#since cove and i may be a bit too similar :3

[cove-simp]

Character Opinion Bingo

This is something I've been meaning to do forever and it seems only fair now that both Derek and Baxter DLCs have come out! Template is here, and my responses are under the cut :P

Cove / Derek/ Baxter

[riding-the-sunset-bird]

A character reference based on all four Steps of Our Life! It's only "sort of" a height reference as well since obviously they're not 100% accurate (the devs don't have specific heights for everyone to my knowledge).

I did dig into the code to try and get characters at their "normal" heights but there are other matters at play too (example: Nicolas is obviously "taller" than he should be because he needs to be pushed upwards to be visible enough above the game's text box; likewise with other very short characters).

Still, this should serve as either a nice reference guide for every character or a "height reference" in the sense of getting an idea of which characters are shorter/taller than others.

I'm also going to detail some extra notes below the break, including posts from GB Patch's Tumblr that reference any defined heights (with Cove being the obvious one) or general height things, as well as some more stuff about the MC's height in comparison to the three love interests depending on what you pick.

Cove's height is listed on GB Patch's FAQ as 4' 1" in Step 1 (also stated as "mostly average, perhaps a bit on the short side"), 5' 4" in Step 2 (in-game this is defined as "very tall" on the MC's potential height spectrum, as that is the only option considered on par with Cove's height), 6' 0" in Step 3, and 6' 4" in Step 4. A fun fact is that Cove's final height was originally 6' 3" (191cm) instead.

Derek in Step 2 is under five feet tall (this post also lists Cove as "around 5 and a half feet tall" which you could take as either close enough to 5' 4" as stated above or a potential original height he had that got changed). In-game, he's "short" but not "very short", as having your MC be "very short" will prompt narration telling you that you're shorter than Derek, whereas "short" only has you relate to him in smolness generally.

Step 4 Derek is "mostly average." He wouldn't be considered tall nor would he be considered short. His youngest brother Nicolas will "probably end up as a similar height to him" once he's more grown up.

Step 4 Baxter is "taller than average, but not especially tall."

I've been informed that, on the Our Life Patreon Discord, Step 4 Derek's height is listed as 5' 9" (175cm) whereas Step 4 Baxter's is listed as 5' 11" (180cm), so those are their defined heights. Before that, both of their heights had jumped around somewhat. A post from 2019 said that Derek was 5' 11", but a post from June 2021 said that Baxter was 5' 11" and Derek was 5' 9" (so consistent with the Discord). Then there's also another post from July 2021 (you'll have to scroll down for this one) that listed Baxter at around 5' 10" while Derek was 5' 8"/5' 9". If you're insane enough to try and use the character reference too, then Baxter would actually be around 6'1" at minimum since he's taller than Step 3 Cove (though you could also make the same argument that this means the mom trio of Pamela, Noelani, and Kyra must be decently tall as well since they're so close to Cove on the character reference).

I don't have any experience with GB Patch's other game, XOXO Droplets, so I don't know what ages the characters are in it, but since both Shiloh and Jeremy are characters seen visibly in Our Life, I thought I'd also mention that they're listed as 5' 10" and 5' 5" (or 5' 5 1/2") respectively in XOXO Droplets. Jeremy also apparently grows to 5' 8" in his 20s and he's 22 in the Our Life Cove Wedding DLC (I don't think this is spoken of in the game specifically but he's labeled as 22 in the code).

As for the MC and how their height plays into things, "tall" and "very tall" as well as "short" and "very short" tend to be considered the same for the most part in the game's code. It's not that there isn't a difference at all (I would say it's still notable), it's just that sometimes the game may be more vague about height differences. My post about Errands references this where you don't need more athletic points due to being "very short" instead of "short" to give Cove a piggyback ride.

A guesstimate I'd make is that about 5% of the time, the game will take note of whether you're "very tall" instead of "tall" or "very short" instead of "short." Otherwise, you're either "generally tall," "average," or "generally short." There are also other instances (usually with Cove) where the game might just check if you're either generally tall (around Cove's height) or not generally tall (i.e: definitely shorter than him).

This is actually relevant to the heights because, following all above information, one would assume that Step 4 Derek is average, Step 4 Baxter is tall, and Step 4 Cove is very tall going off the MC's potential "height spectrum" of very short, short, average, tall, and very tall, but it's not entirely the case.

A "tall" MC (generally tall) will look "down" at Step 4 Baxter just as he will look "up" at them or they'll look directly at each other if the MC is "average," same as Step 3 Baxter, but--

when the game has any instance of differentiating between "tall" and "very tall" (they never do this for Step 3 Baxter so the base assumption would have to be that he's just average height), things change.

During Baxter's apology in the wedding of his Step 4, Baxter dips his chin to look at the MC if they're "short"/"very short," levels his chin to look at the MC if they're "average"/"tall," and then lifts his chin to look at the MC if they're "very tall." A generally tall MC still has to lean down to kiss him if they choose to do so though.

Also, during the intimacy scene with Baxter (either in his office or his living room), if the MC is "very short," "short," or "average," it states that Baxter is taller than them. If they're "very tall," then Baxter is shorter than them, but a "tall" MC is "almost the exact same height" as him.

This is all a really long-winded way of saying that GB Patch referring to Step 4 Baxter being "taller than average but not especially tall" might mean that he's some infuriating middle ground between average and tall where he's not quite one but not quite the other either (which honestly is very Baxter of him so I can't even be mad).

[doc-draws]

my MC (with Cove) for Our Life: Beginnings & Always - Syd Summers

Syd is energetic, outgoing, and bold. He can be very impulsive, leading him to make dumb decisions, but he's also very intelligent. As a kid, he was interested in robotics. He dropped it in middle school to pursue more creative interests. His favorite hobby is playing bass. He loves music in general. Syd's an extrovert; he gets bored if he's alone for too long. He usually finds it pretty easy to get along with others, but he's also very competitive. He'll love any game that can 'destroy friendships'. He's trans, gay, autistic, and has ADHD.

Our Life is a visual novel by @gb-patch. thank you for making such a wonderful game :)

more about Syd throughout the steps below + some additional drawings of him :D

my main is @doctor-ramen

Step 1 Syd is Syd at his core. Kid Syd has no filter, which can be a good thing and a bad thing. He's kindhearted, friendly, adventurous and outgoing. But he's also blunt, stubborn, and intense. When Cove first moves to Sunset Bird, Syd is immediately interested. He doesn't love hanging out with Lizzie, and Shiloh isn't as interested in Syd as Syd is in him, so he's very eager to make a new friend. When he finds Cove on the hill, Syd tries to comfort and encourage him. It's not too long before Syd decides they're best friends.

Step 2 Syd is a lot more reserved. This is a short period in his life where he's more cautious and more self-aware. He's started to care more about what other people think, and thus is careful with how he presents himself. He doesn't really engage with strangers all that much—making for an interesting situation when he meets Kyra (who he grows to adore in later steps). He relies on sardonic comedy to cover up any of his awkwardness. Despite these changes, he still maintains his core qualities. When he's around people he's comfortable with—such as Cove, Lee, and Derek to an extent—he becomes a lot more relaxed. He draws back his filter and allows himself to be louder, more impulsive, and more teasing. This is when he starts to pick on Cove a lot. Of course, it's all in good fun; they're still best friends. By this time, Syd's started to develop feelings for Cove, but he hasn't realized it yet.

In Step 3, Syd returns to being himself. He's grown enough to stop caring so much about what other people think of him. He returns to being very outgoing, adventurous, and bold. This step is also when he becomes the most chaotic out of any of the steps. He may be impulsive and loud and blunt, but he keeps hints of that kindness he's had since he was a kid. It's during this time that he starts to downplay his troubles. His most frequent lie is "I'm fine". It's no surprise that this is also when his mental health starts to decline. On top of that, he's also worried about his future. It seems like everyone knows what they'll do except for him… But for now, he tries to shove that down and focus on having fun with his friends. Syd and Cove are dating by now—for almost three years, in fact. To Syd, they're still best friends first.

By Step 4, Syd has chilled out a little bit. He's similar to how he was in Step 3, but more relaxed and more mature. Not quite so mature in his behavior—he's still loud, competitive, impulsive and sociable. Step 4 takes place soon after Syd pulled himself out of a deep depression, so he has a newfound appreciation for his life and everything he has. He's less dismissive of his problems, after going through something like that. He also becomes a little more considerate of others, really returning to how he was when he was small. It's at this time that he truly embraces the "dad/uncle friend" vibe: laid back, fun, a little messy, but thoughtful. In this step, Syd does plan to take the next step in his and Cove's relationship.

i've talked about Syd a lot more in the GB Patch Discord server. i appear and disappear and reappear with new information a lot, so if you're interested, keep an eye out!

here's the latest design concept for Syd in each step, + some icons i drew of him :) thank u for reading, if you did!

[gb-patch]

Ask Answers: August 8th

Well, doing big posts all together worked for a while but lately I’ve been putting it off because it takes a long time to get them done. I think I’m gonna try switching back to answering asks whenever I can fit it in and posting them one at a time instead of waiting until I’ve filled out one of these major collections.

But for now, here’s more ask answers! Thank you for the questions and for all the kind words along with them ^^.

Hello!! I'm here to ask if its possible to get  the game and its dlcs on steam and play it on android?

I’m afraid not. Steam doesn’t have Android builds on their own site and Steam is not cool with keys for other sites being given out for Steam purchases, so you don’t get the Itch version from buying on Steam.

Hello! Sorry to bother you but, I had a question, if we buy the Game on itchio do we get steam keys or would we need to purchase it twice? 

You would have to buy it twice if you want it in both places, I’m sorry. To repeat myself a little, Steam doesn’t like the key trading thing. Itch may support giving keys for another site, but the reverse isn’t doable with Steam and Steam doesn’t even really want you to get a Steam key for buying somewhere else either. So we just don’t mess around with that.

hey, sorry if this is frequently asked, but is step 4 free dlc or paid for? some of your sources are contradicting each other. 

It’s free! There’s a paid wedding DLC, but Step 4 itself is entirely unpaid.

Hello! I just had a quick question, for the Baxter and Derek DLC's will we be able to confess our feelings to them or let them confess to MC? or will it only be one way? (they confess to MC)

Both type of options will be available!

Hey there! I wanted to ask whether or not the Derek DLC is still on track to be released in August since on the steam discussion board it says it will be released mid 2021. I totally understand if it isn't, I'm just really looking forward to it! If you answer then ty! And keep up the amazing work :D 

It’s not, aha. Unfortunately, 2021 wasn’t easier than 2020 as we hoped so things are still slower than planned. It’ll come out late 2021 or early 2022.

Hi! Firstly I just want to say that I LOVE Our Life. I have played a bit of similar games but this one instantly wins for the best one! Everything about it is amazing! I just wanted to ask if Derek would ever lose feelings for MC, like if they make the deal and then MC gets with Cove would he move on? and even if you don't, after "losing contact" would his feeling fade or would he still like MC? 

If you don’t really keep in touch with him and clearly move on with your life, Derek will too and he’ll be over it. But if you are still close as best as you can be, he’ll still think the MC is special. Though, he’ll always support your relationship with someone else if that’s what’ll make you happy.

Hello! Sorry if you've answered this before but: 'How's Lee related to us? Though which momma? And does she share our player-chosen last names? Also, do you know if Noelani took Pam's last name or did it happen the other way round? 

She’s related to Pamela and Pamela’s last name is the one they use, so the MC has the same last name as Lee.

Will we be able to choose which (they or he) we tend to call Qiu by more often, or will it randomly change depending on the moment? 

Qiu knows which pronoun they’re comfortable with at a time and you’ll call them what they’re happy with. And it doesn’t change between lines, it takes multiple scenes or even full Steps for it to switch. So for extended periods Qiu will be totally a guy or fully agender.

Will Step 4 of OL2 have moments?

It’ll be an epilogue like it is in OL1, so it won’t have a bunch of different Moments.

Hello! Just a quick question, is Sunset bird from OL1 based on a real location? If so what's it called? I wanna visit it +_+

ps i love your games so much <3

It isn’t based on one specific town you can go to, but there are a lot of little coastal towns in Cali that have a similar vibe!

Heyaaa ( I hope you're all well ), umm… it might seem kinda stupid to ask but did Patreon members can have a key for the dlc's ( all the steps-released dlc ) even if they became a member this month or later ? (me? saying this cuz it's my case? maybe ;-;), and once again thanks for absolutely all the amazing works on all the games ! u-u 

You wouldn’t get the DLCs for backing there. The Patreon is for extra bonus content/early access, rather than being a storefront to purchase the normal DLCs. Rarely we give them out as a side gift, but it hardly happens and if what you want is the DLCs it’s best to ignore the Patreon and  buy keys for those directly from Itch or Steam. I’m sorry for the confusion.

Hey y'all, love what youre doing w/Terry. Trans rep outside of player customization is so rare and important to see more of so thank you so much. I do have a question and its that does he have a canon sexuality? I know Miranda was said to be straight ace but I dont believe anything was stated for Terry probably because he wasnt revealed to be a guy which changes things. Im also curious if well get answers on how long hes liked Miranda since he may have liked her in step 3 before she liked him 

Terry likes women and Randy likes men! And he did like Miranda back in Step 3.

Will the Wedding Dlc release at the same time as Step 4? 

They’ll come out separately with Step 4 releasing first.

I really love Our Life so much! I've spent over 20hours playing it even though I only got it a week ago! I was wondering if I could make a fangame for Our Life with a different love interest but same plot. Next-door neighbors romance, multiple steps, etc? I'll probably make it on Google Slides though- 

Sure! I hope you have fun with it and I’m glad you love the game.

How does Cove feel about poly relationships? 

He’s got nothing against them for the people they work for, but he’s 100% monogamous and would only be comfortable with a partner who was willing to be monogamous with him.

Idk if this has been answered before but will Step 4 include the option to advance your feelings towards Cove? 

Yep, you’ll be able to determine your feelings and what your relationship is.

In step 4 will there be a chosen to say we live with Cove even as just friends? 

Yeah, you can choose to live with Cove and that can be done when you’re friends.

I just played the game with the MC and Cove being best friends and omg it’s still so damn cute like the wholesomeness of it all is too much for my heart I swear ^.^  Now with that all said I was wondering can we still marry Cove? if we only love him as a friend like let’s say we’ve made deal with him similar to the one we can make with Derek because let’s real no one could compete with what the MC and Cove have even if they aren’t in love. 

It’s great to hear you enjoyed the friendship story! You can live with Cove, but you can’t marry him platonically. Cove has familial affection for the MC if they’re best-est friends. He wouldn’t think to marry someone he loves like family and even grew up with as though they truly were siblings.

Are you still going to be making a DLC for XOBD? :] 

Yes! We’re slowing adding voiced lines and fixing errors.

It makes me laugh that Shiloh's last name is Fields because that's what I put as my last name! So in Our Life when he talked about "Ms. Fields" picking him up I was extremely confused, lol. That dude mimics personalities so much that he stole my surname!

Oh, wow, that’s a very funny coincidence, haha.

hi !! i cant seem to be able to get the scene where mc is able to propose to cove despite being at the 'love' stage and telling him i'd want to get married, are there any other details that im missing out on? the options just dont appear at the end... 

Maybe you missed telling Cove you were in love with him even if you mentioned wanting to get married or you might’ve accidentally said earlier in the game that you don’t want to progress your relationship further with Cove. We haven’t removed them, so you can get the scene again. It’s just kind of easy to miss since there’s multiple requirements. You can read a little guide in the FAQ.

wait what di you need to do to be able to propose to cove? I've been trying but haven't had much luck 

You can check out the FAQ linked above!

does cove only develop a crush on the mc if the mc is also at crush/in love with him? 

Technically, yes. We treat the non-romantic relationship options as truly non-romantic since we don’t want to bait and switch people. But there’s nothing wrong with headcanoning that Cove does have feelings developing for the MC even before the MC has.

Is there a way to make/allow Lee and Baxter to date?

No, they just don’t have enough time together.

We also got a group of asks related to Tamarack in OL2, but I’m afraid the way they talked about people with larger bodies made me not want to post their words, even if the person didn’t say they’re trying to be hurtful. I will separate out the core question and answer it though, so people can know that info.

Does Tamarack lose weight in later Steps?

No, she doesn’t. As for the other questions included, to be honest, I don’t have to explain/defend having romance options of different sizes. I’m sorry if you’re dealing with unhappiness that’s connected to body image, if that’s where the negative emotions are coming from, but even so I can’t meet you on that level and pretend it’s a problem that needs an answer. A girl who simply isn’t thin being a main love interest is just not an unreasonable concept. Also, Tamarack isn’t a lesbian. Yes, she can date a female MC, but that doesn’t undo her actual sexuality, so I’m not sure where that one part at the end was coming from.

I wonder... can we "fight" with Qiu over leader status? 👀

Not really, haha. No matter how cool your MC is, they’re never gonna replace Qiu for the other kids around. So you can either partner up with him, follow him too, or not be a part of all that group politics stuff.

So when I play the game, sometimes I mentally call Cove “Covie/Covey” and that made me wonder, how does Cove feel about being nicknamed? Not like Romeo/Space Cadet/etc. but like pet names relating to his actual name

It’d depend on his age, personality, and your relationship with him! When he’s younger he’d probably be embarrassed, when he was grown he’d probably be more casual or happy about it.

will you be able to date baxter in step 3 while at crush with cove (but not dating him ofc) sorry if this has been asked already. i really love baxters step 4 design btw!! 

Yeah, you can be crushing on Cove and date Baxter if you weren’t already dating Cove. You just can’t be truly in love with Cove and then switch to Baxter.

I just got my friend into our life, and they adore shiloh and derek sooo will there be more of them in the second game? 

I’m afraid not. But you can see plenty more of Shiloh in XOXO Droplets/XOXO Blood Droplets, haha.

I see you haven't gotten any xoxo droplets asks recently but I'm still obsessed with these boys!! I was just wondering if Nate would curse under any circumstance? 

Yeah, Nate does use certain swear words (damn, hell, bastard) on very rare occasions.

Hi there! I have a question about the wedding dlc. Will we be able to plan a honeymoon during the planning stages of it or would it be something that Cove and the mc would rather plan later on? Thank you! Absolutly love the game by the way, definitely one of my favorite games! 

The focus will be on the wedding day itself. The topic of the honeymoon might come up a bit, but there won’t be any choosing of the exact location and such.

Hi! I have two questions and it's completely understandable if you only answer one/neither and I'm sorry if you've already answered either before! First, is there a set year in which OL:B&A takes place (ex: Step 1 being set in 2010 & Step 2 being set in 2016, etc.) or is it simply up to interpretation? Second, have you guys thought about doing a coming-of-age game where the MC has a tough home life or upbringing? (like one of their parents is an addict, a parent being transphobic whilst the player has the option to be trans, or having friends that are influencing them to do drugs, etc.) That's all! Thanks for making beautiful games. <3 

There is a set timeline!

Step 1: 2006 Step 2: 2011 Step 3: 2016 Step 4: 2021 

And we don’t currently plan on making a game like that. The Our Life series exists to be a safer environment for people to play around in and if we did do a brand new series that was harsher edged it’d be something more fantastical and/or plot-driven instead of a different type of modern day slice-of-life growing up story. I’m sorry.

i don’t know if you’ve already answered this, but do you have a guess on when phase 4 will come out? as well as ol2? i’m so excited for both of them, the inclusivity in this game is amazing, you guys should be really proud of it! 

Step 4 will be coming out very soon! OL2 is gonna take until 2023 to be anywhere near completion. But we might episodically release the Steps one at a time as they get done instead of waiting for three to be finished before launch like we did with the first game.

Hello, I was curious if there was an official or unofficial discord server for the game? 

We do have a discord! You can join by clicking this link HERE.

how long do you plan to keep ol's patreon running? 

Hopefully for at least a few more years.

Are you considering ever making merch? 

Yeah, but I don’t know when it’ll happen or what exactly we’ll make, aha. It’s something we want do, just nothing is set.

hi! i just found out about your game a couple of days ago on tiktok (so sorry if you’ve already answered this question) and i was wondering if y’all are ever planning to release it on iOS? 

I have no idea. It’s hard for a small group to get Apple approval and I honestly can’t say if it’ll ever happen or not. Maybe someday, though!

Hi, I love the art style of Our life and I would like to know if the artist has a Twitter? Also, could it be possible to fund more CGs for the game from him/her? So many times, I wish there was one like when the cutscene of the sunshower. 

That’s nice of you to offer. He doesn’t have a Twitter, at least not one that’s public enough to be shared with me. And I’m afraid not. The issue is that the CGs take huge amounts of time rather than there not being a budget for it. He’s gotta make CGs for Step 4, the DLCs, and new character sprites, too. There isn’t space in the schedule for even more. Sorry for that.

Hi, how are you?!

Are you planning on accepting new writers or is it always the same people who write your stories??

Thanks!!

Our Life: Beginnings & Always won’t be getting new writers, but we will be hiring a new team of writers for Our Life: Now & Forever eventually!

perhaps this counts as nsfw and I'm sure it has been answered before but what does Cove prefer, chests/boobs or butts? or perhaps both :3c thank you for this wonderful game (and the patreon bonus moment, it was worth all the waiting and more ♥) 

He’s a “chests of all shapes and sizes” kind of guy, haha.

i was wondering- did any of the writers actually grow up by the beach? as someone who's lived in a beach town all their life it really did feel nostalgic to play through our life 1 

I was born and raised in Cali! Though, not right by the beach. We still had to make trips out, but the setting is based on my own childhood memories of small beach towns we went through.

