#itll pass and then i wont be ready

[cometchasr]

im not doing enough and its going to take fucking forever but i dont want to wait fucking forever i dont want to endure his bullshit for another half year until it becomes acceptable. but im not doing enough. i need to do more. maybe then, it would go faster. and next year i would finally be good.

but its so slow. so slow. always so fucking slow. and we cant do anything about it, and my fucking teacher is being very good at draining away any and all motivation i have to do anything, and my confidence, and i just- why cant i have done this earlier, or had it beamed into my fucking head

[skunkes]

if life is categorized by Before Loss and After Loss then I exist in the before but with a countdown to the after. and the countdown is always always present and debilitating. the loss will be debilitating too but i cant help myself. i will always suffer twice.

[8aji]

im a lil embarrassed that most of the posts ive posted (duh) as of late were text posts abt me being sick LMFAO n it feels silly to write this but i think i may log out of this acc for a lil while at least on mobile <3

[reallife6anoufriev6boy6]

dylric angst fanfic

includes angst, past/repressed sexual trauma, eric being sweet, and last night on earth.

note: little bit of a projection, but im posting anyway.

no lyrics, sorry:o(

the basement was quiet. the whole house was. it was late at night - around one am.

they had been passing back and forth a bottle of vodka, but it was now discarded.

one last night. they shouldve been asleep.

dylan couldnt sleep, so he called eric.

eric couldnt either, so he invited him over.

they werent ready. theyve planned for months, did drills, had everything set to go, but they werent ready.

“im not ready,” dylan verbalizes the thought, voice soft “im not ready, eric.” he repeated.

the brunette turned his head, looking to his friend.

“we have to do it,” he answered with “we have to do it, dylan.” he repeated as well.

they were in tune with each other. everything they said was on the same wavelength.

the blonde shakes his head, looking over at him.

“i cant.”

“we have to.”

they both stare at each other, communicating something that they could never verbalize.

theyd been through so much and they never got the chance to unpack any of it. this was their way of unpacking - kill everyone and then themselves.

dylan though had gone through something that eric hadnt been through. they were used to the bullying, having been through just about everything you could imagine, but dylan had been given the worse hand.

he cant remember it - doesnt *want* to remember it, but he can remember the way the hands felt - the names he was called and the empty feeling afterwards. he forgot everything else.

he was never able to figure out his emotions or how to deal with the trauma he was given, and now he never would.

eric knew though - he had told him. it was one of the many reasons they would be committing their final act together in less then a couple hours.

he didnt know everything though. even he couldnt know the extent of it.

“itll work out,” eric spoke again “everythings ready to go, vee.” he wasnt feeling good about this either, but he didnt want to show his weakness.

the blonde shakes his head again “im - im ready, but…”he struggled to find the words, staring at his friend and hoping he would get it.

eric does get it. he wasnt good with comfort or anything similar, but this was his best friend.

he gave a small, barely noticeable nod of his head.

before dylan realized, tears had already started to build up and streak down his face.

he sniffled, shuffling closer and putting his head on his shoulder.

eric lifted his arm and put it over him - the weight of it felt good.

neither know what to say or what to do. at the end of it all they were still two clueless, dumb teenage boys who didnt know how to comfort or handle emotional baggage, but when have they ever known how to deal with anything? their overall solution for life was death.

the brunettes hand rubbed over the others arm soothingly “its gonna be alright,” he makes his voice as soft and gentle as he can “itll - itll be over soon, vee.”

dylan can only sniffle and cry, putting all his weight onto the other and leaning on him for support.

the hands that would soon be used to carry out mass destruction and murder were so gentle and careful over his arm.

it was a wonderful feeling to be cared for - to have someone understand.

this was so out of character. this wasnt a persona or personality they put on like in front of their friends, their family, and the camera. this was just them.

the room is quiet except for the crying and soft hum of the air conditioner kicking on. it was peaceful - the last moments of peace theyd ever know.

“we’ll take care of them,” erics voice cuts through the silence, swallowing hard “*ill* take care of them.” he didnt want to sound gay when he said it, which was funny, but it was the least he could do.

dylan was his best friend. he would hunt down those fuckers if it was the last thing he did - which, it would be.

“theyll be gone. you wont have to deal with it anymore,” he wouldnt have to deal with it either way - they would be dead too, but he didnt want to say that “itll be over.”

dylan has no idea how to respond - he just keeps crying, soon turning into choked sobs. he didnt want it to be this way.

his friend is quick to hush him, moving his hand and running it through his hair now. he placed a kiss to the top of his head.

“itll be alright.” he restates from earlier, saying it quieter this time - just above a whisper.

he knew he had to accept it, but he just couldnt. it would never be alright.

he shook his head, but the other just keeps reassuring him.

“yeah, it will. we’re gonna take care of all those fuckers,” normally hed be saying that with such hate and anger, but his voice doesnt change “they wont know whats coming. theyll pay for all the crap they did,” he tucked his silky blonde hair behind his ear “we’ll take ‘em all down with us. we’ll make our point and no one can stop us,” he placed another kiss to his head “we’ll be a force grater then nature.”

to anyone else that would be disturbing - make them feel sick and want nothing to do with this anymore, but it made dylan feel better.

as long as he was with his best friend while getting rid of all their problems, he would be happy.

“you promise, reb?” he asked abruptly, his own voice small.

“yeah, i promise, vee.” he answered back without hesitation.

it was the last promise hed ever make. he had to make it count.

[tinylilwheatlings]

im just sort of speaking to the void here, lmao. my fiance got a new laptop for christmas which means i can use his old one for gaming! its slow and too big and heavy to carry around (hes a college student) but its not like. totally broken lmao. and i cant play portal anymore on my own laptop cuz its a mac and it cant play 32 bit software :( which is stupid. when this laptop croaks on me im probably gonna switch to windows but thats besides the point

theres a fanfic ive wanted to do since 2014 but never did cuz i was like. why bother. it wont be popular at all, its a crossover pairing, and eventually ill get bored of it and forget about it. needless to say that did not happen!! and i really want to do it lmao. if i had like a Team Of People id take a stab at making it a webtoon. but like a really bad dull stab cause ive never made a webtoon and probably cant afford to hire people. idk. idk how much it costs ^^; and even if i did know, idk how to go around finding trustworthy people to work for probably not as good of a paycheck as theyd otherwise get since i work minimum wage, who are passionate about this dumb little project and will stick with it for however long it takes, and will bear with me as i get my bearings in the beginning. ive never like, Directed A Production so itll be a bit weird in the beginning lmao. idk if i was like a storyboard artist or an animator or a VA i probably would pass, but thats just my guessing. and how do i find people? do i just slide into their dms like “ARE YOU READY FOR A FIRE OPPORTUNITY” like im in a pyramid scheme?? 

legit idk ^^; im not upset about this its just a thing i think about a lot. and since its christmas im in the portal mood (i got the game as a christmas present way back when!) so here i am. merry christmas btw!

[uwuowotf2waslife]

How would they react to their S/O either being pregnant or wants a child? (You can ignore this if you already answered it)

Im a sucker for parent mercs headcanons

tw: mentions of abortions, miscarriages and a very sad ending

Scout -will have an aneurism, but also will also hug you and spend a whole day just run around announcing to anyone he sees that hell become a dad -given the fact he never had a perminant paternal figure throughout his life, except his older brothers or his moms boyfriends from time to time, he will be at least insecure and nervous about the whole procedure. He has seen pregnant women yes, but he has never been the one who impregnated them. He loathes hell end up like his dad and become a deadbeat, but he also knows how much life sucks without a dad so he’ll man up and with some reasurrance from S/O he will become a much, much better than his.  Soldier -proudly announces to the whole base than a new recruit will be arriving in approximately 9 months and prepares accordingly. -he makes a crib with the help of Engie and makes blankets and clothes with the help of Heavy, even asks medic for advice on how to treat common baby sicknesses or just tips to how make their arrival/ first year on the world easier. Will help you around but will insist you take it easy. Will spend lazy nights or evenings talking to your belly, telling his adventures/ stories from the war or just american history ( his version tho).

Pyro

( idk how to write about them sorry chief)

Engie

-this texan will pick you up and pepper you in kisses, It isn’t a secret, his biggest dream since he was a young man was to become a father and now itll finnaly become a reality. Hell become emotional ngl, he will cry and just hold you as tight he can without hurting the baby.

-he will make from scratch everything youll ever use for the baby up to their college graduation( Engie why we need a crib with a mini-sentry?) and will baby proof the whole house/ base/ workshop. Lowkey will baby you during the pregnancy, especially the last months before the birth, he can’t believe his child will finnaly come in his life and he can’t stop spoiling you because he feels somewhat bad for the hardships of pregnancy ( morning sickness, back pain, the bby being a wannabe rodeo horse, the ussual)

Demo

-drinks a whole barrel of scrumpy after you announced that to him and passes out.

-wakes up and basically has both a panic attack and just so much joy, he has never felt that way in all of his life. Will try to stay as sober as he can druing the pregnancy, can’t have you laboring while he is vomiting like a cat in the hospitals bathroom. He can’t say he had a happy childhood neither that he was dying to become a dad, but he isn’t one to back down from the challenge. He is given the chance to make amends with his poor upbringing and ensure that the next generation of his bloodline won’t suffer like he did. Will buy lots of plushies and maybe ask advice from the people of the orphanage he was raised on how to raise a baby since his mother didnt raise him until he was a much older kid.

Heavy

-nearly dies on the spot. Family meant the world for him and now, he is finnaly able to start his own. For the first time in your relationship, he will openly cry in front of you and hold you while he is shaking with so many emotions

- phones his mother daily and basically creates a series of notepads filled with advice/old wives tales for caring for children. He already knows some basic stuff from raising his sisters but he wants to be 100% sure he will ace it. Having his father dying at a young age puted a lot of pressure in him to “grow” up and mature, so he makes his existances goal to make their childhood everything his wasnt. Que daily visits to the medic and being practically only allowed to breathe and eat, he really doesnt want anything to happen to you or your child, especially if you belong on the smaller/shorter type of people. He spends hours of his daily reading books in russian or talking to your belly and is ready to do everything to make your life easier, he will even knit baby clothes and cute blankets with small bears on them or small ines from poems on them, a bearskin baby blanket/coat is a must.

Medic

-he is no that happy tbh, he thinks hes far too old and his sperm isn’t as “strong” as itd be ifhe was younger, he has a nagging fear because of his age youll have a miscarriage or a difficult pregnancy.

-but once he saws the joy in your eyes and realise that hey, better late than never, he will try his best. He makes sure your pregnancy is smooth and does daily checkups on you and the baby, he is almost paranoid. You should help him relax or he will have a breakdown during the later months, because he is beyond terrified that somehow he will fuck up the birth and either permantly hurt you or the baby ( headcanon he will create twins, just imagine his silent mental freakout while he feels around and feels/hears two heartbeats). He needs comfort, but he will spend hours just talking to the baby about medical stuff or his experiences ( yes you will hear the skeleton story, multiple times). He isn’t a stable man, but he strives to make you and them happy so he is down to sacrifice everything he can.

Sniper

-faints when he hears the news, but scoops you up and spinns you around when hes over that initial shock.

-he is terrified and he is pretty open about it. He has barely enough social skills to speak with adults, he fears how useless hes around children.He needs constant reasurance or he will have the biggest mental breakdown he will ever have in his life. He can’t say he had shitty parents, but he also isnt a paternal man. He needs you to be the more hands on so he will feel comfortable with the idea. Engie and him will renovate the Van to have a built-in crib/bed and he will consult Medic for almos anything/ pick you up and run to medic if you feel the smallest hinge of pain. Once he feels the baby kicking or sees them on the machine ( idontrememberthenamesorry) he will cry and kiss your belly. He knows he wont be the best dad buthe will try his darnest to be the best dad he can be and provide all the love and the support for his child or children ( i lowkey see him as the type of guy who starts very insecure and then breed like a rabbit)

Spy

-oh mon fuck dieu, will faint and need medical assistance to wake up

-he thinks hes wayyy too old to have any more children, he believes ( a very common belief among the era/although somewhat debunked nowadays) that his sperm after so many decades its deffective and he doubts the pregnancy will even last that long to result to a child. But also he knows that he can’t leave another woman behind anymore, been there, done that, he’s a deadbeat many years now. He pays child support tho, but he knows all the money of the world can’t replace a father in a childs life. Furthermore his terrified of having a public family tree ( i think even if hes a fuckboy, he might was raised pretty hardcore catholic so in his head if you are to have his child and him being there for the both of you, it means he must also marry you). He has many enemies and he knows they are waiting for a chance to sink their teeth into someone that is dear to him. So he presents you a choice, either abort the baby and hell forget the whole situation happened and force medic and Engie either to create the most effective birth control, or to give him the most effective vasectomy there can be, or that you must understand he can’t stay because he doesnt want his enemies to hurt you and your child. He will come and go in your life , if you choose to keep them and send you a fat child support, but he can’t be seen with his child or have any legal documents with them. If you choose to abort, well better prepare to hold his hand while he gets his peepee pipe cut.

