#but like yeah just imagine a praying mantis on the side of the head with its claws like wrapped around the ear like cmon thats sick as hell

[chisatowo]

Every now and then I think abt that one conversation with a guy who worked at the place where I took my ged tests where we talked abt tattoos and he suggested a praying mantis tattoo on the shaved side of my head and I just think damn. I wish I had money dhdkydjd

[navyhyuck]

week two | previous | masterlist | next

𝐒𝐈𝐆𝐍𝐄𝐃, 𝐉𝐀𝐘.

↳ a love letter a week, and it has you wondering who’s your secret admirer. you have nine weeks, eight candidates, and one story to live. will you find out who your ‘jay’ is?

a/n :: here’s part two my sexy friends, i’ll be starting to add a little warnings tag from now on because parts will start to get longer and may include some triggering topics!!

wc :: 2.9k (i’m sorry it’s getting longer and longer i know)

warnings: mentions of sex (kinda, not explicit), a singular mention of death, someone’s borderline a bully but not quite (they’re just mean)

taglist: @childofthecycle @the8luvr @staywrites @chocolattees @cloudzume @babytoadz @cherrystay @sandaigdigan-reads @hoes4hoseok @ctrlaltfangirl @kodzu-ken @xazucaradictax @qtieskz @blueprint-han

couldn’t tag: @x-dawna-x

let me know if you’d like to be added to the taglist!

You’re listening to Ryujin go on and on about Han Jisung at practically 6 a.m. (okay, it was around halfway to 8 o’clock, but her words were making you lose track of time), your head resting against the cool metal of the locker, almost wishing you were banging your head against it instead. As much as you knew your friend had a thing for the boy, you never thought you’d be stuck in the middle listening to her over analyzing everything that happened in English the day before. Sure, the precarious boy could be outstanding at pipetting in chemistry, but his social skills weren’t the best. Or at least, they weren’t the best with you.

“Anyway, I’ll shut up now, you look like you just watched The Conjuring and threw up on yourself.” She exclaims rather dryly, and you raise your head, glimpsing at the questioning look on her face. “By the way, that movie was shit. I’ll get to the point, then. I was gonna ask who you’re going to homecoming with.”

You scoff, rolling your eyes at both the comment on one of your favorite horror movies ever (that you’ve watched four times already, each time with the same girl who insists it’s not scary but ends up peeking past her fingers anyway) and homecoming. “Myself,” you reply, returning your head to its original position. “Do I look like the kind of person that would go to homecoming with a date? Really?”

“You went last year,” she points out, and you realize it’s true with a groan. It wasn’t your fault that you couldn’t refuse the captain of the basketball team when he proposed the idea in the middle of the cafeteria, halfway through the sixth period. Honestly, San wasn’t too bad anyway, he just wanted to have some fun with a girl that wasn’t following after him in the general sheep crowd; after the night was over, however, you swore to yourself that you would never come to a dance voluntarily wearing stilettos without one of your go-to friends. “And you liked it. Plus, I was thinking, we should all get dates this year! You know, since it’s our senior year and all. You won’t have another hoco to miss after this one.”

“Get dates? You’re acting like it’s buying takeout.” 

“It basically is,” she shrugs. “You go out, ask for something from someone, and they either give it to you or not. Though I’m not really sure if restaurants are allowed to refuse service.”

 “We could just all go as friends,” you suggest, finally opening up your locker. “As great as having some random dude as my date, no thanks. Like you said, it’s our last year. And hoco’s been fun since freshman year for us anyway, what’s the point of setting us up with dudes when we’re just gonna ditch them?”

“Who said I’m gonna ditch my date?”

“Me, I just did,” you deadpan, shuffling through your books to grab onto your chemistry lab book and stuffing it into your bag. “Remember sophomore year? Yeah, you might not want to remember it, but I do. Lee Daehwi?” She groans at the sound of the familiar name, making you chuckle.

“Okay, fair enough, but I’m not gonna ditch my date this time. Not if I get the one I want.” Ryujin smacks your arm to grab your attention, making you hiss before you see the knowing look on her face as she wiggles her eyebrows. You cross your arms in confusion, trying to scan and rescan her face for hints to what she was getting at, but when your mind finally clicks, you freeze. And then, your jaw drops. “Shut up.”

“I-I didn’t even say anything!”

“I know what you’re gonna say!” She points at you, shaking her finger before bringing it back down. “Look, like you said, it’s senior year. I don’t have a chance, really, not after this one. Either I ask him out for homecoming in the next week or I mope around for the rest of my life regretting not going to a high school dance with the hottest guy in school. Yeah, okay, I guess that kinda does sound a little pathetic.”

You consider it for a moment, imagining how awkward the interaction between Ryujin’s infamous crush and her would be; there would be a whole lot of tripping at the feet and ten times the amount of stuttering. Plus, you’re sure that the boy didn’t have the heart capacity to receive a request without passing out cold. He’s a little fragile after all. “You think Jisung’s the hottest guy in school?”

“Duh, who else do you think? That Hyunjin dude? Yeah, maybe, I saw him a few times in the past few days, but so what? People just get hyped over some guy whenever they come to the school and like four days later he’s no longer a cool transfer student and just ‘the guy next to me in calculus.’” You give her a look, one that you hope resembles something that conveyed the message of ‘you just brought up Hyunjin completely unprovoked’ but she doesn’t budge, her eyes trailed on her nails as she continues. “...and I’ll ask Jisung. Chaeryoung said she’s going with that other guy from your chem, whatever his name was, him. So then, it’s just you.”

You’re reminded suddenly of the letter that you pulled from your locker a few days earlier, the one that followed after the previous introduction and pleaded for you to attend the dance. Even if the letter had never arrived, you were planning on it anyway, but now, you had a purpose. “I don’t really want a date,” you say carefully, your eyes darting across the busy hallway before focusing on the blue of your best friend’s hair. “I mean, I don’t know, maybe, whatever. I don’t feel like stressing out about asking someone, so maybe if someone asks me, I'll be their date. But don’t count on it, alright?”

Ryujin narrows her eyes at you, as if searching for something underneath (something that wasn’t there, you’d like to point out, but she’s still looking intently) before humming. “Alright, sure.” She finishes abruptly, clearly wanting to add onto her sentence but refraining from doing so, making you raise an eyebrow at her shenanigans.

“Spit it out, c’mon, I know you have more to say.”

Your best friend gives you a deadly look but considers it, resting her back against the lockers before turning back to you. “Okay, this is just a thought, got it? Just something running through my head right now that I want to share.”

You cross your arms. “A thought? You? Thinking? Well, that’s no good.”

“Shut up and listen to me first,” she waves you off, shuffling closer until you can see the glimmer of her eyeshadow smudged on the side of her winged eyeliner. “Think about this. You, Y/N, a beautiful girl with absolutely no intention on going to homecoming with a date because of the lack of attraction towards snotty teenage boys, asking the Hwang Hyunjin, a transfer student that’s extremely good-looking and apparently affectionately kind who has no intention on going to homecoming with a date because of the lack of connection with beautiful girls, to homecoming.”

You blink twice, looking up at the ceiling as you quietly process her words. It’s a bit jumbled in your head, but once you think it’s clear enough, you look at her. “Ryujin. May I express my feelings about this ‘thought?’”

She scans you up and down, and then nods.

“It’s absolute bullshit.”

“Hey!”

“I hate my life,” you say to yourself as you swing open the door of your car, stepping out rather impatiently onto the asphalt. Having forgotten to grab your psychology notebook at the end of the day, you found yourself taking an unwanted U-turn back to the school to pick it up; in your defense, you would rather maintain your A in the class even if you had to stop by the gas station on your way back. Like you were told, a class requires commitment.

You march your way into the school once again, wondering why the school officials never thought to add any precautionary measures to the buildings. It makes you wonder if someone had ever snuck onto campus since you were a freshman. From the very deep memories of your sophomore year, you remember a junior at that time sneaking in one of his friends during finals week thinking he’d get away with it. Honestly, Juyeon was something else.

Just as you make your way to your locker, you quietly scroll through your phone distractedly before seeing a text pop up in your infamous group chat.

[3:05 p.m.] chaechaer: guess what guys!! :D

[3:05 p.m.] praying mantis: don’t wanna guess

[3:05 p.m.] hwangji: she’s finally getting dick 

[3:05 p.m.] chaechaer: i’ll fucking bite you yeji.

[3:06 p.m.] hwangji: bite me baby i wanna see you try

[3:06 p.m.] you: spill c’mon

[3:07 p.m.] praying mantis: y/n.

[3:07 p.m.] praying mantis: why are you at school right now

[3:07 p.m.] chaechaer: gasp

[3:07 p.m.] chaechaer: looks like i’m not the only one getting dick

[3:08 p.m.] you: oh fuck off, i came back bc i forgot something

[3:08 p.m.] you: wait did you just say ‘not the only one’

[3:09 p.m.] hwangji: so you ARE getting dick???

[3:09 p.m.] hwangji: spill mf, right now

[3:09 p.m.] you: ryujin, are you checking my snap location rn??? hello?? 

[3:10 p.m.] praying mantis: ofc i am, i’m your guardian angel :)

[3:10 p.m.] you: you’re a stalker

[3:10 p.m.] praying mantis: but whose dick are you getting? that’s the real question 

You roll your eyes as hard as you can, hoping that your best friend would know even from a distance. Just as you continue to tap furiously into the glass of your phone, you’re suddenly hit by your left shoulder, sending you flying down to the ground in an instant. “Shit,” you whisper under your breath, brushing your hair out of your eyes well enough to look up and see that the hard object you just ran into wasn’t a wall. In fact, it was a human.

“Watch where you’re going,” the boy snaps at you, rather loudly in fact, making you flinch as you slowly stand up, gathering your phone. “This wouldn’t have happened if you weren’t on your phone. Who walks in a hallway with their head down like that? Do you want to die?”

It takes you a minute to realize who’s actually standing in front of you, and it’s only when you’ve managed to gulp down his harsh words. Seo Changbin. He looks at you from head to toe, the scowl still evident on his face when your eyes widen. Suddenly, you’re a little more aware of yourself, shifting uncomfortably in his gaze as he doesn’t move. 

“Well?” He crosses his arms across his chest, now approaching you. “I don’t hear an apology.”

You instinctively back away, avoiding the boy’s eyes before you’re looking right back into them. If you weren’t mistaken, there was no one in front of you until there was, and there was no way that you could’ve ran into someone without noticing their presence earlier. Scoffing, you mimic his posture, looking behind him to see if you’re right about your assumption. In fact, you are, seeing the door of the locker room staring right back at you. “Me? Shouldn’t you be watching where you’re going?”

Changbin looks taken aback by your retaliation, somehow making his forehead lines fall into a straight line. “Don’t talk back to me, bitch.”

“Bitch?” You want to laugh, but instead, you press a smile down. “Seriously? Who do you think you are?”

You’re honestly appalled at the way the admired swimmer is acting towards you, but you’re not surprised. You would be lying if you didn’t say you weren’t in the faintest surprised. The entire team could act like a handful of bullies that didn’t have any other free time on their hands, if you looked into it more. Changbin seems to be dissatisfied with your answer, closing in on you as your back presses against the wall. 

“What did you say to me?” 

You’re about to respond with an equally harsh answer but there’s a sudden call of Changbin’s name from the end of the hallway, making the both of you turn your heads. Yet another swimming team member comes jogging your way, sporting a school branded shirt that tells you exactly what he’s part of. The boy stops a few feet away from the two of you, a large smile spreading across his face as he looks from Changbin to you. You scratch your head. Is Bang Chan currently standing in front of you? Or was it just a figment of your imagination?

“Hi! What’s your name?” He asks, coming closer before glancing over at Changbin and stopping. “W-What? Wait, what? What did you do to her?”

“I didn’t do anything!” Changbin defends immediately, making you raise an eyebrow as he holds up his palms. “I didn’t! Nothing happened, Chan. It’s all good. Let’s just go now.”

Chan doesn’t budge when he grabs onto his arm, tugging to pull him away, but he instead focuses his attention on you. His smile persists. “Hi sweetheart, judging from the look on your face, he did do something, right?”

You’re taken aback at his soft voice, a complete contrast from what you just heard from the other boy. Pursing your lips, you try not to let your cheeks flame up. Sweetheart? “It’s nothing—he just ran into me and tried to pin the whole thing on me—it’s all good, really. I’m fine, I didn’t get hurt. So…”

“You didn’t get hurt? But he ran into you?” Chan shoots Changbin a sharp look, one that looks much darker than the gaze he returns to you. “Are you okay? It might’ve been a hard fall. I can take you to the nurse’s office, if you’d like?”

“N-No, it’s fine!” You shake your hands in refusal, an awkward chuckle leaving your lips. Chan only laughs brightly in response, his entire face somehow appearing ten times more charming than before. You notice with another fleeting glimpse that there are dimples that crease into his skin as he smiles, now making your heart do an unidentifiable leap inside your chest. “Um, okay, I actually have to go now! I’ll, uh, yeah! Bye!”

You turn in your heel, trying to walk at a casual but extremely quick pace at the same time, which proves to be difficult. Just as you’re about to turn at the corner, there’s a shout from down the hall.

“Hey!” Peaking your head back, you see Chan waving his hand at you. “What’s your name?!”

“Y/N!”

“Nice to meet you Y/N! I hope to see you around!”

Gulping, you lean back against one of the lockers near yours, placing a hand over your chest as you finally notice the thumping. You take a deep breath, shaking your head a few times to get the entire situation out of your head; it doesn’t work, not with your brain taking you back to that exact moment once again. You just spoke to one, no, scratch that, two extremely talented swimming players with your own two eyes. And perhaps the rapid beating of your heart wasn’t just because one of them was being nice to you. But you wouldn’t admit that now, would you?

dear y/n love,

hi hi! i’ve missed talking to you (yes, i know, there’s no way you can respond to me, but anyway), but this letter will be unfortunately short today. please don’t think too much of it! my class is about to end, haha.

i saw you at one of the swimming meets a few days ago, and oh my god, i really couldn’t take my eyes off of you. i don’t know if anyone has ever told you, y/n, but you are so beautiful. i remember what you were wearing; was it...a black shirt? and jeans, oh yes. your sense of style is so simple yet somehow so perfect. i couldn’t even take my eyes off of you, oh god, i remember all my friends yelling at me to pay attention but all i was doing was staring at you. sounds like a problem, huh? but i enjoy it. shit, this sounds kinda creepy again, doesn’t it? i’m so sorry, love, that’s not what i was going for. i just...really admire you. a lot.

also, the homecoming game is this weekend! i hope you end up going, you can even go with your friend! the blue-haired one, yeah, ryujin, i think. that’s her name, right? oh god, you probably think i’m even weirder now that i just told you that i know your friend. fuck. anyway. 

once again, i hope to see you there! there’s something waiting for you there and i want to be able to surprise you, even if i don’t want to reveal my identity just yet. see you soon, love.

signed, jay

[kaweeella]

Bonding Time, Kids

Chapter 3- There’s A Saying About Chickens That Could Go Here, I’m Sure.

Word count- 1871

Description- It’s like the entrance exam! But so much more difficult!

Author note- I’m breaking down this one, as it was originally 19 pages long and still going, so.

“Let's put the students up against robots.” Principal Nezu said. “The adrenaline will activate their quirks.” He said.

They let the students that already know their new quirks sit out and watch. Touru has Hanta’s and Hanta has Kyoka’s. They could also figure out a non mutation quirk with Shouto, whose sweaty hands smell like sugar.

The rest fight the robots in ground beta.

Well, it’s less like fighting and more like running around with constant danger of bodily harm until something happens.

“I feel bad for whoever has my quirk.” Hitoshi says as he watches his classmates scramble around trying to not be crushed.

“Why?” Denki leans back, patting his tail with one hand.

“No amount of adrenaline’ll activate it.”

“Right, your quirk is based on talking.” Mashirao says.

“It’s probably difficult for everyone.” Touru sits down by them. She was given a PE uniform to change into and she gave Neito his jacket back. “I can’t imagine anyone else being all that used to this.”

She’s right. The most comfortable among them is Denki, and that’s because he’s still physically the same.

Rikido is one of the students that has to fight. Even without his quirk he’s still pretty strong, just enough to properly defend himself instead of having to run. When he has enough time to think, something occurs to him. His quirk is activated with sugar. He quickly apologises to whoever got his quirk before a robot jumps in front of him. Panic fills him and before he realizes it, he scatters.

His body breaks into pieces that go all over the place, he begins screaming.

“Looks like you’ve got mine!” Setsuna yells over the horrified scream, that stops after a few seconds as he calms down. “I reacted like that when it first popped up, too!”

Rikido puts himself back together. “So that's what that feels like. I never wanted to know before but I guess I know now.” He doesn’t understand how his hero costume broke apart and put back together, as it wasn’t designed for that, but he decides todays not the day to ask questions.

Fumikage, however, is not able to defend himself from the robots, and no matter how hard he tries, his quirk will not activate.

“What a mad banquet of darkness.”

“Tokoyami are you alright!?” Tenya says, with his usual way of saying things; loud and with wild arm movements.

“Yes, I’m fine.” Fumikage sees a robot behind Tenya, looking like it’s getting ready to attack. “Watch out!”

Tenya backs up and Fumikage reaches out and grabs him. When Tenya touches Fumikage’s cloak, he vanishes. He soon hears his yelling from somewhere in the distance. Fumikage is glad to have given assistance, but he’s still in immediate danger.

He backs up until he bumps into someone.

“Watch it!” Togaru yells. He still looks like a praying mantis, though it isn’t surprising as some people still retained some of their physical characteristics, like Mina and even Fumikage himself, who still has a bird head.

They’re backed into the side of a building, surrounded. Both are desperately trying to activate his quirk.

“We’re trapped.”

“Yeah, no shit Sherlock.”

“We might be able to get past them if we-”

“Shut the fuck up.”

“Do you have a better plan?”

