#lovejoys never die

[snappycrow]

NO NO NO NO NO! I'M NOT GONNA JUST LET THIS SLIDE!

SBI (Sleepy Boys INC (incorporated)) Is a group name for Minecraft streamers Philza, Wilbur Soot, Technoblade and TommyInnit, that was "created" in 2020.

When i say "created" i mean named because they weren't like an official streamer group they were just a group of friends that were hanging out, streaming together.

Originally the group consisted of only Philza, Wilbur and Technoblade. Tommy joined later.

When the 3 of them were hanging out one night on February 17th 2020, just playing games they all at the same time tweted the same picture. Everyone got confused so Philza retweeted the tweet saying "this post was brought to you by Sleepy Boys Inc." Because it was like 4 am and they were all sleepy.

And this is how the name SBI got born!

Then Tommy joined.

During MCC 8 (Minecraft event) Tommy and Wilbur were teamed together. Tommy kept begging Wilbur that he wanted to join their group, so Wilbur said that he could if their team placed 5th or higher. Unfortunately that didn't go as it was supposed to. So Tommy had another chance in MCC 9. And they did it, they placed 5th and Tommy was on September 12th 2020, officially a part of SBI!

Those four hanged out a lot together and developed a sort of family dynamic. Because they were all different ages;

Tommy was 16 at the time,

Wibur was 24,

Technoblade was 20,

and Philza was 34.

So Philza became a sort of father figure, Technoblade and Wilbur were the older brothers and Tommy was the little brother of the group.

Because of different time zones and scheduals it was really rare for us to see them all play together on the same stream. Then the joke 4/4 was born.

If we saw all of them at the same place hanging out, we would start saying "oh, look 4/4 SBI!" as to all of them were hanging out that day, and streaming together.

Sadly in June 2022 Technoblade pasted away of cancer. (Rest in peace, king ❤️)

This didn't brake the group apart, not even the fandom but it definitely changed something.

We were still joking when the 3 of them were together that it was still 4/4, because Technoblade was now always with them. And he's still to this day.

The group are still very close friends. They are now together in a group channel called Sorry Boys.

But they all got different interests now, and are not hanging out on streams as often as they did.

Wilbur is a lead singer in his band Lovejoy, Tommy is starting a tour with his comedy show, and Philza is still playing Minecraft and probably will never stop lmao. But they are still very close friends off stream and will be for a log time on. :)

Anyways, i hope you all enjoyed this little rant. SBI is always gonna be so important to me and I'm never gonna let this name die. I don't think that anyone will of course. And if we keep talking about them, post art and write fan fics and AUs, I don't think that the name will ever die.

Anyways, SBI forever ❤️!

[modelbus]

Hello!! I LOVE your writing, like I’m obsessed! So, I can’t tell if your requests are open, buttt if they are, I would DIE for some fluff turned to angst of a fem!reader who is in a group with cc!Ranboo, cc!Tubbo, cc!Wilbur and cc!Tommy nicknamed the chaos squad by the fandom, where she is the least popular in the group and a rumour spread that shes only in it for the popularity, so they slowly stoped inviting her to streams and vlogs and ghosting her.

it could start with like three two sentence stories about the group (or something), how it was formed just fluffy moments, and then be like “but it didn’t stay like that for long..” and explain why she was subtly kicked from the group before a scene where shes streaming and gets asked about why shes not been in any videos anymore.

PHEW that was ALOT, if its to long you can obviously shorten it or just not do it- but if requests are open and you like the idea, I would love to see something like this!! <3

PS. You are super cool, keep up the amazing work!! (When you want to ofc)

-✨🌌🌙 Anon

Thank you so much! I tried my best to include everything :D This literally took me out of my writing slump

Part 2 :)

Pairing(s): cc!Ranboo, cc!Tubbo, cc!Wilbur and cc!Tommy x Fem!Reader (Platonic)

Cut Chaos

The feeling of belonging was something nearly everyone chased after. After all, being out of place was simply… lonely. And, somehow, you found yourself slotting into the weirdest place in the world.

A handful of stupid friends.

You always found yourself drawn to dumbasses, in the most affectionate way. Like looks for like, you suppose. And shit, did you find some people that could make you cry laughing even on the worst days.

Ranboo, Tubbo, Wilbur, Tommy. Four people that made the sun rise every day, that dragged you out of bed for the stupidest vlogs to ever exist. Fans adored the five of you together so much that you got a group name for the first time in your career: the Chaos Squad.

Truly, it was a fitting name. The things that the five of you got up to, you’re certain no normal sane person would do. But, well, your job as a streamer already set you apart from the category of “normal” a long time ago, so you definitely didn’t mind the messes you got into with them.

From Tommy dragging the group to an abandoned island, saying it’d be fun to try to escape (you fell out of a tree and Wilbur sprained his ankle), to screaming along at Lovejoy concerts, it felt like the five of you were unstoppable.

And God, did you love them. It didn’t matter how many times Ranboo hit his head on things, you’d still laugh. It didn’t matter that you literally passed out from laughing so hard once, you were still happy. Pure, unfiltered love.

The five of you against the world, forever. You could see it, in those sunny days where you grinned so hard your cheeks hurt (they were the first ones to make you do that—the realization only made you grin harder). The perfect idea of happiness.

Was it any wonder things didn’t stay that way, that perfect, for long?

A rumor.

It always seemed to start with one of those, nowadays. A simple murmur among fans that grew and grew, until you were closing out of twitter at 2, 4, 5 AM, debating if you should just delete the app and put your status on “Do Not Disturb.”

You accepted the fact that being a female content creator was going to be a struggle a long time ago. It was a fact, something you knew you couldn’t avoid, especially in gaming. Having rumors about you online wasn’t new. It would never be new, not as long as you were yourself.

But you thought you’d be past caring about them by now. You thought the tight panic that gripped your heart, made it hard to breathe, was a thing of the past. So stupid.

One private account turned into multiple threads, turned into trends on the trending tab.

Everyone thought you were using your friends, the chaos squad as a whole, just to boost your career. To leech off anyone’s subscribers, just for some money in your pocket.

The idea made you sick to your core.

How dare they? How dare they ever think you didn’t genuinely care for the four? That they were anything less than the lightness in your heart, the freedom on your mind?

Rumors.

You ignored them. Even the thought of addressing them made you feel pissed off like you’ve never been before. It was such an absurd idea! At the very least, you knew your friends would see past the hateful people.

Right?

It starts with an unanswered message in the group chat.

Unanswered messages weren’t new. A stray comment tended to get lost in the general mess that the group chat was, so you weren’t concerned. Just laughed to yourself quietly; it wasn’t important anyways, just a photo of a cat you saw.

Until it happened again. And again. Until more of your messages went ignored than responded to, until the group chat had less and less messages each day.

When the first vlog comes out, the process repeats. It’s on Tommy’s channel, of course. Him, Ranboo, Tubbo, and Wilbur. The chaos squad, just without you. It surprised you, because you never even realized they filmed a video, and normally all of you share upcoming videos.

All the warning signs were obvious, and you were too much of a damn fool.

You filmed one vlog with them after that, exploring a supposedly haunted house, before you woke up a month later and realized you hadn’t talked to them in a week.

One week turns into two, two into three, until you’ve realized what’s happened. You were gone, out of the picture. Happiness had slipped through your fingers faster than you could’ve ever comprehended, and now you were in a dark room—literally.

But what could you do? If they didn’t want you, there was nothing you could do to stop the unraveling of your universe.

So you did the same thing you did before them, defaulting back to what was safe: streaming alone.

Today, it’s just a mindless game. Yesterday was the same, and fuck, this isn’t the same anymore. Not when you don’t have Tubbo in the chat sending messages, or Wilbur using Text-To-Speech.

But you’re here, still streaming. Still going, no matter how tempting it is to just shut off your computer and pretend the last months of your life never happened.

There’s always fans though, and if anything cheers you up, it’s them. So your donations are on, allowing them to be read aloud while you play the silly little unpacking game.

“Where am I putting the diploma guys? Where does this go?” You ask, mouse hovering over the virtual object. “Maybe I’ll just put it under the pillow…”

“StarEmojis donated $15! If up is down and yes is no, how many sides does a triangle have?”

“Thank you, but… uh...” You narrow your eyes at the message. “None, it’s a circle?”

Shrugging, you drag the diploma in the game to under the pillow. The riddle sounds familiar, but not one you know the answer to. It sounds like something Wilbur would send in the group chat at 2 in the morning, honestly.

With that thought in mind, your eyes flicker over the user that donated it. StarEmojis. Not Wilbur.

You’re so stupid for hoping. For the jump in your heart, for the frantic searching.

“StarStarMoon donated $20! Why aren’t you in any Chaos Squad videos anymore? Love you!”

Air catches in your lungs, dread swelling in your chest as your hands still on the mouse and keyboard. That shouldn’t have gotten past the moderators, but it did.

And now you have to answer it.

It wasn’t like you could tell the truth: that you weren’t good enough. That even your best friends didn’t believe you over rumors from strangers online.

Any lie would have a chance of getting back to them though. Not that you can imagine them caring, not anymore.

You swallow past the lump in your throat that’s killing you, taking a breath in before answering. One chance to get the fans to move on, one chance to find the impossible balance between the agony inside of you and cool indifference.

“We’re all just busy.” You say, forcing a smile on your face.

It’s true, at least. Everyone is busy. Everyone except you, that’s it.

“Just scheduling problems. Wil- Wilbur has Lovejoy practices and performances.” You stumble over his name. Did you even have the right to call him Wil anymore? “And Tommy is just always busy. He’s the busiest person, I swear.”

Is that true anymore? You don’t know. He used to be, but you used to help force him to take breaks. Was he taking breaks? You’ll never know.

With another forced smile, you give a half-hearted shrug. “So yeah, just busy, don’t worry guys.”

It’s with baited breath that you wait, eyes scanning chat to see if they bought it. From what you’re seeing, they have.

“Now we need to reorganize these clothes, because they’re killing me like this—“

Your discord pings quietly on another monitor, and you scramble to open it. Just your mods apologizing for letting the donation go through. You send a quick message back to them before pushing the donation to the back of your head just like everything relating to the group you’re no longer part of.

What could you do, anyways?

This was out of your control.

[dewdr0pz]

YN has social anxiety and in any case that YN and Wilbur are together outside hes always by her side.

And if YN is ever getting around people and Wilbur is around, he rubs his thumb across her hand a whispers loving things in her ear

💨 Breathe for Me 💨

Summary: You have social anxiety & in any situation where you & Wilbur are together outside he's always by your side, & if you're ever getting around people & Wilbur is around, he rubs his thumb across your hand & whispers loving things in your ear.

A/N: I'm sorry this was kinda late! I've been very busy as of late with schoolwork & choir practice & such. Hope you enjoy it!

word count: 488

contains: the reader nearly having a panic attack, social anxiety, pet names, the reader being sensitive to loud noises, the reader wanting to die (this happens while the party is going on & the reader wishes they were dead so they didn't have to go through this)

"Darling, are you completely sure you want to go to the party tonight?" Wilbur had just finished a show with his band & the plan was for everybody to have a party to celebrate their last day on tour. You weren't a very big fan of large parties.

"I'm sure I'll be fine," you lied. You were never fine.

He looked at you with uncertainty. "We can just stay on the tour bus, love. You know I won't mind."

"I'm sure I'll be fine," you repeated. You put your shoes on &, in an attempt to change the subject, you asked, "Where are we going for the party?"

"I really don't know," Wilbur chuckled. "Ash & Joe said something about a bar, but Leandra said to have a party on the tour bus, & Mark said something about a restaurant that's around here. You could go ask one of them, if you want to."

You shook your head. "I don't really care." Another lie. You were very curious, but you just didn't like talking to people.

Wilbur nodded in understanding. He took your hand & you two stepped out of the venue & were greeted by cheering fans. You quickly put your hands over your ears & quickly walked to the tour bus. You opened the door & stepped inside with a sigh of relief. Inside of the tour bus stood the rest of Lovejoy, who greeted you with waves & "hello"s. You greeted them with a smile as soon as Wilbur walked in. & then, almost spontaneously, the party started.

An hour later...

You were standing in the corner of a tour bus as you felt a panic attack coming. It was very loud & somewhat crowded on the tour bus & you wanted to jump off of a cliff. Wilbur was doing a chugging competition with the rest of the band & you couldn't be bothered to participate. Wilbur, of course, saw you in the corner of his eyes & rushed over to you.

"Lovely, what's wrong?" he whispered, leaning into your ear as he gently grabbed your hands. "Breathe for me, baby, deep breaths." You hadn't even noticed that you were hyperventilating until he told you to breathe.

