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milfgritty · 6 years ago

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i’ll be good pt. eight | j. hughes & t. zegras

❀ ⇢ requested: yes | no ❀ ⇢ word count: 2k

having a crush on one person was confusing enough. now throw in one of their teammates and you weren’t sure where that left you anymore.

⇢ posted: 05.07.19 . | . masterlist prev. | next.

He lost track of time after you hung up.

When he made the decision to call you, he was sure he was doing the right thing. Breaking up with you, he needed to do it. But hearing your voice, the panic and confusion clear as day when he actually went through with it…

No, he shook his head, stop that. You already broke up with her. It’s too late.

He couldn’t take it back, not now. No matter how much he wanted to, how much he didn’t want to do it in the first place.

It was better this way. He didn’t know what he was thinking in the first place. Asking you out when he knew you liked Jack was a mistake.

We almost kissed.

Letting out a shaky breath, he ran a hand through his hair. He hadn’t meant to overhear Spencer cornering Jack earlier, but he hid to listen anyway. He was going to leave it alone, get home and changed for your date tonight, and then he heard Spencer’s guess. Jack’s silence confirming it.

It was easy to duck around the corner, listen to Jack telling Spence everything.

We almost kissed.

She pulled away right before.

He tried reasoning with himself that you didn’t kiss Jack. But the fact that you never told him?

He knew you actually forgetting about Jack was too good to be true. He could fool himself with every date, every kiss, every smile, but he knew. It was dumb to think you would actually like him back, fall head over heels for him like he did with you.

Like you did with Jack.

Fuck, he should’ve just left you alone.

He rubbed at his eyes, roughly wiping away the water clouding his vision. He didn’t have to look in the mirror to tell they were red and bloodshot.

He didn’t even know who to blame anymore. The bitterness settling inside him wasn’t aimed at you, not entirely. But he couldn’t help but think, wonder what he had done wrong. Was he really not enough? Why couldn’t you just move on from Hughes?

It all came back to him, all came back to Jack.

Why couldn’t Jack just let him have the girl for once? Why couldn’t he just—

Exhaling slowly, he stopped his train of thought. There was no use continuing down that path. This entire thing was on all of you. You and him would have never worked out, there was just too much shit.

He sighed, rubbing his hands down his face tiredly. Hair messy from his hands, he collapsed onto his bed. Lying in bed, limbs sprawled out, he closed his eyes. All he wanted was to not feel like shit and for this goddamn headache to go away.

His door creaked open, drawing a groan from him. He shoved his pillow over his face with a frown.

“Go away,” his words came out muffled but still audible.

Whoever it was listened, the sound of the door clicking closed a second later.

“As much as I’d like to, we actually need to talk.”

“What the hell are you doing here, Hughes,” he shot up, flinging the pillow away. His brows knitted together at the sight of his teammate standing uncertainly in front of his bed. Jack was the absolute last person he wanted to see right now—hell, the last person he wanted to see ever.

He watched warily as Hughes wheeled his desk chair over. Sitting down, he leaned forward and fidgeted his fingers.

“Y/N called me, told me you broke up with her,” Jack began, gaze drifting between him and his twiddling fingers.

He let out of a scoff, dropping back down with his arm thrown over his eyes. He’d be damned if he let Hughes see that he was crying. “Of course you know,” he muttered under his breath.

Jack ignored him, continuing on. “She’s really fucked up right now, man.”

His words made something in him snap. Flinging himself back up, he glared at his teammate.

“Stay the hell out of it, Hughes,” he spit at him, furious that he had the audacity to tell him that like he didn’t know. Of course he knew, of course he was aware that he made you cry and feel like shit and everything else. Didn’t the jackass—no pun intended—see that it tore him up inside to break up with you?

“Besides, I thought you would be happy. She’s single and now you’re free to make another move on her,” he finished, voice bitter. Shifting, he pulled himself back to lean against the wall.

Jack reeled back in shock, mouth dropping open. “I—you,” he stuttered. He breathed out a defeated sigh, slumping down. “How’d you find out?” he asked quietly.

Biting the inside of his cheeks, he debated whether or not to tell him or just demand that he left him alone already.

“You told me earlier when you spilled everything to Spencer,” he said. He was still a little hurt that Spencer didn’t tell him, but he couldn’t really find it in him to blame the guy. He wouldn’t want to get caught up in whatever the hell drama this shit was either.

Jack swallowed and looked away. “Oh.”

He let out a snort, leaning back and closing his eyes.

“Yea. Oh.”

“Is that why you broke things off with her then? Cause Trev, we didn’t actually—she pulled away before anything–“

“No,” he cut him off, shaking his head. “It was part of the reason, but not like you’d think.” He left Jack in silence for a bit, letting him stew in his answer before he continued quietly.

“But it was because of you.”

“Wait, what?”

He opened his eyes to watch Jack’s confused face. His head lulled to the side as he blinked, trying to clear away his lingering pain before elaborating.

“When I asked Y/N out,” he started lowly, his voice carrying a hint of sadness, “I wasn’t expecting her to say yes. It was old news to everyone but you that she was practically in love with you. But then she said yes,” his lips turned up in a small smile at the memory. “I thought that meant that I finally had my chance. That she would get over you and choose me. And it seemed like it was working. She started looking at me like how she used to look at you. I thought—I thought that her feelings for you were gone.

And then you found out about us. Things seemed like they were the same, but… there was a shift. She was distant for a bit before things went back to the same. I ignored it, man. I liked—still like–” he chucked bitterly “–her so much that I let it slide. I didn’t want to think about what it meant. And then she was my Y/N again. I thought everything was okay, let myself believe that she was finally over you.” He couldn’t help the dark laugh that left him. “But then you almost kissed her.”

He saw Jack open his mouth and rushed on, shaking his head sadly. “Yea, she pulled away. But how long did it take for her to?”

Jack’s silence and guilty expression confirmed it.

“She’s not over you,” he whispered, “And I was an idiot to think that I could change that. She always liked you more than me and I was just standing in the way. So go ahead Hughes, shoot your shot or whatever the fuck. I’m out of the equation now.”

Once he finished talking, he slouched back against the wall. When did he get so tired? Seconds ticked by as he waited for Jack to respond. He was about to lay back down when he finally started speaking.

“You’re a dumbass alright, Zegras,” Jack told him.

He huffed out a laugh, smiling sarcastically at his teammate. “Glad we got that sorted.”

Jack rolled his eyes, so far it pained his own still pounding eyeballs. His eyebrow raised in surprise when Jack reared back before continuing angrily.

“No, dipshit,” he forcibly said, leaning forward in his chair. “You’re a dumbass for thinking that Y/N doesn’t care about you as much as she does me. Hell, as much as you or me do her. You didn’t hear her when she called me, barely able to hold it together.”

At this point, Jack had propelled himself up, standing and wildly gesturing.

“Trust me, Trevor. If she didn’t really fucking like you, she wouldn’t have been damn near sobbing on the phone. She wouldn’t have been barely able to string together words to tell me happened, desperate for someone to comfort her. Even if I wasn’t the one she called after you broke her heart—because that’s what you did, jackass—it was pretty obvious that she was really into you. Every fucking day I wished I was you, man. The way she looked at you, it made it nearly impossible to be around the two of you together. I guarantee that if you hadn’t broken up with her, she would’ve told you she loved you in probably another month. She was never the one who acted on their feelings between me and her. I’m the dick that couldn’t stay away and she was ready to cut me out of her life for it. For you. So don’t give me that ‘she liked you more’ bullshit. You just threw away everything you had with her because you were insecure.”

“You’re right; I am insecure,” he shot forward, staring Jack in the eye intensely. “I was scared that I was gonna fuck everything up and send her running to you. And look; that’s just what I did.”

He deflated quickly after he said that, falling back into his pillows. “Only one of us could be lucky enough to have her and when I did, I was terrified of her realizing that I wasn’t worth it. Realizing that you were better for her. So I did it first, to save both of us from going down that road,” his voice started out strong enough but got quieter as he continued. By the end, it was barely a whisper, choked up as tears sprung back to his eyes.

He tried rubbing them away discreetly, unsure if it worked but grateful that Jack refrained from saying anything. Instead, his teammate remained quiet, walking the small distance to sit on his bed by his feet.

Shoulders hunched forward, he spoke.

“You��re right,” Jack said, turning his head to look at him. “But what are we supposed to do? I don’t even think she knows who she likes more anymore. We can’t make her choose again, Trev.”

“No, we can’t,” he agreed lowly, brushing his hair back.

Trapped in their thoughts, they lapsed back into silence. For once, it didn’t feel like Jack was enemy, just another poor asshole trapped in the same situation as him. One neither of them knew how to fix.

“What are we going to do?” he asked, raising his gaze to meet Jack’s.

Jack let go of his bottom lip, ceasing his gnawing on it. He shrugged helplessly, just as lost as he was.

“I don’t know,” exhaustion lined his features. He was sure his expression mirrored his teammates.

Throwing his head back, he winced when it hit the wall with a thud. “When did all of this get so out of control and depressing?” he joked, their self-deprecating laughter mingling together.

“Probably when I tried to kiss your girlfriend,” Jack snorted, looking over at him.

“You’re such a fucking asshole, Hughes. Who even does that?” he halfheartedly ranted in return, lifting his foot up to kick him in the side.

Jack barked out a laugh, swatting his foot away. “Yea. I feel pretty shitty about that,” he screwed up his face, shooting him an apologetic grin.

Scoffing, he gave him a ‘no shit’ look. “You should, dickhead.” Jack retaliated with a light slap to the leg. He couldn’t help but feel that sense of comradery come back after so long.

And look, all it took was them trying to figure out how to fix the shitty mess they somehow managed to get themselves into this time.

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gimmetheheadcanons · 6 years ago

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don’t sit down, he’s moved your chair (1/3)

A/N: First Bonkai and barely edited so be gentle. Inspired by a funny post I saw on tumblr about purposefully hiring a nightmare Thanksgiving guest.

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Break a mirror//Roll the dice//Run with scissors through a chip and fryer fight//Go into business with a grizzly bear//But just don’t sit down ‘cause I’ve moved your chair. ----Arctic Monkeys//Don’t Sit Down Cause I’ve Moved Your Chair

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1. The Deal.

“You won't believe what bomb my grams decided to drop on me three frickin’ days before Thanksgiving Elena!”

“Was it - now my child, you are getting too old to sit on my lap.”

The voice Bonnie Bennett found on the other side was unsympathetic and unmistakably male. She had been lazily pushing her shopping cart through the narrow aisles of a busy grocery store when Mr. Not-Elena’s surprise impersonation of her grandmother brought her to a sudden halt. Cue the chorus of irritated tongue clicks, a barrage of choice curses (all very colorful) and echoing groans from the shoppers behind her.

Bonnie ignored them all.

Yeah yeah, we hear you, she thought as a train of angry customers and their carts passed her by, but only after an exchange of death glares as a final parting gift. No one wanted to be here running last minute Turkey Day errands. Least of all Bonnie. But she’d been bulldozed by her grandma and in no mood to be so agreeable again.

What a sham of a holiday.

When she was done redirecting traffic with her free hand, Bonnie turned to the man on the other line – the one inexplicably answering her best friend’s cell. Feeling even less festive than she did a moment ago she made her demand for answers.

“Who is this?” She snapped.

The stranger simply chuckled in return.

“I mean it pal.”

“Pal?”

Another mocking laugh.

“They're your minutes.” The stranger declared before lowering his tone to be more sultry. Another borrowed voice, this time a phone sex line operator with the intention to seduce Bonnie.

“Who'd you want me to be?”

Of course. The theatrics should’ve given it away, but then again ‘obvious’ doesn’t necessarily mean ‘less infuriating’.

Bonnie rolled her eyes as she figured out which idiot it was she was dealing with.

“Oh God. Damon.”

“Ding ding, well done.”

Who else would take such delight in rubbing salt into her wound.

“Aren't you too dumped to be answering your ex's phone like this?”

“Eh we're trying the whole friend thing.” Damon Salvatore finally responded and in his own voice, flippant and full of trouble.

Bonnie shook her head as she always did when confronted by Damon and Elena’s drama.

“And?” She asked but stopping short of adding the intended (and wholly judgemental) final part of that sentence: What else is new.

“It sucks. Massively.” Damon whined, and it was Bonnie’s turn to chuckle at his misery.

It took her a while to warm to the man her childhood friend made the monumental mistake of getting romantically involved with. But Bonnie finally did and now cared enough to make a mental note to schedule another intervention for him once the holidays were over.

The break up couldn’t have come soon enough and Damon just needed to hear that.

Still, it must’ve hurt like hell.

“Tell me about it.” Bonnie said with a little more kindness. She too was recovering from the end of a rough relationship. There was somewhat of an odd camaraderie developing between her and Damon Salvatore and perhaps that was the reason for it – bonding over the shared humiliation of being jilted by a Gilbert.

Except Bonnie was sure she’d gotten the short end of the stick. Her Gilbert, sweet baby brother Jeremy Gilbert, turned out to be a cheat. Damon, on the other hand, was far more culpable than Bonnie when it came to his heartbreak.

“You should hang up. Before she sees you.”

“Sees me doing what? What’s a little chinwag between pals?”

With no longer a mystery to distract her, Bonnie resumed her shopping. Departing from her grandmother’s grocery list, she almost swept clean an entire shelf of sugary snacks.

Straight into the cart you all go.

Necessary reinforcements, something to get her through the misery of the next few days.

“Honestly you’re acting a little paranoid Bon Bon. What’s wrong?” Damon said, further insisting his innocence with an artificial sweetness that even Bonnie, with all her cravings, found a little too sickly.

“So, we're just gonna pretend you weren't snooping around in her mail box? See who Elena's texting now you're supposedly done done.”

“Ha! Trick question. She isn't texting anyone...not anymore anyway.”

“Damon! You ca-”

“One second, got a quick text I need to send.”

Cut off mid-speech Bonnie could still hear Damon in the background reading aloud the messages he typed out on his ill-gotten device. She’d been forcibly made party to this unethical intrusion into Elena Gilbert’s personal life.

Great. More relationship awkwardness on the horizon.

“New phone who dis…question mark. Send. Block. New phone who dis…question mark. Send. Block.”

Growing impatient with his behavior, Bonnie tried to get Damon’s attention by calling out his name and a couple important facts about boundaries – all of which his disturbing ass chose to ignore.

“Aaand send. Aaand block. Okay done now.”

Damon was back.

“Damon what di – ”

“Hey, call me back on mine?”

And just as suddenly, Damon was gone.

----------- Bonnie had been shopping for about fifteen minutes when phone rang. It had been a strangely peaceful fifteen minutes, the chaos all around the store provided the perfect backdrop for some pensive sulking. Deep in thought yet frustratingly unable to formulate a plan to get out of Thanksgiving dinner this year, moping was all Bonnie had and she was prepared not to have it interrupted by Damon Salvatore.

Pressing to reject had bought another fifteen minutes of peace and Bonnie accomplished plenty with that time. Groceries had been paid for, then bagged, and placed in her Prius. She still no plan but the self-pity had begun to wane enough for her to want to pick up should the phone ring again.

It did, whilst she was on route to return her now empty cart, and this time she answered.

“Damon?”

Silence on the other end.

Bonnie cursed the pettiness of the man she could clearly hear breathing.

“Damn it Damon. Hello?”

When Damon eventually answered, Bonnie had her finger on the end call button and her car keys in her hand. The sun hadn’t set yet, but the temperature dropped significantly since she’d first gotten to the store. She watched as a wave of new arrivals fought over parking spaces, the escalating drama made it impossible for other drivers to leave further exacerbating the situation. By the carts, under a flimsily built shelter, Bonnie hugged her body against the November cold and decided to wait it out.

“So bombs huh?” Damon asked, he sounded a little out of breath. He was somewhere outside too. Out walking. Bonnie couldn’t help speculating as to why he’d suddenly decided to brave the fierce frost.

“Where’s Elena?”

“Oh I don't know Bonnie!” She could hear him shiver before he spoke and imagined his lips turn a biting shade of blue to match his eyes. Icicles hanging from his black hair and that stupid leather jacket, like something out of a Saturday morning cartoon.

“I'm not her babysitter. Didn’t you get the memo – we’re finished.”

Bonnie scoffed before placing the phone in between her shoulder and ear to free up her freezing hands. She then pushed them into the warm pockets of her long, red winter coat and there felt around for a pair of thick gloves.

In the end, she was only able to fish out one.

“Fine,” said Damon, misconstruing Bonnie’s silence as directed at him disapproval. “If I had to guess I’d say…out looking for her phone.”

“Oh my God, move on Damon!”

“This is not normal behaviour!”

She hadn’t intended on yelling so angrily that her phone nearly dropped to the ground, but Bonnie was furious. She’d just bought those gloves yesterday to match her knitted beanie, how could one be gone already?

“Oh shush. It's perfectly Ross and Rachel, trust me. We're gonna get back together. Maybe. Probably.”

The battle for parking continued to wage on, as did the icy wind and Bonnie needed better shelter at least until one of those things passed. Defeated, she headed back to the store she’d thought she’d just escaped.

“You know what Damon, the most disturbing part of that is you're probably right. But I got too much on plate for your drama so good luck to you both I guess.”

Just inside by the entrance, Bonnie found a nice heating vent to camp next to. She flashed the large security guard at the door an awkward smile and pointed to her cell phone, pretending bad cell coverage was the real culprit behind her return.

All she got in return was that menacing security guard scowl.

Anxious to stay indoors, Bonnie found herself turn to the desperate act of pleading with her eyes; a survival tactic she picked up from orphaned pups in a kennel she volunteered at one summer back in high school. Every day there, she tried to adopt them all and every day she was told she couldn’t.

“Helloooo Bonnieeeee?”

She could hear Damon singing her name, off-key and right into her ear. Each time a little louder, little more annoying. But Bonnie couldn’t risk breaking eye contact with the guard. Her hazel eyes were beginning to sting, her face ached from the unnatural width of her smile; it growing increasingly more manic and pained.

No one loitering here. Nothing to see sir, please move on.

Strange as it was, it somehow worked. An incident came in over the intercom and the guard called to action. Bonnie could stay and not lose a limb to frostbite.

Thank God for Thanksgiving tantrums.

“I’m still here Damon.”

“Finally! So, what exactly did wily old Sheila do?”

Crap, she’d almost forgotten it. The problem, still intractable and inching closer.

“Oh nothing except invite my disaster deadbeat mom for Thanksgivings dinner. Three courses of sweet emotional manipulation followed by forced reconciliation over coffee.”

“‘Tis the season I guess.”

“‘Tis not fair is what it is.” Bonnie immediately howled back then felt ashamed closely after.

Damon sounded a little more serious when he spoke next.

“So…How many years has it been?”

She sighed before taken a moment to do the math. Talking about the woman who birthed her then ditched her was always a sore subject for Bonnie.

“Six and before that seven I think. She just showed up one night, stayed half a day and left before dinner. Pulled the same crappy move the time before that. Except, she brought me a stupid doll I guess.”

“I was childish enough to think it was awesome.”