“I’m gonna fi-” He doesn’t finish his sentence, his arms fall limply to his sides and has a vacant look in his eyes.

Fumikage doesn’t have long to be confused, as the robots begin to close in on them. He grabs the other boy by the wrist and runs between two of them, just barely avoiding the giant metal fist.

Togaru’s eyes regain focus and he snaps back to reality.

“What the fuck just happened?!” He rubs his arm.

“I’m not sure.”

“I didn’t need you to save me. I’m perfectly capable of fighting these things.”

“Apologies.”

“Whatever.”

The two go their separate ways, as Momo watches from one of the roofs.

She got up there to have a better vantage point and to be able to think clearly, though she’s been so panicked that she’s only been able to get one of those things. She watches as Pony runs away from a robot, when she’s stopped in her tracks when a part of one of the nearby buildings falls in front of her. She starts to climb the rubble, not seeing the robot behind her rearing up to hit her.

“Tsunotori!” Momo reaches out her arm towards her as if for her to grab. She turns, and sees the monstrous machine about to hit her, with not enough time to react, when she’s pulled into the air. She slowly floats over towards Momo.

“Thank you.” She lands on the roof. “I was nervous.”

“Yeah, me too.” Momo stands there for a second. “Did I do that?”

“Did you not?”

“I’m not sure.”

“Oh! I think you have Yinagi’s quirk. She can levitate stuff.”

“Hmm…” She focuses, and some of the small rocks start to float.

“Watch out!” The robot rears back to crush Momo, when Pony pushes her out of the way, getting crushed instead.

Momo rushes to lift the fist, not even trying the quirk. She pulls on it with all of her might, and starts to get it off her. When the robot is removed, Momo checks the crater left behind. She doesn’t see Pony, but she does see something metal.

She starts digging. It’s difficult and painful, but she digs, uncovering Pony’s head, made of steel.

“Did I die…?”

“No, thankfully, no.” The two of them slowly get Pony unburied from the concrete. “Thank you, for saving me.”

“That’s what heroes do! Plus you saved me first!” She changes back to normal and brushes some of the dust off. “Seems I have Tetsutetsu’s quirk. Good thing.”

Behind them Tsuyu runs, jumping to an adjacent roof. Even without her quirk, she’s still agile.

She lands atop a building, just as a robot slams into it, sending it to the ground. She lands on a large rock, and starts crying in pain. A lot. Though she quickly wipes her eyes, as the robot that took down the building goes after her.

It stops walking, however. Tsuyu cautiously investigates, finding one of its feet planted where she landed, its other foot scraping on the ground trying to continue walking.

Tears still try to run down her cheeks. She wipes her eye again, picks up two rocks from the ground, wipes her hand over one, and puts them together. After a few seconds, she tries to pull them apart, but can’t. They’re glued together.

“Huh.”

Jurota turns the corner and sees her there, in the rubble and in front of the robot. “Miss Asui, are you alright?” He runs over.

“I’m fine, and call me Tsu.”

“You’re crying, are you sure?”

“Yeah, I just got scraped up a little, that’s all. I think I might’ve immobilized the robot somehow.”

“How do you mean?”

“It stopped right where I landed, and I glued these rocks together.”

“I believe you may have Bondo’s quirk. He creates a quick drying adhesive from his eyes.”

“Sounds like it.”

Shouta and Sekijirou watch the kids.

“I don’t think this was a good idea.”

“No, probably not.”

Manga runs around, his bubble head holding exclamation marks. Whoever’s quirk he got sucks because no matter how hard he can’t get it working. 

A robot hot on his tail, he runs down street after street. His legs give out, and he falls to his knees, exhausted.

“Watch out!”

Turning around, Manga sees Eijirou stand between himself and the robot, winding up to attack. He stands up shakily, and thinks for a moment.

“Wai-”

Before he can finish the robot hits Eijirou, knocking him back into Manga and sending them flying.

Ochako watches them going overhead. She runs after them. If she can’t levitate them to break their fall, she can at least be there to check that they’re okay.

“Guys are you alright?”

“I think I broke a rib…” Manga’s bubble has two little bandaids crossed over each other and a crying face.

“Sorry, force of habit.” Eijirou sits up and rubs the back of his neck, before he spits out a rock.

Ochako helps them to their feet. “You know, it’s not a great idea to just blindly throw yourself into danger with or without your quirk.”

“But that’s my whole thing!”

She sees Manga’s bubble fill with exclamation points and she turns to see why. The robot’s back. It’s ready to attack, and Ochaco prepares herself for the impact, covering her face with her arms. She feels the hit, she feels herself being pushed, but she doesn’t feel the pain, and she isn’t flung back.

“Dude! You got my quirk!”

Ochako lowers her arms and sees it rearing back to attack again, and she grabs the boys’ arms and pulls them into an alleyway. 

When they feel they’re far enough, they stop to catch their breath. Manga slides down a wall onto the ground. Ochako just falls back on her butt, sighing. Eijirou leans on a wall.

“So have you guys figured out your quirks?”

“No…  I’m not sure of what to do. Nothing I’ve done activates it.” Manga sighs

“I haven’t either. My stomachs kinda been hurting, though.”

“You should’ve said something. It’s not good to push yourself so hard.”

“I’m sure the last few minutes didn’t do any favors.”

“No, no, I’m fine. I jus-” A beam of bright light bursts from his stomach. “Oh. That explains that.”

“Seems you have Aoyama’s quirk.”

“J’ai entendu mon nom?”

Yuuga startles the three of them.

“Oh, hey dude! I got your quirk.”

“Have you been well?”

“I guess. It’s kinda uncomfortable.”

“This may help.” He takes off his support belt and helps Eijirou put it on.

“Thanks, man.”

“Anytime, mon amie.”

“Have you figured out your quirk yet?”

“No, I haven’t quite got it yet.”

There’s a crash as the surrounding buildings collapse around them.

Manga stands up and he and Aoyama start running. Kirishima tries to wait for Ochako, who tells him to run and not worry about her.

Ochako starts to get up, but is soon trapped under rubble. She activates harden and tries to push it off of her. It’s not working, but she’s not getting crushed so there are worse things that could happen.

“Are you guys hurt?” Hiryuu joins them, having heard the noise.

“Ururaka’s under there!” Eijirou runs to start pulling the rocks off of her.

Hiryuu moves to assist. “Come on, guys, we need to help her.”

“Oui bien sûr.”

It’s slow, but they manage to free Ochako.

“Thank you,”

“You aren’t too badly hurt, are you?”

“No, I have Kirishima’s quirk, so it wasn’t so bad.”

“That’s good.”

“That was so tense! It just went pow! Bam!” Manga says, emphasizing his words with large gestures.

“Fukidashi, I’m not sure this is the appropriate time for that,” Hiryuu pauses for a moment. “Also if you ask me, it was more of a crsh.” He holds his hands over his mouth for added sound effect.

A nearby building collapses. They don’t see any robots or any other students.

“Hmm. Hopefully no one got hurt.”

[fallingin-like]

november 23

the real folk blues by @annawrites [requested by @allforthebee]

see which other fics i’m reviewing this month! / my review request post!

this absolutely amazing and captivating fic that has the foxes as space bounty hunters and neil who is, as usual, and exceptionally skilled runaway. set away some time to read this fic as soon as possible, because once you start, you won’t be able to put it down until you finish.

this is such an entertaining, fun fic and you did an amazing job at balancing the softer moments with intense, action-packed scenes. at all times i was fully immersed in the story, you handled everything so well. i’m always a fan of your writing, so it’s not a surprised that i had a wonderful experience rereading this.

bits that stood out to me:

”counting stars has become a habit, something to subdue the memories” ah this is really cute and i can totally imagine canon andrew, lying on the roof of some building counting stars instead of trying to sleep

”renee cracks a chicken bone smile in the corner of her mouth” i have never heard this phrase before but i love it!

”there’s a collective intake of breath - andrew, who remembers every single bounty ever placed, can’t remember it ever being this big” for some reason, i love when this kind of thing happens. it feels so cool, knowing someone wants that character that bad and gets me excited for what kind of skills the hunted person has, to be able to evade the people looking for them (reminds me of john wick lol)

”nathaniel wesninski alias neil josten is a hacker, con artist, engineer and pilot” BLESS HIM FOR BEING SO CAPABLE AND SKILLED

matt’s infamous bell peppers and beef with no beef!!! that’s funny and i think about it surprisingly often

”renee pulls up a few more photographs of neil wesninski on the hologram screen. she deals them out like cards until they fan out in a neat timeline of faded hoodies and various iterations of the same polished smile, a mouth sharpened to cutting perfection… the eyes, in contrast, look consistently hunted” holograms and just this space tech is SO cool. i love seeing how the foxes view neil before they meet him. it’s interesting how many sightings they have of him, but also how blank he seems, when we all know that there’s so much personality under that surface

”the ISSP are a bunch of corrupt, incompetent idiots” LOL

”’tone down the optimism, day,’ andrew drawls. ‘we might start overestimating our chances’” agh i love your characterization of all of these characters and this is a great example of why! and i like that you used drawls, it feels very andrew-like

”andrew waggles his fingers lazily in the air” yeah this is andrew

woah i have never seen the art for this fic (i guess because i have the fic downloaded and i just read that version instead of going on ao3, the pictures must not have downloaded) but it’s great!

gasp, i love the idea of the foxes Dressed Up

ALLISON BEING BANNED FROM PLAYING!! “her former alias - lady luck, also known as poker alice” oh this is great. for some reason, them having reputations like this really excites me

”it’s in my blind spot” ANDREW this is so funny

ahhhh i can’t believE you added the “better luck next time” line in!!

okay so the whole action part of this scene is so intense, love andrew throwing the poker chip as a diversion, and neil pretending to give up for a moment before ACTIVATING HIS ARMED SHIP AND SHOOTING EVERYONE. ugh, hearing about neil being so good at what he does (steering, hacking, while taking off his jacket) makes me love this scene so much

”vowels rolling like a pair of dice” this is so good on its own, but paired with the casino scene that precedes it? stunning

”kevin values his ship, and his life, in that order.” i can imagine. i wonder, is there competitive racing in this au? i can imagine kevin being obsessed with that

thank goodness riko is dead, one less thing (on a list of many things) to worry about. whoop and i see that easthaven has passed, good.

KEVIN DAY WITH A METAL ARM AND A TRANSMITTER PLATE THAT COVERS HIS TATTOO YEAH

oh dang limb regrowth tech in this au? wild

”’minyard and the monster, how lovely to see you again.’ neil greets him through the once more hijacked comm. they’ve been playing this game for weeks now, racing each other across the milky way like starved lovers. even allison is starting to run out of lewd jokes” i find it so interesting hearing about this relationship that’s being built between them even though they basically never meet in person, the joking from neil’s side

these hints of andrew’s eye mods are really great, i definitely didn’t notice them as much as i should have when i first read this fic, but every time after that, i appreciate little details like these more and more

RENEE WITH A KATANA YES PLEASE

”andrew shakes off the last dregs of sunday sleepiness that cling to his lips like the skin on warm milk. neil wesninski might have become a game by now, but the malcolms still mean business” ohhh boy, even knowing what comes next i get nervous hearing this. i love the contrast between the softness of what sundays mean with the conflict to come, especially when you jump right into the action

”renee pants, her voice cool and slippery like broken tiles amid the crackle of static” oh i love this description

LOL i can’t believe that andrew got matt’s dessert rations and gets to invite neil to be a part of their crew

”missions are slow and neil’s face keeps showing up on big shot, though not for lack of people trying to hunt him down.” i don’t know why but i really like this!! you go, neil!

oh oh thank you so much for the way that you describe neil alone on his ship, his hoodies, gloves, “one sad-looking sock”, “the one sock he’s wearing has holes”, talking to himself, “yet he’s still inexplicably trying to shield his robots from andrew’s gun” so cute!

”eyes like the gleaming insides of a wire in the dark” this!!!!

the! cats! neil made his robots cats!!

NEIL HACKING INTO THEIR COMMS I LOVE HIM

”neil is like a live fish under his hands, constantly wriggling and sliding out of his grip, fingers twitching back toward his abandoned project like flies caught in a spiderweb” ahh squirmy neil is super cute, “neil shivers under the touch like he’s not used to being touched at all” this doesn’t surprise me. even if i didn’t have an idea of what his childhood might have been like (with mary and nathan, i imagine there was not very much affection), he’s probably been alone for so long, when would the last time someone would have touched him? i don’t think i would be able to handle it

ahh barefoot neil is always cute

SCARS no matter how many fics i read, i always love moments when neil’s scars are revealed

NEIL RUNNING LAPS IN HIS TINY SHORTS AROUND AND AROUND AHH

”neil slinks into the room late, looking tousled and a little sticky around the edges like he’s just woken up from a nap. he freezes when he sees andrew, stuck standing right in the middle of the projection, and only moves when dan throws a cushion at him” your writing actually paints scenes in my head which for me, a person really bad at visualizing things, is really impressive. it makes the experiences of reading exponentially more interesting, and doesn’t happen that often.

renee as praying mantis!! what a perfect nickname. is she religious in this au as well? i can’t remember if any religions even exist in this au (whoops i know nothing about cowboy bebop)

”she looks stiff and faded like old newspaper in the light of the kitchen lamps” what a gem of a sentence

me: sees the nickname gorilla and gets excited because i know some action is going to go down

”the three of them would just  about reach his head if renee sat on andrew’s shoulders and lifted neil up” THIS IS AMAZING. i mean, andrew and neil are tiny but they are not that tiny

”andrew begins tonelessly, tracing patterns into neil’s skin” if we ignore the fact that andrew is telling a terrible terrible story, this is so soft

”his breathing is viscous now, like syrup in his lungs. his left eye aches and the corner of his mouth twitches painfully into the ghost of a manic grin. he bites his tongue and it tastes like the word please” i am speechless but i really wanted to acknowledge this sentences lakjsdf

NEIL WINNING THE BET ABOUT BEING ABLE TO STEAL THINGS FROM THE VENDOR AND ROBBING THE MAN JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING. uGH you do such a good job of integrating humour like this into your story and having it fit the tone and pacing of the fic effortlessly.

excuse me how is it possible that you followed such a lighthearted scene with something so devastating as andrew explaining his past to allison and neil and have it still flow??? “because… i did not mean for you to get hurt” ANDREW YOU’RE SO GOOD

”he’s smoking outside and watching the dusk unfurl like an exotic flower when there’s a crash inside the store” this description is so gorgeous

what in the world, andrew i don’t even know how to describe you. he really just helps catch the robbers with his headphones on while choosing things to buy, killing a dude, then checking out, no big deal???? i understand neil’s attraction to him a little bit more now…

andrew and renee sharing clothes is now canon, please and thank you

oh no, lola is Bad News, especially when it comes to threatening neil’s family

NEIL PACKING ANDREW’S LEATHER JACKET AHH

”the bebop crew are basically overgrown children and react very well to the little sugary rewards for good behaviour” yeah this is very true haha

”’your blatant flirting woke me up,’ matt grins weakly. ‘can i have a lollipop too, neil?” i remember this whole scene so well, the second the infirmary was mentioned i knew it was lollipop time. matt, is basically how i feel right now HAH

woah wymack taking care of bonsai trees? i didn’t know i needed that in my life so badly. just like neil and the twins, so tiny :’)

uhm so, the tape that nicky sent to andrew? it’s actually making me cry (which is super rare for fics) “i hope you know that i love you”, “things aren’t so easy at the moment, and maybe they still aren’t easy for you watching this ten years from now, but i’ll always be there for you, and for aaron, too. i hope that one day we can be a family. happy birthday, my little piyoko, don’t eat all the cake by yourself!” i love this so much, and it makes me so sad and happy. this nicky is so good, and as much as i think andrew needed to see this, i think that i needed to read this more. thank you

nicky calling the twins his little piyokos, his lucky birds ;-;

the reunion scenes are so good, i really don’t think i can write anything that sufficiently describes how i feel. the way that nicky acts, the new relatives, older aaron, it all feels so right, so real.

andrea minyard deserves her own bullet point

neil just goes and makes all the police ships crash by controlling them remotely just for andrew to be hit by a moon rock?!?!?

”something irritatingly warm rises and swells inside andrew like yeast dough and he plunges his fists into it and kneads it into submission, twists it until all that remains is sticky, frothy anger” and “andrew sits down on a crate and prods at the yeasty mass still fermenting in his insides. the sudden bloating of anger has subsided to the usual starchy nothingness, but there’s a sugary residue of unease that he doesn’t want to examine any further right now” as much as i adore your jokes and beautiful descriptions of scenes, sentences like these ones that blow me away completely are why you’re one of my favourite fanfic authors. these are the kinds of sentences that i carry with me even after i am finished reading

”i can’t decide if you two are more like toddlers or like an old married couple… either way, it’s really bizarre to see andrew having feelings other than hate and destruction” LOL

thea is the coolest person ever

”kevin makes a noise like a dying dog” me too, kevin

NONONONONO ICHIROU AND JEAN AND EASTHAVEN

thank goodness neil is here

apparently i am very fond of the words “juice pack” and think it is cute. why? i also do not know

huh, riko naming his identity kevin king?? feels… not good

oh boy, lola is back

ANDREW CAN PICK OPEN HIS HANDCUFFS THANK YOU FOR THIS

is it bad if i am happy that all these people are dying (proust, lola, etc.)

