#bobo would like anything that would refer to her as not having the weight of ruling a kingdom on her shoulders

[axvwriter]

Hmmm... maybe "Hero" or "My hero" for Idia? Though that sort of depends. He may have liked heroes before but if he associates that with what happened then that probably would hurt instead. I'd hope that "Pogchamp" would embarrass him, his style of speech is so cringe. There's plenty to embarrass him but what would make him actually melt... "Love" or "Lover boy"? I get the feeling that he doesn't think people would actually like him and/or may feel like he wouldn't be a good partner so maybe those would be sweet to him? I don't want to go with the usual nicknames, but they're often used for a reason aren't they. Do you think Idia would snort at being called "Sweetie"?

Ah man I'm clueless for Floyd... something punny perhaps? "That's my amoray"? No, that's too silly. Perhaps something relating to him being strong... "My champion"? I've never really had to think about this before ae

Aubbie, you're going to have to reblog and share your melting petnames for your lovelies! You try to start this and don't even share about your capitalist husband and loser otaku boyfriend and the animefication of a man that used to actually exist as an actual person?

(Am I the only one that finds it weird to make fictional characters heavily based off of real people? Like I don't want the uwu-ed version of a physics dude nor do I like how that one movie painted what was a horrible man as the guy we should root for.)

Dang it, I rather just think of melting petnames for my own ocs as that's the only characters I feel confident that I know all I need to know about!

new silly little gushing reblog game bc i havent done once in a minute!! what pet name would make your fictional lovelies absolutely melt?

[drwcn]

Hey I hope you're doing well! I have a question I hope you can answer. Jin Guangshan adresses JC as Jiang Cheng instead of Sect Leader Jiang or Jiang Wanyin ?? like, is that usual ? or is that considered rude ? I mean despite their Sects having been considered brother-sects or smth like that it's not like jc and jgs actually had a decent relationship whatsoever? so shouldn't he at least use his courtesy name? o,o i noticed this at the banquet episode after the hunt and??

Hi Anons, I don’t know if you’re the same person, but you guys popped into the inbox next to each other and the questions are fairly similar so I’ll just answer it in one go. 

For how sect leaders should address each other, I reblogged a [post] I was tagged in awhile ago. :) 

The TLDR in that post is basically saying, if Jin Guangshan wanted to be REALLY courteous and if he and Jiang Cheng were strangers when they were introduced and Jiang Cheng was already a Sect Leader then yes, technically, Jin Guangshan should call Jiang Cheng “Sect Leader Jiang”. But because Jiang Cheng’s parents and Jin Guangshan and his wife Madam Jin were (likely good) friends, Jin Guangshan is considered a “zhangbei” 长辈, someone of the older generation. He is treating Jiang Cheng as a child, and not as a fellow Sect Leader. Therefore it is not weird that he would call Jiang Cheng by his birth name. From a purely language point of view, it isn’t rude, not at all, and I want to stress this point. 

For Jin Guangshan to call Jiang Cheng by his birth is not rude. His sister once had an engagement with Jin Guangshan’s son. Jiang Cheng is very young, and his parents had been friends with the Jin family. In modern context, Jiang Cheng would’ve had to call Jin Guangshan Jin shushu or Jin bobo (Uncle Jin). 

Imagine for a second that Jin Guangshan is not a shit face, and that he deeply cared about the Jiang children. In that case, his calling Jiang Cheng would not be seen as an impertinence but a show of familiarity, of their close relationship.  

What is insidious in this case is the intent. Technically, since Jiang Cheng is Sect Leader now, he should be paid a higher respect. While it’s not rude of him, Jin Guangshan’s intent is very obviously to diminish Jiang Cheng’s importance and his weight in the political landscape. Oh, you’re just a boy, you don’t know anything. 

To show familiarity but also respect to a wanbei (someone of younger generation, like a pseudo-nephew), a polite term Jin Guangshan could’ve used is xianzhi 贤侄, which means “gracious/kind nephew”. In context, imagine like... a historical novel written in English where one person can say to another “my good man” - it has the same connotation. Obviously, Jin Guangshan is a shit, and we all know this. 