"Loud & crowded," was all you could say. He nodded & shouted to the band, "OI! TURN DOWN THE MUSIC A BIT!" Leandra looked over at you two & quickly turned the music down a little bit.

"How about we go do the challenge, okay?" he whispered. "If at any point you want to step outside, we can do that, alright? & I'll hold your hand the entire time if you want."

A small smile crept onto your lips & you slowly nodded. He returned the smile & kissed your cheek. For the rest of the evening, he was right beside you, holding your hand & whispering sweet nothings into your ear when he had the chance.

He was the best boyfriend you could ask for.

[mystic-crochet]

It's finally finished!!

My Unprepared Casters crochet project has taken me 3 months but I've reached a point where I'm really happy with it

For the corners, I tried to use the hosts colours to tie it all together (blue for Haley, purple for Gus, and blue for Amelia)

Thank you for everyone's support and kind notes! And if you've seen this but have never listened to Unprepared Casters, you should!

I'll probably go back to posting random small crochet projects on this blog, but if anyone has any suggestions for things to make, podcast related or otherwise, please send me an ask!

If you want to see all the squares up close, you can scroll back on my blog, or I'll leave links to the individual posts under the cut

Arc 1: Dragons in Dungeons

Arc 2: Lovejoy's Four

Arc 3: Gonna Raise Hell

Arc 4: Orb is Life

Arc 5: Lives of the Party

Arc 6: The Glacerian Trail

Arc 7: Wizards Off the Coast

Arc 8: The King is Dead

Arc 9: Once Upon a Crime

Arc 10: Daggers Out

Arc 11: Off the Rails

Arc 12: Die Hot

[demigod-jack-hearth]

POTENTIAL SPOILER WARNING FOR SONG OF ACHILLES, BUT I'LL TRY TO AVOID THEM

this is probably going to sound like an essay you would write at school. idk why but when I go on rants like this my writing turns formal for some reason.

Y'all I just finished reading Song of Achilles for the first time... and I have thoughts

firstly, I'm gonna recommend that if you're planning on reading this book, which I think everyone should at some point, you should wait until you're at least 15-16 years old. Cos there are some SPICY scenes that are definitely not kid friendly, so younger kids probably shouldn't be reading it.

But generally it's an amazing book. It's filled with beautiful wholesome gayness that makes me feel fuzzy, and the way that Madeline Miller wrote it using an older style of language really gives it an older feel than when it was released, 2011.

While I was reading the book, because of how well written it is, I kept on forgetting that this is not actual mythology no matter how much it feels like it should be, and I know this is probably because it was heavily inspired from the 'Iliad', but like, if the author had said it was really mythology, I wouldn't doubt them for a minute.

Every time there was a little chunk of wholesome gayness (like every few pages) my heart got all fuzzy and it made me smile, because of the way that it was written really makes you feel the love that the two characters have for each other.

But aside from the wholesomeness, this is based on Greek mythology, so you know we gotta have several different things, and I'm gonna list them

a complete asshole that you hate but refuses to die

the gods being assholes

the gods fucking shit up

divine intervention

a prophecy

✨Greeks doing stupid things✨

I'm gonna tag people cos idk who else has read it and I wanna rant.

@emdabitchass @pink-koi-lovejoy @gaygirldoodles @ariathemortal @bast-the-best26 @silena-daughterofaphrodite @demeters-daughter-is-done @zariahthewitch @the-smart-and-the-dumb-one @i-was-never-sane @gellyhelio @creature-under-ur-bed @goddess-of-tragedy

[sjbattleangel]

"I'm not (media illiterate)."

Lily, you are one of THE MOST media illiterate people on the face of the earth! You decided Moon Girl And Devil Dinosaur was "automatically garbage" because you heard it was going to be serialized; You dismissed Amphibia as "irredeemable trash, sight unseen" because you heard it had a story and fell for some stupid nontroversy regarding a crew member's fanart; You sided with Disney suits when they cancelled The Owl House for being "too dark and scary for kids" to appease some moral guardians and watchdogs (who may've not even existed)! You want to control what kids watch, you want all of animation to be nothing but toothless, slice-of-life romantic comedies with no action, stakes or soul. Just like your crappy coffee shop AUs.

Not to mention whenever any piece of media contains disturbing and/or problematic moments, you automatically believe it equals "endorsement" and to you, we're all impressionable babies who can't tell fact from fiction and need to be "protected for our good." You just want censor and police fiction to satisfy your own holier-than-thou self-indulgence. Helen Lovejoy much?

"I didn't (accuse Rebecca Sugar of being a sex fiend)."

Hermana, WE HAVE RECEIPTS!

You and your simps decided that a sweet, wholesome picture of Steven wearing his mother's hand-me-downs is somehow Rebecca Sugar's way of "sexualizing him." Even more, in your awful Rebecca Sugar Must Die video, you accused Sugar of sexualizing the character of Stevonnie and that through fusion, Sugar made Seven and Connie "have sex". For this you constantly attacked Sugar as a "creep", "pervert", "disease", "fascist sympathizer", trying your hardest to convince everyone that Sugar is some Neo-Nazi pedophile.

No, Lily! Rebecca sugar is not-and never has been-a Neo-Nazi pedophile! She didn't sexualize Steven! She didn't sexualize Stevonnie! But most of all, fusion was never a metaphor for sex!

The only ones sexualizing Steven, Connie and Stevonnie are YOU and your simps!

[myceliumsunshine]

random wilbur relationship things

pairings: wilbur x gn!reader

pronouns: you/yours

content/trigger warnings: fake fighting (maybe?), swearing

couple fights

depending on your height one of two things happen

if you're short/shorter than him you constantly threaten to beat him up

"fight me like a real man, tall boy" "you will actually die if i fight you"

if you're taller than him he will headbutt you before asking to 'scrap'

"i'll actually fucking scrap with you mate don't even test me" "oh shut it short stack"

petnames between the happy couple

wilbur calls you either darling, love or baby

if he's feeling frisky he'll call you bitch or cunt

"hey darling?" ... "darling?" ... "my love?" ... "bitch look at me" "what's up?"

in return you call him honey or mon amour

you're not french (or are you?) but because french is the language of love you like to call him that anyway

or you call him mon petit bureaux de change

"mon amour?" "what do you need?" "i have a new petname for you!" "oh that's lovely what is i-" "mon petit bureaux de change" "so you watched that video?" "many many times. speak french more often it's kinda hot-"

jealousy

jealousy doesn't really happen that often between you two

you know that wilbur would never cheat and he knows the same about you

but there are still those bad days when you or wilbur feel like shit about yourselves and you get jealous of the people around the other

you guys have a codeword to drop everything when the other feel like shit

"it's funny phil, tommy refuses to quit messaging me about going out for a vlo-" "GRAPEFRUIT!!!!!" "shit i gotta go, bye phil and kristen" *hangs up* "come here baby i got you"

"tommy if you ever buy me anything, buy me arctic monkey tickets" "GRAPEFRUIT!!!!!" "bye tommy! gotta go!" *hangs up* "cuddles mon amour?"

okay one more: lovejoy tours

it depends on your work really

if you can take time off to travel around the country with him then you do

if you can't then you spend every night on the phone with your boys (yes you refer to lovejoy as your boys, you love them all almost equally)

"hi boys!" "HI WILBUR'S PARTNER!!""HI MY PARTNER!!" "HELLO WILBUR'S PARTNER!!" "hey [NAME]!!"

leave a like and a follow if you enjoyed!

[marigoldsinamber]

Something Exciting (Reverend Lovejoy x Reader)

Summary:

From the day he first noticed you, he knew you didn't belong in Springfield. He never meant to fall for you as hard as he did; God must be tormenting him for something but he had no idea what it could be.

Ships: Reverend Lovejoy/Reader

Content Warnings: N/A

Word Count: 10.3k

⋘ 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑎... ⋙

Things so rarely changed in Springfield. The members who filtered through the church’s doors never really differed from week to week. It was one of the reasons he noticed you, standing just outside the entrance and leaning against the door frame to listen.

He couldn’t make out your features, saw nothing but the red of a skirt as the wind rustled by and he turned his attention elsewhere.

You stayed for the majority of the sermon but disappeared as he began on the final prayer like a strange ghost. Even after you disappeared, the reverend still glanced toward the entrance as he finished his announcements, still scanned over the crowds as they gathered on the church lawn.

He didn’t ask Helen about it though he knew his wife would probably be the most likely to have answers. If he’d imagined you, he’d rather not have people talking about how he might be losing his mind.

The next week, once again, you appeared halfway through the sermon – slipped through the open door and stood just inside the building.

Now he could confirm you were real and certainly not from around town, he stared a second too long. Though his words continued, his gaze locked on yours and so did the ever-watching eyes of the front row who always paid a mite too much attention to his mannerisms.

It was almost cartoonish how they looked back in sync to see the newcomer who immediately ducked back out.

He almost rolled his eyes at the situation. If they wanted to encourage greater attendance at church, it helped not to gawk at people who might have entered late. Of course, he complained at those he’d met who arrived halfway through but you were new.

And it immediately turned into the main discussion once everybody filtered out. Helen asked just about all her friends if they had any idea who she might have been and the topic of his sermon went forgotten.

Though, to be honest, he scarcely remembered it himself.

“She’s not from around here,” Helen said the second they got in the car. She looked more awake than usual, only eager to speak about her information. “I asked around and nobody has friends or family open. Do you think she’s looking to move in? We might have a new family joining our flock.”

“I suppose she could just be a tourist,” he said slowly.

“In Springfield? Don’t make me laugh.”

“Anything’s possible.”

Anybody who visited the town got bored of it quickly though. He’d seen you for two Sundays in a row so it seemed Helen might be right.

She smugly informed of such at the dinner table that evening. “It looks like she might be moving into that empty house close to the Flanders. Apparently, she was being shown around a few days ago by a real estate agency.”

“Didn’t the woman who lived there die a painful and drawn-out death?”

“Well, yes but that probably means it’ll be available for a very good price. I can’t say she’s off to a good start if she disrupted the service like she did.”

By the time the next week rolled around, it appeared the town had already grown bored of its newest citizen. He spotted you hovering once more beyond the doors and considered inviting you to come take a seat. It couldn’t be too comfortable standing outside in the sun and listening.

As he was thinking of doing so, you slipped through the doors and took a seat at the very back, practically hidden in the darkest corner.

He gave a small tilt of his head in acknowledgement and continued, refocused his attention on nothing so nobody could ever accuse him of being too enthusiastic about what he preached. The last thing he needed was to invite another Ned into his life.

After he’d stepped outside to speak to all those who needed him (fortunately not many) and to bid his wife goodbye before she headed out to a brunch with her friends, he returned to find one person hadn’t quite moved. Your eyes still trained on the stained-glass windows, hair twisting in the light breeze.

He cleared his throat and you startled.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I got carried away looking at the windows,” you said and hurried to stand. “I’ll make my way out.”

He held up his hand. “No need to rush. If you’re searching for guidance, you’re more than welcome to spend your time here. Unless you find the doors locked which they will be from five to seven.”

You laughed and toyed with a strand of hair. “I wasn’t really praying, per say. I’ve just been admiring the windows for a few days now and I wanted to see how they look from the inside. The design work is phenomenal.”

He raised an eyebrow, curious. “I can hardly imagine anybody would visit the same building for three weeks just to look at the windows.”

“You’ve noticed?”

“If you’re going for inconspicuous, you ought to find a better hiding place. May I recommend behind the pipe organ.”

You laughed and your shoulders relaxed somewhat. “I’m sorry for hovering, really. I wasn’t trying to be secretive or anything but I’m still trying to get a proper feel for the town.”

“You’ve recently moved in.”

“I got a job nearby so I had to. I’ve explored most of the areas now but something about the church kept calling me over.”

He nodded solemnly. “Seems the Lord might be calling for you then. Our sermons are open to any who have willing hearts. You don’t need to hide in the shadows at the back of the hall.”

You laughed, soft and sweet. “I’m afraid I’ve grown rather fond of the spiders though.”

He glanced past you to see that there were a fair number of webs there. He sighed. It really was impossible to keep this place clean. Though Helen sometimes helped (and he refused to let Ned near him for that long), it felt continuously dirty.

“They’re as welcome as anybody else I suppose.”

You smiled and straightened your clothing which were likely to end up in the gossip mill around town if anybody saw them. Most of the woman took it upon themselves to enforce a rather strict modesty rule in the church that he never really cared too much about. They certainly wouldn’t approve of any of the outfits he’d seen you wearing.

