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connorandersons-blog · 4 years ago

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For Good

The battle comes to an end and bodies from both sides litter the ground. Connor knows this is his chance to free the others of himself.

Inspired by Defying Gravity and For Good in Wicked.

So I had this scene in my head, where its kinda canon, canon universe and roles but with Harry Potter style spells and magic.

I'm ngl, I'm nervous to post this. For some reason it feels personal, but I can't decide why. But anyway, I'm really proud of this, and wanted to post it anyway.

Rating: Teen Word Count: 2,049 Ship: Rk1000 (Markus/Connor) Warning: Minor Character death, death, fake death

Hope you enjoy!

__________________________

He didn't belong, he always knew that would be the case, but he always thought he'd be able to make it through anyway. He just didn't realize how bad it would get even with the few people that accepted him.

But he wanted different things than them. He needed different things, and it spit them apart. It hurt more than anything else, watching as Markus desperately tried to hold onto their friendship–or whatever it really was.

He'd stood by them during the fight, he'd fought for what was right even when he'd done so much bad in the past. He understood the curses sent his way, the confused looks the others sent as he fired at the ones he used to defend.

It was actually rather easy, with all of the chaos. He always knew this battle was coming, everyone had felt the tensions rising, a coil ready to snap. And snap it did.

Markus had even put himself in the front, if this went down then he'd go down with it. Connor protected him as much as he could, but everyone was hurt and bleeding. No side was left unscathed, mentally, or physically.

He saw the terror in a human's eyes as they trembled from blood loss. Connor knew no one would heal them, not in time, so he made the death quick and painless. Some would say it was merciful while others thought it cruel not to give the human a fighting chance.

He watched as those like him burned and screamed in agony, begging for the pain to finally stop. Those that died quickly were the lucky ones, even more so than the ones that got to live to see another day.

Connor had hoped he'd die, that one well-aimed spell would end him. It would be easier that way, he wouldn't have to live with the guilt of knowing what he'd do to his friends.

North was resilient, she'd toughen up like always but eventually break down. She would be fine, though. She always was, and she would never forget his name, but those memories would fade.

Josh would blame himself, thinking about how he could have done better. That there were ways to avoid the whole mess of fighting, and in that Connor would still be alive. Connor adored him for his optimism, but it would be his downfall eventually.

Simon? It would be hard for him. He'd already lost so much, but the others would be there for him, and he'd make it through. North and Markus wouldn't let him go after all of this.

And Markus… that was the hardest to think about. Connor knew how he felt, but they never did anything. They couldn't, not in this world, not at that time. Markus had too much to focus on, and Connor knew he'd eventually hurt Markus. He was so wonderful, and Connor would mourn their connection the most.

They would all be losing one close friend, but he'd be losing four. They would think he was dead, gone for good, but Connor would always know there could be more. He could always go back, but it was better if he didn't. It would be better if he disappeared.

The bodies covered the ground, and with a flick of his wrist and whispered words, his joined. It was weird seeing himself lie this, his face slightly mangled, and his chest was blown open by some spell. He had to place a hand over his own chest, to feel that he was still breathing.

Then came the harder spell, making himself fully invisible. The only catch was Markus with his odd eye would be able to see through it. But he hoped the body would be too distracting.

He hid quickly when he heard their mumbled voices, moving so that he could leave. He just wanted to see all four of them, together and alive.

And they were. Their faces were dirty and bloody, their hair messed up but they were well and truly alive. He didn't want to watch them find the body, so he started to leave, making sure to stay hidden in the shadows.

Then he heard her scream. It shook through him and vibrated the ground, threatening to split open. He squeezed his eyes shut, but he could imagine the look on North's face as she lost a brother. Not by blood, but blood wasn't everything. That's what they had tried to show the humans.

It was terrifying to hear, it was a sound that would never leave him. He'd wake up hearing her scream, her plead for this not to be real.

She sobbed and screamed, but he could tell the others were comforting her, trying to calm her before she really tore open the very ground he was walking away on.

He ran. He ran as fast as he could away, not able to look back. If he looked back he knew what would happen. He'd go back, show them it was ok, that he wasn't dead. He'd give some excuse that a human he knew was after him, that he had to make the human believe he was dead.

He'd run back into Markus' safe, warm arms. Markus would stroke through his hair like he always did when Connor would lay his head in his lap.

He just couldn't. It wouldn't be fair to them or himself. He'd never fit in with either side, but maybe he could find a place where fitting in didn't matter. Where his name was unknown or forgotten, and his presence would hinder anyone's success. He would no longer be the extra wheel or the storm clouds that hid the sun. He'd be free, and so would everyone else.

"Connor!"

Shit. He knew he should have just left, he shouldn't have been so selfish as to wait to see them. He couldn't stop running, he could outrun Markus if given the chance.

"Please! I just," Markus said, reaching out and grabbing his wrist, yanking them both to a stop.

He didn't turn around, he couldn't face him. "Let me go." It wasn't a demand or a command, it was a plea.

“You’re leaving?!” of course Markus saw through the illusion. Connor knew he wouldn't tell the others, not before knowing why Connor was doing this.

“I...” He looked down at his hands, unable to see past the blurriness of tears. “I’m just... I’m so tired.”

The hand around his wrist tightened and he stumbled back as he was pulled against Markus' chest. His strong arms slid around him, letting go of his wrist to only hold him more securely.

He could feel Markus' breath on his neck and ear, and any other time he would have shivered, hoping this would finally be the time. Instead, he trembled, gasping for air he didn't need. This was safe, here in Markus' arms was home.

"Please don't leave me," Markus whispered almost too softly for Connor to hear.

What was he supposed to say? Markus already knew almost everything, he probably didn't even have to use his eye to see through the illusion, he probably knew it would happen. "You have to let me go."

Markus shook his head, squeezing Connor closer. "I can't do that. I can't lose you."

"Markus… I've been gone since the moment I fell in-" he couldn't say it. He couldn't admit it out loud now, it would be too cruel.

"I'll come with you. We can escape, go anywhere you want." Now it was Markus' turn to beg, and if Connor hadn't been so sure of this choice it would have worked.

"You know you can't. You won, you have to stay. You couldn't live the way I'm going to, not because you aren't strong but because it would slowly crush you." He couldn't watch as Markus slowly started to resent him for it.

He felt warmth on his neck, the wetness of Markus' tears on his own lips as he pressed a kiss there. "All I want is for you to be happy. Will this really do that?"

No. But he would never be able to be truly happy. "Yes." Another lie in the many he collected. This was his most important, the one that meant the most.

Markus was silent, trying to figure everything out. Connor didn't try to pull away, if this was the last time he would be in Markus' arms then he'd savor it. "I thought I could… I thought I maybe helped."

"So much of me is made of what I learned from you. You'll be with me," he took one of Markus' hands, sliding it up to rest over his heart, "like a handprint on my heart." He'd never forget him, there would always be part of Markus that would stay. Markus would always have his heart, and he'd gladly give it up, he'd pull it out of his chest himself.

Markus had helped so much, more than he could imagine, and that's why he was doing this. One day he'd fully understand, and maybe Markus would think back and be at peace. "I'm not sure I can let you go."

"I know, but you have to." It was the only way either would be free. "Don't tell the others. North will never stop looking and it will drive her insane. You know she won't stop until she dies." He wasn't exaggerating either, she would die trying to find him.

He felt Markus nod, his stubble rubbing against his neck. "I want to say it. Would it change your mind? Would you stay?"

Connor let out a choked sob, "No. Fuck, please don't. Markus, you have to know it was either this, or I would have found a way to… that body would have been real."

"Baby, please don't. I can live and hope if I know you're alive. That's all I ask for, that hope."

Hope. Markus had always been his hope. One he would eventually have to let go of. He'd never stop caring about him, but he knew if he was to survive he'd have to. "I'll find ways to let you know I'm alive, I promise." He could send small things, untraceable things. But eventually, that would stop too, only to spare Markus the heartache.

"You have changed me for good. I won't ever truly let you go, but I understand if you need to. If it will make you happiest, then I understand." Markus pressed another kiss to his neck, but closer to his jaw. They'd never kissed, not like this. It was always on the cheek, or if they were feeling silly, on the hand.

He always imagined what it would feel like to have Markus really kiss him, to feel that adoration with every touch. He closed his eyes and tilted his head, letting Markus do what they both wanted for so long.

Markus's hand traveled down only to move back up under Connor's ruined shirt. They both shivered, finally feeling each other. Markus's hands were so warm as they slid over Connor's stomach.

Neither said anything as Markus' touch burned through him, but Connor let out soft sighs and whimpers, wanting so much more. He wanted things he couldn't have.

He barely had any energy left, so he knew it would be risky. He just needed one last thing.

He turned in Markus' arms, finally kissing him. It was so natural, their bodies pressed together perfectly, Connor's head tilted slightly to press closer. Markus's hand went up to grab Connor's hair, keeping him in place as he deepened the kiss.

It was everything he dreamed of and more. It hurt so bad, his heart twisting and ripping in half, but it felt amazing. He leaned back, finally able to look Markus in his beautiful eyes.

He could see the sadness there, but also understanding. If Connor stayed staring into those eyes he knew he would melt.

He took out his wand, closing his eyes as he whispered the words, his body being ripped away from Markus and the battlefield. For a split second, he heard Markus calling for him, but the spell had already shoved him away, letting Connor teleport to where he had to go.

He let himself disappear for good.

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365days365movies · 4 years ago

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January 15, 2021: Casino Royale (2006) (Part 1)

So...we meet again, Bond. What’ve you been doing for the past few years?

...What. Not who, James, WHAT. Jeez.

Whatever. BrosBond had 3 movies after GoldenEye, and they were...not great, from what I’ve heard. Remember, I wasn’t as big of a fan of GoldenEye as many critics and fans were; so, I can’t imagine what I’d think of the latter three. Maybe one day, but not today!

Today, I’m focusing my sights on the revitalization of the brand. See, in 2002, Die Another Day came out, and that movie was apparently crazy. TOO crazy. So crazy, in fact, that audiences and critics accused it of losing the plot, and the production studio in charge (Eon Productions) had a yearning to change direction. And their inspiration came from...a surprising place.

See, Joel Schumacher’s campy, over-the-top Batman films were basically wiped out by Christopher Nolan’s 2005 reinvention of the character in Batman Begins. Which is, in my opinion, a highly underrated classic, Seriously. And in 2005, this film was absolutely a smash-hit. Batman was cool again, which a lot of people never thought would happen in film. Eon saw this, and thought...how can we apply that to Bond?

Out with Brosnan...in with Craig.

The first of the new, darker, reinvented Bond films is planned for release in 2006, starring Daniel Craig as the suave, sophisticated spy. And the director of the film was selected to be...Martin Campbell? From GoldenEye? The guy who kinda sorta started the modern over-the-top Bond? Really? I mean, OK. The writers this time are different...except for one. I didn’t talk about the writers last time because I don’t like putting people on blast if I don’t gotta. This time...maybe. We’ll see.

If this Casino Royale is basically Bond Begins, I’m definitely interested. Maybe this’ll revitalize that Bond-love from the Connery days. Let’s find out! We’re also gonna look at the Bond checklist again!

Gadgets: better have more cool gadgets than GoldenEye, I swear...

Bond Girl: GoldenEye’s Natalya wasn’t bad, to be honest; let’s see who his Inevitable Love Interest is this time.

Villain: Alec Trevelyan had so much potential. I need my dastardly villain, let’s do this. Oh, and let’s throw the henchman in here, too. Xenia Onatopp was...a lot...but she was a memorable henchman, at least.

Music: Of course. GoldenEye’s theme was good, and we’ll see how 2006 does.

OK, movie time. SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap

We start at an office building in Prague, where a man makes his way up to his office. Waiting there for him is, of course, James Bond (Daniel Craig). The man is Dryden, section chief at the British Embassy in Prague, whom M has accused of selling secrets, a big no-no. But Bond...isn’t a double-0 agent. Huh. You got me interested.

Apparently, agents get the two zeroes once they’ve killed two people on file. James hadn’t killed anyone...until recently. Which is when we get this.

OH SHIT

This is an absolutely BRUTAL fight. It’s not choreographed flashily, it’s not pretty...it’s rough. It’s intense. And it’s...oh my God, wow. Made me feel it. And what’s astonishing is that it’s SO short.

On learning this, Dryden tells him not to worry, the second one is...

...YOU GOT ME. I’M IN FOR THE FUCKIN’ RIDE

HOW??? How is it that in 3 minutes of screentime, I’m already more satisfied by Craig’s Bond than I was for the ENTIRETY of GoldenEye? That is masterfully done, right off the bat. WOW. We even get a smooth-as-silk segue into the classic bullet turret sequence, and that takes us right into the song and opening credits. And...wow.

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Here’s the thing about Bond openings, as I mentioned last time: they were all directed by one guy up until GoldenEye, and were basically all silhouetted women with themes and scenes from the movie projected around them. The Brosnan movies followed suit, always having silhouetted women in one way or another. Die Another Day used CGI women and...a really bad Madonna song. It was...it is NOT GOOD, guys. Look it up, it’s the most 2002 thing I’ve ever heard.

But here’s the fin bit about Casino Royale. This is the first Bond movie opening with no women in it. Yeah. It’s the first one. And the song is Chris Cornell’s You Know My Name, and it’s good! Not sure it’s going in my soundtrack, though.

Finally, the opening credits sequence itself: it’s once again Daniel Kleinman doing it, and it’s actually inspired by the first James Bond book Casino Royale, which had already had a TV special and unofficial Bond movie made from it! The cover had a playing card motif, and the opening carries over that motif creatively. I really dig it, if I’m honest! Definitely a welcome break from the 44 years of Bond films preceding it.

Uganda! And we meet the villain of this film: Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelsen). And GODDAMN if that isn’t a Bond villain! He’s a banker, making a deal with a rebel leader, Steven Obanno (Isaach de Bankole), via their liason Mr. White (Jesper Christiensen). Setting up an attack by supplying Obanno with money, he sells his stocks of a company called Skyfleet, knowing that they’re about to fail.

Meanwhile, a ferret’s fighting an Asian species of cobra. In Madagascar. My zoology senses are EXPLODING, OH my God. So much wrong there. Anyway, there’s a bombmaker in the crowd watching the fight. He’s being tailed by Bond and another agent, Carter, who tips off the guy by being a bad spy. Bond chases him to a construction yard. What now, James?

Awesome. Why is this awesome when I said that the tank was dumb? Because at least it makes sense for a bulldozer to go haywire in a construction yard, just sayin’. Plus, this dude clearly isn’t the best, as he fires on construction workers and cops.

Eventually, this chase sequence brings us to the top of a crane, where this exchange happens.

I, uh...I love this movie already. That’s goddamn great.

The chase scene as a whole is also fantastic, as it continues off the bridge and into an abandoned building, then escalates into the streets, brings in law enforcement, and eventually ends with Bond at an embassy, facing down both the military and the bomb maker. He kills the guy, shoots some gas tanks, grabs the bomb, and then gets the hell out of there.

...Y’know what, that was fucking amazing, but he also almost certainly caused an international incident there. And I should be annoyed about that, but guess what! It makes sense! This is an inexperienced Bond, one who’s JUST been promoted to 00 status as 007, as the prologue explained. So, y’know what? I’m into it!

Cut to a yacht, like you do in a Martin Campbell Bond film. There, we have our villain, Le Chiffre, playing a card game. Also, he weeps blood. Yeah. HE WEEPS BLOOD.

OK, if that isn’t some Bond villain shit, I don’t know WHAT is. He’s also asthmatic, because I love it. I love it so much. He’s a mathematically-brilliant asthmatic that weeps blood. More, please.

He’s also a person aware of what Bond did at the embassy, as it’s already become an international incident! Thank you for showing consequences, movie! Damn! I love it! This has two additional consequences. One, Le Chiffre notes that the code “Ellipsis” used by the bomber may be soon to expire, indicating a connection between the two. And the second consequence? M’s pissed.

M! DAME JUDI DENCH! One of my favorite things about GoldenEye was bringing in Judi Dench as M, and she made it through the reboot! And she’s still as entertaining as she was before, calling Bond out for his stupidity, and explaining that she misses the Cold War.

In her apartment, M does her normal exposition schtick, and her interactions with Bond are fantastic here. She’s understandably angry at him, and gives him what for, but she’s also clearly impressed that he FIGURED OUT WHERE SHE LIVES, as well as her REAL NAME. Shows her opinion of Bond and aspects of Bond’s character in a single, masterful stroke.

Well. Goddamn. Done.

The Bahamas! Bond’s here to find Alex Dimitrios (Simon Abkarian), a Greek businessman who’s believed to have a connection with Le Chiffre himself. And, as James Bond is wont to do, he finds him at a party, playing cards. And here’s where the reinvention of Bond comes full circle.

See, Bond’s doing all the typical Bond things, yeah. But there are some differences present here, as well as some neat nuances. Bond isn’t wearing the suit, first of all. He actually hasn’t worn a suit the whole movie, which makes perfect sense for a spy. Suits aren’t exactly the least conspicuous thing in the world; bound to get you noticed if you don’t want to be.

And then, there’s the girl. This is Solange Dimitrios (Catherina Murino), the wife of Alex who was treated BADLY by him at the party. That gives her a reason to take Bond’s offer for a ride to his place, outside of just his raw animalistic charm that he seems to have in some of these movies. Look at that, already more chemistry than he had with Natalya in GoldenEye.

And yes, this results in her cheating on Alex. Is her cheating justified from a moral standpoint? No, of course it isn’t. And of course, this leads to the typical Bond-handsome-sex-GOOD sequence, but again, some nuance here! First of all, he doesn’t win her over with corny clever lines, like what we saw in GoldenEye multiple ties. Second, this is actually all an attempt to get some infomation from her about her husband. Bond might be enjoying it, but his womanizing here actually has a purpose. And that’s rare!

That’s further punctuated by the fact that he STRAIGHT UP LEAVES BEFORE ANYTHING HAPPENS. Yeah, she tells him that Alex just made his way to Miami, and he leaves! Dick move, yeah, but it makes sense! James isn’t here for pleasure, he’s here for work!

He follows Alex to a Bodies at Work exhibit (you know, the preserved and skinned cadavers put into poses that used to tour around the USA? I saw it in Times Square at the end of its popularity. A little ghoulish, maybe, but I think it’s pretty cool), where the two of them get in a very tense close-up knife fight in public.

Alex is dead, but not before passing off a package to someone else at the exhibition. Bond tails the guy to Miami International Airport, where the largest airplane in the world is set to be unveiled. Using the code sent to the bombers, Bond gets into the back, and goes to intercept the disguised bomber who’s set to blow up the SkyChonk (I mean it, that giant airplane is THICCC).

Time for another cool chase sequence! Some luggage is destroyed, along with a bus, the cops join in on the chase, an airplane is prevented from landing (making someone on that plane probably very upset), and Bond somehow manages to prevent the plane from blowing up. And it’s by the SKIN of his teeth, lemme tell you. Also, he blows up a dude with his own flashlight bomb.

Nice. Somehow, Bond isn’t arrested, and makes his way back to the Bahamas. And it looks like Solange isn’t the Bond girl after all. Because she was thought to be the information leak (which she was, to an extent), she was tortured to death. Whoof.

M’s in the Bahamas now, and the exposition continues. She’s done with Bond’s bullshit, and she plants a tracker under his skin. She explains that with the big boi plane destroyed, somebody stood a lot to gain financially from the stock crash to come. Except that the plane wasn’t destroyed, and that person lost $100 million by “betting the wrong way.”

That person, of course, was Le Chiffre, a manthematical genius and chess prodigy, who plays poker for fun, and plays the stock market with his clients’ money. Bond’s the best poker player in MI6 (a good addition that we already saw foreshadowed earlier! See what I mean?), and she’s sending him to a high stakes poker game that Le Chiffre’s looking to regain his money from.

Bond FINALLY dons his suit, and gets on a train in Montenegro, where he meets...

