#have just had the bad luck of having multiple awful experiences hit me in one week

[glorious-blackout]

I really do love my job and can't imagine doing anything else, but having said that, I desperately need this week to stop being so unfathomably shit

[secretswiftymarvelfan]

The Demigod From Asgard - Steve Rogers x Reader (Part 84)

Summary: Bruce gives making a time machine a go with surprising results, luckily Tony had a change of heart

Word Count: 4.5k

Warnings: Language! Angst! Alcoholism! Grief! Thor’s POV?

Dividers by @firefly-graphics​

Series Masterlist / Masterlist

Chapter 84: The EPR Paradox

It was only a few days later when Bruce said he had worked this whole time travel thing out, or at least he said he did. So they decided to test it, Scott volunteering to be the test dummy since he had quantum realm experience.

Steve had already dropped JJ off at school and was in the hanger of the Avenger’s compound making sure that if it went wrong the entire state of New York wouldn’t loose power.

“Okay, here we go, time travel test number one!” Bruce announces “Scott fire up the uh, van thing”

“breakers are set,” Steve says as he walks back over to the group “emergency generators are on standby”

“good because if we blow the grid, I don’t wanna lose uh Tiny here in the 1950s,” Bruce says gesturing over to Scott with his thumb.

“Excuse me?” Scott says looking up from his helmet that he was fiddling with.

“he’s kidding” Nat chuckles reassuring Scott “you can’t say things like that,” she tells Bruce.

“it-it was a- a bad joke” Bruce stammers, Steve and Nat exchanging a glance when they heard the hesitancy in his voice.

“you were kidding right?” Nat asks quietly once Scott had walked away.

“I have no idea! We’re talking about time travel here, either it's all a joke or not of it is” Bruce points out “we’re good” he says loudly to Scott giving him a thumbs up “get you’re helmet on”

“Scott I’m gonna send you back a week, let you walk around for an hour the bring you back in 10 seconds, make sense?” Bruce asks turning to Scott.

Scott waves his hand dismissively “perfectly not confusing” he states.

“good luck Scott, you got this” Steve says giving him a nod of reassurance.

Scott gives him a proud smile back “you’re right, I do Captain America” he says before disappearing into the van.

Steve waits with bated breath as Bruce counts down ready to pull Scott back. The machine whirs and someone appears out of it, but it wasn’t Scott, it was a ten-year-old boy.

“uh guys?” the boy says looking down at his arms “this doesn’t feel right”

“what is this?” Steve mutters in shock.

“what is going on?” Bruce says at the same time, worry in his voice.

“who is that!” Nat exclaims in confusion “is that Scott?”

“yes its Scott!” Boy Scott exclaims before being sucked back into the machine.

“what’s going on Bruce?” Steve asks moving to get a better look just as an old man appears out of the van.

“oh, my back!” old man Scott complains.

“hold on a second,” Bruce says getting more worried by the second “can I get a little space here?” he asks looking at Steve.

“yeah, yeah, yeah, can you bring him back?” Steve asks moving away from the controls to stand by Nat, this really wasn’t going to plan.

“I’m working on it” Bruce promises, pressing multiple buttons and hitting the controls, sending the old man back into the machine.

The next version to appear was a baby, both Steve and Nat looking at it in shock, this was going very wrong fast.

“it’s a baby” Steve states in disbelief.

“its Scott” Bruce points out.

“As a baby!” Steve argues getting agitated now.

“he’ll grow!” Bruce reasons.

“Bring Scott back!” Steve states leaving no room for arguments.

“when I say kill the power, kill the power,” Bruce tells Nat.

“oh my god” Nat mutters running off to the power breaker.

“and… Kill it!” Bruce shouts.

Nat shuts off the power and the van spits out the grown version of Scott they all recognised. One that looked very shellshocked and disorientated.

“Somebody peed my pants” he muttered still frozen in shock “but I don’t know if it was baby me or old me… or just me me”

Steve blinks a couple of times before looking over at Bruce who throws his arms out “Time Travel!” he exclaims almost too proudly.

Steve rolls his eyes, shaking his head as he turns away “what? I see this as an absolute win” Bruce continues.

Steve didn’t though, he saw it as a complete failure. One that made him angry and upset all at the same time. Of course, this wasn’t going to work, why did he ever think it would?

“Nat, help Lang out” Steve orders as he walks past her.

“wait Steve where are you going?” Nat asks her brows furrowed in concern.

“to get some air,” he says his voice a little snappier than he meant it to be.

As Steve walked through the compound corridors he was hoping his anger would dissipate but it only got worse. He wasn’t angry at Bruce though, Bruce had tried his best and Steve knew that. He was just angry at himself for getting his hopes up. He should have just listened to Tony when he said it wasn’t going to work and it was too dangerous. They could have just lost Scott and were extremely lucky that they didn’t.

Once he got outside he looked out at the lawn his eyes immediately falling on the memorial to the fallen. In an instant, all of his anger was gone and he just felt complete despair. He was this close to getting you back and he failed. The only saving grace was that he hadn’t told JJ about the plan, he’d hate to get his hopes up and then have to tell him his mom wasn’t coming home.

Putting his hands on his hips Steve dropped his head taking a deep breath trying to get his emotions under control. He counted to 10, reminding himself of all the good things in his life right now before taking another breath and looking back up. As he did so he heard the sound of an engine roaring, looking over to where the sound was coming from he spotted one of Tony’s Audi’s driving into the compound.

Steve frowned as he watched the car approach, unsure why Tony would need to visit. Steve stepped forward as the car rounded the corner, stopping just past Steve, before slowly reversing. Tony’s face remains neutral as he rolls down the window.

“why the long face?” Tony asks “let me guess he turned into a baby”

Steve lets out a small huff, nodding his head “amongst over things yeah, what are you doing here?” Steve asks.

“It's the EPR paradox,” Tony says as he climbs out of his car “instead of pushing Lang through time, you might’ve wound up pushing time through Lang, it’s tricky, dangerous, somebody could have cautioned you against it”

“you did” Steve sighs not missing the irony.

“oh did I?” Tony says acting innocent “well thank god I’m here, regardless I fixed it,” he says holding up his hand to show off a bracelet-like device.

Steve frowns slightly trying to process what Tony had just said, it sounded like he was actually going to help. But after what just happened he didn’t want to get his hopes up.

“a fully functioning time-space GPS” Tony explains confirming what Steve believed.

Steve couldn’t stop the smile that broke out on his face, nor did he want to. He knew Stark would be able to do it, but he honestly didn’t think he’d change his mind and Steve was very happy to be wrong.

“I just want peace” Tony reasons holding up a peace sign “Turns out resentment is corrosive and I hate it”

“me too” Steve agrees with a small nod of his head.

“we got a shot at getting these stones, but I gotta tell you my priorities, bring back what we lost, I hope yes, keep what I found, I have to at all costs, and maybe not die trying, I’m sure you understand,” Tony says nodding his head.

“I do” Steve agrees before holding out his hand “sounds like a deal”

“let's get JJ his mom back” Tony sighs as he shakes steve’s hand.

“thank you Tony,” Steve says his voice barely above a whisper as he feels a wave of emotion crash over him.

Tony gives him a small smile before nodding his head towards the boot of the car, Steve follows Tony watching as he opens the boot. Tony lifts up something covered in a blanket, a stuffed toy dog on top before tilting it to reveal Steve’s shield, rebuffed and repainted.

Steve sighs as he looks down at the shield, the one he gave up over 7 years ago now. He never thought he’d see it again, he never thought he’d be Captain America again. A part of him didn’t want to be Captain America again, he’d stopped all that for JJ, even when people referred to him as Cap now it felt wrong. A part of him felt like he no longer deserved it.

“Tony I don’t know” Steve mutters.

“why?” Tony asks frowning slightly “he made it for you, plus honestly I have to get it out of the garage before Morgan takes it sledging,” Tony says flipping the shield so the straps were facing Steve “I’m surprised JJ didn’t find it when he last was over”

Steve sighs slipping his arm through the straps the familiar feeling of the shield on his arm washing over him. One that made him realise he never really got closure on that part of his life, and maybe it was why he felt like he still needed to fight when he was living in Wakanda with you. While he doesn’t regret his choices, and having to step down from active duty to look after JJ, he never got to make the active choice to retire. Maybe doing this last mission would give him that closure, so he could finally retire, this time with you.  

“thank you Tony” Steve says, knowing just how important it must be for him too.

“will you keep that a little quiet? Didn’t bring one for the whole team and I’ve learnt that mistake from Morgan’s kindergarten class” Tony says before turning back to his boot “we are getting the whole team yeah?” he questions.

“we’re working on that right now” Steve nods “we’ve already sent word to the guardians and Rhodey”

“what about Thor and Clint?” Tony asks as they head inside.

“that’s where it gets complicated” Steve admits with a sigh.

“I get Clint but why is getting Thor complicated, surely you guys being technically brothers helps?” Tony points out.

“I haven’t seen or spoken to him in 3 years, and we didn’t really end on good terms” Steve explains with a sigh.

“what happened?” Tony asks frowning.

“we got into an argument, he was drunk and lashed out at JJ and then me, I told him not to visit until he sorted himself out hoping it would snap him out of it but he said he never wanted to see me or JJ again, he blames me for what happened, that I broke my promise to protect her” Steve explains his voice catching.

“Shit” Tony muttered stopping to turn and face Steve “you know he probably doesn’t right? He probably blames himself and took his anger out on you, and unfortunately JJ”

“I know, but we’re gonna need him and I don’t think he’ll agree to it if I ask” Steve sighs.

“well, who can we send instead?” Tony asks.

“Bruce and Rocket, they’re the ones closest to him” Steve sighs.

“well let's hope the build-a-bear wins him over” Tony mutters

Thor woke with a large snort, scratching his belly as he let out a large yawn and stretched in his bed. He sat up rubbing his eyes when he spotted a half-finished bottle of ale on his bedside table. He quickly grabbed it taking a couple of swigs, not even cringing at the warmth and flatness of the drink, just grateful for the numbing sensation it gave.

He pushed himself from his bed, grabbed a pair of sweatpants that had Cheeto dust smeared on them and pulled them on. He then made his way out of his bedroom, kicking past the dirty laundry and discarded bottles as he went.

“Morning Thor!” Korg called out as Thor passed the living room.

“Mornin Korg” Thor mumbled as he drained the last of his beer, chuckling the bottle to the side.

Thor shuffled his way into the kitchen grabbing a box of pop tarts and ripping open a packet. He barely waited for them to warm up in the toaster before taking a large bite, crumbs falling into his beard and onto his bare belly.

“this thing working yet?” Thor grumbled as he walked back into the living room, hitting the top of the TV.

“nope, but the Xbox works still” Korg grinned holding up the remote.

“blasted cable guys” Thor huffs.

Later on in the day Thor was rifling through the cupboards trying to find a snack when he heard the front door open and someone call out a hello.

“are you here about the cable?” Thor says walking back into the living room “the cinemaz went out two weeks ago and the sports are all kinda fuzzy and whatnot” he mumbles grabbing another bottle of beer from a bowl of ice.

“Thor?” the guy says behind him.

Thor sighs turning to face the cable guy, blinking a couple of times when he realised it wasn’t a cable guy.

“boys! Oh my god!” Thor exclaimed loudly, rushing over to give the Hulk a hug “Oh my god its so good to see you!”

He then turns to spot Rocket standing behind him “hey come here you little rascal!” Thor chuckles grabbing Rocket and rubbing the top of his head as he hugged him.

“yeah no I’m good, I’m good!” Rocket shouts pushing Thor away.

“Hulk you know my friends, Miek and Korg right?” Thor says pointing over to the pair sitting on the couch.

“hey boys!” Korg greets, waving over to them.

“hey guys,” Bruce says “long time no see”

“beers in the bucket,” Korg says pointing to the ice bucket “feel free to log on to the wi-fi, no password obviously,” Korg says before frowning and pointing at the TV “Thor he’s back! that kid on the TV just called me a dickhead again”

Thor frowned knowing exactly who Korg meant “Noobmaster” he growls before storming over.

“yeah noobmaster69, called me a dickhead” Korg confirms passing Thor the headset.

“I am sick of this! Noobmaster hey it's Thor again, you know the god of thunder, listen bud if you don’t log off this game immediately I am going to fly over to your house come down to that basement you’re hiding in rip off your arms and shove them up your butt!” Thor growls “oh yes that’s right, go cry to your father you little weasel” Thor taunts before passing the headset back to Korg.

“thank you Thor,” Korg says gratefully.

“let me know if he bothers you again okay?” Thor tells him.

“thank you very much I will” Korg nods.

Thor turns back to the others who had a looked of shock on their faces “so you guys want a drink? What are we drinking?” he asks “I’ve got beer, tequila, all sorts of things” he says using Stormbreaker to pop the top off his beer.

“buddy,” Bruce says gently moving over to Thor “you all right?”

Thor scoffs “yes I’m fine why? Why? Don’t I look all right?”

“you look like melted ice cream,” Rocket says making Thor laugh.

“so what’s up? You just here for a hang or what?” Thor asks taking a sip of his beer.

“We need your help,” Bruce says “there might be a chance we could fix everything”

“what like the cable?” Thor asks before burping “cause that's been driving me bananas for weeks”

“like Thanos,” Bruce says, Thor's jovial mood disappearing in an instant as grief and regret rolled over him.

Thor’s hand shakes as he moves to grab Bruce’s jacket “Don’t say that name” Thor says his voice barely above a whisper, shaking with emotion.

“uh yeah we don’t actually say that name in here,” Korg says as he stands from the couch.

Bruce moves to rest his hand on Thor's arm “please take your hand off me” he asks gently.

“Now I know that guy might scare you” Bruce starts.

“Why would I be?” Thor scoffs shaking his head at the idea “why would I be scared of that guy? I’m the one who killed that guy remember? Anyone else here kill that guy? Nope” Thor says shaking his head, voice still trembling “didn’t think so”

“Korg why don’t you tell everybody who chopped Thanos’ big head off?” Thor states pushing past Bruce.

“um, Stormbreaker?” Korg says confused.

“who was swinging Stormbreaker?” Thor counters.

“I get it, you’re in a rough spot okay? I’ve been there myself, and you want to know who helped me out of it?” Bruce asks his voice gentle.

“uh oh uh was it Natasha?” Thor asks his words slurring together.

“it was you,” Bruce says putting his hand on Thor’s chest “you helped me”

Thor walks away from Bruce once more “so why don’t you ask the Asgardians down there how much my help is worth?” Thor says pointing out the window, slumping down into a nearby chair “the ones that are left anyway”

“I think we could bring them back,” Bruce says.

“stop” Thor mutters shaking his head “stop okay, I know you think I’m down here wallowing in my own self-pity waiting to be rescued and saved but I’m fine okay, we’re fine aren’t we?”

“oh we’re all good here mate” Korg confirms

“so whatever it is that you’re operating we’re not into it” Thor states “don’t care, couldn’t care less, goodbye”

“We need you pal” Bruce sighs.

Thor scoffs shaking his head “he sent you here didn’t he? Captain America” Thor spits “it's his fault we’re in this mess, his fault that-“ he says his voice catching at the end.

“look Thor I know you and Steve aren’t really on speaking terms right now” Bruce sighs.

“he banned me from seeing the only family I have left!” Thor growls, blinking back the tears “and he didn’t even come here to ask me himself”

“would you have said yes if he did?” Bruce asks.

Thor scoffs “of course not! I’d never help that liar”

“okay” Bruce sighs “but would you do it for Y/N?”

Thor blinks a couple of times trying to stop the tears from falling, glancing out of the window as he composed himself “of course I would, I’d lay down my life for her, she’s my baby sister” he says his voice weak.

“then do it for her, help us bring her and everyone else back,” Bruce says gently, thor looking back over at him.

“We have beers on the ship” Rocket offers after a moment of silence.

“let’s go,” Thor says pushing himself up and grabbing a hoodie from the floor.

It took a couple of weeks but between the three of them, Bruce, Tony and Rocket had built the time machine and suits for everyone to wear when they travelled through the quantum realm. Things had been a little tense between Steve and Thor but they had come to a mutual understanding that they shared a motive, to get you back and Steve hoped once you were back you’d help sort Thor out and all the bad blood would be gone.

Today was about to be the first official test run of the machine, due to the limited amount of Pym particles they only had one shot. It was supposed to be two test runs but Scott had an accident and now there was only one, it was also why Clint had now stepped up in his place.

Steve stood with Bruce, Nat, Tony, Thor and Scott as Clint walked up onto the machine. Steve had barely slept last night worrying about this mission, part of him wanted to be the one to go but he knew it was too risky. He just prayed to every god out there that it wouldn’t fail, he didn’t want to fall at this hurdle.

“ready Clint?” Bruce asks, earning a small nod of the head from Clint as the nanotech helmet forms.

Bruce begins the countdown and everyone watches as Clint disappears. The ten seconds he was gone felt like a lifetime, Steve’s heart racing when he reappeared with a shout on his hands and knees. Everyone instantly rushes over, Scott with a plate of orange slices on hand.

“Hey, hey look at me, you’re okay,” Nat says as she helps Clint stand.

“yeah, yeah… it worked” Clint mutters breathing heavily “it worked,” he says chucking a baseball glove to Tony.

“hell yes, it worked” Tony smirked holding the baseball glove up victoriously “now to Steve’s favourite part, mission planning” Tony smirks looking over his shoulder at Clint.

“let’s call it a day today and get some rest, especially you Clint” Steve says nodding over to Clint who still looked shaken up and emotional “we’ll start fresh in the morning, everyone get brainstorming in the meantime,” he says before glancing down at his watch “I’m gonna head off, pick JJ up from school, see you all in the morning”

“give JJ a big hug from me” Nat calls out as Steve turns to leave.

“uh yeah me too,” Thor says burping slightly.

Steve’s lips twitch upwards at Thor’s efforts, relieved at the thought that maybe the friendship they had was salvageable, and JJ would have his Uncle Thor around again.

Steve nods “I will, see you in the morning” he smiles.

Once he got to the school he stood in his usual spot, hands in his pockets as waited for JJ to come out. He glanced around at all the other parents that were here for pick up, Steve’s mind beginning to wonder how their lives would change if they succeeded in getting the stones. The family and friends they’d have back in their lives.

“Daddy!” JJ shouted grabbing Steve’s attention.

A wide smile appeared on Steve’s face when he saw JJ’s excited expression, the little boy running straight over to Steve. Steve let out a small oofh at the impact of his son hugging him tightly.

“I thought Roberta was picking me up today?” JJ asked looking up at Steve.

“Well I managed to finish work early today so I thought I’d pick you up instead unless you wanted Roberta instead” Steve playfully teased ruffling up JJ’s hair.

“Nooo!” JJ laughed pushing Steve’s hand away “I’m happy it’s you”

“I’m happy it's me too bean, now c’mon give me your backpack” Steve smiled holding out his hand.

JJ passed Steve his bag, before quickly grabbing Steve’s free hand “I like Roberta but I like it more when you pick me up” JJ says as they start walking back to the car.

“I like it too bean” Steve smiles down at his son.

“why has it been Roberta then?” JJ asks making Steve frown slightly.

“what do you mean?” Steve asks as he opens up the car door and helps JJ up into his seat.

“you used to pick me up loads, but now Roberta does” JJ explains as Steve does up his seatbelt.

“well I’ve just been very busy at work recently so I’ve had less time to come and get you, it doesn’t mean I don’t want to, trust me bean I’d rather spend the afternoon with you than working” Steve explains.

“Roberta says you’re doing something very important,” JJ says fiddling with his fingers “is it Avengers stuff?”

Steve purses his lips and lets out a long sigh trying to work out how to explain what he was doing, he didn’t want to tell JJ that they were working to get everyone back, just in case it didn’t work.

“kind of, we’re working on a project that will hopefully help a lot of people” Steve explains.

“Are you fighting baddies?” JJ asks frowning in concern.

“no, no fighting, just a lot of research and paperwork, super boring stuff,” Steve says quick to reassure him.

“oh okay,” JJ says nodding his head slightly as all the information sunk in.

“Everything is fine I promise but look it's been a while since we’ve had some fun together so why don’t we go out for ice cream” Steve offers, smiling when JJ’s face instantly lit up.

“yes please!” JJ beamed.

“Great, let's go then” Steve smiles closing the door before climbing in and starting the car.

A couple of hours later Steve and JJ arrived home, JJ ran inside as quickly as he could to go say hello and play with Scout. The two of them headed outside to the backyard for a game of fetch. Steve watched with a smile on his face from the kitchen window as he unpacked JJ’s bag.

“knock, knock” Roberta calls out as she opens the front door.

“in the kitchen” Steve calls back as he empties out the rubbish left in JJ’s lunchbox.

“you guys are home later than I expected” Roberta comments as she walks into the kitchen, giving a quick wave to JJ through the open back door.

“yeah well I’ve been so busy lately that I thought we should spend some time together, took him out for some ice cream,” Steve says shrugging his shoulders.

“well it’s a good thing that boy has the appetite of an army, otherwise his dinner would be ruined” Roberta chuckles before her face turns serious “speaking of busy how is everything going?”

Steve bit his lip to stop himself from smiling “it's actually going really well, the first test run was a success, we might actually pull this off” he says keeping his voice low.

“that’s wow, that’s amazing,” Roberta says shaking her head in disbelief.

“I know, and I know I shouldn’t get my hopes up because it still could go wrong but, by October JJ could have his mom back” Steve mutters smiling to himself.

“I believe in you Steve, if anyone could do it it’s you” Roberta smiles putting her hand on his shoulder “does JJ know?”

Steve shakes his head “no, I told him I was working on something that would help a lot of people out but that’s it, I just didn’t want to tell him and get his hopes up, especially if it goes wrong, he’s gone through so much already I couldn’t bare to break his heart” Steve sighs.

“of course, so what’s the plan now?” Roberta asks.

“We’re all meeting tomorrow to discuss when and where we're going to get the stones, we only have enough Pym particles for one trip each and none of the stones are going to be easy to get so we don’t want to spread ourselves too thin” Steve sighs shrugging his shoulders.

“you’ll work it out, now I have a pasta bake in the oven, do you two want to join me?” Roberta offers with a small wink.

Steve lets out a small sigh of relief because after everything today he really didn’t want to cook “that would be amazing thank you Roberta” he smiles.

“it's fine, from what I heard I’m gonna have competition when Y/N gets back” she winks before heading out the back door towards her house.

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Series Masterlist / Masterlist

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[no-stabbing-wednesdays]

The Conspiracy Job

I made a post about the “Eliot’s semi-famous identities” conspiracy here and @what---i-dated-a wanted a fic, which got my muse going. So, here it is, and also on AO3

An amazing version of the same concept by @copperbadge was linked in the notes and I recommend you all read that too! The Job Interview Job

The Conspiracy Job

“Oh, not again!”

The others, busy drawing up plans for their latest con, looked over at Hardison. 

“What is it?” Sophie asked.

He brought his display up on the large screen at the front of the room. 

“Someone’s just searched a bunch of Eliot’s old aliases, all at the same time.”

Parker frowned as she looked at the screen. “That doesn’t sound good.”

Eliot was on his feet immediately, concern clear on his face.

“Who is it? CIA? FBI? KGB? Mossad?”

“Give me a second,” Hardison said. “No, I don’t think so. They’re not being flagged on any databases. Someone’s just googling them.”

Eliot relaxed slightly and rolled his eyes. “It’s not those damn conspiracy forums, is it? I thought you got rid of those.”

“I did! They haven’t posted anything, they’re just looking. Oh, they’re here in Portland.”

Eliot tensed again at that, but Hardison shook his head.

“Relax, man. It’s a family house; a couple of dentists and a fifteen year old. If they post anything I’ll take it down, nothing to worry about.”

On the other side of Portland, Julia stepped into her friend Marcie’s bedroom and her eyes widened as she took in the scene before her. Marcie was connecting red threads between grainy, printed-out images on her corkboard and empty bottles of Gatorade littered the desk.

“You have to cool it with this, dude.”

Marcie turned to face her, her hair a mess and her eyes red from lack of sleep, and Julia sighed.

“You look like freaking Charlie Kelly!”

“There’s something here, Jules. I’m sure of it.”

“It’s a couple of athletes and a singer who happen to look similar. It’s hardly the scoop of the century.”

“Look similar? Look similar? Julia, they are completely identical! There are exactly three possibilities.” She held up three fingers in her friend’s face as she counted them off. “Triplets, clones or one ridiculously talented guy.”

“Okaaay, and which one do you think it is?”

“I don’t know,” Marcie answered, turning back to her board. “Triplets? Why would they have different names and hide it? One guy? He’d have to be able to sing and play guitar, baseball and hockey. Why wouldn’t you own up to having that kind of talent? Why go to different places with different names? Clones? I’m leaning clones.”

“Clones? Come on, Marcie.” 

“It’s the most logical explanation.”

“You think someone cloned a human being just to create a one-hit-wonder country singer and some short lived athletes?”

Marcie shrugged. “It could be a trial run or an experiment or something. And you remember that anything I ever said on the forums would mysteriously vanish? I went to look after Jacques Labert turned up and every single forum post was gone! Every one! Doesn’t that sound like a government conspiracy to you?”

“It’s weird,” Julia admitted. “But I think you might be taking this a little too far. If the government were making clones, why would they let them get famous so people could discover it?”

“But they weren’t that famous. Think about it, what were the chances that someone would connect them? There were only ever a couple of us posting on the forums. If I hadn’t happened to be visiting my uncle in Palmerston when Roy Chappell was playing and then gone to Saddle and Spurs for my birthday, I’d never have known.” 

Her eyes widened as a horrifying thought occurred to her . “Then Jacques Labert turned up in my city! What if I’m the connection?”

She swung back to the board and began to write her own name. Julia grabbed her hand.

“Marcie! You’re not the center of a government conspiracy! Besides, who’s this fourth guy again?” She asked, tapping one of the photos in the corner. “You didn’t have anything to do with him, did you?”

“No,” Marcie conceded. “And I told you about him, remember? He’s an animal rights activist who was on the news in San Lorenzo a couple of years ago, talking about dog fights in the Presidential Palace. And he’s Canadian. That’s why it’s so exciting that, after almost two years of nothing new, Jacques Labert, Canadian hockey player, suddenly appears. Was the guy on the news Jacques Labert? If there really is more than one of them in the first place!”

