bottle bucket barrel sleeve applicator line automatic sleeve wrapping packing machine

[vorteckpackagingmachinery]

5 Essential Features to Look for in a Vacuum Packing Machine

In the world of food preservation and packaging, a vacuum packing machine is a versatile and invaluable tool for businesses and households alike. Choosing the right vacuum packing machine is crucial for ensuring the freshness and longevity of products. Here are five essential features to consider when selecting a vacuum packing machine.

I. Vacuum Sealing Power

The primary function of a vacuum packing machine is to remove air from the packaging to prevent oxidation and spoilage. A machine with sufficient vacuum sealing power ensures that the maximum amount of air is extracted, extending the shelf life of the packaged items. Look for a machine with adjustable vacuum settings to accommodate different types of products.

II. Sealing Bar Length and Width

The sealing bar is a critical component of a vacuum packing machine, determining the size and type of bags it can accommodate. Consider the types of items you plan to package and choose a machine with a sealing bar that suits your needs. A longer and wider sealing bar allows for packaging larger items or multiple smaller items in a single bag.

III. Durability and Build Quality

Investing in a durable and well-built vacuum packing machine is essential for long-term use. Look for machines constructed from high-quality materials, such as stainless steel, which enhances durability and resistance to corrosion. A robust build ensures that the machine can withstand the demands of regular use in a commercial or home environment.

IV. Ease of Use and Maintenance

A user-friendly interface and easy maintenance are key considerations when selecting a vacuum packing machine. Opt for a machine with intuitive controls, clear instructions, and easy-to-understand settings. Additionally, choose a model with easily removable and washable components to simplify the cleaning process, maintaining hygiene and prolonging the machine's lifespan.

V. Additional Features for Versatility

Beyond the basic functionalities, look for additional features that enhance the versatility of the vacuum packing machine. Features such as the ability to vacuum pack liquids, a pulse function for delicate items, and the option to control the vacuum pressure can provide added flexibility for various packaging needs. Consider your specific requirements and choose a machine that offers the features most relevant to your use case.

[trivenipack]

Triveni Packaging | Packaging Machinery | Packaging Machine Suppliers in UAE

Triveni Packaging Trading Company LLC is a leading provider of advanced packaging solutions in the UAE, specializing in a diverse range of packaging machinery in UAE, essential for various industries. Our product lineup includes:

Induction Cap Sealing Machine — Essential for ensuring the airtight sealing of containers.

Tray Sealing Machines — Designed for packaging food products in pre-formed trays

Shrink Wrap Machine — Used to apply a protective layer of plastic film around products.

Cling Wrapping Machine — It automatically wrap products in a stretchable film, creating a tight seal that clings to the item.

Vacuum Packing Machines — It removes air from packaging to create a vacuum-sealed environment that prolongs the shelf life of perishable products.

Sleeve Wrapping Machine — perfect for packaging multiple items together, providing a secure and attractive presentation.

Carton Sealing Machine — It is designed to automate the sealing of cartons for shipping and storage.

We are the premier packaging machine supplier in UAE, delivering high-quality and affordable packaging solutions to diverse business needs. Our protective packaging solutions ensure your products are safe during packaging and transporting.

Reach out to Triveni Packaging, the best packaging machine supplier in dubai for all your packaging requirements.

[packagingmachinesusa]

Best Packaging Machines

It is an unmissable event for decision-makers within the meal packaging sector. Our range of labeling machines embraces semi-automatic bench-top labeling up to excessive velocity full wraparound and back and front self-adhesive labeling machines. We group-coded merchandise to ensure high ranges of traceability for your packaging across the provision chain. Our feeder techniques transfer your merchandise into the answer which applies the packaging and out to the subsequent stage - auger filler.

Our exemplary automated packing solutions are guaranteed to type the proper answer for all of your bottling, baggage, and canning needs. Our team will investigate the number of packing units your goal is to carry out after which& organize all the automated packing tasks accordingly.  Our team of packing equipment professionals right here at is devoted to offering every one of our prospects a variety of packing options and options to choose from when they come to us.

When you determine to work with our set of expert packing experts, you'll be able to rest assured that your wants and expectations will be exquisitely met, no matter what they may be. Regulations around meal security standards are stringent and particular, especially relating to the preservation and elements of food merchandise - automatic shrink wrap machine.

We may help offer you probably the most suitable resolution on your merchandise and present you the results earlier than you purchase from us. Just ship us your packs and we’ll ship over a wrapped sample with costing information based mostly on the equipment and film you would wish. We supply an unbelievable range of shrink-wrap equipment, together with semi-automatic and computerized fashions, chamber shrink-wrap machines, shrink tunnels, and sleeve sealer machines. However, the time needed may be extended if there are complex controls and programs to manage. For more information, please visit our site https://packagingmachinesusa.com/

[worldepackcn]

Shrink wrap packing machine for bottled water

The automatic Sleeve Shrink Wrap Machine is made to wrap heavy products with thick film. The finished packaging has two open ends on each side which are referred to as "bullseyes". Standard products packaged with a shrink bundling machine include firewood, canned goods, cases of water bottles, metal products, tool cases, and more. The machine can carry out two-row, three-row, or four-row shrink packaging with or without bottom support, like 10 bottles (1 × 10), (2 × 5), 9 bottles (3 × 3), 12 bottles (3 × 4), 15 bottles (3 × 5), 24 bottles (4 × 6).

[qocsuing]

How Does Shrinkwrap Machinery Work?

How Does Shrinkwrap Machinery Work? Shrinkwrap machines work by creating a sleeve, or envelope, of loose shrink film around a product, from a continuous plastic roll. Heat is then applied to shrink the individual sleeve or envelope firmly around the product. If the film is properly applied by a shrinkwrap machine then the resultant packaged product will have an outer wrap which conforms tightly around the product itself. The film is strong, thin, and clear, and will provide both tamper evidence and enhanced optical display properties, both of which are essential for retail distribution.Get more news about Auto Shrink Wrap Machine,you can vist our website!

This process is available to all businesses, whether the demand is low level, or whether required by large scale organisations that have continuous production requirements. Accordingly Shrink wrapping can be fulfilled by machinery that is very simple, such as a manual heat gun, or it can be through specialist packaging machinery. Kempner is here to offer exactly the right advice, because for all businesses, the right shrink wrap machine is vital to efficiency, allowing as many products to be wrapped in as short an amount of time as possible.

The type of shrink wrapping machinery you need for your business will depend upon understanding your current, or proposed, wrapping process and what you goals are. You will need to think about the wrapping process: how quickly packs are produced prior to the wrapping process, what range of sizes are required, and how many packs are to be wrapped in a given time.

Whatever the need, there will nearly always be a shrink wrapping machine designed to meet the application. If you would like to discuss individual requirements then Kempner can help you understand which packaging machine and shrinkwrap film options may be best suited to your needs. The ways in which shrink wrapping machines operate can vary in type in a number significant ways. In simple terms the choice is between Manual, Semi-Automatic and Fully Automatic, but within each of these broader categories there are various options to choose. Below are some of the available options: Side Sealer A side sealer is the quickest and most versatile way of packaging large volumes of products. They wrap products in a continuous tube of film, sealing one side of the package then separating individual units downstream through a cross seal. Side sealers usually come in one of two configurations: two belts or three belts. A two belt sealer is more compact (only slightly bigger than an L-sealer) and eliminates one of the indeed belts to make the end seal before the side seal.

They are best when you need to wrap longer products but cannot afford to expand production line lengths. Three belt sealers are slightly larger than two belt sealers and have the added advantage of precisely spacing the products before entering the wrapping area.

[sleevelabelmachine]

Everything About Shrink Wrapping Machine | Process | Features & Types of shrink wrapping

Shrink wrapping is a popular packaging technique that involves wrapping a product in a plastic film and then shrinking the film to tightly fit the product using heat.  Shrink wrapping is used in a variety of industries, including food, beverage, cosmetics, and electronics. Shrink wrapping machines automate this process and make it faster and more efficient.

Siddhivinayak Engineering is a leading Automatic Shrink Wrapping Machine Manufacturer, that provides a variety of features, including high-speed labeling, precise positioning, easy operation, and reliability. This Automatic Shrink Sleeve Wrap Applicator is perfect for wrapping single or multiple products, such as bottles, cans, cartons, and pallets. We also manufacture Shrink Wrapping Tunnel, Automatic Bottle Shrink Wrapping Machine, Automatic Shrink Sleeve Label Applicator Machine, etc.

Process of Automatic Shrink Wrapping Machine-

Sealing- The product is placed in the center of the film, and the film is wrapped around it. The machine then seals the edges of the film together to create a pouch around the product.

Heating- Once the product is sealed inside the film, the machine applies heat to the film. This causes the film to shrink and tightly conform to the shape of the product.

Cooling- After the film has been shrunk, the machine applies cool air to the product to set the film in place and complete the wrapping process.

Features- These are certain features available with Shrink wrapping machine:-

Sealing line on Two sides of the product

Counter& Timer controlled System

Heavy-duty Conveyor System

High-speed Blower System with Continuous Rating

High-Quality Heating Element

Easy Operations

Longer Service Life

Most importantly, Resistant Against Corrosion

Two Roll of shrink film Operations

Types of Shrink Wrapping Machines-

PVC Shrink Wrap-  PVC shrink wrap is a popular type of shrink wrapping material. It is a clear and glossy film that provides excellent clarity and presentation for the product. The Automatic PVC Shrink Sleeve Label Applicator Machine is durable and provides excellent protection against moisture and dust. 