In Derek’s upcoming DLC, will we be able to reference the pact we made as teens? (love olba and xod/xobd so much btw you’re literally amazing) 

Yep, you will be able to talk about that!

Oh, sorry about the Cole being secretly L ask, then!

If you wanted context: Death Note is about this one guy who finds a notebook that kills anyone who you write the name of in there. The guy eventually develops a God Complex and starts mass killing criminals and stuff. L is the one trying to find out who is killing all these people.

Me and my sister first joked about it because I couldn't remember how to translate a word about the way Cove was sitting, so I just did the pose, and it looked a lot like how L himself sits! Then we just snowballed from there, with more and more nonsense connections.

That’s okay! Thanks for explaining. I’m sorry I didn’t know what you meant.

[solarstcrms]

( yang hyeji, she/her, cisfem )   ---   JUNIPER JOHNSON  is a child of  HECATE  with the power of  MYSTIOKINESIS.  they were born in  1996  and have been in nemean lion since  2013.  with the change, they  HAVE GRADUATED FROM  the  HERO  role which makes sense since they’re usually  MAKING FRIENDS  &  TRYING TO HELP WHERE SHE CAN.

    #tags:     ( face )   ( musings )   ( headcanons )

bio

past

as far as juniper understands it, some time near the end of may, hecate appeared on the door step of two mortals she had befriended on one of her trips to the mortal realm, and presented them with a child. they were confused --- they’d mentioned their desire to raise a kid to a friendly stranger once, but who shows up months later unannounced with a random baby in hand? all she told them then was to keep this baby safe, and to keep her rooted to her home. as soon as they tried to ask her to explain herself, they blinked and she was gone. but after the two reoriented themselves, they made all the preparations they needed and just like that, they were a happy little family. for a few years, at least. unfortunately, juniper’s adoptive mom grew incredibly ill, at a speed that no one saw coming. just as they feared it might be terminal, it was becoming increasingly hard for them to raise a small child in the midst of the chaos, and they made the tough decision to send her to california so a family friend could watch over her. this was when juniper’s magic started flaring up and trouble would start popping up wherever she was. her new guardian thought juniper was causing fires and breaking their home on purpose, and so could only handle caring for juniper for less than a year before she started looking for someone else in the area to raise her. and so the next few years of her life went, getting passed along from home to home, some better, some worse, than the last. by now, juniper was starting to understand that maybe she was not the kind of kid people liked to have around, so she tried to make up for that in other ways. she would go out of her way to please those around her, and to make people laugh. it was, in her opinion, the least she could do. but when she was ten, she met the johnson family. by then, they were already caring for two demigods, and pax was already a magic kid, to boot. no matter what kind of trouble she caused in their house, they never held it against her. eventually, they also adopted marcus and miri, and it was here that juniper was finally able to live in a stable, happy home, with more siblings than she knew what to do with.

present

from an early age, juniper has always wanted to make people feel better. this comes out in the way she gets overly friendly with anyone who gives her the chance, and even those who would rather not. it’s no wonder she ended up on the hero track, and so far, she loves it. she’s not the flashiest magic user, but she tries to make up for that with charm and energy! lots and lots of energy. if you’re hoping to catch her, the top places to check would be: the training areas, where she might be sparring or experimenting with magic; the private beach, for similar reasons, but also the vibes; or the quick fix, where she might be getting her third caffeine top-up of the day~

stats

full name:  juniper yeoreum johnson nickname(s):  june, juni, anything you wanna call her tbh powers:  mystiokinesis (basic magic)

specialty:  psychometry -- also known as object reading, it is the ability to gain memories or sensations through touch

weapon:  combat knives orientation:  pansexual birth place:  savannah, ga height:  5′ 3 piercings:  snakebites, both standard lobes

human parent:  [ REDACTED ] adoptive parents:  the johnson dads adoptive siblings:  miri, marcus, astrid & pax johnson half-siblings:  miri, pax; & ivy moon hometown:  crystal cove, ca

clothing style:  i believe pinterest calls it ‘bright skater girl’ lol. it’s a little bit grunge, a little bit funky streetwear, a whole lot of fun favorite dessert:  nothing too sweet! dark chocolate espresso beans are the perfect indulgent treat alignment:  chaotic good

+  easy-going, very friendly, loves to help --  impulsive, easily distracted, allergic to genuine emotion

plots

friendship!: it would be fun to have a friend who trained in the hero track alongside her, but any track works, really. she’s all over the place and she’s insistent about making friends so!

regular sparring partner(s): she would really enjoy, and even seek out, the practical help of someone who’s regimented in their training, but she’d definitely have a lot of fun with someone spontaneous that liked to fight a little dirty now and then

secret healer: ideally, if she gets injured, she would just go see her sister, but that’s embarrassing. so it would be nice if there was someone she could rely on to be subtle when she inevitably gets a bit too scraped up for, like, the third time today

a good listener: most of the time, she talks just to fill the silence, so maybe your muse likes not having to worry about carrying a conversation and listening to her go on about seemingly nothing for a bit

opposites repel: the vibes are not there. maybe they find her volume annoying, or just how constant it is exhausting. maybe the fact that she insists your muse is her best friend despite how much they reject her is a real turn off. maybe they just don’t click! either way, they just can’t seem to get along and your muse might finally break her

family friend: the johnsons are, for the most part, a friendly bunch so it’s only a matter of time before you run into a few. your muse would be someone who only knows juniper through word of mouth, and as the sister of someone you actually know, probably miri!

it’s about the Pining: crushes are always fun, whether it’s from your muse, or mine. maybe it’s an old crush they’re still harboring to this day, or they got over it a long time ago and bringing it up makes them both laugh now. maybe it’s reciprocated but they can’t get the timing right, or they both think it’s unrequited, idk, there are a lot of avenues!

anything under the sun: and then some. i’m open to any and all ideas, but especially if they’re a weirdly specific connection you’re trying to give your muse (why is that so funny to me?), or if it’s a little wild and funky lol. i mean, who doesn’t love a bit of drama, angst, or chaos to toss into the mix every now and again, right?

feel free to dm me about plots no matter when the idea strikes :)

[acti-veg]

hey I've been vegan for a year now but lately I've been really craving fish... do you have any reccomendations of documentaries/articles I could watch to like, get these temptations away?

There is a documentary called Artifishal and one called The Covee; I haven’t seen them but they’re supposed to be good. @wrenhaven has kindly suggested a couple in the notees, too. I have my own article on fish in general here, and a more in-depth article on fish suffering here. As for your actual cravings, there is likely something behind that - a need for sodium and fatty acids like omega-3 is the most likely suspect. Algae oil supplements are easily absorbed and widely available, that may be worth a shot.

In terms of the actual food, the taste of fish is one of the most easily replicated, since fish get their taste and smell mostly from their environment. Seaweed has similar properties and is used to flavour faux  meat alternatives, so try those if you haven’t already. You can do a decent approximation even with just plants - chickpea tuna for example is surprisingly good. Just experiment a little bit and see what hits the spot - I also have a post on dealing with cravings more generally here.

[iphoenixrising]

Where have you gone?? Please do one of these for me babe. 1. Continuing with mer Tim. 2. More alpha Tim. 3. Jealous omega Tim when Dick shows another omega too much affection.

ears.

BUT.

On to other things than my terrible obsession.

So, number 2 might be in the works for later on and Number 3 kind of doesn’t appeal to me, so maybe a last little drab from that mer au thing, yeah? I’ll pick it up from here. But you may want to read this one (NSFW) and this one.

NOTE: It can be a little squick with a bit of dub-con in the previous installments, so be warned.

Waking up on Tam’s couch wasn’t really that out of place in his life because he’s crashed here more than once, during research projects in grad school, during late night Uno frenzies, during gallon of Häagen Dazs nights when the blind dates were awful and they lamented how old they were getting.

It was familiar to open his eyes to her quaint coffee table and curtains, her flat-screen off to the side with his old N64 hooked up to one of the channels.

It was familiar to have the soft throw from the back of the couch cocooning him because blanket burritos were seriously the way to go.

The real crux of it all is feeling the shift in his abdomen, something soft, something so real, that he comes awake fast and furious, fumbling to get his arms out of the burrito.

“Shh, shh. S’ okay. Yer okay, baby.”

The voice from behind him, jarring since he’s dazed from a drugged sleep, disoriented because he knows that voice–

“Wh-what?! How–how?!” Is about all he’s got when the full-body jerk made him lose his balance and promptly fall off the couch, flailing hands and a sore ass to boot.

The one with green flecks in his eyes moves around the couch to where he’s trying to get free of the blanket and get the fuck out of here.

“S’ all right, pretty baby, yeah?” There’s a hand out, not reaching for him (yet), and when the former merman takes a small step forward, Tim is scrambling back until he hits the living room wall, one arm protectively around Minnow in his belly.

“Get-get back! How the hell are you even here? Where’s your tail?! Are you seriously telling me you speak English?!”

Jay blinks slowly at him, like he’s translating in his head while those eyes take in every detail of their beautiful mate. After several weeks in Gotham learning about land-walkers and their mate’s culture, he’s been bordering on desperate for this male, their male. When they should have been caring for him, seeing to his every need, massaging him when the young started weighing on him, holding him close and cuddling him, all the things good mates should do for their carrier.

Seeing him being…touched by another, a rival, brought out all the protective instincts in both him and Dickie in the worst way. The fact their mate, their Tim, is shrinking away from him, wide-eyed and terrified, is the only thing stopping him from filling his arms, burying his face, palming the young in that perfect belly like he wants, needs to.

“Wh-where’s Tam? Tell me you didn’t do anything to Tam?!”

Tim’s legs are weak but he braces a hand against the wall and wobbly-legs it for a second before he’s standing.

“Heyheyhey, pretty,” because Jay sees the panic, the gasping breath, their mate’s face white as a sheet, his legs trembling, threatening to spill him back onto the floor, “gotcha calm down, you feel me, honey? Yer safe. Yer Tam is safe, she’s making Dickie more coffee ‘cause he figured out how much he likes it.”

“C-coffee?” Tim breathes out desperately, needing to latch on to something here.

“You know you only get decaf! And you, Fish Face, step it the hell back. Right. Now.”

Tam has no problem shoving the merman back with an impatient hand and has a glorious mug of decaf coffee. It’s in no way a substitute for the real thing, but it still smells similar enough that he’s going to thank all the Gods out there for this.

“We also brought food for you!” The other merman, the one he remembers so vividly speaking in a sing-song language, laughter like tinkling bells echoing in the underwater cove where they kept him, is right over Tam’s shoulder, carrying a tray with some fruit on it and–

raw fish?

He’s sensing a whole lot of nope here, but finds it strange he’s not getting nauseous from the smell alone.

Tam steers him back to the couch, bracing him while she glares at Jay and Dick when the mermen can’t help but reach out to touch, to brace his elbows to help ease him down.

Tam places the warm mug between his cold hands, rubbing his forearms while her glare of doom makes the two pout but agreeably move to the other side of the couch further away, giving him at least the illusion of space. Their eyes never leave him, are soft and fond one second, then intense the next when he absently rubs his little baby bump during Tam’s rendition of the events.

She flails when she describes slamming on the brakes the second her headlights hit the three of them and smirks triumphantly when she describes the look on Ra’s al Ghul’s face when the police took him away in the back of a squad car.

Through it, the two mermen ease slyly closer, moving like water, even without the tails, easy and flowing until they’re sitting on Tam’s coffee table, barely two feet from him, chins in hand, watching him with dreamy expressions.

(The same ones from when they spoke softly, cooing at him before the next round...)

His mug is empty and he feels a little more lucid even if it’s decaf.

Tam holds his free hand supportively when they both can deal with the fairytales sitting across from him–

(when did the coffee table get that close?)

“And, I’ve been talking to your literal baby daddies here. About a lot of things. Like, the importance of consent.”

He has to roll his lips so he doesn’t smile because if he could have been not drugged during that conversation, it would have been incredible to see Tam read these two the riot act.

Still, it’s nice to see the them look contrite.

“We went to our clan,” Dick explains gently, tentatively reaching out to hold one of his hands in both bigger, warmer palms, “and told them…we’d lost you. That we needed to find you as soon as possible.”

“Needed ta be by yer side, Sweets. Take care a’ ya, n’ provide. We ain’t some shitty mates what gonna breed ya up n’ just leave ya. That ain’t our way, you feel me, baby?”

“So…our clan gave us a sprinkle of magic we needed to walk with you on land, be with you like we are meant to be. When we mated you, Tim, we mated you no matter what, even if you needed to come back to the surface.”

Jay’s eyes are warm, “knew it might come down ta followin’ ya up here. S’okay. Knew what we were gettin’ inta.”

Dick nods gently, smiling at him, the same smile Tim remembers from the cove, something fond and sweet right before gentle kisses as the front of a slick, slithering body pressed wetly against Tim’s back, molded to him.

“We took us some time gettin’ ta know how ya land walkers live while’s we were on yer trail,” and Jay gently lays a hand on his knees, a thrill running up his leg, his body remembering those hands, too. “Wanted ta know s’ much about ya as we could.”

“We understand more about your culture now, Tim,” Dick squeezes his hand and grimaces, “and we get why you-you left. We mated you without asking and getting your permission–”

“I had a tail, and I’m–I’m pregnant! Of course I freaked out. Human men can't get pregnant!”

“For our people, we all feel the pull of the mating season. We did not know humans do not go through the same kind of heat. Everything we observed from you indicated you were feeling the mating frenzy, but we were wrong, we were very wrong, and we are sorry.”

“We want ta do whatever ya need ta make it right, Timmy,” Jay squeezes his hand. “Now that we know land walkers don’t carry young like we do, yer gonna need us when it’s time ta birth th’ young.”

“And we…we don’t want to leave you alone. We want to be with you if you will allow it.”

And Tim’s at a loss, looking helplessly from one merman to another, his brain working on how, if, there was any way he could believe in this, if there was any way his insane life could get even more crazy.

“S’been a fucked up night fer ya, baby, so’s ya ain’t gotta answer us now, you feel me? Ya need ta rest n’ eat, need ta be safe.”

And Tim sees how those eyes roll down to his swollen belly, has a moment when his breath catches at it, that soft, gentle look.

“But, we aren’t just going to leave. I promise. Now that we’ve found you, we’re going to protect you and the young. We won’t have to intrude on your life to protect you…if that’s what you decide you want.” The hands holding his squeeze gently, encouragingly. “Now that we understand your culture, we can understand why you might not.”

“But,” and the taller of the two leans forward a little, thumb rubbing soothing circles on Tim’s knee, “we wanna ask ya ta at least hear us out. Think ‘bout just giving us a chance. Let us prove ourselves ta ya, Timmy. Please.”

“Please,” the other merman echoes, also leaning forward, sounding just as desperate, just as needy.

His eyes wide and heart pounding, the little flutters against his belly, Tam holds one hand tight while the merman holds the other. His thoughts are racing, one into another, wondering if this could be real after all, if his solitary life with the ocean could have turned into these legendary creatures choosing him as their…mate?

He’s helplessly torn between running for the hills, somewhere they’ll never find him, somewhere far away from open water, and…and giving them the chance they’re asking for.

No promises or guarantees, maybe just long enough for them to help him through the birth if he’s being realistic, but–but forever?

Tim glances over at Tam’s neutral expression, his conflict in his eyes, in every line of his body. He looks back to the two mermen-turned-human and the absolutely hopeful faces begging him for so many things, so many things he doesn’t know if he can give.

“I…I don’t know,” is as honest as he can be, “I mean…I don’t even know your names, how can you even ask me to trust you?”

“M’ name translates ta Jason, baby. Ya can call me Jay if ya like it.” The taller of the two, the one with green flecks in his blue eyes, gives him a crooked smile that’s unfairly attractive, reminds him of being held against this merman’s bare chest between rounds, of that same smile while a hand cards oh so gently through his hair. The soft, whispered words in the same deep baritone making him shiver and this merman, Jay, holding him closer as a natural reaction.

Tim’s mouth goes a little dry with those soft moments, of fondness and care, of them not trying to hurt him, of them…taking care of him in their own way.

(Pomacanthus paru mate for life, defend their offspring and territories…)

“I’m Richard, but some land-walkers called me Dick instead,” the hands still holding his are rubbing gently, absently at his wrist, instinctively making the stiff muscles in his back ease just a little, so he can slump and take his other hand back from Tam to rub his trembling belly. “And your wonderful friend, Tam, told us you are Tim. Timothy Jackson Drake.”

“Yes…yes I. Well, I mean, I’m a Doctor of Oceanic Studies at the University, so I spent a lot of time close to where you found me. Not-not for much longer because I’ve accepted a research grant, but…I–I,” and he stutters on it, makes himself think of this pragmatically, “I’m going to move. If you’re serious about following, then…then you’ll have to go to California, make sure I don’t get taken by any other semivir marinus, I guess.”

To his credit, Tam actually snorts, and the two–

(Jay and Dick and it’s absolutely insane how giving them names makes it that much more real, how it’s getting clearer, the last four weeks spent with them…)

–perk up.

“You won’t regret this,” Dick says hurriedly, “I promise, you will not, Timmy.” Without letting go of his hand, the merman effortlessly slides off the coffee table, kneels right by Tim’s leg, looking up at him with the most beautiful smile.

(So, so unfair. Too late, Dick, he’s already regretting this.)

Jay follows suit, spreading his knees to accommodate Tim’s feet, pressing very impressively sculpted abs against his legs.

“Gonna prove it ta ya, baby. Gonna be whatever ya need, yeah?” And it’s gentle, slow, Jay giving him plenty of time to bat away the palm easing on top of his, spanning some of his big belly, their fingers overlapping. Jay makes a soft gasp when the tips of his longer fingers touch the subtle shifting of the baby moving.

“We have learned so much about your world, and we will learn more so we can properly take care of you,” Dick croons gently, absently freeing one hand to pull the plate of fruit and fish from the coffee table behind him, hold it so Jay can take a ripe strawberry and bring it up to Tim’s mouth.

He sighs, looking down at those adoring eyes. Tim gives up the ghost–

–and opens his mouth.

**

Epilogue

San Diego is wonderful this time of year.

He’s leading a small research team at Scripps Institute of Oceanography, just a few grad students at Giddings Lab. His next book is set to come out this March and the research article from this study is already hitting Oceanographic next month. The lab life was fine up to hide the very noticeable baby bump. Soon after the birth, he was back out on schooners again, playing at wearing diving gear, gathering more data sets.

It’s exactly the change he needed.

Dick has four shows a day at Sea World San Diego, and Jay loves being a trainer. The two of them put on the best shows the amusement park has ever had; they draw record-breaking crowds and have the time of their lives.

In the evenings, after they eat and have the usual necessary cuddle pile (because those two still stay close to him, dote on him, can’t help but run fingers through his hair, and steal chaste kisses whenever they possibly can get away with it– even five years after they followed him to California), they take Hallie and Zarya down to the secluded Coves below their bungalow to swim. When the magic shells glow for them, give them their tails, the small family swims out in the deep, deep waters, playing tag in the waves, and talking to different species.

Hallie has green flecks in her blue eyes, and Zarya is a cuddle-machine. They’re pre-school playmates love them both, and the shenanigans their little minnows get into is nothing short of hilarious.

Tam is resolutely their favorite auntie, and spoils them with day trips out to have a “spa day” whenever she can nab them away from their fathers.

She always has their back with the girls when the next season starts and all three of them feel the pull to mate.

(This time, he has a plan and very smartly modified birth control…you know, for legendary creatures and shit.)

They live. They love, and if anyone who knew all the secrets would ask Tim Drake whether or not he would take it all back, not go out into Gotham Harbor that fateful day–

The doctor would look at his beautiful girls, his grinning mates, would look at all the pictures on their walls and down their hallway, would shake his head at rumpled beds, and nostalgically touch the remnants of the mermaid-themed crib sets. He would remember holding two wiggling babies in his arms after hours of labor, both his mates by his side coaching him, holding his hands, praying for him to their sea gods. He would remember the blossom in his chest, the pure and adulterated love for these little, helpless babies blinking blind eyes up at him in their first few moments of life.

He would remember Jay and Dick weeping, clutching him in their arms, helping him support their daughters, kissing his hair and his face, thanking him for giving them these beautiful miracles.

He would remember five years of arguments and explanations, of negotiations and understanding, of making a life together.

On land and in the sea.

And would he give all this up to go back to his lonely existence, worshipping at the altar of coffee and science, living his work more than his life?

Nope.

This fairytale? Is worth every moment.

[krycss]

Crossroads | oc:Alice Harkins/Arthur Morgan/Charles Smith | RDR2

Ch6: Clemen’s Point (Part 1)  

[Read on AO3]

Previous Chapter - Next Chapter

Author Note: HOLY COW I LIVE. After 3 months there's finally a new chapter! My new job has basically sucked away any and all of my free time plus my energy so I haven't really been up to writing. However, I finally just sat down and finished this chapter. Is it my best work? No. But, it's something and I hope that you guys enjoy it nonetheless.

Arthur shook his head as he grinned at Dutch.

“Hoagy Macintosh? Really? That’s what you came up with?”

Dutch shrugged. “What? It worked, didn’t it?”

Hosea laughed as Arthur just shrugged. He couldn’t argue that, it did indeed get them close to the Sherriff of Rhodes. Which is not exactly how Arthur saw his day going when this was meant to be a simple fishing trip with the old men. They’d rescued Trelawney from the law after he’d gone and gotten himself caught, Arthur ran down some escaped criminals with a Deputy Archibald, and Dutch being Dutch, he smuggled his way into the good graces of Sherriff Gray. “Hiding in plain sight” as he called it.

