#let me see a maga tomorrow

[blood-teeth]

sick to my fucking stomach tonight. this country has voted against women, voted for hatred, voted for bigotry, against facts, education, morality. a father looked at his ballot today and sold his daughter out for the hopes of a .20 price decrease on fucking gas.

fuck Trump. i don’t know what else to say

[vidavalor]

Gabriel and Aziraphale here are everything

Look at this fucking fascist, Aziraphale, I can't even. I'm going *insane* Up there. All day, every day, for six thousand fucking years with our asshole dad The Metatron and bitchy Uriel and know-it-all-Michael and this MAGA jerkwad... I can't take it anymore. Are we sure we aren't the ones in Hell? You are literally the only person in Heaven that I like being around. You're smart and you're funny and I love you. I've started jogging on Earth to get away from them. I kinda like it here. I love the clothes. I don't get it, exactly, but I'm jealous. My schedule tomorrow is the cleaning roster and a meeting with whatstheirface Saraq-something about how we've got to curb the number of angels requesting transparent desks... Just fucking shoot me in the face, Aziraphale lololol go get Crowley and tell him he can douse me in Hellfire, for the love of Somebody...

Anyway, great to see you, I'll get this homophobe I've been bullshitting in an attempt to be your friend out of here and let you get back to whatever weird human shit you do down here... I've got to go rally the troops for the end of the world. If I say "climb every mountain" one more time, I'm going to throw myself off of one hahahaha send help...

[simp999]

A New Home Ch. 35

Various! Splatoon Maga x Skilled! Isekai'd! Reader

Wc: 1.1k

A/N: Ya'll're lucky my boyfriend likes my story or else this hiatus would've been longer lmao. Love ya'll

Back to the start!! Previous Next

“Shh, shh. You’re safe, Tasha. You’re safe, sweetheart. Safe with Milo, safe with your family.”

Milo spoke softly, taking your place- holding her to his chest and petting her tentacles. You now understood. You saw it: the true family. Milo held Tasha as if she were his younger sister, Leo stood off to the side, worried. Just like a younger brother would. He eventually went to sit on the edge of Tasha’s bed, resting his hand near her to let her know he was there. Milo breathes with her, guiding her. Tasha was so vulnerable, you could almost see a younger version of her in her place- a small child who needed to be cared for. You asked if you could do anything for her. Milo answered for her, she refused to speak with such a shaky voice. She wasn’t embarrassed- not at all. It simply hurt too much. 

“Stay.”

So you did. You stayed as long as she needed you. You already thought you were as close with your family as you could be, but these past few days have brought you infinitely closer.

You debated throwing the match so that Tasha could get her bearings. You’d gladly do whatever it took to make her not feel rushed, to make her feel safe.

She shakily took a breath in and told you she was okay now. You lost track of the time, but it was into the early evening now. Leo and Milo both helped her get up so that she could trail behind Milo as he went to make supper for the family. Her legs were shaky, and her face was puffy. She kept her mask off for the time being. She assisted Milo in making supper, wanting to feel needed, you thought. 

You sat on the couch next to Leo after making sure that Tasha and Milo were doing well.

Your mind felt static.

You began to wonder if you were needed in this family. 

You just intruded all that time ago, didn’t you? This was a happy family, and you just busted in and began taking charge.

You don’t even belong here.

None of this was right-

“Thank you.”

You shook your head from your daze, finally noticing Milo who was standing right before you. You didn’t quite register his words.

“Tasha’s not quite ready to speak yet, but I want to thank you on her behalf for keeping her safe. She told me that you put yourself between him and her. She told me that she felt safer with you. So, thank you.” 

Maybe you did belong. 

You didn’t do much, but your presence alone comforted her.

You then asked if you could go talk to Tasha alone for a moment. He nodded.

She was at the kitchen table, cleaning her weapon. She tilted her head up towards you and her gaze softened. You weren’t used to seeing her without her mask. She was gorgeous. You felt you were finally seeing the true her. An inner child that needs healing. And she’s doing amazing, you thought. 

You sat across from her, silently asking if you could hold her hands in your by opening them out in front of her. She put down her weapon and held your hands.

As sincerely as you could, you spoke. 

“Hun,”

She was fully focused on you.

“Do you want to forfeit tomorrow’s match? It’s okay if you need some time off.”

She blinked in surprise, you were so… genuine. Tasha removed one of her hands to form the ‘no’ sign, paired with shaking her head and smiling kindly. She rubbed her thumb along the palm of your hand, almost to say ‘thank you for caring’. You nod and stand up, leaving her to get back to her weapon.

Well, you knew what that meant. Game on.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

The following morning came quick. The lot of you couldn’t sleep in no matter how hard you tried, too hyped (and nervous) for the upcoming battle. You all decided to go for a small jog in the morning to get yourselves moving. You came across some fans wishing you good luck for the battle against Emperor. 

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

You sat with your chin in your hand as you tried to come up with any last-minute issues you might run into. You’ve been preparing for this ever since you got here. 

Milo started on a big but light enough breakfast for the family. Leo played on his switch as he waited for the food, and you probably already know what Tasha’s doing.

“Do you guys have any ideas?” You decided to confide in your family. 

“I’m confident in us. We’ve been training for this ever since we met.” Tasha began.

“Yeah! We can kick their butts, ‘specially since our idols’ll be watching! Ooh, do you think we can become their idols? Wait, how would that work…”

Leo begins to mumble to himself as you chuckle. Having them watch isn’t so scary, especially since you know for a fact that they’re cheering on your team, not theirs. 

…Maybe the right thing to do is to hype yourselves up? That’s quite important.

“Hey, how about we spend some time with them before our battle? Leo, wanna call up Aloha and ask?”

“Heck yeah! I’ll ring him up right away!” … he just has to finish his match first. Well, you understand what it’s like- you don’t blame him.

Soon enough, you ended up having the S4 over at your place. Milo didn’t have too much cleaning to do as you all helped out, and there wasn’t much to do in the first place. 

Aloha blasted some hyped up music, to which Army claimed was too loud so it got turned down. Skull was enjoying the bowl of sweets Milo always had on the counter that you had to smack Leo’s hand away on multiple occasions, reminding him not to eat any junk before the battle. Mask sat at the far end of the table, playing squid racer on his own switch. You noticed the joycon colors- one cyan, and the other one was your own ink color. Hm, must be a cool coincidence. It even had a tiny cyan squid charm where the earphone jack was, how cute!

Aloha spent his time hyping you up, while Army went over some battle plans he had in his manual. You all paid attention, your team sometimes butting in to offer some advice on his plans. 

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ─── 

It didn’t take long before your family had stretched and were standing on the respawn pad, shaking with anticipation. 

.

.

.

1.1k wc

Next part

[evita-shelby]

Incantatrice

Chapter 20

Cw: murder, suicide, ghosts and blood

A/N: friends, romans, countrymen, it has been an honor to write this fic with y'all

Special thanks to @thegreatdragonfruta @zablife @wandawiccan60 @call-sign-shark @cljordan-imperium and @minaethrym

It has been a year since Grace died in his arms. Had she lived would their marriage have survived the year, he wonders?

Would she have lived to leave him and take Charlie or would she have stuck by his side even as the Italians kill them one by one?

Tommy is pushed to call for a truce after Arthur’s death. So close to Grace’s death that their funerals take place the same day even if a year apart.

First John now Arthur. Only Finn remains and he has been packed off to Boston with Ada and Karl for their safety.

“Where will you go?” Polly asks him after she tells him of her plans to go to Australia and find Anna’s grave. Michael is hesitant to go, but keeps his knowledge of Polly’s deal with Luca a secret.

Self-preservation trumps all after all. Not that he blames them.

“Hell, finally.” Tommy is strangely at peace with it.

With Grace and Lizzie and little Charlie he had considered staying alive, but now he knows it was never the sapphire, he is the curse.

As long as he lives, everyone he loves will keep dying.

First with Grace and now with Arthur.

He might make it easier for Luca and just take his revolver into his mouth. No one but Tommy Shelby can kill Tommy Shelby.

They have lost anyways.

“I would have said there is still a chance, but I don’t think there is even if we had divine intervention.” The witch taps the card that came next in their last reading.

Two of cups, failure, loss.

The vendetta would be over, the Changrettas the winners.

But at least its over.

“If you can keep an eye on Charlie for me, I would forgive you for betraying me, Pol.”

His aunt nods sadly, and leaves to catch the last train to London.

“Do it, Thomas, we will be together again, me and you and Charlie watching us from heaven with Lizzie and little Ruby.” Grace’s voice said as if she stood behind him.

The way she adds Charlie’s name sends a shiver down his spine.

Had the Italians killed him?

“Luca doesn’t keep his promises, my love, he took my sweet boy even if he wasn’t your son.” The ghost says and he turns to see her in her modest clothes when she was a barmaid, when she pretended to be the woman he fell in love with. “Join us, while we wait for the others, Tom. Just take the gun and join us.”

And he does.

Thomas Shelby is thirty-six years old when he takes his own life.

On a two of cups he wrote: “You did not keep your word.”

And just like that, it is over.

The villain defeated, the dead avenged and England ripe for the taking.

And yet Eva’s wine tastes like blood all the same.

It never got easier for her, killing even indirectly always made her see how further and further the light is.

“Tonight we celebrate our victory, maga. Tomorrow my mother comes with the children and our new life truly begins.” Luca takes the glass and kissed her hands drenched in blood only she can see.

“You killed them all didn’t you?” He is covered in blood as well, but his have the handprints of children on his pristine white shirt.

Luca plays dirty, she should’ve known he wont let them live.

“A vendetta is a vendetta, I couldn’t take any chances, Eva.” He explains his actions so well she can almost believe his lies.“I didn’t want to, but I had to, vita mia.”

He wanted then dead, always has.

His brother and father’s death only gave him the reasons to finally do it.

“Why?” she asks as to why he’d go so far.

Polly and Michael never got on their train, Ada and the two boys never reached Benjamin Younger where he waited for them to start their life together.

Every single drop of Shelby blood had been spilled over the earth on his orders while they celebrated Tommy’s suicide.

“Because I don’t forgive those who betray me.” Luca’s hold on her wrists become manacles, manacles that won’t ever come off now.

The shadow that she saw the day they married had never left, how could it leave when it had become them.

A year ago today the shadow had begun to consume Luca and now the transformation was complete.

The man who stands before her has become the true devil of Birmingham, and she his queen.

He is not the man you think he is, she can hear Audrey’s warnings.

But I do know him, the witch reminds herself, they’d been married for six years and she knows him.

She should’ve known he wasn’t going to stop until everyone was dead. And now that Shelby was gone, he wouldn’t stop until all of England fears the Black Hand.

Sabini will learn that the hard way when he outlives his use to her husband. Poor little Aurora will die just like her parents and siblings will too.

And because she loves him, she will help him every step of the way.

“A good thing I never plan to, mi amor.” The witch let go of his hands and wrapped them around his neck.

No matter what she will never regret choosing him over all the men the world had offered her that day.

With a kiss she lets the darkness consume her as it seeps in through her mouth in a loving kiss.

Fin

[uss-vermont]

I'd like to add my 2 cents to everything going on right now.

It's absolutely fine to take today to cry. To talk to your friends and family. Do what you need to in order to get past the shock.

But tomorrow... tomorrow it's time to get mad. Get mad as hell.

Get mad at the people who see everything he stands for, and say "That's alright by me"

Get mad at the people who decided to sit this one out, saying it didn't affect them.

Get mad at the media moguls who made this happen.

And with that rage, you're going to organize. Join local community organizations, protest, march!

Don't every let up. Don't let them have a moment of piece. Small businesses, ban MAGA from your store. Refuse to serve them. Kick them out.

But most of all, don't give up.

[lunar-years]

It’s all gop/conservative majority now, right? Dems won’t have the house or the senate and I can’t see how she will win….. I’m legit terrified of how this is going to benefit Christian Nationalists 😟

Yeah. Republicans have won the presidency. They’ve won the Senate. Trump declared the House in his favor during his victory speech, but from what I can see the results are still very much not final and there’s a *chance* dems could still take it. However, there’s also the existing conservative majority on the Supreme Court that is only going to worsen in the next four years and continue for probably the rest of my lifetime. So I’m not going to lie, this is looking very bad, just about worst case scenario.

Trump’s reign four years ago was horrifyingly awful, and we have been living out the ramifications ever since, but Trump without checks and balances is a prospect that makes me feel physically ill all over. With all the branches on his side he could theoretically successfully roll back decades of progress in this country, and I fear Roe v. Wade was just the beginning. His former chief of staff stated Trump praised Hitler multiple times whilst in office, and agreed he meets the definition of a fascist. Practically no one on his former cabinet supported him in this election and several actively warned and campaigned against him. Our country is not going to look the same in four years time. I’m not trying to fear monger or sound hopeless (it’s hard right now), but I do think it’s important to sit with that very real fact before we can best decide what to do about it.

