#event: the marshal is 8

[armagnac-army]

LANNES, SOULT TURNED INTO A KITTY CAT HE CAN NOW BE HEAD-PATTED IVE TRIED SUCCESSFULLY

BONJOURMONSIEURKITTYYOUAREVERYSOFTANDCUDDLYDOYOUHAVEAFAMILYWHATISITLIKEBEINGACAT

🐱: MIAO. *

*Translator’s note: “What is happening. What is this kitten doing.”

[therealcocoshady]

Recovery - Chapter 8

Eminem x FemReader (Y/N) fanfiction

Summary : Y/N reconnects with an old friend and her sobriety is seriously challenged.

Tags : Angst, Comfort, Fluff

CW : Bullying, Alcohol, Drugs, Mentions of nudity

TWO WEEKS LATER

To say you had a bad week would be an understatement. It was a terrible one : everything that could go wrong basically did, except for the moments you spent at the studio. 

As it often happened, you missed Simon terribly. You were feeling touch-starved, and you just missed being in a relationship. Granted, you had amazing friends, but it just wasn’t the same. Work wasn’t a piece of cake either. You’d had to attend several faculty events and, as was often the case in academia, almost everyone over-indulged on alcohol. You found yourself missing the days where you could party and dance the night away. You had never been much of a party-girl, but now that you were sober, you missed it sorely. You were supposed to work on your doctoral dissertation but found no motivation to work at all. 

Only three things were able to get you out of your bad mood : the few hours a week you spent at the studio, dinner time every evening with Talia and Jamal, as well as the perspective of seeing an old friend who was coming back to Detroit. 

Two weeks prior, after Marshall brought you back from the studio, you had received a text from an old friend named Cassie. She was the first person you befriended at Michigan State University, four years ago, when you were an exchange student. Your friendship was the living embodiment of “opposites attract”, as she was everything you weren’t : funny, easy-going, sociable, the life of the party. It was also a good partnership : you helped her study and she helped you socialise. She was the one who took you to some parties and showed you cool places in the city. In a way, she was a good influence : she pushed you out of your comfort zone. Whenever you were with her, you found yourself to be more bold. Unfortunately, you hadn’t seen her in a while, as she moved to another state to follow her then-fiancé, now ex-husband. Cassie had texted you to tell you she was coming back to town and that she’d love to see you. Generous as ever, she offered for you to spend a couple of days in her suite at a fancy hotel, promising you a good time and some spa. You were extremely happy to see her again. When she left, you had tried to keep in touch, but she seemed extremely busy. Now though, she was considering coming back to Michigan after a divorce and was actually in town for a job interview. 

Her offer for you to spend a couple of days with her was also a nice way to give Talia and Jamal some space. They would never admit it, but you figured they would appreciate spending some time at the house, just the two of them. There was only one drawback : Talia seemed a bit wary of Cassie. You knew she never liked her, but being the classy lady she was, she refused to drag you into their drama. She simply told you to enjoy yourself. 

On Friday night, you joined Cassie at her hotel, after she was done with her job interview. She seemed ecstatic to see you. 

Ma chériiiiiie, she shrieked as she took you in her arms. It has been so long ! 

I’m so happy to see you, you said sincerely. 

I have planned the most amazing weekend for the two of us, she said giddily. 

Really ? What do you have in mind ? 

First, we’re going to have a nice five stars dinner brought up to our room, and tomorrow, I’m taking you to the Spa, shopping and then, I was thinking we could go to a party together, she explained. 

That is a lot, Cassie…, you said. 

My treat, she assured you. Let my divorce settlement money be useful ! 

I can’t accept that. 

Of course you can ! You’ve done so much for me, baby, it’s time I paid you back a little ! Some people I know are throwing a party and you’re going to love it. 

You hummed. Cassie was a ball of energy, as always. You half expected her to be depressed because of her short marriage that just ended, but she was beaming with happiness. At dinner, she explained that she caught her husband cheating with a colleague. She got a lot of money from the divorce and was ready to move on. She had always been like this : always seeing the positive side of things. During the conversation, the talk shifted to your breakup with Simon, although you didn’t go into much detail as to why the relationship ended. Cassie was your friend but you didn’t want to either bore or worry her by talking about your struggle with pills. If you were being honest, you also didn’t want her to think poorly of you. As amazing as she was, you knew she could be a little judgy, at times. 

It’s a shame that you guys broke up, but maybe it’s better this way, she said. You can do better anyway. 

Do you really think so ? you asked as you bit your lip. 

Of course. I mean, he was great and everything, but I don’t know… You could probably do with someone a little more fun. He was always so serious, she said. 

I don’t know… I liked that about him, you said with a sigh. 

Of course you did, she continued. But I’m sure we can find you someone better. The party I’m taking you to tomorrow will be the perfect place for you to find a man. 

I don’t need to find a man, you scoffed. 

Of course you do, she giggled. It’s been months since the breakup. And knowing the good girl you are, you probably haven’t got any action since. You don’t want spider webs to grow in your vagina, now, do you ? 

You almost choked on your water. God, she could be so straightforward when it came to sex. Or any other topic, for that matter. Once again, she was the complete opposite of you. Anyway, you didn’t bother responding to her comment about the good girl you were. And you were absolutely not going to mention your movie night with Marshall. Thankfully, the conversation shifted once again to another topic. After all, the two of you had a lot of catching up to do. 

You barely got any sleep that night. Not that you weren’t tired from your week - you were actually exhausted - but you spent the whole time talking to Cassie and catching up on her life. This girl had a talent for making life seem exciting and glamorous. She always had things going on, always being the one with the most amazing stories to tell. You felt a little dull, next to her. 

The next day, you started by having a fancy breakfast in bed before she dragged you to do some shopping. The department store is where you noticed she was seriously intent on spending money. She kept on grabbing items, not even bothering to look at the price. Meanwhile, you failed to find anything. You either didn’t like it or it was out of your price range. Eventually, she decided to take matters into her own hands and initiated a makeover session with the pretext that you needed to look fancy for whatever party she wanted to take you to. Of course, it was Cassie, so you weren’t exactly surprised when she told you it would be extra. She insisted that you try on a Sandro black dress, even though you weren’t convinced. It was on the shorter side, with sequins and definitely showed a lot of skin. Not to mention that it was extremely expensive. You liked shopping and dressing up as much as the next girly girl, but you didn’t come from money, so spending $300 on a dress wasn’t something you considered. However, to her, it seemed like it was no big deal. She didn’t even blink when the sales assistant told her about the price. “We’ll take it”, she simply said, before asking for bags and shoes to match the dress. Once again, she spared no expenses. The shoes she selected for you to wear were from Jimmy Choo, costing almost $800, with a matching clutch that was just as expensive. She even went the extra mile and selected a pair of gorgeous diamond earrings to complete the outfit. She was extremely happy with the outfit. So much so that you didn’t really dare tell her that you felt ridiculous in these clothes. It was the least “you” outfit ever. “If Talia could see me, she would laugh in my face”, you thought. But at the same time, Cassie was so generous and confident that you wanted to give it a try. After all, maybe you needed to get out of your comfort zone. After the shopping spree, you went to get pampered at the hotel spa. You both got your hair done, as well as beauty treatments for the face and body. You had to admit it felt good. Plus, she seemed to enjoy giving you the princess treatment. To be fair, you also enjoyed getting it. It wasn’t every day that you could get a massage, a facial and a new hairdo. 

The both of you went back to the room to get ready for the party. You didn’t know much about it, other than the fact that Cassie was extremely excited to go. It was supposed to be held in an exclusive location, with “only the best people, food, music and drinks”. When you stepped out of the bathroom, she clapped and shrieked in excitement. 

You have never looked so sexy, Y/N !!! If I had your ass and your breast, I’d dress like that everyday ! 

You were glad she liked it, although you thought you resembled a Bratz Doll. You hardly ever wore makeup anymore, but there you were, with eyelash extensions, foundation, bold lipstick and, hell, even highlighter on your cheeks. Not to mention the outfit. “The dress is too tight, too short, and the heels are definitely too high”, you thought. 

Are we sure about the heels, Cass ? You asked nervously. I might break an ankle, here… 

You’ll be fine, she said. Plus, God knows I’m not one to criticize, but… You’re way too short to wear anything lower anyway. 

And there was the thing you liked the least about Cass : the way she would sometimes ignore your insecurities and dismiss them. Back when you were in school together, you couldn’t count the times when she would comment on your acne scars, your hair or even your weight. But she was your friend and you knew she meant well. It was her own way to care for you. She had your best interests at heart and she wanted you to be nothing but the best version of yourself. Besides, you knew that she was just as hard on herself. She was constantly under her own pressure to look good, do good and be with good people. But that was what made her thrive, so you figured that, maybe she was right. 

You look stunning and those basketball and NFL players are going to get in line to get your number, she said as she placed a strand of hair behind your ear. 

You look amazing too, you said with a shy smile. 

I know, she giggled. 

But wait… You mentioned… sports players ? Who exactly is going to be there ? Do you know them ? 

You’re getting in your head, baby, she chuckled. I know a few people. As for the others, it’s just a few friends we haven’t made yet. Anyway, I have something for you. 

She grabbed her handbag and took out a vial. 

I know how nervous you can get in social settings. This will help you relax. We are going to have the best night ever, she said with a wink. All you have to do is inhale this. 

She placed the vial in your hand and you looked at her, intrigued. 

What’s that ? You asked. Essential oils ? 

Almost, she hummed. Just trust me, ok ? 

Do you promise it’s nothing weird ? You asked as you bit your lip. 

I would never give you anything dangerous, she said as she rubbed your shoulder. You trust me, right ? 

You nodded with a smile. Of course you trusted her. 

Now, let’s have a glass of champagne, just the two of us before leaving, ok ? We didn't even toast to our reunion last night !!! 

I shouldn’t drink, you said as you avoided her gaze. I’ll have water but go ahead. 

Don’t be a boring, Y/N, she giggled. God, you can be such a dud sometimes. One glass, it won’t kill you. I’m going out of my way for you to have a great time, here. 

You felt your heart strain. You didn’t want to be ungrateful. After all, she was more than generous to you and she did go out of her way for you to have a memorable weekend. You didn’t want her to think you were a dud. Besides… One glass of champagne was ok, right ? It wasn’t as if she was handing you some pills or offering for you to snort cocaine in her hotel room. Plus, it was Cassie, of all people. You took a deep breath and sighed. 

Right. I’m sorry. Champagne sounds lovely, you said. 

She smiled and ordered champagne from room service. When it came, it wasn’t just two glasses : it was a whole bottle. Cassie laughed it off. You had your first sip of alcohol in months. You were never a huge drinker, but you had to admit you sort of missed it. You made small talk as you sipped on your glass and she told you that one of her motives to go to the party was to see a guy she had a small crush on. Some Pistons player, apparently. This made you smile. Cassie had always been quite the seductress, even though she got engaged and married quite young. She was the flirty type, even with you. This was part of her persona, and people were here for it. She was the very definition of irresistible. The girl you befriended, that you knew you could never be. You knew there was nothing wrong with you and, most of the time, you were ok with who you were. As years went by, you had come to appreciate being the rather shy, sometimes dorky girl next door who could be seen as quite cute when she made an effort. You would never be an ethereal beauty like Cassie and you were fine with it. Before you knew it, you were on your third glass of champagne. 

We’d better go, you said with a giggle. I’m on my third glass already. 

You’re right, we’ll have plenty of bubbles to drink when we get to the party anyway, she said. 

Not quite what I meant, Cass… 

Just enjoy the evening, baby ! Now, time for you to use that vial. Just put it close to your nostril and sniff, ok ? she directed. 

You nodded and did as she said. After you were done, she did the same. Less than a minute later, you were filled with a sensation of euphoria and relaxation. 

I don’t know what it is, but this is the shit ! You giggled. 

I know right ? If you feel anxious, just do that again. I promise, you will have a great time ! 

A car took you to the party. It was definitely a fancy event. You didn’t know anyone, but Cassie did, and she introduced you to some people. You ended up discreetly sniffing the magic vial a couple of times, taking some time to relax. Before you knew it, you were standing alone as your friend was in deep conversation with a handsome gentleman who, you guessed, was her crush. 

I can’t believe such a beautiful woman is standing here without a drink, a man said as he placed a glass of champagne in your hand. 

Thank you, you giggled. 

The stranger was quite handsome. He was tall, blonde, with gorgeous hazel eyes. He was dressed in a tux and arbored a charming smile. At that point, you were just a little tipsy and definitely relaxed. You greeted him with a smile and thanked him for the drink. 

May I say you look absolutely stunning, he complimented you. That’s quite an outfit.

Thank you, you said with a smile. You don’t look too bad either. 

I don’t believe we’ve been introduced, yet. I am Jared. 

Nice to meet you, Jared. I’m Y/N, you said as you extended your hand. 

You expected him to shake it but he took you by surprise by kissing it, which made you all giddy. You made small talk and he told you he actually played for the Detroit Lions, taking no offense when you confessed that you had no idea who he was, and that you didn’t watch a lot of football. 

So, what brings you to this fundraiser for the Detroit Sports Teams ? he asked. 

Oh, is that what the event is ? you chuckled. I had no idea. Actually, my friend Cassie brought me here. I was promised champagne and a great time. 

I’ll be honest with you, this fundraiser is mostly an excuse for people to drink and dance, he said as he winked. 

You chortled and kept on talking to him. He was easy-going and very sociable. You could tell he was flirting with you and you liked it. It was very flattering to have such a handsome man take an interest in you. You also began to feel more confident in the outfit Cassie had chosen for you. Some people joined the conversation. Apparently, they also played for the football team. All of these men were good-looking and you found yourself considering getting a season ticket for the games. You would have been more interested in sports if you’d known how great the players looked. Eventually, the conversation turned to sports and you took it as your cue to leave, figuring that if Jared wanted to talk some more, he’d find you in the crowd. You sniffed the vial again and found Cassie. People were starting to dance and she dragged you to the dance floor. Had you been completely sober, she wouldn’t have had a chance, but you were far from it now. Whatever potion she had you inhaling was working its wonders when it came to deprive you of your inhibitions. You were more confident in your moves than ever and you danced with her. The both of you were soon swarmed by an army of suitors and you gladly obliged them when they offered to dance. You were having a great time and it was the magic of Cassie : she managed to turn you into a lovable, sociable creature. Hell, you even gave your number to Jared who had found you on the dancefloor and begged for a dance. He promised to call but, unfortunately, he had to leave. You were having yet another drink and talked to Cassie when her face suddenly changed. 

Holy shit. How do I look ?! she asked. 

You look gorgeous, as always, you giggled. Why ? Is your crush here ? 

Better, she grinned. Look, it’s Eminem !!! 

You turned your head in a dramatic move and saw Marshall talking to a couple of people. He was wearing black jeans, sneakers, a black tee-shirt and the Saint Laurent jacket you liked so much. Far from the tuxedos some men were wearing, but definitely an improvement compared to some of his daily outfits and usual sweatpants. As always, you thought he looked amazing. You were shocked, though. He was the last person you expected to see here. 

He is even hotter in person, she squealed. I have to introduce myself. Come with me, she said as she dragged you across the room. 

Your heart was pounding but you didn’t have time to protest. He saw you arrive, hand in hand with Cassie and his eyes seemed to widen, not that you could be so sure because, at this point, you were drunk. But thankfully, you were also too relaxed to care, thanks to the stuff you had kept on inhaling. 

Hey, Y/N, he said as he gave you a quick hug, looking suspicious. 

Hey handsome, Cassie said seductively. I didn’t realize you knew our beautiful friend here. I’m Cassie. 

Hi Cassie, he said as he politely shook the hand she extended. Yeah, I know Y/N. 

“Or at least, I think I do.”, he added in a lower voice, still staring at you. You smiled at him but his comment left you puzzled. Of course he knew you. You were friends. Why would he say that ? You looked at him as Cassie talked to him, complimenting his music and telling him how insanely talented she thought he was, though you couldn’t remember her listening to hip-hop. Ever. 