The memory of that cheap doll flooded Bonnie’s insides with bitter rage. What she didn’t tell Damon was how she was pretty certain the doll was something Abby Bennett picked up at a gas station just outside of Mystic Falls. Bonnie figured that out last summer when she, Elena and their friend Caroline Forbes planned to take their college tour road trip. Except, she didn’t make it past Whitmore; somehow, even with all those miles between them, Abby managed to ruin that for her daughter too.

“Ouch. Sounds like mommy Bennett is gunning for the illustrious Lilly Salvatore Award for Monstrous Mothers and Their Tortured Offspring.

“Ouch.” Bonnie said, meaning it. Damon didn’t often talk about his parents but oddly enough when he did it wasn’t with Elena. It was something Bonnie remembered her best friend call attention to night after night during the build up to the end of their doomed romance.

He won’t let me in Bon. Each time, he either laughs or lashes out. How am I supposed to deal with that?

As her friend poured out her heart, Bonnie poured herself another drink and kindly pretended she didn’t understand the appeal of shutting down, of keeping your loved ones out and precious sunny moments away from dark storm clouds of your past.

“I don’t want to see her Damon.”

“So don't go. Problem solved.”

“But I promised Grams. I didn’t mean to, but she worked her magic and somehow got to me.”

“Then go and bail after you’ve had a mouthful of tasty bird.” Damon said making it sound all so easy.

“But bailing isn't my thing. So…other options? Please.”

“Fine, stay. All the way till pie, have said pie and chew slow. Very slow.”

She was losing his sympathy, Bonnie could tell. Life was always easy for the Damon Salvatores of the world, consequences be damned. The only options were their way or their way but a little bumpier, littered with the bodies he had to mercilessly mow down.

“I can’t stay either.” Bonnie admitted. Just the thought made her queasy. Being sat opposite Abby for an entire day, being made to bite her tongue or make empty conversation about God knows what. Swallow all that hurt then let it fester inside her for another six or seven years until it bubbled up to the surface at the most inconvenient of times.

No, Bonnie wouldn’t be able to stomach it.

“Then we’re back to option a) Don't frickin’ go.”

“But Grams -”

“Well then that sounds like a you problem Bon. I gave you all your choices. Now pick one or call a friend.”

“I thought I was calling a frie – hello? Damon? Hello?”

A cold dial tone emitted from her cell. Damon’s voice was long gone, and Bonnie was left standing with one less thing to be thankful for on this crappy holiday – her so called friends.

“Jerk. What did I even expect?” Bonnie found herself muttering, at first angrily and then louder.

“Not meaningful advice. Oh no! Never from you Damon, you bloodsucking cold-eyed asshole!”

With her call completed, her nemesis the store security guard reappeared ready to add to Bonnie’s misery and kick her outside to either face the mayhem or mace-like wind.

“Ma’am, you’re not buying so I want you out of here.”

“I’m going! Jeez, just give me a second.”

“Sure, you were.” He snorted as he grabbed Bonnie by her arm and without warning began to steer her towards the exit. When she resisted the niceties were dropped.

“Out. Now.”

Bonnie was about to give the unreasonable man a piece of her mind and teach him a thing or two about personal space when another person got there first.

An onlooker, male, maybe college-aged and casually munching on a bag of what looked like pork rinds.

“Hey man,” He called out to the security guard, his voice light and non-confrontational. “You wanna back off a little? Really wouldn’t wanna lose a hand.”

The guard stopped long enough for Bonnie to free herself from his grip. He watched the guy with wary eyes as if trying to discern if an actual threat was being made. Bonnie understood the hesitation, there was something off about the way the words were delivered and yet on the surface Pork Rind Guy seemed only interested in consuming his gross snack. The relaxed grin he wore on his face, akin to that of an entertained moviegoer not a someone roaring for a throw down with a much larger man.

Every so often, in between bites, he’d attempt to throw a piece in the air and catch it with his mouth but be left smacking his lips at air like a fish; each portion bouncing right off the short brown hairs on his head and onto the floor. There, he’d kick at them with the grim looking muddy sneakers he wore on his feet.

He was a child, a man yes, but barely.

A nuisance.

Bonnie could tell the guard decided the same thing and was ready to dismiss the interfering stranger as such when Pork Rind Guy opened his mouth to speak again.

“Yeah…especially that one.” He said pointing at the guard’s left hand. “With it being so close to the holidays you’re gonna wanna keep the company.”

Bonnie’s eyes widened.

With a twinkle in his blue eyes and no regrets, Pork Rind Guy made a lewd gesture with his own left hand and laughed.

It was a great laugh. Free and big. The kind of laugh you’d hear as you passed a playground. Yet, Bonnie felt embarrassed by it and everything else about him. The gesture included. It was immature, meant to grate on you and it made her cringe a little.

The gesture had a different impact on the guard. His face flushed red with anger and Bonnie knew it was time to throw in the towel and just go.

As she used the distraction to quietly slip away, she could hear the burly security guard bark at the younger man and Pork Rind Guy’s response made her smile a little.

“You need to get out of my face son.”

“Could you like – not wave that so close to my face?”

“Get out of here! Right now!”

Bonnie glanced back just in time to see Pork Rind Guy throw her a wink. It came right after he’d finally succeeded in catching a pork rind with his mouth.

How childish, Bonnie thought, shaking her head but this time smiling a lot.

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

By the time Bonnie got close to her car, the traffic situation had died down considerably and she didn’t expect to be held up much longer; and yet, in typical Thanksgiving fashion, she’d been too hasty in giving thanks.

“Hey.”

Pork Rind Guy, materializing out of nowhere and coming in between her and her car.

Startled, Bonnie frowned and looked around to see if they’d be joined by their old friend the security guard, finally able to do his job and provide said security.

The question is, however, would she be needing it.

Pork Rind Guy seemed oblivious to Bonnie’s alarm. His right arm reached deep into the jumbo bag of rinds he still cradled and not her throat like the parking lot assailant Bonnie worried he might be.

If this encounter were going to turn into an NBC Dateline special then it’d have to wait whilst he hunted for crumbs.

When done, Pork Rind Guy cast aside the empty packet and finally addressed the perplexed person he’d delayed.

“So I just wanted to tell you – before you go – there is always one other option. Bring a date. A human buffer.”

It took Bonnie a full minute to gather her wits enough to follow what Pork Rind Guy was trying to tell her. She still didn’t understand how he managed to get away from the guard and out to the parking lot in time to catch her, why he did so and if he was a danger.

Keys readied in her fist, Bonnie asked for an explanation.

“Excuse me?”

Pork Rind Guy smiled and again it was full of boyish charm.

“Someone to draw fire and guess what? I got the perfect shirt for that!”

He puffed out his chest and pulled at the bottom of his t-shirt to straighten it out.

“See?”

What Bonnie saw was a logo, right in the middle and against the blueish gray of the rest of his shirt. It was red and round, like a bullseye but probably belonged to a band she’d never heard of.

“Draw fire at dinner.” He repeated, and this time Bonnie understood.

Pork Rind Guy was referring to her earlier conversation with Damon about Thanksgiving dinner with her mom.

Bonnie felt a chill and it had nothing to do with the weather. Had their run in earlier been planned and if so why? She examined the parking lot for others and was relieved to find they weren’t alone. Several shoppers still close enough to call on if things got unsafe.

Nothing about this guy felt right and Bonnie had heard enough. She snuck quick glance at the car sat behind him, her ticket out of this progressively creepy conversation. Good, Pork Rind Guy didn’t seem to be blocking the door. In fact, there was plenty of space behind him where Bonnie could pass him by and then get the hell out of there.

“Uhm thanks but I gotta go.”

“Hey hey hey! Wait a minute.”

In one quick motion, Pork Rind Guy positioned him directly against Bonnie’s door and successfully cut her off from her escape route.

Bonnie braced herself for worse to follow, but was surprised to see him then, just as smoothly, step aside. Nothing about this guy felt right, Bonnie knew that and yet she didn’t get in her car and drive away.

“What do you want?”

His lips curled into a satisfied smile when she turned to face him.

They were now stood a little too close for comfort. Bonnie could feel the hot air of his breath on her lips, see the goose bumps on the pale skin of his exposed neck and decided that’s where the sharp end of her keys would go if he took one more step towards her.

But Pork Grind Guy didn’t. In fact, he fell back, held up his hands and apologized.

“I'm sorry. That was weird right? Kinda? A little?”

Bonnie didn’t respond, just watched him with narrowed eyes as he took it upon himself to tally up all the reasons why everything he’d done up until now was inappropriate.

“No it's alright to admit it...that was weird. With me just showing up at your car like that. Outta nowhere with all this information about a conversation we personally didn’t have. I know, I know. I’m an eavesdropper. I admit.”

Another smile, brief and full of humor.

“And then that proposition? Yikes! What even was that? No, no, no. No good. at all!”

Bonnie relaxed a little but not enough to put away her car keys and retire her plans to go for the jugular.

“Let's try again. Hi, my name is Kai. Well it’s actually Malachai but since I'm trying not to frighten you away with a name straight out of Necronomicon I think Kai will do just fine.”

“By the way, have you seen that film? God, Bruce Campbell. What a guy right?”

“Sorry, rude again. What's your name?”

“Bonnie and I gotta head home now.”

“I’m expected.” She quickly added, angrily wondering why she told him her real name. Was it because earlier, he was essentially asking for her home address and this was the lesser of two evils?

Either way, she wouldn’t slip up again.

“I need go home now Kai. It’s cold and I’m very tired.”

Pork Rind Guy – no – Kai dropped his jaw when she said his name. It was exaggerated for effect, but she could see he was somehow flattered by the show of trust when she told him hers.

“Bonnie.”

He celebrated by repeating her name back to her, saying every letter with great purpose and pleasure.

“Nice to meet you Bonnie.”

“Well Bonnie, it sounds to me like you were having a rough day. Got a bit of a situation at the home front huh?”

“I wanna help with that.”

Bonnie blinked as confusion set in once again.

“Excuse me.”

“For the reasonable price of one home cooked Thanksgiving dinner. I, Kai Parker, will be your date.”

“Eh yeah…No thanks.”

Bonnie felt a little relieved but also self-conscious, was Damon right, was this perfectly normal and she just not to used to guys hitting on her?

“Oh no, you got it all wrong. I'll be your date. The one all girls sooner or later bring home to screw with their parents. I'll be the mistake.”

Kai continued to explain, and Bonnie again found herself not walking away when she easily could have.

“I've been told, on many occasions, that I'm every parent’s nightmare. Imagine, Grams drops a bomb and you Bonnie, drop a nuke.”

Every parent’s nightmare, why did Bonnie have no trouble believing that. Kai was cute but on balance also a major creep with awful taste so no, of course most girls would have no interest in inviting him home to meet their families. End of November and he’s dressed like a stoner extra in a bad nineties high school movie. Faded t-shirt and long sleeves combo, three-quarter cargo pants and sneakers.

In this weather.

Who does that?

Valid question Bon.

“And why would I invite a perfect stranger into my home?” She asked him, for the first time saying more than four words. He must’ve noticed too, how her curiosity got the better of her because his face lit up like a Christmas tree. It was too soon for that crap, Bonnie thought, gripping her keys a little tighter.

“Because that's the beauty of it! After Thanksgiving, I go back to being a perfect stranger. Who else can say that?”

“No baggage.”

“No offense” Bonnie said flatly and with all the offense. “But that sounds like BS.”

Kai appeared unfazed by her bluntness. As usual, the lack of warmth in her voice made him work only harder.

“If you ask me - which I know you're not but hear me out anyway – if you were asking me… what sounds like bullshit is having to spend Thanksgiving with a woman who gets to choose to walk in and out of your life at a moment's notice.”

“You should be able to the same Bonnie.”

“That's what I think.”

Bonnie inhaled deeply, thrown by the sudden sincerity with which he delivered that final line. She let a calculated stillness wash over her as she dealt with the sweltering emotion under the surface. She’d been affected by Kai’s words, the notion behind them appealing not to her but directly to the pain her small body had housed for all the years.

“Pork rind?”

Out of one of his pocket, Kai spontaneously produced a handful of the snack Bonnie saw him finish then offered it to her.

Bonnie’s eyes zeroed in on the lint particulars stuck to the grease of the rinds and declined.

“I can see why you're so eager to worm your way to our dinner table.”

Kai shrugged and stuffed the rinds back into his pocket. Eyes fixed firmly on hers, Bonnie knew there was another offer he was eager to see if she would accept.

If not rinds Bonnie, how about retaliation?

“What about your family? Won't they be expecting you?” She asked changing the subject.

“Not if they changed the locks as they promised they would.”

Again, Kai surprised her with his openness.

“Harsh.” Bonnie said yet not feeling the need to press Kai for any further details. In all her anger, she’d forgotten there were people out there who simply didn’t have families to spend Thanksgiving Day with.

“Not everyone takes to my winning personality as you have.” Kai replied appearing to have sufficiently recovered from the solemnness of the moment.

Bonnie laughed and saw Kai’s entire face beam as if the sound of her laugh had been his goal all along.

“Hold your horses buddy. I haven’t agreed to anything just yet.”

“Sorry manners.” Kai said before he began to obsessively kick at the gravel and the dirt under his feet.

“What is it now Kai? Dropped a pork rind?”

Satisfied he’d made enough of a clearing, Kai Parker got down on one knee and held up a single pork rind in between his fingers like an engagement ring.

Mortified, Bonnie’s face flushed at the sudden interest passing shoppers were beginning to show and the several prying looks being thrown their way.

Kai cleared his throat.

“Bonnie, will you let me spend Thanksgiving Day with you and your family? I promise to be on my worst behaviour. Promise to shake your poor unsuspecting mother to core and show her the dangerous road her awful parenting choices may have led her beautiful baby girl.”

A nod from her was enough of a signal for Kai to jump up to his feet and throw the absurd edible ring Bonnie refused over his shoulder; freeing up his hand for a more formal shake.

“Oh my bad.” He said only remembering to wipe the food grease from his palm and onto his pant leg after noticing the look of disgust on Bonnie’s face.

That look didn’t change much when finally, clean enough to be once more presented to her, Kai simply held his hand up to his face and grinned.

“Gotta make it legit right?” He told her before spitting straight onto his skin.

“No backsies.”

One look at the wet hand in front her and Bonnie knew her instincts were right.

Kai Parker was the worst.

Yet any hesitation she may have grappled with since meeting him was gone at the mere prospect of her mother coming to a similar conclusion and doing so over a plate full of turkey at Grams’s house. With a grin of her own and a generous amount of spit, Bonnie Bennett shook on the deal; feeling for the first time all day, especially thankful for the perfectly awful Thanksgiving dinner to come.

#bonkai #bonnie bennett #kai parker #tvd #r: gimme a platform #fanfiction

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evswiftie · 7 years ago

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Full breakdown on how I relate look what you made me do to all the past times I've been sexually assaulted

