#everything could stay the same or we could change it all {re: finn}

[dynamicspacebud]

was just doing my moms dishes bc i felt bad for her when i just really started to dwell on how she is as a mother like WOW is she a SHIT mom and i mean that like my god she is awful. I don’t like to remember stuff like this or hold it in my head like how i really have to dig deep to re-remember all the ways my father is horrible but right now with her i don’t know i want to write down what i was thinking about. How less than a year earlier we had to change the locks on the door because he threatened to come even though she said no and i got really scared and started having terrible nightmares about him coming in and killing us and then she just surprise told me he is was coming over one day and completely disregarded my concerns and feelings about how i told her i felt uncomfortable and unsafe with him around she just did not care and was so selfish even though this was supposed to be my home too. Or how that night she was like I’m an adult i can have casual sex when i simply asked if he was staying the night and she was like i’m just being honest when i went wtf as though a year prior she didn’t blame me for him financially/ sexually abusing her for getting money for sex and she blamed me because i was using her credit card and not paying bills as though i wasn’t a teenager who didn’t even know any of this was happening i just got blamed. How could she even put that on me i knew then and now it wasn’t and had never been my fault but that’s such a sick thing to say honestly it makes my stomach curl. Her asking how and why my relationship with my father has to reflect and effect my relationship with her as though i didn’t write a whole fucking peer reviewed essay about how it does like how is she so fucking awful as a mother like i’m very glad i was born but god she should have never been someone to take care of someone else or anything else like how she also abandoned her cat when her boyfriend wanted her too. It’s so sick i don’t and never did deserve the terrible parents i have. I don’t want them. I cant wait to get to a place when i can genuinely never have contact with them again. Seeing and being reminded of it all holds me back i know that. I don’t want that. I cant have that. And every year in close and closer to breaking away. I’ll get there i know i will and i’ll never have parents i’ll only have s** and a***** but i’ll still watch bluey and cry cry cry because someone has those parents and that makes my heart warm enough. And maybe i’ll even be that parent one day. Mine are so beyond awful i will and can never be them it’s not even possible. I’m very lucky i got out i mean look at my shit brother that hateful bigot. Good for him tho he barley talks to them i wish i were him in only that way. They hurt him more than me and because he’s cishet and grew up in a rich highschool i think that’s why he turned out that way. I don’t know i want to say maybe he has changed but as a cop i know it’s impossible he has. I won’t have any contact to my immediate bio family. My uncle today asking me how long it’s been since i talked to my brother and me saying years. I mean often i genuinely forget i have a brother which is funny in a way because we lived together until i was like 19 it’s not even like we didn’t grow up together or he left when i was young. My mind just has such a strong way of blocking everything out. It’s for my own protection but i don’t know how good that is honestly. Like with hannah it did the same thing. Nes being like I REMEMBER how do you not ??? you were so close and i have to really think about it or see pictures or texts to remember and when i do it’s strong and im sad. I guess my mind doesn’t want me to be sad. But i don’t know i don’t think that’s a good thing. Not entirely. Ok funny enough im rewatching the 100 and they have kind of touched on this subject with raven not remembering finn and jaha not remembering his son but them being “happy” because they can’t feel the pain of losing them even though they don’t remember the happy and good stuff either. I think that’s kind of what my mind is

[lumosinlove]

Day Four: 12/17/20

On the fourth day of Ficmas, Hazel gave to thee, Sweater Weather behind the scenes!

Sweater Weather Outtakes. Sometimes I changed it because I feel like the pacing was off, which is the case in the first big chunk, and sometimes I changed it because I just wanted the plot to be different. I wrote a lot of the end of Sweater Weather in the very beginning before most of the fic was even written, just musing to myself about my boys winning the Cup. Enjoy!

TW: Mentions of being outed.

(This takes place right after they were outed.)

Sirius was doing something wrong, and that was not calling Remus for two days.

Sirius stood. “So, we’re settled.”

Alice nodded. “We have our plan. Now, as Arthur says, we just have to wait for a few punches. Good thing you’re familiar with those.”

Arthur stood, too, and slapped Sirius on the back. “I’m proud of you, kid. You’ve let no one own you, and that’s hard for someone in your position. You’ve come a long way. See you on TV, eh?”

Sirius glanced at Remus, who was talking to Alice as they walked out of Coach’s office and into the hallway. “It hasn’t been without help. Merci, Coach. For everything.”

Sirius ducked out into the hallway, half expecting to find Remus gone, disappeared, to find all of this not real. He felt like he was floating above everything, dreading the comments that he knew to expect from others, kicking himself for running, fighting to be brave about it all.

Sirius had a lot of people making decisions for him.

This one was for him to make.

There Remus was, back turned, watching Alice disappear back into her office.

Sirius’ heart pounded as he reached out and lay a gentle hand on Remus’ back. He felt like he was going to collapse with it, with wanting to be alone with him, to say he was sorry, to say how thankful he was to have him. Remus turned and looked at him, face soft. He looked as tired as Sirius felt.

“Come with me?” Sirius asked.

Remus nodded hurriedly and Sirius followed Remus towards the quiet room, where they seemed to be just making memory after memory. Remus shut the door and stayed against it for a moment, hands on the smooth wood.

Sirius took a few quick, nervous breaths. Looking at Remus, he was done trying to protect the both of them by pushing him away. He hurt without Remus and, by the set of Remus’ shoulders, he felt the same.

“Remus,” Sirius stepped forward, and Remus turned.

“I don’t care if I get fired,” Remus said suddenly, all in one breath, back against the door. “I want you. I care about you. Sirius, do whatever you need to, just talk to me about it so I can do what I need to—”

Sirius strode forward and took Remus’ face in his hands. Remus sank into his touch, like it pulled the tension coiled in his muscles. Like it was all he needed.

“I’m scared of a lot of things right now,” Sirius whispered, thumbs stroking across Remus’ cheeks. “But I’m the most scared of losing you.”

Remus’ lip shook, and he brought his hands up to hold Sirius’. “You are?”

Sirius hated that Remus even questioned it. He couldn’t seem to get close enough, pressing them together, feeling Remus’ warmth through his t-shirt.

“Remember what you said? What you said about people who told me I wasn’t good enough?”

Remus’ hands tightened around his wrists, eyes filling. He nodded. “I’d make you forget.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” Sirius said softly. “But I didn’t need you to make me forget.” He stroked his thumbs through the slow tears that blinked down Remus’ cheeks. “I needed you, so I could see that they were wrong.”

Remus let out a tear filled breath, curving a hand around the back of Sirius’ neck.

“Re,” Sirius whispered, brushing their noses together. “I see now.”

Remus let out a laugh, half sob. “C’est l’heure?” He twisted his wrist, making his watch flash in the dim light. It’s time? he had asked.

Sirius smiled, tears in his throat, relief in his chest. “Oui, mon vœu.”

Remus pressed up onto his toes and kissed Sirius hard, breath hitching. Sirius let Remus clutch him close, craving the feeling of him after what felt like so long. He wrapped him up, his strong shoulders and slim waist, and buried his nose in his hair, breathing in.

They stayed like that, kissing and close in the semi-darkness. It didn’t matter if anyone walked in, Sirius suddenly realized with a thrill. It didn’t matter at all. He could hold Remus like this in the middle of the street if he wanted. His mother’s face flashed in his mind. The image of a burning jersey, his burning jersey. A chill crept in, but he pushed it back, holding Remus’ warmth closer. He was leaving tonight. He needed all the warmth he could get. It was as if Remus remembered, too, because then he was pulling back and pressing kiss after kiss to Sirius’ mouth, to his cheeks and jaw.

“I’ll miss you,” Sirius whispered. “I wish you were coming with me.”

Remus tucked his face into Sirius’ neck, hands locked around Sirius’ waist, resting at the base of his spine. “Me too.”

“My mother will be there,” Sirius’ voice shook despite himself. “Because my brother.”

“Maybe…” Remus pulled back just enough to look at Sirius. “Maybe it will help to see her. To talk to her. Maybe it will show you that she really has no say in your life. Not anymore.”

Sirius nodded. “I think, maybe, but I also…When I see her, I can’t help it, I get all…”

“Aw, baby,” Remus sighed and pressed his cheek to Sirius’ chest.

“What about you, your family? Have you talked to them?”

Remus made a guilty noise. “I texted them…I don’t know why, I just—I wanted to sort things out with you first. I couldn’t think about anything but you.”

“Remus,” Sirius sighed. “Merde, you’re so…this happened to you, too. How are you, mon loup?”

“Worried about you,” Remus laughed and then pressed his forehead to Sirius’ chest before looking up at him. “I’m…I’m actually okay. This isn’t how I wanted to tell my family but, when I talk to them…I get to talk about you, too.”

Sirius stared at him, smile slow. “Jules.”

Remus laughed again. “Oh my fucking god. I think he’s going to pass out.” He groaned. “God, I hope he didn’t see those pictures, though. That’s…I don’t know. I wish we could have surprised him, or told him together.”

“Maybe he doesn’t know yet,” Sirius offered. “Maybe we can.”

“Maybe,” Remus said, then reached up and wrapped his arms around Sirius’ neck, pulling him in for a kiss. “I’ll call them tonight.”

“Text me so I can call you when I get to the hotel?” Sirius asked hopefully, and Remus nodded.

“You better.”

“You wanna come over and help me pack?”

Remus raised an eyebrow. “You sure you’re gonna get any packing done with me there?”

Sirius shrugged, ducking to brush their mouths together. “Maybe a little.”

Remus kissed him, and they pressed together for a few minutes, mouths hot. Remus laughed breathlessly as Sirius leaned against him, their kisses turning deeper.

“This sounds crazy, given everything,” Sirius said, dragging his mouth across Remus’ jaw. “But I feel—I’m relieved. Are you?”

“Yes,” Remus whispered, tilting his head back so Sirius could kiss more of his neck. “I can have you.”

“You could always have me.”

“Yeah,” Sirius could hear the smile in Remus’ voice. “But now I can have you wherever I want.”

Sirius grinned, biting gently on Remus’ jaw. “I’ll take you back to Sid’s and you can wipe food off my face all you want, cameras be damned.”

Remus laughed out loud. “My dream.”

“Should we get out of this dark room?” Sirius said softly after another lingering kiss.

Remus smiled and nodded.

Here’s a really early piece of dialogue I wrote where the team finds out about Sirius and Remus on the ice after they win the Cup:

“Holy shit,” Finn said tearfully. “You and the fucking Captain. I didn’t even know who I was talking to, did I?”

“No,” Remus laughed, and Finn kissed him right on the cheek.

“Jesus Christ, Loops, we’re in love and we have a Cup.”

“We really do. Proud of you, Harzy. All of you.”

~

“I love you.”

It came out of nowhere, slammed into Remus like a check to the boards, like a gust of pure, clean win across a frozen pond. He was blissful and awake with it.

“I love you,” Sirius said again, whispered against his skin. “I love you, Remus, je t’aime, je t’aime, je t’aime, mon loup, Remus…”

Sirius was gasping with it, as if the words were air themselves.

Remus clutched him, hands fisting his jersey. “I love you. God, of course, of course I love you, too.”

And here’s me almost giving Pascal a career ending injury during the playoffs, which Sirius and Remus overhear the Cubs comforting Logan about. Just incase the discord wants some angsty roads to go down :)

“Oh, sweetheart,” Leo’s voice came gently, followed by a low sob, probably from Logan.

Remus and Sirius looked at each other. Sweetheart Sirius mouthed, and Remus shook his head.

“I’m fine,” Logan said, voice thick. “I’ll be fine, let’s go, we need to play.”

“You’re not fine,” came a third voice, Finn’s, Remus realized. “And you don’t need to be. Lo, c’mere, please let us be here for you. C’mere.”

There was the unmistakable sound of a short kiss, and with that, Remus grabbed Sirius’ arm and pulled back back down the hallway as fast as he could. They ended up in Remus’ office, staring at each other.

“I…” Sirius began. “Okay, I don’t know what we just heard, but…”

“He’s being comforted by his—friends,” Remus said. “That’s all we know because…”

“They haven’t said anything yet.”

[unsettledink]

Comfort (Re)Reads Recs

It's been a rough couple of weeks, both personally and just *waves hands around* you know, everything. I found myself going back to some of my comfort reads again and again and thought – you know, I bet other people are in serious need of that too.

So here's a handful of some of my favorite comfort reads across a bunch of fandoms. Most are pretty long, or series. Everything has a happy ending, but I like h/c so plenty have some hurt or angst on the way. I put the ones that have the most near that bottom.

For all of them I'd suggest looking at the author's other works too! And if you liked what you read, please tell them that it made your day a bit better. I'm off to do so myself.

Leader Of The Free World, @copperbadge

Marvel (MCU) - Steve/Tony, Bucky/Clint, 15k

Summary: Clint Barton's presidential campaign started as a joke. It didn't end that way, except for Steve.

Sixpence In His Shoe, @scifigrl47

Marvel - Steve/Tony, 100k

Summary: Steve and Tony should really read the fine print on what they're signing. Then again, some mistakes are not really mistakes.

Always Starts the Same, with a Boy and a Girl, lightgetsin

White Collar - Neal/Elizabeth/Peter, 21k

Summary: Summer, 1998. Neal Caffrey robs the gallery where Elizabeth O'Dell is working late, and comes away with a lot more than art. Agent Burke has no idea what's about to hit him.

Take Me Out,    @setepenre-set

Megamind – Megamind/Roxanne, 10k

Summary: The Metro City Wolverines are the worst team in the MLB. So Megamind, using the disguise watch to manage the stadium’s illegal betting pool, is understandably shocked when Miss Ritchi (at the stadium on a ‘date’ with Metro Man…and his mother) wants to place a bet that the Wolverines can win against the best ranked team in the league. But then, maybe the luck is turning for all of Metro City's underdogs…

My Heart Comes Tumbling Down, @devildoll

Teen Wolf – Derek/Stiles, 5k

Summary: "This is a casual, adult relationship based on sex, and it is awesome." In which Stiles and Derek have a great time buddyfucking until a burrito ruins it all.

Technical Support,    @astolat

Person of Interest – John/Harold, 13k

Summary: The IFT Plaza security team wasn't what John would have called the brightest stars in the firmament. (Written for the tech support AU prompt.)

From Thy Bounty, @ibby-writes​

Marvel (MCU) – Tony/Peter, 30k

Summary: Tony’s eyes are always dark, but now there's almost no iris left. He looks hollowed out. There’s something terribly hungry there, despite the feast they've filled themselves on.

Gift of Choice, @everysecondtuesday

Marvel (MCU) – Tony/Peter, 11k

Summary: Tony Stark had a thing about giving Peter stuff.

Feels Like Something, Maybe It Fits, @learned-foot

Marvel (MCU) – Tony/Peter, 7k

Summary:  Peter’s still not used to hearing that voice. Four months, and part of him thinks it’s a lie every time.

Better Than, unsettled (yup, it's mine. It feels weird to include it? But it was the comfort reread that set this off, so)

Marvel (MCU) – Tony/Peter, 40k

Summary: Maybe there isn't really a fixed point where it starts, where any of it starts, nothing Tony can point to and say, there, there is where I made my mistake, there is where I could have stopped this, there is where I can stop it from happening again. Maybe it shouldn’t have been something Tony tried to stop. (or: the one where Tony is going to be responsible for once, ok? He is!)

The Swear Jar, @allthemarvelousrage

Marvel (MCU) – Clint/Laura/Tony, 12k

Summary: In the last three months, she’s seen Tony go through a lot of mood changes and shifts of introspection, but she doesn’t think he’s ever been close to leaving. Then again, she doesn’t think he’s actually aware of how intertwined his life’s become with theirs, because half the time, he’s exhausted from Avengers business or exhausted from engineering binges, and the other half of the time, he’s either trading one-liners and witticisms with Clint or coloring with Lila or building things with Cooper or letting Nathan crawl all over him.

This, You Protect, @vmohlere

Marvel (MCU) - Steve/Bucky, 64k

Summary: The mission resets abruptly, from objective: kill to objective: protect

have you heard, peradi

Star Wars - Finn/Poe, Finn/Poe/Rey, 42k

Summary: "I heard FN-2187 was a Stormtrooper."

Transfigurations, Resonant

Harry Potter – Harry/Draco, 71k

Summary: Five years after Voldemort's defeat, Harry returns to England to help re-open Hogwarts.

Something Blue, Lapin

The Hobbit – Bilbo/Thorin, 34k

Summary: Thorin marries Bilbo after the Battle of Five Armies, a marriage of convenience, not love. Slowly, they must come to make the best of it, Bilbo resolves. After all, he's a Hobbit. They make the best of things.

Nothing Gold Can Stay,  @bilboo

The Hobbit – Bilbo/Thorin, 296k

Summary: Bilbo Baggins led a rather peaceful life, thank you very much, until an old acquaintance decided to turn it upside down, and he found himself agreeing to take a job that’s… let’s say not exactly up his alley, and might eventually cost him a little more than his treasured cozy lifestyle. Who would have thought tutoring a slightly menacing monarch’s more than slightly overbearing nephew could prove to be such an adventure?

Like a Comet Streaming On, @sineala

Marvel (616)– Tony/Steve, 32k

Summary: Tony escapes Afghanistan with a functioning Iron Man suit and a perfectly normal heart. He even manages to bring Ho Yinsen home safely at his side. But he may as well have lost everything... because his wolfbrother is dead. Six months later, the Avengers find Captain America, frozen in ice, miraculously alive. Everything and everyone Steve has ever known is gone -- except his wolfsister, the recipient of the lupine version of the super-soldier serum, who was frozen in his arms. Tony has everything but his wolf. Steve has only his wolf. This is how their lives fit together.

All Our Secrets Laid Bare, @firethesound

Harry Potter – Harry/Draco, 149k

Summary: Over the six years Draco Malfoy has been an Auror, four of his partners have turned up dead. Harry Potter is assigned as his newest partner to investigate just what is going on.

The End Where We Begin, @ingu

Man From UNCLE (Movie) – Illya/Napoleon, 21k

Summary: Illya kills an American spy in Zurich. Three days later, he’s staring into the face of a dead man standing in his hotel room.

A man turns around., spqr

Marvel (MCU) – Tony/Steve/Bucky, 6k

Summary: Liver failure or a lone assassin with a long-range weapon will get him eventually. He doesn’t think it will take too long, now that he’s retired. He wishes death would hurry up. If happiness were coming his way, it would’ve gotten here by now. All that’s left to do is wait. Languish in the "later life" section of his Wikipedia page. Wake up in the morning and go to bed at night. Exist, until it’s over.

[merakiaes]

On Your Knees - Tommy Shelby

Pairing: Tommy Shelby x reader

Requested: Yes. 

Prompts: #48, #57 and #66 from the fluff/humour-list. 

Warnings/notes: Indications to smut, but no full smut. Sorry if it’s shit. I had to mix and match two requests and it was hard to get everything working together so I hope this is readable xD I changed the form of the prompts a bit to make them fit better. 

Wordcount: 2902

Summary: You go on a date, Tommy gets jealous and interferes, and it ends up with you doing the dirty. Basically. 

Dating wasn’t easy when you were the long-term best friend of Tommy Shelby, the infamous leader of the Peaky Blinders.

He had always been protective over you, as had his brothers, but the possessiveness he held over you hadn’t made an appearance until you were about fifteen when boys started noticing you and asking you out on dates.

You accepted the possessive protectiveness the first few times, hoping that maybe he had feelings for you. But when he never made a move, your appreciation for his behavior quickly turned into loathing, said behavior making you lose all interest in romance after a time.

Tonight was the first night you had reciprocated a man’s advances and accepted to go on a date for… probably more than two years. 

You had really grown so tired of Tommy constantly interfering your dating life that you had distanced yourself from any other men than him and his brothers all together.

But you were done with letting his mannerisms control your life. It was absolutely none of his business what you did on your spare time and who you were with.

Still, to avoid getting interrupted like you had all the other times you had attempted dating, you had done everything in your power to keep your plans a secret from everyone that associated themselves with the Peaky Blinders.

The only person you had told about your plans of going out was Polly, solely for the purpose of getting her to keep Tommy away if he, against all odds, still found out what you were up to.

The evening had started wonderfully. 

Robert, as the man’s name was, had picked you up in his car at around six in the afternoon, complimenting your navy blue dress, kissing your hand and opening the door for you like a true gentleman.

You had started out with dinner at a nice restaurant a bit outside of Small Heath, then going to the pictures for a re-run of Frankenstein where you had been sneaking kisses at the back of the salon through the entire film, having you feeling like you were sixteen all over again.

And after the movie, you had ended up at the Garrison. 

You had insisted that you go to another pub, despite knowing that Tommy and his brothers had other plans that night being nervous that he would catch word about your whereabouts and the company you kept.

But Robert, in turn, had insisted that he didn’t want to go anywhere else. And although you had wanted to punch him in the face for going against your wishes without even taking them into consideration, you agreed, too stubborn to let a night that had been amazing so far go down in the drain because of Tommy.

You had been there for about forty minutes now without any disturbances, drinking, sharing stories and jokes and just having a good time in general.

But like always when you tried having a good time without Tommy, it was bound to come to an end eventually.

Unbeknownst to you, Finn had come some while ago to fetch a bottle of whiskey for his brothers who were working late in the betting shop.

