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elopez7228 · 5 years ago

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Scenic Route 24/47

Read on AO3 : https://archiveofourown.org/works/18268208/chapters/43229774

Start over : https://elopez7228.tumblr.com/post/620919089893933056/scenic-route-0147

***

Gripping the steering wheel, Syed inhaled deeply. Her heart was beating wildly out of pace.

I only did my duty she repeated to herself—her new mantra. Kylo was getting sloppy and it was my duty to alert Snoke.

She wondered how she was going to explain herself, to convince the others. It had been six years since she joined the Knights of Ren: Skylar, Saul, Shakti, Kelsi, and Tyra.

They were more than colleagues, more than friends. They were almost like brothers and sisters, with their conflicts, their arguments, their crazy pranks, their terrifyingly close calls, and—if she was being honest—the occasional make out session.

Above all, they had one constant rule: Kylo Ren was their leader and they would sacrifice everything for him if needed.

It's not betrayal. I’m doing my duty. It was him, Kylo Ren, who was betraying his mentor and his mission. He put FORCE in danger for a pair of pretty eyes.

He had always been overly impulsive and capricious. Syed admired that, most of the time. They were alike in that regard. They loved passionately, hated passionately, and they lived without compromise. It was all or nothing. But this time, Kylo has gone too far.

As for herself, now that she had dared to contact Hux directly, she could no longer go back. She had crossed the point of return. Kylo Ren would suffer for his choices at Snoke’s hand, he would be humiliated...and then? Then he would shred her to pieces. He had underestimated the consequences of his actions, but she would not commit the same mistake. He would kill her. Or would have her killed.

By taking a stand against him, she had just lost the right to peace of mind. He could spend every day and night getting revenge...unless she acted first. Trying not to panic, she calmed herself enough to unlock her phone.

Rey gripped the leash tightly, for fear of losing BB8 as she navigated the pre-marked trails. On the other end, BB8 trotted along happily, wagging her tail with excitement.

Mammoth was an absolute tourist trap, full of geysers more than anything else. Rey had become accustomed to seeing them within the park, but they were still geological marvels in their own right, a fascinating spectacle of hot water cascading against a bed of immaculately calcified rock to form an overflowing basin. Rey took a few photos while Maz stepped aside to take an incoming call. When she returned, Rey was sure that something was wrong as soon as she saw Maz’s concerned expression.

“Rey, I just received a call from a fellow hitchhiker who is willing to split a ride with me. I’d posted a request on a travel forum online.”

“Okay?” Rey nodded, unsure of what she was asking for.

“They’re going all the way from Bozeman to Seattle but they leave tomorrow morning.”

“Oh...” Rey’s face fell even as she tried to understand. “Is this good news or bad news, then?”

“Well,” Maz sighed, a hint of embarrassment in her voice, “it’s good news for me, I’ll be able to go almost all the way up to the Canadian border. But as for the concert...”

“Oh?” Rey managed, her vocabulary coming up a bit short. “You’re going to have to leave me already...”

“It’s alright, Rey, don’t worry. I can refuse the ride. We can go to the concert together, I can see it’s very important to you.”

Rey shook her head, forcing herself to smile. “No, Maz, you have to make it to that car. Life on the road is unpredictable and you can’t afford to pass up a good opportunity like this.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m positive,” Rey said as firmly as she could, “you need to get to Bozeman and I can take you there.”

Maz opened her mouth to refuse but Rey interjected. “Come on, I insist. It’s not like I have anything better to do. I would rather not walk around alone for the rest of the day. You need be in Bozeman tomorrow morning so it’s best if we leave now and spend the night there.”

In the end, they finished walking along the marked trail before finding their way back to the Falcon.

Rey froze in her tracks as soon as they arrived. There it was again, the same charcoal grey SUV she had seen next to the river, now sitting motionless in the visitor parking.

It could have been mere coincidence. After all, weren’t there plenty of high-end vehicles out here in the park? Only one way to find out.

