#so originally I was gonna use shepherd
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shadow0-1 · 2 years ago
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[Make the rules]
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crappy-writings · 2 months ago
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Orpheus and Eurydice
Natasha RomanoffxReader // Fluff
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*Images are not mine, credit to its creators and sources
Summary: You recount the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice with your girlfriend.
Trigger Warning: Greek mythology?
*No pronouns were used for the reader
Word Count: 1,242
A/N: Listen, I’m actually pretty proud of this one, but would still like some feedback! I was originally gonna make this longer and with some angst, but then I liked it as it is, so. Hope y’all enjoy!
Links to the myth’s Summary and Analysis that I used.
Main Masterlist | MCU Masterlist | Recced Fics Masterlist
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“Do you like Greek mythology?”
The question had been a simple one and yet, it had made Natasha’s brow furrow in curiosity. You were sitting across from her on the couch, having been completely engrossed in a book, whose title she could not read by the way you were nursing it, up until you asked that question. She raised her gaze from her computer screen, emerald green eyes staring into the pensive ones that stared back.
“I learned some of the myths and read some of the literature, like The Iliad,” Natasha replied. The Red Room was a lot of things. Aside from turning young, vulnerable girls into weapons and masters of espionage, they expected them to be prim and educated. She learned quite a bit about every conceivable topic, a Jack-Of-All-Trades, master of none.
“But do you like it?” you pressed, marking the page you left off in before shifting your position to fully look at her. There was a soft twinkle in your eye, one that held a sense of wonder and curiosity. It caused Natasha to smile ever so gently as she pondered your question. “I never really thought about it. It’s certainly interesting, and I did like reading the Iliad,” Natasha replied truthfully, setting her laptop aside so as to give you all her attention. 
“Did you ever read about Orpheus and Eurydice?” you ask with a cute tilt of your head as you chew on the inside of your lip.
“Orpheus was a musician, said to be the son of Apollo and of Calliope. Eurydice was a beautiful wood nymph that heard him play during one of his gatherings,” Natasha began recounting what she remembered of the myth, ���They fell madly in love with one another, and they got married.”
“And shortly after the marriage, a shepherd that wanted Eurydice for himself chased after them. She stepped on a snake’s nest as they ran away and got bit. She dies and he’s overcome with grief,” you continued the tale as you stand up from your side of the couch, looking to close the large gap between the both of you, your book now long forgotten, “all he ever did after her death was mourn her until he decides to go look for her in the Underworld.”
Natasha watches as you saunter on to her side, laying down beside her and offering to hold her hand, your open palm faced up at her, your finger flexing oh so slightly. She accepts it graciously, the length of your forearms fitting snugly beside each other as they often do. You were staring down at your intertwined fingers with a soft smile, your free hand falling on top of hers before running your fingers up and down her exposed forearm. 
Your touch was gentle and soothing, providing Natasha with a sense of warmth, the kind that had been denied to her for so long. A trail of goosebumps follows your touch on her skin, and you smile all the more. This was only achieved after years of breaking down tall, emotional walls that had never allowed her to be so vulnerable. She is very aware of the effect you have on her and she loves every single bit of it. 
“Orpheus reached the king of the Underworld, and he sang a song so beautiful and so heartbreaking that Hades cried. He let Orpheus try to save Eurydice, telling him that if she followed him until they both reached the exit to the Underworld without him looking back, she could return to the living world. If he did turn to look at her before that, she would have to return to the Underworld,” Natasha continued the myth as you continued to draw arbitrary patterns along the top of her skin.
“He reached the other side, and, in his excitement, he turned to look at her, but she hadn’t seen the light of the living world yet, and she’s forced back into the Underworld. He tried to go back, but the gods wouldn’t let him, and he loses her for a second time. All the songs he sang were sad and bitter and he never wanted to be in the company of another woman after that,” you finish the story, resting your head upon her shoulder. It was around now that Natasha realized that the lines you drew on her skin were, in fact, words. Three of them, to be exact. Ones that were rarely ever spoken aloud. Those three words were more often than not showcased instead of said, only being reserved for the most vulnerable and intimate of moments.  
“A tragic Greek myth,” Natasha comments as she herself laid her head against yours. 
“The part of the story that people leave out is that Orpheus is later killed by a group of women who resented him and he’s able to reunite with Eurydice in the Underworld in the end,” you added, never relenting on writing those three familiar words upon her skin, “it’s my favorite of the Greek myths.”
“Why is that one your favorite?” Natasha asked pensively, her head lifting off yours to admire your features. You adjusted yourself slightly, your gaze meeting hers. She stared at your wide, innocent eyes, watching as you gave her the smallest of smiles. There’s a flutter in Natasha’s chest with the way you looked at her. 
“They loved each other so much. Orpheus went to the Underworld just to get her back. Hades cried hearing Orpheus’ song about her. And, you know, they still find each other in the end. It’s a tragedy, yes, and it's a story about death and grief and the pitfalls of devotion, but it’s still a story about true love,” you respond thoughtfully, your gaze having settled back on your connected hands. You had always been regarded as a hopeless romantic, making your love for this particular myth all the more ironic. 
Natasha hums thoughtfully at your response. “What are your thoughts on Romeo and Juliet, then?” she asks with a teasing air to her. The question would sound dismissive to anyone else, but you let out a soft laugh. Years of knowing the woman beside you meant that you knew this was her way of showing she was listening to you. There was never any malice in her words, especially when you are speaking about a topic you enjoy. 
“I prefer The Merchant of Venice. Othello, if we want to talk tragedies,” you respond with a teasing smile, eyes staring up at her with a similar, mischievous glint. Natasha smiles down at you, the ones that reach the corners of her eyes and that intoxicate you with warmth and love.
Then your expression changed. The corners of your eyes softened, and she got lost in the lovely hue of your eyes that simply held the warm feeling of complete and utter adoration. The smile on your lips was no longer teasing, but held a loving look that could hold the stars and the moon in place.
“I would travel a thousand years to the Underworld for you,” you say quietly at her, eyes never straying from hers. Your tone was sweet and soft, and Natasha had no doubts that you meant what you said. Her gaze softens around the corners of her eyes as her heart swells with emotion. 
“And I would follow you ‘till the ends of the earth if it means getting back to you.”
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welldonekhushi · 1 year ago
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Okay guys, I'm back and.. I needed a short break after what happened in the MWIII campaign. Words can't express how shocked I was when I reached the end of the campaign and.. it left me in confusion, denial, depression and anger.
I'm putting a "read more" below because, if there are people who still haven't played MWIII, I'll keep ya guys safe.
Our theories before were constantly revolving that who's gonna die and what worse is going to happen.. it first pointed towards the fate of Price or Gaz. But, turns out we were jinxed. JINXED.
The campaign was.. okay but at the same time I felt it was small. Quite rushed. I did have a light of concern over their release date when MWII was currently trending. I was reading others reviews of how they felt about the game and yes, I agree with the same. But I wanna talk about Soap's fate this time..
Soap, who JUST started his journey, like, the one who only appeared in MWII and hoped we would see him more develop in the further games to be just.. killed off? When were they moments away from achieving victory?
So only because it's called MW3 ✌�� and you wanted to give us all a nostalgic experience you'll.. give them the original plot treatment? Both Soaps in the Modern Warfare universes.. died under the hands of Vladimir Makarov but in different circumstances.
This is where I got a bit angry at Price because, why didn't you kill Makarov instead of taking him in custody in Verdansk?! That guy is a walking grim reaper, and if Price took that action before, not just Soap but MANY more lives would have been saved. Soap was a man who was ready to take immediate action but always got backed off because of being bound to orders.
The end scene when they took out his ashes.. it broke me. Like, how unexpected this can be? Well, though I know Makarov already gave a warning that he was going to kill him off in the heli scene, but.. it's just not it? Like, honestly, I was hopeful Soap would survive.. it's disappointing for me, as someone who loves him so much, like anything.
So ScarSoap's now an angsty ship? Because let it be for both universes — OG and Reboot, Scarlet's going to be left behind? Welp, I'm more sad now, lol.
Otherwise, the expectations I had for the campaign were somehow, not met to the fullest but let's talk about the good things.
Price killing off Shepherd. YES, THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. I freaking knew that he was going to die and my prediction called itself right. But, now that Price killed a 4-star General, he's gonna go rogue. You mean, batshit, crazy and unhinged Price on the move?!
Julian Kostov. The man. Bro, like, when he was featured in the reveal trailer, I was just hoping that he'd play the role of Makarov well and guess what? He did! I absolutely loved how he portrayed the man and he looked intimidating and twisted like a true psychopath. Truly, he could compete with the OG!Makarov and it's proven! Hats off to the actor, really <3
Price DOESN'T die. Neither in my beliefs, Farah and Alex. A relief. A pure relief, for real. The trailers showed him passing out but glad he's good in one piece. But, did that happen for the cost of killing Soap? :')
Graves and Shepherd betray each other in the conference, LMFAO! Who knew they were going to turn their backs on each other. Graves really had nothing to do with this, he was just a man following orders.. the problem lies with Shepherd, and always has.
Now, these guys said we're gonna release the "full campaign" on November 10. You mean.. the early access didn't show much of the story? So there's hope? OR NOT? Sigh, I don't want to think about it.. I just don't. I've been delulu, haha
Anyways, these are my thoughts for Modern Warfare III! What do you feel about it, let me know in the comments!
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glittergoblinzz · 4 months ago
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Mini Modern Warfare Rant
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The biggest plot hole (if you wanna call it that I suppose) from the original MW3 that bugs me the most is during Blood Brothers where Yuri, Soap and Price head to Prague to meet up with Kamarov and the rest of the resistance to try and take down Makarov
Obviously this fails and Soap ends up dying
Yuri and Soap should have immediately noticed the C-4 or whatever bomb was planted up in that room with them in the church. There was absolutely NO WAY they could have missed it, as Soap was literally two feet from one when you see them start to flash and beep when Makarov activates them.
As much as I love the OG Modern Warfare games, the plot holes they have are quite silly.
Like, it's stated MULTIPLE times throughout MW2 that the man Makarov hates the most is Prisoner 6-2-7, who you have to go and snag from the Gulag....which ends up being Captain Price. Makarov KNEW that this man and Soap were the only people that was somewhat capable in taking him out.
So why on God's green Earth did this man decide to help out his worst enemy to rat out Shepherd's location? He knew Shepherd was gonna kill Price and the rest of TF141, so why not just let it happen?
I guess you could make the argument that he knew Shepherd was after him as well, but Makarov also had proof that could tie Shepherd back to the Zakhaev International attack and just blackmail him to NOT come after him unless Shepherd wanted his whole "war hero" image to be burned away
Firmly believe Makarov would have ended up winning (at least succeeded in his goal of eliminating Price and Soap) if he hadn't given Price Shepherd's location and instead gave him a fake ass location during "Enemy of my Enemy" before letting Shepherd know so he could finish up tying his loose ends. Then he could have turned right around in giving the US the information that tied Shepherd with the terrorist attack that started WW3, which would have put Shepherd behind bars or even give him the death penalty.
And yeah, I know there's still the whole thing with Yuri but like....who would he have turned to if Price and Soap had died at the end of MW2? I wonder if Yuri would have went to Kamarov and the resistance instead and how that would have turned out.
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mar3ggiata · 28 days ago
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professional help, c28. On a leash.
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simon riley x original character.
trigger warnings: violence, sexual assault, mentions of rape, trauma, sexual themes, swearing, use of alcohol and drugs, mentions of death, depression, eating disorders.
song to listen to when reading this: Movement, Hozier.
abstract: Judy here, I really don't know what my life is about, I'm working in autopilot. Something is clearly wrong but I haven't figured it out yet… which is weird cause I always figure out everything before everyone else. I feel fucking ill.
'Praticamente niente, ho un nuovo lavoro.' Alba propped her phone against a cereal box and stood in the frame. Salvo's expression, on her phone, turned from confusion to excitement, his big black eyes looking at her in shock. 'Ma che cazzo…' She laughed and sat down on one of the stools. She had her wet hair up in with towel, a oversized jumper on. She got an email that morning from Laswell, said that since she did so well on her last mission she could help out once more. In reality, and she didn't know this, they were calling her just to keep an eye on her, Shepherd's orders. Keep the girl under observation, he had said. It wasn’t because she was good, poor thing. It was because they were scared. The job description was exactly how you would expect it, non existent. She would get briefed that night. Laswell had other things to attend and couldn't really follow smaller missions that were all organised by Price. She told Salvo the news. She told him she was happy, it was basically a promotion without a pay raise, but she liked it anyway. She craved that validation, the fact that she was getting praised by her boss and having more to do than her usual sessions was going to keep her busy and distract her from nightmares and paranoia.
She asked Salvo to remind her what time he was flying to the airport, since she was supposed to pick him up. He would stay at her place for a few nights, and then go back to base. Just to catch up and spend more time together. She sat in group therapy at the edge of her seat, she was eager to get out and go to the meeting with Price, to know what she needed to do, what her tasks were going to be. There were three people in the room with her, she usually had larger groups but many were still deployed or at home to their families. 'And how are you doing with your meds Andy?' She had her notebook on her lap, she put a strand of hair behind her ear. 'Do you remember what I was saying a few weeks ago about panic, about using your senses to ground yourself?' It was almost scary how she liked helping people, and how she never took her own advice. She had a long healing journey from her past, when she was in university she took therapy extremely seriously, since her brain blocked out memories and chunks of her past from bothering her and tormenting her in her day-to-day life. After the attack last year, after Arash… She really wasn't the best to give advice, she was just going with what theories and literature had to offer her. Fix everybody and let yourself rot in bed for weeks. 'It might be useful to focus your attention to something you can see like the cars out of the window, something you can hear…' She gently stretched to her right with her hand open, 'Something you can feel like my hand on your arm, or the chair beneath you…' She gently gave Sargent Alison a pat on the arm. She had time for a smoke break after the session ended, that's where she found the Lieutenant.
He stood alone with his mask raised on his nose, cigarette in his right hand. He wore black, she thought he looked even taller today, taller and bigger. Handsome. He offered his lighter without her even having to ask. He acted like he knew her forever. 'I heard you'll be joining us again.'
'Just make sure you don't say my name again this time, you're gonna get me killed.'
His blood went cold for a second, heat rushing to his masked face. He had thought about what he did constantly after New Years. Even when he was with her on that bench, walking down the street with Jinx or choosing what to eat, he looked at her and thought about her being dead. He thought about her under the desk, at the ballet school, pale and terrified. He ate with her, payed for dinner, told her to get whatever dessert she liked. He held her dog on a leash for her. Her shoulder brushed his arm countless times while they squeezed in the crowd to get to the bench. He almost killed her. He cursed her for joking about it, you’re too young to understand. She was smoking in silence beside him, looking at the sun setting, painting the deserted street pink and gold. He was done with his cigarette, he debated waiting for her. Entering the briefing room together would have looked extremely suspicious. No one knew what he had been doing, no one knew he knew her. He thought Johnny was suspicious for sure, cause he noticed he had been going out a few times alone. But no one could ever imagine he ate dinner at her house, walked with her, talked to her. He hugged her (she chose him). No one knew he knew stuff about her, like her tattoos, that she liked to cook, that she broke her right arm as a kid. No one knew she knew him, that was the scary part. She knew where he was from, where he got deployed, that be enjoyed working in Bulgaria, she knew he didn’t like hostage situations. She knew he was allergic to stupid fucking strawberries… No one could even imagine she had anything to do with him, someone like him.