Vesper Lynd (Eva Green). THERE’S our Bond girl! Although, there’s a reference to Miss Moneypenny in their introduction, which is interesting. But Vesper is an agent for the British Treasury, supplying the money for the buy-in for the tournament. And their conversation on the train...wow. Now THIS is chemistry, seriously.

Vesper’s a great character, and she gives Bond NO quarter. She reads his character, and calls him out very accurately. They also explain why both Bond and Vesper are good at poker: it’s all about reading people. I’m genuinely impressed by how this movie is put together, and how well-thought out Bond is as a character. And this is the dimension I love to see in a Bond girl as well!

GODDAMN, I am in love with this movie. More coming in Part 2!

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smallestclowninthecircus · 4 years ago

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Tma season 2 notes baybeee

I made myself take several breaks so I could give my frie d who is listening to it at the same time as me a chance to catch up. Honestly just posting them so I have them saved somewhere but whatever.

ep 41: real graham wrote keep watching before he was replaced. Jon feels like he's being watched. But they werent replaced by things related to the eye. It's the web that's on the box that replaces them. Endless hallways and doors to nowhere. I bet nicholas will have ideas what entity this relates to. If it even does. They're like the tunnels in the one with the builder guy. Tunnels closing in etc. Also like the cave diving one. He's assuming it's just one

ep 42: so 100 gecs? (IM SORRY I LIKE 100 GECS BUT LMAO) so there's some entity related to music right? There's the piper episode and the 27 w/ the calliope. Ah yes, this season is gonna be the season of Paranoid!Jon

ep 43: section 31? fucking books. god no. smashed lights? cult lady did that. covered the lights too. she mentioned a spooky clown doll. thats not random.

ep 44: is this that same circus that got mentioned before? it is! the pipe organ! pop off organ! pipe off! mouth on the stomach! yes! mouths in unusual places my beloved!

ep 45: antiques! like that one ep!

ep 46: every time books get mentioned i sigh. hhh sus smells. it got brighter. I get the vibes occasionally that the dark and the eye are sorta at odds with eachother. GRRR BARK BARK LEITNER. ayyy ex altiora. entity go brr. which entity do we thing it is? my guess is The Dark. The book buyer's name is Mike. He has scars? Electricity? The childhood friend of the guy who got it later on perhaps? The Vast? its formatted like an entity idk. This happened before the other one. He got trapped in the wood carving. a win for the web lol spiders go brr

ep 47: did i hear spiral? ITS THE NOT THING FROM THE EPISODE WITH NOT GRAHAM "it didnt move, it shifted" is like the exact same sentence as before. ay john's starting to remember. the laughing woah thats weird. is "michael" one of the entities? "you make it seem like theres a war" supports my theory that theres a struggle between a couple of the entities. I said i thought it was the eye and the dark i believe but im not sure. its whatever entity michael is vs the worms? what did nicholas say the worms were again? The Corruption? still dont know which one michael is tho.

Had to take a break after that episode. smth about the quality of michael's voice makes me feel like im gonna slip into one of those states where it feels like nothing is real, so i got a nice cold glass of water.

ep 48: jesus ok this one's kidna corny. you're telling me love made the crowd go away come on now. Ur losing it big J. also shouldnt it be more sus that "sasha" is so unaffected by the worm incident/ finding of gertrude's body

ep 49: haven't we heard hector's name before? oh is he the crime guy? fucking jared... so it's a throat? chompa chompa. (it's just a little bit hot) the good part about these episodes is that we know whoever's telling the story isn't gonna die. even if it's a close call, they're not dead. hotworth? ok not jared keay. it bothers me how theres so many repeated names, can they not come up with other names? "sasha"'s computer is breaking... sus. Elias our favorite weed man! jon ur so paranoid lmao

ep 50: robert smirk, at it again. this is like that one episode with the old dude who locked his door. who said idle beforehand? was it smirk? fingertips. thats so weird lmao. bahahah tim

ep 51: simon fairchild. im sure jon will mention the name at the end i cant remember where we've heard it. this is just like the cavediving episode. a hand? there was a hand in the last one right? the scalpel! and an eye thing. she's trying to throw them off.

ep 52: thats the guy from before! with the hearts! god i hate this guy writing the statement hh. lights blowing, and brackish water. we know how this ends but its still tense. rainer? reigner? rain man. we've seen him before

ep 53: pls not a leitner. oh boy mans scratched out his eyes. rip skelly. why would gertrude have had this statement off the books? jon stabbed himself?? bruh im? big man are you okay

ep 54: cockney boys! ayy its our favorite delivery men. she cut out their eyes. she knew that the eye was a thing?

ep 55: oily residue like the retirement home!

ep 56: worms? no. spiders?? bruhh. aaah yelling :(( aww martin anyways yeah i called it about paranoid!jon he needs to take a nap and drink some hot chocolate and calm down for once please

ep 57: just remembered, i think theres an entity called The Lonely?? This feels pretty lonely idk. fairchild, lukas/ lucas, some spooky place in norway idk. "sasha" knew he was recordinig hmm suspicious cmon jon figure it out. Sasha and tom. hm sus. for records sake i feel liek i should note here that I did have it spoiled to me simply that that's not sasha, but thats really all. i assumed it was like the thing that happened to graham in S1

ep 58: i feel like i recognize the name eustice (?) wick. someone please tell me im not just watching jon's descent into madness over the course of this podcast. im hoping it isnt so but, (and pardon the dsmp reference) im getting real wilbur vibes from this one.

ep 59: oh dear ok account from the fielding house. swirling designs? Spiral time? oh boyy. oh wait! 6 inch hole in the middle! is it not a spiderweb type design on the table? thats what i had assumed but that description sounds more like a spiral thing. cobwebs is a Web thing. ayy nicholas was right! the box goes in the table! the place that she kissed him was burning. Raymond is an avatar of The Web and agnes is the burning one. Lightless Flame! Why did she save him? i guess she was against this guy eating ppl or wtvr but why was she at the halfway house then? I think she's like michael.

ep 60: the eye go brr

ep 61: breacon and hope once again. tom. sasha's boyfriend. vampires sleep in coffins. the guy just walking in seems similar to the mind control of the vampires

ep 62: bones! its that one leitner. is this mother keay? the mom of gerard? this is what happened to her right? her skin was found on hooks? oh yeah thats what i thought the pages are made of skin. yeesh. The End!! sounds like an entity. phrased like one, and i think i remember it. are the people trapped in the pages? or... kept?

ep 63: eaten by the darkness! cavediving episode! (just like eaten by the sky) did my brain make up one called The Vast? it feels like it should be one, and all these episodes have some similar description about their feelings when they do whatever chosen hobby they have. ok now this one kinda feels like the dark. lights going out and all that. ok so not really a The Vast thing, its more of a Dark thing. feckin smirk gah.

ep 64: dice! the death guy! the death game thing! the person tricked somebody else into becoming death and then they were immortal? but if the egyptians wanted to kill him or punish him or whatever couldnt they just kill him? it worked in the end when he had the person giving the statement stab him, that did the job and actually killed him

ep 65: finally jon is actually acknowledging something is wrong.

So we know Mary Keay was revived most likely with the book by gerard.

Gertrude was way more aware of the entities than Jon. mary keay referenced The End openly and she cut the eyes out of her magazines and all that which makes me think she was aware of The Eye

ep 66: please not buried alive pleeaase not buried alive. lukas of the tundra? didnt we hear the name lukas before? she wanted it to be difficult to find important files because that way bad people couldnt find them?

ep 67: agnes... the girl in the hilltop house? agnes poppin off!! he's really not gonna question how she knew where he lived?? oh no D: the tree. were they the ones working on the house? aww they kissi- OH DEAR. why did she kiss him? it seemed like she cared about him? also she could kiss that other dude on the cheek and he was fine, but maybe it was cuz she was younger? lightless flame go brrrrr.

ep 68: oh god books. yup its bitchboy leitner. mans said "this seems supernatural, its a werd book!" bruuh.

ep 69: heh nice. aw cmon jon listen to martin. gahhh spiders. is that the class we heard about in the other doctor one with the teeth apple? some kind of psych class? oh dear. fucking spiders. aaaah. web do be goin brr. it's like the girl in the homeless shelter! who made the guy leave and she took his bed.

ep 70: is this gonna be the book that mary keay had? Most likely a leitner no matter what. Oh boy latin. Why did it start in latin then become old English? I'm guessing people put them in the book? He cant burn it. Phrophecies go brr. He says eh it's a decade in the future it's fine. Its gonna have changed. Ayy called it. Just accept it, it's a magic book. His death is getting closer. Leitner didnt make them but just collected them? Gertrude burned the book! She burned them down there so no one would know.

ep 71: oh boy tunnels. Our favorite thing /s. is The Buried a thing? Idk this seems pretty buried. Oh dear he's trapped here isnt he. "Not enough space to move, never enough to breathe" is that from the computer episode? With the guy who uploaded his consciousness? Somebody living down there. Hmmmm. Guesses: tom, sasha's boyfriend. Gertrude herself? (Though I doubt it)

ep 72: sweeney todd moment. Meat. The slaughter? Idk we'll see what the supernatural part is. Meat is meat. Similar to the slaughterhouse episode. Is it fucking Jared I swear to God it better not be. Hooligan teenagers, you know how it is. Meat is me lmao. Is the kid gonna be in the freezer. Ok that's good. OWW. Oddly textured candles. Made from people? Human fat or smth? Tom from the meat processing plant!

ep 73: outer bay shipping. Bet it's a subset of breacon and hope delivery. The Dark go brrr. Uh oh mans is gonna die. Leo or whatever. Cult ppl go brr. The people's church of the divine host. Who is the divine host? Is it reigner or whatever his name is? I dont think Jon can quit tbh. Probably an anonymous tip but from who?? One of the entities?

ep 74: fucking teeth hhh. I dont know which entity is related to teeth. Spiral. Isnt the spiral an entity. It feels like it could be related to many things idk. Yeah this sounds like the spiral. Heart attack at 29? Jesus... michael! That's kinda what I was thinking. Sasha goin in the tunnels. Hmm sus. They move the floor. Wack. Bet its tom.

ep 75: Man with a lightning scar. Has one of the leitner books. The childhood friend of the one who first introduced us to leitner. Oh my god that sounds terrifying. Michael crew.

ep 76: scalpel? Hmm spooky. NotSasha... think jon think.

ep 77: another double! NotThem, The Stranger. Not related to the table?

ep 78: what was that at the beginning? Question mark?? Oh boy more NotThem. Decker... what is the deal with the table. Does it contain the creature? Fucking Michael. Bitchboi himself.

ep 79: yes pop off martin. Ugh fucking Michael just leave man. I hate that dude. New person. Hmm. No idea who it is.

ep 80: shitener himself! Ok sir tell us the entities. Ayy The Spiral. Ok we know what that one is. The Eye is the beholding! Oooh. The Stranger. Did elias just kill leitner? Popping off honestly.

#Neptune tma notes

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lighthausen · 4 years ago

Text

It’s the final tma liveblog everyone… for mag200 last words… IT’S FINALLY HERE (and loaded lol. I’m really impressed they got their servers okay that quick!)… and 25 minutes… oh my god… how are they gonna do this

Let’s go. Below the cut.

Thank you Alex <3

Oh yay cast and crew!

I hope i enjoy it too

Love you

Oh intro song

Here we go here we go

How can they do this in 25 minutes???

Oh the way he says Last Words… hh

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa

*tape recorder click*

Oh hey it’s jonah

CEASELESS WATCHER

Uhhh?

Release him!?

OHHH

OH??

Is he dead?

WHAT

What’s going on?

It is over

Where is Martin?

WhEREs martin???

Not even fear…

But. where’s Martin??

Ohhhh his voice

Oh my god

Burn it out

Lifeless?!

Wait? whAT?

OHHH HE DERAILED THE PLAN

HE DERAILED THE PLAN

Not for much longer

Can they fear their own ends

Oh he’s trying

HYESL

KILL HIM

GET HIM

FOR SASHA FOR TIM FOR GERTRUDE

No one escapes the end!!!

Yeahh!

What’s he killing him with??

Eugh

Wha?

Who’s that?

What? W hat’s happening?????

OHHHH NO

OHHH HE’S BECOMING THE PUPIL

NOooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OH GOD

NO!! NO NONO!!

Oh?

Is… he ok?

“Thank you” aw

What’s…..

Once upon a time?

Oh!

Fear of the End!

Ooooo love the soundscaping!!!

Feel more?

Be more ooooh

Ah here comes the Dark!!!

The thing that was fear!

Inch by inch…

Ohh fun!

Love this origin story!

Fire!

And sky!

(Oh no what if Martin has to kill him now)

Oh communication

Crack??

Oh! Oh! It can’t see itself? Oh never whole

That’s… kinda sad????????????

New dreads

corruption, buried, vast

Yaaah

Oh the Web!

Slaughter!!

More and more!

Some didn’t recoil?

Oh. Court them…

Very fun!

Whispering…

Smooth and shifting. Interesting

Oh! The veil between torn!!!!!

Oh so the fears exist but they’re not… there yet until now!

Watched and watched

Ohh

Greed. Oooh.

Oh no! Not Capitalism!!

Til they were one or the same?? Hm..

They needed it…

Sing. Ooh.

Oooh soundscaping so good

The spider!!!! :)

Threads! Webs! OOoh.. Nerves… give her a brain

Oh is that a spinning wheel? Fun!!

The web doesn’t like to explain. Interesting

Escape… escape into other realities itself

The Eye, the most unwise.. It doesn’t understand the knowledge

A grander web! Neat!

Find its escape?

Apotheosis??

Climax

*pause* i’m thinking about the whole trolley problem “Jon gets in the trolley and floors it” that’s still so funny. Love that.

Hey while we’re here… like. What happened outside earth post apocalypse. If anyone was in space are they also sucked into the fearscape or?

Anyway it looks like he’s done with that statement. *unpause*

No it won’t?

It has only found its end

MARTIN

He’s already done it

What’s that

ELIAS

SFDKJLSDFKJDS

Ohhh nooooooooooo

Oh no..

Go tell the others

Oh no…

They’re down there

It’s still him..

It’s done.

Oh. But Martin can hurt him.

We can still be together…

Call off?

If they don’t?

What’s happening????

WH?

What’s happening????????

The pull??

What? What’s

You can’t see that :(

Can’t protect him?

He’ll die???

What?

W??????????

What’s

Oh god he’s crying

Where you go I go,

Oh no…

Oh god

What?

Maybe everything works out??

Together…

Oh..

Oh no.

I LOVE YOU

OH god

KISS

OH GOD

Oh shit

It’s done.

Silent.

Glass?

Huh.

Birds in the background

No bodies???

*looks out window*

Probably for the best

OH SIMON

OH my god!?

OH shit people remember!!! OH god people remember!

Did people suddenly die from what’s happening?

WHat happened to the world

Nightlights…

THE ADMIRAL

OH MY GOD THE ADMIRAL IS OK

Tinned tuna

So… the world just snapped back. But the things that happened.

Hey, Fakecrfan, like your fics! Nice job predicting

Turn it off :(

No…

Don’t go

I’m listening!

Hi!

BYE!!

I’m sorry too

Thank you

Wait good luck.

Good luck about what????

The MAGNUS ARCHIVES WAS A PODCAST

*is.

Oh boy

Gotta say, I like the openness of the ending

Oh this is easy to write around

OH look Jon and Martin are in their own little world

Oh look Jon and Martin were found and they’re alive

Very cool.

Well… That sure was fun!!

Good podcast! Good podcast! Satisfying ending! Loved how Jonah got fucking killed

I hope the script says “brutal knife murder”

Ohhh the way he begged . how he tried to be all manipulative at first . good shit.

And the Jon and Martin confrontation

How calm Jon sounded at points…

Wanna know what would happen in an au where he doesn’t tell the others to go.

Wow

Podcast.

Yeah. I can’t see any other way this could have ended. Not really.

Soundscaping was great. Sounds like the fears…

I guess I should stop.

I had fun guys. Love you <3

#tma spoilers #tma liveblog

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taketheringtolohac · 4 years ago

Note

simon for the ask game!

jshkajhja god victor i love him so much thank u for sending me this ok here we go (sidenote i know theres ppl who follow me who havent finished dd so if you dont want to get spoiled dont read this!! i talk about a LOT of spoilers!)

send me a character ask and i’ll answer!

favorite thing about them ok so heres the thing. i know that there is a lot to be said about him and just the way that he does like genuienly care for people even if he has a funny way of showing it but honestly? honestly? i LOVE a funny king. like his own brand of humor is just so good and when he laughs (at his own jokes, like a real Uncle Figure) he laughs with his WHOLE BODY which. yes king go get em. also hes sexy <3 not in a rat kinda way but he LOOKS like he should be just, outwardly, but simon blackquill himself is just a HOT MAN. yes im a lesbian and what about it.

least favorite thing about them this isnt about him but you know when aa fandom makes him a weeb? bad. stop calling urself/other ppl weebs in 2021 especially if u arent using the term critically/as a way to talk about ppl who fetishize Japanese culture tho most ppl who call themselves weebs dont realize theyre doing this anyways which. ok this isnt the post for this im just (rightfully) Mad

favorite line its not exactly a LINE, per say, bc i dont remember a lot of them, but remember when he shakes athena in SOJ and its like that kermit strangling meme? top 10 ace attorney moments EASILY

brOTP LITERALLY ATHENA AND SIMON BROTP LIVES IN MY BRAIN AT ALL TIMES LIKE theres so much healing that they both have to do from the 7/8 years since the incident and focusing on literally just that one incident and how to fix it (or in his case how to just like. live with it in a lot of ways) and they do some of it together but some of it they very much do NOT do together and i think like the setting boundaries that they do is just. its good. also i love the idea that he lived with her for a while after he was released like. just from a general perspective i love them sort of being a patchwork family but also just imagine being 18 and living on your own then suddenly you invite your 33 year old uncle to live with you who’s been in prison for the past 8 years. he doesnt rlly know how the world works from a cultural perspective and you dont know what its like from a “how do i use a can opener” perspective. together you’re a functioning adult.

OTP honestly i see him as very gay man in his 30s bachelor just living his post prison life and figuring stuff out but i’d be lying to myself if i said i didn’t read nahyuta/simon fics that shit is cute as FUCK and also ppl do a really good job of writing them like??? its about the understanding whats its like to go through an incredibly fucked up situation and not feeling the need to EXPLAIN yourself but to just understand that its beyond your control sometimes and gently helping them through without being making it about you because YOU wouldnt want that and. yeah.

nOTP if you ship simon with the phantom i’m knives out IMMEDIATELY i understand the want for angst but it makes me uncomfy and man has already been through enough please. also You Know What Else. i will not say it but it should be self explanatory.

random headcanon him and aura were REALLY close pre UR-1 incident. like i think they had a lot of issues but i think its just because they probably had to raise themselves in a lot of ways and pretty much really only looked out for each other for awhile. i like to think that he visited the space center a lot bc he was visiting her and thats how he got to meet metis and he was like huh maybe i could use this physcological stuff in court hmm and like thats how he became her student but i ALSO think that aura is just. SO mad at him for what he did about UR-1 and how he handled it because now SHE has to be alone and its not fair to him and she knows its not but she can’t help herself. Not just that but Simon hates seeing her lose it a little every time she visits him (which is often, he doesn’t get many visitors and even if he did he’d ALWAYS take her visits bc he misses her even if they don’t see eye to eye they’re all they’ve GOT) and just. seeing her become more cold and somehow thinking maybe its his fault and her not knowing if she does think its his in some ways but them still loving each other even if they have funny ways of showing it just UGH!!!

unpopular opinion he doesnt talk all posh why do ppl do that he’s literally a funny garbage man who like kinda hates himself a bit. also yes he’s emo but i think he would absolutely ROCK a printed neon button up with like. really loud socks specifically stupid steel samurai/anime socks. ik i said dont call him a weeb but theres a difference between liking anime/samurai/japanese culture and being weird about it. also he’s Japanese die mad about it

song i associate with them god i dont know i dont really listen to music but i GUESS i will say Mike Townsend (Knows What He’s Gotta Do) by the Garages because they’re very similar “i’m gonna do what I think is right to protect/save this other person and these people I care about even if the consequences are extremely detrimental to me”

favorite picture of them i will not say the simon shaking sprite again but you know that funky one with the bird? the one where he’s got taka just. perched on his arm. perfect photo i use it for everything <3

#THIS GOT SO LONG GOD #BUT TY FOR ASKING ME ABOUT HIM I JUST THINK HES NEAT AND ALSO LOVES HIS FAMILY #also i have written blackquill fic which lol sometimes i forget i Did That but then i remember and go wow that was so sexy of me #anyways victor ur an icon ty #maybe i wont tag this as aa rn just bc theres somethings that could cause discorse in this post but oh well.#roxy talks

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conchstellations · 5 years ago

Text

watching the 1990 LOTF movie!! my reactions:

hello all!!!! i was bored at midnight again so here it is: me watchin the 1990 movie, for the first time, hell yeah!!!!! here we go!!! its got the other movie to live up to, so im excited for a comedy lmao!! tl;dr at end if u want!!! its kinda long btw lmao

- castle rock entertainment??? piggy u better watch out bro

- fuck is that the pilot???

