#the duke is just humoring her by not explaining either | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

humorisstoredinthetits · 3 months ago

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The Heathers + Veronica Youtuber! AU

I'm gonna be trying to post more consistently, hopefully once a week on Fridays

In this AU the events of Heathers happened somewhat similarly, Veronica never joined the group but she still got together with JD and he murdered Kurt and Ram but failed to kill Chandler before the ending playing out the same. JD is also more movie-like in that he isn't as obsessed with Veronica and just wants to kill.

The Heathers are the most popular Youtuber group in the history of the platform

Their channels combined have over 200 million subscribers, and ask any person on the street and they would be able to tell you who the Heathers are, think like Mr. Beast levels of people knowing them and double it

The group consists of three members

The first is Heather Chandler, aka Mythic_Bitch, who has a beauty/drama channel and is by far the most popular of the three

A weird combination of topics sure, but one Chandler makes work

She'll often review beauty products, and while applying them to herself she'll talk about Youtube drama

Beauty companies line up to have their products tested out by her, and she will only accept sponsorships from those which she feels are the best of the best or those which she wants to warn her viewers about

As part of her sponsorship contracts she demands that she be free to give her true opinion about the product, a term which the companies are forced to accept if they want their products recommended by the most popular Youtuber in the world

And of course she is always in the know of all the juiciest drama

Her word is treated as gospel among the population of the site, when she gives her opinion on the matter its closed and public opinion shifts to whatever Chandler's opinion is

She started out just reviewing products, but she quickly ran out of things to say while showing her viewers how to use them which led to awkward pauses

Knowing that she would have to find something to fill that blank space, she tried doing timelapses, telling personal stories, jumpcuts, and when none of those seemed to really work she decided to talk about what she knows best, which was drama

Her modest audience was boosted by an influx of new subscribers who sought out her opinion on the latest drama

And since this is Youtube, there's always new drama going on so she never runs out of things to talk about

Her views only skyrocketed when it was announced she would be collaborating with two other Youtubers who also happened to be named Heather

They would appear in her videos, acting as canvases for her to test out products on or to help talk about a big piece of drama news

Next up is Heather Duke, aka Shut Up Heather!, who runs a channel which focuses on literature

One would expect this to be rather boring content, I mean she's just talking about books, but her unique sense of humor combined with her insights into the books she discusses creates interesting videos for even those who wouldn't normally be interested in reading

She often tries to search out lesser-known books by unknown authors and reviews their work to try and bring attention to them

Mainly the kinds of books she looks for are by LGBTQ+ or POC authors

She also accepts submissions of writings for her to review and critique to help them improve their stories and with her advice several writer viewers have managed to get their stories published, an accomplishment she always celebrates by making a video about said book

For the longest time she's been trying to write her own book but keeps pushing it back out of fear that it's not good enough, but her viewers wait in anticipation for that day

Once she began collaborating with the other Heathers, she introduced a new segment to her videos, the skit segment

When trying to explain a key scene from a book she's reviewing, she and the other Heathers will act it out in a succinct yet humorous manner

They spare no expense either, getting costumes, doing their hair and makeup, the whole nine yards

At the end of the video there's a blooper reel of all their failed attempts

A fan-favorite of her channel has nothing to do with literature, its her pet snake, Cornelius

He was included in a skit involving a scene where a character was bitten by a snake, and ever since that video her viewers begged to see more of him

So she now starts every video by giving a snake update

To round out the trio, there's Heather McNamara, aka Mac & Cheese, who makes variety content with her golden retriever, Cheese

She hated the idea of being stuck into this box of 'gaming Youtuber' or 'drama Youtuber' or whatever, so she posts whatever she feels like with no cohesion

Normally this wouldn't be the best move, after all to have a consistent audience one should focus on a single type of content that those same viewers would come back for, but Mac's bright bubbly personality helps tie it all together

She has several ongoing series in between her other content, including a Minecraft Let's Play and a series focusing on her pets, of which she has several

Of course there's Cheese, but also Munchkin the Rabbit, a Parakeet named Tweety and a Maine Coon called Heather Catler, who was adopted after the collaboration with her was announced

The latter is technically Chandler's pet but she hates her so for all intents and purposes she's Mac's

In these videos she'll show her routine for caring for them and give the audience updates, but mostly its just an excuse for her to get paid for playing with her pets

From week to week her content can shift wildly, it all depending on what Mac feels like doing that week

The one constant is Cheese, who the viewers often call her twin because Mac always dresses in yellow

The dog was named Cheese because he loves cheese, to the point that if she cooks with it he'll jump onto the counter to nab some

The three of them also have a collab channel, simply called The Heathers, where they post content involving the three of them

When the collaboration was announced the three of them bought a house together and all moved in, an experience which they vlogged and created the channel to post the vlogs to

They post the occasional vlog, but also their gaming videos where they play games like Mario Party, or Duke's infamous prank videos, like the time she put her snake in Chandler's makeup cabinet, capturing on film the moment she opens it up and screams upon seeing a snake slithering through her things

As time passed their fanbases grew and grew until they became the largest group on the platform

They were invited to official Youtube events, went to conventions like VidCon, started their own merch line, major news companies started reporting on their big developments, things were only going up for them

Unbeknownst to the public, however, the three of them were dating, and had been long before starting their channels

Of course there was always speculation, there was plenty of evidence that the three of them were in some way LGBTQ+, but no one could agree on which two were dating and the Heathers never confirmed or denied anything

They were at the top of the world, they were extremely well-liked, had no major controversies and most importantly to them, they were happy

But one day, things changed

Veronica Sawyer, aka Detective Sawyer, ran a small channel of around 150k subscribers focusing on true crime and unsolved mysteries

Her small fanbase admired the sheer quality of her videos, as it was clear they were well-researched and well put together

A big part of her content was the motive behind the crime

Veronica was studying criminal psychology at her university and she applied what she learned in class to these cases to try and understand what drove these people to commit these heinous acts

If a case was unsolved, she would give her best guess on what she think happened

She took audience submissions for people they wanted her to cover, which helped boost her views as she was looking in to who her viewers wanted to see

Because of how long it took to research, analyze, and film, she did not upload very often, but her videos were always greeted with plenty of fanfare

**Line break**

She also always wore this monocle and a old-timey detective's hat, helping her to build up this character

However, there was a reason she created this channel, a reason she chose to cover what she did, hell even a reason that she was studying criminal psychology in the first place

Initially she was never planning on covering it on her channel, sure it fit in with the rest of her content but it was deeply personal to her and she wasn't sure if she wanted to share it with the whole wide world

But eventually she decided to do it, having it serve as a warning to those in similar situations

The video was titled "The Tale of Jason "JD" Dean and the Girl Stupid Enough to Follow Him"

As soon as the video started it was clear that something was off

She wasn't wearing her usual get-up, and it took her several seconds to compose herself before she was able to speak

She started by saying that this situation is different than all others she's covered up until this point, because it involves her personally

She went on to explain that this was more so than others a cautionary tale, of fear and lust and pride based on actual events where people died (People died)

She started at the beginning, spinning a tale of a loser girl and a guy who took interest in her, infecting her with his lies that they personally could choose who lived and who died because they knew better than everyone else

She spoke of his crimes, from attempting to poison the most popular girl in school by spiking her coffee with drain cleaner to shooting and killing two jocks after luring them to a graveyard at the dead of night, and his 'jokes' about killing her too if she went to the police

She told of how she was enthralled by his ideology, the idea that bad people deserved to be punished and that they were the ones tasked to do so, letting her finally get revenge on the people that had wronged her for years

Eventually she reached the end, with her realization that he was insane after telling her of his plan to blow up the school, leaving them the sole survivors, and how after she left him he almost killed her and was forced to fake her own suicide to get him to leave, only to confront him at school and remove the bomb, only for him to then take it back and blow himself up on the football field, claiming that he was too damaged and that she deserved better

She then went on to speak of the aftermath, the countless police interviews, the trial where she was found not guilty as she had not actually participated in any of the crimes and was found to be under major duress and threat of harm, explaining why she hadn't acted sooner, her stay at a psychiatric institution, the hours and hours of painful, upsetting therapy, her return to school, her anger at everything and everyone, and her eventually resolve to figure out what drove JD to do the things he did, leading to this channel

Eventually she reached her segment where she discussed the why behind his actions, where she attempted to dissect his rationale, speaking of the death of his mother, his abusive father, his constant moving around, ending up with a simple 'he thought he was better than everyone else and was the one to dish out punishment' being unwilling or unable to go any further

The video ended there, Veronica clearly in tears and just wanting to be done with this

Unexpectedly her video blew up, reaching the front page, going up to #1 Trending at it's peak

Veronica was surprised to see her comments sections filled with supporting comments, telling her that she was so brave for going through that and coming out on the other side, saying that JD was a master manipulator and that she shouldn't feel bad for falling for him, and that they are proud of her for being able to get up here and tell her story despite how much she suffered

But what really surprised her was a single comment from a Mythic_Bitch, asking her if they could talk

The replies to it were filled with questions and theories, but all were ignored

Of course Veronica knew the Heathers ran the most popular Youtube Channels on the platform, how could she not, but she wasn't expecting Heather fucking Chandler to see her video, much less ask to talk to her

But she couldn't be all that surprised, after all it was her that JD tried to kill, the situation involved her as much as it did Veronica

Of course she didn't name her or anyone besides herself and JD, but she still knew who she was talking about

With much anxiety she sent her a reply, starting a chat with the Demon Queen herself

Private Message Between Mythic_Bitch and Detective Sawyer

Detective Sawyer: Hey, you wanted to talk?

Mythic_Bitch: Yeah, I saw your video.

No messages are sent for about 5 minutes

Detective Sawyer: And?

Mythic_Bitch: I have to say I was pleasantly surprised

Detective Sawyer: What

Mythic_Bitch: You took complete accountability for your actions, never once trying to downplay your role in the events but instead explaining why you did what you did

Mythic_Bitch: Honestly I expected you to just deny deny deny and blame it all on JD, but it seems that you've grown up a bit

Detective Sawyer: Of course I took accountability for my part, even if I didn't actually do anything to hurt anyone I still enabled him to do what he did

Mythic_Bitch: I have a proposition for you

Detective Sawyer: Well that was an abrupt change of topic

Mythic_Bitch: Just take the compliment and listen to my proposition

Mythic_Bitch: I want you to interview me, on your channel

Mythic_Bitch: You can ask me literally anything about my perspective on the situation, my experiences, whatever you think will add to your video

Mythic_Bitch: It'll be a great way to get some views, plus when have you gotten the opportunity to interview a victim of one of your video's subjects before?

Detective Sawyer: And you're ok with this? It kinda seems like I'd be forcing you to talk about your trauma

Mythic_Bitch: I trust that you won't just ask "Hey Heather how did it feel to almost get fucking murdered?" or something like that

Mythic_Bitch: Besides, my therapist says I need to "open up more" and I guess this counts

Detective Sawyer: I guess that makes sense, but why are you being so nice to me? I enabled the guy who almost killed you, you should hate my guts

Mythic_Bitch: Its a twofold situation

Mythic_Bitch: Not blaming you, but since you put out that video its only a matter of time before people find out who his victims were

Mythic_Bitch: You tried to hide my name but its the internet, things like that don't stay secret forever

Mythic_Bitch: And don't apologize either, this is just what happens, and it probably would've been found eventually

Mythic_Bitch: Also I'd like to talk about it on my own terms, before the horde of fans demand an explanation

Detective Sawyer: Understandable, but I'm still sorry about that

Mythic_Bitch: And I don't really blame you

Mythic_Bitch: You were young and dumb, and there was this guy who made you feel special and important and that nothing else besides him mattered, and because of that you ignored all of the red flags

Mythic_Bitch: I know what its like to be in that situation, and it would be hypocritical of me to judge you for it when I am guilty of it myself

Detective Sawyer: Oh my god, I'm so sorry, I didn't know

Mythic_Bitch: Don't. Just don't

Detective Sawyer: Ok....

Detective Sawyer: Well, I guess I accept your offer, just let me know when you're free

Mythic_Bitch: Alright

Veronica didn't exactly believe her when she said that she didn't blame her

Of course she had no choice but to take what she said as the truth, but she couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to it than what she was told

She considered that this interview was just a chance for her to yell at her for all that she's done, to tell her that she hates her and for everyone to beg Youtube to delete her channel, the possibilities for humiliation were endless

Even so, a small part of her hoped that she was telling the truth and simply wants to tell her side of things, however unlikely that may be

The scheduled time for the interview arrived and Veronica booted up a livestream

There had been massive hype when it was announced, and even before the stream started there were millions waiting

It was widely theorized that Chandler was the victim that survived, after all why else would she comment on the video?

She sent the link to Chandler before sighing and turning on her camera

She explained, to those who didn't already know, that she would be interviewing Mythic_Bitch about her part in the JD Case, and asked them to please remain respectful as this was gonna be tough for both of them

She also added that any donations made would be donated to a anti-child abuse organization and that Chandler had agreed to match and double the amount

With that she pulled up Chandler's screen

She was sitting on a rather expensive looking couch, Duke and Mac on either side of her, and Cheese laying on the couch with them

Veronica decided to start out with some pleasantries, asking the three of them how things had been going, trying to diffuse the obvious tension

She received three identical oks, and sensing this wasn't going to work she decided to just move on to the interview

Before she did that she reminded Chandler that at any point she could end the interview or refuse to answer a question that makes her uncomfortable

To start, she decided to ask Chandler why she wanted to have this interview, already knowing the answer but asking for the audience's sake

Chandler responded that she was the victim who was fed drain cleaner and survived from her latest video

Veronica then asked if she could give her account of the event

Chandler explained that she woke up with a hangover from a party the previous night and went to make herself a prairie oyster

Unbeknownst to her, JD had switched out one of the ingredients with drain cleaner, making sure to clean up his fingerprints after doing so, and when she went to drink it she felt a burning sensation, quickly stopping drinking

Looking in the cup she could see that it was bright blue, and so she quickly called 911 and was taken to a hospital where she went into a coma

When she awoke it was several months later, and she was told that she had tried to kill herself, much to her confusion

It was hard to talk, as she had gotten several surgeries while in a coma to replace the damaged tissues and organs, but thankfully because she didn't drink that much and called 911 quickly she was able to make a full recovery

She told the doctors that she didn't have suicidal thoughts, and thats when they brought out the suicide note

Veronica interjects here, explaining that she was the one to forge it, the actual words being JDs and her just using her skills at forgery, all done under threat of something happening to her if she didn't comply because "she knew too much already"

The police came and took a statement and while searching for evidence JD blew himself up and Veronica turned herself in, clearing up the situation

She ended up staying in the hospital for months after, going through physical therapy to help her re-learn how to talk and walk after so long in a coma, actual therapy for her many issues, and monitoring, but eventually she was allowed to go free

She told the audience that she wasn't exactly the nicest person in high school, quite the opposite, and thats probably why she was a target for JD, but after almost dying she had a newfound perspective on life and on the way she had been acting, and decided to try to make up for the wrongs she's done

She felt like she didn't do enough, and thats part of why she made a Youtube channel

Entertaining people, giving advice on things she knew enough about to help people with, thats some good she could do, right?

Tears are pooling in her eyes as she finishes speaking

Mac and Duke, seeing the tears, took the opportunity to tell Chandler that of course she did enough, they witnessed firsthand her bending over backwards to earn forgiveness from all the people at Westerberg, and even now she donated most of their earnings to different charities and holds fundraisers constantly, and that she's more than made up for her actions

Chandler starts crying before pulling both of them into a tight hug, telling them that she loves them so much and that she couldn't imagine a life without them, before giving them a big kiss

Veronica just stays silent before the realization hits her

They're kissing

Thinking about it, it should've been obvious they had some kind of polyamorous situation, they were wayyy too close to just be friends

Then a second realization hits her

They're recording

She makes some noises in an attempt to get their attention, and when they turn to face the camera they all have the realization at the same time, and their faces burn bright red

Duke mutters that they're gonna have to make a video on this, but Chandler says screw it and that they'll just talk about this now

She tells the audience that her, Mac and Duke are all dating each other and had been since freshman year for her and Mac and junior year for all three of them, and that the four of them went to the same high school

She promises to make another video elaborating on their situation, but this is Veronica's stream and they don't want to take the attention away from her

Veronica feels super awkward, like she walked in on them having sex or something, but quickly comes to her senses and moves on with the interview

She asks Chandler some questions about what she can remember of JD, even going to ask Mac and Duke what they remembered

This is actually how Veronica found out that JD blackmailed Duke to pass around a petition that was later found to be a group suicide note

For her part Chandler asks Veronica some questions about what about him drew her in, what he threatened to do to her, what he did to her, and eventually her final question, why his ideology appealed to her?

It takes a minute for her to respond, but she eventually settles on saying that everyone knows that she wasn't exactly the most popular in high school and she always thought that it was unfair that who she perceived as bad people got to live good, fun lives while she struggled, and so when he came by and told her that her feelings were right and good and that she could use them to change things for the better, she jumped at the opportunity

Chandler muttered 'that's what I thought' before taking a deep breath and saying that after all these years there was one person at Westerberg that she never apologized to, and that was Veronica, and she feels that out of everyone she's the one owed an apology the most

Veronica is taken aback as Chandler begins listing off all the things she needed to apologize for, like bullying her and her best friends, having others target them and so on, but Veronica interrupts her, telling her that she's the one who should be apologizing, her boyfriend literally tried to kill her and she was a part of it

**Line break**

Chandler then said "who do you think pushed you to that point?", telling her that it was obvious the 'bad people' she referred to earlier meant them, and maybe if they weren't such bad people then she wouldn't have felt the need to do what she did, essentially telling her that she blamed herself for everything that happened

Before Veronica could get in another word Chandler told her that she knew that words could not ever begin to make up for all the pain she went through because of them, and that's why she has something to offer her

She invited her to join the Heathers, move in with them in their house in California, become part of their events, the whole fucking package

Veronica is stunned and is silent for a good few minutes, just taking it in

Mac eventually asks if she's ok, which breaks her out of her stupor

Veronica tries to deny the offer, saying that she doesn't deserve it, but all three of them start trying to convince her, eventually wearing her down and getting her to say Yes

The livestream eventually ended, and Veronica flopped on to her bed and screamed into her pillow

In the meantime, the Heather started their preparations to have Veronica join their group

They added her to all of their groups, linked her channel to their shared channel, bought her a plane ticket and arranged delivery for her things

They then made a quick announcement on their Twitters and filmed a short video announcing her invitation for anyone who didn't see the stream, but it was pretty redundant because every news outlet was covering this news

The idea to invite her was actually Chandler's, she had always wanted to apologize to Veronica since the moment she heard her testimony at the trial, but with her isolating herself and deleting her social media she never got the opportunity, so when this situation came up she saw it as a sign to make up for what she believed was her biggest wrong

And now she could not only boost her channel and bring her plenty of clout and attention, but also get her out of that horrible town where everything went down, in Chandler's opinion a win-win situation

Fast forward several weeks, and Veronica has gotten everything arranged on her end

She applied to a much better university in California, known for its astounding criminal psychology program, and was transferring there next semester

The Heathers agreed to cover the cost of her tuition, so the only thing she had to worry about was actually getting it, but with her videos she was able to prove to admissions that she would be an excellent fit for their program

As she got on the plane to head to California she started feeling unsure again

It was something she kinda pushed to the side while she worked on getting everything settled, but now that the day was here it came back in full force

She barely knew these people, and despite everyone, even Martha telling her that the Heathers had changed, she couldn't escape the feeling that something was going to go horribly wrong

On top of that, she hated the idea that her channel was going to grow off the backs of other people

She wanted her channel to succeed due to her own merits, not promotion from people who already made it big

And while her channel had grown after the first video on JD, it grew exponentially faster following the interview with Chandler and her endorsement, but how many of these subscribers subscribed because they liked her content or because she was part of the group?

These thoughts swam around her mind the entire plane right, the stress only building as she landed in LA

As she got off the plane she was able to find the three of them dressed inconspicuously as to not draw attention to the fact they were the Heathers

Inconspicuously for them at least, to any onlookers they looked like they were going to the Met Gala

Upon seeing her Mac rushed up and pulled her into a hug, the force of which knocked the wind out of Veronica

They went to pick up Veronica's luggage, of which there wasn't much as she had shipped most of it a week earlier, and then they got into Duke's infamous dark green Jeep, her "baby"

The tension during the car ride was so thick one could cut it with a knife

None of them really knew what to say to the other, Mac trying to start conversation but all attempts receiving a short, curt response that didn't leave much for her to work with

Plus Veronica had jet lag, having taken an early flight to avoid any fans who may want to see the Heathers greet her at the airport, so she was exhausted beyond belief

After a 2 hour drive they reached the mansion the Heathers called home

This thing was massive, being 3 stories tall and having huge grounds surrounded by a electric fence, which Duke explained had to be installed after some fans tried to break in to their house

They had planned on showing her around but they could see that she was exhausted, so they decided to postpone that and just show her to the guest room (her stuff hadn't arrived yet) While they headed to the room Veronica was amazed at the sheer luxury of the home, she knew the Heathers were rich but not this rich

As soon as she basically fell into the bed she thought 'this is the most comfortable I have ever felt in my entire fucking life' before falling asleep

When she woke up she saw a little yellow sticky note attached to the nightstand, telling her to come down to the kitchen whenever she was ready =) <3 - Mac

She just shrugged and headed down, after spending 20 minutes trying to find her way around the house, seeing the three of them sitting at the kitchen table, scrolling their phones

They look up and see her, and ask her to sit down

Feeling like she's already done something wrong, she nervously sits down

Chandler starts by welcoming her to their home, before saying that they have to talk business before they can do the fun stuff

They just have a couple of suggestions of how to improve her content and to let her know the expectations they have for her

Internally she thinks that maybe they should've talked about this before she moved across the whole country to work with them, but she digresses

Over all its not too much, they tell her that she should send her videos to be edited by someone else, they have several amazing editors who will accommodate any specification she has, plus it'll save her some time

They also tell her that she will have to be in some group content like vlogs and Duke's skits, but they wouldn't pry too much into her personal life and that they would work around her school schedule

That also meant that if she needed them to be in her videos that they would be available to do so

However there are 2 major problems

The first is that they want her to upload more frequently

Currently she uploaded about once every other week, sometimes more if it was a smaller video or the evidence was easier to obtain, but the Heathers wanted at least 2 a week

Veronica said that she felt like it would compromise the quality of her videos if she was to do that, plus with her college she's gonna need to devote even more time to studying than she did at her old community college

They were able to negotiate it to once a week, but she would start making shorts going over some cases she's already covered

The final issues was a big one

The Heathers' channels were family-friendly, at least to some extent

Veronica's was not, often going into detail about the heinous actions the subjects of her videos committed to paint the full picture of the nature of the crimes

The Heathers were worried that this could cause Youtube to take action against her channel, and that maybe she should tone it down a little

**Line break**

Veronica was vehemently against this, stating that in no uncertain terms would she be censoring her videos

Duke told her that they figured as much, but they had to do something because Youtube really doesn't like that kind of thing on their platform

It didn't matter so much when she was a smaller channel, but now she is likely to become the 4th biggest channel on the site, meaning it was more likely that Youtube would be willing to demonetize her or give her channels strikes

Veronica retorted, saying that 'so it's about the money then?'

Chandler explains that its yes and no, obviously they want to make money and more importantly want her to make money, but they also don't want her to lose her hard work over it

They know Youtube isn't a perfect platform, but its what they have to work with and they kinda have to play their game and follow their rules, no matter how ridiculous they are

She then told her that they wouldn't force her to do anything, but to just think about it

They had a few more things to discuss, mostly about money (25% of profits from all of their channels went into a shared account to help pay for the groceries and bills and that kind of stuff, and the money from their shared channel would be divided evenly between the four of them), which Veronica felt was fair and agreed to

With all that settled all that was left to do is start recording

They were planning on filming a vlog for that day, detailing the process of her moving in and getting settled

Initial filming attempts go badly, to the shock of no one

Veronica is an introvert and is in a completely new place with people she barely knows and trying to do content she is wholly unfamiliar with, of course she didn't do great

They did that mainly to see what areas of her performance needed improvement, and yeah she needs a lot of work

They postponed the video and spent a few days walking her thought how to act on camera around other people

She was fine when alone and in her element, but in unfamiliar situations she really struggled, so they needed to work on getting her more comfortable around them and around the camera

To help with this, they had a game night that night, a staple for their shared channel, but they told her that they weren't going to film it, just play

They were filming, they just didn't want her to know and were planning on including it as a segment in a larger video

They decided on Wii Sports, as they knew how rowdy they (Duke) got during other games and they didn't want to scare her

It took a minute, but after a while Veronica started to let her guard down and get into the game

She even ended up winning at bowling, much to the dismay of Duke and Chandler

Once they finished they pulled out the camera and admitted that they recorded the whole thing, just to show her that it wasn't that hard and she just had to act like the camera wasn't there

She was pretty upset about this, they had told her specifically that they weren't filming and they did it anyway, was this how things were going to be living with them?

