#my family and i had been rescued from our island only days prior

[rubythecrimsonwriter]

As someone who has lived in the south where the water trough is anywhere from mildly annoying to actively terrifying, who has lived on a fairly decently sized island where it is indeed absolutely terrifying to be cut off from the mainland suddenly with little to no help from the government for an extended period of time--

After No Man's Land and all the issues that arose then, I'd like to propose the new way of interring their dead would be mausoleums. Possibly especially with Gotham canonically existing on a system of caves. An island made of caves on the East Coast that gets battered by hurricanes almost every year is just asking to get sunk a la Atlantis but its fucking Gotham and i think the Gothamites would raise it from the sea floor again out of sheer spite.

But with mausoleums you:

Dont have your son crawling six feet through packed dirt after inexplicably coming back to life

Dont have long buried coffins and corpses getting flooded/shaken/otherwise disturbed and shunted into the water system/streets/underground reservoirs (or Lazarus Pits, since there's one of those down there too, as if Gotham didn't have enough things wrong with it)

Continues the Gotham aesthetic

Have more places for various characters to have a private mental breakdown in

Have more places for various characters to find ominous warnings etched or graffiti'd on the walls

Have more places for things much older than the mausoleums have been En Vogue™ for to inexplicably appear and send shivers down the spine

The Gothamites are very firm about not really being part of the US. The US kind of looks at the South like we're really fucking strange, and the South looks at New Orleans like they've taken the South and concentrated it, carbonated it, and shook it really hard.

I want the same vibes for Gotham. This is their home. They are weird and stubborn to a fault and everything is on fire and the government is corrupt and the people aren't always good but nobody else understands. No one else ever could. Who else has seen the lights for rescue appear on the horizon only to see the light of death on the waters, ensuring no help would ever come? They are resourceful and violent and resentful but the gods won't help you if you cross one of their own.

[confessionsofastoryfreak]

Day 2 of #NaNoWriMo

let's gooooo! Prompt - Reincarnation | Theme - Discovery

They death is the ultimate adventure. Nothing's more exciting then seeing what lies beyond your final breath. But what if what lies beyond is an even worse life than the previous one? What if reincarnation exists and your new life is decided based on your choices in your most recent life? What happens then? Well... I can tell you.

My name is Elizabeth. I am an orphan born into an uncaring world. You're not supposed to remember your previous lives at all. But I remember my last one. I was a horrible human - a dictator bent on destroying an entire race of people. I slaughter 100 million people and quite nearly succeeded in eradicating the race. I tortured millions more. But I can't take all the credit. My inspiration had been Nazi Germany... had been Adolf Hitler.

That's why... why I'm in this life. Because it is my punishment. It's interesting how a different body can make you reflect on the atrocities of a life prior. I regret everything, but God has punished me, and rightly so. So I must live this life.

I tried to eliminate all of the UK. Every Englishman, Irishman, Scotsman, and Welshman out there. And the women. I wanted them eradicated. My philosophy was that they were partially the reason Germany lost. The US contributed but I didn't have the numbers to take them on.

Now? Now I'm an Irish lass living in the squalor of Welsh slums. I was raised in a dilapidated orphanage that eventually collapsed. Since we were located in the slums, nobody came to rescue us. Most of us didn't make it from the building's collapse, and those of use that did were now homeless. Living in the slums, people couldn't afford to take in homeless children - not that they wanted to. Those outside the slums didn't want "dirty" children.

It's not like there was an overcrowding problem on the island nation. I had saw to that previously. But when the royal family died and parliament fell, there was no one left to pick up the pieces... except for Russia. My previous life's nation. Apparently, someone had picked up my handiwork and took over the UK as a result. They weren't as evil as I had been, but they weren't necessarily kind. Only the rich could survive. Those who couldn't pay taxes were either deported somewhere in the Congo to survive or sold off into labor camps to repay their debts. The problem was that the place in the Congo where you were dropped off at... was not kind to foreigners.

As children, we still had to pay rent.

I gave everything to others and I ended up in a labor camp. It wasn't cruel like I had been... like I had modeled after Hitler. But it was hard. We were served 3 meals a day, had decent beds, were allowed regular bathroom breaks, allowed to shower, got new clothes when ours wore out, got ample water intake, and had an onsite doctor for injury and illness. The downside? The meals were small, the beds were short and cramped together in bunks, the toilets weren't the cleanest, the shower was always cold, and if you were sick or injured longer than 6 weeks, they marked you lame and... put you out of your misery.

That's the life I was reborn into... and it's what I deserve and so much worse.

[prof-peach]

Hey Prof, I need your advice.

My sister recently decided she didn't wanted her bulbasaur anymore (she got him on a whim about a month ago) and gave him to me, he is quite violent and tends to attack when I try to get close to him.

Now, that wouldn't be a huge problem, but my Purrloin has gotten hurt trying to befriend him, she's quite outgoing and never really liked fighting (we enjoy contests so she knows a few more flashy attacks), so she couldn't even defend herself properly.

I don't want to give up on him and my local rescue center is filled with Bunearies (you know, after Easter kids don't want their Bunny anymore) so they can't take him in right now, any advice in how I can go about this situation?

Sounds to me like you have a tricky little dude on your hands. So you're not battle orientated which will make this harder, Bulbasaur in the wild are actually quite combat minded to defend their families and territory, and a lot of their herds consist of strict hierarchy based on power and skill, often led by older, fully evolved members of their group. 

Before you take any actions to befriend them, its worth noting that any pokemon who comes into your care showing aggression is usually doing so for one or two reasons that are pretty universal for any species. Fear being the main issue with pokemon who have been ditched, if a pokemon is unwell, if it feels exposed, if it is unsure of you or your home, your partners, it may lash out because it is afraid. Even what looks like pure anger can stem from a fear. Of course some individuals are just full of rage, its not unheard of, but for the most part it comes from somewhere else. 

For a moment, take the time to put yourself in this pokemons shoes. It was chosen, with hopes and ambitions of its own, by your sister, a stranger to them, and for whatever reason they were cast aside. This reason may be unclear to the pokemon, it may be unfair, unkind, or even without malice just out of pure indifference. No matter the reason, this pokemon has been left behind by a trainer it at one point probably wanted to try to get along with. I don’t know what your sister may or may not have done, or provided for the bulbasaur, but it will help you understand how its feeling, if you were to ask her about their relationship prior to you receiving the pokemon. If it has always been aggressive and angry, i’d seriously consider talking to it about release, not rehome. 

We humans have a preconceived notion that pokemon are pets and things to keep with us. This may be true for some sure, but not every pokemon wishes to be a captive to a human, they may want more for themselves, and wish for a free life with their own kind. We cannot put our wants and desires above that of the pokemons, so you two need to have a talk, at a respectful distance for safeties sake, to see what the Bulbasaur feels they may want. These are herd pokemon, born and bred to be with their own kind, if not a larger group, if its lonely, if it wants to go home, to start a family, or simply to not be held in a ball as some creature to be owned, then you as its current carer must give it what you can. You can always find another pokemon who wants to be your partner, but you cannot give back lost years to a pokemon who has lived a life its unhappy with. Treat them with respect, and be open and honest. At the end of the day we have a chance to help pokemon, and forcing what we want onto them is a hinderance, and will lead to them feeling unsatisfied and bitter in the long run. 

Some pokemon lash out due to the process of being handed off to someone else, trust is earnt, not always just simply given to whoever holds the pokeball. Remember this as you move forward, and try to keep your other pokemon away from them, Bulbasaur are territorial species, and have to accept pokemon into their families before simply allowing them to come and go freely into their personal space. Despite their grouchy natures at times they usually do have a morally positive compass, and defend with ferocity when they love something. Perhaps in you showing genuine concern for their welfare and future, offering them not what you want, but instead what they want, they may give you a chance to get closer, but take baby steps, and try to be their friend above all else. I bet they're feeling pretty lonely right now. 

Its worth sharing interests with the pokemon, talk about contests, see if they're interested, some pokemon have a predisposition for this, others have no interest and prefer more battle based lives, or even peaceful non-competitive existences. no amount of pressure will change a pokemon’s nature, and some just aren't cut out for the fine art of showmanship that contests require. You can however use powerful attacks in showy ways, so theres always hope that they could enjoy it, if you can work with them to their strengths. 

If possible, work to getting them outdoors, cooping grass types up can lead to stroppy, testing personalities, many thrive in the outdoors, he may need some serious outside time to compensate for the lack of exercise and natural stimulation they may have not been getting prior to your ownership. There are plenty of areas in public that are much like tennis courts, areas of space you can book for a set amount of time too exercise difficult pokemon, these locations are often secure facilities, both outdoors and indoors, to suit a range of species. find one that has outdoor facilities and book a few hours per week to go there, increasing the time whenever possible. This exercise and time with you may help to find common ground, and topics that you and the bulbasaur can bond over. This can be anything from battles, to sun bathing, playing sports, games, swimming, running or digging, and everything in between. Bulbasaur naturally are great foragers and tend to like to snaffle about in long grass and shrubland, hiding treats like berry slices in a secure environment is good enrichment and can tire the pokemon out. a tired pokemon is usually a little less aggressive, having lower energy levels and less want to expend attacks. this process also associated you with something fun, and your scent will be on the treats too, so they'll know you were the one to provide this activity for them.   

I’d also take plenty of time to observe the bulbasaur, as your sister got them on a whim, they probably had no prior knowledge of the species, or how to correctly care for them. In a month, a health complaint could have begun to show, so observe their colouration, feet, walking gait, sleeping patterns, feeding habits, and general behaviour. Excess scratching, heavy breathing, or unusual shaking or moving can suggest a health condition is starting to take form. Most can be helped if caught early, but some illnesses give the pokemon discomfort, and can lead to snappy tempers and irritability. It could be that this individual is in pain, or finding life difficult due to its health, which can cause a lot of hostility as i’m sure anyone would agree. It can suck to be sick!

This species can be won over if you can prove you have a skill of worth to them. This is the case with a lot of pokemon, having respect for something they cannot do, and learning that they need things from you can lead to them at least tolerating us humans. Its a foot in the door. A trick i like t use with particularly difficult bulbasaur is to give them their fav food, whatever it is, then put it in a clear container the pokemon cannot open. They have no thumbs, and their vines though dexterous, aren't able to open every kind of container. The pokemon will want whats inside, and be unable to access it. they will eventually give up out of frustration. this is where you come in. enter the space, don’t let your pokemon approach as this can be threatening, and open the container. leave it on the floor open, making sure they've watched you get the thing open. They can then approach and enjoy their fav food, all thanks to you and those wondrous thumbs you have. repeating this process yields good results, and starts a mutual relationship of tolerance and acceptance between you and a bulbasaur. Most will accept they want the food more than they want you gone, and you provide something they can’t get to. whatever you do, don’t let them see that you were the one to lock the food up in the container. Get a friend to do it, or do it in the room, and leave it in place on the floor, before allowing the bulbasaur to enter and investigate the item. If they see you're the one doing it, the trick is foiled, and your back to square one. Eventually this does tend to lead to the pokemon becoming less stressed with you around them, and eventually it leads to trust, and even friendship. This trick is good to use to get them use to you, once they're ok with you being around them because of your use to them, they may start to take food from you directly, engage in play, or even just sit and tolerate company for short periods of time. Do not expect this to be quick, but it does usually do the trick. 

Regardless, i do have concern that the pokemon may want to be with its own, should you discuss this and find they're not interested in being housebound and a pet, feel free to send them our way, we had exactly this situation in mind when setting up the islands facilities, and have extensive locations designed with grass pokemosn needs at the forefront. Theres a small herd of about 12 bulbasaur evolutions that live north of our labs, no people see them, they are happy as a unit, and are left alone to go about their lives, with the only interactions between humans being us giving them their yearly health check, or should we spot them with an issue, we may intervene. They live away from others and pretty much free, in a poacher safe environment. Its not ideal, we like to keep pokemon in areas they come from, with people who love them, and you show great concern for the pokemon so it would be a shame to have to let them go, BUT sometimes thats just life, and theres nothing to be done about it other than accepting that the pokemons wants come first. They may just be mistrusting so try everything else first, and see how you go. hopefully you’ll yield some results from this all. Good luck out there trainer. 

[jarienn972]

La Sirena - Chapter Ten (Epilogue)

Captain Swan Supernatural Summer 

(that’s finally being completed in winter)

We have reached the finale of this @cssns tale at last. This has been such a fun and challenging experience trying to build this universe, and I hope that readers have found it enjoyable as well. Thanks for all of your lovely words and feedback along the way!

I thank you, @kmomof4, for all of your assistance and input. You rock as a beta!  And @courtorderedcake​, thank you once again for the beautiful artwork that really brought to life the imagery of the opening chapter!

And now, back to the story... Here, we pick up moments after a stubborn and confused Killian pretended to be asleep to avoid his brother. He’s about to get a wonderful surprise...

Catch up from the beginning here on Tumblr: One  Two  Three  Four  Five  Six  Seven  Eight  Nine  Or read in full on AO3 or FF.net

The instant that Killian was certain that Liam was out of earshot and wouldn't be present to scold him for faking sleep, his eyelids sprang open wide to behold the most wondrous sight. Perched in the chair just to his left was the very same angelic vision he'd first laid eyes on back on that deserted beach days ago. She looked different with her long, gilded tresses pulled back by a ribbon and seemed a bit more diminutive while wearing a vastly oversized sailor's white uniform tunic and navy woolen trousers but he knew for certain it was her.

But how? How was he gazing upon a beautiful siren here in his own quarters? How could she be here and still be real?

"Emma? It's you!" he exclaimed, trying to sit upright to greet her properly despite the pain. "What are you doing here? How are you even here, Love?

"One question at a time," she chuckled as she reached over and placed her hand atop his forearm to urge him not to move. The moment her fingers brushed his skin, he felt a tingle pass through his entire body - one that was warm and tender. His heart was suddenly racing, but it was no longer driven by fear or anxiety. He welcomed her touch, her presence. "I'm here because this is where I belong and it would seem that even the gods agree."

"But you're a siren. I thought your home was those isles and the surrounding seas? I thought you couldn't leave without…" His voice trailed off before he could say sacrificing your powers.

Her demeanor rapidly switched from jovial to serious at Killian's off-handed, yet important questions. Her eyes avoided his for a moment, then recaptured his gaze with an intensity he'd not seen from her before. There was a new melancholy about her as she took in a deep, reflective breath before responding.

"That cove was no longer my home. In truth, it was far more of a prison for longer than I care to remember. I thought I was happy alone when I left the ranks of the siren council, but I had no idea how wrong I was - until you floated into my bay." Killian's jaw gaped in stunned silence as he watched the tears begin to well in her eyes, but she shushed him when he tried to reply. There was more to her confession that she needed him to hear before he could respond properly. "I may have rescued you from drowning that fateful day, but it was you who rescued me from an eternity of loneliness. And then watching my sister attempting to harm you only strengthened my resolve…" She paused to take a breath, unsure how he was going to react to her next words. "I guess what I am trying to say is that I am here right now on this ship, wearing these ridiculous garments because I knew I couldn't let you go. I risk sounding like a fool right now, but there is something I must confess. I love you, Lieutenant Killian Charles Arthur Jones of His Majesty's Royal Navy. Nothing in my entire lifetime has felt as right as the days I spent with you, and because of that, I asked the mighty Poseidon to make me human so that I could accompany you."

"Emma… I…," he stammered, his thoughts an incoherent jumble.

Her jaw wavered as she dipped her head, almost ashamed of her utterance. "I'm sorry if I've upset you, but after all we've been through these past days, I believed you should know the truth. I do understand if you do not feel the same as I do."

Ignoring his body's cries of pain, Killian threw off the blanket and forced his protesting limbs to sit upright, swinging his legs over the side of the bunk so he could position himself close enough to her that he could cup her cheek in his palm and brush away a tear with the pad of his thumb.

"Emma, there is no need for tears," he assured her. "While I will admit that your revelation to be a siren - and all of the events that followed - were a tad horrifying, I still knew I would gladly spend the remainder of my years stranded in that cove with you. But you, you gave up being a siren - being immortal - for me?"

"What good was being immortal if it meant losing you?" she said with a sniffle just as Killian leaned forward to capture her lips with his, neither of them even caring if Liam were to reenter Killian's quarters right then and there. For a brief moment, the universe was theirs alone until Killian's protesting rib cage caused him to reluctantly pull away, but not without more questions.

"But my brother and the crew, they didn't suspect you to be any less than human? Liam, he addressed you as Miss Swan? Since I don't believe that sirens have family names, wherever did that come from? Whatever did you tell them whilst I was incapacitated?"

"No one suspects me to be a siren, if that is your worry. Once your fellow crew members reached the cove to rescue you, I had to tell them something, so I led them to believe that I was a fellow prisoner from the sunken pirate ship. They believe that the pirates attacked my family's vessel prior to abducting you on that isle of Neverland you spoke of. It isn't as though any of them could corroborate my story with your captors. The crew also collected several damaged trunks and weathered chests that had washed up on the shore, believing them to be part of the stolen loot from the sunken ship. I happened to notice that there was a swan's head carved into one of the wooden trunks so as I boarded this vessel, I introduced myself to your captain as Emma Swan. Do you believe I should have chosen something else?"

Killian chuckled at the thought of her thinking up a surname on the spot. "I don't think anyone will make the connection. I kind of like it. You're beautiful and graceful like a swan. It suits you."

"Thank you," she blushed. "I hardly feel beautiful in these borrowed clothes. This fabric, it is rather unpleasant."

"I'm sure we can find you some attire more suitable for a lady when we next make port. Women aren't common on the high seas. There's an old legend that they're unlucky."

"What nonsense," she muttered with a frown. "But no matter. I have it on good authority that no harm will come to this ship. No creature of the seas would dare challenge Poseidon's edict."

"I still don't understand how this is possible. How does my brother not know that the expedition to the uncharted island went horribly wrong? He wants to award me a bloody commendation that I don't deserve. They think I've lost my mind."

"This will need to be our secret, but the events as you remember them never actually transpired," she stated, which of course left Killian befuddled. He opened his mouth, prepared with a barrage of questions, but she raised a hand to shush him, wanting to explain what she meant before letting him speak. "I know you will have many questions, some of which I will never be able to answer, but in simple terms, Poseidon modified all of the events that led up to your brother's ship arriving to rescue us from the cove. Everything that transpired remained in the same order, but not in the same manner. You still encountered the pirates on that island, they still took you prisoner, and the sirens still laid siege to the ship before it ran aground and sank, but Poseidon changed the scope of each event and allowed your brother's ship to pursue the pirate vessel to locate you. Your injuries were all believed to have come at the hands of your pirate captors and during the escape from the sinking vessel. They have no reason to suspect otherwise."

"But what about my crew? Does no one remember their sacrifices?" he queried anxiously, afraid that those men's lives had been lost in vain.

"Some of them were never there, never set foot on the island. Others were there but their fates were changed by the modified events," she explained, although her words did little to alleviate his confusion. "In this revised timeline, there was no actual battle with those scoundrels. You alone were captured by the pirates. I have no way else to explain, but essentially, Poseidon changed how your history played out. No one beyond our realm will ever know of the version you lived through."

His jaw remained slack as he shook his head and tried to come to terms with a turn of events that was nothing short of miraculous. "But how? Why?" he stammered. "Why would he do such a thing?"

"He said I reminded him of his daughter, Ursula, and he recognized your good heart - much like the man Ursula fell in love with so long ago. He knew you'd been wronged, as had I, and he wanted to put things right. He granted my wish to become human and accompany you, and brought your brother's ship into the bay so you could be saved by your kind."

"Do you know what became of your sister?"

"Not all. I do know that she had her powers revoked for abusing them and that she was made mortal, although not by choice in her case. I don't know if Poseidon turned her human or made her a permanent creature of the sea, and in truth, I don't care. I've made my peace with it. Now, all I wish is to be with you, if you'll have me."

"I wish for nothing else," he replied with a beaming smile. "I just don't know what sort of life I can provide for a former siren… There's so much out there…"

"And I want to experience it all!" she exclaimed giddily as she gestured towards the faded map of Britannia that Killian had pinned to one of the beams lining the walls of his cabin. "I know little of the world beyond our isles. If my time is now finite, I want to see and experience as much as possible! I want to visit these other lands and sail the other seas…"

Killian chuckled at her enthusiasm, not really sure what would be physically possible, but hey - after surviving several harrowing encounters with mythical beings and living to tell the fantastical tales, he was open to adventure.

"Whatever your heart desires, Emma. Whatever your heart desires is what I want for you," he repeated as he pulled his siren - his beautiful angel - in for another heartfelt, lengthy kiss, almost certain that he felt a surge of energy embrace them both.

