#but damn Astrid looks great

[justagalwhowrites]

Yearling - Ch. 33: Discovery

You, Joel and Tommy go on patrol. A continuation of Yearling ch. 1-32 found on Tumblr here.

Pairing: Joel Miller x Female Reader

Warnings: Canon-typical violence. Torture. Smut :). No use of Y/N. Minors DNI 18+ Only 

Length: 9.8k

AO3 | Chapter One | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

February, 2028 

“Bambi, tell your husband to stop being a wuss.” 

“Wuss?” Joel shifted to look around you to his little brother. “Who you callin’ a wuss?” 

“Think I’ll call my brother-in-law a dumbass instead,” you smirked over toward Tommy. “Seems more accurate.” 

“You tellin’ me we shouldn’t be following that path there?” Tommy nodded toward a worn spot in the snow on the other side of the river where the three of you had stopped, sitting astride your horses. “The one that looks like it could’ve been made by a dozen fuckin’ men?”  

“Who knows how old that is,” Joel said. “Been weeks since it snowed. And water’s lookin’ high. Would be real easy to end up cold and wet for no damn reason…” 

“Seem awful scared of winding up cold and wet for someone who’s not a wuss,” Tommy teased. 

“I don’t want my wife,” Joel stressed the word and you smiled a little, tucking your chin into your chest to hide it. “Being cold and wet and getting sick because you’ve got some harebrained idea that we need to run down some track that’s long dead.” 

“Bambi, c’mon,” Tommy said. “You know I’m right, you know the horses can handle it and you know Joel’s just bein’ paranoid because you’re here.” 

Joel wasn’t about to tell Tommy that he was right. At least, not while he was out on his first patrol since the incident in November. It would just worry you, might make you drag him back to Jackson before patrol was done. But Tommy was right. Joel had been nervous all day, worrying about seeing you hurt. Worrying that, whoever had been after him would hurt you, too. That wasn’t something he could abide at any time but now that you were his wife, it was more vital. It felt different somehow.

A lot of things did. 

Not that there had been much tangible change since the two of you had said your vows that night in Joel’s bed. Since the attack, you hadn’t slept at your own house even once, you were already living together in every way that mattered. Ellie and Savvy had become like sisters in the few months that Savvy had been in Jackson, you like a mother to his daughter and him like a father to yours. And Joel had always been driven to protect you, from the first moment he saw you he knew he would do damn near anything to keep you safe. But the sense of peace and permanence he had calling you his wife made life alongside you another thing entirely. Protecting and caring for you was all the more necessary now. 

The girls had taken the news well, all things considered. Joel hadn’t really been worried about Ellie’s reaction, of course. You were the closest thing she had to a mother and lord knew the girl had been working overtime trying to shove you and Joel back together after you’d left. 

But he could tell you’d been worried about telling Savvy. 

“That ring fittin’ OK?” He asked as he brought you a cup of coffee in bed just as the sun started to rise on Christmas morning. 

“Hm?” You looked up at him from your spot nestled into the pillows, chest bare and blankets over your lap like they had been the night before as the two of you made promises to each other. The hand that was twisting your ring around and around on your finger stilled. 

“You’re fidgetin’ something fierce there, Mrs. Miller,” he smiled a little and handed you the cup of coffee. “Wanted to know if that ring was fittin’ OK or if you were just getting cold feet on me.” 

“It fits great,” you smiled a little over the coffee cup, taking a sip. “And no, no cold feet.” 

“Alright,” he said, sitting in bed beside you in nothing but his pajama pants. His fingers trailed up the bare skin of your arm. “Then I think you should tell me what’s on that pretty mind of yours.” 

“You’re gonna get us in trouble, touching me like that,” you said, taking another sip of coffee. “Girls will be here soon…” 

“Oh I can be quick,” he teased. “But I’d rather not rush our wedding… well, morning…” 

You rolled your eyes but laced your fingers with his, brushing his ring as you did. 

“Talk to me,” he said, turning serious. “Don’t want to start this off with secrets.” 

“It’s not a secret,” you sighed, looking at his hand for a moment longer before looking him in the eye. “But… I don’t want to hurt Savvy. I want this with you more than almost anything else. The only thing I want more is for her to be OK. I just don’t know how to tell her.” 

Joel nodded slowly, watching you. 

“Want to do it together?” He asked gently. You raised your eyebrows. “I don’t want to get in the way of anything but I don’t want you thinkin’ you’re in this alone because you’re not. That’s the whole point.” 

You laughed once and then sighed. 

“It might help,” you said after a moment. “I think she likes you more than she likes me.” 

“Don’t think that’s true,” he said. “She’s just… dealing with some complicated things. And there ain’t a real guidebook for regular parenting, let alone how you raise a kid after the world ends. She loves you. She really does.” 

“Should we tell the girls together then?” You asked, looking uncertain.  

“I think, if you’re OK with that?” Joel shrugged. “Yeah. I’d like to do that with you.” 

You smiled a little and the two of you adjusted in bed so that you were in his arms, your skin soft against his. You finished your coffee and got dressed just before the clatter of teenaged girls took over the house not long after. 

Joel kept you tucked against his side as the two of you watched the girls open their gifts, his lips brushing your temple and giving you a squeeze when he could sense you getting tense. He gathered the two of them that afternoon as the four of you got ready to head to Tommy and Maria’s for dinner, your hands stuffed into the back pockets of your jeans as you paced the kitchen until Ellie and Savvy were there and you joined him at his side. 

“What’s up?” Ellie frowned, looking between the two of you. 

“Well,” Joel said gently. “We were hopin’ to talk to you girls about something…” 

“Oh God,” Ellie groaned. “Please tell me no one’s doing anything stupid…” 

“Nothin’ stupid,” Joel smiled a little, slipping an arm through yours to curve around your back and tug you close to his side. You looked up at him for a moment but he didn’t need to look back to know that you were on the verge of panic. He could feel it, your whole body was tense, your breaths short and shallow. “Something real good, actually. We wanted the two of you to know before anyone else but… well, we decided to get married.” 

“Oh shit!” Ellie’s eyes went wide for a minute. “Congrats! It’s about damn time, honestly.” 

Savvy, however, was silent. She looked between the two of you, her brows drawn together, a small frown on her face before she stalked out of the room. 

You pulled away from Joel immediately and he went to follow you but you put up a hand and shook your head before chasing her down. 

“Shit,” Ellie, said quietly, staring out the back door that you and Savvy had just left through. Joel clenched his jaw for a moment, resisting the urge to go find you no matter how badly he might want to. 

“Still a sore subject for her, huh?” Joel asked Ellie after a moment. 

She sighed. 

“I really wish Bambi would give her some idea of what happened,” she said. “Because she really seems to think that she had some kind of easy fucking time… She asked me a little bit about it after you both got back last month. I guess she overheard the doctors talking but I didn’t know what to fucking say. I don’t think she’s actually pissed about the two of you. I think she’s pissed at the idea that she was on her own while her mom was having some happy life here.” 

Joel sighed for a moment before giving in and following you out the back door. You were standing in the snow, halfway back to Ellie’s place, your back to him as you focused on Savvy. 

“Don’t let me get in the way of whatever dream life you’re tryin’ to have here,” her tone was sharp. “Didn’t let me hold you back before…” 

“That’s not what this is,” you said, calm and steady. But Joel could hear the pain on your voice.  “You’re the most important thing in the world to me and…” 

“You’ve got a funny way of showing that!” 

Savvy noticed him then, narrowing glaring at him for a moment. You looked back over your shoulder to him, your eyes large and round and watery. He came up behind you, a hand going to the small of your back as he pressed himself against your shoulder. 

“Baby girl,” Joel said gently. “I know this is something that’s big…” 

“No shit,” she snapped in a way that was so Ellie that Joel considered talking to the older girl about how she spoke around the younger one. 

“But,” he continued. “You and Ellie are our number one priority. Always have been…” 

She scoffed and rolled her eyes, looking into the distance instead of at either one of you. 

“Us getting married is just about me and Joel,” you said, pressing yourself back into him. “It doesn’t mean we’re choosing each other over you, it doesn’t mean we love you any less. It just means we wanted to make that commitment to each other, that’s all.” 

She sighed and closed her eyes for a moment before looking back at you. 

“So what does this mean, then?” She asked. “What’s going to change?” 

You looked up at Joel for a moment before looking back to her. 

“Not a lot, really,” you said. “We haven’t really talked about where we’re going to live but that’s not too different from how things have been the past few weeks. No one here uses my real name, anyway, and you have your father’s last name, not mine, so even if I did decide to take Joel’s name, it wouldn’t change anything for you.” 

She nodded slowly, considering. Joel marveled, for a moment, at how your daughter held her face just like you when she was thinking, the same purse to her lips, the same scrunch of her brow. You’d passed on so much to her even if you didn’t give her your blood. 

“Think you can be OK with this?” You asked gently after a moment. “I don’t want to hurt you, honey. I love you more than anything, I don’t want you to be unhappy, especially not because of me.” 

“I don’t want you to be unhappy, either,” Savvy said quietly. “I just… I still don’t really get this place. I’m making friends, I’m going to school but… it’s all so different. I still don’t know how I feel about any of it.” 

“I know,” you said quietly, reaching out and cupping your daughter’s cheek. Joel held his breath for half a moment, until he realized that she wasn’t going to pull away from your touch. “And I’m sorry I didn’t find you sooner or get you here when you were smaller and it would have been easier.” 

“I don’t want to be angry,” she said, her voice thick and wet. “I’m so tired, Mom.” 

“I know,” you said again, pulling her into you and holding her to your chest. She was stiff for a moment before relaxing into you, her arms going around your waist. “I know, baby.” 

It got easier after that. At least on the surface. Savvy was still distant but she didn’t seem to be as antagonistic as she had been before. You moved into Joel’s house - though you traded the sound system at your house for Joel’s - and you set up one of the bedrooms upstairs for Savvy, even though she was still living at Ellie’s. 

“At some point, Ellie is going to need her space,” you said, moving the twin sized bed for the fourth time, the wood groaning across the floor as you shoved it into a new place. “She’s a grown woman now…” 

“Rather not think about that,” Joel grumbled, even though he’d been trying to find a way to talk to Ellie about her friendship with Jesse in particular. They seemed… close. And who knew what  she’d been taught in that damn FEDRA school. 

“Think about it or not,” you said, standing back, hands on your hips as you looked at your handiwork. “It’s comin’ for you. She’s going to want to actually live an adult life and that means adult space. Would rather her not feel like she needs to move out of the backyard right away to have that. So… Savvy can just come here.” 

Joel thought it was a bit optimistic to think that Savvy would be willing to come here, but he couldn’t bring himself to say that. You were finally showing signs of hope about your relationship with your daughter. You’d been suffering with her so far away. You had done a good job of hiding it - he doubted anyone but him had noticed - but you couldn’t keep going like that, not forever. He didn’t want to ruin it, not now. 

Your hopeful nature around Savvy was just another way the world seemed to be changing. The patrols outside Jackson were reporting more and more signs of people and, with them would come more infected. Patrols were starting to pick up and Joel felt the push to make himself useful again with more urgency than ever. 

While Jackson was filled with incredibly skillful riders and hunters, Joel knew he was one of the best. Many of the folk here had lived a life that didn’t involve much struggle - at least, relatively speaking - after the outbreak. He’d survived with blood and he was more than willing to shed some more to protect his home and his family. Sitting on the sidelines, lame and useless, didn’t suit him. 

He’d learned to avoid the gates and the stables when patrols were coming and going, not wanting to look at the men and women who got to go out and actually make themselves useful with envy that was rooted in the self loathing that had started to bloom inside of him. 

He started going to talk to the doctors at least once a week, seeing if he’d made enough progress to start going outside the walls of the city again. It was slow going. Getting approved for sex and lighter work around town was one thing. Getting the OK to go outside and hunt down raiders was - apparently - another matter entirely. But, eventually, he got a hesitant OK from both doctors. 

Joel got them to put it in writing - feeling only a little bit like a school boy taking a report card home to his mother - and headed straight for the stable to show you. You were working with a horse, one that had been foaled in Jackson right around the time he’d first found you in the snow. It was old enough now that you could work with it, accustomed enough to people that you’d told him you thought you’d be able to get the horse to broke fast. He stood and watched you for a bit, you standing beside her and getting her used to someone putting pressure on her body to guide her, talking to her in that gentle voice you used when working with animals. 

“You gonna just stand there and watch, cowboy?” You asked after a few minutes, not looking over your shoulder to him but Joel knew you were smiling all the same. “Or is there something I can do for you?” 

“Man need a reason to come look at his wife?” He asked. You twisted look at him at that and he was right, you were smiling. “I don’t think he does. Not when she’s as pretty as you, anyway.” 

“Uh huh,” you looked back to the horse, giving her a treat of some kind. “Feel like you’re tryin’ to butter me up over there.” 

“Maybe,” he shrugged. “Or maybe I just needed to look at ya for a minute.” 