Being too wrapped up in your conversation, you hadn’t noticed him at all and therefor paid him no mind. Of course, being the loyal brother he was, he had turned around in the door the second he saw you, forgetting all about the whiskey and running straight back home to tell on you.

And only five minutes later, Tommy, John and Arthur had entered the pub, catching your eye instantly.

“Shit.” You cursed under your breath as you spotted them, trying to hide your face behind your hair.

Robert looked over at you with a questioning glance. “What’s wrong?”

You simply stood up, grabbing your jacket from the back of the chair. “Do you want to get out of here?”

Of course, he didn’t protest, without a doubt thinking he was going to get some with the way he hurriedly threw back the rest of his drink before standing up and grabbing his own jacket, putting it on.

But you didn’t get very far, as Arthur had now spotted you and pointed you out to Tommy, said man starting to walk over while Arthur and John lingered by the bar, ready to back him up if anything was to go down, which was exactly what you were trying to avoid.

Tommy reached you just as Robert was starting to lead you off, wasting no time in getting into his face.

“What a surprise to find you here, (Y/N).” Tommy greeted you, raising his eyebrows slightly. “Polly told me you were home sick and wanted to be left alone.”

You only sighed, rolling your eyes and grabbing a hold of Robert’s arm. “Well, she wasn’t lying about the last part.” You answered, not even bothering to lie as you knew it wouldn’t make a difference. “We were just leaving so you can have our table if you want. Come on, Robert.”

You tugged on his arm slightly, and he wasted no time in moving to follow, the two of you making an attempt to walk around Tommy. But surprise, surprise, he only took a step backwards, keeping himself in your way.

“You’re not going to introduce me?” He asked with a mocking smile teasing at his lips, eyebrows raised.

You glared at him, knowing exactly what he was doing. “Tommy, this is Robert. Robert, Tommy. Now, if you’ll excuse us.”

“What is it you do, Robert?” Tommy kept going, taking another step backwards when you attempted to round him again, and this time you weren’t the only time to pick up on his antics and get annoyed, Robert letting out an aggravated sigh.

“Look, you’re ruining a very good night.” He spoke, glaring at Tommy as if he had no idea who he was. You really hoped for his sake that you were wrong. “So if you would just get out of our way and leave me and the lady be, that would be great.”

You then felt Robert’s hand, that had previously been resting at your waist, slide down to land on your bottom, and that’s when you realized he either really didn’t know who he was talking to, or he just didn’t care. Either way, he was doomed.

Tommy noticed his hand moving south and you immediately recognized the look in his eye.

“Tommy.” You warned, glaring, but he paid you no mind. 

Much to your surprise, however, he didn’t launch himself at Robert like you expected him to, but rather took a calm step closer to the two of you, reaching out and grabbing a hold of Robert’s hand, forcing it off your body, all while keeping eye contact with the slightly taller man.

And that’s when all hell broke lose, Robert being the one to make the first move and landing a harsh blow right in Tommy’s face, sending him flying backwards into the nearest table.

You yelled out in surprise, jumping backwards for a moment, before quickly launching yourself forward when Tommy launched himself at Robert, the two starting to land blow after blow on each other, causing the entire pub to break out into chaos.

Seeing as they were only one on one, Arthur and John stayed back, laughing at the scene in front of them, most likely at the fate Robert was sure to suffer.  

“Tommy!” You yelled, jumping into the fight and trying to pull them apart, but to no use. You only got pushed away, stumbling into a man you didn’t know, Tommy not listening to a single one of your calls. And the same went for Robert.

“Tom, cut it out! Tommy!” You tried again, jumping back in to try to get them a part, flinching when he landed a punch right at Robert’s nose, resulting in a nasty crack to cut through the air. 

But when you once again got pushed back, you knew you had to bring out the big guns, yelling at the top of your lungs.

“Thomas Michael Shelby!”

Everyone stopped what they were doing at the sound of your furious call.

The laughter and cheering died down, you could see how the smiles were wiped off of both John and Arthur’s faces, the two clearing their throats to calm their laughter down.

Tommy had stopped himself mid-punch, one of his hands holding on to Robert’s collar, and the other raised in a fist directed to his face, but his eyes were now looking straight into yours.

Not once breaking the stare, you marched up to him and slapped his hand away from Robert’s collar and grabbed a hold of the sleeve of his shirt, starting to pull him away. 

“Come on, let’s go.” You told him sternly, and he didn’t dare protest, following behind you while the crowd cleared out of your way.

But before you got too far, Robert called out from behind you. “What? You’re going with him? After he came in here, ruined our date and attacked me?”

Before you could stop yourself, you had let go of Tommy’s sleeve and whipped back around, marched back up to Robert and punched him in the face, landing a perfect blow to his probably already broken nose. 

A few of the women in the pub let out sounds of surprise, but you paid them no mind, simply pointing a finger at your date who was now holding his nose in pain.

“You ought to know better than to start a fight with a Peaky Blinder, especially in a place they own. You hit one of them, you start a war with all of us. And that’s a war you won’t win.” You told him coldly, not waiting around long enough for a response before turning back around.

Arthur and John were laughing mockingly at the man, roaring out in amusement. “That’s right! You don’t mess with us Peaky Blinders!”

But you didn’t pay them any mind either, simply shoving right past Tommy and out of the Garrison, stomping down the street with him close behind.

Back at his office, you didn’t even bother being soft with him as you cleaned the cuts on his face, pressing down extra hard on his split lip with the rag you had soaked in alcohol.

He hissed at the sensation, but said nothing, knowing better.

“What is it with you and always putting your nose in my business, huh?” You asked him, pressing down on his cut again and refusing to meet his eyes.

You may have been the one to deliver the last blow to your date after he had insulted your family, but you were still pissed beyond relief that Tommy had intervened in the first place.

Obviously, you didn’t like Robert enough to actually picture another date with him. But just like any human being, you had needs too. And unlike the men, you couldn’t just walk into a whorehouse and get them taken care of. You needed to fix it on your own, and once again, Tommy had prevented you from doing so.

“I didn’t like him.” He spoke back simply, analyzing your face as you moved on to a cut in his eyebrow, cleaning it off before pressing a small piece of tissue into the small, open wound to stop it from bleeding further.

You snorted at his mediocre response, shaking your head. “You don’t like anyone.”

He raised his eyebrows as you finally let yourself meet his gaze. “I like you.”

“Yeah?” You inquired, throwing the bloody rag onto his desk and taking a step back as he stood up. “Then why won’t you let me live my life the way I want it? Why do you have to intervene in every single thing I do?”

You crossed your arms over your chest, not giving him any time to answer. “Are you jealous, is that it?” You asked. “Does it anger you to see me with other men?”

You expected him to say something, to tell you that no, he didn’t mind, he just wanted to see you safe, but when he said nothing, he gave you all the answer you needed, and a mocking smirk quickly rose to your lips.

“Oh, you are jealous, aren’t you?”

He looked genuinely confused at the sight of the teasing smirk now playing at your lips. “You’re not angry at me?”

You rolled your eyes, scoffing.

“No, I’m not angry at you. In fact, I think it’s kind of hot when you defend me like that.” You corrected him, raising your eyebrows slightly but tightening your arms over your chest. “But I’m sexually frustrated because you keep denying me of the release I plan on getting by going out on dates. You men aren’t the only ones who need to fuck, you know?”  

Now you had gone back to glaring at him, and you half expected him to say sorry like he always did. Not that he ever meant or kept it, but still. But instead, he only took a step closer, bringing his hand up to touch a strand of your hair.

“Why didn’t you just tell me that’s what you needed, then?” He asked in a low voice, and no matter how hard you tried keeping you cool, the shock of his response made the glare falter from your face and caused your arms to drop limp to your sides.

“I- What?” You asked, sucking in a breath as you were backed into the wall. You took a moment to collect yourself under his intense stare, before narrowing your eyes slightly. “Are you flirting with me?”

He didn’t answer, instead, the corner of his lip only tugged upwards slightly, and before you got any time to react, his lips were pressed against yours, having the back of your head slamming into the wall behind you.

But you couldn’t be bothered with the pain. If anything, it only made the feeling erupting in your stomach even more intense.

Your body reacted as if out of pure animalistic instincts, your hands shooting out to grab and tug at his hair while his fell down to your waist to tug you even closer, as if it was even possible to get any closer with the way he was pressing you into the wall.

Your heart picked up speed almost instantly, feeling as if it was going to jump straight out of your chest, and so did your lungs, burning with the same desire that was bubbling in the pit of your stomach and your chest.

Grabby hands were everywhere within the next few seconds, tugging at everything they could find while your lips molded together, tongues fighting for a battle neither of you seemed to be willing to lose.

Tommy let out a throaty groan as you tugged harshly on his hair, the sound getting muffled by your mouth and his hands responding by squeezing down at your ass, pushing your pelvis up into his.

The feeling had your hands away from his hair and pulling at his tie almost instantly, fondling with it for a few seconds before getting it lose. You threw it to the floor and started working on the buttons of his shirt with shaky hands and rushed motions, while Tommy’s hands moved from to your back where he started unbuttoning your dress.

In a flurry of hands and messy kisses, Tommy was soon left in only his slacks, and you in only your black underdress.

As you were working on the zipper of his pants, his mouth left yours and traveled down your jaw and neck, leaving wet, sloppy kisses in his wake and drawing sweet moans of ecstasy from your lips that were now, without a doubt, smudged with red lipstick.

You grabbed at his hair as he worked away at your neck for a moment, but when you felt his hands starting to brush the straps of your underdress down your shoulders, you snapped your eyes open and pushed him away by his chest.

The sudden and harsh action caused him to stumble slightly, but he quickly regained his balance, his eyes meeting yours.

His usually baby blue eyes were now several shades darker, his pupils so dilated you almost could have thought he was high on drugs.

Both of your chests were heaving up and down both from the excitement and from being out of breath. None of you spoke for a moment, just staring at each other with hungry eyes, but then you pushed yourself off the wall you were leaning on for support, and Tommy spoke up.

“Where do you want me?”

Without ever breaking eye contact, you slowly started walking towards him, brushing one of the straps down your shoulders, taking your sweet time just in order to make him as frustrated as he had made you the past few years.

Only when you were standing right in front of him again did you let any emotion show, a wicked grin rising to your lips as you answered.

“On your knees, Shelby.”

Like a dog would his master, he did as ordered, slowly sinking to his knees without ever looking away from your eyes, and as you brushed off the second strap and let your nightdress fall to your ankles, he wasted no time in getting to work.  

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Re-Write

(Inspired by the fantastic work of @dalekofchaos) 

“Fix it” fics are a thing, yeah? Well, here’s my shot at writing one for the ninth Star Wars film. Contrary to popular opinions, I’m only going to change one or two things about the two movies beforehand, because I unironically loved both of them. But I can admit that there were mistakes, and TLJ tied up most of the loose ends, leaving it difficult to follow-up with a sequel. So, regarding Episodes eight and nine, here’s what changes. 

I have exactly one change for TFA. That random ass stormtrooper who called out Finn as a traitor and inexplicably had a melee weapon that could fight lightsabers? Yeah, just make that Phasma and have done with it. I don’t understand why it wasn’t her in the first place. Also, Finn being able to wield a lightsaber isn’t “evidence” that he’s force-sensitive if you ask me. The films never confirm that non-force sensitives can’t use them. This will be important later.

Moving on to TLJ...replace that stupid milk scene with the deleted scene of Luke reacting to the news of Han’s death. I mean, come on, that’s a given. Another given, Luke uses his green lightsaber in the illusionary duel against Kylo Ren. That’s just common sense. 

After Kylo Ren asserts himself and force-chokes General Hux, and the two of them depart...the camera pans in on the pieces of Snoke’s corpse, onto his face...and his eyes suddenly open. Yes, this will be important later. Somehow, Snoke survived.

I genuinely liked Vice-Admiral Holdo, but they kind of fumbled her role in the story. She was never given a reason for why she did not share her plans with the rest of the Resistance. The most popular theory being that she assumed a mole was on board, but this was never stated in the movie. In my opinion, Poe had every reason to call for mutiny based on what he knew, so the whole message/character arc of him learning to be a leader rather than a hero didn’t quite stick the landing. So how will I fix it? Simple, replace Holdo with Leia. First things first, we don’t get the superman-flying, which is just an objective improvement. We also are more inclined to trust Leia over Poe, because of the legacy the character has. We’re also going with the plot-threat there is indeed a mole. What’s more, Leia is given the sendoff she deserves with the light-speed kamikaze scene. Sure, she may be force-sensitive, but it’s clear that she chose a different path in her life and I think she should go out as a warrior, not a Jedi, because that’s what she was. General Leia. Plus, you avoid the awkward interactions with CGI Leia from the canon episode 9. 

I think we can all agree that Finn deserved better, and he absolutely deserved to have the scene that was deleted, where he called out Phasma in front of her soldiers, telling them what happened in TFA, when Phasma caved so easily. This is the beginning of the Stormtrooper rebellion, and Finn is responsible for igniting the spark. He can definitely duel with Phasma, but he’s not going to win for one simple reason. The mole suddenly reveals herself and puts a blaster to his head. 

Spoiler alert, the mole is Rose. The reason why could vary - perhaps she blames the resistance for the death of her sister. Perhaps the First Order captured her sister alive and is threatening her. Either way, Rose’s efforts help turn the tide and allow her and Phasma to escape. The code-breaker can still be part of the movie, but he doesn’t really matter. The Canto Bight sequence is unchanged, because I honestly don’t dislike it at all. 

So who saves Finn from his attempt to follow General Leia’s example, and give his life for the cause that he now truly cares about? Poe does. This moment already causes their character arcs to intersect, with Poe being in the position Leia was in at the start of Last Jedi, Finn being in Poe’s position. Poe crashes their ships to save Finn, and because I’m #Stormpilot trash, and we deserved an onscreen LGBT relationship between leads, Poe does indeed kiss Finn. However, don’t worry about Rose. I have plans for her. 

That’s about all that changes. But in the grand scene of things, most of these aren’t really issues with the film itself. But they’re necessary to set up for my idea for a Rise of Skywalker re-write. Speaking of...

The Rise of Skywalker - let’s begin with the name. 

I hate this name and everything it represents. I’ve heard rumors of an alternate script where Ben Solo is not redeemed, called “Duel of Fates.” I’m not a fan of Ben not being redeemed, but I like the concept of that film name. So I’m thinking this movie will be called something like “One Last Bout” or “One Last Stand.” Something simple but effective, with the air of finality. I truly doubt Episode 9 is the end of Star Wars forever, but if we think of it as a conclusion to the first two trilogies, this can work. 

The film opens with the funeral of General Leia. With Rey, Finn, and Poe (who are holding hands for sure) all standing together with Chewie, who is in shambles as we can expect. Lando is also present and he gets re-introduced. Luke’s force spirit appears and looks on, but does not reveal himself to everyone else. Likewise, pan the camera over, and we see Kylo Ren observing the service as well, out of sight. Luke makes telepathic contact with Rey, to warn her of danger, at which point both Rey and Ben double over in pain, the sound design giving us an uncomfortable high pitched screech, or something similar. There’s a disturbance in the Force. Something is returning. Something terrible. Ben is spotted, and the main trio open fire with blasters, but Ben escapes. Lando stops Rey from pursuing him, suggesting that it would dishonor Leia’s memory to do it right then and there. 

Ben, on his ship, struggles with horrible pain, a serious headache. Until at last, he is telepathically contacted by a voice we do not hear. But it terrifies him, and he takes off in his ship in pursuit of it. 

A scene similar to the one where the Resistance analyzes Palpatine’s message, but there is no message and there is empathically no Palpatine in this movie, though I won’t get into why that was a horrible idea right now. Never mind, Rey is simply recounting to Finn, Poe, Chewie, and Lando that there’s a disturbance in the Force. Luke’s spirit appears and warns them that a great evil that long predates their time, is returning. He disappears, explaining that he needs to await Leia as she “crosses over” and becomes one with The Force. This is the last we see of Luke in the film, because his story is over. The torch has been passed.

Ben/Kylo Ren arrives at what we saw as Exegol. I don’t mind this planet being Exegol, it was about the only new location I actually remembered from the canon film. He confronts the voice in his head, proclaiming that he will kill any threat to The First Order and it’s Supreme Leader. A familiar voice in the dark chuckles. “You have yet to finish off your predecessor. By what right do you claim his job?” Snoke leans forward, and reveals himself. A similar scene to TROS plays out but with no mention of Rey. Despite Ben’s shock, Snoke is amused. “You are not the first apprentice to try and take my life. You probably won’t be the last. I have fashioned many into tools for the Dark Side, even the Emperor himself learned at my feet. Did you think you were special? So, yes. Snoke is the final Big Bad like he should have been (Andy Serkis was robbed) and he really is Darth Plagueis because he was totally supposed to be. By means of mental torture, Snoke reassumes control of Ben and tells him to gather the Knights of Ren “Wherever you’ve hidden them” and prepare to crush the rebellion once and for all. 

Instead of visiting a random planet for a lead, Lando and Chewie lead the gang back to Endor. Or it could also be Kashyyyk, I suppose. Like before, Lando and Luke were there. They spent years documenting the history of the Jedi and the Sith. This could be contained in “Holocrons” I realize they have meaning behind them in the lore, but I don’t know much, so just consider the “Holocron” to be a storage unit for information. Arriving there, we still have the scene of a local asking for Rey’s family name, but this time she’s going to stay no one like she should have. While researching, Finn expresses the theory, or more like the hope, that he might be Force-Sensitive. Rey tells him that everyone is, to an extent, but Finn clarifies that he means it the same way that Rey is. “Y’know, the way you can push stuff around and sense people’s feelings. Make stuff float.” An echo back to Rey’s line from TLJ. What I’m going for here is that Finn is not force-sensitive in the traditional way. His arc in this movie is going to be about accepting that, and realizing that he doesn’t need that to be a “hero.” He already is one, with everything he’s done. But as of right now, his insistence that he could be leads to bickering between him and Rey.

Things only get worse as Rey uncovers more about the Jedi. Sees some of the ways in which they were not the white knights that history remembers them as. Luke was right, they played no small part in creating Darth Vader. What’s more, she discovers the “Rule of Two” which has been hinted in the films but never discussed outright. The idea that there are only ever two people wielding the Dark Side, a master and an apprentice. And that the apprentice invariably kills the master to succeed them. A tradition dating back for millennia. The Sith, the practitioners of the Dark Side, always betray each other. She’s disheartened, thinking of Ben killing Snoke and how he offered her his hand. What it all would have led to in the end. 

They finally discover what could be the answer - the “great evil” that is returning. A Sith lord called Darth Plaguis, who, when they bring up the hologram of him, strongly resembles Snoke. They put two and two together, reading more about Plagueis’ file. How he vanished without a trace. How he was said to have performed an unspeakable ritual in the Dark Side to allow him to control life and death itself. He could revive those he loved from death, and could not truly he killed, having become an anomaly in the Force. Only another anomaly of equal power would be able to stop him. 

An ambush occurs, with assassins in masks attacking the heroes. They wield melee weapons that are not lightsabers, and they force the group to split up due to simply being outnumbered. The gang realizes that, apart from being here to kill them, they probably want that Holocron, but the Resistance must be the ones to get it. We get a similar scene to the canon film, with Chewie heading to the Millennium Falcon with the Holocron and trying to take off, to blast the assassins from the sky...but then the assassins reveal their ace card. They have force power. And they start to pull the Falcon back down. Rey struggles against them, but she’s outnumbered, still upset from everything that she’s learned, and easily angered when Finn rushes in to try and help, despite not being able to. Rey succumbs to her anger and unleashes Dark-Side lightning. Just like in the canon film. The differences? Number one, this doesn’t foreshadow any lineage for her...but importantly Chewie is actually dead, not just a fake-out. He’s dead, and the Falcon and Holocron are destroyed with him. Seriously, the emotional weight of that scene is completely drained by not having Chewie actually die there. The potential is lost, and I’m going to prove it. 

Rey is appropriately mortified, shocked, and despondent.  The assassins are too - they can’t believe their enemy killed one of their own just to win. Everyone is shocked, but Poe is the quickest to regain his head, dashing in and blasting at the assassins to help cover the heroes while they escape, Finn half-dragging a stunned Rey. So, everyone feels awkward about what just happened and though they believe Rey that it was an accident, it still happened and both Finn and Poe feel distant from her. Lando, understandably, is a lot less patient than them. He knew Chewie for years. His old feelings about losing Han might resurface, and he could say something about how Rey is no better than Kylo Ren, before catching himself and apologizing. At this point, Lando also departs. He needs to get back to the Resistance, because he has been named the Acting General, since Leia’s death. 

Meanwhile, Poe deduces that the assassins were the mythical “Knights of Ren” rumored to be the Supreme Leader’s private army. Rey is shaken from her stupor at this news - it doesn’t make sense, it completely violates the “Rule of Two.” Could Ben still be saved? Or is it too late for him? Is it too late for her, Rey, even? Cue Ben Solo/Kylo Ren opening up the force-bond once again. A similar conversation about how they’re both uncertain of their place in the galaxy, and a confirmation that Snoke is back, and is really Plagueis. Ben reveals that he’s been ordered to kill Rey, and he apologies - he truly doesn’t want to do this, but Snoke once again has control of him, and has proven that killing him won’t matter. Rey senses terrible pain, and gets a taste of what Ben has been put through - think, like, the Cruciatus Curse. Whatever “pain” move Kylo Ren used on Poe in TFA. He learned it from Snoke, of course. Ben closes the force-bond, telling Rey to run. Run as far and as fast as she can, because he’s no longer able to take it easy on her.