" I don't like your little games" -When I was 11 and swimming in the public pool at the YMCA and this 30 year old man asked if he could play with me in the pool and pick me up and throw me in the water but he "had to touch me here first (he digitally raped me) ( I didnt even know what a Vagina is or does as that age) -When I was 12 and my dads best friend who lived in my house would tell my parents he would watch after me when they went out but instead forcibly touched me and made me touch him. And he would bang on my bedroom door when I was pressing up against it shut because it didn't have a lock, he would offer me to play outside with him on my trampoline just so he could be on top of me and suck in my nipples again but I screamed to leave me alone. When the guy in sophomore year of high school who I had my first real big crush on told me I could trust him so I told him all about my life and he was my first kiss but then right after, he threw me on the ground grabbed my hand and made me give him a hand job and then went around school taunting me by mocking me with my secrets I told him and told people I was a slut. And he call me during the middle of the night threatening that if I didn't send him nudes he would make worse rumors and spread them around. When the 20 year old guy who took my virginity from me raped me when I was 16 tried to email me, text me and follow me on Instagram as if time passing had changed everything. BITCH DONT TALK TO ME. When the guy who molested me outside of a bar gave me the excuse the next day that he was to drunk to know what he was doing even though I saw him get in his car and drive away and text me that night he made it home safe. IF YOURE SOBER ENOUGH TO DRIVE YOURE SOBER ENOUGH TO NOT SEXUALLY MOLEST SOMEONE WHO IS TO INTOXICATED TO STAND STRAIGHT. " I don't like your tilted stage " AKA an uneven playing field. When the guy who "had to" digitally rape me in the YMCA swimming pool knew i was to young to know what was happening to me and I was easy to listen to adults so he told me not tell anyone so I stayed quiet about it until I was 17. -When the guy who was my dads best friend knew I was a caring kid and wouldnt tell anyone so my dad wouldn't loose a friend so he took advantage of me. And when I finally told my dad and he made his friend come to the house to confront him DUDE WAS SPEAKING 100% Spanish so I couldnt know what he was saying against me. -When the guy I trusted in high school majorly taunted me outside school and was so sneaky about how he did on school grounds so he wouldnt get in trouble -When the guy who raped me at age 16 asked me if i was ready and I said "I dont know, I think I am" but he was controlling and forceful and went on top of me and I hated it and was to scared to run away or tell him to get off me. -When the guy who molested me outside the bar did it where no one could see and theres not cameras so there was no proof and he apologized the next day. "The role you made me play, of the fool, no I dont like you" All of these people made me play the delusional crazy girl whose making shit up for attention " i don't like your perfect crime, How you laugh when you lie -When I was tired of staying silent for ten years so I finally decided to report something horrible happening to me , at the age of 22 sobbing in the car feeling worthless and like nothing but a sex toy, like my feelings dont matter because all Ill ever be is my body and nothing more, I picked up the phone and called the police, they told me that because I was talking to the guy in the bar before him molesting me he probably thought I wanted it so they told me I should accept his apology. They told me that because I cant remember because I was to intoxicated to remember clearly if he forcibly grabbed my hand and put it down his pants or if I put my hands down there it doesn't even count as sexual assault. Even tho I KNO I was screaming to get out. "You said the gun was mine, isn't cool, no, I don't like you"(oh!) They always tell you to report things but then when you do they dont do anything to help "But I got smarter, I got harder in the nick of time, Honey, I rose up from the dead, I do it all the time" -After being denied of reporting my most recent sexual assault I was in hysterics sobbing in my car realizing that anyone can do anything they want to me and feel like such a low life and absolutely nothing and get away with it. Snot and tears were everywhere and I was messaging my friends saying I cant live like this anymore, whats the point? When Im just going to be tossed from guy to guy simply for their pleasure while they take my dignity from me, when all I get is cat called and harassed and pressured to give myself to them I lifted my head up and realize that if 22 year old erica can't get justice then 11year -16 year old Erica can, NO MATTER what those abusers say to deny it or beat around the bush they WILL go fucking down because I was a MINOR. And theyre not getting out of it with that crime "I've got a list of names and yours is in red, underlined" -after realizing im gonna come for blood I picked up the phone and called up the police dept and said I'm reporting a sexual assault from 10 years ago and this was at midnight when the police showed up at my house to get a written statement and proceeded to list off every other time I was sexually assaulted . To which the officer accused me of "cop shopping" BITCH YEA. Because I didn't get what I wanted from the first one. BITCH YOU RIGHT IM GONNA KEEP REPORTING IT UNTIL SOMEONE LISTENS. "I check it once, then I check it twice, oh" -Did they really sexually assault me if I didnt scream "no" and "rape" and push and shove my way out ? Yes okay ! Just gotta double check I know what happened to me before others tell me over exaggerating! "Ooh, look what you made me Look what you made me do Look what you just made me Look what you just made me Ooh, look what you made me Look what you made me do Look what you just made me Look what you just made me do" -the next morning after listing off these names to the rude police officer I slept until noon, got up in my grown up boss ass outfit, got in my red buggy and zoomed to the YMCA with my sunglasses feeling like a bad ass scene from a movie, I catwalked into the YMCA to the chorus of LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO and I said I need to see a manager and report an incident then that manager came over and I told her everything that happened in that public pool to me and she was dumb founded because they have a "no tolerance policy" "I don't like your kingdom keys, they once belonged to me, you asked me for a place, locked me out then threw a feast (WHAT?!)" -Every single one of these manipulating sexual abusers have affected me in so many ways for the rest of my life. I went to couseling in high school and my recent new Doctor , those two told me that a lot of how I act, talk and think has to do with the after affects and symptoms of being sexually abused and that a portion in my FUCKING BRAIN paused on developing and has a fog over it and cant pay attention to things and I am easily forgetful and space out way more often than the normal person. I DONT LIKE HOW THESE SICK FUCKS HAVE THE KEYS TO THE PERSON I AM TODAY. I don't like that the like psychos who molested me when I was a pre teen took something from me I never had,finding myself at such a crucial age and my confidence I had as a kid. "The world moves on, another day, another drama, drama." While I've been in the deep state of depression and feeling empty I stand there and notice how everyone else lives goes on and theyre happy mean while Im dead on the inside "But not for me, not for me, all I think about is karma" -But while Im standing there feeling like everyone can just pretend like it never happened to me even when I told them , I cant help but think of the the sexual abusers getting put in jail or getting their lives taken away from them because they deserve that. "And then the world moves on, but one things for sure Maybe I got mine, but you all get yours" -Maybe for now my karma for trying to go out for fun was to be molested by a boy ll be punished for what you did. " I don't trust nobody and nobody trusts me be the actress starring in your bad dreams I dont trust nobody and nobody trusts me" -when the boy in high school spread all these awful rumors about me and showed the nudes I sent him (because he threatened me) to his classes, I lost friends at school , no one wanted to talk to me and in return I was left being fearful for the rest of my life that anyone could leave me at any moment. .. " I don't trust nobody" -I turned to all the people whose ever told me " I'll be there for you if you ever need anything "but when that something i need is to tell someone about how I was sexually assaulted they tell everything except things that will actually lift my soul up and make me feel better but no one cares enough to actually check up on me after hearing a horrible traumatic thing happening to me because I don't have the energy to come to people myself every day and come forward on how low I feel. I had people tell me to "just go home" when I'd call them up sobbing in my car and ask them if I could come over for them to comfort me. I've had people literally leave me because I confronted them about only sending me a sad face or "I'm sorry" and nothing more. LIKE. MAYBE SEND ME THE CLEAN SOEECH IDK. I'm desperate to hear some words of encouragement but no people HATE confrontation So much they'll just leave me instead of owning up and offering me anything more then a sad face through a text and their sympathy. "I'll be the actress starring in your bad dreams" -Im coming for revenge , I'm gonna make you pay for what you did to me so I'll be in your nightmares "I'm sorry the old Erica can't come to the phone right now, why? OH , cuz she's dead" It's been months since I was sexually assaulted last and the scared old fragile me is dead and I'm becoming this new fierce woman who protects myself. I have two open sexual assault cases open right now and I'm looking for mental health help and okay, I'm overly distracted , it's like there's this fog over my mind and I can't see or think clearly and it's affecting my every day life, I can't do well at work and when I'm in a normal conversation , and cry myself to sleep when I feel worthless. But I've found time can heal most anything. P.s Taylor I admire you so much for defending yourself during your sexual assault trial, I heard you got sassy.. I would have to... it's pretty annoying when you have to relive the incident numerous amount of times and people don't believe you so you have to say it over and over again until you just start to cry because you just want justice. My parents didn't report to the police about the guy who was my dads best friend touching me when I was 12 because they knew all the interviews and questions I would be asked and they didn't want me to relive it m, I was 12 and scared..... 10 years later I got the guts to do but only because i can't live like his anymore unneeded something to matter so i went for justice, I had a interview for a detective and police man in an office in the police station, it was video recorded and everything, they asked me about every little detail of all the 4 times he molested me, it was awful and I cried so much during the whole thing I told them how he took something away from me I never really had as a 12 year old.. my confidence and finding who I am. And saying that out loud made me cry even more but I felt like it was necessary to say so they could believe me and see how much he hurt me. They said it's going to take a long to time to be able to find the him and when they do I need to be prepared for him to deny it and if so we might go to court. I Do NOT have the money for that at all but taylor, I heard you are donating to foundations that help girls defend themselves and I might have to use that and in SO BEYOND THANKFUL. For those foundations and for you helping out. They thanked me for my time and as the detective walked me out to the the main door she said " maybe you'll be able to inspire other girls and let them know it's never to late to report it" and in that moment I felt so inspired... now I feel SO passionate about being a mental health advocate, I have my AA degree so I'll be going back to college and get my psychology degree. I'm gonna kick ass. P.s.s I'm sorry if this post triggered anyone with anything I talked about but I really wanted to let taylor know how I relate to her music P.s.s Taylor i am SO sorry for what you had to go through being sexually assaulted, it really does turn a light off on your personality and I wish I could just take all your pain away, you have been there for me through EVERYTHING and I just want to be there for you and hold your hands through every step . @taylorswift

#reputation #taylorswift #look what you made me do

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nilliad · 7 years ago

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CH 1. Keep Believing

Word count: 6,258 (I can’t believe it’s this long)

Summary: Based off of this post by @the-light-of-stars as well as this post, this is a remodel of Endless Summer’s Book 3 Chapter 1 (with some elements of 2). I’ve seen that a lot of people weren’t expecting so many off-task scenes/romance scenes in the first few chapters of the book. Some were expecting more action and drama so I am going to try my best to deliver what the people want!

IMPORTANT: This is still based off of elements in the 1st chapter meaning that there will be scenes that are word for word. The story and characters belong to Pixelberry.

Although this is technically a JakexMC (Jalen) fic, there are moments with Estela (and will eventually have future moments with) Sean and Quinn.

So an astronaut, a pirate, and an armored woman walk into a bar…

Wait a minute. That’s not technically right.

So an immortal being wearing a red spacesuit, a pirate, and Jalen run through a rainforest…

What a start of an awful joke. And that’s not even mentioning the blue shaman.

That is what it all felt to Jalen. It was one big, giant joke. None of this should be happening. Yet here they were, running from a time warping volcanic eruption that destroyed the world as they all know it. The only reason how she knew it was a real thing was the waves of heat that sent waves down throughout the rainforest, smothering her and the others in sweat.

The leaves crunched under the weight of Jalen’s armored boots and the shrieks of terrified birds took flight and the smokey haze that had begun to roll over the island further solidified the belief that yeah, this is all real and was the worst joke that Jalen had ever been a part of.

Her friends were missing. Hell, she was missing. After getting to know everyone briefly in the grand scheme of time, Jalen knew in her heart that the gang will be with her forever. And forever right now sucked without them.

Lava from Mount Atropo poured over its slopes, slowly swallowing everything in its path. With the sky blackened by the ash and fire from the volcano, there was one thing that the old shaman knew for sure. In despair, with fear deeply rooted in his voice, he croaked out, “Too late… It’s all too late. Raan’losti has come.”

Jalen wasn’t sure any amount of comforting could heal the shaman and bring him hope. Hope seemed to be so far now, just as far as her friends were.

Yvonne stepped in front of the Endless, gearing up for what appeared to be a face-off. Her eyes were narrowed in anger. “Arrete demon!” She hissed at the Endless. “You told me if I brought you Jalen-“ Yvonne pointed at Jalen, making her back up a few steps, “-you’d give me the Fountain!”

The Endless blinked at Yvonne, somehow keeping her emotions in check despite the world crumbling around them. “The legendary Fountain of Youth, yes.” She nodded her head. “It’s inside the mountain just as you and your fellow pirates believed, but not in the form you’d expect. In any case, I wouldn’t go back there now.”

Everyone turned their heads back to the mountain from which they escaped from. Yvonne clenched her jaw before she eased up, regaining her composure. If she wanted to say something (which she definitely did Jalen figured) Yvonne swallowed it down.

At the summit of the mountain, geysers of lava rocketed into the night sky, consuming the stars from thousands of years ago in ancient constellations no naked eye had ever seen before.

“This is no ordinary eruption,” said the Endless gravely. “This entire island is about to change… just as it did when Rourke tampered with the crux.”

In amidst of all of the chaos, Jalen was supposed to find her friends through a volcanic eruption. And the island itself… Jalen shuddered, but she also wondered if the Vaanti had ever seen such a catastrophe. To answer her question, Uqzhaal announced, “During there last eruption the Vaanti were pulled back hundreds of years��”

“And the world was turned into a primeval hellscape.” Jalen tried to imagine it. She focused on the environment all around her, keeping out the others by her side. She surveyed the area, picturing literally hell on Earth. The ground crackled and popped, streaks of red lava pounded against it to break free. Occasionally, it did, sending surges above the surface like geysers of death. Streaks of white and yellow lightning attacked the surface and a never-ending storm made darkness its ruler.

She blinked and everything was gone. Her mind took the best of her and left her completely dumbfounded. The world right now was like this- dying, turning itself inside and out. It only made Jalen sicker. “Is this going to send everything further into the past?”

Jalen glanced over to the Endless for an answer only she could answer. “There’s no way to know how far-reaching the effect will be yet.” The Endless turned away from the others, making Jalen frown. This was who she was going to eventually become?

Yvonne, silent for the last few minutes, spoke with her voice soft. She approached the Endless, her hand hovering over the spacesuit’s shoulder. Yvonne decided not to. “So you’re saying the Fountain is lost?”

“What you seek can be found to the east,” the Endless replied over her shoulder. “There is another temple on the coast. A place once known as No’ox Naj. Your brother, Patrice-“

A gout of lava crashed onto the nearby slopes. It converged with a stream of molten rock and rapidly flooded down toward the group.

Doubt bubbled up inside Jalen. She shook her head. “Oh god… I don’t think we’re gone survive this.” Instinctively, she backed up further, watching the lava as she moved as if it would lash out at her.

The Endless turned to Jalen with her eyes fueled with intensity. “Listen to me.” Jalen forced herself to pull her eyes off of the lava to stare back at the Endless. “You’re the miracle I’ve waited for. You’re the only one who could keep everyone safe. I need you to recover the Island’s Heart from Rourke. With it, we can preserve La Huerta and protect our friends. Do you understand?”

“I… I-“

Forcibly, the Endless yelled, “Jalen, do you understand?!”

She swallowed, unsure what to make of this plan. All that the Heart has done for her friends was to control Quinn and show them the death of their world, how could it possibly redeem itself? But, despite her doubts, she weakly said “Yes”.

“Good.” The Endless smiled. “Stand back.” She lifted her helmet over her head and secured it on as Jalen and the others took a few paces back. The Endless lifted her arms like she was balancing on a tightrope as she approached the pool of lava. Jalen clamped her mouth, her eyes widening as the Endless struggled to form words. “Go… Find everyone! Find… the Island’s Heart!” And she vanished beneath the rising blaze.

Jalen wasn’t sure if she just witnessed her own death or if the Endless was still alive. She reached out toward her until Yvonne grabbed her wrist, yanking her away. “Laisse tomber! We must go!” Together, the three of them ran through the rainforest, ducking under low branches and jumping over exposed roots.

They reached the summit of a hill where Jalen finally turned around to see the base of the Mountains surrounded by lava.

“We should be safe up here,” Uqzhaal heaved.

He spoke too soon. You could hear it before you could see it. The thunder before the lightning. It was a booming sound, it could have shaken the Earth with its force. Then, the lightning. Several flashes light up the smoky sky, striking the Earth at arbitrary locations.

Gawking up at the sky, Yvonne mumbled, “A storm?”

Uqzhaal too peered up. “Not a natural one…”

Floating orbs of energy appeared high above, exploding into wild arcs of lightning, giving Jalen deja vu from the very first day. The storm. “It’s happening again,” she said with terrified certainty, “just like when we flew in!”

The lightning zapped into the rainforest, grabbing ahold of the surrounding foliage, causing it to ignite. Yvonne shouted a curse in French, bouncing up in surprise as she did so. Uqzhaal began to backpedal from the peak of the hill. “No longer safe! We must move, quickly!”

They took off from the hilltop, Jalen leading them in a fierce effort to get to safety. There was a crackle of splintering wood and a massive tree trunk began to fall toward her. She dived out of the way into the smoking brush. As the tree crashed down, a cloud of sparks and thick smoke billowed out, suffocating her. Jalen coughed roughly, squeezing her eyes shut to keep them from burning. Jalen rolled over, blind, as she crawled her way out of the smoke. After a few moments, she was pulled up from the ground. Yvonne supported her with an arm wrapped around her waist. While squeezing one eye shut and gritting her teeth, Yvonne said, “We’ve got to… keep moving!”

“Where’s Uqzhaal? He was right behind us…”

“On the other side of the tree after it fell. We must hope that he can make it out on his own, he knows the land.”

Together, they moved in unison, helping the other walk further into the forest. In front of them, a series of blue flashes fill the air. Rays of bright blue light streamed from a glowing rift hovering in mid-air. Jalen wasn’t sure what to make of it. “It’s… like a window,” awed Yvonne. “I see a place on the other side.”

Jalen peered up to Yvonne's eyes and they had a mental agreement. “Ah, screw it,” grumbled Jalen as they stepped through the rift. The world shifted around them to be a dusty roomed crammed with furniture and half-packed wooden crates.

“Where do you suppose we are?” asked Yvonne as she pulled away from Jalen to wander through the room.

Jalen went to the table in front of her. She pulled out the chair and sunk into the seat. “No idea,” she sighed, glancing around. “‘When’ might be an even better question.” She bent down from her chair to pick up a crate. Wiping the dust away from the top, it read:

Property of Joseph’s Cantina, British Colony of La Huerta

“It’s got a bunch of old bottles inside. This must’ve been some kind of bar,” she announced, lifting the crate on top of the table. So La Huerta was part of the British Colony, that would be somewhere between the 1600s and the 1700s. Yvonne must have also been part of that time, considering she was a French pirate in the Caribbean when piracy was at its high.

Eyeing the contents of the crate, Yvonne selected a wine bottle. She pulled it out of the crate. She unsheathed her dagger and prepared to pop out the cork.

Jalen waved her hands. “Wait a minute. You can’t just take that!”

She winked at Jalen. “I’m a customer, cheri. And more importantly, I’m a pirate!” She popped the cork with a smirk. Then, she grabbed two glasses and blew out any dust from the glasses before she poured the wine into each one. “Drink with me?”

Jalen pressed her lips before she took a glass and takes a sip from the dark, velvety liquid. She lifted a brow. “It’s not bad.”

“Oui,” Yvonne gulped down her drink in seconds. “Hits the spot.”

Over Jalen’s shoulder, she could still see the rift that would lead back to la Huerta. She wanted to keep her eye on it in case it randomly decided to close and leave her and Yvonne stranded in another time. But the rift wasn’t moving and Jalen didn’t want to move either. She whipped her head back around and caught Yvonne’s eye. “So… why does your brother need the Fountain of Youth?”

Yvonne pouted, casting her gaze on the table, avoiding Jalen’s. “Ah. I’d hoped you’d be more charming to drink with.”

"I think we at least need to talk about the fact that you were trying to trade me for knowledge about it.”

“Non… I would never trade you. Truly.” Yvonne shut her mouth when she saw how unconvinced Jalen looked. She rolled her eyes and poured herself another glass to drink from before she answered. “The red demon told me you were in danger and where to find you.”

Jalen guessed, “And promised to give you the Fountain when we returned together?”

Yvonne nodded. She gulped down the rest of her wine and wiped her mouth with her sleeve. “Jalen… you’re clever at making difficult choices, oui?”

She shrugged, but she couldn’t resist a small smile. “I mean, I guess I’ve made it this far.” Her smile drained when she realized that she made it this far with her friends. She needed them back. She didn’t think she could go any farther than this without them keeping her sane.

Yvonne wasn’t reading her innermost thoughts. She moved on. “If you were forced to decide between following your dream or not following it and taking care of someone you care about, which would you choose?”

“That’s tough.” She tried to make sense of the question, but only one face showed up in her mind. Diego, her best friend, the person she loved the most. Jalen couldn’t bear the thought of not being there, sharing her dream without Diego by her side. “I’d take care of my loved ones,” she decided. “My friends are everything to me.”

“Joi sentiment. If I’d held that same belief, perhaps Patrice would have…” Her gaze went straight through Jalen, her mind lost in her own thoughts. She blinked and suddenly, she was rearing to go. She bounced back up to her feet with a clap of her hands. “Ah, well, it is a matter for another time.” She glanced over at the rift where the silver of visible rainforest is dark and smoky, indicating that the fire had died down. “We should return.”

Jalen finished off the rest of her wine and she set her glass on the table. Picking herself up she cracked her knuckles and tried to shake loose the nerves. “Okay, let’s go.” Jalen walked out through the tear with Yvonne close behind.

The ground is covered with writhing smoke. The lava fissures still emit a dull glow, but the surrounding brush appeared to have stopped burning. Finally, there was a calm to the storm, allowing for Jalen to finally say it: “We’re going to find everyone. Right now.”

“Oui, but wouldn’t you think that we should get to safety-?”

“We have to get them to safety. C’mon.” Jalen began to trudge forward, deeper into the rainforest with her hands shaking. She clenched her fists to stop the shaking and to stop the fear from taking her over. She’ll find them… she would.

After a half-hour of wandering through the rainforest, they heard ruffling of the brush. Voices amongst them. Jalen inched closer to the sound when Yvonne pulled her arm, spinning her back. Yvonne pressed her finger to her own lips and lifted her cutlass sword, meaning for them to be careful. Jalen nodded, slightly embarrassed that she was being so reckless. They ducked behind another brush and waited.

“…been three days since they crashed the helicopter, they could be anywhere on the island right now.” Jalen didn’t recognize the voice. She kept low and held her breath as she tried to watch the strangers. But three days didn’t sound remotely right. It was only hours ago...

They pushed through the foliage, wearing the Arachnid suits with guns low in their hands. The leader, wearing a blue-tinted suit tapped on the side of their helmet, making a light flicker on. They motioned for the others to follow their example. “I don’t care when they landed,” the leader said, “we’re getting paid to find them and bring ‘em back to Lundgren. So we do our job and we get off of this godforsaken island. Got it?”

The other soldiers saluted to their leader as a response.