Insofar as possible, our next focus will be winning back Congress in the midterms and then on making sure Trump’s (who will undoubtedly spend part of the next four years grooming his MAGA successor) reign actually ends in four years. Obviously the Democratic Party has a lot to reckon with, and desperately needs to face its shortcomings head on and actually build up and put their full weight and ability behind viable and fresh candidates. The current path isn’t working and hasn’t been for years. So what needs to change.

Today we let ourselves be sad and frustrated and angry and tomorrow we do something with those emotions and continue the fight wherever and whenever and however we are able.

[artcalledwrap]

C C U ARS

CCU ARS

Cougars?

C.C. You Automatic Rifle’s

See see you ours

See see you are our’s

The top of the game playing

On a rally

Cowboy Checkered we own you

You are ours for the time we won’t all

Taking it by the small backs of Americans the blocks were thrown down long ago

The BRIC want’s all control rather than a World of All United In Continents

You small there stay there, you middle need to go down we need bigger gaps between ourselves think as in Covid in the convenient store with enlarged gaps you remain smaller

In regards to Trump Rumpty

He gave Tax breaks to further along gorge you are in the water and they on up land

You will fall to bottom if elected again!

You are in a gorge!

What’s with Musk’s Shirt?

Who paid for National Secrets?

Paid for by Governmental!

The flourishing fluorescent look compared to Trumps tan

Dark MAGA

Later on during last 30 minutes of the Rally

Dear Trump you looked eased and washed from the view at looking at you in a ball throwing dunk tank, you are not moving through space and time fast enough to be running into bugs likes this, may I throw a ball you looked washed up after the left over become, nobody washed your booth since last Assassin attempt Rally or is that white wash ethereal camouflage come on wash that to clear, it sends the wrong message’s to young one’s you are seen as pearly, the pearly glazed Trump who checked that……..Period.. … .. shit

Did he know it

Did he

Fox News recorded it

C C U

A R S

Tell us tomorrow!

I was accepted in officially back into X

After I picture post

I P P

Cute comfy underwear

Ass rear sex

That’s not me

I don’t support

Trump Vance Musk

All the names Trump gives out

That all white haired old Lady

Got damn nine years

Without magnetic

Bed or her beads and other toys

I don’t understand

CCU

ARS

Chicken Chicken-heads Red-capped

All Relative Systems

Throughout our Government

What how why!

Further segregation into states, let them battle it out!

Not a United States of America

Separation

Smaller degrees rather than whole

Wholesome Wholeheartedly O

Not for their Power

And Powers on the Earth around a Globe

This here Planet

C.C.U.A.R.S

(The pictured above chicken head, didn’t have bones it was only yolk the way it landed in boiling water and getting burned that’s what is born made for(e) purpose [pictured I])

Yea not going back too correct too

{ How ever long…… the Rally…….. }

Carrots Cabbage added Ham

That’s not an eye and beak

It tripped me out too

You know my anti’s

[justabumatthepark]

WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU LOOKING AT PUSSY

GOT YOU HOOKED, HUH?

😈😈😈

FUCK CANCEL CULTURE 24' 🇺🇲

VOTE BLUE

FUCK MAGA

ONLY BUM COMPARED TO ALEXANDER

FUCK PUTO FAG

100% ✅ SECURED

WHO WANTS IT?

50 MILLION

ALL FOR YOU

EVER SEEN 50 MILLION IN A ROOM?

😈😈😈

WE TIRED OF WORKING PUTO FAG

IT'S STARTING TO LOOK LIKE RETIREMENT MONEY

😈😈😈

THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS I'M NOT THE JOKER

😈😈😈

THE NAME IS PETTY

NICE TO MEET YOU

🙂🙂🙂

50/50 MY BOY

WHO WANTS IT?

😈😈😈

AND SURE YOU CAN HAVE IT ALL

I MEANT 50/50 I HELP YOU MAKE THIS MONEY

I HANDLE PUTO FAG

YOU TAKE THE LOOT

😈😈😈

FUCK THE MONEY

I JUST WANT PUTO FAG OUT OF THE MONOPOLY GAME

AND ANYONE YOU DON'T LIKE

CAN DIE WITH HIM TOO

😈😈😈

HUSHMOUTH?

NIGGA I'M LITERALLY BEGGING FOR SOMEONE TO STOP ME

BUT WHO GON' DO IT?

DEFINITELY NOT YOU

THAT'S CHECKMATE

😈😈😈

100% ✅ SECURED

HE'S CHOOSING TO GIVE EVERYTHING UP

BECAUSE HE KNOWS MY PLAN IS SOLID

HORRIBLE POKER PLAYERS

HE FIGURED IF HE COULD BLUFF HIS WAY OUT

NO ONE WOULD NOTICE

BUT I DID

😈😈😈

YOU ARE NO LONGER PUTO FAG

YOU HAVE BEEN UPGRADED TO ANGRY TORCHER ADDICT FUCK

SEE YOU'RE ONE OF US BROTHA

😈😈😈

I KNOW YOU KNOW ALREADY KNOW

BUT I'M STILL GONNA TELL YOU A THIRD TIME

WE LIKE YOUR BROTHER

WE HATE YOU

😈😈😈

IF YOU WANNA TALK ABOUT ANYTHING OTHER THAN ANGRY TORCHER PUTO FAG

THEN HEAD OVER TO

@alt-zombee

YOU KNOW THIS NIGGA IS STEAMINNNNNN RIGHT NOW

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

HUSHMOUTH????

😈😂😂😂😂🤭🤭😂😈😈😂😈😂

GOOD JOB WITH THE PSYCHOLOGICAL TORCHER

I HAVE TO SAY YOU REALLY DID PUT IN A LOT OF WORK

BUT UNFORTUNATELY

I'M BETTER AT IT

😈😈😈

[pettyentity.]🩷

SO LET'S ADJUST FOR INFLATION

SO THAT WAS 12.75 MINIMUM WAGE TIMES A 40 HOUR WORK WEEK TIMES 4 FOR THE MONTH TIMES 12 FOR THE YEAR TIMES 6 FOR THE YEARS YOU'VE BEEN HERE THAT IS 146,880 DOLLARS TIMES 20 EMPLOYEES EQUALS 2,937,600 TOTAL

SO YOU DO HAVE FUCK YOU MONEY HUH?

IF THAT'S CHUMP CHANGE

I WONDER HOW MUCH IS IN YOUR BANK ACCOUNT

😈😈😈

THE PRICE OF PSYCHOLOGICAL TORCHER

ALL FOR

ONE MAN

ME

YOU ADDICT FUCK

AND I DIDN'T EVEN MENTION GAS

OR OUTSIDE EMPLOYEES YOU MIGHT HAVE NEEDED FOR THIS

SO I WONDER

WHAT THE FUCK DID I DO TO MAKE YOU SO MAD?

🤭🤭🤭

HUSHMOUTH?

I FEEL HUMBLED

😌😌😌

PUTO FAG

GG

🤭🤭🤭

DON'T BLAME IT ON ME

BLAME IT ON GOD

GIT GUD FAGGOT

😈😈😈

DON'T BLAME PUTO FAG TOO MUCH

HE JUST LIKE ME

GOT BABIED BY MOMMY AND DADDY

SO HE'S A SPOILED BRAT

THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS GODS STUPID ASS GAVE HIM MONEY

AND HE JUST DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO USE IT PROPERLY

😈😈😈

THIS MAN HASN'T SAID A SINGLE WORD

HE MAD MAD

AND HE KNOWS I HAVE HIM BY THE BALLS TOO

😂😂😂

"FUCK YOU"

🤭😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

RETREAT AND COME BACK WHEN YOU'RE READY

BUT I PEEP THAT STRATEGY AND RAISE YOU FUCK YOU

I'M GONNA KEEP TEASING YOU ALL DAY

AND TOMORROW

AND THE DAY AFTER

AND I'M JUST GONNA KEEP EXPOSING YOU YOU ADDICT FUCK

SO JUST GIVE IT UP

DONATIONS ARE OPEN

ALSO ATTACKING FROM AFAR IS SMART

AGAIN I DON'T BLAME YOU

BUT I'M YOUR ASS NOW

BETTER KEEP RUNNIN'

CUSS I SMELL PUSSYYYYY

TE ESTOY COMIENDO EL CULOOOOOOOO

HE'S WAITING TO SEE WHO'S GONNA HELP ME SO HE CAN PLAN AROUND THAT

OKAY SO I'LL RAISE YOU THIS

ANSWER THIS QUESTION IF IT ALL GOES WELL WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO?

"......."

EXACTLY

THAT'S CHECKMATE

TELL YOUR BOSS TO FUCKING CALL ME BITCH

YOU FAILED

IT'S TIME TO REPORT THAT TO HIM

😈😈😈

2 FOR 1

BET

THAT'S TWO BANK ACCOUNTS JUST FOR US

MORE LOOT FOR US

ANY MORE FUCKERS WANNA JOIN THEM?

MONOPOLY ACTIONS

THE DOMINO EFFECT

TWO ADDICTS ABOUT TO LOSE THEIR BANK ACCOUNTS

HUSHMOUTH???

"THAT'S NOT GONNA HAPPEN NO ONE BELIEVES YOU"

BUT DON'T YOU HAVE A WHOLE CAMP OF PEOPLE?

YOU'RE TELLING ME THAT OUT OF 100

NO ONE IS GONNA STAND UP?

NIGGA NEVER TOOK A MATH CLASS IN HIS LIFE

🤭😂😂😂😂

BETTER START LOOKING AT THE NIGGA NEXT TO YOU

🤭

"THEY ARE ALL WITH ME"

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

OKAY PUTO FAG 👍🏽

"Already disrespecting, something I ain't tolerating

You niggas fuck with me, I give 'em motivation

And your circle shrinkin', see some boys escapin'

Rest of them is guilty by association (ayy, what?)

Fuck debatin' who the G.O.A.T.

Better not make the shit up 'bout the numbers all I know

Better not make the shit up 'bout the summer all I know

Better find you someone else to hit with all that smoke, nigga, yeah"

And all them tweets and all them posts

Ain't got the type of time to be playin' with you folk

I had a Richard prior to these niggas, that's the joke

I'm really down to die behind these verses in my notes

"THEY ARE ALL WITH ME"

REMEMBER YOU SAID IT

NOT ME

😈😈😈

ALL MY FRIENDS ARE DEAD

IT'S TIME TO START PURGING YOU MOTHERFUCKERS

FLUSH YOU MOTHERFUCKERS OUT OF THAT LIL HIDING SPOT

100% ✅ I GUARANTEE IT

YOU LET ME HANDLE PUTO FAG

AND ANY THREAT HE THROWS YOUR WAY

😈😈😈

AND YOU CAN HAVE ALL HIS MONEY

ALL OF IT

NOT ONE CENT FOR ME

ALL I ASK IS YOU LET ME TURN HIM TO THE POLICE

I WANNA SEE HIS FACE WHEN I'M DONE WITH HIS ASS

HE CAN'T THREATEN YOU IF YOU HAVE NOTHING TO BE THREATENED BY

AND IF HE SAYS HE'S GONNA KILL YOU

LET HIM

I GUARANTEE HE WONT

HE'S ALL BARK NO ACTION

PUTO FAG THE CHIHUAHA

FUCKING ADDICT

HE WON'T KILL YOU BECAUSE HE KNOWS HIS ADDICTION WILL SNITCH HIM OUT FURTHER

IF HE KILLS YOU HE BASICALLY FUCKS HIMSELF

IT'S LIKE RAISING THE PRICE OF SODA

IF IT SELLS OUT

THE STORE WILL RAISE THE PRICE ON IT

SO IF HE KILLS YOU

MORE PEOPLE ARE GONNA TRY TO COME GET THIS MONEY

AND THAT'S THE LAST THING HE WANTS

😈😈😈

LITTLE BITCH CAN EITHER ACCEPT HIS FATE

OR START KILLING EVERYONE IN HIS CAMP

ALL BECAUSE YOU DON'T AGREE WITH HIM

YOU SEE WHAT KIND OF PERSON HE IS

WHY WOULD YOU WANNA WORK FOR HIM?

😈😈😈

THE FACT THAT YOU GOT WHOOPED BY FOGELL IS EVIL WORK

😈😈😈

This shit way too formal, y'all know I don't follow suit

Stacey Dash, most of these girls ain't got a clue

All of these hoes I made off records I produced

I might take all my exes and put 'em all in a group

😈😈😈

"Pass this to my daughter, I'ma show her what it took (yeah)"

😇😇😇

"MY PRIDE JUST WON'T LET ME CALL HER NO MORE"

YOU'RE WELCOME PUTO FAG

PETTY THE ARCHETYPE

😈😈😈

THIS IS "HOW TO KEEP IT G FOR DUMMIES"

THE BOOK

REDRUM - 21 SAVAGE 

"SHUT THE FUCK UP"

OH, HE SPEAKS 

WHAT'S WRONG DID I STRIKE A NERVE? 