He snapped back to reality when he felt her pull his jacket. She looked like a child pulling on his sleeve. He looked at her and realised she wanted him to take a step back and take cover from the light rain. She quickly let go of the fabric, he did as she wished and pressed his back to the wall so he wouldn’t get soaked. She was considerate. She was observant. They smoked in silence, he was done before her, he waited for her to finish. He was getting extremely nervous. She seemed to be relaxed, a bit tired even. ‘What’s the mission?’ she asked, they were walking inside, side by side. His boots heavy on the ground in sync with the clicking of her shiny shoes. Her coat was flowing behind her like a super villain cape. ‘Serbia’, he answered, they stepped in the meeting room.
Walking with him made her comfortable and confident. They stepped inside the room together, her in front of him, they gained a couple of weird looks. Even Price noticed. As if he didn’t already suspect that something was going on, and nothing was going on they were literally just colleagues. They happened to be in the corridor at the same time, no big deal. He felt like everyone could hear his thoughts or read his mind. He felt violated, like everyone knew how often he thought about her, and in which situations. He felt terrified at the thought everyone in the room had the right to think about her as well. He didn’t sit next to her, she chose her spot next to the wall, she didn’t seem to mind that he was no longer beside her. She noticed the room counted less soldiers, compared to the Al-Jareena mission. She saw Kyle, Scotland, the guy that mocked her in the past mission. She recognised his face. With the captain, the room counted six people. Price started speaking without even acknowledging her, or the others for that matter. He explained the situation in Serbia was getting out of hand again, but not enough to get deployed there. This time, they were waiting, this time violence wasn't exactly the answer. With a look around the room she quickly understood that she was the only one unaware of what the situation in Serbia was…
Her confused look gained Price's attention, so he made the effort to explain. 'We've been following some criminal gangs in Serbia, they occupy a neighbourhood close to the Romanian border. It was just stealing and drugs at the beginning, it's getting larger now. It's nothing major still, but they seem a rather strong group.' She nodded. The captain turned the small tv in the room on, two faces popped up. Two men. 'This is Smith and Madison, you remember them. They infiltrated the group nearly four months ago. They're reporting some changes in the diplomacy in the group, they're beginning to work with external parties…'
'What do you mean, they're expanding?' someone asked, she didn't turn to look.
'They are. They have arms, they have men, no one really knows who they are, they haven't been arrested yet, they're maybe getting paid to serve as mercenary.'
'By who?' she was the one to speak now, eyes still glued on the screen.
Price gave her a look, before revealing they suspected other terrorist groups to be in contact with them. Jude tried to hide her extremely confused expression, while everyone felt like Price’s speech was totally making sense. 'Jude, we would need you to… listen.' She felt her heart drop at him personally addressing her. 'Beg your pardon?' She whispered. He took a step towards her 'We have a team of two people who listen to the group's conversation basically all day, since Smith and Madison were finally able to plant covert listening devices around their bases. You would be listening, writing and reporting any details you think are important.' She kept looking at him without making a sound. Why don't they do it? Why me? She was about to answer when he started talking again. 'You're Croatian on your mother's side, Serbian is a variety of the Serbo-Croatian language, they even switch to English at times'.
Fucked. She was fucked. She looked at the captain petrified, he knew she wasn't really Croatian for Christ's sake! That's not true I'm not fucking Croatian, you dick! And he knows it. It's part of the fake story, you idiot. 'Correct me if I'm wrong… I'm supposed to sit and listen and take notes? You know I don't know Croatian that well, let alone Serbian…' She hated him for putting her in that position. She felt her face burn up, her ears turning red. I’m not doing it. ‘Well, it shouldn’t be too difficult. Serbian language has three genders, they have neuter as well. They have grammatical cases, nominative, dative, accusative… you studied Latin didn’t you?’ Her face dropped in an even more shocked expression. She did, in fact, study Latin. Ten years ago. ‘I’m sorry, you have two people working on this, what do you need me for?’ She spoke again, hoping no one in the room could sense the panic in her voice. Simon could. He was tense as well, basing off her body language, which he observed from his seat, she wasn’t comfortable at all. Why wasn’t she, he thought she was all proud and confident to work with them. What is happening to you, sweet thing? ‘Because we trust you, Jude.’ The captain assured. You don’t, she thought. ‘Laswell trusts you, she likes the way you work, she feels like she has control over these type of situation if you’re working as well. Plus, the workload is significant…' She felt flattered, don’t get me wrong. But no, something was up. She had a job already, she didn’t know Serbian. She didn’t know the alphabet, she didn’t know the vocabulary. It was absurd, her mom wasn’t fucking Croatian and Price knew. Laswell knew! Laswell was the one who helped with the fake identity thing! They were up to something.
She let out a sight, ‘Will I get compensated?’ She was back, Simon saw her. He saw right through her, he saw her change. He saw the way her eyes looked dark, fierce. She fixed her posture, she looked at the captain through her eyebrows. She was Jude again, Alba was gone. ‘Compensated?’ The captain asked, he made a mistake. She quickly followed. 'I already have a job. I’ll have to learn the alphabet, captain. You’ll need to get me a dictionary. And you said you have two people that are working right now every day practically all day, with me I count…’ she pretended to think about it, ‘eight hours of listening and writing each day?’ Silence. Simon had to repress a smile. 'I guess… yes, no you're right.' She sat back in her seat, shocked that he thought she wasn't gonna ask to get paid.
She quickly realised what mess she had gotten herself into. The men in the room kept talking about the gangs situation, their next steps and when they were going to intervene. She spaced out, thinking about what actually meant to have agreed to something like that. She had work, she had ballet… When was she gonna have time to do this? And, again, she didn't know Serbian! She felt a wave of anxiety wash over her when the captain handed her the two other workers' schedule. She was still looking at the working hours, walking towards the exit when she felt an hand on her shoulder. Her mind went to Simon. It went to Simon immediately to be exact, she thought that she was going to raise her eyes and see him, he would ask her if she was fine with all probability. She felt like she could rant to him and tell him the truth, it was too much to ask her, she felt incredibly lost and insecure… It wasn't Simon.
'You keep surprising me, really. You'll be our official translator!'
She let out a chuckle while Kyle practically escorted her out of the room.
It wasn't Simon.
notes: i am uploading from my hotel in turkey lol.
notes: i inspire my missions to real life history facts, and I think you can kinda see which wars and historical events this is inspired from. if you can't, it means I did a good job hiding it. I want to remind you everything I write is fictional, if I'm taking inspiration is simply from historical facts that are common knowledge. I'm going to refer to Italy and set the story in Italy soon, so I will be talking about war and crime in my own country. still, it will be all from my imagination. bye. I love you.
taglist:
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@warmedbythebody @katzykat @iristhemuse @azkza @keiraslayz @abbyandermine @jennyjencakes @dest-nai @corset-briefs @nutze-kekse @ilytsukiw @b3anspr0ut
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fictionallystable · 9 months ago
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Rating: Mature
Fandom: Call of Duty (Video Games)
Relationship: Phillip Graves (Call of Duty)/Reader
Characters: Reader, Phillip Graves (Call of Duty), Original Male Character(s)
Additional Tags: Author Has Played Call of Duty, Childhood Friends, Miscommunication, Mutual Pining, slight age gap, Civilian!Reader, Pre-Canon, Jealousy, Angst, Kissing, Time Skips, Slight OOC Graves, Brother's Best Friend.
Words: 1,990 | Chapters: 3/5
Authors: @orphancains & @collinnmckinley
Chapter 3: Happy Birthday.
Chapter Summary: Your parents invite Phil and his new pretty girlfriend to dinner, and things take a turn but not for the better.
A/N: Sorry for the late update. But here is Chapter 3, finally! We'll try to post Chapter 4 sooner than this one. Again, thanks for hanging in with us! :) (likes and reblogs are appreciated <3)
the fic can also be found on AO3
tags will be updated!!
In front of you a cake with light purple frosting and exactly thirteen candles sat on it . Your mom had ordered it and it was a special order for your birthday. You were excited to finally get into your teen years , and you were grateful your mom didn’t force you to invite your old classmates from school to your home, despite your father’s initial ideas. Instead, you sat at the table outside in your backyard, the same oak tree you always played under as a kid provided your family shade as you sat by the cake, whose candles you blew out just minutes before. You were content to just be with your brother, mom, dad, and a few cousins for the afternoon, rather than surrounded by strangers masquerading as friends. And now, you were excited to dig into the cake.
“ Wait wait wait- Before we eat,” Your brother spoke up, while your mom removed the candles with smoke still spiraling off their tips. “I wanted to give you my present.”
You gave him a confused chuckle. “Matty, you already gave me the present this morning, remember?”
“I have something else,” he said with a sly grin before jogging off back into the house. 
You looked up at your parents, as if silently asking them if they knew what he was up to. Your mom shrugged while your dad only huffed.
When your brother came back, your jaw dropped and you gasped. In his hand was a bundle of fur , but most importantly, the said bundle was moving and when you looked closely you recognized it as a small German Shepherd puppy. He couldn’t have been older than 2 months. In typical puppy fashion, he wiggled out of your brother’s arms to scamper toward you.
“I just picked him up from the humane society an hour ago.” He let out a breathy laugh.
When he let go of the puppy, immediately the fur bundle tried to leap onto your lap, sniffing your face and giving small kisses near your nose as you bent down to carry him. You giggled at the tickling of his whiskers against your skin. You cooed lovingly and caressed his head and felt his soft fur between your fingers. Purposefully, you sang the dog praises loud enough to drown out the sound of your parents trying to reprimand Matty for this ‘expensive’ gift and the “ Matty, we’re going to talk about this later ”.
You beckoned your brother to come over to you, and when he did you hugged him tightly.
Your brother knelt down in front of you. “ So? You gonna give him a name? ”
You furrowed your brow, still petting the dog. “Oh shoot ! Now I have to think about that don’t I… ”, your brother shook his head amused at your conflict.
Before you could begin brainstorming, you heard the door from the house open and looked up. You saw Phillip there, closing the door behind him holding a gift box. When he glanced at you, he gave a small wave and one of his soft smiles. You stiffened, but you waved back hesitantly. You didn’t expect him to come. Suddenly, you felt nervous, embarrassed. Scenes from the night of that disastrous dinner flashing in your mind, him kissing Marisa by the pool also invading your thoughts. But you tried to brush them aside. And when you did you felt a hint of the same joy you always felt when Phil appeared. As if feeling your emotions too, the new puppy sitting on your lap yapped and barked happily at the sight of the new human.
Your brother glared briefly at Phil. “Dude, you’re late.”
Phil ignored his comment, focusing instead on you and the dog on your lap. “Holy shit, Matty—” Phil’s cursing prompted a low grumble from your dad “—I thought you were joking when you said you were getting her a puppy ,” he said as he approached you. “And you actually got her a German Shepherd. Jesus, he’s gonna be as big as a bear when he’s fully grown.”
The puppy then lept back off your lap and landed on the floor, clambering up Phillip’s leg trying with his front paws. He knelt down and gave the dog a few pets as well. “Man, I don’t know if my gift can top this,” he said with a small laugh as the dog also l icked his face. You felt your heartbeat quicken a bit at the mention of him getting you a present. You were surprised he even kept your birthday in mind, let alone wanting to give you something after what had happened.
He stood back up and dusted the grass off his knees. “Sorry, I’m late. Had to meet up with someone real quick on the way , it took longer than I thought.”
“Don’t worry, Phillip, we were going to save you a slice of cake just in case,” your mother warmly added, to which Phillip thanked her.
He handed you the box gently and said, “I made sure to bring you something though.”
You felt your throat tighten and you felt your eyes wanted to water from the emotions flooding you. Regret, from the dinner. But also adoration for this boy who felt like a second older brother to you, but even more than that. You couldn’t find the words to describe it. Instead, you held the present, unwrapping the lilac and silver wrapping paper slowly. 
When you opened it, you felt your heart soar in your chest.
“Oh, my god…” you exclaimed, looking up at him in surprise. Phil had gotten you the artist kit that you had been dreaming about for months, but you could never afford with what little money you had saved. Your eyes shined with joy as you held the gift in disbelief. “I can’t believe you got this! You—you actually remembered!” 
He furrowed his brows for a split second, but he continued to smile and tenderly placed a hand on your shoulder. “Of course I did.”
Standing much shorter than Phillip, you had to crane your neck to look at him, but your heart fluttered when you saw the warmth with which he looked at you. Without a word, you jumped forward and wrapped your arms around his chest, hugging him tightly. With the hug, you could feel all the shame and hurt from the past couple of weeks melt away. He hugged you back, his larger arms making you feel safe. 
“ Oh, god! The dog is trying to eat the cake!,” your mom was panicking.
You pulled away from the hug and found that, yes, the puppy had its two paws on the edge of the table, his nose dangerously close to the slices of cake that your mom had put aside while she cut the rest.
“ So , what’s his name?” Phillip asked you gingerly but also choked back a laugh at seeing your dad scratching his graying head of hair in annoyance.
“I’m not sure…” you frowned at the thought, grabbing the dog and carrying him, you held him to your chest while he panted happily at Phil beside you. 
He hummed in return.
“Why not name him Bear then ?”
He blinked and mulled over this for a few seconds, but gave you a playful smirk. “Bear… Yeah, I like it.” 
The start of the school year was quickly approaching. You sat in your brother’s room as he was packing his bags for college and with a now slightly larger Bear chewing on a toy beside you. The next day, he was going to drive with your dad to College Station, where he was going to start his first year. You watched as he begrudgingly packed his clothes into bags, asking him questions about it. “Are you nervous?” “What classes are you taking?” and most importantly “How often are you coming back to visit?” You couldn’t deny you were going to painfully miss him. You were glad he had gotten you Bear to keep you company in his absence, but it wasn’t the same.
“I’ll try to drive back home every few weeks, okay?. And I’ll definitely be back for Thanksgiving.” 
When he started packing his video game discs, you froze for a few moments, before asking him. “Hey, is Phil going with you too?” You now wondered why your dad didn’t mention also driving him to College Station with Matty.
Matty stopped packing and looked at you with a small frown, puzzled. “No, of course not. He shipped out last week.”
It was your turn to frown now. “Shipped out? What does that mean?”
He grimaced . “ Oh, he never told you…” He paused and ran his hand through his hair in frustration now. “What the fuck, Phil,” he mumbled under his breath. With a heavy sigh he looked up at you with regretful eyes. “What I mean is… he left to start boot camp with the Marines a few days ago, Y/N.” 
You leaned away and stared in confusion “Wait, w-why would he…” you stammered, unable to finish the question. “He… left?” You felt your heart shatter but you were still so confused. A thousand thoughts ran through your mind. Since when did Phil want to join the military? He never did mention college to you, you suddenly realized. But when did he decide to just get up and leave? And why did he never tell you? 
Your brother sighed again, “Yeah, that’s why he got here late as fuck on your birthday. ” Annoyance flashed in his eyes for a brief second. “He was at the Marines’ recruiting office, getting the paperwork done, setting up dates and… finalizing his decision to join, I guess.”
Your eyes were watering. You fought so the tears that were gathering behind your eyes . “Why… wouldn’t he tell me ?” 
Matty opened his mouth to answer but he couldn’t find the words. “I don’t know, to be honest. I told him he should, but he didn’t say anything .”
