#getting reprimanded for hitting a baseball through a window

[mocndu]

angry scout animation doodle

[apomaro-mellow]

S01E06: All Bases Covered

“Okay now remember what I taught you boys. Keep it loose but stay tight.”

“What exactly are you teaching my boys?”, Joyce asked as she stepped out into her backyard, arms crossed.

Jim had on a baseball glove, as did Jonathan. Will was holding a bat.

“Teachin’ them America’s finest pastime in preparation for this weekend.”

“The charity game?”

“Yep. Alright Will, get ready”, Jim bent his knees just barely. “Jonathan, don’t go easy on him, put some mustard on it.”

“Why not some mayo and a pickle too, while you’re at it”, Joyce heckled.

Jonathan wound up and pitched to his brother, who hit the ball dead on. His, Jonathan’s, Jim’s, and Joyce’s looks of pride and wonder where all dashed the moment the ball dashed through one of the windows of the Byers house.

“Now boys, here’s another important lesson”, Jim said, adjusting his cap. “If you break a window while playing ball…book it!”

The three of them bolted off, dropping their things and ignoring Joyce’s calls.

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

Eddie cleared his throat while dusting off the microphone. He got comfortable in his seat, Nancy right along with him.

“Goooood morning Hawkins. It is a beautiful day for baseball on this clear Saturday morning. Most would say this time is better spent watching cartoons. And they’d be right!”

“But what a privilege it is to be here anyway”, Nancy gave him a look. “Remember folks, all proceeds from the concession stand, as well as donations goes to Top of the Mornin’ flower shop on 2nd Street, which suffered a devastating fire recently.”

Eddie grinned. “In addition to the snacks and donations, Steve Harrington is offering dough for kisses. 2 bucks and he’ll plant one anywhere.”

Steve, who was in the middle of jogging the bases to warm up, paused and glared at Eddie. “Buzz off, Munson!”

Nancy made sure her mic was off before reprimanding him. “Need I remind you you’re doing time for last week’s crime?”

“Hijacking the school announcements barely counts as a misdemeanor Big Wheel.”

“It’s only thanks to me that you’re doing this instead of spending all day in detention. So behave.”

“As you wish”, Eddie said with a flourish of his hand.

The two teams were made up by people in the community. Joyce wrangled the kids to represent the store she worked at. The other side was Hawkins Middle School’s actual baseball team.

Dustin watched as other kids his age ran drills with what appeared to his eyes to be militant-like precision while he sat in the dug out.

“So, we’re content with being beat, right? This is just for charity and there’s no shame in losing.”

“That sounds an awful lot like quitter talk”, Jim said, adjusting the cap on his head.

“Yeah, I don’t know about you, but I came to win”, Lucas said.

Steve beamed as he returned from his jog. “I knew there was a reason he was my favorite.”

“How am I not your favorite? I’m your sister”, El challenged.

“You just answered your own question. Sister, ergo different category than these dweebs.”

“Don’t lump me in with the rest of them, I actually know what I’m doing”, Max said while practicing her swings.

“Alright”, Jim clapped his hands. “Let’s stay focused. I’m not gonna lie and say it’s gonna be an easy game, but as long as you keep your fundamentals, we’ll be in good shape.”

Mike, Will, and Dustin looked unconvinced but they were in it now. No denying that. Steve called over Max and El for some batting practice and Jim ordered some laps for Jonathan and Dustin. He told Mike and Lucas to organize the dug out. Mike was propping up the bats when they all fell over, jostling the pile of everybody’s bags and backpacks.

He put the bats back up, then tried lining up the bags instead, when a notebook fell from one of them. The book fell with the pages open on the dirty ground. Mike picked it up and turned it over, dusting it off, eyes just happening to graze over the words as he did.

“Mike and his annoying voice…”

He shoved his face into it, skimming the words. That was his name. And a few lines later, Dustin was mentioned, then Will. He looked to the top of the page and saw that there was a date. He snapped it closed and then went over to Lucas who was just about to leave the dug out for more warm ups.

“Dude!”, Mike hissed.

“Yeah?”

"This is a diary", Mike said, holding it tightly in his hands but also at arm's length.

"And this is a baseball bat", Lucas said, knocking it against his feet. "These are all things."

“You’re not listening. This is a diary. Of someone we know”, Mike kept his voice at a whisper.

Lucas looked around to make sure no one else was watching. “Put it back where you found it before Max kills you.”

“How do you know it’s Max’s?”

Lucas shrugged. “It’s gotta be a girl’s, right? Only chicks keep diaries.”

“It could be El’s”, Mike suggested. “Aaand I can’t put it back into someone’s bag until I find out whose it is.”

“You’re treading shaky ground, friend.”

“Just-just keep a lookout, okay?”, Mike urged while opening up to the first page he had started on.

“I’m going to have to suffer through Mike and his annoying voice. He’s fine I just wish he wasn’t always so quick to argue. It gets kind of old.”

“Is my voice annoying?”

“Who cares? Did you figure it out?”, Lucas asked.

Mike was unable to answer as Nancy’s voice rang out, stating that the game would begin soon and for all players to vacate the field. Mike sat on the bench, putting the diary under him as the others returned to the dugout. 

“It is 9:05, skies are blue, wind is abouuut 2 miles towards the southeast, and it is time for some baseball!”, Eddie announced.

“The Hawkins Middle pitcher is Reggie Ranner and he’s been in the sport since he started t-ball at 5”, Nancy said. 

“And up to bat first is Will Byers. Don’t let the sweet face fool ya, he once called a grown man an idiot. To his face!”, Eddie exclaimed. “Mad respect.”

Reggie pitched and Will waited until just the last second to bunt and get himself a place on first base. While the game was going on, Mike was still reading the diary, trying to figure out who it belonged to. He tried looking at some earlier pages for context.

“We’re finally moving and I’m trying to be excited about it. Jim says we could use a fresh start. I guess I do want to get away from here. But as stupid as it sounds, moving is scary.”

“This is definitely El’s”, Mike said to himself. He imagined her lying on her bed, kicking her feet as she wrote. He skipped a few pages, trying to find something about himself.

“Life is weird here. But, maybe in a good way? I definitely never imagined having dinner with people like Dustin, or Mike, or even Jonathan. My social circle has seriously flipped. And yet it’s not that bad. What is bad is the guy who keeps hanging off these people. His name is Eddie Munson and he’s so annoying.”

Mike looked up as he heard Eddie’s voice, announcing the next batter.

“Coming up to the plate is Steeeeve Harrington. And yes ladies, he’s single.”

“Mike, come on, you’re after Steve”, Jim called out.

Mike put the book under the bench as he got up, grumbling about the futility of athletic pursuits. Steve swung and with his hit the bases were all loaded.

“All Mike has to do is hit and his team could get everyone home”, Eddie said, voice a whisper on the microphone. “Now I only read the manual ten minutes before the game, but even I know a grand slam could be major.”

Jim, Will, and Lucas were shouting encouragement to Mike who was wiping his sweaty hands down. Reggie was smirking him down.

The umpire from behind tapped him on the ankle and snickered. “Enjoy it Wheeler. This is the only time you’ll get to first base.”

Mike didn’t see the pitch. His body just moved and the ball popped right into the air. While the Hawkins Middle team scrambled, Will, Lucas, and Steve all made it home. Mike heard the cheers but all he was thinking was whether or not El would put this in her diary.

“Well we are four innings in and it seems the luck of the first inning has worn off with a current score of 5-3, Hawkins Middle up”, Nancy said. “As the weather heats up, be sure to get a drink from our snack stand. Remember, all proceeds go to Top of the Mornin’ flower shop. My partner Eddie is over there right now, grabbing refreshments.”

Nancy turned her mic off the moment she saw her brother coming up to the booth. Lucas was with him.

“Nancy, we’ve got a question”, Mike started.

“What does it mean when a girl keeps talking about a dude over and over again but only about how she doesn’t like him?”, Lucas asked.

“What are you guys talking about? Jonathan is about to pitch.”

“Can you just tell us what it means in girl-talk?”, Mike asked.

Nancy rolled her eyes. “For girls your age, if she’s constantly talking about him, usually it means she has a crush.”

She shooed them out as they started getting either excited or angry she couldn’t tell. Either way she had to get back to announcing the game. 

“If what Nancy said is true, then that means El has a crush on Eddie!”, Mike hissed in a whisper as they returned to the dugout.

“I mean…she could do worse”, Lucas said.

“She could also do better”, Mike deadpanned. “Like someone actually her age.”

“Maybe Nancy’s wrong. Maybe El actually just doesn’t like Eddie.”

“She talks about his hair a lot. Like a lot. Should I start growing mine out?”

“Mike, I guarantee you his hair is cripsier than a french fry”, Lucas said.

“Let me just see if she said anything else”, Mike began to flip the pages.

Lucas gave him a nudge and Mike hid it behind his back, then tossed it under the bench as the others returned for a switch. Jim tried to give a rousing speech as the innings went on and they didn’t score any more points after the first inning. Eventually he switched gears to ‘winning isn’t everything.’

“We’re at the last bout of the afternoon”, Eddie announced at the bottom of the ninth. “And here comes Steve Harrington and I know what you’re thinking. No, he does not stuff. He just buys his pants a size too small. And there he is giving me the bird. What a class act.”

“Is it because he’s funny?”, Mike asked.

“Is what because he’s funny?”, Dustin asked.

“Mike thinks El likes Eddie”, Lucas said.

“What?!”, Dustin shrieked, getting everyone else’s attention, and making Lucas and Mike shush him.

“And that’s the game!”, Nancy exclaimed from the booth.

Their side lost, of course. But they said good game to the other team anyway. Mike left the diary on the ground near the bags, hoping that El would gasp and exclaim when she found it. Instead, he heard Steve curse and jam it into his duffel bag, looking around to see if anyone was watching.

“So the diary was Steve’s, what does that mean?”, Lucas asked as Jim and Joyce took them all out for ice cream.

Mike shrugged. “Steve hates Eddie. That’s not news.”

[elisaphoenix13]

Consequences Of Pitching Practice

"Bah!"

"That's all well and good but you still haven't given me the screwdriver."

"Nnmmmnnn." Lucy answers while slobbering all over said screwdriver.

Tony huffs fondly. "Don't let your mom see that. I don't need another lecture about how unsanitary that is." He takes the screwdriver and chuckles when the baby glares at him. "It's also unsafe. I kind of like you."

Lucy babbles at him angrily as Tony wipes the screwdriver free of drool and he offers her one of her actual toys. It's not that he didn't offer her her own toys in the first place, it's just that Lucy had an uncanny ability to get her hands on whatever she wanted. Even when she was confined to a highchair or something. It wasn't anything magical, Tony and Stephen made sure of that, Lucy was just a typical, curious baby.

Tony had a feeling he may have been the same way as a baby.

"If you keep back talking me like that, you won't have lab time with me anymore." Tony says as he tightens a screw.

"Mmmfffbbb!" Lucy retorts and the engineer looks over at her to find that she had somehow gotten her hands on a different screwdriver. Which she was currently drooling on the rubber end of.

"Maybe I should take that as a clue that it's lunchtime for you." Tony says. "How about a bottle?"

Some happy beeps and whirs grab Tony's attention and he looks over at the kitchenette to find DUM-E excitedly starting a bottle. The first ingredient? Grease of some sort. Tony wasn't even sure when the robot grabbed that.

