#no good deed goes unpunished

[green-eyedfirework]

“Rose,” Dick said very seriously to the girl perched on his hip, “You need to shift.  Now.”

“I can’t,” she said, tightening her grip on him.  Dick cursed under his breath—the sound of footsteps was getting closer, and the blood trail would lead them straight to him.

But that was fine.  He’d be fine.  The merling clinging to him would not, and he just needed her to shift back to fins.

“Rose,” he said as soothingly as he could, and finally gave up and slipped into the water.  It was cold, and it stung badly in his scraped-up feet.  Rose shrieked and clung even tighter to him, nearly strangling him.  “Rose, please, your pod is right past the rocks.  Just shift and swim.  You can do it.”

Rose’s breaths were coming short and fast, and she—she was shaking.  Fuck.  She didn’t even try to deny it again, just tightened her grip with nails that were too hard and sharp to be human.  The footsteps were getting closer, accompanied by shouts.

Dick could try to hide with her, somewhere in and around the pier.  Safe waters.  For a human.  Hide until the poachers went away and he could calm her down and talk her into shifting and swimming out of the bay and towards the coves, where he knew the Wilson pod lurked.  It would be fine.

Or the poachers would find them, and he’d get Rose captured all because he wouldn’t swim out into the waters of a pod that’d nearly killed him once.

“Okay,” Dick swallowed, and tried not to think about dark claws and one icy blue eye and the scars that stretched down his back.  “Okay, I’ll take you home.”

~#~

It wasn’t easy to swim out of the way with a human-shifted merling clinging tightly to his back.  Dick was losing breath faster than he should, though that might’ve also had something to do with the way his heart was pounding.

They’re not going to try to kill you this time, he tried to tell himself.  Last time he and Grant had nearly killed each other, and Slade had been planning on finishing the job before Joey stopped him.  Last time they’d had a reason.  This time, he was returning their lost merling.  He was helping.  They wouldn’t attack him.

“Come near my pod again, and I’ll strip the flesh from your bones.”

They might attack him.

It was slow-going with Dick’s frequent stops to remember how to breathe, and saltwater getting into all his wounds and stinging them badly, but he forced himself on.

Out of the bay, water turning colder when they hit open sea.  And then back towards the rugged shoreline, wild and untamed.

Gods, he hoped they hadn’t moved.

The waves were turning choppy, and Rose whimpered, wrapped around him like an eel.  “Rose,” he murmured, “We’re almost there.”

She didn’t even raise her head from his back.

By the time the shoreline was in reach, Dick was wheezing for breath and barely treading water.  He needed to just—drop off Rose.  And leave.  He was willing to walk through the wilderness with torn-up feet if it meant not having to swim back.

He stilled.

Something crawled unpleasantly down his spine.

“Where are they?” Rose whispered into his ear, eyeing the same, ominous, empty waves.  They were close enough to the coves that someone should’ve greeted him.

Greet him they did.

With a hand around his ankle.

Rose shrieked as they plunged down, and Dick yanked at her arms the same time he kicked at the fingers wrapped around his leg.  He couldn’t protect her, not from a mer, and ripping her arms free meant her nails scored long, stinging gashes on his shoulders, but he managed to break her grip and shove her at the surface.

The fingers around his ankle squeezed, claws biting deep a second before something in his ankle cracked.

Dick’s scream was lost to air bubbles.

The water was dark and roiling, and his eyes were stinging, but he could make out blond hair and orange fins.  An all-too-familiar snarl was below his captive foot, and as Dick watched, the viciousness transformed to something more malicious.

Grant bared long, sharp, serrated teeth, and twisted Dick’s broken ankle.

Pain shot up like a fiery dagger, and Dick didn’t have the momentum to kick out at him.  There was another blond, another set of orange-and-black fins and Dick signed help right before they crashed into him, claws first.

It punched the last of his oxygen out, and Dick wheezed helplessly, stuck underwater, dark spots covering Joey’s angry face and furiously flashing signs.  Dick couldn’t read them, couldn’t understand—they really were going to kill him this time, an unarmed human against even a single mer was no contest.

The darkness covered more and more and—his ankle was free.  Dick kicked frantically at the surface with one working leg, and ended up choking on seawater when he finally broke for air.

No amount was enough, Dick couldn’t draw deep enough a breath to stop coughing, and his treading was beginning to slow as his muscles burned.  Shore was too far away, a blurry smudge in his vision, his path blocked by silver hair and a scarred face.

Rose was clinging to her father, still in human form, so at least Dick had succeeded at getting her home safe.

He just wasn’t going to succeed at getting back alive.  No matter how desperately he clawed at the water, he couldn’t hold himself up forever, not with stinging wounds and a leg radiating fire and his face was wet with more than seawater as he gasped for air.

The only member of the pod who had helped him last time had already attacked him, and Dick didn’t have the breath to beg.

He didn’t have the breath, period.

His nose dipped before the waves, once, twice, thrice before Dick could no longer force it back up.

He blinked, and there was water above him.

His lungs were burning.

His muscles were burning.

Everything went slowly, creepingly, suffocatingly dark.

~#~

“No!” Rose shrieked, directly into his ear, and Slade had to grab her before she launched herself into the water.  “No, he’s drowning!”

Slade made a sharp, irritated sound, and the human was pulled to the surface again.  Completely limp, but still breathing.  Grant’s face was poisonously dark as he supported the human’s face just above the waves, but Rose’s half-garbled explanation had insisted that Dick had saved her and brought her home.

Slade was not inclined to think charitably of a human, especially a human that had once already attacked his pod, but Joey’s expression had gone from furious betrayal to confusion, and Slade knew he had no choice.

“You can’t kill him,” Rose insisted. “He helped me and brought me back.”  She turned to face him, eyes wide.  “Papa, please.”

His daughter had been kidnapped for days, she was still not calm enough to shift back into mer form, and Slade couldn’t even have the pleasure of tearing his claws through human flesh?

“Are you sure he helped?” Grant asked darkly.  “This could be just a trick.  Get close, and destroy all of us.”  His grip tightened on Dick’s throat, and the human’s breathing grew more labored.

“He saved me!  He got hurt protecting me, and you just attacked him!”

Slade had weathered enough tantrums to know when one was starting, and his annoyed click cut through the rising squabble.  “Enough,” he said shortly.  “Take him to the cave.  We can ask our questions when he wakes up.”  He was bleeding as well, Slade could smell it, which meant they had to treat his wounds.

Humans were so annoyingly fragile.

Slade clutched Rose tighter, and let the knot of worry slowly loosen now that his daughter was back in his arms.

~#~

Everything hurt.

From the stiffness in his chest to the brief flickers of stinging pain all over his body, he felt like a wrung-out towel.  He could smell the sea, and hear the sound of waves against stone, and even taste the salt on his lips as he dragged his eyes open, exhausted enough to fall straight back to sleep.

Rose.  The poachers.

No—he’d taken her home.

But then where was he?

Dick pushed himself up on an elbow—cold, hard stone underneath him—and nearly collapsed back down when the world spun dizzyingly around him.  His stomach was gnawing at him, his throat felt ragged and dry and on the verge of a cough, and he had to curl over and put both hands against the ground to shakily push himself up.

He was—in a cave.  On slick, wet stone, shivering and trembling, the water a few feet away.  His shirt was gone, and there was a blue-green paste smeared over his shoulders and his chest, covering slices made by mer claws.

“You’re awake,” a voice said coldly—a voice he recognized, and Dick was scrambling back before he recognized the silver-haired figure pulling himself out of the water.  No long, powerful tail, poisonous orange splotches on black scales, but Slade looked terrifying in human form as well, tall and broad and muscled.

