#i did ride the cyclone this past fall and it was SO FREAKING FUN and it required me to play both electric and double bass

[bassicallymaestra]

I haven't had any time to draw this week between working extra hours at the gallery and musical tech week and I teach at a music camp next week! So instead I wanted to share what it looks like to be in an orchestra pit (especially for people who have never seen one before). The conductor is on a platform and the opening allows the conductor to see what's going on stage so they can cue both the pit ensemble and the cast ensemble on stage. I've had a little experience conducting the end of Handel's Alcina and it was SO NEAT seeing everyone and the stage so close up, while being able to work with the pit musicians. I always joked its the best seat in the house (also the most nerve-wracking)

tbh, this pit is one of the nicest I've been in, they're usually just concrete and dust 😭 the other one I usually play in also has a low ceiling so I can't pull my endpin out and use a stool for playing so I have to play like a literal gremlin 😂

This is what it's supposed to look like:

Here's me with the worst posture and hoping my professor doesn't come down to see this atrocious technique:

I've played in a lot of musicals, some of my favorites being Elf, Sound of Music, Ride the Cyclone, Newsies, and recently Beauty and the Beast! My favorite opera to play in was Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, which is an absolute riot of an opera (it's basically Weekend at Bernie's).

[femreader]

A girl walks with the Dead - Apocalypse!Avengers

Summary: Zombie apocalypse AU! Y/N is a teenager who happens to run into a group of people while looking for supplies.

Pairing: Avengers x reader

Warnings: Uh... zombies? Zombie killing, language. This is like, so long

A/N: this has been in the drafts for so loooooooong.... 

The cities were a dangerous place for living right now. Well... the living who didn’t want to kill and eat everything that moved. It was much safer to stay up in the hills where you could see anything approaching. Or up north where it was so cold the dead couldn’t raise a finger let alone clamp their jaws around your leg.

Y/N was walking quietly over the rubble of dirt, feeling the sun warm her back. Her old white converses were more grey at this point. Her flannel and top were probably thoroughly covered in sweat and dirt, but she couldn’t throw away her thin jacket. It was the only thing keeping her warm at night.

The teenager stopped and raised her hand over her eyes to look around. The great city of New York, in pieces. The buildings barely intact and the streets flooded with cars. Y/N thought about it when her cellmate talked about driving there some time. They’d go to see the times square and maybe ride the Cyclone at Coney Island. He never shut up about it. Even when Y/N said it would be a death wish to turn on a color chaos like Cyclone. Y/N scoffed and wiped her forehead. The sweatdrops rolling down her skin made her eyes burn.

Her eyes caught a department store up ahead. No movement, she thought. Y/N quietly took out her machete and walked forward quietly, looking for any zombies coming for her.

The back door was rusted so it opened easily. Y/N was glad when it opened straight inside the store. Carefully she wedged a brick by the door, keeping it open.

She held out her machete and walked briskly but carefully towards the food isle. Her ear perked from the slightest sounds. Her hand shook from the exhaustion and hunger but it only made her more alert.

Once she found the canned food, Y/N opened her backpack and managed to take ten cans of beans. She smiled briefly to herself, feeling a sense of victory. The smallest things were the biggest these days. 

Y/N closed her bag and threw it back onto her back. She wondered if there was any water. She bit her lip in thought and walked back to the main aisle, looking around. It would be a miracle if there still was something, anything drinkable but it would be worth it.

Damn, I’d kill for a Pepsi. 

After checking the liquids and finding two bottles of water Y/N turned back to the backdoor. While walking past the robbed pharmacy aisle she noticed a white box witha green picture. Looking around once again she took the box in hand and read what it said. 

“No fucking way,” Y/N mumbled as she checked the menstrual cup inside. Completely not touched. It was perfectly clean. She hadn’t used one before but you bet she was taking this with her.

“I could kiss you, you just saved me from so many problems,” She once again spoke to herself and put the box into one of the pockets of the bag. Y/N turned around and held out her machete. 

