#had enough of it maye | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

baldursgate3tempobsessed · 1 year ago

Note

Ok, I’m a little confused on how to word this request so bear with me.

Would you be willing to write a short fic about Astarion and The Main Character, sharing a tent at camp because relationship, and the main character giving Astarion a massage because he got hurt in battle, but Astarion starts moaning too loud on purpose, and making the other people at the camp think they are having sex?

I realize how weird and specific this is, but I love the idea of Astarion being an absolute Ham, and making the others uncomfortable XD

(Bonus points if the Main Character plays along)

LOL. Yes, I am willing. CW: Actually not many? Allusions to sex I guess? Maye spoilers to be safe? Brief mention of sadboy back story? This is honestly pretty tame.

Astarion wasn't against adventuring. If anything he was a fan, especially when comparing it to his old life. But he was only a fan when it was him doing the bloodshed, not when he was the one being knocked around into walls by massive ogres.

It hadn't been the worst pain he'd ever felt, far from it. But it had been fairly intense. Intense enough for it to take multiple tries for him to get back on his feet. And to have you fawning over him.

"Are you sure you're okay?" You asked as the two of you entered the tent hours later, still hovering behind him, "Is there anything I can do?"

"I'm fine darling," Astarion sighed as he plopped down onto his bedroll, exhausted beyond belief, "Nothing that a good night's sleep can't fix."

The healing from Shadowheart had done wonders, even if his muscles were still screaming at him. He was sore yes, but it really was nothing dire. But that wouldn't stop you from fretting, a fact that Astarion was a fan of.

It was no secret that he liked it when you agonized over his well-being. At first he had been a bit offended at your constant worry, taking it as a lack of belief that he could take care of himself. But then he realized you just... cared. About him of all people. Deeply and intimately, in a way that Astarion had never known, but one he could certainly get used to.

"Want me to have a look?" You asked as you sat next to him, your hands already helping to do the work of taking his armor off, "Maybe a massage?"

"That would be perfect," Astarion sighed, more than happy to let you pamper him. He had been hoping that you would ask that. You did have talented hands, "Thank you darling."

After he was divested of his armor you had him lay on his stomach, his back bare as you straddled his legs. Then you got to work, kneading his sore flesh like a pro. Astarion could feel the tension seeping out of his muscles. You really were so good at this, just one more perk of accidently falling in love with you.

He was moaning before he even knew the sounds were out of his mouth. But he didn't give it much thought, not when he knew you didn't mind. If anything you liked hearing him feel so content, even if he could get a little loud.

"Tch."

Astarion blinked his eyes open at the sound. Was... was that a scoff he heard? Astarion strained his ears, listening out of curiosity as you worked wonders on his back. That was one benefit of being a spawn and elf hybrid, he had vastly superior hearing abilities.

"It's happening again," That was definitely Lae'Zel's voice, the gravely cadence instantly recognizable.

"Oh come on, it's not that bad!" He heard Halsin say quietly, only to be met by collective groaning, "Whiners, the lot of you. I would have expected better from you Karlach."

"All I'm saying is that they could pitch their tent a bit farther away, that's all!" She laughed back at him, "Can't a girl be a little jealous?"

"Or a little annoyed," Shadowheart grumbled.

"Or a lot," Gale agreed, grumbling in that very specific way that made Astarion want to slap the frown off of his face.

Astarion rolled his eyes, finding himself to be a bit annoyed as well. While it was true that the two of you could get... excited, you weren't that bad. And Astarion had made it a point to sneak you far away from camp when he really wanted to have his way with you. What more could they ask for? It just felt like envy at this point, an envy that Astarion was petty enough to resent.

"All I'm saying is if I lose one more wink of sleep because of those two, they're getting a piece of my mind," Gale continued, "I'm sure we all can agree on that."

Oh. Well in that case...

"You're so good at this my sweet," Astarion moaned loudly as you worked over a hard knot in his back, "The best I've ever had."

He could hear more groaning from the peanut gallery, but better yet he could hear the smile in your voice as you quietly answered, "I'm just happy it helps. You're so bruised sweetheart, I'm surprised you're still standing. Your pain tolerance is really something else."

That was unfortunately true, a natural consequence after decades and decades of torture. But at least it served him in his newfound freedom.

"Maybe I just like it when it hurts," Astarion groaned loudly, an obvious lie. Especially to your ears.

It was enough to have your hands pausing on him. You leaned in close, whispering a question in his ear, "Are you doing what I think you're doing?"

"Darling, I'll do anything you want me to do," Astarion murmured, hoping that the ridiculous line would get his point across. And it did, of course it did. No one understood him better than you.

Astarion glanced at you as you leaned back, pleased to see the telling smirk on your face as you got back to work.

"Do you like that baby? Should I go lower?" You asked loudly, biting your lip near the end to keep in a giggle, "Would you like that?"

"Please," Astarion moaned out, only half of the sound faked. You really were just that good at giving massages. And the show you were both putting on was having the desired effect.

"For the love of everything that is holy keep it down!" Gale yelled out into the night, doing nothing more than encouraging Astarion to get even louder, "Perfect darling, right there. Gods, I'm close."

"Mm, flip over. I wanna see your face during," You shot back. Astarion could hear it in your voice, that barely contained laughter. And he wasn't doing much better himself. If anything he was a little surprised the others hadn't caught on yet. Maybe even a little offended. The dirty talk you had together wasn't this bad, a fact that they would know if they had actually ever heard it.

But before Astarion could belt out his big finale, the flap of your tent was being pulled open, Gale's voice yelling into it, "For the love of Mystra would you two shut up- oh my gods. They aren't even naked!"

That was the end of the façade. The two of you burst out laughing, you falling down to Astarion's side as you erupted into a pair of giggling idiots.

Karlach joined Gale at the door to the tent, her voice cracking halfway through on a laugh, "I told you they were hamming it up! Wyll, you owe me ten silver!"

Gale was already turning back, a pout on his lips as he muttered, "You're both lucky it was fake. We were five seconds away from sending Lae'zel in to shut you up."

"The threats aren't going to help my desire to continue fucking with you in the future," Astarion called after him, wiping amused tears from his eyes as they both stepped away. You turned to face him, still giggling up a storm as Astarion wrapped an arm around your wasit.

He kissed your cheek, still grinning ear to ear, "I think it's safe to say that I feel much, much better now."

#astarion #astarion x reader #astarion x tav #baldur's gate 3 #asks #silly #so silly #dramatic sad vampire man deserves to be silly #five left!!!!!!!!

857 notes · View notes

meggannn · 1 year ago

Text

hades 2 conversation dialogue my sister and i found interesting

SPOILERS obviously. my sister has been failing her runs on purpose to get more dialogue out of people. this post discusses dialogue that was not in the developer stream.

on hermes (mel and hecate are speaking about hermes and artemis at the start):

on melinoë, artemis, and the olympians:

on why mel is the only one who can kill chronos:

on hecate & mel's relationship:

on a secret order that mel is apart of:

on mel's job at the crossroads:

tension and secrets in the crossroads!!!!

when you give hypnos nectar:

(i wasn't fast enough to get his reply. hypnos says something like "zzzz... welcome to the.... zzzz"), then mel says:

other things i didnt screengrab:

hypnos: mel can remark to charon that hypnos is still asleep, charon says "arrghhh," and mel says "wait, he's of more use this way...?" possibly implying hypnos's sleep is not what it seems

nemesis: is uhhh kind of really mean!!!! she says something to mel along the lines of "you're upset you lost a family you don't remember? i KNEW my mom, all you did was be born"

moros: you can invite moros to the crossroads and he stands near the fated list far from everyone because nobody wants to talk to doom incarnate (odysseus in particular makes a point to say he'll stay away). iirc he introduces himself as "the bearer of bad news" which i find kind of clever but also a bit sad. if you give him nectar iirc he says nobody has given him a gift/offering before. aphrodite also notes that moros has made mel's acquaintance and calls him good-looking.

hephaestus: he criticizes your weapon's workmanship when you first meet him, then later takes it back and compliments it as very good, and says "just don't go spreading it around" to the olympians.