Now that I know that you know Y/N, we simply have to hang out. Don’t we, ma chérie ? she said. 

Of course, you said shyly - somewhat uncomfortable that your friend was flirting with your Marshall.

Sure, he said with a blank face. 

I have to go to the bathroom, she said. Y/N, hold my glass, will you ? 

She quickly disappeared and you were left alone with him. You smiled shyly. 

I didn’t know you’d be here, you said in an attempt to make small talk. 

I didn’t know you would be here, he replied. What are you doing here ? 

Same as you, I guess, you giggled. 

I’m here for work, he clarified. 

Oh well, I’m not, you shrugged with a smile. Cassie took me here. By the way… She thinks you’re hot. 

You weren't too sure why you were telling him that. Probably because you did not have much inhibitions anymore. You couldn’t help but chortle at the absurdity of the situation. 

Good for her. Now… Care to explain why you’re clearly drunk and dressed like a ho !? He groaned. 

You opened your mouth to reply but found yourself unable to say anything. Did he just insult you ?! You were about to retort something when Cassie returned from the bathroom. 

Now, Marshall, she said as she took her glass from your hand without even glancing at you, I happen to be free for a dance. 

Yeah, he said. I…

He was cut by someone who came to him before he could even continue. You were still a bit stunned. Cassie, however, shrugged off and took you to the dance floor. 

You’ll have to get him to call me, she giggled as she resumed dancing. 

Y-Yeah, you said, still a bit stunned. 

Dance with me, baby, she said as she took your glass and placed it on a table. 

She took your hand and you soon forgot about Marshall’s insult. You were rolling your hips to the beat of the music. A man placed a hand on your waist and danced with you. It was very sensual and you found yourself a bit giddy and turned on, not too sure why. Cassie was doing the same with another man. At that moment, your soul had left your body. Or maybe you just experienced being raw and free for the first time in forever ? It felt like you were on fire. Cassie gestured for you to come closer. 

You’re having a great time, she laughed. Look at you, all sexy ! 

I feel great, you giggled. I’m super horny, too. 

That’s the poppers, she chuckled. Wanna drive them crazy ? 

Poppers ? Is that what she gave you ? Before you knew it, she was kissing you. You were a bit taken aback but returned the kiss anyway. You liked women as much as men, for sure, but you had never thought of your friend like that. Yet, you found yourself kissing back, because you just felt like it. You were turned on, having a great time, and she was gorgeous, so why not make out with her ? You were laughing as you broke the kiss. Before you knew it, the guy you were dancing with was kissing you. You giggled as you danced with him some more. You had never felt more beautiful and desirable. Your thoughts were interrupted when someone in the crowd grabbed your wrist. Marshall. He didn’t look too happy. 

Come with me, he said firmly. 

Not a chance, you giggled. I’m dancing here. 

No shit, he groaned. Just come, Y/N. 

So that you can insult me again ? I hardly think so, Em, you said as you rolled your eyes. 

That’s not a fucking question, he groaned on your ear as he pulled you closer to him. 

Before you could protest, he was holding your hand, walking you out. Cassie followed you. 

Where are the two of you going ? She asked. 

I’m taking her home, Marshall said curtly. 

Oh… then why don’t you take us both home ? She offered with her seductive signature smile. 

You were stunned and you looked at the two of them. Was she offering… a threesome ?! Your eyes were wide open wide and you felt like a deer in headlights. 

She needs to sleep, Marshall said. 

I’m fine, you groaned as he shot you a death glare. 

Whatever, Cassie said. We can figure out who does what when we get to your place, she added with a wink. 

Oh, I have it all figured out, he assured her. I’m taking Y/N home. You can catch a ride to… wherever it is that you’re going. 

You were about to say something but the room was starting to spin and you almost lost your balance. The heels were definitely too high. 

Careful there, Marshall said as he placed a hand on your waist to secure you. Come on, I’ll take you home. 

Whatever, Cassie sighed. Call me tomorrow, chérie ? 

You nodded and walked out as Marshall was holding you firmly by the hand. The cold, fresh air made you shiver and he sighed before placing his jacket over your shoulders. 

I think someone’s following us, you slurred. 

Yeah, that’s my security, he groaned. Look down, now. 

What ? You asked, a bit lost. 

Fuck. Just look down, he repeated in an annoyed tone. 

You did, as you thought that maybe he was going to show you something, but you saw a flash from afar. Someone was snapping pictures as you got out of the event. Your head was still ducked as Marshall led you to a van that was waiting. He helped you get in before entering the car as well, followed by the two security guards. You felt insanely small, as they were huge and took a lot of space in the car. He told the driver to go to his place. 

You’re not taking me home ? You asked. 

I’m taking you where I can keep an eye on you, he grunted. 

That’s totally unnecessary, you said blurringly as you rolled your eyes. 

That wasn’t a question. 

You sighed and looked outside the window. You threw a glance at Marshall, who was fuming, his fist clenched into a ball. Your head was still turning and you didn’t feel too good. 

I need to get out of here, you mumbled. Can you stop the car ?! 

Will you just shut up for one fucking second ?! He snapped. 

I’m gonna puke. 

Shit. Stop the car now, Marshall said to the driver. 

Immediately, the vehicle piled and you hit your head on the window. One of the bodyguards opened the door and you ran outside before puking on the side of the road. Marshall followed you and stood next to you. You were doubled up as he held your hair. When you finally stopped puking, you looked at him with teary eyes. 

I’m sorry, you mumbled. 

He rolled his eyes and shook his head before leading you back to the car. 

Do you hate me ? You whispered. 

No, he groaned. We’ll talk about it when we get home, alright ? 

God, my head hurts, you croaked. 

He sighed and gently pulled you so that your head rested on his shoulder. 

There.

Thank you, you whispered. 

The rest of the drive was silent and you were almost asleep by the time the car dropped you at Marshall’s place. 

Can you walk ? He asked. 

You nodded and took a few steps but almost collapsed. These damn heels had you feeling like a baby giraffe taking its first steps. 

Come here, he sighed before carrying you bridal-style. 

As you walked through the door, he carried you upstairs to a bathroom. 

You need to shower, ok ? There’s a bit of barf on your dress… 

Ok, you muttered. Marshall, I-I’m sorry. 

You were on the verge of tears and your bottom lip was quivering. His look softened a bit. 

You can barely stand so I’ll help you with the shower and the undressing, is that alright with you ? 

You nodded. He made you sit on the floor before helping you undress. You grunted as he freed your feet from the shoes. He fumbled with the zipper of your dress, which was apparently stuck. 

Fuckin’ zipper, he muttered. I should cut this thing. 

Don’t, you whined. It’s new. 

He groaned as he finally managed to unzip you. You were finally naked on the cold floor of the bathroom. The dress didn’t allow you to wear any underwear. You noticed his surprise, but he didn’t comment. In any other circumstance, you would have felt embarrassed, but you were too drunk to care. You were actually thankful he was able to help you get out of these clothes, as you wouldn’t be able to undress on your own.

Alright, now let’s get you to the shower, he said softly. 

You nodded and tried to stand. Although it was easier without the heels, you weren’t too secure. He helped you stand and led you to the shower. 

I’m going to take my clothes off. It’ll be easier. Are you ok with that ? 

You nodded silently, not really daring to look at him. As minutes went by, you were feeling more and more ashamed of yourself. 

Hold still. Don’t fall, he directed before taking his clothes off, staying in his boxers. 

He went back to you and held you firmly so that you wouldn’t fall before turning on the shower. The water was flowing on your bodies. You tried your best not to fall but Marshall had to hold you with one hand while helping you wash with the other. 

Fuck it, he grunted as he turned off the water. I’ll just draw a bath, ok ? 

He drew a bath and helped you settle in the huge bathtub. 

Are you alright ? He asked gently, concern all over his face. 

You hummed and he started to wash your back. 

You’re not getting in ? You asked. 

Don’t worry about me, he said. Try not to drown, alright ?

I’m just saying, you might as well get in. You’re all wet already. 

He shrugged and finally joined you in the bathtub, settling right behind you so that you rested between his legs, while holding you tight so you wouldn't slip.

You know you could have taken your boxers off, right ? 

We’re not doing that, he sighed. 

Just saying… I know what your dick looks like, anyway. 

He scoffed softly and resumed helping you wash. It was actually easier now that you were in the bathtub. 

Marshall ? 

Mmmh ? 

Do you hate me ? You asked under your breath. 

Yes. I loathe you. That’s why I’m taking care of you right now, isn’t that obvious ? He asked sarcastically. Of course I don’t hate you, Y/N. Why do you even ask that ? 

You said I was a whore. 

I didn’t say that. I said you were dressed like a ho, he corrected. 

You turned your head to look at him. 

What ? You’re going to deny it ? He asked with an eyeroll. You weren’t even wearing a fucking thong. 

That’s mean, you said. You can’t wear underwear with that kind of dress. Otherwise, it shows. 

Oh so that’s what makes it not a ho-dress ? He mused as he lathered your arm with soap. My bad, sorry. You definitely looked like a nun, then. 

You rolled your eyes. 

Why were you even wearing this thing ? He asked. 

Cassie said it looked good, you shrugged. I mean, obviously, you disagree, but… 

Never said so, he said. 

You said I looked like a ho !  

Once again… no one said hoes can’t look good, he chuckled. I mean… you sort of have to, if you’re a ho, I guess ? Otherwise you’re not a very good one. 

You let out a drunken giggle. 

So you think I looked good ? You asked. 

Yeah, the prettiest ho I’ve ever seen, he grinned. It’s just… it doesn’t look like you, you know ? 

Maybe it should look like me, you shrugged. 

What the hell do you mean ? 

I look better like this, you said. 

Nope, he replied as he shook his head. You don’t. 

You don’t think so ? 

I think you’re beautiful as is, and that you don’t need to look like a whore, a ho or whatever. Or to act like one, for that matter, he said. 

Hey ! 

He shrugged as he stared at you. 

Was I acting like a ho ? You asked sheepishly, suddenly unsure about the whole evening. 

I don’t know. I guess, sort of, he said. Seriously, though…What was with all the kissing and grinding like you were in heat ? 

I don’t know, you admitted. Cassie gave me that vial to sniff. It made me all light and happy and…horny. 

Seriously ? Poppers ?! He sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose. 

You swallowed dryly. 

She told me it wasn’t a big deal, you said. 

Let me guess, this genius is also the one who convinced you to have a drink ? 

… yes, you admitted. 

He groaned and shook his head. You looked down in embarrassment. 

I just wanted to have a good time, you said sheepishly. 

Yeah, because breaking your sobriety and making out with people is the only way to do that, right…? 

The comment about how you had failed to stay sober caused you to break into tears. 

I’m sorry, you murmured as you sobbed. I… I thought it wouldn’t count ? 

What ? He asked, confused. 

I mean, I figured that, it’s not pills, you explained as you kept sobbing. 

That’s not how sobriety works, Y/N, he said as he shook his head. You know better than that.

Tears kept on flowing. It felt like you would never stop crying. 

I fucked up. Everything. I’m a failure. I’m so sorry, you cried. 

Come here, he said as he pulled you in his arms. 

He held you and you rested your head in the crook of his neck, as you kept on crying. After a few minutes, you managed to calm down. 

Better now ? He asked. 

Yes. I’m sorry, you muttered. 

It’s ok to cry, he said as he stroked your hair. Now let’s get you dressed, ok ? I don’t want you to be cold. 

He got out of the bathtub first and helped you up. You were a bit more level-headed and managed to stand up. He wrapped you in a towel and told you not to move before disappearing for a minute, coming back wearing sweatpants. 

Put these on, he said as he gave you some clothes of his to wear. Let’s get ready for bed, ok ? 

You’re not taking me home ? You asked as you yawned. 

It’s late and Talia and Jamal are either asleep or having sex, he shrugged. So I don’t think we should disturb. Plus, you’re still shit-faced so I should keep an eye on you. 

You nodded and got dressed. His clothes were comfy. You also enjoyed the smell of his detergent - it was a smell you associated with him. You looked at yourself in the mirror. 

I look like a house elf in your tee-shirt, you pointed out. 

Come on Dobby, he chuckled as he shook his head. To bed, now. 

I can’t sleep in my makeup, you said. Do you have anything I could use to remove it ? 

He opened the cabinet door and managed to find some makeup removing wipes. You were wearing so much makeup that it took a while for you to take it off. 

You don’t need to use that much makeup, he pointed out. You look better without it anyway. 

I hate wearing it, you confessed. 

So… why the fuck do you look like a stolen car that’s been painted over ? 

I don’t know. I wanted to look pretty. Cassie convinced me.  I mean, I know I’ll never look as good as her, but… 

That’s true, he said. 

He looked at you and inspected your face, his fingers tracing your cheeks. 

You look better than her, he added. 

You felt yourself blush. You could tell he was being honest. It was the first time anyone ever mentioned that you looked better than Cassie. 

You don’t think she’s pretty ? You asked. 

Nah, she looks good, for sure, he said. But she looks too… whatever. Doesn’t matter anyway. 

It kind of does, though, you replied. 

Why is that ? 

She likes you. 

He scoffed and rolled his eyes. 

No she doesn’t, he said matter-of-factly. 

She thinks you’re hot and she wants you to call her, you replied. 

She likes Eminem, he explained. She has no idea who I am. I know she’s your friend and shit, but she basically threw herself at me, just because I’m famous. If I’d been a random guy, I’m not even sure she would have given me the time of day. 

You’d still be hot, you pointed out. 

He shook his head with a smile. 

Doesn’t matter, he said softly. I’m used to it, you know ? I can tell this type of thing from a mile away. Not to mention she was ready to drag her drunk friend into a threesome… 

It’s probably a misunderstanding, you said to defend her. I mean, she’s my friend, she wouldn’t… 

I know it sucks to hear it, Y/N, but you became an afterthought for this girl as soon as she saw a possibility to suck my dick. That’s not what friends do. 

He sighed and rubbed your shoulder. 

Also, friends don’t give their sober friends poppers and champagne, he pointed out. 

To be fair she didn’t know I was sober, you said. I didn’t have the heart to explain that to her… I guess it’s my fault. 

He hummed and shrugged. 

We’ll talk about that tomorrow. I’m tired, you’re exhausted, and it’s time for bed, he said. 

You almost giggled when you heard the unintentional rhyme. He led you to the adjacent guest bedroom. You felt a bit sobered-up but he was right, you were exhausted. You settled under the covers as he sat next to you. 

Thank you Marshall, you said as you stared into his blue eyes. 

Oh so you’re calling me Marshall now ? He said with a grin. 

Well, that’s your name, you said confused. 

You called me Em, at the party, he said. 

Well people also call you that, you pointed out. 

You don’t. 

You shrugged. 

Yeah, so ? 

I don’t like it, he said. Not in your mouth. It doesn’t feel right. I don’t mind about the others, but… For you, it’s Marshall. 

Ok, you chuckled. I won’t call you Em if you don’t call me a hoe or piss me off, then. 

Deal, he said with a smile. 

Marshall ? You asked. 

Yes ? 

Can I have a hug ? 

He simply nodded and took you in his arms. 

What am I supposed to do now ? You asked. About this whole sober thing ? 

For now, just sleep, Y/N. We’ll talk about it tomorrow. When you’re completely sobered-up and well-rested, ok ? 

You nodded, thanked him and closed your eyes. You felt his fingers in your hair, gently stroking your scalp. It was all you needed to fall asleep.

[marshallpupfan]

More Movie Thoughts Again...

It's been a few months since The Mighty Movie released to theaters. Currently, we know a third movie is on its way, and it's due to release in 2026. What we don't know, however, is... well, anything else about it. We still don't even know yet which pup it'll focus on, or if it even will at all. We know the year, just nothing else.

If the story does focus on a single pup again, much like The Movie and The Mighty Movie before it, then the question is... which one will they go with? If you ask the fans, the answer seems to be quite obvious. Just take a look at the above poll from the PAW Patrol Wiki.