She heard a sound, like a step. Quietly she pressed herself by the shelves and held her machete on her chest. Y/N listened carefully and waited for the walker to pass her by. Much to her surprise, the dead seemed to have a much brisker walking style than normal. 

Y/N leaped around the aisle and kicked the person’s back, successfully making them fall onto their stomach. Her eyebrows furrowed as she went to strike the brain, only to notice this person was actually still a human. He turned around, swirling on his spot

A teenage boy to be exact. 

“Woah Woah Woah,” His voice was quiet and high pitched as he held his hands up. “I’m not going to kill you I promise!”

Y/N placed a hand over his mouth and looked around, before moving the said hand over his chest.

“Is there anyone else with you. Lie and I’ll cut your jugular out,” Y/N hissed turning him around and locking the boy’s hands with her left arm and holding her machete on his neck. The boy shook his head repeatedly. 

“No, no. I-I I’m alone. Well here anyway-” Y/N raised his chin with her weapon. The boy went to explain hurriedly. 

“I mean, there’s a group! There’s a group, I’m with but they are not here. They are in the woods, behind the hills.”

“and you’re here?” Y/N raised her eyebrow. 

“We got separated!” He exclaimed and Y/N shushed him again. “We came here to seek out supplies and the freaks got us. I-I don’t even know if they made it back.”

After debating, Y/N got off of the boy and got to her feet. Still keeping a tight grip on her weapon she watched as the fellow teenager got up and held a hand on his throat for a while. 

“Wait you’re...” He stood still in his place. “You’re... You’re my age.” His eyes lowered to her shoulder and to the star symbol which was mostly scratched away on her jacket. Y/N noticed it and aimed her machete back towards the boy. 

“I’m leaving. And if you’re stopping me-”

“Trust me I’m not,” The boy said holding out his hands and looking around. He seemed to have something to say but didn’t know how to phrase it. “B-but, we could try to find my group.”

Y/N scoffed. “Why would I?”

“They can help. And it can’t be fun to travel alone. We have a safe group, freshwater, and a camp. Everyone gets along,” He tried to reason and walked closer to the girl. “You wouldn’t need to be alone.”

“I can be alone,” Y/N said back. 

“But the thing is... you don’t have to.” 

Y/N felt her heart jump and her arm fell to her side from the familiar words. Her eyes widened. 

“Where did you hear that?” She asked and held out the machete and walked closer to the boy. He squeezed himself against the shelf and looked at her with wide eyes. “Who said that to you?!”

“T-the guys at camp, they talk all this philosophical shit all the time!”

Y/N sighed deeply as she looked into the scared boy’s eyes. She bit the inside of her cheek and reluctantly put the machete back to its sheath. The boy relaxed immediately when he noticed her putting her weapon away. He sighed and chuckled quietly. 

“How do I know they won’t snipe me when they see me?” 

“They don’t do that. they really don't,” The boy said confidently. Y/N fixed her backpack to be more comfortable and nodded. 

“Just to be clear,” she moved the hair from her face. “I’m just helping you to get back there. Nothing more nothing less.” Y/N said promptly and moved to walk back to the backdoor. The teenager boy was dumbfounded. 

“So, you coming or not,” Y/N asked and he followed briskly behind her. 

“So how long have you been alone?” 

Y/N couldn’t help but smile a tad. The boy sure was annoying at times and too curious for his own sake. He’d get killed for that at some point. Y/N surprised even herself when she found his company is surprisingly enjoyable. 

The girl sighed and held out a hand to pull Peter over a car. The highway was the fastest way to get to the hills. Y/N’s hand burned as they climbed over the useless vehicles. 

“It’s a rather long story. Let’s just say I will rather be alone than where I was before.”

Peter didn’t say anything back but just continued to walk next to her. He eyes one of the cars. 

“You don’t think we could hotwire one?” He nodded towards an old Volvo and walked over to it. Y/N pulled him back by his shoulder and shot him a look before glancing inside the car. 

Just like she had suspected there was a zombie laying quietly in the backseat, it’s head on their side. Y/N opened the door and smashed it’s brains with her machete before the bastard could make a sound. Peter jumped back and watched as the walker fell onto the pavement. Y/N turned to him. 