Syed jumped when Rey knocked on the driver-side window, eyes widening in surprise when she recognized the face on the other side. But she quickly schooled her features into a more neutral expression.

“Hello, Rey. Having fun?”

Rey offered no greeting in return.

“Are you following me?” she demanded instead, staring the other woman down with flinty eyes.

It would have been a ridiculous question, even a paranoid one, had it not been the case. Syed seemed taken aback.

“Following you? What for?”

“You tell me. I saw your car at the river, and I told myself it looked familiar but it was probably a coincidence. But you were at Old Faithful and Grand Prismatic Spring too, weren’t you? Either this is an incredible coincidence or you’ve been chasing me. So you tell me why.”

“Yellowstone is always worth the trip,” Syed hissed through gritted teeth. “You think I came all the way out here just because of you?”

Rey crossed her arms.

“Oh, really? You had a concert yesterday. Did you really ditch your job to come play tourist?”

“It’s a free country, I can go wherever I please. Kylo didn’t need me for a while so I took the day off.”

“Did he put you up to this?”

Syed paused to take a breath. She’d been caught red-handed, her cover blown and her mission compromised. But the tables had turned too, she was no longer on Kylo’s side even though Rey was still the target. She had to handle this carefully...no use in hiding, Rey was on to her. It was time to switch to subtler tactics.

“Okay, fine. Look, Kylo was worried about you.” She admitted, sounding sincerely embarrassed even to her own ears. “You told him a woman was following you and trying to steal your car. He just wanted to make sure nothing happened to you, that’s all.”

At that, Rey’s arms fell limply to her sides. She had been expecting more denial, or a fight, really anything but this kind of sincerity.

“No...but, I—“ she stammered, “that—that’s not a reason!”

Sensing her weakness, Syed played the ultimate card...by saying exactly nothing. She pursed her lips and gave Rey a chagrined look, wordlessly conveying the misfortune of the unintended situation in her had found themselves in.

Rey was speechless. She didn’t khnow whether to be furious or grateful. Was he really tracking her to keep her safe? Wasn’t she the one who asked for help—could she really blame him for this? She really didn’t know.

Maz placed a gentle hand on her arm. “Rey,” she sighed, “we really have to get going. Come, let’s go.”

She led Rey a little further away before turning to wave Syed off. “Sorry about the misunderstanding. Give our regards to Ben, won’t you? Bye!”

Syed watched them walk away with a polite smile on her face, before suddenly collapsing into a boneless heap at the steering wheel. She buried her face in her hands and rerouted into nervous laughter.

Fuck. She’d come within inches of an outright disaster. Her whole plan was ruined, not that it mattered now. She had bigger things at stake. If she could give Snoke what he wanted, to hell with the other FORCE agents. She could become the new master of the Knights of Ren. She would recruit new members and start over. No way she would trust anyone who had been loyal to Kylo. All of them were unpredictable...she wouldn’t spend every waking hour of the next few years wondering which one of them would betray her next.

She was so heartbroken that she lost the battle with the bile rising in her throat. She got out of the car to throw up.

Why was she like this, wasn’t this what she wanted? Why was she cracking under the pressure now, when she had been through worse before?

Rhetorical questions. She knew exactly why. She knew that by actively going against Kylo’s orders like this that they would be through. Everything would be lost, their history, their connection, their respect. It didn’t matter how strong it had gotten over the years. After this betrayal, he would look at her only in disdain.

He wouldn’t love her anymore. The would only be hate.

Syed leaned against the car for support as another wave of nausea overtook her.

Fortunately, Rey and her companion saw nothing of this as Maz continued to lead the way to the Millenium Falcon, far from the SUV and its owner.

“Rey,” Maz began, “I don’t know what’s going on between you and this Ben, Kylo, or whatever his name is. Did someone really try to steal your car?”