A few years later…

It was a perfect morning. Only a few wispy clouds broke up the brilliant blue skies as gentle ripples made their way across the serene harbor. Crew lowered and secured the huge canvas sails of the Jewel of the Realm as Liam oversaw their arrival at the dock. His sailors worked like a well-oiled machine performing their tasks, which was a good thing since their Captain might have been a tad distracted.

Instead of supervising lines being tied off, Liam was scanning the shoreline in search of something - or rather, someone. He'd made sure to send out correspondence through courier when they last made port making sure that Killian was aware the Jewel was on its way to the port of Misthaven where they'd agreed to rendezvous.

He hadn't been particularly overjoyed when Killian had decided to resign his commission upon return to Britannia, but if he was honest, the decision hadn't come as much of a surprise. His little brother had endured a harrowing experience, one that Liam knew he could never fully understand. In the process, he'd formed a bond with the lovely Swan woman and Liam had seen all the signs that Killian had fallen head over heels in love and feared lengthy deployments at sea that would keep him apart from his love.

Liam also had to admit that he was a little envious of his brother, but it was clear that while Killian loved the sea, his calling wasn't a career in His Majesty's Royal Navy. He knew that his sibling had taken up as captain of a merchant ship, but since it had been nearly a year and a half since he had last seen Killian, he was curious to see how his brother was faring in his new pursuits.

"Ahoy, brother!" he heard a shout from the pier and off in the distance, he spotted his sibling waving like a fool. And was he wearing black leather?

Once the Jewel was safely moored, Liam gave out his instructions for crew liberty and then made his way down the gangplank with dozens of rambunctious sailors at his heels. He chuckled as they darted past him, scurrying along the pier on their way to one of the local taverns. At least one of them would likely end up spending a night in the brig for overindulgence, but Liam couldn't be bothered with that right now.

His brother awaited him at the far end of the pier, casually leaning against a stone pillar with his foot propped up on an overturned barrel. It was a far more confident stance than Liam recalled when they'd last seen each other, but it was Killian's attire that spoke volumes about his newfound fortitude. He'd not expected to find Killian sporting an ebony leather duster that hung to his knees atop of a bold crimson waistcoat and black woolen trousers that, even from a distance, appeared to be far softer than Liam's own scratchy uniform. Killian clearly seemed to be happy and must have been doing well for himself to afford such luxuries.

"You look well, brother," Killian greeted him.

"As do you," Liam replied, pulling his younger sibling into an embrace and patting him heartily on the back. "Whatever are you wearing?"

"Ah, this…," Killian smiled as he took a step back so Liam could take in all of the elaborate detail on the coat which included embroidered cuffs and lapels along with silver clasps and carved bone buttons. "This was a gift from Queen Ava. The circumstances behind how it came to be is a rather long tale that I'll not bore you with since we've little time to catch up."

"Of course…," Liam responded, raising his eyes skyward with a shake of his head. Killian always seemed to have a new, unbelievable tale these days. "Where ever is that lovely wife of yours? I expected she would be here with you."

"She's waiting for us back on our ship. It's getting a tad more difficult for her to get around these days."

"So then, my new niece or nephew will be arriving soon?"

"Soon enough. Likely before the next full moon. It is why we'll be sailing back to the port of Arendelle, leaving the day after tomorrow," an excited Killian announced.

"Arendelle?" Liam questioned. "Why are you heading there?"

"We were invited by the Queen, and one simply does not turn down the invitation of royalty."

"You were invited by Queen Elsa?" Liam asked incredulously as they ambled along the cobblestone street towards another section of Misthaven's bustling harbor that was filled with smaller fishing boats and merchant ships. He tried to figure out which of the vessels was the one Killian now owned but he couldn't be certain.

"Queen Anna, actually," Killian corrected him. "Queen Elsa stepped down from the throne last year as she believed her more vivacious sister was better suited to handle the duties of the royal court."

"Alright, but that still doesn't explain how you secured a royal invitation."

"While sailing the Northern Isles last summer, we stumbled upon the wreckage of a galleon that had partially sunk in a narrow, rocky fjord. We explored it to see if there was anything worthy of salvage and located a chest containing a crown and other treasures that had been stolen from the Kingdom of Arendelle. We returned the riches to the castle and received a hefty finders fee for our efforts and Emma made fast friends with the Queen. We've made several visits back to Arendelle and have kept in correspondence with the royal family. As soon as Queen Anna learned that Emma was with child, she extended the royal invitation to come join them in the castle. She's already arranged a midwife for Emma, and has said we're welcome to stay as long as we wish. Can you imagine - living in a castle? I would never have thought it possible…"

"I'm very happy for you, Killian, and very proud of you as well. For someone who believed himself a failure not so long ago, you seem to have fortune smiling upon you."

"It hardly seems possible, brother. I feel like the luckiest bloke in all the world," Killian gushed, stopping at the bottom of the gangplank of a decent sized ship with a single towering mast. It was far more compact than the Jewel, but still large enough to carry crew and cargo comfortably. "Here we are. This is our lovely lady, La Sirena."

"Beautiful vessel. Interesting choice of name though. What led you to christen her after such a creature?"

"Oh, I have my reasons," Killian smirked. "But anyway, here's Emma now." A broad smile lit up Killian's visage as he stared up at his wife who was leaning over the railing on the deck above them. "It's almost unfathomable how I ever got so lucky that the gods would send such an angel to watch over me." Emma didn't say a word herself but the smile that stretched from ear to ear across her own face seemed to echo his sentiment.

But then maybe she suspected that the love that blossomed from a heart that was true and good was worth far more than a little bit of luck.

[interstellarflare]

Welcome Home Soldier || Alex

~PART ONE~

(Call of Duty: Modern Warfare)

Warnings: Swearing, violence, gore.

Summary: After destroying Barkov’s chemical factory in Georgia, and in the aftermath of Alex’s death, you return home for some much needed R&R. But after a surprise visit from Price, you are called back to the line of duty with the delivery of some shocking news.

Author’s Note: There might possibly be a part two? I’m unsure as of yet. I know where I want this series to go, and I have multiple parts planned, but I’m not sure if I should write them. Let me know what you guys think, and a tag list is open. If you want to be added just comment. Enjoy!

The afternoon sky in Washington D.C. was a vibrant violet, fading into pastel shades of blue, pink, yellow and orange over the horizon.

“You’re gonna be home for an entire month!” My nephew, Max exclaimed, jumping up and down excitedly as we made our way home from the park. I laughed softly, nodding my head as a kind smile graced my lips. “You bet! That means you get to come over whenever you want” I mused happily, chuckling as Max wrapped his small arms around my middle, cheering ecstatically as we turned onto my street.

“We are going to have so much fun...” Max began, taking my much larger hand in his smaller one “we can stay up every single night, and make hot chocolate with the little marshmallows and...Oh! We could go to the museum, and...” my mind began to wander, as Max continued to list all of the various things he wished to do. A week. Had it really been a week, since Alex was killed in Georgia? Laswell, after hearing my plea for some R&R, allowed me to return home. There was no doubt that Alex’s sacrifice weighed heavily on everyone. I could still feel Price’s arms wrapped around my torso, holding me back as Barkov’s factory burned.

The memory caused me to feel sick to my stomach, my heart breaking as I realised I would never see that bastard again. A faint hollow smile formed on my lips as I remembered our first meeting. Alex and I had despised each other.

I had been in Urzikstan a few days prior to Alex’s arrival. Having been with Price upon rescuing Farah and Hadir from a Russian chemical lab, Farah welcomed me with open arms. She explained to me that she considered me as one of her own, a very close friend. Even going as far as to call me her sister in front of her brother, which he wasn’t too pleased about.

Farah, Hadir and I stood around a small table as several of Farah’s troops hauled Alex into the room. Forced to sit down opposite both Farah and myself, an annoyed expression forming on his face. ‘What is your message from Captain Price?’ Farah asked blankly, stepping forward out of the shadows towards him with her arms folded over her chest. For a brief moment, Alex’s eyes met mine. They skimmed over my military uniform, my vest, clearly displaying the American flag front and centre. ‘Commander Karim...’ he spoke somewhat awkwardly, trying to keep a level head ‘call me Alex’. ‘I’m listening Alex’.

His eyes met mine again, before motioning to the other soldiers in the room. ‘This is classified...’ he spoke lowly, whilst Farah motioned for her team to leave the room. I remained, much to his annoyance and confusion, but he didn’t say a word. The two of them began to talk, about the stolen Russian gas, which was now likely in Al-Qatala’s hands. Price had briefed me on most this, so I didn’t bother listening to much of what was said. ‘We would never use these poisons...’ Farah retorted sharply, whilst Alex breathed heavily ‘Then help us track it before-’

‘Before they what? Take it to Europe? Or America?’ she continued, releasing a breathless laugh. Alex remained silent for a moment, listening to Farah as she spoke, but before she could go on, the door behind us opened. I turned to watch as Hadir walked past, standing beside his sister. ‘Commander, it’s time to go...’ he informed, his presence only adding more pressure to the situation. I remained silent as they conversed, introductions and so-forth, while they filled Alex in on our plan to attack the airfield. ‘What do you think, Y/n?’ Karim asked, casually turning her head to meet my shadowed form. All eyes were on me now, including Hadir and Alex. I shrugged, pushing off from the wall and joining them at the table, ‘I think Price chose well...’ I drawled, meeting Alex’s gaze ‘I’ll let him know we received our newest recruit in one piece-’

‘Hang on a second, you know Captain Price?’ Alex spoke bewilderedly, his eyes widening in shock. I nodded as Farah and Hadir laughed to themselves, ‘We’re more like family, actually...’ I spoke quickly ‘but yes. I do’. ‘Then why the hell did he send me here and not just tell you?’ He snapped, his surprised tone suddenly changing to malice. My eyes narrowed as I stood tall, folding my arms over my chest, ‘Because we needed you here...’ I responded lowly, watching cautiously as Alex held his ground ‘we need all the help we can get around here’.

I felt myself smiling in amusement. Alex and I hadn’t really started to get along until we became trapped together in the tunnels below the Wolf’s compound. He had pulled me aside afterward, awkwardly expressing how worried he was when we had become separated.

I was brought out of my memory when Max suddenly tugged on the sleeve of my jacket. “Aunty Y/n, who is that man standing outside your house?” he asked quietly, leaning into my side shyly. With a confused expression, I turned my gaze towards my front door. Sure enough, parked in front of my house was a black sedan, with a very familiar figure leaning against its side. I mumbled a few curses under my breath, sighing heavily as I held Max’s hand tightly. “You couldn’t give me one goddamn week to myself?” I called out sarcastically, approaching the front of my house with an annoyed expression.

Price laughed lowly, folding his arms over his chest as he pushed off the sedan. “I know, and I want you to know that I am sorry for turning up out of the blue...” he began, stopping before me with a solemn expression “but this couldn’t wait. I thought it would be best if I told you in person rather than over the phone”. I nodded my head slowly, biting my lip awkwardly as my mind raced with possible outcomes. If Price was here now, then it had to be serious.

Another tug at my jacket sleeve, and I realised my nephew was still present. I cleared my throat awkwardly, wrapping my arm around Max’s frame with an uneasy smile. “Price, this is my nephew, Max...” I introduced, looking between the two with a small cough “max, this is John Price, a work friend of mine”. Immediately, Max’s expression brightened, his attitude completely changing and becoming more vibrant. His eyes sparkled, though he remained silent. I looked back towards Price, motioning with my head for him to follow. “Come on, we’re having spaghetti with little hit dogs for dinner, Max’s favourite” I teased, unable to help the amused laugh that escaped my lips as Price shook his head, smirking at my mocking tone.

“Spaghetti and little hot dogs!” Max shouted excitedly, “Why didn’t you tell me!?”. “Because it was a surprise!” I responded, turning back to face Price with a small roll of my eyes. As we all stepped inside the house, I couldn’t help but focus on the uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach.

After a late dinner, because Max kept pestering Price to tell him about how we came to work together, my nephew eventually went to bed. Surprisingly, Price was exceptionally good with kids. Then again, he had dealt with more difficult things than a child. As I descended the staircase, I could hear Price chuckling from the kitchen. He remained at the island bench, drinking a bottle of beer as I entered the room. “Your nephew is quite adorable” he laughed, taking a small swig from his drink before him as I stood opposite him.

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard the word ‘adorable’ come from you in the long time since I’ve known you” I spoke mockingly, to which Price snorted in amusement. “Fuck off...” he grumbled with a mocking pout, “Max is going to be a great man when he grows up”. I nodded with a low hum, leaning on my elbows with a small sigh. “So...what did you want to talk to me about?” I asked hesitantly, my tired eyes meeting his own as I waited for his response. This time, Price downed what remained of his beer, clearing his throat before releasing a long sigh. “We received intel from some operatives in Georgia, something I’m not sure I even quite believe” he spoke lowly, clasping his hands together on the bench before him. I sighed in mild annoyance, rolling my eyes. “Price...” I spoke sharply ��please, just tell me what is going on”.

His silence caused the uneasiness in my stomach to increase. Then again, it had been steadily growing since Price arrived. With a huff, Price’s eyes met my own. “Alex is alive”.

I choked, gasping slightly as my eyes widened in shock. Alex was alive? I felt my heart stop, my chest suddenly filling with a mixture of emotions; bewilderment, happiness, shock, sadness...

“How?” I breathed, my voice barely above a whisper. “The factory it...it exploded. He-he died-” “That’s what we all thought...” Price mused quietly, shaking his head slowly “but as far as we know, he’s gone AWOL. He’s been charged with desertion-”

“Desertion!? Why?” I exclaimed, feeling the familiar sting of tears welling within my eyes. Sensing my distress. Price stood from his seat on the opposite side of the bench, making his way over to my form. With a simple gesture, Price wrapped his arms around my frame, pulling me into his side as he held me close. I didn’t know whether to scream or cry, whether to be happy or sad. “I know this isn’t what you want to hear...” Price spoke calmly, comfortingly running his hands up and down my arms “but I need you to come back. We have a situation unfolding in Verdansk . Al-Qatala is under new leadership, and causing a hell of a lot of trouble”. Pulling away from Price’s embrace, I sighed heavily and ran a stressed hand through my hair. I turned my gaze toward the clock on the wall, checking the time with a small sigh.

9:30pm.

“Okay, well...I’ll have to call Max’s dad and, get him home before we leave”. Price nodded his head as I continued “You make yourself at home while I talk to Max, and get everything organised. Wordlessly, Price made his way over to the living room and sat down, while I began to make my way upstairs to prepare for the oncoming onslaught of the massive guilt-trip awaiting in my nephew’s room.

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

You have a lot to explain, Shuichi.

NOTE: Spoilers for the entirety of V3.

Y-Yeah...no kidding...

Take your time. We’re not in any rush...

Th-Thank you...

It all started when me...A normal high school student, woke up in a place called the Ultimate Academy for Gifted Juveniles. I was trapped with 15 other students, including...

A girl named Kaede Akamatsu. The person in particular that I formed a pretty special bond with.

When we tried to get a handle on the situation, our group was abruptly accompanied by a team of bear robots, known as Monokubs who exposed us to a "Flashback Light," which kind of work like neuralysers.  When we woke up again, we remembered having ultimate talents. For example, I was the Ultimate Detective and Kaede was the Ultimate Pianist. But then...

Monokuma, this robot bear and the Monokubs father, arrived and informed us that the only way to escape the academy is to successfully murder another student and not be voted as the culprit at the resulting class trial. Initially, we were obviously unwilling to take part in this game, until a new rule was imposed If nobody is killed within two days, Monokuma will prematurely end the game by killing all of the students.

Makoto: Huh!? That’s insane! Isn’t that just a life or death situation?

Hajime: Wouldn’t put it past Monokuma...I mean, it’s not too different from the funhouse, right?

Shuichi: Can I continue?

Hajime: Sure.

After finding a hidden card-locked door in the academies library, I reasoned that there must have been a mastermind controlling Monokuma, and Kaede worked with me to set a trap to expose the mastermind just prior to the time limit. However...

When our trap was sprung, we headed down to the library and found the dead body of Rantaro Amami, an amnesiac who couldn’t remember his own talent by this point. 

It turns out that without telling me, concerned that there wouldn’t be enough time to stop the mastermind, Kaede had secretly altered the trap to kill the person it caught. Rantaro dying wasn’t part of her plan, and during the following class trial, Kaede attempted to uncover the mastermind but failed. After encouraging me to call her out, she confessed to her crime, encouraged me to keep going and survive with everyone and...

She was...executed...

Kuripa: I...I’m so sorry...

Shuichi: Don’t worry...It’s painful to remember but...she would want me to move on...

Although I was definitely brokenhearted at Kaede's death, I soon developed a lifelong friendship with Kaito Momota, the Ultimate Astronaut, as well as Maki Harukawa, the Ultimate Assassin, who hid her true self under the guise of the Ultimate Child Caregiver before she opened up to us...I wish I could say we lived in relative harmony but...that wasn’t the case...

Several more murders took place and several more of my “friends” were executed, but I was able to solve all of the mysteries that the class trials threw at me...but that’s where “he” always came into play...

Hajime: Who’s...”he?”

One of the students alongside me in the predicament was this short boy with purple hair named Kokichi Ouma, who’s ultimate talent was apparently being the “Ultimate Supreme Leader” of a secret evil organisation that had over 10,000 members...He constantly tried to vex me and the others investigations,  continuously lying and obscuring the truth from us for his own entertainment...

Hajime: Why does that sound...familiar?

Makoto: Funny, I was just about to say that...

Kuripa: Guys, let him talk.

When about only half of us remained, we found additional Flashback Lights and gradually remembered that we were students of the reopened Hope's Peak Academy, who were sent into space in the hopes of preserving humanity after meteors began to fall upon the Earth and a deadly epidemic had ravaged the remainder of the population. 

Kokichi revealed to us that the ship had been hijacked and returned to earth by people who were against the project, and that the world itself had been destroyed by the meteors. He also revealed to us that he was the mastermind behind the killing game controlling Monokuma, and he proved it by summoning the Exisal robots that had been used by the Monokubs to keep us in check up until now.

Kaito tried to fight back against him, but he ended up getting kidnapped.

When this happened, me, Maki, and the other students staged a rescue mission with the aim of saving Kaito and stopping the game, but after we used hacking weapons created by one of our deceased friends, Miu Iruma, an inventor, we broke into the Exisal hangar where Kokichi was keeping Kaito...But when we broke in...

We were greeted with a corpse, crushed underneath a hydraulic press. The trial ensued and it became hard to not only figure out the culprit, but also we didn’t know the victim...

Further complicating the mystery was the sudden arrival of a massive Exisal mech during the trial, whose unseen pilot sounded like and identified himself as Kokichi but bore the idiosyncrasies of both Kokichi and Kaito. During the ensuing trial, it became clear that Kokichi was not the mastermind and only claimed as such to stop the killing game. Kokichi convinced Kaito to kill him and then pretend to be him in the hopes of creating a crime Monokuma could not solve and defeat the game. His identity exposed, Kaito emerged from the Exisal and urged us survivors to uncover the truth before being executed.

Kuripa: You mean that this Kokichi guy was able to beat Monokuma at his own game by creating a mystery so impossible that even HE couldn’t solve it!? That’s...jeez, that’s actually pretty impressive.

Hajime: An impossible mystery? Yeah, this definitely sounds familiar...

Unwilling to continue the game, my friend Keebo, using his powers as the Ultimate Robot, decided to destroy the school, which would kill the rest of us with it. He gave us until dawn to find the mastermind, or else we’d all die from the lack of oxygen on the planet. It was me, Maki, and two other people, Ultimate Magician, Himiko Yumeno, and Ultimate Cosplayer, Tsumugi Shirogane. We investigated the school and discovered evidence that contradicted our memories, as well as inconsistencies in Rantaro's crime scene. We further learnt that Rantaro was the "Ultimate Survivor", having taken part in a previous killing game. To break up Keebo and the now revived Monokubs fight, I called a final class trial to re-try Rantaro's case.

At the trial, I found the mastermind. Tsumugi Shirogane was the real villain we’d been looking for the whole time, and she was the one who killed Rantaro and framed Kaede for the crime. Tsumugi confessed and revealed, when we asked about our memories, that our memories, talents, relationships, and personalities were entirely fake, the Flashback Light was a brainwashing device and the destroyed world was nothing more than a sound stage. 

All of the events that we had found out about: The tragedy, the killing game at the original Hope’s Peak Academy, the Jabberwock Island incident, the remnants of despair, the final killing game and everything else...never existed. All of it took place in a fictional world known as Danganronpa. The disgusting truth was that Danganronpa was an anime that got so popular, that it was able to become a long running franchise, and by the time our killing game rolled around, it had become so famous that real people had begun to be used as part of the killing game.

Hajime: That’s completely insane...! How many incarnations did the killing game get?

Shuichi: Our version of the killing game was...Danganronpa 53...