Julia grimaced, increasingly worried about Marcie’s obsession with this wild conspiracy. “He was on the news where?”

“San Lorenzo. It’s this tiny European country. Here look.” Marcie sat at her desk, tapped the name into Google and turned her laptop towards Julia. 

Julia scrolled through a few pictures of the idyllic Mediterranean island, then stopped suddenly and pointed at one of them. 

“Wait, who’s that?”

“Oh, that’s Rebecca Ibañez. It’s a tragic story,” Marcie explained, as she clicked on the link and showed her some clearer pictures. “A couple of years ago, the same time maybe-Jacques Labert was there, there was an election and her fiancé won. But, just as the results were announced, supporters of the former president tried to assassinate him and Rebecca stepped in front and took the bullet for him.”

“She was assassinated?”

“Yes, isn’t it awful?”

Julia shook her head. “She can’t have been.”

“What?”

“She’s my brother Zachary’s acting teacher.”

“What?”

“Yeah, I went to see his play last week and I met her. Her name’s Sophie Devereaux and she’s definitely not dead.”

Marcie looked at her in amazement, a grin breaking out across her face . “And she was in San Lorenzo at the same time as Jacques-Roy-Kenneth! There might be even more to this than I thought!”

Julia, almost as invested as Marcie now that her brother’s odd director was mixed up in this, pulled up a chair and looked on excitedly as her friend brought up another google search. 

Back at the Brewpub, the crew were working out the kinks in their plan while waiting for any sign of the internet sleuth trying to share their ideas about Eliot’s multiple identities.

When the computer pinged again, they all turned to see which of his aliases had been flagged this time, only for their eyes to widen in horror as the search term flashed on the screen.

“Rebecca Ibañez” “Sophie Devereaux”

Sophie gave a gasp that almost turned into a choke. “Wha- wha- what?”

Eliot turned to Hardison, furious. “Oh sure, just dentists and a teenager! Fix. This.”

“I’m trying!” Hardison said. “I can’t find any connections to anything. They look clean.”

“Then look harder!”

Wait, I have something. It’s the kid’s computer.”

“Who’s the kid?” Nate asked.

Hardison pulled up a Facebook page. “Marcie Taylor. She’s a sophomore. She used to post on those stupid Eliot forums that I had to take down every week after Memphis. It was pretty harmless, but I’ve no idea why she’s suddenly looking at Sophie’s aliases.”

He scrolled down the page looking for any kind of hint, when Sophie called out to him to stop.

“Who’s that with her? She looks familiar.”

A few more clicks and Hardison had a name.

“Julia Gutmann. She’s in the same class.”

Gutmann?” Sophie groaned. “I know why she’s familiar. That’s Zachary’s little sister.”

“Zachary? Your acting student Zachary?” Nate asked disbelievingly.

“Yes, she came to our play last week.”

Nate shook his head. “I told you to use an alias at that theater.”

“But I wanted to do this as me,” Sophie protested.

Eliot turned back to Hardison. “So, let me get this straight. The aliases and digital trail that you set up to be uncrackable by international governmental organizations are about to be blown apart by a couple of high schoolers?”

Hardison glowered at him. “They’re only looking at old aliases and they were all burnt when we had to leave Boston anyway. It’s not that bad.”

“Sophie’s still using Sophie,” Eliot argued, nearly yelling now. “And I was only just Jacques Labert and in this city. Now they’ve tied me and her together. How did they even do that? That’s way more than some fifteen year old girls should be able to accomplish on Google.”

“Okay, okay. Don’t panic. They were looking at photos of San Lorenzo. That’s how they found a picture of Sophie."

Sophie glared at him.

"Hey!" he protested. "You're the one who jumped in front of the cameras! I can't control the entire internet you know, and I think the people of San Lorenzo would have noticed if every image of their martyred heroine suddenly vanished.

“It’s just bad luck that Julia had met you. But why were they looking at…” Hardison groaned. “They found that video of Eliot and the puppy somehow.”

“Why didn’t you take that down?” Eliot snapped.

“It’s a thirty second feature on the news from two years ago in a country smaller than Iceland! It wasn’t my top priority!”

“Dammit, Hardison!”

“So, our cover’s going to get blown by kids?” Parker asked, incredulously. 

“No,” Nate insisted. “Well, maybe. But we can manage this. Hardison, don't let them post anything. Sophie, call Zachary. Let’s go steal ourselves some silence.”

[lovedinapastlife]

Rec List

Hey. It’s me. Sunlit Garden on AO3. If you would like to find a bughead fic, beta, be long-term groomed with positive feedback and helpfulness, then have your self-confidence chipped away, be isolated from other support systems, be negged, insulted, and emotionally harassed/toyed with to output to her idea of perfection -- or find someone who did this to others and will most likely weasel their way into doing it again -- I recommend none other than jandjsalmon, the gal who runs theblueandgoldoffice - a handy fic-finding website.

I made a prior post about my personal experience but apparently not everyone knew it was her because I didn’t name her specifically. Hopefully, this is the last post I’ll ever make about her. A lot of wonderful people reached out with similar experiences or sympathy but I’ve also seen some continue to interact with her or rec her as someone to follow. Now, I’m putting it in the tags. Her name is out there. If I see her on rec lists, at least I know the info is out there that she abused me and others and whoever posted didn’t want to deal with having to deal with her bullshit of her harassing them or they think I’m a liar. I have nothing to lose in this fandom or to gain by outing her. I’m doing it because I don’t want her to be introduced to new waves of authors/readers/people will trust her without protecting themselves or doing something to protect others. Unfortunately, me and the victims I talked to did not feel comfortable sharing how much she hurt us with each other until she’d done a fair amount of damage, and we were all trying to make it work with her until we hit a breaking point.

As a reminder... this is just a potential scenario based on past experience.

If you do become mutuals, and she thinks you have an ounce of fandom fame or MIGHT post things she likes if she bugs you enough, she might make you aesthetics, reblog, comment, buddy up to your friends to get closer to you, find out and exploit your insecurities or mental illness, notably withdraw support to prove a point if you like something she doesn’t or even show love for another person who doesn’t love her, keep records of your convos, show them to other people, vague post about you (sometimes even going so far as to message you without you even asking to make sure you know ‘oh it wasn’t about you’ to rub salt in that wound), let her husband talk shit about and to you even when on good terms with her, and try to get involved in your personal life to be your (only) best friend and support system... only to tell you you are nothing without her, people rely on her for recs and she can turn the tides on fandom favorites, you should not write original works because original romance is “disgusting” YA is “immature” and no one likes your work and your mind is too fucked up to be productive without her. No one will love you or have time for you like her.

She will insist you include scenes even if you don’t want them there, then try to claim she helped write your fic in the comments of it when all she did was tell you to add something you already wrote and deleted back in, though she did comment on the doc and talk through your million ideas and pick her favorite OF YOUR OWN IDEAS and help with grammar. She will also tell you at least one of your fics is disgusting and berate you to the point of not wanting to post it, especially if it shows Betty even slightly interested in someone besides Jughead at some point in her life, claiming “that’s not her!” but OOC or Jughead with past/current partners is no problem... and she will be very apologetic to have to tell you and make you feel bad, but brag in DMs of her friends that she “made you change your mind” and “taught you how to think” if you eventually cave and adjust something. Conversations become drags where you agree with what she says just to avoid confrontations and meltdowns sometimes.

If you talk to her and try to rebuild your friendship or set boundaries, she will either lash out or apologize and be good for a few days until she can find a reason to turn on you again. When you distance yourself for protection or make new friends, she will harass you in DMs asking why you unfollowed (even if it’s a tumblr glitch) or followed so and so, why you did or didn’t like something, tell you how awful everyone except her is, and try to get you to talk shit about your own friends when you know she’s talking shit about you, too.

Oh and if you compliment her on something you’re considered good at that she’s insecure about (prompted or unprompted), be prepared to be called a fake liar and a judgmental bitch in general for having an opinion -- yes, even if it’s positive, so imagine how fun it was to disagree on something neither of us even made.

She is not a neutral party when it comes to abuse and harassments either. Despite being very anti-cheating, she stoutly defends the Sprouse brothers despite multiple women and outlets coming forward claiming they cheated on or abused their partners, claiming the sources are “crazy” or “jealous” or “unprofessional.” I have some pretty ironic in retrospect screenshots someone sent me of some of her rants but I won’t post them publicly here. What Jandy told me of her former victims was that they blocked her for no reason. She was nothing but supportive of them and they got too big for their britches and had other friends and abandoned her. I’m sure she says similar if not worse things about me for calling her out and cutting her off.

So yeah, it will be uncomfortable to unfollow, ghost, and/or block her. It might even be inconvenient because of the service she provides to this fandom. But please keep in mind that even the slight fear/dread of her shadow-banning or harassing you is a sign that she’s affected you, too.

If you really miss that one extra comment per chapter, hit me up. I’ve got a lot going on but I’ll make an exception for people who need that extra support as long as I can. For additional support, please see local and online organizations to talk to a professional or volunteer trained to help with emotional abuse, toxicity, depressive, or anxious thoughts like therealdepressionproject. Good luck and have a wonderful day.

[maddogofshimano]

The Woman Who Dyed a Black Stain to White

Major Y0 Spoiler Warning

Lee got a sugoroku event! Look at his chibi sprite!!! 

There’s several foreign names and groups mentioned in here that I don’t know the ideal romanization for, but I will try to at least be consistent on them.

This one is seriously heavy. I’m actually going to put a trigger warning on this: it’s about sex trafficked women, and Makoto’s backstory. There’s the start of an attempted sexual assault and a lot of dehumanizing language about the women who are being trafficked. Nothing is shown explicitly, but it’s rough. Additionally multiple people in the mafia commit suicide.

Summary: Lee is ordered to assassinate the boss of the Songyoung, a mysterious crime syndicate behind the disappearances of multiple women in Sotenbori. They operate in complete secrecy, and Lee finds himself facing a terrible choice between his orders and his morals.

<1986--two years before a man's corpse would be found in Kamurocho's empty lot--Iwao Bridge, Sotenbori>  Makoto: Excuse me, I'm looking for my brother. Have you seen the man in this picture?

Man: No, don't know him at all. Sorry... Makoto: Excuse me, have you seen the person in this picture?

Woman: I don't know him, sorry... Oda: That woman... she's not bad... I think I'll have a little talk with her...

Oda: Pardon me miss. You're looking for your brother? I've got an idea of where he might be...

Makoto: Really!? Please, take me there right away! Oda: Of course. If you wouldn't mind coming with me then...

<One Year Later--Sotenbori Hogushi Kaikan>

Voice on the TV: The case of the repeated disappearances of women in Sotenbori clearly seems to be--

Lee: Young women bein' targeted for abduction... Must be the Omi Alliance, or maybe some foreign group... Lee: The police are stayin' awful quiet on it though. Hard to feel good about all the movement that's happenin' around it... <phone rings> Lee: Ah, the phone... Lee: Hogushi Kaikan speaking. What treatment may I help you with? Voice on the phone: I have a job for you, Lee Wen Hai Lee: Well, sounds like ya aren't after a massage, are ya... Wong, who'd'ya need taken care of this time? Wong: That's cruel, Lee. Do you know the Korean mafia faction, the Songyoung? Lee: Aah, I've been hearin' some things about them. I was gettin' a real bad vibe off of that group... Wong: We haven't been able to pin them down effectively because they don't do anything themselves, they use hired thugs for all the dirty work... Wong: It sounds like they outsource their income streams. That's how they keep everything a secret. Lee: So you're tellin' me this for a reason... right? The Songyoung are my next target? Wong: Mhm, that's right. Wong: These days their thugs are rampaging all over our organization's territory... Wong: If they keep making waves like this, they're bound to bring the Omi down on our heads. Wong: The current pressure the Omi is putting on us is more than enough, and they'll only use this as an excuse to squeeze harder. Lee: Is the big bad mainland mafia's Kotou and the Omi that scared? (Tl note: this gets clarified way later, but Kotou (虎頭) is the Chinese mafia group Lee works for) Wong: Don't tease... Sotenbori is the Omi Alliance's most treasured territory... Wong: There's no advantage to putting the Omi in a bad mood or inflicting damage. But, how much do you even understand that? Wong: Anyways, the more the Songyoung keep rampaging, the more foreign organizations like our Kotou will suffer. Wong: Your assignment is to assassinate the boss of the Songyoung. I'm sure you know the usual payment from Kotou... Wong: For this one, it'll be double. Lee: Well ain't that generous... So what's the catch? Wong: Like I said, the Songyoung is a thoroughly secretive organization. Wong: Naturally, their bosses current whereabouts are unknown, as are the group's hideouts... Lee: So I gotta figure out where the guy even is... Wong: So? Will you take on the assignment? Lee: Well of course. I'll take it. You can transfer the payment to the usual account. Wong: Understood. When I get it, I'll fax you a picture of the boss of the Songyoung. Use it for verification. Wong: Well then, I'll leave you to it. Don't forget to keep in contact, okay? Lee: I'll remember... See ya later then? <Hangs up the phone> Lee: Well then, first things first is collectin' information on the Songyoung... <Prologue End> <A few days later--Shofuku Street, Sotenbori> Lee: After all this time pokin' around I still haven't gotten any info on the Songwong...

Lee: I thought Wong was just cuttin' corners, but even that pro I listened to didn't know shit... Lee: Information fees have gotten jacked up with the current economic boom, and it's hard to rely on anything they say... Lee: This place then. Today I'll pay it a visit... <Lee enters the mahjong parlor> Lee: Let's see, where is that guy... Oh, there he is....

Lee: Hey, been a while... how's things treatin' ya?

Information Broker: Well, if it isn't God Hand-sama himself... Broker: It'd been so long since I heard from ya that lately I'd been thinkin' about closin' up shop and pickin' up massage instead. Lee: Shut it, smartass! All you've been doin' lately is sittin' on your ass playin' mahjong... Lee: ...But, I'll let it slide. I'm here to get some info from ya. Lee: Tell me everythin' ya know about the Songyoung... Broker: ....And if that information isn't cheap? Lee: How much? Broker: Give me... 100k upfront, and we'll see how much it'll cost. Lee: Tch... Ya better watch yourself after this... Here, take your cash! <a wad of bills thumps onto the table> Broker: Of course. So, what do you want to know about the Songyoung? Lee: Their main hideout, and where their boss is at right now. For that information I'll pay as much as ya need. Broker: That's some real problematic info, ya know. These guys are hardcore on their secrecy... Lee: Seriously, I paid out the ass upfront already... So what, ya don't have that info? Broker: I do have a list of their lower rungs... Broker: If ya wanna find the main group, you'll have to squeeze it out of the branches... Lee: Sure, hand over that info then. Broker: You sure? It's gonna be another 100k. Lee: Jeez... Here. We good now? <another wad of bills hits the table> Broker: Thank you for your patronage... Alright, here's the list. Lee: ....This, you're sure there's not some sort of mistake? Broker: I absolutely guarantee it. Welllllll some of them might have cut ties with the main group already I suppose... Broker: The lower rungs are nothin' but nasty, muscle-headed imbeciles, though with your strength it won't be a problem... Lee: Heh.... I can't understand why this information is goin' for only 100k.

Broker: Ha... Findin’ a buyer for that kind of thing ain't easy. Broker: If you're makin' a move on these guys... Well, there's not gonna be a point to holdin' on to that information afterwards, right? Lee: ...That's pretty smart of ya. I'm off then, I'll be back later. Lee: Well, time to get goin' through this list with a fine toothed comb. <Lee goes to the park> Lee: Every one of these organizations is tied to the Songyoung somehow, but I just don't know what's connectin' them...

Lee: Do I really gotta go trompin' through this whole list and hope I stumble onto where the boss is at? Goon A: Hehe... Hey, let's go do some damage today!!

Goon B: It's great havin' the backin' of a big, influential group like that... Looks like our luck is finally turnin' around!! Lee: Well there's some assholes... I wonder what kinda info they might have... <Lee kicks the shit out of them. Like I don't even do the fight it just fades to black and Lee takes care of it himself> Goon A: Hhhh... Please forgive us.... The Songyoung already cut us off! So please don't kill us!!

Lee: Ya better not tell me you've cut ties again, okay? Just tell me all the info ya got on the Songyoung. Goon A: I-I really don't know anythin'! The contact we had, we never even saw their face. Lee: Seriously you guys... This is the tenth time. These Songyoung are damn serious about this secrecy crap, huh... Lee: These bastards don't have any information neither... Goon B: Th-That's true, but it is possible... Lee: What? Ya got an idea or somethin'? Goon B: There’s some guys that have turf near Iwao Bridge, they do way worse dealings than we do, I think... Lee: Worse dealings? Goon B: Yeah, they abduct young women that've just come to Sotenbori, and the Songyoung takes em for a shit ton of cash. Lee: Wait, wait, you mean... That's what's causin' the "vanishing women case" right now!?

Goon B: Yeah... That's right... It's all just rumors, but they go after runaway girls to kidnap... Lee: Then that means, this "disappearance case", it's all the Songyoung's doing... Lee: Now that's the kind of details I want to hear!! Goon B: Y-Yes sir!! Though, there is one other thing you should know... Goon B: In the past there was a real famous gang that was doin' this kind of job, but that gang left Sotenbori just when they were about to take over... Goon B: The organization that's currently makin' bank off of abducting women is called... Well, it's gotta be "Ganryujima". (Tl note: Ganryujima is the island famous for the duel between Miyamoto Musashi and Sasaki Kojiro. Also of note the first kanji in ganryujima is the same as the first kanji in Iwao Bridge) Goon B: That's the full extent of what I know... Lee: So near Iwao Bridge there's turf belonging to "Ganryujima"? That group's also on the list.... Seems like I got plenty to go on. Lee: In light of this info ya gave me, I'll let ya go. Hopefully this'll've been a learnin' experience for ya, and ya won't got gettin' involved with any more groups like that. Goons: Y-Yes sir!! Thank you very much!! Lee: Iwao Bridge is right up there.... I was gonna ask the Garyujima about the Songwong but... this feelin'...

Lee: This ain't just another punk, is it... someone else in the same profession? Lee: Hey, I know you're there. Come on out. If you're gonna tail someone, put a lil more effort in on stayin' hidden... Menacing Man: Are you the one who's been crushing all of our lower rungs? No hard feelings, but I'm going to kill you here...

Lee: As if I'd fall so far as to get killed by some third rate hitman who can't even hide himself properly... Lee: Though, ya did save me the trouble by showin' up. It was gonna be a pain in the ass to get the info I was after on your kinda organization. Lee: I'm just gonna beat every last drop of info about your group out of ya!! Menacing Man: Heh.... Come at me then!! You're going to regret messing with the Songyoung!! <the fight happens for real this time, fittingly Misery Comes On Beat plays and Lee clobbers them> Menacing Man: G-Guh........ Lee: Alright, you know what I want, ready to spill it on the Songyoung? Menacing Man: Heh.... You think I'm going to talk? Lee: Oh, so you've decided I gotta make you talk then... Menacing Man: The organization's secrets are absolute... Letting that kind of things slip, it's just not something I can do... <stabbing sounds> Lee: You! What the hell did you do!! Menacing Man: Guhh..... fool!? Lee: What idiots... All of them went and slit their own throats... Lee: All that to protect their organization's secrets... Finding their boss's location is gonna be a real pain in the ass.

<end part 1> Lee: You bastards are Ganryujima boys, ain't ya?

Goon: Who the hell are you? You got a problem if we're Ganryujima? Lee: Nope, my problem is with all the women you've been ordered to kidnap for the Songyoung. Goon: You... where the hell did ya hear that? Lee: Ya think I'm gonna say? Goon: Heh..... 's all good. If ya knew any better, ya would have gone home to keep on livin'... Goon: Oi, everyone!! Let's end this geezer!! Lee: Sure are a lotta hotblooded assholes... Ah well. I'll just have to convince ya to talk. <once again, Lee crushes them without me even doing the fight> Goon: Haa... Haa... Wh-What the hell's with this old man...

Lee: From now on, be selective when you pick fights. If you pick the wrong opponent on this street, are you ready to lose your life? <metallic noise of something being drawn, presumably a knife or the acupuncture needle, it's unclear> Goon: A-Aahh!? P-Please don't kill me!! Lee: Are ya ready to tell me about the Songyoung then? What's the guy look like that you're handin' these girls over to? Goon: Sorry... we just leave the women we kidnapped in a pre-designated abandoned house on a regular basis, I never seen anyone... Goon: The money just gets wired into our account... I really don't know the guy's face at all... Lee: ....Tch, you fuckers are another dead end. Goon: I-I'm sorry I'm so worthless!! But please, my life... Lee: Fine, whatever.... Actually, one thing! Goon: Wh-What!? Lee: In exchange for me lookin' the other way on this, I'm givin' ya a job to do. Goon: A-A job... What'd'ya want us to do? Lee: It's easy. I'm gonna bring ya a girl, and you're gonna sell her to those guys... can ya do that? (Tl note: misread this at first as "I'm gonna be the next girl ya sell to those guys" and was pogging) Goon: Y-Yeah. I think we should be able to do that... Lee: Good, then I'll be back when I've finished some preparations. <Lee goes to a bar to speak with an anime girl because there is exactly one base sprite for all women> Lee: Yo, it's been a while. You haven't changed a day...

Lee: Makes sense, given nobody knows the number of guys you've swindled out of their cash then bumped off... Woman: .....You know, Lee. Isn't it a bit cruel to call someone out to meet you and then speak about them like that? Lee: Sorry, sorry, I thought I was payin' a compliment to your heinous modus operandi, it's very skillful.

Woman: Sigh~... so what is it? Why'd you call me over so suddenly? I came because I owe you one, but I'm not here on a leisure trip. Lee: I was hopin' to get us squared away. Think ya can handle one bothersome task for me? Woman: Bothersome? Lee: Yeah, I'm trying to get a hold of information on this organization... Stuff like where there hideout is, but since no one's talkin' I'd like to borrow your power. Woman: ....And what do you want me to do? Lee: I want ya to pose as a runaway and sneak into this place as one of the girls gettin' traffic'd. Lee: I've gotten a hold of the sales route they're usin'... Lee: You'll get bought wearin' a tracking device and a hidden mic, and that'll let us infiltrate the hideout. Woman: This is going to be dangerous, isn't it? I know I owe you, but is that enough to risk my life over? Lee: When you're a professional killer, isn't there always a risk of death, that someone will turn the tables on ya? Well, as soon as I know where the place is I'll go and help ya. I'll protect this body you've altered... What d'ya think, will ya help? Woman: ....Ha, I guess so. After this, we're even, right? Lee: Yeah, of course. Honestly I'll feel indebted to ya! <Lee goes back outside> Lee: Right now, you're in the abandoned building in West Shokufukucho. Great, the transmitter just moved into the kitchen...

<radio static> Lee: I can hear her voice through the bug. Sensitivity is good... Lee: Now then... After that woman gets taken to the main hideout, everything will go flawlessly. <footsteps> Voice over the mic: "This is the collection team. The cargo of women has been confirmed. We'll be returning to HQ shortly, via our transport." Lee: They're speakin' korean... "Recover the woman and take her to headquarters".... huh.... Lee: Seems like it's going well. I hope it keeps up.... Voice: "Be careful not to be seen on the way back! Hurry up and return to HQ!!" Lee: They're not aware of the bug or the tracking device... <Lee gets into a car> Lee: And now I just follow em right to their hideout. <He gets out after a drive> Lee: Looks like the transmitter stopped in this building...

<radio static> Voice: "The shipment of women has arrived. Where's the boss at?" Voice: "Right now the boss is inspecting the warehouse..." Voice: "Aah, that place is crammed full of women isn't it... So, will you deliver this woman there too?" Voice: "Nah, no need to do extra work. We'll just put her in the usual room until the boss gets back..." Voice: "Roger on that!" <radio static> Lee: So this is the main hideout then. However, the boss ain't here... Lee: Ah well, I'm bound to hear where he is sooner or later. ...Ah, afterwards though, I did promise to help that woman out. <Lee kicks in the door> Songyoung goon: "Wh-What are you doing!?"

Lee: "My bad, but I was hoping to retrieve a woman I left here?"

Goon: "W-Woman!? Who do you think you are!? Do you have a death wish!?" Lee: "How about you tell me the location of the warehouse you've got the other women in?" Goon: "Wh-What!? Did you plant a bug on that woman!? Shit!! Everyone! Don't let this man leave here alive!!" Goon: "For the sake of protecting our organization, this man must die!! Kill him and sink his body in the harbor!! Let's go!!" <Lee crushes them and two of the three hit the floor> Goon: "That man... so strong..." Lee: "Well, the place where you've got all those women locked up, ya better tell me where it is.." Goon: "Heh... you really think it's going to be that simple?" <gunshots> Lee: Shit... Shot himself right in the head... Lee: The other two drank poison to kill themselves too. What a commitment to secrecy... It's sickening.... Lee: And even still, I just gotta investigate this place and I'll figure out where that warehouse is. Whoops, gotta help that woman first... <back outside> Woman: Seriously... I'm sorry for this again, alright? (Tl note: extremely in the weeds here, I don't really know what she's talking about)

Lee: Heh.... Searching the house would have been rotten without your help. Woman: I'll send a bill for that information later! Lee: And I'll send ya a whole mountain of gold as payment! Woman: Haa~... That's what I like to hear.... Well then, don't you go and die until you pay me, okay? <She leaves> Lee: Hmm, I need to keep in contact with Wong.... Was there a payphone around here? <He goes to a payphone and dials Wong>

Wong: ...Lee? Lee: Yep, just keepin' in touch. I found the group's hideout. Wong: Oh, good work... Several of their members are dead there. They won't be able to use it. Wong: So? Have you brought down their boss? Lee: No. He wasn't at the hideout... Lee: But, I do know where he is. The warehouse with all the imprisoned women. Wong: Heh... Going to sample the wares? Always was a nympho... Wong: Regardless you've done well. You should head over to the warehouse right away.... Lee: ....? Got it. Once I deal with the boss, is it okay if I release the women? Wong: No, all the captive women should be erased. It would be problematic if this income stream got leaked to the police. Lee: What....!? <end of part 2>

Lee: I'm not gonna kill kidnapped women who have done nothin' wrong! Don't be ridiculous!! Lee: Is that the kind of orders the top mafia Kotou is handin' out!? Wong: Calm down, Lee. This was a decision by the organization. Lee: These women were kidnapped by punks with more lust for gold than humanity and are getting preyed upon by the main branch with their wicked intentions. Lee: And after all that shit, I ain't gonna just go in and kill them!! Wong: If the police find out about this source of income from the Songyoung, the crackdown in Sotenbori is going to be very strict... Wong: If that happens, it will be harder for us to operate in a lot of ways... So these women continuing to exist is problematic. Wong: You do understand what will happen if you go against direct orders from the group, don't you? Lee: (Have they really made up their mind on killing these women? Even though these women, they haven't done anything wrong, they're the victims?) Lee: (But if I go against orders, I'll be the one killed... Either the lives of those women, or my own, I have to choose.) Wong: There's high expectations on you for completing this job. Are you going to betray everyone? Lee: (If I try to run, I won't be able to catch the boss. If I want to bring him down... There's no time to hesitate...) Lee: (That's how I have to think. I'm a pro. An assassin. And... up till now, I've devoted myself fully to this path, just as expected.) Lee: ...I understand. I'll take the lives of those women. That is part of my job... Wong: Is that so... Well then, I'll be waiting to hear good news. <hangs up phone and goes back to the Songyoung hideout> Lee: Shit.... That asshole, handin' out such a sickening order. Lee: Fine!! I'll sink the corpse of that boss, all those women, and anyone else into the damn harbor!! Lee: I'm already black hearted, and this time I'll be stained as black as can be... Lee: With this blood on my hands, I'll just get em even dirtier with more and more. <Lee goes to the warehouse> Lee: This is where the main branch's hideout said the warehouse should be, so the boss and the kidnapped women should be inside...