“Gimme five minutes,” you said, throwing a mischievous look over your shoulder. “Then maybe you can do more than look.”

Joel laughed a little and watched you finish up with the horse before you led her inside and put her in her stall, him trailing behind you. In all honesty, he was happy to watch you work. You were so good with them, you cared so deeply. It was enthralling in the best possible way, just the physical manifestation of one of the infinite reasons he loved you. 

You latched the stable door when you were done with the horse and stood close to Joel, taking his shirt by the fistful and pulling him against you so you could kiss him. He was happy to let you, one of his hands finding your face to hold you in just the right spot so he could dip his tongue into your mouth while you moaned against his lips. 

“Before this goes too far,” he said after pulling back from you. “Should talk about something…” 

“Should we?” You asked, tugging him against you for another kiss. 

“Mhmm,” he hummed against your mouth. You released him and stepped back a little, frowning. He smiled a little. “S’nothing bad, don’t gotta look so worried about it.” 

“Alright,” you said, a hint of challenge in your voice. “Then what is it?” 

“Well,” he said, holding your gaze and trying to shake the feeling that he’d done something he shouldn’t have. “Talked to the doctors…” 

Your eyes narrowed. 

“And they’ve OKed me to go out on patrol again…” 

“GodDAMMIT Joel!” You stomped away from him, back to him, arms crossed. He gave you a moment to seethe, his hands in his pockets, thumbs drumming a stuttering rhythm on the denim. After a few deathly quiet seconds, you turned back. “Really? You really want to go get yourself fuckin’ killed…” 

“Sweetheart…” 

“Are we just not enough for you?” You demanded, stalking up to him, arms still crossed tightly in front of you. “Me, Ellie, Savvy. Are we not enough? Do you need to go get some kind of goddamn adrenaline rush, is that it?” 

He resisted the urge to fight you on it. Your eyes were watery and wide and pleading. 

“You know that’s not what it is, baby,” he whispered. A single tear slipped down your cheek and he reached out to gently take your face in his hand, catching it on his thumb. “You’re more than enough, you’re more than I deserve. And you know I don’t want to hurt you…” 

“Don’t make this about me,” you snapped. He ignored that, too. 

“But we need people who can keep Jackson safe,” he said. “For you, for our girls. I can do that. You know I can…” 

“You can’t if you get yourself fuckin’ killed!” You took a deep breath and centered yourself for a moment. “You’re still limping…” 

“I know,” he nodded slowly. “But they think I’ll probably limp at least a little for the rest of my life. S’OK. I can ride just fine, won’t hurt me bein’ able to fight…” 

“Bullshit.” 

“It’ll be OK,” he said gently. “And I’m willin’ to go out with you or Tommy….” 

“And,” you cut him off. 

Joel frowned. 

“And?” 

“Me and Tommy,” you replied. “Deal’s changed. You’re limping, you can’t go out with just one of us, it has to be both.”

He sighed. 

“Bambi…” 

“You want me on board?” You asked. “That’s the deal.” 

He sighed again. 

“We can talk with Maria,” he said. “See if we have the space for it.” 

“Alright,” you said “Because I’m not going to just sit here and watch you get yourself hurt or killed. That’s not what I signed up for.” 

“Not what I’m asking you to do,” he said gently. “I don’t want to not come home to you, baby. But I need to make sure I’m doin’ my part to keep Jackson safe.” 

It had taken a few weeks for things to line up right with patrols and Joel could feel how tense you were leading up to the day the three of you were heading out. You’d clung to him especially hard the night before. Ellie and Savvy had joined the two of you for dinner and then to play cards and you’d held it together pretty well until they left. But the second they were gone it was like a switch flipped. You pressed yourself against his side, your arms wrapped around his bicep, your head tight against his shoulder. 

“You alright?” He frowned. 

“Fine,” you said, voice tight. 

When he took you to bed, you rode him aching and slow until you came and collapsed on top of him, Joel only lasting a few more deep thrusts into your tight heat before coming undone himself. He held you there, your head against his chest as his hand trailed a slow and easy path up and down your spine. He was still inside you when he felt your tears on his chest. 

“Baby,” he said softly. 

“Don’t make me come back alone,” you said, lifting your head from his chest enough to look at him, the rest of you still tight against his body. “Please, Joel. Don’t make me lose you, too.” 

“Not losing me,” he held your face in his hands. “Promise.” 

“You’ll always come back for me?” You whispered. 

“Always,” he said softly. “I promise. As long as you promise to always be there to come back to.” 

“Promise,” you said quietly. 

He’d been worried about how the patrol was going to go after that, but you, him and Tommy had fallen back into your usual patterns easily once you were outside Jackson and you let yourselves relax into them a bit. 

It had been an easy patrol until the three of you stopped to give the horses a chance to take a drink and saw the tracks across the river. And Joel couldn’t seem to shake the clutch of fear that gripped him at the thought of putting you in harm’s way by following the trail. 

“Tommy, I swear to God, you ever hold this against me…” you began, but he cut you off. 

“You’ll shoot me?” Tommy teased. 

���Trample you with a horse,” you replied. “But… yeah. You’re right. We should check that trail.” 

Joel gave you a look and you just looked back, your brows raised. He sighed. 

“Alright,” he said. “Tommy, you take the lead since this is your damn scheme.” 

“C’mon lovebirds,” he said, starting across the water. “Sooner we follow this path, sooner we can get back to town and the sooner you two can go back to leavin’ me out of whatever it is you two do.” 

Joel was about to give Tommy shit but you beat him to it, lobbing a snowball at him and hitting him straight in the face. Joel barked a laugh as you tried to stifle yours, your arms crossed demurely over your saddle horn. 

“Nice,” Tommy said as the snow slid off his face. “Real nice.” 

“Well, say stupid shit, win stupid prizes,” you shrugged, smirking a little. 

“Not cool, Bambi,” he said, wiping his face clean. “Not cool.” 

“You’re right,” you replied, smirk growing. “Think it’s technically cold…” 

Tommy leaned around you to look at Joel. 

“You’ve had too much influence on your wife,” he said. “I remember when she was a nice girl…” 

“Bullshit,” you said. 

“Wouldn’t even look at someone mean…” 

“Tommy, she’d have always kicked your ass whenever you did somethin’ dumb enough to ask for it,” Joel smiled, a little proud. “Now let’s move before you give ‘er another reason.” 

Tommy wiped the last of the snow from his skin with a good natured shake of his head and started off. You called Gatling back into her spot on your saddle as Joel nodded for you to be in between the two of them so he could bring up the rear. At least this way, Joel or Tommy would get hit before you would. 

The three of you followed the tracks for a few hours, until things shifted. You noticed it first, that the footprints in the snow looked more well traveled, like people were coming and going from this point in the forest more often than all the way to the water. 

“There,” you said quietly, nodding to the brush off the trail. Joel looked where you indicated, a baited trap primed and ready. 

“That ain’t been there long,” Tommy said. Joel came up alongside you, closer than he’d normally try to be when on horseback. But it kept the rising fear in him calmer, more contained. He looked around at the ground, the snow so worn down it was hard to have even a remote idea of how many people had been through here recently. Gatling gave a low, rumbling growl and you soothed her with a pet.

“We should go back,” Joel said. “Get backup…”

“That’d be wise.” 

Your gun was drawn before Joel or Tommy could reach theirs and you twisted in your saddle to  look behind you. Joel turned, too, his sidearm drawn, a group of six men on foot standing about 20 feet back. Their rifles were drawn, at least two of them trained on you. Joel’s jaw clenched. 

“Why don’t you folks get off those horses,” a man at the middle of the group said. “See what we can figure out.” 

You glanced toward Joel before you whistled Gatling down and started to dismount before he had a chance to argue. Joel did, too, arranging himself in front of you - Tommy at his side, shielding you, too - before stepping closer to the group. Joel slung his rifle forward on his arm but kept it tilted toward the man’s legs and not his head. The man who’d spoken smirked. 

“Haven’t seen you out this way before,” the man said. “Care to tell us where you’re from?” 

“Not really,” Tommy said as Joel looked the group over. They were all large and broad, young and cocky. Looked to be well fed. These weren’t travelers passing through, of that he was almost certain. “You can tell us, though, seein’ as you’re traipsin’ through our territory.” 

“Your territory?” The man raised his brows. “Seems like a bold claim for two men and their… pet to make.”

Tommy snapped his rifle up before Joel did.

“Say that shit about her again,” he snapped. “Fuckin’ dare you.” 

Your hand went in the middle of Joel’s back, right between his shoulder blades, a gentle and grounding force, before you appeared at his side, Gatling practically glued to your calve. 

“Bambi,” Joel growled, your hand trailing over his back before raising your rifle. 

The man looked at you, amused. 

“She’s come to play,” he smiled. “That’s good, I like ‘em with a little fight…” 

“Trust me when I tell you that I’m doing you a favor, giving you the chance to deal with me,” you said, sounding almost eerily calm. “Try me and they’ll kill you. Assuming I don’t kill you first.”

Gatling growled at your feet, crouched and ready to spring. 

“Now,” you said. “Where are you from.” 

The man looked at you for a moment, all but licking his lips, before turning back to Joel and Tommy. 

“You really let your little woman run the show?” He asked. “Can think of a lot better uses for her smart mouth…” 

Gatling snarled and flattened her ears against her head. Joel’s eyes narrowed, raising his gun so it was now aimed at the man’s chest, not his legs. 

“That’s my wife you’re talkin’ about,” he strained to keep his voice calm. “Now, you gonna tell us where you’re from or are you gonna make me gun you down?”  

“How about this,” the man said, still seeming over confident. “You tell us where you’re from, maybe let us have a little fun with your whore wife, you go on your merry way. Otherwise, we can just kill you.” 

Joel’s jaw clenched. Tommy adjusted his grip on his gun and Joel gave him a look before glancing over to you. 

“Any of them look familiar?” He asked, voice dangerous and low. 

“No,” you said. “Don’t know any of them.” 

Joel focused back on the men. 

“Good.” 

He reached out an arm and swept you behind him a half second before he started shooting, Tommy following suit almost immediately. The men shot back, a bullet glancing off Joel’s shoulder as they did. You, of course refused to stay where Joel had tucked you for long. You stepped alongside him, firing, too, as Joel tried not to be distracted by the terrifying possibility of you, bleeding on the ground. 

But the three of you were lucky. The men clearly hadn’t been doing this long. Joel wasn’t sure if they were just bad shots or if shooting and killing a person wasn’t something they were really comfortable with yet but either way, they’d dropped five of them, the sixth taking off, a bullet hole in his leg. 

You lowered your gun. 

“Gatling,” you panted before snapping and pointing toward the man. “Capture.” 

She shot off like a rocket, her ears pressed flat against her head. The man was no match for her speed and she launched herself at him, her jaws clamping around the man’s bicep as she wrenched his body to the ground. 

You took a deep breath and then looked to Joel’s arm, where there was now a hole in his jacket that the cold air bit through and a small spray of blood. 

“Why do you always find some way to get fuckin’ shot?” You asked, your thumbs gently tracing the outside edge of the small wound. 

“Just talented I suppose,” Joel smiled a little before looking over at Tommy. “You OK?” 

“Fine,” he slung his rifle over his shoulder. “Should question that fucker and get the hell out of here before worse shows up.” 

Joel led the way, drawing his knife. The three of you stood over the man, the same one who’d done all the talking before. He seemed much less cocky now, whimpering as Gatling growled around the meat of his arm. 

“Call off your fucking dog!” He sobbed. “Fuck, please! I’ll tell you whatever you want, please!” 

“Not one to give in to demands like that, but…” Joel looked at you. 

“Gatling,” you said. “Release.” 

The dog dropped the man’s arm and came to stand against your side, her ribs pressed to your leg. Joel caught the man’s shoulder with the toe of his boot and rolled him onto his back. He tried to sit up but Joel stopped him, pressing his foot into the wound from Gatling’s jaws on the man’s arm. He cried out as Joel forced him to the ground and Tommy kicked the man’s gun away. 

“Now,” Joel said, getting down low and putting a knee at the center of the man’s chest. “You’re gonna answer some questions for us.” 

***

Normally, watching Joel hurt someone would turn your stomach. It wasn’t a sight you enjoyed to begin with and you’d never seen him torture someone since you’d known how he learned how to. The fact that he had anything in common with the man bleeding on the ground made your stomach clench. 

But this was different. Savvy was back in Jackson now. There were a lot of lines you were more than willing to cross to keep men like this far, far away from her. Including this one. 

You rested your hand on Gatling’s head, the warmth of her fur comforting and familiar. 

“Look at her,” Joel said, taking the man’s chin in his hand and forcing him to face you before looking at you himself. “You sure you don’t know him? Want to make sure I make this worse if you do.” 

“I’m sure,” you said. It was oddly comforting, his threat. It was good to know that Joel was still Joel, even when doing stuff like this. 

He nodded once and looked back at the man. 

“Count yourself lucky,” he said. “She’s makin’ this easier for you. Now, where are you from.” 

“Territory north west of here,” he panted. “In Idaho.” 

