#he also has some scruff in this series and gotta say it works for him

[jtownraindancer]

Speaking of Burn and his profile-

-can we please talk about this?

[variousqueerthings]

and now I’ve finished my rewatch of s1

(EDIT: yankee doodle doctor! I forgot to fuckn include it - done now)

which, I’ve gotta say -- considering I only watched it for the first time... in late August of this year? -- I think I’d already internalised this idea of the show “still finding its feet” in that season/generally not being as good

however while this is true in the sense that there are some concepts that are rougher now/better explored in later stories + character things that definitely don’t exist later on (Hawkeye mentions “mom and sis,” and Radar smokes and drinks I think are the two I noticed the most... there’s also Henry’s wife giving birth in showtime, which I don’t think is ever brought up again, but I can include it in my show canon)

(makes him cheating on her feel worse though)

(also saved this:)

(haha... ha.... oh no)

anyway, a lot of character stuff and concepts persist! 

the “dear” episodes of course, the depiction of the army as both inherently ridiculous and dangerous (the ringbanger, the army-navy game, tuttle) feels pretty consistent, even some early experimentation in episodes like yankee doodle doctor and showtime (which, I take back my previous post, showtime also feels like a season-ending episode, so that makes it s1,3,5,7 for me so far). And Klinger made appearances much sooner and more consistently than I remembered. Even that early on it feels like the writers could tell that character was something special

then there’s Hawkeye becoming Chief Surgeon in episode 4 already, early seeding for Margaret to become more friendly with especially Hawkeye (although they’re right in showtime -- she and Trapper always seemed to have a tension... she shoulda given some % of the perfect guy to him, she and Hawkeye bonding over wanting to lowkey bone Trapper), and Mulcahy’s series-long arc of not feeling like he’s necessary in comparison to the others in the camp

an early couple of entries into the “Hawkeye’s brain works a certain kind of way” with “yankee doodle doctor,” “bananas, crackers, and nuts,” “tuttle,” “sticky wicket,” “major fred c dobbs,” and the whole nude-camp-walk in “dear dad again” especially

a lot of same-sex flirting, including some of my favourite scenes, such as: Hawkeye and Trapper dancing, Hawkeye kissing Frank -- on the forehead and on the mouth, Hawkeye warning Frank that he’s going to call an usher if he doesn’t stop walking his fingers up his thigh, Hawkeye and Klinger discussing gaudy outfits, Hawkeye telling Trapper he won’t go home with him just because he gets him drunk, Hawkeye and Trapper flirting in Margaret’s bed, and Hawkeye telling the general he wants his baby, and also general vibes, such as Tommy saying young Hawkeye was “a bit of a sissy,” Hawkeye giving Trapper his long-johns because of one pathetic cough, and the way Hawkeye grabs the back of Trapper’s neck in relief and support in showtime

(not shown on this screenshot is how he shakes him a bit, like he’s holding onto the scruff of a puppy)

and then of course the first suggestion of the show’s overall trajectory with “sometimes you hear the bullet,” but would argue particularly “yankee doodle doctor,” “ceasefire,” “sticky wicket,” and “showtime” are also strong indications of that

Shower scenes: 3 (the ringbanger, sticky wicket, showtime)

Most shocking thing that never comes up again: Klinger threatening to use a hand-grenade in camp and Mulcahy talking him down

Favourite 3 episodes: sometimes you hear the bullet (yeah yeah it’s obvious but it’s That Episode!), tuttle (this was the first episode for me that really cemented how into the show I was going to be), aaand then a tie between sticky wicket and ceasefire 

Singing: I forgot to document that this season! Silly me...

Kind of insane about this:

Followed by Hawkeye refusing her advances and her pressing on regardless (with the line “I’m not interested in your mind,” interested in the role reversal happening here), and then Trapper comes in and interrupts them

[xenoredux]

The Legend of Silver Fang - Episode 5: The Beasts

If you haven’t read episode 4 yet, you can do so here.

As mentioned before, the major story beats and overarching plot are the same. This is written under the supposition that, in fantasy land, this is a mini series with episodes that run about 2 hours in length each.

Some things to be aware of going in:

This story is violent as shit!!! CONTENT WARNING FOR: Animal injuries, animal death, sickness via poisoning, eye trauma, weaponry, cannibalism, fire damage to property and animals, wacky cult antics, child abuse and endangerment, suicide, starvation, dogfighting, bullying, and idk probably something else terrible. Seriously don’t read if you don’t like this kind fuckery

I was trying to achieve a decent adaptation that combines the strongest elements of the anime and manga. It will not be precisely like either and will occasionally totally deviate from both

This isn’t meant to be “better” then the canon. It’s just the way I’d go about rewriting the Akakabuto arc if I had that level of ungodly power lol

Character designs made to represent several mentioned characters can be found here, here, here, here, and here. Others will be left up to the reader’s interpretation. A link to the next episode will also be provided at the end. If a link isn’t available, the next episode just hasn’t been posted yet!

I KEEP POSTING THESE SO LATE IN THE DAY AAAAAHHH

The Igas and Gin are frozen where they float. Kurojaki's teeth clack against the scythe's handle as he sadistically taunts them. This day marks the end of the Iga clan he says (though it sounds more like "Ish ey marsh he and ufh eh Uhguh clun.") Akame barks back someone along the lines of "OH YEAH?" before turning to the others.

The albino levels with them: four against, what, 40? Not good odds. But maybe if there was a diversion some of them could get away. Akame passes his share of herbs to Jinnai and says that no matter what happens the Ohu soldiers must receive these herbs. Even if it costs the remaining Igas their lives and their legacy, no innocents will die just because some mottled dickhead bamboozled them all.

With a final command for them to get moving, Akame vertical leaps outta the lake and busts Koga heads the minute he lands. The other three good guys exit stage right while the gettin's still good. Gin looks back, almost certain someone's gonna come after them, but the Kogas are all too concerned with chasing Akame in circles to care about anything else.

Shinobi slaying is easier said then done, turns out. Akame didn't become Chief Ninja Daddy without some skills to back the title up. He is eventually pinned down by several heftier dogs, but it takes a few minutes of him humiliating his opponents first. As payback one of the cannibals chomps down hard on Akame's hind leg and jerks it back at a nasty angle. Akame lets out a manly scream of pain.

Jinnai, Kirikaze, and that silver guy are still running back home unimpeded when they hear Akame's hollering. Kirikaze is especially affected by his old man's tortured yowls and he begins crying big fat tears of sorrow.

So overwhelmed is he by his progenitor's wails that he tries to double back, but Jinnai tackles him and tries to smack some sense into him. Kirikaze's gotta nut up for Akame's sake. This scolding almost works, but another scream from the chief threatens to break the rest of Kirikaze's resolve.

They have reason to be concerned. Kurojaki's started wiping the forest floor with Akame's pale ass, bruising the Kishu heavily and giving him a nice big slash across the throat. The cut on his neck isn't enough to kill Akame, but combined with his other injuries it's enough to sap his remaining strength from him. As Akame tries to gather his bearings and defend himself the scythe comes down across his neck a second time.

Another scream of agony reaches the trio. Jinnai and Kirikaze are still fighting over whether to save the army of strangers or their dad when Gin decides he can't stand moral dilemas involving family. He spits out his share of herbs and shoves them towards Kirikaze.

Gin tells the bros that he's willing to double back and help Akame so long as they can pull themselves together long enough to cure the Ohu dogs. As the Akita moves towards the marsh, Jinnai asks him if he's so insolent as to disobey the chief's orders.

"Akame isn't my chief," Gin states matter of factly, "so I can do whatever I want." And so he turns and leaves the two Kishus to collect their herbs and continue their journey. Before they go the two decide to come back and help the moment they deliver the plants.

Akame coughs up blood and falls limply to the ground. He's hurting something fierce. He tries to go all Mind Over Matter with his body, but he's having too much trouble standing up to fight anymore. Kurojaki cackles triumphantly. Maya is grinning in a nasty way while their son yips excitedly, too young to understand that Daddy's committing an atrocity.

Emboldened by the support, Kurojaki decides it's time to deliver the killing blow. He leaps towards the incapacitated albino all ready to shreddy, too busy to notice the other Kogas trying to stop a silver striped blur from slamming into him. Gin lunges through the air, grabs Kurojaki by the hind leg, and does an anti-gravity version of the worm that sends both of them flying to the ground. Gin lands elegantly on all fours, but Kurojaki is slammed face first into the dirt. The moment he makes contact with Mother Earth, the cannibal lets out an unholy screech.

Everyone is taken aback - even Akame is frightened by the noise - as Kurojaki continues vicerally screaming for a moment more. It's at this moment that Gin realizes he hadn't seen where the scythe's blade had landed. Kurojaki lifts his trembling head and turns to face Gin.

The blade has been buried deep into the black devil's right eye. Icky red squidge oozes from the wound and down his cheek as he heaves a shallow, rattled breath.

"You little motherfucker," he pants, his remaining eye bulging and rolling around wildly in his head.

The other Kogas are now a terrifying mix of horrified and pissed the fuck off, and Kurojaki's ready to take advantage of that. As Gin gapes in horror at the live demonstration of why running with sharp things is a bad idea Kurojaki commands his crew to tear the invaders limb from limb. He especially wants that little stripey shit's head on a pike.

Obedient as ever, Kurojaki's mohawked mooks spring into action. Gin leaps to Akame's side to protect him. A couple of especially speedy Kogas advance on them before the others, but Gin's entire bloodstream is full of adrenaline right now and he manages to pick them off easily.

Before the rest of the hoard can descend upon them, Gin snags Akame up by the scruff and leaps into the trees with him. The Kogas watch as the two make their getaway. This only serves to frustrate Kurojaki. As Maya is fussing over his sliced up face he screams for the cult to follow the two.

Unaware of what's gone down, Jinnai and Kirikaze continue their jog home. They've been making good time but are stopped suddenly when another dog they've yet to meet jumps out of the bushes before them. He's just as surprised to see them as they are to see him, and they all trip over each other.

The dog, a tempermental German Shepherd, barks that the two dipshits need to watch where they're going next time. The Kishus apologize before scampering off with their herbs.

To the surprise of no one this rude dog is John. The upstart has finally left the village to pursue more heroic avenues. This is nice, but he realizes it's not quite going according to plan when he notices several dogs of intederminate breed running up to him.

These three dogs have the decency to stop and ask if John's seen a couple of white guys with plants in their gobs passing by. John pulls an "I know something that you don't know" face and tells them to fuck off because he's not going to enable them to chase down a couple of geeks with weeds.

This pisses the mohawked mutts off, as does the fact that John stinks of human civilization. They go to give him a taste of Whoopass Stew (1992) before John recites the navy seal copypasta from memory and teaches them some humility via a few well aimed bites and mean names regarding their haircuts. As soon as they realize he's a capable fighter the trio runs off with their tails tucked both metaphorically and literally between their legs.

This is getting bizzare. John's just arrived in this forest and already he's seen two groups of oddballs he can't begin to understand.

Back at the Iga House Gin has brought Akame home. He sets the ninja chief down gently as the other Kishus come to greet them. The Ohu soldiers, most of who are feeling much better now, are also glad to see Gin is still kicking.

Gin's happy to see them as well. He runs over to where they're gathered to more properly say hello. Most dogs are back on their feet, but he can't see the tallest one of them all. He asks where Ben is before realizing by the look on everyone's faces that this isn't a question they want to answer.

The crowd parts to reveal Jinnai has finally gotten Ben to eat his share of antidote. Ben's a hotass mess, though; his eyes are bloodshot, his mouth is foamy with excess saliva, and his muscles are all twitching involuntarily. He looks miserable as he stares aimlessly into the woods.

Akatora comes over to him and offers a friendly nudge and a whispered, "Hey, you okay?" Ben simply responds by snapping at him. Akatora tumbles backwards, stunned that his old friend and mentor would react to him so aggresively.

Akame pads over to Akatora and tells him not to take Ben's bizarre behavior to heart. Ben's had bad shit in his blood longer then everyone else. It's gonna take him a second to come out of this haze.

Luckily the dane seems to be regaining his composure, for he has managed to stand up and steady his limbs. The soldiers seem mostly relieved at the sight, but Gin notices Akame is still staring at Ben in concern. Is there something he's not telling them?

While alla this was going down, Hyena had wandered off by himself and ended up being taken prisoner by the Kogas. Worse still, he's been trafficking the corpses of dead Igas into their slapshod fridge (i.e. a dank, chilly cave).

As he drags the icky, ewwy canine cadavers along, his captures taunt and jeer at him for being both a wuss and their munchie packmule. One particularly nasty looking sucker with no tail tells him to move his ass before they decide to add him to the every-growing pile of carcasses. Hyena just whines miserably and goes back into the body storage. He's just flopped down another lifeless Kishu when he hears a sudden commotion outside. He cowers far back in the cave.

"MORE of these assholes?" says a newcomer. "Jesus, these woods are full of lunatics."

The Kogas have turned to look at their visitor. Three of them point him out as being a direct threat. They'd run into this dickhead in the woods, and though he stinks of men he's more powerful then any housepet they've chomped on before. While the cannibals encircle John, Hyena pokes his head out of the cave just long enough to recognize the GSD as one of the dogs he'd seen at Ohu. What on Earth is HE doing here?

Back at the Iga house the Kishus have organized to face off with the Kogas. Enough is enough. They can't allow any more innocents to get swept up in this stupid war.

Ben is feeling more lucid now and he insists that the Ohu dogs aid the raid against the Kogas. They outnumber the mohawked mongrels together and lbr this has become personal for the troops. Akame worriedly tries to convince Ben not to subject himself or his bros to this, but the dane refuses to leave it alone. Akame reluctantly agrees to let them help and begins leading the way back to the marsh.

Ben is just behind the shinobi, but he's doing a shit job at keeping with the pack. Despite having scolded Gin for running off course, Ben keeps drifting farther and farther off trail. In fact, he's essentially in the treeline now, and a concerned Gin and Cross follow to ask him where he's going.

Ben freezes up. He takes a deep sniff and realizes he's not with the others. Everyone stops running, concerned. Akame attempts to be stoic, but his brow twitches intently.

Ben tells everyone it's nbd bruh, he's just gotta take a piss, it's fine it's fine it's cool it's fine. Akame grunts and tells Kirikaze to continue leading the pack while he checks up on the big guy. Kirikaze nods and directs the others to follow him.

The only stragglers are Gin and Cross. They're both too concerned about Ben to follow orders. The two of them sneak closer to where Akame and Ben are huddled and strain to listen to what they're saying.

Akame looks sadly at Ben as the dane stares blankly ahead.

"Ben," Akame says in a low voice, "look at me."

Ben pauses for a second as if focusing hard, then turns his head. He's not looking at Akame. He's not even close to meeting eyes with him.

"Akame?" he says with a tinge of fear in his voice. "What's happening to me? I can barely see."

Akame sighs and apologizes to Ben for all this. It's a side effect of the poisoning. Ben was doped up on the bad shit long enough that there was potential for it to do some damage to his senses. The eyes and ears are most suseptible to the poison's effects, and it seems like Ben's eyes are feeling the hurt.

Ben's shoulders slump as he softly shakes his head. He figured his sudden astigmatism and fading peripheral vision had been brought on by Akame's bioweapon. He just hadn't wanted to admit it.

Gin is shaken to hear this, but he's not as upset as Cross. The Saluki is trying and failing to contain her tears.

"He'll never see--" she says before running off, unable to stand it anymore. Gin only lets her go when he hears the conversation continue.

Ben asks if he'll become totally blind. Akame says yes. Ben asks if he'll be blind forever. Akame says yes again. Ben asks if he'll be able to keep up his duties as commander. Akame doesn't respond directly but instead tries to soothe the dane by saying that he owes Ben a great debt and will pay it forward by being his eyes.

Ben takes a moment to think before thanking the Kishu, but he has a request. Cross is ready to take his place as commander when he becomes totally incapacitated, but as she was his successor she'll need a right hand dog of her own. Akame figures that all Ben's soldiers are so jacked that any of them would do nicely, but Ben has his eyes (no pun intended) set on one guy in particular.

That kid Gin... he's a good fighter, sure, but he's also young and eager and empathetic. He's got a good head on his shoulders, boundless potential, and clearly has had some training before. Within a few months he'll be fully grown, and by then he'll make a great lieutenant. Gin only now realizes he's been holding his breath.

Meanwhile, John has made quick work of the lingering Kogas, adding those who didn't flee to the abnormally high count of dog bodies in the area. When he's sure it's safe to come out of hiding, Hyena slinks out of the cave to meet John.

John recognizes the little twerp from Ohu mountain, but he's still in Fight or Fight mode so instead of saying hi he just gears up to cream him. Hyena whimpers and begs for mercy, insisting that the Kogas took him as a POW and that he's still loyal to the Ohu army. John rolls his eyes and takes Hyena's word for it before turning to leave.

Hyena dares not be alone in this above-ground graveyard, so he follows John. The shepherd either doesn't realize or doesn't care that Hyena's his new little tagalong. They wander for a bit, Hyena taking every chance he can to suck up to John, before John tells him to shut the fuck up and listen.

The dogs fall quiet. The sound is faint, but they can distinctly hear a low mumbling, or, more accurately, the muffled sound of a crowd speaking amongst themselves. Someone literally barks a command and all the voices fall silent. John nudges Hyena to follow his lead and the two sneak closer to find out what's going on.

As they advance on the group they realize that it's more of the Kogas. The cannibals are having a meeting.

Kurojaki's eye socket has stopped bleeding and instead has collapsed in on itself, the tattered lids laying concave in his skull. He's sitting atop a boulder looking down at his cult as he gently strokes the babyhawk atop his infant heir's head.

As his son mouths absentmindedly at his father's paws, Kurojaki informs his people that now is the time to strike. They've killed several of the remaining Igas and they still have enough people to take on both the ninjas and any allies they bring with them. It's time to take the Iga homestead as their own and secure a glorious future for their breed. And as an added bonus, he thinks to himself, we can fuck up that guy who took my eye.

Hyena and John take a moment to spy on the hoard from afar. Hyena points out the big guy on the rock as Kurojaki, and it's clear as day that he's the leader of this band of hoodlums. John nods and, having learned nothing from his previous ass whooping at the hands of a pack leader, puffs out his chest and readies himself to attack.

John says he's gonna tear the whole lot to smitherines and singlehandedly lower the cannibal population in the area to 0%. Hyena tries to convince him that attacking a warlord in front of his entire legion of followers is a bad idea, but John's ego demands stroking. He's already taken off in a sprint.

The shepherd tears through several of the Kogas before they even realize what's happening. He rips the throat out of one particularly unfortunate bystander who proceeds to tumble to the ground. The miserable cur seizes wildly as he dies.

Everyone is caught so off guard by this development that they don't stop John when he walks up to the bottom of Kurojaki's perch and tells the merle cyclops that his reign of terror is over. Kurojaki has literally no idea what the fuck is going on, but he rolls with the punches and tells John that he'll be crushed like a bug before the group departs on their actual mission. Before any crushing can commence, a rumbling can be heard coming closer.

It's (predictably) the Iga and Ohu dogs. The Kogas have an Oh Shit moment before scrambling into battle position. They're a little wary of the fight given there's an absolute shittonne of dogs running towards them, but Kurojaki tells them not to be a buncha bedwetting babies and fight anyway. He passes his literal bedwetter baby son off to the boy's mother so he can join the brawl. John just shrugs and goes to attack the guy nearest to him.

As army meets army, the blood begins to flow. Despite how much larger the Ohu pack is, it's really anyone's game, for the cannibals' desperation to keep their cause alive pushes them forward. Still, the Ohu dogs are holding their own. Even Ben is managing to fight off his enemies. Unfortunately for Smith, the dane's poor vision throws a spanner in the works, and the Spaniel gets a couple of chomps on the ass. Don't worry about it, Ben, he's young. He'll heal.

As the battle grows more and more out of control, Kurojaki slinks past his men and into the woods in the hopes of baiting one particular target into following him. To his delight, that target falls into his trap; Gin notices him leaving and gives chase.

Gin's too caught up in the task at hand to notice Kurojaki's leading him on purpose, but lucky for him Kurojaki is too caught up in his own plan to notice he himself is being ambushed. Akame saw Gin following the cultist, and he's bolted out of the woods to save Gin's silver hide.

Akame smacks Kurojaki face first into the dirt and is about to give him an atomic noogie when Gin's all like WAIT. Gin lets the cat out of the bag and tells Akame he knows that Ben wants to scootch Gin up the platoon's pecking order. Gin wants to use this chance to wipe the forest floor with Kurojaki to prove that Ben's right to think that.

Akame is a touch offended that Gin's a filthy eavesdropper, but he understands his motivation. He just sorta shrugs and lets Gin face off with the warlord. Gin puts up his doggy dukes and gets the ball rolling with some fighting words.

Meanwhile, everyone else is fighting a Koga of their own and they're doing a good job of it. Even Hyena is making an honest, if hopeless, attempt at mauling one of the smaller guys. He's failing miserably when he's aided by Smith, who follows up his generously saving Hyena's life by mocking him for being a wussypants and asking him why he hasn't fucked off yet.

Hyena wants Smith and the others to appeal the No Hyenas Allowed rule of their club because he's decided to be a good guy now. Smith isn't sure if he believes him, but whatever, the traitor can serve as a canine shield if nothing else. The two continue snapping at their enemies.

As the fight rages on, John makes his presence known to the platoon by leaping beside a bloodied Ben. John manages to choke out a sincere word of praise for the other dogs' fighting abilities before more graciously humbling himself to Ben by proclaiming he's ready to fall in line with his commander's orders. Ben's newly-beshitted eyes are having a hard time recognizing John, but he'd know that stuck-up, twatty voice anywhere. He instantly welcomes the shepherd back into the fold.

Gin and Kurojaki are standing off in earnest now, but they're still not really getting anywhere. They're surprisingly well matched, Gin always managing to strike and Kurojaki always managing to either dodge or deflect. They've only faced off for a few minutes more when the rumble of a bazillion dog feet advances towards them.

The Ohu and Iga dogs have managed to subdue the Kogas and now they're bumbling towards the fighters. To make matters more dramatic, a storm has been brewing. As if called in as reinforcements a bolt of lightening strikes a nearby tree and catches it on fire. With a terrified, "Shit!" Kurojaki turns tail and runs, a frustrated Gin following behind.

But before Kurojaki can run very far, someone calls down to him from above. He breaks stride and looks up. It's Wilson, finally appearing onscreen again for the first time in a while. His long, white muzzle is rippled in a snarl, and he calls Kurojaki a gutless coward for abandoning his men. And it's not just his men he's abandoned. Has he really forgotten about...

...his own son? Wilson suddenly lifts a small, mottled bundle of fur into view. It's Kurojaki's infant child, and he's crying with fright. Though Kurojaki cannot see it, Maya's body is lying beside Wilson as well, her neck broken and twisted at an ugly angle.

Gin freezes and looks on in horror, as do the other soldiers who come to a stop beside him. Everyone wants to stop this but they're too stunned to speak. The sky rumbles as if angry, lightening flashing and illuminating Wilson's spiteful white face.

"T-tesshin!" Kurojaki cries in recognition. "My boy! What are you doing with my boy?!"

"Can a fucking demon like you truly feel love for a child?" Wilson wonders aloud. "You certainly didn't show any mercy towards mine. You've never understood the horror of what you did, but now you will. I'll make you see. I'll make you pay."

Wilson begins to shake Tesshin back and forth by his tiny grey scruff. A sickening chorus of wails and squeals comes from the baby. The other soldiers are appaled by Wilson's vengeance, as is a now very desperate Kurojaki. The Koga master begins climbing uphill after Wilson, his paws splayed far out in front of him as if trying to grasp for his son.

