#it said it arrived at the post office at like 2 30... i COULD of maybe gone and picked it up

[grimvisionary]

bro if this bike gets here a MONTH early im gonna lose my mind. if its just the bag and umbrella, then like oh well. i'll feel bad for the delivery guy either way cuz the bike is like 30 lbs lmaoooo

[rosedere]

Murder Mountain

(Yandere Azul Ashengrotto x Afab Reader)

Modern AU

TW: Dark Content, Attempted Murder, Harassment, Non Con/Rape.

Part 1, Part 2 (You are here), Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6

Cross Posted on AO3.

Part 2 Summary:

Azul and you take a trip into the mountains; Little do you know Azul has his own agenda.

-

Can you take me to northern California

Where the grass is greener

Can you make me dissappear

Be my puppeteer

Don't you leave again

-

You really didn't expect to get this far

literally and figuratively.

Arriving at the gated estate full of pine trees and golden fences, on the tall menacing gate before you was a entry buzzer, roughly, you pressed the button, a ring resounding from the buzzer on the outside post was heard echoing around the woods.

You weren't expecting to immediately be let in, the dark metallic gates opening before you effortlessly.

Pausing you looked around cautiously; no way your boss just let you in.

But you couldnt back down now was what encouraged you to walk up the winding driveway leading past the numerous gardens and waterways connecting to a massive renaissance fountain in the center of the estate further back.

Keeping your eyes peeled for any witnesses it seemed his sprawling estate was deserted.

Only after a few more minutes of walking, you made it to the illustserous main house.

You knew him being a multi billionaire would entail a huge house, but not to the extent of having a house as big as a small town.

At the doorstep, you observed his three doorway poarch the doors were made of a see-through glass with frosted tint coating said doors. Being able to see the interior of his spiraling house with dark wooden floors and almost minimal walls but nothing more without walking up to the door to look in.

Taking note of the garage next to the doorway along with a ten foot tall ornamental tree, you notived the massive garage was open with a several expensive cars sitting there,ominously, lined up in order of price most likely.

Noting Azul was no where to be found you approached the door in the middle looking for, something, to announce your presence.

Finally you spotted a doorbell, quickly you went to where the smart doorbell was.

you had your finger extended but before you could ring he doorbell, a hand was firmly pressed onto your shoulder.

With a hard swallow, you retracted your hand.

Turning, you were met with your enemy.

Azul Ashengrotto.

"No need for that, I'm already ready to depart"

You only looked stoic at him.

"You said you'd be here 30 minutes ago," He replied in his usual business tone.

Azul was wearing an expensive camping long-sleeve shirt you'd seen at designer sports stores, almost as much as your rent was if you had to make a guess was what he wore on his body along with matching hiking khakis.

It almost seemed like he was dressed up for someone.

Other than that, he didn't look noticeably different from how you'd normally see him in the office.

Including his scowl that was practically oozing discomfort.

Focus (name).

"just traffic, the walk up from where I parked didnt help either," you shrugged hoping your answer would appease him.

Not like you cared for his response, though.

waiting for a snide remark about your outfit or about your flimsy excuse it was silent for way too long.

Looking over at your boss instead of seeing him disgusted you watched him look you up from head to toe.

"it seems you decided to dress more feminine today" azul smirked, "it looks good on you I can actually see your body more in detail"

If only there wasnt so many cameras and possible witnesses out of sight...

Before you could stay angry however, he tossed you a black rectangular item, looking closer you realized it was a Electric car key.

Of course, he's rich enough to have a keyless car.

Azul walked off towards a car parked the furthest in the garage, looking in the back of the trunk you could see almost ten bags of god knows what stacked neatly in the deep trunk bed.

Thank god he did; easier to hide your lucky bag.

You load your "bag" into his trunk with hesitancy, loading it into the back of all the luggage so it wouldn't be of note to him or anyone looking through the trunk if the worst case scenario occurs.

"Is that all you brought?" Azul abruptly says from behind you causing a flinch from you.

He probably only was watching to make sure you didnt steal his luggage.

"It didn't seem necessary to bring much," you murmured, closing the trunk you walked towards the drivers side.

You got inside as fast as you could into the car first almost about to put the key inside when you realized Azul was still outside.

He seemingly was looking through his luggage off course confirming your earlier suspicions.

Ignoring him, you looked for the start button eventually finding it next to the console.

Pressing the ignition button, a jolt of worry from this morning stung you.

Why was this going too well?

Does he know I'm going to get my long-desired revenge?

Maybe this is a set up he probably is going to lure me there and Jade and the police will be waiting to-

"Never driven a car like this before or what?" Azul mocked this from his side in the passenger seat as he started buckling himself in closing the door with a hard slam.

"It's automatic; all you do is press the screen twice, put your location in, and then you steer once every 30 minutes," he explained, idly combing his finger into his hair seemingly in his own little world.

The mountain specifically.

You grabbed the steering wheel after you entered the directions to the campsite.

"Now drive"

-

The first 2 hours of the drive, nothing eventful happened, which intensified your sense of dread that kept sticking to you.

You tried to preoccupy your mind with softball, Jade, and your boyfriend. Azul was looking out the windows or would check his phone and fidget with it for moments at a time.

If you really focused on the winding roads that led the two of you deeper into the evergreen sea of trees, it almost felt like he wasn't there.

Until the beginning of hour 3.

You had been focusing on directing the bulky steering wheel getting it to turn on the windy passage up the mountain when you felt something weird.

Right.

Left.

Right.

Your hands around the steering wheel tightened.

Looking over pretending to fix the mirror was when you saw Azul.

Azul had been staring at you.

You looked again through your peripheral vision.

A pair of cerulean peered back towards you.

You had no idea what was behind his locked on stare, it was more annoying to you seeing him gawking at you if anything.

"You seem tired (name)"

Oh here it comes...

"Do you want me to drive?" Azul asked as he shifted his position from his seat.

He was now facing you directly with the same sickening look on his face to receive from someone who'd been cruel to you for so many years.

"Why do you ask Mr. Ashengrotto? We're almost there, but if you need to stretch, there's several rest stops and one gas station before we get to our destination," you gripped the steering wheel harder.

The mask is back on.

"Im merely suggesting so you can have enough..."

Suddenly his hands curled around your clothed thigh before vigorously kneading it.

"Energy for later," Azul smiled his gaze now looking up your side profile again.

"Thanks, but I'll be fine, Mr. Ashengrotto."

"Azul"

Azul then placed his hand onto your thigh giving it a gentle squeeze.

The discomfort was unbearable.

But you reassured yourself you had approximately 1 hour, 40 minutes, and 50 seconds to get ready for the next and last phase of your plan for revenge.

-

Out of the sea of evergreen trees you both found yourselfs surrounded by canyons and revines alongside occasional thick redwood trees and a few meadows scattered about.

10 feet to your destination.

A vast clearing overlooked a ravine that would lead up to one of the mountain structures besides the campground, and behind the cute little wooden cabins lining the rough rocky road was a unmistakable towering mountain.

The oppressive nature it had was hauntingly beautiful; you had to admire it from all sides in your mind.

The familiar camping ground your company always had events at was finally right in front of you.

You awkwardly parked the car next to the first cabin reserved for Mostro Inc.

Furthest from all the cabins...

Turning the ignition off, Azul immediately got out and walked towards the cabin, stretching and eventually reaching for his phone to call someone you couldn't quite pick up.

Good. 

You watched him disappear, guessing Azul wanted to go to the cabin to see if it was to his taste.

Hastily, you popped the trunk and grabbed some of his bags, noticing most were arranged differently from before.

You knew he would scold you if he didnt have access to his bag for a few moments too long.

Grabbing the expensive hard case luggage two at a time you began to approach the open door.

Step

Step

Step

You entered the cabin to reveal it to be an ordinary cabin.

Definitely worn from the conditions it would face from various seasons, but it had a touched-up quality to it, with a very comfortingly decorated entrance way leading to a small kitchen and living room full of cute camping decorations reminiscent of a cozy fall cottage.

To the right was a presumed guest room, which only had a full-sized bed with a whole antique wardobe, a bedside lamp, and one small window. On the opposite side of the hallway was the actual master bedroom of sorts.

It had a queen-sized bed with a built-in closet and bathroom you were about to further inspect it when you unexpectedly caught him walking out of the bathroom.

With something in his hands, one hand had something that was reminscent of...

Personal lubricant the label read.

His other hand contained a few pills you didnt recognize.

Weird.

"Mr- I mean Azul. I have some bags here"

"I'm not sure if you want me to get the rest of your luggage or-"

You held up the luggage youd brought hoping you could dash away from whatever was happening in front of you.

"Of course" he briefly answered.

You rolled the luggage towards the door when Azul suddenly spoke.

"Actually, can you set those bags in the kitchen?"He pointed at the bags you had.

Y/N….

You thought you misheard him.

Flashing a smile you quickly walked away into the kitchen to set them by the wooden coffee table in the center of it.

You turned around to walk back out when your eye was caught on the two glasses set on the counter. It seemed as if whoever had stayed here last had left some items.

Immediately you realized what Azul was most likely doing, shaking your head in disgust at the thought of your boss using the cabins you all used as his personal getaway for his many women.

Trying to push the image of Azul having sex out of your mind you walked back outside, almost knocking yourself against the heavy lock that was on the door.

Rubbing the spot on your left side as you walked down the wooden steps to the car.

Step

Step

Step

Only about A few bags remain.

Cautiously walking inside, you didnt expect to see your boss in the kitchen. It seemed he didnt notice you enter or if he did didnt acknowledge you as you heard the sound of pouring fill the room.

The sounds of glasses clinking and cutting against a hard surface was heard but grew distant as you continued into the master bedroom.

Placing the bags next to the bed you noticed he had left a box of chocolates next to the bed.

Most likely for him to eat by himself, you snickered before carrying on making sure to avoid the lock again, you carefully opened the door and noticed a slight hesitation on the door.

Weird.

Azul must be messing with it to make sure it locks. You couldn't blame him since, once again, he was the most expensive man in the world.

You grabbed the remaining bags.

Now is the time to act...

-

After carefully concealing your "bag,” you juggle it between the heavy luggage Azul had and prayed it was camouflaged enough, walking up the steps.

Step

Step

Step

Lock.

You leave the remaining bags in the master bedroom.

Only....

That feeling of extreme dread washes over you as you drop the last luggage onto the bed.

"Y/N, would you like a drink?”

Your eyes flicked to the glass he had in his hand; Cucumber water.

"I just wanted to turn a new leaf with you (name)"

Azul took a sip out of the glass in question.

"why dont we see this trip as a way to understand each other"

You still stared at him in disbelief.

Why now would he want to become friends or anything with you now?

"Sorry, I'm not really thirsty" you turned away from him picking your "bag" off the ground.

But before you could leave he blocked the doorway.

"Just a sip" he smiled.

You knew he wasnt asking anymore.

Gingerly you grabbed the glass before putting it to your lips, His eyes watching as you let yourself consume a little swig.

Weirdly enough, you were actually parched and the cucumber was refreshing. He did drink a little bit of it anyway so you knew he didnt do anything to poison you.

Azul was still standing before you waiting for you to take another sip of the liquid. Letting your lips touch the glass once more you drank eyeing him to see when he'd move.

Except he didnt move until you had downed the whole water.

"See that wasnt so bad (name)" he gingerly grabbed your glass before setting off towards the kitchen.

You rolled your eyes before taking the "bag" to the bedroom across. Leaving your bag ontop of the bed a wave of warmth wrapped around you.

The thrill of finally being able to inact your revenge was nearly through.

You unzipped the "bag" going through the motions of unzipping it.

Until you felt yourself suddenly lose control of your arms.

And then you passed out ontop of the bed next to your items.

-

You couldnt open your eyes but you could feel your bra being unclasped.

Someone was undressing you agonizingly slow.

You tried to move your hands only to feel them heavy. Not as if you were bound but you simply couldnt pick them up.

Using your strength you opened your eyes to see.

Azul.

And the now locked master bedroom before you.

[mr-clow]

Ensemble 2: Greed and Politics. Part 2:

Six months had passed since the initial attack. Quatl was now on the podium, informing the other delegates that had joined the war the current situation.

Quatl - My speech has been sent previously to your translation units, any doubts please wait until the report is finished.

Quatl scanned the ample room that was barely occupied by fifteen different creatures. Al waiting to hear has been fished out of the war on humanity only for them to start arguing who would keep what.

Quatl - The war has progressed a lot faster than expected and with minimal losses. The first five standard rotations (Ten human days for the reader) were the cruellest, where we had the 90% of the total deaths and all the ships lost were during that period. After that, during the following 30 rotations, humanity retreated to the inner section of their system, fleeting with nothing more than what they could carry with their hands. As stated before, the humans cannot be trusted, so we established a barrier around the system, only stopping the ships that were trying to leave the system. No human ship tried to leave and we assume that at the moment more than 89.000.000.000.000 humans are enclosed in that area. Sanarin and KalHal governments had been sending food to support their allies and we cannot stop them by the same council rules that we established to protect ourselves. As for now, nothing more than food has been taken inside the system, so there is nothing to worry about.

Quatl watched as several symbols of approval crossed through the different species. They all chipped in prepared for war with one of the most vicious species on the galaxy and suddenly this overgrown monkeys had shown their cowardly side, nothing could have been better.

Quatl – Now, we know that humanity faced a civil war, the actual ruler is a female without any experience in combat and deemed mentally unstable. Their industry resources are lacking, they are short on fuel, and as a civilization right now they cannot distinguish top from bottom. We will have an additional meeting to speak about the profits of this war, but I assure you, the bounty is plentiful. I would prefer if we coordinate said meeting before the replacement delegate of the Spin’d arrives, as the latter abandoned her post.

Quatl went down of the podium as voices of approval follow him. After reviewing a couple of documents with the rest of the present members, he went to Kiltnik office, as he had some doubts that the smart Rajne might solve. He went in and clashed on the resting surface that was set up against the wall. Kiltnik looked at him and sat on the other side of the desk.

Kiltnik – I am really impressed, we made out with 37 worlds, five of them already terraformed, a few others habitable and all the rest are full of resources.

Quatl – Yes, humanity have a superb sense for valuables. Now that we have taken all of their colonies, the commerce inside the council will reach levels never seen before.

Kiltnik – The most important question still remains unanswered, though.

Quatl – Don’t worry, I have a plan to convince those brutes that the planets we are going to give them are worth more than all our share together.

Kiltnik – I don’t have any doubts about that. I am wondering what will we do with humanity.

Quatl – That will be easy, but we need time. Eventually the other species will stop sending aid and humanity will have to perish or drag to our feet. They already ran like scared prey to they own system and we blockaded them. Maybe the civil war will make the job for us and humanity will kill itself.

Kiltnik – That is a good prediction. Sadly we can not stop the Sanarin and KalHal from sending them aid, but maybe shall we convince them in other way?

Quatl – When they see the share they missed, they will start doubting. Meanwhile, they are not bothering us with other things, so let’s wait a bit more.

Kiltnik – That means that you are not here to talk about humans, nor the share, what do you need to know?

Quatl – You should learn to do some small talk, ease those around you to be more receptive.

Kiltnik – You know that is not the way of my people.

Quatl – Well, well, alright. Do you know what happened with Gnacht? The Spin’d wouldn’t change their delegate just because.