As for why we don’t see other people use Jiang Cheng’s courtesy name, I think that’s a just a bias of narration. For most of the story, we see Jiang Cheng interact mostly with family (mother, father, brother, sister, and nephew). All of these people would’ve used familial terms (either A-Cheng, Jiang Cheng for WWX, or jiujiu for Jin Ling). 

Pre-Sunshot Campaign, the only other person we saw who was close with Jiang Cheng was Nie Huaisang and he used Jiang-xiong, which is a term for close friends.  

Subordinates of other sects would’ve referred to Jiang Cheng as Jiang-gongzi, or Jiang-zongzhu when he became Sect Leader. 

If you think about it, who exactly in his generation would’ve had opportunity to call him Jiang Wanyin to his face? Not that many people. Jiang Cheng’s name exists in Wei Wuxian’s narration, and he is always Jiang Cheng to him, because that’s his brother. However, if MDZS was told through... say Lan Xichen’s point of view, Jiang Cheng would’ve certainly been referred to more as Jiang Wanyin.

The people that could conceivably call him Jiang Wangyin to his face are Jin Zixuan and Lan Wangji.....that’s it. I guess, Jin Zixun too. Lan Xichen is too polite, Jin Guangyao is too scheming, and Nie Mingjue doesn’t know Jiang Cheng well enough. NMJ probably would use Jiang Wanyin if he doesn’t default to Jiang-zongzhu like Lan Xichen. If Wen Qing became friends with Jiang Cheng, I can certainly see her calling him Jiang Wanyin. That would be within her character trait. (And she does, in my fics ;) ) 

Finally, some notes about names in Chinese in general. In modern context, friends use each other’s name all the time. Classmates would definitely have no hesitation using each other’s name. This is true in the historical context too: so during their time at Cloud Recesses, Lan Wangji, Nie Huaisang, and Jin Zixuan should’ve all called Jiang Cheng Jiang Wanyin, and I think Lan Wangji does.  

The Chinese culture loves to use variations of honorifics when talking to each other. Everyone is a xiao (little, used for young adults, younger adults), a lao (old, used for older adults), a brother, a sister, an aunt, a uncle, a grandpa, or a grandma. Chinese youths do not refer to their parents’ friends as Mr. or Mrs. Name, it’s Uncle or Auntie Name. 

E.g.: if my last name was Wang, and I’m a young person in my twenties. My boss at work could easily call me xiao-Wang. If I was 45 yro and male, my colleagues could easily call me lao-Wang. Notice, lao (old), is only used for older men. Older women become jie (older sister). So since I’m female, a younger colleague can call me Wang-jie. 

So why don’t we see Jiang Wangyin used a lot? Well, maybe the author was just lazy, but the sad truth is Jiang Cheng doesn’t have people in his life who would call him Jiang Wanyin to his face, unless they’re angry with him. 

[themurphyzone]

104 Words for 104 Days: Birthday

It’s June 15, Vanessa’s birthday, so it feels right to post this! Unrelated note, but curse you washing machine for breaking (we're getting a new one at the end of the month thankfully)! 

The day of Vanessa’s birth wasn’t like his other backstories. Sure, backstories took place in the past. They were supposed to provide an explanation for the motive. Backstories were emotionally scarring and tragic, but ultimately simple to tell once he boiled it down to its basic components.

It took place in the past, but that was all. Nothing involving Vanessa qualified as a tragic backstory because those stories brought all the wrong emotions to the table while he spread evil across the Tri-State Area. But more importantly, it wasn’t so simple to talk about, not even to Perry the Platypus.

He remembered being on cloud nine when he held Vanessa for the first time. But nine wasn’t even the right number. More like the clouds were infinite or at the very least some astronomically high number because that was how deliriously happy he’d been.

She was wrapped in a pink blanket. She was tiny. She was perfect.

And she had Heinz’s eyes.

He remembered how Mother had looked at Roger when he was born. Heck, how she’d anticipated his birth with the enormous pile of pretty dresses. But he’d never understood how Mother could look at a tiny, wrinkly creature who only ate, slept, and pooped and accept him as a child.

