#the main problem about what I say for the new chapters is that I don t give a fck about the yugi twins so rip

[miss-vanta-likes-to-write]

Loyalties chapter 15

Loyaties Master List

A.N: short one because this is a double post.

CW: please check main master list. MDNI

It was day two of her being at their home. Bambi was mostly sure that her work was piling up back at her own home. She had watched her Instagram stories of Symphony and Gloria complaining about a rather distressing gift that Sophia and Ananiah had gotten. Their godfather König had purchased both girls a brand new set of paintball guns, all of them quite real looking. The guns were engraved with their names and flowers. Both mothers were sick but didn't take the guns away.

“I swear he's such an ass.” Bambi grumbled from her spot on the couch.

“Wots up Bonnie?” Johnny was laying with his head in her lap, “who's an arse?”

“König…he gave my nieces four paintball guns a piece with the idea of teaching them how to handle a gun.” She rolls her eyes, “This won't cause issues down the line. They are fucking seven.”

Johnny does not offer his normal quips that she's come to know and love. Instead his blue eyes become cold and he lets out a low growl. “Don' say his name ‘round us.”

“Excuse me?” She says.

“Don' say his name ‘round us, Bambi.” He repeats as if he didn't say something outlandish.

She sighs, not really wanting to argue and just goes back to her phone. “Okay. But like it our not he is associated with my brother and for some fucking reason Xavier insists on having him around.”

“If ye donnae like it so much then move in with us.” Johnny sits up and smiles, “Yea, there's more than enough room for ye, Bonnie!”

She looked at him and frowned, “It's not right to put my nest in y'alls den without me being marked.”

“Ye ‘ready slept wit us and did sex stuff wit us multiple times. Why would it matter?” He grabbed her hands and held them. “If ye wanna, ye can have my room and put yur nest there, and I'll just move in wit Si.” His blue eyes and pleading pout almost made her say yes.

“No, Malik would strangle me. Besides, it hasn't even been a full month yet. Leaving a nest here just…” She looks away from him and refuses to say much more.

The front door swings open, ending the serious moment for the time being. There's no doubt between the both of them that this conversation will be brought up behind a closed door with John, Simon and Kyle, and Johnny won't hold back anything. The three alphas are returning from a grocery run, wanting to stock the house up with more snacks and foods that Bambi enjoys. They are laughing together, John is holding Kyle's hand, fingers interlocked. Simon walks by the couch and places his forehead against hers in greeting and he does the same to Johnny.

For a moment she's transported to a much simpler time that was also dark around the edges. She catches a glimpse of sandy hair and short baby dreadlocks when she watches John and Kyle. Her mind is playing tricks on her and she's not enchanted at all. Her skin becomes clammy as she watches them. She knew they were close, and had seen them kiss each other in the heat of their more sexual moments. Had no problem with it at all, but she at least wants to know if that is what this courtship is.

The reality is, this is a pack she's coming into. A pack of alphas that have moved their relationships beyond the standard ‘Forced Association.’ that the military packs had. These four loved each other and she hopes she's not their secret keeper. She hopes deep down that they don't want her so they won't get the odd or disapproving stares. Everyone knows what unmated alphas get into, especially a group of them. It's as bad as when a group of omegas won't let an alpha near them and actively seek out betas. Never mind those who are bitched or studded or altered in any way.

Fuck. Even her scent, undeniably an omega’s scent clings to all of them. People, outsiders know that they aren't a taboo pack of just alphas rutting each other without a care about their natural biology. She suddenly wants to be anywhere but here for a week.

“You okay?” Kyle asks her, he leans over her and presses his face into her neck and kisses her scent gland. “You look tense, Soap hasn't been annoying you has he?” His voice is soft with concern and those sweet brown eyes of his are smitten.

She shivers and looks at him, “It's nothing beloved.” She calls him that now, it slipped once and he has preened each and every time that she calls him that. He won't even answer unless it's her calling him beloved. “Johnny wants me to make a nest here.” They may as well have this talk now, she doesn't want them talking about her or a nest behind closed doors.

John sits down in his recliner, clips the end of his cigar, “Do you want to Sweetheart?”

“No, I don't.”

“Bonnie thinks it's inappropriate.” Johnny says instantly. “Tell her it's not.”

“It's extremely intimate.” John hums in thought, “putting a nest in a den conveys a level of trust and intimacy that we're working towards.”

Bambi nods along with a haughty little smirk, “Exactly. Ask again in two months.”

Johnny only grumbles and flops back into her lap, “But where we gonnae ‘elp ye wit ye heat?” He whines and his accent almost makes what he says unintelligible.

Simon comes out of the kitchen from putting away the groceries and is fully conveniently ready to participate in this conversation. Kyle nods his head agreeing with his pack mate, it was clearly something that they expected to help with in the future. John just silently puffed on his cigar waiting for her to speak first. And honestly she could and should say ‘Fuck you and your strategizing John’ because she sees that silence for what it is. It's equally attractive and irritating at the same time, but she knows alphas like that, Antony was the best of them.

But Carrie could read a room and turn anything into her favor with the batting of her lashes and a well placed pout. It's what worked when she had to be subtle about her own manipulations and make it seem like every thought that Antony had when it came to the den and the home was his idea. Bambi was her mother's daughter first and foremost.

“Well,” Bambi laughs and looks at each one of them, “my heat happens every five to six weeks when it's regular. I take relaxants to ease the onset symptoms and I know how to sweat it out for the six days I'm indisposed.” She shrugs, “Maybe I don't need help.”

“That can't be healthy or comfortable.” Simon says, and he knows he's right. He eats suppressants for breakfast, lunch, and dinner the week before a rut, and he is cuffed and tied down so Johnny can help without being hurt.

“You speak from experience Si?” She raises an eyebrow and starts playing in Johnny's hair.

“Yes.” He answers back, “are you worried we'll mark you?”

“No. I'm not, when we do cross that bridge and if I want your help, I'll wear a collar, I have one that's already fitted.” She doesn't miss how each one of them tenses up at that statement.

“We'll get you a new one.” John says with a smile, “it'll be fun and sweet making one together, it'll mean much more when you let us take care of you without it on.”

The message is glaringly clear, ‘We won't tolerate any signs of a past alpha who has had you.’

“But that's a conversation for later.” John grins, the tension in the air is gone just because he commanded it to leave. “Tomorrow we are going out and it's a surprise that Simon and I put together.”

Johnny and Kyle perk up like excited pups and Bambi just commends John silently for his clear display of control over the mood in the house. It's a skill that comes with time, something that happens when you've earned rank as a lead alpha.

She thinks it's unbearably attractive and her omega agrees. So she tucks herself into the lighter atmosphere, leaning into Kyle's kisses on her neck and plays with Johnny's hair. She knows full well the next time the talk of the nest comes up…she's gotta have a stronger argument other than, ‘it's not appropriate.’

Tag list: @curiouslittleprincess @leahnicole1219

[andydrysdalerogers]

Cross-Checked ~ Chapter 23

Andy Barber x OFC Leighton "Leia" Andrews

Summary:

Andy Barber is having the best year of his life. His game is on point. It’s gets to play with his best friend and his fiancé just... dumped him?!. 

Reeling from a sudden change in status, Andy decides it’s time to just focus on hockey. Until his best friend's sister comes out with news that rock the entire organizations world., 

Andy has always carried a torch for the untouchable Leighton but in her hour of need, is now the time to shoot and score or risk getting cross - checked again? 

Warnings: Cheating (but not by the MCs); slow burn; friends to lovers eventually; SMUT!; pregnancy; jealousy; handsome goalies, evil exes...

I do NOT give permission for my work to be translated or reposted on here or any other site, even if you give me credit. DO NOT REPOST MY FICS. Reblogs, comments, likes, and feedback ALWAYS appreciated

Dividers by @firefly-graphics

Banners by me!

Previous: Chapter 22 - This is MY Family

Series Masterlist // Main Masterlist

Chapter 23 – She's Ours 

Andy 

Growing up, we used to be a threesome. But when we graduated from high school, Luke and I went to Boston University. Lloyd Hansen decided to go to play football for Harvard and then enlisted in the military.  

(By the way, nobody goes to Harvard to play football. But Lloyd has always been the exception.) 

It was hard to keep in touch with him when he was undercover or on a mission. But whenever he came home, I made sure I had time. That he came to a game.  

Lloyd Hansen has always had my back. That’s why I knew he was the only call I could make.  

“You’re exes are pieces of work, Barber.” Lloyd popped the candy from his mouth. “I mean, Jesus, what kind of person tries to take a child from a good mother? Should’ve let me run background checks on them.”  

“Like we knew they were capable of this,” I mutter as I take a sip of my coffee.  

“You should have seen it coming, princess.” Lloyd laughed before turning to Luke. “Need me to check out Miranda?”  

“The fact that you only met her a handful of times already tells me that you checked.” Lloyd winked and Luke sighed. “Look, did you find anything?” 

“I’m insulted.” Lloyd pouts. “I can’t believe that you doubt me.” 

“Fucking dramatic Hansen,” I tell him. I ball a napkin and throw it at his face. “I left my girlfriend and baby for this meeting.”  

“You’re no fun.” Lloyd reached down on the seat a picked up a manila envelope. “Like I said before, your exes are pieces of work. Ass-wipe number one, also known as Bret Anderson, started researching adoption procedures and parental rights after the incident at the baby shower. His lawyer, an idiot with very soft security measures, has drafted a sole custody agreement.”  

“Fucking hell,” I look at the copies of the paperwork. “When does her mother come into this?” 

“Right before. She places a call to Japan, about thirty minutes before a wire transfer of $1 Million hits his account.”  

“Why the fuck would my mother pay him?” 

Lloyd shakes his head. “I don’t think it was to pay him. I assume it was to finance.” Lloyd pulls another envelope. “This is where Fiona Mancini comes in. Andy,” he looks at me with a serious face I’ve only seen a few times in my life, “did you know that Fiona had ties to the New York Mafia?” 

My heart stops. “What?” 

“Yeah, Fiona is the niece of the don of New York’s underboss.” When I give him a blank look, he rolls his eyes. “You’re such a boy scout. It's the second in command. She is his niece. And while he wasn’t happy that she was in a relationship that was not approved by the family, he is more unhappy that she is unhappy.”  

“What the, and I say this from the bottom of my heart, fuck?” 

“Yep,” Lloyd popped that ’P’ like it was going out of style. “Fortunately, for you, I happened to have had dealings with this man before. I explained what his precious Fiona had done and well,” he smiled sadistically, “Craig Bailey has other problems then sitting suspended for knocking out your goalie.”  

“Fuck me,” Luke mumbled.  

“Indeed. He sends his apologies for the lies and hurt that his niece has caused, and she will be dealt with. So that part worked out. However, I have copies of everything and his phone number for you, just in case.”  

“Thank Lloyd.”  

“Oh, and he asked if you could go easy on his Islanders. The Rangers not so much.”  

This got a startled chuckle from me and Luke. “I’ll see what we can do.”  

“As for Bret, all the financials and legals are there. I already contacted your attorney for you and said that you might need some loss of parental rights and other possible paperwork set up.  He’s waiting for your call.”  

“I don’t know how to thank you Lloyd.”  

“Some box seats and an invite to the wedding would be nice. A bottle of scotch.”  

“I’ll send two.”  We stand and I give Lloyd a hug.  “Thank you, brother.”  

“Yeah, yeah. Kiss the girls for me and tell Leia that I saw her medical report.  She’s stronger than all of us and I’m lowkey jealous of how badass she is. You better be good to her. Or I’ll kill you.” He flashes me a wink. 

The problem with that statement is that he could. And it would look like an accident.   

I’m starting to hate the country club. The boys and I usually come here on the off season to play a couple of rounds, and the Bruins always host a charity tournament for the children’s hospital.  I think that maybe the only time I come here from now on. Especially if this meeting goes south.  

I turn to my best friend. “Are you ready for this?” 

He takes a fortifying breath. “No but it needs to be done. She’s gone too far now.” He looks at me. “Are you ready?” 

“Yep.” We walk towards the private dining room that I booked for today. The last thing I needed was for this meeting to go public. Not unless it was on my terms.  They are sitting there, waiting, talking quietly. They smile when they see me but Monica’s face falls when she sees her son.  She stands up. “Lukas, I didn’t expect to see you here.”  

“Yeah, I bet you didn’t.” He doesn’t move to greet her like a son should greet his mother.  He just sits across from her, a hard look on his face. Luke is someone who doesn’t get pissed often. But when he does, it's like raining hell fire. The one person he will always go nuclear for is Leia.  

I love that he’s on my team, professionally and personally.  

“Why did you come here?” Bret or Ass-wipe #1 as Lloyd called him, asks. God, his face is punch-able, especially when he looks like a petulant five-year-old.  

Luke shrugs. “When it comes to my baby sister and my niece, their problems will always be my problems.” 

I cleared my throat.  “We’re here to discuss the blackmail.”  

“Oh, Andrew, I wouldn’t call it blackmail,” Monica says sweetly. “It would be an arrangement to bring a family back together.”  

“This family is not broken,” I say through gritted teeth. “My family is perfect. So call it what it is Monica, its blackmail.”  I lean forward. “It’s coercion in the worst form. But,” I sit back, “I am willing to negotiate.”  

“You’re a smart man, Barber,” Bret says. “Now as I said before,” he slides a contract in front of me, “you sign over your parental rights, sign an affidavit stating that you are no longer in a relationship with Leia and the photos will not be published. Monica will also transfer the money to you right away.”  

I stare at the paperwork. These papers would take away the only family I have. The little girl who took my heart between her tiny hands and squeezed just two months ago. I think of the woman who makes me feel complete, my perfect match. I think of the future that I could be giving up but remember that I have the ace up my sleeve.  

“No.”  

A stunned look crossed both of their faces. “What do you mean no?” Monica sneered. “These pictures...” 

“Don’t compare to the financial statements and emails that you shared with Fiona and Bret.” I pulled the copies of the documents Lloyd had given to me and they both pale significantly. “I’ve highlighted the appropriate passages.” I pointed to them. “Proof that you have doctored the photos and are blackmailing me and Leia.”  

“I am a respected member of Boston society,” Monica argues. “No one will believe you.”  

I shrug. “Then I guess we can involve Antonio Mancini then.”  

“Who...” Bret starts but I cut him off.  

“Who is Antonio Mancini? Yeah, that’s Fiona’s uncle. He’s also known as the underboss of the New York mob.” Man, I wish I had been filming their reactions because, while the image of their shock and disbelief is burned in my brain, I would have loved to shown Leia.  

“Andy, be reasonable,” Monica starts.  

“You lost that right when you decided to blackmail by best friend, Mother.” Luke looks murderous.  

“Here is what is going to happen.” I pulled the papers I had gotten from my lawyer that morning. “You,” pointing to Bret, “are going to sign your parental rights over my baby girl and fucking disappear from our lives.  I also want you,” pointing to Monica, “to sign this affidavit stating that you are giving me all proofs and copies of these photos to me and that you will keep away from your daughter and granddaughter. At a time of her choosing, Leia will tell you whether she wants you in your granddaughter’s life or not.”  

“You can’t do this,” Monica squeaked. “Lukas, you can’t allow this.”  

“Not my decision but I support it one hundred percent. You abandoned us Mother, when Pops died. You choose money over being with us. Live with the consequences.”  

“I did what I needed to do to survive.”  

“So did we. Sign the papers.  Let Leia live the life she deserves.” He turns to Bret. “I warned you, when you came to me to ask Leia to move in.  I warned you not to hurt her. Not only did you do that, but you left her when she needed you most of all.  Thank God that she had the right man in her corner all along.” He looks at me. “He worships her. He protects her. He cares for them. He loves them.”  

Bret looks stricken. But without another word, he signed the papers, gets up and leaves. We’re now left with Monica, who’s perfect makeup is now streaked with tears. “Sign them Monica, and I’ll talk to Leia,” I tell her.  “Don’t make me go to the papers with this or the police.”  

“I just... I thought I was doing what was best for her.” She wipes at her face with a napkin before picking up the pen and signing. “Luke...” 

“No, not right now. I’ll decide when we speak again Mother.” Luke turns away. Monica lets another tear slide before she gets up and walks out.  

I blew out a breath. “Did that actually work?” 

“Yeah, it did, brother.” He notices another paper in the folder. “What’s this?” 

“The future.” I see that Luke’s phone is on. “What’s that?” 

“Revenge.”  He stops the recording and then sends it to an email address.  

k.dilaurentis@dilaurentislaw.com  

I stare up at him and he shrugs with a half-smile. “I’m petty. Sue me.” 

I drove around for a while after I had dropped Luke off at his house. I needed a moment to think. To reflect. To believe in my dreams again. I had been so close to losing it all. Yes, I could have survived Leia and Avery being taken away from me, but I wouldn’t have lived anymore.  

A year ago, I thought that I was going to be ok on my own. Just me and hockey. I had no idea that the house I bought we become my home. That the girl I watched grown up and then pined for, would become my girl. That she would bless me with a beautiful daughter.  