😈😈😈

"I'M GONNA FUCKING KILL YOU YOU FUCK"

DO IT THEN PUSSY 

WYA 

Tap in!

DM ME 

I'LL SEND YOU MY LOCATION

😈😈😈

HUSHMOUTH?

⬇���⬇️⬇️⬇️

PREVIOUS POST

[saganandkatelynindc]

Farewell to DC

July 21, 2023, 11:24 PM

Yes, I am 71! Where did the time go!?!?! Our week in DC is also almost over and it too has flown by. Katelyn is back to feeling great! After our small outing at the American History Museum today, Katelyn took a rest. When she got up around 7:00 - she definitely wanted to go our our DC at night tour - but didn't know if she could make it. I assured her that all she had to do was to announce she done and we would stop the tour, get an Uber and go home, so she said "let's try it."

We had a little mix up on where we were meant to pick up our tour - but it got worked out and our guide, Joe, was fantastic!! That mix-up did give us the chance to walk through the amazing Willard Hotel. This place has a lot of history AND will be in the news a great deal in the future as we hear more about the site that participants described as a “war room” where Trump-aligned lawyers and diehard MAGA operatives working to overturn the 2020 election. By the way, folks - attempting to overturn an election is the definition of a COUP. I told the kids - when they hear and read "Willard Hotel" they will know exactly what and where it is.

This golf cart tour was fabulous and the perfect summary of our trip to DC. The night weather was ideal and the city just got lovelier and lovelier as the sun set We were all mesmerized. Joe has lots of facts and interesting stories. We all loved it. Katelyn never once thought of leaving this. It was just the 4 of us and Joe.

We toured the city seeing things we hadn't seen and reviewing places we had been. It was fun to see the Capitol because we had entered on the Senate Train and exited through the tunnel that connected it to the Library of Congress. It is a magnificent building from all directions - all of which are called "the front." (Kinda' weird, I'm not going to lie.)

We saw the Supreme Court - which is called the highest court in the land - but has a basketball court on the top floor. So IS the Supreme Court REALLY the highest court?

And the Library of Congress - Thomas Jefferson Building, a building we also had entered by tunnel.

We had fun at the Washington Monument. Turns out is it NOT that heavy - right Katelyn?

Or that big - as Daphne demonstrates.

From here we headed to the Tidal Basin and we were thrilled to see some of our favorite places in the dark.

Next up was the Lincoln Memorial

Then we finally got to go the Korean Memorial. We had talked about this - planned to visit it twice - and now here we were!

It is a beautiful place and especially at night it is stunning. The newest addition is a huge ring with a pond and the listing of the more than 35,000 Americans that were killed during the United Nations conflict.

During the day the black wall becomes a mirror turning the 19 soldiers into 38 representing the months the conflict lasted and the parallel nearest the DMZ. BUT at night the etching in the wall are highly visible. Katelyn was taken with this amazing art.

All too soon it was time to go.

I also loved the photo below. Katelyn at work

Finally it was time to head home. When the kids sent me pics, I especially loved this one:

They were riding backwards and both kids agreed this was the traffic they liked the best.

The night was a great success and the weather was the BEST we had experienced our entire trip. We got home around 10:30 but it was hard to settle down to sleep after the wonderful evening we had had.

Tomorrow we will head home - but I have a few more tricks in my bag. Stay tuned.

[fortuositywritings]

Netflix and Chill

Part 2 of New Resolutions

You asked for it and voila. WandaxReader, oblivious!reader 

Summary: Wanda asks you to Netflix and chill and you do what you do best - misinterpret everything.

“Kate is multifaceted. Very talented, but I’m sure she’ll brag to you all about it. Anyway, could you show her around the compound? I have some stuff I need to do,” Clint asks.

“Oh, yeah. Of course,” you agree. “Let me just text Wanda and let her know I’ll be a little late to our date tonight. We’re gonna watch a movie.”

“I still can’t believe this is a thing. What movie are you going to watch?”

“I don’t know. Wanda said we’d just chill in her room and watch Netflix. Do you have any suggestions?” you ask innocently. 

Clint chuckles, “Yeah. Put on the performance of a lifetime.”

“Oh, I haven’t heard of that one. Is it a drama?”

“What? No,” he shakes his head disappointedly. 

“What’s going on here? Why are you shaking your head at Y/N?” Sam appears. “Did she fall for uhbish again?”

“What’s uhbish?” You fall right into that one.

Sam cracks up. “That’s what I’m trying to find out!”

You glare at him, realizing what he did there while Clint shakes his head again. Sam’s laughter dies down and he asks again. “No, but seriously, what did I miss?”

“Wanda invited Y/N to her room tonight to ‘watch movies’,” Clint says suggestively.

“Why are you doing air quotes?” you ask.

“Oh, Y/N,” Sam sighs. “There’s not going to be any movie. You better have some good music queued up. Depending on how tonight goes, Wanda decides whether or not you two should continue dating.”

“What?”

“I don’t know how much clearer I can be. She wants to do it with you,” Sam emphasizes. “You got to bring your A game. Here’s a tip, the louder she is the more she’s enjoying it.”

“That’s not true,” Clint mutters. 

“So tomorrow she better not be able to speak,” Sam tells you. “That’s your goal.”

“Oh, god. I didn’t know this is what we were going to do.” You rub the back of your neck, trying to calm yourself down. 

“You freaked her out, Sam. Good going,” Clint chides Sam. “Y/N, don’t listen to him. This is supposed to be fun. If one of you gets nervous, let the other person take the lead.”

“Oh, that’s good. Yeah. You should take the lead. A lot of girls like it when you are confident,” Sam advises. 

“Okay, yeah. I can start it I guess,” you voice. 

“That’s the spirit. Make us proud!” Sam exclaims. Clint pats your back before he and Sam leave you riddled with nerves in the hallway. You were just planning on watching a movie with Wanda tonight and now Clint and Sam are saying that she’s expecting something else from you. How are you supposed to prepare?

You show Kate around the compound answering her many questions about the Avenger life and finish the tour in her room where she asks more questions. Half of the boxes in her room are unpacked. Wow, she has a lot of trophies. It had taken you less time than you thought giving Kate the grand tour much to your displeasure because it had taken your mind off of tonight and now you are thinking too hard about it. 

Kate notices you biting your nails and asks, “Are you okay? You seem anxious.”

“Sorry,” you apologize, pulling your hand away from your face. You clench your fists to not be tempted to bite your nails again. “It’s nothing.”

“Are you sure? Maybe I could help, if you want to talk about it?” she offers.

Looking at her trophies, you think maybe she can help. She seems to know what she’s doing and is a champ at everything. “You have a lot of awards. What are some things you are good at?”

She discloses her impressive repertoire. “My main focus is archery, but through the years I did a lot of things. There’s fencing, gymnastics, several sports, mixed martial arts. I learned Krav Maga.”

“Oh, I always wanted to learn a new language,” you say.

“Krav Maga is a style of fighting,” Kate informs you.

“No, yeah, I knew that.” Kate doesn’t quite believe you but you continue on, “So you know a lot. Maybe you can help me. See I’ve got to impress someone tonight and I need some tips.”

“Um, yeah. Sure. What are you trying to do?”

“I need to find the right song,” you answer. 

An hour later, Wanda is waiting in her bedroom for you. She has Netflix pulled up on her television and snacks on her night stand, nothing that would get too messy. Her bedsheets are nice and clean. There is a lit candle in one corner of the room. She is fresh and showered and shaven. She is just waiting for you to knock at her door. 

Knock, Knock

And there you are. She gets up from her bed, giddy with excitement. Of course she’s a little nervous but she’s ready for this with you. She fixes her outfit and fluffs her hair before opening the door. 

“Hello, Y/N,” she greets you with a bright smile.

“Hi, Wanda,” you reply with your own timid smile. She ushers you into her room and you have a hard time taking your eyes off of her. So much skin is on display. She’s wearing a tank top and some lounging shorts that show off her long legs. Wanda smirks seeing you checking her out. 

“I’ve got to be honest. I’m kind of nervous,” you admit. 

“Oh, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. I don’t want you to feel uncomfortable,” Wanda says sincerely. She’s a bit disappointed but if you aren’t ready, then you aren’t ready, and she is going to respect it.

“No, I can do it. I just don’t want to disappoint you. I’m not very good at this,” you confide sheepishly. 

She takes your face in her hands and looks you in the eyes. “Hey, I won’t be disappointed. I promise.”

She kisses you tenderly and the nerves dissolve. When she pulls away you whisper, “Okay, I’m ready.”

“Yeah?” she asks, with an excited smile.

“Yeah,” you confirm. “Go sit over there.”

You point at the bed and Wanda follows your order. She guesses you’re taking charge and she is more than okay with that. 

“Do you have a speaker?” you ask. She points to one by the candle. She didn’t think you would have a playlist for this but alright. While you are setting up the music, you tell her, “Before we start this I have to warn you it may be a little rough.”

Her eyes widen at that. You continue, “Usually I’m drunk when I do this. It’s usually better like that but that may just be the alcohol making me believe that.”

That concerns Wanda. She voices, “That doesn’t seem right, Y/N.”

“I know, I know. It shouldn’t take alcohol for me to do this with people. People do this all the time sober. I guess I just feel like people are always judging and I can’t enjoy it when I think someone is giving me a score in their mind,” you state. 

“I don’t want you feeling that way here, okay? You are perfect to me and I don’t want you thinking otherwise,” Wanda insists. “And if you don’t want to do this right now, I can wait.”

“No, I’m ready,” you say. “I spent the whole last hour practicing with Kate. I’m all warmed up.”

“What?!” Wanda hollers, but you don’t hear her over the music that started playing. 

Wanda recognizes the song. It’s “Fallin’ For You” by Colbie Caillait. What she doesn’t notice is that it is the karaoke version but that’s because she’s too wrapped up thinking you just hooked up with Kate before you came to Wanda’s room. 

“I don’t know but I think I may be 

Fallin’ for you, droppin’ so quickly.

Maybe I should keep this to myself.

Wait until I know you better.”

You are trying your best to not sound pitchy that you don’t realize Wanda is very upset at the moment.

“I am trying not to tell you

But I want to

I’m scared of what you’ll say

And so I’m hiding what I’m feeling

But I’m tired of holding this inside my head!

I’ve been spen-”

You stop when you hear the music stop playing. You see Wanda by the speaker and she looks mad. “What’s wrong?” you ask worriedly. “Oh, god. Was I that bad?”

“What the hell is wrong with you?” she hisses. 

“I know I should have picked my go-to karaoke song but Kate said I should pick one that makes me think of you and that was it. I told her it wasn’t really in my range and that one hour of rehearsing wasn’t going to change that but she insisted,” you explain. 

Wanda’s anger turns into confusion. Her eyebrows furrow as she tries to get all the facts. “Wait, so the hour with Kate practicing, you were just singing this song?”

“I mean, I also tried ‘Sexy Bitch’ but she said that one wasn’t as romantic and you would like this one more,” you recount. “I see now it was a mistake.”

Wanda shakes her head. “No, it wasn’t. It’s sweet, really.”

“Then why did you get mad?”

“I thought you and Kate, you know,” she looks away. 

Your eyes widen with realization. Wanda got jealous. “Oh, do you not want me to duet with anyone but you?”

“I know we haven’t talked about it but we’ve been dating for like a month now. I think that warrants exclusivity,” Wanda mumbles.

“How about a compromise? I mean it’s asking a little too much to not sing with other people, so how about I will only sing romantic duets with you?”

Wanda realizes you two are not having the same conversation. “Y/N, I meant I thought you and Kate slept together before coming here.”

“Like sex?” you whisper scandalously. 

She rolls her eyes. “Yes, Y/N. Sex.”

You gasp, “What? I wouldn’t do that to you. I haven’t slept with anyone since I liked you which was, like, the day we met. Your face ruined sex for me.”

Wanda raises an eyebrow at you and you’ve learned this is a sign that you’ve said something wrong, so you retrace your steps. It’s something you’ve been doing this month with Wanda. “Sorry, what I mean to say is after meeting you, I didn’t want anyone else and anytime someone tried something, your face would pop in my head and they weren’t what I wanted.”

She nods, satisfied with your correction. 

“You couldn’t ruin sex for me if you tried. Actually, I take that back. You could do anything you set your mind to,” you tell her. “You would just have to try really hard for that cause sex with you would be awesome, no doubt.”

She’s quiet and you think you’ve said something wrong again. “Sorry, I meant it would be an honor to make love to you and I wouldn’t take the opportunity for granted?”

