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arcane-vagabond · 1 year ago

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Fool's Fare: Chapter One

Fool's Fare: Chapter One

Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x Reader

Summary: Captain Jake "Hangman" Seresin had come close to swinging from the gallows more times than he would care to admit. He's stolen, cheated, even killed. The worst thing he's ever done? Broken the heart of a woman. Having broken the heart of the woman whom Davy Jones himself had fallen for six years ago, Jake is now cursed to live as something not dead, but not alive. He's doomed to live a half-life for the rest of his existence unless he manages to obtain the treasure Davy Jones deems most valuable. The problem? He has no idea what it is, and he only had seven years to obtain it.

Trigger Warnings: Alcohol, Jake Seresin, suggestive language, fear of abandonment. I think that's it?

Word Count: 2.87k

A/N: Wasn't sure I was going to post again tonight, but here we are! Not sure I'm going to post a fic update tomorrow, but I might work on some drabbles and post some of the asks sitting in my inbox. As always, reblogs, comments, and likes are greatly appreciated. 18+ ONLY!! You can find me on AO3 under arcane_vagabond!

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The cool, night breeze twisted its way through the door of the crowded pub as a group of patrons exited, offering the briefest relief to your clammy skin as you busied yourself behind the bar. Patrons crowded around the various tables, some laughing in the open while others crowded in the dark shadows of the corners. Your regulars were easy to spot, most of them fishermen. Their carefree attitudes set them apart from the strangers passing through who kept themselves closed off and guarded in an unfamiliar places.

“Y/n!” Called Tom, one of your regulars. He had been a good friend to your father, having known him from his early fishing days. Tom had done well for himself, having been able to put enough money away to buy his own ship - the Iceman. “How’s about another ale!”

“Coming, Captain!” you hollered over at him jovially, already moving to grab a fresh glass. You had always liked the old captain, and had considered him to be a part of your family growing up. When your parents had died, he had seen to it personally that you were taken care of and that Bradley was able to secure steady work on the various shipping vessels that docked on your shores. “Where’s Rooster?”

“Should be coming along soon, I suspect,” Tom smiled warmly. Bradley had been picking up different odd jobs as of late, his latest one being aboard the Iceman loading and unloading cargo. He had been dodging your questions about it as of late, and you had started to wonder if he was up to something.

“He’s going to work himself into an early grave,” you grumbled, sliding the glass of ale down to the captain who caught it easily. “He won’t even tell me what he’s doing all of these jobs for.”

“I’m sure he has his reasons,” mused Tom, lifting the glass up to his lips to take a swig. “He probably doesn’t want you to worry.”

“He’s worrying me by not saying anything,” you countered, leaning against the bar. At that moment, the pub door swung open, and an exhausted looking Bradley stumbled through. You rounded the bar to help him sit down as he staggered onto a stool. “Bradley, for heaven’s sake!”

“Think you can get me an ale, Guppy?” he asked, rubbing at the bags under his eyes. The tips of his ears and nose were seared pink from hours spent in the intense sun, and you frowned at him.

“What you need is sleep,” you countered, but Bradley shook his head, fixing you with tired, pleading eyes.

“Please?” he asked again, softer this time. You sighed, moving back behind the bar and pouring him a draft before sliding it over to him. He grabbed it, raising it up in a silent cheers before tossing his head back with a long swig.

“Easy, lad,” Tom frowned, watching the young man as he took another long pull from his glass. Bradley set his drink down, absentmindedly wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

“Another,” he told you, but you shook your head.

“No, absolutely not,” you scowled as the furrow between his eyes deepened. “You need to go home and rest, Bradley.”

“She’s right, lad,” Tom started, twisting in his seat to face the younger man. “You’ll work yourself into an early grave if you’re not careful.”

“I’m fine,” Bradley muttered, resting his head against the palm of his hand. Tom gave him a wry smile before clapping his hand on the other man’s shoulder. He shot you a wink before getting up to join his crew that was gathered on the opposite side of the room. You watched him go before turning back to look at Bradley with a frown.

“C’mon, Roos,” you prodded, leaning your head down so you could meet his gaze that was fixed on the bartop. “Tell me what you’re up to.”

“Nothin’” he grumbled unconvincingly. You rolled your eyes with a purse of your lips.

“I’m having a hard time believing you,” you sniped, snatching the glass away from him. Without another word to him, you poured another ale and offered it to him. He took it, offering a small smile. He met your even gaze just long enough for you to see the flash of guilt that flitted in his eyes. “What was that?”

“What was what?” he asked, taking a small sip from his glass.

“Why do you look guilty?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Bradley Bradshaw,” you hissed, eyes blazing, “I have known you for twenty years now. Either you tell me what you’re up to right now, or I will personally see to it that you won’t be able to get another job for a month.”

“Alright,” he winced, setting the glass down and finally meeting your stare. “You have to promise me you won’t yell.”

You scoffed. “Are you twelve?”

“Guppy, promise me,” he insisted, hazel eyes pleading with you. You studied him another moment before sighing.

“Alright, fine.”

“I’m leaving.”

“You’re what?” you shrieked, causing some of the patrons to turn to the two of you as Bradley hissed at you to be quiet.

“You promised you wouldn’t be mad.”

“That was before you told me you were leaving,” you snapped. “Where are you even going to go?”

“I don’t know yet,” he admitted, leaning back. “Still need to find a crew that will take me on long-term.”

You stayed silent, watching him with furious eyes. After a couple of beats, you turned to walk back around the bar. “Caroline, I’m leaving.”

She waved after you, moving to tend to some patrons on the opposite end of the bar. Bradley watched you walk away with wide eyes before getting up to stumble after you. You flung the door of the pub open before setting off with a brisk pace down the road.

“Guppy!”

You ignored the man behind you, tears starting to gather in your eyes.

“Guppy?”

The tears began to fall, the trails they left behind on your cheeks turning to ice in the cool, night air. You turned to walk down to the beach past the docks. How could he drop that bomb shell on you? How could he keep that hidden from you in the first place? Your anger only served to cover up the true emotion you tried your hardest to ignore. Betrayal.

“Y/n, please,” Bradley begged, his long legs having helped him catch up to you by now. You stopped in your tracks, feet sliding into the sand beneath you as you whirled around. You shoved Bradley with all of your strength, shock at the unexpected movement being the only reason stumbled back at all.

“How could you?” you cried, tears falling quicker and your breath coming out shallower as you fought to keep your composure. “How could you just plan to leave me?”

“It’s not like that,” he started, but you shook your head.

“Don’t lie to me, Bradley,” you seethed, hands now clenched at your sides. “Don’t. I deserve the truth. Were you even going to say goodbye to me, or were you just going to vanish one day?”

“Of course not,” he murmured, staring at you with eyes once again pleading with you. “I would never do that to you. You know that.”

“I thought I knew you well enough to know that you wouldn’t leave,” you shot back, causing Bradley to wince. “Guess I don’t know as much as I thought I did.”

“Y/n,” he sighed, running a hand over his face and looking out at the ocean. He seemed to be mulling over his words. “It wouldn’t be forever.”

“That makes me feel so much better,” you laughed humorlessly.

“It wouldn’t be forever,” he continued, giving you a pointed look. “It would only be until I earned enough to buy my own ship.”

“You can do that here,” you argued, but Bradley shook his head with a small, empty laugh.

“I can’t,” he said. “I’ve barely earned enough these past weeks to live off of for a month out at sea. I’d be buried in the ground before I earned enough to buy a ship, and you know that.”

You couldn’t argue. You knew he was right, and you knew that this was not the life he had dreamed of. He had dreamed of going off with your father on one of his many voyages before the sea had claimed him. It had been years, but the pain of his and your mother’s passing still felt fresh in your heart.

You saw how Bradley looked longingly out at the sea when he thought you weren’t looking, or how he always looked happiest standing on the deck of a boat. No, Bradley was meant for a life at sea, and you knew it. You just never thought he would leave you behind.

“It won’t be forever,” he says again, moving to put his hands on your shoulders, bending down so he was eye level with you. “And when I earn enough money to buy my own ship, I’ll come back for you.”

“That could be years,” you croaked, your voice barely above a whisper. Bradley sucks in a breath before slowly nodding.

“You’re right,” he conceded, wiping the tears from your cheek.

“What if you forget about me?”

Bradley huffed out a laugh before drawing you into his arms. He hugged you tightly, resting his cheek on the top of your head. “How could I forget my baby sister? Besides, I think you’d swim across the ocean to find me if I ever forgot about you.”

You huffed a laugh, wrapping your arms around him. “You’re probably right.”

“‘Course I am,” he chuckled, pulling away from you. “Now, c’mon. It’s freezin’ out here, and I’m exhausted.”

You allowed him to lead you up the hill to your shared home. He left a chaste kiss to the top of your head before wishing you goodnight. As you lay in bed that night, you obsessed over the one question you had refused to allow yourself to ask him down at the beach. What if the sea claimed him too?

The following night, you found yourself back behind the bar of the pub. You had heard snippets of chatter amongst the locals about an unknown ship that had docked on your shores.

“I don’t like the look of’em,” Tom had told you and Bradley as he sat at the bar. A lull in the crowd had granted you a moment to stop and talk with the two of them.

“Why’s that?” you asked. He frowned.

“When you get to be my age,” he grumbled, “you can start to pick out the rotten sorts from just a glance.”

Before you could respond, the pub door swung open, hitting the wall with a thud. All three of you turned to see a large group step through the doorway and into the warm glow of the lantern filled room. A blond man stood at the front of the group, lips curled into a confident smirk. You noted the handsome features of him and his companions, and you knew the other women in the room had as well due to the scattered giggles from around the room.

“That’s them,” Tom mumbled, taking another sip of his ale.

The blond scanned his eyes across the room before catching sight of you at the bar. A twinkle of intrigue shone in his eyes as he began to saunter over to you, his crew dispersing to find a table to sit at. You shot a weary glance at Tom before moving to meet the tall stranger on the opposite side of where Bradley sat.

“Evenin’” you greeted with a polite smile. “What can I get you?”

The man looked you over with lick of his lips. “An ale, and your company if you’re offerin’ that too.”

You felt your cheeks grow warm. It wasn’t the first time a patron had made a pass at you, but it was the first time a patron was that devilishly handsome. “The ale, I can get you, but I’m not in the habit of entertaining sailors.”

“Shame,” the stranger grins, watching as you pour his drink. You hand it to him, and you feel a shiver run up your spine as his fingers graze yours. “Would have been nice to have someone as pretty as you in my bed tonight.”

You saw Bradley’s jaw tick from the corner of your eye, and you shot him a warning glance. This part of your job wasn’t new, and you had long since learned how to handle yourself in these situations.

“I believe there are more than a couple of girls over there who would be willing to warm your bed tonight, Mr…?”

“Seresin,” he said with a cheeky grin. “Jake Seresin. And I’m not interested in having anyone but you, pretty girl.”

“Well, then it looks like your bed will go cold tonight after all,” you said to him. Bradley snorted, trying to cover it with a cough, but Jake ignored him.

“Seresin,” Tom grunted, causing all three of you to look at him. He shook his head, and turned to glare at Jake. “I’ve heard of you. You’re a pirate.”

The conversation died in the pub as everyone turned to look at your little group by the bar. Jake’s easy grin never faltered as he stared back at Tom.

“Pirate is such a nasty word,” he drawled, taking a sip of his ale. “I prefer the term…liberator.”

“Whatever you call it, you have no business here,” Tom snapped.

“I beg to differ, my friend,” Jake countered, moving to stand. Turning to the rest of the room, he stated, “I’m looking for men to join my crew. You keep what you can carry with you. If you’re interested, come see me.”

And with one final glance at you, he sauntered off towards the back of the room where his crew had taken up purchase.

“Pirates?” you asked, looking at Tom hesitantly. He shook his head and got up to go join his own crew in the corner. You peered at Bradley from the corner of your eye. He studied the rim of his glass as he stroked it thoughtfully.

“What are you thinking about?” you asked him. He jumped as your words pulled him from his train of thought.

“Nothing,” he said quickly, refusing to meet your gaze. You studied him him for a moment until you saw the quick glance he threw towards the back of the room.

“No,” you snapped, causing him to finally meet your gaze. “Absolutely not.”

“What?” he scowled, but you fixed him with a glare and a finger pointed into his chest.

“Don’t even think about it,” you hissed in warning. Bradley glared right back at you before hopping off his stool and strutting towards the crew at the back. You scrambled around the bar after him. You closed the distance just as he stopped in front of Jake.

“I want to join your crew,” he stated. Jake looked at him with an amused look, eyes flickering to you as you pulled on Bradley’s arm so that he faced you.

“Bradley, don’t,” you begged.

“Y/n, enough,” he snapped down at you, taking you aback. His eyes softened as you looked up at his broad frame with hurt bewilderment. He let out a long sigh, running a hand through his sandy brown locks. He looked back at you before continuing. “Don’t you see, Guppy? This is my chance. If I don’t go now, who knows when I’ll get another opportunity to leave and make my fortune.”

“Roo, you’re my brother. I can’t let you do this,” you pleaded, taking his hand in yours. You willed him to listen to you, but it was no use.

“I’ve made my decision, Guppy,” he said. You couldn’t stop the flash of hurt you knew passed over your face as Bradley turned back to the captain. You looked around at the other patrons desperately before settling your eyes on Tom. He was already looking at you with a solemn expression, shaking his head.