Finn and Poe overhear the conversation, or at least Rey’s side of it. They hear enough to deduce who she’s talking to, and this further plants the seeds of doubt in their heads. As we see in Last Jedi, Rey doesn’t really tell people about the force-bond, so we can assume she never told her friends. The family is fracturing more and more. Rey is slipping closer and closer to the Dark Side. And all without needing to give her a bloodline. See? I told you Chewbacca’s death had potential. 

They make a pit stop on Coruscant, because there’s no reason it couldn’t have been Coruscant, hiding from First Order ships. Here is where the character of Zorii originally showed up. As compelling as the performance was, she’s not going to show up here. Let’s be honest, she was only there to no-homo Finn and Poe, as well as give Poe a backstory that is apparently racist? (I’m not knowledgeable enough about this topic to comment, so let’s just throw out the whole idea.) Instead, the team is confronted by none other than Rose, the mole from TLJ. She reveals that more and more stormtroopers have been rebelling since Finn gave his speech. There’s only one faction that she is confident will never turn on the First Order - the Knights of Ren, who “seem to worship the Supreme Leader like a damn god...though, I guess he isn’t the Supreme Leader anymore, is he?” News is spreading of Snoke’s return, and Rose has the heroes cornered with a band of loyalist stormtroopers. 

Finn pleads with Rose, and the other Stormtroopers, to reconsider. Here is where we outline Rose’s character. She despises everything about war. She’s intentionally attacking both sides, seeking to see both the Resistance and The First Order collapse. She has a personal vendetta against Poe and actively tries to kill him, for his role in the battle that killed her sister. Poe likewise despises Rose for having betrayed Finn. Whether Rose’s actions are tactical doesn’t really matter - she’s responding from a place of emotion, not logic. Poe, showing his growth, apologies to Rose and talks her down. Explains the situation, how dire the circumstances are. Rey chimes in and identifies with Rose, having made plenty of mistakes of her own. There’s a moment of solidarity between the team once again. A moment, anyway. Poe makes peace with Rose, and she lets the heroes go. However, her stormtroopers turn on her, and attack everyone. The gang helps Rose escape with them, and after the escape, they realize that those stormtroopers were in fact the Knights of Ren, spying for Kylo Ren, which means Snoke as well. 

Rey, tortured by nightmares about Snoke, leaves in the middle of the night. Finn is awake, and tries to stop her, which leads to a major fight. Finn is having trouble trusting Rey, and it shows. Rey is likewise fed up with Finn trying to insert himself into the story, as it were. However, having been told by Rose the impact that he had on the galaxy, Finn no longer wishes to be a Jedi. He then redirects the question to Rey - does she want to be a Jedi? Like Luke? Honest answer - she doesn’t know. The Jedi of old would never have accepted her. She’d have been expelled and become another Darth Vader. Rey is impulsive, confrontational, she has a short temper. She gives in to the Dark Side too easily, and now it’s gotten someone killed. She feels diseased. Though Finn tries to dissuade such talk, it comes out that he and Poe overheard her conversation with Kylo Ren. Both sides are angry here, because Rey kept this secret, and because her friends spied on her. She cries out in anger, causing several nearby lights to blow out. Rey storms away, seeking to be alone.

This fight scene takes the place of the ESB rip-off with an evil Rey. That just wasn’t necessary. Instead, Rey leaves to confront Snoke, kill him once and for all, and rescue Ben if she can. After that, she isn’t sure what she’ll do. It is at this point that she is captured by the Knights of Ren. However, they don’t kill her, as instructed. They remove their masks - humanizing them as just being people. They reveal that they were the Jedi who followed Ben after he left Luke. When Starkiller Base was finished, Ben told them to go and evacuate their families from their home planets, just in case. The Knights stayed away for a long time, per Ben’s orders, but returned when he bid them too. They love him, seem to look up to him, and they can tell that he loves Rey. That he’s not his own man anymore. And that his best interests don’t align with Snoke’s. They know Snoke has to die, but also realize they aren’t powerful enough to stop him. The only one they can think of who might be - is Rey. They beg for her help, and she agrees.

The movie now offers a montage of Stormtroopers abandoning Phasma and Hux, and turning themselves in to the Resistance, explaining that they want to fight for the light. Meanwhile, Finn talks to Rose and Poe, and they all agree that they can’t just leave Rey, they have to go after her. They regret not trusting her, and conclude that even if she is tempted by the Dark Side, even if she falls...she’s still their friend. They don’t believe that she’s a spy - Rose offers useful tip in this sense. Observing that Rey offers none of the “tells.” Finally, we come to Rey training with the Knights of Ren. The transformation of her staff into a lightsaber pike. And it’s gold, baby. It’s gold. (Oh, since I forgot to mention this, Anakin’s lightsaber never gets repaired. Rey has been using a blaster up to this point.)

Bring us back to Snoke, torturing Ben once again as he can sense the betrayal of the Knights. Ben doesn’t realize that they’re still loyal to him, he thinks they just abandoned him, and his spirit is broken even further. Snoke talks more about his past, and here we can get a philosophical discussion. Perhaps Snoke discovered the midichlorians during his research, and exploited them for more power. He could analyze the Force as being, not a difference between light and darkness, but a shallow body of water that only gets deeper the further you venture. Snoke boasts that he was the first to risk “drowning” himself in it’s depths. Meanwhile, Ben hallucinates seeing Han, encouraging him to get up and fight back. We can also have Leia’s voice here, if we want. Ben fights back in a scene that echoes TFA, the way Rey resisted his own control. “You are no Master, Plagueis. Not of anyone or anything. You act so powerful, but your thoughts betray you. You’re afraid you will never get it right. Your desperation grows with every failure. But Today is not the day you finally succeed.”  snaps free of Snoke’s control and when Snoke attempts to dominate him with Force Lightning, Ben goes full Prince Zuko and redirects it, Yoda style. With that, he escapes, now on his own. 

Finn, Poe, and Rose show up to fight the Knights of Ren. Assuming Rey to be their prisoner. Rey, faced with her ultimate conflict, the symbol of her uncertainty, a literal metaphor between the two sides of her being at war...her loyalty to Ben, and her loyalty to her friends...her desire to be good, but her tendency toward darkness...finally completes her character arc and solves her identity issues. She creates a barrier between both sides, knocking them all down. She explains herself, telling her friends that the Knights want to stop Snoke. That she has joined them freely, for this reason. She apologizes for how distant she’s been. Admits that while she would never support the First Order, she does care for Ben Solo, despite all he’s done. This leads to Rey making up with her friends, and making peace with the Knights, who were already kind-of friends with Rose, once upon a time. This can lead into a bigger discussion about The Force, the concepts of good and evil as a whole. While Finn and Poe contact Lando, to tell him where Snoke is hiding, Rey reaches out to Ben through the force-bond. 

Meanwhile, Ben has returned to the planet where Luke’s old school of Jedi was. He visits the smoldering remains, and unearths Luke’s green lightsaber. He struggles, still feeling that call to the light, and now that he’s alone and able to meditate, he attempts to do what Snoke did, and “drown” himself in the Force, in the hope of stopping him. He doesn’t drown. Instead, he meets a spirit who he had unconsciously blocked out a long time ago. Anakin Skywalker, portrayed by Hayden “The lines were terrible but his acting was actually pretty good” Christensen.  The call to the light that Ben had always resisted had come from Anakin. These two finally talk, and Anakin urges Ben to choose the right side. They find solidarity in understanding that they were both drawn to the Dark Side, and both felt that this meant they “had” to be evil. Anakin doesn’t dissuade Ben from the Dark Side, but advises him to do what is right for the galaxy, defeating Snoke. Ben is helpless, he doesn’t know how. But Anakin tells him that an anomaly of equal power to Snoke could be enough to kill him forever. It’s definitely worth a try. Anakin fades, promising Ben that the answer is closer than he thinks. He can sense it right now...

After Anakin fades, Rey appears. She has succeeded in contacting Ben, and they catch up. Ben learning that The Knights still care about him, and that Rey has joined them. Rey expresses that Ben was right - it’s time to leave the Jedi and the Sith behind. To start something new. They can discuss the Force in greater detail, how being Dark doesn’t always mean one is evil, but the teachings of the Jedi suggest that it is a binary system. They express affection for each other. With everyone around Rey seeing her talk to someone invisible, Rey reaches out her hand...and Ben takes it. Suddenly appearing in the ship with everyone else. 

Rey and The Knights take turns embracing him, and he exchanges awkward nods with the others. With the help of the Knights, the group comes to the conclusion that Rey and Ben are some kind of Dyad in the Force, irrevocably connected. The two that are one. Such a thing has not been seen in millennia. It’s almost like a glitch in the universe. But this anomaly could be what it takes to stop Snoke for good. 

The main team makes their way back to Exegol as we see Lando giving a speech to the Resistance, now much stronger with the added former-Stormtroopers. As much as I love Jannah, she’s just as unnecessary as Zorii. That screen time could have and should have gone to Rose as she re-establishes herself back into the squad, same as Ben. Everyone arrives at Exegol at the same time, and Resistance soldiers move to open fire on Rose and Ben, understandably so, but here come Poe and Finn to talk them down and explain the situation. No one is happy about it, particularly having Ben Solo around, but Lando, with much consternation, accepts the situation and tells the Resistance not to fire on their new allies. However, he also instructs Finn to kill Ben if he steps out of line. We can get a callback when Finn gives the “I’m watching you” look to Ben, and have a line like “Don’t be a traitor.” Or something. 

Final battle time. Another montage. Finn leading the former storm-troopers in the battle against the last of Snoke’s loyalists, led by Phasma. Together with Rose, Finn defeats them and Phasma is left on her knees. She pleads for mercy, and Rose is prepared to kill her, but Finn intervenes. They take her prisoner instead, because killing people who are already defeated and defenseless is the “Stormtrooper” way. 

Rey, Ben, and the Knights are helping out with their Melee weapons. The Knights are also using the Force, because not using it offensively was a Jedi message, and they didn’t always follow it anyway. Though he’s definitively good now, Ben is still wearing his Kylo Ren armor, and wielding the cross-guard saber. I mean, imagine if he showed up to a warzone in day clothes with a blaster, just because his previous weapons were “evil?” How stupid would that be, right? However, at one point the cross-guard saber is destroyed in the right, and left empty-handed, Ben pulls out Luke’s lightsaber, stares at it...and then ignites it to rejoin the fray.

 We likewise get a battle of wits and strategy between Poe and Hux, as Poe commands a legion to take out the forces guarding Snoke’s throne room. In the end, Poe’s armada is saved by another that Lando commands. Hux manages to fatally shoot Lando, but Poe quickly repays him in kind. While everyone crowds around Lando, Hux dies alone, symbolizing the difference between the two causes. Lando expresses pride in how far Poe has come, tells him that Leia would be proud too, and with his dying words, he addresses Poe as “General Dameron.” It’s a truly emotional moment and afterward, Poe simply turns to the loyalist stormtroopers, carrying the poise and energy of a powerful leader. He tells them to drop their weapons. To surrender now, and they won’t be harmed. It’s badass. And the loyalists do as instructed. 

The path is clear for Rey and Ben to rush in to the Throne Room and kill Snoke, with the Resistance following them as backup. Only Snoke is nowhere to be seen. All of a sudden, we hear that high-pitched screech again. Rey and Ben collapse in terrible pain, hearing Snoke’s voice. His physical body no longer matters or plays by the same rules. He has essentially taken the practice of returning as a force-spirit and perverted it to become Dark. We now get Snoke’s final backstory, and the answer to why he’s able to do this. Snoke himself was part of a Dyad, centuries ago. Though exceptionally rare, Rey and Ben’s bond is not unique. However, Snoke murdered his counterpart for his own selfish reasons. A total violation of nature. This is what splintered him and turned him into the unnatural being that he is now. Rey and Ben vanish, to the alarm of Finn and Poe, as they disappear into the Force. 

The three of them - Rey, Ben, and Snoke, all appear to be in some kind of void. Snoke recounts having sensed the awakening of another Dyad (”The Force Awakens”) and that this is what prompted him to return to physical form in the first place. He reveals his final plan. Rey and Ben must now fight to the death - the winner becoming as powerful Snoke himself. He promises that the winner can rule beside him. This is probably a lie, and both of his opponents refuse. But Snoke also warns that without achieving that kind of power, they’ll be hopeless to stop him. He dual wields red lightsabers in the subsequent duel. Notice how Rey and Ben are using sabers of gold and green - the opposite of red and blue, which  have traditionally symbolized the Jedi and the Sith conflict. Snoke tells them that they have no future. They cannot become Jedi, not with the crimes they’ve committed. If they become Sith, well...he cites the “Rule of Two” insisting that Rey and Ben cannot coexist because one will inevitably slay the other. Rey and Ben respond that they are neither, that they simply fight for what they believe in. That they are...knights of Ren. 

Together, they strike back, plunging their sabers through Snoke’s chest. He vanishes, and the void world vanishes. Rey and Ben reappear in the throne room, and Snoke is there too, staggering to his feet. The Resistance takes aim at him, but he pays them no mind. He warns the two heroes that there is no telling what will happen if they choose this path, that the Galaxy needs structure when dealing with an entity as vague and infinite as The Force. Rey responds simply that “The Force is not some stranger or threat. It is not a vice for power. The Force...is us. All of us. The good and the bad, the light and the dark. So long as we stand together, you will never influence The Force again. You will never control us. You will never return again.” With a roar of defeat, Snoke’s body turns to dust, and a shadowy mass is left in it’s place. Finn and Poe fire at at it, to no avail, but Rey and Ben join hands, and as the shadowy mass surges toward them, The Dyad employs it’s full potential, causing Snoke’s bastardized force-spirit to vanish. Not sure how this would be filmed without looking silly, but I swear, it’s compelling. 

The battle is over. Everyone celebrates. When Finn and Poe kiss, it’s earned, not some nameless background characters. The team returns to the Resistance base. Poe has been unanimously voted to be the new General, which is the closest thing they have to an elected leader right now, so he is in charge of the trials for the loyalists, and the Knights of Ren. The people who committed treason or other crimes. But we only see three of these trials. Ben Solo, Rose Tico...and Rey. After all, she did kill Chewie, right? She conspired with the Knights, too. Rey is pardoned almost immediately, Rose not long after, but Ben Solo...after much consideration, Poe charges the Knights of Ren to a path of atonement. To go around, helping fix the Galaxy. Community service. 

Ben and the Knights prepare to leave on their trip, and Rey and Ben say goodbye. How ship-teasy this is, if there’s a final kiss...eh, interpret how you like. I’m a Reylo fan personally, but I know a lot of people aren’t. Ben promises to see Rey again, and they both acknowledge that thanks to the Dyad, they won’t have to go without seeing each other, not really. Likewise, Rey and Finn and Poe and Rose will be helping to fix up the galaxy, so it’s certainly not goodbye. 

I lied, Luke’s force-spirit appears one more time, this time with Leia, though she doesn’t speak much for obvious reasons. Luke is proud of her, and says something to the effect of “Not bad for a scavenger girl with no family from Jakku of all places. Well done, Rey from nowhere.” Rey looks around at everyone - at Finn, Poe, Rose. At Ben and the Knights. At C3PO, R2D2 and BB8 (Who were definitely involved the whole time I just didn’t have much to say about them) she looks back at Luke and replies that she does have a family. She and her friends go to wave goodbye as Ben’s ship takes off, flying into the sunset, and....ENDING CREDITS!

Let me know what y’all think! Hopefully this doesn’t throw out quite as much from Last Jedi, and does the characters justice! 

[teacherunicorn]

Delores Theadoisa Hargreeves

Chapter Eleven

@tomisbaeholland

Italics = Delores' letter to Five

*Thirteen Years Old*

Dear Finn,

I've missed you. How've you been?

"I wanna time travel."

Having been lost in the book she was reading -- ironically a college history textbook -- Delores was not expecting her brother to materialize by her side, despite his fondness for doing so.

Seems silly, I know; writing a letter that you'll never get to read because I don't have anywhere to send it.

"Doors, Five! We've discussed this!" She exclaimed upon recovery from her minor heart attack.

Five rolled his eyes. In a flash of blue light, he was gone. A shave and haircut knock sounded from the other side of Delores'bedroom door, and it opened, only for Five to teleport back to her side on her bed upon closing it.

Delores huffed and lay her forehead on her book. "You know, I worked so hard, how did I mange to raise such a brat?"

"Love you too." Five nodded. "I wanna time travel."

I mean, Klaus says he can't see you -- not that he sees much of anything these days -- but I like to think it's because you pulled it off.

"Why? I can guarantee you that the world sucks no matter what year you're in."

"I wanna prove I can do it. If my spacial jumps can take me through physical space, why shouldn't they be able to take me through time?"

"Teleportation and time travel are two very different things Five." Delores informed.

I'm not sure if you're so caught up in it all that you haven't been back to visit yet,

"You don't think I can do it?" He raised an eyebrow, a defensive tone edging his voice.

or if something went wrong and you can't make it back.

"I'm not saying that. I'm saying you need to take it slowly the same way we approached the rest of your training. More so; if you get stuck in a different time there's very little we can do to get you back." She laid her hand over his. "You can accomplish anything you set your mind to Finny. I'm just not willing to put you at risk to prove a point."

Five's name had been basically forgotten by the household. No one used it anymore, and it was likely the others believed their brother had simply never had a name to begin with.

Delores was the only one to still call him Finny, and it was how he knew she was being serious. (She only used Finnegan when he was in trouble.)

"Fine. You're right."

"Try again."

"I'm wrong."

"There ya go." She smirked, nudging him with her elbow.

Five glared at her, but was unable to keep the corner of his lips from turning up. "I'm still gonna do it."

"Take pictures when you do." Delores requested. "I've got this theory that dinosaurs had feathers."

But I like to think you're out there somewhen, taking pictures like I asked you to.

******

*Several Weeks Later*

Meals in the Hargreeves household, like most times spent in Reginald's vicinity, were quiet. The sound of a Herr Carlson broadcast playing filled the empty spaces between the scrapping of cutlery and Diego carving his initials into his chair.

Not to say this stopped conversation; the Hargreeves children were quite adapt at talking with their eyes. As such, Delores caught on quite quickly to the silent argument Five seemed to be having with Vanya, along with the glares intermittently thrown her Grandfather's way.

If you end up in the future, I hope you come across a few of the signs I left for you.

Vanya was just giving her a desperate look asking for her intervention, when Five slammed his steak knife into the table.

It's a real Hail Mary, because of course, I don't exactly know where or when you are.

"Number Five?"

"I have a question."

“Knowledge is an admirable goal, but you know the rules; no talking during meal times. You are interrupting Herr Carlson.”

What are you up to Finny? Delores worried. No one, even Five as bold and brash as he could be, would dare make a scene like this in front of Reginald over small potatoes.

"I want to time travel."

Wherever it is, it must be far....

Uh oh...

"No." Reginald said flatly, not once looking up from his meal.

"But I'm ready. I've been practicing my spacial jumps, just like you and Eight said." A flash and he was standing at her Grandfather's side. "See?"

“A spacial jump is trivial when compared to the unknowns of time travel. One is like sliding across the ice, the other is akin to descending blindly into the depths of the freezing water, and re-emerging as an acorn.”

Perhaps Delores really wasn’t getting enough sleep; that almost made sense to her. It clearly didn’t to Five however, as his smile grew stiffer. “Well, I don’t get it.”

"Hence the reason, you're not ready."

"I'm not afraid!"

“Fear isn’t the issue.” Reginald finally set down his cutlery to look at his son. “The effects it might have on your body, even on your mind, are far too unpredictable. Now, I forbid you to talk about this anymore.” He turned back to his plate, clearly thinking the conversation to be over.

You don't have to worry about us though okay? I can handle everything here; you go explore. It's what you were meant to do.

Five, in all his stubbornness, had other ideas.

Several things happened in quick succession; Five ran from the room, Reginald called after him. Delores ran after Five, also ignoring her Grandfather’s calls of ‘You haven’t been excused!’

“Finny!” She chased him out the gate and down the block. Delores could see the familiar blue surrounding him and reached out to grab him. Her fingertips jus barely brushed the fabric of his jacket before he jumped through his portal and was gone.

Take lots of pictures, bring back lots of stories, there'll be a peanut butter and marshmallow sandwich waiting for you.

*******

Five lit up when the season around him changed. “Not ready, my ass!” He pushed further, autum leaves turning into snow. He spots a storefront advertising polaroid cameras on Christmas special.

"Take pictures when you do."

Caring very little for the price tag, Five jumps his way into the store and picks up the first camera he sees, along with the extra paper pack that happens to be laying next to it. He jumps back to the street and barely hears the store clerk start to yell before he jumps through time again.

Only this time it didn't go so well.

Camera and supplies clatter to the ground. Five looks around in shock and fear at the wreckage around him. He can still recognize what used to be the store he had just stolen from.