Maybe that was why you hadn’t approached any of the others in town yet. Something might have warned you about their more judgmental nature at times.

Your gaze flicked to the windows once more and you smiled. “Praying’s never really worked before. Maybe it’ll be better this time.”

“The Lord answers us when we need him to,” he said, his answer almost instinctual. He’d needed to respond to so many with the same sentiment that he only paused when your expression fell somewhat.

“I guess there’s no harm in trying,” you admitted. “Thank you.”

And you left so quickly he didn’t even realise he hadn’t gotten your name. He glanced at the spot you’d been sitting in and wondered if he should try and get rid of the spiders before deciding it wasn’t worth the effort. If they bothered you enough, you’d probably eventually chase them by yourself.

The next time he saw you, he finally got your name.

He’d always considered Helen’s friendship with the Flanders rather unfortunate because it meant even more exposure to them than he wanted. The frequent bowling was, at least, one of the better options when it came to spending time with them.

Helen noticed you first, sitting with a small group that he only vaguely recognised. Certainly not churchgoers but perhaps your co-workers? You did appear far more comfortable with them than you did in any other interaction he’d had with you.

“Isn’t that your new neighbour, Maude?” Helen asked.

Maude gave a small smile. “It is. She’s quite lovely, you know, just very quiet. The boys always want to go and play with her dog but to be entirely transparent with you, I’m weary of letting them. I’ve never seen the animal so I don’t know what breed it is and some can be a little more inclined to bite than others.”

They probably wouldn’t be happy unless it was the size of a chihuahua but he didn’t say anything. The family feared just about everything.

“Quiet is one way to describe it,” Helen said. “Nobody knows anything about her except how she works in the accounting department for that horrible Mr. Burns and you know the standards of people he has working for him.”

“Rather unfortunate that he provides employment for half the town in some way or another,” he remarked dryly.

“But there are still plenty of places to work which don’t involve helping such an evil man,” Helen said with an affected shudder. “I still remember when he stole the sun.”

“She can’t be too bad though,” Ned said as he chose his ball. “Not many young girls like her willingly come to church. I invited her to come sit up front with us just the other day but she said she preferred her spot in the back. Not sure why but as long as she’s hearing the good word, I’m just chuffed she’s there.”

“Maybe she likes the spiders,” he drawled and met three very confused looks before he realised it didn’t make sense out of context.

Thankfully, Maude saved him from having to explain when she raised her hand to wave you over. You stepped away from your game and strolled over to say hello – clad in an ill-fitting bowling shirt that had to be loaned from somebody. Yet despite being a few sizes big, it somehow suited your look.

“Hey there neighbourino,” Ned greeted cheerily. “Didn’t know you bowled or I would have invited you to come with.”

“Oh, thank you but I don’t really bowl. A few guys from work invited me out so I thought I may as well give it a shot. They loaned me one of their shirts too but it’s a bit…” You pulled on the side to emphasis its size.

Ned laughed and nodded. “Well, if you end up enjoying it, you are more than welcome to come with us sometime. Say, have you met the reverend and his wife properly?”

Your gaze flicked to him and for a second, his mouth felt a little dryer than usual. You offered the same nervous grin you always gave him and finally provided him with a name before you shook his hand, grip featherlight.

“You work for Mr. Burns from what I hear,” Helen said after she’d introduced herself. “That must be so much fun.”

“Not really,” you admitted. “It’s pretty boring. I mostly keep track of expenses around the nuclear plant and try to limit them where I can.”

“Doesn’t really sound like the type of job you move all the way to Springfield for.”

“It’s not too bad. I didn’t have any real roots back home so when the opportunity presented itself, I just took it.”

“Really? No husband? Kids?”

You shook your head. “Neither.”

Helen laughed and nodded in understanding. “Don’t worry, you’re not missing much. My daughter has been causing so many problems lately. I feel like I’m getting a call from the principle on a daily basis.”

“Helen,” he said softly, pleading with her to quieten.

He knew she loved all gossip equally but he preferred it when it didn’t surround his family. He certainly didn’t need to form a reputation as a poor father around every newcomer to town. It was bad enough they had to constantly shell out money to replace whatever Jessica stole or broke at school.

You shifted your weight awkwardly. “You have a daughter? That’s lovely.”

“Sometimes but you know, she’s a bit much. I can only hope she’ll grow out of it.”

Maude nodded in agreement. “I’m hoping my two will get a little stronger as time goes on. They’re so sensitive to everything and I’m worried they won’t be able to handle the real world sometimes.”

Ned placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry Maude, they’ll be fine.”

You smiled and mentioned returning to your game, clearly somewhat uncomfortable with the conversation. He watched you for a little bit before he returned to his own bowling, content with no longer thinking about anybody new in town.

“She looks like she came from a big city,” Helen said, breaking his illusion. “They all have the idea they’re better than us in some way.”

“I think she’s just shy,” Maude said with a small smile. “She helps out where she can.”

He could mention how long you sat in the church after sermons, eyes trained on the windows, but he imagined that might cause more interest. Part of him was curious as well. It sounded like you might have moved away for more than a boring job and an empty house.

Maude was right though. You showed a keen interest in helping when the next Sunday, he drawled, “If you keep staying this late, I’m going to sign you up as a volunteer.”

You immediately asked what it entailed, which was a problem because he didn’t actually have much for a volunteer to do.

Maybe he’d misread the situation. Maybe you weren’t praying for some salvation or escape – perhaps you attended the church because you were bored. You certainly seemed eager when he found a few tasks you could help with. Take attendance, help clean some of the building, and do some research on topics for the next service.

You helped him set up the pipe organ when it needed tuning and gave ideas for small events the church could host to bolster attendance. It was actually very helpful but you arrived whenever you could and he started to wonder.

“I do hope I’m not taking you away from your actual job,” he said one day when he arrived to open the church and found you sitting against the locked door, a book in your hand.

You stretched as you stood, the edges of your shirt rising up above your hips just enough to notice. “The only thing I’m missing out on is lounging around at home. I don’t have too many things to do in town just yet.”

“There’s always walking your dog,” he commented.

“Oh, I don’t have a dog. I’ve been thinking of getting one though.”

He frowned but didn’t comment on it. What were the Flander boys chasing after if not a dog?

“I’m so glad you’re here!” Helen said excitedly and handed you a rather large box of baked goods that had been donated. “We need to make sure all of these are appropriate before we set them out. Last month, somebody put toothpicks in a few of the cupcakes to ‘hold up decorations’ and children can get badly hurt by tricks like those.”

You smiled somewhat nervously and he just opened the church doors.

Maude and Ned arrived somewhat later and your discomfort only grew as more people arrived after them and the church grounds became more crowded than they had been at any sermon.

The church hosted this bake sale to raise funds every month and most families brought goods to be sold. The Simpsons had been banned some time ago but occasionally they still slipped in so Helen was on constant watch.

He had a headache before the first hour had even passed.

He noticed when you disappeared into the main building, promising to come back soon with something or the other. When you didn’t come out again, he took an opportunity to follow, curious if nothing else and more than willing to take advantage of a brief break from having to speak to people.

He found you buzzing around the announcement board as though looking pointlessly for something. “Are you alright?”

You startled and gave an awkward smile, quickly snatching the poster for the bake sale off the wall. “Somebody was uh, looking for this. They wanted to know what time it would be running until.”

“I see.”

You tried a smile though it really came out more as a grimace but didn’t seem willing to leave. Instead, you turned your attention to the board again. “I noticed there was an auto show next weekend Saturday. Do you know if it’s like a weekly thing or…?”

“It’s once a year,” he said, glancing at the poster to note where it said annual. “They have more than cars.”

“Oh, that’s pretty interesting.”

You took a deep breath and smiled. “Right. I should probably get back out there then.”

He watched you take two steps before he impulsively asked, “Would you be interested in going?”

“Sorry?”

“To the show,” he clarified. “I have a spare ticket if you did want to.”

Your excitement bubbled up slowly. “I mean, I would definitely want to but I don’t know if I’ll even have the day off. I’d have to see if I’m needed on Saturday.”

“Well, let me know.”

He didn’t know why he’d lied. He didn’t actually have a spare ticket – he’d only bought himself one knowing that Helen wouldn’t really be interested and more likely wanted to spend the day with her mother.

Yet when you approached him toward the end of the sale and asked if the offer was still available, he didn’t find himself exhausted at the idea of buying another ticket.

He only later realised how it might look if he took you alone and begrudgingly took the phone to invite Ned and his family. It was lucky that people had been fairly generous with their donations lately because he ended up buying an additional five.

“It’s for the highest attendance rate to sermons,” he explained when Ned asked why the sudden invite. “Based on how long they’ve lived here.” He quickly added the last part.

It wasn’t too busy and she looked more excited than he anticipated, early discussing some of the cars with Marge and showing the kids somethings they’d like. The awkwardness you’d had was fading and he found himself somewhat happy to see it.

“Reverend?”

His title in your voice startled him more than he’d expected it. Had you ever called him that before? No, most certainly not. He rather liked the way you said the word.

“Yes?”

“Ned mentioned you’re quite fond of trains. They have a whole section for some older models if you’d like to go see them next?”

He agreed and followed you through the thin crowds, ignoring the strange fluttering in his chest. Must have been something he ate. The Flanders split off for a short while to see if they could find healthy food for their kids and you followed him around curiously as he appreciated the trains.

“I do prefer the model versions,” he admitted. “But they’re very impressive at any size.”

“Do you create your own tracks and backgrounds?” you asked and he nodded proudly.

“I do. It takes hours of dedicated work but it’s mostly worth it. So long as I don’t get distracted and end up accidentally ruining any of my trains.”

You hummed, interested and he began to offer small pieces of interesting information about the various trains. You listened with rapt attention, occasionally giving input but otherwise listening as though he was giving a small sermon though considerably more passionately than he usually did.

“I actually rode in one of these to Springfield,” you said as you passed one of the trains. “It was quicker than driving but I didn’t want to leave my car in the back alone so I stayed with it.”

“That’s some dedication for a job.”

“And a house. I technically inherited both just from different people. I was already sort of working in the industry so I had the experience and I wasn’t tied down anymore.”

“Fortunate.”

“I know. There are benefits to being alone sometimes.”

His instinctive reaction to your mood dip was to give the standard response; tell you the Lord had plans and all you needed was to trust him. Yet something stopped him from giving the default sentiment.

“Well, aren’t you unlucky to have made so many friends here then?”

You laughed. “I haven’t made that many.”

“It seems as though you’ve charmed quite a few people in this town.”

“What about us? Are we friends, reverend?”

There was his title again and the strange discomfort in his stomach. He gave a small hum in answer. “I imagine so.”

Helen looked ready for a fight when he arrived home. Accusation seeped through her greeting as she crossed her arms over her chest. Luann had phoned to ask if she knew her husband had been spending time with another woman and she’d had to lie to say she already heard about it.

“My mother and I would have come with,” she said. “If you bothered to invite us.”

“You have no interest in going usually,” he pointed out. “But if you would like to join us, you are more than welcome to next year.”

She huffed. “I don’t want to go but if you’re going to be flitting around with some woman outside our marriage then the least you can do is tell me. Do you have any idea how wild the rumours would go?”

He tried his hardest not to look too exasperated. More than half of those stories came from her. “I’m surprised none of them have started wondering if we’re divorced given how often we fight in public.”

“Everybody has marriage problems in this town,” she said with a wave and a small laugh. “I’d say we’re the most stable of the lot.”

“That’s not a good thing.”

“We wouldn’t fight so much if you weren’t so cold, you know,” she said. “Everybody talks about it already. You’re more interested in those trains than you are in me.”

“The only possible way people would speak about that would be if you told them.”

“I have to talk to somebody when you’re not around.”

She was right, he supposed. He’d tried back when they first got married after her senseless gossiping gave them no other option but he’d grown less caring when nothing built the relationship properly. If they spoke nicely to one another, it was only about other people or the church.

And sometimes, he really didn’t want to speak about the church anymore.

“I am around. We live together.”

“You’re also boring, Tim, alright? Talking to you sometimes is like listening to nails get dragged down a chalkboard slowly. Why do you think everybody falls asleep constantly or runs away? You’re not fun. You’re not interesting.”

“You certainly didn’t feel that way when you told all your friends we were getting married barely a month into dating.”

She rolled her eyes dramatically. “Oh, don’t bring that up. You said it was fine because we both wanted it.”

“Maybe if I’d had the time to date you for a little while longer, I would have changed my mind.”