Kiltnik – As you might expect, their central government got an anonymous word of the opportunity they lost because of her decision. It was an obvious response. They should have been on our side, now she will pay for it.

Quatl – I enjoy easing people to submission as much as you enjoy destroying their careers. We make an excellent team. I hope we stay on the same side for the rotations to come.

Kiltnik – That word is empty, make sure I’ll be on your side and I’ll do the same.

Quatl – And you should work on your ability to read between lines, but yes, the same as I said. I have to leave, remember to hand me your selection for the loot.

Kiltnik made a gesture to leave Quatl at ease as he reached for the door. Quatl happily walk to his room, he would leave an absence note to dismiss every appointment that required his presence, and he would bury himself to enjoy a long-lasting and well-earned meal.

[expatesque]

Referring to your recent post, would love to see some of the fun things you’ve bought! You have the best taste 😊

Aw thank you.

So the main categories of things have been home stuff and fashion stuff. I do have a tag (of course) but haven't posted everything so to summarize...

Home stuff

Living room: The swan table (an icon, a queen, the inspiration for the room), the insane green velvet chair (we love her, gotta keep it eclectic), snake rug (hiss hiss), a fundamentally impractical sofa (Ikea, concessions had to be made somewhere. I'm going to restuff to make it look more fluffy and expensive). I'm keeping my vintage curio cabinet, 1960's referencing 30's circular bar cart, black arched lamp, and big rubber plant. The inspiration is somewhere between this 1930's Thorne miniature room and hummusbird. I need some paintings, a little table for under the window to display a great vase (got this one in ivory, tbc if it's the right size), and some big new throw pillows (I'm thinking dusky pink). Oh also I'm getting a fish to go in the bookcase (I wanted a white Betta but my dad has said that's a bad idea and suggested a gold fish instead).

Kitchen: An oval marble topped cast iron bistro style table. Keeping my black bistro chairs (2x) and will also use 2 of my armless ghost chairs (like these). Likely to get a small floating island to get a little more counter space. Also bought an insane copper kettle ala my man Rajiv recently.

Main bedroom: I've got a new headboard for my bed (this one), I'm getting rid of the wardrobe in there (using the one in the 2nd bedroom) and will replace it with a vintage dressing table and mirror (I do like this one but would rather not spend that given... everything else) to display my great great grandmother's silver mirror, brush, etc. Need some big Euro shams and perpetually looking for a navy woven blanket that's big enough (I want it like, almost duvet sized).

2nd bedroom: Currently is an office / video game room, turning into a proper 2nd bed. I'll use my meh existing bed, need bedside tables, maybe a new desk chair.

Fashion stuff

It's been a lot of big skirts (my love the Prada one, a really full white canvas-y one, this crazy pink one, a beige cashmere Theory one), a set of heavy ribbed tops with high necks in black and browns (for autumn, this is one of them), a few cropped cardigans (can't find any specific ones that I've bought right now, but short enough to wear with the skirts), a totally sheer cream colored top (that is proving surprisingly versatile already), two cheap Zara wrap vests that I'm waiting to arrive (one in cream and one in black, we'll see the quality when they get here), a Victorian gold charm bracelet (+ a charm of a monkey holding a pearl), a pair of really gorgeous silver and mother pearl earrings from the 50s, some rag and bone soft leather mules, some baby blue Mary Janes, and a set of tiny kitten heels that I really like but am not sure I'm keeping (they're a little narrow but I think I could stretch them). I think there's more but if I think too much about it I'll be stressed (rip my budget). Pro tip: Laura Riley has an incredible fashion newsletter that rounds up what's new and what's on sale -- I've gotten almost everything I've bought on 50%+ off.

[kathxsoupp]

In Love With a Fever: Chapter 5

William Afton x law enforcement ! reader (fem)

HELLO HI I'M BACK FROM THE DEAD!!!!

Summary: Reader is a detective who was put on the missing children incident case, her person of interest is William and is currently investigating him.

WARNINGS: very graphic violence throughout the whole fic, eventual smut, slow burn, age-gap between reader and Will, manipulation, mutilation, broken bones, use of pet names, Will is obsessive, mentions of death, death and murder, there will be smut, a lot probably, I think, dub-con at some point maybe, fluff and angst, idk if I missed something just read with caution

Notes: NOT ENTIRELY LORE ACCURATE!!! This fic is also posted on my AO3, linked in my pinned post, I'm updating this fic every Monday and it's the first thing I have ever posted, so I hope you like it!

--MINORS DNI--

Chapter 5

He stood before his office window, thoughts racing through his mind. The satisfaction of his perfect plan slowly but surely working out made him feel like he was on top of the world. The clueless girl like an angel sent from heavens above right there for him to use. He promised himself he wasn’t actually going to fall in love with her or anything. He didn’t perceive her as that special. She was just there to cover for him. She was there for him to manipulate and shape into what he needed her to be, ‘so don’t fall too hard sweetheart. I’ll get rid of you in the end anyway.’

The clock finally struck 2:30 pm. You looked into the mirror once more, fixing your appearance and taking a deep breath. You were a little bit too nervous for a work-related meeting. If you could always be so professional about your job, why couldn’t you do the same right now? Working in law enforcement was always your dream job. True crime, mystery and even horror and paranormal stuff always intrigued you so much. That’s why you were so excited about being on this case.

You’ve known about Freddy’s for a while and about the diner that came before it. To be honest, you were still hoping you could maybe somehow get Afton to show you the robots, since you didn’t get the chance earlier. You wanted to know more about them. How they work, how they were built if there’s any stories behind them, etc. The animatronics were interesting to you, but you also found them a little bit creepy. That didn’t discourage you from wanting to find out more though, quite the opposite. Now you needed to focus on the task at hand.

You grabbed your bag and left your office. You walked out of the building and headed to the appointed place. The café wasn’t too far from where you worked. It was about fifteen minutes away, so you decided to just walk instead of driving. You got there a little earlier than you meant to. At least you had the time to find some place to sit and collect your thoughts.

Ten minutes later, he arrived. You looked up from your notebook and your heart skipped a beat when you saw him.

Why were you this nervous?

Breathe, (y/n). Breathe.

You stood up from your chair with a small polite smile and held your hand out to him.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Afton. Thank you again for taking the time to speak with me.” You greeted him. He took your hand in a handshake. “The pleasure is all mine, agent.” He said, returning your smile.

You couldn’t believe how quickly he got so comfortable around you; however, you didn’t exactly mind that. It was your intention to get him to trust you as much as possible. They tend to be the most talkative then. You both sat back down, and you opened your notebook to write down anything he says.

“So, how have you been since we last spoke?” you asked him. “I’ve been alright, but I have to say I’m still very concerned about the recent events.” he replied with a serious look on his face. “It feels so surreal to me, and it has left me feeling quite numb I have to admit.”

Your heart ached at his words. You knew he was also a grieving father and couldn’t imagine what it must be like to go through the pain all over again.

“Again, I am so sorry for your loss. I can’t imagine what that must be like.” “What was it you needed to talk to me about?” he said to change the subject.

You were now a little nervous to ask about his family. You didn’t want to make the situation worse than it already was, but you didn’t have a choice, really.

“I just needed to ask you a few more personal questions. I promise you it’s just routine work, we need any lead we can get so we can finally put a stop to this madness. Would you be comfortable with that?”

He smiled to himself. He didn’t think his act would be so good you’d believe every single word he said.

“Of course, miss (l/n). Go ahead.” He said with that same smile, leaning forward, hands on the table fingers intertwined.

You asked him some questions you had written down in your notebook. Everything went well, until you mentioned the co-owner of the pizzeria, Henry.

“Henry, huh?” he said. “I have to say Henry Emily is the nicest man I know. Cheerful all the time, always happy to help, but he’s been acting strange lately. You know, I don’t want to point fingers at anyone, and I genuinely don’t believe he could be a suspect here I just figured you should know.”  “What about his behavior do you consider as strange?” you asked with a furrowed brow. “Well… he’s secretive and startled easily, I guess. Every time I speak to him, he seems nervous Fidgeting with his hands, not his usual calm and friendly self, but that might just be this whole situation getting to him.”

Interesting. You made sure to note down what he told you and then closed your notebook.

“Alright, well that would be all from me today. Thank you again for meeting up with me today, Mr. Afton. Is there anything else you’d like to talk about?” He leaned forward in his chair closer to you. “I saw you looking for the animatronics the last time you visited my restaurant. Tell me, do those fascinate you?” he said with a small smirk. Your face went red. “Oh you did? I didn’t mean to stare, but yeah, I have to say those are very interesting. It’s a shame I didn’t get to get a look at them.” “You know, if you want, I will gladly take you to see them sometime. I can show you around too. Show you how they work, I can even let you see the blueprints, if you’d like.”

His offer shocked you. You didn’t expect him to be so eager to show you his work. Especially when you were literally a cop, a possible threat to him. The fact that he would voluntarily like to spend time with you showing you his restaurant gave you the slight feeling he really had nothing to hide, but you couldn’t jump to conclusions yet. And as much as you hated to admit, you really wanted to accept. You wanted to see the animatronics and spending time with him would be the cherry on top. You knew it would be so unprofessional. You knew it wasn’t right, but there was no way you could say no.

“Really?” you exclaimed a little louder than you meant to. “You know, I’d love to, but I don’t think it’s right you know. And besides, I wouldn’t want to be a bother to you.” You answered with an apologetic smile, but you prayed he would insist on his offer. “It wouldn’t be a bother at all, love. I was the one with the idea, wasn’t I? And as for the professionality of it,” he lowered his voice, “if you can keep a secret so can I.”

The nickname gave you butterflies. His attractiveness was a little too much for you. You hated it, but you were melting on the inside. You did your best to not make a huge deal out of it. He was a brit after all, and it most likely didn’t mean anything. You pushed your thoughts to the back of your head and leaned forward to get closer to him.

“My lips are sealed, sir.” You replied with your voice lowered, mimicking his, and with a smug little smile. He grinned. “It’s a deal then, agent. Tomorrow, after work, at 9:00?” You kept your smile. “Sounds perfect.”

[saleintothe90s]

478. 93 things about 1993, part 3

(part 2)

(Newsweek, November 1, 1993)

12. David Williams' $125,000 baby

(source)

David couldn't make his plane to the game anyway due to the weather even if he tried:

While Debi was in labor, David was on the delivery room phone with coaches and team officials. Time was running out to catch that last flight and the conversation wasn't pretty.

"It was hard on her at the time ... She could hear them screaming over the phone at me,'' David said. "Finally the doctor just yanked the phone plug, took the phone off the wall and said 'We're not taking any more calls.' ''

Scot didn't arrive until almost 6:25 p.m. and, by then, it was too late for Williams to catch the 6:54 p.m. flight from either airport.

"Even if I had left the second after he was born, I still never would have made that plane,'' he said. "It was nerve-wracking for me. I'd never been through anything like that. It was tough.''

He said teammates Mike Munchak and Bruce Matthews tried to arrange a private plane through a third party, but when David left the hospital around 11:30 p.m., he hadn't heard back.

"I had been up with Deb since 4 o'clock that morning and going through that emotional roller coaster of getting screamed at and yelled at by coaches and general manager as I'm in the delivery room,'' he said. "My wife's giving birth and I'm getting screamed at. Man, it isn't supposed to feel like this.'' 1

13. Randy Jackson is kidnapped in Columbia

14. Sales of saxophones rise cuz of Bill 

15. New Yorker "kiss" cover

The artist of the cover was Art Spiegelman, the author/illustrator of the Maus series of graphic novels:

“This metaphoric embrace is my Valentine’s card to New York, a wish for the reconciliation of seemingly unbridgeable differences in the form of a symbolic kiss,” he wrote. “I’m also painfully aware that the calamities facing black communities in New York cannot be kissed away. But once a year, perhaps, it’s permissible, even if just for a moment, to close one’s eyes, see beyond the tragic complexities of modern life, and imagine that it might really be true that ‘all you need is love.’” 2

16. Bill Clinton was supposed to be in the Cheers finale?

I thought that this was some sort of rumor that was sent via faxes in offices, and then it branched into water cooler rumor, but NO. Bill really wanted to be in the finale of Cheers (which I bring up here). Unfortunately, when it came to shoot the finale in April, Bill couldn't make it due to Hillary's dad being in poor health, and an upcoming meeting with Boris Yeltsin. 3

I wonder why Bill didn't make a cameo during the last episode of Frasier to make up for it? I mean, he wasn't doing anything in 2004.

17. Neptune, Florida Kmart pipe bomb (December 30th)

Remember when we had to worry about random bombings in the early 90s?

The perp wouldn't be found until June of 1994:

"I think this guy just wanted to blow things up"

He got ten years!

Hauser, Melanie. ‘25 Years Later, Ex-Oiler David Williams and Son Reflect on “Babygate” Firestorm’. Houston Chronicle, 15 October 2018. https://www.houstonchronicle.com/texas-sports-nation/texans/article/25-years-later-ex-Oiler-David-Williams-and-son-13308250.php. https://archive.is/DjIfp

Finnegan, Leah. ‘“New Yorker” Covers? Watercolor Me Unimpressed’. The Outline. Accessed 21 April 2023. https://theoutline.com/post/1541/the-new-yorker-covers-are-bad.

Tampa Bay Times. “President Must Skip Final "Cheers’.” April 1, 1993. https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1993/04/01/president-must-skip-final-cheers/.

[mightyflamethrower]

The Morning Briefing: However Bad You Think the Border Mess Is—It's Worse

BY STEPHEN KRUISER 2:03 AM ON AUGUST 30, 2023

Top O’ the Briefing

Happy Wednesday, dear Kruiser Morning Briefing friends. Cantiva was known all about town for her solo rides on a tandem bike and transcendent Jell-O molds.

I may be a couple of thousand miles away from home at the moment, but the festering hot mess at the U.S./Mexico border is never far from my mind. In fact, I’ve been asked about it once or twice on this trip.

Whenever we discuss the Biden administration’s monumental nightmare at the border it’s important to remember that they immediately got the mess in motion. President LOLEightyonemillion signed executive orders ending the construction of the border wall and strengthening Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) on his first afternoon in office. Biden’s handlers couldn’t wait to begin undoing President Trump’s efforts to secure the border.

It’s truly stunning how quickly Biden was able to make the situation at the border worse than it’s ever been. Many have theorized that was the plan. Democrats have been known to deliberately create problems that they then hope to be able to take credit for fixing. It’s a flawed strategy that rarely works out, but bless their hearts, they keep trying.

Of course, Team Biden has yet to meet a problem it couldn’t make exponentially worse, and the border crisis remains Exhibit A in support of that claim.

Catherine wrote a post yesterday that has some sobering numbers in it regarding the border:

Here’s a fact the Biden administration would sure like to bury — 7,000 illegal aliens are reportedly entering the U.S. on a daily basis.

That’s from the National Border Patrol Council, the union that represents Border Patrol agents.  And yes, ladies and gentlemen, it’s still proper to say “illegal aliens” because, you know, that’s what they are.

Things are so bad that when I first read that I thought, “That seems a little low.”

House Republicans have been putting a little pressure on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, but the guy still has a job. A big frustration of mine has always been that more Republicans don’t hammer Democrats on the border. It’s an issue that should be getting daily attention from anyone in the GOP who wants to be serious about the future of the country.