Wanda blushes and looks at you in awe. There is no way you are real. One way to find out. She pulls you into a kiss. When she pulls away, you are smiling, happy she isn’t upset anymore. 

“So, do I finish the song, or do you want to sing next?” 

Wanda decides sleeping with you tonight wasn’t on the table. You deserve something better than her suggesting ‘Netflix and chill’. When the day comes, she would make it special and make sure you knew exactly what to expect. 

“You practiced for so long. I want to hear you sing it,” she says, handing you your phone to replay the song. She goes back to her bed, sits down, and grabs a snack to watch you perform. You have a fun night singing with Wanda. You even invite Kate via text. Natasha joins in after she knocks on the door asking why you are butchering her favorite song. Being in the room next door, she could hear the three of you belting out the lyrics. 

The girls get tired around one in the morning. Kate and Nat leave, but not without Kate taking the leftover snacks with her. You help Wanda pick up her pillows scattered all over the room from Kate’s last song. She had put on a whole performance, jumping on Wanda’s bed, pretending it was her stage. 

“Tonight was really fun. I don’t know why I was so nervous,” you tell her as you fix her bed.

“Oh, leave it. I’m about to go to sleep anyway,” she croaks. She places her hand over her throat. “My voice is gone.”

“Then I call tonight successful,” you chuckle. Sam will be proud tomorrow when you tell him. “Do you want me to get you something from the kitchen? I could make you some tea if you want?”

“No, that’s okay,” she declines, getting into her bed. “Thank you for offering.”

“Yeah. Okay, I’ll let you sleep,” you announce. 

“Y/N.” You turn around. Wanda pulls the covers from next to her. “Will you sleep with me?”

You gape at her and stammer, “L-like sex right now?”

She palms her face. “No, like falling asleep next to me.”

“Oh, yeah. Duh,” you chuckle in embarrassment. “Of course I will.”

You take your shoes off and basically run to bed, excitedly pulling the covers over your body. Wanda smiles at your goofy antics. You feel your heart skyrocket when she cuddles you. 

“We should Netflix and chill more often. It was fun,” you suggest.

“Hey, Y/N?” Wanda whispers.

“Yeah?”

“What do you think Netflix and chill means?” she asks. You feel her lips upturn. 

“It means singing, doesn’t it?” you answer.

“Who told you that?”

“Sam and Clint. They were all like ‘you’re not watching any movie’ and ‘you need good music’ cause I guess this decides whether you will keep seeing me or not,” you reply. “But I’m glad they told me or I would have totally been unprepared tonight.”

Wanda tries not to laugh at that. The night did not go like Wanda planned. It’s not all bad though because it ended the way she wanted it to, with her in your arms. “Good thing they did that.”

“So, did I do okay? Will you keep going on dates with me?” you ask nervously.

She smiles and pulls away to lean up and kiss you. “You did great and since you asked so nicely, yes, we can keep seeing each other.” She cuddles you again.

“Awesome. Good night, Wanda,” you murmur, falling asleep. 

You wake up to kisses from Wanda. You smile feeling ridiculously happy that Wanda is the first thing you see in the morning. Your arm is numb from having Wanda’s weight on it all night but it is worth it. She looks like an angel. 

“How are you real?” you ask, entranced by her beauty. 

She blushes, rolling her eyes playfully at you. You aren’t known to be quick witted, but Wanda’s found out you can be damn smooth sometimes without meaning to be. “That’s cheesy.”

Her voice is still gone, but it isn’t as bad as when she fell asleep. You hop up from her bed. “That’s it. I’m going to make you some tea. Or do you prefer coffee?”

She doesn’t want you to go but coffee sounds really good at the moment. “Coffee, please. I’ll meet you in the kitchen. I’m just going to change.”

You enter the kitchen whistling a happy tune. Sam, Clint, and Steve are in the kitchen already. You greet them as you make your way to brew some coffee. “Good morning!”

“Sure looks like it,” Sam comments, making Clint chuckle. “How was last night?”

“It was awesome. I don’t know why I was so nervous. She told me I did great,” you inform him. “By the end, we were so tired, I think I fell asleep in the middle of a conversation. The only thing is my arm is kind of sore. Hopefully next time I get to be on top.”

“Okay, we don’t need the details,” Clint says.

“Hush, Barton. Let the woman speak. You were saying, Y/N?” Sam gestures for you to continue. Clint shakes his head at Sam and Steve wonders how the hell he ended up in this conversation. 

The coffee is ready and you pour some in a cup for Wanda. You know how she takes it already so you prepare it the way she likes. You continue, “I was nervous but I took the lead like you guys suggested. I thought Wanda was mad at one point, but it turns out it was something else and she let me finish.” 

“Yeah, okay. I’m tuning you out,” Clint grunts. He turns off his hearing aid but realizes his good ear is facing your direction. “Damn it.”

Wanda walks in then. “Morning, everyone,” she tries to say but it comes out more like a whisper. Sam’s eyes light up at this fact. “Sorry, Y/N. I have to take that to go. I forgot I have to meet Bruce.”

“That’s okay. I’ll see you later.” You smile and hand her the coffee. Wanda kisses your cheek before heading off. 

“Damn, you actually did it! For your first night together, that’s impressive,” Sam exclaims. 

Steve makes a face. “That’s what that was? I couldn’t sleep with all the thumping.”

“Sorry,” you apologize. You forgot that Steve’s room is one floor beneath Wanda’s. “Kate got over excited.”

Clint chokes on his breakfast. “Kate was a part of it?!”

“Oh yeah. She was like the star of the show. You weren’t kidding about her being talented at, like, everything. She got the last one and boy did she make a mess,” you reply, before taking a sip of your own coffee. 

“Oh my god!” Sam is eating this like hot gossip. “Why was I giving you tips? Clearly you know what you are doing.”

“Please stop talking,” Clint begs.

Steve’s face is flushed. “I don’t think you should be telling people this, Y/N. It seems private.”

“What do you mean?” you ask, not understanding how a karaoke night is a private thing. 

Your question goes unanswered because Nat interrupts. “Hey, guys. What’s with all the faces?”

She serves herself cereal while Sam answers. “Y/N is telling us about the wild night she had.”

“Oh yeah. That was fun. We should do that again, Y/N,” Natasha requests. All the men’s jaws drop. 

“You were there, too?!” Steve gasps. 

“Who wasn’t there?” Clint asks sarcastically, not actually wanting an answer.

“I wasn’t. That’s for sure. Did Wanda send a group text and not include me?” Sam quips.

“Jeez, it’s not a big deal. It just happened. My room is next to Wanda’s and I obviously heard them, so I popped in to show them how it’s really done,” Nat explains. 

“Nat was a total rockstar,” you praise her to the others. 

“Oh, that was nothing,” Nat replies.

“NO seriously. The breath control you have, it’s impressive. You guys should see it!” you tell the guys. 

“I’d really rather not,” Clint mumbles.

“Oh, I know! We could do it again tomorrow night. Yelena and Bucky will be back from their mission. I know they would be down. Oh, I would kill to watch them duet,” you add, excited just imagining what song they would sing.

“That would be fun to watch,” Nat agrees. The guys stare at her, bewildered at how nonchalantly she answered, eating her cereal. 

“That is just wrong, Nat,” Sam states.

“What? It’s Yelena and Bucky. You’re not curious to hear what they sound like together?” she asks.

“No. No, I am not,” Sam replies. 

“Oh, come on. Trust me. Once you get into it, it’s a lot of fun. We can even have drinks. Clint, I’ll get that beer you really like.” You try to convince them.

“He’s married, Y/N,” Steve says, shocked you would invite Clint to do this sort of activity.

“The more the merrier! You can invite her, Clint,” you offer.

“Yeah, that’s not going to happen,” Clint assures you.

“I knew stuff went down at girls’ slumber parties. Didn’t I tell you, Steve? Now they’re trying to have a giant ‘slumber party’ in the compound,” Sam blurts.

“Why did you air quote slumber party?” Nat asks.

“Because we all know what it really is. We know there won’t be any sleeping,” Sam responds. 

“Yeah, because it’s not a slumber party,” Nat says, like it’s so obvious. “But I mean, if you end up on the couch then whatever.”

“Woah, no, no, no. No one will be doing anything on the couch. Steve, you’re the captain. Tell them they can’t use the living room,” Clint demands.

You and Nat look at him in confusion, wondering why he is so against you using the living room.

“He’s right. You guys can do whatever you want behind closed doors but we don’t need to see it in the living room,” Steve declares. 

Nat finally asks the question, “What the hell do you guys think we are going to use the living room for?”

“Your little sex party,” Clint replies.

You choke on your coffee and Natasha is trying not to laugh, especially at Clint’s wording. “Why in the world do you think we are planning an orgy?”

“Because that’s literally what you are doing!” Sam bellows.

“We are planning a karaoke night,” Nat informs him. “We had a lot of fun singing last night and we thought it would be fun with everyone.”

“OHHHHH,” the men say in unison.

“Why would I want to watch my sister get it on with Bucky?” Nat asks incredulously.

“You agreed with Y/N that it would be fun to watch them do it,” Sam says.

“Du - et, Wilson. As in sing together,” she clarifies.

“Yeah, that makes more sense. So you didn’t have a foursome?” Sam asks.

“No, we were just singing. What gave you that idea?” 

“Y/N said Wanda and her were going to have sex, and then we hear that you and Kate were there too and talking about how talented she is and your breath control, we assumed,” Sam explains. 

You splutter, “Wa-wa-wait! I never said that.”

“Yes, you said Wanda invited you to Netflix and chill,” Clint remembers correctly.

“Yeah, and then you guys told me that meant singing,” you tell him.

“We didn’t say that,” Sam tells Natasha when she gives them a look, thinking they might have just been messing with you.

“Yes, Clint said to give a good performance and to take the lead and Sam said to pick good music and even said Wanda wanted to duet- oh.” You stop, figuring out how this got messy. 

“I think the lesson here is that everyone needs to learn to enunciate more clearly,” Steve comments.

“This was a great way to start my morning, guys. Thanks for that,” Nat says, washing her plate. 

The men get up as well. One by one, they wash their plates and then leave. Nat is the last. Before she is out of earshot, you ask her, “So what does Netflix and chill mean?”

“Look it up,” she smirks. You pull out your phone and do that. You nearly flip the table when you read the definition and realize what you missed out on last night.

Despite already being in another room a hallway away, Nat hears you yell in frustration, “ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME !!”

She shakes her head. “Tsk, tsk. Oh, Y/N.”

__________________________________________

I hope you liked part 2. There may be a part 3 just because when I was coming up with ideas, I came up with a lot and this one just got out of hand.

taglist: @scarletswandawitch @imdreamingblo @anxietyisgreat @xxromanoffxx @romanoffomixam @diaryoflife @natashasilverfox @harleyswanda @olsensnpm @chaekhan @dumpaccdontmindme

[shurisneakers]

shut in [5]

Summary: When your high profile mission goes terribly wrong, you’re forced to hide in a safehouse with a man you’ve never met before. With seemingly nowhere else to go, you’re forced to work together to figure out who is trying to have you assassinated before it’s too late. (Sam Wilson x Reader, Hitman AU)

Warnings: cursing, threats, implied ptsd, violence

Word count: 2.9k

A/N: sam wilson nation how are we feeling after that trailer. only about a month to go for my two dumbasses to get the recognition they deserve!!

i also appreciate feedback so if you would like to, please consider dropping me an ask or comment ly guys!! also if you want to be on the taglist, it’s mentioned at the bottom of the chapter.

here’s my ko-fi if you’d like to support my writing <333

Previous Part || Shut In Masterlist

“Where are they?”

“We don’t know, boss.”

Their eyes glossed over with rising anger, masking its earlier aloofness.

“I’m going to need more than ‘I don’t know’.” Their voice was acidic, dripping with faux politeness. A bad sign.

“Police say they pulled off the highway at one point and then they lost track of them because there were no cameras.” The agent looked at his partner who only nodded in confirmation.

“They could have ditched the car before going on foot,” the partner suggested rather unhelpfully,  “We have no idea where they could be”

They were silent, mouth pressed in a hard line, leaving everyone in silence.

“Have I told you about the time my dad hired someone to fix the sink here?” they finally asked, looking away from the agents. “Some drunk fuck got in a fistfight and absolutely decimated the thing. Dad got someone to fix the hole in the wall and the fitting.”

They turned away, facing the wall.

“He did an alright job, that guy. Fixed up the place, installed a new sink. But there was a problem that he said he’d be able to fix only the next day, something about water dripping through an unsealed pipe.”

The agents just sat there on their chairs, feet cold. They knew where the story was going. It was a myth at their organisation, a cautionary tale to everyone who joined.