I didn’t know that losing one of my best friends would be the best thing that ever happened to me.  

I drove back to my home, relief flooding through me that I would find my queen and my princess there and that would never change. That the family we created would be together forever.  Pulling into the garage, I looked at the folder with the documents all of them had been signed except for one. Taking that particular one with me as I dropped my coat and keys in the entry way, I made my way to find my girls.  

It wasn’t hard to find them. Leia was rocking Avery in her room, singing a lullaby to her as she fed her. I watched silently, enjoying the beauty of the moment. To see mother and daughter together in the most natural way.  

“I know you’re watching me, love.” Leia didn’t look away from our daughter, but I saw the small smile on her face.  

“How is she?” I walked into the room, sat on the ottoman and leaned over to see my girl. She had a sleepy, milk-drunk smile on her pouty lips, eyes closed, dreaming her sweet dreams.  

“She’s perfect,” Leia said to me. She finally looked up at me but frowned. “What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing.” I looked at her before I kneeled before her. “Nothing is wrong.”  

“Why are you kneeling? Andy...” 

“I’m kneeling before you because I have to tell you something.” I took a breath. “I met with Bret and Monica today.” Leia went to speak but I stopped her. “Let me finish. I met with them, and we talked and they signed the papers.”  

“What?” 

“Bret signed away his parental rights and your mom signed an agreement that she would have no contact with us, with you, until you were ready.”  

Leia let out a soft sob. “So, it's over?” 

“Not quite.” I pulled the paper from where I dropped it on the floor.  “This is the final piece. I know you put my name on the birth certificate, but I didn’t sign it. I looked it up and since I wasn’t biologically the father, I couldn’t. But, when I picked up the papers for the meeting, I asked my lawyer to draft one more.” I handed it to Leia for her to read.  

She read it and gasp. “An application for formal adoption? You want to adopt her?” 

“I know I’m her daddy in every other way, but I want to make sure she knows, that the whole world knows, I’m her daddy and she’s ours. Will you sign the papers so we can be an official, on the record family?” The tears flow down her beautiful face and I try to thumb them away as much as I can. “Is that a yes?” 

She sputtered a laugh. “It's a hell yes!” I hugged them both as best I could before take Avery in my arms. I rocked her back to sleep before missing her forehead and breathing in that sweet baby smell.  

She is my princess, my baby girl, our daughter.  

Forever.  

NEXT

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[alexandia03]

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros - Theories, Spoilers and Headcannons

This post will serve as my way of making order in my own mind, in a way. I finished Fourth Wing three days ago and I feel like my mind is exploding. I have read lots of theories and I have my own to add to the list, so... maybe if I put them in one place and start a discussion with you all, we might find some answers - considering November does not seem to come any soon.

Before I forget -

This post will be like an analogy of theories, spoilers, headcannons. If you did not finish the book yet, I suggest scrolling over it. See you when you join our little club of desperate broken hearts post-reading.

And now... let`s begin.

1. Returning to Basgiath

Who will return to Basgiath is the most important question I have. You can read the synopsis for Iron Flame here.

From the synopsis for the second book, we know that Violet will return to the war college and I can think of a few reasons for her to return: she wants to keep her promise to Liam (ouch, my aching heart) to keep an eye on his younger sister (Sloane?), but at the same time I have the feeling that Violet will act as a spy for the rebellion throughout Iron Flame.

And it is not a bad idea. I mean, Violet did not raise any suspicions in the first book. Sure, her connection with Xaden was frowned upon, but most of the people in command (her mother, the king, Dain`s father and some teachers) saw her as a victim in the situation.

“Their dragons are mated,” Mom offers, her smile chilling. “So she’s grown quite close to him out of necessity.” “That’s excellent.” King Tauri beams. “It’s good to have a Sorrengail on lookout for us. You’ll let us know if he decides to, oh, I don’t know.” He laughs. “Start another war?” (Chapter 31)

Bonus - Violet is a Sorrengail. There are few others with better access to information and our little Violence has a talent to stumble over secrets.

The problem is... who will return with her?

I have seen people saying Xaden might remain behind in Aretia, considering the attack was a plan to kill him and the others. Perhaps a plan orchestrated by Violet`s mom - and because Violet was added to Xaden`s squad afterwards and considering Dain`s objections, it seems that her presence was not part of the initial plan. But can Xaden remain behind? I will highlight the main reasons I don`t think so:

The most obvious reason - Tairn and Sgaeyl. They can not be separated for a long period of time and Xaden cant just come by (even in secret) every few days without being noticed. From the synopsis, we know that Violet will be directly watched by that new vice commandant - he will not turn a blind eye to a certain blue dragon (from a rare breed) coming and going as she pleases.

I read a fanfic where Violet choses to leave Tairn behind and return with Andarna, which might be a possibility in theory - let me explain it briefly: this theory suggests that Violet will pretend Tairn died in the attack along with his mate and the other riders and dragons and her bond with Andarna saved her from a fate similar to Liam`s. It is a plausible lie, but... have we met Tairn? He is the ultimate protective dad figure, he would rather die than let Violet on her own where he can not be. He had a saddle and a baby carrier made for Violet and Andarna, so I doubt he will be okay with it. And before someone comes to suggest he can hide somewhere nearby - he is freaking huge, guys.

Another reason I think Violet will not come alone is the threat Dain poses. Sure, she will not let him get near her again, but it might be beyond her control. What if he is ordered to interrogate her by someone higher in the food chain? That is why I think Imogen must be returning with her, but I will get into a deeper discussion about Imogen later (I absolutely adore her). Her signet might be the only way to avoid Dain`s prying hands.

Besides, Xaden will die of longing and worry if Violet leaves without him.

What I think will happen?

They will all return. Or at least Xaden and Imogen will return with her. Xaden will be appointed to a position somewhere far away or somewhere he can be closely watched by someone the command trusts - maybe with Mira?

It might be a good occasion to gain Mira`s trust and get her to join the rebellion (let`s be honest, she will join it at some point).

OR!

Only Imogen will return with Violet. Considering her signet lets her wipe recent memories, she can facilitate meetings with Xaden and Sgaeyl.

However, I am fairly certain that Xaden will return. There would be no reason for the new vice commander to pressure Violet to spill out our shadow boy`s secrets if they would think him dead.

2. Professor Carr

The second matter on the list... I don`t know if anyone else noticed, but there is a paragraph in the book, during Violet`s training sessions with him, when he says something like this:

“And the fact that you bonded Tairn makes you and Riorson the most coveted pair of riders this kingdom has seen in far too long. If I could offer a piece of advice?” His eyes narrow. “Please do.” At least he’s brutally honest, so I know where I stand with him. “Keep your loyalties clear. You and Riorson both have exceptional, lethal power that any rider would be envious of. But together?” His bushy brows furrow. “You would be a formidable enemy who command could simply not afford to let exist. Do you understand what I’m saying?” His voice softens.

Why am I interested in this passage? Because it sounds like a warning and not the make-sure-you-are-loyal-to-Navarre sort of warning. I fail to see any kind of loyalty or admiration for the command on Carr`s part - the opposite, really. I would go so far as to say he might be in on the rebellion.

Why does he train Violet privately? Why not on school grounds? I have the feeling he knows that her ability might be the only weapon against wyverns and venins.

Am I crazy?

3. Imogen

By far the most interesting theory I have come across. Here is a link to a Reddit theory about it, which I absolutely agree with. If the person who wrote it comes across this post - I fucking love you, mate.

To sum it all up...

Imogen has the power to wipe memories and there are some moments that seem suspicious.

How does Violet know about Imogen`s signet? I doubt the pink haired raider would just tell her during training. And how come Violent doesn`t go into detail about it? Perhaps because Imogen wiped out this memory.

The author of this theory also goes into detail about how it is possible for Imogen to wipe out memories, but not knowledge, about how it is probably a secret few are in on. They also give a plausible explanation as to why Imogen seems to be absent during the Montserrat trip and as to why Xaden has a lighter backpack when they leave. Absolutely brilliant.

But I can`t help but notice... did Xaden come to Montserrat only for that weapon transport, thus lying about Sgaeyl not resisting to be far from Tairn for more than 3 days? Because this changes... a hell of a lot of things.

We can all agree that Imogen will have a central role in the next books - you can probably tell by now that I am excited.

Seriously, take a look at that post.

4. Brennan Sorregail

The piece of resistance!

He is alive and part of the rebellion. Okay, we all get that. But... how? And how much of what has been happening is he in on?

Did he correspond with Xaden? Did he know about Violet and made Xaden protect her? Shadow boy here was clearly in on the secret of Brennan being alive. I want answers, Yarros!

Is Brennan in a leading position in the rebellion?

Where will he stand on Violet returning to Basgiath?

I feel like he will be the wild card of the series. It will be like a bomb when he starts spilling all the information he has, I can tell. And I love it already.

I feel like Violet`s dad knew about it all - about the real reason behind the rebellion, about the wyverns and venins and about his son faking his death. I want to know more about the Sorrengail men, please and thank you.

Anyhow, this is all for today. I will probably continue to collect theories and post them separately. Please feel free to comment your own thoughts - I am open to discussions as long as we keep it civil, guys!

And as a side note - does anyone know a group chat or something for Fourth Wing? I desperately need people to talk to about this amazing book. Or role-playing groups? Message me if you are on the same boat.

Kisses!

[mythicalninjas]

Bloody Season

Donnie and Mikey X fem!Reader.

This is a serie of three chapters about Donnie explaining to his brothers about menstruation. His such knowledge was given by reader through a doubt he had during her period, and from deep researches.

Warning: SFW, blood mention.

Cramps, loss of appetite, lack of good humor, a heat bag being held against your lower abdomen to assuage the anguish, feeling that affliction hot liquid between your legs, "weak stomach", menstrual diarrhea; and also the pre syntoms: sore breasts, desire of sweets; should I continue?

It's frightering of how both body and mind change during the bloody days.

"I don't-".

"You need..." Donnie said softly while hold a sandwish to you.

"Donnie, I... I'm not hungry".

"You haven't eaten yet, Y/N".

"But-" You sighed "Okay..." You whispered, groaning while make effort to sit. You are curently in the Lair on a sofa of the main space. With shaky hands, you pick the delicious looking sandwish and spend a few seconds staring at it, forcing your stomach groan by hungry—which never has come. Being vulnerable and painful throughout those days of the week is something we could only get used a while after; it seems we never get used of it, like it is the first time every month we go through.

All your stomach does is protest to not receive the food, but you have to. Or you would get weaker than before. You bite, chew and swallow; again. Bite, chew and swallow; slow moves.

"Enough" you murmmured, handing the half-eaten sandwish towards the purple clad humanoid mutant turtle, who was only watching you all the time "I don't want it anymore". Donatello could see the discomfort in your eyes "It's okay. At least you have eaten something and this is what the matter" he assured, taking the sandwish and placing his massive hand on your shoulder and pushing you down carefully, making you laying down again. "Rest. If you need something, call me".

You share a weak smile as he walks away. Donatello is the only one besides April who understand perfectly your mensal unconfortable situation; the others know as well but not as much as their smart brother.

"Hey, Don. How's Y/N?" Mikey asked as soon Donnie enters the kitchen area.

"She is okay. Just tired" he explains "Not hungry as normal".

Mikey hummed in confirmation, nodding. Even being difficult to get exactly what is happening to you, Mikey has a deep respect for you; giving you space, silence, sharing support. Because he knew what is going on, but he doesn't know the why of it.

He wants to ask, but a feeling of shame prevents him to do it.

"Don bro..." he called.

"Hum?" Donnie answered while take a simp of coffee with milk and holding a piece of bread with Nutella generously spread over it.

"I know that Y/N suffers by... uh... menstrual season or whatever. But can you explain me why does she has it every month?".

Donnie almost choke with his coffee, wide eyes right at his younger curious brother. Menstruation is kind of thing that just women have, and it might be a delicated subject to be debated about, mainly among men.

"Well, I will explain. But I'll say what Y/N has told me, okay? I'm not an expert on it".

Mikey nodded, taking a seat as prepares himself for the "class". Donnie did as well, picking another free chair and sitting on the other side of the table, right in front of Mikey and signing with his finger for his young brother to lean closer.

"Okay, imagine..." Donnie starts, whispering near to his brother's face "Imagine you have an organ within you, lower in your abdomen". Mikey looked down at his plastron with a question expression "This organ is called uterus, and it was made to create, carry, and support a child" Mikey looked up at Donnie, with many facial expressions traveling over his cute face "Okay so, period is a woman body's way of releasing tissue that it no longer needs. Every month, the feminine body prepares for pregnancy. The lining of the uterus gets thicker as preparation for nurturing a fertilized egg. An egg is released and is ready to be fertilized and settle in the lining of your uterus. When the fertilization does not happen, the uterus eliminates all its stuff it had done. This is why women bleeds in this season" he finished, taking a bite of the bread with Nutella.

Mikey did not say a word, just stared at his brother's eyes.

Donnie tilted his head, waiting for Mikey comment.

"I didn't get it yet" Mikey said quietly.

Donnie groaned "What did you not understand?".

"How a woman can create a child alone?"

"Mikey!"

"Sorry! I know women don't make children alone. There are a fucking rush of questions running in my head now".

Donnie shook his head, biting another piece of his food. He doesn't blame Mikey at all, he knew that he's new into this kind of conversation.

"Okay, well..." the genius continued, calmly "Women are the only one who contain this organ-".

"This is what I was already aware." Mikey said.

"Good. So, the period is kind of "punishment" for women for not get pregnant" the nerdy summed up.

"Really?".

"Yeah".

"That's awful".

"Indeed''.

''But... Why they feel pain? Like, not just cramps, but others stuff".

"What they feel is similar—or same—to pregnancy symptoms. Actually it depends from each woman. For example, Y/N" he points at you "She feels weak, she has loss of appetite, cramps, etc. There are days that she feels okay during her period, but during others days, it looks like she couldn't even leave bed''.

Mikey glanced at you with sad eyes "Poor Y/N. And thinking that she has to go through it every month. I guess I wouldn't handle with it tho".

Donnie shrugged in agreement.

The both turtles spent a few minutes observing you sleeping, their minds—Mikey mostly—lost in a sea of imagines and questions. They want to ask you more about period, but they are deel timid for it. It is weird when men ask women about menstrual cycle, but it could be important to know what happens to women body during this time.

"So, when Y/N will get pregnant to not feel those stuff?"

"Excuse m-!"

They jumped as you aproach to the kitchen area, a tired face and messy hair difining your current mood "Hey, guys..." You greeted, walking towards the fridge.

"Hey, Y/N" Donnie smiled "W-Why did you get up? You had to have called me to reach you something".

"No problem, Donnie" you said with a hoarse voice "I have to make my body move a bit. I was too motionless. I'm okay" You take a simp of water, walking back to the coach.

"Hey, Y/N. Can I ask you something?" Mikey's question makes Donnie feel shivers running down his spine. The genius immediately grabs Mikey's arm to pull him closer and threatened quietly "Don't you dare ask that!".

"Sure. What ya wanna ask?" Noticing their sudden change of behavior, you quirked a brow edge "Is everything okay?".

"Yes!" Mikey responded quickly, and Donnie shares a dork smile.

You shruged, heading back to the couch. You knew they're hidding something, but you're not expecting what is coming soon with Mikey's curiosity.

[cheri-translates]

[CN] Gavin’s S2 R&S - Fireworks into the Heart

🍒 Warning: This post contains detailed spoilers from an R&S (烟花入心) which has not been released in EN! 🍒

Features S2 Gavin. References are made to S2 Ch 16

[ Chapter One ]

“Wang Xiao Cui, you’ve been employed by the STF’s Logistics Department. Report to the cafeteria at 8am tomorrow.”

“Yes, sir.”

I’ve been hired to work in the STF cafeteria. 

As a nutritionist with over thirty years of experience, joining the STF isn’t a problem for me.

My old companion isn’t able to understand why I’m not using my years of retirement to enjoy life. Without giving him a response, I simply smoothen the small creases on my STF uniform carefully.

As an ordinary person, the STF always had a mysterious and prestigious impression in my eyes. Agents who are able to work here are all heroes with indomitable spirits.

Being able to take care of their meals and enable them to get more nutrition every day to strengthen their bodies and better protect Loveland City gives me a sense of honour in protecting this city too.

Based on my experience, taking care of a group of young people is a piece of cake. However, I didn’t expect to make the mistake of underestimating this place.

-

Standing in front of the cafeteria’s bleak signboard at 7.30am, I witness several agents carrying Tianjin-style deep-friend dough sticks through the doors. Someone even carries several bags of fried beef buns. While walking, he speaks in a loud voice:

"I braved the risk of running laps to bring you guys fried buns again!”

“During training later, no one’s allowed to snatch that new gun from me.”

The other agents let out a “tsk”, taking the fried buns and chilli paste from him before dividing them amongst themselves.