Arthur could feel a familiar tingle in the back of his mind; he’d ignore it for now. As long as they didn’t bring any attention to themselves they were fine. They’d have enough trouble as is with the rival family feud that the Deputy had told him about. Arthur couldn’t help but wonder what Dutch had planned in that head of his about the rumors of gold.

Still, as Dutch had put it earlier, this was a lovely day. It was time for fishing.

They’d just gotten off their horses, spotting a series of boats near the fishing spot Hosea had found.

“I got a good feeling about fishing here,” Hosea said between his grunts from pushing the boat. “Supposed to be some incredible sturgeon.”

“Okay, here we go.” Arthur hummed as they finally got the boat into the water. “Let me row. You boys are too old for real labor no more.”

Dutch chuckled from the other end of the boat as Arthur took the oars from Hosea.

“And you’re too dumb for anything else.” Hosea quipped back, lightly thumping Arthur on the back of the head.

“You’re still too quick for me, old man!” Arthur said between laughs.

“I enjoy picking on children.”

He’d missed this. It’d been far too long since the three of them had done anything together. There were days when Arthur wished things could go back to those times. Things were simpler. There were less mouths to feed, and less drama. Less worrying about whether someone was going to die tomorrow because there were just too many people to keep track of.

Still, he wouldn’t change things, despite thinking about it. Especially now with Alice. And Charles too, he supposed. Arthur still wasn’t sure about things. He kept thinking that he didn’t deserve anything remotely similar to another relationship after what had happened with Mary. God forbid, he thought, if things ended up how they did with Eliza.

Arthur shook the thoughts from his head as he felt a pull on his fishing pole. After a bit of finagling, he’d managed to reel in a nicely sized steelhead trout. He threw it in the boat to bring to Pearson later.

He eventually tuned out the chatter between Dutch and Hosea until they caught his attention again.

“So,” Hosea said with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. “How are you, Arthur? How’s Alice?”

Arthur suddenly found his fishing pole very interesting.

“Oh, indeed, Hosea.” Dutch joined in, accentuating the syllables. “There’s certainly some interesting chatter around camp lately.”

“We’re fine.” Arthur gritted through his teeth.

“And Mister Smith?”

“I will tip this boat over.”

The two older men laughed. Arthur began rocking the boat just a small bit earning a yelp from them both.

“Seriously though.” Gone was Hosea’s mirth. “How are you three? There is chatter around camp, not always the friendly kind, and I’m sure it’s…difficult.”

Arthur sighed. He had hoped things in camp would remain rather normal but, there was hardly any privacy within their gang. Once one person put two and two together – or three and three - then it spread like wildfire.

“We’re figuring it out.” Arthur collapsed his fishing pole, having suddenly lost interest.

“I’m sure it can’t be easy, ‘specially for you.” Dutch also put away his pole, easing himself down onto the bench in the boat. “You’re still hung up about one woman and here you are, sharing Alice with another man. Don’t think I’d be able to handle that.”

Arthur bit the inside of his cheek. For a man whose eyes constantly dragged over other women when he had Molly back at camp, Dutch had some nerve.

“As I said, we’re still…figuring things out.” Arthur chose his words carefully. “’sides, who says I can’t handle this sort of situation?”

Dutch gave him a look that caused Arthur to roll his eyes. Sure, this wasn’t exactly the easiest thing to accept but, despite it only being a few days into it, so far things were good. Mostly just a little awkward as the three of them work out the details. They’re playing it by ear. However, it was all still so new and to be honest, Arthur really didn’t feel like talking with the two men about the early stages of his relationship. Relationships? He still hadn’t figured out what to call Charles in this particular scenario.

Arthur shook his head. “How ‘bout we head out?”

“Already?” Hosea spoke as he took a small trout off the end of his line and tossed it back.

“You ain’t been chasin’ down outlaws all afternoon!”

“Yeah, yeah.” Hosea slapped Arthur on the shoulder as he sat down.

Then they were off. Arthur spotted the horses following along as he rowed down the shore. His spirits were lifted when Hosea and Dutch began singing, Arthur didn’t know all the words but he kept up with the ones he did. With the sun setting to his left, Arthur couldn’t help but feel like this was the official beginning to something new and beautiful.

   ******

   Alice had to admit, the humidity brought on by being this far south was well worth the convenience of having a lake right next to camp. Her and Mary-Beth were taking advantage of their new lake-front property by going for a quick bath in the little cove to that Kieran had told Mary-Beth about at some point. Their bath quickly turned into an afternoon of lounging on the shore, their feet still in the water once their chores were done. Mary-Beth, it seemed, had an ulterior motive.

“So,” She wiggled her eyebrows towards Alice. “You’ve gotta spill the beans. How in the world did you manage to wrangle not one, but two men?!” She clasped her hands together, sighing dramatically. “Handsome ones to boot! It’s like something right out of one of my books!”

Alice splashed Mary-Beth, causing the girl to squeal.

“Is that why you dragged me out here?!” Alice was trying her best to glare at her friend but was fighting a losing battle with her smile.

 There was really no hiding anything from the rest of the camp. The gang was rather close-knit. Still, the trio hadn’t decided to announce it to everyone seeing as it was a new thing for them and they wanted to keep it as private as they could. The camp caught on rather quickly though, much to their chagrin. Hosea of course had his fair share of comments and jokes. Dutch hadn’t said anything to her personally, but Alice had spotted him talking with Arthur occasionally. Other than that, no one really had much to say after the initially teasing was out of the way. There was still the occasional snicker every so often which was put to rest with one of the three giving a rather nasty stink-eye. Micah had been the biggest agitator so far. His latest comment was during dinner recently. Alice was seated on Charles’s lap by the fire; it was easier for Charles and her to be more open to public displays of affection while Arthur preferred to enjoy Alice’s time away from prying eyes if he could. Micah had picked up on the situation and had been the cause of most of the snickering in camp and this particular night he had made the suggestion that since Alice apparently was being passed around, it should be his turn sooner or later.

Charles had attempted to deal with the situation himself but Alice had beat him to it.

“Mister Bell, even if we were the last two people in this God-forsaken country, I’d still rather die before that happened.” She had said with a smirk, continuing to eat nonchalantly as the people around her laughed.

Micah, of course, hadn’t appreciated it, but Alice and Charles were fairly entertained as he stomped off. He gave Alice one last parting quip about regretting that statement before retreating to the woods.

 Alice was brought back to the impatient girl in front of her by being splashed in the face.

“Alright, alright!” She sputtered, spitting the lake water out of her mouth. “But you gotta tell me about you and Kieran, then!”

  ******

   Charles spotted Arthur standing awkwardly on the edge of camp, his back to the water. He had been in the middle of sharpening his hunting knife when he got up to see what the cowboy was up to. When Arthur spotted him he gave a short nod.

“Hey.” Charles walked up next to him, hand on his belt. “What are you doing out here?”

“Uh…” Arthur coughed a little, jabbing his thumb behind him.

Charles could hear laughter and splashing. He could tell who it was by the laughs, the corners of his lips tugging up.

He chuckled. “Keeping watch, hm?”

Arthur blushed. Charles tried not to smile at how easy it was to fluster the man.

“Well now I am. I may have, uh, accidentally spotted them.” He scratched at his stubble. “Figured I’d make sure no one else makes the same mistake. Don’t want to embarrass them, ya know?”

Charles hummed, nodding his head quick.

“What you preparing for, anyhow?” Arthur nodded towards Charles’s hand which was still holding the whetstone.

“The greatest of gifts.”

“An unguarded stagecoach?” Arthur teased.

“No, you simple-minded fool.” Charles nudged his shoulder, letting him know he wasn’t being an ass. “Bison.”

“Bison?”

“Bison. From which you can get anything.” Charles turned around when he heard the sound of the girls getting out of the water. “There’s some over on the Plains, I believe. I saw a couple a long way off earlier.”

“Ah,” Arthur nodded. “Well, good luck then.”

Charles muttered a quick thanks but stopped a couple steps away. He had planned on using it as some time to himself but…

“Wanna come with me? When you’re done here.” He turned back. “I can show you how we hunt one.”

Arthur bobbed his head side-to-side, thinking it over. “Sure, why not?”

“Alright. Well, come find me when you’re done here, then.”

Arthur gave him his little finger salute which Charles nodded at.

He walked away, thinking back on things. He was happy with how things were going. It wasn’t as awkward as he had thought it would be, “sharing” Alice. It’s not like he didn’t know of others in similar relationships during his time on his own. It’s always different when it’s yourself, though. He was happy though, that much he could admit. For the first time in a while. He wasn’t sure how Arthur was fairing, he’d ask him while they were out. Alice seemed to be happy, though. She was smiling more and it seemed like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Charles could only imagine how much stress she had been under trying to figure out her feelings during these stressful times for the gang.

He glanced back at Arthur again when he heard the man explaining his situation to Mary-Beth and Alice. His face was hidden behind his hat but Charles could see the redness of his cheeks and neck as the girls giggled. Charles sighed, that man was far too easy to fluster.

   ******

   Arthur was still trying to fight his blush as he rode alongside Charles towards the Plains in the Heartlands. Having one woman giggling at you while still soaked from water was enough to fluster him, but two? And one of which he was sweet on? Arthur thought this day would never end. Charles eventually broke him out of his thoughts by grabbing his attention.

“So, how are you holding up with things?”

Arthur knew what he meant without asking.

“Still getting used to it I suppose?” He took in a deep breath which caused tickle in his chest, making him cough a little. “I’ll admit I never thought I’d end up in another relationship with someone after…Mary.”

Arthur paused. No one else knew about Eliza…he still wasn’t ready to tell anyone.

“I never thought I deserved it, you know?” He continued. “Still don’t. ‘Specially with Alice. She’s just - she’s too good. And I’m just…me.”

Charles glanced over at him, slowing Taima down.

“She is a good person. Too good for our way life if I’m being honest. But, just like me, she sees the good in you. You deserve happiness Arthur, in whatever way you can get it. And if me and her have to remind you every day then, well, I suppose we will.”

Arthur puffed out his cheeks. Why’d these two have to gang up on him?

“You two are fools.” He mumbled.

Charles huffed a laugh through his nose as he picked up the pace, Arthur following shortly.

  The bison were right where Charles said they would be. After telling him the history of his tribe and their closeness to the animal, Arthur was feeling a little stressed when Charles said that he could take one down while Charles went off to wrangle them.

Arthur brought Crayola to a run alongside the ringed-in bison. He took aim at one that was falling behind but still had enough meat on it to feed their ever-growing family.

With two good shots, the beast went down with a loud thump as the others ran off.

“Well done!” Charles called out as he rode up to Arthur.

Arthur found himself sitting up straighter in his saddle at the praise for some reason.

Both men brought their horses to the downed animal, Arthur hopping down to examine it.

“Alright, let’s skin and butcher it.” Charles pulled out the hunting knife he had been sharpening earlier and handed it to Arthur. “Take the horns too. It can all be used.”

Arthur went to work, quickly but methodically. He didn’t want to mess this up. Eventually both of their horses were tied down with either meat or furs.

Charles was looking over the hills surrounding them. Arthur hummed to get his attention.

“What is it?”

“I want to go check something out.” Charles spoke lowly, still staring over the hill.

“Where we goin’?” Arthur asked as he followed along.

“I thought I saw some scavenger birds over here, just want to see what attracted them.”

Arthur nodded, despite knowing the man in front couldn’t see the action. Charles’s shoulders were tense.

They became even more rigid when they came around the hill and discovered the source.

Three bison carcasses, their skin and meat torn to shred from the birds and other wildlife having had time to feast.

Charles growled. “Shot and left for dead, it looks like.”

“Why would someone do that?”

“I don’t know, but I see tracks heading in this direction. I say we follow them.”

Arthur watched as Charles’s jaw clenched, it seemed almost painful. He wasn’t sure if he was more worried about Charles, or what he’d do to whoever they found.

   ******

   Alice had been helping sort through the piles of goods that Sean and Javier had brought in from their latest homestead robbery when Charles and Arthur rushed through the opening of the camp. Alice jumped to her feet, eager to see what the men had been up to while they were away. The smile on her face fell when she saw the expression on their faces. Charles quickly dismounted Taima, grabbing whatever was tied to the back of her and rushed past Alice towards Pearson. Alice watched as he discarded what appeared to be a bag filled with meat before he went straight to his tent, dropped off his things, and headed out to the woods nearby. Alice felt like a windstorm had passed through camp with how quickly Charles had come and gone. Her chest hurt at the expression she briefly saw on his face and took a step to follow him when she felt Arthur’s hand gently grab her shoulder.

“Give him some time to himself for a little bit.” He pulled her close, her back flush against his warm chest.

Alice tilted her head up to look at Arthur.

“What happened?”

“We went out hunting bison. Found some poachers.”

Alice nodded, resting her head back against his chest. She felt Arthur’s chin on the top of her head.

She knew how Charles felt about poachers. It was one of the things they had talked about oh so long ago when she was first getting to know him. She didn’t need Arthur to elaborate to understand that he was right. Charles needed space for a little bit. He’d be back. And they’d be here waiting for him when he did.

The quiet of camp was broken with a shout from Pearson’s wagon. Arthur and Alice looked over to see Sadie currently waving a rather large knife in Pearson’s face.

“For Christ’s sake.” Arthur muttered, resting his forehead on Alice’s shoulder. “Can there ever be a calm day in this camp?”

Alice chuckled, causing Arthur to lift his head to get away from her bouncing shoulder.

“I’m afraid not Mister Enforcer.” She pulled herself from his grasp reluctantly, pushing him towards the scene. “Go on now before we need to find another cook.”

“I dunno, I think our stomachs would be happier for it honestly.” Arthur chimed back, sending her a wink as he stormed off.

Alice shook her head with a smile as she watched the scene unfold from afar. It would seem they might have a new set of hands to help in the fighting if Sadie has her way. Alice couldn’t help but be a little relieved. After what happened in Valentine she wasn’t exactly thrilled at the prospect of being caught in any sort of gun fire any time soon. She still had nightmares about it sometimes.

She gave a wave and a cheeky smile to the grumbling Arthur as he and Sadie rode out of camp on the supply wagon. Alice’s attention went back to the direction Charles had stormed off. She knew there was a bit of a clearing in that area and wondered if maybe he had gone that way. She hesitated as she took a step, heeding Arthur’s suggestion of leaving him alone but, Charles didn’t have to be alone anymore. None of them did. Making up her mind, Alice quickly half-ran to Charles’s tent, grabbing his blanket. She then ran over to her own tent, grabbing her blanket as well. And finally over to Arthur’s tent to steal one of his. She stopped by Pearson’s wagon and wrapped up some fruits and other goods in the blankets and was off to the meadow. Even if he wasn’t there, she knew it wouldn’t take him long to find her.

 She wasn’t sure if she was just that good at reading the man, or just extremely lucky but when she finally pushed through the last of the bushes, she did indeed spot Charles laying in the middle of the small clearing. He looked like one of the cats that used to lie around Blackwater, soaking up the sun. Alice knew that he knew she was there. He probably heard her coming a long while off with her stomping through the woods. Still, he kept his eyes closed. He didn’t say anything though – not that he said much – and Alice took it as a good sign to come closer. She sat tentatively on the grass next to him, the blankets bundled in her lap.

“Arthur told me what happened.” She spoke low.

Charles hummed. “I’m sorry about how I charged into camp.”

Alice shook her head, then realizing that Charles still had his eyes closed, she spoke. “No need to apologize, Charles. I understand.”

Charles sucked in a large breath before pulling himself up to sit.

“So,” His effort to change topics was obvious. “What do you have there?”

Alice smiled towards him. “Well, I thought I might try and cheer you up a little and while we don’t have much in camp, figured we could have some sort of picnic. Make sure to save some for when Arthur gets back, though. We all need some time away from camp I think.”

Charles nodded slowly. “He go somewhere?”

“Sadie finally made her attempt at killin’ poor mister Pearson.” Charles laughed at that. “Arthur took her on a trip into town to get her out for a bit. From what I could hear it sounds like she might want to start riding with you guys now.”

Charles hummed in question. “You not planning on going with us anymore?”

“Not into any sort of…gunfights. I don’t know.” Alice sighed. “After Valentine…”

Charles nodded. “I get it. Take your time. You’re a skilled thief anyways, you weren’t exactly known for your gun-slinging.”

“Hey now!”

Both of them were now laughing as Alice tore up a handful of grass and threw it at Charles.

“Well, let’s get this picnic set up, hm?”

   ******

   Arthur was still grumbling to himself when he walked towards his tent. The simple shopping trip with Sadie turned into one of the wildest things he’d gotten himself into in a while. Couldn’t argue that the woman could hold her own though. He had a feeling she’d be making herself known in the gang fairly quickly at this rate. Still, doesn’t mean he likes being shot at out of the blue.

“The hell?”

Arthur scratched at the stubble on his chin when he reached his tent. His blanket was missing.

“Who the hell steals a blanket?”

He turned around, doing a quick search of the immediate area. His eyes were drawn to Alice’s tent not too far away. His brow furrowed.

She would. She definitely would.

As he made his way to her tent he glanced over towards where Charles’s stuff was set up and noticed that his too was missing.

“What in the world is she up to…?” He mumbled.

He announced himself before pulling the front flap of her tent open and peeked inside. No blanket.

“Looking for someone, Arthur?” Javier’s voice came from behind.

Arthur turned around. Javier was putting away his rifle from his watch.

“She headed off after Charles not long after you left. They went that way.” Javier chuckled as he pointed towards the small trail on the other side of camp that led to the woods. “Have fun, amigo!”

Arthur shot him an annoyed glare before thanking him and walking in that direction. He wasn’t all that surprised to hear that Alice had gone after Charles even after being told to give him some time alone. She was just too good. There were some days where Arthur was worried that the life they lead would taint her but, somehow she’s kept it.

As he got closer, using the tracking skills Charles had taught him what feels like ages ago, he finally heard laughter and chatter coming from ahead. He felt a smile form on his face immediately.

“Surely that ain’t true!” He heard Alice yell out in laughter.

“It is!” Charles replied with a loud laugh of his own. “It was knotted up so badly that we had to shave it all off in the end. There was no fixing it. It took forever for my hair to grow back. Mother was furious.”

Arthur stepped the bushes and his chest warmed at what he was seeing. There was a large pile of blankets sprawled across the grass. Some food piled in one corner, some having already been eaten. Alice was sitting cross-legged in front of Charles, doing something with some flowers. Seemed like she was making a version of one of Jack’s flower necklaces. Charles was sat behind her on his knees, he was currently working his way through an intricate braid in her hair.

“Well ain’t this a pretty picture.” Arthur called out as he walked closer.

“Arthur! You found us!” Alice smiled wide and waved in his direction; she could only turn her head so far with Charles’s hands in her hair.

He sat on the edge of the blankets and pulled off his boots, throwing them next to theirs. He picked up a can of peaches and quickly scarfed it down while Alice wasn’t paying attention. He’d gotten one too many lectures from her about how he shouldn’t just breathe in his food.

“What’chu two up to?” He said between bites.

“Well, we wanted to kill some time while waiting for you to finally show up, so I asked Charles if he’d braid my hair for me.”

“Couldn’t exactly say no.” Charles smirked. “Haven’t had the chance to braid anyone’s hair except my own in a long time.”

Arthur hummed. “Seems difficult.”

“Wanna learn?”

Arthur’s eye brows shot up, he had said that out loud?

“I….I don’t know. Think my hands are a little too…uncoordinated for this kind of stuff.” He mumbled.

“Just follow what Charles does!” Alice reached back and patted one of Charles’s hand. “Could he braid yours or is that…?”

“It’s okay.” Charles turned and smiled at Arthur. “If you want to follow along that’s fine. I’ll show you something simpler.”

He quickly finished up whatever braid he was doing on Alice and then stopped, letting go of some strands and moving some others around so that he was only holding three this time.

“You sure?” Arthur moved slowly behind Charles.

There was a part of him that kind of hoped Charles would change his mind. But then there was this other part of him that wanted to be able to do stuff like this for Alice as well.

Plus, he had always thought Charles had nice hair for a man. He also didn’t want to offend him if it was a…cultural thing.

“Come on.” Charles smiled at Arthur over his shoulder and then swept all of his hair back with his free hand.

“Now I’m kinda wishin’ I could see because I can only imagine how this is gonna go.” Alice snickered from up front.

“Watch it, missy.” Arthur playfully growled.

He could spot a grin on her face from the side. The stubborn part of him wanted to change his mind just to wipe the grin from her face. But he was already holding three strands of hair between his fingers so it was a bit late for that.

“Hey, it’s not your hair he’s practicing on.”

Charles and Alice laughed at that while Arthur just gently tugged on one strand of Charles’s hair.

“You two hush and let’s start.”

  Arthur was forever thankful for Charles’s patience and trust as he learned some basic braids. He was currently being shown a little trickier one which involved four strands of hair so that Charles could finish the same braid on Alice. Whatever Alice was working on, she seemed to be finished as Arthur couldn’t see her hands moving anymore.

“Now just tie it off.” Charles said as he finished with Alice’s hair.

“I’m no expert but I don’t think I did half bad!” Arthur chuckled to himself, he tucked some fly-away strands behind Charles’s ears, feeling the man shudder.

“Only one way to find out!” Alice quickly turned around, shuffling on her knees to look at both men.

Charles just smiled and shook his head as he turned to show off his hair. It was braided from about midway on his head. There were some spots that were definitely messy or sticking out of place, but overall Arthur was happy with it.

“Not bad, Arthur. Not bad at all.” Alice grinned up at him.