"Stop!" Kurojaki wails desperately. "Please, please stop!"

For the first (and last) time ever both the Ohu and Iga soldiers are in agreement with Kurojaki. They also call out for Wilson to put the child down. Gin feels helpless to stop this injustice. It's cut him to the quick more then any adult dog's endangerment has yet to. Ben tries to reason with Wilson to stop, but he's distracted by Cross. She's quaking with some overpowering emotion that's not exactly anger and not exactly fear.

Kurojaki nears the hilltop as Wilson's swinging quickens and he jostles Tesshin around like a ragdoll. The Koga leaps with an enraged roar at the Collie when suddenly the two of them are joined by Cross. Before any of them can acknowledge her, Kurojaki collides with Wilson without thinking to stop and sends both the collie and his son tumbling off the hill's edge.

Kuroj screams in horror as he sees both Wilson and the baby descend into the dark gorge below, and the army dogs join his yelling as Cross mounts the hill and descends down into the dark behind them.

The wind blows mournfully as Kurojaki stands mouth agape on the hill, staring into the black pit with his remaining eye. So busy was he with his child that he has only now noticed his wife's bloody corpse sprawled beside him. His eye fills with tears.

But the tears evaporate quickly as he's taken by an overpowering fury. He turns to the stunned soliders and swears at them, damns each and every one of them for bringing his wife and child into this. He will singlehandedly kill them all.

In a (half) blind rage, Kurojaki flings himself headlong into the gaping crowd. First he tears into the massive Moss. Then he slashes Akatora up the shoulder, gives John a concussion, brings Ben to his knees, bam, bam, bam.

So powerful is his rage that one would think he's about to make good on his promise of Ohu decimation, and for the first time the soldiers and their newfound allies start backing away from their foe. All except Gin, ofc, whose protagonist moral code is preventing him from faltering.

Kurojaki's all too willing to beat Gin's ass for causing just about every bad thing in his life lately, so he runs at Gin with reckless abandon. Both he and the Akita leap at each other. A shooting star's comet trail follows Gin's arch in the sky.

The symbolism of it is enough to trigger a convenient, empowering flashback in Gin's mind of his maybe-probably-mostly-confirmed-not-dead father defending baby Gin from Akakabuto. He remembers Riki's signature bear-hunting move, a hard bite to the top of the animal's muzzle. Thinking fast, Gin performs this move on the murderous merle mongrel flying towards him.

This catches Kurojaki by surprise just long enough for Gin to rabbit kick the shinobi bastard into the dirt, bloodying both it and his foe's face in the process. Gin lands back on Earth with an equally small amount of grace by spraining every ankle he's got upon landing. He plops down onto his stomach and quivers as his muscles relax, and Kurojaki has been knocked down hard enough that he's not yet making an effort to get up.

The other dogs run forward, panting congrats to Gin for being so awesome and stuff before they move to descend on their enemy.

John makes himself known to Gin a second later when he's like whoa hold up everyone lmao chill, this is Gin's battle and he should be allowed to finish the dude off himself. Gin's just now realized John's returned, but before he can say HUH WHAT John tells him to handle business before he's offered an explanation. Already feeling a bit overwhelmed by the gravity of the situation, Gin turns at a familiar female voice telling everyone to hold their horses.

It's Cross! She's holding a fussy but living Tesshin in her jaws. Beside her is a battered, humiliated looking Wilson. The Collie sways unsurely, totally unwilling to hold anyone's gaze.

While Wilson wallows in his post-attempted infanticide guilt, Cross sets the child down. Kurojaki is a total sack of shit, she says, but he's still this little guy's dad and only remaining parent. This decision can't be made lightly because it will always come back around to affect the kid.

Gin takes this as a chance to stall on his decision and runs over to Cross, overjoyed to see she's still alive. Cross, looking even more tired then you'd expect, gives him a coy wink. She's told him before she has a soft spot for kids, yeah? After all, she's always believed they have the potential to be better then their parents. As she says this she allows Tesshin to toddle up to his daddy and lick his bloody nose.

But it's still ultimately up to Gin whether or not Kurojaki lives or dies. The decision weighs heavily on the kid. Yeah, Kuro is a violent murderer, a cult leader, an advocate of genocide, and an all around assclown, but watching Tesshin lick his deadly dad's face with unconditional affection awakens something in Gin.

He can't shake the memories of his own puppyhood. He was taken too early from his mother and only ever got to be held by his father once before he was forever stripped of the chance to have a peaceful childhood. He's steadfast in his decision to be with these soldiers, but can he truly say he's comfortable subjecting another child to the loss of their innocence?

"Kurojaki," Gin starts. The cannibal king meets Gin's gaze with his single eye. "Get out of here. Take your people with you. Don't ever come back."

Kurojaki understands this is the only chance he's got to leave, so he picks his sorry ass up and leaps with a noticable decrease in elegance into the trees. All he leaves behind him is a puddle of nose blood... and his infant son. Tesshin simply sits beside his papa's nose goo and yips pitifully, too small to understand he's been ditched but having enough cognition to know neither mommy or daddy are with him and he's frightened.

"Miserable piece of shit didn't want the kid as bad as we though," Kurotora grumbles.

The others in the crowd can't help but agree. Some of them believe it's time to kill Kurojaki after all, but Gin tells them to lay off. This whole debacle has been a real fuck of a shit and more unnecessary casualties are only going to make things worse. So long as Kurojaki actually fucks off once and for all, that's all that needs to happen.

A new discussion begins about what's to be done with the baby when the Kai Bros finally take notice of Hyena. Akame thoughtfully dashes off elsewhere as the tiger-striped trio start telling the grey-haired square to get the hell outta here. John breaks up the bloodthirsty posse by explaining that Hyena's lowkey alright actually. John's elaboration on his experience in these woods and his opinion about the Weimaraner doesn't mean much to the Kais given they've never met him before, but Gin helpfully explains that John's an old friend of his who's come to join their ranks.

He gives John a warm, appreciative smile. For a moment he looks very much like the boss smiling proudly at all his troops. John's brow is furrowed as per ush, but he can't help but smile softly back.

But John quickly wipes the smile off his face and gets back to business. Yeah, sorry about leaving the pack initially and all, but he had a bit of self discovery to do. Ya see, John went and battled with the boss. Surprised at his insolence, he's now got the attention of everybody there.

Anyway, John tried to beat the leader into submission, but he failed spectacularly and for the first time he can remember. The experience taught him something he's still too proud to state clearly, but the important thing is that it motivated him to come back. Oh, btw, the big guy himself has a message to share, generously saving the audience from further elaboration on events they've seen take place:

Akakabuto's stronghold is expanding further, and, though on a forgivingly smaller scale then the Ohu dogs, he is also attempting to grow an army of followers. The sonuvabitch may be a horrifying monster, but he ain't fuckin' stupid. He is aware that a massive hoard of dogs are coming to get him, so he's setting up counter measures to stay one step ahead of them. The troops have to hurry and expand their numbers fast, for the battle is rapidly approaching. It's only a matter of time before Akakabuto and his bears begin overtaking human settlements.

This is all well and good, like thanks for the update and all, but everyone becomes distracted by the unmistakable smell of shit burnin' down. Cross is the first to notice the orange-gold light and incredible heat illuminating the woods beyond. The dogs rush over to see what exactly is happening.

It's the Iga manor. The ancient house is quickly going up in flames, much to everyone's surprise. Even more Nani? inducing is the culprit of the mansion toasting himself, Akame.

The Kishu is standing unwavering in front of the burning building. He's grasping a burning tree branch in his mouth, no doubt having gotten it from the tree that had previously been smoldering. The night sky is alight with storm and flame alike as Akame's children run up to him and ask him what the fuck he's done.

Turns out Akame's just tired of the bullshit. He's tired of constantly having to hold off the violent cannibals they have as neighbors. He's tired of living separate from those who could serve as close allies and true friends. He's tired of leading his sons and daughters into battles they cannot win.

Fuck the house, Akame's turning a new leaf. From now on he'll be dedicating his power to the Ohu army's cause and he encourages the remaining Igas to come with. At least then their ability to whoop ass will be useful beyond gang wars.

"Akame!" a ragged voice hollers from somewhere in the woods. "You little coward!"

Everyone looks. It's Kurojaki, his mottled fur caked in dry blood, his single eye bulging. He runs over to the Igas but he doesn't make as if to attack them. Instead, he just keeps yelling, his thoughts spilling like vomit from his mouth.

Akame just HAS to be this extra, doesn't he? First Kurojaki loses his wife. Then his own child is used to humiliate him. And now Akame is burning down the one solace he had left, swiftly destroying his life's mission of overtaking the manor. With one last gibbered out swear Kurojaki leaps into the burning house.

The smell of roasted kindling is quickly laced with, then overpowered by, the stench of burning hair and melting flesh. Kurojaki screams bloody murder as the flames engulf him. Gin gazes into the abyss of Kurojaki's one eye before it pops, bubbles, and oozes down his cheek, its gooey remains soon joined by his eyebrows and the last fringes of his white mohawk. Despite his agony the mongrel makes no effort to escape the flames, instead collapsing without struggle on the immolated wooden floor.

If this whole sight wasn't fucked enough, a whole chorus of desperate cries also approach the house. It's several of the remaining Kogas all hollering out to their leader. Loyalty may be a virtue, but the outpouring of devotion from the cult leads each and every one of the mohawked dogs to leap into the flames alongside their master.

Upon realizing the hoard won't stop making like they're campfire marshmallows, Gin tries to stop them. He's just shoved out of the way. The only Koga who neither leaps into the flames or runs away is baby Tesshin. Instead the child begins nestling into, oddly enough, Wilson's ankle as he watches his family burn to death.

Akame squints into the flames as the Kogas' agonized screams fade away. The cloudy night sky finally starts drip dropping rain down on the scene and working quickly to extinguish the house. Once the flames have subsided everyone gathers to stare into the wreckage.

Gin takes the first step into the charred remains of the manor. The blackened, crumbling corpses of so many canines litter the floor. Gin hasn't felt like crying this much since his first beating from Gohei, but something physically holds him back. He lip trembles as he looks from the bodies to Akame.

Despite everything the shithead put him through, Akame, with poise unmatched by anyone on Earth, respectfully wishes that Kurojaki and his people could have dedicated themselves to a cause that wasn't so heinous. He also wishes that they may now rest in peace. Many years of anguish and war have lead up to this point, but if nothing else it served to prove that Kurojaki had a lotta resolve.

Now that nobody's gonna come in the middle of the night and kill them dead the group allows themselves to settle in and get some shut eye. Everyone is curling up beside each other when Wilson awkwardly walks up to the hoard. Tiny little Tesshin follows behind him.

Wilson seems especially interested in speaking with Gin, who is nestled in between Ben and Cross. While the Collie coyly bows respectfully to Gin, Tesshin recognizes Cross and runs to her so he can tug on her ears.

Wilson apologizes for the whole almost-committing-infantacide thing. He's deeply ashamed of how low he stooped to strike back against his Kurojaki. Now that he's gotten to see him die in literally the most painful way possible, Wilson hasn't got any ill will towards any Kogas anymore, least of all the only truly innocent one. He accepts that what he did was super shitty even if he'd been blinded by immense grief. He wants to do right and contribute to something that matters, so he'd like to know if everyone - Ben, Cross, Gin - would allow him to stay with the pack.

Nobody responds for a moment, though Gin makes as if he wants to say something. Instead the first to speak is Cross. She tells Wilson that despite the immorality of his behavior she understands his pain. She takes a deep breath and places her paw over Ben's, which seems to have signaled him to lean soothingly against her. Cross begins explaining to Wilson - and Gin, just cause he's there - what her life was like before she joined the Ohu army.

Cross was, as most of the folks here were, a hunting dog. She met Akakabuto once or twice out in the wild, but it took her a while to stand off against him in earnest. Before then she had been bred to another Saluki (Ben politely doesn't say anything to this) and had a litter of puppies. She was blessed with the chance to raise and live with her children into their early adult years, but this is Ginga so her backstory wouldn't have been brought up if it'd stayed idyllic forever.

Her master brought her and her 2 year old children along on a hunt one day when the group was met with the pants-shittingly horrifying sight that is Akakabuto. The bear struck one of Cross's sons across the face, snapping his neck and killing him instantly. Cross and her other children tried to defend themselves and their owner, but one by one her kids were brutally murdered.

The only reason Cross herself survived was because when Akakabuto struck her across the back - the thing that left the scars she bears to this day - she took a fall so hard that she couldn't get up and he believed her to be dead.

All throughout this battle Cross and her kids had been looking desperately to their master for help, but he never given it. While they'd tried to defend the man with their lives, he had been running away and leaving them for dead.

Akakabuto eventually grew bored of the dead dogs and left them behind. When she felt some degree of safe, Cross had crawled over to each of her children's corpses and wept into them.

For a while Cross had nothing much to live for. She didn't care about her owner anymore - in fact, she hated just about the whole of humanity at this point sans one human child who had once fed her while she was wandering aimlessly - and her children were all dead. The only thing that kept her going was her hatred for Akakabuto, her burning desire to see him pay for what he'd done to her.

But she had never been a stray before, and despite her strength it was hard to make ends meet. She barely ate enough to fill a cavity most days and she was quickly growing weak, emaciated, and depressed. She'd felt like giving up.

It was around this point when a red and white Akita Inu had found her. At first she had been afraid of him given he was a wild-looking, battlescarred character with an unreadable face, but he'd shown her a kindness she hadn't felt for a long time. He'd lead her back to his pack, an impressively large collective of other former hunting dogs, and told them that she was their guest. They were to treat her with kindness and feed her back to health before letting her go.

The soldiers were mostly nice to her, if a bit awkward regarding her emotional state. Most of them were dudes and the chicks in the bunch were more about biting and killing then offering any TLC. There was one dog who was especially kind to her, though. His name was Ben (Ben smiles and twitches his ears at the mention of his name), and he was an extremely noble, involved dog who lead the first platoon. She and him instantly clicked, and so they became fast friends.

Cross quickly regained her lost weight and, with Ben's help, regained her lost muscle mass... and then some! So grateful was she for both Ben's kindness and the boss's generosity that she insisted she stay with the pack. She humbly requested membership to the first platoon, promising that she could keep up with the others. She even offered to train under Ben's supervision if need be.

The leader had smiled at her and responded with a gentle nod and a twinkle in his eye. The rest, as they say, is history.

So engrossed in Cross's story was Gin that he'd barely noticed when Wilson laid down beside them. He also didn't really notice when Ben told Wilson that he was welcome so long as he used violence as a means of achieving peace, not as a means of releasing his anger. Nor did he notice when Tesshin wobbled over to Moss and his son and was happily invited to spend the night tucked between the pudgy Mastiff's enormous paws.

But he does notice when Cross winks at him and tucks herself tightly against her doghusband, and he takes this as a sign that storytime is over.

Gin settles in beside his friends to sleep, now better understanding the depth of their devotion. As he dozes he imagines Riki (or, at least, the dog who looks a shittonne like Riki) offering shelter to a boney Cross, training up gentle giant Ben, and lovingly smiling down from his perch at his ever-growing pack.

He imagines the Riki Dog smiling down at him, too, and reaching out a paw to him. Before he can imagine himself touching paws with the boss he fades into a deep, dreamless sleep.

At the buttcrack of dawn the troops head out. They're now joined by John, Wilson, the remaining Igas, and even Kurojaki's little son (who Moss has begun happily carrying around in between the folds on his back). The mission to find more soldiers continues on, and all the dogs begin the journey southward to scope out more canine meatheads for their cause.

Bust out the water wings, folks, because the troops are headed to the seaside. Gin's never seen the ocean before, so he's super weirded out by so much water in one place. John considerably refrains from mocking him for not  knowing what the sea is and explains that crossing the ocean is necessary to reach different countries. Given that John once lived in some mysterious land called Your Up, Gin takes his word for it.

The gang boards an abandoned ship half submerged in the ocean. Gin takes a chance to gaze over the edge and into the water below. His eyes sparkle with curiosity as the waves wash to and fro before the boat.

His gaze follow the waves as they go out and out and out further and further away, the expanse of water stretching out miles ahead. Also miles ahead is a mass of land that looks no larger then a grain of rice. Gin excitedly calls out that he's found a foreign country.

Wilson politely tells Gin that he's got a good eye, but that's not a foreign country. It's just Shikoku. Ole Willy used to travel there frequently during his circus days, and it's also where he met nomadic Mortal Enemy #2.

Before Wilson has a chance to elaborate, Ben interrupts. He closes his foggy eyes and takes in the sounds of the waves before saying that yeah, Shikoku's pretty lit. Lotsa bodybuilder types over there, dogs specifically bred and raised for battle. This fills Gin with the sort of glee that'd seem excessive in a hyperactive schoolgirl. Gin begs the dane to let him go on a field trip to Battle Dog Island.

Everything is a blurry mass of God-knows-what in Ben's eyes, but even he can tell Shikoku is a long ways away. He asks how exactly Gin plans on getting there, to which Gin responds with, "Swimming, of course." This is foolish, obviously, as doggy paddling that far through these waters would be impossible. Ben kindly but firmly tells Gin that he'll be just as much help in gathering troops here.

Ben turns with a degree of finality back into the captain's quarters, his face turning redder then normal as he bonks his muzzle into the doorframe. Despite his upset at being denied permission to abandon ship Gin follows after him in concern when Wilson calls him back.

He tells Gin that he's sorry the kid can't come, but Ben knows best. Gin disagrees - he HAS to go. It's his duty to take Ben's place on the trip, for the newly disabled dog won't make it very far in these conditions.

Several of the dogs seem confused about what this means before Gin passes around volume 3 of the manga and catches them up to speed on how Ben's poisoning has started sapping away his sight. As some of them "ohhhhhhhh" in realization, Smith chimes in with a haven't you people ever heard of not leaving the commander of a platoon behind.

John insists that Gin's a tough cookie, perfect to take Ben's place. So long as he has his immaculate bestie beside him, ofc. He'll be going with Gin, too. Not wanting to be left out, Smith also insists on going. So do the Kai Bros. So does Wilson.

Cross looks as if she wants to say something, but she restrains herself. Gin notices and asks her if she'd like to Come Along by Cosmo Sheldrake. She unconvincingly says she'd love to but she can't leave Ben alone in his condition. It's pretty obvious she's keeping something from everyone, but before they can pry she trots off to join Ben in his quarters.

Smith mutters about how he thinks Cross has been looking a little differently lately but he can't quite put his paw on how. Gin doesn't say anything. Instead he just watches her leave.

Nighttime comes right on schedule. The Ohu dogs are sprawled across the poopdeck, pooped from their travels. Most of them are asleep, but some are only pretending to snooze.

Gin is one of those fakers. He slowly and quietly gathers the other pretenders to join him towards the front of the ship. He has a moment of hesitation before leaping into the water when he sees how aggressive the waves are tonight, but he tries not to show any doubt. This has to be done.

Just before he's about to go, the ever-so-gentle scrapping of claws on wood directs his attention behind him. The gathered gang looks back and sees the Igas are also awake and eager to join them.

Akame feels it's his responsibility to lighten Ben's load in this regard. He'll be leaving the near-sighted dog in the care of Papa Moss. Besides, God only knows what the dogs in Shikoku are like, so why not bring a ninja along just in case? Finally satisfied with the group's size, everyone gathers their courage and jumps into the ocean.

Huge black and blue waves toss the dogs around as they struggle to stay afloat. Smith hesitates at the boat's edge upon realizing what sorta Jackass stunt they're pulling here, but he can't back out now. He gives a loud squeak as he cannonballs into the water.

John's rolling his eyes and mocking Smith's masculinity from the boat when he realizes that he can see a pair of eyes glimmer from nearby. Someone is awake and moving towards them! "Oh shit," John manages as he leaps gracefully in after the others.

Turns out that the nosy parker was just Cross. Upon seeing everyone abandon ship she comes trotting, then running, to the deck's edge. She can just make out the shining wet fur of the dogs in the ocean. She hopes aloud that they'll make it.

A confused, groggy voice from behind her catches her attention. She turns to see that Ben has woken up. Moss is trailing behind, a still snoozing Tesshin draped across his broad forehead. Ben asks Cross what she's doing awake. All is still. The silence speaks volumes, and Ben realizes that Gin has taken off in one of his hare-brained schemes again. Cross is about to defend the kid's decision when Ben sorta just shrugs and sighs.

Ben figures that when someone like Gin gets an idea in his head, he won't abandon it. He'll either learn his lesson the hard way or live to do them all a great service, and Gin's proven time and time again he's not likely to up and die on them. Besides, the dane admits, he kinda wanted to ask Gin to ride (swim?) shotgun anyway, but he couldn't justify asking the youngest troop to do it. Though Ben can't see the dogs swim away he still looks out towards the sea.

The dogs swim for a longass time, paddling in their namesakeway as the waves threaten to toss them into space. Shikoku both is and isn't as far away as they imagined, and this eats away at their patience while they grow more and more tired. Gin is capable of leading the charge given his childhood waterboardings but he's also losing steam.

The only thing keeping him moving is the sliver of moonlight above. When the partial moon is intercepted by the clouds, the shape it forms bears resemblance to Riki's silhouette atop his Throne Hill. Gin can't let the big man down.

After a while the dogs come across a reprieve from their struggle: a tiny island, little more then a small hunk of muddy, sandy land sticking up out the water. Shikoku isn't much further now, but the whole lot is swung out. There's just enough room on the puny isle to allow everyone refuge for the night.

The dogs all adorably snuggle up beside each other to keep warm against the cold ocean winds. As Gin rests his head across John's shoulders he takes one last peek at the moon. The Riki Clouds have vanished. He just sighs and closes his eyes.

Night turns to day and things are getting interesting in Shikoku. A nationwide dog fighting tournament is in full swing, making everyone reading this instantly a little less comfortable. In this particular fight, two Tosa dogs named Niouryu ("Nio dragon") and Musashi ("master warrior") are duking it out to a screaming crowd of weirdos who like watching dogs sumo wrestle.

Musashi's gotten the drop on Niouryu and is clearly winning via attempted strangulation. For the sake of saving Niouryu's life and so as I never have to write that name again, the fight is broken up and Musashi is declared winner.

This is very exciting news for the Musashi fans in the crowd because it means that the dude has won the Dog Wrastling championship for the 2nd year in a row. True, he's working his way up from middleweight to heavyweight, but this ain't no small potatoes. Musashi's unmatched prowess is celebrated as he is donned in traditional championship garb. The dog proudly holds his scarred head high as he gazes wistfully into the distance. His nose twitches as he detects something strange on the wind.

Musashi's trainer takes him back to his kennel alongside several other competitors. All of the dogs, Mushie Boy included, begin barking, seemingly alerted to something nearby. Musashi's trainer doesn't know what to make of this so he leaves the kennel to go snooping around in the hopes of finding the source of the dogs' intruige.

Unseen to all but the fighters' noses, the Ohu dogs reveal that they've made it to Shikoku by posing mysteriously atop the high stone wall surrounding the kennels. Gin gazes down at Musashi. They GOTTA get this guy to join the army.

The Ohu dogs climb down from the wall and disappear into the nearby woods until the sun begins to set and all the humans are gone. The kennel dogs have just settled in when the same smell from before recaptures their interest. Musashi growls but refrains from barking when he sees three synchronized silhouettes approach his cage.

"Who is it? Who's there?" Musashi says with all the confidence of a lion who's punched God to death.