Fresh out of the oven, hot steam rises from the buns in the cafeteria, and nobody bats an eye. The master who steamed the buns has already grown accustomed to this. They stand in groups of twos and threes, engaging in idle chatter.

Why doesn’t anyone in the STF like eating food from the cafeteria?

Unable to figure out an answer after much thought, I happen to spot a handsome lad dressed in a white uniform. His steps are steady, and he brings along a breeze when he walks. I immediately call out to him.

“Hey! Young lad, wait.”

The handsome lad stops in his footsteps, giving me a sweeping glance out of the corner of his eye.

“Do you need help with anything?”

“No no, I'm the new nutritionist in the cafeteria. I just wanted to ask you something. Why don’t the STF agents love to eat cafeteria food? From what I can see, the Nourishing Meal has meat and vegetables, and it’s pretty rich in nutrition.”

The handsome lad is silent for a moment before responding to my question.

“The healthy meals place too much focus on health, and they don’t taste any better than the small stalls outside.”

“Captain Gavin, the materials from yesterday’s case have been tidied up.”

“Mm, I’ll have a look at them.”

The handsome lad who was addressed as “Captain Gavin” sees that I have no further questions. Giving me a nod, he takes large strides towards the office.

With a frown, I take a bite out of a celery meat bun. Aside from the taste being slightly bland, I don’t find anything wrong with it. Furthermore, adding too much salt would reduce its nutritional value, so it’s a given that less salt would be added to it.

However, since this point was brought up, it means there’s room for improvement.

In order to prepare food that better suits the palate of STF, I spend a whole week lying low and observing the favourite eateries that the STF agents enjoy eating most, and try out all of their famous dishes.

Based on their palate, I meticulously prepare a modified version of trial dishes.

On the first day of introducing the trial dishes, I brim with enthusiasm while bringing out a “New Dishes to Try” signboard, thinking that this would raise the reputation of the STF’s cafeteria. However, even after half a day, the only things that enter are mosquitoes which I swat to death.

There’s a cold breeze at the entrance. I look at the clock hanging on the wall of the cafeteria - lunchtime is almost over.

Deciding not to wait any longer, I head outside, planning to grab a few people in to try the dishes.

The moment I step outside, my eyes brighten when I see that lad from before.

His footsteps are hurried, and he has a packet of instant noodles in his hand. He probably has to deal with some urgent matters, which is why he has to make do with that for lunch.

How is that good? An STF agent eating instant noodles? Where would I, a nutritionist, hide my pride? I hurriedly stop him.

“Young lad, there are new dishes in the cafeteria. Since you’re about to eat, why don’t you try the cafeteria? It’d be a quick meal.”

He pauses in his footsteps for a slight moment, his refusal ready. However, when he sees the menu behind me, he suddenly blinks, then looks up to give me a nod.

“I’ll have to trouble you then.”

With this, he walks into the cafeteria. I look at the menu. There’s only a simple line written on it - “Today’s Special: Chicken with Chilli”.

Does he like eating chicken with chilli?

[Note] To be precise, this dish is called 辣子鸡 (là zǐ jī). It’s a a stir-fried dish consisting of marinated then deep-fried pieces of chicken, dried Sichuan chilli peppers, spicy bean paste, Sichuan peppers, garlic, and ginger.

[ Chapter Two ]

The young man eats quickly and seriously. Ignoring the fact that that he’s eating at an unhealthy pace, I feel very relieved. When he walks over to return the tray, I ask him a question.

“You’re done, young lad? How’s the taste? Do you think there’s anything to improve on?”

The young man sets the tray down. After a moment of serious contemplation, he give his response.

“The taste isn’t bad. If you’re asking for suggestions, since it’s chicken with chilli, you could add a little more chilli.”

I record his suggestions in my notebook earnestly. At the same time, I’m secretly amazed at how members of the STF are truly talented individuals. I created this chicken with chilli dish based on the spice levels in Sichuan cuisine, but he still didn’t find it spicy enough.

Look like there’s much room for improvement in future dishes.

-

The next day, I continue with my plan to introduce trial dishes. However, most of the STF agents are already used to eating out. The ones who try the dishes are few and far between. Just as lunchtime is about to end, a familiar figure once again appears at the door of the cafeteria.

He’s the young man who ate the chicken with chilli yesterday.

He walks straight in, taking a tray and getting food. Although he doesn’t say anything, I feel very moved, and wonder if this kid dropped by specially to support the canteen’s business.

I inform him that red braised pork is being served today, accompanied with bitter gourd and scrambled eggs. He seems a little hesitant when he sees the bitter gourd. But in the end, he doesn’t say anything, finding a place to sit down and eat.

-

Over the next two weeks, it seems that as long as he isn’t out on missions or doing anything else, that young man would come to the cafeteria.

It appears that he’s a Captain or something. With his impetus, more and more people gradually eat in the cafeteria, and I have a better understanding of his reticent young man.

His name is Gavin, and he’s the Captain of the Special Ops Team. I heard that the Special Ops team is the hardest squad to get into within the STF. They are one of the very best in terms of resolved cases. Everyone in the team are the cream of the crop, much less the Captain.

I heard about how this Captain usually rushes to the most forefront when faced with any danger, which is why he receives much adoration from the team. Of course, the number of injuries and stack of silk banners in the storeroom are proportional to each other.

On the days when he isn’t around, there’s a high chance that he’s out on a mission, or having his injuries treated in the infirmary.

-

“Aunt Wang, give me the same chicken with chilli as Captain Gavin!”

A red-haired agent’s voice pulls me back to reality. He carries a tray, pointing at the chicken with chilli from across the glass. I give him a huge scoop of it. He carries the tray and sits at a row of tables close to the window. There are quite a number of people donning the same uniform, and Gavin is one of them.

“Captain Gavin, why have you fled from our braised beef noodles alliance? You’ve also stopped eating cup noodles with us when we work overtime.”

“Mm, this is something you’re unaware of. Our Captain Gavin has someone who cares for him.”

"Last time, that Miss Producer was filming something and gave us handmade biscuits. You were on leave so you didn’t know about this. Captain Gavin’s biscuits were several times more exquisite than ours. They were even heart-shaped.”

The agents wink at each other and chatter on incessantly. Gavin, the main topic of the conversation, continues eating calmly. When he finally feels slightly annoyed by the clamour, he puts down his chopsticks, glancing at the red-haired agent.

“Tang Chao, it seems that your stamina is getting better with your daily laps.”

“You’ll be my partner for the next mission.”

The red-haired agent immediately pulls a long face.

“Captain Gavin, it's not that I don’t want to be your partner. But based on my fighting skills, I’ll only be a burden to you.”

“I’ll continue shining as a support personnel, and be an emotionless lie detector for the Special Ops Team!”

Gavin ignores the red-haired officer whose name is Tang Chao. But when he lowers his head to drink the soup, I can see his slightly arched brows.

Over the past two weeks, I’ve always been seeing his composed and chilly side, and even thought that was his personality. It turns that he’s still a young man. It’s just that he hides that unrestrained aura that young people have, and doesn’t display it easily.

Perhaps that’s the fetter of being a Captain.

Looking at these young people, I suddenly feel as though I’ve found the reason why my trial dishes have not been successful.

It’s probably because I’ve never tried to truly understand this group of young people.

[ Chapter Three ]

I’m no longer stubborn when it comes to the dishes. Instead, I pay more attention to observing the dietary habits of this group of young people. Gradually, many more pages on the notebook which I use to record modified recipes are written on.

Everything goes smoothly. However, I notice that Gavin hasn’t visited the cafeteria for meals in a long while.

When the red-haired officer comes to collect his food, I scoop pork ribs and winter melon soup for him, and find myself asking him a question.

“Why hasn’t your Captain been coming down to eat in the cafeteria these days?”

He scratches his head, his tone less carefree as before.

“Captain Gavin’s injuries from this mission were a little more serious, so he’s still getting treated in the hospital.”

Before coming to the STF, the word “injuries” was associated with a sliced finger from cutting vegetables, or being scratched while playing with a cat. But after coming to the STF, I realised that there are many other ways people can get hurt.

The STF has doctors who understand Evolvers most in the whole of Loveland City. Logically speaking, even if it’s a fracture or external bleeding, patients can typically be discharged in a week.

That young man called Gavin hasn’t appeared in such a long time. Is he severely injured?

Even though we haven’t exchanged many words, I can’t help but worry about that young man.

He’s still so young. If anything were to happen to him, how worried would his family members be?

Perhaps due to the fact that he was the first agent willing to try food from the cafeteria, I find myself being more concerned about him, and wanting to know more about him. However, STF agents are disciplined and strict. When they’re eating in the cafeteria, they rarely mention Gavin. When he’s occasionally brought up, they say things that I’m unable to understand.

“She went to the hospital again today.”

“That’s fine. Her presence at the hospital is much more useful than a few of us going. At least Captain Gavin would smile a little when he sees her. When we’re there, we’re like stalks of grain, and can do nothing but watch helplessly.”

“The next time the ‘Snake’ bites, we can’t let Captain Gavin hold the fort again.”

In the fog of their conversation, I’m unable to understand anything. I’m getting old, and my ears aren’t as useful. I shake my head, turning around and heading back into the kitchen.

-

Just when I think Gavin’s injuries have rendered him unable to return to the team, he appears.

While I’m writing the lunch menu on the whiteboard, I spot Gavin and his squad mates walking in together. He has become much thinner, and looks very pale. Even so, his entire frame remains as solemn as always, a sense of sharpness emanating from him.

When I hand him braised beef noodles, he gives me a nod.

“Thanks.”

He picks up the chopsticks and eats the noodles. When he sees the slices of beef in the bowl, he’s slightly stunned. However, he returns to normal in an instant, continuing to eat as usual.

When they’re halfway through eating, the communication device at Gavin’s waist suddenly beeps. He presses the communication device, his expression changing when he hears the message.

“The ‘Snake’ has left the hole. Take action.”

With his command, everyone abandon their meal and hurriedly leave the cafeteria.

When Gavin passes by me, I can see traces of blood on the side of his sleeve.

It appears that he’s leaving for a mission before his wounds have completely healed.

The cafeteria lapses into silence. I tidy the table, looking at the beef noodles which only had a few bites taken out of it, and let out a heavy sigh.

I know how difficult it is to join the STF. People who join the STF are so incredible. But I still wish to know what kind of reasons would make such a young person charge forward and risk his life to the point where he can’t even have a proper meal.

[ Chapter Four ]

It’s very late at night, but the STF remains brightly lit.

Similar to the busy agents, I haven’t left either.

After this period of research and testing dishes, I discovered that the people here aren’t picky. They simply lack the time to sit down and eat slowly.

With this in mind, I restart the dish modifications.

The television in the cafeteria is currently showing the Loveland News. The host is reporting on something about “Evol Assassination Incidents”, and is criticising how the STF hasn’t been doing anything about them.

“Things here are turning upside down from how busy they are, and the infirmary is filled with people. And you claim that they aren’t doing anything? Reporters are so irresponsible these days.”

I shake my head, switching the television off. After calling a few colleagues over, we carry supper to the infirmary.

Due to the incident the news was reporting about, the STF has been in a mess recently. I heard that there aren’t enough beds in the infirmary for use.

My heart aches from how these kids are getting criticised even after getting injured. I’ve prepared sweet soup suitable for evening consumption, bringing them to the infirmary while they get treated.

While passing by the Captain’s office, I notice that the door isn’t closed, and I see someone standing inside.

It’s Gavin.

His side is facing the door, his hair is messy, and he’s leaning against the wall. One of his legs is lifted up, and he’s currently pursing his lips as he removes his combat gloves.

He appears to have lacked sleep for several days, and quiet fatigue emanates from his entire frame.

However, he doesn’t seem to have shown this side of him to anyone outside, demanding himself to only leave this version of himself to an empty office in the depths of night.

I knock on the door. The moment he hears this, he quickly straightens up, his sharp gaze sweeping over. When he sees that it’s me, his amber eyes are stunned, and he nods.

“Please come in.”

Walking in, I place a bowl of snow fungus soup on his table.

“Everyone has been working hard in the bureau lately. We decided to make some sweet soup for all of you to relieve the fatigue. Drink this soup while it’s hot. There’s Chinese wolf berry and longan in it, so it’s pretty nourishing.”

Gavin nods. Stray hairs stick messily against the sides of his eyes and brows. I’m guessing that since he’s a kid who usually puts up a strong front, he probably doesn’t like others seeing his sorry state. I hurriedly wave my hands to signal that I’m leaving.

Before I walk out of the door, Gavin suddenly asks me a question.

“Aunt Wang, is your cafeteria recipe modification going smoothly?”

I can hardly believe that he actually remembered such a trivial matter.

Just how many things does he concern himself with?

“Very smoothly. I’ve been looking into a new fast-food style beef noodles, and plan to introduce it to the bureau.”

“Fast-food beef noodles?”

“Mm. There used to be very few people in the cafeteria because I only paid attention to maintaining the nutritional value of dishes. But if people don’t even have the time to eat, how can I talk about nutrition?”

“Right now, I’m looking into preparing beef noodles that are both nutritious and can be eaten really quickly. Such noodles are more diverse in flavour, and the nutritional value is easy to maintain.”

After saying all of this, I follow up with a question.

“But I'm still considering whether to use bean sprouts or eggs as a substitute. Which do you prefer?”

Perhaps few people have asked him something as trivial as his dietary preferences. He gives this very serious thought before providing a careful answer.

“I’d prefer eggs.”

I nod, then find myself giving him my sincere and earnest wishes.

“No matter how busy work is, you need to have proper meals. Even though rice and vegetables seem simple, they are part of life.”

“Whenever you head forward so urgently, have you ever thought of whether you might be forcing yourself too much?”

When Gavin hears this, he’s taken back. I don’t continue. With a sigh, I turn around and leave.

[ Chapter Five ]

The new fast-food beef noodles introduced in the canteen received a huge welcome amongst the agents. It became the favourite supper of agents who worked overtime on cases. Given the positive responses, I also released different flavoured fast-food products. 

With this signature dish, the STF canteen finally became lively every day.

But the strange things is, I didn’t see Gavin for a very long time. I heard that he... temporarily relieved himself of his duties.

I have no idea what happened, but I trust that he had his reasons, and I silently hope that the kid can be safe.

Afterwards, a strange fog enveloped Loveland City. I was protected by STF agents, and later heard that Gavin was the one who retrieved the fog.

-

I’m just about to prepare dinner in the cafeteria when I hear the news that Gavin’s in the hospital. News related to the STF’s retrieval of the fog is being broadcasted, and Gavin’s powerful and resounding voice can be heard.

“This round of the Hunter Game is over.”

I lift my head to see that familiar figure on the television, determined and composed.

“Thank you all for protecting the dignity of this city.”

When he had meals in the cafeteria before, I often wondered how this taciturn young man could persevere on his own, shouldering high pressure that ordinary people find difficult, and also protect tens of thousands of ordinary people.

Right now, I understand.

It’s because he has a heart of justice that’s gentler and more unwavering than anyone else - 

And this heart has guided him onto a path destined to be rugged, where he will pursue justice with no second thoughts.

But I’m still a little puzzled. Doesn’t he find it lonely when walking down this path?

With the assistance of the red-haired agent, I carry chicken wonton soup to Gavin’s hospital ward.

The door is closed, and I can hear an indistinct voice of a girl drifting from the inside.

From across the glass, I see a girl sitting at the bedside, a pink bento box on the table.

The girl is resting a hand against her cheek while supervising Gavin as he eats the bento. Meanwhile, the young man sitting on the bed is eating it one mouthful at a time, earnestly and tenderly.

For some reason, I find myself grinning.

On this path filled with ups and downs, someone is willing to accompany him, wait for him, sit down together with him, and have a serious, proper meal with him.

I leave the hospital with the thermos box.

Being here for so many days, I’ve grown used to this place, grown used to the whistle at 6.30am in the morning, grown used to the agents finishing their meals within ten minutes and rushing off, and grown used to the lights in STF illuminating my path like starlight when I’m heading home at night.

My old companion often asks why an oldie like me continues going to the STF. 

It’s because I can see a broader world here. I can see souls with determined spirits. I’ve never felt more alive and fulfilled in my entire lifetime.

This is the meaning that STF gives me.

I hope that the young man called Gavin, as well as the countless young people who are like Gavin, will always lead a fulfilling life.

...and that they may always be safe.

May he, along with the girl he watches silently, return to life through every meal while embracing justice.

💙 More S2 content: here

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[exovapor]

The Adventure - TMNT Bitches:  chapter 10

CHAPTER 10:  Through the Looking Glass  

·         The four brothers exit the parking deck and are immediately overwhelmed by the steady stream of people walking to and fro.  Donnie has his eyes glued to his virtual display while Leo and Mikey each take up flanking positions on either side of him to guard his shoulders so he doesn’t trip over the crowds walking past.