You stood up from his bed and headed towards the door. Your heart ached at knowing Phil didn’t trust you with this information, or worse, you fear that he didn’t care about you anymore to tell you anything . “ Why did you keep this from me…?” you asked as you gripped at the door frame. You felt betrayed, ignored, small once again. You felt like the dumb little sister once more. 
Your brother stood up and gently held onto your shoulders. “Listen, if I know Phil like I think I know him, he’d surely have a reason.” ‘What reason would have been big enough for him to hide about his enlistment?’ “Don’t forget, he cares a lot about you.” ‘Does he?’
You felt like your knees would give up , you leaned into his chest slightly as you tried holding back your cries, but ending up staining his shirt with your silent tears . “I didn’t think… I didn’t think he would actually hide this from you . He said something about not wanting you to worry about it. ”
On the bed, Bear nervously whined seeing you in tears. Matty wanted to guide you back to his bed to sit you down, but you removed his hands from your shoulders as you started to leave the room. Bear trailing behind you. 
In your room, you sat on the bed as it became gloomy all of a sudden. Whenever something plagued your mind with concern or a wave of depression hit you, the atmosphere changes drastically in your room. Bear’s cold, wet nose poked your hand. You slowly raised it to gently caress the dog, feeling your cries grow into quiet sobs . Sniffling and your vision blurred from more tears gathering in your eyes, as you slowly laid down on the bed . Curling up on your side you cried into your pillow. You breathed deeply as you realized now: Phil could in a matter of months be in a warzone tens of thousands of miles away from home. The heartbreak and sense of betrayal that had stunned your senses were now inundated and replaced with fear. You didn’t know if you’d ever hear back from him. Knowing him, he maybe didn’t even have plans to come back to your town because his parents were never home. His house was never really his home.  
“Oh, god, please ,” you thought to yourself, “please stay safe Phil. ”
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fantomette22 · 1 year ago
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The Dogs in Bloodborne!
So @bobbyzombiegg you wanted some headcanons on the dogs right? Following this post. Alright I will, but first i’m gonna recap all the dogs we can see in Bloodborne!
No I'm not talking about the weird beasts. Even the ones we're not sure if they have animal or human origins, I will stay focused on dogs only.
Rabid dog (Yharnam and found in most of the locations of the game)
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They seems to be cream coloured but I saw people said it could be brown. It's the dog ennemies we encounter the most often. The chimera in the Nightmare of Mensis are made with them too.
Grey Rabid dog (grey/silver version found in Yaha'rgul & chalice dungeons)
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Same breed as the light coloured ones but they have darker fur (grey/silver)
Some might already know but for the ones who don't know this dog highly ressemble the Irish Wolfhound Breed
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It's one of the biggest dog in the world. Typically used to hunt wolves (that's how all the wolf in Ireland disappear), deers and big animals.
The breed almost disappear in the 19th century but it was restored into the one we know today with mixing the last ones with the Great Dane, Scottish deerhound, borzoi and even Tibetan dog.
It also highly ressemble the Scottish deerhound, the too breed being very similar and link.
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I personally call the ones in Bloodborne just wolfhound because there's no guarantee it's a real breed and again Bloodborne, like dark souls is not our world so I don't think Irish and England exist XD there's equivalent maybe. (And Yharnam would be closer to this universe version or Poland or Czech).
If you are attentive they aren't presented in the hunter's nightmare (see below the old hunter's hound) With the scourge of the beasts becoming worst and huge beasts appearing more frequently the hunters and citizens turn themself to bigger dogs to hunt bigger prey.
Hunting dog (Hemwick Charnel lane & chalice dungeons)
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Don't ask me what breed it is I have 0 idea. Greyhound? A mixt breed? Idk. They are principally found in Hemwick too. They have been equip of weapons to hurt beast better I supposed. A hardcore version of the collar of some shepherd dog 😅 The ones left almost in completely autonomy with a herd and half collars with spike to not get hurt by wolves.
Keeper's hunting dogs
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Found in the chalice dungeons and are weird mutated fire dogs. They follow their master, the keepers. I suppose they were normal dogs before.
Watchdog of the Old Lords
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Idk if that was a dog before. Could be a keeper who transformed or something for all we know. But well it's literally called a "watchdog" so-
The corpses of dead dogs in the chalice dungeons
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(I know it looks great but please imagined it's a dog 💀 it's the only screenshot I found)
Sometimes you can see corpses in the chalice dungeons and sometimes there's dogs ones as well. They seem rather "normal". And not really the breeds we already see.
Old hunter hound /rabid dog (Hunter's Nightmare-Yharnam/ The Old Hunters dlc)
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So those are probably Dobermann. Used as guard dogs and for protections. During old hunter's era, most beasts were beast patients / human size not huge scourge beasts. So this type of dogs was ideal. With the beast growing bigger having more scourge beasts around the poor dogs become too insufficient. And that's why Yharnam adopt bigger bred like the wolfhounds.
Dobermanns are born with long falling ears and a tail. The tails was cut so they don't got hurt into fight or hunting and the ears because they often got affections. Many countries have forbidden it because with modern standard of life it donees't have any real use now. Contrary to what people think "attack dogs" are not born agressive. It's just that if they aren't trained well and develop comportement issues and agression it's going to be a bit more of a problem than a chihuahua who would have the same issues.
Fish dogs (Hunter's nightmare-Fishing hamlet/ The Old hunters dlc)
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Don't ask me please. there's no idea of knowing what they were before. But their fish's head apparently ressemble a viperfish's head, also called a chauliodus, deep sea fish from the Stomiidae family. Not putting pictures here for people who are sensible, I put a link above. Their body as slimed and long (30cm), they lived between 200 and 4000m of depth (3300-13000ft). Those types of fishes (their genus) were discovered in the very early XIX/19th century.
Now my headcanons on why most of wolfhounds in Yharnam have light fur and why the one in Yahar’gul have dark colored ones.
Objectively the most possible answer is simply that the dog’s population of this two area weren’t mixted together. When you have a small portions of individual who don’t mixt with more exterior individuals they tend to end up with similar traits because of dominant & rececive genes (and if it last a LONG time, that’s how new species appears. But it take thousands if not millions of years and generations).
Well my headcanons is much simpler than that and basically for fic purposes. I just thought it would make sense that Yahar’gul hunters kept the darker ones because they need to stay discreet (they themselves have black clothes) etc. And the other would have kept the lighter ones because they are easier to see and recognize at night.
At the beginning of the introduction of the wolfhound races in Yharnam it was probably mixed individuals of different fur coats. With a bit with time, selection and breeding they would end up with most of the dogs being light light colored for the hunters/citizens and church. And Yahar’gul doing the same would ended up with the darker ones.
And bonus headcanons:
I imagined a younger Paarl possibly taking care of the first generation of wolfhound in Yharnam (they were introduced to replace the dobermanns because beasts grew bigger). And i like imagining Gehrman to had help with training and had one of his own :3 a white one (yes I draw it I should do that again) (because you see, to have survived that long and have will to live after Maria passed away and the old hunters dying one by one i imagined it would have been nice for him to have a companion for a time).
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sleepyconfusedpotato · 2 years ago
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Hello, Sleppy! There is one thing I have always wanted to know about Jade but did not dare ask. Tell me, please, what happened to Jade and Simon in the original CoD universe? I saw a sketch of crying Jade, was it her reaction to Simon's death or in your universe he managed to survive? P.S. - I am sorry if you do not like this question at all.
Okay so since I rarely post about the OG!MW2 anymore, I'm just gonna reveal the whole plot to you guys (ʘ ͜ʖ ʘ)
Be ready cuz this is kinda long - these are the canon divergence that I constructed in the events that my OC's are inserted into the OG!MW2 plot.
So, Jade was actually sent by the MI6 to track down what actually happened that made Russia attack US out of nowhere. Because that Zakhaev Airport massacre sounded and looked FISHY as HECK. Being the MI6 she was, Jade had to report regularly to her handler in MI6 (141 didn’t know this. It’s her personal gig). She met Soap Ghost and Roach there, but her first meeting with Ghost was bad and blab la blaaa SHE OPENED GHOST'S MASK. She also met Ellie (another OC I had for Gaz who’s a medical corps leader in 141. Gaz died in the OG!MW, she was still saddened but she’s very glad to have Jade in the base).
There’s also another OC that I have named Bara. He’s a lone Indonesian Denjaka sniper lieutenant that got sent by the country to capture an Indo defector among Makarov’s cause. Because of political reasons, he’s not a 141. Bara’s like an ally that pop out sometime somewhere like a spirit. 141 themselves were still very suspicious of him, but when Bara saved Meat and Royce in Rio, he gained their trust, and 141 would help him find the defector as Bara would help them on their missions.
Now, sometime in the middle, Jade was captured by Makarov and got tortured by him. Jade intentionally didn’t escape and held the pain in to gain some info herself from anyone inside the room or from Makarov himself. And that’s where the (How about you check who you surround yourself with) and Jade’s gears started turning inside her brain. She released herself and ran amok around Mak’s place, and found some data about “anonymous source” that said there’ s mole among Makarov’s group in the massacre (we know it is Joseph Allen) and she SENT THAT STRAIGHT to MI6. Ghost and the boys found the compound and rescued a badly injured Jade.
So like, along the story, Jade found bits and pieces, put two and two together, and by the end, Jade’s 90% sure that Shepherd’s onto something shitty.
NOW HERE’S THE CANON DIVERGENCE IN LOOSE ENDS MISSION.
As Jade, Roach, and Ghost went to Makarov’s base at the Georgian-Russian border, Jade actually took the time to read the posts, notes, and all the info that were sticked to the boards, tables, and walls. In fact, as Ghost and Roach was busy fighting off Makarov’s goons, Jade READ that shit (because at that point she didn’t trust Shepherd AT ALL).
And you guessed it, she found out that Shepherd is the mastermind behind every damn thing.
So when Roach transferred the data to the DSM, she did her magic and unbeknownst to everyone, she SENT ALL the proof to MI6 on the spot.
Jade then told Ghost and Roach about everything, and they did NOT trust Shepherd anymore. So when the general told them to go the fields, they declined and decided to hold the fort inside the house. Shepherd knew something was wrong, so when he kept pressing the three to get out of the house, but again, the three didn’t oblige, the general and the shadows decided to finally go to the house.
Shepherd and the Shadows cleared the whole area from enemies and tried to find Ghost, Roach, Jade,and the others in the house. One by one, the SC people got killed with stealth. Things led to another, and chaos ensued inside the house. Shepherd could’ve burnt down the house with the 141 in it, but Shepherd’s paranoid that Jade had done something, and he NEEDED that DSM.
Shootout happened, and Jade got one of the SC as a shield with a gun to his head. Shepherd told Jade to give him the DSM, and convo happened, Shepherd finally revealed his motives. And now he had to get rid of the three of them.
AND THEN, MI6 contacted Jade, saying that the proof about Shepherd’s doing had gone public. The whole thing was his doing all long, and now the world had turned all their forces towards finding Shepherd. Russia, US, now began their search on Shepherd! WOOHOO
Panicked, Shepherd yelled at SC as reinforcements came, along with Price and Soap who came straight fom Kazakhstan to the place, Meat and Royce (who survived Rio), Archer and Toad, everyone came to help.
CLIMAX ENSUED, and Ghost got shot twice protecting Jade from Shepherd’s bullets.
As Jade held Ghost on her arms, Price and Soap, with Nikolai’s help, chased Shepherd who’s desperately tried to escape and killed him. Minus the Soap getting stabbed.
Don’t worry, Ghost survived because ELLIE WILL NOT let him leave Jade like Gaz left her too fast. So Ghost survived WOOHOOO.
The Jade crying sketch was, indeed, a cry of relief as Ellie told her that Ghost was going to be fine (❁´◡`❁). She wore Ghost's jacket to comfort herself during the times Ghost was unconscious, and this sketch came out!
Everybody lives, no WW3, no MW3. This is REAL MOVIE ASS SHIT but it’s what’s in my mind!
I have the whole ass fic about the post-Loose Ends angst at the ready if y'all want it.
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sylunisart · 2 months ago
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I am a bit dry on art atm so I’m gonna post some of my surname hcs since Shepherd and Dobbs canonically have established full names, I’m not including Pom because I hc Pom is a surname and her first name is Lisa.
Anyways
Olimar: Naegi(Japanese surname meaning seedling or sapling)
Louie: Asanuma(Japanese surname meaning “shallow swamp” referencing having grown up in the swamp area of Hocotate, which is implied by some of Louie’s voyage logs in game)
Alph and Yorke: Zaffre(Zaffre is another name for Cobalt, a mineral used in electronics + cobalt blue)
Brittany and Nelle: Pointer(comes from the Brittany spaniel dog breed which believe it or not aren’t true spaniels, they’re pointer dogs + pointy nose pun)
Charlie: Reyes(Spanish surname meaning “King”, I decided to reference King Charles spaniels with this)
Delta(character D): Rinmann(based on Rinmann’s green, otherwise known as cobalt green. I hc that they and the Zaffre siblings are cousins)
Collin: Peters(named after a famous collie who was a rescue dog)
Russ: Parson(referencing the man who originally developed the dog breed)
Dingo: Larrikin(Australian slang for hooligan/outlaw)
Yonny: Desrouleaux(surname meaning “of the scrolls” it is a French surname, but it is also used by Creole people)
Bernard: Bamse(named after a St. Bernard who saved a navy crew member from drowning)
Santi: Bhavaraju(Sanskrit surname meaning “one who is knowledgeable”)
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chadillacboseman · 1 year ago
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Summary: Part of the Vampire!Graves AU that @gloombride and I are currently going insane over. My original/first snippet is here. Graves is back from the dead and needs to find you. 141 has taken you for interrogation after hearing reports that the commander might be alive. Graves doesn't take kindly to your imprisonment. Reader is gender neutral, but the pet name "baby" is used.
Word Count: 5.1k!!!
Warnings: Oh boy! Major character death, blood, dismemberment, broken bones, vampirism, consumption of blood. The least offensive part of this is the use of guns lol. The moment Price and Graves interact, some pretty graphic descriptions of injury take place and continue until the end.
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
--
"What do you know about Phillip Graves being alive?" Captain Price stood before you, his figure looming above your seated form, hands resting on his rifle.
"Nothing."
That was the truth. You'd spent the last two weeks mourning his death after his second in command had came to your door to notify you.
"Bullshit-" Soap piped up from across the room, his voice tinged with barely contained rage. Soap had been one of the few to know about you- Graves had pulled a weathered photo of you from his pocket to show him the night before they'd taken down El Sin Nombre.
"That's my whole world right there," Graves grinned and ran a thumb absentmindedly over your face in the photo, "Gonna make it home safe just to see that face again."
"Didn't peg ya for one to settle down, Graves," Soap raised an eyebrow, "But I can see why."
Graves chuckled and shoved the photo back into his pocket, "I'm gonna hang it up soon, give the Shadows over to Oz- sit my ass behind a fuckin' desk and call the shots from there."
"I don't know anything!" you hissed; tears were threatening to well up in your eyes now.
"Let me clue you in here," Price knelt down in front of you, eyes laser fixed on yours, "You are not leaving this room until I get an answer."
"Fuck you."
--
"Shepherd told me you were dead," Oz's back was against the wall, eyes following Graves as he paced.
"Maybe I was," there was a new glint in the commander's eye that made Oz uncomfortable. His irises were glowing in the dim light, two halos of amber bobbing just above his shark-like grin, "Now I'm gonna ask you one more time, where are they?"