- k this isnt a big thing but why are they in water? the plane left a scar in the earth, they were on land.

- okay, again, me nitpicking. but idk, to me, they dont look 12?? maybe its just cause theyre all dressed up n that but they dont look like 12 yr olds to me like the last movie

- why tf does ralph (?) have a glowstick lmaooooo

- why are they all together. where is my conch. wher are my stupid ass choir outfits. maybe im not there yet and they have them, but i want my stupid cloaks!!! jack would not stand for this!!!

- why TF is the pilot alive???

- am i supposed to know whos who by now?? did i just miss that?? which ones ralph? which ones jack?? wheres simon???

- conch??? the conchs main job is to bring them together, and here theyre already together so???

- piggy already makin me love him gosh piggy is child

- okay so im guessing brown hair kid is ralph

- piggy protecting conch rights

- i do like piggys sass... very iconic

- okay whAT??? is that blonde kid supposed to be jack?? first off, jack has red hair. second off, there is no way in hELL THAT MY basTARD child jack merridew would let ralph win the election just like that??? wheres my choir??? wheres my c sharp???

- okay jack would for sure call piggy shitbrain nvm

- mY CHOIR WOULD NOT ACCEPT THAT SINGING.

- wheres simon????

- r they fuckin cookin lizards??? nvm look away simon pls dont be in this

- is thAT BITCH supposed to be Simon?? hes got a lot to look up to. also why the FUCK is the adult alive. taht ruins the whole purpose of the entire book

- was that a dream??? sorry im dumb af lmao

- alrght simon is kind of an adorable hild and he likes lizard maybe hes valid?

- idk.. for some reason this ralph isnt like, giving me ralph vibes?? hes just not bring like ralphish u know??

- now im getting a little bit more of our beloved lil bitch ralph..

- okay wtf is going on lmao

- “SHOVE THEIR DICK IN THE CONCH” had me laughing for a solid fucking 30 minutes. william golding who??? whoever wrote that line is the new icon

- ‘EAT SHIT AND DIE” okay wtffff im so confused but also vv entertained

- for some reason jack’s character is like 100% off, but also somehow 100% on point “thats exactly what i meant” like holy shit. like idk hes not jack but just sometimes he radiates “jack if he was allowed to swear and was less of a lil bitch” energy

- ok simon and lizard?? valid

- i swear to FUCKING GOD i will kill that child!!!

- im gonna cry. wtf. why would you kill his lizard. even this movie’s jack seems like he thinks thats fucked up and hes a psychopath. also, lemme say, at this point, i think most of the book characters would beat the shit out of someone if they were mean to simon like that, bc the choir were his friends, and ralphs tribe respected him, sooooo

- why tf is it simons job to take care of the adult that shouldnt even be there? liek wtf hes grieving asshole

- no fucking duh hes scared of everyone but simon i would be too

- honestly kinda glad they let ralph say fuck he deserved it

- “back off man im sick of ur shit and sos my gang” fuckin got em

- let me guess pilot dude is the new beast???

- honestly wtf is goin on lmao

- okay piggys actor actually made me sd when he was crying about his glasses so good job

- simon comin through with the glowstick. also, good job simon

- well at least the lord of the flies looks terrifying as always

- are samneric putting on warpaint this early?? bc i WILL NOT stand for that shit. i am a samneric STAN Ok??? they were two of the tHREE left when simon died who didnt become cowards and go savage. they wree LOYAL to ralph until they were LITERALLY tied up and FORCED to join jack, and even then they helped ralph!!!! so fuck u. samneric are better than that.

- oh simon :(

- im glad they actually kind of (?) shwed simon like with the pig head bc last movei it was just ike them flipping the camera from pig to si so idkk

- ok that was a pretty ralph move to bring up the fire 24/7 lmao

- piggytits?? tf

- simon with hus fuckin glowstick lmao

- awe, simon

- okay HOLY SHIT. the sounds of what i assume to be them fucking stabbing simon are horrific. and then that cut to simon’s fucking mutiliated corpse?? holy SHIT. like as much as im complaining, thats the gruesome shit i expect from this book. i was expecting them to shy away from it bc its so awful, but im SO glad they didnt, bc that gave me fuckin chills. finally, something i can praise them on. thats the lord of the flies i expect.

- i feel bad for ralph.. good job

- ok good. samneric came back. good job again.

- ok. nvm. the disrespect to my loyal children. alright.

- okay that child screaming as hes being whipped?? wtf.

- ok that line of piggy being scared that the russians will take them nad make them go into the olympics? gold.

- piggys laugh is so pure

- why the fuCK are they finding instruments lmao

- poor piggy

- did roger just wolf whistle at ralph what the fuck is going on

- holy SHIt this movie does not hold back on the blood. but, wheres my conch explosion?? if ur gonna show him getting hit u gotta show the conch exploding. although, the conch means like nothing in this movie lmao

- okay wow piggys dead body cool cool cool

- ralph fucking YEETED that kid to the ground lmao

- okay, ralph crying?? good acting

tl;dr/conclusion/my thoughts: hooooo boy so i see why everyone likes 1960 one better.

first, lets start with the obvious: why this isnt lord of the flies. because its not. if this wasnt telling me that its lord of the flies, i would think of it as that, really. first off, the conch. the conch represents civility, it brings them together. its important. when piggy dies, it dies, representing how all civility is now gone. i maybe saw the conch three times this movie. didnt do anything.

second, the pilot, captain whatever. the point of the beast to me is that they made it up. sure, the corpse was real, but it didnt pose a threat, it was simply a corpse. they made it into what it was, therefore proving that they are the beast. sure, the pilot here was harmless, but he grbbed a boy’s foot and was therefore making himself a possible threat. maybe its not a big deal i guess.

third, the characters. the point of lord of the flies is that they are rich kids who havent gone through anything. theyre the perfect, spoiled kids who havent done anything wrong. half of them are in choir. chOIR. in this movie, lets take jack for example. they said he stole a car and got sent to military school. no. the point of jack is that he was a perfect kid. leader of choir. he was manipulitive and got even ADULTS to trust him. its part of hs character, showing that this perfect choir leader kid went fucking insane to prove how literally everyone can be evil. also samneric???? the direspect!! they were loyal to ralph until they were tied up and FORCED to join jack, and even then, after roger like beat the shit out of them, they were STILL loyal. fuck you.

so those are the MAIN reasons why it wasnt lotf.

now, what i liked i guess.

the swearing was NOT lotf, and it didnt fit with the story, but ill admit that i laughed, so i guess thats a plus.

second, i liked how they showed the gore, i guess? sounds weird, hear me out. lord of the flies is a gruesome, violent, awful book. theres descriptions of death in detail, and im so glad they showed it. when simon’s body was there, literally torn to shreds? the shock of it, the true savagery you see that these boys murdered him SO violently, is amazing, because thats the essence of lotf. simons death shows how theyve lost all their civility, and showing such a gruesome corpse really brings that through. so good job.

and now, of course, the obvious: thats not the characters i pictured when i read the story. simon doesnt look like that, ralph doesnt look like that, jack doesnt look like that.

where did the choir go, too? forgot to mention that, and i think that also adds into the whole, theyre supposed to be perfect kids and then become savage thing. also, the choir was a group. they voted for jack and went with him for a reason.

so yea, thats that. dont know why people would read this lmao but thats my thoughts!!!! i just need to keep myself busy when i watch movies and to make sure i focused, i figured id just write down my thoughts as i went. if u wanna watch for free, look up lord of the flies 1990 google drive.

;)))) and yea im posting this at 230 am lmao why not

#lord of the flies #lotf #lotf 1990

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rational-mastermind · 5 years ago

Text

It Doesn’t Hurt

Ch 4/5

Siobhan was waiting patiently by the car, took one look at me, and instantly became concerned.

“Oh no.. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” I got in the car. “We’re heading back to the shop.”

She frowned a moment then came and sat beside me. We took off for the shop and as it should be expected when one drives through England, the traffic made it difficult to progress. It was turning out to be a rather long, frustrating day.

My mind wouldn’t let go of what Claire implied, and while granted I was sore that the one person in the office who didn’t talk about what I did even started to mention it so casually, what really hurt was how it was such a clear and distinct reasoning for my past actions that have led me to where I am today.

I kept my distance from others, shutting them out, because I was the one who killed AJ.

I have this horrible, crummy, bloody job because I was the one who killed AJ.

I couldn’t sleep a single wink at night because I was the one who killed AJ.

I went to the Clanbronwyn Hotel because I was the one who killed AJ.

I couldn’t move on with my life, because I was the one who killed AJ.

I was dumb for thinking about having any kind of a relationship after this mission. After this is over, she’ll be running her own store and going to college, while I’ll still be hunting down poltergeists and fending off the anxiety and insanity that threatens to consume my mind, day after day, night after night.

It didn’t matter if she actually did like me.

It didn’t matter if I actually liked her.

Because I was the one who killed AJ.

I entered Defoe Manor, got too close to the idol, and killed Andrew Jarvis and Philip Harty and from that alone, my life can neither progress nor reset. If I hadn’t been so careless, they would still be alive. Simone would still be alive. Abed would be too.

But that can’t be.

Because I was the one who killed AJ

And it hurts.

“TRILBY.”

Like pulling my head out of the dark waters, Siobhan’s voice cut through my thoughts and I actually jumped in my seat. I looked back at her and she was worried.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” I lied and realized I may have said so a little too fast because obviously Siobhan didn’t buy it.

“Bull. Now really, what’s wrong?”

I sighed and rubbed my tired eyes.

“I’ve just been having a long day.” I explained. “I mean, I started it with being accused of taking part in a masochistic cult. I think that really sat the tone beautifully for my whole day.”

“Oh..” she deflated a little, and I could see the guilt sweep over her face. “...That was pretty harsh of me, wasn’t it?”

“I don’t blame you. You really don’t know anything about me.”

There was a moment of silence before Siobhan hesitantly began.

“I could... try to get to know you.” she offered.

“Siobhan I’m currently in the process of not wanting to know me.” I said flatly. “I’m not a part of a cult, mind you, but I do have a darker history and I’m not one for indulging in it.”

“I wouldn’t judge you, honestly!” she persisted. “I’ve been wanting to get to know you, Trilby. The real you. The you behind the hat.”

“Siobhan...” I sighed for what felt like the hundredth time today.

“I know we all have troubles in our past, and decisions we probably regret, but that doesn’t make you a bad person. Even when I was skeptical of you earlier, I didn’t really think you could be so bad.” she smiled a bit and I internally cringed at her next words. “Abed really liked you too, and he was a pretty good judge of character. He wouldn’t have liked you if you were anything too far gone.”

Apparently today I was meant to wallow in my guilt and regret. Abed was such a good hearted and foolish man. I honestly wasn’t sure if he was fully aware of any evils in this world until I came along and ruined it, like everything else.

My mind was pulled back to when I last saw the man alive. How depressed he looked.

“You took one companion of mine away and now you want another.”

At the time I was somewhat puzzled by his words, too focused on finding out what was going on to really pay attention, that only now do I realize what he was thinking before his death. I had gone looking for Siobhan, and spoke with her privately in her room. She had passed out on the bed. Of course I knew what had really happened, but looking at it, from Abed’s perspective, I grimaced. He must’ve felt abandoned. Alone. Forgotten.

It hurts.

“I really don’t think Abed thought of me so highly.” I said, unable to mask my own depression. “And honestly, Siobhan? I know you’re trying to help but it’s not working. After all, if it wasn’t for me, he would still be alive, wouldn’t he?”

“Well what do you mean?”

“If I had kept a closer eye on you two, if I had just told either of you what was really going on.. Maybe you would’ve been able to escape the hotel. Maybe Abed would’ve still been alive if it weren’t for me.” I shrugged helplessly.

“Trilby, you’re not responsible for Abed’s death.” Siobhan sighed a little. “It’s not your fault.”

“What if it is? What if I did something- anything- differently?”

It hurts

“Woulda-coulda-shoulda.” Siobhan replied with a shrug of her own. “It’s like I said last month. People die. You can’t feel responsible for it forever. Is this what’s been bothering you?”

“A million things have been bothering me, but since that’s the current subject, yes. It was all such a blur… I don’t know, maybe there was something I could’ve done. Maybe I didn’t do my best.”

It hurts.

“You can’t help that some tall demon was going around and hurting innocent people. That wasn’t your doing.”

“Then why do I feel responsible?!” I snapped and then groaned. “I’m sorry.. I shouldn’t yell like that.”

It hurts.

“Trilby.. You’re the only one beating yourself up over it.”

“No I’m not.”

“You’re the only one baring this responsibility. No one else blames you but you!”

“Because it’s my fault.” I said through gritted teeth.

IT HURTS.

“IT’S. NOT. YOUR. FAULT.” she said, adamantly.

I suddenly slammed on the brakes, as we have arrived at our destination. I was in a hurry to leave the car.

IT HURTS.

“And what if it is?” I growled. “Maybe it is my fault! Maybe I should feel responsible for what happened!”

IT HURTS.

I could hear Siobhan slam the door and follow after me, clearly growing frustrated.

“Then what good would that do?” she asked as we made our way into the store. “All you’re going to do is make yourself feel horrible!”

“I do feel horrible!”

“Of course you do!”

“It hurts!”

“Then why let it hurt?!”

I finally whipped around and raised my voice, all of my frustration and anxiety rearing its ugly head as I snapped.

“BECAUSE I’M THE ONE WHO KILLED AJ!”

Before I realized how stupid I was being, the shop shook once more and the wails of the undead immediately filled our ears. Things began to fly off the shelves again, swirling around us. Several shadows became more and more visible, joining in the madness. Siobhan accidentally bumped into me, trying to dodge a flying typewriter.

“Siobhan, look out!” I quickly ducked out of the way of a launched rotary phone.

I looked up and saw one semi-transparent form step out from among the madness. He had a broom mustache and a scar that traced down from the crown of his head over his eye. His entire torso was missing, jagged pieces of ribs sticking out under the folds of his clothes. Judging by the vague shapes that made up his uniform and the massive size and build he carried himself with, I was only left with one guess.

Chief Brutus J. Ustyss.

I carefully held Siobhan at arm’s length, knowing full well what was about to happen next.

He came charging, a fist flying. I managed to duck out of the way. Without fully thinking, I tried throwing a punch myself, knowing full well that I’m by no means a fighter, but whether I knew how to fight or not, it wouldn’t have mattered.

Because my hand passed right through his body, suddenly covered in icy coldness.

“Oh shit.”

A large fist was met with my jaw and I hit the floor, only dimly aware of Siobhan’s scream in fear.

I tried to shake my head clear of the throbbing pain, and looked up only to find Brutus about to pound both fists into me at once. I rolled out of the way, brushing up against the icy cold barrier countless other ghosts have created for us. Immediately hands began to grab at me and tried to pull me in, digging claws into my shirt, but I tore away.

A saw a china tea set come flying at me and dodged it in time, narrowly avoiding the shattered remains of a broken saucer.

Despite my best efforts, I knew I couldn’t keep dodging him, nor the flying debris of the antique shop, forever. And there was no time to create a banishment ring.

My brain was scrambling, trying desperately to find a solution to this when suddenly I hear Siobhan shout.

“Trilby look out!”

I looked, barely had time to register the grandfather clock that was flying at us before I felt Siobhan’s body colliding with mine. There was a loud bang, a sharp pain in the back of my head, and suddenly the world was black and still and silent.

But I wasn’t knocked out.

Pain throbbed through out my head while my eyes adjusted to the scare light that crept through the cracks. I could hear Siobhan and myself wheeze, trying to regain our breaths.

“Trilby, you alright?”

“I think so.. You?”

“I’m alright. I… I think the ghost stopped.”

I realized I was pressed back against something wooden, and when I tried to stand up straight, my head hit some kinda pole. I tried to feel out my surroundings.

“Where are…?”

“I think we’re in one of the old wardrobes.” Siobhan answered, I could hear her feeling things out as well. There was a moment of rattling. “Oh.. Ohhhhhh nooo..”

I didn’t like the sound of that groan.

“What?”

“I think this is that one that locks automatically...”

All I could do was stare at Siobhan through the darkness. A comical look of disbelief if she could see it.

“...And where’s the key?”

“...behind my desk... On a ring with a bunch more.”

I sighed and allowed my head to drop against the apparent door in front of me.

“Can today be any worse?”

“Well.. I think that ghost stopped. Maybe if you’re out of sight, you’re out of mind?”

“Hurrah. Now he won’t murder me.”

“Well I could tell you how it could be better.”

“And pray tell, what would that be, Ms. O’Malley?”

“You could start by telling me what the hell’s been going on with you?”

I heaved a great sigh, far too exhausted and frustrated for this round-about again.

“I’m just.. I’m not having a good day, Siobhan..”

“No shit, Sherlock.” she snapped back at me and then sighed. “Trilby, I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong.”

I huffed and rolled my eyes. I was decidedly fed up with everything at this point.

“Fine, you want to know what’s wrong? Everything is piling up on me right now and I can’t reasonably deal with any of it!” I began to vent. “I went to talk with Claire and apparently the Chief is the only one who’s keeping all the other ghosts, who knows how many, at bay! So I couldn’t do anything in that fight, even if I wanted to! “Then talking further along with Claire, I’m led to believe that apparently I get all the worst jobs my employers have to offer because I’m the one held responsible for the death of one of their operatives, who wasn’t exactly the best at his job anyway if he was going to be murdered by a retarded child’s ghost! If I hadn’t stepped foot in that manor, my life would be a hell of a lot more sane than it already is! I wouldn’t have blood on my hands! I wouldn’t have gone to that forsaken hotel! I wouldn’t be responsible for the death of so many innocent people!”

“Trilby! Trilby, you’re NOT responsible for anyone’s deaths!”

I would never admit it to her, but I could feel hot tears sting in my eyes and I fought to keep them from spilling. My body shook. I felt so torn apart. I felt her hands gently rest on my shoulders, guiding me closer to her.

“But I’m the one who killed-”

“It wasn’t you.” Siobhan interrupted me, her voice kept low and soothing. “It was the ghost, wasn’t it? The ghost of Defoe Manor?”

“Well.. Yes..”

“It used your hands.. It wasn’t you. It wasn’t your fault.”

I could feel her gently guiding me until our foreheads touched.

“Trilby.. Look at me.”

I hesitated, but finally complied. I looked up and saw her dark green eyes, shimmering back at me. The light between the cracks barely catching in them enough to reflect the slight hues of brown that made it sparkle. She was concerned. I couldn’t blame her. But suddenly I couldn’t think of any way to string together the proper words to tell her all the awful things I was feeling. The thoughts that had been plaguing me for days. Weeks.