And even this poll on Reddit, too. Rocky's the most popular on the PAW Patrol subreddit, yet Marshall still won by over twice the votes. It seems fans really, really want to see the spotted pup in the spotlight this time around... which may even lead to him finally getting some sort of backstory. Of course, what we want isn't always what we get, but it's possible the folks at Spin Master, Brunker, or whoever with influence might be aware of this.

As many of you know, despite my mixed feelings about the theatrical films, I am rooting for Marshall to helm the third movie. After season 7 and 9 of the TV series were so bad to him (season 8 wasn't exactly great to him at times, either), I really want to see something propel him back into the spotlight. Becoming the star of the next theatrical film will undoubtedly accomplish this, as even Skye has seen an increase of attention since The Mighty Movie hit theaters. Assuming the third movie is about him and it turns out good, I've no doubt the same will happen to Marshall, too. And, if we're lucky, the TV series will finally go back to using him more again, instead of calling someone with her helicopter to save a kid from a tree as her harness cable magically passes through a bunch of branches to do this, instead of calling the firefighter pup with his ladder like they should've.

However, I have some reservations here. I've talked in the past about how I feel the theatrical films haven't handled Marshall all that well, my "caused vs. because" argument with the way they portrayed his clumsiness, and the fact that he's rarely involved in comedic moments because of Brunker's obvious preference for Rubble. Even if Marshall's the focus on the plot, I don't know if these things will be any different.

This is just a theory, so it may be far from the truth, but... I have a bad feeling that Brunker may not like or care about Marshall. I hope I'm wrong, but due to the way he's portrayed in these theatrical films, the fact both movies continuously refuse to give him his elevator wipeout running gag, among other reasons, I just can't shake this belief. And the thing is, I've noticed over the years that when a writer doesn't like or care about a character, they often try to change them... drastically, at times. It's not uncommon at all, really. And if any of this is true, then I fear what this means when/if Brunker tries to write an entire film around the pup. It's possible he may act completely different, or portray his clumsiness as the result of some devastating event in his past. Marshall's a silly pup who always means well but sometimes trips over his own paws, but Brunker might try to change the meaning behind that. And should the film become popular and these newfound characteristics spill over into the TV series, well... I honestly dread the thought.

Then again, this might happen anyway, no matter who the focus is. You see, a few months ago, I was chatting with someone on the PAW Patrol Wiki who said their favorite pup is Skye. When The Mighty Movie got brought up, they admitted to me how they felt Skye was really out of character during it... not to mention, they were also quite disappointed to see the film ditch her unique Mighty tornado & wings, in favor of a cape and simply turning her into a Superman clone. The thing is, if Marshall, Rocky, Zuma, or whoever turns out to be the focus next, will the same happen to them, regardless of how Brunker feels about these characters? Did he dislike Skye, or did he just write her in a way he believed was good? Is that Skye fan in the minority? Am *I* in the minority with any of this?

...I don't know. Do you? Does anyone know?

As usual, all I can do is wait and hope for the best. Should Marshall be the focus, I really, really, really, hope that Brunker takes his time with understanding the character, learns the way he acts and behaves, and comes up with something that's both good and not out of character. I also hope that, should we get a backstory for Marshall, it's not another "and then they almost died" plot, just like Skye, Chase, and even Surly's backstory from Brunker's The Nut Job 2. I want Marshall's history to stand out and truly be something good, not just... more of the same we've already seen. And if Brunker does insist on changing the character, I hope it's nothing extreme. In all fairness, change isn't always a bad thing, when its done right.

As I often say... only time will tell.

[sotwk]

Last updated: 6/13/24. Newest entry is marked.

Welcome to my Masterlist! I write exclusively for Tolkien, specifically the LotR and The Hobbit series.

For more information about my writer preferences and specialties, please refer to my Fanfiction Request Guidelines.

All my works are also posted in my Ao3 Account.

Sins of Our Fathers (Thranduil x OC Elvenqueen - ongoing series - Second Age 1358) Over the course of a century, Thranduil and Maereth meet and develop a friendship that is destined to become Mirkwood's greatest love story. In Progress.

The Crown (Thranduil x OC Elvenqueen - one-shot - Second Age 3441) Thranduil’s queen comforts him as they prepare on the evening of his coronation. Completed.

A Stab to the Heart (Thranduil & Royal Family - 2-part fic - Third Age 1012) The Elvenqueen is injured in a surprise orc attack, and Thranduil gathers their sons to discuss the ramifications. In Progress.

Yuletide in the Elvenking's Realm (Thranduil & Royal Family - 12-part fic - various years, Third Age) Collection of 12 ficlets in chronological order; stories of Yuletide celebrations in the Woodland Realm through the eyes of Thranduil and his family. In Progress.

Greenleaf's Tree (Child Legolas & Thranduil - one-shot - Third Age 248) Six-year-old Legolas goes on royal progress with Thranduil for the first time. Completed.

Greenleaf’s Day Out (Child Legolas & Family - Complete Series - Third Age 250) On a single day in 8-year-old Legolas’s life, he shares bonding moments with each of his 4 older brothers. 6 Chapters. Completed. Full work on AO3.

The Best Gift (Legolas x unnamed OC- one-shot - Third Age 556) Legolas wishes a "dear friend" a Joyous Begetting Day--but anonymously. Completed.

Unnecessary Guardian (Legolas x unnamed OC - one-shot - Third Age 1254) Legolas wants to guard his friend in her new role as a Mirkwood Spiderhunter. Completed.

Transformed (Gelir x unnamed OC- one-shot - Third Age 1554) A Mirkwood huntress is attacked by a dark beast and begins a slow and gradual transformation into a monster herself. Completed.

The Baker from Lórien (Haldir & OC Mother - one-shot- Third Age 246) A visitor from Lórien brings some excitement to the kitchens of the Elvenking's palace. Completed.

Breathe (Boromir x unnamed OC- one-shot - Third Age 3008) You have harbored a deep, secret crush on Boromir for years, and have now been asked by him to dance. Completed. (Will be continued in an upcoming long fic.)

Dandelions (Boromir x unnamed OC - one-shot - Third Age 3015) Boromir brings flowers to his lady love. Completed.

Taken (Eomer x OC - 3-part fic - Third Age 3019) A shield-maiden learns her hidden love for the Marshal of her Eored, now the King of Rohan, may not be unrequited as she had always assumed. Completed. (Sequel in progress.)

The Broken Shield (Thorin & Frerin - one-shot - Third Age 2791-2799) The young Princes of Erebor forge a surprising alliance with the Elves of Mirkwood to fight together in the War of the Dwarves and Orcs. Entry to the Thorin's Spring Forge 2023 event. Completed.

The Task of Living (Thorin x unnamed OC - one-shot - Third Age 2943) The re-throned King of Erebor returns to his former village in Dunland, seeking the woman he has loved since long ago. Completed.

The Only Gold (Fili x OC - ongoing series - Third Age 2941) Fili, heir presumptive of Erebor, befriends a mysterious elf-maiden during the Company's sojourn at Rivendell. Their bond will shift the courses not just of their individual destinies, but that of their peoples. In Progress.

Cinder Girl (Fili x unnamed OC - one-shot - Third Age 2945) The Crown Prince of Erebor faces the dilemma of losing his heart to a lovely yet humble palace servant. Completed. [New!]

OTHER USEFUL LINKS:

Introduction to SotWK

Headcanon Masterlist

[kotaloyelysiumevents]

May '24 - Monthly Prompt

🗡️All About Kotallo🦾

Fic

Taking Care of Their Marshal (E) - @fogsblue Aloy's been taken apart by Kotallo and Hekarro… and now the Chief and the Champion decide to make the marshal the centre of their attention, to spoil him as he deserves. (F/M/M)

Interlude, restrospective: Five times Kotallo was distracted and confused, and one time he figured it out. (E) - @5ellaal5 What’s that strange and alluring scent? Oh. Figured it out. Awkward.

Art

"May the 4th be with you, soldier" - @beyondbendingsky

May the Fourth Be With You / The Chief's Successor - @quiche-draws

"I was welcomed as a hero...and I was content" - @setavvo

All About Kotallo - theartseewinks (on Instagram)

Unleash the Storm!!! - @astralpaint

Walk With The Ten - @apricity-writes

Zenith Kotallo - @tonys-art-n-stuff

Action Shot! - @i-lavabean

GIFs / Photomode

@charger-lens - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17. 18, 19

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

We got a lot of entries this month! Thank you everyone who participated in paying tribute to our beloved one-armed Marshal!

For those who have yet to post theirs or if we have missed you, feel free to let us know so we can add you on to our list!

Check out our AO3 collection here and our other events here!

If you are interested in joining our server, please feel free to message us directly!

[gaymer-hag-stan]

Who Is Tekken?

I made a tier ranking because I was bored and because this is TEKKEN 8'S RELEASE WEEK!!!

So, basically this is a tier list based on who I think represents the series best. Not personal preference, just who I think of when I think of Tekken, and which characters I think usually act as the "face" of the franchise.

Tekken God Tier a.k.a. The one true "Face" of Tekken

Paul Phoenix - Although the story is centered around the Mishima Family feud, Paul I think best represents the spirit of Tekken as a whole. His design is outrageous, he can be considered goofy, not only because of the hair but because of his most recent portrayal and rivalry with Kuma, but he is nevertheless not treated entirely as a joke character. He is always there and he is a veteran.

Tekken Kings Tier a.k.a Characters present in all games that are also synonymous with Tekken

Yoshimitsu - Yoshimitsu is another character that is always present and, like Paul, he represents Tekken's spirit. He always looks ridiculous and he is completely redesigned in each new installment.

King - King also fits the same mentality as the other two. The jaguar mask, and the fact that when he speaks jaguar growls come out make him a staple to the "ridiculous but not a joke character" archetype that Tekken essentially jumpstarted and has polished to perfection over the years. Many other fighting games have joke characters of course, but some of Tekken's joke characters are actually pretty viable options.

Tekken Overlords Tier a.k.a. Characters who are present in almost all games and also represent the brand in promotional events and such

Nina Williams - Nina is undisputedly the Queen of Tekken. She is the only female fighter to appear in all Tekken games, she has her own spinoff game and she is almost always featured in collaborations and promotional events. She is the Chun-Li of Tekken with Cammy's demeanour. A two-in-one type of deal if you will.

Kazuya Mishima - Kazuya was the protagonist of the original Tekken game and has ever since taken on the role of either the primary or secondary antagonist. If Nina is Tekken's Chun-Li, then Kazuya is Tekken's Ryu, but with a twist. Kazuya is no hero, he is not the golden shoto honest boy who wants to save the world. Quite the opposite. Tekken can be campy but it can also be extremely edgy. Kazuya perfectly represents this inherent need to be edgy. When other fighting games attempted to replicate Street Fighter's Ryu by making more stoic stereotypical Japanese heroes who don't say much and only want to become stronger, Tekken introduced a villainous type of protagonist that will stop at nothing to achieve ultimate power. Tekken doesn't have a Ryu, only an Evil Ryu.

Ling Xiaoyu - Many would argue that Xiaoyu is Tekken's Chun-Li, and in the sense of having an upbeat female Chinese martial artist she is, but she is more like Chun-Li's little sister, or Tekken's little sister in this case. Nina is mature and sexy while Xiaoyu is cheerful and cute, childish even, in her debut appearance. Depending on who you ask she may be the main female character of Tekken but I'll say she's the second best thing. Still extremely important for the franchise.

Hwoarang - Hwoarang has never missed a game since his debut and I don't think he will in the future either. He is a very integral part of Tekken and his high kicks in the tightest of jeans definitely add a little more unhingedeness to the series.

Marshall Law - Every fighting game that respects itself pays homage to the greatest martial artist that ever lived. Law has every Bruce Lee mannerism that you can imagine and then some!

Tekken Warrior Tier a.k.a Jack

Although Jack's appearance and moveset are not necessarily remarkable, the fact that he undergoes a name change with each new Tekken entry, to match the mainline game's numbering, is kinda iconic in its own right and tied to Tekken itself. Even though he skipped Tekken 4 (and the JACK unit in the original game is a generic one not related to Jane's JACK who is present in all the following games) there is still a JACK-4 line, which further goes to show that you can't have Tekken without the JACKs.

Tekken Fighters Tier a.k.a. fairly recognisable characters who appear in most games

Lei Wulong - Tekken not only has its own Bruce Lee, but it also has its own Jackie Chan*! Lei has one of the most complicated movesets in fighting game history and as fighting game development gets pricier and pricier, he puts an actual strain on Namco's developments costs. While I don't think he will completely miss Tekken 8 or any following Tekkens, he is most likely gonna be permanent DLC to accommodate for the resources and money needed for his animations lmao

*since he is still alive though they actually started making his face more distinct as time went on and graphics became more realistic, possibly to avoid a lawsuit lol

Jin Kazama - Jin has essentially been the protagonist of Tekken since Tekken 3 (with a minor stint as a villain in 6 and, technically, being in a coma throughout Tekken 7's entire story) He is once again positioned as the "hero" in Tekken 8, although, like I said with Kazuya, Tekken doesn't do heroes the traditional way.

Bryan Fury - Bryan is the resident kickboxer of Tekken and he hasn't missed a game since his debut. His psychotic laugh is a Tekken trademark and his unhinged personality is a perfect match for a series like Tekken.

Steve Fox - Likewise, Steve is the resident boxer of Tekken. Arguably, he's not as strong in the personality department, so his fighting style kind of hard carries him and is also probably why he hasn't skipped an entry since his inception.

Asuka Kazama - Asuka is kind of the "new generation" type of Tekken girl. She had a really strong debut in Tekken 5, I think she really served in that game, but ever since the rivalry with Lili subplot was introduced I feel like Lili's personality overpowers hers. Nevertheless, they have been positioned by Namco as the new main female Tekken rivalry ever since Tekken 6 so that's that.

Tekken Brawlers Tier a.k.a. the last three core Tekken characters

Heihachi Mishima - Heihachi is arguably the Akuma of Tekken. He often assumes the final boss role and has been in all Tekken games until his death (?). Tekken 7 was teased as the big finale to Kazuya and Heihachi's rivalry, and his death (??) truly meant the end of an era for the series.

Feng Wei - I struggled a lot with this one because he's a character I personally don't care at all about, but personal bias aside I think his moveset is quintessential Tekken, and like Asuka he also had a very strong Tekken 5 debut that kind of hard carries him ever since. His scenes in the Tekken 5 opening cinematic are pretty memorable.

Lili - If the Tekken universe has an it girl it is her. Lili has been a consistently popular character since her debut and I don't think it's hard to see why. Her personality is hilarious, the rich mean daddy's girl type, her moveset is hella fun and her design is pretty slick and gets the message across - you know she is the spoiled brat before she even opens her mouth.

Tekken Grand Masters Tier a.k.a. characters who are still pretty important but can skip a game or two

Lee Chaolan - Lee's trademark "excellent" is definitely pretty standard amongst Tekken fans, but from here on, him and the characters that follow are more or less characters who are mostly relevant within the Tekken community and don't necessarily represent the franchise as a whole or are instantly recognisable as Tekken characters. Lee's is a very interesting take on Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do. In Tekken 1, all of the "rival" characters are in some way reused or alternate versions of the initial eight characters' fighting styles. In this case, he practices Jeet Kune Do like Law, but unlike Law, he doesn't retain any of Bruce Lee's mannerisms, other than the outrageous screams.

Eddy Gordo - Eddy is the resident capoeira master of Tekken, and you could argue this alone could earn him a higher placing, but I feel like the fact that he was Christie's pallette swap for two games split the spotlight between them. He still has a story-related reason to fight and is therefore still coming back whereas Christie's story arc is done for now, but even still, he was missing from the initial arcade release of Tekken 7 and is now only coming back as DLC. Eddy is undoubtedly a trademark Tekken character, but I feel like all the characters above him have become a tad more essential than him over the years.