Lee: (Looks like they got two guys keepin' watch... The entrance to this place is well defended... It's gonna be tough takin' out the boss and those women by myself...)

<stabbing noises>

Goon A: Gah!? Goon B: Guhh!? <they hit the floor> Lee: ...There's probably more guys keepin' watch. I'll have to be careful killin' the boss and women... <Lee moves into the warehouse> Lee: Since there's a guard over there, there's no mistake that this is the main group's warehouse...

Lee: The real question is, where is the boss... Hm? That's... <A man walks by with a woman> Lee: Just now, that guy that brought a woman into that room... There's no doubt about it, that's the guy from the photo Wong sent... Lee: When I go into that room... Lee: I'll lose my chance to run. I'll commit myself to seein' this job through and stainin' myself pitch black. <Lee heads in> Young Woman: Stop it... d-don't come any closer... someone!!

Songyoung Boss: Heh, no matter how much you scream, no one is coming to help you... Lee: Mind if I step in and have some fun?

Boss: Who the fuck are you!? ...Are you an assassin sent by Wong?

Boss: He never gets his own hands dirty with jobs like this... Lee: You figured it out quick. No hard feelings, but I'm going to kill you now. (Tl note: same line that the Songyoung assassin used against Lee) Boss: You're a moron. I'm not going to be killed by some wannabe assassin. I'll kill you first!! Boss: Let's go, assassin!! I'm going to send your stinking corpse to Wong!! <fight, Lee wrecks shop> Lee: Say your prayers... <Stabbing noise> Boss: Guah!? <he hits the floor> Lee: That handles my primary goal... Now I have to... Lee: (Now I have to deal with the women... First I should have her guide me to where they're all being imprisoned...) Lee: Were you bein’ held captive in here?

Woman: Yes!! Please, please help!! There's a lot of others that are being held captive here besides me!! Lee: ...Got it. Could ya bring me to the room they're all in? Woman: Yes! This way!! <they go> Woman: Just ahead is the room we were all held in! We had given up all hope on being rescued, everyone will be so happy!!

Lee: Sorry for the trouble, Miss Guide... Lee: (She looks delighted... Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd be killin' someone lookin' like that...) Lee: (... If my daughter were still alive, she'd be just about the same age as this woman.....) Lee: (This blameless woman that I'm going to sink into the sea... This really is the most depraved job...) Lee: (It would be troublesome if she started screamin' here... Guess I'll take care of her after I handle all the other women...) Lee: ...Ah, that's right! I got a request for ya, miss... Woman: Yes! What do you need? Lee: There's still a lot of thugs around outside... Could ya make sure no one leaves till I confirm it's safe? Lee: Would ya go and close off the entrance and the exit to the warehouse? Woman: Y-Yeah! On it!! <she leaves> Lee: Miss, forgive me... I ain't really here to save ya... <Lee goes into the inner room> Woman A: A-Again... Who's coming in here now?

Woman B: That's not it! The door is still open!! Woman B: R-Run for it! We're finally free from this nightmare!! <the women flee> Lee: (With the door open like that... It's natural that they'd all run off in a panic...) Lee: (All these run away girls, now about to get killed, they really are the unluckiest women in the world.......) Lee: (But if I don't kill them, the organization's gonna kill me... This really is the most abysmal job...) Lee: (I can't save even a single one of them... It's a weight I'll have to bear for the rest of my life, no matter what excuses I try to make.) <knife drawing sound> Lee: Hm? That woman, what is she... Lee: ...Why didn't she run? That's weird... Is she hurt?

Lee: Hey, are you alright....?

Lee: (She's feelin' her way around... This girl, is she blind?) Makoto: A-Are you the one who's helping everyone? Lee: N-No... I'm... <music cuts out> Makoto: Thank you so much... Thank you..... Thank you so very much... thank you....

Lee's daughter: "Hey, dad... are you there...?"

Lee: "Yes, I'm right here!! I'm here!! You're gonna be okay, the doctor's on his way!! Just stay with me!!" Lee's daughter: "....Dad, even with this frail life of mine... thank you so much for raising me..." Lee: "Nonsense! Sayin' stuff like that, raisin' you was only natural!!" Lee's daughter: "Thank you for everything, dad... I love you..." Lee: (Ah... She also, said the same thing......)

Lee: (......) Lee: (No way.... There's no way... I could kill her......)

<end of part 3>

Lee: (For the time bein' that girl's gone to sleep in that room. Everythin' is still chaotic though...) (Tl note: the word Lee is using for girl here is 娘 which is the same one used for daughter) Lee: (Helpin' that girl means disobeyin' Wong's--no, Kotou's orders...) Lee: (If I'm already goin' against my orders... I might as well save every woman in this damn place!!) Lee: (But what am I gonna do? If I don't kill the women, then Wong's just gonna send another hitman after 'em.) Lee: (If I want these women to live, my only options are gettin' Wong to let them go, or if Kotou was totally annihilated.) Lee: Damn it... There's no way Wong would look the other way on this, so my only option is to wipe out Kotou myself... Lee: Of course, I gotta figure out how to even do that... Lee: I'm gamblin' on a long shot. At least I'm gonna save as many women as I possibly can!! Lee: Alright, then I need to get the women out of here before Wong catches onto what I'm up to... Woman: Kyaaaaaa!! Lee: What!? That voice, did someone get into the warehouse!? <two women are facing a menacing man> Man: ...So you women didn't get killed? I see, I see...

Woman: W-Who are you!? Oh no, are you one of the people that locked us all up in here!? Man: No, I'm not a part of the group that did that. (Tl note: He's speaking very politely, it's kind of unsettling) Man: That being said, I do have a job to do here, so... No hard feelings, but I'm going to kill you now. (Tl note: the third instance of this line, I guess hitmen are very fond of it) Woman 2: You're going to... Why would you kill us!! Man: It's nothing you've done personally... however there are people who would be very inconvenienced if your confinement was ever known about... Man: Well then, let's start off with you... If you're going to hold a grudge, please hold it against your own bad luck... Woman 2: W-Wait... don't kill me.... Lee: Hold it, jack ass!! Lee: Ladies... stay back...

Women: S-Sure... Man: Hmmm... you're the one Wong sent to kill the Songwong boss, aren't you? Lee: What about it? I already took care of that boss a while ago now... Man: Is that so... Thank you for a job well done. ....Though, I have to ask, why are these women still alive? Man: Surely you were ordered to eliminate the women as well? Woman 2: Eh!? Lee: All these women did nothin' wrong... killin' them is completely unnecessary. Man: So you intend to turn against Wong? Lee: .....Yeah, I do. Man: Ah ha ha! I see, I see... You know, Wong-san seemed worried this was the path you'd take. Lee: ...Who are you? Man: I'm the contingency plan Wong-san prepared to handle this if you couldn't bring yourself to kill these women. Man: My orders from Wong-san were to come here and kill any woman left alive. Lee: Hah... Awful conniving of Wong to pull somethin' like this... Too bad that I decided that all these women are gonna live!!

Man: So that's how it is... what a shame. Well, you've made your decision to die here with these women. Man: But that's good! A killer like you will die alongside all these young ladies!! <they fight, Lee tears him up> Man: I'm finished... You're a skilled hitman... Lee: Your arm can probably be saved... Man: But... Wong-san will never forgive you for going against the organization like this... You'll be killed, won't you? Lee: Seems that way... But I'm gonna fight it all the way to the end... Man: I see... In that case, I wish you good luck... <man collapses to the floor> Lee: Hoooo~.... I need to make sure all the ladies are still alright... Lee: I'm gonna wipe all traces of you being enslaved from the records here and in the Songwong hideout... Lee: That should throw em off all your trails... Woman 2: Eh? D-Does that mean... you're helping all of us? Lee: Yeah, that's right... Lee: It'll be best if all of you forget about everythin' that happened here and go back to your old lives... Lee: After that leave everythin' else to this geezer!! Woman 2: Th-Thank you so much!! Woman 1: But, are you going to be alright? That person said that you would be killed too... Lee: The fate of a killer who goes against his organization is set in stone. But, I don't intend to be easy to kill... Lee: If it means savin' all of you, payin' with the life of a killer like me is a hell of a bargain, right?  Woman 1: But that's... isn't there something you can do? You could run away with us... Lee: I've got to go smash up my employer... I got a lotta obligations in front of me... Lee: If I run away, other people are gonna end up payin' for it. Woman 1: But... Lee: It's fine... Don't you go worryin' about me none. Lee: Though, sorry to keep askin' things of ya miss, but could I ask one more favor of ya? Woman 1: What is it? I'll do whatever I can!! Lee: In the room ya were locked up in, there's a lady that can't see waitin' there... Lee: As much as ya can, could ya take care of that kid and keep her out of trouble? Woman 1: I-I should be okay... I'll do as much as I'm able-- Lee: Yeah!! Seriously, I'm grateful! Lee: I know it's a lot to ask of ya miss, sorry. Woman 1: No, this doesn't even begin to pay back how much you've helped us... Lee: Alright, you stay healthy miss... <Lee leaves> Woman 1: Ah!? That's right, there's a mafia called "Kotou", please stay safe from them!! Lee: W-Wait a minute!! Miss, what did you say just now!? Woman 1: Umm... To please watch out for a mafia called "Kotou"... Lee: You said "Kotou"... miss, where did you hear that name!? (Tl note: I had been reading it wildly wrong as “Toragashira” until now and had to go back and correct every instance of it. When she says it it’s in katakana, but Lee had been saying it in kanji, so I was just guessing on pronunciation) Woman 1: Earlier, while we were still imprisoned, I heard it from one of the people here... Woman 1: "My group "Kotou" is a Chinese mafia. You can rely on us for backup if you encounter any trouble" is what they said... Lee: H-Hold on... But wouldn't that mean... Kotou and the Songyoung are workin' together...!? Lee: What the hell, what the hell is goin' on....!?

<end part 4>

Lee: You're sure they said "Kotou"?

Woman 1: Y-Yeah... That's definitely what they said. Lee: Seriously.... hm? Wait... Thinkin' back on it... Wong did say somethin' strange... Lee: (Back when I first found out the boss was in the warehouse....) Lee: ("Heh... Planning on sampling the wares? ...Always was a nympo...") (Tl note: I had to go back and edit the earlier instance of this to be more vague like this, I confused on who it was directed at but I was looking at it as between Lee or Wong and couldn't see how it would make sense to be self directed since Wong wasn't going to the warehouse. Lee seemed confused by it too, so the vagueness seems intentional, but I’m very glad it wasn’t actually directed at Lee like I initially thought) Lee: (It's like he knew the Songyoung Boss before this...) Lee: If that's true, then that means the same goes for the Songyoung boss! Lee: (In that room where I took him out, he said to me "He never gets his own hands dirty with jobs like this")  Lee: (So that means he also knew Wong before all of this...) Lee: It's possible... but what does it all mean? Woman 1: ...Um, is there something I can help with? Lee: Aah! Thank to you miss, I might have figured out a way to avoid dyin'. Woman 1: Really!? Lee: I do have one job to take care of first though. Lee: When ya get out of here and forget all this to get back to your life... I want ya to forget me too... okay? Lee: Oh, and avoid dealin with strange men, okay? Woman 1: Yes sir! Thank you again!! <she leaves> Lee: If I believe her story, then the Songyoung and Wong are connected... Lee: If that's the case, there might be evidence of that here and in the Songyoung hideout... Lee: If I can find it, I might be able to use that to keep Wong silent on this whole thing. Lee: First things first, better start searchin' the warehouse... Lee: Haa~...... I can't find anythin'.... Well, findin' somethin' like that was never going to be easy. Lee: Next is the room where all the women were confined...

<rustling noise> Lee: Hm? Hold on... this is it!! <screen fades to black> Wong: Lee... You just keep betraying my faith in you...

Lee: Ha, you're soundin' awful full of yourself... Wong. Lee: You'd probably tell me I was wipin' my own ass wrong... Lee: Aren't you betrayin' our organization too? I don't think you're in any position to talk about my betrayal. Wong: Lee, you piece of shit...... Lee: Heh... Of course, since you and the Songyoung are in bed together... Lee: Didn’t you let them make money trafficking these women so you could have a little slush fund? Lee: It's all written in this set of orders ya fax'd em anyways... Wong: Are you an idiot!? Get rid of that like you were ordered to!!

Lee: You stopped trustin' the Songyoung boss, right? Lee: Nothin' will poison a relationship faster than cash, it's a common story in this line of work. Lee: Seems like for the most part the Songyoung hated the tight leash you had them on and decided to betray you and be more bold about things, yeah? Lee: Then, when the disappearance of women started to become public knowledge, it lit a fire under your ass to hurry up and stamp out this whole operation... Wong: ........... Lee: That's why ya sent me to find the Songyoung hideout that had moved and you had lost contact with... Lee: With myself on the job, it'd be easy for ya to nonchalantly show up and snag the evidence of your betrayal... Lee: And if I failed you had prepared a contingency to get the job done... then ya'd be able to muzzle the aforementioned organization. Have I got that right? Wong: ........... Lee: Hah... Seems like that's a bulls-eye... Lee: If ya don't want this fax bein' sent off to Kotou, I got a condition for ya to accept... Well, Wong? Wong: ....Heh, pffhahaha... you really are a dumb fuck... Lee: What!? The hell's so funny!! Wong: If you had turned over that evidence right away, you might have been fine... Wong: But you're hopelessly stupid if you think you can negotiate with me face to face and I won't just kill you here and now. Wong: If I erase you and the evidence right here, I won't get caught for my betrayal!! Lee: Hmm... So you... are turnin' down my condition? Wong: Of course I am!! I'm going to kill you!! That's why I brought my best men with me!! Wong: Lee, my blood ran cold when you told me you had found evidence of my betrayal... Wong: So I must thank you for being such a dumbass!! Wong: Rest assured, Lee! After I'm done killing you, all those women you saved will be killed too!! Wong: Go to hell alongside the women you risked your life to protect!! Let's do it!! Your certain death!! <they fight, Lee crushes them> Wong: Stupid... even my best men...?

Lee: Heh, bad luck for you Wong. I've been survived more lethal battles than you can count... Lee: Well, that's all been with your help...

Lee: So, are ya ready? This is the endin' you asked for..... Lee: .........You know, it didn't have to end like this if you had just put up with my one demand. Wong: W-Wait!! I'll do it!! Your life, those women's lives, I'll look past it all!! So please... Lee: ....What you're sayin', you really mean it? Wong: Yes! Of course!! I'll talk to the organization myself about the women...

Lee: ......I've owed ya a lot. So if ya say that--

Wong: You truly are the stupidest mother fucker on earth!! <gun cocks>

Lee: Guh! Wong, you bastard!? <Stabbing sound> Wong: Guah--... Leeee.... you.... fucker!!

Lee: Idiot... Why'd ya make me do that, Wong.... <Some days later, Kotou confirmed that Wong has gone rogue.> <Lee's killing of Wong was considered a "purge" and his actions were left unquestioned.>

<end of part 5>

<A few weeks later> <Sotenbori's Hogushi Kaikan> Customer: Ah, just what I'd expect from the chief! Everything feels great!!

Lee: Hey, Makoto! Could ya grab my needles for me? Makoto: Eh? N-Needles...? Those are, ummm.... S-Sorry, I don't know... Lee: Ah, that's my bad, don't worry. Here, I'll show ya... Makoto: S-Sorry, chief.....

Lee: ....Wanna grab my hand? Makoto: Y-Yeah.... Lee: The needles we use for acupuncture are... right here. For you that'll be about 5 steps past the entrance to the treatment room. Makoto: Got it... S-Sorry... Lee: Hey, I already said it was my bad, don't worry... Lee: Some day you're gonna be able to see again. Until then, it's perfectly fine to get used to things slowly. Lee: We'll start at a slow pace for you... Then when you can do that, we can step it up. Makoto: Yes sir. Customer: The chief sure has changed since Makoto-chan showed up, huh? It seems like he's really happy now... Lee: Sh-Shut it, smart ass!! You say more dumb shit like that and I'll run your tongue through with my needle!! Customer: A-Ahhh!? Please forgive me!!

Customer: Nonetheless... Makoto-chan's been here for a few weeks now. Customer: I was really surprised at first! How'd a cute girl like Makoto end up as your apprentice... Customer: I thought the chief had gone and kidnapped you. Lee: Hey! Don't go startin' nasty rumors like that!! Lee: Geez... You know, I think I won't do the acupuncture! You're not stiff enough to need any hot oil neither... Lee: But it's fiiine, you can scram!! Ain't like you'd appreciate the pain of this needle anyhow... Customer: Ahaha... well then, I better get out of here before the chief starts stabbing. Customer: See ya, Makoto-chan. Be safe... and I hope your vision comes back quickly. Makoto: ...Y-Yeah....... Customer: See ya chief, till next time! <he leaves> Makoto: Lee-san, I'm sorry.... I don't know how to do anything... even though you've allowed me to be your live-in apprentice...... Lee: It's all good, Makoto. Don't fret. As long as ya don't panic and take things slowly you'll have no trouble doin' all sorts of stuff... Makoto: .........Yeah. Lee: Makoto, I'm gonna smoke for a minute out back..... Makoto: Ah, sure... Have a good day, Lee-san. <he leaves> Lee: "Have a good day" huh.... 

Lee: That look she gave me... I'm going to protect that to the bitter end.... Lee: To protect that girl... I'd do anything... Anything at all....

<epilogue end> Bonus time: first of all OOFA DOOFA this was huge! and intense! and very difficult to translate god damn all this politicking and kansai-ben. In good(?) news, I learned a bunch of fun new vocab like abduction, kidnapping, human trafficking, betrayal, etc. You know, the essential stuff. Also it’s extremely unclear if the femme fatale that Lee leveraged here is the same one he plans to kill to fake Makoto’s death in Y0, or if he just knows multiple women that swindle money out of men and kill them. Here’s an actual bonus: Lee’s thoughts on things from the board game! Let’s see if tumblr explodes from all these images or not.

Sotenbori Our city. It's got good and bad and everythin' else all mixed together. Of course, that's why they call it the city that can't be satisfied.

Acupuncture Needle The acupuncture needle I use. Custom made, but ordinary needles. By using this, it'll start feeling good instantly.

Smokes  An item vital to any acupuncturist. If you gently take a drag, the customer's meridians will appear on their back. Don't believe me?

Iwao Bridge A lot of young guys here trying to be pick up artists. A little while ago, one of my customers was an idiot who had jumped into the river after the local baseball team won the championship

Cabaret Grand This place has become the topic of conversation lately. I don't really go to those kinds of places, but, well, I kind of want to head over and take a peek

The Man with the Bat Tattoo I don't have any connection to him, I don't even know his face or his name, but if I ever meet him... I'm really going to enjoy it

Hogushi Kaikan My massage shop in Sotenbori. All ages of men and women, mafia and civilians, come here to get their muscles relaxed. (Tl note: Hogushi means to relax/loosen)

Rumor of Shakedown A shakedown? That ain't gonna happen. Still, some idiot wanting to try to shake me down is just the kind of thing that happens in Sotenbori

Mahjong Parlor I go to the mahjong parlor often. There's a lot of chinese people there. Though, japanese people go there too sometimes. Either way, by the time I go home I'm flat broke.

One Eyed Fella I've started seein' this guy around Sotenbori recently. I got no clue as to why he's here, but he's got the eye of a beaten stray dog.

I didn’t intentionally leave the Majima one for last, his was just the last one I found! I didn’t think there’d even be one, since this takes place a year before they even met, but I’m really glad there is. Now he’s just a fun bonus for anyone who made it all the way to the end. I kind of hoped the assassin that Lee sensed right in front of the Grand was just going to be Majima walking by or something.

Lee’s also got a character story that I’ll translate once I get his bond up, so look forward to even more Lee content!

[fantasticstoryteller]

New Dynasty Chapter 55

Peter watched as Wade paced the room. The older man was nervous and slightly twitchy as he moved. Slowly, Peter was coming to realize that the twitches were the man reacting to the voices in his head, the “boxes” as he called them.

“Please calm down,” Peter urged as Wade paced.

“I can’t—I mean, I shouldn't—shut up! I’m getting there!”

Peter felt a little hurt that the boxes got a full, complete sentence to themselves while all he got was broken grammar. He strode over and quickly grabbed Wade’s shoulders. “It’s okay!” he assured the man—still clearly not all there.

Wade gasped for a moment and then pressed his hands to his face. “I got a job.”

Peter waited. Clearly there was more coming.

Wade began to shift, like he wanted to pace—but he didn’t break away from Peter, who kept his grip light enough that Wade could break away. “It’s in New York.” He rushed on, quickly. “But it’s not a killing job and I know I said I wouldn’t kill in the city but it’s a good job for a friend and there’s no killing involved.” He paused. “I asked.”

Peter nodded. Sure, he knew Wade said he wouldn't kill in the city—and that was good. He also knew that Wade was a mercenary which meant he had to take jobs. He felt certain Deadpool was trying to funnel that money into Peter’s house without the boy knowing. He didn’t see why Wade was so worried about it.

“Do you need help?” he asked as he released Wade’s shoulders.

Wade stared at him for a full minute before suddenly dropping into a crouch with both hands on the back of his head. “Fuuuck,” he breathed. “You don’t—you just don’t know, Baby Boy.” Suddenly, in a lightning change of mood, he jumped back up and grinned. “It’ll be fun!”

Peter grinned back. “Of course,” he said. “You’re always coming along with me, so I’ll come along with you.”

“Woohoo!” Wade danced around Peter towards the door, and then shuffled back to avoid hitting Aunt May as she came in with groceries. “Oh, let me help you with that!” he said.

“You are a dear,” the old woman replied as she handed the bags she was carrying to him. “I have more in the car.”

Peter grinned. “Let me help too,” he said as he went out to the car.

After all the groceries were in and put up Aunt May invited Wade for dinner, and—for the first time since he’d woken up recovering in the house—he declined. “Sorry Aunt May,” he said cheerfully. “Spidey’s going on a job with me and I have to make sure it’s safe.” He twitched slightly. “Of course I know what recon is!” he said suddenly. “I just don’t normally bother!” He bowed, saluted, and then pulled his hood up before dancing out the door.

“Well, you certainly made him happy,” Aunt May commented. She looked at Peter and raised an eyebrow. “A job?” she asked.

He shrugged. “Wade said there’s no killing,” he said, “and I believe him.”

“Hmm.”

^^^

{Smooth, idiot. That was real smooth.}

[‘Make it safe?’ Just how are we supposed to do that? Just last week the Lizard knocked him off a building!]

“We do the best we can,” Wade said soothingly. It was something Peter had told him on one of their lunch dates.

{Date!}

[Dude, he’s way, way too young.]

“Not like that,” muttered Wade as he walked down the street.

[And why are we working for that bitch, anyway? She tried to kill us!]

“Everyone tries to kill us,” Wade argued.

[She THREW us into a VOLCANO!]

Wade winced as the words echoed against the inside of his skull. “But it wasn’t personal,” he protested.

[The hell it wasn’t!]

{Anyone else curious as to why she came to us? Considering she told us to go to Hell last time we met?}

“We have more skills than she does!”

[The only skill we have that she doesn’t is the skill not to die. Are you sure this is going to be safe for Peter?]

{Aw, relax. She’s also lazy.}

Wade reached his apartment and hauled out his maps of the city. Now, from what she’d said the object he was supposed to be collecting was in this high-security facility. All he had to do was—

There was a rap on the door. Then it turned into a vicious pounding. “Dammit Deadpool!” snarled his roommate. “Open the damn door!”

Curious as to why she needed him to open the door, he did so. His roommate, a pale young woman with hair in multiple colors, was holding one of her shoulders as blood seeped between her fingers. “You look bad,” he commented as she limped into the apartment.

“Don’t start,” she growled as she limped towards the medicine cabinet in the kitchen.

Wade saw odd purple and blue lights dancing in the spilled blood.

[That’s new.]

{Never seen that before. We sure she’s human?}

“Pretty sure she’s not,” murmured Wade as he closed the door.

“What was that?” demanded the angry voice.

“Your blood’s all sparkly!” Wade said cheerfully.

“Yeah? It’ll wear off.” Her voice lowered and she muttered to herself. “Fucking unicorns.”

{Hey look! The room’s brighter!}

Wade nodded as he looked at the literally glowing golden strands of hair next to the young woman’s head. They were the only parts not dyed. “Your hair’s glowing again,” he pointed.

“Fan-fucking-tastic,” muttered the woman as she grabbed a beer with one hand, smashed the neck of the bottle against the counter, and chugged it. She pressed the cool glass to her head. “I miss home.”

“Because of your hair?”

“That too.”

Standing there it occurred to Wade that his roommate was almost as indestructible as he was. “So Carol,” he said.