"Those British fucks came knocking-" Oz paused, eyes screwed up, as if he was trying to conjure the memory up in his mind, "They know you're alive. Took 'em in for questioning. That's all I fuckin' know, Graves."
He didn't need any more than that.
"Do me a favor, Osmond," Graves glanced over his shoulder as he exited the room, "Don't tell Shepherd about this conversation. I'd like it to be a surprise."
--
Your house was deserted. Lights were still on, and your phone was sitting at the table. Graves knew you didn't go voluntarily. He inhaled deeply, letting the scent of the place dance through his nostrils and across his tongue. Each scent was a thread, a way to trace back to the source- a way for him to find you.
He got a lock on it, pulled it from the others that surrounded it until it was all he could smell, all he could taste. From there, it was easy- like a bloodhound on the trail he could retrace your every step.
The other scents made his fangs throb, anger welled up in his chest- Soap, Ghost, and two others he couldn't quite place.
It was easy to follow the trail once he had a lock on you. Graves could see the scent now, like a faint fog that hovered in the air.
You were close. And so were the others.
--
"Do you really think he's alive?" The soldier Gaz was posted with was chatty. He hated that.
"Dunno. Price seems to think so," Gaz traced a circle in the dirt with his boot, hoping to avoid further conversation.
"Yeah, but, they fuckin' blew that tank sky-high, right? No shot he lived."
"Maybe he wasn't in it."
The soldier seemed surprised by the suggestion, "Yeah? That could be. Probably put some low level guy in there, made him get blasted."
Gaz simply grunted in response, praying that the man took the hint. He didn't want to be part of the interrogation, in fact, he thought the whole thing was a farce. As if Graves would be foolish enough to tell you he was alive, let alone where he was.
So, Price stuck him outside on "guard duty" with some chatty nobody until they were through.
"I'm gonna do a walk-around, make sure nobody is up to anything," The soldier had clearly taken the hint, uncomfortable with the silence that was left hanging between them.
"Knock yourself out," Gaz leaned back against the cool metal of the wall and watched as the man disappeared into the darkness.
The night was quiet and Gaz could hear the faint sounds of the highway in the distance, muddled with crickets chirping in the field just outside the gate.
The minutes ticked by and Gaz began to wonder if the other soldier had abandoned him. He wouldn't complain if he had, but Price demanded two on the door at all times.
"Oi, you done fucking around out there?" Gaz called into the darkness.
No response.
"Jesus, mate-" He cupped his hand around his mouth and yelled once more, "If I have to come find you, I'm tellin' Price and he'll kick your ass."
Silence.
"Fuckin' hell," Gaz muttered as he flipped the flashlight to life on his rifle and aimed it into the distance.
He wandered between the shipping containers in the warehouse yard, flashlight beam bobbing from shadow to shadow.
"You out here takin' a piss or are you-" Gaz stopped mid-sentence as his beam fell on something dark pooled on the concrete. From it, drag marks had been formed in the liquid, leading off into the darkness. Gaz knelt beside the puddle and examined it closely; he realized with a sudden jolt that it was blood. A lot of it.
"What the fuck-" He lifted the beam of his flashlight, following the drag marks until the dark overwhelmed it.
A thud in the distance, just beyond the reach of the light made him jump; he lifted his rifle to his shoulder and tried to calm his racing heart.
"Somebody out there? Come out with your hands up." Something to his left rustled and Gaz spun on his heel in search of the source.
Gaz had never met Graves in person. He only knew him from photographs and from a brief glimpse of him during their raid of the Fuerzas Especiales base.
But, the man standing before him was undoubtedly Phillip fucking Graves.
Something was off about his uniform, it seemed to shine in the light. It took Gaz a moment to realize that the fabric was covered in blood.
"Gaz, right?" Graves grinned as he drawled on, "Never had the pleasure of meeting you, but I'm sure you know who I am."
"Price is gonna have your fuckin' head."
"We'll see about that. Now look, I think you know what happened to your buddy," Graves nodded to the pool of blood, "But it doesn't have to happen to you. You answer my questions, you walk away. Pretty simple."
Gaz swallowed, hard, and flexed his fingers on the grip of his rifle, "No shot."
Graves sighed and ran his tongue over his teeth, "I know you're smarter than this, Garrick. Tell me where they're at and we go our separate ways."
"I promise you, I'm a man of my word."
--
"Gaz, we're calling it a night. Everything clear out there?" Price released the button on his radio and waited for a response.
Silence.
"Fuck's sake, Gaz," Price shook his head and made his way toward the entry. Gaz was good at what he did, but he never turned his fucking radio on.
Price flung the heavy metal door open and found the entry unguarded. Gaz's rifle was leaned neatly against the wall, and there was no sign of Krieger anywhere.
Graves watched Price from the shadows, listening as his heartbeat grew more rapid with every passing second, no doubt worrying about Gaz's safety. He didn't have to worry- Graves was, indeed, a man of his word. The kid had left without a scratch on him, but he'd made him leave his radio behind; he knew Gaz would try to warn Price. He'd probably gone to circle back and do it anyway, but Graves didn't care.
It would be more fun if they knew he was coming.
Graves waited until Price turned his back and made his move, lunging out of the darkness and shoving him to the concrete. Price grunted as the air was forced from his lungs, thrashing beneath the other man's weight.
"Hello again, Captain," Graves shoved his knee into Price's back and used his weight to keep him pinned, "Long time no see."
"Graves-" Price growled as he tried to free himself from his grip, "What the fuck did you do to Gaz?"
"Nothing," Graves said simply, "The other one, though," he whistled for emphasis, "Let's just say he retired early, hm?"
"I'll fucking kill you-"
Graves used his free hand to shove Price's face into the concrete, silencing him.
"No, no, I think you misunderstand the situation here, hoss," Graves leaned down until his face was just inches from Price's, "See, your little lapdogs thought they killed me down in Mexico. Hell, I thought they did too. But somethin' out there had a different idea, and now-" he flashed his pointed teeth and Price's eyes widened, "I'm gonna make you and your little 141 regret it."
Graves adjusted his weight so he could wrestle one of Price's arms out from under him, easily overpowering every attempt he made to pull it away.
"I'd love to take my time with you, but I don't want the boys inside to get worried and come lookin'- that'd ruin all my plans," Graves angled Price's arm until he felt resistance, the bones trying to prevent him from moving them beyond their limit, "Doesn't mean I can't have a little fun first."
A sickening crack radiated under Graves' grip and Price cried out through gritted teeth as his radial bone gave way, followed by another crunch when the ulna followed suit.
"Hope that wasn't your shootin' arm," Graves joked as Price panted in pain beneath him, "Not that that matters much."
Graves reached for his other arm, wrenching it back despite the other man's efforts against him. This time he twisted, savoring the way Price cried out in earnest when his bone spiraled into pieces, skin already beginning to discolor as blood gathered beneath the surface.
Graves dropped the now limp limb, feeling Price's heartbeat, erratic and racing, thrum in his ears. Oh, how he wanted to break every bone in his body, to make his death as slow as he could. But he didn't have time for that.
Instead, he reached down, taking Price's head in his hands and lifting his face from the pavement, "Take a real good look at the stars, Captain," Graves grinned as he felt the race of blood just under the skin, "At least die lookin' at something pretty."
Price opened his mouth to retort, but Graves wrenched, hard, twisting his head until he felt a pop reverberate through his fingers. Price's body went limp, and Graves stood up, pausing to dust himself off before making his way to the door.
--
Your back ached from the hard metal chair, and the dim lighting was threatening to give you a headache before long. You'd told Price over and over again that you knew nothing, and yet he still persisted.
He'd left you in the room with Soap, who was watching you from the shadows, a look of pure hate painted across his face.
"You can keep lyin' all ya want, but eventually we're gonna get what we want," his Scottish accent grated on your ears after hours trapped in that fucking room.
"I don't know how else to tell you this, you thick-skulled moron-" you shifted in your chair so he could better see your face, "I don't know fucking anything. You telling me that Phillip is alive is just as much of a shock to me as it is to you!"
"Bullshit."
"If he is alive, I can tell you this much-" you were mad now, some kind of volatile mix of anger and grief that had you feeling bolder than you ever had before, "he's going to tear the place apart looking for me."
Soap didn't respond, which only irritated you further.
"And from where I'm sitting, you look like a prime fucking target right now!"
That made him laugh, which sent a jolt of rage through your chest, "Even if your little boyfriend is still alive, he's not making it ten steps into this country-"
His cellphone began to vibrate, interrupting his tirade; when he pulled it from his pocket, you could see Gaz's name on the screen.
"Gaz- what? Slow down, man. What are you talking about?" Soap's brows were furrowed, and you could hear the other man shouting frantically, "I can't- did you call Price? What do you mean he didn't answer?"
Your heart hammered as you strained to hear what Gaz was saying on the other end, you caught bits and pieces- "killed Krieger" and "I ran"; before Soap hung up, you heard "You have to get everyone out."
Soap hammered the call button on his radio, "Ghost, you got ears on?"
There was a pause before his radio crackled to life, and Ghost's gruff voice responded in the affirmative.
"Listen, Gaz just called me- I dunno if he's off his rocker or what, babbling on about Krieger being dead and-" he paused and looked down at you before continuing, "Just...could you go outside and see what the fuck is going on?"
"Roger."
--
Ghost made his way silently through the hallways toward the front entry. This whole affair annoyed him- if Graves was alive, how far could he possibly have gotten? He wasn't an idiot, he'd have kept his status from you for as long as he could for his safety and yours.
But Price's ego was bruised and you were an easy grab- it didn't matter if everyone agreed or not.
Where the hell was Price, anyway?
Ghost flung the heavy metal door open and blinked as his eyes adjusted to the sudden darkness- the small light that had hung just above the frame seemed to have been broken.
Ghost cursed and thumbed the flashlight on his rifle to life, sweeping it over the concrete.
"Price-" he spotted the man, lying limp on the pavement just a few feet away. There was something wrong with the way he was positioned, something unnerving about his neck, "Captain?"
Ghost crouched low to the ground and approached, "Captain?" Once he was closer he realized what was wrong- Price's neck was twisted beyond its limit. His eyes were wide and bulging, bloodshot and full of ruptured vessels.
"Fuckin' hell," Ghost stood straight and hit the call button on his radio, "Soap, we have a problem. Lock the door to that cell and meet me out here."
"Roger."
--
"Ghost?" Soap turned the key in the lock on the cell door as he peered down the hallway, "Ya there, LT?"
Silence was his only answer.
Soap made his way toward the exit; his heart was hammering- what had made Gaz go into hysterics like that? Where was Price?
His thoughts were interrupted by a loud thrum as the power went out in the warehouse, sealing him in total darkness.
"Fuck!" Soap jumped in surprise and fumbled in the darkness with his rifle until the flashlight came to life.
The bright white beam bobbed as he continued his trek in darkness toward the door, "Comin' LT! The fuckin' power went out," he called, hoping Ghost could hear him through the metal.
The door rattled, hard, and Soap stopped in his tracks, "Soap, open the fuckin' door," Ghost's voice echoed over the radio.
"Locked yourself out, eh, LT?" Soap chuckled.
"Fuck off."
Soap approached the door and swept his flashlight over it, confusion taking root in his mind as he took in the chains that were wrapped around the bar.
"LT, something...something is going on with the door-"
Graves watched from the rafters, feeling Soap's pulse grow more rapid by the second, savoring the thrum of it in his ears. He had wanted to save the Scot for last, but fate had other plans.
Soap examined the chains, running his gloved hand along the metal, "LT...there's chains on the door."
"What?"
"There's chains, keeping the door shut."
"What the fuck are you on about, Johnny?" Ghost sounded annoyed; the door rattled as he put his full weight into it once more.
Graves was tired of the pathetic display below him- while Soap fumbled in the darkness, he was able to see everything in perfect totality. Every finite detail, every color. Another benefit of his new condition.
Graves dropped from the rafters, silent as a predatory cat, moving as if he was one with the shadows until he was behind Soap, close enough to hear his every breath.
"Hey Soap, long time no see."
Soap was quick, Graves had to give him that much. He swung his rifle, nearly connecting with Graves' head, and managed to strangle out "GHOST, GRAVES IS-" over his radio before it was ripped from his vest.
"Soap? Johnny??" Ghost's voice faded away on the abandoned radio as Graves dragged the Scot down the hall.
--
"Wakey wakey, Soap," Graves brought his hand down, hard, across Soap's face, the sound ringing through the empty room.
The Scot's eyes fluttered as he regained consciousness, eyes flitting around the room frantically. He was seated, his wrists bound to the arms of the chair he was in. His ankles were bound as well, held tightly in place with some kind of cord.
The room was dark, save for one single bulb that hung above his head, casting harsh shadows on his figure.
"What the fuck-" Soap hissed as his eyes struggled to adjust to the pitch blackness, limbs straining against his bindings.
"You wanna know something, Soap?" Graves paced around the chair, his Southern drawl echoed off the walls of the room, "I wanted to like you. Hell, I did like you. But you just couldn't let it go."
"You took Alejandro's base!" Soap spat, "You wanted us to just 'let that go'?"
"I'd be willing to let bygones be bygones, too. Bury the hatchet. When I crawled outta that tank, I was just happy to be alive."
Graves reached for the crowbar that hung from the back of his tac vest, wrapping his fingers around the cool metal and snagging it from the loop that held it.
"But then I come home to find that you and your little gang of assholes had the gall to use someone I love to try and hunt me down," he brandished the crowbar, its silver finish glinting in the harsh light, "And I can't forgive that."
The crowbar came down swiftly, connecting with Soap's knee, its clawed head dragging the flesh and connective tissue with it. Blood splattered to the floor and Soap let out a pained cry through gritted teeth.
Graves raked his eyes over the soldier's panting form, calculating where he should strike next. This time the blow came to his chest with the blunt side, taking the air from Soap's lungs with a dull crack.
The Scot coughed, a faint wheeze at the crest of his next breath. Graves grinned wolfishly, waiting for him to recover, the crowbar tapping absentmindedly against his flattened palm.
"Ghost...." Soap wheezed, his head lolling slightly, "Is going to fuckin' kill you."
"Better give him a good reason, then."
Graves brought the sharp teeth of the crowbar down, with his full strength, onto Soap's right fingers. The metal cut through in one motion- muscle, tendons, and bones giving way easily under the blow. The force was such that the teeth lodged themselves into the wood of the chair as blood oozed from the two severed fingers in thick rivulets.
Soap let out a genuine cry of pain, his muscles flexing on instinct, struggling against his bindings. Graves gave him no time to recover, swinging the weapon upward and striking him in the jaw with a wet whacking sound that reverberated through the metal.
Blood gushed from his cracked jaw, spilling down his fatigues and pattering to the floor. He let out a pained groan as more blood rolled over his lips and down his chin.
Another blow landed on the side of his head and for a moment, he danced on the edge of unconsciousness, his skull throbbing in time with his pulse.
"Ghost-" blood clung to his lips as he spoke, weak pleas falling on deaf ears, "Simon, please-"
Graves laughed outright at that, "He's not coming to save you. By the time he gets in this building, you'll be long gone."
"Fuck....you," Soap wheezed. His face was covered in blood now, caked in his stubble and soaked into his uniform.