“Sign here,” Jake instructed, pointing to the piece of parchment he had rolled out onto the table. Bradley obeyed, scratching his name in quick strokes to the bottom. You felt the tears start to run down your face before you could stop them. You couldn’t stop anything, it seemed. Bradley straightened and turned to look at you. The two of you stared at one another for several moments before you turned on your heel and stormed away from him.

That night, as you lay in bed, you dreamed of the sea. You dreamed of blue and green swirling around you as you struggled to breath. You dreamed of splintering wood and echoed shrieks that were drowned out by thundering waves. You dreamed of strange creatures that lurked the deep as they waited for their next meal. You dreamed of golden hair and cocky smirks as they taunted you beneath the waves. You dreamt of a cold, calloused hand that pulled you under until the surface was nothing but a distant memory.

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s10127470 · 6 months ago

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My Wolverine and the X-Men Rewrite (Part 1)

I'm sure many of you are familiar of Wolverine and the X-Men, as it was the last major animated series based on Marvel's merry band of mutants before X-Men '97 came out....

And before Marvel entered their infamous "anti-mutant" phase of the 2010s.

(If you don't count the X-Men Anime, which was a mini-series.)

Premiering back in 2009 on the somehow still-existing Nicktoons Network, the series is about the X-Men disbanding after a mysterious explosion results in the destruction of the Institute and the disappearance of Charles Xavier and Jean Grey.

About a year later, the team ended up reuniting for two major reasons.

The MRD (short for the Mutant Response Division), a government-supported organization created for the detainment and subsequent registration of existing mutants, begin capturing mutants from all over the country. Not only that, but they’ve even taken humans as prisoners as well just for helping mutants.

Charles Xavier, who the team find out is actually alive but in a coma resting on Magneto’s island nation of Genosha. Xavier is able telepathically communicate with the team from, in the words of Squidward….

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Essentially, the explosion resulted in Xavier’s psyche being flung 20 years into the future. And Xavier himself won’t be awakened from his coma until those 20 years pass. Meanwhile, in the future, Xavier is awake, but finds himself constantly trying to survive as the future he’s in is absolute shit.

Being a loose adaption of Days of Future Past, the future Xavier’s in is one where the Sentinels have conquered the world after a war that broke out between the Master Mold program and Genosha.

In the end, nobody won.

As in this future, humanity has essentially been wiped out and mutants are on the verge of extinction, being placed in concentration camps.

But there is some hope....

Xavier in the future has formed a new X-Men team as it’s revealed that all of the original team are now dead. This new team consists of the likes of Bishop (who’s was one of the many mutants unfortunate enough to be born into this life instead of being a police officer from the distant future), an older Domino (whose present self is an enemy of the X-Men as she’s a member of the Brotherhood), and Marrow (who isn’t a member of the Morlocks).

Since Xavier is able to communicate with his past X-Men, he wants them to ensure that this future never happens.

So now, the reunited X-Men must face on the MRD, stop whatever plans Magneto has up his sleeves this time, and prevent the dark future from happening.

And all with Wolverine being the leader.

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Yep! Wolverine is the leader of the X-Men as of right now as Cyclops is not doing so well….at all.

But in addition to those two, the rest of the X-Men consists of Storm, Beast, Nightcrawler, Iceman, Shadowcat, Angel, Forge, and newcomer Emma Frost.

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WAXTM is notable things for two things.

It was also shortest-lived of the shows, only lasting 1 season of 26 episodes, which ran through the year of 2009, from January 23rd to November 29th.

This would be the sort-of beginning of an all-new shared animated universe known as the Yostverse, which consisted of the Hulk vs. Films, Thor: Tales of Asgard, and most notably, The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. The reason I say sort-of beginning because one of the shows that’s supposedly a part of this universe is The Spectacular Spider-Man, which came out almost a year before this show did. But that’s a discussion in itself.

Ever since its cancellation, WAXTM has gained a following and has become one of the many animated shows that got cancelled too soon and has led thousands of fans clamoring for a revival.

And to this day, people consider the show an underrated gem.

But I'm gonna have to come out and say it.....

Wolverine and the X-Men is not exactly a good show....

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It's not bad by any means, but does have a lot of flaws.

And while it did do some things right, it wasn't quite to the extent of X-Men Evolution and especially X-Men: The Animated Series.

So today I want to discuss how I would rewrite the show. Keeping what worked about the show and either strengthen or removing what didn't.

And for this rewrite, be prepared to expect changes in characterizations, looks and even voices!

For the first part of this rewrite, we'll be covering the first three episodes of the show, Hindsight: Parts 1, 2 and 3.

And for this version of the show, all 3 of episodes would premiering on the exact same night: January 23rd, 2009.

Essentially, Wolverine and the X-Men's premiere in this AU would be a full-on TV movie!

This would be similar to what Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends did as when they first premiered, they had the first three episodes packed into a TV movie.

And one last thing, I would like to credit synergysilhouette as my main inspiration for this post, as he also shared his own idea on rewrite Wolverine and the X-Men as well.

So with that being said, let's get this party started!

First thing we need to get out of way that this show would not be called "Wolverine and the X-Men".

As that title is undoubtedly emblematic of the show's greatest flaw: the focus on Wolverine.

It's pretty obvious that the original series was riding on the coattails of the X-Men films, which Wolverine was not only the most popular character of, but the essentially the main character (and the only one that really mattered, much to the detriment of basically everyone else.).

Made more obvious with the fact that it premiered just four months before his long anticipated solo film.

Yeah, we all know how well that turned out....

Apparently, when WAXTM was first conceived, it was initially meant to be solo cartoon for Wolverine.

At least in the eyes of the executives...

But to the directors and producers, this was meant to be another X-Men cartoon.

In the end, the two sides essentially came to a compromise: the show would have the X-Men as its main cast, but Wolverine would be the focal character of the show.

Everyone has already said it before, but it does bare repeating.

The X-Men are suppose to be an ensemble. It shouldn't focus on just one character and essentially make everyone else irrelevant.

For this rewrite, the show's name would be changed to "X-Men Destiny", which I feel like fits perfectly with the premise of the series.

Next we come to the tone and style. This was another area where the influence from the films is quite obvious.

Just like the FOX films, Wolverine and the X-Men is notably more serious and gloomy than most other X-Men media, even the comics at some points.

It's somewhat melodramatic and there's rarely ever a sense of levity or humor to lighten things up

I'm admittedly not a fan of this style. I understand the X-Men are a little more serious when compared to other characters of the Marvel universe, but I don't think they need to be this overly serious.

I feel like the core of the X-Men, in spite of the all bullshit they deal with, they still persevere and keep their heads up no matter what.

So for this version of the show, the tone will be a little more light-hearted.

There will actually be humor present and some characters will be the resident comic reliefs.

But don't worry, the show will still take itself seriously when it needs to.

But another area the show would see change in is the art-style.

For this version of the show, the character designs would be done by ZyalahDoodles.

She’s an artist here on Tumblr who has done some redraws and redesigns for WAXTM.

I really like her style. It strikes that balance between being similar to the original art style while still being somewhat different. And if anything, it’s actually an improvement over the original style, especially when look at characters like Quicksilver.

Like Jesus Christ, he was hideous in the original!

I know he’s suppose to be Magneto’s son, but you didn’t need to make him look as old as him too!

Like Zyalah’s Quicksilver can actually get it.

If you want to check out more of her art, here’s the link to her page below.

Next we come to the roster.

Overall, it's largely the same as in the original except we would see the addition of one more character.

And that's none other than the steel-skinned gentle giant himself, Colossus!

Not only because he's one of my favorite X-Men, it's also because he's honestly kind of deserves it.

For those who don't know, despite only appearing in the prologue of the first episode, Colossus was weirdly in a lot of promotional material and merchandising for the show.

Apparently he was suppose to return to the X-Men following the explosion, but the producers decided not to do that and just save him for the planned season 2.

I'm guessing that the promotional material and merchandising started production during the early development of the show and before everything got finalized.

And thus, it's why a lot of this stuff still shows Colossus as a main character.

It's similar to what happened with The Simpsons, as during its early years, a lot of merchandising featured Bart famously wearing a blue shirt instead of his trademark red shirt.

But now that we got our roster out of the way, let's talk about the characters.

Specifically, their voices, appearances and ages.

In terms of voices, just about everyone still have their respective VAs in this version....except for two of the X-Men.

Those two being Iceman and Rogue.

Iceman would be voiced by Jason Marsden, replacing Yuri Lowenthal.

But don't worry, Yuri would be still in this version of the show, but as a different character (who we'll get to shortly).

And Rogue would be voiced by Melissa Disney, replacing Kieren van den Blink.

As for appearances, synergysilhouette brought up how a little wonky the builds of the characters were.

Like some of the males had buff upper bodies but surprisingly thin torsos and legs, and the females were pretty paper thin.

Like, we're talking almost VivziePop thin, specifically in the leg area.

The only part of them that wasn't thin were their chests....

Who designed these girls? Greg Land?

So yeah, in this version of the show would fix some of those designs.

Particularly putting a little more meat on the females.

I guess you could say I made them....

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But for the builds of the X-Men.

Wolverine has a stocky and muscular build.

Cyclops is lean but athletic.

Emma Frost has an hourglass figure with a more top-heavy build.

Storm also has an hourglass figure, with an all-around build.

Beast...basically looks the same as he does in the original show.

So does Nightcrawler, Angel, Colossus, Iceman, Shadowcat and Forge (expect he'll actually have tanned skin)

And Rogue has a similar build to Storm.

Apart from the builds, the X-Men look largely the same as in the original show.

Though Cyclops and Rogue would definitely be getting a serious hairdo.

Since let's be real, their haircuts were pretty awful in the original show, especially Rogue's.

Cyclops' new hair would look just how it does in Zyalah's piece I showed earlier, and Rogue would have much longer hair.

As for heights, the X-Men are pretty accurate to those from the comics.

Yes, and that does include Wolverine.

However, there is one exception to this and that's with Beast.

I've always felt that Beast definitely should be a much taller character than he actually is.

(He's canonically 5'11)

But despite that, in the more recent comics, he's always shown as being bigger than most of the other X-Men.

So here, Beast is like 6'5.

As for their outfits...

Wolverine, Storm, Emma, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Angel, Rogue and Forge would be wearing the exact same outfits they did in the original show.

Beast as well, but he would also be sporting goggles this time.

(He just looks so right with them).

Iceman would wearing a modified version of his outfit from the show.

It would have a light blue and dark blue color scheme, short pant-legs and no shoes.

Shadowcat would be wearing her outfit from the Astonishing X-Men run.

And Cyclops, well....

This what he'll be wearing.

If you collected any Marvel merchandising during the 2000s, you've most definitely seen this look before.

It's kind of like an combination between his 90s outfit and his Astonishing outfit.

And in all honesty, it's really cool looking.

But weirdly enough, he's never wore this any iteration outside of the merchandising.

So I figured.....

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Finally, we come to the ages of the X-Men.

I'm reason I'm bringing this up is because of the episode, Breakdown.

In that episode, we take a look into Cyclops' past, and just like in the comics, the X-Men originally started off with the original five.

And we can clearly see that they're teenagers.

But this becomes an issue when take Iceman into account.

In the second episode when Wolverine and Beast come to recruit him, the latter mentions to his parents that Iceman is now 18.

Which would mean that three years have past since the X-Men formed.

And since the estimated age difference between the original five is that Beast is older than Cyclops, Jean and Angel by 2 years and Iceman is younger than them by 2 years, that would mean that Cyclops, Jean Angel are around 19-20 and Beast is around 21-22.

And yeah, there's is no way in hell that's the case.

I could definitely see them being in their 20s, but like mid-to-late 20s.

Definitely not early 20s!

Here, it would be established that the X-Men have been around for about 8 years, including after the explosion.

As for the ages of the team.

We all know Wolverine is old as hell!

Cyclops, Jean and Angel are 24.

Emma is 29.

Storm is 26.

Beast is 27.

Nightcrawler is 22.

Colossus, Rogue and Forge are 20.

And Iceman and Shadowcat are 18.

Now that we got that out of the way, let's go ahead and talk about the episodes themselves!

Hindsight: Part 1

This episode is largely the same, but there would be a few changes.

-All of the X-Men would be present in the prologue. Iceman would training in The Danger Room with Shadowcat, Colossus and Nightcrawler, Forge would be working on a new device while ignoring the cries for help from the four after getting trapped, and Angel would be seen spending them with Storm.

-We would get the establishment of where everyone else is once Wolverine and Beast reunite. Cyclops has living in a rundown apartment by himself, Storm moved back to her village in Kenya, Angel has been working at his father's company, Iceman and Shadowcat moved back in with their parents, Colossus moved back to his family's farm in Russia, and nobody's heard from Nightcrawler or Rogue. As for Beast, he's been hanging at what's left of the mansion with Forge, working together to see what caused the explosion in the first place.

-Speaking of Forge, he would be helping out Wolverine and Beast with their break-in. And also, and more importantly, Forge's characterization is much different. Here, he's basically like Sokka and Velma, being the team's resident tech-genius and total smartass.