“Yes,” Rey nodded. “It’s true.” And Ben asking Syed to keep an eye on her was likely the truth as well. Wasn’t she the one who called him in the middle of the night from a campsite, demanding his protection? Could she really fault him for taking it so seriously?

Maz looked up at her with a worried expression. “I wish I could tell you that I would join you for the concert after what just happened...it’s a tough call to leave you with such an eccentric man involved. But I think I would be the last person you need if you really want to get through this.”

Rey cocked her head to one side in confusion.

“Listen,” Maz said in a serious tone, all traces of a smile gone from her face. She straightened to her full height as she continued. “You’re not a damsel in distress. You don’t need a strong man to protect you, or some sort of fairy godmother. Get out of that mindset. You are strong and brave in your own right. You’ve travelled all this way alone and you’ve even faced a bear alone. You don’t need to prove yourself to anyone.”

“But I—“ Rey began before Maz interrupted her again. “You’re feeling fragile because of the emotional trauma you’ve endured. That’s normal. It’s perfectly natural to want to be comforted, to be reassured, after what happened to you. But that’s no reason to fall for the first man who is interested. If you want someone, stay with them because you want them, not because you need them. Do you understand?”

Rey pursed her lips. It was an awkward conversation to have. She felt like Maz was undressing her somehow, seeing past her paper-thin defenses, straight into her soul, and laying bare the years of lies and self-persuasion. She hated this. Being drilled into and cracked open, being hit exactly where it hurt. She acquiesced, tears pooling in her eyes.

“Don’t make any rash decisions.” Maz continued still. “Don’t hang on to people like lifelines. That makes you dependent. Dependence leads to an unbalanced relationship. What Ben did to you, having you followed without your consent, was to put you in a gilded cage. And you played the part of the princess in need. That’s not a relationship. You deserve better than that, Rey.”

“What am I supposed to do then?” Asked Rey, her voice on the verge of breaking.

“It’s not my place to tell you. Listen to your heart. Decide for yourself what is important, what is necessary or tolerable, or not tolerable at all. And then make a decision. Act on it, and move forward.”

Sensing her friend’s unhappiness, BB8 leapt up onto her hind legs, nuzzling Rey’s leg and begging to be cuddled. It made Rey smile, despite her tears.

“An unhappy princess, a crazy adventure, an adorable sidekick...it’s all here. I guess that makes you my fairy godmother, doesn’t it?”

Maz rolled her eyes. “Very well,” she said, holding her hands out as if to cast a magic spell, “by the powers vested in me as you fairy godmother,” she intoned solemnly, “I hereby declare you, Rey Jakku, free of your own personal prison! You may dance and shout “fuck” all night if you want to, amen.”

She didn’t know if it was the magic spell or the power of self-determination, but suddenly Rey felt a million times lighter. She couldn’t help laughing. Once again, this strange little woman had hurt her in the best way, tearing her false hopes and convictions into shreds in order to face the unknown. But she was right. Rey didn’t owe anything to anyone. Who was she afraid of displeasing now tat she no longer fit the description of the pretty little city girl she had built up for herself? It was her choice.

As for Ben Solo, what he want from her? What did he think she could bring him? If he thought she was just a fragile plaything, he was sorely mistaken.

And as for the concert...she would see.

“All aboard!” Rey announced as she carried BB8 to the back seat. “We have two hours to get to Bozeman and that’ll give us just enough time to look for a place to stay tonight.”

“I know the perfect motel,” Maz agreed. “My treat. I know this detour is for me ans it’s the least I can do. How about a real mattress, and a real shower with quality shampoo? How does that sound?”

That sounded amazing.

The Millenium Falcon soared past the northern entrance of the park, merging onto I-89 towards Bozeman.

Rey searched for Syed’s SUV in the rear view mirror, but it never appeared.

Was she finally free?

#Reylo #fanfiction #Scenic Route #Modern AU

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disenchantedfaerie · 5 years ago

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We’re still playing games, won’t you join?