The shadows whisper in low voices that that's not important right now. What is important is that Musashi agrees to come with.

Musashi doesn't feel like missing bedtime so he tells them to fuck off. One of the silhouettes, the one missing an ear, tells him that if he doesn't willingly join their canine convoy they're gonna force him to. Musashi demonstrates that this is an incredibly stupid thing to say to a fighting champion in a way that surprises the trio. He knows how to open his kennel and he's feeling cranky. He grabs the one eared dog as the stripey group tries to scatter.

Luckily for the Kai Kens the other kennel dogs are barking up a storm, all jerring and yelling FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT. This noise would serve only as an irritant if it didn't cause someone, a human, to call out in confusion. A light inside a nearby building turns on.

Moments later the circular beam of a flashlight can be seen from the other side of the yard. Musashi has an Oh Shit moment and releases the dog he's holding. He tells the three that he's impressed by their ballsiness, but if they wanna live to see another day they need to pound pavement.

The dogs seem less afraid of Musashi's threats then they do of the man with the light. As the man calls out to the dogs the three brindles scramble out of the yard, each making a beeline for the treeline. Once he's certain they've left, Musashi meekly sits down and waits for his master to come find him. The man joins him within a moment and scoffs, scolds Musashi for breaking out again, and finally leads the dog back to his kennel.

The Kai Bros (btw it was so obviously the Kai Bros who came aknocking on Musashi's door) start heading back into the forest, kicking pebbles in their path and muttering about how it sucks ass that they didn't successfully kidnap someone to fight a war with them. As Chutora and Kurotora begin detailing just how much ass the situation sucks, Akatora tells them to shut their yapholes and hide. Someone - a LOT of someones, it smells like - are following them. The brothers dive into the bushes.

An asstonne of quadrapedal silhouettes dot the hills nearby. The strangers smell unfamiliar and are poised as if they mean business so Akatora tells everyone to head back to Gin. His littermates start whining about how running away isn't very cash money of them but Akatora nips them on the backsides to move them along. By this point he wouldn't have needed to put tooth to butt. The pack has descended from their vantage point and is headed straight for them.

The trio takes off in a gallop as tens of angry looking dogs, all barking and yelling for the intruders to stop, give chase. Kurotora's got a terrible Napoleon complex going on so he gives up running and instead tries to fight some of the dogs away. This backfires phenominally badly because the pack swiftly overpowers him, then overpowers his bros when they come running to his defense. Manly, agonized screams ring out in the night.

Somewhere insultingly close by Gin and his coterie have noticed the commotion. John proposes that sending the most overzealous and tactless of them to convince a champion fighter to leave his home wasn't a great decision. Though Gin realizes he fucked up by doing this, he's too proud to show the embarassment he feels for his idea. Instead he just tells everyone they oughta go see what the screaming's for so as to make sure they're not down three soldiers.

The troops head deeper into the forest, each keeping their eyes peeled and ears open to see if they can find the disappeared brothers. The Igas try to contribute to the search by leaping through the trees and ahead of the pack. The thick smell of an unfamiliar group lingers in the air, but no one can be seen.

No, wait, there is someone there. A sliver of moon shine casts a dim spotlight over a muscular dog carrying something red and black and striped all over. It's Musashi! He's got a concerned look on his face and a busted up Akatora stretched across his back.

"I'm guessing the Kai brothers didn't convince you to come peacefully?" Smith asks, the urge to alleviate the situational tension clouding his manners.

Musashi shrugs and allows Akatora to slip from his shoulders and onto the ground. Gin quickly looks over the Kai Ken as John snaps at Musashi for doing this to their friend. Musashi's eyes grow wide and spiteful. He tells the dogs to lay off for chrissakes. Believe it or don't, he's here to help. Akatora agrees in a choked voice; Musashi rescued him when he was too injured to save his brothers.

Gin asks Musashi to explain what the shit's happening so the Fite Club veteran lays it all out. The triplets were attacked by a pack that lives in these here parts, a pack that's lead by a dastardly bastard whos exploits encourage gossip even among the most seasoned of fighting dogs. This aforementioned bastard goes by Bandit Bill, and he's a notoriously brutal brown doberman who lives in an abandoned Buddhist shrine. He's a territorial sort and was probably upset that a buncha insolent strays came piddlefarting around his domain.

Before Musashi goes on about Billy the Kid he gives a broken smile and says he'd gone to follow the obnoxious brothers upon realizing that they might have ties to the giant army of dogs that's been growing and moving across Japan. Gin gapes, somehowhaving been oblivious to how a nomadic collective of dedicated troops might catch the populace's attention.

Musashi states that he's glad the army seems real because it means he can be flattered at how they've come to recruit him. Bee tee dubbya, he's totally down to join them. He's been a fighting dog long enough for it to get dull. The old man is ready to live out the rest of his life as one big adventure.

A second later a white dog drops down from the trees. It's Akame here to say that he and the other fair furred folk have managed to locate Chutora and Kurotora. The good news is that they're still alive. The bad news is that they're in front of a weird, ancient looking monument swarming with buff-looking dogs. Musashi confirms that that's Bill's pad, though he doesn't understand why Bill would keep trespassers around instead of just killing them.

Gin immediately announces a rescue mission. Musashi tells everyone to hold their horses. He's gonna go home and bring back his posse to help sort this out. Bill isn't a bloodthirsty idiot - standing in front of him isn't a death sentence - but he needs to know these guys have backup. It'd also be easier for locals to get information outta him  as opposed to new guys from across the sea. Better to talk then fight, yeah?

Musashi departs while warning the troops that it'll be a hot minute before he busts open all the kennels at home, but he swears he'll be back by morning. Given there's not much they can do til Musashi gets back, the dogs set up camp for the night. The night seemingly passes without incident, and the crowing of a rooster can be heard as the sun rises.

Wait, did I say rooster? Oopsie! I meant Smith starts shrieking to the other soldiers that OH SHIT, GIN IS MISSING. John wakes with a start at his friend's name, and as soon as he's truly concious there's no doubt in his mind as to where Gin is.

Predictably Gin has run off to solve this problem by himself. Only this time he has a moment of self reflection. He realizes aloud that he very often ends up helping, yes, but he also has the habit of tying situations in big, complicated knots by making decisions on the fly... just like he's doing right now.

And yet he can't say he feels remorse for it. He doesn't have the time to. He needs to save his friends. He needs to prove himself to Ben. He needs to do this to protect the village, the people, his family, his Daisuke.

The ancient monument, Bill's Bandit Bed-n-Breakfast, is lookin' pretty eerie in the shady woods. The only thing that makes the dark, imposing forest more intimidating is the two dog heads sticking out of the dirt smack dab in the middle of the monument's front yard. It's Chutora and Kurotora, and both are exhausted from struggling to escape their halfassed graves. A deep, slimy voice cackles triumphantly as something lithe, black, and endlessly shitty exits the building.

It's General Sniper! The bastard merrily licks his lips as he watches the Kais struggle to free themselves from the Earth's unwelcome hug. Mr. S is just about to go on about how great he is or some shit when a dog from Bill's pack, one who had totalled the Kai Bros, runs into view and tells him there's an issue. They have a visitor, someone none of Bill's crew has ever seen before. Sniper runs to the arch out front.

Gin's parked his little silver ass just in front of the arch and is refusing to explain to any of Bill's soldiers why he's here until he has council with Billiam The Bad Guy himself.

"I am a representative of the leader of Ohu," he says in the deepest voice he can muster, "and I shall tell you no more. Please allow me to speak to your boss."

"Oh, no, I don't think that's going to happen," Sniper says snidely.

Gin is surprised to see the hoodlum here, but Sniper doesn't explain himself. Instead, his brow crinkles cruelly as he repeats what Gin said: so, he's here to rep for Ohu, huh? Got himself a promotion, ey? How charming.

Sniper turns to Bill's men and explains that this stupid kid's boss is a tyrant trying to take over Shikoku's prime real estate, ignoring Gin's protests and cries of What The Hell Dude. Bill's men approach Gin to tackle him, but Gin leaps past them before they can.

Gin continues to frog-hop his way onto the front lawn where he's shocked to find two of his compadres buried alive. Little Chu and Kuro, Too yell at him to get out, it's a trap! But Gin's too stubborn to listen. He ignores their pleading begins trying to dig them out instead.

While Gin is distracted, Sniper launches himself into the Akita and sends him flying. Gin quickly rights himself, his nose bleeding, and swears aloud while telling Sniper it's unsportsmanlike to strike from behind. The little German chickenshit better be ready to fight because his treason will not go unpunished.

Sniper yells a barrage of death threats at Gin as if all of Twitter is rushing through his veins when he hears one of Bill's men call for everyone to retreat. Sniper looks up and dumbly utters a confused "Huh?". The Ohu dogs have caught up to Gin, and they're here to stop this madness!

Sniper tells Bill's troops not to puss out of a fight. They've got enough dogs to rival these suckers. The troops comply and the fur starts to fly. For a moment it seems like the Ohu dogs will be able to swiftly end this battle. Unfortunately, they lose the upper hand just as swiftly.

Sniper has made his way over to Kurotora and he's got his fangs pressed up against the black brindle's jugular. He mumbles through a mouthful of dog neck that the Ohu folks must surrender to The Bill Brigade or else he'll start killing the helpless hostages. Gin blurts out for the Ohu dogs to stop fighting without a second thought. Sniper responds by telling his ex-army not to move or else the stripey guy gets it.

Bill's fighters take this as a chance to start beating the shit outta the now motionlss soldiers. Gin's eyes fill with tears of frustration and realization at the severity of the impossible situation before them. Before anyone can die, however, someone else comes in and smacks Sniper so hard he flies back a few feet.

It's another Doberman, a brown and tan one with sunken eyes. This other pinscher says in a deep, silken voice that Sniper can kindly fuck off with this sadism. Bandit Bill can handle his own intruders, thank you very much. Besides, he doesn't believe in killing for the fun of it. If Sniper wants to be his right-hand man he needs to respect the rules of Bill's domain.

Sniper half-snarls, half-whines to Bill about how all is fair in love and war. Gin tells his cliche ass to shut up because the Ohu lads aren't here to fight. They're here to ask for help.

Before any more nonsense can go down someone calls ahoy from the arch. It's Musashi! The big man has kept true to his word and has brought tens of his fighting buds with him, many more dogs then the Ohu guys knew lived in his kennel. Indeed a small army of Tosas trail behind Musashi-sama as he steps up to greet Bill.

Mushmush asks in the voice of a gossiping old biddy if Billy has heard of these guys. They're bear hunters with good intentions, ya know. Bill says that yeah, he's heard about the bear stuff, but their former general here has a different story to tell.

Gin insists Sniper is a big fat stupid ugly liar. They're not here to steal land or dominate Shikoku or whatever, they deadass just need soldiers for their cause. Musashi interjects by saying he's not one to get involved in work place drama. To him it seems the real issue is that Gin and Sniper need to settle a beef they've been fostering. Bill appreciates the sentiment (as well as any chance he gets to watch a good fight), so he agrees. Let these two handle this shit the old fashioned way: with tooth and nail.

Gin licks the tacky, drying blood from his nose and dives at Sniper so as to get this party started. Sniper catches him off guard and sends him flying into a tree's trunk. Gin starts scrambling to his feet but he's not quick enough to dodge Sniper snagging him by the scruff of the neck. John almost rushes forward to intervene when Akame restrains him and assures him that they can save Gin if it comes to it, but they'd better hang back in case they upset Bill.

Sniper wildly moves his jaw around and leaves big bloody slashes across Gin's neck, his teeth fumbling around the kid's collar. Realizing he can't tear Gin's throat out with the big leather slab in the way, Sniper has another idea. He tells everyone to watch what happens when you fuck with Mr. S as he gives Gin's neck a hard squeeze and an even harder twist. All the dogs gape in horror as they hear a bizarre, powerful snap. Sniper releases his grip on Gin's neck and the Akita tumbles to the dirt.

John swears loudly. He wastes no time in detailing how he's gonna shove Sniper's ass down his throat when a weak cough makes everyone aware that Gin is still moving. Even Sniper is surprised as the dogs watch Gin hobble to his feet.

Blood is oozing from Gin's clearly not-broken neck. Just before one can say "wait so like what happened", Gin's leather collar slips off his shoulders and hits the ground with a small thump. A white tear in the leather ring explains the strange breaking noise.

For just a second Gin is lost in the memory of when he was given the collar. It wasn't Gohei who'd bestowed it upon him. It had been Diasuke. The boy had said that it had once been worn by Gin's dad, which may or may not have just been a cover for a convenient purchase from Pet Smart. Regardless, Gin silently thanks Daisuke for giving him protection he didn't even know he had, and he thanks God himself for giving him the massive muscles he needs to tear Sniper a new one.

And tear he does, for he begins giving this asslancing all he's got. He runs rings around Sniper, leaps down upon him from the trees, and finishes off his display of hypermasculinity by swinging the Doberman from a hind leg until the pitiful would-be dictator cries out for him to stop.

Gin does indeed stop, but not without placing a humilation cherry on this assbeating sundae. He swings the pinscher into a branch of a tree. When he lets go all can see that Sniper's dangling from the branch by his spiked collar.

"Shit! Damnit!" Sniper howls, defeated. "Let me down! Someone let me down!" But nobody comes to his aid. Either they're too stunned or, like Smith, are laughing at the ridiculous sight. Bill takes Sniper's dangling very seriously, though, and he calls up to Sniper that he's ashamed to be the same breed as him. Then he turns to Musashi with a smile. He would be giving a slow, polite clap if he had hands.

Gin relishes the moment by boldly telling Sniper to never show his ugly mug again because he's the one dog alive, the one dog in the whole world, who Gin will never forgive. The youngin gives the stuck up commander one last chance to fuck off and live peacefully elsewhere. Sniper only responds with more swearing and even more desperate pleas for help.

Gin thanks Musashi for his backup. He's about to thank Bill too when the Doberman takes a step back. Oh no, he's not getting buddy-buddy with anyone yet.

Musashi looks like he's about to roll up his non-existant sleeves and convince Bill otherwise when the dobie explains: Bill would like to meet this Ohu Boss guy himself before deciding if he's gonna join anyone else's army. He's willing to go with, but no promises on whether or not he'll be killing any bears.

Gin figures this is as good as it's gonna get, so he nods and welcomes Bill into the fold. John playfully elbows Gin in the side. This is all well and good, but it's about time to get back to Ben, yeah?

Before everyone can start planning the cruise back, Musashi stops them and gives them a tip. There's an even stronger dog who lives out here, some dude who's rumored to be the strongest in the world. The Ohu troops look intrigued. Some of them excitedly ask Gin if he'd like to meet this superdog. Of course Gin's like HELL YEAH. The dogs all depart, leaving Sniper cursing and swaying from the tree.

And so all three of the packs (the Ohu soldiers, Musashi's crew, and Bill's cronies) join together and start their trek to meet the world's strongest dog. Next stop: the city of Uwajima. Gin allows Musashi to show them the way, but he can tell by how his men fall in behind him that they're really taking his lead.

Gin can't help but feel a warm sense of pride well up inside him. He hopes he can be as good a commander as Ben. He hopes he can do right by the Ohu leader.

After another day long road trip the dogs emerge panting from the forest onto a cliff overhanging a seaside city. Seemingly having remembered all the times Ben refused to speak up about his own prospective recruits, everyone quickly asks Musashi to describe the dog they're after. Musashi's less reserved then Benny is so he settles on his haunches and launches into a story for the ages.

Benizakura ("crimson cherry blossom") is his name, and dog fighting is his game. The dude is an astoundingly tall and muscular Tosa Inu mix as well as an honored veteran in the fighting world. Legend has it he was born 10 years ago in Japan's snowiest mountain region. He was born to two village mutts of unknown ancestory and for a while he was a simple housepet. That was before he turned 2, at which point his master realized there was money to be made off of him after having seen him tear a cheeky village dog he hated he limb from limb.

By the age of 3 Benizakura had effectively dominated the dog fighting championships. He'd body slamming his way through medium, then large, then heavyweight dogs one by one. He traveled all over Japan and had made his mark on history by never losing a single fight. It came as a surprise to nobody when he finally entered the running for the nation's top canine yokozuna (highest rank in sumo wrestling.)

When he'd clawed his way to the big leagues, his greatest opponent was Japan's then-current champion yokozuna. This dog was an equally imposing purebred Tosa named Tsuna Arashi ("rope storm"). Tsuna was no spring chicken - by this point he'd been about 8 or 9 years old - but he'd spent the last 6 years of his life claiming and reclaiming his championship title. Though it was apparent upon their first meeting that Tsuna respected Benizakura's perserverance, the champ had no intention of letting the younger dog take his glory.

Musashi says that this fight was one for the books which I guess makes it highly unfortunate that dogs can't read. Hell, even the wet-behind-the-biceps kids Musashi used to train would recount it with awe.

See, the two dogs' gameness had been admirably strong. They'd never once relented in their assault of each other. Not when their muscles began to quake, not when they drooling bloody spittle, not when Benizakura's ears had been torn to ribbons. Kick, bite, snarl, tear, claw, throw, strike.

Their faces wet with blood and their muscles failing, neither dog refused to give in. And because of that the match's thirty minute time limit came to an end. No decided victor could be decided between them.

Tsuna Arashi was carted away by his master and Benizakura was left in an exhausted rage. He hadn't won. He hadn't even lost. He'd gotten nothing. Nothing at all but a face full of scars and two ragged stumps where his ears used to be.

Time passed without much incident for Benizakura as he continued his training at home. He still had the respect of his peers, and the dude was as strong as ever. His ears couldn't be saved, but they could be cropped, and so his master gave him a battle crop so low his stumpy little ear nubs were almost flush with his skull.

After a few more months of training Benizakura's owner suggested a rematch against Tsuna, but the dog's owner declined. Tsuna was an old fart by now. His eyes were riddled with cataracts, he had developed diabetes, and he was ready to retire. And so Benizakura was blue balled cruelly by fate, never managing to win himself that championship from his greatest foe.

Musashi pauses for a moment before Gin asks what happened after that. Musashi continues his tale of whoopass woe by detailing that, being a dog and not having the context to these conversations, Benizakura never stopped itching for a chance to beat Tsuna Arashi for real. He'd continued his training, continued his hoping.

Three years later just before his 6th birthday, Benizakura finally felt ready to try again. When he came to realize Tsuna would never return on his own accord, Benizakura had busted out of his kennel and gone to find Tsuna himself.

Benizakura crossed water and shore and forest to find Tsuna Arashi, and eventually he did. What he found horrified him. The blind, elderly dog was locked in a pen and being chewed up and spat out piece by piece by the next generation of fighting dogs.

Tsuna Arashi had become a miserable bait animal biding his time til one of his master's newest pupils got too overzealous and handled him just a little too roughly. The sight stopped Benizakura's blood cold. It was then that he'd realized that if he stayed in the fighting game this would be his future, too.

Enraged at the injustice of it all, Benizakura leapt into Tsuna's pen and killed the other dogs, their humans looking while the beast of an animal ripped their livelihoods apart. And this is what they would call him from now on: The Beast. A fitting name given his mauled appearance and massive stature.

But Benizakura either didn't notice the humans screaming or he didn't care. Covered in blood, he'd merely leapt out of the pen just as swiftly as he'd leapt into it, this time leaving a dazed and confused Tsuna Arashi behind.

Since then Benizakura hasn't returned to his OG master. Hell, the only evidence that he may still be alive at all is the fact that Uwajima locals catch a glimpse at him now and again. The Beast has become a sort of Japanese Bigfoot. Though the muscleman lives as a cryptid nowadays, Musashi swears by his belief that The World's Strongest Dog is still alive. The hard part will be finding him.

Meanwhile, back at the ship the Ohu dogs have claimed as a temporary home base, Cross has been left in charge because both Moss and Ben have had to take off due to pressing circumstances. Cross is pretty miffed at being left behind, but Ben had just assured her that her service is appreciated and he'd be back in a jiffy.

Problem is that several jiffies end up passing by as Cross waits and she's getting tired of leading troops on simple hunting missions. These dogs can take care of themselves without someone telling them how to hold down the fort. But what about Gin?

Gin's nearing 2 years now, but he's still so young and has so little experience. Dogs don't have cell phones or group chats so there's really no way to tell how he's doing. And so Cross nudges a subordinate named Luke, a speckled pointer mix, and tells him to take care of business while she gets the scoop on the wayward pooches.

Luke seems bashful in accepting, trying to murmur out something about how Cross might not be in the best way to brave the sea, but Cross won't be having it. She says her goodbyes and then dives into the waves. The tide has settled exponentially but the ocean still does a good job at knocking her around.

While Cross is boogie boarding, Wilson and Gin are poking around the peaceful streets of Uwajima. Most of what they see is quiet, amiable people going about their business, but there is one especially loud something happening nearby. Gin says it sounds like a lotta hooplah for boring city stuff, but Wilson disagrees.

Willy had once traveled here when his circus made its rounds in Shikoku and, if memory serves correctly, bull baiting is a common sport in the region. That's probably what they're hearing now. He assures Gin it's not worth getting involved - bulls don't fight bears - but Gin ignores him and goes to see anyway.

The two make like everyone in this damn story does and stand atop a hill overlooking the bullfight. It's a big runny-aroundy event taking place inside a wooden pen surrounded by hooting, hollering humans. Several of them are cheering for someone called "Don", and in the pen with a very pissed-off bovine stands an absolute unit of a dog.

Gin's eyes widen as he examines the pooch: massive Ginga pecs, Tosa Inu mix, ears cropped almost flat against his head. It's him. It must be him. Benizakura. Wilson tries to explain that Musashi said Benizakura is more like a sasquatch then a regular sports enthusiast, but Gin just excitedly grasps at Wilson's fluffy white chest and tells him to look, look! As the two watch, the dog, presumably the aforementioned Don, uses all his chunk to snag the immature bull by the neck and flip it over using its center of gravity against it. The crowd goes fucking nuts, and too Gin is beside himself with delight. Wilson concedes that maybe, just maybe, this dog IS the strongest in the world.

Someone in the pin comes and separates Don from the bull. As he does so a young boy comes running up to grab Don by the neck and shower him with praise. The old dog seems pretty pleased with himself, holding his head high as the onlookers cheer.

Wilson's not entirely convinced this dude is Benizakura, but he does believe that the army could use this veritable canine tank in their ranks. He asks Gin how he proposes they get the Hulk Hogan of animals to come with. Gin deadass just takes off in a run.

Wilson calls out to Gin to slow his roll, but this roll ain't stoppin' anytime soon. Gin leaps over several gawking onlookers, each one alarmed and confused. Then the Akita aims right for Don while yelling, "Forgive my rudeness, Benizakura!"

The old dog falters, confused. He poses as if ready to take a blow from Gin, but no blow comes. Instead Gin pulls the canine equivilent of a pantsing and yoinks Don's collar from around his neck.

Don's boychild seems insulted that Gin dare makey his dog nakey and demands he drop it, bad dog, spit it out. Don stands growling at the Akita and Gin stands growling back in return. Gin's worried for a split second that this dude might really just be some random guy, but his fears fade when the old dog snarls through a face full of scars, "Who are you? How do you know my real name?"

Gin smiles around the collar in his mouth as he's overcome with relief. But he doesn't get more then a moment to enjoy having found the living legend because the big guy is running towards him, scolding him for his unorthidox greeting and offering him a similar one in kind. A huge white paw lashes out at Gin's face, smacks him silly, and throws him off his feet.

Wilson watches in a panic on the hill. He wishes he had either backup or a unicycle so he could fix this mess. Benizakura Confirmed lashes a paw out at Gin's face once more, only this time Gin has the foresight to brace himself against it.