Dick forced himself up, but he didn’t realize just how slick the stone was, and his broken ankle woke up with a vengeance when he accidentally shifted his weight onto it.  He nearly cracked his head open as he crumpled, but he landed half in the water instead of completely on the stone, and, in the jolt of icy shock, he slipped all the way in.

Run, screamed some part of him ancient enough to recognize a predator, and Dick ended up swallowing seawater in his panic.  He was more flailing than swimming, but as long as he got away from Slade—

A flash of orange-and-black scales in front of him, and Dick immediately back-tracked.

Orange-and-black behind him, cutting him off from the mouth of the cave and the grey skies beyond.

A dark, glaring face beside him, teeth bared in threat.

Getting into the water had been a mistake.

Orange-and-black spun around him in whirling flashes, neatly blocking any escape, and all Dick could do was press against the cave wall, trembling all over.  One attack by that powerful tail could break his ribs.  One slash of those sharp claws could gut him.  If they didn’t just pull him down and watch him choke and splutter and drown.

Dick didn’t realize he was clawing at the wall behind him until his fingernails started stinging.

Everything was blurry.  Someone was making a sound like a dying fish, gasping and breathless and frantic.  Dick was slipping into the water again, or maybe the water was rushing up to meet him, his heartbeat deafening in his ears, his lungs burning.

Something slammed into him, hard enough to bruise, and Dick wheezed as bands of iron tightened around him, holding him fast.  “Stop it!” snapped a familiar voice.  “You’re scaring him!”

Dick tilted his gaze until he could see long silver hair.  Below them, an orange-and-black tail flicked idly.  “Rose?” he rasped.

[echantedtoon]

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished Ch2 Red Shines Bright Tonight

(Tagging @punks-never-die205 @feiatjjk

@karmadglory @babygurlenthusiast @swampstew @purplesoulsapphire

Remember if you want to be added to the taglist lemme know.

I apologize if I write Kid or his crew OOC in this. I only wrote for Kid like one other time. Also apologies for the inaccuracy of anything. I'll research everything in One Piece as accurately as possible. I'm only planning on this to have four parts so bare with me. The first three chapters are post the two year time skip.

Warnings for spicy things implied or mentioned maybe some innuendos but it will STAY sfw otherwise. Kid's cannon killing streak and violence mentioned. Some cussing and mentioned drinking.)

The measurements of one's own worth weighed heavily upon the beauty of outer looks. Or the wealth from the status you had upon thee either from birth or taken for one's own self through selfish means. 

Wano was no stranger to that way of life.

The crystalized glamor that was painted over the true cruelty of the withering Flower Capital of Wano hid the true meaning underneath. The streets bathed in the battered blood of civilization tainted with selfish desire and covered in a layer of cherry blossom petals and silk robes to distract those from the real monsters underneath. 

Which was exactly why they felt so at home being worse than the monster's already inhabiting the district.

The many hours of sailing had made the residents of the blight known as the Victoria Punk had grown restless in excitement and desire at their Captain's promised reward for their gastly deeds done not a mere day ago. The celebration of their bloodshed would soon be upon them. Morning sunlight shown upon them all as that night slowly slid to a close to make way for the morning light. Many a crew slept the day's voyage away minus those whom had duties to perform or were too excited to sleep. Slowly the day trickled by. The morning sun rising towards the middle of the sky. Winds favored the boat full of sins as they pushed the sails ever faster towards their desired promise. However no greedy pirate would miss the loud voice carried upon the breeze and instantly awoke any slumbering hellions.

"LAND HO!!"

The voice calling down from the crow's nest caused quite a stir up. Men and women crew members alike bursting from below deck charging up towards the deck stampeded out. Some snorting awake and tripping over themselves from beds to rush within the growing board. Some already up top rushing towards the railings. No matter where they came from, all cheered and talked with glee spotting the glittering land so close now on the horizon and having their desires so close to being fulfilled.

The dull thudding of boots against wood under his feet sounded out before he stopped just on the upper deck looking upon the sunlight glistening off the beautiful blue sea and seemingly added an extra shine to the glamoured land. 

"Huh. We got here earlier than expected," the red headed man commented shooting a grin at the right hand man next to him. "Guess today's our lucky day after all, ain't it?"

"The winds were favorable is all," he calmly stated but couldn't hide the happy undertone of his voice. "We got here a couple hours before sundown." A sigh was let out. "I wish you didn't make such a big deal about it. The entire crew's riled up now."

"You would be too if you're promised the night of a lifetime which I did promise you." The blonde didn't respond beyond a sigh as his best friend and captain patted his back. 

"Just don't do anything really crazy like burn half the district down. I heard Kaido's had his eyes on this place and with what happened a day ago, it's best to at least lay semi low."

"Don't worry. If there's a barbecue then you're the first person to get dibs on the food." Killer didn't respond to his joke as he turned grinning eagerly to himself and rubbing his own hands together in his own anticipation. "The district is a walnut and the best way to get the goods inside is to crack it wide open."

The closer to the glittery land they got, the more the excitement and desperation truly grew within greedy heart. It was only a matter of time before they truly were there.  And the horrors of the Victoria Punk brought with it would not be lost on the people who gazed upon it's visage either. For when the danger pulled into the docks only the sounds of sloshing ocean waves and the groans of the ship coming to rest into the docks were the warnings onlookers got before the cheers of the greedy hellions were had again.

Those within earshot or eyesight of them were always the same and upon this land there was no exception. Those who recognized the immediate threat shrieked out in terror, fled, or both. Some of them seeking to hide in the nearby streets and buildings while some could only watch in horror. Those who didn't know looked on in confusion but fear as the bridge connecting the Victoria Punk to the docks lowered until connecting with a resounding thud and then the desperate board descended onto the promised land. Whoops. Bollard. Cheers. All were heard alongside the desperate steps thundering down onto land after hours at sea, and right behind them following slowly behind was the Red Devil himself.

Slowly coming down off his ship with each slow step of those boots until he took a deep inhale of air before slowly letting it all out. The sweet smells of seawater and the distant cherry blossoms were both an enticing and delightful change of the usual smoke and fire from the misdeeds done and the oil and rust from the workshop located right next to his own private courters. 

"Smells nice..Almost makes me sick." Amber eyes darted towards the latest victim of the devil. And a nearby man shouted in fear as he was suddenly in the air, held there by a fist holding the collar of his shirt. A maniac pirate smiling up at his as a crate of fish, no doubt, what he'd been doing at the docks, crashed onto the ground below. "Which way's the Red Light District?"

Terrified a arm shot towards the right, down a stretch of road. Good. His reward was getting to live another day. With a squawk of fright, the man was tossed aside. Flying off the docks only to splash into the seawater below. Earning a round of laughs from some but most were interested in following the thudded footsteps of their Captain as he walked down the street towards the desired night or another night of horror at his own hands.

The streets were as beautiful as the buildings and each were obviously made to show off wealth and status, and yet they looked so breakable! The annoyance in pattern only continued on with each step they took, each street passed, each house going by. Becoming more bigger and tacky looking the more wealthy into the district they marched. Getting stares of disgust, horror, confusion, and in most cases a mixture of all three. Mothers pulled their children inside. Ladies closed windows and doors. Men quickly retreated out of their path and in some instances even diving into nearby buildings to escape his path. 

He reveled in the fear he brought automatically. Yes. Fear him and his decaying death and drear he brought with him. It'll only benefit them all to listen to the warnings. 