“Don’t need to cut it all off?” Charles teased, earning a soft shove from Arthur.

“You knew the risk.” Arthur snickered, then his attention turned back to Alice. “What was you workin’ on anyhow?”

“Oh!” Alice leaned back, reaching for her mystery project. When she turned back around she was holding a crown made of daisies. “Since you don’t exactly have as much hair as me and Charles, I figured I’d make you something braided as well so we can all look nice together.”

She sounded like she was joking, but Arthur could tell that she was still a little nervous in giving it to him. Whatever witty comeback he had ready was stowed away in favor of a soft smile. He grabbed it from her hands, placed it on his head, and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. He chuckled when he heard her squeak a little.

“Well ain’t this a pretty picture?” Charles laughed lowly, mocking Arthur’s earlier statement.

Arthur and Alice looked over to see Charles lounging back on his elbows watching the both of them. He had a small smile on his face.

“Aw, you want a kiss too?” Alice cooed.

Charles smirked, lowering his head a bit. He looked up through his eyelashes. “Maybe.”

Alice giggled. “Fine, you big baby.” She crawled towards him, sitting herself on his lap.

Arthur had thought he’d be more jealous seeing the woman he cared for sitting in the lap of another man. Especially knowing that the other man was her…other man. Instead the twist he thought he felt in his stomach was more like butterflies. He didn’t quite know how to describe it or what it meant. He found himself smiling at the cute scene that was Alice grabbing Charles’s face with her small hands and squishing his cheeks as she planted an exaggerated kiss on one of them. He was broke from his reverie when he realized they were both now staring at him.

“W-what?”

“Your turn, Arthur.” Alice teased, tapping Charles’s other cheek.

Arthur sputtered, feeling his face heat up. Surely she was joking? He scratched the back of his neck, trying to figure out what to do. Also to think about why he wasn’t exactly…against the idea? He glanced back towards where camp was, briefly.

“I-I don’t-”

As if sensing his dilemma, Alice backtracked. Charles leaned forward, knocking into Alice, mumbling that they’d get him next time. Arthur squinted over at the two of them – leave them alone and they scheme apparently. And now the stubborn side of him was surfacing again. He stood up quickly, causing the two of them to scramble to their feet. They were already starting to apologize again for teasing him when he marched towards the two of them, rather than back to camp like they must have thought he would. Before either could say anything else, Arthur walked up to Charles. The man was only slightly taller than Arthur, looking at him with a question behind his eyes. They stared at one another, Arthur’s eyes flicked from Charles’ to his lips. Arthur let out a quick huff of air before leaning forward and placing a quick kiss to Charles’s cheek. When he leaned back he looked between the two of them as his face burned hotter. Alice was sporting a small smile, her bottom lip tucked between her teeth. Charles was blinking rapidly and Arthur couldn’t help but feel a little smug about surprising the man - it was hard to catch him off-guard.

“We should probably head back to camp.” Arthur coughed, once the situation finally caught up with him.

Charles quickly agreed and the three went to work on picking up their supplies.

   The next couple weeks for Arthur were an interesting time, to say the least. He was following up on Dutch’s plan to get Arthur close to the Grey family while Hosea worked on the Braithwaites. Turns out, that meant playing mailman for two kids in love from rival families. Really made Arthur think about his relationship and how at least the camp wasn’t going to kill them for being together at least. Turning into a mailman then somehow turned into becoming a wagon driver and newly appointed women’s suffragette member. To say that his feelings regarding a certain man back in camp were the least of his worries was an understatement.

Things between the three of them were definitely different after that day in the field. They didn’t talk about it but the air had certainly changed between them. Where before there would be little looks between him and Alice, Arthur now found his eyes drifting to Charles as well. It was as if he was seeing the man in a new light and all it took was one little moment. The moments by the campfires which had previously been awkward, with figuring out how they would all sit together, was now a mish-mash of the three of them practically sitting on top of each other. Alice frequently found herself seated on one of the men’s laps with her legs across the others’. And when no one was paying attention in camp, Arthur and Charles found themselves sitting closer than they had in the past. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t heard of things like this before between two men. The addition of a lady was new to him but Charles had told him stories from his travels that it wasn’t exactly rare either – usually just hard to spot out in the open. However, Arthur was still wrapping his head around his feelings for Alice, he didn’t need to be more confused about things. There was still that nagging voice in the back of his mind that sounded a lot like Mary telling him he didn’t deserve this. He found it amazing how just seeing people that he had known for months and years in a different light could quite literally flip his world.

Arthur bit the end of his pencil as he looked down at his notebook at what he had been writing.

He sighed, loudly.

He had it bad.

Before he could continue down the confusing rabbit-hole that was his emotions, he heard Molly call out for him from across the way. She was seated under a tree near the horses, overlooking the lake.

“Yes, Miss O’Shea?” Arthur helped her to her feet as he neared.

“Ah, call me Molly, would ya?” Her accent lilted. “Arthur, how is Dutch? I-I mean how does he seem to you?”

Arthur grumbled, shaking his head lightly in confusion. “About the same as usual, I guess?”

“I…I really love him, you know, but if he…” Her train of thought shifted. “Like he always says, loyalty is everything, so…”

Molly placed her hands on her hips, trying to find the right words. Arthur was still trying to figure out what she was trying to get at when Uncle called his name, running up to them.

“Excuse me, Miss O’Shea.” Uncle pushed past her with a gentle hand on her shoulder earning a glare from the woman.

“What’chu want?” Arthur growled.

“I bring a gift,” Uncle smiled. “The great gift of information.”

Arthur scoffed, shaking his head. “So, you got some tip off, so now, I can risk my neck, and make you some money, while you lounge around.”

Molly waved Arthur off, realizing she wasn’t being heard anymore. Arthur gave her an apologetic smile.

“You know, Arthur, bitterness, it works on the inside, as well as on your sour face.”

Arthur rolled his eyes, trying to walk away from the man.

“If you say so, but you can go find some other fool to run your errands.” Arthur sniffed as he leaned against the nearby tree.

Just then, Charles and Bill happened to walk by and Uncle flagged them down.

“Bill, come over here!”

Charles gave Arthur a questioning look from where he was to which Arthur shrugged as he lit a cigarette.

“Will you be my other fool?” Arthur didn’t have to turn around to know that Uncle was smiling at him as he said it. “You too, Charles.”

“What are you talking about?” Bill questioned with his hands.

“Arthur’s above a little stick up I heard about.”

Arthur’s head shot up. “No I’m not?”

“Well you just said-“

“Hey, I’ll do it as long as you ride with us.” Arthur spoke as he moved to stand next to Bill and Charles.

Uncle sputtered. “I got a serious medical condition.”

Arthur wheezed as he blew smoke out. “Yes, you are a compulsive liar.” He grinned at Uncle who puffed out his chest.

“No need to be like that. Charles, have I ever lied to you?”

Charles’s face scrunched together in confusion. “I hardly know you.”

Arthur smiled at his confused expression when Charles looked over at him. It was adorable, really. Arthur coughed on the smoke he inhaled when he gasped at that thought.

“Exactly.” Uncle continued, ignoring the coughing fit Arthur was having. “Now you boys should do this, it’s easy and I’ll only take a small commission for my information, but it’s now or never.”

Arthur rolled his eyes once more as he put the offending cigarette out. “Then it’s never.”

“Oh, God help me.” Uncle sighed dramatically. “Fine, I’ll do it!”

Arthur laughed, knowing he’d won. “Well, what is it?”

Arthur and Charles walked side by side as Uncle explained the job, sharing a knowing look.

This probably wasn’t going to go as planned.

   ******

   Charles leaned his head against his forearm as he kept watch in the barn. He just knew this just was too good to be true. Nothing ever seems to go as planned anymore for the gang.

It had all started fairly well. The act of stopping and robbing the wagon went fine, it was just the addition of extra security that threw a wrench in the plan. So now here they were, crammed in a dilapidated barn with no horses, just hoping that no one would find them out here in the middle of the night. They had put some pretty good distance between them and Cornwall’s men but still, Charles was wary.

 He flinched every time Uncle or Bill would snore, knowing it could blow their cover. Charles looked down at his feet to where Arthur was resting, his head leaning against Charles’s leg. Charles reached up and ran his hand over his hair. There was a small braid behind his ear that Arthur had put there the other day. He had used the excuse of wanting more practice but Charles could see through it, even if Arthur couldn’t.

It was during a late-night fireside chat that Charles had confessed that he perhaps had been thinking of Arthur as more than just a friend. He was a little surprised at Alice’s reaction at first. She had a little bit to drink that night so her emotions were high and had asked if that meant he’d rather have Arthur than her. Charles had laughed at that which just caused the poor girl more confusion. She understood though when he explained that it was just the same as her having feelings for both men, that he had feelings for her and Arthur. Or at least, he was considering it. The day Arthur kissed him – albeit on the cheek – he knew his feelings were confirmed. It was different than his feelings for Alice. With Alice he felt as though he had found his other half, his soul-mate, if he dared use the term. He could see himself with her as long as their way of life would allow. And however long society would allow, since it was a stickler for their kind of relationship. But with Arthur it seemed as though he had found a partner. It just felt natural. Two people who were very similar but also so different, coming together. It just worked.

 Charles shook his thoughts away – those could be saved for another day. The other men were starting to wake up. Arthur suggested trying to get out of there now that it was nightfall. Uncle started grumbling something but Charles was quick to shut him up.

His eyes squinted as he spotted lights coming over the hill in the distance.

“Damn.” Arthur whispered, coming to stand next to Charles. “L-let’s just keep this calm. See what happens.” He motioned for everyone to get into hiding.

Charles backed into a corner, engulfing himself in the darkness. He could see Bill clear as day and was not confident that the man would remain hidden if anyone decided to check the barn.

Just as he had that thought the owner of the home shouted to the men knocking on his door about some noises in the barn. Charles cursed to himself. He and Arthur stared at one another as two men came closer to the barn. If they were fast enough they could probably take the men out without the others noticing too quickly. They nodded to each other, as if coming to the same thought. The men walked into the barn and Charles was certain they just might get out of this alive until Bill slipped on something in the back of the barn, causing all hell to break lose. Charles was quick to pull out his sawed-off and shoot the man closest to him. Arthur got the other man but they could already hear the shouts from the men outside the barn, as well as more being called in as backup. They were surrounded. Every opening to the barn that Charles could see was blocked and his hopes of all of them getting out alive was quickly dwindling.

“Behind you, Charles!”

Charles turned around but before he could fire off a shot, the man was already dead. He turned back to see Arthur nodding at him, reloading his gun.

They were firing from every angle but the number of enemies never seemed to go down. Charles grunted in pain as he felt a bullet whizz by his face, no doubt adding another scar to his collection.

“They’re coming in from all sides!” Bill yelled out.

“Oh, shit…fire!” Arthur yelled out. “The oil from that lantern!”

Charles look around, trying to assess the situation. Burning to death or getting shot to death cornered in a barn was not exactly how he saw himself going out. His irritation was growing with every passing second.

“Nicely done, Bill.” He growled out. “They teach you that move in the army too?”

“Can’t you keep your fat feet still for ten goddamn seconds?” Uncle chimed in.

Bill looked between the two men for a moment. “You got us into this!”

All of the men went back to shooting as their attackers got steadily closer. It was like there was no end to them.

“How about we stop robbing Cornwall’s men for a while?” Charles glanced at Arthur who returned a knowing look.

“I didn’t know we was robbing Cornwall, aright?” Uncle retorted, clearly annoyed that his plan didn’t work out.

“If we don’t get out of here soon we’re charcoal.” Arthur looked around at the barn as it started falling apart. Beams were now blocking a lot of the open windows.

Charles put his sawed off away, focusing on trying to find a way out while the others kept shooting. He headed towards the back wall. It was the side with most of the fire, but was also the side with none of Cornwall’s men. He assessed the standing wall, wondering how hard it would be to break through when another beam fell from the ceiling causing him to jump back with a shout.

Charles turned to the men. “This whole place is catching!”

“Come on, old man!” Bill yelled out as he ran towards the opposite wall.

Charles winced as he watched Bill ram his leg through the wood. No doubt he’d be feeling it later if the adrenaline wasn’t working through his system. Uncle was quick to follow Bill out of the barn as they both fired away at anyone outside. Charles stepped through, looking back at Arthur who was still firing shots away in the fire.

“Come on, Arthur!” He yelled out, his voice harsh from the smoke.

He ran back, grabbing Arthur by the hand to pull him out of the building. They didn’t let go of each other until they were heading towards the woods nearby, following Bill and Uncle. They had a bit of a reprieve as it seemed no one had noticed they had escaped for the time being.

“Where we going, Bill?” Charles called out, wondering what the plan was.

“We’ll try to lose them in the woods!”

They reached a dried riverbed.

“Let’s split up a bit, try to confuse ‘em.” Uncle whispered. “Arthur, with me.”

Charles and Arthur looked at one another briefly. Charles knew the man could handle himself, still, his newfound feelings didn’t make it any easier to separate from him in this situation. The four parted ways and Charles begrudgingly followed Bill.

“Anything dumb, Williamson, and you’re on your own.” Charles grumbled.

“Oh, shut the hell up.”

   ******

   Alice had just come back from a rather successful hunt – three rabbits, a turkey, and a rather nicely sized deer. She was helping Pearson skin the rabbits when Uncle, Bill, Charles, and Arthur finally returned. She knew they had left for a job yesterday but it was supposed to have been a simple robbery. Sufficed to say she spent most of the night a nervous wreck which is why she felt the need to go hunting this morning.

She quickly dropped the rabbit she was skinning, shouting an apology to Pearson as she ran towards her men.

“Charles! Arthur!” She nearly collided into Arthur from her speed.

The men smiled down at her, enjoying her worry over them.

She took the chance to look over the men individually to make sure they were intact. They were both rubbing her arms as she reached their faces, her neck craning up to examine every angle. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the wound on Charles’s face. It was just a scratch but still, that was a very close call. She wasn’t sure if it was because it was her time of the month or not, but her emotions seemed to be heightened as the thought alone of how close she could have come to losing Charles was enough to cause her chin to start wobbling and her eyes to burn. Both men sighed as they pulled her in close to their chests. Alice gripped their shirts, taking in the smell of them. They smelled of smoke. She could feel them surround her, hugging each other as well. She didn’t care if everyone in camp was watching them, she was just glad that they were okay.

“Ya’ll can’t keep giving me heart attacks like this. You hear?” She tried to sound firm but the sniffle that followed didn’t help.

“Yes ma’am.” Arthur hummed into her hair, placing a kiss on the top of her head.

Charles hummed in agreement, squeezing her tighter.

The three released one another but Alice was still riding on her emotional high. Again, she didn’t care that they were within view of everyone in camp. She grabbed Arthur’s face and pulled him down to meet her as she crushed their lips together. When she released him she did the same with Charles.

She could feel her face beginning to warm. Sure, she had kissed both men in private. But they had never kissed her in front of each other. That day in the field was as close as they had gotten. But Alice didn’t care. It felt right. Still, she kept her head down as she looked up at both of them through her eyelashes. They were staring between each other and her. As if figuring out what to do next. They smiled. Alice couldn’t tell if she should be happy or afraid that they both smiled at the same time. She tried to back away as they both leaned forward but Arthur grabbed her by the waist before she could get too far. He pulled her in close, dipping her back a bit to kiss her hard. A little too hard, but she wouldn’t complain. The man was much larger than her it was easy for him to forget. Alice had to grab onto his suspenders in order to keep her balance. When he placed her back on her feet she felt Charles spin her around before she had time to think about what was happening. Her stomach did flips as she was lifted into the air, her body seemed to weigh nothing to the man. It was interesting being taller than Charles and it certainly made kissing the man all the more interesting. She grabbed handfuls of his hair as they kissed and by the time he placed her back on the ground all her previous worries were long forgotten. She smiled between the two men before she heard applause and whistles from behind her. She jumped in her skin, quickly hiding her face in her hands as the camp whooped and hollered. Alice laughed to herself as she heard Arthur yell at everyone to mind their own business.

“Come on you two, let’s get ya’ll cleaned up.”

[ahnmakes]

devlog # 8 // mapmaking, part 2 (plants, blender modeling + refining map visuals)

welcome back to the world of Gamedév!

okay, so, it’s been a couple weeks since the last devlog, but honestly, it feels like years have passed.  to let you know a bit of what i’ve been up to, i’ve mainly been reflecting on pursuing further education in a formal setting.  for close to a year now, i’ve already been studying computer science and game development pretty intentionally on my own - with the abundant resources available online, it is more than possible to receive a full and competent education without university studies. however, there are a few things that self-studying does not always make easy or accessible, namely: a) tangible, structured evidence of the skills you’re learning, in a format others (employers) feel they understand, b) opportunities to collaborate and build with other people around your skill levels, and c) in-person connections, leading to further interpersonal and career potentials

these are things that i think university education does tend to provide more consistently, and they are the reason that i am nearly certain i’ll be pursuing more formal education in the coming months.  i am mainly waiting to hear back on a funding opportunity, so more details on my plan in the next devlog ..

as far as progress on zodaia, the main thing i worked on this week was getting some new models into the game.  as you may remember, in the previous devlog, i had made a number of environmental models .. pretty much entirely out of cubes.  the first model, a tree, allowed me to render a stunningly realistic and artistically compelling forest:

it may be difficult to tell, but this is a digitally-rendered forest scene, not a photo; hard to believe, but if you zoom in close, you might see subtle indications that these models were created from geometric shapes.  while i did not imagine i could improve upon the flowing asymmetry of the grass or the bold sharpness of the rock faces, i thought i would give it a shot.

putting these placeholder assets temporarily aside, i decided to start with a sort of leafy plant because it seemed like something i couldn’t fuck up too much.

i opened blender, deleted the initial cube, and started with a flat plane, just the default one provided.  i then extruded it a couple of times, making a longer, flat plane - it seemed easier to work with the leaf as a flat piece before bringing it more into 3d.  i next curved the shape by selecting loop cuts and scaling them down as made sense to me; i didn’t follow any guide, just went along adjusting the shape into something pleasing to me.  once i had a flat leaf that looked nice, i put a loop cut down the length of the leaf, and i rotated the whole leaf up, keeping its base close to the center, where the axes meet.  i then pulled this center loop of vertices down, creating an indent in the leaf, then individually adjusted the side vertices up and down to create more depth, as if the leaf were rotated or growing differently along its edges.

and that brought me to this:

i know that is a lot of blender/3d-modeling talk, already, so let me know if you’d like a more in-depth blender introduction; if you support me on patreon, i will definitely make a tutorial so you can know more about the modeling process!

anyhow, once i had this one leaf, i just duplicated it and started manually positioning the leaves to make something that looked decent.  i’m sure there is a more perfomant or efficient way to do things, but my goal right now is simply to make - i have spent years trying to conceptualise an ideal way to do everything, which often led to me not making anything at all, but the intention of this blog is for ahn to make.  so, this is what i made:

obviously, as this was the first model i’ve made for the game (aside from the hex model, which will also soon get a rework), i couldn’t wait to see the model actually in the game.  i made a basic green material, imported the model (as an fbx file) into unity, and simply replaced this with the model in one of the original InteractableObjects - i think i replaced the bush?

here’s how it looked:

already stunning!  sincerely, this time.  i am in love with the simplicity of this effect - and though i might feel differently later, right now, i love how this plant looks.

next, i continued swiftly on with a tree, since i imagined that is the thing that would be most engaging and also most visually rewarding.  in the past, i have created low-poly trees before and absolutely loved the effect, so i also decided i would go for something similar this time.

skipping most of the modeling details, i basically just started with a cylinder and extruded, extruded, extruded and repositioned vertices until i got this shape - it took probably 5 minutes (including the part where i needed to bond the duplicated tree branch by manually creating faces between the central and duplicated branch vertices).

i then added in some icospheres, which i just pulled around and contorted into these shapes, which i (again) duplicated.

after creating materials for the tree bark and the tree top and putting a light in the scene, this was the quick render result.

and now, in the game..

the difference is absurd, especially considering how little energy it took to make these trees.  i created a dark and a light variation once i had the models imported into unity, and will certainly make variations with many more shapes - however, right now, there is only that one tree model in this scene.  could you tell?  without studying the trees too hard, i think the automatic rotation (included in the procedural generation) gives a convincing effect, as if there are many tree models there.

and since i was coasting on the excitement of having these models complete nearly immediately, i decided to go ahead and do the grass and rock models, too.

again, start with one shape ..

then duplicate and make material ..

et voilà.  also featuring the rocks i made.

actually, the first time i imported the model and pressed play, it crashed unity and looked like this:

why? i initially thought it was because i had made the noob mistake of making 3d grass (which i did) instead of using 2d images, but actually, it was because i had also imported a light and camera for each grass model; remember to delete them from the scene in blender before exporting!

with that, i was pretty in love with how everything was going.  the environments are starting to look more organic and how i dream of them being.

updated glacier: (not much going on here yet; needs more water effects, snow falling .. but i did update the ice color and transparency to be more distinct from the snow)

desert scene with a very bright weather:

ash biome looking almost exactly the same:

gardens at night with an ambient light:

and two new biomes: the tundra, a mostly frozen, rocky landscape with some plant-growth:

and the cove, dark because it’s inside/a cave:

overall, i am super pleased with these developments and *so* thrilled for the next changes to come.

look out for the next devlog, where i’ll probably be working on a couple more models (or texturing/modeling the hexes?) and especially the more weather-y environmental effects: lighting, post processing, clouds, rain, lightning, water, the sky -- much to come.  until then..

with love and hopefully a low poly count,

ahn

// support me on patreon?  click here to join my party and help me keep making content like this <3

[rememberthattime]

Chapter 47. Fiji

I was born on May 13, 1989. I don’t remember much about the day, but from pictures, it looked like a great time. My parents were celebrating, there were balloons, someone brought a children’s Chicago Cubs baseball set.