takeaways:

hermes is "missing" but he's on a mission for the war to find out what chronos is scheming

artemis (and hermes) didn't tell the olympians hecate has been raising a titan-killer (mel) and the olympians don't really believe she can do it but send her boons anyway, presumably figuring why not

only mel can enter the house of hades to challenge chronos, so that's why she needs to make this journey alone

hecate is rather sweet and mentorly with mel, but she gets exhausted and irritated when mel doubts herself. i didn't grab it but there's a bit where mel says if hecate had not held back, she knows she would've lost, and hecate snaps "you know?" asking mel why she puts limits on herself

mel, hecate, selene, and artemis are part of a secret order called the silver sisters that hermes also supports. olympus does not know about it. all these gods (save hermes) also have moon iconography in their designs

pretty sure moros will be romanceable. i think his and mel's interactions are very sweet, and aphrodite notes he's arrived and calls him good-looking, which reminded me of how she commented on thanatos to zag. no idea who might be a female romance option yet (i'm assuming there is one)

hephaestus boons are a lot of fun, per my sister

the big one: HECATE AND NEMESIS KNOW SOMETHING WE DON'T??? hecate maybe knew an attack was coming and didn't do anything?? nyx is also confirmed to basically be not around though we don't know where she is. and hecate is something called a handmaiden??? is she meant to serve nyx? it now seems like the children of nyx are meant to serve hecate, and eris isn't doing that, but nemesis is playing guard duty begrudgingly. so maybe nemesis thinks hecate let the house be captured/destroyed for her own ends, possibly also to get nyx out of the picture, so nyx's children would serve her(?). maye nyx is also a silver sister and hecate is now in command at the crossroads/on earth, second only to selene?

#hades 2

213 notes · View notes

prophetszendo · 1 year ago

Text

How the birds fall (pt. 2)

Content warning: suicide

Pairing: Astarion/you (no use of y/n or pronouns)

Summary: this is an alternate ending to part 1. The difference? Just a few seconds.

Word count: 1.4k

Disclaimer: not a native speaker, feel free to point out mistakes or weird sentences.

Astarion layed on his stomach, his torso hanging over the cliff. With one hand, he was holding himself, and with the other, he was reaching down. And he was yelling your name repeatedly, as his hands opened and closed, hoping to feel a piece of clothing, or a hand be caught in it.

But he was just a blink too late.

Back in the night, he was laying awake in his bed. He felt hungry, started to starve, and desperately wanted to feed. Yet he didn’t approach you. He felt like it would have shown his weakness for you, just how much he depends on you. He felt he had been used enough in his life, and didn’t need you to do the same.

He heard you shuffle around in your tent, then leave it. He found nothing strange about it, people can have casual buiness in the night. He expected your return soon, and when the night stayed silent, a thought crossed his mind. Maybe, just maye, you knew it was long since he fed and now you were waiting for him in a more quiet, secluded area.

Astarion got a bit too excitied for his own good. He could definitely not stay still like this, so he also sneaked out into the moonlight. It reminded him of the old times, when he would only be able to be under the sky after the sun set. He quickly shook the memory off, and focused on you. Thanks to his darkvision, he clearly saw which path you took. He beileved he was able to smell you, especially your sweet sweet blood among the trees.

He felt like a hunter, going after his prey in the dark. He quite liked this game.

He followed your trail silently. His boots made no sound, he wanted to suprise you with his arrival. He felt your taste on his tongue already, and he wanted more and more.

He always wanted more.

He slowly reached you. He caught a glimpse of you sitting on a log. You had your back to him, and you didn’t notice him. He noticed that you were facing a cliff. Unusual place for a feast.

Astarion prepared to approach you, when he got the feeling that something was off. He observed you a bit closer, and noticed a few oddities. Your back was hunched way more than usual. On an average day, you carried yourself confidently, but now, you seemed much more fragile, and small. Your breathing was also irregular, which again, was very unlike you.

His first thought was thag you got lost, and something spooked you. Maybe some of the nightlife? He smirked, as he planned to go and save you, and then you would offer yourself to him, and he would get to bite you and finally feel a bit satisfied.

Before he could move, you stood up, and went ro the edge of the cliff. Your head was facing down, and your breathinf stabilized.

Astarion thought you seemed calm.

Then a horrible, horrible suspicion hit him. As you you lifted your arms, as if you wantes to hug the sky in front of you, Astarion shot out of hiding, and started running towards you. His arm raised in front of him, to grab you and pull you back.

As if it was in slow motion, you started to fall. His legs felt entirely way too heavy. Maybe if he wasn’t on the edge of starving, he would have been faster.

But now, he was just a breath too late. His fingers nearly touched you.

You never stopped falling.

And here he was, yelling, screaming your name, hoping that would cast featherfall on you, so you would be alright. He remembered this cliff, the team briefly saw it earlier, and it was endlessly deep. And you were falling into the abyss, even his night seeing gaze couldn’t pierce.

As you disappeared from his sight, he lied there, in complete shock. What just happened? Why would you knowingly jump down into the nothingness?

It must have been the tadpole – and idea raised in Astarions mind. It must have been taking you over, making you stuff you never wantes to. But you were strong minded, you would never let yourself be taken over like this.

A painful memory rose in him. And one more. And another one.

He had noticed your weird expression you had when you thought noone was looking. The glimmer in your eyes were gone and was replaced by dullness. Your smile, which normally seemed to be glued to you was also gone. As if you were a completely different person. Yet, only after a moment or two of him noticing this, your face would go back to the usual, and the fierce and strong leader would come back and solve every problem.

Astarion suddenly felt a tug on his mind and before he could do anything, feelings that weren’t his floded him.

After a second, he realized they were yours. Your last feelings. Just as fast as they came, they were gone.

And so were you.

Astarion cried out in pain. He rolled onto his back, and put his palm over his face, as he started sobbing uncontrollably.

Because it was his fault.

He never payed close attention on how the adveture was for you. He always let you make the hard decisions. No, that wasn’t the right wording. He always made you choose.

No wonder you felt pressured. The feelings he recieved were everything you felt on the edge. His throath narrowed, as he started to untangle, to understand you.

To understand why you would leave him like this.

He had no right to think this way. You were never his, no matter how much he wanted it to happen. He constantly self sabotaged, and denied himself the luxury to trust you and take an honest liking in you. Now, he understood what he denied you and it made him feel more like a monster.

You never made him feel like a monster. No matter what he did. Not even when he sneaked up on you to take a bite, not when you said horrible things, and not when he acted cold towards you on purpose.

You only felt hurt, but you never thought less of him.

He felt lost. Since he met you, he felt some sort of security in his life. You accepted him for who he was, like noone did before. You cared about him, and did anything he asked.

And Astarion never thanked you, or showed anything sincere for it. Now he will never be able to, and regret was taking him over. He took you granted, like how he was taken granted in his past.

He was so taken over by self pity, and how horrible he was, that he failed to see further than himself. If he said a few nice words to you after seeing you so broken, maybe you would be sleeping in your tent now, and not somewhere out of his reach.

If he told you just how much he needed you, maybe now you would be sitting next to him, telling him about your day, sharing the hardships of the trip, and maybe some plans for the future.

He never even asked what you wanted to do after this was over, he realized. This thought caused another set of loud sobs and tears to appear. How could he have been so selfish?

All he ever wanted is to have a future with you. Because with you, he could see further than tomorrow. Maybe a sweet little home in Baldur’s Gate.

Only if he said it out loud.

Only if he told you just how much you are on his mind. How much he wishes to hold you, to caress you, to kiss youm

Only if he told you how much he loved you.

This thought kept swirling in his mind, he couldn’t get rid of it. He sat up, and inched closer to the cliff. He kept his distance, as in his mind he saw you fall again and again. But he looked down, as much as he could.

„I’m... So sorry. I loved... I love you.”

His voice cracked, and he just sat there, crying his aching heart out.

#astarion #astarion bg3 #astarion fanfic #astarion x reader #astarion x tav #astarion x you #astarion ancunin

183 notes · View notes

lovelybeesthings · 1 year ago

Text

Quick like a bunny Ch 2

Coriolanus Snow x reader

Warnings: none I think

Word count: 1.8k

Ch 1 & 3

Mansion

Why did he have to say such hurtful things all I’m trying to do is to care for him is that not enough? What does Lucy Grey have that I don’t she's a poor tribute form that distracts 12 from what he's doing he can end up killed or hanged! *I cry into my pillows as I try to find a way to release my feelings and emotions as tears find a way to escape from my sniffs and efforts push them away* “Yvanna dear come down for dinner!” *I hear my mother call as I get up in my pink pastel long puffy Lacey dress with my hair in curls*

Training

The next day I attended the Academy sitting threw my classes and lessons with focus but I couldn't help but look at Coriolanus his beauty his curls his looks- I stopped myself from looking and continued to focus on ways to take advantage of the games. As the lesson soon ended I came across my tribute as we practiced one-on-one trying to think of how I could better his odds even though he has the brown I would like to give him the brain.