“You need to be more careful,” She opened the truck but found nothing. 

“Aww, you concerned about me,” Peter joked and held a hand on his heart. 

“Well, I don’t exactly like killing people,” Y/N said back, but shot a somewhat of a smile to the boy when noticing his frown. “Come on, I think you might be right.”

Y/N climbed inside the car, Peter to the shotgun. He drummed his thighs and waited for Y/N to do her magic. Both of their faces smiled thriumply as the engine roared quietly and the car turned on. They laughed along for a while.

“Do you know how to drive this?” Peter asked, suddenly. Y/N smirked and moved the gearstick. 

“Well, we’ll see,” She did actually know. Once before she had found a car and learned to drive with it.

The journey went much more smoothly after they got the car. Peter even managed to turn on the radio but they agreed not to listen to it as the only thing they could hear was static. Couple of times they had to stop and get out of the car to move vehicles out of the way, but other than that it was smooth sailing. 

“How did they even leave you out there alone,” Y/N asked and glanced at the reviewing mirror. The city was now barely in her line of vision anymore. “I just mean, if they are such good people I thought they would come back for you.”

“We got jumped on,” Peter sounded irritated but lowered his voice as soon as he heard it himself. “It all happened fast, and like I said, I don’t know if the rest even got back.”

Y/N nodded and cursed silently under her breath. The old road ended and the only thing left was a path leading towards the woods and going up towards the hills. She stopped the car and pulled the handbrake up. “I guess it’s moving on foot again.”

Peter whined quietly, his feet were just as tired as Y/N’s. She was glad her shoes were comfortable so they didn't give her any chafe on her feet. 

“C’mon,” She hauled her backpack on and walked alongside the path. Peter was close behind her, at times taking hold of Y/N’s backpack strap to steady himself. Y/N took a grip on the nearby trees while they walked, the path was surprisingly narrow and steep making it harder to move fast. 

“Uh, god,” Peter mumbled as they finally managed to walk up the hill. Peter and Y/N both held their sides and breathed heavily even though both of them were actively sporty. They shared a look. 

“If I could conquer that, I can do anything,” Y/N said, gulping down some water and turned to help Peter. He took the water flask and brought it to his mouth. An arrow flew from the bush, making him drop the flask and spill all the water. Y/N tensed momentarily from surprised and pulled out her gun, aiming it at the bushes. 

A figure came at her from behind her. Y/N felt a rock hit her shoulder, she groaned from the pain. Quickly she reacted to the assaulter and bit their arm which was placed around her throat. They groaned from pain, from somewhere Y/N heard a shout. She turned on her back and head-butted the man on top of her. Once he leaned backward Y/N crawled back and kicked him to his nuts. 

Y/N grasped at her gun and aimed it at the man on the ground, breathing heavily and left side of her face covered in dirt. 

“Drop the gun. Now,” Someone held a cold metal against the back of her neck. Y/N clenched her teeth but kept her aim at the man with a mohawk. The woman cocked her weapon. 

“Drop it.”

Y/N dropped her handgun and held up her hands. She went to see Peter, but noticed him already talking to one of the men. One with a goatee.

“Peter what the hell?!”

“You stay where you are!” The man said and pointed at his gun at Y/N too, once she tried to take a step. Peter looked around eyes wide and jumped in between the gun and Y/N. 

“Peter!”

“Everyone stop!”

“Peter you get the hell away!”

“Stop!” Peter’s voice was high pitched as he frantically waved his arms. Y/N felt the barrel of a gun being pushed further into her head. She bit her lip and thought if she’d be fast enough to disarm her. 

“She helped me. C’mon guys, she’s my age. She’s not a threat,” Peter reasoned. Y/N couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows. The man with a goatee scoffed and changed the gun into his other hand so he aimed it over Peter’s shoulder. 

“Peter, move along.”

“No. She helped me,” He said sternly. Peter glanced at Y/N and Natasha who was pointing the gun. “She’s not a threat. I-... Wouldn’t you think she would have killed me already if she wanted to!?”