Here are some more disturbing numbers from Catherine’s post:

Border Patrol arrested a whopping 12,028 criminal illegals in Fiscal Year (FY) 2022, and the criminals keep coming. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) statistics on criminal illegals apprehended FY2023 to date (last updated Aug. 16) is 10,810 criminal illegals. There was also a 600% spike in potential “national security risk” migrants (i.e. potential terrorists) apprehended in FY2022, a total of 25,627 individuals — hence the Border Patrol Union is warning that thousands of terrorists could be entering the U.S. illegally.

With a sympathetic president in the Oval Office, the open borders crowd has created a full-blown national security crisis. This is something that most Democrats continue to pretend isn’t happening. They don’t care if the more-than-occasional murderer makes it across the border, as long as said murderer doesn’t kill anyone in their gated neighborhoods.

Katie Pavlich writes over at Townhall about the latest potential terrorist risk:

“The FBI is investigating more than a dozen Uzbek nationals allowed into the US after they sought asylum at the southern border with Mexico earlier this year, a scramble set off when US intelligence officials found that the migrants traveled with the help of a smuggler with ties to ISIS, according to multiple US officials,” CNN reports. “While the FBI says no specific ISIS plot has been identified, officials are still working to ‘identify and assess’ all of the individuals who gained entry to the United States, according to a statement from National Security Council spokesman Adrienne Watson. And they are closely scrutinizing a number of the migrants as possible criminal threats, according to two US officials.” More than 100 suspected terrorists have been arrested at the U.S. southern border since President Joe Biden took office. It is estimated two million “gotaways” have crossed into the U.S. undetected. In May, an Afghan national on the terror watch list was arrested in San Diego.

Who had “ISIS-Friendly Smuggler” in their “What Fresh Hell Can Biden Unleash Next” office pool?

In addition to the national security crisis, Joe Biden’s humanitarian border crisis continues. The administration has never had any coherent plan to deal with people who are trying to migrate here legally, either. The Biden Democrats’ failure on border policy is utterly tragic and dangerous to any innocent players involved.

This could be said about most of the important issues facing the country right now, but there is no scenario in which the Dems’ border plans work out well for the United States of America.

If you’ve been paying attention, you know that’s by design.

Thanks to all who commented or emailed about my thoroughly embarrassing “phased/fazed” screw-up yesterday. I’m still working on getting the Briefing done earlier and avoiding boneheaded faux pas like that. It’s a work in progress. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. 

[thecat-isblogging-blog]

I posted 827 times in 2022

That's 91 more posts than 2021!

69 posts created (8%)

758 posts reblogged (92%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@ashesandhackles

@messrsmemoirs

@nanamistuff

@desidarling123

@chocolatepot

I tagged 739 of my posts in 2022

Only 11% of my posts had no tags

#remus lupin - 279 posts

#sirius black - 97 posts

#nymphadora tonks - 69 posts

#harry potter - 65 posts

#marauders - 46 posts

#james potter - 30 posts

#remadora - 30 posts

#peter pettigrew - 20 posts

#hermione granger - 19 posts

#teddy lupin - 18 posts

Longest Tag: 87 characters

#kakashi was my favourite character and it got me writing fan fiction for the first time

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Can I ask for your favorite Remus scenes please?

Yes of course! <3 Get ready for a lengthy one. 1. Lupin summoning fire into his palm on the train in PoA. It feels very much like an instinctive spell for him. 2. Any scene with Lupin and Snape is just so much fun, great underhanded comments. But I do love the scene where Snape calls Lupin to investigate the map in PoA. It's filled with under pressure thinking and Snape being made a fool of. 3. Speaking of which, Lupin getting upset at Harry for not turning the map in. I love moments where Harry feels guilt over disappointing Lupin, it really shows how much he looked up to him. 4. Black and Lupin stood shoulder to shoulder, wands raised.

“You should have realized,” said Lupin quietly, “if Voldemort didn’t kill you, we would. Good-bye, Peter.” (Enough said, this whole chapter is beautiful) 5. The moment Sirius dies and Lupin is trying to hold it together for Harry. <3 6. When Lupin gets bothered at Harry for not killing/stunning Stan Shunpike. “Harry, the time for Disarming is past! These people are trying to capture and kill you! At least Stun if you aren’t prepared to kill!”

7. HBP when Harry is at the Burrow for Christmas, there are two moments that I love very much because it's supposed to give us clues to the relationship between Lupin and Tonks: Meanwhile, Remus Lupin, who was thinner and more ragged- looking than ever, was sitting beside the fire, staring into its depths as though he could not hear Celestina’s voice. Oh, come and stir my cauldron, And if you do it right, I’ll boil you up some hot strong love To keep you warm tonight. and then the next day Harry (bless him) asks Lupin about Tonks' Patronus changing.

“Tonks’s Patronus has changed its form,” he told him. “Snape said so anyway. I didn’t know that could happen. Why would your Patronus change?”

Lupin took his time chewing his turkey and swallowing before saying slowly, “Sometimes ... a great shock ... an emotional upheaval ...” (The man almost choked on a dry piece of turkey)

8. In HBP I both love and hate the hospital scene, but Lupin sobbing at the news that Dumbledore had died will always gets to me. 9. Lupin in DH really has some great scenes that show him breaking, his nerves are definitely on edge.

The moment Harry arrives at the Burrow, he is filled with panic over a rat being in the Order. This is both a terrible reminder of what happened in the past, but also Tonks isn't back yet. When Harry arrives, Lupin interrogates him:

“What creature sat in the corner the first time that Harry Potter visited my office at Hogwarts?” he said, giving Harry a small shake. “Answer me!”

“A — a grindylow in a tank, wasn’t it?”

Lupin released Harry and fell back against a kitchen cupboard.

And then when he leaves Tonks and Harry is not having any of it: Lupin actually seized handfuls of his own hair; he looked quite deranged. Lupin at the very dark end of his character arc, we love to see it.

42 notes - Posted July 30, 2022

#4

... I'm assuming the "Remus doesn't like Tonks at all when they first met" is AU right? Because I read that and was like ?!?!?

Hmm I really wouldn't say AU, my own interpretation sure. But what does canon really tell us?

It tells us that Remus fell in love with her, but not when or how. All canon gives us is that by the time they fetch Harry, Remus is doing some snarky flirting with her (which I doubt he even knows it). But between then and when the Order first gets together, nothing is mentioned.

Remus has too much of a guard on to fall in love with someone at first sight. In fact, any attraction he has for her will at first be faced with a wave of misinterpreted feelings. Irritation and embarrassment comes to mind.

The fic I'm writing will have Remus fall in love eventually and slowly. It's more of a look at him as a character and the way he treats the people that he loves differently. But definitely not AU

60 notes - Posted April 21, 2022

#3

As part of our fic Toys in the Attic, I made some accompanying art.

Because I don't know how to end projects that still have a hold on me. 🥺

@ashesandhackles and myself are still emotional over our sad men. To read our fic, follow the link Toys in the Attic

76 notes - Posted April 3, 2022

#2

"The more you analyse Lupin, the more you wonder why Tonks fell for him" ??? Is this implying that's there's no good qualities of Lupin for Tonks to fall for? Because we seen through lupin interaction with Harry that he has lots of good qualities

Thecat_isexcitedyouaskedanon Yes of course Lupin has good qualities. His loyalty, kindness and patience is probably what drew Tonks in. But that doesn't mean he was easy to fall for. It took some digging, and Tonks is a busy Auror - she didn't sit around and wait for him to open up and show who he was outside of the Order.

Why is Lupin difficult to fall for?

The man is a wall.

Lupin had many many years to despise himself. By the time we see him again in Ootp he's probably accepted his solitude and feels so unwanted by the world that it's almost impossible for him to imagine a life outside of being hated. He was finally known as a werewolf to the wizarding world, after years of hiding. This added with Umbridge's legislation, being jobless and fighting the guilt of having mourned the wrong friend for 12 years. He is a pretty broken person by now and it's difficult to see how he would allow anyone to get close to him, other than Sirius and Harry (to some degree). But slip ups happen, and with a roof over his head, meals on the table and a new purpose in life (and a second chance to avenge his friends) I think the self-hatred slipped a little. There was a glimpse of a Lupin before his life was turned upside down. So when a pretty and bad-ass Auror walks in, Lupin can't help but feed into that crush: ���And this is Nymphadora –’ ‘Don’t call me Nymphadora, Remus,’ said the young witch with a shudder, ‘it’s Tonks.’ ‘Nymphadora Tonks, who prefers to be known by her surname only,’ finished Lupin.

(I'm with the fandom on this, that was Lupin's way of flirting)

Alright, so how did Tonks fall for him?

Lupin is a text-book overthinker. It might not be clear at first, but once you see how he chooses to phrase certain things to Harry, the way he hid the truth from Dumbledore - the man doesn't let loose.

He can't afford to, his safety is threatened everyday.

So when I say, I wonder how Tonks fell for him? Canon doesn't show us how it happened, it tells us it did happen while we were following our main protagonist. But if Lupin is so guarded, feels unworthy and overthinks everything he says making it difficult to truly know him - it's difficult to know how Tonks decided to let this man have her heart. And I say this because this young Auror is a damn intelligent person. She probably knew full well, this guy is going to break her heart.

Well, we need Lupin to open up, to show his good and bad sides to her. To show that the heartbreak will be worth it.

This is where my HC comes in, enemies to friends to lovers.

I'd like to think that these two didn't exactly get along at first, that they clashed quite a bit. Personally, I see Tonks as seeing straight through the tip-toeing and not buying it.

So she pushed his buttons to the point where he forgot himself a little. Now anger with Lupin is very interesting. I'll quote Ashes and my meta for this: While his dialogue surrounding marginalisation is either passive or dry around the Order (“an occupational hazard of being a werewolf”), he does allow himself to get angry about what he faces around Sirius:

“I know she is a nasty piece of work though - you should hear Remus talk about her,” said Sirius. (In reference to Umbridge drafting an anti werewolf legislation)

- Gentleman MonsterAnger for Lupin is a privilege, only people who have nothing to prove get to lash out. He doesn't want to feed in any werewolf stereotypes. So what bigger indication to her that he can be trusted, than when he starts trusting her with his more 'grey' areas. The ones he hides under his polite dialogue I think above all else, Tonks saw a man worthy of love despite how he felt. That he was kind even when he didn't need to be, and fiercely loyal even when it was problematic.

I hope that answers your ask anon!

86 notes - Posted January 21, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Why is Remus your favourite?

Lupin is very well written and has a really interesting journey. He is also very complicated and in reality, a bit of a red flag. He deserves to be loved, but fights against it so much due to his condition and the grief he experienced in his short life. I'm weak for characters like this. I enjoy seeing the way he hides certain pieces of information to protect himself, how his anger sneaks past him when that information does make its way to Harry. Here is a little scene I love:

Lupin loses this control in PoA when Harry is fighting the Boggart/Dementor. Lupin is feeling a lot of emotions by the end of it, Harry has just become an earpiece to James' last moments. "You heard James?" said Lupin, in a strange voice. This is where it starts, the weight of hearing his best friend's last words, the proof that James is in fact no longer here. It must be incredibly difficult for Lupin, grief wants to overcome the cool exterior.

And now to top that off, Harry brings up Sirius, which isn't the first time he does but it is the first time he asks Lupin if he knew him. And not just asking, Harry dear is putting two and two together and says 'you must have'. "If you knew my dad, you must've known Sirius Black as well."

Lupin turned very quickly.

"What gives you that idea?" he said sharply.

This little change in his character, a slip up that will follow even more slip ups as Lupin's security gets under pressure, indicates how much Lupin plays a roll of the calm professor. I'm sure he would love nothing more than to only be this for Harry, but he can't quite help having a Jekyll and Hyde moment. Lupin is far from the softness we associate him with, he is of course kind and one of the most emphatic characters in the books. But, he is also very clever, mischievous and manipulative as a way to survive. I do believe in the deep centre of him there's anger, we see it in glimpses but when it happens it is explosive which is due to burying it so much. Only Sirius and Harry see it. Wrap that all up in a hard layer of grief and sadness, and we have one great chocolate truffle. Just a brilliant character.

168 notes - Posted July 30, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[youllalwaysfindyourwaybackhome]

I posted 12,532 times in 2022

1,678 posts created (13%)

10,854 posts reblogged (87%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@reputation

@thenighttrain

@tolerateit

@sweetsnothing

@cages-boxes-hunters-foxes

I tagged 9,084 of my posts in 2022

Only 28% of my posts had no tags

#0 - 491 posts

#reputation era - 586 posts

#red - 567 posts

#reputation - 551 posts

#1989 era - 503 posts

#speak now - 428 posts

#speak now era - 412 posts

#red era - 409 posts

#lover era - 406 posts

#lover - 355 posts

Longest Tag: 139 characters

#i saw a white flower standing straight and proud shapely as a lily and yet knew that it was hard as if wrought by elf-wrights out of steel.

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

us all getting suspicious that an announcement is incoming feels kinda like a group of elderly people gazing at a clear blue sky sensing a storm in their bones

467 notes - Posted April 1, 2022

#4

thinking about the progression from "we are the kings and the queens" to "I wonder if they'll miss me once they drive me out" to "I'm sorry, the old Taylor can't come to the phone right now / Why? / Oh, 'cause she's dead!" to "I didn't know if you'd care if I came back" to "I'm still on my tallest tiptoes / spinning in my highest heels, love / shining just for you" to "I come back stronger than a '90s trend"

657 notes - Posted June 3, 2022

#3

the closer we get to july 9th the more nervous I get because what if taylor does something speak now tv related but also what if she doesn't

671 notes - Posted June 30, 2022

#2

Dozens of Clarence House staff have been given notice of their redundancy as the offices of King Charles and the Queen Consort move to Buckingham Palace after the death of the Queen, the Guardian has learned.

Up to 100 employees at the King’s former official residence, including some who have worked there for decades, received notification that they could lose their jobs just as they were working round the clock to smooth his elevation to the throne.

Private secretaries, the finance office, the communications team and household staff are among those who received notice during the thanksgiving service for the Queen, at St Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh on Monday, that their posts were on the line.

Many staff had assumed they would be amalgamated into the King’s new household, claiming they were given no indication of what was coming until the letter from Sir Clive Alderton, the King’s top aide, arrived. One source said: “Everybody is absolutely livid, including private secretaries and the senior team. All the staff have been working late every night since Thursday, to be met with this. People were visibly shaken by it.”

800 notes - Posted September 13, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

how is it almost july how are we almost halfway through the year how are we almost closer to the start of 2023 not the start of 2022 what has happened to the last six months why am i continuously shaken by the undeniable passage of time i think I need to lie down

9,742 notes - Posted June 28, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[kitsune-ichika]

Chapter 5: Clues

[November 15, 2006] 18:30 pm

Once the four arrived, they were greeted with the security guard that stood post outside the small building

“Good evening, how can I help you?” the guard asked.

“We’d like to view the security footage on the cameras on woodland street ave” said Mai as her and Sergey both showed their detective badges. The guard's expression was confused as he looked at Sergey’s badge considering he wasn’t able to read anything written there since it was all in russian.

“He’s a detective too” Mai clarified as she looked at Sergey and placed a hand on his shoulder. Amusement showed in Sergey’s eyes

“What about the two behind you-?” the guard said, being quickly cut off by Mrs. Luong’s voice.