I shortly walked away to get some Items to see how Reaper works with them and I soon came across a tribute his features were beyond what I'd seen from the Capitol his eyes sea green, his hair bronzed color his skin the color of gold if possible whatever he came from they had been keeping him well.. I felt a rush of warmth from my cheeks this tribute quickly noticed my luring eyes. “Fenwick Odair District 4” his smile was a bright pure one he knew he was handsome and showed it* “Did I scare you little bunny?” he said as I quickly regained my thoughts and answered “No, I was just impressed I believe you have a good chance of winning I think the odds are surely more in your favor” he looked at me hand on his chin smirking “That so little bunny?” “Better watch out then this bunny is quick” I smile as I flirt a bit with him and quickly return to Reaper to continue our training.

Unnoticeable to me Coriolanus was watching our interactions on his way to Dr. Volumnia's lab he felt his heart clench with bitter thoughts surfaced in his head what did he do to that tribute from District 4- no what did he think he was here to learn more knowledge to find a better way for Lucy to better her odds for his odds.

After hours

I spent my time brushing my silky (c/h) as it didn't have any tangles or any worries in my long healthy hair as I think about my encounter with Fenwick his love is his charms make me blush still, I hope he wins the game is know I should try to win but Id like to spend more time with him.

I heard a sudden knock on my door and I got up from my vanity in my pink lacey nightgown opened the door got my candle lamp to see who had visited my room in such late hours Maye a maid “y/n” Coriolanus speaks I'm shocked to see him here this light at night “what happen why are you home are you alright is Tigris okay?” I say confused and worried soon his cold hands reach my face and hold my chin I look completely lost to his sudden affection.

He pushes his way inside my room and preps me down on my bed I'm blushing and not sure what he's planning to do “What are you doing Coriolanus?” I say as his piercing blue eyes look at mine like a wolf looking at a poor rabbit to slaughter in minutes, his response was his lips on mine I'm surprised I mean this man was my fiance but he never really showed me an ounce of affection like that and since our last words, I wasn't sure he wanted to be in my life.

I respond with his kisses as he’s on top of me vulnerable to his lips how could I shut him down his mop of white blinding curly hair he just does it for me though in the back of my mind I think of Fenwick and gently push snow off “what are you doing..?” he looks at me a bit surprised and confused “What do you mean y/n I'm showing my affection and love for you” he looks at my eyes then lips then back up to my lips “No this doesn't feel right you don't….Are you okay this doesn't seem like something you think about clearly” I know I want his attention and his kisses but it feels like he's thinking of someone else..not someone Lucy..

“You don't want this you think you do but you love her..” I say “Right now you don't know what you want to be what makes you happy” *I say as I hold a smile and angle face holding tears back pushing the one I want to be happy “Lucy will cherish you as much as I will” he nods and slips out of my room my house like he was never even there the only reaches left were the stolen kisses of mine.

How do we think about this chapter? Is it good for your guys' standards I'll try to make the third one a time skip to after what goes down in the book and snows return back to the Capitol.

please like 😘

SHOUTOUT TO @edb954 for some of the inspiration and @watercolorskyy

#coriolanus snow x reader #fanfic #coriolanus snow #reader #tom blyth x resder

154 notes · View notes

princess-of-the-corner · 6 months ago

Text

oh because I saw a tweet about it I'm still cackling at the idea of Kurogiri getting his age wrong.

Like he wakes up has no memory AfO gives him a made up identity but he doesn't know how old he is and sure maye he asks AfO but AfO probably lies. And that's if he asks because a 17 year old who doesn't know he's 17 is so confident he'll figure it out.

Add in the fact that AfO yeets Kuogiri into the bar so ofc his assumption is that he's over 20 that's the legal drinking age. (Kurogiri wonders how he remembers the legal drinking ageand not his own age). Don't think about how AfO is a villain who doesn't care about the law surely you wouldn't have a kid in a bar right?

So obviously he must be An Adult™ but what else indcates age? Uh. Hm. Well he's old enough to be trusted to watch over a young child! You wouldn't trust someone barely-20 to be solely responsible for a kid unless you had no other option, right? So clearly he's gotta be at least mid-20s.

And his body hurts a lot. That's a thing old people complain about! It might not be 'old age' but surely this is the result of several years of hard work wearing on him (and not just a few months of fucked up experimentation)!

So he's 17 but thinks he's gotta be at least 30 already. And then by the time he actually gets to 30 he thinks he's well into his 40s. Only to find out 'no you just turned 30. You were still 17 when you first woke up'.

I think I'd have a crisis tbh./

21 notes · View notes

acourtofsnakes · 1 year ago

Text

The Aftermath - Freefall, Chapter 6 || The Bad Batch x Jedi!Reader

Summary: You thought things couldn't get worse after the Order, but as your friends slowly didappear one by one, you find yourself teaming up with a radical, until your boys find you. But are you safe at home?

Warnings: 18+, swearing, injuries, descriptions of violence, canon fighting, fear, loss, death, blood, canon violence and weapons, nicknamed reader (Ghost), Order 66

A/N: We are back guuuuuys!!! As usual, this section of the series is still 'in the past', following on directly from the previous chapter! We'll back to the present very soon, with all the storylines linking back up!

Series Masterlist | Series Playlist | AO3

You wished you hadn’t come here.

But you wouldn’t be anywhere else.

Not when Padmé needed you, all of you. Yet perhaps the one she needed most was the only one to break her out of this sickness.

But he would never be reached now, not after what happened. Not after Mustafar.

You couldn’t even key into the Force for answers, or peace, because all you could feel was death and destruction and chaos.

It grated on your nerves, ran claws down your spine and hissed in your ears, making you hypersensitive to every single noise, every smell, every stitch of clothing touching your skin.

The more you thought about it, the more aware you became, until your breathing became uneven and sharp and you couldn’t escape the awareness of it slipping into your consciousness.

Oh, what you wouldn’t give for those long fuzzy creatures on Myrkr, the adorable unique tree-dwellers called Ysalimir. They were able to create a sort of bubble around them, in which the connection to the Force was cut off to the point not even a Jedi could access it.

Sometimes it did feel like a limb being cut off when you couldn’t get to the Force, but in times like this, where everything was too close, too loud, too there… Maker, you’d dive headfirst into a group of them right now.

A ragged breath escaped your lips and you resisted the urge to plunge one of your lightsabers through the head of the nurse who breathed just a little too loudly in your direction. Your hands curled into fists, nails biting sharply into your palms but even that didn’t stop the feeling of bugs crawling over your skin, bands wrapping around your chest -

Warm, slightly calloused fingers gently wriggled their way into your hand, carefully pushing under your nails until they held onto your hand, slowly enough you could push them away if you didn’t want it.

But you did.

A little sob escaped your chest as you stayed watching Padmé through the glass, and you curled your fingers back tightly around Obi-Wan’s hand, clinging to him, an anchor. You felt a caress of the force, his own presence soothing all the rough edges of your own and helping you settle a little, even though his own signature was in complete and utter agony over what he’d had to do to his brother.

So you gripped his hand tighter, pressing your arm into his, relaying that comfort even as tears ran down your cheeks, “She has to get better, Obi… She has to.” Yet even as you said it, you knew that even if she did, she would never recover from the pain of losing Anakin. She’d never stop hoping and looking for the good in him, and it would torture her until… Until the end.

You knew this with a startling clarity because you were exactly the same. If it were any of the boys, you would die before you gave up. Even now, you believed that there had to be some hope for Anakin, that he was still in there.

Maybe if Padmé recovered, maye they would both survive…

“I know, I know… But I fear that the medical droid was right. She’s simply given up. She…” Obi-Wan shuddered softly, guilt flaring high in his signature, stinging the air around you. “Perhaps if I had listened, if I hadn't acted as a member of the Council, as a master, but as a brother, none of this would be happening as it had.” Obi-Wan’s hair fell over his forehead, his entire posture slumping more and more with each word, his composure in as many tatters as the Force itself. “Such destruction and devastation.” He breathed those last words, bowing his head, as if he could retreat into himself - or as if he were waiting for the blow of retribution.

Seeing his pain, feeling how broken he was made it hit home that all of this was real. That it wasn’t some terrible dream.

