#he's just a little guy trying to succeed at his new shiny job

[larissa-the-scribe]

I'll try to avoid Dracula-posting too much over here, but I would like to point out that, while Jonathan Harker is often teased for obliviously wandering into the jaws of death, he understood that the Vibes were Off enough to preemptively wish Mina goodbye on day 2. And this is before, well, tomorrow.

Like, he has zero context for supernatural stuff being a thing, of course he wouldn't give up a business trip over what he currently considers to be superstition. He also doesn't know yet that the superstition is about his client being Definitely Not a Vampire. But he is worried, and I would argue that this all sets him up to survive Castle Dracula--because he's going into it already feeling that, generally, things are Weird, so he's quicker to pick up on and observe odd things.

[where-skies-end]

disclaimer that this is skyrim!cyrael, not world of beasts canon. and also that I basically never write in first person so bear with me here

I finally have her right where I wanted her. Standing with her back turned, huddled over a map with her companions, not paying any attention to the brush behind her. I draw my daggers and crept forward. Closer, closer...

I lunge. Faster than me, so does the dog I didn't see laying nearby. Its teeth wrap around my arm as it flung me to the ground. She turns around calmly, the unscarred side of her mouth upturned in a lazy smile. "First day on the job, huh?"

"No!" I shout, a little too loudly. Her crooked grin widens.

She tells me, "They didn't tell you shit. Just like the last guy. And the guy before that. And the one before that. And the one before him. God, how many is it now?" She turns to the cat with the wrinkled face standing beside her, bemused.

"This one makes fourteen," they reply in a flat voice.

"You know, I almost feel bad for killing all of them."

From her other side, a different voice cautions, "Don't let him go. He's just going to try again."

Now, the briefings did warn me about him. The High Elf runaway whose shiny uniform was nothing more than a decoration, who wouldn't start a fight or finish one. The cat, too. A scholar, carrying a heavy axe, but so long as you kept your distance, they would be no problem either.

"Relax. It's not like he'll succeed." The dog's teeth sink deeper into my arm as I twist to reach for my dagger. She casually kicks it away, making her elven companion flinch. He seems anxious. I can run with that.

To him, I say, with a sly grin, "I'm sure there's people who want to know your whereabouts, deserter."

"Kill him. Now." His pretty face twists into a snarl.

My target only shrugs. "I caught us dinner last night. You've got a sword, do it yourself."

He glares at her and draws his blade. He won't have the guts to do it. I'll go free, and I can tell the others there's a new weakness to exploit. Infighting and laziness. An anxious man who would do anything to avoid conflict.

His hand shakes as he levels the edge of his sword with my chin. Trembling like that, he'll take me out by accident long before he works up the courage to actually do it. The others watch him. The cat looks apathetic. She looks smug. "What are you waiting on? Some kind of moral justification for slitting the throat of someone who's already down?"

He pales. His hands shake further. She leans over and whispers something to him. He backs up and lowers his sword. I relax a touch.

Then cold metal slides through my neck.

The last words I hear as my vision fades are, "See? Easy. Even this piece of shit couldn't manage that."

You’re a hitman who has just taken his first contract. After a long day of trying and failing to kill your target, you eventually come face to face with him. You both just look at each other, and he shrugs before asking “First day on the job, huh?”

[fourfucksake]

online meeting

pairing: chris evans x black!fem!reader

warnings: cursing, stripping, masturbation

word count: 4.2k

p.s this workpiece is set in an alternative reality. this is a professor!chris one shot + i imagined y/n as a black girl, but i hope every single one of you lovely people will read!

Heaps of new policies bombarded universities since the spread of the virus. The amount of preparation and paperwork that had to be completed due to the newest conditions in the teaching system made everyone stressed to the maximum level. Perhaps, that’s why teachers communicated more during those challenging times; only those who work in the same environment can relate to your work frustrations. Individuals whom before appeared almost invisible where now your online buddies. It was quite incredible though.

Chris enjoyed the feeling of this community being available for him whenever he feels like expressing his irritations and or simply desires to moan about his dislikes. Before, he has never considered himself to be a whiner, but since everyone has been constantly moaning and pouting, he thought this is the right time to join the club.

Taking into consideration the current state of the world he was assured that everyone is a complainer right about now. He was okay with that though. No doubt, he didn’t know much about psychology, however, it seemed only logical to allow people to talk about how they feel. Also, it appeared plausible people felt scared, confused, or worried. Hey, these were very surreal times. There was no reason to make others feel bad about having emotions.

Of course, there was some resentment towards certain members of University since all the teaching went online. Sometimes, Chris felt like most of his colleagues gave rats ass about regulations and procedures that were now put in place. Instead of trying to provide the best learning experience possible, they restricted themselves to slamming all the work materials online for students to figure everything out on their own.

Personally, he found online teaching unbearable and exhausting. He hated it; there were no words to describe how much he despised it. At first it was alright; it was tolerable and doable. In a way, it was nice. Being at home, able to wake up later than early morning hours. Being with his dog and going on long walks wherever he wished. Being able to take his time with cooking, exercising, reading. All of those mentioned were exceedingly pleasant.

However, Chris chose to be a teacher. He loved spreading his knowledge around. Since an early age he would teach his younger brother; he was much help when it came to revising, essay or exam tips. This was his passion, he loved it. This pandemic undeniably took this away from him. However, there was still room to provide students with knowledge this way, and he tried extremely hard to do so in most effective ways.

For example, he did not have to orchestrate his own online meetings to be this long. Half an hour, that was a long time slot. This was planned completely on purpose. Ultimately, his desire was to provide students with the time to talk to him, express their concerns, and ask questions. Maybe he took this job way too seriously, he thought, and it wasn't needed. However, there’s always this teacher everyone likes, and Chris wanted to be precisely that guy. It wasn't some stupid ego thing, not at all. He genuinely wanted people to feel like he is there for them and wants them to succeed. Every single individual had an ability to be successful, some just needed an extra push too keep them on track. Although his own schooling experiences where genuinely pleasant, he knew he would benefit more from University experience if he had a teacher like him. Not to lick his own ass, he thought, of course.

After years of working in the schooling system no errors have ever occurred. Until last year, when the last class prior to pandemic began their college journey. Back then and there a problem has arisen – you. It was no one else than little Miss Perfect, the girl who made him look twice when she entered the room. Oh, how tiring and fatiguing crushing on you really was. Chris was always collected and focused while working, but with you in his classes he found himself distracted. Often losing his train of thought, his mind shifted to dark places when your class sat in front of him. Chris was a perfectionist, so this was, in fact, greatly infuriating for him.

He did not feel this way since high school. Back in the day he was not the coolest kid you could walk past in the corridor. Thankfully, he has never had his head shoved in the toilet, but not being bullied did not necessarily mean there’s a successful high school experience behind an average American. In his own opinion, he was just a normal kid that had nothing to show for back then.

Precisely that, being average, was now the reason behind this familiar feeling. A pretty girl, a popular girl causing vivid emotions to flush down himself. Looking at her while she does the most ordinary things was the reason behind the uncomfortable state in his pants. His hormones went ill around her, reminding him of how tough being a teenage boy with no control over his erections was. It felt so familiar, craving her this badly, almost as if he’s done it before. Maybe, in a way, he compared you to someone he crushed on for the whole duration of high school. A beautiful skin complexion, addictive smile and those big, shiny eyes staring at his soul; those qualities of yours highly reminded him of her.

Chris remembered that girl very well. He recalled being fascinated by her presence, by her strong personality, and hypnotic prettiness. Her name did not pop up in his mind for years. Until he met you. Chris had Pearl, Pearl Bennett, tattooed on his brain back then. Needless to say, it was embarrassing how annoyingly beautiful she was. Just like you. Now, he didn’t even know if she was alive, he hasn’t seen her for years. It never really bugged him then, it didn’t bug him now. It was just a pleasant memory that he was able to recollect because of you.

He wasn’t sure about your feelings towards him. Mr. Novak, his colleague, often commented on the way some students would look at him. Chris regularly heard Novak claiming that Evans could get any of “that young pussy” if he only snapped his fingers. Whether it was true or not, he had no idea. Maybe, he was just humble. Or stupid, possibly very stupid.  

The house was practically unoccupied now; his wife was dropping groceries off at her mum’s house and Dodger was nowhere to be found, most likely sleeping someplace in the house. Chris did not mind. In fact, he was relieved to have no other human being here. Since pandemic began his marriage decreased in its quality drastically. For quite some time existing relationship brought more annoyance than joy. He was not sure if it went both ways but noticing how regularly his wife exited their house in recent times it was healthy to assume the feeling was mutual.

How did he feel about his failed marriage? Weirdly, he was awfully okay with it. There was not a single part of him that cared enough to fight for this marriage any longer. Right now, all his thoughts were concentrated around another female. How she managed to look delicious without trying. How she smiled or laughed. How her faced twisted with grumpy expressions once she didn’t understand a certain concept of a lecture. Chris could go on, and on, and on.

It was not possible he could describe you in any other word than perfect. It was quite pathetic, he thought, it shouldn't be like that. Yes, you are a pretty girl and yes, no man can probably say no to you. There was just something about you, something so extraordinary that it took his breath away. What was this fascination? He wasn't sure. However, what he was positive about was that he enjoys looking at you. He enjoys listening to you. He enjoys thinking about you. He enjoys all those things way too much; he was aware of that. He was not ready to stop thinking about you just yet.

Now, sitting in front of his Mac, his eyes were focused on the screen. He wasn’t too up to date when it came to the modern technology, but he also wasn’t clueless to how to work a computer. Setting everything up, he glanced over at the previously printed list of names with time slots besides them. The list was not in alphabetical order, students had their half an hour available for the next eight hours of his life.

It would be a lie to say he was not thinking about you. He was looking forward to seeing your face, even if it’s only on the computer display. Your surname and student ID were somewhere halfway through the list. Naturally, he searched for your name straight away after the programme generated the list.

The ticking of the clock hanged on the nearby wall sounded out so clearly. Almost like a racing heart whenever one feels more strain than usual. He could feel the nervousness growing within him as the time passed. He almost felt bad for the kid who had his scheduled meeting right before you. Chris kept on stuttering, disconnecting, and asking for questions to be repeated. Unfortunately, there was no strength in him to think about the failed one-to-one since his brain was too concentrated on you. His favourite, little student.

His thought process was disrupted as a green dot appeared next to your surname, suggesting your online availability. Licking his lips and fixing his hair, his fingers position themselves on the mouse. One click and the signal began. Beep one, beep two, beep three.

“Hi, Mr. Evans!” Her bubbly voice caused Chris to smile. She waved and in response so did he. She seemed happy, her face expression indicated nothing but joy, he enjoyed it greatly. “Hi! How are you? How’s everything?” He asked with an honest curiosity, still smiling at his student. It’s been months since the last time they spoke without anyone else around. Of course, this was the first instance of them conversating in those settings, but he did not mind. Any type of physical interaction seemed impossible now and anytime soon. This was the best he could receive for a significant period for now.

Their faces didn’t shut for the first couple of minutes. Talking about the past months, Chris was quickly reminded of how smart and funny this girl infatuating really is. They seemed to be getting on well right from the first meeting. Weirdly, she had similar likes and dislikes as well as sense of humour. It was like talking to a long-term friend whom you haven’t seen in the longest time. He noticed her hair change, spotting the long knotless braids; in his opinion she looked completely stunning in this hairstyle. He was quick to comment on it and as a reply he was given a complement on his newest buzzcut.

Sadly, but still, he ended the chit chat to focus on discussing work material. Chris tried to stay on topic and somehow it was going well. For the next couple of minutes, he chatted about work. His hand travelled to the left side of his desk to glance at a list of things he wanted to mention, however, he got cut off by the voice emanating from the screen.

“Are those meetings being recorded, Mr. Evans?” She raised her eyebrows with interest spread across her face. Her back bent forward, causing her face to enlarge on his screen. “I mean like,” She continued and coughed. “Is anyone going to watch this later? Does anyone have access to this after we finish talking?” Her question expanded or rather multiplied, sounding out in Chris’ air pads. There was no denying he was conflicted about why she was asking this question. This was not his first online meeting and not a single individual showed any concern in this matter.

“Well, no, not really. If any of us wanted to report our meeting for any reason then I guess, um, I guess it is possible to reopen the video chat,” Slow nod was all he could do at this very moment. No doubt, he still was not able to understand the nature of her question. “If any of us found the other person’s behaviour concerning, rude or inappropriate then the IT services could recover this video chat.” He added in a robotic tone almost as if he were reading from the script.

“Would you want this meeting to get inappropriate, Sir?”

He chocked a little as his eyes widened. He wanted to slap himself across the face in response to his pathetic reaction. Shouldn’t the age gap mean something? Why was he behaving like he’s on her leash? Why was he this…nervous? Excited?

Assuredly, she should be the one who is intimidated, meanwhile it’s her making the first move. He wasn’t sure whether this simply comes from his politeness and gentles; obviously, momma Evans raised him to be a respectful man. It’s apparent, the fear of scaring you was blocking all his possible moves. Risk of being reported for improper behaviour in the workplace was also a worry of his, but it came nowhere near the terrifying theory of frightening you.

But here you were. Being indecent with him. And oh, how he loved it. How he enjoyed this single sentence leaving your pretty lips. Your remarks were more enjoyable and exciting than everything he has completed with the woman he married in the past year, if not longer.

Was he being delirious? Did your comment indicated what he thought it did? Possibility of his mind playing games on him was high. It’s so easy to assume things happened when you wish for them to happen.

“Do you want to make it inappropriate? Do you want me to be inappropriate with you, Sir?” A deep breath left his mouth and a shiver travelling down his spine followed. He was now sure; he did not misunderstand. This was not his imagination playing him, tricking him into believing there’s something here that does not exist. All of this was very real.

“Whatever you wanna be on this call — I’m happy with,” He managed to speak out loud, fixing himself on the chair. This was a bad idea, he thought once again, a horrible idea that could quite literally ruin his career. Was he going to stop? Prevent this from happening? No fucking way.

“Huh, you sure about that, Mr. Evans? I can get really filthy when I want. I am a naughty girl,” Your words hit him like a truck, and he couldn’t help the blood rush in his trousers. He licked his lips slowly and pressed his back onto the chair. He could say something, but he chose not to. Whatever you planned on doing suited him and there was not an ounce of interest in preventing you from doing so.

No further words were spoken. There was a moment of short silence that felt like forever. A moment for someone to back up, break this madness off. No one expressed a need nor a want to stop. She played with her nipples through her shirt before they journeyed up. The straps of her pale pink top slowly moved down her arm, his eyes patiently followed. To him, you were mesmerising. At this moment you had his whole attention.

Looking straight at him, her hands removed the top and carelessly dropped it on the floor. His eyes glued onto her as the soft material left her body completely. He tensed as his length twitched, reacting to her breasts and hard nipples. Her skin was complemented by the colour of a previously worn top but seeing her without it sent shivers down his spine.

Chris could feel the discomfort in his pants becoming unbearable, needing to expose himself immediately. With shame, but still, he slowly undid his zipper. For a while now the feeling downstairs was insufferable, pleading and begging to be uncovered by his hand. Chris gulped back the lump in his throat as he completely freed his member. The view on the screen made his dick ache, his length twitched, jumping again his tense stomach.

“Liking this?” She teased, firmly grabbing her breasts. His eyes darken when he took in all her naked presence. The way she touched herself, he wanted that too. He wanted to feel her nipples between his fingers. He ached to be close to her.

“I wanna see all of you,” His words escaped his mouth, hand firmly grabbing his cock. Without shame nor hesitation his member was stroked, slowly and decisively, as his back leaned on the chair comfortably.

She was quick to listen. So submissive, he though, hand still firmly hugging his man part. He observed as she stood up, taking a few steps back. Still looking at Chris, her body turned around in a circle. Her moves were slow, very captivating, making Chris feel like every single movement was in slow motion. He already adored her body.

Her hands roamed around her own body before she slipped her hand inside her shorts and panties. Subtle movements of her hands indicated she’s pleasuring herself right in front of him. By her expressions, he was able to conclude that she’s enjoying herself. She didn’t play with herself for too long. Pulling the defiant material down as her eyes travelled to his, she exposed herself completely. He felt his mouth dry at a sigh of her bare body. She gave him a sultry look, realising the power she now held over him.

“Is this how you like me, Mr. Evans?” She broke of the silence, still exposing her hot flesh. It took Chris a couple of second to even register the question, his imagination run too wild to focus now. “Do I like you naked? It’s certainly a more thought-provoking image than how I usually view you,” He teased, slightly raising the corner of his lips in a smug smile.

Licking his lips once again, he watched as she took a box from underneath her bed. It was a regular box, nothing fancy. Taking off the lid her hand searched inside for a short moment before pulling out a pink dildo. Suiting, he thought, always liking this colour on her. He admired how her skin tone was complemented by the shade.

“I love imagining it’s your cock fucking me instead of my dildo,” She said completely unprovoked, making Chris widen his eyes. They did something naughty, something filthy, yet this comment really threw him off. “I’m gonna show you how I play with myself when I think of you,” She added and waisted no time before sitting on the bed. Chris had to admit, he spotted the bed straight away when the call started. Picturing himself laying there, you next to him, he took some time imagining the wicked scene you two could create on that mattress.

“I will show you how much, how much I love picturing us together,” Her seductive voice reached Chris’ ears, his interest growing with every single second. There was this unexplainable fear within him at this very moment, fearing she is going to stop. He was helpless now, he needed her to entertain him long enough for him to reach satisfaction.

Licking his lips once again, he watched as she took a box from underneath her bed. It was a regular box, nothing fancy. Taking off the lid, her hand searched inside for a short moment before pulling out a pink dildo. Suiting, he thought, always liking this colour on her. He admired how her skin tone was complemented by the shade.

“I want you to watch,” His student said firmly, staring right at him. The sound of a dildo followed. Chris’ breath was caught in his throat straight from the anticipation of the next step she’s going to undertake. With hunger, Chris watched as she teased herself, rubbing her clit. The toy fondly slid inside of her, resulting in her lewd sounds and Chris’ silent moan.

Her nipples were hard, her unoccupied hand coming up to fondle them both whilst her bottom lip was taken hostage by her teeth. She was really enjoying herself; Chris could tell. The bed made a squeaky noise every time she moved. The call was so clear, thank God, he was able to enjoy every motion of hers. The moans, whimpers and groans escaping her pretty lips as she fucked herself with a toy. The quality of the video chat was good, but not great. He wanted to see her in full HD, he wanted to see the details. For now, though, viewing this was enough. This was damn good, so good. Those desperate hand movements, stuffing the length as deep as she could, it drove him insane. Oh, how he wanted to stretch her out like no one did before.

“Just like that, baby,” He groaned, squeezing his hard cock. He was conversating with you through moans, examining you as the vibrations caused tingles in your lower department. He couldn’t feel it, but he knew her pussy was throbbing and pulsing, desperate for more length to enter. His body parts were no different; his balls felt heavy and his dick was hard as a rock, begging for a dream release.

The heat began to grow within his body with each and every movements of hers. She kept him going, moaning his name, calling him daddy, reminding him who she’s pulling this show for. If only she had any idea what it did to him. A shaky hand wrapped around his length made rapid movements, fighting for his orgasm to arrive. Watching her, listening to her, it was magical. This craze he had within him, this fixation she caused – it was obsessive. A loud scream, her thighs closing on the pink toy and her eyes shut while she orgasmed was enough, it was everything.

The feeling of euphoria intensely swept through him as a creamy load exploded in his hand. She could not see it, but he knew she felt it. All that left his mouth was a silent “fuck” as he collected his breathe. Chris was in pieces, still processing previous events. It was now clear to him how he pleaded for that orgasm to happen, how he needed it. He was embarrassed to admit how strong, how intense, the load bursting onto his hand really was. Lucky for him, no one knew anything about it but him and himself.  

„You liked this little show of mine, daddy?” Her voice awakened his senses, causing his mouth to water once again. She caught him looking at his crotch, now surely convinced what happened. She removed the toy from her body, a silent whimper followed. She threw it away on the bed like it was nothing, like it did not help them both cum just minutes ago.

“So much baby, so much. Can you show me s’more? One more time,” He breathed, looking at her with lust. She obeyed, without hesitation; her body rose from the bed and did a slow, full 360 to demonstrate her delectable features. Maybe, he was delusional, but he was sure her juices travelled down her leg. If he were right next to her, his tongue would have taken care of that.

“See you in a seminar, right, Mr. Evans?” Her sweet voice rang in his ears followed by his quick nodding. He had a chance to see her collecting the missing wardrobe that she then put on right before him. Chris could not help but notice her shaky legs. She sat down in the exact same position as before. She reached for a cup, drinking, and sipping the liquid through a straw. Now, she was back to her regular self, looking innocent once again. It slightly woke him up, brought half of him to reality.

“Yes, Miss. I will see you there. Be good, huh?” Chris said casually or at least he tried to do so. He was caught by surprise, convinced that he’s going to slur over his words more. He caught a glimpse of her eyes, forming as much of an eye contact as possible through the processor. Her current thoughts seemed impenetrable to him, although he always thought he’s amazing at reading facial cues.

“Me and you both know - I won’t.”

The last words of his current interest sounded from his Mac. Sending him a flirty wink before pressing the right button, she terminated the call. The intense orgasm left his hand still somewhat shaking. Eyes focused on the screen, he looked like he was awaiting another glimpse of her to come back.

Chris’ ecstatic state wasn’t quick to falter. It took another couple of minutes for him to do anything. Literally, anything. He was already late for the next meeting, which he felt absolutely no remorse for. His eyes lowered to look at the mess he produced; his mind displeased as he had realised, he needs to move to clean it.

Once again, it was just him and his usual surroundings. The call was over, just like that, almost as if it never happened. Despite his deepest longing, he could not go back to what just happened, he could not relive it. Your moans and whimpers performed in his head like a favourite song one would put on replay without a hesitation. He was craving more, his fingers curled into fists as he felt his cock hardening again. He was not sure what his next moves in this matter will be, but he was more than sure he needed to be inside this beautiful body.