Sergei Dragunov - Dragunov certainly has his fans, and has a fun moveset and an interesting... gimmick, if you can even call it that, in that he chooses not to speak. Ever... Almost.

Jun Kazama - No other character has had such a strong impact in the Tekken fanbase as Jun. Despite only being canonically present in one game (and it will 100% remain so as she is definitely still dead in Tekken 8) she has been constantly requested by fans, has had a "clone" character in the form of Asuka, and even an "evil counterpart" in the form of Unknown. Jun is kind of the face of the Tekken Tag Tournament games, as both of them, and any future ones we hopefully get, were always fans' chance to get to see her again after her death. Even after Asuka's debut, Jun's comeback in Tag 2 was among the main marketing for the game.

Christie Monteiro - Like I said, Christie replaced Eddy in Tekken 4 and 5 as the "face" of capoeira for Tekken. Although Eddy was the OG, and I feel like his Tekken 3 and Tag 1 appearances are his main popularity and nostalgia boosts over hers, Christie is arguably the more fun of the two and although her story arc is over, she has more to give in the personality department. With Tekken 8 going the extra mile to make Kuma and Panda feel more unique, decades after their debut as identical characters, I think the same energy can be applied to Eddy and Christie. They already had different standing throws to begin with so a first step was taken ever since Tekken 4.

Craig Marduk - Marduk is the series' resident big burly screaming neanderthal type of character. He has had a bit of character development through his feud and eventual friendship with King and, even when it seemed like Gigas had kind of replaced him in Tekken 7 he actually made it back so good for him, I guess...

Leo Kliesen - Leo kind of invented being non-binary back in 2008 right? What was initially envisioned as a gimmick, a character without gender, has taken on a whole new meaning as people found new ways to express their identities that weren't as widely explored before and I think that this is a good thing. No one in the Tekken world seems to treat Leo's androgyny as something abnormal, in fact nobody even acknowledges it, nobody is bothered by it, nobody loses sleep about it. Leo is Leo and they're here to stay. My only issue is that Leo's personality trait sliders were all set right in the middle too and this is definitely something that could be worked on a lot more.

Lars Alexandersson - Tekken 6 tried really hard to set Lars up as "the new Mishima" and I don't think it worked. I mean look at Reina's reception. I think that's what they were going for at the time. Did it work? Yes and no. Lars is intrinsically tied with the story and he seems to have been positioned as a positive role model and moral compass for Jin to make him "find his way" or whatever the fuck. If you think about it, after Jun's death, Jin only had Heihachi's abusive relationship and murder attempt and then his equally bloody reunion with his father in the form of family. Lars, and I guess Lee (they don't seem to have canonically interacted with each other before Tekken 7's ending) are now positioned as the good influences in Jin's life. Although Lee has worked under both Heihachi and Kazuya, and Lars had no issues working as a mercenary for Heihachi in the Tekken Force and only quit after Jin started World War III. Once again this harkens back to how no one is a saint in Tekken. Lars is no exception.

Raven - He took a small break in 7 but his fighting style was still represented in the form of his master. Raven's design is a knock-off Blade but the fact that he is a ninja working for the United Nations and that they also keep expanding his organization with new members in the form of Master Raven and Victor is proof enough of his relevancy to the series.

Tekken Experts Tier a.k.a. the last few ones that actually matter

Kuma - Kuma is a joke character, but an arguably quite good one at that. Tekken employs many "jokey" characters, the Pauls, the Yoshimitsus, the Kings, as marketing gimmicks. "Oh you know Tekken has a guy with weird hair that punches real hard" or "Tekken has a mech space ninja" or "Tekken has a dude with a jaguar head" but nothing hits quite hard like "Tekken has a bear". Street Fighter II had many martial artists in its original eight-character roster. A stoic karateka, a cheerful Kung Fu master, a hardened wrestler. But it also had Blanka, a weird "out of the box" type of character that fights with an unconventional fighting style and has a unique appearance. The other characters I mentioned have unique appearances but Paul practices judo, King is a wrestler and Yoshimitsu is a ninja (so at least his shenanigans are somewhat excused). But Kuma is a talking bear (when he speaks we hear growls, just like with King, but he is canonically able to communicate with humans, he just follows Tekken's "everyone speaks their mother tongue" and therefore speaks 'bear') who practices a mix of Mishima-style karate along with... Well bear moves. Very few other games in the market can match that energy.

Anna Williams - Anna is unfortunately, more often than not, in the shadow of her older sister, a sentiment that perhaps hits too close to home for a lot of younger siblings. Nevertheless, even if she began as a Nina clone, she was among the very first who the developers started differentiating from their original counterpart, as early as Tekken 3. Anna is certainly popular, but she is constantly treated as an afterthought to Nina, which itself prevents me from placing her any higher. While Nina is allowed to be part of the main story and have a subplot with her son or others, Anna has only ever had her rivalry with Nina, her having the hots for Kazuya and an interaction with Lee that may not even be canon. Perhaps the fact that she constantly has to live in the shadow of a more popular sister is in and of itself her own gimmick within the Tekken universe. The fact that she always serves the cunt™, all the cunt™ and nothing but the cunt™ is also probably a reason why she is a favourite of the gays and the girls.

Ganryu - Ganryu is another joke character. He has many running gage, actually, from his obsession with Michelle Chang and then her much-younger-than-him (...) daughter and them barely even acknowledging his existence, his lying over his ranking in sumo (and being cancelled by the... Sumo masters??? because of it) and also trying and failing to promote his chanko restaurant through the Tournaments, Ganryu is perhaps the Joke Character of Tekken. Even so, Kazuya apparently found something in him as he was among his elite bodyguards along with Bruce, Anna and Lee in Tekken 2.

Julia Chang - Julia I feel like also peaked during her Tekken 5 era but has been slowly fading in the background ever since. Arguably the most interesting character development she's had was adopting the Jaycee luchadora persona... Which was not canon... Her new streamer persona doesn't seem to be necessarily popular and the fact that she's again missing from another mainline base Tekken game may reflect that Namco don't necessarily seem like they know what to do with her at all.

Devil Jin - Devil Jin is not really an actual character, rather an alter ego of sorts of Jin, although we haven't necessarily "seen" him so far. Whenever Jin canonically assumes his devil form he just seems to lose control for a few seconds and then snaps back to normal. The reason for his existence is that people were pissed that Jin's Tekken 3 moveset was dropped in Tekken 4 as Jin relearned his fighting style to distance himself from his Mishima heritage and go back to his mother's teachings and Namco simply decided to bring it back in the form of an alter ego. He simply exists as a gameplay mechanic, although it still has endured for all these years, showing the impact Tekken 3 still has on the series. The initial story trailers for Tekken 8 seemed to hint that Devil Jin was no more but, for better or worse, Namco doesn't seem to be ready to let go just yet.

Baek Doo San & Michelle Chang - Both have been completely replaced by Hwoarang and Julia respectively so both are mostly in this tier for their presence in the first few games and the fact that their fighting style lives on through their disciples. Arguably Baek's is a little more alive than Michelle's though lol

Alisa Bosconovitch - Alisa is another one of the teen girly characters that Namco loves to push as their main form of female character archetype. Alisa being an android with chainsaw blades coming out of her arms was certainly an interesting gimmick back when she was added to Tekken 6, but it doesn't have an impact nearly as strong as "man with jaguar head" or "talking bear".

Zafina - Zafina closes up the last tier of actually important characters for the game's identity. She is cunty and as assassin but also her fighting style is extremely cooky and her animations are hilarious and, on top of that, she now also has the rotting Azazel hand. A perfect mix of the three pillars of Tekken; edginess, camp and c*nt~

Tekken Mentors Tier a.k.a. Pallette swaps, the last few legacy characters and Mokujin

Tekken Initiates Tier a.k.a Bosses, one-off characters and the literal newcomers who cannot be properly placed yet. I consider Leroy a newcomer since he didn't get a story chapter last time and since he's the only T7 DLC to make it in T8 thus far he gets a small bonus boost

Tekken Beginners Tier a.k.a. even more palette swaps, characters completely replaced by others or obscure randos that only come back for the Tag Tournaments. The rest of T7's characters that did not make the cut (so far) are here either because they didn't have as strong an impact as the rest or they were DLC and haven't shown their full potential yet

[josefavomjaaga]

Bessières's correspondence

This is for @flowwochair: the index of the documents in the "Fonds Maréchal Bessières" in the French National Archives. Not much about the content, unfortunately. I summarised some points that I imagined were not all that interesting to you. Please let me know if there is something you'd want to have more details on and I will look if there is more.

1) Letters and orders by Napoleon to Bessières, dating from 1796 to 1813. It’s organized by the different armies and contains mostly »official« stuff of some importance, like documents related to the double abdication of the two Spanish Bourbon kings in 1808. Murat’s name is mentioned once, in connection with one document:

copies of Napoleon's instructions to Murat on how to deal with the Spanish, 17 and 28 April 1808

Maybe also of interest: some of the documents concern the reorganisation of the troops after the Russian campaign and date as late as mid and end-April 1813, so only days before his death

2) Letters from princes of the imperial family to Bessières

Mostly interesting because a large chunk seems to be labeled »a.s.«, which I believe to mean »autographe signée«, i.e., handwritten and signed. Most correspondence of important people would have been in the hands of secretaries, with the sender merely signing them. Bessières being worthy of receiving letters that these imperial princes had written themselves hints at a special position of trust.

41 letters from Joseph Bonaparte, related to events in Spain (1808 – 1811)

2 letters (not written by Jerome himself) about uprisings in Kassel in 1813

And here you go: 29 letters by Murat, in his own handwriting, relating to the daily report on the Guard, the policy to be followed, and to military events in Spain (dated 5 August 1805 to 5 June 1808)

Followed by some stuff for me: 22 letters from Eugène de Beauharnais, in his own handwriting and »d’un caractère surtout personnel« (of primarily private nature), dated 27 January 1805 - 5 June 1808

Other than that, there are letters from Josephine, Lebrun, Hortense, Stéphanie de Beauharnais, Méneval and the secretary of Madame Mère.

The rest of this section are documents related to Bessières’s military career, decorations etc.

3) Some personal letters. The connection between them escapes me

from Bessières to his sister-in-law (?), 22 February 1808.

from Bessières to a marshal on the reorganisation of the Guard, 27 January 1813.

from Madame la Maréchale concerning her financial distress, 12 December 1813 and 12 December 1814.

Facsimile of a letter from the Marshal to his wife, after his departure for the 1813 campaign

4) Certificates, letters of service and appointment, decorations

Some documents as early as 1792 among them, but mostly bits and bobs that seem unrelated

5) Letters adressed to Bessières – Army of Italy and Army of Egypt. 55 pieces

6) Ministers' reports to the Emperor and various letters. Plenty of documents and letters among them that are neither written by or adressed at Bessières

7) Imperial Guard I (Organisation, financial reports etc.)

8) Imperial Guard II (contains one more letter by Eugène!)

9) Imperial Guard III (Holland in 1810)

10) Legion of Honour and pay. 73 pieces, 1804 to 1813

11) Russia. Letters adressed to Bessières, situation reports, mostly from before the campaign started

12) Letters from Napoleon, the imperial family, the royal family and several famous personalities. A lot of them obviously from after Bessières’s death, among them (condolation) letters to Madame la Maréchale from

Napoleon - 6 May 1813

Madame Mère – 7 May 1813

Marie Louise – 5 May 1813

Caroline Murat – 25 May 1813

Eugène Beauharnais – 2 June 1813

Joachim Murat – 8 June 1813

Also contains 18 letters from Hortense de Beauharnais to Madame la Maréchale, dated 1809 to 1813, letters from Madame la Maréchale Oudinot, from Laure Junot, from Wellington (handwritten!) and plenty more

And on a happier note: a letter by Joachim Murat dated 1 Germinal year VIII (22 March 1800)

13) Related to Bessières’s city house

14) Correspondence between Marshal Bessières and Madame la Maréchale I

3 letters from Bessières to his wife, 2 prairial-15 vendémiaire an XIV (22 January-7 October 1805)

75 letters of Madame la Maréchale to Bessières, found in the cassette of the marshal after his death, 5 January 1806-1 May 1807

29 letters of Bessières to his wife, 26 March-13 December 1808

15) Correspondence between Marshal Bessières and Madame la Maréchale II. Continuation from above

72 (? I’m not sure about the numbering here) letters from Bessières to his wife, 5 January 1809, 28 September and ... 1811

48 (?) letters from Madame la Maréchale to the Marshal, January-9 December 1811

16) Correspondence between Marshal Bessières and Madame la Maréchale III. Continuation from above

9 letters from the Maréchale Bessières to her husband, 19 March - 16 December 1812

40 letters from Bessières to his wife, 13 January 1812 - 24 April 1813

17) Related to the electoral college of département Haute-Garonne

18) Personal papers, financial documents, real estate etc.

19) Letters to Madame la Maréchale during Restauration and July Monarchy

20) Collection of autographed letters unrelated to Bessières

[freifraufischer]

The New Zealand Problem

Sometimes you can see the issue that will light the gymternet on fire a mile away before anyone has even seen the smoke. And sometimes that fire had always existed.

In gymnastics one of the paths to qualification at the Olympics goes to the single highest all around placement at each continental championship from a country that did not qualify a team already. This is fairly straight forward in most places but gets dicey in one corner of the world. The Oceania Gymnastics Union is essentially a continental federation of 2 countries. Yes there are other members (Guam, Tonga, Fiji, Cook Islands, and America Samoa), but there are no elite gymnasts from those countries. Australia qualified a women's team to the Olympics, so by default that means a Kiwi WAG gets an Olympic spot. At least according to FIG. But they aren't the only ones who get to decide who is an Olympian.

I've talked about "No Olympic Tourist" Policies before, and people may have run into them in regard to Sweden and ice skating, but many small to medium sized countries have policies to limit the size of their own Olympic teams for budget reasons. These national Olympic committees (NOC) set criteria that are higher than the general qualification rules for a given sport. Sweden's is often considered the most extreme (you have to show you are in the top eight in the world, meaning you can make an Olympic final and contend for a medal. The reason they're called No Olympic Tourist Policies is because you wont be sent to the Olympics just to be there.

New Zealand has had a No Olympic Tourist Policy for decades, and while their criteria is less extreme then Sweden's it works similarly. You have to convince the NZOC that you are within the top 16 in the world (the ability to make a semifinal in athletics or swimming where races are 8 lanes wide). In 2012 Jordan Rae was one of the last gymnasts to qualify at the London Test Event, but NZOC turned down her spot and it passed on to Đỗ Thị Ngân Thương of Vietnam who finished behind her and who went on to compete in London.

In this interview from 2016, Rhythmic gymnast Tanya Moss-Barry who represented New Zealand in Los Angeles describes how initially they believed that New Zealand would send no gymnasts to the Olympics that year. Only a top 8 finish at an event in Tokyo convinced the NZOC to send her, and she believes it was at the expense of equally deserving WAG and MAG gymnasts. They would send only one of them.

It appears that Courtney McGregor was sent to Rio on the basis of her vaulting competitiveness. Which itself suggests that the people making the decisions at the NZOC don't really know much about gymnastics. McGregor came in 4th on vault at the Rio test event and 17th at 2015 Worlds. But as anyone who knows gymnastics knows... vault fields are much smaller than other apparatus and a finish in the teens doesn't mean you are as competitive as one on the other apparatus. But more power to them if they were able to get the Olympic committee to send her on that basis.

So the problem for 2024.

The WAG Olympic Qualification road has handed an Olympic spot to New Zealand by default. There are no other elite gymnasts in the region it can go to and no mechanism for that spot to be reallocated to anyone outside of Oceania. And based on the results from Worlds it is highly doubtful that the NZOC will consider either Madeleine Marshall (93rd in the AA and 110th on beam) or Reece Cobb (102nd in the AA and 56th on beam) to be competitive. Courtney McGregor is making a comeback but without competing elite in years I'm not sure how she makes that case either.