Polyolefin Shrink Wrap- Polyolefin shrink wrap is a more environmentally friendly option compared to PVC shrink wrap.

Shrink Sleeve Labeling- Shrink sleeve labeling is a type of shrink wrapping technique used for products that require a label or branding.

Advantages Of Shrink Wrapping Machine-

Protection from dust, Moisture, and foreign Particles.

Secondly, Give stability to the pack

Scratch Resistant

Handling becomes easy and fast

Economical Mode of packing

Prevent Telescoping of Rolls

Most importantly, it Saving Packaging Labor and time

Attractive Packing Than printed boxes

We are a leading Automatic Shrink Wrapping Machine Exporter in Ahmedabad, India. We’re also a Supplier of Shrink Wrapping Tunnel,  Automatic Bottle Shrink Wrapping Machine, and more. We also provide training, technical support, and after sales-support services to help our customers.

[canseamers]

Packaging Machines - The Various Types Used in Popular Industries

Defining packaging machines is made easier by knowing the different parts of the manufacturing process. Simply put, it may be a type of machinery that is purposely used for sealing, wrapping, filling, cleaning, packaging and forming goods at varied automation levels. In some industries, the list may include those used while sorting, accumulating and counting items. automatic tin seaming machine

Before proceeding to the basic types of machines, it is also best to have a view of the different package types where packaging machinery is often used. Examples range from aerosol containers, blister packs, bags and pouches, pallets and intermediate bulk containers and cartridges to cans, cases, cups and trays, drums, tubes, vials and capsules. As for its applications, there are a number of industries making use of these industrial products. Popular ones are automotive, cosmetic and perfumery, electronics, chemical and petrochemical and food industries. They also cater to military, music, video, software, household products, garment, stationary, tobacco and pharmaceutical industries.

Types of packaging machines

There are a number of classifications when it comes to packaging machines. The list includes accumulators, bagging, batching and bundling machinery as well as box making, capping, closing and cartooning machinery. Below are explanations for all these types of packing machines. automatic can seamer

As the name implies, an accumulator or accumulating machinery is used in order to make gathering of goods easier during the manufacturing process. As for bagging machines, expect that products are placed easily in their respective pouches, sacks or bags. Batching machinery on the other hand allows preparation of the goods before they are packaged or processed. Banding machines help secure the items with the aid of bands. At times, this is also called as sleeving machines.

Bundling machines are those that have the capability to pile goods before they are wrapped or banded. Box making machines make it easy for cardboard to be transformed into boxes. The so-called capping machines are responsible for placing or snapping caps into the containers where they are needed. Closing machines are basically made in order to make tying wires or metal straps easier around the neck of pouches or bags. With all these descriptions on each type of packaging machinery, one may conclude that the function of the machine is related to the name given to the equipment type.

View More: automatic can seaming machine

[siddhivinayakengineerings-blog]

Boost Productivity with an Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine

In today's fast-paced business environment, productivity is a critical factor in the success of any company. Businesses must find ways to streamline their processes and optimize their resources in order to remain competitive. This is especially true in the case of product packaging and labeling. An Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine can be a game changer in this situation.

An Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine is a piece of equipment that applies shrink sleeves to containers with a high level of accuracy and speed. Shrink sleeves are plastic labels that wrap around a container and provide a tamper-evident seal, protecting the product from harm or theft. With an Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine, businesses can quickly apply these labels to their products, improving their security and reducing the risk of product tampering.

One of the key advantages of an Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine is that it increases production tremendously. Manual labeling and packaging operations take time and are prone to human mistake. An Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine, on the other hand, can apply shrink sleeves to containers with high precision and uniformity in a matter of seconds. This implies that enterprises may label and package their items more quickly, increasing output and meeting client demand more efficiently.

Apart from Shrink Sleeve  Applicator Machine We're also dealing in Automatic Neck Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine, Automatic High Speed Sleeving Machine, and Automatic Shrink Wrapping Machine & Etc.

Another advantage of an Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine is that it can help businesses reduce their labor costs. Manual labeling and packaging processes require a significant amount of time and labor, which can be expensive for businesses. With an Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine, businesses can automate this process, reducing the need for manual labor and freeing up employees to focus on other tasks. This can save businesses money in the long run, making the investment in an Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine a wise choice.

An AutomaticSecurity Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine can improve the quality of the labeling and packing process in addition to increasing productivity and lowering labor expenses. With a high level of accuracy and consistency, businesses can ensure that their products are labeled correctly every time. This can assist companies in avoiding costly mistakes and ensuring that their products match the high quality standards that clients expect.

Overall, an Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine can be an excellent investment for businesses looking to boost productivity and efficiency in their labeling and packaging processes. This machine's ability to apply shrink sleeves fast, accurately, and consistently can help organizations streamline their operations and cut costs while enhancing product quality. As such, businesses should seriously consider investing in an Automatic Security Seal Shrink Sleeve Applicator Machine to enhance their operations and stay ahead of the competition.

[sanjeevseo]

Automatic Shrink Wrap Machines in UAE – Its benefits for the multiple industries

An Automatic Shrink Wrap Machines is machinery that shrinks any material to be enfolded or to call it in simple terms – a shrink wrapper. It is comprised of a plethora of industries most leading being the food and beverages industry. Though, all segments comprising pharmaceuticals have majorly started using Automatic Shrink Wrap machines widely. Shrink Wrap is done with the support of a Shrink film and Automatic Shrink Wrap Machines in UAE which albeit looks thin but is ultra-strong as it includes a few layers and bonded strongly.

The objectives of this packaging can be varied like giving a compact packing which helps to brand easier and catchier so that it’s picked off the shelf easily. Shrink Wrap Machine wraps a thing in a free sleeve or a wobbly polyolefin shrink film and heat is used to shrink the film firmly around. Shrink-packing machines are very handy when a bulk of goods want to be shrink-wrapped.

Benefits of Using a Shrink Wrap Machine

One advantage that just can’t be missed out on is the sustainability it gives to products. Least labour with maximum output. The input of the Shrink wrapper is most usually available and a very reasonable option because the wrap material can shrink up to 50% of its size or more. Reliant on the kind of business, one may opt for a manual shrink wrap machine, a semi-automatic shrink wrap machine, or a fully automatic shrink wrap machine. The value variants/ Shrink wrap machine price depends on the type selected for and which Industry demands which category of machinery. High-speed version machines are also obtainable and packs per minute explain the volume the shrink packaging machine can give.

Why do industries need Automatic Shrink Wrap Machines? Due to the below exceptional benefits industries are using Automatic Shrink Wrap Machines in Dubai UAE

• Low-cost enabler

• Profit doubled

• Effective in Inventory management

• Reduces loss and wastage in the business model

• Low power consumption

Industries that use Automatic Shrink Wrap Machines • Ever thought of packaged water obtainable in a small refreshment shop? Well, it uses the same technology. Packaged water bottles and other PET bottles make sufficient use of automatic shrink-wrap machinery. Shrink-wrapping machines for bottles play a main role in the market.

• An Automatic Shrink Wrap Machines in UAE manufacturer customizes manifold and presents it to the consumer. Scaffold wrap suppression of bridges and buildings and disaster contingency and relief projects such as damaged buildings and roofs also entail its uses.

• The shrink wrap manufacturer customizes its product reliant on the client’s requirement. The food Industry benefits from it like you can stock your favourite Pizza or French fries. • Cosmetic companies could benefit from this to pack cold-pressed soaps. Tamper-marked shrink wrap is nowadays being used for carrying physical money shipped by an armed transport or even where portable disks or DVDs transport information needs to reach unscathed. • Given all the uses and thinking beyond for which mankind is recognized, the shrink wrap packaging machine in due course of time is a device or device that industries might see a rare possibility of evading.

[smartpackernews]

Automatic plastic film wrap sealing machine sleeve film wrap shrinking sealing packing machine for books case box carton

1.Model:GR-FS80

2.Packaging size:L: no limited

W:60-450mm

H:5-150mm

3.Mechnical speed:80 packs/minute

4.Air cylinder consumption:

5.Power:18KW

6.Overall size:7850*1650*1430mm

?UNIT 1:Name:T-80

Feeding system:Length of conveyor:1000mm

Width of conveyor:500mm

Conveying speed:0-80 meter/minute

Height of feed belt:850+10mm

UNIT 2

Automatic sealing and cutting system:

Equipment size:2100*1520*1300mm

Packing?speed:0-80 packs/minute

Power:3.6KW AC380V

Suitable film(UM):0.015-0.025mm thickness(folded POF)

UNIT 3

Heat shrink tunnel:

Equipment size:2000*800*1375mm

Shrink tunnel size:1500*550*370mm

Conveying speed:0-80 packs/minute

Power:13KW AC380V

UNIT 4:

Collecting system:

Length of conveyor:1800mm

Width of conveyor:500mm

Conveying speed:0-80 meters/minute

[vorteckpackagingmachinery]

https://vorteckpackagingmachinery.ie/about-us/

[beifongsss]

playing with fire pt. 5 [sokka]

Pairing: Sokka x reader

Summary: You’re a Fire Nation citizen who saves Sokka and Katara from some angry villagers. Aang “convinces” you to come along with them, finding your knowledge of the nation useful. Not everything is smooth sailing though as both Water Tribe siblings have their doubts about you.

this will be a series :D this takes place during The Chase!

w.c.~5.1k

prologue. one. two. three. four.

.masterlist.

~

Toph was a breath of fresh air. She was unapologetically herself, and you loved it. 