"No, no, no. Lulu can't have grease. You finish that for yourself!" Tony reprimands as he walks over to make a proper bottle. He partially ignores the sad noises DUM-E makes and takes the bottle over to Lucy. "Here you go dolcezza. How about something sanitary to put in your mouth?"

Lucy eyes the bottle her father holds out for her and Tony's eyes widen when she actually throws her screwdriver across the room and takes the bottle. He looks over to where the tool had landed when he hears a crash and finds a separate project emitting sparks from where it had been hit. Six months old and she had quite the arm.

"Maybe we should make a baseball team." Tony says calmly. "You can be our pitcher. Diana was kind of like that too but Cassie corrupted her."

For once, Tony doesn't get an answer from Lucy, but she was too busy with her lunch. Something he should probably be thinking about at the very least.

"Think your mom would make me a sandwich if I asked him nicely?"

A pointed look from the infant makes him chuckle.

"Probably not, huh? Not when I'm down here with you and tinkering for f--"

A low hum distracts Tony and he swivels around when it gets louder by the second. The machine Lucy had damaged with the screwdriver was spitting sparks like an angry cat, and it was glowing brighter and brighter. Tony barely had the mind to turn back and grab and cover Lucy just before the thing exploded. The force of the explosion sent them to the ground, but Tony made sure to keep Lucy secure in his arms. When he recovers and sits up, he winces as his ears ring and the first thing he hears is Lucy crying. Her poor ears were probably ringing too and he knew that Stephen was going to have a fit when the sorcerer undoubtedly came to investigate. Both Friday and Victor tended to snitch on him, especially when one of the kids was in the lab with him.

"I'm sorry dolcezza." Tony says to Lucy in an attempt to soothe her. "Daddy should have checked to make sure you didn't do so much damage."

He carefully gets back to his feet as a window opens to ventilate the smoke, and checks Lucy over to make sure she's unharmed, glad to see she wasn't and was already calming down. Her cries had already turned into whimpers and she had grabbed one of his fingers to stick into her mouth to help soothe her further. Tony coughs and waves away the smoke in the air, noting that DUM-E was actually in the process of putting out a small fire by the machine. It wasn't the only thing Tony noticed either. There were two extra bodies standing by the burning remains of his project, and when the smoke finally cleared away, Tony froze.

The two people that were also waving away the smoke and coughing were his parents.

Howard and Maria were standing ten feet away from him and all Tony could do was stand and stare.

That project was in no way a time travel machine, but clearly that's what had happened. His parents were somehow pulled from the past with a half finished machine that Lucy broke with a screwdriver, and Tony was floored. The last time he saw his mother was the night she died, and his father during the time heist.

"Tony!" The engineer blinks and looks over at the door with wide eyes as Stephen rushes in and over to him. "Friday told me there was an explosion. Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah. We both are. Lulu was just a little spooked…"

"Tony?"

Howard's voice draws the attention of both men and Stephen's eyebrows fly up toward his hairline.

"What exactly were you working on?" Stephen asks Tony.

"Not a time machine."

=======

"She's so darling." Maria says as she takes Lucy from Tony. "What's her name?"

"Lucy." Tony mumbles and watches the interaction with fascination.

Once they had gotten over the initial shock, Tony managed to explain what happened before promising to find a way to send his parents back to where they belonged. For now though, they were stuck in the present time and Tony was already preparing for anything. Maria wasn't the problem...it was Howard. Tony had no idea how things would go when it came to his father.

"Who is her mother?" Howard asks.

There it is. That didn't take long, Tony thinks to himself. He then points to Stephen.

"Him. Meet my husband, Doctor Stephen Strange." Tony says.

"Did you adopt?" Maria asks.

"Yes...but not Lucy. Stephen is literally her mother. The girls were made with magic." Tony explains, and Maria brightens when he mentions the girls.

"There are more?" Maria asks while Howard simultaneously says, "Really, Anthony? Magic?"

Stephen was the one to answer Howard before Tony could open his mouth again. The doctor didn't even have to say anything. He simply displayed his magical abilities and Howard actually closed his mouth.

"How many children do you have?" Maria asks again.

Tony looks at her and genuinely smiles. "Seven."

"And a half." Stephen adds and Tony chuckles.

"That's a long story." Tony explains to his parents.

"Where are the others?" Howard asks.

"Somewhere." Tony says flippantly.

"Peter is out patrolling, Harley and Thomas are running an errand for me, Diana is downstairs with Cassie, and William is napping with Valerie." Stephen tells them. "Tea?"

"Yes, please." Maria says and Stephen walks into the kitchen.

Tony could only watch his mother play with Lucy. Even Howard seemed content to spend time with his granddaughter, so Tony joined Stephen in the kitchen and finally took a shuddering breath. Stephen looks over at him with concern and Tony waves him away.

"I'm alright."

"Wondering if it's all a dream?" Stephen asks.

"Maybe? It was nerve wracking just seeing my father during the time heist and now he's actually here. Sort of." Tony tries to explain.

"You have a chance to tell him what you want to." Stephen says. "And...I understand how you're feeling."

He reaches over and carefully grabs Tony's right arm, and looks at the scars traveling from the top of his hand and up his arm. They disappear briefly under his sleeve, but then reappear at the collar of his shirt and finally stop just below the right side of his jaw. Tony supposed Stephen had a point. Stephen probably felt that having Tony back was just a dream for a while. But Tony was here to stay.

Howard and Maria had to go back.

"You've made it very clear that I'm only allowed to die of old age or caffeine overdose." Tony chuckles and Stephen looks at him flatly.

"Preferably the former."

"That's the plan. Where's Athena?" Tony asks as Stephen gently drops his arm and turns back to the tea.

"Upstairs with William and Valerie. Tibbs is sleeping in his cat tower."

"The chaos will start up any second now regardless." Tony huffs and Stephen picks up the tea he finishes and takes it back into the living room.

Tony follows him, finding Lucy surprisingly with his father, and giving Maria a chance to drink the tea Stephen offers her. The chaos truly did erupt after that as he expected. Maria was only halfway through her tea when the kids that were out and about came home, Cassie and Diana came upstairs, and William and Valerie shuffled out of the little girl's room. Harley and Peter had expressions on their faces that made Tony think that they knew who exactly their visitors were, but they didn't say anything.

"Here's the rest of the brood." Tony announces. "Brood and a half." He says motioning to Cassie.

"I'm sure it's always exciting here." Maria says with a smile.

Stephen snorts. "If it's not the kids, it's our friends. Sometimes it's both."

"But it's our life. I don't think any of us would trade it for anything." Tony says.

Not even for one more day with his parents like he might have wished for once upon a time. He got his wish anyway, just not the way he thought he would. Because Lucy liked to throw things.

Tony told himself that he wanted to say things to his dad if he ever got the chance to, but just like the time heist, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He didn't want to see his parents off with another bad memory, and he didn't want to do that to any of his kids. They deserved a good memory with their grandparents...and Howard was being pretty decent so far. He could be civil too.

=====

To Tony and Stephen's surprise, Howard and Maria enjoyed spending every moment with the kids. Stephen at first kept an eye on them to make sure they didn't force any of their beliefs on them (or try to parent them in their own way), but he was able to relax after a little while. The older couple were content to spend time with the kids as grandparents usually did. Watching movies, playing games, cooking, and sharing each kid's hobbies.

Tony unfortunately couldn't spend much time with his parents because he had to fix the project Lucy had thrown the screwdriver at. He had to find a way to return his parents to their own time since he knew they didn't belong here. No matter how much he might have wanted them to stay and see how his life turned out.

Maybe they would go back to his seventeen-year-old self and tell him everything would work out okay. Even back then, Tony probably wouldn't listen to them, so he could see their attempt to reassure him being ignored.

It only took Tony a couple of days to fix the machine so that he could send his parents home. He let them, Stephen, and the kids know...and spent the rest of the night and up until the next afternoon with his parents. When it came time to take them back downstairs, they all went to say their final goodbyes.

"Do they have to go?" Diana pouts and Maria smiles as she pats her head.

"I know dear. It's unfair, but I'm glad we got to see you and your brothers and sisters." She says softly. "You be good for your mom and dad."

"I will."

Maria and Howard were quick to accept Stephen's role as the kids' mother once they explained how it started. How it started as a bit of a joke but overtime became serious...and then true when Diana was born. Of course they weren't used to it since their time was almost forty years prior, but even they knew anything could happen that far in the future. That things and people were becoming more open-minded.

"Thanks for teaching us some more of your recipes." Harley says, making Maria smile.

"Of course. I'm glad to see you enjoy cooking."

He shrugs. "Sometimes."

"Make sure you surpass your father." Howard says and Peter grins.

"We will."

After the kids finish saying their goodbyes -- and of course Lucy throws her teething ring at them -- Howard pulls Tony aside. Stephen watches with a raised eyebrow, but Tony subtly waves away his concern and the sorcerer turns his attention back to Maria and the kids.

"I'm glad to see you've done well for yourself." Howard says.

"For the company?" Tony asks.

His father sighs. "No. I'm glad to see that you have a family. A good one. Your children are all amazing and I'm not even talking about their potential." Tony looks at him in surprise but doesn't interrupt as Howard continues. "Your spouse...I don't know how things are in this time...but he's good for you. I…" he sighs. "I'm not good at this…"

"It's okay. I think I know what you're trying to say." Tony reassures. "I love him. I love my kids...and I would do anything to keep them safe. I have and I always will."

"I'm proud of you." Howard says softly. "I know our relationship wasn't the greatest, but I wanted to make sure you knew that. I doubt you need to know that or if you care--"

"Thank you." Tony says. "It means a lot."

"I'm glad we got to see you happy."

Tony felt just a tiny bit lighter after that when they rejoined the others. He hugged both of his parents goodbye, watched as his kids and Stephen did the same, and then booted up the machine that would send his parents back. Tony made sure Lucy didn't have anything that she could throw and make a mess of the machine again, and then finally hit the button. He looked at his parents as the machine hummed loudly, and returned the smile they gave him before they disappeared from sight and the machine powered down.

Stephen walks over to Tony as the kids head back upstairs, and wraps his arms around his neck. "Any regrets?"

"No."

Not at all.

[icouldntfinditsoiwroteit]

Lost and found (1/2)

Inspired in @lil-medic's post "Horror", go read her post, it is incredible and very fun to read.

(F/N) = First name

"" = Dialogue

** = Thoughts

"You know that staring is rude, right?" Crosshair's eyes snapped at the right of the counter where the voice had come from, it was one of the girls that had entered the store a few minutes ago, she was quite tall, Crosshair hadn't noticed her approached him, he glared.

"(F/N), the car is ready!" The togrutan girl who had been outside filling their car up shouted.

"Your friend already paid," Crosshair concluded that he must have been too busy examining the girl outside that he didn't notice this one.

"And I want to buy these," He looked at the counter where a pair of lollipops and a package of gum were laid.

He ranged her up and she handed the money.*He noticed that her arms were covered in scales*. She took her stuff and shoved it on her jacket's pockets except for one of the lollipops, they never broke eye contact.

"Anyway, keep your eyes to yourself, creep," She gave him a sideways glance before leaving the store.

Crosshair sneered, he hated teenagers.

"Ahsoka, is that a kid?" (F/N) noticed from the shotgun's seat.