Then a soft glow settled amongst the glam and glitter that paves the streets. There was still plenty of light only just beginning to turn sundown, but most of the light came from above. Strings of lanterns hung up over the streets and connecting the buildings within the dazzling glow of red lantern lights. Sparkling like mini stars and giving off the red glow the district was known for. Finally. The heavy scenes of sweet perfumes and food ravaged the air. And the sights before Amber eyes were what they were hoping for.

The streets were full of people crowded yet still more were coming in. Once a buzz like bees murmuring of speech, now slowed down to a full stop as eyes from streets, doorways, and windows looked down to stare wide eyed at the band of murderers and thieves standing loose in the streets. The streets were filled with beautiful women adoring flattering dresses and make up, and working men in loose fitting Hakama shifts showing off their impressive builds, both men and women of the night ripe for the taking for any paying customer. They'd often catcall out to potential customers to entice them out of their money and lure them to an early empty wallet.

However there was nothing but silence as the mere presence of the pirates was noticed. 

Eventually the silence was broken in by the chuckling of a Red Devil. "Well? What the hell are you bastards standing around for?"

That was it.

The straw that broke the camel's last remaining restraint.

The floodgates burst open like a dam of water rapidly pushing a trail of dominos.

A woman's squeal was the first thing heard amongst the domino's effect. First by a man of their group shoving aside a man who might've been talking to said woman moments ago, but was now caught up in the arms of the hellion cackling in pure delight at his catch. A domino effect started on as they descended amongst the crowd and buildings. The sounds of women squealing and maniac laughing filled the air as he just smiled...And then turned hearing a sigh next to him. 

"'Nothing's gonna go wrong', huh?" Killer crossed his arms in a 'i told you so' way as he stared at him.

"Eh, fuck off, Kil. Let 'em get some stress relief in." He waved off the concerns of the blonde, rolling his eyes with a grunt. Before setting his sights up on a establishment he was itching to see. An unmistakable pub. Whoever placed that in the middle of an entertainment district had a smart investment idea. "Speaking of which-"

Killer watched him start walking off. "Where are you going?"

"I've had a long day, so I'm going to drink until I black out or you drag me back to my ship! Whichever one comes first!"

An inwardly sigh left the killer's brain, but the thought of getting a drink was appealing so follow Kid he did. Through the chaos surrounding them all and straight into the pub which was already swarmed in other members of their hellish parade. They passed by Wire who was in the middle of working an honestly eight out of ten barmaid. Whispering something sweet to her mad face before slowly kissing her hand. Ah. Wire always had a thing for charming the ones who caught his eye. A couple more feet away from him was Quincy eyeing the nervous bartender with a list filled smiling face.

Proof in point. Doesn't matter what gender they were, any crew member of his hell scape was fearful. 

The poor bartender quivered more when the stares of both himself and Killer stopping at the bar looked down upon him from their rather taller heights. The pupils in his skull shrinking as the Captain leaned down to give him that satisfied smirk.

"Gimme a beer. Make it strong because I'm planning on not being able to walk come morning."

"Give me a shot of whiskey and leave the bottle..Please," Killer added watching as the trembling man quickly nodded and turned around to scramble around the many bottles visible on the shelf before looking back to Kid. "Let's not loose ourselves too much and act like semi civilized gentlemen at least."

"HA! Since when are we civilized?" A pint of the alcohol he wanted was placed in front of him and he pointed it at Killer snatching it up into his grasp. "We don't fucking pretend to be something we aren't, Kil. If we want something then even Kaido couldn't stand in our way." He made him point by downing the large pint in front of him before slamming down the mug loud enough to be heard above the many voices around him. "Give me another!"

Killer hummed again casually reaching out to poor himself a shot of the whiskey the trembling barman had placed in front of him, plucking a straw from a nearby cup before poking said straw into one of the holes of his helmet. "This is why Heat n' I are the designated babysitters." 

Despite the sigh leaving his lips, anyone could tell Killer was smiling under his mask as he drank the preferred drink tonight. For tonight was about nothing but celebrating the Red Devil's whims.

Step after step through the crowd.

His legs carried him closer and closer towards the destination of the festivities. Music played. Many people celebrated. Lots of guests coming forth to celebrate the creation of hellions' escapades. 

"Almost shameful behavior."

He commented to himself  despite the gleeful smirk on his face watching as one of the men drunkenly pulled his laughing woman of the night onto his lap, giving her a big kiss to her cheek, and holding up a large mug. "TO CAPTAIN KID!! MAY HE BE HALF AS HAPPY AS ME AND MY BEAUTIFUL LITTLE LADY HERE!" The woman busted out laughing high pitched giggles in his lap as he pulled the mug back chugging down the sake.

A loud laughing fit emanated throughout the crowds followed by wolf whistles as the man went back to smothering his wife back with affection as she just laughed. It made his eyes roll and a chuckled huff escape his lips at the sight. Truly degenerate. But he meant it in the best way.~

He heard the sounds of loud laughter a mile before he even stepped back outside and was hit with the reek of alcohol long before he even stepped foot outside and made his way quickly through the throngs of people and towards the center. Back towards the pub. His senses were attacked by the strong smells to the point he was sure he'd get drunk from just smelling it. The crowds were terrible. Pushing against his body uncomfortably so and bumping his arms annoyingly so but he kept going his way towards the pub.

The loud laughter, music, and other blurring noises blending together from the crowds was mixed together in a vile assortment of degeneracy. The only thing to remedy this would be to seek shelter at the ship...But why would he want to do that?~ Finally he managed to get back to the bar and find his way inside. It had been a good three hours now. The sun had finally set and early night had just arrived. Now truly the city was alive but the hellions made no signs of stopping anytime soon. Knowing them, they'd be at this all night only to get dragged back to the Victoria Punk to sleep off angry throbbing hangovers. However he didn't bother with their fun.

Once inside he made his way over towards a small table in the corner where a few of his fellow crewmates were sitting by themselves and just drinking. Those included Killer still sipping on the draw poking out of his mask, Heat, and one other crew member whom was in a conversation with Heat while both drank some form of alcohol but they looked up as he just casually sat down across from the three of them.

"There you are, Wire. I thought you went back to the ship when you left," the pink haired man said before again taking a sip of his drink. Ah. Mosh. By the smell of the drink, it was some kind of margarita but bigger.

"No. I was just simply tending to business."

"Uh huh..And would that business be the pretty lady you were sweet talking a few hours ago?"

A grin was all Mosh got back, head settled in his hands. "I don't kiss and tell.~ But speaking of missing people-" Dark eyes gazed momentarily around the room and rose a brow at the missing red headed Captain. "-where'd Kid go?"

"Compo got drunk and someone dared him to stick his head in a bucket. Kid's outside helping him get it off."

His words got Heat to sigh tiredly but otherwise no one else really made a comment on it. "Hm. Seems about right. Honestly I'm surprised no one's done anything REALLY stupid yet-"

"DON'T jinx it, Wire." Heat narrowed his eyes at him. "I don't want to have a repeat of last time everyone got drunk. Killer still can't find his favorite spatula." At the mention of his name, Killer nodded in agreement with the other man.

"Heh. Well I can't say everyone's not enjoying themselves. Except maybe Kid and Compo at the moment. Surprised it's not one of you two trying to help him out."

"Kid actually volunteered for it."

Well that certainly surprised Wife as both his brows rose at his masked companion. "Really?"

Killer nodded. "Said we did a good job so we deserved to have a break tonight. That and he could probably get Compo out of there easier with those magnetic abilities of his."

That got Sore humming. Not in a 'oh ok' hum but a 'Im thinking of something' him. Head in hand allowing his eyes to gaze around lazily, and the other tapping on the table. "I don't suppose he's gotten any breaks himself yet."

"Whaddya mean by that?"