Or how Mother could accept one baby but wouldn’t hold another for longer than she had to.

Well, now he had a baby of his own.

And wasn’t that a terrifying thought?

Vanessa may have escaped the signature beaky nose of the Doofenshmirtz clan, but there were many ways he could mess her up for life. There were no genetic issues, no weight issues, in fact the only issue was getting Vanessa to do what they wanted because even as a newborn she had so much willpower and he didn’t know if it would continue as she grew or if something would cause her to be submissive and lose her spirit.

He wouldn’t be the reason it happened though. He wouldn’t screw up. He would show her how loved she was, that she could do anything she set her mind to, that she was Vanessa Doofenshmirtz and nobody could tell her otherwise. Well, that’s what he believed at her birth.

There was an awful moment after the divorce where Heinz sat in his new penthouse, bathed in darkness and vastness and loneliness, and cried harder than he’d ever cried in his life because he failed.

It wasn’t the oh well, try again tomorrow failure he often experienced when an inator blew up.

He’d failed Vanessa. He’d already broken the promise he made at her birth, and she was barely four. He wouldn’t see her daily, like a good father should do. He should’ve been asking her what she did at Pre-K, playing with her, reading bedtime stories every night because that’s how good fathers are.

He was already turning Vanessa’s life into a tragic backstory, when that wasn’t his goal at all.

He wasn’t doing enough. He needed to try harder.

The following year, Vanessa’s party was pink and she was just expressing a taste for goth and punk outfits, and Heinz wondered if Vanessa was growing up too quickly, because preteens and not five year olds were the ones with vampire obsessions.

She probably just hated the petting zoo. To be fair, Lenny the Llama was on the temperamental side. Heinz had enough spit to fill a swimming pool to prove it.

And he kept trying. No petting zoo. Just ponies, because ponies were tame and easy to ride. No clowns, maybe a magician. Maybe he wouldn’t hire another magician after the banana crème incident at Vanessa’s ninth birthday, but just break out his own seventh grade magic kit and do it himself. He still remembered some tricks, even if he still couldn’t find Bobo the Rabbit.

Friends. Streamers. Balloons. Color. Cake. Gifts.

The essentials for any birthday party, though he’d never experienced any in his life. He really didn’t have the personal experience for a frame of reference. But it was fine. He just needed the right combination.

But this year had been different. This year, Perry the Platypus had helped him. Sure, Heinz had gotten his arm stuck in a firecracker and blown up, but the smile and hug Vanessa gave him the next day made the charred lab coat worth it.

Vanessa was his baby girl. His very strong, independent baby girl. And he was so proud of her.  

[nerdylittleshit]

Thoughts about Supernatural 13x10

SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!

I didn’t like “Wayward Sisters”. No. I LOVED IT! *shakingandcrying* IT IS THE SPIN OFF WE DESERVE!!!

Ahem. Where was I? The episode, yes. Which I overall loved and I’ve been thinking about it all day and there was so much in it, so many layers and stories worth telling, and guys, I really really need this show. There was one part however that I wasn’t a big fan of, and I have seen a lot of discussion and speculation about it already, and it is likely not even going to be a permanent thing, but they still went there in the first place so. More detailed and vague discussion below.

So, let’s do this.

The damsels in distress

Aka Sam and Dean. Like that was their role. Eating lizards and getting captured. And honestly? I didn’t mind at all their absence. I do enjoy episodes that are told from a different perspective than theirs, and unlike the last time we got a backdoor pilot (9x20) this time we saw characters that we actually know and care about. And instead of being some random dudes Sam and Dean are the catalyst of the story. It is them going missing that starts the story, and even though all of the women we saw know them, I would argue they are not the motivation for everyone. Sure enough Claire and Jody try to save them because they saved their lives, and arguably Donna as well. But I think both Alex and Patience are in it for Jody. And Kaia… well, it is possible she feels a certain kind of responsibility for Sam and Dean, but I don’t think she owes them anything, especially after Dean threated her with a gun. So what is Kaia’s motivation here? Claire, I would say.