However for Katara, it was a little stressful. 

“Hey you guys picked a great campsite!” Toph exclaimed, digging her toes into what she thought was grass. “The grass is so soft!”

You snickered at Sokka’s displeased expression as he looked down at the ground before turning to face Toph. “Sorry shortcake, that’s not grass you’re standing on. Appa’s shedding.”

“Oh gross!” Katara exclaimed, raising her foot as she examined the fur. 

“That’s not gross!” Aang chirped. “It’s just a part of spring! You know, rebirth, flowers blooming, and Appa gets a new coat!”

“Ah, the beauty of spring,” Katara replied sarcastically, earning a muffled laugh from you. Aang gave you a betrayed look and you simply shrugged, trying to keep the smile off of your face. 

“She’s right,” you said, looking at the Air Nomad apologetically. “It’s a little disgusting.”

Appa chose that moment to sneeze, sending up plumes of fur all around you. You coughed lightly, feeling some of the fur land on your tongue. 

“Stop! Appa, stop! Ugh!” Katara cried out, trying to brush off the fur that now clung to her clothes. 

“It’s not that bad Katara,” Sokka said, his back facing Katara as he bent over. He turned around proudly, meeting Katara’s unsettled face. “It makes a great wig!”

Katara looked at you expectantly, a disgusted look on her face. Her expression dropped when she saw you laughing and egging her brother on before bending down and creating a mustache out of fur. 

“Look! It also makes a great mustache!” you exclaimed, causing Aang to laugh along with you. Sokka looked at you dreamily, happy that the two of you shared a sense of humor. 

“And a great beard!” Aang added, stroking the beard he had created. Katara looked at all of you with disappointment before closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

“I’m just glad we have another girl in the group, because you three are disgusting,” Katara said, brushing off the last of the fur from her clothes.

“Excuse me, does anyone have a razor?” Toph asked innocently, walking up behind you. “Because I’ve got some hairy pits!”

The three of you cackled loudly as Toph raised her arms, revealing the fur she had stuffed into her sleeves. Katara shook her head as she watched the four of you, a smile tugging at her lips. Aang chose that exact moment to sneeze, flying back into Appa’s side and sending up another cloud of fur. This just caused you all to laugh even harder, Sokka patting your back when you breathed in some fur. Even Katara chuckled lowly, and eventually you began to set up camp. 

Sokka was out looking for firewood as you and Aang set up the tent. Katara sat a few yards away from you, getting started on dinner. Toph was lounging on the ground a few feet away from Katara, lazily chewing on a piece of wheat. 

“So, you and Sokka?” Aang asked, drawing your attention to him. Sokka entered the clearing as if on cue, walking over to the weak flame near Katara and setting the firewood down next to her. He straightened and shot you and Aang a confused look, noticing your glances. You looked away immediately, a blush spreading across your cheeks.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you muttered in response, rolling your eyes when Aang giggled. 

“We can all tell that you like each other,” Aang said, unfolding the tarp. “He even got you that necklace to show you how he feels!”

You absentmindedly reached for the pendant that hung delicately from your neck, running your fingertips over it as you smiled at Sokka. The Water Tribe boy noticed and shot you a dazzling smile in return before turning to watch over the pot Katara had left unattended.

“And we can all tell that you like him back,” Aang said casually, smiling when you opened your mouth to reply but shut it, knowing he was right. “I think you should go for it. It’s not like he’s gonna say no.”

The conversation stopped before you could reply as a loud rumbling reached your ears. You turned to see Toph laying under an earth tent, Katara fuming as she walked away. You exchanged a worried look with Aang before continuing to set the tarp up in silence, occasionally shooting a glance at Katara who seemed to be trying to control her temper. 

There was a tense atmosphere surrounding the campsite for the rest of the afternoon and all of you tiptoed around Katara as you tried to not set her off. Things only got worse when Katara attempted to apologize and Toph made a comment about how tired she seemed. Katara’s eyes twitched for the next few minutes. Night fell soon enough and you found yourself drifting off to sleep, only to be awoken by Toph’s voice.

“There’s something coming towards us!”

“What are you talking about, shortcake,” you grumbled, rubbing your eyes as you sat up. Toph gave you an irritated look.

“What is it?” Aang asked.

“It feels like an avalanche, but not an avalanche,” Toph replied, pressing her hand against the ground.

“Your powers of perception are frightening,” Sokka said sarcastically, smiling down at you when you hit him softly. 

“Should we leave?” Katara asked worriedly.

“Better safe than sorry,” Aang replied, already packing up his stuff. The rest of you followed his lead, climbing onto Appa and taking off. You sat next to Sokka, digging your face into the crook of his neck as you tried to relax. Sokka could feel his heartbeat speed up as he looked down at you, blushing when he noticed Aang’s knowing gaze. 

“What is that thing?” Katara asked, gazing at something in the distance. Sokka followed her gaze, being careful not to disturb your position. Down below, a tank-like machine was making its way through the land. No one answered Katara and soon enough, they landed. 

Toph was the first one to hop down from Appa, sighing in relief as her “sight” returned to her. “Ah, sweet land! See you guys in the morning!”

“Actually, can you help us unload?” Katara asked as you all made your way down to the ground.

“Really?” Toph asked in disbelief. “You need me to unload Sokka’s funky-smelling sleeping bag?”

You let out a laugh at Toph’s words, biting your lip when Sokka looked at you in mock-anger. 

“Well, yeah,” Katara said lightly. “That and everything else. You’re a part of our team now and-”

“Look! I didn’t ask you to help unload my stuff,” Toph interrupted Katara. “I’m carrying my own weight!”

“That’s not the point!” Katara cried angrily, taking a step towards Toph. “Ever since you’ve joined us, you’ve been nothing but selfish and unhelpful!”

“What?” Toph screeched. “Look here, sugar queen. I gave up everything I had so that I could teach Aang earthbending. So don’t you talk to me about being selfish!”

“Should we stop them?” you asked sleepily, leaning against Sokka’s side. Sokka looked down at you, smiling as you yawned before wrapping his arms around you and pulling you close. Aang and Sokka flinched as Toph raised another earth tent around herself, blocking Katara out. 

“Maybe we should do something,” Aang said nervously. 

Sokka looked at his sister before glancing as you, your arms now wrapped tightly around him as well as you rested your head on his chest. “Nah, I’m fine just watching the show.”

Aang smiled at the sight in front of him before walking away, ready to try and calm Katara down. Sokka gently led you over to the sleeping bags, gently setting you down before turning to walk away. Your hand shot out, grasping the sleeve of his shirt and bringing him to a stop. 

“Stay,” you mumbled, your words slurred by sleep. “You’re warm.”

Sokka looked around hesitantly before letting himself be dragged down by you. He settled into the space next to you and you automatically drifted closer to him, burying your face into his chest once again. His arms wrapped around you, bringing you close and causing you to sigh softly as you felt his warmth envelope you. 

Of course, good things never last long and as soon as Sokka found himself drifting off to sleep, the ground began to shake. 

“Hey!” he called out, sitting up and looking at Toph. “How’s a guy supposed to sleep with all this earthquaking going on?”

“The thing is back!” Toph cried, letting her tent fall. 

“Well how far is it?” Sokka mumbled, laying back down and holding you close. “Maybe we can close our eyes for just a few more minutes.”

“I don’t think so Sokka,” Aang replied sadly, noticing the smoke cloud that seemed to be getting closer. 

You whimpered softly as Sokka untangled himself from you, earning yourself a soft look from the Water Tribe boy. “Sorry (Y/N/N), we have to go.”

You all boarded Appa, eyes drooping as you flew over the mountainous terrain. You leaned against Sokka yet again, curling up on the saddle with your head in his lap. His hands ran through your hair, lulling you into a hazy, half-asleep state.

“Seriously, what is that thing?” Katara asked.

“And how does it keep finding us?” Toph added.

“I don’t know,” Aang said, the bags under his eyes more prominent. “But this time, I’m going to make sure we lose it.”

Appa flew a great distance before landing. Sokka immediately climbed off of the sky bison, spreading a blanket and laying down with you as the two of you ignored the arguing. Aang was playing mediator again, trying to calm the two girls down while asking the right questions. 

“Come on guys, there's something after us and we don't even know what or who it is.”

“It could be Zuko,” Katara mumbled. “We haven’t seen him since the North Pole.”

“Who’s Zuko?” Toph asked, her interest piqued. 

“Just some angry freak with a ponytail who’s tracked us all over the world,” Sokka muttered in response, rolling on to his back when you sat up. 

“What’s wrong with ponytails, ponytail?” Katara asked teasingly. You bit back a smile.

“This,” Sokka said, pointing at his hair. “Is a warrior’s wolf tail!”

“Well it certainly tells the other warriors you’re fun and perky!” Katara joked. You couldn’t hold your laugh back this time. 

“Zuko is the prince of the Fire Nation,” you explained to Toph. “He was banished by his father, the Fire Lord, and sent on a quest to capture the Avatar.”

“How do you know that, princess?” Toph asked.

“Gossip travels quickly in the colonies, shortcake,” you replied, laying back down and curling into Sokka’s side. The peace and quiet didn’t last long and soon enough, you found yourselves standing on the edge of the cliff. Aang wanted to see who was in the tank-like machine, and so you found yourselves staring unamusedly as three komodo-rhinos emerged from the machine. 

“It’s Azula,” you whispered, suddenly wide awake. “And Mai and Ty Lee.”

“We can take them,” Toph said, suddenly determined. “Four on three.”