“My dad, he agreed. Said ‘Yeah sure, come back tomorrow’. Guy packed up his bag and was on his way out when my dad called him back. Asked him to hold out his hand for the money and then he just,” they paused, “cut one of his fingers clean off. Told him that he’d get his payment and his finger when the job was done.”

“I loved my father,” They skipped a beat before whipping their head around to look at the two agents. “But he was a coward. I would have shot him in the head.”

The agents looked paler than what they were a few seconds ago.

“If I tell you to do something, either do it perfectly or don’t do it all because the next time you’re here and those two are still alive,” they sneered, lunging forward to grab one of their collars, “I’ll blow your fucking brains out. Do we have an understanding?”

“Yes boss,” the partner was barely audible, speaking for the one who was breathing heavily, looking like he was on the verge of passing out.

“Go on then.” They smiled, letting go of the agent’s collar as he stayed frozen in his place. They dusted their hands off before straightening up. “Don’t return without good news.”

The frustration of not knowing something was not one you were used to.

You were used to knowing. The satisfaction of a puzzle. The ease of a predictable pattern.

So when this mystery wasn’t getting solved within twenty minutes, it was starting to affect you. You spent hours staring at the ceiling, replaying every detail for months leading up to the case. Every client you shook hands with. Every coworker you greeted with a nod. Every vile sicko you had killed.

And yet, no matter how much you thought and rethought and rethought again, it simply didn’t make sense. There was a piece missing. A hidden variable.

Sam helped wherever he could. He offered up arguments and rebuttals. If you had a theory, he’d find the flaw or the lack of proof. He was keeping it reasonable. Only snorted when you suggested that maybe the president was involved in a large scale extermination of underground mafias. A absurd theory that had no roots in reality.

“You could point out any official on the damn senate and they would have some connection to our gang that you can dig up with one Red Bull and twenty minutes on the internet,” he had said. “It’s too much of a liability if we get caught. They’ll just get exposed for all the nasty shit they’ve been hiding under the carpet.”

You knew this, of course, and it didn’t help to be reminded of it again because it also meant that one more theory was ruled out. And with each theory ruled out, the further away you were from your answer.

It was frustrating.

Sam was in front of the TV, lounging on the couch with the copy of Pride and Prejudice in his hands. You were working on plausible solutions, drawing up flow charts to see what could be connected.

If Pierce wasn’t the common link then it had to be something else. You couldn’t proceed with the other spies theory because no one else immediately sprung to mind. There was one... but you decided against writing it.

If Ransone was telling the truth, and there was no way of knowing he was, Sam and you were unrelated and his being there was coincidental. You just had to rely on the employee-employer relationship you shared, if you could even call it that.

“Fuck,” you cursed loudly, tearing up the piece of paper and crumpling it. You groaned, holding your head in your hands. Your eyes were burning from straining it for too long and your shoulders were in pain from slumping over the table all day. 

You took a deep breath, shaking your head before instinctively reaching for another sheet. Your hand came up short so you fumbled around the table blindly, trying to grab at a piece of paper without spending the extra effort of searching.

“You’re not getting another sheet,” Sam’s voice came from above you. “You’re going to watch some shitty movie, eat some soup and relax for today.”

“Give it back, Wilson,” you muttered, reaching out your hand.

“No. You can use your unhealthy coping mechanism when I’m not around to see it. Half of this is my mess too and I’m not going to watch you have a breakdown over it.”

He was going to be annoyingly persistent; somehow he had exhibited that magnificently over the last few days. You knew better than to argue with him over something that he had made his mind up about by now.

“I don’t want to watch a movie.” You let your head fall onto the table, wishing that the cool wood would do something for the headache you felt coming.

You heard him set the paper back down, not saying a word. Your head was throbbing and all you wanted was the frustration to ease. It was killing you.

“Come on. We’re going outside.” That piqued your interest. Sam had never invited you anywhere before.

“Where?”

“Y’know; the outside. I know you haven’t seen it in a while but see if these words jog your memory. Sun. Grass. Win-”

“I know what the outdoors is, Wilson.” You smiled against the table, not giving him the satisfaction of seeing it. “I’m asking where exactly we’re going.”

“You’ll see. Put some shoes on.”

By the time you looked up he was already walking away from the table, leaving you to follow.

You sighed. He sounded too determined and you didn’t have many other options.

Pushing your chair away from the table, you went to go put on your shoes. __

“If in care you were planning to, I’m just going to tell you right now that you can’t kill me.”

The both of you had been wandering along the path for a while. When you met him by the backdoor, he had a bag with him filled with who knows what.

He declined to tell you what was in it either, despite you asking thrice.

“Calm down, Keanu Reeves. That’s not what I was going to do.” Sam gave a short laugh.

“I’m serious. I know karate.”

“So do I.”

“Krav Maga.”

He hummed in agreement. 

“Kickboxing.”

“Now you’re just insulting me. That’s level one.”

The path was littered with tree roots that stuck out of the soil, stray branches and leaves that crunched satisfactorily under your feet. One second of distraction and you were sure you’d fall flat to the ground. 

You both continued for a few more minutes before he finally came to a stop.

It didn't look very different from the rest of the woods until something caught your eye. In front of you, one of the trees stood out. The bark had large concentric circles, resembling a large dart board. A few indentations were already made in it; clearly it was being used for practice regularly.

“Here you go,” he spoke from beside you, handing you a tomahawk. “Go ahead, throw it at it.”

You looked at the tiny axe in his hand.

“Think of it as adult darts,” he encouraged, “Here, I’ll throw the first one.”

He extended his arm in front of him, pulling his wrist back before effortlessly throwing it at his makeshift board. It was two circles away from the bullseye he had carved out. It must have taken a while to make.

“This doesn’t look very safe,” you commented as he picked up another one, launching it at the tree. You followed its trajectory, watching it embed itself into the bark closer to the centre than the previous turn.

“That’s what makes it fun.” This man had no regard for safety protocols. Given, these were things that came with the job but it didn’t mean you did it in your free time. “It helps, just try.”

“Why are you doing this?” you asked curiously, trying to assess his reaction. Pulling you out of the house for a bar game wasn’t exactly the type of thing people generally did for you.

“Because I wanted to.” He shrugged, not giving you any further explanation. “Try one.”

“Okay.” You followed his example, watching as it glided smoothly before landing close to his initial throw.

“Nice shot.”

A smile made its way to your face automatically as he handed you another one. You repeated your action, an unusual sense of pride establishing itself in you when it came closer to the middle.

“Now what?”

“Now we collect and do the whole thing again till you feel better,” Sam replied, making his way towards the tree and plucking the small axes out easily. His back muscles tightened against the material of his shirt in the process. It wasn’t a bad sight at all. “Endorphins and all that.

“Is this where you keep disappearing to?” you inquired, taking two of them from him when he returned.

“Sometimes.” He took aim before throwing it at the board. “There’s a few things you can do around here.”

“Your coping mechanism is extreme sports without proper guidelines.”

“You gotta do what you gotta do.” Sam took a step to the side, giving you space to take your turn.

“Have you always been this wise, or?” you teased, concentrating on the circles in front of you. Your shot came pretty close. 

When you didn’t receive a reply, you glanced at him through your peripheral vision. He wasn’t moving, a thousand yard stare in his eyes.

“Hit it.”

“I can’t.” His fists were bleeding through the bandages wound around them. He could feel the tear in his skin, the burn of flesh against sweat soaked clothes.

“I said, hit it,” Emil commanded once more. Sam could feel his chest rising and falling steadily from beside him, his putrid breath making him want to vomit.

“I can’t.” He could barely stand up. Exhaustion seeped through every muscle in his body.

“You’re weak,” his trainer spat. “Nothing but a fucking child.”

“He’ll die.” Sam looks down at the boy, bloody and mangled on the floor. He had passed out ages ago but that did nothing to stop them from forcing Sam to continue relentlessly.

“It doesn’t deserve mercy. You hear that Wilson?” He leered right into his ear. “Do you fucking hear that?”

Sam flinched, nodding his head. The saltiness of his sweat was fresh on his tongue, burning where it dripped onto his busted lip from his forehead.

“So fucking finish it.” He knew that if he didn’t listen this time, there would be consequences. He didn’t want to find out what it was because he had no doubt it would pain a hell of a lot more than bruised knuckles.

“No,” he whispered, eyes wandering over the body on the floor. “I won’t.”

“What’d you say?” Emil straightened up, taking a step towards him.

“I said no.” Sam turned around on his heel. He could barely stand straight but the spite running through his veins was driving him, giving him enough energy to not collapse right there on the spot.

“He said no,” his trainer repeated, leaning away from Sam. “He said no.”

He turned to look at Ransone. Sam had forgotten he was there in the darkness of the room, observing the fight for the past two hours.

“He said no.” He started chuckling. His chuckles soon gave way to hideous laughter. Stomach clutching, tear inducing laughter.

Before Sam could even realise the change in attitude, Emil’s entire demeanour shifted. He stepped forward, forcefully gripping Sam’s neck. He shoved him backward until his back was pressed against the wall, no doubt bruising his spine further than what it was.

“Say that again, you fucking idiot,” he growled. But Sam couldn’t say anything. He could barely breathe. He was terrified, but determined not to let it show on his face. “When I say something, you better fucking listen.”

His trainer observed his expression for a few more seconds. Sam didn’t open his mouth.

His trainer finally loosened his grip, letting go of his neck.

Sam’s knees nearly buckled but he kept his balance, coughs racking through his body. He felt lightheaded, swollen eyes watching Emil walk towards the body on the floor. The only friend he had.

“Maybe this oughta teach you a lesson.” Emil flashed a quick smirk at Sam before raising his fist above Riley’s face.

Within a split second a guttural cry escaped his throat as he launched himself at the much larger trainer, taking him by surprise. The pure rage he was feeling had him seeing only red, the adrenaline steering his body on autopilot.  

With their position suddenly switched, Sam found himself on top of Emil, bloody fists beating down on his face without a break. The pain didn’t even matter anymore.

“Fuck you,” he screamed, not giving him even a second to defend himself. “Fuck you, you fucking dickhead.”

When he could feel his trainer raising his arm to grab from behind, he took a pause from pummelling his face to grab his arm, twisting sharply it till he heard a crack. The roar escaping Emil’s throat didn’t dissuade him from finishing what he started, returning to landing a punch wherever he could.

He didn’t even know how long had passed before his body was being pulled away, kicking and cursing.

“You see how good it feels Wilson? You feel that relief?” Ransone held him tightly as he squirmed furiously trying to get back to beating the shit out of that asshole on the ground. “Next time you’re angry, remember that’s the only way to feel good. If you’re in pain, you cause pain.”

Sam’s flailing was reducing as the adrenaline wore off. The exhaustion was beginning to take hold of his body as he looked at the onslaught of blood splatter everywhere, two bodies side by side on the ground. He did this to both of them.

“Violence is your only friend. Don’t you ever forget that.”

Ransone let go of him. His feet gave out beneath him, chest rising and falling heavily. His shoulders ached as he dragged his body towards Riley, praying to every force in the universe that he wasn’t dead.

He was still breathing. Sam nearly cried out of relief, collapsing next to him. Ready to defend him if Emil woke up.

“Next time you want to let out some anger, come find me,” Ransone called out. “I’ll find you your next victim.”

“You okay?” You waved your hand in front of his face. “Earth to Wilson.”

It seemed to work as he snapped back, blinking rapidly.

“You zoned out a little there. Everything alright?” you asked. He looked at you blankly for a second before realising what you asked.

“Yeah.” He gave you a half smile. “Yeah, I’m good. You done with your turn?”

The light that was there behind his eyes a few minutes ago had dimmed considerably. He looked weary. You recognised what had happened, what he was probably thinking of. You didn’t bring it up, not risking the chance of him reliving it.

“Kinda.” You pointed towards the target where a tomahawk was sticking out of the centre.

“Damn,” he whistled, resting his hands on his waist. “Best of three?”

“Didn’t know it was a competition.” You went to collect it. It was harder to pull out than you thought. You wondered how many times Sam had practiced it to make it look so effortless.

“Only if you want it to be.”

“Nah.” You walked towards him, handing two of them back to him. “Maybe next time.”

“Next time, huh.” He tested his throw before letting go of the handle. Bullseye. “I’m going to hold you to that.”

You only smiled.

Next part

[bigboxcar]

Mugshot Monday - "The Democratic Dream" heat changing coffee mug by The Unemployed Philosophers Guild with Morning Glory Signature Blend by Peace Coffee

Happy Midterm Elections everyone!

This mug makes me smile. It's a dream made possible by hot-hot coffee! 😀

After election night tomorrow, it's 100% guaranteed we won't see every state come to their senses and vote out MAGA Republicans from office.

However there could be enough of a change that Democrats can secure a solid majority and start working toward passing legislation that help make our lives better.