-Pyro wouldn't be one of the mutants freed when Wolverine, Beast and Forge free the prisoners. Instead, his place would be taken by Jubilee (voiced by Janice Kawaye). She would end up staying with the X-Men, kick-starting one of the storylines for this series. As for her characterization, it's pretty accurate to how she is in the comics. In terms of overall physical appearance and age: she's about 15, has a slightly petite build, black hair in a bob-cut style, pink lips, brown eyes, stands at 5'1, and wears a modified version of her classic 90s outfit. It's largely the same, except with a navel-bearing shirt, fingerless gloves and sneakers.

Hindsight: Part 2

Once again, largely the same with a few changes.

-The Brotherhood has two new additions from the original version in the form of Pyro and Gambit. Yep! Gambit is a member of Brotherhood in this version of the show, as it would set up his eventual turnover to the X-Men and his romance with Rogue. And in typical Gambit fashion, he'll definitely be laying his Cajun charm on Rogue immediately. As their voices, all of them remain the same except for Quicksilver, Toad and Pyro. Quicksilver would be voiced by Yuri Lowenthal (I told you we would be coming back to him!), Toad would be voiced by Danny Cooksey, and Pyro would be voiced by John Kassir. Also, Toad will be British. Yeah, remember when he used to have a British accent?

-Cyclops' characterization. One of the biggest flaws of the original show was how Cyclops was characterized. In the original, he was intolerant, depressed grub. I get that he's grieving over the loss of Jean, but man. It's hard for us to feel sorry for the guy when he's constantly being angry and angsty. He may've not been done as dirty when compared to the Fox films, but this version of the character isn't too far behind. But here, Cyclops is will actually remain as the leader of the team, and his big story of the season (apart from the obvious) is him grappling with whether or not he still has what it takes to be leader again. And along with that, he isn't gonna nearly as angry and angsty as he was in the original. However, he will still be grieving and his depression will be shown in a way where we actually sympathize with him. This would be first shown when Wolverine tries to recruit him and after blasting him out of his room. And although he starts off looking down at Wolverine angry at first, but once he leaves, his expression eventually turns into one of regret.

Hindsight: Part 3

Just like with the last two, it's mostly the same with one notable exception.

-When the X-Men meet Emma for the first time, their reactions are a little different. Angel isn't smitten by her at all, as he already has a special somebody (i.e. Storm). But Iceman still is. But he's not the only one. The other would be Shadowcat. Yep! In this show, Shadowcat and Iceman are both, in the words of NSYNC....

youtube

Well that's all I have for now.

Let me know what you guys think about this rewrite. And if you could, give me some ideas on how the rest of the series should play out!

But anyway, I'm gonna go play some X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse....

Peace out, yo.

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cryptid-in-your-closet · 2 years ago

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Someone tell me which WIP I should work on instead of studying for my finals

You Have the Wrong Guy - in which everyone is giving Jake the shovel talk when it was Bradley who broke off their first relationship - Exs to Lovers, ft. dagger squad and class of 86’

Unpacking - how each of the daggers (and Mav) find out about trans!Jake - not romance centered but has the development and destruction and ultimately getting back together of Hangster, Javy is the best friend ever and deserves all the love, this is very self indulgent

Running - Jake has ran his whole life. If no one can catch up to him no one can leave him. Then he meets Javy. The man seemingly has unlimited patience and always seems to be a step ahead of Jake. - character study, Macheresin, Jake has an absent father and issuesTM

Ballett AU (unnamed) - In which Ice is a Ballet instructor and Mav takes care of Amelia for Penny when he’s not test piloting the military’s newest planes. - plenty of misunderstandings, Icemav endgame but mistaken Mav/Penny, Penny&Sarah friendship

Dinner for Three - when Beau gets an invite to the Mitchell-Kazansky household he figures it’s something to do with the dagger squad, after all the first (and only other time) he was invited over was to celebrate the success of the dagger mission, what he was not expecting was a fancy dinner cooked by the handsome couple that are blatantly flirting with him. This is some cosmic joke, right? - Cyclone/Maverick/Iceman, might end up being smut but won’t promise anything, ft. Cyclone having a massive crush on Ice and reluctant feelings (ew) for Mav, surprise they like him too, Bradley shows up in here for some reason

Dadmral - the obligatory fic in which the dagger squad finds out Mav is married to the COMPACFLT - Pov Phoenix which is different for me lol, some texting, dagger squad and class 86’, Icemav, Ice is alive, Rooster gets smothered by his uncles who have missed him

Coming Home - Rooster fixes his relationship with Mav while working on the Mustang and getting awful (and some good) relationship advice - Icemav, Hangster, Mavdad, Icepops

Goose Been Knew - in which Goose has to deal with idiot pilots who clearly love each other (twice), don’t worry he has a lovely wife and partner to go complain to. - Goose lives, Icemav, Hangster, Slooserole, really just short bits of Goose putting up with Mav and then Rooster

Guitar - Bradley owns a guitar for reasons completely unrelated to his ex who he’s definitely not still in love with. That would be crazy. They’ve been apart for years. - Hangster Exs to Lovers, bitter Hangman, Phoenix and Javy are DONE, the rest of the dagger squad are confused

A Series of Weddings - Tom and Pete get married for the first time in 91’ despite what the world tells them they can do, they talk about it in 2011, they get married legally in 2013 when Ice is diagnosed with Cancer, talk about redoing vows and throwing an actual celebration in 2015 (they don’t), redo their vows in the spring of 2021. In 2023 they attend the Bradley’s wedding. - this is honestly one of my favs, inspired by this post, Icemav, no relapse of cancer, lots of weddings, love, and fluff, Hangster at the end, class of 86’

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starkraivennemad · 7 months ago

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The Weight of Things

Mycroft Holmes played the heavy, the cold man-

He knew the reason some call him Iceman was earned. There are documents which will never see the light of day until his bones have long turned to dust before others will know of the actions of the person codenamed Antarctica. The mega-genius was calculating, and exacting; willing to make, and execute, the hard decisions.

Mycroft played the heavy, the manipulating man-

Once he was able to prove he was of better service in the office, than in the field, he eschewed all outward appearances of ever having done so. He worked hard at his perfectly curated his sharply honed brain over blunt instrument brawn image.

Played the heavy, the secretive man-

He kept the secrets of Crown and Country.

He kept the family secrets, knowing them for the ticking bombs they were.

Not telling his parents believe his sister was alive.

Letting John believe the man he loved was dead.

Mycroft bore the weight of the damage that should not have been his to take on when time ran out.

For when they inevitably blew? It was bad.

The heavy, the bad man-

It came with a price…

While Mycroft honestly enjoyed the work, it cost him the trust of people in general and his personal happiness overall and a life of isolation.

He told himself it was a minor thing. That it was the balance needed in the scale of things. And for far too many years he not only believed it, but willingly paid it.

But then the scales tipped.

They tipped with a weight Mycroft never imagined bearing.

They tipped with a weight that could not be seen, heard, smelled, tasted or touched.

Except in his heart.

Tipped by the all-encompassing weight called love in the form of one Gregory Lestrade.

The oh so heavy weight that lightened everything else around him.

And once tipped, it outweighed everything else.

Make no bones about it, Mycroft Holmes is who he is– cold, manipulating, secretive, the heavy the bad man.

But it’s the heavy weight of Greg’s love that lightens his heart to also make Mycroft Holmes-Lestrade a good man.

Read on AO3

For @sherlockchallenge April prompt HEAVY

#sherlock challenge #bbc sherlock #mystrade #mycroft holmes #april 2024

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persephone11110 · 2 years ago

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Highway To Heaven

tom kazansky x daughter reader

TW: medical induced coma, talks of injuries, possible death, hopeful ending

summary: He watches her fight, now he’s watching her lose against death.

characters: Tom“Iceman”Kazansky, Original Female Characters x2, Sarah Kazansky

A/N: i wrote a shitty reason of health problems ,I completely got carried away but its fine. this isn’t proofread at all.

—

He thinks back to her first basketball game, how she still got back up even after getting a busted lip. Never since the day she was born has Nadia Kazansky given up, not when she came out the womb blue, not even against death. So why now?

He hates how she’s not smiling as she sleeps. Ever since Nadia was a baby there would be a smile plastered on her face as she slept. Now Nadia lips sat straight on her face as she laid medically sedated on her hospital bed.

Ice listened to the heart monitor as it beeped steadily, the only sound he’s listened to for the last four days. He misses her smiles, her laughter, her corny jokes.

He sighed putting his book down, standing up and leaning over her bed rails kissing her forehead. “Honey I need you to wake up”, Tom Kazansky was never a man to beg, but for this he will; for her he always will.

Tears dropped to down his face, guilt clenched his heart. Ice himself had approved of this mission and he’d also picked Nadia for the mission knowing she would be the only person to pull it off.

If there was a way to look into the future, Ice would have never put his daughter in that damn fight jet. He wouldn’t had given the okay for her to fly, if he had known about the fallout.

He feels digusted with himself, those thoughts didn’t belong to him. They belong to a father who’s at risk of losing his only child, a father who’s already grieving for the death of his daughter.

A sob left his mouth as he thought about the possibility of losing his daughter.

He would be left childless, Tom Kazansky would know how it felt to bury a child. Something he doesn’t want to do, a thing he thought he wouldn’t have to go through.

He stares at her pale face, her face lacked it usual tan of life. Nadia would had murdered her father if she had known about a tube being down her throat.

At the thought of food his stomach growled viciously. He wanted to move and grab food. But what if he walked away and this was last time his daughter was alive?

What if this was the last time her chest went up and down, no matter if she had help or not?

“Thomas” a feminine voice pulled him out his horrible thoughts of hell.

Sarah Kazansky his little sister, grabbed her older brother and hugged him. She ran her hands up and down his back, easing his rattling body frame.

He held on to this pain for almost a week. Ice cries for his daughter at thought of her being in pain. He also cries as he knows death is approaching and finally Tom allows his guilt to unravel from his heart.

He didn’t want to be this vulnerable, not now when Nadia is facing against death.

“Here Tom” she said handing him a pb&j sandwich, and a bottle of juice. In return he offered her weak attempt of a smile.

She gives him another hug before leaving him alone in the cafeteria to return to work.

He leaned back in the white plastic chair, uncomfortably adjusting his tall frame in the chair. He twirls the necklace that Nadia gotten for him a long time ago, he feels the slight comfort and hope the necklace gives him.

He on the verge of slumber when a voice erupts his sleep.“Admiral Kazansy”

He hums lowly, his eyes open to see the doctor who had been treating his daughter.

Ice is out of the chair in seconds, hoping the doctor is sparing his already broken heart and giving him good news.

He noticed the grim look the doctor had on her face, the way her eyes had a look of pity and sadness to them.

Bad news.

“How is my daughter?”, he asks her.

“Sir, I think it’s time we discuss a plan” She pauses briefly looking at Ice before continuing.

“What I mean by that Admiral is that, Nadia is suffering from a brain injury called cerebral edema, her entire brain is bruised and swollen from the impact of her crash”.

His mask was instantly replaced with concern and anxiety.

He felt his world starting to crash and burn.

Ice’s eyes started to prickle to with tears as he thought about the death of his only child.

He took a shaky breathe before asking Dr. Foreman his next question“can you fix it?”.

Ice didn’t want the answer to his question. He knew most likely he going to end his week, month or year by burying his daughter Nadia.

“Lets take a seat” Dr. Foreman gently ordered, she gestured to the chair and led her and Ice to them.

He felt it, he knew those words by heart.

It only meant one word was going to appear in the next sentence.

Death.

The hands on the clock ticked as she talked to him describing in great detail for what was best for his Nadia.

His daughter, how dare a she tell him whats best for his kid.

He drowned out the conversation, only hearing the word death.

“Admiral Kazansky, Its in you and Nadia best wishes to let her go peacefully”. She spoke as she held Ice’s hand before letting go.

“Unless, Nadia pulls through” Dr. Foreman said kindly.

“And the chances are?” He asked as his body shooked with anger, sadness, denial.

“Less than 35 percent” she nodded her head sadly, already grasping what Ice meant.

“Admiral, sit on it and think about your next move” she ordered as she walk away from him, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

——

As Ice slept, in his dream he kept hearing erratic beeping as if it was an alarm going off.

Someone yelling pulled him out his short slumber. “she’s coding, she’s coding!”

He was being yanked out the chair by Sarah.

Ice watched from the outside as they tried to revive Nadia back.

He watched the doctors hands go up and down as they tried cpr on her.

He heard the orders being yelled, he heard them upping the charge number on the AED.

You could hear Ice sobs even aganist Sarah’s shoulder. But what you couldn’t hear and see was death as it loomed over his daughter.

“Give me another chance God, please”.

#top gun #tom kazansky #top gun maverick #tom kazansky x reader

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redundare · 2 years ago

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so, okay. relistening to Part 16 of Malevolent i went into a research spiral about Eugene O'Neill, whose poem "Free" Arthur recites for John. name wasn't familiar to me, but some of his plays i recognize by name: The Iceman Cometh, Long Day's Journey Into Night. okay so far so normal.

then i start coming across poems like Nocturne, and monologues like this one (CW attempted suicide, child death). like, damn, okay, i see why Harlan chose this writer for Arthur, and the podcast in general. very thematically on point

THEN. i read the wiki page for The Great God Brown. hold up. use of masks? a character takes the mask and poses as someone’s husband and by the time she finds out, the "real" Billy has faded away, and he’s accused of killing his "real" self?? hold up hold up hold up we're in King in Yellow territory

AND THEN i discover O'Neill is famous for his use of masks in his plays, not just in The Great God Brown but others too, and there's dozens of papers written about it. O'Neill himself wrote an article called "Memoranda on Masks" in which he says things like, "the mask is dramatic in itself, has always been dramatic in itself, is a proven weapon of attack."