[fearsbellsarchived]

[me? Thinking about a gf fairytales au instead of being productive? More likely than u think!!! think ou.at buT BETTER and w/o the real world dimension hopping part. under the cut bc i just copy/pasted my tags from forever ago to put them in one place

mabel and dipper are hansel and gretal

paz is sleeping beauty 

bill is maleficient 

if we’re gonna get disney about it wendy as merida 

i LOVE the idea of tambry as rapunzel??? 

mabel can also be like...eric from the little mermaid 

so mermando can be ariel 

gIDEON AS URSULA/VANESSA IN THAT VEIN THO 

bill is also rumplestilskin 

stan can be the huntsman (idk from which story cause theres a fEW BUT)

ford is the sorcerer from fanstasia 

ford is teaching dipper magic....and instead of a true love’s kiss that’s how he wakes paz (maybe?)

the northwests made a deal w bill like in the most famous version of rumplestilskin but instead of wanting paz for himself he just wanted to steal her body at 16

so when they lose the deal they ask for help from ford and ford’s like “yo i can maybe change the deal??? a little bit???” so instead of bill taking her over when he goes to she falls asleep ​

so dipper wasnt supposed to wake her up but he found her and fords notes and he and mabel went on an adventure

bill is all the villains 

billains 

so stan has to leave mabel and dipper in the woods (idk y it wasnt for long the twins are just impatient) so stan disappears and the twins are like “lETS EXPLORE THE WOODS”

they come across some creepy old house w a lot of spiderwebs (can u guess the villain yet?)

an older woman comes out and is like “why are you guys lost in the forest?”

mabel points to the glitter trail “we’re not lost”

dipper looks behind them ‘mabel!!! where’s all the glitter?!”

(ACTUALLY MAYBE ITS YARN???) 

so they lose the trail 

meanwhile stan is losing his fucking mind

he follows the stray glitter but it’s blown all over

he feels “LOST IN THE WOOOOODDDS!!!”

so the old lady offers for them to stay the night bc its getting late

dipper is SUPER sus but he plays it cool surprisingly

mabel is So In!

long short...stan eventually saves them from darlene’s trap

usually shes just a maneater but look

when u live in the woods u do what u can

so stan hauls them back to their cottage

dipper knew there was weird shit out there but he wants MORE

he starts going through his great-uncle’s journals (*cue the dipper squee*)

he reads about bill and his deal w paz’s parents

he’s like....’maybe we should rescue her?’

ford wont tell him why they cant

so dipper and mabel sneak out

they steal the grunkles’ boat

mabel falls over board???

dipper tries like HELL to save her

but then he sees mermando save her

SO MABEL IS SAVED BY MERMANDO!!! 

gideon (who had long-loved mabel from afar) finds out

he visits the merman to trick him

all mabel remembers is his voice

so YES mermando trades his voice for legs just like the movie

sue me okay w his distinct accent it makes sense!!!

so the twins get sidetracked bc mermando shows up out of nowhere

they dock on a small island for a pit stop and thats when ‘kiss the girl’ happens

they dont kiss so they move on

they dock on another stretch of land the next day

AND GIDEON APPEARS

the twins have only heard about him from their grunkles so mabel hears his voice and goes *heart eyes*

mermando is Distressed

dipper is Focused on getting to this sleeping princess

mabel makes fun of him for liking her

SO GIDEON HAS MERMANDOS VOICE!

at one point dipper catches him w/o the amulet that makes him sound like mermando

and he tells mabel and its kinda like “the hand that rocks the mabel” or whatever the ep was called

it takes dipper and mermando being threatened (and gideons voice slipping) for her to catch on and she breaks up w him

dipper wants to throw him overboard

they just leave him on the next inhabited island they find

mermando got his kiss but decides to go back to the ocean anyway

he promises to write

mabel is Sad

SO BACK TO OUR REGULARLY SCHEDULED ADVENTURE!

the twins come across a land near the one paz is on and decide to stop for food and to stretch their legs and other hygiene things

they find out there’s some archery thing going on and mabel is like ’ooooh can we try?!’

turns out its for neighboring kingdoms’ princes to win a princess

mabel and dipper think this is RIDICULOUS so they crash it

mabel steps up to shoot and everyone’s like ‘wHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?’

then dipper steps up beside her. neither of them have shot a bow before

they shoot at the same time. mabel’s like thisclose to the bullseye. dippers too far right

THEN!!! PRINCESS WENDY COMES OUT OF NOWHERE

DIPPER AND MABEL ARE IN AWE OF THIS VALKYRIE. THEYRE BOTH READY FOR HER TO KILL THEM BC THEY THINK ITLL BE AWESOME

but wendy is like ‘ACTUALLY ILL SHOOT FOR MYSELF THANKS’ and splits like three arrows down the middle w her accuracy

she looks at mabel and dipper and is like ‘u dudes look fun! ive never seen u before who are u???’

and they’re like ‘WELL!’ and launch into detail about their adventure w overlapping voices and sound affects and VAST description

anyways. i cant decide how old people are rn okay 

so wendy is like “hey dad??? im going on an adventure w these guys!” and her dad is like “unusual but u DID just win ur own hand. so ill allow it”

“YES! can i take soos too?!” 

“sure!”

sO THEYRE OFF AGAIN!!! lemme tell u the ship is filling faST!!!

they get to paz’s land. and the first thing they find is a girl in a tower with long purple hair.

everyone is pretty much just making ‘wtf’ faces for like....ten minutes.

finally wendy calls up the tower like “YO! WHATS W ALL THE HAIR?!”

tambry leans out the window w a bored expression and goes “its mine. im tambry. who r u?”

they introduce themselves and are like “u wanna come on our adventure?”

then....ROBBIE APPEARS!

and he knows where the princess is!!!

”oh yeah. her. shes also in a tower. its got a door but its guarded by gnomes.”

then robbie climbs tambrys hair pecks her cheek and ducks in the tower

they decide to head for the tower robbie directed them to. but they have to pass the castle. Northwest Castle

robbie warned them about the northwests. said that the princess was one and before she disappeared she was the snottiest brat hed ever met

so they became friends despite the fact that he plays music for a living (and not very well either)

her parents told her of the spell when she was twelve

so robbie’s like “they are not nice people and neither was she??? most of the townsfolk are glad shes asleep tbh”

but dammit! dipper came here for an adventure!!! he wasnt going to stop just bc the princess wasnt what he expected!

so they continue on!

mabel is like “maybe she doesnt KNOW how to be nice!”

and soos is just excited to be there!

and wendy is just...u kno...chill

they start to get close to the castle and they feel like they’re being watched

and then soos notices the PEACOCKS!

they assume theyre spies for the king and queen. which is half true?

they can also warn bill if someone is near pacifica

oh damn imagine that

being stuck asleep w a DREAM DEMON in ur head

sorry for the accidental psychological torture paz

WHICH IS THE ONLY TORTURE SHES HAD!

i think to make up for risking her life as a baby ther parents were like “we’re just gonna spoil u rotten and PRETEND u do no wrong eVERYTHING IS FINE”

so dipper is reading the journal and he FINALLY gets to the true loves kiss part of the deal

and he looks around at the party like “oh shit true love what do we do???”

mabel suggests he at least try and everyone agrees that yeah okay thats the back up plan

but dipper wants to use a SPELL!!!

so the king and queen see him w the journal and remember ford having the same one

so everyone is brought to the king and queen

theyre like “pRINCESS GWENDOLYN?!”

bc this is MY STORY and if i wanna give wendy a more princess-y name thEN I WILL

i say as i continue to refer to mason as DIPPER!!!

SO THEYRE MEETING THE NORTHWESTS!!!

wendys like “yes that is me the princess” and then everyone else introduces themselves...w dipper introducing himself as mason bc it just sounds more fairytale-y

soos is jesus (hey zeus! not jee sus)

soos is like....wendys bff/personal servant but mostly bff

so they explain their adventure to the northwests as quickly as possible

preston is no patient man and he’s is like “tbh its probably important she be here for her 18th bday soooo??? as long as she wakes up by next year why not???”

but only bc dipper was like “i wANNA USE MAGIC I DONT WANNA KISS HER THATS PLAN B!!!”

plus u kno...even if he DOES whats the guarantee itll work???

the guarantee is me being a filthy shipper tHATS WHAT!!!

so they continue to the tower!

there is probably a sidequest thingy with giffany bc i liked that episode

also soos needs more screentime im sorry

SO THEN!!! FINALLY!!!! THEY MAKE IT TO THE TOWER!!!

WHICH IS!!!

IN FACT!!!

GUARDED

BY

GNOMES!]

also theres a manotaur/multi-bear sidequest i just thought of bc i like THAT episode!!!

is this gf, a fairytale, sk.yrim, or a d.n.d campaign now??? WHO KNOWS!!! ITS NOT ME!!!

SO THEY GOTTA GET PAST THE GNOMES!

first they offer safe passage in exchange for mabel as their queen

after thats declined theyre like “or the redhead. well take her!”

this is also declined

finally jeff tells them to attack

at first the party tries to fight them off and they do okay

uNTIL SOME GNOME WEAPONIZED SCHMEBULOCKS RAINBOW PUKE!!! (i think it’s toxic tbh but i dONT REMEMBER)

finally mabel just pulls out her trusty crosSbow (aka “GRAPPLING HOOK!”) and they just make a tightrope to the window above the door

wendy goes first and NAILS it

then everyone else follows

soos almost falls and gets left to the gnomes but everyone helps him balance and they all make it through the window

coincidentally. the window leads to the princess’s room

OH MAN WHY DIDNT I USE THE PTERODACTYL?!

oh well. anyways.

everyone is looking around the room and like...taking it all in

dipper takes a moment...then walks over to the princess

he isnt sure if waking her will also wake the demon

crossover even more w my old paciphera au??? idk probably not

so dipper tries the spells he narrowed it down to

none of them work

all his friends have returned to the princess’s room and mabel is like “u gotta kiss her brobro!”

so dipper...poor poor dipper...just leans forward and kisses her

paz pretty much snaps her eyes open when dipper is a half inch from her face while he’s pulling back 

and even tho she was forewarned she wasnt expecting DIPPER so she SCREAMS

dippers ears are ringing

she shuts her eyes and stills her breathing and sits up.

AND SEES EVERYONE ELSE AND SCREAMS AGAIN

“i dIDNT EXPECT U TO BRING *FRIENDS*!”

so once shes a little more calm they explain the whole adventure to her

paz feels a little honored they came all this way just for her

also since True Love beats everything bill is like.....back in his home dimension. also paz has been fighting him for like....over a year.

so paz is like....ready to Go. u kno. just wants to go HOME.

they get pazs shit together and exit the tower through the door

she says goodbye to the gnomes. all by name.

“oh yeah mom and dad made them my personal guard when i was like...eight. theyve been prepping for this my whole life. they’ll meet me back at the castle.” so then she starts telling them about herself and her last like 

two years of being asleep w a DREAM DEMON

“sometimes i got the weirdest nightmares??? and they never ended. but when i woke up i couldnt remember anything specific.”

she and dipper talk away from the group. he tells her about how hes her true love and everything “okay well. we’ll have to lie to my parents and say it was a spell. bc they will NOT approve of us being true loves and if they hurt you...”

“then they hurt *you* too!” dipper finishes (idk maybe a combo w a soulmate au thing?)

meanwhile mabel is like...whining about boy problems??? and wendy is like “this is y boys r dumb.”

soos is like...wandering off. I WANNA INCORPORATE MELODY BUT WHO SHOULD SHE BE?!

paz and dipper start like....arguing about how to deal w her parents

apparently they actually ARENT that nice. if she doesnt marry a prince they’ll give her over to bill completely...or something idk

SO theyre nearing the castle!!!

theyve written theyre grunkles okay no worries. also mermando.

thats y mabels complaing about boys.

mermando and that manatee wife of his!!!

paz is not exactly ready to face her parents so she convinces the party (roll for charisma) to go the long way

which is actually just circles

anyways

we run back in to melody and soos and the party is like ‘wHOOPS WE DIDNT EVEN NOTICE GLAD U DIDNT GET EATEN BY A SPIDER LADY!

maybe melody is like....a fairy???

something light and ‘childish’ bc thatd fit her personality

soos is like “ive BEEN here. u dudes have been going in circles.” and everyone glares at paz.