"Well he's doing the damage control tonight and if he's sober enough to do that then I can conclude he hasn't had a lot of drinks either. That's not enjoying himself."

"Well you know Kid. Once he does something he's too stubborn to let anyone, except sometimes Killer, to talk him outta it."

Wire hummed again still looking around the room until his eyes finally locked onto UK. At the moment he was a blushing mess of a man both no doubt from the booze but also because of the lovely lady cooing at him. That's when his eyes slightly widened and a smile graced his features.

"I know that look. What are you thinking?"

"What if we get the boss a gift?"

"Gift?"

He nodded. "Yeah. He's doing so much he should enjoy himself too." He finally looked back to them. "Let's get him a girl for the night."

"A girl?" Heat tilted his head in question.. before shrugging. "That's doable I guess. There's plenty of girls workin' the establishments so it wouldn't be hard to find one."

"I'm not talking about any regular working girl. There's plenty of them around. I'm talking about getting him something REAL special. Something even Kid's never had before."

"What are you talking about now? You want to get him a working guy instead?"

"What if we got him an oirans?"

There was silence around the table as the three stared at Wire before Heat and Mosh exchanged glances and Killer spoke up.

"You want to get Kid an oirans...Do you know the crazy conditions surrounding Kumorasaki? She takes and takes men of all their money and then raises the prices every second you're with her. She's a dam good digging witch and that's me putting it politely."

"Did you forget what District this is? Just because Kumorasaki is the most popular and well known Oiran in the Flower Capital that doesn't mean she's the only oiran here. C'mon, Killer. You still have the key to that chest right?" Killer slowly nodded. "Then what's the harm in surprising him with a gift?"

A long thoughtful him came from the blonde man. The cup in his hand slowly lowering until it says on the table with a light thud, his head tilted at Wire. Mosh and Heat exchanging unsure but thoughtful looks in turn to Wire's suggestion.

".....Which house do you think would have an oiran?"

-One Hour Later-

Lanterns as heaven's echo play above the street, come to the night as if they are our brightest of dreams and forever lighting our way. Lanterns are the stars we make in salute to the black heavens. The red glow shining down upon the masses as they walked the streets below.

It was then that the red glow matched with the red hair of the man walking through the masses, only to stop short just outside the pub of where he was headed. A curious sight to behold seeing everyone drinking outside the pub instead of in. Even more so seeing tables placed on the street where he saw familiar faces that attracted him towards them. 

A number of faces smiled up at him as he exasperatedly pulled out a chair only to plop himself down into it with a grunt. Sighing as he allowed his muscles to relax for once sinking into the hard oak wood.

"There ya are, Cap'n. Where have ya been?"

"Don't ask!," Kid growled out head leaning towards the lanterns and night sky above, "Killer, take a fucking mental note. Compo is not fuckin' allowed near booze again and NEVER in the same room as fuckin' Bubblegum!"

"Got it. Heh."

Immediately amber eyes shot up and narrowed at the blonde. "What's so dam funny?"

"Nothing really," Killer replied genuinely. "Just drinking my whiskey."

Those eyes narrowed more, brows scrunched up as more Snickers could be heard around him. Slowly tilting his head back down, he was met face to face with chuckling and his men not only at this table but a few surrounding tables snickered. Stealing smiling glances at him to which he felt annoyance bubbling up from his chest.

"Alright. What's the fucking joke?" He demanded slowly looking at Killer whom shook his head no. "I'm fucking serious, Killer! Did someone put something on my chair?!" Wood screeched as he immediately stood up and snapped his head around. "I swear if anyone-"

"Calm down, Kid," Killer held up a hand to calm the angry man, "No one's playing tricks." He gestured to the empty chair as if to prove his point.

Kid still stared suspiciously but slowly sat back down. "Then why is everyone looking at me like I'm the but of someone's dam joke?"

"They're excited and grateful to ya for the reward. Like you said relax and enjoy a little. C'mon. Drink and have some food with us!" He motioned for the barman still inside.

A small chorus joined in agreement with Killer. He didn't loose that suspicious look..but soon turned his attention to the new mug of beer and plate of delicious smelling turkey legs brought out and placed in front of him. Not as good as Killer's cooking but still delicious. He soon mellowed out, loosing himself to the tender taste of seasoned meat and butter taste of alcohol. 

The laughter and music around them continued through as he stuffed his face and laughed at a crude joke Wife told him. Meanwhile excited looks and whispers still glanced up and down the streets in anticipation of what's to come.

Slowly the loud laughs and talking with the occasional scream filled down to a murmuring him until it reached a silence. The new slowed silence wasn't lost to the captain who slowly rose a brow at the sudden change. Noticing the way everyone's faces turned down the street behind him. Still chewing on the food, he turned to see why such a change in direction occured. 

The entire middle of the street had been cleared and what looked to be two giant crowds of men and women lined the street on either side. As if something was blocking them from crossing with each other. What was stopping them? Did something happen just now? He then looked up the street and immediately knew the reason why.

Slowly coming towards you was a parade of people. And smack dab in the middle of them all was a woman.The most BEAUTIFUL woman he had ever seen.

 She glowed under the lantern lights like a beacon of beauty, slow steady steps she took gracefully step after step slowly but surely as if she was dancing, by the way she was doing so he knew she must've done this countless times before. Her makeup and hair done perfectly. Her robes the fanciest he's ever seen yet so beautifully matched perfectly with her complexion. But what struck him the most about her was her smile. Her eyes were the most striking beautiful he'd ever seen. Lips pink in lipstick catching onto the red lantern lights shiny with the lip gloss she used. In a way it she was angelic with the way they shined in the light. 

However her demeanor was... Strange. As she got closer he could see the slightly worried look in her eyes. As if she didn't want to be here, but yet at the same time there was something... Powerful almost scarily heavy about her body despite how graceful she moved. Entranced by the new sight he only stopped and stared as she ever so slowly and gracefully walked, continually up the street with her escorts.

"Huh. She's coming pretty close to us." He made sure to note in his head giving a look around at the awe filled looks from men and women alike. Taking special care to note the tackily dressed men that weren't his crew. "Her customer must be one of the rich snobs close by. Lucky bastard."

The moment of silence was deafening with only the sounds of the oiran's parade coming down the street, the red lanterns being her spotlights for the whole district was her stage and her the one glittery star. The rummage of fabric like flowing wind danced amongst her body as her flesh and bone became flowing water, gracefully dancing each step she took up the long stage of streets. 

Her face was memorizing with each flutter of half lidded lashes, the flashing of those beautiful eyes reflected in the reddened lights, her smile warm as she offered a smile as thanks for the watchers standing there. The gold ornaments shining in her styles silk of hair caught the glitter of moonlight and lantern reds, causing an almost uthereal glow around her body as she danced in her silks.

Beauty. Grace. Elegance.

Like a current in the sparkling blue ocean, she flowed.

Amber eyes were transfixed upon her with everyone else as the party of people in front and behind her came closer, but no one paid any attention to anyone other than the main gleaming star herself because..Well he's never seen such a display before. An oiran's procession was always a sight to behold and he'd be damned if he didn't also want to stop and watch her dance to the sounds of bells and her own graceful steps. 

Closer and closer to the end of the street they came. Angelic face coming closer and closer to his eyes, until they stopped in front of them all. And he realized that he was able to gaze right at those beautiful eyes and smile. The air was tense with silence anticipation and awe from everyone awaiting at the dancer's words. Slowly the hand a hold of the pint brought it up to his lips. If he didn't know better, he could've sworn that she was beautifully directed to him. As if a pirate like him would be given the smile of a woman like this.