“Cora,” she corrected firmly. “As in, ‘Coraline.’ As in the other person on this god-forsaken lease.” She angrily tossed her beer bottle towards the trashcan and it hit the wall where it shattered. Most of the glass went into the garbage can. Neither of them really cared to clean up the mess.

[We ever ask where she came from? Because, I think it might be important later.]

{We said we wouldn't ask if she didn’t, so we didn’t.}

“Coraline,” Wade agreed. “I’m going on a job soon.”

“Good for you.” The phone in her pocket rang, she dug it out, and answered with a single word. “No.” She put the phone on the counter. “And?” she asked.

“And Spiderman wants to tag along. There’s no killing involved,” he added.

Coraline sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Deadpool,” she said wearily, “you accepted a job.”

“Yes.”

“In New York City.”

“Yes…”

“What’s the job?”

Wade beamed behind his mask. “Object retrieval!”

Coraline closed her eyes. “Object retrieval,” she repeated.

“Yup!”

“Deadpool, did you seriously ask the spider if he could tag along on one of your jobs—the mostly law-abiding do-anything-to-help-along-the-boys-in-blue spider, I’d like to add—when it involves stealing?” She looked at him. “I’m not an expert, but that sounds like a good way to alienate him.”

[She’s right.]

{Oh, my God! What were we thinking!}

“Gotta go!” Wade said realizing there was a crap ton of research he had to do.

“Yeah yeah, good luck,” muttered Coraline as she head towards the bathroom, limps already fading.

^^^

Peter crouched in the corner overlooking the building in front of them as Wade, in full Deadpool regalia, checked an odd little compass on his wrist. “What’s that?” he asked.

“My moral compass. Just making sure I don’t lead you down the wrong path, buddy,” said the mercenary as he put the thing away.

Some of the things the man said made absolutely no sense. “All right,” he said. “So, now that your moral compass is straightened out, what’s the mission.”

“Right. So, my client, my friend, works for these people who had this—thing stolen from them by these people. Now, they called me, instead of the police, because none of them are supposed to have it.”

Peter felt his lips twitch behind his mask. He wasn’t sure if they were twitching in distaste at stealing or amusement at the way Wade was putting the situation. “Let me see if I’ve got this right. A group of people, who were not supposed to have this object—whatever it is—had it stolen by this other group of people, and the first group has hired you to steal it back for them.”

Wade nodded. “That’s it. Contract complete when said object is in her, the contract holder’s hands.”

Peter nodded. He was slightly surprised at the formal phrasing, but Wade was a mercenary. Presumably that meant he had a lot of experience with contracts. “What’s the object?” he asked.

“Some kind of book. She said I can’t miss it.”

“All right.” Peter waited. “How are we getting in?” he asked.

Wade’s head whipped towards him. “What?”

Peter held back a sigh. “Your mission,” he reminded the other man. “Your plans.”

“That is both the single best and most terrifying thing I have ever heard from you,” Wade said softly.

“So, what’s the plan?” asked Peter, both anxious to get started and to keep Wade from thinking too much.

“Plan? Right, plan. Spidey, you’re backup. I want you to stay out of sight as much as possible. These people are sneaky, and I may need super-secret backup to get back out of there.���

Peter nodded. “All right,” he agreed. The two of them went into the building.

Everything seemed normal enough at first. There seemed to be an appropriate number of guards for what was a secret priceless artifact. The security was not quite the best, but appropriate. Pretty much all Peter had to do, as Spiderman, was follow along the ceiling keeping an eye out for surprise attacks. There were a few, and he webbed those would-be attackers to the walls and floors before Deadpool even registered that there was a threat, but nothing major. And Deadpool was very careful not to actually kill any of his attackers, a fact that Peter appreciated.

Before the mission Peter and Aunt May had sat down to have a talk and Peter understood that Deadpool was a mercenary known for killing. Knew it very well, in fact. He had accepted that there might be reasons fro Deadpool would kill on this job—because he was working and it simply might not occur to him to use non-lethal force. He was prepared for that.

When they made it to an inner room, Spiderman still hanging back in the shadows providing silent support, the game changed. On a wooden table was a single, huge book. It was blue. It looked like it was glowing.

Leaning against the table was a woman. She was tall, for a woman (slightly shorter than Wade), was wearing a white dress that looked like a bunch of feathers had been sewed together, and had long, cascading blond hair. “Hello Deadpool,” the woman said in a calm voice. She was holding what looked like a bunch of Popsicle sticks tied into the vague form of a human in one hand. In the other she held what looked like a bloodstained piece of cloth. Just behind her, on the table, was a tall, wide glass of water and a second doll.

Peter’s senses went haywire. This woman, whoever she was, was bad news. Deadpool merely waved cheerfully. “Hi,” he said. “I’ve come to get that book on the table behind you, and once I get it I’ll be on my way since I don’t want to kill anyone in Spiderman’s city.”

The woman chuckled softly and Peter felt the little hairs on the back of his neck raise at the sound. “Oh, yes,” she said as she wrapped the bloodstained piece of cloth around the doll she was holding. “I’ve heard about your little—team up with the human spider.” She moved to where the doll was being dangled over the water. “I’m surprised he isn’t here now.”

Another chill ran over Peter, warning him that something was about to happen. He tensed, not knowing what to expect as he looked around the room desperately for any sign of the danger his senses said was coming. He trusted his senses explicitly.

The woman simply released the doll to where it fell in the water. Wade gasped and choked as Peter stared, not certain what was going on until water began pouring from Wade’s mouth. The man was drowning. The woman dropped the doll into the water and now Wade was drowning.

Peter dropped to grab the doll, to haul it out of the water only to be easily backhanded out of the way by the woman, her nails ripping bits of his suit. “There you are,” the woman said in satisfaction. She smiled at Peter as she pulled a thread from his suit and tied it around the other doll. The merc choked one water as the woman snapped the leg on the doll.

And Peter felt his own leg snap in response before he collapsed to the floor. He gasped as waves of pain rolled over him—but he had fought his way through worse. He’d once swung through the city to catch Norman as Green Goblin with two cracked ribs. That had been bad. This was—still bad, but not quite at those levels yet. He swallowed hard as the woman walked towards him.

“Do you give up, little spider?” asked the woman in a voice that sounded kind, but his senses warned him were anything but.

“Never.” Peter shot webbing at her, and she easily dodged with a laugh.

“You are losing your touch, little spider,” the woman said.

Peter felt his lips widen in a grin. “Am I?” he asked as he yanked on the webbing. The glass fell to the floor. It didn’t break, but the water spilled out.

“Poor little spider,” said the woman sadly as she snapped the other leg. “Just doesn’t know when to quit.” She gasped as suddenly a sword protruded through her stomach.

“Want to bet?” snarled Wade as she fell off the sword, clutching the wound in her abdomen.

A dim part of Peter’s brain that was still functioning noted that it wasn’t a kill move. Even drowning, Wade had held back. As Wade picked him up, Peter webbed the woman to the floor. He also snagged the book with another piece of webbing; no reason to leave it behind. The book sagged as Peter reeled it in. “How heavy is this thing?” he demanded.

Wade glanced at the book. “If I recognize this,” he said absently, “about sixty pounds.”

“Sixty pounds?” demanded Peter, his vision graying slightly as Wade moved him. “What exactly is it?”

“I don’t think anyone is really sure. It sort of showed up a few years ago and has been bouncing around private collections ever since.” Wade carefully carried both Peter and the book out of the building. “Shit!” he swore when they were outside. “This was supposed to be a safe mission!”

Peter couldn't help but chuckle. “I don’t think there is a such a thing,” he said. “How many buildings have you been knocked off of?”

“Yeah,” said Wade as he walked. “But that’s me. I heal. I know he does too, but not as fast!”

Peter frowned. He healed both too fast and too slow. Too fast to risk going to a regular doctor and too slow to keep up with Wade.

“Not to worry,” Wade said as he tried to keep his steps even to prevent from jolting the injured spider in his arms, “we’ll just drop off the book-it thing and then I’ll take you back to Aunt May.”

They were a ways down the alley when suddenly the building they’d escaped exploded. Peter stared at the wreckage in horror. “All those people.”

“Not your fault,” Wade said quickly. He sagged. “Mine.”

“Your fault?” Peter frowned as he mentally reviewed the mission. Had the merc planted a bomb or something without Peter noticing? No, he hadn’t. Wouldn’t. “No,” Peter said firmly. “Not your fault, either.” He turned back to the wreckage. “It must have been some kind of self destruct,” he mused.

“Must have,” echoed Wade dully. “Come on,” he said turning and sprinting down the alley. Peter clung to consciousness with all he had. Every step hurt his legs more.

It didn’t take too long for them to reach Wade’s goal. Wade propped Peter (careful about jolting the injured legs) in a shadowed area of the park before taking the book to the swing set. Peter clenched his jaw against unnecessary sounds and worked to set the legs himself. He’d learned that his bones healed faster if they were set as soon as possible.

A woman, dark hair and sensual curves, approached the swing set. “Deadpool,” she purred.

Peter frowned. Used to hearing meaning behind words he read the dark irritation in her voice. Not usually the voice used to greet a friend. He looked up warily as the woman approached. Actually—she slunk more than she approached.

“Ana. You lied to me.” Wade’s voice was hard, cold, and almost unrecognizable.

“About what?” asked the woman, Ana, Peter supposed she was called.

“About the mission,” he said. “Medium security, no powers, that’s what you told me.”

The woman shrugged. “So they hired extra help after I looked into it. Not like you can die,” she added carelessly.

Rage flickered in Peter at the tone. He grit his teeth as he started to understand Wade’s casual attitude towards injury and dying. It took all his will to stay seated where he was and not draw attention to himself.

Wade merely sighed and tossed the book to the woman—who caught it easily. “That’s my friend,” the woman purred.

Peter had heard enough. He got up, barely registering the sharp pains in both legs, and strode over before webbing the book to her hand and the rest of her to the swings. “That,” he said grimly to the woman, “is no way to be. You can’t base ‘friendship’ on favors. That’s not how it works,” he told her before pulling his phone out.

“Spidey, what are you doing?” asked Wade.

“Look, you said the contract was complete when she was holding the book. She’s holding the book. Contract complete,” Peter grumbled as he dialed. “It’s me,” he told the operator. “Came across what looked like a shady deal at the park.” He rattled off the park’s address. “The buyer is webbed. The seller?” He turned to look at Wade and firmly added, “The seller got away.” He looked back at the woman as he slipped the phone back into his pocket. “They’ll be here in twenty minutes,” he told her. He took off quickly.

Wade loped off after him. “Hey, what?” he asked the hero.

Peter stopped for a moment and then looked at the merc. “All right, listen,” he told the man. “If something happened and you did kill someone in the city—we’d still be friends. Granted, we’d be friends with distance because I wouldn't be able to let you stay in the city—but we’d still be friends. It’s not dependent on you doing anything for me.”

The Deadpool mask stared at him for a moment, eerily still. Then he pointed down. “Do you realize you’re walking on broken legs?” he asked.

“What?” Peter looked down and stared as he gently stomped his feet against the ground. “Oh—huh.”

The two continued on their way. “You need to figure out how to do that on purpose,” Wade told him as he locked fingers behind his head.

“I wouldn't even know where to start,” Peter said wearily.

Later, the two men would find out that their mysterious adversary was known as The Witch. They found that out—the same time they found out that there was no female body found in the explosion.

[bowtied-pasta]

I know you would have prefered anon, so I did it for you! 🤗

I went back and forth with @creepy-bi-day about this exact thing because I am a simp for this dude, so I will be partially using an idea that we talked about together.

Noah panics as he makes another god awful loop on the boardwalk from hell and is faced with the Observer standing there, about 20 feet away.

He waves and begins slowly walking toward him, an unnerving smile on his face as he begins to laugh.

Noah startles and starts to move backward, not taking his eyes off of the creep as he gets ready to bolt, until the being drops. Fainting and hitting the boardwalk as the world around them seems to waiver, like the heat you can see coming off of a surface in summer.

His head starts to hurt the longer he continues to stare at it, and he has to shut his eyes, his body feeling out of place and unwelcome as the world around him gave way.

Until it stopped, and he cracked open an eye to see that the world looked normal. He was out.

He laughed as he couldnt believe his eyes. Walking forward as he heads toward the parking lot where he’d hopefully still find his car, until he realizes that the Observer was still laying on the boardwalk infront of him.

He freezes, waiting for movement, and flinches as the being groans. Working to make his way up into a sitting position. Looking around at his surroundings and freezing once his eyes land on him.

“Uh..... Hi. Would you mind telling me who I am?” He says, and his head tilts a bit to the side, confusion apparent and eyes wide.

Noah fumbles. What the fuck do you mean you dont know who you are? Theres no way this could be.... theres no way he has one.

He laughs as he stumbles away from you, shaking his head in disbelief at the luck he had. The Observers soulmate, that bastards soulmate, right here in front of him. And they had no idea what was going on. How perfect could this be?

The person infront of him stood slowly, taking a cautious step toward him. “Are you okay?”

Noah recovers quickly, knowing he would miss his chance if he didnt pull himself together and do what he needed to do. “Ahaha.... yeah. Im good. Its just... weve both been waiting for this kind of thing to happen. Just didnt expect it now. Gave me a heart attack when... Kevin.... dropped like that. Thought I was gonna have to call 911 or something.”

The stranger infront of him seems to accept this as truth, good. He can get them to trust him faster if they were gullible. Better to keep them out of the loop. That way, he can find the location of a possibly depowered Observer, and take advantage of his vulnerable form.

This is, of course, assuming the Observers powers were bound to his chosen form. Its the best shot hes had all this time and he’d be damned if he didnt take it though.

“Alright... and you said his name is Kevin? Good to know. Well, we can head to mine so we can go back to our own bodies. Or, if thats inconvienient for you, we can just wait wherever this is-“

“No,” he cuts them off. Setting his horribly thought out plan into motion. “We can head to yours. Faster that way. He always had a horrible sense of time and direction.”

They give a small nod, taking the information easily, not having any reason not to trust the man infront of them. “Cool. We can head that way whenever. I’m... not really sure where we are, but I know my address. Of course. So I can just enter it in the gps and we can go off of that.”

“Sounds good. Just gotta stop by my place for a few things and we can go.” He says as he moves in the direction of his car once more, moving a bit faster than normal.

You sigh, the form of your soulmate an odd thing to experience first-hand. Nothing could have really prepaired you for what waking up in another persons body would entail, but you were just glad you would be able to get back to your own body soon. That is, if your soulmates friend, Noah, would hurry up and get out of his house.

You were shocked when he finally did, revealing he had cleaned himself up and was carrying a bag. Locking up his house and looking around multiple times before getting back in the car.

“Was getting worried for a second there, thought I would have to come get you.” You laugh a bit, trying to lighten his mood as he appeared to be anxious for one reason or another.

He was silent as he put his bag next to him on the floor of the drivers seat. An odd place to put it, and it was probably uncomfortable, but who were you to judge.

He pauses to look over at you, seeming to contemplate his answer before starting the car. “Uh.... yeah. Sorry for taking so long, just had to make sure everything was still okay. I actually havent been to my place for awhile. Family stuff.”

You take the information easily, nodding your head to his words as he starts to drive, following the gps commands to turn.

You wake up as the car comes to a complete stop, and being turned off. You gues you had fallen asleep during the drive over and now felt bad for Noah. You look out the windows at your neighborhood, a cloudy night making everything appear dark and ominous, but being familiar with the area you felt nothing but comfort with the view.

“Oh good, we made it to my place. Im sorry I fell aslee-“ you cut yourself off as you turn to look at Noah. Finding a gun pointed directly at your head.

“Get out of the car.”

You freeze as your hand slowly moves toward the handle of your door, unbuckling yourself with your other hand.

You stumble out of the car, mind still on autopilot as you watch Noah get out of the car, walking around it to grab you and position the gun closer to your head.

“Im sorry. Im sure youre a great person, but it has to happen this way.” He says as he forces you to walk toward your front door, waiting for you to unlock it and open it, taking a cautious step inside and closing the door behind him with his foot omce you both make it in.

He backs himself up to the door, grabbing you and keeping you secured to him with one arm while his other hand holds the gun to your head. “Come out you fucker! Its time!”

You wait in silence, tears streaming down your face as you begin processing just exactly what was going on. And you crying become audible as you see your soulmate walk around the corner in your body. Face blank with boredom, as if expecting this occurance and taking it in stride. Like he had planned for this.

“Well, Noah. What exactly do you plan to get out of this? You know I cant be killed.” You hear your voice say, your body taking a step closer and setting Noah off.

Noah whips the gun toward your soulmate, making you unfreeze and grab his arm. Moving it away from your soulmate, and causing Noah to misfire. The bullet going into your wall.

“NO!” And with that, he seems to disappear. His grasp on you having gone loose before he did, and he had seemingly been trying to keep solid contact with you.

“Well. That was interesting. Cant wait to play with him myself, but that will have to do for now.” You turn to look at your soulmate again, feeling odd to look at your own body like this, and feeling confusion and awe.

“I.... what was that? Where did he go? Why did he want you dead? Is your name even Kevin? Who are you really?” Questions just kept spilling out of your mouth, one after the other, until he got tired of it apparently.

He moves toward you, his hand grabbing yours as your faces are brought close together. His free hand under your chin, keeping eye contact with you as he does so. You never thought your eyes could be so pretty to look at, but then again, you had never seen them as a different person before.

“Close your eyes, little one, youre very likely to faint again.” As he says this, he closes the distance and seals your change back with a kiss.

[soundofseventeen]

Cinderella (Joshua Hong)

Here is part 1 for the series! I hope you enjoy them! I of course had to start with my favorite fairy tale, because why not? 

Master List

*Fairy Tale*

“So, how is the fair maiden enjoying the evening?” Joshua asked, walking around the castle gardens, step in step with you. You never imagined this when you came tonight, simply just wanting a night to yourself to have fun. The whole evening almost didn’t happen when your Fairy Godmother showed up and performed a little magic, turning you into a princess of your own. Granted, you weren’t a princess, but you sure felt like you could be.

“She is. Is the kind gentleman enjoying the evening as well?” You asked, nudging his arm with your elbow. He let out a shining smile, one you almost didn’t believe was real. Whoever this guy was, he sure was pretty damn charming.

“He is, very much.” He replied, looking around the gardens. “I never imagined tonight would go like this. I thought it would be like every other ball I’ve been to.”

“So you’ve been to multiple?” You looked at him, and he nodded his head.

“Oh yes. They’re all the same though. Fairly boring. Unless some other of my friends are there, then something chaotic is bound to happen. Otherwise, just…” He looked over at you, watching him as he talked. “...They’re never like this.”

“Well, I’m glad I could change your view.” You smiled, looking around the gardens.

“You must have been to several yourself?” He asked, and you started to shake your head, realizing he gestured to your dress.

“Oh… Well, not really. My family doesn’t really do the… Royal… ball thing…” You laughed, thankful that Joshua laughed as well. “Technically I wasn’t even going to come.”

“So why did you?” You thought about your answer for a second, trying to figure out what a usual response would be.

“Well, I thought it would be a fun experience. A nice night off. Plus it’s always interesting to try and see the prince. He’s practically a myth.” You added on, causing Joshua to raise an eyebrow.

“Oh really?” He chuckled, causing you to roll your eyes.

“But alas, that shall have to wait for another day. I have yet to even see the prince here, and at this point it would take a miracle to run into him.” You commented, causing Joshua to blush.

“I think the odds are in your favor with this one.” This time you laughed, turning to look at him.

“And what exactly do you mean by… Is that the time?” You said, spotting the clock tower behind Joshua’s head. He gave you a confused look, looking back at the tower himself.

“Yes? Why, do you have somewhere to be?” He joked as you started to panic.

“Yes, actually. I’m so sorry, but I need to leave.” You started to run back towards the castle, stopping and running back to Joshua, who was frozen confused. “Thank you for tonight. I don’t think I could have had a better time if I actually met the prince. I loved everything.” You said, then turning and running away again. Joshua stood frozen in place, trying to figure out what just happened, before turning and running after you.

*Today*

“Miss Y/N, I can’t figure out this problem.” One of your students said, pointing to a math problem.

“Okay, let’s figure this out…” You said, looking over the work they already did. You offered suggestions, eventually leading to the correct answer. The student thanked you, walking back to their desk. You smiled, continuing to grade some homework. Soon the bell rang, causing small chaos in your room as students packed up their bags to go to their next class.

You leaned back and sighed in your chair, finally hitting your free period. You stretched your arms above your head, not noticing your coworker practically skipping into your room.

“Did you hear?” You opened your eyes, sighing at her.

“Hear what?”

“We have a new teacher.” She said, sitting on your desk.

“Oh? Another one for you to flirt with constantly?” You teased, poking her leg.

“Hey, he will eventually fall for my charms.” She said, pointing at you.

“I still don’t know why you want to go out with him so bad. Minghao has shown literally negative interest in you.” You shook your head, and she rolled her eyes.

“Whatever. New. Teacher. Fresh. Meat.” She said, emphasizing each word.

“You’re gross.” You said, smirking at her and looking back at your papers.

“I’m just saying… You’re single… He might be single… If I can get Hao to date me, we could double date…”

“You know, I have a lot of grading to do.” She rolled her eyes, and you rested your head on your hand. “And I imagine you do too?”

“But it’s all projects…” She whined, and you sighed.

“Hey, you picked to be a science teacher.” She stuck her tongue out and walked out of your classroom, finally leaving you in peace.

You continued to grade assignments, slowly starting to hum. You smiled to yourself, realizing you were humming that song from Cinderella, shaking your head at yourself. You looked up at the door, seeing no one in the hallway, and then at the clock, seeing that there was still about 20 minutes until the next bell rang. You started to outwardly sing as you graded, smiling to yourself.

You looked up as someone knocked at your door, eyes going wide at the guy standing in your doorway, smiling at you.

“Oh, I’m so sorry…” You said, standing up as he walked in. “Uhm… Can I help you with something?”

“Not really, I was just looking for you. I wanted to come introduce myself.” He said, smiling at you. “I’m Joshua, I’m the new English teacher.”

*Fairy Tale*

“So you spent the entire evening with a girl, she suddenly fled a little before midnight, and you couldn’t catch her, only finding her shoe?” Seokmin asked, looking at his friend.

“Yep.” Joshua said simply, looking at the glass slipper in his hand, trying to figure out exactly who his mystery princess was.

“And you have no idea who she was or where she was from?” Jeonghan asked from the other side, looking between Seokmin and Joshua.

“Nope.” Joshua sighed, setting the slipper down and standing up. “I’ve never seen her before in my life. Trust me, I would remember her if I had.”

“Yeah, that seems about right.” Seokmin commented, shaking his head. The three sat in silence for a couple seconds, when Seokmin stood up suddenly. “I have an idea!”

“Please share?” Jeonghan said, staring at Seokmin with wide eyes. Joshua stared at him as well, curious as to where this was going.

“You have her shoe!” Seokmin said, as if that answered all of their questions.

“...Yes, that is true?” Joshua furrowed his eyebrows, still confused.

“You make an announcement that you have the shoe, then ask her to come and try it on! If it fits, it’s her!” Jeonghan and Joshua stared at Seokmin, not fully following his logic.

“Do you realize how many girls in this kingdom would fit in that shoe?” Jeonghan said, half laughing. “Besides, I thought she was a princess.”

“Part of me thinks she wasn’t. I don’t know, there was just something about her that wasn’t… I don’t think she’s a royal…” Joshua said, thinking over Seokmin’s idea.

“Well, that doesn’t solve the fact that multiple girls in the kingdom could have that shoe size.” Jeonghan countered.

“Josh, you remember what she looked like, right?” Joshua nodded his head. “Then it’ll be easy! Once he sees her, he’ll know!”

“Why don’t you just ask your father? Or the Grand Duke? Surely they would be able to help you.”

“Because if she’s not a princess, they won’t approve.” Joshua said, looking at the shoe. “I’m gonna do it.” Seokmin cheered and Jeonghan sighed.

“Okay, well I have to go anyway. Fortunately, I know where my princess is. Good luck buddy.” Jeonghan patted Joshua’s shoulder.

“I still can’t believe you’re making her do all the wedding planning.” Seokmin shook his head, teasing his friend, who gave him a look that showed it worked. “How can you just sit while she does all that work? It’s exhausting enough for two people.”

“Once again, she won’t let me help! She wants to plan the whole thing herself. I’ve thrown thousands of parties, why won’t she let me help with this one!” Jeonghan whined, causing the other two boys to laugh.

“Probably because you keep referring to your wedding as a party.” Joshua laughed, suddenly excited about his new plan.

*Today*

“You’re Joshua?” You said, staring at the slightly (very) attractive man standing in your doorway.

“Yes. Today’s my first day, actually.” He said, walking up to your desk.

“Well, welcome.” You smiled, walking around your desk to shake his hand. “I hope you can feel at home here.”

“Thank you, I hope so too.” He grinned, taking his hand away from yours.

“So you were looking for me, then?” You asked, and he nodded.

“Yes, the secretary at the front desk said you were one of the best teachers here. I thought you could maybe give me some tips. I’ve never actually taught before…” He admitted, and you couldn’t help but smile.

“Of course! I’d be happy to help you. We can meet up for lunch if you’d like. I’ll try to get one of the other teachers to come too. He’s the art teacher here, and he’s been here forever.”

“That would be amazing, thank you.” He looked at the clock, sighing. “Well, I shall continue my rounds of introducing myself. I’ll see you in an hour then.” You waved as he walked out of your classroom, then stopped in the doorway.

“Yes?” You asked, already humored by him.

“It’s just… Have we met before?” He asked, and you looked at him.

“Uhm… I don’t believe so?” You laughed, and he looked at you a second more, then shrugged.

“My mistake. I’ll see you at lunch.” He smiled, officially leaving the room. You tilted your own head, now wondering if you did know him from somewhere. The ringing bell brought you back to reality as students entered your room.

*Fairy Tale*

“How was the ball girls?” You asked your step sisters, pretending to clean some dishes. You managed to make it home just before them, thankful that your dress had turned back to its original shape. Despite your breathing from running, you had no signs that you left the house. Well, aside from the glass slipper you still had.

“Awful.” One of your step sisters said, pouting as she fell into a chair.

“We barely even got to see the prince, let alone get him to fall in love with us.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” You said, thinking instead about the kind gentleman you met rather than listening to them.

“We only saw him at the very beginning, and then at the end.”

“It was crazy, it was almost like he was chasing after someone at the end of the ball.”