“We’re with them!” she exclaimed. The urgency in Mrs. Luong’s voice startled Mai as she jumped up a bit, Sergey looked over checking if she was okay smuggling a smirk of amusement.

“What are you staring at, asshole?!” Mai exclaimed flustered. Sergey tried his hardest to not laugh but couldn’t help the fact that it was funny seeing Mai so flustered. Mai elbowed Sergey so he would stop giggling and focus on the case.

“Alright so if it’s the cameras you wish to view come with me, I’ll take you to the headmaster of this office, he's the one who usually works with the cameras” the guard said awkwardly after seeing Mai and Sergey have their little fight of amusement. The guard started leading the group through a small hall and to the head office of the building.

“Here is the office, the headmaster is Deputy chief Tuan,” explained the guard.

“Alright thank you, you may get back to your guard duties now,” Mai said, excusing the guard.

The guard nodded and started heading back to his post. Mai knocked on the door and heard a deep voice answer “Come in”. The group walked inside the room to see a man most likely in his 30s, sitting at a large wooden desk with his eyes focused on the newcomers.

“How may I help you?” asked Deputy Tuan.

“You must be Deputy chief Tuan? I’m Mai and this is my partner Sergey. We are detectives investigating the case of Mr and Mrs. Luong here whose children were recently kidnapped,” Mai explained, showing the officer her badge.

“I see, let me pull up the footage real quick, what day was this incident?” asked the deputy looking up at Mai and Sergey. As Mai was about to answer, Mrs. Luong cut her off. “2 days ago!” she answered with urgency. Deputy Tuan looked over at Mr and Mrs. Luong, examining the fear and urgency in Mrs. Luong's dark chocolate eyes. Officer Tuan removed his gaze from the panicked the Mrs. Luong and rested his gaze on his computer as he flipped through footage searching.

“Around what time did the incident occur?” he asked.

“4:30 pm,” Mai answered before she could be cut off. Deputy Tuan typed in some numbers into the computer and pushed himself in his chair away from his desk. He waved his hand in a gesture to come over and take a look at the screen to view the footage. Sergey and Mai walk up to the screen and click the play button. The two watch the footage, on the screen it shows 3 children out in the house's backyard.

“Sukira, Ria and Luna..” Mai muttered. Sergey's blue eyes were fixed at the footage. His hand reached and paused the video.

“There” he pointed to the dark blue mustang that pulled up in the tape. Two people were visible in the footage; one was a slender male figure with dark slicked hair and another male figure with messy ginger hair. Mai Narrowed her eyes. The figures seemed a little blurry.

“Hey, Tuan, yes? Is it possible to zoom in on the license plate in this footage” Mai asked, gazing gingerly at the Officer. Mai heard a little sob escape Mrs. Luong as she stared horrified at the two male figures on the screen.

“Of course Ms. Mai” answered the Deputy as he scooted closer to the monitor. He clicked a few buttons and zoomed into the license plate of the dark blue car. Mai mumbled under her breath.

“..God can criminals get any more stupid?..” Mai stared at the now visible license plate.

“Its like they are asking to be caught,” Sergey added. Mai straightened herself and took a small folded sheet of paper out of her coat pocket.

“May I?” Mai asked as she hovered her hand over a pen lying on the desk. The officer gave a small nod in response. Mai quickly picked up the pen and scribbled down the numbers and letters of the plate. She looked up and held out the paper for the officer. ”Put these numbers through and find this dark blue car in the footage.” Officer Tuan took the paper and stood up and walked over to a microphone to the right of Mai.

“Hello, officer 424 this is Deputy Tuan. I need you to pass through a license for me.” he said sternly as he sent the license to officer 424.

“Right on it sir,” said a muffled voice on the small speaker near the mic. The group waited for a minute or two before the voice returned online,”I have results sir, I am sending you a report of all the information.”

“Great thanks officer.” replied Tuan. After he clicked of the mic he added,”The report will be printed for you, I’ll be right back since I need to claim the papers”

“Please take your time,” Mai said with a pleased grin. She sighed and looked at Mrs. Willows.

“Ma’am your children are going to be okay, please don’t worry” Sergey said sympathetically. Mrs. Luong gave Sergey a weak smile in response. Five minutes passed and Deputy Tuan returned with a file.

“I apologize for the wait, the chief called me over. He needed my assistance for a moment.” Tuan explained.

“No worries,” replied Mai, resting her gaze on the file. The deputy handed her the papers neatly placed in a pale yellow file. She opened the file and looked over the information.

“I suppose we need a search warrant now?” asked Sergey. In response Mai gave him a curt nod.

“Don’t worry I made sure to include it, it's at the very end” Tuan pointed at the files.

“Thank you sir, it was a pleasure working alongside you but we must be off now.” Mai explained.

“The pleasure is all mine, I am honored to finally meet the great detective Mai. I’ve read quite a bit about the cases you’ve solved.” he smirked. Mai grinned, as her eyes hovered over to Sergey who gave her a playful grin.

“Looks like you have a fan,” he chuckled.

“Oh stop it you idiot,” Mai replied playfully jabbing Sergey in the ribs.

“It was a pleasure meeting you too Sergey Chekov, I’ve also heard of your work before too” Tuan smiled. Sergey gave the deputy a cheery grin.

“Look at that you have a fan too Mr. Chekov” Mai said with a dramatic hint to her voice. Sergey only rolled his eyes with his grin still plastered on his face.

“Anyways we really must go now, have a good rest of your day.” said Sergey. The deputy gave an understanding nod, everyone shared their goodbyes to each other, Sergey and Mai left for the car parked by the now lit lamp post. The sun had slowly hidden at the horizon.

“We should continue tomorrow, it's getting rather late,” Mai murmured as she stared at the distant horizon.

“That would be for the best, the time we find those two criminals it will already be midnight.” Sergey agreed as he added,”Should we go have dinner perhaps?”

“I suppose, and we can discuss further details on what our next steps will be,” as a response Sergey gave a simple nod.

[eli-wallach]

i’m honestly kinda in awe with how badly my first ever trip to the gynecologist went…

in july, i went to a gynecologist for the first time after my mom scheduled an appointment for me to have a pap smear. like before going in, i was pretty nonchalant about the whole thing because besides getting my period, i wasn’t making much use of my uterus to cause concern. however, after the pap smear, my gynecologist felt my uterus and said it was unusually hard and that it might be fibroids. he advised me to return after 2 weeks for an ultrasound to see if it really was fibroids or something else.

2 weeks have passed, i returned and took the ultrasound. i knew it was a bad sign because the person who was doing my ultrasound took a deep sigh and i became really nervous… then, i saw my gynecologist again and he confirmed that it was indeed fibroids or in my case, a grapefruit-sized fibroid (it was about 10 cm tall). he explained what fibroids are (benign tumors in the uterus) and the different types (mine was on top of the uterus, which explains why i wasn’t suffering from any symptoms). afterwards, he explained that i have to get mine removed because i was too young for fibroids and that the fibroid was gonna continue growing due to my hormones. he recommended a robotic myomectomy (which was the surgery i ended up getting) and three surgeons (all very experienced but have different wait times and methods). i chose the one with the best waiting time because i wanted the fibroid removed asap.

so more time has passed and i went to the surgeon’s office where it was so incredibly busy that i didn’t see until a hour in. when i did saw my surgeon, he did a pelvic examination and confirmed the same thing my gynecologist said and seconded his opinion. so i set up my surgery and the follow up appointment and waited…

while i waited, i became depressed because my gyn said that i would have to resort to a c-section if i ever wanted kids because the muscles in my uterus would be weakened afterwards (in which i mean no disrespect toward people had c-sections or were born via c-section, it’s just that i felt kinda off that’s it) also the surgeon’s office gave me preop instructions to read which i did. i also had to do bloodwork in the hospital i was gonna have the surgery in 3 days before and they gave a whole bunch of instructions, which were super specific (one of them was i had to drink gatorade but not the red one the night before the surgery and one hour before i arrived at the hospital).

so after i done the bloodwork, the hospital later called me to give the arrival time. they told me to arrive at 5:30 AM (like in the morning!). i was surprised because it was so early but i felt like i couldn’t rearrange my time so 5:30 am it was.

and then the day of the surgery arrived… i couldn’t sleep at all but i was ready, i took a shower with the special soap they wanted me to use (hibiclens), and my mom and i left to go to the hospital at around 4:40 am. until, the hospital called me and told me there was a slight delay because the robot that was going to do the surgery was having problems. so they changed it to 8 am which was slightly better because my mom could drop off my baby bro off the bus. but it was also bad because it was rush hour and traffic suckeddddd

i ended up being 15 minutes late, but i finally arrived to the hospital’s surgery unit. i went through all the pre-procedure procedures and waited til around 1:30 pm to finally have the surgery. i was so nervous that my high blood pressure and heart rate were pretty high.

then the procedure was beginning, my nurse and her helpers gave me a couple of pain medications early on so that it would be working during the procedure. and then, i was whisked off onto the operating table where i was given general anesthesia and off to sleep i went…

afterwards, i woke up in the recovery room, i was told that the procedure was a success which was good. i was very out of it (which you tell by the selfie i posted lol), in a lot pain, and felt like i was on my period (which was normal). after gaining my consciousness bit by bit, i had a couple of nurses taking care of me and handed me graham crackers to eat and some apple juice to drink (in which i was excited because i love snacks and juice). the only bad thing was that after drinking all that juice, i had to pee and i was in pain so i had to have two nurses walk me to the restroom. i was so tired and i felt so nauseous in the bathroom, i felt like throwing up (i didn’t though) and i could barely keep my head up. and then, i was placed on a recliner, getting ready to home. one of the nurses helped me get ready and gave me 4 different kinds of pain medications, an instruction packet, and free grippy socks :D

afterwards, i sat on a wheelchair and one of the doctors helped escort me out of the building and waited with me outside while my mom, who was sitting in the lounge, got the car. i got in the car with all my stuff and that was the end of that!

i know this post is super long but i just wanted to share my whole experience with fibroids and the myomectomy with you guys and provide a lot of context regarding that hospital selfie i posted. all the medical professionals i met during the whole thing were very kind and very professional and helped me a lot even i was a bit lost and a nervous wreck. i’m outta commission for about 6 weeks and i’m in some pain but, i’m getting better bit by bit and that’s all that matters!

thanks again to everyone who supported me along the way! 💖💖💖

and psa: see a gynecologist if you can because even if you don’t have cervical cancer, there could be other issues regarding your uterus that you may had never heard about, as i have learned.

[allywritesforfun]

hey i really enjoyed your nightly routine post with wilbur? i was wondering if you could do something similar but in the morning instead?

awe my love! I'm glad that you enjoyed the nightly the routine... here is the morning routine!

{Morning Routine} Wilbur Soot x Reader

summary: you and wilbur made a nightly routine video that blew up more than you have thought, so now its time to do a morning routine!

pronouns: not mentioned

word count: 2280

trigger warnings: swearing, mention of a knife for going chop chop, this was too cute for even me to handle and it came from my hands

a/n: my god is this long! I really got carried away. I could've made this into two parts but whatevs

a/n pt 2: takes place after the “Nightly Routines” but not directly connected 

regular masterlist

wilbur masterlist

You deeply groaned as you fluttered your eyes open. This was not a great time to wake up. You really wanted another hour of sleep, but you knew you had work to get done today.

You looked behind you. You smiled at the sight of Wilbur in his sweet slumber, his arm lazily draped over your waist. Wilbur very much loved to be in bed with you. If he could, he would spend all day there, just you in his arms and some soft lofi in the background. 

That was something very rare to get. Being a streamer and musician, Wilbur was busy almost all the time and rarely took a day off. Mornings and nights were dedicated to you. However, there were times that you would stream with him, or stop by the office to give him food, but nothing was compared to waking up with him.

“Oh shit,” You whispered, “We’re supposed to do morning vlog today.”

You looked around for Wilbur’s camera, which was no where to be found. You settled on stretching over to nightstand and unplugging your phone. You looked back at Wilbur to make sure he was still sleeping. You could tell he was by the gentle raise and fall of his chest and subtle “Ah-woo”. You just knew that was the perfect way to start the vlog. You recored him for about ten seconds of him doing his ‘not really a snore but definitely something’ and giggled almost the whole way through.

You would think that after living with him for two months and the multiple sleepovers that you’ve had with him, that you would be used to it by now. But even today you still giggled just like you did when you first woke up with him. 

You snuck yourself out of bed and made your way to the kitchen. Once arrived you did the intro, “Good morning chat! It is currently about 6:30 in the morning, and as you realize, I am the only one awake. As you saw, Wilbur is still sound asleep and that how it is every morning. So we’re going to vlog our morning routine today, which I promise is way more interesting than the nightly routine vlog. So, Wilbur is literally the best person ever and deserves the world. And his world, besides me of course, is his morning coffee. So I’m going to use our Keurig to get his coffee started.” 

You stopped the recording and decided to get some of your creativity out. You weren’t musical like Wilbur and can't draw for shit, so videography was your way of being creative. You set your phone the in the corner and opened up the blind to let a little bit of light through. It still looked basic so you moved your plant to the background, which added the perfect look. You started brewing and hit record. 

While that was going, you measured out the creamer and syrup and grabbed your sippy cup for your chocolate milk. No judgement here. We all know chocolate milk tastes better in sippy cups. 

The brew came to a slow stop and you grabbed the camera, “Wasn't that a satisfactory angle chat? Now, I am more of an iced coffee person, so in the morning I have water or chocolate milk, and today is definitely a chocolate milk day.” You raised your cup to the camera and fake ‘clinked’ it, cutting the recording when it was closest to the camera. You finished up making Wilbur’s coffee and set it on the living room table. 

You looked at the time, 6:50 am, now was a good time to get Wilbur up. You always let his coffee sit out for a little bit, that way he could drink it the second that he woke up. You threw some napkins under your drinks and moved another plant over there. You wanted your place to look aesthetically pleasing, even if it was a little bit staged. You did a transition with your cup, this time now on the table.

“Okay chat, we all now mr. simpbur is a snuggler so we don't have breakfast in the kitchen, instead we share on the couch, that way we can get all of our snuggles in before he has to leave for the office. I have everything set up, normally I would prepare breakfast too, but I feel like cooking with Wilbur this morning. We’ll do this about once a week for some bonding time, so let's go get him up,” You decided to keep recording, just in case Wilbur woke up from your loss of presence. 

You creaked the door open, Wilbur was still asleep. He adjusted his body for that he was hugging a pillow, who you assumed was your replacement. You laid down next to him and just took a moment to admire him. It was moments like this that you forgot that you were internet personalities. This was you. This was Wilbur. Both of you living your life without needing to exaggerate yourself. This was Wilbur at his purest form. He was all relaxed, not even aware that he was being recorded.

You scooted closer to him and intertwined your legs with him. You brushed his bangs with the back of your hands and gently placed your lips on your forehead. He stirred a little bit, but not enough to wake him up. You took the pillow from him and wrapped your body around his, “Wilbur, my love, it's about seven, you need to get up.”

You could tell he woke up by him pulling you closer and burying his head only you neck. You gently massaged his head and twirled his curls between your fingers, “Come on Will, I got your coffee made already. We need to start breakfast.”

He shook his head and kissed your shoulder, “Mine.”

You laughed, “Yes Will, and ‘yours’ is hungry, let’s get up and eat.”

He slowly nodded and pulled you closer, “Mmmm... I love you.”