NEIL AMPUTATES NATHAN’S HAND WITH A CLEAVER WHILE HE’S HOLDING A CLEAVER AND THEN KILLS HIM LDKSJFLK

oh dang, it’s stuart (i trust him)

andrew’s eye! thank goodness, because although it kind of sucks, it also Really Does Not Suck

”it’s stiff and awkward and neil quickly wriggles out of it. kevin must be really shaken up, because he tries andrew next. andrew waits passively until he’s close and then steps to the side at the last moment, smothering his amusement in a cough when kevin walks straight into the wall with open arms. serves him right for thinking even for a second that andrew would let him” LOL i love you, anna, so so much

money!! woohoooooo (or should i say woolonghooo okay sorry that’s like the world’s worst pun)

BELL PEPPERS AND BEEF WITH ACTUAL BEEF AND NO PEPPERS YES! what a great way to bring things full circle, even though it’s small

sweet dumplings filled with fruit? i am intrigued

THE SHIRT

i can’t not acknowledge the bit with the key, neil is too clever for his own good

we finally get to see bee! ugh i love the relationship between bee and andrew

”they may be marks of destruction, but they are still andrew’s; still proof of his existence” yeah (like a good yeah)

interesting about andrew’s memory not being as good without his left eye. does he have eidetic memory in this au? maybe it’s better if he doesn’t

i remember the first time i read this fic, in startling detail. this fic was so good then, and it has been just as good, if not better, every time i have reread it

it’s kind of embarrassing, but one of the things that i remember distinctly (among a lot of other things) is the noodles! reading this fic never fails to make me want to eat instant noodles

so one thing about me is that i am actually really bad at visualizing things. when i read stories, i can never imagine what a character looks like, i just see the feature that is being highlighted at the moment, and the second that sentence ends, that image is gone. like i just have a magnifying glass to someone’s face but i can’t piece together the parts. it makes it so that i often struggle with the visualization of stories. but something about your writing makes it easy for me to pictures scenes happening. everything is so vivid, and real (hence, the instant noodle cravings lol) and i love that so much. it’s so special.

the flow of this fic is amazing, the characterization is incredibly authentic and really helps with carrying the plot. you integrated lighthearted scenes with pure angst and awful things (easthaven) and i’m honestly curious as to the cowboy bebop episodes you took inspiration from. this fic was so well written, you are so skilled at introducing characters, locations, plot points, although i’m not familiar with this universe i wasn’t confused at any point. you explained everything without me noticing. this was just a breathtaking fic. thank you so much for writing this!!

[gothamundernightlight]

Okay, so most of us know about the deleted scene from Avengers: Endgame now, that surfaced yesterday, and I need to talk about it. Like, it's a physical need, y'all, I gotta. If you haven't seen it, here's a link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0H6GZxve2o

First up, this scene is PERFECTION! Yes, it's heart-wrenching, depressing, and just straight up reminds us of what was lost in the film. We lost Tony Stark. But that is exactly what he deserved. The reactions, the human-ness of it, was relevant, and I think that Marvel did a disservice to quite a lot of these characters by deleting this scene.

Starting off with Pepper, our very first Marvel lady. The badass, sassy, ineffable Pepper Potts, who put up with Tony's shit enough to marry the lucky bastard. They have a daughter together, and the man that she loves just died in her arms. Her partner, her husband, the father of her child is gone, and at that moment, she doesn't care if she looks weak, she will mourn. She will mourn now, and so she just sobs.

Next we see Cap and Thor. I think we were all praying somewhat that Pepper would tell them that he's okay, but seeing Pepper cry just confirmed to everyone in that moment that Tony is dead, and we are getting a raw reaction from both of them. The horror, the grief, it's prevalent on their faces, and Cap's mouth just hangs open in shock. He doesn't know what to say.

Thor has been through enough, he's emotionally strained, having lost his security, most of his self-confidence, and now two of his teammates. We've seen Thor cry in this film, and now he's about to do it again, and he's within his rights to.

Then the music swells and we cut to Clint. Clint was done dirty by Marvel ever since Age of Ultron, and cutting this scene was just another example. Over the years, Clint Barton has been through hell. He deserved a happy life JUST AS MUCH as Tony, and he got it. He had his wife, his kids, his freedom. And yeah, he was bitter in Civil War, reminding Tony of Rhodey's injury, but if a friend had been responsible for putting you behind bars, you'd feel a little bitter too. The last time Clint saw Tony? Tony was shielding him in case Bruce blew something up with the gauntlet. They worked as a team to save the world, and relied on each other, seamlessly. They'd lost Nat, they mourned her together, and while there is a risk in every battle, Clint didn't think he'd lose another teammate...no, another friend so soon. He kneels, and bows his head. He hides his face, but the action is clear. The respect is clear.

Then the camera pulls out, revealing T'Challa and Carol. Clint's motion catches the king's eye, and when he realizes what the archer is doing, he immediately looks back at Tony. And then he too, kneels. This man just gave his life to save everyone, he damn well earned the respect that the motion carries. Carol kneels next. She sees T'Challa kneel, but culturally, she gets it. I would assume that Carol has remembered a lot about her time on Earth, her life, and certain traditions that come with it. The whole bowing to a fallen comrade may be Arthurian in nature, but the tradition is widely recognized in American football. A player is hurt = Everyone kneels. Everyone in the stadium, everyone watching. It's a visible mark of respect, and it's why Colin Kaepernick knelt in protest of racial inequality and police brutality rather than standing in solemnity. Carol might remember the tradition of kneeling from her youth, and so, she pays due.

Next we see Peter Quill, Valkyrie, and Nebula. Peter kneels. He too remembers the tradition (he’s from Missouri, he watched football, fight me) He fought next to the man, and while he didn't know him well, Peter might've enjoyed his company under different circumstances. Valkyrie has no clue what's going on, but she recognizes the situation. She knows what it's like to lose someone in battle, and she respects the tradition. She kneels.

Nebula technically kneels before Valkyrie, but her posture is different. Her back is straight, and her head is angled up. Nebula is a proud individual, and knows that his sacrifice was necessary, so she will mourn privately. She got to know Tony a little during their little space venture, and might've considered him a friend. She definitely respected him enough to stay, and kneel, because she knows the man earned it.

Next we see Scott kneeling, and it’s probably one of my favorite views of a person’s face during this scene. Scott’s an empathetic person, family-oriented, and tries to get along with people. But he didn’t exactly get along with Tony. He held Tony’s original refusal about the time-heist against him, and was so sure it would work, that he didn’t really consider the consequences. But seeing Tony’s widow mourn him now, Scott gets it. He regrets his actions a little, and so he will pay this man, this man he didn’t even like that much, some respect.

Cap comes into frame at that moment, and he doesn’t hesitate. He just falls, and he wobbles going down. He hits the ground hard, like the world has just been pulled out from under his feet. Who can blame him. Steve Rodgers felt very responsible for his team, and he feels that everything that happens to them for the most part is on him to fix. It’s on him to defend them, and we’re thrown back to that conversation. “We got a shot at getting these stones, but I got to tell you, my priority. Bring back what we lost? I hope, yes. Keep what I found? I have to, at all costs. And maybe not die trying would be nice.” Tony was able to move on past the Snap, he did what Steve struggled to do, after waking up in the 21st century, and after the Snap. He moved on, got married, started a family. Steve couldn’t move on, and somehow, he’s the one still standing while Tony is now gone. I think that’s the moment when Steve knew he would do whatever it took to get that life that Tony talked about, because he couldn’t be the one to fall in battle for him.

Strange is next in line, and we see him kneel, and his hair is still waving like someone is following him with a weak hairdryer. But his expression…whew, that’s solid. That’s the look that would’ve been on his face when losing a patient on the table, and having to inform the family. He knew this was coming. Five years ago, he saw that coming. He was prepared for it, but that didn’t make it hurt any less seeing it actually happen. His eyes don’t move until he’s fully on the ground, he refuses to take his eyes off Tony even at the risk of falling flat on his face. But he bows and in that moment you can see the regret and grief and the wonder if maybe there had been another way. His eyes shut, and his breath hitches a little.

Then, we get a change of pace. Gamora from 2014. Unlike everyone else, I don’t think she’s actually looking at Tony. Whatever she’s looking at, is eye-level. I think she’s watching everyone else, making sure that none of them are looking at her. She doesn’t know this man, but she is not surprised he is dead. She knows the power of the Infinity Stones, it’s been ingrained into her, and what’s more is that she knows what happens to people who go up against Thanos. She may appreciate that her father is dead because of this man, but she can’t stay and thank him. So she leaves. As she should. Maybe she finds a Chitauri transport vessel in the wreckage and makes her escape, but she spared him a moment, which from her…was enough.

In the next shot, none of the people are original Avengers. Mantis and Drax stand in the back, Shuri and Bucky in the front, and Sam, Wanda, and Okoye are to the side. Bucky, Sam and Wanda are already kneeling in this moment, and Shuri and Okoye quickly kneel as well. (Also, is Shuri wearing pristine NIKE sneakers in that moment, so QUEEN!) Neither check to look at T’Challa, so they do it of their own volition.

None of them knew Tony well, some even not at all. But what I find interesting, is that out of all the people kneeling in that shot, only Bucky is looking at Tony. The last time the two of them interacted was in Siberia, and a lot has changed since then. Tony changed, and Bucky definitely got the help he needed. Perhaps, had there been time, amends would have been made, apologies been exchanged, and even a camaraderie might have formed between the two. That will never happen now.

Then Drax kneels. The man is a peculiarity when it comes to things, and boundaries are clearly in different positions when it comes to social interactions. But he’s a fighter, and he’s been in Pepper’s shoes. He had a family and lost them, his wife and daughter, and then the Guardians. He can sympathize, and so he kneels. Mantis is looking at Drax. Unsure of what to do in this situation, she seeks out something familiar. She’s isolated, can’t touch anyone to glean context, so she copies him. She kneels. It might not be out of respect, but she does it anyways because it feels appropriate.

As the camera pulls back out, we see Pepper once more, and then Rhodes comes into view, and there’s even a slight glimpse of Peter. Rhodey is turned away. He can’t watch this. He physically can’t. Over the years, his best friend has done a lot of dumb shit. Like, A LOT! There were probably times Rhodey imagined waking up to find out that Tony OD’ed in college. Or died in Afghanistan. Got himself killed as Iron Man. Not this. He can’t watch this. Yes, his best friend was a superhero, but he didn’t imagine that Tony would die being one. Tony was supposed to die a civilian, not like a soldier.

Peter isn’t kneeling. It’s hard to see, but his posture indicated that he’s pulled away, sat back, curled into himself. His head is in his hands, and he’s trying to process what’s just happened. He just lost another person, another father figure, and he’s grieving only inches away from the body. He’s not moving, he can’t look up, not without seeing Tony’s face, and he can’t help but remember moments ago when Tony was standing there, giving him a hug. How can someone so important be gone so fast?

Pulling out some more, more people are revealed. Thor is now kneeling, as is Wong and Hope. Then there’s Bruce. Bruce is turned away, like Rhodey, but he’s kneeling on both knees, like he’s about to throw up and is looking at the sling around his arm. He’s made the connection, on what Tony did. He felt the pain of what the stone’s power is like, and he can only imagine what kind of pain Tony was in in his last moments. He wouldn’t wish that on anyone, and would rather have risked snapping his fingers with those stones again than losing Tony. But it’s too late.

As the screen fades to black, the camera continues to pull out, like there could’ve been more people revealed to mourn the Iron Man, and I think it would have been appropriate to segue into the message that Tony left to Morgan, had that scene not been cut from the film. We got to watch them say goodbye to Tony, and it would’ve been nice to see Tony say goodbye next. But at the same time, I think if this scene had been kept, the funeral itself wouldn’t have had much point narratively.

The only reason the funeral happened was to see all of the people pay tribute, while also explaining the extra people there who weren’t in the battle. Hank Pym, Queen Ramonda, Nick Fury, and Harley Keener. Morgan.

If I was in charge of editing this, I would’ve kept the kneeling scene in, as that was emotionally significant to the characters, and would’ve had a greater impact on the audience. Fade to black, and then show the message, before seeing Pepper and Morgan lay down the wreath on the lake. Made the funeral more ambiguous, for both Tony and Natasha (she deserved a funeral too y’all) Make the other faces visible as they approach, and then cut to Morgan’s cheeseburger line.

But either way, as is, I am grateful that this particular moment was filmed, and then released. I loved it, and if y’all will excuse me, I’m going to cry some more.

[scattered0mind]

Prying Mantis (Bucky Barnes x Reader one-shot)

A/N: I saw infinity wars like 3 times and I just want all my babies together and happy and joking okay. I’m hurt okay. This is my first one shot so please be nice! BUT I WOULD LOVE FEEDBACK!!! I saw this one shot once before someone I think did a blurb about it and my mind just went crazy for it so here it is:) I don’t own the gif or marvel

warnings: fluff i think what is fluff? kissing implied sex you know the norm.

Prompt: Mantis wants to show everyone her powers, she just so happened to pick you to demonstrate on.

You weren’t scared of ‘aliens’ (they really liked it better if you just didn’t utter that word at all) really. It was more like they peaked your interest because you never really came in contact with any friendly other worldly beings expect Thor but he didn’t really count because that man was the definition of Godlike. Then you met the Guardians of the Galaxy and suddenly you didn’t know how to act or where to put your hands and for a trained secret agent, it wasn’t the best look.

There was only one other person who made you feel something kind of close to that and it was Bucky Barnes. 

You’ve had a crush on Bucky since your first mission together. Hell, maybe even when you first laid eyes on him but mission sounded less creepy so that’s what you told Nat. The Avengers was full of very attractive people but something about Bucky made you get flustered in his presence. It wasn’t like the Guardians where you were more interest in their cultures and habits but more of he’s-so-cute-I-want-to-kiss-him-so-bad-I’m-going-to-die kind of way. But you stared a lot. You couldn’t help it, if something interested you or made you curious it held your attention anytime it was around.

Like when you met Drax for the first time and you practically committed the red markings on his green skin to memory because you found them so awesomely interesting. Rocket laughed at you as he entertained the idea of you being attracted to Drax. And even harder when Drax replied how he finds you quite ugly. It wasn’t a good first impression.

Or when you met Bucky and your eyes roamed around his entire being trying to take everything about him in. You could tell at first that he found it kind of odd and you knew it was rude. Your mother always smacked you on the back of the head for staring. But after making a stupid joke about how you couldn’t take your eyes off of him and his beauty, he eased up around you and you two eventually fell into a weird flirting with sexual tension (though you might just be imagining it) kind of friendship.

“Hey Y/N, come here Mantis is going to show us how she uses her powers.” Sam called from his spot on the couch in the lounge. It’s been a few weeks since the Guardians started staying with them and everyone seemed to have found their own ways to interact with each other. The base had quickly became a comfortable environment with all of them. 

“Okay, be right there.” You said as you grabbed your bottle of the water. You just got back from training with Steve and Bucky. After two hours and watching men who pretty much looked like they were sculptured to perfection lift weights shirtless and sweaty all while being teased by Bucky about how much you could squat you were ready for some quiet time by yourself. It also didn’t help your severely large crush on him. If anything it’s bigger and more embarrassing then before. So not only were you tired and sweaty but also bothered and uncomfortable watching him in the gym. 

Walking out into the living room, everyone was there. Steve stood behind one of the couches next to Drax who was eating chips as Nat, Sam and Clint claimed the couch in front of the two. Peter Quill and Gamora were cuddled on the other one next to Rhodey. The only remaining spot was between Bucky and Mantis. You sighed and went to sit between the two. Mantis smiled brightly at you as Bucky moved his arm to be draped over the back of the couch behind your head. You resisted the urge to breathe deeply so you didn’t inhale Bucky’s scent weirdly enough. Being this close next to him was torture enough. Thigh on Thigh and if you shifted even a little bit you guys would be even closer. 

“Alright Mantis show us whatcha got.” You said crossing your arms and leaning back into the seat. Bucky pulled your pony tail teasing you, as you elbowed him softly in his side.

“Hey watch it. I don’t want you to hurt yourself on my muscles.” He joked. You rolled your eyes and tried sliding a little more away from him but not too much so you weren’t cuddled up to Mantis.

“I would say bite me Barnes but we all know you’re into that.” You quipped. Bucky shrugged making you stifle a laugh as you directed your attention to Mantis.

“As you know I can feel emotions.” Mantis said leaning forward into the group. Her bug-like eyes sparkled with happiness as she smiled. You loved that she was proud of her power and loved them because they were solely hers. “I can also change emotions too, but that sometimes is a bit hard and most people I meet do not like it.” 

“I love this part.” Drax whispered not so quietly to Steve, who looked at him funny before looking back at Mantis. Drax was still eating his way through a bag of chips he found in one of the cabinets in the kitchen, not shying away from the crunch of them.

“May I?” Mantis asked, turning towards you. You started objecting because you didn’t exactly know how you felt about getting your emotions read. It wasn’t like a scam psychic you found at the carnivals and fairs. You knew Mantis could actually do it and do it well. But before you could stop she laid a hand on top of yours. Everyone in the room paused as Bucky leaned forward and towards you to watch. Your senses were filled with his scent and you could feel his heat on your back and breath on your neck. You tried to fight the blush that crept on your face as Mantis held your hand. Her antennas lighting up.

“You feel love.” She began, pausing to read it better. You knew what she was reading and who it was for. “Sexual love.” 

“Okay maybe we should try someone-” You said, trying to pull your hand away but she held on.

“For him!” She yelled point at Bucky, who eyes widen as he leaned back away from you. You closed your eyes sighing, pulling your hand away from Mantis. You wanted to snap at her and tell her to mind her own business but you knew she was innocent in all of this. 

Meanwhile Drax busted out loud laughing, pieces of chips flying everywhere. 

“It’s just like Quill!” He hollered throwing his head back. Peter scratched the back of his head.

“Yeah I should have warned you about that.” Your eyes shoot daggers at Quill, keeping your face and body turned away form Bucky. Mantis frowned at you.

“I’m sorry sometimes I dig too deep.” She said, looking sad. 

“It’s okay. I’m just going to uh go uh shower or something.” You said as you got up not sparing a glance at Bucky who seemed frozen. Nat looked up at you from as you passed behind the couch she was at. She smirked and you could see the amusement in her eyes. She’s being telling you for weeks to ask out Bucky and now everyone in the Base knew you wanted to fuck him. Steve gave you a sympathetic look as he let you by. Everyone was laughing quietly for your sake expect for Drax. 