“It was never your fault.” she repeated.

I knew a part of me deep down wanted to believe it so fervently and I leaned more into her, as if somehow being closer would make it more true.

“Siobhan..” the other part of me still felt hesitant. Still held doubt. I wanted to get as much of it cleared out as I could. “Why do you care so much? What does it matter to you how I feel? It’s.. Not like we’ll ever see each other after this.”

“We could..” she offered with a small smile. “Whenever we have free time. You could drop by. Weekends. After hours. We could go for walks. Sit on the couch with tea. Talk... Read.... Or..”

And suddenly, without thinking, our lips met.

I couldn’t tell who dove in first, but before I could fully think it through, we were kissing. Maybe it was the adrenaline from the fight. Maybe it was something else. My mind tried to tell me how inappropriate and stupid this was. The rest of me told it to shut up. Too desperate to finally feel something good. To just have this one nice thing to myself.

Our lips brushed against each other and hers were just as soft as I thought they were last night. Gentle hands raked through my hair and I was vaguely aware that my hat had fallen off outside the wardrobe. I carefully pulled Siobhan closer as we continued. Her arms wrapped around me.

We stopped for a moment to breathe, my brain was scrambling to understand why or what we were doing, but all I could really focus on was how warm her cheeks felt, so close to mine, and how she smelled like apple cider.

This time she kissed first, but it didn’t really matter. All that did matter was the growing warmth between us as we continued. My hands began exploring her, the same as hers did me.. I was fond in discovering how soft her glistening red hair felt, gliding between my fingers. Shivers raced up my spine in time with her gentle hands.

It was exciting, sweet, and passionate, and for a while, the world outside of these closed doors was left behind us, for the sake of this moment. Focusing solely on the way she felt against me. The way she shivered under my touch, her soft lips pressing feverishly to mine.

The way my heart swelled and my head made light and dizzy was almost as intoxicating as the way she giggled and sighed as my lips traced up along her jaw and down her neck.

I was met with a nose full of her green turtleneck and the dusty smell of old books. I rolled my eyes a little, knowing this simply wouldn’t do, and pulled it away only to kiss at the silky softness underneath. This, of course, was rewarded with an admittedly adorable squeak.

“Trilby! how ungentlemanly of you.” Siobhan teasingly scolded.

I chuckled, a little breathless myself, and could feel my face grow warm.

“W-Well..”

She giggled and pulled away, leaving me wanting for a moment. Before I knew what she was up to, she was back in my arms, sans sweater. The warmth in my cheeks began to spread to my ears as I was made well aware what difference a tank top or a sweater makes. And before I could really focus more on that, she was returning the favor, sparking new waves of shuddering delight and effectively plunging my brain into a heady fog, in which I was happy to leave it.

Eventually at some point my waistcoat made friends with her sweater, tangled under our feet. But I couldn’t care less. All I could really focus on was where her lips traveled, as they continued their own exploration further down, past my neck, whilst mine were buried deep in her red hair, breathing in her soft and sweet scent that reminded me of autumn evenings.

Her hands traveled lower still and whilst mine felt out the hemline of her tank top and the smooth arch of her back as she leaned close into me.

I was so caught up in the way everything felt that I had no earthly idea what was going on outside of the wardrobe. Time was illusory. That is, until I suddenly ran out of it.

“Trilby! It wasn’t your fault!” Claire’s voice suddenly pierced the moment, leaving it to die quickly and painfully.

Siobhan and I looked at each other only a moment before I quickly bent, to the best of my abilities in the cramped space, to grab my waistcoat and began cleaning myself up.

I stood up and was sharply reminded of the coat hanger railing above my head.

“Ow!” I tried not to bump the walls too much either, suddenly finding the small space to be far too cramped for me to move around in.

“Trilby? Where are- OH.” Claire’s voice indicated she knew a little too much.

“Claire, it’s not what you’re thinking!” I quickly replied, face burning hotter than before. It didn’t help that I had to button up my shirt as well. “It was the ghost! He- W-we-”

“Should I uh… just let you two…?”

“No! No, no, Claire, listen, we really should get out of here.” I said, trying to ignore the fact that Siobhan still had her arms wrapped around me and trying to keep a steady voice. “This thing is locked. Th-the key should be behind the counter.”

I felt Siobhan kiss at my collarbone and fought with all my will to not let my voice crack. I tried pushing her off so I could finish buttoning up.

“Siobhan, stop it.” I hissed at her, as quietly as I could.

“It’ll take her a while to find those keys. We have a few minutes.” she whispered, barely audible, back. I could feel her grinning against me and I shuddered with conflicting emotions.

“Found them!” Claire’s voice rang out cheerfully, suddenly bringing everything to a screeching halt.

We looked at each other for only half a second before Siobhan finally started rushing to pull on her sweater while I tried to straighten myself out.

By the time Claire opened the wardrobe, Siobhan and I were standing apart from each other. I tried to look composed and stepped out with slight cough. Claire, obviously, was waiting for me with a mischievous grin.

“Hi, Claire. Thanks for that.” I said.

“So, were you two um… Having fun?” she asked, playfully.

“Nothing happened.” I said flatly.

Claire only had to look me up and down before I caught on and corrected any mistakes. Claire scooped up my hat from the floor and offered it to me.

“Right, so nothing happened.” she teased.

“NOTHING.” I hissed and snatched it away from her.

“Aaannnyway.. so what DID happen?” she asked.

“Trilby accidentally uh.. Triggered the ghost again.” Siobhan explained, fixing up her ponytail. I couldn’t help but also notice how flushed her cheeks were.

I looked over and saw the grandfather clock that flew at us earlier. I quickly moved to stand it back up, finding only the glass broken. Everything else seemed fine. Siobhan sighed with some relief.

“I don’t think Brutus is going to want to talk about leaving peacefully.” I surmised. “Even if we do pull rank on him.”

“Hm.. Then what should we do?” Claire asked. “Banishing circle?”

I looked around the antique shop and sighed. It was cluttered and messy and made worse by the previous skirmish.

“That could get some, but not all the ghosts.” I guessed to the best of my ability. “And that’s if we can clear the floor well enough for a ritual, to start with. We would get Brutus.”

“But then how do we guarantee exorcising all of the ghosts under his control?” Siobhan asked.

I looked at the tears in my shirt’s sleeve, remembering how eager and desperate the others were to get a hold of me. Most of them were likely violent and dangerous criminals.

“Well.. We could try a big one.” I offered.

“The counter’s in the way.” Claire gestured towards it. “And some would probably still escape anyway. We need to get them all.”

I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. This day was certainly becoming taxing. Claire tapped her foot and began pacing back and forth.

“Well maybe we can try, like.. A lot of them?” Siobhan was asking. “We can clear the floor.. It’d… Mean moving everything downstairs, but we could make more space.. And cover the area?”

“And if they try to escape?” Claire argued. “They could try to leave the shop. The plot’s supposed to cover the block, right?”

“Well it starts at the sidewalk and runs from one end of the street to the other, and covers the shops behind this one on the other side of the street.”

“Right, so the ghosts could move around on any part of that land. They’re only kept here because the basement is Death Row. It’s where Brutus would’ve dragged me had he successfully killed me.” I throw out.

“Right. That’s also why he stopped when I dragged you out the first time.” Siobhan explained, giving me a glance. “As soon as you left the plot, he stopped. Then Claire and I took you upstairs.’

“So we’d have a better chance of getting them all if we were to cover not just the floor, but the walls and ceiling as well.” I said.

“But then we still need to lure them out.” Claire intoned.

“What do you mean?” Siobhan asked.

“I mean we can’t just wait for the ghosts to wander in on their own. Someone would have to invoke them. But since this guy’s obviously violent, it’d be dangerous. And he disappears as soon as the criminals are either dead or gone.”

“So we need a way to keep the bait safe and stay here in the store while everything is going on…”

After a moment of thought, we all came to the same conclusion.

“Salt ring.”

After that, it was agreed that I would be bait. Claire was apparently too clean for the job and I wasn’t about to risk Siobhan’s health. We spent the day clearing out the shop and Claire offered to pick up chalk for tomorrow.

#Chzo Mythos #Trilbhan #Trilby Somerset #Siobhan O'Malley #Rational writing #my writing

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goodnightstoriess · 6 years ago

Text

Author: goodnightstoriess

Pairing: Arthur Pendragon x Reader

Word Count: 3.8k

Warnings: Rape (it's not really, but I'm just leaving it here, so if this will trigger you in any way then please don't read it)

A/N: I finally got around to finish part 3 of The Last Dragonlord, yay! I kinda lost my motivation when I finished the last episode of Merlin, can we talk about what they did to my poor babies?! (I cried for 5 days, so yes it completely destroyed me, and I needed some time to get through it) Wow, it sounds like I don't have a life, oh well.. I hope you will enjoy it, and if any of you want to be added to a tag list (who am I kidding, this is a piece of trash) then, please just send an ask. I don't know exactly how many parts this will end up with but there are at least 2 to go.

Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - OH HOLD

Masterlist

It had been at least five minutes since you had left to change and Arthur was getting worried. He looked in the direction where you had disappeared only minutes ago wondering if something had happened to you, or if you just took your time getting dressed.

He put on his scabbard tightened it around his hips trying to distract himself from thinking about you, "That's it," he mumbled as he began walking into the forest to go look for you.

He walked through the green grass cursing when he almost tripped over a stump hidden behind a small bush. His sword glinted in the light that escaped through the treetops above him, it was a beautiful warm day at the beginning of summer the forest was alive with all its colors and smells.

A few branches had scratched across Arthurs bare chest leaving it slightly red, but he didn't feel anything, all he could concentrate on was you. His head snapped around as he heard a few voices coming from somewhere nearby, it sounded like people laughing.

He walked around for a few minutes suddenly hearing the voice as clear as day, "You shouldn't have run pretty girl, you have no idea what I could do to you," Arthur instantly knew something was wrong desperately trying to make his way through the thick trees.

"Let go of me!" It didn't do much to scream after all a big hand was covering your mouth, only a few words slipping into the forest. You looked up at the man with big eyes, you were scared you hated to admit it but you were, maybe it was because you were surrounded by three men who looked at you with greedy eyes or the fact that you accidentally had run in the wrong direction when you got the chance a few minutes ago. "Please," you tried again, hoping it would make the men change their mind.

"She said please, Simon, did you hear that?" one of the men grinned as he circled you looking at you a way that made you sick to your stomach. "Let's show her how to have a good time," he touched your shoulder sliding the straps down your arm almost leaving your chest exposed.

Squirming trying to get him of off you only made them all laugh more but you could still hear your heart beating due to the shock and terror going through your mind. "Please-, please just kill me," you cried rather wanting to die a thousand times than letting them touch you in such a way.

"God no, pretty girl, we are not going to kill you before we all have had a good time." It was the man holding your mouth that talked again. He must be the one the other called Simon. He was big and he smelled awful, his beard was long and you wouldn't even think about what lived in it.

You had not heard a single word from the third man yet, he just stood a few feets away looking at you with a smirk on his face. "You're stunning, what's your name again? I'm Simon and the man behind you is called Nat. Oh and the man not saying a word is Tom".

Simon slid his finger down your neck letting it reach your cleavage, but he didn't stop he just kept going until your left nipple was exposed. Tears had made its way down your cheeks as you bit hard into your lip to keep yourself from sobbing, you wouldn't give them the satisfaction when they clearly enjoyed watching you break down. He studied your breast licking his lips as his thumb was on its way to touch your nipple. You were disgusted pretty sure your lunch was soon coming back up.

"No! No stop, please!" You pleaded again but all hope vanished when his hand slid up your thigh reaching the place he couldn't wait to bury himself in. He touched you in the most private place, that no one else had yet to discover. All you could think about was Arthur and how everything felt so different when he was the one being near you. With him, your body felt light and warm as if a hundred fires burned beneath your skin in the most wonderful way possible.

Now, on the other hand, your body was beginning to shut down preparing for the worst thinkable outcome of this situation, this Simon was about to take something from you, something that wasn't his to take. Your eyes shut once again as you tried picturing Arthur, maybe it wouldn't be as bad if you could imagine him instead of the man in front of you. Your thoughts were interrupted when you heard a sword getting drawn, maybe they were going to kill you after all? You hoped they would.

"Step away." It as him, it was Arthur you could recognize his voice anywhere. You opened your eyes staring at him as he stood with his sword in his hand. He looked beyond mad in fact he was almost shaking, his body not being able to handle that much anger, "Step away from her," this time he said it slow so he was sure the men understood what he was saying.

The men were all looking at him and you saw your chance so you bit down on the hand covering your mouth with as much power as you could, "Ouch!" Simon yelled as you tried getting away but you quickly felt a hard slap across your cheek. It held an enormous amount of force so you dropped to the ground your eyes fluttering closed.

Arthur was quick and turned to the man beside him who wasn't prepared for an attack so it only took Arthur a few seconds before the blade went through the man's chest falling to the ground.

"She is mine now," Simon said as he held up his sword, " Kill him Nat, so we can get to have some fun with the girl." You sat up slowly getting back to the real world, your cheek felt hot and you were sure you soon would have a mark from Simons full-grown hand.

He looked down at you with a smile that made you shiver, "She's a feisty one, I like that." You looked away seeing Nat swing his sword at Arthur who luckily ducked before it hit him, Nat was a good fighter making this a lot harder for Arthur.

You stood up wanting to look stronger and you didn't like feeling useless, you had to do something, not wanting to sit around waiting while Arthur was fighting for both your lives.

Standing up on your shaking legs up pulled up your dress so you were covered once again, "No pretty girl, you don't need to cover yourself up, very soon I will take off that little dress of yours and you will be mine entirely." He took a step towards you which made you back away until your back was pressed against a tree. He grinned, "Nowhere to go now, you don't have to be scared I will take good care of you and if you are a good girl then it won't hurt at all."

Holding your shoulders with his hands he slid them down making your dress rest on your hips leaving your entire upper half exposed. Crossing your arms over your chest you tried covering up a little, but he forcefully tore them away eyeing your breasts. You looked down a bulge evident in his pants and once again you felt sick, but then you got an idea.

You glanced up at him again and he stood as before, completely frozen still looking at you with lust. You quickly lifted your leg kneeing him with all you had, so he fell on his knees screaming, "For god sake! I will kill-," he didn't get to finish his sentence before a sword went through his back and he fell dead to the ground.

You looked up, your eyes locked with Arthurs and all you could do was cry, tears running down your face. You dropped to the ground sobbing uncontrollably but soon you felt Arthurs' arms wrap around you from behind, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he whispered kissing your hair.

He took a hold on your hips turning you around so you no longer faced the dead man on the ground. Wrapping your arms around Arthurs' neck you hugged him tightly as you continued crying into his chest, all you wanted was to disappear, you felt extremely humiliated and exposed.

The both of you stayed like that until your cries turned to a low sniff. You felt safe in Arthus arms and the feeling of protection slowly made your breathing go back to normal.

You moved your hands from neck resting it on his chest, his body heat making your hands tingle and you felt his heartbeat slowly increasing. He made every inch of your body feel at pease, you felt like nothing bad could happen as long as he was by your side. Arthurs' hands found your cheeks stroking away the almost dry tears and caressing the red mark that had now appeared under your eye.

A breeze of fresh air went through the trees and hit you like another smack, it was then you noticed what state you were in, your breasts still fully exposed and was in full display for Arthur to see. He didn't look though, he kept his gaze on your face before looking around to find the shirt lying on the ground beside you.

He picked it up putting it under his arm so he could take a hold on the dress sliding it up your body. You lifted your arms so he could pull it over your head and just like that you were almost fully naked in front of him.

He quickly tugged his shirt over your head and you let out a breath when you were finally covered by the blue fabric that reached your knees and pooled around you. "Let's go back, Merlin should have started the fire by now," he said as he took your hand and started walking back to the lake.

________________

"You guys have been gone for ages, did you have fun?" Merlin turned as he spoke, but stopped when he saw the looks on your faces. "What- what happened to your face (y/n)?" He asked when he saw the red mark across your left cheek.

The both of you stayed quiet and you looked down feeling both of their gazes on your skin. "Who hit you?" You still didn't say a word and he grew impatient, "Arthur what happened?!" He was getting angry not understanding what the hell was going on.

"I'm fine Merlin, I really don't want to talk about it, please," you broke the silence, and walked to the fire, "I'm just really cold I just need to sit for a moment," you mumbled sitting down close to the fire hugging your legs. It felt really good, the heat radiating through your body making you feel less numb.

Merlin looked at Arthur who hadn't moved an inch, he too looked troubled, and he was cause you hadn't said a single word on the way back you only held his hand firmly like you were never going to let go.

He understood that you were hurt maybe not physically but something had changed the moment the men touched you, it felt like you had shut yourself down not really being here.

He couldn't bear thinking what they would have done to you if he hadn't found you, he had seen one of the men touch you, it was a picture he didn't think he could ever get out of his head.

He hated himself for letting you go into the forest alone, how stupid could he be? It was all his fault and he would never forgive himself. He moved to your horse finding your cape in the bag and then went to get his own before making his way to the fire, "Here," he said as he wrapped the two capes around you to shield you against the wind. He sat beside you not knowing what to say as you kept looking into the flames, "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked you gently, but he already knew the answer.

You shook your head as you shifted on the ground. You didn't think you were ever going to talk about it, you were humiliated and it was all your fault.

You looked out over the lake, it no longer looked welcoming but it was now dark blue and the wind made small waves in the water. It was no more than an hour since Arthur and you had been swimming around laughing and kissing, sharing the most intimate moment you had ever experienced, but it was all ruined now, you were broken all because some random men couldn't keep their hands to themselves.

"We don't have much food left, I found some berries while gathering branches and then we have some bread," Merlin sat across from you watching you carefully but you never met his gaze only interested in the flames dancing together. He looked at Arthur trying to figure out what was going on and what had happened earlier to make you like this.

"I will go find something to eat," Arthur stood up and took an extra shirt from his back tugging it over his head before picking up Merlin's sword handing it to him, "You take care of her alright? If something happens you will call for me, okay?" He looked Merlin dead in the eye making sure he got the message. He hated leaving you in this state but you all needed to eat.

Merlin nodded and took the sword "I will, I promise."

_________

"That was amazing," Merlin tossed the rabbit bone to the side and wiped his mouth with his sleeve. It was dark, the sun had set an hour ago and the only light came from the still burning fire.

"I know, what would you do without me?" Arthur was still eating his meat while sitting on a rock.

"Probably have a lot more spare time," Merlin laughed taking a sip of water.

Arthur glared, "You are lucky to work for me Merlin, never forget that" he tried acting mad but soon a smile made its way on his face.

"I know, I know. An honor, sire" Merlin mocked, "but sometimes you should clean your own clothes, don't you think (y/n)?"

Your head snapped at the sound of your name, you hadn't heard a thing they were saying, "I'm sorry, what?"

He smiled at you, "I was just saying how sometimes Arthur should clean his own clothes."

"Oh, yeah I guess so, but he would give up halfway, it stinks too much," You shrugged and looked down on the food in front of you. You still had two pieces of meat left, but you were not really hungry.

They had given you most of the rabbit, which left them with not much for themselves, "Here, the two of you can have the rest of the rabbit," you leaned over to take the leather Arthur had in front of him.

"No, you need to eat," He took your hand before you reached the leather.

"I already did, you gave me too much, I'm not hungry," You took the meat and put a piece in front of him before standing up walking to Merlin. "Here, you need it more than me," Merlin studied your face before accepting the food you held out for him, "Who takes the first shift tonight?" you asked looking at them, "I can do it, I was the one who slept most last night." You were tired, it felt like this day had lasted forever, but to be honest you had no idea if you would even be able to fall asleep.

Arthur was about to say something but got interrupted by Merlin, "No, you should get some sleep (y/n), it has been a long day, I will take your shift."