Georgia-Rose Brown recently changed countries from Australia to New Zealand but she almost certainly is banking on making an argument for her competitiveness based on her bars results (she came in 4th and 5th on bars at two World Cups in 2023). Maybe the people making a choice at NZOC wont know that 2023 World Cups aren't evidence of competitiveness. Her best bars result of the entire quad would have put her in 22nd on bars at 2023 Worlds. If she qualifies here is to hoping she can make a case. But it does raise the question of if she knew about the NZOC policy before changing countries or if she saw the automatic NZ WAG qualification spot as an opportunity and didn't realize there was an extra step. I have to believe she went into it knowing though. The NZOC is pretty well known in Kiwi circles.

So what happens to this spot if it goes to a Kiwi and the NZOC turns it down? Well... that's not clear. It could go unfilled. Or FIG could ask the IOC permission to let them revert it to the Worlds AA results as Australia's team means that Oceania already had representation.

Or some smart cookie NCAA gymnast with ties to Guam or Fiji could make a country change REAL soon and find themselves at the Olympics with a relatively easy path.

[morphinemilkshake]

About two years ago, I made a set of leprechauns for a Lord of Space. I'm not very happy with how it turned out back then, so I redesigned them :-} Info about them under the cut:

LOONIE ABILITY: Whenever LOONIE would receive any bodily harm, he instead teleports away unharmed, the distance being proportional to the damage he would have taken. For instance, teleporting away from a slap to the face will place him somewhere else in the same room, whereas an attempt to punch him in the gut would displace him somewhere in the same house or general area. Teleporting away from fatal damage, for example a bullet to the head, will place him extremely far away, potentially even on a different continent. CONCEPT: A “LOONIE” is a slang term for a 1$ Canadian coin depicting a common loon.

SWAN ABILITY: SWAN can instantly swap places with any other being. This ability has no limit to the distance it can be performed over. CONCEPT: The number 2 looks like a SWAN, and the word “SWAN” is very close to the word “swap”.

MOUSTACHE ABILITY: MOUSTACHE is an excellent housemaid, performing tasks efficiently and quickly. He is also tied to a JUJU: a silver bell which can be used to instantly summon MOUSTACHE to any location in space. He must at the very least attempt whatever he is tasked with when the JUJU is used. CONCEPT: The number 3 looks like a MOUSTACHE. The sort of butler-ey aesthetic comes bundled in with it.

MANNY ABILITY: MANNY can multiply the amount of himself by two, creating an exponentially growing army of clones. These clones commune through a shared subconscious, and their memories are absorbed by other living instances when one dies. MANNY can also divide the amount of himself by two, manually absorbing other instances of himself. CONCEPT: 4 is the smallest squared prime number, which is thematically appropriate because of MANNY’s ability to endlessly multiply.

MARSHALL ABILITY: MARSHALL can ATTRACT and REPEL things, kind of like a more limited telekinesis. This allows him to nab objects from a distance, pull foes towards him or, inversely, away from him, and even force bullets to stop in the air before they reach him. CONCEPT: Stars, especially five-pointed ones, are often used in military ranks. Stars, the actual celestial bodies, have strong gravitational properties.

RUBIK ABILITY: RUBIK can create PERFECTLY GENERIC OBJECTS. CONCEPT: A cube has six faces, and one of the most famous cubes is the RUBIK’s cube.

SUNDAY ABILITY: SUNDAY has passive reality-bending properties, which mostly manifest as an extension of his general disinterest and laziness. Hallways become shorter as he passes through them, bullets curve away because he can’t be bothered to duck in time, items appear in his pockets because he doesn’t want to look for them, and so on. CONCEPT: SUNDAY is the 7th day of the week. People don’t usually work or want to work on Sundays.

CYCLES ABILITY: Some catastrophic event keeps CYCLES trapped in an infinite Groundhog Day loop. This unknown terminus sends CYCLES back again and again to iterate in doomed offshoots over and over, stuck trying to understand its nature and find a solution to overcome it. This predicament has allowed him to accumulate an immense amount of prescient knowledge through first-hand experience, so much so that he is almost never caught off-guard. CONCEPT: The number 8 can be turned sideways to form the symbol of infinity.

GARRY ABILITY: GARRY is in possession of a powerful and mysterious JUJU called the ARCHITECH CALIBER. Using the ARCHITECH CALIBER one may WELD THINGS TOGETHER, PAINT OBJECTS, DELETE OBJECTS or even CREATE BALLOONS and ROPE out of NOTHING. Naturally, the creative use of this JUJU could have disastrous consequences. That is why only GARRY is allowed to have it, as he is yet to demonstrate the capacity for creative thought. CONCEPT: The number 9 looks like the letter g. The JUJU is the toolgun from Garry’s Mod, obviously. You’ll never guess why the guy is named Garry.

PIXIE ABILITY: PIXIE can grow and shrink at will. He can also do a lot of other inconsequential magical bullshit, like summoning forest critters and changing the color of objects, among other things. His elvish magics are governed by incomprehensible rules he refuses to share with anybody. CONCEPT: Dixie is the slang term for a Canadian 10$ bill, and it sounds very close to PIXIE. His nature is a reference to Fae-folk, of which pixies are a member.

POLES ABILITY: POLES wears a suspiciously POLES-shaped JUJU that looks like a spacesuit. It allows POLES to control how gravity affects him. He can reduce the pull he experiences to jump higher and descend slower, levitate in zero-gravity, or even change the direction of gravity for himself, walking on walls and ceilings. CONCEPT: Apollo 11 was perhaps the most famous space mission; it was during it that man first took steps on the surface of the moon. Poles’ aesthetic references that. 11 also looks like two poles next to each other.

LOADER ABILITY: LOADER can shrink and un-shrink things for easier, compact storage. He is also pretty strong, able to lift things most others can’t. CONCEPT: Loaders unload crates and boxes; cuboids have 12 edges. He unloads stuff, also.

FANGS ABILITY: FANGS can enter THE FOURTH DIMENSION. As it is extraneous to three-dimensional normal-Space, he is not only untouchable within it, but can also cover great distances and reach normally unreachable areas before re-emerging into normal-Space. Using this ability, FANGS can travel faster and more efficiently, as well as stalk victims, waiting for the perfect time to ambush them. The limitation to emerging in and out of THE FOURTH DIMENSION is that FANGS has to enter and exit it unseen, as he is quantum-locked in normal-Space when observed. CONCEPT: Ophiuchus, the snake bearer constellation to which Caliborn owes his symbol, is the unofficial 13th constellation. FANGS has elements stylized after the cherubs, like his swirly cheeks, and has general snake-like characteristics. His behavior as an ambush predator is also snake-like.

CASTLE ABILITIES: CASTLE contains a POCKET DIMENSION inside of himself: a 14x14x14 green room. He can transform his body into a gateway leading inside this POCKET DIMENSION, allowing himself to become a portable source of storage or protection. If CASTLE so chooses, the gateway can violently suck in everything in front of him. Everything caught within the POCKET DIMENSION will be trapped there, until CASTLE opens the gateway to it. CONCEPT: A fortnight is a period of fourteen days. Forts and castles are both fortified structures.

COMMODORE ABILITY: COMMODORE, or just ‘DORE for short, can PUNCH THROUGH TOPOLOGY creating temporary holes in the fabric of Space itself. These can connect impossibly vast distances as two-way portals, but heal over time and cannot exceed the boundaries of a Universe. Punching through the exterior of a Universe would be pretty irresponsible. CONCEPT: COMMODORE is a cockney term for a 15-pounder bill. It is also a navy title, in reference to which COMMODORE dons his sailor hat. ‘DORE also sounds like “door”, which references his ability to create temporary gateways a little bit.

[armagnac-army]

✨🪄Turnes Lannes into his eight year old self, for the rest of the day. his hat shrinks with him so now he has a tiny taco hat🪄✨

now im going to buy milk and nerver coming back~!

🪄🪄🪄

WHATSGOINGONWHERESMYFAMILYWHEREAREYOUGOINGCANICOMEWITHWHYAMIWEARINGTHISFANCYSTUFFLOUISETISGOINGTOBESOJELLYIMBORED

[pompomqt]

Journey to the West Chapter 8

So after the events of last chapter, the Buddha finally returns to the Treasure Monastery of Thunderclap. About 500 years after he subdued Monkey, Buddha says that he has 3 baskets of scriptures, one that speaks of the collection of Heaven, one which tells of Earth and one that can redeem the damned. So he calls on a volunteer from the crowd to travel east to find a virtuous believer to make the Journey to the West, to bring the scriptures back to the sinful people of the east to enlighten the people there. The Bodhisattva Guanyin volunteers as tribute. So the Buddha gives her an embroidered cassock and a nine ring priestly staff to give to the scripture pilgrim which will supposedly prevent him from falling back into the wheel of transmigration and protect him from poison and harm. He also gives her three tightening fillets, and tells her to be on the look out for monsters with great power that can be persuaded to become a disciple of the scripture pilgrim. If they are disobedient they can recite a spell that will tighten the fillet and cause them to feel like their brains will burst. Before this I think I knew that there were three fillets, one for each of the disciples, but I've only ever heard of Monkey's being used. I wonder if he is the only one who it's ever truly used on- or if he's just the most famous?

So as per Buddha's instruction Guaynin heads out with her disciple and body guard Moksa. As they are flying low to examine the terrain they come across the massive and evil looking Flowing Sand River. As they are examining the river and wondering how the scripture pilgrim is going to get across, they are attacked by the soon to be 'Sandy'. When Sandy tries to grab Guanyin, Moksa intercepts him and they battle for a while, before Sandy recognizes Hui'an as Guanyin's disciple, and Moksa points her out to him. Sandy apologizes and explains that he isn't a monster, but instead the Curtain-Raising General, who was given eight hundred lashes and banished to earth for breaking a crystal cup. And even worse, every seven days the Jade Emperor sends a flying sword to stab him more then a hundred times before it leaves again. This situation has led to him finding and eating travelers for food.

Guanyin tells him that she's on her way to find a scripture pilgrim, and suggests that he becomes the pilgrims disciple, in exchange she will have the sword called off, and when they succeed his sins will be forgiven and he will be restored to his former position. Sandy is willing, but worried that since he has devoured numerous scripture pilgrims, and chained their skulls together because they floated in the water rather then sank, that no other scripture pilgrim will every come this way. Guanyin instructs Sandy to hang the skulls around his neck, because when the scripture pilgrim comes there will be a use for them. I'm honestly very curious on what this 'use' could possibly be... but who am I to question the Bodhisattva? Anyways she gives him the name 'Sha Wujing' which means 'Sand Aware of Purity', and then she heads off, leaving Sha Wujing to wait for the scripture pilgrim.

A while after Guanyin and Moksa bid ado to Sandy they encounter the evil looking mountain 'Mountain of the Blessed Mound', and are once again attacked by a monster. This pig monster tries to attack Guanyin with his rake, but is deflected by Moksa. The two battle it out for a while, before Guanyin intervenes by throwing down some lotus flowers to separate them. Which leads to Pigsy recognizing her, and asking her to pardon his sin. He explains that he was originally The Marshal of the Heavenly Reeds in the Heavenly River, but because he got drunk and dallied with the moon goddess the Jade Emperor had him beaten with a mallet two thousand times and banished to the earth. Apparently he had a mistake when trying to reincarnate and ended up in the womb of a sow. After having killed the sow and the rest of the litter, he took over this mountain and began eating people. Pigsy, despite asking Guanyin to forgive his sin, initially seems reluctant to change his ways in order to earn said forgiveness, saying that he'll starve to death trying to follow the law of Buddha and that he's better off eating travelers. But Guanyin explains her quest and explains that if he becomes the pilgrims diciple, he can be forgiven from his sins. Pigsy finally agree's and she gives him the name 'Zhu Wuneng' meaning 'Pig who is aware of ability'. So with that Guanyin and Moksa take their leave, leaving Pigsy to be strictly vegetarian until the Scripture Pilgrim arrives.

After once again journeying on for a while, they come across a young dragon calling for help. The dragon explains that he is a son of the dragon king of the Western Ocean Aorun, but because he accidentally set fire to the palace his father had the court of heaven charge him with grave disobedience. The Jade Emperor hung him in the sky, gave him 300 lashes and ordered him to be executed in a few days.

So Guanyin and Moksa rush up to the see the Jade Emperor, and convince him to spare the dragons life, and give him to her for the scripture pilgrim to use as a mode of transportation. The Jade Emperor agrees, and the young dragon pledges obedience to Guanyin. So Guanyin tells him to wait in a mountain stream and transform into a white horse and accompany the pilgrim when he arrives. I wonder why she didn't give him a new name like she did with Sandy and Pigsy?

After the duo take their leave of the young dragon, they come across Five phases mountain, where Sun Wukong is being imprisoned. Guanyin composes a short poem about how Sun Wukong wreaked havoc in heaven, causing Sun Wukong to complain and demand to know who is composing poems about his faults. Which- fair reaction lol. Anyways, Sun Wukong complains about how he has been here for such a long time and never even received any visitors and asks Guanyin to rescue him. Guanyin says that she fears if she releases him, he will just cause mayhem again, but he says that he is willing to learn the proper path and practice cultivation. Guanyin then tells him that is he is willing, then she will send the Scripture Pilgrim to release him, so he can follow him as a disciple. She then offers to give him a name, but he says he already has one- 'Sun Wukong'. This works out perfectly for Guanyin who had given Pigsy and Sandy names that were also built on the word 'Wu'. So with that sorted out, Guanyin and Moksa make it to Chang'an of the Great Tang Nation, and set of camp in a local spirit's temple.

And with that- we have all but 1 member of this five man band revealed. Thanks for reading this weeks chapter of Journey to the West with @journeythroughjourneytothewest Current Sun Wukong Stats: Names/Titles: Monkey, The Stone Monkey, The Handsome Monkey King, Sun Wukong (Monkey awakened to the void), Bimawen (Banhorseplague) and The Great Sage Equal To Heaven. Immortality: 5 Weapon: The Compliant Golden Hooped Rod Abilities: 72 Transformations, Cloud-Somersault, Ability to transform his individual hairs, super strength, Ability to Summon Wind, Water restriction charm, and the ability to change into a huge war form, ability to duplicate his staff, ability to immobilize others, the ability to put others to sleep, and the Fiery eyes and Diamond Pupils Demon Kill Count: 1+ Unknown Number of Minions God's Defeated: 19 + Unknown number Defeats: 2 Crime List: Robbery, Murder, Mass Murder, Arson, Theft, Coercion, Threatening a Government Official, Resisting Arrest, Assault, Forgery, Employee Theft, False Imprisonment, Impersonating a Government Official and Treason. Cry Count: 3 Mountains Trapped Under: 1 Current Sha Wujing Stats: Names/Titles: The Curtain-Raising General, Sha Wujing (Sand Aware of Purity), and Sandy. Weapon: 'Monster Taming Staff' Crime List: Breaking a Crystal Cup, murder, and desecration of a human corpse. Current Zhu Wuneng Stats: Names/Titles: The Marshal of the Heavenly Reeds, Zhu Wuneng (Pig who is aware of ability) and Pigsy. Weapon: Rake Failed Flirtation Attempts: 1 Crime List: Sexual Harassment and Murder. Current Bai Long Ma Stats: Names/Titles: Bai Long Ma (White Dragon Horse), and Prince of the Western Ocean. Crime List: Arson, and Grave Disobedience.