"Captain Eustass Kid." The voice so calming and sweet carried with it and aura of grace as those lashes fluttered shut as she bowed.  It struck his veins like an icy ghost's hand dipping into his body and seizing his throat. "I'm so honored to have the pleasure of meeting you."

"PPFFFTT-?!" 

The metaphorical ghost hand entrapping his throat clogged up the alcohol going down forcing him to choke it out of him. Back into the mug of all over the table, whichever one was closest. A loud series of coughs and hacks left his throat disrupting the serenic scene and finally bursting that seed filled bubble.

"Surprise, Captain!", someone shouted from the crowd, "WE GOT YA AN OIRAN!!"

A series of laughs, cheers, whoops, and a few wolf whistles filled the air. Amber eyes widened as his face snapped in shock towards the crowd of cheerers. The mug dropping to the ground with whatever was left inside spilling out all over the ground. He sat there in stunned shock only stiffly looking over when Killer reached out to pat his shoulder grinning under that mask he wore.

"Well, Kid. You said you wanted the night of a lifetime."

[finleyforevermore]

"kill them with kindness"? wrong! ELEKA NAHMEN NAHMEN AH TUM AH TUM ELEKA NAHMEN

[cruel-hiraeth]

i thought i was being cute when i made a request for ffg kinktober with a character + kink that aleks wanted to see. but since someone dropped out, he’s fulfilling that exact request LMFAO

[gale-gentlepenguin]

“No Good deed goes unpunished.”

A trope where the hero does something out of kindness or morality that results in a villain being able to perform an action that results in something 100x worse.

The hero maybe spared the villain, because murdering them would have taken it too far. Maybe the hero helped what appeared to be a civillian from danger only for that person to become the threat they are facing.

It rocks the hero to their core, wondering if they are the ones doing more harm than good. It is taken as moment where the hero either learns that mercy can only go so far, or maybe that it’s the price of a hero that you can never know. Being a hero is hard, being good is hard.

[its-time-to-rise-above]

Guess who listened to wicked!!

[jedi-lothwolf]

Whump: The Musical Day 2: Wicked ("No Good Deed Goes Unpunished.")

Fandom: Star Wars (bad batch time zone but not the batch)

Warning: referenced and an attempted suicide of a side character

Summary: Caleb stops a man from killing himself. When some citizens see this they report him to the authorities.

    Why did Caleb have to save that man?

    Roofs were a good place to travel when you didn't want to be found. The ex-padawan learned that pretty fast. Being above everyone had its advantages. Seeing everything that was going on below you made being someone everyone wanted dead at but safer.

    But then he came across a man who was ready to jump. Before Caleb could stop himself he started to talk. "Sir?" he asked. "Are you okay?"

    The man looked panicked as he turned around. "Get going kid. You don't want to see this." Before he could say anything, the twi'lek jumped.

    Running to the side of the six story building, instinct kicked in and Caleb reached for him. Before the man hit the ground, he found himself levitating. There was a look of surprise on his face, as well as the faces of the people nearby.

    The danger the child had put himself in, hadn't made it's way to his fears yet.

    Caleb ran down the stairs. Skipping steps made him reach the bottom quicker. Bursting though the metal doors, the boy ran to find the man who was still sitting on the sidewalk. "Sir?" He started. "Are you okay?"

    Crying, the man tried to smile. "Thank you kid. I'm okay."

    "So, what's been going on?" Caleb said as he sat next to the older man.

    "You're a child."

    "Then let's find someone for you to talk to." He stood again and extended a hand to the man. The Twi'lek nodded and took his hand.

    "Do you have any family or friends?" As he spoke, Caleb started to feel the eyes on him. He realized what had happened. Shoving the thought off to the side, he starts to lead the man away from the crowded street.

    "No."

    "Same" was the first thing that came to Caleb's mind but he figured he probably shouldn't say that.

    "How about I take you to the nearby hospital? They can help you there."

    Despite the look of defeat in his face, the man agreed.

    They took the scenic route. Caleb knew he needed to avoid larger streets. With the empire around and with them knowing he was around, hiding was important.

    As they closed in on the hospital, a voice came from behind them. "There! Get the Jedi!"

    Turning around, Caleb looked at them. Then he turned to the man, "I have to go. Please, take care."

    Then it was time to run. The padawan did a lot of that. It hurt, having to run away from the man. Every part of him wanted to finish taking him to the hospital.

    The imperial presence on the planet was a large one. Hiding, Caleb ducked into a building. Then he started to run for the roof. They seemed to be his only safe place. He always liked sitting in the highest place he could find at the temple.

    The kid made his way to the stairs. Tripping over some stairs on the third floor, slowed him down. His ankle was sore.

    On the stairs of the sixth floor, imperials caught up to him. The door was in sight. Pushing the men down the stairs, Caleb threw open the door to the roof. Without looking back, he jumped to the next building.

    After a while of jumping from building to building, Caleb took a break. Out of breath, he started to curse himself out. Why did he have to save that man? Jedi  instincts were going to get him killed.

    "No good dead goes unpunished I guess" he whispered. It seemed he almost lived by this saying. Every time he helped someone, something bad happened to him. Maybe he should learn to control his companion. Maybe he should have just let the man have his way out.

    Listening to his surroundings, he deemed it was safe to wait a few more minutes. Sitting down, Caleb looked at his ankle. Luckily, he had just twisted it.

    It was time to move. There was a nagging feeling in the kids heart that told him he needed to make sure the man had gotten to the hospital alright. It wasn't too far, even if he had been running in the opposite direction.

    The stairs down the building he had ended up on, creaked as he walked down them. Opening the door, Caleb faced the night. The beautiful sunset that had previously painted the sky, was gone. It was a pretty sight to kill yourself too. The red and orange in the sky would have matched the red on the pavement as well as the orange of the man's skin.

    Caleb snuck around, trying to find a discreet way to the hospital. "Why am I doing this?" He muttered. "This is gonna get me killed."

    After a while of walking and a few close calls with the empire, Caleb found the hospital. Seeing the nurse reach for the phone sent a cold chill down the kid's spine. "Excuse me?" He said, his voice going up a few octaves. "Did a Twi'lek come in earlier to be admitted to the psychiatric ward?"

    "Are you family?" The nurse asked, setting her phone down. She hasn't been calling about him.

    "No, I'm the person who stopped him and brought him most of the way here. I just-" he sighed, trying to keep from crying. "I just wanted to make sure he got here okay."

    The nurse came around from her station. "He came in. He's been admitted." She put her hand on his shoulder. "You're a good kid."

    "Thank you. I'm just doing my job." That probably sounded strange to the poor nurse.

    "Can I call your parents, I'm sure they'll be proud of you for saving that man's life."

    What did he tell her? She was right, Depa would be proud. "My Mom's out of town. I'll just head home."

    "Okay. Stay safe."

    "Can I do me a favor?" He asked quietly.

    "I'm sure I can." The girl kneeled beside him.

    "Can you tell him I got away safely? That I came to check on him, and if the empire asks, can you say I was never here? I'm just trying to survive and every time I do something to help people, it always gets me caught and I'm just so tired." Tears welled in Caleb's eyes and the nurse tightened her grip on his shoulder.

    "Of course I can." She pulled him into a hug and Caleb started to cry. It had been so long. The boy wasn't sure how long he had been there, but by the time he stopped crying, his throat was sore and his eyes hurt.

    The nurse let go of him and walked around the counter. Grabbing soothing she walked back over to him. "Use this to get you something to eat. This is a safe place for you."

    "Thank you. For everything. Hopefully this doesn't hurt you. My Captain, Styles-"

    "You fought in a war?"

    Instead of answering, Caleb continued his sentence. "He used to say that no good deed goes unpunished. Just be careful." Before she could ask any more questions, Caleb made his way to the door.