The Heathers were quick to explain no, this was just to help her get accustomed to the camera

Veronica understood their reasoning but told them that if this ever happened again she would be leaving, no questions asked

If she was to be filmed, she must know that she is being filmed, firmly establishing this boundary with them, to which the three of them apologized and agreed to

Despite how upset she was at them for it she was actually kind of glad, because when they went to film the other parts of the vlog she found it easier to be in front of the camera

Still not easy by any means, but she no longer felt like a wild animal being recorded by researchers

To make it up to her the Heathers let her pick what movie they watched that night, and not a single complaint was heard when she picked The Princess Bride

From there her new routine started

She had class three times a week, and she would get up early

The Heathers told her that she didn't have to worry about driving, they paid for a chauffeur, which while making her feel a little uncomfortable at just how rich they were also was freakin' amazing when she had a 7am class and the college was an hour and a half away, meaning that she could sleep the whole way there

She also had security with her at all times, another thing she had to grow accustomed to

The Heathers had told her that because of their popularity they almost never went anywhere without security, there were some crazy fans out there willing to do anything to meet their favorite Youtubers

It was that that made her realize just what she was getting into

She was a celebrity now, a person of note, she needed security and chauffeurs and all this crazy rich people stuff because as much as they loved their fans some took it a little too far

This was none more apparent from the moment she stepped out of the car

Some people with too much free time had realized that she was moving in with the Heathers, and knowing she was attending college for criminal psychology found the nearest university with a good program for it, and had been coming for several days in hopes to catch a sight of the one of the biggest content creators

She was bombarded with people taking photos of her, asking for autographs and answers to their questions, one really dedicated fan even trying to ask her on a date

Thankfully security forced them all back, and campus police arrived not too long after to remove those who refused to leave her alone but the experience stuck with her, making her question if she had made the right choice

What she didn't question was coming to this university

The class was much more intensive, with a professor who really knew what she was talking about and classmates who wanted to be there and put their all into learning

They didn't even care that she was Detective Sawyer, hell they actually helped her by pointing out some mistakes in her videos, giving her an idea for some new content, to go back over her old videos and update them

And sure she probably had triple the work to do, but it wasn't like she needed to work a part-time job anymore to help pay for rent while balancing her channel

Inbetween homework she would research topics for her channel, relying more heavily than ever on viewer submissions to find new subjects, but as a result of her better education her analyses became much more detailed and accurate

But the most interesting part of her new life is the Heathers

She had imagined rich people life to involve hundreds of servants running around, waiting on the beck and call of their masters, going to balls and other events for snobby rich people, sipping martinis on the beach, you get the idea

But in reality, they were nothing like that at all

There was not a single servant anywhere in the house, the only hired help was the chauffeurs and security, which they said they only have for their own protection

All of the household chores were divided up amongst themselves, everyone doing their fare share

They also seemed to genuinely enjoy each other's company, which yeah they were dating but even so she had always imagined them as coworkers in their job of being popular and shit, but it was the exact opposite

Despite their busy lives, between filming, chores, dealing with business aspects of their channels and their own personal projects, they always made time for each other, and she would usually see them at night cuddling on the couch watching a movie, or playing a game, or just talking to each other

**Line break**

And they seemed to have a really strong relationship

She never really saw them fighting, if one of them had an issue with something the other two always listened, if they needed each other they would immediately put down what they doing to go help

There were no "Shut up Heathers", no shoving, no rude comments, no yelling, they were kind and caring and sweet

If you told Veronica that she entered the Twilight Zone she would've believed you

Maybe that drain cleaner messed with Chandler more than she thought

And the weirdest thing was that they extended this kindness to her as well

Whenever she came home stressed they would fuss over her, making her hot cocoa

They would listen whenever she came to them with problems with sponsors, Chandler even getting on the phone with them personally to deal with it

Sometimes they would invite her to watch a movie with them, or take her to events that they had been invited to but she had not, making sure to let the whole world know that they did things as a group and she was part of the group

And she appreciated all of it, don't get her wrong, their help was invaluable in helping her navigate the world of the top echelons of Youtube, but she felt weird

Not only did she not feel like she deserved the kindness afforded to her, she literally helped in the attempted murder of Chandler, but seeing them all happy and loving made her feel.... jealous, in a way

She's only ever had the one relationship, and that was the disastrous one with JD

He wasn't exactly the most touchy-feely or even loving of partners, and oh yeah he was a psychopath, so she's never had the experience of real love and seeing the Heathers being so in love made her a little upset

She knows she's being irrational, she no longer thinks that they're bad people and knows they deserve to be happy, but she still wants that feeling of love more than anything and hates the constant reminders of what she doesn't have

She tried to go on some dates, but her dates were mostly fans who sought her out or were really creepy, so that was a bust

The Heathers always comforted her after a failed date, being there with open arms, which only makes her feel worse

She also considered asking them to tone it down, but this is their home and as much as they try she doesn't feel like she belongs here just yet, so it feels unfair to ask them to watch their behavior in their own home

Eventually she internalizes the idea that she's meant to be alone forever, a repentance for her wrongs with JD, and she starts to withdraw herself

Of course the Heathers know that something is up

Veronica clearly never got the help she needed after the incident, the trauma never being confronted

When Chandler asked her if she needed help finding a therapist upon moving, she was surprised to hear that she didn't need one and never had one

They saw the bags under her eyes, saw her grades slipping, noticed her attempts to avoid interaction, only talking to them when they needed to film, and even then it seemed like the progress they had made over the past few months had vanished overnight

They watched her videos, and while they didn't know much about child psychology they could tell that her analyses were off and not accurate, the comments confirming their suspicions

However, they debated on just how to help her

Chandler was adamant that they just confront her outright, but Duke told her that it would only scare her or piss her off

Mac suggested that they bring it slowly during a normal conversation, but Chandler said that she was too smart for that and would see it coming from a mile away

Eventually they came up with a plan to get her to talk

They told her one day that they were making a video about mental health and the stigmatism surrounding it, and if she was ok with it she would like her to talk about her experiences

Veronica looked weary, but Chandler told her that the rest of them would be talking about their issues and none of them would judge

She eventually agreed to do so, and headed in front of the camera

What Veronica didn't know is that the camera wasn't actually on

The plan was that by opening up themselves, Veronica would feel more comfortable talking about what was going on

They imagined that before making the video on JD she was repressing it all, but with it blowing up she was unable to escape it, which combined with the fact that she never dealt with the trauma to begin with was probably the source of her current issues

Chandler started by speaking about her parents, both abusive and non present, her need to be better than everyone else, and the things she needed to do to maintain her popularity, before moving on to the whole almost getting murdered situation and how she got helped by the mental health staff while waiting to recover from her injuries

Duke then spoke about her bulimia and self-image issues, how it invaded her every thought, every action, every waking moment but also how, with the help of her gfs, she was able to get the courage to do something about it

Mac then spoke about her troubles with self-harm and suicide, even to the extent that the only reason she was here today was a child-proof cap on a pill bottle preventing her from taking the meds before Chandler found her, and how even though she didn't want help and just wanted to fade away she eventually found something to live for

Hearing all of this, Veronica only felt worse

These were people with actual problems, who have gone through some shit in their lives, not like her who chose to get together with JD and willingly took part in his demented lies

She deserved what she went through, she didn't deserve the help

She stood up before bolting out of the room before locking herself in hers

Chandler said "goddamnit, we're moving on to Plan B", much to the other two's confusion

Chandler raced up to her room, and upon finding it locked asked Veronica to 'open the door please'

Those words brought her back to that awful day when JD banged on her closet while she huddled up scared, using the exact same words to order her to come with him, and she started to feel lightheaded and her breaths became rapid

Hearing the telltale signs of a panic attack, Mac used her cheerleader strength to kick the door in just the right place to force it to swing open without it breaking, before rushing over to find Veronica curled up in a ball on the side of her bed

She quickly pulled her into her arms and after a bit of struggling Veronica gave up and began to sob into Mac's shoulder, the other two sitting beside the pair stroking her hair as she cried

Eventually Veronica was able to calm down and as she looked at the three women looking at her with concern written across their faces, she felt deep shame for bothering them and needing comfort like a child

Duke asked her if she wanted to talk about it, and when Veronica shook her head Chandler stepped in, telling her that she probably needed to talk about it

Veronica was able to choke out that she was fine, but Mac was quick to ask her if running into her room having a panic attack was her definition of fine

After a bit more persuasion she gave in, and began to explain what was wrong

The Heathers were shocked to hear what was actually bothering her

They knew she had been on a few dates and that they hadn't gone well, but they never realized just how much love, both past and lackthereof, had a negative impact on her mental health

They assured her that they didn't think her struggles made her weak or were bothering them, and they were here for her if she needed to talk, and that she deserved to get help, her past be damned

**Line break**

Chandler also told her that she was going to therapy, and her tone of voice indicated that this wasn't optional

The Heathers also agreed to help her with dating

They all sat down one night and Mac asked her if she was looking for guys, girls, nonbinary people, or it didn't really matter

Being bisexual Veronica responded that it didn't really matter, but she would prefer a woman

Duke then pulled out a sheet of paper and asked her what she was looking for in a partner

It took her a good minute to think about her answer, but she eventually responded that they would have to be kind, protective, cognizant of the world around them and their place in it and accepting of her past misdeeds and willing to look past them, but also willing to stand up for what they believe in and being intolerant of injustice

They also need to be ok with her Youtuber lifestyle and of the subject matter of her channel

It was only later when reviewing the list that Duke realized that all of these these things lined up with them, which she brushed off at the time as a coincidence

Unbeknownst to her Mac picked up on this immediately, and decided to keep a closer eye on how Veronica acts around them

After talking a few things over Chandler decided that it was probably best if she dated a fellow Youtuber, someone who knew the struggles of their career

Using her many connections she was able to secure dates with several different Youtubers

The dates were framed as collaborations and all took place in public areas with the Heathers present, and of course they were filmed

They knew that Veronica had bad experiences with previous dates, and they just wanted to make sure nothing fishy went down

However, she already knew these dates wouldn't go anywhere and just went along with them, her heart being set on a certain color-coded trio despite knowing the absurdity of her feelings

Most of the dates ended with both Veronica and her date agreeing that the spark just wasn't there and parting ways as friends, but not all dates ended so amicably

The Heathers had found someone who made similar content to Veronica, hoping that the connection would help foster a relationship

Instead, the Youtuber went on to berate Veronica every time the camera was turned off and the Heathers had their backs turned, telling her that her analyses were all wrong and that there was no why behind the crime, they were just evil people with no reason to why they did what they did, and even going as far to tell her that she was stupid for falling for JD and should've seen right through him and gone to the police

Veronica initially stayed quiet, knowing how much thought work the Heathers put into finding a date for her, but the last comment set her off and she punched the Youtuber right in the nose

The Heathers quickly rushed over, asking Veronica what was her damage?, to which Veronica explained what she told her

The Heathers were livid, telling the Youtuber to get the hell out and never talk to them again

The Youtuber threatened to sue for assault, but Chandler gave an evil cackle and told her that if she tried she would ruin her career, get her channel removed, blacklisted from every sponsorship opportunity, basically forcing her to get a normal job

The Youtuber looked terrified and scurried away

Mac quickly pulled Veronica into a hug, apologizing for what just happened

Veronica brushed it off, saying that they couldn't have known her true colors, blushing the entire time Mac had her arms around her

Mac took note of this, seemingly confirming her suspicions

After that debacle Veronica decided to hold off on dating for a while, a sentiment which the Heathers couldn't help but agree with

Mac took this opportunity to test Veronica's reactions to things

When they would sit on the couch she would get really close to her, just barely touching, noting how Veronica's heart would start to beat louder and faster when she did so

If they needed to go somewhere during a video she would grab Veronica's hand and pull her along, seeing how she would blush and (poorly) try to hide it

Things seemingly pointed to that she had a crush on them, but her suspicions were confirmed when she accidentally got a peek at Veronica's diary

Tweety had flown into Veronica's room and she was running around trying to catch her, and while attempting to do so she bumped into her nightstand, knocking a book over

The book had fallen in such a way so that when Mac picked it up it was open to pages where Veronica detailed her feelings towards the Heathers soon after she arrived, the notes on them being written in their signature colors

She wasn't intending to read it, but when she saw her name written in a sparkling yellow hue she couldn't help herself

March 16th, 20XX

Dear Diary, I've been living with the Heathers for about two weeks now, and I've got to say I was pleasantly surprised. I was sure that the interview was gonna be a prank, and even more sure that this situation was an even bigger one, but in the time that I've been here they've been nothing but kind and caring and supportive. They've helped me so much with Youtube and getting things settled, they'll never know just how much I appreciate their help.

And the weirdest thing is just how much they've changed;

Heather Chandler - I used to think she was a real bitch, a Regina George-type who just cared about herself, but the person that I've seen is nothing like that. She is dedicated to making up for her wrongs, hell she apologized to Martha, MARTHA of all people! She showed me her donations, and she is donating tens of thousands a month to various charities. HEATHER FUCKING CHANDLER is donating to charities about bullying and domestic violence and honestly I feel like I entered an alternate dimension. And she's so passionate, she's so hot when she goes on her tirades or yells at people god I wish she would talk to me that way

What I meant to say is that she honestly believes in the causes she supports, the other day she was livid because she watched a video about some Youtuber coming forward with allegations against their previous partner who was another Youtuber and how she planned to invite that person onto her channel and hear her side of the story, and how she was planning on working to get her ex's channel taken down. Yes, Heather Chandler is helping an abuse victim, what a world we live in. Something probably went on in her past involving abuse, but I don't want to pry at it, we've really only known each other for two weeks.

If you thought she was hot normally SHE LOOKS EVEN BETTER IN PERSON, HOLY SHIT when she has her makeup on its like Aphrodite herself walked in

I don't normally look for looks when I'm trying to find a partner, but GODDAMN she is hot

I need to stop, she is already in a relationship and even if she's poly there's no way that anyone would want me as a partner, not after what I've done... Anyway

Heather Duke - I think I was the most wrong about her. I always saw her as just kind of there, no personality, just a servant to Chandler's bidding. I couldn't have been more wrong. What I saw back at school was just a front, just like the other two.

She's really caring, always offering me advice or help even when I don't ask for it, its like she can tell when I need help and is just there ready to offer it. She does this for her gfs too, helping them look at frustrating situations logically and work through a solution. She's not the most open person in the world, but she's there and willing to help. I can really admire this about her, I would've killed for someone like her when I was dealing with (the next word is scratched out to the point of being unreadable)

I've found myself really liking her videos too. I always imagined a channel talking about books to be rather boring, sure I like to read but how much is there to talk about? But I see the effort she puts into every video, the time spent rehearsing skits so they're funny and informing, the amount of research she does, it all astonishes me.

And what really surprises me is how funny she can be. Mac can be funny but its unintentional, with Duke its purposeful. Apparently she's played pranks on the others before, but its never mean-spirited or harmful, its something silly like putting her snake into Chandler's makeup cabinet. Chandler was upset for a little while but they all have a good laugh about it now.

I think I was wrong about the boob job too, I got a look at those things on accident and they are real and just so big

Heather McNamara - She's just so precious. She reminds me of her dog, they're both always just so happy and excited about everything and when I'm around her it seems to rub off on me. No wonder people call them twins.

But in all honesty, she's just been a really good friend to me. She asks about my day, listens to everything I tell her intently and even though its clear she doesn't fully get it she still tries to ask me questions. She's done her best to make me feel welcome in her home and that I'm wanted here, and while I don't feel that way just yet I appreciate the gestures.

She's also super affectionate, she's always holding someone's hand or arm and is usually having some kind of physical contact with her gfs or even me god I wish she would do it more it feels so nice to be

The blush forming on Mac's face is wiped as the diary is swiped out of her hands by a mortified looking Veronica

Mac tries to offer up an apology and explanation, but all she manages to get out is a unidentifiable noise before bolting out of the room and heading to hers, locking the door behind her

Veronica on the other hand, is terrified as the looks at the pages that Mac was reading

It was from early on in her time living with them, and the first time that she realized that her feelings towards the Heathers may be something a little more than friendly, and now Mac read all of that

A small part of her recognized that she was blushing while reading that and maybe there was some hope, but it was quickly shut down

She literally wrote in her diary about how she wants to fuck the three women who are already in a relationship, and after all they did for her

They were probably gonna kick her out of their home, but it didn't even matter, she deserved it after all she's done

She sunk to the floor, back against the door as she curled into a ball and began to cry

It was after about 15 minutes that Duke realized that she hadn't heard anything from Veronica or Mac in a while

For Veronica that's the norm, but for Mac going 15 minutes without seeing one of her gfs was unheard of, so she went to check up on her

Mac was lying down on her bed, face buried in several plushes

Duke went over to sit on her bed and rub her back as she asked what was wrong

Mac replied, her voice muffled by the plushes, 'don't wanna talk about it'

Duke became really concerned with this, Mac always would tell her or Chandler what was wrong, for her to refuse meant that this was a real bad fuck-up

She texted Chandler and within 30 seconds she bounded up the stairs and reached Mac's room, concern written on her face

After a bit of coaxing Mac sat up and faced them, and began to go on a tangent explaining that that Tweety got into Veronica's room and she knocked into her nightstand and her diary fell down and when she went to pick it up she saw that it was open to a page talking about them and she got curious and looked at it and it had some parts where she was talking about how she found them attractive and that she had been suspecting this for a while but this confirmed it and she wasn't able to apologize to her because she was so shocked and she probably hates them and and and

She bursts into tears

Eventually she is able to calm down and is able to slowly to explain to the other two what transpired

Once she gets over the initial shock Duke realizes that this was kinda obvious, but Chandler is dumbstruck, saying that she would've never seen this coming

The other two tell her that they love her but that she's oblivious as hell

They decide that Mac needs to go and apologize, but the question of what to do with this information is still up in the air, none of them sure how to approach the situation

Mac is the one to break the ice, saying that she would be open to the possibility of having Veronica join them

She says that she already lives with them, does everything with them, is in their videos, and people already suspect that she joined the polycule, it wouldn't be that much of an adjustment to bring her into the relationship

Duke and Chandler remain in thought for a minute

Duke is the first to respond, agreeing with Mac's assessment of things, adding on that Veronica is pretty cute

Chandler admits that they both make a compelling argument, but says that its a big step to go from friends to gfs, and they haven't talked this through or planned it, they're just rushing into things

She doesn't think her joining is a bad idea or even that she's opposed to the idea, she just doesn't think the time is right

Duke responds that they have to tell her something, they can't just go on like everything is normal, and they definitely can't tell her "we want you to join but not right now"

Chandler then asks 'then what are they supposed to tell her?'

Mac, getting frustrated, proposes just sitting down with her and talking it out, working with Veronica to plan out how things will go and help integrate her into the relationship

She goes on to say that it seems like they are in agreement that they want her to join or at least aren't opposed to it, but if she is going to join they need to treat her like an equal, that includes including her in their talks

The other two look a little ashamed that they had tried to have a talk about Veronica's future without her, but they brush that aside and head over to Veronica's room, only to hear the sounds of muffled sobbing

Thankfully this time her door is unlocked, but unfortunately she's also sitting against the door, so when it is opened she falls onto the floor, looking up at the Heathers who are all clearly concerned

She quickly gets up and wipes her eyes before asking what they wanted

Mac is the first to enter, sitting awkwardly on Veronica's bed before beginning to apologize for reading her diary without permission

Veronica had kinda forgot about that with the whole panicking about her secret crushes thing, but regardless she was still upset with Mac, and rightfully so

She told Mac that she had no right to look through her diary, even if the part she looked at was about her, the diary was meant as a place for her to write down her private thoughts and to have someone look through them was a major invasion of privacy

Mac had the decency to look ashamed of how she had acted before going on to promise to not even go in Veronica's room without explicit permission again

Veronica was satisfied with this, but she went on to question why the others were here

She already knew the answer but she wanted to hear it from them

Duke squirmed but eventually said that they three of them kinda sorta talked about what Mac saw in the diary

Veronica's blood turned cold as she heard the words, fearing for what comes next

Chandler, noticing the panic seep into her expression, told Veronica that there was nothing to worry about, a sentiment which only worried her even more

Noticing that she was on the verge of a panic attack, Chandler moved down onto the floor and pulled Veronica into a hug, sushing her cries

Duke and Mac then followed her lead, holding Veronica tight, apologizing for making her panic

Once she calmed down the Heathers went on to explain that while they didn't feel quite the same just yet, they would be willing to invite her into their relationship and give things a try, Mac interating her earlier points about how integrated into their lives she already was

Veronica was completely stunned

This was not the outcome she was expecting in the slightest, and it took everything she had to not start sobbing again

From there they went to the kitchen table and had a long talk, not too different from the one they had when Veronica joined the Heathers, about how their relationship worked and what was ok and what was not, but Veronica picked up on it really quickly

Chandler was surprised at how well Veronica was handling this, and reconsidered her previous belief that they weren't ready

Once that was settled, they declared themselves girlfriends and went to consumate the relationship *wink wink*

Of course they made a video telling their audiences the good news, with the consensus being 'it took them long enough'

Not much changed with the change in relationship

They still had videos to make and upload, sponsors to deal with, Veronica still had class, but she found herself feeling much better mentally

Combined with some advice from her therapist Veronica felt the best she had since before JD, and maybe even her entire life

**Line break**

But of course, something had to ruin that good feeling, and this time it was actually her fault

Veronica woke up one day to check her email, only to see a notification from Youtube notifying her that her channel had been taken down for Community Guidelines Strikes

No warnings were given, one day it was there, the next it was not

She just felt numb

Of course as soon as she gets something good, something else has to be taken away, she can't just be happy

Duke came up to greet her, joking that she thought she had slept in and was brining her come coffee, only to see the email spread across Veronica's PC

Duke's hand curled up so hard that the mug shattered in her hand and they had to rush to the ER to get her stitches

While that was happening the three of them sat in the waiting room (Chandler couldn't even be in the same room while they did that, she is terrified of needles), and discussed what they were going to do

Chandler was adamant that she would raise hell if they didn't reinstate her channel immediately

Mac added in that she would rally the other Youtubers and have them say the same, and that this was completely unfair and bullshit

Veronica just stayed silent, done with everything

Duke eventually emerged from the room, her hand covered in bandages and they headed home

Chandler and Mac filled Duke in on their plans, but she was more concerned about how Veronica was handling this, noticing the blue-clad girl staring silently out of the window

As they got home Duke puled her onto the couch and asking her what's up

"Asking" in quotations, she basically demanded that Veronica tell her the truth

Veronica eventually spit out about how unfair this all was, telling Duke all of the things she had thought about earlier

Duke heard all of this but quickly debunked it all, telling Veronica that of course she deserved to be happy and that happiness wasn't limited to just one area of life at a time

She also admonished that she could come to them for help, they were girlfriends and that meant that they were there for each other

Chandler quickly put out a video explaining that Veronica's channel had been taken down with no warning, before detailing her plan of action to deal with this

They were going on a Youtube blackout, none of them would be posting any content until Veronica's channel was re-instated, and she encouraged all their fans to not use the platform either

In the meantime they would do some streams on Twitch (link in the description below) so that they could get a fill of Heathers content

She also invited every other Youtuber to join them in the protest

Youtube quickly took the video down and put up a stattement saying that Veronica's channel had been taken down for violating community guidelines policy and would be staying that way, but none of them were deterred

Big name Youtubers joined, all refusing to interact with the platform

In just a week the site saw a 75% reduction in ad revenue with no signs of stopping, a move which scared the higher ups so bad that the CEO was ousted and many more upper management members were replaced, before it was announced that Veronica's channel would be re-instated

Seeing all this occur made Veronica come to a realization

She could trust her girlfriends

She's known that she has trust issues from what happened with JD, but didn't realize just how deep they go until this

She was ready to just give up on Youtube, not even considering the advice from her gfs, only doing so after Duke sat her down and forced her to do so

And why didn't she, she should've known that they want nothing but the best for her and just want to help

But in the end she was paralyzed with fear of what they were going to do, having absurd thoughts like them kicking her out of their house and breaking up with her, things that weren't even close to reality

But her girlfriends proved time and time again that they were people who could be relied upon and trusted and wouldn't just abandon her at the drop of a hat, and with that Veronica felt the anxiety that had made itself home in her chest since the day she met JD evaporate

As she walked into the room to record her welcome back video with her gfs, she smiled, envisioning the future the four of them would have together

This didn't turn out as well as I would've liked but I've been working on this for ages and I just wanted to be done with it lol

#heathers #heathers the musical #heather chandler #heather duke #heather mcnamara #veronica sawyer #poly!heathers+veronica #poly!heathersxveronica #heathers headcannons #heathers au

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aster-draws · 8 months ago

Note

Who’s the hardest character to write and why?

And who’s the easiest?

(I’m totally not asking this because I like reading you explaining things, noooooo)

You are in luck because I love explaining things.