U H M ? ? ?

in a different article for the NYT, he writes of the characters in The Great God Brown,

“When he steals Dion’s mask of Mephisopheles he thinks he is gaining the power to live creatively while in reality he is only stealing that creative made self-destructive by complete frustration. This devil of mocking doubt makes short work of him. It enters him, rending him apart, torturing and transfiguring him until he is even forced to wear a mask of his success […] Thus Billy Brown becomes not himself to any one. And thus he partakes of Dion’s anguish [...] and in the end out of this anguish his soul is born.”

hey harlan, what the fuck, man. O'Neill isn't even NAMED IN THAT EPISODE! if i pull on EVERY string will something fall out?? like how the fuck does he keep doing this??? anyway, new pet theory that O’Neill is one of the King’s and Arthur was attracted to his work because of Yellow-Tinted Reasons. O’Neill’s also alive in canon rn, so I hope John insists on seeing one of his plays when they’re in NYC

#malevolent #a game we play with a malevolent entity

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wanderingmind867 · 8 months ago

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Team 3 (Angel, Iceman, Gargoyle, Man-Thing and Namor): When the dream demon ambushed Namor, he sent him to a strange planet with a rocky surface and a deadly sea of fire with only very tiny rivers dotting the far flung countryside. It is a struggle to stay alive for the Sub-Mariner, being so far from the life giving sea. It becomes a quest of endurance as he must go from the rocky cliffs and fiery oceans of this land to their one lush, jungle paradise and it's waters of life, a paradise at least a week or two away, if we're being generous.

Angel, Iceman, Gargoyle and the Man-Thing end up on this world too when the dream demon ambushes them in the swamp. By the time they get to this strange world, Namor is already nearly at his jungle destination, although he is about to fall into the trap of the mosntrous beast stalking those jungles. In any case, our quartet (Angel, Iceman, Gargoyle and Man-Thing set out for the jungle paradise too, but not before they have a nasty fight with a powerful fire demon who is the guardian of a giant volcano.

While on their quest, our strange quartet meet a nature spirit who has lost her way. She needs the team's help. Once, this land was home to a beautiful, verdant forest. But now, all that remains is rock and fire. Her beautiful Willow tree is gone. And the longer her tree is gone, the weaker and weaker she gets. She's nearly on the verge of fading away (just like all her fellow nature spirits did) by the time our quartet find her.

Willow is also able to warn them about the jungle to the north. It's a large trap. The strongest of all the monsters is located there: a giant shapeshifting beast with the power to shoot fire and acid. He's the reasons this whole world has fallen to pieces. Willow wants to go with the team to help them fight him, to get revenge for her fallen brethren.

Also, Willow and Man-Thing have a strange bond. Possibly because Willow is a nature spirit, she is able to touch the Man-Thing in a way few others can. But for the whole team, she is pretty much their guide to this strange new world.

Eventually, our strange group of five manage to make it to the jungle, where they're ambushed by the shapeshifting beast. Well, some are. Man-Thing and Willow narrowly escape. But Angel, Iceman and Gargoyle are captured and manage to meet up with Namor. While these four prisoners are busy escaping from the beasts giant nest, Willow is trying to find his weakness. She remembers a story she once heard from another nature spirit when she was just a sapling: about a shapeshifting beast defeated by a legendary warrior using nothing but sheer endurance and trickery. He tricked the beast into a cave, then sealed the cave shut behind him. There was no food in the cave, so the beast died of starvation.

Just as Willow remembers all this, the others show up. And together, they use their combined skills to defeat the beast. Man-Thing and Gargoyle will fight the beast and face all his blows with their heavy endurance, while Willow, Angel, Iceman and Namor lure him into a cave. Angel leads him all the way to the very back of the cave, where Iceman gets to finish him off with a powerful Icy Spear to the chest. Then (once Angel and Iceman have escaped the cave), Namor uses his mighty strength to create a rock slide which traps the injured beast's body inside the cave.

Now that they've beaten the beast, the dream demon's curse is ended. And all our heroes are driven back to Man-Thing's Swamp. The strange thing though: Willow came with them. Her connection to the Man-Thing (plus her world being the temporary creation of a demon) leads to her simply being sent to earth with the rest of them. She can finally go back to being a nature spirit, and not worrying about dying from the lack of connection to nature.

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pollyna · 2 years ago

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AO3 First Lines Tag Game

Tagged by: @oftincturedwords (thank you for the tag! it looks like fun 👀)

Rules: Share the first lines of ten of your most recent fanfics and tag ten people. If you have written fewer than ten, don’t be shy and share anyway.

Did you see the drummer's hair? (wip, top gun, halo/phoenix)

Three a.m. in the morning, and even though the mission was over two months ago, insomnia clings to her body like a second skin she can shed away. It doesn't even matter how many times she calls Bradley in the middle of the night to make sure he's alive and she doesn't lose her best friend once and for all.

2. The adventures of Mr. Iceman and Baby Goose (wip, top gun, gen)

Mav says is good because they're going to bond, Carole nods and smiles and Bradley says Mr. Iceman moma always takes me to the candy shop on Sunday and Ice knows the kid is totally bullshitting him but then Carole asks if they can take some strawberries one and how Ice can say no, at that point?

3. You got MIA before our first (second) date (wip, top gun, warlock/cyclone)

Sicily sounds and looks like a dream after months of forced cohabitation in some bumfuck port in the northern part of Russia, with people who wanted them there even less than they did. Despite its name, Archangel doesn't have anything of the holiness the name promised if one doesn't consider the white of the snow that never seems to end, and when it does, it paves the way for the ice and wind. And even if it's just twenty-four hours before their new assignment somewhere in the world, everyone is hoping for a place with lenient weather. Something in the air makes Warlock carefully optimistic.

4. The good parts (complete, top gun, pre-relationship)

Ice knows there is something important because Slider's head is against his shoulder, but the man is watching the flowers on the table and not the match he had spent all day talking about. And when Ice says he spent all day talking about the match, he means Slider even doodled the teams' logos on his notes, but he has the nagging sensation something did happen between class and when he was on a date with Mav.

5. My kind of love (complete, top gun, halo/phoenix)

Callie doesn't really care about Valentine's day, she never has and probably never will. (When she was in primary school, Valentine's Day was when her favourite teacher baked chocolate cupcakes for the entire class and created silly and funny math exercises that always gave heart-shaped results.)

6. Say it first (complete, top gun, iceman/maverick)

Maverick is observant—maybe not all the time and about everything and everyone around him, but when he wants, he can notice things that most people miss. And Iceman Kazansky? He ends up on his radar for so many different reasons, and Mav can't stop noticing stuff about him, from his favourite type of gum to that little nagging fact that Slider's always asking Ice if it's okay to touch him.

7. Oh, you're the best friend that I ever had. (complete, top gun, iceman&slider)

It's a random morning when Ice writes down I miss flying and doesn't add anything else. Slider doesn't even know if he was supposed to see it or not, but he would take him up himself if Tom wasn't so tired these days. He can barely walk and has to use the wheelchair for most things, and it breaks Ron knowing his best friend is missing the only thing nobody can give him.

8. Halfway home. (complete, ncis, di nozzo/mcgee & di nozzo/david)

Sleep deprivation tastes like coffee with too much sugar on Timothy's lips, looks like three-day stubble and sounds like someone who shallowed an entire fucking encyclopaedia that's getting spewed up all together. It's hell.

9. Lay be me. (complete, top gun, iceman/maverick)

It has been a day, or maybe a week or an entire year, and Ice can feel the tiredness setting in his bones, the way it makes space in every fragment of his being because he's simply done. Tired, over-stressed, over-caffeinated and sleep-deprived but he knows it's going to be worth it all in the long run, even if every day is a fight against people and his own capacity of not snapping and punching some fucking Senator in the face.

10. Rise up (complete, top gun, callie halo shen)

The first punch feels liberatory and she feels even better when Bang doesn't stay down. The second punch is another hit because the man thinks he's a big deal but she can't remember him passing a single self-defence class.

No pressure tag: @redhead-writes, @the-ace-with-spades, @semperhuggs, @bearsinpotatosacks, @destinedtobeloved, @icemankazansky, @derpinathebrave, @ettaberrytea, @xihe1874,, @struggling-with-space

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bearsinpotatosacks · 1 year ago

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Cold Sheath of the Afterlife - Whumptober2023

Do or die, you’ll never make me; Because the world will never take my heart.

Goose floated through the door to follow him. He was seven now, a cub scout with a few teeth missing and his pockets a little heavier from the cash from the tooth fairy. His bag was all packed, sleeping bag tied on top and metal mug dangling from the sides. The bag was almost as big as him.

Mav ruffled his hair as Ice swinged the keys around his finger. Slider opened the trunk of the car and threw in their backpacks. If Goose still had a heart it would pang at a scene like this. Being a ghost was fun sometimes but, god, didn’t it break his heart to see all the things we should be doing with his kid but couldn’t.

For day 6 of @whumptober. Also on AO3. Shows abuse so watch out.

Words: 3544

“Have a good time sweetie!” She called out to Bradley and closed the door.

“You ready for the best weekend ever, squirt?” Slider said

“Yeah!”

“Are we gonna make the best tent ever?” Mav shouted.

“Yeah!”

“I think that’s going to be considered cheating,” Iceman input.

Goose had never seen him as a guy who was good around kids, and he’d been right. He didn’t have a baby voice, or an ability to simplify things so a kid could understand them. A few months ago he’d spotted him trying to explain the complicated physics of a F-14 Tomcat to Bradley when he was meant to be helping him with his science work. The kid had only asked how magnets worked.

“It’s building a tent, how can you cheat at that?”

“Because Bradley’s got three adults and the other kids only have one,”

Bradley’s smile faltered, lowered a tad as he read into what that actually meant. Slider gave him a long stare. One that only a RIO could give his pilot. One that said “I love you, man, but get with the program”. A respectful one that also told them to fuck off. Goose was very familar with it.

Ice tilted his head and rephrased, “It’s just that the other kids are gonna be jealous because we’ll be so much better than them, it’ll ruin their whole weekend.”

Bradley’s smile came back again, wide as ever. “Yeah!”

They packed him off to the car and Goose was left with a decision. Does he go and follow them? Watch them do everything he should be doing right now and feel his hypothetical heart break like his neck did (he was glad he didn’t remain exactly as he’d died because that would be awful)? Or stay and watch Carole with her new boyfriend?

He didn’t want her to stay hung up on him forever, he wanted her happiness above all, but there was wanting her happiness and seeing her get fucked by another guy in the bed that used to be yours. Because that’s what they would be doing. It’s what he and Carole would be doing if he was still alive.

There was something else too. A feeling in his ghost gut that made him wary of Roger. He’d been avoiding him in general, he didn’t see much of him when it was just him and Carole alone for the exact reason he’d just thought of. To him, she was his wife, but she was a widow who was moving on. He’d follow her to work, and Bradley to school, linger around them both at home and make the wind blow just enough that the laundry dried and Bradley’s paper plane flew further and further every time he made one.

He didn’t have any evidence that Roger was a bad guy, though, beyond a ghost feeling whenever he was around. Like someone was trying to tell him something but everything was too muffled for him to properly make it out.

He decided to follow Carole for a little while, at least until her and Roger got handsey, then he’d book it and make sure the wind didn’t blow out the campfire on Bradley’s scout trip, and make sure that he caught the biggest fish too.

Floating through the door again, he expected to hear nothing in particular. General sounds of the house, the washing machine going, or the dishwasher, the TV playing or the click of Carole’s knitting needles. Instead he heard shouting.

“Fuck.” That was Roger.

He was sat on the sofa, leant back with his hand on his forehead. The lines in his face and the tense way he held his shoulder made him realise he was annoyed. His defence went up, he stood by Carole’s side even though he didn’t know a thing that was going on. Even in death, when he couldn’t do much of anything, he’d defend her.

“What? What did I say?” Carole said, exasperated but a little tense too, not angry but careful of her words more than someone who was just arguing would.

“Every time we do something you mention him.”

Roger pointed at Goose. For a second he was alarmed that he could see him, of all the people who could see ghosts he wished it wasn’t him, but he looked through himself and at the shelf over the fireplace. It was him he was pointing at, but just a picture of him instead of his ghost. This was about him?

“He was the father of my child, I think I can be a little sentimental when Bradley’s going on a scout weekend that Goose should’ve been on with him”

Goose smiled to himself. In sync. Even when parted.

“And he’s dead!”

Carole flinched. She pouted, her eyebrows furrowed as she butted her lip out. She crossed her arms.

“Don’t give me that look,” Roger said, getting up. “Don’t go like you always do, making me the bad guy, here, I’m just saying the truth here.”

“I know he’s dead.”

“Then why don’t you act like it!”

Roger threw his arms out, standing over Carole in a way that Goose didn’t like. They’d had arguments but he’d never talked to her like this.