Kuripa: 53!? That fucked up show reached 53 seasons!? How could something that sick and twisted reach so many seasons!?

Shuichi: Because people love and enjoyed watching shows like that, and it gave us hope in even the most trying times. In fact, we were no different...

Makoto: What do you mean?

All of the “Ultimates” except for Keebo, were ordinary individuals who willingly had our the memories of our previous, normal lives permanently erased in exchange for a talent and a fake background. Many of us, including Kaede, Kaito and even myself, were revealed to have joined purely for fame, fortune, or the thrill of the game, and we were far less trusting and altruistic than our killing game selves.

Makoto: You said Keebo wasn’t the same. Why’s that?

Keebo was...part of the equipment crew, and he didn’t even realize it...

He was a walking camera for the viewers, and possessed an antenna disguised as part of his hair, that let him hear the audience's opinions on the show. They encouraged him to battle Tsumugi's despair with hope. Tsumugi offered us a  choice: "hope", where she is executed but we must choose two of their own to take part in the next killing game filling the same role as Rantaro, who was a survivor of the 52nd season, or "despair", where K1-B0 will be executed and the game will continue.

Hajime: I suddenly feel really self-conscious about my hair...

Makoto: I was just about to say that...

Shuichi: Yeah, I know, right?

Kuripa: Funny how this weird hair spike seems to run in the family.

Makoto: We’re...not a family...

Hajime: That’s not important right now. What...what did you choose...

Shuichi: That’s the thing...

Realizing either choice would still continue the killing game, I encouraged the others to not vote, meaning everyone would be executed but the killing game would also end. I was able to convince Maki, Himiko and Keebo, but then due to their desperation of never letting the slaughter and despair, their own entertainment, stop, the viewers hacked Keebo and forced him to serve only as a conduit for viewer votes.

But I wasn’t about to let that happen. I took advantage of the situation and used this to make an impassioned plea directly to the viewers to get them to stop watching. At the vote, all parties abstained, including Tsumugi and Keebo. Tsumugi was willing to sacrifice herself to continue Danganronpa and Keebo had also refused, indicating the audience has given up on Danganronpa. As the remaining viewers tuned out, Tsumugi, completely and utterly defeated, told Keebo to go ahead and destroy the school. He did so, killing Tsumugi in the process, then activated his self-destruct feature and deliberately flew into the glass dome surrounding the school.

Somehow, me, Maki and Himiko were able to escape from the rubble mostly unscathed. And when we did, we noticed this huge blue portal looking thing in the sky...

When we saw it, we considered the possibility that Tsumugi was lying about our past selves willingly signing up to participate in Danganronpa, and about the original editions of Danganronpa being fiction...

And in hope’s it’s where it would lead us, we stepped through the portal and departed for the real world...

And that’s how I somehow ended up here, through that weird portal...

I...woah...

[p-artsypants]

Longest Night (28) Hunting

I’m sorry this chapter is late, I had another commission! I actually chopped it in half to get it out in time.

Next chapter MAY be late as well, because of the Christmas, but I’ll do my best.

Okay, so I made a little hiccup. The Mayor is under the Minister of Interior as far as ranking. I went to school for art, not Parisian government…

*slams on the gas pedal*

Ao3 | FF.net

—

Six Weeks Prior

—

Arthur Vanderguard’s already full plate just got another heaping helping dropped on top. Just ten minutes after the first broadcast ended, he found his phone ringing off the hook. The Chief of Police, the Mayor, the Prime Minister…everyone had questions, orders, ideas.

He just wanted a minute to think.

Chloe Bourgeois had been the first to call, demanding to know what he planned on doing to save her friends. He assured that he’d do everything in his power to make that happen.

But it had to be Ladybug and Chat Noir he was saving…

And it had to be Edward Savauge’s family he was dealing with.

Every time that man came to town, it was trouble. How many good officers had he lost to him? How many men had thought they would be the one to tackle the Big Fish?

At this point in his career, he knew that dealing with Savauge was an impossible task. The man knew too much. Knew more than Arthur did. Or he knew people that knew things. Even with undeniable evidence, he was still able to weasel his way out of the system. It was unbearable.

As for Ladybug and Chat Noir…he didn’t hate them, but he didn’t like them either. If they had just stuck to fighting akumas and Hawkmoth, they would have gotten along well enough. But when they started to branch out into regular crime, then it became a headache.

Because they weren’t equipped to handle criminals. They couldn’t make arrests. The best they could do was tie them up and call an officer out. And then, unless they stuck around to describe the crime, the person had to be let go.

It was a red tape nightmare, these vigilantes.

So saving people he actively disliked from people he had never beaten?

He needed a drink.

Hours later, late into the night, the bottle of Mondavi was half empty, and the broadcast had been rewatched about 18 times. His notebook laid on the table, scribbled notes for plans of action. He’d have to talk with Europol, and the French Gendarmerie. Because this wasn’t a typical kidnapping, they’d have to be careful. Salo and her men could move at any moment, undoing everything, if they got a whiff of what was going on. And knowing Edward Savauge, there was little that they could hide.  

There was a knock at the door.

Arthur muted his tv, and glanced at the clock. It was nearing 4am.

The knock was a little more insistent.

It was probably his police chief, coming to seek him out in person after ignoring several phone calls.

But as he opened the door, he saw a woman with red hair up in a bun with reflective sunglasses instead, flanked by huge bodyguards on both sides.

“Nope.” He said as he attempted to close the door.

A hand took hold and forced the door open, letting the group inside.

“Hello Arthur, you’re looking well.”

Arthur backed up into his couch, nearly flipping over the back. “How did you find me?”

“A wild guess.” Said Salo, waltzing around the apartment and making herself at home. The large men blocked the exits.

Salo wandered into the kitchen area, seeing the wine on the island. “Mondavi? How rude, I didn’t take you as a Napa Valley man.” She sniffed the bottle and then poured herself a glass. “It’s been a while. What, three years since you last tried to arrest me?”

Arthur didn’t respond, just looked at the men she had with her.

“Relax. We’re not here to hurt you.”

“Then why did you come?”

“Just to chat.” She sat down on his couch and kicked her boots up on his coffee table. “I can see you watched my work.”

The muted stream was still looping on the TV.

“It was hard to miss.” He answered.

“Let’s be honest. You don’t really like Ladybug and Chat Noir, do you?”

He didn’t answer.

“I mean, that’s what the word around town is. At least by my ears. You complain every time they step in to save the day.”

“Ladybug’s magic reset button is invaluable to the city. As long as she fixes damage from the akumas, I’m fine.”

“You’re avoiding the question, Artie.”

“Fine, sometimes they make my job harder. Is that what you want to hear? They’re children. I can’t hate them for wanting to keep Paris safe. Especially since they have super powers.”

“Interesting. Good to see you haven’t grown completely callus. Your ex-wife might think differently though.”

Arthur’s eyes widened.

“And your little girl, Ava. She loves Chat Noir, doesn’t she?” Salo smiled, showing her cards.

Arthur got her point. “What do you want?”

“I’m just here to give you a reminder. I have ears in Place Beauvau and The Police Prefecture. We let you take care of crimes that get in our way. We let you look like you’re keeping Paris safe. So we’ll let you look like you’re investigating this case too, because everyone will be watching you. But if you or any of your men step a toe out of line, you’ll regret it.”

“Are you threatening me?”

“No. Just warning. For your sake, and for Ava’s.” She threw her wine glass down on the floor, smashing the glass and sending little red droplets on the white carpet. “I suggest you act like a babbling moron. After all, you’d rather lose your job than lose the little family you have left, right?”

Arthur swallowed. “You make your point clear.”

“Good. Can’t wait to see what kind of lame excuses you put out when people start asking questions.”

He nodded in understanding.

“And one more thing…Eddy is going free.”

“I…will try to make that happen without looking suspicious.”

“That’s a good man.” She stood. “Now, I’m afraid I can’t sit around and talk. I have work to do. And I suppose you do too.”

He nodded sheepishly.

“I’ll be taking the rest of the Mondavi. You shouldn’t be drinking it with your heart medication.”

He didn’t say anything. He couldn’t say anything. But as soon as that door shut, he felt a cold hand on his throat. In his haze, he wandered into the bathroom. His face was pale in the mirror, and he looked ten years older. He opened the medicine cabinet and looked at the medication Salo had mentioned. How had she known about his heart condition? He had just been diagnosed a few weeks ago. He hadn’t told anyone…

The bottle was half full. Plenty to end his problems.

Since when did he become such a coward? Watching people die, having things run out of control, the stress of an entire city on your shoulders…it changes a person. It changed him.

He shook two tablets into his palm and put the rest back into his cabinet.

There would be a loophole to save the kids.

And tomorrow’s Arthur Vanderguard had to be here to find it.

—

Present Day

—

The night crept onward. The darkness deepening in the hours. Lights in homes and businesses went out as people went home and went to bed. Unsuspecting innocents that had no idea of the danger that lurked.

Minister of Interior, Arthur Vanderguard, was a dead man. And he knew it, judging how he kept his head on a swivel.

Ladybug and Chat Noir were free and akumatized. Salo was dead, along with several of her henchmen.

And now everyone was waiting apprehensively while the aftermath unfolded.

Arthur himself sat at his desk, while the mayor sat in a chair nearby. The mayor’s daughter, Chloe Bourgeois, who refused to listen to anyone, sat next to him. Officers were dispatched all over the city, keeping an eye out for the akumas, while the phones were manned, waiting for any sightings.

They could be anywhere.

Doubtless, Edward Savauge knew that they were free and someone was responsible for it.

So Arthur was understandably stressed.

Chloe was not helping, with the tapping of the keys on her phone.

“Miss Bourgeois, I must state again that this is a very sensitive situation—“

“And I’ll state again that Adrien is my best friend and I’m one of the only other heroes out there that can stop them. I’m in contact with Rena Rouge and Carapace. I’m staying.”

Arthur grunted, tapping his fingers on his desk.

A knock came from the door.

“Yes?”

“A man is here to see you sir, a witness.”

“Bring him in.”

A bald man, dripping with blood, but relatively unharmed, was escorted into his office.

“M. Pierre Rouso.” One of the officers introduced. “He said he was the camera man during the akuma attack with Salo.”

Arthur paled. “Someone survived?”

“Y-yes sir,” said the man. He was sweaty, panting, and pale. “I…I think she let me live so I could give them directions out.”

“She?”

“Lady Lacrima.”

“Alright. How much time do we have until they reach Paris?”

“They never left.”

Arthur flicked his gaze up to the two lower ranked officers. “Close and lock the door.”

He waited until the deed was done before asking quietly. “What do you mean, they never left?”

“We’ve been in Paris the whole time. In a bunker in the catacombs.”

Arthur rolled his eyes in disgust. The catacombs. Wasn’t it obvious? “Does anyone know you came here?”

“Only Lady Lacrima and Grimalkin.”

“You haven’t talked to anyone else? Not any pedestrians?”

“No! I ran straight here…well, I disconnected from the server and locked the gate so no one came get in or out.”

Arthur came closer to the man. “Out? There’s other survivors?”

“No, I mean…prisoners. Ladybug and Chat Noir weren’t the only one’s being tortured down there.”

“Sweet Jesus…”

“I think she wanted me to come here to get men down there right away…cleaning up the bodies and rescuing the other prisoners. I’m willing to work with you 100%. I was being blackmailed and—“

“Everyone’s being blackmailed.” Arthur interrupted. “There’s no one working under Salo or Savauge that hasn’t been blackmailed or threatened in some capacity. That’s how they stay on top. If M. Savauge finds out you’re still alive…you’re going to wish Lady Lacrima had killed you.”

The man shrunk back. “Are…are you being blackmailed?”

Arthur’s gaze flicked over to Chloe. It would be so much easier to just confess the truth. He had been hiding it for so long… “I’m afraid that’s none of your business.”

Mayor Bourgeois took out a handkerchief and dabbed his forehead. “Surely M. Savauge wouldn’t be angry with a survivor, right?”

A new voice spoke from the window. “You’re worried about the wrong person, M. Vanderguard.”

Arthur whipped his head around, coming face to face with Lady Lacrima and Grimalkin. They looked much more volatile in real life. “How—How did you get in?”

“Just because you’re on the top floor, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t lock your windows.” The curtains fluttered in the evening breeze.

Arthur went to take his gun from his holster, but before he could, steel claws closed around his throat.

Chloe shrieked.

Pierre fell to the ground while the other officers withdrew guns. “Freeze!”

Lady Lacrima took no heed as she summoned a lance.

The men opened fire on her as she leapt off the desk and impaled one of the officers with a pole. The other grabbed her and flipped her into a glass cabinet.

“Bad move!” She hissed, grabbing a vase nearby. She careened it into the side of his head, knocking him out. Still filled with rage, she summoned a pipe and wailed on his body.

Chloe watched this all in stunned horror before she ran to Grimalkin and grabbed his wrist. “Let him go Adrien! You don’t hurt people! Please!”

Grimalkin turned his blood red eyes on her, boring holes into her soul. This was not the Adrien she knew. Not by a long shot.

“Adrikins…?”

Lady Lacrima grabbed her by the shoulder and yanked her back so she fell on her rear. “Chloe, Chloe, Chloe…” She chastised.

Chloe scooted back, trying in vain to get away.

“You know, you’re on my list too. Years and years of being the bigger person, trying to turn the other cheek…years of suffering, self doubt, injustice…and now there’s nothing you or your ‘daddy’ can do to stop me.” She summoned a giant meat hook.

Chloe’s back ran into a bookshelf. She was overwhelmed with fear. “I’m sorry, Marinette!”

“You’re sorry now, now that there’s no where to run.”  

Chloe summoned every ounce of courage left inside her. “I was sorry the second I saw you were Ladybug!”

Lady Lacrima stopped her advancement and listened.

“Ladybug made me want to be a better person. The person I respected the most…and I was so awful to you. And you still put up with me! I’ve been doing everything I could to find you! Why do you think I’m here right now?!”

Lady Lacrima snarled. “I just hear a bunch of excuses!”

“Pollen, Buzz On!”

In a flash of gold light, Queen Bee appeared in Chloe’s place.

That only served to enrage Lady Lacrima as she plunged the hook into the wood of the shelf. “You don’t deserve that! I took that from you!”

Chloe scrambled to her feet. She was too terrified to argue.

“He replaced me!” Lady Lacrima screamed. “He just gave out more Miraculous!”

“To save you! Not to replace you!” Chloe called, as she ran to her father. “You’re irreplaceable!”

“They why didn’t you come for me!?”

The Mayor grabbed his daughter. “Don’t argue with her Chloe! She can’t hear you!”

“She won’t remember what I say anyways!” Chloe cried back, wrapping her arm around her father. “Let’s get out of here!” She cast her spinning top out the open window and together they fled.

Lady Lacrima scoffed. “Cowards.”

Grimalkin still had Arthur by the throat.

Pierre sat on the ground not too far away, watching them with horror.

Lady Lacrima stood over him, smiling gently. “You did good. Just as I asked. So I’ll spare you.”

The man sniveled in response.

“But you…” she stated, walking up to Arthur. His face was red as sweat and tears covered his skin. “You have some explaining to do.”

Arthur clawed at the hand on his throat, trying to get air to speak. “I—I tried…” he choked.

“I heard you though.” She said, plainly. “You’re just another one of Edward Savauge’s pawns. Too afraid to get your hands dirty.”

“I—I have a little girl—“ He begged.

“You have a job! And you failed us!”

Arthur choked.

Grimalkin grunted and dragged the man over to the window. Then with ungodly strength, he held him out, dangling freely over the street.

Arthur held onto his wrist and kicked his legs.

“Where is Edward Savauge?” She asked.

He didn’t answer, staring her right in the eye.

Grimalkin removed a finger from his throat, and Arthur could feel himself sliding.

“Where is Edward Savauge!?” She screamed.

“At—At his Penthouse—on the south side of the Arc de Triomphe—blue roof—orange…bricks…top floor…”

Lady Lacrima simply nodded at Grimalkin, prompting him to let go.

They didn’t watch him fall. Didn’t wait for him to hit the ground. Only dropped, and then moved onto the next target.

—

Edward Savauge was a patriot through and through. He loved Italy. It gave him everything. He only ever left for business.

France was…a disappointment, but he chose to enjoy the finer things Paris had to offer. That’s why he had a penthouse with a view to his favorite Landmark.

He had stayed much longer than he ever had before, and longed with every part of his being to go home. He was only supposed to be in town for a week, to deal with his failed contact. After disposing of Charles, he would collect the insurance money from his wife, and then set up a new contact. And even then, finding a new dealer wouldn’t necessitate him to stay in Paris.

But alas, he had to stay now. Especially now that those children were loose. Honestly, he expected more from his top girl.

But Hawkmoth’s secret was just one of a few he didn’t know. The man was shaping up to be a real rival. After he took care of those kids, he’d find the Mothman, and take his jewelry from him!

“Sir, if I may be so bold...aren’t you afraid of the Akuma?” Asked his butler, an older gentleman.

Edward sat is his library, ambient light casting the room with a soft glow. He swirled the grappa in his glass, and leaned his head on his hand.

“A man like me doesn’t feel fear, Rupert. Do you have children?”

“You know the answer to that, sir.”

“Play with me.” Edward smiled.

“No, I have no children.”

“Then allow me to explain something to you. When children become afraid, they become unreasonable. I simply intend to show them there’s nothing to be afraid of, and they will submit.”

“That’s awfully presumptuous of you, sir.”

“Hawkmoth, Ladybug and Chat Noir, the police, all of them are predictable.”

“What…if they aren’t afraid?”

Edward laughed. “Why wouldn’t they be afraid? I’m the reason they were captured. Fear doesn’t mean they’d hide from me. It can mean they’re taking advantage of their heightened state to attack me.”

“And you don’t believe they could be a threat to you?”

“Not those kids. They’re too soft. They won’t kill me.”

“Just like they killed Miss Bianca and her men?”

“You’ve got me there, friend.” He sipped his drink. “But that’s what the men downstairs are for. We’ll wrangle them, and they’ll just be another pawn for my collection. It’s as I’ve done to every enemy of mine. Now that I know the identities of the Cat and Bug, they will be even more willing to listen to reason.” He gestured to a manilla envelope on the table. “Miss Dupain-Cheng has family in close proximity to our home office. And Mr. Agreste has family unprotected and unaware in England. Plenty of reasons why getting on my bad side is a bad idea…if they haven’t already figured that out.” He set down his glass and picked up a box of Toscanos. “Would you like one Rupert?”

“You’re offering me one of your cigars?”

“Think of it as a special occasion.”

The butler came closer and took a cigar, allowing his boss to light it.

“Take a seat, old friend. I could use the company.”

Rupert did as he was told, sitting and smoking in the silent night. He chanced a glance at Edward, seeing the cigar shaking slightly in his hand.

Ah.

They were going to die, then.

When music started to play from the other room, Edward tensed and closed his eyes. He sighed, smoke exhaling. “How ironic. Una Furtiva Lacrima. I used to love that song.”  

A single secret tear

from her eye did spring:

as if she envied all the youths

that laughingly passed her by.

The door behind them creaked open. There was no bursting down the door, no shouting and yelling, no gun shots. They had made their way here almost effortlessly.

Swallowing, Edward swiveled his chair around. “It seems you and I both have a penchant for theatrics. Not something I would have expected from you.”

But as he looked to the opened doorway, there was no one there. No light coming from the hall, just a wall of darkness.

Then a thump of something hitting the floor, before a red stain bled over into the carpet.   What more searching need I do?

What more searching need I do?

She loves me! Yes, she loves me, I see it. I see it.

For just an instant the beating

of her beautiful heart I could feel!

Lady Lacrima stood in the frame, the blood that had washed off by the rain was accompanied by even more. Splatters on her cheek, blood dripping from the deadly mace in her hand. Her face showed no emotion, no mercy, no anger, nothing.

She looked like the angel of death, coming to claim his soul.

As if my sighs were hers,

and her sighs were mine!

The beating, the beating of her heart I could feel,

to merge my sighs with hers...

“I don’t suppose we could talk this out? You know, I can give you anything you want. And unlike with my usual contacts, I wouldn’t ask for much in return. Just my life spared, as well as my friend Rupert here. He’s my butler, you see. Never did a thing wrong, just worked for an honest wage.”

Lady Lacrima just stared him down, and it felt impossible to tell if she was listening or not.

Or if she was just trying to make him squirm.

Finally, she raised her chin to look at him levelly. “Others begged. Salo, she spent her last breath threatening me, Pasolini promised us wealth and power…and you are here bartering, as if this is another day in business.”

Edward took another puff on his cigar. “No one’s ever beaten me before, you know? I haven’t served prison time since I was a boy. Plenty of guns have pointed me down, but not a single has gone off. Ladybug, you’ve been the first to get so close. I might actually be scared of you.”