We'll be waiting for you when you come home.

A sharp feeling of terror fills him and he darts back down the street the way he’d come, skidding to a halt in front of the gate he had gone through minutes before, now bent and hanging off it’s hinges.

“Eight! Vanya! Ben!” He yells into the wreckage. “Anyone!”

He runs through the broken gate and across the stone rubble. There are a collection of bodies sticking out under the dust that at first he doesn’t recognize. Then he sees the familiar umbrella tattoo on one of their arms and his heart stops.

Klaus.

Allison.

Luther.

Diego.

As he puts names to the aged faces, his stomach drops out when his eyes land on the last one.

I love you, Finny. Stay safe.

There, tucked in the back like they had been trying to protect her, is a woman a few years older than the rest, her blonde hair draped over a treble cleft tattoo on her left arm.

-- Love, #8

“No. No no nonononnono!” He runs over and shakes her slightly. “E, wake up please!” no response. Her body remains limp and her eyes remain closed. “Eight! Eight! Mom, come on please!”

Next

[vampire207343]

Faith Liac Mikaelson

         What if....  Youngest Potter died and reborn, in another wold leaving her beloved husband and two sons.

                                                        ****

             After the defeat of the Dark Lordthe oldest Daughter of tge Potters, Camilia Liliana Potter (The-Girl-Who-Lived) found out that her younger twin sister Hyacinth Lilac Potter (Fem!Harry Potter) has been dating Camalia’s sworn enemies, Draco Lucius Malfoy for almost 4 years, she never known about the relationship even though Draco and Hycinth Potter never hidden their relationship from anyone, Even Hyacinth’s GodFather Sirius Orion Black had known about the relationship when he was alived.

               Evenutally Camalia and Hyavinth drift away from one another. It wasn’t long before Draco and Hyacinth married when the Potter twins finally lost all contact with one another.

A year after the war ended and Draco & Hyacinth gotten married when they gaved the news to the family and friends that they will be welcoming two new members of the family in 7 months and by then Hyacinth already drop the Potter name and began going by Black being the Lady of the house of Black. And one day her first born son would take the title from her when he come of age.

                     On May 15, 2001

Hyacinth Black Malfoy gaved birth to two healthy twin boys the oldest son who has Black hair of his grandfather and Sliver Blue eyes like his father, is given the name James Sirius Black Malfoy the secound the future Lord of the house of Black, and the youngest son who is identical to Draco Malfoy himself is given the Scorpio Rigel Black Malfoy the future Lord ofbthe house of Malfoy.

                  18 years later....

The Malfoy twins recently turn 17 years old and recently graduate Hogwarts, James Surius Black Malfoy is currently the new Lord of the most Ancient and most Noble House of Black, and Scorpio Rigel Black Malfoy is also the current Lord of the most Ancient Noble House of Malfoy.

When Hyacinth Black Malfoy unexpectedly died of Dragon pox since they were unawared that she even has it since she never showed any sign of having Dragon Pox until her death when the Healer’s scan her body, Draco Malfoy  was devested by the Death of his beloved wife, but he has to stay strong for his two sons.

               4 years after, Hyacinth Black Malfoy’s death, Draco Malfoy re-married after get the blessing of his two sons, he courted the youngest Greengrast sister for 2 & 1/2  years, Astoria Greengrass who made a silent vowbthe day her bestfriend Hyacinthb Black Malfoy died that she would watch over her three boys for herand that she would be their for them like she promise in her death bed.

Death collected Hyacinth Black Malfoy’s soul, but the moment Hyacinth arrived in the realm of the dead she quickly reborn in another world so simikar to her old one. She is reborn a twin once again. She is the youngest Daughter of Klaus Mikaelson and Hayle Marshall.

                    Faith lilac Mikaelson the reborn self of Hyacinth Black Malfoy one of the most powerful witch of her generation that rivals her former twin sister Camalia Liliana Potter Weasley. So it was no surprised that she is a powerful witch on her new life as well. But she isn’t treated right by her new family, she is ignored by her parents Klaus Mikaelson & Hayley Marshall, and her Aunt Rebekah who always dream of having children of her own ignore her as well she take my presence as a nuisance to the family. The same could be said for Elijah Mikaelson the so called Noble Uncle. Then their’s Freya Mikaelson the long lost sister of the original Family, she is no better than the rest of their family, they all ignored Faith Mikaelson for the Suppose Strongest twin, Hope Andrea Mikealson.

But if you had ask Kol Mikalson who was the strongest witch between Hope and Faith. He’ll say Faith is more powerfull than do called “First Born” witch of the Mikaeldon family. He is the only one who knows what Faith is feeling being ignored like they woild rather be anywhere but with her. He know that feeling since been their for almost all his life never fiting in with his brothers or sister even when they were human so it was no surprise that he favore Faith his youngest niece. Other than him his wife Davina Claire and Marcel Gerald are the only one who loves her.

            Faith Lilac Mikaelson was ignored by almost by all her family with the exception of her favorite Uncle Kol Mikaelsonand his wife her Aunt Davina along with her brother figure Marcel Gerald for 6 years and she can’t afford to stay in the same house as hrt so call family any longer, so she run away from home only telling her Uncle Kol and her Aunt Davina along with her brother figure Marcel and made them promise not say anything to their so call family not that that they would even know that she run away at all.

when she arrive at her desried location Mystic Fall, and she cast a powerfull cloaking spell on herself to make sure her Aunt Freya can’t tract her

“coeur la vous votre tai ma say tou” with the help of the spirit of Esther and Dahlia Mikaelson.

And it wasn’t long before she vefan casting the Rescurrection spell of her own creation that her Uncle Finn was brought a vampire with out needing to drink human blood at all. The spell work like it should she was affair that it would fail. She conjured him some clothes to wear before telling him Everything thatvhappen since he died and that the only one who cared about what haappen to her is her Unclec Kol and his wife her Aunt Davina other than both of them shebis mostly ignored by the rest of her family  for first 6 years of her life.

Finn Mikaelson didn’t think that his family could get any worse, But he was proven wrong,  they have chosen to ignore a child like her very existen didn’t worth a thing. Like how they all treated Kol when we were all human. He talk to his new discovered niece the youngest Daughter of his brother Klaus. He even had the chance to speak with his youngest brother Kol in the phone. He decided to rise his youngest niece like my brother Klaus should have done. The only one who even rised Faith right is my youngest brother Kol Mikealson and his wife Davina Clair and in a year Kol and his wife would be moving back to Mystic Fall to be near Faith. The only one who remotly change from all my siblings is my youngest brother Kol and he use to be the most iresponsible of all my siblings.

         Finn enroled his young niece to Salvator Boarding School for the Gifted where she meet children her age and made her very first friend  in Jason “Jace” Alexsander Salvator the son of Caroline Forbes and her late husband Stefan Salvator, He is a Heretic Vampire, she also befriend the saltzman twins but she closer to Jace and Lizzy more

            Faith Mikaelson past memories of her past life has been slowly returning to her, but while she regaining the memories of her past life she has no connection to that life except for the memories that’s returning. She also began re-creating every spells that Hyacinth Black Malfoy knows and use it to daily life. Even re-creating all the spell she ever created in that life.

  It didn’t take long before Faith befriend Jace’s cousin Hunter Grayson Salvator the son of Elena Gilbert and Damon Salvator.

      While both Elena and Damon Salvator still hate  Klaus Mikealsonbfor everything that he ever did to them, but his youngest daughter Faith is innocent from Klaus own crime, in fac she has their sympathy for having Klaus Mikaelson as her father and never having a real childhood being ignored by most of her family. It wss hard to believed the most iresponsible Mikalson end up to be the one carring for this innocent and sweet little girl. The more they get to kow Faith Mikaelson, she remind everyone so much of Elena herself when she was a kid, so it was no surprise to anyone that Damon end up liking Faith so much.

          1 year later...

Kol Mikaelson and his wife Davina Claire start to distance themself from the rest of the family after their favorite niece Faith Lilac Mikaelson run away from home they didn’t even notice she was even missing for 5 months after the Hallow to possession of Hope and in order to keep Hope safe, Freya divided all the Hallow in equal part of 4 before being sealed inside there body before their seperate way to keep Hope safe, and Hayle knows to keep of Mystic Fall since that’s where Kol and Davina plan to move. 

The part of the Hallow inside Kol wouldn’t be able to try to take possession of Faith’s body since Faith casted a powerful cloakihg and protection spell on her person that not even Freya can break through.

             6 & 1/2 years later..

Faith Lilac Mikaelson and

Jason “Jace” Alexsander Salvator  both recently turn 18 years old and graduate at Salvator boarding school after attenteding the school for 12 years. And they both plan on leaving Mystic Fall for Collage and attented Norwich University of the Art in England.

But before they leave for Collage they are going to attend the wedding of her srcound favorite 

Uncle Finn Mikaelson’s big wedding to our favorite teacher in Salvator Boarding School

Adela Harper Jones my new Aunt teach Salvator Boarding School as the Defence Teacher and she’s a Phoenix.

       After Uncle Finn and Aunt Adelab left for their Honeymoon in Paris did both Faith and Jace left gor Collage as well.

Freya found away to destroy all the Hallow without her brothers and sister dying so that Hope may have all her family together again so with the Hallow gone.

Hope Andrea Mikaelson is trying yo convince her parents to allow her to attented normal school like any teenager. It only took her two months, before all of them leaves New Orlean to move back to Mystic Fall for Hope’s new school, Freya already called Salvator Boarding School to enrole Hope Mikaelson.

The Salvators, and Bennett witch along with the rest of their friends that the rest of the Mikaelson are moving back in town. The reason they accept Kol and Finn Mikaelson is because they know both of them have change, so they aren’t happy that Klaus and the rest of his siblings return to Mystic Fall.

Hope Mikaelson is having problem making friends until 5 months later, when she offically meet Jossie Saltzman and befriend her but Jossie’s twin sister Lizzie tend to avoid me no matter what, I gotten the feeling that Lizzy hates my gut.

          Lizzie Saltzman don’t get what’s so imprortant about Hope Mikaelson that her family ignored her best friend very existence well it can’t be because Hope being more powerful witch because Faith is alot more powerful witch than her older twin sister, just because Hope Mikaelson is a tribird dosen’t mean she’s more powerful than Faith their uncle Kol and Finn would be able to tell you that.

5 months later on March 5, Hope Mikaelson meet another new student who’s a blonde Doppleganger of Faith Mikaelson

 who is a new werewolf student, and Hope befriend Clarrisa “Clary” Rose Smith unknown to Hope that that the reason why Kol and Finn are shock to meet Hope’s new friend is because she look like a blonde version of Faith Mikaelson not that Hope knows her new friend look is a look a like her younger twin.

Damon and Elena are worried that their might be another Doppleganger Drama again in the coming future since Clary Smith look like a blonde werewolf version of Faith Mikaelson. They already went through Doppleganger drama that would last them a life time. 

          2 years later...

Faith and Jace graduate Norwich University of Art only attented Collage for 2 years graduating early. After graduating Faith and jace are getting married after they get out of Collage which their close friends and family are invited for the wedding. They got married in England.

Faith Lilac Mikaelson and 

Jason “Jace” Alexsander Salvator are in their honeymoon  in singapore they stayed their for 3 months before visit their family in Mystic Fall, but they plan to settle in England instead of staying  in England to work where Faith has slowly been creating her own Fashion Line called FLMS Fashion since the beging of their collage career, while Jace also been directing small movies of his own is slowly rising up like his wife so they decided to stay in England.

Mystic Fall...

While Faith and Jace Salvator visit their family Klaus and Hayley manged to catch a glimps of their youngest daughyter Faith wuo’s living a successful life recently married to her lingbtime Boyfriend Jace Salavtor the son of Caroline Forbes and her late husband Stefan Salvator. She’s close to both Finn and Kol along with their respected wifes.

The family tried to approach her over the week she was in mystic fall but they never manged to talk to her and how they all wish yo make up for everything  when she was a child leaving her out to celebrate Hope and Faith’s birthday they realized that Kol and Davina were more Faith’s parents than they were. It wasn’t long before returning to England.

[iamfallinforeverything]

First Love (2/?)

Here it is dear @xceafh​  I hope you like it 😊 Also it is alot different from what you requested, but I decided to make this into a little series, because I have a lot of ideas for this and it would be to much for one part. So there is going to be a third part for sure, maybe even a fourth. I don’t know yet.

Also let me know if any of you want to be tagged in the upcoming stuff for First Love. I’ll try to make a tag list for this 😅

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 (coming soon)

Fandom: The Vampire Diaries, The Originals

                (Elijah Mikaelson, Kol Mikaelson (coming soon))

Summary: Your ancestors make sure that you’ll keep your promise and it’s going to be interesting.

Words: +1,6k

Warnings: swearing, angst (just being upset I guess), alcohol 

Y/F/D = Your favorite drink

Last Time: For a moment it was silent. And then Niklaus clapped his hands and looked at me.

“So, let’s talk about that promise you just made.”, he smiled and wrapped his arm around my shoulders. “Because I don’t want to change who I am.”

***

We started to walk back to the house and I looked at him unsure. 

“That’s going to be a problem then.”, I answered and smiled nervously. 

“Oh it’s not. I’ve known most of the witches from your coven. They know that I am not willing to change who I am.”, Niklaus answered and let go of my arm. I stopped my walk. 

“Because you killed most of them, haven’t you?”, I answered. 

“You could say so. I prefer to say that I defended myself.”, he said and turned back around. 

“Of course you did.”, I breathed heavily and walked past him, back inside the house. 

Esther was gone. I couldn’t see her anymore. Just like Elijah. He’s probably taking care of her. 

“Care to explain what the hell you did out there?”, Niklaus asked when he had caught up to me and was next to me again. 

“Isn’t it that obvious? I peformed magic.”, I answered and shrugged with my shoulders. 

“That’s not what I meant little witch. Stop playing games with me.”, Niklaus said and sounded a little angry. 

“Or else what?”, I challenged him. 

“You don’t want to know that my dear.” 

“Oh, I have a good idea of what's going to follow.”, I smiled sweetly at him and spook a little spell to make it unbearable for him to be around me. 

I could hear him gag and I laughed quietly. 

“Stupid little witch.”, I heard him say which made me laugh louder. 

I walked towards one of the many bars and ordered some water. With the glass in my hands I started to walk around again. I could see Finn, Rebekah and Kol talking with eachothers. Just as I was about to speak a little spell to hear what they were saying, their heads turned in my direction and all three looked at me. Kol looked so tortured again. As if something was putting him in a lot of pain.  The sick feeling in my stomach returned and all I wanted to do was to leave this house. I was here for what I was invited to. So I’m free to go, right? As if anyone would care anyway. 

I put the glass down and walked towards the exit. Everything I wanted to do was to go home, curle up under my warm blanket and sleep for four weeks straight. For some reason looking at Kol, Finn and Rebekah made me sick as fuck. 

I walked out the door and straight to my car. I just needed to get in and drive back home. Not a big deal. I can drive. I can drive in the dark and the last sip of alcohol is was also... ...half an hour ago?  That’s fine. I can leave. It’s fine. 

Then why the fucking isn’t my stupid car opening? I had pressed the stupid button at least 1000 times and I had even rattled the handle. It just did not open. Fuck it, who needs a car when there are buses and trains. Besides, I'm a witch, I can do it without a car. 

So I took off my high heels, picked them up and walked home. I walked the long way down to the gate. Pebbles, by the way, are an invention of men who never have to walk over them with bare feet. I cursed every little pebble and as I stood in front of the gate, it crossed my mind that I could also enchant them to make them soft. But I could also simply magically create flat shoes, which will certainly be useful for the further way home. 

And that is exactly what I did as I walked through the gate. Or at least I tried. In front of the gate was an invisible barrier, which I couldn't get through.

"That little bitch Esther," I murmured quietly and quickly spoke a spell that should undo her "protection" spell. But when I still couldn't get through the gate, I realized it wasn't Esther's protection spell. It wasn't even a protection spell.

"You're kidding me, aren't you?" I said and tried another spell, but it didn't help either, which was clear.  "You're gonna lock me in here? You're really gonna lock me in here? With the vampires. With the fucking original vampires! They' re gonna kill me. They're all gonna kill me." 

Beaten, I turned around again and looked at the house in front of me, where I was forced to spend the next time, if not the rest of my life. Why did I always have to be so damn forward? Did I have to promise to change them back to humans? Couldn't I have come up with something else? Like turning them into a bunny, for example? That would be easier. 

What am I supposed to do now? I can't leave the stupid property and one day they' ll notice me anyway. And I didn't want to sleep in a bush either. 

Why were my stupid ancestors so damn specific about everything? I could just as easily fulfill my promise with something warm to drink in my cuddly bed. Wouldn't be a problem. No, of course they were melodramatic again and had to lock me up here. With the crazy ones. Great. Thanks, you idiots.  

So I trotted back to the house and on the way there I decided to get drunk without restraint. I intensified my little spell that's keeping Niklaus away from me, and extended it to the entire Mikaelson family. Only Elijah I spared. I liked him. Somehow.

In the house I immediately headed to the first bar I saw and ordered Y/F/D, drank my drink straight down and ordered a new one. I did the same and with the third glass I resumed my tour through the house, even though I already knew the area where the guests were allowed to go. So I extended my tour to the "private" rooms. At some point I would know all of them anyway, after all I would stay here for a while. I wondered for how long my ancestors would go on playing this game. At least I knew that my mother's crazy aunt had a lot of stamina when it came to punishment. And my father's mother, my grandmother, also loved punishment. What kind of stupid family did I live in? Who loved punishing people? Who loved punishing their own family?

I drank my drink, walked around aimlessly and watched the Mikaelson family trying to get closer to me, but each time they soon started puking. The drunker I got, the funnier it got. Eventually I turned the tables and walked towards them, which made them start to run. I had to control myself not to laugh out loud. It looked too funny watching Finn puff out his cheeks because he was gagging. Or the look Rebekah got on her face. It was just amusing.

Unfortunately this game got boring after a while and so I decided to go outside again.  It was damn cold outside and a dress with thin straps and a huge slit on the side didn't really help against the cold. But I was more than drunk, so I didn't really care. Maybe I was lucky and would freeze to death. Would my spirit be trapped here too then? That would be terrible. Being tied to this place forever.

For a while I just walked through the garden until I found a bench  a little bit away from everything and sat down. With my back to the house. I just looked up at the sky and watched the stars. I wondered how much they' d already seen in their lives.

I heard footsteps behind me, but I didn't really cared who was coming. I couldn't walk away anyway.

A thin blanket was put around my shoulders before someone sat down beside me. A quick glance was enough to know that it was Elijah.

"Were you not about to leave?", Elijah asked.

"Can't.", I murmured back without looking at him.

"Why may I ask?"

"Because my ancestors are little shitheads who won't let me go until I have kept my promise," I replied fiercely and immediately felt a slight tug in my head. That must have been my mother's crazy aunt. She has always hated me.

"Care to explain?"

"They have bound me to this property. I can't leave because there's a barrier around the entire property. I can't leave until I keep my promise. And since that is very unlikely, I will be stuck here forever.", I said. Maybe I was slurring my words, I was not quite sure.

"Why did you help us at all? We have brought nothing but misery to your coven."

"I don't know. I just had to.", I shrugged.

Elijah didn't say anything else. He just sat there. Kept me company. I could feel myself getting tired. Magic and alcohol made me sleepy. Elijah noticed that immediately.

"Come. I'll show you a room where you can stay.", he said and extended his hand to me.

Without thinking I took it and let him pull me up. My eyes were heavy and I coulnd't think straight. Was the sun rising back there? Was it already so late? Or was it just some lights from the party?

I didn't know and to be honest I didn't really cared. I was exhausted and I just wanted to sleep. I didn't really remember how I got into the room either. All I knew was that Elijah had helped me. And after that, it was all just a blur. Damn alcohol.

And please, don’t ask me where the stupid blanket went that Elijah put around my shoulders because I don’t have a fucking clue. 

[bettsfic]

nobody asked but here’s how i would have written it: star wars sequels edition

WARNING FOR TROS SPOILERS

(though they are somewhat hidden, because this is just what i wish had happened)

in the same way i re-plotted season 8 of game of thrones, here’s how i would have plotted the star wars sequels in terms of the basic beats of conflict, using the themes and characters already established.

the force awakens

more time spent on what happens between RotJ and TFA. the present narrative is interspersed with flashbacks to ben solo’s upbringing, so we see where the seeds of darkness grew from.

ben is a good boy who turns into something of an entitled brat. it is both everyone’s and no one’s fault. han and leia’s divorce. leia’s duties which take up most of her time. han running away from his problems, and both of them dropping him off with luke to be trained as a jedi, without regard to how his young mind perceives it -- a small betrayal, a change for which he has no explanation or understanding.

then there’s luke’s patient yet firm hand in teaching ben the ways of the jedi. ben wants to be special. he wants his power and potential acknowledged. he is the grandson of anakin skywalker, the greatest jedi who ever lived. but luke spends most of his time trying to teach ben humility. it only leads to ben’s teenage resentment.

they fight, and snoke comes to ben in a dream, offering him everything he desires -- he would be snoke’s one and only apprentice. he would be given access to power beyond anything the jedi could show him. he would be able to do whatever he wanted. and best of all, he would finally fulfill his potential.

ben says no, of course, because the dark side is Bad. but snoke keeps coming to him after every altercation with luke, until eventually ben’s resolve breaks, and darkness floods him, that’s how luke finds ben when he pulls his saber -- one foot in darkness. it’s the turning point that leads ben astray.