“Me next! Me next!” You heard Clint yell as you left the room.

You walked down the hallway towards your dorm. You were so embarrassed and even more tired and bothered than before. When Mantis touched you, you could feel the emotion more as she said it. Like she plucked it out of all the emotions inside of you. You just wanted to take a nice cold shower and then suffocate yourself in your duvet until you worked up the guts to talk to Bucky or anyone else ever again.

“Is that true?” You froze at the sound of Bucky’s voice. You didn’t even see or hear him follow you out of the room.You turned around to look at him. 

“Well I-I mean you’re attractive so I mean-” You were rambling. You were pretty positive Bucky didn’t take any of the flirting you two do seriously and you didn’t expect him too. But now he knew you actually felt something for him.

“Is it just that?” He asked, putting a fallen piece of hair behind his ear. You loved when he wore a bun and you face burned that even now in this humiliating moment you were still checking him out. 

“Ithinkiactuallyilikeyou.” You rushed out, not wanting to stay in this hallway any longer because you were feeling more and more embarrassed by the second. By now your face was on fire and you wrung your hands so many time they were red. Bucky chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck as he looked at his feet. He was laughing at you. He was definitely going to reject you.

“Listen it’s totally cool if you don’t- I mean I know you don’t like me and-” You said nervously, wanting to rip the band-aid off.

“What?” His head snapped up, and you could see the faint blush creeping up his neck. His blue eyes were shocked as he started walking towards you.

“You don’t like me?” You questioned, backing up as into the wall as he got closer. He stopped right in front of you. Your eyes adverted to anywhere so you didn’t have to directly look at him.

“I never said that.” He said, taking your face in his hands. The cool metal of one felt nice on your ever burning face. Your heart thumping rapidly in your chest and you prayed you wouldn’t pass out. Not here. Not now.

“Oh okay I don’t know what to do here.” You muttered slightly embarrassed and slightly nervous. You were trying to ease the situation with a joke like you normally do. Bucky rolled his eyes as he smiled softly down at you. 

“You could let me kiss you and stop rambling for one.” He said, bringing his face close to yours. You bite your lip and smiled, fluttering your eyes close as your noses brushed each other.

“Okay.” You whispered as your lips met. The kiss was soft and sweet at first and as it dragged on you found yourself pushed up against the wall, Bucky trapping you with his body as his hands roamed from your face to your hips and ass. You opened your mouth when you felt his tongue swipe across your bottom on, his tongue meeting yours smoothly and effortlessly like you guys were made to do this. It was possible the best kiss you’ve ever had and you groaned loudly when he pulled away causing him to laugh aloud. 

“How about that shower?” He said with a wink and you laughed hitting his chest. You definitely weren’t afraid of aliens at all.

[voyages-extraordinaires]

C:R ~VE~ Chapter 32

I hadn’t realized how tense the atmosphere between Cardia and Barbicane had been until I saw them again. It was like a cloak of pressure had been pulled off, and all that was left were their smiles.

The both of them looked so happy. They looked ‘complete’ together, partners who would one day conquer gravity and the atmosphere itself to ascend to the moon.

Well, that’s how I felt, anyway. The whole thing was terribly romantic.

“So, Nemo tried to teach you how to drive, huh?” Barbicane’s barely looking at me as he speaks. All of his attention is on his angel, who’s still trying to eat her flummery with an exasperated smile.

“’Teach’ is putting it very loosely, I’m afriad,” I say, pushing my glasses back onto the bridge of my nose. “He stepped away from the wheel and I had to grab it. I thought I was going to get us all killed!”

“Well, we all have to start somewhere,” Barbicane finally looks my way and gives me a wink. “I should thank the two of you, though! When the Harper began rocking, I had to hold on super-tight to my princess!”

Cardia sighs and shakes her head. Eventually, though, her embarrassment seemed to melt and she said, “I remember how much fun I had when I first piloted Impey’s Ornithopter. I guess I was lucky to have such a good teacher.”

“’Guess you were lucky’? Luck had nothing to do with it, Cardia-chan! Wasn’t I the best teacher out of them all?! Didn’t you look at me with sparkly eyes and cry: ‘Teach me more, sensei!’“

Cardia sets her fork down. “I’m fairly certain I didn’t do anything like that...”

“Well, just as long as my driving lessons are kept below the sea or on terra firma, I’m fine. I’ll leave Ornithopter piloting to you, Cardia.”

Cardia smiles slightly. “You can count on me.”

“H-Hey! Who owns the Ornithopter, here?! Come on!”

Cardia’s laugh is joyful. I want to give the lovebirds more time to themselves, but I did come here for a specific reason. 

“We’re headed towards the continental shelf now. Nemo said that once we get to shallow enough water... we’ll be able to walk on the ocean floor, deeper than man has ever gone.”

"Heh, you’re usually pretty cool, Polly-chan, but you sound like you’re about to burst!” Barbicane gives me a wolfish smile.

I put a hand to my throat. Was my voice trembling that much?

“Hey, nothing to be embarrassed about! When I’m about to set foot on the moon, I’ll be leaping for joy! Maybe I’ll carry my angel across the threshold of the ship-- she’ll be so beautiful in her suit!”

“The suits are on the bridge, right?” asks Cardia. “How are we going to get outside? I know we have an escape pod, but I don’t think that would work. If we open the hatch, water will come pouring in, won’t it?”

"You wouldn’t have to worry about that even being a possibility,” I say. “The ocean’s pressure is so great that we wouldn’t be able to open the hatch while submerged, no matter how hard we tried.”

“Oh yeah,” Barbicane sighs. “Nemo has a super-secret plan for getting us out there, but he said that if I told you he’d make me his...”

He wrinkles his nose and shudders. “His ‘cute guinea pig’...”

I hide my laughter behind my hand.

-----

About half an hour later, the four of us are gathered in the bridge.

“We’re at about 50 fathoms,” says Cardia.

“Excelleeeeeeeeeeent! This-- maaaany fathoms below the limits imposed upon man by nature herself-- will be a suuuuuuperb demonstration of my genius!” Nemo throws his head back and cackles while Barbicane lunges forward to catch the steering wheel that Nemo had let go of in his throes of science-induced hysteria.

“Oy, oy, Nemo! Can you cut the hyena laugh while you’re DRIVING?!”

The two scientists do an awkward sort of tango as they fight over the wheel, leaving Cardia and I to muse to ourselves.

“My god... we’ll be walking 96 meters under the water’s surface!” I breathe. “I-- I thought it would be maybe 50 meters at most.”

I can feel excitement bubbling inside of me as I clasp my hands in glee. “I’ll finally be able to be a part of that submerged world, lovingly embraced by the most primal element, the place where life began!”

Barbicane somehow wrestles the wheel away from Nemo, fending him off with one of his feet while balancing precariously. How have we not crashed yet?

“We’re going in teams of two,” says Barbicane. “It’ll be a double date, you know?”

Nemo grimaces at the redhead. “Pleeeeeeeaaase... don’t disrespect this momentous moment with inane babble... try to be serious, hmm? Do it for meeee?”

“I DO NOT NEED YOU, OF ALL PEOPLE, TO TELL ME ME TO BE SERIOUS!”

Each couple will be limited to an hour outside. The Harper’s spotlight will illuminate a distance great enough for us to explore to our heart’s content. Each of us will carry one of the rifles specifically designed for this expedition. Each of us get twelve bullets that are already pre-loaded. Only one shot is needed for each enemy, thanks to the electric miracle that each bullet possesses. Quick, painless, and deadly.

“While the first team is out there, the second team will be standing by to make sure that everything goes well. There’s an emergency transmitter in each helmet, but it should really only be used if you absolutely, positively need it,” says Barbicane. “So no screeching. Got it?”

“Hmmm? Whateeeever are you talking about...” Nemo trails off.

“The divers won’t be able to communicate with each other?” I ask.

“Sorry, Polly-chan,” Barbicane smiles at me. “I know you were probably really excited about fish talk, but pressure resistance and the emergency communicators were a higher priority.”

“It’s fine, Barbicane. If anything, it will add to the serenity.” I pause to shake my head. “So, how are we doing this? Shall we pick lots to see which team will go first?”

Barbicane shoots a glance at Nemo before looking back at me. “You’re kidding, right? That’d be like drawing lots to see which one of us will take the first steps on the moon!”

“We had already decided back when the ship was being built,” Cardia smiles.

“Fwee hee hee... of coooooourse it only makes sense that a genius as great as myself would be the first to walk on the ocean floor at this depth!” Nemo laughs loudly, but it soon dies down into a hum. “But to keep you away from the sea of your heart would be like clipping a bird’s wings! Ahhh, how needlessly cruueeel!”

“Nemo... everyone... being able to walk out there... be a part of that world for just a moment... I can’t even begin to thank the three of you enough. But, please... humor my attempt! Thank you!!”

“Geez, so formal,” says Barbicane. “Come on, lighten up a little, will you? We’re your friends! I can’t let go of the wheel right now, Cardia-chan can you go give her a noogie for me or something?”

“A what?” Cardia stares at Barbicane.

“I’d rather you didn’t,” I say quickly as I notice Nemo’s goggles flash with wicked intent. “I am curious about something, though... Nemo.”

Nemo stops, his fingers twitching with what I can only imagine is a childish desire to get me in a headlock like we were schoolchildren.

“Y-Y-Yeeees...?” He looks like a praying mantis, reared back and ready to pounce. The posture is... definitely more intimidating on the insect...

“Cardia raised an interesting point. At this depth... even if it weren’t suicide, it would be impossible for us to open the hatch thanks to the ocean’s pressure. How do you plan on us getting out of here?”

“Ohhh...? Impeeey Barbicane didn’t tell you, after all? Such a shame... what a shaaaaaaaaaame!! He would have made such a cute little guinea pig, don’t you think...?”

Barbicane sounds like he’s choking.

“But, no matter! Come, come, coooome with me! I will shoooow you, my daaaarling---!!” Nemo takes my hand and begins to lead me towards the salon.

“You two better not do anything too creepy out there while my honey and I are watching--!” Barbicane yells after us.

“Heheheee... don’t teeeempt me!” Nemo flashes a smile as he shuts the salon door behind us. He gives my hand a squeeze before approaching his pipe organ and flicking open a small compartment. He presses a button, and the pipe organ... it’s almost like the mouth of a living creature as it jolts to life and opens with a roar. Beyond the instrument is a room so small that the four of us would have trouble cramming inside. But the most interesting part of it is the trap door and some valves nearby.

“Water will come in through here,” Nemo points to the valve. “And the pressures will equalize. Then, we will drop into the seaaaaaaaaa!”

He looks at me with a leer. “Are you frightened? You can hold onto me if you neeeeeed~”

I laugh and turn away from the open pipe organ. “I’m not afraid of the sea... but I just might take you up on your offer anyway.”

His smile widens, and I quickly look away before adding: “You know... just so we won’t take any unnecessary risks.”

Despite our banter, getting undressed is surprisingly uneventful. We have bigger things to think about. We drag our diving suits over to the trap door and begin to suit each other up. Our boots are weighted, so it’s much easier for us to dress directly above where we’ll be dropping.

The suits are beautiful, rubber and canvas with a strange metal vest to protect ourselves from the pressure. There’s also a strange box upon our backs not unlike the one Nemo usually wears. I can only assume that these are our breathing apparatuses.

Nemo looks delicious in the technology he’s created, hair falling temptingly over his shoulders as ties it back so it will fit in the helmet. Overcome with excitement and desire, I pull him down to my height and kiss him.

“For luck,” I say with a shrug.

“We have science on our side, which is faaaaaaaar more reliable than luck! So if you want to kiss me, do it in triumph of this moment we will carve into the annals of histoooooooory!”

Separated by the weight of our suits, I can’t hold him as tight as I want or kiss him as deeply as I want, but it is still an embrace carved into my memory forever.

It takes a little while for us to screw our helmets into place, but I’m pleasantly surprised by the amount of visibility I have. Nemo, too, looks absolutely delighted and decides to demonstrate this by affectionately thunking his helmet against mine. It would have been cute if the impact hadn’t made my teeth rattle.

There’s a light, mechanical hum and a pulse not unlike a mechanical heartbeat before I realize that I can breathe normally. With this, I know that we’re ready for the true expedition of our voyage.

Nemo holds an arm out towards me and I try to shuffle in my boots to get closer to him. It doesn’t really work, and the two of us look more like we’re dance partners being scrutinized by chaperones.

Still, with an arm around each other and guns in our free hands, I feel like I’m ready to take on the world!

Nemo reaches up and flicks a switch, and we’re surrounded by darkness. There’s a loud rumble before I feel a coldness surrounding me, enveloping me slowly from my feet upwards. But in that coldness is freedom, and once we’re submerged in the water I’m able to pull Nemo in by his waist.

A moment passes, and Nemo presses another switch. The floor beneath us opens into a square of blue twilight, and we begin to sink a short distance down to the bottom of the sea.

How can I possibly describe the marvels before me? The sand beneath our feet is even and dusted with pieces of shells, and I do my best to avoid the unfortunate mollusks that have made their home here. They were truly radiant, lining the ground like a path in the Count’s gardens.

It’s so easy for me to move now that we’re submerged that I’m able to bend down to take a closer look at the shells. I immediately recognize the angel wing clam, and it takes all of my self-restraint to stop myself from picking one up to get a better look at the magnificent shape. After all, here I am merely a visitor. Nearby are various bullmouth snail shells, and I find myself climbing carefully to get a closer look.

Nemo observes me side-stepping the creatures, and for a moment I fear that he might not have the same regard for the ocean life. I’m relieved, though, to see him apparently realize the significance of this untouched landscape-- or maybe he just knows it would upset me-- or... perhaps he just wants to show off, as he jumps over the groups of mollusks like he’s playing a game of hopscotch.

Either way, I show my approval by taking his free hand and giving it a grateful squeeze. He returns the squeeze, clearly glad that I noticed his attempt to spare the lives of dozens of helpless invertebrates. Nemo thunks his helmet lightly against mine multiple times, trying... apparently... to mimic an excited flurry of kisses.

Clunk. Clunk. Clunk.

He doesn’t let go of my hand, leading me through the kaleidoscope of wonders before us. The light fading in the deep casts a reddish glow over us as we enter a forest of seaweed blooming in more hues than I could even imagine.

An underwater forest... the site of many of my childhood adventures. Surely as we tread through this place, I can push away the kelp and catch a glimpse of my beloved Atlantis!

But it’s not Atlantis I see as I push aside stalks of kelp: Squalus cuvier, renamed Galeocerdo tigrinus in 1837, and more commonly called the man-eater shark.

I take a step back in the sand, telling myself it’s to get a better view of the shark in its natural surroundings. My quaking legs say otherwise.

I love the creatures of the deep, all of them, truly. ... But god, what terrible and fearsome foes sharks are!

I mean, I don’t have much reason to think so... sharks are usually docile creatures who show curiosity with their teeth. With their many, many rows of teeth... and their inky black eyes...

I shudder, hoping that the motion was hidden by my suit.

Nemo looks at me, then at the shark, then at me again. I can practically see him squinting in confusion.

It’s perfectly natural for a marine biologist to be nervous around sharks! In fact, we should know better than anyone what these creatures are capable of! Like removing limbs and things like that.

He points to the shark and looks back at me, tilting his head. It’s strange to see him pantomiming his usual outbursts... and it’s even stranger how he still manages to slouch so distinctly in his diving suit.

But my observations are cut short when he cocks his rifle with a flourish and takes aim at the shark.

I quickly begin waving my arms, shaking my head vigorously. I might be frightened by these creatures, but that is certainly no reason to kill it! It hasn’t even noticed us!

I should have known guns would be a bad idea, almost as bad as handing him explosive material! He’s like a giddy child, if he has a toy he simply has to show it off-- tenfold if it’s one he created!

Nemo looks over at me, his gun still raised, and tilts his head in the opposite direction.

Damnit, he doesn’t understand! Why don’t we have any way of communication?! If only I could somehow convey that this creature is a precious specimen, a precious piece of the ocean’s biological community! Think clearly, Pauline!

I worriedly look back at the shark and freeze-- my hand signals must have attracted it, because it’s headed this way! And if it heads this way, Nemo will certainly kill it!

The shark swoops down, and I shove the both of us to the ground. Of course, Nemo being Nemo, he begins to flail in a panic. Being a rational woman, I quickly climb on top of him and lay still, hoping to weigh down his limbs.

Sharks have terrible vision, and once we’re on the ground it doesn’t seem to notice us, even as Nemo continues to attempt his kicking.

Once the shark meanders out of sight, I slowly roll off of Nemo and onto my back, staring up at the surface of the ocean as my heartrate begins to go down.

Nemo’s probably very confused as well, but hopefully he’s able to realize how closely we brushed against death. He leans over and peers at me, his lips pursed in confusion. But when I shake my head, he shrugs and flops back down, sending up a cloud of sand.

The sun seems so far away down here, and the ripples of the water give it the appearance of a stained-glass window. It’s peaceful, almost solemn, much like the church I visited as a child.

Nemo reaches over and rubs my hand for attention. Such a needy man! But I can’t help but smile and thread our fingers together.

Holding his hand, I look back up at the surface as a denizen of this wonderland that lies fathoms below.

[adriennescomingbacktolife]

...The Drinks and The Divided...

Written with the amazing Amber...