He hadn’t snapped in ages and the frustration brewed beneath his skin. The regret came almost immediately but Helen stared at him with almost no care. Then came the realisation of how little she worried about his sentiments and with it, a stab of hurt at the lack of interest she showed even now.

“I don’t want us to earn a reputation for being unhappily married,” she said. “Not unless it comes from me first. Otherwise, everybody in town is going to be talking about how I’m not satisfying you.”

She wasn’t and he felt he might not be providing her with any happiness either.

“I haven’t done anything with her,” he said.

And Helen scoffed and waved her hand. “I don’t care if you have or haven’t. Visit every tramp in town if you really want to but at least allow me to be the one who spreads the story.”

He didn’t even know how to respond to it.

The days after that argument stretched out like they never had before. He spent all of his time on his trains or making up excuses to go to work. They weren’t speaking. She barely glanced at him in passing as he stalked past the kitchen.

His bad mood followed him around like a cloud, dark enough to even ward off Ned for the majority of the week. He walked the dog so many times it eventually lay down and refused to get up until he left. When he overheard Helen discussing their fight with somebody on the phone, he decided to just leave the dog and walk by himself.

And, because God wanted to make his life harder, he walked right past you.

“You got a dog,” he said after he found no way to escape after exchanging quick greetings.

“I did. The boys next door kept trying to pet some weird raccoon living in my backyard so I thought this might help them avoid getting rabies,” you said with a laugh. “And I get some company so it works out.”

“That’s always good.”

He shouldn’t hover near you too much if he wanted to shake the remarks but there was something soothing about speaking to you.

“I didn’t know you walked in this neighbourhood,” you admitted. “We’re pretty close to my place and I know sometimes Ned can be a little overbearing.”

“Ever so slightly,” he said slowly. “I walk sometimes when I need to clear my head.”

“Oh, of course. Maybe I could interest you in a cup of coffee?”

He wanted to accept. It sounded far better than strolling around aimlessly but Helen’s accusatory tone still lingered in his head and as he looked at you with your soft smile, he felt uneasy.

“No, no. I have choir practice to attend.”

“At this time in the evening?”

“The Lord doesn’t sleep, you know.”

“He should try it sometime,” you commented with a smile. “But before you run off, I heard there’s actually a restaurant inside a train in town. I’m sure you’ve been there a few times before so you must know if it’s any good.”

He knew exactly which restaurant you were talking about. “The food is alright, I suppose. Nothing special.”

“Aw that’s a shame. I guess I can’t surprise you with a dinner there,” you said with a tease and for a second, he faltered.

“Trust me, I was just as disappointed when I found out,” he mused.

“I’ll find somewhere else.”

He spoke before he even thought the words through. “I look forward to it.”

When he got out the car on Sunday, Helen swept around to link her arm through his and plaster on a smile as though they’d had a delightful conversation rather than a surly drive over. It wasn’t the first time they’d done this; he’d expected it to happen. He couldn’t help but feel it might be disingenuous.

He repeated his sermon from the previous week and not many paid enough attention to notice as he guessed. He’d done it before when he forgot to write something.

Helen walked out the church with him but instead of returning to assist with anything else, she disappeared with Luann without a word. He’d expected that too as well as needing to reassure Ned that his repetition was intentional.

You were sitting inside still, as you often did before helping organise anything and he loosened his robes as he walked past.

“Still here?” he asked. “Window-gazing again?”

“They’ve grown pretty boring,” you admitted with the slightest smile. “But I have to hang out with the spiders or they’ll think I’ve forgotten them.”

“Couldn’t have that.”

You got up to follow him to his office, collected all the smaller pieces as you went and dug out a lost coat from nearby. “This belongs to Luann’s kid,” you said. “I’ll drop it off tomorrow on the way to work.” You were glancing at him from the corner of your eye before you continued with the question you surely wanted to ask. “How’s your week been?”

“Living is a continuous trial,” he said. “It’s how we prove our faith to the Lord.”

You grimaced. “Must have been quite taxing if you reused a sermon.”

“Surprised you noticed.”

“I listen,” you protested with a good-natured smile. “Unless I’m late but I’ve gotten better at that, you have to admit.”

He actually couldn’t remember when last you’d been late to his service. You leaned against the corner of the desk, relaxed and easy. He realised you were likely waiting for instructions of some sort but he didn’t really have any.

“Maybe this week will be better,” you offered sympathetically.

“I wouldn’t count on it.”

In two days, they were due to call Jessica’s boarding school and get an update on her which always resulted in a fight. They disagreed on what to do about their daughter frequently and it spiraled into an argument about everything. Sometimes, he felt entirely unaffected by it but other times the emotion he forced down crept up again.

He shook himself free of his self-pity when you made a small humming sound. “Everything alright? You look… odd.”

He didn’t actually know what to make of your expression. Somewhere between nervous and upset; you kept thumbing at the corner of the library’s bible where it sat on his desk.

“Are you taking confessions now?”

You clearly meant it as a joke but his curiosity didn’t let him laugh it off. “I don’t usually but as long as you’re not going to admit to murder of any kind, I suppose I can try to offer my advice.”

“Oh no murder, just a slightly odd compliment.” You leaned a little forward as though you had a secret to share. “I don’t attend the church to hear about the bible. I just like listening to your voice.”

He scoffed at the idea. “I imagine you were suffering from insomnia or some other form of sleep deprivation.”

“No,” you said with a laugh. “I’m sleeping perfectly well.”

“The Lord does work in mysterious ways. Perhaps he gave you an increased tolerance to his glorified sleeping tablet.”

“Or you just make it interesting.”

“I doubt that.”

You quirked the corner up into the small, humoured smile you so often did. He couldn’t help but return the expression despite his mood. He appreciated your softness more than he wanted to admit; caught himself staring at you for a second too long as he thought over the idea of somebody wanting to listen to him.

His gaze met yours and you tilted your head to the side. “I have another confession, if you want to hear it.”

He should have stepped away when he noticed the whispered implication. Should have remained steady and reminded you he didn’t take confessions. Should have done anything but kiss you.

The soft, startled sound you made tasted sweet on your lips; your arm immediately wrapped around his neck as you returned the kiss passionately. He pressed against you, lost himself in the warmth of your mouth and the arch of your back as you steadied yourself against the desk.

One of your knees slotted between his own and the brush of your thigh made him groan. You twisted his tie to pull him closer still as you began to loosen it; rolled your body against his.

Finally, his brain caught up with what he was doing and he broke the kiss harshly. He stared with lips slightly parted as he tried to steady his breath.

He had so many ‘correct’ responses to give. Part of his mind was already urging him to pray for forgiveness. His guilt crawled up the back of his throat as he considered asking you to leave and you were bracing for that response. He could see the weariness in your gaze even if your eyes were heavily lidded and your lips kiss swollen. His tie hung in your hand.

He kissed you again with purpose and your soft moan shoved that guilt down once more.

You lifted yourself onto the desk, wrapped your legs around his waist and dragged him even closer. The perfume lingering on your skin was almost overwhelming. He buried a hand in your hair and gave a small tug to encourage your head back so he could trail kisses over your throat while you deftly undid the top buttons on his shirt.

The phone started to ring. You twisted your head away to glance at it but he caught your lips again; ignored its shrill for a few moments longer to lose himself in your softness before he answered it, your noses still brushing against one another.

“Reverend Lovejoy speaking,” he said and hoped whoever was on the other side didn’t notice how breathless he sounded.

He wanted to hang up the phone and go back to whatever it had dragged him away from. The bottom of your shirt had ridden up like it so often did and this time, he didn’t have to ignore it. He’d been ignoring many things about you.

Ned’s voice sliced through the spell like a knife and he straightened, moved ever so slightly away from the temptation of your lips.

“Reverend, I’m having a bit of an issue here. I think we might have hit a possum but the little guy scurried off before we got a good look. I’m just shaking with guilt not knowing if the poor thing got hurt or not.”

His own guilt crept back into his mind at the reminder. His response was short and clipped, something about God’s will, but Ned’s call felt too much like an accusation.

Yet despite that, all he could do was stare at you with your hair messed up and your gaze filled with happiness. A silence stretched out and all he could focus on was the press of your thighs against him. The consequences later would be the same thing if he kissed you again and he really, really wanted to.

But you spoke before he could do so, your voice breathy. “We shouldn’t be doing this.”

“Certainly not.” A lie wouldn’t work if he wanted to but the admittance went without any move to disentangle himself from you.

“You’re married.”

“Technically.”

“Only technically?”

“It wasn’t too many days ago that my wife told me she didn’t care if I slept with every woman in town as long as her friends didn’t find out.”

The bitterness snuck into his voice though he tried to keep it neutral. They’d never had a trouble-free marriage but something about the admittance of that hurt the most. He’d imagined she cared somewhat about what he did. He’d been wrong.

You muttered a quiet breath, not really knowing how you should respond to that. Had he kissed you just to get back at her? No. That kiss had been building for a long time.

But whether true or not…

“You’re right,” he admitted. “Regardless of how Helen and I might fight, we are married in the eyes of the Lord and, perhaps more importantly, the church. If anybody thought I was having an affair, attendance would plummet.”

You winced but though you looked guilty, neither him nor you made any move to separate. He could feel the way your breath tickled his cheeks. If he wanted to, it would take no time to close the distance again. He did so briefly, his lips merely brushing against your own for a second that didn’t feel long enough.

“I don’t understand why I’d have these temptations if they’re supposedly wrong,” you said quietly. “Seems rather unfair.”

“I think most churches agree the devil is behind something like this.”

“I don’t believe that. Some things feel wrong but not this.”

He couldn’t deny your words. You’d been slowly drawing him to you from the day you first arrived, listened when he spoke and genuinely shown interest. If he’d been a younger man, a more unattached man, he’d have fallen for you in a second.

Even now, he worried he might have done just that when all he could think about was how soft your lips were.

You shifted away and he used the small strength it gave him to finally break whatever hold you had on him. His tie fluttered to the ground and you moved to pick it up, folding it around your hand and placing it gently on the desk.

He wanted to reassure you, smooth away the worries that were causing you to frown.

“Sorry,” you said, the word a strange break in the silence.

He was too. “We won’t speak about this again,” he said, forcing his voice to stay monotonous. “You’re welcome in the church but I think I can get along fine without further assistance.”

“Of course.”

You left quickly after that and he slowly sat back in his chair, picked up his tie and ran it through his fingers. He couldn’t go back on anything now. He’d married a woman who gave him no solace and then fallen prey to temptation. Temptation with its sweet taste and gentle words and casual conversation.

Was it lust alone or was it something entirely worse? His emotions were running far deeper than a simple physical appeal.

He put the tie in one of his drawers. He could still feel the taste of your lips against his skin.

You didn’t come back to the church. He hadn’t expected it but something still looked wrong when the back corner sat with spiders alone.

It didn’t matter if you were out of view though, his dreams more than made up for your absence. He prayed every night for forgiveness and yet you waited for him the moment he fell asleep, filled with laughter and flattery that left him yearning.

Was this his punishment? To feel the ghost of your fingers across his chest when he woke up in the middle of the night, his heart pounding in his ears. He couldn’t imagine what else it might be. The Lord certainly wasn’t giving him any help with getting you out of his mind no matter how much he asked.

Helen wanted to know why you’d stopped coming by the church and he gave no reason though even the mention of your name felt nerve-racking.

If anybody noticed something was wrong with him, they didn’t mention it. He kept telling himself to hold out and wait for God to guide him in the right direction but when Flanders invited him to dinner, it felt like the divine was mocking him.

He steered his gaze away from your house when they arrived and almost dragged Helen through the front door to remove the temptation. The discussion was as dry as ever until Ned chuckled nervously.

“Something on your mind? You look very contemplative.”

He cleared his throat and brushed the concern off with a, hopefully convincing, wave. “Nothing too interesting. I’m merely considering how the lord helps us through all life’s troubles.”

Unless it was forgetting about the woman who lived next door. He could see her windows behind Ned if he tried to.

As ridiculous as it was, he wanted to speak to you about this. It felt as though nobody else would be able to offer him the advice or the acceptance he knew he’d get from you. Maybe if he took you out to that dinner you’d joked about a few weeks ago and he could just listen to your stories about work, he’d feel far better about it.

“Maybe if you focused more on him than your trains, he’d give you some better advice,” Helen said and he got dragged back in the conversation.

Did she really want to have this conversation now? In front of people who she knew valued their church sometimes too much.

“I sincerely doubt the Lord has a problem with my trains,” he said. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to buy them in the first place.”