    The nurse caught up to him, "hey kid." She kneeled down beside to make sure no one else would hear what she had to say. "May the force be with you."

    There was something comforting about hearing that. "Thank you." With that he left the hospital and shortly after that, the planet.

[explorersaremadeofhope]

so eepy my whole body feels like loose rubber bands and yet. i have to eat dinner and stay awake until bedtime. truly god's hardest challenge

[journalofanobody]

Struggling just to keep posting, I become a traitor.

As I've been recovering from surgery these past two weeks, I've been trying hard to keep posting, to give something, however little, to my friends and followers here. Quite frankly, many times while posting I have battled a terrible tiredness while simply trying to post an interesting mix of things for those who have faithfully continued to look at my blog and my poor little poems.

Sometimes the fogginess nearly gets the best of me but, at the end of each evening's posting, I feel pretty good about what I have done here. Not great, just pretty good. And for now, that's plenty.

However, mistakes occur, as I learned this morning. A follower whom I was actually beginning to see as a potential friend, wrote to thank me for all the support and advice I have given her during her persecution by trolls here and then revealed to me that she noticed that I had reblogged something from one of them. This, she concluded, is evidence that I was now one of that group of her "enemies" who were "tightening the noose around her blog." I was shocked.

Often, in my current state, I am completely absorbed in just finding aesthetically pleasing content, and barely notice who the original blogger was, and this, I guess, was my undoing. I was now a "betrayer" of a friend and thus belonged to the enemies and internet trolls she claimed were pursuing her. Needless to say, I was hurt and disappointed that she could not consider the context of my trying very hard to post even while recovering from major surgery.

Funny, even as I was reading it, I was ready to apologize and ask her to point out which post it was so I could remove it but, alas, I found that I had been blocked and her blog deactivated. Judgment had been rendered and no appeal was possible,

Now, sitting here, thinking about this, I recall the small herd of trolls I had to deal with when I first started this blog. Some of my friends here were following and reblogging from some of those people and, when I mentioned it to them, they said it's just reblogging of images, nothing to do with our friendship or "sides" being taken. And I thought it made sense and got over it.

I didn't speak out in defense of her trolls, or even reblog a lot from them. One image got through and, even if I had noticed it's origin, it would have seemed wrong to deny the source of it. And so what?

I'm not up for this sort of nonsense right now. I feel like I'm back in high school with warring cliques, or in Donald Trump's circle being forced to care about whether the boss feels betrayed. But this person I was dealing with was no high school girl, or some prickly fascist, this was a well-educated, cultured, kind person, and this is precisely why I find it more disappointing and sad than all the sorts of people I usually imagine behaving this way.

It's a small bump in the road of my recovery, a wee ding on my spirit, and it makes it all that much harder to trust people on this site, but then, who cares? Society unravels even at its upper reaches, among people from whom we would reasonably expect better.

I think I am just going to take a few days off from posting here. My time might be better spent just reading, sleeping, and trying to get myself fit to work again.

A weary good night from a slightly sadder Nobody,

Michael

[newathens]

talking abt fic at work and just remembered the time i read the most gorgeous beautiful poetic pjo fic and went to the tumblr they linked because i wanted to send them a comment right in their inbox cause i loved it that much. and i was blocked

[echantedtoon]

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished Ch1 Premise

Elegance, grace, and beauty. That is what made up someone's worth where she was from. But perhaps it was her kindness that was the downfall of her life. After all no good deed goes unpunished.

(Warnings for yandere themes, mentioned entertainment district and spicy stuff but it will STAY sfw, Kid's in cannon killing streak and violence, maybe some cussing, and kidnapping.

Tagging @punks-never-die205 @feiatjjk

@karmadglory @swampstew

Remember if you want to be added to the taglist lemme know.

I apologize if I write Kid or his crew OOC in this. I only wrote for Kid like one other time. Also apologies for the inaccuracy of anything. I'll research everything in One Piece as accurately as possible. I'm only planning on this to have four parts so bare with me.)

The waves crashed against the solid wood of the nightmare that tainted the seas with its blight. The dull voyage towards it's next destination undisclosed to the masses until it was too late. Until the cries of the victims dammed to endure the blight's upcoming wrath soared throughout the heavens. The air impure of the smoke from hellfire that ravaged the land and homes of the peaceful innocents that could flee in terror and watch in ever growing shock and fear as the Red Devil laughed his cries of mania.

'Pillage. Plunder. Take. Leave not even a penny of value behind.'

That was the unspoken code for his existence and by extension the very existence of his hellish crew. Each one as deadly and hellish as their Red Devil of a leader however no one could compare to the wrath of the leader himself. That's why he was feared far more than the trickling members who followed him into battle. 

'Take what you want. Dam anyone else who stands in the way. We are the best of the worst generation.'

The faint scent of smoke still  festered from the clothes on their backs from the latest of the hellborns' victims. Consuming everything in their path that wasn't stolen or rescued from their grasp by the few lucky victims that managed to get away from the scorching flames and weapons the devil's wielded. For those who survived lived to tell the newest horror stories of the blight.

The blight known around the world as the Victoria Punk.

A ship lead by the devil captain and his band of murderers and thieves. Thousands of lives changed forever for the worst by a single vessel.

The vessel carried on into the night. The wind pushing it towards the closest destination to endure their presence. The sour wind was filled with the cheers of the victorious thieves celebrating their latest tragedy. The decks filled with the thundering of footsteps and murmuring of excited voices as they all exchanged words and passed around the rewards of their disaster. 

THUD!

The murmuring was short lived when a large wooden chest was just dropped in the middle of the deck at the feet of two large boots. Two laughing men eagerly grabbing at the top to pry it open for the mostly blank face of the one who watched them. After all-

Everyone knows that the Captain has first pick of the best plunder. 

A metallic sound was heard as a lock snapped. Wood creaked as the top was pried open. And moonlight glowed from silver to gold. Ah. A wondrous abundance it was. The sight of gold bedazzled in the moonlight was always a sight to behold. Never got old. A gasp of awe passed around the deck at the sight of cold and countless gems. Scattered greens and reds signalled the presence of rubies and emeralds while the clear ones told them that diamonds were in the mix. As much as greedy hands wanted to nab the precious loot, the unspoken code that the Captain would happily toss whoever dared defy him into the ocean for a swim. 

So all watched in bated breathes as footsteps approached the chest with a frown. 

The glittery gold shining off from the moonlit gold. In their glitter the many reflections of Amber eyes as they leaned down to gaze upon the shimmer and shine. From the chest a single jewelry was taken. A gold chained necklace swayed from where a finger and thumb gripped it's base. A single large pink spinel gem sparkled and swayed, reflected in the amber pupil that brought it close to inspect it's sparkle. Eyes narrowed looking as it swayed almost hypnotically.. before red lips split in a wide grin. 

"Heh. And to think they were planning on using this to fund that new little marine base. They should've known better than to try and build that in the same area as pirates!" A bout of loud laughter filled the air from the crew. The necklace tossed to the side into the lucky excited hands of a greedy pirate. "I think we earnt ourselves a little reward after this."

"Whaddya mean by that, Kid?"

The secondary voice was calm and collected despite the amount of blood that spilt from the killer's hands just a mere few hours ago. The name being ironic of his deeds.  Despite the calm demeanor by the curious tilt of his head one could tell he was curious as to what the red headed captain was thinking of. 

The fearsome man of blood red hair turned to him with that sadistically pleased grin of his. "I'm talking about where we're currently positioned, Killer." His brow raised. "If we set sail for the Flower Capital right this second, about when we'll get there?"