“im sorry!!! i just dont want to go back!!!”

“ur dad made us promise to have u back for ur 18th bday.” says dipper while he tries to stay mad at his future wife

paz is like “YEAH SO HE CAN MARRY ME OFF TO A PRINCE!!!”

idk why paz and dips are being better at being soulmates here okay i was like....sleep-drunk when i first wrote this

so the party has a choice to make.

take paz back home where she wont be able to be w her TL (which in some cases has probably led to death) OR!!!

sneak her out and take her home w them?!

wendys probably gotta go back to her own kingdom tho.

and soos wants to stay w melody

U KNOW WHAT I JUST REALIZED?!

sTAN NEVER GOT TO BE SOOS’S DAD!!!!

SORRY SOOS!!!

so anyways

mabel and dipper decide to help her sneak out

luckily she knows all the blindspots

it takes longer but they finally make it back to their ship

they say theyre goodbyes to soos and melody and paz wishes them well in her kingdom. she promises to return when shes ready to rule

they load the ship and sail to wendys kingdom next

they stay a few days to recuperate

paz has trouble sleeping bc when she does the nightmares come back.

cue a kat.niss/pee.ta thing where paz sleeps next to dips bc it keeps the nightmares away

wendy has to explain why soos isnt w them to her dad who kinda shrugs it off?

“u proved u can protect urself.” or something.

after like.....a whole fucking year the twins are heading home.

paz and dipper sleep together on the ship too bc its just fucking easier

paz is nervous to meet the grunks

she and dipper arent exactly....dating??? its def more like soulmate au

where theyre AWARE theyre supposed to be together but they dont even rly know if they WANT to be together.

paz is p much “i dont rly wanna be w anyone else. ill let u kno if that changes.” and dips is like “tbh same.”

mabel is already planning a big royal wedding.

iDK Y BUT I WANT THEM TO FIND OUT THEYVE BEEN ROYALTY ALL THIS TIME??? probably just bc i LOVE that trope!!! but theyre not so its whateves.

so they FINALLY get home. mabel has been writing letters this whole time. to mermanso. to soos and melody. to wendy.

shes the captain of the dip.ifica ship and shes gotta keep her crewmembers in the know!!!

the twins also wrote to the grunks the whole time so!!!! no worries!!!

paz tries writing to her parents...but she can never find the right words.

meeting the grunks isnt as bad as she thought???

stan loves her off the bat. partially bc shes rich and bc she doesnt take shit

ford is pleased to meet the girl he saved and shes v v thankful to him for saving her life as best he could.

it takes her like a YEAR to write the letter.

she promises her parents she’ll return. AFTER shes married.

at this point she and dipper ARE together. they figured all theyre confusion out and are just living the good life!

mabel and wendy are doing the long distance thing. shes still friends w mermando.

robbie and tambry found paz and they write back and forth.

u CAN TAKE ROBBIE AND PAZ SIBLINGS FROM MY DECOMPOSING HANDS!!!

everything is as happily ever after as it can get.

and then dipper proposes despite knowing what it means.

BUT THATS A WHOLE OTHER ADVENTURE!!!!

*end credits roll. an epic theme song starts playing*

[crownedbyluke]

Long Road Ahead (Chapter One)

Estelle Finley has been friends with Ashton Irwin and Luke Hemmings for three years. When the boys bring her along on a jam-packed road trip to Cape Cod with the rest of the band, their adventures are just beginning. Through long hours driving, exploring cities, and hidden secrets, something more is bound to happen on this journey. How will this road trip change Estelle’s friendship with the friends she’s come to love so dearly?

Word Count: 3,480

Masterlist.

Luke’s blue eyes and Ashton’s hazel eyes were staring at me. I was used to their weird looks, but there was something in them I hadn’t seen before.

“Whatever it is, you might as well tell me before your eyes burst out of your heads,” I said while walking over to my desk.

“What are you talking about?” Ashton asked, a hitch in his voice giving him away.

“You both are staring at me, which usually means you have to tell me something. So come on,” I said, looking through some of the papers that were out.

“I told you she’d know,” Luke said making me laugh.

“Ugh fine. Estelle, stop being in teacher mode” Ashton teased making me laugh more.

I raised my hands up in surrender before turning to face them. I met Luke’s eyes and a shiver ran through me. I should have been used to it, but no matter how many times it happened in the three years we’ve been friends, it still took me by surprise.

“We’re going on a road trip and you’re coming with us,” Ashton said taking my eyes off of Luke.

“What? No I’m not,” I said shaking my head.

“Yes you are. You’re coming with us, Mikey, Cal, and Crystal. Oh, and you should really start packing because we leave tomorrow at six in the morning,” Luke said, an unexpected confidence in his tone..

“What? No, you two are kidding,” I argued, not believing them for a second.

They loved playing pranks on me and if this was their latest one, I had every intention of making them regret it.

“We aren’t. Completely serious. No pranks and no jokes,” Ashton said, his eyes lit up.

“For how long?” I asked, turning back to look at my calendar.

As much as I wanted to agree and let them sweep me away, I had lesson plans to prepare.

“Well, it’ll take us fourteen days to get there and then we’ll be at our final destination for three weeks,” Ashton said, moving his fingers as if he was counting midair.

“Es, we’ll get you back in time to prep for school. I promise,” Luke reassured, his hands coming to rest on my shoulders.

There was a calm that came over me with his touch. It made it impossible to not give into them.

“And what am I supposed to pack?” I asked, tilting my head back to look at Luke.

The smile that lit up his face met those ocean eyes and I was sold on whatever we were doing.

“Lots of summer clothes, some swimsuits, but also a couple things that are warmer for nights,” Luke said quietly, his fingers squeezing my shoulders.

“Well if I know where we’re going, I could pack properly,” I said, wiggling my eyebrows at him.

“Nope. That’s a secret. Now, remember what Luke said, but put some nicer clothes in there too,” Ashton said, giving me his thousand watt smile.

I rolled my eyes at him before looking back up at Luke. There was something in his eyes that made me melt into his touch even more.

“Get to packing little dove. We’ll see you bright and early tomorrow,” he said, giving my shoulders another squeeze.

The blush came across my body from the pet name. It didn’t matter how many times he called me that, it still caused the same reaction. Ashton came over and gave me a quick hug. It felt like I was still in a trance when I heard them close my apartment door.

“Shit,” I mumbled before going to my hall closet door.

I pulled out my biggest suitcase and dragged it to my bedroom. The sound of my closet doors echoed against the walls. My wardrobe was still being transitioned to summer, but I had most of what I would need or at least, I hoped. My eyes wandered over the clothes before I pulled out my phone.

E: Crys, what the hell am I supposed to pack?

My fingers ghosted over my favorite white top, fond memories coming to mind. My phone buzzed in my pocket.

C: Plenty of shorts, tees and tanks, at least three swimsuits, some sundresses, some skirts, coverups, sneakers, sandals, and like one hoodie/sweater.

E: Oh my god. I’m guessing you won’t tell me where we’re going either?

C: Nope. Under strict instructions not to.

E: Damn it. Okay. I guess I’ll get packing then.

I sighed before tossing my phone onto my bed. I took the top I had been touching off the hanger and gently placed it on my shoulder.

“Only like forty more to go,” I said, my hands falling to my hips before getting started.

                                                         ➢➢➢

The blaring sound of my alarm woke me from the peaceful slumber I was in. I hit the button and checked the time. The red numbers flashed five in the morning. I pushed myself from my bed and headed to the kitchen. My finger pushed the start button on my espresso machine after placing a mug underneath it. My feet carried me to the bathroom for the shower I desperately needed. After ten minutes, I stepped out and got dressed in my comfy clothes for the drive. I quickly put my hair into a fishtail braid and went back to the kitchen. I added milk and ice to finish my iced mocha. I glanced down to check my watch. 5:20 A.M. I went to the fridge and pulled out the vanilla greek yogurt. After chopping up a banana, I started eating as quickly as I could so I would be ready in time. I checked my watch again. 5:40 A.M. I cleaned my dishes and went to my front door. The suitcase and backpack that I packed last night already by the door. I pulled on my gold sandals and black wide brimmed hat. Just as I was clasping the last sandal, the buzzer sounded.

“Ready Es?” Ashton’s voice crackled over the speaker.

“Yep. Come on up,” I said, finger pressing to let him up.

The sun was starting to peek through the linen curtains. I cracked my door for Ash before walking over my balcony window. I snapped a quick picture, the calm of the view washing over me. There was a part of me that just wished I could stare at the sunrise for an infinite amount of time, before I was brought back to the world around me.

“Let’s go Es,” Ashton said from behind me.

I walked back over to him and grabbed my backpack.

“Still not telling me?” I asked while locking up.

“Nope,” he said, giving me a wink over the shoulder before heading down to the elevator.

We left my apartment building, a gray Range Rover idling by the curb when we walked out. Ashton hauled my suitcase into the back while I opened the door.

“Good morning little dove,” Luke said after I opened the door.

“Good morning giraffe,” I said, crawling in.

I found myself between the window and Luke with Calum on his other side. Ashton climbed into the single seat in the back.

“And we’re off!” Michael cheered from the driver’s seat.

Crystal cheered from the passenger seat to encourage him even though it was early. Her phone was hooked up to the aux, making her the DJ for the first portion of our trip.

“Mike and Crystal are driving until noon, then Cal and Ash will take over for three hours,” Luke said once we pulled away.

He was reading from a notebook that had different times written in it.

“Do I get to do any driving?” I asked, testing him.

His laugh rang in my ears before I saw his smile.

“Maybe later, but you don’t know where we’re going so you’re gonna have to wait,” he said, nudging my shoulder.

I groaned before looking out the window. California was passing by and it was hard to believe that I was really doing this with them. My ears caught the bassline of Move On by Mike Posner. My head bobbed along to the song before Calum and I looked at each other. We moved in sync with the bassline, both of us appreciating it for exactly what it was. I couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up when Calum tried dancing along. Luke looked at us like we were crazy before joining us in the groove. I caught Ashton filming us and gave him a wink. We laughed once the song was over.

                                                          ➢➢➢

Time was flying by. Luke was driving and I had a sleeping Ashton on my shoulder, Crystal nodding off next to him. I still had no idea where we were headed, but now that it was dark, it was harder to tell anyways. No matter how hard I tried to get it out of everyone, they wouldn’t tell me. I knew we had been driving for awhile, but there was no indication for how much longer we were going to be. I caught Luke’s eye in the rearview mirror. It was simple, but it made everything I was feeling more complicated. I tried ignoring and figuring out how I felt about Luke so many times. Each time, I came up with no concrete answers. What it always came down to was that he was one of my best friends and to jeopardize that because of some feelings wasn’t something I would do. My thoughts faded away when I heard the guitar from I Was Made For Loving You by Tori Kelly and Ed Sheeran. My eyes met brown this time, a strange feeling of understanding between me and Calum flooded my senses.

“It’s Crystal’s turn,” Calum said, breaking the moment between us.

Luke nodded.

“Let me find a gas station,” he said, eyes searching the signs to find one.

I adjusted a little so Ashton’s head wasn’t digging into my shoulder.

“Well, Estelle is my co-pilot because you lot keep hogging the passenger seat,” Crystal said, making me laugh.

“Ash,” I whispered, gently squeezing his shoulder.

“Essie?” he asked, eyes still closed.

“I have to get up,” I said, threading my fingers through his hair.

“But you make such a good pillow,” he almost whined.

“I know. You can use my pillow if you want,” I offered, smiling down at him.

There was a fondness I felt for Ash in that moment. He looked so young and stress free when he was asleep. I ran my fingers through his hair one more time. Luke pulled into the gas station parking lot.

“Coffee Es?” Crystal asked while opening the door.

“You know it,” I said, getting out of my seat.

I put my pillow in Ashton’s lap and pressed a quick kiss to his temple. Crystal and I were the only ones that went inside.

“I’m gonna go to the bathroom quick,” I said, heading to the back of the store.

I passed a rack of postcards making me stop instantly. Colorado landscapes and greetings from Colorado were everywhere. I went to the bathroom quick and picked one out. I grabbed a few snacks before heading back to the car. I put the postcard on the dash.

“We’re in Colorado,” I said getting Luke and Crystal’s attention.

“Shit. Okay, yeah,” Luke said, sighing a little now that his surprise was ruined.

“Luke, just tell her,” Crystal said, adjusting the seat a bit.

“Okay okay. Currently, we’re heading to St. Louis,” he said, a hint of relief in his tone.

“And I’m guessing that isn’t our final destination,” I said, taking a sip of the coffee Crystal got me.