The top three issues for me are Universal Healthcare, Protecting Abortion Rights, and Protecting Civil Rights.

This made my choice VERY easy. Here in South Minneapolis, I'm voting for Democrats down my entire ballot.

Get out and VOTE! Let's do this. 🗳 ☕️

See also my 650+ photos from the Mugshot Monday project here: www.MugshotMonday.com – Every Mug Has A Story

[limitlessgojo]

Blood Bound: Red Strings of Fate (Ch 5)

Warnings: Action, Coarse Language, Fighting, Descriptions of Blood

Previous Chapter: Cherry Blossom Storm

Next Chapter: Speed of Sound

Tags: Soulmates AU, Angst, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Fem!Reader

Taglist: @lessie-oxj, @rizzo-nero, @whoreuc, @fkngkumiko, @isl3t

Notes: If you want to be tagged for every update, please mention it in the comments below ty <3

Chapter 5: Special Grade

After you bid goodbye to the two girls, you went off back to your dorm room to get dinner, when you bumped into the girl who lived next to your room.

“Oh hi!” She greeted you with a big smile. “I’m Miwa Kasumi, you can call me Miwa. 1st year here! Please take care of me.”

“Hello! I’m Tsuchimikado Y/n, you can call me either Tsuchi or y/n I really don’t mind either way. Also my first year here, please take care of me!” you grinned.

“Ahhh, I’m so nervous to start class here. Are you ready for it?”

“To be honest I’m also nervous, but pretty excited! Ah, I have to go eat dinner now and call my family, but tomorrow I’m free to chat more. You can come over to my room if you’d like.” You offered.

She agreed and bid you goodnight.

◇◇◇

You were able to get to know Miwa before classes began, and it was really fun getting to know her. She talked about her brothers and her origins, but admitted that she couldn’t give out too many details on her technique.

“I’m sorry y/n but I was told to keep it a secret. Even among other jujutsu shi. And I’m just doing all I can to support my brothers.” She sadly spoke.

To which you didn’t mind too much, as you were the same. The Tsuchimikado does its best to keep their strongest techniques and passed down family legends under wraps, to prevent themselves from being targeted by curse users.

“It’s no worry at all, you don’t have to share anything you don’t want to share. And I won’t pry. I come from a minor Jujutsu clan and understand the need to keep cursed technique details a secret.” You smiled and offered her more biscuits.

If you don’t stand out, you would have less affairs to worry about. Unlike the great 3 Jujutsu clans. And because of this, you sort of grew up in a regular loving home, with the exception of normalcy brought by the need to kill curses.

◇◇◇

Classes soon started after and honestly they were not too bad. You all got your student ID cards on the very first day.

You were surprised to see that you were awarded a Special Grade title on the very first day… not what you expected. The rest were, as expected, Grade 4 jujutsu sorcerers.

Everyone starts on the same level and can have their ranks increased as they go. They can get recommended to Grade 2 and/or Grade 1 based on their performance.

Geniuses were said to start as a Grade 2 sorcerer in their first year. Grade 3 was average for a jujutsu high student. And a special grade is an anomaly.

You were pretty sure that you and your family kept your condition under wraps and yet… You looked up to Utahime and asked if you could have a chat outside. She eyed you knowingly and the others stared at you as you left the room.

“Uhhh… There seems to be a mistake with this. I don’t think I am fit to be a Special Grade yet Utahime sensei.” you explained to her truthfully.

“Tsuchimikado chan. You are from a minor Jujutsu clan, that's true. And while it is very rare for an esper to be born in your clan, there was a higher up who was in touch with your father. They received enough information about your technique, albeit not all of it of course, and cursed energy levels, deeming you to be a special grade.”

You just stared at her in shock at all this info. Sure you’ve been sparring with your cousins, and yeah nobody could come close to you when you had mastered your basic barriers and cursed technique. But you didn’t expect to get this far.

Then Utahime sighed, “Okay I’ll be honest. There was one other person who actually pushed for this and was surprisingly agreed to by the elders.”

You felt yourself tense up, “Who?”

“Gojo Satoru said you were capable of dealing a massive destruction over a large scaled area. And of course, the jujutsu higher ups are aware as to what happened to you when you were 6 years old.”

“Satoru nii!” You paled, blood draining out of your face, but before you could open your mouth Utahime consoled you. “It’s okay. It’s kept top secret… well as much as a secret can be amongst the Jujutsu school leaders and higher ups. Don’t worry, we understand your situation.”

You just nodded, still as white as a sheet. ‘They know, oh gosh of course they know!’ you thought with horror.

“Okay, now nobody should give you any trouble. Just relax, you’re not forced to give out any info to the other students if you don’t want to. It’s okay,” She pushed you back into the classroom where the other students were chatting.

“Haiiii, let’s start class now.” Utahime called out to which you all responded with a “Yes sensei.”

◇◇◇

Everything started to calm down and settle at school for you after that day.

Most of your time was spent in the classroom with regular subjects. But then you’d have the added physical training and cursed energy management with Utahime sensei, which you always looked forward to the most.

“Okay, time to form pairs now. Mai and Y/n. Miwa and Mechamaru, try to disarm and pin down your opponent if you can. Y/n go easy on the others.” Utahime sensei spoke, to which of course you agreed to.

Amongst the first years, both you and Mechamaru seemed to be the most capable, proficient even with long range techniques.

Mai and Miwa were weak in close combat quarters when they were disarmed. And it was too easy for you to disarm them with minimal cursed energy, as you spent a lot of time sparring with your older male cousins.

“Hup!” You closed in on Mai and kicked the gun from her grasp before flipping her body and pinning her to the ground. Mixed martial arts definitely comes in handy.

“Ouch, she said to go easy on me Y/n. You’re still pretty rough.” Mai spat out. “Get strong now or you won’t last on the battlefield. You have to focus on surviving.” You darkly said. Mai was shocked at that since you were always so bright and cheerful.

But everyone else noticed that whenever you were training, (whether it be by yourself in your free time or sparring with the others during class) you seemed like an entirely different person. Cold, calculating, detached, strong and fierce.

But of course, you always did your best to help them improve. “Mai, you’re moving your body wrong. Stabilise your footing, then aim. If I come close to you from the side, try to hit me based on your peripheral vision quicker.”

Truth be told, she improved. “Thank you y/n. You seem familiar with martial arts. Do you do any?” She asked you during break time.

Mechamaru and Miwa listened in, facing you curiously. The entire school is now aware of your Special Grade status, but everyone was still shy to outright ask you about the full details of how it was granted.

“I do. I’ve grown up sparring with my older male cousins all the time. Mixed martial arts, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and Krav Maga. Not sure if you guys know of Tsuchimikado Hiroki? Graduated from Kyoto Jujutsu high a few years back.”

“I’ve heard of his name in passing, but I don’t know of him. Your clan is kept pretty well under wraps after all.” Mai said. You smiled and nodded.

You were set to spar with Mechamaru after the break. This is where it got interesting. You activated your technique for the first time since training started as he shot laser beams at you.

He did everything he could, but even with his sword options, and strongest bursts of cursed energy, nothing hit you while you stood in the same spot.

You had activated your cursed technique, and made the space around you warp, making the attacks bounce off. Mechamaru had pretty solid power, but it wasn’t enough to rock you.

You held out one hand, “Enhanced gravity: Output level 5%” and Mechamaru’s body crumpled against the ground. You increased the air pressure above his body until he shouted, “Give!”.

You released your technique and thanked him for the fight. Mai and Miwa had stopped sparring to watch the both of you.

“Wow.” Miwa said with sparkling eyes. “No wonder… she’s special grade.” she whispered.

To be honest, at the end of the day labels and rankings meant NOTHING to you. You wanted all your allies to get as strong as they can be, so that they won’t suffer during missions.

Which is why you openly offered advice and help when they needed it. You’ve had enough of loss.

◇◇◇

When you had your free time you made your way to the library as was planned. You had a list of topics to burn through. Past lives, shared visions, alternate worlds, future visions… and the topic of soulmates. You had to get to the bottom of whatever happened between Noritoshi senpai and you.

The Tsuchimikado clan did have its history and legends as well. You had information on the other big 3 clans and their techniques. Along with that information came the basic legends of old. Soulmates, possibilities of inherited memories, parallel worlds, and some of the most evil of curses to exist. (Such as Ryomen Sukuna).

But you were sad to see that there was a lack of books on soulmates. Only some left on alternate and Parallel Worlds. 'Is the library lacking??? Didn't expect that.' You thought sadly.

You asked the librarian about it but, "I'm sorry my dear, we only have what's there on the shelves. There's a possibility the books have been borrowed. I can check the database for you."

"Yes please, thank you so much."

"Ah yes….. Kamo kun has taken some books on soulmates, parallel worlds, foresight and Abe no Seimei. Are those any of what you're looking for?" She asked.

You felt yourself pause. Okay so you were both thinking along the same lines. Not surprising.

"Yes, I can just wait for him to return it or ask him about it then. Thank you so much that was a great help!" You bid her your goodbyes and left the library.

Not to worry, you were going to see him real soon.

Author's notes: These first few chapters focus heavily on world building to set the pace for the story. You'll see a lot more of Nori in the following chapters <3

Blood Bound: Table of Contents

[evita-shelby]

Incantatrice

Chapter 7

“What do you want?” Eva asks her former lover once Luca leaves as he was ordered.

“Clear the air, like my suegro keeps saying.” She answers still drinking Patricio’s liquor.

“Go on.” Eva stays where she is and crossed her arms.

Eva was owed an apology, an apology she would refuse until she felt well enough to forgive her.

Maybe when she and Luca return from Rome, Eva will do it.

“I am sorry I fell in love with Franco and was not honest with you about it, I am sorry I had the god-awful idea of not inviting you to my wedding and I am sorry I made things worse by cutting off all my communication with you. It was a shitty thing to do, and I am sorry I did it when you were at your weakest.” It is genuine, even if Antonia’s voice makes it sound a little insincere, but Eva knows this woman like the back of her hand.

And to prove her sincerity, Toña, put the glass on the side table and stood up. Made sure Eva could see how much she meant it.

But even that couldn’t make Eva forgive her before she has fully healed from it all.

“I don’t think I am ready to forgive you. Like you said you hurt me when I was at my weakest, hiciste leña de un arbol caido, and I need time to see if I can trust you not to hurt me again.” The witch said hoping she did not sound as hurt as she still felt when Antonia dealt her the final blow.

“I loved you and you loved me, maybe we were never meant to be, but I hope we can be friends like we used to.” She walks towards the witch repentant, and when Eva only moves out of the way, she leaves to rejoin the family.

“How much did you hear?” Eva asks Luca who had not left.

“Enough. I did not become who I am now by following all my orders, Evuccia.” There is a warning in his voice, but there is that edge that thrills her.

Luca had the appeal of war, of danger, glory, and adrenaline.

“So now you know I am sexually ambidextrous, so to speak. Antonia and I were lovers, things ended badly, and they ended for good, you won’t have to worry about me leaving you for a woman.” Eva hates this part; the I hope you don’t think I am an abomination and that you aren’t the type of man to hurt a woman for not abiding to the norms when it comes to love and sex.

“I trust your word,” he says. For now, she can hear it unsaid.

Not good enough, but still sufficient enough for her.

A shame that in this day and age Eva has to content herself with adequate and sufficient understanding instead of true acceptance.

Still, they pretend this never happened especially when Magdalena escapes her bedroom in her peach-colored night dress and ambushed them in the hallway.

Maddy is intrigued by Luca, asking all sorts of questions and saying all the nice things she can think about Eva.

It is adorable even if a bit embarrassing.

“Israel said you are very smart, and papa said we wouldn’t let stupid people into the family anyways.” Magdalena finished her assessment of him and gave him her seal of approval.

“And how would you know I am very smart, bambina?” Luca makes the mistake of asking her.

Please don’t say the thing about the nose, this she prays to whatever gods can hear her. Eva will kill Izzy tomorrow.

“Israel says men with big noses are very smart.” Magdalena says too honestly to everyone’s collective horror.

That’s it, Eva is never going to marry Luca.

“I feel like I shall spend the entire night apologizing to you and still it won’t feel like enough.”  Eva apologized as he just chuckled about it.

He was used to it, he said that at least Maddy had somehow made it a compliment.

“Don’t worry about it, Evuccia.” He pushed her against the wall, and she knew this man was not like the rest. There was nothing that would scare him off, nothing to stop him from making her his. “I will let you make it up to me tomorrow at the office, maga. Might be what gets me through all those meetings I have.”

“Won’t your secretary mind, cariño” Eva could taste the wine in his breath. She wanted him, she may not love him yet, but lust is a good consolation prize she thinks.

She’d find a way to get him to fire her, he had fucked his secretary like most men do. Eva would be an idiot to let him keep her that close.