Anyway, Sam and Dean going missing might be where this story starts, but these women and their stories don’t revolve around them. Their relationships with each other is the essence of this episode, not their relationship with the Winchesters, which gives us a solid ground to build their stories on.

Dreamhunter

Listen, some of us (myself included) already shipped Kaia and Claire based on the promo photos for this episode, so to say this episode has been giving is quite an understatement. If they wanted to set up a new ship they did a perfect job. And really, the best explanation why Kaia would willingly go back to the Bad Place? Because she developed a giant crush on the beautiful girl, who saved her from a monster out of her nightmares and swore she would protect her. The meeting and bonding between these two was just beautiful written, and even if you don’t ship it, they managed to put a real emotional weight behind their bond and Claire’s broken heart at the end.

Claire’s approach to Kaia was a different one than Dean’s. She talked to her and could easily see how scared Kaia was. Kaia’s scars have probably been a topic of many conversations in her life, and as she hardly can tell anyone about their true origin people might have come to their own conclusions. Claire though in return shows off her own scars, maybe because she knows how insecure Kaia is about her own. Unlike Kaia though Claire has a certain sense of pride about her scars, because she collected them during her hunts, and much like Dean Claire has found her purpose in hunting and making the world a better place through it. It is then that we see Kaia for the first time neither scared or angry, but relaxed and smiling. And it is through her understanding of what hunting means to Claire and the role Sam and Dean played in her life, that Kaia decides to help Claire.

(Also, the last time we saw two people comparing their scars? That was in 11x15 with Dean and Gunner. I love that by now Supernatural writers use the show’s very own queer subtext as a reference to make their own show even more queer <3 )

And we saw them holding hands not once, but twice. My heart. However. And this is my big “no, you didn’t” with this episode. Kaia’s death. Now, a brief glimpse at my dash told me that there are already different theories why Kaia isn’t dead. Saying that the Kaia at the end was our Kaia. Or that the two Kaias were two halves of the same person, like Charlie in 10x11. And both Kim and Bobo teased her return. However. Despite the fact that I’m pretty sure she comes back (the real Kaia, not AU!Kaia), the fact that they killed her in the first place bothers me a lot. Why? Because it seemed like the only motivation the writers could come up with to make Claire stay at home for a while. And we have been there so many times. Jess died so Sam would go hunting again. Kevin died so Dean would take the MoC. Charlie died so Dean would fully give in to the MoC. Eileen died so the Winchesters would turn against the BMoL. And so on. Like killing of a character is the only way to get a character in a certain direction. And I don’t think it is. There are other ways. So even if Kaia comes back, I’m still angry they had to kill her in the first place (leaving her alone in the place she feared the most).

I wonder though about her doppelgänger? It seems that she is more powerful than Kaia, because she was able to open a rift on her own (unlike that universe has a Nephilim as well). And I wonder if she directed our Kaia to this place in her dreams, hoping she would eventually go there, so they could swap places? Did she wanted to kill Claire or Kaia all along? Is she going to pretend to be our Kaia in order to gain Claire’s trust? (Did anyone say Casmodeus?)

And interesting enough even though we thought Kaia’s death prevented Patience’s vision to come true, it still did, because Patience interpreted what she saw wrong.

Going back to Claire for a bit, because she and Jody were the centre of this episode. Her opening scene gave me some Asa Fox feelings, both kids (Asa and the girl here) being rescued by kickass lady hunters. I think it was no coincidence that the girl looked a lot like a young Claire and that Claire watched her reunited with her mother, as Jody and Claire’s relationship would be a central theme of the episode.  The core family unit is Jody, Alex and Claire (though Donna shares a history with the girls as well and I want to know everything about it). They parallel John, Sam and Dean here, but not in the clear way we would expect it. Claire wants to be a hunter, it is where she finds her purpose, same like Dean. Alex wants a normal life and tries to help people as a civilian, the same way Sam tried. But then it is Claire who left her family, just like Sam, and Alex who stayed behind and tries to be a good daughter, the way Dean did. Jody of course is the anti-John, but her concern for Claire is paralleled with John’s concern for Sam. Both believe that by leaving their children risk their lives. In the end both Claire and Sam return, both after losing someone close to them.