“What brings you down this way?” Joel asked. 

The man was silent for a moment outside of his labored breaths, his eyes closed in a wince. Joel sighed, sounding exasperated before lifting his knife. 

“I’m gonna ask again,” Joel said. “Last time it’ll be nice. Why are you here.” 

“Why should I tell you, hm?” The man spat. “You’re just gonna hurt me, kill me anyway, what goddamn difference does it make?” 

“Now see, that’s just a bad attitude to have,” Tommy said, kneeling next to the man. He grabbed a fistful of his hair and forced his head to turn. “We can make this real hard or real easy. We got a lot of incentive to make this easy. We want to get back home to our families, don’t want to just be out here in the cold for hours on end because you’re being a goddamn dumbass. But, we have shit we need to protect. And if that means stayin’ out here while we take you apart piece by piece until you tell us what we want to know then, well, so be it.” 

“Give you just a second to think about what my brother told you,” Joel said, pressing the tip of the knife to the man’s shoulder but not pushing it in. “And then you can answer now or you can answer later. Why are you here.” 

The man closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep, shuddering breath before opening them again. 

“There are too many of us,” he said. “Too many groups, been fighting over space for the past few years. Decided to work together for a time, find new territory to expand into. Sent us out here to see what might get in the way. Been tracking the territory of a settlement about a day’s walk from here, trying to see where we can push in and what they’ve got to push back…” 

You stiffened, a chill running up your spine. Joel looked up to you, his eyes as concerned as you felt. He looked back at the man. 

“How’s that been workin’?” Joel asked. “How are you tracking it?” 

“We’ve been marking what we think the outside edges are,” he said. “We’ve been pushing in closer, last few months…” 

“Who’re you workin’ with?” Joel asked. 

“What?” The man asked, confused. 

Joel sighed before pressing the knife into the man’s shoulder and he screamed. 

“Don’t ask stupid questions,” Joel said. “The way you were talkin’ about my wife? I really wouldn’t mind taking my time and takin’ you apart. Who are you working with. Want names.” 

“I don’t know!” He sobbed. “Swear I don’t, we run with a guy called Smith, he’s joined up with a couple other guys with groups like his, I don’t know their names…” 

“Try and remember,” Joel growled, pressing the knife deeper. You winced and looked away, trying not think about Joel doing this before. Your stomach turned. “The name Mitchum ring a bell?” 

“No,” the man said quickly. “Please, no, I promise I don’t know the names! Just that there are three or four of ‘em, that’s all.” 

“How far out are the others you’re working with?” He asked. “They gonna be breathing down our necks any second?” 

“No,” he said. “No, they’re a few days walk at least…” 

Joel nodded before he reached out, brushing his fingers over the outside of your thigh, bringing your attention back to him. 

“Any other questions?” He asked you. “Other names?” 

“No,” you shook your head quickly. “Nothing else.” 

Joel nodded, turning back to the man. 

“Can’t let you live,” he said. “You’re a liability. You’re too hurt to get a message back to your people so there’s no point in risking it.” 

“Fuck you,” the man spat and Joel shrugged. 

“Shitty last words,” he said, pulling the knife from his shoulder before quickly slitting the man’s throat. He gasped and burbled on his own blood for a minute before he went still and quiet. Joel wiped his knife clean on the man’s shirt before sheathing it and getting to his feet. He looked to you then, his eyes wide and soft and deep. 

“You with me?” He asked gently. You nodded quickly. He reached out, slowly, to take your face in his hands. His thumbs traced your cheekbones and his eyes looked into yours. “You’re OK? Not…” 

“Yeah,” you said softly, cutting him off. “I’m OK.” 

You weren’t sure how true that was. He pulled you against him, pressing his lips to your forehead before cradling you against him and holding you for a moment. 

“Much as I’m happy you two have worked your shit out,” Tommy said. “We should get moving. Pretty sure he was tellin’ the truth but I don’t want to bet our lives on it.” 

The three of you mounted up again, Gatling settling into her space on the front of your saddle. 

“So,” Tommy said after you’d been riding for a bit. “Am I allowed to ask the obvious question?” 

“Tommy,” Joel said, a warning on his voice. 

“Look,” he replied. “Not tryin’ to hurt anyone or fuck up things between you two. But I’ve got a job to do when it comes to protecting my town and protecting my family and you two are a part of both of those things. Can’t defend from something I don’t know.” 

“You don’t need -” Joel began but you cut him off. 

“Mitchum was the man who held me captive for two years,” you said, staring straight ahead. Gatling gave a small whimper and you scratched her head. Tommy was quiet for what felt like a small eternity.

“He…” Tommy’s voice trailed off. “Two years?” You nodded, not able to look at him. “Two goddamn years?” 

Your jaw tightened and your stomach turned. 

“Two goddamn years and he ain’t dead yet?” Tommy asked, voice shifting to anger as he rounded on Joel. “The fuck have you been doing?” 

“You think he’d still be breathin’ if I knew where to find him?” Joel snapped. “Ain’t that easy.” 

“Should do to that fucker whatever he did to you,” Tommy said, ignoring Joel now. “Why haven’t you mentioned this before? We could’ve helped you, could’ve tried to track him down…” 

“She don’t want to talk about it, Tommy,” Joel hissed. “Leave it.” 

Gatling stretched up to give you a small lick on the chin. 

“Joel’s right,” you said, finally making yourself look at the man who had become as much of a brother to you as the boys you’d grown up with had been. The pity in his eyes almost made you turn away. “I don’t want to talk about it. But you should know that he’s still after me. Joel and I ran into trouble on patrol before. One of the men then was one that… I knew him, from before. He said Mitchum is looking for me. He’s got a crew, at least 50 guys when I got out, and he’s looking for me.” 

“Jesus,” Tommy shook his head for a moment before steeling himself. “He’s not gettin’ his hands on you. We’ll protect you, not going to let him hurt you, you understand me?” 

“I know,” you said, looking straight ahead again. You tried not to think about what the man had just said. That there were groups of men like Mitchum, all bearing down on Jackson. 

“Who all knows?” Tommy asked, calmer now. “About… what happened.” 

“Joel,” you said, though that should have been obvious. “Ellie knows the broad strokes of it. Now you.” 

“Not Savvy?” He asked, frown so evident in his voice that you looked over at him again. He looked sad and you tried not to resent him for it. 

“Don’t need her having that shit in her head,” you said, looking forward again. 

Tommy was silent for a few minutes. 

“I’m really sorry, Bambi,” he said eventually. “You shouldn’t…” 

“I don’t want your pity,” you said, harsher than you’d really meant to. “Just… forget I said anything.” 

“But…” 

“I said fucking forget it, Tommy.” 

The rest of the ride back was quiet and you wanted to fix it. But, more than that, you wanted things to go back to how they’d been before. Where Tommy would give you shit and you’d give him shit back, not where he was going to pity you and handle you with kid gloves. You wanted him to keep being your brother, not someone who kept you at arm’s length because they kept picturing the shit that had happened to you. 

Olivia was at the stable when the three of you made it back and you were almost disappointed that you wouldn’t be able to get lost in handling the horses on your own for a while. When she stepped to the side for a moment, you took a deep breath and turned to Tommy. 

“I’m sorry I snapped at you,” you said, hoping that this would at least start to fix things. “I get that you need certain… information. I just don’t want you seeing me any different.” 

“I don’t,” he gave you a sad half smile. “Just think you’re more badass now, that’s all.” 

You scoffed but he waved you off. 

“I mean it,” he said. “I do. And I’ll keep it to myself, alright?” 

“Thank you,” you said and he pulled you in for a small hug. 

“You might be Joel’s girl,” he said. “But you’re my sister. I’m gonna look out for you. No one’s allowed to fuck with you except me.” 

You laughed a little at that, Tommy reminding you so much of Richie for a moment. 

“I’ll go report out on this patrol,” he said, stepping back from you and looking to Joel. “We got some good information, it’ll help us be ready for whatever’s comin’ our way.” 

Joel nodded, a concerned look on his face. 

“We’ve weathered hard shit before,” Tommy said. “We can handle whatever these assholes have to throw at us. Took a lot to establish our territory here and I’m not afraid to shed a little blood to protect it.” 

He set off and you, Joel and Olivia took care of everything else in near silence, Olivia just filling you in on the goings on while you were gone, seemingly unaware of any tension on the air. 

“Should we go by the doctor?” You asked as you and Joel went to leave, your arms tight across your chest. “See if you need stitches or anything?” 

“No,” he replied, draping an arm over your shoulders and tugging you closer to press a kiss to your temple. “It’s nothing too bad. Just want to get home.” 

You just nodded and let him guide you home, walking in silence, the looming threat from the man Joel had questioned keeping your mind far away. 

But when Joel opened the front door, you weren’t met with a quiet living room. Instead, Ellie and Savvy were sitting on the floor around the coffee table, Uno cards fanned out in their hands. 

“Should never have told you how the draw cards work,” Ellie was muttering, her back to you and her already sizable hand growing as she drew from the deck in the middle of the table. 

Savvy looked up as the door knob thudded into the wall, her eyes finding yours. Her face lit up like she was happy to see you - actually happy to see you. 

“Mom!” She dropped her cards and jumped up. “You’re back!” 

She ran over to you but stopped short of hugging you, looking you up and down before looking at Joel, too. 

“Are you guys OK?” She asked, a little more reserved now, more how you were used to seeing her over the past few months. “Everyone made it through and stuff?” 

“We’re fine,” you smiled, trying to actually be in the room with her instead of worrying about the threat of raiders on the horizon. It was easier, knowing that she actually wanted you there. “Is everything OK? What are you two doing here?” 

“You were gone a little long,” she bit her lip and shoved her hands in her back pockets. “We just… we wanted to make sure you got home.” 

You smiled, reaching out to tuck the stray curl that always popped out from her braids behind her ear. It was an automatic thing, a gesture you’d done countless times since she was a toddler. It didn’t occur to you until your fingers were almost brushing her skin that she might pull back from you now. But she didn’t. She let you touch her, adjusting her hair and cupping her cheek. 

“Missed you,” you said quietly. 

She smiled. It was tight, a little hesitant, but it was a smile.

“I missed you, too.” 

Ellie had gone to the mess hall and brought back dinner for you and Joel and the two of you ate as Ellie and Savvy got Monopoly set up at the kitchen table. The four of you played a game, you paying more attention to explaining things like rents and mortgages and how they’d worked in the real world to Savvy. She crinkled her nose, the concept of money and paying to live inherently foreign to her. Joel kept a hand on your knee for most of it, his thumb tracing a gentle pattern there as you let Savvy clean you out, a small smile on your face every time you had to pay her. 

“Well, some of us have to be up early tomorrow,” Ellie said, stretching, back arched like a cat after she won the game. “C’mon Savvy.” 

“Yeah, alright,” Savvy yawned and tried to stifle it before getting to her feet. 

“It was good to see you,” you said, crossing your arms to keep from reaching for her. “Thank you for staying a while.” 

“Yeah,” she smiled, small but not as tight as it had been lately. “It was good to see you, too.” 

She looked at you for a moment before hesitantly stepping closer. You lowered your arms and forced yourself to keep them at your sides until she reached for you, hugging you. You slowly, cautiously, hugged her back, tears pricking at the corners of your eyes as you held her close. She felt so foreign but so familiar all at once. You’d never had a chance to truly get used to holding her in the body she’d grown into in the years you were apart but she was still so her, smelling and moving the same as she always had.

You held onto her until she pulled away, her awkwardly staring down at your shoes before clearing her throat. 

“Well…” she said. “Goodnight Mom. Joel.” 

“Night,” Joel said, coming up alongside you, one of his large hands splaying wide over the small of your back. 

“Goodnight,” you smiled a little, your voice wet. 

Ellie gave you an encouraging look and followed Savvy out the back door and into the yard. You just stood there, watching them go, until they were inside the shed and the light turned on there. 

“Hey,” Joel said quietly from beside you. You turned enough to look at him. He was watching you closely, frowning slightly. “How we doin’?” 

You frowned. 

“I’m fine,” you said. “Not really sure what you’re asking…” 

“Well,” he looked off to the side for a moment before steeling himself and looking back to you with a heavy sigh. “Back when you first came back to me… You said you might need space sometimes. Today… There was a lot that happened, I had to do some shit that I’m sure ain’t easy to watch and… baby, if you need some distance from me…” 

“Joel,” you said softly, twisting in his gentle hold so your front was pressed against his. You reached up and trailed your fingers through his curls. 

“Want to give you whatever it is you need,” he said as your hands came to rest on his broad chest. He took your wrist gently in his palm and brought it to his lips pressing a kiss into your pulse point. “Even if that’s time away from me.” 

“I don’t want that,” you said. “I just want to know you’re here.” 

He pulled you a little closer, the hand that was on your wrist trailing down your arm before curling around your back. 

“Why don’t we go get cleaned up,” he said, voice low, before leading you upstairs. 