“Nope. We’re in St. Louis for two days and then we’re off to Myrtle Beach for three days,” he said trailing off.

It was one of the many things Luke did when he wanted to keep things a surprise that drove me insane.

“Keep going,” I encouraged.

“Then in New York for four days,” he continued, the same trailing off happening.

“And then?” I asked, fully aware that there was more.

“We’re gonna be in Cape Cod for three weeks,” he said.

The excitement rushed through me causing me to turn around to look at Luke.

“You mean my number one place to visit?” I asked, thinking that I was dreaming.

“Yeah,” he said, a smirk on his face.

“Oh my god, Luke, this better not be a prank,” I said, my words coming out fast while I stared at him.

“Not a prank. I promise,” he said, holding out his pinkie.

I linked mine with his, the touch heating my skin. I turned back around, a giant grin on my face.

“DJ, please hit me with some jams,” Crystal joked, aux cord in hand.

“Well of course,” I responded, taking it from her and plugging my phone in.

It took me a moment before I found a song that fit the mood I was in. King Of the Clouds by Panic! At the Disco played through the speakers. I let the song wash over me, the words and vocals taking me away.

“I wanted to tell you when you texted yesterday, but Luke and Ash really wanted it to be a surprise,” Crystal said, bringing me back to reality.

“I’m glad it was a surprise though. It makes it that much better,” I said, unable to stop smiling.

“Look at them,” she whispered, turning the music down.

I looked in the rearview to see all of the boys asleep. Ashton had my pillow pressed against the window in the single seat while Luke, Calum, and Michael were lying on each other, their heads crooked into each other in different ways.

“They’ve gotta be used to sleeping in cars by now,” I said, looking over at her.

“You would think, but I know Mikey still struggles with falling asleep in cars. He always needs adjustment when he comes back,” she said, pushing her hair back.

“So does Luke. He usually stays at mine or makes me stay at his when he gets back because he hates being alone after tours,” I said, a small smile coming across my face.

“You sure that’s not because Luke has a thing for you?” she asked, taking me by surprise.

“What? Luke doesn’t have a thing for me,” I dismissed, waving my hand at her.

My heart had picked up when she said it, but I had to push it away.

“Estelle, you’re joking right? I’ve known that boy for awhile now. I’ve seen him go through love and heartbreak. I know when he’s into someone,” she said, her eyes glancing over at me.

“Crystal, I’m telling you, he isn’t into me. We’re best friends and that’s it. That’s all we are now and all we’re ever going to be,” I said, a hint of frustration in my voice.

I had already convinced myself of this. As much as I wanted to believe Crystal, I couldn’t. That road lead to far more hope and rejection than I was able to handle.

“But the way he looks at you-”

“He looks at me like he’s always looked at me. Besides, if he did, the feelings wouldn’t be mutual,” I lied.

The words felt like they were burning my tongue as I said them. I turned to look out the window, my head full of daydreams that the smallest part of me wished would come true.

                                                        ➢➢➢

“Okay Ash, overnight shift,” Calum said after pulling into a gas station.

Calum’s voice woke me up, causing me to move my head off of Luke’s shoulder.

“Who’s my co-pilot?” he asked while getting out of the car.

“I’ll do it Ash,” I said, tying my hair into a loose bun.

“Essie, you were asleep,” he argued, staring at me.

“I’m awake now. Give me a coffee and I’ll be good,” I said getting out of the car.

“Fine. Let’s go get some snack too. It’s you and me for six hours so we should stock up,” he said, leading me into the gas station.

“I’ll get snacks. You get refreshments,” I said before we high fived and split up.

I grabbed chips, granola bars, some candy, and a couple sandwiches. Ash and I met at the counter, his arms full of drinks. He grabbed plenty of flavored water for me and soda for himself.

“I’m grabbing two coffees quick,” he said to the cashier.

He ran back and gave the short brunette the thousand watt smile. She blushed under his gaze. We took the bags from her and went back to the car.

“You are ridiculous,” I said while we settled in the car.

“I don’t know what you mean,” he laughed.

“Oh please. You flirt with everything that has a pulse,” I said, rolling my eyes.

“Excuse you, but that’s Luke. I didn’t mean to flirt with her, but she was cute,” Ashton said, laughing again before pulling away from the gas station.

“You’re right, Luke does do that a lot,” I said, picking up my phone.

“Is that some jealousy I’m hearing?” he teased.

“No,” I said, hitting play on Nintendo Game by Alessia Cara.

“I’m kidding Essie,” he said.

“Yeah I know. Why did you guys pick Cape Cod?” I asked, taking the subject off me and Luke.

I opened a bag of cheddar sour cream chips and took a sip of the coffee Ashton got me. The bittersweetness ran over my tongue, just the way I liked it. Ashton always made sure the coffee he got me tasted just right.

“Well, I was personally tired of the same California beaches every summer and Cal wanted some place that was warm, but still pretty chill. Luke pitched Cape Cod and we all agreed,” he said with a shrug.

He made it sound so simple and easy, like it was just a walk in the park for them. Then again, the boys were always like this and it was always an adjustment at first, but I had found myself getting used to it.

“Who’s idea was it to bring me?” I asked, quickly eating a chip so he wouldn’t sense the nerves I had about the situation.

“Luke’s. He remembered how badly you wanted to go,” Ashton said like it was obvious.

“Yeah. It’s been my number one since high school,” I said quietly.

“I don’t get why you never went,” he said, taking a swig of his cream soda.

“My parents never wanted to and then during college, I just never got the chance or there wasn’t time. Now, yeah my career allows for vacation, but I didn’t think anyone would want to go,” I said shrugging it off.

“Well now you got us,” Ashton said giving me a smile.

“Yeah I do,” I said returning the smile.

                                                          ➢➢➢

“Ash, your shift is over. You two need some sleep,” Luke called from the back.

Ashton got off at the next exit. Despite my best efforts, I was exhausted. I climbed into the middle seat while Luke and Crystal took over. Ashton climbed in next to me.

“Get some sleep Essie,” he whispered before pressing a kiss to my temple.

I adjusted slightly until my head was on Ashton’s shoulder. A nudging woke me up a few hours later. I slowly sat up, my eyes adjusting to the new light.

“Welcome to St. Louis little dove,” Luke said, our eyes meeting in the rearview yet again.

I looked out the window immediately. A gasp escaped my mouth as I took in the view. There was water shining in the sun and the big arch took over the sky. Brick buildings and greenery were everywhere. It was absolutely breathtaking and one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen. Luke parked in front of a brick building with two arches framing the doors.

“We’re here,” he said, eyes gleaming as he looked at the building.

“This is where we’re staying?” I asked while following everyone else’s lead at getting out.

“Yeah,” Ashton said handing me my suitcase.

We walked into the condo, the white walls taking me by surprise.

“Luke and I will take the double beds,” Ashton said.

I stopped in front of a single room with a gorgeous view of the city. I could see the water from the window and there was something about the way the arch was reflecting on it that made me smile.

“Estelle’s got this one!” Luke called after following Ashton.

I slowly walked into it, my breath gone again.

“Well, I guess this is real now,” I whispered, my fingers ghosting over the soft bed sheets.

It had felt like a dream until this moment, but everything about it still felt like I needed to be pinched. If it was all a dream, I never wanted to wake up.

Let me know if you want more and want to be added to the taglist. 

taglist loves: @thruheavenandhighwater @notoriouslyhood @24kcalum @bbycal @cashton-queen @thebookamongmen @tommossoccer @slimthicccal @a-little-international @irwinsx

[kae-karo]

Katie I’m about to fly completely on my own for the first time this Friday and I’m pretty anxious about it. Do you have any advise you could give me about flying/the airport/packing/anything really? Thank you in advance :S x

hi b! ooooookay wow finally the 38 flights i went on last year will come in handy!

packing:

okay traveling by yourself if you’ve never done it before won’t necessarily impact your packing - just be sure that if you have a small carry-on bag that you don’t have any liquids over 2.5oz and remember that like. if you forget something, a lot of hotels (if that’s where you’re staying) will have stuff you can use for free, just ask them. worst case they usually have some stuff you can buy but most places are like really nice. if you’re staying with friends/family, just ask if you forgot something!

most people usually do like a carry-on bag and a checked bag, but just do whatever you normally do, and then make sure your carry-on has your id/passport, your phone, a charger for said phone, your wallet, any meds you have or anything you can’t go for the entire flight without, and then something to do on the plane (book, game, laptop, tablet, etc)

my necessities: phone, wallet, passport if i’m going international, keys cause i usually have to get back in my house after lmao, laptop, chargers for laptop and phone, a portable charger, headphones

here’s the hard tip: acknowledge that you probably will forget something. i literally travel almost every month of the year and i forget one thing every time. but it’s gonna be okay. as long as you have your id/passport/wallet and phone, things will be okay

before you travel:

okay so i have the apps for like all the major airlines and i usually try to check myself in right when i’m allowed to (24hr before). if you’re on southwest, set yourself a reminder so you can check in exactly 24hr before the flight and make sure you get a decent boarding number cause they do it on first come first serve

otherwise, just check in and save a screenshot of your boarding pass to your phone. i usually just do everything with the boarding pass in the app or saved to my photos but you can get a paper copy at the airport as well, and don’t stress if you lose it or w.e once you’re past security cause the gate attendants can print a new one (or you can just use the mobile)

oh the other thing here is you can sometimes choose a different seat whilst checking in? so if you see the one that’s assigned to you and you Don’t Like It, see if any others are available that you might prefer. i always go for the closest aisle seat to the front when traveling alone

and ofc you’ll want to make sure you have some kind of plan for once you arrive at your destination for how you’ll be getting wherever you’re going - taxi, uber, ride from friend/fam, public transport, whatever, just kind of have an idea what you need to do so you’re not stressing once you land

this one is one that doesn’t apply to me, but definitely something to check and look into if needed: if you have any special requirements or needs whilst in the airport or flying, ie wheelchairs or special accommodations or w.e, make sure you know what you have to do when you arrive

leaving for the airport:

okay first and foremost, depending on your airport, you’ll want to be sure you arrive at least 1.5hr early (this is like my personal rule of thumb bc i usually fly in and out of moderately large airports and i have Massive Paranoia about traveling for some reason?? even though i take like 12+ trips a year? but most places require no less than 40ish minutes ahead of time, that’s like super tight though i do Not recommend) - keep in mind like. traffic and stuff, if you’re going to the airport during rush hour or w.e make time for that

if you’re not familiar with your airport and like getting in (bc there’s usually a massive amount of like exits and ‘turn here for this’ sort of things) talk to someone who is familiar with it or like. google maps it ahead of time and street view walk yourself through it, whatever you need to do to feel comfy so if you’re the one driving, you know where to go to park/etc. if you’re ubering or having someone drop you off, just be sure you know which airline you’re on as they’ll drop you off in the right place

checking in:

okay if you’re already checked in and you don’t have a checked bag, you can head straight to security, but if you do need to check your bag, use the kiosks they’re always faster and you don’t have to wait in line. it’s pretty self-explanatory, usually, just enter the identifying info and it’ll probably note that you’re already checked in and just say you have a bag to check. you can also print a physical boarding pass here if you want. the kiosk will print out your luggage tag and just follow the instructions to attach it to the bag. there’ll be like a drop off point (they’re usually p well-labeled) up by the actual people at desks so just head up there and have your id/passport and boarding pass ready cause they’ll want to check them

security:

okay 9 times out of 10 you probably will Not have tsa precheck but if you do, it’ll be somewhere on your boarding pass and you should look for/ask someone about the nearest tsa precheck line. it’s just convenient, cause you don’t have to remove laptops or take your shoes off and it’s usually the shortest line

if you don’t have tsa precheck, just find the nearest (and shortest) security line and have your id and boarding pass ready. if you’re using a mobile boarding pass, lock your screen rotation if you’ll be using the picture you took instead of the app (this is the most annoying thing lmao i’ve done it too many times and usually just try to use the app when i can cause it’ll lock the rotation and go full brightness automatically). then you’ll have to put the phone on the lil scanner and it’ll beep when it’s scanned and done

now, again, if you have any special needs whilst going through security, you’re probably familiar with what you’d have to do if it differs from the standard procedure, but otherwise just go through as you normally would

between security and boarding:

do whatever u want basically. get food, if you need it or if you think you’ll need it whilst on the flight. drinks are usually hella expensive so i try to bring my refillable water bottle (empty!) and then refill once i’m past security

basically how you spend this time is totally up to you. i usually grab food as needed then go chill by my gate, if it’s an airport i’m familiar with and i know how long it’ll take to get wherever i need to go, but you may be more comfy just finding your gate first and then sticking nearby to get anything you need. also i’m a big fan of the charging areas which a lot of airports have now, so if u wanna charge up i recommend

boarding:

every airline is different but there’ll usually be some kind of boarding group or order listed on your boarding pass, so just keep that in mind (ie american has like,,,,6 boarding groups? united has 9, southwest has their whole a/b/c groups, etc etc etc i think one even has like a 2a 2b or something idk that might’ve been in the uk but just look on your boarding pass) if you’re confused or w.e don’t be afraid to ask one of the gate attendants that stand at the front

basically nothing here is all that different if you’re alone, just pay attention when they start boarding and listen for your group, same rule of thumb goes with turning your phone on screen-rotation lock when you go to scan your boarding pass (if it’s the mobile pic you saved)

the goal here with boarding is to go as quickly as you can, but don’t stress if it takes you a second to get in your row! it’s okay, people aren’t as in a rush as they seem. definitely try to fit ur stuff under your seat cause otherwise it’s a pain to get up and get it from the overhead bins

the flight:

honestly just sit back relax and do whatever u normally do! usually there’s no reason this would be any different when traveling alone. aside from sitting near strangers which is annoying sometimes but in my experience if u pop some headphones in everyone leaves u alone

after the flight:

i mean generally just head out into the airport u landed in and look for baggage claim signs - regardless of whether u checked a bag or not, most ground transport out of the airport is near the baggage claim. so just follow signs (and generally the people leaving the plane) and make your way there. if you get lost, again, don’t feel bad abt asking someone to point you in the right direction

if u have a bag, most places have a display board that says which baggage claim you’re at (if they didn’t announce it on the plane when you landed) and you can wait there

once ur done, depending on your mode of transport out, you can follow signs! many of the bigger airports now have designated sections for rideshares like uber and lyft as well 

i hope that helps b! you’ll be fine, don’t stress too much :) i hope you’re traveling for a good/fun reason at least!