He could think of you in the same way, he imagined. The Lord guided you to Springfield and to the church. Nobody just wandered in to listen to a random sermon without his hand gently nudging them there but then that would mean the Lord allowed him to be tempted.

This was a dangerous line of thought.

Helen rolled her eyes subtly but not enough for anybody to miss it. “Well, at least it’s not as bad as what I hear Homer Simpson has been up to. Am I wrong in thinking he got fired yet again and is starting a new career venture?”

The question was directed at their hosts and Maude nodded her head. “It’s true. The noise from their house has been ridiculous but we always remember to just wait it out and see what happens. Often times, it’s less than a week before he somehow gets his job back.”

“Really, I wonder what kind of role model he’s setting for those children,” Helen said. “It’s just such a shame.”

“We shouldn’t judge,” he reminded her though he knew the words mattered not. He’d tried too often to get through to her with such reasoning. “We have no right to do so.”

“It’s not judgement,” Helen insisted. “I’m just worried about all the young and impressionable children around the neighbourhood. I couldn’t sit by and let them grow up believing that you can get through life being so lazy.”

The children of Springfield had far more issues than role models but he’d rather not fight so he just gave her a small head nod before he went back to his food. He imagined she’d continue speaking to Maude and the living room light behind them had just flicked on meaning you were home.

“Are you ignoring me?”

He turned his head back to the table, realising all eyes were on him. “No,” he said quickly, answering his wife without thought. “I was simply looking for a possible topic for this week’s sermon.”

She crossed her arms, staring at him with a disbelieving glare. “What are your options? The importance of being a good listener?”

“I was thinking more about the dangers of trivial gossip.”

Her eyes narrowed even more. “Knowing what’s going on around town is necessary. It helps us make sure we talk about relevant topics and keep our kids safe.”

“There aren’t any threats to the kids,” he said and Rod and Todd immediately sighed massively. Those two listened a little too seriously to the adults in their lives. It was why they were so panicked about everything.

“There most certainly are. Just look at what happened to Jessica. She’s such a smart girl you know and perfectly lovely but she fell in with the wrong crowd when she was younger and now look. It’s nothing the Lord can’t fix but it’s been so hard.” Helen swiped away non-existent tears from her face as she glanced at the others.

“Oh dear,” Maude said and immediately pulled her into a hug. “Has she been getting into more trouble at school?”

“She always does. It’s so hard on you as a mother to have a daughter who behaves like that. I tried my hardest to raise her right and I still don’t know where I went wrong.”

“It wasn’t anything you did wrong,” Maude said reassuringly. “Nobody has ever said children are easy and I know you’re doing your best. At least you’re not alone in this.”

“Sometimes it really feels like I am.”

She sniffed and dabbed her eyes and, though he knew he ought to feel sympathy for her or at least, irritation at her comment, he felt nothing. Jessica got worse by the day and nothing they did seemed to have an affect on her. The boarding school would undoubtedly throw her out again soon and then they’d need to find another.

They were all watching him, trying to tell if he would comfort his wife like he should or at least defend himself against her comments. He simply turned back to his food and tried to pretend the light wasn’t shining in his eyes.

Helen never cried unless there was somebody to witness it and give her sympathy. She was fine the second she realised he wouldn’t indulge her now.

He could really use a drink.

The Flanders kids didn’t eat dessert and instead begged for a movie which Helen happily agreed to join them for. She continued the front of the neglected wife until she grew bored and then immediately went back to talking about the nearby Simpson house while he slipped out the back door.

He knew he shouldn’t but he found himself walking toward the smaller house with its large maple tree and overgrown flowerbeds. Every step felt heavier than the last as the sounds of the movie gave way to small crickets.

You were lying beneath the tree on a picnic blanket, gaze on the sky and your dog at your side. He nearly left purely so he wouldn’t intrude but then you lowered your attention and met his eyes.

“Hey,” you said, a little confused. “Aren’t you missing your dinner?”

“I was just taking a break from it.”

You laughed. “Right. Ned can be overwhelming at times. I’m just waiting for the coffee machine to finish.”

He hummed and leaned against the fence. A gate led between them, likely how the two boys had continued to make friends with the racoon in your garden. He had no reason to want to open it.

“Would you like a cup?”

He should say no and return to his dinner party. Somebody would notice that he’d disappeared soon and, knowing Ned, might even lead a miniature search party looking for him.

Instead, he opened the gate and stepped through quietly.

Your house looked somewhat different than he imagined with blankets draped over the couch and too many appliances cluttered on the cabinets. The dog followed you in and sprawled itself over the tiled floors, forcing you to step over it to continue with your mission of making coffee.

“I wasn’t meant to sit outside tonight,” you admitted after you’d handed him a mug. “Ned invited me but I thought it’d be better to stay home. Couldn’t help myself, it seems.”

“I can hardly lecture you on self-control when you were in your backyard.”

“Especially not if I pretend that I had no ulterior motive.”

You hopped onto the kitchen counter, sitting with your back against the window as he leaned against the wall. It felt too personal to properly sit down but your choice of seating brought a slight flush to his cheeks.

“The church has been missing you,” he said, hurrying to change the topic and failing.

“I’m taking a small break from religion,” you said with a small laugh. “In case I get hit by lightning or something for only going to see the hot reverend.”

He scoffed but the flattery warmed his chest dangerously. This was precisely why he should have avoided coming over here. You were too good at making him want to start caring about things beyond the church. Too good at making him want to care more about you. He shouldn’t encourage it.

But you wanted his company and that was something he liked. You didn’t want him because he represented your faith or because you thought he provided you with some strange superiority.

You simply wanted to sit with your ankles crossed and a near-constant warmth radiating from your chest as you enjoyed your coffee.

“Was that too much?” you asked and he realised he’d been staring.

He shook his head. “The Lord brings us all to him through different means. If you come because you’re one of the few who enjoy listening to me speak, then that’s as good of a reason as any.”

“You have one of the biggest churches in town,” you pointed out. “I’m sure there are hundreds of people who enjoy listening to you.”

“Many attend church out of obligation and fear rather than desire.”

You pursed your lips as though laughing at a quiet joke. “Some would say that desire isn’t really the right reason to visit church.”

He rolled his eyes and pretended his cheeks hadn’t turned slightly red as he sipped his coffee. Had you ever made coffee for him before? He didn’t think so which meant you either guessed perfectly or you’d noticed when he’d made his own coffee.

“Either way, you’re still welcome to attend,” he reassured. “It forces me to come up with new sermons every week.”

“I won’t tell anybody if you don’t.”

You were right there and nobody else was around. If he wanted to make those damn dreams of his stop, all he needed to do was fulfill them, right?

His name being called stopped him. That was Ned. He regretfully placed his coffee on the table and rubbed the bridge of his nose. Was the man constantly trying to cause him as many issues as possible?

“If you go through the front door, you can tell them you were just returning my dog,” you said as you slipped off the table. “He gets out sometimes to flirt with that strange-looking scrawny one from down the street.”

It would be a good enough excuse. She opened the front door and he stepped through, hesitating for a second as he caught the desire to kiss you goodnight, as though you’d spent the evening together rather than a clandestine coffee after he ran away from a dinner party.

But you simply wished him a goodnight and closed the door, leaving him to deal with a flustered Ned in peace. At least your excuse worked.

He knew what he needed to do and before he prayed that night, he hesitated before he asked for guidance. Something like this would pull his reputation to pieces but it would be the right thing to do.

Helen didn’t look up when he walked into the kitchen the next morning as she paged through a book.

“We need a divorce.”

He said the words before he thought about them but she didn’t cry or get angry. She simply looked up at him and shrugged. “We’ve needed one since the first day you started playing with those ridiculous trains.”

And that was the end of the discussion.

He didn’t know how to feel about her admitting that she didn’t want to be married anymore either. His sermon two days later felt more awkward than ever as he looked at every member of his flock. How would they react if he admitted to getting a divorce? Would they shun him for such a thing?

To make things even worse for his train of thoughts, you slipped in about halfway through and took your seat in the back. He’d have lectured anybody else for being tardy but he just tripped over a word, leaving you to giggle.

He smiled, the smallest quirk of a grin, and this time, Helen noticed.

She’d probably been on high alert since his request but her head snapped back in an instant, her gaze locked on you and her lips pressed into a thin line.

After the sermon, they made it less than a minute into the drive home before she turned to him, far too smug for the situation.

“I knew it was her,” Helen said. “I guessed from the day she first showed up in this town.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I’m not stupid, Tim and you’re not subtle. You’re just lucky that everybody else in this town is practically brain damaged and haven’t noticed how you stare at her like some dog with its favourite bone.”

He could argue against it but even if he took offense to her comparison, he knew the right thing to do was come clean.

“I’m sorry.”

She rolled her eyes sharply. “Well, I suppose you did keep it mostly quiet. I haven’t heard any rumours going around town yet. I told you I don’t care if you’re sleeping around as long as that information stays here.”

“I haven’t slept with her.” He didn’t know what else to say. Defend himself or protest what she thought he would do. Though if it hadn’t been for that phone call…

“Why not? I mean, I guess she is very pretty so it makes sense that she might be looking elsewhere or did you start talking about trains in the bedroom again?”

He glanced at her, momentarily confused to find her genuinely making a joke. How many years had it been since she started a rumour just to marry him and move to this town? All the effort she put into crafting her image, thrown away so she could laugh about his possible affair as though it meant nothing.

“Don’t look at me like that,” she said. “Really, can you blame me? You’re so miserable all the time and the least you can do is make my life somewhat interesting. Give me more to talk about than how I sit in the house all day while my husband stares at toys.”

“They’re not toys.”

Helen waved a hand. “Whatever they are. I wanted to move away from that stupid house because I was bored and it’s been the same thing for the past, however many years. I’m still bored.”

He couldn’t help but feel bad about that. He’d never promised her a life filled with excitement but he knew she dreamed of it when they’d been younger. Maybe he could have been more interesting but he liked his life as it was: calm and peaceful as he could get it.

“You really haven’t slept with her?”

“No.”

Helen sighed. “That’s far less thrilling. Nobody will think my life is thrilling if my husband’s simply looking at another woman.”

“You’d ruin everything if you started spreading this around town,” he said, his knuckles white on the steering wheel.

She hummed and stared from the window. “I mean, it would be worse for you than for me but true, I don’t want to give the opinion that I’m an unwanted woman. Obviously, I’m not but I can’t allow anybody to try use it against me. Still… I do wish I had something more fun. Everybody else’s lives are filled with controversy.”

Since moving to Springfield, it had felt as though he was surrounded by a constant barrage of interesting characters – people whose lives could fill a thousand episodes of a television show without getting boring.

The most exciting thing he could say that he’d done in the entire week was rebuild part of his model when it got a little faded.

He glanced at Helen and sighed. “I kissed her. Once.”

Helen immediately snapped to him, looking far more interested. “I knew it! Was it on the day you two went to that little fair?”

“No.”

“Was it when you disappeared from dinner the other night?”

“No. I still don’t understand why you want details about this. We swore vows.”

She waved her hand through the air. “Yes, but these things are just so thrilling. You’re not the only one in this marriage who’s… considered other options.”

He stepped on the breaks a little too hard, the betrayal hitting him unexpectedly. This entire time, all the guilt and the concern were for nothing. She didn’t care about their marriage. She didn’t care about them.

“Tim, at least pull over if you’re going to be hypocritical. You’re blocking the traffic.”

He restarted the car, apologised to the drivers behind him, and tried not to think too hard about how long it had been since his marriage started drifting this far apart. It had always been slightly based on pretense but surely it hadn’t been like that from the beginning.

“When?”

“Once or twice over the years. You could hardly expect me to continue along when my husband cares more about trains than me. I’m not going to wait around and be ignored for years when there are others who show interest.” She giggled at the end as though recalling something.

“I don’t ignore you.”

“Don’t lie to yourself. The only time we stop fighting is when we aren’t talking to each other. Do you even remember the last time we slept together?”

He didn’t. Maybe six months ago? More? Helen often initiated those moments more than he did and as time went on, he’d grown less and less interested in her suggestions. Perhaps he should have considered it as a warning.

“What do we do now?”

Helen hummed thoughtfully. “Well, if you want to do me a favour, you can always let me call her out in the church. I’ll make a big scene and everything. People will be coming over for weeks to offer their condolences and I’m sure not too many people will hate her.”

“Absolutely not.”

Helen sighed. “Fine. I guess we’ll just continue pretending nothing happened. What else are we going to do? Get a divorce?”

They arrived at the house but when Helen got out, he didn’t move. His knuckles were turning white around the steering wheel as he considered his options. He could follow her into the house now and accept what she offered – pretend nothing had happened and continue doing things in secret. With Helen on his side, nobody should find out.