You undressed each other while the shower warmed up. You unbuttoned his shirt slowly, methodically, running your fingers over his bared chest before pressing your lips into him there. You examined the place on his arm where the bullet had grazed him, the cut already scabbing over. 

“You got lucky,” you said, your fingers tracing over the older scars on his body before you kissed just below the new one. 

“Been a lot luckier than I deserve for a while now,” he said quietly. 

Once Joel undressed you, you took his hand and led him into the water. You cleaned him gently, lathering the soap in your hands before running them over his skin, cleaning the blood and dirt from his body and finding every mark on him that you’d gotten to know so well. He washed you in return, his large hands cupping your breasts, trailing over your stomach, your arms, cupping you between your legs with tender care. When you were both clean, you wrapped your arms around his neck and pressed your slick, wet body against his own. His cock - half hard and thick - nestled against your stomach. 

“C’mon baby,” he said, tilting your head so he could look in your eyes while his nose brushed your own. “Let me take you to bed. Don’t want to rush this with you and don’t trust my bum leg to let me take my time in here.” 

You smiled a little and kissed him. 

“Promise you’ll take me to a lake this summer?” You asked. “Because I really want to fuck you in the water.” 

He closed his eyes and laughed, low and needy. 

“Promise, baby.” 

You kissed him again. 

“Then take me to bed.” 

Joel reached behind you to turn off the water and wrapped you securely in a towel before running one quickly through his curls and over his own slick body. You enjoyed the view for a moment - the muscle of his arms and chest, the soft and welcoming swell of his stomach - before starting off toward the bedroom, dropping your towel halfway down the hall and looking back over your shoulder to catch your husband staring at you as you did. 

It didn’t take him long to join you, his hands on your waist soon after you were in your bedroom, turning you to face him. His cock was fully hard as he kissed you, his lips hot and needy against you. You arched into his touch, the feeling of him against you, the taste of him on your tongue. 

He pulled back from you just enough that you could look into his eyes, all molten hot and soft and open, his nose brushing yours, still breathing the same air. 

“Tell me how to take care of you,” he said softly. “Tell me what you need.” 

“Just you,” you said, voice breathy and trembling. “I need to feel you, I need you close.” 

His mouth swallowed your words as he nudged you back down onto the bed. He arranged you in the middle of it, his skin never far from yours, before he settled in the cradle of your hips. His thick length pressed against your slit, making you moan as he kissed down your shoulder to your breast, taking the firm, pebbled part of you into his mouth and sucking you gently. You whimpered, grinding your hips against him. He kissed over your swell of flesh to your breast bone before looking up at you there, his gaze hot and desperate. 

“Needy, are you?” He all but growled before pressing another kiss to your chest. “Don’t worry baby, I’ll take real good care of you. Just let me enjoy you first.” 

He worked his way to your other breast, sucking you there while he cupped and gently toyed with the other one, his cock rocking against your core the whole time. You could feel your pussy starting to drip for him, your grasping entrance desperate for something to hold. 

“Please Joel,” you panted, working your hips up against him as best you could with the weight of him holding you still. “I need you, please, please…” 

He pulled his mouth from your nipple with a reluctant groan before adjusting his hips, your clit throbbing in protest of the loss of contact for a moment before you felt his head notch against your entrance. Joel hovered over you, the soft skin of his chest and stomach ghosting over yours, one of his hands coming to cradle the crown of your head, his thumb tracing tenderly along the peak of your hairline. 

“What do you need?” He asked, sounding nearly breathless himself. “What’s my pretty, perfect wife need, hm?” 

“You,” you whimpered. You didn’t really care if you sounded pathetic, you needed Joel too much. “Inside me, please, please…” 

“Don’t worry baby,” he said. “Give you exactly what you need, always gonna take care of you.” 

You felt him press into you then, his cock opening your tight channel as he sank into you. You closed your eyes and arched into the familiar, pleasant burn of the stretch of him followed by the almost shocking fullness when he was fully sheathed within you. He stilled there for a moment, your body adjusting to his size, and you could feel all of him. He was so close like this, closer than anyone else had ever been. Your body held onto his, your thighs around his hips, hands over his chest, pussy stretched taut over his cock. You could feel every breath he took, every throb of his cock within you. He was yours like this, yours and yours alone. 

“This what you needed?” His voice trembled. You could only nod. He pulled back from you and you whimpered before he thrust back in with a grunt. “Good. Always give you what you need, baby, always.” 

He fucked you hard and slow, his thrusts almost bruising in their force and making your hands leave his chest to twist and tangle in the blankets as your orgasm built. He set his aching rhythm, his tongue sweeping into your mouth and devouring all your needy, fucked out sounds.

Your whole being was drawn in tight and hot when he laced his fingers with yours, pinning your hand to the bed. 

“C’mon baby,” Joel panted as he thrust into you deep and hard. “Let me feel you, just let go for me. You’re OK, you’re here with me, just give in. I’ve got you, baby. Take care of you, just give in, just come for me. Just come.” 

You pressed your hips up against him and came, your fingers tightening around his as your pussy pulsed and throbbed and he fucked you through it. 

Joel didn’t last long, though. Your climax had barely begun to ease when he pressed himself deep and came with a strangled cry. He kissed you as he finished before collapsing onto you for a moment, the heavy weight of him soothing and centering as you came back down to Earth. 

After a minute, he pulled himself gently from your fucked out body and lay beside you, still panting for breath as he watched you next to him. You rolled to face him and pressed yourself close, burying your face in his chest that smelled like soap from the shower with a hint of sweat from what happened after. His hand brushed over your hair and down your back in a gentle, easy cadence. He pressed a kiss into the crown of your head and you felt him take a deep breath, his nose nuzzled into your hair. 

“You with me?” He asked softly. You nodded into his chest. “How’re you feelin’?” 

“After that?” You teased lightly. “I’m great.” 

He chuckled. 

“Not what I meant, love.” 

You took a deep breath, taking the centering scent of Joel into yourself. 

“I don’t know,” you said quietly. “I guess I just… I kept thinking raiders were far away from here. Sure, they were out there, we ran into them sometimes, but they weren’t a problem. Not really. But they’re not, they’re right there and I…” your voice cracked and he pulled you tighter. 

“I know, sweetheart,” he whispered. “M’sorry.” 

“Savvy’s here now,” you said, trying to keep yourself from crying. “Ellie… she goes out there. And now you do, too, and… I know I sound like a goddamn broken record but I cannot survive losing any of you. I can’t. And they just take, they take and take and they won’t stop until there’s nothing left and…” 

You buried your face in his chest, not able to keep going. 

“It won’t be like that this time,” he whispered. “You’re not doing this alone. I’ve got you and anyone who wants to even glance at you or our girls will have to go through me. And good luck keepin’ me from coming home to you.” 

You laughed once at that, the sound thick and wet. 

“I’m going to protect you, Bambi,” he said, his tone serious now. “I promise you. I’ll keep you safe. I’ll keep us all safe.” 

Next Chapter

A/N: I dunno guys, I feel like something might be about to happen.

Could just be me, though.

👀👀👀👀

Thank you, as always, for reading. I really can't say how much it means to me that you're here, that you're so kind and supportive, that you choose to spend your time with this story. I appreciate it so much.

Love you!

Taglist: @ashleymsnodgrass@planet-marz1@kalea-bane @juneswonderlust@ilovepedro @h-annahayy @starstruckmusiciansartghost@beccerjune@mumma-moonchild@netonetoneto@mellymbee@purplelye@n7cje@flugazi@evyiione@randomhoex@aliengirl99@orcasoul@reds-ramblings@pedropascalsbbg @fupoola @tinypotatothing @knopes-waffles @lilmizmoz @ayamenimthiriel@jenispunk@panda-pascal@sarap-77@flugazi@your-slutty-gf@daniegraceg@partyofone3413@cumberpegg@noisynightmarepoetry.@fifia-writes@grumpygrumperton @srmacaroni @txlady37 @bigboiseason123@ashleyfilm

[raccoonsface]

“T-Tara?” Pt.2

____________——————————____________

Words- About 750

Warnings- angst or fluff, idk tbh. Swearing, idk what else

Just to say some stuff, I lost my other emails’ password and that email was connected to my other account so I’m on this one now. Sorry for being gone for so long too!

Summary- Y/n and Tara have a crush on each other and go to great lengths to make sure they have them all to themselves.

————————______________———————-

Part 1

______________————————_____________

“Jeez the suns out early”

Tara has just woken up from her sleep, she was tired from all the running around yesterday.

She almost falls back asleep because of it but then she turns over and takes a look at her clock

“SHIT! ITS 10:30 AM IM LATE FOR SCHOOL”

She rushes to get all of her stuff packed so she can make it to school before lunch, which is at 11:30, so it shouldn’t be that hard… right?

“Okay I’m fucked… I can’t find my keys.”

Oh Well she’s fucked

————————______________———————-

______________————————_____________

Tara’s POV

“I’m gonna fucking die”

I’m not gonna make it there in time, come on Tara run faster. Damn it’s hot out

Fuck I didn’t bring my inhaler, again?!What the fuck Tara, you’re gonna die on the side of the street. I’ve gotta sit down, yeah the sidewalk under this tree looks fine.

“Damn two days in a row”

Is this heaven? Ugh it’s too bright here.

“Hah, no this isn’t heaven Tara” oh it’s Y/n

“Well if it isn’t then what am I doing looking at a goddess” damn what’s going on right now

“Geez don’t you got the pick up lines when you’re literally gasping for air”

She’s funny, and really pretty

“Okay, Tara here you go” Her and that extra inhaler

I mean it definitely feels way better when I can breathe that’s for sure, but every time I look at her I loose my breath anyways so I don’t really see the point in it.

“You good Tara?” So kind

“Huh, oh yeah” me and my dumbass self

“Okay good… what are you doing running out here with a backpack on anyways?” Looking for a princess like you

“Oh- uhm I’m running late for school”

“Huh, I didn’t know there was school on Saturdays” shit of course it’s Saturday, that’s why my alarm didn’t go off.

“Oh… I forgot it was Saturday” oh my god you sound like an idiot Tara!

“Huh, well you need a ride to get home?” I think I’m gonna faint

“Uhm I mean if you’re willing to” Oh. My. God.

“I mean if you want me to” of course I do beautiful.

“Uh I mean yeah sure”

“Okay, yeah, alright uhm my cars over there”

“Right! Right, I gotta get up” oh my god she’s reaching out her hand towards me, oh I’m gonna die when I get home

“Thanks”

“Yeah, no problem” She seems kinda shy.. it’s probably nothing I’m over analyzing

“Damn this car seat is comfy” no like holy shit this is comfy

“Yeah, I know, they’re custom seats.” Of course they are

“Anyways where do you live?” Oh right!

“Oh uhm it’s uhh” me and my damn it stuttering

“You wanna go eat instead? I mean you must be hungry from all that running, and I don’t mean to-“ aww she’s so cute I can’t believe I survived without her before

“I’d love to go out with you- I mean yeah I’m down to go eat with you” what the hell Tara

“Huh, right, anyways where should we go?” Shit I don’t know

“Uhm, let’s go tooooooo…” I have no idea where to go eat

“How about we drive around and figure out where to eat..?” Phew!

“Yeah I think that’s probably the better idea” she’s really smart… she could be my wife..

OKAY NO Tara get yourself together. You cannot do this. But she’s so perfect.. maybe just maybe. I can’t even fight it anymore.. I need her. I need Y/n.

————————______________———————-

Oh my god. A lot has happened in the past two months. The meaning behind this new account is between the warnings and the summary at the top.

Sorry for the short post! They’ll be way more sooner!

I have a three part series for Astrid Deetz, the last two parts will probably come out after the movie is released because I can’t really get much off of her character just from the trailer

Anyways hope you guys have had a nice day!

[bisexualenbyblueberry]

My Favourite Details This Season

Callum pacing and tossing the cube in episode 1 he's just like me fr

"I heard you were up here losing your mind ;)"

"Lots of books, I like books :D"

"I HAVE AN IDEA" "So,,,, what's your idea-" *runs out of room*

"I HAVE A SECRET PLAN" with the most dramatic stage whisper I've ever heard

SNEEZLES IN CALLUM'S SCARF

Pyrrah stretching like a cat

Literally every interaction Soren and Corvus have. The party conversation. "Maybe it's edible" "NO, and PLEASE don't find out" and then Corvus having to tell him to spit it out. "You’re a man of mystery, Corvus ;)))" and "You clearly didn’t learn anything at camp 🙄🙄🙄" “It’s not great.” “Yeah I tried. “Okay” “It’s the effort”. Soren’s head falling onto Corvus’ chest

Janai being so damn tall. I swear to god this woman grows like a foot every season. What is happening to her. Why is she like that

"Wake up kids!" When they arrive at the frozen sea

"It’s literally frozen in time 😮" "it’s literally frozen in ice, it’s figuratively frozen in time"

"The frozen ship, so sad😔"

Rayla sitting on the table reading a book imagining the characters she’s so silly

“Is Rayla crying?? I’M COMING RAYLA 😡😡😡”

“Rayla! I’m here!” *door slams in his face*

"NO PUNCHING THE BOAT" and Callum's facial expression and pose afterwards 😭

Sneezles and Stella being buddies

“Your breath is warm” “Oh…sorry”

The way they SITTT (Karim in his throne, Janai after trying to burn the tree, Soren against the wall in the first meeting, Miyana on the rocks in the second episode, Ezran on his bed, Janai near the tree, Rayla lying on her bed and on the table)

 RAYLLUM ON THE SIDE OF THE SHIP

“ARE YOU BEGGING FOR MERCY?” “NO” “GOOD, YOU DON'T DESERVE ANY” HOLYYYY SHIT

Terry's glasses making their heavily anticipated return

"And this is Rayla- wait, did you want to do your own intro?"