“I love you too, simpbur.”

He snapped his head up at the nickname and saw the camera, “Fuck-that’s today?”

You giggled and detached yourself from, “Say good morning to chat.”

He shook his head and buried it in his pillow out of embarrassment. You stop recording and put your phone on the stand. Just seeing Wilbur all flustered was enough to make you go back to bed. You laid back down with him and pulled him on top of you.

“We’re gonna have to re-record that part,” Wilbur mentioned.

You rubbed his cheek with your thumb, which he happily leaned into, “No bubs, we gotta keep it in. It was a very cute moment.”

He shook his head aggressively, “No! That was embarrassing!”

“Too bad, it’s on my phone so I get to chose what goes in.”

He huffed and grabbed your hand, accepting defeat, “You said you made my coffee?”

You two got up and sat down on the couch. Wilbur took you into his arms the second he took his first sip, his personal way of saying ‘thank you, you’re the best person to ever exist’. 

“What are you feeling for breakfast?” You asked.

“You,” Wilbur joked, kissing your temple. 

You gently pushed him, “No actually, I really want yogurt, so pick something that goes well with that.”

“Can we just make a fruit plate?”

You excitedly nodded, if it wasn't for Wilbur, you would not be eating healthy. He really made sure that you were going to live as long as he did. Neither of you could live without the other. If something crazy didn't happen to you, you were going to die from a broken heart.

Wilbur grabbed your phone and started recording, “So um, good morning chat, I’ve had some coffee and more awake now. What you just saw- no you fucking didn't. We’re on the sofa right now and we decided on a fruit plate with yogurt this morning, trying to be a little healthier considering we had ice cream at one am last night. So we’re gonna make that off camera, because if you guys get us to six million subs, we’ll do a cooking stream!”

“Oh we are now?” You questioned. “I was never told about this.”

Wilbur laughed and kissed your temple, “Well you know now, that's good enough innit?”

You shook your head and placed your hand over the camera, Wilbur stopped the recording. You go the fruit out while Wilbur prepared the sink for rinsing and knives for chopping. 

You made the plate look all nice and took it back to the couch. Wilbur placed his arm back over you and grabbed the remote with is free hand while you centered your phone.

“Okay chat, we’re gonna eat and watch tv for a bit, then you're gonna get ready with us. Wilbur has a test shoot at the office today, so we gotta make him look all pretty and obviously personal hygiene is a must... so yeah, brb.”

You two set up another game show to watch, it sorta became your go to show. Especially because there was no storyline and you could talk when you wanted. This was a pretty chill morning, you two enjoyed each other's presence. 

When you finished up, Wilbur took the dishes and you went to the bathroom and cleaned up a little bit. You heard Wilbur go into his closet, so you started recording, “Okay chat, last thing we do before he leaves is actually get ready. Wilbur is getting changed right now so I’m gonna brush my hair out. I can get a little aggressive with the snarls and Wilbur always thinks I'm ripping my hair out so I always do it when he's not around to make sure he doesn't get worried.”

You set the phone in the corner and set it up to record a time lapse. You heard off in distance some light pop type of music, so you knew that Wilbur got his speaker out.

“Are you playing copyrighted music?” You called.

“It’s released Lovejoy!”

You smiled, you always got giddy seeing how happy Wilbur was able to make himself with his own music. You set your brush down and started to wet your toothbrush, Wilbur slid into frame, already jamming out to his own music.

You covered your mouth with your hand stifled your laughter. Wilbur laughed with you and tugged on your waist, trying to get you to dance with him. You aggressively shook your head no, you hated dancing. You would think by now that you would be used to Wilbur and his random dance breaks, but you never came around. 

You looked down in shame as Wilbur attempted to get you to spin around. Once you made it clear that you were not in the mood to dance, Wilbur turned down the music and waddle over to the counter.

You grabbed the camera, “If someone wants a very tall British man, you can come get him. Warning: not fun dance outbreaks.”

“Oh come on now, y/n!” Wilbur wrapped his arms around your waist and placed his head on yours, “Stop pretending like you don't like to dance.” “You know I hate dancing,” You reminded him.

“Well chat, apparently I’m not allowed to have any fun in the morning? But anyway, that was a joke, but- we do really have to get ready. Should we do this Disney Channel style?”

You laughed and shook your head, “No, I think I just want to make sure you don't miss your meeting.”

“That’s at nine! We have time! Please let me have fun with you! It’s going to be such a stressful day!” He pouted with the cutest puppy dogs eyes.

There was no way that you could say no to him, “Alright, what fun we having?”

Wilbur said nothing and prepared his toothbrush like yours, “Last one to finish brushing their teeth has to do the dishes tonight.”

You hated dishes. You were winning this one. You didn't even wait for a countdown. You instantly grabbed your toothbrush and turned on the water with lightening speed. 

“What?!” Wilbur yelled. “That’s not fair!”

You did your best to bump him away, but it literally did nothing. Both of you were laughing very hard but Wilbur quickly caught up. You both fought with your hands, trying to cup a decent amount water. You both managed to get the water into your mouth and you turned to face Wilbur, it came down to who could rinse the fastest. You two just stared at each other, wishing the water around. You were dead serious. You were not doing the dishes tonight. Wilbur kept flaunting his hands around trying get himself to go faster, which ended up in him completely breaking out in laughter and spitting all over your face. It took you by surprise and all that you could you do was laugh to yourself, you eventually spit the water out in the sink, raising your hands in victory. 

“I am so sorry, love!” Wilbur took your hand and guided you into his arms, gently running his hand up and down your back, “I didn't think that would be that hilarious.” “It’s okay,” You laughed and looked back in the mirror. You were completely drenched shoulder up, “It was fun. Better to happen to me than you, you look really nice today for the shoot.” “Thank you,” Wilbur blushed and turned you around, “I think that is enough recording for today. All that we have left to do is leave so... thank you for watching! Subscribe now and remember, cooking stream at six mil! Bye guys!”

[snowiemimi]

RAIN STORM [Aaron Hotchner x FM! Reader] CHAPTER 2

chapter 1

SUMMARY: Hotch is not very nice to her, and she will not sit there and take criticism. Enemies to lovers, yeaaaa

A/N: This didn't really turn out the way I wanted it to, but I'm posting it anyways. This one does have a little smut, so please do not read if you're underage:))

feedback is always appreciated

NO PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION (she/her pronouns are used, female genitalia)

WARNINGS: swearing, bickering, talk about case, P in V, unprotected sex, this one does include a phone call at a very inconvinient time... (please tell me if i forgot anything)

word count: 2.5k aprox.

“Because I enjoy watching you suffer.”

She chuckled, a bit shocked at his honesty. “You what?” She said, her eyes big with confusion. Did he really just say that? He smirked, the shadows on his face dark. She took a step forward, putting the files on his desk and leaned forward. “You really want to play that game?” Hotch laughed lowly and said, “I do.”

She left his office to go pick up her things, and made her way out of the building. On her way home, she stopped by a store to get a bottle of wine. She decided she deserved it after dealing with her bitch of a boss.

At home, she was sitting in front of the tv, watching one of her favorite shows while sipping on her wine. Her head was empty, feeling kind of numb after a long case. But there was one thing on her mind.

The next morning, she woke up to the sound of her phone ringing. Still feeling groggy and extremely tired, she picked up hearing the usually happy care-free voice of Penelope Garcia, but it was concerned. “We have a case; can you get here by 7?” She answered, “yeah, see you then” and hung up. She should get ready and leave, but first, coffee.

She should have known by then that it was going to be a hard case. She had arrived at the office at 6:45, tiredly saying hello and good morning to the other team members in the bullpen. “It’s a hard one, isn’t it?” Emily muttered, sipping her own black coffee.

They had only been at home for a good 5 hours, since they got home late after the last case. Derek shuddered a bit, looking up to see Hotch walk out of his office. “Did he even leave?” She looked up at him. “Knowing him and his stubborn ass, he probably didn’t.” “Oh, so you know his ass?” Derek teased her, laughing at her shocked expression.

The meeting was long. The case was in Florida, 8 women were raped and dismembered, the unsub left them in different places, some in their own apartments, some in hotel rooms. He was not big on leaving them in public and that made it a bit harder to find them.

The biggest problem was, every single one of these women looked about the same. He had a type. And she fit that type. The first one to notice was Spencer.

“Do you guys see this?” The rest of them looked up at him. “They all have the same hair and innocent looking eyes, they’re all beautiful… And they all look like you.” He looked at her, she had noticed the same thing. “If the unsub seeks them out, in public places, we could maybe use you as leverage...” Derek started, uncertain if he should have said it out loud. “I’m down for that.” She said, looking up at Hotch, knowing he definitely had some kind of objection. He simply nodded and said, “wheels up in 20.”

The flight was on the shorter side, only around 2 hours. 30 minutes in, Hotch started going through the case with Rossi sitting next to him. Everyone else got closer and opened their own files. He was telling people where to go when they got on the ground, “and you two go to the office, set up and start on the geographical profile. Again.” He looked at her, a smirk displayed on his face.

She knew he was doing it to piss her off, and it was working. But she went with Spencer to the office and got started. Reid was talking to himself while going through some boxes, while she was standing with the board with a marker.

After a while of discussing and marking the spots of where the victims were found and where they were taken from, JJ walks into the room talking on the phone. “Guys, they found another one.”

The entire team was standing in a small hotel room. The room was modern, most of the furniture were white. The only color in the room was the big blood stain on the floor and the blood splatter on the walls.

“He’s escalating, we need to hurry.” David said, looking at her. Hotch did the same. “You said you were in, right?” She nodded, knowing it might get dangerous. “Someone should go with her though; I think the unsub likes married girls.” Spencer said, while fishing a gold ring from under the bedside table. “I say Hotch goes with her, they already bicker like an old married couple.” Emily laughed, Hotch looked strangely amused as well. It was going to be a hell of a case.

When they got back to the station, they started talking strategy. “The unsub picks up most of the girls at bars, only 2 has been somewhere else.” David said, looking up from his little notebook. “But how does he know whether or not they were married?” Hotch said, the usual unreadable expression on his face. “Why? Don’t you want to marry me?” She faked a pout, but ended up laughing. Emily snorted next to her, and Spencer giggled. “You would make an awful wife.” He bit back, amused. “Yeah yeah, we get it.” Derek laughed. “We’re definitely sending you two out together.”

The plan was to stay at a bar, hopefully the one the unsub would be at, and eventually go to the hotel across the street.

She was at JJ’s hotel room, a different hotel then the one they were going to, the hotel the team was staying at during the case. JJ had found a dress for her to put on, while Emily was fixing up her hair. The dress was a deep ruby red, flattering on her body. She looked stunning.

In Rossi’s hotel room, the boys were fixing up Hotch. And by fixing up I mean Hotch was getting ready and Derek was teasing him about her. Carefully, though, as to not step over the boundaries that he had already crossed. But Hotch did not seem to care about the teasing. He only cared about one thing at this moment.

The bar was not packed, but there were a lot of people. Hotch was already inside, sitting at the bar with a glass of whiskey in his right hand. He was looking towards the door, waiting for her arrival.

She walked in, the smell of alcohol was very strong. She saw her boss sitting at the bar, practically drooling, she smirked knowing damn well she was hot.

She sat down next to him, ordering her own drink while looking around the room. The unsub could be there, but he could also not.

“Stop drooling.” She said, looking at her boss. “You’re being obvious.” He closed his mouth and looked at his drink. “I’m not drooling, I’m throwing up in my mouth.” She laughed at him and moved a strand of hair from her face.

“Here.” He said after a moment of silence. A gold ring was placed in her palm. “Oh, you’re proposing? How cute. But I prefer silver.” She put the ring on her finger, at least it looked nice. “Dream on, sweetheart.” Her face turned slightly pink, she was not used to being called any pet names, and definitely not by her boss. “Sweetheart? What? Do you finally admit you like me?” She smiled, desperately trying to hide the fact that she just blushed. He leaned in, whispering in her ear, “Bet you’d like that, huh? Hate to break it to you, but you’re not likable even if you tried.”

They had been sitting at the bar for a good 15 minutes until he reminded her she had to go flirt with other men. He told her he was going to leave and go back to the hotel and to not do anything stupid.

She took a deep breath, hoping this plan would work. She got up, fixed her dress, and made her way to the closest available man.

After what seemed like ages and ages of flirting with disgusting and creepy men, she was giving up. But a man closer to the back of the bar caught her attention. He was eyeing a girl on the table beside her. When the girl got up and got ready to leave, he got up to follow her.

Following them into a different street, they seemed to disappear. She knew then she should not have followed them. She made her way to the hotel, feeling stupid that she left the bar over some gut feeling. At least she got a good look at him.

Knocking at the door, she knew he would probably yell the shit out of her. He opened the door and dragged her inside. “Was there a reason you left to follow them?” He said, harshly. “I had a gut feeling…” She looked down to the floor. “And what did you find out?” She swallowed. “Nothing, uhm… They disappeared…”

He sighed, “Why can’t you do anything right?” She looked up at him, feeling hurt by his words. “I don’t know, maybe because I have a boss who doesn’t trust me?” He made her blood boil. She made his head spin. “I would’ve trusted you if you were trustworthy” He was getting fired up. “If you would have a little faith in me, maybe I could do a good job. Not everyone can do well while their boss gives them shit for everything they do.”

She got frustrated. “Maybe you’re just bad at your job?” he said, getting angry as well. “If I couldn’t do a good job, you wouldn’t hire me. You should tell me if there’s anything I’m doing wrong, not give me crappy work and double the workload.” “Well, then what do you want me to do?” he said, seeming genuinely interested, for a split second. “Teach me how to do well.” She answered honestly. She took a step into the hotel room, standing beside the closet. “I’ll teach you how to do something well.” He smirked, she gasped slightly, not expecting that right after the argument.

“You’re crazy.” She bit back. He took a step towards her; she was up against the wall.

“You drive me crazy.”

She looked up into his eyes, wondering if he meant it the way she thought he meant it. Her train of thought was interrupted by her boss pushing her against the wall, crashing his lips against her. She kissed him back, his lips soft and his scent sending her senses into overdrive. After a few seconds, she pulled back slightly, smirking up at him. “So, you do admit you like me, huh” He cocked an eyebrow at her words. “Do you ever shut up?” She smiled, “No.”

He held her hips firmly, pushing himself against her. “I really can’t stand you.” He whispered in her ear, kissing down her neck. She placed her hands on his chest, pushing him slightly off of her. She pushed him towards the bed in the hotel room, sitting down on top of his hips when he laid down. She kissed his lips again, her hips moving against his. He let out a deep groan into her mouth before he picked her up and switched their positions. “You’re so annoying.” She rolled her eyes at him. “Shut up.” He said back. She rolled her hips up against his. “Can’t you give me something?” She almost whined. “Not yet. I like seeing you beg for my attention.” He smirked down at her.

“You motherfucker” she said, trying to look mad. “That’s not very nice to say to your boss, is it?” He smiled, his left hand tracing her upper body, while the other held him up. She got annoyed at his teasing, pulling his lips back onto hers. He chuckled into the kiss, his left hand making its way to hold her thigh. She broke apart the kiss, whispering into his ear. “I swear to god if you’re not going to do anything I might as well leave.” He looked into her eyes, “You want something? Sure, I’ll give you something.”