[piratewithvigor]

AEW Roster Organized By Age (& events, for context)

Source: Smackdown Hotel

Jan 3 1952 - Jim Ross

Feb 8 1952 - Elizabeth II crowned

May 30 1955 - Jake Roberts

Nov 3 1957 - Laika becomes first animal in space

Nov 7 1957 - Tony Schiavone

May 13 1958 - Velcro is patented

Sep 20 1958 - Arn Anderson

Mar 20 1959 - Sting

Jun 12 1963 - Jerry Lynn

Jul 1 1963 - ZIP codes are introduced in the US

Oct 13 1963 - Don Callis

Nov 11 1963 - Daddy Ass

Apr 14 1967 - Jeff Jarrett

May 9 1967 - Kevin Kelly

Oct 11 1967 - Taz

Dec 6 1967 - First successful heart transplant

May 10 1968 - William Regal

Oct 30 1968 - Luther

Apr 10 1969 - Dustin Rhodes

Jul 16 1969 - Apollo 11 lands the first people on the moon

Mar 24 1970 - Christopher Daniels

Nov 9 1970 - Chris Jericho

Dec 18 1970 - Rob Van Dam

Apr 3 1971 - Alex Marvez

Jun 12 1971 - Mark Henry

Feb 8 1972 - Paul Wight

Oct 12 1972 - Karen Jarrett

Nov 29 1972 - Atari releases Pong

Oct 30 1973 - Adam Copeland

Nov 30 1973 - Christian Cage

Jan 1 1974 - Jim Ross starts his career in wrestling

Sep 23 1974 - Matt Hardy

Oct 8 1975 - Michael Nakazawa

Jan 23 1976 - Nigel McGuinness

May 8 1976 - First roller coaster with a loop in it opens

Oct 4 1976 - Emi Sakura

Feb 28 1977 - Lance Archer

Aug 31 1977 - Jeff Hardy

Nov 9 1977 - Alex Abrahantes

Dec 12 1977 - The Butcher

Mar 17 1979 - Samoa Joe

Aug 1 1979 - Prince Nana

Oct 3 1979 - Johnny TV

Dec 29 1979 - Justin Roberts

May 6 1980 - Colt Cabana

Jun 2 1980 - The Blade

Jul 16 1980 - Excalibur

Nov 17 1980 - Mercedes Martinez

Dec 27 1980 - Claudio Castagnoli

Feb 19 1981 - Shawn Spears

May 22 1981 - Bryan Danielson

Aug 1 1981 - MTV debuts

Dec 12 1981 - Eddie Kingston

Apr 7 1982 - Sonjay Dutt

May 21 1982 - Kota Ibushi

Aug 3 1982 - Nyla Rose

Oct 10 1982 - Tony Khan

Dec 3 1982 - Jake Hager

Mar 1 1983 - Mark Sterling

Mar 19 1983 - Matt Sydal

Apr 1 1983 - Scorpio Sky

Jul 26 1983 - Roderick Strong

Oct 16 1983 - Kenny Omega

Dec 7 1983 - Matt Menard

Jan 26 1984 - JD Drake

Feb 2 1984 - Brian Cage

Feb 17 1984 - Jimmy Jacobs

Feb 23 1984 - Serpentico

Mar 20 1984 - Angelo Parker

May 4 1984 - Orange Cassidy

Jun 30 1984 - Dax Harwood

Jul 1 1984 - PG13 rating is invented

Sep 19 1984 - Renee Paquette

Nov 4 1984 - Ryan Nemeth

Nov 8 1984 - Keith Lee

Dec 26 1984 - Pat Buck

Dec 29 1984 - Anthony Henry

Jan 17 1985 - Mark Briscoe

Feb 13 1985 - Truth Magnum

Feb 26 1985 - Penta El Zero Miedo

Mar 13 1985 - Matt Jackson

Mar 19 1985 - Luchasaurus

Mar 20 1985 - Matt Taven

Mar 23 1985 - CJ

Mar 31 1985 - First Wrestlemania

May 16 1985 - Mike Bennett

May 19 1985 - Malakai Black

Apr 20 1985 - Jay Lethal

Jul 15 1985 - QT Marshall

Aug 6 1985 - Tony Nese

Sep 9 1985 - The Bunny

Dec 7 1985 - Jon Moxley

Dec 25 1985 - Miro

Jan 24 1986 - Vincent

Feb 5 1986 - Madison Rayne

Feb 19 1986 - Shawn Dean

Feb 21 1986 - The first Zelda game is released

Mar 2 1986 - Bishop Kaun

Mar 4 1986 - Dalton Castle

Apr 8 1986 - Big Bill

Apr 22 1986 - Chuck Taylor

Jun 15 1986 - Cezar Bononi

Jun 29 1986 - Serena Deeb

Jul 22 1986 - Thunder Rosa

Aug 21 1986 - Pac

Oct 22 1986 - Taya Valkyrie

Jan 13 1987 - Ian Riccaboni

Feb 4 1987 - Aaron Solo

Mar 1 1987 - Kyle O'Reilly

Mar 7 1987 - Angelico

Mar 10 1987 - Alex Reynolds

Mar 17 1987 - Brody King

Mar 30 1987 - Trent Beretta

May 17 1987 - Cash Wheeler

Apr 21 1987 - Dutch

Jun 18 1987 - Brandon Cutler

Jul 20 1987 - Evil Uno

Sep 5 1987 - AR Fox

Jan 19 1988 - Wardlow

Mar 20 1988 - Josh Woods

Apr 14 1988 - Marina Shafir

Apr 17 1988 - Dasha Gonzalez

Jun 11 1988 - Hikaru Shida

Jul 18 1988 - RJ City

Aug 23 1988 - Metalik

Aug 28 1988 - EJ Nduka

Aug 31 1988 - Athena

Sep 26 1988 - Buddy Matthews

Sep 29 1988 - Rush

Nov 24 1988 - Anthony Ogogo

Jan 25 1989 - Stu Grayson

Apr 10 1989 - Juice Robinson

Apr 11 1989 - Ari Daivari

Jun 14 1989 - Peter Avalon

Jul 5 1989 - Adam Cole

Jul 27 1989 - Nick Jackson

Jul 31 1989 - Max Caster

Sep 20 1989 - Ethan Page

Nov 3 1989 - Andrade El Idolo

Dec 17 1989 - The Simpsons premiers

Aug 17 1990 - Danhausen

Aug 20 1990 - Mark Davis

Sep 30 1990 - Swerve Strickland

Nov 12 1990 - Stokely Hathaway

Dec 18 1990 - Anthony Bowens

Dec 30 1990 - Rey Fenix

Jan 9 1991 - Ruby Soho

Jan 23 1991 - Powerhouse Hobbs

Jan 30 1991 - Toa Liona

Feb 4 1991 - Mike Santana

Apr 22 1991 - Nick Comoroto

Apr 23 1991 - Dr Britt Baker DMD

May 18 1991 - Colten Gunn

Jun 4 1991 - John Silver

Jul 14 1991 - Diamante

Jul 21 1991 - Adam Page

Aug 23 1991 - World Wide Web starts up

Sep 27 1991 - Ortiz

Nov 22 1991 - Brandon

Nov 22 1991 - Brent

Jan 15 1992 - Preston Vance

Apr 7 1992 - Abadon

May 19 1992 - Kip Sabian

Jun 3 1992 - Red Velvet

Aug 17 1992 - Saraya

Sep 14 1992 - Penelope Ford

Sep 15 1992 - Dralistico

Oct 9 1992 - Jay White

Dec 27 1992 - Yuka Sakazaki

Jan 7 1993 - Darby Allin

Jul 28 1993 - Sammy Guevara

Jan 25 1994 - Willow Nightingale

Feb 21 1994 - Ricky Starks

Mar 26 1994 - Paige Vanzant

Apr 12 1994 - Marq Quen

Jun 6 1994 - Lee Moriarty

Aug 26 1994 - Austin Gunn

Sep 16 1994 - Kiera Hogan

Apr 17 1995 - Bandido

Apr 23 1995 - Jamie Hayter

May 29 1995 - Konosuka Takeshita

Jun 6 1995 - Tay Melo

Aug 7 1995 - Kris Statlander

Oct 19 1995 - Toni Storm

Nov 13 1995 - Boulder

Nov 13 1995 - Bronson

Nov 22 1995 - Toy Story is released

Dec 10 1995 - Satnam Singh

Mar 15 1996 - MJF

Aug 11 1996 - Lexy Nair

Oct 26 1996 - Wheeler Yuta

Apr 29 1997 - El Hijo Del Vikingo

Jun 4 1997 - Riho

Jun 15 1997 - Jack Perry

Jul 10 1997 - Isiah Kassidy

Oct 27 1997 - Leyla Hirsch

Dec 13 1997 - Lee Johnson

Mar 9 1998 - Parker Boudreaux

Jul 15 1998 - Anna Jay

Aug 4 1998 - Mariah May

Sep 7 1998 - Daniel Garcia

Dec 15 1998 - Komander

Dec 24 1998 - Kyle Fletcher

May 4 1999 - Hook

Sep 20 1999 - Darius Martin

Oct 2 1999 - Skye Blue

Mar 3 2001 - Dante Martin

Mar 23 2001 - WWF buys WCW

Nov 8 2001 - Julia Hart

Oct 13 2004 - Billie Starkz

Jul 10 2005 - Nick Wayne

Jan 17 2012 - Negative One

[kermit-coded]

All The Bad Dreams That You Hide (1853 words) by kermit_coded Chapters: 1/4 Fandom: One Piece (Anime & Manga) Rating: Mature Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con Relationships: Monkey D. Luffy & Portgas D. Ace, Portgas D. Ace & Whitebeard Pirates, Jinbei & Portgas D. Ace, Portgas D. Ace & Trafalgar D. Water Law, Portgas D. Ace & Silvers Rayleigh, Mugiwara Kaizoku | Strawhat Pirates & Portgas D. Ace, Portgas D. Ace & Sabo, Monkey D. Luffy & Portgas D. Ace & Sabo, Monkey D. Garp & Portgas D. Ace Characters: Portgas D. Ace, Monkey D. Luffy, Sabo (One Piece), Whitebeard Pirates, Jinbei (One Piece), Trafalgar D. Water Law, Silvers Rayleigh, Mugiwara Kaizoku | Strawhat Pirates, Kurohige | Blackbeard | Marshall D. Teach, Monkey D. Garp, Boa Hancock Additional Tags: Title from a Phoebe Bridgers Song, Creepy Kurohige | Blackbeard | Marshall D. Teach, Portgas D. Ace Lives, Portgas D. Ace-centric, Trans Portgas D. Ace, ASL Brothers (One Piece), Alternate Marineford Events, Non-Graphic Rape/Non-Con, Rape Aftermath, Rape Recovery, Kurohige | Blackbeard | Marshall D. Teach Dies, Jinbei is a good friend, Protective Monkey D. Luffy, Implied/Referenced Torture, Protective Sabo (One Piece), Mugiwara no Ichimi | Straw Hat Pirates As Family, Hurt/Comfort, Heavy Angst, Whump, Portgas D. Ace Needs a Hug, Portgas D. Ace Has Self-Worth Issues, Suicidal Thoughts, Panic Attacks, Mental Breakdown, all the usual ace-typical mental health issues and then some, Protective Portgas D. Ace, Portgas D. Ace is a Good Sibling, Monkey D. Luffy is a Good Sibling, Monkey D. Garp Tries to Be a Good Grandparent, jinbei spelled as jimbei, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Sabo (One Piece) is a Good Sibling, POV Alternating, Mentions of Pregnancy, Mentions of Slavery, Sabo remembers early, Dissociation, Healing, Depression Series: Part 39 of yo ho yo ho (one piece fics), Part 8 of asl trio fics Summary: Ace doesn't die at Marineford. But that doesn't mean he's okay.

[good-grade-in-cleric]

Ulder Ravengard is getting added to Idle Champions in the upcoming Dragondown event

Stats seem to be pulling from DiA (left) rather than BG3 (right). He also goes from Neutral to Lawful Neutral, but i don't disagree with that decision

I think pure Support does make the most sense. A Grand Duke and Marshal of the Flaming Fist better serves as a motivational and tactical force than as one driving their sword through the horde or, even worse, absorbing the many swords of the horde

"Do you have melee base attacks on your phone? OuO"

Critical Teamwork is going to synergize well with the Companions of the Hall. Of them, only Catti-brie is not a melee champion, and none would be competing with him for Seat 8

Obviously, as he's not part of the Absolute Adversaries affiliation, he doesn't have anything that affects or is affected by their Ceremorphosis stacks, but i predict he'll have access to the Illithid Tadpole feat. He's in the same boat as Minsc, and he has that feat as well as Jaheira (pointedly does not have a tadpole), Imoen (hopefully does not have a tadpole if she's even still alive by BG3), Dynaheir (very definitely not still alive by BG3), Nrakk (i'm under the impression he's original to Idle Champions so he can do whatever he wants). Viconia also has a feat that interacts with Ceremorphosis, but hers is called Mother Superior, so i'm pretty sure that's just her being manipulative

It is admittedly very sweet that one of his specializations synergizes with Wyll. I do like when they do that

All of his event variants (not pictured because it's a little awkward trying to get those screenshots orderly, you can read the blog post yourself) stipulate only melee champions may join the formation. He focuses heavily on synergy with melee, but that's going to make him an okay match (although probably not the best) for formations centering the Absolute Adversaries or Heroes of Baldur's Gate. AA are 4/7 melee including all 3 of their DPS units, so you aren't short on damage options there. One of Lae'zel's specializations even increases her crit chance + damage. The fourth is, of course, Wyll. HoBG are 4/10 melee including 2/3 of their DPS units, and the only other DPS is Delina who shares a seat with Ulder anyway. Like i said, probably not the best, but good enough that i can justify the choice on the easier adventures for the sake of playing dolls. Otherwise, i probably wouldn't put him in any affiliation-based formation besides maybe the Companions of the Hall

My live reaction: "Well maybe you shouldn't listen to whoever said that. You've got the emblem of the Fists on there, and i'm pretty sure there were a couple hundred years between the founding of the Flaming Fist and Balduran's disappearance– Wait, Baldur?"

Didn't even give me time to give them the grace to assume they just defaced a shield of his after his presumed death. It's a silly mistake to make fun of which is why i made the rest of this post around it because i am more than just a hater. I am also an enjoyer and a haver of surface level thoughts

[fics-not-tragedies]

January 2024 Music Prompts - Spotify Wrapped edition

♪ Hello again! Yes, I'm finally back, at last. Let's start new year with something great: music prompts ♪🎵🎶

♪ Since getting your Spotify Wrapped is such a huge event every year (at least for me, who listens to the same 5 artists and even tho I still get surprised, lol), I decided to surprise you with a little prompt event.

♪ I've chosen 15 songs from my 2023 Wrapped playlist and a lyric (or few) for each one of them that just has THE vibe (y'know):

1. Own My Mind ♫ Måneskin I'm prayin' at your altar if you know what I mean.

2. Dinner & Diatribes ♫ Hozier I’d suffer hell if you'd tell me/What you'd do to me tonight.

3. Kiwi ♫ Harry Styles She worked her way through a cheap pack of cigarettes/Hard liquor mixed with a bit of intellect.

4. Electricity ♫ Arctic Monkeys Tell me something I don’t already know/Like how'd you get your kisses to fill me with electricity?

5. Francesca ♫ Hozier Though I know my heart would break/I'd tell them, "Put me back in it".

6. Honey (Are You Coming?) ♫ Måneskin I'm gonna show you how this Italian amor/It's gonna love you harder than ever before/You will like it.

7. Don't Blame Me ♫ Taylor Swift I would fall from grace/Just to touch your face.

8. For Your Love ♫ Måneskin I wanna be the first man you look at tonight/I wanna be stuck in your head and make you go wild.

9. Stuck ♫ Thirty Seconds to Mars I've been lost in your eyes all afternoon/The more I drift, the closer I get to you.

10. Mammamia ♫ Måneskin They ask me why I'm so hot, 'cause I'm italiano.

11. Nobody ♫ Hozier I'd be appalled if I saw you ever try to be a saint/I wouldn't fall for someone I thought couldn't misbehave/But I want you to know that I've had no love like your love.

12. I Can See You ♫ Taylor Swift But what would you do if I went to touch you now?/What would you do if they never found us out?/What would you do if we never made a sound?