"Welcome to the starscraper 😌" "WELCOME?! YOU NEARLY KILLED US" "Nearly, but the fates seem to have another path in mind for you" "The FATES?! What does that even... is that even an apology?!"

"Okay, you both seem on the nice side, so not to be rude... as if somehow this is ruder than throwing people out from a great height🙄🙄🙄..."

“Wait, is everyone else wearing blindfolds too?” “That is a joke.” “Yeah it was funny 😡”

Astrid saying Callum has greasy hair

STELLA TRYING TO STEAL THE SKETCHBOOK

“Where’d you get that comically large block of ice”

Callum trying and failing to use Rayla’s blade and almost cutting his fingers off

“How do I insult a star spider? 😆 Ezran would know what to do- ow OW HEY”

Astrid’s little trans speech your honor I love her

"This orb.... is a giant peice of candy 😐"

Jack De Sena's voice acting in Kosmo's hallucination?? Hello?? Poured out his heart and soul all for a hypothetical

"A child will die 😠" I'M SORRY IT'S A FINE LINE BUT IT CATERS TOO MUCH TO MY SENSE OF HUMOUR FOR ME TO TAKE IT SERIOUSLY

Wind elk :)))))

The awkward giggles when they're about to kiss that first time

THE VOWS, THE WAY THEY LOOK AT EACH OTHER, THE CEREMONIES??? EVERYTHING ABOUT THE WEDDING IS PERFECT I’M CRYING

The entire “fiscal exercices” conversation 

“HER DAD JUST DIED”

Leola. Just everything about Leola she's just like me fr

Feel free to add on because I certainly will. This list is like 50% unfinished

[illumiera]

see, i've come to burn your kingdom down

or: How Elentari Bellefeuille Ruined the Dark Brotherhood's Day pre-i fear no fate (for you are my fate), 641 words

Astrid has heard of the Dragonborn, of course, long before she turns up in the Falkreath Sanctuary in the grave-dark hours before dawn. Flameheart, they call her, or Dragonslayer, or Ysmir come again, or something far too sentimental in the name of Mara. Not that it matters. In the flesh, she’s a slip of a thing—a slip of a thing some cosmic jokester decided to pit against a god. Poor fool, Astrid thinks with an amused quirk of her mouth. Barricaded the door behind herself and all. It’d be a mercy, really, to end it here. One clean blow—or, well, a few clean or not-so-clean blows, since everyone’s come out to see—as opposed to the inevitable dragonfire.

Better the blade than the burning, always.

“I suppose you haven’t come all the way here and breached our Black Door just to have a chat,” Astrid says lightly, one hand toying with the hilt of the Blade of Woe at her belt. “Shall I assume you’re here on some sort of do-gooder errand? Wipe out the Brotherhood, save the world, everyone’s happy, hm? You wouldn’t be the first to give it a shot.”

The Dragonborn smiles, then, and it cuts across her full lips like a knife.

“Not quite,” she replies in an accent that reeks of Bretic. She’s like a little bird, the way she tilts her head, the way she perches on the balls of her feet as if poised to take flight. “I will not deny that my purpose here is indeed to ‘wipe you out’, as you say,” she allows, “but I’m afraid my motives are far more personal than that.”

“Ah, so this is revenge, is it?” Not uncommon in this line of work, and just as entertaining when they start screaming and cursing and swearing by gods that never look the Brotherhood’s way. “Do enlighten us who it was—or shall I guess? A lover, maybe? No? A friend? A sibling?”

But the Dragonborn just flicks her too-green gaze around, taking in daggers, swords, and scimitars with unblinking impassivity. “You may all draw your weapons, if you’d like, so as not to die without a blade in your hands.”

And Astrid would laugh. She would laugh, but then the Dragonborn’s eyes are blazing silver in the glow of the flames she cups in her palms, and her toes are leaving the ground altogether, and none of their blades will sink into her skin, and maybe there’s the curve of great wings arching at her back, or maybe it’s just the fire, and the fire, and the fire—

—the fire, the Void—

Later, when it is done, Elentari stands with both feet planted in the ashes and releases a slow, steady breath. She’s scorched pure inside, clean and bright as the heart of midwinter, and the world around her is as ringing-sharp as a bell. For a moment, she studies what little remains. Here is where she would go to her knees in the ash, the snow, the dirt. It’s where she would close unseeing eyes with gloved fingers, return weapons to empty hands, and perhaps leave a flower behind for the dead, though she never allows herself to think of why. It’s where she would murmur a prayer to Arkay, most of all, so that the soul may find rest, and so that the last thing the body knows on Nirn is not violence.

Without her prayers, she thinks, these assassins will be damned wanderers. Untethered, their spirits will walk and walk in the ashes for eternity, even as the scorched earth turns anew and wildflowers spring between their bones.

Elentari does not kneel. She breaks apart the barricade with a whispered Word, steps out into the light of the rising sun, and listens to the wolves howling in the woods all around her.

[m4rs-ex3]

* s6 spoilers *

i i cant even lets just

well first that ol bri'ish chav in the beginning i'm assuming is one of the celestial elves because skywings. brits

ok the thangs in the pillars look exactly like viren's staff. considering viren's staff most certainly came from aaravos i'm guessing these are like ~ relics from the great ones. ~ i'm hoping this means that his doesn't have one of the quasar diamonds like we thought

hmmm

so this was what that fucking vegetable steamer was about

whatcha got in that jar there astrid. huh. jars haven't been very good things in this show thus jar

ok considering this bloke is the one with the magic wings the wristlets are definitely what gives rayla her wings

so. so uhhhhh. i uhhhhhhhh. i literally do not know what to do with this. absolutely everything is pointing to this being runaan (and frankly i hope to god it is because BANGSS?!?!?!?!??!) but i know damn well it's not the real runaan because. as you might recall he's missing a horn (also the arm but that could be explained)

so how we feelin. i mean at least he looks cool. ok so the way he's in finnegrin's quarters on the sea legs has me almost certain this is a dream sequence ok it's a dream sequence say it with me its a dereama fseqeuence iTS' A DREAM SeQUENC#E

6x01 in the wild

holy shite what in garlaaths name is terry doing in the valley of the graves? fuck if i know but i'm digging it

did they just blow ezran up

she's fine. rayla's fine

GIRLYYYYYYYY

i am so fucking hyped for this this specifically couldn't even tell you why

6x01 in the wild

anyway this is my new favorite meme template

[dragonmasterhiccup]

My question may be a bit ridiculous but I still want to ask based on your analysis,

In the HTTYD series, Hiccup was always called "Fishbone" because he was born prematurely, yes, he was like that in the first movie and he couldn't even lift a bucket of water, but in the next movies, the armor he wore was mostly made of iron pieces. In order to prevent hard falls and to soften the blows, the thickness of the iron should be thicker than normal, right? Technically, it would probably be like that. Okay, back to the question, damn.. I forgot the question I was going to ask. Okay wait, it takes physical effort to lift that much weight, but when we examined his costume, and even in the first scene of the movie, during the secret attack, we saw a soldier say to Hiccup "People don't have such fishbone legs!" (That's how it was in my language, I can't remember the English version, excuse me.) So.. is this physically possible???

To be honest, it's a question that has been on my mind for days before going to bed and has been keeping me awake for ridiculous reasons..

Not ridiculous at all! It's a great question!

I did a little research just to be sure, but it is entirely possible to be lean and strong, it does have to do with how you exercise though. It's like with gymnasts, they are incredibly strong, but also can be on the leaner side.

I also had to scroll back a bit on my blog to reference this post that also talks about Hiccup's strength.

I don't think it's ever explicitly stated when he started working in the forge with Gobber, but smithing does take a considerable amount of muscle, not to mention just holding on to Toothless while he flies. Using his flight suit as well must use a good amount of strength. Now, based on how quickly he made Toothless' tail, I'm guessing he had been in the forge a couple years at least. There are headcanons that he was sick a lot growing up, and that could also explain why he's so small for his age and not as strong in the first movie as he is a few years later in Race to the Edge and the other two films.

I like the fishbone callback! In English, I believe the line was "No human has legs that skinny!"

Do animated films play a little with the laws of physics? Definitely!

But, we do see many instances proving that Hiccup is stronger than he looks. I'll just name a few off the top of my head:

• Knocking Dagur off a cliff

• Knocking Toothless off a cliff

• Stopping a man twice his size wielding an axe with rope that Hiccup is holding taught (I literally had to rewind and make sure I had seen that right, but it's true! He does)

• Catching and carrying Astrid when she was dead weight easily

These examples are all from Race to the Edge, I'm sure there are some from the movies, but those are just what came to mind first.

And you're right, his armor definitely isn't light. Based on the color, it's probably not Gronckle iron since it has a specific coloring and a distinct pattern (though that would make more sense for his armor, as it's known to be lightweight and incredibly strong). The pieces do look thick, at least a 1/4-1/2 inch maybe (at least the shoulder pieces, but don't quote me on that), and wearing it as much as he does is bound to build up muscle.

It does appear that Hiccup takes more after Valka physically, and she is lean and definitely muscular as well. I'm no expert, but the fluidity in which she moves using her staff and while standing on Cloudjumper proves that she's strong while staying on the thinner side.

Since Hiccup is often underestimated due to his size and age, I like that this is another area where he takes people by surprise.

[overtrred28]

Stargirl | matildas x original character fic [part ten]

Words; 3.1k

Pairings; matildas team x astrid taylor (OC)

Warnings; none (that im aware of, if there is something lmk)

A/N; hope you are enjoying these xx

masterlist

The team headed straight to the media room after breakfast for their pre match chat. The team filed into the room, chatting or laughing amongst themselves before sitting down. Once everyone was settled Tony walked up to the projector. 

“Hi. It’s so great to see the team together again.” He smiled brightly at the group. “It’s been more than four months. It’s now putting the national team hat on, right? Remember what we are doing here.”  Everyone focused on what he was saying. “I want to thank you for the patience that you’ve had ‘cause we’ve played the toughest schedule in the history of this program in terms of top-ranked teams this year. And at the same time we introduced 17 debutants.” Kyra nudged Astrid’s shoulder at this, Astrid smiling at the girl beside her.

“So, sometimes the result on the scoreboard might not have been what we wanted it to be. But package everything that we learnt up until now and start getting more consistency, cohesion, chemistry, we got the foundation now.” Everyone dodded along to Tony’s words. 

“323 days. That’s the number of days left until the first game in the world cup.” Tony pointed at the screen which then revealed a ‘46’. “What’s that?” He smirked as the room stayed quiet. 

“Days we’re in camp together?” Astrid spoke softly in the room. Tony nodded while making eye contact with the young player. 

“Days we’re in camp together. About three days per camp goes to travel and recovery. That means 32 days of football together before we announce a roster and come here and prepare for the World Cup.” Tony looked around the room again. Astrid’s heart dropped at the mention of the World Cup, it seemed so far away but it was officially less than a year.  “That’s 11 games. That’s what we got. Before announcing the World Cup roster, 11 games. That means we can’t waste one single minute.” The room was silent with the heaviness of the conversation. 

The team made their way out to the bus to take them to the stadium. Everyone always sat by themselves for the ride to the stadium, playing their own music and getting in game mode. 

Astrid wanted to focus on the game ahead but her mind kept drifting to the earlier mention of next year's FIFA Women’s World Cup on home soil. She knew that if she wanted to be even considered for that 23 roster then she would have to work damn hard at both club level and national level before then, especially because so many senior and regular players were already a shoe in. 

They finally arrived and made their way to the changeroom, putting on their boots and making their way to the pitch for pre-match training. After everyone made their way out, Kyra, Astrid and Charli being the last like always, Jack Sharkley the head sports scientist clapped for everyone to join him. 

“Alrighty, let’s go for a jog shall we?” He looked particularly to Astrid who always had something to say about that first warm up, usually groaning and complaining every time. 

“Let’s go.” Astrid simply said and left everyone shocked. 

“You feeling alright there, kiddo? You didn’t groan or complain.” Sam remarked as she ran alongside Astrid who rolled her eyes at the captain. 

“Piss off.” Astrid laughed and shook her head.

After their warmups, drills and skills practise it came time for Astrid’s favourite part of training; scrimmages. Normally Sam and Steph would have separate teams but today they were on the same one, Astrid taking Caitlin’s usual position who was over on the bikes with Chloe. 