[firelxdykatara]

Day 2: Hidden Identities

So this is a day late, but hopefully not a dollar short! (lol kill me my jokes suck) ANYWAY, this is for Day 2 of @thirtydaysofzutara and was heavily inspired by @artcraawl‘s amazing Zutara Mulan AU pictures. Some of it is directly from the movie, some is embellished, anyway I hope it’s a fun read, as I certainly had fun writing it!

---

“I don’t know if I can do this, Tui.”

Katara gave one more half-hearted tug, but her father’s sword remained stubbornly embedded in the tree’s trunk. With a sigh, she flopped to the ground, thumping her fists against the hard-packed soil in frustration. Her companion, a silver dragon-lizard with impossibly black eyes, scurried up the tree and perched on the flat of the blade, tugging gently, but to no avail. “It’ll come out! You just have- to be- persistent!”

With a final tug, the lizard slipped from the blade and fell to the ground. Katara pushed herself up on her elbows with a groan. “I’ve been persistent! It’s not working! I haven’t even been able to get that stupid arrow out of the pole.”

“No one else has, either,” Tui pointed out, curling her tail over her shoulder and rubbing a spot of dirt from her scales.

“That’s not the point.” Katara sat up and pushed herself to her feet.  “They belong here. They don’t have to prove anything.”

“Neither do you, as far as they know.”

“Sure, and what happens when they find-”

“Who are you talking to, Tak?”

Katara froze. Tui scampered into the bushes with an alarmed squeak, and the moment stretched uncomfortably, as the woman tried desperately to convince herself that voice belonged to someone—anyone­—else. It didn’t work; she was pretty sure she could feel his amber gaze burning holes into her back.

He had the disconcerting ability to make her feel like he could see right through her façade—through the warrior she was trying to be, to the scared, homesick girl beneath.

Time sped up again, and Katara turned to look at Zuko, who was standing behind her with his arms crossed and one eyebrow raised.

“Uh…” she began, before realizing her voice was pitched too high, coughing to cover it up. “No one! I’m just, talking to… myself…” She trailed off, rubbing the back of her neck with one hand (mostly to hide the fact that she kept reaching for a lock of hair that just wasn’t there anymore). Her eyes slid to her sword, still sunk into the tree trunk, about the same time Zuko’s did. Disapproval radiated from his lithe form in waves, and Katara had to fight back the nervous laughter that kept threatening to bubble up.

“Oh, this is… I was just training…” she said, grabbing the hilt tightly in both hands. It still refused to move, and she braced herself with one foot on the trunk. Finally, with an almighty yank, the sword came free, and the momentum sent her careening off-balance.

Zuko ducked just in time—the blade passed a hair’s breadth over his head.

“Oops,” Katara muttered, giving a weak chuckle as she clumsily shoved her sword back into its sheath. “Cut it a little close there-” Spirits, Katara, stop talking.

The captain looked less than impressed as he straightened back up, looking at her with some emotion in his eyes that she couldn’t quite describe. Then he sighed, shaking his head. “Pack up.”

Something churned unpleasantly in the pit of her stomach. “What?”

“Go home. You’re through here, Tak. I’ve tried my best, but you just aren’t suited for war—not in my company. And if you’re the best that Chief Hakoda could send in his own stead-” He broke off, squaring his shoulders. “You’d be more of a danger to your own comrades than the Fire Nation soldiers. And I won’t have good men, even you, needlessly killed because they weren’t ready.”

Katara watched as he walked away, trying very hard to keep from noticing the way his muscles had tensed (probably from anger) beneath the thin padding of his training vest. “He’s right. I know he is. But…”

Tui poked her head out of the bushes. “But you want to prove him wrong.”

A wry grimace twisted at her mouth. “I was too willful and stubborn to make a good wife, remember? It must be good for something.”

“So what are you going to do?”

The sun had set, the last of its amber glow receding from the skyline just as the full moon began to peek through the clouds. “I don’t know…” Katara murmured, gazing up at the sky—she traced the moonbeams with her eyes, until she caught one that illuminated the arrow still stuck at the top of that tall, wooden beam.

She could have had it down weeks ago, if she’d wanted to risk waterbending—but it was supposed to be a physical exercise. For all that she was at a disadvantage compared to the rest of the company (not that anyone but Sokka realized it), the last thing she wanted to do was prove herself by cheating. But there had to be some way to get to that arrow. And maybe, if she got it down herself…

 Hours later, the only thing preventing her from screaming in frustration was the fact that Zuko’s tent was only ten feet away. “Come on,” she grunted, taking another running jump at the pole—and, as before, she made it a few feet before falling to the ground in an ungainly heap.

She might have had a better chance at getting higher, if not to the top, if it weren’t for the weights at her wrists. Katara picked herself up for the thousandth time, dropping the weights and dusting herself off. (It was a good thing her family didn’t seem to have the ‘quitter’ gene, or she might have contemplated just leaving, like she’d been told.) She couldn’t help the nagging feeling that there was something about this exercise that was missing, that she just didn’t understand. She picked up the weights again, holding them in front of her, inspecting the etchings in the gold. It was an ancient form of Earth Kingdom script, and she could only make out a few letters.

Somehow, she doubted anyone had carved a cheat sheet onto these things a thousand years ago, anyway.

But as the weights swayed gently on their leather ties, something occurred to her—it was so simple she could almost kick herself for not thinking of it sooner. It was so obvious. It wasn’t just about having to struggle against the weight. It was about discipline and strength—using them to her advantage.

Squaring her shoulders, Katara faced the pole again—this time, when she jumped, she swung the weights, tangling the leather ties together, and she began to climb.

Halfway up, she almost wanted to let go, forget the whole thing. Her arms were screaming in protest, and she kept slipping even as she gained inches in height—sweat was streaming down her face in small rivers, and she could feel her tunic sticking to her back. The cotton binding around her breasts was beginning to itch something fierce. But she had already gotten too far to quit, and so she kept going—gaining inches and losing centimeters, until she could see the top of the pole. She could almost reach out and grab that arrow.

The sun began to peek over the horizon once more, and Katara gasped for breath, her muscles screaming in agony as she grabbed the top of the pole and finally pulled herself up. It was a deceptively wide beam of wood, in fact, and easy enough to perch on was she grabbed the arrow in one tender hand and pulled it free.

It was only when the cheering began that she realized she’d drawn a crowd.

A tired grin crossed her face, and she subtley bent some of her sweat, coating the arrow-head with a thin layer of ice. Just as Zuko’s tent flap opened, she threw the arrow down—it landed with impressive accuracy, thudding into the ground at his feet as he stepped out. He looked up at her, and while it was difficult to tell from how far away she was, Katara almost thought he looked proud.

 ---

 “I’m sorry. About your uncle.” Katara winced inwardly—she kept forgetting to pitch her voice low enough, but Zuko didn’t seem to notice. He was staring at the fire; if he’d heard a word she said, he didn’t indicate it. Which was almost a relief—she wasn’t sure she’d be able to get into a conversation about lost loved ones and not accidentally blow her own cover.

Sokka had been helping as much as he dared, once he’d realized her plan, but there was only so much he could do to keep her from ruining everything with her ‘stupid girly habits’.

Apparently, talking about feelings qualified.

Either way, Zuko clearly wasn’t in the mood for company. Katara turned to go—if she hadn’t already become so tuned to the tenor of his voice, for reasons she couldn’t even begin to explain, she might have missed it entirely when he said, “Thank you, Tak.”

She stopped, glancing back at him—he was giving her at least an attempt at a smile, and it suddenly struck her how very young he looked. Especially for a captain.

He really couldn’t have been more than a couple years older than she was, and it was hard enough for her to manage to keep her own life straight—she couldn’t imagine what it was like trying to lead an entire company.

She opened her mouth to say something else—she wasn’t quite sure what, but since when had thinking ever stopped her from blurting out what was on her mind?—when she heard the screech of a bird of prey high in the sky above them. It sounded familiar, almost… almost like…

She was six years old, and the snow had turned grey from falling ash. Buildings burned, people were screaming and running away, bursts of fire from soldiers in the streets kept illuminating the overcast sky, and Katara couldn’t find her parents.

“Mama!” she shouted, tears streaking through the soot stains on her face, running towards her house. Everything was chaos, but she still knew home. Somewhere, high in the sky, a fire hawk screamed—the little girl could see it circling over her family’s hut, an omen she couldn’t quite comprehend.

When she opened the door, the smell of charred flesh nearly knocked her off her feet. It was-

“The Fire Nation!” Katara heard herself shouting, those last images from her memory still superimposed over her vision, the smell sticking to her all these years later. She wanted to gag, but there was no time. “They’re here! They-“

An arrow whistled through the air and into Zuko’s shoulder as he stood, knocking him flat.

“Zuko!” Katara rushed to his side as more arrows floated into view just over the snowy hilltop—he waved her off, pulling the arrow free with a grunt and clambering to his feet.

“Everyone, get out of their range! Grab the cannons!”

It was pure chaos, after that. Zuko’s company scattered—they grabbed armloads of cannons and their weapons and ran, forcing the Fire Nation soldiers to abandon their high ground advantage if they wanted to do any real damage. Out of range of the arrows was also out of range of their firebenders, and it took everything Katara had not to panic and freeze.

“Sokka!” The relief nearly knocked her over, but she held her ground, grabbing for her brother’s hand and yanking him out of the way of another arrow barrage. “Where’s Zuko? Is he-”

“He’s fine! We need to set up these canons, Tak. Now!”

Their answering barrage sent shockwaves rippling through the ground—when they were down to the last cannon, Zuko appeared behind them. “Hold- we don’t know who’s left. If…”

He trailed off. The smoke cleared, and revealed the bulk of the Fire Nation army still intact on the hillside.

Ozai was at the army’s head. Katara could feel his smug smirk from here.

“Sokka, take that last canon. Hit Ozai, if it’s the last thing you do!” Zuko commanded. “Men- prepare for a fight!”

Katara’s hand went to her sword hilt, but something was still bothering her. Taking out Ozai wouldn’t decimate the Fire Nations forces—they’d keep coming, they’d kill everyone. How many more villages would suffer the way Omashu had? The way her tribe had? The way-

She caught sight of the snow-covered mountain just behind them. They weren’t going to have time to retreat back through the mountain passes to safety, but maybe, if she could only just… She reached, but nothing. Practicing her bending in secret had only gotten her so far, and that snow was too far off. But…

“Give me that!” She pushed Sokka aside and grabbed the cannon. It would work. It had to.

 ---

 Katara was beginning to lose feeling in her arms. She hadn’t realized Ozai’s blade had cut that deep, but now Koda’s saddle was soaked in her blood, and she had barely been able to muster the strength to grab Zuko and pull him to safety.