The crowd seems stunned that a dog only 2/3rds "Don's" size could stop his strike. Wilson is equally surprised. So is Benizakura.

Upon remembering that they paid to be here, several people in the crowd encourage the new Little Guy to give his all against "Don" while others encourage the sumo vet to snap the youngster over his knee. But Benizakura doesn't do anything escept look intently into Gin's eyes, staring like he means to find something.

Gin smiles his soft, goofy smile once more and tells Benizakura this is what the lawbooks call a case of Pinch, Poke, You Owe Me A Coke. He only struck Benizakura once. Benizakura has struck him twice. Big Man owes him a free hit, and he'll be coming back for it later.

Benizakura seems first confused, then insulted, then confused again by Gin's forwardness. And with nothing more then a wink and a duck, Gin leaves Benizakura behind, foot raised and jaw slack.

Gin leaps back out of the pen and joins Wilson. The crowd goes nuts once again, this time because they're all wondering what the shit they just saw. Wilson and Gin quickly depart.

The Collie scolds Gin for putting so many human eyes on them. Gin says he'll explain why he did what he did later, but for now they need to let everyone know that The Beast lives. Not only that, but he'll be expecting to see Gin again.

On a familiar shoreline, a white mass of hair is lawling miserably around the sand. The fuzzy mop turns out to be a dog, and the dog turns out to be Cross. She didn't stop and take a break like the other dogs but instead swam until she'd reached Shikoku. Her unusually wide sides heave as she coughs up sea water. She tries to settles down for a second, but her ears don't follow her lead. They perk up when she hears a commotion nearby.

Her legs are killing her, but she hobbles to her feet and sways tiredly as she follows the sound of someone - no, several someones - speaking. One of the voices is high and desperate while the other two are deeper and more threatening. As Cross slinks into a hunting crouch, she sees who's doing all the yapping.

A long dog of very small stature is being encircled by two much, much larger dogs. The short king is a Dachshund. It seems like he's trying to look tough while being harassed by the two taller bullies. The big dogs are peeved that weenie boy wandered into their territory, and now they're making like they're going to eat him.

Though she's tired enough to sleep for a week straight, Cross's unyeilding sense of justice refuses to let her rest. She leaps towards one of the dogs and cracks him upside the head. She stands over the living hotdog and snarls at the two, telling them to beat it, beat it. But neither of them wants to be defeated, so they ready themselves to fight.

That is, they ready themselves to fight until realizing that Cross is a bedraggled woman. They pause to laugh at the absurdity of what they believe is some homeless chick saving a manlet from assault before Cross sinks her teeth into one's neck and begins shaking.

These dogs are little more then overgrown puppies, maybe 2 years old at most, and though they're nasty little things they're not very good in a fight. "Hey, lady, stop! Let Beth go!" says the one Cross isn't ripping holes in. The dog in her grasp, presumably Beth, begins whining and crying, obviously not used to real fights.

"Okay, okay! We'll go, we'll go! Please stop!" Beth whimpers submissvely. Cross lets him go with a loud grunt and swears at the unruly teenagers as they make a break for it.

Cross pants as she watches them go, and suddenly she's back to feeling weak. The adrenaline has all but left her system and her righteous power has been turned to a mushy lightheaded feeling. She turns to the little dog to see he's smiling gratefully at her.

He thanks her for her help, though he assures her he definitely could've handled the delinquents himself. She smiles back at him. She asks him what he's doing out here and he responds in a way that surprises her.

The Dachshund explains that he's heard about a roaming pack of dogs playing military, running their own corps and organizing men to battle a man-eating bear. He hopes to join those dogs and prove himself just as capable as any warrior, but his training hasn't been going so well.

He sighs dreamily as he imagines aloud how wicked it'd be to be one of the cool kids. All the cool kids, they seem to get it. It being fame and glory, of course.

Cross's smile grows encouragingly as she tells the little dude to keep at it, for he's bound to contribute to a good cause someday if he keeps that attitude up. He thanks her, then tells her that it's time for him to get back to training. Maybe this time he'll stick to killing squirrels instead of chasing down bigger dogs.

She asks him for his name, and he grins a broken smile. Oliver is his name, and he's pleased to make her aquaintence. After Cross shares her own name Oliver enthusiastically lets her know that if there's ever anything he can do to repay her for her good deed, all she needs to do is give a howl.

As Oliver waddles off, Cross's smile quickly fades. She's not feeling too hot. She's been put under an unusually large amount of strain lately and hasn't allowed herself a moment of rest. Something in her stomach cramps up. She's been puking a lot lately and it looks like what little she has in her gut is coming back up. She tosses her cookies all over the forest floor as the lightheadedness comes back.

She tries to stumble away but her head is too foggy. Her legs give out under her and she rolls to her side upon realizing just how long she'd been at sea. She allows her eyes to close as she breathes in deeply. So distracted by her tiredness is she that she doesn't notice when a long, dark shadow falls over her.

Back in Ohu, the boss is facing off with not one but two oversized red-backed bears. The unusually beefy animals don't intimidate the boss, but their origin does cause some concern. These two are beary obviously assassins sent - and fathered - by Akakabuto himself, the types of visitors the Akita has gotten very used to in the past couple of months. Clearly Redhead isn't happy with an especially jacked dog keeping his troops from more human BBQs. Whatever dude, it'll take more then a couple of homicidal teddies to down this masterful bear killer.

Actually, check that: it takes a couple teddies doing something unexpected to down him. The two big-boned barbarians combine their powers to knock a goddamn tree over and roll it the boss's way. Captain Canine is able to dodge the attack, but he can't do so without leaping over a lump of debris that's blocking his path. Turns out that bear ninjas and dog ninjas have something in common, as the poor dog learns first hand that bears understand the concept of pit traps.

There's no skewers this time, but as the leader tumbles into pit the uprooted tree trunk comes rolling in after him. He gasps and tries to get out of its way, but it's too late. The trunk hits the bottom of the pit with a loud WHAM. The sound of splintering wood and a yelping dog meets the twin terrors' ears.

The assassins grin between themselves. Yes. Finally. The Ohu leader has been defeated. The army will soon crumble, and Akakabuto's reign will be unstoppable.

But enough of alla that, I know what you people really came here to see: John yelling at Gin for making a rash decision! Yes, ole Johnny Boy is annoyed that Gin plans on not only finding Benizakura alone, but wants to leave the rest of the troops hanging back while he does so. Like, Gin, dude, you have an army of walking powerhouses and you don't want their backup against The Strongest Dog In The World Trademark All Rights Reserved?? Especially after the bastard hit you in the face twice???

Various dogs begin barking their suggestions. Gin should beat the shit out of the old fart for disrespecting him (so says the Kai Bros), and Benizakura would be outnumbered and thus forced to comply if everyone ganged up on him (so says Bill.) Gin politely speaks up with a deliberate, "Be quiet," which gets everyone to settle down. Akame clears his throat and nods to Gin, clearly having something he's gotta say. Gin bows and gives the Kishu the floor.

Akame explains that given neither Ben or Cross are here, the next commander in line is Gin. He admits that Gin is young and his decisions are brash, but he can't recall any time Gin's pigheaded determination didn't end with the Ohu dogs getting what they wanted. Besides, it's probably for best that the kid doesn't wanna face this with violence. You don't convince people like Benizakura to join you through ass kicking alone, and if there's one thing Gin's proven he can do it's convince people to be cool.

Gin's face is flush with relief as he quietly thanks Akame for his support. Musashi also agrees with the white guy's elaboration. He tries explaining things from a fighting dog's perspective.

If they all go in to kick Benizakura's ass, he'll just fight them off til he can't fight anymore. They'd just be another challenger, nothing more. But no matter how good a dog is at fighting, he's still just a dog. There is always a side to him that's soft and doughy and vulnerable to what he feels is important. Suddenly becoming aware of himself, Moss peers up at the top of his head where a tiny Tesshin is curled in a ball.

Gin allows Musashi to finish what he's saying before going on to explain himself: it's childhood rules, guys. He hit Benizakura once, Benizakura hit him twice. Ergo, Gin gets one free punchy. Smith laughs and elbows Gin in the chest, guffawing about how the baby of the team would find a way to skew such simple, immature logistics to work on a hardass like Benizakura. This plan is crazy... so crazy........ that it just might work!!!

A while later Cross finds herself on the wooden floor of an old barn. She rubs her face to clear her eyes of grit. Once her vision is clear she sees that she's not alone in the room. A dark shadow of what seems to be a massive dog is sitting before her, its eyes shining as they catch the room's sparse light. The stranger asks her in a crumpled, kind voice if she's doing alright.

Cross's brain finally reactivates and she's all like OH SHIT. The dog before her is an aged Tosa mix, his jowls greying and his face smattered with scars. But that's not nearly the worst of it, she realizes, because it turns out she's been chained to the wall.

She scrambles to her feet and demands to know who this random senior citizen is and why she's stuck in her own private Hotel California. Oldie barely reacts. He just gently informs her that his owner is willing to care for her. She'll be safe here.

As Cross pries desperately at the metal stake chaining her up - no dice - the mutt explains that she's lucky to have been rescued. She'd been delirious, mumbling strange things in her sleep about bears and wars. She also mentioned something about Shikoku, which, spoiler alert, is where she is right now.

Cross finally stops fidgeting and lets this sink in. So she made it after all. She's so glad at the prospect of finding the others that she stops struggling and smiles to herself, then to the other dog.

She gingerly thanks him for saving her, like really she's super grateful and all, but would he mind letting her off this chain? She's on a mission. The dog does not offer to set her free, but he doesn't not offer it either. Instead, he just says that she needs more rest.

Besides that, he's become very curious about her circumstances. What in God's name is she doing out here? So gentle is the old dog's gaze that she heaves a sigh, sits on her haunches, and begins describing Akakabuto to him in livid detail. And then she continues to tell him about the boss, and Ben, and Gin, and the sea, and then something much more recent.

Everyone who didn't leave with Gin was just chilling out in the woods one day hunting some food and determining where they'd go next when a scout they'd sent off, a black lab named Kurobe, had returned with some pretty shitty news: all of the platoons sent up north had been killed, wiped out in one fell swoop. Speaking of being wiped out, Kurobe was also bleeding heavily from deep lacerations. She'd collapsed in a heap before Ben before her breathing had ceased. Kurobe had died soon after.

Livid over the gruesome sight, Moss told Ben that it was time to get serious about his fucky eyesight and get to either an optomitrist or a veterinarian in a nearby human village. Ben wanted to argue, but Moss pushed that there wasn't much time left before the final full moon. Something had to be done about the slain soldiers.

Besides, how was Ben to lead his platoon if he couldn't see? Cross had looked at Ben, part of her hoping he'd stay, part of her hoping he'd leave and return with his vision intact. Ben had decided to leave.

Moss and Cross had discussed what to do. They'd want a small base camp for Gin and the others to come back to, but someone would need to head north to sort out the whole mass murder thing. They decided that the dogs should be split between the two platoon commanders available, those being Great and the newly promoted Cross.

Cross had then elected to hang around the dock to regroup with Gin and welcome back Ben when he returned. Better yet, she'd take a day or two to lead Ben to a village herself. Moss had buckled at the suggestion, asking warily if she wouldn't prefer to stay with Ben at the doctor's.

Oblivious, Cross had said that'd be excessive. She could stand on her own four feet without her man, and the hubby would want someone watching over his troops. Then her face fell, her cheeks stinging with embarrassment. She'd noticed Moss looking at her distended belly.

"You should resign when you can," Moss had said sympathetically. "Take it easy til then, but resign when you can. For your family's sake."

And with that he had departed, had followed behind Great as the dane had directed half the dogs away. Cross had stood shaking from both frustration and anguish before Ben trotted up and reminded her that he had a hot date with an eye surgeon. She'd just gritted her teeth, licked his face, and led him through the woods.

The old dog had been listening very intently to Cross this whole time, and even now she could tell he was paying her mind despite his focus being outside the shed. The dog remarks that this has all accumulated in her coming to find some scruffy punk kid with tiger stripes, huh? Well, he doesn't believe in guarantees, but he can promise her that she'll be seeing that kid soon. Cross cocks an eyebrow high enough to count as a Dreamworks audition before realizing what he means.

Not 50 feet from the hut is Gin, his nose to the dirt. Cross notices him as he gets closer. She wants to call out to him, but the old dog cuts her off. He says that he understands why Gin's doing this - he'd done similar rash things when he was young - but he won't be going easy on him. If the kid wants a fight, then a fight is what he'll get.

Cross is concerned about a heavyweight champ punching the shit outta a teenager so she tells the dog to fuck off with that idea. But of course he doesn't. Instead he says that if the Akita wants to die for his cause, then he will.

As Cross struggles to free herself Gin pads lackidasically into view. He calls out to Benizakura and lets the old meathead know he's here for that second hit. Cross gives up trying to loosen her chain and tells Gin to make himself scarce before his head gets lumped in.

Gin's surprised to see her and asks what she's doing here, but she just continues to tell him to get away. By it's too late. The old dog, Benizakura, has climbed onto the roof of the shed, and now he's plummeting down towards Gin. He lands inches in front of Gin. Gin boldly tells Benizakura that he wants him to join the Ohu army. Benizakura's like dude, we've had plenty of exposition for the day. He already knows what Gin's here to do.

That said, The Beast isn't going to abandon his cushy life as a bullbaiter because someone asks him nicely. If Gin wants him as an ally, he'll have to convince him. Gin says he agrees to a fight, but on one condition: if Benizakura pummels him into an early grave, he has to promise to take Gin's place in the army.

Benizakura accepts this offer without hesitation. He shows the exact same amount of hesitation when he grabs Gin by the neck and throws him like a football. This surpises Gin so much that he can't do anything but take the L.

Cross tries to escape the shack by pawing at a wall covered in loose boards, but she can't quite seem to make them break. She looks out at the two brawlers in a panic. Benizakura continues his assault on Gin by headbutting, kicking, biting, and finally throwing him into the side of the hut.

Cross doubles back from the wall as Gin smashes through it, splintered wood flying in all directions. When the dust settles Cross can see that Gin might have met his match. He's bleeding from the face and ribcage, and his eyes are rolling around without focus.

Cross commands Gin as his superior to leave immediately. Dying like a showoff isn't going to help anybody. Gin stubbornly picks himself up, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, while Benizakura looks in through the new window he just installed.

"Get back out here!" the Tosa demands. "You think you're tough? You call yourself a man while you're in there cowering behind a pregnant woman?"

Gin never received a birds and the bees talk during his younger days so it never occured to him that Cross's rapidly growing ponch was the result of her and Ben's alone time instead of her taking seconds during meals. Cross pulls away from him as if ashamed. She says she didn't tell anyone because she was worried they'd think lesser of her for being with child. None of the other chicks in Ohu's ranks have let this happen.

Feeling awkward but sympathetic, Gin tells her that she managed to get here fulla babies so clearly she's not as weak as she's worried everyone would think she is. Before he can further reassure her, though, he remembers what he's here to do.

Gin climbs out of the wall his spine obliterated and tells Benizakura that he refuses to leave until The Beast joins him. As he nears Benizakura, Cross climbs out of the wallhole and chases after him before she's clotheslined by the chain. As Cross flops around in desperate rage, Benizakura takes a moment to look at Gin's bloodied forehead.

One of several massive scars he hadn't noticed before has split open on the kid's forehead. And yet Gin's still here, still standing before a muscleman who has broken dogs' legs like toothpicks. The kid snarls in determination as his forehead blood runs into his face.

Benizakura is distracted for only a moment before snapping out of his stupor and lunging at Gin again, but that pause was all Gin needed to plan his next attack. It should be familiar to Benizakura given he invented it. Making like he's Benizakura and Benny is a bull, Gin snags the Tosa by the flabby skin of his neck and uses his massive weight against him to fling him off his center of gravity.

The two leave the Earth behind for a nanosecond before Gin slams the dog, a monster 3 times his own size, face first into the Earth. Blood gushes from Benizakura's nose as he falls into a heap.

Cross has ceased using her words and is barking like a maniac, but nobody but the three of them is listening. Benizakura wriggles on the ground as Gin looks over his shoulder at Cross. His face says "hell yeah" but then his body goes "oh no" as Benizakura rights himself and slams as hard as he can into Gin's side. The Beast pins Gin to the ground with one massive paw on his neck and the other on his rib cage. Gin squirms violently and Benizakura stands over him panting and swaying. He seems to be... smiling?

Yes indeed, the bull of a dog is smiling ear to ear. And then he begins to laugh. His laugh grows into a bellyfull of guffaws and snorts, his eyes squeezed shut in hysterics. His laugh is as coarse as the rest of his voice, but there's no malice in it. He genuinely sounds like he's heard the funniest joke of his life.

Beizakura sits back on his haunches, still laughing, and allows Gin to get up. Gin doesn't understand if this is an insult or a mental break. Cross is so confused she quits yapping. Benizakura finally stops his chortling and wipes his eyes dry of tears.

The old dog proclaims that this was great. It's been a long time since he'd felt so alive. To think he'd almost forgotten what fighting other dogs was like! He thanks Gin for the fun and says that he'd intitially thought Gin was just some punkass kid who'd grown too big for his britches. But he understands that Gin's got real dedication.

And if he's the youngest in his army's ranks - woof! The other troops must be just as amazing. So sure, he'd be happy to live out his winter years fighting alongside the Ohu dogs. Why not?

Gin's jaw falls open in a dopey looking smile of its own. He's kinda amazed that this whole thing actually worked. While he catches his breath, Benizakura pads over to Cross.

"Benizakura, thank--" she begins, but he politely cuts her off.

"So formal, you people," he says. "Just call me Zak." And with that, he uses his powerful jaws to yank the chain from Cross's collar. The thin but sturdy metal loops snap in half.

The three are just about to head out when the door of the nearby house opens. Everyone stands surprised as the boy who was with Benizakura at the ring steps out with a large bowl of dog kibble. He seems confused and asks his dog Don what's going on. He watches as the Akita and Saluki run away, and then panickedly follows when the Tosa joins them.

"Don!" the child cries out. "Where are you going? Don't leave!"

Gin notices this mildly underwhelming goodbye become a melodramatic one as the boy trips and spills the food he was carrying. Benizakura pauses and looks back for one last time. His gaze meets the boy's, and the child begins to cry tears of confusion and hurt.

Gin's own eyes glaze over as the sight fills him with a sense of familiarity. The child's desperate face reminds him so much of Daisuke's. Is this how Diasuke felt when Gin left? Was it worse given Gin took off without saying goodbye? Gin doesn't know. All he knows is that it hurts to watch the dog give the boy a solemn smile before turning away forever.

Cross lopes up beside Gin and they wait as Zak catches up to them. The boy is still calling out and blubbers desperately. Gin's wet cheeks match Zak's. The old dog isn't so proud that he hides his pain, and he simply chokes out his desire to leave. The others nod and lead him away.

Gin lags a few feet behind as his thoughts jumble with memories of Daisuke. Gin had forgotten how much he missed his boy. He'd forgotten the last time he'd felt like a dog instead of a soldier.

The dogs slow their pace. This allows them some time to share their thoughts with each other. Zak is pretty broken up about leaving his boy. He's not so steadfast in his decision to fly the coop anymore.

Gin pauses thoughtfully before sharing his own experience with the Tosa. Gin had to leave his boy behind when he joined the army too, and it was one of the toughest decisions he'd ever had to make. Even though it hurt him in a way he's never been hurt before, he did it because...

Gin pauses as his eyes well up. The other dogs wait for him to finish his thought. Gin chokes on his words as he says them, but he still manages to spit them out.

"But I had to leave him because I knew it was the only way I could keep him safe. Because if we succeed, he'll never have to face that kind of danger again."

Everyone falls silent. Cross's eyes are wide as she takes in Gin's words, and Zak's face is stony before he nudges Gin's side encouragingly.

"Okay," is all the big guy manages to say. "I understand."

But the waterworks gradually subside and Gin's focus shifts back to the mission at hand. After running for a shorter time then you'd expect, the trio meet up with the Ohu dogs in the area.

Everyone is very impressed to see The Beast in The Flesh. He's impressed by them, too, and he quickly takes on the role of everyone's surrogate grandpa by telling them stories from the good ole days and calling them variations of "whippersnapper." The strongest dog in the world easily finds comraderie among his fellow punchy people. While he worms his way into everyone's hearts, Cross meets up with Musashi, Bill, and their comrades.

This vacay has come to an end, so everyone goes to cross the sea once more. Benizakura chauvinistically offers to help Cross carry her pregnant self across the waves, but she blows a raspberry at him and jumps in before she has to answer any questions about what he old dude said regarding pregnancy.

This will be the last bit of goofing before the journey back because oh my god there's a lot to do when they get to shore. Ben has to be retrieved, John is set to lead some of this gang to find more soldiers, Moss's crew up North needs to be checked on, and, most importantly, everything must be organized before the end of the month. That's when the war will truly begin, and everyone will have to contribute.

----------

AND SO THE SERIES CONTINUES. Just two more episodes after this one, get ready for ‘em. They should both be up before the end of the month. Also keep your eyes peeled for something else, visual stuff this time, that’ll be coming shortly too.

Episode 6: The Battle

[pynkhues]

Hi! So I love your blog and your headcanons and ask responses but and I really want to ask you something thought provoking but my brain is like not cooperating so... what I really was wondering is do you have any hot tip fic recs? I am pretty new to GG and the tag on Ao3 is starting to get kinda long so I would love to know your picks before I start trawling through!

Ah, thanks, anon! And oh my gosh, there are somany great fics on ao3!! I barely know where to start, so I’m just going torec my straight up faves. This kind of blew out a little bit, so I’ve kept itto one fic per author (but assume I’m like, reccing all their works, haha)annnd I’ve put it under a tag to save everyone’s feeds, haha.

Happy reading!

Fora Moment We Were Strangers byopenhearts. 

I think I’ve already re-read this one like, a hundred times, and it’sjust so, so perfect. Intimate and domestic and sexy and sweet and just the rightamount of heartbreaking. Basically Rio, Beth, Marcus and Emma end up playinghouse due to Reasons, and it feels so true to character, and true to the show.It’s great.

He looks for another several seconds before a mild little grin colorshis face for a moment, then vanishes as he backs away.

“Nothin’. You just get pissed about weird shit is all.” He actuallyturns to leave the room, adding, “Laundry,” as he does, for emphasis.

Beth could probably choose not to rise to that, but she doesn’t. He’s inher house, messing with her, getting in her space and doing things withoutasking or being asked and it’s freaking her out, beyond just the fact that he’spresent and has made it clear he’s ready for a repeat performance of the barrestroom whenever they can find the time and privacy.

“My laundry,” she corrects, following on his heels, and she thinks shecan tell just by his shoulders that he’s holding in a laugh, which is obnoxiouson both their parts. “My house. My kitchen, my dishes-”

“I’m tryna be a pleasant houseguest, damn!” he says under his breath,both of them immediately mindful of Marcus in the next room.  Then, “thissome real last year shit, you know? You got all bothered about me bein’ in yourhouse where people could see, what your friends gonna think, how’m I gonna makeyour pretty life messy today like you-”

“Rio?”

StayPut and Play Along by FakePlastikTrees.

There are almost no words for how much I love this fic. It’s set after1.10, so it’s a little older, and basically assumes Rio really did cut Beth andthe girls loose after beating the crap out of Dean. They didn’t retaliateagain, but started their own shady business in the world of highstakesgambling, and it is just sogood and hot and the dynamic between them is *chef kissy hands*. 

Eyes trained on the wall, she takes a deep breath and asks, “Why did yousend me my necklace?”