The car slowed down and just like (F/N) had said, there was a kid on the side of the road alone.

"What is a kid doing there?" Ahsoka questioned

"Don't know, stop the car I'll ask if she's okay," (F/N) said as they came to a stop beside the kid and she rolled the window down.

"Hey kid, are you alright?" The kid turned towards them surprised.

"Umm, I........ " The kid looked away.

"Are you lost, how did you get here?" (F/N) asked gently.

"I got lost," They looked down as if embarrassed.

"Where do you live dear?" Ahsoka asked.

"I........um....." They looked uncertain.

"Hey don't worry, if you want we can take you to the next town that is a few miles away from where we have signal and you can call your parents with our phones," (F/N) offered.

"I.......I don't know their numbers," They looked away again but seemed to be starting to tear up.

"Don't worry about it, it happens to everyone," Ahsoka reassured.

"Do you want us to wait here until they find you?" Ahsoka offered.

"No, my brother can't leave the house due to being sick, he won't be able to get here," The kid explained.

Ahsoka and (F/N) looked at each other with worry.

"Would you maybe like for us to drive you to your home or near it?" (F/N) finally offered.

"Would you do that??" The kid's face lightened with a hopeful smile.

"Yeah, if you want to," Ahsoka agreed and unlocked to car's doors.

The kid quickly entered the car.

"Thank you so much," They gave a huge smile.

"Don't worry about it, you can call me Ahsoka and this is (F/N),"

"My names Omega, thank you for helping me, my brother must be so worried,"

"Then we better hurry and take you home, would you mind telling us where it is?" (F/N) asked as she took the GPS.

"It's not in the town, it's near it though," Omega explained.

"Okay then, you will be our guide then," Ahsoka cheerfully said as the car started to move again.

"So, how did you get lost?" (F/N) asked.

"I ventured too far into the forest, my brother has told me not too but I....."

"You didn't listen?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yeah," Omega whispered just loud enough for them to hear.

"We've all disobeyed something we've been told before," Ahsoka gave a sympathetic smile.

"But you should know that it most probably is there for your safety, the woods are no place for a kid," (F/N) added.

"I know," Omega looked out of the window.

"But the good thing is that you are on your way back, do you want some gum," (F/N) offered with a small smile, Omega accepted the piece of gum.

They stayed silent for a while until Omega broke it.

"It's there, my home's entrance is that one," She pointed at a dirt path that they took without much of a second thought.

"The path ends here," Ahsoka stopped the car beside a grey pickup.

"My house is at the end of those stairs," Omega pointed to some stair made of wood that went up, if Ahsoka and (F/N) squinted they could see a house.

"Do you want us to walk you to the door?" Ahsoka offered.

"Yes please," The three got out of the car and started to follow Omega.

"I bet my brother will want to thank you both," Omega said as they approached the house, but that is when (F/N) noticed something.

"Hey kid, where is your hairband?" She asked.

Omega froze for a moment, Ahsoka worried that something was wrong the moment Omega froze was short.

"I must have left it in the car, I'm sorry," Omega gave an apologetic look.

"Don't worry about it, I'll go get it, you keep climbing the stairs I'll catch up," (F/N) said and before anyone could say anything she was jogging down the stairs towards the stairs, Omega and Ahsoka kept going up.

When they were a few steps from the door Ahsoka took a breath from the long stairs.

"Those were some long stairs," She chuckled.

"Yup," Omega walked to the door.

"So.... what is your brother's name again,"

"Echo," Omega said as she opened the front door and there stood a short thin man with goggles.

"No he's not," Ahsoka whispered as her eyes widened for a moment.

"Pardon?" Not Echo asked, fortunately not having heard what Ahsoka had said.

"Oh....nothing, you must be Omega's brother?" Ahsoka asked.

"Yes, I was so worried about her, how did you find her?" Not Echo asked.

"She was lost and we found her in the road," Ahsoka explained.

"Omega, what have I told you of not wandering in the woods?"

"Not to,"

"I am so grateful you found her, would you like to come in, I can at least offer you dinner after bringing her home?" The man offered.

"There is no need, I'm just glad we could help, but we need to get going," Ahsoka explained.

"But (F/N) said she was going to bring my headband," Omega said.

"Right.....I forgot about-"

BANG!!!!

A loud gunshot echoed through the woods.

Ahsoka turned to where the sound had come from and it was where the cars were parked, she was about to run toward where (F/N) had been but she felt someone moving behind her and she ducked feeling something graze the top of her montrals.

She rolled out of the way and when she looked around she saw a man with a tattooed face with a baseball bat, clearly what had been mere inches from hitting her head.

"You still need practice in improvising Omega," The man informed as he started to approach Ahsoka.

"Sorry Hunter," Omega apologized as she took out a knife.

*What the hell!!!* Ahsoka thought as she considered how to escape this situation.

"Hunter, if you could I would much appreciate for them to be left alive," The thin man who Omega had said was omega spoke.

"I'll see what we can do," The bloodlust on Hunter's eyes made Ahsoka decide that running was the best option at the moment, and so she did, she took a large jump to cut the stair and land as far away from them but she felt a knife graze her left montral.

"KRIFF!!" She let out a pained groan, she had experienced injuries to her montrals but the pain never became any more bearable, she swallowed another pained moan a began to run, she wouldn't waste any time with the car, she didn't need to be a genius to know that it was useless.

She saw (F/N) footprints leading into the left side of the forest.

*To the left it is,* She thought as she started to run towards the left, she could feel the man Hunter and Omega following her at a slower pace.

*Trackers, there must be traps in the forest,*

(F/N) held her injured arm with her left arm, even if the boulder of a man had some good strength, she had almost got the upper hand in her small fight with him but.....

*They have a damned sniper,* Even if a slugthrower couldn't penetrate her arm's scales it still hurt, and the boulder man punch wasn't helping.

*I need to get rid of the sniper if I want to find Ahsoka in one piece,* Fortunately she had found a hollow tree where she had taken refuge in, it was a good place to think of a plan, they couldn't let these people stand in their way.

As (F/N) thought of a way to get out of there she heard footsteps.

*Those are heavy footsteps.....but they don't belong to boulder boy, he's were weirdly quiet, and these ones are too.....sluggish?* She decided to take a peek out of her hiding place and was met with a disgusting view.

What looked to be humans with machine parts?

*What the actual kriff??!!* (F/N) scrunched her nose in disgust.

*Whatever those things are, they are already rotting,* She scrunched her nose in disgust at the smell

(F/N) could cut those things in half easily but with the sniper out there she is going to need to be stealthy.

Two hours before

"What did you say she looked like?" Tech asked.

"She has scales in her arms, legs and they cover part of her face," Crosshair explained again.

"You said she had a tail too?"

"Yes...."

"What color were the scales?"

"Tech," Hunter reprimanded.

"Alright, so we have a Togruta and a Naklid...."

"What's a Nakild?" Omega asked through the com.

"They are a species that share similarities with Trandoshans and humans, although unlike humans and trandoshans they possess a long tail. They are also able to run as bipeds or as quadrupeds due to how their legs are formed, this also makes them taller than many species, faster, and their scales are incredibly resistant although they don't cover them completely in their belly, chest, their front neck and most of their head, both targets are going to be hard to kill, but I want the Nakild alive," Tech informed.

"I don't even want to know what for," Crosshair sneered in disgust.

"I've already informed Wrecker and Echo of the species from our new prey," Hunter said.

"Are you in position Omega?"

"Yup"

Current time, with Tech

"Wrecker, the Nakild is heading towards sector E-West, some of my experiments will lure it out, be careful with the legs and tail, those are the strongest parts of a Nakild, especially with the females," Tech explained as he saw the screens that showed what every video camera caught.

"The what?" Wrecker asked, he had clearly ignored Tech's warning.

"Where you play with my failed tests, you can trap it in the ditch but I want it alive," Tech explained after sighing loudly.

"I'll see what I can do, that girl is going to be fun," Wrecker's voice sounded amused and excited.

Tech just rolled his eyes before he caught an orange figure dash through one of the screens.

"Echo, the Togruta is heading your way, Hunter and Omega are going after it, but it's more probable that you will reach them sooner, just make sure that it doesn't get out of your area and be careful of its bite, they possess a mortal venom,"

"Understood," Echo quickly answered.

Ashoka had been running for a few minutes before she had to dodge a trap.

*That's a nonlethal trap, whoever these people are they seem to like to keep their victims alive,* Ashoka realized as she remembered that the man with the tattoed face had been aiming for a lethal blow either.

But something made her come to a complete stop, a faint smell had reached her, a smell she knew but, it was so faint that it seemed to have been replaced with the metallic smell that had accompanied it, the only reason that she had noticed it is that she had known it like the back of her hand once.

*Echo's sent, that kid had also used his name,*

Before Ashoka could investigate the sent any more she heard the tattoed man and the kid getting near her, she knew that he had to be close in some kind of way so she concentrated and used the force to sense the place around her, there was...

*Nothing, there must be some kind of Force blocker in this place,* Ashoka concluded when she could barely reach the force, she had noticed that the force jump had been harder but not that something was interfering with her connection.

*Whoever is here, they know how to hide from a Togruta,* Ashoka scowled, she would need to find (F/N), these people knew Echo in some way and they would get answers.

A/N: The Nakild species isn't canon or anything, it is just a species I've thought about and decided to use in this post for the reader.

If anyone wishes to know more about the Nakild species, I will be making a post about the species and its culture.

[crazybagelbitch]

Febuwhump Day #1: Mind Control

Chimney doesn’t know how long it’s been, glancing up at Buck from across the room as he does every morning when they gather for breakfast. They’ve tried to keep track of time but there are no windows to track the daylight by and no phones with the time and date-- it’s probably been weeks, it feels like months.

It was a simple call; and Chimney will be regretting one spur of the moment decision for the rest of his life. There had been another earthquake, there were hundreds of people to attend to. Once incident. The details over dispatch made Bobby quickly determine that it only required one paramedic and one EMT. Buck had been closest, so Chimney had grabbed him and off they ran.

And now both he and Buck are gone, and it wouldn’t be any better if it were Eddie that had been stuck with him because he’s his friend and has a kid, too, but he can’t stop thinking about what Maddie must be going through.

He and Buck had rushed into the house, two men ambushed them hitting them on their heads with baseball bats, and they woke up in the back of car, being balled out of the trunk and forced into some house and then downstairs into an underground bunker.

Disoriented as they were from their head injuries, it didn’t take him or Buck very long to deduce that they had been forced into a cult.

They’re clearly the last ones to join, the only ones who have not yet been convinced of some doomsday happening and brainwashed by “The Leader” yet. He can’t help but wonder how long he and Buck will hold onto their sanity. Eventually, they’ll have to cave-- Stockholm Syndrome and all that-- and start believing and give in to survive, right? Their minds and bodies can only tolerate this for so long until they crack...

There’s no way out, they’ve tried and tried and tried. He’s sure their friends and family are looking but some of the cult members have clearly been there for years and if they hadn’t been found yet... he doesn’t see he and Buck being rescued anytime soon. Besides, who’s to say they weren’t put down as missing and presumed dead in the aftermath of the earthquake? There were aftershocks, they went missing (trying to) give care in an unstable house... it would only make logical sense.