“What do you want me to cry? Fall asleep in his shirts like I used to for the first year after he died until they didn’t smell of him anymore, just me?”

He’d hated that time as much as she had. Every night, she’d curl up wearing a different one of his shirts, and every night he curled up around her as if she could feel his embrace through the cold sheath of the afterlife.

“No.”

Roger got closer. Carole met him, stared that stubborn glare back at him as he made himself taller.

“Then what?”

“I want you to act how you told me you would when we first started dating.”

“Which is like what?”

That must have stepped on a nerve. She goaded the snake too much and got the fangs. But your boyfriend wasn’t meant to be like goading a snake, more like cuddling a goose, like himself. Not that he had a bias.

“Being over your dead husband and not making me turn into him!”

He jumped forward, grabbing a vase, her vase, off the table next to him and throwing it over her head. Her defiance disappeared as if it was never there. Instead of an intimidating glare, her eyes were wide, like a child being shouted at for the first time, her body froze. Goose came to the cold realisation that this wasn’t the first fight like this, this is what he’d been missing by avoiding them being together alone.

“Because that’s exactly what you do, day in and day out, talking about him, making sure that I know that I will always be second best to a man I’ve never met.” He stood closer, close enough that Carole instinctively took a step backwards, away from him. “But he’s dead, and you know what? I’ve always been kind of happy because I thought that meant that I got to have you, but I don’t.”

He took another step forward, leaning over her, boxing her in so the only way she could go was back. Goose wanted nothing more than to push him away from her and throw him out the door.

“I’m second place to a dead man.”

“No,” Carole squeaked.

“A man I’ll never be able to get rid of.”

She shook her head still as more tears fell.

“A man who probably deserved to be dead.”

“No!”

He pounced. Throwing her against the wall and pinning her hands above her head. Goose felt his non-existant heart pound, breath he didn’t need to breathe coming out in hot pants as he singled in on the one fact that was true. Roger was abusing her. He was abusing his wife.

“Why not? Huh?” He said, then shouted louder when he tried to argue back with tears covering her face. “Why not!”

“He killed people, he was in the Navy, he was legally allowed to kill people, how did he not deserve to die? Why is he a better man than me? A hard working man who just wants a woman that loves him to come home to?”

Her jaw trembled. He gripped her wrists harder.

“You’re hurting me, stop it.”

He carried on speaking like she hadn’t said anything.

“Why am I the bad one? When you’re constantly comparing me to a killer? To a dead man who is never coming back and probably fucked other people while he was away?” He carried on filling up all the space around her. “I’m the loyal one, I’m the one that raises a kid that isn’t mine while you don’t appreciate it!”

She shook her head again, pulling at her hands as he held them. The way she struggled gave him flashes of what might have happened before, when he wasn’t there. Goose began to feel sick.

“Get away from her,” he shouted at Roger, knowing he wouldn’t hear her.

“I do appreciate it, I do!” Carole said, crying all the more.

“Well you don’t show it!” Roger bellowed back. “All you do is make me feel like shit and I’m the bad guy?”

She shook her head but it was useless. Nothing she said would stop him. His face was going red, spit coming out of his mouth as he shouted at her. It landed on her face as he did, she flinched every time.

“Get away from her.” Goose said again.

“Is that what you think?” Roger shouted again. “Is that what you think!”

“No!”

“It is, isn’t it?”

“No!”

“Yes!”

Roger let go of her wrists a bit. He stood back, giving her some room to breathe. Goose felt relieved for a moment before his stomach dropped again, like going down a rollercoaster with no end.

“Well maybe I should knock some sense into that head of yours, make you see reason!”

Goose had never wished to be corporeal more as he watched him pull back one hand, grip her head with it and smack it against the wall as hard as he could. He couldn’t unhear her cry of pain or the thud against the wall. He couldn’t stop looking at Roger did it again with a satisfied look of anger on his face.

“Get off her!” Goose yelled.

He reached for him only for his hands to go straight through him. You’d think the universe would give him some leeway for this? He’s been made to watch his own wife get beaten and couldn’t intervene at all?

Roger smacked her head again. Carole tried to reach for his wrist, getting a loose grasp that he could shake off immediately. Everytime she managed to get a hold and tried to tug his hand off her head, he’d smash it back into the wall.

“Get off her!”

Goose just kept on yelling at him. He knew he was going red in the face now too. Hoping that the universe or God or something would notice his effort and do something was all he could do as he screamed at Roger to let her go. He didn’t stop, or wonder why, when his throat began to scratch. He didn’t stop when Carole gave out muffled cries of pain as she wiggled and writhed to try and get out from behind him.

“Don’t touch her!” Goose yelled again. “Get your hands off my wife, get your filthy fucking hands off my wife!”

Roger couldn’t hear him. Carole couldn’t see him fighting with all his might to save her. Roger held her up with just his hand on her skull, keeping her dangling in the air. Goose noticed blood splashed on the wall.

“Are you getting it yet?” Roger said, monotone and cold, past rage and into that really fucking scary stage when you knew there was absolutely nothing you could do.

Carole nodded as much as she could in his grasp.

Goose stood panting, hoping it would stop but realising too late that it wasn’t, not yet.

Roger pulled his arm back one more time and threw Carole against the wall with a vigour that made the crack of her skull echo around the room. She fell to the floor like a forgotten toy. Her body limp, eyes closed in unconsciousness.