“Well, what do I want with your necklace? Plus, you have my gun. Thoughtwe could trade.”

The statement makes her want to punch a hole in the wall and she has totake a steadying breath before slowly turning back around to face him. When shedoes, he’s standing, looking at the picture of the kids on the nightstand.

“Car man’s gone, huh?”

“Rio–”

He turns to her before she can finish a thought and as if he’s beenwaiting to say it, blurts, “You look good, Elizabeth.”

He’s serious now, all mischief gone from his demeanor.

FierceKingdom by emeraldcut

I’m a total sucker for fic which focuses on Rio’s relationship withour other good girls, soemeraldcut’s story with Annie and Rio sitting in a car basically baiting thehell out of each other makes me totally giddy every time I read it. It’s so, somuch fun, and she gets both their voices down perfectly. 

“Are you married?” she asked.

That got his attention. He gave her a blatant once-over. “You’renot my type, sweetheart,” he said, mock apology in his voice.

“Ha!” She scowled, fighting the urge to stick her tongue out.“You would be so lucky, but I never thought I was. You obviously like theolder ladies.” She didn’t know his age, but beneath the scruff, he had ababy face, she could tell.

“Why do you care?” The glint in his eyes told her that he knewexactly why.

She narrowed her eyes at him. “It’s my job to care. Don’t you havesisters?” Now she was just baiting him.

Rio’s jaw rocked back and forth. There was a shift in the energy aroundthem, and he almost looked uncomfortable.

Annie had watched this guy hold a gun to Beth’s head without flinching,but her messing with him about something romantic with the same woman had himlooking uncharacteristically awkward. “Her husband’s a super douche.Capital S, capital D,” she announced in the midst of his silence, feelingher stomach lurch. Annie thought this was a joke, thought it was all in goodfun, just entertainment, but now she wasn’t sure.

WeSuck Young Blood by sylvianorth

Another one thatmarries domesticity with wonderful character insight and great writing! Thisone basically diverges from canon at 2.03, but it honestly could’ve replacedit. It’s such a logical progression, beautifully drawn, and with some prettysexy scenes too (a running theme in these recs, haha).

“It’s been two weeks since you said you were going to teach me.”

Rio squints at her. “Uh-huh,” he says, like he’s not sure where this isgoing. He takes a piece of bacon off her plate. “I am teaching you.”

(Sitting here at the table in her sun-drenched kitchen, Beth feels likeshe’s trapped in a cage with a leopard but Rio is genial, drinking coffee,discussing current events in the paper and asking questions about her kids.Sometimes his questions get so specific that she wonders if he goes throughtheir backpacks when she’s not looking. Once, he brings a box of Danishes forbreakfast and recommends that she save some for her children’s afterschoolsnack.)

Beth shrugs. “It’s just – it’s been a while and we haven’t doneanything. You just show up here and drink my coffee and tell me to be a bossbitch and leave and I don’t know what’s going on. You haven’t even showed mehow to fire a gun. I still can’ t lie. I still can’t kill anybody. You don’teven tell me what being a boss bitch entails, only that I’ve gotta do it. Imean, I got rid of Annie’s boss, so if anything, you owe it to me to teach me.”

Una Lady Como Tú bySleepylotus

This one haseverything! Beth and Rio on a stakeout! Snarking! Shotgunning! Car sex! It’s sogood, and so sexy, and just genuinely a lot of fun. 

“This wasn’t supposed to take this long,” Rio grumbled, tapping theclock with one long finger. “Your kiddos gonna wake up wonderin’ where Mamais?”

He almost sounded worried about them, which threw Beth off a fewdegrees. “No, they’re with their father at the family cabin up on thePeninsula,” she answered. “They’ll be gone all week.”

This won her a sideways look that sent a small shiver down her spine.“You all alone in that big house, baby girl?”

Narrowing her eyes, she lifted her chin. “I’m perfectly fine on my own,thank you.”

Rio chuckled under his breath. “Yeah, I believe that.” Strangely, itsounded like he really did.

PTA Vibes by greyish 

This is just so.much. fun. The banter! The Rio POV! The swings and roundabouts of the Beth xRio intimacy! It’s honestly just got such a great energy to it, and is sowell-written, I love it. 

The first PTA meeting he walked into, she’d given him a look of totalabject horror before quickly resuming her standard Passive Housewifeexpression. He’d enjoyed riling her up until she completely cracked, yellinggluten-free snacks are non-negotiable! at him across the table like a maniacand stunning the rest of the room into silence. They’d stared at each otherintensely until someone awkwardly cleared their throat and suggested they takea tea break

(She’d pulled him aside and demanded to know why he was trying to fuckwith her by attending a PTA meeting. He denied it lazily, not even trying tosound genuine. She’d carved out a space in his life like it was nothing. Hewanted to retaliate. Invade every aspect of her existence.)

She’d stormed off and spent the rest of the break agressively loading apaper plate with pieces of cantelope and then left it on the table withouteating any. He’s pretty sure that’s when the betting started.

A Bit of Reciprocity by nottonyharrison

Another one set post2.04, this is just really, really great. It’s more these quick snapshots ofBeth and Rio that comply with canon, but also give really great insights intoboth characters. It’s fun, and dirty, and complicated, because the charactersare fun, and dirty, and complicated, and I just love that. 

She straightens her dress and checks her makeup before she leaves, Heruns a hand over her hair to flatten a couple of strands at the back, and runsa hand towel up her leg and then she’s gone, the door closing softly behindher. His eyes lift to the mirror and he can see his hands shaking.

He didn’t kiss her, not on the mouth. He recognised her husband as heturned in his chair trying to catch the wait staff’s eye. If he’s being honestwith himself, the idea of her returning to the table dishevelled and obviouslyfucked out turns him on more than anything, but there’s a time and a place andthis definitely isn’t it.

HaveIt Your Way by ohmisterjapan

Oh my god, everything about this series is just hot. It’s a realpowerplay series, so if you’re not into that, it might not be for you, butohmisterjapan captures so well the dynamic between Beth and Rio, and both oftheir alpha personalities competing in, ya know, a very sexy way. It’s so, so,so good. 

“You set up a meeting already?” he cuts her off, visibly irritated.

There’s a beat.

“I handled it.” She holds his eye contact. He feels one of his guysshift behind him.

Another beat. He grimaces a little then leers.

“Oh you handled it? You made a decision without talking it through withyour partner, huh?”

“I did what needed to be done.” She’s deliberately light and assertivewith him and he’s so pleased and displeased at once that he barks out a laugh.He looks round to both his guys; they’re poised but, Rio notices, look a littleuncertain. He’s tries to push that observation away because if he acknowledgesit then he might also acknowledge that he, too, feels little uncertain ofhimself. And then he feels a twinge of foolishness. He snaps himself out of it.He taught her.

Suream using you byAniara 

This is actually, I think, one of the most underrated fics in the GGtag. It’s tagged as Rio/OC, but it’s actually more like Rio/Beth but from theopinion of an OC he’s fucking instead of Beth, and ugh,it’s so good. I mean: 

“[Rio’s] eyes soften and he looks away. It’s too late because before hedoes she catches the rest of his features turn almost tender. She’s seen thatlook, not just in Lee, but all the men who’ve been interested in her. It’s alook of beginning but this one is clouded with apprehension. He’s hot for thispearl lady and not just for her body.

It gets to the point his skin buzzes sometimes when she sees him. Shehalf expects him to whisper her name when they’re getting it on but he doesn’t.He’s tight lipped about most things, she figures, so why not this.”  

Annnnnnnd, I mean, it’s not a rec exactly, but a casual reminder that I’mflashindie on ao3 and you can read my stuff here, haha. :-) 

[kbstories]

Kicking off the second part of my Charthur series with some fluff!

Quiet For So Long

Tags: Fluff, Road Trips, First Time, Bathing/Washing

This is a direct sequel to my first fic, Only Lost The Night. Please read that one first!

(No AO3 links this time, sorry!)

“... and this guy, he comes charging at me like a bull, I panic, throw the knife. Perfect bullseye, clean between the eyes–“

“Oh, horseshit–“

“No, no, I swear, on Taima, the fucker went down like a sack of bricks, and there I was: money in hand, just... drenched in blood from head to toe, it was a mess.”

Arthur's expression must've been more than a little incredulous because Charles starts laughing the moment he sees it, head thrown back, teeth bared in a broad grin. Arthur huffs, shakes his head.

“I can't believe this. You are the luckiest fuckin' bast– and that was your first run?”

“The very first one, yup.”

Charles's eyes are shining with mirth, the smile clinging to his lips as he leans over his horse's neck and pats her beneath her mane, settling back comfortably in his saddle. A day's ride or two away from camp, they've fallen into their usual system to cover long distances: side-by-side, their mares march in step with each other, the calmer Taima acting as a guide to temperamental Dyani in narrow spaces and tense situations.

They camp by sundown and keep moving by sunrise, spending the time in-between swapping stories, singing familiar songs, whistling along with the birds – sometimes, when Charles is in the mood, he'll get out that ancient harmonica of his and play a tune, and Arthur will hum along, closely watching Charles's mouth as it teases an incredible range of tones from the instrument, sometimes joyful, sometimes full of sorrow.

It makes him think. With Arthur back on his feet and orders from Dutch to follow up on a lead across-state, together, the reasons keeping them apart dwindle to nothing; and while their first night away from camp was spent with bold kisses and even bolder hands mapping each other's backs, there's an invisible line neither of them have approached yet.

It's distracting, it's the only thing on his mind at any given moment. All Arthur can do is wrangle those thoughts into manageable pieces, pieces of himself he pours into the silent pages of his journal.

Arthur pushes the sweaty tips of his hair off his face and under his hat, the motion calming in its familiarity. A little worse for wear and patched in some areas, Charles had given it back the day Arthur had been cleared for duty.

Welcome back, Arthur.

The man is watching him, now, in that undemanding way of his. Arthur tips his hat a little, smiling at the deadpan blink he gets in return that might as well be Charles's version of an eye-roll. Continuing his story, Charles gestures vaguely to Arthur's saddle.

“That bow I gave you? I bought the wood for it the day after. Figured stealth would be a better way to go about things.”

Arthur's look turns surprised, genuinely impressed. “Wait, you made it?”

Charles's eyebrows rise. “Yeah? I thought you knew. All you folks know are pistols and rifles and it shows, no offence. Makes it hard to find one that's balanced right.”

“Huh. Never crossed my mind, that.”

Arthur glances at Charles, then, at his capable hands, and the jagged scars there. A thousand questions burn on his tongue, but he hesitates, wondering what is off-limits and what isn't. Collecting his reins, Arthur brings Dyani's head back from the clouds, murmuring a word of praise under his breath. Her ears flick back and towards him; she chews on her bit.

Finally: “Is that, uh, somethin' your mom taught ya, or…?”

Charles hums, “Mh, you could say so”, and for a while, only the four-beat gait of their horses is to be heard. “She showed me how to hunt, too. Said it's best to trust in nature to stay alive, and to rely on my skills rather than other people.”

“Wise words”, Arthur agrees softly, maybe it's better that way. He's too selfish to voice the thought out loud.

“Yes and no”, says Charles, meeting Arthur's gaze briefly, shrugging. “Followed that advice most of my life, and it's not enough. I know that now.”

And Arthur knows, before he even opens his mouth, that he shouldn't pry. That he shouldn't drag the vulnerability lurking beyond those words into the light – yet he asks, “What changed?”, and Charles looks at him, eyes warm.

“I met you.”

*

They arrive at Strawberry with the last light, riding through wafts of mist that flow down the streets and sticks to the few scattered buildings the village has, making them stick out like milk teeth in a child's mouth.

At the end of the road, the hotel's warm glow beckons them closer, and Arthur answers Charles's questioning glance with a shrug and a muttered, “Might as well.”

This, too, is a well-known routine: Arthur strides up to the clerk to get a room set up and the bath running, mentions in stride that the tip'll be highest the least he is disturbed and, thirty minutes later on the dot, he slides the window open and waves Charles inside.

By then, he's washed and making short work of his scraggly beard, preferring a neat shave over his typical scruff just because it's been so long since he felt anywhere close to clean in these past few weeks.

In the mirror, he can see Charles undress in the low light, movements quick and efficient,and while they've been naked in each other's presence countless times – after all, there's no room for propriety in an outlaw's life – Arthur's gaze wanders over each inch of bared skin like it's the first. Until the razor nicks his skin and he hisses, face heating up at the chuckle from across the room.

“Careful, there”, Charles tells him, and Arthur doesn't reply, resolutely staring at the slow glide of the blade over his already-smooth jaw as water splashes behind him and Charles sinks into the tub with a groan of relief.

Arthur blames the sweat on his brow on the thick steam filling the room with nowhere to go.

It's quiet, then. Arthur lingers in front of his reflection a little longer than usual, eyeing the messy flop of his wet hair critically but deeming it a lost cause like the rest; throwing the razor on the bunched heap of clothes beside him, he stands up, stretching and sighing as his back cracks audibly.

Charles hasn't moved a single inch, body soaking up to his chest in soapy water, face lax and eyes closed. Dozing, perhaps, although his breaths are too measured for that.

For a lost moment, Arthur looks at Charles and wants, feels it like a physical string pulling at his guts, very much like arousal but also... different. More intimate, more fragile, like it could shatter in his hands if he holds on too tightly.

Quietly, as quiet as possible, he pads over, kneels, mumbles his name, to wake him up or give him an out, Arthur doesn't quite know; Charles blinks his eyes open drowsily, a lazy smile spreading on his lips. He rasps, “Hey”, and “Kiss me?”, so soft it could've gone lost in the gentle trickling of water.

Arthur does, careful at first, nipping at the perspiration gathering on Charles's lips and watching his lids slip shut again. The string tugs, pulls taut in his chest at the blatant trust in the gesture, how Charles hums and his mouth relents to Arthur's.

The water is warm on Charles's skin, the muscles in his shoulders relaxing under the tender slide of Arthur's hands; he squeezes and Charles's brows twitch closer together as he moans, low in his throat.

“Let me”, Arthur whispers; Charles mumbles, “Whatever you want”, and Arthur exhales shakily, pressing a kiss to his temple.

“You're makin' offers that are hard to refuse.”

“Then don't.”

Two words, simple, really. Arthur swallows, traces the faded arch of a scar on Charles's bicep. The graze of a bullet, maybe, or a knife's cut. Charles leans back and lets him, previously calm breath hitching as Arthur's touch trails further down, brushing over the smattering of coarse hair on his chest and abdomen and lingering there.

Arthur catches the intense look in Charles's eyes and leans his forehead against his, breathing the same air. “Gotta stay quiet”, he reminds him, waits for Charles to nod – Arthur watches him bite his bottom lip as he takes him in hand and pulls experimentally, tightening his hold around him at the almost-hurt noise coming from Charles–

If Arthur had any concentration left to form doubts they'd be gone, blown away by how Charles's voice sounds as he groans his name; Arthur shushes him, wraps his arm behind his shoulders to place his hand on his mouth, gentle.

The angle doesn't allow for much but Arthur doesn't care, eyes fixed on the way Charles's abs tense and release in the rhythm of his hand on his length, how the murky white of the water flows across his dark skin like silk.

Charles pants against his fingers, eyes half-lidded and hazy with bliss – an image that etches itself into Arthur's soul as he strokes him to completion and thinks, I love you.

[hellomissmabel]

Nothing under 7 inches (2)

MASTERLIST

Pairing: Baker!Bucky x reader

Warnings: Mentions of a sugar daddy/baby relationship. Mentions of sex but nothing NSFW. Mentions of disease. It’s also unedited haha

Word count: 3k

Summary: Bucky is a baker in Y/N’s hometown and with her mother’s birthday right around the corner, he’s excited to see her again. Y/N however doesn’t plan on staying for too long and aims to return to the city life, a dirty little secret getting in the way of her love life.

A/N: My prompt was “cottage”. This fic is written for @soldatbarnes her writing challenge.

Series masterlist can be found here

Previously

“So turns out you’re not such a nun after all,” the redhead grins wickedly. “Who was that, hm?” Your lips move to deny her statement but she instantly shuts you down. “Don’t you dare lie to my face, Y/N. I know what I heard. You’ve got a man on the side, haven’t you? A sugar daddy. And that’s why you never date.”

“Nat,” you address her in a warning tone, worried she’ll jump to incorrect conclusions. “Before you say anything else, would you please let me explain?”

Crossing her arms over her chest, she nods softly. “I’m listening.”

She closes the front door behind her, stepping inside the hallway so your conversation is more private. “First of all, I am not a prostitute or an escort. If that’s what you’re thinking, you’re so wrong. But that man you saw, he’s some kind of benefactor to me. Some people would call him a sugar daddy, but I’d rather not use that term.”

Natasha squints her eyes at you but doesn’t say anything – yet. Taking a deep breath, you continue in a hushed voice. “Tony and I met at a party. Sharon had set me up with this guy, Sam Wilson. We were supposed to go for a drink at a bar but ended up at a frat party instead. Turns out Sam was more interested in getting to know the hostess than me. So I sat down at the bar and ordered myself a drink, waiting for a reply from Sharon.”

“I was about to leave when Tony came up to me and offered to buy me another drink. I wanted to refuse but there was something about him… I just couldn’t say no. So we had a couple drinks and afterward he asked his driver to take me home. I woke up to a delivery of two dozen red roses from Tony.”

Natasha rolls her eyes at this and makes a gagging noise, not one to fall for grand romantic gestures. “He took me to dinner, and after dinner came lunch and after lunch there was breakfast. Like I said, there was just something about him that intrigued me. I thought I had found a man where I could really tick all the boxes.”

“But you were wrong.” Nat purses her lips and gives you a sour look. “Surprise, surprise.”

You didn’t feel the need to tell Natasha the whole story, but she kept digging and prying, giving you no other option but to share it with her after all. “We had rented a hotel room for the night. The next morning, room service knocked on my door and Tony was nowhere to be found. The hotel bill had been paid already and there was a note and a check on the bedside table… for services rendered.”

The redhead scrunches up her nose in disgust. “Such an asshole!”

You tell her to keep her voice down, holding a finger to your lips. “I called him for an explanation, demanding he’d talk to me face to face. So we met up at the same bar we first met.”

“Let me guess,” Natasha hijacks your clarification, “He just used you for sex.”

Giving her a hard glare, you ignore her comment. “No,” you reply harshly through gritted teeth, getting frustrated by Nat’s tendency to jump the gun all too eagerly. “He told me about his divorce and how he found out his now ex-wife had hired a girl, an escort to seduce him so she could divorce him on grounds of infidelity and ask for more money. He thought I was that girl. Later he found out that his wife only said that to anger him.”

“Still, what happened really hurt me and I didn’t feel like continuing the relationship. But Tony wanted to give us another shot… He had already fallen for me and thought he could buy my love with expensive gifts and such. At first I let him because I really needed the money, and I still do.”

You look down at your feet, a guilty expression etching your face with the shame that bubbles up in your chest. “That’s how we came to our present arrangement…”

“You have sex with him in exchange for money?” Natasha hits the nail right on its head.

You confirm with a slight nod of your head, accompanied by a heavy sigh. “Tony… despite his flirtatious nature… I believe he really does love me.”

Your answer is met with a scoff. “Love? A guy like that doesn’t know what love is.”

“I need the money, Nat.” You gently rest your hand on her shoulder. “I have student loans to pay off and medical bills and…”

“Yeah, yeah,” Natasha sighs, getting a little fed up by your need to clear your name. But as soon as you mention medical bills, you’ve grasped her attention again. “Medical bills? I know about your student loans, but I thought your parents were helping you with those?”

Eying her awkwardly, you cough once to voice your uneasiness with the subject. Yet Natasha isn’t one to let you get off the hook that easy. “Come on, Y/N. You’ve already told me this much…”

“I – I -,” you stutter in an attempt to find the courage to speak plainly. “I am…,” you swallow thickly. “I’m sick, Nat. I have sickle cell disease.”

The redheads eyes soften at your words, her arms enveloping you in a comforting hug while she whispers soothing, sweet nothings in your ear. “I got it from my father,” you mumble into the fabric of her shirt. “And my kid will most likely get it, too.”

Coming face to face with your roommate again, she stares into your eyes with a puzzled expression, like she is debating something in the clever head of hers. Or plotting. You never know with Nat. “I won’t tell anyone, Y/N. I won’t do that to you.”

“Thank, Nat. I appreciate it,” you exhale in relief.

“But,” she continues and you dread what’s coming next, “You gotta stop seeing that guy. I’m sure there are other ways to pay for your medical expenses. You don’t need a sugar daddy. You don’t need him.”

“Nat,” you whine softly, distancing yourself from her. “I know. Just one more party on Friday and then I’m done.”

“Sounds like you have a busy weekend ahead,” Natasha comments dryly, clearly not amused. “Your trip home, the party, your dinner date with Steve. Yeah, I heard,” she adds matter-of-factly, marking the end of your conversation. “Sharon has a very loud voice.”

Your friend reaches for the door knob to enter the apartment again and you follow right behind her. She goes straight back to the couch to finish up on her article and you head back to your room where Sharon is still waiting for you, bored out of her mind.

“What took  you so long!,” she practically yells at you, throwing her phone on the bed as dramatically as she can to make her point.

“I’m sorry. Just a guy from work handing over some paperwork. He’s really chatty.”

Sharon doesn’t question it any further and goes back to scrolling on her phone. You look over her shoulder and see she’s checking out guys on Tinder again, but when you want to make a comment about it, she shuts you down at once.

“Look who we have here,” she coos as she shows you the picture on the screen of her phone. It’s a pic of Steve and as she wiggles her eyebrows at you, she secretly swipes right.

“Steve’s on Tinder?,” you gasps as you open your closet, prompting a giggle from your friend’s lips. “How scandalous…” You go back to selecting a couple of clothes that you’re sure you want to take with you, too busy to notice her gloating when she finds out it’s a match, your attention focused on packing your suitcase.

Bucky waits for you at the train station, casually leaning against his car as he watches you get off the train and run towards him, right into his arms. “Hi there, doll,” he greets you with that one pet name you’ve always loved so much. It’s a pleasure to hear your name roll off his tongue, but you can’t resist the warm and fuzzy feeling that erupts in your tummy when he calls you doll.

He’s just as you remember. That same brown hair brushing his shoulders ever so slightly, those same baby blues that can pierce your heart like an ice pick, and a mild scruff dusting his razor sharp jawline. “I’ve missed you, Buck.”

“Likewise.” His breath fans your cheek as he presses a tender kiss to your skin, smelling like cookie dough and sugar, a dash of flour on his plaid shirt. “You haven’t changed a bit.”

The brunet picks up your luggage and puts it in the trunk of his car, opening the door to the passenger side for you. He rushes to the other side and slides into his car, revving the engine for added effect. He’s still a bit of a show-off too, you see.

The car ride home is filled with light banter and a lot of catching up. Bucky tells you that his bakery has been getting a lot more attention, people coming from all around to taste his marvellous white chocolate cheesecake. You tell Bucky you finally managed to get a job in graphic design for a company that specialises in coming up with, creating and designing advertisements.

“Seems you made it big in the Big Apple,” he whistles lowly, impressed by your achievements.

“I can say the same for you, Buck. Why haven’t you moved to a bigger city yet? You’re so talented! And it’s a shame to deprive the world of your heavenly pastries!”

Bucky’s grip on the wheel tightens. “Nah, I’m good here. This is where I belong,” is his answer.

What follows is a short silence, your nerves tested by Bucky’s reluctance to start another conversation. You have no clue why this struck such a sensitive nerve, but you decide to drop it anyway. “So… what kind of cake have you made for my mom?”