I didn’t really listen to the entire thing. I was mostly just interested in the part about the rant. What I love most about this is still the fact that no one mentions why he was called out in the first place. He doesn’t mention it. CB doesn’t mention it. No one does. It’s just poor SH couldn’t take it anymore. He is poor abused Sam and it was the right time to share his feelings. He doesn’t mention it was all in response to the “small group of very vocal people” who used their voices to point out his covidiocy. And what did they get in return? Hate from this worshippers loyal followers and his blocking them from his SM. Read that again. HATE from his followers, the very thing he was reprimanding the fandom for is what they were doing to the “small group of people” that called him out for the lies and the blatant disrespect of what was happening.

Again, I don’t discount his feelings and if he truly does have mental health issues, I really hope and pray he finds a way to seek the help he needs. Mental health is no joke. I know. I deal with it daily. Bullying and stalking is not acceptable on any level ever. As someone in the public eye, I’m sorry that they have to deal with that. We’ve all heard the horror stories. The thought of stalking a celeb to find their whereabouts would never occur to me. If I run into someone on the street randomly, LUCKY ME! But to seek them out? No thank you. I don’t have that kind of time. I lived in LA for 17 years. I met a few celebs when I was following bands in Hollywood. Met them. Maybe had a drink or two, some nice conversation or a hug. That’s it. I didn’t follow them home or try to find them in hopes we could have a relationship, friendship or anything else. End of story.

Which leads me back to the main issue. Why did he really feel the need to drop that rant on that fateful day? It wasn’t really about the bullying and stalking. It was to change the focus of the fact that he fucked up by going to Hawaii in the midst of a global pandemic with someone, as far as we all know, he barely knew, and then bragged about it and let us know how hard he works and how much he deserved it when other harder working people had to cancel their plans. Let’s not forget it was just a few days before the Gaga special as well. Damage control. Simple. He then further punished his worshippers loyal followers and the rest of the fandom by tweeting and IGing sporadically, not interacting and staying quiet. Maybe he should have done that to begin with but attention is attention whether it’s good or bad.

And for what? A vacation? Really? New Orleans was all work? New York? Vegas? Oregon? Mexico? Mammoth? Big Sur? LA? He was working 24/7 (like all our front line doctors/nurses/delivery/all ESSENTIAL workers) the entire time he was brought to America? That’s truly amazing. What stamina he must have coming off of 10 long months of filming where again there was absolutely no down time ever. All work and no play makes Sammy a dull boy I guess.

The response however from STARZ and his coworkers has been very telling in my opinion. There really hasn’t been much interaction and for being one of the leads in the show it’s simply amazing how his live IGs have been cancelled time and again and OL STARZ hasn’t supported him doing one like they did for all the lesser cast. Interesting, yes?

I know I keep saying it over and over and I likely will keep saying it in the hopes that the guy I thought I followed when I started watching this show will apologize for discounting this pandemic and not following the advice of his government and being an entitled jerk about it when he was called out. If he thought he was really right, why lash out? Because deep down, he knew he was wrong but as a spoiled, selfish, entitled git, he had to show everyone just exactly who he is. Thank you. I’m glad he did. He’s saved me heartache and money.

I feel like I’m blathering but it’s my blog so I can. My final point is about this interview. When asked what the first thing is he wants to after this is over? He briefly said oh friends and family, but see my good old coworker Cait, hug my good old coworker Cait because that means they’re back at work. Feed a shipper much? That statement on the heals of the IG story he posted and where he asked for captions? Not a photo of J/C. No. That would have made too much sense. It was a photo of S/C with a cutesy little heart. Feed the shippers much? I just cannot with these people. They can’t have it both ways. Who are the biggest trolls in the fandom? STARZ and the leads. They started it. They keep feeding it. It will never end. What is he really going to do when OL is no more? Slip back into obscurity and hopefully (fingers crossed) live his actual truth if he even remembers what that is? Or will he continue with the lies because this taste of fame is too much to resist? Who will he fall back on when he can’t hide behind the show or his good old coworker, his number one woman to be associated with? What then? Be on another series, if he can, and be shipped with his costar again? And start the entire process all over? Be careful what you wish for. You may just actually get it. I feel bad for his mum. I can’t wait to see mine again, to hug her, have a meal with her, just sit with her and look at her. My coworkers will come and go. I only get one mum.