His other hand took the abuse this time. The crowbar's sharp clawed end ripped through two of his fingers, sending a spray of crimson to the floor. Graves waited until blood had pooled on the metal, then raised the weapon to his mouth and ran his tongue along it, pointed fangs glinting in the harsh light.
Soap could barely muster a cry of pain this time, instead making a pathetic moaning sound as the fresh blood joined the rest on the floor at his feet.
"Aw, come on now, buck up, sport-" Graves positioned the crowbar under Soap's chin and tilted his face upward, "Don't be blacking out on me just yet. I'm not done havin' fun!"
He tossed the crowbar to the side and Soap's head dropped to his chest once more, his breaths coming in shallow waves. Graves unsheathed his combat knife and fidgeted with the blade, contemplating.
"You wanna know something, Soap?" Graves paced around the chair slowly, mapping out his next target, "I really respected you. It's a shame it had to go down like this."
Soap groaned in response, a wet, gurgling sound that fell flat in the empty room. Graves rolled his eyes and slid the knife under the shoulder straps of the Scot's tactical vest, slicing the fabric and letting the heavy kevlar fall away from his chest.
"Let's wake you up, shall we?" Graves laced his fingers in Soap's hair and yanked, hard, bringing his face upward. He gripped the blade tightly and brought it to the Scot's cheek, dragging it down the flesh and leaving an angry cut in its wake.
Soap gritted his teeth, choking back a cry of pain as blood flooded down his jaw and neck.
Graves tutted, unsatisfied, and instead brought the blade to Soap's stomach, "Guess we'll go big then."
The knife pierced through the Scot's skin just above his navel; blood gushed around the blade as Soap thrashed, a new, more urgent sound escaping his lips.
"That's more like it!" Graves grinned, delighted. He pulled the knife upward, shredding the flesh and muscle until he hit the resistance of bone in the ribcage.
"Simon!" Soap cried hoarsely, his mind struggling to comprehend the new pain, "Ghost, please- it hurts."
Graves watched as the blood flooded to the floor, enough to make Soap grow pale, his eyes going in and out of focus.
"Sorry, hoss," Graves cocked his head and took a step back to avoid his boots getting tinged with blood, "I know your ol' pal Ghost has got to be close to getting in. Couldn't have him interrupting."
Soap slumped forward, his form going limp; a few disjointed words still fell from his lips as he faded from consciousness, "Simon", "please" "Help me".
Graves grabbed Soap's dog tags, clutching them firmly in his fist before ripping them from the Scot's neck, "No hard feelings, Johnny boy." He watched, amused, as the Scot convulsed and then went limp.
From down the hall, Graves detected another heartbeat, racing, filled with rage.
Ghost.
--
Graves prowled along the rafters, watching Ghost move through the warehouse. It would be hard to break him- he'd read the files. The man had a psych profile a fucking mile long.
"Lookin' for your buddy?" Graves called down from the ceiling, watching as Ghost pointed his rifle skyward, eyes under his mask narrowed as he stared into the darkness, "Got some bad news about that."
Ghost swung his rifle wildly, aiming into the rafters; Graves could hear his heart hammering, a sweet melody of anticipation that made him grin in the darkness. He took one last look at the bloodied dog tags clutched in his fist before tossing them to the ground.
Ghost spun on his heel at the sound of metal connecting with concrete, eyes widening as they fell on Johnny's dog tags, dented and covered in blood.
"Y'know it's a damn shame, Ghost," Graves drawled from somewhere above him, "Soap died all alone, screamin' your name. Should'a heard him when I cut his gut open-" he paused to chuckle at the memory, "he was beggin' like a dog."
"Come down and fight me, Graves!" Ghost snarled, his rage fighting the overwhelming grief of losing Johnny.
"Careful what you wish for."
Before Ghost could turn to the source of the voice, pain erupted in his lower back. There was a momentary heat as he felt fingers push through the fabric of his gear, then into his flesh. He tried to pull away, but Graves had a hold of something inside him. Instead, he turned as well as he could, swinging the rifle to take aim at the other man's chest.
Graves grinned and clenched his fist until he felt a crunch. Hot, coppery blood ran down his arm and mixed with a viscous fluid that poured from Ghost's now shattered spine.
When he released his grip, the masked man crumpled to the floor, his legs now immobile beneath him. Graves took advantage of the momentary shock to grab the rifle from Ghost's hands and toss it across the room.
Ghost was panting under his mask, trying to process the lack of feeling in his legs.
"You know, I always wondered what you look like under this-" Graves took a fistful of the fabric just above the skull and pulled, prying the mask from Ghost's face and letting it fall carelessly to the floor.
"Now, I don't know what the hell Soap saw in you," Graves paced around the downed soldier, watching his eyes follow him; there was no fear there, just anticipation, "Gotta say, I respect the dedication to the badass bit you've got going here."
Ghost said nothing in return. He could feel the blood pooling beneath him, soaking through the hooded sweatshirt he wore under his flak jacket. He'd been through worse- Graves would have to do better than this.
"Johnny boy, though, he dropped the act pretty quick," Ghost's mouth twitched at those words, "Wish you could have heard the way he begged for you to help him right up until the end."
Graves retrieved his crowbar once more, and Ghost's eyes flicked to the dried blood caked on the hooked claw.
"Just know you won't be very far behind him," Graves lined up his crowbar and brought it down with the entirety of his strength, onto Ghost's right arm, just under the elbow. The bones gave way easily, shattering under the weight of the metal.
Ghost didn't make a sound, and his face barely changed; he merely stared up at Graves, his jaw set.
"Like I said, pretty impressive-" Graves tapped the blunt instrument against his palm. Ghost was lying flat on his back now, unable to support himself with his arms any longer, "Just wish I had a little more time."
Ghost's left arm was next. The crowbar came down, teeth first, the force of it cleaving straight through the flesh and bone and striking off the concrete beneath it.
This time, Ghost made a sound, a guttural groan from somewhere deep in his chest. He was growing more pale by the minute as blood began to spread in a halo around his form on the floor.
Graves was growing bored of the interaction.
"Don't worry, Ghost" Graves moved behind him, shoving him upright and bringing the crowbar to his neck, "Soap won't be alone for long."
The crowbar went tight against Ghost's throat, cutting off his air. He tried to move, tried to thrash away from the pressure, but Graves was stronger.
"Look at that! There is some life left in you," Graves sneered as he pulled the metal even tighter, eliciting a choked gasp from Ghost, whose head thrashed weakly, trying in vain to relieve the pressure.
Graves pulled with more force, grunting against the soldier's struggles, until he felt the man go grow weaker before becoming still entirely.
Graves rose to his feet and let Ghost fall to the floor in a heap, watching with amusement as the light went out in his eyes. He paused to dust himself off and replace his crowbar on the back of his vest before exiting the room and making his way toward you.
--
You strained your wrists against the bindings, struggling helplessly to free yourself in the pitch blackness. The power had gone out what seemed like hours ago, and Soap still hadn't returned.
Was this some new trick? A vain effort to make you talk by playing on fear?
Your thoughts were interrupted by the distinct sound of the door on the far side of the room opening- no light flooded in from outside, which meant the power outage stretched at least into the hallway.
"That you, Soap?" you tried to sound casual, but the darkness and your immobility were starting to wear on you, "Neat trick with the lights."
No response.
"Ever figure out what Gaz was so worked up about?"
You could feel someone getting closer to you- not hear, feel, like the air shifted around whoever it was. The hairs on the back of your neck were on end, your heart banging out a rhythm in against your rib cage.
"Hello?" Your voice sounded very small, dwarfed by whatever presence was hovering near you in the darkness.
"Hey baby," a distinctive southern drawl purred near your ear and you felt as if your heart was going to leap out of your throat. There was a coppery smell to his breath that you couldn't quite place.
"Phillip?" You choked back a sob as he cut the bindings on your wrists and ankles.
"It's me," you felt his hand cup your chin and his forehead touched to yours.
"How-" your voice cracked and you felt tears spill down your cheeks as you struggled to find the words.
"Shhh, it's alright. I'm here," Graves pulled you in close and you buried your face in the crook of his neck. His shirt felt wet, and the metallic scent persisted on him, almost overwhelming, "I'm gonna walk you outta here, okay? But you gotta promise me something-"
"What?"
"Keep your eyes closed."
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queermentaldisaster · 10 months ago
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I feel like in the shifter!au the shifters would have traits that carried over in a way that would just seem like an odd quirk to civilians and non shifters. Like Gaz stomping his leg because he did that with his hooves, or (picture this please) Ghost doing that biiiig exaggerated yawn then mlem that cats do, but since he doesn't have fangs he just looks ridiculous.
Also, if you have König still undecided, may I suggest a draft horse?
Also Shepard is 100% a vulture lmao
Okay...first off. You are absolutely right about the shifters having traits that carry over. However, these traits don't really show up if you consistently suppress your shifts. So at first, Ghost doesn't really show traits of being a shifter. He's so used to suppressing his shifts that shifting barely even crosses his mind anymore, let alone his more primal instincts. So he looks and acts completely human, but he's not.
Second. THE BIG YAWN AND MLEM THING!? Ghost 100% does that a lot when he starts shifting more and more again.
Third. I may actually not do König. I have some ideas for if I do, but as he's not part of 141 or the main campaign, he won't show up unless I decide to do a side fic.
Fourth. I was originally gonna have Shepherd be a bear shifter, but I saw vulture and realized how much it fits. So...thank you.
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anruraiocht · 3 months ago
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TOA Anniversary Munday
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from neffi (thank you neffi!!)
Celebrating TOA and the people who contribute to make our group what it is.
Repost, don't reblog. Only fill in what you feel comfortable sharing!
Happy anniversary, TOA! Here's to many more years spent together.
Name: limit
Pronouns: they/them
Birthday (no year): 3/8 (thats march 8th for my non-americans)
Where are you from? What is your time zone? US | EST
How long is your roleplay experience? 10+ years
How were you introduced to roleplaying as a whole? i was doing warrior cats roleplay on scratch dot mit dot edu at age 10 brother
How were you introduced to TOA? n was talking about it on call and me and the oomfs decided to play a little prank on him when he went to the bathroom. it was really funny to be fair
Do you have any pets? three dogs (australian shepherd, shiba, chihuahua mix) and a cat (stupid)
What is your favorite time of year and why? (Season, holiday, general period) fall; i have pollen allergies that give me really bad headaches and live in a pollen bowl you can imagine my suffering.
Some interests and things you like/enjoy? i like to play and draw
What non-Fire Emblem games do you play? i'm a visual novel (otome, yuri, general non-romantic) and rhythm game type of guy. jrpgs and action rpgs when i'm in the mood
Favorite Pokemon type & Pokemon: the only pokemon type that matters to me is Dog
Tell us some funfacts and trivia about yourself! i used my wisdom teeth fun fact last yeah so uhhhhh did you know i can clap one handed but only with my right hand
How did you get into Fire Emblem? i think i saw awakening in gamestop and was like yeag i'll play that. my brother and i had just finished playing virtue's last reward together so we named our robins sigma and phi
What Fire Emblem games have you played? i've at least touched every game except for 1-3 (ymmv how much that means for each game)
First & Favorite Fire Emblem games: Awakening first, FE6 or Engage for fave
List your 5 favorite Fire Emblem characters across the series! honestly just look at my muse list for this one i only write my faves
Who was the first character ever to make you go “ooh I like this one in particular” and why? Can be any context and reason! lyn was the first fe character to really get me excited about fe i was writing essays about her in n's dms while in the middle of classes haha
Any Fire Emblem crushes? 😳 i am in love with nel like /srs /gen i opened engage on my birthday so i could hear her say happy birthday to me
If you’ve played (or are familiar with) the following games, who was your first S support? Who would you S support nowadays?
Awakening: Chrom (on purpose); married Olivia in my male run. i would still choose chrom Fates: kaden and keaton for birthright and conquest respectively. i stopped playing once i had my furry daughters. LMAO. Three Houses: never got that far. dorothea and mercedes probably. Engage: i have commitment issues and this is why i dont finish games
Favorite Fire Emblem class? Dark Mage(s)
If you were a Fire Emblem character, what would be your class and stats? Would you be playable? sticking with what i said last year; a mage that just completely sucks ass. repping my special girls by also being a character that makes people say "why would you use them"
If you were a Three Houses character, what would be your affiliation? i apparently said golden deer last year. yeah sure
If you were an Officers Academy student, what would be your boons, banes and potential budding talent? Reason boon, Heavy Armor and Faith Banes, bow budding talent
If you were an Engage character, which nation would you originate from? i was gonna say elusia but then i remembered solm is partially brazil inspired and i felt my father breathing down my neck to not betray his country
How do you pronounce TOA? TOE-uh
Current TOA muses: Miranda, Marni, Reginn
Past TOA muses? Volug, Lyn, Sophia
Who was your first TOA muse? If you no longer have them, can you see yourself picking them up again? Volug; he's comfortably retired.
Do you believe you have a type of character you gravitate towards writing? the three limit muse genders are as follows:
-depersonalization and/or self-isolation (we're not the same and never will be) -my siblings are all i have (but i dont know if love is enough to save us) -oh god where does the anger go after everything is over ..............the bonus limit muse gender is "man who is funny" ftr
Do you have characters or types of characters you don’t think you can handle writing, but wish you could? i think i could do anything if i tried hard enough (hubris speaking) but i would have to become obsessed with them first which is the hard part because i feel like i'm pretty picky
What kind of scenes, situations etc do you believe you enjoy writing the most? i've really gotten back into my complicated sibling relationship era lately. i like non-traditional family relationships in general and having to work to keep that connection alive. i like relationships between women (not necessarily romantic but also yeah i'm a lesbian so romantic too) and the nuances that come with that. Honestly i like talking about gender in general HAHA
Do you have any scenario in mind for your muse(s) that gets you thinking “man I hope I get to write this one day”? just happy to be here tbh :)
Favorite TOA-related memories? my friemds :)
Present or past tense? present tense but honestly i think im really bad at tenses. LMFAO.
Normal size text, small text, no preference? normal size is my default. i'll match whatever my partner prefers
Got any potential muse delusions to share? 😉 wouldnt you like to know weatherboy
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sojirosteacup · 10 months ago
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Hanadan character name meanings
As it is common with anime/manga characters, the characters in Hana Yori Dango have names that relate to their storyline. In this post, I'll attempt to translate the names of the main characters from Japanese.
Warning, long post under the cut:
Before we begin
All their names are pretty much the same in mandarin, with the exception of Tsukushi/Shancai, so these translations partially fit Meteor Garden too. (but I don't know mandarin, so I can't give you more than this, sorry)
Due to the way korean names work (and the unfortunate implications of giving korean characters japanese sounding names), they were completely renamed in the K-drama. I'm gonna make a separate post for their korean names later.
They were also renamed in the thai drama but I know nothing about thai, so I won't even try to translate those, sorry (I make one speculation in this post and that's it, lol).
Japanese names, when written in japanese characters, have the family name coming first and personal name second. That's the order I'm gonna use here.
I make a few stretches here and there because I'm not a native japanese speaker nor a specialist in japanese name meanings. This was translated with the help of two japanese dictionary apps/sites and my obsession with this fucking manga.
Now that you read all of this, let's begin with our protagonist:
Makino Tsukushi (牧野つくし)
Her name is the most obvious one because the story revolves around it, but lets take a look at it anyway
牧野 (Makino) Let's look at the kanji for it separately:
牧 (Boku, Maki) - breed, care for, shepherd, feed, pasture
野 (ya, no) - plains, field, rustic, civilian life
牧野 (Makino), can also be read as Bokuya, which means "pasture land" or "ranch".