“What is it about her that is so goddamned special?” ― Laurell K. Hamilton, Obsidian Butterfly Unnamed Bar Baltimore, MD 16.09.2020 2:41pm After the third drink, Amber expected to feel far more like herself. Such things however, were not the case as she stared through the bottom of a glass, that arguably should have been far cleaner than what it was, leaving her eyes aching and the distant throbbing headache she hadn’t been able to shoo away far more prevalent than it had any right to be. Maybe this was a mistake, trying to reach out and create connections- for the longest time she’d kept the walls higher than anyone dared to climb, the facade of thorns and ivy a blockade from real human connections and her perceived indifference a barrier to stop anyone seeing that she might have the remnants of something worth salvaging inside her chest. Whether it was the shredded remains of her heart, or a suspiciously misshapen piece of gum though was yet to be determined. Adrienne struck her curiously though, something about her drew Amber in despite her best efforts to remain distant. They travelled in very different circles, Amber had been doing this far too long while Adrienne was still relatively green despite her age, polar opposite ends of their careers… Amber really fucking liked her though, even if she couldn’t quite pinpoint why. Perhaps it was her genuine nature, her honesty in the face of an industry that had no use for such frivolities in it's upper echelons- or maybe just the sheer lack of anything resembling fear that reminded Amber of her own crude beginnings. Running her fingers through her ponytail idly, Amber lazily pushed the glass around the bar surface, procrastinating ordering another as the bartender did his best to disguise his annoyance and vague frustration. She’d been there an hour before messaging Adrienne that she was here, an hour and she’d only had three drinks- if she weren’t one of the only people there the bartender would have probably sent her on her way for wasting his time… A whole hour, most of which was spent trying to convince herself to just fucking hit send already. Nerves firing on all cylinders, Amber wasn’t even sure why she was nervous- if it could be defined as such- only that she hated it. Making friends Amber, she mused silently as the glass caught on the surface jarring slightly, why must you make this far more difficult than it needs to be… “Amber?” Adrienne had quietly entered the bar, scanning the area for the woman she’d up to this moment had only met in passing. Shared a few messages and the like. With all of her media appearances satisfied for the upcoming Chaos, she was hoping to just meet the person beyond her remarkable persona. Normally, she’d be one to talk to everyone about her agenda for the day. Where she was, who she was with … but this felt necessary to not share especially with how heated it seemed to be getting. Sitting a few stools apart from Amber, Adrienne had tried to get her attention a few times but was not loud enough to be heard above the ambience of their surroundings. She’d dressed a little better for this outing with a new Fallout Boy t-shirt, a new pair of jeans, and sneakers. That was about as formal as you’d get from her. “Sorry, I didn’t want to interrupt you.” She said a little louder. Sweet girl. Polite too, which is a damn rarity in this place- Amber contemplated silently as she drew herself out of her hunch as though uncoiling into a slightly better posture while some satisfying pops and cracks emanated from her spine. Would it be rude to tell the girl she knew she was there the moment she walked in the door, that her footfalls gave her away and that Amber had simply taken the extra time to drag herself from the depths of her own psyche, somehow hoping that she might find something constructive and significant to say. “Not interrupting at all- get a bit lost in my thoughts sometimes while the rest of the world kinda passes me by.” Despite their casual passing in corridors and limited interactions on social media, this was the redheads first real time sizing up the newcomer, the upstart with potential beyond her years, the heir to the proverbial throne of ‘Carnage queens’ potentially… An inch taller but slimmer build, Adrienne reminded Amber of a praying mantis with her deceptive speed and skill, a killer instinct buried beneath what seemed to be layers and layers of pent up frustrations and something else- something that resonated behind her eyes, burning through everything that might try to free it from it's pride of place in her head. Curious indeed. “What's your poison chick- and before you attempt to argue… I extended the invitation so at least just let me cover this…” Money was the scourge of the industry, so many sought their fortune between the ropes thinking of the paydays and the infamy it might bring- however those particular specimens never lasted long, fame never came quick enough and their bank accounts went into overdraft instead of their expected overload. Anyone who wrestled purely for the money, wasn’t a real wrestler at all. Everyone in this godforsaken industry had a story, their reason for being and doing etched into their skin and buried deep in their hearts. Fuel, motivation, desire- take what you love and let it kill you… Although Amber doubted wrestling was what they had meant. Amber waved down the bartender with her right hand as he eyed her warily, her left staying firmly in her hoodie pocket as bandages tugged at the torn skin of her palm. His expectation of disappointment was written across his features long before he ever got close to the two women- hell, he could only imagine what he was thinking seeing Amber and Adrienne together- polar opposites and yet entirely alike in the same notion. Adrienne had dressed for the occasion while Amber was damn near lucky just to be wearing pants… Leaning up over the bar, Adrienne looked at the bottles on the shelves to see if anything caught her eye but she was out of her depth. Whatever didn’t empty her wallet went into her glass. “Oh, I don’t know.” She thought out loud. Looking out loud. Adrienne cast a side eye glance to Amber and smiled slightly. “I usually just down a cheap bottle of pink moscato and call it a night. But if you’re offering, I’ll try whatever you’re into.” Amber chuckled softly to herself with a small shake of the head, perhaps now wasn’t a good time to say that she’d consume anything with an alcohol level high enough to give her a buzz. Pink moscato, it explained a couple things to say the least. “Whatever I’m into, huh? Used to be more picky but these days... ” A vague gesture towards some bourbon bottles to one side followed, along with Amber clearing her throat slightly trying to find something to say… Converse like a real person. It couldn’t be that hard, right? “So… how's things?” Yeah, nailed it. Amber flashed what likely was intended to be a sincere smile, trying to cover up her own awkwardness in hopes that maybe it wasn’t as absurdly obvious as it sounded. “Well...” Adrienne trailed off. In the last few weeks, that could be considered a loaded question. Could be considered weird to just how things were really going. “I’m alright. Still getting adjusted to this city. How the air smells. That I don’t know where I’m going. Not that I’m complaining. It was worth it.” Her mind wandered through what could be the obvious answers to how Amber was doing these days. Personal and business issues seemed indistinguishable and sometimes Adrienne felt like she was in the middle as battle lines were being drawn. “You?” Two glasses materialized, half filled with broken ice cubes and part filled with a liquid almost dark gold and translucent, Amber found herself grateful if only for the fact she might now have something to wash away the bitter taste of her answer. “Well, if I can be completely blunt… Pretty terribly.” Amber rummaged in her pocket for a few moments, a deliberate move to avoid eye contact. Something about Adrienne's eyes seemed to capture far more than just the light, that perhaps at the right angle she might see straight through the redhead like she wasn't even there. A few crumpled notes ended up tossed casually onto the bar before Amber pushed her glass around a little as though unwilling to commit to the extra inebriation quite yet. “I guess that's the industry though. Ups, downs and everything in between… Everyone’s so busy at each other's throats at the moment that everything else seems far less important than it should. I’ll admit though, I’m a little surprised Knox was just willing to let you do this… Nice guy, a bit of a dick, definitely got a big mouth, but seems like he cares. God, that's a weird thought… that I might actually be considered ‘trustworthy’ to be around.” Without an extra seconds hesitation, Amber took up her glass while giving Adrienne a nod and downing the liquid in one- a cringe and a momentary shudder released some of the tension Amber had been holding as she cocked her head slightly looking back towards Adrienne. “If that isn’t a sign the worlds gone mad…” Adrienne sipped at her glass, doing her best to not let her present company know how much it burned going down. Probably failed there as she sputtered a little before taking another drink. The dark haired woman let Amber speak, listening intently. She however did want to clarify. “Matt’s a good person. He’s not my minder or anything like that but I understand what you mean.” However, she swung back around on Amber’s honesty. “I’m sorry with what is going on. I guess it's naive to hope that we could all be friends. I’ve held back on making too many declarations. I want ...maybe some of the stuff that is being talked about but not at the expense of others. Guess that makes me kinda dumb.” Swirling the contents in the glass, she continued, just audible enough for the person next to her. “Cuz you were world’s champion and you took a moment out of your time to notice me. It felt nice.” Sincerity was a rare thing in this world, far too often everyone spoke freely from both sides of their mouths trying to find the most advantageous side to fall in with. Adrienne hadn’t been tainted with that cynicism yet, perhaps something to remain hopeful for at least from Amber’s distorted perspective. “Yeah… were.” It stung worse than she dared let on, the constant reminders were hard enough. Innocent comments also cut deeper cause they weren’t intended to- Amber quickly regrouped though trying to shrug off the dark cloud trying to downpour on her conversation. “Truthfully, I don’t see any reason why people can’t be friends except for that pride and ambition tend to get in the way. Everyone has this view of the way everything is supposed to work, it's subjective and if it doesn’t match with what someone else believes then it's automatically deemed to be wrong. It doesn’t make you dumb though chicky, it makes you hopeful and it makes you optimistic that people can look past their own bullshit for two minutes and realize that there are far greater things to be upset over." Pushing her glass out of the way, Amber leaned a little closer to Adrienne for emphasis- her usual passive indifference making way for the flickers of a genuine smile. “Besides, world champion or not… I noticed you the moment you walked in the door. Being at the top shouldn’t make you ignorant, after all…” Adrienne returned the smile in kind. She had heard a lot of compliments lately. Either through experience or her own insecurities, they were always assessed as genuine. Ever since that strange lapse of judgment from Willis or honestly maybe before all of this. However, Amber had cut through the rookie mistakes and feelings of futility with simple assurances. “No, the one on top should inspire others.” Adrienne mused, “I appreciate the kind words. I started late and still have a lot to learn. Two left feet doesn’t help either but I’m figuring it out.” Trying her best to stop the self-depreciation, she laughed a little before taking a braver drink - finishing off the glass. “Whew, sorry. But Amber, I’ve listened to both sides. I guess there are two sides? I can’t profess to understand what happened in the past here. If I ever got too judgemental, I apologize.” If there weren’t a global pandemic, Amber might have hugged her. All this sweetness and decency made Adrienne far too good for this business already, like a better version of what Amber possibly could have been. “You’re doing just fine. Hell, better than fine- I wish I had this much success when I started… That and people around that were willing to help.” Amber knew she’d been in the business far too long, sure others had been a part of it longer but they hadn’t destroyed their bodies and their souls in quite the same way. She’d aged beyond her years and hurt beyond what anyone should- somehow sitting beside someone who hadn’t been a part of those traumas, who potentially didn’t know the full extent of her story was refreshing. A new point of view on a life that had grown tedious and difficult. “... and besides, you have nothing to apologize for. You’ve been honest and you’ve spoken thoughtfully when you have chimed in- it's not like you’ve jumped on social media and discredited anyone’s lifes work recently, you know?” An attempt at humour fell flat on it's face, perhaps a little more on the nose than she’d intended. Twitter had become a quagmire of opinions, well more than usual, and the redhead had grown tired quickly of the toxicity. If she wanted to feel like she was being poisoned and suffocated at the same time, she’d have stayed in her hotel room drinking. “Yeah, that sounded funnier in my head…” Alcohol had helped open the floodgates and Amber knew she was speaking possibly far too honestly to someone likely unsure how to react. It was easy to forget how green Adrienne was still, the inner workings and the people behind the larger than life facades still fascinating rather than straight up disappointing. Adrienne chuckled at the redhead’s quip. “I learned my lesson with that Twitter thing.” Spurning on Alex Winter had only seemingly created a monster. Nothing she could do for that now. Or elsewhere how misunderstandings had blown into legitimate issues. “If I do anything, once I get bored, I go do something else. Some of these guys always seem to be looking for attention so I’m happy to leave them hanging.” Pausing, Adrienne realized that was a little mean. Her cheeks flushed slightly with embarrassment. “Oops.” A little mischief went a long way, Amber found herself genuinely tickled more at Adrienne's reaction to her own comment than the actual statement itself. “Man, I love how new you still are… Sorry, that might sound a little condescending and I promise I don’t mean it that way. Just the fact you still worry and care about saying mean things about people who obviously deserve it kinda reminds me what it's like to start over I guess. It's real easy to get lost in how serious this all is all the time- for most people it's a dream or it's their life, others it's a means for survival, the reason they still walk this proverbial mortal coil. Doesn’t mean we all have to be miserable, unless it's our own making…” Amber hit herself hard with her own words as they tumbled forth. Adrienne was easy to talk to, Amber didn’t care if she was being judged or perceived as anything outside of the ‘reputation’ that had been cultivated around her. For some reason, it was just nice to not feel so fucking hateful- even just for a little while. “We all do this for our own reasons. Some good and inspirational and some, well some not so much… We all got a story, and some of them just don’t get a happy ending. So, what's yours… And I don’t mean the stuff in promos trying to hype a match and the things we want everyone to know cause it makes us sound cooler than we actually are…” It was Amber's turn to look straight through her companion, studying the little involuntary twitches and subtle eye movements as the gears turned. “Why this… and why now…”. Adrienne’s mind went through a normal catalogue of stock answers. The one’s she’d been giving out to her friends even. There was one meeting with Zane but even then, it was only a piece. Through all of this honestly, she felt that she owned Amber a little more than… “So yeah, I’ve been in this industry since I was nineteen, Amber.” She turned to Amber to meet the gaze. Her force of habit was to not look people in the eyes. Sometimes it was a scary proposition. “I was an accessory. In a lot of ways.” Her voice wavered on that admission. Silvio knew as much but she wasn’t sure that he’d grasp exactly what she meant besides the obvious terror of it all. Something made Adrienne consider that this would be heard and understood more so, “I started training out of spite over a year ago.” Adrienne put her hand on the bar. The ringless finger was still alien to her. She’d let go, sure, but well, Amber asked. “I’m not sure if I even liked doing this. I just wanted to show my husband that I could do it. Maybe even better than he did.” She said in an unsure manner, “But, well, Danny’s dead and I’m guessing he isn’t in the position to care much anymore.” Normally she’d be ashamed at the slight grin she gave off but Adrienne Levi was done living in that boy’s shadow. “But that’s changed. I love doing this more than anything I ever have before. It’s finally something that’s mine.” Amber paused briefly, sensing the mixture of emotions radiating. Sadness and grief mixed with a certain sense of relief. Freedom in spite of it's cost, a feeling Amber had fought and lost against more times than she wanted to remember. “Sounds to me that you’re in a better place now.” Another pause, though this time more thoughtful. “I’m certainly not one to speak ill of the dead or anything- but I get the feeling that maybe it was the best thing that could have happened to you. Fuck, I didn’t mean it to sound that harsh…” Rubbing her temple slightly, Amber tried to regroup her thoughts in a way that didn’t sound like she was being callous and basically a total ass. Adrienne shook her head, reassuring Amber was just fine in what she was saying. “Look, the way I see it is that sometimes the worst things in our lives are blessings down the line. Without those things, we can’t become something better… You said it yourself, you were an accessory. With him around you were never going to blossom and in his proverbial wake- you’re far more than you were previously destined for. Death and pain- it sucks, we both know that far better than we probably have any right to. Yet here we are… Living, breathing and arguably successful in varying degrees. If that's not the best middle finger to give to everything shitty that's ever happened then I don’t know what is.” Amber’s tone softened, her own recollections flooding through her fractured mind and moulded into something almost fragile. “We don’t always get to move on, sometimes we just can’t darl… But we can try.”

[shewhowantsmouseears]

The Son Of Scheherazade, 3

Notes: As always, big thanks to my fantastic editors, Drucilla and BlueShifted!

I promise I won't handwave everything with "its just magic", as tempting and easy as that would be. But first and foremost, this is Mickey's tale, so his character development stays in the spotlight! ... Until he has to share it with a lovely lady.

Summary: As the epic journey begins, Mickey begins to realize he wasn't as prepared as his fantasies told him. Meanwhile, Pete must pay a price for his failure.

It wasn't long before the entire kingdom learned that their benevolent rulers had vanished, and that their valiant prince would take on an epic quest to save them. Many offered their prayers to the gods for the family's safe return, yet some couldn't help but think how devastated the poor boy must be. Not only were his parents gone, but he would have to leave his home for the first time in his life. Surely, they imagined, he was holed up in his new room in tears.

“OH MY GOSH OH MY GOSH OH MY GOOOSH!”

Simply put, Mickey wasn't in the mood for crying. He had arrived where Goofy's ship was docked, if one could say it had – outside of the castle, the crew had tied the anchor around one of the towers and there it floated, its sails flapping in the wind. It was as big as the palace itself, its shadow reaching out over the marketplace and causing many customers to stop, struggle to understand what they were seeing, and then faint. The figurehead was far larger than what most ships had – a faceless woman had her fingers locked in prayer, and her flowing hair lined the sides of the ship, each strand of wooden hair a different color. Each sail appeared to have been painted by the various crew members – the largest was a skull and crossbones with buck teeth, no doubt to resemble the captain.

“It's real!” Mickey was having a mild heart attack of sheer joy. “It's really real! The flying ship! The ship that defies the world! Sinbad the Sailor's ship!”

“Goofy the Pirate,” Goofy corrected him, and he had a feeling he'd have to do that several times while Mickey was with him. He didn't mind.

“How do you board it, if it can't come any closer to the ground?” Mickey asks, his little body trembling with excitement.

José lightly tugged on the anchor's rope with his umbrella. “All you have to do is climb and-” Mickey jumped onto the rope and frantically began to climb upwards. “...Excitable fellow, huh?”

“I like him!” Panchito declared, despite knowing Mickey for less than an hour. The rest of the crew began to climb up the rope with Goofy going last, untying the line. He whistled a merry tune as he returned to the ship, not entirely surprised to see Mickey running back and forth like a maniac.

“Oh my gosh, this is where you battled the dreaded ice yetis of the tundra!” Mickey declared as he found an area of the ship with frozen cracks forever left in the wood.

“Sure is,” Goofy said, heading for the wheel.

“And this is where you climbed to escape the man-eating praying mantis from the volcano islands!” Mickey climbed a foot up the mast, wanting to feel the scratches the bugs had left behind.

“Is this going to be an all-day thing?” Horace had to ask, and Clarabelle nudged him with her elbow.

“And this is where you declared yourself the supreme sailor of all the high seas and higher skies!” Mickey made this similar declaration now standing atop the steering wheel, and Goofy had to calmly pick him up and put him aside. It gave Mickey enough time to breathe and focus on the situation at hand. “...So you have no idea why my Ma said you're a sailor instead of a pirate?”

“I can't say I know her exact reasons,” Goofy offered as the group began to split up, doing their various assigned tasks. “But maybe she didn't want her boy idolizing a pirate. Might set a bad image.” The ship wasn't moving, and Goofy made no motion to steer the wheel. Instead he simply leaned against it, waiting.