I don't think I really have difficulty writing any one character- I don't like staying in one POV for entire works, that's definitely more of a struggle for me than any one character. Generally if I'm having problems with a character then it's not the place for them? If that makes sense. Like I love Duke to Death but trying to fit him into Wanted was Not It. And that's for writing in their head or for writing them from someone else's. If it sucks hit da bricks, essentially.

Technically, though (as in, regarding a technical aspect) Damian was the most difficult in Wanted because I started off giving him a very strong and distinct voice, and when I went back to his POV in later chapters, I had to edit a lot to maintain consistency.

As far as Better Halves, though, I don't think I'm running into any issues with either of them- i won't be moving to any POVs other than Tim or Danny for the whole work. Tim is Very Easy for me to write. I am him. He is me. in that we have a lot of similar tendencies and flaws. But it's easy for me to find a balance- i don't stay in Tim's head forever, because I just ask myself- who's POV in this scene has The Most potential for. Like. a reaction from my audience. (eg. Angst, Humor, giggling and kicking feet, ect.) and then I just do that.

And OUTSIDE of Fanfiction, the Most technically difficult character I write is one of my OCs, CARMI, who is a brain in a jar operating an android body. I have to make a lot of decisions about her narration based on Neuroscience and our understanding of consciousness, and how learning and the way we interact with our environment affects the way we perceive the world around us. I'm gonna be so fr I still don't know if I can pull this shit off. I'm gonna TRY because it'll be sick as hell if I can do it right. But it's very hard and my brain hurts thinking about it

#You don't understand the amount of books about neuroscience i've been reading recently and I was a neuroscience major #I literally was a research assistant on so many neural imaging studies and I still feel like I'm drowning when I'm reading some of this stu #its so complicated and its so interesting but i need to make a decision and stick with it but that decision is predicated on sm research #anyways soft launch of Blood Brain Barrier! The scifi horror novella that i'm terrified of trying to start! It is. So. Intimidating.#and I write 100k+ fanfiction for fun. So. hopefully that can indicate the scale of how scared I am of this thing.#Also dear weirdo I do see your ask about freakshow i haven't really watched DP properly in Years so let me do that and get back to you.#answered #weirdohasleft #better halves (and other such falsehoods)#wanted: dead and alive

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cephalog0d · 1 year ago

Text

Batfic - "Haunted AF"

HAPPY SPOOKYWEEN here's some silly Batkids! (Shoutout to @dangerousdan-dan for motivating me to finish this even though it's very last minute XD)

Rating: Teen and Up Audiences Category: Gen Characters/Relationships: Cassandra Cain & Dick Grayson & Duke Thomas & Jason Todd & Stephanie Brown & Tim Drake Additional Tags: Humor, Ghosts, Dick Grayson is a Troll, Jason Todd is a Troll, Batkids Being Batsibs

Summary:

“I mean, would you want to spend Halloween in a haunted fucking house?” Jason asked. He received a collection of blank stares and frowns for a second before anyone realized what he meant. “Jason, the Manor is not haunted,” Tim said with a truly impressive eye roll.

“Has Bruce worked out Halloween patrols yet?” Steph asked as she flopped sideways into an arm chair. “I mean I assume there’s going to be some kind of catastrophe to deal with.”

“Last I heard he was still narrowing down leads. I think I’m supposed to review some data scrapes from Babs later,” Tim said, frowning absently into his mug. Either because he was remembering the work he had to do or because he’d just realized his drink was gone, it wasn’t entirely clear.

“Ooh, fun,” Steph said with a smirk.

“Yeah, well. Failure to prepare is preparing to fail and all that.”

“What, did you swallow a motivational calendar?” Jason asked without looking up from his book.

“Too blessed to be stressed,” Tim intoned flatly.

“Hashtag blessed,” Cass corrected him with a grin. Steph made a choking noise and clapped a hand over her mouth to avoid spraying her drink all over herself while Jason shot both of them a look of outright disgust.

“Does the Manor get, like, trick or treaters and stuff?” Duke asked thoughtfully. “I mean it’s way out in the middle of nowhere.”

“I dunno, actually,” Tim said with a frown. “Nobody’s usually home on Halloween anyway, considering…” He gestured vaguely at all of them in a way that was apparently meant to indicate “being a vigilante in Gotham on Halloween”.

“I mean, would you want to spend Halloween in a haunted fucking house?” Jason asked. He received a collection of blank stares and frowns for a second before anyone realized what he meant.

“Jason, the Manor is not haunted,” Tim said with a truly impressive eye roll.

“What, are you kidding me? It’s Gotham. Gotham is hella haunted-”

“Don’t say hella.”

“-just in general and the Manor is definitely included in that. You know how old that place is? How many people used to live there before Bruce turned into the Bat Hermit? How much tragedy those walls have borne witness to?”

“‘Borne witness’?” Cass repeated softly to herself.

“There are no ghosts in Wayne Manor,” Tim said firmly. “I’ve never noticed anything strange. Or, you know, strange compared to our normal level of weird.”

“You barely lived there. I saw all sorts of weird shit when I was a kid. Stuff getting moved around even though no one was home, doors opening and closing on their own, weird shadows that shouldn’t be there moving around. That was the worst. Headed up the stairs in the dark, seeing someone lurking up ahead, assuming it’s Bruce, and then nope, he’s behind you and nobody’s there. Scared the shit out of me when I was little.”

“So a bunch of stuff that’s easily explained as a child’s imagination?” Tim asked, unimpressed.

“There’s also the mirror.”

“The mirror?” Steph repeated in a mockingly serious voice.

“One of the bathroom mirrors back in the back hall would always have handprints up in the top corner no matter how many times we cleaned it. Alfred just thought it was me and Dick messing with him. Eventually he decided it must’ve been stained somehow and just replaced the mirror, but the handprints came back pretty much immediately.”

“You are so full of shit!” Steph laughed loudly. Tim was silent but the hard stare he was directing at Jason was more than eloquent.

“I heard yelling, what’s going on?” Dick said from the hall, poking his head around the doorway.

“Just telling them about the ghosts,” Jason said evenly. Whatever reaction the others expected of Dick (probably either rolling his eyes or sternly telling Jason to knock it off), they didn’t get it. Dick just nodded, entirely unsurprised, as if that was a perfectly reasonable answer, eliciting another round of Looks between the kids as he wandered over to stand by Jason’s chair.

“Oh, yeah,” Dick said matter-of-factly. “The attic one who breaks glass at stupid o’clock in the morning or the one who leaves creepy handprints in the downstairs bathroom mirror?”

“Wait, that’s real?” Tim demanded incredulously.

“Yeah, and that thing in the tiny guest room that blows on your neck if you stay there too long.”

“Ugh, I hate that one,” Dick agreed with a shudder. “So creepy.”

The other four exchanged a complicated series of looks.

“Okay, so you’re both full of shit,” Steph said with less conviction than before.

“Believe what you want,” Jason said levelly. Dick just looked slightly confused at their skepticism.

“I...need to check something,” Tim said as he hurriedly packed up his laptop and phone.

“Oh, yeah, you want some help?” Steph offered.

“Uh, sure, I’m just gonna…” Tim did not actually finish explaining what he was going to do as he left, Steph and Cass trailing along behind him. Duke watched them go, glanced at Dick and Jason, then shrugged and went to follow.

“They’re totally going to spend all night ghost hunting,” Jason said once they were gone.

“Yup,” Dick grinned, holding out a hand in Jason’s direction. Jason rolled his eyes, but fist bumped him anyway.

“Should we make sure they find something?” he suggested with a smirk. Dick blinked at him, looking slightly confused again.

“You don’t think they will?” he asked innocently. Jason narrowed his eyes suspiciously. That was absolutely one of Dick’s “I’m full of shit” voices.

“Of course they won’t, because the Manor’s not haunted,” Jason said slowly. “That was all bullshit.”

“Oh, right! Of course,” Dick agreed with a (fake as hell) easy smile.

“Dick.”

“Do you think Bruce has finished his patrol schedules yet?” Dick asked as he headed out of the room.

“Dick! You said you made it up! Dick!”

#I'm sorry for the title I named the doc that and it stuck #Dick's siblings may be able to recognize his Full Of Shit voice/face but that doesn't stop him from using it against them #dick grayson #stephanie brown #cassandra cain #tim drake #jason todd #duke thomas #ceph writes things #Halloween

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lady-literature · 4 years ago

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royalty au? royalty au.

@maribatmarch-2k21 | find more here

She was eight years old when she gained her first Wayne as a personal guard.

His name was Richard and Marinette remembers the bright smiles he always gave her when on duty. All the other guards tasked to her were so formal and grim, but Richard was always friendly and treated her with a simple sort of kindness, something she was rarely privy to from those outside her family.

The whole castle knew Richard was Marinette’s favorite, for she rarely made any effort to hide her affection.

When she was nearing thirteen, the aging D'Argencourt was transferred to the teaching of knights and Sir Jason Wayne was appointed to replace him. He was far more familiar with her than was proper, but Marinette delighted in his gentle teasing and ridiculous nicknames. Whenever he could, he taught her commoner’s tricks and told her stories about the lower town and living on the streets.

(It had been the first time she’d been faced with the privilege of her birth so blatantly. Jason had only told her stories of humor and levity, but she was clever for her age and could hear all the things he wasn’t saying.

She was melancholic for a whole week following the revelation, guilty about her ignorance and unearned luck of birth. When she emerges from the end, she swears to protect her kingdom from such hardship as best she can. She may not always succeed, but she will try, and sometimes, that is enough.)

By the time Tim is added the month after her sixteenth birthday, Marinette is starting to think this is all something of a tradition. (Or at least, with the way the siblings talk, a competition of sorts.)

She’s practically expecting the day Cassandra is sworn in, pledging her sword to the protection of the throne. And when Duke follows behind not even a month later, well. There are more than a few whispers of favoritism floating about the castle halls.

(There is, after all, not a single knight on her detail that isn't a Wayne at this point.)

The proper number for a royal escort is five during times of peace, so Marinette does not expect any new additions until Richard decides he wants to retire or finally take her father up on the offer of joining the Justice League, those privileged knights in charge of protecting the King and Queen themselves.

Of course, they all overlooked one important detail.

Damian.

***

They are attending Court. Her parents are sat in their thrones, crowns atop their heads and looking regal and kind as they see to the many needs of their people. Farmers and merchants and families bring to them their problems, and they solve them as best they can.

Her mother sits to the right of her father, and Marinette stands at his left and just a step behind.

They are a united front to the people of their kingdom and this is not an accident.

So, of course, when Damian strides up to the dais, he promptly throws it out the window.

He bows first to the King and Queen, deep and textbook perfect, but when he turns to her, instead of the slightly shallower bow that is afforded to her, he drops to his knees.

The Court gasps and Marinette’s hands twitch where they are clasped in front of her.

The hall has fallen deadly silent and all eyes have turned on her and the knight at her feet.

He is only a few summers older than her and a well-known prodigy on the dueling grounds, easily rivaling the skill of knights twice his size and age.

Marinette has known him nearly as long as she has known Richard, and up until this very moment, she had believed him to be indifferent to her in the highest regard.

Oh, how wrong she had been.

“I, Damian Wayne, pledge my sword and skill to the service of her Royal Highness, Princess Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Should she accept this humble knight, I shall be the obedient weapon that which she wields. This vow I take, for as long as I breathe.”

For a long moment, Marinette does nothing.

He has offered the pledge to her and her only, which means it should be her choice alone to accept or deny it. But that is not how being Princess works and Marinette has responsibilities to more than just herself.

Damian has chosen to make this public, has chosen to cause a spectacle, and Marinette cannot afford to play along if it will place the people she has sworn to protect in danger.

Her mother eyes him with the critical shrewdness that had made her such an excellent spymaster before she married and was crowned Queen. After a long, drawn-out moment, Marinette watches the look melt off her face and the barely-there nod of approval makes the air rush from her lungs.

Should her mother have found that this action would cause more problems than they could handle, Marinette would have turned him away. She must, even if it would break her heart.

(Royalty must be united. There can be no lines drawn in the sand between them and Marinette cannot go against them without undermining the power she herself will one day hold as Queen.

She has responsibility to more than just herself.)

But Damian is lucky. Lucky he is young, lucky that the castle is already rife with rumors of where, exactly, the Waynes’ loyalties lie, lucky that he is a prodigy too valuable to scorn.

And perhaps, most of all, he is lucky that her parents are kinder people than rulers should be.

(How else could one explain his continued existence when he has so blatantly committed treason by pledging to serve an individual rather than the crown?

Marinette would laugh at his bravery if she did not think him an utter fool.)

Her mother has given her blessing, but Marinette does not yet reach for the sword Damian holds out for her to take. She has been privy to enough of the trials of Court and whispers of the castle to know this must be nipped in the bud.

Damian has made this a public affair, and so now Marinette will twist that to her advantage.

“To serve me is to serve Miraculi,” she says, voice clear and firm so that none may misunderstand her. “On behalf of the citizens I protect, and whom you shall as well, I shall accept if only you swear to them as well.”

There is not even a moment of hesitation. “I swear, Your Highness.”

She would smile had it been in any form appropriate.

“Then let your vow be accepted.” Finally, she takes the sword from him and taps the blade against either shoulder. “Rise, Sir Wayne. May you live long and fight well.”

Once on his feet, he bows to her once more and catches her hand as she returns his sword to him. Then, in front of her parents and all the Court, he presses a kiss against her knuckles and smiles.

Distantly, Marinette comes to the realization that she may have misjudged precisely how much of a handful her new knight shall prove to be.

#maribat #maribatmarch2021 #mlb x dc #daminette #my typewriter

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named-jiang-or-wang · 3 years ago

Text

SHANG-CHI (2021) Fan Revision

In my previous posts in @welcome-to-the-cafe I posted multiple rants about the movie itself. (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3). For such a great movie, there were still some flaws, which I will attempt to correct here.

Large fish first.

I hated the final CGI fest. Not the Ten Rings battle between Wenwu and Shang-chi, the one with ugly CGI monstrosity. "Dweller in the Darkness", for a name so mysterious, the result sure was a pretty generic bat-winged western dragon-shaped bastard. Really, as soon as it popped out of the cave, it stopped being scary; it stopped doing the one thing that made it more frightening than Wenwu, which was telepathically manipulate Wenwu using his dead wife's voice. That shit was creepy! Why stop it for the climax?? We need to involve the Ten Rings themselves in its creepiness. They should be empowered directly by the Dweller and dark feelings, and the Rings should partially transfer to Shang-Chi at his lowest, most-rage filled moment.

Plus, for all of the Chineseness of the rest of the movie, the Dweller in the Darkness looked incredibly Western. I can't think of one thing it references in Chinese mythology, which was strange since Morris does! It's a Hundun （混沌）, one of the Four Perils (四凶), why not use another one of them, like the Qiongqi (穷奇）. Especially the Qiongqi, since it supposedly eats people, so we can keeping the soul-sucking mechanic.

The little bat-spawns are also poorly-designed, and not fun to watch the martial artist army fight. Martial arts are meant to fight other people, by the Heavens, not weird flying tentacle things. Why is Ta Lo's training anti-human instead of anti-monster? Because anti-human training looks cooler. And we can keep that, with a solution I'll explain after complaining about the Dragon.

The CGI Kaiju battle between the dragon and dweller was cinematic, but it eliminated the kung fu from the final fight, reducing both Shang-Chi and Xialing to boring dragon riders. The dragon wasn't really something that deserved to be a character. I get that Shang-Chi is supposed to have his 'awakening' moment, where he embodies the dragon his mother teaches him about at the beginning of the movie. But the dragon doesn't have to be "real", it should be more of a spirit that goes into him, or comes out of his heart and empowers his body. Either way, it should be more of an internal instead of external dragon. This better reflects the internal emotional conflict of Shang-Chi, his guilt over not saving his mother and then doing terrible things to get revenge; he has to let that go, accept her loss, and with that, he can let his inner dragon out. Just like...shit, just like in Kung Fu Panda 3 lmao.

youtube

So what are my solutions to the climax?

1) Make Dweller in Darkness possess Wenwu. Or suck his soul, and then take his shape. Maybe even take the shape of the mother as well at first!

2) Make the little soulsuckers transform into shadow martial-artists. They still can only be killed by dragon weapons.

3) Make the dragon a spirit that rises out of the water that goes into Shang-Chi and Xialing, enabling them to fight Wenwu/Dweller more evenly.

Here's my altered sequence of events.

The 5 humvees still arrive, the small skirmish between the Ten Rings and the villagers still happen (without the giant lions). Wenwu and Shang-Chi still duke it out, and Wenwu knocks him away. Wenwu makes the big leap to the sealed cave, and Xialing and the aunt notice. The aunt activates a magic thing that raises a giant bridge from the depths of the water and Xialing crosses over to fight her dad. Wenwu pounds the door a bit more, and the Dweller's minions shoot out in black mist, forming into humanoid shapes that begin fighting the villagers and Ten Rings.

Meanwhile, Shang-chi is having a flashbacks in the water of killing his mother's murderer, in the process, one of the Ten Rings that is knocked away during Xialing and Wenwu's fight finds its way into the water and revives Shang-Chi. He joins the fight just as Xialing is knocked aside, apparently over the cliff. Shang-Chi loses it, and fights his father more brutally, until 5 of the rings transfers to him. They whisper to him to make his father pay, and he knocks his father into the door, shattering it, and seemingly killing Wenwu. Shang-Chi is appalled at what he's done, and he collapses and drops his 5 rings. He hears his sister calling for help, and he rushes over to see her hanging off the edge of the cliff. He can't reach her, and he cries to her that he's sorry for everything. Xialing forgives him for abandoning her before, saying that him coming to Macau meant a lot, and that their mother would be proud of him. With effort, he pulls her up, while the 5 rings to his father who rises from the rubble. Shang-Chi said their mother wouldn't be proud after what he's done for revenge, but Xialing tells him that he needs to accept what has happened.

Wenwu looks triumphant at the open gateway, but a dark mist spills in front of him and take the rough shape of his wife. He is about embrace her, but she grabs him around the wrist and possesses him through the Rings. Dweller uses Wenwu's and Ying Li's voices to taunt Shang-chi and Xialing.

Shang-chi finally lets go of his guilt and stops "running away". The spirit of the dragon rises from the sea and goes into him and his sister, empowering them. They double-team the Dweller/Wenwu until he blows them back with "Enough!". The little soulsuckers return with their spoils, strengthening the Dweller, and now he has the advantage. He defeats both of them, holds Shang-chi down, trying to steal his soul. Xialing is trying to pull him away. Shang-chi looks his father in his eyes and tells him he forgives him and he is still a good man. This awakens Wenwu inside the Dweller, and in one dramatic moment, transfers the Ten Rings to his son. With this, Shang-chi knocks Wenwu/Dweller back, and Xialing restrains him with the ropedart. Shang-chi performs exorcism, deleting Dweller forever, but Wenwu is mortally wounded. He tells Shang-chi and Xialing that he loves them, and he will tell their mother how proud he is of them, then dies.

Rest of the movies is the same.

Oh, we do need to deal with the secondary characters.

Katy shouldn't be good at archery, but could save Guan Bo/Razorfist/Death Dealer in a key moment, maybe just by tacking. She could do more to counsel Shang-Chi and Xialing before their big moments.

Death Dealer was wasted. Unique, memorable design (if kinda half-assed), only to be ignominiously soulsucked first by CGI uglies. He is basically Shang-chi's primary martial arts tutor, so should know a variety of martial arts styles. To incorporate his opera mask (a full-faced one), and add even more mystery, he should be a bianlian (变脸), a Chinese facechanger, and for each face he has a different kungfu style. This could be used to semi-humorous effect, with mocking faces and angry faces. And a Monkey King face when he's using a staff! We should not see the glint of his eyes. Before Xialing runs across the bridge to fight Wenwu, she should have a showdown with Death Dealer to show she did learn kung fu even without him. They fight to standstill, until the aunt steps in and they kick his ass together. I think he should live too, and have a team up with the aunt to delete soulsuckers.

youtube

Oh I know now, Katy, Morris and Slattery should have a comical chase/fight with Razorfist. He screams "You! I recognize you from the bus! And you stole my car!!!", and he charges at them, ignoring everyone else. They find a way to beat him up, and think they've lost him, but he gets back up and almost has them, until the soulsucker bois nab him. Katy, being a good person, fires and arrow and saves his ass.

These, and some aesthetic changes, like giving the young mom a thin flowy cloth mask instead of her noisy bamboo one, would bring the movie up from a 7.5 to a 9.5 for me.

#shang-chi #rewrite #headcanon #simu liu #tony leung #menger zhang #awkwafina #michelle yeoh #death dealer #ten rings #asian american representation #marvel #revision #bianlian #Youtube

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alj4890 · 4 years ago

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I have an ask. We know in TRR Book 3 Ch10 Drake is the one being challenged by Neville but what if The King is the one to challenge Neville? After all he’s the one that would talk down to Riley during book 3 and nit once did Liam stand up for her during those times? So I wonder if Liam knew what Neville had said to his future Queen what would his reaction would be. I feel at least that Riley had the choice to punch him! Lol

A/N: Okay, seriously. WHY didn't all the other love interests tell Neville off?! He even annoyed Olivia with his pouting and whines. I get the tension between him and Drake and all; but Neville was talking bad behind Liam's back about his choice to elevate MC to becoming a duchess regardless of whether or not she was engaged to Liam. He was such a jerk to Hana and who in their right mind could be mean to her??? As protective and sacrificial as Maxwell was, (he did show getting ticked off whenever Neville opened his mouth), why wasn't there a dance fight between the two🤣 Now that my mini rant is over, let's see what would happen if Neville pushed Liam too far.

Masterlist

@gkittylove99 @darley1101 @krsnlove @kingliam2019 @texaskitten30 @yourmajesty09 @mom2000aggie @ofpixelsandscribbles @twinkleallnight @lodberg

Too Far

It wasn't noticeable at first.

He even somehow managed to make friends.

Neville had a way that made him appear as the perfect example of a gentlemanly noble. His cultured tone uttering compliments and his ability to appear humble before his betters had assured his place within Cordonia's high society. Being heir to an earldom and not too horrible to look upon also set him up in life to have a variety of ladies to choose from.

Or so he believed.

When Prince Leo abdicated, the nobles of Cordonia were actually laughed at by the rest of the world. The teasing began with mere good natured ribbing at parties of how unfaithful a Cordonian must be.

It was enough to sour any disposition, especially one that was already so.

Neville Vancoeur kept his noble mask firmly in place. Nothing was going to stop him from his destiny.

Nothing. No one.

But the newest crown prince was best friends with, it was disgusting simply thinking of the word, a commoner. A commoner! What noble much less a direct descendant of the king himself would ever align themselves with someone who was absolutely worthless

Yet, the embarrassment that was Prince Liam didn't end there. He then went on to favor a poor waitress from America of all places. A waitress. He redeemed himself in Neville's eyes when he chose Countess Madeleine Amaranth of Fydelia to be Cordonia's queen. Though he didn't quite understand why the normally shrewd countess would allow the waitress to travel with the nobility, perhaps it was to give Drake Walker a playmate (one has to entertain pets, he supposed) he accepted it as a way to appease the people they ruled over.

Then New York happened. King Liam threw aside a well respected, birthed to perfection noble for that mongrel American who did not possess the first clue of how to behave amongst Cordonia's elite court.

Neville would have found it humorous if he was not permanently tied to his country.

To top it all off, not only was he forced to endure such unworthy company, he was shamed in front of them by some minor noble who had failed to win Liam. He blamed that brief moment of weakness for finding Lady Hana attractive on being inadvertently influenced by what had to be Drake and Riley's baser inclinations.

There was only one action left to a man so much more above these lowly peasants.

He was going to have to put these people in their proper place.

*******************

Liam knew that some of his fellow nobles took their positions as some sort of right in lording over those they considered their inferiors. It had never sat easy with him. He himself had a mother who had been a, "simple commoner". Yet, being in the tenacious situation he was in as a new king, he had to ignore for the most part their rude behavior.

But there was only so much he could stand when it came to the one he loved.

He knew something was going on the night of Madeleine's ball. As he stood on the other side of the ballroom, listening to Duke Godfrey drone on and on, he noticed Drake bump into the future earl. He knew there were very few nobles his best friend respected so seeing the flash of anger was normal.

Riley's though was surprising.

That unusual bitter twist to her normal, friendly smile followed by what he could only assume were heated words between his love and Neville made him feel the need to rush over and place himself between them. That desire to protect Riley was so strong that his body had already turned to leave Godfrey mid sentence.

But then Neville walked away.

Maxwell's brief sadness followed by Hana's irritation had him focusing once more on Riley's anger turning to resigned acceptance. Her relaxed stance returned as his group of friends found a table to sit and enjoy their meal.

He knew then that he would need to keep an eye on Lord Neville for the rest of the Unity Tour.

*****************

It didn't surprise him at all the insults and tension between Drake and Neville during the charity polo match. Liam felt sorry for Rashad and Maxwell being stuck on their team and forced to work with the two men that seemed to truly despise one another.