·         “Oh no-no-no, this is not good!”, Donnie exclaims while panning left and right with his display, trying to find the trail that is quickly disappearing right before his eyes.

·         “What is it, Donnie?”, Leo asks, the concern thick in his voice.

·         Donnie frantically pans in a wider arch, but the trail is fading too quickly.  The flow of the foot traffic is causing too much interference and the particle stream is all but faded away, “Leo, I think we have a problem here.  The portal residue isn’t as clear down here on the street as I had hoped.  I’ve lost the trail”.

·         “Great! Now what?”, Raph’s towering figure grumbles from behind them all, where he has taken of the posterior position to keep people from walking dead-straight into Donnie as he stands stationary in the middle of a river of people.

·         “Give me a minute to think, Raph”, Leo chides but he’s feeling his own sense of panic rising. He’s never been claustrophobic, after all he lives under ground, but here with all these bodies pressing in around them, jostling past them, the serum keeping them in human form already on its count-down clock, and their one clue to follow Shredder is literally disappearing before their eyes, he’s never felt so out of his element…so not ready to lead.  However, he doesn’t have the option to quit, to flake out, his brothers are looking to him for guidance.

·         Leo studies their surroundings, the people, the activity….and then he sees it, the thing that gives him a new idea, a new possible solution to their dilemma.  He’s watching people all over pulling out their cell phones to take pictures of each other’s costumes, to stream and vlog about their adventures as they walk down the street, “Donnie, can you search through the media flowing around this event?  Maybe we’ll get lucky can catch a glimpse of Shredder in the background of someone’s post.”.

·         “Can I? Psssshhh.  Does Mikey like pizza?”, Donnie throws Leo a sassy glance before flipping through his virtual screens again.  Almost as soon as he starts flipping and searching the data streams, a ping comes from his computer, then another, and another, “Oh boy, BINGO!”, Donnie exclaims.

·         Mikey leans in close from Donnie’s right shoulder, omitting the concept of personal space, and nearly blocking Donnie’s field of vision of the display, “Dude…that’s Shredder!”.

·         “I KNOW, Mikey”, Donnie says and grabs Mikey’s cute little human face with his large left hand and pushes him back a few inches in order to have some breathing room, “it’s a video that’s quickly going viral of an altercation between Shedder some human kid”.

·         “What’s he saying?”, Leo asks, leaning in from the left.

·         “Hm…not good…he’s looking for fighters but at least we know where he’s going, according to my search this ‘Marriott’ that the guy mentions is a hotel just down the street…the Atlanta Marriott Marquis.”

·         “Then let’s get movin’, Don, lead da way.”, Raph shoves Donnie from behind, where he’s still acting as a barricade between his lithe brother and the crushing public. He’s eager to get moving, standing still when Shredder is out there hunting for a new army is grating on his nerves.

·         The quartet of disguised mutants walk along in the crowd, still in more shock and awe of being able to walk so freely among the general masses.  The laughter, the smiles, the excitement, and comradery are palpable in the air.  Everyone is high spirts and the four brothers are right in the middle of it.  This is truly a new and welcomed experience for them.

·         For too long they have watched from the shadows as people had fun.  They would watch club goers and weekend warriors living it up on Friday and Saturday nights in New York while they stood on roof tops patrolling and keeping watch…from a distance.  They often wondered, and in some of their cases daydreamed, about being part of the crowd below.  And, now, here they were, walking in soft human skins with the rest of the world.  Would they ever be able to go back to the shadows and not feel empty inside?

·         As they each ponder the experience quietly and the implications of these experiences on their future selves, they follow the flow of the crowd as it passes under the carport awning of the Marriott Marquis.  The voices and sounds of laughter echoing and bouncing back under the marquee, adding to the energy of the atmosphere.

·         They enter the establishment through the double sliding doors and are immediately stuck speechless by the activity and the setting.  The hotel was architecturally beautiful, it’s 47 stories visible in the main atrium with a cluster of stylish elevators quickly running crowds of people up and down the inside column of the atrium.  Hundreds, no, thousands of people, most of which that were in some form of costume milled about talking, taking pictures, and celebrating as one.

·         Donnie was sure that he had died and gone to nerd heaven…nerd nirvana…nerd-vana.  A small tear rests at the edge of one of his eyes.  Mikey’s hyperactive mind starts to short circuit as his eyes jump around the celebratory scene in front of him…’now THIS is a PARTY’, he thinks to himself.  Raph bringing up the rear, is stunned into silence himself. There are women…EVERYWHERE…WITH VERY LITTLE ON…AND WITHIN TOUCHING DISTANCE!  

·         Leo quickly assesses the scene and the effect that it is having on his brothers’ attention span, he’s got to set down the rules quickly and keep them focused on the task of finding Shredder.  “Ok, guys, let’s split up and find Shredder quickly as possible.  There are a lot of people here, so he’ll have plenty to blend in with, or use as victims against us, we NEED to find him quickly.  Raph, you’re with me, we’ll down those escalators and search there. Don you and Mike take that upper level.  If you see Shredder call for backup, don’t engage until we can be sure that we can keep the area clear and ensure that people won’t get hurt.”.

·         Leo and Raph descend to the lower level via the escalator.  The level is one large arching circle with various wings and ballrooms off its center.  There is a back entrance where other vehicles are making pit stops, picking up and dropping off of party-goers.  Leo doesn’t like this scenario, it’s going to be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. “We need to move through these wings to make sure he hasn’t made it to some of the maintenance areas.

·         Raph doesn’t hear Leo’s directions as he is fully distracted by a group of women cosplaying as a Sailor Moon group standing around the lower level posing for pictures. He grins devilishly at them as they wave teasingly at him.  Leo lets out an alpha snort, which doesn’t have much impact coming from his smaller human lungs, and he punches the oversexed behemoth in the arm, “Raph, focus!”.  

·         “I am focusing, Fearless, I’m focusing on dat real hard”, he replies slyly while his eyes haven’t left the group of short-skirted women.

·         Leo shakes his head, “I knew I should have brought Donnie with me, but I couldn’t trust you and Mikey together.”.

·         Raph’s eyes finally leave the group of cosplayers to stare pointedly at Leo, “I don’t need ya ta babysit me, LEO.  I’ll find Shredda and kick his ass all da way back ta New York”, he snarls aggressively.

·         “Fine, prove it, let’s move”, Leo challenges and starts leading the way down through the bowels of the hotel.

·         As Donnie and Mikey crested the escalator, their eyes saw even more of the festivities taking place on the main level.  People crowded around the bar and the dance platform, one story up overlooking the main level lobby, was packed to the brim with people grinding and gyrating to the beats from the house DJ.

·         “Don, I think I’ve died and gone to heaven”, Mikey whispers out reverently.

·         “We need to find Shredder, Mikey, we don’t have time to play around”, Donnie says, even though his own eyes are wandering the crowds appreciating the costume designs, period replicas people are carrying, and the….uhm….nice outfits of the ladies. Donnie subtly adjusts the crotch of his cargo pants.  He may be slightly smaller in human form, but proportionally still quite sizable and too many ‘happy thoughts’ still cause an uncomfortable tightness down below.

·         “Ok, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think we need to split up to cover more ground. There is just too many going on and Shredder will be able to hide among it.  Mikey, PLEASE, don’t get lost and stay focused.”, Donnie negotiates with his younger brother.

·         “Don, you can count on me, bro!  Detective Mikey is on the case!”, he clasps Donnie on the shoulder before starting to walk off to circle the atrium from the left.

·         “We’ll meet back up by the bar”, Donnie yells at him over the crowd before he moves off to the right, searching the crowds for a villain but appreciating the other visual interests as well.

@turtle-babe83 @tmntspidergirl @kokokatsworld @nittleboo @the-second-circle-of-shell

[tomtenadia]

A Little Braver - Chapter 1

Here I am!

As i promised here is the first chapter of my new Rowaelin.

This one will be very different from Island Dream. It’s meant to have a slightly more challenging plot line and a smidge more angst in it. Also, i know very little about fire fighters and the airforce. I did research for both of them and for the firefighters I used some shows I follow as inspiration. Whereas for the airforce... it’s mostly research. I based the ranks system on the UK RAF.

THIS is Rowan’s jet (it actually exists. It’s called a Eurofighter Typhoon. I have seen it live at some airshow here in Scotland and it’s so damn sexy.), just imagine it in deep green for Terrasen. 

I have 12 chapters down but still no actual direction in mind yet. I have a few ideas I want to develop but the storyline is still hazy. 

And this is the SONG that gave the idea for the title.

Anyway, I’ll leave you to it

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Aelin is a firefighter for the Terrasen Fire Department (TFD) and one day her squadron get called to deal with a fire at the airbase of the Terrasen airforce (TAF). During the incident she meets icy Captain Whitethorn. They are thown together in a forced cooperation.  Slowly they will find their lives entwined beyond work. And both of them, with a tragic past at their backs... will have to be a little braver...

(Sorry i suck at introductions)

----------------

“Again!” Shouted a blonde woman standing in front of a training tower on fire. Her long braid gently placed on her shoulder. Blue eyes like the clearest of days fixed on the inferno in front of her and a concentrated expression. 

“Brullo, help Luca and start again, perhaps this time without killing our victim.”

They had been at it for a while but it seemed like the newbie was struggling with training. Being a firefighter was not a job for everyone. Aelin knew Luca was still a probie and still learning the ropes but sometimes she felt as if the boy was not as tough as he tried to be. Luca had been with them for three months and he had become the mascot of the group. He was eighteen an eager and she was happy to support him as much as she could, but her job was also to make sure her people would walk out of a raging fire alive. She had already lost enough in the line of duty. 

She was about to call for a break when the dispatch siren went off.

“Everyone, time to go.” She turned to Luca “You stay at the station and cover dispatch or just study for your exam.” She winked at him and ran to the engine, donned her gear and climbed to her seat.

Being the Captain she took the passenger seat in the engine and joined Nox who was the driver.

“Were are we heading?”

“Airforce base.” Replied Nox while driving the engine to its destination with incredible skill.

“Did a pilot forgot to turn off one of their fancy planes?” Then she turned to Aedion, the man was her lieutenant and her second  “Are our EMTs with us?”

The man nodded “right behind us.”

The engine sped through traffic, siren blazing “what’s our ETA?” Asked Aelin.

“Five minutes, Cap.” Replied Nox.

Not long after they reached their destination and arrived at the main gates of the airbase which were shut. Aelin swore. She opened the door and jumped off the truck.

To meet her there was a tall man, his hair silver and the eyes of the deepest of green. She thought Aedion was tall. She was wrong. This man was a good twenty centimetre taller. 

“Fire department at your service, did one of men’s arse caught fire?”

The man glared at her. His face harsh.

Ok, wrong audience.

“We have a fire in hangar bay 2.”

“Good, now open these gates and let us through if you want us to work our magic.”

“This is a restricted area as you can imagine.” His tone flat and almost bored.

Aelin took a step toward him, not afraid “Listen, you either let us through with the engine and the ambulance or you start praying the gods for a fuckload of rain. Which will it be, sir?”

Aelin noticed a flash of anger pass through his eyes. He would have been the most gorgeous man she had ever seen if it wasn’t for his stick up his arse attitude.

The man in front of her made a gesture and a car appeared in front of the truck “Follow the car and do not wander. This is a restricted area.”

“Sure, I always wanted a picnic in an airbase.”

Aelin ignored him and gestured at the ambulance to follow them. She jumped back on the truck and noticed the silver haired arsehole getting in the car in front of them.

It did not take long to reach their destination and Aelin swore when she noticed the fire engulfing hangar bay 2.

“And that’s me hoping in a boring day. How silly of me.” Joked Aedion from his seat behind Aelin. 

Aelin jumped off the truck and started shouting orders then joined again the officer “Do you have all staff accounted for?”

The man shook his head “Two engineers are missing and we have a few injured as well.”

Aelin shouted for the EMTs and the two women appeared in front of her in an instant “there are few injured that need treatment. Go and call for backup if you need it.” The taller brunette nodded and they disappeared again. 

Aedion’s voice reached her over the radio “copy that, Aedion. There are still two civilians trapped inside.” She turned to see her squad at work and a pang of pride rushed through her. They were an amazing well oiled machine and all the gruelling training paid off in the end. 

She turned to look at the grumpy officer and noticed the man was like a statue. His eyes fixed on the raging fire in front of them.

“We’ll get them out.” She offered as a comfort but the man didn’t even notice her. 

“Any idea on how it started?”

He turned his head slightly and his icy stare focused on her “isn’t that your job, captain?” She did not like the tone she used to call her captain. She could hear a veil of mockery.

“Ansel, Ress,” she shouted while donning the rest of her fire suit “direct the jet there.” She pointed to the location that looked like the epicentre. Once her mask and oxygen tank were on, she grabbed a fire extinguisher and ran into the building to join the rest of the squad.

Rowan stared at the woman ran into the fire. The captain had struck him stupid when she had the guts to challenge him without any fear. He was so used to give orders without ever receiving a rebuttal that it totally threw him off that the woman had fought him that way. Soon after he had found himself staring while she directed her squad to take positions and start to tackle the fire. She was fierce, of that he had no doubts. And with the same fierceness she had ran into the hangar and joined her team.

He was too busy staring at her that he missed the instant in which the structure had started to collapse on the ground. It went down as if made of paper and he froze at the realisation that there were still people inside the building. Engineers and firefighters alike. And for a brief second he felt a pang of panic for a woman he did not know and who had a temper of fire.

“Captain!” His head whipped to the side at the subtle veil of panic in the dark-haired man, handling the jet of water on their truck. “Lieutenant, come in.” But no sound came over the radio “fuck.” The man intensified the jet of water. 

Rowan knew that level of panic. He had experienced it a few times in his career. The soul crashing fear of losing a member of his team, the fear gripping his heart until a response came over the radio. He knew that fear very well. 

It took ten minutes for the auxiliary vehicles of the airbase to reach the site. They were not proper fire engines. For that they had to use the firefighters. But they could help and they started spreading a sort of special agent that slowly stifled the fire.

Rowan sighed in relief when he noticed some figures appearing from the smoke. The captain amongst them. Her hair was now covered in soot and her face just as dirty. He relaxed completely when he spotted the captain carrying one of the engineers and another fire fighters carrying the second one. The firefighter deposited the victims gently on the ground and the two EMTs went to check for them. He saw her collapsing on the ground on her knees then she stood, almost regretting that moment of weakness and went back to the engine to give some more orders. A tall blonde man approached her and after discussing something he moved away and stood staring at the collapsed building and the fire now fully extinguished.

She coughed once and then turned noticing the presence at her back.

“You should ask one of your EMTs to have a look at you.” His tone flat and devoid of emotions.

“I am fine.” She admitted with defiance “I don’t need you to babysit me. Sir or whatever rank your insignia has.”

“Captain. Captain Whitethorn.” And his words had a far gentler tone that he expected and it surprised him.

She walked away from him and went to the rest of the team to make sure everyone was okay and then checked on the civilians that had been saved and finally returned to captain Whitethorn.

“The two engineers will be fine.” She coughed one more time “They inhaled a lot of smoke but they are now on their way to the hospital for a few more checks. There are a few other with minor burns but everyone has been treated and on their way to the hospital as well.”

“Thank you.”

“Once the embers cool down I want to have a look at the site. Something clearly went completely wrong in here which means that some of your safety systems or your basic procedures are not working.”

“Are you saying that we are slacking in terms of safety?” His tone became harsh once again.

Aelin again stood straight in front of him “I saw sprinkles, but there was no trace of water which means they did not activate as soon as the fire started as they are meant to. Which in a place with so much fuel and flames is a big infraction and can land you in a shit ton of problems. Whoever was in charge of safety fucked up big time, Captain.”

Whitethorn ran his hand through his hair. That was his CO’s job. Lorcan was the one meant to look after all those things. But Lorcan had inherited a situation that was a bit of a clusterfuck and he had been working hard to fix it since his promotion. 

“I will need to come back tomorrow to do an inspection of the site and I want to inspect all the other remaining buildings and make sure they are up to code. And I don’t care if this is a restricted zone,” she moved a step closer to him and Whitethorn stared in her deep blue eyes “You get me a pass into here for tomorrow with access to all areas. And if you don’t, I’ll go high enough that when I come back you will have to roll out the red carpet. Do you read me on this Captain?”

He nodded silently. A part of him was in awe. Who was this woman? She did not seem to be intimidated by rank or a pretty uniform. He was speechless. Even civilians often tended to offer a certain level of respect to him just because of his rank. She stood in front of him, chin high and defiant. 

“Yes ma’am,” he heard himself say with unexpected obedience.

“Good. I will see you tomorrow, Captain Whitethorn.” She turned on her heels and left him still planted in his spot and completely stunned.

Aelin joined her team again and once the scene was cleared up and all the gear tucked back in the truck they left the premises.

“I hope Luca had some sort of food ready, I am starving.” Added Aelin sitting back in her seat in the truck.