Next time I’m going to lay my thoughts on you about Dwayne Johnson The Rock. I read an interview with him recently and it restored my faith in humanity and elite A-List celebs. That’s for next time. Stay tuned.

I’ll be watching. I’ll be posting. 🖤💙🤍

#samheughan #sam heughan #my opinion #my rants #my thoughts #king of men #if you cant be nice scroll on by #over it #outlander starz #interview

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connorrenwick · 5 years ago

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Where I Work: Rachel Smith of & SMITH

Rachel Smith is partner of London-based creative agency & SMITH, a firm she co-founded with Dan Bernstein in 2007. & SMITH specializes in branding for hotels, food, and drink, working with companies like Liberty London, LUX* Resorts, Yo! Sushi, Dishoom, Shake Shack, and Ikor Resorts, to name a few. The team works out of their Stoke Newington studio, a light-filled space that’s acts as a white canvas for colorful artwork, plants, and creative ideas. For this month’s Where I Work, Rachel takes us inside to see the agency’s workspace while sharing about her work process.

What’s your studio/work environment like?

Our studio used to be a piano factory, so we have amazing light, huge windows, and very high ceilings. It’s in residential Stoke Newington, a pretty peaceful part of the world and we’re close to a beautiful park and the best local shop in London, I’ve just had a great ice lolly from there. After a good Friday tidy the studio can look pretty cool – but most of the time it’s a very ‘lived in’ space.

How is your space organized/arranged?

We have one long bank of desks, where most people sit. My business partner Dan and I used to be there, too, but we got evicted when the studio got a little larger a few years ago. We now hop between ‘the cave’ (our small meeting room), our main table, next to a designer, out and about, or at home.

How long have you been in this space? Where did you work before that?

Around 6 years. When Dan and I set up in 2008 we were in a small shipping container in Shadwell with a walk outside to get to the sink and toilets. This was definitely a step up for us, and we were so happy to get this space. At the time most of our staff lived within walking difference, which was a big plus.

If you could change something about your workspace, what would it be?

Eating lunch together is one of my favourite things, so maybe a slightly larger communal table. We can all squeeze round – but it can get friendly! I’ve come up with a few terrible ideas over the years on how to extend it – but it thankfully never happens. We do need one more meeting room, oh and a sofa to have a nap on would be nice. I used to nap on a sofa in our old studio in my ‘post working from home’ days.

Is there an office pet?

Nope, I’m not an animal person, I think I’m missing a gene, or I have a pebble for a heart. My studio mostly loves animals though – so I have said if anyone wants a dog, they can bring it in – but they don’t think I’m serious. They’re probably right, so they’ve made friends with a few local cats instead.

Do you require music in the background? If so, who are some favorites?

Yes, we love music in the studio. Our Studio Manager Aimee is a DJ, so she’s mainly responsible for our daily listening. She describes it as a mixture of ‘Soul, R&B, Yacht Rock, Disco and 90’s Nostalgia with a peppering of the 6 Music playlist’.

If it’s left to me, it’s 80/90’s pop, a power ballad or two and some 90’s hip hop classics – I’m very content being stuck in time. A studio classic is Private Dancer by Tina Turner for a Friday end of day, get it up nice and loud to finish the week. I also like to kick projects off with a relevant tune to get the team in the mood, although that did result in Christmas tunes on the hottest day of the year recently. Sorry Sam.

How do you record ideas?

I love an iPhone note or photograph. My iPhone and I are very good friends. It’s either that or any random bit of paper on my desk, which I then usually lose. I’m very messy.

Do you have an inspiration board? What’s on it right now?