Liam also felt a large bit of pride when Riley used Neville's refusal to pass to Drake to score.

He also was relieved that Neville had not turned his disdain toward her.

Perhaps he was beginning to respect his future queen.

**************

It shouldn't have affected Liam like it did. Maybe it was the fact he was under so much pressure from keeping his father's cancer hidden, the fear from hearing he had been rushed to the hospital, all the terrorist attacks and threats, and then having to focus on pampered nobles instead of actually running his kingdom that caused him to lose his last shred of patience.

This ball was one that he had looked forward to. It would be the first of his escorting his Riley before the court. He had waited so long for such a moment to show his world how proud he was to have won her heart.

And Neville had to ruin it during their first dance.

The heated exchange of words escalated when Riley jumped in to defend Drake. Liam could see the utter hatred and lack of respect Neville had for the two people he was closest to. The way the young lord talked down to his beloved sent a bitter resolve through Cordonia's king.

"I've had enough of your insolence!" Neville snapped.

Liam saw his hand reach for his pocket and begin to withdraw a white glove. Before he could think through what he was about to do, he slapped Neville with the back of his hand, cutting short the challenge the lord was about to issue to Drake.

The entire court gasped. Silence fell as all watched this rare occurrence of Liam losing his temper.

"I've had enough of your insolence." Liam bit out. "Lord Neville, I challenge you to a duel."

Neville paled. His eyes darted around the ballroom, searching for anyone who might possibly be on his side. Seeing no sympathy, his chin lifted.

"I accept." His voice cracked slightly.

****************

"Liam, why are you doing this?" Riley gripped his hand as they walked out to the courtyard.

"I'm tired of his attitude." Liam explained. "Especially around you."

"I can handle his snide remarks." She countered. "What I can't handle is the thought of you possibly getting hurt."

Liam paused and slipped his arm around her waist. "You don't think I can take him?"

She smiled, looping her arms around his neck. "I know you can." She snared him with a tender kiss. "Just make it fast. There's a certain king I want to slow dance with."

His lips curved once more before turning toward the growing crowd. "As my queen wishes, so it shall be."

With a wink to her, he removed his sword from its sheath with a dramatic flourish.

Her delighted laughter followed him as he faced his opponent.

Neville swallowed uncomfortably as Constantine laid out the rules for the duel.

He barely managed to block Liam's blows, footsteps retreating most of the time. His lip curled into a snarl when the new king sliced into his blazer.

"My lady was right," Liam taunted, "that is a dreadful dinner jacket."

Neville's cheeks burned when those watching nearby chuckled. Each time he tried to make an offensive strike, Liam not only blocked it but somehow turned it into a point in his favor.

At one point they locked swords. Neville hated he had to tilt his head up to meet Liam's eyes. He hadn't expected to see the coldness there.

"You will apologize to Riley and Drake." Liam commanded in a low tone. "You will also never speak to either of them with such disrespect again."

"Why should I?" Neville breathed. "They need to learn to respect their betters."

"Really?" Liam's tone held a sinister edge.

With an elegant spin that happened in the blink of an eye, he knocked his opponent’s sword out of his hand, caught it in mid air with his free one, and had both blades crossed with Neville's neck in the middle.

"Well done!" Constantine cheered from the sideline.

Riley let out a whoop as she hurried over to Liam's side.

"Wasn't there something you wished to say to her grace, Lord Neville?" Liam asked

Neville's ready sneer died when he felt a slight nick to his tender skin.

"Forgive me, your grace." He managed to say without choking. "I will remember my manners when next we meet."

Riley gave a regal nod of acceptance.

Liam lowered the swords. "You're dismissed."

Neville scurried through the amused crowd, keeping his eyes downcast.

Riley yanked Liam into a passionate kiss once all the compliments were given and the crowd dispersed.

"My lady?" He asked with a grin. "What brought that on?"

"Nothing except my impressive Prince Charming fighting for me." She responded. "Perhaps he would like to find somewhere more private where I can better express my admiration."

"As you wish." He handed his swords to a servant as the couple sneaked away for a moment alone.

#king liam x riley #liam x riley #choices fanfic writers creations #choices the royal romance #liam trr #request #choices fic writers creations

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crash-cinematic-universe · 4 years ago

Text

a sickly satisfaction (ch.1)

pairing: jason dean/reader

summary: high school sucks. jason dean makes it a little better.

warnings: uuhhhh murder, language, suicide discussion

notes: i have every chapter of this written out already, so every wednesday I’ll release a new one <3 in total the story is 7,800 words! but there are some parts that are kind of short, forgive me for those.

Eyes down. Walk fast. Stay out of their way. Three simple steps to get through the day. They had an iron grip on the school, their perfectly manicured nails digging into the oily skin of the entire student body. High School was a bloody battlefield in the war that is life. However, the epitome of cruelty, the ultimate teenage angst inducing, self-esteem crushing, happiness shattering war machine came in the form of three girls and their weak-willed sidekick. That’s right; my biggest threat in high school is Heather Chandler, Heather McNamara, Heather Duke, and Veronica Sawyer. Veronica at least has some semblance of regret and empathy-- she’s just doing what she needs to survive. Unfortunately, that means the rest of us have to struggle to keep our heads above water.

Thankfully, I have a sanctuary. A refrigerator heaven filled with endless isles of roadtrip snacks and hangover remedies. Of course, this junk food Garden of Eden also happens to contain my best friend, Tommy Geller. Tommy is 18, emo, and gay, so naturally we got along pretty well. He sits behind the register and lets me hang around until closing. It’s actually pretty nice-- sometimes he lets me do busywork around the store. Sure, it’s sort of pathetic that Snappy Snack Shack is my main source of serotonin, but you know what? There are worse places to be.

“Pop open a bottle of champagne, Tommy, because today is a special day!” I cry, pushing open the small class doors. To my delight, the store is empty. There are no irritating customers there to make me keep my voice down.

“Oh? And why is that?” Tommy inquires, his jet black hair falling in front of his eyes. He’s tired-- and bored-- and I’m the perfect remedy for that.

“Today marks exactly six months since I first stepped foot in this town,” I grin. Tommy’s eyebrows perk up.

“Really? Congrats, kid,” He’s humoring me a bit, but there is a genuine reaction beneath his sarcastic remarks.

“Thanks, Tommy. Y’know, that’s twice as long as my time in New Jersey and three times as long as my run in Nebraska. I have a feeling dear old aunt Maria might actually stay here for good,” I hop over the counter before grabbing a can of Coke out of the fridge. I prop me feet up on the counter, but Tommy knocks them down.

“You know the rules, kid, no stompy boots on the counter.” I roll my eyes. He wipes off the place where my shoes were before organizing the lotto tickets. “Anything interesting happen at school today?”

“Eh, same old same old. The Heathers were bitches, Veronica was desperately trying to keep up, and I got tripped in the hallway,” Tommy frowns.

“God, those girls really need to get humbled,” He spits.

“You don’t need to tell me. They constantly act so… self-superior, as if their power doesn’t depend solely on whether or not everyone else hates themselves to believe they’re inferior to three teenage girls who are the definition of ‘peaked in high school’,” I squeeze the soda can in my hand, the metal crunching under the pressure. “They need to be more than humbled. The Heathers deserve to be dealt as much pain as they served,”

“Watch it, kid, you’re sounding a bit homicidal,” Tommy jokes. If only he knew.

“It wouldn’t matter anyway. I don’t think they can die-- they’re like a Hydra. If you kill one of the Heathers, three more will grow in her place,” I sigh. Tommy looks concerned.

“Y/n, you don’t actually want to kill them, right?” I hesitate. The silence makes Tommy worry.

“I wouldn’t exactly lose sleep if one of them did die,” I reply nonchalantly. “It would be like a public service. Similar to killing the black mold that grows in the girl’s showers,” Tommy looks at me for a second, his expression unreadable, before turning back to his counter.

“That’s morbid,” he says. “You know that? You sound like a killer in the making.”

“Sometimes bad people deserve bad things.”

�� “You’re absolutely not helping your case,” Tommy laughs. I can feel someone watching me. It’s an odd feeling, but I brush it off.

“New topic?” I ask. Tommy nods.

A mischievous grin grows on his face. “You got a boyfriend? Girlfriend? Partner? All of the above?” he asks hopefully.

“No, Tommy, and don’t get your hopes up,” I chuckle, before standing up and admiring the neon sign outside.

“Oh come on, there has to be someone. You can’t possibly go to that hellhole every day and not see at least one hot person!” Tommy groans.

“Everyone at Westerburg is either evil or boring. No one interests me and I’m not interesting to anyone. Plus, my attention is mainly focused on getting through the day in one piece, not getting laid.” I neglect to mention the stranger I saw in the Cafe yesterday. He was pretty hot, and didn’t seem to be a douchebag-- in fact, he shot two of the douchiest douchebags with blank bullets. A real rarity at Westerburg.

“God, you need to get out more. I see some pretty people pass through here occasionally, I’m going to start pawning you off,” he jokes.

“Oh, god, no,” I joined in on his laughter.

“Yup, I’m going to give every hot person your photo and your address until you finally score yourself some arm candy,” Tommy can barely form sentences through his laughter.

“I’m gonna to get murdered if you do that, Tom,” I giggle.

“ And that would be damn shame,” A voice calls from across the counter. I look up to see the most attractive man I’ve ever seen in my entire life. It’s the same guy from the Cafe-- although in the bright convenience store lighting he looks more like a ghost than a man. His jawline looked sharp enough to slice me in half, his cheekbones high and defined. His hair was gorgeous and his teeth were really, really nice.

“Uh, yeah, that would totally s-suck,” I choked. Tommy shot me the most horrified look I’ve ever seen. “I’ve, uh, seen you around. That stunt you pulled in the Cafe was wicked, man, seriously.”

“Hey, it was a public service,” He smirked. Tommy gave me a ‘holy-shit-I’ll-leave-you-two-alone’ look before disappearing in the isles across the room. I could see him peeking through the cereal boxes. “I’m Jason Dean, but most people call me JD.” He offers his hand for me to shake.

“Y/n, Y/n Ln,” I grip his hand firmly and try not to have a breakdown over the contact. “Y’know, there are much less extreme ways to get people to fuck off than, well, shooting them.”

“The extreme always seems to make an impression, though, doesn’t it?” His voice was a little bit lower and he leaned in a little bit closer. Tommy was freaking out across the aisle, his eyes wide as his hand raked through his greasy hair.

“That it does,” I grin. “There are quite a few people in that school that deserve certain... extremities,”

“I think you’re right,” Jason smirked once again. I kept my composure as best I could. “Speaking of extremities, I saw you and Kurt in the hallway last week,” My face is lit ablaze as I recall the incident. Kurt had been continuously pestering me the entire day, and eventually I reached my limit.

“I guess they aren’t joking when they say the chin is the knockout button,” Jason seems impressed, although I can’t really tell because looking him in the eyes seems like a death sentence. “Landed me three days detention, though. That sucked. Although I guess it can’t compare to whatever they’re dealing you,” At this point, one of the regulars began approaching the front doors. Tommy sprinted out before they got in, seemingly explaining that my entire love life depends on whether or not I can play it cool.

“Eh, what can I say. I sort of dug myself a grave there,” I spoke without thinking.

“The only graves that should’ve been dug are Kurt and Ram’s. My one critique? Use real bullets next time,” I froze. Why the fuck would I say that? I mean, I’m not wrong but I doubt JD would stick around after--

“I like the way you think,” JD laughs, his ears tinted pink. Jason looks at me, and for a moment, I look right back. There’s something behind his eyes, something festering and enticing. I wonder if my eyes communicate anything. “I’ll see you around, Y/n L/n,”

“And I’ll see you, Jason Dean,” With that he winked at me, spun on his heel, and walked out the front door. Tommy practically sprinted across the room as I released every muscle I’d been tensing. I slowly melted onto the floor. Laying on the tile with my eyes trained on the bright lights overhead.

“Oh my god,” Tommy breathed. “Oh my fucking god that was-- oh my god.”

“I know,”

“Did you see him? He’s like a greek god,”

“I know,”

“And he was totally into you, like, totally,”

“I should’ve given him my address. I wouldn’t mind getting murdered by him.” I say breathlessly. Tommy sits on the counter and looks down at me.

“I think I need to teach you how to talk to boys,” Tommy sighs, shock still lingering on his face.

“Pssh, I can talk to boys just fine,” I retort.

“You almost collapsed when you saw him,” he says flatly.

“That was--”

“I thought you were going to pass out when he told you his name,”

“But I--”

“I genuinely believed you were going to vomit when he shook your hand,”

“Alright! I give! I can’t talk to boys! You caught me! Lock me up and never let me embarrass myself like that again!” I surrendered, throwing my arms in the air before letting them collapse over my face. “He probably thinks I’m a freak,”

“Are you joking? He was more smitten than you were!” This caught my attention, and I tore my arms away from my eyes.

“Huh? Elaborate!” I snapped.

“You seriously didn’t notice? He’d been staring at you since you stepped foot in here, didn’t you see him? At first I thought it was weird, but then I realized he was smoking hot so I decided I’d let it slide,” “Comforting,” Sarcasm drips from my words. “Y’know serial killers and stalkers can be hot, too.” I rolled my eyes.

“ I seem to recall you saying something along the lines of ‘I wouldn’t mind getting mur--’,”

“Alright, Tommy, we get it.” I cut him off in embarrassment. “Please continue.”

“He comes in here a lot, so I knew he was alright. He was beet red the entire time you were talking. Didn’t you see the way he was in a perpetual state of stupid smiling? Dude, he was definitely into you and really bad at hiding it,” Tommy concluded.

I smiled a big, dumb smile. I didn’t notice the fact that he was nervous, so he probably didn’t notice that I was dying, right?

“Tommy, I think we might have a keeper.”

“Thank god, I don’t think I could stand to see you go to Prom alone. That would be too depressing, even for me,” Tommy enthused. I propped my feet against the edge of the counter, staring at the tips of my boots. For the first time in a long time, Tommy is silent. I can’t get his eyes out of my head. Then again, I don’t know if I want to.

_________

#jason dean #heathers #jason dean x reader #a sickly satisfaction series #irl dont look #irl don't look #veronica sawyer #heather mcnamara #heather chandler #heather duke

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mischiefandspirits · 3 years ago

Text

Bloodlines (1 of 3)

After receiving a vague warning from his mother about his cousin and Richard, Damian goes looking for his runaway ward.

This chapter started as a flashback in the latter half of the story, but I felt like it was running on too long so I decided to cut it out and make it its own chapter. As such the events of this chapter occur a little under five years before the events of the main story, which takes place a few months after “Family Weekend.”

Part of Batkid and Robin

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

Damian was surprised to see Nightwing in the Hatch when he arrived. He knew his ex-partner noticed his entrance, but the Super didn’t look up from the conversation he was having with Señal in the doorway to the infirmary.

Taking the hint, Damian turned to E-ko. “What happened?”

“We’re not entirely sure. Izzy and I were both in class and Dax was at work when Dick’s distress beacon went off so only Duke and Dre responded,” she said, glancing towards the infirmary. “By my estimate, they sent out the request for backup almost immediately after they engaged. Nightwing had been finishing up something with Metro across the bay so he responded. Izzy and I were suiting up when ‘Wing dragged them in. He thinks they were fighting talons when he got there, but the guys took off as soon as he got close. Dre was already knocked out -- drugged we think -- and Duke passed out on the way here -- bloodloss.”

“Richard?”

“Your son wasn’t there,” Nightwing said as he and Señal approached. “I didn’t know he was involved until I got here and the girls filled me in.”

“He’s not -” Damian closed his eyes and asked, “Did Signal say anything before he passed out?”

“He slurred something about Cobb and Halloway and I think he tried to say something else, but he was fading fast at that point. Didn’t recognize either name, but I’m not surprised since this seems to be Gotham stuff.”

“Nightwing.”

“Batman.”

Damian glared up at neon blue eyes. “We’re not doing this while Richard is missing.”

“Well, I guess I’ll just stay quiet then. Not sure I have anything to add since I don’t even know the kid.”

The only reaction Damian allowed himself to have was to clench his fists as he turned to Señal. “If the talons are involved, then Cobb is William Cobb. Why would he be after Richard though? The Court has only ever targeted adults for kills and street kids for would-be talons. A child from a prominent family doesn’t fit their M.O.”

“We’re not sure,” she said. “Oracle’s looking into it. In the meantime, Selina’s pulling Stephanie and Jason out of school in case they’re targeting Wayne kids. Cass and Mia are also going to bunker down somewhere safe with Tim if they can drag him away from wherever he is now on his mental breakdown road trip.”

“Don’t call it that.”

The group turned to see Duke slumped against his IV pole in the infirmary’s doorway.

“¡Bobo! Lay back down!” Señal snapped, rushing over to him.

He let his girlfriend take his weight, but didn’t let her drag him back to bed. His chest and arms were heavily bandaged and butterfly stitches were keeping a few cuts on his cheek and neck closed. He was also glaring at Señal. “Lay off Tim.”

“Sorry, I know you want to humor him.”

Duke shook his head and turned to Damian. “We’ve got a problem.”

“I know. We’ll find Richard. Go -”

“No, you don’t understand. Halloway was there. From DCF.”

It took Damian a moment, but he put the name to the face. Cathy Halloway was one of the social workers that gave him the hardest time while trying to foster Richard, but not one of the ones who’d earned his respect because they thought Damian was taking Richard in on a whim. He wasn’t sure if it was Richard’s Romani heritage she had a problem with or if it was the fact Richard was white-passing while Damian had very clearly taken after his mother, but the family had dug up a few comments made by her about keeping Richard “with his own people.”

As if the Gotham branch of the DCF had placed Richard with a family instead of in a detention center.

Backward morals aside, the Bat’s investigation hadn’t turned up anything tying her to the court. “Why was she there?”

The Hatch’s main computer lit up green, announcing Oracle’s presence. “Because Cobb told her he was Dick’s grandfather.”

“What?” Damian asked. Richard didn’t have any living relatives, the Bats checked as had DCF at the Waynes’ insistence. “Why would she believe that?”

“I’m looking into it, but she’s started the paperwork to transfer custody and she was there to help Cobb pull Dick out of school. Selina played it off like she was picking Dick up alongside Steph and Jay then went full PTA mom when she found out they’d sent Dick off with strangers. Alfred’s bringing the little Bats to you while she puts the staff through the wringer to get as much info for us as she can. I’m trying to match our maps of the Court’s labyrinth to what little information from Dick’s beacon is making it through the scramblers so, hopefully, I’ll have a location by the time you’re all suited up.”

Damian made a mental note to bring his own version of hell down on the staff if any of them survived his Step-Mother’s fury then focused back on the matter at hand. “Señal, you know the labyrinth best. Can you see if you can help Oracle? I’ll get Duke back in bed.”

She nodded and passed Duke off to him after giving her boyfriend a quick kiss.

“Sorry, Dames,” Duke said as Damian helped him back onto the medical cot. “The talons cut us off before we could get anywhere near Dick or Cobb.”

“You did your best. We know what we’re facing now. We’ll bring him home, no matter how many talons we have to freeze. Get some rest.”

Duke nodded and leaned back.

Damian returned to the main room and approached E-ko and Nightwing. He asked the latter, “Are you staying?”

The Super gave a sardonic smile. “I guess I should get going. Don’t want to overstay my welcome. Call me if you think the situation is bad enough to need outside help.”

“That’s not what -” Damian started, but Nightwing was already gone. He sighed and turned to E-ko. “Has the Court been up to anything recently that could explain coming after Richard?”

She shook her head. “They’ve been quiet since we reclaimed that youth shelter they were using to try and lure in would-be talons. We knew they’d try to find a new way to bring in kids, and trying to get their hooks in the foster system isn’t too far out there if they don’t realize we’ve been keeping a close eye on it ever since Jason, but going after someone as notable as Dick doesn’t make sense.”

“There has to be a reason.”

“Who cares, let’s just get out there and find Dickie!” Jason called as he stomped into the Hatch. He and Stephanie came towards them while Alfred went off to check on the two in the infirmary.

“Knowing why a person is doing something is very important,” Damian said and Jason scowled.

“It’s not more important than rescuing my Red Bird! Let’s go!” he snapped, shoving Damian towards the changing rooms.

“Rushing in is going to get you in trouble,” Damian huffed, but let his younger brother push him along with Stephanie trailing after.

The three quickly changed into the extra suits they kept in the Hatch in case of emergency then they, Señal, and E-ko set off towards the labyrinth entrance closest to the approximate location Señal and Oracle had decided on.

Batman took the lead, keeping an eye out for danger as Señal directed him through the tunnels. Thankfully the closer they got, the more accurate the beacon's positioning became. He was keeping a sharp eye on everything, looking for the booby traps and talons, so he immediately noticed when Señal and E-ko began to share worried looks.

“What?”

“There aren’t any mazes, meeting halls, or holding cells this way,” E-ko said. “The only things down here are…”

“Labs and cryo-caskets,” Señal finished.

“Shit!”

Batman grabbed Batkid before he could race ahead. “Hold on.”

“Hold on? I’m not going to wait around while those psychos turn Red Bird into one of those monsters!” the boy snarled, then took off down the tunnel.

“They wouldn’t start the process so soon,” E-ko tried to reassure as the four chased after him. “They always start training before beginning the Electrum injections. They want to be sure the investment would be worth it.”

A shadow slid out of a side tunnel and Batman grabbed the edge of Batkid’s cloak. He yanked the boy back just in time for the talon’s dagger to cut through the air in front of his face instead of across his throat.

E-ko intercepted the assassin with her cryo-gun as Señal repelled another two with her chain whip.

“Go find Grayson. We’ll deal with these ones,” E-ko called out and Batman nodded.

He led Batkid and Batgirl forward, bringing up Richard’s distress beacon on his gauntlet computer. They raced up to a heavy door that he quickly kicked in once confirming it was locked.

Inside, scientists and talons stood over an operating bed that held a teary eleven-year-old. Thick leather straps wrapped around Richard’s arms, legs, and chest to keep him pinned to the bed. A scientist had been preparing an iv filled with a dark silver liquid while William Cobb had leaned over Richard with his hand fisted in the boy’s hair, but all eyes turned to the Bats at their entrance.

Batkid immediately launched himself at the scientists, ripping the one closest to Richard away from him and laying into them with a fury. Batgirl and Batman tossed liquid nitrogen pellets at the talons, partially encasing three of them in ice to put them into hibernation. Batgirl engaged another two talons while Batman tackled Cobb.

“You must be getting desperate for new talons if you’re starting to steal children from Gotham’s old families, Talon.” Batman ducked one knife strike, deflected another, then landed a blow that snapped Cobb’s arm with a loud crack.

“Wayne was the one who stole him,” Cobb spat, disengaging just long enough for the Electrum to twist his bones back into place before slashing at Batman’s neck. “The Gray Son was born and raised to serve the Court of Owls. Just as his grandfather, my son, was before him.”

Batman shifted back in time for the claws aiming for his ribs to cut through nothing more than armor. “Emil Grayson was a circus acrobat.”

“Emil was raised by Nathaniel Haley to be the perfect talon, just as I was. Had Nathaniel not passed before he could return my son or instruct his own in the ways of the Court, then Emil would have surpassed even me. Instead, that fool Cameron spirited my son away to Europe. By the time the Court could reforge ties with the circus, my son was lost to us while my grandson had been raised weak and the Court had no influence over him. We could only ensure that the child he bore would receive the proper training and be returned to Gotham when the time came.”

Batman felt sick. He wanted to deny it, but Cobb had no reason to lie and the Bats hadn’t bothered to look that far into Richard’s family’s past. “The Graysons’ deaths…”

“Not the Court’s work, though it provided us with an opportunity to place the boy somewhere we could have full influence over him.”

He’d never felt better about rescuing Richard from that awful detention center. He fought down a smirk that would be both telling and uncharacteristic for Batman as he slammed his foot into Cobb’s chest, audibly breaking a few ribs. “But Wayne took him instead.”

From his place on the ground, Cobb pulled off his mask to spit out discolored blood then glared up at Batman. “It doesn’t matter. The boy is destined for the Court. Whether now or later, the Gray Son of Gotham will be a talon.”

“Never,” Batman growled, freezing the talon with a liquid nitrogen pellet.

When he turned back to the room at large, Batgirl was taking down her opponents while Batkid had tied up the scientists and was pulling off the straps. Batman went to help the boys, pulling Richard into his arms as soon as he was free. The ladies agreed to handle the talons and scientists so Batman and Batkid could get Richard up to the surface where Oracle had police cars and an ambulance waiting.

Once they were out of the labyrinth and away from any cameras the Court may have had, but before they reached the authorities, Dick pressed his face into Batman’s neck. “Dami.”

“I’m here, Dick.”

“Th-that man, he said…”

Batman tightened his grip on his ward. “I know, but I’ve got you now and I promise, the Court won’t ever touch you again.”

Richard wrapped his arms around his neck and Damian quickly ran his fingers through the black-brown curls before Batman stepped out of the shadows and passed Richard off for a paramedic to check him over.