The avalanche had stilled, snow wiping the last traces of the Fire Nation army away, and Katara finally slid from her horse’s back, stumbling to her knees. Zuko had regained consciousness, and he rushed to her side. “Tak! Are you alright?”

She gripped his arm and pulled herself upright, nodding weakly. “I’m fine, is everyone else-”

“We made it, Tak,” Toph said, affectionately thumping her shoulder. “Thanks to you. That was brilliant.”

The others chimed in, and Katara smiled, for just a moment. And then she collapsed.

When she opened her eyes, she recognized the colors of the medical tent above her cot. For a moment, Katara was dazed, confused—how had she gotten here? Where were Zuko, Sokka and the others? How-

Her clothing had been removed. The breast binding wraps were visible, overlapping the bandages around her abdomen. The doctor was looking at her, perhaps to be sure she was truly awake, but when she opened her mouth to speak, he turned away and left the tent.

Katara sat up quickly, wincing at the tight feeling of the wound in her stomach, wanting to protest—but then Zuko stepped inside, and the words died in her throat.

It was then that she realized her hair was loose—the thick, dark brown waves that just brushed against her shoulders were much more visibly feminine now that she no longer wore them in her father’s hairstyle, and the breast wraps had only been effective at hiding her figure when covered by padding and armour. Now, she felt her cheeks burn as Zuko’s eyes followed her figure, and realized the truth of what the doctor had obviously told him.

“So it’s true,” came Long Feng’s voice as he entered the tent behind Zuko. Where the latter’s gaze was completely unreadable, Long Feng didn’t bother to disguise his disgust. He surged forward, grabbing Katara by the arm and dragging her out of the tent, throwing her into the snow with just her blanket for cover. She fell to her knees before the rest of the company, tears of humiliation freezing to her lashes before they even had a chance to fall.

“A woman,” Long Feng hissed. “A despicable traitor to our great kingdom!”

Toph and Aang stared in shock. Sokka started forward, but Katara shook her head. It was too late for her, but she would not let her brother take the fall, too. “My name is Katara. I only came here to save my father-”

“More lies!” Long Feng insisted, turning to glare at her as Zuko approached. “Devious snake!”

“I never meant for it to go this far!” Her eyes met Zuko’s, and she pleaded with him silently. Please understand. “You have to believe me! I only wanted-”

“Silence!” Long Feng shouted.

Sokka ran forward. “Wait! You can’t do this—she’s my sister!”

“Sokka, no!”

But the damage was done. “You knew about her deception?” Long Feng was practically quivering with rage. “Stand aside, boy, or you will share in this traitor’s fate!”

“Sokka, please-”

He refused to budge. Katara could still see Zuko, staring at the both of them now, sword in hand. He took a step forward, and several gasps ran through the company—Toph and Aang looked ready to rush to their defense, but Long Feng threw his arm out and stopped them. “You know the law!”

For just a moment, Katara met Zuko’s eyes, and thought she saw something flickering in their depths. Something other than anger or disgust. Something warm.

Then it was gone, and Zuko threw his sword to the ground. “A life for a life,” he said, staring down at her. “My debt to you is ended.” Finally, as if only now realizing he was there, Zuko looked at Sokka. “Take her home. Don’t bother coming back.”

He turned on his heel—Long Feng made a noise, as if he were about to protest, but Zuko turned on him with a glower that could’ve melted steel. The advisor finally cowed into silence, he turned to the rest of his men and motioned for them to move out.

 ---

 “You trusted Tak. Why is Katara any different?”

“You stole my victory.” “No! I did!” “… The soldier from the mountain!”

“She’s a woman, and from the water tribes! She’s not worth protecting!”

“I have heard all about you, Katara of the Water Tribes. You followed your brother off to war—stole your father’s armour and ran away from home. You impersonated a soldier, deceived your commanding officer, dishonored the Earth Kingdom, and… you have saved us all.”

 It was… surreal. That was the only way Katara could describe the feeling that overtook her, when she realized that not only was the Earth King bowing, but so was the entirety of Ba Sing Se. As far as the eye could see, citizens were stooping low, and it was all but impossible to believe they were honoring her.

Even Zuko was bowing—even her brother. She wanted to tell them all to stand up, that she really hadn’t done anything that extraordinary, but she didn’t want to risk losing the King’s good faith. The moment eventually passed, anyway, and Katara turned to find the Earth King smiling warmly at her.

“I would be honored if you would accept a seat on my council, Katara,” he said—Long Feng looked like he was about to faint.

“B- but sir, you can’t just- there are no positions open!”

“Alright. You can have his job.”

This time, he did faint. Katara had to smother a chuckle before taking a deep breath and shaking her head. “You honor me, your majesty, but… I think it’s time for me to go home.”

He nodded, as if he’d expected nothing less of her.

The Earth King gave her his medallion and Ozai’s sword, and when Katara finally turned to go, she very nearly ran right into Zuko. “Oh! Zuko, I-”

“Katara-” he began, at the same time. They both broke off; Katara bit her lip, waiting for him to continue. He cleared his throat. “I, uh- you fight good. Well! Proficiently, you- you’re an excellent soldier.”

Their eyes met, but Katara was the first to look away, this time. “Oh. Thank you, Zuko. For everything.” And then she left, finding Koda and pulling herself into his saddle to begin the long journey home.

“You don’t meet a girl like that every dynasty,” the Earth King declared—sounding very much like he was calling Zuko an idiot.

 “Would you like to stay for dinner?” From a distance, Katara could hear Grandma Kanna’s voice, “Would you like to stay forever?!” Zuko laughed. “Dinner would be great.”

[imrobert-clarington]

Bonding||Self-Para

It had been a long night for the Anderson-Clarington family. After a few hours of coaxing, Robbie had managed to tuck Cooper under his chin and carry him out of his office. He had texted Blaine to meet them at the house, thankful that the younger Anderson had taken it upon himself to buy a car seat of his own. Robbie had to admire the commitment that he was taking as an uncle. He knew there was something special in the bond between uncle and nephew. 

As they got home, Robbie focused on getting a passed out Cooper out of his clothes while Blaine got Zach ready for bed. Once Robbie got his fiance tucked into bed, he walked the younger Anderson out of the house and thanked him for everything before locking the door. He went to the kitchen to grab a glass of water before heading back up the stairs to the bedroom. 

He hadn’t even so much as sat down on the bed before he noticed two pairs of eyes on him. He almost had to laugh at the sight before him: Zach had managed to pull himself up by the side of the crib and was looking at him expectantly. “If it’s not one of you avoiding sleep, it’s the other, isn’t it,” he mumbled softly as he set the water on the bedside table. He walked over quietly to the crib, standing there for a moment and looking down at the big brown eyes staring back at him. 

“Come on then,” he said quietly, bending down to pick him up gently and settling him against his hip. “It’s late, Zach Attack, we need to get you to sleep. You’re the one who’s supposed to get an ungodly amount of sleep right now.” 

He walked down the stairs slowly, still feeling paranoid about carrying a little infant down. He’d never been afraid of tripping on them before, but when he literally had another life in his hands....well, that was a different story. 

He grabbed a blanket off the back of the couch as he walked past, the movement disturbing the two pups that had just settled on the couch. Dodger immediately went to follow him, though Penny stayed behind, looking up at him. “Pen, I think Dad needs you up there,” he said softly. He knew that Penny couldn’t actually understand him, but the way she hauled ass up the stairs immediately made him second guess himself.

He continued walking out onto the deck, shifting Zach closer to him as the chilled night air settled around them as he walked towards the hammock. It wasn’t so unbearable, though, especially after he switched on the small space heater next to them. Dodger settled underneath the hammock as Robbie gingerly laid them down and draped the blanket on top of them. 

He looked back at Zach, who was still staring back at him. He had to be thankful that the boy had at least gotten used to him, if nothing else. It had been a hard week, with Ellie going back home and the boy getting used to his new environment. He took the fact that he wasn’t being screamed at as a good sign. 

Robbie could tell that the boy was tired, seeing as his usual energy was radiating off him as normal. He could only assume that he was refusing sleep, something that seemed to run in the family. 

“So,” he mused. “I know how to tire your dad out enough to pass out, but I guess now is an experiment to see what it takes for you.” He paused for a moment, bringing his knees up so the young boy could lean against them. “I mean, I could just talk for a while, bore you to sleep,” he said with a small chuckle. “I could teach you how to dab, though I think Cooper would kill me if I took that away from him. Not to mention I’m not sure how effective it’d be.” 

He sighed softly as he shrugged. “I’m trying to remember what my Dad did when I had nights like this. Granted, that was ages ago. Obviously, I don’t remember from first hand experience. You don’t really remember things that happen when you’re a baby. Just like you won’t remember this night at all.” 

“My mom would tell me though. Later in life, I mean. I was a fussy baby, apparently. Dad was the only one who could calm me down and make me get to sleep. He would turn me into a plane, reenact some of the famous battles of the World Wars. Kept it PG, of course, and that would be enough to make me laugh, to stop crying. Then he’d just walk me around the room until I had no other choice but to sleep.” 

He slipped his thumbs into Zach’s hands and waved them back and forth, the boy still staring at him, a little lost but Robbie could appreciate the attention. “I wish you would’ve gotten the chance to meet him. He liked to sound tough a lot but he was a big softie; he’s where part of your name comes from too, you know. I wish he was here too, ‘cause then I could ask him how-” he was cut off as a pair of hands launched themselves into his beard. 

He paused for a moment before cracking a laugh. “I was trying to have a moment here!” he said through his chuckles. He closed his lips around his teeth and nipped at Zach’s hands, illiciting a squeal from the small boy. Robbie let his laughs fade out as he looked at the boy, seeing every bit of Cooper in him, though also catching the small glimpses of Ellie underneath. 

But for the first time that week, after pulling Cooper out of the depths again, Robbie was determined to see himself there too. He sighed softly, carefully getting out of the hammock, turning off the heater and walking them back inside. Dodger immediately went back to the couch, though Robbie lingered in the hallway, walking to the small group of photos that were hanging there. 

“That’s him,” he said softly, as he pointed to a picture of his father. “See? Looks scary, but then you remember that he was just barely as tall as your Dad, and he’s not so bad,” he chuckled, moving on to the next picture. “That’s Sarah, your aunt,” he said quickly, letting the use of the titles help him make this seem more normal, “and your cousin, Gabe. Gabe’s a maniac, but he’s a good kid. It wouldn’t surprise me if you know the name of every dinosaur in existence by the time you’re two. Also, it’s a good thing they live on the other side of the country or you would be getting so spoiled.” 

He pointed to the next one as Zach laid his head on Robbie’s shoulder, his little hand fisting in the man’s shirt. “That’s Hunter,” he said, pointing out the man in the family photo as he gently leaned his head against the boy’s. “Honestly, he’s a hard one to keep up with, but he’s family, and I think a good uncle to have. If I know either him or your uncle Blaine at all, those two would probably fight to the death for the title of ‘World’s Greatest Uncle’. I’ve already been through it with Hunt when it comes to Gabe,” he chuckled. 

He stopped at the next picture, sighing softly at the image of his mother. “And you’ve met Mom,” he said softly. “She loves you, don’t worry, I don’t want the tension from last week to scare you. She’s just...worried. It’s a weird situation. But I think it’ll work out okay. See, the thing with your Dad and I....nothing about us has ever been normal; we’ve had to make our own normal. It’ll be a fun story to tell you one day, but honestly, how we had our first child....well, why should that be normal?” 

He heard a labored breath under his chin, and he knew that that meant the boy had fallen asleep. He smiled softly and walked back over to the couch, tossing the blanket back down. With a finally pat to Dodger’s head, Robbie slowly made his way back up the stairs. He placed the boy gently back in his crib and pulled the blanket over him. He leaned against the side of the crib and watched him for a moment. He leaned over and kissed his head gently and sighed. “I do love you, kiddo. We’ll hit a rhythm, I promise.” 

He tapped the crib lightly with his knuckle before stepping back and glancing over at Cooper. He smiled to himself as he noticed the man had already star-fished. He stripped down to just his t-shirt and boxers before crawling into bed, mindful of Penny as she moved to compensate him. He reached over and scratched behind her ears, kissing her head softly before laying back. Instead of curling on his side, though, he nudged his way under Cooper’s arm and wrapped one of his own around the other’s waist. 

The house was quiet, but with his fiance next to him, his dogs in their respective places, and his son across the room, it was home. And that’s what Robbie held onto as he drifted off to sleep. 