“Actually Toph, there’s five of us,” Sokka said, annoyed.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t count you,” Toph replied, not sounding sorry at all. “You know, no bending and all.”

“(Y/N) can’t bend either!” Sokka proclaimed, ignoring Top’s questioning gaze. “And I can still fight.”

“Okay, four on three, plus Sokka,” Toph said, a smirk on her face.

Sokka’s groan was ignored as Toph tried to slow down the girls to give everyone enough time to reach Appa. The sky bison flew away immediately, missing a plume of blue fire from Azula. You stayed in the air for a while, all of you wincing when the sun began to rise. The tiredness was getting to you and you leaned against the saddle, closing your eyes for just a minute. 

The next time you opened your eyes you were falling. 

“Aang!” you yelled loudly, waking Toph. 

“What’s going on?” Toph asked frantically. 

“Appa fell asleep!” Aang yelled back, a panicked look on his face. He did his best to wake the sky bison up as the rest of you clung onto the saddle. You reached for Toph, pulling her close as she tried to not panic. Appa leveled out for a few seconds as Aang managed to wake him up. He flew closer and closer to the ground, the exhaustion getting to him before he crashed into the ground. 

You landed on the ground roughly, toppling off of the saddle. You were still clutching Toph in your arms, letting her go as she scrambled to her feet.

“You okay, shortcake?” you asked warily, knowing that being in the air was daunting for Toph.

“Just peachy, princess,” she grumbled back. “Thanks.”

You didn’t reply, instead focusing on Katara who was now back to yelling. “Of course we could’ve gotten some sleep earlier, if Toph didn’t have such issues.”

The earthbender went red with anger before stomping over to Katara. “What?!”

Sokka sidled up to you as the argument grew. “What should we do?”

“I don’t know anymore,” you groaned, flopping onto the ground. You listened lazily as Toph insulted Appa, blaming his shedding as the reason Azula kept finding you. You couldn’t help but agree with her; Appa was losing a lot of fur. 

“That’s it!” Toph suddenly yelled. “I’m out of here!”

You shot up straight, running to stop the girl. “Toph, wait. Don’t do this.”

“No!” Toph said, pushing you to the side. “I know when I’m not wanted.”

She stomped away, sending a wall of rock up behind her to prevent anyone from going after her. You turned to Aang, a disbelieving expression on your face. “Aang! Why?”

Aang sat on the ground, upset. “What did I just do? I can’t believe I just yelled at my earthbending teacher! Now she’s gone.”

“I know,” Katara said sorrowfully. “We’re all just trying to get used to each other. And I was so mean to her.”

“Yeah, you two were pretty much jerks,” Sokka said, coming up beside you and throwing his arm over your shoulder. 

Katara gave him a dull look. “Thanks Sokka.”

“No problem!”

“We need to find Toph and apologize,” you said, meeting Aang’s sad gaze. 

“Okay, but what are we going to do about the tank full of dangerous ladies chasing us?” Sokka asked.

Aang bent down and picked up a handful of fur before letting the wind blow it away. “I have a plan.”

~

The plan consisted of you giving Appa a bath. 

The sky bison grunted happily as you and Sokka brushed him, Aang and Katara bending water to douse the bison. Momo was lounging around on your head, occasionally flying away when the water got too close to him. Appa was napping happily as he sat in the river, letting the four of you do your thing. Once you were done, the four of you lounged on the riverbank, watching as Appa dried himself off. 

“Toph was right,” Aang said, breaking the silence. “The fur was leaving a trail right to us. But now that he’s clean, no more trail!”

“Are you sure he’s okay to fly?” Katara asked quietly. You all turned to look at the sky bison, his eyes drooping with exhaustion. 

“He'll be fine as long as we leave his saddle and all our stuff here,” Aang said. “I'm going to use Appa's fur to make a fake trail to lead the tank off-course. (Y/N) will come with me and you two will lead them away!”

The four of you separated as you readied yourselves, with you walking down to the river to splash water on your face to wake yourself up. You stiffened as you felt someone stand next to you, relaxing when you realized it was Sokka. 

“Stay safe out there, okay?” Sokka stated, his eyes peering intensely into yours. You nodded silently.

“You too,” you finally replied, trying to calm your heart as you noticed Sokka step closer. “We can’t have either of you getting hurt because we still have to find Toph.”

Sokka nodded before cupping your cheeks and pressing his lips to yours. You let out a strangled gasp, your breath hitching in your throat as you realized what was happening. You kissed back urgently, your heart racing incredibly fast. Sokka smiled into the kiss at your reaction before pulling away. “Be careful.”

You opened your mouth to reply before being cut off by Aang, who was standing a few feet away and had witnessed the whole thing. “Hey! Are you two ready to go?”

Katara stood next to the Air Nomad, a small smirk on her face as she took in her brother’s blushing face. She couldn’t deny that she wasn’t too fond of the Fire Nation, but you had proven yourself to them various times. If you made her brother happy, who was she to argue. 

You swallowed harshly, nodding softly before walking over to Aang. The four of you said your goodbyes before the Water Tribe siblings climbed onto Appa, holding on tightly as they set off without the saddle. You stood there with Aang, watching them disappear before you turned and set off down the other path. 

“So,” Aang said a while later, dropping a clump of Appa’s hair onto the ground before repeating the same words from a few days ago. “You and Sokka huh?”

Aang’s laugh rang out loudly as he was met with a groan from you. 

~

After a while, you and Aang found yourselves sitting in the middle of a road in an abandoned town. Neither one of you spoke, both of you way too exhausted and anxious for the fight you knew was about to come. The sun was setting, covering the both of you in a subtle glow as you awaited the arrival of the Fire Nation Princess. In the distance, you could see something moving and you straightened, nudging Aang with your elbow in the process. 

A mongoose lizard became visible as it neared, a cloud of dust surrounding the animal as it hurried. The princess dismounted, her feet landing on the dusty ground, a clump of fur being crushed under her foot. Aang looked at her tiredly, glancing at you to see a hard glare on your face. 

“Alright, you’ve caught up to us, Azula,” he said calmly. “What now?”

“You know who I am?” Azula asked, mildly surprised. She glanced at you, cocking an eyebrow before turning her attention back to Aang. “Of course you do. (Y/N) always did ruin the surprises.”

You stayed quiet, your gaze never leaving Azula. 

“Now? Now, it's over. You're tired and you have no place to go,” Azula continued. “You can run, but I'll catch you.”

“I’m not running,” Aang stated, determined to make his stand. Azula nodded in satisfaction, her eyes drifting over to you before she tilted her head in a silent question. 

“Neither am I,” you said, standing up. Azula smirked, brushing her bangs to the side as she noticed the way you gripped your sword.

“Do you really want to fight me?” Azula asked, taking a step towards you. 

“Yes I do!”

“Zuko!” you and Aang yelled at the same time, eyes widening as they landed on the young prince. His ponytail was gone, his hair shorter than it had been in a long time. 

“I was wondering when you’d show up, Zuzu,” Azula remarked. 

“Zuzu?” Aang asked, trying to stifle his laughter. You let your laugh out, drawing Zuko’s attention to you. 

“(Y/N)!” he called out, taking a step forward before being blocked by the princess. “Back off, Azula. He’s mine!”

“I’m not going anywhere,” she replied, getting ready to fight. There was tense silence for a minute, the four of you looking at each other as you waited for someone to strike. You noticed Azula’s arm twitch and you lunged forwards, using the flat side of your sword to move her arm as she fired off a blue blast at Zuko. 

You landed in front of Zuko, blocking him from Azula as you held your sword out. Azula’s shocked expression easily melted away, being replaced by one of annoyance. She raised her hand to strike once more, turning away from you when she realized Aang was attempting to fly away. 

“Not so fast,” she growled, sending a stream of fire towards the young boy. You were too late to block her, watching worriedly as Aang went down. You were knocked down as Azula ran after Aang, Zuko following closely behind her. You stuck your leg out, managing to trip Zuko and laughing as he fell face first. 

The two of you sprung to your feet quickly, watching each other with wary eyes. You glanced behind Zuko worriedly, noticing that Aang and Azula had disappeared. Shaking your head, you brought your gaze back to Zuko. At least you could hold back one of the troublesome Fire Nation siblings. 

“Why are you doing this?” Zuko asked, breaking the silence as he lunged at you. You ducked uner his arm, hitting his back with the flat of your sword and sending him sprawling onto the ground. 

“You know why, Zuko,” you replied. “Aang is the only one who can end this war! Why are you doing this?”

“I need to regain my honor,” Zuko stated simply, brushing himself off before throwing himself at you again. The fight went on for a while, the two of you too well-versed with each other’s fighting styles for either one of you to get the upper hand. It was just like when you were children, the two of you dancing around each other as you tried to find each other’s weak spots. The fight ended when Zuko sent a blast of fire at you, hitting the ground before you and sending you flying. 

A loud ‘oof’ left your lips as you crashed into the side of a building, debris falling all around you and trapping you. You caught sight of Zuko’s apologetic glance before he ran away, shaking his head as he left. You didn’t know how long you were stuck there, hearing the blasts and explosions that were most likely a result of the two siblings. 

“Katara!” Aang’s voice cried out faintly. Your struggle lessened slightly, knowing that Aang now had help. You kept trying to push the debris off of you, gasping lightly when it was all suddenly thrown off of you. 

“Need a hand, princess?”

You looked up to see a smirking Toph, sighing in relief when you realized you were free. Thanks, shortcake.”