A light tickle paraded down on Jalen’s hand. She turned her head to see a massive spider crawling up her arm. Her mouth opened to shriek but she quickly swallowed it back down with the help of her other hand covering her mouth. The movement alone forced rustling from the brush she and Yvonne hid against.

“You heard that?” one of the soldiers broke rank, slowly inching toward Jalen and Yvonne.

Out of the corner of her eye, the tip of Yvonne’s blade reflected the moonlight, illuminating the spider on Jalen’s wrist. She grabbed the spider, feeling the coolness from its metal body. Its legs were slender like needles and where the head should be was a tiny red camera. Clenching her fist, the spider broke and crumpled to the soil.

“5038! Get back in formation, now!” The soldier wasn’t too far off from where Jalen and Yvonne hid, but he was forced to retreat back to the others. As they walked away, their leader barked more orders, more than likely compromising their own goal to find the catalysts.

Yvonne sighed and she used her sword to push herself up from the ground. She offered her hand for Jalen to take. “Great, they have robotic animals with cameras as if the guns weren’t enough.” Jalen made sure she stomped on the mechanical spider, making sure her anger was properly exerted. “We have to get out of here, they might know where we are.”

“D’accord.”

They carried on for what seemed like hours before they found the shoreline of a wide, moonlit cove. Pillars of natural rock rose from the sea like fingers grasping for the stars. The clearing allowed for Jalen to take a grand look around. Ever since the encounter with the mechanical spider, she felt more on edge with the thought of someone watching her and her friends. She couldn’t shake the eyes off of her. She spun around, eyeing the trees behind them. Just when she thought she might have seen something, Yvonne cried out in French.

She jabbed her finger at a wreckage further along the beach. She spoke too fast for Jalen to understand (even though she doesn’t know French at all). Then, Jalen realized that Yvonne had never seen a helicopter. And it was the helicopter that she fell from…

Jalen ignored Yvonne and eased closer to the wreckage. Images of Jake’s horrified face as Jalen fell out of the helicopter flashed in her mind. She reached out, touching the cold body of the copter, wishing it was Jake’s hand that she had missed grasping before the fall. Shutting her eyes and biting her lip, Jalen pressed her head to the helicopter and hoped that her worst fears weren’t true.

The helicopter was turned on its side, it was somehow missing a few of its blades. The cockpit was caved in and the tail bent. Jalen forced open the door and let out a breath. No one. She was never more relieved not to see anyone. At least they didn’t die in the helicopter.

Then she noticed the blood on one of the seats. There was glass from the windows broken on the inside. Some shards were stained.

“There’s nothing here,” croaked Jalen. She turned away from the wreckage and stepped up to Yvonne.

“Why don’t we take shelter for the night, eh?” she offered, making Jalen shake her head.

“I’m not quitting here. They are still somewhere…” Jalen looked up to the tree line once more, hoping to find answers from it. When nothing magically came to her, she trudged back through the rainforest again. Deeper and deeper they went, careful to be as silent as they could if they were unfortunate enough to see any more Arachnid soldiers. Finally, they saw a light. Soon, one light turned into dozens.

Jalen frowned, knowing what it was before she got to the perimeter. The Arachnids had set up an operation camp in the middle of the rainforest with sturdy tents, boxes of supplies and cars in their wake.

Just when Jalen turned to leave, she heard his voice. “Let him go!” Sean yelled at the top of his lungs. He was shoved by Fiddler with his hands bound behind his back by rope. She pushed him on the ground with her boot on the side of his cheek in the middle of the camp. Fiddler grinned down at him, sadistic. Even then, Sean did not relent. “He needs medical help! Let me help him!”

“And why the hell would a football star know how to stitch up that kind of wound, huh?” Fiddler rolled her eyes.

Jalen knew why. She saw that Sean was also thinking of the same person, Michelle. His face contorted in a silent sadness before Lundgren appeared. His cigar burnt in the moonlight. “Get the other one,” he grunted.

One of the other lieutenants, Mouse, yanked Craig forward by his arm. Craig howled in pain, his teeth flashing in a snarl. There was a wrap around his arm, blood soaking through it. Mouse forced him to his knees across from Sean. When Craig went down, he blinked hard, his body wavering. He was unstable.

Bored, Fiddler sighed, “Why can’t we just kill them now?”

“Because we need Wolf to see it,” Lundgren’s mouth pulled into a cruel smile. “He has to see them all.”

Jalen backed away from the foliage that gave her cover. Her head spun, trying to think of a way to bust Sean and Craig out of there.

“Jalen!” whispered Yvonne. She dragged Jalen away from the perimeter of the camp, deeper in the rainforest. They both stopped short when rustling came in front of them. Yvonne held up her cutlass, ready for a fight and Jalen went for the knife stashed out of sight from her Andromeda armor, holding it unsteady.

A spearhead impacted the ground several meters in front of them. Jalen and Yvonne exchanged nervous glances before someone walked through the foliage. Estela pushed the giant leaves out of the way with a relieved grin on her face. “I knew it was you.”

“So was that spear meant for me then?”

Estela glanced down at the spear and blushed. “I-I just…stuck it in the ground. I wasn’t trying to hit-“

“Katniss, why didn’t you bother to wake me up? It’s my shift…” Jake swallowed his words once he appeared beside Estela and noticed Yvonne and Jalen standing right in front of them- solid. Here. Just a few paces away. His shoulders slumped as if a weight had been lifted off of him.

Jalen tucked away her knife. They met halfway, silly grins on their faces as they embraced each other in a tight, desperate hug. Jake wrapped his arms around Jalen’s waist and swung her around in a circle, making her laugh in pure joy. He’s alive. Estela’s alive. Sean and Craig too- it’s a start at least.

Estela went over to Yvonne, who dramatically leaned onto her for support after she sheathed her sword. “Oh cher,” Yvonne moaned, “my feet! We’ve been combing the forest all night…” Estela was forced to hold onto her so the pirate wouldn’t collapse onto the ground. She was considering letting her fall but… she was with Jalen. Yvonne must have helped her.

Estela called out, anxious to get back to their little campsite and out of the rainforest. “What’s the holdup, guys?” She glanced over her shoulder, her eyes widening.

Jalen and Jake had been busy. Jake still had her in his arms lifted off of the ground. She cupped his cheeks as they kissed. It was the type of kiss you’d only experience once in a lifetime. The only one that mattered: the reunited kiss that meant that they would never be separated again. They both shook in fear that they might get pulled away from each other…

Estela felt like she was violating their personal space. She turned away, her face a furious shade of red and tried to focus on getting Yvonne back to her own feet.

“Oh my god, why didn’t you say I was hurting you?!” Jalen cried. Estela figured now would be a good time to look. The couple was inches apart, their heads bowed against each other while Jalen gently felt Jake’s sides as he repressed a wince. When he finally did, Jalen knew she found the spot. “Here?” she whispered.

“It’s fine,” he shrugged off the matter. “Glass cut me when we went down. Besides, seeing you for the first time after all of this? Worth the pain.”

She sighed, “Shut up” with a shake of her head. It was nothing Jalen could do to fix that herself. She glanced over to Estela, who regarded her with a dignified nod. But that wasn’t enough. No. Jalen pulled away from Jake to engulf Estela in the biggest hug, squeezing her to remind Estela that she had missed her. Jalen pressed her lips to Estela’s cheek and gave her a smile. “I’m so happy to see you.”

Estela knew she was blushing really hard now. “I’ve missed you too,” she said, “I thought that you might’ve died.”

“Well, I’m glad we both didn’t.” Jalen squeezed her one more time before she backed away and eyed Yvonne. “Are you going to be good?”

Yvonne shrugged. “Once I rest. But no hugs, kisses, and tears of joy pour moi?”   Both Jake and Estela rolled their eyes.

Estela pulled her spear from the ground and led everyone where she and Jake had come from. Yvonne trailed a step beside her, trying to keep the conversation light and entertaining while Jake and Jalen stayed back, holding hands. Jalen lifted their intertwined hands together and kissed his knuckles. “We are going to find everyone and make sure Michelle checks you out just in case.”

It made her sad to think of Michelle again. She remembered the devastated look on Sean’s face from earlier. Somehow, they would have to break them out of the Arachnid camp and she wasn’t sure how. She also wasn’t sure if Jake and Estela even knew about it.

“Yes ma’am,” he replied, letting their arms fall back into their natural swing.

Estela pulled apart some foliage and pushed aside hanging vines. She presented a cave on the side of one of the mountains. As everyone went through, she held it open before she closed it after herself. Inside, there was a fire that was still burning, their backpacks and more giant leaves that were makeshift comforters. “Welcome to the humble abode a la Montoya y McKenzie.”

They gathered around the fire, Yvonne especially. She held out her hands and rubbed them. Jalen noticed the callouses imprinted on her palms.

The fire gave everyone a warm glow, its shimmering brightness made her feel relaxed after this entire ordeal. The cackling of the flames was a sound that settled the calm.

Jalen had pieced off her armor, leaving her in her tank and her camouflage pants. With the light of the flame, she could focus in on her friends. Estela’s face was smudged with dirt. Her sweatshirt was torn, honestly falling apart but she didn’t take it off. Her hair was knotted in its ponytail. Jake was no better. He had lifted up his shirt for Jalen to take a look at his laceration which was pinned down by a long leaf. Jake’s shirt where he was cut was torn. He had bags under his eyes (obviously he didn’t sleep much on off shift), and his blue jeans were muddied and wet at the bottom.

“So what happened after…” Jalen couldn’t meet Jake’s eyes. “…after I went down?”

“Jake crashed the helicopter,” Estela said, plopping a berry in her mouth. “And Craig is right, I am never flying with you again.”

If Jake was hurt by that statement, he didn’t show it. “Craig and I got the worst of it. Shard got impaled in his arm and we were looking for some medical supplies to fix that up.”

“He passed out from blood loss when he was with Sean and so Sean went off on his own to find something or someone to help,” Estela mumbled under her breath, “Ese idiota.��

“While Katniss was here fixing me up, the Arachnids found them and took them back to their camp.” Jake bit his lip, focusing in on the fire. “We wanted to look for you and Zahra first, but obviously we didn’t get very far because of me and Craig. And Estela and I have been thinking of a plan to bust them out when you showed up.”

Estela shook her head. “We took too long. They aren’t going to last- Craig won’t.”

“We’ll find them, Trinity. Just relax,” Jake offered.

She gritted her teeth as she glared at Jake from across the campfire. The flames added a sense of fury to her dark eyes, making her more intimidating than she already was. “Use my name or don’t speak to me again.”

Her forceful words were like a slap in Jake’s face, leaving him in shock. Beside her, Jalen tried to reach out to Estela, saying her name as she did so. Estela turned away from Jalen, refusing to be comforted. Sadly she said, “We were idiots to think we could all make it through this together. Honestly… I doubt anyone is getting out of this alive.”

After being quiet for so long, Jalen was surprised to hear Yvonne’s voice. How Yvonne was about to weave in and out of conversations like a shadow, making you forget about her, was something that Jalen didn’t understand. Especially since Yvonne was such a flamboyant person. “Ah, pardonnez-moi… but do you happen to see something outside?” She pointed at the cave’s entrance where the green of the environment glowed in the moonlight.

“More leaves?” Jake lifted his brow.

Jalen was close to giving up squinting at whatever Yvonne was trying to hint at when she finally noticed it. “Is it just me or is it phasing through the leaves?” It definitely wasn’t just her, seeing the look of confusion on their faces.

A strange, indistinct figure faded through the opening of the cave. It captured the moonlight from outside, illuminating it in a soft glow. The figure was faceless but shaped like a human being. When it drew closer to everyone, Jalen felt a chill down her back. Green light undulates within a translucent, ghostly body.

Jake jumped in his spot. “Holy-“

“What on Earth?” mumbled Jalen.

“Oh, non, non, non! Yvonne does not do ghosts!” She stumbled to her feet and took off deeper in the cave.  

Estella finally turned to look at the figure. Her eyes widened. She was rendered unable to form a coherent sentence. She stared up at it as it loomed over her, seeming to study her grief-stricken face. “What is this? W-what’s happening?” she stuttered.

It raised a hand toward her, offering something. A small object was partially visible in its luminous grasp.

She gasped, “Is that… How did you get that?”

Jalen tried to see what the ghost-like figure was holding in its hand. “What is it? What does it have?”

Estela met her gaze. Jalen had never seen Estela so rattled before. “A photo I kept at home in San Trobida. It’s me, my mother, and Tio Nicolas…” Her shoulders fell. “It can’t be real. Everything out there is burned to cinders.” She stared at the spectral entity fearfully, unable to reach out to it. The light within its body faltered, turning grey and black.

In desperation, the figure turned and extended the photo in its hand to Jalen. The picture was slowly darkening at the edges. It seemed to be ready to burst into flames. Tentatively, Jalen reached out and took the salvaged photo from the entity. As she grasped the photograph, the figure disappeared.

Jake glanced all around. “Where the hell did that thing go?”

Jalen went to hand the photo to Estela, and the very moment she touched it, everything is suddenly awash with light. The haze cleared, and Jalen stood in a cozy, yet sparsely decorated room. A man with tied back grey hair leaned over a desk, trying to fix an old typewriter. “Come on, you tonto…” He hit the side of the typewriter in frustration. The machine emitted a sad clang as its keys click back into place.

He sat down and he prepared himself to resume typing. After a moment of hesitation, he sighed. “Now I’ve forgotten where I was…”

There was a knock at the door. Estela entered the room carrying a large box.

“Ha. And then there’s my niece who thinks she can fix everything with her fancy college degree!” He welcomed her in with a kiss on her cheek.

“Hola, Tio Nicolas. I have something for you.” Nicolas eyed the box which bore the image of a desktop computer. Estela explained how much this would be better than the old typewriter he had been using to write his memoirs. Although he was hesitant to accept the gift because it might be traced, Estela reassured him that his revolutions would not be compromised if he only wrote his memoirs on it.

Together, they worked on getting the box open. “You never give up,” he said, lost in thought. “Just like your mother.” He smiled at her wistfully. “I should call you Livita.”

Estela placed a large bundle of packing material in his hands. “I’m not a little girl anyone, Tio,” she sighed.

“No, you’re not. She’d be very proud to see you now. All grown up and on your way to great things.” He named a couple of big cities, sure of himself that she would love a different lifestyle than what she had here but Estela disagreed. She assured him that her future would be here, where she could be able to raise a family on her own. The entire scene melted Jalen’s heart but she felt like it wasn’t her place to watch.

Soon after, the scene flooded away with another burst of intense light. Jalen was back in the cave. Estela was still holding the photo in dumbstruck awe. Tears streamed down her face. She met Jalen’s eyes and Jalen knew that they both saw the same thing. A future, perhaps, if they all survive this. Something to hold onto, something to hope for, something they can fight for.

Jake stared at them both. “You two okay? You kind of… zoned out. I’ve hit you both twice with this stick.” He waved around a small twig in front of the fire.

Estela, blinked her eyes to free herself from the tears. “I… was that… how…?” 

“I think,” Jalen said with more certainty than she led on, “we’re seeing the future. A future that could’ve been.” She figured if she couldn’t get Estela to believe in this, she couldn’t get Estela at all. She would be gone, consumed with despair.

She agreed, nodded her head without a doubt. Estela watched the fire, how it crawled upward to the sky to disperse in the air. Its color leaving a warm, comforting glow to everyone. Estela twisted herself in her spot and leaned over to Jalen to embrace her in a tight hug. Jalen wrapped her arms around Estela,, rubbing her hand down Estela’s arm. “Shh. It’s okay.”

“I’d forgotten how much I miss my home.” Estela lifted the photograph behind Jalen’s shoulder, gazing into it. “When I was little, all I wanted was to have a family one day…” She pulled herself back, inhaling deeply. She glanced at Jake (who is very confused but is doing a great job of keeping his mouth shut) and then back to Jalen. With a new resolution in her, she said, “We’re going to fix this.”

Jake broke his silence vow with a reassuring smile. “Damn right we are.”

“No more anger. No more despair. We owe it to ourselves to fight for the future with all we’ve got.” She tossed a lone branch into the fire, adding more flames to rise higher. She watched the flames before she met Jalen’s and Jake’s gaze once more. “I think maybe I… I just needed to see it to keep believing in it.”

“Now that’s the Estela I know.” No nickname. Jalen was relieved that Jake had listened to Estela earlier about the name calling. Even though Jake meant it in a playful manner (unless you’re Rourke), she could understand how pissed you could get from it. Her? Jalen didn’t think she would accept her own ridiculous nickname. She gave him one back just out of spite and never regretted it.

Estela shook her head. “It’s Katniss, cabron.”

Jake laughed.

Jalen fell in love with this moment. She never wanted to see it end. But sadly, they had a more pressing issue at the moment: Sean and Craig, busting them out of the Arachnid camp. “Okay, you guys said you were forming a plan to get the guys out? Let’s hear it.”

Fun fact: in my version of Endless Summer, I headcanon everyone referring to Jake and Jalen as JJ/J&J behind their backs

#endless summer #playchoices #choices stories you play #jake mckenzie #jakexmc #estela montoya #sean gayle #michelle nguyen #diego ortiz soto #craig hsiao #pixelberry #es

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waltsluckyrabbit · 7 years ago

Text

[Ch. 1] - Epic Mickey 3: Sealed in Ink

(a collab by waltsluckyrabbit and 09alih [on DeviantART])

“I don’t get it, Ortensia,” Oswald muttered as he leaned against a wall. “I can tell something’s bugging him and I’m tryin’ to help, but every time I bring it up, he acts like I’m threatenin’ to punch him in the nose. And frankly, I’m gettin’ close.”

Ortensia smiled at him as she herded a group of bunny children outside to play. She knew he was just concerned, even if he wouldn’t admit it. “Now, Oswald, I don’t think you’ll have to do that. Why don’t you just ask outright?”

The rabbit looked up in surprise. “Huh?”

Ortensia rolled her eyes. Of course he wouldn’t have thought of that. “Ask him outright what’s bothering him. If I know Mickey, he’ll admit it eventually.”

Oswald looked at her, then smacked his head. “Why didn’t I think of that?”

Ortensia giggled and playfully tugged his ear. “Because you’re too macho, hunny bunny,” she purred.

Oswald blushed a little and chuckled as she gave his cheek a kiss. “Thanks, hon.”

“My pleasure,” Ortensia giggled. “I’ll see you later.”

Oswald couldn’t help smiling as he headed toward Mickey’s house. How had he ever survived without her?

When he got to the door, he knocked a few times. “Hey, Mickey! You there?” He waited, tapping his foot, but no one answered. Letting out an impatient huff, he knocked again. “I haven’t got all day, ya know!” Still no answer. Finally, Oswald opened the door and stepped inside. “Mick?”

Across the room, the phone chimed in greeting. “No one home! Want to leave a message?”

Oswald smiled. “That’s okay. Ya know where he is?”

The phone sighed. “He hasn’t been back since this morning. No one to talk to.”

Oswald frowned in thought. “Huh… okay, thanks.” Seeing the phone’s sulking look, he smiled and patted its head. “If ya want someone to talk to, we can send some of the kids over.”