Mickey supposed Goofy had a point – but then his eyes widened. “But that means...you're all a bunch of thieves! You steal from people, that makes you bad guys! … Doesn't it?”

Goofy waved his hand side-to-side. “'Thieves' is a dirty word.”

“Accurate, but dirty,” Horace quipped from a nearby room.

“We never steal from folks who can't afford it,” Goofy continued. “We only go after the really rich, those who ain't really affected by the end of the day. And it's not like we steal from every single place we go to. Otherwise, we wouldn't be able to travel, we'd be hunted down no matter where we went!”

“I... Well... hm.” Mickey scratched his head. This was a new kind of ethics, but then again, the butcher never went out of business any time Pluto snatched an extra sausage or two. But surely his mother wouldn't want Mickey to meet a bunch of bad guys – yet she'd clearly been hiding some pretty big secrets from him. All of this back and forth was making his head hurt. Right now he wasn't sure he wanted to hear the real story of how a thieving pirate met his heroic mother, if any of those descriptions were accurate. “I'm really confused.”

“If it helps, I'm confused most of the time!” Goofy said with such a big smile that it was hard not to be comforted. “No one starts out understanding everything. But whatever your mama was planning, she wanted you to be safe and sound no matter what. That's why she had me get that flying carpet.”

Mickey looked back up at his new friend with raised eyebrows. “How does that work, anyway? How can a carpet fly?”

“The long answer is that a long time ago during one of my millions of adventures, I met a magical weaver and saved his son from execution at the hands of a tyrannical emperor. Since then, he's owed me a favor. He puts part of his soul into everything he weaves, which gives the carpet the ability to fly. There was supposed to be a proper ceremony for it and everything so it would obey you, but since that got skipped, I think it just obeys itself.”

All right, now Mickey was really really confused. “What was the short answer?”

“It's magic.”

“Oh.” Hours ago Mickey was convinced magic didn't exist, and now apparently there was a whole reality where magic was just given an obvious shrug, like pointing out that wheels rolled because they were round. He was about to sit down and try to understand what a magic carpet ceremony even was, when the word “wheel” stuck in his head, as in the one Goofy wasn't moving. He looked at it, then to Goofy, back to the wheel, then back to Goofy. “...Well?”

“Well what?”

“When are you going to start sailing?”

“Can't sail without a map.”

“Yeah, but...” Mickey struggled to gesture towards the outside of the ship. “We can at least get moving!  Who knows how long my parents are going to be safe, if they're safe at all? We need to start the journey!”

“Can't sail without a map,” Goofy said again.

Mickey's limit for that day's utter nonsense was being met. “Look, am I going to have to start ordering you around again?! I know you do this a million times every week, but my parents aren't just some story! They need my help! The kingdom needs them to rule! Pete might be able to handle it for a couple of days, but he's got some bad ideas about how things should be run. We have to hurry!”

“Can't sail without-”

“WHY NOT?!” Mickey had grabbed fistfuls of Goofy's shirt and began vigorously shaking him back and forth. “MOVE THIS SHIP, MAP OR NO MAP!”

“I have the map!” Panchito cheerfully shouted, walking into the scene and taking no mind that their newest addition looked ready to strangle the captain. “Now we can get going towards Mawarid!” He then rolled out the thin yellowing map onto the ship's wheel – the map and the wheel began to glow a glittering yellow, and all of the sails suddenly billowed, expanding and pushing forward. The ship began to move, despite the wind having died down moments ago.

Mickey blinked slowly before glancing at Goofy. “...The ship literally can't move without a map?”

“It's what I said.”

“... And the short answer why is...?”

“Magic.”

It began to dawn on Mickey that his epic journey wasn't going to be as much fun as he had been imagining moments earlier. He had wanted to start his eighteenth year of life with logic and straight-forward-thinking, and now he was aboard a flying ship with a crew of loonies. Now that he thought about it further, he hadn't packed anything either – not even his mother's lamp to read by. Thinking about his mother brought back all those earlier problems and a headache began to form. “I have no idea what I'm doing,” he said to no one.

“Let me see if I can help, amigo.” Panchito slapped his arm around Mickey's shoulders. “The ship is magic, but still sails as slow as one on water. So it will take us a day or two to get to Mawarid!”

“Mawarid...” Mickey felt his cheeks go red in humiliation. A city that close and Mickey knew nothing about it. Maybe he really was going to be a burden to the crew after all. “Why are we going there?”

“To stock up on supplies,” Goofy answered – now his hands were on the wheel, just to make sure any winds wouldn't set them off course. “We dunno how long this journey will take, plus we got a new crew member to take care of. Then we hit the kingdom of Taqs!”

“Specifically, we're going to rob it,” Panchito pointed out. “To make up for all the money we use in Mawarid.”

“After that, we'll head for the little town of Maelumat. I know a lady there that might be able to give us some clues where to look for your parents. When it comes to gossip around the world, she can't be beat,” Goofy said with a smile, remembering her fondly.

It sounded like a solid plan, and Mickey had to admit that for a bunch of weirdos, they were well-prepared weirdos. In a way, it did make sense – if they had a thousand and one adventures, they should have some idea of what they were doing. So where did Mickey fit in? What could he possibly do to help them? The depression that followed him throughout the kingdom began to creep back into his heart. Maybe he should've stayed behind to take care of the kingdom.

“So about tonight!” Panchito's vibrant voice cut through Mickey's self-loathing. “I know you probably want to keep it a secret, but I was wondering if I could get a hint about tonight's story?”

Mickey blinked three times in a row, trying to comprehend what was being asked of him. “Huh? Whaddya mean?”

“You're going to tell us some epic, amazing story, aren't you?” Panchito asked hopefully. “You are the Son of Scheherazade, after all! Surely you have her gift for captivating tales! We all can't wait to hear what you tell us later!”

“I, uh... I don't...” Mickey didn't want to give Panchito a reason to boot him off the ship, but Mickey had never been the creative sort. It might've been better to say that Mickey never bothered to see if he was. After all, when you had a famous storyteller for a mother, it wasn't as if you could ever top her tales. Thus, Mickey had never even made an attempt, thinking his own storytelling abilities were inferior right from the get-go. He was inferior. He shouldn't have come aboard, he shouldn't have tried to become something he wasn't, he-

“Say, Panchito,” Goofy interrupted. “That spare room we have above the kitchen, that ought to do for a sleeping space for Mickey here, huh?”

The rooster was successfully distracted. “A brilliant idea, mi capitán! I'll go make sure it's in tip-top shape!” He sped off like a bullet, doors slamming behind him.

Mickey rubbed one arm, unsure if he should thank Goofy, more unsure that Goofy did it on purpose. Goofy clicked his tongue. “You remember what I asked you to do when you said you wanted to join?”

“Huh?” Mickey raised his head and tried to remember. “Oh, um, the crow's nest?”

“Yup. Why don't you go up there and get started? Just needs a bit of touch up, is all.”

Mickey wasn't sure how to “touch up” a crow's nest, but by now he was far too embarrassed to ask. He didn't want to emphasize his worthlessness. “O-Okay,” he mumbled, and walked over to the intimidating mast. After taking a deep breath, he began to climb the small steps, trying to tell himself the view wouldn't be much different than the view from his room. When he reached the nest, it was indeed a little dirty, with mostly leftover food left behind and some messy rags sitting on the floor. The nest had a raised seat all around the pole, so you could lean back and watch the world pass you by.

The view wasn't like Mickey's bedroom at all.

Mickey gasped – the kingdom was further away, and he could see the vast desert that lay beyond the walls. It shone like gold dust in the sunlight, and he thought he could spy a group of bold travelers atop their furry camels. The sky was brilliantly blue, with light clouds shifting into funny faces as the ship sailed on. Mountains of stone lined the distance, casting their shadows over deep dunes. But what struck Mickey the most was the horizon and how far away it was – as if it was endless, infinite, that it could stretch on forever and no one would ever see where it began and finished. This was the world. It was so much bigger than the kingdom, so much bigger than what his mind could fathom.

Mickey gripped the edge of the nest. If the world was endless, so were the possibilities that lay ahead. Maybe out there, he'd find a special talent that only he could bring to the ship. Maybe he'd find a way to earn the praise and accolades heaped upon him, and be more than the son of Scheherazade. Maybe he could find someone who would want to be with him for him, and not for where and who he came from. Maybe none of those things would happen – but maybe was a powerful world. It gave him hope.

For a moment, Mickey wondered if that was the reason Goofy had sent him up there in the first place. It was difficult to say – was Goofy dumb, clever, or was it possible to be both at the same time? There were hundreds of questions to ask each member of this silly ship, but for now, Mickey decided they could wait. He wanted to watch the horizon and all the chances it could bring.

Down below, Goofy resumed humming. Not every moment of his life was filled with monsters and mayhem, and truth be told, it was these quiet moments that he treasured more than treasure.

“Oh, the world owes me a livin'...”

~*~

That night, Pete headed for his room, despite having full rights to the Sultan's room. He had been looking forward to the day where he could rest his heavy body onto all those pillows. Tonight, however, he doubted he would get much sleep. He grabbed the tallest scepter he could find from the Sultan's room before approaching his bedroom, gulping audibly as he glanced inside at the chest that was spewing black smoke. He was in trouble.

“Easy...” Pete inched into the room, slowly sliding out the scepter towards the chest. He had the jeweled top lightly poke the top, and slowly began to lift it. “Easy, easy, easy... Oookay, so, there was a teeny, tiny, itty bitty change to the plan...”

“I TOLD YOU TO CAPTURE ALL THREE OF THEM, YOU COLOSSAL FOOL!” The top of the chest slammed open, and a swirling torrent of shadows escaped, surrounding Pete in darkness. The shadows spun around and around, knocking over his bed and shattering his windows, the roar of the mysterious voice getting louder by the second. “MY PLAN ISN'T COMPLETE WITHOUT ALL THREE! WHERE IS THE BOY?!”

Pete swallowed down the urge to cry for his mommy, backing up as far as he could. “L-Look, how was I supposed to know the Sultana would have access to a flying carpet? I didn't even know they were a real thing until I saw one!” In hindsight, working for a magical evil being probably should have clued him in that there were a lot of things that didn't only exist in stories. “Can't the plan go on even with just those two? You've got the Sultan, just threaten him, and Scheherazade will do what you want!”

“DON'T SPEAK AS IF YOU KNOW BETTER THAN I!” The shadows slammed down onto the floor, sending an earthquake hard enough to make Pete fall onto his stomach. “The Sultan is more than willing to sacrifice his life it means helping his wife... but threatening the life of their child will be far more effective! WHERE! IS! THE! BOY!”

Pete managed to sit up on his knees, breathing slowly though his teeth. There was no way he could deliver this without further angering his master, so it would be best just to get it over with. “Well... you know that Sinbad guy Scheherazade has a thousand and one stories about? Turns out, he's real. And the boy went with him to rescue his parents. So he's long gone by now.” He then closed his eyes, waiting for further punishment. And waited. And waited. And...

Pete opened one eye. The shadows hadn't left, but they weren't actively trying to hurt him anymore either. Maybe the dark master was so in shock he couldn't do anything. Pete, never one to know when to take his luck and run, began to inch towards the chest. “Sir?” he asked, and got no response. “You know, I gotta say, you're handling this really well!” He then stuck his head over the shadowy chest. “I mean, if I were you, I would've showed no mercy, but I guess you-”

That was when a pair of ink-black hands thrust themselves out of the chest and snatched Pete by the shoulders. Pete screamed as he was suddenly yanked into the chest, and the lid slammed shut, with the shadows evaporating into mist.

In the morning, the servants were curious that Pete hadn't arrived for breakfast. When they entered his room, there was no trace of him, but the room had been trashed. As they panicked and tried to figure out who would rule over the kingdom, none of them noticed the locked chest tucked away in the corner.

~*~

It took two days to reach Mawarid, and during that time Mickey avoided the rest of the crew as much as possible. He wanted to know their past and their stories, how they all knew one another and learned their amazing abilities, but he feared that once he asked, they'd ask about him in turn – and he had nothing fantastic to boast of. It was an odd battle of his curiosity versus his self-loathing, and on the day they “landed” at the town, curiosity was starting to win. Goofy had gone down to tie the anchor to a sturdy building, and Clarabelle handed out lists of supplies to the crew.

“Everyone, stick to your list!” she announced while tapping her own paper with one finger. “Don't go overboard, and make sure to get everything on it! Return to the ship before sundown, and if all goes well, we should be ready to leave by mid-afternoon tomorrow.” She pointed to the birds. “Panchito, José, you're team one!”

The birds saluted. “Understood! I'll keep José from flirting too much!”

“We'll be back before Panchito can finish his next lyric!”

Clarabelle then gestured towards her husband. “Horace, I want you and Goofy to go with the son of Scheherazade! You'll be team two. Teach him the ropes!”

Mickey was insulted by one thing more than the other, and he raised his hand. “I know I never got out much, but even I know how to shop!”

“There's shopping,” Horace explained with finger guns, “And then there's bargain-hunting! I'll teach you how to sweet-talk the shopkeepers, and find the best deals for the best meals! When it comes being a cheapskate, no one can beat me.”

“Pluto and I will be team three,” Clarabelle finished, a thumb to her chest. “We'll guard the ship!” Mickey raised his hand again and Clarabelle answered the obvious question. “Yes, people will still try to attack a ship that's up in the air.” Mickey lowered his hand. “All right, you've got your assignments! Remember what I said – before sundown! Off you go!”

Mickey scratched Pluto's ear, wishing him well before tucking the list into his pants pocket and starting his climb downwards with the others. As they headed down, Mickey looked down at Horace, his curiosity winning one victory. “Say, uh, Horace? Mind if I ask you... how come you and Clarabelle are pirates with Goofy?”

“Oh, we're on our own epic quest, going back...” A pause for recollection. “Three years now? Three years sounds right. We're trying to find our martial-arts-master! See, when we were young, she and I both attended the best martial-arts dojo in the east. There lived a man who had the most powerful techniques in the whole wide world, and he was looking for apprentices to pass down his teachings. I learned all his hand-to-hand moves, and Clarabelle learned all his foot-to-foot moves.”

Mickey recalled the fight days ago, and yes, Horace had only fought with his fists, and Clarabelle had only used her legs. “...Wouldn't you be more powerful if you learned all the moves?”

“We were gunna, but our master disappeared.” Horace didn't seem terribly bothered by this, helping Mickey down once they reached the ground. “Since then, we've been trying to find him. We joined up with Goofy to better our chances.” Another pause, this time out of annoyance. “Well, I joined to better our chances of finding our master. Clarabelle wanted to better her chances of marrying Goofy.”

Mickey jumped, and now that they were below, he stared at Goofy for confirmation. Goofy merely shrugged, and the birds had long since left to do their own tasks. “But isn't she married to you, Horace?”

“She is now.” Horace started to walk, and the two followed. “But boy, it was hard winning her over! Stubborn as a mule, that one. But I never gave up! True love never lets you give up. Now our bond is stronger than ever, and nothing could ever tear the two of us apart!”

“... But you guys fight constantly.”

“We like fighting.” Horace grinned. “Ain't nobody that argues better than my Clarabelle! She's the only one who can match me when it comes to stubbornness! We'd never be able to put up with someone that couldn't handle us! Besides, love is different for everyone. Some people don't even recognize it when they feel it. But once you do, your life changes forever!”

Mickey almost gagged. One thing he didn't miss about his parent was the constant lovey-dovey affection between them, and he sincerely hoped it wouldn't be replicated on the ship. Oh, the key to his heart, oh, the wind in her sails, - ugh! “I'll just take your word on that. I'm not exactly looking for mushiness.”

Horace chuckled, smoothing out his list. “That might be for the best for now! Save the romance until after we find your parents.” He then read the list over, nodding once to himself. “First on the list, we're going to need two pounds of lemons.” Mickey began to wonder if he could make any additions to the list, like a lamp for his room, and he was about to ask when Horace spoke up once more. “Goofy, we should probably head right for the south market, they tend to have the best prices when it comes to-”

Goofy suddenly began running towards a gathered crowd up in the north.

Mickey blinked. “What's he doing?”

Horace groaned. “Nothing good, I promise you that.”

As the duo raced to join Goofy, they could see what everyone was facing – a hand-made stage had been constructed, five feet above the ground, and it was lined with fancy rugs and empty barrels. A tall rat in robes that were three sizes too long for him was standing there, shuffling a deck of purple cards. He smirked with gigantic teeth that went over his lips, and his snout was so large it cast its own shadow. His red and green cloth was made of the finest quality, Mickey could tell, and no doubt it had cost thousands. The rat then stopped shuffling, and held up a single card. “Is this your card?”

An old man at the front of the crowd frowned, shaking his bald head. “No, sir, it isn't.”

“Oh, what a shame,” the rat said with pretend melancholy, tossing his card over his shoulder. “Maybe it's somewhere else... I wish it was in your shoe!”

The old man squinted, then jerked – he lifted up his foot and pulled off his shoe. He reached inside and took out a card, and the crowd gasped. “This is my card!” Applause waved through the crowd, and Goofy clapped just as enthusiastically.

“Another marvel from Mortimer the Magnificent!” the rat declared for himself, taking a large bow before heading to one of the empty barrels. “Now, for my next trick...you can all see here, nothing inside, right?” He closed the barrel, and waved his hands. “... I wish...” He hesitated, eyes going back and forth, as if trying to decide. “I wish there was a...spotted...pink...monkey! Yeah, that'll do.” He then lifted the barrel's lid and reached inside – and he pulled out a spotted pink monkey, the little creature screeching in confusion. The audience roared with amazement, throwing small coins at the bottom of the stage.

“It's a magic show!” Goofy cheered, hopping up and down. “Can we stay and watch it, can we, can we, huh?”