“This is how you show fear? By flattery?”

“Is it working?”

She shook her head.

“Thought not.” He finished off his grappa. “But what can I say, I’m a gambling man. I thought I’d try my luck.” His brows furrowed. “Where’s the Cat?”

Lady Lacrima didn’t answer, but judging by the ever so slight smile on her lips, he didn’t want to hear it.      

Heavens! Yes, I could die!

I could ask for nothing more, nothing more.

Oh, heavens! Yes, I could, I could die!

I could ask for nothing more, nothing more.

A thud hit the ground behind him and a ball rolled forward between his feet.

No, not a ball.

A head.

The head of one of his men downstairs, completely covered in blood. It stopped, facing him, jaw open and eyes staring lifelessly into his.

Yes, I could die! Yes, I could die.

—

Queen Bee and Mayor Bourgeois swung through the pouring rain to the Agreste Mansion. She landed inside the gate, before running up the stairs and pounding on the door. “Madam Cheng! Madam Cheng!” She cried.

In mere seconds, the door flew open and Sabine gaped at them in shock.

“Chloe?”

Chloe, still reeling from the horrific scene at the police prefecture, all but collapsed against the woman, sobbing.

Sabine looked to the Mayor in confusion.

He was pale, windswept, and stricken.

She led them both inside.

“Where’s Gabriel? Alya?”

Sabine didn’t answer. “What happened to you two?”

The mayor responded, “I received a call from the chief of police that Adrien and Marinette had become akumatized and escaped. So Chloe and I went to the precinct to check in with the Minister of Interior…”

“They showed up and killed some police officers! We didn’t stay but I’m sure they killed the minister too!” Chloe lamented. “And Marinette! She tried to—she tried to kill me too! She was so angry! I didn’t know what to do!”

Tom and Sabine looked at each other, holding a silent conversation.

Tom took an arm around the Mayor and led him away, “you look like you can use a nice drink Mr. Mayor. M. Agreste has a bottle of Sherry in the kitchen. We’ll let the superheroes take care of this.”

The mayor nodded. “Yes, yes…at this point, the less I know the better…”

Once they left the room, Sabine gently pulled Queen Bee away from her. “Come with me.” Together, they went into the office, and Queen Bee fell into a chair.

“It was horrifying! I heard they were akumatized, but I had no idea—I’m so scared!”

Sabine petted her hair, her voice shaking. “It’s going to be alright Chloe. We’re going to fix this.” She then took out her phone and called Alya.

“Yes, mom?”

“Queen Bee is here, Tom took the Mayor to the kitchen. Marinette and Adrien were spotted over at the police station…and it seems they did some damage.”

“We’ll be right down.”

“Now Chloe,” Sabine said patiently after hanging up. “A lot has happened in the last few hours. What was the last thing you saw?”

Chloe wiped her eyes. “I saw Adrien getting—getting whipped! I couldn’t—I haven’t be able to even think about watching since then. It hurt too much!”

“Yes, I know.” Sabine agreed, gently moving her bangs from her face. “Well…we’ll wait for the others to get here, and then we’ll get you up to date, alright?”

At that moment, the sound of hydraulics came from the other side of the room. Rena Rouge, Carapace, and Hawkmoth emerged from the floor.

“Hawk…moth…?” She squeaked.

“Hello Chloe,” he said, his voice much more calm than she’d ever heard from the villain.

“No…you’re…” She leapt to her feet. “Gabriel!?”

He nodded.

“This whole time—you’ve—! I can’t believe—!” She ran at him, angry and feral, beating on him with her fists. “Adrien trusted you! You let him down over and over and he swore to me that you were good! That you only had his best interests at heart! He never listened to me! But he insisted—!” Overwhelmed with emotion, she slid to the floor, only to be caught around the arm by Rena. “The whole time…you neglected him in favor of—of hurting people! Of taking advantage of people suffering!”

Hawkmoth just stared down at her.

“He’s cried so many times because of you! And all you’ve done is lied! And now you—“ She grit her teeth and spat at him. “You’ve turned him into a monster! A heartless killing machine!”

“Chloe…” Alya placated.

“What was this even for?!” She screamed. “You have fame! Wealth! Power! What were you even trying to do with the Miraculous!?”

Hawkmoth couldn’t meet her eyes. “It’s a long story…one we don’t have time for right now.”

“Actually, I’d really like to know too.” Said Nino. “Chloe makes a great point. You always forced Adrien to stay home for his own safety, but you were the most dangerous thing in Paris. I know you put him in danger too. Besides Chat Noir.”  He frowned. “Hey, did you purposefully piss me off when I asked about his birthday party? Did you purposely set me up to be akumatized?!”

The brooch on Hawkmoth’s chest burned with the anger in the room.

“Yeah! And you akumatized Adrien’s bodyguard! The big gorilla threw Adrien off the side of the building!” Alya added.

Hawkmoth growled. “We’re wasting time!”

“I’m not working with you until you explain yourself!” Chloe shrieked.

A very sharp pain, right to the heart, emanated from the brooch. Gabriel collapsed, ripping the brooch off and sending it clattering across the floor.

For a tense moment, he knelt on the floor, grasping at his chest and trying to catch his breath.

Sabine, who had been silently watching, stood up and stepped closer. “Gabriel?”

“The anger…” he moaned. “They must have done something else…I was just…suddenly overwhelmed with a lot of negative emotion. Not just from the room, but from the city.”

Queen Bee shuttered. “They killed two police officers and the Minster of Interior. Others must have found them.”

Rena gasped. “What?”

Queen Bee took a deep sigh and recounted everything that she had witnessed that evening at the police station. When she was done, everyone stood in stunned silence.

Gabriel, who had slightly recovered, slowly stood and picked up his Miraculous. “Using the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculous together allows the user to make an ultimate wish. I wanted to bring my wife back. But…as I spoke with the Guardian, I found that trying to do so would have likely killed Adrien and I both in the process. Master Fu is taking care of the situation in exchange for the Butterfly and Peacock Miraculous.” He pinned the brooch back on. “I was desperate and wrong. Is that enough for you?”

Chloe sniffed and wiped her cheeks. “For now.”

Gabriel sighed as he paced the room. “Then…we have to confront them.”

“Can’t you just un-akumatize them?” Queen Bee asked.

“No. Making two akuma divides the control I have. They’ve taken my akuma from me. And I can’t make anymore until I get them back.”

“Then what do we do?” Asked Rena.

“The only thing we can do. We have to get the Ladybug Miraculous from them, purify them, and use the cure. That should bring back the officers and the Minister…but that will also bring back Salo.”

They all sighed at that. It was wrong and unfair.

“But couldn’t she twist the truth once she was back? There has to be another way!”

“No, this time, I think it will be impossible for her to get out of it. Her and Edward Savauge.”

“I bet that’s who they’re going for next, if they haven’t already.” Said Rena. “What’s our move?”

“We’ll try to talk them down first,” explained Gabriel. “And if that doesn’t work, we’ll just have to take the Miraculous by force.”

[vfdbaudelairefile13]

The Unforgotten Middle Child's Birthday:

Klaus Baudelaire sat near the graves of an old friend and old enemy. He sat there in silence pondering to himself. Finally, he looked only towards Kit Snicket’s grave and began to speak. “You know...it’s my birthday today,” he said aloud. He felt silly talking to Kit’s grave because it felt like he was talking to himself but he felt like he needed someone to talk to. Strangely enough, he felt like he couldn’t talk to his elder sister, Violet or his younger sister, Sunny about what was bugging him. Because it was his sisters who were bugging him. “It’s my birthday today…” he repeated sadly. “My fourteenth birthday...and it seems like they both forgot...again.”

Now, Klaus Baudelaire understood why his sisters both forgot his birthday last year. They were busy trying to rescue their friends, Duncan and Isadora Quagmire and they were tasked with breaking Kit’s brother, Jacques Snicket, out of jail in the Village of Fowl Devotees. He didn’t blame his sisters for forgetting his thirteenth birthday, he couldn’t even if he wanted to because he also forgot his birthday last year. But this year, Klaus felt like it was different. They were in a much better place than they had been in a while. It was only the three Baudelaires and Kit’s daughter, Beatrice II. It was just them. Their lives had settled down. It’s not an unreasonable request to have that his sisters remember his goddamn birthday. 

He felt like most middle children. Unwanted and ignored. As he sat staring mournfully at Kit’s grave, he thought back to all the Baudelaires’ trials and tribulations, wondering what he had done to help them get out of any of it. It was mainly Violet and in some cases, like with the elevator shaft, it was Sunny. He frowned. He didn’t want to think that his sisters had forgotten his birthday again this year because he was the useless member of the Baudelaire clan but Klaus was at a low point this morning. He woke up to no “happy birthday”s, he didn’t wake up to nicely fashioned homemade gifts, not even a mention of a special meal today. Both his sisters went about their days as if there was nothing special about it.

“Maybe I’m overreacting…” he said aloud to Kit’s grave. “Maybe my birthday doesn’t matter,” 

As he sat there in silence, he could have sworn he could hear laughter. Villainous laughter. Klaus knew it was all in his head as he turned his head to glare at the grave next to Kit’s. “No one’s talking to you!” Klaus yelled at Olaf’s grave. “It’s your fucking fault all three of us forgot last year! You fucking rat bastard! I wish that my sisters and I would’ve been the ones to end your pitiful excuse for a life! Not that fucking old bastard with the ridiculous beard!” Klaus rubbed his eyes as he felt tears of anger slowly falling down his face. 

His sisters wouldn’t forget his birthday...would they? 

__________________________________________________________________

Violet Baudelaire had just successfully put Beatrice II down for a nap which was not an easy feature. She sighed as she rubbed her face. She was honestly glad that she had both of her younger siblings to help her. Klaus was currently outside doing his daily chores, taking care of the sheep, doing the laundry, and finding coconuts for Sunny to cook with. Speaking of Sunny, she was in the kitchen at the moment. Violet assumed she was making lunch. 

Sunny was mainly in charge of the cooking seeing as Violet had a Spencer-Shay effect whenever she cooked, this meant that whatever she was preparing would magically burn or be mysteriously set ablaze. Her siblings joked that she’d be able to set cereal on fire. Klaus didn’t always burn the meals that he cooked, he had the opposite problem, he always under-cooked his meals and the very few that he made right were bland and distasteful. Both older Baudelaires realized real quick to leave all culinary duties to Sunny. Sunny didn’t mind, though. It was never a chore or a job to her, she liked it. It was her skill. 

So it was never odd when Sunny would prefer to spend most of her day in the kitchen, so to Violet, nothing seemed out of the ordinary until she heard a loud metal clank! And then she heard a loud frustrated growl coming from the kitchen.

“Fuck!” Sunny yelled frustrated.

“Sunny?” Violet called out, checking on her youngest sibling. 

“No!” Sunny yelled towards her sister, peeking out the kitchen. “Where’s Klaus?” she asks looking around the room. 

“He’s outside, silly,” Violet replied as Bea woke up and began crying. “...and now, Bea’s awake, thanks Sunny.” 

“Sorry not sorry,” Sunny replied blocking Violet out of the kitchen.

“Sunny, we need to have everything ready for tonight,” Violet rolled her eyes. “Seriously, Sunny. What’s the issue?”

“Birthday surprise,” Sunny replied simply. “Don’t say nothing,” 

“What are you trying to do?” Violet asked as she held Bea in her arms entering the kitchen which was a complete and utter disaster.

Violet looked around and saw that the Baudelaire’s entire kitchen was covered in several ingredients that Sunny needed to make homemade bread. Yeast and flour had covered every surface in the kitchen. Violet noticed that there were five loaves of homemade bread. On the floor, there was unchurned butter, milk, and a few cracked eggs. Mixing bowls and other kitchen utensils were scattered all around the kitchen. Sunny was covered in milk, eggs, and flour. Violet looked to her younger sister and the mess in the kitchen.

“Sunny? What happened in here?” Violet asked concerned. “It looks like a tornado hit our kitchen!”  

“Bread pudding,” Sunny explained. “Harder than it looks,”

Violet looked at her baby sister and then at the kitchen once more. She gave Sunny a small smile realizing that Sunny was trying to do the one thing their parents had failed to do on Klaus’ twelfth birthday, which was correctly make bread pudding. The Baudelaire parents had tried and failed to make bread pudding for their son’s birthday. When it failed, they had promised their only son that his next birthday would be extra special.

Although if you know the history of the three Baudelaire orphans you would know that that had not happened. When Klaus turned thirteen, not only did he and both of his sisters forget but because Count Olaf disguised himself as a detective, he was successfully able to convince the entire Village of Fowl Devotees (which had been the Baudelaires’ guardians at the time) that the Baudelaires had murdered Count Olaf. So Klaus was incarcerated in a deluxe jail cell for a large portion of his birthday. And he spent the rest of his thirteenth birthday on the run from the law and missing his friends, Duncan and Isadora Quagmire, deeply. Although he had been relieved they had been rescued.

So Sunny plans to make up for both his twelfth and thirteenth birthday but she was learning what her parents had learned two years prior. Making bread pudding was harder than it looks.

“Is there some way I can help?”

“You can’t cook,” Sunny reminded her.

Violet rolled her eyes. “Thanks, sis.”

“Truth hurts,” Sunny replied sarcastically. “I just need a taste tester and someone to distract him,”

Violet and Sunny smiled deviously as they both looked stared at Beatrice II. She was the definition of the perfect distraction. When she was born, all three Baudelaires took a quick liking to her but Klaus had made the strongest attachment to the young infant. When Beatrice was first born, Klaus was the first one, other than Kit, herself, to hold Beatrice and those first few seconds had created a strong, unbreakable bond. Klaus didn’t see himself as Beatrice’s older brother...he saw himself more as a father figure towards the infant which both his sisters thought was super adorable. Both Baudelaire sisters remembered the days before the fire that orphaned them, where their brother was just a weak, book-obsessed nerd. But sometime during the children’s unfortunate events, he had become more of a protector, taking on the role of the man of the house. They wouldn’t know until they return to civilization and leave the island, but both Sunny and Violet believed that his behavior would show this more since the addition of Beatrice II into their family. So his attachment to her will be his own undoing when it came to keeping Sunny’s birthday surprise a secret.

Just as the two sisters had devised a plan, Klaus made his way inside their island home. Sunny quickly ran into the kitchen as Violet nonchalantly blocked the entrance from Klaus. 

“What are you doing?” Klaus asked confused as he tried to walk passed his older sister.

“Can’t go in there,” Violet replied, placing her hand on his forehead to keep him at bay.

“Why not?” 

“We’ve been...banned,” 

“Banned?” 

Violet nodded.

“Why are we banned from the kitchen? It’s the kitchen...where the food is...which is what I want. So if you’d politely move…” Klaus replied as he tried to move passed his sister again.

“Bro, I’m doing you a favor by standing guard. Sunny still has a sharp set of teeth and she isn’t afraid to use it,”

“She can’t ban us from the kitchen for no reason!” 

“Oh, she has a reason,” 

Sunny poked her head out. “I always have a reason,” she said as she popped her head back in.

“And that reason would be?” 

“I...Well...you see,” Violet began trying to come up with a believable lie. She knew her brother was intelligent but she also knew that he was quite gullible. “It’s kind of embarrassing… I was trying to make…” Violet paused. She nearly said ‘pudding’ and then she nearly said ‘cake’. She was trying to think of a food that didn’t have anything to do with Klaus or birthdays. She thought about it for a good minute and sighed remembering her siblings' favorite insult towards her when it came to her cooking. “...I was making...well it doesn’t really matter what I was trying to make...because...I...I somehow made it explode,” 

“Explode?” Klaus asked incredulously.

“Explode,” Violet said simply.

Sunny popped her head out again. She nodded. “Explode,” she confirmed sneaking Violet a look indicating that Sunny knew she could lie better than that.

Klaus was speechless. “But...how…”

Violet shrugged her shoulders. “Honestly, is it really out of the realms of possibility for me?” she asked her brother.

“Well...no,” he replied. “Most definitely not,” 

Violet took offense to this but decided to let it go. She handed Bea to Klaus. “How about you and your favorite little buddy go spend the day on the beach...outside.” 

“Why?” 

“It’ll be good for you...for both of you!”

Sunny popped her head out again. “Yep...sunshine very good for babies. I would know I was one not too long ago.” She popped her head back inside the kitchen.

Klaus slowly nodded his head as he took the infant in his arms. “They’re both crazy, aren’t they, Bea?” he cooed at the infant, who giggled back at him. “We’re the only sane ones in this family.”

Violet laughed at this. “I wouldn’t describe any Baudelaire as ‘sane’,” she muttered as he chuckled taking Bea outside to the beach. 

“You wanna go see mommy?” Klaus asked Bea once he was outside. Bea nodded. He sighed. He enjoyed visiting Kit’s grave, he liked to take Bea there as much as possible and when he needed someone other than his sisters to talk to, he’d go to Kit’s grave as he did this morning. He just hated the fact that Olaf’s grave laid right there, next to Kit’s. He always wondered why he and Violet didn’t bury him in the darker side of the island where the Baudelaires rarely went. He walked the long way as he info dumped on Bea on the latest book that he had found from the latest storm. 

Once Klaus got to the graves, he sat down on the large rock that sat at a good distance from the two graves. He looked down at the infant. He gave a small smile.  “You didn’t forget my birthday, did you?”

The infant looked up at him and giggled, reaching up for his glasses. 

“I’ll take that as a no,” he replied smiling down at the infant. Taking off his glasses and allowing Bea to play with them under his watchful eye. 

________________________________________________________________

Violet and Sunny began to move fast. They didn’t know how long Klaus would stay outside with Bea. So with each variation of a bread pudding recipe, both Baudelaire sisters tasted each one. Some were sour, some were soggy. When Sunny allowed Violet to put the next batch into the stove, it burnt. Sunny was both surprised by this since that’s all she let Violet do but a small part of her wasn’t surprised. After twelve tries, Sunny looked to Violet. 

“This one has to work,” Sunny replied.

“This would be number thirteen,” Violet muttered.

“Thirteen is unlucky...but so are we,” Sunny began, “So maybe the two ‘unlucky’s will cancel each other out,”

“That’s...that’s not how that works, Sunny,” 

“Yeah huh. It’s like negatives,” 

Violet sighed. “Let’s just cross our fingers,” 

Sunny and Violet watched eagerly at their last attempt at making bread pudding cooked. Both sisters were worried. They hadn’t spent all day making Klaus think his birthday was the furthest from their minds for no reason. They both wanted to surprise him. That’s why Violet had spent the past few weeks constructing an outdoor library for her brother, using as many items as she could from the arboretum to make sure it could withstand storms. Sunny had spent days thinking of what to prepare for her brother and today had finally decided on bread pudding since that was the last birthday meal that her parents had tried to make for Klaus and she remembered how disappointed he was when it didn’t turn out just right.

Finally, as the dish finished baking. Both sisters glanced at each other nervously as they each took a small bite. Both Baudelaire girls smiled happily when they realized that Sunny had finally done it. She had finally made the bread pudding perfectly. She smiled down at her dish and smiled up at her older sister. “Thanks, Vi,”

“For what?” Violet asked laughing. “I didn’t do much,” 

“Moral support,” Sunny replied.

Both Baudelaire sisters hurriedly finished cleaning the mess that had occurred earlier that day in the kitchen as they took turns keeping a watchful eye for Klaus. They were not going to let him spoil the surprise that they had been working so hard on creating. After they finished cleaning, both sisters tried to decorate their dining room the best they could for a birthday with what they had. 

____________________________________________________________

Klaus had spent most the afternoon sulking as he revisited Kit’s grave allowing Bea to see her mother and her biological father even if he despised the man. He had to thank him for Bea’s existence. Without Bea in his life, he’d be more lost than he already is. After they spent around a good hour just chatting with Kit, Klaus would translate for Bea since she was beginning to speak in a similar way that his younger sister had. He took Bea to a spot on the island where the water was shallow and he and Bea spent some time swimming and laughing. He was trying to forget all about how his sisters had forgotten his birthday. But he couldn’t let it go. He looked at the smiling, giggling infant in his arms. “You know what,” he said to Bea, “if they forgot my birthday, then I’ll forget their birthdays,” he said triumphantly as Bea simply gave him a confused look. “What? It’s only fair,” he replied when Bea didn’t say anything in reply. 

As the sun was slowly setting, he frowned. “Time to go inside,” he told Bea who looked disappointed. “Time to have a normal meal on this normal day,” 

As he trudged along the beach back to the Baudelaires’ island home, he felt a few tears forming in his eyes. He just couldn’t believe that Violet and Sunny had completely forgotten his birthday again.

He finally reached the door of their home and noticed that it seemed dark inside. He didn’t think too much of it as he opened the door and jumped when he heard two voices yelling. 

“Surprise!” Violet shouted jumping up and down.