[chayacat]

Devil’s Sweet Star (1)

Fandom: Dead by Daylight

Ghostface x Female Reader  

Rated M for Violence, Language and Smut  

***

Finally. After months and months of searching for a suitable space, you have found it. Even if it means leave Indiana. After all, you no longer have anything to hold you back there and a change of landscape will do the greatest good. You’ve moved to Roseville, Ohio in order to open your own coffee shop and found locals curious but welcoming to you. Your new apartment, big enough for a couple is certainly simple but with all the decorations you have in your boxes, you will make it as comfortable and warm as you can. You get your apartment keys from James Lawson your landlord, an adorable old man who lives with his wife for forty years.  

He warned you about the hot water system that was shared among all residents, so keep it in mind if you don’t want to have some complaint from them. Rent is reasonable and if you have any problem or just want to talk, you just have to knock on his door. 

“One last thing young girl! Be careful outside! With these little hooligans, filthy little scoundrels who give no respect for their elders, smoking their bullshit drugs and...” he said becoming grumpier before his wife puts his hand on his shoulder

“Calm down my dear...think of your heart. But I agree and that’s not the worst. Robbery and aggressions happen often if they saw you weak or alone. Just for...Fun as they said. It's really worrying to see such a thing when they could do something better for everyone.” She said.

“No worries! If someone try to piss me off, I'll just kick his ass! It’s not the first time and I know it wouldn’t be the last. As my father said: hit a man where it hurts! But thanks for warning me anyway. You answer with that smile of yours before going to your car get your boxes.

It was exhausting and you sigh in relief when you put the last box on the ground to close the door behind you. After two hours of household and storage with some music to give you motivation, you decide to go out to take care of what will soon be your coffee shop.  Located two blocks away, the old building, once a diner, was bigger than you thought. Fortunately, the companies you hired to do work have finished the day before, all that remains is to place the material and decorations, tables and chairs and wait for the delivery of coffee.

“Damn it’s much bigger than I expected. But that’s not bad after all! Still...I have to find a name. Not always the easiest part. The Nebula? Galaxia?  Sugar Star?” you said tilting your head thinking of many names as you enter into the shop.  

Everything was as you imagine. From walls to the smallest decorations, everything, without overloading, reminded space. Pleasant, relaxing, a real place to escape after a busy and stressful day while drinking a good coffee and devouring a slice of pie or other pastry. You start to organise everything, placing seats, tables and chairs to maximize space allowing future customers to move freely without getting in the way. Suddenly you hear someone knocking on the door and when you turn to see who it is, you notice a woman, in her forties, wearing an apron adorned with flowers that stood in front of the entrance.

“Wow...I didn’t think this place would change that much. and I love it! Much more than Joe's old dinner. I assume you're the new owner? I’m Lindsey Parson, I own the flower shop” she said with a bright smile offering her hand.

“Yes ma’am! Nice to meet you!” you answer as you introduced yourself shaking her hand.  

“I hope you’ll enjoy Roseville. And that your business will succeed. When do you think you're going to open it?  

“Oh...Well if all goes well, I think I could welcome my first customers on Wednesday! I just have to...find a name.”

“It's always the hardest thing to do when you open a business. I’m sure you’ll find it. And if you want, I can talk about your coffee to my friends. They’ll be delighted to go in a new place to share some news over a good coffee or tea.  

“Thanks a lot! that’s really nice of you! I think I’ll be happy to live here than in Indiana.”

“If he’s not decided to make you his prey...” whispered Lindsey turning her face outside slightly worried.

You tilted you head at her words. His prey? Who? Who is she talking about? She breathes deeply and turn her face again to you with a little smile like she doesn’t want to scare you. Not when you’ve just arrived here.

“You know I'm not afraid about some weirdo punk or pervert bastard. If someone looks for troubles, I’ll kick them where it hurts: nuts or ass they’ll choose.” you reply by shrugging your shoulders.

“You’ve got guts, but it won't stop Ghostface from killing you if he decided to make you his next victim. Since many months, he killed many persons and no one know who is he. He’s a real shadow, stalking you and waiting for the perfect moment to hit his victim. Even if you’re not afraid, you should be careful, because he will not give you time or opportunity to defend yourself or run away.” said Lindsey.

“Great. I always move in at the right moment. Well, I guess I'm cursed or something.” you say with a sigh. “Cops have no leads to find him? he must have left traces, clues! no crimes and criminals are perfect. Except in thrillers.”

“He’s not called Ghostface for nothing girl. With him It’s like you try to catch the air in your hand, he plays and makes fun of the cops. He humiliates them and it pissed them off. So please, take care of yourself. and If you see something weird call the cops immediately. Well, I’m going back to my shop. See you around! And good luck!”

She waves her hand, and you wave back at her before she leaves. A few minutes later, you leave the coffee shop making sure all the doors are closed. Since coffee delivery doesn't arrive until tomorrow morning, you have the rest of the day and tomorrow to find a name. the hardest is yet to come. You make your way at home and once you arrive, you park and read the newspaper you bought on the road. After what you’ve heard from Lindsey, you better know more about that Ghostface guy. If cops don’t have any clues about him, the journalist who made the article on the other hand, named Jed Olsen, seems to make a real investigation work.  

It's real impressive to see how many details he wrote about the last murder and the victim, a young man named Travis Maloney. Maybe he’s an experienced journalist, working for 25 years, in the fifties, dressed surely with old suspender pants, a slightly mis tied tie, dual focus glasses and an onset of baldness. And also, some smell of tobacco that smokes your nostrils. Imagine all this makes you wince, hope you will never deal with this guy, you will be good at disinfecting the whole apartment after. Once in the building you go to your mailbox to pick up the mail you have transferred as well as some advertisements. As you reach your home, you turned the corner and lost in your throughs you met with someone’s nose.  

“Ouch...damn It hurts. I’m so sorry I wasn’t paying attention. Are you okay? “you start to say before raising your head to your unfortunate interlocutor.  

Then you freeze. He was a little taller than you, his coppery blond hair almost approaching red, slightly wavy, came to the shoulders to fits his thin face. He was wearing a black shirt covered by a khaki jacket, black pants and shiny brown dress shoes. But what attracted you the most was his piercing blue eyes hidden behind thin rectangular glasses.  He’s handsome, even if he looks like a nerdy boy. He groaned a little as he rubbed his nose before looking at you.  

“Well...at least I can say it’s a way to say hello. I'm fine my nose is not fallen so...you can breathe you need more strength to broke it.” He laughed putting his glasses back in place. “What about you?”

“I’m okay, my brain still okay...even if sometimes I should use it more often to avoid something like this.” You answer with a nervous laugh as you introduced yourself. “You sure everything is okay? I didn’t break your glasses or anything?!”  

“No worries really.” He assured with an angelic smile. Damn he looks like an angel. “Anyways, I have to change them sooner or later so...it’s doesn’t matter. Nice to meet you, I'm Jed Olsen, it’s seems like you’re my new neighbour, I live the door right next to you.”  

You froze again. Okay. Do you remember what you thought before about him? Forget it. Jed Olsen is not an old man that stinks of tobacco but that handsome nerdy boy right in front of you. More he is your neighbour. You mentally slap yourself to have disfigured him in this way.  

“Jed? I don’t want to be rude but you look very young to carry a name too ... Old. When I hear that name, I feel like we're talking about someone who has fifty / sixty years old...No offence.” You reply a little embarrassed.  

“Let’s just say my parents considered me as a mistake. Maybe that’s why they gave me this old name. To remind me that I was not wanted” said Jed.

“Sorry. But at least they wrong! Look at you! You pull off the nerd look very well! If all the nerds, and more all men were physically like you, this would-be paradise on Earth!”

Oh Shit...did you just say this out loud? Yes, you do, and you mentally slap yourself again to say that JUST in front of him. Jed’s eyes blinked for several seconds, a little surprised about what you say before giving you a little smile scratching the back of his head.

“Well, I got to go! I still have storage to do in the apartment and I have to think about two, three little things! You laughed awkwardly “H-have a nice day! See ya !”  

You walk fast to your home door, quickly open and close it after entering inside. You facepalm yourself many times, cursed you in all languages.  

“Good job, pickle brain! For a first good impression It’s a failure. He's going to think I'm an idiot and pervert as a bonus. What did is done anyway...I should focus on the coffee for now. I will find a way to apologize to him later. But first a shower is welcomed! I smell like a camel...and I'm being polite.”  

You spend the rest of the day thinking about the name of your pastries, in harmony with the theme of the coffee as well as the very name of the coffee shop. If it was easy enough for the first one, you come out empty-handed in your name search for your shop. As Lindsey says, it's not the easier part. And she's right.

***

(Well, this is the first time I write a fiction and especially an English fiction because I’m a French potato x) Sorry if my English causes headaches XD Do not hesitate to tell me what you think, I take all positive/negative/neutral opinions! This will allow me to improve my writing talent which is at the same level as my talent in drawing (0/20 in fact XD) if you want a better view of Danny aka Jed Olsen, check out @arkkosun ‘s page who allowed me to use his/her version of our Danny boy! i thank him/her again by the way! So as promised @arkkosun @sleepydaydreamz and @horror-ink here’s my first chapter! And i hope not the last 0.0″)   

[diaryofabeautyfiend]

Small Time Witch (27)

A S G A R D

When you were a small child you attended a Christian nursery school until you were old enough to start kindergarten. One of your very earliest memories was how your teacher described heaven. She called it paradise where the weather was always warm and there were so many trees and mountains and sprawling landscapes. “In the middle,” she would say “is the Lord’s palace. It is so bright and shiny that you will almost be blinded by its majesty.” Perhaps the teacher had been a former resident of Asgard.

You stood at the foot of the Bifrost bridge where Heimdall greeted you. In the distance was the palace glistening like a jewel amongst the stone statues and mountains. The water beneath the bridge looked like it was made of glass it was so still and blue. If you didn’t know better you would have believed you were walking into Oz.

Heimdall stood next to you staring into the horizon with his gold eyes glinting in the sun. “It’s beautiful isn’t it?”

“Yeah” was all you could manage.

“Welcome to Asgard, Princess.” You were startled back into reality.

“I’m not a princess. Please call me Y/N.”

“Your marriage to the Prince is recognized by the throne. It would be improper of me to call you by your name. The Allfather is expecting you.” He directed you into the care of two palace guards who freaking bowed to you. They loaded you into a small craft that zipped you to the palace.

Thor was waiting for you at the door. He introduced himself extending his hand. You reminded him that you were family and you hug. “It’s weird, Thor, because in another life I know you. We’re very close and get into all sorts of trouble together. Usually alcohol is involved.”

He laughed and drew you into his Vice grip. “You remind me of my mother. That may serve you well today.”

“I hope so. The only Odin stories I ever hear are of him being super gruff. He was even a little mean to Jane. Who can be mean to Jane Foster? Sweetest person ever.”

“You know of my Jane?”

“Of course. We’re very good friends. When you’re in town you two usually stay with us. It’s nice.” You didn’t have the heart to tell him that Jane passed away due to complications from cancer. Bruce thought the Aether likely mutated her cells and her body didn’t handle it well. Knowing that you were friends with Jane put a little smile on his face so you chose to keep it to yourself.

When you approached Odin you bowed. He peered down at you from his throne. He looked older than you thought he would. The guy was ancient. You supposed he shouldn’t look young. He looked more frail than anything.

He stood up and walked down the steps to be closer to you. “So this is the Midgardian witch who captured my son’s heart? You are very impressive, young lady. I’ve heard of your talents. Let’s leave this room and retire to my chambers. We’ll have more privacy.” He offered his arm which you took. Thor followed behind. “Please, sit. Now, what can I do for you?”

“Right down to business. Ok. Your highness, I am here to negotiate the terms of Loki’s sentence. The King and small council of Vanaheim have offered to keep Loki in the palace, with your consent of course. In exchange, they will keep me in the Temple of the Vanir to learn their ways. Also, my powers allow me to absorb the energy of the infinity stones. There is a Titan searching for the stones, sir. In my time, he destroyed Asgard and Xandar looking for them. If I can possess even two of them, I can stop him before he lays waist to the Nine.”

He did not say anything for several minutes. You were terrified. Finally, “The Vanir intend to weaponize you. Is that what I’m understanding?”

“I suppose that would imply that they have some sort of control over me. I will not be a weapon against another realm.”

“And if they use Loki as leverage, what choice would you have?”

You took a deep breath so you wouldn’t have a tone in your voice. “With all due respect, Allfather, they wouldn’t have the strength to fight me. I know how this sounds. It is dangerous and there is no guarantee I’ll succeed. I have to try.”

“Thor? What do you think? Another one of Loki’s tricks?”

You started to panic. Thor’s brow was knitted together. He was skeptical of the whole plan.

“Please. Don’t you have your own prophet? How can I prove to you that I’m not tricking you? What can I do?”

“Thor, call in Freyr. Let’s see if he can make sense of this.”

When Freyr saw you his face lit up. “Princess! How lovely to see you again. May I have a moment alone with the girl?”

The two men left the room. “You remember meeting me?” Your voice was trembling.

“Of course! Are you still so naive to think time is linear? This, my dear, is your destiny. The Norns give you the illusion of free will when really all of this was predetermined. You are here because you are meant to fight this war.”

“And Loki?”

He patted you on the head, “He’ll come around.”

When Odin and Thor came back in Freyr did most of the talking. Odin agreed to come with you to Vanaheim to meet with the king and investigate this threat. That was all you could ask for.

He invited you to stay for a couple of days to get acquainted with your new home. It wasn’t a request that much you knew. Thor was happy to show you around. He brought you to your chambers which were near Frigga’s. He showed you her gardens and told you to feel free to explore. There were some sheers on a small table. You slipped them in your pocket so you could take some clippings. She had everything you could possibly need to preform a spell. Literally any spell you could think of.

Thor followed you listening to you speak about the flowers and herbs that grew wild there. The more you spoke the more he understood why Loki chose you. You were so like their mother but with a jagged edge. Poised and gentle but you would definitely cut a bitch without a second thought.

Once you sat down for lunch he worked up the courage to ask about his brother.

“Y/N, can you tell me why my brother did this? Why Midgard specifically?”

You put down your fork and looked him directly in the eyes, “I think you know the answer to that question. Because you loved Earth. Because Earth loved you. You found Jane. He was jealous and angry and took it out on you. But it took him years to admit that he was really so deeply hurt by Odin’s admission.”

“But why not fight me directly? The people on Midgard were innocent.” He was beginning to get angry. You had to remember this just happened so the wounds were still fresh.

“He did fight you directly in New Mexico. When he turned the Bifrost onto Jotunheim he effectively killed that part of himself. The part he thought monstrous. When he let go of Odin’s staff on the bridge, he thought he would either die or live on in exile somewhere. He was ready to leave it behind. But Thanos found him. First he seduced him with power and revenge then he tortured him into subjugation. For a whole year he tortured him. Then, during the attack, he was controlled by the mind stone and The Other could hear him. That’s why he didn’t relent when you said you would bring him home.”

Thor was quiet. You could see tears in his eyes. He had never thought of his brother as a monster. Even when the glory of Loki’s destruction rained down from the heavens, he still loved his brother. He thought back on how Loki looked when he saw him before Chitauri invaded. He looked sick and bruised. He was having trouble standing. The amount of force it would take to mark a god’s skin was beyond comprehension. And now, all he knew was that Loki was recovering on Vanaheim. He had no idea just how close to death Loki was.

When you returned to Vanaheim you went directly to the Temple of the Vanir. Thor went right to his brother. He was outwardly shocked by Loki’s appearance.

“Have you come to throw me in the dungeon?” Loki held Thor’s eyes to attempt to intimidate him. It wasn’t working. He winced as he tried to sit up straighter. Thor would not dare help him in fear of injuring his already fragile pride.

“No, brother. I’m here to talk.”

“I don’t want to talk.”

“Then perhaps you’ll listen.” Loki looked away from him but raised his hand to signal him to carry on.

“If your quarrel was with me why not just fight me?”

“I wanted to prove to father that I can do something. He conquered realms. Why can’t I? That’s what kings do! It is my birthright!”

“Loki, I fear you and father are more alike than either of you care to admit. A king’s job is to unite the realms not to simply rule.”

Loki looked away in shame. “I would have been a good king. Both loved and feared. I would have built an empire.”

“And we all would have watched helpless as it consumed and destroyed you. Forget all of that. You have been given a second chance, brother. A chance with this woman who shares your spirit. Do not squander it lying about feeling sorry for yourself.”

Loki quirked his brow. He thought you had taken your one way trip back home after the way he treated you. Surely you weren’t still carrying on with your plan. The thing was no matter where you were on Vanaheim, he could feel you. Now he can’t. “She hasn’t gone?”

“No. She’s in the temple preparing for the stone. I’m going there myself. Why don’t you join me?”

“Funny. I can’t feel her.”

Thor gave him a weak smile and patted him on the shoulder. “Mother gave her free reign in her garden. No telling what manner of spell she conjured. I’m sure it’s for your own protection.”

You were a clever little witch. He would never say it aloud but he loved how quick you were. If you succeeded with the stones you two would be the most powerful couple in the known universe. You could probably dethrone Odin together. No army would be powerful enough to stop you. He stuck those thoughts into the back of his mind. You were uninterested in power in the way that Loki was. He could not understand your altruistic nature. All of this risk and for what? For people who didn’t know you existed. Though, if you didn’t care for others, he supposed you would have moved on by now and never given him a second chance. Perhaps now was the time to put such irrational things aside and support you.

——————————————————————

The Vanir worked quickly to construct a room strong enough to withstand a nuclear blast. You would have to crush the stone to release its full power. The only weapon strong enough for that was Mjölnir. If you were not worthy enough to wield it, Thor would have to be in the room with you. There was a real potential neither of you would make it out alive. First thing first, you had to lift the hammer.

The weight of Mjölnir would be of no concern if you were worthy. You stepped up to the handle and with effort you rocked it a little. Thor looked nervous. “You can do this, little sister.”

You took a deep breath, closed your eyes and on three you lifted again with an unburdened mind and a clear heart. The hammer was in your hands.

Gasps filled the room. No one dared utter a word. You let Mjölnir dangle from your wrist and made your way to Loki. “Lok, listen, if I don’t make it...”

“Shush, mortal. You will.”

You put your hand over his mouth, “If I don’t make it, please know that for one brief blissful moment, you were happy. We were happy. I love you.” He gripped your hand and opened his mouth to speak but you stopped him. “Don’t say it if it’s not true. Please.”

“Y/N, you will make it. I have faith in you.” You stared into each other’s eyes searchingly.

“You want to kiss me right now don’t you?”

He chuckled, “Desperately.”

You planted the softest most barely there kiss on his lips. He pulled you in to deepen the kiss. The tip of his tongue pressed against yours for just a second and then he released you. You pressed a knotted clipping of Yggdrasil into his palm and hung a tiny gold screw driver around his neck. When you walked away a gold bracelet adorned with emeralds dangled around your wrist. Around your left ring finger was a twin piece of knotted Yggdrasil. The screwdriver was warm to the touch and, if he listened closely, he swore he heard your heart beating.

You went into the room and slammed the metal shut and froze the lock. You held out your hand and forced the cube to crush with your magic. All that remained was the stone. This little blue stone that shined with the light of a million lightning strikes. It floated in the air. You circled it balancing Mjölnir on your shoulder. You plucked the blue candy button out of the air and placed it on the floor. As if it knew it was about to be set free, it released a high pitched whine. You raised the hammer into the air and with all of the force you could summon, you struck it. The room flooded with blue light so bright you couldn’t look directly at it. It sucked in its energy and then exploded outward sending shards of the jewel into your skin. It pushed you around the room like a pinball pinging you off of any surface it could find. You felt like your flesh was separating off of your bones and you were turning to liquid. All at once it went dark and dropped you to the ground.

——————————————————————

Loki paced the floor muttering to himself. Everyone else held their breathing straining to hear any sound. An utterance to let them know you’re alive. That’s when they heard the explosion. Blue light radiated from every exposed crack and nail hole. They heard your body careening off the walls and, with an unsettling thud, the room fell silent.

Loki rushed to the door trying to pry it open. The lock was jammed. Thor tried too but it wouldn’t budge. Njord yelled over their banging that the door was at least five inches thick. You wouldn’t hear them. He tried the key but it broke in the lock. Freyr used his seiðr to crush the door. When it fell away from it’s hinges, you emerged. Your hair had gone completely white and your eyes looked cloudy. You blinked a few times and they went back to normal.

You handed Thor his hammer and patted him on the shoulder. “Sister, speak to us. Are you well?”

You smiled and nodded. You took Loki’s hand in yours. Electricity crackled off of your fingertips. You smiled and opened a black void behind you for which to escape. In the blink of an eye you were on Asgard then Midgard then back to the temple. He laughed and clapped his hands, “You are a clever little witch aren’t you?”

“Princess...” Njord looked worried. You were unaware of your physical changes. You may have been a mutant but you were still a mortal. The stone could have severely injured you. “Your highness, please. We need to get you upstairs.”

“Relax, Njord. I’m perfectly fine. I feel amazing.” You were talking a mile a minute.

He kept insisting and you grew impatient. The more impatient you were the more your hands glowed and your eyes changed. “Njord, let’s give the Prince and Princess some space. She’ll come upstairs shortly.” Frigga ushered everyone out so you and Loki could sit in peace.

You couldn’t sit. Your skin felt too tight for your body. You needed to expel some energy. “Y/N, what’s going on in your head?”

“A million things. I’m wondering if I should go to south London right now since I know where the aether is. I’m wondering if the rest of my powers are amplified. I feel like I’m plugged into a massive battery, Lok. Maybe I can heal you quicker than Njord. Can I try?!”

He laughed and pulled you down into the chair next to him, “You’re like an excited puppy. Let’s go outside before you piddle on the floor. We can test your powers there.”