“Yeah right headbutting Clint’s teeth in-”

“Well, to my defense you attacked me,” Y/N piped up. Peter gave her a look to just stay quiet. The goatee man sighed and moved closer. 

“Is she bitten?”

“What- No! I’ve been with her all this time,” Peter exclaimed and turned to Nat. he raised his eyebrows and Y/N felt the barrel move away from her head. Carefully and slowly she stood up from her knees. The man she fought chuckled. 

“Well, that’s definitely the first time getting my ass beat by a kid.”

Y/N sighed and put on her backpack. The goatee man put his gun away now too. 

“Sorry for the hustle,” The teenage girl said and moved to take her gun and machete, swiftly wiping out most of the dirt. “I’ll take my leave now.” 

“No, no, no,” Peter said as the three tensed from Y/N picking up her weapons. “You’re coming with us, right? Please,” He looked at her pleadingly. Something about his eyes almost made Y/N want to stay. 

A rustle from the root of the hill caught their attention. Tony groaned and rubbed his face. 

“A walker. I think it’s the best we continue this conversation at the camp,” He patted Peter’s back and looked at Y/N pointedly. She knew they didn’t really leave her with a choice, so reluctantly she turned towards the way they were walking but kept a tight grip on her machete. Something, probably her old experiences of groups, made a shiver run down Y/N spine. 

The walk wasn’t even the most awkward part of the journey. As soon as they got to the camp, which looked like a real camping area with one big van, there were more people waiting for them. Peter went to hug a brunette woman who gladly accepted him with a smile. A big muscular blonde guy and a lot smaller looking man with glasses walked up to them, Y/N noticed the weird looks the gave her. 

“She helped Peter to get back here safely,” The mohawk man said casually while walking towards one of the tents. Y/N heard giggles of children from the inside and her stomach twisted slightly. She kept a strained eye on the blonde man who stood in front of her, scanning her like she was a predator. There was a pregnant pause. 

“Well,” He started and moved forward. “I guess we own her a thank you then.” He gave her a hand to shook which Y/N looked skeptically. Slowly she moved her machete into her left hand and shook his hand steadily. 

“I apologize for being nosy but,” The eyeglasses man asked Y/N. “But are you alone. Is there someone looking out for you.”

Y/N shook her head as a ‘no’ and everyone silently agreed. This kid, no matter how talented she was, wouldn’t be left out there alone again.

“What’s all this ruckus about,” Someone emerged from the bushes wiping his hands from dirt. Y/N squinted her eyes, trying to make clear of the man’s face. Something about him was familiar. Half of his face was shielded by the shadows of the trees and the long brow hair.

“Hey, Buck. How’s the fish?” The blonde guy asked, turning to the long-haired man. Y/N’s eyes widened and her machete fell onto the ground, with a clank. She opened and closed her mouth like a fish n dry land trying to breathe.

“It’s ready in 10 minutes...” His voice lowered by the end when he looked at Y/N. 

“Bucky?” Her voice was quiet. She took a couple of steps forward before breaking off into a sprint. Someone shouted after her but Y/N didn’t care. She threw herself into his arms and squeezed tightly. His arms gathered her into his embrace quickly. 

“Y/N? What? How are you here?”

“How are you here?!” Y/N said and punched his arm. “You just disappeared!”

“I know, I know... shush,” Bucky calmed her and let her stay in his arms. The rest of the gang looked at the two. 

”You just left,” The teenager mumbled into his shoulder and felt her eyes burn. Bucky patted her hair in a calming way.

”I’m sorry.”

“You have some explaining to do,” Stark said. 

As they all got their fish and sat around the small fire Y/N had helped built, Bucky and Y/N began to explain where they knew each other.

”A year or so back I escaped a group of people, they had their own small community run by nasty people,” Y/N bit some of her fish. Bucky looked at her empathically.

”Bucky was the first person to ever escape the place, around six years ago. I was the second. Though they did upgrade their defenses after you,” she nudged Bucky’s side. ”Didn’t make my job any easier.”