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

For Reference:

The Batcave: Under Wayne Manor in Bristol, acts as HQ for Batman, Catwoman, and Batgirl (and Batkid)

The Perch: Under Damian and Jon's house in Somerset, acts as HQ for Nightwing and Flamebird (and Robin)

The Hatch: Under the Lucius Fox Center in Burnley, acts as HQ for We Are Future (Signal, Señal, E-ko, Flyfox, and Allegro)

The Clocktower: At the top of Gotham Clock Tower in Old Gotham, acts as HQ for Oracle and Orphan

The Roost: Under Drake Towers in Blüdhaven, acts as HQ for Black Bat and Athens

#dick grayson #damian wayne #Jason Todd #robin #red x #fanfiction #batkid and robin

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ironmandeficiency · 5 years ago

Text

beach please

pairing: rex / reader / cody

word count: 6166

summary: once the war ended, you retreated to scarif for much-needed time to recenter yourself. rex and cody worry when you don’t answer your comms for days and leave coruscant to find you, fearing the worst. turns out you’ve just been drinking and partying, now sporting two new tattoos.

a/n: the self-created duke of scarif is jimmy buffett & i was inspired by his song “margaritaville” & “beach please” by kevin fowler.

canon changes: everyone listened to fives abt the chips & palps was discovered to be a sith lord. the clones were given human rights, a generously low locked-in rent if they lived on coruscant, and as much back pay as the republic could afford (not much but better than nothing).

“master y/l/n, there’s still so much to be done-”

“and you can have someone else do it. you must not be capable of recognizing the importance of reevaluating the way we interpret the code, or else this conversation wouldn’t be occurring.”

obi-wan blanched at the barely tamed fury radiating from your force signature. this was the second time in less than a year that he felt something so raging from your force signature, the time before this meeting being the aftermath of umbara. before the nightmare that was the siege on the shadow planet, it had been decades since you were angry enough about something to raise your voice to the council. it took a very great transgression to ignite your anger into something scathing and this meeting was doing exactly that.

the council was meeting to discuss the senate’s plans to have the jedi spearhead efforts to repair the galaxy and quell the revolts in areas that still wanted to continue the war. palpatine was manipulating both sides and if it weren’t for fives and kix, the republic would have been none the wiser when chancellor palpatine executed the order to have the clones murder their jedi.

“how are we going to guide the galaxy through the changing times if we’re unable to reevaluate our own beliefs and how the war impacted them? so many of our padawans were raised in this war, far different than how they should have been brought up.” your mind drifted to ahsoka and late-night conversations spent trying to make sense of the reality of war and how she’d been nothing but a soldier since she left the temple at fourteen. “the senate is not our responsibility nor our lead authority. we were their pawns once and despite seeing the consequences on geonosis, we let ourselves get wrapped in politics. think of what we lost because of it.”

eeth koth was deeply disturbed by your entire demeanor as well as the words spilling from your lips. if there was ever a jedi that made you want to leave the order, he’d be it. douchebag. “our duty is to the galaxy, to maintain peace! you can’t expect us to sit back and do nothing when people are struggling!”

obi-wan shared your sentiment but strived for more unity than polarization within the meeting. “but aren’t we struggling just as much as the rest of the galaxy? time must be allotted for us to heal the wounds of war before we’ll be able to successfully help others that are suffering, if that’s what’s agreed upon.” a few jedi nodded their agreement, masters plo and gallia among them. shaak looks close to being convinced but seems to still be hesitant to comment on her opinion.

“in order to help the galaxy, we must help ourselves. our emotions must be looked into with more than just the intent to throw them away at a moment’s notice. knowing why we feel the things we do can help us with far more than just our connection to the force.”

this was an idea that obi-wan has spent many years struggling with but it took the end of the war to guide him into believing that emotions aren’t the enemy, it’s how they’re utilized that counts. he explained this concept to his fellow council members and it was a sentiment you agreed with immensely.

saese scoffs at the mere idea of doing more with emotions besides dispelling them into the force. “that sounds a lot like allowing your emotions to cloud your judgement, master kenobi, something your lineage is quite popular for-” oh he crossed the line. saese was not about to talk shit about your creche mate and closest friend or his lineage and get away with it.

“no need to pardon my language, master, but it sounds a lot like you’re allowing your own emotional shortcomings and the bantha fodder you call intelligence to cloud your judgement.”

even mace was stunned at the verbal jab that came from your seat. kit had been mid-drink and it took him several seconds to recover from the way he choked on his water. you were normally calm and collected, a voice of reason amid the chaos. this time, however, you were at your limit. this was your cue to leave.

mace spoke up as you neared the door. “y/l/n, where do you think you’re going?”

“i’m going to heal and allow myself to enjoy the peace we gave nearly everything to obtain. if you want to join me, feel free to let me know.”

your robes billowed out behind you as the council meeting dissolved into chaos. you were convinced that if your seat was close enough to master yoda’s that you’d be sporting a few new gimer stick bruises. thank the force for the little things.

later that evening, you boarded your personal ship and set the coordinates for scarif. that was the perfect place to go as a jedi that didn’t want to be found by anyone that they didn’t fully trust. who would think to find a monk on a planet filled with booze, sex, and other carnal pleasures? a few comms were sent telling the recipients that you were going on vacation and to call if you were needed, giving them a new private commlink and vague hints at where you’d be.

scarif, here i come.

“she hasn’t commed us in nearly a week! what reason is there to not worry?”

“rex, she would have called us if there was something wrong.”

“you know as well as i do that there are still radical seppies trying to keep the war going. the kidnapping of a jedi would surely be cause to fight!”

cody sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. he conceded that you ignoring their comms was highly unusual, yes, but you weren’t the type to throw yourself heedlessly into danger like some of the other jetti they knew (cough cough, skywalker and kenobi). “no one in their right mind is going to think to look for a jedi on scarif, the place is too carefree and without a permanent stuck up its shebs.”

rex knew there was a valid point to the statement. he vaguely recollects general kenobi’s mild yet humorous complaints about the “uncivilized, booze-blooded” inhabitants of the beach planet. general skywalker’s only problem with scarif, it seems, was the fact there was sand nearly everywhere, the drunks and constant parties posing no issue to the younger jedi. the reason for his disdain of sand was never expanded upon.

“i’m still going to look for her, feel free to come with.” they were free men who had no one to report to, no one telling them where they could go or when to eat and sleep, so of course rex was going to look for you. with this newfound freedom cody and rex moved into a middle-level apartment together, nothing too fancy but quite a contrast to their former living spaces under the gar.

rex chose to join the police force on coruscant and quickly climbed the ranks, excelling in every task thrown at him. he was a force to be reckoned with, crime rates dropping rapidly within his first month.

cody hasn’t made a new career choice yet, the commander still trying to find his own path. he had tried his hand on the police force but he quickly realized it wasn’t his cup of tea and left rex to it. he’s helping with groceries and other living costs with his back pay despite rex’s protests for him to put it to better use (what better use is there for credits than helping you survive day to day? that’s what they’re made for).

they were given a ship by general skywalker -anakin, rex’s mind supplied; he had corrected them many times about not using the rank- that the man had modified himself because he “wouldn’t want any friends of mine flying around the galaxy in a piece of junk.” apparently any sort of ship/speeder/droid/anything not built and/or modified by the man was inferior in nearly every imaginable way. it was a kind and meaningful gesture that anakin was willing to go to such lengths to protect them, no matter how unnecessary. the war was over after all, there was no need to have blaster attachments on their civilian speeder.

“like i’m gonna leave you to your own devices, di’kut. of course i’m going with.”

“you better hurry and pack, i’m planning on leaving no later than 1800.”

sitting in the reclined beach chair with two margaritas, you haven’t enjoyed yourself this much in a long time. the togrutan brother and sister you met soon after your arrival had become dear friends in your two months on scarif, the three of you becoming a trio commonly seen hitting the best parties all over the planet. miek wasn’t as much of a party animal in comparison to his sister briel who was known for her wild drunken antics.

you had been there and lived in your small ship for a total of two days before they offered you a place with them. no one lived alone on scarif, they said, and it would be wrong to let you continue to be deprived of the peace the waters brought when it was lulling you to sleep.

meeting the duke of scarif during your first week planetside was quite an exhilarating experience, to put it briefly. duke buffett was an older man with hair as white as the sands he loved to party on day and night, one hand perpetually occupied by a drink and a guitar strapped to his back. he was known to play and sing during the parties he attended, his carefree attitude evident in his voice.

although no one would have guessed by looking at him, he was a fierce conservationist who would either have his guards fight anyone caught littering or, if drunk enough, would fight them himself. you’ve held him back a time or two when he clearly wasn’t in shape to do said fighting and helped ease the situation back to a fun normal.

now you weren’t a heavy drinker by any means, but your tolerance was better than most because of your connection to the force. this made you a favorite drinking buddy to many of the planet’s permanent inhabitants and tourists. of these numbers was the duke himself whom you would sometimes humor by opening drinks with your lightsaber. it was a splendid game that won you diplomatic immunity (apparently he can do that) on the planet after two weeks of jedi party tricks and fight-preventing.

time had become even more of a social construct than you had believed it to be before the war. there were parties going on at all hours of the day and night and the concept of solitude was forgotten. everyone here extended a hand to each other, friend or not-yet friend (there were no strangers on scarif, just friends you haven’t made yet). what little pain felt was carried by all until it was so faint that it seemed to heal itself. the waters healed, you had no doubt in your mind.

the sun was high in the sky when the ship landed next to yours behind your current residence. you were, of course, not home to know where it landed but you did see said ship flying overhead as you relaxed on a blanket next to briel and miek. maybe they were lost, but you had confidence that someone on the island would help them in what they need. this was the way of scarif, after all.

you were distracted by the drinks in both of your hands, alternating sips between the two. you were outfitted in a flowy summer dress that had ridden up a smidge too high while you were lounging on a reclined beach chair. briel was rubbing - lotion? sunscreen? - something on your exposed thighs as you relaxed, enjoying the way the breeze felt on the moisturized skin.

this was the best decision you’ve ever made, coming to scarif. eventually you were going to leave, yeah, but that was a problem for future you. for now, you were going to enjoy the endless sunshine and copious amounts of alcohol that aided in your relaxation.

they had seen the docking bay protruding into the sky like a gundark among loth-cats and decided instantly that you weren’t going to be there. you had told them ages ago that the vibes (you used that word a lot to describe force things to them) that came from industrial buildings bothered you terribly. something along the lines of wearing on your psyche, if they remembered correctly. instead, they flew a little lower than they probably should have to search the ground for where you landed your ship.

it took longer than they would have liked it to, but your ship was eventually found behind a medium-sized hut not too far from one of the many beaches. cody found just the right angle to land next to it and not hurt either shuttle, not trusting rex to touch the controls (his vod was a terrible pilot).

both men decided that even if scarif was a peaceful planet, they still didn’t know what to expect, so they equipped themselves with their blasters and lower armor before leaving their ship. first order of business: check to see if you were in your ship. if you weren’t, they could cross that bridge when they got there.

just as they were beginning to open the ramp, a man emerged from the hut and began to storm their way. he was togrutan, with yellow skin and lavender stripes on his lekku and montrals.

“hey! you two! what’s your business with that shuttle?” he sounded like he was ready to fight them about the ship, which worried the brothers, but he slowed his advance when he noticed the two blasters pointed in his direction. good, this guy wasn’t a complete di’kut.

cody was the first to lower his weapon, quick to take the diplomatic approach. rex followed suit but didn’t soften the intimidating stare he threw at the man. there was a reason your ship was there and they were going to stop at nothing to find out why. “we’re looking for a friend of ours, she hasn’t answered our comms in over a week and we were worried, it isn’t like her to not reply. last we talked to her she was here on scarif.”

the togrutan paused for a moment, inspecting the appearances of the men (clones, his mind told him, the telltale armor and near identical faces hiding nothing) in front of him.

the blond had an air of confidence about him, an almost dangerous sort of confidence. his armor was painted with a shade of blue that was pleasantly similar to the waters he just returned from, pieces of it chipped from what he supposed were rough times in battle. his jaw was set, hand hovering above where he holstered his weapon seconds before.

he didn’t appear to be bloodthirsty, just protective; who he wanted to protect, however, was still a mystery. there was a passion in his eyes that wasn’t even mildly held back. he seemed to be skilled in channeling that passion into his every thought, every action. with a note to himself to not get on this man’s bad side, he switched his focus on the blond’s companion.

miek’s gaze shifted to the other clone and quickly decided that he liked this one better. there was an extremely intimidating scar along the side of his face, yet this one seemed far less willing to shoot him on sight. he still has a grit and presence about him that told miek that this one wouldn’t hesitate to fuck your shit up if need be, but he had tact (thank the stars one of the clones had a sense of discretion).

he could tell that this one had some sort of authority over the blond, clearly serving as a high percentage of the other’s common sense. miek’s mind, after analyzing the men thoroughly, gives names for the men before they introduce themselves. “you must be the famed rex and cody! come, i’ll take you to the shoreline!”

he gestured for them to follow him and was genuinely shocked when instead of doing as he suggested, he was tackled to the ground. miek spit away everything that had gotten into his mouth, unable to move when one of the men pinned him down. this was officially miek’s worst day in over a decade.

he caught a glimpse of marigold stripes on leg armor just over his shoulder, confirming the identity of the man on top of him as rex. “how do you know our names?!” rex’s voice sent a shiver down miek’s spine (the blaster against his back also helped in that), and the togrutan reaffirmed his choice in his favorite clone: not rex.

“i’ve heard stories about you two! from y/n! i’m assuming you’re here about y/n, right?” the blaster was removed from his back and a little bit of the weight was taken off him. he must be saying something right. “she’s been staying with my sister and i, and i promise you she’s perfectly safe!” rex moves his weight completely off him now, allowing miek to stand back up but not move more than a few feet away from him.

“where is she?” cody’s voice was hauntingly low, nothing about him betraying his tension except for the hard glare felt like lasers. he had the same desire, same yearning to protect someone - that someone miek now knew was you - and it burned brighter than a hundred suns.

“last i saw her was thirty minutes ago on the shore with briel, my sister. i can take you to them if you would kindly not threaten to shoot me again. my name is miek, and i would say it was a pleasure to meet you both but then i’d be making myself a liar.” he had no idea where that bit of snark at the end came from but it seemed to sway the clones to his favor. why it did, he had no clue, but at least he wasn’t getting shot.

they walked silently for a few minutes, the two troopers beginning to slightly admire the view while keeping eyes on miek. it was a beautiful planet, there was no denying that. you were surely enjoying yourself in the sunshine, always finding a little bit of time to bask in the nature of whatever planet you ended up on during the war.

it was strange to cody, not feeling eyes on him as he walked with rex on the beach. when he would accompany general ke- obi-wan on trips to the temple or into the streets of coruscant, he constantly felt the eyes of many on him. they would be expressing curiosity, shock, disdain, or something in between, and cody could feel every bit of it. here, it seemed, no one cared that he was a clone. no one was leering at him for walking too close to them or for just breathing the same air as them. cody was blissfully able to blend with the people here and he loved it.

he was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn’t notice when miek had come to a stop in front of a small cluster of reclinable chairs. a large umbrella provided the area with a patch of shade and a smidge of reprieve from the sun’s blistering heat.

“see? she’s perfectly fine.” miek’s voice broke their precious silence. “i’m assuming you both can find your own way back to your ship, so i’ll be headed off.” miek left them quite quickly and rex guessed (with a bit more amusement than was warranted) that it was because he nearly shot the man on more than one occasion minutes earlier.

“cody! rex! when did you two get here?”

a familiar voice drew their attention and it took them a second longer than it should have for them to realize that yes, you were the one lounging in front of them as if it’s all you’ve ever done in your life. you were extremely relaxed and your posture conveyed your state perfectly, two margaritas perched in loose hands, both half-empty. an ivory summer dress flowed loosely around you, the front hiked a bit too high for the men to keep their imaginations under control. that wasn’t even acknowledging the neckline of your dress (or lack thereof) that made their throats a bit dry and minds slip into the gutter.

rex and cody cleared their heads after indulging the images for a second, the latter clearing his throat before replying, “just a few minutes ago. you haven’t answered our comms in over a week. rex had the idea to come and visit to see how you were doing, so here we are.”

that was really sweet of them to check up on you, you thought with a smile. you felt a bit guilty about not answering their comms. normally you were careful to reply to theirs and every other message you received soon after getting it, but as stated earlier, time has become a social construct that didn’t really matter while on scarif. you gestured for them to sit, and they took the open chair to your left. they didn’t bother laying back, just sitting shoulder to shoulder in the same chair with their eyes on you.

offering them both half-drank margaritas was a subconscious action on your part that surprised you. what shocked you even more was the fact they accepted the drinks with soft, fond smiles. kriff you missed them, how you’ve been able to go this long without seeing them was beyond you.

you smiled warmly as you introduced your boys to briel, who was smirking a bit too widely than would be deemed safe (you didn’t notice this, seeing as you were too busy drinking in the sight of your boys and the way the sunlight made their eyes glow). her eyes drifted to your thighs as she put in very little effort to hide a laugh. dark clone trooper eyes decided to see what was so amusing to the togruta, and they choked on whatever words they were contemplating.

on your thighs were rex and cody, left and right respectively. or, more accurately, on your thighs were six-inch tattoos of rex and cody.

both men were in quite show-offy poses, appearing to have the intent to make them look like pin-ups. the lower half of their armor was equipped but they were shirtless, faint details of scars and sweat appearing to glisten in imaginary sunlight.

cody’s face was set in a smolder the likes of which would send half the women in the galaxy into puddles at the commander’s feet. his dc-15a was held aloft in his right hand while his left arm was holding his helmet in place in the crook of his hip. his left foot was stepping on a small heap of droids which brought his knee up a bit, and he was facing the inked rex on the opposite thigh.

rex’s wild smile could catch the soggiest piece of kindling alight with the allure and charm it held. his eyes were sparkling with a pleasant mirth not often seen in the man. both hands wielded his trusted dc-17’s, the right blaster pointed at the droids under cody’s foot while the left was pointed in the air, blaster bolts coming out of both. his helmet was under his right foot, jaig eyes almost peering into your soul and welding marks visible from his customization of the phase 2 helmet.

commander and captain are both beginning to flush at the art in front of them. they were flattered to see drawings of themselves look so dashing, and seeing it on your body roused feelings they had spent years repressing. their biggest question now was whether their likenesses on your body translated into something more on your end.

“nice to finally meet my friend’s muses,” briel quips, “it’s hard to get her to talk about something that isn’t you two when she’s plastered.” she pauses a moment, thinking of her next words and chuckling to herself. “she’s barely spent three consecutive days completely sober since she got here, which means that you two are almost all she talks about.”

this deepened the heat in their cheeks as you playfully swatted at briel’s shoulder. “that is not true!” a moment of silence. “wait, what day is it? that miiiight make a difference.”

rex chortles at the admission. “glad to see you enjoying yourself, cyare. but kix would be enraged to hear that you’ve been drinking nearly every day for two months, and we can’t exactly blame him.” he grinned as he took an experimental sip of the drink you gave him. it was stronger than he expected, but it had an underlying sweetness not often found in margaritas. he liked it.

sitting up, your dress covered your ink as you expertly drank from the margarita in cody’s hand while he still held it. the commander sent you a soft glare, wondering why you didn’t just get a new drink but enjoying the moment nonetheless. “kix shmix, his face isn’t on my thigh so i don’t really care what he has to say right now.” you lean toward cody and rex before whispering, “you didn’t bring him, did you?”

all three of them guffawed at the question, you joining their laughter solely because of how happy the joy radiating from your boys’ force signatures made you.

calling them your boys had become second nature after mere months of fighting beside them. you spent an inane amount of time with them during planning and actual combat, and were just as much their general as their actual generals were (despite you not carrying the honorific). any free time was spent with one or the other if available, but if they were both occupied you would make your way toward the barracks and join a few games of sabacc.

there were nights you’d spend in the barracks with either battalion (depends on which group you were assigned to at the time) and be welcomed there as if you were a fellow clone. they taught you to play sabacc and you enjoyed playing with them despite the fact you had the most rotten luck with the game.

winning didn’t carry any weight when you were able to spend time with rex and cody, shamelessly basking in the way they always seemed to have some sort of physical contact with you every moment possible. when rex and/or cody returned from whatever responsibilities held them earlier, the men were quick to relinquish them a seat next to you with a sly grin.

their vode noticed the affection shared for the jedi on sabacc night number two and didn’t hesitate to spread word of it around to the rest of their battalions and beyond. on the nights you accompanied them on trips to 79’s, men under rex and cody both (read: fives and boil) made sure that the rest of their brothers and the occasional civvie knew that you three were off-limits to anyone but each other. you were their jetti & they were your captain and commander, no one would get between that even if it wasn’t decided among those in question.

“nah, he’s kept his head in his work. he just got his civvie medical license, started his own private practice on naboo.” rex was extremely happy for his brother, although it was strange to not see him nearly every day. it took a while before he was used to the lack of vode around him at all moments, but cody has been a massive help with that transition.

cody nodded before adding onto his brother’s statement. “and besides, we’re not that cruel, cyar’ika.” you grinned at the endearing tone, choosing that moment to snag another drink from the glass in cody’s hand. he swatted at your hand gently but didn’t put up a fight otherwise, just smiling at how carefree you’d become.

during their comms you did sound at peace, and the times where you’d appear via hologram to him your posture was less rigid than it was during wartime. scarif was good for you, cody knew this. the knowledge of your happiness, however, couldn’t prevent selfish thoughts from returning to the front of his mind. thoughts of you leaving scarif with him and rex, lighting up their apartment better than the sun with nothing but a smile were pipe dreams he indulged in when nightmares of war caught up to him.

“y’know,” you began, “no one would ever tell me what that word really meant.” the men froze, trying to play it off. they were saved only by the fact you kept talking. “none of the men ever gave me a straight answer, just saying that it was something you say to someone you trusted. i even asked duchess satine about it when i was on mandalore. she asked who was using the word and when i told her it was you two, she just grinned like a tooka with a rat tail hanging from its mouth.”

duchess satine was most definitely going to be receiving a gift in the near future.

briel chose that moment to speak for the first time in a while, crossing her arms behind her head. “i’ve never been to mandalore nor heard a lick of what i’m guessing is its native language, but you’d have to be a fool to not guess its meaning by now.” her words were directed at you but they made the men sputter.

“what is that supposed to mean, brie?”

“seriously? please tell me you’re kidding.”

briel was absolutely incredulous. how could a member of the highly revered jedi order, known for the wisdom of its members, not read between the lines? they were giving her plenty to work with in terms of evidence of their affections that they weren’t hiding very well, how did you not know?!

silence followed her words and she came to the startling realization that you were, in fact, not kidding. “look at them, these two adore you! they followed you here like stray tookas when you didn’t comm them enough.” the men didn’t even bother looking offended as they were called out by the togruta. they were scared you’d be disgruntled at the blatant show of care for you but briel wasn’t done. “sithspit y/n, you got tattoos of them because you said you missed them so much!”

hold on, rewind, what did she just say?!

“you… missed us?” rex’s voice was softer than anyone had heard it be in a long time. part of him aches to throw his drink over his shoulder and take you into his arms with no regard to the outside world, yet he restrains himself. this could very well be a trap, an illusion or extremely detailed dream the likes of which he’s never experienced.

then again, how would that explain his mind creating a taste for something he’s never had before?

he concluded that this was indeed real, and he very well could do exactly as his heart desires if he let go for just a moment, just long enough for the contents of his glass to seep into the sand and his calloused hands to roam your exposed skin.

but he also remembers long talks with his ori’vod about their mutual affections for you. how selfish and uncaring it would be for him to try and keep you to himself after spending so many nights lamenting with cody about the way you made them both feel more human. the way you tethered them to sanity when the war threatened to dispose of what little control they had over themselves or their fates, the softness of your fingers intertwined with theirs whenever you had the chance. both men would contemplate the way you’d taste as you downed several shots at 79’s or cups of the contraband moonshine brewed by the men, wondering how much would be the alcohol and how much would be you and wishing that they could find out.

it would be a betrayal far greater and even more despicable than that of palpatine and the republic, and rex didn’t think he could handle losing the respect of his ori’vod no matter what was given in return. not even you.

the togruta woman officially lost the last speck of patience she held for the clueless, lovesick trio, groaning that she gave up as she left them to their own devices.

you were confused. why would you not miss them? did those years of fighting next to them and caring about them and loving them not translate to the idea of missing them when they were gone? yeah you were a little tipsy when you got your tattoos, but that didn’t change the facts as to why you got them: you wanted cody and rex by your side and moments spent without them were moments spent unhappy. they were your boys, the two reasons you kept fighting in that cursed war instead of returning to the temple with your tail between your legs at the first sign of combat.

cody downed his margarita with a solid gulp before taking your right hand in both of his, face twisted almost identically to his brother’s while processing the information you presented. he marveled in the familiar grooves and calluses from battle that were beginning to soften, thoroughly enjoying the fact he didn’t have to hide anything from you or the rest of the galaxy about the love - cody was sure now that this was indeed love - he held for you and you alone.