The blonde masked man him in a clear tone of thought, calculating carefully before the tilted head turned back up. "If the winds keep going like this and we go now, then we should get there either around sundown or nightfall tomorrow. But why would we set sail for there?"

"Ain't it obvious, Kil? I think you deserve a reward for the hard work we all put in! Don't you agree?" A flurry of agreement from the jeerers was immediately as an arm raised pointing out a specific direction. "Turn the ship northwest and set full speed ahead. IM TAKING YOU LUCKY BASTARDS TO THE ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT!"

An uproar was immediate. The promise of women, booze, and women was bestowed upon them all. A pair of men in the cheering crowd even embracing each other in the excitement.

"Is that a wise choice, Kid?," the blonde man asked slowly crossing his arms and looking at the smiling Captain. "That place is more corrupt than some waters of the sea, and crime runs rampant."

"Sounds like my kind of place."

"What I'm trying to say is maybe we shouldn't ask for more trouble after destroying the makings of a marine base," he explained calmly, "That place is full of criminals and I heard you're not even allowed to live there unless you got money or you're in service to some rich prick. Your bounty might draw some crazy out of the woodworks desperate for cash."

A broad arm was slung over his shoulders and the blonde knew that it was pointless to argue right that second. "Then we got nothin' to worry about. We got the funds, and if we need more we'll just gladly take some of the graciously donated 'funds' from those rich fucks. If anyone tries to get in our way ... We'll our night might be a little more fun is all. Plus I have three good things that's gonna convince you otherwise."

"*sigh* And those would be?"

"Booze, food, and women." He held up three fingers as he lifted off the subjects of convincing.

Despite the mask he could see the convinced look that Killer had before he sighed once more. "Fine but let me just say now that I told you so if something goes wrong."

"Keyword, Kil. IF it goes wrong. Which it-"

"Don't finish that sentence and jinx yourself."

Despite the warning of the longtime trusted friend, the Captain did nothing but pat the faithful companion on the back before turning his attention back towards the chest that still laid bare and untouched, as everyone knew the rules in place by authority and hierarchy of the ship. The sweet jingling of coins against jewelry and gemstone sounded out as his hands dipped down into the board and threatened to spill onto the deck as they slipped between his fingers from hands pulled back. After all the Captain ALWAYS gets best pick of the spoils. 

"To the victor goes the spoils."

[beardedmrbean]

A Virginia school suspended one of its students for taking too long to report that a fellow pupil had a bullet.

An 11-year-old sixth-grader was suspended for a day and a half at St John the Apostle Catholic School in Virginia Beach after he waited two hours before reporting that his friend had shown him a bullet, attorney Tim Anderson said, according to The Washington Post.

Anderson represents the student and his mother, Rachel Wigand.

The school faced threats of violence last week after the news of the suspension. St John’s was closed down for two days and a man in North Carolina was arrested.

Officials at the school pointed to the recent school shooting in Winder, Georgia at Apalachee High School, in which four people were killed and nine were injured, when defending their punishment, saying that the delay could have had disastrous consequences.

��The message it sends is, instead of ‘See something, say something,’ the kids are better off not saying anything,” Anderson told the paper.

“It’s creating a more dangerous environment,” he added.

St John’s is part of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond, which told The Post that “The school’s culture of safety requires that students and adults alike report potential threats as quickly as they are made aware of them; in a real emergency, gaps in reporting time — especially hours-long gaps — could have major consequences for school safety.”

Wigand’s son was shown a bullet by a classmate on the morning of September 5, adding that the boy had found it in his parent’s coin jar. Her son didn’t see it as a threat.

The mother said her son waited until he could make an anonymous report, taking a math test for an hour and a half before going to an art class alongside the boy who had shown him the bullet.

Anderson said that during a fire drill, the boy went to the school interim principal to report the bullet. The attorney said police eventually found the bullet in the pupil’s bag.

The lawyer said both students were suspended for a day and a half.

“There’s no way somebody would suspend you for reporting something,” Wigand told The Post. “I couldn’t believe it.”

After reviewing the school handbook, she noted to school officials that it stated nothing about reporting anything apart from sexual harassment.

Anderson said that the principal remained “adamant” that the 11-year-old be punished.

Wigand emailed Catholic and school officials threatening legal action if the school didn’t reverse its decision, but a lawyer for the diocese responded that they would not back down.

The lawyer wrote that the sixth-grader placed himself and others in danger by not reporting the bullet earlier.

“Failure to report a safety concern affects the safety of everyone in the school,” diocese attorney Leslie Winneberger wrote, according to The Post.

“The school cannot, and will not, take chances when it comes to student safety, especially true in light of the school shooting in Georgia this past week,” the lawyer added.

The school was closed on Thursday and Friday after getting an email threat because of the punishment of the 11-year-old. A man was arrested in North Carolina on Friday for allegedly making the threats.

Temporary private security has been hired to patrol the school premises, Superintendent Michael Riley told parents on Friday.

Wigand said she has spoken to school officials on several occasions about removing the suspension from her son’s record but that her calls and emails have gone unanswered.

“He’s upset because one of the things he didn’t want was to be bullied and didn’t want to be labeled a ‘snitch,’” Wigand told the paper.

She added: “I told him to stay strong and he did right. Let others know, if you see something that’s unsafe, you need to report it.”

[narvaldetierra]

No good deed goes unpunished IV

*Comes out from her cave as if it had been here the whole time*

This was one of the first chapters I wrote for this fic. I'm so excited to finally share it. The GIF I used here, was the inspiration for the events I wrote about.

Just ignore the fact that I published the VIII chapter and I didn't make a post.

I'm so excited about this one that I want to share a few extra things I did while writing, that don't show up in the chapter. It contains spoilers, so look for it later or at your own risk.

First I have to say that I learned A LOT of names from medical stuff in English by doing the translation. That was awesome!

But what I wanted to talk about here was that sometimes I get obsessed with research for my stories, sometimes I even waste all my free time on it without writing anything. And sometimes not even half of it ends up in the story. This said, I did A LOT of research for this one, to try and make it right.

Like, when I decided that Patterson would end up in Port Alberni. The first thing I did was to go around the city with the street view mode of Google Maps, just to get to know how it was and to have a more accurate idea of what Patterson would see from the hospital window.

Then, my goal was to make it unclear where she escaped from, so Patterson is told she walked from Parksville, which is part of Madeline's deception. According to Google Maps, it would take approximately 9hs 54 minutes to walk that distance.

But she wasn't in a city when escaped, but out in the woods. My next steps were to find at least two other places that had a similar distance to walk but weren't cities.

After a few hours, and thinking about changing the city Patterson ends up in, I found two options: Rosewall Creek Provincial Park and Clayoquot Plateau Provincial Park. (Minuto más, minuto menos)

Like, she didn't need to be exactly in those places, but it helped me to picture what she had seen on the road while walking in the snow.

Something that I find curious is that this last distance, which Google stipulates would take 10h 42 minutes of walking, would take only 48 minutes in a car.

Anyway, to finish this self-exposure of how obsessive I can be, another two things I Googled were the date of the first snow in British Columbia, and the sunlight hours there. This is to get a rough idea of the light according to the hours I imagined the different scenes, and the time of the year this is happening. It may be important for future chapters.

I Googled a few more stuff, but it doesn't matter, you get the point.

Thanks for reading 🧡

[pinkshiori]

So in Wicked, when Elphaba sings No Good Deed Goes Unpunished, do you feel your whole exhausted soul break with hers, or are you neurotypical ?

[whumpflash]

Acacia Aneura: 1027

for Angstpril, Day 10: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished (alt)

cw: noncon drugging, slavery, dehumanization, violence, adult language, brief emeto mention

previous ///// masterlist ///// next

×××

1027.