We have three inspiration places in the studio, one for magazines, one for general inspiration and one place where Aimee puts up which is new and interesting places to eat, drink, or sleep. On it right now… see above!

What is your typical work style?

At the moment, it’s a bit tightly packed. I had a baby last year so I’m still working on the best work/life balance. I used to only work in the office and enjoyed home being a work-free place. In general, I’m always better much later in the day. We have flextime at work so you can be an early bird or a late worker, and the hours can adapt to suit you.

What is your creative process and/or creative workflow like? Does it change every project or do you keep it the same?

The key to starting every project is spending time with a client, experience the brand and carefully listen to what they are trying to do. No project can start without this.

After that it’s flexible depending on the project and team size. Ideally, we’d have full project briefing all together, then we like to physically immerse ourselves in the world (getting as much eating, sleeping, and drinking done as possible). Sometimes we have a focused team on a creative project for 48 hours – with no distractions.

There’s a midway crit and a presentation at the end to rest of the team. This is way before it gets anywhere near the client.

What kind of art/design/objects might you have scattered about the space?

We probably should have a few more. We have a cool Supermundane mural that he painted for us when we moved in. Oh, and I like our lightbulb Disco sign too, and a large female figure cut out of an illustration we did for a recent project.

Are there tools and/or machinery in your space?

There’s a large walk-in cupboard which has all of our cutting/mock-up equipment in, masking tape, spray mount, rulers, scalpels, etc. Our machinery is just our printer.

What tool(s) do you most enjoy using in the design process?

Scissors, paper, and a nice fat pen. Getting early ideas up on the board and getting busy with some scissors, pens, paper always feels good.

Let’s talk about how you’re wired. Tell us about your tech arsenal/devices.

Just lots and lots of Macs, a mammoth server, and a goliath phone system – all technical terms.

What design software do you use, if any, and for what?

We use InDesign mainly, then Illustrator, Photoshop, After Effects, Sketch, Pages, Numbers, and our trusty steeds Slack and Streamtime. Slack Attack has well and truly hit our studio in the last year.

What’s on your desk right now?

Normally a load of paper, full up A4 Moleskines, and old status reports/quotes plus a few random pens and my 20-year-old calculator that I stole from Pentagram – that calculator and I have seen some good and bad times. But, let’s be honest, I tidied a little for the shoot so you can now see some nice books and a clear desk. Use your imagination to make this look a lot messier.

LUX*

Dishoom

Is there a favorite project/piece you’ve worked on?

Next year’s projects?! If I had to pick a few past projects, I think LUX* Hotels and Resorts work for the sector challenging ideas and our Art Direction work. Then Dishoom for seeing a project start authentically and getting on board with that journey early on with a strong focus on typography. It’s great to have seen Dishoom grow. Nothing is better than being given license to do great work for someone but then seeing the way that comes to life with the rest of the team’s hard work.

Tell us about a current project you’re working on. What was the inspiration behind it?

We’re working on a really exciting vegan ice cream brand at the moment. I can’t talk about the inspiration yet (as I’d have to kill you) but I’ve loved finding out more about that and also how people shop in the frozen aisle. We throw ourselves into each world and learn so much, this can then influence every project that follows in unexpected ways.

Do you have anything in your home that you’ve designed/created?

Look Up Pin badges and cards for my husband’s print company, a screenprint from one of his events, and a chair covered in my mate’s amazing Marwood fabric – but let’s be honest, I hardly designed this one. I bought the fabric, found the chair, and paid someone else to cover it!

I have many hopes for our house, painting ceilings bright yellow, walls in the garden a Yves Klein Blue, a sculptural polystyrene wall above the stairs, or a Sol Le Witt/Emma Kunz inspired coloured pencil wall mural. But alas, I have no time right now – so these things will all have to wait.

via http://design-milk.com/

from WordPress https://connorrenwickblog.wordpress.com/2019/09/24/where-i-work-rachel-smith-of-smith/

#Uncategorized

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