"No, you need your sleep just as much as me," you refused to let him lose sleep because of you.

"I will take it, its okay I'm not tired," Arthur cut in hoping you would let him do this for you.

Crossing your arms you stared at them, "No! Listen I can take part in this just as much as the two of you."

"Fine fine we will wake you up later," Merlin sighed as he looked at Arthur, "Right?"

"Yes, sure," He agreed, but he wasn't going to wake you up, it was just something he said to get you to sleep and he knew Merlin did the same.

"Great," you looked around trying to figure out the best place to sleep. It would be best if you moved away from the fire because you weren't very good at falling asleep while people were talking and the light was dancing across your face, but you also didn't want to be alone after what happened earlier. You walked around the fire, "Can I sleep here?" you pointed to the ground beside Arthur as you bit your lip.

"Of course you can," he wanted you near him, so for you to sleep inches away from him was not something he would ever turn down. You laid down on your side, hand under your head and legs slightly bent. He reached down stroking your cheek "Goodnight (y/n)," you hummed before closing your eyes welcoming sleep.

_____________

Arthur looked out over the lake, it was still night and it was pitch black. You had been sleeping for several hours now and it looked like you dreamed peacefully. He laid against the stone, his arms behind his head as he listened to the sound of your breathing. Merlin was also sleeping, he had refused to do so, but after Arthur had slept for a couple of hours, sleep was beginning to take over him.

Merlin had asked Arthur what had happened when he was sure you were fast asleep, still wanting to know what had happened earlier. At first, Arthur wouldn't say anything, but he needed to share his concerns with someone, and after all, Merlin was your best friend.

To say Merlin was angry was an understatement, he was furious. You had become like a sister to him and to even think about someone touching you like that made him want to use his magic to make them pay, but they were already dead so that was not really a possibility.

You stirred beside him turning so that your face was now faced him. Your eyelids flickered a few times before you slowly opened your eyes squinching your eyes from the light in front of you, "What- how long have I been sleeping?" you asked groggily.

Arthur smiled at your mumbling, "the sun will set soon" he said taking your hand squeezing it lightly.

"You told me you would wake me," you sat up rubbing your eyes trying to wake up so you could be mad at him.

"We both know there was no way I would that," he looked into your eyes the flames making your (y/e/c) eyes change a little, but they still showed everything you felt.

"Did you sleep?"

"Yes"

"How much?" you studied him, it couldn't have been much he looked exhausted

"A couple of hours I think" he smiled at you, trying not to show how tired he was, but you already knew, he hadn't slept much last night either.

"Arthur please, you need to sleep," you said quietly, not wanting him to lose sleep because of you.

He caressed your hand, "I'm fine, I don't want to leave you alone."

"But I'm not alone you are right here, and so is Merlin, I can wake you if anything happens."

He shook his head, "No, It's too risky"

You moved a little so you were sitting closer to him leaning against his shoulder, "It makes me feel a lot worse when I know you are not feeling well either, plus, what if something happens and you haven't slept in two days? you wouldn't be able to fight."

"I can fight, trust me," he said while crossing his arms

"Yeah, of course, you can, but it's not really the point," you whispered untangling his arms finding his left hand lacing your fingers, "You will fight even better if you get some sleep and you will need it when we reach Engard tomorrow."

He didn't say anything only looking down at your hands.

You kissed his cheek making him glance at you, "Will you please go to sleep, for me?" you knew it was unfair to ask it like that, but it was the only way you knew he would do what you said.

"That's not fair, you know I would do absolutely everything for you," he looked disappointed and it made you feel even worse.

"I'm sorry Arthur, but I promise I will wake you up" you mumbled

He knew you didn't intend to make it seem like he wouldn't do it for you, so he gave up giving you what you wanted, "Fine, but you will wake me no matter what, even if you hear something, anything, I don't care if its a bird." he said sternly making you know not to question him.

"I will," you promised looking him in the eyes sincerely. He nodded moving away from the stone and you took his place but not before removing your his cape from around your shoulders, "Here, its cold and you are freezing." You had been wearing both his and your own cape and it was more than enough.

"No, you need it more than me," he said and you knew you weren't going to win this one.

"Okay, come here then," you patted your thighs that were covered by the thick material of your cape. He looked confused, "Lay your head here, that way we can both use the cape," you could see him debating whether to do it or not, and you knew his reason not to do it was because of what had happened earlier, "I want to be close to you, you make me feel safe," you reassured him and that was all it took for him to rest his head on your legs.

You smiled wrapping the cape around the both of you already feeling his body heat warm. He hummed and closed his eyes when you cuddled his soft hair slowly falling into a deep slumber, you observed him for a second feeling the butterflies flying around deep inside your chest, "I love you," you whispered hoping one day you’d have the guts to tell him.

__________

#king arthur #king arthur series #king arthur imagine #king arthur x reader #Arthur Pendragon #arthur pendragon x reader #king arthur pendragon #king arthur fanfiction #arthur fanfiction #arthur pendragon fanfiction #king arthur oneshot #the last dragonlord #bbc #bbc merlin #bbc merlin imagines #fluff #angst #by goodnightstoriess

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jane-argeiphontes · 5 years ago

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SOMA: After the Launch Chapter 4

Chapter Four “The Gel and the Devil”

Simon set down the Cortex Chip on the table at Phi, he unloaded everything he managed to scrounge up from that room in-case he would need them. Why not be prepared for anything? Unless he lost his sanity before he made it to the other side. How long would it take it for him to start hallucinating? He guessed it depended on the mental stability of the person, if they were quite sane then it would take years but if they weren’t then goodbye sanity.

“Gotta keep it together, Simon,” he told himself out loud. “Do it for Catherine. Keep it together! Don’t stop. Keep going, keeeeeeep going, don’t stop, keep going.” He turned back to his board. Crossing out the Cortex Chip he looked at the Structure Gel supposedly in Johan Ross’ room back in Tau. He had flashbacks to when Ross would follow him and stalk him whilst he roamed around the site, urging him onwards whenever Simon stopped to take a break. He never went upstairs to Sarah, either he didn’t want to look upon her or he didn’t even know she existed at all.

“You have to stop it!” he would shout.

Simon wasn’t interested in his goals and ambitions, the world was gone! What was the point of stopping the WAU? Let it have the Earth, let it have everything. All that mattered to him was what good it brought him. Catherine, the ARK, and another chance at life. The original him died long ago with hopes and dreams silenced, now he had the chance at it again except that not much was left. The world may be gone but there’s plenty of things to do down here. Maybe there were stuff still intact up there? The Omega Space Gun was intact enough to even launch a new satellite into space.

“Ok,” he spoke and cleared his thoughts of worry and stress, “let’s do this.” He began the travel back to Tau, keeping an eye out for the Leviathan and that Whale in-case they wanted his robotic insides. When he reached the WAU, he found more growth of the gunk and foliage than before. On a cracked screen brought in from the original Site Alpha, it displayed images of the above before the Impact Event. No doubt, planning and learning to “revive” what was up there. It’s sick, twisted version of it.

Then, he looked back at the hole next to his way out. A dark trail of Structure Gel leaked out of it down back into Alpha. Some scrap metal followed along with what looked like a leg or a mutilated arm. Ross? He’s been brought back once, he could have been brought back again. That or something worse found him. An angler fish? No, no, he already saw that on his way to Tau and it was barely his size. An octopus? Maybe. That’d be terrifying, covered in faces on every angle with glowing lights illuminating the dark with a false sense of hope. Regardless, they were heading in the same direction so he’ll find out whether he likes it or not. When he passed by the ruins of Alpha again, he wondered if there were any human staff here? What happened to them? There were rooms seemingly built to house them but not a single body or indication was to be found. Out of every Site he’s been to, this one is in the worst state of the WAU’s overhaul to “save” Humanity.

The trail would stop then reappeared from what he could tell, larger clumps became smaller and smaller every time he found them again with his Power Suit helmet’s light. The anglerfish stalked him from afar in the dark, the human face on its side writhing in seemingly anguish. Did it have a human brainscan? Did the WAU graft someone onto the fish? God, Simon didn’t even want to imagine it. He pushed on into Tau, passing by the crushed body of Neil Tsiolkovsky, the Russian crew member of Tau. Simon wondered about using his suit for Catherine. It was mostly intact except for the face region and basically the upper half of the body. Nevermind, he’ll go with the original plan. Better a good suit then one where the top half is useless, he wouldn’t get to see Catherine’s face and he didn’t have the skill to repair it.

He managed to get back to the living area, still set up and livable if he needed a place to hang out. There was the bodies of Auclair and the rest of the ARK team were there. He read the old records and files still active on the terminals he found, thankfully a few kept paper journals during their last days. To extend his trip here, he searched around for the possible whereabouts of the crew. Auclair was in his room, malformed by the WAU into this...cacoon thing. What was it doing with him? Was it trying to rebuild him? Back at Omicron he saw what the “rebuilding” looked like with that crew member in the orange jumpsuit. Malformed: one leg was longer than the other, the proportions of his body oddly shifted, and the machinery in his chest of course.

Then he found the trail again. It led to one of the corner vents in the main area of the living quarters, the grate was popped open. Simon crouched down, turning on his flashlight to get a better look at the insides. Structure Gel bubbling and slightly growing until it died back down only to do so again in a cycle. “The hell is here?” He went over to Johan Ross’s room, pressing the button only for it to deny access. He pressed it again. Access denied. He slammed his fist against the button. Denied. “WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!” He kicked the door with full force, making a small dent in the metal.

The Data Buffer cracked to life. “You had your chance to save Humanity and what did you do?! You threw it away! Now it’ll infect and infect the world, making the grand illusion that we’re still alive! All for what?! The ARK? Another illusion of our existence! A mockery!”

“Ross? You’re alive! The Leviathan--”

“The WAU tried to silence me! I breathed again thanks to the Structure Gel, no matter what it keeps me alive with it pulsating in my veins. Now I have to use the weapon of my enemy in order to destroy it. I need a body Simon! I can’t make one on my own, and I need the same Gel in yours. So, I’m going to replace your copy with my own.” The door opened with Ross leaping atop Simon, sending him to the ground. Ross clawed and smacked against the helmet; he howled like an animal and clawed like one too at the Power Suit.

Simon threw him at the desk inside his room. Ross’s arm dislocated itself, the tissue and flesh still weak from the revival. “It’s over for us. It’s done,” he told the deranged man. Or what was left of the man, he was still human at her despite whatever the WAU put him through. His mind may be centered on one goal, but if he didn’t have that goal he would realize that it was over, that there was no point anymore to taking his Structure Gel to infect it. He was still human to a degree, nothing like Sarah but what else would convince him?

“I have to stop it! Humanity--”

“Ross,” Simon tried a less aggressive tone, “Think about it. It’s just you and me, the last sane beings left on this earth. The only true human that was left alive is dead. Sarah’s gone, she couldn’t go on anymore. Nothing else mattered, no way to reproduce and save us, even if you killed the WAU what would you do after that? Kill yourself? Kill everything is brought to life? All the life still living?”

Ross just looked at him, blue lights flickering in his weakened state like a broken computer, his posture slumped. His metallic and rotted insides slowly spilled out with some just hanging there still attached to their original pieces, the tube connected to his head scrunched up every time he took a deep breath. He leaned against the chair with what was left of him. They both listened to the fan go and the clock go by. “Is it really over?” His voice was broken. “Did we really lose? Can we have lost?”

Simon took a seat in front of him. “The ARK launched, our memory and the copies of us are up there. Thousands of years, maybe even more, they’ll be in Paradise. Now down here, us, the WAU, these creatures, we’re all that’s left of the living. Sure, Humanity may be gone but at least life is still flourishing. We’re still living. Maybe someplace up there is still intact, maybe something is still up there worth living for. The scans, even though they’re not us or truly human they still have a chance to make this...work. Without the WAU, none of this was possible. Sure, it may have led to people losing it. To the monsters killing people at Tau, the fall of Theta, Upsilon’s abandonment, and so much more. Despite all that, here we are. You died, Ross, a part of you did but the WAU saved you. Saved what was left of you yet your mind is still intact, you still have that. Think. Use it. Is killing the WAU really going to make the world much better than it already is?”

Ross didn’t say anything. Simon didn’t know where that part came from, he did know that Catherine would be proud of him. What else did they have to live for? They had to live just because the world needed live to continue, even if they weren’t human they had to go on.

“You...you have a point.” Ross’s voice was gloomy, he didn’t want to admit it but what else did he have left? Everyone he wanted to protect was dead. They’re long gone. The last human left alive didn’t want to live, they simply wanted to die. He looked up at Simon.“Why did you come here? Why come to Tau? To my room?”

“I’m trying to fix...my friend, Catherine. The WAU gave me some kind of vision, I guess, on how to fix her. Kinda like how I made the body for me using...Herber. The one part that it didn’t tell me was how to actually get her into the suit. Catherine was the only one who knew how and I doubt it’ll tell me in any way that makes sense.”

“Friend? Hmm...I can figure it out if you get me some of her notes. The schematics or anything,” Ross suggested. “Why not? I’ll put myself to use down here.”

Simon, surprised by this revelation, was speechless with joy. “Y-You will? You’ll help me get her back?” Such hope was in his voice at the thought of his chances being greater.

Ross nodded.

“Theta. She had a room in Theta. Akers was there with his Proxies if they’ll be trouble. I think he died when the tunnel flooded.”

“What else did you need?”

Simon explained everything from the vision to him. The Power Suit, the Structure Gel, and the Cortext Chip he’s already collected. How he came here to get one of Ross’s jars of Structure Gel that was hidden in a compartment in his vent. Ross turned around, climbed up and revealed the jar that was there.

“This is how I knew the WAU was changing, I watched it infect one of the plant life when I was out with Glasser so I collected a sample before he had to pull me back.” Ross thought back to his colleague, the only one that believed him about the WAU and the threat it posed. “And he died trying to get me to Omicron. Glasser, the ever noble and proud man, charged forward unto death without a second thought. Here I am, doing what I can to honor him. He studied life so I’ll make sure that there’s life to be studied.”

As the two talked, a monitor over in the communication hub sparked to life:

WARNING, SATELLITE DESCENT DETECTED. IMPACT NEAR SITE THETA.

#Soma #Frictional Games

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twdmusicboxmystery · 6 years ago

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Grandfather Clock in 7x07

Hello everyone! Today's theory is something @frangipanilove reminded me about over the Christmas break. She messaged to ask what I thought about the clock and the time it pointed to in 7x07, now that Jesus has died.

I honestly haven't thought about that at all since 9x08 aired, but when I re-watched the scene, my jaw was sort of on the floor. It's really awesome!

So, let's recap. We actually saw the beginning of the scene in 7x05. Jesus jumps into the back of one of the Savior's trucks to figure out where the Sanctuary is. He opens a bottle of alcohol, drinks some, and then pours it out. He then realizes Carl has already stowed away in the back as well.

The scene continues in 7x07, where we see them approaching the Sanctuary. In this part, Jesus uses pancake syrup to create a trail on the pavement that he can follow back.

We also see a grandfather clock in the truck, and guess what time that clock points to? It says 9:30. In terms of episodes, that could point at 9x06, but we’ve more or less established that one hour = one season, rather than numbers being specific episodes. 9:30, or half way through S9 = 9x08, when Jesus died.

When 7x07 first aired, especially because of the alcohol symbol (we always relate alcohol back to Beth because of Still) we tried to make the clock either a Beth symbol or Carl symbol. I think we can say with confidence now that it was neither. It was a foreshadow of Jesus's death. But the more I analyze the scene, the more things stick out to me.

In terms of Jesus's death, Jesus and Aaron were proxies for Beth and Daryl. Because Aaron cried over Jesus's body and Jesus was the one who died, Jesus = Beth in this analogy. So, I think all the alcohol stuff, drinking it and then pouring it out (very similar to Still) was a way of showing that Jesus was a Beth proxy.

Then there's Carl. I'll reference this on Friday as well, but because of Carl’s arc in 7x07 (sings to Negan, earns his respect, just the fact that he interacts with Negan) a lot of us have always thought that he was a bit of a Beth proxy in this episode as well.

Let’s look at some of the other symbols in the scene.

We see cucumbers very prominently, which could point to the St. Nicholas/Pickle story. I'll come back to that.

There's the clock itself. The biggest place we saw a grandfather clock before this was in Still, when it laid across Daryl's path in the golf club. Daryl set it up right and then it chimed, making them both pee themselves. ;D

The syrup suggests pancakes and the Bisquick line, which was present at Grady.

At one point, they even pass a statue of Frances of Assisi. We tried to figure out the significance of the statue at the time, but didn't come up with anything super-concrete. But there IS a famous story about Francis and a wolf. So, there's that.

(I looked up the Francis story and am super excited about it, so I’ll talk about it tomorrow. Wanted to give it its own post and keep this one a manageable size. 😉 I don’t think we could have understood the reason for this symbol during S7. That kind of thing.)

Let’s look at the sequence, here.

Jesus jumps out of the truck, and only after that does Carl get to the Sanctuary and meet Negan. Especially as we see Jesus jumping out of the truck and hitting the ground, I think this foreshadows his death. As in, he got off the train/truck and didn't continue on. And then of course we had the 9:30 clock. So, a very complicated and subtle foreshadow the Jesus would die (a.k.a. fall off the truck) in episode 9x08, or halfway through S9.

And if Carl is a Beth proxy here (a.k.a. singing, etc.), then I think maybe this was pointing to the fact that very soon after Jesus's death, Beth (symbolized at Carl) would meet Negan.

See why this makes me excited? Didn't I tell you Jesus's death had been planned for a long time, even if the Tom Payne didn't know about it?

Negan took a liking to Carl, much like he did to Sasha, which I'll talk more about on Friday. So Carl’s and Sasha’s relationships with Negan might have been foreshadows of Beth's relationship with Negan. (Kinda gives the fact that Daryl was at the Sanctuary watching everything and being protective of Carl whole new meaning, doesn't it?)

Back to those cucumbers/pickles. Remember that the St. Nicholas/Pickle story talks about three deaths before a resurrection. I’ve thrown out lots of different possibilities for who the three deaths are. It's difficult to pin down because SO many people die on the show.

But… It occurred to me that if you start in this episode (7x07) and go until Jesus's death in 9x08, we really only have three really major deaths. From 7×07 to present, the three major deaths were Sasha (7x16, which had a lot of Beth symbolism around it)

Carl (8x09, with lots of symbolism was around him as well, including the Phoenix)

and finally Jesus, whom we’ve established was a Coda/Beth proxy).

Now granted, there been other deaths, but none that were major, mainstream characters (Spencer, Olivia, Simon, etc. have died, but they were side characters.) We’re talking characters who had their names in the opening credits.

In fact, if I can elaborate on this idea, remember that when Sasha died, we saw a replay of 5x10 with her and Maggie watching a sunset,

which mirrored when the music box woke up. So maybe that showed that this was the beginning of the arc of three deaths that would lead to Beth’s/the music box’s resurrection. Carl would have been second, with the Phoenix. And now Jesus is the third. So, if I’m right, we really should see Beth next.

Disclaimer: Yes, I’ve said things like that before and could be wrong again. I’m merely telling you what I’m seeing and what it says to me. And yes, what I’m hoping for. 😉

So at the end of 7x05 (which was very heavy on both Sasha and Carl story lines, btw) they showed the grandfather clock along with cucumbers/pickles

and it pointed to there being three more Beth proxies/deaths, ending with Jesus’s in 9x08 (and Carl/Jesus were two of those three). And only after that would Beth (symbolized by Carl here) show up and meet Negan.

No idea this will end up being correct, just thought I'd throw it out there. Thoughts on the grandfather clock in 7x07?

#beth greene #beth greene lives #beth is alive #beth is coming #td theory #td theories #team delusional #team defiance #beth is almost here #bethyl

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maevefiction · 6 years ago

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Your Light in the Mist - Chapter 11

More than a week had elapsed since my last yoga session, and I was pleasantly surprised at my lack of stiffness. My iPod sat silent in the grass next to my mat…the sound of the waves crashing against the rocks proved to be the only music I required. Especially at six in the morning. The sun had just begun to rise behind us, its warmth exacerbating the flush my workout normally provided.