“The day you will say that you are not hungry it will be a day when doom will descend upon us.” Chimed in Aedion.

“Hey, I use a lot of energy.”

“Sure, having a stand off with Captain silver fox must have been exhausting.”

Aelin turned and stared at Ansel. The red haired woman was smirking.

“He was being a pompous arsehole who think he is a god just because he wears a uniform.”

“Yeah, one hot arsehole though. I mean did you even notice him?”

Aelin did not reply. She had actually noticed him but her first impression of him hadn’t changed. The man was impossibly gorgeous but he still needed a bit of manners.

Eventually the squad got back to the station and got off the truck abandoning their equipment for checks later. “Let’s all go and get some chow in.”Aelin shouted while removing her boots “Aedion make sure you and Ansel check the truck and take Luca with you he needs some training in what we do after a call out.”

The ambulance pulled over beside them a bit later and the two women joined the rest of the group.

“Lys, all okay with the victims?”

The taller woman nodded “dropped them off. No serious injuries though.” Then she opened the back of the ambulance car and grabbed a clipboard and handed it to Aelin “our supplies order for the hospital. I was going to give it to you before but then we got called out and I forgot.”

Aelin grabbed the document “I’ll get it done today. You and Elide go and join the guys for food.”

Lysandra walked over to Aedion and dropped him a kiss on his lips. The two had been dating for years now and the whole squadron had been taking bets on when Aedion would pop the question. 

Aelin eventually joined the rest of her team for their meal and Luca had overdone himself and prepared some amazing food. She was ravenous, however during her meal her head kept going over the call they had received at the airbase. There were a few things that bugged her and she was looking forward to her visit the next morning to check the scene again. The sprinklers had been her first clue. She just hoped Captain tight-pants would be more willing to help after he had a nice night of sleep. 

It was much later when Aedion found her in her office buried under layers of folders and papers on her desk.

He gently knocked at her door “Lys and I are going home. Are you staying late again?”

“Aedion, look at these documents.” she passed him a pile of sheet of paper “That is the last safety check they had a look at the signature of who passed it.”

“Fucking Havillard senior.” The man had been the fire chief and had finally retired a few months before and the event had created a sense of relief in every single firefighter in Orynth. The man had a bad reputation and a penchant for currying far too many favours with politicians “I am so glad Dorian finally took over. He is a much better fire chief. He has done more for the fire department in a few months than his father in years of his rule.”

“I want to check every single thing he signed off as to code. I don’t trust the bastard and if he passed things not operating correctly I am going to cause a shitstorm.”

“And do what, Aelin? The man is retired and back to his mansion in Adarlan. There is nothing you can do.” Aedion was always the rational one and sometimes Aelin hated him for that.

“His negligence could have killed hundreds of people.”

“I know, but all we can do now is to fix his wrongs and make sure that the airbase is up to code. And keep your friend the Captain safe.”

Aelin snorted “Why everyone thinks I have the hots for the Captain?”

“I have known you all my life and you totally are into him. I recognised the signs.”

“Well, my dear cousin, you are highly mistaken.”

Aelin and Aedion were cousins. The man had served in the army and when he retired she had told him that her fire house was looking for recruits and asked if he wanted a shot at being a fire fighter. Aedion accepted and went through training at the academy and in the end the skills he had gained in the military had proven amazing for his new role. 

“Don’t tell me you guys are taking bets on me.”

Aedion laughed “my revenge for starting the one about me and Lys.”

Aelin growled “Yours is bound to happen eventually.” She looked at him “me and his stiffness? Not a chance. He might be hot as hell but he has no sense of humour and probably cannot go to the toilet unless he gets permission from his CO.”

Aedion sighed “That’s military training. It gets drilled into you from day one. He is still active and it’s normal. I am retired and still have that instinct.”

Aelin laughed “No, you don’t do anything without Lys’ approval.”

He nodded “I love her but the woman is scary. And now that she had Elide as a partner she is getting craftier.”

Aelin smiled “Go home and relax you two. Just don’t make me an aunt yet.”

“Don’t stay too long okay?” The man waved at her and left. 

Aelin sat five more minutes then she heard the second team arrive on the premises she packed up her stuff and decided to go home. She walked down the corridor greeting the other team and had a catch up with the lieutenant and eventually she left the station. The weather had turned cold and winter was definitely in the air. Aelin sniffled the air, cosied up in her jacket and walked home. It took her much longer than usual to go home as she took a different route and stopped at the park. Not the best idea at night but she had enough knowledge of hand to hand combat that she would easily kick the arse of whoever tried to assault her. She stopped in her favourite spot and leaned against the rail to look at the ducks in the pond. Going back home was still hard. Since she had lost Sam she hated her empty house. Even after over a year. They were both firefighters. He was the captain at the west station. They had met during a call out and got along from the start. Then got along a bit more until things got serious and they moved in together. They had two years of happiness until he went out on a call with his squadron and thing went south. He and another firefighter lost their lives that night. It had been over a year now but her heart still ached and missed him.

She heard ambulance sirens in the background and her instinct was to look for a cause for it.��

She said goodbye to the ducks and eventually walked home.

The next morning Aelin had got to work so early that the second team was still on. She had shared breakfast with them and was glad to hear they had a quiet night with just a call.

She walked back to her office and went over one the documents one more time. As a courtesy she decided tray and phone Captain Whitethorn but then realised she did not have his number and doubted the airbase would advertise its number freely. Ach well, he knew they she was going. 

Once Aedion arrived she gave him instructions on what to do while she was away. She wanted a few more drills run and the truck scrubbed and equipment checked. She knew that when she was away they tended to have far too much fun “And if I come back and I discover you guys slacked off I am going to unleash Lysandra on you.”

“I will keep them in check.”

“You better.” And with that she left and drove away to the airbase. 

It took her a good half an hour to finally reach the main gate. She got out of the car and went to the guards posted at the entrance “Hi, I am a firefighter on the TFD. I am here to see Captain Whitethorn, he is waiting for me.”

“What is your name?”

“Captain Aelin Galathynius.”

The man walked away to check something with another guard and got back to her “You can go in. The Captain will meet you at the next check point.”

Aelin grunted. They did not have this many checks the day before. Although, with a building on fire they were probably quite eager to have them in as soon as possible.

She got back in the car and drove the short distance where another military man stopped her and she noticed the captain behind him. Still stiff and a face that deserved to be punched. 

He knocked on her passenger window and Aelin lowered the glass “good morning, Captain.”

“I will need to get in the car.”

Aelin rolled her eyes and unlocked the door for him.

“Follow the main road until you see the main building. Park there and we’ll get you all signed in.”

What was his problems? Didn’t they used greeting in the military?

Aelin drove in silence until she spotted the main building.

“Park over there.” She sensed the command in his voice.

She did as told and once done she grabbed all her stuff from the back of the car and followed him. He had exited the vehicle and started walking not bothering waiting for her.

She was going to kill him. 

Once inside the main building she found him waiting for her at the reception area with a clipboard in his hands “Fill this in.” Again, that tone of command and not a single please.

Aelin had a look and realised they were annoyingly thorough in term of security “Do you want my bra size as well?” She smiled at him “it’s a 38A, by the way.”

No reaction. She sighed and filled in all her details. Once she was done the captain took the clipboard and gave her her badge “Keep this on you at all times Miss Galathynius.”

“You can call me Aelin. I gave you my bra size, I guess we are on a name basis kind of relationship.” She grabbed the badge and wore it around her neck.

“Were do you want to start?”

Fine. No jokes and back to business “your office for starters.”

“I thought you wanted to see the fire scene.”

“Yes, but I need to ask a few questions first.” And she waved the big pile of documents in her hand.

He tensed and with a hand he gestured for her to follow him. 

They walked until they reached an office at the end of a corridor “This is my CO office. I discussed the situation with him and he believes it’s a matter that needs his presence as well.”

“The more the merrier” and flashed him a smile but she had no reaction from him.

They entered the room and Aelin froze. The man in front of her was huge. He stood to greet her and she thought she had never met anyone as tall as the man behind the desk.

“Sir, this is the Captain.”

“Miss Galathynius, isn’t it?”

“Captain, if you don’t mind. I earned my rank like all of you, even if I am a woman.”

“I am Air Commodore Lorcan Salvaterre.” She shook his hand and took a seat after he offered. Captain Whitethorn stood behind her, rigid and cold as his usual. Gods, the man needed to get laid. 

“I believe you had some concerns with regard to that accident from yesterday.”

“I do.” And she slammed the pile of documents on the desk. If they wanted to play tough, they had met their match “My first concern is that some of your safety checks are two years old. As you are aware Mr Salvaterre, considered the nature of your business and the level of dangerous materials present on site you are required by law an annual check.” She passed over a piece of paper with the current regulations “and again in your case there are aspects that need to be checked twice a year and you have not done so.” She sat back on the chair “Yesterday I noticed that the sprinkles had not activated during the fire. Again, your reports show that the last maintenance check was three years ago.” Another sheet landed on the man’s desk “A hangar that could, according to your plans, have up to a 100 personnel on site at the same time, only had one fire exit.”

“If you had a look at hangar bay two blueprints you could see why only one exit was added.”

Aelin unfolded the blueprints in challenge. They had no idea who they were dealing with “I can see that one side of the hangar share the door with the airstrip and I can see that this is a very bad idea for an evacuation spot. However,” and she pointed at the plan “this area here, as you can see is perfectly safe. It offer protection from a possible explosion of fire and it looks like it could accommodate at least half of the staff.” She closed the folder “I am going to be frank with you. It’s a miracle you are still allowed to operate. This are only the biggest infractions, I am sure that once I will inspect the site of the fire I will find more.”

She noticed Salvaterre flinch.

“I am also aware that it was the old fire chief who signed off the last inspections and that explains a lot. The man had been a thorn in my side for a very long time but his son is a far more capable chief.” She sat comfortably again “My concern here is for all the staff. Yesterday could have had a far worse outcome. I can see that at least your team has a good grasp on how safely evacuate and I am positive that once we add a second door it will be even more efficient.”

“Any big changes will have to get approved by the military.”

“Well, get that done. If you value your people you will grovel until you get what you need. You don’t seem the man to back down from a valid fight.” She leaned forward a bit, not breaking eye contact with him.

“What do you suggest?”

“I will make you a deal.” She offered “I am aware it might take some time to fix all the issues and bring the whole base up to code. I am giving you six months. Work with us, I am willing to help as a consultant. I had a chat with chief Havillard and he is okay with my plan and authorised me to cooperate with you.”

“I guess I can work with that.” Then he stared at Captain Whitethorn behind her “Captain Whitethorn will be you liaison. I am too busy, but he has my authorisation to help you with what you need.”

She turned to the man at her back and noticed at his panicked face “I am sure the Captain and I will have fun. We are best buddies already.” She flashed him a smile and the man flinched. Well, at least that was a reaction. 

“Perfect. Captain Galathynius I expect you will keep me updated on the progress.” And he offered her his business card “my email is at the bottom. It’s the best way to get in touch with me.”

“Thank you sir,”Aelin said pocketing the card. The man was just as cold as the captain but seemed a bit more willing to cooperate “Now if you’ll excuse me sir I have some work to do.”

The man nodded and Captain Whitethorn walked outside, probably already dreading the idea of working with her. She was not ecstatic either. 

They were walking toward the hangar when four men stopped them and Whitethorn stopped 

“I thought I told you to go over the last tactics we developed.” He really had no idea on how to talk to people.

“We just finished.” Said the older of the group.

“Hi gorgeous.” 

Aelin turned to the voice and saw a stunning blonde man staring at her “I am Flight Lieutenant Fenrys Moonbeam, m’lady. I hope our cold hearted captain is treating you nicely. We have been trying to teach him manners…”

Aelin laughed. So they had sense of humour. It was just Whitethorn.

“Lieutenant, why don’t you go and clean your jet until it shines like a mirror?”

Fenrys got closer to her “he is old and cranky.” Then he straightened up “call me if you need a fun guide during your time at the base, Captain.”

“Lieutenant!” Whitethorn barked with a tone that did not admit any more games. 

The older man grabbed Fenrys arm and pulled him away “let’s go pup. Don’t anger the man.”

“Bye guys.” Aelin waved as they walked away.

“They are my squadron.” Whitethorn finally spoke and she turned at him in surprise “The man who took Fenrys away is Gavriel and he is Wing Commander. He is basically my second. The other two were Vaughan and Connall and, well, Fenrys. They are all Flight Lieutenants.” He sighed “Fenrys is a good pilot but he is still young.”

“The only person with a sense of humour inside here and you shot him down that way?” She shook her head “Come on grampa, let’s go and do our job.”

Aelin walked away with a swagger and when she was not looking his lips bent in a fraction of a smile. The woman was a force of nature and for some reason he could not explain why he had spent the previous night wondering about the fierce woman who had not backed down and who face him fiercely. Not that he would ever admit to anyone, but  he found her madly attractive. 

She was now walking in front of him and was almost skipping and he had to try very hard not to chuckle at the scene.

“You are going the wrong way.” His tone cold again.

“Well, then get your arse in front of me and lead the way.” She stopped and waited for him to walk past her. While behind him she sneaked a peak at the man and she realised that Ansel had been right. Her gaze lingered on his backside and some very improper thoughts passed through her mind. Her gaze trailed up to his broad shoulders and lingered on his short silver hair and then dropped to the strong hands folded behind his back. Some very improper thought passed through her mind but she shook them off. He was a horrible man. She was not going down that road. Boundaries. 

“We are here.” His voice woke her up from her thoughts.

From her bag Aelin extracted two masks and a torch. She threw one of the masks to Mr cranky pants “put this on. There will be still fumes lingering and they are very toxic.”

Thankfully he accepted the mask without complaints. It looks like he was intelligent enough to understand the risks.

He unlocked the place and allowed Aelin to go in first. He trailed behind and let her work in silence. 

“What kind of jobs do you do in here?”

“Hangar two is were the jets needing heavy maintenance are moved to. Hangar one is the main one where all the jets ready for take off are kept.”

She moved around pointing the light in some specific areas “Am I correct in saying that the planes in here do not have any fuel and are not armed.”

She saw him nod “The fuel is removed as soon as they are moved in here. A small amount is added only when they need to be moved back to the main hangar. And yes, no weapon of any type is held here or in hangar one for all that matters. We have very tight procedure for ammunition and the missiles are loaded only an hour prior to take off and armed only after the jets have left the base.”

Aelin nodded, well, at least it seemed that on some areas they had their shit together.

She moved to what looked like the epicentre of the fire and crouched down and touched a strange puddle on the floor. She smelled it and cursed. That smelled like kerosene but a doubt was nagging her. The puddle looked big enough to be a leak.

“Do you keep track of the repairs done in each bay?”

“We do and I have the jobs recorded for yesterday in bay four.” Then his eyes reacted in shock “It looks like the jet in bay four had suffered a fuel tank leak and was scheduled for a repair or possibly a replacement.”

Aelin walked around the charred remains of the jet then she noticed a panel missing on the side “help me here Captain, what is this panel for?” And she flashed the light inside the livery.

“This is the access panel for the tank. It looks like they had started the works already.”

“I am allowed to make a guess Captain?”

“By all means.” He stood at her side.

“My theory is that while the tank was emptied fuel leaked out. Whoever did the job, did not realise it. Once the tank was empty he proceeded with the replacement job and used tools that might have caused a spark and ignited the fuel and caused the explosion. Am I getting closer?”

“I have a feeling ma’am that you are on the right track, alas.”

She crouched again and stared at the puddle “however, this is not how kerosene works… kerosene does not catches fire easily. It has a high flash point.” she muttered to herself then she turned to the man behind her “Captain, are you using a special type of fuel? Jets are usually powered by kerosene.”

He froze and she knew she had hit the jackpot.

He cleared his throat “we have been experimenting with other fuels and liquid oxygen.”

“Fuck,” muttered Aelin turning and standing “do you really need all that power?”

“As I said we have been experimenting. This plane was one of the new prototypes.” He confessed.

“How many of these monsters do you have?”

“I am not allowed to tell. This is as much as I have been authorised to say.”

“Damn it Captain.” She shouted.

“They are not on the premises and in a very remote location away from inhabited areas. This one was here for testing.” His face grew dark all of a sudden “I was meant to fly it.”

Aelin gasped “are you telling me that you were willing to strap yourself in this crazy thing and risk your life with something clearly not stable?”

He looked away “It’s my job after all.”

“Shit.” Aelin stood and walked away. Why was she even caring about him.

“Captain…”

But she brushed him off and kept inspecting the area “your fire extinguishers a too far away and it takes a person too much time to grab one. And you need more.” Then she turned to the Captain “I assume they at least know how to use it…” he nodded.

“Well, that’s a start but we will have refresher session. That never hurts and you guys will have to do it as well.”

He nodded.

“Fine. Take me to hangar bay one.”

“Follow me.” He just said and started walking still thinking about her reaction and was stunned that for a moment she had seemed to care.