The phone stiffened in alarm, then put on a casual look. “Oh, thanks, but that’s fine! I think I, uh… I’ve got some calls to make, anyway…”

Oswald smirked and headed back out. “Alright, take it easy.”

After jumping through the projector to Mean Street, Oswald saw Gus talking to Markus near the Penny Arcade. He hopped off the platform and walked over.

“Hey Markus, Gus,” he said. “Is Mickey still around here? I was lookin’ for…” He dropped off when he noticed the gremlins’ concerned looks.

“Not anymore,” Markus said. “He was here, but he left about a half hour ago. Last I saw, he was heading toward the Underground.”

Oswald scratched his head. “That’s weird… he should’ve been in OsTown. Thanks, Markus.”

As him and Gus walked toward the entrance to the Underground, Oswald looked over at the gremlin. “So, what were you talking about? Is somethin’ wrong?”

Gus shook his head, still frowning. “Not exactly, it’s just… has something about Mickey seemed, well, odd lately?”

Oswald stared at him in surprise. “It’s not just me?” he asked. Gus shook his head. “That’s actually what I’m lookin’ for him about,” Oswald said as they entered the tunnel. “So I can—”

He stopped in his tracks; something was lying on the ground in the corridor ahead. Oswald squinted, then his eyes snapped wide open as he realized what, or rather who, it was. “Mickey!” He ran over with Gus close behind and knelt down.

Mickey lay still on his back, eyes closed. He was breathing in slow, heavy breaths like he was hurt, but there was no sign of any injuries. Oswald noticed something in his hand and frowned. Why did he have the brush out?

“What happened?” Gus exclaimed, more to himself than anyone else.

Oswald shook the mouse. "Mickey? Hey, Mickey! Wake up!" Just then, he saw something that made his stomach twist. Small black drops were detaching from the mouse’s body, floating up into the air before disappearing. He looked up at Gus to see the same shock on his face. Shaking it off, Oswald took one of Mickey’s arms and hoisted him upright. “Gus, give me a hand! We gotta get him to the Doc!”

Gus immediately flew over and helped Oswald lift Mickey up. Working together, they carried him out of the Underground and to the new lab the Mad Doctor had set up on Mean Street.

“Doc!” Oswald called out. “We need your help! Somethin’s wrong with Mickey!”

The Mad Doctor looked up from the sparking wires he was about to cross. “Something wrong, you say?”

“Yeah, we found him like this in the Underground and he’s not waking up!” Oswald said.

The Doctor abandoned his project and hurried over for a closer look. He frowned when he noticed the drops and caught one, rubbing it between his gloved fingers. “Hmm… I see…” He nodded. “Put him on the table, quickly.”

Oswald and Gus set Mickey down on the lab table and waited as the Mad Doctor began doing routine checkups, listening to his heartbeat and breathing, then pulling back an eyelid to check his eyes. After that, he turned and punched a button on a nearby control panel. A device on the ceiling whirred to life and a large machine with an eye on the bottom lowered from it. The Mad Doctor grabbed the handles on its sides and pulled so it was positioned over Mickey.

Oswald frowned. “Uh, Doc?”

The Mad Doctor gave no sign of hearing as he looked through the viewport on the machine, muttering to himself as the eye clicked and whirred. Gus glanced at Oswald, who shrugged. Finally, the Doctor pressed the button again and the device whirred back up to the ceiling. His face was unreadable as he lifted Mickey off the table and placed him on one of the small cots against the wall.

“So, what’s goin’ on?” Oswald asked, tapping his foot with impatience.

“It’s very strange, my friends… very strange indeed.”

Oswald resisted the urge to roll his eyes; the Doc had finally stopped singing everything, but he still had a flair for drama.

“As you may have suspected, the Blot inside him has reawakened.”

Oswald stared in disbelief. “But… how? And why’s he so out of it?”

Gus frowned with worry and nodded at the rabbit’s words. “I saw the effects after he absorbed it. They never got this extreme.”

The Mad Doctor frowned and tugged at a glove. “How it happened, I may be able to explain. Dark feelings like anger and sadness were very strong influences on the Blot. In large enough quantities, they certainly would have been enough to reawaken a smaller part. Why it happened… that, my friends, is unclear.”

Oswald looked at Mickey, a realization coming to him as he considered their recent conversations. “I think I know,” he said quietly. “Missing people you love… well, that’s about the darkest feeling there is.”

Gus glanced at Oswald in surprise, then let out a heavy sigh as he rubbed his neck. “I should’ve known. Ever since I told him about the device… but how did he get like this? It isn’t even the whole Blot, and…”

“Ah, and that, my friends, brings us to the real mystery,” the Mad Doctor said. “The reawakening wasn’t what caused his current condition.”

Gus and Oswald glanced at each other in confusion before the Doctor continued.

“A portion of the Blot inside him seems to have been…” He paused, then narrowed his eyes. “Forcibly removed.”

Oswald felt his jaw go slack as he stared at the Mad Doctor. “Ya mean... somethin’ sucked it out of him?”

The Mad Doctor drooped and sighed; it sounded nowhere near as dramatic put that way. “…In layman’s terms.”

Oswald looked at Mickey again, his ears twitching with unease. “So, is he gonna be all right?”

The Mad Doctor nodded, adjusting his gloves. “Fortunately, it hasn’t caused serious damage. He simply needs time to recover.”

Oswald let out a sigh of relief, but Gus still looked worried. “Will he wake up soon?”

The Mad Doctor nodded. “It shouldn’t be much longer.”

As if to prove his point, a faint groan came from the cot. The small group turned to see Mickey slowly lift a hand to his head. “Unh… wh-… what…”

Relieved, Oswald and Gus hurried over to his side. Mickey blinked, looking groggy and confused. “Wh-… Oswald? Gus?” He looked around with dazed eyes. “Where am I?”

“The Mad Doc’s lab,” Oswald replied.

“We found you collapsed in the Underground,” Gus added. “You had us worried for a while.”

“Oh… sorry…” Mickey murmured.

Gus smiled and patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry about it now. Are you all right?”

Mickey winced and grunted as he sat up and touched his chest. “Y-Yeah, I guess. But I…” Just then, a few small drops of ink rose from his arm. He froze, staring at it.

“That ol’ Blot inside ya’s actin’ up,” Oswald said.

Mickey’s face went blank with shock. Apparently, he’d assumed it was gone, too. “What?”

Oswald glanced at Gus, who looked just as uneasy. Before either could figure out the best way to explain, the Mad Doctor stepped up and cleared his throat.

“I’m afraid it was only dormant, still feeding on your negative emotions. It seems they were strong enough to reawaken it…”

Noticing the guilt filling Mickey’s face, Gus and Oswald glared at the Mad Doctor, who realized his lack of tact and stuttered. “Er… o-of course, it was bound to happen sooner or later. And I very much doubt it could have been avoided.”

Oswald nodded. “Mick… ya do know ya can talk to us, right?”

Mickey looked at him in surprise, then at Gus, who nodded. Shame quickly replaced it as he looked away. After a moment, he let out a heavy sigh and spoke. “I didn’t mean for this to happen again. I tried not to, but… I just miss everyone so much. And… Minnie…” Tears filled his eyes and he closed them. His voice began breaking as he continued. “I… I might never see her again. I can’t even tell her I’m okay, know if she’s okay…” He trailed off, letting out a soft whimper as he buried his face in his hands. He looked so heartbroken that even the Mad Doctor had to blow his nose.

“Mick, why didn’t ya just say so?” Oswald said as he put a hand on Mickey’s shoulder. “I’ll make sure you find a way home, promise.”

Mickey slowly looked up, then smiled a little. “Thanks, Os.” He glanced back down at his feet. “I guess I was afraid that… I was being selfish.”

Oswald shook his head. “Nah, Mick. There’s way more selfish things than that.” Oswald’s voice then lowered to a near-inaudible volume, as if voicing an unconscious thought. “Hah… I would know.”

Mickey seemed like he was about to say something when Gus suddenly hovered up to him, looking concerned.

“I’m afraid there’s something else,” the gremlin said. “The Mad Doctor says that some of the Blot in you was… well, pulled out.”

The Doctor nodded, stroking his beard. “Indeed, indeed… and judging from the circumstances, it was not by something or someone very friendly.”

Mickey’s eyes grew wide as he listened, raising a hand to his chest again. “Pulled out…” he muttered, a distant frown on his face.

Oswald glanced over at the Mad Doctor. “Wait, but shouldn’t gettin’ that inky mess outta him be a good thing?”

The Mad Doctor pulled down a small screen and turned it on. A white outline of the mouse’s body appeared on the blue backdrop, with a black blob floating near it. “If done the correct way, yes.”

Gus crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. “Correct way?” he repeated.

The Mad Doctor gestured to the screen; the black shape moved into the body and began breaking up as it swirled around. “You see, over time, the Blot began to merge with his own ink. Removing it safely would be a very careful process requiring time and patience. This, however…”

A portion of the black suddenly tore out of the body outline. Even in this crude form, it made the viewers wince.

The Mad Doctor shook his head. “This was the exact opposite. Fortunately, the shock wasn’t too severe… his body was able to recover in time to heal itself.”

Oswald snuck a side glance at Mickey, ears twitching with slight concern.

“In the meantime,” Gus said. “Perhaps, we should try to find out what did this. It could be very dangerous.”

The Mad Doctor nodded and turned to Mickey. “Do you remember anything?”

The mouse closed his eyes. “It happened real fast,” he said slowly, frowning. “But I remember seein’ some kind of a… a dome with a flat bottom. And there was a whirrin’ noise… it kept goin’. It sounded kinda like a Beetleworx.” His body tensed as he continued. “It knocked me down before I could do anything. Then somethin’ metal latched on my chest and started… pullin’. It felt like it was… rippin’ something out of me. That’s when I must a’ passed out. Next thing I know, I’m wakin’ up here.”

The Mad Doctor scowled as he rubbed his chin. “Strange… strange indeed,” he muttered. “It certainly must’ve been a machine. You don’t suppose it could be some kind of rogue Beetleworx? It’s unlikely, but certainly not impossible…” He glanced at the monitors nearby. “I’ll have to run some calculations to find if any disappeared from the grid recently.”

Oswald glared at the Mad Doctor with obvious impatience. “Well, what’re ya waitin’ for? Get to it! If it’s one of your machines, I want it shut down right away!”

The Mad Doctor jumped and started typing rapidly on the keyboard. Mickey placed a hand on Oswald’s shoulder, looking concerned. “Oswald, calm down. Whatever it was, we’ll find it.”

Oswald sighed. “I sure hope so. I don’t want this happenin’ again—to you or anyone else.” He then waggled a finger at the mouse. “So, don’t go off on your own again until we get this sorted out, got it? No more of that wanderin’ dark alleys nonsense. There’s a reason that never goes well in the movies.”

Mickey grinned sheepishly as he rubbed his neck. “Got it.” He touched his chest and sighed. “Believe me, I don’t plan on runnin’ into that thing again soon.”

Gus smiled and nodded before hovering upward. “I should probably tell the other gremlins on Mean Street, so they can keep an eye out for it.”

“Keep me updated,” Oswald said.

Gus nodded and teleported out of the lab.

“Hmm…” the Mad Doctor muttered, looking at the monitor. “This is troubling.”

He turned, frowning as he rubbed his chin.

“What’s wrong, Doc?” Mickey asked. The Mad Doctor started and looked up, as if he’d forgotten the two were there. He then cleared his throat.

“It seems that all the Beetleworx are accounted for, and none have displayed any serious defects in their programming.”

“Are ya sure?” Oswald asked. “Maybe you should double-check…”

The Mad Doctor pouted, looking a little offended. “Quite sure, but I can certainly run another check.”

“Sorry, Doc, I just wanna make sure we find it before… anythin’ else happens.”

The Mad Doctor’s frown softened and he nodded. “I’ll also perform some scans on different areas of Wasteland for unusual activity… the Blot portion may be detectable. The results will be ready by tomorrow.”

“Okay, thanks, Doc.” Oswald turned back to Mickey, a worrying thought crossing his mind. “Ya know, maybe it’d be best if you stayed with Ortensia and me for now, in case they or it tries to… well, we have a guest room ya could use.”

Mickey frowned, shifting in his seat. “Well… I don’t wanna impose, but if ya really think it’s a good idea…”

“It’s no problem,” Oswald said, then smirked. “Besides, the kids’ll be tickled.”

Mickey cringed a little. “Was that supposed to be encouraging?”

Oswald couldn’t help chuckling at that. Mickey grinned back and hopped off the cot, stumbling a bit on the landing.

Oswald steadied the mouse. “Easy… you sure you’re up to this?”

The mouse rubbed his head and nodded, still wobbling a bit. “Yeah, just kinda dizzy.”

Once he was sure Mickey was steady, Oswald let him go and they walked together toward the exit.

Ortensia looked up in surprise as Oswald walked in with Mickey following. “Oh… hello, boys,” she said, then noticed their looks. “Is everything okay?”

“Well…” Oswald said. “It’s kind of a long story, but is it okay if Mickey stays here for a while?”

Ortensia cocked her head, looking concerned. “Well, yes, of course. But… is something wrong?”

Mickey and Oswald glanced at each other, but just then, the Bunny Children hopped in excitedly.

“Daddy! Unca Mickey!”

Oswald cleared his throat and smiled. “Hey, kids, guess what? Your Uncle Mickey’s gonna be stayin’ with us for a while!”

The bunnies squealed and began leaping up and down with excitement. “Yay! Unca Mickey’s sleepin’ over!”

Mickey smiled, but he was buried in a heap of cheering blue bunnies before he could say anything.

“I’ll explain everything later,” Oswald said quietly to Ortensia before wading through the swarm of bunnies. “All right, kids, you can play with your uncle later,” he said as he grabbed hold of Mickey’s arm, pulling him out of the crowd.

He then led him upstairs to the guest room, which was full of antiques and old family photos. “Well, I know it’s not much, but make yourself at home.”

Mickey smiled gratefully as he looked around. “No, it’s great. Thanks a lot, Os.” Suddenly, a sharp ache throbbed in his chest and he couldn’t help wincing.

“Mick?” Oswald asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. “You okay?”

“Yeah, sorry…” Mickey said, rubbing his chest. “It’s still kinda sore.”

“Well, ya better get some rest,” he said, grabbing Mickey’s shoulders from behind and leading him over to the bed. “Just take it easy.”

Mickey slowly sat down; suddenly his body was aching like all the pressures of the past few days had caught up with him. “Thanks, Oswald,” he said.

The rabbit smiled reassuringly. “No problem,” he said. “Hope ya feel better.”

He turned to leave, but Mickey suddenly spoke up again. “Hey, Os…” Oswald stopped and looked back to see Mickey giving him a slight smile. “For what it’s worth, I don’t think you were selfish either.”

Oswald stood there for a moment, startled. Slowly, he smiled. “Thanks, Mick.”

Index

#Epic Mickey #Oswald the Lucky Rabbit #Mickey Mouse #Sealed in Ink #EM3: Sealed in Ink #Oswald #Oswald Rabbit #Mickey #EM3 #fanfic #fanfiction #EM3 fanfic #EM3 fanfiction #EM3 Sealed in Ink #Epic Mickey fanfic #Epic Mickey 3 fanfic #Epic Mickey 3 fanfiction #Epic Mickey fanfiction #Disney

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volcanofireflame150 · 5 years ago

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Dark as the Deepest Night

Story Series; Ch6

Chapter 5

So, we went off to find the cave that I came out of so I could give my parents a piece of my mind for making becoming like them for all my life and to show on who I picked, I made Sehun wear my mask because I don't want anyone to steal him away from me. Sehun won my heart, I don't want him to be taken away from me at all, I hope he knows that on what I am doing.

"Why did you cover my face?" asked Sehun. I answered, "I don't want you to be taken away from me." "Now why would that happen?" he asked. I told him, "My parents are always judgmental if they don't approve of our relationship they'll send you away and send me to someone else." "Remember our plan though the one we made with the other kings? We are crafty on what we do," he said. I entirely forgot on how crafty they are, so we got to the entrance of the cave, I put my hood on and making sure that the mask is firmly on Sehun. When we got to the gates of the Dark Elf Kingdom, the atmosphere is extremely familiar to me. We went through the gates, I led Sehun towards straight the castle on where I was living in, once we got there I realized that the mask was upside down, so I flipped it back over so he sees, breathes, and talks through the mask. Sehun said, "Finally you got to that, I almost suffocated in this thing." "Oh, stop being such a drama King," I said. "Did you bring the scepter with you?" he asked. I nodded, "I have it hidden away." "Clever," said Sehun. Then we headed inside of the castle, Sehun took off the mask because I told him to and I lowered my hood of my cloak. I called out to my parents, I saw them coming forward and my mother asked in a shouting manner, "Where have you been, Lucia?" "I've been doing the task you guys had given me," I said. "Oh, you have? We didn't see you walk out of the castle," said my mother. My father asked, "Who is this young fellow?" "This is Oh Sehun, King of his kingdom called the Air Kingdom, I was venturing outside of the cave," I said. I heard Sehun catching his breath when my mother yelled, "You went outside of this cave?!" "Yes because I don't ever want to be stuck here with the likes of you 2, Sehun, here, taught me things that you refused to let me do," I yelled back, "And I have a special power that none of you have." "And pray tell, what power do you have?" my mother asked. I told her, "I can raise the moon at night." "False power, you can't do that here," said my father. I sassed him, "Well I can't because I ventured out while you guys are busy doing your duties which is everyday and you expect me to follow under your shadows? Hell no!" "Watch your mouth, young lady," said my mother, was on her way to smack me. She almost did when my scepter forcibly pushed her back, I had the scepter come out of my sleeve, Sehun said, "Don't ever put your hands on my future queen." "Future queen?" asked my father. Sehun said, "Yes, when she marries me, she'll automatically becomes a queen with or without your blessings because I already won her heart." "Lucia, is this true?" my mother asked. Sehun said, "Also, her real name Lucia does not fit her queen title, Queen Lulu fits better, because I have been calling her Lulu, same with my other friends who also happen to be Kings, and if you decide to split the 2 of us apart, let me warn you guys, my King friends and myself are very crafty on what we do so if you happen to send her to a different person then we will find a way to get her back to me. Basically like it or not, we were meant to be." "If you said is true then what's the use of disapproving this," said my father. Sehun said, "Also I think my soon-to-be queen has something to say to you guys and you guys better let her talk like I am." "Alright, Lucia, tell us on what is on your mind?" my mother asked. "Would it kill you to stop calling her that? Queen Lucia does not fit her! Did you even heard a word I was saying you old fraud?!" Sehun insulted my mother. That got her attention and I finally spoke, "First of all, nice one Sehun, second of all, I never liked you mother. From the very beginning I thought a mother was suppose to be loving and caring like all mothers should act. You are no where near being loving and caring, what kind of mother tells their child that they can't have their rooms in style of their choosing. I wanted my room to be Gothic, instead of Gothic, now mind you Sehun, I love flowers I really do it's just the color she picked was just so hideous for a Dark Elf like me." "I thought all these years you would've liked the color I chose," she said. I asked, "Why else would I repainted the color to being grey?" "You did what?" she asked. Sehun said, "Her favorite color is nowhere near the color that you had chosen." "Oh really, then what's her actual favorite color?" she asked. Sehun answered, "She has 3 favorite colors, they are black, white, and grey. That's it, when she came into my kingdom she instantly did not want to move out because my kingdom colors are all those 3 colors she even told me." "That's true," I said. "Alright, Marigold, I'm sorry dear, but I'm afraid your judgement is not powerful enough for that scepter of hers, I looked through it and it shows that these 2 were meant to be," said my father, "Have a look for yourself." "Alright, I will," said my mother. So she looked and gasped at the sight of us Dark Elves no longer in this cave, she asked, "Are you really going to tell everyone that they can move out of this cave?" "Oh yeah, I forgot to do that, thank you mother," I said. Sehun followed me outside and I slammed my scepter on the ground, then a bright light was shining we got everyone's attention, I said in a booming voice, "Everyone, as I, princess Lulu, have something to tell you all with my fiancee King Sehun." "I hereby to you all to freely move out of this cave or you guys can stay here, it's all up to you guys I'm not forcing anyone to move out of this cave because my love, Lulu, and her sister Lynn-Rose are living on the outside of this cave," said Sehun. After we said all that, we both see my people going to their homes and we were hearing some suitcases being opened up, I smiled brightly because that means my kind is no longer going to be in this dark dingy cave. We waited at the gates of the kingdom for everyone to meet us at the gates, once they did, I saw no sign of my parents, which is fine I mean Sehun did say that we are not forcing anyone to move out of this cave. Sehun shouted, "Everybody ready?" They shouted yes, then Sehun kissed my forehead and said, "That takes care of everything." "Yeah, I mean my only condition was being isolated," I told him. Sehun said, "Seems how its no longer a condition you can now act freely on the outside of this cave." "Agreed," I said. Then his sassy side came out when he said, "Finally took you long enough to finally agree with me. Geez, you are an old lady." "Excuse me, mister? I know you did not just sassed me," I sassed back. "Yeah I did so what?" he asked, again in his sassy voice. I said, "Well, I guess that means no nightly make out sessions and me not giving you any sign of attention." He was offended by all that, he said, "You wouldn't dare." "That reminds me I need to find another for me to stay in," I said. He gave in, "Alright I'm sorry, you win, just don't ignore me, I'll miss your touch and everything." I felt his needy hands going to my chest and swatted them away, told him, "Everyone's watching." Once we were out of the cave, I just realized how needy I was when I pulled him towards his castle and then to our room. I pushed him in, closed the door, locked it, and made him sit on the bed while I sat in his lap. "Are you sure you want to do this? If so, then I'm not holding back," he said. I said, "I need you, I want to be with you forever." Before he said anything, we began to make out and then the magical experience happened.