Simon’s skill level was far, far above mine, and some of the poses he worked through made me stop dead in my tracks as I admired the way his body seemed to defy the very laws of physics. He volunteered to work with me whenever we had the time, and I gratefully accepted, though I fully understood that a grace such as his was something that couldn’t be taught.

We chatted while cooling down, learning that our birthdays were only a day apart, his on October 30th, mine on October 31st. He found my being a Halloween baby hilarious, and I was tickled that we shared the same astrological sign. Fellow Scorpios - no wonder he’d liked my tank top. I tried to get him to reveal his birth year, but he adamantly refused until I offered mine up first. The look of delight on his face as he screeched out ‘me too!’ was adorable, and when he high-fived me and christened me his sister from another mister I embraced him and kissed his cheek, grinning at the lovely blush it caused.

I took a seat at the patio table and opened my laptop with the intention of starting work on Tom’s website design. Simon sat next to me, both of us facing the ocean, and he began typing away on his phone. He harrumphed and gave me some wicked side eye.

My brow furrowed. “For fuck’s sake, what NOW?”

He showed me his screen, scrolling through his inbox. “Seven more since last night. You’ve made an awful lot of extra work for me, woman.” I rolled my eyes. He turned on his chair to face me. “I’m curious, though…I thought you just lectured to and consulted with PR firms, which would mean their actual clients wouldn’t know much about you at all. So, it’s kinda surprising that an artist would be willing to jump ship and leave their current rep in the dust to wind up where you are, wouldn’t you say?”

I sighed and finished editing my open layer in Photoshop before replying. “I started out working directly with clients. My first was Anne Rice. She’s is a family friend and was willing to give me a cha…”

He put a hand on my shoulder and shoved. “GET. OUT. I’m assuming this means you’re from or lived in New Orleans at some point? But it mustn’t have been for long, because you have zero accent.”

“Your assumption is correct. Born there, raised there, relocated to New York City in 1998.”

He nodded emphatically. “So you dumped the accent. Understandable.”

It was my turn for side eye. “I didn’t dump it. It just…faded.”

He snorted. “Whatever you say, Maude.”

I pinched his arm, reveling in the resulting squeal he emitted. “Faded. I’m like a chameleon with accents. Soon I’ll be picking up your dialect and sounding like a pretentious asshat, too. In which case, you have my permission to kill me.”

“You can call me anything you like as long as you solemnly swear to take me to Mardi Gras next year.”

I rolled my eyes and held up my hand, palm towards him. “Simon. Please. I don’t think you’re ready for that sort of thing. But, if you start training now, we might be able to pull it off.”

He tilted his head like an oversized puppy. “Training for what? Drinking heavily? I’ve been training for that for years.”

“No. Throwing beads into the crowd. And doing the princess wave.” I demonstrated both. “Because if we go, you must ride on a parade float. It can be arranged. I know people.” I frowned. “At least, I used to know people. Anyway, what I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted was that she was my first client, and it gave me a lot of clout. For which I am eternally grateful. I moved on after three years or so with her and began working directly with clients, most of whom were too small to have a decent PR firm behind them. I did everything, created websites, set up Facebook accounts, provided instructions on how to post, when to post, what to post, yada yada. Lots of hand holding and cajoling. Word spread, and bigger names took notice, which led to PR firms hiring me to work one-on-one with their clients for a specified duration. Most of them already had websites in place, so my focus shifted entirely to social media. In early 2010, I was invited to speak for two hours at a PR conference in San Diego…they wanted me to lecture on enhancing client reputation through social media. It was winter in New York, and they were willing to pay for my travel expenses so I thought, California? Fuck it, why not?”

Simon’s legs were crossed, his upper body leaning in towards me as he listened attentively. I had paused, and he motioned for me to continue.

“So, I spoke for two hours and they handed me a check for three thousand dollars. That was more than I normally made in an entire week and it blew my tiny little mind. It seemed to be vastly less stressful than dealing with super huge egos and non-tech savvy artists and damn, the money. I adjusted my entire business model, and within a month I was turning down engagements because my calendar was full. PR firms were still asking me for assistance, so I set up a consulting procedure wherein I’d outline a plan for them to implement, collected my fee and was on my way. It was all so…easy.”

He laughed loudly. “And you decided to work for Prosper why?”

“Because my ‘easy’ job and the cash it generated had taken over my entire life. I was the job and the job was me. Much to my surprise, lecturing and consulting long term turned out to be a soul sucking bore…and it transformed me into a miserable drudge. I am, at heart, a creative individual and I missed doing graphic and website design, photography, and learning new things. Terribly. Working for Prosper allows me to do all that again, and then some. That’s why.”

He leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin with one hand. “And I’m sure it has nothing to do with the exquisite creature sleeping soundly in your bed right now.”

“No, it doesn’t. He was actually the reason why I seriously considered declining Luke’s offer.” Simon looked puzzled, but I didn’t elaborate. “So. Why did you leave such a prestigious position at the Dorchester to become a PA? Just for Luke? Or is there more to the story?”

He grinned. “Damn, turned it right around on me, didn’t you? Touché, my friend. I went to university for business management and administrative assistance, and worked in the field until 2005. Cooking had always been my passion, and I had some sort of spiritual awakening wherein I decided I absolutely needed to become a professional chef or else I would shrivel up and die. So I did. I moved from place to place, learning, working, partying my ass off, and finally landed the sous chef spot at the Dorchester in 2009. It was dandy at first, but as the years passed I felt like I’d grown stagnant, doing the same thing night after night, having little input on menu changes and so on. Like you, I was bored. I was averaging 70 hours a week in that kitchen, cut off from the world, and it hit me that all I had gotten out of it was a nicely padded bank account…and that there was no one to share it with. I’d always loved being around lots of people, and there I was seeing nothing but the same damn faces day in and day out. In 2013 I happened across Luke’s ad, reworked my resume, and the rest is history. Unlike you, though, I don’t think I would have taken the job if it wasn’t for him, because the salary was abysmal. As soon as I saw him, I knew. He was it. The one. Love at first sight. I thank my lucky stars every single day that he felt the same way.”

After wiping the tears from his eyes, he took hold of my hand. “Maude, I don’t know if he’s mentioned it or not, but Tom’s had a rough time of it lately, and I’m so, so happy that you’ve found each other.”

“Me too, Simon.” I smiled, letting go of his hand. “Now, please, for the love of all things holy, shut your cake hole so I can get some work done, okay?”

“God, you are such a bitch.”

“I am. And you’re still talking. Cease.”

We worked quietly, side by side, until Luke poked his head out the doors to inquire as to when Simon planned on getting his butt in the kitchen and making some breakfast. As he got up from his chair, he peered over my shoulder at my laptop screen. I had a basic layout set and was in the process of choosing a color combination that would contrast perfectly.

“Wow, that’s a right brilliant color palette you have there, Maude. Is that for Tom’s site?”

I nodded. “Does it look…familiar?”

He stared. “Yes…maybe…should it?”

I opened the tab that contained the HD photo of Tom’s eye that I’d drawn all my color options from. “Tada.”

Simon poked my shoulder and called for Luke to come see. He padded out onto the lanai, looked over my shoulder, nodded, then put his hands on his hips.

“So, when are you going to use your magic to revamp the Prosper site?”

I closed my laptop and put my head in my hands, then pushed my chair back and went to wait in the kitchen, muttering to myself about peace and solitude and how I couldn’t find any even though I was in paradise.

Tom bounded our of our bedroom just as Simon was plating our pancakes and bacon, freshly showered, wearing a pair of faded, loose fitting jeans and a tight, light blue V-neck tee. I leaned back on my bar stool and around the counter to look at his feet. Scuffed, well-worn boots. When my eyes finally made their way up to his face I was greeted with a dazzling, toothy smile. I groaned.

Simon pinched his cheeks. “Lovely of you to join us, Thomas.”

Tom lowered himself elegantly onto the stool to my right, resting his hand on my spandex-clad thigh as he leaned in to kiss me.

“Good morning, Maude. How was yoga?”

“Spectacular, actually. Simon and I had a lovely chat and I even managed to get some work done in spite of it.” He laughed and began slowly sliding his hand up my leg, edging ever closer to the apex of my thighs. Simon set our plates in front of us, raising a brow as he spied what Tom was up to.

“Um, excuse me. This is a fine dining establishment, people. No foreplay is permitted.” I glanced up from my plate and saw Luke directly behind him, hand cupping Simon’s ass.

“Whatever, asshole.” I pointed at my short stack. “Do you have syrup for these?”

He pulled a pot off the stove and spooned some of its contents onto them. “Made with fresh pineapples. Especially for you.”

All eyes were on me as they waited for a reaction. I broke off a hunk of pancake with my fork and shoved it in my mouth. “Mmm, yummy. Thank you.” Luke looked at Tom, who shrugged. I took another bite of breakfast. “Yeah, nice try, losers. I happen to like pineapples. Just not on pizza.”

Tom put his arm around my waist, pulled me to him and kissed the top of my head. “I had nothing to do with this. I swear it.”

I said nothing, ripping off a piece of bacon with my teeth instead. He tapped his fork on his plate.

“So, Maude, I was thinking…maybe we could take a ride out to Talk Story today? I called to see if Alani would be in, and she is.” I spun the stool around in his direction, dumbfounded. He smiled. “I did say I’d go back to meet her, did I not?”

“Yes. Yes you did.” I grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “What an amazingly generous thing to do. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me just yet. You’re going to be the one in charge of crowd control.” He stole a strip of bacon from my plate and swallowed it down before I could even muster a protest.

“I’d rather corral a group of a hundred people than have to sit next to you while I’m trying to eat a fucking meal, bacon stealer. And everything else stealer.”

He snickered, and I wolfed down the rest of my food, rinsed my dishes, put them in the dishwasher and headed for the bedroom, finally noticing that Luke and Simon had disappeared. I wrote a giant ‘thanks for breakfast’ on the chalkboard in the kitchen and drew a smiley face to go with it, figuring we wouldn’t be seeing them again before we left.

*************************************** After my much needed shower, I wound up standing in my underwear, staring into yet another wardrobe wondering what the hell to wear. Tom looked too damn good for me to get away with shorts and a T-shirt, and my black tank dress just didn’t scream ‘please behave and listen to the nice lady’. Tom was waiting patiently for me, sitting at the desk answering emails and returning calls. I looked at his boots, then back and my limited selection of dresses. The brown chiffon galaxy print sleeveless wasn’t an exact match, but pretty damn close. I pulled it off its hanger and laid it on the bed so I could unzip the back without it winding up on the floor, chastising myself for giving in to my everything-must-coordinate OCD once again. I slipped it over my head, put my arms through the proper holes and managed to zip it up on my own, then went into the bathroom to figure out a hair strategy.

I’d just wrestled it into a braid when I overheard Tom talking in the bedroom.

“How’s Los Angeles? Elsa? Kids? Good to hear. Oh, she’s unbelievable, Chris. Here, I’ll take you in and you can meet her.” He came around the corner carrying his open laptop.

“Chris Hemsworth, Maude Gallagher.” He turned the screen toward me, and there he was, Thor, God of Thunder. In my bathroom. He held up a hand in greeting.

“Hello, Maude. Nice to meet you. See you? Skype you?” He face palmed. “I have no idea what the correct terminology is.” I heard a woman yell in the background that meet was fine and for him to bring the tablet over to her so she could see me. He got up and walked into another room, and a beautiful blonde woman came into view alongside Chris. She waved madly.

“Look at you, you’re gorgeous. A natural beauty. And that dress…I am in love with it. You must tell me where you found it.” Her accent was a delight. She grinned. “I’m Elsa, by the way. Tom has told us so much about you I feel like I know you already.”

I waved at them. “Hi there. Lovely to meet you both. I’d like to say Tom has told me so much about you, but that would be a big fat lie, so suffice to say I’m sure he will tell me so much about you when we aren’t quite so…so…shit, what’s the word I’m looking for here?”

Tom moved to stand next to me, shifting the laptop so we were both visible, smirking. “Preoccupied. The word you’re looking for is preoccupied.”

They laughed, and Chris grabbed at Elsa. “Remember when we were always preoccupied?”

She slapped his hand. “Oh yes. I do. And that’s why now we’re preoccupied with three little ones, my darling Christopher.” I heard children crying in the background. Elsa said a quick goodbye and ran off, and Chris followed suit so he could assist.

Tom put the laptop on the counter and pulled me to him, hands on my ass as he pressed me up against his crotch and rammed his tongue in my mouth, then backed away quickly, leaving me panting. “Well, I guess we should get going.”

I shot him a scathing look. “We should. But I have to pee first.” He walked out into the bedroom. As I sat on the toilet, I weighed my options for getting even. I mentally high fived myself as I pulled my underwear off over my feet and left them on the bathroom floor.

*************************************** We parked a block down from Talk Story, and I scouted ahead and left Tom in the Jeep. My gladiator sandals clicked on the sidewalk as I half-jogged to my destination, anxious to see if Alani was at the desk. She was, and I texted him to come on down. He ran to meet me, and I stopped him from holding the door for me and letting me go in first.

“Nope, you should be the first thing she sees.” I had my phone all ready to go in order to capture the moment, planning on sending her a copy as a keepsake. He walked through, and she looked up as the bell dinged to announce that someone had entered the store and the look on her face was one I knew I’d remember forever. He approached her, hand extended, and I was right behind him.

“Hello, Alani. I’m Tom.” She remained motionless. He turned to me. “This is Maude. We were here on Monday, and she told me that you’re a fan of my work and would perhaps enjoy meeting me.” She nodded, gingerly lifting her arm up but unable to make herself grab his hand. He took the initiative, holding it to his lips and kissing it demurely. She squealed, so high pitched I thought my ears might bleed. Four other girls came running out of the stacks, took one look at him, and began jumping up and down, screaming, phones in hand. I stopped filming so I could set the boundaries before any issues arose, stepping between them and Tom.

“Hi, ladies. I’m Maude, Tom’s social media manager. Let’s go over some ground rules, okay?” They lowered their phones and nodded. “Tom wants to be able to take pictures, sign for and chat with all of you, but in order for him to be able to do so you need to make sure you don’t post anything to social media until after we leave the premises. No texting or calling, either. If a crowd turns up, we’ll have to cut things short, and where’s the fun in that?”

A husky, bearded, bespectacled man came out from the stacks, wearing a white and green palm leaf print Hawaiian shirt and khaki hiking shorts. “Girls, what the heck is going on up here? Why all the screaming? You know people prefer quiet when they…” He stopped short when he saw Tom, his mouth dropping open, then quickly closing as he grew closer, hand proffered. I figured he was the owner, so I let him pass.

“Aloha, Mr. Hiddleston. I’m Roger Marshal, and Talk Story is my baby. I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate your stopping by again…the girls were so bummed when they learned they’d missed you on Monday.”

Tom shook his hand vigorously. “Thank you for having me. Your establishment is outstanding…I’m a bit of a bibliophile, and if I had my druthers I’d be perusing the shelves here for days on end. My apologies for dashing off so quickly when I was in last, but I had a prior obligation and thought it better to come back when I had more time to spend.” He turned to me. “This is Maude Gallagher, my social media manager.”

I offered my hand and he clasped it gently with one of his, then placed the other on top. “Maude, nice to meet you. Is there anything I can do to make this easier for you both?”

“Actually, would you happen to have a room available that’s a bit more private?”

He nodded, then turned his attention to the desk. “Sure thing. Alani, why don’t you show our guests to the staff lunch room?” Her eyes lit up, and the faces of the rest of the staff fell. “Girls, you go too. I’ll cover the desk.” They thanked him in unison between excited giggles.

I tried to hang back behind Tom, but he slowed and fell into step with me and slipped his arm around me, hand on my lower back, whispering in my ear. “The way you jumped in and took charge did…things…to me, Maude.” His let his hand glide lower and lower, halting when he reached the spot where the waistband of my underwear should be. He felt around with his fingers, over my hip, diving quickly down into the crease of my left buttock then back up to my waist, gripping me just a smidge too hard.

I met his gaze, noting his narrowed eyes and the way his tongue darted out over and over to lick his lips. I smirked and whispered back. “Gosh, I’m sorry. I forgot to mention that I’m not wearing any panties. They sorta fell off back at the house and are lying on the bathroom floor, all alone and unloved.” The hand on my waist began to shake as we reached the staff room and he began breathing deeply as he attempted to keep his shit together. And round two of Friday’s Titillation Tease goes to…me.

Tom spent nearly two hours taking selfies, videos, signing anything the girls could get their hands on, and answering their seemingly unlimited supply of questions. The giant cup of tea I’d had on the ride over had finally hit my bladder, and I excused myself and went off in search of the bathrooms. There was only a one, unisex, located all the way on the other side of the store, tucked into an alcove deep in the stacks. Nice and roomy, too. I envisioned Tom fucking me up against the wall, then scolded myself for my blatant lack of restraint as I texted him precisely what I’d been thinking while I walked back to the staff room.

Roger had come back to check on them, which Tom took as an indicator that it was time to wrap things up. He was hugging each of the girls goodbye in turn as they left the room, saving Alaini for last. She rested her head on his chest, facing me, and mouthed ‘he smells like a FOREST’ while hugging him tightly. Up until that moment, I hadn’t been sure whether she recognized me or not. She stepped back and looked at both of us.

“This has been, like, the best day of my life. I can never thank you enough.” Her eyes shone with tears. “Would it be okay if I took a picture of you guys together?”

I smiled. “Of course. But I think it would be better if you were in it, too.” We posed, and Tom held out her phone to get the shot. I was entering my Prosper email address into her phone so she could send me a copy and she was putting hers in mine so I could send her the video from earlier when she cleared her throat.

She looked up shyly. “Um, I don’t mean to be rude or get in your business or anything, but I was just, you know, wondering…” She swallowed. “Are you guys, like, a couple?”

Tom grinned. “Is it that obvious?”

Her brow furrowed. “Well, you know, I saw what you posted on Twitter yesterday and I was like, hmm, and I know you guys work together and now seeing you in person…yeah. It’s pretty obvious, I guess.”

Tom took my hand. “Yes, Alani. Maude isn’t just my social media manager…she’s my girlfriend as well. And can I let you in on a little secret?” She nodded, awestruck. “When you saw us here on Monday, that was the very first time we met. So you played a rather important role in what turned out to be the best day of my life so far.”

I kissed his cheek. “Mine too, Alani.”

Alani flopped onto the nearest chair, clutching her hands to her chest. “That. Is. So. Romantic.” She leapt back up and hugged me. “We all want him for ourselves, but if he has to be with someone else, I’m really glad it’s you.”

I patted her on the back. “Thank you. Hearing you say that means so much…honestly, I don’t have the words to express properly how it made me feel.” We let go of each other, and she made her way back to the desk.

I turned to Tom. “I need to hit the bathroom again before we head out.” He nodded and followed my lead. He didn’t mention my text, and I assumed he hadn’t read it yet. We didn’t see another soul on the way there, and the stacks outside the alcove were deserted as well. I recalled my vision of Tom fucking me against the bathroom wall and decided this was going to be my shining moment of public indecency. I opened the door, stepped in, then turned around to face him, left eyebrow raised.

“Want to join me?” I licked my lips. He barged past me into the bathroom, fingers already working to unbuckle his belt.

“I thought you’d never ask.” I locked the door, then did a 180. He held his fully engorged cock in his right hand, stroking it, catching any drips with his left. “I do believe I need to put this somewhere immediately so I don’t make a terrible mess on the floor.”

I bit my bottom lip as I tilted my head to the side. “I think I’ve got just the place for it.”