But he wouldn’t be happy and really, neither would she. God was far too merciful to force either of them to suffer through a relationship they wanted.

Helen looked over her shoulder at him, her hand on the knob of the front door.

She gave him a small smile and gestured for him to go, walked into the house, and closed the door behind her. He put the car into reverse without a moment’s hesitation.

You were home, he could see your car in the driveway as he parked alongside it. He knocked on the door as firmly as he could manage, constantly glancing over his shoulder as though expecting somebody to pop out. Why did this feel stranger now that he’d solved things? How long would it be until visiting you would be normal?

He really hoped it would be soon.

You opened the door, exasperated initially but expression quickly morphing into a smile when you noticed who it was. Sometimes, you looked at him as though he made your entire day better just by arriving.

“Hey,” you greeted. “Sorry I took so long to get to the door. Some of the kids around here are being incredibly irritating. I think they’re bored but honestly…” You rolled your eyes affectionately. “How can I help?”

“I’m getting a divorce.”

You went through at least ten different expressions before you settled on one, still blinking a little. He should have taken some time before reaching that part of the conversation.

“Oh. Do you want to come in?”

Your dog raised its head briefly at his entrance but promptly went back to snoring. He hovered uncertainly until you took a seat on the couch, following your guidance and then just staring at you and hoping the words came to mind.

“Helen and I got married because she told some of her friends we were sleeping together. We weren’t but I decided to salvage both our reputations and I thought it would be something we both wanted.”

“Was it?”

“Not at all. It would seem both her and I lied in front of the Lord that day when we swore our vows. I’m not the only one with a wandering eye, from what she’s said.”

You winced and he recognised the flash of acknowledgement in your expression. Things clicked together slowly.

“You knew.”

“Not for certain,” you hurried to defend yourself. “But I admit I was curious where I was circulating in the gossip hub. I heard some things about Helen through it and I didn’t want to believe them, really. Of course, I can’t judge given the uh, main reason I asked in first place.”

He groaned and dropped his face into his hands. How had he gone for so long without noticing how truly unhappy everything in his life was? He’d constantly thought it was just something he had to handle; he’d made his choice and now he had to accept whatever came with it.

“I’m sorry,” you said. “For what it’s worth. I was stupidly selfish.”

“You weren’t the only one. It appears I’m quite the fool.”

You smiled and shook your head. “No. I wouldn’t say that at all though I admit, I’m a little biased when it comes to you.”

He chuckled, a small sound without much humour. “At least I’ve realised now. We’ve all made mistakes and the Lord will surely forgive me this one and then… after everything has quietened after the divorce, perhaps we can go somewhere together?”

“If we don’t wait long enough, people might guess there was something between us.”

“They’ll know. Helen isn’t very good at keeping secrets.”

“Right.”

He raised his head to watch you. “Does it bother you? That people might know about what happened?”

You thought about it for less than a minute before you shook your head. “No, not really. I’m just happy that I can be with you in any sense of the word. Even if we’re just friends, I’ll be thrilled.”

There was no way you would be his friend. He reached up to brush your hair away from your face before he finally kissed you once more, sweet and soft. You hummed pleasantly against his lips and he relaxed, sure now that he’d decided correctly even if it wasn’t going to be easy.

When he arrived home and placed the papers in front of Helen, she looked down at them and started laughing. His shoulders tensed but before he could worry, she pulled an identical copy from her own purse.

It was the first time they’d laughed together in years and he actually felt a strange excitement he hadn’t experienced since first moving to this town.

[wonderswritings]

Starless Lovers {9}

Summary: They fell from the sky. We roamed the earth. We were always meant to clash. 

Warnings: The 100 Themes, Angst, Death, Blood, Unrequited Feelings, Slow Burn, Possibly more to come

Pairings: Lexa x Sister!Reader, Bellamy Blake x Fem!Reader (eventual)

War has always been brewing. With twelve clans, each with different ideals, it was always going to happen. But tensions rise when they come, the people from the sky. We watched from a distance, learning. But then they attacked, and if there's one thing all the clans can agree on,

Blood must have blood.

Starless Lovers Masterlist | Tags

The trig translator I was using no longer works, so I managed to find a new one but there’s a chance some words are still incorrect or even untranslated but I tried my best. 

🌒🌓🌔🌕🌖🌗🌘

“What if we’re wrong and cutting the power doesn’t disengage the locks?”

Lexa was laying down, her arms crossed over her chest as she responded to Clarke.

“Your people said it will.”

She opened her eyes, glancing over at where Clarke stood. 

“You should rest, Clarke.”

“We could blow the doors manually.”

Lexa huffed slightly as she stood, making her way towards Clarke.

“Plans don’t last very long in battle. Tiring yourself with questions already asked and answered is a waste of energy.”

Clarke turned, looking at Lexa.

“People died for this, Lexa. It has to work.”

“You’re doing what I did when I first took command.”

Lexa turned, walking towards the table with the water, pouring her a cup. 

“We can’t move forward and it’s giving you too much time to think. Once Bellamy shuts down the acid fog and the battle begins, everything will be clear.”

“What if he can’t? What if it was too dangerous and I sent him in there anyway?”

“You care about him.”

Clarke turned, clenching her jaw as she looked at Lexa.

“I care about all of them.”

“But you worry about him more.”

“I couldn’t have kept us alive all this time without him. We need him. And now I might be the one who gets him killed.”

Lexa walked forward, stopping in front of Clarke.

“That’s what it means to be a leader, Clarke. The truth is, we must look into the eyes of our warriors and say, ‘go die for me’.”

“If only it were that easy.”

Clarke turned back towards the table with the plans, huffing. 

“Can we please just get back to the plan?”

“No.” 

Clarke clenched her jaw, turning back towards Lexa.

“You could be a leader your people look to. Pour their hopes and dreams into. Someone they would fight and die for.”

“I never asked for that. I’m just trying to keep us alive.”

“You were born for this, Clarke. Same as me.”

🌒🌓🌔🌕🌖🌗🌘

Bellamy held his card over the scanner, huffing when it didn’t work.

“Bellamy. Come in.”

“Yeah, I’m a little busy here Raven.”

Bellamy looked around, seeing another door that led to the emergency stairs, making his way to the door.

“You missed check in. Did you find the source of the acid fog yet?”

“I’m making my way there now. It’s taking longer than I thought.”

“I don’t know enough to crack it on this end. You gotta give me something.”

“I’m working on it.”

He tried his card again, slightly making a face when it flashed red.

“Something’s wrong.”

“What?”

“My key card isn’t working.”

“That’s not good.”

“I need to find another way in. I’ll call you back.”

“Stay right there.”

Bellamy turned, seeing two guards, their guns pointed at him.

“Hands in the air.”

Bellamy turned his head, taking a deep breath before he turned, running up the stairs.

“In pursuit of the target. It’s not Lovejoy. Repeat, it’s not Lovejoy.”

Bellamy’s hat fell as he ran up the second set of stairs, the alarms blaring as he ran down the platform. Cutting a corner he ran down the stairs, jumping a few at a time. Once he was at the bottom he stopped, looking up.

“Checking in. Go back down to the base level.”

One of the guards aimed his gun as he walked down the steps, Bellamy turning and running.

“You’re surrounded. There’s no way out!”

Bellamy ran down the hall, turning at a corner, looking around as he took a deep breath.

“Garza, do you have eyes on him?”

Bellamy grabbed the hand holding the gun as the guard walked by him, shoving it down as he punched the guard in the face. He punched him again as he dodged the guards attempt at hitting him, causing the guard to fall back, landing on the steps. Bellamy punched him again, knocking him out.

“Garza, what is your status?”

Bellamy checked the guards pockets, trying to find his key card.

“Garza do you copy?”

Once he found the key card he turned, grabbing the gun from the ground as he made his way to the door, scanning the card. He breathed a sigh of relief as it lit green, shoving the door open.

🌒🌓🌔🌕🌖🌗🌘

Groaning, you slowly started to come to. The first thing you noticed as you came to was that you were laying down, your arms and legs weighed down with something, causing you to be unable to move. You turned your head to the side, making a face. You were in a room, but you didn’t recognize where you were. Medical supplies lined one side of the wall, various tools lining the other wall. You turned when the door opened, watching as two men walked in.

“Ah good, you’re awake.”

One of the men walked towards the medical supplies while the other walked towards you, stopping next to you and grinning down at you.

“Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Cage Wallace.”

He reached out, running his hand down the side of your face. You turned, opening your mouth and biting his hand. He jerked his hand back, lifting his other hand and slapping you. Your head slammed to the side upon impact, Cage slightly making a face as he shook his head, once again grabbing your face.

“It’s okay, it’s okay. I know exactly who you are. Riheda, the dark commander. Interesting name.”

He glanced over at the man, letting your face go, nodding at him before he looked back down at you.

“The doctor has found something interesting within your blood. Tell me why that is.”

You said nothing, keeping your glare on him. 

“Answer me!”

He huffed, shaking his head as he lightly chuckled.

“You think your people are coming for you but they’re not. We know about your army.”

He tilted his head to the side, huffing slightly.

“Or rather, what’s left of it. You see, we bombed your little Tondc. Dropped a missile right on top of them. They’re dead. Every last one of them.”

You clenched your jaw as you fought against your restraints, causing Cage to laugh as he looked over at the doctor.

“Do what you must. I have some things to handle.”

The doctor nodded as he came into your line of sight, glancing down at you.

“We’ll be just fine here.”

🌒🌓🌔🌕🌖🌗🌘

Indra made her way to the Commander’s tent, clenching her jaw, her mind clouded with worry as she opened the flap.

“Heda.”

She bowed her head, cutting a glare at Clarke when she saw her in the tent as well.

“Ai don news.” (I have news)

“I can-”

“Stay.”

Indra tightened her grip on her sword, huffing slightly as Clarke looked over at Lexa.

“I want you to stay, so stay.”

Lexa turned towards Indra, nodding.

“Whatever you have to say, you can say in front of Clarke.”

“We’ve looked everywhere, Heda, but there is no sign of Riheda.”

“Esmeray is missing? I thought-”

Lexa sighed, glancing at Clarke.

“I lied, earlier. Esmeray wasn’t avoiding the clan leaders in the woods. She never made it to Tondc.” 

Clarke turned towards Indra, shaking her head, her mind racing.

“Esmeray left before you did. You didn’t see anything out of the ordinary?”

Indra looked over at Clarke, glaring at her. 

“Did you? We took the same path, Clarke. We saw nothing.”

Clarke looked over at Lexa, nodding slightly. 

“I’ll radio Raven, have her let Bellamy know to be on the lookout in case it was the mountain men who took her.”

Indra scoffed, shaking her head.

“Who else would it be?”

Lexa shot Indra a look before she turned, nodding at Clarke.

“Thank you.”

🌒🌓🌔🌕🌖🌗🌘

“Come in, Raven. I made it. I hope you have a plan.”

“Still working on it. Give us something to go on. What do you see?”

Bellamy looked around, slightly shaking his head as he made his way downn the steps. 

“A huge steel vat. Looks like a submarine. Some other tanks with chemical formulas and warning labels. Bunch of pipes running into the wall. Monitor.”

“Oo, go to the monitor.”

Bellamy huffed slightly, walking towards the monitor.“Hello to you, too.”

“Don’t mind Wick. He’s not really helping.”

“Hey Bellamy. How’s my boy Monty doing?”

“Fine. but I don’t know for how long.”

“Great. Pleasantries over. Listen, if that monitor is a control panel, we can use it to kill this thing. Look for a pH scale.”

“Right. It has a scale, but the rest… uh, look can I just blow this thing?”

“No.”

“No, they’ll know their defenses are down. They’ll send a tech to fix it or reroute it or pull out some other weapon we don’t even know about.”

“Plus, you’d probably melt your face off.”

“Look, you know I like a good explosion, but we gotta think our way through this one. We can do this. Here we go.”

“Okay, uh level indicator.”

“Nope.”

“Do you see an actuator anywhere?”

Bellamy made a face, throwing his hand up.

“I have no idea what that is.”

“Come on, what else.”

“Internal pressure sensor.”

“No.”

“Uh, setpoint and alarm.”

“Let’s avoid that one.”

“Maintenance and cleaning.”

“Bellamy, go to that subdirectory. See if there’s anything there that says passivation.”

Bellamy nodded slightly, starting to filter through the monitor.

“Okay, I’m on it. Got it. Say us, aqueous sodium hydroxide bath.”