Toph’s smirk turned into a scow and she turned away from you, ready to join the battle. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Now let’s go kick some butt!”

You followed the small girl to the heart of the town, noticing Katara and Sokka fighting alongside Aang. They were trying to gang up on Azula, a plan you knew would fail. The princess sent an arc of fire out, throwing them all backwards. Without hesitation, you threw yourself at Azula, ignoring the shocked yells from your friends. You tackled the princess, the two of you rolling as you each tried to get the upper hand. You stood up first, noticing that you were a few yards away from your friends. Azula stood up quickly, smiling maniacally as she met your eyes before composing herself. 

“Well (Y/N/N), that’s no way to greet me is it?” Azula taunted, fire dancing among her fingertips. She angled her body away from you, ready to head back to the group. She was stopped when you smacked her calf with your sword. 

“Leave them alone Zula,” you said. She turned to you, her eyebrow raised. “Just me and you. Maybe this time you can finally prove you’re better than me.”

Your words caused her eye to twitch and you smiled, relieved that you had gotten her attention. She turned to face you completely, her fire growing as she took a menacing step towards you. 

“(Y/N)! What are you doing?” Katara shouted. You glanced at the group, noticing all of them (except Toph) looking at you worriedly. “You’re gonna get hurt!”

You ignored Katara’s words, deciding to strike first. Your sword came down towards Azula quickly, causing the younger girl to dodge and roll away. She snarled as she realized you had cut off a few locks of hair, looking at you with disdain. She rushed at you, aiming a blast at your chest. You stood your ground, ignoring your friends’ panicked shouts. You sidestepped slightly, once again bringing up the flat of your blade to move her arm off course like you had earlier. 

The fight continued like that, with Azula getting more and more angry as you kept blocking her hits. She got the upper hand when you jumped up, landing badly on your ankle and stumbling. Azula’s blast grazed your arm, causing you to collapse to the ground before you rolled over and leapt back up to your feet.

“C’mon!” Azula screamed, stalking closer to you. “Bend at me! Do it! Prove that you’re the best.”

Your eyes widened at her words, backing away as her fire began to spark. Your friends exchanged confused looks at Azula’s words. You weren’t a bender, you had proven that already. They watched as Azula’s attacks became fiercer, turning into lightning as she got closer to you.

“Bend at me!” Azula shouted again. “You can’t prove you’re the best without your fire. I refuse to be bested by you if you’re not giving it your all!”

She lunged at you and you brought your leg up, kicking her in the chest. She tumbled back, yelling in frustration at your actions. She ran at you again, this time being tossed to the side by a fire blast as Zuko ran in. He turned to face you and the two of you stood silently, watching each other with sad eyes. He crouched down, flames engulfing his hand as he prepared to fight you as well. 

“Prince Zuko,” Iroh’s voice rang out. “Don’t.”

“Why not?” Zuko answered brashly. “I’ll show her how much my bending has improved. We’re finally on the same level.”

The fight was over before it began as Azula stood back up. Everyone crowded around, much more focused on the girl than the fight that was about to take place. She looked at all of you, her eyes lingering on the burn she had left on your arm. She smirked, holding her hands up in surrender. 

“Well look at this,” Azula said, her gaze drifting from person to person. “Enemies and traitors working together. I’m done. I know when I’m beaten. You got me. A princess surrenders with honor, isn’t that right (Y/N/N)?”

You froze, watching her carefully as you tried to catch the double meaning in her words. You felt Iroh’s eyes on you, carefully watching as you stared down Azula. Everyone was tense, looking at Azula even though she was only staring at you. You heard Toph let out a tiny gasp, knowing that you were right. 

It happened in a second. Azula stepped forwards and aimed a bolt of lightning at Iroh. You had already predicted her move and threw yourself into the lightning’s way, ready to take the hit. Your plan failed however, when you were pulled back by someone.

“N-No!” you yelled struggling against the person’s hold. A large blast went off as everyone else attacked Azula, dust going everywhere. 

“Stop struggling (Y/N/N),” Zuko whispered into your ear, holding you tightly as you watched Iroh twitch as the lightning ran through his body. 

Everyone went silent when they realized Azula had disappeared, turning to see Iroh on the ground and you sobbing into Zuko’s chest as he held you tightly. 

“Let me go!” you cried, weakly punching Zuko. “Zu, please. He’s i-injured.”

“Take her and leave,” Zuko said, pushing you away from him and towards Sokka. Tears were beginning to stream down his face as he knelt down besides Iroh and hugged him. 

“Zuko, I can help,” Katara said softly, stepping closer. She was stopped when he sent out an arc of fire, sending them all stumbling back. 

“Leave!” Zuko shouted gruffly. They complied, walking away as you struggled against Sokka’s fold.

“Zu! Please, Zu!” you yelled out. “Let them help Iroh. Please.”

No one listened to you, instead choosing to pull you away from the injured general and the prince. By the time you had reached Appa, your sobs had lessened. The short flight was silent, the only sound being your occasional hiccups. You landed on a mountain, far away from anyone else. It was quiet; almost peaceful. However that didn’t last long and soon enough, you found yourself being pinned to the rocks behind you by Katara. 

“What was that?” she hissed. Her hold wasn’t strong and she looked more worried than upset. Aang’s eyes were wide as he stared at the two of you.

“Katara! What are you doing?” Sokka squawked, coming up to his sister and trying to pull her off of you. She dug her forearm into your throat just a little bit harder.

“Don’t defend her, Sokka!” Katara yelled out, her eyes still sad. “You heard what they said. She’s a bender.”

“No I’m not” you said, trying to push Katara’s eyes away. “I’ve already told you guys everything!”

“She’s lying,” Toph’s voice rang out. Everyone turned to look at her in confusion. She sighed before elaborating. “When someone lies, their heart speeds up. I can hear it with my feet.”

Everyone’s attention turned back to you, Katara’s stare hard this time. “So you’ve been lying. I knew we couldn’t trust anyone from the Fire Nation. I bet (Y/N) isn’t even your real name!”

“It is,” you whispered softly. You slipped out of Katara’s hold, handing her your sword before sitting down. “Look, I may have lied about who I am but I promise you that I was honest about my intentions. I really do want to help Aang defeat the Fire Lord.”

They all looked at Toph, who simply nodded softly. You weren’t lying. Katara crossed her arms, standing in front of you and taking a deep breath. “Tell us everything. Now.”

“Look, I told you my name. I didn’t tell you my title,” you said. You could feel everyone’s curious stares on you. Taking a deep breath, you mentally prepared yourself for what you were about to say before looking up.

“My name is (Y/N), Crown Princess of the Fire Nation.”

~

taglist!

atla: @musicalkeys, @mywigglybaby​​, @aangsupremacy​, @iguessthefloorislava​​, @dekahg​​, @boxofteenageideas​​, @bottledcostcowater​​, @butterflycore​​, @coldlilheart​​, @the-firebender-girl​​, @ajediherowitchrunner​​, @lammello​​, @astroninaaa​​, @samsmultifandomblogs​​, @sadskater25, @oddment-niwit-blubber-tweak​​, @eternallyvenus​​, @emberislandplayers​​, @sunflowerazula​​, @moonnei​​, @stilllivindue2spite​, @knaite-solo​, @riespage​, @wastelandbbyg​

pwf: @ilovespideyyy, @binaryssunsets, @a—-rag, @existing-but-nonexistent, @milk-n-cheese, @itsthatsadbitch, @nin-tendou, @honey-ruel, @reclusive-chicken-nugget​, @teenbiology​, @davnwillcome​, @fandomarchiveilyd​, @minninugget​, @sukifans​, @nugget-barnes​, @vintageroses1014516, @donteatmycookiesplease​, @fanficdepot​, @birdlovinghyena​, @cipheress-to-k-pop​, @my--shitty--art​, @woohoney​, @castalette​, @lozzybowe​, @spacelesbianfanclub​, @macymafia​, @deadsunflower01​

[babyspiderling]

Tiny Dancer Michael Jackson x reader (Triumph era)

"Blue jean baby, LA Lady, Seamstress for the band"

I pulled the shining fabric through the machine, turning a square of sequin material into a shirt for one of the boys. I adjust the needle of my machine as someone opens the door. I glance up to see Michael peeking his head in. "Oh, Michael, perfect timing. I need you to try this on. And if you could get your brothers in here too, I need to do fittings on the outfits I've already finished." I hand him the shining fabric, as well as a pair of white pants. "Put these on, I'm planning on putting some sequin on the knees, and I need to see where that falls on you." I shoo him out the door as I thumb through my shelves of fabric, deciding on what to work with next. Once again my door is opened, this time four Jackson's trample through the opening. Randy and Marlon automatically move towards my designs pinned to the wall, Tito is drawn to the shining fabrics, and Jackie leans against the door frame a small smile blooming on his face. I swat Tito's hand away from the fabrics, very territorial of my materials. "Alright guys, it's fitting day!" I organized outfits by person, making it easy to select an outfit for each man and give to the correct person. I shoo them out the door as well as Michael comes back in, a perfect fit.