“Happy Birthday!” Sunny shouted, also jumping up and down.

Klaus, who reacted to the sudden noises by holding Bea tighter to him in order to protect her, sighed in relief realizing that he and Bea were not in any danger. He looked to his older sister and then to his younger sister, with a big happy smile. As he felt happy tears forming in his eyes. “You guys are fucked up you know that,” Klaus said smiling. 

“Yeah. We take pride in it,” Sunny replied hugging her big brother.

“Wait? Did you really think that we forgot your birthday?” Violet asked in a slightly offended tone.

Klaus turned his head a bit embarrassed. “M-maybe…” 

Violet looked at her younger brother. “We would never forget your birthday…” she began.

“Again,” Sunny pointed out.

“Yes, we would never forget your birthday ever again. Last year was a fluke. It’s never going to be that bad ever again,” Violet explained.

Klaus nodded as he shifted Bea into one arm, picking up his younger sister in the other and motioning to Violet to join the Baudelaire group hug. The middle Baudelaire embraced the three most important people in his life for what felt like an eternity before Violet pulled away.

Sunny hopped down from her brother’s grasp as she grabbed hold of his hand pulling him into the kitchen. “Close your eyes,” Sunny ordered.

“What?” Klaus said.

“No peeking,” Violet replied as Bea stood up as straight as she could and placed her tiny hands on his glasses as Violet slowly steered him into the kitchen.

When his sisters finally allowed him to open his eyes, Klaus felt like he wanted to cry more tears of blissful joy as he looked down at the bread pudding that Sunny had prepared with Violet’s help.

“You…” he began as he stared at the bread pudding. He handed Bea to Violet as he wiped a few happy tears from his face. His heart ached for two reasons, one was that he missed his parents deeply, the other was because he had the audacity to believe that both of his sisters would forget his birthday. He knew why they forgot last year and he felt silly for believing that they would forget his birthday when they weren’t in dire situations. “You…”

Sunny nodded as Klaus knelt down and scooped up his little sister in a big bear hug. Sunny could see that Klaus was crying, but she knew that he was happy crying. “You made bread pudding for my birthday just like they did two years ago,”

“Yep. This time it’s edible though,” Sunny remarked. “Violet helped me,” 

“Well, let’s eat!” Violet suggested as she put Bea in her high chair. 

The Baudelaires enjoyed the rest of the evening eating the bread pudding and telling stories about their past lives with their parents. Violet and Klaus shared several stories that happened before Sunny was born. While Sunny showed off her amazing memory when she told stories that her elder siblings couldn’t believe that she remembered. But with each story, both elder Baudelaires saw that she remembered the details correctly. They shared stories about their happier lives for what seemed like forever. Eventually, when they couldn’t think of any new stories to share, Violet walked Klaus out to where his outdoor library was which made the middle Baudelaire hug his older sister as tightly as he hugged Sunny.

Klaus realized now that his sister’s new his birthday was coming up for a while, they had both prepared surprises for him and even expertly fooled him into thinking that they had actually forgotten. Maybe it was the middle child doubt that caused him to believe this. Maybe it was his insecurity as a whole. Or maybe it was the fact that he was the most gullible of the three Baudelaire orphans. But either way, he spent the rest of the night knowing that he was loved and appreciated. He felt like a damn fool for ever thinking otherwise.

[imagineclaireandjamie]

Greetings. Has anyone wrote any more about Claire and Bree rescuing Jamie and getting away to Ireland in the short term. Or was that story finished? Thank you all for brightening my day.

Selkie Island AU 

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

—-

“Will you be all right in here, Bree?”

The girl’s red curls bobbed up and down furiously. “It’sso – so *grand*, Mama! Almost like a castle!”

Claire glanced around the spacious quarters that had beenso generously apportioned to them – their very own suite of rooms in the solid,ancient home of the Lynch family that was within walking distance of the Galwaydocks. The Lynches were powerful in Galway’s economy and politics – and the currentmaster of the house was a secret (if devoted) Jacobite, and a close personalfriend of General O’Sullivan – with whom Jamie had served in the Rising.

Stephen Lynch was so enamored of the cause – and sohonored to have been introduced to as eminent a Jacobite leader as Jamie Fraser– that he had cheerily offered all three bedrooms and two sitting rooms of theguest suite for the small family to have at their disposal, for as long as theywished. And an open door to stay for as long as they desired – be it one night orten years.

“Ten years is a long time, Mr. Lynch,” Jamie had repliedsoftly, slightly stunned, a steady hand on Brianna’s small shoulder. “But mywife and daughter and I – we canna express our gratitude to you.”

“It’s truly the least I could do,” Stephen had replied,wiping a stray tear from his eye. “You sacrificed so much, Mr. Fraser – youdeserve to live in comfort while you decide which path to take next.”

“Did ye no’ hear the man on the way over from the docks,*a leannan*?” Jamie snuggled closer to his daughter on the divan, extending anarm to Claire. “He called it Lynch’s Castle. Said it’s been here since thefifteenth century.”

Claire sank against Jamie’s side, resting one hand on hisknee.

“That sounds very old to me,” Bree mused. “Does thatsound old to you?”

Jamie laughed. Claire’s heart soared.

–

“Mama?”

Claire turned in the doorway, watching Bree settle deeperinto the quilt.

“Will you and Da be in the other room?”

“Yes – the one right down the hall from this one.Remember?”

“Yeah. But nobody else is coming in, right?”

“No – the servants only came to freshen up the beds. Doyou remember Mr. Lynch saying that it had been a while since anyone had stayedhere?”

Bree paused, but then nodded. “It’s so nice he lets usstay here.”

At Bree’s side, Jamie snorted. “What – do ye mean yeprefer staying on the ship?”

“No way!” she exclaimed. “I’m done with being seasick.”

“That makes two of us,” her father smiled. “Now – should weresume our story?”

“I’ll be down the hall,” Claire said softly. “Good night,Bree. I love you.”

“Love you Mama!”

She caught Jamie’s gaze – saw a reflection in his eyes ofthe fire in her heart – and slipped into the hallway.

Finally, she and Jamie would be alone tonight.

Closing the door behind her, her hands shook.

*Don’t be ridiculous, Beauchamp. He’s your *husband*, forGod’s sake.*

But then she swallowed. For tonight they would embark onsomething different. The escape now behind them – and their entire lives beforethem.

Claire clenched her fists, took a deep breath, andcrossed the room.

–

Sometime later, the door creaked open.

“Sassenach?” he called into the candlelight.

“Here,” came her soft reply.

Jamie swallowed, clenched his fists, and approached hiswife.

She sat on the other side of the bed, back to him. Cladin her shift. When she stood and turned to face him – eyes bright – his heartnearly stopped.

“Come here,” he croaked.

And she was there – holding his hands, threading herfingers through his.

They listened to each other breathe, accompanied only bythe rain pattering against the window. His thumb ghosted over the pulse andtendons on the inside of her wrist.

Suddenly she couldn’t look at him.

“Are you as scared as I am?”

“Aye,” he croaked. “But it’s just us, no? Claire – we canjust sleep. There’s no need – ”

“I want you.” Now she looked up – locked eyes. “I havewaited for this for more than ten years. I want you – I want this. I want whatwe used to have together.”

“I want more than what we used to have, Claire.” Hestepped closer. Brought his forehead against hers. “Being apart from you hasshown me that much. I want there to be no doubts between us. No barriers. Iwant us to promise to each other – to never use our years apart as an excuse tonot discuss something. Because we have forever, now.”

“Yes.” Her breath was hot against his lips.

“You know that I’ll do everything in my power to protectyou and Bree, aye? To always keep you both safe? To always put you first?”

“I do, Jamie – I do. She does, too.”

He kissed her cheek, the tip of her nose, her forehead.

“Will ye – will ye come to bed wi’ me then?”

She pulled back. Serene.

“Yes.”

–

“Sassenach?”

She stretched against him, limbs delightfully boneless. “Hmm?”

He pulled her closer against his shoulder. “What do yethink about a farm of our own?”

Her fingers traced idle patterns on his chest. “I’m not opposedto the idea. But I thought we’d discussed this – and you saw it in Bree’shistory book. Catholics can’t purchase rural property in Ireland, under thesebackward Penal Laws.”

He hadn’t stopped smiling since he’d collapsed againsther a few minutes prior – and now the smile widened even further. “No’ here. Inthe Colonies.”

“Would you be willing to take another ocean voyage sosoon?”

“Maybe not right away – we can stay here as long as welike, after all. Would be good for you and Bree to get your bearings in thistime. Perhaps for a few months – wait until the spring. And from what Iunderstand, the Colonies are a big place. We’d need to choose the one mostsuited to what we want.”

He turned to face her across the pillow. “What do youthink?”

Her ear-splitting smile matched his own. “I think it’s abeautiful plan. But we don’t need to rush it.”

“No. We can rest. Enjoy each other. Bree can teach me herhistory. I can teach her chess.”

Claire kissed the tip of his nose. “How I love you.”

“How I love *you*, *mo nighean donn*,” he breathed. “Youcame for me. You pulled me from the hell of being alone. You saved me.”

“Sshh.” Her arms locked around him, her face buriedagainst his shoulder. “We save each other.”

–

FIN

[fortunatelylori]

I love Jon and Sansa's not so sibling relationship and I love Theon and Yara's sibling relationship. I'm sure there are connections between the two. Can you list the ways in which they are foils? Thank you!

Hey, nonnie!

Sorry for taking so long to answer this. I’ve had to spend some time thinking about how I was going to tackle it because I’m not sure I’m quite the right person to answer this question. 

My main issue is that I don’t particularly like Yara as a character and I’m not all together happy with the way the show has handled the Yara/Theon relationship. 

So, please ignore me while I go on a rant about my issues with Yara and then I will go on to attempt to draw a few parallel/foil examples between Theon/Yara and Jonsa. 

I have a pretty hard time talking about Yara because in theory she’s a great character: she looks and acts badass but is still emotional and invested in the well-being of the people she cares about, she’s funny and charming and Gemma Whelan is a wonderful actress who looks and acts the part. However, that’s the theory and the actress. 

My problem with her is that in narrative terms, she’s very much a character that talks the talk but doesn’t walk the walk. If this was an in-story flaw, I’d have no problems with it but it isn’t. This is the writers wanting to have a badass female character but also not wanting her to overpower the male characters in the show. 

I’ll give you a few examples: 

Yara coming to rescue Theon from Ramsay 

I absolutely loved Yara standing up to her father, calling him a coward and saying she was going to save “her little brother”. However, she ends up at the Dreadfort and runs away the moment a shirtless man and his dogs scream at her. There was so much emotional build-up to that scene for it to fizzle out because the writers wanted to protect Ramsay not just from death, but from any significant injury/consequence.

Yara’s pitch for the Salt Throne 

Since her introduction, Yara has been presented as the real reaver in this story. Tough, able, brave, knowledgeable, we were lead to believe people whole heartily supported her and even more importantly that she knew exactly how to talk to these people and what she needed to do for them. Then Yara makes her pitch as queen and all of a sudden not only do people point to Theon as a better option because he’s male (even though they scorned him when he first showed up on the Iron Islands) but end up very quickly turning on her and picking Euron, a guy they haven’t seen in years, over her. But that’s not even the most egregious thing. We could always chalk that up to male privilege. 

The real issue is that when Yara makes her speech, she says very little of any real substance and then the moment she’s challenged, she becomes flustered. It’s up to Theon to make the salient points she should have made and then the writers give the truly revolutionary ideas to Euron who wants to develop and raise the Iron Born past the level of thugs they’ve been stuck in for centuries. 

Euron’s attack on the Blackwater

Yara is supposed to be a battle hardened naval commander but Euron manages to surprise her and defeat her with little to no effort. I don’t have an issue with Yara losing the battle but the entire set-up shows her as being incompetent because not only didn’t she think there was a chance they’d get attacked, she didn’t take any precautions in the likelihood that it would happen. 

Then there’s the Yara/Theon relationship and the two issues I have with that. :))) (Hang in there, nonnie! We’re almost done)

Yara’s sexuality and how that is used to shame Theon for not having a dick

Notice how almost all of the Yara/Theon scenes post-castration take place in brothels or situations where a woman is hitting on Yara? Don’t get me wrong. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the show celebrating and highlighting Yara’s love for women. However, that’s not really what they’re doing. They’re essentially using those moments for cringe comedy and as humiliation for the fact that Theon’s not able to partake because … he doesn’t have a dick! Get it?!? Look how sad he is! Get it?!?

Nor is this the show trying to have a commentary on the issue of Theon’s castration trauma (which would be great but alas) but rather this is a narrative punishment/joke. And I don’t really appreciate that. 

And then there’s this:

Yara: Listen to me. If you’re so broken that there’s no coming back, take a knife and cut your wrists. End it. But if you’re staying, Theon, I need you. We’re going to sail to Mereen. We’re going to make a pact with this dragon queen and we’re going to take back the Iron Islands. Are you with me? 

If this was a singular case in this series, I would chalk it up to Yara being callous and ignorant about the profound and lasting effects torture and PTSD have on a person. But Brienne gave Jaime a similar “tough talk” when she disapproved of him being depressed over having lost his hand. 

Brienne: Coward. One misfortune and you’re giving up? […] You have a taste of the real world, where people have important things taken from them and you whine and cry and quit. You sound like a bloody woman!

The message seems to be that all you need to get over trauma is a tough as nails badass woman screaming at you. Add some good ol’ fashion misogyny on top of it for good measure and you’re good to go. 

Had your hand amputated? Stop “whining”! Still unsure how to get passed systematic torture and castration? Either put a band aid on it or kill yourself, we’ve got important shit to do. Can’t possibly waste any time on empathy, understanding and emotional support. 

Again, I can’t really blame Yara or Brienne for that matter. This is the writers thinking that anyone who becomes a victim and doesn’t move past it as fast as humanly possible and also “toughens up”, is inherently weak. I hate that mindset and I hate the old “other people have it worse” argument. Yes, I’m sure other people have it worse. That is no reason to dismiss individual pain and how traumatic events in our lives affect us personally. 

Now that’s out of the way, let’s look at a few instances where Theon/Yara act like foils to Jonsa. These will be broad because I don’t think these two relationships are set-up in opposition to each other, the way Jaime/Cersei and Jonsa are:

The relationship dynamic and roles

Yara and Theon are very much a relationship that operates under the clear hierarchy of big sister/little brother. This was established the moment Yara was revealed as his sister and continues to this day. In the beginning this was highlighted by Yara making fun of Theon, proving she’s better than him but also giving him heartfelt advice at Winterfell and bonding with him over having a shitty father. It was carried over into Yara protecting or rather trying to protect Theon. 

Post-Ramsay, Yara is the leader that drags Theon after her. This inequality is further supported by Theon giving his claim to the Salt Throne in order to continue having a relationship with Yara. So in addition to being big sister/little brother, they’re also queen/right hand of the queen.  

These established roles are completely missing from Jon and Sansa’s relationship and, in many ways, this is the true source of their disagreements and tension. What are they? Are they big brother/little sister? Are they true born/bastard? Are they King in the North/right hand to the king? None really fit … Jon doesn’t submit to Sansa’s authority and she doesn’t submit to his. The only way their relationship works is if they behave as equals. Anything less, I think would be unacceptable for either one of them. 

Not only that, but rather than enforce an hierarchy, Jon and Sansa spend their time validating each other: 

Jon: We’re standing here because of you. I’ve had the Lord’s chamber prepared for you. 

Sansa: Mother and father’s room? You should have it. 

Jon: I’m not a Stark. 

Sansa: You are to me. 

Sansa: You’re good at this, you know. Ruling. 

Sansa: They respect you. They really do. 

Jon: You know Tyrion better than any of us. What do you think?

Sansa: You’re abandoning your people. You’re abandoning your home. 

Jon: I’m leaving both in good hands. 

Sansa: Whose? 

Jon: Yours. Until I return, the North is yours. 

Arguments

Yara and Theon have a very typical sibling/relatives relationship. They say the most vile things to each other and then move on as if nothing happened because that’s how family works. (Yara does most of the saying in these quotes but you get my meaning)

Yara: Why! It’s the Prince of Winterfell!

Theon: Envy isn’t attractive. 

Yara: You were a terrible baby, you know that? Bawling all the time. Never sleeping. And one night you just wouldn’t shut up. Screaming like a dying pig. I walked over to your crib. I looked down at you. I wanted to strangle you. 

Yara: I’m tired of seeing you cower like a dog. 

Yara: I need Theon. The real Theon Greyjoy. Not this rat shit pretender. 

Jon and Sansa, on the other hand, can’t get away with saying things like this to one another. Their relationship just doesn’t allow for it. And it isn’t because they’re not close or because they aren’t comfortable with each other. But rather that whatever one of them says/does affects the other very deeply. 

All through season 6, Sansa was in desperate need of validation from Jon. She takes it personally that he trusts Davos and Tormund and feels he prefers them to her. She gets angry that he didn’t specifically ask for her opinion prior to the battle. 

There’s also this: 

Jon: You sound like you admire her. [Cersei]

Sansa: I learned a great deal fromher. 

Look at that scene and tell meSansa isn’t hurt that Jon thinks she admires Cersei or isn’t affected by hisdisapproval. 

As well as: 

Jon: And how should I be smarter?By listening to you?

And Jon …

Sansa: He plays with people. He’sfar better at it than you. He’s been doing it all his life. 

Jon: Aye? And what have I beendoing all my life? Playing with broomsticks?!?

 Jon: When you question my decisionsin front of the other lords and ladies, you undermine me. 

Sansa: Jofferey never let anyonequestion his decisions. Do you think he was a good king? 

Jon: Do you think I’m Jofferey?!?

Notice how nothing they say toone another or do to one another is as bad as Yara calling baby Theona “dying pig”. And yet they can’t handle it. Even something as Sam gentlyattacking Jon saying that he “hates” him after Jon admits to being enviousof Robb would probably not work. I mean can you imagine Jon’s face if Sansa,even jokingly, told him she hated him. She’d be better off sticking a knife inhis neck. It would probably hurt less. :)))

The sexual component 

Even though I noted that thescenes of Yara enjoying her sex life is a ham fisted way of reminding theaudience of Theon’s lack of sexual organs, I think it’s important to note thatTheon isn’t affected by the idea of Yara either having sex or beingromantically involved with someone. 

That’s the kind of lack ofworry that Jon “If you touch my sister, I’ll kill you myself” Snow andSansa “do you think he wants to marry her?!?” Stark would probablyenvy. 

And on that note, one of themost interesting things that denotes the differences between these two is how thetwo relationships start: 

Yara and Theon’s relationshipstarts on a shared horse ride to Pyke, where Theon fondles Yara’s breasts andprivate parts all the way there only to be horrified when he realizes she’s hissister. Since then, their relationship has been completely platonic and neitherone of them has ever given any indication that they’d like to revisit thatparticular incident. 

Jon and Sansa, on the otherhand, start off as long lost siblings who very quickly end up enacting marriageceremonies (the cloak), having passionate fights in tents, lingering foreheadkisses and … (to be continued in season 8). :))))

[coruscantholonet]

The End of the Vreni Island crisis.

The crisis on Vreni Island begun with a Sith attack on the Jedi Temple that seemed to have been lead by Darth Knox.  While the Sith may have been focused on their Jedi rivals another entity would exploit the chaos.  Nec’ron Sk’ar would lead the Scourge to attack the island at that moment and managed to seize it with over a thousand hostages under their control which included many VIP’s in Government and Business.  To this day it is unknown whether the Sith & The Scourge were coordinated in their effort.

The One Sith had their temple raided by CorSec with the Jedi and would withdraw from the public eye on Corellia.  Over the next several months a tense stand off would develop.  The CDF would blockade the island and several in Government such as Councilor’s Turq and Zwee as well as Prime Minister Victoria made diplomatic efforts.  The efforts had mixed result, Zwee would trade herself for the former Republic Chancellor Bok Suthra as well as several other prisoners.  Zwee made several efforts to help the hostages from the inside, and has provided us with some journal excerpts which further detail the occupation that we will publish at the end of this summary.

Eventually a raid was held on the Scourge stronghold in Coronet in which Bones and the Vandangante OutlawTech gang were taken down by CorSec.  During this raid an Imperial Agent was rescued.  They were about to be executed by the Scourge as they had managed to retrieve the codes to disarm the bombs that had been placed on Vreni Island as a method for mass execution of the hostages. With these codes an assault was quickly launched. 

The CDF focused on dealing with the Scourge gunships as CorSec, Jedi, Mandalorians and an unidentified force moved in.  The unidentified force managed to slip in and blow up the power station, killing one of the notable Scourge in Val’kar the Dashade in the process.  The Mandalorians would provide a distraction for the CorSec and Jedi forces to reach the hostages.  It is estimated that the Mandos took on the bulk of Scourge forces and though several were wounded they managed to clear several hundreds of Scourge, capturing copkiller Noj Peesejamo and putting an end to Bofa Treat Gang Leader Nenthus Rordul.