Her name つくし (Tsukushi) doesn't use Kanji, but it's mentioned many times in that story that is a type of weed plant.
If I were to put everything together and attempt to translate it, it turns into something like… Pasture land weed.
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Poor girl.
Doumyouji Tsukasa (道明寺司)
道明寺 (Doumyouji) - If you look at these characters apart, they don't mean anything in particular
道 (Dou) means road, path, street, teachings (like in the martial art judo, or the art of tea ceremony, chadou)
明 (myou) means wisdom, mantra, light, bright [insert obvious joke about F4 thailand here].
寺 (Ji) is a counter for temple, which is why Yuuki's ex, in the double date in the manga, makes fun of him asking if his family lived in a temple. 寺 is also a radical in the kanji 時 (toki) (hour) and the word 時間 (jikan) (time), which I guess is where they took Thyme`s nickname from.
But 道明寺 (Doumyouji) as a whole is the name of a japanese street candy. Kamio once said on her twitter that the F4 was based off a dango and all of them were supposed to be named after candy, but she ended up scrapping the idea because she didn`t have time to think of candy names for all of them. Doumyouji was the only one that kept the original naming concept.
Now let's go to the rest of his name:
司 (Tsukasa, Shi) - director, official, rule. (Fun fact: there is a verb, tsukasadoru, that means "to be in charge, to manage, to rule, to govern, to control")
This one is obvious, Tsukasa is the leader of the F4.
If I were to put both names together and translate his full name it would mean something like… Candy ruler. He is the leader of the dango that is the F4. 🍡
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He doesn`t sound that threatening when we put it like this lol
Hanazawa Rui (花沢類)
花沢 (Hanazawa) - Let`s look at the words separately:
花 (hana) means flower
沢 (sawa) means valley, swamp, marsh, brilliance, grace
Hanazawa would mean something like "flower valley" (I don't know if it could translate as "flower grace")
類 (Rui) means sort, kind, variety, similar
If I were to translate his full name, it would be something like: "A kind of flower valley" or, if I really stretch it, "Like a flower valley"
And notice this funny thing: Tsukasa and Rui's names are a walking spoiler! Hana Yori Dango, the name of the manga itself, is oficially translated as "Boys over flowers", but another translation of it could be "Candy (Dango) over flowers". If Doumyouji is the candy leader and Hanazawa is a flower valley… Damn, I wonder who the main character is going to choose. /s
Now to my favorite boy Nishikado Soujirou (西門総二郎):
(西門) Nishikado:
西 (nishi) means west
門 (kado, mon) means gate and, as I recently found out, "branch of learning based on the teachings of a single master". Obviously, his name comes from the second meaning.
So, Nishikado would mean "Branch of learning (tea ceremony) from the west" or "Lineage of (tea ceremony) masters from the west".
With "Soujirou", let's start with Jirou first:
二 (ni, Ji) - Two. That's literally the kanji for the number 2. No mystery here.
郎 (rou) - Counter for sons.
So if it's not obvious yet, 二郎 (Jirou) is used in names to mean that the person is the second son. You see it in anime character names all the time, look for it, you'll find it.
総 (Sou) - whole, all, overall, entire
The "Sou" part is maybe not supposed to mean anything in particular, but if you are still reading this long ass post you want to see me try to find a meaning for it. So if i stretch it, maybe it could be "full second son" (which doesn't make much sense) or, if I really stretch it, it could maybe mean "Second of all sons"
So his name would be: "Second son overall from the west lineage of (tea ceremony) masters"
Boy that's not a name, that's a whole ass title. 😭
And, yes, his older brother is called Souichirou, and by this logic his younger brother is probably called Sousaburou, or something like that.
Last but not least: Mimasaka Akira (美作あきら)
美 (mi, bi) means beauty, beautiful
作 (saka, sa, tsuku) means prepare, to make, build (it's the same kanji used in the verb Tsukuru - to make, to produce)
Mimasaka would mean something like "Make beauty" or "beautifully made"
Akira (あきら), on the other hand… it doesn't use a Kanji. It's the same case as Tsukushi, except with her we know the meaning because the character herself says it. But Akira doesn't, so i have no idea what it could mean since we don't have the kanji for it.
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(sorry Akira)
But translating what it can, it would mean "Akira makes beauty" or even "The beautifully made Akira" (which at least sounds cool asf, come on)
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reds-skull · 11 months ago
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Not Alive, Nor Dead
[PREV PART] [AO3]
I'm going back to my parent's house for the holidays, so I'm probably gonna post less in the next couple of days...
Soap’s eyes dart between the 3 revenants in the room, wide and fearful.
Ghost watches how he turns it into rage.
“I’m not a ‘revenant killer’, whatever the fuck they call it.” Soap snarls, glaring at the screen as if he’s looking at Laswell, “I wasn’t killed by a revenant.”
Laswell exhales, Ghost can imagine the smoke streaming from her mouth, “a revenant killer is a revenant that is made to combat other revenants. You were created to defeat whoever killed your squad - to kill Konchar.”
Johnny’s revenge… the reason they’re both stronger than they truly had to be. And yet, they’re different, Ghost muses.
Soap wanted retribution for his dead mates. Ghost? He wanted payback for his own.
Johnny clutches at his hair, hands burning bright, fire crackling dangerously. Ghost takes hold of his left hand, gently pulling it away from his warhawk.
“Johnny.” Soap glares at him.
“So much fuckin’ evil comes out because I lived that day, Simon. Sometimes I’m real feckin’ sick of it.”
Soap tries to fight his hold, but Ghost pulls him closer, towering over him, “then do something about it. The past is unchangeable, you’re already alive. What are you gonna do about it.”
Ghost squints, his voice lowers, “you wanted revenge? Let’s fucking get it, Sergeant.”
Flames dance in blue skies, anger and rage that knows no bounds, uncontrollable forest fire decimating everything in its path.
Johnny nods, determination fueling his flames.
Laswell was the last break they needed before they could truly form a rescue operation. She informs them of Graves’ power limits, his priorities, the reason he captured a platoon’s worth of revenants.
He aims for Soap. One giant bait the American knows Johnny would never ignore. If they could get their hands on the original revenant killer, they hope to be able to replicate his “success”. Create a pipeline of vengeful not-dead.
Gaz will cover the skies, radio in locations of shadows, suspicious movements, and if he can, the locations of their teammates.
Ghost, Soap and Rudy will take to the underground, tunneling under the prison and freeing Alejandro. From then on, it’s a race against time, Gaz and Alejandro using their abilities to find everyone, and Rudy and Soap clearing the Shadows from their paths.
Once everyone is outside his range, Ghost will use Limbo to annihilate any remaining Shadows. Before that, Ghost’s main objective is keeping Johnny safe. Limbo’s new docile state brings with it the long-lost control he had on the realm, the ability to create only a small circle of void around him, one that Ghost thought he’ll never have again. That means, if any Shadows try to grab at Johnny, Ghost will simply let his victims rip them apart.
They don’t have the element of surprise in that Graves is waiting for them, but what the Shadow Company revenant doesn’t know is how much they understand his limitations, as well as Ghost and Soap’s changed powers.
Laswell has to leave soon after they finish planning, Shepherd breathing down her neck. She promises to do anything that might help them, but their group is operating outside any government jurisdiction as of now.
Meaning, if they were to fail, no one will come to save them.
They have one shot. Ghost prays the Reapers that’s all they’ll need.
Johnny drags him to the back of the safe house right before they’re supposed to gear up, ignoring Ghost’s questioning hum.
He slams him against the wall, fingers digging into his shoulders, nostrils flaring with barely restrained anger.
“Let me get the kill on Graves, LT.” Soap says through clenched teeth, “this entire thing is my fault - I can fix this.”
Ghost tilts his head, mauling it over, “if the opportunity arises-”
“No.” flames grow in his peripheral, and Soap lets his hands fall away, “I need to kill him, I need-”
“Revenge?”
Ghost can see how Soap’s heart stops beating. How he stills. Ghost risks a hand, bringing it up to brush Johnny’s hair, wild and unruly from the previous days’ events. “I understand. But remember your first priority, Sergeant.”
Johnny closes his eyes, pushing lightly against Ghost’s hand, “get the others out alive.”
“The others and yourself, Johnny. Graves has his sights on you.” his hand travels down to Soap’s neck, pulling him closer, “if he catches you…”
Johnny nudges his head under Ghost’s. “I’m not easy to hold, Simon. Was made to destroy.”
Simon wraps his arms around Johnny, taking deep breaths of his smell, burning fireplace and safety.
Now that they practically disobeyed their Reapers, he’s not sure anymore that his Reaper’s prophecy isn’t null and void. If Johnny is still destined to kill him first. Simon’s mind conjures a million images, scenes of Johnny laying dead, body broken beyond repair, eyes vacant staring at the sky, never to meet Simon’s again.
“I’m going to be alright. I just told you I’m too strong for anyone’s good.” Johnny tries to joke under him, sensing his sudden tension.
Simon pulls him closer yet, “you’re still mortal, last I checked.”
A huff of breath tickles his neck, where the mask rucked up in light of Johnny’s wiggling. Simon brushes another hand over dark strands, ungloved hand tingling with the sensation, and he gets the urge to bury his face in it.
Simon is used to living in regret, in ‘what would’ve’s and ‘I should’ve’.
He doesn’t want Johnny to become another memory to fuel his aches.
Simon reaches above Johnny’s head, taking hold of the skull mask. With a deep breath, he slides it off his head.
“What are ye-” Johnny looks up in confusion, before his eyes soften, creases smooth over.
Blue eyes dart over his features, mapping the newfound grounds, tilling paths in their wakes. Simon can almost feel their weight, the burn, as they follow scars to landmarks.
A hand, white flames curling around it, raises slowly to brush over his skin, hot and cold, gentle yet firm. Simon feels tears gather in his eyes, and he lets his lids shut, head bowing to rest in calloused hands.
Johnny’s breath fans over his cheek, making him shudder, “didn’t know you had face markings.”
Simon opens his eyes, brows furrowing a little, “I don’t.”
Mirthful eyes follow a track down his cheek, “ye do… right here.” a thumb brushes from Simon’s lower eyelid, to his jaw. “They’re white, reminds me of yer eyes in Limbo…”
Tear tracks.
“They’re new…” Simon relaxes a little when he understands, “when you entered Limbo, I… my tears must’ve left them.”
“Fuck…” Johnny purrs, “You’re breathtaking, Simon.” he lifts Simon’s head when he tries to back away, “beautiful. Knew yer bonnie under that mask of yers.”
“Fuck off…” he turns away.
Johnny laughs, “I’m serious. Let me look at ye, please?”
Simon glares at him before relenting, Johnny resuming his examination, eyes and hands caressing him.
“Thank ye…” Johnny breathes, “thank ye fer… fer existing. Without ye, or Gaz, or Price… I wouldn’t have so many reasons to live.”
Simon inhales shakily, Johnny whispering now, “I couldn’t imagine wanting something more than repent before I met ye.”
“And now?” 
He hears the small smile in Johnny’s voice, “now I want to be with ye, fer as long as I can. Fer as long as the Reapers will let me.”
Simon covers the hand on his face with his, “we don’t need permission from them. I’ll be here as long as you’ll have me.”
Johnny gives him that crooked grin Simon had come to love so much, “I’m afraid that will be quite a while, m'eudail.”
The dirt in Las Almas doesn’t smell too different from his grave’s, Ghost decides. The mask is the only thing protecting his mouth from its taste, and even that feels too thin.
There’s no place for panic on the field, no space for the soldier inside Ghost to raise his head and shout “I’m scared.”
Soap’s controlled explosions burn that smell, transform it into something more familiar. 
Fuck, he could kiss Johnny’s insane exploding hands right now.
Their comms crackle to life, “Shadows didn’t notice you yet, clear to continue pushing.” Garrick’s voice barely sounds over the explosions.
“WHAT?!” Soap yells up front.
Rudy cups his hands to shout back, “keep going, hermano! We’re in the clear!”
“COPY!”
Ghost waits for Rudy, walking beside him to check the map, “how close are we to cellar level?”
Rudy taps a pen over a point, “this is our target…” the pen moves down, stopping about 2 inches away from the cellar, “and this is where we should be, according to my calculations.”
Another explosion shakes their tunnel, Soap rushing back to burn off oncoming debris from the ceiling, “we need teh move faster than this! Tunnel’s not gonna hold!”
Ghost nods, clicking his comms, “Gaz, we’re going to start running, be prepared.”
“Copy, good luck down there.”
Rudy mutters under his breath in Spanish, “may the Reapers keep us alive.”
Soap looks back, “on the count of three!” his body tenses in preparation.
Two…
One…
“NOW!” Johnny lets go of the ceiling, sprinting ahead and practically melting his way, Ghost and Rudy running right behind him as the tunnel collapses.
The three revenants continue running, Gaz informing them the Shadows have started suspecting something’s afoot, until Rudy rushes ahead to grab Soap’s shoulder and shout in his ear, “stop! Alejandro should be right here!”
His Sergeant instantly lifts his hands above him to hold the ceiling. Ghost notes they’re now surrounded by concrete rather than dry earth.
Rudy adjusts the light attached to his tac vest, trying to calculate where Alejandro is exactly.
Ghost instantly aims at the left wall when something goes through it.
Alejandro appears, Rudy and Soap gaping at him, before the Colonel grabs Rudy into a hug. The Sergeant Major returns it after a second of stunned silence, and Alejandro starts mumbling something in Spanish, before he lifts his head and notices Soap.
“You bunch of pandejos! What is he doing here?!” he points at Johnny.
Soap grunts, “can we get to the accusations later?? I’m still holding the steamin’ ceiling!”
Ghost shoves the two Vaqueros out of the way, and Soap stretches a hand to explode the wall to Alejandro’s cell. They all rush inside with Soap behind them.
“Ghost.” Alejandro nods to Soap, “you are aware Graves is after him, right?”
“Affirm. We got intel from Laswell.”
The Vaquero scoffs, “and you still brought him here?!”
Johnny walks around Ghost to confront Alejandro, “I’m here on my own volition. Unless you wanted Rudy and Ghost to walk through the front gates.” he casts a challenging stare at the man.
Rudy lifts his hands like he’s trying to calm an angry beast, “Soap knows the risks. We needed to save you. Do you know where Graves holds the rest of them?”
Alejandro’s face relaxes when he looks at Rudy, “probably on the top floor of the prison. I didn’t see anyone since we got caught.”
“Shadows are moving on your location, Bravo!” Garrick shouts through the comms, “strongly suggest you start moving, now!”
Ghost searches the cell for an exit, spotting a trap door on the high ceiling, “you’re not hiding a ladder anywhere here, do you Alejandro?”
The Colonel shakes his head as Soap follows Ghost’s gaze, noticing the door.
“I’ll get it, stand back.” Johnny’s eyes are locked on the ceiling as he positions himself under the door.
Ghost’s brow furrow, “what are you planning, Sergeant?”
Soap smirks in a way that brings only trouble, and turns on his comms, “gonna use the rocket technique.”
Ghost has to shove the bloody thing away when Gaz shrieks, “without me?! Oh, I’m gonna get you back for this, MacTavish.”
“Sorry mate, maybe next time.” Johnny snickers.