He wants to give in, but he makes eye contact again with Buck who still looks defiant and he knows he has to try, too. He has to keep the faith and not give in to the bullshit “sermons” and praying for God to have mercy on them when the disaster hits to make it easier to survive because Maddie, his pregnant girlfriend, is counting on him to come home and so is their unborn child.

“How long have you been here?” he asks the woman sitting next him in a low voice, not wanting to piss off The Leader for what would not be the first time that day, even at this early hours, and she shakes her head and he knows it’s useless, this poor woman is having her mind controlled and even if she wanted to be of help, she couldn’t be.

He feels a tap on his shoulder and turns around, expecting to by physically reprimanded once more but sees another woman, younger, in her early twenties maybe looking at him. She leans forward and whispers in his ear.

“I haven’t given up yet either. Please don’t give up, you our your friend.”

He shakes his head, he’s not going to give up.

“I have a baby at home,” she whimpers, and it tears him apart inside because a mother has been ripped from her baby and he’s been ripped from his before they’ve even been born, “I-I need to get out. You’re a firefighter?”

He’s confused before he realizes he’s still in the same clothes he and Buck went missing in, their uniforms.

“Yeah, my buddy and I both are.”

“That means you’re strong, right? We’ll find a way out, we have to.”

“Yeah,” he sighs, hoping he’s not giving her false hope, “we’ll have to.”

[leelee10898]

Chikara: Itami (4/?)

Summary: Ellie has been saved, but how will the events of the attack effect her? Meanwhile in California, the brotherhood makes another move. The word Itami, roughly translates to pain.

Catch up HERE. As always if you'd like added to the tags, let me know. Also I apologize in advance, tumblr apparently hates the read more feature stil....

Raiting: Mature. Series contains Violence, language, death and Lemons..

Compton, California….

Ximena slipped out to her red SUV, she had it painted to try to throw the brotherhood off her trail. The night Jason was arrested she took off for Compton. An old friend had a house she could crash and lay low for a while, the only person who knew her whereabouts was Colt. With him showing up she would need to put some effort in relocating again, keeping the trail Cold. A quick trip to the 24 hour market for some groceries and she was headed back to her safe house. Not a soul in sight she slowed to a stop at the sign and signaled right. Suddenly a car with no lights came out of nowhere plowing into her car, sending it spinning around 3 times before coming to a stop.  

[[MORE]]

Ximena hit her head on the window, her body jostled around from the collision. She tried to turn the engine over to no avail. Fuck she growled, reaching for her baseball batt she kept tucked away in the back seat. She could make out two figures stepping out of the vehicle  behind her. She quickly assessed her surroundings, her only vantage point was her car stopped crooked, her passenger side a blind spot. She carefully climbed into the passenger seat, quietly opening the door and slipping out.

"Hester warned us about her, she's tough. Stay alert." She heard one of them say as she stayed hidden in the shadows. Come on. Come on. Just a little closer. she thought to herself. "The doors open, she's gone. Check the alley." The other man spoke, as she heard footsteps approaching. Lucky for her, he passed by where she was standing. Once he turned to leave she jumped out from behind the dumpster, swinging the bat at the man, he hit the ground with a thud. She took off running towards her car, the other man on her tail. He lunged at her, grabbing her waist. He was larger than her, not giving her much advantage she struggled against the man finally wriggling free. "You son of a bitch." She swung her arm, the man ducking and landing a blow to her side.

Ximena clutched her side, fire raging through her veins, "big mistake asshole." She reached out grabbing the thug by this neck, bringing her free hand up to punch him in the jaw. The man struggled against her as She backed him up against the wall, pushing him up against it with force, knocking him out cold.  Rushing to her car she climbed in the passenger side, settling behind the wheel. "Come on. Come on." She grunted turning the key, as the engine sputtered. She noticed the other man emerging from the alley way, wielding a baseball bat. Finally the engine roared to life, the man jumped in front of the car, ximena clipped him with the passenger side,  sending him flying backwards.

She picked up her phone, frantically searching for a number.  "Colt. Its ximena, i'm on my way to you.. and your plan, I want in."

New York……

Ellie laid in the hospital bed, still unconscious. The nurses and doctors had left the room, leaving only Nick and her. After answering numerous questions by hospital staff and the cops, he was finally given permission to see her. When Ellie told him she was leaving the party, he was so caught up in the fact she put him in the friendzone, then worry about her safety. After a moment to compose himself, he mentally reprimanded himself for allowing a beautiful girl like herself to walk home alone, and so he set out to trail behind her. He only found her as she darted into a dead end alley, a figure following behind her. By the time he had reached her, she laid barely conscious as he grabbed the assailant off of her, and beat him until he passed out. He called 911 reporting the incident, and Ellie and the assailant were taken to the hospital.  

He was able to get into her phone and give the hospital her dads number. His memory reaching back to the image on her wallpaper, the boy with the leather jacket, dark hair and eyes, his arm wrapped around her waist. He knew he must have been something special to her, the fact made him a little jealous.  He stood next to her bed "Ellie, I need you to wake up. I need you to be ok." He spoke as he noticed her hand started to move. Slowly she opened her eyes, an audible gasp escaped her as she began to panic. "Ellie. Ellie, hey its ok you're ok." She looked over to Nick, relief and confusion on her face. "Nick? Where. Where am I? She whispered. "You're at the hospital, do you remember what happened?" She nodded her head, lifting her arm that was free from wires and iv lines to the back of her head.

"The brotherhood." She whispered.  Nick snapped his head to look at her "what did you say?" A nurse walked in "oh miss wheeler, glad you're awake. Im Nadia, I'll be the nurse taking care of you." She walked over assessing her. "Well everything looks good, however they do want to keep you overnight for observation. And there is a couple police officers who would like to speak to you." Ellie nodded as the nurse left the room, a minute later tow officers walked in.

"Hello miss Wheer, im officer grubbs. This is officer Davis" he motioned to the man standing next to him.  "we would like to ask you a few questions about what happened."

Ellie began to tell them how she had left a party to walk home by herself, when she was followed and cornered in an alley and then attacked by the man. "I see, and do you know the person who attacked you, had you ever seen him before?" Ellie shook her head "No. He said that Jason Shaw sent him to get rid of me. I have never seen him before tonight."

Officer Davis approached her "Had you been drinking at this party?" Ellie looked at the officer shocked.  "I had one cup of punch, hours before I left the party."

"So you're saying your judgment could be clouded by Alcohol consumption. " Davis smirked slightly.

"No. I'm saying that man followed me into an alley with every intention to kill me." Ellie bagam to tear up, frustrated by the turn of events.

"Kill is such a strong word. Were there any witnesses? The way we're told is you two have a history and your jealous boyfriend here stepped in while he was trying to save you."

"Davis!" Officer Grubbs warned.

"No. That's not what happened at all. I don't know him." Ellie sobbed.

Nick stood up from his chair "Hey, that asshole was attacking my friend.  He's the one you should be grilling, not Ellie."

Davis laughed out "ok casanova, calm yourself."

"I'm sorry miss wheeler if this had upset you. I have your statement, he will see a closed circuit judge." Grubbs spoke with a soothing voice.

"What. What will happen to him?" Davis gave her a  wicked smirk, Grubbs more sympathetic.

"He will be charged with assault, however he already has someone trying to post bail."

"B- bail? No. No no no, He's working for the brotherhood. Jason Shaw sent him to kill me. Check the FBIs wanted list, you cant let him go." Ellie sobbed out.

Davis gave her a smirk and walked out the door, in that moment she knew he was in their pocket. Grubbs walked up placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Im sorry Ellie, the best advice I can give you is to file a no contact order against him. I wish there was more we could hold him on." He gave her a sad smile and walked out the door.

Ellie began to panic, Jason wouldn't stop until he got what he wanted, revenge on her for taking him down. "My dad. I need to call my dad." She tried to get out of bed. "Hey, hey calm down Ellie. The hospital called your dad, he's on his way here." Nick assured her as he wrapped his arms around her small shaking frame. "Ellie, it's going to be ok. It's all going to be ok." Nick assured her in a soothing voice, calming her down. Something about the way he spoke was so familiar and she realized it was the same reassuring, soft tone Colt took with her it made her heart ache.

They sat there like that for a while, until the nurse came in telling them they were moving Ellie to a bed in the main hospital and Nick had to leave. That night Ellie struggled to find a good night's sleep, she tossed and turned until exhaustion took over.

Jason looked at her,  a maniacal smile that bared his teeth, chilling her to the bone. "I told you Ellie, Do as I say and nobody gets hurt. It's a shame you didn't listen."  Colts limp body sat hunched over in the chair, clinging between life and death. She tried to scream but her voice failed her, instead she sobbed out a pleading cry as he sauntered over to Colt. "Please. Please no." She managed to get out. "Such a sweet, innocent little thing still.  To bad that delicate skin is going to be your undoing. Say bye bye to lover boy." Jason lifted his hand pulling the trigger.

"Colt….." she Jerked up in bed, screaming as a constant flow of tears streamed her face. She looked around the room,  still in the hospital, alone. No Jason, no Colt, just her completely and utterly alone. The events of the past day wearing her down, He was supposed to keep her safe,  he told her going to Langston would keep her safe and it didn't. He failed to keep her safe, and he failed to do what he promised he would, Love her. Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft rapp at the door. A petite brunette nurse peeked her head in. "Ellie, Its early and we usually don't allow visitors at this hour, but someone wants to see you." Her eyes landed on her dad, he quickly crossed the room throwing his arms around her.  "Oh Ellie. Oh thank god you're ok." He breathed a sigh of relief. "Im ok. She flinched, her body sore from the attack. "If something happened to you Ellie, I don't. I don't know what I would do."

"Im alive." Her tone with a hint of harshness to it. She was angry at Colt for his failed promises,  it wasn't until her father came that she realized she was angry at him too.

"What's wrong Ellie? You seem a little angry." Her dad pulled back, sensing her tone. She sat there, silent for a moment he expression unreadable. "Why didn't you tell me Jason wasn't in jail?"

Her dad, caught off guard by her question doubled back. "Ellie…"

"Dad! Why didn't you tell me?" She demanded.  She was angry, much more than she thought.

"I. Was just trying to protect you." His voice soft, maybe a hint of shame in it.

"Right, because I'm this delicate little flower that everyone thinks cant handle the tough stuff." She scoffed.

"I wanted you to focus on school. The farther you were from this, the safer. " her father reached for her hand, she pulled it back quickly. "Well, look how well that worked out." She rolled her eyes. "I'm pretty tired dad. I think im going to get some rest. You should go get some sleep too. I'll see you later."  Her dad looked at her with a sadness that screamed heartbreak but he nodded anyway. "Ok. Get some sleep, I love you Ellie." He leaned over giving her a soft kiss. "Love you too, dad."

Once the door closed she tossed herself on the bed.  Jason's words from her dream running through her head. Too bad that delicate skin is going to be your undoing. She was soft, everyone seen her as a softie who needed saving, who couldn't get the job done. She was weak, meaningless and useless and that had to change. As she laid there she felt the darkness creep over, no longer would she be weak, useless, the girl who always needed saving. She wouldn't allow Jason to pull her puppet strings anymore.  he was going down once and for all, and she was going to be the one to do it. No matter what it took.

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[ryderaeron]

I’m Fine → Self Para

Also Called: I’m Not Okay and It’s Not Alright Soundtrack: Drown by Bring Me The Horizon Trigger Warnings: violence, mentions of blood, mentions of past parental abuse

It comes in waves, I close my eyes Hold my breath and let it bury me.