The two walked in silence and Aelin followed him looking around the base and noticing things.

Once in the main hangar bay, Whitethorn opened the door and Aelin stood still at the sight. In front of her there were at least ten jets. All painted in the Terrasen green. They were a sight to behold.

“I am not sure I agree with their use but they look majestic.”

The captain nodded while he stood at her side, hands folded behind his back “come.”

He walked to one of the jets, said something to one of the engineers buzzing around it and it was just the two of them “This one is mine.”

Aelin traced her hand to the livery “Iceman?” She asked noticing the word painted just under the canopy.

“My call sign.”

Aelin chuckled “I guess it fits you perfectly.” Then she walked to the stepladder “Can I?” She asked. She was dying to sit in the cockpit. Just for a few minutes. She could not get distracted but she wanted to do it.

The Captain moved closer to her “be careful on the ladder.” She flashed him a smug smile and Whitethorn kept a watchful eye while she climbed turning his head when her backside was basically in his face. Once at the top she climbed over the edge and sat in the cockpit quite skilfully and now she looked down at him with a big grin. His heart jumped. When she smiled she was the most stunning creature he had seen. A brat, but still a gorgeous brat.

A moment later he had noticed she had taken his helmet and was now trying to wear it. He held back a chuckle and climbed the ladder “let me.” He was so close to her that he could smell her scent of lavender and jasmine. He helped her fastening the helmet properly then he turned to some of the dials on the dashboard.

“This is the altimeter” for some reason he leaned forward and started to explain her some of the dials in the cockpit “this is to check the speed and this one tells how many g’s we are pulling. That is—“ but he got interrupted.

“I know what that is Captain. How many g’s do you pull max?”

“9 in a vertical steep ascent, dogfights and in some turns as well. We never sustain it for too long because it’s dangerous.” He leaned on the livery “we wear special suits called G suits that help with the pressure and we undergo a crazy amount of training in the centrifuge and we also have to keep a strict exercise and health regime.”

That, she had noticed the previous day and on a couple of occasions she had imagined the amount of muscles under that uniform of his.

“Let’s get back to work.” She said, saving herself from the strange direction her thoughts had wondered. She stood and the Captain straightened and moved closer to her “be careful, climbing is much easier than coming down.” She turned and gave her back to him and felt a phantom of his hand on her back. He was not touching her but she could feel his hand lingering there, protecting her.

“Ok, one rung at a time.” His tone had changed as well and somehow the iciness had gone “Good, one more and you are there.”

Aelin climbed off the last rung and turned only to crash into his hard chest. She had not realised how close he was standing and when she looked up she met his eyes. They looked brighter and they had a strange light she could not place. As soon as she realised how close they were standing she backed away and for a very brief second she thought she noticed disappointment in his expression.

“Thank you for that Captain. Now I can brag that I sat in a fighter jet.”

He nodded but did not added anything. 

They finished inspecting the main hangar and Aelin looked puzzled “How is it possible that this hangar is all up to code and perfect. Such a discrepancy does not make sense.”

“Salvaterre took over from our old CO only six months ago.” He sighed “do you want the diplomatic answer or the actual truth?”

“What do you think?” Her answer was a bit harsher than she intended “Sorry, I did not mean it like that. The truth of course.”

“Our old CO was very much a friend with Havillard senior. And I think politics and money are the answer to your question.”

“I don’t fucking it believe it.” She almost shouted in frustration “so these bastards prefer to save some money and leave a hangar with very little safety?” She leaned against the plane and looked up to try and calm down for a moment “It’s disgusting.”

“We both got new COs who both seem to be more decent individual. Let’s leave the past where it is and fix things from now onwards.”

Aelin smiled at him “this might be one of the wisest thing you said since I met you.”

Whitethorn glared at her but she ignored him.

They spent another hour going around the base and Aelin completed her inspection. There were some issues but all things that could be easily fixed and she was relieved that although the base was not in its best of state it was definitely not as in bad condition as she thought after the disaster in the secondary hangar.

“Captain, that’s me all done. I would like you to come to the station tomorrow so we can discuss an action plan and put forward some ideas for your CO.”

“I can do that. Do you have a preferred time?”

“Would morning at 9am be okay for you or is it too early?”

“It’s fine.” 

“Amazing.” Aelin flashed him a very bright smile and then extracted a card from the pocket of her jacket “These are my contact details. If you have any question you can email me or phone me.” She pointed at the card “that is my direct phone number at work. The address of the fire station is on as well.”

The man accepted the card and placed in the trousers pockets of his uniform.

“Well, Captain Whitethorn, thank you for today. And I will see you tomorrow.” She extended her hand and the man took it.

He nodded and in silence he walked her back to the check point. Another nod and he turned on his heels with military precision and walked away.

Aelin stood to study the man for a moment. She found him fascinating. He was still an emotionless prick but there was something that got her attention. She hoped that working together would become easier in the long run otherwise it would be a very long and touch liaison mission.

Eventually she got back in the car and returned to work.

[wipodu-ao3]

Fueled by revenge - a HTTYD fanfic

Read it on Ao3. Join the Discord!

A work in the Cannibal AU.

Summary:

A simple day in the life of Hiccup, with a few twist that can change a life, not his though.

An explanaition on how the chapter 'Fueled by revenge' came to be.

Words: 2,502

[One-shot]

After they had taken care of the tribe who were responsible for Toothless’ injury, Hiccup had used the forge on that cursed island to build the Nigh Fury a temporary fin. It had disturbed Hiccup that he felt nothing when he stepped over the dead bodies of the cursed tribe, but they were responsible for their own situation.

The tribe that had captured him had held dragons as food, nothing more, nothing less. Hiccup had learned from Storm that they had been capturing dragons and ate them as their main source of meat. While Storm was okay with fish that Shadow managed to catch, Hiccup grew a preference for… something else.

It was easy for Hiccup to take a knife to the body. It was easy to cut the flesh and taste it again. The fact that Toothless indulged in the taste too, just made everything seem okay. Hiccup knew it wasn’t, but he didn’t care.

What had shocked Hiccup, was that Storm didn’t seem to care. She had stumbled upon him with the knife in his hand and a cut up body below him. She didn’t scream or seem afraid. Storm had looked at him in disgust and scoffed.

“Cook it at least,” she told him.

And that was that. Hiccup’s new meat preferences were left undiscussed and an understanding was born between the two humans.

While Hiccup was making Toothless’ first ever prosthetic, they talked.

Hiccup learned that the man he had killed was Storm’s father. He learned that the reason the girl was with the dragons, was because she refused to eat the dragon flesh and her father didn’t have it in him to kill her. The reason Shadow was alive? ‘Skrill wasn’t tasty’.

The more Hiccup learned, the more he felt justified in his actions. Something he hadn’t noticed in his rage, was that the girl didn’t have a leg, just like him she had a prosthetic. It was a simple wooden one and she had clearly not gotten used to it. When asked about how that happened, Storm simply said:

“Just because he didn’t kill me, doesn’t mean he didn’t try.”

The fact that she joined him so easily made sense, she wanted revenge and she got it. Still, Hiccup had taken upon himself to make her a prosthetic, like the one he had, as a gesture of his gratitude. At first she refused, but the prospect of having a comfortable leg won her over.

Fortunately for both Hiccup and Toothless, Storm knew a little bit about healing and she took care of the injuries they sustained. Their injuries needed time to heal and Hiccup gladly stayed on the island for a few more days.

When he was done with both prosthetics, he asked Storm what she was going to do. She had hesitantly admitted that she didn’t know, but she wanted to but the cursed island to the ground. Hiccup was hit with an idea, he knew that learning to fly with Toothless’ new tail would take some time, but he wanted to get back to Berk sooner rather than later. He offered Storm a place to stay if he got her help one more time.

That was about two years ago.

Hiccup was hammering a metal rod for Toothless’ new tail. The new tail would seamlessly blend in with the Night Fury’s body and nobody would know that Toothless doesn’t have a tailfin. It was the third fin Hiccup was making for the dragon. The first one was on the Edge, and Toothless’ current one would join it in Hiccup’s room.

The Edge was the place Hiccup had offered to Storm. At the time it was just an island with a lone abandoned hut that Hiccup sometimes used to spend the night. While Hiccup had been at Berk, Storm had taken it upon herself to fix it up, she didn’t want to explore without Hiccup, so she spent her time building. At this point, the Edge had two houses, one they used for sleeping and the other was like a common space, with a simple kitchen and a library in progress.

Hiccup would leave for the Edge and be long gone by the time the morning rolled around. He had plans to explore and check out some spots frequented by Dragon Trappers. He also wanted to make sure the new tail was okay and that the saddle didn’t need any adjustments. Hiccup had already adjusted the saddle twice, his growth spurt making it uncomfortable.

Hiccup finished with the rod and put away the used forge equipment. He took the rod, also taking some nails he had made previously, and left the forge. It was late evening, but people were still milling around. He didn’t bother hiding the rod or nails as he could just claim they were for his prosthetic, nobody would care, because his growth spurt did mean he had to build a new prosthetic.

Hiccup let his eyes wander across the village. A lot of people were trying to finish up their chores for the next day, as from tomorrow, for almost a week, his father would be in the Meade hall, answering the tribe’s problems and solving their disputes. A good time for Hiccup to disappear for a while.

“Hiccup!” he heard his name being called from behind him.

He kept walking, not even glancing back to acknowledge his cousin. Hiccup hoped his obvious dismissal would discourage Snotlout from pursuing him. Luck was not on Hiccup’s sight it seemed as Snotlout caught up with him and stopped him by placing a hand on his shoulder. Hiccup stopped and looked at the hand in disgust and Snotlout quickly removed it.

“We’re going over to the Meade hall, want to join us?” Snotlout asked him, gesturing to the rest of the gang standing a bit away.

“No,” Hiccup answered after glancing at the others, he went to leave, but his cousin stopped him with a hand on his shoulder again, and even Hiccup’s disgusted look didn’t make Snotlout remove his hand this time.

“We-we’re gonna take some mead and head out to the academy,” Snotlout tried to persuade him.

Hiccup almost laughed. How times have changed… a few years ago, he would have jumped on the chance to hang out with the others, but now he knew that they didn’t have any real value in his life. With Toothless he could see faraway lands and explore, with Storm he could talk about his thoughts and have meaningful conversations. The others just didn’t offer him anything, at least not at this time.

He knew that if they were a bit more mature or adventurous, and forgot their hate for dragons, they would be great friends. Also, Hiccup was still a bit mad that they had tormented him in his younger years, the torment stopping only when he stopped reacting to them and started treating them with indifference. His cold disposition somehow made him cool in their eyes.

“I don’t drink,” Hiccup told him and shrugged of his hand, going back home without looking back.

Hiccup didn’t linger at home, he didn’t need to. He just took a loaf of bread and put it with his other things. He left through the back door so nobody would see him leaving, because while they generally never noticed he left, but that was because they didn’t see him leave.

Toothless excitedly bounced towards Hiccup as he entered the cove. Hiccup greeted his best friend and went over to his stash of things. His stash consisted of the armor he didn’t want to wear around the village, the armor that could easily be recognized as the Dragon Master’s get up, some spare bags and a few of his own made weapons.

He dressed in his armor, mounted Toothless and with one final pet to the dragon’s head, they took off. They flew through the air as fast as they could, making short work of leaving Berk behind. Hiccup knew the way to the Edge by hearth, he could find it with his eyes closed.

Flying was freeing for him. Soaring through the air like nothing mattered, because it didn’t when he was there, Hiccup let his mind wander. He thought about the dragons he had found, the places he had explored and the people he had ‘met’. He used the term ‘met’ loosely as the people met his persona of ‘Dragon Master’.

He didn’t know who had given him that name, but he had no problem with it. The name gave him notoriety and opened doors that could never be opened otherwise. And he couldn’t say that ‘Dragon Master’s’ reputation was unwarranted, because it was. He didn’t hesitate to land a killing blow if he needed to, he frequently went around Dragon Trapper ships and freed the dragons inside, killing anyone who came in his way. And, of course, taking some of his preferred meat with him anytime he could.

Halfway to the Edge, in the middle of the night, Hiccup saw a ship in the waters below him. Curiosity got the better of him and he steered Toothless down. They flew around the ship, the darkness hiding them. Hiccup felt anger rise within him when he heard the roars of scared dragons come from within. Hiccup hated Dragon Trappers, he had taken care of countless ships on his own before, this time would be no different. He doubted anyone would survive.  

Hiccup touched down on the ship, the fact that the deck was clear of people surprised him. He dismounted Toothless and gestured for him to stay quiet, he listened closer and he heard a voice mixed in with the roaring of the dragons. The shouting was filled with pain, it was clear to Hiccup that whoever was beneath the deck was being tortured. That did not surprise him, Dragon Trappers were rarely smart or compassionate people.

Hiccup motioned for Toothless to stay on alert and went beneath the deck. It was light there, torches on the walls giving enough light for him to see clearly. There were about ten people there, all ganged up on one tied up man. The tied up man was screaming as one of the trappers, donned with a cloak made of dragon hide, took a knife to his bicep – carving away the skin there.

Hiccup didn’t waste time when he saw the keys dangling on one of their belts. He sneaked toward the man with the keys, luckily he was in the back of the group so Hiccup found it easy to cover the man’s mouth and pull him back. A dagger to the man’s throat was a quick and silent way to dispose of him, the body went down and Hiccup took the keys from his belt.

It was done silently, not alerting the others in the group. Hiccup used the keys to unlock the cages that housed dragons that did gain the group’s attention. Startled shouts rang out as the dragons ran out, Hiccup used the commotion to his advantage. He took his sword and managed to kill three more of the men before the others register what had happened.

The remaining six were easy to dispose of. Hiccup’s sword was sharp and he managed to behead two of the six, their head landing on the ground with a thud. One took a stab at the heart, two took fatal blows to the neck. The last one was the leader of the group, the one who had been carving at the man’s bicep. Hiccup managed to push the man to the ground and used his sword to cut the man’s leg at the hip clean off. The leader screamed in pain as he bled out.

Hiccup took the dismembered leg and with one swig he separated it at the knee. Hiccup called for Toothless, the dragon bouncing in with a croon. Hiccup took a mesh bag he had in the sack with his other things and wrapped the thigh in it. He fixed the slab of meat on Toothless’ saddle and turned to the man who had been tortured.

The man was looking at him with fear and confusion. Hiccup went over to him and took a knee to stay in eye level with the man.

“What’s your name?” Hiccup asked him with a tilt of his head.

“E-Eret,” the man gasped out, his face screwed up in pain.

“You have a choice Eret,” Hiccup told him, his eyes turning to the man’s bleeding bicep, the wound would scar if the man stayed alive, “Join me.”

“Or?” Eret asked when Hiccup didn’t elaborate.

Hiccup rolled his eyes and looked around the dead men, making a show of his wandering gaze. Eret gulped as he understood, he took a deep breath and nodded.

“Join you.”

Hiccup smiled and went around him to cut the rope that held his hands. Eret was another person for him to train and be friends with. Even if Hiccup could do this on his own, more people meant more saved dragons. Hiccup got Eret in Toothless and they took off.

Hiccup wasn’t scared that Eret would try to hurt him. For one, the man’s bicep must have been killing him. Eret had also been tortured by the dragon trappers, which meant he was someone they hated, and he didn’t share in their believes, at least not anymore. Hiccup could easily recognize people who could be assets to his cause, Eret was one.

By the time they landed on the Edge, Eret was struggling to stay awake, even the pain from his injury and the excitement that came with flying for the first time, couldn’t keep him awake. They had landed by the main building and, even though it was still dark, Storm had come to greet them.

“Who’s this?” she asked instead of greeting them, Eret’s presence coming as a shock to her.

Hiccup jumped from the saddle and helped Eret down, letting the man lean on him. Toothless went over to Storm and nuzzled her in greeting, she petted the Night Fury’s head as she watched the two men. Hiccup started leading Eret to the house.

“A new member of our team,” Hiccup told her as she held the door open, “He needs a bit of medical attention, if you don’t mind.”

Storm sighed and went over to their kitchen, she opened a cabinet where they stored their medical supplies, and took out everything she would need. Hiccup sat Eret down at the table and pulled out a seat for Storm.

She sat down and looked at the man’s bicep, she blew her hair out of her face and glanced at Toothless. The Night Fury was sitting near the door, waiting for Hiccup to take his things from the dragon. Storm eyed the mesh bag and turned to Hiccup.

“Put the meat on ice, at least,” she sighed and rolled her eyes, “Thor, you never learn…” she mumbled and got to work on Eret’s wound.

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

icl, i kinda miss Alanza. i know it’s an unpopular opinion but honestly i don’t mind her. she was in one of the assignments in the new year 7 chapter and it was nice to see her again even if it wasn’t in the main story. it’s almost like she doesn’t even exist outside astronomy lessons most of the time like i’ve literally seen a few ppl saying they forgot she even existed and honestly i can’t entirely blame them at this point. i don’t know why they even added Alanza in the first place, i like her enough but she doesn’t really do anything anymore. they never bothered to explain why she was staying an extra year either. maybe they originally had bigger plans for her but Alanza didn’t turn out to be as popular as they hoped so they changed their minds or something.