13. Baby Said ♫ Måneskin Baby said, "Let me taste your silhouette/You can talk between my legs"/Uh-uh, uh, uh, know you really want to.

14. Cuff It ♫ Beyonce I wanna go higher, can I sit on top of you?

15. I Wanna Be Your Dog ♫ John McCrea So messed up, I want you here/In my room, I want you here/Now we're gonna be face-to-face/And I'll lay right down in my favorite place.

♪ You can now start making request for the following list of characters:

1. Keanu Reeves along with his following characters/movies:

John Wick & the John Wick movies franchise,

Constantine & the movie,

Johnny Utah & Point Break,

Jonathan Harker & Bram Stoker’s Dracula,

Neo & The Matrix,

dr Julian Mercer,

Jack Traven & Speed;

2. Riccardo Scamarcio along with:

Santino D’Antonio;

3. Andrew Hozier Byrne;

4. Tom Hiddleston along with his following characters/movies:

Sir Thomas Sharpe & Crimson Peak,

Loki & Avengers/Thor,

Adam & Only Lovers Left Alive,

dr Robert Laing & High Rise,

Jonathan Pine & The Night Manager;

5. Henry Cavill along with his following characters/movies:

Geralt of Rivia & The Witcher,

Walter Marshall & Nomis,

Capt. Syverson & Sand Castle,

Napoleon Solo & The Man from U.N.C.L.E.,

August Walker & MI: Fallout,

6. Alexander Skarsgård along with his following characters/movies:

Eric Northman & True Blood,

Leo Beiler & Mute,

Gadi Becker & The Little Drummer Girl,

sergeant Brad “Iceman” Colbert & Generation Kill,

7. Peaky Blinders franchise along with the following characters:

Thomas ‘Tommy’ Shelby,

Alfie Solomons,

8. Supernatural franchise along with the following characters:

Dean Winchester,

Sam Winchester,

9. The X Files franchise along with the following characters:

Dana Scully,

Fox Mulder,

10. Kiefer Sutherland along with his following characters/movies:

Jack Bauer & 24,

president Tom Kirkman & Designated Survivor,

David & The Lost Boys.

Please send in a number with the song/lyric you fancy + a character from those listed above, first come - first serve, as always.

If there are any questions don’t be afraid to ask them, I’m always all ears for y’all!

♪ LET'S CELEBRATE THE BEGINNING OF 2024 ✨

[willshipanything-blog]

Breaking the Rules- Chapter 8

Sorry again for the 2 week + gap, but this is a fairly long chapter (and I culled a LOT of stuff already). Plenty of angst and trauma to enjoy! ✨✌️

Full tags on AO3, along with the fic if you want to read over there

Breaking the Rules full chapter index here

(We know Finn isn't in this AU, but this is a story clue!) 🥲

Chapter 8- Better Halves

The rest of the day was perfectly normal on the surface, which felt somewhat surreal after that morning’s events. It seemed the things Max had told you (and the wrought emotion that had sprung up from you both) was an aberration, a temporary blight to the calm comfort that Max so easily provided. Barely ten minutes had passed after ascending the basement stairs before Max was corralling you to get ready, marshaling you and Samson out the door for a walk. Was it a way for him to create distance between himself and the basement, outrunning his mental demons with physical distance? 

But no- Max had returned to his sprightly, upbeat self and remained that way all day. You made lunch for the pair of you. Max did a grocery run. You both watched TV together in the afternoon. He’d even started to circle jobs in the newspaper, littering the ‘Help Wanted’ section with eager red circles. Even if COPY EDITOR- GALESBURG GAZETTE and JUNIOR DETECTIVE- DENVER POLICE DEPARTMENT were a little out of reach. Max disagreed with your opinion. According to him, enthusiasm was more important than spelling and grammar, even if the job was essentially proofreading. Furthermore, Max informed you, the police might still hire him- his 2 priors were only minor, after all. Just possession- not possession with intent. His voice faltered even as he spoke, your derisive look probably also helping him realize that idea was dead on arrival. He mumbled under his breath before putting a red cross through that second job posting. 

If the usual daily routine wasn’t signifier enough, your ribbing banter marked an almost certain return to normality. As if Max hadn’t shared his abusive past, as if you hadn't both wept for the things that had happened, things that had been lost and hidden for years suddenly wrenched from the shadows and thrust into the light. As swiftly as it came, it went- a switch had been flicked, and it appeared Max was content to forget. Dousing that pain in darkness once more and illuminating the pleasantness of the here and now, his effervescent personality returned. 

As genuine as Max’s carefree attitude seemed, you thought you knew him well enough by now to know the truth, and figured you could read him almost as well as Al. Something in your gut that told you Max was still affected by what he’d told you. Maybe it was the longer than usual walk, a hint that he didn’t want to return to the house so quickly. Maybe it was that he’d played with Samson a little more today, a few extra treats, a little more love that was needed in this house. Maybe it was the way Max joked around with you today- not hesitant, but he did so with a dull glint in his eye, as if he didn’t have the heart to really mean it today. 

Another similarity between brothers, then. A characteristically Shaw trait. Slipping on a mask in an attempt to obscure one feeling whilst experiencing another emotion entirely. Al slipped between personalities all too easily, even after he’d unmasked himself. But he could still easily hide hurt, disguise pain, conceal guilt. Max might have possessed the same aptitude. You certainly didn’t possess such a skill. You could tell, throughout the rest of the day before Al returned, that Max didn’t quite believe your small smiles, and wasn't convinced by your half-hearted jokes. You supposed you hadn’t had a childhood of horrors to practice putting on a brave face for others. Although you were both concealing your sadness, yours was just more obvious, not as easily hidden as the shroud of obfuscation that Max had constructed. 

The worry that Al would sense your concern riddled you, having promised not to ask Max about the things that had nevertheless spilled out of him. But all seemed normal as you welcomed him home with a deep kiss, your genuine spark of warmth at his return burning the worries to cinders. As he changed out of his work clothes, you continued cooking dinner for the three of you, noting there was even enough meatloaf for Samson, too. As you plated the food, your worries rose from their ashes to burden you again, namely about what you might talk about over dinner. Al would always ask how your day had gone- would you be content to sit quietly and let Max fumble out of that quandary?

You barely had time to think of a solution before a warm pair of hands landed on your waist and Al leaned into your body from behind. You turned your head slightly and felt his mouth planted at the juncture of your neck and shoulder, plying soft kisses along your suddenly flushed pink skin. Soft hums from your own lips soon followed, and you issued a chirrupy giggle when he reached a particularly ticklish patch of skin. Even in your muted, worrisome state, Al was adept in his ministrations that even a small act of flirtation mollified those incendiary worries that had been threatening to reignite. 

“Dinner’s nearly ready.” you said, your voice trembling just slightly at the tingling sensation on your skin.

“Hmm, smells delicious, dove,” he crooned contentedly, nuzzling into your hair “I could just eat it all up.” 

“What, the meatloaf?” you scoffed, understanding the double entendre, given how often Al liked to bait you with them. A dry chuckle escaped Al before he nibbled at your earlobe with a firm bite, forcing a sudden inhale from you. The knife you’d been cutting up the meatloaf with clattered on the plastic worktop as you dropped it. This was fine. If Al’s presence meant the blush on your cheeks could hide any trace of hesitancy, if you stuttered at his playful teasing which hid the stammer of fearful speech, then you could suffer it a little while. It’s not as if you didn’t enjoy the distraction. 

“Oh, sorry guys,” you heard Max say as he tramped into the kitchen “I didn’t realize the kitchen was your new love nest.” Al didn’t move, not affected enough by his brother’s entry to cease his grip around you. Max (also unconcerned by Al’s unsubtle flirtations), sauntered casually to the refrigerator, where the soft clinking of glass told you he was helping himself to a cold beer. Max out of earshot, Al dared another lewd comment, whispering amorously into your ear:

“If he only knew the things we’ve done in this room, sweet thing.” 

You were sure the thermostat in the kitchen must have raised 15 degrees at those fiery words, painting your cheeks what felt like deepest crimson. Al knew you so easily flushed at the slightest dare of your predilections coming to light, and used it as a constant source of personal amusement. 

“Oooh, what’s cookin’, Scout?” Max had waltzed over and was hovering over your right shoulder (your left still occupied by Al’s chin), humming appreciatively at the homely dinner you’d made. Not wanting to turn and give Max a reason to tease about your bright blushing cheeks, you shooed both of them away with a hand, gesturing them to sit down. As you glanced over to the table, you noted Al setting three places with plates and cutlery, and Max placing down three beers he had grabbed from the refrigerator. 

Funny, how their presence at your back, essentially cornering you into the kitchen counter had felt safe, yet now they were a distance from you, a claustrophobic feeling had begun to slither over you, weaving through each pore in your body. Physical distance meant the pervading thoughts in your mind were allowed to edge closer once again. The brothers seemed to have no such demons on their shoulders. It was how calm, how happy both of them were, which felt unfair given how your own thoughts were hurricaning through your head, a constant blight of bad memories running a million miles an hour. This blight felt like a real manifestation, a crushing weight that only you were laden with. Al was unaware of the day’s events, and Max seemed to be coping well, as if sharing his problems had freed him from them, even if the past couldn’t be changed. 

That was the solution, you figured. That sharing your worries would help. A problem shared is a problem halved- isn’t that how the saying went? You were just apprehensive about sharing the origin of your most recent woes with Al. One, because he’d specifically asked you not to ask about those things. And two, because if he was asking that of you, how much worse was he affected by the past than Max? Of course he was, Y/N- he’d become the fucking Grabber for Christ’s sake. You might have told Al just a moment ago (in the safe warmth of his embrace) about all the truths that had been revealed to you earlier in the day. But Max had halted that. Dinner first, talk later, you concluded, pushing those worries to the back of your mind- a thing you had gotten so good at doing in recent memory. You just had to get through dinner and the expanse of the evening. Then, once you and Al were alone, you could talk. 

“How about we play a game?”

You winced at Max’s suggestion. You might normally have found his wording amusing, Max’s unawareness at the weight those words held in this house. But tonight they hit differently, like a skimmed stone suddenly dropping to the bottom of a lake. Al snorted at the proposal of Max’s, still able to find the joke in the double meaning. 

“Oh sure, Y/N loves playing games, don’t ya dove?” he drolled. You couldn’t muster more than a small curl at the corner of your lips, even for Al and his little inside joke that would usually have you turning a fabulous shade of fuschia. You had survived a little teasing over dinner, but the later the night grew, edging closer to the time you were going to talk to Al, your smiles were becoming more forced, your laughter less enthusiastic. All the joking seemed wrong, and you felt if you’d have joined in, any indecent comment or mocking joke would have tasted like ash on your tongue. Al’s eyebrows knitted in the middle, a sign he’d picked up on your reluctance to join in the little shared secret. You swerved his question- and his concerned gaze- by slipping away to the wooden cabinet in the far corner of the room. 

At Max’s insistence, you dusted off an old Scrabble box from the cabinet, setting the board up for the pair of you. Al decided to sit this one out- to watch his dove’s victory from the sidelines, he’d quipped. If you’d been in better spirits, you’d have teased back that Al enjoyed playing games just as much as you did. Instead, you left Max to reply to the comment with an exaggerated scowl. You both shuffled the tiles around in the cloth bag, counting out seven each and starting the game.

Whether playing a board game was a welcome distraction or not, you couldn’t determine. It meant stalling a little, giving you time to consider how to approach Al with your newly-acquired information. But each minute that ticked by was another moment where the weight of the unsaid knowledge hung like a millstone around your neck, heavy and suffocating. 

Between turns, you dared small glances up at Al, who remained in his armchair as you and Max sat cross-legged on either side of the coffee table, Samson lying beside you with his huge head in your lap. Al made little jokes as the game unfolded, admonishing Max for making up imaginary words, humming when his prediction of your winning was clearly on the cards. He was happy living like this, keeping up his little inside jokes and avoiding any serious topics of conversation. But he couldn’t avoid it for long- the bag of tiles was more than half-empty now.

Your turn. SECRET could score 16, if you played on the double word square. You settled instead for REST, for just half as many points. 

Max deliberated and fretted over each of his turns, allowing your thoughts to wander away from the board and to your inevitable confrontation with Al. How were you meant to strike the delicate balance between stating that you know the secrets Al didn’t want told, and reassuring him that he had nothing to fear from you knowing? You wanted to scream; to flip the board; to have the little wooden letters spell it out for him, if only so you didn’t have to have that conversation face to face.  

Your turn again. SHOUT would be good for 16, the H landing on a triple letter. You settled for SHUT, only one point less. 

“Good game, Scout.” Max grumbled as Al read the final tallies- he’d been keeping score while you played. Max grimaced slightly when he realized just how badly he’d lost, but shook your hand across the table like a true gentleman. As your hands clasped, he gave a tight squeeze, and you glanced up at his face, which held a warm smile but an unusually intense gaze. Max nodded slightly, before making excuses that he needed to take Samson out for a final walk around the block. Within a minute, the front door had slammed shut, leaving just you and Al in the house. Before you could speak, Al interjected.

“Dove, what happened?” The gravelly voice was laced with fierce concern.

He knew. Of course he did. Al could read the tiny expressions on your face as easily as reading the front page of the Galesburg Gazette. He could pick up on the cracks in your voice, the hesitancy of your tone as easily as humming along to a familiar tune of one of his old vinyl records. When had he worked it out that you were hiding something? Was it as soon as he’d stepped through the front door after work, or at dinner, or over the evening’s game? The urge to reply with “Nothing” was all too tempting, save for the fact that you’d promised Max to discuss things with Al. That, and Al would always know if you weren’t telling the truth. With a subtle tilt of your head, you gestured to the bedroom and he acceded, rising from his chair with a soft grunt. You scrambled up before he could offer to pull you to a stand, walking ahead down the corridor, avoiding Al’s eye as you scurried into the bedroom. 

After trying to plot out this conversation all evening, you had no clue how to even begin to broach this subject with Al. Al, who didn’t yet know how much you’d learned about his childhood, the abuses he’d suffered, the vile nature of his father who had harmed the family he was supposed to love and protect. Al, who was content evading the subject, happy to subsist on light conversation and inside jokes, midnight kisses and hazy morning caresses. Al, who now only knew pain when he meted it out and you accepted willingly during your infamous game. Living in ignorance (or purposeful avoidance) of those difficult questions that he knew you wanted answers to. Even prohibiting you and Max from questioning things you thought might be wrong. No longer. You couldn’t- you wouldn’t- go another day without voicing what you knew. And, hopefully, wringing out some honesty from Al’s own reticent lips. 

As the door snicked shut, you inhaled deeply. You spun round, half expecting Al to be an inch from your body, ready to embrace and soothe you, to hold your cheeks in his hands and wipe away any tears that might fall from your cheeks with the soft, sweeping brush of his thumb. Instead, he stood by the door in the harsh glow of the overhead light, a stark contrast to the soft crimson radiance of the lamplight that normally illuminated the space. Al stood motionless, save for his hands, where he ran his thumbs rhythmically up and down his fingers in a silent strum. His nervous tic- because he was unsure of what you might say? Or because he anticipated it? Or, perhaps, because he’d seen right through you, and was growing more agitated by the minute that you were keeping those revelations to yourself? 

Anxiety sliced through you like a cold switchblade on your skin. Still stalling, you began a question rather than providing the answers Al seemed eager for you to admit. 

“How did you-” 

“How did I know something was wrong?” His voice was flat, as if he had puzzled something out, but hadn’t yet decided if he should be concerned or furious. “You can’t trick me, Y/N. Something’s upset you, but I didn’t want to ask in front of Max. In case you were uncomfortable.”

His words held kindness within them, but it didn’t reach his mouth to send a reassuring smile. Nor did it reach his eyes- only a blank stare of blue steel, cold and impenetrable, locked on you. Maybe it was better this way- if Al imbued himself with warmth and benevolence, you’d be less likely to want to break that soft facade. Perhaps he was presenting that rough, stony exterior so you’d feel more comfortable throwing barbs his way- that’s what he was clearly expecting.