“is that true, cyar’ika?” cody’s voice was sickeningly hopeful. he’s never allowed himself to hope, knowing that diving too deep into desire could lead to consequences tantamount to death. hearing you stumble over your words as you admitted to loving him, loving him and rex both in the same capacity, cracked the last mask of stoicism he had in his reserves. his mouth was smiling but his eyes were wet, and anyone who didn’t know him would think the man was karking mad.

you weren’t as focused on your boys as you would have been any other moment, too busy trying to figure out what you said for cody to ask about and oh. holy shit, i said all of that out loud. then, a brief moment of clarity. i said every bit of that, but they’re not leaving. they’re instead moving closer, taking my hands in theirs and then- “have i ever lied to either of you?” your heart once again overpowered your brain, taking over your vocal chords and bringing voice to your thoughts.

rex nestled his glass into the sand before going to his knees in front of you, eyes sparkling from both the scarif sun and unshed tears. “you could never, ner’jetti.” he rested his chin on your knee not blocked by cody, his subconscious deciding to nuzzle his head into the hand that had come up to his face.

within seconds, the clunky armor had taken to the sand. they didn’t startle at the sudden exposure to just their bottom blacks because they could feel the soft humming of the force around them, knowing that it was merely you making them more comfortable. you were pulling them toward you and into your reclined chair, rex’s chin in one hand and cody’s hands in the other. they were quick to take a hint, immediately moving to either side of you to lay on their sides, facing their jetti with soft smiles.

rex made quick work of wrapping an arm around your waist, face burying itself into the crook of your neck as best he could. he inhaled your scent, the familiar ozone that came with the force mingling wonderfully with scarif’s ocean water and the tropical drinks you’ve been keeping yourself busy with.

cody tangled one hand into your hair, fingers softly moving as he rested his other arm slightly above his brother’s. the hand touching your waist softly stroked your side as he let his eyes drift closed, the force wrapped around him like a blanket of protection.

no one spoke of love in the hours you spent wrapped in each other’s arms in that uncomfortable-for-three-people chair. the admissions and conveyance of all the love held between the three of you was saved for the privacy of their ship. cody and rex worshiped you and you did the same for them, no one allowing there to be a single doubt as to where your hearts belong.

#star wars reader insert #star wars fanfic #star wars imagines #star wars the clone wars #star wars #captain rex #captain rex x reader #captain rex imagines #commander cody #commander cody x reader #commander cody imagine #captain rex x reader x commander cody #poly rex x reader x cody #commander cody x reader x captain rex #beach please #this is fluffy as hell #i refuse to ship him with qui-gon #ct-7567 #cc-2224

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earnestly-endlessly · 4 years ago

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Bridgeton AU!!!! yespleasethankskbye

Thanks for the ask @pinkoptics. I do love my period drama and when I watched Bridgerton I thought of all the ways I could cherik it. Now you can’t quite match the storyline entirely to the characters of x-men so I had to develop different ways to establish family connections and backgrounds. This is the idea I have currently, and it might change. The main idea of Bridgerton is there, but some of the characters are merged into others so that the characterisation makes sense. Also, this is A/B/O universe so those are the main differences. But I hope you enjoy what I have.

Bridgerton AU

As London’s social season is fast approaching, Charles Xavier is about to make his formal introduction into high society at the annual Debutante Ball hosted by Queen Emma. Every year the queen hosts the debutante ball where young omegas of noble and gentry families are presented to the royal court. After being presented at court, debutantes are allowed to partake in all the exclusive social events of high society. More importantly, after their debut the young noble omegas are considered eligible for marriage. The season is anticipated by everyone in town, especially when the elusive secret columnist who writes under the pseudonym Lady Whistledown follows reports on the proceedings with her ever watchful gaze.

Charles Xavier is the only son of Brian Xavier and Sharon Marko nee Xavier. After Brian Xavier’s untimely death, Sharon is forced into marriage to Brian’s business partner and friend, Kurt Marko. Kurt Marko has a son Cain from a previous marriage (his wife passed away under suspicious circumstances but there was no proof of foul play). Cain is brutish and boisterous and terribly dim witted. He harbours jealousy towards Charles who is smart, well-read and friendly to all. Charles is also proud and ambitious. Together Kurt and Sharon have Raven who is very close to Charles and becomes overprotective of him.

Kurt Marko doesn’t care about his omega stepson’s societal status and is keen to marry him off as soon as possible. He has made an arrangement with Lord William Stryker II who has shown Charles great interest. Kurt Marko owes Stryker’s father hefty money as he has been spending the Xavier fortune on gambling and indulging his and his wife’s overly excessive lifestyle. By marrying Charles to Stryker’s son, he has solved all of his problems. His plan to marry Charles quietly off to William Stryker II is dashed when Charles receives attention and high praise from the queen herself at the Debutante ball. Suddenly, Charles becomes the most sought after omega of the season and every noble and single alpha is after his hand in marriage.

When Charles and the Marko´s are invited to the first social gathering at the Summers residence in Kensington Charles becomes hopeful of finding a suitable mate. Despite his independence and keen mind, Charles is also very much aware that in order to leave the Markos household he must find a suitable mate.

The Summers family lives near the Marko´s and are an unusually large family. Christopher and Katherine have eight children, Scott being the oldest of them. He has his eyes set on young miss Jean Grey who is also one of the more favourable omegas of the season. The Summers have four omegas to present for the debutante: Henry Philip ´Hank´, Alexander ‘Alex’, Anna Marie and Sean. Their three youngest, Katherine ‘Kitty’, Nathaniel and Gabriel are too young to be presented. Charles and Raven have been close friends with the Summers siblings since childhood. Charles is especially close to Hank who is awkward and doesn’t have the typical small stature of young noble omegas. Hank doesn’t want to sacrifice his studies and get married to a noble alpha. He wants a future in academia and spends most of his time holed in the library with his stack of books.

During the Summers ball, Charles is eager to be introduced to eligible alphas but realizes that Kurt has no intention of making his formal introductions. Raven is of no help either. As an alpha, Raven knows many of the alphas who have their eye on Charles and feels as if they would all take advantage of her brother. She even steers him away from the dashing Lord Azazel and the lovely Lady Braddock. There are also more disagreeable suitors such as Lord William Stryker II whose attempts of seduction are repulsive and aggravating. In his haste to remove himself from Stryker’s presence Charles accidentally stumbles into a tall, handsome alpha. In his desperation to get out of Stryker’s hands he attempts to engage the alpha in a conversation with no luck. It turns out that the alpha is rude, proud and standoffish. Charles deems his character altogether unpleasant though he begrudgingly admits that he is handsome, and his scent is pleasing. Thankfully Raven sweeps him away before he can make any more fool of himself. Raven explains to him that he just ran into Erik Lehnsherr, Duke of Hastings. Raven warns Charles of the Duke who is an acquaintance of hers. Despite her young age, Raven has tried to establish her place in the alpha community of the noble and gentry of London. In her experience the Duke is taciturn and aloof with no intention of marrying.

Much to his dismay, Jean Grey receives all the attention that night. This becomes even worse when the Summers family present their cousin and ward, Angel Salvadore, at the next ball who gains the attention of everyone with her beauty and charm. Little does the family know that she has secrets of her own that are best kept under wraps.

The days following the Summers ball Charles is called on by various suitors but Kurt Marko´s ominous presence and Raven’s forthright comments and criticism of the suitors repel most of them away.

Charles hopes that he’ll have better luck at the ball hosted by Viscount MacTaggert. At the ball, Kurt informs Charles that he has agreed to give Charles’ hand to Lord William Stryker II in marriage. Charles refuses to marry Stryker and storms off. As he seeks solace in the quiet rose garden, Charles is ambushed by none other than Stryker who attempts to take advantage of him. He’s instantly grateful when a tall, dark figure arrives in time to strike Stryker in the head and render him unconscious. Unfortunately for Charles, his saviour is none other than Duke Erik Lehnsherr himself and Charles reluctantly thanks him for saving him (though he assures him that he could have taken care of it himself). The Duke merely humors him and offers to escort him back to the party. Charles explains to him his predicament and Kurt’s acceptance of Stryker’s proposal on his behalf.

During Charles’ explanation, Erik halts him in his step and proposes an idea that is so absurd that Charles can’t help but laugh. Erik proposes that they pretend to court each other. With Charles on his arm everyone would believe that he has found his true mate and he would be free of the constant wooing of young, impressionable omegas. This would help Charles gain the attention of eligible Alphas of good standing, and to challenge his stepfather who has already promised his hand to Stryker. Unknown to Charles, Erik has made a vow to never marry and have children due to events from his past that involve his father Jakob Lehnsherr and his father’s associate Sebastian Shaw. Erik intends to end the toxic reign of his father’s and shaw’s influence by ending their legacy with himself. His last vow to his father was that he would never conceive children and involve an omega into the legacy his father left on his deathbed.

At first their arrangement goes exactly to plan. Charles’ new relationship with the Duke makes suitors seek him out at every ball and he receives severe calls a day from hopeful suitors. The whole affair draws the attention of the handsome Colonel James Howlett and the dashing General Steve Rogers (who harbours a scandalous secret that gets reported in Lady Whistledown’s column). When the queen herself invites Charles to tea at the palace she introduces him to her cousin Prince Warren Worthington III who shows Charles great interest Charles finally feels as if he can escape Kurt Marko’s clutches at last.

The only problem is that as Charles continues his ruse with the Duke…Erik, he starts to become fond of him. Once taciturn and cold, Erik seems to let his guard down when he is around Charles. As their charade goes on Charles begins to form a sort of attachment to Erik and finds that not merely does he seek his presence, but he looks forward to their chaperoned outings. Moreover, Erik gives him lingering, burning glances and subtle touches that makes his skin tingle. But Charles can’t harbour feelings for Erik when he has plenty of other suitors. Besides, Charles is sure that he doesn’t feel the same way about him. He probably sees him as a naïve, foolish omega with no worth.

Their whole charade takes a turn when lady Jean Grey witnesses Erik kiss Charles without an escort present in the maze by the Grey manor house. Jean Grey threatens to reveal the truth and Charles knows that it will ruin him and his prospects entirely. Raven challenges Erik to a duel since it’s her duty to protect her brother’s virtue. Charles manages to stop the proceedings before they go any further and pleas for them to stop, eventually begging Erik to marry him and end their foolish escapades. With reluctance Erik agrees to marry Charles. Raven is furious at Charles and claims that she can end this without Charles having to sacrifice his happiness and freedom. However, Charles is steadfast. Erik agrees to marry Charles but makes it clear that he can‘t and won‘t have children. In his desperation Charles agrees.

However, Charles does not know the reason behind Erik‘s refusal to have children and in the first weeks of their marriage he gives it no heed. Eventually, Charles finds out the truth and challenges Erik‘s decision which ultimately challenges their fragile relationship. Charles‘ belief that Erik was starting to care for him shatters which makes him question his growing feelings for him.

Their whole affair is closely followed by Lady Whistledown‘s column. Not only is the affair between Charles Xavier and the Duke the talk of town, but Ms. Salvadore‘s affair with young Mr. Armando Munoz who was believed to hold the affection of Alexander Summers. Things become even more complicated when Lady Whisteldown reports that Ms. Salvadore has a dark secret of her own.

#asks #earnestly answers #cherik #my writing #Bridgerton AU #Regency AU #WIP tag game

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gascon-en-exil · 4 years ago

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Dark Deity Pre-Release Character Opinions

This isn't actually a tier list, but someone helpfully created a template for this game and it's as good a way as any to do a little visual showcase for this cast. Characters are listed by their class sets, which are fixed but offer a nice variety in terms of promotion options. My opinions on each are as follows, from left to right in each row. Most characters have introductory profiles written up on the DD subreddit, if you'd like to check them out yourself.

Warriors

Alexa

You know those buff female blacksmiths in Echoes and Three Houses that some people wish were playable characters? That's pretty much Alexa. Can't say I'm too hyped about her myself, but warrior + tomboyish female character will do that for me...or not do it, I suppose.

Benji

Seems to have been written to become a meme, and I still can't decide whether that's clever or stupid. Kind of like Raphael only with a bigger emphasis on training than on eating, and with brotherly devotion replaced with brotherly angst that might theoretically go somewhere if the character isn't reduced to being a goofy joke all the time.

Fenton

Doesn't have a character profile, so as far as I know he's just a generic dwarf because DD swaps out its inspiration's loli dragons and other vaguely fetishistic shapeshifters for the two most cliché non-human races in Western fantasy. I wonder whether his VA will voice him with a Scottish accent, to go all in on the (ironic?) laziness. There are a handful of elves in the playable cast, but Fenton is the only dwarf so for better or worse he's representing.

Helena

She's the embodiment of the FE exotic swordswoman archetype, but curiously DD seems to have turned that broad ethnic brush inward. Helena's last name is apparently a Japanese verb, her art shows her with a spear (as in the association of the naginata with women), and she studied and trained in a monastery that seems to blend elements of Buddhism and Shintoism. Not sure how all that fits into the larger setting yet, but at this point she's still got more background development than Petra.

Irving

Our Hero, the one front and center on the cover art. He sounds a bit on the blander side as far as lords or lord equivalents go, with his most promising hook for me being his established friendship with Garrick (see the ranger section). At best I can hope for a bit of a romantic friendship dynamic, although they sound a bit rougher overall as they're military academy schoolmates I wonder why DD went with that instead of lordlings of different territories.

Rogues

Brooke

Looks like Camilla; has a backstory like Niles. Cleavage aside though the sexual element of both is toned down here, and there might be some sapphic bodyguard shenanigans to be had as her current employers are a pair of highborn sisters further down this list.

Cia

For some reason she reminds me of Tressa from Octopath Traveler, only bustier and a bartender rather than a merchant. She's still just a small town girl with big city dreams, and this being a tactical war game following those dreams will inevitably involve stabbing people.

Corvan

Hard to judge him at the moment, as his profile was only the second written and so isn't terribly detailed. He's a moon elf with scholarly interests, apparently. Still, as of right now he's the only rogue who doesn't slot loosely into either a ninja/assassin or pirate aesthetic, so that's kind of neat. Also, he's one of several characters to have FEH-esque beach fanart made of them already, so clearly someone's into elf twinks.

Ford

A former officer at the military academy Irving attends and a smuggler who dotes on his niece, Ford has major dad energy. Per developer reveals he's also bi, and as I mentioned before I'm totally fine with that. More bear sex, please - but what guy in this cast would hop in the sack with Ford? Only time will tell. His personal skill makes him extra dodgy, which combined with the mug of booze in his art makes me think of WoW brewmasters who dodge-tank through the power of being wasted.

Wren

Like Brooke, he's an assassin from a foreign nation - in his case the same one as Helena so presumably he's a not!Japanese ninja. I'm not really feeling him at the moment. What is it about Hao'Fen (the city/territory he and Helena come from) and massive families? That comes up in both their backstories.

Rangers

Caius

I feel like this is the third or fourth character to grow up in some slum or other; at least they've all been in different towns so far. The relative rarity of noble characters is certainly different from FE, but it reduces the political stakes which leaves me wondering a bit about the story. Anyway, Caius is a small town desert hunter who learned how to make arrows out of animal bones. How aerodynamic is bone, I wonder?

Garrick

Irving's BFF and seemingly the Hector to Irving's Eliwood, only with more flirting (his intro doesn't specify that Garrick is flirting with women, but I'm not going so far as to say that indicates anything). He's the academy headmaster's son, with a strained relationship with his father for some of that hotheaded lead tension. Notably, his VA is the one I'm most familiar with in this cast, as he's the voice of Revali from Breath of the Wild as well as love interests in two different erotic gay dating sims I've played. In other words, I know what this guy sounds like making awkwardly simulated sex noises...and I have no idea what to do with that information.

Maeve

She's a half-elf with a very storied background, so much so that it's all rather hard to follow her exploits when little of what's being described has been fully revealed yet. I'm expecting her to be a mid/lategame recruit, unless she's dropped in early on to reveal that (sun) elves exist or something.

Rose

Imagine if Bernadetta were a commoner, although we can only hope they'll be less screaming. Alternatively, Neimi without an obvious boyfriend. She won the beach contest so now she has official swimsuit art, which I guess makes her a top-tier waifu in the eyes of players who care about such things.

Sophia

A ranger in the "has animal companions" sense, although whether that will come into play mechanically aside from her personal skill - Butter the ferret can attack with her! - remains to be seen. Her preference for the company of animals is explained by a lack of social graces, so prepare for klutz-related humor. Of note to those interested in F/F is that her introduction specifically brings up her connection with Sloane (see the mage section) and how close the two of them are.

Clerics

Faust

Doesn't have a profile yet, so not much to go off other than his decidedly unhinged look. The cleric class set does feature some darker-flavored options, so presumably he's more naturally aligned with those. His VA was announced to be the YouTuber behind So This is Basically Fire Emblem and other similar videos, so I'm picturing a kooky and somewhat demented Henry type.

Lincoln

Also lacks a profile at time of writing...clerics get so little love. The Discord has identified him a bland blond paladin sort, but as we know from the likes of Perceval and especially Dimitri that doesn't necessarily mean he'll be boring (or not gay).

Maren

The soft-spoken healer type, and also a childhood friend of Garrick although her intro sibling-zones him but then this game is inspired by FE so who knows if that'll stick. She may have some interesting thoughts on the theology of the setting, as there seem to be several faiths and she's said to have a complicated relationship with her own. I will be utterly shocked if she's not either Irving or Garrick's eventual love interest.

Samara

One of two princesses of the country of Aramor, which appears to be loosely inspired by the Middle East. Heaven help us if the Khalidstans ever get wind of this game. Unfortunately aside from her bond with her older sister (in the mage section) and the knowledge that Brooke has been hired as their bodyguard there's not much to Samara at the moment. Hopefully the clerics all do some comparative theology in their bond conversations, and this isn't like Sacred Stones where none of the clergy characters from different countries ever compare notes. The succession crisis involving Samara and her sister vs. their less-loved cousin the king's son might be a major plot hook? It's still too early to tell.

Vesta

Much like Maeve her backstory has entirely too much going on to really follow at the moment. Basically she's a human who grew up in a sun elf city because Reasons (seriously, I don't know what they are) and was called to a clerical vocation and also something about taking a journey. Has an unfortunate case of silly boob armor, which unlike a certain other character probably won't be rectified this close to release.

Mages

Alden

Maren's precocious younger brother, also basically Ricken up to and including the comically oversized hat. As a unit he follows the tradition of Donnel, Mozu, and Cyril of having a personal skill that buffs his stat gains, so it's safe to say he's a growth unit. At least he'll probably join early.

Liberty

Comes with dead brother angst and a connection to the "aspects" system that will hopefully make more sense once I've played the game and know how it functions both mechanically and from a storytelling perspective. Otherwise she looks to be a busty older - as in, not a teenage - mage in the vein of Calill.

Monroe

Got the first ever character profile, so it's really short. He's the son of a duke and sounds like a bit of a snob, albeit one that can make explosions happen to back up his haughtiness. He's got some scarring around his eye that surely must come with a story. Someone also made featured fanart of him in Heroes summer banner style, so I guess he's got somebody horny already.

Sara

Samara's half-sister, with comparable fantasy Middle Eastern flavoring. Has an interest in discovering magical artifacts and being a just ruler in the event she winds up on the throne (so, almost definitely), and she and Samara travel around with the assassin Brooke as their bodyguard. There's maybe some lesbian possibilities there? Either way, Sara has enough development where I could see her as a major supporting character.

Sloane

Comes with a genuinely fascinating backstory involving manipulative double-crossing parents, an education in the cruelties and deceptions of social life (reflected in her personal skill), and disinheritance - and yet it's all likely to be overshadowed because she may go down as DD's equivalent to Fates's face-touching. Her initial art is even more revealing than Camilla's, and while the developers later gave her a more modest redesign after negative feedback I get the feeling that this controversy may live on. Her introduction mentions her hunting for both heirs and heiresses and she's now been linked to Sophia, so safe to say she's another confirmed bi character.

Adepts

While the other class sets are standard fantasy fare adepts require a bit more explanation. They have innate magical abilities and appear to be feared and distrusted most places in the setting. Functionally they remind me of adepts from the Golden Sun series, if anyone is familiar with those games. The classes in the adept group tend more toward physical/magical hybridization than those of other sets, so that will probably be their mechanical niche. Oh, and their default weapon type is lances, which is a plus in my book.

Aurima

Along with Caius and the royal sisters, he's another one from the desert nation of Aramor. An arena fighter who got touched by a god in what I assume was a non-sexual way and came out of it with a new appearance and adept powers. Also, he's confirmed to be over 40 - how often do you see that in games like this?

Bianca

Looks like a more carefree Mathilda from Echoes. She's a ranking officer in the Delian army which sounds like it'd sit uneasily with her adept powers. Her profile describes Lincoln as her close friend, which is still about the most we know about him at this point.

Elias

This guy's writing plays more into the fairly standard coding that comes with adept powers, as we know they manifested shortly before he was going to confess his feelings to a male paramour and afterwards he was forced to flee his homeland and wander the world. He also spent time among dwarves, so insert short bear jokes here? In the present he's attached to Cia in what seems to be a platonic way; maybe she's a fruit fly, or maybe she just likes having a friend who can light drunken assholes on fire? Elias is definitely into guys, but I would still be a little surprised if he turned out to be totally gay as that's such a rarity in these sorts of things.

Iris

Oof, another lengthy and rough backstory. Iris had better parents than Sloane, but she also had to deal with permanent facial scarring (hence the mask) after a bandit kidnapping and the stigma of manifesting as an adept pretty much eliminating the prospects of her making a good political marriage. Also, she and Elias both come from Neullais, which is prominently featured on the continental map on the DD subreddit but doesn't seem to come up all too often in backstories. I think it's a not!France? Hard to tell.

Thae'lanel

A World of Warcraft blood elf, flowing anime hair and apostrophe'd name and all. I like WoW so that's not terribly grating, but as he has no profile yet there's little else I can say. Thae'lanel is mentioned in Maeve's introduction as a member of a sun elf group called the Exiled, which I'm guessing is tied to his adept status in some way. He and Maeve form yet another adventurer/bodyguard duo.

#Dark Deity #Fire Emblem #Well it's sort of FE

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thefanficmonster · 4 years ago

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Like Wind At Sea

Conrad x Fliss (The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man Of Medan)

Warnings: Swearing, !SPOILERS!

Genre: Fluff, A tiny bit of Angst

Summary: Conrad stays in French Polynesia after the events of the game, a force beyond his control forcing him to stay. A feeling he can’t explain keeping him tied to the place. It’s not the place per-se, more like a soul and mind that endured similar torment. Takes a while for him to admit it to himself though. Typical Conrad.

Requested by Anon (we both know who you are XD) Sorry to be getting to your request so late! You know I couldn’t wait to write this fic though! Thank you so much for being my first and only ConFliss request so far, means a lot to me! Please enjoy! Love, Vy ❤

He has just gotten off the phone with Julia. She calls him every other day to check if he’s still alive and functional - as functional as a mildly unstable alcoholic could be. Not that she’d ever outright say that’s why she’s calling him but he sees it, hears it loud and clear in the tone she uses - the same tone people use to talk a child away from a tantrum or calm them down once they’ve already started one. There’s also the subliminal ‘get your ass on a plane and fly back home’ during every phone call, but he pretends it’s so subtle he doesn’t catch it. Julia never points it out specifically, so he gets away with it.

His sister has every right to worry. It’s been approximately a month since they survived the horrors out on that ghost ship. ‘Survived’ in the most minimal sense of the word - half of their minds are still stuck there, healing the wounds that place left on them. Each person’s healing differently - Julia and Alex seek comfort in one another, the events having brought them closer than ever. Brad has thrown himself head-first in his studies, giving them all his focus and time so the memories can’t haunt him. Fliss has not been seen on land since then. She goes out at sea on her own or with tourist groups, never taking them for long trips or trips far from land - never in the direction of the ghost ship. And Conrad is stuck in a cycle that will kill him eventually. Minimal eating, overdrinking and oversleeping. He barely sees the light of day. He lives in a cheap, rundown motel, leaving his room only in the morning to make his way to the docks to ask about Fliss. He would never admit to himself that he is looking for her per-se. The way he sees it - he’s looking for closure. She’s the only person he feels he could discuss what happened with but he can’t explain why.

Just one conversation, and he’ll be on his way.

When he doesn’t find her - as expected - he goes back to the motel, passing by a liquor store on the way and obtaining his fix for the day. He knocks himself out until further notice. Said further notice is late into the afternoon/early evening when he finally stumbles into the small restaurant near the shore where he always takes a seat by the windows - his gaze always fixated on the docks. Always expecting to see her in the distance. He has a feeling he’ll recognize her no matter how far away she is. His eyes could always find her.

But he only needs them to find her this once, give him closure, and let him go on his way home to his sister and parents. He is so convinced she’ll free him from the invisible chains keeping him here, he has contemplated borrowing a boat to go search for her out on open water but managed to talk himself out of it every time.