He lead you to an open space where you could work without fear of hurting someone. Your powers were indeed amplified. Your electricity was more like lightning. You grew a sapling into a knotted mature tree. You split yourself up into many clones and made it rain over the two of you. All of that should have tired you out but it did not. The last thing was to heal Loki. That was sure to drain you as broken as he was. You placed your hands on his solar plexus and went to work. Every ache and pain subsided every cut knitted itself back together. He felt reborn. You were settled.

You went back to the palace for dinner to talk strategy with Odin and the king. Since you and Loki were the only ones who ever faced Thanos, it was crucial that you were involved. You came to the conclusion that you needed numbers. You would divide the realms and enlist help even from the Dark Elves and Jötuns. You and Thor would go to Earth to speak with SWORD who handled all extra dimensional doings. Everyone agreed that Loki shouldn’t travel to Midgard just yet. You insisted the Avengers not be involved but, your X-men friends would be delighted to assist. At this point, they were more powerful anyway.

When you retired for the evening, Loki walked you back to your room. “May I ask you something?” His eyes were fixed on the floor he tried his hardest to sound confident. You lifted his chin so he would look at you. “Why couldn’t I sense you when you arrived? Why can’t I feel you now?”

“I guess I just wanted you to feel your own feelings for a change. I thought I might be overwhelming you.”

“I thought...” he laced his fingers in with yours, “I thought you were angry with me.”

“Oh I was. You’ve never raised your voice to me. It hurt. I didn’t want you to know how much.”

He didn’t know how much he missed you in the short time you were gone. He missed you right now and you were standing right in front of him. He kissed you on the corner of your mouth, “I’m sorry to have raised my voice. I’m sorry I’m hurting you. I wish I could love you as you love me. I am trying, Pet.”

“Lok, you can’t fall in love with someone in such a short period. We have time.” You kissed him gently and slipped into your room.

He stayed outside of your chambers for a while with his head pressed against the door. Love was not something he gave freely. He wished things were different. He wished his future self never helped Thor. He wished he would know the happiness you spoke of. One day he would. For now he would keep on disappointing you.

——————————————————————

The next morning you woke up and surveyed the clothing you were gifted. Nothing screamed Midgard 2012 to you. You waved your hand over your body and came up with something more south London and less Stratford Upon Avon. Satisfied with your look you set out to Loki’s chambers.

You knocked but he didn’t answer. Once more and a giggling flustered chamber maid opened. She straitened up when she saw your face and readjusted her apron straps. “Princess!” she yelped. “Apologies. Prince Loki should be along shortly.”

“You know what? Tell him don’t bother.”

She called after you but you didn’t turn around. You kept your spine straight and let your head high. Your heels clacked loudly as you stomped through the halls with a walk that would make Naomi Campbell proud.

Thor was coming out of his room and smiled when he saw you, “Good morning, sister! You’re looking well.”

“Are you ready to go? I don’t think it’s wise for Loki to show his face on earth.”

Thor was pretty daft when it came to the whims of the fairer sex but your face was speaking loud and clear. You held his hand and landed in a warehouse in London. You searched high and low but struck out.

“What exactly are we looking for?”

“A void filled with a red mist.”

“And you are certain it’s here?”

“This is where Jane found it, yes.”

“Is this around the time she found it. Maybe it’s not here yet.”

“No, it’s here. I can feel it. I just have to ah! It’s here.”

He swung Mjölnir and the wall crumbled. You stuck your hand in and he grabbed you.

“Wait. Is this wise? I feel like one of the Vanir should be with you or at least Loki. If anything goes wrong I won’t know how to help you.”

“Your brother is more interested in his chamber maids than saving the universe. If anything goes wrong, call for Heimdall.”

“Did you catch him with someone else? It’s very common in royal marriages...”

The Aether called to you and effectively drowned him out. While he prattled on you put your arm through the wall and let it take you. It meshed with the space stone because they were meant to be together. Their energies lifted you up off the ground and light poured out your eyes mouth and fingers. You collapsed back down where Thor caught you. He shook you but you were unable to focus. You put your fingers to your mouth and pulled away with crimson soaked tips. Thor scooped you into his arms cursing you and then raised Mjölnir to call Heimdall. Just then you stopped him.

“No. No, I’m fine. Don’t call him.”

“But, sister.”

“No. Put me down.” He did as he was told and carefully set you on your feet. You smoothed your hair and fixed your clothes. With a flourish all of the blood vanished.

“Come on. Let’s go see Jane.”

“You are out of your mind. I have to get you back to Njord.”

“Nonsense. I have to see Dr. Selvig to fix what my darling husband broke. And you, brother, need to see Jane. You miss her. I want you to be happy. She needs to be happy. Just take her to lunch.”

He agreed but insisted you take more traditional transportation rather than using your powers. You found the nearest train station and took the tube to Jane’s office. This Jane was a lot less together than the Jane you knew. She was so stunned to see Thor at her door that she could barely speak.

You introduced yourself as Loki’s wife but assured her your marriage was less gothic romance and more Charles and Di. A reference that Thor didn’t understand but Jane did perfectly. She brought you to Dr. Selvig who was speaking nonsensically. He seemed to recognize you right away. Though you had not yet met he knew the energy that was inside you. You placed your hands on either side of his head and pulled the power of the space stone out of him. He was weak but thinking for himself.

You practically pushed the happy couple out of the door to have lunch on you. You conjured a credit card an an id for Thor. You said you had business to attend to.

Darcy offered to give you a ride which you happily accepted. Had her drop you in front of Claridge's, a very posh hotel in Hyde Park, where you intended to relax and partake in retail therapy. Magically their best room was available for the evening. You held your breath when they ran your card. You had no idea if it would work. Luckily it did. The porter showed you to your room. You asked for a bottle of single malt and a glass to be left in the seating area. You kicked off your shoes and started to unbutton your blouse when you heard a man clear his throat.

You had not immediately seen Mobius M. Mobius when you entered. Funny, neither did the porter. Electricity crackled in your fingers and, as you raised them to strike, he walked toward you. “Holster those weapons, Mrs. Laufeyson. Or is it Odinson? Either way. I’m not here to hurt you. Just to talk.”

“Do you drink scotch?”

[bi-naesala]

Found you (chapter two)

Bad Batch arc retelling (sort of) | Fives lives AU

Also on AO3

Chapter 1

Fives hates waiting, especially in these kinds of situations. They should be rescuing Echo, but all they can do now it to wait around until they get permission like some kind of kids!

The idea of leaving alone comes to mind, but even if he manages to reach Skako Minor - that’s where Echo’s signal came from - what could he do against entire squadrons of droids? They’re about to mess with the Techno Union, which means that things are going to get ugly. No, as much as he hates admitting it, he needs everyone, even the Shebs Batch.

The only problem, now, is that Rex has somehow disappeared. Where’s the Captain now? He doubts he’s in his quarters - why would he be there of all places? - but he can’t find him anywhere.

A hand plants itself on his shoulder, forcing him to stay still and stop pacing.

“You’re going to burn a hole in your boots if you keep up like that,” Jesse says, “Just calm down.”

“I am calm,” Fives snaps back. He hates when people tell him to calm down; if anything, they only succeed in irritating him more. He tries to pull his shoulder free, but Jesse’s hold is too strong.

“You really are not,” he says, which is rich coming from him of all people. Jesse has never exactly been a paramount of patience.

Seeing the worry in his brother’s eyes, Fives’ aggressive stance deflates.

“Look, I just want to be over with this part,” he says, “We should’ve moved already.”

“I know, but it’s not like we can do whatever we want. There are strategies to be made.” Fives hates this kind of reasoning because it’s so cold: it makes war look like more like a series of calculations than the gruesome affair that it actually is. Still, Jesse is right - for once - but this doesn’t mean that Fives has to be happy with it, hence the pacing and the death stares; he’s sure he’s scared shitless a few shinies that have tried to approach him. He should apologize to them, but they really had picked a very bad time to bother him.

“Hey,” Jesse calls him then, a smirk on his face, “If you’re looking for a way to pass time, why don’t we play some sabacc? Want to steal more credits out of you.”

“So you admit that was stealing!” Fives exclaims, playfully shoving his vod, “Besides, now I know your tricks. You won’t fool me this time,” he adds with a confidence that makes Jesse chuckle.

“We’ll see…”

 Thankfully for Fives’ credits, they’re stopped by captain Rex before they can make their way to the barracks.

“Captain, where were--”

“We have no time for that, Fives,” Rex interrupts him, “We’re leaving.”

  Fives still doesn’t understand if they’ve actually gotten clearance to depart or if general Skywalker is doing as he pleases - it wouldn’t be the first time. In the end, it doesn’t matter, as long as they get to Skako Minor and rescue Echo.

He’s not entirely comfortable with the idea of having left Jesse behind, but general Kenobi and general Windu are going to need all the help they can and Jesse is one of the best. Whatever happens, he’ll surely make it out alive, or at least Fives hopes so. He really doesn’t want to lose another brother…

 “Did you hear what he said? Does it mean he knows?”

“Sir, I really have no idea--”

Those are clearly the general and the captain’s voices that Fives is hearing as he makes his way to the ship’s main corridor. A glance is enough to confirm this theory: general Skywalker and captain Rex seem to be having a heated conversation. What are they talking about?

“Did you snitch on me, Rex? Were you the one who told Obi-Wan?” Skywalker accuses, making Rex spout indignantly at the idea that he would betray his trust like that. If nobody intervenes, things might escalate, which prompts Fives to walk up to them.

“Sirs, is there something wrong?” he asks, feigning innocence, like he hasn’t accidentally heard part of their conversation.

There’s a moment of pause, then the two look at each other.

“It’s nothing, Fives,” Anakin says then, leaving his previous position to do who knows what - probably going to speak with Hunter.

“What was that about?” Fives asks once he and Rex are alone. General Skywalker is known for his temperament, but there are only few things that would set him off even against Rex, and one of these things are…

“Was this about him and Senator Amidala?”

“General Kenobi finally snapped and made it clear that he knows.” Ah, so that’s what happened.

 Skywalker and Amidala. They’re the worst kept secret in the whole GAR. The only way the Jedi Council hasn’t approached the general about this yet is probably because they think that looking the other way is the best solution which, in the end, might’ve been true: all this talk about attachments, and yet Skywalker, the Jedi who you could say has the most attachments, hasn’t turned on them, not even when the Chancellor tried to persuade him to his side by using his fear of losing his loved ones. If he had cracked, things would’ve gone very differently and Fives doubts he’d even be alive to tell the tale. Who knows.

It’s also true that Palpatine didn’t really get much time to talk before being shot from behind - he probably wasn’t expecting the Guard to turn on him, but Fox looked particularly smug when he took the shot. He had underestimated the clones, and this is what ruined him. A fitting end.

 Before Fives’ thoughts can wander even more, Rex recalls him to attention.

“We should regroup with the others,” he says and, as always, he’s right.

“Yes, sir. Let’s go.”

  They land into a storm. Just their luck.

Thankfully Tech is skilled enough to make them land safely. It was still a better landing than when the general flies.

“Nice job vod,” Five mutters, giving Tech’s shoulder a nice pat. Out of all the Bad Batchers, he’s the one he likes the most.

Tech seems surprised by such familiarity coming from him, but apart from looking at him like he’s seen a ghost, he doesn’t comment on it except from an awkward “thank you”.

And now, let’s see what kind of banthashit they’ll have to deal with now.

  So long the General has only being kidnapped and rescued. Basically, nothing new.

If things keep going this way, maybe they’ll be done by the end of the day with only a few things majorly blowing up. Nothing Fives hasn’t experienced already.

These Poletecs are adamant on not wanting war on their planet, and to be frank, Fives can’t exactly blame them. Still, they’re here not to bring war but to save a brother, so if they’ll have to fight in order to do it, he won’t hesitate.

Tech’s the one that comes to the rescue again, thanks to his technology. An immediate translator like that would be mighty useful to have - how many times did Fives try to flirt with somebody at 79, only to find out they don’t speak the same language? Not that it usually isn’t that much of a problem, but still it would be something nice. Maybe if he asks kindly Tech would build one for him too?

At least now they’ve gotten safe passage, and from what Fives has understood, they’re even going to take them to Purkoll? Talk about lucky.

 It would’ve been nice if they could help out more, but Fives supposed they can’t exactly ask much out of them. They’ll have to make do with that little they have.

Fives cracks his knuckles and adjusts the helmet on his face. Time to put his ARC training to use.

  Everything was going great… until it doesn’t anymore. Tech has lost Echo’s signal, and that small hope they all felt is beginning to get overshadowed by doubt again, not for Fives, though, and not for Rex. Fives’ glad that the captain is backing him up as he keeps telling them that something must’ve happened and that they need to hurry up.

Then Crosshair opens his mouth.

“You feelings are getting in the way because you left him for dead at the Citadel.”

Fives blood begins to boil. He remembers that moment too vividly - there hasn’t been a day that he hasn’t thought about that. The General’s voice echoes in his head, the continuous screams and the “we have to keep going!”. He takes his first step towards Crosshair.

“We wouldn’t have if he had a choice! We couldn’t--”

“Oh, I don’t blame you, I would’ve left him for dead too.” Fives swears, this guy-- “Besides, he’s just another reg.”

 Just another reg...

 Anger takes over Fives. This time he doesn’t even try to rebuttal, he just throws himself at Crosshair with all his weight, making them tumble along the hill.

He’s been wanting to punch this asshole’s face since he first laid his eyes on him, and now he finally can. If he wasn’t so angry he would’ve smirked hearing his pained noises, but he’s too busy punching him to care.

“You don’t know what we’ve been through! You don’t know!”

Even as Crosshair tries to break free, there’s little he can do against Fives’ superior strength. ARC training really paid off.

Then he feels someone pulling him up, and as he tries to pull away, he recognizes Wrecker’s voice telling him to take it someone not his size. As if he’s afraid of him.

“Put him down!” Rex shouts at him, shaking him so that he loses his grip on Fives, who lands on the ground but gets up immediately, ready to throw down again. Wrecker’s attention, however, has moved to Rex; he clearly hasn’t appreciated the way his captain interfered, even though he had been the first one to put himself into a fight that didn’t concern him. It doesn’t matter, Fives can take care of him too.

“You’ll be a lot smaller when I’m through with you!” Rex shouts, maintaining the aggressive stance towards Wrecker. Fives has rarely seen him lose his cool like this and he almost wishes Jesse was here to witness it - he’ll just have to tell him when they come back. Still, it’s nice of his captain to stand up for him, especially against these assholes.

 “That’s enough!”

General Skywalker’s voice echo with not exactly rage, but definitely irritation. The Jedi has put himself between Wrecker and the other two clones. “We’re supposed to work together, not getting into fights like this!”

He’s right, of course, even though if anything this makes things worse: if Skywalker of all people is telling you to be more responsible, then things must be bad.

The general sighs, a defeated look in his eyes, then he asks the Bad Batch to scout ahead, a clear excuse to be left alone with Rex and Fives.

 “Sir,” Fives begins immediately once they are alone, “You heard him. I couldn’t--”

“I know Fives,” Skywalker interrupts him, “I don’t like what he said either, but that’s no excuse to act like that.”

As Rex apologizes for the show they’ve just given, Five has to bite his tongue in order not to snap at the general that he can’t say stuff like that, not when he’s done the same on other occasions. It’s unfair and he knows it, but he’s not perfect and sometimes you have to be petty to win.

At least the general seems to understand their situation. “Listen,” he sighs, “I know this mission means a lot to you, it means a lot to me too. If Echo’s truly alive, then it’s our priority to get him out of there, however… We have to be prepared in case this is just a trap, understood?”

“Yes sir.” Rex replies. Skywalker then proceeds to put a hand on Rex’s shoulder and the other on Fives’.

“I want him to be alive as much as you do, but if it turns out he isn’t, I need to know that you’ll be able to handle it. Can you?”

“We will, sir,” Rex says, “If he turns out dead, we’ll handle it.”

“Good,” Skywalker replies, his voice soft with obvious concern. He turns to Fives then. “And you, Fives?”

It takes him longer that it should to reply. He knows that there are many chances that yes, this is all a trap, but he has to believe that Echo is alive - someone has to. Besides, it wouldn’t be the first he has a hunch that, although highly improbable, turns out to be true.

“Yes I… I’ll handle it,” he says eventually, because if it’s really true that Echo’s dead, it will hurt, but eventually he’ll have to move on. His brother wouldn’t like it if he spent his entire life mourning him, or worse getting injured because he was too busy being sad to concentrate on the mission.

He feels Skywalker’s grip tighten, but not too much, just enough to be comforting.

“I’ll be fine sir. Really.”

The general nods, then he smiles. It’s that kind of smile that means trouble, the one who usually give Rex headaches because it means that he’s going to do something stupid.

“Alright, let’s go now. Wouldn’t want to be outshined, eh, guys?”

Rex and Fives share a look.

“General’s right,” Fives points out, a mischievous smile mirroring Skywalker’s on his face. For once, even Rex seems on board with this.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

  Once they all reach the tower, they finally manage to pick up Echo’s signal again. It doesn’t mean that it’s all good, but Fives will take what he can get.

If there’s even the smallest chance that Echo’s alive, then it’s all worth it.

 Tech - the only valid Bad Batcher, Fives will never stop saying it - manages to hack the door open, which is good because at least they can get in undetected.

Fives has never been fond of stealth missions but he understands their importance. Eh, this reminds him of that time when he and Hardcase had to sneak in that umbaran… Hardcase.

Fives shakes his head. That’s not the time to think about his fallen brother.

 Fortunately he gets distracted from that by Wrecker’s hesitation in front of the elevator. Fives can barely suppresses a chuckle at the discovery that big strong Wrecker’s afraid of heights, but as soon as Hunter suggests holding his hand he doesn’t hold back anymore, gaining a punch on his shoulder from an angry Wrecker - though given the standards it’s a pretty light punch.

“You got something to say?” he says, clearly challenging him. As if Fives is going to fall back.

“I can hold your other hand if you want.”

At that, even Hunter chuckles; the sergeant thankfully puts a hand on Wrecker’s shoulder, stopping him before he can attack Fives again. All that’s left for the big guy is to grumble that he hates everybody there.

 Ah the irony of general Skywalker telling them this is a stealth mission, only for the elevator’s doors to open and reveal a group of droids outside, too close not to spot them.

Of course Wrecker, the big oaf, throws himself at them, screaming without a care in the world. Ok that he wanted to crush some droids, but what the kriff anyway.

“So much for stealth,” Rex comments, using the I’m-so-done-with-this voice Fives is very familiar with. They look at each other and he shrugs. Might as well make themselves useful.

They all move out, firing their blasters. They still have a chance of not blowing it if they manage to kill everything fast enough. Fives manages even to steal a couple of kills from Crosshair - and he notes to himself that he must never make him forget it.

 Nobody is impressed with the way Wrecker begins to shout after destroying the droids. He at least has the decency to look embarrassed about it.

He even apologizes, though Fives doubts he’s really sorry.

Damn, he and Hardcase would’ve gotten along splendidly.

  Of course, since things were going so splendidly, there’s a new problem: Tech is able to track Echo’s signal only during intel transmission, which makes him harder to find.

“Damn it!” Fives exclaims, and he would’ve punched the wall in rage if Rex hadn’t grabbed his wrist. They’re so close and yet so far!

“Calm down, Fives. We’ll find him.”

“Alright,” the general calls them back to attention, “We’re splitting up. Search for every door and, if you find Echo, contact the others.”

He moves his gaze to Fives, making it clear that this last part is addressing him in particular. “We go in together, just in case there’s trouble.”

Fives nods, but he already knows that, depending on the situation, he’ll decide later whether to consider that an order or just a mere suggestion.

 The room Fives’ searches is empty, but that won’t stop him. He’s already rushing outside, moving to the next room, when Tech announces that Echo’s signal is back.

They follow it, arriving in front at a double door. Echo must be inside! Fives rushes to it, trying to open it, but it doesn’t budge!

To make things worse, the viewscreen next to the door activates, showing them Wat Tambor’s ugly mug.

The way he’s talking about Echo like it’s just a robot, an algorithm, makes Fives’ blood boil. If he gets his hands on him he’ll make sure he won’t survive the encounter.

He had forgotten how scary captain Rex can get when he’s angry; he believes every word he says about leaving that place only with Echo.

 Oh no, they have company now - so many droids. They’re left with no choice but to fight.

Thankfully the general has finally reached them, helping them getting rid of the droids faster. Still, this is no easy feat: there’s too many droids and so little of them. In this case Fives is really glad that the Bad Batch is with them, because they’re handling things spectacularly, so much that they actually manage to get rid of the droids in record time…

No, reinforcements are coming. Kriff.

 Good thing Tech’s working on opening the door.

They just have to resist a little bit longer.

 As soon as the doors open, Fives and Rex rush to it. Since they aren’t incompetent they don’t do so blindly, and they keep their weapon ready, eyes on the lookout. Getting ambushed now won’t do at all.

They stumble upon an empty huge room, a lab definitely, but what gets everyone’s attention is a certain stasis chamber… Is Echo in there?!

“I don’t like the look of this,” Tech comment, very helpfully.

“Just open it, please,” Fives begs. If Echo’s in there they need to pull him out!

He can feel the weight of Rex resting his hand on his pauldron, an even though he can see his expression under the helmet, the way he inclines his head his enough for Fives to understand that he wants to know if he’s fine. He nods. Yeah, he’s fine.

The chamber’s about to be opened soon.

“I’m picking up a life form in there.”

It’s Echo, it has to be Echo…

 Fives can’t believe his eyes. He… doesn’t know what to say.

That thing that has gotten out of the stasis chamber, still attached to it by wires, is… Echo?

He looks terrible: he’s pale, so skinny that he could see the bones, head shaved, gaze unfocused like he hadn’t even realized they’re there, and… prosthesis at his arm and his legs.

Fives is going to kill the entire Techno Union.

 Thankfully, Rex manages to recover from the shock and springs into action, ordering Tech to find a way to safely unplug Echo from this machine. He begins working on getting him down, and after shaking his head, trying to focus, Fives joins him.

“Echo? Echo are you there?” he calls out, but there’s no response coming from him.