With every minute that passed, you were losing more and more of your loved ones.

You drew in a shuddering breath, turning away from the sight before you to instead look at Obi-Wan, “Enough.” You chided him gently, but firmly, “This is not your fault, Master Kenobi. None of this is. This… This destruction was at the hand of the Emperor, not you. Do not allow him to win further by shouldering guilt.” You squeezed his hand again, knowing the words wouldn't soothe him - they wouldn’t soothe yourself if the situation was reversed - but he needed to hear them.

Obi-Wan sighed, lifting his head slowly, as if it carried the weight of the galaxy. His eyes, so flat and lost, tracked over your face, reading the same agony and guilt, the same desolate emptiness of knowing you two could very well be the last Jedi left in the galaxy, “I forget how young you are sometimes when you say such wise things like that.” The faintest of smiles touched his lips fleetingly, “You’ve always had a determination I admired, a stubbornness that could rival An - his.” His face twisted in pain momentarily, but he recovered himself a moment later, but you saw the momentous effort it took.

“You never allowed what others thought to shape you… I know how hard it’s been to not let their words sink in, but you’ve always proved yourself to be even more than they thought, that you were your own person and not what they believed you to be.” He hummed faintly, thoughtfully, “Another balance between two sides.”

Something tingled at the back of your mind, an awareness that Wrecker always said was your own version of ‘Hunter-senses’. Whatever it was that Obi-Wan was getting at… It meant something.

You were certain you’d heard something like this, the talk of someone who was both light and dark and could bring balance, back when you were younger and were sneaking around the Temple rather than being told off for not being able to focus.

Before you could ask however, the monitors and holograms surrounded Padmé began to wail and beep frantically, flashing up with symbols you didn’t understand - but the sinking feeling in your belly did.

Obi-Wan’s head snapped up and he stepped forward, “What’s happening?!” He made to move further, but you were all being ushered out by the medical droids, hastened from the room as voices clamoured over one another and the beeping became louder and more persistent.

The door swiped shut behind you, Obi and Bail, the hallway jarring in its stillness compared to the frantic bustle behind it.

And all you could do was wait.

You felt it, maybe hours or even just minutes later.

Everything fell still, silent. Bail was called in, and then Obi-Wan, into the room that suddenly felt like a tomb, the spectre of Death hanging over the doorway.

It was clinging to you, dragging skeletal claws over your bones, the lingering touch of all those Clones, the aching spaces of all the lost Jedi, your best friend shrouded in darkness - and now Padmé.

You barely registered the hallway floor beneath you, the walls blurring past, faceless people scolding you for running, a voice that could have been Obi-Wan or Bail calling for you - none of it mattered.

You only stumbled to a stop inside an empty room when an echo of agony ripped through your chest, so raw and potent it felt like your own heart was being carved out.

The Force was screaming in response, the Light in shreds already, but that thread of the Dark that always wound through your soul… That’s where you felt it strongest.

Rage, guilt, loneliness, agony - He’d felt it too.

He knew she was gone.

And there would be no chance of redemption for him now. The one thing that could have helped, the person that was almost guaranteed to get through to him somehow was gone.

It was all gone.

Your friends were most likely dead.

Ahsoka… Had Rex and the 501st turned on her? Had she been forced to mow down the legion which was more family than mere soldier?

Your boys… Had they survived?

You couldn’t bear the thought of what would happen if they hadn’t.

So despite the crippling grief wracking your body, you knew you had to keep going. Keep doing… Something. Because if you didn’t… Well.

It was likely you never would.

“Hey, you got that crate of supplies for me?” A man who’s name you still hadn’t remembered motioned to the box in your arms, reaching out for it when you were close enough.

You nodded, letting him take it from you, “It’s one of the last ones, we’ll need to do another run soon, we’re low on med supplies and we still have a few children who are sick.”

In all fairness, the kids would be fine. You’d been healing them with the Force when noone else was around and they were asleep, even if tapping into it did still hurt… And that voice whispered to you whenever you did.

The man nodded, already crouched down to rifle through the contents, “Let Saw know, he was talking about organising another one soon.”

That would be Saw Gerrera.

Your current, if only temporary.. Partner? Company? Whatever it was.

Since Padmé, and the Order, you’d drifted, unable to stay still for too long lest the thoughts and memories came crashing back down and reminding you of what you’d lost.

You’d spent days in a stupor, travelling under darkness with the hood of your cloak pulled down low over your head, barely noting faces and places and you sought passage to whatever planet you could.

The Empire was crawling around everywhere, but you donned the abilities of your nicknames, able to slink through shadows and slip past scrutinising eyes.

You stayed low like Hunter had asked, feeling the weight of your silent comms grow heavier and heavier with each day that passed and it remained silent.

Day by day, the loneliness and hopelessness slithering closer until you couldn’t stand it any longer and formulated a plan.

To help.

Whatever, wherever, you were going to help people rebuild after what had happened and try and do something good.

Something to keep the balance Obi-Wan had mentioned.

Because with each of those silent days, the shadows slipping under your skin seemed to grow stronger, the dance of lightning shimmering across your knuckles in the dead of night when the nightmares both old and new found you.

One foot on either side. A balance.

You might still have a foot in shadow and a foot in light, but it felt as though the galaxy had shifted on its axis and your weight had begun to lean to one side over the other.

So when dreams of your boys being turned into mindless monsters, of Rex killing Ahsoka, punctuated by Anakn’s screams, chased you from sleep, you moved.

Way back when the worst thing was the Separatists, you’d gone with Anakina and the others to Onderon, helping Saw Gerrera and his band of activist free the planet from the clutches of the Separatists.

You knew he was still there, that instinct telling you that was the place you needed to be to help.

So you followed.

And it was on the way here that your comm had beeped to life, pinging through an encoded message in the frequency and code worked out between yourself and the boys should you ever need to communicate privately.

“Ghost, we’re okay. Whatever happened, whatever that was, it didn’t affect us. We don’t know what it is but we’re safe. Are you? Tech registered a ship leaving the planet after that transmission but we didn’t know if you were on it. Let us know where you are and we’ll come for you.”

The earth-shattering relief that they were okay had brought to your knees, the fact that something had stayed good, that you hadn’t lost everyone. They were okay. They were alive. And they weren’t slaves to whatever Sidious had done to them.

They were alive and they wanted to come for you.

And yet… Something held you back from responding.

Something… vicious. That growing voice.

You were a walking target, no longer a Jedi Commander, best friends to General’s Skywalker and Kenobi, to Commander Tano and Captain Rex.

In this new, upside down world… You were the enemy.

The chatter you had heard hid this ‘Order 66’, instead labelling the massacre as a Jedi rebellion, claiming the people sworn to be the peacekeepers of the galaxy had handed in their honour for cold-blooded murder and the clones had been forced to fight back and do their job of protecting the galaxy from threats.

And that was that.

Temples were torn down, burned, raided. Those that remained sealed themself up, turning into relics of the past when they should be beacons for the future.

Jedi who had slipped through the cracks in the carnage lined wanted boards and lit up the pucks of bounty hunters, both old and young.

Even the children, those who had just discovered the gift that should be a blessing, now had a noose around their neck and a target on their back.

How could you bring the boys into that crossfire?

If they weren’t murdered alongside you, they;d be tried and executed as traitors for helping you and working alongside you.

As much as every cell in your body craved to be with them, to be back by their side, protecting them as fiercely as they would protect you.. You just couldn’t sentence them to death.

Or bring about the realisation that they weren’t under the same control as their brothers.

Not to mention the gradually reducing control you seemed to be experiencing over this ‘balance’.

There was too much risk.

So you ignored the transmission.

And the next one.

And the one after that.

//”We haven’t heard from you yet, so we’re assuming it’s not safe for you to respond. That’s the only reason I’m believing. We’ll find you and we’ll get you safe.”//

//”Please, Ghost. Please just give us something. Anything. Just a sign to let us know you’re still out there.”//

//”Something is wrong here. The regs are even more off than usual, there’s been a shift-up in command and training has increased. Crosshair is even more on edge than usual, and we seem to have acquired a friend.; A young girl, Omega. You’d like her, she’s stubborn like you and keeps us on our toes.”//

//”We miss you, Ghost. We can’t lose you. I can’t lose you.”//

//”Please.”//

Everyday had brought a new transmission, the latest being this morning.