The meek (shall inherit the earth)

I admit that both Patience and Donna were a bit underwritten, but then again Patience already had an episode focused on her (13x03) and Donna will have one (13x11), so that is okay. We are so used to hunters that it is easy to forget that it is not normal to bury monsters in your graveyard or to own an armory. But Patience is our reminder how surreal this world must look like to outsiders. She is also not a fighter, same as Alex, and I loved Alex’s comment that they don’t have to be in order to help. All these women bring different skills to this fight, and they are all important.

There is a brief moment where she decides to go back and wonders if her father takes her back. We all have discussed the ambiguity of Patience’s father saying “You go now, you choose that life, you don't come back” in 13x09. Apparently Patience is concerned that her father throw her out for good. I still wonder how Patience will fit into this show, when it hopefully gets picked up. We saw the reason why she was there and why she stayed, but now that both Jody and Claire are save, why should she stay? Or are more visions coming? We will see.

Some other things:

- Loved the opening song (“I am the Fire” by Halestorm) and I would love if they could use this song for an intro when the show gets picked up. Like one of those longer intros with all the characters we used to have in the old days. Miss those.

- Still not over Mr. Werewolf. Why did he open the door anyway? Did he expect a delivery?

- Claire keeps a journal, the same way John did.

- Dean saying “My hero”. In a total not even remotely sardonic way. Because these men can admit and accept help when they need it.

So yeah, please make this show a thing. Please give us these wonderful women, let us hear their stories, let them become a family. Give us these all female ensemble show, with all these different kind of relationships to explore, with daughters and moms and sisters and friends and lovers. It is time.

[takadasaiko]

Fallen Series: Not Like Him

FFN II AO3

Summary: Future Fic. When Clootie gets ahold of Bobo to use as bait to lure out Wynonna, the last thing the Revenant expects is for her to come for him.

Warning: Brief torture at the beginning.

Not Like Him

The blow to the head had left his vision pulsing, but it had been the hit to the back that had driven him to his knees, hitting the frozen ground hard. He couldn't move, couldn't straighten himself up in time to see the steel toed boot that slammed into his ribs, sending him crashing the rest of the way to the ground.

Bobo Del Rey lay on his black in the snow, desperately trying to draw air into his lungs even though each breath brought new spikes of pain with it. His vision was going in and out and he knew he needed to pull himself up or the next blow would hurt even more.

Not that he'd get very far, and Clootie knew that.

He heard the demon's low chuckle before he was able to focus in on where he'd leaned into his line of sight, nudging his battered ribs hard enough to draw a pained gasp from him. Bobo swallowed it back, clenching his teeth stubbornly and narrowing his eyes up at him.

They had gotten ahold of him on the edge of town, the newly formed alliance with the Earps still on shaky ground when it came to handling them and the handful of Revenants that had remained loyal to him when Clootie had called them all in. He was still fighting Bulshar's control himself, and he'd missed… something. Even now he wasn't sure what, but if they had caught up to him just five minutes later they would have had Waverly as well. He was questioning his ability to get himself out of this at the moment, but he knew he wouldn't have been able to get both of them out.

Clootie had never been fond of being ignored. He bent down and took hold of Bobo's dual-coloured hair, hauling him up and drawing pained yelp from him. "You will useful to me, Robert, if you choose to be or not."

Bobo dragged a painful breath in, the air burning his lungs and he could almost feel the cracked ribs shifting dangerously. He struggled to get his feet under him to keep from being held up by his hair and his boots caught a patch of ice. He heard the satisfied laugh that left the demon as he released him, Bobo slamming hard back to the ground and he writhed for a moment, no room in his mind for anything but the overwhelming pain.

Slowly it started to creep back, letting him work through it enough to focus his eyes. He didn't like the look on Clootie's face.