[ao3feed-creek]

Finding Somewhere

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2OkkeSi

by twitchytweek

Tweek's been gone for four years, and predictably the hectic world of South Park has moved on in his absence with little care for the shaky spaz that once held an amount of significant influence. Trees still grow, flowers still bloom, and people still breathe in without a single thought cast his way. But things have a funny habit of falling apart, sometimes in just the right way, and he comes back to places and people that have grown around his influence, that remember him without knowing him at all. People change, places change, but it's very rare to forget entirely, and he's very quickly pulled back into the habitat that he was so certain he belonged to once upon a time. Now he's stuck wondering if this is really what he wants anymore.

Welcome back, Tweek. Welcome home.

Words: 5359, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: South Park

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: M/M

Characters: Tweek Tweak, Craig Tucker, Tricia Tucker, Kenny McCormick, Clyde Donovan, again others will be mentioned in passing probably, but i think those guys will be the most significant, speaking of those guys, Token Black, Jimmy Valmer

Relationships: Craig Tucker/Tweek Tweak, others might be mentioned in passing??????, Clyde Donovan/Craig Tucker (one-sided)

Additional Tags: Hi this is going to be fluffy but also, yall ready for pain, bc i cant have fluff without extensive s u f f e r i n g, I swear, i do it out of love, sweet sadistic love, alternatively titled, Projection: The Fic, Oops, also there wont be smut bUT, there will probs be makeouts with like, a very tasteful fade to black, everyone in this fic will be around 17/18, so if that squicks yall out be safe, also maybe........... implied???? self harm, nothing graphic shown again, update schedule might be wild too sorry, Please Forgive me, also suggestive language and lots of cursing because yall. theyre teens., ive been a teens, teens Say Things, many many characters will be mentioned but not shown extensively bc this is a creek fic but trust me, if i could, id write a chapter from the pov of literally every character, bc i love the it, but itll mostly be written from tweek's pov with a few others v rarely, there are brief mentions of:, Drug Use, Alcoholism, Abuse, Mental Illness, so again be safe

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2OkkeSi

[bnha-scenerios-imagines]

Hey!!! So Im totally in love with your blog!! You're really talented and I just adore your writing style!! 😄❤️ I was wondering if I could get a scenario where a fem reader sticks up for Shinsou when some kids in hall are talking bad about him when they know he can hear (because reader has a major crush for the lavender cutie) and then they become friends but after a while he tells her he never really saw her as just a friend and confesses that he wants more? Thank you so much!!

Hitoshi Shinso

“Shinso’s quirk is useless. I mean, how can he become a hero if every person already knows to just not react?” One of the boys in the group snort out, glancing at the classroom door where he knows the lavender haired boy can hear. 

“Plus,” One of the girls move in, “His quirk would suit a villain wouldn’t it?” She looks over to her friend who nods in agreement with the girl, crossing her arms over her chest.

“I agree, it’s quite a scary quirk to have. What if one day he decides to use it on us?” She shakes her head, frowning. 

“Hold my books,” You say to your friend as you drop them into her arms. She’s quick to catch them, frowning as she watches you approach the trio causing trouble for your crush. 

“kick their asses, (Name).” She whispers just loud enough for you to hear before she stands back, waiting for you to be done. You step in front of the three, your hands resting on your hips as you frown at them.

“Listen here. Shinso is here to become a hero, unlike you three, he’s actually working on it. He worked hard to be here, while you three got a free ride. Last time I checked the three of you almost failed the entrance exam, and you’re barely passing now. Shinso is a hard worker, and who cares what his quirk is! Bakugou’s quirk from class 1-A is literally blowing things up and he’s in the hero class. What does that tell you?” You huff, crossing your arms while you glare at them, “Shinso is a kind, gentle, and wonderful person who worked hard to come to this school, he works hard to pass every class in the honors and he works hard so he can someday be a hero. The three of you shouldn’t even be here” You turn on your heel, sending them one last glare before saying, “So, leave him alone. Or next time I won’t be so considerate” You walk back over to your friend who happily hands you, your books and follows you away. 

“What a bitch” One of the girls' huff. The door slides open and Shinso turns his attention to the direction you were walking and he made a mental note to speak with you at the end of the day. He slowly turns his attention to the trio at the door who are looking at him nervously. He says nothing as he passes them, staring at them as he does so. 

“(Name)” He calls out, his hand slightly raised before you leave the classroom. You look up, stopping in your tracks to look at him. Your friend grins as she nudges you before walking out the door. 

“Yeah, Shinso? What can I do to help you?” You question as you walk over to him, stopping in front of him. His hand awkwardly scratches the back of his neck as he sends you a sheepish smile. An expression that made your heart skip a beat.

“Thank you for earlier today, I uh- heard what you said. Thank you” he said, looking away from you. You smile, beaming at him as you shake your head. 

“You don’t deserve those words. You’re an amazing person Shinso and you’ll be an amazing hero” You turn on your heel, expecting the conversation to be over but he quickly asks,

“May I walk with you?” When you turn to look at him, surprised, he looks away, his hand falling from his neck and shoves them into his pockets. “O-or not. It’s really whatever you want-”

“I would love it if you did Shinso” You said as you tilted your head towards the door. He sent you a small smile before stepping beside you. The two of you walking in sync as you spoke with each other, smiling and chatting happily together.

“(Name)” Shinso calls out to you, quickly collecting his books as he walks with you out of the classroom.

“I’ll talk with you later (Name),” Your friend hit your shoulder in a sort of goodbye as she disappeared into the crowd. You waved to her, turning your attention to Shinso who smiled at you.

“Hello Shinso, are you ready for exams?” You asked and he nodded as he moved closer to you, protecting you from the students pushing and squeezing past the two of you.

“Yeah, are you (Name)?” He questioned and you sent him a nervous smile, nodding as you looked down at your books. He knew how anxious you would get about tests, most of the time almost psyching yourself out the night before the test.

“I’m a little nervous, to be honest,” You confess, letting out a shaky laugh as you stop at your locker to grab your backpack and shoes. “But I know you’ll do great Shinso, you’re a natural when it comes to tests” He smiles at your comment as he unlocks his own locker, grabbing his things.

“Hey want to take a detour today?” He asks and you nod excitedly. 

“It’ll be something to take my mind off of” you confess as you lock your locker, waiting for him to finish before the two of you walked out of the school together.

“I want to confess something,” He says as the two of you sit on a small bridge, your feet almost touching the water that flows underneath the bridge. You hum and throw some of the bread from your leftover lunch into the water, watching the fish swim up and eat it. A relaxed smile settled on your features as you repeated your actions. “I never truly saw you as a friend” 

“What?” You ask quietly, stopping your movements as you look at him with wide eyes, your hands involuntarily gripping the bread a little harder than you normally would. He looks at you, a nervous look in his eyes as he continued,

“I uh- always wanted to be more.” He confesses as he nervously grasps his hands together, his knuckles turning white. He turns his attention back to the water, staying like that for a moment before you punch his shoulder.

Hard.

“Ow! What the-”

“You ass! I thought you were going to say you didn’t want to be my friend anymore.” You huff, leaning back on your hands, the bread left on your lap. “Well, I guess that’s what you are saying isn’t it.” You turn your attention back to him, smiling at him. “Yeah, I like you too Shinso. I have for a while” You confess with a nervous laugh as you scratch your cheek.

“Really? You... You aren’t kidding?” He says, leaning closer to you and you smile, looking up at him as you reach over and touch his hand with your fingers. 

“Thank you for telling me in person,” You say with a kind smile and his heart skips a beat. He recalls telling you at one point that he’s always been nervous to ask people what they think of him in fear that they believe he would make them become his puppets. “You’re amazing Shinso” You breathe out and he takes a visible gulp as he inches closer to you, his fingers brushing against yours until the two of you intertwine hands. His face flushes as he looks between your eyes and your lips. 

“May I kiss you?” He whispers and you let out a silent laugh before nodding your head. He inches closer, pausing for a moment, only an inch away from your lips before he leans closer, kissing you.

“After exams lets do something,” You say, pulling away so you can look up at him with a sheepish smile. He smiles back at you, his hands are sweating as he nods, remembering how soft your lips were against his. His stomach does flips as he clears his throat.

“Yes. Let’s do that”

[pokefanbri]

https://www.facebook.com/104057744428568/posts/156998459134496/?sfnsn=mo&d=n&vh=e

Fucking told him its a huge red flag if someone doesn't get rid of their apps. Multiple apps. Smh 😠 "oh yea i don't use them anymore" proceeds to use fb dating app" for real come on bro!

Some comments of the post:

"If you have to be checking up on your Partner then you shouldn't be with that person.. Idk how people have time for all this .. love yourself and know your worth.."

"If you're in a serious committed exclusive relationship you should not be on tinder. That's how I met my fiance and as soon as we said we are gf and bf and exclusive we both deleted it. Honestly if I was her I would have broken up with him too"

"a person also has a right to trust their gut feeling and check things out if something's not feeling right. Knowledge is power"

I've already discussed this but this news clip further validates my point of the topic, nothing more. I could call him out on hs bs further with detail, but I won't....yet, out of respect even though he probably doesn't deserve it. Til he reaches me & apologizes for everything he's done, i can say whatever tf I want & i could make a whole damn list.

Its the events of this what happened that started our downfall to begin with cuz i didn't trust him & he didn't even try to gain it back just left it as is when I could've turned my back right then & there, no apology either. Didnt apologize much actually, not even when i last saw him. But from then we spiraled & he got bored of me. I wasn't giving him what he wanted in whatever way & he wanted to find more. Closed himself off from the beginning & that created his boredom 😒

Would've had a blast together like a normal fucking couple if he was less closed off, & wouldn't have felt the need to do shit behind my back.

I'll stop talking about it for now, I have the anger & urge to keep going but I wont...actually no Screw it im pissed 😡 but ill keep it light. Its just not fair, I did so much for him but I was disrespected in different aspects of the whole relationship. Fuck! I've talked about the positives alot cuz i do love him..but the negatives are such bs too.

I want a good ass sincere apology for all of it so I can forgive him & move on, ive already apologized myself even though I dont think I should have to 😒. Didnt even give me a straight answer for the breakup, it was always a different excuse when I know he just wanted to pursue other women without me around im not fucking stupid. His own toxicity was too much even for himself & I was in the line of fire, to where i was the toxic one? No fuck that its unacceptable, he always lied when it came to covering his own ass.

For all i know he's watching me squirm & taking pleasure in all the pain I'm going through over him cuz he likes the attention. But no I actually don't think so on that one he's still good & ill give him credit where its due. But I gave him all the attention he wanted/needed & still wanted more from someone else. Really dude fucking really!?

Man up & own up to your mistakes, speak to me where I can actually hear ur voice speaking back to me with sincerity. We'll apologize together. Yea ull be pissed about this, but after u get over it & calm down. Give in & call me, granted when ur ready, & open up for once in your damn reserved life. Itll help us both with more closure & may even take a weight off our shoulders if we just talk it out, no arguing...since we're done there's no point anyway..a friendly non judgment zone cuz idc, i won't think of u any less.

U confused me during & especially after the relationship cuz i didnt know who u really were, i know the good cuz that's what u allowed me to see, ive accepted the bad that I knew already & from what ive learned...i accepted u regardless.

I always forgave u & not cuz im passive, cuz forgiveness is what the Bible teaches.. ive forgiven u & myself the best i could especially with the last things ive showed u, (accept this part cuz im pissed rn & standing up for myself, ill delete eventually maybe if u ask cuz nobody wants to be seen any less of a person. but I can make it alot worse, calling me the mistake was the worst thing u ever said to me & pointing out your faults so u can be better throughout the relationship was my only toxicity to u) we actually never really fought except the 1 time, just argued a tiny bit rarely about little things.

Ive tried using every ounce of my courage to show u how much im sorry for any wrong ive done. but its up to u now to make things right. U know me, ive always said that u can talk to me about anything. I want to be able to trust again & move on whilst staying friends. What else do u have to lose, might even have a great heart to heart convo dude to dudet

Everything ive ever said up to this point lies all my Questions. But here's most of the list, we both were equally in control of the relationship. Maybe u didn't want me to? But doing everything I had to for myself & the household, what u & ur parents wanted of me & just me being me cuz i had to, u had your own part to play & did provide...but did u actually not want me to cater to u if it were a sign u were lazy or something? Like did u not feel worthy of me? What is it u think is my "addicting personality" that isn't fixable on the surface? What is it really that u didnt like about me? This is why i don't have closure, u left me like this, confused as well as wanting more since u held back so much. Was that on purpose to give me even more false hope & want me to pine over u? Did u ever or do u still, love me at all? What did u want from me & out of the relationship, what was the purpose of it from ur perspective & why do u think i couldn't give that to u? What did i lack that u felt compelled to not tell me so I could improve & vise versa so we both could improve? Why wouldn't u allow me to help u become a better man when (I shouldnt have to btw), its exactly what u wanted but maybe didnt see it? Do u realize your own faults even as u do them? Lol. Like i genuinely want to know as much as the good ive seen, cuz to be better the more open of a person u are the more u understand yourself too.