You sighed as you keyed it off, kicking a rock like it was the cause of all your problems and booting it across the dusty ground would ease the longing in your heart.

“You’re going to have to answer whatever you’re avoiding at some point, you know. You can’t run forever, trust me.” The husky voice of Saw Gerrera appeared from your left as you rounded a stack of crates, not really paying attention to where you were going.

You shoved the comms back into your cloak pocket, looking up at him with a raised eyebrow and what you hoped was a neutral expression, “I’m well aware of that, Gerrera. I don’t need to be reminded.” The words came out with more bite than you’d originally intended but… Whatever Better to be on the offensive lately.

Saw’s eyebrows raised a little and he held his hands up in surrender, “Easy, I wasn’t starting a fight, just offering advice.” He cocked his head, observing you with a stare that was far too knowing and intense, making your skin prickle.

You scowled at him, resisting the urge to cross your arms, “What? Why are you looking at me like that?” You were grateful that he was allowing you to stay here and help, but there was something about him that was too intense, too… extremist. His reasons were there but his actions… They rubbed you up the wrong way.

But where else did you have to go?

He ran a thumb along his jaw, eyebrows lowered in thought, “I know what you’re doing. Why you’re acting like this.” He didn’t give you a chance to argue, merely continuing in a level, even voice, “But you can’t keep biting at people just to push them away. You need your friends, the ones loyal to you. Especially now. They can help you, Ghost. They can keep you safe. We’re thankful for you here, but -”

“In case you haven’t been around lately, all of my friends are dead.” You spat the words at him, defensive anger immediately crackling to life, tingling in your veins and you tried to will it back into slumber.

Saw rolled his eyes, planting his hands on his hips, “Clearly not all of them, or are you receiving coded transmissions from beyond the Force now?” He didn’t even bother to keep his voice down, reckless fool.

You growled, stepping closer and you pointed warningly at him, “You can’t be saying things like that, I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Your cold gaze flicked between his own eyes, “Have you been spying on me, Gerrera?” Anyone who knew you would immediately recognise the danger in the softness of your voice, something you and Crosshair had both been famed for.

The softer the voice, the faster you better turn tail and run.

The man before you didn’t back down, merely straightened his posture, muscles coiling in case you finally decided to snap. “It’s my job to keep these people safe, Ghost. No matter who they are, or who they were.” Clearly referring to you being a Commander, “Like I said. We’re thankful for your help, but if these friends of yours are going to come looking for you, I can’t risk my people.”

A scoff escaped your throat despite your emotion, “Hang on, a moment ago you were giving me a pep talk about being with people who’ll keep me safe, and now you’re worried I’m going to hurt your people? Which is it, Saw? You want me gone for my own good, or gone because you don’t trust me?”

So much for controlling your anger.

Saw huffed, his chest rising and falling with the movement, “Look, I don’t want a fight. I just need to know I’m not going to have any trouble here. We’ve built too much and we’ve prepared too much to risk losing it now. The fight is nowhere near over, it’s even more important than it was when we fought the Separatists. This galaxy deserves peace, don’t you think? Can’t you of all people see that?” He stepped closer, his voice softening to the tone you knew he used on people to coax them to his side, “Isn't that what you were trained for? To allow people to live in peace and safety?”

Too far.

You squared up to him, head tilted back to stare him down, “Let’s get one thing straight. I may have helped you all those years ago, and I might be thankful to you for helping me in return now; But do not think that gives you any right to comment on my past. Or my future. Or anything about me, actually.” You didn’t even blink, didn’t even care that his people were looking over, some of them pushing the younger ones behind them, “And for that matter, stop trying to encourage me to join you. I appreciate what you’re doing, and I’ll help here in camp but I’m not joining you. I’m not joining anyone.”

Saw was about to open his mouth, but awareness danced down your spine, signalling someone’s approach.

Seconds later, you heard footsteps. Six pairs of footsteps. One set unfamiliar, but the other five…

“Not even us?”

Hunter watched as your head snapped round to face him, fast enough he would have feared for your spine had he not known you.

He watched the emotion play across your face, shock, guilt, surprise, adoration. Your eyes narrowed, tracking carefully over each of his and his brother’s faces, and he could tell from the slightly unfocused look that you had tuned into the Force… Perhaps to see if that Order had affected them too… But then, complete and utter relief. It was so potent on your face, he nearly ran to you right then, had he not suddenly had at least ten blasters trained on him. Which in itself was nothing, they’d faced far worse odds, but he wasn’t here for a fight.

“Clones?” Saw spat the word, yanking his own blaster free and he levelled it square at your face, “Your friends are clones? The Empire?!” His face was one of defensive fury, before the mask slipped over and he was impassive and watchful.

Hunter’s fingers twitched on instinct, but you merely rolled your eyes, lifting a hand and knocking his blaster from your face “They don’t work for the Empire, Gerrera. And neither do I, despite what your prejudices are telling you.”

The man you’d passed the crate to before scoffed, moving closer to the Batch, safety clicking off, “So what are they doing here then? You told us you were untraceable.” He narrowed suspecting eyes at you before looking back at the boys, particularly Crosshair, as if recognising him as the most lethal.

And with that expression on his face, he certainly looked it.

Tech pushed between Hunter and Wrecker, one finger nudging his glasses up, “Actually, Ghost was correct. She was virtually untraceable. However, that would be by anyone else’s skill set. I, on the other hand, have been genetically engineered to have skills far beyond that which the average person has therefore in this case, Ghost was -”

“Tech! I think they get it, brother.” Hunter raised a hand, patting Tech affectionately on the shoulder before looking at Saw, his eyes straying to you now and then, unable to stop looking, checking you were okay.

You were alive.

You were alive and whole before him… At least in the physical sense. He could tell with one look, and by the way you kept avoiding his direct gaze that the events that had happened over the last week or so had left a wicked bruise, one that would take a while to heal.

“We aren’t here to cause any trouble, Gerrera. We… We were sent here, yes. But under false orders. What we were told and what we’ve seen… You’re not a threat. At least not the one the Empire made you out to be.” He looked across at the children hidden behind adults, “You’re not causing trouble, you’re just trying to live.”

Like they were.

Crosshair scoffed from behind him, his gun clicking as he reflexively loosened and tightened his grip on it. The distaste and displeasure was rolling off of him in waves, jaw set and honey eyes almost black in the low pitch of the camp.

Hunter knew he was in for a sniping match later, especially after Crosshair’s insistence before coming down here.

“Make the order, Hunter. I have a clear shot.”

“Crosshair, there are children there. And they’re just… living.”

“We have orders. We were told to eliminate them, and that is what we are here to do. Tell me to take the shot, now.”

“Just wait, Crosshair.”

“Hunter.”

That had been when the hair on Hunter’s neck stood up, his senses perking their head, as if sensing a storm… And then there you were. Helping Saw’s men, your armour hidden beneath that billowing cloak.

You were alive.

Saw barely moved, his eyes tracking across everyone, noting the fact your hands were ont he hilts of your twin blades, even if your posture seemed relaxed, “Okay, okay. Here’s what’s going to happen.” He nodded slightly to his men, who lowered their blasters after a seconds hesitation, “You said you were sent here to stop us, but you changed your mind?”

Hunter nodded, brows still low and body still tense as he waited to see where this went, “Yes. Like I said, you’re just trying to live.” He didn’t remove his fingers from his own blade, not quite yet.

Not whilst you were still staring down the muzzle of Saw’s blaster.

Saw nodded again, eyes flicking to you then back to Hunter and the other boys, “You seem smart, Sergeant. You know the corruption of the Empire, and the lies they tell you.” His tone shifted, blaster lowering and shoulders pushing back, “we could use a squad like yours in the fight ahead. The fight for what is right. For freedom.” He lifted his chin again and his men backed off, beginning to load up the last few supplies, “We’re heading out. Do whatever you feel is right, but I hope you make the correct decision for yourself and the future of the galaxy.” With those final words, he levelled a glance at you, making you bristle and your eyes harden but you just rolled your eyes and crossed your arms.

No one said a word as Saw’s men began to move, but Crosshair stepped forward, his hold still tight on his rifle, “Are we just going to let them walk away? Hunter, you heard Tarkin. They’re insurgents. They’re a danger. They need to be eliminated.” His eyes were fixed on the retreating group, so focused that it had you stepping forward into his line of sight.