Today is my 30th birthday, so I’m reflecting … looking back all the way to the very start.

It’s interesting to imagine my mom & dad’s thoughts in that delivery room 30 years ago. They must have been terrified by the responsibility of raising a toddler (I would be), but also excited for their new son’s future. What will he grow up to be? Where will he live? What will he do? Their dreams for me had to be bigger than their 1980’s hair.

In the least dramatic way I can say this: they couldn’t have predicted where I’d end up 30 years later.

Birthdays are important to celebrate, but especially milestone birthdays. This is mainly Chelsay’s influence speaking, but I agree with her: milestone birthdays are ones you’ll always remember. 15 years from now, we’ll think back and ask: “What did we do for your 30th birthday?” ... I won’t let that be an ordinary memory. Life is busy though, so it’s tough to carve out a day for festivities, let alone plan them. Even a month ago, Chelsay and I didn’t know how we’d be celebrating. Chels had plans in motion, but my work complicated things by scheduling meetings in Atlanta the week before. My trip back to Sydney would require 24 hours of flights, so would we still be up for a big celebration? The answer is Yes. I’m not 70, and I just said milestone birthdays were important, so we’re making this happen. Work would pay for me to get from ATL back to SYD via any route, so Chels and I started looking for convenient connecting destinations. Hong Kong, Tokyo, Patagonia, and Hawaii were all considered, but in the end, we found the perfect blend of celebration, relaxation, adventure, and convenient flights in Fiji. Fiji is a county made up of 330 islands, and each island chain has its own unique characteristics. Viti Levu is the main island and home to Nadi Airport, but most tourists don’t stay here. Near Viti Levu are the Mamanucas, small sandy dots amongst the expansive blue. The Mamanucas are stunning, but they’re typically more resort-y and popular with nearby Aussies & Kiwis. Then there are the Yasawas, where Chelsay and I chose to stay. The Yasawas are further from the mainland, and their remoteness means their less touristy.

This is a double-edged sword though, because less tourists means there’s less tourist infrastructre, so finding a comfortable option would take some research. We eventually decided on Paradise Cove, which perfectly balanced vacation comforts (comfy bed, outdoor shower, and excellent food, which can’t be understated on a remote island) with a sense of wild adventure (fewer guests, great snorkelling, and hiking paths around the large island).

I nailed my meetings in Atlanta, so my birthday weekend was off to a good start even before boarding the plane. For the next 24 hours of flights, I had nothing to worry about - just enjoying a few movies and catching up on sleep. Chelsay and I met up in the Nadi Airport after extremely disproportionate flight times (hers was only 4 hours), and caught a ferry to Paradise Cove. Seaplanes were an option, but they were 5x the price and this wasn’t our honeymoon. The other advantage of the ferry is that it allowed us to see the different Fijian islands up close. Viti Levu and the Mamanucas were very nice, but Chelsay and I knew we’d made the right choice as we arrived in the less crowded Yasawas.

We were in heaven as we stepped onto the sandy beaches of Paradise Cove. A jungle of palm trees lined the beach, at first hiding the resort before eventually revealing a dream island getaway: shaded cabanas, pool-side lounge chairs, and a bar concocting frozen, fruity treats.

The pineapple on top of this pina colada was that Chelsay told the resort it was both of our birthdays, so they upgraded our villa and outfitted it with balloons and welcome drinks. As birthday surprises go, drinks on a beach in Fiji was pretty good.

After drinks on the beach, scuba diving wasn’t really an option, so we decided to snorkel in Paradise Cove’s house reef. I was really surprised by its color. It was just last week that I wrote about the scale of the Great Barrier Reef... but out in the middle of the Pacific, Fiji’s immense soft coral, highlighter vibrancy, and sea life abundance were incredible.

Now, it was inevitable that jet lag would catch up to me. Atlanta is 16 hours behind Fiji, and I was mentally nearing midnight. Chelsay was also dealing with severe time zone change (2 hours), so she was equally down for a nap. We gave ourselves 90 minutes but would wake up well before our 6:30 dinner. Apparently we woke up to the alarm at 5:30... I don’t remember. I guess I turned it off and only woke up once Chelsay checked her phone. 6:20. Woof. I say all this only to give you an idea of the mental state I was in over dinner. It was similar to that infamous Innsbruck dinner, where Chelsay and I giggled through our whole meal in a tired haze. After our mains, I asked Chelsay if it was time to call it a night... Despite having sour straws in the room, she insisted we stay at the restaurant for dessert. “Alright, well if we’re going to be here awhile, I need some extra bug spray.” I stumbled back to the room and, as I was re-applying, I heard singing in the distance. “Must be the ‘Kava Social’ by the fire pit,” I thought. ...These resorts always put on a show. Still in a sleepy haze, I leisurely made my way back to Chelsay. As I got closer though, I realized the singing wasn’t coming from the fire pit… it was coming from the restaurant. I turned the corner and could see they were surrounding Chelsay and I’s table... and Chelsay had her hands clasped over her mouth... and they weren’t making eye contact with her... and they had a cake. OH NO! They’d been singing this whole time for me!!!! Ahhhhh-I rushed back to the table, face bright red, and started clapping along as they sang a Fijian happy birthday song. I don’t know what they sang actually... it could’ve been the alphabet. I just tried to focus on Chelsay and not on the fact that the song had been going for at least three minutes. I thought to myself, “Chelsay must be so embarrassed!” And then I thought, “Oh no everyone thinks I was taking a shit!” The song finally wrapped up, and the waiters were laughing with Chelsay and I. They accusingly pointed out that it was the longest they’ve ever had to sing happy birthday… “Guys, I swear, I was putting on more bug spray!” Luckily a nearby couple caught the awkwardness of camera.

The next morning, Chelsay and I had scheduled back-to-back dives. We’ve been diving quite a bit recently, but it was still fun to float around the bottom of the ocean. Much like the local humans, Fijian fish seemed incredible friendly: the sea life was very comfortable with divers, staring back at Chelsay and I from only a few inches away.

After our dives, Chels and I took a 1.5 hour hike around the island, stopping at a secluded beach for private snorkelling. Along the hike, the resort had set up a few small exercise stations. One station was a tire flip... like what NFL prospects train with. This is probably why all the Polynesian players are so big. Anyway, Chelsay challenged me to flip it and I did so without difficulty. It must not have looked hard, because Chelsay confidently stepped up to try it herself. She bent down, grabbed the tire, lifted from her legs for less than one millisecond, and walked away with nothing but a “Nope.”

At dinner that night, first of all, there were no birthday song surprises. Second, we had phenomenal steak with a spread of beetroot, pea, and garlic purée. It was exceptional, as was every meal we ate at Paradise Cove. This can’t be overstated. I mentioned earlier that food in many Yasawan islands is poor, often limited to rice and fries. These resorts just aren’t prepared to meet all vacation comforts... Paradise Cove was ready though. Over our three days, we enjoyed tasty local kokoda, beef lettuce wraps, coconut crusted chicken, and their many fresh catches of the day.

The next morning, Chelsay and I joined a snorkel excursion through a nearby island channel. In Fiji, these channels serve as a funnel for pods of manta rays, which are probably my favorite non-dog animal. See, ever since our failed hunt for mantas in the Maldives, I’ve had an appreciation for how hard they are to find. Even though we’ve since seen entire pods of mantas, I’ll always jump at the slightest chance to see another. Our boat between the two islands, and the guide jumped in the water. He wore a weight belt so that he could sink down where the mantas swim, which I only mention because I want to remember how easily he descended 10 meters (30 feet), sitting in the dark blue for 2 minutes before resurfacing. This guy is a fish. On the other hand, Chelsay had a less graceful descent. When we scuba dived the day before, we exited the boat by sitting on the ledge, tanks over the water, and just falling backwards. The weight of the tank would naturally fall into the water and 360-degree flip you back to the surface. When snorkelling though, you don’t have the weight of the tank. Chelsay threw herself back and entered the water, but was too buoyant to complete a flip. She’d contoured herself into an arch, with her belly sticking out of the water and fins frantically trying to rotate over. She probably scared the mantas away. It took about 30 minutes of tense anticipation, but while staring down at the blue abyss, we heard the guide yell, “Manta!” Chelsay and I swam over quickly to take in the majestic giant. At around 3 meters wide, this female manta was bigger than me, yet swam with such gentle grace. Its grace is deceptive though, because it’s actually still moving quickly - between our hunt and subsequent chase, I probably swam 3 km that morning.

Chels and I were tired when we got back to Paradise Cove, but it was our last day so we decided to snorkel the house reef one more time. It was cool to see the soft coral again, but we were pooped. I actually had to tow Chelsay back: you know, when I swim in front and my wife just holds onto my foot.

As I was towing her, we passed over a shallow part of the reef but I kept powering along. Suddenly, Chelsay let go of my foot and started slapping the water. I stopped in my tracks, unsure what she was freaking out about. She swam off, so I followed, and it wasn’t until we’d gotten to shore that she told me what it was: apparently a venomous white-banded sea snake popped out and launched within 1.5 ft of me. That was enough sea life for this trip, so we spent the rest of the day on the resort’s inflated jungle gym. We laughed, played around, and attempted backflips (key word: attempted). Just a reminder that I’d turned 30 a few days before.

That note actually transitions well into my conclusion…

A lot of people get anxious about their 30th birthday. It isn’t a vitality thing - too early for that - but the anxiety comes more from gauging where you are vs where you thought you’d be. Life isn’t a checklist, but it’s natural to have expectations for when you turn 30, 40, etc. Well, I’m writing this from my villa patio in Fiji, so I’m nailing the “Where you are” part. To answer that question less literally though, I’ll instead consider “Where I am” against Chelsay and I’s life motto, something we wrote in our wedding vows: “We’ll never let age get in the way of our youth.” This is perfect motto for age-related milestones because youth isn’t a concept tied to age. It isn’t chapter in your life that just fades away. It’s a mindset, and it’s one you can measure whether you’re 5, 20, 30, 40, or 80. To be youthful is to be energetic, playful, and optimistic. Now I’m technically 30, but this milestone age doesn’t bother me. “Where I am” is energetic enough to swim with Mantas, playful enough to laugh at awkward cake situations and splash around on an inflatable jungle gym, and optimistic enough to make a celebratory Fiji weekend happen despite all of life’s complexities. I’m not worried about turning 30, because after the past weekend, I know I’m as youthful as I’ve ever been.

[crimsonblackrose]

My second and final full day in Tokyo was visiting Disney Sea. The friend I was staying with decided to join me since she was also on vacation and we made our way to the park. We had decided to try something called Disney Bounding, even though it was late September and the parks let adults dress up in actual cosplay of characters. It’s really cool to witness. My friend and I decided to go for villains because we believed Disney Sea was the park that was taken over by villains and maybe we’d see the whole park transformed with a larger Halloween influence than I had last year at Tokyo Disneyland. Disney bounding is putting together an outfit that is inspired by a character to wear at the parks since about 80% of the year adults can’t dress up. My friend chose Scar from The Lion King and I picked Captain Hook from Peter Pan.

I had a lot of fun figuring out an outfit, though to be honest, I failed my first attempt. South Korea has a lot of  really nice underground malls where clothing is a bit cheaper and I spent an afternoon with a friend walking around trying to put something together. I really proud with my finds only to go home and realize that despite being elastic and looking like they’d fit that they didn’t actually. The downfall to shopping in the underground where you can’t try anything on. Lesson learned. I’m still proud of what I ended up with but as family and friends have pointed out I also ended up looking a bit like Carmen Sandiego. It was a happy coincidence.

picture of the monorail with Mickey Mouse shaped windows and gates that say “35 Happiest Celebration”

Once we arrived at Maihama station we had to take the monorail to Disney Sea. The monorail has four stops.

1: Resort Gateway: This is where you catch the train back to Tokyo. 

2: Tokyo Disneyland Station

3: Bayside

4: Tokyo Disney Sea

The monorail isn’t free. It’s 260 yen per ride and you can get a day pass or a two day pass. You can also use the same pass that you might use in Tokyo for the regular trains and buses. I hoped that there was a special Disney one way ticket but there’s not. I had a Passimo (a transit card for Tokyo) which I should’ve just used instead. You can also walk to either park. I walked to Disneyland last year, but it was nice to take the monorail which was comfortable, played Disney music and was very cute.

mickey mouse shaped hanging straps

a view of a boat called Columbia through the view of the Mickey Mouse shaped window on the monorail

Once at Disney Sea we headed to the bathroom so my friend could add the finishing touches to her Scar look. Which included us spending a half hour while she drew the iconic scar on her face with lipstick and eye liner. We took our cute tickets which she’d gotten at a Disney store in Tokyo and headed in. I went straight through but my friend got stopped. There’s a list of do’s and don’ts for the park and despite being on the website it wasn’t anywhere we’d looked before going. To save you time because I couldn’t find it easily while navigating the site you can find rules for dressing up here. We spent nearly an extra half hour waiting for a staff member who was kind enough to run off and get my friend make up remover.

35 Happiest Celebration Mickey Mouse Ticket 7,400 yen (~$74)

Once in the park we looked at the schedule for the day. We arrived early enough to catch the main show we wanted to see “Villains World” but there was already a crowd before it started. Two! Hours! Early! Rather than wait with the crowd for two hours in the early morning sun we headed towards the back of the park towards the Lost River Delta to watch a show called “Out of Shadowland” at the Hangar. We were about an half hour early and there wasn’t too bad of a line. We got good seats and enjoyed the show which was a musical that was 100% in Japanese. I was expecting it to be a little bit like the Lilo and Stitch show I saw last year where it came with a translator but no. The plot is simple and it is possible to follow along. It’s about a group that goes into a woods in search of a special bird. A shy girl named Mei finds and follows the bird and becomes separated from the group and then finds herself in the “Shadowland” where she meets a deer spirit named Yuu. Yuu wants her to help save the world he lives in (with her magical powers) and defeat the evil bird but Mei just wants to go home. Through her adventure she finds courage and confidence. It was pretty to watch and fun, though as a note there is some flashing lights at various parts and possibly some parts that may be disturbing to very small children.

Sign for “Out of Shadowland” with showtimes

The last showing is on March 31st, 2019, after which a new musical will be performed at the Hangar stage. The show is about 25 minutes long. The schedule for the performances change occasionally but in general it seems to be performed about 5 times a day at the Hangar stage: 10:30,  12:00, 1:30,3:45, and 5:15 p.m.

Picture of Mermaid Lagoon, lots of blue and pink coral

After the show we headed to the Mermaid Lagoon to get lunch. Most of the Mermaid Lagoon is indoors in an area called Triton’s Kingdom. Inside Triton’s Kingdom is a very fluorescent space made up of coral mixed with a video arcade vibe. While there aren’t video games, there are tons of rides perfect for children. We weren’t there to ride any of the rides though and none of them really seemed like adult rides. They all seemed to be specifically activities for children. We headed towards the back to Sebastian’s Calypso Kitchen. This is a counter style restaurant where you order, pay and then go up to the counter where they’ll give you a tray with your food. We went here because according to the today page (which is 100% in Japanese) you can get some special Halloween treats.

Cup of coffee, special Halloween Melon soda and Halloween seafood burger with disney villains to go burger bag

close up on Halloween burger with purple bun

My friend ordered their  スペシャルセットwhich was a seafood burger that was a scallop cream croquette with ratatouille sauce on a purple bun. She ordered it as a set so it came with a side of fries and a choice of drink for 990 yen. I misread the today page and thought that it was also the restaurant with Halloween non-seafood burger but it wasn’t. So instead I ordered a sausage pizza ソーセージピザ (700 yen) and their special Halloween drink calledメロンソーダ（ホイップクリーム＆パイナップルシロップ）(380 yen) which was a melon soda with a whipped cream and pineapple syrup topped with little gummy candies in a very cute cup.

Little Mermaid statue of Ariel, Flounder, and Sebastian in the Mermaid Lagoon

Picture of King Triton in a chariot pulled by two dolphins holding his trident at the entrance of Triton’s Kingdom in the Mermaid Lagoon.

A picture of the inside neon lit dim Triton’s Kingdom inside facilities.

A beach version of Donald Duck surrounded by families and children trying to get pictures.

The seating was cute with little clam shell booths but like the rest of Triton’s kingdom it was very dimly lit. When we finished eating and were just enjoying our drinks my friend let out a scream, threw her arms out and then herself over the back of our clam shell booth. At first I thought she’d forgotten something she had to do for work or saw something upsetting, but then I spotted a Donald Duck wobbling past in snorkeling gear. I told her “go” and she bolted. It was probably the funniest part of the day and she managed to get some cute photos with the Donald Duck who was instantly swarmed on all sides by children, just like Pluto that was also wearing beachwear nearby.

After our trip to Triton’s Kingdom in the Mermaid Lagoon we headed to the Arabian Coast. While the Mermaid Lagoon is The Little Mermaid themed the Arabian coast is Aladdin themed. Here we rode Jasmine’s flying carpets which is a ride similar to Dumbo the flying elephant. Only for Jasmine’s flying carpet each carpet can seat up to four people, with two people up front and two in the back. The two sitting at the front get to control whether the carpet slowly moves up or slowly moves down. It’s a bit delayed but fun.

Picture of one of the entrances to the Arabian Coast

Picture of Tiger Fountain in front of the Magical Lamp Theater at the Arabian Coast

The Caravan Carousel, a covered carousel ride that is two stories beneath a beautiful blue dome

A picture of a door that says “Closed by order of the Sultan” with a large padlock on it. Next to the door is a shop sign that reads “Jafar’s Shop of Wonders”

Picture of Jasmine’s Flying Carpet ride in action

Statue of Rajah the tiger in front of Jasmine’s Flying Carpet’s ride

After the ride we stopped momentarily at a snack stand called Open Sesame to buy a pumpkin and maple churro. There was also a large line in the Arabian coast but for what I wasn’t exactly sure. It may have been for either the Agrabah Marketplace which boasts magic tricks as well as items for sale or Abuu’s bazaar which was a place to play carnival style games for an extra fee. Those were at least things in the area I assumed might’ve been the cause of the long line, but there is also a restaurant, some shows and a couple more rides that may have caused it.

The Open Sesame food stand

Pumpkin Maple churro

Our next stop was the most exciting to me: Mysterious Island. Mysterious Island is located in the center of the park and is enclosed on all sides with paths leading in and out. It’s easy to spot from the rest of the park since a large portion of it is a volcano called Mount Prometheus. It’s 189 feet (57.61m) tall and occasionally belches out flame that can be seen and heard almost everywhere. Beneath this mammoth of a man-made volcano are two popular rides and a small cove to excite any steam-punk fan or better yet, anyone who enjoys the works of Jules Verne.

Walkways around the Mysterious island and a train sticking out of the side of the volcano

The Nautilus on the water, a submersible boat (also the name of the nearby gift shop)

view across the water of the entrance to 20,000 leagues under the sea ride

view of Nautilus and the walkways around the Mysterious Island

Jules Verne was a French author in the 1800’s to early 1900’s. He’s most well known for his science fiction adventure stories that are hinted at throughout the Mysterious Island. Actually even the name of this section of the park is the name of one of his novels, specifically his #12 novel in “The Extraordinary Voyages” series. The island is in fact the hide out of one of his characters Captain Nemo who is also found in his book Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (book #6) which shares a name with one of the rides on the Mysterious Island. The other ride is Journey to the Center of the Earth (book #3), which is another of Verne’s adventure novels.

We headed first to ride Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and made our way down underground and into a semi-long line with plenty to look at and enjoy. When it was time for us to board our crafts, small submarines that fit six, each set of two with their own window we were quite pleased. The ride was fun and felt in the same spirit as the book, a journey of exploration of the ocean with a bit of danger. Which really was the theme of both rides. It’s a similar style ride to the Peter Pan one found at the other parks.

Spiral staircase with a submarine boat that leads down to the 20,000 leagues under the sea ride

close up of suspended submarine boat

view of Captain Nemo’s office

view of “Captain Nemo’s” office while waiting for Journey to the Center of the Earth

I enjoyed the ride so much that I was ready to run across and under Mount Prometheus to get in line for Journey to the Center of the Earth. This was a bad idea. Outside Journey to the Center of the Earth are a lot of benches and places to sit. I should’ve sat. My feet were already hurting and the line ended up being 70 minutes. Which for park lines isn’t too long, I’ve been in line much longer before but the wait was disorienting. Unlike many rides at other Disney parks there weren’t any “From this point on your wait is___ minutes”. There also wasn’t any staff to ask. We were underground and there wasn’t much difference in things to look at. The line snaked around items and among other parts of the line to the point I didn’t know who else was behind me and who was in front of me to know where I was going next. That coupled with the pain in my feet was just torturous. I was about ready to throw in the towel when my friend spotted what she thought was the start to the ride. What she spotted in actuality were elevators that took us down further to where we entered another line, but this line at least we could see the special drilling device designed roller-coaster car. The ride was a lot of fun and the most intense roller coaster we managed to get on that day. Thankfully it had little places at the front of our seats to place bags and hats or anything we needed to store for fear of loosing. This was another ride that fit about six people.

These rides were a lot of fun and if you’re in a hurry it’s worth getting a fast pass for. We didn’t understand how fast passes worked and didn’t try to get any for the day. There should be fast pass ticket machines near the rides where you can scan your ticket and get a fast pass for a specific time period in which to return to the ride. Thankfully though our 70 minute wait was the longest we had for a ride that day.