Y'know, I am convinced more than ever that there was some sort of alternative plan for Alanza's character, whatever it might have been, that was ultimately scrapped for whatever reason. Like you said, it's not at all clear why they added her to begin with, and while they may have just kept her around for mechanical reasons or to appease fans...they conspicuously never gave a reason for why she stayed. All it would have taken is one throwaway line.

There's something more. I've been leveling Alanza up recently. (Looking forward to donning those kickass robes.) and one of the questions that I constantly roll when I'm having butterbeer with her is "Who's necklace did I give you?" The correct answer being, her Grandmother's. There's just one problem with that. Alanza has never given MC a necklace. Not her grandma's or anyone else's. Maybe there's just some quest that I missed or haven't unlocked yet, maybe it's a quest in the code that never got released. (Think of Jae's cooking quest, it was in limbo for ages.) But if there is, I've not heard about it. And even if the quest exists, the fact is, my file has never completed it. So this bit of trivia doesn't make any sense. At the rate the game is going, I don't see us getting a necklace from Alanza either, outside of maybe in a TLSQ.

I haven't forgotten Alanza existed, but I frankly have no idea how to work her into my canon. Her arrival in Year 6 is something that I find difficult to describe as anything but filler. I don't want to think of it as filler, but similar to Victor, her character just hasn't really contributed to the plot much at all. I guess she recruited the Weird Sisters? But MC already knew them, Alanza wasn't necessary. I guess she told MC that Rakepick smelled like cinnamon? As if that ended up mattering, or did anything apart from raise more questions. I've said it a million times, but the story grinded to a halt to introduce Alanza, and then the universe seemed to conspire to ensure she found out about The Circle of Khanna...only...then she didn't join.

Am I alone in thinking that Alanza presented herself differently in Y6CH22 then she did for...the rest of the game, pretty much? In her initial appearance, she gave the impression of being the adventurous type. For crying out loud, she got lost in the jungle for a week. She lived on ants and rain! And then, after the player is forced to let her in on the secret organization that she was so curious about...she doesn't want to get involved? I know first impressions aren't everything, and any character can have their own cases of early installment weirdness, but...I'm not the only one who's noticed this, right? Alanza became significantly calmer and less inclined toward danger after her initial introduction. To the point that I noticed it, again and again.

Then there's her affinity for creatures, which they make such a big deal about, that I assume it has to be a Checkov's Wand. The scene where she sits in Rowan's seat, obliviously. Just a harsh moment for MC, or...is it supposed to mean something more? I'd suspect it might, except...Alanza has hardly done anything in Year 7, and I'm just left wondering...what exactly is her home situation like. I mean, she'll be seventeen by this point, so her parents can't make her come home, but...why wouldn't she want to? Doesn't she miss them? Did something happen there? I want to know, gosh dangit.

EDIT: I was wrong about the necklace, she does technically give us one, but it's still a huge error.

[just-like-playing-tag]

aaaaaaa okay i just watched the new episode and im so curious about how theyre going to handle the rest of this arc? you always have really good takes so i was wondering what your thoughts were!! bunkerman is such an important character in this part of the story, it seems like they cant cut him out entirely????so where is he!!!

~ Sorry for the late answer, I kept procrastinating writing my thoughts because I knew this would have turned out to be long ahah ~

Thank you for the compliments, I'm flattered!!! Tho I doubt I will be of great help, I feel like I'm lost at sea ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ But I'll do my best!!!

First of all, I'd want to point out that, as of now, I'm confident they will not cut Bunkerman and Goldy Pond off the plot. Goldy Pond is a strong and solid arc that I'm sure received a positive response from SJ readers while it was on going; once it's animated, the anime will be completed of the action that has so far been lacking. As for Bunkerman, in the Shounen Jump's tpn popularity polls he earned 16th and 7th place, which makes me think he's fairly popular. His presence adds a very nice twist to the plot: not only he's the first male adult we see; even though he doesn't side with demons, he's still hostile to the children, which comes off as very surprising to the reader / watcher (and builds up to how Andrew and later the whole Ratri clan will persecute them, introducing the aspect that not all humans on the outside are their friends). Additionally, he is the first character to help build up the theme that Emma is not only going to help her friends and family, but also her enemies, which puts the basis of her character development and her decision to save all the demons and mamas. Moreover: how people have already pointed out, Bunkerman has also a very important role as representing the “what-if” version of the children, as showed in chapter 177:

His character has a very poignant role, as he's revealed to have a very tragic backstory: his story consolidates the cruelty of the world they live in, which is a main theme of tpn, and the way it's ultimately revealed how the children saved his life and gave him the chance to start living again comes to the viewer as extremely moving.

To sum up, he's too much of a great character to be omitted- they're not going to have all that great potential go to waste. His character development and personal growth is too powerful to be thrown away, and I refuse to believe they will (I'm going through chapter 109 again after a long time and I'm getting a little emotional :')

So next up is when we're going to see him, right? I doubt it is going to be soon. My guesses are that he'll show up either in the second half of the season, or even at the very end as teasing for an eventual following season.

The conditions in which the children have found the shelter unsettle me. The shelter confuses me so much, because things simply don't add up. If Bunkerman and his friends have already been there, then why Minerva's letter is still hanging there, unopened. On the opposite, if they have never been there, then that doesn't explain the cookies, which are a clear wink to manga readers, nor the scratched room. I'm confused, because these elements just aren't coherent with each other, and that makes me uneasy. I'd exclude that the Glory Bell escapees didn't open the letter, or that a Minerva supporter came back and placed a new one, but then again those elements really don't make any sense? Any that I can understand anyway- I hope they'll come up with a good explanation in the next episosodes.

Back to why I don't think Bunkerman will show up in the next episodes: several elements from the shelter make me think that. The most evident is obviously the rotten cookies. If he's just out hunting, and he usually lives in the shelter, then I don't see why he would keep those moldy biscuits (if not to commemorate his comrades? Dunnot). Besides, the shelter as for how it's been displayed seems to have not been inhabited for a long time: all the crockery was neatly placed; besides from the biscuits, there was not a single hint of people living or having lived there like the food we saw in the manga- if there had been, the children would have surely noticed. Again, that confuses me. Everything is perfectly tidy and clean, making it more similar to the untouched, neat shelter the Glory Bell escapees found when they arrived there for the first time- except for a conveniently scratched room? Isn't that weird that the room and the biscuits are the very only hint that somebody has been there before? But I'm digressing.

Other things that make me think Bunkerman is not going to show up: the children are learning everything on their own. There won't be Bunkerman to show them the armory, to talk about the limited resources and stuff. I believe that them finding about all these things on their own is a further proof that the kids aren't going to meet him soon.

I don't know how the children are going to meet Bunkerman. I'll be frank, I'm very worried, because for the way the children meet Bunkerman to be as it is is of great importance for his character and character development; I worry to make them meet in a different context is likely to have negative consequences to his character growth.

Shifting back to Goldy Pond, I don't think we're getting there any time soon either? There was no hint to A08-63 in the letter. My personal guess is that the "Poachers" skretch was replaced with "help" because we're not getting any poacher this season, and they didn't want to introduce so early an element that is not going to be explained in this season. Of course "Minerva" could reveal it in their phone call- but then why not mention it at all in the letter, besides from ending the episode with a cliff hanger? Furthermore: would it make sense to introduce Goldy Pond before Bunkerman? Goldy Pond wouldn't be the same without him- besides the fact that it would be hard to integrate the story of Lucas and the other Glory Bell escapees, this is a friendly reminder that it's Bunkerman to both break Lewis' mask and later kill him.

Now, as for my personal guess? I think the children are going to leave the shelter and look for Minerva. First of all, that would explain why, in the opening, everyone has the go-out-shelter-coats:

That's the outfit Emma, Ray and later Gilda and Don wear when going out; it's an outfit we never saw the younger children wear in the manga. Another reason why I think that all the children are going to leave together is because it's the only way to protect them: they still can't be sure the shelter is a safe place (the manga reveals it isn't), so they can't leave the children alone in it. In the manga, they divide in two groups: Emma, Ray and Bunkerman leave the shelter, and Gilda and Don would have stayed to keep the children safe. For how things are in the anime, this becomes a problem. Let's say they decide to leave the shelter (and like, they will, otherwise the plot can't move on lol): Emma and Ray can't leave on their own, without Bunkerman to both guide and protect them; at the same time, they can't leave with the support of Gilda and Don, for that would mean leaving the children alone in the shelter. It's not only because leaving a group of less then nines alone would normally not be a good idea (these children are very smart, so maybe they'd manage to go on?), but they can't really know if the shelter will continue being a safe place: only because the demons haven't found it so far, that doesn't mean they can be sure they won't find it at some point; additionally, for what they know poachers are still after them. That's why I think the most logic progress of events will be for the children to leave the shelter together. Which, even though I stand for what I've said... Sounds like a very bad idea??? Not only the children keep travelling in this demon world- they also don't have weapons besides from bow and arrow? That's why I find the armory being empty one of the most senseless things- of course I want the children to be safe, but for the children to survive in demon forests completely unarmored sounds extremely unrealistic. I just hope they aren't going to kill one of the "irrelevant children" to prove how dangerous the world is, that would destroy me.

(I'm Chris.)

Ok, I think I covered everything! Thanks for asking! Let's hope together they won't mess this up for us :))

[readreadbookblog]

Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten War that Changed American History by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger

https://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Jefferson-Tripoli-Pirates-Forgotten/dp/0143129430

A forgotten early conflict in American history was the battle against piracy in the Barbary states. Located in modern day Morocco, Algeria, Libya, and Tunisia, The Barbary States were semi-autonomous provinces of the Ottoman Empire that raided European ships in the Mediterranean. Upon gaining independence, the United States no longer had British protection from Barbary raids that came from European payments to each sultan and thus were constant targets for attack. In Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger’s book Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten War That Changed American History, a very readable but flawed history of this conflict is told that while it entertaining, seriously misreads the lessons of history that these events offer.

The narrative of this book is very good. It is easy to read and follow with it’s long stretches of time periods and rotating cast of characters. The first chapter deals with the capture of Richard O’Brien and describes the long and harsh captivity that awaited him in North Africa. After that, the book expands into John Adams and Thomas Jefferson in Europe as diplomats trying to solve the piracy threats and then the book shows the response of the first three U.S. president’s attempt to battle the Barbary pirates with major emphasize on Jefferson.

Jefferson is loosely followed as the “main character” of the fight against the pirates, which the book seems to want to portrait as the main driving force leading the charge against the Barbary Pirates but fails to accurately show this. John Adams is credited with the creation of the U.S. Navy. Jefferson was very much against this, seeing it as another excuse to increase Federal power over the wishes of the people. But the authors of this book portrait Jefferson as the one who creates and sends the Navy to the Mediterranean to finally stop the pirates. But discussions of Jefferson’s pacifism are not discussed as he was anti-war. The book’s largely about the battles between the pirates and the various U.S. ships sent to fight them. Again, it is easy to read and quite action pack narrative that readers can easily understand.

But while placing Jefferson as the selling point of the book is a forgivable offense, the biggest and most problematic problem of the book is the author’s stupid racist opinions. One of the authors is a Fox News reporter, which I didn’t know when I read this book, but throughout the book that is misleading, lies, racism, and lots of Islamophobia. There are false claims that this was a battle between the west and Islam. The authors keep repeating claims that all this piracy was in the name of Islam but fail to mention that slavery and other terrible things were being done in the name of Christianity in the south, so using religion as an excuse like this isn’t the reason why all this was occurring. In reality this whole Barbary Pirates war is just because the U.S. fails to pay them as agreed upon, there is no religious battle, the authors are just being Islamophobic.

In the end we don’t even get to see how this war changed America as the title of the book says. The authors rant about Islam like the racists that they are and later in the end chapter it is explained that another war with the Barbary Pirates occurs. What?! So why not expand on that too? It occurred on Madison’s presidency during the War of 1812 and most importantly ends up putting an end to the North African pirates for all of Europe. The authors really drop the ball on fully explaining the Second Barbary Pirate War but I guess it was because they couldn’t explain it without blaming Islam or being racist about it little was written on it.

It is hard for me to recommend this book. It is really easy to read and fast paced. “It’s Like Writing History with Lightning" as the racist Woodrow Wilson would say. Can one read this ignoring the fake historic revisionism and racist Islamophobia? Maybe. But most wouldn’t, or rather are not smart enough to do so. Most people would probably read only this book on the Barbary pirates, even if they hear how biased it is and not read any follow up. I would urge readers to have another source, an academic source preferably, to counter the fake claims of this book, but would they do this?  I don’t know. But perhaps with this review you know if you would want to pick this book up.

[human-enthusiast]

Absurd Person #1 - Monkey D. Luffy (kid)

 Let’s start with not only the main protagonist of One Piece but also the first character to give Luffy any sort of injury...

...his dumb, seven-year-old self...

*Disclaimer: I don’t own this image - screenshot from Episode of East Blue

The last time I wrote this, I forgot to hit save and my browser just reloaded the page and lost everything. After that I just went “I’m done” and rage quit Tumblr for the night (which I normally don’t do). That’s how my Sundays usually go😒🥴

Now Onward!

Basic Classifications

Real World Ethnicity/Nationality: Brazilian

Class: farm / country / lower class

Culture (the one he grew up around): Dawn Island - Sea-side village

Fishing community

Farming / Ranching community

Hard work ethic

Small and close community members; relatively friendly; little to non-existent conflict

Selective mix of being open towards strangers (especially with merchant vessels for better trading opportunities) and weariness towards those they expect to be harmful (likes Pirates; I’d imagine the people of Windmill Village were understandably unnerved with the Red-Haired Pirates first showing up).

Core values (personal to Luffy): pride, physical strength, adventures on and outside his home village,

Relation to authority: neutral - shifting slightly towards negative (no clear basis of opinion; can only go off on Luffy’s fascination with pirates as the main viewpoint)

(The added information feels a little scatter-shot but figured I give it a try based on little information from the manga panels and how it lines up with real-world similarities. Most information is based on logical speculation and could change with new information in later chapters.)

I know that the Romance Dawn arc consists of the chapters up until he meets Coby and Alvida (I think...), but the depiction of Luffy’s character in the first chapter seems different from when he is seventeen and setting out to sea. So, I’ll treat kid Luffy as a separate character for the first analysis.

First Impressions and Introduction

Now, I am an anime watcher, first and foremost, so my first impression of this character stems from the Anime. My introduction towards this ball of chaos was when he popped out of a barrel, that he put himself into after realizing that a whirlpool suddenly appeared (how he missed it? - It’s Luffy), and then inexplicably took a nap in. That was the absurd reason I was able to stick with One Piece in the first few arcs (until Baratie became one of the major reasons I stuck with it - I’ll explain why when we get there).

And since the first chapter was used for episode four in the anime, I was already somewhat familiar with how the story started and who Luffy was as a kid. However, reading the first chapter felt....different than what I would’ve expected. And because the anime cut out a few details from the chapter, there definitely are some things to take from kid Luffy at that point.

So my first impression was, as follows:

The kid is unhinged...That explains some things...

Complete wild child of a backwater village from Day 1. 

LIKE-- The anime episode DID NOT explain how he got that scar and the guy didn’t bring it up ever. To be fair, that wasn’t a big focus because the anime didn’t make it a focus. Reading that part though did more for his character and a little of his upbringing, through speculation, making it a rather slow-building but also fascinating introduction into this series.

Just a bit of an add-on, but if the manga introduced Luffy in the same level of neutrality as what the Anime did, It may not have fully made it clear if Luffy was going to be the main protagonist. Then again, it’s a shounen manga, maybe it was rather obvious to everyone else. Regardless, his introduction served to 

(1) Make his entrance memorable

(2) Establish his character that could either compare or set him apart from his teen self.

(3) Act as a sort of precursor towards the introduction of Luffy’s world and upbringing (which isn’t completely established until the last few arcs of Pre-Time Skip)

Personality

The best way I could describe Luffy at this point is a stereotypical kid...

Energetic, short-tempered, adventure-seeking, easily impressed, and ignorant...

That last description is actually something I brought up in a separate post about the “Fluid themes” of One Piece. Because I found that a small but overarching part in many (almost all) themes and world issues that One Piece reflects has some level of unawareness or apathy. Jimbe put it best during the Fishman Island Flashback when they found Koala (paraphrasing)

“They are afraid of us because they don’t know us.”

Know us referring to acknowledging them as people on the same level as humans.

Because of that and plenty of other instances from the East Blue, it can be a potential center for many characters who go up against or wish to explore the world and find that they are a frog in a well.

And that’s what kid Luffy represents. A rather aggressive frog in a well that wants out.