He feels like he’s going to be sick. What have they done to him?

 It’s his fault. This is all his fault.

He shouldn’t have left him at the Citadel. He should’ve tried harder.

 Both he and Rex remove their helmets, hoping that maybe he will recognize them like this. Now Fives can see how horrified Rex is; well, he feels the same.

It’s then that Echo begins to talk, but his voice is so low and broken that Fives can barely understands what he’s saying. He can only catch “Citadel”.

“No! No!” he begins to say, face panicking. Fives doesn’t know what the best course of action is, but he can’t stay idle and watch his brother suffer.

He gently puts a hand on his shoulder - he’s so cold - and tries to call for him again, this time without raising his voice, no matter how much he wants to scream.

“Echo? Can you hear me?”

Nothing.

“It’s me, Fives!”

Still nothing.

“I’m here, Echo. Talk to me please!”

 “… Fives?” A flash of recognition has passed through Echo’s eyes, and now he looks like he’s actually seeing them. “Rex?”

“Yes, I’m here,” the captain says, scooting closer to Echo.

When Echo speaks again, with that voice so soft, Fives feels tears prickling at the side of his eyes, but he fights them back. Seeing him cry is the last thing Echo needs rights now.

“You came back for me.”

It breaks Fives’ heart. Yes, they came back to him, but after how many years? If only they had known before…

“Yes, yes we did,” Rex replies, and Fives can easily sense from his voice that he too is close to completely breaking down. They have to be strong for Echo.

“Thought you’d get rid of me that easily, vod?” he attempts to joke, and he doubts anyone has ever felt the relief he’s feeling when Echo chuckles.

 There are still some things he wants to say, so many things he wants to do.

There’s also the question of having to come back, which is another big problem on its own, but now that they’ve found Echo, Fives feels unstoppable. It wouldn’t be good dying right when they’re so close to succeeding.

“We’re going to get you home. Whatever happens, I’ll keep you safe.” He goes to take his brothers hand, squeezing it with determination.

“I promise.”

[vagrantblvrd]

Jeremwood FAHC where battle buddies formed before they joined the crew? Everyone is terrified until they find the pair dead asleep on Gavin or Lindsay, or both, and they just look confused/pleased respectively, and shoo everyone away when they try and wake the pair up? And just, sheer shenanigans between all of them as they all settle into a the full force of the FAHC

Hmm, yes, yes, I see what you’re getting at with this, Anon?

But may I humbly suggest the reason these two Very Scary and Spooky figures choose Team Losers for their respective human pillows has to do with their Tragic Backstories?

For an example:

Before they became the Super Scary duo known throughout all Los Santos (and certain areas outside it, most of which have been reduced to rubble and charred remains because idiots) they were (baby) agents in An Agency somewhere?

Very hush, hush, totally no shady goings on here, no sir Mr. Government overwatch group!

Just patriotic assassinations and the whatnot.

Ryan is all clean-shaven and by the book. Perfect role model for the other baby agents who came after him.

Stellar record and all that, did everything Right.

And then the handler he’s had since graduating the academy retired. (Or is retired, something that plants the initial seed of unrest/suspicion in the back of Ryan’s mind about what he’s been doing all this time, but we’ll get to that later.

Anyway, he gets a shiny new handler in this guy all the way from England, kid with this accent who makes no damn sense and Ryan is >:( because he doesn’t trust him? (Gavin’s a goddamned kid, wet behind the ears and the most ridiculous questions and Ryan’s supposed to trust him to keep him alive?)

But then they get tossed into training exercises and simulations to get used to each other and as annoyed as Ryan is with the ceaseless chatter, Gavin’s always on point when it comes to getting Ryan through the exercise/simulation flawlessly. (Well, okay. There’s a miscommunication or two due to cultural differences but they sort it out before disaster befalls them.)

And at the end of things Ryan’s a little annoyed at the fact he can’t fault Gavin’s expertise at his job. Especially when he’s kind of glowering at Gavin after one of the “cultural differences” arguments and Gavin challenges Ryan to take over Gavin’s job while Gavin runs through the exercise/simulation.

All, “…what?” because his old handler wasn’t a field agent in any form of the word, amazing at her job, sure, but a klutz who only passed the annual certifications because Ryan and her previous agents kept on her about them to make sure she’d pass and all that.

And Gavin, okay. Goddamned twig and just look at him, no way he could pull off an assassination in a controlled setting like this, okay. Gavin just looks at him like he thinks Ryan’s chickening out, because of course he would, and Ryan will be goddmaned if he lets this twig of an asshole get away with that. (Or…something.)

Gavin chortles all the way down to the training room floor, grins up at the cameras he knows Ryan’s watching him through and tosses off a little salute before wading into the training exercise.

Entirely new one the two of them haven’t gone through yet because this is meant to be a test for both of them, right? Gavin going to their superiors and agents and whatevers involved in running these exercises for an official okay from them and all that. (He puts it forward as a bonding exercise, way to gain trust between partners which will up their efficiency rating and all that and of course their superiors are eager to jump at the chance to have the two of them reach active status all the sooner and the whatnot.)

So.

Ryan in Gavin’s little command center realizing he’s maybe made a misstep with this dare/bet? He’d been in the room once or twice before talking to his previous handler, but when Gavin came into the picture he’d had it upgraded. More cameras and gadgets and other bells and whistles Ryan isn’t sure what their function is?

And hes clumsier than he’d like about it, toggling between camera feeds to keep track of Gavin’s progress through the levels. Goddamned mansion the agency had built for this particular exercise and Gavin charming his way through with barely a ripple to mark his passing.

Hasn’t alerted anyone yet and Ryan is struggling to keep up with him and okay, yes, it’s definitely harder than it looks from the outside. (He’s always known it in the back of his head, but it’s different now, isn’t it?)

Things go…okay for a bit, but then their superior threw in a little plot twist towards the end, this Ultimate Test for the two of them they obviously didn’t anticipate and Ryan almost gets Gavin “killed”, sends him down a dead end corridor, guards closing in and they both know he fucked up, and Gavin looks right at the closest camera.

Should, by all rights, be furious with Ryan because he fucked up – but all he does is ask Ryan some simple little question, look up the blueprints on one on the computers and see if there’s a discrepancy with the layout of the area he’s in.

Contractors and clients and other bullshit he doesn’t have time to explain, because Plot Reasons. Mainly due to the fact Gavin got his hands on the real blueprints involved in building the course level they’re using for the exercise because he likes to be thorough like that. (Might be considered cheating, but he’s all about everything he can do to keep his agent alive, even in a supposedly safe environment like the agency training courses.)

Lo and behold there is, some botched bit with the ducts or something hastily covered up, Ryan’s hardly an expert despite all the time he’s spent crawling through various systems in his career to date.

Gavin grins as he backtracks and finds the botched bit of construction hastily covered over. Since the “building” the agency is using for this training exercise is an overblown set piece it’s just been wallpapered over or something else, and Gavin is easily able to get through it and escape that way, because Plot Reasons.

Ryan’s still a bit shaken at the close call and Gavin has to get him back on task of leading him out of the ducts he’s in, which he does. Watching silently as Gavin exits the training level with the McGuffin he was sent to steal and a dead target behind him.

He apologizes to Gavin for almost getting him killed, which Gavin laughs and dismisses because he knows it wasn’t intentional (right, Ryan?), but maybe now he understands Gavin’s up to the job of keeping Ryan alive if he’ll let him.

Their bosses side-eye them for basically Kobayashi Maru-ing their way out of the training exercise, but decide Gavin’s more of an asset than they anticipated and praise him for his thoroughness. (While making a mental note to keep an eye on him because he really shouldn’t have been able to get his hands on those blueprints, you know?)

Anyway, they work together for a year or two until Ryan gets picked for this new agency that’s come along in the meantime. Even shadier doings than his original agency and so sorry, but you’ll be given a new handler and a field partner and really, Agent Haywood, you’ll be doing your country a great service with this new agency.

There’s this whole Thing where they say their goodbyes and Gavin, who has a bad feeling about all of it, warns Ryan to watch hi back out there since Gavin won’t be there to do it for him. Ryan is all ??? and also ditto and a little if Gavin ever needs anything to contact him? Which Gavin promises to do with more vice versa, but honestly they know the odds of them ever meeting again are slim to none.

(And Ryan’s kind of right, when his old agency goes down in flames a half a year or so later. Sabotage and all that and so many dead with Gavin’s name of the list of casualties and okay, right, totally nothing suspect there. Ryan absolutely buys into that load of horseshit after the way he saw their agency being whittled down before Ryan was picked for his current agency, or course. Totally doesn’t have a little side-hobby of untangling that mess to get to the truth, goodness no.)

ANYWAY.

Ryan gets paired up with Jeremy who is obviously a rookie agent out of whatever agency handed him over to their current agency.

Young and inexperienced in the field but eager to learn and smart as hell. Lot of potential and best of all doesn’t take Ryan’s bullshit, which is awesome.

There’s an adjustment period for both of them because their new agency is a bit more lax with the rules and regulations, and Jeremy rubs off on Ryan a little over time and vice versa.

They get this handler who is calm and professional – for the most part.

The three of them don’t really click as a team for their first few missions, but the third or fourth one in things go to shit in the most chaotic, bizarre ways possible?

And their handler, who up to this point has been completely normal proposes a ridiculous plan to get them out of their predicament and the worst thing is it works? Ryan in a goddamned clown suit and Jeremy posing as a cowboy (???) and they get their target and escape without incident somehow?

Get to listen to their handler howling with laughter as they speed away in a speedboat and share this look because what the hell? And Lindsay – of fucking course it’s Lindsay – getting herself under control to coordinate their extraction and whatnot.

Things get better (worse???) after that because their missions tend to go to shit more often than not requiring the most ridiculous plans to succeed and they’re still considered their agency’s top operatives.

Life has never been so strange for any of them.

Ryan loosens up, decides he likes the look of the beard he grew for a mission and keeps it unless there’s another mission that requires he shave it. (And then he goes right back to growing it out, and also just kind of loses his mind in general because no one can stay sane with both Jeremy and Lindsay in the mix, okay, no one.)

Lindsay starts joking around with them when they’re in the field and Jeremy is just. So flabbergasted at half the things she says and it’s all gloriously wonderful shenanigans and chaos and all that for a good long while for the three of them.

Lindsay watches these two idiots she’s responsible doing the Mutual Pining Thing and laughing at them because it’s pretty damn obvious they’re head over heals for one another?

All these little gestures between them in and out of the field, but then it just gets sad, you know?

Close calls thanks to the nature of their line of work, Jeremy sitting beside Ryan’s bed down in medical after a bad mission and vice versa. Longing Looks and Quiet Pining and Lindsay is their confidant and does her best to drops hints without betraying either of their trust in her.

Setting up situations where they have lunch or dinner together. The three of them out to have a dinner to celebrate some team milepost or whatever but she gets called away at the last minute for some minor  problem but no, really, you two enjoy yourselves they can do this again at a later date. (Heavy emphasis on the word date, but they’re too dense to pick up on it.)

And then! Just when she thinks they realize there’s a Mutual Pining Situation going on and might be about to do something about it?

Bad shit happens, because of course it does.

Someone contacts Lindsay, tells her trouble’s headed their way and to look out for her boys because they’re going to be at the heart of it, and Lindsay.

Oh, she knows exactly who sent her that message, the ones that follow because Gavin’s clever, right, but she’s just as good at her job as he is. (There’s this whole Thing where they met years ago, thanks to friendly inter-agency rivalries and Gavin worrying about idiot Ryan and just. Yeah.)

It’s thanks to him the three of them are prepared for the suicide mission meant to get rid of the Battle Buddies (the usual Conspiracy Plot Reasons) that allows them to fake their deaths. Handy little tip telling them a good place to hide out is Los Santos, and hey, take the scenic route just in case, which they do.

Meanwhile, Lindsay has all these files and the whatnot on what their agency have been up to that end up in the right hands, some reputable reporter or whoever and goes to lunch one day and forgets to go back afterwards.

Doesn’t go so far to fake her death, just disappears as far as the rest of the world is concerned while the agency more or less burns to the ground behind her.

She ends up in Los Santos too, gets a nice little apartment somewhere and gets a reputation for being a crazy cat lady with all the strays she looks after, fosters, handing them over to good homes and the like.

Hears rumors going around about this pair of mercs new on the scene a year or two later. Big scary bastard going around wearing a skull mask and his partner with the cowboy ensemble and laughs herself sick when she sees her boys on the news one night, because they haven’t changed a goddamned bit.

Wonders if they ever figured their shit out and makes plans to contact them to ask how they’ve been doing, but she gets a job offer before she can.

Some crew or other with a reputation of their own and this skinny prick of a Brit with the most obnoxious grin and gaudy sunglasses and the Fakes would be interested in someone with your particular skills, and is she interested?

Lindsay just looks at Gavin in his ridiculous get up and decides the hell with it, you know? She’s been on vacation long enough and if someone like him trusts these assholes she’s fine with it.

They hand her control of B-Team and she kind of loves it. The crew is her kind of chaotic and she gets why Gavin chose them out of all the crews in Los Santos.

No brainer when Geoff’s looking to expand the crew and there are these two idiots running around causing chaos without anyone to watch their backs but themselves. (Well, okay. And Gavin and Lindsay from the shadows, but they’re stretching themselves thin watching out for the Fakes and the Battle Buddies and it just makes sense to have them all under the same roof, so to speak.)

And then!

Ryan and Jeremy being ??? and !!! at seeing Gavin and Lindsay – initially suspicious because what are the odds?

Jeremy watching Ryan circling Gavin because it’s been years and he really wants to think he can trust the little shit, but so much has happened he’s not sure he can?(All this time he’s been trying to find out what happened to him only to see Gavin cozied up to the biggest crew in Los Santos???)

But then he realizes Lindsay trusts Gavin implicitly, that Gavin’s the reason the three of them made it out of the agency alive at all, and Gavin’s just giving him this little smile waiting for Ryan to make up his mind the way he did when they met all those years ago.

Various shenanigans as he realizes Gavin’s safe, the Fakes are safe, and Jeremy relaxes because he trusts Ryan’s judgment in this?

The two of them realize the others have no idea the four of them know each other from Before and get a kick out of fucking with them whenever they can, hence the human pillow Thing.

Big scary mercs napping like little kittens on them and everyone else being !!! because what do now??? while Gavin and Lindsay are like, no! They need their sleep, hush up or go away because you have no idea about these idiots and their sleeping habits! >:((((((((((

The slow realization the rest of the crew have that allowing the four of them to Shenanigate was a Terrible Idea as they rain chaos on Los Santos (and occasionally the crew itself).

Also?

Just shenanigans in general with Ryan being a creepy bastard and Jeremy being Jeremy and everyone worrying Gavin and Lindsay are going to be horribly murderized like the idiots they are because they just keep teasing and making fun of Ryan and Jeremy. Like. Mercilessly so the way they do the rest of the crew?

At least until something happens with someone from their old agencies out for Revenge and Gavin and Lindsay get grabbed and the crew going crazy trying to find them?

And then there’s the Battle Buddies all terrifyingly professional about ripping these bastards apart for touching their family – and their Tragic Backstories are revealed in which the crew had no idea about the (former) sekrit agents in their midst this whole time.

Also, also, the bastards who grabbed Gavin and Lindsay are suffering before the rescue party gets to their little hideout because Team Losers is a force to reckoned with on their own, you know?

Supposedly where the baddies want them, but the baddies miscalculated because they’re locked in there with Team Losers and oh God, make it stop, make it stop.

Absolutely no one on the crew’s side of things being surprised by this turn of events and it’s kind of a mercy killing for the baddies once they realize what’s going on.

Gavin and Lindsay just :DDDDDDDDDD “What took you guys so long?” even though they’re a bit bloodied up and kind of hurty feeling and everyone is just fucking Christ, you idiots.

And then shenanigans???

[angelofthenightposts]

Back To You.

 It’s Bucky's birthday, and an old friend he never expects, doesn’t leave him alone.

 “Why do you blame yourself for all the bad things you don’t have control over?”

   Baby blue eyes are focused on the beige wall, shiny metal fingers constantly tapping out on his knee; Bucky thinks of an answer to the question his therapist asked.  At first, he gives one of his famous sarcastic replies as he always does, but when he notices the determined gaze of the woman sitting in the opposite, he clears his throat and looks away. Bucky can’t and won’t leave the room without a sincere answer. It’s two minutes to the end of the session; he has to continue this game between his therapist and himself for only two more minutes. He can’t help but try to find the answer; he could always say that he would never deserve happiness after spending his whole life as a bad guy. Or he could tell her that something terrible would happen whenever he believes everything is fine, but all of these answers would only lead to more pessimistic and longer sessions.

He thinks, no, he is sure that the clock would never chime as the hour and minute hand move slower just to spite him. After a deep sigh, he murmurs, "I don’t know.”

“I think you can do better, James.” He opens his mouth to tell her it’s Bucky; he prefers to be called Bucky but notices that she’s writing something quickly in her notebook. Bucky frowns as he leans forward to see what it’s written. But the woman quickly closes the lid and smiles at him, no different from a smile given to a child because they eat vegetables. Bucky rolls his eyes, leaning back on the couch; he can’t shake this feeling of uneasiness. He’s used to spending hours with therapists in a room that is usually beige or white, but somehow he doesn’t succeed in intimidating this one. Even if, on the first day, Bucky had entered her office by vowing he would never speak about his past, she didn’t give up either until she made him talk willingly.

“You want to know why I hold myself responsible. All right, here’s the answer.  It is very difficult to look around with happy and hopeful eyes while I can guess what other people think of me. I’m nothing more than a bloody murderer, a cruel, insensitive monster.

“Who are we talking about here? Is it your teammates or other agents on the base? ”Great, now Bucky is starting to feel like a snitch; he just shakes his head in response. No, the rest of the Avengers are doing their best to make him feel better. He is his biggest enemy, in the middle of one of these previous sessions, it dawned on him. Bucky simply can’t forgive himself.  How could anyone else trust him while he can’t trust his own mind?

“James, what you need right now is stability, which means things should go unchanged, and that’s a big factor in gaining your will and self-esteem. If something changes in your life, something really big that I’m talking about here; I know that you put your issues aside to solve the new one.”

“You don’t seem to know our lives, Doc. All we do is try to find out how to deal with things that surprise us a little bit more every day, monsters, aliens… “

As Bucky keeps talking about the things he’d never thought they are real, she adds one thing to his list and it catches him off guard."Or Agent Y/N’s sudden transfer.”

There is a deep frown set on his face, lips slightly gape. If Bucky knew they’re going to talk about you, he would never have stepped in. But she is that sneaky and smart. “Yes,” he whispers.

    You are one of the few people Bucky really cared about, and if he had to rank the people in his life, it is obvious that you would be on top of the list. He didn’t give a damn about you when you first met, which wasn’t unusual, because Steve was the only person he cared about at the time. But as time passed, he realized that you meant much more to him than he’d prefer to admit. Behind your agile and fit body, there’s a soft and loving heart that had knocked down all of his ten feet tall steel walls and made him like you. Everything was so beautiful; so he still doesn’t understand why you wanted to go away, leave him all alone again. He can still remember how excited you got on every mission and told him that other field missions were miserable before you joined them. The danger never intimidates you; he saw with his own eyes that you are one of the bravest women he has met. You were good at communicating with everyone in the team and even on top of that, earning the respect of everyone around you streaks out all the remaining reasons on his list of why Y/N wanted to leave. Bucky has no logical explanation for this sudden decision.  

“Are you still in touch with her? You told me she’s the one who convinced you to take your first step through this door. ”

“We used to but not anymore. In the beginning, we tried to stay in contact but you know how it goes, busy agendas, the time difference, and all that…”

“I understand; even though things aren’t the same, she still calls me every once in a while to check up on you.  You have a good friend, James. ” Bucky quickly raises his gaze from the carpet beneath his feet and stares at her to see if she is serious. He was so angry at you for several months. He tried to comfort himself by telling that your friendship was nothing more than a lie, so he had an excuse not to run to the phone and call you. But that would change everything; you never stopped caring about him. Why would you prefer someone you don’t know instead of simply calling Bucky and asking how he is, that he can’t understand.

“What exactly does she ask you?” With the silence in response, Bucky decides to ask it a bit differently, licking his lips as he wipes his sweaty palms on the fabric of his dark jeans. “What does she especially want to know about me?”

“Bucky, I’ve never talked to her about you. I can’t because of the doctor-patient confidentiality; I’d lose my job. And when I told her that, she didn’t care about the details of our sessions. She told me that she just wanted to know one thing.” She smiles at Bucky and realizes that how quickly his all-body language changed; his eyes glowing with excitement. She leaves the pen and the notebook on the coffee table in the middle, a sign that the session is over for today. She takes off her glasses and rubs both sides of her nasal bone, “She wanted to know if you still hate yourself and think you don’t deserve happiness.”

“And what did you answer?”

“Of course, the truth... I told her that love is something you still don’t want and think you don’t deserve and I’m doing everything I can to change your mind.”

  That afternoon, after the session, Bucky leaves her office, his mind so confused that he can’t decide what surprises him more. You called his therapist and asked about him, and you have done it so regularly for months. You could pick up your phone and call him but instead, you chose to learn about him from a stranger. He can’t understand what caused all of these; he always tried to be a good friend to you as much as his fucked up mind let him.

He hears Steve’s voice somewhere down the corridor as he walks to the exit, he has to stay alone and think all of it. He stays still in place when he turns around to ask why the team returned so early from the mission. Steve is in his daily clothes, a pair of dark jeans, and a white tee; he has a small scar on his cheek that has almost healed. But what surprises Bucky so much is the woman who walks with Sam a few steps behind Steve. Although you had a haircut and lost weight, Bucky can recognize you no matter what. He doesn’t avert his gaze away from your happy ones, almost in a captivated way as Steve pulls him closer to give a hug.

"I guess the cat is out of the bag; I was planning to surprise you. Guess who the head chef of the Special Forces in Berlin is?” Steve points at you as if it isn’t obvious and Bucky whispers your name, still not so sure that you are really here.