Unless claiming u want to be a better man is part of ur alluring charm in love bombing process to land a caring girl on purpose lol...god I hope not, that would just mean u rinse & repeat like a for real narcissist 🤔 seriously tho look into that im not even kidding, im asking cuz i care. Im pissed now but 1 thing is that im trying to not put ur behavior against u cuz maybe u can't help it, its just the way u are, all ive seen & experienced points to maybe 50% of u lol. Ive always suspected narcissism, a real psych problem that might be worth looking into. But yea 1 of the reasons especially why im so forgiving & trying not to put it against u, why i still care despite u being a dick lol. I chose to look past it, all the time & up to now cuz I understand what its like to have psychological ailments. The worst part about it is most dont realize it, so i encourage u to do some research & self reflection & admitting it to urself are the 1st steps. Okay? There's different kinds & levels to being 1 too, i found that fascinating. bryan is definitely a different type, ur more lighter than that...definitely not the worst which is the physical harm type. Trust me its worth finding out more about yourself, just dont use it to ur advantage in a bad way but i trust u to do right & grow. Not sure a discarded supply (ie me) has ever tried telling a narcy what they might be for the benefit of their own self awareness 🤔,idk if its ever been done, but theres a 1st for everything? U can find alot on it in quora digest alone but Google is also ur friend.

You always were worth every effort of mine to help u in any way to be happy, & i was most happy when u were. U mean alot to me still, its the effect u had on me, I was under ur spell lol its hard to rid myself of it still, not sure when it'll pass. I chose to see it as a gift rather than a curse, that ur effect on me is still so strong when I shouldn't give a damn. If u really are a narcy, then I understand & don't put alot against u cuz its just the way u are & i need to accept it, but if it somehow helps u to help yourself cuz of it, then whats the harm? But, even in doing this or having my socials public for u...maybe just feeds into what u want...i still dont care, I want u to see how bad or good im doing without u in my life, so u know im okay at least. U promised friendship, least I can do is allow u to keep tabs on me too we spoke of, on my end of things.

The 18th of June was the last time i saw u. It'll soon be a month ago in about a week & a 1/2 & your birthday would mark 2 months. Cant believe we couldn't even last through to that 😔

Mark my words playa I will be contacting u on that day lol. Can't ghost your homie forever sweetie

[rhystheredeemed]

Well it seems im being dragged into logans messed up weekend sleep pattern xD ah well, ill live lol He's ill atm bless him and he's worried about passing it on to me, but ive had worse (hell, i got bronchitis about a month and a half ago, a cold wont kill me) and we spent the day (well, evening, i woke up at 1pm and lazed in bed, he slept until around 5) cuddled up watching Mrs Doubtfire since id never seen it before, then since that finished i just did us both hot chocolates and i played pokemon while he played league of legends, and now (1.40am) hes decided hes really hungry so he's ordered us takeout food. Idk, today's been a good day, the cuddling and film has recharged my batteries a fair bit, and hopefully we get some kind of sleep tonight, since we get his four year old back at 2pm, and then tomorrow itll be back to a relatively sane sleep schedule since he's going to have to be getting her ready for school and such on monday morning

[junker-town]

A guide to the West Coast swing, the best stretch on the PGA Tour schedule

We’re going back to Cali for a fantastic 5-week run on the PGA Tour schedule. Here’s a guide for Tiger’s return, Spieth’s slump, and some of the best venues on the pro circuit.

The PGA Tour season never really ends. There may be a few weeks it goes into hibernation around the holidays, but that’s it. The “season” now wraps around two different years and just goes on and on with playing opportunities available for its members almost year-round.

There are a few categorical sections we can discern in the constant march. There are different “swings” such as the Florida swing or Hawaii swing and then there is, of course, the all-important “Playoffs” at the end, which will now come before Labor Day and avoid being swallowed whole by football. We are now entering the West Coast swing, the annual five-week stretch in California and Arizona that may just be the best cluster on the entire schedule (it is definitely the best).

There’s no major championship snapping the sports world’s attention to golf and most of the country is frozen thinking about football and basketball, but this stretch includes the Tour’s best run of venues, fields, and tradition. The West Coast swing has it all, even if you’re not fully paying attention to golf yet. It also marks the return of Tiger Woods, who annually comes back to the Tour at Torrey Pines and will do so again in 2019.

Here’s your schedule for this year.

With such a nice, delineated portion of the schedule to examine, we decided to kick around a few topics and potential discussion points for the next five weeks. It’s a great stretch for the PGA Tour, even if you’re not exactly ready to jump headfirst into the golf season.

Event you’re most excited about is ...

Brendan: Riviera. This is the best stretch on the schedule, in my opinion, and there are multiple great events. But the answer to this will always be Riviera. It is one of the rare venues on the PGA Tour rota that is worth a pilgrimage, in the same way you might go visit a famous venue in another sport, such as Wrigley Field or Lambeau Field. It’s that good. You’re dropped in a canyon in the middle of Los Angeles that boasts one of the great classic courses in the country. Also, the field continues to be absolutely loaded. Every top player from across the world wants to come to the only stop in LA and now that Tiger’s foundation is hosting it, they get the Tiger bounce too. This is the PGA Tour’s best event, even including The Players.

Kyle: Scottsdale, baby. You can have your traditionalism at Riv. That’s fine, it’s a good event. The People’s Open is and will always be exactly what I want a modern golf tournament to look like. It is loud and stupid and boorish and gauche and there’s a music festival on-site. It’s an event, not a golf tournament — and the pomp and circumstance (?) of lots of 32-year-old mutual fund wholesalers named Chad getting drunk in a desert is something I can’t pass up. I’m making my first pilgrimage this year.

Oh, and yeah, the finishes are usually great even if 15 holes of the course are rather forgettable.

Tiger returns, again, at Torrey and Riv and he will ...

Brendan: I think Tiger makes the cut at Torrey, finishes around 30th, and then misses the cut at Riviera. It’s been awhile since we saw him in competition and he didn’t exactly light it up after his Tour Championship win. I think he begins the year easing his way into it and Torrey is not exactly a perfect fit for his game anymore. Despite his saying it fits his eye, he’s never done well at Riviera, where bombers have a distinct advantage. Tiger will try to whale away and get caught up in the sycamores and eucalyptus. I so, so bad want him to show out at Riviera and light it up in LA but I don’t think it happens this year. He’s going to get some reps with an eye on Augusta.

Kyle: My expectations are honestly through-the-floor low. I’m expecting a bit of a regression from that Tour Championship mania to start this year. Surely we flew too close to the sun in 2018 with the near misses at Birkdale and Bellerive, and the win at East Lake, right? Cat’s had a long layoff, looked somewhat shaky in both The Match and Hero World Challenge. You hit on all of his struggles at Riv, and I’ll agree that aging Tiger isn’t built for Torrey’s milquetoast length anymore. I’ll go CUT-CUT to start the year, though I don’t think it’ll be anything worth extrapolating too much from. It’s golf, form fluctuates, he’ll be fine.

One player who absolutely needs to play well ...

Brendan: I don’t think anyone absolutely has to play well. It’s the first quarter of the season and what happens in February can mean little for April through July. But Jordan Spieth sure could use some positive rounds. I think he is the one player most in the crosshairs at the start of the year and his comments at the Sony Open did little to instill confidence that he’s close to figuring it out. He sounded lost and even resigned at times. He has added Torrey Pines to the schedule for the first time in a few years, and has won at Pebble Beach, where he always shows up to shake hands as the title sponsor’s golden boy. If he misses every cut until March, I still think he can show up to Augusta and win with his game in shambles and complete trash of a statistical profile. But every round and meeting with the press he has until then won’t be particularly carefree if he bombs on the West Coast swing.

Kyle: Thought exercise: I’m going to ask you to rattle off a list of 30-something PGA Tour pros that have won exactly one time on Tour in the last three seasons. Seem difficult? Impossible? Of course it is! That list contains a bunch of just, uh, guys — and also Rickie Fowler.

That’s right! One of America’s biggest golf “stars” has the same number of Tour wins as Aaron Baddeley and Ted Potter, Jr. over the last three seasons. He’s now 30. He has four career PGA Tour wins. Yes, he contends. Yes, he’s an elite-level talent. But, how long are we going to keep this up? At what point do you just become Chris Kirk with a motocross bike?

Winning at Riv or in Scottsdale won’t get the burden off Rick’s back, but what it might do is warm up a bit of confidence upstairs if he finds himself in contention at a major in 2019. Is this the year he finally breaks through at the WMPO after near misses each of the last three years?

Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Rickie during another close call at the Phoenix Open.

An underrated player or story you most want to see pop ...

Brendan: Can I interest you in a Steve Marino comeback arc!? No? OK, well I am interested in this. I did a double take when I saw him in the field at the Sony and it appears Marino is in relatively good enough health and shape to play a full PGA Tour schedule here at the top of the year. He’s on the field list for the Desert Classic, Torrey Pines, Phoenix Open, and Pebble Pro-Am. That’s a damn full run for Marino, who is a bit of an off-course legend and everyman that I would love to see pop again on the PGA Tour. We need more characters!

The rookie (or sophomore) you most want to watch ...

Brendan: The obvious and correct answer here is Jose de Jesus Rodriguez, the 37-year-old Mexican with the most triumphant story of getting to the PGA Tour in the league’s history. It’s a damn inspiration and everyone should be rooting for the rookie to get a win on this West Coast swing to lock up a spot in the Masters. But outside of that obvious choice, I’ll go with Chris Thompson, the 42-year-old rookie that goes completely against the trend of the modern game. Thompson may not bubble with personality and he’s exactly the kind of rookie the Tour does NOT want to promote. They want the 22-year-old that hits it 350 yards. There are dozens of those robots coming to plug in to the latest Live Under Par ad, so for now, I’ll watch and root for Thompson to make some noise on the most competitive tour in the world.

Kyle: Sorry, yell at me, fine. I know the cool and hot thing to do is lament the effect of Drivebots on today’s game, but I will mainline all the Cam Champ you can possibly supply me. I’m all in on a freakish athlete who flies the ball miles past other long hitters on tour, especially one with a backstory as interesting as Champ’s. He’s already won once this year, and I’ll be more surprised if it doesn’t happen again this year.

Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Brendan: I am very into that, too! I was just looking for some non-Champ answer. He will be awesome to watch, especially at these venues.

One thing or person that will get plenty of attention that you just do not care about ...

Brendan: I am verrrry worried that the suffocating mainstream golf media is going to choke the joy out of following Hosung Choi, if they haven’t already done so. Choi will be a treat to watch at Pebble Beach. The one story I am already sick of is putting with the pin still in the cup. That’s going to continue to get lots of love as CBS joins the broadcast fray and more and more fans tune in for the first time this year. I’m over it. It’s fine and cool and let’s move on from talking about the new rules.

Kyle: Bryson. I’m tired of Bryson. The bit is old. I’m tired of the putting with the pin in, I’m tired of the carefully-crafted pseudoscience used to develop brand power for Cobra/Puma, I’m tired of the driving-range mental breakdowns that are sure to come, I’m tired of the “Well, Christ Had Haters Too” attitude toward anyone who dare doubt his transparent grift in the name of physics. I beg you to get this man off my television, until someone finally asks his thoughts on global warming during a press conference.

Will Johnny Miller cry at the Phoenix Open?

Brendan: Yes. Despite his spicy commentary and gruff exterior, I think Johnny is an emotional softie and this is the end of a legendary run. Also, remember when he oddly got choked up talking about Keegan Bradley at the end of last year’s BMW Championship? That was one of the weirder and more unexpected turns of the 2018 season.

Kyle: No. Absolutely not. I present you this quote on why he made Phoenix his last stop, via Golf Digest:

“I was always known as the ‘Desert Fox.’ My best golf, besides that final round at Oakmont, came in the desert, especially in 1975 when I won by 14 shots in Phoenix and by nine shots in Tucson. I was playing at a level of golf those two weeks as good or better than I’ve ever seen anyone hit the ball.”

Emotion and reflection requires self-awareness, of which John has none. We’d have him no other way.

One crazy prediction or spicy take ...

Brendan: Jordan Spieth does not make a cut on the West Coast swing and someone proclaims he is completely washed. Phil Mickelson wins in Phoenix, and in keeping with tradition, does so in a playoff against Hideki Matsuyama that runs into the halftime show of the Super Bowl.

Kyle: Cam Champ wins again before we head to Florida, and a whole bunch of people throw way, way too much money on him at the Superbook before we get to Augusta.