After a short rest we left the Mysterious Island and headed down towards the Mediterranean harbor. The Mediterranean harbor is a lake area near the front of the park. This is where all parade like performances are held. We saw two from vastly different view points.  We caught “Villains World” from in front of the Zambini Brother’s Restorante near the Disney Sea Transit Steamer Line. The best place to catch shows is from the front stage however the seating here fills up over two hours before the show starts. The area we sat filled up about an hour before the show. I suggest bringing an umbrella or parasol while you wait and snacks. Because there were two of us, one of us would sit while the other would go off and get snacks. Since it was still hot out I made use of my electric fan. You can’t move much so I highly suggest bringing something to do or something to keep you either warm or cool depending on the weather. People also bring mats to sit on or collapsible chairs that they take down before the show starts.

Screen shot of Mediterranean Harbor with suggested viewing wait spots for the shows. The Yellow Star is where the main stage is and fills up nearly 2 hours or more before a show starts. The black and white stars are other stage spots where characters may disembark from boats as well as where dancers may appear. These don’t fill up nearly as quickly but still try to be there about an hour before the show starts.

I really loved the “Villains World” show. It was fun and entertaining and great to watch. We had good seats since we were right outside a mini side stage where the characters got off their ships to interact with the dancers that were dressed to match the villains. Part of the music was in English and a lot of what the villains said was in Japanese. It was a lot of fun.

Hade’s float with Chip, Dale and Donald Duck in Greek style outfits and Hades with Pain and Panic

Donald Duck, Chip and Dale on the stage with dancers while Hade’s stays on his float

Jafar’s float with dancers

Captain Hook float with Mr. Smee and various dancers on the stage in front of it.

Jafar’s float arriving with Goofy in a similar outfit as Jafar while Chip and Dale look up at the new boat

Captain Hook and Mr. Smee on their boat

The Evil Queen from Snow white and her boat with dancers

Goofy dancing with villain themed dancers with kites, vines and people hydroflying in the background

Jafar’s float with dancers

Hades with Pain and Panic on their boat

This was however a point where I lost my friend for a bit. When the show ended and we gathered up our things she had to go file a complaint with the staff because of an altercation she had with one of the other guests sitting near her. It didn’t go so well and she was gone for about an hour. During this time, since I had no way of contacting her I wandered around the American Waterfront as quickly as I could before going to our meeting spot. There isn’t any wifi at Disney Sea which made me worry how we’d communicate if something happened while she filed her complaint. She also has a phone with very poor battery life which meant she might not have been able to contact me even if she’d wanted to to update me on what happened.

View of Mount Prometheus from the Mediterranean Harbor during Sunset

Disney Sea Electric Railway view in the American Waterfront

Toy Story Mania!

Tower of Terror

Evil Queen statue

Tower of Terror Close up says “Hotel Hightower”

Big Band Beat at Broadway Music Theater

There are some cool things to do in the American Waterfront. You can watch “Big Band Beat” which is a musical performance with characters and dancing at the Broadway Music Theater. It’s thirty minutes with about 5 show times a day that may change depending on the day: 12:20, 1:50, 3:20, 5:20, and 6:50pm. There is reserved and non-reserved seating available depending on the time of day. Reserved seating is usually for orchestra seating and requires getting a seat via lottery. To enter the lottery you need to go to Biglietteria (located near Gondolier Snacks across from Lido Isle at the Mediterranean Harbor) and scan your ticket that you used to get into the park.  (Same as with getting a fast pass) Otherwise head to the Broadway Music Theater before the show to try and get a seat in one of the non-reserved spaces.

Also in the area is The Tower of Terror and a Dockside Stage which is where a twenty-five minute performance called “Hello New York” occurs. Performances happen about five times a day though they do change and sometimes there are less. Usually performances occur at 12:05, 1:35, 3:05, 5:15, and 6:45.

Toy Story Mania is another area in the American Waterfront. It’s similar to Abuu’s bazaar in that it’s mostly carnival games though there is a couple indoor rides. There’s also a beautiful park called the Waterfront Park which was a popular spot to get photos. I saw a ton of people wandering through the park getting pictures of their photos.

New York Deli

Halloween special set of prosciutto with apple sandwich, fries and drink (Kirin apple soda)

After this quick wandering through the American Waterfront I hurried to our meeting spot where the other Halloween sandwich was that I wanted to try. It was in one of the many restaurants on the American Waterfront, this one called New York Deli. The entrance was a little confusing since it wasn’t on the main street but instead around the corner from the main street. I had hoped it’d be a smallish deli where I could easily spot my friend but instead the shop was huge. I did a quick run through to make sure she wasn’t sitting and waiting for me and when I didn’t find her I ordered my meal, スペシャルセット, (1,150 yen) which was a prosciutto and apple sandwich set. I couldn’t remember what prosciutto (raw dry cured ham) was and thought it was just a regular deli meat until I took a bite and saw that it had an unsettling raw color and consistency. I’m not a huge fan of raw foods and despite everything, knowing that it’s meant to be that way just couldn’t really get over the texture. I picked at it, enjoyed my fries and my Kirin apple soda. About an hour later after being super anxious for awhile, my friend showed up and joined me. She didn’t have as much trouble finding me in the restaurant as I feared. We headed off to Port Discovery to ride Aquatopia and were pretty happy to see that it had a short line.

Picture of Aquatopia building at night.

Aquatopia is split into two sections. It’s a water ride where you won’t get wet. You board a small craft that follows an under water track that spins and turns and goes around obstacle’s and water features that may make someone dizzy. It did make me a little dizzy at one point. We ended up enjoying it enough to ride it twice, trying each side of the ride. Afterwards we had just enough time to head back to the American Waterfront and catch the “Fantasmic!” show. We took the Disney Electric Rail that goes from American Waterfront to Port Discovery and back then hurried to the water to try and find a spot to watch the show.

Boats with balloons on the water and The Sorcerer’s Hat

Dragon Maleficent coming through a mirror

water show with rainbow fountains

Mount Prometheus spitting fire

It was fun and a bit like the one shown at Disney World under the same name. It stars “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” version of Mickey Mouse and includes many familiar Disney characters.

Disney Sea Transit Steamer Line from above

Side of boat says “Disney Sea Transit Steamer Line”

After the show we walked to the other side of the lake to catch the first Disney Sea Transit Steamer Line after the show. The Transit Steamer lines stop at various ports around the park. At each spot you can show a crew member your map and they’ll show you where the boat will let you off. Ours stopped at the Lost River Delta, the only spot we hadn’t really spent much time in and which we had run out of time to enjoy. There are two large attractions here Raging Spirits and Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull. Instead of exploring we hurried back in line and boarded the next Transit Steamer Line back to the Mediterranean Harbor. Riding it around was a beautiful and peaceful experience. We got to see the entire park from a different view and it was lovely. We were even able to catch site of the fireworks from the “Brand New Dream” show that starts at 8:30 every night.

Minnie Ice Bar in Peach and Raspberry Flavor that cost 310 yen

After exiting back at the Mediterranean Harbor it was close to closing time. We popped into one of the shops near the entrance to get souvenirs and I quickly learned that only one specific shop carries pins and it wasn’t near where we were. We were even in what the map stated was the shop with the largest selection of merchandise.

Utterly exhausted and with a couple souvenirs to share with friends and coworkers (Omiyage (お土産)) we boarded the monorail back to the train station. Utterly exhausted neither of us paid close attention to the stops assuming that it’d be awhile till we got off and thus missed our stop and had to ride the monorail around once more. We heard Resorts and tuned out when it continued on to say JR line. It was literally the next stop.

I feel like Disney Sea was a bit harder to navigate than Disneyland. You really need to plan what you’re going to do, especially if you want to watch any of the performances. Unlike other parks there isn’t a parade route that goes throughout the majority of the park that you can catch a decent view. Instead there’s only a man-made lake at the front where you have to be early in order to try and get a good spot. While it feels like there’s less to do at Disney Sea it’s much more spread out leading to rides having a long wait time that can very quickly eat away at your day and time. A lot of things also aren’t really explained in English, only a couple things on the map state: In Japanese only, or give warnings about strobe or flashing lights. If you don’t do a lot of preparation ahead of time you could be caught unaware. Visiting with characters is also a bit more difficult. While there are certain set character visits, our surprise Donald Duck and Pluto in swim gear isn’t along the list of character greetings on the English website, neither was Jafar which I spotted wandering around the Arabian Coast at one point. This meant my goal of finding a Captain Hook to take a picture with for my Disney Bound inspired outfit was a bust. The only time I spotted him was during the “Villains World” performance.

Disney Sea is just a little bit less festive than Disney Land. It wasn’t taken over by villains like I had expected and the amount of decorations was a lot less. Both parks aren’t as festive as my Halloween loving self would like but, each have about one good Halloween performance and some decorations. I think Disney Land, though, wins out by having the Haunted Mansion turned Nightmare Before Christmas.

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue wearing a sombrero found in the Lost River Delta

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue wearing a snorkel and being a musical conductor to some fish found in the Mermaid Lagoon

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found in the Arabian Coast laying down and drinking tea?

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found in the Arabian Coast studying a container he’s holding

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found on the Mysterious Island with a flashlight and in old fashion scuba gear

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found on the Mysterious Island studying kelp

A non 25th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue at a ship’s wheel

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found on the American Waterfront with a fishing spear looking out into the distance with a gull nearby

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found on the Mediterranean Harbor that looks like the captain of a ship, standing at the ships wheel and holding is hat out.

Another thing happening while I was there was the 35 anniversary of the parks. Throughout the parks were special Mickey Mouse statues that reflected the area of the park they were in. I didn’t find them all, but they can be found on the map. It felt a bit like a scavenger hunt when I did stumble upon one.

    Disney Sea My second and final full day in Tokyo was visiting Disney Sea. The friend I was staying with decided to join me since she was also on vacation and we made our way to the park.

[blackhound14]

Paint it Red. Chapter 2

I thought all that mattered was my work, but sometimes the world isn't just black or white, sometimes it's a whole spectra of colors. Love, I learned, is the most perplexing of all colors.

I hoped that I never learned that.

View On AO3

chapter 1

chapter 3

Chapter 2: Get the Coffee and the Lead.

Chapter 2: Get the Coffee and the Lead.

I have been to several crime scenes over the last few years; first when I was a rookie, working under my adoptive father, Hank, and then when I was promoted to the post of a Lieutenant. I have interrogated more suspects than the amount of people I have, informally, ever spoken to. Never, in the past seven years of my services to the DPD, have I ever encountered such a troublesome investigation.

The man, Markus, nods towards Jerry and motions me to follow.

We enter another room at the back, filled with what I can only describe as more colors. By the looks of it, this place was probably the store room. I look around curiously, as it was just my second nature by this point. There were empty canvases of varying sizes, lined up neatly in the side and boxes full of brand new brushes. I never knew that brushes could have so many variations.

I hear Markus clear his throat in an attempt to gain my attention, “So, how may I help you, Lieutenant?”

Shit! Even his voice is silky smooth, with a honeyed tone, that I want to do nothing but relish in its sweetness. It had a calming feel to it. How does his laugh sound like, I wonder? How would those lips taste, similar to salt and caramel perhaps? Just like the tint of his sun-kissed skin. I snap out of my nanosecond of distraction and muster up my ability to make full coherent words, one skill of mine that I’m not particularly too proud of.

“I am looking for details regarding a certain type of paint.” I hand him the paint sample, “Do you know of anyone who buys it regularly?”

He shook his head, repeating what Jerry explained earlier about not having the shade for sale. “If you require, I can try to get the same shade of color and then match them with the purchases. However, there are different methods of getting a particular color, so there will be many combinations. I am an artist and I am sure that you will find my services useful.”, he winked.

Calm down and do not stutter. You hear me, Connor?!

I must decline, getting civilians dragged into this mess will only create more problems. And unhealthy distractions. But I need help and this man seems to be the only one that will help me accomplish my mission. I reluctantly agreed. I managed to exchange numbers without much stuttering and making a fool out of myself, so that one good thing.

I walk into the office and make my way to the cafeteria, or the break-room as it is so inconveniently named, to get a cup of coffee. I see Hank, going through some of his case files, from the corner of my eyes. Even at this age, his passion for the job remains undefeated. He was still great at his work as I first worked under him for about eight years and the man didn’t care about relations when it came to the office. ‘I am not your father here, Connor. I am your superior and you call me Lieutenant.’

I couldn’t help but smile at those memories. And now he asks me to call him dad. Hank’s some hard nut to crack, but worth it. No matter how solid of a shell he has, he is still a big-big softy that cries during rom-coms, sleeps while snuggling to a teddy-bear like dog and most importantly, will do anything to keep his small family safe.

I then come face to face with the man I absolutely loath. Gavin Reed. It is still morning and I do not have the willpower to deal with a self-centered moron because, god forbid, this time I might be the one to pull up my sleeve and throw a punch. And I haven’t even taken my coffee yet, making this situation even worse.

He’s a man that has everyone on edge, being incredibly disrespectful and violent. His frame is a little similar to mine, but a tad bit broad. His face has a sharp jawline with a light stubble and light colored eyes. I might even call him ruggedly handsome if his lips, whenever I’m graced with, aren’t always curled up in a nasty snarl or busy making a pathetic statement.

“If it isn’t, Lieutenant Anderson the junior! Seems like you overslept, it’s almost noon. Maybe you were too busy riding daddy’s coattails! Hah!”

As I said, pathetic. Why the hell Captain Fowler hasn’t fired him is beyond my comprehension. I ignore his remarks and continue making myself my drink, as I find that replying back to him is an utter waste of my time. I hear him groan, but don’t turn around because I know what was to follow. I quickly grab my hot coffee and accidentallyspill it over his face.

For a second there was pin drop silence, except the screams of the detective and an occasional curse directed at me. He tried to grabbed me by my collar, but a quickstep and all he held was air. “I will fucking kill you, dipshit! Your daddy’s ain’t gonna save you now, asshole!”

He threw another punch which I easily blocked, I then grabbed that arm and twisted him till his back was against me and the other arm locked. “It is not good to fight, detective. I know your dad might have not taught you manners, but at least follow the rules if you do not want to get fired. It would be very disappointing if our bromance ended so soon.” I then push him away and give him a heartfelt smile.

Before he could cause anymore damage, Tina dragged him away to clean up that mess over his face. “Have a good day, detective.” Now that that’s dealt with, I better get back to work.

I make a new cup of coffee and leave for my desk, which is still the one adjacent to Hank’s. He doesn’t notice me at first, preoccupied going over his documents. I peaked and read the name of the file, ‘Child Kidnapping’. The case Hank was assigned just a couple of weeks ago. I remember going through the file once.

“Is something wrong, Hank? You have been going through that file since I came into the office”

He almost jumped off his seat, “Jeez, Connor! At least let the old man know you’re here.” he huffed, “Anyway, remember this case I was telling you about, it’s been closed.”

“Closed?” my eyes narrowed, “But why? It’s hasn’t even been a month.”

“That’s not the reason. The children, the ones that were captured, miraculously returned home one day. On their own, might I add.”

“All of them? How is that possible?”

“No. Not all of them. But the ones that did, say that some guy saved them. Weird. I said that we should investigate, but Fowler disagreed! Oh, and there are some reports Chris left for you.”

“Have to be the forensics report from last night. I’ll take a look at it.”

I open the report and just as I suspected, Caiden Huffman’s basement acted as a torture room for children and he was illegally selling child organs. That wasn’t the only part, the lab also analyzed the fingerprints present on the crime-scene and gave the list of people to whom the prints belong to. I went through the entire report and I couldn't help but feel that there’s something missing. Where did thesechildren go?

“Hank, can I take a look at your file, the one that got closed?”

He looked at me incredulously, “Why? You got a lead on my case?”

“Maybe.”, he handed me the case file. The names matched. “The names of the children are the same. The cases are linked. How many children were reported to have returned to their families?”

“Oh my god! Three. These are the ones. But we cannot interrogate children! Fuck knows what happened to them.”

Three children escaped. “But we have to try, this is my only lead, Hank!”

Name: Trevor Norris

Age: 10

Date Reported Missing: 25 May 2018

Last Seen Location: Pirate’s Cove Amusement Park

Date of Return: 30 May 2018

Name: Sean Woods

Age: 9

Date Reported Missing: 25 May 2018

Last Seen Location: Pirate’s Cove Amusement Park

Date of Return: 30 May 2018

Name: Alice Chapman

Age: 9

Date Reported Missing: 25 May 2018

Last Seen Location: Pirate’s Cove Amusement Park

Date of Return: 30 May 2018

Caiden worked at an amusement park, his shift was from four to nine in the evening. That’s when the parks are the most crowded. “It is the second of June today. Caiden was killed on 31st of May and his body was found today at two in the morning. He was most likely a mascot as he was was able to grab a child’s attention easily. He’d then make sure that the parents lost sight of their child midst the crowd and then manipulated them into going with him. Maybe by making them think that he’d help them find their parents.”

Hank grimaced, “I suspected that the kidnapper was one of the workers, but we went through all the cameras and we found nothing in the recordings, that backed up my suspicion. Only a worker would know the locations of the security cameras and know how to hide from them. The place has a total of ten-thousand employees. We weren’t even given enough time till the case was declared close.”

He claimed the lives of eight children within a month. The kidnapper was then mysteriously killed in his own home. I need to talk to these kids and find out all I can. “We leave after lunch.”

It is long past five and we have learned nothing new. No parent wants to expose their child to the traumatizing memories of the past few days, when they were held captive in that dungeon-isque place. I do not disagree, but I need to know something!

The first couple declined to let us speak to the child. Which is understandable, still we tried to convince them that it was for a case but to no avail.

The second couple, albeit a bit wary, guided us to their son. He hadn’t even left his room since he returned, according to his parents. We tried asking him a few questions, in the presence of Mr. and Mrs. Woods, but he was too scared to talk, might as well talk to a brick wall.

“You are Sean, am I right? My name is Connor and this”, I pointed towards Hank, “is my father.”

No reply. I look around the room, trying the figure out more about the boy. In the corner, laid a stringed instrument and the place was littered with basic-level music sheets, a football and a dog’s plushy.

“You are nine years old, correct? Do you like to play the cello? I can see some of your music sheets. Cellos are very soothing.”

No reply.

“Do you like to play any sport, such as football?”

No reply.

“You know, I have a dog at home. A St. Bernard and his name is Sumo. He is huge! But not frightening at all, he’s just a softy that wouldn’t even harm a burglar.”

And as expected. No reply. There has to be a way! Then a small noise caught my attention, finally. But to my horror, instead of Sean opening up about the crime, he began to cry. His parents intervened and bitterly, ordered us to leave.

Disappointed, we leave the residence and get in the car. “Do you think that we’ll find something in the next place, Hank?”

He glanced at me, “Well, they do say that the third time’s a charm. Wouldn’t hurt to try our luck, huh?”

I hummed in agreement. Maybe we will.

“So, you never told me that you would be late to office today.” he questioned as I began to drive.

“I went to an art shop for investigation. A man named Markus, who’s also the owner, volunteered to help me out.”

He hummed, “You are leaving something out, Connor. Something happened!” he said with that twinkle in his eye and a sly smirk, “I can hear it in your voice.”

“What? Nothing else happened! Just thought that he was unbelievably handsome and has a great voice.” I stuttered.

“Aha! So something did happen. You have a crush, son!” he laughed that only seemed to ruffle me up, “Now you are blushing! Oh god!”

“Why do I share everything with you? It is just an infatuation. Please, drop this line of conversation now, dad” I say pleadingly and he chortled but listened.

“Ya know, Connor, it’s high time you found someone to spend your life with. I am getting old, I need to have some grand-kids. Are you gonna deprive your old man of this?”

“Dad, I know you are worried about my non-existing love life, but I will when I am ready. Besides, Cole still acts like a five year old and he already has a girlfriend. How about you ask him for grandchildren.”

Hank’s eyes popped out in surprise, “Cole has a girlfriend?! And he never told me!” I do not reply and continue to chuckle, “Hey, Connor! Tell me, how is she? How did they meet? Is she pretty? Connor? Say something, goddammit!”

The residence of the third child was thirty minutes away, and all I could hope for was the child to say something as I waited for someone to answer the bell. A few moments later I could hear the clicking noise of the door being unlocked and it opened to reveal a woman. The woman had short, light brown hair and pale skin. She had blue eyes, some freckles and a sharp jawline. She’s really pretty.

“Yes?” she asked.

“Good evening, Mrs. Chapman. My name is Connor and this is my partner, Hank. We are from the DPD, we would like to have a talk, if that is alright?”

She remained silent for a few seconds, unsure of what to do. Hank cleared his throat and that caught her attention.

“Yes. Do come in. And please, call me Kara.”

She tells us to get comfortable while she brings us some coffee.

“How may I help you, officers?” she asks.

“We are here regarding your daughter, Alice. We got the news that she returned on her own a few days ago after she was… captured. I would like to ask you and Alice a few questions, if that is alright with you.”

She looked around hesitantly, definitely not wanting to speak about it and absolutely not wanting to call Alice. “I know that this is very important to your investigation, but I am afraid that I cannot help you. She doesn’t leave her room, she cannot sleep and when she does she always wakes up screaming. I do not want her to go through those memories again. As a mother, I just want her to forget and move on. I hope you understand.”

I take a deep breath, “The kidnapper has been killed, Kara. The killer, I suspect, is the one that saved your child. All we want to know is, who was the one who saved them. Their looks, their clothing, anything. You can stay in the room with us. We will not ask anything that will harm your daughter anymore. Just give us a few minutes, Kara.”