His set up was supposed to make him feel safe. Cot shoved against the wall in the furthest corner of the gym, as far away from the entrance as possible. The idea of sleep was never an option with this many people around him - half of whom he didn’t trust - but at least he would be able to keep an eye on things. And then, Ryder found eyes that were mirrors of his own. Hands that were used to smack him around, a voice that he hadn’t heard in fifteen years. No matter how far away from everyone else his cot was, Ryder wouldn’t feel safe in that room. Not with Benjamin Aeron less than 500 miles away from him.

When the air around him filled with snores rather than whispers, he pulled himself up. Grabbing his phone and his switchblade, Ryder weaved around cots and bags to get to the hallway. He could’ve been more conspicuous, he figured. But in the current moment the only thing he cared about was getting out. Ryder’s feet took him through the dark hallways towards the office that he and Manny had broken into earlier. The thought of the only bright spot of the day pushing past the stress in his mind for only a second as he set his phone on the desk in the center of the room.

Desperately trying to think of anything besides the ghosts of his past haunting him now on top of everything else going on, his feet started moving him in circles. “Get your fucking shit together, Aeron.” His own voice breaking the silence rattled his pounding head, but he continued to reprimand himself. The only light in the room the streaks of moonlight pushing through the rain clouds. “He’s been gone too long to fucking matter anymore.” Attempting the breathing exercises his therapist taught him, Ryder started to cycle through what Oliver always used to call his Peter Pan thoughts.

In elementary school, Oliver came up with a bunch of memories to have on hand in the event Peter Pan flew through his window to take him to Neverland. The happiest memories that he could come up with. And when Ryder was old enough, he passed the idea to him. Safe to say growing up, Ryder didn’t have many, but now… Dinners at Rowan and Andy’s house with Lettie, the four of them shooting the shit, laughing all through the night. Andy handing him the switchblade that rested in his pocket after he was patched in, and the idea that he finally made someone proud. Being a part of something, with the Primordials before and the Trojans now. Ryder didn’t realize he had stopped pacing until he was reaching for his cell phone, hands no longer shaking. Taking one last deep breath, he unlocked the phone in his hands, typing out a text to Lettie to see how much alcohol she had with her, and how much she’d be willing to share.

Maybe if his back wasn’t to the door, he would’ve seen the door push open. Maybe if his right ear had been tilted just a few inches to another direction, he would’ve heard it.

I'm not OK and it's not alright. Won't you drag the lake and bring me home again

The first hit rocked him forward, head smashing against the wood in front of him. Hand instantly going back towards where his switchblade was waiting in his pocket, Ryder turned. He felt his mouth form the words what the fuck but he didn’t hear it. In the split second of consideration that he gave himself while he fumbled with the blade, he realized how silent everything was. His head was pounding. Fuck.

His only weapon against whoever was intruding on him  falling on the floor, Ryder finally got a good look at who it was with what was now appearing to be a baseball bat although he couldn’t see because it was flying at him again, hitting him in the knees, making him crumple to the ground. The person in front of him was half in shadow, and as Ryder held his arms up to try and deflect the blows he squinted against the darkness. Ignoring the spots in his vision that every hit created, he kicked one leg out in an attempt to knock his assailant to the ground too. It would give him a second to get his knife and not only figure out what the fuck was going on, but also let them know that they picked the wrong person to fuck with, especially today.

The blood in his veins ran cold when finally arms and bat flew over the assailants head far enough that Ryder could make out facial features. He should’ve known. Having seen this same situation from a bystander point of view for years as a Primordial. “Andy?” Once again, the only way Ryder could know he was talking was the feeling of his mouth moving and the vibrations of his vocal chords. “What the fuck?” He continued to kick at Andy’s legs, this time more for answers than retaliation. Would he even be able to fight Andy? First of all with the amount of times he was getting hit he might have a hard time getting back up, but mentally? He never thought of Andy as the enemy, could never think of Andy as the enemy. But why was this happening.

“Fucking stop!” Words trapped between two groans of pain as - yep, those are definitely broken ribs - the bat still fell down against him, he rolled over into a fetal position. “Andy why are you doing this?” Ryder’s words weren’t resonating with Andrew Thane, which was terrifying. He could assume what this meant for him, and that didn’t scare Ryder as much as made him forget the pain and pull himself up. But with each time he tried to get up - a hand on the side of the desk, a knee pulling up to balance himself - there was a harder hit and he was back to square one.

Who will save me now?

Body aching too much to move at this point, Ryder had to put in one last effort to pull himself up. Maybe Andy was getting tired, or maybe time was actually slowing down and it wasn’t part of the head trauma. He managed to pull himself into a kneeling position this time, instead of lying prone on the floor. Nose bleeding, lip cut open, ribs broken. He felt awful and he was swaying back and forth, trying desperately to stay conscious, to try and get Andy to realize who it was. And anything going on they could fucking figure out - right?

But if they could figure it out then Andy wouldn't have come in with a baseball bat at all, right? His breathing was choked and there was a part of him that wanted to vomit. The air in front of him shifted against the bat as it was raised once again and Ryder just looked up at the man he looked up to for so long. He tried one last time. “What’d I do?” If he could hear himself, he’d hear the broken noise that escaped with the words, and he would’ve tried to pass it off as a hiccup. Andy would’ve called him on his bullshit though - Andy knew him well enough. Which is why he let the last hit knock him down.

Dive in when I’m down?

Another thing his therapist tried to teach him was counting to ten when his emotions were running high. She, like many other people, wasn’t a fan of his impulsive nature and wanted him to try and think before he acted. So she taught him to take a breath and count to ten, then reevaluate. It helps with panic attacks too, he had tabled it when she mentioned it. Count to ten and take a breath. Keep going until you think you’ll be okay. If anything, this is a panic attack situation. So he started to count.

One. The swing hit right above his knee.

Two. This one once again cracked a rib.

Three. He was starting to see stars again, he brought his hands up to shield his head.

Four. His body was screaming for some sort of mercy, and maybe he was too…

Five. Heart pounding so hard he could feel it in his throat, Ryder couldn’t breathe.

Six. Maybe the pain was too much, but he was starting to go numb.

Seven...

Ryder didn’t make it to ten.

Save me from myself…don’t let me drown.

[caffeinated--writer]

First Day of The Rest of Your Life

Pairing: Steve Rogers x fem!Reader (Steve x Reader)

Warnings: None

Summary: A newbie at SHIELD your first assignment is to watch a slumbering Steve Rogers. A pain in the ass or a blessing in disguise? Only time will tell.

Note: Posted on my Ao3 account, decided to post it here as well. A multi-chapter fic in which Bucky will come in during the later chapters. Don’t take/steal my work and post it anywhere else!

Chapter 1

“He doesn’t look all that special,” You thought, picking at your nails in boredom. You knew you were in the minority when it came to the excitement around Captain America, not finding him nearly so interesting and just another part of history which would often end up on your test.

 In high school, you often found solace in your mentor, Tony Stark, who was equally (if not more so) disinterested in the Captain and his achievements.

Now -5 years later and a member of the organization SHIELD- you couldn’t help but long for those days. Nobody at work could stop talking about Steve since he had been pulled out of the ice. While you thought it was an amazing feat to come out of something like that alive so many years later, you didn’t think work needed to be all Steve, all the time.

You paced around the room leisurely, the only sounds being the light clicking of your heels and the dull sound of a baseball game coming from the old-timey radio set up in the super soldier’s room, which you had heard six times since your shift had started alone. You were pretty sure you had it memorized.

 You sat down in the wooden chair close to the window with a huff. As you stared at the soldier’s slumbering face, you found yourself, for the hundredth time, wondering why Fury would assign you such a job. You were a newbie after all, and you had imagined someone as high profile as Captain America would get the attention of someone much higher in rank.  And while your ego would love to assume it was because of your superior intellect, if you had to guess it was more likely punishment for speaking out against your superior so openly.

 In your defense, you thought critiques were open! Hell, your superior, Karen, had brought you into the meeting!

 You merely stated that although you agreed with the plan to slowly break the news of the 70-year rest to the super soldier, you didn’t agree with the way they wanted to do so. Clearly, based on the fake old-timey hospital room you were sitting in with a 1940s baseball game playing in the background, no one else had agreed with you. You didn’t think voicing that the radio was a “poor (stupid)” choice to add to the room would be considered overstepping your superior -especially since you hadn’t known the radio had been her idea…

And that…that was how you ended up staring at the handsome sleeping face of Captain America damn near bored out of your mind. You were currently 3 hours into your shift. A small part of you was tempted to trace your hand over his pale cheeks, or lightly brush the blonde hair out of his face. It was clear the boredom was finally getting to you. You were intent on directing your attention elsewhere until something caught your eye.

Standing from your chair you walked toward the slumbering soldier to see if your eyes had been playing tricks on you. When his hand twitched once again you were sure what you had seen hadn’t been a fluke. With baited breath you watched, waiting to see if the movement was a false alarm or preparing for something bigger. As the shuffling continued and the closed eyelids began to flutter, you decided to call it.

Turning away from the super soldier, you lifted your arm to speak into the mic embedded into the cuff of your shirt. “Code Blue…” you whispered, the sound of rustling bed sheets keeping you from repeating the code.

 Standing a bit straighter you turned to face a (now) wide awake Captain America. For a moment he didn’t acknowledge you, too busy taking in his surroundings, but when he did everything stopped.

 It was tense as all either one of you did was stare at one another, blue eyes clashing with (y/e/c). His eyes held some confusion but were strong and could probably intimidate the average person…

Being anything but average you stared back with a subtle but strong gaze of your own.

“Where am I?” Steve questioned, not unkindly. You were stopped from answering the question when the door opened, your superior entering the room. 

“Good Morning” Karen greeted, looking down at her watch “or should I say afternoon.”

Subtly Karen nodded your way. Taking that as the signal to fall back while she took over, you stepped away from Steve. Silently, you walked over to the wall near the door she had entered through, the clicking of your heels highlighting the silence. Crossing your arms over your chest, you leaned back to observe. 

“Where am I?” Steve repeated.

“You’re in a recovery room in New York City.” Karen sent him a warm smile in an attempt to ease his nerves but from where you were standing it didn’t look like it had the desired effect. Silence again settled in the room as Steve took in his surroundings. 

“Where am I really?” Looking up from the floor, you looked at the super soldier sharply. Something was wrong.

“I’m afraid I don’t understand…” Karen replied, smile beginning to fade. With raised eyebrows, you continued to watch the interaction with caution, fully aware of Steve’s shift in attitude but unsure of what caused it in a mere matter of seconds.

“The game…It’s from May 1941. I know because I was there.” He glared, slowly stalking towards you both. “Now I’m going to ask you again…where am I?”

It hadn’t been intentional, it really hadn’t. But what was happening right now was exactly why you had voiced your distaste in the radio which, just as refresher, you had been punished for. Now because your opinion had been ignored, you were currently being backed into a corner by an angry Steve Rogers who looked like he would Hulk out any moment.

 It was truly a laughable moment…and so you did.

“He’s observant.” You chuckled, condescending gaze planted on your superior who was, rightfully, far too terrified of the super soldier standing over her to notice.

 “Who are you!?” Steve demanded. 