“Hello, Bucky.” you greet him.

//xxx//

“Instead of staring at her as if you’ve seen a monster, go talk to her.”Sam sits down next to Bucky who is at one end of the room with a glass of whiskey in his hand. He fails all of his attempts to encourage Bucky to join conversations all night. He doesn’t have to question why his friend is back to his old self all of sudden; the reason is chatting with a few people at the corner of the big room. Aware of a pair of blue eyes that watch you all night; you turn your head and salute Sam by raising your champagne glass.

“And what am I supposed to say?” Bucky asks, he doesn’t care that you caught him staring; he is afraid that if he looks away for a moment, you won’t be there. All he wants is a hug since you met a few hours ago, but you quickly crushed his dreams with a quick nod and staying away from him for the rest of the afternoon. It felt as if you didn’t want to see him, and it broke his heart. Bucky can sense the colorful, joyous energy circulating; you are like a rainbow that came out after a terrible storm; you know how to make everyone feel hopeful and happy no matter what.

"I don’t know, I heard hello is popular, ”Sam leaves his empty glass on the nearest surface and squeezes Bucky’s left shoulder to give him some support,“ I’m sure she missed you too, you two used to be very close. ”

“Yes, as you say, we used to.”  Bucky pats Sam on his shoulder before turning his back on you and heading up the stairs to the big terrace,” Tell the guests that I thank them for coming. Goodnight, Sam. ”

      Bucky approaches the balustrades as the cold air fills his lungs and he looks at the sky. If it wasn’t for the party, he could see the stars shining in the black night, one of the advantages of living so far out of the city. But tonight the bright red, white, and light blue lights stretch to the sky; as usual, Tony wants the whole world to know that there is a celebration going on here.

“I knew you’d get bored with all of this right away and seek out a quiet place.” You take your first step out of the door; you are careful of your steps hence the length of your dress.

"I’ve never been a fan of bright lights, loud music, or celebrations.”As the footsteps approach Bucky, he gets tense even more, warm wind bringing your sweet scent. He never turns his head to you when you stand next to him. The familiar scents of vanilla and orange numb all his senses, he slowly closes his eyes.

“Steve’s talking about how you used to force him to all Stark fun back in the days, so don’t even lie to me.” Bucky groans, a hint that he isn’t happy about what’s going on inside. You add as if you could read his mind, “Steve is your best friend, Bucky. Of course, he will talk about you and your memories, especially on a night like this. ”

“Don’t get me wrong, it’s good to see you again. But is that the only reason you’re here? ”

“Tonight is special for you; of course, I’ll be here with you, Bucky.” You pause as you push a lock of hair behind your ear. And your manicured fingers dive into your bag quickly, "I almost forgot to give you this. In my first month in Berlin, I saw this in a small boutique, and I thought if it has to belong to someone, it should be you. ”   

Bucky turns to look at you, the first time his gaze meets yours without hesitation or discomfort. He watches as your thin fingers moved inside the bag, finally pulling out a velvet box. You lick your lips in excitement and hand him the black box with a big smile. When he hesitates, you roll your eyes and open the box yourself. "How did you know it’s my birthday?” In the darkness of the night, his eyes focus on the gift for a few seconds and move back up to your face. The fact that you remember has more meaning than any gift in the world.

“From your criminal file,” You reply with a childish giggle, hoping that Bucky loosens up a bit, but instead, he squints at you, “You told me when we first met, remember? I was going to ship it to you but I thought it wouldn’t be a better moment when Sam suggested visiting you. I hope you like it.”

 You take the bracelet out of its box very carefully and smile when the moonlight reflects on it. It looks more beautiful and bright than ever, even though it has been waiting in a drawer for months. You, with a few steps, close the distance between you and Bucky. Your fingers move over his skin, and the gift finally finds its place around his wrist.

“When I saw the small symbols, I thought it was definitely designed for you. Look, this is a snowflake and that one is a wolf.” As he stays still there without saying anything you aren’t so sure of your choice; maybe he doesn’t like it. Maybe he finds it too flashy or bold for a man to wear. You have never seen him wear any accessories other than digital watches and physical training trackers; what were you thinking?

“Thank you, it’s beautiful.” He reassures you after giving it another look under the moonlight. “No one has ever given me something like this before.”

"You’re welcome, Bucky. You deserve the best. ” You let out your breath with his words of approving but the satisfied smile on your face quickly disappears with realization; nothing has changed when you’re gone, he still sees himself as worthless. Even though you want to tell him he’s special for you, and that he needs, no, he deserves love more than anyone else, you clear your throat with the sounds of laughter coming from inside,” Everyone’s waiting for you to blow the candles.“ 

You don’t wait for him; instead, you hold the end of your dress and take a step towards the entrance. His left-hand wraps around your forearm and stops you; it has been a problem for you since you were little when people touch you without permission. But this time, you don’t say a single word nor let yourself free from his hold, “Why did you leave?”

“Bucky, this isn’t a good time to talk about it, everyone is waiting for us.”

“I don’t care, please answer me. Why did you suddenly move to the other end of the world? Because I don’t understand, I’ve been thinking about it for months, but I can’t make anything of it. You were happy here, everything was fine. ”Bucky talks in despair until he runs out of breath, he runs his fingers through his hair and sighs heavily,” Did I do something wrong? I did it, didn’t I? Because it can’t be someone else, you’re clearly good with everyone except me. You’ve run away from me like I’m a sick person all night.”

“Bucky, please.” You know it’s in vain when you pull your arm back; he doesn’t need a metal arm to control you. You are no different than a gazelle trying to get away before a lion makes its last move. After seeing the pure determination and desperation in his eyes, you drop your shoulders in defeat. "I, I just needed to get away from you, Bucky. I had to stay away from you, but I wasn’t brave enough to do it, knowing and willingly walked into the fire, Bucky. For a man who doesn’t realize how much he is loved, I deprived myself a little more every day. ”

“Did you love me?”

“I know this is a big surprise for you, but everyone knew, everyone except you. They all were aware of how much effort I had to put in to have a few words with the team’s most distant man. But I know I can’t blame you, Bucky. I know you think you don’t deserve love, that you see yourself as a monster. I’ve tried to give you all the love I have, I really did. But I also know you won’t love anyone else unless you start loving yourself. ”

“I-,” Bucky tilts his head against the palm of her hand, he is afraid that it’s just a dream if he opens his eyes. He has so much to say, but none of it can change the truth, you’re right.

“It is okay, Bucky. You don’t have to say anything. I just want you to realize how much everyone loves you, how much they care about you. Look, we’re all here, for you, to be with you. Please come in with me and look at their faces carefully, and you will see how happy we all are to see you. Happy Birthday, James Buchanan Barnes."   

    About fifteen minutes later, Bucky finally manages to blow all the 110 candles on the giant cake, as he looks up he sees the people applauding, and Sam and Steve are standing next to him to blow up confetti. He looks at everyone in the room; they all have big smiles on their faces, similar to his own. And there you are in the crowd across; something glows around your wrist under the bright lights as you give him thumbs up. He has no idea how he didn’t notice it all night, but while running his fingers over the little figures, he is sure that your bracelet is a copy of the gift.

[takencue]

⌞ʾ⁎ ⊰ candice king, cis female, she/her ⊱ i think i just saw CATHY HIATT walk across trafalgar square, singing to COME UNDONE ( DURAN DURAN ). you know, the THIRTY - ONE year old BARTENDER/STRUGGLING ACTRESS? people claim that they are just like CATHY HIATT from THE LAST FIVE YEARS. it must be because they are MODEST and CAUSTIC as well… though i could be wrong. all i know for sure is that they live at the PETERSBURG apartment. { nia, 18, est, she/her }⌝

hellooooooo! nia right back at ya with another muse who i am really REALLLLLLLLLLLy freaking excited about. i can’t wait to rp as cathy, so please please please hmu here or on discord ( nia#8278 ) for plots!!!! yay!!! here’s cathy.

i’m using bcnoist’s candice king gif icons here!!!

say GOODBYE to wiping ashtrays at the BAR — say HELLO to CATHY HIATT: BIG TIME STAR!

read CATHY’s bio here!

CATHERINE HIATT grew up in a small east coast town in CONNECTICUT, with her parents and two older brothers and the dog.

she wouldn’t say her life was anything special. she had a lot of hope that one day she would get out of her hometown, however.

when her childhood best friend CAROL ANN got pregnant at seventeen with her boyfriend’s baby, she knew for sure she had to get out.

she moved to MANHATTAN, NY as soon as she graduated to a small cheap studio that she could barely afford with a bar tending job. 

but it’s in NEW YORK where she realized her dream to be an actress. she began to go strictly by CATHY, and whenever she wasn’t trying to make ends meet, she was trying to further her acting career.

she dated here and there. notably a guy who she gave up a better part of her early twenties for. she was certain they would be together forever, until he left her high and dry with a letter on a kitchen table breaking up with her. she never saw him again.

she didn’t get discouraged by this, however, it just made her want to succeed with acting more and she became more fervent about her work, going to many auditions as possible.

one of these attempts was a role for the female lead of a play written by english graduate student, JAMIE WELLERSTEIN. she didn’t get the part, but she did get a friendly text from the playwright, sweet - talking about how ‘ she so should’ve ‘. they texted back and forth for a month until he finally asked her out. the first date was enough, CATHY fell for him hard.

with JAMIE, everything was perfect. things moved quickly: they officially were a couple, JAMIE’s manuscript got picked up for an expensive book deal, they moved in together in a luxurious apartment, then a beautiful watch filled with future promises, then a shiny wedding band. things were looking up, even as CATHY struggled to find work.

she didn’t give up, even as JAMIE’s fame skyrocketed.

CATHY wasn’t getting any younger, and still working at the bar at twenty - seven wasn’t exactly what she had planned. the constant failure was tiring. but she kept at it, not wanting to admit defeat. of course, JAMIE supported her anyway he could.

everything was fine, she tried to convince that fact to herself. they married, they were trying for a baby, they were financially stable . . .

but still, she couldn’t shake the discouraging feelings she got whenever she attended parties with JAMIE, the way she was ignored, left alone, the way JAMIE interacted with his female acquaintances. she felt bitter, jealous, and most of all, not an equal to him.

CATHY began to distance herself from his work, and in turn, him.

she had FINALLY got her first recurring, stable acting gig with a small, low - budget touring theatre company . . . in OHIO. still not what she had hoped for herself, but it was better than nothing.

attempting long - distance over the summers wasn’t easy for them, either. it was another compromise, and at least CATHY didn’t have to attend those isolating parties anymore.

the physical distance heightened the couple’s growing emotional distance, and maybe ( CATHY still wonders to this day ) she was being PARANOID, but she began to suspect JAMIE was having an affair.

it ate at her. but when JAMIE visited the opening weekend of her show in OHIO, she thought that maybe, they could try to pull through and get better.

until he told her he couldn’t stay. he would return to NEW YORK that night, and little did CATHY know, that would be the last time she ever saw JAMIE in person.

when CATHY had returned from OHIO, too angry at him to call or text him beforehand, was just exhausted and wanted to try again with her husband.

but all that was left of him was a letter, a manila envelope with divorce papers for her to sign, a depleted bank account, and an apartment filled with shit she couldn’t afford.

she couldn’t leave the apartment for a week, too heartbroken to function properly. how could JAMIE have done this to her? 

and despite everything, CATHY was still in love with him.

she had no choice but to move back home. she began to sort through the remnants of JAMIE’s things, looking for answers. among those was fertility test results from way back when they wanted kids. JAMIE was infertile.

CATHY kept the ring, the watch, his lucky flannel, the photos, the copy of his book she bought in OHIO, her wedding dress and veil.

but after living with her parents for a year, she decided she needed a fresh start and was ready to move on. clearly, JAMIE had.

CATHY moved to london, ready for a new life, far away from CONNECTICUT, far from JAMIE ( wherever he was ).

back to bar tending, five years older, and still not ready to give up on her one true love: the stage. she’s still not over him, she knows deep down, but she’s made her next leap to at least TRY.

[cjostrander]

Papa Roach: Who Do You Trust?

Hi everyone! It’s been a few weeks since my last review and it will likely also be my last review for the year as well. Because of that i had gotten my hands on the latest albums by Papa Roach and The Smashing Pumpkins and was rather happy with both albums. I really do suggest checking out Shiny and Oh So Bright Vol. 1. It is a very nice surprise for the mostly reunited classic lineup and showcases a surprising sense of harmony between the bandmates. It was meant as a combo of eps at the time of recording but fits together rather nice and trims a lot of the excess fat in the last two albums. Because Papa Roach’s newest album isn’t out till mid January and leaked real early I want to get this one out so that they can get a little extra publicity. As is typical with them; it is a bit over a half hour long and should be a straightforward release in terms of bloatedness. It features more focus towards a late night type club sound without necessarily being pop. It features a fair amount of rock and from my first few listens works well due to its simplicity and relaxing mood that is perfect for days when you want to take it easy without going to sleep. It also has four singles out already so they seem to be getting some extra label push this time. Let’s see how it goes!

The Ending: We start this album off with a track that is labelled to better be a finale piece but when the lyrics rise it delivers a more rising from the ashes feeling. The instrumentals begin with an interestingly soothing synth start before they establish a rather firm sense of tension. The guitars arrive to give them some rather tasteful riffs before drum loops signal for Jacoby to enter with very compelling rap verses. Lyrically it moves quick but provides a fair amount of substance for the listener to follow along to. The guitars keep a relaxed flow that supports the vocals perfectly and keeps the song moving with a very calculated energy. I could see it being an easy track to dance to and play live and works rather well as the opening piece due to its firm tension build for the listener to latch onto. 9/10

Renegade Music (Single): This first of four following singles arrives with spaced out but aggressive guitars that bring a sense of fire to the atmosphere and the drums keep a steady beat for Jacoby’s vocals to echo along to. He is a good focal point due to how smoothly the instrumentals format themselves around him. The chorus is full of rage and fire that could bring back fond melodies of their infest days without trying to reach for it. The subtle rap essence in Jacoby’s delivery helps to stretch things out fairly well so that the listener can remain engaged throughout the song.As a live piece; it has the energy to be pulled off easy so as long as the audience isn’t overly harsh then it should be a success. Realistically though if you were enjoying their last three albums then this is only a natural companion piece verses their straight forward rock era albums. 8/10

Not the Only One (Single): This song starts with a nice island style guitar melody and the drums create a very nice groove to dance to that is perfect for a late night drive. Jacoby thrives on this instrumentals support and really makes for a cheery and relaxing song to drive to at nice. The guitars arrive to deliver a rather fresh guitar style to join with manipulated vocal samples. It creates a rather nice texture to change up the album and is one of personal favorites on the album that was a nice surprise when first hearing. It also did the crucial job of fully getting me into this album’s style.The jam instrumentals in the latter half are another highlight to focus on as well. 8.5/10

Who Do You Trust? (Single): This title track begins with a simple guitar rhythm before they pick up the volume a bit for Jacoby to warm his vocals up to. He does a decent job of keeping a nicely atmospheric texture during segments where he is alone. The chorus is a bit repetitive and does open itself to some criticism but could pretty easy at getting a live audience engaged if done right. This one definitely showcases some of the experimental elements that they played with on Crooked Teeth. Other than that i can’t knock this because it is another good piece to get up and move to due to the surprising strength/simplicity of the instrumentals. Also a good driving tune as well! 8.5/10

Elevate (Single): This final single begins with backing gang vocals to set up a sense of ambition before Jacoby arrives to deliver some firm rap verses that remind me of Ronnie Radke’s own style. Instrumentally it stays very simple and gives Jacoby a lot of space this time around before the chorus. The chorus is very basic but shifts focus to the guitars that constantly chime in and out with rather solid riffs that continue to stand out surprisingly despite their simplicity. I remember criticizing the guitars in the past for mainly being along for the ride but they definitely have shown growth over the years and this album is a prime example of how their cohesion has grown together. 8/10

Come Around: This track concludes the first half of the album and begins with very soft and melodic guitar riffs. It has a little more of a airy pop atmosphere but Jacoby’s softer melodic style helps to keep things focused firmly on the uplifting nature of his lyrics. It is definitely going to be a track that will give them a very firm access to a more pop centric audience. It might of been a wise choice to pick it as another single just so that they could try and stick it on a pop station and see if it clicks. For me it’s one of my less favorite tracks but only because i’m a rock/metal guy at heart. However; i have to give it credit for succeeding at its intended sound and trying to appeal to a wider base as a result. 7/10

Feel Like Home:  Drums start off with a nicely energetic rhythm and the guitars infuse a cheery melody that Jacoby arrives with an easygoing vocal tone that is reflective in nature. It’s lyrics are decent to follow along to and the substance in them will be simply straightforward but very full in meaning. The instrumentals keep things feeling rather basic but effective in presence. For people in a rough point of their life this album as with any Papa Roach album will lyrically be a good choice for a therapy session. Though this album definitely going to match that positive tone instrumentally as well so this will be especially suited for your more vulnerable days. 7.5/10

Problems: Interesting synths start off with a very soothing foundation and Jacoby arrives to deliver very soft spoken rap style verses. The lyrics are a very strong focal point in this song and the chorus is pulled off rather refreshingly. It is very basic but its lyrics can hit home emotionally with the listener on a state of being relatable with ease. The instrumentals do rather well with keeping the atmosphere relaxed and soothing but firmly supporting the vocals as well. This will succeed in keeping empty moments from popping out to the listener and may make this a favorite among listeners. I could see this as a finale piece or a concert closer as well due to its intimate nature with the listener. 8.5/10

Top of the World: This song has a more pump up nature lyrically but experiments very heavily with synths and backing harmonies. It works decently with Jacoby’s soft rap delivery and flirts with their pop side without attempting to alienate their rock fanbase. I’m not even going to bother comparing it their Infest days because the fact that they have brought rap vocals back is all you are going to get since they aren’t metal anymore. The guitars make a decent towards the end and should give some needed energy to keep the listener from getting much at risk of sleeping. 7.5/10

I Suffer Well: Now this song is a real quick minute and a half piece that seeks to rev the listener back up with some of the most aggressive material on the album; similar to the title track on their last album Crooked Teeth. It has a bit of a punk vibe that reminds me heavily of Linkin Park’s sound on their album The Hunting Party. It probably could of gone longer but does very well at jolting the listener back into a state of life. 8.5/10

Maniac: Guitars arrive with a nice show of force than is balance by very melodic loops before Jacoby arrives with a more wounded vocal tone. It evokes a sense of emotional despair that showcases ample substance in the vocals.The chorus is an easy moving piece that uses simple lyrics to get the point across without boring the listener too much. The instrumentals do a fair job of keeping things going but other than that its a hit or miss. 7.5/10

Better than Life: This finale track starts off with nicely electronic infused guitar riffs and Jacoby arrives with his poppy vocal style that places high focus on his lyrics. It keeps a very simple atmosphere going on for the listener to ease in to before the chorus arrives. Jacoby and the instrumentals showcase a firm use of power and high notes that will present a sense of ambition to the listener. Overall it’s a fairly decent way to end the album due to it showcasing the new elements on this album and leaving the listener with an energetic sense of farewell. 8/10

Overall album rating: 8.0/10

Well this album scored appropriately for what it was. I definitely recommend checking it out because it showcases continued growth for the band and further experiments with the band’s pop side. For the next album i’m hoping they infuse a little more aggression into it similar to crooked teeth but this album plays a crucial role in adding new sound elements into the band’s backlog. Hope you guys enjoy this review and take time to check the album out. I’ll catch you guys later so enjoy your day everyone!

*Reviewer’s Pick*

[shiggydabs]

Knights of the Eldritch Garden (ShigaDabi Fic)

I switched Day 3 and 4 because I had this one finished already but Day 3 didn’t... and then I forgot to post this yesterday. Whoops.

Word Count: 2428 Verse: Medieval Fantasy Summary: Prince Tomura is kidnapped, and someone needs to rescue him.

You can also read this fic on Ao3.

Chapter 1/5: The King’s Decree

The decree had arrived in-part, briefly, and declared by one of the King’s speakers.

A man dawning a purple robe spoke to a crowd full of curious faces. He stood upon a stage and read off a scroll in a voice that didn’t boom yet held their attention, an accent unlike their own. “On behalf of the Great King I implore the knights of this kingdom, young and old, to partake in a quest unlike any other. In recent passings the King’s son, Tomura Shigaraki, has been kidnapped. The warlock who holds him seek only ransom... but our Great King refuses to bow to the likes of charlatans. He asks of anyone willing to save his son to march against the castle in the North, rescue the prince, and bring him the warlock’s head. Those who succeed will be rewarded greatly and paid handsomely.” There was a murmur, though, of who was likely to survive. “All who are interested in this offer please approach and take a pamphlet.”

Armed men stood at the foot of the stage, both to guard but also to pass out said pamphlets. Dabi looked to Jin and their eyes met in knowing agreement. Dabi pushed his way into the crowd and returned a moment later with a pamphlet.

“This is suicide,” Jin said as he took the sheet and started to read it. The location was vague, the warlock just as vague, and overall the whole thing seemed sketchy. But the reward was hefty, and success guaranteed innumerable fame. Perhaps it was worth a shot.

“Some royal guard if the prince got kidnapped.”

“Some royal pain in the ass if he got himself kidnapped–maybe he would have died if he didn’t go–not that it matters, he’s still worthless.”

“He’s worth a pretty penny at least.” Dabi took the pamphlet and folded it, tucking it into his shirt. Adjusting his belt, he motioned for Jin to follow. The man did, tugging at the hood that hung around his face, moving it mindlessly. “Some old guy in shiny armor will probably go snatch him in a few weeks and that’ll be the end of that.” Neither of them bore a semblance of confidence about the job, neither of them seemed all too interested either. The announcement came and went, passing from their minds. They would find jobs elsewhere, it’s not like their shoddy armor or cheap swords would get them very far anyway.

Then a week passed. And another.