MEANWHILE throughout his and rey’s lives (here is where shit gets ROMANTIC) they’ve felt a bond with each other, though neither could explain it, and they did not know who rested at the other end of the bond. for years, they offered each other comfort in dark times, until kylo ren came around, and he shut their bond for good. 

YES all of that goes in the first movie.

rey, finn, and poe’s narratives stay basically the same, except we establish somehow that rey has Fears about her identity and a sense of belonging, and those strings, if tugged properly, could bring her to the dark side.

i believe as a writer, an audience is far more apt to believe goodness than bad. they want to believe characters have good intentions and motivations. it is established that kylo ren is a big bad who has done awful things; that does not need expanded on. star wars has already done that with the original trilogy. we don’t need a reboot of the same themes that were relevant in 1977. what we DO need is a story about genuine repentance and forgiveness.

we expect kylo ren to kill han. it’s all set up. we think he is bad enough to do it, but we don’t want him to. he readies himself for it, han is waiting for it, but it doesn’t happen. ben walks away.

and yet! han still dies, from some lack of action from ben, so that he still sees it as his fault.

THEN he meets rey, and they know instantly what they are to one another. their bond reopens. rey asks him to come to the light, and he does.

the movie ends with a decent certainty that ben is prepared to shun the dark side, but now he’s up against snoke and the first order.

the last jedi

my major beef with the last jedi was that it was a waste of time. it was pretty, and the themes were woven pretty tightly, but ultimately nothing happened in terms of progressing the present story.

we open with ben solo firmly seated in the resistance, under the command of his mother. he is working to atone for his wrongdoings. leia has forgiven him; luke has not. more than anything, he wants luke’s forgiveness.

rey wants ben to train her but he refuses. he sees the darkness in her and he fears it will draw him back. also, he’s kind of in love with her, which is a Problem.

so rey goes to luke on ahch-to. she asks him to forgive ben but he won’t. she asks him to train her but he won’t. she spends time training herself, becoming attuned to the force.

MEANWHILE, snoke exploits rey’s fears. ben won’t have her. luke won’t have her. she doesn’t know who she is. she doesn’t know her purpose. she has all this power, and nothing to do with it. snoke promises that if she comes to him, he’ll show her who she is. 

in a moment of weakness, she does. snoke takes her to palpatine, who tells her the truth: she is his granddaughter.

i know! it undercuts the entire theme of scavenger-to-hero, a nobody rising up from nowhere! just give me a minute!!

finally rey knows her place. her people. a name and where she belongs. after a lifetime of powerlessness, she is drawn to the idea of ruling the galaxy, of the sith lineage continuing in her. she tells herself it is because she is fundamentally good; she will know what’s best for the people. she’ll be able to make the good changes she wants to see. democracy is a farce, after all, and the only valid rule is that of a truly just leader.

empress palpatine is born!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! gimme that bad bitch aesthetic.

ohhh shit, says ben.

we are boned, say finn and poe (who are boyfriends, obviously).

big final battle in which the resistance is decimated. ben doesn’t want to, but he knows, to save rey and the galaxy, he has to open himself up again to the dark side, and hope that this time, he’s strong enough.

the rise of skywalker

now we have a setup for an actual conclusion that is not predicated on “win the war and destroy all evil” but forgiveness, redemption, and accepting the balance of dark and light.

rey has been training under snoke. she is now more powerful than she has ever been. she is potentially more powerful than anyone has ever been in the entire history of the galaxy. 

snoke annoys her now. she kills him.

palpatine is useless to her now. she kills him too.

hux amuses her. she lets him live.

and then there’s ben. ben, who visits her through their bond. ben, who is a nuisance to her, a leader of a resistance that has no chance of winning. and yet, she can’t bring herself to kill him.

switch to resistance. luke forgives ben, and ben luke. luke and leia have decided that it’s their time to pass into the force. ben urges them not to -- there is too much riding on their advice and leadership, but they assure him he has everything he needs to end the war, and it is their time to go. they say their goodbyes and pass into the force together.

i know, with carrie’s passing, this couldn’t have happened this way. but! i am not considering practicalities right now.

back to rey. she knows the only way the resistance might become a real threat is through ben’s power. she begins beckoning him to her, using the same tactics snoke did -- he can become her apprentice, and it will not be how it was with snoke, but she will treat him as an equal. they will rule together. 

ben is so torn!! 1) still stupid in love, and 2) it’s kind of his destiny? vader’s grandson and palpatine’s granddaughter. two leaders is a far more efficient system of government than ten thousand senators squabbling for eternity to make decisions. the galactic republic was peaceful, but that was only because it was powerful. there was still slavery in the outer rims. poverty. torture. disease. the galactic republic did nothing to help the people who actually needed help. as ruler, ben could help those people. he could do good.

he goes to her, defying poe and finn’s orders for him to stay and fight, and is immediately taken captive on the empress’s ship. she makes him wait in a cell for a long time, then demands his presence. he’s taken to her. 

imagine: ben on his knees in front of the empress’s throne. handcuffed. ragged, defenseless. a lil beaten up.

and ohhhhhhh is he pretty, rey thinks. this is where it gets ~sexy.

ben tries to lock his feelings for her away, but she’s too powerful. she roots around in the force and sees the truth: he loves her, still, after all this time. after all she’s done. he wants his love to bring her to the light, as she once did for him.

but it’s a trick!! ben’s feelings are true, but he had only wanted to distract her. he breaks his bonds, grabs his saber from where it sat on her throne. they fight!!

obvs rey wins, but he was counting on that. she goes to give the death blow, but she can’t. she loves him too much. and ben knows she’s not beyond saving.

the resistance is battling the first order. they are losing, badly. in fact there’s no way they can win, even with lando’s civilian fleet. the only way to win is for rey to step down from power and call a stop to the fighting.

ben tells her that blood is worthless and has nothing to do with who she is. she doesn’t have to be a palpatine. she doesn’t have to continue the sith lineage. she is not a noble and just ruler --

she puts her saber to his throat for that one, but he backpedals 

-- but she is not a jedi, either. they can be whoever they want to be. and where she belongs is with him. 

she clicks off her saber. her face softens. 

i can’t come back from this, she says. 

i did, he replies. i’ll help you.

this is who i am.

it’s not. i promise it’s not. you’re rey. your parents loved you. i love you.

THEY KISS

ben feels a shift in the force. the light is overcoming rey. she drops her saber and lowers her hood. she looks so young and scared. 

hux and his guards enter. a mutiny ensues while hux tries to take over the fleet and destroy the resistance for good. then he will take command and rule the galaxy.

they battle!!!!

at last, they kill all the guards, and back hux, powerless, into a corner. he has only his blaster, and it’s on the fritz. he smacks it against his palm. together, they kill him.

rey calls a complete ceasefire. the war is over.

epilogue:

A WEDDING!!!!!!!! with appearances by jedi force ghosts. everyone is happy. the galaxy is at peace. the end.

[my-morning-straitjacket]

Rey x Reader: Heartbreak

Set in Episode IX so do not read if you haven’t seen the movie and want to avoid spoilers!

It’s you. It’s always been you when it comes to Rey. The woman adores you - simply ADORES you. You have never met anyone like Rey and you are sure that she hasn’t met anyone like you either because if she had, you two wouldn’t be together. You love Rey with all your heart and she loves you just the same. Meeting each other came simply as a coincidence - it really did. You were out scavenging and decided to pull into the market early since you had a good haul and didn’t want to over-encumber yourself when the day ended. You traded in your scrap and received a full portion of your efforts. The jealousy and envy on the fellow scavenger's faces behind you were excessive and protracted but you didn’t pay them any mind.

You were on your way out when you heard Unkar Plutt announce, “one-quarter portion” to a scavenger. You stilled and twisted your neck so you could glance behind you. Your eyes met a girl, no older than sixteen in sand-coloured rags with brown hair, gloomily take the portion and turn. Her eyes were hooded and her eyes were hard but you could see past them - disappointment, enervation, and perhaps sorrow repleted them. You hadn’t seen eyes like hers before and the mere sight tugged on your heart - a feeling you seldom felt since Jakku was not a place for feeling things other than the natural instinct of survival. However, this girl, this stranger, this fellow scavenger challenged that. At the time, you weren’t sure where it came from but you followed the girl and spoke to her. 

She looked at you shocked and perhaps cautiously but you offered her some of your portion. At first, she was skeptical and questioned you but you told her that one-quarter portion wasn’t enough to feed her properly and you had plenty to share. The gesture was an odd one, especially on such a desolate and egocentric planet and you honestly did not expect her to accept your portion. However, you eventually persuaded her to take it with the agreeance that you would eat together. Later that evening, the girl invited you to her home - an old AT-AT from the Galactic Civil War. She cooked and you ate together.

“I’m Rey,” said the girl and you reciprocated the introduction where, for the first time, she smiled at you and you smiled back.

From that day on, you and Rey were inseparable and it didn’t take long for the two of you to fall in love. Rey was different. She was special and it had been such a journey to watch her grow into the person she was today. Howbeit, she has changed from that simple and somewhat nonchalant and even jubilant time. Now, you are at the brink of war with the First Order as you have been for quite some time. You and Rey are members of the Resistance and it has been a journey and a half and it certainly trumps scavenging on Jakku, despite you missing that carefree life. Unfortunately, you feel yourself getting further away from Rey. You feel this distance between you two and it has only been getting stronger over the past year.

You’re not exactly sure what it is but it’s there and it’s real. Rey is still stepping into who she is whilst also trying to discover who she is - a question that has pondered her mind since her existence and a question you have done your utmost to assist her with but to no avail. You and Rey spend little time together since the preponderance of her time is utilised by training, meditating, or on missions, missions that have now (sadly) become the time where you see and spend together the most. Your relationship is not what it used to be and you reflect your time on Jakku almost wistfully. Wistful because you start to question whether or not you should have left and, more importantly, whether or not you should have convinced Rey to return to Jakku so you could continue your simplistic lives. You may not have lived as long but at least you would have been happy.

You love Rey with as much as your heart will let you, which is why it comes with a heavy heart that you have decided to approach her in your shared quarters. She has come back late yet again after nighttime training and is preparing for bed. She removes her shoes and begins to free her arms from the wraps encircling them.

“Rey,” you speak. “We need to talk.”

“What about?” Her voice is monotone and she doesn’t make the effort to meet your gaze - something else that has changed between you two.

“Us,”

Her eyes lock onto yours and you swallow nervously.

“What about us?”

“I… I feel different.”

“How do you mean?”

“I feel as if we’re drifting away from each other. I feel like… I hardly know you now.”

“What?” She frowns, abandoning her unwrapping and turning to you fully. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that you’ve changed. You’re not the same girl I met on Jakku.”

“Neither are you.”

“I don’t mean it like that. Yes, we have changed but you’ve really changed and it’s putting distance between us. I’ve supported you in your journey of self-discovery and I always will but… I believe that there is only so much I can help you with. You’ve come so far but you still have so far to go but… I don’t think I can go as far as you can.”

“What do you mean?” Her voice is firmer but you know she’s not angry with you, if anything, she sounds afraid.

“I mean…” You pause because this is that part that you never thought you would speak but you have to - you NEED to. “I mean it’s time for us to re-evaluate where we’re headed and where you’re headed.”

Rey pauses, her eyes studying you carefully and intently. “Are… are you breaking up with me?”

You and Rey have been together for years and you never thought you’d see your life without her. You’ve endured and accomplished so much together and that has made you stronger as a couple, which is why this is the hardest thing you’ve ever had to do.

“I’m doing this for you,” you state.

Tears automatically well in Rey’s eyes, causing her to turn from you. Your instinct tells you to engulf her in your arms but you stop yourself because you feel it would be contradictory to do so but you can’t help but feel cruel in the process.

“How is this for me?” She probes, her back to you.

“Because we’re drifting apart, Rey. You can’t tell me you don’t feel it, too.”

“I know that we don’t spend as much time together as we used to but that’s no fault of our own. There’s a lot going on, which means that there is less time for us to be together as we want but that doesn’t mean you have to break up with me.”

“I’m not strictly breaking up with you. It’s merely a break until you find what you’ve been looking for all this time.”

“What if I never do?”

“You will. I know you will.”

“I can’t do it without you. I’ve come this far because of you. Without you, I’ll be stuck.”

She sniffs and you feel your heart crack but you force yourself to stay strong.

“I love you, Rey. I always have and I always will and I’m so proud of how far you’ve come but I can’t do this anymore. You’ve changed and with every day that passes, more space between us is created.”

Rey shakes her head as she lifts a hand to wipe her tears. “Don’t do this,” she finally turns to you, revealing her red, puffy eyes and tear-stained cheeks. “Please.”

Everything in you tells you to call it off but you can’t. You’re doing this for Rey and for yourself but more so for her. As much as her tears crush you, you need to remain strong.

“I’m sorry, honey. I’m sorry for hurting you but this is for the best.”

“How? How is this for the best?”

“It just is. I know you don’t see it and you might not but it is.”

“Don’t go,” she begs.

“Rey, please,” it’s now your time to beg because you honestly can’t stand here for much longer watching tears escape her eyes and lip wobble.

“Don’t,”

You close your eyes briefly before stepping forward, gently placing your hands on her face, pulling it down, and kissing her forehead. She doesn’t pull away and allows you to keep hold of her face when you move it so your eyes meet. You instinctively brush her tears away with the pads of your thumbs and try not to cry yourself at the sight of her tears.

“I love you, Rey, and I’ll always be here for you. I promise but this is part of the journey where I can’t help you.”

“D, don’t…”

You can see she is on the verge of breaking down but you place a tender kiss on her lips to prevent it and thankfully, it works. You step back and nod, turning on your heel and leaving. When you go, Rey bursts into tears, falling onto your shared bed and wailing into the pillow. You wish you didn’t have such a strong force connection with her since you can feel all of her sorrow and heartache. You feel everything she feels and it’s times like these you wish your connection with her wasn’t so strong but you have come together as one many times - your souls have been one so many times - so nothing escapes either of you. You push forward, wiping the tears from your face and reminding yourself that it IS all for the best, no matter how heartbreaking…

~

The abrupt noise of the Falcon on the landing pad startles you but not as much as the sight of Rey practically bolting out of it. Finn calls out after her but she doesn’t stop so you instinctively step in.

“Rey,” you try to get her to stop but she pushes past you, avoiding eye contact.

Confused, you turn to Poe who is telling the mechanics what needs repairing on the Falcon and he looks agitated so you deduce that Finn is the safest person to talk to.

“Finn,” you approach him. “What’s wrong with Rey?”

“It’s… it’s Chewie.”

“Chewie? What about him?”

“He… he’s gone.”

Your heart sinks. “G, gone?”

“Yeah,” he nods desolately.

“How? What happened?”

“It was an accident… Rey… she… she…”

“She electrocuted the carrier that he was in, blowing it out of the sky,” Poe finished.

“It was an accident!” Finn defended.

“As far as we know.”

“Do you really think she’d do it on purpose? She had no idea what that was! She was devastated and still is!”

“Wait, hold on,” you interject. “What do you mean by electrocuted?”

“She shot lighting out of her fingers. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Your blood runs cold and you get an overwhelming sensation of dread within you.

“What’s going on with Rey anyway?” Poe questions. “She’s been acting so differently over the past week.”

“Yeah, I know. Every time I try to talk to her, she shuts me out. She’s pushing me away. She’s so reserved and… different,” Finn adds.

“Yeah, um…” You clear your throat and scratch the back of your neck.

Finn and Poe turn to you with quizzical looks.

“What did you do?” Poe probes.

“I, ah… um… I kinda… I kinda told her that we should take a break…”

“YOU BROKE UP WITH HER?”

“Shh!” You hiss. “Keep your voice down!”

“What is wrong with you?”

“Did you really do that? Why?”

“Okay, first off, guys, calm down. Secondly, I didn’t break up with her. We’re simply on a break that’s all.”

“Yeah, a break that has broken her heart and made her lash out every five minutes!” Poe glares at you but you’re not intimidated or phased.

“Why did you do that?” Finn asks.

You sigh and quickly explain to them how you feel and how you believe taking a break is the best thing for Rey. They have trouble digesting the information but they trust your judgment despite Rey’s resulting behaviour.

“I think you should go and talk to her,” Finn encourages.

“No,” you shake your head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. We haven’t spoken since we…” You can’t bring yourself to say it, even though it’s just a break, it’s still painful. “She wouldn’t want to see me and I if I DO see her, it’ll only make things worse.”

“Hey,” Finn puts his hand on your shoulder and looks at you kindly. “No matter what happened between you two, you still care about each other and Rey needs someone right now. She’s pushed me away and Poe, too. The only person who can communicate with her properly is you.”

“But we’re-”

“I know you’re on a break but she still needs you. You said it yourself that you were still going to be there for her so be there for her.”

Finn has always been good with words so you take on board what he says and nod. He smiles at you, giving you a pat on the shoulder before he helps Poe. Taking a breath, you make your way to Rey’s quarters, your heart hammering in your chest the entire time. The last time you felt this nervous approaching Rey was when you first met on Jakku. At the time, you tried to think of why you got so nervous but looking back on it (and having time to think about it), you know it was because you found her intimidating in the best possible way but this time, it’s different. You’re nervous because you have no idea how she is going to react but Finn is right - you said that you were going to be there for her so you need to live up to your words.

You eventually reach Rey’s quarters and knock on her door.

“Go away,” she orders and by her tone, you can tell she’s upset.

“Rey, it’s me,” you speak.

There’s a silence and you hear the door unlock. You take another breath then step inside and see Rey sitting on the edge of her bed in tears. Your heart never fully mended when you broke things off with Rey the week prior but it cracks a little more at the sight of her tears.

“Finn told me about Chewie,” you begin, shutting the door and walking to her.

“I had no idea what happened…” she utters, toying with her fingers and avoiding your gaze. “I… I was trying to pull the ship back but Ren pulled against me…. I was so angry and I tried so hard to get the ship on the ground but then I felt this… this… energy inside me… An energy that I’ve never felt before… It raced through me and… lightning shot out of my fingers…” She runs her thumb over the tips of her fingers shakily. “I… I killed him… I killed everyone aboard…”

“Hey,” you sit next to her, putting a hand on her back. “It was an accident.”

“Was it?” She looks at you, teary-eyed. “I had no idea where that came from. I… I felt so powerful… it… it scared me…”

You can see the fear in Rey’s eyes and guilt quickly consumes you. In your mind, if it weren’t for you, Rey wouldn’t have gotten so overwhelmed with her emotions and Chewie would still be alive. Such an invaluable member of the Resistance is now gone and you feel that it’s your fault.

“I’m a monster…” she whimpers, looking back at her hands.

“No,” you repudiate. “You are FAR from a monster, Rey.”

“Then what am I?” She peers up at you with vulnerability, desperate for reassurance and closure.

You pull her into your arms, causing her to wrap hers around you.

“You’re a fighter,” you answer. “And an amazing one at that.”

Rey sinks into your hold and sobs into your chest. You tighten your grip around her and comfort her the best you can and you are glad that Finn convinced you to come here because this is exactly what Rey needs.

~

It’s probably the best rescue mission you’ve ever been a part of. Chewbacca is alive. Rey felt it. You felt it. You rescued him when you, Rey, Finn, and Poe went to save him while also infiltrating Kylo Ren’s Star Destroyer on Kijimi. After almost getting executed in the process of your rescue mission, you make it out alive and head back to your base to celebrate Chewbacca’s return before you set out to Kef Bir to find the second wavefinder. The base throws a party, which seems to be what everyone needs to unwind from the constant stress of the battle with the First Order.

You approach the bar to get a drink and relax, watching your peers around you have fun and for a moment, you forget that you are ever at war. You forget that now is probably the worst time to celebrate but you don’t fret about that. Everyone in the Resistance has been through a lot so now is actually probably the BEST time to have a party. Everyone needs to blow off steam and forget about the troubles that surround them. Tomorrow will be another day where you will get back to work but tonight is for fun so you leave it at that.

“What are you doing sitting here by yourself?” You ask Rey once you spot her alone.

“Just thinking…” She mutters, fiddling with her empty cup.

You’re pulled out of your fun-filled moment because you know exactly what Rey is thinking. You could feel something was weighing her down ever since you got back from your mission and you know exactly what it is. So, you perch yourself next to her, resting your hand on her knee.

“You’re not him,” you say.

“I am,” she nods. “Shooting lighting out of my fingers is exact proof of that.”

“Rey,”

“No, don’t. It is what it is. I… I’m… I’m a Palpatine. I’m connected to the man who killed millions of innocent people and whose desire was to take over the galaxy in pure evil, blanketing it in total darkness.”

“Rey, look at me,” you order.

Rey hesitates but she does.