He ripped open her red dress, right in two. “Heyyy,” she whined. “I don’t have any other clothing with me.” He laughed at her. “Too bad for you.”

He dipped his head into her neck, kissing and biting softly, his hands on her breasts. “These might be the only nice thing about you.” He whispered into her ear, biting the shell of it. “Asshole.” She chuckled.

The phone rang next to her, she looked up at him, wondering if she should pick up. “Take it.” He said, smiling wickedly.

She picked up the phone, her boss standing up to undress himself. “Hello?” She gulped nervously. “Where are you guys?” Derek said, his voice filled with worry. “At the hotel, we’ll be back soon.” She answered him, Hotch was now hovering over her, taking off what was left of clothing on her body. He rolled his hips against her, skin against skin. She whimpered an “oh my god” before she was reminded about the phone call.

“Are you okay? What’s going on?” Derek was even more worried now. “He’s just being an asshole again.” She said quickly, trying to save herself. Hotch smirked, lining himself up to push into her. “Derek can i call you back?” She was desperate, bucking her own hips up against his, trying to create any kind of friction. “Sure, just don’t murder the man. I’ll see you in a bit.” He hung up. Thank god.

Hotch was smiling. “You’re evil.” She said, tangling her hands in his hair, “Please move” He did. Fast. Almost too fast. But it was delicious.

Her thighs trembled around his body, her head thrown back against the pillow. He was panting against her neck, kissing her softly when he had caught his breath. He whispered lowly in his ear, telling her how close he was, bringing one of his hands down to rub small circles on her clit. She moaned, her back arching from the sheets, she was close as well.

He painted her insides white, groaning lowly as he did. She came quickly after him, gasping for breath.

“We should get back to the station…” Her boss said, biting the shell of her ear. “If you tell anyone, I will murder you.” She looked up at him as he pulled out of her. “I have no doubt you will, with that temper of yours” He got up, and went to get dressed.

“What about my clothes? Your dumbass ruined my dress” He laughed at her, “Figure it out, smartass.”

[writingwithacupoftea]

A family reunited

Summary: Shelby family dinners always bring some drama with them...but none of the brothers expected their sister, Y/N, to join them. After all, she had been missing for 5 years.

Word Count: 3147

A/N: First time writing a fic with a word count over 3000, baby!!! All of the brothers are actually in this but, let’s be honest, Tommy always gets more attention in my writing than anyone else. Let me know what you think of this one, and enjoy!

Part 2

Sometimes you can be better off not knowing the truth. Because the knowing the truth can make your worst nightmares an inescapable reality. A reality that can bring everything crashing down around you.

And that's how the Shelby clan felt about knowing the fate of their sister, Y/N.

Y/N Shelby was 23 when the war began, one year Tommy's junior. Before her brothers left for France, she left them with the promise of having their Mother's favourite sponge cake waiting on the table for them when they got back. She would have to save her money and actually figure out how to make it, but Y/N swore that she'd do it (somehow, even if it did turn out to be an atrocity).

But when the boys stepped through the door of the Shelby residence again in 1918, there was no cake waiting for them. It had been four years, they reasoned, maybe she'd forgotten. Even that didn't seem to sit right with the brothers, however - Y/N always kept her promises, no matter when they were made.  

It was like a dark cloud was looming over the house, but none of them could see what had caused it. Something wasn't right at number 6 Watery Lane.

After embracing Polly and Ada, who had tears flowing down their faces at the mere sight of them, Tommy immediately asked where Y/N was. Their silence had told him everything. Not waiting for an explanation, Tommy stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind him.  

It was no secret that Y/N and Tommy shared a close bond; they always had each other's backs and always made time for each other. Despite there only being one year between them, Tommy was especially protective over Y/N, as he didn't want anything to happen that might risk her leaving him alone. He couldn't cope without her, for Y/N was both his rock and his light, even though she carried her own darkness with her.

It was dusk when Tommy finally returned, wanting answers. Polly simply presented him with the letter that had been left for herself and Ada on the night that Y/N vanished, for that was all she knew. It said that she had to go away for a while, to not tell Tommy, John or Arthur as she didn't want to worry them, and that she'd be back home as soon as she could. The letter was dated back to 1916. Two years ago. And no one had heard anything from her since.

Tommy refused to look up at his family after reading the letter over and over again, not wanting them to see the tears that glazed his cold blue eyes. He grabbed his bag (effectively hiding the shaking that had taken over his hands) and mumbled something about going to unpack, before retreating straight up to his bedroom, actively avoiding the pitiful looks being sent his way.

The only other time the family saw Tommy that night was when he walked through the parlour and back out of the front door again. They assumed that he was going down to Charlie's yard, where Y/N and Tommy always went together to talk. It was their special place, for they both possessed a deep-rooted love for horses and always found themselves wandering back to their Gypsy roots. When they were both younger, the siblings would be out for days on end riding in the open air. What a distant memory that was now.

According to their uncle, Tommy didn't leave the yard until the sun was fully risen the next morning.

***

Y/N Shelby had been well known to the Birmingham Police from a young age: she had a, quite frankly, remarkable ability to escape the officers no matter how tight of a spot she had managed to get herself into. She was a listener, and had an impressive memory for information that could be of use at some point in the future. Her brain, in combination with her physical abilities to slip away from or outrun trouble, made her an absolute nightmare for the coppers of Small Heath.

She built up such an impressive reputation that, during the war, she had been asked to put her talents to good use. Y/N was recruited as a spy by British Intelligence, and went undercover in Germany to retrieve vital information which ultimately helped the Allies to win the war.  

It was an opportunity that she would never have been able to resist. Her brothers had always treated her as an equal when it came to the family business (although Tommy was sometimes unwilling for her to take part in certain activities); it had annoyed her immensely when they went away to fight and she couldn't do anything to help.  

(She had tried to become a nurse with Ada, but was also kicked out because she couldn't stop laughing when her sister had started laughing).  

But this was her way around it and, as far as she was aware at the time, her brothers would never have to know about her dangerous escapades.

However, not even Y/N Shelby was the perfect criminal or spy. In the March of 1918, she had been on the verge of completing her latest mission when the plan had gone awry. Instead of using her limited time to escape, she had ensured that the information she had gained was communicated properly to her associate. This decision left her with an open police case in Germany, and Y/N was forced to go into hiding.  

As that fact hit her, only one word came to mind: shit.

***

For a year after returning home Tommy searched for Y/N, and turned up nothing. She seemed to have disappeared without a trace. His desperation fuelled his ambition: Tommy wanted to make it big, not just for money but for status and connections. This, he hoped, would provide the opportunities to dig deeper and give him access to speak to the right people, so that he could find out where his younger sister was.  

Because despite the slight shadows that lurked in the back of his mind, he clutched onto his conviction that Y/N was still alive somewhere. He didn't believe in much these days, but he would always believe in his sister.

But in 1920, even Tommy was starting to have his doubts, though he refused to admit them or accept them. His search was beginning to become futile and none of his fucking contacts had been able to turn up everything.  

And so Tommy began to spiral further and further downwards, for Y/N wasn't there to stop it and he didn't have the strength to do it alone.

By the time 1921 had rolled around, the family had pretty much given up all hope that their sister was still alive. However, none of them wanted to be told that harsh truth. What they didn't realise, though, was that it couldn't be further from the truth.

***

Polly Gray wasn't a woman to be easily shocked. She had seen and done too much in her time for that.

Having been settled in her new house (courtesy of Thomas) for a few weeks now, she knew exactly who had her new address – she had only given it to the people that she actually wanted to hear from and knew that they weren't a threat. So, when she didn't immediately recognise the writing on the front of an envelope, worry took over her. However, upon closer inspection of the handwriting, she stopped. Polly knew that writing, but she couldn't believe what she was seeing. She ripped the envelope open, and what was contained in that letter shocked her more than anything that had happened over the last three years:

Polly,

DO NOT SHOW THIS LETTER TO ANYONE OR TELL ANYONE ABOUT WHAT IT CONTAINS. It's not sensitive or anything, I just want to keep it a surprise. A secret between us girls, just like the old days (I've written to Ada as well).

As you can probably tell, it's Y/N, and I'm alive and well. I'll explain more when I get home - I'm on my way back to Birmingham now.

By the time you get this, I'll be arriving in two days' time. I'll come to the address that I posted this to, I know that's your fancy new home. Then, how about we organise a little family get together? You know I've always been one for the dramatics (although I promise me disappearing off for 5 years wasn't completely intentional).

I can't wait to see you again soon; I've missed you all so much.

All my love,

Y/N Shelby xxx

(P.S. in case you don't believe that I am who I say I am, I've enclosed my Mother's necklace that Tommy gave to me on my 16th birthday, to prove my identity.)

And there the necklace was, sat at the bottom of the envelope. Silent tears began to roll down Polly's face and a smile, as big as the day that Michael returned to her, brightened her features.

Y/N Shelby was coming home. And, boy, were those two going to have some fun telling her brothers...

***

The day that the 30-year-old turned up on Polly's doorstep was a blur of tears, hugs and gin.  

Y/N had been introduced to Michael, who they couldn't really avoid because he lived there, but who was more than happy to keep their secret. Just being with Polly again made her realise that she was finally home.  

Whilst Y/N already knew a lot about what had happened since she left, having kept tabs on the family through her various contacts while she was away, the next day Polly helped to fill in some of the gaps in her knowledge. Polly also told her about how torn up Tommy still was about her absence, and it was enough to nearly send Y/N running straight to him. But then her aunt reasoned that it was probably better for Thomas to pass out in shock in her home, where they could set up lots of cushions as a crash pad, as oppose to on the hard streets of Birmingham.

And so the planning commenced. It was decided that Polly would host a dinner for the whole family, telling everyone that she needed to put her new house to good use, and that they could combine it with a proper welcome for Michael.

As the day drew nearer, Y/N could feel butterflies in her stomach constantly. Her excitement at seeing her whole family again was almost overwhelming. Yet she dreaded having to tell them all the truth about her prolonged disappearance.  

But, honestly, the excitement won over her nerves every time.

***

When Y/N heard her brothers' voices booming through the house, she had never been more grateful that she was running late in getting ready (as usual) and didn't have her makeup on yet. She hadn't been able to stop the tears falling from her blue eyes as the familiar sounds of her family's squabbling travelled up the stairs like music to her ears.

Everything was ready for the night that she had dreamed of for nearly three full years.

Fuck, I'm still in my pyjamas, Y/N realised, and hurried about getting ready.

Having memorised where the creaky steps were earlier that day, Y/N creeped down the stairs silently, clad in the most gorgeous midnight blue dress that she had ever seen. When she looked in the mirror, with her makeup on and hair done, she had realised how much she had grown up since she last saw her family.

But she had no time to think about that now, for it was nearly her moment.

Lingering in the doorway with a glass of champagne, and sending Polly a wink, she felt her heart rate shoot up as her aunt stood up with her own glass.

"Now, before we have dessert, I'd like to make a toast." She paused, looking around the table, her own happiness threatening to overflow. "To family."

"To family!" The brothers and Michael chorused.

Stepping into the light and leaning against the doorframe, completely unnoticed by her siblings, Y/N waited until the noise had died down before gently repeating the toast: "To family."

***

It felt like time had stood still.

Arthur, John and Finn's heads whipped around to see where the voice came from. Tommy had frozen completely, tensing up as he heard his sister's voice for the first time in seven years.

"Y/N/N?" Arthur whispered, not believing his eyes.

"Hello boys," Y/N said with a smile and a teasing glint in her eye. "Did you miss me?"

John stood up slowly and made his way towards her, and Y/N stretched her hand out towards him after putting her glass down. Her little brother tentatively placed his hand in hers, and she squeezed it, reassuring him that she was really there. She saw a couple of tears form in his eyes, though he refused to let them fall. John started to laugh, wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted Y/N up, spinning her in circles and hugging her tightly. Still laughing, he exclaimed "Oh my fucking God!" and placed her down on the ground.

Y/N was next almost knocked flying with a hug from Finn, who buried his head into the crook of her neck as he cried silently. "Look at you, eh! Almost as big as me now, aren't you?" Y/N placed a soft kiss on the top of her youngest brother's head and rubbed his back soothingly. Over Finn's shoulder, she saw Arthur approaching her, seemingly lost for words. His hand cupped her cheek as he ran his thumb over it, before finally saying "Now what sort of time do you call this, young lady?" Y/N collapsed into giggles as Arthur placed a rough kiss to her forehead.

As Finn and Arthur pulled away, Y/N's eyes found the only brother who hadn't yet greeted her and who she was the most anxious to see. Tommy still hadn't moved, his eyes fixed firmly on the table in front of him, but Y/N could tell that they were cold.

"Tom?"

There was silence. After what felt to Y/N like a lifetime, Tommy spoke quietly and slowly. "I don't want to look up and find that you're not really here. That this is all in my head. I don't think I could bear it." His voice cracked slightly as he uttered the last sentence and, for the first time since the war, the family saw their brother's vulnerability as clear as day. It was a stark contrast to the Tommy Shelby that they'd gotten so used to being around.

Y/N cautiously walked over to her beloved elder brother, as if he were a spooked horse, and lowered herself into the seat beside him. She observed his eyes flit over to her as the chair creaked, so quickly that if she had blinked at the wrong moment she would have missed it. She smiled gently at Tommy. "Well I'm afraid you're going to be stuck with me for a while now, Tom, so you'd better start getting used to having me around again."  

As Y/N gently placed her hand on top of his, Tommy's entire body relaxed and at the same time something ignited in him. He felt alive for the first time since the war, and yet so at peace at the same time.

Suddenly, Tommy grabbed her hand in his, pulled Y/N to her feet with him and brought her into a bone-crushing hug. A thousand emotions and lost words were communicated in that one embrace, in that one moment, even. Tommy clung to his sister like she would vanish again if he loosened his grip. It was only when she whispered "I'm here now, Tom" in his ear as he stroked her hair that he relinquished his hold on her.

Tommy pulled away only slightly from Y/N and held her face gently in his hands. "My sweet girl," he breathed, a small smile gracing his lips. Y/N brought her hand up to his and held it there, the sibling simply enjoying the moment of being together again, tear tracks staining both of their faces.

The silence was broken by Arthur, who gruffly announced: "I need another fucking drink." The whole family started to laugh, the reality of the event finally sinking in.

"Yeah, you pour us all another drink, Artie, while I go and get your pudding." Y/N skipped towards the door.

"Y/N/N we don't fucking care about pudding now, you dick, just get back here now," John shouted after her.

"Bloody hell, no need to shout, John boy, I'm only going round the corner." She leaned around the doorframe, making sure to keep one hand on it to reassure Tommy. "Anyway," Y/N continued, "I've got to give you three your coming home present!"

"Our coming home present?" Arthur chortled.

"Yes," Y/N replied, matter-of-factly. "I believed I promised you lot cake" and she entered holding a cake exactly like their Mother used to make.

The three eldest brothers simply smiled fondly at their sister, shaking their heads.

***

An hour later, the family were all crowded into Polly's living room, having consumed the entire dessert. The gramophone was gently playing music in the background, as no one had bothered to take the record off once Arthur and John had finished dancing with their sister (they had claimed that they needed their toes stepping on to bring them back to reality).

The Shelbys and Grays spent some rare time together as a family that evening. No fighting, no arguing, no business: just talking and reminiscing and laughing.  