It wasn’t long before the room was filled with black ops, far too many if you had to say and by the look of Steve’s body language, he agreed. 

“C…Captain Rogers…”

“Don’t bother.” You cut in; eyes’ purposely ignoring Karen’s annoyed ones. No amount of pleading was going to stop what was about to happen. 

You barely had time to blink before Captain America threw a couple of the agents through the makeshift room. As you watched him jump through his improvised exit and look around the facility in confusion, your heart went out for him a little bit. You couldn’t even imagine how confused –possibly scared- he might be.

“Captain Rogers, wait!” He didn’t even spare Karen a glance. She pulled out her radio to call for a “code 13” while you took in the mess all around you, wondering how shit could have gone sideways so quick. You had spent months watching America’s golden boy without a single incident. It was an assignment you thought would be the most boring of your career and now here you were; staring out of a hole in the wall as grown men moaned and groaned on the ground around you. It seemed the Captain was intent on proving you wrong. 

You turned to Karen, eyes full of judging gleam, “So…great plan, huh?”

You watched the chaos consuming the halls with a raised eyebrow. It was as if ‘stealth’ was no longer apart of these SHIELD agents’ vocabularies. At least it didn’t look like it as they ran like chickens without heads. There was a way to move with quickness without looking like you were which you found helped you maneuver around the chaos easily. Natasha would be proud.

 You had already caught sight of Steve running out of the building and into the streets of New York. Unlike your colleagues, you knew blindly chasing after him would do no good, so here you were in the garage leaning against Fury’s personal car struggling to contain every bit of cockiness that was tempted to surface.

 It didn’t work.

 Almost the second you saw your boss approach a smirk found its way across your face and a sly comment was out before you could stop it. The feeling of being right was euphoric.

“Feel like listening to me now?” 

“Turn right.” You advised, hands clutching the door handle as Fury caused the car to jerk right.

 Agent Hill turned a stern but weary gaze your way.“Are you sure about this?”

“If you’re asking if I, a native born New Yorker, am sure of the directions I’m giving-“ slowly turning in your seat to glance at her “then yes, I am.”

 “But hey, if I’m wrong we can just tack that on to another poor judgment call from you guys.”

You didn’t give them a chance to reprimand you for the comment before barking out another direction for Fury to turn. The van jerked and turned until it finally came to a halt in the middle of Time Square.  And just as you predicted there stood Steve Rogers. 

Afraid to spoke him into running again, you began taking slow steps towards Steve. Luckily, he didn’t seem too focused on you or the chaos going on around him as he was too distracted and confused by the lights of Times Square. 

“At ease soldier!” Fury’s order snapped Steve out of his confusion. “Look, I’m sorry about that little show back there but…we thought it best to break it to you slowly.”

“Break what?” Steve’s eyes shifted between yours and Fury’s waiting for an answer. 

You took another couple of steps closer until you were shoulder to shoulder with Fury, “Captain Rogers, you’ve been asleep…for almost 70 years.” He stared. 

For a moment he just stared at you as he tried to process what you had told him. You watched confusion swirl through his blue eyes. It was only when realization finally hit did he look away from you to look all the flashing lights and sounds around him and again an uncalled for pang of sympathy went through you as you watched him. 

“You gonna be okay?” Fury asked

“Yeah, I just…I had a date…”

[gary36]

GM III: Night at Sea

Thing about me: I can't outrun a Lincoln Towncar. Kyrie almost could though. She threw herself into motion with such force and precision that it seemed the air and the Earth were with her. When Adella swerved the Towncar around the people walking out in front of her Kyrie was on it. When Adella hopped the curb turning onto the main road Kyrie had a hand on her trunk. I could hardly see them. Adella hit the gas and Kyrie held on as tight as she could. The Towncar slipped away into the starry horizon. I couldn't run anymore. Kyrie kept going two more blocks but she just couldn't keep up. Adella was gone.

When I finally caught up to Kyrie I was stumbling and holding a stitch in my side. She had her sites set on the road. We could barely speak.

"She could've gone home." I gasped.

"Payphone over there." She said as she doubled over waving her hand in the general direction of a nearby gas station.

"Call her dad?"

"But he..."

"Better not."

Kyrie nodded.

"Where would she go?"

Kyrie shook her head and held it by the temples. "School maybe."

"Home maybe."

"School's closer." We were stuck walking after all.

I followed Kyrie to our school. We could get there faster if we cut through the trails. The woods around town were a good place to get lost. No one cared to maintain the trails. The vines and the branches reached out beyond their constraints. The water washed out the ground and stole your footing. No one walked the trails, least of all at night, but Kyrie and I did. She set a hard pace. Kyrie's boots nimbly padded their way through the terrain. Sometimes a vine would cling to her jacket in the dark. A branch snagged her short crimson hair but she snapped it with her right hand and moved along. The trees seemed so deep, so endless. I felt like we were being watched. I would've been so scared if Kyrie wasn't there.

We walked for so long. I thought about Adella driving. The trees let me down their winding path and my breath became visible in the cold. Adella's tears streaming down her face. The creatures moving all around me. Adella headed out of town. My mind got stuck in a loop. I walked until my feet hurt, then my legs, then my pelvis, and then my back.

Kyrie didn't slow down for me. Sometimes she was around the next bend of the trail and out of my sight. I would hurry to catch up only to find her almost around the next bend.

"Slow down." I called.

"She's not slowing down. We're already far enough behind." She said as she relentlessly charged her goal.

The trees took me in and let me forget who I was and where I lived. The cold settled in my head and numbed my mind. I was nothing but legs and a destination. I could've followed Kyrie forever. Adella in the car listening to the radio. "The women of Kayan sometimes wear rings around their necks to encourage a stretched appearance. The rings are put in place as early as 2 years old, and although the neck seems longer..." The trees let me hear myself again. Kyrie and I came out of the treeline right next to Flowerland High. We were way in the back by the football and baseball fields. All was quiet.

We split up. Kyrie looked under the bleachers. I walked around by the dugout. Nothing. Kyrie went for the double doors on the gym and spent a few minutes kicking them open. I went around back where I know a window that never gets locked because the handle got stuck back in the 80s. The halls and classrooms were so dark. I looked everywhere for Adella. I thought I'd find her under the stairs where we ate lunch. I thought I'd find her on the old couch backstage in the auditorium. I thought I'd find her in the courtyard with the flowers where she handed me a note once. But I never did. Just emptiness.

Kyrie was scampering around the halls in the dark with me. I heard her kick open a few doors. I heard her running up and down the stairs and cursing under her breath. I heard her in the Commons pounding her fist against the lockers.

I went to the principal's office but I didn't find anything. I heard glass breaking in the next room. "Kyrie!" I scolded with a tempered shout. I stuck my head into the hall and saw a shape shambling through the dark. Soon it was far away. I saw the glint of glass on the floor, right in front of the trophy case. "Kyrie there could be cameras." I reprimanded her while staring at the trophy case. I couldn't tell what was missing. Who knows? With Kyrie it wasn't worth it to argue. I headed for the front door and went for the music room. I thought maybe Adella would sprout out of the floor with the sound of wind chimes but she didn't. Finally I left.

When I came outside I saw the parking lot clearly. There was one car with it's headlights on idling, a Chevy Cavalier. Kyrie waved at me from the driver side. She honked twice. As I approached I began to understand. She beckoned me in the car and we squealed out of the parking lot. We were both tired. "Isn't this Dean Thompson's car?" I asked.

"Dean Thompson is a piece of shit." Kyrie said flatly. "I'll leave his car... Somewhere."

I nodded. Neither of us spoke but I knew we were headed to the Montoya household on the outskirts of town, to Adella's.

As we pulled into her neighborhood I remembered how to be curious. "What did you get out of the trophy case?" I don't know what I expected. Thompson didn't keep his keys there.

"Nothing." She looked at me puzzled. "What happened?"

My heart began to beat very fast. I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach. "I thought you broke the glass on the trophy case."

"Why would I do that?" She was so casual.

"But if you didn't, who did?"

Kyrie locked her eyes on the road. We were both so tired.

When we passed the Montoya house we could see Adella's car was still missing. Her father's car was still there. Every light in the house was on. We decided to scope it out. Kyrie discreetly parked down the street and I walked to the living room window. I stuck to the shadows. Kyrie kept the Cavalier running. My mouth was dry. Adella walking past a gravestone. I couldn't think straight.

When I looked in the window I saw Mr. Montoya. He was across the way cleaning up the kitchen. As he did he sang a song to himself, too vague at this distance. I watched Mr. Montoya take the old tablecloth they'd had for years. He balled it up roughly, still singing a tune. He stuffed it together tightly. He tossed the tablecloth in the fireplace. The flames grew and took on a strange quality. Adella wasn't there. What should I have done? Mr. Montoya was stranger by the second. But Adella first. I left Mr. Montoya to his bizarre housekeeping. I slithered back into the Cavalier. I just shook my head and Kyrie drove off.

We stayed on the road for fifteen minutes before anyone spoke. "I have to check on Suzie." Kyrie said.

I just sat there. Adella listening to a bell.

Kyrie took us to the South side of town. The salt water sizzled in every breath. We scuttled past every condo and gated community on the water. Down. All the way down to the shipyard. The bars were still full and the fish would be waking up soon.

My parents would be worried sick. I didn't care. Adella walks toward the sound.

Finally we parked the car. Actually Kyrie intentionally got it stuck in soft sand. We walked the rest of the way to the docks. Amidst all the bobbing masts and sleeked back antennas there was one houseboat. Modest in size and design.

On the deck one brunette woman bobbed up and down with the waves. As we approached she smiled and pulled her beanie down over her ears. Kyrie walked off the dock and climbed aboard. "Where's the birthday girl?" said the brunette looking at them expectantly.

Kyrie took her in her arms, grabbed a handful of her hair, and kissed her "Sorry I'm late." She said with her lips still touching Suzie's.

We filled Suzie in on the details. She engaged the boat motor and untied it from the dock. The boat rumbled to life.

"Where are you going?" I asked from the dock.

"The point!" Suzie said over the engine as she checked her guages "Baby turtles are hatching. Dell always liked that. You coming?" She swung her head round at me. Her hand was hovering over the throttle.

"Sorry." I said meakly. "I gotta get home."

Kyrie nodded. Suzie hit the gas. The boat skidded off and I stood around on the dock watching them go. They might be right. Maybe the turtles.

I didn't think so though. When they were almost out of sight, just a dot on the line where water met sky, I walked. I wasn't headed home.

Sometimes I got this feeling. It took root and it grew and grew. Sometimes I started walking and I just knew where to go. The harder I tried to resist it the deeper I got pulled in. Adella looking up at the rafters in a dark room. Maybe the turtles brought her to the point. But my chest hurt and my feet fell towards the center of town. I just couldn't ignore it anymore. I'd been thinking about it since before she ran off.

Adella in a room by herself.

BAWNG BAAAWNNNG

I just knew.

[its-negans-lucille]

Coach

THIS IS A REUPLOAD

You can find my Masterlist HERE!

Prompt: Heyy, if you’re up for it, can I request an imagine where Negan was coach before the apocalypse (your 18-19 now) and  he finds you by  the road, realising you were his student and he takes you back to the Sanctuary and is really protective of you?? Sorry if it’s too long, love your blog <3 – Via @maddiemoo16602

Ships: None Words: 1,369 Warnings: Curses Category: Angst with a dash of fluff

***

You were walking down a street of an abandoned town, dilapidated houses either side of you. You kept your eyes peeled for any sort of movement. You heard nothing except the winds rushing through broken windows and long absent streets.