A howl echoed across the field as the heavy boot slammed down on Bobo's outstretched leg, the blow strengthened by Bulshar's demonic powers and Bobo could feel the snap radiate through his entire body.

"There we go," Clootie chuckled. "We need them to hear you."

The words took a moment to work through the pain, but even as the spots dancing across his vision blocked out the cloudy sky above him, a rough laugh managed to escape. Joke was on Clootie if he thought he was using the Revenant as bait. There was no way in hell Wynonna Earp was coming for him.

He wasn't sure how long he was out, but he came around to voices. They filtered slowly through the fog of pain that came with consciousness, and he was having trouble opening his eyes so that he could see who the voices belonged to belonged to.

"You can't just move him! What if his neck is broken or something?"

"Waves, he's a Revenant. Even if he did break it, it'll heal. We have to get him out of here."

"Or we can just leave him."

"That's not an option."

"I'm just sayin' they didn' leave him out here for nothin'. Bulshar's usin' 'im for somethin'."

A low groan escaped Bobo and he finally forced his eyes open. He found three faces coming into view immediately: Waverly, Haught, and…. He groaned again, this time louder. "Didn't think you'd be that stupid," he managed, his gaze catching Wynonna's.

"We came to rescue you. You're welcome, asshole," she snapped.

He knew he should be grateful. He hadn't expected it, hadn't dared to hope for it. It seemed like every time they had a chance to choose to trust him or not, they went with the latter. But here they were, leaned over him and trying to help, and it had to be the one time that it could get the Heir killed and blow everything to hell.

"Clootie knew you would," he managed through gritted teeth. "That was the point."

A strange expression crossed Wynonna's face and he thought it might have been guilt. "C'mon. Dolls, help me get him up."

"If they're coming, you need to go," the deputy marshal said as he moved towards the injured Revenant. "Doc and I will get him someplace safe."

Bobo tensed immediately at the reference to John Henry and he turned as menacing of a glare as he could manage on the gunslinger who was proving to hold a grudge as strong as Bobo's own. This was going to hurt.

"I'm not going to-" Wynonna started, but was cut off.

"We got this," Holliday said firmly. "We're not what Clootie wants. Go."

Well, at least he could depend on Holliday having one priority set.

Wynonna hesitated a moment before turning a stern look on Bobo. "He doesn't get to win and he doesn't get any of us in the fight. You got it?"

"He gets you then he's won," Bobo said lowly, his voice more strained than he was comfortable with. He could already feel his body pulling him back towards unconsciousness, the brief conversation sapping his energy.

She watched him for a long moment before Waverly pulled her back. "They're coming."

He watched indecision flash across her face, but it was brief. She nodded firmly, shot Doc Holliday a look, and was in her way.

Suddenly Dolls had ahold of his arm. "This is going to hurt," he warned, and hauled Bobo to his feet. The Revenant felt gravity try to fight him and moved to catch himself, but is leg wouldn't hold his weight and he found himself pitching forward and back into darkness.

If Bobo came to at any point in the escape, he didn't remember it. The next time his brain was able to register that there was anything happening around him at all he found himself staring up at a ceiling, not an open sky. He shifted, regretting it instantly as pain exploded and it took a long moment for him to get his bearings back. He laid there, jaw clenched and eyes squeezed shut against it. As the worst of it finally eased he could feel sheets wrapped up in his death grip and he forced himself to loosen his hold, making sure to lie very still this time.

He had no idea where he was. He was lying on a bed in a room, but past that he didn't recognize it. Slowly and very, very carefully he turned his head to get a better look. There was an old, painted bedside table pushed up between the bed and the wall, the white and green checkered lamp and a teddy bear that had seen better days the only occupants to it. The ceiling had been normal enough, but the walls were a pale yellow, almost as if they had faded over the years. He let his gaze follow the wall around, having something to focus on helping to pull him around a little better.

There were a few other odds and ends scattered within his line of sight, but for the most part the room looked like it hadn't been lived in in some time. It certainly didn't look like some place Clootie would have stored him away if he'd gotten hold of him.