“What?” You asked, that part striking something in your brain.

“Yeah, he was chasing some princess just before midnight. She must have turned him down or something. What a pity.” Your step sister continued to pout.

“He did?” You looked at them, both giving you confused looks. “I’m just… I’m curious. You know, since I missed the whole thing.” You gave a half explanation, which seemed to satisfy them.

“Yes. We didn’t even really see her though. Whoever she was, she managed to worm her way into his heart rather quickly.”

“Gorgeous dress though.” One sighed, daydreaming.

“Oh my gosh…” You said, connecting pieces.

“Apparently he found one of her shoes. Can’t be that rich of a princess if she can’t even afford shoes that fit.”

“Excuse me.” You said, standing up to leave the room. You heard your step sisters start to whisper about you, but you couldn’t be minded with that.

You just spent the night swooning the prince.

*Today*

“So, Joshua,” Minghao started, looking at your new coworker. “Where did you teach before this?”

“Oh, I actually didn’t. I graduated a while ago, but I hadn’t been able to find a job anywhere. I was actually shocked when they offered me this one.” He laughed, looking between you and Minghao.

“Interesting. We’ve been looking for an English teacher for a while. I wonder how you never found this before.” Joshua shrugged.

“Who knows. I got a call this morning asking if I could come in and they just… offered me the job.”

“Well, I’m sure you’ll do wonderful.” You said, smiling at him. You two made eye contact a little too long, causing you to clear your throat and turn to Minghao. “So, Hao, how’s your dog?” To your surprise, Minghao sighed.

“She ran away this morning. I let her out to get some fresh air, and normally she stays in the yard, but when I went to bring her in before coming to work, she wasn’t there. I was late this morning because I was looking for her. I have no idea where she went.” Minghao said, causing you to pat him on the back.

“I’ll keep an eye out for her.” You said, earning a small smile from Minghao.

“What kind of dog is she?” Joshua asked, and Minghao sat up a little more. “You know, in case I see her, maybe I can help too.”

“She’s a dalmation. She had a blue collar, but her last tag broke off, so there’s just a blank one on there right now. Responds to Perdita.”

“Hopefully we can find her soon.” Joshua said, and Minghao nodded. He looked at his watch, standing up.

“Oh, I have to go. Our crazy coworker is about to go on lunch, and I don’t think I can handle her today.” Minghao said, giving you a slightly apologetic look. As he left, waving goodbye, Joshua turned to you.

“Crazy coworker?” You chuckled to yourself, waving him off.

“One of the science teachers has a huge crush on him. She’s convinced they’re meant to be.”

“Oh, okay.” Joshua said, slightly amused.

“Yeah, so if she asks, you’ve been in a relationship for years. Otherwise you’ll be her next target.” You teased, and Joshua officially let out a laugh.

“So what about you?”

“What about me?”

“Are you in a relationship for years?” He asked, and you immediately saw where this was going.

“No, not really. But I’m not really looking. I also have a thing about… coworker dating.” Joshua just let out a laugh, nodding his head.

“Good to know.” He looked at your for a second, then looked at his phone. “I, have a meeting with the principal. Thank you for lunch.” He smiled, getting up to leave the room.

*Fairy Tale*

“Sir!” One of the guards ran up to Joshua and Jeonghan, stopping them in their tracks.

“Is something the matter?” Joshua asked, confused by the urgency of his guard. The kingdom was at peace right now. The guard took a second to catch his breath, then stood up to face Joshua directly, a smile on his face.

“We found her.” Joshua was confused for a second, then the gears started running in his head.

“What?” Joshua said, feeling excitement growing.

“The girl with the slipper. She has come forward.” Joshua looked to Jeonghan, who just grinned at his friend.

“What are you staring at me for?” Jeonghan said, pushing Joshua’s shoulders. “Go!” He laughed, Joshua immediately running down the hall, the guard following behind him.

The carriage ride to her house couldn’t have been more than a half hour, but to Joshua it felt like a million years. He had never been this nervous, and he had been to war. His heart began to race as the carriage started to slow down, his hands shaking in his lap. What if you didn’t want to see him? What if this feeling was entirely one-sided? What if it was just the magic of that evening that created this feeling?

He still exited the carriage, smiling at the cottage in the woods. He knew you weren’t a princess. He was starting to think of a way to convince his father and the grand duke, but then stopping himself before his mind went too far. He couldn’t let himself plan too far ahead until it was certain you wanted to be with him too.

One of his guards knocked on the door, and Joshua couldn’t help but hear faint singing from an open window above him. Was that the voice of his love? His attention was brought back down as a door opened, revealing an older, strict looking woman. After a brief discussion, he was brought into the house, and led into a living room, where two girls were sitting.

Neither of which were you.

“Hello Prince Joshua.” One of them stood, approaching him.

“Hello.” He greeted, slightly deflated.

“I believe you have my slipper?” She grinned, and Joshua shook his head.

“You’re not her.” He said, looking at her. “I’m sorry, but you’re not the girl from that night.” The other girl stood up, walking towards him.

“Of course she’s not. It’s because I am.” Joshua looked to her and let out a sigh.

“No, you’re not either.”

“But I have this?” She said, pulling out an identical glass slipper. Joshua’s eyes widened, causing the girl to grin.

“Where did you get this?” He asked, looking at her.

“It’s mine.” She said simply. The gears were running inside Joshua’s head, looking around the cottage.

“Are there any other maidens in this house?” He asked their mother, who had a panicked look.

“No, nope. Just us.”

“What about staff? Surely with a house this size you must have someone on staff.”

“Nope. It’s just us three.” She smiled a slightly creepy smile, which caused a guard to adjust his stance between Joshua and the woman.

“I heard singing before. It sounded as though it was coming from upstairs.”

“One of my daughters must have left a music box open. They were so excited for you to be here, it must have distracted them.” Joshua looked at her for a second.

“Well, thank you. I’m sorry this wasn’t more successful.” He said, about to leave.

“Wait, your highness.” His guard stopped him. Joshua turned to him, and the guard simply put a finger to his lips. “Listen.” Joshua gave him a look, but stood silent. There was that voice again, singing a different song. Joshua felt his heart grow again, turning to the woman, who had a terrified look on her face as she looked up the stairs.

“If you wouldn’t mind investigating the voice.” He turned to the guard, who nodded and walked up the stairs. “We wouldn’t want the music box to be overworked, would we?” He asked the woman, who just stared back at him. “I’ll be outside.”

He stood outside the cottage, trying not to get his hopes up too high. Sure, the other slipper was here, but the voice could be coming from someone completely different. His heart began to pound again as he heard the door open, a little scared to turn around. He took a deep breath, forcing his feet to move as he turned to face you, a smile on his face as he saw you standing on the steps.

His princess.

“It’s you.” He breathed, and you made a small smile.

“Looks like you’ve found me.” You said, staying on your step. You were slightly embarrassed, standing in front of the prince of your kingdom in a torn dress with cinders on it. Joshua stared at you for several seconds, eventually coming back to reality and letting out a little laugh.

“I uh, I believe this belongs to you.” He said, holding out the slipper to you.

“Thank you.” You said as he walked towards you.

“It must be quite a story you have.” He looked at you, and you nodded.

“It’s… a long story.” You teased as Joshua gestured for you to sit down. Once you did, he picked up your foot, looking you in the eye.

“I look forward to hearing it.” He smiled, placing the shoe on your foot.

*Today*

You were packing up your bag, smiling at the end of another successful day of teaching. As you looked through your planner for the next day, there was a knock at your door, causing you to look up. Joshua stood in your doorway, a bag on his shoulder.

“I’m heading out. Is Minghao still here?”

“No, he left after last period to look for his dog.” You smiled, and he nodded.

“Okay. Well, I just wanted to say thank you again for today. I think I will get along well here.” He smiled.

“Anytime. Drive safely.” You waved as he left, sighing to yourself. You continued to read the plans for tomorrow, setting the planner down and picking up your bag. As you took a couple steps, adjusting one of the desks in your classroom, a warm breath of air flew past you. You looked to the windows, all of which were closed. You looked around confused for a second, then collapsed on the ground.

Slowly your eyes opened, looking around. You looked around the classroom, trying to figure out what was going on. You had vague memories filling your head, somehow from two different places. You stood up, looking around, trying to figure out how you got here. You could feel yourself starting to panic when you heard a voice from in the hall. You couldn’t quite figure out what they were saying until they were outside your door.

“Y/N.” You turned around, seeing Joshua standing in the doorway. You both stared at each other for a second, before you both broke and ran to each other, arms going around each other. “Thank god you’re okay.” He breathed, holding you close to him.

“Where are we? What happened?” You asked, looking around as your hugged Joshua.

“I don’t know. The last thing I remember, we were planning the wedding. Then I woke up in that parking lot. Are you hurt?” He asked, pulling back and looking you over a bit.

“Your highness, I’m fine.” You smiled, and he let out a sigh.

“Didn’t I say you can call me Joshua now?” He chuckled, holding your face in his hands.

“Is anyone else here?” You asked, looking around. He looked back at the door.

“Might as well find out.” He said, leaning forward to give you a soft kiss, then taking your hand and leading you out of the classroom.

[soundrooms]

Soundrs: DJ CYBERDAD

My name is John Verchot, I’ve released music under several names: J-chot as well as DJ CYBERDAD. Locally, I’m usually just billed as DJ Verchot. I feel like the first thing I should tell you about myself is that I have severe ADHD, which seems to be the single most consistent force guiding my art and existence. I often get distracted and always get ahead of myself when I try to explain things. DJ CYBERDAD started out as a funny pseudonym to release more profane songs that I didn’t want my son to hear, but changed into an outlet for my smoother dance jams as well as more introspective music. 

What are your inspiration sources?

It varies from project to project. Often times with tracks, the inspiration to work on them comes in two or three different phases. Inspiration to create sounds is one thing, as inspiration to finish and structure tracks, create moods/themes, or even package them into a finished project, all feel like different driving forces/processes that need to happen in order for me to get anything done. However, whichever one of those forces I am able to utilize when I sit down at my laptop often seems to be beyond my control.

Most times I’ll hear a sound, loop or phrase, I’ll start to wonder what I can do with it, or how I can change and manipulate it. It might be the timbre of an old instructional video’s narrator, or an odd metallic sound I’ve managed to coax out of some equipment. Occasionally I’ll think of a concept, either of overall sound or thematic content and before I know it, I’ve got half a track planned out in my head. Many times I’ll hear other tracks or songs, and want to use just one part/concept/sound or re-do the whole track differently. With “Emotional in Destin”, I was trying to convey moods or feelings I felt during an unexpected trip to Florida in the middle of a crushing depression. It sounds bizarre, but I've never channeled personal experiences into my music before.

Overall what inspires me to create different sounds is the novelty of technology and bits and other people’s music.

What makes me want to sit down and make music is personal or professional success.

What inspires me to finish tracks and projects is the distant white noise of overwhelming anxiety and dread setting in as the ennui of the imminent collapse of western society fades giving way to the dark, almost imperceivable thrumming of the void drawing nearer, and is definitely getting louder. Your “time” is almost up John. Did you even do anything, or are you too skiddish and feeble of heart and head to make any clear decisions, impulsively flitting from one animal urge to another bad habit, clogging the chemical receptors of your brain for simple stupid pleasure. It’s night now and your eyes and fingers grow weary…

What was the question again? 

Tell us something about your workflow.

Most times, it starts with just noodling around. Sometimes, it’s with synths and sequencers, either recording sounds or looping notes and tweaking/loading patches (virtual or real synths), sometimes I’m browsing potential sample material, but what happens next is the same regardless of how I’m making sounds or what I’m doing:

…I think hear something.

…And I STOP noodling. Basically, I either hear something I like, or I hit a riff or whatever and it’s like a tiny, tiny light bulb that blinks barely. Occasionally it’s like a hundred watt, and other ideas quickly fall into place. Most times, it’s a process of trial and error, but I’m making sure to document or isolate the little pieces that click and then attempt to refine or improve on those ideas. Ideas can quickly diverge, multiple sets with different names get saved, and I often jump around and get lost. I use color coding on clips and pieces in Ableton to help me sort those ideas. Some ideas form by running one sequence I’ve had already through a whole different synth/patch.

Very rarely, I’ll get a concrete idea while I’m driving, maybe I’ll make some notes on my phone (text to speech notes, voice recording).

When I get a spark that makes me imagine a full concept (“Charles Nelson Riley”, or that “My P**sy tastes like Pepsi Cola” remix for example), the track is formed VERY quickly (four to eight hours working time) and I finish the mix, structure, everything. This is rare, but these tracks are almost always my better material.

The next step is always the same: Let the track “cool-off”. Leave it alone. Do something else for a few days, or weeks… or in some cases, years… Then I’ll fuck around with it even more, or move on to:

STRUCTURE & MIXING: 

I look for/experiment with arrangements that compliment my DJ style, or allow someone to do a rough edit if they want, (breakdowns at the end), or I’ll load a track that I like to DJ that’s similar enough and I will STRAIGHT UP copy the song structure in terms of intro, (drums or keys?) repeating bits, breakdowns, outros… Most times I fuck with it until it sounds okay, which is kinda bad because I end up drastically overscrutinizing it.

When it comes to mixing, something that I should do more often but don’t is load a reference track (someone else’s track) and try to get my mix to sound like theirs… This technique REALLY helps stop “nasty surprises” when you listen to it on a big system, or in the car.

Most of the time, I’ve been tweaking the mix the entire time I’ve been working on the project. 

TL;DR

The “Emotional in Destin” EP is almost entirely soft synths, but lately my flow is:

1. dick around on hardware

2. “oh that sounds good, let me make another sound to go with it” (see step 1)

3. record a few pieces to an Ableton project.

4. “I don't know what to do now.” …maybe mixing or structure…

…almost ALL THE TIME, however I jump around and do everything very non-linearly. Hardware helps me not spend so much time tweaking patches or EQ-ing a snare drum for an hour. Texture is SUPER important to me, so I’ll often get hung up on EQ and compression before I even start on structure or mixing. 

How would creative rituals benefit your workflow?

The hardest part for me is ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS getting started, or shifting gears from other activities (resting after work, reading tumblr, goofing off…) and going to sit down at my desk and start music stuff. I’m certain it’s an executive dysfunction thing. The less I think about doing it before I do it, the better.

Animal sacrifice SIGNIFICANTLY speeds things up. Try not to get blood on the gear/laptop, and make sure never to clean, but regularly sharpen the ceremonial dagger (VERY important). 

How do you get in the zone?

I don’t really try…

As soon as I start to approach a task as “a thing” I get nervous and anxious. If I go “okay, I’ve got this task to complete…” my subconscious hijacks my higher functions to make me look at memes or tumblr for three hours instead of do what I “should” or “want”… The problem with me in the past has been how do I get OUT of the zone? 

How do you start a track? 

Oh jeez, I really jumped the shark with that question earlier, didn’t I? A technique I’ll sometimes employ is load up an old track, keep the drum sounds/patches but delete all the data, and make an entirely different genre of track… or one that's very similar… That’s kind of a fun exercise if nothing else. Also it often winds up getting tweaked and adjusted to hell and back. 

Do you have a special template? 

Nope. I make TONS of drum, EQ, and effects presets though. And they all have terrible names like “gooddrums”, “$GOODrums” and such.

Even though I’ve started with carbon copies, they ALWAYS end up sounding completely different by the time I’m finished with the track, because I can’t leave em well enough alone. 

What do you put on the master channel? 

Sometimes EQ, but always a phat ass compressor (limiting). I’ve been thinking about investing in a nice non-free one lately, but for some reason I am not comfortable with purchasing software plugins… I also have learned recently, that I’ve been using compression on the individual tracks way too much… which makes final-mixing a pain in the ass. 

How do you arrange and finish a track? 

DAMN IT. I really did go too hard with the first couple questions. The “finishing” of a track for me (arrangement, mixing) is usually done much later than the rest of the process. I try not to force stuff, but lately I’m realizing more and more that I need to not do this as much.

I can’t stress enough how using a reference track for structure or mixing can very often break up stagnation on a project. 

How do you deal with unfinished projects?

Several ways. The first step is to judge an old file and see if it's worth finishing. If there is ANYTHING of creative/sonic merit, I put it in a folder with the other “sketches and ideas” (project graveyard). Otherwise, I have been trying to delete the “junk” projects… this can make it easier to focus. Another thing I often do is to make presets/patches/Ableton instruments from the parts I like, then drop it in a folder called “meh”. Or I drop them into several categorical folders, i.e.: “uncircumcised electro bangers”, “abrasive techno”. 

How do you store and organize your projects?

Aw jeez. Oh gosh-oh darn. (See above answer.) 

How do you take care of studio ergonomics? 

Trial and error, trial and error, trial and error. This year alone my studio has been restructured and moved about my downstairs room at least five times. I’ve finally settled on something that feels very useful and productive. I am also this way with my work station at my job. CHANGE IT UNTIL IT WORKS GREAT. This can also help with creative stagnation, or can trigger it, so be careful. I keep my “electronics laboratory” close at hand so that more of that tinkering can find it’s way into my music… no such luck, YET.

I’ve currently decorated my space with all the crap I’ve saved up over the years, that for some reason, I’ve looked at this and thought: “This makes me happy” …SUUURE, my studio now looks like a fourteen year old decorated it, but I gotta say, I feel pretty phenomenal. Soon I’m gonna try to put this “stars and space” wall paper on my ceiling… I’ll update with a photo when that’s done.

Also I would like to say:

Minimalist spaces and studios are bullshit, y’all look like sick baby birds in empty shoe-boxes.

I mean, NOBODY LIVES THAT WAY, right? Maybe some boring rich people do, but damn… I mean, I try to clean and stay organized… and it helps, but I also try not to get to hung up on it. 

Tell us something about your daily routine, how is your day structured, how do you make room for creativity?

**LOUD SUCKING SOUND THROUGH TEETH** I don't… at least, not very well at all… but I’m working on that.

I am not the person you should ask this question, because THIS RIGHT HERE is the BANE of my existence… 

Share a quick producing tip.

MAN, I’ve already dropped like… seven, but okay, here goes:

BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY, FINISH THE TRACK. For me, this means ghetto-rigging, DIY, using the same goddamn audio interface from 2002 for f****ng fifteen YEARS… (recently fixed) don’t get hung up on “proper” ways, or ways that are outside your current means. Also, get a set of decent monitors… or use several pairs of headphones/speakers to double check mixes.

Recently, I’ve had less time, but a little bit of money, which is the opposite of how I’ve ALWAYS operated… it’s been difficult to unlearn “time consuming but cheap”. Also difficult not to impulse buy synths. 

Making music with just a mouse and keyboard may be the least sexy thing ever… it works tho… cheap MIDI controllers CAN work faster however. 

Share a link to an interesting website (doesn’t have to be music related).

My son just showed me this ➜ https://dddance.party/ and I have to say, this is an outstanding achievement of mankind. 

List ten sounds you are hearing right this moment : ) 

Traffic outside my window, gentle hum of laptop cooling fan, dog snoring, fingers typing, birds chirping… that’s it.

John has a lo-fi house EP out on UltraBold Records as DJ CYBERDAD. It’s called ‘Emotional in Destin’. Stream it ➜ here, audio cassettes are available ➜ here.

Thanks John! If you want to get featured next, send a message here on tumblr or email soundrooms@icloud.com.

[vgckwb]

ML: Are They Worthy? Chapter 62: Out of Control!/Malidictator 2

Vlad, Cat Noir, Sabrina, Roger, a few other officers, and Chloe stared in awe as Malidictator stood before them. Malidictator smiled an evil smile. “That’s not good” Vlad said.

“Well, at least we didn’t get found out” Beyyo whispered.

Vlad sighed. “Silver linings, I guess.”

Malidictator readied himself. “By the power vested in me,” he began, “you are now my personal servant!” He turned around and fired his command at Vlad. Before Vlad got hit though, Bunnyx jumped through a time hole and saved him. “Grrr!” Malidictator cursed. He then turned his command onto one of the police officers.

“Stand back” Cat Noir said, challenging Malidictator.

“Servant! Take care of Cat Noir!” Malidictator demanded. The officer then began to fight Cat Noir. “As for you..” Malidictator turned his attention to Roger. “By the power vested in me, you are now Chloe and Sabrina’s personal bodyguard!” The command hit Roger. Malidictator smirked. “Now, please take Chloe and Sabrina to Chloe’s room in Le Grand Paris, and make sure they stay there!”

“Yes sir!” Roger said. He picked up the two girls and loaded them into his squad car.

“Hey, let me go!” Chloe demanded.

“Chloe!” said Cat Noir. His attention quickly turning back to the officer that he was fighting.

Bunnyx landed on a roof with Vlad. “Thanks” Vlad said. “But why did you save me?”

Bunnyx smiled. “You told me to. I mean, we wouldn’t want Judgement Wolf falling under Malidictator’s spell.

Vlad’s jaw dropped. “When?”

“A few minutes from now” Bunnyx answered.

Vlad rubbed his head. Beyyo flew up. “Kid, I’ve been dealing with Fluff for centuries, and it doesn’t get any easier.”

“Let’s just go” Vlad said. “Beyyo! Fangs sharpen!” He transformed into Judgement Wolf. “You! Return to what you were doing!”

Bunnyx saluted. “Burrow!” she flew through time.

Cat Noir was now fighting multiple officers, when Judgement Wolf joined in. “Hey Judgement Wolf! Good to see ya!” Cat Noir said, subduing one of the officers.

“Where did Malidictator go?” Judgement Wolf asked.

Cat Noir finished off the last guy. “He’s heading to the school. Let’s go!”

“I actually have to do something else” Judgement Wolf said nervously.

Cat Noir looked at him. “Bunnyx?”

“Yeah” Judgement Wolf said. “I’ll meet you there.”

“OK” Cat Noir said. “Seeya!” Cat Noir left. Soon after, Judgement Wolf left in a different direction.

At school, Marinette was talking with Ms. Bustier. “I always thought it was luck that I wasn’t akumatized” she said. “But now, it feels very unlucky.”

“Marinette, luck has nothing to do with it” Ms. Bustier said. “You’re one of the sweetest, gentlest people I know. It’s no surprise you haven’t been akumatized.”

“Yeah, but you’ve been akumatized!” Marinette said. “And I’ve had bad experiences.”

Ms. Bustier offered a kind smile. “Of course. No one is perfect. But when things get serious, you know how to think through them. I admire that about you.”

Marinette smiled. Malidictator then kicked the door in. “Ah. There you are, Marinette Duapin-Cheng!” he said. She and Ms. Bustier were cowering. “I know you and Chloe have become better friends in recent times, but I still feel like you need to own up to your past transgressions. By the power vested in me, you will apologize to my Chloe for everything you’ve done to her!”

Marinette was scared by the villain and the command that she didn’t know what to do for a second. However, Ms. Bustier pushed her out of the way and said “Run!” before getting hit herself.

Marinette felt bad that Ms. Bustier took another hit in her place, but she had to keep going. She ran out the door as quickly as possible. “Grrr!” Malidictator said.

“Where is she?” Ms. Bustier asked.

“Where is who?” Malidictator replied.

“Chloe” Ms. Bustier said. “I need to apologize to her.”

“Right” Malidictator said. “She’s on her way to Le Grand Paris. Meet her there.”

“Yes sir!” Ms. Bustier said. She ran off.

Malidictator sighed. “Well, that’s one person who can’t be my servant anymore, but at least it gets her out of the way. Now, time to find that Marinette girl!”

Marinette went into hiding. “You know, Ms. Bustier is right” Tikki said.

“Thanks Tikki, but save the pep talk for later” Marinette said. “Right now, we have to deal with Malidictator once again. Tikki nodded. “Tikki! Spots on!” she transformed into Ladybug.

Ladybug perched herself on the roof. She looked down and saw Malidictator turning people into his puppets. “Keep searching!” he said. “She couldn’t have gotten too far!”

Cat Noir joined her. “Good to see you, Cat Noir!” she said. “Malidictator is back, and he’s looking for me. Well, civilian me.”

“That’s odd” Cat noir said, a puzzled expression donning his face. “I was there when he transformed, and he was concerned about Chloe.

“He wanted me to ‘apologize for my past transgressions’” Ladybug explained. “At least we know where the akuma is. Lucky CH-”

“Wait Ladybug!” Cat Noir cried out. “Um, I think you should know things are going to be getting a little complicated.”

It was Ladybug’s turn to be puzzled. “Complicated how?”

Alix, who had not fallen victim to Malidictator yet, tried to sneak away. However, Malidictator caught sight of her. “By the power vested in me, you are now my personal servant!” He fired his command. But before it could hit, Alix, Judgment Wolf jumped in and slice it in half, destroying it. He sheathed his sword. “Let’s go!” he said, taking Alix with him.

“Bunnyx?” Ladybug asked.

“Yup” Cat Noir said. “Judgement Wolf already has the miraculous, so we’re good on that front.”

“So, what now?” Ladybug asked.

Cat Noir thought for a second. “Maybe we should go save Chloe. Roger is taking her and Sabrina to her place.”

“Then let’s head out!” Ladybug said. The two heroes left.

Judgement Wolf found a place for him and Alix to hide. “Thanks Judgement Wolf” she said.

“Yeah well, I'm only paying you back” he said in return. Alix was confused. “What? Oh, right. Here.” He gave her her miraculous.”

“Oh. I see” Alix said. “So, does this mean you’re going to tell me who you are?”

“I kind of have to because I did” Judgement Wolf said. “Gah! Time travel is hard.”

Alix giggled. “So who are you?” she asked.

“I’m Vlad” Judgement Wolf said.

“I see…” Alix said. “And you’re not lying?”

“Of course not!” Judgement Wolf said. I don’t have time for that!”

“But I do” Alix said.

“Just transform” Judgement Wolf said.

Alix took out the miraculous. “Fluff! Clockwise!” she transformed into Bunnyx.

“Alright. Now, let’s rendezvous with Ladybug and Cat Noir and come up with a plan” Judgement Wolf said.

“Are you going to tell me who they are?” Bunnyx asked.

“No” Judgement Wolf said. Bunnyx took out a screen and started scanning for footage. “What are you doing?”

“I’m searching for footage of your rescue, trying to get an exact time for when I rescue you,” she said. “Here it is.”

“OK” Judgement Wolf said. “Now let's go!”