“I need to tell you some things, I- I just don’t want to upset you.” you stammered, balls fisted tight by your side, as if clinging desperately to the truths that were still unspoken. 

“You can’t upset me, dove.” 

In your mind, you scoffed silently: wanna bet? Ignoring that unhelpful thought, you sat on the silky sheets of the bed. Al followed suit, sitting beside you and turning inwards so you were facing one another. He took your right hand in his left, those promise rings that each of you wore shining, staring up at you beneath the bright light. Heartening you. Your promise: to be good- and didn’t that include telling the truth? His promise- to take care of you: that included listening to you, even if the outcome might be emotional unrest. 

“What’s all this about then, little thing?”

His face, when you gathered the courage to look at him, was still stoic, as if in reassurance that the things you might say wouldn’t affect him, like a dam wall impervious to external pressures. You swallowed a dry gulp, your throat dry with anxiety, but began, hoping those walls would hold. 

Al sat silently as you relayed what you knew, statuesque save for a few tells. When you began with the fact Max had told you things about their father, his grasp on your hand tightened slightly, an eyebrow twitching in response. You defended that with the truth- that Max had spoken to you freely, with no incitement from you. And you defended Max, too- arguing that Max shouldn’t have to bottle up his feelings, not when he clearly needed to bleed out the hurt inside him. You sensed Al shift uncomfortably at that, but you continued. As you spoke of the terrible deeds that had been inflicted on the young brothers, his grip relented and his glassy blue eyes fixed on a spot somewhere on the wall behind you- as if he’d already replayed those events in his head thousands of times, and your tale was a retelling of a familiar story. The same cruelties, just at a slightly altered angle, based on Max’s perspective of those occasions. 

You finished, and blue eyes devoid of emotion flicked back in your direction. His brows were straight, mouth neither grimacing or smiling. As if he was still deciding how he felt, or wasn’t sure how to express the too-many thoughts that were probably running through his wearied mind. You needed to see if the dam walls had been breached, if your words had hurt as much (or more) than his father’s belt. But there were no cracks or fissures in Al’s sober expression- sadness, perhaps, but he hadn’t been broken by what you’d said. But, you realized- how could you break something that had already been broken years before?

Al’s stony silence wasn’t particularly unusual, but you’d expected some response after your confession. Instead, you opted for a little reassurance of your own. 

“Al, I know you don’t want my pity. I know that. But I need to say it, just once,” He grimaced, but you merely gripped his hand tighter in yours and continued. “I am sorry, truly, for what happened. To you, and Max.”

The ugliness Al had faced needed acknowledgement. It was obviously a precursor to what had come after, and to ignore its importance would be living just another lie. To pretend it hadn’t happened now would be like you and Al living a contrived existence built on weak, crumbling foundations. Even if you might never untangle the puzzle of it all, the cause and effect, the chain reaction that had set so many horrific events in motion. 

Al hadn’t responded to your sympathetic remark, but his grip on your hand had remained tight, and his right hand had risen to cup your cheek in his palm, a soft thumb brushing the faded scar on your cheekbone. He knew the motion soothed you, though the reminder of why it was there lit a white-hot spark within your blood. The one facet of all this you realized you were bitter about. You had been hurt that Al hadn’t shared his story with you, when he knew every aspect of your own suffering, having been the source of so much of it. True, you hadn’t had a childhood full of terrors, but you were confident that Al was doing himself no favors by keeping it locked inside of him. He’d been living in his own solitary hell by not sharing, not communicating about the worst parts of his past. Why couldn’t he have told you- weren’t you past the point of secrets and lies?

“Al I just- I don’t know why you never told me.” Your earnest, somber tone and your cracked voice was evidence enough how much this fact had hurt you. Al’s thumb retreated from your cheek, but his hand remained aligned against your jawbone, the warm palm and cold rings disseminating both warmth and shivers through you. He inhaled, then spoke on a regretful sigh:

“It’s just like you said, Y/N- I didn’t want your pity when I didn't deserve it. And I didn’t want you to shift the blame to someone else for-” the reply had been curtailed, but you both knew how it would have ended. I didn’t want you to shift the blame to someone else for the things I’ve done. 

“Then I won’t,” you responded curtly, receiving a startled look from Al, who retreated his palm from your cheek at the remark. “I won’t use your past as an excuse. The things that man did to you- they don’t exonerate the worse things you did because of them.” If Al was alarmed, you were equally shocked at your own bluntness at that moment. However, the words you said were truthful, and you were glad your candidness outweighed your tact just then. Al seemed to appreciate it too, giving a faint nod and a soft hum of acknowledgement. 

“Thanks, dove. As long as you understand that.” he said in a gruff rasp. With your hands still connected, you looked down once more at the ring on your middle finger, then the one nested on Al’s pinky. In the harsh light of your shared bedroom, one more revelation couldn’t hurt, surely. 

“Can I ask just one thing Al- something about what Max said?”

“What do you want to know, dove?” Good. With the past exposed for you both to see, Al wasn’t about to start avoiding the subject so easily. 

“I asked Max if you ever fought back. He said ‘not then’. But did you, after a while?”

“Oh- that,” Al answered, “Yeah, Max doesn’t know the whole story there.” Al rose, your fingers disentangling as he did so. You remained sitting on the edge of the bed, watching Al intently as he began to pace along the shag carpet, one hand held up to his chin in quiet contemplation. When Al swiveled around to face you again, his eyes were tinged with darkness- he wasn’t sad anymore. This was Al angry. Your fingers clenched the silk sheets below you, and you listened breathlessly to the story. 

“I’d not long turned 16. I came home one day, and I could hear that fucking belt as I walked in the door. Max was crying, he was screaming and I saw red. I got between them both, told him it was my fault- I didn’t even know why Maxie was in trouble. I don’t think that piece of shit cared either way- he was happy to start on me.”

By this point, Al’s fists were bone-white, clenched tightly by his sides. Your own, if you dared to look, might have been a similar shade, gripping the blood red sheets beneath you. Al gave a low, breathy exhalation, as if he’d remembered something funny, before continuing, the intense ferocity of his gaze burning into you. You looked right back up at him with, not daring to break the taut, invisible connection between you both.

“I’d been damn-near pushed down those stairs, and he’d left me down there for the night. I could barely move, just wanted to pass out, but the phone- that fucking phone- it was connected back then and he’d ring it. To taunt me, to keep me awake. I cut the damn line, ripped the cord outta it. He realized, of course, and came right down. Picked up the receiver and started hitting me with it. Over and over and over. I was so tired, Y/N, so tired of it all-”

With Al looming over you in the bedroom, you could easily picture him in his father’s place, phone in hand and using it as a weapon. You looked on wordlessly, transfixed- enthralled and appalled in equal measure. Al paused, licking his lower lip with his tongue. An old familiar glint in his eyes. Not just a retelling of the violence, but the hunger for it, the thrill of it all. 

“I just balled a fist and swung hard for the bastard. Caught him right in the jaw. He fell into the wall, not quite knocked out cold, but dazed enough to stay down. Guess he never expected- never realized how much I was growing. The belt was still hanging from his other hand- I grabbed it. I used it. I had to. I wanted to.”

The image of Al’s father hanging over you morphed into Al now, a grotesque transformation in front of your wide eyes. The abused son fighting back. But, in doing so, undoubtedly taking on the mantle himself now. Were you imagining yourself as his father, receiving deserved retribution with each blow- or were you one of the boys it happened to years later? The lines between Al and the Grabber had been so clearly defined lately, but now the lines between Al and his father were blurring, bleeding into each other like a reckless watercolor of pain and ire. Fighting back was understandable- but at what point had Al cracked, a switch flicking in his brain that violence and fear and rage were things to be savored? Al seemed to calm, taking a long, tremulous breath before he spoke again, more sadly now.

“I left him there and walked myself upstairs. I remember my mom’s hands- they were shaking as she patched me up, and we were both crying in the bathroom. Max was watching us from the doorway. It changed after that- he never touched us after that. He was still a fucking vile man, but he left us all alone. Sat in his easy chair, watching TV and drinking himself to death. Luckily, that only took a few months.”

A happy ending to the story, or at least one of justice against mindless cruelty. Why then, couldn’t that have been the end? Why did the things after need to happen? Al was still standing in front of you, visibly shaking from the effort of sharing those broken fragments of himself. Your next words escaped you before your mind realized the crushing weight of them.

“You were old enough, big enough to fight back. Not like the other boys.”

There it was. The awful realization of what you’d just said. Al pursed his lips tight, blue eyes now ablaze with indignation- not at you per se, but at your words, honest and brutal as they were. The dam had burst. Too much pressure forcing itself against those stone walls of his mind, and you’d finally breached them. Surprising then, when his answer came in a calm wave. 

“Exactly, Y/N,” he said flatly, and you looked up through watery lashes at the agreement. “You’re understanding why I don’t deserve you, or anything. I'm glad you’re finally getting it. Maybe you’ve realized you should never have stayed.”

“No- Al- I-” you stammered pathetically, any response you might have had fracturing and splintering into a million tiny pieces on your tongue. Your head bowed and focused on your palms clasped in your lap.  You couldn’t even look at him after you’d said it, repulsed by your own cold, cruel words. Like a misbehaving child, a naughty girl- perhaps you deserved punishment for that vicious cut you’d delivered. Ashamed by your callous comment, after he’d finally shared that part of his existence that had for so long been sealed. You still didn’t glance up as he left swiftly, slamming the bathroom door behind him. 

Still under the harsh lighting, you sobbed silently into your sleeve; drawing attention to it might have lent itself to sympathy, which you didn’t deserve. Why had that comment been the first response to Al’s harrowing account? That he’d been fortunate and able to escape the basement, when others hadn’t been so lucky. The clarity of the thought hit you like a bullet in your heart. Al hadn’t ever really escaped the basement. Even if he’d fought back, ascended the stairs, defended himself and his family, an ensnaring darkness would always be holding him hostage, twisting his reality, warping his morality. A part of Albert Shaw would always be trapped in those depths.

Al burst into the bathroom, kicking the door shut behind him, instinctively turning on the sink faucet full force before hauling himself over to the toilet bowl. As he hugged the cold porcelain, he retched up the contents of his stomach, hoping his dove wouldn’t hear this gut-churning, visceral reaction. Al wondered, as he spat into the bowl, what part of all this had affected him the most. 

Surprisingly, it hadn’t been Y/N’s comment about Al’s crimes, how he’d picked boys who had no hope of fighting back the way Al had as a teenager. His crimes were his own burden to carry, his own debts to repay one day. No, it was the way her perception of him could so easily change. She loved him, but how far could that go if those horrific memories kept resurfacing? One day in the future, the cons of staying might just outweigh the pros, tipping the scales and shattering the precarious balance of the relationship beyond repair. 

Did she often see him as just as evil as the day he had taken her? Still that monster who had lured her in with a cheap trick, had bled and beat her black and blue, had used her body in the worst ways. Did she still think about the pain and violations whenever he touched her skin? The thought made him gag again, but he had nothing left in his stomach and heaved up watery yellow bile into the bowl. 

It was a strange paradox: Al wanted her to see clearly that he was no hero, and undeserving of pity. But at the same time, he didn’t want her to truly leave, and he’d spoken to her from that place of self-loathing when he’d suggested she shouldn’t have stayed. He’d have to go back to her soon, to explain that he’d spoken in anger, impulsive and wrong. He heaved himself up from the floor and stumbled over to the sink, splashing his face with water, running a frantic hand through his hair before turning off the faucet. He braced himself against the sink before looking into the mirror in front of him. Only the thought of his love in the next room held him back from punching the glass with a clenched fist. He really did look like his father, but a worse reflection of that bastard, like a warped, misshapen image reflected in a funfair mirror. 

His father had been handsome, too, and for years Al had wondered whether that had been used to an advantage. His mother, so gentle and sweet, lured in by the charismatic charm and gleaming white teeth, only too late realizing the monster buried beneath that facade, those teeth belonging to a wolf who had trapped its prey. Entrapped, just the same way Al had done to his little thing. He wondered if that same face he’d seen a hundred times, snarling and screaming, coming for him with the belt, was exactly what she had seen when he’d first locked her away in the basement. 

He had told her the bones of that fateful day when he’d fought his father, though a few details he’d omitted flashed through his mind. His father’s frozen expression, the fear of a son who was getting stronger every day, almost a man. The memory of him picking up the receiver, still smeared with blood, holstering it back on the wall as he spoke to his father. ‘This won’t work anymore.’ How he’d leaned over, spitting on him as he grabbed the belt from his father’s trembling, wrinkled hands. He’d snarled between lashes. ‘You don’t touch me.’ Thwack! ‘You don’t touch Max.’ Thwack! ‘You don’t touch mom.’ Thwack. ‘You do NOT control us anymore.’

A pathetic, hollow lie, of course. Even after his father had gone, Al wasn’t free. He’d been so alone- Max had left this house first chance he got, and then his mom had died not long after. 

The years of torment, the violence, the screams- it had twisted his mind and led to the creation of that vile creature who still couldn’t shake the past from his consciousness. Every abuse and anguish playing on repeat in his head. Naughty Boy. Naughty Boy. Naughty Boy. He wasn’t, was he? Not if someone else was. Al didn’t pretend to understand it- he just knew that he’d been wired wrong, those events serving to short-circuit his brain and fill his mind with sickening, poisonous thoughts. Still, he wasn’t about to place blame on his father- Al had committed those crimes alone, those conscious decisions that he would never atone for. 

He returned to the bedroom, where she had flicked on the soft, warm lamplight and pulled back the bedsheets to welcome him in beside her. As he accepted the invite, she looked up at him, her beautiful thick lashes wet with fresh tears, a wary gaze in her wide eyes. It wasn’t fear, Al was sure. But in some sick way, he wished she did feel that sometimes. Because when she lived in that eternal, hopeful dream, where she saw the best in him, what was inevitable except disappointment when she remembered all the things he’d done? She inched close to him as he lay down beside her, close enough that he could smell her sweet, intoxicating scent, close enough to grasp a lock of her hair and rub it tenderly between his thumb and forefinger. 

“I’m sorry I upset you, Al.” Upset. A word with more than one meaning. 

Did she think he was mad, angered by her indelicate words? Or was she asking if he was genuinely sad at- well, anything and everything. Past and present. It was a potent mixture of both meanings, Al figured- but none of that pain was her fault directly.

“My perfect, perfect girl. I told you before, didn’t I? You could never upset me, dove.” He brushed away a final, errant tear from her cheek.

The worst she could do was tell the truth, and whose fault was it that the truth was so heinous? The topic of honesty twanged in his chest like a discordant string, spoiling the soft melodies of her sweet voice who only wanted to make him happy. Al continued.

“I’m sorry for what I said. It’s all just- well, it’s a lot for me. I’m sorry that it wasn’t me you found out most of it from.”

“No. I can understand why you didn’t want to talk. I can’t even imagine.”

But she could imagine those things. She’d been through the same, and worse. How was she so selfless, almost to the point of ignorance? It couldn’t be easy to forget, but if her and Max could be so optimistic, Al could try better too. Be the man she saw all the time, not the undeserving one he saw in the mirror. The better side of himself, for his better half. Always for her. 

“You know I’m staying, don’t you Al?” her fingernails softly grazed the scar on his chest, a reminder that she had made that decision before, and would uphold that promise. 

He wrapped her up in his arms, small and delicate compared to his large frame, but infinitely more powerful. Because what if she did leave- Al would be broken completely. He trusted her promise- to always be honest. He didn’t doubt for a second that she would stay with him, not when she was here beside him, reassuring and kindhearted to a fault. He needed to feel her, her warm body pressed against his, smell her scent, hear her hums, or else feel like any moment she might vanish like a rabbit in a top hat. To wake up with an empty space next to him, after knowing the feel of her in his life- he’d suffer his father’s torments a thousand times over before accepting that as a reality.