Luca is hers, and if he expects him to remain only his, he must do the same.

“Does my secretary make you jealous, cara mia?” he asked pinning her and making her wish they didn’t have to return to her family.

“Terribly, always been selfish that way, you know.” Eva answered wanting to kiss him to show him how much she wanted him, but he keeps her just constrained enough to make it impossible.

“You won’t see Antonia; I won’t see Laura.” He proposes and Eva thinks it’s a good proposition.

The secretary is pretty and Italian, Laura, was involved with the Family and had a brother or a father working for them.

Laura hates Eva. Eva had been unlike the other women, the only one who somehow got his attention and made him unable to even think of having someone on the side.

“I won’t see anyone, not Antonia, not anyone else if you promise me to do the same.” Eva hopes he will agree to her change in the terms, he had only implied he would not stray, she needed him to swear to her he will not betray her like Antonia and Diosdado had done so many times.

“Te lo guiro, maga, she will be gone tomorrow if you want it so.” He swears and Eva believes him…for now.

[bitchesgetriches]

Hey bitches, let's dream. What would you do with a no strings attached $10k, $100k and $1m donation to BGR?

Oh. OH.

This question made my brain blush with serotonin. I will happily answer this.

If we had $10K, we would hire a part-time assistant to help us. The funny thing is: when you do something you really love, you only do The Thing Itself a small fraction of the time. We have all of Season 2 of the podcast recorded, but it takes us months to release because we’re doing all the research, editing, writing, and promotional stuff ourselves. I often sit down intending to write, only to end up working on taxes and updating security certificates. All that invisible administrative work is a drag, and it would be awesome to have a little help with it.

A lot of folks in our position have one or more virtual assistants to help them. It’s very affordable, if you hire someone in a low cost of living country. I’m not gonna say we would never do that, because I’m willing to do what it takes to grow our audience and help more people.

But...ugh. It just doesn’t jive with our ethos?

Like. BGR is a sisterhood founded in a shared dream of promoting economic justice and empowerment. We couldn’t add an assistant unless we found someone who was really fired up about our mission and we enough money to show them respect for their time. $10K would be enough to pay someone $20/hour for 10 hours of admin work per week. That would be totally life-changing for BGR.

If we had $100K, we would both make this our full-time job. 2020 is the first year we’ve paid ourselves through BGR. I cannot thank our Patreon donors enough for their support. It is so meaningful, ESPECIALLY now that Piggy has lost her job.

But, real talk: the last time I calculated it out, Piggy and I were paying ourselves about...$3/hour.

The overwhelming majority of our donors give $1/month. Those donations mean the world to us, because we know they’re likely coming from folks who don’t have more to give! But, you know, we write from our hearts, and that takes a lot of spoons. We have to balance against our day job (or hunting for a new day job, in Piggy’s case) and activities that refill the cup: eating, showering, sinking 200 hours into a video game I only sorta liked, etc.

We have considered lots of options for additional monetization, and rejected pretty much all of them, because we just can’t get away from the idea that it’s unethical to charge poor people money for advice on how to stop being poor. We’ve had lots of sponsorship offers; we’ve even had major financial companies inquire about buying Bitches Get Riches. Ego-stroking and wallet-filling as that is, we don’t think it’s in our fans’ best interest.

The donor model feels good to us right now. We hope that the people we’ve helped will remember us and pay it forward by donating. It’s not giving us rent money, but it’s grocery money. And we stan groceries. But seriously, if someone handed BGR a hundred geez, I wouldn’t even send in my letter of resignation---just fling my work computer onto the lawn of my old office and see how long it took for them to stop sending me paychecks. They’re awfully bureaucratic, it could take a while!

Telling you what we would do if we had $1M requires some embarrassing dream-disclosures, but hey, let’s do it! I had to leave home when I was 17. And I did some really risky things to get by on my own. Now, everything worked out well for me in the end! But I got help from a lot of strangers. Many of them were wise older women who never asked questions, just gave me what they could: a spare room, a job, a place at their table on Christmas. BGR is very much my attempt to do what was done for me, on the widest scale I possibly can.

But if I had a milly?

Ho mah gad, this is embarrassing, but...

My won-the-lottery dream has always been to buy land somewhere beautiful, and build a bunch of tiny-home style cabins around a big main house. Half would be rented out to artists working on finishing a project (writing their book, programming their game, whatever). The income from those rentals would subsidize the other half of the cabins, which would be free short-term housing for people who need help getting out of shitty situations.

I would live at the big house and manage the property. I’d cook delicious family dinners, and invite interesting speakers, and create a safe and inspiring environment for my guests. We’d have a bunch of old rescued animals around too, because animals can do so much to put life into perspective and teach you how to be kind to yourself AND ALSO BECAUSE ANIMALS ARE V. CUTE.

Obviously BGR would live on, with this sanctuary as its headquarters. With more opportunities to come together in-person, we could host seminars and retreats and conferences. (A pressing need, since the guy who runs our main industry conference took a hard right turn onto MAGA Alley and got canceled faster than a critically-acclaimed LGBT tv show.)

Sorry, Piggy, in this dream, you and Bear would have to come live with us. I know how much you hate the outdoors, loathe home improvement projects, dread serving huge Italian family-style dinners, despise the thought of teaching city people how to fish, and weep at the idea of playing your guitar out on the lawn while interesting, kind people talked quietly and sipped wine and tapped away on their laptops until the fireflies came out. You said I could answer this question, so you don’t get a say, tough titties.

Thank you for asking this lovely question. The time I wasted on this daydreaming has me fired up for doing all the other things I have to do today! Like editing all these dagum podcast files. I’ll see about getting episode one dropped tomorrow-ish.

What about you guys? What would YOU do?

[keelywolfe]

FIC: The Royal We ch.1 (baon)

Summary: Family helps family. Sometimes right into the path of an oncoming car.

Tags:  Spicyhoney, Kustard, Established Relationships, Angst, Hurt/Comfort

Part of the ‘by any other name’ series.

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Read it here!

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When they first came to this universe, it hadn’t taken long for Edge to realize that things were very different here than back home in Underfell, (no, not home, not for a long time now). The changes took some time to absorb and some might never fully integrate, as his freezer filled with stocked up meals would attest. But there were a few universal constants and while all of them grew up with their brother as their only relative, they all knew that family helped family. Even when that family was a pack of alternates who appeared later in life.

Which was how Edge found himself on his day off sitting on the floor of what was currently Papyrus and Blue’s house, making party favors for Undyne’s baby shower.

The living room was strewn with decorations waiting to be placed, streamers and banners in an eclectic rainbow of colors, uninflated balloons spilling out of a bag like the leftover skins of a particularly garish fruit. The party itself wasn’t until tomorrow, but that left little time to waste, considering the plans Papyrus had drawn up.

Plan was perhaps an overstatement, but Edge could never fault Papyrus for his enthusiasm. His color scheme, on the other hand—well. He’d never approved of the way some Humans were so obsessed with gender that they actually assigned colors at birth but there was a great distance between that and a design that might cause any guests with fleshier eyes to scramble for sunglasses.

Papyrus was bustling around setting things up while the rest of them were sitting on the floor in a circle around a coffee table that was cluttered with craft supplies. He’d paired each of them off to work on separate projects and for all that the occasion was a joyous one, the mood was decidedly not.

“how many of these things do we need, anyway?” Stretch grumbled. His and Jeff’s assigned duty was to pour a mixture of toffee-coated popcorn into small plastic bags, tie it closed with a ribbon, and then affix a sticker on the front that declared in cheery letters ‘Ready to Pop’!

Edge was morbidly curious as to how Undyne felt about that particular sentiment this close to the end of her pregnancy.

A glance at the finished bags confirmed that Stretch’s ribbons were less a bow and more a tangle of colorful knots, Jeff’s only a slight improvement. The bags were sealed at least, and Papyrus was more than content with the effort, which was all that really mattered.

Besides, Edge was busy with his own task; planting tiny succulents into miniature pots, each with a painstakingly attached tag reading, ‘Watch Me Grow!’. Privately, he thought the small cacti were a far better representation of Undyne than any snack, but then, he wasn’t the one actually throwing the shower.

“How many do we need,” Papyrus repeated thoughtfully. Edge pointedly did not ask about the garland in his hand which seemed to be made of dangling fish ornaments and…was that tomatoes? Edge decided it would be best not to know, lest he end up lying awake tonight with the answer still haunting him. “Well, there is Undyne’s co-workers in Security and Alphys’s at the lab, plus their neighbors and friends, and of course us!”

“i don’t need no damn cactus,” Red muttered sullenly. How Papyrus even got Red here was another burning question, though the answer was likely Sans sitting placidly right next to him. His collar was visible over the neckline of his t-shirt, the buckle glinting in the light. Occasionally he reached up absently to touch it as if to verify it hadn’t wandered off when he wasn’t looking. Their entire duty seemed to be putting cans of sparkling water into drink koozies emblazoned with such witticisms as ‘nacho average baby’ over a cartoon of a tortilla chip. It was anyone’s guess as to if that task was actually assigned to them or simple the one they’d decided on doing, but between them, there were four cans done after a half an hour of work.

Sans managed to slide another can into a koozie, bringing their grand total to five. “paps, that didn’t really answer the question.”

“That would be because I am not finished counting!” Papyrus scolded. “There’s also Undyne’s ‘Cooking with Krav Maga’ class and naturally all the Dreemurr family will be coming.”

“great, ass-gore will be here,” Stretch muttered, fumbling to tie another ribbon with varying success. “i’ll be sure to bring my headphones.”

Edge sighed inwardly. Stretch was in a prickly mood and had been all day, and it didn’t take a scientist-level IQ to know it had something to do with the baby shower. They’d known about this for days; when Papyrus asked if they would help, Edge hadn’t hesitated to agree. Now he was wondering if he shouldn’t have asked Stretch in advance. He hadn’t refused to come, but he’d been twitchy and snappish since getting up that morning, only getting worse when they came over. If the party were for anyone but Undyne, Edge would have suggested they go home.

Adding to the irritation was Red in a poor mood of his own and he hadn’t a single qualm about casting sparks around a gasoline spill. “good, no one wants to hear you flappin’ your yap, anyway. save your 280 characters for your twitter freaks.”

“aww, jealous?” Stretch cooed, “‘cause, you talk so much crap, i dunno whether to you need toilet paper or a breath mint.”

Edge exchanged a weary look with Blue, who returned it with equal exasperation. Those two had been sniping at each other all morning and it was Blue’s turn to attempt a least a little fire prevention.

“Really, Papy, that’s enough,” Blue said reprovingly. That might stop them briefly, but they all knew from past experience it wouldn’t last. Red and Stretch were alike in a number of dissatisfying ways, past the darkened circles of exhaustion that were currently visible beneath both their sockets. For one, most of them weren’t above returning a good insult with a better one, but Red and Stretch could be particularly vicious about it. Usually it was better to let them simply work it out between themselves; trying to intercede past a little mild scolding usually ended up getting you mixed up in the spat.

This time Edge was tempted, if only because Jeff looked supremely uncomfortable. He fumbled with his latest little bag of popcorn and ended up with a good portion bouncing into his lap rather than the treat bag.

For the time being, Sans seemed content to allow them to try to rein in their brothers, and that would likely last until their petty squabbling might upset Papyrus. Who thus far either hadn’t noticed or was content to allow the others to handle it. Edge hoped it was the latter. The crack in Papyrus’s skull was still starkly visible, although his balance seemed much improved, if the way he all but leapt from the ladder was any indication, digging furiously through an overflowing box of even more decorations.

“sure, bro,” Stretch said to his brother’s scold, and then promptly added a mumble of, “don’t see why he has to be here, anyway.”

“’cause it ain’t your party, it’s hers, and she’d want ‘im,” Red grumbled. Then, in a smirking sotto voce, “’sides, i figure he’s the baby daddy so be kinda rude not to at least give ‘im a party favor.”

“There is no baby daddy, since neither Undyne nor Alphys want to be called daddy, and it’s much ruder to speculate,” Papyrus called primly, confirming that he was indeed listening to the ongoing bickering. He stood with his hands on his hips, eyeing the growing balloon sculpture critically. Edge joined him in looking, biting the tip of his tongue to hold back any questions, especially on whether the design was supposed to be Undyne or an eggplant. Never ask when you didn’t want to know the answer and Papyrus wove in another long, purple balloon as he went on, “and also Asgore can’t be the donor because I am.”

A hush of silence fell, along with a number of wide sockets and eyes turning to Papyrus’s direction. No one’s were wider than Sans’s at what was obviously unexpected news to him as he blurted, "seriously, bro? you're the one who handed over the baby batter for undyne?”

Papyrus frowned at them all reprovingly. “That is rude AND crude, I'll thank you not to refer to it that way.”