In a cool, almost rehearsed manner, Roger stepped away and watched her as she breathed in and out without thought. “You never learn.”

~~~~

The campsite wasn’t too far away. It wouldn’t take too long to get there, in fact, after travelling just ten minutes, it was only another forty minutes until they would arrive at their destination. At least that’s what Ron was reading on the map.

Bradley had gone quiet a little bit ago. Looking around as discretely as possible before going a little pale and blurting out. “I forgot my goose.”

Mav turned around and looked around the back of the car.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” Bradley said. “We need to go back, I can’t go without him!”

Tom sighed, “It’s only two nights, bud, you’ll be so busy that you won’t even miss it.”

Mav mouthed ‘him’ at Ice.

“But I need him with me, it’ll feel like dad’s here too!”

Ice, Mav and Slider all paled at the mention of Goose. Even three years later, it still wasn’t an easy subject. Bradley was without a father and no matter how much they all tried to overcompensate, they couldn’t deny that fact.

Tom sighed and indicated to turn around. “We’re only ten minutes in anyway, and we left early on purpose.”

The car ride was quieter as they made their way back to the Bradshaw house. Goose was lingering on everyone’s minds as they pulled into the drive and Mav undid his seatbelt.

“I’ll go and get it, where is it baby goose?”

“On my bed, I think.”

Mav nodded and made his way to the house. It was silent when he entered. Silent apart from the sound of Roger’s panting breaths. Either he’d walked in on something he didn’t want to see, or he was working out.

He was wrong.

Roger didn’t see him but Pete saw what he’d done. Carole was on the floor, unconscious. There was blood on the wall. A smashed vase lay scattered alongside Carole’s limp form.

He tried to leave as quietly as possible. Peaking his head out of the door, he gestured at Tom and Ron to come inside. They looked confused as he kept on waving his hand at them until they both rolled their eyes and got out of the car, leaving Bradley there.

“Can’t you find it or something?” Ron said.

Pete shushed him immediately and pointed toward the living room. They followed his point and saw the scene at hand. Ron’s nostrils flared as his hands clenched. Before they could stop him, he’d already stormed in and got Roger by his shirt up against the wall.

“Ron what are you doing?” Tom charged forward after him.

“Giving him a taste of his own medicine.” He said through gritted teeth.

“What did I do?” Roger said.

This aggravated all of them, Ron even more for some reason. He pushed him harder against the wall, his biceps straining barely, he was lifting him like he weighed nothing at all.

“What did you do? What did you do?” Ron roared. “You beat up our fucking friend!”

“She tripped, she fell over the side table, can’t you see by the vase.”

Pete met eyes with Tom and shook his head. They all knew that was a lie. After years in foster care, he was well accustomed to them, whether it was stories from other kids or from the foster parents themselves. Tom didn’t, he’d had a bit of a claustrophobic home life but nothing dangerous or abusive. He didn’t know about Ron, though, sometimes it felt they were only friends because they were friends with Tom.

“Bullshit.”

“It’s the truth.”

Ron shoved him up the wall again, teeth bared and breath heaving out of him like a steam train going up a hill. “Bullshit!”

“My dad used to pick on my mom when he was around, until I got big enough to make him stop, and he never came back, I’m thinking I might do the same to you.”

He began to lower him to the ground, still holding his securely with one hand and swinging the other back ready to punch. Tom ran in at the last second, holding his arm back and giving him the iconic Iceman stare.

“Don’t tell me you believe this son of a bitch.” Ron said.

“No. But think about it, if you beat him up, he’ll have leverage if this goes to court, he might be able to get a lighter sentence or even play it as a domestic fight gone wrong and get off scot free.”

Ron turned back to where Roger was struggling in his grasp. He tightened his grip on his shirt.

“But we’ve seen this, he can’t get off if we’ve seen it?”

“There’s sign of a struggle, yeah, what if he makes Carole seem bad? Make you out to be her side thing, or a jealous ex-lover and he was defending her?”

Roger’s face was blank. Pete daren’t go any closer. Something within him couldn’t. It was bringing back things he thought he’d gotten over years ago, or maybe just blocked out. He felt like a child, watching his parents argue, not understanding what was going on entirely but feeling guilty somehow.

“So what do you say we do?”

“Call the cops, call an ambulance, you keep a hold on him.”

Ron nodded, turning back to Roger. “I can do that.” He said, gripping his arms until they began to go white under his grip. “But it’s a shame, though, cause I was going to give you what you deserve.”

Tom let go of Ron’s arm and moved back to the hall to call the emergency services. He noticed Pete just standing there.

“What about Bradley?” He said.

He wasn’t sure if it was concern for the kid, what if Roger had done this to him too, what if he saw this, what did they say, or if it was because he’d been in similar situations. People he cared about getting hurt, foster parents hurting friends in the system, bullies at school. He felt like he was shrinking, like Alice in Wonderland getting smaller and smaller with no signs of hope.

“We’ll say she tripped,” Tom said, stroking his arm. “It’s not the truth and I don’t like using Roger’s story but I don’t fancy explaining abuse to a seven year old, do you?”

He shook his head and walked over to Carole. He made sure to take careful steps as he stepped around Ron and over the broken shards of that vase that belonged to Carole’s grandmother.

In the background, he heard Tom on the phone to the police. He was using his professional voice, the ‘I am an important member of the Navy and am going to make Admiral’ voice.

Kneeling down next to Carole, Pete realised that he didn’t really feel like speaking. He thought it was shock. Shock and anger and fear all at once. And grief. He wanted Goose back now more than anything. This wouldn’t be happening if he was here, they’d probably be at the campsite or getting close, Goose would be failing at pitching a tent and Bradley would have to show him how. Good conflict, not this.

“Nicky?” A croaky voice whispered from below him. “Nicky?”

It was Carole. Her eyes were barely open. Her voice was low and quiet, either from fear or because her head was pounding he didn’t know.

“No, Carole, it’s Pete, you’re safe now.”

“Nicky it hurts, my head hurts.”

She didn’t listen to him. But as her eyes opened, he got the feeling that she wasn’t actually speaking to him. Her eyes focused on someone above him, behind him who, when he looked, wasn’t actually there. His stomach dropped.

“Can’t you make it stop? It really hurts.”

Was she hallucinating? Or actually seeing him? Neither answer gave him any comfort.

“Tom, how far away is that ambulance?” He called.

He turned his head and pulled the receiver away from his head. “Ten minutes, why?”

“Tell them to hurry up.” He looked back at Carole. “She’s seeing Goose.”

More fics in the carole pain train! But it's fine, she ends up fine later on, don't worry, there's another fic that in my mind carries on in this fic universe. Thanks for reading! @whumptober-archive

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kevin--of-desert-bluffs · 2 years ago

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WTNV quick rundown - The Novel -

This is the post talking about randon Night Vale/King City and Man in the Tan Jacket facts!

Basic Plot of the Novel is here. Diane, Josh and Jackie random facts here. NV citizens random facts here.

The history of the town of Night Vale is long and complicated, reaching back thousands of years to the earliest indigenous people in the desert. We will cover none of this here. […] It is a friendly desert community, where the sun is hot, the moon is beautiful and mysterious lights past overhead while we all pretend to sleep. Welcome to Night Vale.

In NV, pharmacists wear gas masks and hip waders.

Hearts in NV are made of straw and clay and grow at age 9 or at least that's what they're taught.

Manual transmission works like this: 1 - whisper a secret into the cup holder, 2 - grab the clutch (a splintered wooden stake driven into the dashboard), 3 - shake it till something happens whilst taping a series of code numbers into a keyboard on the steering wheel.

Not yielding to a hooded figure will cause a mandatory city-wide ennui.

Encrypted radio pulses announce the opening of 'Lenny's Bargain House of Garden Wares'. As well as the titular function the government will also be unloading failed machines, tests and dangerous substances. The shop is being built on the site where the government was previously doing said tests. If you go to the grand opening sale and find 8 government secrets you get an 'free' government kidnapping and personality reassignment.

To protect against identity theft, Cecil recommends changing your passwords often, wearing a mask in public, blacking out your door number with black spraypaint and 'never ending up on a database'.

The 'Absurd Bowl' and 'Knife Ball' are events that happen in NV.

The NV job market is apparently very scarce as the hooded figures do most of the jobs in NV.

Here is what else we know about the MITTJ. He has a belt which is a darker brown than his shoes. His hair is recently cut. His face is clean and smooth. His teeth are almost white and his left upper bicuspid is a little further forward than the others.

The Moonlite diner has mugs from different sources, some of which leave strange sounds or hum. It has cracked red stools which smell of rubber and sawdust. It's pies are described as 'ok' and some are invisible. Food is served by a grey hand which extends from under the table and should not be acknowledged.

Most people in NV have no idea what doctors do only that it's rumoured to be beneficial. The hospital in NV is built next to the abandoned mine. Hospital rooms are full of cameras and speakers asking you to ask your doctor invasive questions. It was closed years ago and is no longer run by any recognised medical professionals or beings that are or were ever alive.

There are several spy satellites scanning citizens brains and revealing their thoughts. For some reason, Cecil has access to some of these.

'No country for old men' is a kids film in NV. They also have a 'popular animated franchise' about trees with human organs inside who are being cut down until vengeful arboreal spirits eviscerate the loggers. Lee Marvin is in it.

NV is confirmed to be somewhere in SW california.

Childrens friends are assigned by City Council decree based on the numerology of each child's name.

Hot milk drawers are a thing, also all avocados in NV are fake.

Metallic trees that change size each day are considered the plants most suited for a desert climate.

The NV cinema has nightly screenings of John Frankenheimes 1973 'the Iceman Cometh'. Popcorn prices are linked to the coal market.

There is a 'Top Secret Censorship Board' run by a guy called Luis who judges each film based on the risk of being shown a forbidden idea or gesture.

Having a regular police was see as too dangerous as knowledge of them could somehow be used against NV. The previous police were renamed the 'Secret Police', driving dark red sedans with gold racing stripes, black 7-pointed stars with the words 'Secret Police' on the cars side. They also wear capes and have a blowgun belt.

When writing tickets, these officers are required to describe the nature of the sunlight at the time of the infraction in verse.

You can only petition a speeding ticket if you go to city hall, so most people just pay the ticket, even if they're given one when they're not in a car.

Some magazine articles in NV; "10 ways to redecorate your bloodstone circle", "How to lose weight without losing sight of your own mortality" and "A cake recipe that only people who hate our government will want to try so mail us your best pictures of making it and we will take you away."

Some doors in NV require you to bleed on them to open.

There is an annual Imaginary Corn Festival and Fun Fair. There is a costume contest sponsored by the NV daily journal (dress as the decline of the printed word) where winners will not be forced to sign up for a several subscriptions to the journal.

The NV version of a Greek Salad is fruit and pumice stones.

The NV tourism board has a brochure with the tagline 'A town full of hidden evils and the secretly malevolent' featuring a picture of a diverse group of townfolk smiling and looking at the camera in the windowless prison they will be kept in until enough tourists visit NV to buy their release.

Aside from known eateries, there's also apparently places called 'Shame' and 'Pieces O' Grass' and 'Missing Frog Salad Bar' (which serves orangemilk and salad' in NV.

NV knowledges says the only known book on European history was a pamphlet on Svitz which was burnt by the 'Book Cleansers' because they mistook the giraffe on the front for a handgun.

It is illegal in NV to not have some kind of tracking device on you at all times. Most people choose a mobile phone but some still wear bulky tracking collars.

Most planes in NV are private, propeller, secret military drones and government planes used to make chemtrails.

The world government all wear blue headphones and horn-rimmed glasses.

Flamingos in NV are creatures that have six legs and double beaks.

Most bath gel or greeting card stores in NV have a full staff of bleeding saleclerks.

NV city hall is topped with ancient volcanic stone towers.

There is a service called 'Lifelock' in NV where they just lock you up and destroy all records of you existing to 'protect you from identity theft, impersonation, assassination, assignations and memory removal'.

Larry Leroy finds these things out in the desert: a metallic sphere that fell from the sky and whistles softly as if bored, his double, the body of the main in the pinstripe suit and a new way of breathing. The main in the pinstripe suit btw, goes through an existential crisis during the novel, cumulating in him trying to touch the planet of awesome size and then, death.

KC is a small town of little over 10,000 people in Monterey County. It's newspaper is called the KC rustler. Citizens include Wanda Nieves and Ynez.

The post office in KC is a one-storey stucco building with no front door, a splintered parapet walls with missing letters on it's marquee and a tree that has grown through the broken sidewalk and into one of the many shattered windows.

There's a 'video store' which only contains tall shelves full of loose tapes, some labelled and some not. Some shelves are densely packed, others nearly empty. The labels are handwritten and some simply have rows of x's, j's, p's etc. The walls at the back are made of mud and are easily pulled away to reveal a different room behind it. There's a music store containing a woman on a chair who pulls a face at Jackie/Diane. A bait shop where the empty jars keep exploding and cutting the man working there. A phone shop where the salesclerk doesn't remember ever having a customer before.

The flies that the MITTJ sells form a protective cloud in front of him whenever he is threatened.

The copier in the KC city hall is endlessly printing, so that there's stacks of paper everywhere. The receptionist is typing on a computer which is actually just a carved block of wood painted to look like a computer.

KC has a Taco Bell which people would stop off at on their way to either a town called Greenfield of a state wildlife area.

Stay tuned next for the sound of a creaking spine and the soft collapse of paper onto itself.

#wtnv #wtnv quick rundown #wtnv the novel #wtnv the novel rundown

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zumek0 · 1 year ago

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draft 03; nakahara, c.

↪︎ angst, heavy stormbringer spoilers, stormbringer references, mentions of death, gore?, a little bit of body horror, panic attack.

↪︎ 1.1k words.

↝ “…you hold him. because that's the only thing you can do for him when he's in this state. so you keep holding him as he screams.”

whenever someone meets him for the first time, they usually have the same impression: an arrogant, crass, young man, who only got to where he is because of his strong ability. he was blessed with a fearsome gift that could end entire groups in an instant. after all—no one can escape gravity.

but nakahara chuuya is more than just an ability.

he is a man.

he is a friend.

he is a human.

or at least that is what he tells himself while staring at his reflection on his bathroom mirror, after waking up from a very particular nightmare he had from time to time. chuuya didn’t dream. at least not often. ever since fighting paul verlaine, he started dreaming every now and then. however his dreams weren’t the nonsensical kind that he heard most people had, no. his were memories.

some felt like distant lifetimes: going to school and playing tag with his classmates, helping his mother set the table, eating dinner with his parents, trying to climb a tree (and failing miserably) and getting hurt, his dad tending to his wound, watching his mother do her makeup, eating a popsicle underneath a tree.

common childhood memories.

except he didn’t recall living these events. he couldn’t have. because nakahara chuuya didn’t have a childhood. he was born in suribachi city at the hands of a team of scientists. arthur rimbaud freed him from the glass cylinder he was contained in. there was no way he had ever lived those memories.

but those dreams were pleasant, even when they served as a reminder of the normalcy that he would never have in his existence.

his nightmares, however, were a whole different story. there were nights where he would wake up disoriented, the feeling of electric currents flowing through his body as vivid as ever. he could feel his skin burning, almost as if he had been skinned alive and his nerves were exposed bare.

other nights he would wake up and couldn’t help but cry. he would cry for hours until either his body exhausted itself or the sun rised. on days like those no matter how hard he tried, he could not get rid of the smell of blood he felt when he entered the pool hall, the feeling of albatross’s hand going limp between his, the splat of lipmann’s body after it hit the floor, the image of what was left of doc’s body, the expression iceman had on his face.

he felt like his senses weren’t there with him, almost feeling as if they were in a different reality than his body.

“This isn’t a present. This is a flag. Ever since the days of Ancient Rome, there has only been a reason to raise a flag: to tell people, ‘We are here, and we are the chosen ones.’” it was lippmann’s voice.

chuuya tried to open his eyes but couldn’t. shut up.

“If any one of the six of us is ever in trouble, you remember that flag and gather under it.”

chuuya realized that he couldn’t open his eyes because they were already open. everything was dark. please shut up.

“We’re counting on you.”

he looks down. he’s in a street, no, a road. in front of his is a blond man wearing a familiar hat. the man was smiling: a different kind of smirk twisted his lips like a black flower blooming—a most unpleasant smile.