“It doesn’t matter who you’re biologically related to, you are who you are and I know you. You are kind, caring, strong-willed, passionate, loving, and GOOD. Above all things, Rey, you are GOOD and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Just because Palpatine is your grandfather doesn’t change who you are. If his blood running through your veins would impact you so much then you would be a completely different person. It’s not until now - having the knowledge that you are his granddaughter - that you’re starting to doubt yourself. Don’t let that control you. It’s what he would want.”

“But how do I NOT let it control me? I don’t want this. I don’t want to be a Palpatine.”

“Look… I know it’s hard and I know you don’t want this but you have done amazingly well by yourself being who you are. You never knew who you were until now and look at you - you’re one of the most invaluable members of the Resistance and you’re special. Just because you’re a Palpatine, doesn’t mean you have to follow in his footsteps. Luke didn’t follow in his father’s. Well, not in Darth Vader’s footsteps but in Anakin’s he did. Set your own path, Rey. Change the Palpatine name to something good. Your parents were good and you’re good and that outweighs the evil and destruction that Palpatine had ever caused.”

“He’s still alive,” she says. “I can feel it… I’ve always felt it but now that I know what it is… Part of me wishes that I never found out who I really was. I’d much prefer to have my identity nag at me than for me to actually know. Sometimes I lay awake at night thinking back to our time on Jakku… I miss it so much…”

“Me, too,” you nod and Rey looks at you.

“You do?”

“Yes. Every day.”

“Would you go back? Would you choose to stay instead of getting on the Falcon? Would you prefer to have kept living on Jakku scavenging?”

It still amazes you juts how connected you and Rey really are. It’s also reassuring knowing that she thinks about Jakku as you do.

“I often think about that. I think about it probably more than I should. Life on Jakku was simple and sure, it could get tedious at times but it’s what we did to survive and we did it together, which made it so much easier and fun. We had each other. There was only us on Jakku. We didn’t have to worry about anything else but each other and we always knew that we had each other’s backs no matter what… It was nice.”

“It was.”

“But… being here now… I wouldn’t change it. We’re doing something for the greater good and if we didn’t get on the Falcon, we probably wouldn’t be alive anyway. The First Order would have found us, tortured us for answers, then killed us. Life isn’t any easier being in the Resistance but we’re a part of something much bigger than we ever could have thought and I’ve finally found my purpose.”

Rey smiles at you softly, then puts her hand on top of yours. “You always know just what to say. You always have.”

“When you’re with someone for years, you learn a few things,” you wink, making Rey giggle - a sound that you have missed so. “Come on,” you stand and offer your hand to her.

“What?”

“Dance with me.”

“Dance?”

“Yes. It’s a party and I’ll be damned if you sit here all night pondering and who knows when we’ll have another celebration like this so let’s make the most of it while we can. You can ponder later.”

A broad smile sweeps across Rey’s face as she takes your hand. You guide her up and lead her to where the band is playing, pull her to you, and start dancing. It doesn’t take long for Rey to loosen up. She loves dancing and being a complete and utter goofball with you. She’s always said that you’re the better dancer out of the two of you but you don’t think Rey gives herself enough credit. You can’t remember the last time you had fun like this. You miss this with Rey. You miss seeing her smile, laugh, and enjoy herself. It’s so blissful that you could live in it forever. You feel so carefree and so does Rey. You can see it and feel it. The force connection between you two has been rather harsh and bleak lately so the current change is nice even if it is only for a brief period of time.

Rey falls into your arms in a fit of giggles after you’ve been dancing for about ten minutes or so. You’re not really sure since you were too busy living in the moment but all you know is that you are a little out of breath and you have accomplished what you set out to do - getting Rey to have fun.

“Don’t ever tell me that you can’t dance,” you breathe.

“I only follow what you do.”

“Well, you make what I do look a thousand times better. You’re a good dancer.”

“Only because you are.” Rey peers up at you and that’s when you realise just how close to one another you really are.

Rey scans your face and you watch her eyes attentively. You know what she’s thinking and you can feel that pull to her; that pull that you have always failed to resist in times like these. She briefly runs her tongue over her bottom lip before sinking her teeth into it, staring at your lips the entire time. You know what she wants and you want it, too but you can’t. Rey has come so far since your break and you don’t want to ruin that for her. So, you take her hands, raise them to your lips, and kiss them daintily.

“Thank you for the dance,” you say. “You keep having a good night. I’m going to retire for the evening.”

“So early?” She questions, nearly in the form of a whine.

“It’s actually pretty late and I’ve got an early start tomorrow. You and I both know that I don’t work well when I’m tired.”

Rey looks at you pleadingly but you don’t give in. You rub her hands then let them go, stepping to the side and making your way towards your quarters. You hate to leave Rey but it’s for the best. You really do have an early start tomorrow and you’ve had your fun at the party. If you and Rey were together, you would have stayed or convinced Rey to retire with you but it’s not like that anymore. You know it won’t always be like this but in the meantime, things will be difficult so you have to do your best to remain strong.

You remove your shoes and prepare to bathe once you reach your quarters. It’s been a long day so you’re looking forward to getting clean, curling up in bed, and falling asleep. Tomorrow, you plan to travel to Kef Bir - an ocean moon planet that holds part of the wreckage from the second Death Star - and you know that will be an adventure. You just hope that it’s not dangerous but there hasn’t been a mission that you’ve been on that’s been “safe”. You’re going to find the second wavefinder so you hope that it won’t be too difficult.

When you’re about to strip down, there’s a knock on your door. Curious, you turn to the noise but when you do, you feel it. The pull. It’s Rey. You know it is. You really should ignore it and bathe. If you ignore it, Rey will leave but the conflict inside you takes over, bringing you to open the door. Rey stands in front of you mutely but you don’t speak. You watch her watching you and you fill the air thicken with tension until Rey lunges at you, cupping your face and kissing you. You grasp at her waist, pulling her into you and stepping backward, kicking the door shut as you gravitate to the middle of the room.

Your kisses are hard yet passionate and you’re in that state for a good minute or so until you pull away where you and Rey intuitively begin disrobing each other. Rey’s eyes are dark and hungry - filled with concupiscence, need, and want. She strips you down as if your clothes are on fire then stares at you once there is nothing left. You do the same, drinking in every curve and crevice of her anatomy before tugging her forward so your lips meet. Rey presses her body against yours, holding your face so your lips don’t part. You wrap your arms around her, holding her before grabbing her legs and hoisting her onto your hips, allowing you to carry her to the bed. She coils her legs around you, keeping her lips sewn on yours as you lay her down beneath you.

You kiss her lips ardently, which is followed by her body that you never seem to get enough of. The music of the party is still playing and it is only faint but it takes away some of the white noise in the room. However, the music is soon drowned out with music of your own created by Rey and yourself in the midst of your lovemaking. It feels like years that you haven’t been intimate with Rey. Your relationship does not comprise an abundance of sexual intimacy but it’s still a part of it. You don’t need to be so intimate all the time to maintain a strong relationship. When you ever are intimate, it is special and it truly means something. You exchange so many thoughts and feelings without saying a single word. You trust each other fully to the point where you give yourselves to one another with an open heart.

You are the only one who can touch and care for Rey like this and she is the only one who can touch and care for you like this. The two of you share something so special and so strong that it cannot be broken by anyone or anything. Every time you are intimate, you grow stronger. Going on missions together, communicating, working together, and other activities makes your bond exceedingly tenacious also. Nobody else has the bond with Rey that you have and vice versa. You know Rey down to the last detail and she knows you. You know so much about each other and that is only possible to achieve by being as devoted and loyal to another as you two have been.

The feel of Rey’s skin against your own, the holding of each other’s hands, the kissing, the fondling, the elongated and intense eye contact reinforces how much you’ve missed her. Rey touches you as much as she can and you try your utmost to requite but it proves difficult since you are solely focused on pleasing Rey but you know she loves it when you fondle her and touch her as if she’s the most precious thing in the entire galaxy and to you, she is. You take in everything about Rey because moments like these are exiguous but so, so precious. You attempt to cram so much affection, love, attentiveness, and care into your lovemaking that you know won’t last much longer.

You know Rey loves the intimacy of sex and how special it makes her feel as do you so you try to make it about her because it really IS about her and you feel like you’ve achieved it when her limbs encircle you and clamp around your body and that’s when you feel it - the ultimate pull towards Rey where you unite as one - one body, one soul, one mind, one heart, one life; you are one. You hold onto Rey and she holds onto you as you unite and you collapse on top of her when it’s over, so tired but so strong with Rey. Rey runs her hands through your hair, her dexterous fingers entangling in your thick locks. Your breathing is laboured but it harmonises with Rey’s and you soon settle, resting upon her chest, feeling your weariness encroach and you know you are mere seconds away from letting it claim you.

“I love you,” Rey whispers and you find the strength to lift your head and kiss her.

“I love you, too.”

“I missed you.”

“I missed you, too.” You share another kiss before you return your head to her chest.

“Don’t ever leave me again,” she requests but is executed as a plea.

“I never left you, honey. I never have and I never will. I promise.”

Rey kisses your head as her hand continues to feed through your hair while the other gently caress your back, which happens to be your weakness just like Rey herself. It’s always been Rey when it comes to you. You adore her and you would do anything for her and you have never been happier to be with her than now and heretofore, despite what she says and thinks, you’ve never been prouder of her either.

[eclectic-aussie]

Post ‘S7 the 100′ Trailer Reveal

Wow, that was a doozey! So many questions, so many questions. And also, so many worries since the worst thing about the final season of a show you adore (besides saying good-bye to characters you love) is the fact that they don’t have a chance to fix any F-ups they make in the next season. I’m not try to jinx it, it’s just that I got a little worried about how they’ll finish up everyone’s journey and whether or not they’ll actually properly fix the relationships and people they’ve broken or just put a band-aid on it and expect us to overlook it (Princess Mechanic (and pretty much all of Clarke’s relationships tbh) I’m looking at you) Or worse just send them back to Earth in the Dropship days for a ‘re-do’ which would kind of feel like a cop-out of everything they’ve gone through and their growth as characters ala ‘it was all a dream’.

I’m happy that Clarke is given an opportunity to say good-bye to her mum like she hasn’t really ever been given much time to grieve before, and I’m glad that she seems to be given a possible start to a friendship outside Spacekru with her talk with Gaia. And a new leather jacket and outfit! She must be happy for the wardrobe change after wearing the same thing for 2 or 3 months now?

I am also glad we see Jordan being more himself that the last time, because our cinnamon roll jr needs protecting and his survival (and sanity) is paramount!

The limited amount of Bellamy in the trailer is a little worrying, especially with Octavia saying not to sacrifice his life for hers and her, Clarke and...Hope? running into the locked door and it looking like Hope calls out ‘Bellamy’ while they all look scared, which makes me scared for him because he and Clarke have not gone through hell for 132 YEARS as leaders just to be killed off in the last season. Also the only Bellarke in the trailer is from when he was trying to convince her not to go back to Sanctum as Josephine which sucked, but doesn’t really mean anything off hand.

I wonder who the ‘key to the last war that mankind will ever wage’ is? I mean they’re heavily implying it’s Clarke, but it could honestly be anyone at this point with so many Nightbloods traipsing around. Or if they wanted to get tricky they could mean she’s the key because she could be used as leverage to get one side to stand down or a leader to stop (if say, she was important enough to stop fighting to protect like Diyoza was important enough to Hope to ‘kill’ Octavia) or her death could stop them, if she was the mother of someone key they needed to win or lose? Like if Padme hadn’t have had Luke and Leia the Rebellion wouldn’t have gotten nearly as far. Just a thought. Or her death triggers something, like it did with Sheidheda and Madi? Honestly, it could be anything.

What confused me though, was when Clarke was meeting the visitors near the edge of the protective dome around Sanctum, why were Gaia and Niyla the ones covering her? Where were Miller, or Bellamy (probably in the Anomaly) or Indra or Murphy or pretty much anyone who’d actually trained to use guns instead of the Grounders who were afraid to pick one up until the Mountain Men died? I’m not saying Clarke needs anyone to back her up, she’s a force all her own, but it just seemed odd.

And the creepy dude with the knife smearing blood on Madi’s chin is also worrying. What is it with this show and constantly threatening the little ones?

I really hope they give everyone the chance to work out their issues and their grievances and actually get some closure (Finn and Aurora Blake turning up later on suggests they might) but not as a cop out of ‘finding peace only right before death’ trope they forced out last season with Abby and a few others in previous seasons. Finding peace within yourself or ‘redemption’ being found by sacrificing yourself for a dramatic death scene (not Octavia hopefully, that would be cheap) gets done too often to have real impact.

So I’m guessing it’s going to be: Party 1: Bellamy, Echo, Hope, possibly Octavia. Gabriel might be in there too, though he could have stayed in Sanctum.

Party 2: Clarke, Raven, Miller, Jordan, Gaia and Niylah (for some reason, sure it’s explained)

Party 3: Murphy, Emori...? who stay in Sanctum maybe to keep the peace...?

And Indra probably being one of the above, probably Clarke’s group, because why would you ever leave her behind?

So yeah, really looking forward to this final season, but also more than a little worried that we’ll be left with an unsatisfying ending to one of my favourite shows. Yes I know, I know that’s why fanfics exist, but I’m still worried that they’ll just gloss over a lot of serious stuff that needs addressing on the basis of: ‘there isn’t really time or we just can’t find a place to put it, even if it’s something that’s fundamental to get towards organically patching the relationships between these characters...ahh well we’ll just have Clarke give everyone instant forgiveness per usual and no-one but her and Bellamy need question the borderline evil things they did (tied down and drugged a child to take a nearly lethal amount of her bone-marrow, which was also treason and led to Abby’s death) and have it swept under the ‘we did it for our survival and we’re not Clarke so it’s ok’ rug that’s almost to the roof by now.’ crap they’ve been peddling since season...actually it’s been happening a while, they’re just a lot more blatant about it the last 2 seasons.

After I watched the trailer, I didn’t over-do the analyzing since I thought I’d give it a few hours and Tumblr would have blown-up with a break-down of the trailer frame-by-frame. So I went onto IMDB, mainly because I wanted to see a better pic of a character from one of the snippets shown, and I had a look through at the cast listings for the season which aren’t really reliably filled out until after the episode has aired so it can’t be trusted that much...but I would like to point out there is an August (Leo Howard) in episode 11 which is hmmm worthy given why Bellamy named his sister Octavia, as a lot of people (including myself) have used August or Augustus as a very probable name for a Bellarke kid. I know, I am very much reaching about the ‘suspiciously named’ (how often do character names change before airing?!) characters with brown hair and hazel eyes, with a dimpled chin and jawline and height similar to Bellamy, even if his colouring is closer to...Finn, if I’m honest. Just saying. Also, there was a young woman (I don’t think it was Hope but possibly wrong) in the trailer with long curly blonde hair with purple highlights like Clarke in season 5. Also just saying.

I’ll just keep being equal parts hopeful and terrified for the premiere on the 20th.

[eleanor-writes-stuff]

keep calm and let HR handle it [I/VI]

Rey managed to go a full year without ever directly interacting with her new CEO, but now it seems like he’s dropping by her office every single week.

(Because what else is a love-struck fool to do when he falls for his head of HR other than find reasons to visit her department?)

OR: five times Ben gets summoned down to HR, and one time Rey gets called into the CEO’s office, based on this prompt from @optimisticsprinkles: "Rey as the director of HR at [office] and Kylo/Ben starts finding reasons to be sent down to HR".

Hello, friends! I’m officially back from hiatus with a one-shot that somehow stretched into a six-part fic. Here’s hoping I’m not too rusty! Anyway, please enjoy the office shenanigans of CEO Ben and head of HR Rey as they go from colleagues to friends to lovers.

Chapter 2 Also available on AO3. And hey, maybe check out my Twitter and Ko-fi?

To: ben_solo@organafoundation.com From: rey_niima@organafoundation.com Subject: Office Conduct

Dear Mr. Solo,

This department has been contacted by several concerned individuals regarding your conduct this afternoon. Attached please find my schedule for the next two weeks; I would appreciate it if you could drop by my office for a meeting between us at your earliest convenience.

Warm regards, Rey Niima, Head of Human Resources, The Organa Foundation.

 To: rey_niima@organafoundation.com From: ben_solo@organafoundation.com Subject: Re: Office Conduct

Dear Ms. Niima,

As I’m sure you’re aware, I’m quite busy handling the fall-out of today’s events. My only availability this month would be at 5PM this Friday. Of course, I don’t expect you to stay after hours for a meeting. Perhaps we should reschedule for next month?

Best regards, Ben Solo, Chief Executive Officer, The Organa Foundation.

 To: ben_solo@organafoundation.com From: rey_niima@organafoundation.com Subject: Re: Office Conduct

Dear Mr. Solo,

I look forward to seeing you on Friday, in that case.

Warm regards, Rey Niima, Head of Human Resources, The Organa Foundation.

 It’s a little… surreal, Rey thinks, that she’s managed to avoid her new CEO for a whole year only to have their first in-person encounter revolve around her telling her boss off for throwing a temper tantrum.

She’s still a little hung up on the boss part, but Rose and Kaydel had pretty much forced her to send that email on Wednesday after news of the morning’s events started spreading like wildfire.

“This is exactly what HR is for!” Kaydel had insisted.

“If anyone else thrashed their office and made their assistant piss their pants in fear, you’d definitely call them in,” Rose had pointed out.

The keyword being anyone else, Rey had attempted to argue. The chain of command is clear, after all, in that the CEO sits at the very top of it, while the head of HR falls somewhere around the middle at best. But her team had refused to take no for an answer, and so here she is, two days later, anxiously waiting for her boss to arrive so that she can… gently scold him for his inappropriate behavior? Drop hints about anger management? Make pointed comments about the cost of replacing office supplies and furniture?

Rey has had two whole days to prepare for this meeting, and she still feels like she’s walking into it completely blind. She’s spent every free moment since Solo’s reply quizzing her friends and coworkers about him, only to somehow end up with even more questions about her boss than she had to begin with.

Paige thinks that Ben Solo is intimidating, but also shy. Finn says he’s intense and result-driven, but he tries to keep things light in the office. Poe swears he’s seen some of the scariest people in the business leave Solo’s office in tears, but Wednesday’s outburst was the first time anyone in the building had actually witnessed his legendary anger issues.

An okay boss, the consensus seems to be. Nowhere near as loved and respected as his predecessor and mother, but also nowhere near as bad as all of them had feared when it was announced that the COO of their sworn enemy was jumping ship to return to the family business.

It’s this reassurance that Rey clings to when the dreaded knock on her door comes at exactly 5PM. At least he’s punctual, even for a meeting he obviously tried his best to evade. Joke’s on him, though, because now they’re both wasting their Friday evening when they could have had this meeting at a perfectly normal working hour instead.

“Come in,” Rey calls out, and it instantly occurs to her how strange it is that she’s giving the CEO permission to enter her office. How in the world is she supposed to build up to the telling him off part?

Said CEO strides into her office with his eyes firmly fixed upon his phone and a furrow between his brows. “I apologize, Ms. Niima, but I have a previous engagement scheduled for forty-five minutes from now so we’re going to have to make this–”

He stops short as soon as he looks up from his phone and at her, and usually Rey would break the ice by asking if she has something on her face or in her teeth but… she’s equally at a loss for words, it seems.

Because here’s the thing: Rey thought she knew what Ben Solo looks like. After all, she’d seen him from a distance the day of Leia’s retirement party, when he was first announced as his mother’s successor, and sometimes their paths cross and she spies him down the hallway or across a room. But distance… distance does not do Ben Solo justice.

He’s tall, but she’d figured as much just from seeing him tower over literally everyone else in the office. Broad too, but she vaguely recalls Poe once insisting to a skeptical Finn that Ben Solo is shredded, so that’s no surprise.

But up close like this, what strikes Rey the most is his eyes. She’d forgotten – or maybe never even realized – that he has Leia’s eyes. It’s disconcerting to see that familiar glint of quiet determination lost in a sea of something she’s unable to name, something she only recognizes because like calls to like.

Rey shakes that thought off and snaps herself out of it, just in time to stand up and take Solo’s hand as he reaches for hers.

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Ms. Niima,” he says, and Rey has to force herself to concentrate on his words rather than the smile that frames them. “I’ve heard so much about you, especially from my mother.”

She blurts out the first thing that comes to mind, still holding his hand. “It’s Rey. Um, I mean – please, call me Rey. No one calls me by my last name.” It’s not even hers, not really, but this is a HR meeting with her boss, not a heart-to-heart with her best friend.

“Same here,” he says with a shrug, and somehow they let go of each other to settle into their seats at the same moment. “Just Ben will do.”

Rey knows for a fact that a lot of people call him by his last name – nearly everyone, in fact, with the exception of Poe and his preferred boss man – but that’s not what they’re here to talk about, and she’s not going to let herself get derailed – not by tiny details like what he prefers to go by or the way the corners of his eyes crinkle when he smiles at her or how cramped he makes her rather spacious office feel.

She turns her attention to the clock hanging above her door instead – a kitschy little thing Rose brought back as a souvenir from a trip once – and is rudely reminded of the circumstances surrounding their meeting. It is 5PM on a Friday evening, and she should be at the company’s weekly happy hour over at Maz’s instead of dealing with her misbehaving boss. It’s a much-needed reminder, one Rey keeps in mind as she dives straight into it.