"Alright Mike, what do you think? Too loose anywhere, too tight anywhere? Go ahead and do a couple steps to make sure it doesn't get in the way of anything." He does his little ankle breaking shuffle, spinning a couple times. He shoves his hands into the pockets and shrugs. "Feels good, perfect fit." I smile and nod, feeling proud of getting his perfect size on the first try. I grab my swatches of silver fabric and rest on my heels in front of him. With a mouth full of pins, I feel around his legs to find his knees, pinning the fabrics in place. Leaning back, I inspect the patches, muffling out a "Heels together." as I inspect them closely to make sure the two sides are identical. I hear Michael say "Wow, you're really good at this.", and I chuckle in return. "Glad I can be of service. You like it?" He murmurs an affirmation, and he lifts me off my heels. I search his face, memorizing every single detail. My hand reaches up to his face, his weight leaning into my touch. "I love you Mike." Kissing my palm, he rests his forehead against mine. "I love you too." I enjoy his presence just a little longer before stepping away, clearing my throat. "Alright, I've got another outfit for you to try on. Careful with the pins, and I'll see you in a bit, ok?" He chuckles, kissing my cheek one last time before exiting. "Ok. I'll be careful. See you when I get done."

Rolling my eyes, I sit back down at my seat, hemming a skirt Janet had begged me to alter. Tito then entered, his sequin vest shining, and his outfit going together very well if I say so myself. He inspected himself in the mirror, almost as if trying to see what was missing. His eyes lit up and he turned towards me. "That's it! I need a cowboy hat!" My eyebrows crease and my jaw drops in confusion. "You need a what? Tito, no. You are not a country band, no one else is wearing a cowboy hat. You do not need a cowboy hat." He slides up to me, puppy dog eyes staring me in the face. "Please Y/N, it'll look really cool. Plus it'll tie the whole thing together. I've already got the vest and everything." I huff, throwing my hands up in the air. "Fine! Tito, you can get a cowboy hat, but you have to find one and I will jazz it up, understood? I am a seamstress, not a hatter." His face lights up at getting his way, hollering and spinning me. "Yes! I knew you'd agree! Thanks Y/N!" I roll my eyes playfully shoving him away. "Is there anything else wrong or missing with the outfit? Besides the cowboy hat, anyways." He turns and twists, pretending to play guitar, and does a couple steps. He shakes his head. "Nope, all good. Just need to get the hat. Which I'll go out and get when we're done here." I hand him a second outfit, sending him on his way. Marlon and Randy follow one right after the other. While hemming Randy's pants, I kept having to chide Marlon from touching my stuff. I yelled over my shoulder, "Marlon Jackson if I find a fingerprint on my fabric or designs I swear I will give you the ugliest tour outfits until the end of time." He raised his hands in surrender and took a seat.

Jackie and Michael came in about the same time, Michael letting his older brother go first. "Alright Jackie, what do you think. Anywhere too loose or too tight?" Jackie wiggles around and lifts his leg. "The pants are a little loose. But overall, it's all good." I nod, filling my mouth with pins, sitting on my heels in front of him. Jackie smirks down at me, "Babe, if you wanted to get on your knees for me, you could've just asked." I roll my eyes, pinning the inside of his pant leg tighter, pointing a pin threateningly at him. He smiles at me flexing his hands in surrender. I see out of the corner of my eye Michael shifting in his seat, a scowl deep in his face. I send a smile his way before finishing Jackie's pants.

Rocking myself back to stand, I stagger at the blood flowing back into my legs. A large pair of hands wrap around my hips to steady me, and I look up to see Michael staring down at me. I give him a reassuring smile and whisper, "I'm ok Mike, thank you." With a smile in return, he releases his grip and takes his place for hemmings. I see Jackie flick his gaze between Michael and I, his face scrunched up in concentration. I shrug it off, trying not to give anything away. "Alright, Michael, you know the drill. How's it fit?" His white pants from earlier are simply duplicated since Michael has a talent for wearing out his costumes faster than anyone else. He has a red Hawaiian print shirt tucked into it, a few buttons undone. "The pants fit, but they're a little loose on the belt line. Nothing you need to fix or anything, just a belt would make it perfect." I nod, checking over his outfit myself for loose threads, puckers in the seams, loose buttons, but find nothing wrong. "Alright, let me add that to the list with Tito's cowboy hat." At the mention of the horrible idea of a cowboy hat, Randy and Marlon are back, Tito not far behind. Marlon screeches and cackles. "Tito, you want a cowboy hat? C'mon man!" Tito huffs, and folds his arms under his chest. I roll my eyes and call out to everyone "Alright everyone. Mike, Jackie, go change. Jackie, please be careful with those pins! You three, decide which order you're going in for fittings, and then we're done for the day." I pin and adjust Tito and Marlon's outfits, Jackie and Michael returning while I finish up on Randy. "Thank you boys. Just take a seat while I finish up here." I place the last pin in Randy's sleeve, shortening it to the correct length. "Randy, are the pins comfortable enough for you to stay here for a couple minutes?" He nods and I open my mouth, "Alright guys, we're all done for the day. Please I am begging you guys, do not rip up these costumes. I'm looking at you Michael, if you rip these shirts like last time, I will send you out in whatever you have packed for tour." A few chuckles are heard and Michael smiles and rolls his eyes. They all take their leave as I sit back at my machine, ready to fix everything from today. Michael calls out to his brothers that he'll catch up, he just needs to double check something.

Slipping into my work room once more, he shuts the door behind him. He pulls me from my seat and presses me tightly against him. "Y/N, you have no idea how much I wanted to punch Jackie after he said those things to you. Why can't we tell everybody about us? At least my family? We're going on tour next month and my brothers are going to try to set me up with fans. Are you ashamed of being with me?" I stare into his eyes with a passion. "Oh god, Michael, no. Of course I'm not ashamed of you. If anything you should be ashamed of me. I'm just the band seamstress. Not to mention the fact that if we did come out about our relationship, people would wonder why in the world would you choose to be with a white girl who makes your clothes. Your father would see me as a distraction. If he found out about us, he would fire me and then kill the both of us. I love you too much to let you risk that." He shakes his head, his eyes growing glossy. "I love you too much to keep it a secret. To keep you a secret." I lean my forehead into his chest. "I'm sorry Michael. I didn't see it like that, if you'd like, we can tell your family. Just, just let me be there when you do. Ok?" He nods his head and captures my lips in a gentle kiss. Breaking away, I sit back down. "If you want, you can put some records on and we can have each other as company until I finish here. You'll just have to tell your brothers to go on without you." He nods and exits to tell his brothers goodbye, saying that I need him to stay behind to make sure everything meets his standards. Returning, he puts some old records on, teasing me for my Dolly Parton albums, and we just enjoy the music and the hum of my machine.

"Jackie! Outfit! Tito! Outfit! Marlon! Outfit! Randy! Outfit! Michael! Outfit! Please be careful tonight! We have reached the halfway point in the tour and I am very proud of the condition you are leaving these in! Have a good show tonight! And please, do not rip your shirts open!" I hand out garment bag after garment bag, the boys hurrying to change in their dressing rooms. Janet leans against the wall, her outfit designed and made by yours truly, looking good for a fifteen year old. "When I go on tour, I am definitely bringing you with me." I rolled my eyes and laughed. I place my ticket around my neck and take my place up against the barrier separating the crowd from the boys. The opening refrains of "Can You Feel It?" rang out and the crowds went absolutely wild. It was so fun just to watch them all in their element. I'd catch the boys singing to me or looking at me and I'd make the silliest faces. I accidentally almost made Randy mess up on his bongo solo on "Working Day and Night". "Shake Your Body (Down To The Ground)" finished and slowly the fans filtered out of the arena. When no one was looking, security lifted me over the barrier and back to the corridors in the backstage area.

Michael was on a high after the show like he always was. He was jumping around in the hall when I finally made my way to him. "You had a very good show tonight. I had fun, and I'm pretty sure the girl next to me was having fun too. When you winked her way, I'm pretty sure she found euphoria." He giggled and spun me around. "Goodness, I love you." With that he held me tight against him and kissed me deeply and passionately. I let myself melt into him, letting myself slip into the bliss only he provides. We break apart with the sound of Janet shrieking "What the hell?"

Taglist: @accio-boys

[automatic-palletizer-machine]

Excessive Automatic Palletizer Machine Stage

This course of repeats till a full layer of products and products are configured to be placed on a pallet. The system is designed to ensure full performance even in heavy seas. The outcome is a robust computerized palletizer machine of excessive quality that saves an unlimited quantity of area. Columbia's conventional high level palletizer machines set the industry normal automatic palletizer machine.

Because your specifications for palletizing are reliably met, hundreds are much less likely to incur damage during loading, cargo and unloading. Roll feed, Hot soften, Cold glue, Self-adhesive and shrink sleeve labelling machines in standalone or mixed variations for various formed bottles. Linear and Rotary Rinsing, Filling & Capping solutions utilizing Net weight, Flow meter and Level filling technologies. A low friction curler transfer desk is out there to allow easy handling of heavy and shrinkwrapped circumstances.

Feed and orient empty plastic containers of various shapes & sizes to the filling line mechanically. Achieve maximum output with minimal downtime for peak effectivity and machine profitability. Our palletizing consultants help with each step of the method and stand by 24/7 to resolve any questions.

No lifting, stooping or strolling around the pallet is required to operate this case palletizer.

An automatic palletizer can present up to 60 baggage per minute, nonetheless, it's nonetheless potential to extend this fee by integrating a second robotic to the cell which optimizes velocity.

Wearproof steel guides make positive the curler bearings roll efficiently.

In some palletizing stations, when a pallet layer is full, the operator lowers the work surface as required to hold up a comfortable working height.

The Science of Palletizing is a 72-page educational introduction to the basics of unit-load forming and is designed to familiarize you with the basics of automatic palletizer machine.