the trunk of the car opens. something falls out of it and hits the floor with a sound.

chuuya doesn’t look. he can’t. he recognizes the sound—the sound of a body hitting the floor. of course he recognizes it. it plays in his head over, and over, and over again. chuuya doesn’t look.

“We’re counting on you.”

it was lippmann’s voice.

but it sounds wrong. it sounds strained, almost drowned. it sounds dead.

chuuya looks. he wishes he hadn’t.

he sees lippmann's body in a state that can only be described as destroyed. his bones are crushed, his skin is rotten, worms are crawling out of a hole in his throat, a piece of his skull is missing.

and chuuya tries to scream, just like he did when he first lived it, except nothing comes out. he can't hear anything. he can't feel anything. tears start welling up in his eyes and that's when he wakes up.

you toss and turn restlessly on your bed. even when covered by the thick duvet, you felt strangely cold. you extend your arm, patting the bed next to you, but open your eyes when you feel nothing beside you. you sit up on the bed and scan the room with your eyes.

you get up and cringe a little when your bare feet touch the cold marble floor. you head for the living room, as he usually stayed up reading whenever he couldn't sleep. you hear shallow breathing. you stop.

"baby?" it's coming from the bathroom. you approach it and carefully open the door. "chuu?" your voice sounds clearer now, and your senses become more alert.

as you enter the bathroom your eyes move around and land on a silhouette on the floor.

he is holding his hands over his throat. he can't breathe. his eyes are lost. you kneel in front of him and take his face in your hands to turn it to look at you. he can see your lips moving but he doesn't hear anything. he feels like he's dying. please knock me out.

"what's wrong, baby? what happened?" your voice comes out desperate. think rationally—you tell yourself and back away. his pupils are constricted, his eye movements are erratic, he's sweating and he clearly can't breathe.

you call his name but he doesn't respond, so you grab his face again and caress his cheek with your thumb. he looks at you. he sees your lips moving again. there's ringing in his ears but he can feel your gentle touch on his face. slowly, he starts to make out the words that come out of your mouth. it's his name. over and over again. one of his hands moves to grab your wrist, the other one falls to grab onto his thigh.

"chuuya. scream." your face is serious but your voice sounds tender.

"wha-"

"you need to scream. do it, chuuya. scream. please."

he opens his mouth and tries again. he can hear it this time, so he keeps doing it. he continues to scream until his throat feels raw and burning. he starts crying as well at some point. you bring his face to your chest and rest your chin above his head. his arms wrap around you.

you hold him. because that's the only thing you can do for him when he's in this state. so you keep holding him as he screams. and even when he's quieted down and sunrise covers yokohama in a pinkish-orange tint, you remain in the same position: holding him.

i have a really important test tomorrow, and i haven’t studied a thing. med school is really kicking my ass :')

i've been sick and miserable for the past few days, so i re-read stormbringer. the lippmann scene hits me hard every time. i'm not really sure who the artist of the fanart i used is, so if anyone knows, let me know so i can credit them.

—han.

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thebahwrites · 2 years ago

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TG ‘86/TGM Leverage AU in which Mav and Ice are the only remaining members of the old squad but then a new insane job that involves destroying a huge corporation that’s killing a small town or something like that comes along and they need a new team, so Ice gets his ~old contacts Cyclone and Warlock into finding them a team of proper ~~experts~~ to team up with Mav again.

Character ramble under the cut but I’m just, shakes fist, THINKING SO HARD ABOUT THIS. Just this heist team-found family shenanigans of old criminals putting a wholeass team together and them becoming family.

And then we get, of course: - Iceman as the mastermind/the brain. Ice Cold plans, no mistakes. Maybe he’s not as insane as Mav but his plans? Flawless. - Maverick as the partner-in-crime/master criminal, of course. Man was a CIA cold war spy who simply “disappeared” at some point, never to be found. Became a legend where criminals were concerned. Dead? Alive? Impossible to catch. Some people might even believe he was D.B. Cooper and all. Man is just impossible to catch and does whatever he wants. Too chaotic. (Insert backstory.) - Rooster, Goose’s son*, as the hitter/muscle/brawn/physically trained bastard, the field specialist with a random bunch of skillsets (he plays piano? getaway driver? cook? sing?) that would make him a very decent spy if only he didn’t have a TEMPER, so in general he’s just VERY GOOD at everything else that doesn’t require direct acting or talking too much; *adjacent story with being Mav and Ice’s surrogate son after Goose’s death, etc etc - Hangman as the reckon/spy/grifter, man’s got charm for days, can play any part and has the lightest hands in the business, catch-me-if-you-can type. Nothing gets past him. Watch the hands, not the mouth might be his biggest trick. Getting him into the job? Was a job in itself. Renowned art thief/white collar criminal. Foster kid who got adopted into a rich family and learned how to act the part maybe? - Phoenix as the thief, safe-cracker, stealth skills to the max, will break in and out of any vault, security code, lock and key. Will get in and out through any vent, limbo skills against safety lasers to the max. Also a proper martial artist. Ex-CIA who wanted to do good but turns out being like that doesn’t really help anyone. - Bob as the specialist. Phoenix’s partner in crime & best friend, the one who maps out the territory, her guy in the chair (and ultimately the team’s). He’s the one who knows the places, schedules, everything there is about their plans. Has NO social skills alright but he’ll have everything memorized to a T. Don’t put him to directly interact with the targets, though. No sad backstory, he really just decided to Robin Hood the gig after realizing the insurance companies he tested security systems for were absolutely corrupt and screwing up their clients. - Fanboy as, of course, the hacker & gadget guy. The guy in the chair. He’s not the one to draw plans but he’s the one who help make it all happen, is a huge dork and knows way too much not only about pop culture but about pretty much everything culture. IT genius, definitely broke into the Pentagon systems and got himself into hot water. Payback was his saving grace. You know. The weapons specialist/assassin. The nickname comes with a reason. Mellow dude, another former CIA you don’t wanna piss off. The team hopes they don’t need to use his skills but you won’t get a better sharpshooter in the business. He usually sits with Mickey during their assignments and helps him out with the tech prep. - Coyote as the fixer, he didn’t start as Hangman’s partner but they did a lot of work together so they’re happy to be in the same crew together. Not a criminal as his main profession but he’s ‘the guy who knows a guy who knows a guy’, he’s got the inside, the networking, he can sell anything to anyone, knows everyone, is generally well-loved by the underground community. His main job? Family’s pawn shop. Ends up roped in because he cares about Jake and hey, why not. - Halo, Fritz, Omaha, Yale & Harvard as the guest-in-a-while with different needs to fill in. Omaha & Halo as the decoy/bait, being models as their actual job but they’re friends with Hangman! Fritz as another hacker, Fanboy loves him but their styles are just too wildly different so he brings him in when they need extra juice. Yale & Harvard as underground number runners, the counting cards type people that you DON’T wanna piss off, usually they run casinos to the ground and disappear.

Did I think too much about this? Yes. Did I actually think HARD about it? Yes. Am I considering writing? Maybe. If no one else does. I have even more ideas for the 86 crew. ANYWAY. Please don’t look at me.

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baby-girl-e · 2 years ago

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The Best of My Heart Part 4

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Characters - Rooster x f!Reader, Iceman x Maverick

Summary - Rooster and Maverick finally talk it out before you have to get your boys ready for their mission.

Word Count - 2.9k

Warnings - ongoing grief, talk of loss, angst

A/N - I think this chapter is one of the longest in the series so far! This chapter is a little angsty because of the mission, but the next chapter will be more of a dramatic angst if that makes you feel any better! As always, thank you for reading and my inbox is always open for whatever you want! It could be questions regarding this or any of my other fics, requests (Those will take longer because I need to be inspired in order to really write something good!) or even if you just need a chat :)

They pull up to Mavericks driveway, this time it’s Bradley that is freaking out slightly. “Babe, just let your heart do the talking. It’s what I did with my mom. Just tell him everything you feel and you should be fine.” He nods and kisses your joined hands before proceeding to get out and knock on his door. you’re welcomed in immediately and you notice both yours and Bradley’s High School graduation photos on the wall, as you go further into his home you notice just how many pictures of you and Bradley over the years. One of your graduation from the fire academy, and Bradley’s graduation from the Naval flight academy. When you reach his living room there’s one big one of him and your dad, the iconic one you always heard stories about and always had on your wall at home growing up. It was apparently taken after their first mission together, right after they had agreed to be each other's wingmen. To the left of it is one of him and Goose in front of their old F-14, and to the right of it is one with you, Mav, and your dad when you were little. “Wow Mav I’ve never seen so many photos of me in one home!” He blushes slightly at your comment, “Not to pass the blame, but your dad did send me most of them. Mostly at my request, but still.” You smile and turn to Bradley who tenses up.

You all sit down and Mav looks nervous. “So, how did things go with your mom?” You almost don’t want to tell him, hoping he won’t feel betrayed by your father keeping this from him. “Um, she took it really well actually.” Maybe you could just not tell him? “Really? Did she already know or something?” You put your face in your hands and take a deep breath. Did all kids have to do this after their parent died? Were you the only one who had to pretty much play conduit for your dead dad and would be lover? “Mav, I’m going to tell you something but you have to know that it changes nothing. Even if you knew while he was alive, it wouldn’t have changed anything.” He looked right confused now. “My parents had an agreement. My mom was never attracted to anyone romantically or sexually. As you know my dad was not attracted to women or anyone really that wasn’t you. They became good friends and decided that getting married was the best way to both get what they needed, and not hurt anyone.” Mav looked less confused now and more shocked. “So Sarah never loved him like that?” You shake your head. “So this whole time they kept up this facade? Why didn’t they tell me?” You do feel bad for the man, having his whole life flipped on its head in the last week or so. “According to mom, dad didn’t want to give you false hope. He hoped you would have moved on eventually and find someone else.” Mav laughs at that, almost like it was the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever said. “Well he’s an idiot if he thought I would ever find someone better than him.” You laugh with him, agreeing.

You have learned a lot about their relationship recently and one thing was for sure, There was no way in hell either of them could ever love anyone else the same. “Yeah he did have his moments. But we did actually come here tonight for a different reason, Bradley?” you urge Bradley to start. “So Mav, I just thought we should talk about what happened between us.” Maverick seems excited by this prospect and smiles slightly. “That’s probably a good idea. You should start.” Bradley nods and if these weren’t your two favorite men on the earth it would’ve been awkwardly tense. “Growing up without a dad was hard, Mav. I barely remember him, and if I do it’s brief flashes and stories my mom told me. It was hard, but I had you. You were my dad for so long. I always wanted to make you proud, because if you were proud of me that meant that my dad was proud of me. I thought applying to the Naval Academy would’ve made you proud, but you stabbed me in the back instead. I guess what I need to know is why?” Maverick took a deep breath, always getting emotional about his best friend and former RIO. “What I did was wrong, I know that now. But at the time I was scared of what could happen to you. I couldn’t save your dad, but I thought that maybe I could save you.” Bradley’s eyes shone with unshed tears. “But Mav, instead of protecting me you hurt me. You thought you were saving me from a worse fate, but instead you made me think that the one person left alive that I loved didn’t trust me.” Mav slid his hands down his face. “I never wanted to make you feel that way Bradley and I’m sorry. Is there any way you can forgive me?” Bradley seems torn, on the one hand he had a lot of pride and wanted to hold the grudge, you knew this about him. On the other hand you knew how much this man meant to him. Yeah Maverick was like a dad to you, but Maverick was the only dad that Bradley had. “You have to know that no matter what you did, I was going to get in a plane sooner or later. It’s in my blood. But Mav, damn it, I can forgive you. I think I have for a while, I just didn’t know how to say it until Y/N here showed me how.” He turns to wink at you and you blush, sliding closer to him. Sometimes you have these moments of ‘Damn I really love him’. “Thank you Bradley, it means a lot. I know your dad would’ve been proud. Especially the work you’ve done to prepare for the mission in a few days.”

Wait. Days? “I’m sorry, am I missing something? I thought it was like in a week and a half?” Once again it dawns on you that you could lose everything. Bradley see’s your panic immediately and holds you tighter. “They had to move up the mission, I meant to tell you, but I wasn’t sure how things would go with your mom. I didn’t want to overwhelm you.” Sweet boy, stupid, but sweet. “Bradley, I'm a big girl, I can handle it. I just wish there was more time. We just found each other again, I don’t want that to go away.” He shuts his eyes tight and shakes his head. “Y/N, You’re not losing me. Okay? I am very good at what I do.” His words comfort you some, but not enough. “I know that, I do. But sometimes things happen. You can’t promise me you’ll come back and that’s what scares me.” Maverick decides that this is his moment to chime in. “Sweetheart, listen. You’re right, stuff happens. But, from experience you can prevent a lot. That’s why we’ve been training for all these weeks for this specific mission. I’ve been doing this kind of thing or worse for 30 years and look at me! I’m still in one piece.” That didn’t make you feel a ton better, but it did sate your nerves. “Yeah Mav I’m well aware. All the while you were giving my dad heart attacks because of said things. You know one time he genuinely thought he was having a heart attack?” Mav ruffled his eyebrows, “Wait really? When was this?” You remember it clearly, it was only a few days after he had told you about their past, it was also the moment that you realized it wasn’t really in the past. At least for your dad. “One of your tours in Afghanistan, You went into a tailspin and they didn’t see you eject. They apparently called my dad immediately and he really thought you were gone. We took him to the hospital where they told him he had just had a major panic attack. By the time they discharged him he got a call saying they found you and were sending you home.” Maverick didn’t look shocked, just ashamed. “I guess that explains the very ‘Iceman’ greeting I got when he visited me back at base. Sorry about that.” You smile and shake your head at your poor step-dad. “Mav, he loved you. He never stopped worrying about you. But now that he’s gone, that burden falls to me. Please for the love of god don’t give me a heart attack? Same goes for you Bradley.” Your boys were going to be the death of you, you knew it.

Time unfortunately flew and it was the morning of the mission before you knew it. The three of you had stayed at Mavs place the night before at your request. You needed everyone in the same spot and you didn’t think you could handle two separate goodbyes. It feels like the morning of a long trip, but more sinister. Hustle and bustle getting things ready, so early in the morning that it's still dark and even a little cold. Tensions were high, but they were mostly out of concern for you. “How are you feeling this morning sweetheart?” Mav was looking out for you, you knew, but you were mostly concerned with them. You think they had gotten sleep, Bradley at least had, but you weren’t sure about Mav. It had dawned in you last night that this was his first mission without his wingman back on the ground rooting for him. At least you knew that wherever he was, your dad was still looking out for him. “I’m doing okay Mav, did you get any sleep?” He shakes his head and carries on righting his uniform.

You don’t bother getting ready for the day, knowing whatever makeup you put on will ultimately be cried off later. Too soon, both of your boys were ready to leave, Maverick is the first to break the silence. He urges you to sit before he starts. “Y/N, yesterday Bradley and I discussed what we should do about our emergency contacts. I was Bradley’s even with everything that had happened, and your dad was mine. Now, since we’re both going to be on the mission, we thought it best to pick you as our contact. If you don’t want to, I understand,” You cut him off with a hand. “Of course I want to. But I didn’t know I could, don’t I have to be in close relation to you? Legally?” Maverick carries on his explanation, “They’d like it to be yes, but sometimes people don’t have close legal family. You just have to put down a relationship with the person.” You could’ve laughed if you weren’t so stressed. “And what on heaven's earth did you both put down?” Bradley blushed, not expecting to need to explain. “I put down Significant other. I figured girlfriend didn’t sound official enough.” He seemed a little shy about his answer, as if he thought you might think it was weird. “Do you want me to be more than your girlfriend Bradley?” You knew now was not the time to bring this up but you just couldn’t help yourself. “I, uh- I mean don’t you? I know it’s a bit soon but we’re headed that way right?” Putting your hand on his arm you slow his ramble. “I do want that with you eventually, let’s talk about it when you get back?” He nods and kisses you. Maverick makes his presence known with a clearing of his throat. “I put down that you were my step daughter.” Now this takes you by surprise. Had he really done that? Surely that had raised a few eyebrows. “And how did that go down?” He just laughed and shook his head. “Well I definitely got more than a few weird looks for putting Commander Kazansky’s daughter down as my step daughter but they were so used to what is referred to as ‘Maverick Shit’ that they didn’t say much.” Maverick did have quite the reputation for doing weird things, but he also had the reputation for making those weird things work out for the better.