Jedi and CorSec forces managed to secure most of the hostages though nearly a hundred of the 1200 or so that remained lost their lives during the battle.  They also captured CorSec traitor Vakira Crane.

Those still in condition to fight from all the teams then converged on Nec’ron Sk’ar and his Battle Skiff.  Sk’ar would soon see how outnumbered he was and make an effort to withdraw but he did not get far and was captured.  Once Nec’ron was captured the remaining Scourge forces were scattered fully.  Only a few minor officers escaped such as Nsspar the Bothan, a pair of Zabrak twins, and Meru of the White Worms.

It is believed that most of the gangs that had been part of the Scourge coalition have been fragmented beyond being any type of threat anytime in the near future with the exception of the White Worms.  The Worms for their part seem to be laying low after the whole affair.

Over the course of the entire Scourge Saga around 150 hostages were killed, 350 escaping or freed prior to the liberation and another 1100 freed after, and around 250 flipped to join the Scourge, most infamously CorSec high up Vakira Crane.

The Island will need rebuilding in sections and the courts will be busy over the next few weeks.  So far Bones is the only one sentenced having received life and moved to a maximum security prison on Drall.   Noj, Crane, and Sk’ar await their trials, the prosecution seeking the death penalty on Sk’ar following Councilor Turq and Prime Minister Victoria asking for that.  Some believe Sk’ar and the Scourge were the device of someone else’s agenda but who and why..?

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The Prime Minister made a press release following the conclusion of the saga;

“Good Day Citizens of the five planets. This is Prime Minster Victoria to tell you about the Vreni Island hostage.  I’m glad to tell you all the Vreni Island takeover have officially ended and thanks to the brave members of CorSec and allies to the CorFed.  These people deserve recognition and will get that in due time. We have managed to rescue the remaining hostages and capture some of Scourge members including their leader Nec'ron. I would like to thanks the hostages for surviving as long as they did as we work out the best possible plan to save them. I know we have loss innocent lives, but rest assure that justice will be serve for them.  We are currently providing support to the survivors which also include Councilor Zwee as she is in critical condition. We will keep you update if anything else related to this incident."

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Behind Enemy Lines the Journal of Zwee on Vreni Island during the occupation.

DAY 1

   I've settled in here on the island, finally. For the moment, the Scourge are keeping me away from the other hostages, setting me up in a smaller house all on my own by order of Nec'ron. He IS intelligent, I'll give him that, moreso than the media likes to portray him. Far from keeping me in my own hovel for my comfort, I'm certain the move was a calculated one so as to foster resentment for me in the rest of the hostages, both to undermine my attempts while lowering their overall morale. A common theme in his diatribes was railing against our government, to show us as rich and uncaring and aloof...this was a move to bring some factuality to his opinions, and likely will work in the short term. However, it also shows a flaw: this means he cares what the hostages think of him and his goals. Whatever Nec'ron is REALLY after, he'll need the support of 'The People'. I can use this.

DAY 4

   The past few days I've been about my work when I was allowed outside of my new home. PM Victoria and I hatched the plan to place me here so that I could covertly spy upon the Scourge- reveal their strength, weaknesses, attain surveillance photographs satellite images may not be strong enough to get. I went to the Prime Minister and volunteered because I believed that I was the only one capable of such. My cybernetic implants enable me to photograph easily and silently..although a few Scourge agents have given me jeers and made jokes at my expense for seemingly walking around and staring at things. Hopefully this will continue, the last thing I want is to be viewed as a threat.    Luckily for me, the house I am set up in had a holonet uplink (all furniture and the holonet device itself had been trashed, of course), and with a little rigging I was able to connect the uplink to my headjack. This way, I'll be able to transmit my recon data directly and securely to the PMs datapad without having to resort to so-called 'dead drops' and the like. Unluckily for me, the Scourge have taken away the medications I need to keep myself healthy with all this tech implanted in my head. In hindsight, I could have hidden the stash better, but this spywork is pretty new to me. Oh well.    Also, turns out I was right about Nec'ron wanting to foster resentment for me with the other hostages. Earlier today I was allowed to mingle with them and, though the family members of the children, elderly, and wounded were grateful with my successful negotiation of their release (was quite worried about Suthra), the rest were pretty ticked off I couldn't rescue them all. A good many joined the Scourge today, some even killed, but I don't think all hope is lost. I can still reach them, prove Nec'ron wrong and show them their government, we, care about them.

DAY 8

   I'm allowed more and more access with the hostages, by now i think Nec'ron doesn't think much of me at all, much less a threat. Though some hostages are kept in pens, we've negotiated that all the hostages are allowed some time to walk around, occupy houses, for lack of a better phrase 'live a normal life' so long as they stay out of the Scourge's way. As a result, far fewer have been flipped to their cause or killed the past few days. I'm doing what I can to keep them calm and organized, to counteract the resentment Nec'ron is hoping to grow within them. I've taken to assigning chores for the ones willing to do them- just tidying up, some paltry decorating and the like to keep their minds occupied. I've heard Councilor Turq was able to persuade the Scourge away from treating us TOO poorly as well, which has definitely helped with keeping everyone calm. In the evenings, more hostages have been coming to our story-circle...we sit around a small fire and trade happy stories and the like. It may sound ridiculous, but these activities have done wonders for their morale. In a way I'm g-g-glad I could b-b-be here.    Sorry for that. I'm trying very hard not to show weakness in front of the other hostages- wouldn't be good for morale. I was able to 'hotwire' a handful of the Scourge's droids today, and that and my lack of medication are starting to take their toll. Should be f-f-fine.    Damn it.

DAY 10

   Discovered what Nec'ron is really after. Although the CorSec commissioner has flipped to the Scourge's side, Vakira Crane was given some access to Nec'rons little private circle and is a woman that has loose lips. I was able to overhear quite a lot while she was bragging to those few CorSec officers she was able to turn with her. Combined with what I sliced from Nec'rons datapad, the PM will be getting quite a juicy transmission this week!

DAY 12

  Reached equilibrium today with persuasion attempts, most hostages content to stay where they are, onl-on-only a couple joined Scourge, one killed. Garthus Vin, his name was. Painter.   Equilibrium could not have come at a better time. Stuttering more, harder to speak. Our natural charisma, taken...our?   Likely, cranial implants starting to malfunction. We...I? I. I've continued with reprogramming what Scourge droids I can find. It seems Nec'ron and the rest pay little attention with droid upkeep. Beneficial for our wor-wo-work.

DAY 16

   Hostage assesment: complacency high. Turned to Scourge or killed: very few, similar to last week. Equilibrium: maintained. Whispering now, allowing cranial implants control of our speech. Pain: lessened this way. More efficient. Re: efficiency- we were able to reprogram last of Scourge droids today. All thirty under our control. Plan is to use them to disrupt signal that will activate thermal cluster bombs, protect hostages. We estimate in five days: reprogram fully so as they can act autonomously. Many parameters, much reprogramming needs adjustment.

DAY 17

   Informed Prime Minister negotiated release of more hostages. We will be among them. Tried to persuade to stay: failed. Assessment: Nec'ron becoming suspicious of our activities. Result: no time re: droid fine tuning. Optimal course of action: slave thirty droids to our implant control remotely. Most efficient course of action. Cranial/neurological implants: not designed for this solution. Eighty-seven percent chance: severe neurological damage. Suggest another...    ERROR.    Risk assessment: acceptable. We will proceed.    Droid slaving: success.    Consequence: lost usage of lower appendages. Sudden. Cranial implants: slight malfunction audible/visable. Combined:.possible Scourge discover droid slaving.Solution: hide consequence via Scourge provocation leading to physical abuse.    Solution: successful

[bloojayoolie]

Animals, Apparently, and Butt: Srihe Du 6025 Friendly and adorable Spike may look like a serious chap but he has a sunny personality-is easy to handle on leash and happily playful in the yard. Spike will make the perfect playmate and a wonderful partner for just chilling out on the couch, too. 43 63 Manhattan 2 ys ld TO BE KILLED 6/29/19 *** A $500 stipend will be offered to the New Hope partner that pulls Spike 56025.*** Get ready to goof around with Spike~ Friendly and Adorable Spike Wants to Win Your Heart Over <3 ~ A volunteer writes: Spike is ready to smile! He may look like a serious chap when you first meet, but take the time to play, pet and get to know him and he'll be sunny side up in a jiffy. We had so much fun on our first date, leisurely strolling around the block while Spike sniffed every snowbank and tree, then joyfully playing with toys indoors. He's the best of both worlds, a consummate gentleman and easy to handle on leash and a happy, play-bowing loon off leash. For an active family looking for the perfect playmate, Spike definitely fits the bill, but he'd make a wonderful partner for just chilling out on the couch, too. Seemingly house trained and ready to come, sit and stay for treats, he's smart and eager to please. So if you're keen to teach, he'll be happy to learn. As open-hearted as he is with us humans, Spike can be very selective with his four-legged playmates, so a home where he'll be able to settle in as your only pet before any new introductions are made (one-on-one, no dog parks, please) would be best. Meet this handsome boy at our Manhattan Care Center today! Another volunteer writes: Sweet Spike loves to play! ACC long-timer and fetch-n-snuggle superstar Spike is my favorite boyfriend at ACC and how he’s still not been scooped up by a new family is a mystery to me and everyone else who loves him. Spike arrived at the shelter on Feb 28 and aside from a very short adoption from which he was returned for playing too boisterously, he’s been waiting there ever since. Many dogs would succumb to depression or act out after so long in a cage but not our Spike. He’s just as affectionate, silly and tail-waggingly happy as ever and every date we have I fall even deeper under his spell. Spike is recommended for an only-dog home at this time but the more people to love, the better. This deserving boy is eager to find a true forever family who’ll love him as much as we all do, please share him far and wide! MY VIDEOS: Spike ~ a sweetrheart, a scholar and an athlete! https://youtu.be/0yfmgg8IB-I Beloved beauty Spike <3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOJ3fuqMf40 Princess Brownie and Spike in Playgroup https://youtu.be/oDSlGdbSF_c Spike - Fetch MASTER! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSjSf_baXoA SPIKE ID# 56025, 2 yrs old, 43 lbs, Neutered Male Manhattan ACC, Large Mixed Breed , Brown / White Owner Surrender Reason: Return Shelter Assessment Rating: NEW HOPE ONLY Medical Behavior Rating: OWNER SURRENDER NOTES - BASIC INFORMATION: Means of surrender (length of time in previous home): Owner Surrender (adopted and returned after a few days) Energy level/descriptors: Spike is described as having a very high level of activity. Other Notes: Spike is reported to be mouthy in the home, nipping playfully at people. SHELTER ASSESSMENT SUMMARIES - Date of assessment: 3-Mar-2019 Leash Walking Strength and pulling: None Reactivity to humans: None Reactivity to dogs: None Leash walking comments: None Sociability Loose in room (15-20 seconds): Moderately social Call over: Approaches with coaxing Sociability comments: Jumps up socially when approaches, body soft Handling Soft handling: Accepts contact Exuberant handling: Accepts contact Comments: Body soft, stands still Arousal Jog: Follows (loose) Arousal comments: None Knock: Approaches (loose) Knock Comments: None Toy: No response Toy comments: None PLAYGROUP NOTES - DOG TO DOG SUMMARIES: Due to sudden rapid escalation, a single dog residence is recommended for Spike at this time, until behavior around dogs can be followed up on outside of the shelter environment. 3/1: When introduced off leash to a female greeter dog, Spike initially attempts to mount, but when solicited with play, he engages in bouncy play. 3/2-3/3: Spike engages in running and bouncy play with male and female dogs. 3/4: When solicited with play, Spike growls, snaps, and pursues the other dog while continuing to growl and snap. IN SHELTER OBSERVATIONS:5/9 While Spike remains social outside of his kennel, he was observed to redirect when being moved throughout the kennel as he was reacting to the other dogs in passing. Spike was observed to mouth handler's wrist and arm. Spike has not displayed any on leash reactivity towards other animals outside of being moved throughout the kennels in the care center. The behavior team feels this behavior may be shelter specific as a result of Spike's overall level of stress and frustration being kenneled at this time. While at the Care Center, Spike has been an active participant in ACC's BouroughBreak program. On one occasion, Spike went to Central Park, on another occasion, he went to Randall's Island. He went on a hike, played with toys and saw horses. His handlers described him as 'popular', 'adventurous', and 'playful'. However, in shelter, Spike's level of stress and frustration has been displayed through reactivity towards other dogs and on one occasion was observed to redirect onto the handler, mouthing the handler's wrist and arm. Spike has not displayed any on leash reactivity towards other animals outside of being moved throughout the kennels in the care center. 6/22: Spike was being fitted for a harness to go on a Borough Break when he grabbed the handlers forearm in his mouth and would not let go. The handlers offered toys and treats but he would not release until an auditory interrupter was used. Significant bruising and red marks were left on the arm. BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION: NEW HOPE ONLY Behavior Asilomar H - Healthy Recommendations: No young children (under 5) Single-pet home Recommend no dog parks Recommendations comments: Single pet/no dog parks: See DOG-DOG. No young children: Due to being mouthy in his previous home, we recommend a home without young children. Older children who are comfortable around large, jumpy dogs should have an in-depth interaction prior to adoption. Placed with a New Hope partner: While Spike continues to display social behavior with handlers in the care center, he has become increasingly challenging to manage and appears to be at high risk for deterioration. When overstimulated, Spike quickly escalates to jumping up high repeatedly towards handlers, mouthing hard (see "in-shelter observations") and is unable to readily recover therefore we advise safe and appropriate management. Due to the intensity of the behaviors observed, we feel that Spike may be best set up to succeed if placed with an experienced rescue partner who can assess his behavior after decompression/acclimation in a new home environment before permanent placement. Force-free, reward-based training only is advised. Potential challenges: Basic manners/poor impulse control Mouthiness/poor bite inhibition Low threshold for arousal Potential challenges comments: Spike is reported to be active and jumpy with people, in a playful manner. Please see handout on Basic Manners. Spike is has been observed to be extremely mouthy in the care center, the behavior intensifies as Spike becomes excited/overstimulated. Please see handout on Mouthiness. While being fitted for a harness, Spike appeared to have become over-aroused and mouthed handler's arm hard; Spike was reported to not release without use of auditory interrupter, this resulted in bruising and red marks. Please see handout on Arousal. MEDICAL EXAM NOTES 29-Mar-2019 Progress Exam SO Volunteer noted 2 sores on P anus. P has been scooting / dragging butt on ground. BAR, very energetic and enjoys being pet. Rectal -- erythematous with mild crusting along the anus; anal sacs are mildly full and easily expressed. A perianal dermatitis r/o secondary to full anal sacs P expressed anal sacs rimadyl 100mg tablet -- give 1 tablet PO q24h x 3 days Continue to monitor in shelter 19-Mar-2019 DVM Intake Exam Estimated age: 2 years Microchip noted on Intake? Previously placed at MACC Microchip Number (If Applicable): History : Returned. Subjective: BAR Observed Behavior -Friendly, wagging his tail, taking treats, a lot of energy. Evidence of Cruelty seen -No Evidence of Trauma seen -No Objective T = P =120 bpm R =eup BCS 4.5/9 EENT: Eyes clear, ears clean, no nasal or ocular discharge noted Oral Exam: Mild tartar, grade 1/4 PLN: No enlargements noted H/L: NSR, NMA, CRT < 2, Lungs clear, eupnic, no c/s ABD: Non painful, no masses palpated U/G: M/N MSI: Ambulatory x 4, skin free of parasites, no masses noted, healthy hair coat CNS: Mentation appropriate - no signs of neurologic abnormalities Rectal: Clean externally Assessment: Apparently healthy Prognosis: Good Plan: No tx needed at this time SURGERY: Already neutered ---------------------------------------------------------- NOTES FIRST STAY - INTAKE 03-01-2019 SPIKE ID# 56025, 2 yrs old, 43 lbs, Manhattan Animal Care Center, Large Mixed Breed Cross, Brown / White Neutered Male, Intake Agency Shelter Assessment Rating: LEVEL 1 Single-pet home Recommend no dog parks Medical Behavior Rating: BEHAVIOR NOTES; Means of surrender (length of time in previous home): Stray SHELTER ASSESSMENT - Date of assessment: 3-Mar-2019 Leash Walking Strength and pulling: None Reactivity to humans: None Reactivity to dogs: None Leash walking comments: None Sociability Loose in room (15-20 seconds): Moderately social Call over: Approaches with coaxing Sociability comments: Jumps up socially when approaches, body soft Handling Soft handling: Accepts contact Exuberant handling: Accepts contact Comments: Body soft, stands still Arousal Jog: Follows (loose) Arousal comments: None Knock: Approaches (loose) Knock Comments: None Toy: No response Toy comments: None PLAYGROUP NOTES - DOG TO DOG SUMMARIES: Due to sudden rapid escalation, a single dog residence is recommended for Spike at this time, until behavior around dogs can be followed up on outside of the shelter environment. 3/1: When introduced off leash to a female greeter dog, Spike initially attempts to mount, but when solicited with play, he engages in bouncy play. 3/2-3/3: Spike engages in running and bouncy play with male and female dogs. 3/4: When solicited with play, Spike growls, snaps, and pursues the other dog while continuing to growl and snap. INTAKE BEHAVIOR - Date of intake: 28-Feb-2019 Summary: Shy, allowed handling MEDICAL BEHAVIOR - Date of initial: 3-Mar-2019 Summary: Allowed handling ENERGY LEVEL: We have no history on Spike so we cannot be certain of his behavior in a home environment. At the care center, he displays a medium level of activity. BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION: Level 1 Behavior Asilomar H - Healthy Recommendations: Single-pet home Recommend no dog parks Recommendations comments: Single pet/no dog parks: See DOG-DOG. MEDICAL EXAM NOTES: 15-Mar-2019 Progress Exam HAD A BATH ON 03.15.2019 14-Mar-2019 Progress Exam hx: acs reports loose BM BAR P) monitor; no meds at this time 13-Mar-2019 Progress Exam HAD BATH 03.13.2019 8-Mar-2019 Post Op Exam SO Post op exam Skin -- incision site is clean and dry. A healing sx site P continue to monitor post op 6-Mar-2019 Spay/Neuter Summary Pre-surgical exam, anesthesia, and surgery performed by ASPCA. Green linear tattoo placed lateral to incision. Start 1 tablet carprofen 100 mg sid po x 2 days. 3-Mar-2019 DVM Intake Exam Estimated age: 3 years Microchip noted on Intake? NO Microchip Number (If Applicable): History : Found dog walking on street; brought by in police who said that the dog was easily leashed Subjective: little shy; hesitant to come out of cage; bright and alert Observed Behavior - comes up to outreached palm; easily scratched ears but does not seek; PE easily done with minimal restraint Evidence of Cruelty seen - none Evidence of Trauma seen - none Objective P = 120hr R = 40 BCS 6/9 EENT: Eyes clear, ears clean, no nasal or ocular discharge noted Oral Exam: mild to moderate dental tartar PLN: No enlargements noted H/L: NSR, NMA, CRT < 2, Lungs clear, eupnic ABD: Non painful, no masses palpated U/G: MI with 2 down MSI: Ambulatory x 4, skin free of parasites, no masses noted, healthy hair coat CNS: Mentation appropriate - no signs of neurologic abnormalities Assessment apparently healthy Prognosis: good SURGERY: Okay for surgery * TO FOSTER OR ADOPT * If you would like to adopt a NYC ACC dog, and can get to the shelter in person to complete the adoption process, you can contact the shelter directly. We have provided the Brooklyn, Staten Island and Manhattan information below. Adoption hours at these facilities is Noon – 8:00 p.m. (6:30 on weekends) If you CANNOT get to the shelter in person and you want to FOSTER OR ADOPT a NYC ACC Dog, you can PRIVATE MESSAGE our Must Love Dogs page for assistance. PLEASE NOTE: You MUST live in NY, NJ, PA, CT, RI, DE, MD, MA, NH, VT, ME or Northern VA. You will need to fill out applications with a New Hope Rescue Partner to foster or adopt a NYC ACC dog. Transport is available if you live within the prescribed range of states. Shelter contact information: Phone number (212) 788-4000 Email adopt@nycacc.org Shelter Addresses: Brooklyn Shelter: 2336 Linden Boulevard Brooklyn, NY 11208 Manhattan Shelter: 326 East 110 St. New York, NY 10029 Staten Island Shelter: 3139 Veterans Road West Staten Island, NY 10309 * NEW NYC ACC RATING SYSTEM * Level 1 Dogs with Level 1 determinations are suitable for the majority of homes. These dogs are not displaying concerning behaviors in shelter, and the owner surrender profile (where available) is positive. Level 2 Dogs with Level 2 determinations will be suitable for adopters with some previous dog experience. They will have displayed behavior in the shelter (or have owner reported behavior) that requires some training, or is simply not suitable for an adopter with minimal experience. Level 3 Dogs with Level 3 determinations will need to go to homes with experienced adopters, and the ACC strongly suggest that the adopter have prior experience with the challenges described and/or an understanding of the challenge and how to manage it safely in a home environment. In many cases, a trainer will be needed to manage and work on the behaviors safely in a home environment.