Ivy crawled up the once neatly panelled houses like a parasite. The neatly trimmed lawns and flowers which may have once been well kept and colourful were now overgrown with weeds which had killed the beautiful roses and daisies that once bloomed there long ago.

Your stomach rumbled as it had been for the past week. You had eaten nothing but a dead rat and even then you only ate half of it, its milky eyes felt although it was staring at you from beyond the grave.

You had been alone for maybe months? Possibly years? You had lost track of time when your mother had passed.

She had been bitten on a simple run, or at least it should’ve been simple. One minute you had been joking about something long ago, possibly school, you couldn’t remember now, when a walker had lunged at your mother from almost out of nowhere. Undoubtedly attracted by the scent of genuine joy and happiness.

After that you hadn’t returned to the group that you had previously belonged too. You had run and never looked back since. You usually blocked out such unpleasant memories of the past but your hunger was making you weak and slow.

You wandered around the small town for a while, only encountering a few of the corpses. You were so hungry that even their tainted flesh looked appealing to you. You shook that thought out of your head as soon as it had been established.

You eventually rested yourself on a swing which creaked loudly when you rested yourself on it. You tried to ignore the blood that stained the wood chips leading from the slide. You simply attempted to imagine what this town may have been like before the end of the world.

But if the world had ended, you thought to yourself idly, why am I still fighting? You were lost in thought for a great amount of time until you were brought out of your revelry by a low rumble.

You didn’t register what it was at first, turning your gaze to the dark and foreboding sky above you, thinking of thunder. But no, the rumble was gradually growing louder. Cars, you thought as you stood abruptly up and took out your pistol that had long run out of ammunition.

The sound seemed to echo around the abandoned houses, making it difficult to pinpoint the exact junction that the vehicles would immerge from.

The suddenly a convoy of dark cars and vans appeared from the junction directly behind you. You whirled around and turned to face the vehicles. You knew that it was too late to hide and that you were too weak to run. The cars circled the playground in the town centre until coming to an abrupt halt.

A man with a handlebar moustache immerged from a car; he had an unnervingly large smile on his face as he stood just beyond the playground fence.

“What’s a little lady like you doing out here all alone?” He called, a hand on his hip.

“Sight seeing.” You replied smartly.

“Sight seeing in a tiny town in good ol’ Georgia.” The man continued in an airy voice. “You part of any group around here?” He continued, raising an eyebrow.

“No.” You replied shortly. You began to back away, edging infinitesimally away.

“Well count me as-” The handle bar moustached man was cut off by a slam of a car door, the sound reverberated all around the houses and made you flinch.

“Simon! What the fuckty fucking hell is going on out here!” A man yelled from a few cars back. The voice reminded you of someone, though you weren’t entirely sure who.

Then the tall and lean form of a man that you thought you would never see again sauntered out from behind one of the large vans. He wore a leather jacket with a blood red scarf tucked into it. He also wore plain pants with dark, mud stained boots.

“Neg- I mean- mister Negan?” You corrected yourself swiftly. You were frowned and scrutinizing him from under his new salt and pepper scruff.

“Mister Negan, huh, well I fucking love that.” Negan said, he had yet to set eyes on you. You could spy a lethal baseball bat, with barbed wire curled tightly around its tip, slung over Negan’s shoulder. “Who’s askin- holy shit.” Negan said. He had finally laid his dark and penetrating gaze on you. “(Y/N)?” Negan asked, running a hand down his scruff.

“Dammit, if any of those disappointing sons of fucks would survive the end of the damn world it would be you.” Negan chuckled, striding over to you and giving you his coach handshake that he had with all the kids in his classes.

“Negan? You know her?” Simon asked, leaning backwards to get a good look at you.

“Hell yes I know her. My star fucking student. Won the regionals in running for two fucking years in a row!” Negan proclaimed loudly, almost like a proud father. “Would’ve been three if it weren’t for this shit show.” He motioned around with his hand airily, indicating the state of the world.

“Where did you go? How’d you get out? After the school was hit I mean.” You asked, all of a sudden giddy with joy for the first time in months.

“A good magician never tells his secrets.” Negan said wisely, avoiding the question entirely while tapping the left side of his nose.

“Bullshit!” You replied, playfully punching Negan’s shoulder.

“Language! What would your mother say if she heard you?!” Negan reprimanded in a joking tone. “What happened to your mom anyway, huh?” Negan asked in a genuinely interested voice. Your mom and Negan had always had some kind of on-off relationship; one that had been off ever since Lucille, Negan’s previous wife, had passed away.

That was when you fell down from cloud nine. Negan didn’t know. Well how could he? He wasn’t with you when it happened. He didn’t know about the pain and suffering you had gone through. You couldn’t blame him for asking about her.

“You in there, (Y/N)?” Negan asked, leaning down so that he was at your eye level.

“Yeah- yeah I’m here. Sorry.” You stuttered, attempting to get your words out. You rubbed the back of your neck awkwardly. You saw Negan’s face change from charismatic and smiling to frowning and eventually to concern.

“Oh.” Negan said finally, running a hand down his scruff. “She. . . didn’t make it?” Negan asked quietly.

You shook your head, not trusting yourself with words as you were sure that your voice may break if you did. You avoided Negan’s eye, far too interested in the ground and the dark sky than his intense gaze. That was, however, until you felt two arms engulfed you in a warm embrace.

You didn’t cry, you knew that. You didn’t think that there were enough emotions in you to cry. Your grief was too great for trivial tears.

“I’m sorry.” You heard Negan whisper in a genuine tone that none of his men could hear.

You didn’t reply. You had shut off that part of yourself that felt the pain of your loss. As far as that self knew your mother was back at your quaint, suburban home cooking your favourite food.  You had made it this far fooling yourself, you could continue.

“Come back to our base.” Negan said, stepped away from you and swiftly picking up the baseball bat once again. “We have food, water… everything you’d need.” Negan continued imploringly. “You’d be an asset.”

It took you no time to decide what you wanted to do. It was the choice of being left out in the unknown, death lurking behind every corner. Sadness and hatred all through the land. Now, more than ever, you had to stick with the people who had taken care of you.

“Yes.” You said almost immediately. “I’ll come.”

***

Thank you all so much for reading!! I hope that this is what you wanted!! Thank you so much for the request! C:

Thank you all for reading and have a great day!

@negans-network

[livingthervdream]

Yellowstone day 1

We awoke this morning with everyone in much better spirits! It was a much colder night than we are used to even with our house normally set at 67-69 degrees. I kept thinking to myself…this is what that show “Naked and Afraid” must be like but not really so afraid on our end…or really naked….just really cold. Our RV does have heat and A/C but in Yellowstone you can not run your generator from 8:00 pm to 8:00am so we just tried to bundle up with blankets. When we wake up at an early 9:30😳 I immediately turn on the heat to get the day started. GB ends up being the early riser on this trip which is ironic because at home he is ALWAYS the one sleeping in and I am the early riser. We get ready to start our day with a plan for Old Faithful. We head on the road and just soak in the scenery. I am going click crazy on my camera just trying to get it all. Not sure what I am going to do with all the hundreds of photos I am taking but do hope my computer at home will be ready to handle this major download! GB definitely has set the soundtrack for our vacation. He tries to stay old and classic with music by Willie Nelson, John Denver, Styx, Eric Clapton, CCR and Merle Haggard. I try to mix in a little Fleetwood Mac, Eagles and Jimmy Buffet ( I know some of you are groaning right now…I am just making sure they are well balanced!🏝). All have eyes on the road trying to be the first to spot an animal and yell which side of the car it’s on. We see a lot of buffalo just hanging out but all of us are just hoping to see the glimpse of a grizzly. We pull into Old Faithful, and as many have described, it is the DisneyWorld of Yellowstone. The parking lot is a mad town. Someone in Custer had told me off a couple apps you can download for times of when Old Faithful will erupt and other things to catch. The funny thing, she said, is that there is no cell service so the apps are basically useless while you are in the park. So us Bransons were just hoping on just getting lucky…which usually never goes in our favor. We start heading to Old Faithful right away and I see it steaming. I then hear a lady, who’s wearing a walking boot, yell to her counterparts behind her to hurry up she’s got 3 minutes. Way to go Bransons, we timed this just right! We didn’t get up close seats but really any seat was a great view. We got tons of pics and selfies as it went off. Many “oooohs” and “aaaahhhhs” were heard from the crowd, as well as a thank you clap from all when she was done. I overheard a ranger say that she does not spout off as long as she had a while ago. The ranger questions if she may be clogged from people throwing trash in…I honestly don’t see how that is possible as I feel this was heavily guarded but you never know I guess. We made our way to the museum while GB went to the gift shop to peruse ahead without worrying about kids messing with stuff. There was a kid section that had footprints of various animals that Libby immediately took off her shoes and out her feet on a grizzly’s paw print (GB would have flipped out about germs, but I just let it slide, what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him…until he reads this I guess😬). Ali picked up a ranger hat to go with her ranger vest she got at Jewel Cave, Andrew got a water bottle with a scene from Yellowstone and Libby hit the jackpot. She got a backpack that had 4 little animal heads poking out of four holes: buffalo, bear, deer, moose. She put that backpack on and didn’t take it off till I made her when it was time to go to bed(she was going to sleep with it on). She definitely is the most creative out of the three. Many times she sits and plays pretend, acting out her most recently viewed episode of Paw Patrol or PJ Masks. She would sit in the car and give voices to each animal while playing as if she was the mom telling them what they could and could not do. This trip she has also began speaking for her Tummy. She has told us on many occasions that Tummy told her that he is hungry and will act out a deep voice speaking as Tummy. When you ask Tummy what he wants to eat, he will usually say ice cream but when really hungry he will sometimes just say food! There are times where she has to tell Tummy that now is not the time for ice cream and that he has to eat real food, to which he will either respond in a disappointed voice of “ok” or if he is feeling sassy he will answer “whatever!” There was one time where she said “I see dead people” to which GB and I look at each other and try not to bust out laughing with a slightly concerned look. For the record, she has not seen the movie and we think she was just being silly. I am sure this will cost us a pretty penny in psych bills but right now we play along and sometimes encourage it to get a good laugh! After the craziness of Old Faithful, we head for the lower west corner of Yellowstone to explore the geysers and hot springs. We had a very serious talk about how we needed to listen and stay close to Mom and Dad. We explained how the springs were and how it would burn you, I event went so far to say that if you fall in there will be nothing left of you as you will completely disintegrate. A little harsh, I know, but I wanted to get the point across especially as I myself was very nervous and worried especially with all the people around. I have never seen my kids act better. I guess it helped to scare them, because they did not stray far from us requiring no reprimanding. The Grand Prismatic Spring had to be one of our favorites. The color was unreal and the heat it gave off when the wind blew was hot it steamed up my sun glasses instantly! We got some real cool photos especially Ali with her hair blowing around her with the prismatic spring in the background. It was funny to see baseball camps strewn along the edges of the springs. With such a strong wind blowing I guess some people’s hats didn’t fit them that great. GB guesses about a couple hundred dollars of hats made it near the spring. I was kind of hoping we’d see one disintegrate but it seems they all landed where it really wasn’t hot enough for that to happen. Bummer! But I am sure, whoever lost their hat had to take a second to not go out there and get it since it wasn’t burning immediately to ashes. Guess everyone was to afraid to chance it. The day was winding down and we had brought stuff to take showers. We took the scenic route to Canyon Village through Norris where there were public showers we could use. We were actually making pretty good time till we hit a wall of stand still traffic. We sat in the car for about 15 minutes waiting till Andrew and Ali both chimed in that they had to use the bathroom and both needed to go number 2. Yup….that sounds about right. After not moving for yet another 10 minutes and no other cars comin the opposite direction, I decided to turn on my camera and head out for a walk to see what the issue was and how far up it was. As I was walking all I could think was “Keep aware of your surroundings”. I had a rock wall/ridge to my right and cars on my left as I walked the side of the road. I kept joking with some cars that if a bear comes I am hopping into their car….always a good laugh! I kept telling myself no bear is going to come barreling down the hill at me. I thought of friends of ours that the wife makes noises and wears a cowbell to scare away the bears…her husband laughs at her…right now I wanted her cowbell!!! I kept walking and finally came up to a woman, who had just returned from walking up further, who said that there was a herd of buffalo blocking the road and the ranger was there but they were not moving. To make bad things even worse, the blockage was still a ways up and our car was no where close. I walked back to the car, a little braver as I had not seen any bears on my way there, letting other cars know what was causing the lack of movement in traffic. When I told GB this, a big old “F this” came out of his mouth and we turned the car around to head the other direction especially to find the nearest bathrooms. We made our pit stop and then were presented two options. We could head back to where our traffic stop was in hopes that the buffalo have completed their crossing or head back the opposite direction and spend more time in the car to get to the next closest showers. We crossed our fingers and headed back to the traffic spot. Luckily, as we approached a consistent round of cars were coming from the opposite direction, their was still a line of cars but they were moving steadily. The road led us to the buffalo that were now calmly chewing grass on the side of the road not knowing how far they had backed up traffic. All we could say was what was told to us in Custer State Park. "Their park, their road!" We arrived at the showers in Canyon Village which were very needed. Our feet were hideous as all I had packed for myself and the three kids were keen closed toe sandals. So needless to say our feet will be all in desperate needs of pedicures when we return! After showers, everyone was in a much better mood and relaxed, that is except for Ali. Poor girl had been battling her swimmer's ear since just before Yellowstone. We (we meaning I, no way GB is going to be the bad guy to his little princess) have been putting 4 drops in each ear 2x/day with screams and crying due to the pain. I brought children's ibuprofen but we were down to the last drop and I knew she was going to need it bad when we got back to camp. She fought back the tears like a trooper. We approached another beginnings of a buffalo barricade but GB gently used the car to usher them along. I laughed and called him a buffalo herder. As I looked out the window, one man flicked GB off and another was yelling at him. I personally got upset (GB didn't care, things like that don't bother him as much as they do me). I was upset because I felt we did nothing wrong. We did the same thing our ranger did back in Custer to move the buffalo along. We did not ramp our speed, we did not hit them, we just moved slowly through as if were were buffalo ourselves to make a path for cars to pass by. No buffalo were harmed in the making of this scene and really didn't seem to care. But nonetheless, the people upset at us bothered me for the rest of the day...just couldn't shake it off! GB kept telling me we did nothing wrong, and this I knew, but it still bothered me. Once we got to camp, I raced to get Ali set up with her meds. I knew we were out of children's ibuprofen but I had ibuprofen pills for adults. GB recommended looking at the dosage to see if they would match up for her. Luckily 1 pull equaled her dosage that she took for children's! Winner!!! Now to just get her to take a pill. I coaxed her by drinking it with Gatorade (total special treat!) but it wouldn't go down and now she was just freaking out. Andrew then comes in big brother style and told her how when he first started applesauce helped him swallow the pill because it all blended together! Genius Andrew!!! Way to go big brother coming through in the clutch! Ali stopped her tears and started to calm. We had applesauce juice pouches in our pantry. She took two swigs on the pouch and she yelled in excitement "I did it" with arms held high in victory. The whole RV cheered and the mood went right back where they should be! Hot dogs and cheddar wurst were eaten for dinner and then we called it a night. GB and I stayed up with drinks under a sky that was filled with stars. GB saw a shooting star and I told him to make a good one! Today's adventure (that's what we call things on this trip) made up for all the mishaps yesterday. So much to do tomorrow, so excited for tomorrow, so happy for tomorrow!