“Okay, Ben. Since you’re in a hurry, let’s get right to it. Could you talk me through the events of Wednesday morning?” She’s always been a no-nonsense, straight to the point kind of person, but Rey feels a brief flash of regret for her bluntness when the smile on Ben’s face suddenly disappears, only to be replaced by a perfect mask of… nothing.

“Right. Wednesday.” He clears his throat and drops his eyes down to his hands, laced together on the other end of her desk, and Rey watches in mild concern as this huge man seems to curl in on himself. “Look, it was… it was not my best moment, that’s for sure.”

He looks up then, carefully meeting her eyes, and Rey encourages him to go on with a wordless nod and the listening face she’s spent all her time in HR perfecting.

It works like a charm, every time. “I’ve been trying so hard,” Ben says quietly, still facing her even as his eyes occasionally dart away, “ever since I got here, and it’s been a whole year so I thought maybe things really had changed, maybe I’d changed, but then… then Wednesday happened, and fu- freaking Armitage Hux just had to swoop in and ruin everything for us, and I just…” He brings one hand up to run his fingers through his hair in an agitated manner, while the other clenches into a fist. This time, when his eyes move over her shoulder to stare out her window, they stay there.

“Of course Hux was the one to ruin everything. It’s always– maybe he brings out the worst in me. Maybe it’s just FO as a whole. Or maybe I’m just an asshole making excuses–”

His speech is getting faster, his breathing harder, and Rey looks down to find the fingers curled into a fist pressing so hard into his palm it looks like they might cut crescents into his skin.

It’s instinct, the way she reaches out for him without a moment’s thought or hesitation, the way she places her hand on top of his to soothe and comfort.

“Ben,” she says quietly, firmly.

And his eyes immediately snap back to hers.

“Sorry,” he says, the tension seeping out of his shoulders and eyes and jaw, leaving him looking rather like a deflated balloon. “Sorry, I just… I’m guessing you’ve heard about my experience with First Order?”

Who hasn’t heard the tale of how Ben Solo nearly gave his mother a heart attack when he chose to work with her mortal enemy right out of college? Who hasn’t heard all the whispered horror stories about his notoriously short fuse and his cold, unfeeling way of doing business and his complete lack of passion and principles?

Except… that’s in the past, all of it. And in the entire year that Ben Solo has served as CEO of the Organa Foundation, this is the very first incident she’s heard of. So Rey decides to go easy on him, especially in light of what he just said – or ranted – about trying to change.

“Bits and pieces,” she claims, a white lie.

Ben pulls his hand away from hers with a nod. “Enough to know what kind of person I was,” he assumes. “It’s probably true, everything you’ve heard. Especially the worst parts. But I meant what I said, about trying. That’s really not who I am anymore.”

He hangs his head in shame.

“Or at the very least, it’s not who I want to be anymore.”

Rey almost wishes his hand were still in hers, just so she could give him a little supportive squeeze. “One slip-up doesn’t undo a whole year of hard work, Ben,” she says instead, as gently as she can. “And given that this is the first time you and I have had to sit down, I’d say you’ve been doing pretty well this past year.”

It occurs to her, as she waits for him to absorb her encouragement and look up again, that this is not at all how she’d expected this meeting to go. First of all, she’s supposed to be scolding him, not comforting him. And secondly… this is her boss, not some overworked newbie stressing out about their first project. Absolutely no one is going to believe she ended up spending her meeting with the notorious Ben Solo as some kind of motivational coach instead.

But then he looks up at her with a smile – a small, soft thing – and suddenly… suddenly Rey’s okay with all of it.

“Thank you. That… that means a lot. And I’m sorry, for all of this… babbling. I don’t know what came over me, I don’t usually open up to people like this–“

“It’s a HR thing,” Rey quickly assures him, even though she can count the number of people who’ve actually broken down and opened up to her during a meeting on one hand. She just… she doesn’t want him to be uncomfortable.

Except she might’ve just made things uncomfortable with that reminder of the roles they’re supposed to play, the professional boundaries that should be in place.

Ben stills for a moment, and then sits up straighter, slides his hands off her desk and out of view. “Right. It’s just part of your job, isn’t it? Anyway, I should get going, there’s a conference call I need to attend to and I’m sure you have plans, what with it being Friday evening and all that–”

Rey watches in a sort of stunned silence as he abruptly stands up and cuts their meeting short, jarred by the sudden switch into exactly the kind of CEO she’d expected him to be. It’s only when he makes to turn his back to her that she snaps out of it.

“Wait, we still have to talk about what you did–“

“It was a mistake,” Ben says, without turning to look at her. “A slip-up, like you said. And it won’t happen again, I promise.” With that, he sweeps out of her office just as suddenly as he’d entered it.

And Rey is left staring at her door, trying to process the weirdest meeting of her life.

. . .

One down, four +1 left to go!

And hey: hello again, friends! It's been a while - more than four months, if anyone's keeping track. My hiatus was long, unexpected, and damaging, because wow is it hard to get back into writing proper fics after four months of nothing but the occasional Twitter fic. I've tried my best to polish this, so hopefully it's not as clunky as I fear it is. And hopefully things will get smoother with each subsequent update, as I remember how this writing thing works.

Until then, thank you so much for reading, I hope you liked it, and as always, comments, likes, and reblogs are greatly appreciated.

[makistar2018]

It's a Love Story: The History of Taylor Swift's Fiercely Tight Bond With Her Parents

by NATALIE FINN Aug. 13, 2019

Taylor Swift has gotten a ton of musical mileage out of the romantic relationships that have come and gone in her life, but those guys haven't been the truly essential players in her journey to the top of the pop star pyramid.

Instead, it's Scott and Andrea Swift, Taylor's parents, who have championed their daughter since day one, believing in her so much that they left their palatial house in Reading, Penn., for Nashville, where a determined 14-year-old Taylor felt she had to be to make her dream a reality.

Talking to CMT, she said her parents weren't just indulging her for the sake of being supportive. "My parents actually believed it," she said.

Before her Reputation Tour touched down in Philadelphia last year, she took a few friends to visit her childhood home, a Christmas tree farm in Wyomissing, where the new owners were apparently happy to let the famous former resident in to take a look at her old room.

"I went to the house I grew up in. I got emotional when I went into my bedroom, and there's another little girl's things in there," Swift told the sold-out crowd one night at Lincoln Financial Field. "It's not my family farm anymore. We sold it when we went to Nashville. I've been thinking about how cool it is to be back where I started writing songs."

She told CMT that, back in the day, her parents never pushed her, but "I would not leave them alone."

Taylor was barely out of grade school when Andrea Swift (née Gardner Finlay) first took her to Nashville to drop off the CDs she had made of her singing karaoke with record labels, having seen in documentaries about Shania Twain and LeAnn Rimes that Music City, U.S.A., was where she needed to be.

"My mom waited in the car with my little brother while I knocked on doors up and down Music Row," Swift recalled to Entertainment Weekly in 2008. "I would say, 'Hi, I'm Taylor. I'm 11; I want a record deal. Call me."'

Well, the world wasn't ready for it just yet.

"She came back from that trip to Nashville and realized she needed to be different, and part of that would be to learn the guitar," Andrea told EW. "Now, at 12, she saw a 12-string guitar and thought it was the coolest thing. And of course we immediately said, 'Oh no, absolutely not, your fingers are too small—not till you're much older will you be able to play the 12-string guitar.'

"Well, that was all it took. Don't ever say never or can't do to Taylor. She started playing it four hours a day—six on the weekends. She would get calluses on her fingers and they would crack and bleed, and we would tape them up and she'd just keep on playing. That's all she played, till a couple of years later, which was the first time she ever picked up a six-string guitar. And when she did, it was like, 'wow, this is really easy!'"

Swift performed in venues all over Pennsylvania, wherever she could get a gig, and wrote her little heart out.  She went back to Nashville at 13 and got a development deal at RCA Records, which she declined to re-up after a year, wanting to record only songs that she had a hand in writing. At 14 she became the youngest person in the roster at Sony/ATV Publishing.

So, the whole family—Scott, Andrea, Taylor and her brother, Austin Swift—eventually relocated to Hendersonville, about 20 miles outside Nashville, in 2003. But they didn't explicitly put it that way at the time.

"I knew I was the reason they were moving," Taylor later told Self. "But they tried to put no pressure on me. They were like, 'Well, we need a change of scenery anyway,' and 'I love how friendly the people in Tennessee are.'"

"I never wanted to make that move about her 'making it,"' Andrea explained to EW. "Because what a horrible thing if it hadn't happened, for her to carry that kind of guilt or pressure around. And we moved far enough outside Nashville to where she didn't have to be going to school with producers' kids and label presidents' kids and be reminded constantly that she was struggling to make it. We've always told her that this is not about putting food on our table or making our dreams come true.

"There would always be an escape hatch into normal life if she decided this wasn't something she had to pursue. And of course that's like saying to her, 'If you want to stop breathing, that's cool.'"

Swift ended up fatefully signing with Big Machine Records, run by Scott Borchetta, who had just left Universal Music Group to start his own label.

"They only had 10 employees at the record label to start out with, so when they were releasing my first single, my mom and I came in to help stuff the CD singles into envelopes to send to radio," Taylor recalled to EW. "We sat out on the floor and did it because there wasn't furniture at the label yet."

Meanwhile, Scott and Andrea—formerly a marketing manager at an advertising agency—had already set up Taylor's website and MySpace page (with Taylor writing her bio, updates and responses to fans herself, of course).

"The mom and dad both have great marketing minds," Rick Barker, Swift's manager at the time, told EW. "I don't want to say fake it until you make it, but when you looked at her stuff, it was very professional even before she got her deal."

Andrea said that her daughter relished the recognition, the selfie requests and the otherwise positive attention from fans of her music, "but she never in her life ever said, 'I want to be famous' or 'I want to be rich' or 'I want to be a star.' Those words absolutely never came out of her mouth. If they had, I would have said, 'Honey, maybe you're doing it kind of for the wrong reasons.'

"For her, the happiest I ever see her is just after she's written a killer song. As a parent, I felt really good about that. If that's where she draws happiness from, she'll have that the rest of her life. She's not always gonna have the awards, or the attention, or the celebrity, but she will always have the ability to write a song."

Swift has credited her mother for instilling in her the importance of maintaining her independence, financial and otherwise, saying, "She raised me to be logical and practical. I was brought up with such a strong woman in my life and I think that had a lot to do with me not wanting to do anything halfway."

Andrea's mother, Marjorie Finlay, was a professional opera singer and a magnetic presence in every room—a quality Taylor shared with her grandma, Scott Swift once said. "The two of them had some sort of magic where they could walk into a room and remember everyone's name," he said. "Taylor has the same grace and physique of Andrea's mother."

Taylor described her dad, meanwhile, as "just a big teddy bear who tells me everything I do is perfect." That being said, she added, "business-wise, he's brilliant."

Once Taylor's career started to take off, Scott, who had relocated his business to Nashville, stayed in town with Austin while Andrea accompanied their daughter on tour, helping her finish high school on the road.

"She was always singing music when she was 3, 5, 6, 7 years old," Scott, an investment banker with Merill Lynch who ran The Swift Group under the company's umbrella, told the University of Delaware's UDaily in 2009. "It's Taylor doing what she likes to do." (When she was quite little, Taylor recalled, she would tell people she was going to be a financial advisor, even though she didn't know what that meant.)

"We had a kid that was really passionate about it," he said. Getting that first deal at 13 "was the confirmation that maybe she wasn't crazy, because her writing is why she got it."

Swift was 16 when her self-titled debut album came out in October 2006. Less than a year later, she opened for Brad Paisley at the Allentown Fair, a big-ticket gig in her home state.

While "Tim McGraw," her first-ever single, eventually drew the most attention, her second single, "Teardrops on My Guitar," was her first top-15 single (peaking at 13) and the next, "Our Song," became her biggest hit on country radio to date, her first No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart.

Scott Swift hasn't had to do much lately when it comes to Taylor's ridiculously successful career, but he helped out where he could early on (not including the unconfirmed reports that he advised Harry Styles to not rush things when he and Taylor started dating). He told UDaily that he helped arrange Taylor's prime-time gig singing the national anthem during Game 3 of the 2008 World Series, a home game for the Philadelphia Phillies (who went on to beat the Tampa Bay Rays in five games). Scott went to college with the Phillies' facilities manager.

"The reason she sang the anthem is because two University of Delaware alumni kept in touch over the years," Scott told the paper. But as time went on, Taylor's reputation preceded her. "I've heard from a lot of great alumni, and I'm convinced they live in every city, because whenever Taylor's rolling into wherever she is, we'll hear from them," her dad said. "It's really powerful."

Scott and Andrea are hardly the unsung heroes of Taylor's life, though—quite the opposite, in fact.

You'd have been forgiven for assuming that "The Best Day," off of 2008's Fearless, centers on the father-daughter bond (going by the line "I have an excellent father / His strength is making me stronger"), but it's really a sweeping ode to Andrea, the one who waited in the car while tween Taylor knocked on doors.

"'The Best Day' is a song that I wrote without telling my mom," Swift shared in 2011. "I wrote it in the summertime, and I recorded it secretly, too. I had this idea that I wanted to play it for her for Christmas. So, when I got the track I synced up all of these home videos from when I was a little kid to go along with the song like a music video, and played it for her on Christmas Eve and she was crying her eyes out."

She eventually had to stop playing it live because Andrea was always dissolving into tears backstage.

Taylor continued, "Remembering all the times that we had when she was my only friend when I was 13 and I couldn't understand why my friends were being so mean to me. She would just take me on these adventures and we would drive around and go to towns we'd never seen before.

"Those adventures and those days of just running away from my problems—you're not supposed to run away from your problems, but when you're 13 and your friends won't talk to you and they move when you sit down at the lunch table, and your mom lets you run from those problems, I think it's a good thing... My mom was my escape in a lot of ways."

Andrea recalled the days when Taylor's friends seemed to be turning on her, telling Elle Girl she'd have to "pick [Taylor] up off the floor," she was hurting so badly.

When she was 21 she bought her parents a $1.4 million house in Nashville, around the same time she bought her first house in Los Angeles.

By 2011, the Taylor road show ran like a well-oiled machine, in no small part because of Andrea's watchful eye.

"Well, you know, she's just been doing this for so long that, to me, this is just like soccer practice," Swift's mom shrugged to the New Yorker in a 2011 profile.

After which Scott quipped, "I'm not taking her money, if that's what you're saying."

The writer noted that at least either her mom or dad was at every show that she attended, but Taylor said that they were "staying home more" than they used to.

Through the years, Andrea has become a familiar face to everyone who follows Taylor's career, from the Swifties to the paparazzi, but neither mother nor daughter has made a habit of sharing too much personal information about their family—and they, unlike some celebrities' parents, Andrea and Scott haven't been clamoring to share the spotlight.

So it was only under the greatest of emotional strains that Swift shared in 2015 that Andrea was battling cancer.

"Usually when things happen to me, I process them and then write music about how I feel, and you hear it much later," Swift wrote on Tumblr. "This is something my family and I thought you should know about now." She explained how she had encouraged her mom to go to the doctor, "just to ease some worries of mine. She agreed, and went in to get checked. There were no red flags and she felt perfectly fine, but she did it just to get me and my brother off her case about it. The results came in, and I'm saddened to tell you that my mom has been diagnosed with cancer."

Part of the message was to explain why Andrea wouldn't be at as many shows as usual, so enmeshed she was in the Taylor tour fabric.

"I'd like to keep the details of her condition and treatment plans private, but she wanted you to know," Swift explained. "She wanted you to know because your parents may be too busy juggling everything they've got going on to go to the doctor, and maybe you reminding them to go get checked for cancer could possibly lead to an early diagnosis and an easier battle."

A little over a week later, Andrea introduced her daughter at the Academy of Country Music Awards, where Taylor was one of seven being honored with the Milestone Award.

"I've watched this milestone artist from the time she was a tangled-hair little girl...Full of imagination and creativity until right now when she prepares for her next world tour," Mama Swift said. Tears starting to build, she concluded, "I'm a very proud mom."

The whole family gathered a month later to cheer Austin's graduation from Notre Dame.

On Mother's Day in 2015, Taylor personally responded to a message from a fan who had lost her own mom and was understandably having a rough day. The singer wrote back on Tumblr, "I love you so much and can't imagine what you must be feeling today. You've lived through my worst fear. I'm so sorry you can't spend today with her. It's not fair, and there's no reason why you should feel okay about it. No one should ever expect you to feel normal today."

Andrea sightings did become less frequent, but when she was spotted (having dinner with Taylor and Tom Hiddleston in L.A. in the summer of 2016, for instance), she looked like her usual self. And in 2017 she was by Taylor's side in Colorado when her daughter's dueling lawsuits with a D.J. she had accused of groping her went to trial.

Andrea testified that Taylor had told her right away that the D.J.—who sued Swift for $3 million after he was fired over the incident, after which she countersued, alleging sexual assault—had grabbed her butt while they were taking a photo during a meet-and-greet in 2013.

Explaining why they didn't immediately report him to police, Andrea said, "I did not want her to have to live through the endless memes and GIFs and anything else that tabloid media or trolls would be able to come up with...making her relive this awful moment over and over again."

"I was upset to the point where I wanted to vomit and cry at the same time," she added. "We felt it was imperative to let his employers know what happened."

The jury decided in Swift's favor, awarding her the symbolic $1 in damages she had asked for.

Andrea successfully completed treatment, but Swift revealed in March in her "30 Things I Learned Before Turning 30" essay for Elle that the cancer had returned. And, she shared for the first time that her dad had battled cancer as well.

"Both of my parents have had cancer, and my mom is now fighting her battle with it again," she wrote. "It's taught me that there are real problems and then there's everything else. My mom's cancer is a real problem. I used to be so anxious about daily ups and downs. I give all of my worry, stress, and prayers to real problems now."

Still, the now almost 30-year-old artist—winner of 10 Grammys, seller of millions of albums—won't go into too much detail when it comes to her parents' personal lives.

"There was a relapse that happened," Swift told Vogue for its 2019 September issue when asked about her mom's health. "It's something that my family is going through."

And that's a whole other kind of love story.

E! News

[the-beastslayers-queen]

Magic and Moonlight: Chapter 19

Here’s chapter 19. Tagging: @queenofthearchitect @wwepoppunkprincess @balorrollinsmoxley @bethany99stuff-blog @mrsambroserollinsacklesmgk @sassyspacedust @afauss2009 and @calwitch If you want to be tagged here and/or on my one shots, hit the inbox. Enjoy!

I tried to stay up for when Colby and Charlotte would come into Orlando for the next few days since Raw was coming to town as was a couple live shows. Unfortunately, I fell asleep in my bed, the book I was currently reading was laying on my chest. I felt someone leaving butterfly kisses on my forehead and cheeks, causing me to stir. I opened my eyes to find Colby sitting next to me, leaning over me.

“When did you get in,” I asked him, sleep weighing heavily on my voice.

“Char and I just got here,” he replied, “You look exhausted. How about you go put on something more comfortable to wear for bed and we’ll get some sleep, okay. You have to go train with your magic with Finn and then in-ring training with me.”

I got up from bed and went into my dresser to take out one of the many shirts I stole from Colby and a pair of sleep shorts out. I got changed into those while Colby took his shirt off and settled into the bed wearing just his sweatpants and socks. I climbed back into bed once I was changed and got right to work on freeing Colby’s hair from his hair tie. His old blond patch had grown out to just past his ear and his natural color was coming out. I knew that he wasn’t going to maintain the blond anymore, but I was going to miss it all the same.

“So I take it that you’re not going to re-dye your blond patch,” I asked him as I got settled under the covers.

“Nah,” he replied, “It’s too much upkeep and it’s going to destroy my hair if I do it again. I like my hair too damn much to make it go bald in that spot.”

“Yeah you’re too young and beautiful to go bald,” I teased and kissed him, “You are not allowed to go bald.”

“Alright I won’t go bald,” Colby chuckled as he turned off the lamp by the bed, “Now let’s get some sleep, we have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow.”

Colby and I got up fairly early in the morning. Colby took up the job of making breakfast while I got dressed into my workout clothes. Once I was dressed and went to sit at the kitchen island, watching Colby cook at the stove, still not wearing a damn shirt.

“Hey babe be careful,” I started to tease him, “You should wear shirts a little more so no one gets any ideas.”

“Well it’s a good thing it’s just us,” he replied still facing the stove and I could hear the smirk in his voice, “Because only you get to have the ideas about my body.”

“Oh don’t get me started,” I groaned at him playfully, “I’m not ready to make another baby just yet.”

“I wouldn’t dare think of having more werewolf pups with you yet,” he turned off the stove and served up the scrambled eggs he was making for us, “I’m not done enjoying Tyler yet to want another baby.”

“So are you going to come to the PC with me and watch me train with Finn before you and I do our thing,” I asked him, “Or are you going to go to meetings all day with Stephanie and Hunter before we train?”

“Oh I’m going to watch you train,” he replied, “I like watching you make magic.”

Once we finished our breakfast and Colby got changed to go to the PC, we made our way out. I texted Finn to let him know we were on our way over. He replied quickly that no one was at the PC today so we had it all to ourselves for the day to flex my magic-casting muscles.