[vehementdaze]

Grief manifests

In sudden places, like rain in a desert sky

Heartbreak had ruled my world until I hit rock bottom and my father pulled me out of it by a yank of my arm.

Love had found me and essentially broke me down, and that brought me to an ultimate low. My father, Sergio, had to pay off a girl’s family when I had fought her in a club during the family’s vacation. I was arrested, and it took months for the charge to fall off my name as the family purposely didn’t want to settle.

It was possible that the girl’s family was exaggerating the issues when she had brought it upon herself, in my opinion. The fight happened during the summer her heart was broken. When her friend finally happened across a man she was interested in, another girl was constantly attempting to get between them. Quite literally.

My irritation with the girl grew with every attempt made. Until I finally snapped and threw a punch at the girl one night.

Sergio rambled for hours on end that I had to grow up and invest in the family business. Or I was going to have to wander off, party and get into trouble on her own. The latter meaning he wasn’t going to the rescue any longer.

That’s when I decided to dive into the business with him.

Immediate downpour from a blue span:

For years, the family had been producing cocaine in Mexico. It was safer than production in the States, also less expensive to a degree. The warehouse where it was produced and the ship it was boarded in to get to Cali was connected. Both under a fake name that was meant for my mother; sure, enough digging would bring my mother down, but no one cared about that. Not even my mom.

I attended many business meetings. Sergio assigned all business dealings with Cuba over to me. Cuba was mine, and I was in charge of production.

Over time, the realization came that production was not enough if the business was going to grow. I needed to purchase another warehouse on the island to increase the production and the sells of their cocaine. However, my father wouldn’t let me.

No, Sergio insisted on making a deal with another family. This other family, the Castillo’s, wanted millions of dollars in exchange for their cocaine that was 80 percent purity. I was against the deal. However, the underlying agreement was that the Busquets could not have any other cocaine except for the Castillo’s.

Strong enough to carve boulders in two,

The agreement made with the Castillo Family caused arguments with myself and Sergio. I knew it was a bad idea to converse with that family as they want their cocaine to be the only supply we were leaning on. But that was never going to be the case. Sergio had no plans of stopping production. He needed more; maybe that was his flaw, his greed.

“God, you are so stupid!” I shouted at my father from across the way of the foyer. Sergio entered the mansion a moment prior; he had been out on business that called for meeting with the head of the Castillo’s. “I hope you told them we are retracting the agreement!” I exclaimed the words. High heels clicking against the marble floors with each step I took to my father.

I was visiting my parents’ home. I knew Sergio had been out, having told me he didn’t want me along for the meeting. I spent the time with my mother, Emilia.

The two of us were mostly civil for a mother and daughter pair that did not have much in common. Emilia was stuck in a marriage with a man she never loved. She was a gold digger, only wanting Sergio for his money. When she had found out she was pregnant with me, the woman stayed and married him because she knew the kind of lifestyle both her and her child could have. But then she cheated a couple years after I was born. That was when Jocelyn came along.

While he had taken care of Jocelyn, Sergio certainly favored me; Emilia favoring Jocelyn. And, for the most part, that was okay. Jocelyn had a better childhood as the parents made sure to never fight in front of her. Emilia seemed to care for Joce more, and that, along with me being the only true child of Sergio, allowed her to slip under their noses a lot while the kids grew up.

Emilia quickly followed me from the kitchen to the foyer where I was yelling at my father. “Camilla,” the woman spoke in a soft voice. Footsteps halting when I stopped several feet shy of Sergio, Emilia standing less than a foot behind me.

“I should have never gave you Mexico,” Sergio huffed, shaking just head as he voiced his regrets to his child. The dress shoes he wore sounded against the floor as he moved towards the staircase. “You’re going to screw up the whole business, our whole fucking name when you’re in charge! Go sit back at the table in there and let your mother feed you. I’ll handle the business.”

It was an insult for being a child. Also a reason I disliked my father. “Camilla, honey. Calm down and let’s go out,” my mother piped up as Sergio gestured to the two of us with a swift wave of his hand before he turned and headed up the staircase. I was speechless, unsure of what to say next. After all, I was a disappointment to him.

I had backed down to my father then, leaving the home with my mother. We went shopping at the local mall. My eyebrows remained furrowed as my frustration over the entire Mexico and cocaine ordeal was still there, lingering within me. Emilia catching onto that after the second store they visited. She turning to me, reaching a hand up to soothingly rub over my bicep. The action earning her a glare. “I’m sorry. I can’t do this shit with you either,” I snapped. The pressure my parents were putting on me finally was getting to me.

“Why are you here? Why are you pretending to love me, pretending you’re happy?” I swiftly spun around to exclaim at her. Frustration leaking from me. “You married your fucking sugar daddy and you want me to calm down over /actual/ business? Have you even worked a day in your life? And I don’t mean lying on your fucking back!”

Without another word, I left her standing there speechless in the middle of the mall. Other people were staring but I couldn’t care; I was leaving, retrieving my cell phone to call for a driver to pick me up.

Cactus choking down water, drenched spines drowner’s arms

No changes were made in Mexico. While I stayed in California, my cousin stayed behind to ensure production ran smoothly. Vanessa, the cousin, wasn’t even made aware of the agreement with another family when the warehouse was ambushed.

The meeting Sergio had a week prior? That meeting was the acknowledgment of Mexico continuing production. Sergio was told to cut it off; there was a threat, but it was unknown. That is until the warehouse was raided. Vanessa was mildlyinjured, as well as several other workers. Five lives were lost, all because of greed.

“We cannot stop! We need the coke,” Sergio spoke in a firm tone. Turning to his niece, he pressed on a soft smile. Vanessa had several cuts and bruises from the raid but she still gave the man a decent smile, which made his tone soften for her. “Replace the lost workers. Continue on.”

“Are you serious?” I exclaimed. For months, Mexico and cocaine was on my plate, making me crazy. That frustration continued to boil inside of me. “Do you really think no more lives are going to be lost?” My heart ached for those families that had now lost someone they loved.

The older man shook his head in disapproval, even releasing a humorless chuckle. “Hopefully you will learn from all this. Sometimes loss is necessary.”

And that? That was all I needed to hear from him. I wasn’t even sure of who the man was anymore. Was that really my father?

The sunlight. Over.

Weeks had gone by before anything happened. Cocaine continued to flow from Mexico to South Cali, Sergio was a cocky shit, my mother bought me gifts in an effort to get my attention. Emilia only wanted to show affection to me when Jocelyn wasn’t around. And, while my sister deserved all the love the world had to offer, I never wanted to fill that void. And I felt that I never really could.

Weeks passed until it happened.

They owned a home on the island, many miles away from the warehouse. It was a small town version of the vacation home in Florida. Emilia strode through the foyer, the front door being left wide open as she made her way to the kitchen. “Camilla, honey!” She called out.

It was breakfast; my father and I silently eating eggs and bacon at the counter of the island bar. Both turned our hazel eyes onto the woman entering. Emilia had a brilliant smile over her lips. “Come see who I have found! You will never guess!” Excitement was written clear as day across her features.

We were visiting for a couple days to spend time with the other members of the family that lived on the island. Emilia was almost always clueless when it came to how important safety was to us, especially when someone was out for our heads. My father and I exchanged confused looks before we abandoned the food to follow the woman into the foyer.

“I went to school with Kimberly. She moved out here years ago and I just ran into her at the fish market!” Emilia squealed with so much excitement. My eyebrows furrowed. It had been so long since I had seen such enthusiasm from my mother for anything than wasn’t clothing or shoes. “She—”

It was all the woman got out. I stepped forward, entering the small area of the foyer; Sergio two steps behind me. At that same instant, the sound of a gun going off was heard. Emilia made an attempt to spin around and face us when she tried to speak again. Only that one word left her before she collapsed. The bullet piercing her forehead and colliding with a picture hanging on the wall a couple feet from where I stood. The glass covering the photo cracked with the impact of the bullet.

I couldn’t process anything. Everything happened in slow motion. There was someone standing in the threshold of the entrance of the home but, before I could tear her gaze away from my mother, the person was gone. Sergio was the first to react, pushing me a step over to rush passed me. It was his attempt to run after the culprit.

My focus was on my mother after that split second of a lifted gaze. Emilia was beautiful, certainly my sister and I had gotten their beauty from her. She was in her late forties with no grays, no sign of wrinkles forming. But now? Emilia’s forehead had a hole, blood continuously flowing from the wound. I knew there was nothing that could be done. Maybe that was why I was frozen, standing there. Watching her only existence left to the world pour from her injury.

Tears welled in my eyes. My father did this... His greed killed her. And, while I didn’t always get along with the woman, while I craved a completely different lifestyle than her, I still loved her. And I watched her take her last breath, say her last words.

Moisture sucked already into forgetful earth.

She was dead.

The pain of it didn’t register. My entire body was numb to it. I wasn’t even sure if I was blinking. Was it all a daze? Was it even real?

[jarienn972]

The Right Place - Chapter 14

Finally back with an update on The Right Place! I had more challenges getting this chapter to come out the way I wanted but after changing a few things, it is done. This new chapter opens back in Storybrooke with Regina and Henry and gives an answer to a question that came up much earlier in the story - was Ursula really involved in Killian's rescue or did he hallucinate it?   It also becomes apparent that our poor pirate is getting a little cabin fever.

From the beginning on Tumblr: Prologue/1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13

Also on FF.net and AO3

Wednesday Evening, Storybrooke, Maine

Deep beneath the town's cemetery, Regina admitted to herself that she'd lost track of time. Down here amidst the flickering of candlelight, the setting sun wasn't visible to alert her to evening's onset, not that she was going to be deterred by nightfall. She knew that damned shell was here somewhere; she'd tossed it down here herself when Ursula left town years ago with her father, Poseidon. She didn't figure she'd ever have reason to use it again. Of course, things had also gotten a little mixed up when her evil half had been utilizing the vault as well and while her intent had been to reorganize and return everything to its proper place, she hadn't really had the time. After defeating the Evil Queen and sending her off to another realm, the Black Fairy had descended upon them almost immediately.

Never a dull moment around here, that was certain.

"Any luck, Mom?" Henry asked as he reached the bottom step of the stone staircase.

"Not yet, but there are still a couple of chests I haven't gotten to yet."

"Well, I've finished all of today's homework and my make-up work. Can I help you out?" he offered.

"I would appreciate it. I didn't think it would be possible to lose a giant conch shell down here, but the Evil Queen moved some things around and I haven't found time to put everything back in order."

"Where should I start?" Henry wondered, glancing around the vault until his mother pointed him in the direction of two dusty steamer trunks stacked against the earthen wall to the left of the stairs.

"I haven't been through those two yet," she informed him. "Why don't you start with those while I go through this last one over here?"

"Sure. It shouldn't be too hard to tell if a large seashell is inside…"

"You'd be surprised…" Regina muttered under her breath, not wanting Henry to hear.

"Mom sent me a text a little while ago," Henry began as he flipped open the latch on the top trunk, brushing away the cobwebs as he raised the lid. "She said Killian might be released from the hospital on Friday."

"That's good news," Regina replied half-heartedly. "Just be careful around those. Most of that dust is older than you."

"If that's true, then the shell probably wouldn't be in here, would it?" he queried, holding back a sneeze at the cloud of dust particles he'd stirred up just lifting the lid.

"True," was her blunt answer as she realized that she hadn't put the shell into a trunk that she hadn't opened in decades. "Forget about those and come over here. I could use your help with something…"

"Sure," Henry responded, lowering the lid slowly to prevent another dust cloud and replacing the latch before he met his mother on the opposite side of her vault. "What do you need me to do?"

"Help me move this table," she instructed. "I'd almost forgotten about this…" The placed her hands atop a heavy walnut table that was draped with a regal purple and gold cloth and with Henry's help, they moved the table aside to reveal a two foot by three foot woven woolen rug that matched the colors in the tablecloth. "I stashed a few items down here after we learned that my evil half wasn't actually dead, things I didn't want her to get her hands on and since I was convinced she wouldn't harm you, I sealed it with a lock only you could open."

"Me?"

"Who better?" she countered as she rolled away the rug, revealing what appeared to be a metal trap door. "I don't think she ever found this, but either way, only your touch can release the seal, Henry."

"Okay... What do I need to do?"

"Just press your right hand down onto the metal plate and it should pop open."

"Okay…" he repeated as he lowered his palm onto the metal and pushed down. A few sparks flew into the air as the seal released and then the door snapped back against his hand before sliding aside. "Cool!"

"Cool indeed," Regina grinned as she reached inside the trap door and retrieved the conch shell from her secret cache. "I guess I put it in here so that Queenie couldn't contact the Sea Witch, not that she really seemed concerned with aligning herself to anyone besides Zelena, Hyde and Gold."

"So how to we summon Ursula with it?" Henry asked while Regina began extinguishing candles with a flick of her wrist.

"It works pretty much like a trumpet and once we sound the horn, the Sea Witch should appear," she replied, giving her son a gentle push toward the stairs. "Let's get back above ground and I'll show you."

She followed Henry up the stairs and out of the mausoleum, traversing the cemetery grounds to the park before stopping to summon Ursula. Raising the shell to her lips, she blew through it, releasing a sound that wouldn't exactly be described as melodious, but it wasn't as though she were using the shell for its musical qualities. She just needed it to garner the attentions of the Sea Witch herself.

"Regina? Can't say I was expecting you to the be the one summoning me at this hour," Ursula stated as she appeared behind the pair in her fully human form.

"Hello, Ursula," Regina greeted her former ally. "Can't say that summoning you was ever in my plans either but I'm doing it on behalf of a friend…"

"Really?" Ursula questioned Regina's intentions. "A friend asked you to contact me? Whatever for?"

"Well, why don't you tell me – did you really rescue Captain Hook from drowning off the coast of Portland a couple of days ago?" Regina asked directly.

"This is about Hook?" the Sea Witch chuckled. "You summoned me to ask about Captain Hook? Do I even want to know what tall tales he's been telling or how drunk he was?"

"The only tall tale he's telling is that you plucked him out of the water and tossed him onto a beach – and that was of course once he was finally able to tell us…" Regina clarified her prior question with the story that had been relayed to her.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ursula demanded. "Yes – I rescued the pirate. Found him nearly-drowned, bobbing in the open ocean so I picked him up and deposited his soggy, probably drunken ass on the nearest beach. I figured once he got dried out and sobered up, he'd walk himself over to the ferry terminal to call his lovely wife…"

"I'm sure if this had been normal circumstances and he had been just a little tipsy, he'd have done just that, but it seems your little fishy senses were off. You didn't happen to notice that he's been stabbed?" Regina just threw it out there, not really caring if she offended Ursula.

"Stabbed?" Ursula's demeanor changed almost instantly. "What do you mean he was stabbed? I found him in the water and assumed he'd fallen overboard or something."

"Unfortunately, the situation was a lot more serious. He was rescued later when a couple of fishermen found him on that beach, but he lay unconscious in a hospital bed for two days because Portland authorities couldn't identify him or figure out how he got onto the beach and no one here knew where he was."

"What a mess she created…" Ursula sighed, her cryptic comment confusing both Regina and Henry. "Is there somewhere we can talk that's a little warmer perhaps? I prefer not to have detailed conversations in dark, dreary cemeteries."

"How about we move to my office?" Regina suggested. Ursula and Henry both nodded in agreement, happy to move this little reunion indoors as the evening chill set in. With a flick of her wrist, she whisked them all to the relative warmth of her office, shrugging off her coat and tossing it atop her desk upon arrival. "How's this?"

"Much better," Ursula replied with a grin, flopping dramatically into one of the two padded arm chairs placed in front of Regina's desk.

"Now that you've made yourself comfortable, how about we discuss what you said before I brought us all here. You said something about a mess someone created?" Regina questioned.

"I probably shouldn't have opened my big mouth back there in the graveyard," Ursula replied disgustedly.

"A little late for that," Regina reminded the Sea Witch. "So, why don't you tell us who you were talking about and what the hell it has to do with Hook?"

"The 'who' would be my niece, Tempest," Ursula stated. "Ever since Father allowed her to start testing her powers, she's been out of control."

"Didn't know you had a niece." Regina wondered how many other little demi-gods might be running around out there.

"The family history is a bit muddled, but suffice it to say she's my sister's kid – born with the ability to control the winds. She loves to toy with ships out on the open seas, blowing up rogue storms and endangering a whole lot of human lives. My father doesn't seem bothered by her actions, but then you know his opinion on humans, considering he once used my voice to lure unsuspecting sailors to their deaths. It really didn't come as a surprise."

"Okay, so your niece likes to make it really windy and endanger ships," Regina said snidely. "Can we skip to the part that involves Hook?"

"I wasn't aware that Tempest had ventured into the Land Without Magic until recently," Ursula began. "I'd just rescued a young mermaid who'd managed to get herself ensnared in a fishing net when I spotted a cloaked vessel, the Jolly Roger, anchored off an island south of here. I went aboard in search of her Captain but all I found on deck was a frayed rope, a damaged sail and in the Captain's quarters, a shiny steel hook. It didn't take much to put two and two together and figure that Tempest was involved so I went looking for him."

"You said the ship was already anchored so what made you think your niece was involved?"

"The damaged sail was a pretty good indication," Ursula responded. "I figured he anchored near the closest harbor and took the rowboat to shore. Maybe the dinghy got upended before he reached land or he got blown further offshore than he expected and he ended up in the water. Either way, a tracking spell led me to the pirate and I pulled him out of the water. Simple as that."

"Except for that bleeding out complication," Regina reminded her. "Well, at least now it makes more sense how he managed to sail so far south that quickly."

"So, where's the pirate now?" the Sea Witch asked.

"He's still hospitalized in Portland," Regina explained. "By the sound of it, he'll be there at least a few more days since Emma can't exactly magically heal his injuries outside of Storybrooke. She's also working with the local authorities trying to find and capture the men who attacked him."

"Sounds like our dear Captain had quite the eventful day," Ursula mused as she stood, her expression almost apologetic when faced with the revelation of what she'd overlooked. She'd hardly consider Captain Hook to be a friend, but they'd mended their terse past so she didn't count him among her enemies any longer either. She'd no obligation to search for the pirate or to rescue him before he drowned, but she'd felt it was the right thing to do. Damned heroes had gotten under her skin too but how had she not noticed he was bleeding? He couldn't have been in the water long though or he would have had predators all over him. "Is there anything I can do?"

"You may want to talk to Emma about that," Regina suggested. "She probably isn't going anywhere for a few more days."

"Is there a way to magically repair the Jolly Roger so we can bring her back to Storybrooke?" Henry jumped into the conversation with his question after listening silently for long enough. "Killian won't be able to finish the sail repair easily with his injuries and even if Mom brings him back home first to heal him, they'd still have to find a way back out to the ship without being noticed. And how long does a cloaking spell work anyway? What if someone discovers the ship?"

"Slow down, young man," Ursula replied. "I believe I can be of assistance there, but I'd like to speak to your mother, the sheriff, first. Can you relay a message to her that I'll meet her tomorrow in Portland at the harbor front park? I'll be there at sunset."

"I'll let her know right now," Henry stated, digging his cell phone from his interior jacket pocket. "She'll be happy to meet with you."

"For some reason, I doubt that," Ursula replied with a sigh. If this feeling of regret was what heroes had to go through all the time, she'd much rather be a villain.

Thursday morning, Portland Medical Center

The first thing Emma recalled hearing that morning was an ear-piercing screech followed by a muttering of curse words. Raising her head from the pillow, she brushed a curtain of unruly blonde locks away from her face so she could get a better view of what was occurring just a few feet away from her. As her eyes adjusted to the light, she could make out her husband standing next to the bed, fully clothed save for his socks and boots, although she could see that one of those black leather boots was clutched in his hand. The other half of the pair had apparently fallen onto the floor, ending up beneath the nightstand and as she put the pieces together, she realized that the screeching sound that awakened her had come from his attempt to move said stand to retrieve his footwear himself. His pursuit of stealth had failed miserably and now he knew he had his wife staring at him wondering what the hell he was doing.

"Killian?" she asked, still groggy with sleep as she tried to figure out why her husband would have put on jeans and why he was standing before her with his boot gripped in his hand. "What's going on? And why are you dressed?"