“That’s a base. That’ll neutralize the acid. Select that.”

“It’s doing something.”

“You should be able to hear the pump.”

“I can hear them. Needle’s moving. pH is rising.”

“It’s working.”

“Passivation successful.”

Bellamy grinned as the pumps cut off.

“Alright. Send a flare.”

“Roger that.”

Bellamy turned to leave when he saw something, causing him to make a face as he leaned forward, wiping the smudge off, seeing a pH scale. He turned back towards the monitor, looking between the two before he walked towards the monitor, seeing the pH scale was still the same as before. 

“Raven, we’ve got a problem.”

He made a face when she didn’t respond, shaking his head.

“Dammit, where are you? I don’t think the acid fog is down. Get word to Clarke. We have to stop the army. Raven!”

Bellamy watched as the pH scale was reset.

“No.”

He looked up when the alarms started to go off, hearing a banging on the doors.

“Oh, no, no, no.” 

He looked around, seeing the oxygen tank. He glanced down at the acetylene torch in his hand when they managed to kick the door open, causing Bellamy to turn and run.

“Go! Go! Move in, move in!”

“He’s armed, don’t be a hero.”

“Come on out, hands up!”

Bellamy took a few deep breaths before he ran, the men shooting at him as he dived into the vents.

“Cease fire! Don’t hit the tanks!”

Bellamy crawled as far as he could before he stopped, turning back towards the entrance, shooting both guns until he was out.

“He’s out. I’m going in.”

“Got it. I’ll check the tanks.”

Bellamy tossed the guns to the side as he turned, crawling away as fast as he could. When the tanks blew the vent shook, causing him to lose his balance before he started to crawl faster, the force of the flames pushing him out of the vent. He landed with a harsh ‘thud’ the flames shooting out as he ducked, covering his head. When the flames disappeared he turned onto his back, coughing as he laughed. 

🌒🌓🌔🌕🌖🌗🌘

Your hair was matted with sweat and blood, the doctor having hit you after you tried to bite him. After that, he’d tied a cloth around your mouth, forcing you to open your mouth so he could place the waded part of it in your mouth to keep you from trying to bite him or from speaking, which you hadn’t done the entire time you’d been awake. You were tired, and everything hurt, but you refused to fall asleep, forcing yourself to stay awake even if everything was screaming at you to stop and let go. Your eyes began fluttering when the door slammed open, causing you to jump slightly as you opened your eyes, seeing a blurry figure rushing towards you. Slowly, the blurry figure came into focus, causing you to glare weakly as Cage grabbed your face, squeezing harshly.

“Where is he? Where is the intruder?”

He yanked you forward when you didn’t answer, screaming in your face.

“Where is he?!”

“Sir, please! Do not move her too much, or you’ll interfere with my studies! She must remain still!”

Cage turned his head, glaring at the doctor before he scoffed, letting you go, causing you to fall back onto the table with a groan. Cage leaned back, standing to his full height as he took a deep breath, looking down at you.

“Where is he?”

You said nothing, causing Cage to turn and walk towards the guard that came in with him. You couldn’t see what he was doing, but he walked back towards you, placing the cold metal of the gun at your forehead, pushing it so it dug into your skin.

“Where. Is. He?”

“Sir, please! If you kill her, she’ll be of no use to us! Her blood is the key! We no longer need the kids! Her blood will lead us all to the ground again!”

Cage glared down at you, clenching his jaw before he stepped back, his chest heaving as he looked over at the doctor.

“Prepare her for transport. This location has been compromised.”

Cage turned towards the guard, handing him back his gun.

“Send a group to help move the doctor and the grounder. The rest of you will find those kids, and you will kill them.”

“Yes sir.”

Cage looked back at you as the doctor fluttered around you, grinning slightly.

“We can still win the war.”

🌒🌓🌔🌕🌖🌗🌘

Four months later and I've finally managed to update! Thank you all for being so patient with me! I hope to have the miniseries for this series posted soon-ish. The next chapter will be when Bellamy and Esmeray 'officially' meet!

Starless Lovers Tags: @kloy344  @bxnnywatts @kibumslatina @smol-book-nerd @newbooksmell777 @bamboozledbooks

Everything Tags: @jedi-dreea  @sammysgirl1997 @scarlett-witchhh @cevans-winchester @rafecameronswhore @jennmurawski13-writes 

The 100 Tags: @3leni  @topazy  @vxidnik  @kloy344 @lexajaye  @dani5216 @kelseyd07  @bxnnywatts @thebookisbtr  @kibumslatina @cryinghotmess @smol-book-nerd @mariaenchanted  @rafecameronswhore  @multi-fandom-lover7667 

Lexa Tags: @kloy344  @wonielover @bamboozledbooks @rafecameronswhore

Bellamy Blake Tags: @topazy  @vxidnik  @hftff-lol  @lexajaye  @dani5216  @im-sidney  @kelseyd07  @wonielover  @bxnnywatts @daisy-the-quake  @mariaenchanted  @bamboozledbooks @rafecameronswhore  @multi-fandom-lover7667

[barzfrommarz]

Why do I still love c!wilbur so much?

small essay type post to just gush about c!wilbur

One thing that always surprises me is why I stayed with c!wilbur

Before cc!wilbur even confirmed the allegations, I dropped him and lovejoy because it was becoming way too stressful and way more obvious it was him even though he had became a special interest and a huge part of my life

So why didnt I do the same with c!wilbur?

Better question, why couldn’t I?

Maybe it’s because back in March of 2022, my online friends had just stopped being friends with me a week prior. Specifically on March 17th 2022 (correct me if i’m wrong) the first stream that kick started the apology streams happened. I think that’s was what reignited my interest fully, since I had changed myself so much for my ex friends since they hated dsmp so much and it was basically my entire personality

It was also an outlet to interact with people, since these specific friends were my only friends at the time.

It was so nice to have a community of people who love the same thing I love. Making art, fanfiction, theories even songs. It was great and it was definitely one of the best times of my life (in the recent years)

The days leading up to the final were the greatest but also the most nerve wracking, esp since I wanted c!wilbur to have a good ending and basically not die

Waiting for the stream to start on Sept 3rd 2022 was so exciting, I remember sitting in offline chat just waiting for a fucking minecraft stream to start. Something I had never done

Now im not gna critique the ending in this post. I have my gripes with the apology tour in general but thats not what this post is about.

It was surprising to watch. Not what I had expected but it had its charm and I grew on it eventually. Going on twitter afterwards kinda sucked but it stopped eventually

The community was still going strong. Even if our favorite character is completely retired. The love and passion was still there, especially for me. It seemed like my love for c!wilbur just got more intense

After the dsmp ended and 2023 rolled around, thats when I noticed things kinda slowing down a bit. I know why of course. Loveshit was kicking off for William so its obvious why more people gradually moved on from the dsmp and fan content slowed down. Including me!

I wont go more into it but it was disappointing for me as someone who just couldn't move on from c!wilbur and the dsmp to see everyone on all the main platforms I used move on. Yeah tumblr was still active but I didn't use it as much back then

Then of course, the allegations came out

Im not proud of how I acted during the first night. You could say I was very very delusional and willing to make up excuses and drown out a victim all for some white guy I didn't know.

Thankfully, the next morning I came to my senses a bit and left, soon after joining everyone in just waiting for him to respond. Luckily I had some great mutuals on twitter and we were all there for eachother, even though I was the least affected since I was more mad at the fact I wasted years of my life on him than upset.

You all know how the story ends, he responded and everyone hated on him blah blah blah

but throughout all of that, I still stayed with c!wilbur. Not any other bursona. I cant engage with any of the other bursonas because they remind me too much of william, so why is c!wilbur different?

Well one obvious factor is my autism. C!Wilbur and the Dsmp is one of my biggest and longest lasting special interest so I dont think its going away for atleast 2-4 more years atp. Who knows maybe ill be 24 years old still yapping about a minecraft server that I liked when I was 11

I also think its because of the dsmp community on tumblr. Yeah the c!wilbur part has gotten understandably smarter but the people who have stayed are awesome and cool and so creative but most importantly strong

We have all been through it. From the allegations to the shit we get from outsiders for showing slight interest in c!wilbur and the dsmp in general.

I also see it as one massive fuck you to William. Taking his creation for ourselves then actively hating on him in the process. Shipping the ship he has gone on record to say its not canon is also pretty cool

So I guess I just want to say thank you. I could not have kept my interest alive if it wasn't for you guys continuing to create despite the creator being a degenerate. This stupid little character has single handedly kept my passion for creation and art going so strong. If you look through any of my recent sketchbooks most of the pages have him on it. I got into wrighting and reading fanfiction because of c!wilbur (and c!tntduo but we dont talk about the fanfictions ive read). My point is this character means alot to me so to all the remaining c!wilbur fans...

Thank you, truly

[catboy037]

Drop the playlist please i am on my KNEES

i have a few reasons why i can't share the whole thing but here are a few of my favorites, with the (in my opinion) best ones in bold and pink:

Tear You Apart - She Wants Revenge

Saccharine - Jazmin Bean

IN MY MOUTH - Black Dresses

An Unhealthy Obsession - The Blake Robinson Synthetic Orchestra

Obsession - STACY OUTRAGEOUS

No Children - The Mountain Goats

What is This Feeling? - the Wicked soundtrack

bad idea! - girl in red

Closer - Nine Inch Nails (duh)

Muscle Memory - Banoffee

Never Ever Getting Rid of Me - the Waitress soundtrack

Little Miss Perfect - Write Out Loud

Your Stupid Face - Kaden McKay

Genghis Khan - Miike Snow

Say Yes to Heaven - Lana Del Rey

Better in Stereo - the Liv and Maddie soundtrack

hand crushed by a mallet - 100 gecs

Hatef--k - The Bravery (GOD THIS ONE IS MY FAVORITE IT IS LITERALLY PERFECT)

Stray Italian Greyhound - Vienna Tang

Love Like You - Rebecca Sugar

Forever - CHVRCHES (THIS ONE IS PERFECT TOO)

Borrowed Time - the Rick and Morty soundtrack

BITE - Troye Sivan

Maybe This Time - the Cabaret soundtrack

Baby Teeth - Flower Face

You Missed My Heart - Phoebe Bridgers

She's So Lovely - Beach House

Is There Somewhere - Halsey

Curl Up & Die - Matt Maltese

Taunt - Lovejoy

Trees - McCafferty

[gabelesimp]

I had a gorey idea, I seem to like it-

Tw: Manipulating, Beelzebub getting tortured

"Please." He begged you for the last time, your curiosity became an obsession.

His body was covered in blood, bruises and scars. You were loving the sight of him in pain. You took out a knife, you started to carve on his chest, right where Lilth's tattoo lies. He hissed in pain, crying for you to stop.

"ENOUGH." That made you smile, you stabbed the opposite side of his chest, his screams were music to your ears.

You lifted his chin up to look at you, he saw that sadistic smile on your face. "Tell me, do you still want to live?" "Yes, I kept my promise. For Lilith." You groaned when you heard her name.

"When will you ever put the fucking blame on her? You wanted to die so bad before, you tried so many times to kill yourself."

"Because I love her." You laughed at him.

"So, You love her? Are you sure? She stopped you from getting what you fucking want, she keeps stopping you from your desires. And that's what your sin is, Beelzebub."

You gave him a kiss, holding his cheek.

"I never knew loving you was a pain. But, I'm here for the thrill."

Tears were falling, you wiped them. "You're right...Please, I want to die. I don't want to keep going through this torture.."