Movement at the door startled him and he grunted against the pain, trying to focus through it to see who was standing there. Blue eyes finally focused in on Purgatory's sheriff, standing with his arms crossed irritability across his chest. "Nedley," he managed, his voice hoarse and scratchy as it left his lips. He cleared his throat, pushing down the urge to sit up. It wouldn't help the balance of power if he passed out again.

"You know," the other man drawled, "I really need to start asking before I agree to one if Wynonna's favours."

Bobo blinked at him for a moment. "Where am I?"

"My house. Wynonna needed somewhere off the beaten path to let you heal up."

"And you volunteered?" the Revenant asked skeptically.

"Like I said, need to clarify favours before I agree." He took a step forward as Bobo started to try to move. "Listen, you're not in great shape. That leg's... what?"

A smirk quirked Bobo's lips and he held Nedley's gaze long enough that the other man started to shift uncomfortably. There he was. The years had toughened him up, but Bobo could see the signs of the young cop that had worked under Ward, fumbling through trying to figure Purgatory out from the lawman's side of things and getting no real help from the half-drunken Earp. The one that had desperately tried to regain control over the town after Ward's death and had learned the hard way that it couldn't be done without Bobo Del Rey. He had tried, but it had crashed into utter chaos for several weeks following the Heir's death and the Revenant leader had let it, his attention focused elsewhere and perfectly happy to leave the new sheriff to realize just what Purgatory would be without him. The lesson had been hard learned, but Nedley had finally realized just where the power lay in town and he had stopped trying to topple Bobo off his throne.

Bobo needed that power now. Even laid out in a bed that could have only belonged to a young Chrissy Nedley growing up, the healing process barely begun even though it had been hours since the injuries had been dealt, he refused to look as weak as he felt.

Nedley pulled in a deep breath, seeming to try to steady himself. He met Bobo's gaze and pushed the air back out through his nose. "You know, I remember the first time I came across you. Fresh into the police department you look like everything that shouldn't be happening in our town. I thought Ward was working some sort of angle with you for a while, and then nothing. Every time I'd come close to one of your boys he'd stop me."

"Ward knew how it worked," Bobo answered, the words riding out on a low growl and he didn't miss the way Nedley flinched when his eyes flashed red.

"Got him killed in the end," he managed after a moment. "His father too, and I imagine his father before that. Now Wynonna is striking deals with you."

"And you don't approve?"

"Wynonna Earp will do what she's gonna do, but you don't have the best track record with helping Earps."

Bobo settled a little deeper into the pillows under him, narrowing his eyes as he did.

"She trusts you though. Hell if I know why. You're not different than any of the others, maybe worse."

"Oh I'm much worse," Bobo agreed with viscous grin. "Comes with the territory, but you know that much by now."

"I do. I know what you are - knew even before Dolls came to town - and this may be my one chance, so I want to make something clear." He didn't step any closer, but Bobo thought he saw the sheriff square his shoulders a bit. "I'm not going to let you do to Wynonna what you've done to the others."

The statement was simple enough and the threat was clear, even if they both knew there was no way to back it up. As soon as Bobo was on his feet again he would be fully capable of crushing the sheriff at his whim if he so chose. Even so, there he was making his opinion abundantly clear. Bobo wasn't sure if he it was bravery or foolishness.

After a long moment of silence from the Revenant Nedley cleared his throat awkwardly, pulling his attention back around. Bobo was actively and openly working with Wynonna now, and with that - if he liked it or not - meant working with those around her. Even those that he had purposefully kept out of the loop up until that point. That wasn't weakness, he reminded himself. That was just the price of alliances.

Bobo winced and grit his teeth stubbornly, shifting so that he forced himself up in his elbows, the closest he could get to sitting. There was a rush of pain, but he didn't black out. That seemed like a good sign. At least a step in the right direction, even if he could still feel the painful pull against his battered ribs and even into his leg with the shifting of weight. He swallowed hard before speaking. "At this point, we all survive this together or we all die together, and I ain't goin' back to hell."

Nedley eyed him for a moment. "And you think Wynonna's got what it takes to beat this…. demon."