#exo royalty au #oh sehun #lulu #darkelf

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thewritingduckling · 8 years ago

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A China Rose: Chapter 3

Summary: Y/N was once an employee at Prince Adams castle along with being his childhood friend but she doesn’t remember. Caught up in the curse, she ends up in Villeneuve where she stands out. But circumstances arrive and she somehow returns to the place she once called home, and a beast she once thought a friend. A multi-chapter fanfiction. CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 2

Author’s Note: Well chapter 3 is here guys, and we’re one step closer to meeting the beast. We’ve got more Gaston in this chapter (cause everyone loves a bit of Gaston). Hope you guys enjoy, tags and requests are open.

Chapter 3: Delicate China

You were hard at work. Since the morning in the market, you'd been inside your workshop, making the final touches to your new invention. At that moment in time, you were making the final touches to your new washer. You had had to put the project aside to work on the school clock, but now you had plenty of time. You were just checking over the final calculations to ensure that it would spin at the speed necessary for the clothes to be washed and spun, and not just lie at the bottom of the barrel. After several moments you jumped up in pure joy. You smashed your pencil down in pure elation. You'd done it. You'd finally made your washer. This invention was begging to be tested, and conveniently enough you had left a huge pile of laundry on the floor in your room. You clearly had had a feeling you'd be able to make your washer work, and not the fact that you didn't actually want to do any laundry. You grabbed the barrel and the ropes and rushed outside, practically breaking the hinges on your little shed's door. You walked quickly and lopsidedly, well aware of the fact that you probably looked rather strange. You entered the church, and ran up the stairs to your room, so ecstatic that you tripped over your skirt twice despite the fact it was well above your ankles. You'd have been wearing pants but not doing laundry resulted in sacrifices and a few bruises were something you were willing to bear. You busted dramatically through your door, as if it were announced that you'd won a prize for your genius. You pretended to bow and give thanks to your furniture as you reached into your clothes basket and pulled out your cream and pale blue shirts and your two pairs of pants (one olive in colour, the other brown leather). At the bottom you found your blue scarf, something you long thought lost from you forever. "That's where you went." You said whilst pretending to tell the clothing off for wandering away. You pulled the scarf around your neck (as it was still rather clean) and bustled the rest of the clothes into a tight ball. With one big adieu to your audience of furniture you left your room but not before grabbing your washing bar of soap. As you trotted down the stairs you thought of how you were going to convince Henry, the church donkey, to pull your washer for you. It was a problem easily solved. You decided to attach a carrot to the end of a piece of string which dangled in front of his face. Food worked miracles. You and Henry walked down from the top of the church hill into the washer’s area, which was empty as most people did their laundry in the morning, to catch up on last night's gossip. Henry was doing well considering your laundry and washer was attached to his back, and it was a small trek to get from the church to the square. "Good boy Henry, we're already here," you stated as you pulled him under the cover of the washing roof. You rewarded him with a carrot that was hidden within your skirt pocket. The carrot kept him occupied whilst you set up your machine. You placed it in the water, curled the rope around the necessary poles, and filled the barrel with you clothes and washing soap bar. You then grabbed Henry's attention so that he'd start to follow you circling the water. After a few laps he had gotten into his groove and you could sit back and enjoy your two lovers of Verona (the book was in another of your pockets). You were thoroughly invested in you book when you hear a small, "What are you doing?" You looked up expecting Gaston but instead you saw Madeleine, one of the younger girls in the village looking at you with her eyes full of curiosity. You smile at put your book down. "I'm reading my favourite play." She smiled at you before taking a few steps towards you, "Is it fun?" she asked. You nod in reply. "Is it hard?" "To begin with but soon it becomes as easy as eating." You replied to her questions. "I can show you if you'd like." The apprehension in her face vanished and she rushed up to you before plonking herself down beside you on the washer’s wall. You smiled and happily obliged to fill her desire to learn. You opened Romeo and Juliet to the first page and began to explain to her the way each letter sounds. She had practically mastered the first line of the play before a loud noise from Henry disturbed you. The young girl's mother was walking towards her. She hurried Madeleine away from you before giving you a harsh stare, full of what could only have been described as pure hatred. Then it happened. You heard the crash. You looked over to the water where you saw Colthide, Tom and Dick chucking your washer to the ground causing all your clothes to spill over the ground. It took everything within your soul to stop yourself from ripping them to shreds. Instead you simply ran over to the clothes and began placing them back in the barrel whilst you heard Colthide say how you'd been taught a lesson. You'd picked up half of your clothes when an extra pair of hands joined you. You were relieved to see that it was Père Robert. You needed him right now as you began to feel yourself well up. He grabbed you're hand softly before stating, "I'll take the washer, clothes and Henry back to the church. You just calm yourself and get back when you're ready." You nodded and helped him reattach all of the equipment back onto Henry's back. As he walked back up to the church, you noticed that the crowd that had been drawn in by the drama, had now depleted to none. You couldn't help but feel relieved. There would be no one to see you cry. You went over to the wall of the washer area, where Romeo and Juliet was still opened to the first page, just how you'd left it. You gripped it closely to your chest, knowing how much it meant to you. It was your mothers after all. The only thing you had left of her. You had no memories or pictures only the book she gave to you as her gift to you. Your father always told you that she'd read it to you when you were a babe to send you to sleep. You smiled at the thought of your family, long before your mother died, before your father disappeared. You buried your face into your knees as you clutched the book close to your chest. You felt the tears rise in your eyes and you let them come. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You'd cried for so long that you put yourself to sleep. You awoke to see the sun low in the sky, clearly about an hour before sunset. You picked yourself up of the wall and safely stored your book away into your skirt pocket. You left the washing area and slowly began to trudge your way back up to the church. You'd practically made it all the way when you stopped dead in your tracks. Gaston was standing outside the entrance to the church's back garden. You groaned slightly and tried to steal away so that he couldn't see you but alas, it was too late. "Ah Y/N! I heard you had trouble at the fountain." He exclaimed as he waved in a dramatic gesture. "I don't know what you’re talking about, Gaston." You said feigning indifference as you walked past him into the churches garden, heading for your workshop. You didn't want to talk about today, especially not to Gaston. "You know, they're never going to accept the type of change you’re trying to bring." He said condescendingly as he opened the gate and stomped on several of your lettuces to get to you. You sighed. "All I wanted to do was to teach a child to read." you said, anger beginning to brew in your stomach. "The only children you should be concerned with are your own." He made a gesture between you and him and you felt physically repulsed. "I'm not ready to have children." You said, once again heading towards your shed. He jumped in front of you. "Well maybe that's because you haven't met the right man yet." He smiled knowingly. You simply sighed and said, "It's a small village, Gaston. I've met them all." You pushed him aside to reach for the door. He took another step forward. "Well, why don't you take a closer look?" He said, eyes burning with desire. "Some of us have changed." You turned around and faced him head on and decided to be as blunt as possible. "Gaston, we could never make each other happy. No one can change that much." Disappointment etched across his face. "Oh Y/N. Do you know what happens to women after a certain age who don't marry?" He turned and signalled to Agathe, who was standing on the far corner of the street at the bottom of the hill. "They beg for scraps like poor Agathe." He turns around dramatically, "This is our world Y/N! Simple folk like us need to grab onto every chance they get." He grabbed your lower left arm rather forcibly. You didn't feel it but you heard the cracking sound. His face furrowed at the sound, clearly confused as to where it came from. You realised what just happened and you teared your arm away from him as you backed towards the shed door. "I'm not a just a farm girl. I'm not simple and I'm never going to marry you Gaston." You pulled open the door and quickly slid behind it. You looked into his eyes and said, "I'm sorry." before slamming the door shut. He banged his head against the door and you slipped away towards your desk, still seeing the shadow of his feet under the door. You ripped off your glove no longer concerned about Gaston. You heard the noise that was made when Gaston gripped your arm tightly. You knew it meant only one thing. You looked down at your hand to see a small black line at the base of your palm. You steadied your breathing and rolled up your sleeve. You let out a small yelp. The sunrise on your arm had a reverse lightning bolt on it. A large black crack had formed down the inside of your forearm and stopped mere inches from where china turned into flesh. You tried to calm yourself. You'd broken your hand before and like any other bone in your body, it healed. But only when you applied glue. That's what you did when you fell one time and landed on your hand. You had to glue a crack between your ring and pinkie finger. It healed after several weeks although, the damage was still visible. There was a line between the two fingers which wasn't glossy like the rest of your hand. You grabbed the glue from the top shelf of your left side cupboard. You carefully applied it and pushed the china of your arm into the correct position. As you waited for it to dry you looked to the door. Gaston's shadow was still visible and it was clear that he was still waiting for you to change your mind which most certainly wasn't going to happen. You grabbed a bandage from one of your chest of drawers before wrapping it tightly around your newly glued arm. You pulled down your shirt sleeve to once again cover your injury. You peered over to the door to see Gaston's shadow receding. You slowly and quietly opened the door. He was walking, well more accurately stomping down the hill. He was stomping so hard that he walked straight into a deep puddle. He looked down in disgust before stomping away again. You just giggled at his stupidity. You look down at the chickens in the coop to your left. "Can you imagine?" You asked them. "Me the wife of that boorish," you thought back to the puddle, "brainless. Madame Gaston?" You questioned again. It sent a shiver up your spine. You couldn't see it. "Madame Gaston, his little wife?" You shuddered again. You grabbed a handful of chicken feed and threw it down into the coop. The chickens ran for it, pleased with the offering. You practically sprinted away from the coop and ran for the gate. 'No sir!' You thought. 'Not me, I guarantee it!' You tried to push thoughts of Gaston out of your mind as you ran away from the church, as you headed out of town. "I want much more than this stupid provincial life." You whispered to yourself as you ran past the village border and ran up to the opposite hill with the old oak tree atop it. You'd read there several times before, your small little sanctuary and sanctuary was what you needed right now. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You had sat under the tree for what seemed like several hours. The sun had set long ago as you were thinking about how you wanted adventure in the great wide somewhere, and how you wanted it more than anyone could ever tell you. You had thought about how you wanted more than what the village and Gaston had planned for you. You had sat there staring at you book, deep in thought, no longer paying attention to the words on the page (especially because you couldn't even see them anymore). You had been terrified when you heard the crack, because you were terrified of Gaston finding out about your hand. You gripped your scarf closely. What if he had? You'd have been locked away as some sort of freak by the village. They already treated you so. You were sick and tired of the comments they made about you, not at all trying to be subtle about hiding their disdain. Today was a perfect example of that. They'd destroyed your washer, something you worked so hard on for weeks. The schoolmaster had paid less for your clock than he would for a few pints in the local pub. Gaston had unintentionally hurt you. Plus he'd made two advances on you in one day, more than he'd normally do in one week. You couldn't take it anymore, the hatred; the harassment. Only one person, in a town of hundreds, actually understood you and was your friend. In a blink of an eye you knew what you were going to about it all. You snapped your book shut before stuffing it in your skirt pocket. You stood up and looked at the tree that had given you happy memories in amongst all the solitude. You took it all in, as if it were the last time you'd see it. With that you headed down the hill back towards the village that had caused you so much misery today. You smiled as you trotted slowly down the slope towards the church, finally knowing that what you were about to do was absolutely the right thing.

Tag List: @rainwing-galaxy @loneliestlittlerainbow @bucky-with-the-metal-arm @liviacollettex3 @caseynathan @langinator @casangelcake @scarlinrouge @an-anxiousace-from-outerspace @molethemollie @no-butter-before-marriage @theeeeens (It won’t let me tag you, I’m so sorry)

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timtamscurrencyexchange · 7 years ago

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Memories of a Freedom Lost | A Freedom Planet Fanfiction

Author: mpuppy4 Genre: Drama, Hurt/Comfort Rating: 10+ Warnings: Mild violence, Blood, Lots of crying Characters: Sash Lilac, Carol Tea, Milla Basset Pairing(s): N/A

While cleaning up the remains of a certain invasion, Lilac is horribly injured. When she wakes up, she isn't the same. Will she ever be who she once was? Moreover, will she ever even remember who she once was?

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Preview under the cut.