I hear footsteps and a new voice spoke, “If someone did kill that kidnapper, maybe he did the right thing. He did more than what the police did anyways, why would I help you find the person that saved my daughter?”

That had to be Alice’s father. He was very tall, with dark skin and dark hair with a military cut. An impressive figure.

“Mr. Chapman, killing is a crime, done for whatever reason. Capturing such assholes is our job.” Hank replied.

Before the taller man could say anything else, Kara intervened, she held his palm in her own and looked him in his eyes, “Luther, they are just doing their job. We should allow them to speak to Alice, just for few minutes. We’ll be there with her.”

Luther reluctantly allowed, but not without a warning, and motioned us to follow. The door to her room opened and Alice was silently reading a story book. The moment she notices us, she tries to hide inside her blanket.

“Alice, this is Connor and Hank. They are your friends and they wanna talk to you.” Kara reassures while sitting next to her. “Think you can answer some questions?”

Alice gives a small nod, and I smile. “Hello, Alice. How are you?”

“I am fine, I think. But I am also scared.”

“I know. You like reading books?”, I read the title, “Alice in wonderland? It is an amazing story.” she doesn't reply. I haven't ever read the book, but I know a little about it thanks to the movie’s promotions, “So, I heard that you met the Mad-Hatter.”

The girl was puzzled, “I did not meet him, he is not real.”

“But you did. The person that saved you from the bad man. The Mad-Hatter must have saved Alice sometimes. So, let’s call them, the Mad-Hatter because they saved you. What can you tell me about them?”

She looked at her mother who just nodded in return, “I do not know. He was wearing dark clothes and his face was covered. He saved me from that place and the other two took me back to mom and dad. A boy and a girl.” a few stray tear drops fell from her brown eyes. Kara hugged her and kept her close. “He said that we were free now.”

I glanced towards Luther, “We didn’t see them. They left before we could thank them. That is all.”

I and Hank left after saying our goodbyes to Alice and her parents. Emotionless, I stare right ahead, conflicted.

“Look at the bright side. Now we are certain that your killer is a male and that he is not alone. It is a group of three.” Hank said, trying to make me feel better and it did, but I just felt at lost.

What do I do now?

A buzz grabbed my attention. I received a message.

From: Markus

I have found something. You might wanna have a look! Maybe come over tomorrow?

“What is this? I’m the one that says the good things but when someone else messages you, you beam like the goddamn sun?! Is it that Marcus guy?”

“It is Markus, Hank.”

“Oh! I didn’t know you were dating already. Whatever, just send me the wedding date!”

“Very funny, Hank. Look I am laughing. HAHAHAH” I said unimpressed, but my face was flushed red and Hank was having the time of his life.

“And by the way, you have never read ‘Alice in Wonderland’, have you?” and he just laughed more.

[nekosayuri]

Family: Uchiha.

I recreated this family first, ages ago, pretty much when Konoha was still empty. <3 it’s probably no surprise if you know me even a little (I mean, I use them in my previews too nowadays xD that’s how much I love them.)

I first created Sasuke and Sayuri in Belladonna Cove for the heck of it, but then I got really attached, especially to their kids. Back then (2014ish), my ACOH story was also not all that developed past their 20s, but playing their sims inspired me a lot, and the kids they had became their kids in my story too (well, only the first three, cause come on, eight kids?!) I literally let their sims guide my writing. <3

Since I wrote little Sim/story profiles for them, I posted them separately first, but here’s the all at once post. :D

This is like the first time I ever do this, but I really wanted to try, so sorry if I’m confusing! 

Uchiha Sayuri, previously Amamiya, is first, cause why not? She’s one of the main OCs. Self insert originally, too, so I’m a little biased. :D

Sayuri never really fit into the Ninja world. Something about the occupation always rubbed her the wrong way. She knew she was born in a Ninja village to a Ninja family, but was that really all there was? Was her destiny really to fight and kill? She refused that. It took many years, and some friends in high places, but with effort and stubbornness, Sayuri got people to follow her dream and make it a reality: a village where kids could be kids, without the pressure of the Ninja world on their shoulders, where they have a choice and can make their own way. A place where she would want her own kids to grow up.

Nowadays, Sayuri is the head of the Diplomacy department of Konoha’s government. A skilled negotiator who is not afraid to get in the thick of it, she’s solved many situations that could have ended far worse. She gets personally involved, though, which takes its toll. But she can’t help it– this is how she is. She wouldn’t be so good at it otherwise.

Sayuri is a family sim with a pleasure secondary. Her zodiac is Cancer, with a personality of 5/4/5/5/6. She’s relatively in-the-middle there for someone as revolutionary as her, but despite being kinda shy, she’s also VERY stubborn and willing to fight for her dreams/goals/whatever.

Traits: Family oriented, nurturing, over-emotional, bookworm, and terrible cook.

Turn ons: black hair, logical (may have been influenced a little over the years she was married to Sasuke… xD). Turn offs: bad at cooking that should be a turn off, ugh! Right now, it’s robots, because there’s no such thing, yet! I can never find turn offs that actually make sense.

Sasuke is next, this is my attempt at explaining what he is like in my story?

Sasuke spent 10 years living a life that wasn’t his, pursuing a goal that was forced on him by his brother, Itachi. When he came out on the other side, he couldn’t recognise himself anymore– not the person he was before the whole thing started, not the person he had become over the years. He had nothing left but a hollowness inside that scared him. But he was wrong, and there were people who were there to show him that. As soon as he saw in himself something good that could become bigger, he grabbed it with both of his hands and never let go.

Nowadays, he’s the Head of Shield, a team of elite ninja, chosen only by him and the Hokage. They’re the very best for a reason. Each and every one of them are experts in their field and they normally go on the most dangerous missions, and come back alive. That must say something! Due to his position, Sasuke also has a seat on the council. Though he clearly cares about his position and the village itself, Sasuke would prefer to stay out of harm’s way most of the time… so he can come back home to his family at the end of the day.

Random facts: the name ‘Shield’ was chosen by the Hokage, Naruto, at the time. It’s inspired by a word he heard while visiting the Cloud village. Also, ‘dangerous’ isn’t the same as it used to be 10-20 years ago.

Sasuke is a family sim, too, with a knowledge secondary. His zodiac is Leo, with a personality of 7/4/8/3/5 (mostly head-canon, really). He’s a bit of a clean freak and his active personality is literally his core. 

Traits: Athletic, disciplined, brave (a condition for his job), social disaster, natural cook. 

Turn ons: fitness, creative. Turn offs: fat.

Kaito is the eldest and the only boy in the family besides Sasuke. I admit I was delighted their first kid was a boy. :D

Kaito is a genius. Everybody knows that. He’s “perfect” in every way (ask his fangirls), and so he should be, he’s an Uchiha after all. Kaito sees it a different way though, he just wants to be left alone, so he can read his books and do his ninja training and hang out with his friends and figure himself out. Everybody is in such a hurry to put him on a pedestal... 

Kaito is a teenager (15 story-time), so he has only one aspiration, knowledge. His zodiac is Aries, with a personality of 5/4/7/3/7. He was born in game and everything was copied over, although originally I had Sayuri encourage him to be nicer, so that was copied over as well. He’s hell of a lot like Sasuke, personality wise, but his attitude towards people is more like Sayuri’s. xD

Traits: Genius, brave (from Sasuke), terrible cook (from Sayuri). Teens in my game will have only three traits, get another one as YA, and last one as adults.

Turn ons: athletic, brown hair. Turn offs: jewellery.

Mikoto got her name from Sasuke’s mother, because she was born with her eyes (grey which is lighter than Sasuke’s.) It’s mostly not a thing to name your kids after your parents (with some clan exceptions), but meh. 

Right from the start, there was one thing that stood out about Mikoto: her unending care for others. Even as a young child, she would take care of her friends and her little sister, watching over them as if she were their mother. She got more into art as she grew, and she loves painting. She doesn’t really know what she wants to do with her life, you know? She’s only 13 after all! She still has two years before she has to decide whether to go to Ninja school or the Academic one, and she’s going to take her time figuring it out.

Mikoto is a child in the sims, despite being 13 story-time (I kinda figure Teen stage starts at 15), so her aspiration is still to grow up. Her zodiac is Aquarius, with a personality of 4/5/5/5/6. Again, born in game and everything was copied. She’s obviously a lot like Sayuri with the whole in-the-middle thing.

Traits: nurturing (from Sayuri), artistic.

Hikari was born in the middle of the night, when Sasuke and Sayuri caught a glimpse of a falling star just before Sayuri went into labor (that actually happened in my game, I’ll add a link to the picture when the archive actually works -_-). Anyway, I’m a bit of a cliche, so obviously she got her name from the stars lighting up the night sky. XD

Hikari is not like Kaito and Mikoto. She’s not unsure, she’s not confused. She knows exactly what she wants: to be a ninja, of course, so she can be as strong as her father, or even more! so what if she’s just 10 and has plenty of time to make up her mind? 

Hikari’s aspiration is to grow up in the sims, since she’s still a child. Her zodiac is Cancer, with a personality of 5/3/8/4/5. She got her active trait from Sasuke and her shyness from Sayuri. :D born in game, copied faithfully as always.

Traits: Shy, athletic (from Sasuke).

Bonus: The cats!

From right (sitting cat) to left: Kuro, Kurona and Ryoma. 

Sasuke found Kuro on a dark, rainy night when he was just a kitten. He never cared for animals all that much, but when their eyes met, he couldn’t just leave him be, either. Kuro had the kind of eyes that reminded him of his own, at the time-- aloof, independent, but also lonely and lost. So he took him in for the night. That was when he was 17. Needless to say, Kuro stayed. But Kuro came with his own dark past and his own troubles... he’s a ninja cat, after all!

Fun fact: Kuro means Black in Japanese. That’s how creative his name is! Sasuke’s idea.

It was again a dark, rainy night when… ok no, it was a sunny weekend day, when Sasuke and Sayuri were 21, that Kuro came running in frantically and begged (by meowing, a lot) for them to come with him. When they arrived at the destination, they found a pregnant white cat, but she seemed sick. They took her to the animal hospital, who decided to get her kittens out ASAP. Luckily, everybody survived. The kittens were given homes, and the pretty white cat, well… Kuro got attached to her, so Sasuke and Sayuri ended up taking her in, too. Need I mention she’s also a ninja cat?

Fun fact: Kurona was given her name because, well, there’s Kuro, so if we add na (supposedly, a short for nya, which is the sound cats make in Japanese), you get Kurona. It was Sasuke’s idea

Ryoma is their son. He was a part of a litter of four, but the other three were given away because there was just too much chaos at home and Sasuke couldn’t stand it. There was some whining and crying from the children, who were all old enough to understand what was happening, but what had to be done was done. For some odd reason, though, Sasuke decided to keep Ryoma... the hyper, wild kitten! 

Funny fact: He got his name from a character in Prince of Tennis. Yep. No story reason there. XD (the other kittens were named Ryoga, Nana, and Kana. Two males, two females. :D) 

A note on ninja cats for interested people: they’re not like normal cats. Their lifespan is much longer (closer to humans), even though their ability to breed is similar to normal cats– basically, they can breed as soon as normal cats, but they lose that ability the older they get (halfway through their life). As always, females sooner than males. Another thing is that they do understand the human language, and they can also talk! That said, both Kuro and Kurona escaped from their ninja village before they actually learned to talk, so neither of them can. They do understand the human language though, as they’re taught that sooner than to actually talk it. They can also read it, but not write.

[dinendabbleto-blog]

Let’s TACO ‘Bout it

About two months ago, my cousin Maggie asked if my boyfriend Dave and I wanted to go to Taco Fest at Ontario Place. Naturally, I responded within one minute of her texting saying, “send me the info and I’ll purchase our tickets!” I didn’t have to think twice about going. How could we pass up tacos, beer, and margaritas? There is truly no better way to spend a Sunday.

Taco Fest is hosted by TASTETORONTO to showcase some of Toronto’s best chefs that cook with a Mexican twist. There was live music, an authentic Mariachi band and 25 vendors on the grounds. They served a variety of tacos, nachos and salsa, churros, Mexican street corn, and sangria, plus tons of hot sauces. If you enjoy Mexican food, this was definitely the place to be. Here is a great after video from 2016 that TASTETORONTO put together: click here.

Here is a little recap of my first Taco Fest experience:

To start, I have few tips if you ever plan on attending a TASTETORONTO event:

1)      Do NOT eat before! You surprisingly fill up much quicker than expected;

2)      SHARE everything. Sharing is caring  – the more food items you get to try, the better; and

3)      Do NOT over indulge at the bar the night before – I previously went to Brunch Fest and struggled to enjoy myself due to a few too many beverages the night before

We followed my advice and went bright and early. We did not eat breakfast beforehand and therefore did not ruin our appetites – HIGHLY recommend this tactic. We arrived starving, hit all of the stations we wanted, and missed all of the lines, which started to form as we were too full to eat anything else.

It was a little bit overwhelming at first because everything looked delicious and the smells were heavenly. We decided a drink to start may be the best idea. We headed over and ordered Margaritas and Coronas.

Our first food stop was at Busters Sea Cove:

I tried the Jerk Shrimp Taco, which was amazing and one of my favourites. It included jerk fried shrimp, roja, creamy coleslaw, pico de gallo, and jerk aioli on a corn tortilla. Next we headed to the Kathi Roll Express to try The Legendary Butter Chicken Taco. This one is pretty self-explanatory – the taco shell was naan bread. It was my second favourite of the day.

Then we headed to The Citizen to try their Beet & Avocado taco. This was an interesting one and probably my least favourite, BUT it was a beautiful looking taco (see below). This taco consisted of guacamole, coconut queso, beet crema, and puffed quinoa.

Next we tried the Pulled Yam Taco from Rancho Relaxo, which was seasoned shredded yam and carrot topped with vegan apple slaw in a flour tortilla (I wish it was in a corn tortilla but still delish) and the Buffalo Cauliflower Taco from Fidel Gastro’s. This consisted of fried cauliflower tossed in a buffalo sauce with creamy slaw, radish coins, celery, and chopped chives. These two tacos tied for third place.

We ended the day with a Mexican street corn called the Taco Sweet Corn Parfait from The Mighty Cob and Ice Cream Tacos from Booyah Inc.  I thought it was quite unfair since I can’t eat dessert due to my bet… WHICH IS ALMOST OVER! T-minus 54 days… not that I am counting or beyond excited at all.

I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed Taco Fest and will 100% attend again next year. It was a great way to try multiple restaurants in one sitting and figure out where I may want to go back for a full sit down meal. The live music and Mariachi band was a great addition and provided the perfect pit stop to enjoy a beverage and digest before food rounds 4, 5, and 6!

Enjoying every last bite....

TASTETORONTO is hosting an event similar to Taco Fest and Brunch at the end of the summer called Beer, Bourbon, and BBQ. If you are looking for some great craft beers, bourbon cocktails, grill master lessons, and bull rides I would definitely consider going!

Check out my Instagram page : @dineNdabbleTO

[gb-patch]

Ask Answers: January 5th, 2021

How exactly can we get the option to gift cove a bracelet at the start of step 3? I really only get that option with having a ponytail-black shirt-black pants-no accessories cove but i dont know the specific requirements for the option to show up

Cove’s gotta wear a bracelet in Step 2. If he doesn’t it means him liking bracelets isn’t a very long-standing trait and so the MC wouldn’t think to get him one as a gift.

I am very sorry if this was asked before but I have noticed "Our Life: Beginnings and Always" and "Our Like: Now and Forever." Did I miss something? Is "N&F" going to be a sequel or DLC? Are we going to see a geriatric Cove? (haha) Thank you in advance for the reply. ^_^ 

Our Life: Now & Forever is a new game in the franchise, but it’s not a sequel. It’ll have a new cast, new story, and new setting. It will still have all the best features of the original game and be about creating your own character/growing up from childhood!

Is there a specific reason why Cove gets so flustered and has to jump out if bed and walk it off when they share a bed in step 3? It seems a bit over the top for something they've already done twice! Once with the late night visit when Cove finds out his mom is coming and once in the RV.

Is just because they are older and the implications are different, even though the crush was already there in the RV/latenight visit scenes? Or did I miss something that made Cove more reluctant or more apprehensive towards sharing a bed/touching?

Sharing a bed with the person he likes/love is different for him at eighteen than it is at thirteen. Some things get easier when you grow up, like he’s more comfortable sharing food, but some things get harder/more complicated to him. Sharing a bed is one of those for Cove. It feels a lot more intimate and meaningful as time goes on, rather than less of a big deal.

Hello! First, I wanted to thank you and congratulate you for this amazing game. I enjoyed every single second! In a year full of stress, this was a little cozy light. Do you have any plans to make it available for other languages? Thank you again 💕 

Thank you! I’m afraid the game is still in pretty active development so we can’t consider translating the script in it’s semi-incomplete form. And we’re not a big enough company that we can promise translations will definitely come when the game is done, unfortunately. We can see what things are like when all the words are truly set, though.

Did Cove's name come from that Cove restaurant on Holden beach? Whenever I search up his name I always get those results haha 

No, haha. His first name was based on his character and the game’s theme, his last name is a reference to something of a personal joke.

Will the NSFW DLC have CGs too?

Yep!

So, to start off, I need to thank you guys, from the bottom of my heart, for creating Cove Holden. I want every single one of my MCs to be able to get engaged and married to that precious angel, so I was wondering how transitioning into step 4 using save files will work? Will I be able to load up a save file saved right before the end credits after step 3, or will I need to load one from before the transition section after step 3? I’m sorry if this has already been answered somewhere, but if it has, I haven’t been able to find it. Thank you!!!!!! 

Thank you very much c:. You’ll be able to load any save file, unless it was taken as the credits were actually rolling, and the Step 4 epilogue will simply start going once you’ve played through whatever was left of the main game and seen the credits. There are rare cases where a save file breaks between updates, but generally continuing where you left off should work for people.

Hi! I absolutely adore our life, and I was wondering is there a way to have Shiloh remember the MC and Lizzie in step 3?

I’m glad you like it! Sadly, no matter what you do Shiloh will act the same in that scene.

Hi! I'm the Australian that asked about ever including an Aussie VA, do you have any future plans for Our Life 2 or any other games to include an Aussie character and VA? 

Right now we don’t have any guaranteed future Aussie roles. But we don’t have fully developed character lists for our upcoming games yet, so that may still change.

Will OL2 also follow the tradition of "Blonde Adult That We Cannot Date"? 👀

Haha, maybe. There isn’t one right now, however we still have a lot of side characters to plan.

Hey, are the houses in the game furnished based on items in the Sims 4? I’ve noticed some similarities, but I’m not sure if it’s just a coincidence. (If it is, that’d make me building it in TS4 MUCH easier...)

For me, I use real world pictures as references as well as text notes. I loved Sims 2 when I was young but haven’t gotten into a new Sims game since. I don’t believe the artist checks Sims 4 when creating their work, though it’s not impossible. Maybe they do.

is it possible to still get your name in the voiced dlc [I'm not sure how you would do it, is it from patreon ??] or is it too late ?? 

Currently there’s no way to get your name voiced. But we are looking into opening up a method for that one more time later this year. You can keep an eye out for that!

Will we be able to ask Derek out to the dance if we get his DLC? Not a Derek fan but I'm planning to surprise my friend with this 

Yeah. Taking Derek to the dance is part of his DLC.

Hi! I have a question I've been curious about, if you're comfortable with answering! If Cove and the MC remain just friends into Step 4/MC dates one of the other guys, will Cove canonically be in a relationship with/interested in somebody else at that point or shortly after? Thank you!

He won’t. There’s not really anyone in his school, and certainly not the neighborhood he grows up in, that he’d be into other than the MC. As a pretty newly independent adult he hasn’t had enough time to truly find a special someone in Step 4. It takes a while for him to make that kind of move, haha. It’s totally fine to headcanon that sometime after Step 4 he finds love with someone else, but it won’t happen in-game.

i just wanted to share this cute little playlist that i made about cove! https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5wM7GNiJh5eRqhvLBperfQ?si=4FocdBsNTpeF053yOwaLSA

Cool! Thanks for sharing it with us.

No, no, no create longer ask answers please. 😌

The ask answers are not too long. If anything I'm greedy and wish they were longer... I'm already subbed to your guys patreon and I still can't get enough 👀 I'm in love with you guys 

Will you post more of those long form ask posts? I love them 🥰

Haha, thank you for these messages. I’m glad you’re enjoying the content.

——————————————————————

Thank you very much for all the questions! Also, if you prefer to just see the main posts without all the asks/reblogs, feel free to follow our side account instead: GB Patch Updates Blog

[overlordofthelollipopguild]

Finding Home - Chapter 1

So if you recognize this title from me, I originally wrote a story Finding Home before Broken Souls Mend Hearts. I got to nine chapters then abandoned it in favor of BSMH. The original nine chapters were still posted on fanfic but since the title was the same, I had to take it down, so this new version will have many similarities as I am working off of the old fic. 

So everybody welcome back, after...what three? four? years, Finding Home a CS AU. 

Summary: Set right after season 2, and the original idea was written pre-season 3. So this is completely AU. The Jolly Roger crew arrives in Neverland to rescue Henry, but during the journey much about Captain Hook’s past comes to light, which leads to a different OUAT lol. 

Link to ff.net: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12482617/1/

Chapter 1: Arrival

After the storm ended, Emma found herself wandering around the deck of The Jolly Roger. They hadn’t been in Neverland long, the storm having hit them immediately upon arrival. Now, the sun was rising.