Y/N bit her fish and munched on it, noticing how closely everyone was listening to her, waiting for her to continue. Slightly uncomfortable she swallowed and rolled her lips together. 

“Who were they,” Steve asked, his already well-sculptured face illuminated and highlighted by the flickering flames of the fire. Y/N saw from the corner of her eye Bucky shifting uncomfortably and eating his fish, trying to distract himself.

“Hydra,” She said grimly and set her plate aside, hugging herself suddenly having no appetite. “They were very, very strict on what we could do and when we could do it.”

“You’ve been alone since the shit went down?” Y/N nodded, not bothering to look up who asked. She blew a hair out of her face. 

“My parents died quickly, they were at work when it happened and got locked in. I was at home, just got out of school when the first walkers appeared.” She thought of the day she was forced to kill her own parents with a blunt baseball bat. Suddenly she felt sick and she placed the fish next to her, focusing her attention on her fingerless gloves instead. 

“Long story short; I met Bucky there, we thought of escaping, we disappeared and I was left to fend for myself again,” After hearing how defensive that sounded Y/N shot a reassuring smile to Bucky next to her. “It’s alright though, at least we both got out.” 

“What happened to the place,” He asked her, noticing the star on her shoulder. It was clawed off almost. Y/N shrugged her shoulders and made a face. 

“Up and at it as far as I know. But I did blow up one of their generators while leaving, so probably with less power,” The circle chuckled and Y/N felt a blush rise to her cheeks. She noticed the brown-haired woman look at her form the other side of the fire. She wasn’t many years older than Y/N. She was really pretty.

“The star... Bucky has the same one.” 

“Uhhh... yeah,” Y/N lifted her jacket sleeve and looked at the star with multiple white lines over it which she had scratched on it with a blunt key.

“It’s better you don’t know what sick shits worked at Hydra,” She ended up confessing and took some of the fish again. Y/N glanced up and noticed the uneased looks around the flame and a dry chuckle came out of her mouth. 

“What’s with the long faces,” She slightly bumped Bucky’s knee with her own. “Those days are long gone,” She said dramatically and the conversation slowly slid into a bit more casual one. Y/N leaned over to Bucky. 

“I’m still beating your ass,” She lowly whispered with a slight smirk tugging her dry lips. 

The night slowly came upon them and Y/N found herself laying in the same tent as Bucky. the blonde man and the redhead woman were on patrolling duty while everyone else could rest. 

“Bucky,” She said quietly, turning to her left side, her hand under her head. Bucky put down the Great Gatsby book and looked at her with that same parental reassurance as always. 

“What’s it kiddo?” 

Y/N pursed her lips, trying to hide her smile. “Was that a cheek kiss Steve gave you before you came here?” She asked and Bucky immediately flushed red. He fumbled with the book and cleared his throat. 

“I- uh, it’s... I don’t-”

“Hey, It’s alright,” Y/N chuckled and nudged his leg with her arm. Bucky turned off the oil lamp and laid down into his sleeping bag also, facing Y/N. 

“I mean he isn’t that bad looking-”

“Shut up,” Bucky chuckled and pulled the blanket a bit better on Y/N. He smiled slightly, his ears still slightly red. 

“I’m not going to leave you again,” he promised and held up his little finger. Y/N smiled, hooked her little finger with his and nodded. 

“Never ever.” 

[willow-salix]

Random bit of fun because it's been the kind of day where I needed to make myself laugh.

Everyone knew that Selene had a love of classic horror films, the ones that Alan said were boring and not in the least scary. The same ones that John always turned his nose up at because the special effects were non existent. Virgil liked them because they always had great music to them and Scott and Gordon just found them hilariously funny. 

But this one was different, while her favourites were made in the 1960s, she had stumbled across one that was positively modern in comparison from the 2010s. She'd put it off over and over again but if there was one thing that hanging out in a floating space station gave you an opportunity to watch all the movies you had previously never had time for. She had quickly run through almost all the movies on her watch list and was down to two, it was scary or the prank show Gordon had insisted she watch, so it was time to watch the scary even if that time was 3am and she couldn't sleep (not that she expected the movie to help). So there she was, camped out on one of the couches in the sunken lounge of the villa, blanket over her legs, tablet balanced on her knees, watching the movie. 