Chapter 1: Riveredge

Sash Lilac stood at the top of a cliff overlooking a small village below. It was built beside a long river, which stretched away from the little village's territory and into the vast beyond. Not far from this village, the target: an enormous yellow machine, spherical in shape and packed to the brim with artillery, wandering aimlessly across the landscape. She stepped to the side as a motorcycle zoomed up, sending up a cloud of dust as it skidded to a halt. At the handlebars was Carol Tea, wearing a gleeful grin and looking rather energetic. Seated behind her was Milla Basset, clinging to Carol's waist and now glancing uncertainly over the cliff they had just barely not fallen off of. "Took you long enough," said Lilac, though her tone was pleasant. "Yeah, whatever," Carol responded, smile unwavering. "What have we got?" Lilac raised a hand over her eyes for a better view, a motion which Milla mimicked. "Something big," Lilac answered, "and probably stupid. A little too close to that town for comfort though. We should have been here sooner." Carol chuckled. "Don't sweat it, Heropants. We'll clean this up no problem and be home in time for my mid-midday nap. Got a plan?" "I think so…" "Good enough for me!" At that, Milla let out a howling battle cry, and Carol roared with laughter. "Hey, looks like somebody's into it! Alright, let's go kick some metal butt!" Carol jammed down the gas, and she and Milla rocketed down the cliff face. With a sigh and an eyeroll, Lilac took after them. "Milla, I need you to warn the townspeople. Tell them that they're safe, but they have to stay in their homes until we're done. Once everybody is inside, come meet up with us." "Okay!" After a moment's hesitation, Milla leaped off of the motorcycle and rolled across the dirt. She sat up and shook out her fur, before darting into the village on all fours. "What about us?" asked Carol. "We'll lead it away from here," Lilac answered. "And then?" "We smash it!" "Sweet! Then let's get on with it!" While Lilac and Carol trailed away from the village's borders, Milla centered herself in the middle of the town and magicked a large green cube to stand on top of. "Attention, people of town!" Milla shouted, cupping her hands around her mouth. "There is no cause for alarm! A big, scary robot is running around outside of your village, but we're taking care of it! Please return to your homes in a calm and orderly fashion-" This was immediately met with panic. "Hey, ugly!" The robot turned slightly, only for a sharp disc to be hurled into the side of its body. Before it could react, Lilac dragon-boosted clean through it, retrieving the disc as she did so. She busted out the other side and skidded across the ground, handing the disc back to Carol when she pulled up. "Nice shot!" "You too!" The robot turned on them, apparently still functioning just fine despite the Lilac-sized hole now through it. "You want some of this, buddy?!" Carol taunted. "Come and get it!" The girls sped away in the direction opposite the village, giggling to each other as they did so. The great mechanism followed on four pointed, spider-like legs. "You're in a good mood today!" Lilac observed as Carol continued to cackle. "You're not usually so eager to go out for a cleanup." "Yeah? I had a good nap." "Ha! Yeah, a good thirteen-hour nap. You may as well have downed a gallon of catnip-laced coffee." The two let out a joint shriek as something exploded behind them, and they glanced back shortly. The robot had opened fire. "Uh, we might want to speed this up," said Carol. Lilac nodded. "Right. We should be far enough away now. You go behind." "On it!" While Carol fell back, Lilac sprang up and gave the bot a good smack across the eye. It released another missile at her, but she boosted away before it could connect. When she landed, Lilac found herself at the edge of the river that she had observed from the cliff. It looked quite a bit more daunting down here than it did from up there. It must have been at least twice the robot's width, and its depth likely more than ten times her own height. "Yikes," Lilac gasped. "Guess we're not getting it across there…" She glanced back at the rapidly approaching robot behind her and clenched a fist. She dashed toward it, leaped up and scaled to the top of one of its legs. The robot frantically tried to shake her off, spinning around in circles, to no avail. Lilac caught sight of Carol, stopped not far from the action. "Aim for the eye!" Lilac exclaimed. Carol flashed a thumbs-up, then whipped her disc back out. She locked her eyes onto the robot's own as it spun, blinking a few times as she waited. Then Lilac pulled back on the leg she had climbed, and the robot recoiled to reveal an opening. The disc was jammed into it shortly after. Lilac swung off of the leg and latched onto the disc, dragging it down the eye and slicing it in two. While the now blinded robot stumbled and stuttered, Lilac hopped off and again returned the disc to its owner. "Did that do it?" Carol queried. The release of more explosives answered that question before Lilac could. Milla, meanwhile, was busy trying to calm the panicked rampage of townspeople. "Please calm down! There's no need to panic! Return to your homes and you'll be safe!" Upon receiving no response beyond more screaming, Milla heaved a sigh. "I don't think this is working..." The panic was anything but aided by the loud, earth-shaking boom that came from the distance. Its force caused Milla's cube to poof out of existence, and she plopped down to the ground. She looked around and spotted the rising smoke by the river. "Uh-oh." Forgetting her assignment, Milla sped away. Carol slid across the dirt just far enough away from the explosion to avoid being impacted. She scanned the battlefield, and released a sigh when she saw Lilac boost upward out of the smoke. Carol swerved back around and drove across the charred ground for a head start, then jumped up to deliver a wild claw attack. The robot stumbled. Lilac made to deliver what would hopefully be the finishing blow as she descended from her escape boost. However, her shot was just barely misaimed. She clenched her teeth as she careened into the water below. Lilac closed her eyes tight for the impact, then reopened them once she had sunk a few feet. She shook herself, preparing another boost that would propel her out. Perhaps it would have done so, had she not misfired again and accidentally launched herself into the rocky floor. Carol delivered a good kick to the robot's front, knocking it completely off-balance. Lilac rubbed her head, opening her eyes again to find that they weren't focused correctly. However, that didn't stop her from staring up at the enormous shadow looming over the water. In a swift movement, Carol shot across the river edge like a bullet, tossing out her disc one last time as she did so. It sliced off both of the robot's back legs. It fell. When the robot crashed into the river, it caused all of the water to push out, slamming Lilac into the the rocks and knocking the breath out of her. Carol's motorcycle screeched to a halt. She snatched the disc out of the air. Behind her, water splashed up like a tidal wave, and she couldn't help glancing back for a moment to watch. "Alright! That was totally awesome!" she cheered, pumping a fist in the air. "Did you see that, Lilac?!" There was no answer. Carol blinked and looked around. "Uh, Lilac…?" Her heart stopped momentarily as something exploded behind her, and she swung around just in time to see a green blast completely obliterate the cripple that was once a dangerous machine of war. The explosion went off under the water just as it did above. Rocks were shattered and launched forcibly, debris crashed into each other, and mass clouds of bubbles made it near impossible to see what was going on. Among the carnage tumbling downstream were several little lavender feathers. "Milla!" came Carol. Milla stuck her landing just by the river, though she didn't address Carol's call. Her nose was working. She lowered herself to the ground, leaning over the water as she sniffed. "Do you smell Lilac?" Carol asked eagerly. The response wasn't exactly what she had been hoping for. Milla stood up sharply, eyes wide and a small gasp squeaking out of her throat. Carol faltered. "What? What's the matter?" She yelped as Milla launched herself into the water, splashing her shoes and leaving her breathing heavily. Milla made herself a block and fired it off, accelerating her downstream travel. She blinked the debris out of her eyes as she scanned the water for any sign of something even vaguely shaped like a person. She found something, and carefully swam down to examine it. Tendrils. It was Lilac. Milla took Lilac by the arms and hastily making another block, choking on the breath she was holding. The cube fired, and the two were sent back up to the surface. Milla grabbed hold of the shore and shoved Lilac up onto the solid ground. She struggled to pull her own soggy self up, and broke into a wet coughing fit when she finally succeeded. The moment that Carol arrived, she cast her bike aside and dropped to her knees beside Lilac's unconscious figure. "Lilac!" Carol cried, grabbing Lilac's limp arm and shaking it. "No, no, no…" Milla shook the water out of her coat. Carol didn't so much as flinch when it sprayed her; she was too busy checking Lilac's vitals to care. Milla crawled over and took Lilac's hand in hers, gazing hopefully at her resting expression. Then Milla's nose started working again. It lead her to Lilac's head. She sniffed closer, and a lump caught in her throat. "Carol," Milla whispered. "Carol…" "What?!" Carol spat, hardly glancing up from Lilac's wrist. "Look." Milla indicated the currently hidden back of Lilac's head. Carol's expression loosened uncertainly. She reached out, taking Lilac's head in one hand and lower back in the other, and turned her over. Carol gasped shortly, and Milla bit back a sob. Neither had ever seen this much blood in one place. Carol turned Lilac back over, trying her hardest to keep her breathing even. "W-What do we do?" Milla stammered. Carol looked up to find tears streaming down Milla's face. She didn't look much better herself. She held her hand out in front of her, shaking. The hand that had been holding Lilac's head. "I-I…" The words caught in her throat. Milla was staring. Carol took a deep breath. "Milla," she said, as steadily as possible in this moment. "Go into that town… and find its hospital. Or clinic, or infirmary, or whatever the closest thing they have to a hospital is. Find its doctor… and bring them here. Preferably… with an ambulance." "I-I—" "Go!!" Milla scrambled back off to the village without another word between them. Carol stared at her hand again, stained with the blood of her best friend. Then she stared back down at her best friend. "It's… it's going to be okay," she murmured. "It's going to be okay. I promise. I'm right here. I promise." With that, she recalled and executed each and every one of the life-preserving techniques that Lilac herself had taught her.

#hi my name is mpuppy4 and i'm promoting my own fanfiction on my freedom planet fanblog #if any of ya'll write fics and would like to see yours promoted here go ahead and message me #the queue is looking empty again #fanfiction #mpuppy4 #freedom planet

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oxfamontour-blog · 7 years ago

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‘You can’t close your eyes’.

Oxfam Volunteer Kristine tells us about her experience as an Oxfam On Tour crew member.

Last week Coldplay played a show in Omaha, a city based in the Mid-West of the USA on the edge of the State of Nebraska. At the show we had the pleasure of meeting Kristine, an inspiring mum of 3 boys and a daughter who was determined to open people’s eyes to the world. We spent some time with Kristine during the show as she shared with us a little more about her journey with Oxfam and Coldplay.

So Kristine, can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

My name is Kristine. I am 47 years old, born and raised in Nebraska, although I have lived a spell in California and also in Boston I’ve always ended up back here. I am a single mother by choice to three adopted boys ages 16, 16, and 15. I also have one biological daughter aged 10. I work for a leading Dialysis Clinic in Omaha and I adore my job. My goal in life has always been to do something that makes a real difference for people. Pushing papers is just one small portion of what I do.

How did you hear about Oxfam?

To be honest, I am a huge fan of an actor named Daniel Gillies from the CW show The Originals. As he was doing his travelling for the summer attending conventions around the world I caught a live stream interview he did in France with Allocine. He began talking about Oxfam and his intentions to visit Uganda. I was shocked that anyone would want to travel to a war-torn country just for the purpose of observing the refugee situation. As he got closer to his trip, he continued doing live feeds and I just decided I wanted to understand why he was making this decision.

Can you tell us a little about the journey you took to find out everything you know about Oxfam?

After watching Daniel Gilles’ social media posts I began to research more about Oxfam. First I checked their website, then the social media accounts of Oxfam. I signed up for daily notifications and began to read the articles they would share regarding the horrific living conditions of the displaced people all over the world. I learned about the organization, what it stood for and began to yearn to do something to help in some way other than making a monthly pledge which, while it might help, would give me no sense of fulfilment to truly assist those in need.

Living in Omaha, there is no local Oxfam chapter, so following, sharing and talking about what was happening within my small world seemed to be the best option. When Daniel went to Uganda, he began to live stream with staff members from Oxfam who went in to detail about how they provide the water, housing and sanitation needed in the camps. He also bonded with the people who were living in Imvepi and Bidi Bidi and it was eye opening to realize that I am spoiled beyond compare when placed beside these humans who are battling for basic daily needs.

He forged a campaign with "Represent" to sell t-shirts with all money going to support Oxfam. For me, that was the actual first step, getting the shirts. I also continued to voraciously read, listen and try to learn as much as I could. Really feeling inside that I had found a calling for a way to make a difference in the world. One thing he said really resonated with me, he said that years from now when his own son and daughter ask him if he knew about this world crisis and what he did about it he wanted to be able to tell them he stood up and did something, he started a movement and initiated conversations all over the world.

It was at this time I saw the tweet asking for volunteers with @Oxfamontour and I signed up immediately. I shared the news via all my limited social media trying to encourage others to do the same.

Do you think the knowledge you now have has changed you in any way?

It has opened my eyes to a situation that is buried under political headlines and daily drama. We in the US don't pay attention to these huge issues that are ongoing and NOT getting any better. I'm as guilty as anyone of doing this. I think it's a feeling of overwhelm, just a "what can I do?" attitude, but it can be as simple as spreading the word and keeping the situation alive and in the public eye. When enough people protest, things change.

I will never unlearn or un-see what I now know. I will not be able to just push it to the back of my mind and forget about it. If it means I will need to travel further from Omaha to continue to be involved, then that is what I will do. I want my children to say, my mom helped, she did something. Maybe it will spur them on to do humanitarian work as well.

You volunteered at the Coldplay show in Omaha, can you tell us what volunteering with Oxfam entails?

Well, I responded to the recruitment tweet sent by @OxfamAmerica. Confirmed via several emails that I would be there, and then showed up at the venue. I met the other volunteers and sat with the team leader to learn what was expected. Prior to arriving at the venue I received a packet of information and expectations which really prepared me for what was going to happen. I appreciated that.

Meeting other people who felt the same passion as I do was truly rewarding and everyone was so amazing. I worked for about three hours, just approaching concert goers and asking them to sign our petition, not for money or time commitment but rather just as a name, a VOICE to send to world leaders that our priority is to keep the protections for refugees all in place. Learning what the band has done by having Oxfam on tour only fuelled my drive to do well.

Was the volunteering hard work?

Not at all! I was a little nervous about approaching strangers, but let's face it, everyone loves freebies and pictures, so it was a great opportunity to offer the exclusive wrist band and then tell them about Oxfam and why we were there. Surprisingly, many people knew about Coldplay's commitment to refugees and I met so many amazing people from all over who had travelled for the concert. Everyone there is aiming to have fun and I felt like we were giving them an opportunity to help a great cause and get a memory with a photo and a keepsake in the Stand As One wristband. It was a win-win evening! Honestly, out of all the folks I approached and spoke to, only one set of people declined and walked away.

Was there anything that surprised you about your evening?

I was surprised at how much fun I had. It was emotionally exhausting because I was truly invested in getting a message out. I wanted people to be more aware and maybe think about it or research it after they left the concert so I put my whole heart into my message and it was incredibly fulfilling and also exhausting. I would do it again anytime!

What was the best part of the evening?

Truly, the best part for me was making new friends with the other volunteers, meeting Rachel (the staff lead) and feeling like I was part of larger movement that is focused on building a world that is fulfilling for everyone regardless of nationality and colour. I guess that sounds corny, but when it comes down to it, all we really want is to live a satisfying life with friends and family and safety. I wish that for ALL the humans on this planet.

How was Coldplay’s show?

I am a Coldplay fan. Not a super fan I guess but the concert was like a massive rave! It was so much fun! The light show, the confetti, the singing and dancing, the oneness of the crowd, it truly is in the top five of the best concerts I have ever been to. They put their whole heart and soul into their performance even though it was the 96th on this tour!!! Their message of love is undeniable.

What was your favourite part of the show?

It was just a sensory experience all around. The lights, the flashing wrist bands, the confetti and balloons made Coldplay’s music the cherry on top. Chris Martin was charming and funny and so amazing. I would say I am a different level of fan than I was before this entire experience.

What would you tell people about Oxfam to someone who knew nothing about the organisation?

Oxfam is under-acknowledged in the US. We [US citizens] consider ourselves untouchable and have a way of turning the other cheek on issues affecting third world countries. Oxfam is not about collecting massive funds for their own gain, they are on scene, in the heart of the darkness figuring out how to get water and sanitation for all the folks being driven forcibly from their home. They are about keeping a degree of dignity for people who have fled, leaving everything behind them. Giving them clothing, shelter, a feeling of community and support even after they have lost their homes and often times family members. These are people just like you and me in that they want to go home. We need to work on ending the crisis that pushed them out in the first place, but Oxfam is there at the forefront making sure they survive and thrive day to day until that peace eventually arrives.

If you can share one piece of wisdom, what would it be?

You can't close your eyes and make things go away. Ignoring things does not change them. If there is ANYTHING you can do you have a responsibility to the other humans on this planet to make the effort. Talk about it, keep it at the forefront of the news and headlines. Donate if that is how you can best help. Life is too precious to just let it pass you by living with rose coloured glasses on. This is in no way a lecture; this is what I have told myself, what I have pledged to myself. It is important to me and it is now a drive in my life to be better, to try harder, to reach out in any way I can and improve life for everyone. I finally understand what it means to be the change you want to see in the world.

Thank you for allowing me to share my story, and for giving me the opportunity to participate with #oxfamontour.

You can find out more and sign up at Oxfamontour.org

#standasone #en #coldplay #solidarity #worldhumanitarianday #oxfamamerica

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lokifiction · 8 years ago

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Relationship Status

Category: Fanfic

Rating: T

Notes/Warnings: I don’t think there’s any warnings for this chapter. As always, sorry for the long delay!

First Chapter

Previous Chapter

Chapter Fourteen: Stressful Sleepovers

“I think that’s good for now,” Ulyana, my favorite ballet mistress, praised in her signature thick accent. “I’m pleased with our progress so far. This is your last rehearsal of the day, correct?”

I simply nodded, still too breathless from our last run-through to form any understandable verbal reply.

“Well, I’ll let you go early, then. You’re looking far too pale lately. Go enjoy this warm weather before the evening comes and takes it away.” She patted my cheek before making her long trek out of the studio, leaning on her cane all the way. Once she had rounded the corner, I exited, as well, turning the other way to reach my dressing room. Once there, I made quick work of unhooking my practice tutu and dropping it on the dressing table as I plopped down in my chair to undo my pointe shoes.

After melting into my seat for a few minutes, decompressing from a long day, a playful knock sounded on the doorframe. I peeked over and discovered Chantel, beaming brightly as per usual.

“Did you get let out early, too?” I inquired, wadding up the day’s toe tape and tossing the ball into the trashcan.

“Nah, my rehearsal got cancelled.” She stepped further into the room. “But that meant I got to watch yours. Your Paquita stuff is looking phenomenal.”

“That wedding variation kills, though. The one from the first act is fine enough, but the last one is all turning, exactly what I can’t do.” I went to grab my tutu and return it to its hook on the wall, but in the process the tulle dislodged a picture from my mirror. I moved to retrieve it, but the photo fluttered instead towards Chantel’s feet. She picked it up and looked at it for herself, giggling.

“This one’s my favorite,” she declared, turning it around so that I could see. It was a snapshot of me and Loki in Disney World, posing in front of the castle. In the photo, it was apparent that I was beyond excited as I stood with a face-cracking grin that made me appear insane, but Loki had been dubious of the “Most Magical Place on Earth,” only going along with the trip because of how happy the prospect made me. The look of silent resignation, dread, and slight fear in his face was a complete contrast to his experience during the rest of the vacation, however, for he turned out to love the place as much as I did.

“I love that one, too,” I gushed, pinning it back up where it belonged. “There’s a lot of good memories in this photo.”

“Speaking of,” Chantel began, “where has Loki been? I haven’t seen him around lately.”

I hesitated. After our contract signing, Loki and I were called for daily meetings with the Avengers to go over even more consultant terms, draw up a list of duties and missions Loki and I would be assisting with, and more importantly, test our allegiance. Once my season started back up, however, I had rehearsal all day and could no longer attend. Due to that, Loki became the sole representative and person of action in our family, which is how it should have been in the first place, for I knew that my addition as a co-consultant was only a formality due to the inevitability of Loki telling me everything.

After a week or so, the meetings tapered down to only twice a week, and eventually once. However, Loki had been given several duties, primarily under the category of observation in the ways that his skills in magic gave him exclusively. The tasks that went along with that duty occupied quite a bit of his time and the meetings left him emotionally exhausted, so I insisted that since I was in the middle of a rehearsal period and wasn’t performing, there was no point in him coming to work with me all the time and taxing himself unnecessarily.

“He’s been added to this new project with some people he knows,” I replied, aware of my vow of secrecy regarding the consultant program. I bit my tongue and prayed that Chantel wouldn’t ask what kind of project. “It takes up a lot of his time, so he’s been staying home to work on it.”

“I see. Well, I’m glad he’s found something to occupy himself. It’s just that you two are usually inseparable, and a few of us worried that you were fighting when we hadn’t seen him around.” Chantel stepped over and gave me a quick hug. “Anyway, I’ve got to go now. See you when I see you.”

I called a goodbye down the hall after her, then resumed tidying my dressing room and getting changed. Once my sweaty dancewear was off and I was savoring the feeling of finally wearing a short-sleeved dress and open-toed shoes, I made my way out of the building and to the nearest Metro stop. Whenever I wasn’t with Loki, I preferred taking the subway as opposed to catching a cab, for the walks to and from the stations allowed me time to think, and resting on a cool seat in the crowded cars made me feel truly a citizen of the city, which was sometimes a bit suppressed when entering our high-class neighborhood and living in an apartment larger than any house.

As I entered our building, my excitement to see Loki heightened. We weren’t used to being apart for as long as we had been lately, and the highlight of my day became when I got to come home and see him. The moment I stepped off the elevator, however, I was greeted not by his usual hug and kiss, but by Henry’s signature high-pitched yowls of hunger.

“Hey, drama king,” I greeted, kneeling to rub his head. “Why are you screaming like that? Isn’t Daddy here to feed you?”

No sooner had I uttered the question than I spotted a folded note on the side table next to the coat rack. I opened it and noticed Loki’s elegant scrawl immediately, which read:

Camryn,

An impromptu meeting was called at Stark Tower, so I’ve left to attend that. I’d like for you to be here if you can, so when you read this, please head that way as soon as possible. If the meeting concludes before you arrive, I’ll give you a call to save you the journey. I love you.

Loki

P.S. Do NOT feed Henry. He’s already eaten several times today and is being a big faker.

My wonderment as to what the meeting could be about faded into anxiety the more I thought it over, but Henry began yowling again before I could venture too far into my thoughts. I turned my eyes towards the cat, and saw that he had been joined by Bellatrix, whom I could somehow tell was flashing her companion a look of annoyance.

“What Daddy doesn’t know won’t hurt him,” I assured the two, taking them into the kitchen for some cat treats before heading right back out again, this time submitting to a cab to take me to Stark Tower.

When I entered the building, my consultant status made it no longer necessary for me to attend to the fuss of a lengthy check-in, for all I needed to do was scan my badge and thumbprint at the staff entrance and check in with a security guard before going on the elevator. Though I didn’t yet feel quite comfortable walking the halls of the tower, worrying every moment that some joke was being played on me and at any minute I would be forcibly escorted out, being there with my badge and status gave me a sense of importance that I’d never felt before, not even when walking the halls of the palace of Asgard.

“There she is!” Stark called out as I entered the conference room, and I flashed Loki a look from where the guard on duty was giving me my usual probe with the metal detector.