“Give it up, son.“ One of the fishermen told him one day when he performed his usual routine of showing up at the docks to ask for her. He has been looking more and more homeless with each passing day, the fishermen and boat captains witnessing this ‘golden‘ boy crumbling under the pressure of the trauma.

“I can’t.“ He replied, eyes searching for the Duke, knowing damn well there was no way he could find it. He believed what he said - he still believes it - he feels trapped and has established that he will stay that way until she frees him.

“You can’t or you don’t want to?“ The fisherman’s question shook him up, sobering him up from the foggy state he has imprisoner himself in. That one question felt like a slap across the face and a punch to the gut simultaneously.

He didn’t buy liquor on his way back that day.

Dropping the phone on the bed he hops in the shower, a sense of excitement keeping his heart beating faster this morning. His tone surprised Julia - he sounded so alive, lively, enthusiastic. Almost like the Conrad she knew prior to those horrors. Sure, every time he called he masked how he truly felt using his sarcasm, humor and Conrad-ness, but Julia saw right through it. Today, on the other hand, it was genuine. Not an act. Hopeful is how she’d describe him.

And he has what to be hopeful for.

Yesterday, one of the older captains actually had something useful to tell him: A female captain reported her return in the next two days. This sent Conrad’s heart racing and mind haywire. He was practically counting the hours, he barely even slept a wink last night. He thought his patience had thickened after a month of waiting but now that she is so soon to return he realizes his patience has only been worn thinner and thinner. The alcohol masked it well though. Now that he’s sober, however, he’s got all the impatient symptoms: bouncing leg, tapping foot, cracking knuckles, muttering to himself etc.

The captain didn’t know a time to tell him for her arrival. That didn’t pose a problem for Conrad though. He is prepared to sit out by the docks all day and that’s exactly what he’s gonna do. He’s been lacking sunlight too, so it’s a win-win situation for him.

He stopped for a quick breakfast in the restaurant - sat in his usual seat, his gaze ten times as focused and sharpened at the boats dancing on the tiny waves, making a plan to rush out of the restaurant the second he laid eyes on the Duke. After the first breakfast he has had in a month he went to sit with the captains and fishermen, all of which poked at him for more details either about his relation to Fliss or about what had happened. The whole town heard of it, some believed it, some didn’t, others questioned it. Conrad knows better than to tell them what happened, or what DIDN’T happen. He knows they’ll peg him for a nut-job with no further discussion.

That was all hours ago, he has lost track of time and despises the idea of checking his wristwatch to see how much of his life he has wasted on the docks. The sun’s setting, so that’s gotta be some indication.

With his mind travelling the oceans and seas in search of her, he’s rather startled to feel a hand on his shoulder. He turns to see the fisherman that tried to set him ‘straight’ a few weeks ago. “Let’s grab a bite to eat, son. Maybe a drink to go with it.” When Conrad shakes his head in the response, the man sighs, “You really can’t give her up, can you?”

“I don’t want to.“ The words automatically leave his lips, like a truth he’s been dying to speak out loud. A smile appears on his face at the sound of what he said. He knows it’s authentic, no matter how automatic it was.

The man chuckles and pats his shoulder. There is an abrupt but odd pause however, Conrad can see the astonishment in the his eyes as they travel to the sunset. “Maybe it’ll be worth it in the end, after all.” He points ahead, causing Conrad’s head to snap back in the direction it was originally facing. A boat, a familiar one, is approaching.

The man steps away right in time for Conrad to jump to his feet, his heart pounding like it did this morning. It’s not an illusion or a hallucination, he’s fucking done with those. It’s real and it’s her.

The time it takes for the boat to reach the docks is killing him, he has to restrain the urge to swim to her and give her a hug. No, that could earn him a slap to the face. Well, it wouldn’t be the first time - but he still wants that hug.

She on the other hand is baffled to say the least. She has grown wary of her own eyes and now she isn’t sure if she can trust them with what they’re seeing. Conrad. The man who was supposed to be long gone from her life is standing in front of her, a smug smile playing at his lips as if to convince her it’s really him. To say her heart dropped at the sight of him would be an understatement. It’s certainly a shock and a surprise but far from unpleasant. She only now realizes how much she’s missed having him around even if they haven’t known each other for long. She can say with 100% certainty that she has never met, nor will she ever meet a person like Conrad.

And not that she’d admit it, but he has a special place in her heart.

“Aren’t I glad to see you!“ He’s the first to speak up, as expected. To his surprise, she’s the one to initiate the hug though. A more than welcome surprise.

“I could easily say the same.“ She mumbles in the crook of his neck, fighting her instinct to hold onto him for a long time and forcing her arms to free him, “But what are you doing here?“ A very reasonable question on her part, one he doesn’t have an answer to. “And why do you look like you just left that boat after years spent on it?”

“Don’t even joke about that.“ He scolds her playfully, causing her to roll her eyes - playing the ‘unbothered‘ card, much like him.

“Answer my question. Both of them.“ She fixates his gaze on hers with a strict glare, not allowing him to look elsewhere. Which seems to have backfired cause he can’t utter a word. She shakes her head, “I guess a drink will unknot your tongue.“ She waves him over, hopping back into the Duke.

He follows without needing to be told twice, “No drinks, thank you. My liver already hates me enough.”

“Your eyebags do too.“ She points out, taking a seat.

He scoffs though he can’t correct her. Who knew oversleeping could cause eyebags too? He sits down opposite her, mind overheating in search of what to say. “So....about that night...”

“It was a nightmare.” Fliss cuts him off, “One I’d like to forget.“

Her words sound familiar to him. He almost laughs when he recalls saying the exact two sentences, word-for-word to Julia over the phone.

“But you can’t.“ He says firmly. “Drop the act, Fliss. I’ve seen it before. No, I’ve DONE it before. You’re not fooling the master of ‘I don’t give a fuck’. If I’m still troubled by it, you are too.“

Frustration is clawing at her, her thoughts contradicting each other. “You’re right, I can’t. But I don’t wanna talk about it either.”

“Ok then, what do you want to talk about?“ He’s not to keen on talking about it either, he was using that as a front. All along, closure is the last thing he’s needed. Company - her company - is the answer.

“What’s ahead. How we’ll let it go, you know? That cheesy shit like the sunshine after the storm.“ She motions to the Duke and the open water, “This is mine. What’s yours?“

He stops to think for a moment, but for some reason he feels obligated to deliver a reply quickly so he automatically blurts out: “First I plan on going back home. I’ve been planning to do that, but I wanted to see you, talk to you first.”

She feels a pang in her chest. Missing. She’s already missing him again at the very thought of him leaving. She tries to brush it off, call it ridiculous, but it refuses to leave her so she pushes onward, ignoring it to the best of her ability. “So you’re leaving soon?”

The logical thing to say here would be ‘Yes’, but he feels like the word has been removed from his vocabulary at the moment. He can’t say it. It’s not what he wants anymore. Or is it? “I mean, that was the original plan but...” he rubs the back of his neck nervously, “I’m not so sure anymore. I guess it depends...” He trails off, his voice dying down - a rare occurrence. He’s never had this happen to him around any woman ever. He’s a ladies man, and look at him now, timid you could call him.

“Depends on what?“ A feeling worse, more ridiculous than missing him - the hope of him sticking around takes firm hold of her. She knows she should know better, but hell, it’s not time for pride at the moment.

Their eyes meet. “If you’d like company or not.“

His response sends a wave of relief over her, stealing a smile that turns into a laugh from her. “I’d typically say no, but...”

“But my charm has finally knocked you out cold, huh?“ He smirks in his cocky, really-Conrad way.

“That comparison still makes no sense.“ She stands up looking at the sun’s last rays but at the moment it feels more like a sunrise - a new beginning - or it’s the true sunshine after the storm she’s been looking for. “Now, let’s discuss terms over dinner cause I’m starving.“

He chuckles, offering her his hand, which she gladly takes as they start walking down the dock back to the beach. “Terms? You really know how to take the fun out of it.”

She rolls her eyes, stopping to give him a brief kiss on the cheek before quickening her pace, dragging a star-struck Conrad behind her. “That shut you up.” She shoots him a smirk over her shoulder.

It really has shut him up. All he can do is grin at her in awe, mesmerized by how she flipped his life on its ass in such a short amount of time. A month of misery has been erased and turned to bliss in less than thirty minutes.

A phenomenon that he’d like to call - like wind at sea. He’s a sailboat, she’s the wind. She decides his path, he abides. And they’ll sail in harmony together, healing one another, and healing themselves in the process. Just the two of them: Mr. Golden Playboy and Miss No-Nonsense.

If anyone has ever doubted the accuracy of the phrase ‘Opposites attract’, if this doesn’t kill any and all doubt, I don’t know what will.

@chairtiger

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amandaklwrites · 4 years ago

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TV Series Review: Miss Scarlet and the Duke (2019)

Genre: Historical Fiction/Murder Mystery/British Period Drama

Rating: 10/10

TV Show Review:

I. LOVE. THIS SHOW.

Pretty much this review will be me talking about everything I love this series, just a warning. I hope you love it too, so you can enjoy my blabbering and gushing!

I will do this review a bit differently, since it’s still relatively new, especially here in the US. I’ll talk about my general thoughts, and then I’ll do a “keep reading” when it goes down into spoilers for each episode.

So, here, for the spoiler-free part of my review:

Let me start out by saying that these characters make the whole damn show. Yes, the mysteries are great and all, but it’s the characters in this series, for me, that drives the whole thing. Eliza Scarlet is a masterful main character, and I love everything about her—from her determination, her willingness to fight the crowd to be what she wants, how she’s willing to admit some issues, that she still relies so heavily on her father after he passed away. Her humor is so incredible, and I think she’s just someone I wish I could be. Her feistiness is so wonderful. And then our Inspector Detective William “the Duke” Wellington is… one of my favorite leading men, fictional of course. I like that he’s overprotective of her (sometimes, to funny extents), that he does his job well and follows a lot of the right paths, that he doesn’t seem surprised by much of anything, and that he’s willing to fight even when he’s falling apart at the seams. And their relationship! They are so clearly in love with each other (probably have since that “chaste kiss” when they were teens…), they bicker like a married couple, and though they annoy the living hell out of each other, they would die for one another. I like that their relationship isn’t perfect and they take note of that in the show, but it feels real. It’s one of the most real relationships I have ever seen.

Moses and Rupert are such important characters and I LOVE their relationship with Eliza, their friendships that seem so different, but they just fit. I can’t go much into detail about either of them, or it will spoil entire plotlines of mysteries, but I will say that I love what the story does with their characters, how it gives them breaths of their own, that they become some of the most dynamic characters in the show with so much to them and that take a life of their own. That they feel real and important and interesting, and I love the representation. That’s all I’ll say about them in the spoiler-free review.

Now, the mysteries, were incredible. They kept me guessing through every episode, and I would have some feelings about things/people, but I wasn’t sure how it would get there. At times, I thought of the truth, but figured that they were going to trick me with it (my grandpa always told me that I have a brain for a detective, if I had some training, so that’s fun!). But still, they were so innovative and different from other mysteries that I had experienced. And I liked that each episode felt a bit different—we had a taste of ghost story feeling, even an intense thriller. They were really, really good mysteries, to me at least. And I do love me some mysteries.

Okay, so the costumes, sets and music. MY GOD. It was all SO BEAUTIFUL! Eliza’s clothes were magnificent and they had POCKETS!!! William was way too sexy in those clothes (can we bring those back??? We can leave out the discrimination that came with the time period, but let’s bring back the clothes at least!). Everyone had gorgeous clothes. And the sets were beautiful—those dirty, Victorian, coal covered streets… I loved it! (My mom says she’s not sure why I’m so in love with the dark atmosphere of the Victorian era, but I am!). The MUSIC. Can they just upload a damn soundtrack already? I need to listen to this music all the time! It sounds different and cool and I’m just so in love with it.

THE HUMOR! My god, I had never seen a murder mystery show set in another time that does humor so well. I love how they travel between scenes to make it funnier, the lines they say to one another. It makes me feel like these actors absolutely had a blast filming this show. They were so on point, and some of the funny scenes made me laugh harder than any comedy movie I’ve seen.

As you can see, I’m obsessed with this show altogether. I love it, and I want to watch it over and over. The vibe, the love stories, the characters, every. single. thing. is my jam. I know they’re planning a second season and I cannot wait for it. Ugh. My god. It’s wonderful.

So here ends my spoiler-free review. After this, I’m going to talk spoilers. So if you have seen the show and/or want to read the spoiler-y thoughts, please click on the “keep reading.” If not, see you around after your watch the show! It’s well worth it!

Let me start out by explaining more of my thoughts on the relationship between William and Eliza, because I worried that some of what I had said would give away possibly too much. So here’s that part:

The (hilarious) way that William mutters “oh jesus” whenever he finds Eliza waiting in his office, or the fact that Eliza calls herself his wife (or in one instance, something worse, but to save herself) to get what she wants also feels like a sly to personally agitate him. How that he would toss her into jail/into court when she went against things he said she shouldn’t do (though he released her/got her out at some point) never got old and even funnier to me each time. I told my mom, she was like a toddler—he couldn’t keep her in sight, so he had to lock her out. But I liked that she still argued with him despite it. Their back and forth was perfect.

I will say here, that I have seen people’s comments online how they wish that William was more on board with Eliza’s detective dreams and support her 100% much earlier on. And I get that, that he can seem like an ass at times. But honestly, I think he feels more realistic that he’s a little harder about it in the beginning. Trust me, I love this show and the way they play with characters and storylines, and that they are so forward (I mean, Eliza is so forward-thinking and modern, it’s amazing), but to me, if they made EVERYONE, i.e. William especially, it wouldn’t ground me into the time very well. I like that it was more gradual for him, to fully support her. And actually, I think for a man in the Victorian Era, with his position, he supported her as much as he could. Though he fought her on it at times, he eventually gave up trying to stop her. And I do think, in some respect, he was trying to protect her, because he does care for her. He was a man of his time, in his position, and he is changing. Can we at least give him that? Because, in all throughout history, it took a while for things to change. And it was men like William that started to understand, that started to recognize that, that helped make it happen. Plus, Eliza didn’t let him pull shit all the time, and she did fight him on it.

Now, I’m going to comment on each individual episode with my thoughts. I’ve never done this before so yay! Here it goes!

EPISODE ONE: Inheritance

I knew the weird uncle wasn’t the girl’s uncle. I didn’t expect that it was her husband (I should’ve!! We knew he was a cheat and a conartist!!), but I knew it wasn’t her rich uncle. I knew from the moment he came on screen—I remember thinking, this guy looks too young around his eyes. His beard and mustache look fake. So, I was right to an extent.

I can’t be the only one who was horrified to discover what the police did to women who worked as prostitutes or in dance halls—they could be arrested and searched for venereal disease? Seriously??? For men who were so obsessed with wanting their wives to “stay safe” and “be protected,” they sure were fine with flipping the case when it came to women that they would also gladly pay to sleep with? Why don’t they check the male clients who are PAYING for this industry. It was appalling and horrendous, and it made my skin literally crawl as they tried tying Eliza down to the chair.

On the note of that scene, Eliza calling herself William’s favorite whore to save herself is literally one of the funniest (though, darkly) things—especially in the next scene, when you see the two of them sitting in his office in silence and William is mortified, annoyed, and I think amused at the same time.

I loved how Eliza tricked that bastard husband—she set him up, AND she gave him laudanum to make him pass out? This woman knows what’s up!

Instantly from this first episode, I knew I loved this show and these characters. Eliza shows her charm and wit and humor and smarts. She’s skilled and I love her personality so much. Though I can see how she could be aggravating to others. William absolutely adores her. Rupert annoyed me a bit at the beginning, but by the end—when he asked Eliza to not marry him, I knew I would like him. And Moses! A Jamaican man brings in the race question of this dark, old world, but I love that he likes Eliza and finds her interesting. He’s terrifying, but I think he’s a good, decent man, he’s only trapped in this world because no one will let him be anything else. But he’s such a rich, interesting character.

EPISODE TWO: The Woman in Red

This episode brings in the reality of homosexuality in this world. That it has always been there (damn those bastards who think otherwise), but it has been hidden away. That men and women have to fear for their lives, and also marry people they do not want because they want to not be noticed. I loved finding out Rupert was gay—my mom called that one!—and the friendship he develops with Eliza. That he trusts her to tell a secret that could literally have him killed and ruined. And that Eliza doesn’t even blink, that she’s willing to keep his secret to the grave, and I cried when she basically told him that. It’s quite beautiful that Eliza even seemed to be grateful that he trusted her enough to give her that secret.

Which was used in interesting juxtaposition to the gay man, accused of murdering his lover, and his wife. I understand the woman’s hurt, that she loved this man and it turned out he didn’t love her in the same way. But that didn’t mean her willingness to let him die for a crime he didn’t commit was at all good or called for. With Eliza talking her down, to prove that the woman’s husband was innocent, I think proved that though she was hurt beyond reason, she did love that man who was her husband and didn’t want to see her die. It’s really a hard situation, especially during that time, when people were constantly shoved down their throats that homosexuality was bad. Not that I’m giving her a “it’s okay,” but I can understand the pain and confusion she went through. Especially because she pulled through.

Through this whole episode, we thought it was the wife that had murdered the lover (the other man). I was surprised to find out that he had killed himself, cut his own throat (which I had heard wasn’t possible to do—but my grandpa, who had worked as a detective, told me that is a myth people talk about, that it’s really easy to cut your own throat). That was a shock, and it made me so sad. That he was dying because he was unhappy, because he hated what he was, because of damn society telling him so. I actually started crying, because as someone who is bisexual, I would be condemned in this time during for openly being with men and women, though I couldn’t even compare to people who are gay or lesbian, because the situation is not the same. But I could connect, I could understand. And I hated knowing the pain all those people were in, that a man had killed himself because of what he was, and that another man had to live with that. It truly breaks your heart.

William’s response to finding out the dead man was gay was interesting. I thought his comment “in my line of work, nothing surprises you” funny, but also telling. He didn’t act disgusted, he didn’t mistreat the husband when they questioned him afterward. The show didn’t directly say his thoughts on homosexuality, but I got the vibe that he was “whatever” about it. Like he knew it was there, and he wasn’t condemning it publicly. That gives him credit, in my book.

Another great episode that got deep and beautiful.

EPISODE THREE: Deeds Not Words

Is this show just obsessed with getting right down to modern issues that were also faced in this time, but not as strongly discussed? Because I’m all for it! This episode was all about the suffrage movement. But I liked the take they did on it.

Yes, they spoke out about the treatment of women. That men, white men, controlled this whole world. But I also thought it was interesting that they made this main suffragette not the greatest person. It made everything complicated. Like, everything she said to Eliza made sense, and I found myself cheering with her. But she shot a man in cold blood, she was willing to bomb a whole building of men—even though it seems justified because of what their club represents.

I think this episode was discussing the balance. That there can be change, but when you attack the people who you are trying to change, it may not work in your favor. At least, that was the vibe I got. Not to stoop to their levels, to become just as horrible as them. Her ideas and words were great, but her actions were a bit… skeptical.

Eliza and William’s response were interesting as well. Eliza felt a passion for the cause, William thought it a bit extreme. But, to me, by the end of the episode, they had a common understanding, they had reached a comfortable middle. I think, this show was showing that was how change came. People seeing eye to eye, and then it spreading from there. Of course, William has faults, but I think he’s truly trying. Especially with each episode. And the more Eliza and he grow.

EPISODE FOUR: Memento Mori

We got our ghost episode! I wasn’t even expecting it, it was incredible! A ghostly image of a dead wife that had killed herself reappearing in photos? How wild and cool is that idea!

I didn’t know that the Victorians had a thing where they took photos of their dead loved ones, looking like they were alive (y’all, the Victorians were obsessed with death…), but it’s an interesting concept. Maybe even sweet. I get what they were trying to do, even if it did seem morbid. How I feel about it is, if it brings you peace, then go for it (as long as it’s nothing disturbing or harming anyone).

The twist was one I had a hint of but hadn’t expected the whole thing. I knew the daughter had something to do with it (how disturbed is this poor girl??), but I hadn’t expected that the mother had planned this before she killed herself because she knew the woman and her husband were already having an affair. It was interesting and a creepy twist, but I was all for it.

Still, I loved how we had moments of eeriness and the haunting feeling in the house when Eliza stayed over. I felt scared and freaked, and most people that know me know that I do not like horror. But this was the perfect eeriness, which I do love.

That scene from this episode where William screams at the poor telegram young man to give them the message or he’ll break everyone bone in his body and then being like “are you crying?” was the funniest thing I had ever seen. I laughed so hard that I couldn’t breathe. I mean, it’s terrible, but the way it was done was hilarious and amazing.

EPISODE FIVE: Cell 99

This episode was… dark. I liked that it was set in an abandoned prison, and my god, was it creepy as hell. I loved all the shots of William walking through gave me the chills.

This one felt like a thriller to me. How it was filmed, set up, how everything went down. Except for the hilarious scene when they are both so annoyed with each other (Eliza and William, that is) that they both scream in frustration is brilliant. But otherwise, it took a dark tone that made me feel like something was watching my back. Especially as that big, scary guy came walking down the stairs when William and Eliza were trapped, ready to kill them both. I was nearly screaming at the tv in utter horror.

My mom had called it—and I had a feeling—that Eliza’s father had been murdered, not just drinking himself to death and found in the gutter. And there’s a gang now? How interesting!

The masked man was strange, as well as the forger locked away. But he was shot and killed, and it confused me.

I have a strange confession to make: that whole time with William in his dress shirt (without the coat), with his arm covered in blood, was weirdly…. Hot? Please don’t ask me explain. I have weird things to me. But I think it was also hot that though he was hurt and bleeding, he was gearing up to fight that big, scary man to protect himself and Eliza. I like that kind of shit, so much.

This episode was twisted, and it left me with more questions than anything.

EPISODE SIX: The Case of Henry Scarlet

My mom knew William’s boss was in with the gang! I liked that they actually explored the reality of corruptness in the police force (my grandpa had personal experiences himself, and that was why he left), and they laid it all bare. Despite the things that we are learning in this present day, it’s always been there. Which is horrifying and disturbing. That these police who are supposed to protect us are willing to delve into the corrupt world to bring themselves more power and money. Because that’s what it boils down to, doesn’t it? Powerful men wanting more and more.

I liked that William was okay with the truth unfolding, and not fighting it, trying to prove innocence for his boss. To me, it made me feel like that he knew something was up with that man (just beyond not liking him). For his character, it made me think that he was one of those people that was actually good and good at his job, trying to do the right thing. Even if he got distracted and didn’t give Eliza credit where it was due, and fought some things, he was trying to do what he thought was right. He didn’t kill anyone, he didn’t go after anyone specifically. Though him and Moses had some standoffs because he wasn’t sure about the other man, he gave him some thanks and shook his hand. Which is huge for that time period.

I did suspect William’s buddy. I always felt like something was happening with him, and that he would be the perfect bad guy because he knew what was going on at all times. And it was proven right! Though it wasn’t any less terrible, William having to realize that his close friend at Scotland Yard as the bad, bad guy who killed their boss when things were turning ugly.

But Moses to the rescue! I loved that he swooped in, teaming up with Eliza, and taking the guy out! I love Moses so much, he’s one of my other favorites.

And their ending, with a promise of dinner, of love on the horizon was exactly what I needed.

Lasting thoughts:

Besides all the amazing storylines and characters they brought in, besides Eliza and William’s chemistry and relationship, to me, this felt like a story about a daughter and her father. We see flashbacks of Eliza as a child with her father, how he taught her his detective work, when that wasn’t something men did typically in that time, and how she would still talk to him after he had died. That though she had chosen this profession for herself, it was also some way to connect to her father. Something they had shared when she was motherless and only had him, and he gave her these skills and talents, helped her hone in on them. And once he had passed, she fought like hell to keep it, but make it her own. I liked that their relationship wasn’t perfect, but they loved the hell out of each other. She was a grown woman, who believed in herself, but she still turned to him—a ghost, a memory, or whatnot—when she felt at the bottom.

This series is incredible, perfect and just all around so masterful in so many different ways. I knew from the moment I heard about it that I would love it. And it turns out I was right, but even more than I had expected.

Now, I think it’s time for a rewatch.

#miss scarlet and the duke #eliza scarlet #william wellington #i love this damn show #tv series review

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hailbop1701 · 4 years ago

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ReaperXFemaleReader

Doom: To Hell And Back

Chapter 2: The Ark

Hey guys! I'm happy that the first chapter did okay. If you would like to get tagged please just let me know.

A man who strongly resembled a weasel walked towards the group. Holding out his hand he said, “ Sandford Crosby, UAC public relations.” Sarge had no desire to shake hands with him so he dropped it without missing a beat.

“Now follow me, please.” he continued and you tune out the rest; only hearing snippets of the conversation. You looked around with mild interest as you and the others stopped in front of the Ark. The man stopped and cleared his throat, “Welcome to the Ark, gentlemen.” he paused seeing you for the first time. “And lady.”