The use of 6-axis robots allows most flexibility in palletizing schemes, structure and built-in extra functions. Compact and strong design combined with a laterally mounted vertical linear axis system result in a low general machine peak which permits the use even with low ceiling heights. Multi-axis automation products together with H-Bots, T-Bots, Gantries, and Cartesian Robots. Our palletizer is a perfect alternative for palletizing aboard factory trawlers, because the stretch movie is added while the machine palletizes.

Of course, product is transferring all the time and often has to go very far before reaching its destination. But getting it there is only half the battle; the other half is getting it to the ultimate automated palletizer consumer in an interesting, salable condition. This design permits three pallets to be stacked on the ground on each side.

Trust in our four-station palletizer with supreme operating consolation. The pallet magazine is built-in with a switch system that enables for a completely computerized pallet dealing with process. Automatic conveying and palletizing system is used for palletizing unit load, together with various carton bins in paper-making, food and medicine business and so forth. Depending on package deal weight and load configuration, manual palletizing may be backbreaking work. [newline]Automating these processes can scale back publicity to continual injuries and potentially severe accidents. An automatic palletizer can decrease worker’s compensation prices and enhance employee satisfaction on the same time.

Excessive Stage Palletizers

In some cases, pallets are moved away from the machine and packed/wrapped both by hand or by another machine. Columbia Machine offers the most innovative and flexible palletizing options available. Columbia standard palletizers deal with nearly any bundle sort together with trays , shrink-only bundles, RPCs, Totes, tab-lock instances, milk crates and a lot extra.

In the top, robotic computerized palletizers supply extra flexible and dependable options than standard methods. These solutions make it attainable to evolve with the rising needs of an organization. Low upkeep costs and easy palletizing sample changing add to the advantages of a faster return on financial investment. Their excessive reliability and low maintenance demand give them a transparent advantage over standard methods. Nowadays working with palletizing equipment is of a crucial significance in numerous industries worldwide. Therefore, palletizing machines are generally utilized in wooden and paper industry, metal industry, construction trade as properly as in beverage and meals business.

Commonality of part techniques allow cost financial savings for end customers, rapid supply and proven performance with future flexibility when required. Equipped with a forty one" Wide x 48" Long x fifty three" High pallet stacking part, seventy two" long chain infeed conveyor extending 12" past body with a 34" infeed top. Equipped with a forty one" Wide x forty" Long x forty eight" High pallet stacking section, one hundred twenty" lengthy chain infeed conveyor extending seventy eight" past body with a 37" infeed top.

The use of a collaborating robotic permits an open layout with out safety fences. This ensures greatest accessibility and minimizes the house requirement on your shopfloor. Proven drive technology with frequency controlled AC motors guarantee excessive reliability and are easy to keep up. Compact and robust portal building allows a small foot print and good accessibility.

In order to acquire a complete solution, additional options could be built-in to the top of the production line getting ready your pallet for storing or transport. Conveyorized palletizers have a feed area that receives the products which are to be palletized. The packaged items are obtained by curler conveyors and are continuously transferred and sorted to the pallets by automated conveyor rollers, permitting higher packaging speed than robotic palletizers. Robotic systems also can offer several advantages over conventional machines.

There are 5,447 palletizer machine suppliers, mainly situated in Asia. The top supplying country or region is China, which provide 100 percent of palletizer machine respectively. Easy to make use of, with superior options including easy pattern edit/creation. Our palletizers contribute to an efficient processing course of and preserve the standard of your powders. You have selections in relation to packaging supplies and on this webinar, we'll walk via totally different materials and the way it impacts your provide chain.

Innovative automated gripper that ensures precise positioning on the pallet. Safe and stable transport is a prerequisite to ensure that your product reaches its destination whereas safeguarding the standard. TopTier Sales Engineers provide price range quotes in a matter of days. Cost is based on particular products to be handled, fee requirements, layout, and desired features. Format vary subject to feeding and collating system and features of machine.

Robotic palletizing arrived later and introduced with it many advantages in comparability with standard techniques. Reliability and flexibility are some of the property these techniques have to offer. Additionally, if you need upkeep and repair, Robopac USA offers full help through our components and service division. We also can advise you on potential upgrades to improve your machine’s effectivity and presumably lengthen its life. View our TopTier palletizer machines for sale to find out the finest option on your facility.

For these larger footprints and attain conditions a user can simply add a further axis to meet any problem. To obtain the improvements automation techniques produce, it is essential to select one of the best combination of robot fashion, gripper and auxiliary equipment to match the production need. An automation options integrator can provide the proper answer for any palletizing software. Conventional palletizers usually use a layer approach that forms the pack pattern of instances, squeezes them into form and deposits them one layer at a time onto the pallet. This palletizer may be broken down into two categories – a low-level or high-level palletizer.

Dairy Products

Accessible and highly sensible respecting operator security with the photoelectric obstacles. The robotic or choose and place is customised to delicately deal with the product and turn it to the appropriate place before placing it into the pallet. Simple configuration called “GROUND PALLET” the place the empty pallet is positioned by an operator with the pallet truck by hand. Picking the stuffed pallet takes place in the identical means with the pallet truck by hand by an operator.

Fully Automatic 25kg Kraft Paper Valve Bag Filling Production Packing Line Palletizer

Brenton engineers and manufactures case packing, palletizing and built-in packaging systems. Robotic automatic palletizers are designed to adapt to present traces and area to have the ability to enhance production rates or adapt to new merchandise. An automated palletizer can present as much as 60 bags per minute, however, it is nonetheless possible to extend this fee by integrating a second robot to the cell which optimizes speed. Safety systems are the most advanced within the trade, with the highest attainable security score.

Semi-automatic palletizing tools, which is well-liked in area of interest markets the place merchandise are heavy and troublesome to palletize manually, can deal with as much as 20 bags or instances per minute. This tools is nicely suited to low-speed operations that can’t justify the worth of full automation however require a solution to help forestall worker damage. Aagard is an engineering company that builds custom packaging automation techniques. Our group of inventive problem-solvers utilizes our progressive expertise and proven technologies to create the exact solution that our prospects must win.

Fully automated mannequin consists of pallet handling, stretch wrapping, load exit conveyor, and security access doorways. Fully automated model includes pallet dealing with, stretch wrapping, load exit conveyor, mezzanine, and security entry doors. They are excellent for medium to excessive pace vegetation and multiline functions. Hamer absolutely automating palletizing techniques utilize automatic in-feed conveyors to tempo product in-feed to the pick-and-place palletizing station. The product is then stacked on empty pallets with or with out slip sheets, that are automatically fed to the stacking space. Once a pallet has been accomplished it is prepared for forktruck pickup or it is transferred to the in-line stretch wrapping/hooding equipment to mechanically complete the pallet for cargo.

Palletizers are mostly integrated in a much bigger packaging system line, which ensures quick and environment friendly packaging for a spread of products. A hydraulic robotic arm lifts circumstances, bottles, bags or drums using flat pincer arms or suction cup arms in organized rows onto a pallet, stacking items with near-perfect precision. Massman Automation integrates ABB, Fanuc, or Motoman robots into the robotic palletizing cell. These techniques deal with a quantity of packaging strains with a number of SKUs that includes ALBA pallet dispensers and pallet conveyors that are appropriate with many custom-designed case and pallet dealing with methods. PalKombi is an computerized palletizer suitable for crates, cartons, trays, shrink-wrapped packs and all kinds of packages in general. Designed for medium to high speeds, PalKombi works with a gentle low-level infeed pallet.

This compact structure provides minimum house usage and works well in slim spaces. If your workers are engaged on different strains on different days, they'll take the palletizer to their workplace. Movable on rollers and with pallet guides folded up, PalTeq Cobot suits via doorways from 900 mm width.

Manually putting bins on pallets may be time consuming and costly; it could additionally put unusual stress on employees. PalTeq Robot is our fully automatic robot palletizer for palletizing of shipping instances or trays, or almost all type of stackable products. Due to our modular building platform the layout can be designed almost freely and extra features can be built-in easily. Macron Dynamics presents a Cartesian fashion MGS-UC2 linear robot kit that can be built-in into palletizing systems. The Macron MGS-UC2 gantry product is a sturdy and sturdy 2-axis system with broad payload capacity. This ready-made kit, in pre-configured commonplace travel lengths, contains integrated cable management, low profile T-slot sensors and MPG gearboxes ready for any motor mounting.

The VPG palletizer is designed with a particular gripping head, so to stack the bags in an overlapping manner. This palletizer version has a special rotating head, so the product may be imported at excessive pace. We are a professional manufacturer & exporter specialized in numerous tin cans making machinery. [newline]We are always able to develop long-term and good relationship with abroad customers. If you want to know more about us, please don’t hesitate to contact us at any time. SPLX MKII High Level Palletizer’s key parts are primarily maintenance-free, and are simply accessible via detachable guards and doorways.

Manual palletizing may be carried out by people and without any mechanical help at all. Furthermore PalTeq Cobot offers tool-less kind change and changeover between totally different pallet sorts. By using totally different robot sizes we are in a position to all the time offer you the ideal space-optimized structure for every product weight. Proven technology with frequency managed AC drives guarantees high reliability and straightforward maintenance. Using a novel, flexible belt based mostly “rack and pinion” design and structural aluminum MacFRAME parts, our Robotic Transport Units can handle all kinds of lengths and payloads.

[humanscandrivestick]

E.Q.--The Last Christmas

The last christmas for the boys before the defection.

December that year was hard on Felipe, hell the whole year was.  Arpeggio could see it in the languid lines of his shoulders, the often distracted answers, forgetting things.  Even coloring his hair was lazy these days, a flat red color for the last couple months.  