“What’s all that about?” I inquired, my words directed at my fiancé only.

“Nothing of import. Please, come sit.” He gestured to the chair next to him and I hurried to take it.

“What was this meeting called for, and why is it so important that I attend?” I continued as I situated myself. “Catch me up.”

“Do you recall the rifts in time and space that we investigated a while ago?” Loki began.

“The ones that I found out existed by hacking into S.H.I.E.L.D.’s private communications to improve their views of you, then got sucked into, only to get arrested after we successfully closed them?” I ranted, leaving everyone staring at me with gaping mouths. “Those?”

“Yes,” Loki answered quietly, slightly stunned as he usually was when I took control.

“Well, what about them?”

“When it became apparent to us that Loki had extensive knowledge on how these rifts worked, we put him to the task of observing them: locating any remaining ones, seeing if any new ones popped up, et cetera,” Steve answered. “He found a fair few left over from the Chitauri invasion. We didn’t want to close them yet for fear that there could be other people trapped inside, like those you found on your personal mission, but that plan is backfiring on us now.”

“Backfiring how?”

“We’re not sure the true reason, but somehow one of the portals got directed somewhere other than the Chitauri world,” Bruce explained. “We don’t know if things got shaken up during the Convergence or if someone was able to switch it, but there have been beings from another world coming through and terrorizing the citizens.”

“Judging by their appearance, Loki and I have deduced that they’re most likely from Muspelheim,” Thor added. “So far, their numbers have been few, but they appear to simply be scouts. Natasha and Clint are stationed where the portal opens to control those that do come through, but we fear an army is coming.”

“This could become a catastrophic situation,” Loki finished. “That’s why I wanted you here: in the case that the city went into turmoil.”

“Oh.” I attempted to process the situation, but all I could think of was fear for the safety of my friends who were not so fortunate to be sitting inside the most secure place in New York.

“To catch you up as far as this meeting, we’re currently discussing options as to what to do about this situation,” Loki continued. “Of course, it’s preferable to close the portal immediately, but we need to send a scout in to make certain there are no trapped civilians, which will be difficult, seeing as we have no idea where it opens. It could be a pit of fire, for all we know. Also, there’s the issue of making sure that the other rifts aren’t going to start spilling out these creatures, as well as locating and exterminating any scouts that may have escaped our notice.”

“That’s a lot of important decisions to be made,” I commented. I had never been with Loki when he was dealing with duties such as that, and it was a completely different level of anxiety for me. I knew that those situations would be a reality when he was king, so I had been preparing myself to deal with it for years, but I had not expected the day to come so soon.

“Excuse me, Captain Rogers.” An employee in a uniform bearing the Avengers insignia poked her head into the conference room. “We’ve just had communications with Romanoff and Barton. They said that there’s no more time to deliberate and that they need you at their location now.”

My stomach dropped to my feet as I realized what that meant, and I grasped Loki’s hand.

“Guess we’ll be making decisions on the fly, then.” Let’s suit up,” Stark declared, pushing back from the table. As everyone followed, I jumped to pull Loki down by the collar of his shirt.

“Keep yourself safe,” I commanded, boring my eyes into his. “You’ve got a wedding to go to.”

He searched my face for a few moments before leaning down and kissing me hard. He smiled softly as he pulled away, but I could see the worry in his eyes.

“No need to fret, love,” he lied. “This will be mere child’s play.”

He quickly kissed me once more, then hurried out with the rest of the group, leaving me glued to my seat, stupefied with anxiety. Pepper, the only other person remaining in the room, came over to join me, draping her arm around my shoulders.

“I wish I could tell you it got easier,” she lamented. “But I can say that the first time is the worst. Eventually you’ll trust his and his companions’ abilities more and the fear won’t be so front-of-mind, but, unfortunately, it’s always there.”

“We should just consider it reassurance that we really do love them as much as we think, I suppose.” I sniffled, wiping my eyes. “Plus, I know Loki wants me to stay here because it’s safer, but I have no clothes, and I’m really worried about my cats.”

“Pepper chuckled. “If you want, we can take a few agents to head to your place and pick up some stuff. The action is way downtown, so we should be safe if we hurry.”

“Can we please?” I begged, pushing out of my seat. “It would make me feel at least a bit better.”

“Of course we can,” she assured. “Let’s go.”

***

An hour later, I was situated in my pajamas in the lounge area of Avengers Tower, sitting opposite Pepper. She had graciously allowed me to bring the cats, and Bellatrix was purring in my lap whilst Henry sniffed around our takeout containers.

It had turned out that both Pepper and I were stress eaters, so we agreed upon ordering some food for the wait. We had been unable to decide between Chinese and pizza, however, so we ordered both, plowing through massive amounts of each in front of the television. We had originally been watching the news, but that was giving us no information and only making matters worse for the both of us, so we eventually switched to old 80’s movies. After a while, it started to feel like we were teenage best friends at a sleepover, and a few times that’s what I believed was going on until a commotion or agent outside the door would remind me what we were waiting for.

As Pepper had said, most of the action was downtown, and it appeared that the team was doing a good job of containing it, for, other than the occasional massive blare of sirens of police cars and ambulances rushing to help, no evidence that any fight was going on could be seen from the windows. I couldn’t decide if the eerie calm improved or hindered my fear.

After we exhausted our movie stash, Pepper and I began to gossip about our men, giggling like schoolgirls. Eventually, though, the subject became a bit more serious as Pepper inquired about my wedding. After revealing a few tidbits regarding plans and my dress, I decided that then was as good a time as any to do what I’d been considering for a long time.

“You know, I wanted to give you something,” I began, reaching into my overnight bag for the envelope I had slipped inside in anticipation of that moment. “Don’t feel any obligation just because I’m giving you this, but you guys put up your white flag by adding me and Loki on as consultants, so consider this ours.”

I held my breath as Pepper pulled out the invitation to Loki’s and my wedding, addressed to the Avengers. When I first pitched the idea to Loki as a method of reciprocating their peacemaking actions, he fought it immensely. I considered the prospect a lost cause and nearly forgot about it, until a few weeks on his new job brought Loki to me, asking if we could give it to them after all.

“This is amazing,” Pepper commented. “Consider this our official RSVP.”

“For all of you?” I questioned. “You haven’t spoken to anyone about whether they’re available or not.”

“If you’re going to think of us to include in on your special day, despite the risks, you can be damn sure we’re all going to be there, previous plans or not.” With a grin, she brought me in for a hug, which was interrupted by an agent entering the room. My heart jumped to my throat at his worried look, and I sprang to my feet, blurting out questions as to what happened. Pepper rose behind me, much calmer, interrogating the man much more cohesively.

“They’re back,” the agent replied, obviously a bit unsure what to do with me. “Fortunately, there have been no casualties or major injuries. They’re docking now, and they’ll meet you in medical.”

Pepper visibly deflated in relief. “Thank you, Agent Hummel. Shall we go, Camryn?”

She made for the elevator, staring at me in confusion as I launched myself towards the stairs.

“This will be faster!” In insisted. With a chuckle at my rookie excitement, she relented, watching in bemusement as I nearly tumbled over myself on the way downstairs.

When I reached the medical deck, I went into a state of tunnel vision, everything around me going black except for Loki, sitting on the edge of a table, his armor in a heap next to him, wearing only his padded undershirt and pants. He was bruised and a bit bloody, ash and sweat coating his face, complexion a bit paler than usual, but other than that, he appeared relatively unscathed. I launched myself over to him, gathering him into my arms as he stood to meet me. Holding him as tight as possible, I buried my face in his shoulder, noticing that he smelled vaguely of burning.

“How did everything go?” I breathed, pulling away.

“Well, the portal did open into Muspelheim,” Loki replied with a dry smile. “I’ll talk to you about the details later, but all you need to know is that the situation has been resolved and all of the rifts have been closed, never to bother any of us again.”

“It was actually a stroke of brilliance on his part,” Natasha interjected, bringing my notice to the rest of the group, all appearing to be in a similar condition as Loki. “We thought we were going to have a full-on battle on our hands, and were almost completely overwhelmed, but somehow he managed to close all of the portals at once, leaving us with only the creatures already on the ground to deal with.”

“That’s my Loki,” I praised, hugging him once more. “Well, if you’re sure the city’s safe, let’s get you home and cleaned up.”

“Actually, I think I’m going to need him to stay here,” a new voice put in, and a pretty young woman in scrubs put her hand out for me to shake. “I’m sorry I’ve not introduced myself yet. I’m Helen Cho.”

“Camryn Potts. It’s nice to meet you,” I reciprocated. “If you don’t mind me asking, why do you need Loki to stay?”

“For some reason, the heat affected him more than it did everyone else,” Helen explained. Loki and I exchanged a look, knowing full well that the reason was his true heritage that he refused to divulge to anyone.

“He’s showing signs of heat exhaustion and dehydration,” she continued. “I’d like to keep him for at least the night for observation and some I.V. fluids.”

“Oh.” My heart sank, but the more I looked at Loki, the sicker he appeared to be. The dark circles under his eyes were unsettlingly prominent, his lips were nearly white, and the sheen of sweat that had long faded on everyone else was still constantly upon his brow. He had sat down with a plop soon after our embraces, clutching at the table with white knuckles, and his eyes were pale and unfocused.

“The house will be lonely without you,” I murmured, placing one last parting kiss on the top of his head, resolving myself to spend the night alone, worrying instead of sleeping.

“What are you talking about? You have a packed overnight bag, don’t you?” Pepper cut in. “I won’t hear of you going home tonight. You’re staying here.”

Next Chapter

#loki fanfic #loki fanfiction #loki laufeyson

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rip-a-dip-dip-you-potato-chip · 4 years ago

Text

Origins

Mom of the group #2

OK, this didn't blowup like the last post I did about Tornado of Creation but the original to this was rebloged so heres Melodys Origin's and an explanation of her EM power.

(Context/pt 1)

First things first elemental power

The elemental master of music can do several things depending on the song and tempo. And can share the affect with a given party as long as they have the right training.

Classical music acts a lot like every song that is going to be listed but it isn’t as strong. note, the music of instrumental picks up in the wind, so let’s say The Weekend Wip was being used, you’ed here the instrumental. This is the most common tactic thats used by EM’s of Music.

Pop music, gives energy to allies and its user. It basically gives them a boost. Weekend Wip is most commonly used by Melody when she and the others fight.

Rock/Metal/Rap music, these go together cuz they pretty much do the same thing, Rap being more potent tho. Strength is increased but it can only apply to one person at a time, so Melody sings a Rock or Rap song she has to make a choice to use it on herself or one of the ninja

Edge songs, see point above on Rock/Metal/Rap songs. But it exclusively only applys to its elemental master.

Using a high pitch creates a sonic scream to knock people back. Using a low pitch acts as a shield.

Calm songs, like lullaby's, calm a human or an animal/creature down. It also helps people relax. This effect can apply to everyone that can hear it. Melody usually uses this in there down time to help with relaxing or trying to calm a member of the team down, mostly Kai.

Sad songs, they hit everyone within ear shot with heavy emotions, even bring back some sad memories for people. But this also effects the user as they can loose themselves in it leading to an activation of there 'true potential'

True Potential, when an elemental master of song uses this it gets destructive... You know through beat wheel/bar things that measure just how loud something gets? Well that's what happens and a good 300 km radius is covered messed up. But if the master has some control over it they can shrink the size of the radius. They also have the option to not have a radius at all and just store all that energy inside them and use it for physical attacks. Although you should only do this if you have full control over the element or else you could end up hurt or worse.

True Potential ties down to one or two songs, but normally one.

Side note, Melody doesn't like using her True Potential because she can't normally control it. So to clarify, she knows how to use it before the guys unlock theres, but refrains from using, and when asked she says it could take out a city block, questions stop after that said.

Melody is the youngest of 4 children, she has two older twin sisters, Royal being the oldest, and Destiny being the second oldest. Then there's Angel.

Angle is like 2 years older than Melody.

Both she and Angel are EMs of Music much to the dismay of there older sister Royal. She believes as the oldest its her birth right to have the powers not them. This leads to major resentment and abusive like tendancys from the oldest sibling. Destiny is more calm though, yes shes a little upset she didn't get them to, but I kinda relieved as both Melody and Angel got there powers around puberty and with constant voice cracks at a high pitch its difficult to control a short sonic scream from happening.(fun fact Melody and Angel both unlocked there powers as they where singing along with one of Cole's dads records, so when she meets him on there quest for the fang blades she fan girls a bit)But she tries her best to support her siblings through this. Their dad is the one they inharated there powers from. He's a pro boxer. His name? Devilin Loren Green and he’s an ass. Why? Well when he found out his two youngest where EM's he forcibly trained them in the way of boxing. Bastered didn't even hold back. He said we wanted his kids to be boxers like him even though they had different interest. He pushed Melody more than Angel tho, he wanted her to compete in the men's league dispit her protest. And like I mentioned before, Royal has a strong hated of her younger siblings so she supports her dad through this abuse. There mom(and Destiny) on the other hand doesn't. There moms name is Harmony. Harmony is the classic TV mom that's as sweet as cake but when pissed off she will rip you a new one. For the most part aside from the abuse the two youngest face, normal everyday family. By the time the two youngest start high school things take a turn. Royal has moved out and so has Destiny.

Now we enter Griffin (YEES FAST BOI). Griffin is your classic high school play boy. He's the track star as well as soccer as well. All the girls swoon over him as she and his friends walk the halls, Jax Wildthorn among them since he’s his best friend and all. Now since at that Melody is tired from all the training she doesn't pay attention to him and his possy. Griffin on the other hand is captured by Melody, sure for her looks but she doesn't pester him like the other girls, plus she was just like him, and elemental masters, so naturally he tries to pursue her.

Know that both Griffen and Melody are the same age, Mel being older by like two months, Griffen gets to know Jax through a mutual friend.

At this point Jax has become good friends with Angel(all reality there on a flirting basis whenever they see each other). Through this connection they learn that every month Melody visit this barbershop other have her hair cut and cleaned, and that one barbershop.(for anyone that curious the Barbershop is called Tony's Magic Hands its run by this supper enthusiastic Italian guy named Tony) so like a reasonable teenager he picks up a part time jod there, and as lucky would have it he was able to cut her hair that month.

"Hey Tony! I'm here for my usual"

"Melody! Good see your in good health, I currently have my hand's full so our new guy will be assisting you! Don't stress he's a natural!

"I'll take your word for it!" She its in the usual chair and to her surprise Griffin steps out with a smile.

"Griffin Turnner?"

"One and only!"

"Your not going to mess up my hair as some joke, are you?"

"Phfff what no never!"

"Uh, huh,"

"Well just sit back and relax I got this sweet cheeks!"

To Melody's surprise, Griffin was a natural, sure Tony or one of the other guys would usually do this and damn they where good, but Griffin? D A M N he was better. This leads to a fast friend ship sparking between the two,(there ship name is SonicNote). Every month the day of her hair cut she reminds him of it, which he wouldn't forget for the world. They even go as far as trying new hairstyles. But as time goes on Melody falls in love with him and they start to date, around this time Jax and Angel are dating too.

So lots of double dates

Sleepovers

Sharing of food

Movie marathons

Skipping training

They just hang and have fun!

But things go a little far after they decide to go to a party. As natural they get drunk. Griffin and Melody, well let's just say they both lost there v-card that night. At first they just blew it off as "whatever we where drunk, and in the moment" but goes to full on panic when not only is Melody feeling sick but misses the monthly womanly call of mother nature. In the end there was a panic but they ultimately decided to keep the baby(s).

This leads to the birth of North and West Turnner. There was a complication at both though. As some may or may not know, giving birth to twins is dangerous for both mother and baby's, most of the time one child dies in the process.

It’s an RIL thing if you think I’m bullshitting you. There even is a thing called Purple Butterfly where a sticker will be placed on the door of patients who were part of a multiples birth but sadly, one or more of the siblings did not survive. And even then most of the time the mother needs a C-section to birth them so theres that as well.

For Melody and Griffin there was a complication at birth. Mel had a C-section but was losing blood and the doctors feared she, and West wouldn’t make it. In the end they did but Mel needed to be carful of her midsection. If not it would end badly for her and could end up in a wheelchair, not paralyzed mind you but shed have trouble with moving a lot. As a C-section baby i can tell you my mom can't ware tight pants still and its been 16 years since I was born. The stitches can still brake. So real issues for this Music mister if you ask me. And I'm not blowing it out of perportion just for dramas sake.

The twins where the Prince and Princess of there high school. The teachers where fairly supportive of the couple. North and West where even models for the Fashion class that Angel just so happened to be apart of.

Prom was the night Griffin officially proposed to Melody. It was a big deal and everyone that attended other then Melody knew what was going to happen. It was an eventful night to say the least.

It was till years later there was a hiccup in there marriage. Neither really remember what the fight was about but it lead to Griffin packing some things and heading over the Nuros house for a bit.

(Ya Nuro & Shade are also friends of Griffin. They all went to the same high school.)

From there Melody went of town for a bit leaving the kids with her brothers. And form there met Wu.

Now before y'all say Mel is just as bad as Misako for not being there for the twins. She keeps in touch with them, alot. Like detailed in the last post on Mel, she calls video chats and sends gifts for important milestones in there life like birthdays, holidays and academic/ athletic success and so on. She even helps with homework if at all possible.

-phone calls with North, West and Melody-

"Okay West, when doing English read your questions first before reading the pasage, and mark down where you believe the answer for one might be." "Oh i get it! That way I know what I'm looking for later on right?" "Exactly kiddo!"

"North, if your going to participate in track please don't over work yourself" "Uncal Jax already told me about what happened to dad last time he over worked himself for a sport, but I appreciate the concern mom really, and I promise I'll take you're guy's advice into account when practicing with the team" "haha, good I don't want you fainting on me dear"

"Hi mom, thank you so much for the running sneakers! There amazing" "sure thing North, So how did your first Track race go?" "That's what I was going to talk about, WE WON! the shoes really did bring good luck like your latter said they would!"

"Mom, mom, MMOOOOM thankyousomuchforthecustomdrumsticksfrom(insert famous music instrumental company here) ohmygoshthereamazingilovethemthankyouthankyouthannnkkkyoooouuuuuuu!firstitwasthedrumsfromdadandnowthis?iloveyoubothsofeakingmuchhhhh" *incoherent laughing from Melody*

"Wish you where here with us mom" "wish I was too"

They love each other lots.

They also get stuff from there dad too. And to ensure that they don't get them the exact same thing, they communicate. Ya after about a year or two apart they both kinda realized the fight they had was idiotic and immature. But at this point Melody has caught on what Wu is trying to prevent and find and decides to stick around to help out where she can.

I mention in the last post that the guys make a pact to scare Griffin. Well Melody didn't tell them that the two worked out the issue sooooo.

But yes this was part 2 to Mom of the Group. Stick around for a part 3 if I ever get to it.

Also keep an eye out for later cuz I might drop a picture of her

#ninjago #ninja #ninjago oc #lego ninjago #oc #text post #ninjago fandom #this took too fucking long lol

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