It started with three young girls happily playing tea parties in their attic play room when all of a sudden they dropped their dolls and little tea cups and as one, moved to the windows, opened them, and jumped the fuck out. 

Selene jumped in shock. "Da fuq was that about?" she yelped, eyes glued to the action which had cut to a young single father having one last chance to impress his bosses at the solicitors where he worked. He was a widow, his wife having died in childbirth and he was fast running out of money,  debts mounting, he needed this job.  

The owner of a big old house had died and the young father was the one sent to go through all her papers and check the house over,  looking for her most recent will, before they could sell. Seemed simple enough, but this was a spooky movie so obviously that wasn't going to go well.

He said goodbye to his son, planning on being done by the weekend when his son and the nanny would join in for a weekend in the country, all very pleasant... Selene was now quite bored after the dramatics at the start. She reached for her cup of cocoa and sipped as she watched the young father, Arthur Kipps,  board the train and promptly fall asleep. Cue a dream of his late wife which shocked him enough to wake with a start. A helpful man by the name of Sam offered him a ride from the station to the guest house. 

At the guest house Arthur (whom she could see as non other than Harry Potter no matter how hard she tried) was told he didn't in fact have a room booked and must go away. Strange. But the wife of the landlord took pity on him and let him stay in the attic... The same creepy ass attic the girls had jumped from.

"No Harry! Don't sleep there!" Selene warned but of course the twat didn't listen. Though he appeared to get through the night unscathed and proceed to make his way to the creepy ass house he was looking through. 

Selene jumped and squeaked her way through his first visit when the bitch in black decided to pop her ugly ass face up now and then and waft around in the background when she shouldn't be. 

She got a major case of the sads when a kiddie died due to the black bitch and got rather indignant on Harry/Arthurs behalf when the villagers all seemed to blame him. But by the time he went back again and began to uncover some clues as to the woman in blacks identity and why she might be creeping around like a dick and scaring the shit out of people, Selene was on the edge of her seat and not in a good way. The ghost popped up, eyeballs being all weird and dodgy and it all got a bit much for Selene, though she would blame sleep deprivation from back to back rescues. 

"Expelliarmus! " she yelled, waving her wandless hand at the screen in an attempt to make the spook go away.

She might be a super tough witchy but even she wasn't good with jump scares, it was the dodgy plinky plonky music they used to fuck with your head that always got to her and after she had shrieked and almost dropped the tablet for the fourth time she paused the film and, grabbing laptop and blanket, decided her spaceman would so appreciate a late night visit from his witch. 

She padded her way down the hallway from the lounge on a hunt for her elusive man. She checked Scott's office where he was known to sometimes hang out but found it empty. The kitchen was just as deserted so she let herself outside, taking a deep breath of the cooler night air. Ahh, target spotted and locked on! He was stretched out on one of the loungers arranged around the pool, which to some would seem strange in the middle of the night, but she knew he enjoyed the quiet. Such a shame she was there to fuck that up for him. Sucked to be him right now. 

She tugged his book out of his hands without asking - he didn't need it now- put down the tablet and scooped up the cat that was curled up on his lap, dropping him unceremoniously on the floor.

"My space man." Armstrong gave an outraged meow but she nudged him aside with her foot. "Go find Alan and sleep on his face."

There went his peace and quiet. Much as he loved her she had the subtlety of a cyclone sometimes, even at half past three in the morning. How was it even possible that she was still this bouncy? He tried to catch his book as it was whipped out of his hands but missed.

"I was reading that."

The cat went next and, although he had actually been enjoying the warm weight of the purring creature on his lap, he would never admit it and therefore didn't raise a protest. 

Selene pushed his legs apart, ignoring his questioning eyebrow and settled between them. He let his feet fall to the floor, making room, allowing her to wrap his arms around her middle and lean back against his chest. 