"She better or we're all screwed."

He could see the sheriff weighing the words, trying to decide what he thought about them and the whole ordeal. He didn't know Bobo's past. Few did beyond Wynonna. Nedley certain't didn't, and Bobo had no interest in sharing that particular bit of history openly even if it might make things a little easier in that moment.

Nedley's phone began to buzz in his pocket and he pulled it out,glancing at the ID before turning what was likely supposed to be a stern look on Bobo. "Don't move."

The sarcastic response never quite made it from the Revenant's lips as he eased himself back against the pillows, the conversation and movement leaving him spent. At least he could feel the healing starting to take place. It was slow, but there'd been plenty of damage done.

He must have dozed off again, because when he worked his way towards wakefulness again he could hear two voices at the bedroom door. One was Nedley's, gruff and irritable, and as Bobo listed harder he thought the other belonged to Wynonna Earp.

"...was that son of a bitch Benny."

"You thought it might be."

"It was too convenient that he just happened to know where Bulshar had Bobo that last. Loyalty my ass." Wynonna huffed a mirthless laugh. "He got what was coming to him. Maybe that'll keep others from turning."

"I wouldn't count on it. They're not exactly the honest types." Bobo could feel Nedley's gaze slide over to him, but he didn't move. "I know you say you trust him, and he knows what to say to make it sound like the truth, but I still can't place what he's getting out of this."

There was a stretch of silence and Wynonna sighed. "It's…. complicated, but I trust that he's going to do whatever he thinks he has to to bring Clootie down."

"Why?"

He wasn't sure if she was holding back on his past out of respect to his privacy or if she just didn't think anyone who hadn't seen it would believe it. It didn't matter. Randy Nedley didn't need to know. "Just like I said," Bobo said, drawing their attention to him as he forced his eyes open, "I have no intention of goin' back to hell. Breakin' the curse should handle that."

Nedley huffed and shook his head, moving out the door and leaving Wynonna standing there awkwardly. She stuffed her hands in her pockets. "He might-"

"Easier the devil you know than the one you don't," Bobo murmured and she nodded.

"I guess." She turned her gaze down to her boots. "How're you feeling?"

"Healing. Slowly, but healing."

"Yeah, you're slow healing is still something humans would be jealous of."

"Steep price for it."

"Do you really think killing Bulshar will end the curse?"

Bobo let his eyes slip closed for a moment, considering his words carefully. "Hope so."

"What happens to you then?"

"Don't know for sure."

"Just not hell."

He opened his eyes and they flashed dangerously. "I'm not goin' back."

"Gotcha," she said, raising her hands in a nonthreatening manner. "Listen… I should let you get some rest. I just wanted to check in and…."

"Ain't your fault," he breathed and her gaze snapped to meet his. He could see it there. It was the same look she'd had as she stooped over him lying in the snow, broken and beaten and bleeding. Guilt. They didn't have time for her to wallow in it. "You got enough on you. What Clootie did to me was about my part in it. Him getting a chance at you was just his bonus." He narrowed his eyes. "A chance you shouldn't have given him."

Wynonna's gaze hardened at that. "Listen, asshole. You're part of this team now. We're not going to leave you to die. I'm not Wyatt."

The last statement took him by surprise and he let the words rattle around his mind for a moment. "No," he finally breathed. "No you are not."

She nodded. "Get some sleep and don't give Nedley too much hell. I think he's still pissed at you for poisoning the whole damn town."

Bobo's lips quirked up. "Gotta learn to let things go. Not like anybody actually died."

Wynonna rolled her eyes and shook her head, but he thought he saw the smallest flash of amusement in her eyes as she grumbled at him to get some sleep and that she'd be back later.

He settled back, left alone in the quiet room. No, Wynonna Earp was not her great great grandfather. She was better. He never thought he would admit it, even if just to himself, but she was better, and if he had read the situation right, that was how they were going to win.

Notes: I realized that we've never actually seen Nedley and Bobo interact face to face in canon and I feel like that needs to change in S3. It could be a lot of fun.