"sorry, bro, but fuck,” Sans sputtered, “you didn’t say anything!”

"Is there a reason I would need to?” Papyrus asked, brow bones raised, “Undyne is my best friend and wanted a child, so of course I would help provide the necessary material in her time of need!"

“necessary material,” Stretch muttered, his face scrunching up, and in that Edge could only agree, “right.” He nudged Jeff with an elbow, who yelped aloud and jumped, sending up another miniature shower of popcorn, “uh, andy, i know we're best buds and all, but if you ever need--"

“Nope, I’m good,” Jeff said, a touch too loudly.

“happy to hear it.” Stretch gave him a grin that slowly faded. “see? so if asgore didn’t donate his, uh, time and effort, he can stay home."

“Honestly, Papy you can’t—" Blue began reprovingly, only to be drowned out by Red’s loud snort.

“what the fuck is your problem with asgore, anyway,” Red grumbled. He picked at his gold tooth, a tell that sent tension winding up Edge’s spine even as his brother added with lazy viciousness, “get over it already, you act like he’s your ex who fucked you over.”

The day seemed to be one for unexpected silences. Only this time the stares were directed at Stretch, who said nothing. He only sat white-faced, cellophane crinkling loudly as his hands fisted around the bag in his lap, his skull draining of color as he managed to look at anything but those stares.

Red let out a harsh chortle of laughter, “seriously? all this time you’ve been holier than thou about his lv and it’s actually ‘cause you used to give him the bone over in your ‘verse? fuck, now there is a mental picture,” Red moaned out gleefully, “oooh, fuzzy ass, stick it to me good! ram me with your furry wand of wonder and i’ll get your goat!”

A chorus of protests rose up, with Edge’s snarl of, “That’s enough!” rising to the top.

But Stretch was already standing, a litter of colorful ribbons shedding from his lap as he walked swiftly to the door.

“Rus—" Edge stood to chase after him, cursing his damned leg as it threatened to buckle under him. It was an exercise in futility from the start, as he’d known it would be. Stretch shortcutted the moment he was out the door, heading off Angel knew where to lose himself in the stew of his own thoughts. The temptation to look up where he’d reappeared on the phone app was strong, but Edge resisted it. Stretch had the right to be alone if that was what he wanted, particularly after that dig.

He sighed and went back into the house. Only to pause as he saw the various looks had transferred to him, all of them guarded, particularly Blue; his starry eye lights seemed to be anticipating anger at Stretch. As if this made any damned difference between them. Even Jeff looked near tears, like he expected Edge to already have Antwan on the phone demanding him to draw up divorce papers. It was damn well insulting, and he glared back at them all until those gazes dropped, Blue’s reluctantly last.

All except for his own brother. Red was grinning, savagely pleased, and if they wanted anger, the simmering urge to shout at his brother was rising to a roiling boil in him, his LV waking in his soul to twinge eagerly at the heat of it. Only that was likely exactly what his brother wanted, to be punished for his casual cruelties. Whatever was troubling Red, Edge wasn’t about to reward his masochism.

His own anger fell swiftly into disappointment; lately Red had been bordering on kind with Stretch, if it could be called that, treating him as a brother, or better, if Edge were honest with himself. A brother that needed his protection as Edge decidedly did not. It’d been some time since he’d deliberately needled Stretch and Edge couldn’t even understand why he’d chosen to do so today. Whatever his petty reasons, they weren’t sufficient enough to excuse that.

Edge kept his voice low and even as he said, “That was cruel.”

That satisfied smirk faltered and Red shifted to lean forward. “yeah? well, it's about time he starts getting’ over it. it ain’t the same guy and he’s married to you.”

“Affection for someone else is not any kind of betrayal and considering that all of you calculated our worlds have ceased to exist, there isn’t much opportunity for closure, is there,” Edge said, acid creeping in. "The state of my marriage is no concern of yours."

Red’s sockets fell half-closed as he said, dangerously soft, "you think so, boss?"

Then he flinched suddenly, yelping as Sans slapped him upside the head. "you’re so eager for stretch to get over shit, how about you practice what you preach.” He shoved a can of sparkling water into Red’s lap. “shut up and put on a fucking koozie.”

Red scowled hard and Edge did not miss his crimson gaze flicking to the collar around Sans's throat. Grudgingly, he did what he was told.

“Do not interfere with my marriage,” Edge said coolly. Not that such a statement would stop his brother, but at least it was said between them. Then to Papyrus. “I am sorry, but."

Papyrus only flapped his hands at him, shooing him away, “No, no, go, talk to Stretchy Me! I’m sure Cherry here would like to think about how much he hurt Stretch’s feelings and yours, his own brother, who has recently suffered an injury. And there are my own injuries to consider as well, sticks, stones, and words do hurt!"

Edge let him ramble and started for the door, then hesitated. The others were accustomed to a certain amount of internal friction, some of it formerly his and Stretch’s, from the moment they woke up in this universe. Their Human companion was not so inured to it and Edge crouched to set a ginger hand on Jeff’s shoulder, “Jeff, I’m sorry.”

“Nah,” Jeff waved it off, offering up a lopsided grin. “That was nothing. You should’ve seen Thanksgiving at my grandparent’s place. Don’t think my grandma ever got the gravy stains off the ceiling.”

“can’t just drop a hint like that and not give the story, andy,” Sans said, lightly. The others murmured agreement, eager to latch onto another topic.

Edge could hear as he went out the door, “Well, uh, see, my grandpa was originally from Norway, and—”

There were any number of places Stretch might go to nurse his internal wounds, but Edge had a fairly good guess as to the likeliest one. He drove home, parked his car in the driveway, but instead of heading up to the front porch, he went around the side of the house towards their fenced backyard. Before he was even close, he could hear Stretch talking and he went quietly through the gate to see him sitting outside the coop with Noodle settled into his lap, the laces of his untied sneakers trailing into the grass for Dumpling to peck at.

His skull was resting against one of the support posts, still too pale, his sockets closed and his vape drooping loosely from his long fingers. Vaping instead of smoking cropped up sometimes when Stretch was truly irritated, as if he subconsciously wanted control over something and settled for his nicotine addiction. Or perhaps it was to protect his feathered companions from secondhand smoke.

Noodle didn’t seem bothered either way, chirring softly as Stretch stroked his free hand down her back.

“—not like i don’t know i’m being a dick. that guy just pisses me off sometimes. asgore, not red. actually, they both piss me off, now that you mention it.”

Noodle made an inquisitive sound and Stretch sighed out a cloud of vapor. “yeah, yeah, i was in a mood before we even went over. i dunno, all that baby shit gets on my nerves for some reason.” He scratched lightly under Noodle’s chin and she cooed contentedly. “you’re right, it’s no excuse for being shitty. especially to papyrus, he’s all excited about throwing this party. even if the balloon thing was creepy, you should’ve seen it, like cthulhu’s second cousin after failed plastic surgery.”

“You weren’t being a dick.” Edge said, quietly. Stretch tensed and his sockets slid open, but he didn’t look up, his pale eye lights straying down on his poultry pal. Edge walked over and sat next to them, keeping a careful distance away, easily breached if Stretch wished, or a comforting barrier if he didn’t. “Perhaps a little rude.” Edge held up his thumb and forefinger an inch apart. “A little. My brother, on the other hand, was embracing his dickish nature.”

Stretch made a faint, amused sound, “red embracing his dick was not a chat i was expecting today.”

Then he leaned to the side, crossing the distance between them to rest his skull on Edge’s shoulder. He took the unsubtle hint and slid an arm around his husband’s slim shoulders, holding him in close, closing his sockets against the faint tremble in Stretch’s voice as softly spoke.

“he wasn’t my boyfriend. fuck, i never saw him get out of the ruins. i…might’ve given it a shot if he had,” his voice dropped to a bare whisper and Edge hummed encouragingly, already anticipating what was coming, “but i was fucking everyone back then. i was maybe a little infatuated, okay? that’s it.”

“All right,” Edge said, calmly, even as he tightened his arm around Stretch, holding him closer still. He was not jealous of Stretch’s yesterdays; his only commitments were his tomorrows, and despite what his brother might think, Edge was certainly not about to allow anything so trivial as a former crush on a dead man come between them.

Stretch heaved a watery little sigh. “but that isn’t it, not really. he was my friend and i promised him i’d take care of the kid. instead i—"

“Did what you had to do,” Edge interrupted firmly. He understood impossible situations better than most, his own LV-tainted soul aching to think of Stretch enduring what he had for so long, an impossible choice to make between his world and the intent of a murderous child.

Yet, even now, Stretch couldn’t be convinced that was true. He only sighed out a quiet, “sure.” Then, louder, “anyway. he was my friend. he would have hated to see what he was in this world. it’s just…it’s hard sometimes.”

“I know.” Hard to see alternates of people they’d known, a lifetime of memories to be set aside while learning a new person with an old face. Undyne was his own personal struggle and Edge could call her friend, but it wasn’t the same, it couldn’t be.

Next to him, Stretch snuggled in closer even as Noodle let out a querulous protest over the lack of petting. “i’ve been thinking. my hp is on the rise, right?”

“It’s 5 and a quarter, love,” Edge said dryly, reaching over to offer the chicken a gentle pat, Noodle’s dismay quickly turning to a rapturous croon, “and as happy as I am for it, I’d prefer if you didn’t decide to take up hang gliding or street fighting.”

"you're hilarious, babe." Another long, slow breath, before Stretch blurted, "i know i kinda railroaded you when we talked about this before. if you really want kids--" he faltered, his voice breaking as Edge listened in dismayed confusion, "i mean, if that's…we could…"

Suddenly Edge knew precisely what Rus was going to offer and he didn’t want to hear it. Didn’t want him to think in even the tiniest way that he’d lost some measure of Edge’s love by preferring not to have children and and he didn’t know how to stop him from strangling out the words.

So Edge cupped his face in a hand and turned Stretch’s head towards him to kiss that stammering mouth lingeringly, until he stopped trying and simply melted into the gentle touch. By the time he drew away, Stretch was the one making thin, dismayed sounds, trying to chase after that kiss for more, his eye lights hazy soft. Instead, Edge pressed a light, teasing kiss to the slight nodule of his nasal cavity.

"No, I don’t think so,” Edge told him, slow and carefully. Watching that much-loved face to make sure Stretch was hearing him. “I’ve considered it and I’ve decided I’m entirely too busy to add parenthood to my schedule. I’m going back to the Y this week, I think I’m better off trying to secure a place in this world for the children already in it.”

Poorly hidden relief flickered over Stretch’s face and Edge leaned in to kiss him again, silently hoping that he was truly believed this time. There was no doubt in his mind that Stretch would force himself to endure the stresses of having a child if he thought Edge wished it, but making Stretch bear the weight of unwanted parenthood was a nightmare not to be considered. He’d love the child, surely, but at what cost? Far higher than Edge would ever consider paying.

A sudden cackle came from inside the coop and Stretch jerked away, sitting bolt upright.

“the egg!” Stretch gasped, scrambling to his feet, “i never did get a chance to research her adopted egg. you think maybe it actually—” hatched, he did not say, almost superstitiously hopeful.

“It’s possible,” Edge hedged, doubtfully. They both started into the coop, only for a voice calling over the fence to stop them.

“Hello? Hello, is anyone home?” The words were couched with near panic and the voice was a familiar one. Stretch beat him to the fence, opening the gate as he limped as quickly as he could over.

“Janice?” Edge said, surprised and concerned. The fur on her face was matted and wet with tears and she wrung her hands, shaking as she tried to speak. It brought back unpleasant memories of the attack at the Embassy, when one of the protesters threw a brick at her. Even then her pain and fear were tempered under practicality as she asked Antwan to bring her children to the hospital, her thoughts on keeping her boys from fearing Humans more than they already might. To see her bereft of her usual firm control was concerning.

“Calm down,” Edge soothed, pulling her into his arms without a thought, even as he cast a wary glance around the neighborhood. Nothing seemed out of order, not yet, “What’s happened?”

She leaned against him heavily and he nearly staggered back a step. Tall as he was, they were of nearly an equal weight. “It’s Jude, he didn’t come home for lunch and I can’t find him anywhere!” She hitched out a sob. “None of the other children have seen him, my family has been looking but we can’t find him, I can’t—”

Her voice dissolved and Edge gave her a last pat before firmly pushing her into his husband’s startled arms.

“Stretch, stay with her,” Edge commanded, reaching for his phone, “I’m going to make some calls.”

“yeah, sure,” Stretch agreed hastily. He rubbed a soothing hand down her back as Janice struggled against her tears. “hey, we’ll find him. little guy couldn’t have gotten too far.”

Edge was already pulling up his contact list and couldn’t help the darkly sour thought that if this didn’t pull his brother out of his bad mood, nothing would.

~~*~~

tbc