“Leave it, Cross. I agree that they’re.. Radical and I don’t agree with their methods but Hunter is right. They’re just trying to live and make their way in all this mess. The Empire has bigger problems, surely.” Your jaw tensed at that remark, the fact its well known that the Empire were hunting down any escaped Jedi or Jedi sympathisers.

Crosshair’s eyes flashed when you moved in front of him, when you agreed with Hunter. Something predatory crossing his face, like he still hadn’t forgotten that argument outside 79’s before all this, “Well, if Hunter says so, it must be true.” He spat out his toothpick and began to stalk back to the ship, agitation rolling of him in waves so strong you didn’t even need the Force to feel it.

You sighed as you watched him, unfolding your arms, “He’s really not happy with me, is he. Still.”

Tech looked over at you, lifting his visor up to the top of his helmet, “Crosshair has always had a starker sense of right and wrong, he doesn’t see the in between. That part of our training always stuck with him the most, I believe.”

Wrecker shrugged, cracking his neck, “He just needs to shoot something, that always cheers him up.” He laughed and then trailed after Crosshair, helmet perched on his head.

Tech shook his head at his brothers, looking over his shoulder again at you, something more tender touching his eyes, “It’s good to see you okay, Ghost. We’re glad to have you back.” His hand reached out to touch your shoulder for a second before he followed Wrecker.

A smile graced your lips as you watched him go, his words cementing the fact that you were back at home with your boys…

But then it faded, that voice whispering that you were still a target. What if you brought the Empire down on the boys heads?

They were heading right back to them after failing to complete a mission… That was already enough to put them in the crossfire surely.

Hunter’s broad form filled your vision, his finger touching your chin to bring your gaze up to his own, “I know that look. And I know what you’re thinking.” He tilted his head slightly, eyes focused on yours, unrelenting, “I know you didn’t answer our comms because you were afraid you’d bring danger to us.”

You should have remembered that he’d always see straight through you, “I am going to bring danger to you, Hunter. I can’t linger at the sidelines waiting for you like I used to. They know me at Kamino. They know I was a Commander. If they even catch wind that you’re seen with someone who fits my description…” You dragged your eyes to the side, to a spot over his shoulder.

It broke Hunter’s heart, seeing you so unsure, doubting yourself like you used to when the words fo the Council would dig their claws too deep in you. What you’d been through since the Order was called… It had shaken something loose in you. “Ghost, you’re one of us. You will always be one of us. No matter whether you have a bounty on your head or not, you are part of this squad and we will all protect you.” He ducked his head to the side to catch your gaze again, “I will protect you.”

He was right, of course.

You always fit into the squad of ‘defective’ clones more than you had anyone at the Temple, save for Anakin and Ahsoka of course. There was a reason Rex always joked that you were the missing member of Clone Force 99.

Despite the turmoil in your chest, you couldn’t stop the smile that lifted your lips as you looked between Hunter’s eyes, “i think you’ll recall it’s usually me protecting you, no?”

Hunter laughed softly, eyes crinkling at the edges and he shook his head, “Only because you love to come in with a blaze of glory that rivals Anakin’s.”

You couldn’t help the reflexive flinch at his name, the pain searing through you with an echo of that cry again, but you forced that smile to stay on your lips, still not wanting to face it, “You love my blazes of glory, don’t even try to deny it, Sergeant.”

Hunter didn’t miss the agony in your expression, not for one second but he allowed you the grace of waiting until you were ready, instead touching a hand to his chest, “:I would never deny you, Commander.” He swept a hand toward the way the rest of the boys went, “After you, my most dramatic partner.”

You rolled your eyes with a laugh, pushing his chest gently as you moved past him, “Come on, you big idiot.”