The game began and Sam’s side was taking good control, once again having both Kyra and Astrid together on that right side. 

“Kyra.” Astrid called for the ball, the midfielder sending it directly to Astrid in free space. Astrid kept the ball with her, dancing around the defenders to find Sam in the centre. 

“Good, kid, over here.” Sam yelled praise to the young player, catching the ball from her and heading for the goal. A little while later Steph walked off the field, hurting her hamstring after clearing a corner, very soon after Tameka had come off too.

“We’re a man down. Kyra, drop.” Sam called out after noticing Steph missing from her defender spot. “Astrid, move it back and I’ll come out here.” Astrid and Kyra followed her instructions and the game continued. 

The game wrapped up and everyone was tired and/or sore. 

“We’re dropping like flies here.” Astrid commented softly as she saw a few players with ice packs on muscles and the physios watching with caution. 

“Your ankle holding up?” Charli stood beside her, looking at Astrid who began rolling it around and testing it. 

“Yeah it’s good. Promise.” She looked up at the older girl who was still concerned it wasn’t 100% just yet, but it was feeling better than ever. 

A few short hours later and the game had kicked off at Suncorp Stadium against Canada. 11 minutes in and Canada secured a goal from distance after a free kick. The halftime whistle had blown and the score was 1-0 to Canada and Alanna had come off a few minutes prior with a hamstring injury, Aivi taking her place. 

Play restarted and after some substitutions in the midfield, Tameka and Cortnee coming on with fresh legs, it seemed a little more promising. Astrid was told to get ready to sub in for Emily Van Egmond, shuffling their previous 4-4-2 positioning to a 4-3-3 and have Astrid take that left position alongside Sam and Mary up the front, like they discussed at halftime.

A break in play and Astrid keeps her legs moving as she waits for Emily to come off, the players exchanging a double high five before running to her position at the 78th minute. Play resumed instantly and even with many good shots at goal from so many players, nothing seemed to be working for them. Official full time had ended and 4 minutes of extra time was added.

At 93 minutes the ball had been kept in possession by the Matildas, Gorry stealing it and shooting it over to Kyra on the left wing. Kyra darted with it between the Canadian defence, spotting both Sam and Astrid near the goal but the latter had a lot more free space, sending it over her way. She was at the edge of the box when she caught it, no room to run but could spot a narrow spot between her and the goal. 

She struck with her right foot, aiming for the top right corner and as the ball approached the keeper jumped high, but not high enough. It was close to hitting the bar and missing the shot but as it came in it curved ever so slightly, touching the net, rippling as it stayed in. 

The home crowd was up on their feet, all 25,000 fans erupting in cheers. Astrid took off running to Kyra in the midfield, jumping into her arms screaming, everyone else coming to pile on top. 

And in the 93rd minute Australia equalises with Canada. Number 31 Astrid Taylor in her return to the pitch after an ankle injury last time playing for the Matildas against the Philippines. 18 years old, recently joined the Swedish league and then scored that beautiful goal against Spain a few months ago in that tough friendly. What a return to the game. 

Astrid was beyond happy after the ball fell into that net, finally bringing them equal with Canada. Two minutes later and the final whistle blew, and a draw 1-1 with the Olympic Champions. 

The team was very happy they were able to leave the game with an equal scoreline and very grateful Astrid was able to score that last minute goal. Astrid had been beckoned over for a post-match interview, wiping the sweat from her face before appearing on camera. 

“How was it scoring that goal so close to the end of play?” The producer of their ‘Behind the Matildas’ youtube series asked.

“Yeah it was crazy. I mean I was very much expecting it to bounce off that post or for Sheridan to push it away, but it was a big relief when it did go in.” She laughed softly. “I think at that point a lot of people thought it would end in Canada’s favour, but I knew we had a few more minutes in us. And keeping our spirits up so late in the game can be hard but when you’ve only been on the pitch for like 15 minutes, there’s a little extra fight and determination to turn it around so late.” She smiled at the camera. 

“Thanks.” The filming stopped and the crew nodded at her, indicating she was done. She muttered a quick thanks and walked off to be with her team. 

“You owe me a coffee.” An arm fell onto her shoulder and the voice of Kyra got close to Astrid. 

“Yeah, yeah. I’ll get you one tomorrow.” Astrid rolled her eyes at the older girl, bringing her own arm to rest on Kyra's shoulder as they walked down the tunnel. “But you realise I was also right.” She turned to her with a smirk.

“About what?” Kyra asked, confused to what she was talking about. 

“I told you last night that you would start today. And I was right.” She crossed her arms over her chest. 

“I guess you were then.” Kyra smiled at the younger girl, pulling her into her side as they headed for the change room. 

Only two days later and the team had touched down last night in Sydney for match day-1, currently heading to the newly rebuilt Allianz Stadium for their training session. Astrid’s parents had secured tickets to come see her play in person for the first time since her final Sydney FC game and she could not be more excited to see them again, this now being the longest she’s been away from them.

The team piled into the changeroom and began to get ready for their warm up, all watching as Alanna set up a speaker in the middle of the room, confused as to what the defender may be putting on. 

The intro to ‘My Heart Will Go On’ begins to play and the room erupts in laughter at the song choice. Instantly everyone begins singing along, Alanna beginning a piece of interpretive dance to the song.  

“Once more, you open the door!” Their captain sings into a water bottle in front of the camera. 

“YOU’RE HERE! THERE’S NOTHING I FEAR.” The room sings, the loudest singing now coming from Astrid who was standing on her cubby bench, gesturing with passion to Kyra next to her who was laughing at her antics. 

“Get down child.” Macca yells at Astrid who pouts and jumps down, putting her cleats on as the song dies down and their regular playlist begins to play, Sam dragging the speaker with her as they leave the room to walk to the pitch. 

Training had concluded, Alanna was already ruled out from the last game and now Steph was a worry too, her hamstring issue from the other day still not 100%. 

“Let’s bring it in everyone, staff as well.” Tony called and the team had now assembled into a small circle at the edge of the pitch, some sitting and stretching, others having a drink break after a scrimmage. “Er, have to say, I love what I saw out there today. How you took ownership for your performance, how you communicated. I loved what I saw.” He smiled at the girls. “Let’s show what we’re about tomorrow in that game. And to make sure we have memory from that, let’s get together really quick so Ann can grab a photo of us all in the sun on the pitch. Just a quick picture.” Everyone began standing up and moving to open space on the pitch. 

“Viney, help me please.” Astrid looked up at Cortnee with her arms out. 

“Fine.” The older girl grabbed her hands and pulled her up fast. 

“Thanks.” She put her arm over the forward’s shoulder, walking with her to where the group had gathered, both plopping down to the ground where there was a gap between Lydia and Kyra. “Ooo I get to be next to Kyra!” She placed her head on Kyra’s shoulder with a smile. 

“Alright, everyone in.” Ann shouted to catch everyone's attention. The shutter of cameras going off. “Thankyou.”

“Ann, get in on one.” Tony called out. 

“Run!” Astrid yelled and everyone laughed, cheering Ann on as she ran over to the group quickly. 

“Yes, Ann!” Sam clapped as she slotted in. More photos were taken and as soon as the photographer gave them a thumbs up they all jumped up. 

The next day rolled around quickly and before they knew it, the starting line ups were making their way onto the pitch. The energy in the stadium was crazy, so many people were there to watch the Matildas and you could feel their passion radiating down to the players. 

The game kicked off with Emily Van Egmond and although Canada took possession pretty easily, it didn’t take long until it was back to the Matildas. A magical passing sequence between Cortnee, Sam and Mary and within two and a half minutes Mary had opened the scoring with a magnificent goal. The girls on the pitch and the bench cheered, the crowd was maybe the loudest it’s ever been. 

They went into halftime, up 1-0 and spirits a lot higher than the last game, having a stronger defence and the forwards plenty of shots on target but just falling short or being stopped by Canada’s goalkeeper. 

“Astrid.” Tony called her over as the players made their way to the changerooms for the break, she ran over to him. “Come with me, I’m putting you on for Vine, we need fresh legs.” She simply nodded and followed him to a small room, immediately hopping on a bike to warm up while he spoke about the next half. 

The second half began and Astrid was already on the pitch in the right wing position, ready for the next 45 minutes. It’s not a position she normally plays in but she had to take every chance to be on that pitch and making her mark, especially with World Cup talk looming over their heads.

The whistle blew and they were on. Although the Australian defence was strong it didn’t seem strong enough in those first 10 minutes, Leon scoring two goals within minutes of each other and taking the lead 2-1. Astrid fought hard on that right side, connecting with Charli, Gorry and Mary for shots at goal but again nothing wanted to go in or slot past Sheridan. 

It’s finished here at Allianz Stadium. Matildas 1, Canada 2.

Everyone stood still on the pitch, looking around at the crowd before them, seas of green and gold filling the stands. Astrid was exhausted, that was the longest game she’s played for the Matildas and she could feel it, but she made her rounds and congratulated the opposition and found Kyra, Courtney and Charli. 

“Hey.” Courtney’s voice was soft as she saw Astrid approach them.  

“Hey star.” Charli still managed to smile at her, pulling her into her side with one arm. 

“Hi.” Kyra did the same on the other side, Astrid wrapping her arms around their waists, Courtney tagging on beside Charli. 

“Wanna go find my parents with me?” She looked between them, all silently nodding and beginning to walk together to where friends and family were at the barricades. Her eyes searched for them and they finally landed on 2 of the only people wearing her jersey number. “Mum, dad!” She let go of the girls when she spotted them, waving as she ran to them. 

“Hi my darling.” Her mum, Joanna, looked like she was about to start crying as they hugged over the barrier. “I’m so proud of you.” She whispered into her ear, squeezing her tighter. They let go so she could move and hug her dad.

“Hey sweetie, I’ve missed you.” Her dad, Mark, pulled his daughter close. 

"I've missed you too." She nodded into his shoulder, trying not to cry from both happiness and sadness at being with her parents again. They pulled apart and she turned to the three people standing behind her, waving them to come closer.

"Guys, this is Charli, Courtney and Kyra. The rest of the Sweden Squad." She smiled.

“Thank you for taking care of my girl over there and when you guys are on camp, it means alot to know she’s not alone.” Her mum smiled at the girls whose hearts had swelled up. 

“Of course, she’s our stargirl.” Charli donned her signature smile, pulling Astrid into her side and holding Courtney close to her other side. 

“She’s in completely safe hands.” Kyra added herself onto the other girls, squeezing all of them together. 

“Totally.” Courtney put on her best smile, nodding along.

“I don’t know about that.” Astrid laughed with Charli, Kyra and Courtney’s jaws dropping. 

“We are perfectly responsible adults and we’ve kept you alive so far. Making sure you're fed and watered. So…” Kyra pointed out, Courtney nodding along in agreement.

“I’m not a plant.” Astrid emphasised. 

“I didn’t say you were. But we did take care of you while you were injured.” Kyra argued back, the people surrounding laughed at her and Kyra’s interaction. 

“Alright you two. We better get going before you rip each other's heads off or Tony does for taking too long.” Charli intervened finally, pushing some distance between the pair. 

“It was lovely meeting you ladies, and well done on the game today, you all played wonderfully.” Joanna smiled at the older girls who surrounded her daughter. 

“Love you, mum.” Astrid hugged her again, squeezing her tight. “I’ll talk to you soon okay?” She pulled away and moved over to her dad. 

“You make me so proud. I love you.” Mark reached over the barrier, placing a kiss on her head before they parted. “Go on.” He nodded to where the team was beginning to disappear down the tunnel. 

“Bye.” They all spoke in unison, waving goodbye to the couple, Charli wrapping her arm around Astrid who donned a sad look on her face. 

Astrid was beyond grateful these girls had come into her life, especially while living so far away from her family, they became her family. The rest of the team had become her family too but the Sweden squad was something else, something special. 

to be continued...

[evilwriter37]

💜 for the OT6? It can just be Hiccup and one of the other Riders (NOT Astrid)

Hiccup didn’t want to let go of Ruffnut’s hand, but he had to. She had to learn how to fly on her own with the baby Razorwhip. 

He let his fingers linger as he let go. He couldn’t help staring at her as she flew. Even in her trepidation and anxiety she looked radiant, beautiful. He loved the way the wind stroked through her hair.

“You’ve got this, Ruff,” he encouraged. “Keep your hips straight.”

Ruffnut followed his instructions, and he could see that flying became a little easier for her. 

They didn’t go for long, as Hiccup’s flight suit was more for gliding than gaining any actual altitude. The landing was a little rough, Ruffnut making an exclamation as her feet touched the ground, tumbling forward. Hiccup managed to catch her before she could faceplant in the grass.

“Great job!” Hiccup was still holding onto her. She was breathing hard, shaking a little.

“How do you do that?” Ruffnut asked, tugging at one of the wings on Hiccup’s flight suit. “That was… that was scary.” 

“Well, you did excellent.” 