You raised an eyebrow as the computer announced, “ Initiating molecular mapping drive. All personnel, prepare for activation.” The weasel gestured for you all to stand back a bit. “ Keep your distance from the core or you might get sucked in,” he said with a nervous chuckle.

Beside you, the Kid leaned towards Goat looking nervous, “You...You done this before?” he asked lowly. Goat gave a noncommittal shrug, “Once. Training Mission” he said and you turned away from the conversation. You really didn’t want to think about it; Ark travel left a lot to be desired. It wasn’t gonna be fun. You wrinkled your nose at the floating silver mass in front of the room, ‘Ugh this is gonna suck.’ you thought.

Sarge told the weasel man to shut down the surface elevator for the standard six-hour quarantine. “Target receiver initialized. - Ready to proceed. Ark Travel, 15 seconds.” the computer spoke and Reaper stepped forward. Within seconds the silver mass swallowed him completely.

“Crow. You’re up.” Sarge said, jerking his head towards the front. Breathing in through your nose, you step forward. The computer counted down and before you knew it; you were gone. It felt like nothing, and everything all once. But sooner than it happened, it was over. You stumbled forward and gritted your teeth against nausea, taking in a sharp breath through your nose you’re faintly aware of someone guiding you to sit down.

“That’s it. Head between your knees,” they whispered, you look up through your lashes and see Reaper there. All you gave him was a groan in response. “I hate Ark travel.” you mutter. Reaper chuckles humorously, “Yeah it’s not my favorite either.” he murmured back. Squeezing your shoulder one more time before he stood back up and watched as the others came through. You were pleased to see that some of the others fared a bit worse than you.

Portman couldn’t hold it in. As soon as he stepped through the Ark he threw up; you weren’t sure what was worse. The smell or his complaining, “ Why we gotta come all this way? Why can’t UAC rent-a-cops take care of this bullshit?”

You rolled your eyes and got up off the floor with a kind hand from Duke. The kid panted and straightened, “ Is it always that rough?” he asked still looking rather pale.

“Believe me, it used to be a lot rougher. There was a time when Ark travel was susceptible to, let’s say, - major turbulence.” a man in a silver chair said rolling towards them. The poor kid looked confused, “What does he mean?” he asked incredulously.

“He means he went to one galaxy, his ass went to another,” Reaper said without skipping a beat. You smirked, “And here I thought he was doing a terrible impression of Darth Maul.” you muttered so only the closest to you could hear. Reaper coughed covering a laugh, Duke snorted not bothering in being discrete, and the Kid smiled; he relaxed a little at your words. Good.

The man in the chair gave Reaper an unimpressed look, “Call it a scientific miscalculation. Unbelievable as it may seem, UAC does make the odd tiny mistake. Marcus Pinzerowsky. You can call me Pinky. Follow me.”

You all move away from the Ark after Pinky. Sarge asked where the personnel who weren’t locked down in the labs were. Without looking up from a computer console Pinky responded, “ In the atrium.”

Sarge nodded, “Pinky, put us up.” Punky hit a few controls and glanced up, “ Activating remote personal surveillance.” he said. “Circle out men, on my three,” Sarge ordered.

You got into the circle and turned your body slightly to the left,

“One.”

“Two.”

“Three.”

With a snap and click, you pointed your weapon at the person across from you which just so happened to be Reaper. He had his weapon pointed right back at you; and without really thinking you crossed your eyes and stuck out the tip of your tongue. And you really had to give it to the guy, he tried his damnedest to keep a poker face. You knew he was amused though by the subtle huff and the twitch of his lip. Sarge looked at you with only mild exasperation and shook his head. You merely gave him a thousand-watt smile as he gave orders. “ People, this room is a code red, which means no one gets in without our permission. It stays ours at all costs. Mac, stay here with our friend and secure the door. Men, on me. Let’s move out. Open the door.”

People whispered around them, the atrium was abuzz with activity. A man approached Sarge, concern etched on his face. “When can I start evacuating people out through the Ark?” he asked Immediately. “We’re at a level 5 quarantine, nobody goes anywhere,” Sarge said ending the discussion right then and there.

You watched out of the corner of your eye as Portman sauntered up to a group of women trying to convince them that it was quarantine protocol to do a strip search. Duke shifted next to you and snorted, shook his head. “On behalf of all men. I’m sorry,” he whispered. You smirked and tilted your head up to reply but his gaze was fixed on something else. Or someone else.

A woman about your age walked with a purpose up to your group, right past Portman ignoring him. Her blonde ponytail swung back and forth until she made it to a stop beside the head of security. “ Sergeant, this is Dr. Samantha Grimm, UAC science officer assigned to retrieve data from the lab.”

“Sergeant.” Dr. Grimm politely greeted, and her eyes slid over to Reaper. “Hello, John.”

“Hello, Samantha,” Reaper muttered back clearly uncomfortable. ‘Oh He’s not happy’ you thought dryly. “Hello Samantha!” a voice said excitedly next to you; rolling your eyes you elbow Duke in the ribs making him hiss.

“Sarge, this operation is a code red. We really don’t have room for passengers.” Reaper said cooly. Dr. Grimm bristled, “ Excuse me, but I have orders to retrieve data from three servers: Anthropology, Forensic Archeology, and Genetics.”

“This is a military operation Doctor. We’re really not here to retrieve your science homework.” Reaper ground out. ‘Oh boy.’ you thought with a slight wince.

“Look, I got an idea. Why don’t you ask your CO what your orders are?” Dr. Grimm asked almost too sweetly. “This is better than daytime TV,” you muttered under your breath. Duke snorts and shifts a little when Goat glares at him.

Sarge sighed, “ To contain and neutralize the threat, protect the civilians, and retrieve UAC property.” he said monotonously. Dr. Grimm looked completely satisfied, while Reaper looked utterly peeved. ‘Yeah, bet they’re siblings.’ you thought finally. Dr. Grimm walked away, leading them onward.

“Is this going to spoil my day? Sarge asked eyeing Reaper. The man in question scowled, “No, sir.”

Duke let out a low whistle, “ Tell me you didn’t let a fine-looking piece of ass like that get away from you, Reaper.”

Reaper looked grossed out for a split second before saying, “She’s my sister.”

“No shit!” Duke exclaimed happily. ‘Fucking called it.’ you thought smugly. ‘Only family can piss you off like that.’

As we walked toward the pressure door Dr. Grimm explained the layout of the labs. “There’s three sections to Carmack’s lab complex. Archeology, Genetics, and Weapons Research.”

“You test weapons up here,” Duke asked surprised. You wanted to retort with a smartass remark but Dr. Grimm beat you to the punch. “ Well, it’s a dead planet. You want that tested here, where it’s safe, or in your own backyard?”

“Been there, done that, got the radiation poisoning.” you automatically chirped earning a few chuckles. Dr. Grimm smiled at you and continued. “ We’re primarily an archeological operation. Weapons Research is in its own separate facility. It had nothing to do with Dr. Carmack’s work.”

Somehow that didn’t make you feel any better. Something was wrong here and you could feel it in the pit of your stomach. “How many inside when the lab shut down?” Sarge asked looking down at the good Doctor. “Only Dr. Carmack’s team. That’s six people. In one of the carbon dating labs, there was an internal phone left off the hook.” she said warily.

“Did you get any information from it?” Sarge asked. Dr. Grimm looked at the head of security who then held up a small device. What you heard sent a deep chill down your spine and into your very core. Even after the recording was turned off you could still hear the screams echo around in your head.

“Open the door.”

@thottiewithashotgun

@dw-writes

@lauraaan182

#doom 2005 #reaper x reader #slow burn #john grimm #reader insert #ReaperXFemaleReader #karl urban #john grimm x reader

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mor-beck-more-problems · 4 years ago

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Hippie Sabotage || Morgan & Evelyn (feat. Cecily)

TIMING: Current

PARTIES: @thronesofshadows & @mor-beck-more-problems

SUMMARY: Morgan needs a special ingredient for her ritual, and Evelyn knows a woman, Lady Cecily Ashford, who can give it to them. But some things are easier said than done.

CONTAINS: Poshness and sass

Morgan didn’t trust the stars to align in her favor. Not as easily as this seemed to come together. After everything that had already happened, how could Evelyn just happen to know some Baroness with a home museum of dark creepy artifacts, including the bol d’éventre Morgan had been tearing her hair out looking for? Where was the catch? When was the other shoe going to drop? She gripped her friend’s arm as they approached the Haven Hotel where this woman was staying, her face knotted with worry. It was bad form, she knew, to show someone how desperate you were to have something. But she didn’t know how to hide this either. Constance was cruel and slippery and every day she got to hang around the twenty-first century consequences free, Morgan burned as if she’d been slapped. “Do I have to call her Lady Ashford? Mrs. Ashford? Do we..I mean...obviously, you know more about this fancy stuff than I do, but I need the bowl, unless you’re telling her that you need it?” She gave Evelyn a sidelong look, her brow clenched with anxiety. “Am I overthinking this? I’m overthinking this.” Deep breath. “It doesn’t matter. Slong as we get the bowl, whatever else happens.” She pulled on what strings of hope she still had left in her and smiled.

Cecily Ashford only sat on the wretched florals in the hotel parlor because she refused to loiter at the window like a dolt. The world was not as it had once been, but there were still enclaves of auctioneers and traders making do in such rustic, pastoral hamlets such as this. Even the inn, or all its faults, was not without potential. And a visit from a young friend could brighten even a dour day, under the right circumstances. Cecily beamed through her net veil as her visitors arrived. “My dear, Eva, it’s been too long. Let me look at you-- the parties are getting duller by the year, and more of your cohorts are running off to greener pastures. But, at least you seem to be doing fine. Very fine indeed. And who--” Cecily was far too well bred to allow her speech to falter, but her eyes told a most subtle story of surprise to Evelyn. “Might this young woman be?”

She loathed the idea of meeting someone from her past again. Evelyn had run away from England for that very reason, to escape the suffocating feeling that came with living in that house. In that city. In that country. Though she found herself unable to feel true panic, she had been seized with a certain unfamiliar sense of worry upon finding out that Cecily Ashford was in town. There was a certain part of it all that made her feel like a child again, like she should wear the white lace dresses that her father had placed her in, ones that make her throat itch regardless of the fact that they were made with the finest of fabrics. However, if this was what would help Morgan, she would deal with it. Make pleasant small-talk and get the bowl that would rid her friend of her troubles. “I will take the lead, no need to worry.” She spoke in a gentle whisper to Morgan as they approached the hotel. “I call her Cecily, and she is rather fond of me, so I think you might be able to get away with that as well.”

Evelyn opened the door and made her way into the lobby. She had not expected the woman to be there, and led Morgan around until they were in the first-floor parlor. Though it had been a number of years since she had seen the woman, she could still smell the same perfume that she’d been wearing ever since Evelyn was a child. The past is past, she reminded herself as the two of them made their way over. “Cecily.” She offered a small smile, wincing for a moment at the nickname. “It has been too long.” Evelyn straightened her posture, hands running against the skirt of her dress. “I can imagine the parties are getting duller - though I am certain you do your best to liven them up.” She let another grin cross her face. “I am doing fine, and I appreciate that you have noticed. Making my way best as any of us can.” She remained standing, waiting for the woman to motion for them to sit before she did so, though the hand of the arm that was not occupied by Morgan's grip traced the armrest of a chair opposite Cecily. “This is Morgan. We have come to ask you about something of yours. Of course to catch up as well, but when I heard you were in town I could not pass up the opportunity. May we?” She finally said, nodding in the direction of the chairs. “Let me pay for some tea - or something stronger, if you wish.”

“Oh, my dear, I couldn’t possibly drink before three. Although if I recall, you do delight in breaking decorum. I think the Duke of Richmond is still nursing that foot to this day,” Cecily teased, looking the girl over once again. “But, perhaps some sherry. To be among the young is to feel devilish again.” She looked at the woman called Morgan as she said this. There was something impertinent in her face, even as she shrunk behind Evelyn like some Victorian lady’s companion. Well, Evelyn did have an odd taste in playthings, and who was she to make a fuss? “Shall we sit? I was rather surprised to hear about your sudden interest in my collection. You know I don’t part with my treasures so easily, my dear. Not even for friends.” She squinted over at Morgan thoughtfully, then to Evelyn, then back again to Morgan. “And what is your part in this, Morgan, correct?”

Morgan, who could feel Evelyn bristling next to her, gave her best smile. “Oh, I’m, you know, just here to...look pretty?” She waited a moment to see if the bit would land, but her look turned self conscious before she could really find out. “I mean, I just, have a vested interest, I guess. And it’s not every day I get to meet and esteemed gentlewoman, or, uh, lady, such as yourself.” Somewhere in her mind was a faint voice in her head that said she should stop while she was ahead, but with the older woman’s apathy and smugness, clearly so practiced to make her indecipherable on purpose, at least to someone not already fluent in her nonsense. She saw possibility shrinking before her eyes, along with all its potential. Another door closing in her face, throwing her back down into Constance’s grasp. “You do have it, right? The bowl de--eventre?”

“Well, I have a spirited personality, or so I have been told.” Though Evelyn often supposed that many people who had told her and her father that had meant defiant instead. She was not going to fully deny that, either - though she may have not appreciated the tone with which the remarks had been given, she could hardly deny them, especially given that she had run away on her birthday. “I hardly weighed anything, but I have always been able to make a memorable impression.” She shrugged. “I think sherry could be lovely. “Yes, let us sit.” Evelyn sat down opposite Cecily, not wanting to break away from Morgan just yet. After all, she was here in order to help her, it just so happened that she knew an important player in this. She supposed that in the end, it did make sense -- she knew a great many people and even if they were not themselves aware of the value that items they owned held, it did make sense that they would have had such items. Evelyn made a mental note to inquire at some point or another to see if Morgan or anyone else knew if any of the many items she had amassed over the years held any value outside of a monetary one.

She flashed a grin to Morgan at the looking pretty comment, though it seemed to fall flat on Cecily’s sense of humor. Evelyn straightened her posture. She was not about to let the other woman talk down to Morgan - even if that was not entirely her intent, Evelyn was all too aware of how easy it was to do just that. She knew that she was more than a little guilty of it herself, too. More than just occasionally, but right now was not the time to focus on the similarities that she shared with the woman opposite her. The pull to fall back into old habits was alluring - more than she would have imagined, but in a flash she could see her father reminding her to be quiet, to be everything everyone thought she was. “She does.” Evelyn interjected before Cecily could speak. “Right?” She raised an eyebrow at the older woman. “Morgan is a,” she took in a breath, the word friend still feeling far too foreign, “friend. She is a friend of mine, and I trust her, so if she says that it is something that she - we - I - we,” Evelyn finally decided, “need, then it must be quite something. I do have something of a memory of adoring looking at it as a child, though it was your company and the Yorkshire puddings that your cook always used to make that truly made those visits special.”

Cecily was charmed by Evelyn’s flexible manner, but not impressed. She had no intention of giving up her prize, not if this was some lark and certainly not if it turned out to be more significant than she had first imagined. But she did truly miss Evelyn, and if she could find out the cause for this sudden enthusiasm, so much the better. She leaned back in her chair, still composed, and regarded the pair with a smile. “How very sweet you are, Eva,” she said. “Why don’t you tell me more about this...need of yours.”

Morgan looked at Evelyn, gauging how much she ought to explain. Cecily’s eyes were squarely on her, somehow gentle and intimidating at once. She reminded her of Lydia, but not in a way that gave any comfort. “I’m uh...a scholar in several fields, including some obscure ones. This bowl, when applied in a specific context, can…” Well, it united the energy of the ingredients with the incantation thanks to some skillful carving work. It served as a stabilizing agent for the spell. Negative intentions could be volatile, or so common wisdom usually went. So some structural unity and metaphysical braces were usually in order. At least, hypothetically. Morgan had never gotten around to doing something like this before. “Create some incredible reactions. And this context, this application of the bowl’s properties, it’s going to save a lot of people’s lives and do a lot of good for this community. And your bowl is, as far as I’m aware, one of the very last surviving of its kind. If not the actual last. If the need wasn’t so urgent, I--we--would happily put our energy elsewhere. It’s not my intention to inconvenience anyone. But we...need this. We just need this, ma’am. Very dearly.”

“An obscure life-saving silver bowl?” Cecily said, her brow reaching for the heavens. “My dears, if what you say is true, why in god’s name should I part with it for the good of this place?”

“Well, you know that people always found me engaging, even as a young child.” Evelyn replied in turn. However, she supposed that her years away from London had made her a bit more naïve in that she had thought that it would have been rather easy to have Cecily simply hand over the bowl. However, Morgan was here, and the other woman’s explanations were something that Evelyn found herself in dire need of. Even if Morgan’s explanations did not come out as precisely as she had come to expect from the other woman. However, she appeared to have at least more confidence in the way she held herself than the first time she and Evelyn had met, all those many months past. “Precisely. We would certainly put our efforts elsewhere, but you were due to be in town and I recalled this specific object, and, well, you know I have never been able to get an idea out of my head once I have my heart set on it.” She giggled, twirling her hair around her fingers. “Yes, it is life-saving but just think - you would be doing the world a great deal of good, though I understand that you find this sort of thing rather complicated.” She waved one of the staff over, and requested a bottle of sherry before turning back to Cecily and squeezed Morgan’s hand. “However, I am willing to pay whatever price you might request, I have no qualms about that. Save for returning to England.” That much I cannot do.

“Oh, Eva. You know I care for philanthropy as much as the next woman. The hospital board takes up ever so much of my time, and I’m an investor in a number of nonprofits,” Cecily chided. “But you must be reasonable. Is the bowl even going to survive whatever ‘reaction’ you perform on it? Surely its value will decrease with use. Why shouldn’t I give it up at auction and let the proceeds go to some other, more deserving community? Why not keep it for myself and direct these ‘contexts’ for my own needs? You make this sound like the key to blazing world peace.” She laughed, a cruel, tittering sound that chided them for asking the question in the first place.

“Because you can’t!” The words burst out of Morgan before she could stop herself. She flinched, looking abashed at the woman and Evelyn both. “I just mean… look, it’s a specialized sort of thing and you’re not going to believe me if I told you and you wouldn’t care even if you did. But it’s my life and my family, the family I’ve made here, which includes Evelyn, is on the line. My entire existence is on the line. It’s specific, it’s magic, for crying out loud.” She laughed haplessly. She didn’t know this woman, she didn’t have the code for how to make her remember how to give a damn about something besides these stupid boards and nonprofits and whatever else she would rather be doing. “Please,” she said, no longer awkward or halting, but fully earnest. “Please do this for us. Please…”

Cecily’s face betrayed nothing. She looked to Evelyn, and spoke as if she hadn’t heard Morgan at all. “You should consider returning to where you belong, Eva my dear,” she said. “Your father misses you terribly. I’ll tell him what a treat it was to see you when I return, though, hm?”

“Well, Lady Fowler did have a leg up on most all of us, but you are correct.” Evelyn laughed, twirling her hair around her fingertips. She was more than okay with playing the stuck-up socialite that Cecily knew her if it got them what they wanted. Turning back into who she’d been as a teenager didn’t entirely sit right with her, but she found it far easier to do than she would have liked. “I will pay you anything you want and you can give the money to whatever charity, get another library dedicated in your name.” Cecily’s laugh cut through her bones - she’d heard it before, though not directed at her. She used to join in in such laughter.

Morgan was talking again and Evelyn found herself once again grateful, even if the look on Cecily’s face implied that she was less than pleased, and that in and of itself was never a good sign, not much at all. “We - yes. It will help us a great deal. More than you could ever know.” They weren’t getting through to her, and Evelyn cursed herself for it. Because she had believed so fiercely that this would help, that she’d be able to charm Cecily into doing whatever she wanted. Her lips curved up into a small smile at Morgan’s mention of family, though that moment was cut short by Cecily’s next comment. “I am not going home - not going back to England. I have made a life here.” No. “Please do not.” Evelyn could feel her breath catch in her throat. This was everything she didn’t want. She had escaped her life back home, her life with her father and being forced to be everything she was not. She knew he wanted her back, she’d seen the news when she first ran away. Perhaps she’d gotten far too cavalier with her actions, with what she’d posted. She’d walked into this. “Please do not tell him where I am.”

Of course Cecily had known that Evelyn’s abrupt disappearance would be something of a sore spot. One did not vanish from respectable society altogether unless there was a cause. But she had not expected such an impassioned reaction either. It was good to have such precious information on hand, and to know its value. “You’ve been out of the game too long, my dear,” Cecily sighed. “You’ve shown your hand and you have nothing to offer me of value. Now, I won’t go blabbing to your father yet, but, that may prove conditional later on. Do keep that in mind next time I call, Eva.” She rose from her chair and patted Evelyn’s cheek as she had when she was a girl, for old time’s sake.

“Stop calling her that!” Morgan snapped. “She’s not a child, and this isn’t some game for you to power play!” Her hand was out to swat the woman’s away. She only stopped to think when she found herself struck in turn. She shrank back, too stunned to process being slapped or anything else. The only thing she knew for sure was that this whole thing had been a mistake.

“I have not.” Evelyn practically hissed. She had let her emotions get the better of her once again - which continued to prove time and time again that shuttering away how she was feeling was the better way to go. Better than reacting in far too much of an impassioned way. She ought to have known that Cecily wasn’t here for the sake of altruism. She hadn’t ever been keen on that, not back in England, and clearly the few years that had passed had done little to change that. “Please.” Though pleading was hardly something she wished to resort to, she couldn’t help herself. She pressed her lips together firmly, doing her best not to flinch at the woman’s hand against her cheek, no matter how gentle it was, it now felt little other than patronizing.

Then there was Morgan again, Morgan who was far too good, defending Evelyn. The sound of Cecily’s hand against Morgan’s cheek caused Evelyn to stand up, her height almost even with Cecily’s. “You do not get to walk into my life and hurt my friends. I had heard you were coming to town and I figured that you would be able to assist with something I need. I thought that perhaps you would have been more keen to do some sort of good, particularly given that I remember this bowl collecting dust in a cabinet of yours.”

“Then that makes it your mistake of underestimating me, Eva,” Cecily said the name with emphasis, just to prove how undaunted she was by this childish display from the pair. “You should know I give nothing away for free. But do be in touch, my dear. Pleasure seeing you, as always.” She gave Evelyn a curt nod and swept out of the parlor, back towards her room.

Morgan slumped back in her seat, face in her hands. “I am...so sorry…” she groaned. “I just...I didn’t like how she...and I’ve never seen you like that before either. It was just… I reacted, and I didn’t give you time to think things through, or come up with a better bargaining chip, or a sales pitch or…” she let out a long exhale. “Tell me what I can do, Evelyn. Are you okay?” she mumbled.

She could do little besides blink as Cecily left them - that in and of itself was alarming, given that she didn’t have to. Only blinked because that was what humans did. Evelyn turned to face Morgan. “You do not have to be.” She brushed against Morgan’s shoulder, and reached out for the other woman’s hands, much like they had the first time they had met, all those many months ago. It seemed like a lifetime ago, and she supposed that for Morgan, it had been. “No - I…” her voice trailed off. “I ran away from home, four years ago.” Morgan’s hand, no matter how cold, felt good. Better than Cecily’s, that much was certain. “My father - he cannot know where I am. I feel as though I am the most myself I have ever been.” She shook her head. “It - it is not your own doing. I should have - I got too caught up in the dream of being able to get her to give this up. I should have thought through this more.” Biting her lip, she looked over to Morgan again. “We will fix this. I will fix this.” She paused, taking in a shaky breath, “I mean, I will fix whatever I can.” She shrugged, in response to Morgan’s question. “Up for debate.”

Morgan slumped deeper into her seat and squeezed Evelyn’s hands. “I had no idea. I didn’t realize you were taking such a risk for me, Evelyn, I wouldn’t have pressed so much if I--” Morgan grimaced. Yes, she would’ve, but she would’ve felt bad about it in the moment and not just in the aftermath. Maybe exercised some more caution, but that didn’t always work out well for her either. Maybe they really would have always wound up here. “I’m still sorry, for putting you through that. Come on, at least one of us should get drunk after all that. My treat. We can figure out the next move after.”

“You are worth a risk.” Evelyn shrugged. “It - well, I had to, did I not? I think my years here have somehow made me softer than I should have liked. More willing to believe in the goodness of others?” She scrunched her nose. It was not entirely true, she certainly still held her reservations but she had come to understand that growing up as sheltered as she did, despite studying human behavior for her degree (and excelling in it) - had made her quite a bit less able to always understand everyone else’s true self. “I think I believed that I would surely manage - well, I do not know…” her voice trailed off. “You need not to be sorry. We can go and get drinks, certainly. I - we will make this work. We just have to be two steps ahead of her next time.” She stood up, dropping her hand from Morgan’s. “I may have a few ideas already.”

#wr evelyn #wr chatzy #wr evelyn chatzy #hippie sabotage #wickedswriting

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