Roger’s squad car was heading to Le Grand Paris. Chloe and Sabrina were nervously looking at each other, trying to think of a way out. “Don’t worry girls, we will arrive shortly,” Roger said. Suddenly, there were two thumps on top of the car. “What was that?” Ladybug and Cat Noir them ripped open the doors on each side and took Chloe and Sabrina out, leaping off of the car afterwards. Roger then maneuvered his car to try and chase Ladybug and Cat Noir, but the heroes proved to be to quick and mobile for Roger.

Once they were out of his sight, Ladybug and Cat Noir split up. Ladybug had Chloe, Cat Noir had Sabrina. “OK, I think we’re safe here” Ladybug told Chloe. “Ready to save your dad again?”

“Of course. Pollen! Buzz on!” Chloe said, turning into Honey Bee. “Let’ go!” The two jumped into action.

“OK, I think you’re safe here” Cat Noir told Sabrina. “Wait here until this all blows over.”

Cat Noir tried to leave, but Sabrina grabbed a hold of him and said “Wait!” Cat Noir turned back around. “...Please. Be careful. And keep Chloe safe.”

Cat Noir fully turned to her and gently informed her “Hey, protecting people is my job. You shouldn’t worry.”

Sabrina nodded. “Thanks Cat Noir.”

“Seeya!” Cat Noir said, leaving. He then gave Ladybug a call. “Hey, where are you right now?”

“We’re on our way to meet Judgement Wolf and Bunnyx!” Ladybug answered. “We’re meeting on the building across from city hall!”

“Got it! On my way!” Cat Noir answered. He then began making his way towards city hall.

At school, Malidictator was still searching for Marinette. “Malidictator” Hawk Moth called. “She’s probably gone by now. Surely you could turn your attention to getting Cat Noir and Ladybug’s miraculous.”

“Of course, Hawk Moth” Malidictator said. “Once I get them to you, I’ll have all the time to make her pay! Alright everyone! Change of plans! Let’s find some more servants, and take city hall!” The group gathered around Malidictator and left the school.

Roger drove up and ran out to meet Malidictator. “Sir. I’m sorry. But they got them.”

“Who?” Malidictator asked.

“Ladybug and Cat Noir” Roger said. “They took Chloe and Sabrina.”

“WHAT?!” Malidictator shouted. He growled. “LADYBUG!” He stormed off toward city hall, with everyone else following.

Ladybug, Judgement Wolf, Honey Bee, and Bunnyx were waiting on the roof. Cat Noir jumped up and said “So, what’s the plan?”

Ladybug looked down and saw the legion of followers Malidictator has amassed coming towards city hall. “LADYBUG!” he shouted. “COME OUT HERE AND GIVE ME BACK MY CHLOE!”

“Wow, he’s really mad now” said Bunnyx.

“Yeah, but we could probably use that to our advantage” Honey Bee said. “I have an idea.” Honey Bee gathers everyone in and whispers her idea.

A few minutes later, Bunnyx appeared in front of Malidictator. “Hey” she said, getting his attention.

“Ah, Bunnyx!” said Malidictator. “Do you know where Ladybug hid my daughter?”

“No” Bunnyx said, making Malidictator madder. “Because I hid her” she said, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

“WHERE IS SHE?!” he yelled.

“You’ll have to catch me first!” Bunnyx said. “Burrow!” She slipped through time.

“AFTER HER!” demanded Malidictator. “She could be ANYWHERE!” All of his followers spread out.

“Ladybug, still in hiding, said “Here it goes. Lucky Charm! A bucket?”

“Well, at least you’ll use the whole thing this time” Honey Bee remarked.

Ladybug looked around. “I don’t see anything yet.”

“Well, maybe we need to draw him somewhere” Cat Noir said.

“Luckily, we’re good at that” Judgement Wolf said. Ladybug nodded.

Malidictator was looking around, when he heard “HEY!” He looked and saw Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Judgement Wolf.

“Ah, Ladybug” Malidictator said. “Once I get your miraculous and my daughter, nothing can stop me!”

“You’re going to have to get us first” Ladybug said.

“Yeah, and now there’s two of us to prevent that from happening” Cat Noir added.

“Just so you know, I’m not the type to bark on command” Judgement Wolf added.

“Well see about that” Malidictator said. “By the power vested in me, your miraculous are mine!” He unleashed his demand, while the three heroes dodged out of the way.

Ladybug closed in on him first and made a play for the sash, but Malidictator pushed her back. She fell back as Cat Noir took the stage, but Malidictator fended him off as well. Judgement Wolf then closed in, but Malidictator managed to ward off his attacks as well.

Meanwhile, Malidictator’s subjects were searching around town for Bunnyx. Someone saw her and shouted “There she is!”

“No, there she is!” said another.

“She’s here!”

“No, over here!”

Bunnyx was having fun confusing the masses. But she had a job to do, and she knew she had to do it. Her next bit of time travel took her back to when the attack first began and she saved Vlad. Once she was finished, she went back to having her fun.

Meanwhile, Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Judgement Wolf managed to lead Malidictator to the Seine, while Honey Bee was watching from the wings, waiting for her moment to strike. “Come on Ladybug” she said.

Ladybug’s earrings started to beep. “Well well, it seems like all I have to do is keep you away from me just a little while longer!” Malidictator proclaimed.

Ladybug was desperately looking around when she saw the Seine itself. “That’s it!” She ran over to the Seine.

Cat Noir was distracting Malidictator when he got flung back. Judgement Wolf then took over. Judgement Wolf did a better job at holding his own. Judgement Wolf looked behind him, and as Malidictator was about to strike, he jumped out of the way.

Malidictator punched the air, as a few feet in front of him, he was splashed with a bucket of water, courtesy of Ladybug. “Cat Noir!” she said, throwing the bucket in the air. Cat Noir came in and slammed the bucket onto Malidictator’s head.

He started to take the bucket off. “If you think this will stop me, think aga-”

“Venom!” called Honey Bee, as she stung Malidictator.

“Good timing” said Ladybug. She took the sash off of Malidictator and ripped it in two. “No more evil doing for you, little akuma. Time to de-evilize! Gotcha! Bye bye, little butterfly. Miraculous Ladybug!” She threw the bucket up in the air, giving everyone back control over themselves. Bunnyx saw that everything was returning to normal and traveled through time one last time to return to city hall.

“Once again, Malidictator failed me” Hawk Moth said. “No matter. You will listen to my commands someday, Ladybug!”

Mayor Bourgeois returned to normal. “What? What happened?”

“Pound it!” said the four heroes.

Ladybug and Honey Bee’s miraculous started to beep. “We should probably head out” ladybug said.

“It’s OK, I’ve got it from here” Cat Noir said. The two female heroes left.

“I should go too” Judgement Wolf said. “I’ve gotta get Bunnyx’s miraculous.” He left.

“Cat Noir! Where’s my daughter?” Mayor Bourgeois said.

Cat Noir received a message on his baton. He texted them back, and then told the mayor “I’ll take you to her. Hop on.” The mayor got on and Cat Noir took off.

He went to where he stashed Sabrina and found not only her, but Chloe. “Daddy!” Chole said, hugging him.

The mayor hugged her back. “I’m sorry about today” he said. “It’s just you gave me quite a scare.”

“I know” said Chloe. “You’re just worried about me.”

They let go. “I think we should discuss this” mayor Bourgeois said.

“Um, can it wait?” Chloe said. “I kind of have something…” She gestured towards Sabrina.

“Oh. Of course” mayor Bourgeois said. “I’ll get the limo to come around.”

“Well, it looks like you have everything taken care of” Cat Noir said. “Seeya!” He left.

Ladybug made her way back to school and detransformed. She then looked around and headed back to Ms. Bustier’s office. “Ah, Marinette” Ms. Bustier said, hanging up her phone. “That was Lieutenant Raincomprix. He’s on his way back.” Marinette looked at the ground. “Hey” Ms. Bustier said. “You’re going to be fine.”

Marinette smiled. She then got a call. “Hello?”

“Hi sweetie” said Sabine on the other end. “You dad’s got everything covered now. I can be there shortly.”

Marinette smiled even more. “Thanks mom.”

The limo pulled up to Le Grand Paris and Chloe and Sabrina walked into the building. They went up to the restaurant and took a seat. Sabrina noticed something. “What’s with these menus?”

“Take a look” Chloe said. Sabrina looked it over, and was surprised. “I had the chefs create a menu based on your favorite foods for today. I hope you like it.”

“Chloe, you’re amazing!” Sabrina shouted. “Thank you.” Chloe smiled. The two ordered and ate lunch together.

[nonsensical-rants]

So, I 100%ed the Kingdom Hearts Franchise.

Alright. This might be a long take, just saying that now. But I know exactly where to start. This franchise. Is not as confusing as the entirety of the internet would like you to believe. It's mostly due to bad writing decisions here and there. I mean, yeah if you wanna have every single detail and definition ingrained into your brain. Then of course it can get complicated, but what franchise lasting as long as Kingdom Hearts isn't annoyingly convoluted? I can't think of one.

So my thoughts about  the series is that they're pretty good! Both as a story and as games, with some very big exceptions. I wanna say that you should definitely not try to 100% all of these games in chronological order in rapid succession. It will drain you. I can confirm this beyond a shadow of a doubt. After I beat KH2 it really start to hit me. Chain of Memories was fine, if not a bit tedious to get all the cards and Riku to level 100. But other than that I more than enjoyed my time with the game.

Heartless are born from the darkness in peoples hearts. Nobodies are created from the husk of a body left behind in the creation of a Heartless. While Unversed are born from supreme negative emotions that live inside us all. The stronger these feelings are/the person is, the stronger the heartless/unversed and nobody. Especially strong people can keep their identity when transformed into Nobodies. Thus explaining Organization 13. Only the keyblade can truly defeat these creatures. What's so hard about describing that to someone? It isn't that far fetched in terms of the fantasy genre.

Though personally. I have an enormous hatred from Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance. Despite trying to keep an open mind about any and all forms of media I come across, I cannot ever get behind this title in the series because it is just too much and strays too far from what i consider to be "Kingdom Hearts". The gameplay was not fun for me personally, the story was iffy at best in comparison to the others and it really felt like the biggest amount of padding. If you have to do that to become a Keyblade Master, I think i'd rather stay as a rouge agent like Sora did for 99% of the series.

The dream eater system was probably the biggest factor here as for 100% completion you have to get every single dream eater, and every single skill that they can give you which means leveling a lot of them up to the point where they have points to buy said skills. Which takes forever. And then there's the Dream Eater tournaments, which I would have never gotten past without cheap strategies I found online. Usually I get everybody to max potential in these games and give the best items and accessories all around. But as soon as I got the platinum I ejected the disk and took a break. I felt like I needed it.

Alright, putting that behind us. The difference in fighting styles from game to game can get a bit jarring but in the PS4 re-releases it can usually be adjusted too in about half an hour to an hour's worth of gameplay. Chain of Memories was fun, but tedious like I mentioned. And Birth By Sleep was actually a fresh of breath air (until you get to the secret boss fights that is...) If it wasn't for my need to see that 100% bar next to the game title I would classify these games as something everybody should try out and enjoy. They are fantastic experiences. So lets go in order for a bit.

KH1 is a classic story, going through Disney worlds with a fine mix of Final Fantasy. Meeting the princesses and seeing they are "Princesses of Heart" that have strength beyond muscles. Able to use the power of Light and what not. There's a few hiccups here and there (like Cloud and Sephiroth not acting like how they are in FF7 but everyone's already mentioned that.) But aside from that and the bad platforming, its a genuinely fun game to 100% and I'd highly recommend it. Maybe even try to get cosmic arts for everyone so you can have 16-19 MP bars. It gets silly.

Chain of Memories i've already mentioned a lot so far. So I don't think I need to go that in depth. Fun to go through but wouldn't recommend 100%ing it because it takes far to long. The story is actually pretty decent and isn't that complicated. Sora and the gang lose their memories of KH1 because of the magic witch Namine, while we get our first look at Organization 13.

KH2. The golden child. Still played by many to this day and its obvious to see why. The game play is crisp and fantastic as I remember it from my youth. Traveling to Disney worlds again (and not card versions of them that have no people except for cut scenes, like CoM) and having a constant looming threat over your head while you try to have fun on your journey. Its great. I have yet to do a level 1 critical mode (as that's not required thankfully) but I did thoroughly enjoy my regular Critical play though. Story still isn't that bad yet. Organization 13 comes in full force, trying to get a new version of "Kingdom Hearts" so they can restore their humanity. I'd highly recommend 100%ing this one as well. Would also recommend maxing out your stats and putting on multiple Full Bloom+'s and Shadow Archieve+'s for the fun of it.

Birth By Sleep. Still not that bad honestly. It comes at a weird time though, and the story telling kind of requires you to have some outsider knowledge so that you're not thrown for a loop the entire time. So it feels weird to go back in the past, but also necessary for the story as a whole. Fun game to play minus the hundreds of mini games you need to do for all three main characters. If it wasn't for that I would recommend playing this game to completion. It's hard to reach higher levels though and as everyone's who played the game knows. Terra sucks at End Game compared to Aqua and Ven. I beat the Secret bosses by sheer luck and I would not go back for them. You do get to learn the origins of what makes most of the future events play out though and you even get to see younger versions of Organization 13. Back when they weren't evil!

Nothing eventful happens in Re:Coded.

Dream Drop Distance... Already talked about it. Let's move on before i'm forced to remember dream eaters and their annoyingly high pitched theme song.

Birth By Sleep 0.2: A Fragmentary Passage. Really good demo for KH3 in all honestly. I had a fun time with it and seeing Aqua's pain and journey through the realm of darkness for a whole 10 years was interesting.

And now we're at Kh3. The big game we waited so long for. And its... Alright. Nothing really spectacular. The graphics are certainly splendid and gameplay feels great! If not a bit too floaty. Thats a problem for some people, especially those who were avid fans of KH2. But I had no problem with it. I have yet to play it on critical but i've heard it makes things far more entertaining. As for story, its also alright. Not the grand ending I was expecting but it was really fun all things considered. Just another ride through more modern Disney worlds. But no Final Fantasy! I get that they feel KH can stand on its own legs now but you can't take out half the formula that people fell in love with originally. Then there's no battle arena or replayable boss fights. Doesn't have to be the Real Orginization 13. Just any replayable fights with end game gear would be enough.

As for my real problem with the games. Is the treatement of the third member of the original trio. Kairi. Oh, how this character has divided a good portion of the fan base just by existing. It feels like all the time that she is just a damsel for Sora/Riku to save and rescue. In the first game, thats fine. Whatever. She was unconcious the whole time and had her heart within Sora. Chain of Memories was a game about Sora losing his memories and Riku overcoming his darkness. Thats also fine. But in KH2. Really? She gets a keyblade and can't even handle a group of shadows? The lowest level of heartless? It's embarrassing. She's supposed to be a Princess of Heart. What's that even mean anymore? It doesn't even seem relevant.

KH2 should've been her moment to become a party member just like Riku did. I dont care that it means you could possibly not have Donald or Goofy. KH2 felt the most like the penultimate ending to the series than Kh3 did in my opinon. Having the choice between your KH1 buddies (Sora, Donald and Goofy) or the Island Trio (Sora, Riku and Kairi) would have added excellent variety and much needed development for Kairi as a person rather than leaving her as a one dimensional damsel in distress who has a Nobody with more internal conflict and character motivation. Moving past that... BBS is a prequel so nothing for the original trio except for meeting Aqua/Ven/Terra. And we come back to the dreaded DDD again.

If my vision for Kairi in KH2 couldn't have become a reality. Then why wasn't DDD Kairi's game? The set up was perfect. The heroes of light need to train to overcome almost double the amount of darkness agents. Kairi (and Axel) are practically beginners at wielding a Keyblade. It should've been their time to shine and get some love while occasionally helping Sora and Riku in their Mark of Mastery exam. Why did it have to be something you do alone? Well actually you're not alone you have the stupid Dream Eaters. Regardless it could have been the newbies learning how to get to Kh2 Sora's level while Sora goes beyond his limits.

As for KH3, it's just awful. Kairi's treatment is awful and everyone knows it. She said she was gonna help but hit one whole heartless in the finale. Better than KH2 i suppose. And as for the argument of her being "too weak" to try anything agaisnt Xemans. Really? She couldn't even like. Step on his foot? Pull agaisnt his grip or switch which hand the blade is in? Since the keyblade can teleport to your hands when you need it. I don't expect her to randomly become a Keyblade Master, but. I think we all would've prefer if she just did ANYTHING over what actually happened. It's sad. I hope KH4 will give Kairi the proper treatment and character development she deserves. But for all we know it might be another Sora/Riku dual protagonist game like CoM or DDD. What do you think?

[izzy-b-hands]

20-30!

Thank you so much for asking!!!!

20. Favorite character to write?

Already answered, but I don’t mind re-answering cuz I thought maybe I’d narrow my three way tie, but alas, no lol. Still a tie between Ahkmenrah, Snafu, and Skwisgaar.

21. Least favorite character to write? 

Ooh-tbh, Larry from NATM just because I feel like I always make him an asshole? Like, I haven’t published all my fic ideas for NATM because I keep making him really mean? And in some it works but in others I’m like ‘jesus chill Lee he’s just a Dude trying his best’ but also at the same time I feel the way Stiller played him and his character arc means he’s got some major ego to him as the films go on? Idk that isn’t a hot take or anything just me being frustrated with Ben Stiller lol

22. Favorite story you’ve ever written? 

Hard choice, because I love all my kids, but I cried after writing this one lol: https://aboutthatmelancholystorm.tumblr.com/post/186781309036/you-know-that-i-love-you

It hit some personal stuff for me, so to be able to have it work organically in a fic so I could also like, mini therapy session myself? Cool af. Also, ppl seemed to like this a lot too, and while that validation isn’t the only reason I write, it’s always cool when my writing makes ppl happy. 

23. Least favorite story you’ve ever written? 

I don’t really have a least favorite, but I do have some I’m more frustrated with, due to how long they took me to write, etc. Currently? The answer to this is my Mark the Date series because A. it is taking me a day and an age to finish it and B. I feel like it kinda flopped, so it’s hard to pull up any energy to finish it, but like...I may as well now lol. I’ll get it done eventually.

24. Favorite scene you’ve written? 

Oh god tbh I have too many I love just cuz like

I can go back to how I felt writing them and yeah

But as of most recent fics, I really this bit: 

-Snafu patted the blanket near his head, and waited for Eugene to put out his pipe and lay back beside him before snuggling close to him. “You could be right. Could be God. Could just be love.” “How’s that?” “I think love has its own way. Even before you meet someone, even before you know you’re fallin’ for ‘em. Love’s just…out there, like the air or somethin’. Finds you when the time is right, and finds who you click with. You gotta do the rest, the stayin’ in love part, but that bringing together, that first spark…that’s love just existing, and doin’ what it needs to so the world keeps spinnin’, so people make it through tough shit,” Snafu replied. “I like that,” Eugene said. “Think love did a good job with us. Makin’ sure we found each other.” Snafu pressed a kiss softly to the corner of Eugene’s mouth. “Sure did. Wouldn’t ever want to be with anyone else. I don’t even know what that looks like, and I don’t want to.” “Same here,” Eugene’s mouth was warm as he kissed him back. “Here’s to love for making sure you found me.” -

from this fic: https://aboutthatmelancholystorm.tumblr.com/post/186926226531/absolution-is-the-taste-of-your-lips

Because I’m sappy af more than I let on, and also this was a chance to like, write out my own feelings via Snafu. And that was a pretty cool and fulfilling thing for me, ya know? 

25. Favorite line you’ve ever written? 

oh god this is another hard one to narrow down but

I always come back to this line and go ‘oh shit did I really write that. Nah, someone better than me at this had to have. They briefly possessed me or something”:  

-Music and talking and shouting and footsteps collide kaleidoscopic in his ears, but none bearing the one sound that he’d run to if he heard it.-

from this fic, mentioned twice now in this post lol: https://aboutthatmelancholystorm.tumblr.com/post/186781309036/you-know-that-i-love-you

I really love alliteration, and for me this line just sums up how it feels to walk thru a city when you aren’t just wandering really, but are looking or waiting for someone, and have that awful yet sometimes good feeling of expecting to hear or see them but it feels like you’re waiting or searching forever and in the meantime the city just lives on around you, a stopped platelet stuck in a vein full of vitality. Like, idk if it hit any of my readers that way, but that’s what I was trying to get across lol, so the line always hits me hard in a good way when I scroll thru my writing tag and see it. 

26. Story you’re most proud of? 

Gosh

I gotta choose just one kid for this aldsfkja I’m bad at choosing I love my gaggle of ragtag goofballs. I have an original piece I’d choose for this, but I’ve never posted it on here, so I’m gonna choose out of my fanfic on here instead.

One I am really proud of is this one: https://aboutthatmelancholystorm.tumblr.com/post/186781309036/you-know-that-i-love-you

and I know it’s the third time it’s been part of an answer on here but

I really love this one idk. Thinking back to how I felt while writing it, how it all flowed in a certain way. The whole experience was just something else, and I’m proud of this one in a certain way I find myself, funnily enough, unable to describe. 

27. Best review you ever got? 

Okay this sounds cheesy but like

I really do love and appreciate every review or review-like thing I’ve ever gotten so I can’t choose just one for this

Like, y’all gotta understand, I’ve deleted some of it and erased traces of it from my blog, but I’ve written for years on here, I have some stuff on my ao3, and for the longest time I got nothing back, or very nearly nothing. Maybe a few likes, but no comments and not much else. I always just rolled with it and assumed I just wasn’t writing anything good enough to inspire reviews. Idk if that’s true or not, but in any case it means I cherish every comment, like, reblog, and anything review-like in nature because I’m so grateful to have it now, and I know it could well be pure luck that I stumbled up on a really supportive bunch of fandoms with great readers. 

In other words, thank y’all for every kind word and like and reblog and also I may be an immortal feeding off of validation of my art, but we’ll see on that last bit, because I haven’t tested it. 

28. Worst review you ever got?

One from middle school. I’d just finished my very first novel, gave it to a friend to read, and he said it ‘smacked of being too fanciful and childish, something only kids and women would read’ (it was a YA fantasy novel so I mean... what exactly he expected, idk cuz he knew what it was before I gave it to him, like it’s supposed to have those elements as a lot of these sorts of novels/stories do, and that isn’t a bad thing about them at all, so like...what his damage was idek.)

Also this is the same dude who texts me randomly and is really weird abt his friendship with me and happens to be an English teacher now (RIP to his students.) 

Anyway, after he said that I tossed a review right back, because well, middle school and also I was very upset with him because I’d not asked for anything other than a general ‘if you picked this up randomly and started it, would it suck you in enough to keep reading or would you put it down’ like that was literally all I needed him to answer for me. So I told him his latest novel (his second at that point) was essentially just him masturbating to his own opinions (because he’s an arguer, who loves to tell ppl they’re always wrong, and that’s by his own admission) for one hundred pages, and not in a way that anyone else would care to read. He was pissed, but so was I. We didn’t talk for a good week, and we had almost all our classes together lol. 

Like, getting nothing back in review sucks too, but this one has stuck with me forever. Best part? I mentioned it to him a few years back, and he only vaguely remembered it, and followed it with “but I’ve said a lot of rough stuff about your work. I mean, it deserved it at the time, but you might be good at this someday!” 

I didn’t smack him, but I really, really wanted to. 

29. Favorite story/poem of another author

This doesn’t specify on Tumblr or not, so I’ve got two: one from outside tumblr, and one from on here.

A. When I have Fears That I May Cease to Be by John Keats

When I have fears that I may cease to be   Before my pen has gleaned my teeming brain,Before high-pilèd books, in charactery,   Hold like rich garners the full ripened grain;When I behold, upon the night’s starred face,   Huge cloudy symbols of a high romance,And think that I may never live to trace   Their shadows with the magic hand of chance;And when I feel, fair creature of an hour,   That I shall never look upon thee more,Never have relish in the faery power   Of unreflecting love—then on the shoreOf the wide world I stand alone, and thinkTill love and fame to nothingness do sink.

B. Again, this Tumblr one could be a huge ass list because y’all on here are amazing, but one I’ve been rereading over and over again recently is @xmxisxforxmaybe ‘s Remnants series, which can be found here: https://xmxisxforxmaybe.tumblr.com/post/186702235396/remnants-complete-work

Like, Ahk as a character is captured so well, and I love the way the plot twines and also when the smut comes up? Very good A+ smut, something I value pretty highly on and off Tumblr because man, sometimes smut is just work to write, so I appreciate it when it’s really good. All around, this series has captured my heart and I legit have a link to it saved on multiple devices so if I need something to read, I can just pull it up right away. 

30. Hardest part of writing? 

Self-doubt. It’s the biggest hurdle for any artist, regardless of the art in question I think, but with writing it seems to double down a lot. Like, you have to really get out of your own head, even as you spend all your time there with your writing ideas. Shit gets weird and twisted, man. 

For the longest time, I really let self-doubt defeat me too, and I regret the time I lost to that. I still get hit with it randomly, cause I don’t think it every really goes away for any writer, not even the big names like Stephen King or Neil Gaiman (who I’m half tempted to @ on here purely because I wanna know his feelings on this stuff because I respect and admire him as an artist and his thoughts very much, but also he’s a very busy man so I’m not gonna bug him by doing that lol.) 

All there is to do is to work with it, push past it, and most importantly keep writing. I have days where that feels like the hardest thing, but each day I manage to get past it and get the words down? I let myself feel proud of that, and mark it as an achievement in my Big Book of Stuff I’ve Done in This Life. 

[aleenya]

first date / / hinanami prompt 01

@hinanami-week

First date prompt! <3 I love these babies from my childhood skghj. This is a bit of a long rambling mess but I hope someone finds enjoyment in it!