Mickey balked. “A magic – Goofy, you fly on a magic ship! You've had a thousand and one magical adventures! How can some street tricks impress you?”

Goofy tilted his head, unable to comprehend, and Horace rubbed his temples. “Goofy, we don't have time for this! Clarabelle will have our heads if we're not back before sundown!”

“This probably isn't real magic anyway.” Mickey crossed his arms, watching Mortimer wishing to turn a carpet from silk to spiderwebs. “I bet it's all smoke and mirrors! If he had actual working magic like the ship, he wouldn't be wasting it on small coins! He could get himself whatever he wanted. Why would a real user of magic stick around in a small town?”

Horace raised his eyebrows. “That's awful clever of you, Mickey.”

“But it's fun!” Goofy insisted, eyes sticking to the stage, keeping his voice down so he wouldn't disturb the performance. “The best part about magic is the surprise, and surprises are what magic shows are all about!”

Mortimer drew himself up, backing away on the stage. “You know, I'm starting to think I don't have everyone's attention.” He grinned lasciviously, rubbing his fingers together. “So what's say we get a little eye candy to help me with the rest of the show?”

“I mean it, Goofy!” Mickey put his hands on his hips, not bothering to keep his own voice down. “We have to get supplies for the ship, and help save my parents! There is absolutely nothing that guy can do that would make me want to watch his show!”

“I wish...” Mortimer rolled his arms. “...for my beautiful assistant to appear!”

There was a burst of pink smoke on the stage right next to Mortimer, and a small flurry of glitter followed it, and various members of the audience “oohed” and “ahhed”. A small figure began to walk out of the smoke, and in that second, Mickey found something that made him want to watch the show.

“As you command, it has happened, my master!”

There in the dissipating pink smoke was a young woman with the most darling, beautiful blue eyes Mickey had not thought could ever exist. Her gorgeous dark fur was as dark as the softest night, and her smile illuminated her peachy cheeks. Her thin green dress left little to the imagination, similar to dancing girls Mickey had occasionally seen on the seedier streets of his kingdom. Golden rings lined up on her fingers, all of them attached to her dress so that when she waved, her dress would wave with her. Everything about her was tiny and delicate, like one wrong touch would soil her completely. Even her voice was perfection, a melodious harmony that sang sweeter than nightingales with every word. “Can we give my master another hand for his amazing performance?”

In this moment Mickey forgot about his anger, his parents, and essentially everything that existed that was not this gorgeous girl with long lashes and petite hands. It was like magic – he would have never believed someone like this could exist unless he saw it for himself. He stared and stared and stared, afraid that if he blinked she'd suddenly vanish and she'd have been nothing more than an elaborate fantasy. He didn't know what to do with himself or this sudden rush of inexplicable joy dancing throughout his head.

Unbeknownst to him, the world was in fact still moving on regardless of how he felt. Horace had even continued talking while the girl was asking people to clap. “...So it's just like the kid said, we don't have a moment to lose. Let's go!”

“We can't go!” Mickey suddenly sputtered, jerking his head to flail at a startled Horace. “We-we have to stay! We should stay!”

Thrown off, Horace, scratched his head. “What? Seconds ago you were insisting we had to get going! Why do you wanna stay all of a sudden?”

“This, uh... it could, you know...” Mickey kept looking back to the girl, not wanting to miss a second of her movements. “Might be vital to... my parents, or something...” He wasn't even able to make coherent sentence structure at this point and he did not care.

Horace, he who considered himself the most sane person aboard the ship, glanced at Minnie, then at Mickey's ever reddening face. “...Fine time for you to start looking for mushiness.”

“What? No! No, I'm not!” Mickey insisted and oh goodness she was talking and even her voice was cute and she was so so so so cute and he was losing the feeling in his knees. This was normal! This was perfectly normal! Sure it was! Just because he wanted to smell her hair and hold her hands and call her the key to his lock didn't mean -

… The key to his – oh dang it!

[the-resident-wallflower]

Beta Readers Ahoy!

This is for everyone who wanted to give feedback!

The start of the alliance between the humans and the Jarthinark happened quite on accident. The Jarthinark being of a species of hive mentality never imagined that they’d come across a species that was so individualized; one that prided themselves on being such. The humans were on another ‘official’ mission to their moon when they were intercepted by a Jarthinark ship. The exact nature of their discourse was never revealed to the public of either species, but it was decided for the people of Earth and the Jarthinark of Jarark that their allegiance would be beneficial to both species. And thus it began.

The Jarthinark are what humans would refer to as giant Praying Mantis/Spider-esque creature. They were several feet taller that the average male human with four clawed forearms and five pitch black eyes.  They had evolved thousands of human years from a prey species. They could change their outer armor’s color on command and even change its texture if necessary. The humans caught on to how the Jarthinark behaved and what their culture was like a lot quicker that that of the Jarthinark to the humans. Who could blame them? There were thousands of different types of humans and hundreds of thousands of cultures and their varying customs that these newcomers had to learn them all. Jarthinark of being of one culture and one mentality, it was easier to adapt.

That’s the main thing that the Jarthinark took in about the humans. Their ability to adapt and preserve when all seems lost or pinned against them, was astounding. They would be an asset to the Jarthinark no doubt. They’d just never know how much they would come to rely on these small, armor-less predators.

……………………………………………………

As Captain Smoig of the Jarthinark finished his briefing, the entire ship was in chaos. We were going to allow a predator species aboard the ship? They were going to travel with the Jarthinark? There’s no way these creatures are real, Zorgk thought. Apex predators with no perceivable armor are the masters of their realm? Not possible. The Jarthinark had never come across predator species in their explorations and that’s how they liked it. Predator species are odd and usually violent. Violence is not something they need in their quest to map out the Expanse. Capt. Smoig assured them that they have agreed to a pact and that these Humans could prove to be useful.  

The impending visitors worried Zorgk and their partner Eeberbot. The mechanical team didn’t need three Humans to get in the way. The ship ran just fine without nosey intruders. But it wasn’t their decision. Captain Smoig had spoke with Queen Menance on Jarark, and she approved the mission. The captain informed them of their impending doom only one cycle before the Humans were to board. They were instructed to prepare the bay and await the visitors.

When the first Human boarded, the tension left the air. They had been provided with a guide to the Humans but it only brought out skeptics and deniers. The Humans were many different colors and genders, none of them had an outer skin like the guide had assured. And these ‘predators’ were several heads smaller than the Jarthinark and they looked frail in comparison to the five eyed multicolored species that inhabited the ship.

Captain Smoig introduced their captain, Senior Commander Lee, to the crew and then introduced Zorgk and Eeberbot to his mechanical team, Human Judy, Human Bethany, and Human Robert.  

“Come this way.” Zorgk said gruffly, attempting to lead the way to the Tech Room.

The second Jarthinark ignored Zorgk and turned to the newcomers, “I am Eerberbot and this is Zorgk,” Eeberbot stated, introduced themselves, “We are the Mechanical Leads.”

“Hello,” The one categorized as ‘Bethany’ stepped forward extended her appendage, ”I’m Commander Bethany MacDonald, this is Mission Specialist Judy Smith and Mission Specialist Robert ‘Rob’ Kandl.”

Zorgk looked at her outstretched appendage with apprehension “And?”

“I’m sorry. I forgot myself for a second. I was attempting to shake your claw in greeting.” She stated. “It’s a traditional sign of greeting and respect among individuals on Earth.”

“Greeting? Shaking our appendages together is a greeting? And show’s respect?” Zorgk shook his head, clearly agitated. “Please follow me.”

Beth brought her hand back to her side with a shrug and motioned for her team to follow the giant bug-like alien.

The Tech Room was similar to that of an engine bay on a human ship but the humans were fascinated. Immediately, they dispersed throughout the room and starting analyzing the controls.

“Zorgk, where is the fuel?” Judy asked.

“We do not utilize a liquid fuel. Our energy comes from what you call ‘stars’” Eeberbot responded. “The gas is very effective and prominent.”

The humans shared a look about Eeberbot answering for Zorgk but they didn’t have a chance to comment on it as an alarm starting to sing. Immediately, the demeanor of the three humans changed.

“Zorgk, what do you need us to do?” Commander Bethany asked.

“Nothing. Stand clear while we work.” Zorgk responded moving to the main screen to determine the root cause of the alarm.

Ignoring Zorgk’s precious statement, Bethany motioned for Robert to follow the giant and looked to Eeberbot, “Eeberbot, what do you need us to do?”

“Human Bethany, please come here and reach that nozzle.” Bethany obliged and twisted the nozzle to the left, while Judy called out the pressure.

“Okay, Commander, you’ve hit your mark!” Judy shouted over the alarm as the gauge returned to a normal range.

The siren silenced and Zorgk stared at Bethany with all of their five eyes. “How did you know to loosen the nozzle? Or that you would turn it in the right direction?”

“It’s not our first rodeo.” Bethany laughed, “Obviously, the pressure was too high. The gauges were off the chart.”

“Okay,” Zorgk conceded, confused at her reference to a ‘rodeo’, “But how did you know what direction?”

“Some instinct and a mnemonic device.” Bethany said, “Right-y tight-y, left-y loose-y.”

Zorgk huffed and turned his back to the three humans. Eeberbot, however, was intrigued at these mnemonic devices.

“I will show you to your quarters. Please tell me more of those devices.” Eeberbot asked as he lead the humans from the Tech Room.

…………………………………………………………..

There first mission was in Sector 3. They were visiting a realm called Quarth, it contained what humans refer to as water as well as various forms of life. Zorgk and Eeberbot were prepared to maintain the ship and they were prepared for repairing the cruiser that would descend into the atmosphere. They were not prepared for the humans in their specialty who were planning on traveling to the new planet. Not only were the planning for it, they were eager. This confused the Jarthinark to no end.

“Human Beth, why would your team want to leave your designation?” Zorgk questioned.

“I’m not only an Engineer. I’m also a Biologist. Judy is a Botanist while Rob is a Geologist. Anyone planning on going to space must have at least two specialties.” Beth explained, “That way we can all do each other’s jobs should it be necessary.”

“But why would it be…oh.” Eeberbot stopped.

“Nah, it’s fine.” Beth laughed, “It’s just a failsafe. Anyway, why wouldn’t you want to leave the ship?!”

Zorgk just rolled their eyes. “Jo! Help me out!” Beth cried.

Before ‘Jo’ could respond Eeberbot spoke up, “Human Bethany, who is this ‘Jo’ you are speaking to?”

“Jo? It’s Judy.” Bethany laughed. “It’s a nickname.”

Now Zorgk was intrigued in their conversation. “Nick name?”

“Yeah,” Judy piped up, “They call me ‘Jo’ because there’s two other Judy’s under Commander Lee. And it’s short.”

“Right. Commander MacDonald is a mouthful and Bethany is too long. So, they call me Beth.” Beth added.

“They call me ‘Rob’ but I really don’t care.” Said the third human. Jo and Beth glared at him unamused.

“Would you provide us with nick names, Human Beth?” Eeberbot asked.

“Oh, of course! It’ll be helpful in a crisis. The quicker you can address your crew, the less likelihood of a major catastrophe. How’s ‘Z’ and ‘Bot’?”

Eeberbot adapted the teeth bearing form that he’d reviewed in their guide to human emotions. It was supposed to be a smile.

Beth smiled in return and then clapped her hands together loudly, “Okay! Back to the issue at hand! How can you not want to explore the planet?”

“Human Bethany, we do not have visions of grandeur. We serve our purpose and move on.” Zorgk replied in an effort to discontinue the discussion.

“Haven’t you ever been to a new planet before?” Eeberbot asks.

The trio shook their heads.

“Why not? You managed to get to us. What was stopping you…wait, have you not stretched beyond your sector?” Zorgk questioned in disbelief. “How have you not left your sector?”

“We don’t have the technology to last extended periods in space.” Replied Beth simply.

“How did you get here?” Eeberbot asked, “You obviously didn’t ride a rocket, those explode.”

“Actually…”Judy started in an high pitched singsong voice.

“You rode a combustible. To get to the Expanse.” Zorgk looked to be experiencing pain, astonishment, and fear all at the same time. “How has your species come to survive and be the dominant one of your planet?”

“We are not talking about us. We’re talking about you.” Beth stated ignoring the insult. “Why do you always stay on the ship?”

“We have one purpose, one ability. We need to stay with the ship.” Bot said.

“But what if the machinery breaks while the crew is on the planet?” Judy asks.

“We’d send another.” Zorgk answers curtly.

“That’s so wasteful!” cried the Commander.

“And stupid.” Rob comments.

“Rob!” the two women scolded in unison. “Apologize!” Demanded Beth.

“My apologizes, I did not mean any offense.” MS Kandl said testily.

Beth was about to comment on his half assed apology when an announcement sounded off. The Human Commander and a Jarthinark of each team were needed in briefing for the upcoming mission.

…………………………………………………

It was supposed to be a short and sweet type of mission. They were to take a cruiser and descend into the atmosphere, land, collect specimens to analyze, and shoot back up to the ship. That’s not what happened. From the very start of their day, everything went wrong. The Jarthinark were unhappy to note that Captain Smoig had taken the suggestion of Commander Lee and they were now required to accompany the cruiser to the surface. He assured them that it would be good for the Jarthinark to experience new things. The Humans were always learning and they could perform many skills. Why shouldn’t the Jarthinark also have that ability?

The cruiser had to drop an entire team so that the Jarthinark in the mechanical team and those from the biological team could fit. They dropped the medical team as the mission was only supposed to be for twelve hours. Descend, collect, return. Quick and simple. Except it wasn’t. The Jarthinark are twice as heavy as the average human and four of them outweighed the three humans that were on the medical team. The extra weight caused an issue with the cruiser that wasn’t foreseen and instead of landing on the surface of Sector 3 subsection B, what the Earthlings referred to as Zaldar, they crashed.

The landing gear had failed with the extra weight and it sent the cruiser tumbling across the surface into the brush of Zaldar, like a boulder in a canyon that ends up in a cactus bush. When it finally came to a stop, the team was sprawled across the cruiser, bruised and battered.

“Tim! Team! Count off!” Commander Beth called out.

“One!” came Jo’s rough cough

“Two!” a groaning Rob sounded

“Three!” Came the call from Rose of the Biological Team.

“Four!” Tim, the Commander of the Biological Team called out.

“Z! Bot!” Came the sharp command from Beth.

“Human Beth?” Came Zorgk’s respond, “We have survived.”

“What the hell?!” She shouted as she took in the state of her team. “You have to respond! Tim, where’s your Jarthinark, Chuz and kGindo?”

“Accounted for!” Came his reply.

Immediately the humans on board starting taking stock of the supplies on board while the Jarthinark sat around, dumfounded at the accident.

“Zorgk, Eeberbot, Chuz, kGindo,” Called Tim, “See if you guys can pry open the door, it’s stuck.” The Jarthinark were revitalized with something to do.

“Okay,” Started Jo, “We have enough supplies to get us through a week. Zorgk, who’s the highest ranking Jarthinark?”

“Highest ranking?” They questioned.

“Who’s in charge of you guys?” Beth asked, she had no time for nonsense.

“Well, you are.” Zorgk responded. “Captain Smoig made our orders clear, Commander. You are our Captain until we rejoin the ship.”

Beth nodded and addressed Tim. “Take your team out and make a parameter. We’ll stay here, we need to assess the damage, supplies, and make this place livable.”

He nodded and motioned for his team to follow him out the freshly opened door.

Beth turned around and addressed her team, “We need to clear out as much debris as possible and take an assessment of the damage. Bot, you and Rob are to go out and assess the outer damage.” They nodded and left the cabin of the cruiser. “Zorgk, I need you to run a diagnostic on the system and tell what we have and what we don’t” He nodded and approached the main computer. “Jo, we need to document what we can and ration out the food and supplies. Let’s get to work.”

It was an Earth hour before the Bio Team returned from their excursion.

“Beth,” Tim called into the cabin, “We need to talk.”  

She looked up from the list she and Jo had compiled. Rob and Bot had reported that the homing device had been damaged but the hull would provide shelter. Zorgk had also given her bad news stating that the communication systems were inoperable. From the sound of Tim’s voice, it was about to get worse.

She hopped down from the opening and walked over to the other Commander. “Tim? What’s the verdict?”

His mouth was a straight line as he thought about his next thought. “We’re in the middle of a forest. These trees,” he gestured to the tall tree like fauna next to them, “They’re like redwoods. Huge and ridiculous.”

“Okay..?” Beth raised her eyebrow, “What does that mean for us?”

“Our communication system isn’t working because the trees are blocking the signal. And without the homing beacon,” He slowed, “I don’t know how they’re going to find us.”

“Oh.” Beth said grimly, “I guess we’ll have to make this hellhole our new home.”

Tim grinned, “I knew I married you for some reason.”

Beth laughed and they made their way back into the cruiser to deliver the bad news.

“Guys, listen up. Our comms are down, the homing device is destroyed, and we have a week’s worth of food.” Beth addressed the group, “Our mission has changed radically.”

Rob snorted and Rose smacked his shoulder. “We all have loved ones on the main ship and I am going to try like hell to get us back to them.”

“Commander?” Eeberbot stopped Beth, “What is a ‘loved one’?”

“Bot, it’s someone that you care deeply for. Like your life partner. For example, Rose’s wife, Mai, works on the medical team with Jo’s husband, Rick. Rob’s parents are back on Earth. And Commander Tim is the other Commander MacDonald.” She continued with a smile in Tim’s direction, “It’s the people we love that give us the strength to get shit done.”

“Your purpose?” Zorgk asks.

“Yeah, Z,” Jo answers them, “Something like that.”

The marooned team set up their camp using supplied from the cruiser. The humans created a fire and sat around it for fun, which confused the Jarthinark to no end. Why do they seem to enjoy dangerous things?  The Jarthinark joined the Humans under the premise of research. That is, until they felt the heat from the flame. It was many years ago that the Jarthinark had experienced heat from a combustion up close, it was gloriously warm and although it appeared dangerous, there was a calming effect it had over the entire crew, as if they were what the humans referred to as ‘camping’.