Yeah.. It was good to be back together.

~~~~~

Everything felt wrong.

His senses were on high alert, the way they were on a mission, when he was tracking an enemy through the sight of his rifle.

Crosshair rolled his shoulders and his neck, trying to focus on the grassy terrain beneath his feet, but the words in his head pulsed with every beat of his heart,

Complete the mission. Complete the mission. Complete the mission.

Laughter behind him had his hands twitching, a sound that once brought him a sense of freedom and lightness.. It felt all twisted now. Like black smoke filtering across a clear sky.

That voice in his head hissed at the sound, the sweet cadence of it.

His head flicked to the side, watching as you walked along with Hunter and Echo, joking about something or other.

When he saw you standing there, with Saw, his head was a mess.

An insatiable itch in his hands as he held his rifle, battling against relief that you were okay.

And yet, the second you had agreed with Hunter, that battle tipped to one side.

He couldn’t imagine what you had witnessed since they last saw you, but whatever it was left that shadowy beast sitting right behind your eyes. He could see it. Sense it, just like that night at 79’s.

But, just like that night, you choked it down and looked to Hunter for appraisal.

Complete the mission.

Crosshairs eye twitched as you laughed again, bumping into Hunter’s side and he zeroed in on the way his arm settled around yout shoulders so casually.

“We don’t know what else might be around here, or if Saw’s men intend on letting us leave. Don’t you think you should save the reunion party till we’re back on the ship?”

Your eyes flicked as you looked at him, the laughter dying on your face and it hit something deep in his chest, “You could pretend to be a little happier to see me, Crosshair.” Your words were light, but he could see the blade’s edge in the hardness of your eyes, the challenge levelled at him.

He rolled his shoulders again, trying to ease off that tension, “Of course I am. I just don’t think now is the time to be drawing a bigger target on ourselves. We’re already going to be reprimanded for not completing the mission. Now we have another of the Empire’s targets to paint on our backs.” He lifted his hand to motion to you, even though these words.. They were coming out wrong. All wrong. This isn’t what he wanted to say.

He wanted to tell you how relieved he was you were still alive, that the thought you could have been caught in the crossfire of the Order had nearly brought him to his knees… So why weren’t those words coming out?”

Complete the mission.

Echo frowned, looking at Crosshair sharply, “That’s enough, Crosshair. When do we ever complete a mission the way we’re asked to? This is nothing different to what we always do.” He looked back at you, then back to Crosshair as the Marauder came into view, “Ghost is not a target. What’s gotten into you?”

Crosshair wanted to scream, because even he didn’t know. He winced as that sharp pain came back into his head, “Good soldiers follow orders. We shouldn’t be drawing attention to ourselves.” He huffed, turning away, rubbing a hand over his head like he could push the thoughts out, “We need to complete the mission.” He shook his head sharply, then hurried into the ship, long legs working to draw him farther away.

Before he rounded the corner, he heard your voice again, “Maybe we should stop snapping at him and check he’s okay?”

No.

Something in him told him not to be in a room alone with you.

Just… No.

Complete the mission.

Good soldiers follow orders.

The Marauder was silent, save for the soft beeps and hums from the console, the proximity alarms on standby, and the soft breathing of your companions… and Wrecker’s snoring.

But you were used to all of it, a white noise that you found you couldn’t sleep without. The Marauder was a safe home, a solid point in a constantly whirring galaxy that tried to spin everything out of control at any given moment.

And given everything that had happened recently, you needed this stability more than anything.

You needed them more than anything.

As long as you had the Marauder and your family, you were okay. You were home. The rest of the galaxy might be in ruin, but this was your sanctuary.

And maybe you’d only have days before Tarkin realised the boys hadn’t returned to Kamino, but you would deal with that after, and whatever was going on with Crosshair.

You’d fix it.

You could deal with all that when it happened.

For now, you just wanted the peace and safety of the ship, and the boys.

But tonight, the peaceful atmosphere was different.

It was living.

Breathing.

It was alive, and it was prowling. Something was on the hunt.

No, someone was on the hunt.

Maybe that’s what turned your dreaming slumber, switching it from recent memories of all you had endured to awareness, even if your body was still at rest.

Your connection to the force, those senses that rivalled Hunter’s, were whispering at you, hissing a warning even though the Force itself was hurting.

Danger. Danger. Danger.

Your body remained still, breathing even, eyes closed but you didn’t need them open to see.

Someone was here, standing in the rest area at the back of the Marauder.

You could hear the breathing, the near silent inhale and exhale of a steady, solid rhythm. A hunter's rhythm.

Three counts. That’s what you gave yourself, your hand stretching out beneath your pillow, ready to call your sabers to you, because you hadn’t slept with them under your pillow tonight- you didn’t need to, not here.

One.

Adrenaline seeped through your blood, cool like ice, sparkling like lightning.

Two.

The thing was, you knew who it was.

You knew who was here, who had come to end your life.

Who hadn’t escaped the Order you all thought you were free from.

Three.

One more breath, then your eyes snapped open, sabers flying into your hands and igniting with that familiar hum.

The stark white glow lit up his face, bouncing over the sharp angles of his face, highlighting the tattoo, his eyes.

Those eyes were cold, detached, nothing recognisable of your friend in that gaze.

The gaze that was levelled through the sight of his blaster, trained on your centre of your forehead.

You sat up slowly, keeping your saber defensively between you, ready but unwilling to hurt him, because this wasn’t him. It couldn’t be. “Crosshair…”

His finger twitched, taking the safety off the weapon, determined. Cold.

Ready.

“Good soldiers follow orders.”

#the bad batch #the bad batch x reader #hunter the bad batch #tbb hunter x reader #tbb crosshair #tbb crosshair x reader #tbb tech #tbb echo #tbb wrecker #the bad batch season 3 #star wars #the clone wars #star wars fic #jedi reader #freefall

58 notes · View notes

mariacallous · 1 year ago

Text

[Breaking news update, published at 1:19 p.m. ET]

In a historic decision Tuesday, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled the state must adhere to a 123-year-old penal code barring all abortions except in cases when “it is necessary to save” a pregnant person’s life.

The law, which can be traced to as early as 1864, also carried a prison sentence of two to five years for abortion providers.

[Original story, published at 1:11 p.m. ET] CNN —

The Arizona Supreme Court has ruled on whether the state’s current ban on nearly all abortions after 15 weeks will stay in place, or if it will revert to a far narrower 123-year-old law with roots in the Civil War era. CNN is currently reviewing the decision.

The older law barred the procedure in all cases regardless of gestation, except when “it is necessary to save” a pregnant person’s life. It carried a prison sentence of two to five years for abortion providers.

The case is the latest high-profile example of the battle over abortion access that has played out across several states since Roe v. Wade was overturned by the US Supreme Court in 2022. Since that decision, nearly two dozen states have banned or limited access to the procedure. Providers have warned that restrictive policies on abortion access place patients at risk of poor health outcomes and doctors at risk of legal liability.

In a notice Monday, the Arizona court indicated it will file an opinion in Planned Parenthood of Arizona vs. Mayes/Hazelrigg at approximately 10 a.m. PT Tuesday.

Justices heard opening arguments in the case last December, when abortion rights opponents claimed the state should revert to the 1901 ban, and advocates asked the court to affirm the 2022 law allowing abortions up to 15 weeks, CNN previously reported.

When he signed the law in March 2022, then-Gov. Doug Ducey stated the 2022 law would not override the older law.

In late 2022, the Arizona Court of Appeals ruled both abortion laws in the state must be reconciled, or “harmonized,” and that abortion is legal through 15 weeks when provided by licensed physicians in compliance with the state’s other laws and regulations, CNN previously reported.

The state Supreme Court was asked for clarity following months of uncertainty and legal wrangling over which law should apply in the state.

Last week, Arizona for Abortion Access, a group of abortion rights organizations, announced it had gathered enough signatures for a November 2024 ballot measure that would ask voters to enshrine abortion rights in the state’s constitution.

The push is part of a massive effort to get abortion on the 2024 ballot in several states, a move abortion rights advocates are hopeful will restore some power to voters rather than state courts.

46 notes · View notes

ay0nha · 8 months ago

Note

PLEASE do a gojo x old flame reader

maye she's on the run and gojo finds her and charms her, I don't know if this makes sense but basically she is onpar with gojo but doesn't like jujutsu and gojo and her don't get along because of that

Word Count: 700

A/N: I hope I did you justice! just a little blurb about how I think this would go down...willing to do a part two if anyone is interested! Comments always welcomed and encouraged.

“You’re hard to find, you know…” Gojo hummed with interest. He hid his surprise well; he hadn’t expected you to be here, in the flesh tangibly. “Had to go off a rumor… ” He paused. “I have to say, though, I wasn’t expecting this…”

Your hand was steady, pistol pointed at the back of your intruder’s head. Anyone should know better than to listen to the rumors that floated within the Gachinko Fight Club. It was a mistake that you created ones that swarmed your image.

But your wrists itched.

It was as if phantom threads tethered you down. When the knots tightened due to resistance, you became a marionette for those who put you in your place. You’d move with talent as a puppet controlled by those ranked above you.

Your exhaustion had created a silly—delusional— image in your head. Your cheeks were rosy with red paint, and your eyes brightened with Pierrot-styled tears. You performed on a stage silently, an alienated observer of the mysteries and shadows of sorcery.

You took on a second life, reciting an alert, troubled, swaying, and deliberately uncertain verse. It didn’t matter if the audience understood; they considered what you said genuine art. Then, when it all ended, the standing ovation wouldn’t bring you the joy you thought.

In other words, you grew bored of the act. You were tired of the shadows consuming your days. You itched to stretch your power. And now you were here, leaving residuals behind like a novice for others to track.

“Hakari never mentioned you were here.” Gojo turned to face the barrel, a soft smile present. His hands were clasped behind his back, chest forward with enthusiasm.

“I’ve had a really long day—” You cocked the gun. It was a superficial barrier, you knew it would have no effect and primitive in its purpose. “—get to the point, Gojo.”

“You’re distracted.” All six eyes focused as Gojo spoke honestly. He cocked his head immaturely, inspecting you closer. “You fight with feeling, I’ll give you that, but you lack…assurance. You’re holding back.”

“I don’t have time for fan service.” You frowned. The more you pushed forward, the more resistance you were met with. “Why are you here?”

Your lip throbbed, newly bruised and busted from the spat you were just in. It had been a rigged match. If you went down, more money went into your pocket. It wasn’t long until another fight called your name. This time, though, your built-up frustration would find catharsis. The spectacle would draw in the cash. You’d put on a show for non-sorcerers, and you knew you’d receive that standing ovation. Again, it didn’t matter. You didn’t fight for your audience; you didn’t even fight for yourself. You weren’t sure what you were doing, but it alleviated you.