Colby pulled into the parking lot and grabbed our gym bag. I hopped out of the car and took a deep breath before Colby came around to grab my hand before walking inside with me. Finn was in the ring room, sitting up on a turnbuckle, as he waited for us.

“Thanks Finn for doing this,” I greeted him as Colby kissed my cheek before sitting on the apron of the ring next to Finn’s, “Colby is going to watch if you don’t mind.”

“Not at all,” Finn replied, “Now I’m going to be your target. Bálor is staying out of this for right now. You’re going to cast all the spells you know on me and we’ll use it as a gauge on all improvements you make as we get you ready to face Morrigan.”

“Okay,” I replied and got ready.

I’ve been training for the last three days with Finn, and I was improving quite a bit. My vine spell was growing thicker, stronger vines that Finn would have to become Bálor in order to escape them. I’ve even improved my talent with real fire and I was able to do control burns and create fire balls. But my favorite spell was the one that attacks the brain, creating aneurysms over and over in any supernatural being that has quick healing.

But today, Finn wanted to have me train with Colby. But Colby was going to be in his wolf form. Which sucked to have Colby turn while we were out in the woods outside Orlando. Colby was still in constant pain every time he turned, so I hated to have him turn when he didn’t need to.

“Alright so here’s the plan,” Finn stood by Colby, unconsciously petting Colby as he began to explain the exercise, “Colby is going to charge at you and you have to cast as many spells as you can at him to slow him down and stop him. This is to work on your pacing so you can cast spells in succession without hesitating. And you won’t hurt him too badly since Bálor put a protection charm on him so you won’t injure him. If anything, he’ll come out of this with bruises and scrapes more than anything too serious.”

“Okay,” I gulped, nervous as hell that I was going to be casting offensive magic at Colby.

I have all the faith in the world that you won’t hurt me, babe. Give me your best shot. I will not hurt you if I manage to reach you before you can stop me.

I took a deep breath as Colby got into position to start charging at me. Once he took off running, I began to work on growing thorny vines from in the ground to try to trip him up, but they weren’t growing fast enough. So I tried to grow more vines and tried to whip them at him, but missed every shot. I resorted to trying to blast him back with telekinetic blasts, but he was dodging them faster than I could throw them. Hell, I tried to blast him with a frost spell to freeze him, but he dipped to the side of it. I finally tried the vines again, but Colby dodged them and leapt into the air and tackled me into the dirt.

You tried your best, there babe. Try harder.

Don’t be an ass. You were being cheeky as hell dodging everything I threw at you.

I can’t make this easy for you. If I did, you wouldn’t stand a chance against Morrigan. But we’re not going to stop trying, okay. Now dust yourself off and we’ll try again.

Colby trotted back across the field to stand by Finn again.

“Your casting speed was solid,” Finn praised, “But your accuracy is the issue. You have to be preemptive in your casting. You have divination talents right? Use them to see the next move. Predict Colby’s next move before he can even decide to do it and you’ll catch him. Now go again.”

Colby charged again and this time I focused on trying to see the future. I used what I saw of his decisions that he’d make and I started to weave my vine spells. When I predicted his dodge, I nailed him in the muzzle with a vine, slowing him a little. I proceed to wrap that vine around his muzzle as more vines grew and wrapped around the rest of his body. I made the vines coil around him like vipers, applying pressure. I opened my eyes to see Colby struggling to wiggle free. I smirked at him and I tightened the vines enough to make him whimper a little.

Not cool, Thea.

I got you right where I want you.

I ran over to where he was trapped and I planted a little kiss on his nose, falling into a fit of giggles for catching so easily this time. Colby looked unamused since I caught him at his expense.

“Nice work, Thea,” Finn complimented me, “Now I think we’re done with this exercise for today. Release Colby and he can turn back into his human form.”

Tonight, Colby was gone. He and Charlotte had to go back on the road for Raw and more live shows as well as Smackdown tapings. So Finn and I opted to do the next training session at the apartment. This one was to train my mind.

“Now for this exercise,” Finn sat across from me, “I’m going to give Bálor control and he’s going to invade your mind, making you see things you don’t want. Basically, he’s going to give you waking nightmares. Your job is to block him out and counter him with a waking nightmare of your own.”

“Okay,” I took a deep breath, “I’m ready when you are.”

Finn flashed away and Bálor took his place. I braced myself as Bálor sent his nightmares at me. I closed my eyes as he casted his nightmares at me.

I opened my eyes to find Colby standing before me. But this time, he was bloodied and he was clutching his side and cradling an arm to his chest. I went to him, touching his chest and feeling his blood against his skin. I looked up into his eyes and I heard him gasp and cough up blood. I looked down and I saw a knife was plunged into his chest. I looked back into his eyes and watched as the light left his eyes.

“Colby,” I screamed, “No no nononono!”

I held onto him as his body fell down onto me, lowering him down into my lap as I sat on the ground. I tried to use healing magic on him, but it wasn’t working. I even tried to tap into my death magic to bring him back, but nothing worked.

The nightmare ended and a new one began. This time I saw Colby sitting on the ground. I could hear him crying. I stood back up and walked over to him. I looked over his shoulder and clasped my hand over my mouth as I tried to muffle my scream. In Colby’s arms was our dead son, he was gray and so still. I began to cry at seeing my son, my little boy, dead in his father’s arms.

The second nightmare ended and the third began. This time I saw Morrigan standing before me as she held a blade to my mother’s throat. I glared at Morrigan as she laughed at me. Then she ran the blade against my mother’s throat, slicing her clean from ear to ear. I watched as my mother struggled to breathe as her blood rushed out of her neck. Morrigan let go of my mother and she plopped down onto the ground, dead.

With that the third nightmare ended and the first one started again. This time, I ran toward Colby and I grabbed hold of him, moving him away from the blade that was coming for his back. I projected a physical shield and caught the blade. I glared at the unknown figure with the knife and turned it back against them, stabbing them dead with the blade.

The second nightmare came and this time I was able to cast my death magic and resurrected Tyler. Colby cradled him close as I casted a shield around them to stop any threat from touching them.

The third nightmare played and I used a teleportation spell to pull my mother away from Morrigan and used telekinesis to plunge the blade into Morrigan’s chest.

That’s when Bálor appeared before me. I decided to cast a nightmare of my own on him. I conjured a recreation of the meeting with Morrigan and Rowena. I bound Bálor to where he stood and made him watch as Morrigan killed Rowena right before his eyes.

Enough.

I was pulled out of my mind and Bálor’s. I looked across the living room to find Finn sitting there again. He looked exhausted. I was sure Bálor tended to exhaust him when he took control and used his powers. I got up and sat next to him.

“You should go get some sleep, Finn,” I suggested, “I think we’ve done enough today.”

“You did a good job tonight,” he praised me, “I think your dreamwalking sessions with Colby made you very capable to counter anyone that tries to alter your thoughts.”

“Thank you,” I replied, “Now let me help you get to bed. I’m sure Charlotte won’t mind you sleeping on her bed. I’ll change the bedding in the morning when you go home.”

Once I got Finn settled, I went out to the living room and I saw Stephanie pacing in my living room. I conjured a fireball, ready to hurl it at her.

“What the hell are you doing here, Stephanie,” I growled at her.

“I wasn’t sure you’d actually be here,” she smirked at me, “Which means I can do this.”

Before I could attack her, Stephanie grabbed hold of me and delivered the succubus kiss on me. I could feel her feeding on my life energy. I wanted to scream, but she was keeping my mouth shut. I called magefire up onto my hands and made it burn anything but me. I touched her chest, and watched as she threw herself back as she felt the flames kiss her skin. I then grabbed her with my magic and threw her towards the front door. As she flew towards the door, I forced it open with my magic and watched as she flew out of the apartment. I ran to the door and slammed it shut. I conjured a magical barrier over the apartment, barring her from rushing back inside to protect myself and Finn from her.

I sank down to my knees, panting heavily. I was exhausted from using so much magic so quickly. I touched the skin under my nose and I felt my blood trickling out of my nose. I fished my phone out of my back pocket of my jeans, dialing Colby’s number right away.

“Thea,” Colby was confused by me calling him so late.

“I just got attacked by Stephanie,” I began to cry, “She fed on me. I got her out of the apartment and casted a barrier spell to keep her out. But I used too must magic. I’m way too weak and so is Finn.”

“Thea,” Colby was panicked and I could hear shuffling in the background, “I’m going to go find Roman and Dean and I’ll have one of them come down to Orlando to stay with you guys. You need more than just the two of you if Stephanie is coming after you.”

“Thank you, Colby,” I sighed heavily, “As soon as you can, please come back. I need you right now.”

“I promise, once I’m free,” he reassured me, “I’ll be on the first flight back to Orlando. I won’t leave you alone for long, I promise okay.”

[dontwantthenextcommanderiwantyou]

1,000 days since Lexa was killed.

In honor of Leksa kom Trikru, I re-watched the 4 hour Clexa supercut to make a list of my top 100 favorite Lexa quotes.

Jaha: “They want us to turn on each other.” Lexa: “They want justice.”

Jaha: “What is your name?” Lexa: “Leksa.” *And in that moment, a legend was introduced*

Lexa: “One of you must pick up the knife, that is our way.” Jaha: “And if we refuse?” Lexa: “Then the Commander will use it to slit both of your throats.”

Lexa: “He made his choice. This one’s mine.”

Lexa: “The massacre must be answered. Blood must have blood.”

Lexa: “You’re the one who burned 300 of my warriors alive.”

Lexa: “Do you have an answer for me, Clarke of the Sky People?” Clarke: “I’ve come to make you an offer.” Lexa: “This is not a negotiation.”

Lexa: “Deliver me the one you call Finn. Our truce begins with his death.”

Lexa: “Let her pass!”

Lexa: “You bleed for nothing. You can not stop this.”

Clarke: “Show my people how powerful you are. Show them you can be merciful. Show them you’re not a savage.” Lexa: “We are what we are.”

Lexa: “Finn is guilty.” Clarke: “No, he did it for me.” Lexa: “Then he dies for you.”

Lexa: “What you did tonight will haunt you until the end of your days.”

Gustus: “The Sky People are different, they’re more like the Mountain Men than us. It could kill our coalition.” Lexa: “Our coalition, or me?” Gustus: “You are the coalition, Commander.” Lexa: “Then do your job and protect me.”

Lexa: “The Sky People march with us now. Anyone who tries to stop that, will pay with their life.”

Lexa: “I lost someone special to me too. Her name was Costia.”

Lexa: “I thought I’d never get over the pain, but I did.” Clarke: “How?” Lexa: “By recognizing it for what it is. Weakness.”

Lexa: “The dead are gone Clarke. The living are hungry.”

Lexa: “Tell me something Clarke. When you plunged the knife into the heart of the boy you loved, did you not wish that it was mine?”

Gustus: “This alliance would cost you your life Heda. I could not let that happen.” Lexa: “This treachery will cost you yours.”

Lexa: “Attack her, and you attack me.”

Lexa: “Leave me!” 

Lexa: “I’ve seen your strength, it’s true. But now you waiver. You couldn’t kill Quint, you couldn’t leave me to die. That was weakness.” Clarke: “I thought love was weakness.” Lexa: “Mockery is not the product of a strong mind Clarke.”

Lexa: “When I die, my spirit will find the next Commander.” Clarke: “Reincarnation… that’s how you became Commander?” Lexa: “How are your leaders chosen?”

Lexa: “Don’t be afraid Clarke, death is not the end.” 

Lexa: “It’s okay, you’re safe.” Clarke: “How’s your arm?” Lexa: “Hurts.”

Lexa: “I was wrong about you Clarke. Your heart shows no sign of weakness.”

Lexa: “Clarke of the Sky People has honored us with her presence.”

Lexa: “Clarke sometimes you have to concede a battle, to win a war.”

Clarke: “This is wrong!” Lexa: “It’s also our only choice. You could’ve warned everyone out there, but you didn’t. You said nothing, not even to your own people. This is war Clarke, people die. You showed true strength today, don’t let emotion stop you now.”

Lexa: “Victory stands on the back of sacrifice.”

Lexa: “What happened here will not stand. The mountain will fall. The dead will be avenged!”

Lexa: “That’s what it means to be a leader Clarke. The truth is we must look into the eyes of our warriors and say go die for me.”

Lexa: “You were born for this, Clarke… same as me.”

Clarke: “What the hell is wrong with you? You can’t just kill everyone you don’t trust!” Lexa: “Yes I can.”  

Clarke: “You felt something for Gustus. You’re still haunted by Costia. You want everyone to think you’re above it all, but I see right through you.” Lexa: “G e t . . . o u t.” Clarke: “250 people died in that village. I know you felt for them, but you let them burn.” Lexa: “Not everyone… not you.”

Lexa: “You think our ways are harsh. That’s how we survive.” Clarke: “Maybe life should be about more than just surviving. Don’t we deserve better than that?” Lexa: “Maybe we do.” *And with that kiss, the most legendary tv ship was born*

Lexa: “You should come with me to the capital. Polis will change the way you think about us.” Clarke: “You already have.”

Clarke: “What did you do?” Lexa: “What you would’ve done… save my people.”

Clarke: “They’ll all be killed. But you don’t care do you?” Lexa: “I do care Clarke. But I made this decision with my head, not my heart. The duty to protect my people comes first.”

Lexa: “May we meet again.”

Roan: “Honor our deal.” Lexa: “I’ll honor our deal when your queen honors my coalition.”

Lexa: “Leave us!”

Lexa: “War is brewing Clarke. I need you.”

Clarke: “You went through all that trouble to capture me, just to let me go.” Lexa: “I went through all that trouble to save you.”

Lexa: “You’re angry Clarke, but I know you. What you’ve done haunts you and it’s easier to hate me than hate yourself.”

Lexa: “It helps no one to dwell on the past, that’s not why I’m here. You’re right, I’m not just letting you go back to your people. I want something more. I want your people to become my people. I’m offering Skaikru the chance to join my coalition. Become the 13th clan, no one would dare move against you because that would be moving against me.”

Lexa: “You can’t run away from who you are Clarke!”

Lexa: “Please come join me, let us speak in private. I have a message for Queen Nia.”

Lexa: “Would anyone else care to question my decisions?” Everyone: … .. . Lexa: “Good, then let's begin.”

Lexa: “I will not let the fear of war dictate our agenda.”

Titus: “She won’t even see you. Yet everything you do elevates her. Why?” Lexa: “Clarke elevates herself. She’s special.” 

Lexa: “I never meant to turn you into this.”

Lexa: “This is an act of war. Sentries arrest the Ice Nation delegation!”

Lexa: “Clarke will be safe here under my protection.”

Clarke: “I stayed because it was the right thing for my people.” Lexa: “Our people.” Clarke: “If you betray me again.” Lexa: “I won’t. I swear fealty to you, Klark kom Skaikru. I vow to treat your needs as my own, and your people as my people.”

Nia: “None of us here wants war.” Lexa: “We both know what you want, Nia. If you think me unfit to command, issue the challenge, and lets get on with it.”

Titus: “Heda, who will fight for you?” Lexa: “I’m the Commander. No one fights for me.”

Clarke: “You don’t stand a chance against Roan.” Lexa: “You’ve never seen me fight.”

Clarke: “I can’t just let Roan kill you.” Lexa: “If that is to be my fate, you must! You’re driven to fix everything for everyone. But you can’t fix this. I have to do this on my own and you have to let me.”

Lexa: “The queen is dead! Long live the king!”

Clarke: “Is this I told you so?” Lexa: “No, this is thank you.”

Clarke: “Goodnight Commander.” Lexa: “Goodnight Ambassador.”

Lexa: “You left a hero to your people, and you return one. The mountain slayer returns with the body of the ice queen. You bring them justice.” Clarke: “You bring them justice.” Lexa: “We bring them peace.”

Lexa: “I call upon the armies of the 12 clans. In a days’ time we lay waste to Arkadia and everyone within its walls!”

Indra: “Commander, you can’t seriously be considering this.” Lexa: “I’m not considering it. I’m doing it.”

Indra: “Polis will not support you. Titus…” Lexa: “Titus is my subject! They’re all my subjects! Do you say they will defy me? Will you defy me?” Indra: “No Heda, I will not.” Lexa: “Then let it be known… blood must not have blood.”

Lexa: “She can speak for herself, Titus.”

Titus: “See, it is human nature to need vengeance. Only once satiated can there be peace. That is our way.” Lexa: “That was our way! Clarke?” Clarke: … .. . Lexa: “So blood must not have blood applies only when it is my people who bleed.”

Lexa: “Heda will speak for herself! Enough, Titus.”

Lexa: “Quiet! The crimes of the Mountain cannot be answered by one man. Wanheda knows this. Her actions show us a promise for a new future. A world in which violence does not always answer violence. A world in which our children can flourish, without the shadow of death.”

Titus: “What are their orders Heda?” Lexa: “Any Skaikru caught across the line will be subject to a kill order.” Semet: “Heda I do not understand. How is this vengeance?” Lexa: “It is not vengeance my brother. It is justice.”

Clarke: “So when do we have to leave?” Lexa: “We may be drawing a line but who’s to say you can’t choose to stay on this side of it?”

Titus: “If you care for Clarke you will send her home, that is the only way she will be safe! Don’t make her pay the price for your mistakes as Costia did.” Lexa: “My mistakes? Azgeda cut off Costia’s head and delivered it to my bed! And still I let them into my alliance! I am more than capable of separating feelings from duty!!”

Clarke: “I’m sorry.” Lexa: “Don’t be. You have to go back, they’re your people. That’s why I… that’s why you’re you.”

Clarke: “If Octavia and I are gonna get behind the blockade by dawn…” Lexa: “Shhhh.” 

Lexa: “The next commander will protect you.” Clarke: “I don’t want the next commander. I want you.”

Lexa: “Clarke.” Clarke: “I’m here.” Lexa: “My fight is over.” Clarke: “No. No. I won’t accept that.” Lexa: “You were right Clarke. Life is about more than just surviving.”

Lexa: “Our fight is not over.”

Clarke: “I never thought I’d see you again.” Lexa: “I told you my spirit would choose wisely.”

Lexa: “It’s a firewall.”

Clarke: “Lexa! I love you.” Lexa: “I’ll always be with you.” *Lexa will always be with all of us*

Go drop some votes for the amazing Alycia Debnam-Carey... without her, we would’ve never had Lexa, Clexa, Clexakru, or ClexaCon.

[reyskyber]

Headcanon of Wells Jaha was still alive? Would he be with spacekru, bunker, Clarke? Thoughts on Bellamy? Thoughts on Echo?

Anon, I’ve had this sat in my inbox for a while, and I’m sorry it took me so long to get to!

If Wells had lived so much stuff would have been different, but let’s pretend that the plot had stayed relatively similar re: banishing Murphy (we all know he’d have done something else eventually).

We’d get to see Clarke and Bellamy as leaders still, but now with Wells to help.  Wells using his Earth skills knowledge and helping improve the camp.  It was Wells’ idea to put up the walls and collect the water, I’ll bet that he had a million other ideas for how to improve the camp and I’m hurt that we never got to see them.

Wells not making in to the dropship at the end of S1 would have been so good for the plot.  It could further his relationship with Bellamy (and Finn) and then when the adults finally found them they’d actually be willing to listen to Wells.  Wells explaining to Abby and Marcus about how they made the camp work and the 100.  Abby and Marcus actually listening to them instead of arresting Bellamy and Murphy.

Wells being told his father sacrificed himself for the rest of the Ark (WOW I feel like Eli would have made this scene so good and again I’m HURT).  That along with him finding out his father was alive a few weeks later.  WOW.

Wells helping Raven with the radios, that friendship is one that we were robbed of. 

Wells comforting Clarke after Finn, bc wow the girl needed help and no one seemed to want to help her; Wells would have and you know it.  Wells would have tried to talk Clarke out of sending Bellamy into the mountain in hushed tones, then when she did he’d give them both a worried look and then Clarke could lean on him when she was worried about Bellamy.  Wells trying to help heal the wound between Clarke and Raven.

Wells would try and talk Clarke into staying in 216.  I just - 

I’m not sure how the plot of s3 would go the same way if Wells was alive, but let’s pretend it would.  Wells watching his father go crazy for his salvation to the CoL.  He wouldn’t know how to react exactly - he lets him go regardless, but he says he’s staying in Arkadia with his friends family.  Jaha understands, he’s hurt, but he gets it.

Everyone taking the chip and Wells trying so hard along with Raven and Jasper to convince people to not take it.  Wells and Jasper helping Raven when she becomes ALIE!Raven.  Wells trying to talk to Jasper about Clarke and Jasper snapping back.

In S4 Wells is shunned again because of his father, but this time he has his friends around him to defend him.  He helps Clarke plan for changing Arkadia so it’s fit for Praimfaya.  Wells being on the list and refusing to be on it unless Clarke and Bellamy are both on it too.

At the end of S4 Wells volunteers to go help save Raven, so he’d end up in space.  Bellamy and Wells go back to help Monty while Murphy loads up the ship.  (If this actually went down I don’t think Echo would make it to the ship so :////)

Wells calling to Bellamy that they have to go.

Wells and Bellamy staring at earth at the end of S4 and agree to honour Clarke.  They’ve come a long way together after everything that happened on the ground.  Neither are close to each other in the same way they were both close to Clarke, but they’re close friends.

Please excuse me while I go and cry a little bit.