Soon their time runs out and it’s time for the pilots to leave. Maverick approaches you first, tears in his eyes. “This is far from a goodbye Kazansky. I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you, and how proud your dad is, I know it. Thank you for letting me be a part of your life, even after everything.” You let one tear slip and embrace him. Clinging to him you bury your face into his leather jacket. In that moment it felt like you had your dad back, and you suppose you did. Maverick had always had a piece of your dad with him, always would. “You’re like a father to me Mav. Never forget that. I can still feel how much my dad loved you, you feel like him.” He hugs you tighter at that, kisses the top of your head and releases you. With a nod, he turns around and heads for the front door. Now it was time for the hard part, Bradley. He approaches you slowly, taking his hands in yours, pressing a kiss to your joint hands. “Y/N, I love you, more than anything. I really don’t want this to be a goodbye but…” He trails off, searching for his words. “But I don’t think I can get on that carrier without telling you how I feel. I need you to know that this is it for me, you’re it for me. I’m going to do everything in my power to come home to you and bring Mav home too.” You stare at him with watery eyes. How did you feel so lucky and gutted at the same time? “I love you too Bradley. You better come home so I can show you just how much.” You punctuate that last word with a wink, hoping he gets your hidden meaning.If his blush is any indication: he does. After one last kiss to Bradley and a hug to Maverick you finally gain the courage to open the door to let them out. You promised them both you wouldn't be alone the whole time, Lindsey coming to pick you up and take you home in an hour, and that the rest of your coworkers were going to take turns either being with you or taking you out. You had also decided that even though you should keep busy, it was in the best interest of your job to take the week off. A distracted firefighter is not a good firefighter. With the small comfort of knowing your boys were the best of the best, and to them that you’d be well taken care of, you finally let them walk out the door.

Only when it was closed did you let out the tears you were holding in. You knew they’d never leave if you showed them how you really felt, and they needed to go into this knowing you’d be okay. And you would, you’ve done this a million times. You had sent your dad out on countless missions and even Maverick himself. This first moment though was always the hardest, the part where it felt like your heart had been freshly carved out of your chest. You knew you would feel like an open wound until you got the call confirming that they were indeed okay. This time was a little different though, with your dad's funeral being fresh on your mind and the only two things getting you through that had just walked out the front door. You weren’t really a religious person so you rarely prayed, but today you found yourself falling to your knees and calling out to the one person you did believe in. “Dad? I don’t know where you are or if you can hear me but…I need your help here. I know if you have the ability to watch over anyone it’d be those two men out there but dad I need them. I need them like I need air, like I need you. I know that you’re gone and it was your time. I know that. But it can’t be their time too. It just can’t. I love Bradley with my whole heart, like you loved Mav. I need them both to stay so please…” You really didn’t know what you were saying, or what you believed in but you knew that your dad would fight tooth and nail to be there for his family. You knew there wasn’t a force in this universe that could stop that man from being there for You, Maverick, and Bradley. So it didn’t matter what higher power you believed in, You believed in one ‘Iceman’ Kazansky and fuck it if that wasn’t enough.

Tags: @pendragonoflibraries @mys2425 @fangirlofallthings22 @alana4610 @magneticghouls @lewissoul @daddylinguini @tobito-otibot @bridgettt @starstruckselenakylecatwoman @mysty-swirl @jess-maverick @midnightdevotion @thegirlwhowishedeveryonelived

#iceman x maverick #top gun maverick #maverick #bradley bradshaw #icemav #rooster top gun #iceman kazansky #rooster x reader #top gun #goose #maverick x iceman

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blossomreed · 2 years ago

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Chapter 11 of The Dove and her Rooster [Bradley Bradshaw]

find all the parts here

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Both Dove and Maverick were called into Cyclone's office the next day and they both had a gut feeling of what was gonna happen.

Right now, they both stood in the Vice Admiral's office, waiting for him to say anything.

"Well, I know this is a very difficult time for both of you. I just wanted to say if you need to take some time off, please do. I know it's not easy losing someone that close." Dove was the first one to speak up, "Thank you Sir but I want to finish the training and hopefully take part in the mission. It's what my father would want, it's what I want." Cyclone only nodded his head as Maverick started to talk.

"And I'm good too. I was picked to train those kids and I intend to finish that, so thank you but I'll be fine."

Cyclone let out a small scoff as he shook his head before looking up at the two in front of him.

"For Liutenant Dove it was a suggestion...but for you, Captain Maverick, it's an order. You're both dissmised."

Before Maverick could say anything, Dove decided to tell her disapproval of that.

"With all due respect Sir but Captain Maverick was picked for this mission by my father, Admiral Tom Kazansky, callsign Iceman, commander of the U.S. Pacific fleet, personally. He didn't pick him for no reason, he's the only one that can prepare us." Cyclone narrowed his eyes at the blonde woman.

"I am very well aware of who your father was Liutenant. But your father isn't here anymore so I am the one calling the shots now. And I say that Captain Mitchell is no longer part of this mission. Is that clear?" "But-" Dove went to protest but was cut off by Cyclone raising his voice, "I said, is that clear Liutenant?"

Maverick shook his head no at the girl, to signal her that it's okay and not to fight anymore. It wasn't worth it.

"Crystal. Sir." Cyclone nodded his head, "Good. You're both dissmised."

Maverick let Dove in front of him, basically leading her out of the door with his hand on her back but before they could exit the Vice Admiral's office they were stopped by him speaking up again.

"Oh and Liutenant Bradshaw...I highly recommend you take some time off, to grieve the great man that was your father." it took everything in Dove to hold back a scoff at the man's words, he was taunting her, waiting for her to say one wrong word.

"Thank you for your suggestion Vice Admiral but it's actually Kazansky-Bradshaw. I am still my father's daughter."

With that the woman walked out, shortly after followed by her uncle. When they got outside, the blonde let out her frustration.

"It's just not fair! Dad didn't pick you for no reason, you're the only one that can teach us and get us back alive, it's like Cyclo-bitch over there wants us all to die!"

Pete shushed the woman he tought of as his niece as he tried to hold back a laugh. That was a good one, he's gotta give her that.

"Do you want to be kicked off too?? Someone could hear you!" "Does it look like I give even a one fuck anymore? Because I truly don't, I'm done."

Pete somehow calmed her down a little before speaking.

"Look, let's just get you home and then you'll go to training tommorow like nothing happend." she started to protest but he cut her off, "No, no buts, what ifs or anything else. You were picked to train for this mission because you are the best of the best and you're not throwing all of that away because of me."

For some reason Victoria actually decided to listen to Pete and so the next day she walked into training with Bradley by her side, almost all of their colleagues were there already and at the very front was non other than Cyclone who couldn't keep his mouth shout, so while Bradley got to sit down right away, Victoria was stopped by the Admiral.

"Liutenant Bradshaw, I thought I told you to take time off to grieve." she took a deep breath before turning to the Admiral, "With all due respect, Sir. Like I told you yesterday it's Liutenant Kazansky-Bradshaw and I was chosen to train for this mission so I will do exactly that."

With that the blonde turned around and made her way towards her seat but she couldn't help but notice the slight smiles both Hondo and Warlock had on their faces. Her colleagues were either impressed or trying to hide the smiles on their faces so they wouldn't laugh.

"Captain Mitchell will no longer be training you, he has decided to take some personal days so I will be taking over from today. Now, there will be a few changes since I do not agree with Maverick's teachings. So-"

As Cyclone started to explain all the changes that will be happening, everyone was just shocked. That man was trying to get them killed, they were sure of it now.

"But Sir, that's not enough time for us to get out."

The only answer Bob got was that they'll have a chance to beat them in the dogfight. Just as Cyclone was going to continue, a bipping sound was heard from the monitor in front of them. It was Maverick, he'll fly the mission course.

Everyone was on the edge of their seats, watching Maverick fly the course perfectly. While Cyclone had a look of almost hate on his face, everyone else was, well, proud in a way. Dove jumped out of her seat with almost everyone else when Maverick hit the target perfectly.

"BULLSEYE, HOLY SHIT!"

She didn't care about swearing right now or about getting onto Cyclone's good side. All she cared about was her paternal uncle, her Captain, her teacher, sticking up for himself and everyone else that was chosen to train for this mission. He wasn't going to let anything happen to them, he was gonna make sure each person that flies the mission comes back alive and in one piece.

Even though Maverick flew the mission course perfectly, he was still in trouble. Cyclone called him back into his office almost immediately, I mean he did technically steal a plane.

"You proved that this mission can be done, and survived, but you stole a multimillion dollar aircraft...Iceman can't protect you anymore, I can have you Court-martial and dishonourably discharged."

There was a short silence as Cyclone spoke up again, "So I have a choice... Risk the life of my pilots and the mission, or risk my career by making you team leader."

Just as Maverick was about to speak up, Warlock stopped him, saying that it was a rethorical question so the man decided to keep his mouth shut.

After what felt like an eternity, Cyclone finally spoke up again.

"I will give you this chance Maverick. But I swear that if you screw up again, or if you pull out a coup like you just did, you career in the Navy is done. For good."

And that's how Maverick stole a plane and became a mission leader all in one day. If only Goose and Ice were here, they'd have a good laugh about it.

Cyclone told the older man all the information he needed to know before basically telling him to get out of his sight, but before he could fully exit the door, Warlock called out after him.

"Congratulations Captain." he said, trying to hide the obvious smile, "Thank you, Sir." Maverick gave him a smile and short nod before leaving.

The day before the mission came around quickly and currently, everyone was at Penny's bar, having sorts of a celebration, their last night before the mission tommorow. They wanted to have a little fun but not too much of course, they still needed to get up early tommorow.

Victoria excused herself from everyone as she made her way towards her uncle and Penny.

"Sorry to interrupt you two. Uncle Pete could I talk to you outside, please?"

Pete only nodded his head as he followed the blonde woman out of the Hard Deck and outside to the beach.

"Will everything go okay tommorow? Will everyone come back?" the older man was taken back a bit at the questions, but answered truthfully non the less. "I don't know but I do know I will do everything in my power for everything to go perfectly without any complications or deaths. I promise Ria."

She smiled at the childhood nickname that only her dad and her two uncles called her. She came up with it when she constantly was hearing RIO, so little her tought it was fitting. Victoria taught for a bit before turning to her uncle, telling him her troubles from the past few days.

"Are you pregnant?" the poor woman almost choked on her own spit at his question, "No, of course not! I think I would know if I was pregnant uncle Mav...it's probably from everything that went on and is going on, I mean we only lost dad a few days ago and tommorow five of us are going on a crazy dangerous mission."

Unkown to the two, Bradley was looking at them, he could see them from the window near where they all were, a small smile made its way onto his face. Feeling a nudge on his shoulder, he turned his head towards the person.

"I get why you're mad at him but you never know the full story, maybe he had other reasons too. Plus, he's an important part of Vic's life especially now with her dad gone. I'm not saying to forgive the man right away but work towards building a better relationship with him, for both your and Vic's sake....and from what you told me your parents would hate to see you two on bad terms."

Bradley nodded his head, deep in thought before speaking up, "Yeah, I guess you're right Reubs. Thank you."

The younger between the two didn't say anything as he handed Bradley another beer before giving him a clap on the back. Just as he did so, Victoria returned to Bradley's side as she took her drink that Phoenix was holding out for her.

"Everything okay sweetheart?" "Of course honey." the blonde sent her husband a smile as they shared a quick kiss before continuing to talk to their friends and colleagues.

The night didn't last too long since the next day they all had to get up early for the mission but it lasted long enough for them to have fun and talk about anything but the mission.

Maverick looked around at everyone, making a mental picture as they all would smile, laugh or even tease eachother. No matter what it costs him, even if it means sacrificing himself, the kids will be coming back home.

The next day everyone was in uniform and standing in an aircraft carrier. Maverick has just been annouced team leader and he had to pick his team but before he spoke he remembered Warlock's words, he is where he belongs.

"It's been a honour fighting along side you, each one of you represent the best of the best, and it's a very specific mission. My choice is the reflection of that, and nothing more." Cyclone spoke up, "Choose your two foxtrot teams." there was a short silence before Maverick gave his answer.

"Payback and Fanboy, Phoenix and Bob." the first pair nodded their head while the second looked at eachother slowly. This was really happening.

Now it was time to choose his wingman. Rooster kept his head down, knowing he won't be chosen while Hangman held his head high, having a feeling that he'll be the one despite everyone else thinking Dove will be chosen. Not only is she Iceman's daughter who was Maverick's former wingman, she flies like him too, if not a little better. But everyone was suprised when the callsign left Maverick's mouth.

"Rooster." the man's head shut up as he looked at the Captain with a shocked face. Hangman was the backup wingman while the rest will stay on the carrier for any reverse roles that'll be required and with that they were dissmised. Everyone went to congratulate the team that would be flying the mission, being happy for their fellow colleagues. Dove gave all five of them hugs with a small stay safe whispered to them. Rooster got a quick kiss too before the blonde woman was called over by Maverick.

The two went off to stand by the railing of the carrier, looking out at the water. There was a comfortable silence surrounding the two before Maverick spoke up.

"I'm sorry I didn't pick you to be my wingman, I know you wanted to make your dad proud and everything but if you're not feeling well I don't want to risk it. I can't let anything happen to you Ria. I would never forgive myself."

Dove hugged him tightly, even though she shouldn't since this was a profesional setting, she didn't care. He gladly returned the tight hug.

"Don't worry about it uncle Mav, seriously. Just bring them back and you come back too, I can't lose anyone else."

The Captain only let out a small okay as they let go of eachoter before returning to where everyone else was, having to attend one last briefing for the mission held by mostly Warlock but Cyclone was also with him. As Warlock finished Cyclone spoke up, looking out at the pilots before him.

"This is the mission you all have been waiting for....Come home safe."

With those words they were dissmised once again and the real fight for their lives was about to start. Dove had special permission to be in the mission room with Cyclone, Warlock, Hondo amongst others as the rest were in another room, waiting in case they were needed.

The six people flying the mission plus Hangman who was backup went towards their planes. But Maverick and Rooster came face to face as they were making their way out towards the planes.

"You give them hell." and as Maverick left, Rooster decided to go after him and he was trying to tell him something but they got interrupted.

"We'll talk when we get back." Maverick says and starts to walk away again but turns towards his late best friend's son one last time, "Hey Bradley...you got this!" and he just gives him a nod before getting into his plane.

Soon enough everyone was in their planes, ready for take off, so one by one they announced just that.

"Dagger one, up and ready." said Maverick, followed by Hangman "Dagger spare standing by.", then Payback spoke up next with Fanboy in his backseat, "Dagger four, up and ready.", Phoenix with her WSO Bob, "Dagger three, up and ready." and last but not least, Rooster. "Dagger two, up and ready."

There was a short silence after someone annouced that everything was ready, they were only waiting for a launch decision.

"Send them." said Cyclone which was soon followed by-

"Dagger one away. Dagger two away. Dagger three away. Dagger four away."

Dove could see the planes go off one by one on the monitors. And with that the mission and fight of their life had offically started. Now, they just had to pray that they succeed and come back home alive.

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