“Raspberry chocolate cake,” he chuckles softly. “She didn’t want anything with too much chocolate.”

You burst into a fit of hearty laughter, giggling at your mother’s ridiculous reasoning. “Let me guess, the raspberries make it healthy?”

He smirks and gazes over to you, promptly taking your hand in his and squeezing it affectionately. “God, I’ve missed the sound of your laugh.”

You don’t know how to react to his sudden touch, so you pull back your hand after a little hesitation. Bucky is surprised by your reaction and puts his hand back on the wheel, shifting gears when he reaches a red light and stops the motor.

“I’m sorry. It’s just…”

“It’s fine, Y/N,” he sighs as he leans the back of his head against the head rest.  “I shouldn’t have… I guess some part of me still thinks we’re together.”

Turning your head to look outside, you focus your eyes on anything but the man sitting next to you, deflecting his words and banning all memories from your mind. “I need you to drive me back Thursday evening, not Friday morning. It’s okay if you can’t, I’ll just take the train back again.”

“No,” he quickly replies, “I’ll drive you back. Why you need to be back in New York so soon?”

You shrug, humming quietly as you see your parents’ house pop up in the distance. “A boring office party. I have to go because I’m up for promotion and I wanna make a good impression.”

Parking the car outside the house, Bucky takes a couple more minutes to just look at you, cupping your cheek so you’re looking back at him, too. You don’t say anything, your lips don’t move and your mind stop reeling for just those few seconds. But it feels like an eternity, an eternity of Bucky.

“I promised myself I wouldn’t fall in love with you again,” Bucky whispers eventually, smiling sadly at the girl in front of him. “But I guess I never fell out of love with you in the first place.”

Tagging: @avengerofyourheart @a-little-hell-to-raise @marvelingatthewonder @mrshopkirk @hardcorehippos @knittingknerdy @winterboobaer @italwaysendsinafightt @viollettes @hymnofthevalkyrie @feelmyroarrrr @justareader @austinamelio @volklana @howlingbarnes @themcuhasruinedme @theoneandonlysaucymo @caplansteverogers @amrita31199 @emilyevanston @minervaem @howlingbarnes @buchananbarnestrash @youandb @you-and-bucky @fvckingsteverogers @thatawkwardtinyperson @barnes-heaven @that-sokovian-bastard @abovethesmokestacks @marvelrevival @marvel-fanfiction @justanotherbuckydevotee @barnes-heaven @heartmade-writingbucky @buckyywiththegoodhair @captnbarnesrogers @its-not-a-phase-hux @melconnor2007 @ivvitm1109 @toofuckinfabulous @ailynalonso15 @hollycornish @delicatecapnerd @camigt1999 @learisa @curlyexpat @palaiasaurus64 @fanndas-snow-goddess @crisssivonne @yourenotrogers @tomhollandzs @supernaturaldean65 @beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep @aletheladyinred @tessiethompson @xbergiex @reniescarlett @promarvelfangirl @capbuckybuchanan @lovemarvelousfics @yknott81 @rrwilson66 @pegasusdragontiger @salty-holographic-stickers @sammyissassy @sebstanchrisevanchickforever19 @kudosia @bellejeunefillesansmerci @lumelgy @mizzzpink @southernbellestatues @daringtodreamawake @neurotic-narwhal @cokamarie24 @blue1928 @movingonto-betterthings @breezy1415 @isnt-the-blog-youre-looking-for @jesspfly @weenie-butt @debzybrazy @fuckingchaotic  @always-an-evans-addict @petersunderroos  @thegreentgirl @nedthegay @eve1978 @yourtropegirl @4theluvofall @lostinthoughtsandfeelings @pineapplebooboo @curvybihufflepuff @thefridgeismybestie @supernatural508

Series tag list: @buckyappreciationsociety @alexaduke @incoherentsmiles

Strikethrough means Tumblr wouldn’t let me tag you!

[tylerhoechlin]

Back from the brink, Dylan O'Brien is ready to prove he's an action hero

or the past year, Dylan O’Brien has been in hiding. He spent most of his time inside his home in Sherman Oaks, wondering if he’d ever be the same person he was before the accident. Not just emotionally, but physically too: After major reconstructive surgery that left him with four metal plates holding one side of his face together, he feared he’d never look the same again.

“It’s a miracle, what they’ve done,” O’Brien says, placing his hand on his cheek. Indeed, the actor’s team of doctors must have done some incredible work, given the fact that he looks almost exactly as he always has — the boyish teen heartthrob who has amassed an army of young female fans since he began working on MTV’s “Teen Wolf” at age 18.

Of course, he’s 26 now, so he’s filled out a bit, and there’s also a hint of patchy scruff on his face. He had enough gravitas to him that the producers of “American Assassin,” which opens nationwide Friday, felt confident casting him as the grizzled action-hero Mitch Rapp — even though the character in Vince Flynn’s bestselling books was widely believed by readers to be in his 40s.

“American Assassin” is the reason O’Brien emerged from his self-imposed exile. He’d signed onto the film just a few weeks before he began work on “Maze Runner: The Death Cure,” the third and final installment in 20th Century Fox’s post-apocalyptic young-adult franchise. He was hoping “Assassin” would mark the beginning of a new period in his career. In 2017, after six seasons, “Teen Wolf” would come to an end, as would the “Maze Runner” series.

“I’ve never looked at myself as this pop candy type,” O’Brien says, peppering his speech with more colorful language. “I felt like I was more real than that, so I would get mad when someone would say [I was a teen heartthrob]. I’d be like, ‘I’m 19! I’m a stoner!’ I really resented that.”

He was so excited to begin work on “Assassin” that he fielded calls from director Michael Cuesta just as production began in Vancouver, Canada, on the final “Maze Runner” film. Together, they discussed how O’Brien would approach the character, a 23-year-old who is recruited by the CIA to hunt down terrorists after he witnesses his girlfriend’s murder at the hands of Muslim radicals.

“I spoke with him on a Saturday when he had just started ‘Maze Runner,’ addressing his notes and concerns about the character,” Cuesta recalls. “He was really excited and seemed like, ‘Yeah, I’m ready to do this.’ I was like, ‘Pace yourself, dude. Take it slow. We’ll talk when you’re off this project.’ That was Saturday, and on Wednesday, I got a text from my agent telling me that this awful thing had happened to him.”

On the third day of production in Canada, O’Brien was performing a stunt that required him to be harnessed to the top of a moving vehicle; reports claim he was accidentally pulled off that vehicle midstunt and hit by another vehicle. As a result, he suffered “a concussion, facial fracture and lacerations,” according to a report from WorkSafeBC.

Fox put production on hold in March 2016, and O'Brien ultimately returned to set a year later — after he'd shot "Assassin." “Death Cure,” which was originally scheduled to open in February of this year, is now set for release Jan. 26, 2018.

“I didn’t really wake up or become cognizant, in a way, for a good six-to-eight weeks after it happened,” O’Brien explains. “And then I entered a really difficult phase. I just wasn’t the same person. Things happen to you after something like that that you just don’t have any control of. Your body is designed to react in a way to protect itself if you have a severe trauma to your brain.”

The actor is sitting at a hotel bar in late August, publicly discussing his accident for the first time. He’s been anticipating this day for months. He knew how it would go, meeting reporters at the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills, where he’s done press a handful of times before. Even though he was supposed to be talking about “American Assassin,” he’d also have to talk about what had happened to him.

“I hid for a long time, obviously. I was going through a lot and didn’t want anybody to see me going through that, I guess,” he explains. “But I’ve gotten to an OK place of talking about it all. I’ve had to come to terms with people asking me about what happened.”

In a way, he admits, he regrets being so private about what happened to him, given the rash of recent on-set stunt-related injuries and deaths. Last month, stuntwoman Joi Harris was killed while riding a motorcycle on the set of “Deadpool 2.” In July, a stuntman on AMC’s “The Walking Dead” died after falling and suffering massive head injuries. And actors have been harmed too: Tom Cruise broke his ankle while attempting a jump from one building to another on the set of “Mission: Impossible 6,” and filming had to be halted in August. And on the sets of two different comedies this summer, Rebel Wilson suffered a concussion and Ike Barinholtz fell from a high platform, fracturing two cervical vertebrae in his neck.

“It’s really disappointing, and I think things like that should really wake the industry up,” says O’Brien. “It’s really easy, sometimes, to get comfortable on a set and get into the groove and think it’s all make-believe so nothing bad can happen. As an actor, you blindly put your trust in experts — and if they tell you something’s safe, you don’t fully vet it yourself. If you’re young and inexperienced, that’s just what you’re taught to do.”

While he never felt like a “gun was to [his] head,” O’Brien admits he always felt responsible for performing his own stunts. He’d get upset any time he had to be replaced by a stuntman. When he’d watch one of the first two “Maze Runner” films and catch a shot of his double, he was irritated.

“It bugs you,” he explains. “You see it and you’re like, ‘Ugh, what the [heck]? How do people not notice that’s not me?’”

But if he knew if he was going to move forward with “American Assassin,” he’d have to approach his action sequences with far more caution than he ever had before. Once he decided to stay with the project — and CBS Films, the production company behind the movie, agreed to wait for him to fully recover — he began working extensively with action coordinator Roger Yuan to ready himself for the movie’s hand-to-hand combat scenes.

Not surprisingly, O’Brien says, there were strict parameters set in place by the film’s insurance company that dictated just how much he could do himself in the wake of his accident. But he was still eager to do the fight scenes himself, so he rehearsed them extensively — to the point, he says, where he literally could do the choreography blindfolded.

“You just want to know it to that extent so that everybody knows what they’re doing on that day,” he says. “And then when you get to that day and somebody says, ‘Wait, can we just change this?’ You say ‘No.’ Things like that, you’ve gotta stand up for. I’ve understood more of where my voice can exist. When I was younger, I used to just want to please everybody and not want to be an issue or not be considered a diva. I’ve just grown up and realized you have to look out for yourself and stick up for yourself and there’s nothing wrong with that.”

Other protections were built into the production to make O’Brien feel more at ease too: His father, a veteran below-the-line staffer, was hired as a camera operator so he could be there if needed for his son. And “on the days we were putting Dylan in a situation that might make him uncomfortable, we took longer than we might normally take because we didn’t want to rush it,” says producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura. “We were acutely conscious of not putting him in a situation where he could have an adverse reaction — a stunt that might rekindle something.”

O’Brien had also spent time readying himself mentally for the return to set even before production began, visiting with a therapist two times a week. It was there that he realized the similarities he now shared with Mitch Rapp, a character struggling to contain his anger in the wake of a serious trauma.

“It felt like this version of me at the time, always trying to hide from people,” he says. “I was in a really dark place. Obviously, I didn’t experience what he goes through, but that summer when I was in recovery, I was going through a lot. Funny enough, I felt so deeply connected to the dude, and I don’t think I would have known how to play him if this hadn’t happened.”

Meanwhile, it remains to be seen whether “American Assassin” will be the role to catapult O’Brien into adult leading-man territory. His young female fans are still ravenous, anyway: On set in Rome, they once became so intense that the actor was forced to move to a different hotel.

“I saw some fans outside afterward, and three of their moms gave me the finger,” says Cuesta with a laugh. “They hated me because I was keeping Dylan from them.”

The producers of “Assassin” are hoping the film does well enough at the box office this weekend to launch a new action franchise. O’Brien knew that was a possibility, and says he’d be happy to play Mitch Rapp again. But he’s also looking forward to doing something smaller — “finding the new generation of filmmakers and taking risks on guys who don’t have a 25-year résumé.” The idea of acting in a Marvel superhero film, he says, makes him shudder.

“It just seems like too much,” he says. “I don’t think I’m a person who could handle being that face, that star who has to be on every talk show every year. It gives you a lot of flexibility and freedom in things that you do want to do, but it also takes a lot of your time away. And just artistically, it must be hard to keep suiting up and be the same character again over and over all year long in a bunch of different movies. I would like to have a lower profile and career, in a way, but still do things that mean something to me.”

He’s proud of his work in “Assassin,” he says, but he almost doesn’t look at it as a movie.

“It was everything but, in a way,” he acknowledges. “Look, I was angry for a long time. But at this point, that’s not going to do anything. I have to process what happened and move beyond it, and I have. It was the worst thing that ever happened to me, but it’s provided me with a lot of growth and insight that I wouldn’t have had otherwise.”

[source: LA Times]

[courage-a-word-of-justice]

Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga 5 | SGRS: Sukeroku Futatabi-hen 5 | Nanbaka 18 | ACCA 4 | Classicaloid 17 | Morose Mononokean 1 - 2

The idea from now on: Once all 2016 shows are done (rewatches or not), expect the 2016 ranking.

Blue Exorcist: Kyoto Saga 5

You could see Shura’s pink phone in her back pocket. Hopefully, she doesn’t bum dial anyone…

One of the problems of this (part of the) show is its heavy reliance on flashbacks, since the original series was in 2011 (or 12?).

That’s what happens when you have an impulsive guy like Rin, I guess. Custody. (Partially joking.) Sometimes a pep talk is all you need to get back up though.

I can make out some of the hiragana and (maybe?) a minami (south), but otherwise I’m pretty lost on that cursive script too.

With a proper look at the right side of the letter, I can indeed make out “Okumura Rin”.

I just realised – Torako (tiger child) and Tatsuma (judging by the “tatsu”, it likely has something to do with dragons). It’s tiger vs dragon!

How is this letter even relevant to the current day, aside from the tale of Ryuji?

You subbers make me sic! (LOL.) The word is “disastrous” – remember that.

Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu: Sukeroku Futatabi-hen 5

Whoa. Sukeroku’s eyes were red!

I thought it was Yakumo’s ashtray Yota was talking about. Turns out it’s his bento.

Ah, the magic of technology. Yota knows it.

The Amakentei from season 1, episode 1. It’s still here after all these years.

There’s a creepy picture of a man in the back. Probably a photo.

Noxy stereo, LOL.

Note for later: Kajikazawa was the name of the story Yakumo did when he got enraged by Yota.

I thought Yakumo would be furious about the carp. Turns out he’s not. The Yakumo name bit made me laugh because that’s such a Yota thing to do.

“Atashi”? Did I hear Yota say “atashi”?

Hangon-ko is so spellbinding…

Hikobayuru is beautiful as always.

I-I’m crying right now. The preview basically is implying Yakumo’s…dead.

Nanbaka 18

Was that hit really that hard?

I think they skipped a line of the subs?

Oh, “the tall guy” is Qi.

What’s the name of this black/blue haired guy in the first place?

…but the staff was broken before…?

Ruka is apparently a kappa according to earlier comments, so him in the water makes sense somewhat.

Wow. Futamata-sensei really likes Chinese stuff.

Strangely, Uno has a point.

The Gojyousan underground cell. Of course it had to be called after Ruka. Plus the goroawase would definitely mean it has 5 levels.

How did Uno identify Trois and Honey by one middle finger? The nail polish and style of the nails, I guess.

*cue dramatic music* It’s a cliffhanger! (Dangit.)

ACCA 4

Walnut…cookies? Can’t tell what that “walnut” really is since it only appears for a second.

Seriously, who is Nino calling?

I think a captain’s hat like the one that guy was wearing makes people look silly.

There’s a lot of English in this theme song. Except for the autotune, the song suits this show perfectly.

I only just realised Jean has some buttons shaped like the letter H.

Man, having the freedom to decide your own schedule is nice.

Pentagonal table, eh? Not even “Knights of the Round Cross” exist here?

Jazz sounds and xylophones really suit this show.

Satsuei? I forgot what that means. Update: It means “to take a picture of someone”, although it appears to be a noun.

There’s even ACCA desktop wallpapers. I want one.

Interesting to note Beurre uses the word kuni (country) for Suitsu, which was subbed as “place” (“It’s a wonderful place!”). This just shows exactly how much autonomy there is for ACCA’s districts.

I don’t think I questioned it yet, but why is this guy called Biscuit? By the audio, it sounds like he’s called “Bisuke” and not “Bisuketto”.

Keitai denwa = mobile phone.

It’s like the French Revolution. Not that I’ve studied anything on that revolution, but eh. Coldplay’s Liberty Leading the People and all that.

Gag rule. I didn’t know what it meant specifically, but it kind of explained itself.

Jean has such a baby face and gangly neck that it’s easy to think he’s an example of what TV Tropes call “Noodle People”.

Classicaloid 17

I think the word Motz uses is oishii, but I’ve never seen it translated as “delish!” before.

It’s grilled mikan, technically. Didn’t I say that last time?

I got no Google hits on “yaki mikan” or “grilled mikan” that were relevant.

Welp, this seems to be set in Japanese winter. Or else you wouldn’t be seeing mikan (or colds) at all.

Did Cho-chan just do an extensive burn on Sousuke? That’s gotta hurt!

The hallways in blue light at that angle…it’s kinda creepy, due to what the staff put in the next ep preview…I’m actually so scared, I have a lump in my throat…

How did you communicate with Hasshie, Cho-chan? *laughs anyway*

The fact the subs go (verb verber verbing verb!) is hilarious.

It’s a flippin’ zombie apocalypse! I tried to do one of those (not as crazy as this) in one of my stories and needless to say, I utterly failed! *weeps* *stops weeping* Well, back to work.

What would Cho-chan say if he got infected?

Aloe vera? (Why and how did I know that pot contained aloe vera?)

What? Okay, that’s (Schu and Beethes having citrus heads) just plain weird.

O-Okay. So they basically made “Thriller” to the tune of a march…?! *bursts out laughing* That’s the most ridiculous they’ve gotten so far. I don’t love it because it made me sick to the stomach, but honestly, that’s the most original idea I’ve seen in ages!

The prospect of a pineapple zombie invasion though…urgh. I do not want.

I see no Google hints whatsoever about mikan being grown in Turkey.

Wasn’t it Einstein who said “success is 1% talent and 99% perspiration” or something like that?

(Morose Mononokean ep 1)

Why did I pick this show, you ask? It’s pretty obvious, right? It’s appealing to the eyes.

There’s something extremely iyashikei about this show, even if it’s also a supernatural show.

Why is no one wearing yellow except Ashiya?

…and the ol’ “problem with buttshots” comes right back from Bungou Stray Dogs. What is it with people and butts?

“I can’t stand it!” – Considering you’re not able to stand, it’s pretty obvious, Ashiya.

Why a giant fuzzball acts like a dog? Beats me.

My allegiance for the lil’ fuzzball started from episode 1, as you can probably tell. One episode is all I need sometimes.

“…to collect your debt.”

Hanae is a feminine name, normally.

His face when he saw that it was Abeno was…hilarious!

Is that youkai a (subtle) 4th wall breaker?

The ED is so pretty. It evolves too, which must be a pain in the butt for the animators but it’s pleasing to the eyes.

(ep 2)

“I can totally see them now.” – Okay, not many boys speak like that. Girls, maybe, but boys? No. (That is, if we’re talking about the phase where suddenly speech is littered with at least 20% more “like”s than usual.)

Of course, nobody questions the spraying of spontaneous flowers in the OP.

ESP doesn’t do that.

Being possessed by mutant pine cones really does take its toll on Ashiya.

Cyclops pine cones? Probably creepy if they’re all staring at once.

Turtle emblem, even though the maker is a newt.

Mutant pine cones never looked so adorable, especially when picked up by the “scruff of the neck”. Abeno basically tossed the little guy he held.

Doesn’t make much difference regardless of if you call the parasite shrub “incurable disease” or “curse”.

Notice how formal both Abeno and the big Scree are.

It’s not quite explained how the Screes learnt the guys’ names.

[fossadeileonixv]

Benvenuto, Lucas Paqueta

Tudo bem? Tudo bem.

Our boy nine took the time to watch the latest Flamengo game and wrote a fantastic synopsis of what he saw. I had a little scouting report of my own, but to be honest, nine’s is so thorough I scrapped the whole thing. Enjoy and a huge round of applause to the author!

The Facts

Name: Lucas Tolentino Coelho de Lima

Country: Brazil

Height: 180 cm; 5′11″

Weight: 72kg; 160 lbs.

Foot: Left

Position: Central midfield, attacking midfield

Age: 21

Stat Line (Flamengo 2018): Brazilian Serie A, 24 appearances, 9 goals, 2 assists, 4 yellows

At just the tender age of 19, Paqueta secured a starting spot on Rio de Janeiro’s biggest club in Flamengo. Though he began his career as a center-forward, he has been employed deeper and deeper with each season as both his body and game matured. He’s settled into something of an attack-minded midfielder, shuttling possession up-field and involving himself in within the final third, while still dropping back and breaking up play. 2018 has been his breakout season with 9 goals and an assist in 24 league matches, earning his first senior call-up last month. The combination of his technique and intelligence have attracted the interest of some of Europe’s bigger clubs with Man U, Barca, PSG (I guess they’re a big club?) and Liverpool all courting the starlet over the summer months. Ultimately, Leonardo and if rumors are to be true, Kaka were enough to convince Paq that Milan’s project was the right fit.

And now the low cross to nine...

Nine’s Notes

Sooooo the international break is back upon us for what feels like the tenth time this season and like any sane person, I hate it. The timing of the break couldn’t have been any worse considering we are on a three game win streak and heading into the derby with maximum confidence. Regardless, I was tired of friendlies, which are still as meaningless despite now being masked as part of new Nations League so instead, I decided to scout out our newest, nearly-official Brazilian talent, Lucas Paqueta.

The Game

As TR has already touched on, Paqueta is a key player for Flamengo in the Brazilian Serie A and on Sunday, Flamengo faced off against Fluminese in derby match. The match itself ended as a massive 3-0 win for Paqueta’s side. Flamengo dominated until about the 70th minute, by which time, the score was already 3-0 and the points were secured. Truth be told, the result never seemed in doubt for the Brazilians in red and black with Fluminese struggling to create any chances. However, this shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering that Flamengo are currently in third, only four points off top spot in the league, and Fluminese are languishing in midtable mediocrity.

Also I just wanted to add a quick disclaimer before I go into discussing Paqueta’s performance. I have not watched a full 90 minutes of football in the Brazilian Serie A in at least a decade but the quality of play shocked me. I know I’m spoiled watching mostly Serie A along with some La Liga and PL footie sprinkled in, but this game was truly a chore to watch. The passing was disjointed, the defenders were rash, and both the offensive movement and defensive organization was amateurish. The GolTV commentator snoring around the 65th minute about summed up the state of Brazilian footie today.

Paqueta’s position and involvement

Flamengo’s formation was a hybrid between a 4-3-3 and 4-2-3-1 with Paqueta playing on the left side of the midfield trio (think of Jack’s position). He was clearly told by his manager to remain the furthest forward of the midfielders, serving as the link between midfield and attack.

Most of Flamengo’s attacks came through the left side with their left winger, Vitinho, as the main point of chance creation. Paqueta played the pass before the assist for their first goal (https://streamable.com/dhpqs) and his deflected shot directly led to a tap in for their third goal (https://streamable.com/c42sp).

Paqueta wasn’t dictating the pace, nor do I think he had a great game per his standards but his teammates were clearly looking for him every time they had the ball. And he didn’t disappoint when they did manage to get the ball to him: his passing was on another level compared to every other player out there and he did an excellent job striding out from midfield and transitioning the team to attack. So in terms of where he’ll fit in at Milan, I’d expect him to directly challenge Bonaventura when he gets here.