“Fuckin’ hell…” Ghost grabs the two extremely confused Vaqueros, dragging them back, Rudy muttering “rocket?” and sighs heavily, “get on with it, Sergeant.”
Soap smiles at him before looking back up, “with pleasure, LT.”
His Sergeant drops to a crouch, placing his hands on the ground, and inhales. The cell is too damn small for this “technique”, and Ghost has to cover his face with a forearm when Soap explodes up.
Ghost lets his arm fall when he hears a comically loud THUNK when Soap hits his head on the door, watching the Sergeant scramble to hold the edges. Johnny twists his body in a remarkable feat of agility, and kicks the door open before swinging out.
A moment later, a ladder drops down, Johnny popping his head out of the door, “all clear!” 
When they climb up, Ghost notices blood trickling down Soap’s temple, and he calls, “Johnny, how copy? Solid?”
The Scot lets out a frankly concerning laugh, “aye, think Ah got a wee concussion, bu’ it’ll heal in no time.”
“It fucking better, Sergeant.”
Soap offers a hand and helps Ghost up, “of course, sir.” he has a dopey smile when Ghost lets go of his arm, “have I ever told you how beautiful yer eyes are, LT?”
Ghost grabs the back of his neck and shoves him forward, ignoring the giggling Vaqueros behind him.
He’s going to smack Garrick for putting this idea in Johnny’s mind next time he sees him, fucking hell…
You guys don't know how long I've been waiting to put the rocket technique in a mission
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fizzing-imagines · 1 year ago
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Neighbourly Love | Billy Hargrove x Army! Reader
Notes: This is based on an idea that @billyssillywilly gave me. I had a fun time writing and researching for this, it's one of my favourites so far!! Please note that reader is female, muscular and has long-enoigh hair ro put into a military bun in this. For my readers who know Call Of Duty: I might have added some people for y'all 😚 Enjoy!
Warnings: Mention of war, mention of sex
Word Count: 5.5k
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You regretted not agreeing to a gated community now more than ever. While you were on deployment in Iraq for almost a year, a new neighbour moved in next door. You didn't think about it much at first, all you wanted to do was catch up on months of lost sleep. And you knew a lot of young couples or singles who liked to party lived on your street, but at least they kept it on the down low so you were actually able to get some good rest. After three days in hibernation you wanted to sit in your backyard with your K-9, Missy, and drink a Mojito but you didn't have any produce for obvious reasons. So it was time for a trip to Target. And while walking to your car that's when you saw him, your new neighbour, for the first time. He was fixing something on his tires, shirtless and in a pair of jeans. "Billy?", you yelled over.
You've lived in California all your life, originally in Los Angeles but then you moved to San Diego for your job. Your entire childhood was spend in Los Angeles, always in the same house with the same neighbours: The Hargroves. Their son, Billy, used to be your friend until he started bullying you after his mother left LA. Ever since then, he has been your sworn enemy, and Billy thought the same of you. Not only did you two insult each other at any chance you got, you also tried to one-up each other academically all the time. Then, he suddenly moved away in October 1984. That was seven years ago, and now he was back.
"(Y/N)?" He looked up at you while walking over to his fence. "Shit, what are you doing here?" He looked you up and down and so did you with him. "I live here. What are you doing here? Didn't you move?" Your eyes fell on a big scar on his chest, then you noticed multiple others on the sides of his torso. "Yeah, I was in Indiana.", he answered. To not be rude, you looked back into his eyes. "Some shithole town called Hawkins. Came back to LA three years ago, moved to San Diego six months ago." Was he all by himself? Well, his father has always been a piece of shit so you couldn't blame him if that was the case. Either that, or he miraculously found a wife in 'some shithole town called Hawkins'. "Still as charming as ever.", you scoffed at his lingo. "Yeah, well, what are you gonna do about it?" He laughed in a dismissing manner, checking you out once more. "You still on your military trip?" Coming from a family with war veterans, you've been wanting to join the airforce since you were a child. Even back when you and Billy were still friends you did. "My 'military trip'" you put those words in air quotes "is my career now. I'm an army EOD." Billy was quiet for a bit, clearly thinking about something, before saying "EOD where the explosive-guys, right?" He should remember all this, you talked about nothing else as a kid. "Explosive ordnance disposal, yes.", you said. "Well, I have to go. See you around." You turned around to walk to your car, which made Billy check out your butt before you hopped into your red Ford F250.
Three hours later and with a full trunk of Target bags, you pulled back into your driveway. As you went to unload your groceries (and the homeware you couldn't say no to), loud music came from the house next door. As you expected, it was Billy. Light was coming out of his garage with half his car parked into it. You didn't pay attention for now, but even after you unloaded and unpacked you heard his music blasting from his garage. He didn't change, after all. "Come on, Missy.", you cooed while getting your german shepherd on her leash. It was time for a walk anyways, so you might as well drop by and ask him to turn down the music. As you left your front door and started walking down the street with your dog on your right. "Hargrove!", you yelled while walking up his driveway. "Hey, Hargrove!", you yelled once again while somehow letting your drill sergeant voice come out. He peaked up from underneath his car, and grinned in a mischievous manner when he saw you approaching. "Already missing me, sergeant?", he asked while getting up and walking towards you. You noticed that he now wore a white tanktop that was smeared with motor oil. "Could you turn the music down?", you asked him as nicely as you could. "What was that?", he asked while looking at you like he didn't hear you - you knew he did. "Can you turn the music down?", you repeated. "What?", he repeated, leaning towards to you. "Can you please turn your music down?", you finally said in a frustrated tone. Billy grinned, said "Sure thing, sergeant." He walked over to his radio, turning down Puppet Master by Metallica. "Didn't know you were such a party pooper, sarge. Saw you at so many party's in our high school days." You rolled your eyes at him. "I'm not a sergeant, I'm an officer.", you said. Missy, who was next to you, kept looking at Billy. She could feel how tense you were and would snap at him if you gave her the command. "Sorry for stepping on your toes, officer.", Billy said with a malicious grin. "Is that all?" You nodded and gave Missy a non-verbal command to stand back up. "That's all. See you around." You turned on your heel and went your way for your walk. As you went down the street, you could hear him turning up the music again.
And he did it for weeks. It drove you insane. You couldn't sleep properly anymore, not even nap during the day, Missy was irritated, and not even you inviting your army friends over helped. "Alex, I swear to god, he's driving me fucking insane.", you said while mixing your third mojito of the night. "He keeps blasting his fucking music, and now he's started inviting the neighbours to his house for partying." Your colleague and friend Alex Keller listened to you rant about Billy while silently drinking his beer. "Every time I ask him, he just says Yes Sergeant and does the complete opposite." Alex handed you a new plastic straw, still not saying a single word, which you used to drink your cocktail. "And when I do finally sleep, I see nothing but the bombs and I can't even get a good night's rest." Now he was finally talking. "Should I go talk to him?", Alex asked. Just as he said that, Metallica could be heard from next door. You thought about his offer while sipping on your mojito, and did agree. Maybe actually talking would help. So Alex went over.
Billy always provoked you with intentions. After noticing how much you came over to ask him to turn it down, he blasted his music regularly. Sure, it wasn't why he wished you'd come over but after your decade-long rivalry he couldn't exactly find another way to get your attention. But what he knew is that raging jealousy came over him every time he saw Alex, who he nicknamed Your Buddy, pull up to your house. He suspected that something was going on between you two, so naturally he turned his music even louder when he saw his jeep in your driveway. And now, as he saw your buddy approach his property, he could barely contain his anger. Thanks to Neil, he swallowed it down and got up from the tires he was fixing.
"Hey, uhm, Billy, wasn't it?", Alex said to him. Billy nodded and reached his hand out for a handshake. "That's me.", he answered while the two shook each others hands. "Can I help you?". It took everything inside Billy to pull himself together. "Actually, there's something you can help (Y/N) with.", Alex said as he leaned against his garage. "Listen man, she's having a really hard time sleeping. And we got back from Iraq just a week ago, (Y/N) needs all the sleep she can get to deal with what we went through." Billy didn't know this, and some form of guilt hit him right in the gut. "Shit, well, I didn't know that." He truly didn't, but he wouldn't admit to turning his music up all the way just to mess with you. So he turned around to quiet down his radio. "I was actually in an accident a few years ago, it really messed with my hearing so I don't notice when something might be too loud." Alex gave him an understanding nod. He was very oblivious for an officer, because while the accident part was true he lied about his hearing. The mindflayer didn't affect his hearing in the slightest. "While I got you here, I have a question.", Billy then added. "Sure, what is it?", your colleague asked him. It was scary how easy it was for Billy to win people over. "Are you, like, (Y/N)'s boyfriend or something?" He needed to know. That was an information he needed for his peace of mind. Although he wouldn't know what to do it the answer was yes. "Oh no, man. I'm just her colleague. I just check on her so she gets help with working through with what she saw in Iraq. Felt like I was the best one to do that after I left my leg in Borjomi." Alex lifted part of his left pant leg up so reveal a good look at his titanium prosthetic leg. Billy, honestly, didn't care. Even though that guy was probably a war hero who saved thousands of lives, all he cared about was the fact that you weren't dating him. But he couldn't say that. "Well, thank you for your service.", he said to him. Alex gave him a smile and a nod before reaching out his hand again. They shook hands, this time as a goodbye, and your friend said: "Always a pleasure, have a good one." He walked back over to your house, where he told you about the encounter.
Billy did actually stay quiet for the most part. Sure, he threw a party here and there, but in comparison to the hours of blasting music that was absolutely fine. However, now he kept complaining about your dog. While Missy wasn't a sweet dog, she was calm enough. You trained her twice a day, even off-duty, to keep her senses sharp and play-wrestled with her to get her energy out. Of course she'd bark from time-to-time, especially while training. But she was really calm besides that. "Does she ever shut up?", he said over the fence as you were playing on the ground with her. "More than you, at least.", you replied while still playing with her over who gets the rope. Secretly, Billy thought it was adorable. Especially now, where you were in shorts and a tank top he could clearly see all the muscles you've build up since he was gone - you've changed so much. The way the muscles in your arm flexed when you tugged on the rope made him feel things he didn't know he had in him, and seeing yout thighs flex as you dug your heels into the ground gave him a big mental boner. "Come on Missy, are you a K-9 or a mouse?", you said while laughing, to which she finally tugged the rope out of your hands. "Good girl, Missy!" You gave her a treat before dusting yourself off. "Why did you name her Missy anyways?" You didn't even notice that Billy was still watching you until he asked that question. "I wanted to name her Missile at first.", you said while looking at your K-9 chewing on a pig ear. "But then I thought that calling for Missile in the middle of potential war ground wasn't the best idea. So I named her Missy, as a short version of Missile." Billy made a humming sound as a response, to acknowledge that he listened to you. "Well, anyways, if I turned down my music for you I'd appreciate if you kept your Missile under controll." You rolled your eyes at him and went back to paying attention to Missy while Billy went back to whatever he was doing before. But that normal, calm question made your heart ache. 
You had a crush on Billy in your childhood, until he started bullying you. It was that little child puppylove, but those feelings were real. And if he hadn't changed so much over the years you'd probably be in love with him right now. So that conversations, a normal conversation, stung like a wasp. Missy noticed and went to lick your hand. "You'll always be with me, won't you.", you cooed at her before petting her head.
After two weeks back in San Diego, you went to work at base again. Mostly paperwork about what you did in Iraq, while simulation looking at possible new deployment options. Being away from Billy was also good for you, you didn't have to see him all day or listen to his bullshit. Because ever since that conversation your feelings for him came back in some weird, twisted way. You tried your best to shove them away, even trying to get over them by hooking up with your fellow soldiers.
It was Simon Riley today who followed you home. "Third guy this week, new record.", Billy yelled over while you and Simon stepped out of the cars. "Fuck off, Hargrove!", you yelled back before getting inside with your colleague.
While you and Simon were going at it, the mood was ruined by Billy blasting Metallica once again. He couldn't contain his jealousy, being so angry at your fellow soldier that he somehow wanted to make him go away. There was no way he could physically get into your house, so he did what he does best; annoying you with his music. "Fuckin' hell.", Simon sighted, still inside you. "Told you I had an annoying neighbour.", you said while being out of breath. "Not lettin' this go to waste.", he simply said before continuing.
But he did it so well that Billy could hear you. And the rage inside of him just grew and grew more, it was almost unbearable to him. He let it out by working out, but even that didn't help the way it normally does. And christ, once he saw Simon walking out of your house he could barely contain himself. Knowing that Simon was also a soldier, and twice his size, he went back inside to not do anything irrational.
Weeks passed, but your feelings didn't. They were still very present, and only grew during any semi-normal conversation. So when he stood in front of your door, asking to stay for three days, you were floored. A pipe in his house bursted and flooded most of the ground floor. He got a few clothes out, but had to leave so it could be repaired. Stupidly enough, you agreed against better judgement. "What is that, your trophy wall?", Billy asked when he saw your living room wall; the formal picture of you in army uniform, the badges you earned, pictures of you and Missy in different countries. The one that struck him the most was the one in the middle: You on your graduation day, with your veteran grandfathers and veteran dad, all in uniform. "Your dad was in the military?", Billy asked. You stood next to him and looked at the picture with him. "Dad was in Vietnam from '69 'til '73. Was never quite the same afterwards." He had to be honest with himself, he did not remember that piece of information from your childhood even though the two of you were still friends back then. Actually, he didn't remember much good things from him childhood to begin with. "And your grandpa's?", he continued asking. "Geez Billy, do you not remember any rant I gave you as a child?", you jokingly asked while nudging his shoulder. "World war two, both of them. Gramps and Pawpaw were in Northern Ireland, the 'Red Bull' division." Billy gave an understanding hum before his eyes went to the most recent picture of you and Missy. "Well, uhm, I have a guest bedroom you can stay in. Come on." You guided him upstairs to the room right next to yours. The guest room was much smaller than yours, but had all the necessities; a bed, a closet, a small table with a chair, spare toothbrushes and toothpaste in a cupboard and a bookshelf with some of your old books. "I was gonna make dinner, hope you like deli style sandwiches." With those words, you left him alone in the guest room. He didn't see a point in unpacking his clothes much, so he just left them on the table inside his bag. Next, he checked out the door to the bathroom - just to realise it's connected to your bedroom and the two of you will have to share it. With impure thoughts, he went downstairs into the kitchen.
"Here's yours." You pushed a plate with two sandwiches on ot towards him while already eating a sandwich yourself. With your legs dangling in the air, you were sitting on the kitchen counter while Billy stood next to you. "You always eat like this?", he asked you while taking something from his plate. "In the kitchen or the food?", you asked him. "In the kitchen, on the counter.", he specified. "Oh." You laughed. "I do, yeah. Don't you remember how my mum always let us snack on the kitchen island?" He did remember that. "Kept that habit, yeah?", he asked with a slight smile. You nodded in response and took another bite of your sandwich while feeling your heart beating faster. Most of dinner was spend in silence, until Missy came in the kitchen. A check on your clock told you that it was time for her dinner, so you jumped off of the counter to fill her bowl.