But now the night was drawing to a close. Finn had fallen asleep, the overwhelming emotions of the evening having finally caught up to him. Arthur and John were drunkenly singing in the corner of the room, yet they occasionally looked over at their sister, wanting to check that she was still there. Tommy simply felt complete again. For once his silence did not come from an attempt to conceal his true emotions, there was no point in trying that again tonight; he was just cherishing the moment, wanting it to last forever.

As for Y/N herself, she couldn't remember ever feeling so content before. She felt like she was on cloud nine, curled up to Tommy's side as they sat on the sofa together, watching the flames dance around in the hearth. His arm was around her shoulders, holding her close to him, and every now and again Y/N felt him place a soft kiss on the top of her head.

She knew that she had a lot of explaining to do. But that could wait until the morning. For now, they were a family reunited, and none of them could wish for anything more.

[hobbitingryffindor]

Don’t respond after 9 pm

So I've never written fanfic before, but apparently, I'm pissed at Jane. Please be kind, but also let me know if I should continue. I have a few other rules and scenes in mind. I have no idea if this will grow into anything more. Constructive feedback would be great.

___

Maura was ruminating. It was never good when she couldn’t get through her Saturday morning yoga session, but these days, it was becoming the norm. So after she finished her cup of tea, she locked herself in her yoga room, rolled out her yoga mat, and settled in with herself.

She had rules. They were new, and it was hard to keep to them some days, but they were there because she knew better. She knows she deserves more. She may not have had an attentive family growing up, but she knows her worth, or at least she’s gotten better at reminding herself. She knows what they have goes beyond friendship. She also knows it will never be more. Jane just keeps holding back the final piece of the puzzle. She could resign herself to a lifetime of this sexually charged and emotionally mediocre but never fulfilling relationship OR she could take a step back from Jane and a step forward for herself. But last night she forgot. She forgot the first rule she put in place almost a month ago.

1 - Don’t respond to Jane after 9 pm

Recognizing the anxious feeling that started in her chest, she told herself that it was a slip-up and it wouldn’t happen again. But she couldn’t help but grab her phone and reread last night’s messages.

10:36: J - Hey, you still up?

10:42: M - Just finished Bass’ enrichment and heading up to bed.

It had been such a simple response, it just floated out of her fingertips. She was so used to just always responding to Jane.

10:43: J- Enrichment? You can just say that you were in the sandbox hiding food for Bass to find.

10:44: M- Fine yes, I was reading his namesake’s new foreword in “Skeletal biology and bioarchaeology of the Northwestern Plains” while bass dug up the cactus leaves and strawberries I hid in his sandbox.

10:44: J- You make my night of watching the Sox lose seem like an exciting night

10:45: M- What can I say? We love to party over here.

10:45: J- I don’t know when it started, but you’ve gotten really good at sarcasm

10:46: M- You must be rubbing off on me ;-)

As Maura reread that line, she couldn’t help but cringe a little. She really couldn’t stop herself from going there last night, it was yet another small slip up, that showed how their friendship was always a little more than friendship.

10:59: J- I feel like I haven’t seen you at all this week, is the morgue backlogged?

11:04: M- It’s no busier than usual. Actually a little less so without a murder yet this month.

11:04: J- Give it time, Boston can’t go more than 2 weeks without a new murder. Have you been in court on other cases this week? I went to see if you could grab lunch a few times and I never caught you.

11:05: M- We must have just missed each other, I did lunch out of the office a few times.

11:07: J- You going to fancy places without me now?

11:09: M - Really Jane, any place that doesn’t allow jeans, you label as fancy. But no, a friend from my residency, Erica, did a few guest lectures at BCU. I caught one of her lectures and we had lunch a few times.

11:09: J- I see how it is, replacing me with other genii.

Reading this for a second time feels like a needle in her chest, last night it paralyzed her, she didn’t know how to respond. She wasn’t replacing Jane, per se. This was also the point last night where she realized her mistake in responding to Jane’s late text. Even now, she still isn’t sure she handled it correctly.

11:18: J- Any plans for tomorrow?

11:20 M- While genii is correct, you can just say geniuses, you don’t have to try so hard. And, no I’m not replacing you. I was planning on browsing Newbury St in the afternoon.

11:21 J- Great, so I’ll pick you up at 2, I’ll carry the bags and then we can hit up Eataly for dinner? We haven’t been there in a while.

11:25 M- That’s okay Jane, I know you don’t enjoy my long shopping ventures, you don’t have to come. And I’ve got dinner plans, I’m sorry. But I’ll see you Sunday night for dinner.

After that, it was radio silence from Jane. Even after all these years, all the social cues Jane’s helped her learn, she still doesn’t know how to read the silence. Last night she was torn. She wanted to hang out with Jane but didn’t. Now she had to live with rejecting Jane’s plans, and what felt like a rejection of Jane herself.

That’s what brought her here, meditating as the sun was rising, or trying to anyway. Maura shook herself out and realized she was going to need a little help this morning clearing her mind. So she opened up the Calm app and resigned herself to a guided meditation. Maura went through the motions of her day, finishing off with an overzealous stop at Diane Von Furstenberg’s on Newbury just because. She still hadn’t heard from Jane and was trying to tell herself it was okay, they were okay, they were just both adjusting to this new normal. Maura hadn’t figured out what this new normal was supposed to be, but she knew she was unhappy with how Jane and she were a couple in every way, except in the way that mattered. Their friendship was unhealthy as it was. If they were only going to be friends, Maura was going to start making space in her life for other friends and possibly a lover or two. She can’t pinpoint when it happened, but her very active and healthy sex life seemed to slowly dry up the closer she and Jane got.

______________

Dressed in her new Midi dress, and a brand new pair of St. Laurent sandals, she waived to Angela across the courtyard as she headed off to meet Erica. Driving to the Chart House, she couldn’t help but reflect and acknowledge that Eric’s timing was creating a good distraction for her. She and Erica had done their residencies together, they hadn’t been best of friends, but she was always warm to Maura and tried to include Maura in her social circle. A few years after Maura moved to Boston, she reached out when she landed in Providence doing a Post Doc Fellowship at Brown. They’d do dinner a few times a year, trade interesting journal articles, nothing special, but it was nice to have a friend outside of BPD. When BCU invited Erica to guest lecture for the week, Maura decided she’d just drop in on the first lecture, which led to a couple of lunches earlier in the week, and a celebration dinner as Erica was just offered a tenure track faculty position starting in the fall. Pulling up to the valet station, she decided that this was just what she needed to expand her social circle a bit. She’d enjoy her evening, celebrate Erica’s new position and enjoy the late spring evening.

______________

Like clockwork on Sunday around noontime, the Rizzoli’s started to filter into her home. Angela always led the parade, bringing groceries and starting the prep process. Over the next couple of hours Jane, her brothers, little TJ, Frost, Korsak, Kiki, and even Susie sometimes would wander in and fill her house. When she invited Angela to live in the guest house almost 4 years ago, she never thought it was going to be permanent, nor did she think she’d enjoy having her there as much as she does. For all of Angela’s meddling and snooping in Jane’s life, she’d been nothing but respectful of Maura’s boundaries and privacy. Maura treasured how their patchwork family considered her house their gathering place, when it was full, it felt like the warm home she yearned for as a child. The amazing dinners, even if sometimes unhealthy, were a vehicle for that love and inclusion Maura had spent over 30 years searching for. She’d found it with Jane and her family, but she still craves more. She wants more than a patchwork family, she wants her own family.

As Maura was finishing up working in the garden beds Tommy and TJ arrived. By the time she’d entered the kitchen freshly showered and ready for Angela to put her to work, she saw Jane and Frankie had joined Tommy in watching a basketball game. Maura greeted everyone while looking at the TV, she noticed no one was wearing a green jersey so she knew Boston wasn’t playing, which usually boded well for her couch and rugs. TJ was in his high chair feeding himself some plain pasta while Angela sang to him. Maura and Angela quickly fell into their rhythm with this week’s batch of Ragu simmering on the stove. By the time the lasagna was in the oven, Frost, Korsak, and Kiki had arrived and, Angela and Maura joined the gang in the living room to snack on some arancini before dinner.

While Maura and Angela always cooked, the most relaxing part of Sunday dinners was when Jane and Maura cleaned up. Never fail the boys would head out not long after dessert and the games were over. And Jane in her way of appreciating her mother would kick her back to the guest house for an early night, while she took charge of cleaning up the kitchen.

“Another glass of wine while you work?” Jane asked Maura while grabbing the bottle

Maura just put her glass in front of Jane while nodding for more. The pots and pans were washed, the dishwasher had already started its cycle and Jane and Maura were moving to the living room to straighten up before settling in to catch up on their week. Normally all this happened with a comfortable level of conversation between them, but tonight, there was a little more silence than usual. With blankets folded and the remote located, they settled into the couch, each sitting against an arm, facing each other.

“You know mom asked me how your date went last night, I didn’t even know you were seeing anyone” Jane started.

“It wasn’t a date, I told you I was going to dinner with Erica, she’s just accepted an offer at BCU.”

“No, you said you had lunch with Erica” with a slight hint of annoyance that only Maura could pick up on. “I didn’t know you guys were doing dinner, I thought you might have been hiding a new boyfriend from me”

“No, no new boyfriend Jane. Although that would be nice or maybe a girlfriend, I haven’t dated a woman since I first moved to Boston”

Jane nodded, her eyes a little bigger than normal, sometimes Maura could swear Jane forgot she was pansexual.

“What about you? You seeing anyone new?” Maura asked, mostly to take the heat off of her. She didn’t know what was worse, talking about her lackluster dating life or trying to appear supportive of Jane's dating life when all she wanted was to be the person dating Jane.

“No, although Frost mentioned his old college roommate is single. I can’t believe I’m even entertaining the idea of letting him set me up.”

“You should at least meet him, if Frost is setting you up, I’m sure he’s a good man.” Maura grinned through a fake smile.

“I don’t know” Jane responded, Maura saw the walls going up “ I don’t want to talk about dating. Is Erica going to move to Boston? You know you’ve never introduced us, are you scared I’ll embarrass you?” Jane half-joked, changing the topic.

“No Jane, you have to stop with the self-deprecating humor, you know I’m not embarrassed by you. And yes, she needs to finish teaching a summer seminar at Brown, and then she’ll move up here.” The next words fell out of her mouth as soon as they occurred to her “I should see if she wants to come to next Sunday’s dinner.” Seeing Jane’s small annoyance grow into jealously, she redirected. “She can meet everyone, but please don’t interrogate her for college stories. You already know I was weird and awkward, you don’t need more things to tease me about!”

Jane took the bait “Ohhhh, I didn’t even think of that! I wonder if she’s got pictures!!

Maura just rolled her eyes, relieved that the tension was broken. She really did want Jane and everyone else to accept Erica, she remembered what it was like moving back to Boston and not having anyone. The rest of the night passed quickly, Maura kept the topics to mostly work or Boston politics. Jane could rant about local politics for hours and it didn’t put Maura at risk of gazing at Jane like she wanted to take her upstairs. A little before 11, Jane sighed and made her excuses about getting back to Jo before she relieved herself on the rug again. Pre-rules Maura might have made some comment about how much wine Jane had and how she should stay the night. Post-rules Maura kept her mouth shut. As Maura locked the door behind Jane, she couldn’t help but hope that just maybe, with some delicate balancing, she’d be able to move on from Jane and keep her as a friend.

________

Later that week Maura found herself at the Robber with the whole group, even Susie joined them. Maura was finding her new footing and it felt nice, it gave her a boost of confidence. Jane no longer acted as her interpreter when Frost made a joke, Korsak no longer felt the need to censor his dirty jokes and Susie actually had a pretty foul mouth once she had a few drinks. More than ever she noticed how breaking down her walls, allowed others to break their own down around her. She didn’t feel like Queen of the Dead anymore, she was Maura. As the night stretched on the table shuffled around a bit, Korsak left to meet Kiki, Frankie and Nina joined, Susie went home and Frost tried his luck with a pretty blonde at the bar.

Maura didn’t even notice how slowly Jane crept to her, close enough that her side was against Maura and her arm draped behind Maura across the back of the booth. But she did notice when the vibe between Jane and her started to mirror that of Frankie and Nina, right down to Jane ordering Maura another drink before checking with her. Maura and Jane were a couple, they couldn’t help it. The small touches, the laughing into each other’s sides, even the stolen glances. It no longer felt like hanging out, it felt like they were on a double date. It was too much for Maura, she excused herself to the bathroom to regroup. Looking at herself in the mirror, she scolded herself. She had to get out of there, she needed more distance. How could she possibly have her own relationship if she always ended up with Jane?

“I didn’t realize how late it had was,” Maura said marching up to the booth. “I’m going to head home. I’ll see you all in the morning? Those cultures should be ready by 10, I’ll page you when I have the report ready.” All of a sudden Maura infused a formalness into the air that wasn’t there before. Frankie raised his eyebrows but said nothing. It was weird for Maura to leave without Jane, or at least inviting Jane back to her house.

“I’ll leave with you” Jane started to get up.

“Oh no, that’s fine, I’m parked just across the street. I’ll be fine, stay, enjoy the rest of your beer” Maura responded with a slightly stern note. Jane nodded, “Party pooper, leaving me with these love doves” gesturing to Frankie and Nina, while they responded with mock offense. As Maura walked away, she didn’t see Frankie lean in and whisper to Jane.

Once Maura settled into bed for the evening she decided it was time for her to get out there. Even if it meant her joining one of those annoying dating sites. It was better to be trying than pining. Last week Erica had suggested How About We, it was worth at least signing up. She decided that it couldn’t hurt more than she was already hurting. While she hadn’t opened up to Erica about how frustrated she was with her’s and Jane’s relationship, she had expressed a desire to get out there more and Erica had offered a few bits of advice. If she couldn’t go to Jane about this, it was nice to at least have another friend to commiserate with about dating. As soon as she completed her profile, her phone beeped and a notification popped up on the screen.

11:17 PM

Jane Rizzoli

You awake?

Clicking her screen off, Maura put her phone on her nightstand and turned over for what would be a very uncomfortable night’s sleep.

[leupagus]

“Police Response Slowed. The Community Stepped In.”

X

In Minneapolis this summer, 911 response times increased as officers left the force. Instead of asking for more police, some residents reimagined public safety for themselves.

By Sarah Holder, Rachael Dottle, and Marie Patino, 

October 30, 2020, 11:14 AM EDT; Updated on October 30, 2020, 1:17 PM EDT                                       

Every night for the past several months, pairs of bicyclists in high-visibility vests fanned across Minneapolis’s Powderhorn neighborhood after sunset, and stayed out until 2 or 3 in the morning. They were there to keep watch over the neighborhood, but they don’t have any affiliation with the police or city government. Instead they’re residents of the community, there to de-escalate or monitor incidents they hear about by scanning their social media and group chats.

The team, which calls itself the Powderhorn Safety Collective, is one of a handful of ad hoc community safety groups that have emerged in the city’s south side after a police officer killed George Floyd in May. They’re taking an unconventional approach to answering the question echoing in cities across the country: What would a community that was less reliant on police look like?

Minneapolis City Council members started asking that question in earnest this June, pledging to dismantle the existing police department and start from the ground up. Activists, reformers and abolitionists have been exploring the path to a police-free future for decades. But in the Ninth Ward, says Pouya Najmaie, an environmental lobbyist and a founding member of the Powderhorn Safety Collective, creating an alternative to traditional law enforcement wasn’t a thought experiment. It was a necessity.