Strengths

Ball control: One thing that really stood out was how difficult it was for the other team to dispossess Paqueta when he was on the ball. They essentially had to resort to fouling him if they wanted to stop him from dribbling right by them. His size is also a massive plus because he can shield the ball so effectively. I would compare him to Pogba in this sense. This is a players who knows how to use his size effectively to maintain possession and use strength to bomb past defenders. Paqueta does seem to be more of a flashy player than the other two, however, with more of an arsenal of tricks to whip out in tough situations.

Breaking through the lines: Paqueta was an excellent link between the midfield and offense. He effectively uses his close control to stride through the opposing midfield, meaning that the other team would resort to fouling primarily in this game. In the few times that Paqueta did break through the wall of Fluminese midfielders, he picked out some great lateral and vertical passes that either helped shift the ball into an area with more space or create a direct chance. I will admit that there were few moments where he created clear cut chances but near the end of the game, he did play a defense splitting through ball that put the left winger one on one against the keeper.

Decision making: By far the biggest surprise was seeing Paqueta consistently make the right choices when in possession. Based off his highlight reels, he definitely seems like the type of player who values flash over direct football. His performance in this game completely dispels that myth, however. I can only recall one time when he used trickery to beat a defender and he ended up winning a foul in that play (https://streamable.com/43lve). For the most part, Paqueta knew when and where to dribble or pass, which was a massive plus. He is certainly not a ballhog or excessively flashy player – but he does know when to use his range of tricks and flicks.

Defensive work rate: The kid is absolutely willing to put in his shift when his team doesn’t have possession. There was one time when he was actually covering for his right back near the corner flag despite being the left mezzala. In fact, I would even say that he could put in a decent shift in the Kessie role but it would be a waste of his talents. His size and strength are key to making him a difficult opponent to dribble past. Also he’s a beast in the air in both defending and attacking on set pieces.

Weaknesses:

Did not impact the game consistently throughout the 90 minutes: It was a bit disappointing not seeing Paqueta take the game by the scruff of the neck and absolutely dominate it, which he certainly has the talent to do. There were times when it seemed as though the game was passing by him. I also believe that the lower quality of players around him could have contributed to this. His passing was much more intentional and crisp than his teammates, who often failed to pick him out in dangerous positions.

Not taking enough risk when on the ball: I’m being kinda nitpicky here and this is an extension of the previous weakness but I would have liked to see Paqueta create a few more goal scoring chances. He was involved in two of the three goals and should have had another assist but there were a few too many times where I saw him take a safer option. I think this would be less of an issue at Milan considering that we have a few other creative outlets who could press the issue but I would have liked to see a less risk-averse Paqueta. In the grand scheme though, being smart with the ball and knowing when to take risks is an important trait and I think we all expected Paqueta to be on the opposite side of the spectrum and be too risky. So this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, just a surprising observation.

TL;DR

Paqueta has the talent and attitude to be a successful mezzala at Milan. It’ll be important for him to get some rest after a loooong year so I wouldn’t expect him to be starting for Milan before at least mid-February. But I’m optimistic on his chances of contributing in our very thin midfield. He has the propensity to show up from midfield and score a vital goal off a cross or through individual brilliance in the way that Bonaventura does along with a superior ability to create chances from the midfield or at least, push the team into dangerous positions in the final third in games where we need a more direct option. But, he’s gotta continue to work on his understanding of the game and being in sync with his teammates, something that I expect will come become easier for him as he upgrades his teammates in Milan. In conclusion, this move has the makings of another Leonardo coup but I wouldn’t place too much responsibility on him until the start of next season.

[smol-and-grumpy]

EUPHORIA - Chapter 10

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Reader

Summary: He’s Dean Winchester, owner of a shady night club. She’s a journalist who has been asked to write an article to expose the indecency and debauchery that’s going on behind closed doors. But he’s also Dean Winchester, the boy who sat next to her in class. The boy who was too cocky for his own good.

Chapter Warning: NSFW

WC: 3672

A/N: This chapter fills my ‘gags’ (with a cock lol) square for @spnkinkbingo​ Please share your thoughts with me, I’d love to hear your feedback.

Beta’d by @deanwanddamons​​​​​​​ <3

This series is two weeks ahead on patreon!

Series Masterlist ~ SPN Masterlist

Become a Patron ~ Buy me a coffee

Dean’s fucking angry. 

As soon as he heard about the restraining order he wanted to fucking walk it off, but he had to keep his cool, which was kind of hard for him to do. His hands were itching to get a hold of that son of a bitch and personally rip that dude’s fucking lungs out.

But, Dean’s also angry at himself. Angry for not being fucking there! 

He knows that it’s not his fault, but still... He wonders what hell she had to endure. Wonders how long they were together and when it all started. Was he already back in the city? Could he maybe have prevented it if he would have tracked her down? He always wanted to, can’t lie about that. But he always thought that maybe she doesn’t want to be reminded of him. Sometimes, the past should stay past, and not come knocking in the future. 

Dean shakes his head, trying to get the thought of her being coerced into doing anything she doesn’t want to out of his mind. It makes him nauseous.

Somehow, he wants to track that asshole down, put all his investigators on the case. But what good would that do? She’ll only be angry at him if she got wind of it. No, Dean can’t do that behind her back. He does not control her and if he done that, he wouldn’t be any better than the asshole she calls her ex. 

  *

Dean’s sitting in his office, having dropped off her bags in his apartment, and changed into something more business-like. 

He looks over the list of the anniversary party preparation when there’s a knock at the door. 

“Come in,” He grumbles, his eyes not quite leaving the screen.

Cas peaks his head in, “Clear for me to come in?”

“Why shouldn’t it be?” Dean frowns and tears his eyes away from his computer to look at Cas, who has a smug grin on his face.

The dark haired man closes the door behind him before he shrugs, “Oh, you know, gotta be careful what I walk into,”

Dean rolls his eyes, “When did you ever walk into something in my office?”

“That’s not the point,” Cas sighs.

“Your point being?” Dean lifts his one eyebrow in challenge.

“Let’s just,” Cas throws his hands in the air, “Forget it, alright? Fact is, that Y/N is around and I just want to be extra careful because there are parts of you I don’t really want to see.” Cas pretends to shudder. 

Dean rubs over his scruff, as his hand goes up to pinch the bridge of his nose, “Why are you here, Cas? Everything alright down there?”

“Yeah about that. I think someone manipulated our drink orders. None of the champagne has arrived.”

“I heard about that,” Dean nods, “Did you get the suppliers to send out a truck?”

“It’s on its way.” Cas says and finally he sits down.

Dean leans back in his chair, his head right on the edge of the back of it, “I don’t know what’s going on, Cas.”

He really doesn’t. A lot of things are happening that often causes minor discomforts in their already packed schedule. It happens more often, too. It’s like someone’s actively trying to piss him off, and Dean can’t stand the thought of being played. He got his investigators on it, but they come up empty handed, mostly because they don’t fucking know where to look because there’s always other things happening as soon as they have a solid lead. He doesn’t blame them.

“Me neither,” Cas sighs, sinking deeper into the chair across from Dean.

“Look,” Dean composes himself, sits back up and braces his elbows on the desk, “We just keep on going, keep on doing what we can do best. We ignore the little discomforts, alright? I feel like that’s what they want. They want us to give in, and we won’t.”

“Of course we won’t. We’ve worked too hard to let them win.” Cas agrees, and with his next breath, he adds, “How’s things with Y/N?”

Dean smirks at the mention of her name, “Good,” He says, but he has to add what they found out today, “Someone broke into her apartment, though. Stole her laptop. I don’t know if it was her ex boyfriend.”

“You think it has something to do with what we experience now as well?” 

Rubbing over his scruff, Dean exhales, “I don’t know. It could be, it could not. I can’t let her know about it yet, okay?”

“Sure,” The dark haired man says, “You told her about your little secret?”

“No,” And Dean’s quick to add, “We’re not exactly there yet.”

“Ah,” Cas stands up from his chair and Dean knows that he has to go downstairs, “I’m happy you’ve found her, man.”

“She found me.” 

“Right,” Cas nods, “Gotta go see how I can calm the nerves of our VIP’s without champagne, huh?”

Dean scoffs, “Who the hell drinks champagne anyway?”

“Exactly, right?” Cas laughs before he walks to the door.

“I’ll be down in about an hour. I need to amend the list and send it out to Hannah.”

Cas nods before he closes the door. 

  Y/N knocks three times.

“Come in,” She hears Dean shout, his voice a little irritated as if he’s a little annoyed that someone disturbs him.

She only opens the door enough to peek her head through. Dean’s sitting at his desk, his eyes on his computer and he’s typing something or calculating, she doesn’t know, doesn’t really see.

“Are you busy? I mean, I can come by later,” She stands awkwardly in the doorway, not really knowing if she should go in or out. 

Dean turns his head to look at her as soon as he hears that it’s her. His lips curve into a smile, which reaches his eyes and the crinkles deepen, “I’m never busy if it’s you.” 

He’s so blunt about it, and of course the color rises in her cheeks. He abandons his tasks and leans back in his chair. She takes it as a clue to go further into the room, closing the door behind her and drops her bag on the couch.

“What’s that?” Dean asks, jerking his head to the newspaper she’s holding in her hand. 

She toys with it, twists it in her hand, and Dean rolls his chair back a little. She takes it he wants her to go over to him and not sit awkwardly across from him so she does and he watches her curiously. When she’s close enough, he grabs at her wrist, pulls her to stand between his legs. There, he pulls her sideways onto his lap. 

Dean wraps his arms around her, kisses her temple and leaves his lips there, “You okay?”

“Yeah,” She smiles. It’s the truth. She is okay, just really exhausted, “And you?”

“Better when I know you’re okay.” He answers and she’s again taken aback by his bluntness. She should know, though. He’s always been like that. “So, you wanna show me what you have there in your hands?”

Dean changes the subject and yeah, she wants to show him too, because that’s the reason why she came to see him before going up to the apartment at all.

Y/N opens up to the page with the apartment listings. There are several circles in thick black ink, “I looked for apartments,”

“Did you?” Dean’s voice is deep, sharp. A little irritated.

“Yeah,” She nods, “I really shouldn’t stay longer and invade your personal space. You’ve done enough for me as it is, Dean.”

“I don’t really care about my personal space,” Dean takes the newspaper from her hand and he laughs, “Huh, who’s still advertising in newspapers nowadays, though.”

“You shush your mouth. I still don’t have a laptop, so I have to go old school about it, alright?” 

She can see that he’s not really listening. Instead he looks through the ones she’s circled in. To be fair, she only looked at the prices, she didn’t really look where they are or what comes with it. She only went by apartments she could afford. 

While Dean scans through, he drops some remarks, Nope , Nope , Not in a million years , That’s a no .

“Dean!”

“What?” He looks back at her, a frown etched deep into his forehead.

“You can’t say no to every listing!”

“Why not? More than half of them are in bad neighborhoods. Three of them are in our old neighborhood and I know for a fact on my last drive by to visit my parents, that there are prostitutes on every fucking corner. Not to mention drug deals right there on the fucking streets!”

She sighs and scrambled off his lap to stand up, her ass resting against the desk, dropping the newspaper onto it. 

Dean looks up at her. His hands stroke along her thighs, “Look, I’m all for you wanting your own space but not at any cost, alright? Like, now more than ever, I need to know that you’re going to be safe.” 

She gnaws on her bottom lip but doesn’t say anything. And maybe he’s right. No, she knows that he’s right but still… 

“I care about you,” Dean says, his voice is softer, “You should know that by now. And I think that you shouldn’t risk living somewhere that’s not safe when there’s already someone out to get you.”

“Yeah, yeah,” She pouts, can’t help it. 

Dean chuckles, “And there are two listings I’m okay with. Maybe you can call them, arrange a viewing, huh?” Dean grabs at her arms that are crossed over her chest, brings them down to hold both her hands in his, “Come here,”

He pulls her close so she can lean down and cranes his neck to meet her. Her hands go around his head, palms cradling his face, his scruff prickling underneath her hands. Their noses touch and she leans forward, presses her lips on his. 

It feels right, she thinks and that is weird. It feels like she has known him her whole life, even though they just met again a week ago.

His arms go around her body, pulling her tighter to him and she places her knee on the chair between his spread legs. Dean’s tongue invades her mouth, velvety slick against her own. When they part, she feels light headed and her breathing is ragged. 

“There’s no room to show me tonight, is there?” She grins against his lips and Dean has to chuckle.

“No, they’re all occupied,” Dean pecks her lips. His big hands work their way down, spreading themselves over her ass. He spanks down on them, making her squeal, “Besides, you’re still sore.”

He’s right, she’s sore but she has something else in mind. 

“The VIP room?” She raises an eyebrow.

He chuckles again, “Baby, you know I’m not sharing. Not you.”

She smirks, leaning in to steal another kiss. Her tongue teases along his, before she breaks the kiss and Dean’s mouth chases after her. She kisses down his jaw, spraying little kisses down his throat and his hands are now in her hair. 

Dean lets out a groan when she sucks at his pulse point. She grins some more when she makes her way down his body, and Dean’s eyes follow her.

Y/N quickly gets on her knees between his legs. Her hands stroke up and down Dean’s clothed thighs. He watches her, swallowing loudly, his Adam's apple bobbing. However, he doesn’t stop her. Maybe he wants to see how far she would go? Because they’re in his office and someone could come knocking at any time. 

His eyes are challenging, laced with lust. They’re a shade darker too. Dean bites on his lower lip before he darts the tip of his tongue out to lick at it. 

She grins up smugly, before she works her fingers on his belt. 

“Baby, what are you doing?” He growls low. His hands are balled into fists on his thighs, fighting the urge to stop her but also not to. 

“Shhhh, relax,” She smiles. 

Finally, the belt clinks loudly and she’s working on the hook of his dress pants. Her hand cups his bulge before she toys at the zipper and Dean lets out a sound that comes deep from his throat. She likes the sound of that. It’s like he’s trying so hard not to make a noise but it comes out as a mixture of a whine and a growl. 

Pulling the zipper down, she opens his pants enough to lick a broad stripe along his hardening shaft, making Dean moan louder. She has to chuckle at that. It sends his dick twitching underneath the fabric upon feeling the warmth of her breath. 

“Fuck,” Dean grits his teeth.

She seals her mouth around the tip that’s poking through the elastic of his underwear, gives it a hard suck and there’s a sound coming out of his throat again that she can’t quite say what it was. 

Y/N likes that, likes the fact that she’s the one who made him feel all the things he’s feeling right now. It fills her with some weird sense of pride.

Her fingers hook into the elastic band of Dean’s underwear. One hand searches for his cock and Dean lets out an audible exhale upon feeling the air hit his bare dick. She pulls the underwear down to below his balls, leaves it there before she goes lower and sucks one of his balls into her mouth. 

Dean’s hands find her hair, holding it up for her — and for him to see better. 

She lets out the ball from her mouth to worry at his other ball and Dean groans low and dark, “Jesus,”

Her eyes are on him when she licks up his shaft, sees him throw his head back and closes his eyes briefly before he wills himself to look again. 

Taking his hard dick into her hand, she strokes and brushes her fingertips against it. It’s the first time she sees it from up close and god, Dean has a beautiful cock. It makes her drool, quite literally. 

She opens her mouth and sets the tip of her tongue to his little slit that’s leaking pre-cum, the scent of it strong on her taste buds and she tries to get all of his juice into her mouth. Her drool dribbles down her tongue, coating the head of his cock and down his shaft. She’s quick to massage it in and Dean curses incoherently above her. 

His cock twitches in her hand. It’s hard and heavy. It’s pulsing to her own heartbeat. 

Finally, she opens her mouth to rest his dick on her tongue before sealing her lips around it, sucking it in lightly and he has to throw his head back a second time. His taste is even stronger now and it’s intoxicating. All she can see, feel and taste is Dean.

Y/N works him deeper, but there’s no way she can take it all. It doesn’t make her want to try it any less, though. She bobs her head, and Dean holds her hair up, leaves his hands on the side of her face but doesn’t force her down or anything. She’s glad that he lets her do it at her own pace. 

She takes him in as far as she can and there’s her gag reflex. She gags on his cock, bobbing her head some more until her mouth starts to water, her tears start to form, and she gets off him fast, spits the rest of the saliva that formed onto his dick to massage it in. The wetter it gets the louder the noise she makes. The room fills with nasty and obscene sounds. She coughs and blinks a couple of times, and when she looks up, she finds him smiling at her. 

“You really don’t have to take it in so far, you know that, right?” He tries to assure her.

“I want to,” She says, her voice a little strained from the gagging and coughing. 

Not letting him protest, she’s on him again, taking him in inch by inch, and Dean groans when he feels her throat closing and she starts to gag around his sensitive head, “Oh, fuck!”

Sitting straight again, she strokes him with both hands and he reaches out a hand to brush the tears from her face that were running down her cheeks. She continues to suck at his tip and only takes in as much as she can without gagging anymore. The rest she works with her hand, stroking to the same rhythm as her sucking.

“Baby, look at me,” Dean coos, one hand stroking at her cheek. She looks up at him with his dick in her mouth, “Jesus, you look so goddamn beautiful,”

The blood rushes to her head, but she doesn’t think he sees because her head feels warm from working on his cock anyway. She’s so fucking turned on from doing it. From doing it right here. It’s a thing she would have never done in the past.

Dean grabs at the base of his dick and pulls it away from her mouth. She whines at the loss. 

“Open your mouth,” He brushes his fingertips along her cheek gently. And she does, opens up her mouth for him, “Stick your tongue out,” 

She’s sitting and waiting, sticking her tongue out and Dean smiles. The thumb of his other hands comes up to paint along her bottom lip and then he taps his hard dick against her tongue, spanks harder on it with the tip of his dick and rubs it along her velvet tongue, “Jesus fucking Christ, look at you,” His breathing is ragged.

Feeling her drool accumulating in her mouth, she wants to close her lips, wants to swallow it down, but  Dean stops her.

“No, spit on my dick,” He grunts with a piercing look at her. Nodding, she spits it on the head of his dick and Dean massages it in, “Good girl,”

God, she can get off from his words alone. 

Y/N takes his dick into her mouth again to finish what she’s started. Dean caresses her cheek with one hand while he holds her hair out of her face with his other hand. Her one hand strokes the part of him that she can’t fit, fondling his balls with the other, and he groans louder above her.

A choked sound escapes Dean’s lips, “Fuck,” He pants, “Your mouth feels so fucking good,” 

She feels his balls drawing up in her hand, feels his dick twitch slightly when she strokes him harder. 

“Christ— fuck,” Dean curses low and raspy as she feels him releasing his warm cum onto her tongue, “Goddammit,” His hips buck up a couple of times, sending his dick deeper into her mouth, rubbing his cum down her throat while his cock twitches inside of her mouth.

Quickly, she swallows what’s in her mouth and laps at the cum that spilled down his shaft while Dean’s panting hard above her. 

When she’s finished cleaning him up, she lays her head on his thigh, close to his dick, and watches him recover. Dean chuckles when he looks down to her, his hand caresses her cheek, fingertips ghosting over her skin. He smoothes her hair back, tucking them behind her ear as he continues to caress her cheek with his knuckles.

His dick still twitches a little and she moves her face closer to kiss at the head before sucking it in to clean it thoroughly. 

“Oh, shit! Jesus,” He whines, “It’s sensitive,” 

She laughs and lays her head back on his thighs as she watches him packing his soft dick back into his pants. It doesn’t look as impressive when soft, and it’s really astounding how big it can get once it reaches its full size. 

“Come here,” Dean pats his lap for her to climb in and he helps to pull at her arm, manhandling her sideways into his lap. Dean kisses her, and she’s surprised that he’s not put off by his own taste. 

He sucks in her bottom lip before he parts and he has to chuckle all of a sudden. 

“What?” She asks, raising her eyebrows.

“No, it’s just,” Dean starts to say and laughs some more, “Cas was here earlier and he asked if it’s a good time to come in because he didn’t want see us going at it, and I basically just challenged him that he never walked into something before so why should he walk into something now and there you were, sucking me off under my desk.”

She has to laugh, “Good thing he didn’t walk in, huh?” And then she realizes something, “Wait, Cas. As in Castiel? Novak? The guy two grades below us?”

There can be only one. Not a lot of people name their kids Castiel.

Dean nods, “Yeah,”

“I never knew you were friends.” She really didn't. Cas was a fellow nerd as they were called back in high school.

“Well, we weren’t friends either, were we?” He kisses her cheek, “Listen, I really need to go down and see what’s going on down there. Cas is swamped tonight.”

“That’s okay, I’m beat. I wanna go to bed.” 

“Okay,” Dean kisses her temple, leaves his mouth there, “Although I’d prefer to eat you out right now.”

She playfully swats his chest and they both get up from the chair.

“I’ll see you later, okay?” He asks and she nods.

“Shall I take the couch?”

Dean frowns at her, “What?” 

“Well, you know, we’re roomies for a couple of days, I don’t wanna—”

He kisses her bruisingly hard, “Don’t be silly. I expect you to be sleeping soundly in my bed when I go up there,” He leaves one more lingering kiss, one that’s softer, one that makes her all tingly inside. 

Chapter 11

[smol-and-grumpy]

Light My Fire - CH09

Pairing: CEO!Dean Winchester x Reader

Summary: She always thought her boss was an ill-tempered man, but when he presents her with a proposition she can’t quite deny, she gets to know him better. It’s not bad, right? Because all she has to do is being fake married to him for six months, sounds do-able, right? Right.

Warnings: All the fluff

WC: 2818

Please share your thoughts with me, I’d love to hear your feedback.

Beta’d by @deanwanddamons​​​​​​​ <3

SERIES MATSTERLIST 

BECOME A PATRON ~ BUY ME A COFFEE

Sam and Dean show up about thirty minutes later, right when she finishes her fourth gin. 

They make a beeline to where she and Ruby are sitting, grab themselves some chairs that were standing around unoccupied and sit themselves next to them. Someone is singing Bohemian Rhapsody and people are cheering along.

“Hey,” Dean greets them both, looks from Ruby back to her, before he shrugs off his jacket and drapes it over his chair. He folds his shirt up to below his elbows and Sam follows suit. 

God, they really look so good, both of them. They really put all the other men in here to shame. And the women are talking behind their backs.

“Hey, how was the meeting?” She asks, and sees Dean rolling his eyes, it’s the answer to her questions, she knows. And she frowns because she’s a little scared that they might lose after all. 

Dean notices the change in her face, leans in to place a kiss on her cheek before he rests his head on her shoulder. He mumbles to her, “We got this, don’t worry.”

“More drinks?” Sam asks into their round, and beckons the waitress over. 

Both she and Ruby nod their heads.

“You want more?” Dean asks her with one raised eyebrow, “Or will you be too drunk?”

“Hey, I’m not drunk.” She says but she thinks that he can see it in her cheeks that she’s very tipsy. Maybe she’s already drunk, she doesn’t know. The line’s very slippery between tipsy and drunk. One misstep and she’ll be on the other side.

“Liar,” Dean shrugs with a grin, “I’ll allow one more. I need you sharp tonight.”

Before she could even ask what he meant by that, he had ordered her a drink and they began to talk about other things. 

It’s when Sam suddenly stands up to walk to the front that they all started to cheer for him. 

Sam walks to the DJ and whispers something to him before he walks back and grabs the mic. He clears his throat, and she can’t help but laugh.

“Oh no,” Dean groans, feeling second hand embarrassment, and he shows the waitress a sign before ordering two more drinks for himself. “Gotta get on your level to enjoy this,” He whispers to her.

The music starts and everyone starts cheering. 

And then they’re waiting for Sam to start singing, “I believe in miracles,” Sam sways his hips, “Where you from, you sexy thing,” He winks at Ruby and she can swear that her friend whimpers and squirms in her seat.