Hook was the only other person on deck since he was manning the helm.

Emma wanted to ask him why he came back. Why didn’t he just take the bean and leave?

Maybe I just needed reminding that I could.

His words haunted her.

What exactly did he mean by that? Had her words at the diner really gotten to him? She looked over her shoulder at him, his hair and clothes still wet from the storm. His eyes were focused ahead of the ship, watching the seas as he steered.

It was strange seeing him so in his element. She’d seen him on land in the Enchanted Forest and in Storybrooke, where he always seemed confident and undeterred, but here, sailing his ship, he seemed so calm, in control, almost as though he were a part of the ship and sea. They were two things that Hook knew intimately.

Blue eyes flicked to hers, lips curling into a smirk.

Emma looked away, blushing a bit at being caught staring. She shook herself. This was not the time to be…checking him out or pining, or whatever she was doing. They were here for Henry. That’s what this mission was about. Saving her son.

Steeling herself against her own wound up emotions, Emma walked across the deck and up the stairs to the helm, stopping by his right side. “So, do you have a plan?” Emma could tell there was an underlying tension in his posture now that she was up close. He didn’t like being back here, in this place of his three hundred year, self-imposed exile.

“First thing’s first, we sail to Pirate’s Cove.” He told her just as the other four came above deck.

“Why?” Emma asked.

Hearing her, the others looked up at the pair.

“Well, Henry is likely on that island.” Hook said, directing his words to the group. “You can’t very well sail a ship on land. So we’ll get to the cove, dock the ship, and then go on land.”

“Are you sure it’s safe?” Snow asked.

“Very.” Hook nodded. “Three hundred years me crew and I docked there whenever we needed to go on the island, and never once did we see a Lost One there.”

“Things may have changed since you’ve been gone.” Snow pointed out. She did have a good point.

“Let us hope not.” Hook sighed, his brow creasing as he watched the island warily. “I should warn you though, the Lost Ones may stay away from the Cove, but mermaids tend to lurk around there. Not many, but some do.”

“Let me guess, mermaids aren’t very nice?” Emma quirked a brow.

“Not at all.” Hook said gravely. “They’re sneaky bastards. Damnable fast and strong.”

“What about these Lost Ones?” Regina asked, glaring at the island. “Who are they?”

“They’re the wild boys of the island.” Hook told them, his face grim. “They’re deadly, and loyal to Pan. Frankly, I’d rather a mermaid capture me than a Lost One. At least, death is swift with mermaids.”

“Wait,” Emma started. “Don’t you mean Lost Boys?” She’d never heard of the inhabitants of the island being called the Lost Ones in any version of the story she’d ever heard.

Hook’s eyes widened slightly. “There’s no such thing as Lost Boys.”

Emma narrowed her eyes at him. Hook was hiding something.

“What’s that suppose to mean?” David asked. “Aren’t they one in the same?”

Hook shrugged it off. “There’s a lot of things to be wary of when we get on the island. Pan is a dangerous to be sure.”

“Hold on, Pan’s the bad guy?” Emma asked. That was a first. Pan was always supposed to be a hero. Though Captain Hook didn’t seem to be so villainous after all, at least she hoped so, so the stories must’ve gotten Pan’s heroism wrong too.

“He’s a bloody demon.” Hook scoffed.

Rumple made a noise of agreement.

“How do you know Pan?” Regina asked, eyeing the Dark One.

“I met him a long time ago.” Rumple said. “He was the Pied Piper. Before Bae left me, Pan managed to lure him into his collective of wild boys with a pan flute.”

“Pan actually went to pick up his Lost Ones?” Hook arched a brow. “He usually gets the pixies to do his dirty work.”

“Oh he was in no short supply of pixie dust.” Rumple sneered. “He almost took Bae away from me, and he almost succeeded.”

“So we should fear him for kidnapping boys for his feral child club?” Regina scoffed.

“It’s not a joke, your majesty.” Hook snapped. “Pan is dangerous. He turned a bunch of innocent boys into ruthless killers, and he has magic over this realm. It’s his playground where he’ll have eyes and ears everywhere.”

“So the island is just as dangerous as the Lost Ones?” David sighed. He felt like this mission was becoming more impossible the more he learned about this island.

“What do we have to watch out for?” Snow asked.

“Well for starters, the prettier the flower, the more deadly.” Hook began. “Any thick vines on the ground are a part of the man-eating plants, so don’t step on them. Don’t eat the blue colored berries. Black colored ones are safe. Larger fruits are safe to eat. Pixies are fickle, resentful, and bitter. They are also more likely to ally with Pan than us.”

“Tinker Bell too?” Emma mused.

Hook glanced at her, something shadowed his eyes. “Tinker Bell died a long time ago. Pixies have very short life spans.”

“Anything else we should know?” David asked.

“All you need to know is that while we’re on the island, we must stick together.” Hook warned them. “Or at least remain in pairs. If you’re alone you’re more likely to get killed or caught by the Lost Ones.”

“Sounds like a boatload of fun.” Emma remarked dryly.

Hook chuckled. At least, Swan was taking this all in stride despite the circumstances.

Snow’s brow furrowed. “If we all go on the island, what do we do about the ship?”

“Leave that to me, dearie.” Rumple said. “I have a cloaking spell in mind. One that allows us to see the ship, of course.”

“And Henry.” Hook said, surprising the others. “If Henry is a smart lad,” Hook began. “And considering he’s Emma’s son, I have little doubt of that,” that statement earned a dust of a blush on Emma’s face, “then if he sees the ship, he’ll try and get to it, or try and find us.”

“He has a point.” David agreed, impressed by the pirate’s logic even if he wasn’t keen on said pirate flirting with his daughter. “If Henry can’t see the ship, and he escapes Greg and Tamara, who knows where he’ll try and run off to. Especially since he may not realize that the Lost Ones are dangerous.”

“Pan could very well convince Henry that the Lost Ones are good if Henry already doesn’t believe them to be villains.” Hook agreed. “They’re boys, they’re Henry’s age, and Henry seems like a lad that would want some adventure.”

“You’re right.” Emma nodded. “In our world, the Lost Ones are portrayed as playful kids, so Henry might be more excited than worried or scared.”

“They’re certainly anything but playful.” Hook said.

“Then we need to hurry up and get to Henry.” Regina said with grim determination. “How long until we reach the cove?”

“An hour yet.” Hook told her. “We have to sail the coast for a bit.”

“Is there a map of Neverland?” David asked.

“Aye.” Hook replied. “Somewhere in my quarters. When we reach the Cove and anchor, I’ll get it out. Then we can strategize.”

“Well then, in the time we have, I’ll get started on the spell.” Rumple nodded. He headed to the bow of the ship and began spinning his magic.

What seemed like an hour later, and a trip past the entire west coast (according to Hook), they arrived at a grouping of towering rocks. Hook maneuvered the ship between the two walls of rock. The Cove was circular and surrounded by parts of the island, which on all sides seemed to be all jungle.

“Welcome to Pirate’s Cove.” Hook announced.

“Quite the spot you picked out Hook.” Regina said, her sarcasm not even remotely hidden.

Hook scowled at the “former” Evil Queen. “Sorry if it’s not up to your standards, your majesty.”

Rumple was still at the bow preparing the spell. It was taking longer than he expected due to the tweaks in who was allowed to see the ship and cloaking it from enemies. Quite a complicated little spell.

When the ship reached the center of the Cove, Hook handed Emma the helm, to her surprise, and he and David lowered the anchor.

“I’ll go get that map.” He told David.

David nodded and returned to Mary Margaret’s side.

The second he reached his quarters, Hook closed the door and leaned against it, starting to heave. Deep breaths, he chided himself, deep breaths Jones. It was worse than he thought, returning to Neverland.

The first time he returned, he was so caught up in his anger and his revenge that he didn’t let it bother him. He had grown up, Pan hadn’t recognized him. He had been lucky that he had only dealt with the Lost Ones so many times in three hundred years and survived.

But now Hook had the foreboding feeling that this trip, that rescuing Henry, would lead to a confrontation with the Lost Ones.

A confrontation Killian Jones had been avoiding since he was ten years old.

He closed his eyes, and collected himself.

Enough with the self-pity. Emma’s lad, Hook thought. This is all about rescuing Emma’s lad.

Walking over to his desk, Hook hesitated as he looked at a group of rolled up parchments. He shook himself before he pulled out the one tied with a red string, a cursive NL scribbled on the bottom corner.

The map to Neverland. The very first one. The one Killian had hand drawn so many centuries ago, when he was just discovering his artistic talent.

Another deep breath and Hook stalked out of the room.

Before he reached the deck, he felt a stir in the air and a chill rolled down his spine alerting him that the Crocodile had completed his cloaking spell. Reaching the deck, he saw Regina and the Crocodile huddled with the Charmings as Emma walked down the stairs from the helm.

Emma paused, looking at him with curiosity.

Not for the first time, he wondered if being an open book went both ways.

“Took you long enough.” Regina muttered when he joined the group.

Hook just barely refrained from rolling his eyes. “Here we are then.” Hook unrolled the map and placed it on one of the crate’s on deck.

David held down part of the map to keep it flat.

“The original map of Neverland.”

“Really?” Rumple questioned. “How did you come to acquire it?”

“I made it.” Hook commented flatly.

Despite the fact that he sounded blasé about it, Emma though that he should’ve been at least a little proud of it. It was beautifully hand drawn and carefully detailed and labeled. She had no idea the pirate had such an artistic side. It reminded her of her own talent in art, and paintings and drawings lost and torn in foster homes she never saw again.

Hook pointed to Pirate’s Cove on the map. “This where we are. As you can see, we’re to the south. The Lost Ones,” Hook moved his finger to a rock shaped like a skull, “reside in the north, at Skull Rock.”

“What about the Home Underground?” Emma questioned, having seen the name on the map.

Hook swallowed. “That was the Lost Boys home. It was abandoned.” He moved his finger closer to the southeast. “To our left is the Dark Jungle. To our right is the Neverwood, it takes up most of the east side of the island. That’s where the Home Underground was. Mermaid’s Lagoon is here, on the other side of the Neverwood. The north-most end of the island houses Pixie Hollow. And right at the heart of Neverland, the Neverpeak Mountain.”

“Where could they have taken Henry?” Regina asked.

“That depends on wherever they popped out of the ocean.” Hook said, “My guess would be that they, more than likely, have taken, or plan to take Henry to Skull Rock.”

“So, depending on which part of the island they came up on,” Emma started, “they may still be wandering the island.”

“Possibly.” Hook agreed. “Greg and Tamara are from your world, they don’t know Neverland. Unless they’ve stumbled upon or have been found by a Lost One, then they’re still somewhere on the island.”

“Gold.” Mary Margaret looked at the wizard. “Can we use the globe to track Henry?”

“I’m afraid not.” Gold grimaced. “When we arrived in the storm, it was damaged. One crack and it can’t work, or be repaired.”

“Great.” David muttered. “What now?”

“Now, we plan.” Hook replied. “We’ll need to scout the island first. Find the traps, have you lot familiarize yourselves with the island…”

“We don’t have time for this!” Regina interrupted. “Henry is out there right now and in danger!”

“We don’t plan, we’re dead.” Hook snapped. “What use would we be to Henry then?”

“The longer we wait, the more risk we have that the Lost Ones get Henry!” Regina argued.

“For all we know Henry’s already their prisoner.” Hook replied, trying to keep his own temper in check.

“And if he’s not?” Regina glared.

“Then scouting the island gives us a chance to search for him as well.” Emma said calmly trying to diffuse the tension stepping between them, her palm resting against Hook’s chest to calm him. She could tell Hook was easily irritated with Regina’s impatience and impertinence, wondering if that was the pirate captain in him. It was strange though, how he was acting, at least it was strange to Emma. It seemed Neverland shook the pirate’s nerves, something Emma didn’t think was possible.

“Emma’s right.” David agreed, trying not to scowl at Emma’s physical proximity to Hook. “And so is Hook. He knows this place better than any of us. I think listening to him is are best option.”

Snow also took note of Emma’s position with the curiosity only a mother could possess.

Hook was surprised by the amount of trust David was giving him. Even more, he was surprised that Emma was on his side, and working to keep him in control. Her hand was still against his chest and her tough felt like it was burning through his leather vest and shirt. He hoped that she wasn’t feeling his quickly beating heart.

“All right then.” Snow spoke. “Where do we begin?”

They all looked to Hook, who was impressed by the lack of verbal protest from the Crocodile and Regina, expecting him to plan. It was just as well. David was right, Hook knew this place better than anyone.

Realizing her hand was still touching Hook, Emma slowly removed her hand, choosing to scrutinize the map instead.

“We have three options as I see it.” Hook began. “We go to Skull Rock and wait for Henry’s arrival, but risk constantly fighting off the Lost Ones. We all go together in one group and search the island together, which could take too long and risk Henry ending up in the Lost Ones hands. Or, we split up and go in pairs, dividing the map between us, and hopefully cover enough ground so that we might find Henry in time.”

“It sounds like pairs is our best option.” Emma commented. “We can divide the map and cover the most ground. Our meeting spot could be just on the other side of the mountain.”

“It’s a good plan.” Snow agreed. “How should we divide up?”

“I have an idea about that.” Hook spoke before anyone else could. “Pan has magic and the Lost Ones are fighters, so the best thing is for each pair to have someone with magic and someone good in a fight.” Hook carefully cut the map into three parts. One part had the Dark Jungle and Pixie Hollow, the other part had the Neverpeak Mountain and Skull Rock, and the third part had the Neverwood and Mermaid Lagoon. “I’ll take the Dark Jungle and Pixie Hollow. It’s the most dangerous part of Neverland.”

“I’ll go with you.” Emma stated, surprising even herself. “I might not be the best at magic, but I’m least likely to kill you if you get on my nerves.”

Hook chuckled. “Too right, love.”

Snow and David shared a look of concern. Neither of them trusted Hook with their daughter, but they felt that they had to try and trust Emma’s judgement here.

“All right then.” Hook nodded. “Milady Snow, you’re an adept tracker, correct?”

“I am.” Snow confirmed.

“Good, then you take the Neverwood.” Hook told her. “Regina will accompany you.”

“What?” Snow, David, and Regina were a tad flabbergasted at his suggestion.

Rumple was curious himself, wondering what the pirate’s game was.

As was Emma, but she could also see where he might be coming from. Regina and Snow had history, and knew each other well enough that they could work together if they set aside their differences.

“As I said, each pair needs magic.” Hook reminded them. “Plus, you and the Queen here know each other best. That leaves the mountain for the prince and the Crocodile.”

No one could argue that the plan wasn’t a good one as Hook touched on some key points.

“We should stock up on weapons.” Emma said. “You got any?”

“Aye.” Hook gave David and Snow their pieces of the map, before tucking away the part that he and Emma would use. He turned to go back below deck with Emma and her parents following him.

Regina and Gold didn’t see the need for other weapons, figuring that their magic could do.

They reached the weapons storage and Emma was impressed by the array of weapons. “When you pirates pillage, you pillage.”

A wry grin was on Hook’s lips. “It is a pirate’s forte.”

The heroes eyed the weapons, looking for their best match. Snow grabbed a bow and a quiver of arrows, a push dagger, and a hunting sword. David took a broad sword, as well as a dagger. Emma had a short sword, but she also took a bolo knife and, to her inner glee, brass knuckles. Hook took a long dagger and a cutlass.

Now they were ready for a fight.

As they made to leave, David put a hand on Hook’s shoulder, pulling the pirate back.

“Emma, go on ahead.” Snow said. “David and I need to have a word with Hook.”

Emma groaned. “Seriously? What are you going to give him the “you hurt our daughter, we’ll kill you” speech?”

“Something like that.” David muttered.

Emma shot her father a glare. “Okay.” Emma told her parents, “But remember that we do need him.” She gave Hook a warning look as well as if telling him not to say anything that would piss off her parents.

Hook waggled an eyebrow at her as she left. He turned to the Davids, who were looking intimidating with their glares and postures. Luckily, Hook wasn’t a man to be intimidated. If he can face gods themselves and tell them to fuck off, he can certainly face down the parents’ of the woman he pined after.

“So, Hook.” Snow started off, her tone serious.

“Your majesties.” Hook nodded.

“We don’t like you.” David said.

Hook choked back a snort. Emma definitely inherited her father’s tact.

“David.” Snow admonished.

“It’s the truth.” Hook agreed. “Neither of you like me, nor do you trust me. Least of all with your only daughter.”

“Look, we don’t need to tell you that if anything happens to Emma, we will blame you.” Snow said. “So you better do your damnedest to protect her. She’s used to doing things on her own, but she’s not from this realm and she’s too stubborn. You need to be patient with her and ensure her safety. Got it?”

Hook stepped towards them, making eyes contact to convey his seriousness. “Believe it or not, Emma and I are two people cut from the same cloth. We have a lot more in common than you know. I like to think that she and I understand each other, and I seriously doubt that I could ever hurt her.”

Still, David and Snow didn’t seem so sure.

“I give you both my word that I will not hurt Emma and that I will return her safely to you.” Hook’s solemn vow seemed to put them at a bit more ease.

“We’re going to trust you, Hook.” David said. “Just this once. Don’t waste it.”

With that, the prince and princess walked past him.

Hook watched them go. “I hope I don’t.”

Henry struggled with his bonds as Greg dragged him from the coastal shore of Neverland into some kind of jungle. “Let me go!”

“Not a chance.” Tamara said. “Now, shut up and behave.”

“You won’t get away with this!” Henry glared. “My family will find me!”

“I’d like to see them try.” Greg said. “We should wait here. The Home Office needs to contact us.”

“No.” Tamara shook her head, eyeing the jungle critically. “We need to find them. If we don’t get this brat to them soon…”

“We don’t even know where to start.” Greg argued. “We don’t know how big this place is, and we didn’t exactly bring supplies with us.”

Tamara rolled her eyes.

With his kidnappers arguing, Henry took a more critical look at the rope around his wrists. He could find something to cut them with, but Greg wasn’t letting go any time soon. He needed to make a run for it, but Tamara had a gun even if they needed him alive, he wasn’t sure that Tamara wouldn’t shoot him in the leg or something.

Waiting for his family to come wasn’t an option. He needed to find a way to escape and find a safe place to hideout until his family could find him. Henry just needed to figure out how.

“If they were going to contact us, they would’ve by now!” Tamara snapped. “They’re probably waiting for us to come to them!”

“If they know we’re here, then they’ll know where to find us.” Greg jerked on Henry’s bonds, pulling the boy to a stumble.

He needed to get them distracted enough to let go of him and not notice him running off. The whole “look behind you” gag would be too quick and they would hear him running. An idea struck him. Maybe he could get the argument to escalate. “You know, all this arguing you two are doing solves nothing. You’re just sitting around here with no plan, really? That’s pathetic.”

“Shut up!” Tamara pulled Henry from Greg’s grasp. “I shot your dad, do you really think I won’t hurt you?”

Swallowing his fear, Henry glared up at her defiantly. “You could try.”

“Tamara, stop it.” Greg stepped between her and Henry. “We can’t hurt him. Who knows how they might react to that? We need to stay calm.”

“She’s not going to listen to you.” Henry told him. “She’s going to do whatever she wants. She probably thinks that your pathetic letting the Home Office dictate what you do.”

Greg turned on Henry. “You need to be quiet.”

Henry noticed the eye roll from Tamara. “Look at her, she doesn’t care about you or respects you.”

“That’s not true.” Tamara immediately said, shooting Henry a glare before turning to Greg. “Listen…”

Greg eyed her. “Wait, I thought…”

“That she loved you?” Henry prompted. “Because she acted pretty convincing with my dad, and she still shot him. How do you know that she hasn’t lied to you too?”

“Would you shut up!” Tamara lunged, pushing Henry to the ground.

Henry winced, landing hard on his back, but he sat up quickly, watching the fight unfold.

Greg grabbed Tamara by the arm. “So what, everything’s been a lie?”

“No, it hasn’t.” Tamara looked panicked and didn’t sound very convincing.

“How can I know that for sure?” Greg snarled.

As the argument between the two escalated, Henry very slowly walked backwards, keeping his eyes on the pair of them.

Their angry shouts echoed in the jungle.

With neither of them paying attention to him, Henry turned and ran faster than he’d ever run in his life.

Hook and Emma jumped off of the boat, both making a splash in the shallow water as they trekked through it, seeking the shore of the Dark Jungle.

The boat, occupied by Rumple and David, rowed away, heading up river towards the mountain.

Snow and Regina were already on the other side of the cove, heading into the Neverwood.

“So did my parents threaten you within an inch of your life if something happens to me?” Emma asked.

Hook smirked at her. “Essentially.”

“Yeah, that figures.” Emma sighed, shaking the water off her boots once they were on land again. “So what do we do now?”

“Well, the Dark Jungle is the most dangerous part of Neverland.” Hook said. “We’ll need to be quick and thorough in our search and highly alert. You never know what surprises Neverland will have in store.”

Emma had a bad feeling about this, but she had to trust that Hook knew what he was doing.

Hook stopped at the edge of the Jungle and reached a hand out to her. “Do you trust me, Swan?”

Trust.

She didn’t want to trust him, not because of him being a villain, but because trusting someone opened doors to other things. Other feelings. Emma couldn’t let herself feel anything for the pirate right now. Swallowing, Emma walked past him, but paused. “Come on, pirate. Let’s go find my son.”

His smile had her stomach doing somersaults. When their eyes met, there was an intensity in his forget-me-not blues that had Emma’s defenses trembling.

“Aye, let’s get to it then.” Hook pulled out his cutlass and began to cut through the jungle.