She picked up her tablet and propped it up on her knees. This wasn't going to be pleasant, he had very little faith in her viewing choices. 

"Selene, " he sighed. 

There was that tone that they all heard at least once a day, the one that said he was already done with your shit. Good job she was immune to such things. 

She wiggled to get comfy and smiled to herself. This was much better, her man would protect her from evil jumping ghost ladies that desperately needed to cleanse, tone and moisturise once in a while, he was awesome and could like…shoot it with a laser or some shit, what more could she want in a movie buddy? 

"You know I have no interest in watching this, " he protested weakly as he caught sight of the screen. 

She ignored that too, he'd like it once it got going, she was sure of it, and hit play. 

The dumbass formerly known as Harry had balls, she'd give him that, he hadn't given up and was yet again back in the house of oogie boogies with nothing but a dog for company. The story was unfolding and Selene was actually beginning to feel kind of sorry for the emo ghost, but she still didn't trust her and said as much, very vocally and frequently. 

"Don't go in there…. Shit shit shit creepy rocking chair… ahhh I fucking hate those little wind up monkeys, this, this is why kids were disturbed in the victorian times, look at the fucking toys they give them, what's wrong with the parents…" she paused her mini rant by yelping and hiding her face in John's neck when the ghost popped up again, "not cool, so not cool dude. " 

John but his lip, refusing to laugh at her comments, it would just encourage her and honestly, she was bad enough as it was. She was so animated in everything she did, so open, honest and just full on. 

He much preferred to sit and watch in silence, but Selene was never quiet for long and with four brothers he was used to never getting his own way.  It had been a busy few days and while the others had passed out early, they were both too keyed up to rest. He'd chosen the sensible option of quiet relaxation, obviously she'd had other ideas.

He made an attempt to watch the film but it was almost impossible, having missed the start and with her near constant distractions. He gave up all pretence of paying attention and simply enjoyed having her so close, tightening his arms around her middle.

Once she deemed it safe she looked up again,  uncurling a little from the protective shelter of his arms and managed to sit through another five minutes without freaking out, that was until there was a massive ass house fire and Harry/Arthur's friend Sam told him a bit more about his own story, that's when she started to get defensive and head more into pissed off territory.  

"Why do you keep calling him Harry?" he asked but received no answer as she launched into another tirade. 

"What is wrong with you? Oi, ghost bitch, stop that shit! Don't make me come down there! You might be able to mess with the now non wizard but try a real witch for size."

She cheered and got a little excited when the heroes tried to help the ghost, though the bitch wasn't very appreciative and just did her banshee impression, which lead to Selene screaming back at her, as if that would actually help, making John jump in shock. How was she so loud? 

She relaxed when she thought it was all over, only to bounce back up in the last few seconds in complete outrage. "They should have called me, I'd have kicked that bitches arse in less than a day and been home in time for dinner, now look! Look at that! What the fuck was that? Fucking vengeful ghost, what's wrong with you!"  She pushed the tablet aside in a huff, crossing her arms, sulk mode activated.

The chest she was leaning against was vibrating against her back as he shook in silent laughter. She turned to glare at him, which just made things worse as he lost control. 

John was laughing at her, this was unacceptable.  She nipped his chin in retaliation, trying to hold in a laugh and not admit that she had been a massive wimp. 

He continued to laugh, the lines of stress and worry that had formed over the past few days vanishing smoothing out as he relaxed and let go. She smiled, glad to have helped. Even if her way had been unconventional, it had done the job. 

John hugged her tighter, his amusement fading away to leave him with quiet contentment as she placed the tablet on the ground and rested her head back onto his shoulder. High above them, a bright spot in the dark sky he could just make out his beloved craft, awaiting him, but, as was becoming more and more frequent, he didn't feel the immediate urge to return. They lay in silence for a while, watching the stars, relaxed and at peace. 

"Want to take your witchy to bed so we can get some sleep?"

He smiled, turning his head for a quick kiss. "That's an offer I would be a fool to refuse."

They gathered their things, turned off the lights and returned to the silent villa, bed calling.