“I believe in miracles, since you came along, you sexy thing,”

Y/N’s full on laughing and Ruby blushes. 

Sam takes off his tie and swings it around.

“Oh, man,” Dean rubs at his face and she has to laugh at him.

While Sam’s singing, Dean places his hand on her thigh, strokes it up and down and leans closer, rubs his nose along her cheek, “How are you feeling?”

She tilts her head to him and he catches her lips, kisses her soft and tender. His hand cups her face. 

He grins when he parts, strokes the pad of his thumb along her cheek and she smiles, too. “Light headed, but good,” She answers him.

Dean looks at her, presses his lips into a playful grin, “Not too drunk for what I’m going to tell you, I hope.”

“I’m listening,” Her heart thumbs in her chest, curious but also a little scared of what he has to tell her.

He leans closer to whisper into her ears, “I’m taking you on a honeymoon.”

“Dean, no,”

“Dean, yes,” He chuckles.

“But the court thing?” She raises her eyebrows, frowns a little too.

“It was Sam’s idea,” Dean jerks his head to the front where Sam finishes his song and they paused their conversation to clap and cheer for him.

When Sam walks back, he sits down with one hand draped on Ruby’s chair and she’s basically all over him, looking at the younger Winchester with heart eyes.

“So,” Dean drapes his arm over her chair as well and one hand is still on her thigh, “What do you say? We leave on Saturday. Ten full days.”

“Dean, you really don’t have to.”

He lets out a huff of air, “It’s good if we go. Someone will notice us, they’ll see us on our honeymoon,”

“Someone will notice you, you mean.”

Because that’s the way it is. People recognize him sometimes, and they don’t really care about her. But Dean might be right. If someone sees them it’s even better for their case.

“You’ll be recognized, too. So I have to make sure that it’s going to be alright for you.”

She bites on her bottom lip, thinks long and hard. 

Suddenly Ruby’s laughing and she watches her friend get up to walk to the mic.

“Oh, no,” She clasps her hand over her mouth and Dean laughs while Sam claps his hand and lets out a loud whistle.

The music starts playing and Ruby turns her freak on when she sings, it’s when she gets to the chorus where it gets wild, “I wanna kiss you all over,” Ruby points her finger at Sam, winks at him, “And over again,”

“Oh my god,” She groans but Sam’s smiling from ear to ear.

Y/N turns her head to see if Dean’s laughing at Ruby too, and she finds him grinning. Instead of watching Ruby, though, Dean has been watching her. He lifts his one eyebrow as if he—

—oh, yes, he’s waiting for an answer.

“Uh, I don’t know, on Saturday? But work..”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll cancel everything and the ones I can’t cancel, I can do them in Jamaica.”

“Ja-what?!”

Dean chuckles, “You heard me,”

“No,”

“Yes,” He smiles, and her hand goes up to cup his face, she can feel the scruff pricking the palm of her hand, “You have a passport, right? Ruby told me you have one.”

“Yeah,” She nods. She does have one because she wanted one, not because she was going to go traveling. 

It’s her that kisses him now, and she teases her tongue along his teeth. Their tongues meet, it’s nothing like the kisses they shared before. It’s teasing, playful. It leaves her wanting more. And then she remembers. He wants to fucking take her to Jamaica!

“Okay,” She grins, pecks his lips, “Do you want me to book tomorrow?”

Ruby sings something off-key and they both have to look her way. 

Dean’s chuckling next to her ear, “Nah, I already sent Ruby the details this evening. You think she’ll be able to come to work tomorrow? Jesus, I can see her panties when she lifts her leg like that,” He turns his head to bury his face into the crook of her neck and she’s laughing, her hands go up to stroke the short hair on the back of his head.

“She’s a professional at work, you know that.” Y/N reassures him.

He looks up right when Ruby is finished and they clap for her. Sam even gets up from his chair, giving her a standing ovation. 

“Well, if Sam will let her go to work at all tomorrow,” Dean scoffs in the direction of his brother.

When the clapping and cheers die down, Dean whispers to her that they should go home and she agrees because it’s late. Dean gets up from his chair and immediately Sam shouts to the front that Dean’s the next singer.

Dean stands there, frozen, “What?!” He hisses at Sam and Sam just laughs and shrugs his shoulders.

Ruby joins in, calling out Dean’s name and Y/N can’t help to cheer with them. Dean sends her a glare and she immediately shuts up and tries to hold in her laugh.

“Come on, Dean!” Sam shouts out, clapping way too loud.

“Please?” Y/N looks up at Dean who’s still standing there, his hands in his pockets. 

“Y’all owe me,” He grumbles as he walks to the front and she wonders what song he’ll pick.

He walks to the DJ and after Dean whispers something to him, Dean turns around and looks into the audience. His eyes quickly find hers.

When the music starts, Dean grins and there are people cheering him on.

Oh, no.

Kokomo.

Dean looks at her when he sings, “Aruba, Jamaica, oh I want to take ya, Bermuda, Bahama, come on pretty mama, Key Largo, Montego, baby why don't we go, Jamaica..”

Y/N starts to laugh and buries her face into her hands. 

When she looks up again, Dean’s still grinning while he sings. 

“Afternoon delight, cocktails and moonlit nights. That dreamy look in your eye, give me a tropical contact high..”

Dean finishes his song and to her surprise, he got the most cheers, and that of course, makes him so fucking proud because he’s smiling at everyone with that boyish smile of his.

“Now Y/N!” Sam says, and she looks over to send him a glare but instead of the glare, her eyes widen because Ruby sits on Sam’s fucking lap.

“Nah, I’m good.” She shakes her head. 

Dean walks over to weave his arm around her waist and kisses her temple, “Okay, let’s go,” He picks up his jacket and they are already turning around when Dean stops to turn back to Sam, “Good luck tomorrow, Sammy.”

Sam just lifts his hand to a salute.

Dean’s still humming when they sit in the Uber and she has to chuckle.

“You seriously still humming The Beach Boys?”

Dean groans, “Can’t help it. I have it in my head now.”

*

The ride in the Uber was kind of bumpy and when they arrived, she felt somewhat dizzy. In hindsight, maybe she shouldn’t have taken that last drink. 

Of course Dean has to notice and is quick by her side, “You okay?” 

She nods, “Yeah, just— maybe I had too much to drink.”

“Come on, let's get you inside,” He has one hand firm around her waist and helps her to the elevator.

Inside, Dean lifts her up to sit on the kitchen island and goes to grab a bottle of water from the fridge. He opens it and holds it out for her to take before he walks to his room wordlessly.

She wonders where he’s going but then she hears him walking back. He grabs her wrist and places two Tylenols into the palm of her hand.

“Take it and drink up,” There a frown etched deep in his face and he watches her as she downs the pills and drinks up the water. 

He picks her up after she drinks, carries her to her room she assumes, but then he opens up the door to his own bedroom.

“Dean, I need to clean my face and brush my teeth,”

“Right,” He mutters and backs out of his room to go into hers. He walks straight through to the bathroom but instead of setting her down, he lowers himself with her still in his arms, “Take the things you need,”

She doesn’t really know why she needs to take her things, but she does and has to laugh when her hand misses picking up the toothbrush twice.

“You got everything?”

“Uh-huh,” 

Dean walks her out and right into his room again. Oh my god, does he really want her to sleep in his room tonight?

He sets her down in his bathroom and tells her to get herself ready for bed before he walks out.

Y/N doesn’t feel like arguing, so she does what she’s told, and starts to clean her face. 

When she’s brushing her teeth, Dean walks in and sets something on the sink. She can’t really see because he’s now behind her and he is only in his underwear. Distracting is what it is.

Dean doesn’t push her aside but instead, he works around her, crowds her in as he reaches for his own toothbrush and begins to brush his teeth. She can see him watching her through the mirror.

She finishes and rinses her brush and Dean hurries to finish as well. He turns her around, cups her chin and makes her look up at him, “You feeling better?”

“Yeah,” She breathes out, because it’s true. After drinking so much water she feels much better already.

“Good,” He nods and then he begins to take off her dress. She didn’t wear a bra so as soon as Dean slips the dress over her head, she covers her boobs and Dean has to laugh at that, “Y/N, it’s really nothing I haven't seen before.”

Yeah, he might be right but still?

He takes the shirt he placed on the sink and pulls it over her head, lets her slip into the arms of the shirt.

“Let’s go to bed,” Dean’s already pushing her towards the door but she stops him. “What?” He asks with a frown.

She has to giggle at the worried look on his face, “I just drank so much. Where do you think it all goes?”

“Right,” He mutters, blushing a little too. She thinks it’s cute. Dean pats her shoulder before he walks out and she closes the door.

When she finishes and switches off the light, she needs to wait a couple of minutes for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. 

It doesn’t take long, only a couple of blinks to see Dean’s face bathed in moonlight. He looks good, like a perfect oil painting, the cover dragged half across his body. 

Dean lifts the covers, pats the space next to him, and she goes in willingly. How can she not?

He holds out his arm for her to lay her head on and she likes that, it makes her feel safe. She snuggles up to him, even after a tiresome day he still smells so good. It’s making her even more light headed. 

“Why am I sleeping here?” She has to ask for her own peace of mind.

Dean kisses the top of her head, “Because I wanna know that you’ll be okay in the night.”

After a while of silence, Dean starts to hum Kokomo and she lifts her head to glare at him, “Really, Dean?”

“I can’t help it,” He chuckles and turns to his side, drapes an arm around her waist. He noses at her temple and sings into her ear, “Aruba, Jamaica, oh I want to take ya,”

“Oh my god,” 

“Bermuda, Bahama, come on pretty mama,”

“Are you really sure you can take the days off?” She tilts her head up, her nose meets his scruff.

“Super sure,” He leans back a little to look her in the eyes, “When was the last time you remember me taking days off?”

She pauses to think and yeah, he’s right, “Never?”

“Exactly, and if I remember correctly, you have only taken a couple of days yourself. Five, was it?”

How does he know? He must have looked into her records. 

“Yeah,” She says, “Mostly when Jack’s home from college.”

“So, we’ll go away, get tanned, drink cocktails and you always wanted to go there, haven’t you?”

It blows her mind that Dean remembers that conversation. It’s only yesterday that they spoke about it but still, she never thought he would put so much weight into her words. 

“Yeah,” She smiles.

“Good,” Dean grins and leans down to kiss her. It’s really tender and he’s playful with his tongue, teases her own tongue enough to make her whimper. He’s such a good kisser and she absolutely hates how addicted she is to him, “‘K let’s sleep. We have work tomorrow.” Dean pecks her lips once more and she lets out a frustrated groan which, in turn, makes him chuckle. 

With a last good night kiss, she turns around on her side and it’s not long until Dean finds his way to her, and spoons her from behind, his arm draped protectively around her. She can feel the bulge in his pants. He’s half hard, at least. Y/N can’t help but press her ass against his groin and she hears him hitching his breath.

“You should stop that.” One of his hands tight on her hip now, to keep her from moving.

“Why?” She sounds whiny but she doesn’t care. She blames it on the alcohol.

“Baby, because you’re still half drunk and I’m not doing you like this. Stop trying, you can’t change my mind.”

Wow, Dean definitely has more self control than she does.

“Fine,” She pouts.

“You know,” He says, blanketing her with his body as he makes himself comfortable, “I can’t remember if I’ve said it before, but I’m happy that it’s you.”

She can hear his even breathing behind her, and is thankful that he can’t see the blush in her face.

CH10

[smol-and-grumpy]

Cross My Heart - CH.06

Pairing: Bodyguard!Dean x Reader; Chuck Shurley x Reader

Summary: After opening up a letter, the life as she knows it, changes forever. Her husband hires Dean Winchester to protect her but is Dean really who he said he was? And is her husband really worried about her safety?

Warnings: Angst, fluff a little, still a lot of tension

WC: 2446

SERIES MASTERLIST

They tried to reach Chuck again later in the day but Chuck still wouldn’t pick up so they tried to go about the rest of their day like they usually would. 

Dean left two more voicemails before they ate dinner and Y/N can see that he’s agitated when the clock strikes 8pm without so much of a return text or call from Chuck.

She’s worried too, doesn’t really understand why Chuck would tell the tabloids that she’s been kidnapped when it’s clearly not the case. Of course she can’t be sure if Dean’s telling her the truth either, but Dean’s been more sincere in the three days that she’s gotten to know him than Chuck ever was. 

Maybe, though, it can also be that she suffers from Stockholm syndrome. Who knows. She’s confused, that’s all she really knows.

Dean’s typing away on his laptop while she offers to clean the dishes and when she finishes, she walks out to him telling her that he has to go into town for a short while.

“Can I come?” She asks but he frowns at that. “You promised that you weren’t going to leave me here on my own anymore.” She then adds, just to remind him.

Dean sighs, rubs his hand over his face, strokes at his scruff, “I did, didn’t I?”

She braces her hands on her waist, and stares him down. 

Dean scoffs while he pushes his chair back with a screech, “Fine,”

He walks into the bedroom and gets something out of the closet, walks out with a baseball cap in his hand and comes to stand before her, “Wear this when we get there.” He places the cap on her head, brushes her hair back from her face, “No one will really recognize you like that.”

 *

 Dean parks his bike outside of a bar. The sign reads Harvelle’s Roadhouse and it glows in the dark in blinding neon letters.

They take off their helmets and she puts the cap Dean handed her before on her head. It’s too big but it's probably just better like that. It makes her look more invisible.

“You probably don’t even have to wear it here. The people don’t really care who you are but I’d rather be safe than sorry.” He says while he waits for her to walk around the bike. He takes her hand in his, pushes his way through the door, and pulls her along with him.

He shoulders his way past the people and they all part for him. It is really impressive. 

They reach the far side of the bar and the bartender greets Dean with a big smile. “Hey Dean,”

“Cas, this is Y/N.”

“Nice meeting you,” The bartender says and nods, his smile’s still big. 

“Right,” Dean clears his throat, “I need to see Ash,” And then Dean turns to her, “You wait here, I’ll be quick.”

“But—”

Dean places a hand on the back of her neck, his thumb brushes against her cheek, “Please, trust me.” 

She pouts, “Okay.”

Dean nods, and then he lets go of her. Turning to Cas, he says, “Can you watch? I’ll just be a couple of minutes.”

“Sure thing,” Cas answers and starts to tap a beer.

Dean nods at Cas and then at her before he disappears through a back door.

Ash? Who is Ash? She’s not sure if she really wants to know.

“Want anything to drink?” Cas asks her while he serves the beer to the person who’s standing next to her. That guy eyes her up but then he doesn’t pay her any attention, walks back to his peers at the pool table.

She turns her gaze back to Cas, “Uh, I don’t have any money.”

Her cheeks are on fire. She hasn’t even thought about bringing anything with her. Since she doesn’t have a phone anymore, carrying other things around seems pointless to her.

“It’s on the house, don’t worry about that. Gotta take care of Dean’s girl, don’t I?” Cas wriggles with his brows.

“We’re just friends. And I’d like a gin, please.”

Cas laughs, the sound of it bright and she can clearly hear it above the music, “Of course, you are. One gin coming up.”

A bar stool empties next to her so she takes a seat, and soon after, Cas places a glass of gin in front of her. 

“You sure I don’t need to pay?” She asks again just to be extra sure.

Cas braces his hands on the counter and leans down a little, “Can you keep a secret?”

“Sure,”

“I don’t really work here. Just helping out.” Cas winks before he goes about taking another order from someone across the bar.

She didn’t even finish her gin before Dean came back. He eyes her when he sees her drinking but there’s amusement in his eyes. 

“You ready to go?” Dean asks and downs the rest of her gin. 

“Well, I am now.” She pouts but Dean chuckles, and takes her hand, pulling her out of the bar. He didn’t even say goodbye to Cas.

 *

 They arrive at the cabin and the first thing they see is a limousine. Dean pulls his gun out of his pants, draws it and makes her hide behind him while they walk closer. There are two figures waiting on the steps to the cabin.

Chuck.

And there’s also an angry looking guy who she knows as Chuck's own bodyguard who Chuck always uses when he goes out of town.

“Where were you?” Chuck asks. He sounds angry.

Dean lowers his gun, tucks it back and proceeds to fish out the cabin key and unlocks the door for all of them to step in.

Chuck's bodyguard closes the door while they all stand awkwardly in the tiny space.

“Sir, we had to get food,” Dean lies, doesn’t look at her once.

“You didn’t bring anything back.” Chuck states.

“We decided to eat out.”

“Isn’t that risky?” Chuck paces around the cabin and cringes his nose.

“You putting out that she’s been kidnapped is risky, sir.” Dean stares Chuck down.

Her husband laughs, “Is that why you were bothering me with your calls?”

Dean and her don't say anything.

Chuck trails his hand through his hair, “We try to confuse the real kidnapper, we think if they know that someone else got to her, that they’ll give up.”

“You should have informed us.” Dean’s hand balls into fists on his side.

“You’re right,” Chuck says, “But also I don’t pay you to know things, Mr. Winchester, I pay you to keep her safe.”

It’s the first time Chuck even looks at her since he’s here. Her expression towards him is cold. She really doesn’t care anymore.

“Yes, sir.” Dean grits his teeth. He’s mad, she can tell by the tense of his shoulders.

“Anyway, I need to fly to Vegas. My private plane’s already waiting. Keep me updated, alright?”

Chuck’s out the door before either one of them even had the chance to say something.

After Chuck has left, Dean looks at her, the tense in his posture is gone, “You okay?”

She chuckles drily, “Yeah,”

“Fuck,” Dean breathes out, “‘M sorry. You definitely deserve someone who treats you better.”

Someone like you? She wants to ask but doesn’t.

Dean’s frown makes way for a small smile after they heard the car driving away. “How about we go back, have a drink, huh? I know I could use one.”

“Please,” She groans out and Dean chuckles, takes her hand, pulls her out and leads her onto his motorcycle.

 *

 There are even more people at the Roadhouse this time around, she can already tell by the cars and motorcycle. She put on Dean’s cap again and he grins when he sees that she’s thorough. 

He holds out his hand, waits for her to place hers into his and together, they make a beeline to the bar. There are two people behind the bar now. A young blonde woman and Cas. 

Cas looks at her with amusement in his eyes when she arrives. Wordlessly, he places a tumbler with whiskey in front and asks her if she’s going to stay with gin. 

“Actually, I think I’m having a whiskey, too.” She smiles, bright and wide.

“Woah, you be careful, alright? You need to be able to sit on the motorcycle on the way back.” Dean teases her but she just shoots him a glare which shuts him up. 

“Dean,” It’s a woman’s voice.

“Uh-oh,” Cas chuckles but she doesn’t know what he’s trying to say.

Dean turns around to face a pretty girl and she smiles at him, flashes him her white teeth. 

“Liz,” Dean greets the woman. She doesn’t know if she’s just making it up but he seems to be acting kind of cold to her.

“It’s just so nice to see you again, and listen—”

“—Not here Liz,” Dean cuts her off.

Dean turns his gaze to Y/N, and leans forward, his face inches from hers, “I’ll be right back, you stay, okay?” He whispers into her ear and then he nods at Cas before he walks a couple of yards away from her with ‘Liz’.

She watches them talk and she can see from here that Dean’s face stays cold. The frown is still there, still prominent. He steals glances at her while the woman talks to him and Y/N quickly looks away, doesn’t want to seem like she’s intruding. 

Cas is back in front of her, leans down and braces his elbow on the bar top, “Liz, is his ex.” Cas says, she didn’t even ask.

“Oh,” 

“They were together for a couple of years. I think for the whole duration when he was stationed in Afghanistan.”

Right. She forgot that Dean’s an ex-marine. She never asked what he did before he became a bodyguard.

“You wanna know a secret?”

She grins at Cas, “Just how many secrets are you going to reveal to me tonight?”

He chuckles at that and Dean looks over, sees them laughing and Dean frowns some more. 

“The night’s still young. I don’t really count,” Cas shrugs, “Anyway, turns out Liz cheated on him the whole time. Got pregnant and he thought that he was the father until he realizes that it didn’t add up with him being deployed.”

“Oh, that’s sad.”

“Yeah, but I think he made peace with it. At least they are on talking terms again.” Cas and her look over to Dean at the same time to which Dean’s eyebrow climbs up his forehead.

“Ah, so, what are you to him?” Cas turns his attention back to her.

“We’re friends,” She lies about the bodyguard part, and doesn't know how much she can reveal. The friend thing is the truth, she really does think that they’re kind of friends.

“Yeah, right,” Cas scoffs.

“It’s the truth,” She laughs now. 

“Y/N, I see the way he looks at you. That’s as far away from friends as it could get.”

She drinks her whiskey, squints at the burn, “So, you’re telling me that we’re enemies?”

Cas just smiles, and raises one eyebrow, “Sweetheart, he cares about you.”

She almost chokes on her drink, “He really doesn’t.”

“Watch this,” Cas grins and winks at her, before he looks over to Dean. She tilts her head too, sees that he’s in a deep conversation with Liz. 

Cas then leans forward, his nose brushes her cheek, “If he wouldn’t care, then I can do this,” Cas kisses her on her cheek, lets his lips linger there. 

“Cas,” Dean’s voice is deep and it’s now behind her, it rolls over the bass of the music, “Another whiskey, please.”

How did he get here so fast? Cas didn’t even pull away from her face yet. 

“Your glass is still half full.” Cas chuckles.

“I want another one.” Dean shrugs and sits on the empty bar stool next to her. 

She can see out of the corner of her eyes that Liz is still standing there, frozen in place, which probably suggests that Dean left to come back here before they finished their conversation.

Dean turns to her and there’s that intense gaze again. 

Cas is pouring Dean another whiskey, and he couldn’t help but wriggle his eyebrows at her behind Dean’s back. She has to compose herself so as not to laugh out loud.

“You like it here?” He asks her as Cas places another tumbler next to Dean’s still half full one. Dean ignores Cas, which prompts Cas to roll his eyes.

“Yeah. I do. But do you think it’s safe?”

“I know it is.” Dean says, and adds, “I know all of the people here. They’re all alright. Except of Cas.”

She snorts out a laugh and Dean grins.

“Can I ask you something?” Out of the corner of her eyes, she still sees Liz watching them. Dean can’t see it because he has his back to her.

“Shoot,” 

“Who’s the woman?”

Dean turns his head to see who she’s talking about and then he turns back to her, “Liz.”

“Yeah, I got that.”

Dean sighs, “It’s been a while since I saw her last. Don’t worry about her.”

“I mean, I do. Like, I don’t want to put you in an awkward situation. If you want to... you know, rekindle something, you can just drop me off and go meet her after?”

“Y/N,” Her name rolls off his lips, it sounds strict, and she thinks he’s a little mad at her?

“Just saying,” She shrugs.

“Jesus Christ,” Dean rubs over his scruff, tilts his head to look away briefly but then his eyes settle on her again. 

There’s a distance between them but their knees touch. 

“You’re my priority,” He says, his voice deep and it sounds kind of final, “I’m not going to leave you alone to go do something stupid that I’ll regret.” He then scoffs, it sounds more mockery, “Besides, I don’t want her.” 

Her gaze travels back to where Liz is standing. She’s talking to some other dude but every now and then, she would still look at Dean, “Well, she clearly wants you.” Y/N says, she’s really just stating the obvious.

Dean doesn’t look back, doesn’t avert his eyes from Y/N. “She had her chance and she blew it.”

“I’m sorry to hear.”

“It’s in the past,” He sighs, “Also, I still think that sometimes, things happen for a reason.”

She doesn’t say anything to it because she doesn’t know what she could say. He’s still looking at her, it seems that his eyes are a shade darker.

CH.07