"She won't start begging for food now, no?", Billy asked while finishing up his sandwich. You rolled your eyes at him "Jesus, Billy, stop trying to find shit to complain about." The clinking of the kibble hit the bowl while you continued scolding him. "She's a K-9, trained to sniff for explosives and you seriously think that she's one to actively beg for food?" He didn't say anything, just continued eating while watching you give the food to Missy. You, now a bit pissed, put your dishes in the dishwasher while talking to Billy. "I leave for work at 5, I'll put a spare key on the kitchen counter for you. Don't know when you start working, so if you wanna eat something just grab something from the fridge." You took his now-empty plate from him and also put it in the dishwasher. "I come back at 6, so you need to make lunch yourself. But please, for the love of god" You closed the dishwasher. "Clean up after yourself." Billy just gave a hum, showing he understood. "I'll get ready for bed, just be quiet please." You went upstairs to wash your face, brush out the hairgel from your military bun and whipe down the dirt from your work day. Billy didn't stay downstairs for long, he came into the bathroom as you were brushing your hair. He started washing down with a wet cloth as well. "Do you always work 12 hour shifts?", he asked after a while. You already moved on to applying your moisturiser. "For four days, then I get four days off.", you replied.
"Why the army and not the airforce?", you stopped in your track for a second. He did actually remember what you told him. "Well, I didn't pass for flying planes. Then I thought of being a marine, but they honestly have shit working hours. So I decided on a career in the army. Then I got into the whole EOD stuff.", you simply replied. He nodded while putting toothpaste on his toothbrush. "Isn't it dangerous to detonate bombs?", Billy asked before putting the toothbrush into his mouth. You smiled, gave him a small laugh and he could feel his heart skip a beat. "You ask a lot of questions today.", you said. "It is actually one of the most dangerous jobs you could have. But the mortality rate is only at 2%, so we're pretty damn good." You put your hair into braids for sleeping. "Well, I'll be off to bed. Good night, Billy." You gave him another smile before going into your bedroom. He couldn't get the image of you smiling out if his head, it burned into his eyelids. Even when he went to bed and closed his eyes, he still saw it. His imagination ran wild, from pinning you against a wall to laying next to you while slowly kissing you. He couldn't stop thinking about it. It stayed in his mind so much that he even dreamed about walking along the beach with you, hand in hand.
Next morning, he could hear some clinking from the bathroom and soft music playing. When he got up to brush his teeth, he saw you doing your hair in the bathroom. It was an extremely tight bun that you slathered hair gel on to keep every little hair in place. You were already partially in uniform, your camo pants and shirt with your last name on it. Billy then realised that he has never seen you in uniform ever since he found out you were his neighbour. Every time you came home, you were in civilian clothes. But, oh, did his heart start beating. He thought you were the most beautiful girl he ever saw.
"Morning.", you said to him with a small smile. "Mornin'.", he replied while getting his toothbrush. Billy didn't wear a shirt yet, he was only in sweatpants that hung a bit too low. You had to admit, you did give him a look through the mirror. Meanwhile, ABBA's Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! was playing from the radio in your bathroom. He brushed his teeth while sometimes sneaking a glance at you through the mirror. Billy saw the small smile that was on your lips while silently lip-syncing the song, he saw every freckle, every mole and thought you were the most perfect being ever. The feelingin his chest and stomach became overwhelming to him.
"(Y/N)?", Billy said while putting his toothbrush into the toothbrush cup you set out for him. You turned around to face him while putting your hairbrush on the counter, and before you could react Billy leaned towards to kiss you. It all happened so quickly that you didn't have time to react. "Have fun at work.", he said afterwards before walking back into his room.
"And it all happened so quick, I didn't even have time to react.", you finished up your story to your coworker Johnny. "Fuckin' hell, you're in the army and have the reaction time of a sloth." He laughed before eating again. Todays lunch was chicken with egg noodles and vegetables. "I don't exactly have combat reaction when I'm at home.", you said to him before eating another fork-full yourself. "Always have to be ready lass, especially when it's your bitch of a neighbour who you have a crush on." Johnny laughed at his own words, to which you punched him in the arm. "I do not have a crush on him, Johnny MacTavish!" He rolled his eyes at you. "Fuck off, (L/N), I know fucking for compensation when I see it." Guilty as charged.
You wasted time after work by stopping at Target to originally buy some food, but you couldn't help to get a new fluffy blanket. On the way back, you picked up two sandwiches at Subway for Billy and you. So you walked through your front door at 8, just to see Billy in the hallway looking at your military wall. You didn't say a word, wanting to avoid him, and walked straight into your kitchen to unpack. Missy followed you by the heel, not paying and attention to Billy who gave her a side eye. As quickly as humanely possible you unpacked your groceries, threw the blanket on the couch and grabbed your sandwich to go eat in your room. "There's food in the kitchen for you.", you said to him before disappearing upstairs. Missy stayed in the living room and got comfortable in her basket next to the couch. Billy took his food, sat down on the living room couch and started eating.
"Any idea how I can win her over?", he asked Missy after a while. She looked at him and tilted her head. "Oh don't give me that, you know she intimidates me." Once Billy finished his food, he sat down next to Missys basket. "I know I should be nicer, but I can't help it, you know?" She put her head on his leg, to which he started scratching her behind her ear. "I just get so angry when I'm jealous. Really need to work on that." He continued talking to your K-9 about you, how he could make it up to you, how he needs to get less angry, that he doesn't mean it when he acts like he doesn't like Missy. Meanwhile, you left your room to bring some dishes downstairs but stopped in your tracks when you heard him talk. At first, you thought he was on the phone, then you heard that he was talking about you. "Can't you tell her, Missy?" was what made everything click in your brain. He was talking to your dog about you. That confused you so much that you went back into your room and left the dishes on your nightstand for a few more hours.
You didn't see Billy until the next day, when you came back from your last day of work for the week. But the kiss didn't leave your mind. When you walked upstairs to shower, the door of the guest bedroom was half-opened. Your curiosity got the best of you and you took a peek inside the room. Billy was sitting on the bed with books scattered around him, you soon realized that those were the photo albums you kept in the bookshelf. The one in his hand right now was one of the oldest, that also included pictures of you and Billy as children. You could tell by the color of the album. "Are you watching me, creepy lady?", Billy said while still looking at the pictures. You chuckled, then went into the room. "Found our pictures, huh?", you said as you sat down next to him. He hummed in response while flipping onto the next page. There were four pictures, all of which were taken on the same day when the two of you were 8. On the first one, Billy and you were petting a goat. "That was our trip to the zoo.", he said to you. The second picture had the two of you eating ice cream on it. On the third picture were you, Billy and his mother looking at a monkey behind the glas. And on the fourth one, Billy kissed you on the cheek for the picture. The feeling in your chest came back when you saw that picture.
"We were best friends, Billy.", you said while he flipped to the next page. There were pictures from a photo booth of the two of you. "What happened?" He didn't have a good response for that - Billy knew it was because his mother left, but that's about it. Him being alone with Neil didn't help. He was already a bully in school, but was always your friend. "I don't wanna talk about it, (Y/N).", he finally responded. That made you angry, very angry in fact. "You started bullying me overnight for six years and now don't want to talk about it?!", you loudly said while getting up. "Oh fuck you, Hargrove. We see each other again after seven years, you act like a cunt, kiss me and now you don't wanna talk about it." The last five words were spoken in a mocking tone. Angrily, you left the guest room and slammed the door on your way out.
You got a towel and your bathrobe before hopping into the shower. The radio was playing in the background, a bit louder than you usually have it on, with Tina Turner playing from it. You were singing along while shampooing your hair throughoutly, having to get all the hairgel and hairspray out, so concentrated on it that you didn't hear the bathroom door opening. "(Y/N)?", you flinked at first and already raised your hand to the showerhead as a makeshift-weapon, until you realized it was Billy. Thank god you decided to have shower curtains that weren't see-through. "What the fuck is wrong with you, Billy?!", you yelled over the sound of the water. "Get out!"
"Said you wanted to talk, so let's talk.", he replied, just loud enough for you to understand. Billy leaned against the bathroom counter, arms crossed in front of his chest, looking at the shower curtain that separated the two of you. "Oh, really? Are you that much of a perv that you have to do that while I'm showering?", you yelled. Billy was stubborn, he wouldn't move - and you couldn't force him outside without being naked in front of him. "Appreciate it, I usually don't change my mind easily.", he replied. "Look, (Y/N), I'm sorry okay?" You continued showering, since you couldn't do anything anyways, and started applying conditioner to your hair. "I know I was a dick to you when we were teenagers, I didn't know what to do with myself." You scrubbed yourself off with a loofah and shower gel while talking "Then why do you still do it? If anyone should hold a grudge, it's me and not you." Billy didn't know what to say. He can't really be honest with you now, can he? Just tell you that he has feelings for you and either wanted to get your attention or was jealous. What would happen if he did? Billy didn't know if he could deal with more rejection in his life. "You still there?", you asked when he didn't reply. "I'm just...thinking of an answer." You washed off the foam on your skin and the conditioner in your hair while an idea hit you so hard that it almost swept you off your feet. With your feelings for Billy back, so came some fantasies about him. "I think it's easier to talk face-to-face. Wanna come in?" There was silence, then you heard the unbuckling of a belt. A minute later, Billy came into the shower with you. You were turned to him with your back and couldn't see what he was doing, but you felt his hands hold onto your hips. "I still do it because I get angry when I'm jealous.", he said while slowly pulling you towards him. You turned around towards him, soon enough for your chest to squeeze against him. "Why do you get jealous?", you asked him while looking into his eyes. The water fully drenched his hair now, some strands fell into his face. "Because I want you to be only mine.", he said. His eyes starred back into yours. They looked even more blue now, at least that's what it looked like to you. Your hands cupped his cheeks before leaning forwards and kissing him. You were in the shower for another hour.
Billy slept in your bed that night. While getting comfortable next to him, you noticed his scars once more. "Billy?", you asked while leaning down on your arm next to him instead of laying down. "What happened there?" You let your fingers run across the biggest scar on his chest, tracing the white colouring on it. "Long story, you won't believe me if I went into detail.", he said while wrapping one of his arms around your shoulders and suddenly pulled you into his chest. "C'mon, tell me.", you said with a pout. Billy kissed the top of your head before saying: "You know what, when you take some days off, I will take you to the shithole town named Hawkins and have my sister and her friends explain it to you." You nodded in agreement while getting comfortable on him.
"Now I have a question for you.", he said. His hand was resting on your head, making it not possible to look up to him. So you kept listening to his heartbeat. "What is it?", you asked. He thought about what to say for a bit. "So, we've somehow made up in one way or another." You hummed in response. "And we've established that we both have feelings for each other." You let out a slight laught, knowing what he was gonna ask. "Yes, Billy, I'll be your girlfriend.", you said. He kissed the top of your head once again before pulling the covers over you and drifting off to sleep together.
Maybe not living in a gated community wasn't too bad.
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sunburnacoustic · 2 years ago
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Muse full gigs
Some full shows that are available, for anyone who wants to partially relive the Muse live experience.
I figured no one's made lists in a while.
La Cigale, Paris By-Request gig 2018
youtube
rarities + I guarantee I'm gonna fuck up Space Dementia + water spitting + Matt and Dom playing Grammy hosts in the way they announced the winners of the by-request polls
Some cool and noteworthy gigs:
Live Lounge 2012
The Mayan 2015 (performance wise this gig was stunning)
Royal Albert Hall 2008 (Teenage Cancer Trust charity gig - Megalomania on the pipe organ!)
Reading Festival 2011 (10 years of Origin of Symmetry - played the album start to finish)
AOL Sessions 2006
Reading 2006 (Muse's first time headlining if I remember right. Plus, Matt's moves!)
Glastonbury 2004 (first Glasto headline and a must-watch! Of the iconic mad-scientist, white lab coat era. Muse had called it the best gig of their life so far, at the time) (*Ruled By Secrecy was played live but wasn't included in the concert footage DVD and isn't in this video upload either)
Montreaux Jazz 2002 (height of piano maniac-ery days. Would also recommend Pinkpop 2002 but they don't. have. the footage anymore :( Space Dementia at Pinkpop 2002 was phenomenal. 2004 is also good, but I never found 2002 again. Speaking of which,)
Pinkpop 2004 (most songs are in, a few performances missing unfortunately)
MCM Café 1999 (marvel at what a good live act this young band aged 21 already was—with about 4 years of gigging experience under their belts. Insane how good they are.)
Wembley 2007 (H.A.A.R.P. The first band to sell out the newly rebuilt Wembley Stadium. 90,000 people. You need to understand, seeing Chris lift up and point his bass at the crowd at the end of the slightly modified Jimmy Jam riff before Time Is Running Out was a religious experience that changed me and we're lucky enough to live in an age where you and I can witness it over and over and over again and I'd suggest that you do)
Rock Am Ring 2018, uploaded to the Internet Archive by the Muse Historical Society!
Austin City Limits 2013 Philipshalle 1999 Philipshalle 2001 (all suggested in notes, check out the crystal clear gifs from @hotbellamy! :O )
A few additions I remembered after publishing: Eurockeennes 2000 (opened with a then-unreleased New Born. Matt playing a full gig in red sunglasses. Treat to watch. Link's stretched up to fit modern screens but if you want a bit of clarity and don't mind the late 90s ratio stretch, here's a different link) 2002 (quality's a bit shit but that is literally what telly used to look like)
Shepherd's Bush Empire 2006 (Early gigs are always interesting because over time Muse develop different ways of playing songs that are fresh off new albums. The way they work through Take A Bow live is a bit different here, Dom's the one controlling the opening verse synths! During the Abso tour, Matt would play that bit on the piano as an intro to Space Dementia and if I'm remembering right, he does now on the pianos (correct me—this was on the ST tour as well). Also, Starlight in Bm at this gig)
Big Day Out (Australia) 2004 | 2007. Muse's first tour Down Under, 2004. If you're impressed by Muse's riffage here, know that you aren't alone, Metallica's Kirk Hammett was as impressed as you are. Also I've linked 2007, presented by the V channel, featuring Matt asking a male interviewer, 'Do you feel sexy now?' and famously proclaiming that they'll look sexier in their 40s, which has been true.
Rock Werchter 2023 (Muse play Rock Werchter in Belgium almost every year, except for the pandemic and 2012 I think, but this year's was a bit special. Best performance of Madness I've seen in a while, I love what he does in the outro! MOTP returns to the set. Muse had tech troubles at the end that caused them to restart Knights of Cydonia twice, to no avail. They finally cut it back for a guitar-bass-drum-vocals-only performance of Showbiz, and Matt's voice sounds exceptional on it— the best in recent years)
Bizarre Fest 2000 (BLESS SOMEONE HAS RESTORED THIS FROM VHS TAPE IN HD, this is so much better than back in the day!! If the falsetto at 1:13 doesn't do it for you, you're into the wrong band, nothing else will help. What an electric performance this was!)
Buenos Aires 2019 (livestreamed Simulation Theory-era gig in Argentina, because the set was changed at the last minute because of adverse weather, Muse gave the audience a choice of song between Bliss and Showbiz. The crowd chose Showbiz, which the band played for... the first time since 2006 I think??)
Gigs from WOTP 2022/23 festivals tour last summer:
Nova Rock Rock In Rio Ejekt Fest Isle of Wight ALTer EGO Jan 2023 (as Muse had talked about in that iHeart Radio IG Live) Hurricane Festival 2023 (a festival at which Matt once complained that Muse's set was cut short by... hurricanes. But the audio mixing at this gig was really good!)
These are in no particular order, and obviously not complete, I just realised no one had put together a gig archive in a while so I thought I'd give it a stab!
Will edit and add others whenever, there are obviously glaring omissions still!
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