Giving him a kiss once more, you whispered. "Now that's the Beelzebub I'm looking for~"

(That was interestingly wonderful-)

Honorary mention: @seijuuns-fantasy @average-lovejoy-listener

[bootyshaker900o]

“Playlists of my unhealthy obsessions/Simping”

These men have caused such a brain rot- that like they are my whole personality. I made a little playlist of songs for them

Dave/William Afton (🧍‍♂️ I have problems)

Jocelyn Flores - XXXTENTACION

Can You Feel My Heart - Bring Me the Horizon

Yandere - Jazmin Bean

Sex, Drugs, Etc. - Beach Weather

R U Mine? - Arctic Monkeys

Play Date - Melanie Martinez

Perverted - Elita

The Neden Game - ICP

Stalker’s Tango - Autoheart

Say My Name - Alex Brightman

Imma Kill You - ICP

Blow My Brains Out - Tikkle Me

CHOKE - I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME

Ryn, Rabinit Run - Flanagan and Allen

Boogie Woogie Wu - ICP

Donnie

Dirty Harry - Gorillaz

Me and Your Mama - Childish Gambino

Hell of a Ride - Bo Burnham

Family Jewels - Marina and the Diamonds

I’m still standing - Elton John

Puppet Boy - DEVO

Afraid - The Neighborhood

Reflections - The Neighborhood

Fluorescent Adolescent - Arctic Monkeys

One day - Lovejoy

The Ending - Hobo Johnson

Trouble - Hazel Bloom

Teen Romance - Lil Peep

Alien Blues - Vundabar

Team - Mag.Lo

Bad - Michael Jackson

Orphan Tears - Your Favorite Martian

Draxum

Problems - Mother Mother

Zydrate Anatomy - Paris Hilton

Toxic - Britney Spears

Liquid Smooth - Mitski

W.D.Y.W.F.M? - The Neighborhood

Trom Cat - Tyler, the Creator

E.T. - Katy Perry, Kanye West

Molly - MSI

Enemy - Imagine Dragons, JID

Never Satisfied - CORPSE

Desire - Meg Myers

Venom - Little Simz

Daddy AF - Slayyter (don’t ask)

Supermassive Black Hole - Muse

Such A Whore - JVLA

Six Forty Seven - Instupendo

Silco

Daddy issues - The Neighborhood

Genius- Sia, Diplo, Labrinth, LSD

Same Old Love - Selena Gomez

Guys My Age - HEY VIOLET

Life of the Party - The Weeknd

High Enough - K.Flay

Government Hooker - Lady Gaga

Why don’t U - Father, ABRA

New Americana - Halsey

Do You Even? - Jorge Aguilar II

Sugar Daddy - Qveen Herby 

Royals - Lorde

I Feel Like I’m Drowning - Two Feet

New Person, Same Mistakes - Tame Impala

Cold - Maroon 5

Come As You Are - Nirvana

Fantasy - Bazzi

Raph (my sweet baby boy 😭)

Dark Red - Steve Lacy

Somebody To Love - Queen

Careless Whispers  - George Michaels 

Her - Tyler, The Creator 

Are We Still Friends? - Tyler, The Creator

Trumpets - Jason Derulo

Hold On, We’re Going Home - Drake

Rodeo - Lil Nas X

Ms. Jackson - Outkast

EARFQUAKE - Tyler, The Creator

Mine - Bazzi

Die for You - The Weeknd

Love on the Brain - Rihana

Crazy In Love - Beyoncé, JAY-Z

Lucifer

Gooey - Glass Animals

Love Me Dead - Ludo

The Distance - CAKE

Like A Stone - Audioslave

Luxurious- Gwen Stafani

Applause - Lady Gaga

Please Me - Cardi B, Bruno Mars

Take Me Out - Franz Ferdinand

Alejandro - Lady Gaga

Love Is a Bitch - Two Feet

Aint no Rest for The Wicked - Cage the Elephant

Animal - Sir Chloe

Mr. Saxobeat - Alexandra Stan

Judas - Lady Gaga

Livin La Vida Loca - Ricky Martin

White Flag - Bishop Briggs

River - Bishop Briggs

Blurred Lines - Robin Thicke

Sway - Michael Bublé

Juicy

Monster Energy Gun - KevinKempt

Chop Chop Slide - ICP

Get Low - Lil Jon

Crazy - Gnarls Barkley

Star Shopping - Lil Peep

Never There - CAKE

Shake That - Eminem, Nate Dogg

Everywhere I Go - Hollywood Undead

Revenge - XXXTENTACION

POLTERGEIST! - CORPSE

My Mom - Eminem

Asshole - hooligan chase

Under the Influence - Eminem, D12

Shots - LMFAO

Him and I - G-Eazy, Halsey

The Hills - The Weeknd

my boy - Billie Eilish

Leo

Ain’t Shit - Dojo Cat

Feel Like God - Gazy

Nightmare - Halsey

Good-Old Fashioned Lover Boy - Queen

Mujeriego - Ryan Castro

Sweet Dreams - Eurythmics, Annie Lennox

Let’s Groove - Earth, Wind, and Fire

Pizzazz - Akintoye

Slumber Party - Ashnikko

INDUSTRY BABY - Lil Nas X

Milkshake - BBY KODIE

Bad - Michael Jackson

Pony - Ginuwine

Death of a Bachelor - Panic! At the Disco

Blah Blah Blah - The Oozes

Everybody Loves Me - OneRepublic

Joker (Joaquin & Heath’s) (don’t ask- please dont)

Purple Lamborghini- Skrillex, Rick Ross

Fame - David Bowie

Wolf is Sheep’s Clothing - Set It Off

To Catch a Predator- ICP

Back in Black - AC/DC

Tentative - System of a Down

Rainbows and Stuff - ICP

Hokus Pokus - ICP

Murder Go Round - ICP

The Juggla - ICP

HAHA - Lil Darkie

Broken - Lund

I Hate Everything About You - Three Days Grace

Criminal - Britney Spears

Cradles - Sub Urban

Loki

Mind Games - Sickick

I’m A Slave 4 U - Britney Spears

Who is She? - I Monster

A Pearl - Mitski

Cigarettes Out the Window - TV Girl

Redbone - Childish Gambino 

All for Us - Labrinth, Zendaya

Sucker For Pain - Lil Wayne, Imagine Dragons

My Ordinary Life - The Living Tombstone

Bubblegum Bitch - MARINA

I Write Sins Not Tragedies - Panic! At the Disco

Partition - Beyoncé

Suit and Tie - Justing Timberlake

Jealous - Eyedress

Yellow - Coldplay

My Oh My - Camila Cabello

[peppered-moths]

guess whos back, its me and i've come to cause problems! call me what you like by lovejoy is majorwood coded scott pov because i said so - screamingallium

bold take! i'll be completely honest, i haven't even listened to call me what you like. be back in a few minutes.

alright, i'm back! what the fuck. why are you right.

"Smiling when I ask if she's bored yet / Wonder if we took it too far" - this feels like a not-quite-unrequited thing. martyn is definitely Not Over ren, at this point. not sure if he's using scott as a rebound, or if he genuinely wants something serious. maybe he doesn't really know. either way, scott knows and is just a little bit bitter about it, but he can't even try to push martyn away. he's down bad and hates it

"I'd like to think that I'm / The only guy she'll see tonight / You can call me what you like / As long as you call me" - he's not sure how much longer he can take this. he doesn't know why he bothers. is it just the attempt at human contact? is it love? is it desperation? he doesn't care. he wants martyn to want him, even if it's a pipe dream. wishful thinking.

"And you could kiss the skin from my lips / 'Til it makes you feel good" - martyn takes and takes and takes, but that's alright because scott is a giver. he gives lives, he gives love, he hands his heart to martyn and says i hope it's worth it. he knows it'll never amount to anything. his love never does.

"Just let me follow you / And I'll proceed to bang my head on every doorway / And doorframe you see suitable for us to go through" - please let me come with you. please let me be there, in your shadow, in your orbit. he knows it isn't exactly healthy. he's used to ruining himself. why not throw himself on the sword again? what does he even have to lose?

"I'm not paranoid, I'm a realist / I know you're gonna kill me!" - scott's not a fool, despite it all. he knows martyn intends to win. scott's always known he's going to lose, depended on it, an anchor. if he's going to die at martyn's hands, it'll be on his own terms.

"But you can't stay awake forever / No you can't stay awake forever" - sometimes it feels like a dream. a dream where martyn loves scott, where he can pretend that this isn't two lonely people clinging to each other for comfort, but never love. he doesn't want to wake up. he can't sleep. he knows he's going to die. he thinks he'd like it to be a final, grand gesture. i love you, so here. here i am, on a silver platter. maybe if you loved me, you wouldn't do it.

martyn doesn't even hesitate.

[glowxie]

does yalls therapist give u advice that would NOT fucking fly on here too or is mine just in her 50s

[rant below]

like ok. since the truth abt wilbur dropped it has been a steady topic in therapy (sidenote- i literally do not know why but this is a common thing for me. i often get obsessed w media, run w that for maybe a year, fall out of the fandom but still latch onto a couple characters/creators/whathaveyou. for dsmp it was the sorry boys with HEAVY emphasis on ran and wil)

i also have ocd and have a really hard time with "morality" as i call it. genuinely dont know what else to call it. anyway that translates a lot into completely dropping people/musicians/creators etc when i find out theyve actively hurt people.

it's also me doing genuine hours of research into new people and never being able to just casually like something. if a song plays and ive heard more than 2 songs by the artist and i like both i WILL end up doing a deep dive on the artist to see what they have or havent done.

ive been working on that slowly but surely. but anyway. lovejoy. shit got me through when my mom almost died and it felt like a whole new type of grief than what i was already feeling because i KNEW my ocd wouldnt let me listen to them anymore. it was a very back and forth process that i still struggle a lot with.

in therapy it usually goes like

me: like logically i know solely streaming the music on spotify will not bring them very much revenue spotify hates paying their artists and ive never bought merch ive never promoted them ive never made fanart of wil- but my brain thinks immediately if i listen to one song im a horrible person supporting a man that committed domestive violence and is denying it. he has so much support and die hard fans that are going after the victims. i feel like by listening to lovejoy im as bad as them, both him and the fans

her: so. it sounds like youre punishing yourself over something completely out of your control. you did everything you could, went above and beyond to make sure he was a person worthy of your support, yet even his friends didnt know about the abuse at the time. youre keeping yourself from something that you enjoy, something that brought you comfort. you did not know, they didnt know, it wasnt your fault he committed this crime. why should you be punished?

and like. i get it. i really do. i guess part of it is im afraid of what people will think. i do not support wilbur. i fucking hate him for what hes done and i hope he rots in hell. but some of his music brought me comfort in extremely distressing times. listening to music doesnt make me a bad person. knowing does. knowing everything thats happened and continuing to contribute to his fame- thats what kills me about it.

i also know that ran would be so disappointed in me for continuing to listen. so i havent been.

i dont really know what the point of this post is. i guess ive just not seen a perspective like this other than mine. i guess i just hope if other people are afraid like i am (and this is my ocd medicated btw. i have extreme ocd) they can read this and see that if nothing else they arent alone in feeling this way.

[scotianostra]

Abolitionist John Hossack was born on December 6th 1806 in Elgin.

Another name some of you will not know, but I have posted about him before.

Hossack emigrated, with his family, to North America aged 12 and led a remarkable life, first he worked in his uncle's confectionery store in Quebec, then as an adult, he set up his own confectionery store.

He married Martha Lens in 1833; the couple would eventually have eleven children together., all of who grew up to adulthood, no mean feat back when there would have only been basic medical resources. What is even more of a feat is that in fifty-four years, from 1833 to 1887 -- there was not a death in this large family.

Soon after his marriage, Hossack left the confectionery business to become a contractor on the Long Sault canal being built on the Saint Lawrence River, working in the timber business in Chicago, before becoming a successful trader in grain, he became known for his love of "liberty and sympathy for the oppressed"

It was during those days around Chicago that John Hossack took an active role in helping escaped men who had been enslaved, reach Canada, by being part of what became known as the Underground Railroad. He became a friend and associate of William Lloyd Garrison, Owen Lovejoy, Gerrit Smith, John Wentworth, and other noted abolitionists of the time

John Hossack was among the dignitaries on the platform for the first of the Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858, which took place in Ottawa in August 1858. Our US friends might know about these debates, but for all others they were largely concerning the issue of slavery.

Hossack's most famous story is the case of an escaped man "John Grey" during a court case to determine whether he was to be sent back to his "owner" Hossack helped in the mans escape, he ended up being fined and spent time in jail for his involvement, but his time in jail was rather soft in nature compared to real jail time.

You can read all about John Hossack and his family, including details of his 50th wedding anniversary. There is also a letter on the site, written by Hossack while in jail where he writes "....I am a native of the free hills of Scotland..." So even though he was but a youngster when he left, he never forgot his roots.

Also on the page is his statement to the court, where he says he "....landed upon the American shores, having left my kindred and native land in pursuit of some place where men of toil would not be crushed by the property holding class." he goes on "...first saw the light among the rugged and free hills of Scotland; a land, sir, that never was conquered, and where a slave never breathed. "

Hossack was obviously a very learned man, in his statement to the court he argues against slavery using the U.S constitution quoting " it "provides that no person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law."

Perhaps the line that separates John Hossack as great man compared to so many that were against his stance as an abolitionist is this

"I am ready to die, if need be, for the oppressed of my race. But slavery must die"

I could go on and quote loads more from the web page but you really should go take a look yourselves, it's a very interesting read, please take the time to explore it. The pic shows John Hossack and his wife on the day of their golden wedding, with their family around them.