Sonora left him alone to register for the auction, and had come back with a little tin placard strung on a short length of rope. Draped it around his neck, over the collar.

1027. That was him now, a fucking number. He wanted to run, the second she'd left him unattended. He wanted to, he could've, he didn't. His best chance at freedom stolen by the fucking drug.

The auction wasn't set to start for a good while yet, but that didn't mean Judd got a moment's peace. Some bullshit informal part came first; strangers stopping to look him over, Sonora chatting them up, telling them all he could be good for, how versatile he could be for a buyer's needs. A blank slate, moldable with just a little training.

He wanted to throw up. But he remained motionless on his knees, let the conversation buzz and roll past him.

He didn't even lift his head when the pair of boots stopped a foot in front of him.

Not the first time it'd happened. Hands had reached for him a few times, checking his teeth, his eyes; testing the muscle in his arms, legs, torso.

Bite them, his mind screamed each time. Hit, kick, curse, at least try to push them away, for fuck's sake.

All pointless commands, when he was at least a week deep in Compliance.

This particular stranger didn't reach for him though, instead tapping their foot on the ground, as if trying to get Judd's attention.

"Bully."

Recognition pierced through the haze like a needle, tugging a thread of clarity after it. Barely anything, but he held on all he could, head lifting to meet the eyes of the man who'd started this chain reaction of misfortunes.

Skye.

The older man's hat was pulled low, a dust mask pulled up to cover his nose and mouth, but Judd didn't think he'd ever be able to forget his voice. His eyes.

"You—" he began, his voice barely able to hold a whisper.

"Sh." Skye looked over his shoulder. Sonora was engrossed in a conversation with a trio of potential customers, and no one else was even glancing their way.

"Not here to buy you, if that's what you're wondering," Skye said.

He wasn't. Judd was wondering if he was here to profit, if the wine crate had been a trap, a step towards taking him captive. Because if he hadn't fallen for it, someone else would've. If he'd just left the kid alone, he wouldn't have to be here, he could be back at his camp, he could be free.

In that one moment, Judd was grateful for the numbness the Compliance granted. The last thing he wanted was to cry in front of an enemy.

Skye knelt in front of him. "Never meant for this to happen, y'know. I'm gonna help you, but you gotta work with me, okay?"

Help him? Whether intentional or not, he'd caused this mess, and now he wanted to help him? Any other day, Judd would've told him to fuck off. Spit in his face. But right now, he only nodded silently.

"Good. Once someone picks you out, once they start taking you away, that's when I'll act, alright? Wanted you to know ahead. Give you a fighting chance. I can see the drug in you."

And then he was gone.

×××

"You're up, 1027." Sonora unhooked his chain, led him up the narrow steps of the stage.

By some miracle, or maybe due to his own silence, the slaver hadn't seen fit to dose him again before his trip to the stage. The fuzziness that formed a barrier between his consciousness and the world was gradually receding, but Judd was determined not to let it show. He wouldn't throw away what could be his last chance, no matter who it was that had handed it to him.

The auctioneer's voice droned on and on as Sonora pulled him in front of the gathered crowd, pointing out how strong he looked, how pretty he was, rattling off all his potential uses, calling out a starting bid.

From there, it went fast. Buyers clamoring to claim him, to outbid one another as Sonora's grin grew and grew. Judd didn't let any of the words reach him. It didn't have to be his life. He had a chance, he just had to avoid fucking it up.

He barely noticed when the bids were done, when his chain was passed to a man dressed in clothes that were a little too new to be belonging to a local.

City dweller. If he failed to escape now, he'd be taken further than he'd ever been, surrounded by people who thought Wastelanders were no better than animals.

Judd wanted to look for Skye, as the man led him back through the market, but he forced himself to keep his head down. If it came to it, if Skye was nowhere to be found, he'd act alone. 

Not that he'd get very far with the ankle cuffs on…

He scanned the path ahead, angling his course slightly when he saw a jagged stump protruding from the dirt on one side.

Fucking acacia.

Judd stepped so the plant would catch his chains, not even trying to soften his fall when it tripped him. He nearly took the city man down with him as he fell.

As the man cursed, looking back to see what had happened, Judd only knelt with his head bowed, as if demurely waiting for permission to stand back up.

"Dammit… Let me get rid of that. Stay."

Like he's talking to a fucking dog. But Judd stayed, hiding a smile as the man unclasped the shackles.

"Up," he said. "Let's be going."

Judd obeyed, keeping his eyes downcast in case the man glanced back. He couldn't try anything yet. Not until they made it out of the market, away from the crowds.

Once they reached the edge, Judd found he could pick out the man's transport a mile away. One of the fancy models he'd only ever heard about; a silvery, enclosed pod to keep out the sun and wind. Under different circumstances, he'd be excited to even see one. Right now, he'd do everything in his power to avoid setting foot onboard.

He was watching the city man's movements, trying to gauge when would be the best time to try and run, when a dark mass lunged forward, knocking Judd's buyer to the ground.

Skye.

"Run, bully, run!"

And run Judd did, seizing the chain around his neck and yanking it from the city man's grasp, even as his buyer began to scream for reinforcements.

He was running, but where was he running? Into the wastes? Barefoot, barely clothed, with no water, no way to protect himself?

A sharp whistle drew his attention and he saw Skye to his right, sprinting alongside him.

"Follow me! Got a speeder."

Thank fuck. Judd could hear shouts behind them. They had a head start, but once the slavers and shoppers reached their own transports, they could still be overrun. He had to trust that Skye had accounted for that. He had no other option.

The older man had surged ahead, making a beeline for a landspeeder parked in the distance.

Four hundred meters away. Less.

Judd put on a burst of speed, eager to get ahead of his pursuers, to put the last few weeks behind him—

—and was stopped short, a force on his collar suddenly cutting off his air, yanking him off his feet.

The pressure didn't let up right away, and Judd clawed at his throat, momentarily confused at his change in orientation. Why was he staring up at the sky? Why wasn't he running?

Then all of a sudden he could breathe again, and the city man was standing over him, blood leaking from a cut on his lip.

"Wasteland bastard," he panted. "I'm gonna make you real sorry for that—"

Skye reappeared in a flash, but this time the man was ready, sidestepping his attack. Judd pushed through the pain in his throat, aimed a kick at the man's legs, but even as he went down he knew it was too late.

The rest of the market was coming crashing down on them.

As Judd thrashed on the ground, sending wild kicks and punches in any direction, as hands seized hold of him, pinned him to the ground, secured his wrists— he found Skye's eyes, shooting him a pleading look.

For what, even Judd wasn't sure. To help him? To run away and save himself? Because Skye had at least tried. He'd tried to help, and even if it was his fault, that counted for something. He deserved to get away.

But he didn't. Didn't even fucking try. He stayed, trying to beat the slavers back, trying to get Judd back to his feet. He stayed, and he fought, until he was bleeding and breathless on the ground beside Judd, held in place by three men.

"I apologize sir, I didn't realize it'd be so much trouble." Sonora's voice, somewhere above him.

The city man huffed. "I'm sure I'll come to enjoy the challenge," he said, though he didn't sound happy.

"What should we do with the other one?" another slaver piped up. "The one who attacked you. Should we kill him?"

"No," said the man. "No, don't bother."

Judd could hear the smile in his voice, slick and unpleasant, as he continued.

"I think I'll take him with me."

@kira-the-whump-enthusiast @kixngiggles

×××

[anti-cosmofangirl]

When will you learn?

When will you learn??

That your actions have CoNSeQuEnCes