Bodies came through town, the people mourned, buried, and moved on. Yet the bodies kept coming, endlessly. Some buried nothing yet still had something to mourn. Some worried, and the worry whittled away at their hearts. Some only had bits of bones or chewed limbs or broken fragments that they, fruitlessly, identified as one of their own. The kingdom fell into a spell of despair. Dabi and Jin watched it pass them by. Every week the town crier cried – “Prince Tomura is held by a madman! Anyone brave enough to traverse the winter wasteland will be rewarded greatly!” And every week Dabi and Jin passed him by, an idea in the back of their minds that they hardly ever spoke on. Jin had said it himself, it’s suicide.

But the months passed and no one had succeeded.

“We would be rich–!” Jin exclaimed, “–and dead.” Dabi pushed open the tavern doors and the two of them stepped inside, welcomed by a wave of heat, warmth from the fire and discomfort from the room. Everything was grating, tense and hardly at ease. Wary expressions lined every face, dried tears stained cheeks. So many brave souls. So many lost. They sat at the bar counter and ordered a round of drinks. They all needed something. “Or maybe rich and not dead! Or maybe dead and not rich.” Jin frowned, his hood folding fast around his face. “We’ll probably die. But we won’t know unless we try!”

“Wishful thinking,” Dabi muttered. A pamphlet hung above the bartender’s head, the same one that had been handed out months before... he’d tossed that crumpled piece of paper into the fire ages ago. Yet it was still here, still relevant news. The prince was gone. There was talk of another child, another heir, the king seemed to have little choice. No one had rescued his son. It seemed like no one ever would. “At this rate we’ll have better luck with small game.”

“There’s nothing small about our game.”

“Well, smaller game.”

“Is there anything small about a prince?”

“There’s nothing small about a warlock.”

“Maybe he’s a short warlock.”

“A short warlock who’s killed a lot of tall men.”

“That’s quitter talk!”

“Yeah.” Dabi nodded, the rim of his mug against his lips. “Yeah.”

Another month passed, and no progress had been made. The amount of takers had decreased, there were less funerals to be held. Less people dead or lost, no more than usual at least. Brave faces came and went under the torrents of nature, the unpredictability of life, but no one fell to the same hand, save for the executioner’s. Jin and Dabi made their bread and butter elsewhere. One particular day they returned from a hunt, the head of some monstrosity dragging behind them. Jin had attempted to yank a bolt from its skull, every pull only tearing at the skin and fracturing bone, butchering the bolt and their prize all the same. He huffed and tugged but with little progress made.

“Fine, keep it then,” he spat.

“The more you mess with it the more she’s going to complain,” Dabi muttered as he pulled the head along by the hair. Blood trailed behind them, staining the dirt as they walked to the keep. It was a large grand building, the appeal of the entire town, owned by a remarkable woman, the face of nobility. It was guarded constantly by heavily armed men, armored with pikes in hand. No one dared to attack them. They kept the entire keep in-check, watching the servants, the messengers, the guests. Large walls surrounded the estate, a single gate the one way in, save climbing. The wall itself was ornate, draped in gold. Yet it  was nothing compared to the keep itself.

Guardsmen stood guard and eyed them, a simple nod as they passed. It would seem they recognized the scars. Dabi walked through the gate, across the greenery and the garden, beyond the fountain, ever trailing blood. Two guards pulled open the grand doors that lead into the keep, metal boots clicking against the tile. Dabi threw the head of the beast onto the floor, drawing the attention of every man in the room. A woman turned and frowned, a look so unaccustomed to an otherwise smiling face. “Lady Himiko, we brought you the head of your beast,” Dabi said with a mock bow.

“And one of my crossbow bolts because the damn thing won’t let go!” Jin made another attempt to pull the bolt free, splattering more blood across the floor.

Dabi walked passed him and his shenanigans and stood before the woman. It only took a glance before a smile returned to her face. “You never disappoint Dabi,” she hummed before she pulled a bag from her belt. Dabi eyed the thin dagger tucked underneath, and knew well enough that it was only one of many.

“Just doing my job.”

Toga opened the bag and pulled out a number of gold coins. She handed him four, little compared to the weight of the bag. “There will be more where that came from with the next bounty. And the next one. And the next.”

“Plenty of monsters to kill.”

“–or to be killed by!” Jin piped up.

“Indeed,” Toga said with a nod. “Although you two never seem to have much trouble. If you’re interested in more of a challenge then you know the king’s declaration...”

“No thanks,” Dabi said with a shake of the head. “We’re not looking to die.”

“You could die any day, Dabi.”

“Maybe. But going after the warlock is suicide.”

“You’ve fought worst monsters and haven’t died yet.”

“Monsters aren’t like people.”

“They’re worse–!” Jin exclaimed, as he yanked his crossbow bolt free. “And better.”

“They’re smart and they’re cruel.” Dabi tucked the gold coins into his pouch. That would be more than enough to get them something pretty. “And even if we wanted to go after some warlock, we don’t have the gear.” Just from the looks of them it was obvious that there wasn’t much of worth to their appearance. Their armor was clearly old and beaten, their weapons were uneven and dulled, and the scars they bore alone showed how much pain they had endured. It was a miracle they hadn’t been slaughtered. There was little to be admirable of, or to be confident in. Dabi was assured (as much as Jin was half the time) that they would go on this quest and die. He wasn’t looking to die yet. He still had things he needed to do, and people he needed to see.

But Toga seemed to hold a different perspective. She smiled and looked them over, a glint in her eye, something churning in her mind. With a wave of the hand she turned away, lacking dissuasion. “Come by later tonight. Wear something comfortable, none of that armor of yours. I want to talk, and treat you to a meal. You two must be starving.” Dabi opened his mouth but Jin responded first–

“We would love to!”

And apparently, they would love to.

“Perfect. See you then!”

Dabi and Jin stepped outside with a look of confusion between them. It wasn’t until the guards had forced them beyond the gates that they finally got a word out about the situation. “Do you think she’s finally considered my hand in marriage?” Jin said, trailing after Dabi. “Himiko is so pretty, so cute! I wonder!”

“Maybe.” Dabi shrugged. Maybe no. Maybe so, who knows. “Let’s go.”

The day passed them by. The sun rose and set. They broke their gold down to coppers and pondered how much would go to the necessities. Prices were ever changing, the seasons ever unpredictable. Food was sparse, even with less mouths to feed. Less hands to work, too. It made everything difficult. They minded the heavy months that neared, the unending threat of a long, white winter. Prices would go up. Food would go down. People would starve, suffer, and die. Then spring would come. Rinse, and repeat. Dabi and Jin minded the consequences. They held their own, and wondered if the keep would hold. Lady Himiko always seemed well-fed, warm, and protected. They wondered if it would last.

Night came. They changed out of their clothes, per request. Their armor racked, their swords sheathed, they wore the nicest thing they owned (which wasn’t very nice at all) and made the walk down to the keep. Guards still lined the outside, ever on patrol. Even during the coldest nights, they stood guard. Ever faithful. Ever loyal. The two neared and the gates immediately fell open, Dabi supposed his stitched skin was hard to miss. They made the same walk across the garden, passed the gentle fountain, before they entered again. The blood had been cleaned, no such sign of the beast or its head. Mounted somewhere or sold, they supposed.

They entered and a servant approached them. “Lady Himiko will see you.” They were lead, minding that they’d only ever seen the front of the keep before, passing by ornaments of gold and silver, bejeweled and glowing. Wealth, they wondered how Toga lived as she did, where this money came from, and where it went. Nobility by virtue, perhaps. They turned a corner and came across a door. The servant held it open, and inside revealed a large dining room. Toga was already seat at one end, a dozen seats between her and the other. Upon seeing them she smiled, and rose from her seat.

“You came!”

“Of course! We would never miss the opportunity to dine with a woman as stunning as yourself, my lady,” Jin said with a bow.

Dabi rolled his eyes. “We were just curious.”

“Take a seat then,” Toga said as she motioned for them to sit. They took the seats closest to her, the room feeling awfully empty. “Food will be out soon. Are you hungry?”

“Starving!” Jin said. Dabi nodded.

“I’m sure, after all the hunting you two do.”

“We try our best to do our service.”

“And a service well done.” The lady sat promptly, and it became apparent that there was something on her mind. “Eat, enjoy yourselves. We have much to discuss.”

It was a simple proposition over dinner. Dabi didn’t take it all too seriously until servants brought out arms and armor. Full suits of mail, padded and all. A sword too, freshly sharpened, of the finest smith and steel. A crossbow as well, sturdy, light enough to not require much strength to reload, stirrup included. Bolts as well, three dozen. It was a hefty load, sets worth more money than they could imagine.  Even in their career they couldn’t have afforded armor or weapons as nice as these. There was only one question – “What’s the catch?”

Toga turned to Dabi with a smile.

“As you’ve heard the prince has been kidnapped...”

“I have heard.”

“...and there is quite the hefty reward for his rescue.”

“I’ve heard that, too.”

“Which is why I’m proposing a bit of an... agreement, if you’d like. You take my gear, my supplies, anything that you would deem necessary for such an endeavour. Then, when you succeed, I get some of the reward.”

“You want a cut.”

“Yes.”

Dabi frowned and shook his head. “We already said we won’t do it.”

“It’s suicide!” Jin added.

“You said you wouldn’t do it because people are cruel and you don’t have the equipment to handle them. Well, now you do.” She motioned to the set on display. “All you need is the will, and the motivation. Coin is the motivation. The will is all your own.” There was a smile on her face, a knowing smile. Jin and Dabi looked amongst themselves, uncertainty in their gaze. Their minds were churning, consideration held firmly in their grip. All it took was a single word to change their lives forever. What was there to gain? Fame, fortune, admiration. What was there to lose? Their dignity, their lives. Another faceless body to bury.

Toga stirred her tea. “What say you, Dabi?”

[okimargarvez]

IF YOU GO AWAY

Original title: Se tu te ne vai.

Prompt: misunderstandings, funeral, telephone conversations.

Warnings: character death. Set in the end of season 12. Very sad.

Genre: angst, drama, comedy, family, romantic, friendship.

Characters: Penelope Garcia, Luke Alvez, Spencer Reid, (Emily Prentiss), Derek Morgan, BAU team.

Pairing: Garvez.

Note: trilogy of oneshots.

Legend: 💏😘👓🔦⚰.

Song mentioned: none.

If You Go Away- Masterlist

MY OTHER GARVEZ STORIES Note: I’m sorry.

IF YOU GO AWAY or three stories of a farewell, a return and a stay

  1- FAREWELL: Why did you leave?

 -What is this?

-It's my letter of resignation.

-Penelope.

-No. If Reid dies, I quit.

-We won't let that happen.

-Emily, I'm exhausted, and it is breaking me, and this whole year has been an emotional roller coaster. It's like every time something happens, there's a piece of myself that is being chipped away, and if one more thing goes down, I don't think there's going to be anything left.

 Luke has noticed right away, she's not here. But he had look the other way. This was no time to think of such a thing. They had to find the mother of Spencer. But he couldn't help but care about her. He had proved protective of each team member, but she was something more. Maybe because he could so easily to grasp the fragility behind all that apparatus of eccentric clothes and odd phrases. Or will it be that Penelope is the sweetest creature (when and with whom she wants) that exists on this planet. When Emily returns from them, her brown eyes is strange. She went to her? Has something happened? Why she not talks, dammit?

No, she continues to think about the case, and rightly so. But he has had enough.

-I'll take a quick drag.- at night, in an area with no green spots... First of all he heads toward Garcia's office. He knocks. No reply. He tries twisting the handle and... surprise. The door opens. The light is on, but she's not here. He shouldn't set foot, isn't his right, is invading the privacy of the blonde, but... it's a special case, he is justified. He notices with pleasure, indulging in a little smile, that on her desk, in the midst of all those puppets and strange objects, there is also the one that he has given her. He approaches, taking it in his hand, thinking, wondering if she would ever do this, if every now and then she happens to use it, whether she has already tested its usefulness in reducing stress. And while she touches it, if she thinks about him. Ouch, this isn't really a thought by worried coworker.

Then his eyes are attracted to a yellow folder. It doesn't seem like the ones they use to keep the documents of a case. Nothing is written on it, which can help him understand what it is. He must not open it. He can't. But he does it however.

His visual apparatus recognizes before the mind the type of file that is inside.

I, Penelope Garcia, being of sound mind, I ask to be able to resign right now. I don't think I'm more suitable for this job and as a result I'll be a burden and not a valid help for the team. I would suggest for my replacement Sophie Cardoza, she is young but...

-What are you doing in my office?- Luke jumps, feeling behind her. Her tone wanted to be stern, but it came out weak and broken. She doesn't hide the fact that she has just cried. He turns towards Penelope.

He doesn't apologize, he doesn't look for justifications. -Why do you want to leave?- he asks her instead, directly, going to the point, without many turns of phrase. She sighs, shrugs, tries to seem distant and austere as usual, but she doesn't succeed very well. And that look is almost the same as when she had returned from her visit to Reid in prison.

-Why do you think it's your business, Alvez?- she answers with another question. But the man expected it.

-Because I'm part of the Awesome 8- he quotes her, with no parody intent -and I'm sorry to see you like that.- she needs Derek. If he were there, she probably would never have dared to bring that document to Prentiss. However, she can't deny that this isn't the first time she has decided to leave the Bureau. Derek would hold her in his arms and tell her it's all right. Or that if it's not right now, it will be better in the future. He would get Reid out of jail. He would have taken Scratch. Luke instead...

Before she can realize it, she finds the lips of the Newbie pressed on hers. She remains wide-eyed for the duration of the kiss, feeling overwhelmed by a train of emotions, unable to distinguish them with precision. -And this was for...- she pronounces this phrase like a question, her mouth still wet with his taste, as she catches her breath. It's his turn to shrug, indifferent.

-I don't know, I just thought it could work as when people have hiccups. If I could surprise you enough, maybe this would have passed.- he is serious, he did really think such a thing? Yet the man's gaze is so innocent, sweetly joking. Penelope allows herself a laugh.

-You really messed up, Alvez.- but then the mood returns grumpy. It was just a glow in the darkness. -But it didn't work.- she can't do without it, just look at his sad expression to become from the one would need to be consoled, to the one who instead consoles. -Hey, it doesn't depend on you. This time I think that even Morgan couldn't raise me up.-. she lies. Or maybe not?

-You didn't have answered my question. Why do you want to leave?- now Luke's tone is extremely calm and almost cold. She moves a few centimeters away.

-Because I can't take it anymore.- it's something, but it's not enough. He urges her to continue with his gaze. -You are in this team for how much, a little over six months?- it sounds like if he should feel responsible -How can we try to save the others, if we can't protect ourselves and the people we love?- she changes the register and the eyes they come back to be completely shiny. But the tone is firm. -Spencer was kidnapped, the girl who fell in love with him killed by a psychopath, one of the many that we chase every day... and now his mother is in danger.- gradually that she speaks, she notices he is gradually approaching at her body, but she tries not to mind too much.

JJ. Her husband was injured and kidnapped by completely crazy thieves, who were excited to kill as well as steal, and the woman even went to their home and threatened Henry, their child. Let's add the fact that she was disappeared for months, while she was in a war zone with the head of the section, Cruz and that this forced her to abort. - her voice is getting more serious, and less and less hard. -Rossi, as you have seen, spent countless birthdays receiving as a gift a name of a poor murdered girl... but it's not just that. One of her best friends was murdered "because of him", or better than his job. The head of section that was there before, Erin Strauss, with whom he had a relationship, was killed by another unsub, and if that wasn't enough, a girl who aspired to become like him was murdered for this reason.- now she no longer has the strength to look him in the eyes. -Emily, oh, she's more privileged, she's just been killed by a Russian guy and we just thought she was dead for a few months...- her laugh is bitter -... besides this, her childhood friends were killed by a priest convinced to practice exorcisms to save their souls and her ex-colleagues from that Russian I mentioned earlier... Ian Doyle.- she pronounces as if spitting -Tara's brother has been kidnapped by Mr. Scratch, but you know that, you were there too... in fact, when they found him he was saying your name, right?- but he doesn't reply nothing - Walker... that story of his friend seems to me that it doesn't need to be repeated.- she sighs and raises for a moment again the look on him. -And we pass to the absent. Hotch's wife was killed by one who managed to convince us for years of being one of the victims. He was drugged by Peter Lewis, who forced him to relive those experiences. And he risked dying from complications arising from the wounds he had reported years ago! And now he's in the witness protection program.- the words come out freely, as if they had life of its own and she was just a loudspeaker to make them sound louder.

-Derek. He was accused of murder, kidnapped and tortured for days, some criminal shot his pregnant wife... it seems to me sufficient- just three centimeters distance separated Luke from her. - And many others, which will be just names for you. Kate Callahan, her stepdaughter has been kidnapped by a group of people who sell young people to people... I don't think they deserve to be called like that... by some lousy people who sell kids to those who want to have fun, experimenting with a new method of murder.- her eyes, too swollen to hold back her tears, let her flow as she feels the warm breath of man brush her face like a caress -Alex Blake, maybe you've assist some of her lessons or read one of her books, she had to leave the unit to save her sanity and her marriage. In addition to this, her brother was almost killed by am unsub.- now it's certain that Luke has laid his hands on her shoulders, but she doesn't dare to open her eyes to check. -And then Ashley Seaver, daughter of a serial killer and future of the Bureau. Jordan Todd, skilled in dealing with terrorists but practically consumed in less than a month to talk with relatives of the victims and in conferences. Jason Gideon, one of the founders of the BAU... crushed like a fly, by one who had known more than thirty years before, when he had given up on this job! And finally Elle Greenaway, who was forced to leave because of me; after they shot her, she wasn't the same person anymore.- she seems to have talked for centuries. The sense of guilt is there, latent, but never abandons her.

-Why your fault?- finally Luke manages to open his mouth. Garcia's voice had hypnotized him.

-Because I was playing online with my PC, but with the wi-fi of Bureau and so the killer managed to get the personal data of the team, and chose to hit her, maybe because she was alone.- she exclaims aloud something she had just found out was always inside her. -He should have hurt me! I was an easy target too, but surely. she was prettier...- she's not crying, she just has to blow her nose every five minutes.

-Penelope, don't say that...- he increases the hold on her shoulders.

-Why not? It's the truth. In both cases. And it was my fault, I should have paid for it.- it's too easy to go back to those days that she thought she had by now overcome. Luke lifts her head and grabs her chin. If she were in herself, she would probably be shocked.

-No, it's not, in either of them...- but she doesn't listen, so he decides to change the subject and the approach. -And me?- he asks. Penelope frowns, confused.

-What?- he smiles.

-You did practically the list of everyone who was part of the BAU... you even mentioned Walker. The only ones you have not named, it's you and me.- another smile, a little more mischievous than the previous one. She sighs, annoyed.

-I can't include you, because I don't know anything about you.- And would you like to know? those dark eyes ask her.

-Well, you know I joined the team because of Daniel Cullen, the Crimson King...- she nods. -Here, when I caught him he was busy cutting open my partner, Phil, who miraculously survived. But the psychological scars are more difficult to heal and I, too, stayed awake for a few nights, terrified by the prospect of closing my eyes.- she had never thought about the fact that he could have such problems, but basically it's normal, each of them fights against their own demons. She has nothing to comment on. -And you?- we can consider what he is doing the principle of a hug.

-I... nothing. A guy, who I went out with shot me instead of kissing me. He hit me a few millimeters under my heart, a bit of rehab and here I'm, like new.- she shows off in a turn that doesn't come out very well. Even the joking tone is forced. Luke doesn't really want to laugh.

-Why you liquidate this like it was normal? - he puts both hands on her shoulders. -Garcia, don't treat me like I don't care at all.- behind them some device emits a sound.

-I've got some information on the case, would you let me go and see?- reluctant he lets her go and he follows her in every movement. -And anyway, if you really want to know, I'll not leave the BAU until the story of Reid is over.- the man realizes he can't do what he really wants and goes out, leaving her alone.

 While each of them is busy looking for useful information on the murderer of Nadie Ramos, they ignore each other. Or rather Luke can't help but keep an eye on her, but with a more discreet than usual. He positions himself on the blackboard and he mark all the places that come to his mind. When she came back inside and sat down in front of her computer, he immediately realized that she was still crying. But Penelope didn't want his help and he doesn't know what else to do. It was better to focus on the case. They spend all night there, he makes a lot of calls, they drink lots of coffee, and then... then Prentiss manages to convince the judge to free Spencer because his mother was kidnapped.

And so, they go to jail: Luke, JJ and Penelope. He heads off to talk to Calvin Shaw once more while one blonde runs from Reid, the other stays alone outside. Yet as they accompany him on exiting the prison, she remains his only fixed thought, which doesn't want to go away. Here she is, beautiful with straight hair and that almost normal dress. His eyes widen at her sight, he can't help it. Although for her he is only one of many who have been part of the BAU, it's not the same for Luke. He looks away because he is aware that her joyous expression isn't for him, but for Spencer. How he envies him while he looks at them hugging, something she had never allowed him to do... yet that time, the first who had found her crying in his bunker, he had gone so close... if she hadn't received that damned message: We have a case. The two take each other's hands and a part of him dies. Needless to make fun of himself.

 But the worst is yet to come. And bears a name and surname: Derek Morgan.

Right now, Luke doesn't want to rethink the synopsis of those days, but he still can't do without it. They had discovered that Lindsey had an accomplice, another girl who had met Spencer, a certain Cat. It was Penelope herself who told him who she was and what she had done. Then Reid and JJ went to jail where she was detained. And they had followed the whole interview, practically powerless. In the meantime, they had tried to figure out where Lindsey could keep Diana. So, Cat had mentioned Morgan and his family, because she knew that Derek's son carried Spencer's second name and therefore she wanted to make him suffer. Then she made him believe she was with child from him, but Garcia found out that the real father was a guard. And then they had managed to find Diana and bring her to safety. The moment of the maternal embrace had been beautiful. Lindsey was in their hands, Cat always in prison. All solved? No.