You paused in thought. Your eyes scanned the man before you. Satoru Gojo. He was here for something. For you. There was always a catch, never straightforward truth.

“Can’t I visit an old friend?” His shrug carried simplicity.

“No.” Your finger twitched on the trigger. “If you’re here to kill me, get it over with.”

This made Gojo’s humor stutter. It was in your nature to think the worst of him, but it was never easy to swallow. There was a simpler time when you would have blindly followed him, not needing an excuse for his presence. But your skin crawled with something unspoken.

So, he turned serious. “I need your help.”

“You, of all people, can’t be desperate enough to need something.” You pushed. You were growing agitated, buried feelings resurfacing. “What is it you want?”

It was obvious. He needed, no—wanted—your technique. All you could think was how hypocritical. People aren't tools. We aren't born with any set role. Gojo had consoled you once. And yet, here he stood, asking the impossible of you.

So, you pulled the trigger and ran.

#q #gojo satoru #satoru gojo #satoru gojo angst #satoru gojo x reader #jjk #jjk satoru #jjk gojo #gojo satoru x reader #jujutsu satoru #gojo x reader #gojo saturo x reader #satoru x reader #gojo satoru x f!reader

49 notes · View notes

crmsnmth · 1 month ago

Text

From a Different Perspective

take that big breath inhale for five hold for five exhale for five Just get this over with and you can go about your day

The truck door opens with a scream Make a mental note to oil the door hinge there's no one coming jaywalk across the street

Las chance to go home open the gate he's waiting for you he knows what your about to do maye he even knew before you did

Heart's racing Keep calm, we don't need a panic attack here this is hard enough to do but you have to do it You've played behind his back for too long so you might has while add a knife

Knock on the door three times knock, knock knock And he answers the door as if he was by it waiting to feel you take his haeart he beats you in speaking and just asks you why

Because your immature because there's something wrong with you because I've been fucking him you want to shout, but nothing comes out

Your almost in tears of relief when he shuts the door and you turn and had back to the truck You've got a few errands before you go meet the one you've been fucking

Just continue your day business as usual Breaking hearts and shopping smart

7 notes · View notes

not-handsome-enough · 1 year ago

Text

DICK KNUBBLER MAYE STILL BE ALIVE

Kinda

Alright before I do anything take this with a grain of salt, cause it’s probably a continuity error / can be easily explained away BUT if you all would like to hold onto some hope please just hear me out. And also it offers a question for yall.

Alright! So!

On twitter someone had asked Brendon and Gene about Murmaider III and its placement on Dethalbum IV ( which btw shoutout to Gene’s wife that was brilliant ) and Brendon had mentioned that what sets 3 apart from the other two was that it was more dreamlike, and that it was made AFTER Army of the Doomstar. Now since Brendon and Gene weren’t the ones to make the order on the Album we can’t set a timeline for the songs ( though they are set in Brutal to Dreamlike order once again shoutout to Genes wife you goddess ) we can at least say that some songs were made post Army. In fact we could also make some assumptions about what songs were made DURING army. So I’ll separate that list here.

NOTE : YALL DONT NEED TO READ THIS PART THIS IS JUST ME RUNNING WITH “ some songs were made post AOTD which ones could they be teehee “ JUST KNOW MURMAIDER AND SOS WERE AFTER KUBBLER DIED OK SORRy I’m not deleting that whole thing I like it

Songs with “ * “ are canon, the rest are personal interpretation.

DURING ARMY OF THE DOOMSTAR:

* Aortic Desecration ( the first song of salvation but obviously not )

* SOS ( song of salvation )

Gardener of Vengeance ( Nathan directly references this during the scene where he confides in the band and Knubbler that he doesn’t write songs about hope and he’s just doing what he knows. I believe he wrote and recorded this but felt it wasn’t good enough to be the song of salvation and moved on. HOWEVER the language he used could place this as post AOTD because it sounds more like a thrown out there example kinda like how he figured out SOS in the cave )

Poisoned By Food ( Again I think this is a scrapped song of salvation since besides the actual poisoning of food a lot of the imagery feels like the what the metalocalypse was described like )

BLOODBATH ( guess what another scrapped song of salvation. This one feels like a ‘you don’t scare me I’m going to confidently stop you because if I go down you go down with me’ song. Also it could be Nathan trying to reach out to Magnus since he was one of the people on his list. Also quick note I’m going song by song so I don’t know if I’ll notice if any other songs would reflect the list I just got out of work so I’m not gonna catch it all rn )

Horse of Fire ( this is tricky because lyrics like star still blazing allude to this being written before aortic desecration but also Nathan didn’t have the talk with the whale until the deadline came up in which he had to go with aortic desecration <he wouldn’t have had time to write about the fist or the hand.> But the lyrics don’t have the <we should reach out to the fans> revelation that SOS has. Maybe this was a draft for SOS but I think once Nathan figured out what SOS was meant to be it just came to him naturally. I’m not sure. HOWEVER since the doomstar is referred to as a star that is still blazing and not a portal that’s been destroyed it’s safe to say this is not post AOTD. Either way this is an important song to keep in mind if you look at this speculating )

POST ARMY OF THE DOOMSTAR:

* Murmaider III ( stated by Brendon Small in the interview. He said he feels that the boys would have written this after AOTD and based off of interviews he’s had in the past about his songwriting process it’s hard to not take this as canon so. )

DEADFACE ( I think this is post because while the song plays during the movie only Skwisgaar knew about the possession so the lyrics wouldn’t quite make sense yet. It’s a tricky placement but I can see Skwisgaar playing around with it since he does play the notes during the movie )

Mutilation on a Saturday Night ( this feels so much like a we survived so now we’re gonna party song I can’t see Nathan Skwisgaar or Pickles make an argument for this being a Song of Salvation. Also all the fucked up shit they talk about references what happened during the metalocalypse but it’s spoken in past tense like a ‘hey we fucked shit up but we fixed it so now we’re just gonna keep fucking around haha’)

I am The Beast ( simply cause I don’t see this as something Nathan would write during AOTD but the ‘ I am a beast this is my domain and when I speak you scream my name ‘ could work as a salvation line but it feels too much like a Mutilation Saturday Night ‘I can write whatever I want cause I lived and I’m not gonna hold back’ vibe )

Satellite Bleeding ( this feels like the first song they would have written and recorded after the doomstar died. Kinda like watching the sky clear up after a storm. )

Now despite me rambling on about this I would like to draw attention to what’s canon. Specifically SOS and Murmaider III. These songs came out after Knubbler died. Yet Dethalbum IV credits Knubbler for production.

Drawing your attention to how crediting in the Dethalbum works, each album has a little section for Dethklok to get musical credits and thank whoever and whatever. There’s also production credit and location credit. On ALL of the Dethalbums Knubbler is credited as producer. Cause he’s the producer makes sense yeayeyaeyah. But whenever there’s a change in location or production, there’s additional credits.

ANOTHER NOTE: I DONT HAVE THE KLOK OPERA CD I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE CREDITING SYSTEM LOOKS LIKE ON THERE but if someone happens to be selling that cd outside of eBay please let me know

Let’s look at them.

Dethalbum I ^

Shit ton of credits right, and on the other page which I didn’t take a picture of and can’t because I’m not home at the moment there’s credit to Snakes N Barrels for “Kill You” with each member listed. Take note that songs that are considered exceptions are credited differently and locations not at Mordhaus are credited.

I lied I have the other page. For those without the dethalbum cds the actual credits are usually on another page and “Kill You” got mixed in with it

Anyways

Dethalbum II

Hey Knubbies gets to thank someone this time! Anyways once again Knubbler is credited for production, but also Dethklok. Keep this in mind. Also the fact that different location credited for Murmaider II but it’s recorded at Mordhaus

Dethalbum III

Knubbler credit AND Abigail credit along with Dethklok AND once again location credit is Mordhaus and another fuckass place. Only thing that’s not really credited is Magnus with The Hammer but idk if he was like Toki and William where they play the songs but don’t really write or if he actually wrote The Hammer. I’m not a HammerHead, I’ve seen people interpret him as both, but at the end of the day idrk.

So what about Dethalbum IV

Knubbler is credited. At Deus Keep. Only Knubbler. Only at Deus Keep. “But he’s not credited as a Producer” True! If the album was released in universe it would probably be a producer credit. Especially since Brendon and Ulrich have Producer credit on the page prior. Maybe it’s because Knubbler didn’t make it to the final production stage. Or maybe he’s staying hidden undercover..

Remember earlier. He canonically was not around for two of these songs on this album. He could not have recorded OR mixed SOS or Murmaider III. Even if you don’t fully think that Murmaider III was made Post AOTD, SOS was done post Knubbler death. Hell, the song was dedicated to him by William! But there’s no separate credit for SOS.

If we went on the same basis as previous albums SOS would have been credited to that part of Norway where they traveled to that I forgot the name of and I’m not gonna look up but you get the point. Or even Dethklok would have been credited as production. I could also say something about how Murmaider III wasn’t recorded in the Mariana Trench and how the whale isn’t calling to Nathan anymore but that’s for another day. Right now though, it’s just Knubbler. Just Knubbler and Deus Keep.

Which leads to 3 possibilities.

Knubbler Lives: Knubbler survived ( the flashing things on the ground were teleporters ) and Deus Keep is rebuilt. To celebrate their survival they make Dethalbum IV but don’t release it

Knubbler Died: The band recorded the last few songs on the album at the remains of Deus Keep. Knubblers presets aren’t changed so credit remains to him. Once again not releasing it.

It’s not an album: Dethalbum IV doesn’t exist in universe. That’s why there’s no producer credit. That’s why Nathan doesn’t thank the klokateers ( he thanks the army of the doomstar which is just him thanking fans ). Dethklok recording it post AOTD is more to do with how Brendon records dethalbums than in universe writing.

I like to think that this is just an unreleased album in universe since the record label is more than likely destroyed, but it has the possibility of releasing one day if society is rebuilt to what it once was. But it really depends on if you think the album is canon to the universe. Cause there’s no Mordhaus credit on Dethalbum IV and there’s no way for SOS to have been recorded at Deus Keep and blablabla

something fun to think about tho yk?

TLDR: two songs on dethalbum IV were made after Knubbler death yet the credit doesn’t change for him in the dethalbum so there’s a chance that he recorded and mixed those songs cause he is alive and well horray

#metalocalypse #take this with a massive grain of salt #take it with a rock of salt tbh #dick knubbler #I’m rambling like crazy but :(#also I just noticed on dethalbum IV it’s the first time Murderface isn’t placed last in credits #I’ll be honest if Knubbler wasn’t credited at all on dethalbum IV I would have cried very much #I FORGOT TO SPOILER THIS I AM SO SORRY #ARMY OF THE DOOMSTAR SPOILER #SORRY #ARMY OF THE DOOMSTAR

38 notes · View notes