He ceased his stroking in order to back me up against the wall, growling in my ear. “Oh yes. You most certainly do.” He bent his knees as he lifted the front of my dress up to my waist, and I wrapped my leg around his, grinding my dripping pussy against him while I rubbed my clit. He groaned, and I slipped my glistening finger into his mouth. He sucked on it, and I felt the head of his cock at my entrance and his hands cupping my ass, his full weight on me, pressing me firmly against the cool tile.

He was panting. “Put your other leg around me and your arms around my neck.” I did the latter, but scoffed at the former.

“Um, there is no way in hell you’re going to be able to hold me up.”

He leaned forward to stare into my eyes, and his expression made me whimper. “Leg. Up. Now. Please.” As I complied he sheathed himself fully. I tried to bite back a ridiculously loud moan but was only partially successful. His mouth met mine, tongues dancing around each other. He pulled back.

“Maude, my apologies, but once I start moving I fear I’m going to last all of thirty seconds. If I’m fortunate.”

I clamped down on him. He began thrusting wildly, and I focused all my energy on not coming before he did. I was doing well until he started whispering in my ear using his Loki voice.

“Give in, mortal. Come for me. I know you’ve dreamed of this, me fucking into you for all I’m worth, you pinned against the wall, unable to sway those mesmerizing hips and have your way with me as you ride my cock to find your own selfish pleasure.”

He pounded into me, almost savagely, and as he felt my walls begin to flutter he put his hand over my mouth.

“Not. A. Sound.” I came, my scream trapped beneath his hand, the wet sounds of him moving in and out of me echoing eerily off the bathroom walls. “That’s it. Look at you, coming and coming all over my cock. So, so beautiful.”

He let his hand drop, and I could feel his thrusts becoming more erratic as I stared at him, his face red, jaw clenched, the veins on his neck standing out with his exertion. His head tipped back, fingers digging into the underside of my thighs, and his entire body shuddered as he orgasmed, come spurting hot inside me. I let my legs slide down one at a time, planting my feet as firmly as I possibly could despite the fact that they felt like they were made of Jell-O.

He rested his head on my shoulder, and I rubbed his back. “I guess this means you got my text after all.” I felt him nod. “Well, if this is what not wearing underwear gets me, I’m never putting on another fucking pair ever again.”

We both laughed, quickly cleaned ourselves up, and I peeked out the door to make sure the coast was clear. Still not a soul around, and we said a final goodbye to Alani on our way out and proceeded to walk back to the Jeep. We sat for a while, neither of us feeling quite capable of driving.

He leaned over to kiss me, hand on the back of my neck, grinning as he pulled away. “I’m famished. Want to grab something to eat before we head back?”

“You already know the answer to that.” I noticed the street getting a bit congested, a small pack of women heading in our direction and what appeared to be a local news crew up the road a bit…I pulled out my phone and checked Alani’s Twitter feed. She’d posted the photo of all of us.

Here’s me just a little while ago with Tom Hiddleston and his girlfriend, Maude. He smells like a pine forest, and she’s super nice. #bestdayever, #thankyoutomandmaude

I showed it to him. “I’m thinking maybe we should stop somewhere a little further down the road. You?”

He started the Jeep, put it in first and stalled it as he tried to pull away from the curb, and then again on his second try. He smiled at me sheepishly. “Perhaps you’d better drive.”

“Gee, ya think?” We got out and switched places. I shook my head. “What a newb.”

He crossed his arms. “I am not a newb. I’m just out of practice is all.”

I patted his thigh as we got to the highway. “Right. Rusty stick skills. I remember.”

He chortled. “Yours remain top notch though, my love.”

I smiled smugly. “They do, don’t they?”

He raised his index finger. “Although, technically, you didn’t actually make use of them this go round, did you?”

“I’ll make up for it next time.”

“I’m going to hold you to that.”

“Well I’d fucking hope you’d hold me to it. That’s the whole point.” I saw a McDonald’s sign in the distance. “Dude, I want some French fries in the WORST way. And a chocolate milkshake. You game?’

“I most certainly am.”

“If you behave I’ll let you have my cherry.”

“Bit late for that, isn’t it?”

“How rude.”

“Perhaps. But true.”

“Not entirely true.”

“What do you mean, not entirely true?”

I turned off the highway and into the parking lot. The drive through line was mobbed, but the lot itself was relatively empty. “I mean that the fact that it’s a bit late for you to have my cherry is only partially correct.”

He stared at me as I engaged the parking brake, puzzled, then shook his head. “I’m not following.”

The left corner of my mouth scrunched up in mock irritation. “Really? Are you sure?” He shrugged, palms up. “Think about all we’ve…done.”

“Maude.”

“Good. Now think about what we haven’t done.” I gave him a few moments to review, watching his face closely so I’d see it dawn on him. 3…2…1…aaaannndd there it was. His jaw slackened, hips lifting almost imperceptibly. “That’s right. I’ve played around, sure, but as far as actually having a cock in my ass…nope. Which means, technically, my anal cherry is still intact.”

He covered his face with his hands, groaning, but said nothing.

I went in for the kill. “So, Thomas…tell me. Would you like my cherry?”

Shaking his head, face still hidden, he spoke in a low voice. “Maude.” He paused, remaining silent for quite some time, seemingly avoiding my question. I wondered if I’d overstepped some sort of boundary, pushing him too far.

My mind was racing, and I frowned. “Wow. I’m really sorry, Tom.”

He uncovered his face to take my hand, gazing at me with eyes full of concern. “Whatever for?”

“Because I put you on the spot there and just assumed it’s something you’d want to participate in. I didn’t stop to think that it’s something that might not be up everyone’s alley.” I rolled my eyes. “That didn’t come out…shit…DAMN. Anyway, that was incredibly presumptuous and I apologize for letting myself get so carried away. Please don’t feel like it’s something you have to…”

He leaned in to kiss me forcefully, covering my entire mouth with his, tongue darting over my lips, then pulled away before I could fully engage. “May I answer your question now?”

I shook my head. “Tom, you don’t need…”

“I know I don’t need to, but I WANT to. My answer is, with undeniable certainty, yes. Please accept my apology for not answering straight away. I’m afraid I was too busy thinking about how deliciously tight you’re going to feel around me and then I remembered that you aren’t wearing panties and it was all I could do to stop myself from dragging you onto my lap and fucking you right here in the McDonald’s parking lot.”

His eyes met mine, nostrils flaring, pupils blown wide open. Never before had I been able to do this to a man, make him want me so desperately using nothing but words. He squeezed my hand.

“That you’d trust me with something so intimate, bequeathing me such a precious gift, wishing to share something that you’ve not yet experienced with another, is…I’m honored, humbled, awestruck…so very many things.” He smiled timidly. “I’ve never been someone’s first anything before.”

My brows shot up, but I managed to keep my mouth shut.

“Maude, there’s something I’d like to ask you, but…”

“Shoot.”

“All right. This may be terribly intrusive, and feel free to not answer it if you don’t feel comfortable doing so, but…knowing what I do about you, sexually, I’m…surprised…that you…erm, never…anyway, I suppose I’m just wondering why.”

I sighed. Good job, Maude. This is what you get for trying to be a seductress.

“Long story short, you’re only the fourth person I’ve been intimate with. The first two were before I was twenty and not even remotely interested in such a thing. By the third I was very interested, but things fell apart before it happened.” I put my arms on the steering wheel and rested my forehead on them for a moment, then raised my head and turned to him. I couldn’t quite read the expression on his face.

“Okay, I’m not sure if that look means ‘I didn’t need to hear that’ or ‘wow, only three, what a loser’.”

He shook his head. “It’s neither. Well, maybe a bit of the first one, because the idea of you being with someone else is much more unpleasant than I would have imagined, but…it was mostly surprise that such an incredibly beautiful, intelligent, hilarious woman wouldn’t have men lining up to be with her.”

“Thomas. Stop being so fucking wonderful, won’t you? Christ. There was no line, believe me. I’ve always been at least a little chubby, but after I moved to New York I put on a huge amount of weight. There are reasons for that, but that’s another story for another time. By 2003 I was tipping the scales at two hundred and forty-seven pounds. I’ve always been a confident person, and I honestly never cared what anyone else thought about the way I looked, but…you know what I’m getting at here, I think. In late 2008 I started feeling like shit, and Anne, who’d nearly died due to undiagnosed diabetes in 2003, pushed me to see a doctor. Sure enough, that was the problem. It was early, and resolvable with lifestyle modifications. So, I kicked myself in the ass, and over the next year I lost more than eighty pounds, and that was when I…a woman in her sexual prime, in the best shape of her life…met number three. God bless him…I was on a mission, making up for lost time and he could barely keep up with me. One time I actually thought he was going to need an ambulance…sheese, why I am telling you this? Yikes. Sorry. Lord knows I don’t want to hear anything like it from you.” I unbuckled my seat belt. “Let’s pretend this never happened and go get those milkshakes, m’kay?”

He grabbed my arm as I opened the door, and I turned to meet his gaze. “I…Maude…I just…you are…everything about you…” He shook his head. “I fall deeper in love with you with every passing moment.”

“Right back atcha, baby.” He laughed. “Yeah. No way I was going to try and out-eloquent you there. Waste of time and energy.”

We went inside, his arm around my shoulders, and ordered two Happy Meals when we saw the new toys were Minions. Neither of us could resist playing with them as we ate. Tom went back for a Big Mac and chicken nuggets, which I shared. He stuck his fingers in through the lid of my milkshake, deftly picking up the cherry and popping it in his mouth, a huge smile on his face.

We both used the bathroom, separately, and as we were walking back to the Jeep I heard the voice of a young boy.

“Mom, Mom! That man over there! That’s the man you’re always looking at on your computer!”

A woman replied to him. “Mason, what are you talking ab…?” And with that, I knew she’d seen Tom. I pulled at his shirt, and he looked down at me and nodded. We turned around and waved. The woman was about my age, maybe a little older, and she looked like she might die of embarrassment when she realized we’d overheard their conversation. Tom strode over, hand extended.

“Hi there. Tom Hiddleston. And you are?” She moved as if in a trance, hand out, and he grasped it gently and shook.

“I…uh…um…Sarah. I’m Sarah. And this is my son, Mason.”

Tom beamed and shook Mason’s hand as well. “Lovely to meet you both.”

Sarah reached into her purse, dug around and pulled out a Coriolanus program. She cleared her throat. “I heard that you’d be on the island and I’ve been carrying this with me, you know, just in case.”

He took it from her. “Were you in attendance?”

Mason piped up. “We flew all the way across two oceans so she could go see your show. I saw Big Ben. It was really cool.”

Sarah was bright red. “I saw it twice, actually, but didn’t have time to stay after.”

Tom pulled a sharpie out of his back pocket. “May I?”

She grinned. “Please do.” He signed his name, as well as a message. ‘Sorry to have missed you there, but better late than never. Glad to finally have met you. XO’”

As he handed it back to her he asked if she’d like a picture with him. He introduced us, and I volunteered to do the honors so Mason could squeeze in as well. I gave him my Minion to keep him occupied while I took some shots of just Sarah and Tom. He held it up to give it back to me when I handed Sarah back her phone.

“Nope, buddy, that’s yours now.” I held out my hand to Tom and he put his toy in it. “In fact, you can have Tom’s too. This way he gets to stay with his friend and won’t be lonely.” He thanked me so quietly I could barely hear him, eyes full of wonder at what to an adult was such a small gesture.

Tom hugged them both goodbye, and Sarah embraced me as well. She smiled at my surprise. “Thank you, both of you, so much.”

Tom put his arm around my waist as we walked the rest of the way back to the Jeep, placing a quick kiss on the top of my head.

“It is my personal opinion that you’re a much kinder, gentler person than you’d like everyone to believe.”

I sighed. “Yeah, yeah. And it’s all your fucking fault, too.”

#your light in the mist #chapter 11

7 notes · View notes

uhnoly · 6 years ago

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Yay you answered! :D I couldn‘t wait to get home after work to get online and see if you‘ve had the time to answer me :3 I hope it‘s okay that I write you via submit now? I just hate splitting up my asks into parts because you never know if Tumblr eats one of them and then nothing I sent would make sense ^^

We love the asks honestly! It’s fun to chat with someone! If you want to talk to us you can hit up our IMs

Also completely random information: I bought this dessert for dinner that looks so cute, vanilla with pink-colored Strawberry dots. I think baby would like it. I‘d share with her :) It‘s impressive that she can hold her own and manage to care for herself/you all while she‘s out.

Her favorite things are peach and pink and anything strawberry flavored! She’s very brave, too smart for her own good sometimes!

Are there rules that all of you have to stick to no matter what? You really have to trust each other 100% for all this to work, right, I mean if just one of you acts out it affects all of your lives. Also I imagine it can be really scary to take over from someone and not remember where your body was before or what the other person might have used it for (Simon for example..) I mean even such simple things like getting a tattoo could be a really big problem if some are against it or all of you like a different motif. Have there been incidents where Roman had to use the ‚i‘m the host so you gotta listen to me‘ card (and would that even work?)

We have to be in constant communication with eachother on money and most things we do to the body. Leon use to hurt us or drink or leave scars without our knowledge. Some are stronger than others to push people out of the front (Leon and Loki are the strongest) so it kinda helps having Loki around because his bro ther listens to him.

Can you ‚call‘ each other/switch willingly or is it always triggered by something and then you just have to deal with it until you switch places again?

Most of the time it’s knowledgeable switching because none of us like drama so we don’t often fight over the front. Sometimes stuff triggers us and then we get all dissociative and spacey and then sudden someone else is out.

Do you leave each other little notes sometimes, like cute ‚good morning‘ post its or smileys?

Baby and Saint leave notes all the time, sometimes Loki complains and leaves those kinda notes.

Oh, we‘ll get doggy pictures! *happy*

Your dog recognizes the different personalities in you right? I noticed that animals (and especially dogs) are way, way smarter than humans if it comes to stuff like this..

He does, both of our dogs do! It’s kinda ingesting to see and notice.

Are Simon‘s prophecies always about/for one of you or does he make prophecies for others too? Do you believe in the supernatural or god or life after death?

Simon usually has general prophesies about life around us, but that’s because it’s what he experiences. Yeah most of us do, it’s complicated but we choose to come back.

Honestly if I were Roman I would be soo curious who Amor’s in love with and maybe even try to get Leon to tell me if Amor doesnt want to (I know, I know, it would be mean but still..I’d die of curiosity XD

It’s been like this for long enough and he gets weird if we push it.

If you are angry at each other will the kids do stuff like delete each other’s posts on here or are they all as mature as babywhen it comes to respecting the other person’s privacy?

The kids break people stuff sometimes or hide stuff but most of them don’t directly use tumblr. There’s always a certain level of pettiesness when people are upset and live too close.

By the way I have a crystal collection too in case Trinket gets bored by Roman’s collection sometime ;)

They love to talk about that stuff!

What kind of doll is Cotton? Like.. a china doll with porcelain skin or one of those Russian matryoshka dolls? A Japanese ball-jointed doll? Or something completely different?

Very similar to a ball jointed doll or porcelain. Very long lashes and super blond curly hair, that’s where their name is from!

Also.. may I ask how you got out of the abuse situation? Like.. did you move out on your own or did someone notice and help you? If anything I ask is triggering for you I sincerely apologize and hope you can ignore that question.

Some of it was self made, falling in love with dangerous people, trusting others who shouldn’t be. We have been lucky to either move, or drop contact. Not without its heartbreak though.

P.S. Your last posts sounded like you are in a bad place right now. Do you want your readers/followers to ask you what‘s wrong/talk to you then or do you prefer to just vent/get out the emotions on your own?

You can talk to us! The pink is usually safe to reblog vent stuff, manageable but we need a place to put it and get it out of our system and off our chest.

#replies #long post #submission

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startwithbrooklyn · 3 years ago

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THE GREAT ND REWATCH OF 2021 / SEPTEMBER 10-11, 2019 // the car crash

-"stop acting offended" oh god sis 😰🥶

-"lucy knew hudson family secrets in the past, tiffany knew hudson family secrets in the present. both of them are dead." and you ARE a hudson family secret, hes trying like a pretty little liar to keep it 😭

-"you suspect everyone of everything, you always have since you were little" 🤔 *professor voice* "the ad hominem is a fallacy of relevance where someone rejects or criticizes another person’s view on the basis of personal characteristics, background, physical appearance, or other features irrelevant to the argument at issue.

An ad hominem is more than just an insult. It’s an insult used as if it were an argument or evidence in support of a conclusion. Verbally attacking people proves nothing about the truth or falsity of their claims" https://thebestschools.org/magazine/15-logical-fallacies-know/#adhominem

-"if you keep suspecting the people closest to you of horrific crimes you're gonna end up alone" this quote becomes fascinating in the context of our future knowledge of nancys parentage foreshadowing "i've been alone my whole life" threatening nancy with solitude comes off weird. the price of being too perfect i suppose.* wonder about ryan's take on this as a parent. strangely i think she honestly wouldn't mind being alone (on some level anyway)

-wonder what exactly makes captain tom a "legend". he was featured so prominently in the press that a serial killer engaged w him and made him out to be a hero.

-"didnt want his mom to see" where was aces mom this ep and w the poisoner? wonder why they only chose to reveal her s2. maybe to give captain tom more of a feature?

-"he was letting us down" ...or just you?

-"you two are that kinda close" its been like 2 months since they met sis i guess that is 'close' to you

-"how are you and your family?" laura says that to ace in the recording --> s2 ironyyyyy

-love how mcginnis forces the nurse to update these random strangers at the hospital lmaooo

-i love how nancy kinda thinks shes the only one doing supernatural things like shes always surprised to find people who think its legit, even hannah gruen who takes it so straight faced and seriously, nancy always respects her but gives off a little "you might be taking this a bit too seriously" vibe imo

-bess w that unintentional save on the phone to nick lmaoooo

-rawley side eyes the fuck out of nancy as she literally breezes past him to get to mcginnis 😂

-wonder how mcginnis owes tom exactly

-mcginnis looks just as reluctant to admit he cares about ace as nancy does lmfaoo

-damn she knows him really well, all he communicates to her are fucking facial expressions (and her back lmao)

-"theyre not my friends" vs "i'd try anything to save my friend" - is ace the first one she calls a friend? like, the actual f word? 👀😳

-in sharp contrast to nick, george is ironically good at mysteries bc shes always suspicious of everyone

-"okay. dead lucy-" *everyone groans* 😂

-*breezes past carson in his own house* what a mood lmao

-wonder if adam beach supported this feature or if he thought it was disrespectful/cringe

-"there are many things you and i need to discuss" 👀😳🙈👗👑🤰😰🥺🤱😔

-so do we think ted has been corrupted by simon when bess opens that door orrrr was that just ted doing 8 year old things

-love this nick/bess bonding tho

-so carson-wolf, nancy-whale, george-turtle and ace-bear. wonder if those specific animal choices have any particulr meaning. 🐢"a turtle, cool" 😂

-carson definitely has his white "do not understand but dont wanna offend" face on 😭🙈

-when i first watched this ep i could not stop saying "nifty!" the whole time 😂🤦🏼‍♀️

-carson's like "okay ive had enough of indulging this make believe crap dont tell me somethings wrong w my very clearly wrong kid"

-"this is serious" lmfaooooo at this point nancy only appeases mcginnis' beliefs bc shes desperate for answers at any cost (ie "i can just ask tiffany what happened")

-wonder how long carson has worked on this cover story for when nancy inevitably asked (the fact that he got the most curious child in the world is so fucking painful yet funny)

-nancy like 😌👉🏻👈🏻"hey mom, my friend accidentally wandered into your world for a minute, could u help find her?" lmaoo

-"are we even dating?" its been a week baby chill lmaooooo

-lisbeth + hairstroking 💙

-okay bess nails her with this clothing/fashion analysis but everyone dismisses fashion so readily as frivolous that bess gets underestimated on sight

-15 years ago + "i made you that promise when you were six" = ace is 21

-"the moment he thought his father was going to die" i'll take carson - irony for 1200 alex

-wonder who tom was chasing before his crash

-"these boots dont belong" god damn george's big sister instinct activated on sight 😭

-wait how tf did she get that bear in her hand

-"you made a difference, right?" whens the last time someone told you that

-nick and bess are the weakest fucking links w mysteries lmfaoooo

-UNPOPULAR OPINION : "you're a cop!" nancy + cops - mcginnis and rawley fuck her over/view her sexually/as competition and let her down along with karen- but she likes lisbeth who is the opposite, suspected her from the beginning due to the previous people "betraying" her (she and the chief start this show in an odd place with zero trust bc she thinks she can do it better) but lisbeth passes the test; lisbeth is willing to bargain with them and doesnt question where they got the hudsons info. now nancy does not hesitate to call lisbeth for the murder of owen (ie the hand prints) and going after josh on the roof, even tells her the blunt truth about calling the agleaca (lisbeth is NOT woke to the supernatural btw) "use me" she does want to work with police, which she is infamous for not doing previously, because of her connection to bess? because they were men? karen didnt have enough power, or didnt take her seriously? what makes lisbeth so trustworthy? or is it only nancys desire to avenge owen? but she just didnt trust the other cops to get the job done- maybe she still doesnt, but at least she trusts lisbeth for the time as an authority figure when all others have failed. all cops (karen, chief and rawley) in nancy's trust lose her respect/secrets out but Lisbeth has to prove her worth to get in. maybe its something about engaging w women. i mean women can still fail her of course (lucy kind of, kate+reveal, karen) but in terms of feminist themes, the show capitalizes on these exchanges between women for the living and the dead: ghosts/demons who are male (ie simon) are pure evil (think "mr roper" at the asylum being in particular focus when it was the whole family who died) but something like the agleaca (of human origin) is made to be a sympathetic case/highlighting how women have suffered historically and are take revenge as ghosts, able to find power in death that they did not have in life, and circling back to nancy trying to give them previously denied justice through working with other women.