“Why are you smiling at me like that?” Ruffnut asked after a pause. She’d straightened, was still in Hiccup’s arms. 

Hiccup got the very sudden urge to kiss her, gods be damned who saw. He leaned his head down and did just that, pressing his lips to hers.

Ruffnut made a sound of surprise, but didn’t pull away. She smiled against his lips, one hand going to his chest, the other on his shoulder. 

Hiccup liked that. He wanted to hold her forever, cocoon her in his wings. He went to do that, to touch her back, but Wingnut squawked in alarm and discontent. He’d forgotten about him for the moment.

“Sorry!” Hiccup cried, pulling his hands away. Wingnut popped his head up over Ruffnut’s shoulder to give him a squinted glare.

Ruffnut laughed. “Hiccup, what if someone saw?” 

Hiccup shrugged, reluctantly letting go of her. “Well, if they did then they’d just see how much I love you.”

“Yeah, but aren’t we supposed to keep us—all of us—a secret?” Ruffnut sounded worried. 

Hiccup sighed. “Yeah, I suppose we are.” He still couldn’t help smiling though. “You did great, Ruffnut. You’ll ace this test. I’m sure of it.”

Ruffnut looked around furtively for any nearby gazes, and when seeing that they were alone, gave Hiccup a quick peck on the lips. “That’s for helping me.” 

Hiccup smiled. He wanted to reach for her hand, hold it like he had in the skies, but for now, their relationship would remain a secret. 

[muzaktomyears]

Inspired by the remarkable Astrid, John and Paul had returned from Germany with two new items in their baggage – cameras, which they had bought there. Their original intention may have been to try and capture in Liverpool some of the vividly contrasting studies in light and shade in which the artistic Astrid had specialized, but it didn’t exactly work out like that. At the Cavern they set themselves up as glamour cameramen – with distinctly sexual overtones.

John started the ball rolling, or rather the shutter clicking. He would single out a fan at one of our lunchtime sessions, chat her up and proposition her about posing for some pictures. Afterwards he would regale us with the intimate details. “Got her with her briefs on!” he would chuckle. “Couldn’t get her bra off – but cooooo!”

After this Paul decided to jump on the bandwagon. After the Cavern appearances out would come the cameras from their leather jackets and then the search for talent would begin. The pair of them were not yet advanced enough in photography to develop or print themselves so the films would go to a chemist – who frequently blacked out the more meaty poses and sent back only the decent ones. Those that escaped censorship usually showed girls straddling chairs, girls showing a leg or two, girls with a leg in the air, girls minus some of their clothing. One girl named Pat became so hooked that she went into business as a model, taking it all really seriously, which John and Paul certainly didn’t.

Although George and I didn’t take up the hobby we had the same sexual appetites and enjoyed the results of their endeavours which we all crowded round to see. John, who didn’t mind describing himself as ‘a great wanker from way back’ was highly delighted with some of his efforts. “I’ve had a great session,” he would tell us, “I pulled a couple of birds – but not a word to Cyn!”

Cynthia would often arrive at Mathew Street for our evening appearances – and so perhaps would a girl who had been posing for John in the afternoon. When the girl beamed a knowing smile his way he would switch off, as if he had never seen her before in his life or, if near enough, give a quick innocuous ‘Hello’, for fear of Cynthia stumbling on to his secret.

To us he would enthuse about the poses, with descriptive phrases such as: “When we started off she just sat on the stool. Then I got her to show a bit more leg, then a bit more. And then she took her sweater off. Fantastic afternoon – I’m buggered!”

“But you’ve only been taking photographs!” George or I would comment, mock-innocently.

A chemist who handed back only a few prints would be quickly upbraided with: “Where’s the rest of the reel?”

“Sir,” he would be told, “we do not print this kind of pornography.”

“What about the negatives?” John wanted to know.

“We’ve confiscated them.”

“Bloody prude,” was how John dismissed him.

He was convinced that these offending chemists were perverts at heart who spent most of their time ‘out back wanking themselves off’ over his labours in the cause of art.

“And what do I get out of it?” John would lament. “Just a bunch of these rotten stills!”

George and I would rib him: “But it’s the other ones we want to see – not these.”

“So do I,” he would grunt. “Sod off!”

We also used to send up some of the girls who posed for these budding David Baileys.

“Had your photographs taken then, have you?” we would wink.

“How’d you know?”

“Been looking at a couple of snaps. Still wearing black drawers?”

It was all in good humour and the girls knew damn well that the ‘art studies’ of them weren’t going to be kept under lock and key somewhere. These glamour sessions were usually held in accommodation provided by the girls. I doubt Paul’s dad would have stood for it at his home, or John’s Aunt Mimi at hers.

Beatle! The Pete Best Story, Pete Best and Patrick Doncaster (1985)

[iminsomanyfandomsitscrazy]

I absolutely LOVE when Donna tells 14 “why don’t you do something completely different and have some friends?” Because it always felt like Ten had the feeing of loneliness hanging over him***. While we see it somewhat with other Doctors, we see it with Ten a sh*t ton more than any other Doctors.

We see it in the infamous “I just want A mate! A mate!” in Partners in Crime to Donna, as well as the heartbreaking “they’ve all got someone else, and that’s fine” in Journey’s End that we all know and get murdered over.

As well as when he tells Jackson Lake that he no longer travels with any companions because in the end all the companions he travels with “break my heart” in The Next Doctor which nobody ever acknowledges even though it’s one of the most heartbreaking things Ten says. Whenever people bring up the heartbreaking things Ten had said, they almost never include that.

But in terms of him not wanting really to have any friends, we see in Voyage of the Damned after he loses Astrid and everyone else he’d become close with on the Sto Titanic, he tells the only other person in his friend group that survived (the dude with the “degree” in Earthonomics) that he’s “better off alone”. (Especially since Astrid had taken up his offer to join him on the TARDIS and then sacrificed himself).

And in Planet of the Dead he tells and acknowledges when Christina brings it up that they would make a perfect team, but that he “travels alone” because he can’t take losing anyone else.

And in contrast to when he says that he now “travels alone” in Voyage of the Damned but then switches tone when he’s reunited w/ Donna and not only changes his stance bc he already knows Donna, but because we see that while traveling he keeps on talking aloud and then looking up and we see it sink in that he’s struggling being alone and he truly just wants “a mate”. (And to be honest, when he tells that man that it’s cuz Martha had left him not too long ago, and he just lost Astrid a few hours prior. But by that time, he’d “only” - which oh my god, is that heartbreaking - lost Rose (once), lost Astrid via her sacrificing herself, and lost Martha via her leaving him for her and her family (which once again, he understands completely, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt)).

But once we get to Planet of the Dead, he lost Rose twice, lost Donna, Martha left him (and tho he totally, 100% understood and respected her decision, he still did lose her), he lost Astrid, he lost Jenny, he watched River sacrifice herself, and though he didn’t know her well, he A) knew that she would be important to him later on, and B) gotten to like and respect her, and of course, he can’t stand having to sit by and watch anyone die, whether he knows them or not. When we get to Planet of the Dead, he’s made himself believe that he’s better off alone because he can’t stand losing any more people. He’s lost wayyyy to many people in a span of just a few years, and his hearts understandably can’t handle any more loss. And!!!!! In Journey’s End, Stavros makes the Doctor think of everyone whose sacrificed themself for him. Which then hangs over his head and (understandably) breaks his heart and kills him. When Stavros points that out, Ten’s faced with remembering all those people - from the very start (1x02) to one of the most recent episodes with the stewardess - and it hits him like a brick, and then Rose tells him that Harriet Jones sacrificed herself for him earlier that day, and it just destroys and kills him.

He’s lost so much more than most people can handle. The amount of loss and heartbreak he went through would kill most people, and like he told Donna in The Star Beast losing her killed him. We see in The End of Time Part 2 when he asks Joan’s great-granddaughter if Joan was happy in the end and her great-granddaughter says “yes” she then asks “you?” and the Doctor’s expression just tells it all: no.

And losing Rose? The one person he believed in? Over all the gods and Demi-gods he’d met? It killed him and tore his hearts into a billion pieces.

Losing her again? He didn’t survive that. While he was able to comfort himself because he was able to give her the life she deserved and wanted, and Tentoo could spend the rest of his life with her (which is the complete opposite to when Ten days in The School Reunion that she can spend the rest of her life with him, but he can’t spend the rest of his with her), it didn’t help to mend both his hearts. That comfort couldn’t piece together the billion pieces his hearts were in.

Martha leaving? Tore him apart.

Losing Astrid? Tore him apart.

Losing Jenny? Tore him apart.

Watching River sacrifice herself? Tore him apart, watching helplessly while someone - and! someone who he knew would later be important to him - die.

Hell, losing Madame de Pompadour? That hurt.

***I’m just using “he” pronounce throughout this because I’m talking about Ten specifically, who presents as male, even if “he” is not totally correct.

[inafieldofdaisies]

OCs as other characters | quiz | Tagged by @corvosattano @euryalex and @cassietrn

Way back I did this quiz for Sabrina, and I thought since it's making rounds again it would be fun to see what characters Mercedes would get.

Margaery Tyrell (Game of Thrones): 94% - no idea here Jordan Baker (The Great Gatsby): 92% Samantha Jones (Sex and the City): 89% Maeve Millay (Westworld): 89% - awake while everyone else is stuck in a loop, sets on working against the system Satine (Moulin Rouge!): 88% Frank Abagnale (Catch Me If You Can): 86% Mercedes Jones (Glee): 85% Sabrina Spellman (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina): 84% Astrid Leong-Teo (Crazy Rich Asians): 83% - Listen, I adore Astrid, and her “it's not my job to make you feel like a man. I can't make you something you're not.” line is forever my favorite. She's an absolute legend. Lucifer Morningstar (Lucifer): 82% Blair Waldorf (Gossip Girl): 80% Love Quinn (You): 80% - if we're talking her book version (just in Hidden Bodies!), yes (especially her going at such great lengths for Joe and accepting his dark side), if it's the TV one... I'd say no. Book Love was a rich girl that threw away her panties after wearing them one time, she was strange and I loved her for it (then Caroline ruined her completely🙂). Dolores Abernathy (Westworld): 79%

Some of the higher % characters I didn't know too much about to discuss in detail, then as I started going down the list, I ended up with quite a few I'm aware of, so I'd be focusing more on those. First, hilarious she has a result with another character named Mercedes. I'm so damn proud she got Maeve, like the way I adore her as a personality, then I saw Lucifer and was like: HELL YES... she absolutely becomes what people truly desire (see what I did here). There's quite a lot of characters that love the lavish life (fitting as hell), are super charismatic and use that charisma to get ahead (so true about her) and also are looking for their true purpose/dream of something bigger (Dolores and Maeve, Mer too has lost the person she was once upon a time, after spending such a long time wearing different masks, to a point she has no idea if she's being liked for herself or her ability to appeal to people's nature). So yeah, I'd say those results nailed her.

Tagging @socially-awkward-skeleton @direwombat @madparadoxum @florbelles @aceghosts @chazz-anova @clicheantagonist @nightbloodbix @jillvalentinesday @josephslittledeputy @josephseedismyfather @g0dspeeed @simplegenius042 @thesingularityseries @trench-rot @dumbassdep @wrathfulrook @voidika @theelderhazelnut @strangefable @adelaidedrubman and anyone that would like to do the tag <3

[toastthewolfie]

tw: death (suicide)

anyways. Back to issac angst (because i want selena to be happy for a bit and wanna write out a decent ish storyline for it and i dont have too many ideas for astrid.

I’ve mentioned that issac has a younger sister who he pretty much parented up until he was kicked out for being trans. Well, a few months into Issac joining Shadow Company and him reconnecting with her, she ends up killing herself via overdose. She just couldnt take the shit from her parents and it also didnt help that her boyfriend at the time wasn’t great and decided that death was the best way out. That was the way Issac’s mother got in contact with him for the first time in almost half a decade. The second Issac got the news he really just went through a stage of functioning purely on autopilot. His little sister is dead and his mother and father (if he can even call them that) blowing up his phone to try and force him to reconnect (it doesn’t work thankfully, he simply blocked the two of them because he can handle some shit, but them dissing his little sister? Fuck no. (Of course, this does lead to his mother showing up to a party she knows he’s at and spooking him so badly he ends up running like 8 miles out of pure fear)) and he doesn’t want to be seen as weak or anything (he’s already a very skittish person. He did not want anyone getting any other ideas) so what else is there to do than to pretend everything is fine?

What else can he do but force a smile and zone out whenever he thinks no one’s looking. What else is there to do than brush off concern as being tired only to get back to his barrack and just wrap himself in his blanket and stare blankly at a wall while trying not to cry?

He’s still not over it, but god be damned, he won’t utter a single word about it.

[minijenn]

Jen Tortures Herself With Every Dreamworks Animated Movie Ever: How To Train Your Dragon

Fucking FINALLY I can gush about this goddamn MASTERPIECE of a fucking movie, and the source of my newest obsession cause oh my god, ya'll oh my god this FRANCHISE is RUINING ME and it may not be why I decided to understake this entire Dreamworks watch to begin with (for better or worse, but worth it to get to watch through this trilogy again).