It was too good to be true. In fact, the ex-special agent Morgan had appeared out of nowhere because he had received a message from Penelope... in short, the blonde's phone had been hacked. Big mistake. How to try to steal from Arsène Lupine. Luke couldn't help but ask a simple question: if she could figure out where the hacking was from. And she took it very badly. She had turned to Derek and with a knowing look had pointed out what she had to endure. And the latter, holding back a laugh, he had addressed the word to him for the first time.

-Alvez, you'll always get a location with this one.- he had caressed her, squeezed a shoulder. With such naturalness, spontaneity, tranquility... all the opposite of what he could do. Only once he had the opportunity to touch her shoulders, when the judge had rejected the possibility of allowing a bail and throwed Reid in jail. That time she was so in crisis that she had probably not even noticed who was trying to console her. All that Luke had been able to do was a half-smile, behind which a thousand thoughts and emotions were hidden. Then Derek had called him "new friend".

He didn't know what to think of him. He couldn't understand what he felt for him. After all, he was married, with a son. He was no longer part of the unit. He was no longer a danger (or a rival), right?

The answer had arrived very quickly. When they had left the meeting room and they were both alone, he already didn't like the situation. But then he had to go back, because he had forgotten something. And so, he had seen them together. Much worse than the tasting he had had before. The way Penelope looked at him, as if he were really a god... with what love, affection, respect, devotion... all things she would never have shown to him. And even Derek, though his gestures were not just like a normal friend, the sweetness with which he had caressed her cheek or when he had told her he was proud of her and... that he loved her. He really loved her. Yet he had returned from his wife. He could never understand their relationship.

And when he thought that nothing else could happen now, the man had managed to surprise him, to open his mouth wide again. "But do you think you can try to be a little friendlier to Alvez?- why he did care? He did also notice that she treated him differently? -He seems like a pretty all right kid...- and Penelope rolled her eyes. But what she had replied... -It's complicated... I'll try. I make no promises.- Why she say it’s complicated? Apart from that, there were other reasons why it should be complicated?

 For all these reasons Luke wasn't very focused on driving, nor on the case. Yet the accident didn't happen because of him. All the SUVs had been pierced by a special system that had appeared on the road just as they passed. They had turned upside down, but without suffering consequences. But while they were catching their breath, he had seen the light of the headlights out of the corner of his eye. And he had had only time to start a prayer, the most basic, the one that his grandmother had taught him when he was very small...

Then the awakening in the hospital. They were all fine. Some sprain, scratch, but nothing serious. In fact, he had been the one who had made everyone worry more, because he didn't regain consciousness immediately. But they hadn't even had time to relax, to rejoice, to breathe a sigh of relief.

Derek had suddenly entered the room where he was hospitalized, where the entire BAU was gathered. And each of them understood, even before the former profiler opened his mouth. Even Luke had understood that something serious had happened, but he hadn't wanted to believe it. Until he had thought about it, it would not have come true. If only it had been so...

 How had it happened? Nobody could still say it. They only knew that someone had shot Penelope. While she was still at the BAU. Later they would have discovered that it was the work of the two villains, the evil couple, who had managed to organize everything from the prison. Somehow, they understood the connection between computer technician and Spencer and then, in any case, she was the simplest target. More vulnerable. Because they were out.

It had been all a trap. The real goal had been her, from the beginning.

It was their fault, of each of them. They had left her alone. They had assumed that inside their offices she would be safer, in fact, no one had thought it might be dangerous. Not even he.

She hadn't died right away. She had survived the surgery. It seemed like there was hope. In fact, the doctors had immediately said that she was still in danger, that they could only wait. But she was conscious. So, each of them went to her bedside, to do with her what would be the last chat. First JJ, Emily and Tara. Together, because they always had been. Then Rossi and Spencer. And Derek who had never moved. He had only come out after Stephen had done his part. Even he couldn't pretend not to cry. And then it had been his turn. Luke was finished last, he had risked not being able to even have this chance.

But when he had crossed the threshold of her room, Penelope was still alive. Weak. She was the shadow of Garcia to which he was accustomed. He had to show himself strong for her. But by now it was clear to everyone that their technician was slowly shutting down. She had stopped fighting. The game had been won by the lady in black. That game that began more than ten years ago, with a bullet hit. They would have discovered later that she had been the previous damage that made her survival impossible. But he didn't know it yet. He wanted to be strong, but he hadn't succeeded.

He had burst into inconsolable crying, falling to her knees before her bed, holding her hand. He had been out of breath, because

it was being so desperate. He didn't remember if he had said anything to her, if they were sensible phrases. But Penelope had tried to console him as far as she could. Her voice was so low that he finally had to placate tears in order to hear her. -I'm sorry I was so stupid.- it was the juice of the first tiring sentence she had uttered. -I'm sorry to have treated you like that.- the second one. Even at a time like this she couldn't stop thinking about someone else, everyone, except herself. The last one had been -I'm glad you managed to kiss me.- but Luke hadn't even had time to think he could repeat that gesture. The fingers tightened to his had become motionless. They were already cold. He had looked at her face. She had such a serene expression...

 Luke sighs one last time, before he gains strength and loads part of the weight of the coffin on his shoulder. On the other sides there are obviously Spencer, Derek and Rossi. Behind them, many people, many ex-FBI agents. Three of her ex-boyfriends, for whom he can't even feel jealous anymore. Emily and JJ shake hands throughout the ceremony. Then the coffin had lower in the grave. And covered with ground. Together with the flowers above the coffin. Not roses, not just at least. A person like Garcia, she would have liked the last day to be full of colors and variegated. So, sunflowers, orchids, carnations, daisies and many others. In fact, while he waited for Dave's car to pick him up, he lost himself reading the meanings of the various flowers, because he wanted to tell her what he felt, though she no longer cared, at least that way, at least one last time. But he would have to bring a lot of them: holly (defense, eternity) for what he should have done and wanted, but at least he had tried; aquilegia (which before he didn't even know existed) because it meant hidden love ; freesia (another who didn't know) because it signaled mystery and charm; carnation, jasmine because simply the red was mark of love; Hibiscus, on the other hand, was the most suitable of all because it doesn't live more than a day, so its fleeting beauty lasts only for a moment and at the end what was there between them wasn't very different; the lilacs for the beats of love; the forget-me-nots would have been a mockery of himself. And there would have been many others, too many And, in the end, he had opted for a strange flower, whose name wasn't romantic, orange; and Spencer had recognized it immediately and surely, he had been the only one to understand. Buttercup. And yet another had reached his companions and had been buried by the ground. Zinnia.

-Luke... - the young genius approaches him. Only the two of them were remained. He stayed in front of Penelope's tomb, the stone hasn't yet been laid, all this time. To think, to remember. To cry. But it doesn't embarrass him the fact that Spencer had sees his pain so obvious. They stare into each other's eyes for a moment and then he, the famous doctor to hate the handshakes, hugs him. When they separate, the Latin already knows what he is going to ask him. -Two flowers...- for once seems to be speechless, unable to compose one of his long sentences full of big words. -Buttercup: sad and melancholy love. Zinnia: nostalgia , lack.- he declares, how if reads the definitions of a dictionary. -You loved her?- Luke nods without having to think about it.

-You, who always know everything -he provokes him, sniffling -you can tell me why she had to die?- he doesn't blame him, but anger and despair follow each other very quickly in his soul. The young doctor doesn't have the answer he is looking for. But he is in possession of another that can still interest him.

-Do you know what she was doing when she was hit?- Why twist the knife? Why force him to return to that day? Make he feel again useless, helpless and stupid? But he doesn't say anything to stop him -I was with her. She told me that she had decided to leave the team... he showed me her resignation... then she tore the paper into pieces. And she came out to breathe, a breath of air, as if were a kind of ritual... then I heard the hiss of the bullet and I saw her fall to the ground. I called 911, Derek and then you, but you didn't answer, because the accident had already happened...- Luke isn't listening anymore.

Garcia had changed her mind. She wouldn't have abandoned them anymore.

Yet fate has chosen in her place. It decided she had to leave the Bureau. Conclusively.

Penelope, I miss you. Why did you leave me alone? Why you? Why I'm not dead? Not you, with your innocence, your trust in the world... not you.

While Reid holds him in another improbable embrace, the man becomes aware of a truth. He may love other women, but there will always be a thought, a hypothesis no longer verifiable, that will torment him. Because what isn't defined, has no boundaries, doesn't even have an end.

TAGS: @theshamelessmanatee @itsdawnashlie @talesoffairies @janiedreams88 @kiki-krakatoa @yessenia993 @teyamarra @c00lhandsluke  @gcchic @arses21434 @orangesickle @entireoranges @jarmin @kathy5654 @martinab26 @thisonekid @thenibblets @perfectly-penelope @ambrosiaswhispers @maziikeen92 @lovelukealvez @reidskitty13 @jenf42 @gracieeelizabeth27 @silviajajaja @smalliemichelle99 @charchampagne14 @ichooseno  @ megs2219 @rkt3357 @franklintrixie @thinitta @chewwy123 @skisun @maba84 @saisnarry @myhollyhanna23 @thenorthernlytes

Note: I’m still sorry. The other two will be happier. I swear.

[mischieviousmarauder]

Draco x Reader - Friendzoned. (3)

Hello, loves! xx Sorry that this one took so long, but I’m kinda in the middle of moving, and it was pretty hard to balance it out, but we are almost at the end of the fifth year! Hope you will like it, and let me know if you want to be tagged in the next parts xx

| PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 4 |

Lately, Draco was going trough a very frustrating phase in his life. He felt like he had been tossed aside by Y/N and Theo. Two people, who were the closest to him trough out the school years.

Draco really wanted to think of Pansy as one too, but he just couldn’t bring himself to do it, and that gave him a lot to think about. He noticed that lately, he became very cold towards his girlfriend, not being able to act any differently around her.

But Draco’s mind was elsewhere.

He couldn’t stop thinking about Potter and the things that he had been up to, thanks to Umbridge’s constant nagging for reports. He joined her Inquisitorial Squad in order to please his father, as he always did, and this time he intended to make him proud. That’s why he tried to give his best, which eventually led to developing a slight obsession with Harry Potter. He wanted to sack him, really badly and was searching for anything that he could use against him. But so far he had nothing, making him a nervous wreck.

And then, there were also them.

Draco couldn’t help, but feel jealous of the way Theo and Y/N have been spending so much time together on their own lately. Almost every day, they disappeared after dinner, making him wonder what it was that they were doing. Of course, he could just ask them, but his pride always managed to step in, and stop him from doing so.

After some time he began to suspect that they started seeing each other in secret, the thought alone making him feel anxious.

Draco tried to convince himself, that he just missed his best friend and his best mate, but he knew that there was more to it.

He didn’t want to admit it, but he dreaded the thought of Theo and Y/N becoming a couple.

Thanks to the O.W.L’s exams that they were going to have this year, Theo’s and Y/N’s school work has doubled, making it almost impossible to leave the library before it’s closure. And with the tutoring that they promised to one another, they sometimes had to sneak out after curfew to the room of requirement, in which they could practice for a little bit.

But in the middle of all of that, they needed to take some breaks as well, and that’s just what Y/N was doing as she sat on the ground, leaning back against the mirror walls. She reached for the latest copy of the Daily Prophet, that she had hidden in her bag, not yet being able to read it.

“Theo, have you seen this?” Y/N asked him after a few minutes while standing up and passing him the newspaper, the preoccupation in her voice easily detectable “They managed to escape”

He took it and started to read the article that Y/N pointed out. There had been a mass breakout from Azkaban, which probably involved most of the Death Eaters that had been locked up, since Voldemort’s death.

“Well, that’s not a surprise” he huffed and threw the piece of paper on the floor “I suspected something like this to happen, but I thought we had more time”

“Don’t you think we should tell the rest about the Dumbledore’s Army? They could use some training, you know”

Y/N felt guilty. A few months ago she and Theo have been invited to become a part of the group that Harry Potter founded in order to teach and generally prepare some students for what was coming. They thought it was a brilliant idea, and joined them, putting aside their pride. But as much as they wanted to, they knew that they couldn’t tell the rest about it. It was already a miracle, that they had been informed, that such a group existed. Harry risked a lot by telling them, but to be honest, the two have always been on good terms with him, unlike the rest of their housemates.

And with Potter being the leader, they knew that they would tell him off to Umbridge right away.

Lately, the Inquisitorial Squad had been terrorizing Hogwarts, with the power that came with their shiny new silver badges.

Y/N tried to talk to Draco about the way he was behaving, but he didn’t listen. All he wanted to discuss was Potter’s plans and Umbridge’s new orders, that he had to obey to. That’s why after a while she had enough and preferred not to talk at all. She found comfort in the library, where she could forget about it while indulging in her homework and books, that surrounded her.

“That’s out of the question” Theo stated firmly, trying not to raise his voice “You know they would tell the Pink Frog all about it”

“How about Blaise?” she countered, noticing the blush appearing on Theo’s face.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, since you guys apparently have a thing for each other I thought you would like him to join”

“I’m not stupid Y/N” he took off his glasses and rubbed his face “I like him. I really do, but I know he wouldn’t be able to keep it from Umbridge. You are well aware of the fact, that Blaise, Daphne, Draco, and Pansy are doing everything in order to please her”

“I know” she huffed irritated and covered her face with her hands “What’s gotten into them, Theo?”

“The want to succeed can sometimes take a big toll on someone, remember that darling”

“Great job Y/N! Keep it up” Harry shouted and patted her on the shoulder, as a silver light left her wand, slowly forming into a little fox.

“Finally!” she gasped, grinning at the sight of the animal, playfully swirling around her. Patronus was the spell that she really worked hard on, knowing it could be very useful in the future.

She had to admit that Harry was, in fact, a great teacher. He had this kind of radiating energy within him, the second he stepped his foot in the room of requirement, already telling the others what he had planned for the lesson. Harry always made sure to help out everyone, checking their progress as the time went on.

Filled with pride, thanks to her recent victory, Y/N approached Theo, who was still struggling with the spell. As she did so, she noticed that the chandelier over their heads began to shake slightly.

“Theo” Y/N tugged on his sleeve, a frown appearing on her face “Something is wrong“ He turned around to face her, his mind still fixated on the failed attempts that he did in order to conjure a Patronus.

“What is it?”

A muted pounding sound emerged from the outside, taking everyone’s attention. The room fell silent, as the noise became constantly louder.

As some students tried to come closer in order to identify the source of the echoing pounding, it stopped for a minute. In the brief silence, they heard Umbridge’s voice coming trough, casting a variety of spells in order to open the entrance.

Out of pure instinct, Y/N grabbed Theo’s hand, as the bricks flew across the room. When the white mist settled down, they could see Umbridge with Filch, Draco and the rest of the Inquisitorial Squad by her side.

For a moment Y/N and Draco looked at each other, disbelief and utter shock appearing on their features, as a firm “Catch them” resounded in the air.

“Y/N!” Draco shouted as she ran into the direction of their common room, not bothered enough to react, to his attempts to stop her.

“Y/N, stop! We need to talk”

“I do not have anything to tell you, Draco” she said quietly, still not facing him as he managed to grab her arm.

“You don’t have anything to tell me?! How could you and your secret, sneaky boyfriend go around with Potter behind my back!”

“What?!” she turned around the fury gathering within her “How do you dare! Are you that oblivious Malfoy?!”

“Oblivious to what?!”

“Everything!” she shouted, releasing all of the emotions, that she had been accumulating throughout the school year “You go around this school like a little puppet, terrorizing everyone at any occasion you possibly get. You do everything that she tells you to do, no matter how bad it is, and you subdued yourself to the idiotic system that the Ministry had put upon us. At first, I thought that you were just pretending that you were on their side, but now I can’t believe how horribly wrong I was all this time”

“I am no-”

“Yes, you are Draco!” Y/N cut him off, not being able to stand his mendacity any longer “Don’t you know how badly you treated everyone?! Using the power that Frog has given you must have felt incredible. Am I right?”

“I...” he choked out not really knowing what to say at her sudden outburst. Usually, such words didn’t affect him, but that’s because the accusations that he heard towards him were mostly wrong. But everything that Y/N said was the truth, that he had been pushing away. Not because he felt bad for the damages that he took part in, but because he didn’t want to realize, that he had become the person that was capable of doing such things in the first place.

“Don’t bother” she waved him off and started walking into the direction of her dorm, suddenly feeling the urge to add something in “And by the way, Theo is not my secret, sneaky boyfriend, as you charmingly put it” Y/N walked out of the room, leaving Draco behind. He didn’t know what to do, or what to say, so he opted for the best option he thought that he had. Escape.

tagging: @princesse-de-ravenclaw @namelesslosers @abitofmxdness @ashadowhuntersworld @d0wnbutnot0ut @all-theesee-fandoms @missidontknowwhatimdoing @hufflepeople @imthedrappleapple @awkwardly-antisocial-giraffe @fandomscombine @dontstopxx @lumoonn

[consultthemuses]

Sentence Meme: 125 Spike Quotes

Some will be more easily applicable than others.  SOME WILL CONTAIN TRIGGERS (violence / blood/ supernatural references/ gore)!! Feel free to change pronouns/genders at will.

❛ Haven't you figured it all out yet, with your enormous squishy frontal lobes? ❜

❛ I must be in hell. ❜

❛ No. I'm a rebel. You're an idiot. ❜

❛ There's evil. Down here. Right here. I'm a bad man. ❜

❛ Why don't you rip her lungs out? That might make an impression. ❜

❛ I make a lot of mistakes, a lot of wrong bloody calls. ❜

❛ Are you insane? We're supposed to kill the bitch, not leave gag gifts in her friends' beds. ❜

❛ Sodding, blimey, shagging, knickers, bollocks, oh God! I'm English! ❜

❛ I'm saying that [name] had a little trip to the vet, and now he doesn't chase the other puppies any more ❜

❛ I have come to redefine the words pain and suffering since I fell in love with you. ❜

❛ Saw a man about a girl. ❜

❛ No, this is different. Our love was eternal. Literally. ❜ 

❛ You got any of those little marshmallows? ❜

❛ Yeah, well, sometimes I like to crumble up the weetabix in the blood. Gives it a little texture ❜

❛ You tried to record the ultimate evil. Why? In a complex effort to royally piss it off? ❜

❛ Hey, look at me. I'm not asking you for anything. When I say, "I love you," it's not because I want you or because I can't have you. It has nothing to do with me. I love what you are. ❜

❛ What? You think you're in control here? ❜

❛ You mean my skin and muscle burning away from the bone? Organs exploding in my chest? Eyeballs melting in their sockets? No. No memory at all thanks for asking. ❜

❛ That's not your world. You belong in the shadows... with me. ❜

❛ He's a wanker, but he's the only one we've got with half a brain. ❜

❛ Trouble? She's the gnat in my ear. The gristle in my teeth. She's the bloody thorn in my bloody side! ❜

❛ The truth is, I like this world. ❜

❛ By the way... love the coat. ❜

❛ You're a hell of a woman. You're the one, [name]. ❜

❛ Why? Because you're '[name], Vamp Detective' now? I'm so scared. What's next? Vampire Cowboy? Vampire Fireman? Oh, Vampire Ballerina! ❜

❛ [name]’s dull as a table lamp. And we have very different coloring ❜

❛ Delivering melted cheese on bread, doing your part to keep America constipated. ❜

❛ I figure, there is a new chosen one getting all chosen even as we speak. ❜

❛ No, helping those in need's my job. ❜

❛ Good-bye, [name]. See you in hell. ❜

❛ I'm nothing like [name]! ❜

❛ No need to be humble. ❜

❛ [name] used to see things, you know. She'd always be staring up at the sky watching cherubs burn or the heavens bleed, or some nonsense. ❜

❛ I went to seek a legend out. ❜

❛ I had a wee spat with a werewolf myself once. ❜

❛ Like you could drive me at a gallop till my knees buckled. Squeeze me till I popped like warm champagne. That's not the kind of thing a man forgets. ❜

❛ Bugger! ❜

❛ It's called Addiction, Angel. We all have them. ❜

❛ And I'm just supposed to help you out of the evilness of my heart? ❜

❛ [name] said I'd gone soft - wasn't demon enough for the likes of her. ❜

❛ Time was you would've taken her out in a heartbeat. Now look at you. I bet this, uh, tortured thing is an act, right? You're not... housebroken? ❜

❛ But then someone comes along with a vision. With a real... passion for destruction. [name] could pull it off. ❜

❛ Absolutely. Wanna buy him a pint. Bloody made my day. ❜

❛ Ah. Say no more. Evil's still afoot. ❜

❛ You've heard of me? ❜

❛ Oh, you're a piece of work. I like you ❜

❛ Now I'm just a big, fluffy puppy with bad teeth. ❜

❛ Travelled to the other side of the world, made a deal with a demon. ❜

❛ I'm not having these two shag while I'm tied to a chair three feet away ❜

❛ Hello, gorgeous. ❜

❛ Then came the Internet. ❜

❛ [name] double-crossed us? That's a good move. ❜

❛ Oh, someone put a stake in me. ❜

❛ Now, I know you haven't been in the game for a while, mate, but we still do kill people. Sort of our raison d'etre, you know. ❜

❛ It's definitely the crypt, right? I'm not keen on tunnelling into someone's septic tank. ❜

❛ We got a history, him and me. ❜

❛ Not much choice really, is there? ❜

❛ You matter to someone. ❜

❛ Everywhere I turn, she's there. That nasty little face, that bouncing, shampoo- commercial hair. That whole holier-than-thou attitude. ❜

❛ Oh, sod the spell! ❜

❛ I—I'm shocked— shocked that you'd say that. ❜

❛ They're looking at the wee little puppet man! ❜

❛ I'm a handsome devil who brightens the place up? ❜

❛ If every vampire who said he was at the crucifixion was actually there, it would have been like Woodstock. ❜

❛ Hey! What am I, a bleeding broken record? ❜

❛ What's this? Sitting around watching the telly while there's evil still afoot? It's not very industrious of you. ❜