He was just....tired.  

"Fel?"

"Hm??"

"...never mind."

Arpeggio was trying to clear time for them to enjoy the holidays but it was hard.  As the illustrious Trancer 42, the hardest of busts and the most important of control situations usually went to them.  Gigs for election rallies.  World series games.  Tree lighting ceremonies being lined up like figurines in a collection.  He could reduce their office hours to only clocking in on gigs but even that felt exhausting.  Arpeggio had to admit it to himself one day as he glanced in the bathroom mirror.

Darkened circles beneath his eyes told a story of little restful sleep.  Even he felt his skin was paler than a clump of snow.

"Jesus, I look like death warmed over,"  he said to his reflection.  He recalled that Felipe had the same signs of exhaustion, and sighed.

"We both do."

~~~

Felipe lay across their couch that night, languid arm over his eyes as Arpeggio was making dinner.  Despite the fact they had made it back earlier than usual, 6 pm, it felt like 10 to the both of them.

"Fel, how much bacon do you want on this sandwich?"

"Uh...whatever," he replied.  His voice had the husk of soreness.  

He came out of the kitchen and set 2 plates with large sandwiches on their coffee table.  The faux redhead didn't even bother getting up for nearly a minute.

Arpeggio chewed his slowly as he spaced out by watching their window.  It had begun to rain, and the light caught the streetlights.  Amber beads rolled down the dark window.

"Pege," whispered Felipe.  

"Yes...?"

"I'm...I'm tired."  His voice sounded just....dead.

Used to deeper meanings to even the simplest of words, the Tchaikovsky's Child put his sandwich down and looked at his partner.  Feeling there is more, he stayed quiet.

"I....I'm tired.  I'm so damn tired."  His whisper had a small hitch in it.  

Arpeggio got up and sat next to him on the floor.  He, after nearly 16 years with someone who wore his emotions on his sleeve, still had trouble trying to find the right actions, words, or even music to communicate.  His shoulder rested gently against Felipe, the physical contact was what he hoped was the "right" response.  It bothered Arpeggio.  That he constantly had to question which responses to people, especially people close to himself, were "correct".

His partner moved his arm, looked down at Arpeggio who stared at him with his usual placid face though the eyes were concerned.  He took a deep breath and sighed.  

"I'm sorry.  ...I shouldn't complain.  You've been tired too."  He reached over and brushed some of his jet black hair from his forehead.  "You look practically clear these days, Pege."  He gave a half-hearted chuckle.  "You're gonna look like the visible man if you're not careful."

Arpeggio took his hand and gave it a squeeze.  "Fel.  You don't have to pretend.  Not around me.  Please.  Its....its heartbreaking...."

It was the last word that got Felipe.  That he used the word "heartbreaking".  His face quickly crumpled and he took a deep, shuddering breath before he started to cry.  It wasn't body wracking, but it was so full of despair.  

The fact he's so tired that he can't even cry as hard as he can see he wants to hurts Arpeggio to the core.  He gets off the floor to hold him, and he just pulls him into his embrace.  They sit in the living room, food cooling, just holding each other.  The raven-haired musician cried to himself too.  He couldn't tell if it was because he too felt so despairing and tired....or if he was feeling Felipe's emotions right through him.  Felipe ended up crawling into bed, and Arpeggio wrapped their dinners up, setting them next to the last 2 nights of dinner half eaten.  He crawled into bed behind him, and they both fell asleep.  

Arpeggio wept softly, holding Felipe.  It was a long, hard night.

~~~

They took the next 2 weeks off, and while Emi gave them a lot of grief over it, when Arpeggio told her it was final and set their armbands and badges on her desk, she accepted it with a grumble.  It was for show but it was a show she bought.  

"She works through every holiday, even Christmas," Felipe muttered.  "She ain't human, I swear."

"Agreed.  Now let's clean up the desks, we won't be back til after New Years."  Their office was pretty clean anyhow, but they packed up a few things from the desks.  Felipe was packing a secret, small, frankensynth into a box that Arpeggio pretended not to see, then stopped.  Like a jump cut, his body language changed from lighthearted if tired, to exhausted and completely drained.  His face was anguished.  He leaned on his desk, his head bent down as his flyaway hair obscured his eyes.  Small tears began to hit the desk.

"Fel?" Arpeggio asked, his voice really concerned.  

"Its...its not even done," he says between sobs.

"...What...isn't?"

"Your...your song.  I haven't gotten a single thing...not a single note."  He cried, softly, so no one would hear.  "I haven't gotten a single thing done....and I've tried.  I've tried so damn hard, Pege...but....nothing.  Nothing comes out."

Arpeggio takes a few seconds to let it sink in before he sets this box on the other desk and pulls him into another embrace.  He can't recall a recent time when he's felt he's had to hold Felipe so often.  Even his last nightmare cycle didn't require the amount of reassuring he had been doing lately.  

Or was he trying to reassure himself?  That by holding him, it would make things better, even for a short amount of time?

Or was he trying to keep his partner from falling to pieces?

"Let's go home, Fel.  We're tired."

Felipe nodded, dried his face, and after a few breaths, seemed to be calmer.  But the depressed aura around him hadn't evaporated, even a little.  If anything, it felt as if it had grown thicker.

~~~

Felipe let himself feel inconsolable for the next day or so.  Arpeggio could finally see how hard he must have been working to pretend he was just fine, if tired from the month, to everyone else.  Even to Trancer 8392.  Enough to even fool Tungsten.  He tried to get to the laptops, his synths, to try to get something out but he'd simply sit there and stare at the machines, his eyes faraway.  

Arpeggio ended up entirely scrapping the song he had started himself.  He admitted privately as he shredded the music sheets, that he hadn't liked a single thing he'd put down.  He kept working, as if it would resolve itself but it wasn't until Felipe had his small anxiety over his that he realized it wasn't really what he wanted to do with it.

They moped around the apartment for a few days, listlessly going about the motions of living, but neither of them really spoke much.  They gave up on the music for the time being.  It was the first time Arpeggio actually felt a rut he couldn't escape from.  Something told him that while it wasn't Felipe's first rodeo, this also wasn't a normal occurrence.  

Christmas Eve, they were sitting in the living room, instruments on the table.  They had been sitting next to each other, and everything had been listless, unproductive work.

Felipe finally cut to the chase, his voice deadened.  "You think...we're tapped?  Like...this is it?  We're...we're through?"

Arpeggio's heart skipped a few beats because he isn't sure what Felipe means by the word "through".  He looked at his partner and the alarm in his eyes must have made Felipe rethink what he said because his black eyes blinked in surprise.

"Not us," he said rushed.  "I mean....us.  Music.  I mean.  Work is...work."  He tried motioning with his hands.  "Work...you don't think, you just...do what they say you do, with the pieces they give.  Doesn't feel like making music.  So I don't mean that.  I mean...making music...."  He drifted off because he was frustrated that he can't articulate what he means.

But its something about what he said that made the TC put his hands up.

"Work...you don't think, you just...do what they say you do, with the pieces they give."

Felipe stopped talking.  Waited.

Arpeggio can hear it in his mind's ear.  He couldn't pinpoint the actual "when" it had started but he could hear it clearly.  When Trancer 42 had started, Felipe would bend the rules, bend the samples, making music but toeing the line between sanctioned Music Corps work and music.  There was life in their pieces, its what made them recognized, efficient....untouchable it seemed.

Then....after a long, long time...Felipe's hand was left deft.  More automatic, almost robotic.  Like the children's game where someone starts a gesture and everyone follows in such a way so that eventually you can't tell who started and who's just miming, he couldn't tell if it was the Corps "style" from his own training leaking into their style, or if he was taking cues from Felipe.

But at some point....Trancer 42 stopped making music...and had deftly fallen into line.

"...you just...do what they say you do, with the pieces they give."

This isn't the Felipe he knew.  Not anymore.

"When...did we stop making music...?"

Felipe KNEW exactly what he was asking because he himself was questioning it.  By the time he was able to notice....they'd been playing the MC's tune so long he couldn't tell when it started.

His face had a look of recognizing, melancholy, and something like relief.  "...Its...its not just me then."  It wasn't even a question.  It was a statement.

They say it at the same time, as if rushing to reassure the other: "I'm sorry."  It quiets them for a long time.  

Then, as if something in Felipe woke up after a long sleep, he snapped, "Well fuck that."  He took up one of the laptops and started on his music making program.

Arpeggio watched him for a bit before his partner glanced at him.  

"What?  Ain't we gonna jam?"

Arpeggio could see the barest of glimmers of that spark in his eye.  He gave him a small smile.  

"At least hook something up to record it."

It wasn't the most ideal Christmas, and the both of them knew something had changed.  Maybe something had changed so much that going back to the days they couldn't remember was now impossible.  But even Arpeggio knew something had changed.  Not between them, just around them.

A few months later, Arpeggio was staring at his partner, his face facing the window as they watch police cars finally pull away from their latest bust.  He's putting his violin back in its case after tuning it.

"I don't want to do this anymore."

They were the words he was expecting to hear.  He had a script to say, he knew what he had to do to defer this urge.  He knew what he was trained and told to say to keep him in the Music Corps, what he had to do to protect the Corps, protect its integrity, its grip on the world, at the cost of running their best musicians into the ground.

He's never told Felipe since they ran that he wasn't trying to see his resolve in leaving; he was planning this moment since that Christmas Eve.  He just never thought he'd be doing it the way it turned out.

"I want out, Pege."