There was a reason Chiaki failed at dating sims. Beyond the obvious fact of how she was a girl of very little romantic experience, there was also the dilemma of just how frustratingly confusing people could be. Yes, even the weird 2D ones. Whilst the fast pace of arcade fighting games or the tricky logic riddles of puzzle games had her barely breaking out in a sweat, there was something profoundly next-level about taking someone's future - their happily ever after, so to speak - into her own hands and bringing about the optimal result. It was a responsibility she couldn't be trusted with. Kind of like how she couldn't be responsible for her own breakfast in the morning. Or for a healthy sleeping schedule. Oops. So, it was rather ironic that she'd somehow ended up with a boyfriend, even with her notoriously bad track record at breaking hearts and peeping on girls in the bathroom. (Hey, anime always did it, how was she supposed to know that was an automatic hit to the relationship flag she was trying to trigger?) With how constantly she failed at first dates in video games, the dreaded real-life first date of her own seemed like a loss just waiting to happen. Which was why, the week before it was due to occur, she'd holed herself up in her room with nothing but her trusty DS and PSP, five dating sims of various length and quality, and a copy of Animal Crossing - for when she inevitably needed a break, of course. The plan was this: she'd pour hours, hours, into clocking all five dating sims at nothing less than a 100% completion rate. No guides because that was cheating, and it wasn't like there was some walkthrough for her own date that she could keep checking throughout, though that would be ideal. Even if slightly under-handed. Oh well. She was snuggled up in the thick fluff of her weighted blanket; a bag of crumpled chips and five soda cans perched precariously on a pillow; she was ready for anything the next grueling week might throw at her. With the determination that only a true Ultimate Gamer could possess, Chiaki puffed out her cheeks in defiance of fate and set about her quest. Day one was easy enough. She'd managed to get around six hours into her first play-through with minimal errors. It was only once she'd chosen a girl to "seduce" (these games really were weird) that problems started to arise. Multiple choice questions of the proper conversational avenue to travel down never failed to muddle up her brain. Three choices were hard enough - how was she going to cope on her own date when there would be an endless array to choose from? The very thought sent anxiety swirling into the pit of her stomach. Maybe this was a good time to take that Animal Crossing break. The Animal Crossing break lasted two days. Day four was when Chiaki got serious again - and also when a pesky knock on the door interrupted her intense train of thought. "Come in," she called without taking her eyes off the screen. Yellow light pooled in from the hallway and cut through the stale darkness of her room. If Chiaki had been a vampire like the one she was trying to chat up in her visual novel then maybe she would've hissed and retreated further into her blanket cove. Which she did. Maybe she really was a vampire. That would explain the anemia. "Ugh. It reeks." A familiarly squeaky voice shattered the comfortable silence Chiaki had worked so hard on establishing. Saionji strode in pinching the bridge of her nose with Sonia and Akane at her tail. "Congrats, you've officially become a basement dweller." Chiaki peeked out from her cave of blankets, drawn like a moth to flame by the wafting scent of fresh food. "Oh. Hey guys. Long time no see." "We brought food," Sonia said with a lift of her arm to reveal the picnic basket dangling there. "We figured you might appreciate something of more ... sustenance." Akane then switched on the light, which summoned stars to glitter and dance within Chiaki's vision. All three girls let out audible gasps. "Chips? Seriously?" Akane again. Chiaki had burrowed deeper into her blanket fort in order to grant her throbbing eyes some small amount of reprieve. "Chiaki, you seriously can't have been living on cola and a bag of potato chips for the past four days!" Suddenly, the blanket was whipped out from over her head. Hiyoko plucked the console out of her hands before a very sleep-deprived Chiaki had a chance to react. "My Vampire Girlfriend? Okay, I was joking before, but you really have become a virgin basement dweller." Chiaki pointedly decided to ignore the mischievous young girl and directed her attention onto the basket that Sonia placed in front of her. Opening it up, she was greeted by a bento box ripe with fresh sushi, fluffy rice and spring rolls. "Courtesy of Hanamura," said Akane, "but don't worry, I can guarantee it's not spiked this time." Saionji huffed and dropped the DS. Chiaki was tired, but not tired enough to fail at catching her baby mid-air. "What's that look for?" "Don't act like you don't know!" They were a pleasant, albeit distracting, surprise. And so, for the rest of the day, Chiaki found herself unwillingly placed on a side quest. Sonia, Akane and Hiyoko had taken it upon themselves to clean her room up, with the latter grumbling and complaining but ultimately putting in the most work out of everyone. Sonia ended up at Chiaki's side, badgering her with questions about what game she was playing and, when Chiaki answered, why. "A practice run," said Chiaki simply, barely reacting as an empty cola can bounced off her head. "Sorry," Akane called sheepishly, "that was meant for the rubbish bin." "A practice run ...? Oh!" Sonia's face lit up. "Don't tell me! Do you have a date?" "Maybe. Tomorrow." Saying it out loud, the passage of time sunk into Chiaki with a force she hadn't expected. In a rare show of defeat, she allowed the DS to slip from her hands and topple to the floor. "But it's no use. I haven't learned anything. What am I even supposed to do?" Sonia picked up her DS, glanced at the screen, then dropped it in a striking flash of surprise. "I'm guessing not that," she said. Hiyoko peeked over her shoulder. "Aw man, even pixelated you can tell it's small." "Give me that!" Akane snatched up the console and showed the screen to Chiaki. "Seriously, this is like the worst guide you could have for this. It's not gonna teach you anything because it's not real." "That's not true," Chiaki quietly countered, "just because games aren't real doesn't mean they can't teach stuff." "Maybe, yeah, but not this type of game. You want advice? Then here's the best I can offer. Just be yourself!" "Myself?" Chiaki tilted her head. "But ... what if he doesn't like myself?" "Oh for the love of - he wouldn't be going on a date with you if he didn't, numbnuts!" Hiyoko gently thumped her fist down on Chiaki's unruly mop of hair. "That's true," Sonia said, "besides, who wouldn't like you for who you are? We certainly do!" When the trio had finally left with good luck wishes and pleas that she at least eat half the bento tonight, Chiaki found herself alone in a spotless room with a less-than spotless mind. They'd given her a lot to think about, more than the dating sim had in three days in fact. Just be myself. She didn't sleep that night. Chiaki kept powering through her dating sim, the four others still lying in a dejected heap at her side. Even if she wasn't taking strict lessons from it anymore, the idea of giving up and never completing it felt like a cardinal sin. She'd come this far; what was another twenty hours of gameplay in the grand scheme of things? On the dawn of the fifth day, there was another knock on her door. When they didn't come in upon her calling out that it was alright to, Chiaki was forced to untangle herself from her nest and answer it. Even though it was to be expected, the very image of Hajime standing in her doorway sent a jolt to her heart. "Ah, sorry." He threw up his hands in an apology, perhaps thinking he'd woken her up from a nap. Chiaki wasn't one to lose her cool. This definitely stood true now, but still, she couldn't help flushing slightly. She'd been so engrossed in her game that she'd nearly forgotten all about what she'd spent all week preparing for in the first place. "You don't have to apologize," she murmured, turning her back on him and retreating into the familiar darkness, "come in. You're very welcome." Hajime seemed a tad nervous as he slowly slipped his way inside. "What's wrong? Have you never been in a girl's room before?" It was supposed to be a joke, but it provoked a flustered reaction from Hajime and a stream of fumbled failed sentences. "Kidding." Chiaki flopped back into her blanket nest and patted at the crumpled spot at her side. Glancing side to side, Hajime made his way to where she'd made herself comfortable and collapsed in turn. "I've been worried about you," he began as he pulled at the cuff of his shirt. "You haven't replied to any of my texts. You've been eating, right?" "Sorry." He'd sent texts? Chiaki hadn't looked at her phone since the start of the week. "I've been really busy practicing." "Practicing? For what?" "For today." She showed Hajime her screen. He recoiled. "Oh ... I didn't realize you were into those kinds of games, Chiaki." "I'm not," she replied, shoulders slumping and a sigh floating off her lips, "can you keep a secret, Hajime?" With how serious she said it, Hajime's expression turned grave. "Sure, I guess?" Chiaki threw him the most serious look she could muster, complete with her cheeks puffed out in a pout and eyebrows furrowed tightly into creases. Her hands unconsciously squeezed at the console she still held. "Dating sims are my kryptonite." "Oh ... Dating sims are your - wait, what?" "I'm really bad at them," Chiaki said. She was unable to keep a tinge of sadness from her voice. "Not that I usually mind. But ever since last week, when you said you wanted us to go out somewhere, I thought that I should be prepared. It's no use though. I guess, on the bright side, I did make it to the H scene." She flashed her screen again, to which Hajime, with a sheepish smile, pushed it back down. "How about we don't take advice from porn games, yeah? They're not exactly the real deal." "Huh. Akane said the same thing." "She did?" "She said I should just be myself. But I don't know if myself is all that much fun to be around." "Why wouldn't it be?" Hajime scooted closer. "If I wanted a 2D girl, I'd just play ..." He picked up one of her strewn dating sims at random and pulled a face at the title, "Sexy Magic Witch School - seriously, Chiaki, where do you get these?" "I have my sources." "I'm not sure if I want to know what those are ..." Chiaki had to admit, with how natural their conversation was flowing, she could get used to this. She hadn't even hit her pause button yet. Unable to keep the smile from her face, Chiaki turned back to her DS and asked, "so what would you like to do?" "As in?" "You know. Dating. That kind of stuff. We're supposed to go out, yeah?" "We're not supposed to do anything," Hajime replied. "Really, I'm ... as good at these types of things as you are. But we don't have to go anywhere if you don't want, or do anything that you don't want. That's not what dates are about." "They aren't?" Why did everything have to be so complicated? Her dating sims had explicitly said otherwise, yet Hajime was saying they didn't have to do anything. Before she could formulate a proper response, Hajime changed the topic unexpectedly and asked, "have you slept?" Oh. Sleep. "I've had one or two naps," she mused, thinking back on her five days of intensive training. She'd been so caught up and involved in what she was playing that she'd barely allowed herself the luxury of sleep. She was definitely starting to feel it now. Chiaki rubbed at her sore eyes and swallowed a yawn. Hajime's flustered expression gave way to amusement. He sighed, but Chiaki didn't miss the smile on his lips. "Seriously, what am I going to do with you?" "Hopefully not this." She flashed her DS screen again and Hajime spluttered in embarrassment. "I like you, Hajime, but you haven't triggered that relationship flag yet." "You know that's not what I meant!" She laughed. Hajime climbed to his feet and extended his hand; she took it, stumbling upwards on wobbly knees and feeling the ache in her legs that could only accumulate from five days of non-stop sitting with only the occasional bathroom break. "But is it really okay?" she asked as he guided her to the bed and tossed her blanket back over her body. "I know you were really looking forward to this all week." "Who's to say this isn't our first date now?" said Hajime. "Ah, but, if you'd rather I go ..." She grasped his hand and tugged him down onto the bed. Hajime let out a less than manly squeal and fell down on top of her, which Chiaki recalled was a very common trope in My Vampire Girlfriend that signaled she was on the right romantic route. So she'd done something right after all! This was definitely a romance flag trigger. Chiaki could almost see the achievement popping up on Steam. "Path unlocked," Chiaki said cryptically, with a teasing smile. Hajime scrambled off, face red, and Chiaki twisted around onto her side. "You can sleep next to me, if you'd like," she said. "I can't think of a better way to have a date." Though visibly embarrassed and tense, he did lie down to face her. Chiaki grabbed his hand and intertwined her fingers with his own. "Jeez," he said, "why am I not surprised that napping is your idea of a perfect first date?" "It's not yours?" she quizzed, voice thick with the encroaching haze of unconsciousness. "I'm not opposed," he hummed. "Good." Pause. Save progress. And take a screenshot - just for good measure. At least, that's what Chiaki would have done if this were a dating sim event with a cute CG. But it wasn't. And that was for the best. Chiaki had decided that in this case, nothing could beat the real thing.

[huntertales]

Part One: Family Ties. (As Time Goes By S08E12)

Episode Summary: Sam, Dean and the reader are surprised when a man who claims to be Henry Winchester, the boys' grandfather, suddenly appears in their motel room closet demanding to know where he can find John. Henry has time traveled to the future to stop a demon named Abbadon. Through their grandfather, the brothers and the reader learn more about their bloodline and legacy. The reader even learns about her father, Andrew, and his own past that turned him into a demon.  Word Count: 5,868. Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader

Previous Part | Supernatural Rewrite Masterlist

Pregnancy was supposed to be a "beautiful thing." Right at this very moment you were creating a new life, a future human that was half of you and half of Dean. While you carried on through your day and slept at night, in your womb the baby was growing its limbs and internal organs, its small little heart was beating away. Maybe it was a wonderful concept. And maybe the struggle would be worthwhile when you were at the end of all of this, with the newborn you carried for nine months cradled in your arms. But right now, from how your morning was going, you wanted pregnancy to be like the way you thought it was when you were six. Where a stork dropped a baby at your front door one day—and congratulations. You’re a parent. There was no morning sickness, no obnoxious symptom to disrupt your daily life.

You were pretty sure this was going to be your first—and only—child you were ever going to have in your life and you were already hating everything about it. You were barely scratching the surface of how symptoms you were going to experience. Not to mention, the body changes you were going to have along with the weight gain, and the worst of it all, the child birth you were going to have to endure for your little bundle of joy. You didn't understand how women out there in this world who went through this multiple times in their lives just to have a family.

"Remind again why I want this baby?"

Sam grimaced slightly from the view he was being subjected to this morning with you face down in the motel toilet, doing everything  in your power to make the churning feeling in your stomach go away. You had three glorious days of almost no symptoms that ended with you complaining about the smell of someone's food being awful or you upchucking breakfast. Your streak was broken when you woke up with an upset stomach which you prayed would just remain as what it was. Your luck went sour like your stomach had after you managed to get dressed and ready for the day. This was where Sam found you after he came in your motel room to ask if you wanted breakfast. Your response was throwing up from just even thinking about the word.

"Relax. You have a few more weeks before the morning sickness is supposed to end." Sam, who had been leaning against the door frame, reassured you that the worst would soon be over. Not like he was the one who had to endure this punishment. You lifted yourself up from the toilet to give the man a glare from his stupid facts. Before he could say anything, you found yourself quickly returning back to your position face down when another wave of nausea hit you. "When you're done puking your guts out, make sure you take your prenatal.”

You gave the man a sarcastic thumbs up at the plan as you coughed one more time, getting the last remaining content of your stomach before it was empty. You waited a moment or two for you to gather some strength to lift yourself up from the toilet bowl and push yourself up into a sitting position. You flushed the toilet and contemplated how the hell you were going to get back up on your feet. All though you were starting to feel somewhat normal again, when you attempted to push yourself back up, you were still feeling a little bit dizzy. Sam outstretched his hand for you to grab ahold of so he could easily lift you back up without even breaking a sweat.

“Thanks for the helpful reminder, Mom.” You said. You walked past him and back into your motel room to wash the aftertaste out of your mouth when you fixed yourself a drink of tap water from the small kitchen area and spit it out into the sink after gargling for a few seconds.

"How'd you sleep last night?" Sam curiously asked. You shrugged your shoulder shoulders as you grabbed the light pink bottle from the counter top, thinking the man was just trying to make small talk. But it seemed he was checking up on how you were doing in the exact way you told him to stop doing. "Have you been getting enough?"

"You know, the five cups of coffee with the espresso shot and energy drink that I had yesterday really made it seem like it was gonna be kind of tough. But the handful of Xanax that I took really knocked me out last night." You said. Your tone of voice was causal as you shook out one pill into the palm of your hand. Sam's expression showed you that he wasn't the least bit amused. "Yes, Sammy, I've been getting enough. I try to get at least seven hours, eight if I'm lucky. And if it makes you feel better, I took a nap yesterday from the drive out of Michigan and then crawled right into bed after we got to the motel.”

"Good. I'm just checking." Sam said. You let out a sigh, knowing it was more than just being a concerned friend who was trying to make sure you were getting your recommended sleep. As you filled up your glass with more tap water to help swallow the pill, Sam found himself asking you another personal question. "Have you been making sure you're drinking—"

"Yes, Sam! I've been drinking eight glasses of water. I avoid caffeine. I sleep much as I can and take naps when I don’t get enough. I'm trying not to get stressed. But you're driving me up the wall and making me want to take a drink from all your questions!" You accidentally found yourself snapping at the younger man when you realized he was doing it again. He was being overbearing and obsessed with every move you made. You popped the pill into your mouth and took a sip to swallow it down. "It's not that I don't appreciate you being my midwife. I do. But I think you've just been…”

"Obsessed? I like the term helpful." Sam said. His lips stretched into a small smile as you rolled your eyes. You knew that you would be a nervous wreck without his support. And things had been going smoothly over the past few weeks with him helping you keep track of everything and hold you accountable to the things you needed to do. You couldn't help but feel there was another reason why he was being so helpful, other than for the sake of him doing it because this was your niece or nephew you were carrying. There was always more. “If I have to be honest, it's been a good distraction for me. Another reason to remind me for what I had to do."

"Is the baby the reason why you didn't go back to Amelia?" You asked him in a dead serious tone of voice. You always wondered what really made him want to stick around after he had a life that he wanted for so long, with a woman he loved for the first time in a long while. "What if I wasn't? Would have you stayed anyway?"

"It's part of it. But it was the right thing that I needed to do. There's still so much going on, and soon, it's not just gonna be the three of us." Sam said. His reasoning sounded legitimate and understanding. You nodded your head as you continued to finish the glass of water. "Speak of Dean, I convinced him to stay in town for another day. Said you weren't feeling too good and needed to go to the doctors. I made an appointment at noon for us to see an obstetrician."

You found yourself accidentally starting to choke on the water you were trying to swallow down after you heard the words come out of Sam's mouth. "You, what? You had no right to go behind my back and do that! What if Dean finds out what really is going on?”

“He won't. Not right now. I just want to make sure everything is fine with you and the baby." Sam said. You felt yourself suddenly feeling a little stupid for the outburst you had when your mind wandered in the wrong direction. "You're almost three months and you haven't even been once. Don't you want to be safe?”

"Obviously. I've been dying to take a peek at the thing that's been making me miserable." You mumbled. Your hand rested itself on your stomach as you felt yourself grow a smile at the fact you were going to be able to hear the baby's heartbeat for the first time and its tiny little body on the ultrasound. "But it's not like I had the time lately. Between runaway prophets, Cas acting all funky, not to mention you and Dean having your issues. My calender's been kind of booked up."

“Well, clear a few hours for me. I was thinking after we get done with the appointment we could have some lunch. Just the two of us.” Sam suggested. “You know, if you’re done puking your guts out.”

Sam had you thinking the afternoon could have been a nice and sweet bonding time between the both of you, as this was going to be the first spur of the moment appointment you should of had weeks ago, but then he kept on talking. You mocked his smile at his sense of humor and nodded your head for him to start walking out the motel room. after you slipped on your shoes to head to the boys' room that was next door to yours. Dean had been getting ready while Sam was questioning your every life choice you had been making over the past few days.

"Morning, sweetheart." Dean greeted you in his usual way, his boots in his hand. You smiled at him as you attempted to walk past him and to the bed, but you found yourself being pulled back lightly by Dean when he grabbed you by the wrist. You knew exactly what he was trying to do when you saw him leaning forward for a kiss, but for his own safety, you turned your head slightly so his lips hit your cheek instead. He gave you a slightly confused expression at your odd behavior this morning. "What? My morning breath that bad?"

"No. I'm not feeling all that great. Didn't want you to catch whatever I have." You said. You rubbed your stomach as you made your way over to one of the beds to sit yourself down. "I think the diner food I had last night is messing with my stomach or something. Or maybe I have the stomach bug or something. I heard that's going around."

“Really? Weren’t you not feeling too good a couple months ago? Come to think of it, you haven’t been acting all that right for a while now. Maybe you should go to the doctors.” Dean said, agreeing with the plan his brother had discussed with him last night after arriving at the motel that was only supposed to be a one night stay. “You know, I can take you if you want—” “No!” You found yourself cutting off the man from his generous offer from your personal panic at the thought of him going anywhere near the appointment Sam had made for you. Dean’s slightly taken aback expression made you realize what you had done. Your lips stretched into a smile as you composed yourself to give him the fake reason why so he would back off. "No, that's okay. I know you said you wanted to head into town to get some supplies. And complaining last night that you never get any time to yourself. Sam can take me. We'll be gone for a few hours. It works out.” "I mean, I was kidding about the whole 'alone' time. We were stuck in the car together for ten hours. But I got a good night's sleep. I'm ready for the day to be wasted in Urgent Care." Dean said. His words might have sounded like sarcasm, but he was offering up the chance to help figure out what was going on with you. He gave you a smile, wondering if it might help convince you. "I can make Sam do the supply run." “Don’t worry about it, Dean. It’s fine.” You reassured him, brushing off his offer. “Right, Sammy?” “Yeah. Totally.” Sam said. “Don’t worry about it.” Dean felt the slightest bit disappointed at the idea of not taking you, his girlfriend, to do the one thing that he should do when you weren't feeling well. Instead it was his brother who was doing it. Come to think of it, he noticed that you and Sam were acting awfully close these past few weeks since he decided to stay. Closer than normal. Like this morning when he was getting ready. Sam headed over to your motel room after getting ready. Normally the younger Winchester was the early riser, you were next and Dean crawled out of bed a short while later. All of you ended up in the same space to try and wake up with your morning coffee before getting a start on the day. But lately the routine changed. During the times that you and him shared a motel bed he always woke up with you still sleeping right next to him, or still in the same room. But he found himself back to the same sleeping arrangements with his brother like how it used to be while you wanted to bunk alone. And yet he always still found himself waking up with nobody. You and Sam were in your room having a full blown conversation. When he got himself ready and headed over, the second he stepped into the room, the both of you instantly fell silent. And when Dean asked what you were talking about, you always responded with "nothing." Dean didn't know why, but he felt a little bit...left out. It was like he was thrown out of the loop about what was going on. And it seemed like it was important. He knew things between him and his brother were a little bit rough over the past month since he gave up the lifestyle he wanted. Things were slowly getting better every day. But for some reason he found himself feeling like he was being excluded from a secret that you wouldn’t tell him. Maybe it was all in his head. You and Sam could have been discussing the simplest of topics that he might not have been interested in. Yet each time he tried to figure out what you were talking about, you brushed him off that it was just "nothing" or you changed the subject completely. It was nothing, Dean tried to reassure himself.But he didn’t know why that little white lie wasn’t helping him feel better.

Dean mocked his brother at his offer when the man turned his back to go to the bathroom as you sat down on the bed, distracted by your phone when it buzzed a few times to notify you of a new text message. Dean sat himself down on the chair and went to put his shoes on. You felt your lips stretch into a smile at the familiar names pop up on your screen, it was Charlie getting back to you after the both of you had been texting over the past few days since you left the festival to help keep her crown. And the other was from Josh, who wanted to check up on you after not hearing you from so long. You and the boys fell into a moment of silence doing your own things, and as you were writing out a response to Josh to reassure him you very much alive, your attention drifted away from the screen when you heard what to be rattling.

You wondered where it was coming from in the room, expecting it to be near the wall closest to the parking lot when a noisy car was drifting by. However you noticed that it was coming from the most odd place of all—the motel closet door You furrowed your brow in absolute confusion when you heard it open and slam shut without anyone touching it. You tucked your phone back into your pocket when you saw a complete stranger was crouching down on the ground. No rhyme or reason of how he got here. You slowly looked over at the boys, wondering if you were losing your mind. But they were taken back at the stranger in their room.

“Which one of you is John Winchester?” The stranger asked. The three of you responded with blank expressions as you pushed yourself up to your feet as he did the same. But your silent response to a man who had been dead for years wasn’t what he wanted. “Please, time is of the essence! Which one of you is John Winchester?”

"Uh," Sam gave the man a verbal answer. "Neither."

"That's impossible. That's absolutely..." The man muttered underneath his breath, his eyes falling to the ground as he began to think to himself at what step he must have messed up. Your eyes drifted to the boys for a moment, wondering what in the hell was going on here. He wiped his nose, which you noticed was dripping a little bit of blood. "What did I do wrong?"

"Who the hell are you, mister?" Dean questioned the man.

"Not now. I'm thinking." The man said, brushing off the three of you as if you weren't here. Dean did what any smart hunter would do, he slammed the stranger straight into the closet door he jumped out of, pinning him so he couldn't run or do anything stupid. But it seemed the stranger wasn't here to hurt you. "Please. I can assure you there’s no need for violence. One of you must know John Winchester.”

“I’ll tell you what,” Sam said. “when one of us falls out of your closet, then you can ask the questions.

“Yes, my apologies.” The stranger as polite enough to correct his behavior before he directed his attention to the older man that had his forearm pressed against his chest. Is it absolutely essential, sir, that you keep your hands on me?" Dean’s eyes narrowed on the man, as if he was showing that he wasn’t hesitant to pull any moves on him if he had to, but he backed away from the stranger. He pulled out a white handkerchief from his suit pocket to wipe his nose clean. "Thank you. Lady and gentlemen, in the absence of any and all other explanations, I'm afraid this has been  a marvelous, tragic misunderstanding. I'll be on my way."

Sam stepped in front of the man, stopping him from going anywhere. “That’s not happening.”

“There are things of grave importance.” The stranger said. It seemed he was growing impatient and frustrated from being stopped to complete what he was trying to do. But you weren’t exactly pleased at seeing an unfamiliar face jumping out of the motel room closet. "I do not have time to deal with the likes of you."

The man tried to step past Sam to get to the door, but in the matter of seconds, Dean whipped out a pair of handcuffs and worked with his brother to get the man pinned down so they could cuff him. "You're not going anywhere, double oh seven.” Dean said. “Till we get some answers.”

You crossed your arms over your chest as you watched the brothers try to cuff the stranger to the motel chair. There was a bit of a struggle between all of them, but when you heard clicking, you thought the stranger was going to be safely secured. However he managed to pull a fast one, somehow cuffing the boys to the chair together. You were too distracted from what just happened, letting the stranger slip away outside. It seemed the stranger who looked like he just jumped out from the "Mad Men" time period knew a few moves.

“How did he do that? You’ve got to be kidding me!” Dean grunted. He struggled to get himself out of the cuffs along with his brother, but it was no use without the key. “You gonna stand there and stare at us Y/N, or are you gonna help us?”

"Nah. I think I’m gonna watch you two Houdini your way out of this one. I've always wanted to learn how you get out of handcuffs so quickly." You sarcastically replied. Dean didn’t think you were the least bit funny. You rolled your eyes and made your way over to the bag where he got the cuffs from to get the key and help them get free. "Relax. Don't get your boxers in a twist."