"Apologies, Love. I didn't mean to wake you," he replied with a sheepish grin, well aware that as soon as she was completely awake and alert, his actions would be abundantly clear. He lowered himself back down atop the bed with a defeated sigh, placing the boot beside him, next to his navy blue woolen socks. Emma shifted on the cot, pushing herself upright as she shrugged off the drowsiness, a frown scrunching her features.

"I can tell you weren't planning to wake me," she began as she figured out what he was up to. "Just where were you planning on going?"

"You and the two local officers, you're intending to locate and possibly question the Toliver brothers who accosted me and I intend to go with you."

Now she was definitely awake.

"Killian, you haven't been given the okay to be discharged yet. We were told maybe tomorrow…"

"I have spent more than enough time sequestered in this little room. I'm perfectly fine. A little sore perhaps, but well enough to accompany you today and then preferably return home by tomorrow if we're able to apprehend Mr. Donleavy and his accomplices."

"So, you just decided to wake up, get dressed and assume that I'd agree to all of this when I woke up?"

"Perhaps," he responded with a shrug. "I would have already completed the task of getting myself dressed had I not dropped my boot while reaching for my socks. I didn't expect that this metal cabinet to make such a horrendous noise when I tried to move it aside."

"That's what you get for trying to be sneaky," she scolded him, scowling as she stood up, took two steps over to the nightstand and dropped to a knee next to the cabinet. "We could have discussed this together."

"Ah, yes," he rebutted. "Just as we're 'discussing' it now. Clearly, you disagree with my decision, but it is still my decision and I wish to leave this place today so I can assist in the apprehension of my attackers. If our positions were reversed, you'd be asking for the same courtesy."

Emma remained silent as she reached beneath the nightstand and grasped his boot, using the cabinet to help balance as she pushed herself back to her feet. She handed the boot to her slightly irritated husband who tossed the pair to the foot of the bed in disgust. He shifted his weight back against the pillows once again, angry that his wife wouldn't listen to his argument. This was clearly where he was expected to stay for at least another day so he might as well try to get comfortable. Emma's demeanor softened as she recognized the dejected cast to his gaze.

"You really want out of there that badly?" she asked as she plunked her backside onto the bed next to him, her eyes locked on the floor as she wasn't yet ready to meet his.

"Aye," was his only response.

"Okay," she relented, lifting her gaze to the ceiling while shaking her head in disbelief that she was agreeing to this. "We'll tell the doctor that we've made arrangements with Whale to take over your treatment back home where we have family and friends to help us out. I'm sure Whale will agree to go along with it with the right persuasion. And you can go with me today on one condition – you stay in the car. No matter whose car we use, you stay put. I can't concentrate on the investigation if I have to keep an eye on you too."

"I can take care of myself," he assured her.

"Oh, I can see that. It's how you ended up here in the first place, but I'm not questioning why you did the things you did. You were doing exactly what any hero would do. So, you stay in the car. No arguments. Until I can get you across the town line and healed, I don't want you over-exerting yourself. Your lungs are still compromised from nearly drowning and you do have a hole through your chest."

"Agreed," he responded without hesitation.

"Alright then, let me get dressed and we'll go track down a nurse to explain your decision. They're probably not going to be too happy with it…"

"Likely not," Killian replied with a smirk.

"Almost certainly not," Emma sighed, now noticing the blinking light on her cell phone resting atop the same nightstand that had started all of this. She lifted the phone to see what messages she'd received. "There's a text here from Regina," she explained. "Came in some time last night. Wonder why I didn't see it… Anyway, she was able to summon Ursula and the Sea Witch wants to meet with me – well, us I guess, at the harbor park at sunset. I guess she's going to help us get the Jolly Roger back to Storybrooke."

"I'd prefer to sail her back myself, but I'll gladly accept her assistance at this time."

"Sounds like a good idea. Now, I'm going to take a quick shower and try to figure out how to convince hospital staff that you're making the right decision…"

[gnomesagetion]

Missing Gears Chapter 1

Things always go wrong when something good happens. For example: The Thunderbirds were just starting up when Gordon Tracy was the only survivor of a holfoil crash. An engagement of a Tracy son and an ex FBI agent when someone is out to get International Rescue. But sometimes good things come from the bad things in our lives.

Read on: Fanfiction.Net AO3 Wattpad

Naomi and Virgil stood hand in hand outside a church in Matamata, New Zealand. Three weeks earlier Virgil had proposed to Naomi at a New Year’s party with her old team at the FBI. Three days later they had decided that they wanted to get married at Naomi’s old church in her hometown. A week after that, Naomi had started packing her stuff for her move to Tracy Island. Although Jeff Tracy had told the couple that he was perfectly fine with Virgil moving back to America to live with his soon to be wife, both Naomi and Virgil wanted to live on the island. So that Virgil could continue working for International Rescue. So that Naomi could join International Rescue.

“You okay Nomey?” Virgil asked his fiancé “Yeah. Just nervous. I haven’t been here for over 20 years. I don’t even remember who was running the office,” “You were barely six when you left,” “Yeah. And I barely remember anyone from here. And like 60% of the church was at the funeral,” “So let’s get this over and done with,” “Yeah,”

Naomi knocked on the office door. A short women opened it. She looked very familiar to Naomi “Hi, can I help you?” She asks “Um… Hi, I’m Naomi Winchester and this is my fiancé Virgil Tracy. We were wondering if we could have our wedding here,” “Come on in, I’ll see what I can do,” The women showed the couple into the office “I’m Philippa Winchester by the way,” Naomi laughed a little. “I think my cousin on my dad’s side has a wife called Philippa,” She explained “It’s not every day this sort of thing happens,” “What’s your cousin’s name?” “Err… It can’t be Nat or Theo because I know for certain they’re still bachelors. Maru is who knows where doing who knows what. Brian, David and Kelvin all have a different last names. Anthony lives in Rotorua while Jeremy is in Wellington. So that leaves Sam and Matthew,” Naomi counts on her fingers “I think its Matt but I can’t be sure. I haven’t seen any of my cousins since I was like six,” “So you’re the cousin who moved to America,” “Yeah. Wow. Are you and Matt living here?” “On a farm out on Taihou South,” “Cool,” “Anyway, besides the mini family reunion, you two want to get married here,” “Yeah. Naomi grew up here and we thought it would be nice if we married in Naomi’s hometown,” “So what date are you thinking about?” Philippa asked, logging onto the computer. “We haven’t…” “July 14th,” Virgil interrupted “No more tears of sadness,” “A winter wedding?” “Why not?” “You just want it to be easier to remember my birthday,” Naomi bantered with her fiancé playfully “Have I ever forgotten your birthday?” “No. But your brother has,” “So we have nothing planned or booked on Wednesday 14th July this year, would you like us to book you in for the day?” Philippa asked “Yes please,” Naomi and Virgil said in union. A tall boy walked through the door. “Hey Mum,” He looked up and saw the two visitors in the office. “Caleb, this is your dad’s cousin Naomi and her fiancé Virgil,” Philippa told her son “They’re planning to have their wedding here in Matamata,” “Hey,” Naomi said “Nice to meet you,” “You too,” Caleb said “I’m going to Uncle Sam’s now Mum. I’ll be back on Thursday,” “Okay. See you then,” Naomi sighed. “I completely forgot how many people there are on my dad’s side,” “Well the church will be big enough for the whole family,” Philippa told the couple “That’s true,” Naomi agreed “So anything else we need to do before we leave?” “Yeah, just your address and payment details,” Philippa told the couple. Virgil grabbed the pen and paper. “Remember most of the payment for the wedding is coming from my bank account,” “I’ll pay for the venue – you save it for the dress,” Naomi rolled her eyes. “Okay, I’ll contact you guys later with more details,” “Thanks Philippa,” Naomi told her cousin’s wife “No problem. But don’t be surprised if you get a wedding present from the church,” The three adults laughed. “See you around,” Virgil said “We’ve got a few more jobs to do before we head home tomorrow,” “Of course, I won’t keep you any longer,”

15 minutes later, Naomi pulled into a driveway. A blue letter box stood on a wooden post at one end. At the other end, an old house from the 1970s stood. “Welcome to the Winchester farm,” She told her fiancé “My childhood home,” “It’s beautiful,” “For an old house. That my dad helped to build when he was nine,” Naomi said “That shed must have been put up after I left though. I don’t remember that being there,” “I think we should go talk to the occupants, they must be wondering whose car this is,” Virgil suggested. “Good idea,” They got out of the car and went up the concrete steps. They walked along a path to a set of orange wooden steps. “My poppa made these before he died,” Naomi explained “The only way down before these were made were the steps on the other side and the front porch,” “You really remember all that?” “Of course I do. I always was a bright kid,” Naomi took a deep breath and knocked on the front door. A teenage girl opened the door. “Can I help you?” “Um Hi, I’m Naomi. This is my fiancé, Virgil, are your parents’ home?” “Yeah,” The girl answers “Mum! Someone’s at the door for you!” An older women appeared. “Hi, you must be the landlord’s niece,” The women said “I’m Kristen Jones, we’re renting the house at the moment,” “I’m Naomi Winchester, this is my fiancé, Virgil,” Naomi introduced herself and the middle Tracy. “Come on in,” Kristen said.

Kristen handed Naomi a glass of water and Virgil a cup of coffee. “Congratulations on your engagement,” She told the couple “So when’s the wedding,” “July 14th,” Naomi told the women “We’re having it at the bible church in town and we were wondering if we could use the house for the night since neither one of us own property here in New Zealand,” “Well we’re on holiday in Australia at that time so feel free to use it for a week if you need to,” Kristen said “Mr Turner explained the situation to us over the phone a few days ago,” “Thank you so much Kristen,” Virgil smiled “This means a lot to us,” “No problem,” “We’ve got the wedding venue done as well as a place to stay. Still need to worry about the cake, catering, the dress and the people in the wedding party and people invited,” “I’ve got a friend who does catering, I’ll give you her number,” Kristen said, writing down a number on her notepad “Just tell her that Kristen Jones gave you the number,” “Thank you again Kristen,” Naomi said, handing over a card “Here’s my number if something crops up. Obviously I don’t work for the FBI anymore,” “Thanks, I hope you two can get everything ready in time for your wedding,”

Cameron Muter sat in his apartment, reading the latest issue of New Life. The cover story was the announcement of Virgil Tracy and Naomi Winchester’s engagement. While the news of their engagement had been released some weeks prior by The Maze, the Tracy family had only just officially confirmed the fact. It had a photo of the middle Tracy son holding his bride-to-be gently. He had extra reason to. The lucky girl’s right arm was in a dark blue sling. The article stated that the 29 year old had recently been caught in crossfire while saving the fourth Tracy son. Cameron sighed. It would have been better if that Tracy had died when he was supposed to. It would have meant that the Tracy family would have to go through even more pain that they were originally going to go through. Because of the red haired son, Jeff Tracy was going to have to watch his first daughter-in-law perish alongside all of his sons. Cameron picked up his phone and dialled the number at the top of his contacts list. His only contact. “Good evening sir, I’m afraid to report that this time, it seems, that the rumours of a Tracy bride were true,”

[mdwatchestv]

Game of Thrones 7x06: Run Joe, Run

Woo boy that was A LOT. Like a lot, a lot. In so many different ways. I would even go so far as to describe some elements as 'extra'. Yes there was excitement, action, and feels. I even admit to screaming bloody murder when the zombie bear came from a direction I didn't expect. But when all was said and done I couldn't help but feel a bit...used. This season, although boasting some great moments, has felt undeniably different than previous years. Instead of focussing on building out a world and the characters that inhabit it, the show is now rocketing towards a foregone conclusion. If the world of Game of Thrones is a chess board and we have spent the past several years watching knights and queens slowly slide around the squares jockeying for position, this season is the equivalent of knocking it all to the ground and letting the pieces literally fall where they may. Alternatively, if the world of Game of Thrones was a high-end Barbie collector's basement, this is the season his eight-year-old niece broke in, ripped 1993 Holiday Barbie out of her box and made her make out with 1960 1st edition Ken. And neither of those things are inherently bad, playing with dolls and knocking a boring game on the floor are both entertaining in and of themselves, but they are also a departure from what we have come to expect.

Before this season I never thought about things like "Wait- how many long miles IS Westeros? What is the land speed of a laden Raven? What's the MPH on a dragon? How long by air? How long by sea?" I wasn't worried about the logistics, the tech specs. We had other things to worry about, like battle strategies, familial strain, and tyrannical kings. But now it feels as if the curtain is starting to be pulled aside and we are for the first time seeing the mechanics at work behind the scenes. While there were thrills to be had in this super-sized penultimate outing of season seven, they came at a price. In the after-episode special Benioff and Weiss openly admitted to essentially reverse-engineering the entire episode in order to get the final shock of zombie dragon, rather than letting it be the consequence of an organic series of events. One of the reasons Game of Thrones works so well is that consequences, even the upsetting ones, feel earned. The Red Wedding, for example, tragic as it was, was ultimately palatable because it made sense in the larger story. It was the tangible result of a series of connectable actions, not a gambit for ratings. Often the killing of beloved characters leads fan to become disillusioned with a show because it's done in the service of shock value, rather than organic storytelling. But as major characters drop on Game of Thrones, it only acts to draw the audience in further because it’s done in a way that rewards previous storytelling. The idea that characters are existing in a real world with real stakes and consequences is compelling and rare. Up until this season Game of Thrones never had characters rendered immortal by their series regular contracts, or even clear-cut heroes and villains. Yes, we root for different characters and houses, but at this point no one has a clean moral conscious. Those qualities are exactly what made Game of Thrones so good, and what it is seemingly starting to lose.  It's worth pointing out that up until recently the show has had source material to rely on for guidance, and is now having to pick it's own path to the end. Viewer’s theories about the show’s endgame have become increasingly out there, perhaps in response to a world where outcome is not necessarily determined by prior events. For better or worse, anything is possible. 

This episode was some moments of interest strung together with moments of "what?!?!?". Let's begin. ZARTF (Zombie Acquisition and Retrieval Task Force), as well as a few randos clearly marked for death, sally forth into the north. This whole episode gave me greatest hits of Lord of the Rings vibes, including "walking in a straight line across a mountain", "being rescued by a giant winged beast at the last second", and "rolling up half dead on a horse". I really gotta carve out 10 hours to rewatch those. To pass the time tromping through the snow our seven "heroes" try and work through their daddy issues (a little late imo), and Jon makes a half-assed attempt to give Longclaw back to Jorah (conveniently failing to mention it's like the only thing that kills White Walkers). The first sign of trouble comes when the group is set upon by a zombie bear! You hate to see that. Some of the red shirts are killed, Top Knot McGillicutty is wounded, and Jorah saves the day with his dragon glass dagger. Which I guess they all have? Or just Jorah? Unclear. This scene is what we like to call in the biz a foreshadowing.

Meanwhile in Dragonstone Dany is mooning over Jon Snow, even though he is a short stack (he IS super little) and ignores Tyrion who is attempting to invent democracy. In their exchange it's reiterated that Dany can never have babies (beyond her dragon babies), making a potential hold on the Iron Throne tenuous at best (Jon is still the *true* heir, but doesn't seem like Bran is going to tell anyone that anytime soon). Dany would rather not talk about any of that though, and would rather crush/not crush on the King of the Short. Speaking of women on the edge, the Sisters Stark are also failing to see eye to eye. After discovering Arya's BAG OF FACES (I have so many questions about the logistics of face wearing, but I am simply too tired to get into it), Sansa is understandably concerned. These concerns are heightened when creepy-ass Arya pops in to play a decidedly threatening game of questions. Arya seems to think Sansa is out to usurp Jon because she is a Cersei-in-training. Sansa thinks Arya is a terrifying demon child. This is a relationship that has also become frustrating centering around a conflict that doesn't ring true. While it's true that Arya and Sansa have become very different young women, there is more that unites than divides them at this point and Arya's extreme aggression towards her sister feels unwarranted. The core characteristic of the Stark family is that they ARE the Stark family. Arya put aside her dreams of Cersei killing in order to reclaim her heritage, and with the pack dwindling the remaining wolves have to stick together now more than ever. Both of these women have been through extreme trauma, both of them have had to make unthinkable choices in order to survive, and both of them have been continually underestimated by their male cohorts. I'm not saying this is a relationship that should not be without conflict, but their animosity lacks nuance. Granted this show doesn't have a lot of experience with complicated female relationships, but Sansa and Arya attempting to reconnect as complex young women in a time of crisis feels like a real missed opportunity.

And I have seen the Twitter theories that say that the two girls are gaming Littlefinger together, that Sansa sending Brienne away (to an I think prematurely scheduled zombie viewing) right after Littlefinger advised her to use Brienne against Arya is concrete proof. As much as I hope this is all true, it just doesn't seem likely at this point. But maybe Sansa's bizarrely abrupt send off of her last loyal subject really was a clue to a larger plot, or maybe it's just an excuse to put Brienne back in Jaime's path to give him a last second shot of moral obligation. I would love nothing more for my pessimistic theories surrounding two of my long time favs to be proven wrong. These two characters, no matter their ultimate fate, deserve the chance at a final team up.

Back up north, our band of brothers conveniently stumble upon a manageable squadron of zombies led by a White Walker. After dispatching the Walker all the zombies but *one* turn into dust. The plan is going smoothly! However the last zombie calls the rest of the hoard and they are well and truly fucked. The group sends good old Gendry to run back to the Wall (an unknown distance) to raven Dany for help, while the rest of the pack becomes stranded on a rock in the middle of an ice lake surrounded by the entire undead army. Here's where I have questions. Question 1: If Ole One Eye and Top Knot McGee can make fire whenever they want, why cant they have a fire on the island? Or at least gather around one of the swords? Question 2: Can the zombies not use bows? It seems like our group would be pretty easy to take down with a couple dozen arrows. Question 3: How long are they waiting/expecting to wait? How long does it take for the raven to get to Dany? More questions to come later. Anyway Top Knot succumbs to his wounds, meaning that One Eye is now on his final life. The Hound, who was pretty useless most of this episode, continues to be useless by alerting the zombie hoard that the ice is safe to walk on. Our party engages in a seemingly hopeless battle against an untold number of assailants, hoping against hope for a dragony miracle to happen.

And it does! Dany swoops in with her brood in the last second, blasting the zombies with fire, and rocking a seriously fabulous white fur coat, to save the day! Not only is her winter wardrobe literally to die for, it also looks like she may have skinned Ghost to make it, symbolizing her new allegiance (romance?) with Jon. I also have to ask at this point why this wasn't the original plan. Dany made pretty good time getting up there, didn't have to tromp through the snow, and likely could have had Drogon pick up a zombie in his talons-  all in seemingly less than a day! But I guess that would have been much less macho than grimly marching through the snow. It looks like the tables have turned in favor of our hereos when suddenly....the Night King picks up an ice spear and takes out Viserion! Nooooo.

This was a genuinely heart-wrenching moment, as an audience we have watched Dany's dragons grow from hatchlings to giant death machines, and seeing one of them ripped out of the sky was just as painful as losing any beloved human character. Again this was a moment that delivered an emotional punch, but the journey to that payoff was not as satisfyingly authentic as it could have been. Jon, realizing the White Walkers are somehow ready for dragon combat, sacrifices himself so Drogon can take off with his payload safely. But it's an empty sacrifice, because Jon is last minute rescued by BENJEN STARK, who is part ice monster, part North of the Wall lifeguard, all Stark all the time. If you recall Benjen, or Cold Hands I guess is his nickname, previously came in for the save with his swinging lantern when he rescued Meera and Bran. But Benjen's last minute saving days are over as he is eaten by zombies in order to allow Jon to escape. Sad.

Back at the wall Dany ignores Daddy Jorah in favor of wistfully staring out over the tundra, hoping for Jon to appear. And appear he does! Jon is more than fine, especially shirtless and wrapped in furs on Dany's pleasure yacht. The two have some weird flirting where Dany reveals she can never have children, and Jon actually refers to her as 'Dany'. Good thing they are both so hot, because that banter wouldn't cut it anywhere else. Also she's his aunt. I simply cannot stress that enough.

As a final coda to this decades long episode, we see the Night Army dragging the corpse of Viserion out of the lake only to reanimate him into an ice zombie dragon! Gah! Shit is most definitely getting real, as the Night King adds some real power to his arsenal. Will zombie dragon still breathe fire? Ice? Freezing rain? Excited to find out. Next week (the season finale???) looks like it will be the zombie summit down in King's Landing. I have zero predictions for this. My only hope is that Euron will be there, I miss him. In a world of uncertainty, Euron brings the party.

Stuff I didn't get to:

Stop shipping Dany/Jon, START shipping Brienne/Beardy

They almost took Beardy from me after I SPECIFICALLY asked them not too.

Beardy learned the word dick <3

Beardy rode a dragon!!!

MVP: Beardy. I don't have to defend myself.

XO MD