-"let me do it" 👀👀could it be? empathy? a sacrifice on behalf of someone you still wont call a friend?

-"killer boots." *struts like a badass with 'im a bitch, im a boss' playing in the background*

-okay lbr. how on earth did lucys dress come off her body in the ocean? like. is that legit??

-"it's just so not how i would handle things" SIS THIS SHIT COULD ALMOST PROVE YOU TWO ARE DNA RELATED FOR HOW YOU FUCKING HANDLE THINGS like nancy? are u on crack? lmfaooo carson absolutely came for u and he absolutely should have

-"i understand that impulse, it runs in the family" make it a true daily double, alex🙃

-"you stole evidence and sent it out of state because you believed it was the right thing to do" no, you just think you know better than everybody else tbh

-wowwwwwww i cant believe lisbeth really decked her but another half of me can i fucking love lisbeth

and lastly

-oh ted. 💔🥺

#brooklyn's ND primer #nancy drew cw #the Great Rewatch of 2021 #you best start believing in ghost stories miss drew - you're in one

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thebibliomancer · 7 years ago

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Essential Avengers: Avengers #160: ... The Trial!

June, 1977

So here we are once again. Some doofus in a mask who once fell on his own scythe versus the Avengers and also he beats the Avengers. That must sting.

Actually, I was prepared to dislike this issue because Grim Reaper and because the kind of overused trial plot but actually hey, stay tuned. Despite this post lacking any dials whatsoever.

So last time: Wonder Man came back to life and its a mystery and Vision has been feeling the robo-angsts about it. The Avengers recently got their asses kicked by a statue and a dick named Graviton and were played for fool chumps by Attuma and Doom. And also Vision and Wonder Man threw down because punching is easier than talking.

They’ve had a bad time of it, is what I’m basically saying.

This time: some Avengers take off early to avoid the menacing, glinting scythe that somehow got through the Avengers’ lackluster security.

Maybe Gyrich has a point in the future, even if he is an incredible dick about it.

But to be serious: Iron Man is taking Whizzer back to the hospital. I was about to comment on how his plot line just got dropped but Shooter at least remembers to tie it up loosely.

Whizzer complains that they didn’t call him to help with Graviton, Iron Man rebuts that Dude You Have A Heart Condition, thinks himself a secret hypocrite for fighting so much crime with a heart condition.

Yellowjacket and Wasp head back to Pym’s lab because Hank wants to specifically improve Yellowjacket’s powers. Doesn’t even consider improving Wasp’s powers though.

Which is interesting, sorta. I’ve been omitting the letters in the back when they do show up because I’m not sure how interesting ‘hey look at what this fan said decades ago’ is. I’m sure there is interest to be mined there, looking at fan reaction, contrasting it to my own. But I also usually end posts in a natural feeling way and including the letters would interrupt my funky flow. But to get to the point: someone wrote in suggesting that Hank give Wasp a power boost so she can actually start to matter in fights more. So its interesting to see this reflected in-comic with Hank going ‘nope my powers.’

Anyway.

Thor carries Cap back to SHIELD HQ but has some private concerns about how long he’s been absent from the Avengers and how he wishes he could stay longer. A perplexement indeed since it seems like its maybe been a couple days since the new roster. Something is going on here.

Meanwhile, back at the mansion, Beast is in a bit of a mood. He wishes he could have someplace to go that isn’t the mansion.

Everyone else Doesn’t Get It, remarking that the mansion isn’t a bad place to be stuck. Wanda and Vision even have a recently rare cute couple moment about it, Wanda declaring that anyplace is great if she’s with Vision and Vision responding without bemoaning and tearing his shirt over what a fakey fake boy he is.

And Beast remembers his time on the X-Men, a perhaps more successful time.

The plot thread of Beast not knowing his place on the team hasn’t gone away. Although, for a while, his predilection for disguise has.

So he loudly announces he’s going to go clean up the lab because hey if he can’t be a vital part of the team during battles, he may as well be the janitor.

And then he’s instantly blasted through the wall. Everyone’s a critic, I suppose.

The Avengers rush in to the lab and Black Panther switches on the light to reveal...

GRIM REAPER! This isn’t a surprise because he was on the cover and also his scythe was on the splash.

But here’s the interesting thing.

Wonder Man was never told about his brother and his silly hat. But he recognizes Grim Reaper’s voice.

So Grim Reaper gets a dramatic unmasking moment and gets to say “I AM YOUR BROTHER!”

Alas, its three years too early for Wonder Man to appropriately respond ‘THATS NOT TRUE THATS IMPOSSIBLE!’

Also, Eric “Grim Reaper” Williams looks kind of like crap. He has a kind of haggard face and a scar over one eye that is somehow not visible when he has the mask on despite the mask having a little room around the eyes.

Vision and Black Panther recap the previous Grim Reaper events for Wonder Man.

And cute couple moment dashed because when Vision says he’s an artificial boy with Simon’s brain patterns, Wanda tries to tell him that he’s not just a machine and he tells her to shut up.

Rude.

Anyway, Vision logically points out the logic that Grim Reaper should have no beef with them anymore. Look, your dang brother is alive.

Grim Reaper: “I WILL BE THE JUDGE OF THAT!”

Ffs, man.

Beast comes to and has lost nearly all of his humors because he is just sick and tired of being useless on this team when he was the strong dude on the X-Men. So he just rushes straight at Grim Reaper and gets his ass reclobbered. And then its time for fight.

But Wonder Man hesitates. Eric is his asshole brother. He can’t fight him!

Scarlet Witch can though and attacks with the power of explosions. Which Grim Reaper (not joking) scythe helicopters over. He then blasts Scarlet Witch, Black Panther, and Beast with some kind of attack that instantly puts all three in a coma.

Hax. Too op. Plz nerf.

Vision, of course, gets super nettled about Wanda being hurt but Grim Reaper has studied every detail of Vision’s construction and has an attack that puts him down instantly too.

Possibly sonic? There are concentric circles. And sonics have proven effective against Vision before.

And then he turns his scythe on Wonder Man and blasts him, although apologetically.

There’s darkness, as if to represent the passage of time during unconsciousness.

Then the Avengers all wake up at their conference table, with special manacles specially attuned to their molecular makeup and designed to cause ludicrous pain in case of contempt of court.

And we get to see two more of the chair logos!

Scarlet Witch has a stylized W for Witch but I can’t help but notice that it is also her tiara thing upside down and now have to wonder if that was always supposed to be a W. Although upside down would be an M. For mutant? Costume design, you are an enduring mystery.

Vision has his diamond but I’m pretty sure we saw that one before.

And Black Panther has a cute little kitty cat. So he wins.

Anyway, as implied by the cover the theme of Grim Reaper’s emotional turmoil for today is a trial.

He will be playing the prosecuting attorney slash inquisitor. Black Panther will arbitrarily play the defense counsel.

I have to wonder why Black Panther but the other options are Scarlet Witch, who may be slightly biased, and Beast who Grim Reaper doesn’t really know. So I guess that makes sense.

And the name of the game is:

Grim Reaper: “Two men cannot share my brother’s identity! One of them must die!”

So Grim calls Vision to the stand. Which is a chair that Grim Reaper has pulled away from the table to represent a the stand. Because he is committed to this farce.

On the cough cough ‘stand’ Vision recaps his origin: created by Ultron, well actually, adapted from the original robot Human Torch and given the brain-waves of Simon Williams because programming is hard.

So because his personality is derived from Simon Williams’ brain waves, he is in many ways somewhat like the original deal. Although they don’t here explain those similarities.

In Kurt Busiek’s run, where we revisit many of these robo-angst plot points, its revealed that Vision and Simon have very similar tastes in music and literature and women. The last one is the real sticking point.

Anyway, Grim Reaper threatens to destroy Vision if he’s just a mechanical mockery of his brother. Oh and then he reveals that once Vision accepted Grim Reaper’s offer to steal Captain America’s body, which Vision has to confirm that yes he said yes to the offer.

Which is clearly evidence that Vision is Grim’s real brother because he felt a right to a human body even at the expense of a teammate. BUT ALSO: remember how Vision protected Grim Reaper from a deadly Hydra attack? LIKE A TRUE BROTHER???

So is the supposed “Wonder Man” merely an imposter that Vision is trying to shield from Grim’s wrath? YOUR WITNESS BLACK PANTHER.

This line of questioning is dumb because it is finally revealed in this issue who was behind the resurrection of Wonder Man. Spoilers: Its Grim Reaper.

Anyway, Black Panther first objects that any Avenger would act to preserve life, even if that life is Grim Reaper life.

Although, this is not the whole truth. At the time, Vision revealed that because Grim Reaper may be his brother kinda, he felt the need to protect him sorta. It was vague and not entirely logical. Like Vision himself.

Black Panther cross-examines Vision and asks why he agreed to Grim Reaper’s mad body-swapping scheme. And Vision reveals, as the issue at the time revealed, that he was just playing along so Cap could ambush Grim Reaper.

Grim Reaper seems confused by this, almost like he didn’t remember Cap and Vision kicking his ass.

Also, Black Panther burns him almighty.

He also says that Vision won’t fit into the role that Grim Reaper wants to cast him. Vision is his own man, taking his life into his own hands. Why he has even taken a wife.

Which seems an AH HA moment for Grim Reaper because his brother would never marry a mutant! Because Grim Reaper is a bigot in addition to being weirdly fixated on his brother.

Meanwhile, Wonder Man is off to the side trying to ignore the crush he has on Wanda.

I joke, he’s really off to the side flummoxed that his brother is doing all this. But he does have feelings for Wanda at some point. Supposedly he was attracted to her even before he died (when?? when did he ever meet her?) and that formed the basis for Vision’s own interest in her. But that’s a dumb retcon.

Anyway, Grim Reaper calls Wonder Man to the stand/chair.

And Wanda asks Vision what he’s playing at when Grim Reaper may kill him. But Vision says he’s not Simon Williams and if that’s a crime, well he guesses he’ll die. But better he die for not being Simon Williams than Simon Williams suffer a second death for not being Simon Williams.

So now its Wonder Man’s turn to sit in the chair and recap his backstory. Recruited by the Masters of Evil when he was at his lowest point, made swole with ionic power and used as a traitor against the Avengers.

But it wasn’t the Avengers who killed him! To Grim Reaper’s apparent shock. He seems really clueless of a lot of things, actually.

Wonder Man died after turning on Zemo. And seems to think he got blasted for it. But it was really that Zemo didn’t give him the cure. I mean, that was the plot, right?

Then the ‘corpse’ was kept in a special preservative coffin but was stolen (by Grim Reaper). Then ??? and then he was delivered as a zombie (wait we can say that now?) to the Avengers’ front step in a big crate. The Avengers tracked down a voodoo priest called Black Talon and Scarlet Witch kicked his ass but Zombie Wonder Man still walked. And began to feel and think and remember. And by the time the Avengers were fighting Living Laser and the Serpent Crown and Nuklo and all that nonsense, Wonder Man was back to himself again.

Good enough for Grim Reaper! (Redramatically unmasks) The voice and mannerisms are right! This must be the real brother!

OBJECTION says Black Panther

(I knew I kept that for a reason)

Returning from death is impossible! True death is irrevocable!

(Oh Black Panther, how little you know of the comic book world...)

Whatever this Wonder Man is, he is not the same as the man he was before or even ANY man who EVER lived!

And Simon Williams is shocked, shocked, that someone figured it out. He takes off his goggles and reveals that his eyes glow with crimson kirby crackle. He knows he isn’t the same. But he doesn’t know what he has become... and it scares him.

Imagine coming back to life. Years have passed. The world is different. And there’s a feeling deep inside, staring at you in the mirror, that you’re not what you were. The world is not the only thing that has changed. And you wonder (hah!) if you are even human anymore...

There’s a lot of good material you could mine with Wonder Man. I remember it being squandered but maybe I remember wrong.

Grim Reaper is taken aback at Simon’s reveal and it actually feels like a small, human moment. Like maybe there’s a human connection still to be preserved here beyond the hyperbolic dramatics of the Grim Reaper.

But Vision calls Grim Reaper out. If he’s going to kill one of them, just get it over with and also kill him specifically. Because he (the Reaper) is a fool to think that he can ever have his brother back as he was.

Maybe Vision was a fool too because he had once hoped that he was in some way Simon Williams but he is his own unique, beautiful individual! He is the Vision! And he is content with that.

And if Wonder Man has somehow stepped beyond humanity, maybe he and Vision are the true brothers?

NO THAT IS NOT AN ANSWER I LIKE Grim Reaper expresses by torturing his captives.

And with all the Avengers knocked unconscious, Grim Reaper monologues that they would tremble if they knew who provided him the technology to build the manacles. Also now he’s going to execute the android kthx.

And then Wonder Man punches him in the face and it is super satisfying.

Sometimes comics are good.

Wonder Man says that his molecular structure must be different now, since his change. The manacles don’t work right on him.

Grim Reaper: “Simon, you fool! Don’t you realize that what I’ve done... and what I’m doing is for you? Stay back!”

And he blasts at Simon and Simon punches a big piece of machinery at him which Grim Eric shreds with his helicopter scythe.

Back when they were kids, Eric used to beat the stuffing out of Simon all the time. Eric was the big brother and the more athletically inclined to Simon’s quiet bookish type. But things have changed.

Grim Reaper: “Listen to me! I’ve worked long and hard for your sake! Right or wrong, for years I held the Avengers responsible for your death, and sought revenge! I paid the Black Talon a fortune to use his voodoo -- to raise your body and send it among the Avengers to kill them! But for the Scarlet Witch, you yourself would have been the instrument --.”

A lot to unpack here. Grim Reaper basically admits that maybe his revenge was misplaced but eh, sunk cost. Also, that he was the one that resurrected Black Talon but it doesn’t seem he thought he’d get his brother back. He just wanted a Wonder Man zombie (seriously, we can say that now? Its only been a few issues...) to bludgeon the Avengers to death with.

I’m not sure what the actual plan was since the Wonder Man zombie collapsed rather than murder anyone. But maybe that’s the point. Wonder Man had been brought back, not just as a body, and wouldn’t revenge on anyone. That was what derailed the plan.

Grim Reaper blasts Wonder Man with all his remaining power but just shreds his shirt.

Grim Reaper: “Look, I -- I’m trying to tell you how much it means -- to have my real brother back, instead of that android copy! But I had to be sure! I had to test you both!”

With the blade out of power but the whirl engine still whirling, Grim Reaper tries to fend Simon off with the helicoptering. But Simon just marches right into it, the scythe breaking off on his pecs.

And as Grim Reaper stares in disbelief at the stump of his weapon, Wonder Man punches him out. And then deactivates the manacles from the rest of the Avengers.

The Avengers rouse, glad to have survived that nonsense. Scarlet Witch thanks Wonder Man for saving Vision and Vision himself says he is ever in Wonder Man’s debt.

Its Beast that notices that Wonder Man isn’t altogether okay with what he had to do.

But Wonder Man just asks to be left alone for a while.

Because its not Avengers if someone isn’t brooding at the end.

And because in addition to coming back to life having missed several years, feeling like his humanity has slipped him by on his resurrection, Wonder Man had to learn today that his brother, who he already had a contentious relationship with, has become a supervillain who has already done terrible things in Simon’s name. I have to imagine that Simon hasn’t gone looking to reunite with any of his family because he doesn’t know how to explain his death and because he wasn’t sure he was himself anymore. But someone came looking for him and even if it was the brother he didn’t get along with, it was someone from his past reconnecting with him. But the way it seems is that now they’ll forever be at odds. Because having his brother back isn’t enough for Eric. He has to kill the ‘imposter’ and Simon can’t stand for that.

Heavy melodramatic stuff.

...

This issue should have gone before the Graviton arc.

You have all this increased tension from Wonder Man’s resurrection and Vision’s existential crisis, leading Vision to be moody and distant and finally come to blows with Wonder Man.

Then the rest of the issue is some gravity jerk.

It would have required a little rewriting but after Vision and Wonder Man throw down is when Grim Reaper should have struck. Get Black Panther in there somehow or use Iron Man or Captain America in Black Panther’s place.

The Avengers are weak and in turmoil from being just off the Attuma misadventure. From just having their asses kicked on Christmas by a statue. And with tempers at a fraying point, Vision at last lashes out and he and Wonder Man rumble.

And Grim Reaper takes that opportunity to jump in. And enact his trial.

Things play out as they did. Maybe expand into a two parter to give some more time to explore Vision’s discontent and the temptation to be considered the ‘real’ brother even by an ass like Grim Reaper. And then its worth more when, as before, he refuses to play Grim Reaper’s game. He stands up for his own individuality and for Wonder Man’s life. And things play out roughly the same.

With the insinuation that the Statue Knight was Ultron’s work, this makes things flow so much better. Ultron and Grim Reaper are implied and later explicitly stated to be working together.

That’s where he gets all his wonderful toys.

Ultron uses the statue as a distraction to allow Grim Reaper to infiltrate into the mansion and set up his little farce. Which Ultron uses as a distraction from his own plans (as we’ll see soon).

The Graviton story can still happen after this but moving the Grim Reaper stuff forward lets the Vision/Wonder Man thing play out instead of being interrupted by a story that didn’t advance it.

Anyway. Those are my thoughts.

Obviously, I liked this issue more than I thought I would, going in. What with Grim Reaper an all. This is a good Grim Reaper use. And it pays off his previous appearances. The problem is that this then, is the only Grim Reaper we ever get, when I think he kind of ran his course here.

In the future, he will seriously try to put Wonder Man and Vision in a blender to create a one, true brother.

So the true brother schemes should have stopped here. As hilarious as that laconic plot description sounds.

Next time: everyone who ever thought the power of small or ants was worst power I laugh at. Next time, beware the Ant-Man.

Follow @essential-avengers because I have always known ants is best power.

#Avengers #Grim Reaper #the Vision #Wonder Man #Scarlet Witch #Black Panther #Beast #Essential Avengers #Essential marvel liveblogging #villains love putting heroes on trial #i think its a 'how do YOU like it' thing #holidays are super awkward at the Williams residence

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