❛ Death is on your heels, baby. And sooner or later, it's gonna catch you. ❜

❛ I hate being obvious. All fangy and 'grr!' Takes the mystery out.. ❜

❛ Well, if at first you don't succeed, I'll kill him. ❜

❛ Well, I gotta have something. I still have [name] taste in my mouth ❜

❛ What, are you people blind? She's hangin' on by a thread. Any ninny can see that. ❜

❛ Always was a bit of a drama queen. ❜

❛ She's evil, you gormless tit! ❜

❛ Look at you. Fighting for truth, justice, and soccer moms. ❜

❛ You're right. I do deserve to go to Hell. But not today. ❜

❛ Getting killed made me feel alive for the very first time. ❜

❛ When it comes to the fighting, she does have a slight tendency to win. ❜

❛ Tell you what I'll do, then. I'll head out, find this girl, tell her exactly where all of you are, and then watch... as she kills you. ❜

❛ Dracula? Poncy bugger owes me 11 pounds, for one thing. ❜

❛ We killed a homeless man on this bench. Me and [name]. Those were good times. You know, he begged for mercy, and that only made her bite harder. ❜

❛ I happen to be seeking monetary gratification, yeah. ❜

❛ Got to hand it to you, Goldilocks. You do have bleeding tragic taste in men. ❜

❛ And in terms of a plan? ❜

❛ Kids your age are going off to university. You've made it as far as the basement. ❜

❛ So be a good lad and push off. ❜

❛ As usual, I'm here to help you, and I... are you naked under there? ❜

❛ Official sponsor of my killing you. ❜

❛ Well, isn't this usually the part where you... kick me in the head and run out, virtue fluttering? ❜

❛ Oh to be honest, I don't even care. ❜

❛ I will make your neck my chalice... and drink deep. ❜

❛ Dark hair, this tall, name of [name]. Criminally insane. I like this girl already ❜

❛ I came back to [place] for it, a place which has witnessed some truly spectacular kickings of my ass. ❜

❛ I have heard a few complaints over the years, but then I just killed whoever spoke up, and that was pretty much that ❜

❛ My soul. It's really there. Kind of stings. ❜

❛ If he fails, you could eat his eyes out of his sockets for all I care. ❜

❛ We like to talk big... vampires do. "I'm going to destroy the world." That's just tough-guy talk. Strutting around with your friends over a pint of blood. ❜

❛ I was just trying to keep up. ❜

❛ Pretty much what I expected. ❜

❛ With all the rubbish people keep sticking in my head, it's a wonder that there's room for my brain. ❜

❛ My heart. It's... it's beating again! Listen! ❜

❛ How can I thank you, you mysterious, black-clad, hunk of a night thing? ❜

❛ I did it for you. And you keep punishing me. ❜

❛ No. See, you're not getting it, [name]. You're gonna be interestingly dead. ❜

❛ Sometimes our missions end up with you trying to kill me. I'm not fond of those. ❜

❛ I'm not gonna let you just whack me back and forth like a rubber ball. I got my pride, you know. ❜

❛ You hit me with an ax one time. Remember? ❜

❛ What, are you in love with him? ❜

❛ Call it the Yoko factor. Don't tell me you've never heard of the Beatles? ❜

❛ Let's kill something. Oh, come on! ❜

❛ Creature of the night here, yeah? Some people forget that. ❜

❛ She wouldn't even kill me. She just left. ❜

❛ Come on! Vampires! Grrr! Nasty. Let's annihilate them. For justice, and for the safety of puppies, and Christmas, right? Let's fight that evil. ❜

❛ She didn't even care enough to cut off my head, or set me on fire. I mean, is that too much to ask? ❜

❛ Can I have someone to eat? ❜

❛ Blood is life, lackbrain. ❜

❛ You can't buy me off with shiny beads and sweet-talk. ❜

❛ Think I still dream of a crypt for two with a white picket fence? My eyes are clear. ❜

❛ No need, little lady, your tears of gratitude are enough for me. ❜

❛ And more, much more than this, I did it my way! ❜

❛ Well, you and your great poof here want to tag along, that's fine. ❜

❛ That's right! I'm back, and I'm a bloody animal! Yeah! ❜

❛ Come on, I can feel it, Slayer. You know you want to dance. ❜

❛ So [name] took some time off right in the middle of the apocalypse and it was her decision? ❜

❛ Yeah. We're all one big happy Manson family. ❜

❛ She killed you. I helped her. That one counts as mine. ❜

[thebluesideofthemoon]

The Wall #47: LA LA LAND

I feel like I was due for this. This was originally going to be the last movie I wanted to watch last year, but due to some complications (mainly that none of my theaters in town were playing the movie for... whatever reason) that didn't happen. But hey, now that La La Land is getting serious Oscar buzz, and this IS my most anticipated movie of the year (if you've seen Whiplash, you'd know why), I'm happy that I got a chance to cover it. So, what do I think about the movie set in the land of fools who dream? Take a few steps forward and one back, wing your arms and spin on your heels- let's dance to the music of the generation and get on with the show!

You know what? This movie is good. Maybe even great, but it's definitely good. What this movie is not is perfect, and I'll explain why that is because I have some issues with this movie, some pretty big ones at that.

This is a movie about Mia (played by Emma Stone), and Sebastian (played by Ryan Gosling), two struggling artists in Los Angeles who are both trying to hit it big in their respective careers- Mia wants to be a big name actress, while Sebastian wants to open up his own restaurant and save the dying art that is jazz. After blowing it in his last job, Sebastian and Mia run into each other and continue to see each other as they keep trying out for different gigs, only to eventually end up together and trying to fulfill their dreams as a couple. However, bad luck and poor planning starts straining their relationship hard. Will they make it through on following their dreams or will the curtains forever close on their final act?

I normally like to start off with the bad stuff first, but I feel this is case where I should start off on a good note considering all of the praise that this movie is receiving, but first a bit of plot.

For one, I find this to be one of the most beautiful-looking movies to have come out this year- this movie looks amazing. This movie, much like one of my favorite movies from last year, The Revenant, is absolutely gorgeous- the combination of beautiful cinematography and editing allows for some truly stunning colorful, breathtaking shots of Los Angeles (when in the reality, the city is kind of a dump, but hey this is a movie). Speaking of which, this movie is full of really vibrant, eye-catching colors which really help convey the tone and mood of every scene, especially when it comes to all of the sequences of the characters dancing. Not a single shot is wasted, and it also adds to the fun of the musical.

Speaking of which, the choreography in this movie is also spectacular. Seeing Gosling and Stone’s scenes where they dance together is nothing short of absolutely joyful. It does manage to harken to spirit of fun in musicals where, sure, it might seem ridiculous for people to break into song and dance for no reason, but it works thanks to the choreography being fun to watch as it plays out… even if the songs are ho-hum at best (don’t worry, I’ll complain about those in a minute).

Acting-wise it’s pretty solid, though if anyone in the cast deserves the most recognition of all, it’s Emma Stone. A couple of things- one, I’m now convinced that she’s a Disney character that’s come to life, and I’m not just saying that because of her eyes. She’s really animated as an actress, and this movie is a great vehicle that shows her impressive range, from joy to sadness, to betrayal and in being in love. This is a movie where she’s playing an actress and manages to really capture the emotions that allow the audience to root and care about her. There’s a really heartbreaking scene in which Stone has lost all hope and you can see it on her face that her dreams have crumbled. She’s also a really good singer, she has an absolutely wonderful voice, and when she takes the lead of the songs my ears have nothing but my fullest attention to her. To me, she’s the real star of the show, not that Ryan Gosling is bad but he’s just… okay, that’s about it. As far as performances from him are concerned, I preferred his role in The Nice Guys, and not just because he was funny (he gets some funny scenes in this movie too), but he also plays a character that isn’t just… kind of a two-dimensional whiny asshole.

I think this is about as good a time as any to transition into the things that I wasn’t as hot about in the movie. Strap in, we have a lot of ground to cover.

Let’s start with the things that I thought were just okay- I already covered Gosling, so let’s talk about the songs. I wasn’t that impressed by them. Sure, the songs aren’t bad by any means, and they sound really nice. They can be pretty fun to listen to as well, but they just didn’t stand out to me. Comparing it to the other musical that I’ve seen this year (not Sing, because most of its songs were licensed), Moana, the songs are more fun to listen to, there’s more variety in how they sound as well as the genres that they come from make then all more unique to each other. You’re Welcome, doesn’t sound the same as Shiny, which doesn’t sound the same as How Far I’ll Go. A Lovely Night? City of Stars? These sound the same to me. Funny that the song that is meant to be played off as the “bad sellout pop song” (which is performed by JOHN LEGEND, HELLO?!) is one of the more distinct and fun songs from the movie. Though I also really loved Audition (The Fools Who Dream), which is truly the best way to cap off her plot. They’re not all very catchy, and songs don’t need to be catchy to be good, but they’re mostly unmemorable.

This whole thing about Sebastian trying to save jazz? That really goes nowhere. I don’t understand why that was even part of the movie because it’s not really that developed in the least, until it’s used a kind of cheap way to force Gosling to have a conflict with John Legend prior to joining his band in order to make some money to support both himself and Emma Stone. This is not they reason why he ends up leaving the band. I honestly have no idea WHY he ends up leaving the band, but it happens and it all goes into the true conflict of the movie… which doesn’t even start until the LAST thirty minutes. Yeeeaaah, it’s time for the big problems with the movie, and it’s three-fold:

One, the movie is too light in conflict, and too light on the consequences. For the second act of the movie, which is about a good forty minutes or so, it’s just glorified montage. We see Sebastian and Mia’s new life as a couple, which definitely seems pretty sweet and it is, but problems don’t start to arise until the end of the second act. Structure-wise this makes sense because I get that they’re trying to show that this life really is magical and wonderful like… something out of a musical. However, it goes on for too long and when we find out what the actual conflict between them is, it’s just something that happens because these two never bothered to communicate with each other. I have a serious peeve with movies in where couple don’t bother to communicate problems, but this one especially bugs me because at no point do they decide to confront each other about it until it’s too late, and even then it should been easy for them to work out but it’s not.

The second problem I have is that this movie is highly predictable. Now, I don’t have a problem with predictability as long as I’m given something like characters to really enjoy, themes that are interesting and worth discussing, or it’s just entertaining. To La La Land’s credit, it does succeed in the latter- it’s really enjoyable, but it fails at the interesting character portion because of Sebastian being a deadbeat. You know what’s going to happen, and it would be fine if they did something new or interesting but they don’t. This ties into the previous point of there being a lack of conflict when things like this should have either brewed from an earlier point, or they should have actually opened their mouths.

And the third, final, and BIGGEST problem I have with this movie by far is that it relies far too heavily on nostalgia. Did you see Singing in the Rain? Or An American in Paris? This movie has, and it’s going to remind you of that. A LOOOOOT.

I have serious problems with movies that rely on nostalgia as a tool to get the audience invested in the movie. I had serious issues with this earlier in the year with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, and I had serious problems with it in another musical, Rock of Ages, where they think that all they have to do is remind people of things from the past in order to excuse any shortcomings that the movie suffers from- which is some pretty big, nasty ones. Now, I’m sure you’re wondering how this bothers me here and not in something like Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. Well, for one it’s not crucial to the plot- they don’t stop the movie just to remind you of something else the audience might be familiar with just for the sake of doing so, whereas this movie does it pretty deliberately. I’ll admit, I’m not exactly very familiar with Old Hollywood, and I probably should spend more time with older movies, but even if I haven’t this movie gave me the nagging feeling of someone elbowing me shoulder and going: “remember this? Remember? Reeeemember?” and that made my enjoyment of the movie felt kind of thankless and hollow. It’s like the movie is saying that the only way I can really appreciate it is by seeing these older movies that it’s going out of its way to reference- which it shouldn’t because I can tell you for a fact those movies were better and more original than this one.

I know this is a pretty negative note to end the review on, and it’s going to also seem a little confusing considering what I rated the movie, but I want you to keep this in mind: I did have a good time watching it. There were a lot of fun moments, and I think the movie is total eye candy, not to mention Emma Stone is simply amazing through and through, but it just fell really short in what it could have been. Whiplash, this movie is not. (1,731 words. Music: Pokemon Black and White- Route 10)

By every sense of the word, I would consider this movie a disappointment. Now I did expect a good movie, and it was, but I thought that this movie was a shoe-in for my Top 10 of the year, it could have easily been #1, and at this point it's going to be lucky if it even manages to get an Honorable Mention.

This rating may still be surprising to some of you, but not to me. Yes, it's good, it's fun, I recommend you to see it, but it's really not the masterpiece that it's called out as being. If you want a better musical movie to enjoy, go watch Moana, it has stronger characters, stronger conflict, better songs, and it's also just as great to look at. Speaking of Disney... I have some unfinished business to take care of, don't I? Yes... it's finally time... next time, of course. On The Wall. Toodles.

[rhnuzlocke]

Episode 12

Scene 4:

[A day or two later, things are looking a little better. They are still by the waterfall, but Ren has washed and changed and combed her hair. Her things are in a neat pile. We can see that they have carved a small headstone for Wheta in the background. Ren, Kata, Kōtai and Hauoro are skipping rocks over the water while Mele grooms himself nearby. Unsurprisingly, Kata is kicking everyone’s ass and rubbing it in. Roma fetches the rocks back so that they don’t run out. Ren takes a rock from her sharpedo’s mouth and thanks her. She swings her arm back and forth in preparation before flicking the stone back out over the pool. It gets seven skips before sinking. Ren pumps her fist.]

Kōtai: Nice one, luv.

Ren: Thanks!

[A large shadow passes over them and Ren looks up, shielding her eyes with a hand. We can see now that her face, while clean, is still a puffy blotchy mess from all of the crying. Her hair is combed over the left this time, covering some of the scars. The shadow circles down to them and everyone looks up to see Steven on his skarmory. They land and he dismounts gracefully from the saddle. Ren just gapes at him.]

Steven: [smiling pleasantly] Ah, Ren, I thought it might be you. How are you doing these days?

[She doesn’t respond. He looks her over before his eyes drift past her to the headstone and the smile drops off his face. He looks back at her and she is looking down and away. Her shoulders slump and she crosses her arms over herself, body quickly crumpling in on itself. He steps forward, hastily closing the distance between them.]

Steven: [gently laying a hand on her arm] Ren.

[Ren breaks down, tilting forward unsteadily as she starts to cry. Steven comes forward to meet her, wrapping his arms around her. She shakes against him, sobbing uncontrollably. She bows her head so that her crown is pressed into his shoulder rather than her streaming face. He rubs her back gently, but her whole body is tense as she strives in vain to fight the outburst.]

Steven: [quietly] I’m so sorry, Ren.

[She cries harder and he just lets her for a while, holding her gently. He waits patiently for her to quiet a little and she does, though the tension doesn’t leave her.]

Steven: Believe it or not, I know how you feel. [There is a questioning hiccup against him.] I lost a pokemon too, my first year as a trainer. [Ren goes quiet and relaxes just a hair.] She was the first pokemon I ever caught. She died in a battle. It was close and we were cocky… It made me quit training for a while.

Ren: B-but you came back to it?

Steven: Yes. Couldn’t really help myself. Also Bes can be a terrible nag.

[Ren manages a choked sort of warble and leans into him. He holds her a little tighter and she presses her face into his neck.]

Steven: It really is the most terrible thing a trainer can go through. If you are anything like me, you’ll never really stop blaming yourself. It was years ago, but I still think about her all the time. [Ren presses herself harder into him.] But I can promise you that it will get better. Some days are worse than others. You may go through times when you think you are over it, only to have the memories rear back up like it was yesterday. But you have to try and forgive yourself. It will get better.

Ren: [She sniffs loudly.] O-okay.

Steven: You’d be surprised at how common it is too. You’re not alone.

Ren: Thank you, Steven.

Steven: Anytime.

[She takes a deep breath and steps back. He lets go of her. She gives him a weak and watery smile before turning back to the pool. She crouches down and splashes her face. She dries it carefully on her tanktop and scooches back before sitting down. Steven sits down by her left side and sends out the rest of his pokemon (his aggron, steelix, cradily, armaldo and shiny metagross). They just sit quietly for a minute, staring at the waterfall. She glances over at Steven’s pokemon as they spread out and begin to socialize with hers.]

Ren: So, how did you get into pokemon training?

Steven: Oh, that. Good question. Obviously I didn’t do it for the money. The short version is that I went through a rebellious teenage phase.

[She gives him a quizzical look.]

Steven: Don’t believe me, hmm?

Ren: It’s not that I don’t believe you exactly. It’s just… kind of hard to picture.

Steven: I have proof. [pointing to his earring] That’s when I got this. And I have a tattoo.

Ren: [disbelieving] A tattoo?

Steven: A sizable one at that. I’ll have you know that Steven Stone does nothing by halves. Oh, and I dyed my hair. It was blue. Although, to be perfectly honest, that probably had more to do with the fact that I had just started going gray and was very insecure about it.

Ren: [gesturing at his hair] Wait, so this is your natural color?

Steven: Yep. It runs in the family. My father went gray when he was a teenager too.

Ren: Oh… So what is the long version then?

Steven: Well, my father got me Bessemer as a pet when I was a kid, and being a responsible parent, he enrolled us in trainer school so I could learn to take proper care of them. I guess I liked it a little too much. My father was trying to groom me to succeed him and I spent almost all of my free time battling. My father was fine with it as a hobby, but he expected me to go to college and then business school and the whole nine yards. I didn’t mind when I was younger. He has a pretty cool job after all and we were close… [He trails off for a moment, looking out over the water. He glances back at Ren and clears his throat.] So anyway, it started with the hair and tattoo and earring and then right after high school Bes and I ran away from home to become full-time battlers.

Ren: Wow. What did your father do?

Steven: It didn’t take him all that long to find me. It was a bit embarrassing. We had a long talk about it and in the end he let me try and be a trainer. He even got me better equipment et cetera. But after Hecate died, I gave up on it for a while and went to college. Then as soon as I graduated, I was right back in it.

Ren: If you don’t mind my asking, where was your mother for all of this?

Steven: Oh, sometimes I forget you are not from the region.

Ren: I’m sorry! It’s probably common knowledge, huh? I didn’t mean to— I’m sorry, just forget I asked.

Steven: [waving off her concern] No, don’t worry about it. It’s nothing bad. I just don’t have a mother exactly. My dad had me through a surrogate.

Ren: Ohhh.

Steven: It was sort of a big media deal at the time, but it blew over long ago. It’s just something people usually know about me.

[Ren nods. Both are quiet for a while, just looking at the scenery and thinking about things. Ren picks up a rock and skips it, rather proud of her new skill. Ren looks over at Steven and notices him glancing at her. She fidgets for a moment as he returns his attention to the water and the ripples slowly disappearing from her rock skipping.]

Ren: It was a baltoy, in the desert.

Steven: [turning his head to look at her again] Hmm?

Ren: [looking away] My face, that’s why it’s like this. [Combing her hair to the right with her fingers so that the scared side of her face is plainly visible] My sandslash and I were battling it and it used explosion at close range.

Steven: Hmm. We often forget how dangerous pokemon can be, working side by side with them every day…

Ren: [She sighs.] It’s almost funny really. I was afraid something like this [gesturing to her scars] might happen because I tangled with Magma. But in the end it wasn’t my reckless decisions that got me, it was just some random accident.

Steven: I am sorry that it happened to you. It must be difficult.

Ren: Hey, at least I’m still alive.

Steven: Yes, I’m glad of it. [She glances at him, blushing lightly, and tucks her hair behind her ear. He looks her over and smiles.] I like what you’ve done with your hair. Although, you really are showing up everyone else who already has that hairstyle. No one else is going to be able to pull it off as well as you can.

Ren: [blushing briefly] Thank you. A girl does what she can.

Steven: You do it well.

Ren: [her smile goes from flustered to cheeky] It really is a shame though. I had such plans for this face.

Steven: [picking up on her tone and quirking his eyebrow playfully] Oh? Do tell.

Ren: I've been… building a harem. Or a reverse harem if you prefer. [She pictures this “harem” in her mind’s eye: one boy that she just hardcore friend-zoned (Kai), a gay teenager (Wally), a criminal who she doesn’t even like (Josh), and finally an older guy who is completely out of her league (Steven). She laughs out loud, throwing her head back. Steven smiles as he watches her. She looks back over at him, calming.] Ah well, what's a girl to do?

Steven: [leaning back with a grin and waving off her resignation] Nonsense! You fold too soon. [He readjusts his position to face her more directly. His face becomes a mask of mock seriousness.] Think of it as… a challenge of sorts. You'll just have to rely more on your charm to lure them in.

[Ren looks down, trying to smile. Steven ghosts his hand over the scarred side of her face. She looks back up to find him smiling at her, warm and full. Their eyes lock and neither makes to remove his hand. She glances away shyly, going a little pink before meeting his eyes again.]

Ren: S-shouldn’t be too hard.

Steven: My thoughts exactly.

[Ren turns completely red at this and forgets to breathe for a moment. She sputters and he lets his hand fall slowly away to make it clear he is doing it for her sake and not because he wants to end the contact. She starts laughing at her own awkwardness, embarrassed but happy. He smiles back reassuringly, laughing a little too.]

Steven: [clears throat] But in all seriousness, your personal strength continues to impress me. You really are taking it remarkably well.

Ren: Oh, I don’t know about that. I wish I could be a little less self-conscious about it. I know it doesn’t really matter all that much…

Steven: Please don’t say that. Personally, I am quite certain I’d go full Phantom of the Opera over far less.

Ren: [giggling] A little vain are we?

Steven: [pretend outrage] Moi? Heavens no! [exaggeratedly flipping his hair] Whatever gave you that impression?

[That gets her laughing pretty hard and he laughs with her. We pan out to see their pokemon as well. Kata seems to be having a great time talking to Bessemer, gesturing animatedly and bouncing back on her tail. Mele has settled on the steelix’s head as he talks to her while Hauoro and Kotai chat up the aggron. Steven’s armaldo and cradily are playing in the water with Roma while Damascus naps off to the side. Ren and Steven lean in a little closer as they continue to laugh and joke with each other. We see Ren’s pokemon looking on with relieved smiles and Kata elbows Bessemer.]