“Okay. So, Tim was telling me that you guys spotted some wildlife?” Beth prompts.

“Yeah,” Rose responds, “They were small, four legged creatures. This planet seems to be Earth-like. However, I think we should be careful. I’m going to get a vial of the ‘water’ we saw and test it. And Rob,” She turned to address the outcast, “I’m going to need help tomorrow.”

“With what?” He responded flatly.

“We need to identity as much as well can and you’re the geologist. You can really help me with my research.”

“Sure.” He said as he rose to the standing position. “I’m gonna talk a walk.”

As he left the two commanders shared a look. There was definitely something wrong there.

 Beth woke up to the snap of a branch. She slowly rolled onto her side and saw a sixed legged creature stalking it way toward the Jarthinark a few feet away. She reached under her makeshift pillow for the small hatchet she had placed there. The creature was so focused in on Zorgk that it didn’t even hear her change positions.  It lunged toward Zorgk and Beth lunged towards it. She hit it with an angry battle cry and within seconds her hatchet was buried deep into the back of the intruder. It shuddered once and died.

Unfortunately, the commotion had woken the rest of the crew. Zorgk stared at Beth in shock. This Human had not only put herself in harm’s way for them but she had killed the creature responsible for it.

“Thank you, Commander.” Zorgk expressed, “I am in your debt.”

Beth smiled at his first acknowledgement of her title, “Please, it’s no problem. You’re still breathing and now we have dinner.” She said as she tied the creature to a branch several feet away.

“Commander, I am in your debt.” Zorgk repeated in a serious tone, “I pledge my loyalty to you for as long as you please.”

Beth smiled again at Zorgk. She patted his shoulder and made her way back to Tim. “Alright, team, we have to be up bright and early. Let’s get some shut eye.”

 The next morning the team woke up to Rob missing. Immediately, Beth jumped into Commander mode.

“Bot, you and Jo go west. Zorgk and I will head North. Tim, Chuz, south. You two,” She pointed at Rose and kGindo, “east. Moveout!”

They searched until the planets three suns were high in the sky but with no luck. He had vanished.

“We’ll find him.” Beth said as they regrouped, “We just need to sit and talk it out.”

The Jarthinark didn’t know what talking out their ‘feelings’ would do but the humans all agreed and assembled around the remnants of the combustion.

“Rob was acting strange yesterday.” Rose started and the rest of the Humans nodded.

“Rose,” started Eeberbot, “What do you mean ‘strange’?”

“I don’t know. He was acting different. He’s usually sullen and nonconfrontational but he’s been more and more aggressive as our time in space goes on.” She answered.

“Exactly.” Judy continued the thought, “The other day when he insulted you? That was very unlike him. He’s never been disrespectful like that before.” And again the Humans nodded in agreement.

“You document how other Humans act?” Zorgk asked.

“No Z, we just work really closely with the same people. You’d notice if Bot was acting funny. We just have a larger scale of individuals to pay attention too.” Explained Beth. “Did you guys notice anything?”

“Actually,” Chuz raised his head, “Human Rob looked on the brink of violence last sun fall when you protected Zorgk. I assumed it was in the same manner that you looked. But his eyes were empty of good intentions. His fits were curled with rage.”

They set back out to search some more when Zorgk and Beth came across a small clearing. A great crashing sound sounded from the north end of their position. Rob emerged, covered in the varying fauna of Quarth, he walked with murder on his mind.

“What the hell, Rob?!” Beth started to approach him. He didn’t even acknowledge her; only the Jarthinark at her side.

“We’re stuck on this godforsaken planet all because you had to come! You stupid, fucking, dumbass bugs. You should all be exterminated!” He screamed.

“Hey!” Beth barked “It’s not their fault. We didn’t know that the landing gear couldn’t handle the extra weight!”

He switched direction mid step towards Beth. “And you,” his voice accusatory and dripping with malice, “if you had just kept your fucking mouth shut. We wouldn’t have to bunk with them!”

“Kandl! Knock it off!” Beth shouted. “That is uncalled for and you will be disciplined and ejected from this mission and on the first flight back to Earth.”

“Oh, yeah??!!” Rob lunged at Beth revealing a sharp piece of shrapnel. She cried out as the metal made contact with her shoulder.

Zorgk appeared at her side lightning fast and accepted the next wave of Rob’s rage. They clamped down on Rob’s body with all four of their clawed appendages immobilizing him. “Commander?” they questioned peering at Beth who was bleeding from her shoulder but otherwise unhurt. “What are your orders?”

“Bring him in to camp.” Came her reply dripping with rage.

The entire crew regrouped at camp and they were shocked to see Rob. But they were more shocked to see both Zorgk and Beth bleeding.

“What the hell happened?” Tim called out concerned. He jogged out to meet them.

“He happened.” She said gestured to Rob. She moved her shoulder a bit and hissed in pain.

The other three Jarthinark approached Zorgk to release him of his captive. “Tie him down securely. He did not come easy.” Zorgk spoke as he released his grip.

The remainder of the team set to work on thoroughly securing Rob to a chair on the ship using rope and good old fashioned duct tape. The Jarthinark were skeptical but had learned not to question the ways of the tiny Humans.

Tim set to work on stitching up Beth’s arm and consulting Zorgk on how best to treat the cut he had sustained.

“Do not worry about me. I will only need to cover it and it will heal.” Zorgk assured him.

“Tim?” Beth looked at him. He nodded and left them alone.

The unspoken communication was something the Jarthinark would have to study when this mission was completed but for now, Zorgk was content to relax and heal.

“Zorgk, I wanted to thank you for stepping in back there. I never expected him to try to hurt us. And I’m sorry he said those awful things. Please know that we don’t all think like that.” She smiled up at the giant creature.

“Commander, I am forever indebted to you and your kind. You have saved my life as well as those of my comrades.  You have taught us more in this short time that we have learned in the many years of our existence. Please accept my allegiance.” “Zorgk crossed his two left claws and placed them over his chest, a traditional salute of the Jarthinark, pledging his respect and loyalty.

“As I am to you.” Beth raised her right arm gingerly as to not disturb her left shoulder and offered Zorgk her hand. He grasped it gently and shook it up and down, as Beth’s smile grew wider.

Their heart felt concession ended abruptly as a landslide like crash came from the west. Humans and Jarthinark alike storm into the clearing that the crash had made. Zorgk stopped, frozen with their mandibles gaped open in the most unpleasant manner, pure astonishment in their eyes.

“Commander?” They questioned. “What? How did they?”

Beth shrugs, “No man left behind.”

[consultthemuses]

Sentence Meme: 51 Logan Echolls Quotes

Some will be more easily applicable than others.

❛ That's funny. It sounds a lot like my essay. ❜

❛ Wow Sugarpuss, you've certainly been a busy little bee. ❜

❛ Nice car. Wow, it must have been a huge cereal box. ❜

❛ I'm sorry, did that hurt your feeling? ❜

❛ As a rule, I like to start every school day with a hot blonde waiting for me in the parking lot. ❜

❛ You mean, like, if there were total silence? Let's try to imagine it. ❜

❛ Not the ones made for walking? God, I love those boots. ❜

❛ I can't take that I hurt you when all I want to do is protect you. ❜

❛ Oh, god. You know, when I dreamed of this moment, 'I've Had the Time of My Life' was always playing. Oh, what can you do? ❜

❛ Heads up, chests out, big smiles, ready? Ok. ❜

❛ I can't tell you ok? But you have to trust me. He's innocent. ❜

❛ Ask not what [name] can do for you. Ask what you can do for [name]. ❜

❛ I thought our story was epic, you know. You and me. Spanning years and continents. Lives ruined and blood shed. Epic. ❜

❛ Annoy tiny blonde one, annoy like the wind. ❜

❛ I'm not going to see you for a week. That's, like, a month. ❜

❛ Oh, this is gonna be good. ❜

❛ I've let her draw finger hearts on my upper thigh for the last 10 minutes, so, yeah, I get the stakes. ❜

❛ I am beyond tardy for my Physics class. And if I remember right, time travel is not yet possible. ❜

❛ Guess who I saw on campus today? ❜

❛ Saving the world one pointless act at a time. ❜

❛ Wrong answer. Would you care to guess again? ❜

❛ I don't know. Maybe it's like Brigadoon. Come back in a hundred years and it'll be right back in this spot. ❜

❛ Get out of my house. You have a problem with [name], you leave. Actually, you have a problem with [name], you're pretty much dead to me, so just, like, evaporate or something, I don't know. ❜

❛ Frankly my dear... you know the rest. ❜

❛ Will I be returned in my current pristine condition? ❜

❛ Go ahead, screw your brains out. ❜

❛ O-kay... No more college for you. ❜

❛ Well, if she's on the TV, she must be telling the truth. ❜

❛ You're cute when you're jealous. ❜

❛ Frankly, my dear... you know the rest. ❜

❛ Never underestimate the size of my cojones. ❜

❛ Just not like I loved her. It's okay. No, you know, it kinda lets me off the hook, you know. I don't know, I don't have to feel guilty anymore. ❜

❛ Ah, you have that 'I'd rather be making out with a broken bottle' look. Which if history serves, means you're about to say something awkward. ❜

❛ Well, the joke's on her: she came to borrow my video camera. The girl does love a snappy exit line. ❜

❛ Tu casa es mi casa. ❜

❛ My day is complete. [name] has accused me of evil. ❜

❛ You're going to have to take my word for it. ❜

❛ I'm sorry it causes you so much pain. I'm sorry it happened, and I really love you, [name]. ❜

❛ FYI, if the cuddling is the best part, he didn't do it right. ❜

❛ I got it. No calling you Bobcat, no talk of milky thighs. ❜

❛ Ah, he's a master debater. ❜

❛ Best thing about two days in jail? Two days worth of Ellen on the TiVo. That sweet feeling. ❜

❛ Come on, I'll drive you home on the back streets. ❜

❛ Look, [name], can you, just once, save my ass without comment? ❜

❛ Sometimes I'm up all night, just thinkin' about myself. ❜

❛ Well first, I'd just like to say the other, uh, nominees are all such wonderfully gifted criminals. And I wanna thank my agent and my publicist for always shooting me from the left side. ❜

❛ I tried calling you "Chuckles", but it didn't stick. ❜

❛ That's what the female praying mantis says before she bites the male's head off. ❜

❛ What, are we breaking up now? Do you want your best friend charm back? ❜

❛ Are we here to surf or swap hairdo secrets? ❜

❛ She was blonde, petite. Smelled of marshmallows and promises. ❜

[lolimnotfunnydude]

I have been told repeatedly that there are elephants in my village, but I have yet to see one. I jokingly tell people that I believe everyone is lying to me—they are wa fosa-ing (lying-ing)—and that there are actually no elephants in the North West district. It is a conspiracy. This theory has yet to be proven wrong, but I did finally get to see some elephants up close!

On New Years Eve, 10 other volunteers and I went on a game drive in Moremi Game Reserve, located about two hours from Maun within the Okavango Delta. We were picked up at 5am at a local hotel, and as soon as we started driving, I knew the day was going to be an adventure. Almost immediately, one of the other PCVs dropped his water bottle off the rig, so we stopped and let him find it in the dark. Before we even left the hotel compound, someone else dropped their phone of the rig. We turned around and let him get it.

Once we finally got on the main road, the weather changed from somewhat cold to terribly cold and rainy. Those of us who brought rain jackets retreated into their depths, and those who did not suffered—not that the rain jackets did much to reduce the pain, but we at least had a layer between us and the weather’s attempt to murder us. We continued through the morning like that for about two and a half hours, only stopping once because someone’s hat fell off.

Before we reached the game reserve, the weather started to clear up. The fog dissipated, and we saw ELEPHANTS. We saw baby elephants and big elephants and elephants playing in water holes. It was magical. The very first time we saw one in the distance, one of my best friends (who shall not be named and shamed) shouted “Look! Elephants!” and after just a moment “IT’S A BABY!”

  Our driver scolded us and informed us that we would see more elephants if we refrained from screaming.

I, for one, appreciated her enthusiasm. But I also appreciate elephants, so I responded maturely with, “Yeah! Be quiet!”

When we finally entered the park, we stopped for a “bush bathroom,” aka peeing on the ground in the woods. A good PCV always brings wet wipes and toilet paper, though, so we had no problem.

After paying a park entrance fee (which was reduced since we are all residents! Just $3 USD—what???), we hopped back on the rig and prepared ourselves for more animal sightings. We first drove through a heavily-bushed area with a thin path, and we mostly saw birds and impala (a small species of antelope). Then we traveled through some larger fields, where we saw wart hogs, giraffe, and zebra. After a fairly long stretch without seeing anything, we came up a large hill and at the top, we looked out at…

More nothing.

Just kidding!

We saw a watering hole surrounded by more animals than I have seen in my entire life in one spot. There were wildebeests, water buffalo, a dozen species of birds, impala, khudu, hippos, crocodiles, and probably more. I swear I could hear the beginning of Circle of Life from the Lion King playing; I imagined the sun rising and the animals bowing to the newly born Simba.

I think our guide was both amused and pleased by our awed reactions. Heck, I was amused and pleased by the experience.

We continued on to another watering hole, where we saw several more hippos. They did not look happy. Our guide revved the engine of the rig to try to provoke them, but they were not having that, either. We waited until one yawned so we could get a mouth picture and then moved on once again.

  After several more giraffe and impala sightings, we drove through another heavily-bushed area. This time, though, the branches of the bushes invaded the road and driving space. So as we drove through, thorn bushes smacked the people riding on each side. It almost became a game, and it reminded me very much of the famous line from Dodgeball: If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball. Except in this case, if you can dodge a thorn bush, you get to live another day. Not quite as catchy, but far more anecdotally accurate.

Some of the branches deposited bugs unto us. We counted about 100 or so inchworms, and I was even lucky enough to have a praying mantis on my back! I would rather a praying mantis than a venomous spider; it could have been so much worse.

Once we were out of the woods, we happened upon a huge group of water buffalos. They seemed incredibly suspicious of us, and stared at us with fascination comparable to ours as we stared at them. We giggled as their large ears flapped, then stopped laughing as soon as one huffed at us and stomped a hoof on the ground. I have decided that they are good company despite their temper, and I would have liked to stare at them a bit more, if only to say I won a staring contest against a water buffalo.

We soon stopped for lunch, and most of us ate vegetable fried rice from an Indian restaurant in Maun called Chutney. It is one of our usual haunts, and it is unbelievably good. Some friends and I sat on a log near a water hole, and briefly debated our safety before deciding that risking a crocodile attack was worth it for the view. And realistically, the crocodile would only have been able to take one of us, so chances were good that most of us would get away unscathed anyway.

After lunch, we were all exhausted. It was nap time. The guide tried to take us to see lions and wild dogs, but because of the rain that morning and the previous night, those areas of the park were flooded. It allowed us to nap, though, so we did not mind too much. I drifted off to sleep.

The next thing I noticed was my body almost falling out of the rig as we drove through a giant mud puddle. I regained consciousness at the exact right moment to grab a structure of support and keep myself from being flung into the mud. I was relieved, but also somewhat regretful that I missed out on a really hilarious story.

Immediately out of the mud puddle/almost pond, we drove past a rig filled with Batswana. We shouted “Dumela!” and “Happy New Year!” and they got the hugest kick out of us speaking Setswana to them. In true Batswana fashion, one PCV shouted to them, “Borrow me a Castle Lite!” and they were prepared to give it to them until he said he was joking. People here are not only always ready, but always expected, to share.

We finished our drive without too much more excitement save a game during which we had to keep our legs and arms in the air whilst the rig went through more puddles without falling out. It was challenging, and I must admit, I got quite the adrenaline rush. I am such a bad ass, I tell ya.

After the multiple hour drive home, we stopped at a grocery store, grabbed some dinner, then headed back to our friend’s apartment. We got dressed, reviewed our day, then went back out for New Year’s festivities. We went to a local lodge—one of the many Backpacker’s in Maun—where we met up with a bunch of other PCVs. It was quite fun! I was excited to wear a new highlighter palette I had bought in Francistown, and I looked like a mermaid space princess—my ideal aesthetic.

  At the stroke of midnight, a few people shot off some grocery store fireworks, and we all hugged and did some star gazing. About two hours later, we called it a night.

The next morning we had a few lazy hours before we worked up the energy to go to one of the hotels to swim in their pool. It was lovely. Following the swimming, we went on a boat cruise down the nearby river. While we were not in a game reserve, we did still see a monkey and two crocodiles! Nature is everywhere mo Botswana.

We were on the boat just before sunset, so the sky reflecting on the water looked endless. I do not even have the expanse of vocabulary necessary to describe the beauty of it all.

The oncoming storm divided both sky and river.

Maun seems to glow at night.

That was my second boat cruise in Botswana, but this one was far more intimate, and I think in a better setting. The other was beautiful, definitely, but there was something about this boating experience that really inspired me. I could not believe I was there.

Sadly, we had to get off the boat so a different group of people could board, but we went to another lodge nearby to grab dinner. While we were eating our quesadillas (the BEST quesadillas in Botswana without a doubt), it began to drizzle, but the sun did not go away.

I looked up, and just over a palm tree, I watched a rainbow form. And then a double and triple rainbow.

I wanted to cry.

It was New Years Day, and there was a sign that everything is going to be okay.

When my grandmother died a few years ago, we somehow decided that when my mother and I see a rainbow, it is grandma sending us her love and a sign that she is watching over us. Rainbows have since come at some pretty opportune times. But this… this was like something out of a movie. It was surreal and incredible and exactly what I needed without me even knowing I needed it.

Returning to site after such an amazing vacation was difficult, but it is getting better every day. The busier I get, the better I feel. And every day—whether good or bad—I think of that rainbow and how everything is going to be alright.

Ke bonile ditlhou! I have been told repeatedly that there are elephants in my village, but I have yet to see one.