You helped the brothers get free from the cuffs after you found the key buried deep in one of the pockets. After you did so, the three of you wasted no time in heading out the motel door to see where the stranger wandered off to on foot. You scanned the parking lot to see if you might be able to find a distant figure trying to make a run for it to go where ever he expected to find a dead man. But he wasn't going anywhere on foot. He was trying to hot wire the Impala. Dean wasted no time in creeping up on the man when he was leaning over to pull out a few wires to try and hot wire up the engine. Before he could be successful, the sound of the safety going off Dean's gun made him stop.

“Nice taste in wheels.”

The man sat up straight in the seat, knowing well enough there was no way out of this one. He could try, but it would only end up with a bullet through his skull. “Yours, I presume?”

All of you were back in the motel room with the man with no game, who demanded to know where the late John Winchester was. You stood back with Dean as Sam conducted the usual experiments on the stranger to make sure that he wasn't a monster. He was cut with a silver knife and doused in a bit of borax to cross off shifter or a leviathan. The last step was holy water, which the only reaction he gave was a slight chuckle, seeming to know exactly what it was you were testing him for. He was clean of everything you hunted.

“I could have told you that.” He replied as he pulled down his suit sleeve to cover the slice mark on his arm that proved he wasn’t any monster who was affected by silver.

“Yeah, well, you can start by telling us everything before I beat it out of you.” Dean said, pushing himself up to his feet and approached the stranger with his gun still in his hand.

“I’m quite certain this is all beyond your understanding, my alpha-male-monkey friend.” The stranger thought it was a smart enough to make insults to the man who was holding a loaded weapon. You crossed your arms over your chest as he continued talking as if you were too stupid to understand much of anything. “And violence will not help you comprehend this any easier.”

“Let me tell you what I understand!” Dean shouted at the man. He pointed the barrel of the gun directly at the stranger when he was now leaning down at his level, his other hand holding a fistful of his jacket. “Some asshat pops out of my closet asking about my dad, smashes up my ride. So why am I not getting violent, again?”

"John Winchester is your father?" The stranger asked. He sounded rather surprised, like he had no idea the man he was looking also had a few children of his own. You were starting to wonder who he was and where he came from. Before you could ask for any formal introductions, you found your gaze wandering away from the man when you felt the ground beneath your feet starting to shake again. You looked over your shoulder to see that it was coming from the closet door again, the exact same place where the stranger jumped straight out of. He jumped out of the chair when he realized what was going on. “Oh, my God.”

“What?” You asked him, having a feeling he knew what was coming.

He tried warning for you and the boys to run, but it was too late for that. The motel closet door swung open on its own, and yet another person came walking straight through, but this time, it appeared to a woman dressed like she was straight out of the fifties. You noticed from the style of her dress and the pearl necklace. What caught your attention was the blood stains all over the pale blue fabric. You had a feeling it didn't belong to her. The woman eyed all of you for a moment before directing her attention to the man you were trying to interrogate just moments ago. But it seemed from the turn of events he wasn't the enemy here, she was.

“Henry. Silly man, you forgot to lock the door. But then spells were never your best subject, were they?" The woman spoke directly to the stranger you knew as Henry now. She moved her gaze away from the man and towards the sight of three unfamiliar faces. Dean might have been holding a loaded gun, but she didn't seem the least bit fearful. "Why don't you be a doll and give me what I want? And I promise to kill you and your friends quickly."

“You know I can’t do that.” Henry told her.

Her lips stretched farther into a smile, “You’re not a fighter, Henry.”

When a mysterious woman covered in blood comes through your motel room closet door, you didn't think it was a smart enough to engage in conversation with her. Dean attempted to take his shot when she was momentarily distracted, but she proved herself to a woman of many talents, and something that wouldn't be the least bit harmed with a simple gun. With the simple flick of a wrist, you and the boys found yourself flying backwards across the motel room, your back colliding with the wall before you dropped to the hardwood floors.

You felt yourself momentarily distracted by the pain you felt in your backside before you rolled to your side. You pressed a hand to your stomach as your mind instinctively remembered about the very thing inside of your body that could be lost due to something like this. Being flung across the room and falling was going to leave a lot more damage than just some bruises. You had a couple tumbles here and there, but nothing bad as this. As pain in your backside began to subside, you began looking for any warning signs that something could be wrong—cramping, severe back pain. But you felt fine, the breath knocked out of your lungs started to come back.

“Josie.” Henry tried talking to the woman he must have known, who was possessed by a demon if you had to take a guess. “I know you’re still in there.”

“I’m afraid Josie’s indisposed, pet.” The demon mocked the man. “It looks like it’s just you and me.”

The demon laughed at Henry's attempt to reach his friend that was buried deep inside her own skin. She might have thought that she was in control here, but little did she realize that you had something to kill her once and for all. Dean crept up behind the woman and shoved the demon knife straight into her back.. You heard her let out a piercing scream of pain when she felt the blade being shoved into her backside as she dropped to her knees before Dean yanked out the weapon. Ruby’s knife had never failed you once when it came to killing a demon, but it seemed like this wasn’t the case here. Josie huffed out a heavy breaths as she placed her hand on the lower of her back, easing herself through the pain before she somehow went back to normal.

“What in the fresh hell is going on?” You found yourself muttering underneath your breath. You stared at the demon just across the room who was still breathing, and fully recovered from a wound that should have killed her. When you saw Sam coming forward and helping you back up to your feet, you quickly grabbed a hold of his hand and tried to distance yourself from her far as possible.

“Well,” The demon composed herself as she inhaled another deep breath when the pain finally subsided. “That is no way to treat a lady.”

You didn't exactly want to stick around to see if one more stab wound might be the one to kill the demon once and for all. You had a feeling it would be like poking the beast before she decided to rip you all apart limb by limb. Sam yanked on your arm and nearly pushed you forward so you were in front of him and he could follow right behind. The both of you raced out the front door with his brother and Henry, making a run for it before the demon could decide she wanted a bit of revenge.

You nearly threw yourself into the back and crawled across the leather seats to give Sam much room as you could before he was getting inside himself fast as he could. Dean turned on the engine and backed out of the parking lot in a lightning fast speed, and before you were even prepared, he slammed on the gas pedal, getting all of you the hell out of here. You sank into your seat as you inhale a deep breath from everything that was going on faster than you could keep up with. As the motel began to grow nothing more than a distant landmark in the rear view mirror, you looked over at Sam, having a feeling you weren't going to be making it to that doctor's appointment after all.

+ + +

Dean decided to make the choice of driving into the outskirts of town to give all of you some distance from the demon. It gave you enough time to catch your breath and figure out what was going on, and why she wasn't affected by the knife. The Impala came towards a stop when Dean parked it at least a few miles away from any near places, giving you at least some privacy. You got out of the backseat along with Sam, Henry was the first one out as he bolted straight out to the grassy fields where he could freely get sick from what was going on. You grimaced when you heard the familiar noises you were making just a short time ago. You looked away when he coughed up the contents of his stomach straight to the ground.

"Can you kinda not do that?" You muttered underneath your breath. “I already puked once this morning. I would rather not do it again.”

"Are you okay?" Sam asked the other man, deciding to be the one to show a bit of concern.

“Yes, I will be.” Henry reassured all of you. He pulled out the handkerchief from his pocket once more to wipe away the bile from around his mouth to compose himself and get back up to his feet. “It’s just all the adventures I enjoy are usually of the literary nature.”

"Yeah, well, now that you're done blowing chunks, you want to tell us who Betty Crocker was?" Dean questioned the man, thinking it was about time all of you got some answers to figure out what the hell was going on.

“Abbadon.” Henry answered. “She’s a demon.”

“No kidding. Where’d she come from?” You asked him. “And while we’re at it, where did you come from?”

"She's from hell." Henry said. Your face fell in annoyance at the blatant answer you could have figured out for yourself. He adjusted his suit sleeves and continued on answering your questions about himself. "I'm from Normal, Illinois—1958."

"Yeah, right." Dean smiled slightly, thinking the man was pulling his leg for the hell of it. Henry responded by giving the older Winchester a deadpan stare. When you realized the man was telling the truth, you let out a sigh, wondering how your life always kept getting stranger and stranger the more you stayed in this hunting business. "Seriously? Dude's time traveling through motel room closets? That's what we've come to?"

“Well, think of it this way,” You said, trying to see the silver lining of this situation. “at least the crazy is coming to us this time.”

“If you could just take me to John, we could clear all this up, I'm sure.” Henry said.

“I've told you that's not gonna happen.” Dean said in a sharp tone. Henry had the audacity to ask why he couldn't. The older Winchester was feeling himself being pushed to the edge of what his patience would allow himself to handle before he lost it on the stranger he only knew the first name of and the year he was from. And for some reason he wanted to see a man that had been long gone. So, Dean turned to the man to tell him the cold, hard truth. “Because he’s dead!”

Henry's face dropped from the information that made it seem like his heart dropped into the pit of his stomach just from the expression on his face alone. He found himself muttering no underneath his breath only for him to hear as he turned around, his back to the three of you. You furrowed your brow slightly from his reaction that seemed rather odd. John could have only been so young back in the late fifties. You didn't understand why this Henry person traveled fifty-five years into the future to see him.

"What's it to you?" Sam asked the man.

"Everything." Henry said. "I'm his father."

You felt yourself being thrown through a loop at what you just heard. You've traveled back in the past twice to meet Mary and John when they were still a young couple, you've even met the boys' grandparents on their mother's side. But you've never had the pleasure of meeting John's father, who you heard walked out on the family when he was a young child. And here the man was, somehow in the year 2013, time traveling and dragging along demons with him. 

In this very moment you were standing next to two Winchester generations. And if that wasn’t weird enough, you were carrying the future generation that would be brought into this in the next seven and a half months. There was one question that crossed your mind; What the hell were you getting yourself into with this family?

[Next Part]

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[smilingformoney]

Platinum Diamond Scene: Fountain Hopping with Shane

You: As if I could turn down an epic fountain adventure. Who do you think I am? Shane: Good point. Glad some things never change.

Hank drops you and Shane off at a small park on his campus. You: Oh, man, Shane. It’s been age since we fountain-hopped. Shane: Remember last time, at the Fort Lucenne Mall, when the cops showed up? You: And we had to run from the cops in our underwear. You: Yeah, that’s not the kind of thing one easily forgets. You begin walking down the streetlight-illuminated path. You: So… tell me more about how film school’s going. Shane: It’s… humbling. I’m learning a lot, but it’s hard to focus on creating anything because I’m frozen before I even start. Shane: I see what everyone else is working on, and everyone is so great. Maybe I don’t belong in the same program as them. Someone made a mistake in the admissions office.

You: Shane… -I believe in you.

You: You’re the most talented film visionary I know. You earned your spot, same as everyone else. You: So take advantage of the opportunities, resources, and connections you can make while you’re there! You deserve to learn, same as everyone else. Shane takes a deep breath. Shane: Thanks, Cadence. I sure hope so.

-You need to snap out of it.

You: You got lucky enough to be given this opportunity, so you can’t waste it. You: Who cares about innate talent? What really pushes someone over the edge to being great is the work they put in, and that they’re brave enough to take a stab at it, even if they fall on their face multiple times. Shane: Whoa. Shane: That was fire. Can I record you saying that so I can use it to pump myself up in the mornings? You: Nope, it was a fleeting strike of brilliance. You had to experience it in the moment. Shane: Aw, damn. Shane: But you’re totally right, Cadence. I’ll think about what you said.

You turn the corner to a secluded courtyard with a huge, ornate fountain that’s bellowing crystal-clear water. You: Whoa, Shane! This is gorgeous! Shane: Yeah, I come walk here between classes when I need to take a break. It’s amazing during golden hour. A lot of people go picnicking. Shane: Well, um. Should we… You: Get down to our skivvies? Sure. Shane: Well, I mean, I just… You: Come on, Shane. We’ve seen each other in our underwear, like, hundreds of times. Don’t make it weird. Shane: Okay, fair. The two of you start peeling off your clothes. You glance over at Shane and his abs, and… Whoa, okay. Someone’s been working out since he started film school. Shane: Alright, let’s go! You: Wait, are you really still gonna wear your beanie? Shane: Cadence! You know this beanie is sacred. I never take it off.

You: (I should…) -Compliment him on how he looks.

You: Whoa, Shane. Have I ever told you how handsome you look? Shane: Uh, what? You… you think I look… You: Like a sexy, hipster Abercrombie model. Shane: I didn’t know hipster and Abercrombie could go together. But thank you. I think. There’s a long, slow pause. Both of you staring into each other’s eyes. Neither of you saying anything. Shane: You look, um… good… too. You: Thanks. Thank you. I appreciate that.

-Steal his beanie!

Before Shane can react, you snatch the beanie away! You: And now… the sacred beanie is mine! Shane: Noooo! That’s sacrilege! Shane chases you around the fountain until you’re both laughing and breathless. Shane: Alright, fine. You can keep it for now. Safeguard it well for me. You: Oh, don’t worry. I’ll hold it in escrow. You can trust me. Shane: Escrow? I was gonna say theft, but okay.

Shane: Well? Should we do this thing? You: We should definitely do this thing. Shane reaches out and takes your hand, and the two of you leap over the low wall of the fountain. You: Whoa! There are so many pennies on the floor of this thing. I almost slipped. Shane: Careful, careful! I got you. Shane reaches around you and holds you steady. It’s kind of like a hug. Is it more than a hug? You’re both in your underwear, after all. Shane: You know what we have to do now, right? You: What? Shane crouches down, then springs back up with a handful of pennies. Shane: We gotta make a wish. Shane presses a smooth, cold little penny into your palm. His hand accidentally lingers there for a second. Shane: Well? What do you wish for?

You: (I wish for…) -World fame.

Shane: Hey! You can’t wish for something you already have! You: Oh, please. I’m not ‘world famous’ yet. Shane: Cadence. You literally played Madison Square Garden tonight. I was there. I saw it. You: I don’t know. I think I still have a ways to go before real fame. You: Maybe I’m a one-hit wonder. Maybe I’m a flash in the pan. Maybe… Shane: Maybe you’re incredibly talented, and completely deserving. Shane: Maybe you need to stop being so hard on yourself.

-Artistic success.

Shane: Hey! You can’t wish for something you already have! You: Oh, please. I haven’t even put out an album yet. Shane: Cadence. You literally played Madison Square Garden tonight. I was there. I saw it. You: I don’t know. Anyone can sing in a real venue, but writing songs that change people’s lives? You: Maybe I’ll never get there. Maybe I’ll try, and try, and I’ll keep getting my swings clipped… Shane: Or maybe you’re bigger and better than anyone who tries to limit you. Shane: Maybe there’s nobody who can stand in the way of you changing the world.

-True love.

You: Maybe my career’s taking off, but I still want to keep my heart open to meeting someone special. Shane: well, I wouldn’t worry about that, Cadence. You: Huh? What do you mean? Shane: You’re jaw-droppingly beautiful, you’re talented, you’ve got soul, and you’re an all-around badass. Who wouldn’t fall for you?

He looks so sincere when he says it. And, like, mortifyingly ardent. Shane: But… you don’t need me to tell you this stuff anymore. Shane: You’ve got the whole world telling you you’re amazing. You: Well… I still like it when you say it. You smile at each other for a moment, then look away. You: Now, enough about my wish. What’s yours? Shane thinks for a second, tossing the coin up and catching it a few times. Shane: Hmm… Shane: Actually, isn’t it bad luck to say our wishes out loud? You: No way, we totally threw out that myth when we started the magical tradition of fountain hopping. You: You’re deflecting. Shane: Well, I guess… I’d like the courage to tell someone how I feel. You: Someone? Shane swallows. Shane: Come on, let’s throw the coins in. You: Okay. One… Shane: Two… You: Three! You toss the coins backward over your shoulder, as though you’re at the Trevi Fountain in Rome. Shane: Another one bites the dust. You: Taking over New York one borough and one fountain at a time! You laugh, sitting along the edge of the fountain. Shane leans back, putting his hand under the cascading water, catching a few drops. You: Hey, Shane? Can I, um… can I ask you something? Shane: Of course. Yeah. Anything, Cadence.

You: I was just wondering… -Can I kiss you?

Shane: You… you… Yes? Yes, you can? You rest a hand on the side of your best friend’s face. And then you kiss your best friend. Shane: I’ve wanted to do that for… Shane: Well, for my whole life, I think. You: You saw me on the playground, in my OshKosh B’Goshes, and you thought… ‘Yup. That’s the one.’ Shane: Exactly. That’s exactly right. You: You’re ridiculous. You kiss again, but on the slippery edge of the fountain, you lose your balance… You: Ah! …and fall in together! Shane: I was gonna be much smoother in my head. You: Shhh. I like it the way it is. You cuddle up close together in the fountain, as water falls down around you. You explore his arms, his chest, his lips… Everything feels familiar, yet so new at the same time. Shane: Cadence… You kiss him again. And maybe one day you’ll regret the fact that your first real kiss happened while fountain-hopping in your underwear. But maybe it’s perfect. Maybe you wouldn’t change a single thing about it.

-Can I push you in the fountain?

Shane: Huh? You: Gotcha! You shove Shane into the water playfully, and he lands with a splash. He re-emerges, shaking the water out of his eyes. Shane: Good one… Cadence. You: Seems like you forgot what else happened at the Fort Lucenne Mall. You gotta keep your guard up! Shane lunges for you, tacking you so you fall in as well! You: Ahhh! You: I call foul play! Shane: What do you call what you did to me? You: I call it nothing but honourab--

Campus Security: Hey! This is public indecency! You can’t be here! You: Oh, shoot! You scramble to pick up your clothes, and dash off, trailing droplets of water behind you. Campus Security: Get back here! Shane: This is like Fort Lucenne all over again! You book it onto a detour path, and can’t help laughing as you sprint through the trees. You: Catch us if you can! Shane: Woooooo!

[carnationbooks]

Fandom features: Author Wendy Qualls

To kick off a series of fandom-focused posts, we’re chatting with author Wendy Qualls (aka wendymarlowe on AO3) about fanfic, Johnlock, getting published, the intersection of fanfiction and original fiction, and a little dash of DragonCon! We so enjoyed learning a bit about Wendy’s fandom experience, and are so glad to share her insight with all of you! Don’t miss the amazing rec list she wrote for us after the jump (it’s so good). Thank you so much for talking with us, Wendy! 

Thanks so much for chatting with us! How can our readers find you?

I write fic as wendymarlowe (Marlowe being my middle name), but I write my original male/male romance under my real name, Wendy Qualls. (www.wendyqualls.com)

So what inspired you to start writing fic?

I write in the Sherlock fandom with brief forays into Harry Potter, but my first ever fandom was Dragon Age. I played Dragon Age: Origins and went through the love story with one of the characters and immediately thought "I want to experience exactly that again, but different" and I remembered something called fanfic my sister used to read so I looked some up. The one I found was awful, but then I found my way onto fanfiction.net and eventually onto AO3. The fics got better :-)

Now that you’re writing mostly in the Sherlock fandom, what about Johnlock is the most appealing to you?

Honestly? I love what fandom has done to the characters. The Sherlock and John on the show would both be horrible people to be in a relationship with, but the general fandom version sort of rounds the edges off a bit. Sherlock is abrasive but not cruel, John is competently BAMF without being violent and angry. The show has throwaway lines like how John “lost an entire Wednesday once” and I know Moftiss put it in there because they thought it was funny but SERIOUSLY? Drugging your flatmate is not okay! I’d much rather read (and write) about characters who are capable of healthy relationships :-)

What is your favorite thing you have written so far?

My most popular fic, and the one that was the most amazing to write, was Dear John (https://archiveofourown.org/works/2647979). Summary: "With Sherlock dead, John eventually (under duress) makes a profile on an online dating site. And falls into a long-distance relationship with an enigmatic partner who reminds him of Sherlock in all the right ways. (Hint: it turns out to be Sherlock.)" 

It was inspired by a friend trying a dating website and me realizing that sense of waiting for replies and not knowing when they're coming could be replicated by AO3's subscribe feature - I posted the fic in "real time." (As in, back and forth according to when the characters would have been writing each other). It had a pretty modest following at the beginning, but by the time John and Sherlock shared their first sexting right before Christmas it kind of blew up on Tumblr and the comments section started to be longer than the chapters :-P 

It was amazing to see a mini-fandom develop right there and see everyone debating what they thought John and Sherlock were up to that very minute. By the time the fic got to the big dramatic face-to-face meet, the comments/replies were coming in faster than I could read them! I'm told it's still fun to read now, all at once, but the shared waiting experience was something I wish I could replicate for another fic and I don't know that I ever could.

When I started submitting around to find a literary agent, the popularity of Dear John and my other AO3 fics was a strong point in my favor with the agent I ultimately signed with :-) There's a LOT of overlap between romance authors and fanfic authors, actually, even if not all of them are public about it.

Speaking of your work as a published author, do you have any words of wisdom for the fic authors out there who are hoping to get published one day?

Everyone—every published author ever—has a few manuscripts “under the bed” that just didn’t work. Often it’s because their writing needed to get stronger before publishing, sometimes it’s because they hit a crowded market exactly wrong or just never connected with the right editors/agents. Only around 10% of people who attempt to write their first novel make it to the end, and less than half of those get to the point they’re submitting it for professional consideration. 

The thing is, though, the only way to get better at writing is to write. I don’t care how many books and blogs you read about the craft (although those help too), you’re not going to get your book out there for money if you’re not willing to write something imperfect first.

Fanfic, I believe, is an amazing way to practice writing for low stakes. You get your pick of pre-developed characters and settings to choose from, there are no deadlines, and 99% of fanfic readers are supportive. AO3 says I’ve had 11,549 comments on my works - I think I’ve had only one or two readers who were critical. The rest are positive and make me excited to write for them. There is no doubt in my mind that fanfic has made me a better writer. Anyone who dreams of being published someday, my advice is this: write a book. Then write another. Write fanfic along the way and pick up people to cheer you on. The difference between published and unpublished is mostly luck, persistence, and confidence.

Do you ever get writer’s block? What do you do to combat it?

I do absolutely get writer's block, in big part because of my depression. (Depression sucks, btw.) Writing fic has made me comfortable having multiple works in progress at once, though, so often if I'm stuck on my "real" book I can write fic instead. I can't turn out fic as fast as I could before I started actually being published and having deadlines, but it's still a totally different feel writing for no stakes versus "how are my agent and editor and readers going to judge this?" Positive comments on AO3 pretty much balance out the negative energy in bad book reviews :-P

While we discussed this interview, you mentioned you’ll be in attendance at DragonCon this weekend. What are you most excited to do at con?

The panels and the people! There are several friends I only see at DragonCon, and it’s always fun to reconnect. The panels, though, are the heart of the convention. Science vs. Movies (10 PM Sunday in the Hilton Crystal ballroom) is always a highlight - it’s a panel of real, actual science experts forced to watch terrible Hollywood scenes and then argue why the scene was actually 100% scientifically plausible :-P Sometimes they break down and cry. It’s awesome.

You’re on some panels, right? When can folks catch those?

Friday at 10 PM: "BritTrack After Dark - British Fanfic/Slashfic Panel!" in Hilton Galleria 5 and Saturday at 10 PM: "We Do the Weird Stuff!: NC17 Fanfic" in Marriott M301

And finally, do you have any fic recs to share with our followers?

(Ed. Note: Y’ALL! Wendy wrote us an amazing rec list which is under the cut - Click for some Sherlock-y goodness!)

Favorite crack-premise-but-serious-fic: The Midas Touch (E) by flawedregina (https://archiveofourown.org/works/2479868) John Watson has a medical condition that means everyone he sleeps with is instantly healed of all illness and injury. This causes complications when Sherlock breaks his arm, and even more complications when Sherlock falls in love with him. Yes, this is a story where John has a literal magic healing cock. It's a lot less cracky than you're probably imagining. I love this for the "literal magical healing cock" premise, but it's also a beautiful look at ethics, personality, and the dynamics of sex. John is caught between feeling like he ethically HAS to use his rare gift because it saves people's lives and feeling the very human need for privacy and having control over his own life. Sherlock is a brat because he's always a brat but he GETS it and supports John and seriously, it's wonderful. 32K.

Favorite crack-premise-but-serious-fic without all the smut: A Magnificent Instrument (T) by mycapeisplaid (https://archiveofourown.org/works/7452193) A series of vignettes set in an AU in which Sherlock plays the tuba instead of the violin. This does have some brilliant takes on the idea (my favorite is Sherlock playing "oompah oompah" elephant steps in time with Mycroft leaving the flat) but it's also got an amazing connection between Sherlock and John. 6K.

Favorite fantasy AU: Here There Be Dragons (E) by Leloi (https://archiveofourown.org/works/786378) When Lord John of the Umberland Watsons volunteered to his lord father to deal with a dragon, this was not what he had in mind. Instead of using his sword and shield to deal a deadly blow he found himself trussed up like a festival goose sans armor and small clothes, naked as his birth day. This is sweet and hot at the same time and thanks to a certain Tolkien movie, we don't have to imagine very hard to envision Sherlock as a dragon :-D 8K.

Favorite short, kinky smut: Performance Art (E) by thisprettywren (https://archiveofourown.org/works/208374) “I have to say, John, I really just. Well. I can’t see the appeal.” That wasn’t precisely true, of course. At the moment, the appeal lay in the way John was blushing and licking his lip, avoiding Sherlock’s gaze, thoroughly discomfited. This one is so sexy and so Sherlock in how he thinks and gah, just read it! 6K. Favorite AU: The Bang and the Clatter (M) by earlgreytea68 (https://archiveofourown.org/works/744242) Sherlock Holmes is a pitcher and John Watson is a catcher. No, no, no, it's a baseball AU.   I learned a ton about baseball from this fic - it's very educational :-P It's also clear that earlgreytea is an AMAZING writer and a true baseball fan. 137K.

Favorite D/s verse: Shames and Praises (E) by s0mmerspr0ssen (https://archiveofourown.org/works/573019) Unable but desperate to find a dom who will put up with him, Sherlock swallows his pride and turns to Mycroft for help. Shortly after, John Watson steps into Sherlock's life.   Kinky as hell with a wonderful caring top!John. D/s done right. 52K.

Favorite Mystrade: The DI and the Spy (T) by chasingriver (https://archiveofourown.org/works/558609) Greg is an early-morning runner. Mycroft is an early riser who happens to live on Greg's running route. Hilarity ensues. Written for MystradeDoodles' prompt: "Greg is a runner. Rom-com." Exactly what it says on the package - a sweet rom-com story about how Mycroft and Lestrade get a crush on each other before even knowing who the other is. 44K.