For many Black and brown Minneapolitans, calling 911 had never been an impulse, and watching Floyd die under the knee of an Minneapolis Police Department officer further eroded trust in the institution. This summer, however, residents also observed that even for those who did call 911, the police were responding more slowly. In some cases, it seemed they might not be responding at all. “People are very distrustful that [police] can actually do their job, and they're just not doing their job,” said Oluchi Omeoga, an organizer with Minnesota’s Black Visions Collective, a queer-led group that’s become a leading voice in the movement to remake policing in Minneapolis. “It's both, and.” A Bloomberg CityLab analysis puts numbers to that emerging dynamic. In June, the average time it took for the police to assign a unit to 911 calls — the first step to dispatching officers — had slowed by 88% across all five precincts compared to the average from 2019 to early 2020. By August, it was still about 40% slower than before May. A previous CityLab report found that traffic stops were down 80% from the period before May 25, the day of George Floyd’s death. Not all these trends appear destined to stick. As protests die down, the colder winter months arrive, and the calls to disband the police department soften, response times have begun recalibrating back to pre-May levels. But the department may end the year with at least one longer-term change in resources: There are about 130 fewer officers than there were a year ago, Police Chief Medaria Arradondo told MPR News. Many of them are retiring early, and more are likely in the process of leaving; hundreds have reportedly applied for medical leave, citing post-traumatic stress disorder. An MPD spokesperson said there were 830 sworn officers as of Oct. 15, but didn’t respond to any other requests for comment. Locals have debated any number of reasons why such a slowdown in 911 response time might be happening, from an act of political retaliation in the face of scrutiny, to a reflection of depleted morale, to the aforementioned lack of personnel. Whatever the reasons, with rates for some violent crimes spiking in the city amid economic devastation from Covid-19, the trend illuminates another dimension of police accountability: Just as over-policing can have disproportionate adverse consequences for Black people, the impacts of withholding police response from communities can be harmful, too. “Despite our name, we have always considered lack of police service to be the flip side of police brutality, and sometimes just as damaging,” says Dave Bicking, an organizer with Minneapolis’s Communities United Against Police Brutality.

A Minneapolis Star-Tribune analysis of rising crime rates found that while the trend has been observed citywide, “in terms of raw numbers, the increase in violence that intensified after the unrest over the police killing of George Floyd is exacting a heavier toll on neighborhoods already suffering the effects of trauma, poverty and lack of access to adequate health care.” Slowed response times have happened before; so have crime spikes that disproportionately affect already-burdened neighborhoods. What’s different this year, in this city, is how the community and the reform-minded council have reacted to the reports of insufficient police service. The mayor has released a proposal for next year’s budget ahead of a December vote, and demands to substantially reduce funding for the department are not reflected. Several members of the city council have walked back earlier sweeping pledges to disband the department. But as calls grow to divert some non-violent incidents from the police to crisis intervention teams or mental health responders, the department’s disengagement has also been taken as more evidence that the public safety models that exist aren’t working — and as motivation to create new ones, faster. “Previously, I would get really angry calls that say, hey, why aren't you funding the police more?” said Steve Fletcher, a Minneapolis Council member who represents the city’s Third Ward and has proposed reforms unpopular with the police department in the past. “And now the calls I'm getting are much more reflective of the moment we’re in, I think, where they’re saying: ‘What are we paying them for at all? They’re saying they can’t help, they’re saying they don’t have a strategy. Why the hell do we have them?’”

For some residents, the city’s response hasn’t been fast enough. And they’re starting to fill what they see as a void on their own.

‘The phones could ring forever’

In January, before the pandemic threw a wrench in daily activities, Minneapolis police would take an average of 23 minutes to arrive at the scene after responding to the average 911 call. Priority 1 calls, which concern the most urgent issues — shots fired, threats to life or assaults, along with suspicious vehicles or domestic disturbances — took the shortest, at 10 minutes, and Priority 3 calls, like parking problems, road hazards, loud music and thefts reported after the fact took the longest on average, at 40 minutes.

On May 25, it took one minute for the call about Floyd’s alleged forged bill to be assigned to a unit, and four minutes for the officers to arrive at the scene. After that day, police started taking a lot longer to arrive when called.

CityLab data shows that average response times this summer went up about 40% from January to more than 14 minutes for the most urgent calls, Priority 1. They also went up 43% for Priority 2, and 28%, to about a 51-minute response time, for Priority 3.

This slowdown was especially apparent in the city’s 3rd Precinct, where Floyd was killed.

Source: Minneapolis Police Department

During the same period, the volume of 911 calls has risen only marginally, and doesn’t match the spike in response times Minneapolis saw in June and July. That suggests that the police were not experiencing an increase in demand for their services commensurate to their more sluggish response. Aside from volumes of calls, there were other factors: The precinct's headquarters, which serves several wards including 8 and 9, was burned down completely and relocated to a downtown convention center farther away from the neighborhoods it was meant to serve. With potentially hundreds of fewer officers and a frayed relationship with citizens, the department was under greater strain.

“They’re getting worn out. They’ve been working non-stop with limited resources,” Minneapolis Police Federation President Bob Kroll told the Minnesota Reformer this summer.

“My own sense is that this isn’t retaliation as much as it is just everybody’s humanity in this moment,” said council member Linea Palmisano, who represents Ward 13, the southwest corner of Minneapolis. She’s advocated for more mental health support and coaching for police officers who she says have experienced trauma. As the head of the city’s budget committee, Palmisano will also have a say in department funding this winter and has said that more resources, not fewer, will be needed for reform.

Some say changed policing in the zone was intentional. Reports from residents and local news have described the area around the Floyd memorial as a “no-go zone,” where police appear to be unwilling to engage — and unwelcome by many residents.

Especially in cases of enforcing minor infractions, “not every decision to not engage in something is a bad decision,” said council member Fletcher. But even in dangerous instances, residents say something changed.

“In the period directly after George Floyd was killed, during the uprising, the service from 911 was essentially nonexistent,” said Bicking. “People had the feeling that everybody must have just gone home. The phones could ring forever, you could call 20 times and never get an answer.”

‘No Man’s Land’

Minneapolis’s Eighth and Ninth Wards have been ground zero for the city’s season of change. Their border is marked by the corner of 38th and Chicago, where a clerk working at a store called in a forged $20 bill, and where then-Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds on May 25. Now a memorial to Floyd, the intersection draws visitors from across the city and country, who come to pay tribute to his memory.

Over the summer, the area felt like “a disaster zone,” said Alondra Cano, the city council member who represents the Ninth Ward. Lake Street, a thoroughfare that bisects the district, was overtaken by peaceful protesters marching for Black lives, but also by fire and chaos. New reporting from the Minneapolis Star Tribune indicates that some of the destruction was caused by far-right agitators, like the Boogaloo Boys. Residents felt abandoned. “There weren't any firefighters that were readily available. And there weren't any police that were readily available,” said Cano. “A lot of residents took it upon themselves to put out fires and to engage with folks who might be doing some harm out on the street.”

Members of Agape in downtown Minneapolis, after they were called to help respond to looting. Steve Floyd

It was out of that “no-man’s land” that five resident-led safety groups were born, she said, each covering different Ninth Ward neighborhoods, none of them officially designated by the city. In the months following the height of the protests, the groups got more organized and centralized. There’s the Little Earth Protectors, a group of American Indians who patrol the neighborhood around their federally-subsidized housing complex in the East Phillips neighborhood, and the Rock Steady Alliance, which Najmaie describes as a citywide coalition of racial justice activists and harm reduction workers who emerged to provide aid at protests. Agape, a group of 25 to 30 men, many of whom are former gang members, post up near the George Floyd memorial and respond to issues in the 40-block radius around it; they sometimes combine efforts with the Brown Berets, a group of Hispanic and Latino residents. The Powderhorn Safety Collective is run by a loose group of neighbors living in the Powderhorn Park neighborhood, a diverse but majority-white enclave historically home to leftists, artists and working class folks. They patrol the Powderhorn neighborhood by bike and on foot.

The demographics, tactics and territories of each collective vary, but a shared mission appears to unite them: to take elements of public safety out of the hands of the police, and into the hands of the community.

The Powderhorn neighborhood was profiled in the New York Times in June for its residents’ pledge to “check their privilege” after Floyd’s killing. Part of their reckoning was choosing not to call 911 for incidents large and small, out of a fear that the police would inflict more violence on the communities they pledged to protect. When unhoused residents started building a tent encampment down the street, the community resisted the city’s initial push to evict them, instead assigning volunteers to offer food, support and security. Later, when several volunteers pulled out of the area, Najmaie and a few other neighbors decided to start informal patrols that became the Safety Collective, to “make the housed people feel safe, so that they will hopefully not be calling 911 on the unhoused,” he said. (At the end of July, the city removed the encampment.)

The homeless encampment at Powderhorn Park in July, which was later cleared by the city. Photographer: Aaron Lavinsky/Star Tribune via Getty Images

Since they started patrolling in July, Powderhorn volunteers receive reports of incidents through the app Discord, where their neighborhood group chat has had between 1,000 and 1,300 active members. They also proactively monitor activity through the Citizen app, which culls 911 logs for geo-located crimes-in-action, and another older-fashioned tool: the police scanner. Often, what they’re responding to is the sound of gunshots. Their intervention is “full-service,” Najmaie says: they arrive at the scene of the incident, assist in whatever way they can, and report back with updates.

Agape, another one of the patrol groups, formed after young men who lived near 38th and Chicago observed what they saw as opportunistic vendors and gang violence take over the George Floyd memorial, says Steve Floyd, who’s lived in the area for 40 years and acts as an adviser to Agape. “What happened when George Floyd was killed, it made them change their lives and find a different direction,” says Steve Floyd. The group members put up barricades, and started a security patrol.

They aim to “let people understand that we have to protect our own community even if police are not going to be here,” says Floyd, “and then how it would look if we didn’t have police.”

The group has gone through several trainings on mental health, mediation and de-escalation training, and by now they’ve become a visible presence in the neighborhood, there to break up assaults and relieve tension on the street. “A lot of us don’t wear bulletproof vests, and so it just has to depend on the situation,” said Floyd. “Most of the time we can intervene with our voice.”

The groups often work together. For altercations that Powderhorn residents feel unequipped to handle, they seek out other groups like Agape for reinforcement. But even for incidents when neighbors might want to call 911, Najmaie says it hasn’t always felt like a viable option. “During the uprisings, you probably had a 30% chance to 20% chance of any kind of police answering to anything,” said Najmaie. “By mid-summer, it was up to a 50% to 60% chance, if I was to guess, and then slowly rising. Now, we're at a much higher percent chance.”

Because the Powderhorn Safety Collective is embedded within the community, the collective will often show up before police squad cars do, Najmaie says. “Other times when they do show up, what we've noticed is a very quick drive by and if you're lucky, you'll get a searchlight,” he said. “And then that's it.”

A New Playbook

Fletcher believes that some individual officers have actually exaggerated the impression among residents that police are unresponsive. “I have a lot of instances of officers telling businesses, telling residents, ‘I don’t know if we’d be able to get to you if you called and something happened,’” Fletcher said. “That kind of building cynicism and building doubt and building fear has a political impact.”   The MPD did not respond to requests for comment on this allegation.

The time it takes for the police to answer Priority 1 calls did not slow as much as the total average did this summer, indicating that the most urgent calls continued to be answered in a timely fashion. This could be partially thanks to actions by the police department to recalibrate its work: After complaints, the department has triaged its depleted number of officers to prioritize answering 911 calls and pursue investigations of serious incidents.

“In these very challenging times of COVID, budget cuts and retirements, the MPD continues to evaluate and reallocate the resources that we currently have to best serve the City of Minneapolis, focusing on the core responsibilities of a police department; responding to 911 calls and investigations,” the MPD told CBS Minnesota in a statement.  

Using fears about unanswered 911 calls as a justification for increasing police resources has been a familiar playbook in Minneapolis in the lead-up to budget processes, said Fletcher and Bicking, the community activist. “It works to the advantage of the police department, as propaganda: you need us, and there aren't enough of us,” said Bicking. In fact, it’s a familiar playbook in many American cities.

This time, it’s not having the same effect as it used to in Minneapolis, says Fletcher.

“The answer used to be we need 200 more cops and now people are like, we need a whole new division that handles this a different way that’s a non-police approach, if policing is not solving the problem,” he said. “That’s a really important political shift and it’s a potentially really generative moment, because I think people are thinking more critically than they have.”

Andrea Jenkins, vice president of the Minneapolis City Council, during a meeting in which council members declared they would disband the police. Rhetoric on that plan has softened since. Photographer: Star Tribune via Getty Images/Star Tribune

The mayor’s proposed budget includes a suggested $2.5 million in funding for alternative violence prevention programs, and a 7.4% cut to the police — far smaller than proposed cuts to other departments. Many of the city council members who once vowed to abolish the police have since clarified that they’ll focus on systemic reforms — though not all of them agree on what those should look like.

But there are signs that the community safety monitors and the city's efforts may start to converge as both groups explore what future policing might look like.

As of September, there’s yet another group of community members patrolling some of the same neighborhoods in South Minneapolis, but these individuals are paid by a new city “violence interrupter” program with $1.1 million in funding. Participants and leadership in the Office of Violence Prevention program are clear that they do not want to replace police, but instead focus on long-term relationship building. In many cases, they use their community connections to try to defuse tensions before they turn violent.

“We don't want to wait for it to get worse to address it, when we can see the writing on the wall,” said Sasha Cotton, the director of the Office of Violence Prevention, referring to concerns about gun violence. Agape recently started conducting regular nighttime patrols alongside the violence interrupters.

At a meeting with the Office of Violence Prevention and city council members, several of the community safety groups gathered to discuss how they could support each other, and whether they could receive city resources to buy tools like walkie talkies. Cano has given Agape members access to an office on 37th and Chicago, which they use as a “safe house and hotspot,” says Floyd. Cotton, of the city’s Office of Violence Prevention, says “there’s more than enough work” to keep both city and civilian efforts busy so long as gun violence remains a top concern.

Still, there’s debate about whether the community groups that coalesced in the immediate aftermath of Floyd’s death are sustainable in their current form. “Nobody’s getting paid, there’s not a lot of structure, accountability,” said Fletcher. In one indication of potential safety risks, Cano said a member of the Little Earth Collective had been shot while out on patrol, bringing up questions of liability and insurance. (The group was not available for an interview before publication.)

Kaitlin Wolfgram-Gunderson of the Powderhorn Collective hangs signs in the neighborhood about a meeting to seek community feedback on the group’s model. Photographer: Emilie Richardson/Bloomberg

In the Powderhorn neighborhood, Najmaie says that even as the upheaval of the summer dissipates, and the group stops its nightly patrols for the coldest winter months, he wants the collective to live on. They’re readying for Election Day and night, and for potential protests in the lead-up to Inauguration Day. There’s a trial for Derek Chauvin coming up next year. Unrest aside, the mission statement of the Powderhorn Collective describes its end goal as something broader than safety or security: "strengthening the social fabric of the neighborhood."

“People need to be involved in their communities,” said Najmaie. “People need to feel like they have a stake in things, and that they can change things.”

   (Corrects the date of Floyd’s death in paragraph 16. )