[its-negans-lucille]

Coach

You can find my Masterlist HERE!

Prompt: Heyy, if you’re up for it, can I request an imagine where Negan was coach before the apocalypse (your 18-19 now) and  he finds you by  the road, realising you were his student and he takes you back to the Sanctuary and is really protective of you?? Sorry if it’s too long, love your blog <3 – Via @maddiemoo16602

Ships: None Words: 1,369 Warnings: Curses Category: Angst with a dash of fluff

***

You were walking down a street of an abandoned town, dilapidated houses either side of you. You kept your eyes peeled for any sort of movement. You heard nothing except the winds rushing through broken windows and long absent streets.

Ivy crawled up the once neatly panelled houses like a parasite. The neatly trimmed lawns and flowers which may have once been well kept and colourful were now overgrown with weeds which had killed the beautiful roses and daisies that once bloomed there long ago.

Your stomach rumbled as it had been for the past week. You had eaten nothing but a dead rat and even then you only ate half of it, its milky eyes felt although it was staring at you from beyond the grave.

You had been alone for maybe months? Possibly years? You had lost track of time when your mother had passed.

She had been bitten on a simple run, or at least it should’ve been simple. One minute you had been joking about something long ago, possibly school, you couldn’t remember now, when a walker had lunged at your mother from almost out of nowhere. Undoubtedly attracted by the scent of genuine joy and happiness.

After that you hadn’t returned to the group that you had previously belonged too. You had run and never looked back since. You usually blocked out such unpleasant memories of the past but your hunger was making you weak and slow.

You wandered around the small town for a while, only encountering a few of the corpses. You were so hungry that even their tainted flesh looked appealing to you. You shook that thought out of your head as soon as it had been established.

You eventually rested yourself on a swing which creaked loudly when you rested yourself on it. You tried to ignore the blood that stained the wood chips leading from the slide. You simply attempted to imagine what this town may have been like before the end of the world.

But if the world had ended, you thought to yourself idly, why am I still fighting? You were lost in thought for a great amount of time until you were brought out of your revelry by a low rumble.

You didn’t register what it was at first, turning your gaze to the dark and foreboding sky above you, thinking of thunder. But no, the rumble was gradually growing louder. Cars, you thought as you stood abruptly up and took out your pistol that had long run out of ammunition.

The sound seemed to echo around the abandoned houses, making it difficult to pinpoint the exact junction that the vehicles would immerge from.

The suddenly a convoy of dark cars and vans appeared from the junction directly behind you. You whirled around and turned to face the vehicles. You knew that it was too late to hide and that you were too weak to run. The cars circled the playground in the town centre until coming to an abrupt halt.

A man with a handlebar moustache immerged from a car; he had an unnervingly large smile on his face as he stood just beyond the playground fence.

“What’s a little lady like you doing out here all alone?” He called, a hand on his hip.

“Sight seeing.” You replied smartly.

“Sight seeing in a tiny town in good ol’ Georgia.” The man continued in an airy voice. “You part of any group around here?” He continued, raising an eyebrow.

“No.” You replied shortly. You began to back away, edging infinitesimally away.

“Well count me as-” The handle bar moustached man was cut off by a slam of a car door, the sound reverberated all around the houses and made you flinch.

“Simon! What the fuckty fucking hell is going on out here!” A man yelled from a few cars back. The voice reminded you of someone, though you weren’t entirely sure who.

Then the tall and lean form of a man that you thought you would never see again sauntered out from behind one of the large vans. He wore a leather jacket with a blood red scarf tucked into it. He also wore plain pants with dark, mud stained boots.

“Neg- I mean- mister Negan?” You corrected yourself swiftly. You were frowned and scrutinizing him from under his new salt and pepper scruff.

“Mister Negan, huh, well I fucking love that.” Negan said, he had yet to set eyes on you. You could spy a lethal baseball bat, with barbed wire curled tightly around its tip, slung over Negan’s shoulder. “Who’s askin- holy shit.” Negan said. He had finally laid his dark and penetrating gaze on you. “(Y/N)?” Negan asked, running a hand down his scruff.

“Dammit, if any of those disappointing sons of fucks would survive the end of the damn world it would be you.” Negan chuckled, striding over to you and giving you his coach handshake that he had with all the kids in his classes.

“Negan? You know her?” Simon asked, leaning backwards to get a good look at you.

“Hell yes I know her. My star fucking student. Won the regionals in running for two fucking years in a row!” Negan proclaimed loudly, almost like a proud father. “Would’ve been three if it weren’t for this shit show.” He motioned around with his hand airily, indicating the state of the world.

“Where did you go? How’d you get out? After the school was hit I mean.” You asked, all of a sudden giddy with joy for the first time in months.

“A good magician never tells his secrets.” Negan said wisely, avoiding the question entirely while tapping the left side of his nose.

“Bullshit!” You replied, playfully punching Negan’s shoulder.

“Language! What would your mother say if she heard you?!” Negan reprimanded in a joking tone. “What happened to your mom anyway, huh?” Negan asked in a genuinely interested voice. Your mom and Negan had always had some kind of on-off relationship; one that had been off ever since Lucille, Negan’s previous wife, had passed away.

That was when you fell down from cloud nine. Negan didn’t know. Well how could he? He wasn’t with you when it happened. He didn’t know about the pain and suffering you had gone through. You couldn’t blame him for asking about her.

“You in there, (Y/N)?” Negan asked, leaning down so that he was at your eye level.

“Yeah- yeah I’m here. Sorry.” You stuttered, attempting to get your words out. You rubbed the back of your neck awkwardly. You saw Negan’s face change from charismatic and smiling to frowning and eventually to concern.

“Oh.” Negan said finally, running a hand down his scruff. “She. . . didn’t make it?” Negan asked quietly.

You shook your head, not trusting yourself with words as you were sure that your voice may break if you did. You avoided Negan’s eye, far too interested in the ground and the dark sky than his intense gaze. That was, however, until you felt two arms engulfed you in a warm embrace.

You didn’t cry, you knew that. You didn’t think that there were enough emotions in you to cry. Your grief was too great for trivial tears.

“I’m sorry.” You heard Negan whisper in a genuine tone that none of his men could hear.

You didn’t reply. You had shut off that part of yourself that felt the pain of your loss. As far as that self knew your mother was back at your quaint, suburban home cooking your favourite food.  You had made it this far fooling yourself, you could continue.

“Come back to our base.” Negan said, stepped away from you and swiftly picking up the baseball bat once again. “We have food, water. . . everything you’d need.” Negan continued imploringly. “You’d be an asset.”

It took you no time to decide what you wanted to do. It was the choice of being left out in the unknown, death lurking behind every corner. Sadness and hatred all through the land. Now, more than ever, you had to stick with the people who had taken care of you.

“Yes.” You said almost immediately. “I’ll come.”

***

Thank you all so much for reading!! I hope that this is what you wanted!! Thank you so much for the request! C:

Thank you all for reading and have a great day!

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