We focus on Hiccup, a young viking who's out of place among the other dragon-killing vikings on Berk, especially his stern father, Stoick. During a dragon raid one night, Hiccup accidentally shoots down a Night Fury, said to be one of the most dangerous dragons of all. Slowly but surely, however, Hiccup secretly befriends this dragon, which he names Toothless, while in the midst of dragon hunting training alongside Berk's other young vikings, Astrid, Snotlout, Fishlegs, Ruffnut, and Tuffnut.

So this story is so damn good, so fucking good, its so simple, so rooted in the emotions of it all, of Hiccup being torn between wanting to live up to his father's expectations while also growing closer with Toothless and coming to sympathize with dragons in general. As a result, we get some of the strongest emotional highs and lows in really any Dreamworks movie, and it all works so well and flows so beautifully. In fact, this story doesn't even need an antagonist like its two sequels do (i mean it kind of has one in the Red Death, but its more an obstacle to be taken out above all else), it's source of conflict really is what I just described above and it's so well-crafted on every level.

Hell, everything about this movie is. The characters are all phenomenal, it's not wonder this spawned two sequels and several shows (you should watch Riders/Defenders of Berk and Race to the Edge btw, they're great). Hiccup is one of Dreamworks' best leads by far, a genuis little ball of sass who is just as loyal as he is stubborn. The other teens don't get a ton of focus here, but Astrid does, and she's great, starting out as our usual Dreamworks tough gal before eventually softening up to Hiccup heading into the third act. Also, can I just talk about Stoick for a sec? They could have done this man so dirty, could have made him the usual angry father who doesn't understand or care about his son, but he isn't. He cares so damn much about Hiccup, and it shows, even if he claims to be embarassed by him, even if he seems like he wants him to change, he still loves his son to hell and back (which makes what happens in the second movie so much more tragic, but we'll get to that). And then of course, there's Toothless, who is just... absolute Baby. I love how catlike he is, and how, much like Hiccup, he's also kind of a sassy little shit in his own special way.

The animation, golly, its so pretty, The flying scenes are this franchise's bread and butter and they are just a delight to watch. The character designs are some of Dreamworks' best, especially on the Dragons. They all look so unque and have their own little quirks that make them all special. Toothless especially is animated so well. They give him these cat-like mannerisms that bring so much charm to a character that doesn't speak a single word. It's fantastic.

You know what else is fantastic about this movie? THE MUSIC OH MY GOD. This may just be the single greatest score in ANY Dreamworks movie. It's GOD TIER GOOD. The entire franchise has amazing music, but most of the themes that repeat throughout the next two movies started here and they're all so beautiful. Seriously, give this score a listen if you haven't, its just... amazing.

The whole movie is amazing! I honest to god love everything about it so much. It's such a strong start to what I think is Dreamworks' greatest franchise, to a world and characters that I am literally obsessed with now send help, and to a series that I'm so very excited to be revisiting for this watch through. Please, if you've never seen How to Train Your Dragon, do yourself a favor and watch it now. You will not be sorry.

Overall Rating: 10/10

Verdict: (gestures vaguely at Hiccup) LOOK AT MY SON

Previous Review (Monsters Vs. Aliens)

Next Review (Shrek Forever After)

[astridhoff03]

Siege & Storms - chapter 2 Astrid & Hiccup

-However, before Astrid could close the door behind her, Valka raised her voice. “Astrid, if you want to talk. I’m always here.” Astrid smiled, brushing a strand of her long hair out of her face. "Thanks, Valka."

The stone was cold and wet beneath her bare feet, icy rain wet her heated skin and let the thin fabric of the tunic stick to her skin, exposing her nipples. Her gaze slid to the sky, which was covered in thick black clouds. The raindrops flowed down her chin like a small torrent. "Oh, Hiccup, where are you?" Raindrops continually rolled off her glowing skin, she closed her eyes, her hands clenched into steel fists. Her heart burned with desire and longing. He was alive, he was alive, she continued to tell herself in her mind, fighting the urge to burst into tears. Astrid saw something blue come into her field of vision out of the corner of her eye and suddenly the rain above her stopped. Stormfly's golden gaze collided with hers, a faint smile playing on Astrid's lips as she stroked her nadder's lower jaw. "Thank you." Her pulse calmed again and the tears in her eyes dried up. She was a warrior, a general for Thor's sake. Hiccup was alive, she knew it, deep in her heart. It was enough for her. She would look for him alone and not rest until she found him. "Come on, Stormfly, let's go." Astrid ran back into the house, threw on her clothes and grabbed her axe. She also packed a bag with water, provisions, bandages and fresh clothes. She left a note at the dinner table for Valka. Saddled up, Stormfly was already waiting impatiently for them in the pouring rain when Astrid closed the door behind her. With quick movements, Astrid secured her ax and bag to the saddle before she sat down. Cold wind mixed with icy raindrops fell on her face as they took off and flew away from Berk.

The waves surged like high mountains over the sunken city, lightning broke through the night. The massive shadow of the Phantomfin glided majestically like a great cloud of black smoke over a hidden grotto in the ruins. Toothless grumbled and snuggled against the legs of his best friend, the person who had never given up on him despite the unforgivable act he had committed. Hiccup gently stroked his dragon's smooth scales on his head, which glowed silver in the light of each lightning strike. His chest rose and fell with every heartbeat. He heard the blood rushing in his veins with every wave that surged, with every drop that fell from the onyx-colored rocks of the cave, with every heavy step that echoed off the cave walls. He was there immediately. It could only be a matter of seconds. Hiccup looked into his best friend's big green eyes, which reflected his own fear. “Don’t worry, Toothless, we won’t die today. We won't die today. We will fight for our people, for our friends, my mother, my father." He paused briefly at the painful memory of his father's dead body, who had sacrificed himself for him and Toothless. Hiccup gritted his teeth, trying to push away the memory, the thought that he was about to come face to face with the man who was the real reason his father had to die. "Hiccup, you're much stronger than you think," he suddenly heard a very familiar voice in his head. The memory of his father instantly blurred with the sound of love in Astrid's voice. She stood in front of him, her delicate, soft fingers sliding over his chest. Her long blonde hair was tied back in a loose braid that evening, Berk was still in ice and destruction, his childhood home was one of the few that had been spared. He looked down at her, how could she stay so strong while the house she grew up in was in ruins again and her own father had only escaped death with serious injuries. He took her hand and kissed her palm. "Astrid, how do you manage to stay so strong all the damn time?" A sad smile played on her beautiful lips. "Hiccup, I'm not always strong either and you know that. Should I tell you a secret, sometimes I scream inside because I don't allow myself to cry, I don't allow myself to deviate from the ideal that I'm supposed to represent in my clan, my family . I am strong Yes, but I am not invulnerable. And do you know what has kept me alive in every single battle we have fought so far?” Tears gathered in her fathomless eyes. "You. Hiccup, you are my gravity, the driving force that drives me forward in every battle. Never in my life did I think that I would love someone as much as I love you. I love you, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the third, with all your flaws and the qualities that make you so special. I love you." "I love you too, very much," he whispered back, his finger wiping the one tear from her cheek. “And I thank you for always being there for me, my rock, my partner not only in battle but also in my life, for choosing me of all. And I promise you, you can cry at me, scream at me, kick as much as you want. I will never love you less because of it.” “We stay strong for each other,” Astrid finished, her voice broken. He would fight to get back home to the woman he loved and desired more than anything. Hiccup looked down into Toothless' green eyes and he would fight for his best friend. A deep voice snapped Hiccup out of this wondrous memory, he jumped when the shadow of Drago Bludvist appeared on the cave wall. "Hiccup, come out and finally fight like a real man."

[storm-flyer]

Continuing my rewatch of Dragons: Riders of Berk, with episode 9, "Dragon Flower"

Yeah, I don't remember anything about this one. Maybe it has something to do with dragon nip?

Anyway

- Johann >:(

- I don't actually remember what he did but I don't trust this man

- 'Will you take this necklace? It's made from baby dragons teeth?' 'Fair enough, Mr fishlegs.' that can't be a good deal for johann

- 'How about this spyglass? I made it myself.' 'I know, you've given me 5 just like it.' hiccup

- 'Stoick! It is but your good graces that I desire, as my ship passes through berk.' okay. I vaguely remember finding Johann suspicious on first watch, but I often find characters suspicious that actually aren't, so that says very little. But now that I know he's dodgy, everything he says sounds suspicious.

- 'Johann.' 'Mildew!' 'Bring what I want?' 'Always straight to the point. I like that' because this can only go well

- 'Feisty little one, isn't he?' *Johann throws terrible terror and toothless lunges at him* 'Assistance, please!' get his ass toothless!

- 'We had to give him our great grandfather's skull, but we got to keep his clavicle' yeah, okay

- oh dear, looks like toothless has hayfever

- 'Maybe he's got a cold or something. Do dragons get colds?'

- 'Gothi! She'll know what to do!' Gothi knows a lot of things. I'm not sure dragon sickness is in her skillset though

- 'She says to get rid of everything, immediately.' good luck getting mildew to go along with that. In fact, I know he won't, I remember this episode now

- 'Poor girl, can't get comfortable huh?' 🥺

- 'I was up all night scraping dragon barf off our walls!' 'Yeah, well ours is dead! Just kidding... But it's not really funny anymore.' yeah no kidding

- 'Did your book say anything about a cure?' 'I don't know, because somebody made me throw it in a pit!'

- 'Where did these flowers even come from?' 'Mildew. I saw him plant them the other night.' 'And you didn't think that was strange?' 'No. Well, maybe... I don't know, quit pressuring me!' oh I love you tuffnut

- 'Since when have you cared about beauty or happiness?' get his ass astrid

- 'Look, the scaldron has no venom!' 'No, but it looks cool!' 'Dont you understand, the book says no venom!' ... 'The book is wrong! I've dealt with a scaldron before! They're sixty feet long, with razor sharp teeth! The scaldron has no fear, no conscience, but what the scaldron does have is venom!' gobber MVP!!

- 'How's my dragon warrior?' may be the softest I've ever heard stoick speak

- 'Its an outrage! I dug up all the flowers, I did my part!' shut up mildew

- the scaldron is so damn cool

- poor sven

- 'I watched my own hand get devoured by a monstrous nightmare. But never, never, have I seen something so disturbing as the bare behind of that old man.'

Well that was adorable. Johann will be back, unfortunately.

Onwards!

[eolewyn1010]

Downton Abbey Fashion 49 - riding habits over the years

Something that goes through remarkably little change throughout the years is the riding habit of the ladies. After season 1, several years go by without us seeing Mary, who has a reputation as a rider, on horseback, and when we do again in season 4, she doesn’t wear something terribly different.

First off, Mary in season 1 when she’s off to greet Isobel and Matthew in town. I do like this beige riding habit in spite of Mary’s bitchface; the double-breasted closure makes it sit snug, it looks nice with the brown velvet collar and the plum necktie, and I have to admit that I find the top hats a great deal more elegant than the bowl hats they wear for riding a few seasons later.

Without a color spot, this one seems a tad more formal as Mary is wearing it for a hunt in company rather than a ride on her own. But damn, I envy her this jacket. It’s so incredibly flattering.

--------------

Sybil’s get-up isn’t much different; the collar has the same shape, the sleeve tops are structured similarly. Only the lower corners are rounded off. I think she could have chosen a colored tie, especially since we never see Sybil participate in a hunt or any other social riding event.

--------------

In season 4, ten years after the beginning of the first, Mary’s riding habit has not changed much. You could argue it’s a tad more grey than black, and the jacket is not tailored as snugly because 1920s. But it’s still a combination of long skirt and long jacket with a collar of velvet. The tie may actually still be the same. Not a fan of the new hat, but alright. What I do find interesting: The shoulder seam is actually off-the-shoulder, like men’s shirts in the 18th century do. It doesn’t stay that way throughout the 1920s, so what gives?

See? Season 5, and the seam is on top of the shoulder, right where it belongs. I feel obliged to point out that oh-so-modern Mary rides aside because bifurcated garments are not ladylike. Different than Mabel Lane Fox who, if memory serves, does ride astride and thus in breeches. Other than that, they aren’t dressed terribly differently; I assume there’s a dress code for tournaments. Both wear white shirts with point collars, black ties, and grey tweed jackets, although Mary’s has a subtle Tartan which I find very nice and is double-breasted. Mabel’s jacket has a little bit of waistcoat peeking out from beneath, which Mary may or may not also wear. However, it looks like Mabel’s hat doesn’t have the same little netting veil Mary’s has.

And off to season 6 when Mary does put on riding breeches after all, so we get a look at them. The hat is still the same, the jacket is new and promptly gets speckled with a handful of dirt. It is more streamlined that the older jackets were, but with the snug sleeves and the well-behaved collar and lapels, I wouldn’t say there isn’t any tailoring in this.