Granted, he is a seven-year-old, whose schooling has a closer equivalent to the 16th and 17th centuries of our world, living in what appears to be a farming community, so I’d imagine his education only focuses on at least the basic levels of reading/writing, mathematics, etc. A small, unexciting farming village probably has more concerns over their melon crops rather than what the world has going on. Adding in Luffy, you get a kid who dreams about being a pirate and adventuring outside the isolated village, making him avidly interested in a world he has no experience with. Or in a world he thinks is all fun and games.

That’s pretty standard for any child that has a mild and peaceful life. No doubt Shanks and his crew would tell him stories about their adventures. Not as a sort of attempt to make him a pirate, but because he was easily entertained by it, building up this expectation with stereotypical pirate personas. And whether he has his “destructive” tendencies before they became a fixture in Windmill Village, they definitely seemed to amp it up enough for Luffy to try and prove he was “man enough” to be a pirate at seven years old.

Then when you add in this idealistic expectation with the selfishness of a young child, it creates an opportunity to learn. Because, as any kid may go through, will find that their fantasy of the world won’t be what they expected, and will often react negatively. Luffy’s expectation of Shanks is that he is the strongest man worthy enough to be a pirate.

Now, Luffy’s view of a “real man” stems a lot from this stereotype of men solving their problems through fighting only. Which also embodies this rather damaging philosophy of never running away or backing down from a fight (which I refer to as stupid bravery - something that comes up in a certain other character).

The amazing thing about all the combined aspects of this kid is the ability to create a learning lesson for Luffy. Which can become a motivational factor in his pursuit as a pirate.

His easily impressed nature makes it known both when the Red-Haired Pirates talk positively about piracy adventures and when Shanks leaves the village. The difference between the moments can be showcased by the difference in determination and will to make an effort to achieve his dream. As he declared he wants to be King of The Pirates, he sets himself to work at it, rather than try and go with others.

How He Shapes the Story / World Around Them

I don’t know if anybody else made a similar connection (I wanna say someone DID but I can’t remember where) but in combination with Luffy’s general enthusiasm growing up hearing wild stories, his narrative reminds me so much of Don Quixote De La Mancha.

It’s been a while since I last read that story-- and by read I mean translate some paragraphs from Spanish to English during my Spanish I class in freshman year of high school. Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the story. Part I entails an old man who, after indulging himself with various stories of knights and valor, decides he wants to partake in his own adventures. Under various delusions and misadventures, his story becomes a rather well-known one.

Don Quixote was called the first “modern book”. That was something my Spanish teacher mentioned regarding its acknowledgment by the world and always stuck with me. It was one of the first stories of the early medieval period to focus on a regular man. Other stories before this tended to be about legends, gods, demigods-- individuals who often were referred to as legends because they were born into high status (often above humans). Either through original texts (often for religious purposes) and then through varying interpretations (such as the Arthurian Legends), these tales were a part of the status quo.

Kid Luffy is a person that reflects so much of the Don Quixote story (And not just because his village has windmills-- the most iconic scene about the knight’s story). He is that simple, normal boy that longs for his own adventures when there seemingly is already a well-talked-about story about someone who achieved infamy. In place of that is a man named Gold Roger whose execution we see in the manga’s opening. At this point, we don’t have much understanding about how it impacts the world as of yet, we just know it is setting up for something significant to the story.

Luffy becomes that “regular” person from a small-town with big expectations for a grand adventure.

That perspective can slowly build into the story by starting in a simple setting with a character going through one of the first dynamic changes in his life. Luffy’s experience with Shanks’s sacrifice sets a course in his own adventure. A story that trails into a rather bonkers adventure at the end of chapter 1.

His development is what shaped his world. It’s the way he learns when as it stems from the consequences of his actions. Especially ones where the smaller ones turn out to be very costly, making it a hard lesson that ingrains into the young kid. His actions created by his old ideologies sparked an intense reaction in the people around him. Especially Shanks, who felt he was worth losing an arm towards.

How The WORLD Shapes HIM

So, for the sake of the fact that kid Luffy’s “World” in Chapter 1 mostly consists of Windmill Village, I’m adding in Shank’s and his crew’s influence to extend and further give credence to his influence. Because, as of this point, Shanks represents a glimpse into the life of a pirate that Luffy strives for.

With Luffy being in a quiet environment all seven years of life, there is growth through basic schooling and healthy child development (theoretically since Makino seems to be the most likely one acting as his guardian), instead of doing things outside that norm. Now Shanks is the odd factor that creates new development into Luffy’s dreams and future ambitions. 

The crew’s stories, charisma, and connection towards the kid actively (and probably unintentionally) created a positive expectation if he chose to pursue his dream. While that sounds inspiring, there were also negative aspects. Such as driving his ignorance and impatient nature to seek it out too early in his life.

Shanks then became a mediator. Luffy often has mixed feelings with Shanks as the man begets a level of encouragement while verbally making fun of Luffy for being a kid constantly. Despite that, it doesn’t completely deter Luffy’s ambitions. All it does is slowly drop his high expectations in Shanks after the first bar incident. This is again done by his childish outlook of physical strength and bravery equating to his ideal of a real man.

With Higama, Luffy learns about real-world dangers, and how bravery won’t always be enough to win battles. The same can be said for physical strength but at that moment it doesn’t apply to Luffy. 

Shanks’ and the crew’s involvement helped Luffy’s views change. His expectations are fulfilled, which in turn reveal that he was wrong about them.

Finally, seeing Shanks’ sacrifice unfold drove Luffy into a pang of newfound guilt. By then, he was able to change one part of his world views from a childish fantasy into the beginnings of a mature way of thinking. 

He gains some level of patience. Along with a set goal to work with. Attributes which are identifiable with Luffy in the chapters last few panels.

Patience = Luffy took time to train and learn to set sail at age seventeen.

Set goal = Be King of the Pirates

Add-Ons

When I say that kid Luffy, after Shanks’ sacrifice, gained a level of patience, it is meant as a deduction during that chapter. By no means am I insinuating that it became a permanent trait for his character. Because as of chapter 1, all of Luffy’s personality has yet to be revealed.

And this will apply to other posts for various characters. They may behave in ways during or in response to a particular event but it doesn’t necessarily equate to that becoming a whole personality trait. Calling Luffy patient, with having full acknowledgment of his personality during the bulk of One Piece, is completely off. But, there can and will be moments where Luffy will act patient when he deems it necessary.

This is a little hard to articulate but I hope it makes enough sense.

🏴‍☠️🐒

After-Notes

Here’s my first attempt at this analysis. It felt scattered even after editing everything. Breaking down characters sounds easy (and most times it is) but articulating and connecting things takes a lot of work.

Here's to hoping it gets easier with the next character. And maybe shorter paragraphs.

Up Next: Shanks (East Blue)

[everyhowlmarksthedead]

❛ KEEPING UP WITH THE ARIZAS ❜

A serie with Michael ‘Riz’ Ariza.

Summary of chapter nine, “The fight”: this one is based on seven years ago, a continuation of chapter seven, ‘The first date: the first attempt’.

Warnings: none.

Word count: about 1.4k

Aurora says: this writing hasn't been edited, you may find some grammar mistakes, I'm sorry about that!

Gif credits: @fromthesixteenthfloor

Masterlist.

One month hiding in the ranch, that was consuming you down. Declining Riz's calls, and every incoming call from any Mayan. Your father told them that you were busy with final exams, but your excuses ran out when the summer came and you finished college. Coco wrote you a hundred texts asking you to come to the clubhouse, because he was being full patched and that he wanted to celebrate it with you. And you wish you could find a pretext to avoid it, but you had to face reality. You were broken after your father's words about that Riz would never notice you as more than his best friend's kid, and you have to start to live with that. You didn't care much about your outfit, simply wearing a pair of high-waist shorts, a crop top and a pair of sneakers. You were just to have some quick beers, that was all, before coming back to your misery.

The crew received you between teases and jokes, hugs and kisses. Coco was pretty excited showing you the new patches on the back of his leather kutte, touring them with your fingertips. Until you watched Riz fighting against the other prospect inside the ring. For a moment, you greeted Angel for kicking his ass, just because he didn't feel the way you were feeling. But you actually weren't enjoying seeing your best friend wrestling with the man you loved. Coming closer to the ring, you placed yourself by your father's side, who were telling you that he was sorry the whole time since that night.

Even if you wanted to see the fight, some bitches behind you were making improper comments about the older, that they were making boil your blood. You had to count till thirteen, knowing that they weren't about to stop and that you had so much shit contained on your chest. Everything happened faster than you can remember today. Turning around, your right fist went straight to the nose of the one who was laughing, feeling some creaks under your knuckles before the blood began to stain your skin. You were grabbing her by her dress with the other fingers. Hitting her once and again, until your father held you away and the combat inside the ring was overshadowed for your own one. Hearing Riz's voice claiming for your attention and cupping your chin on a bloody big hand, you came back to reality barely breathing. Watching the girl crying and complaining lying down on the floor and everyone around you looking at you in holy silence, you reacted. Pushing away both men and with a strong pain shaking your right knuckles, you ran away from there. Not because of the retaliations, but because you were ashamed like never before. Probably you pushed Riz into that girl. That's what they do. They talk shit about a man, then play the victim card and get a ride. After that, they can say proudly they fucked a Mayan, which gives them some kind of respect that you don't understand.

It cost you too much to drive your bike back to the ranch, knowing that you were fucked if you tried to press the brake. But even so, you speeded up when you found Riz following you through the road. He was the last one you wanted to see at that point of your life. For a moment you felt like a fugitive, throwing your bike to the ground in front of the porch, and running into it trying to find the keys to open the door. And when you finally got them, your shaky and afflicted fingers let them fall over the wooden floor. It was too late to continue avoiding him, turning you around by a hand on your forearm, unlocking you between the red walls and his body. He seemed furious, breathing angrily and frowning. And you were shivering under him.

“What the fuck are you doin'?”

“Lemme' go, Ariza. Or I will punch you too”.

“Not till you tell me what the hell is wrong with you?” Gulping, you put your gaze away about to cry. “One month without seeing you, without nothing shit 'bout you. And from nowhere, you came back and started a fight, because of what? Ah?”

You don't reply, making him nod in silence for a second.

“You're a fuckin' child”. He just said before pulling away himself.

And that was the lit that made you burn again.

“I'm not a fucking child!” You yelled at the man, pushing his back once and again with both hands, without caring about the pain in the right. “This is your fucking fault!”

“My fault?! Oh, good God, give me patience…” He laughs bitterly turning at you. “I didn't do a shit, what the fuck are you talking 'bout now, (Y/N)”.

“That's the problem! You don't do a shit! You don't feel a shit! Nothing!”

“Seriously, the fuck is wrong with you?”

“I'm in love with you, puto pendejo!”

You couldn't believe that you finally said it. Shocking him, who couldn't believe it either. Twisting his neck like a confused dog, he took a step away. You were already crying, grabbing your keys from the floor about to open the door, but he stopped you again.

“Was that… why you weren' coming to the club, or because you weren' answering my calls? Because you're in love with me?”. He asked taking you off the keys and keeping them in a pocket of his kutte. “That shit will pass in… I don' know, some months, but that's no—”.

“That shit, how you called it, it's been inside me for the last five years”. You sobbed, feeling more fucked than never, pointing your chest. “I was trying to show you… that I'm not a fucking child… I started to work while finishing college. I… I… wanted to tell you but… Fuck, it doesn't matter”.

Cleaning your tears, you let your back run down the wall until sitting, curling your legs and surrounding them with both arms. Your cry got louder, pressing your palms against your eyes, hoping he just left you there. Alone. But he didn't, squatting next to you and trying to hold your wrists.

“Fuckin' leave me, Riz…” You begged shaking your arms, even if you knew that a simple touch from him could make you fall again.

“Let me take care of your hand, okay…? Then, I will leave, if it is what you want”.

“I want you to leave now. I can… take care of my own wounds”.

The man nodded with pursed lips, giving you back your keys before getting up, and walking towards his motorbike. But he confused you when you saw him taking off his gun behind the kutte. And when he shot both tires, jumping away before the bike fell down losing its balance. Standing up on the porch, you raised both eyebrows freaking out.

“Do you want me to break my phone, to use yours to call the crane?”

Swallowing, you shook your head in silence.

“Good, 'cause it's gonna cost me about three hundred bucks. The fucking things I do for love…” He muttered that last sentence, but you could hear it.

“You what?” You asked, cleaning your tears with your shirt, seeing him coming back.

“Open the door”.

“What you said, Riz?”

“I fuckin' love you too. You're smart, kind, caring, lovely… fucking… breathtaking. I don' even know if… that's a fucking word. But the point is that your father is my best friend, my br—”.

“He already knows it”.

“Sorry, what…?”

“But he just said that… if I talked to you about my feelings, you were gonna laugh”.

“Nah, I'm gonna get his daughter and make him regret any shit he told you, making you feel like a shit”.

That made you chuckle, before letting him hug you with both arms, kissing your forehead.

“Okay, miss independence, will you lemme take care of your hand?” You nod before offering him the keys back. “I will need you to practice your studies too”.

“Yeah, you just wan' me because I'll be a doctor…”

“I forgot to say that part”. He laughed, finally opening the main door.

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[when-picnic-remember-snacks]

Chapter 1

This is my newest fic, an AU of The Old Guard with everyone’s favorite immortal husbands! It is so far untitled. In this AU, Joe and Nicky are new teachers at an ///unrealistically/// liberal private boarding school. They live in adjacent apartments in a dorm. Joe teaches history, Nicky teaches Latin and Italian. Over the course of the year, the two grow close and a relationship begins to blossom.

DISCLAIMER: I am not Muslim, but I am doing my absolute best to write Joe as a multi-dimensional, imperfect, complex Muslim character. It is frustrating to me to see Joe’s relationship with his faith cast aside in other fics, and I want to portray him as someone with a real, complex relationship to his religion (without assigning my own narratives to it). Despite my best efforts, there may be times when I fall short, and I am not afraid to edit and revise my work (even after publishing it!). Please bear with me!

The new apartment was small. Really small. Nicky wasn't sure what he expected of an apartment that was nestled in a dorm for high schoolers, but he at least expected it to be clean. There were stains on the walls and carpets, and before he could settle in, he resigned himself to a day of literally scrubbing the remnants of previous occupants from his new home. Starting in the kitchen, he donned yellow rubber gloves to his elbows, grabbed a few rags, a sponge, and a bottle of spray cleaner, and got to work.

After an hour, he was satisfied with the results. The appliances gleamed, and there were no more food stains on the walls. The grout between the tiles was a more respectable grey color, and the whole room smelled of bleach. He leaned against the counter and wiped his sweaty forehead with his elbow, looking down to see that his grey shirt was visibly soaked in sweat. The early-August heat did not pair well with an apartment lacking central air conditioning.

As he moved into the living room, there was a knock on the door leading to the hallway. Cazzo, Nicky thought, hissing through his teeth. He crossed the room and opened the door, realizing one second too late that he was wearing a sweaty, bleach-stained grey t-shirt with old basketball shorts that had a giant rip near the hem. Sexy. He became extra aware of his bizarre, decidedly unattractive outfit when he found himself looking into the soft brown eyes of a very handsome man. He opened his mouth, completely lost for words.

"Hello," said the man in his doorway. His voice was soft and musical, and he had a gentle accent. "I'm Joe, I live right next door and I figured I should come to say hi before you think I'm a bad neighbor." He laughed, and Nicky realized how rude he must seem, staring at this man from his doorway.

"Hi, I'm Nicky," and he extended his hand to shake. Joe glanced down at it, one eyebrow cocked. Nicky sucked air in through his teeth, cursing himself, then pulled off the yellow rubber gloves. Thankfully, Joe just laughed again and shook Nicky's hand with both of his own. There was an awkward moment where they stood, still holding each other's hands, before Nicky said: "I would invite you in, but it's a mess in here right now and it smells like a swimming pool–"

"Oh, no, I don't want to intrude, please," Joe reassured him. He shoved his hands in his pockets, then, seeming unhappy with that, tucked them behind his back. "I just wanted to introduce myself." He backed up a step, rocking on his heels.

"I'll tell you what, though," said Nicky quickly. "I should be cleaned up by tonight, you should come over for a drink." He bit the inside of his lip, worried that he was coming off too friendly, but Joe smiled. It made Nicky's heart race a little.

"That sounds very nice, I would love to," he said. "I will bring a bottle of wine?"

"Yes, that sounds perfect," said Nicky. "7:00?"

"See you then," Joe waved awkwardly, then turned and walked the few feet to his door. "Bye," he said with a nervous laugh.

"Bye," said Nicky. He pulled the door closed and leaned against it, tilting his head back and blowing air at the ceiling. He looked at the apartment, suddenly panicking. He glanced at his watch. 10:26. Which gave him… seven and a half hours to clean and move into his apartment. "Fuck," he said quietly, then sprang into action.

 6:30 rolled around, and after hours of diligent work, his apartment was presentable. The walls were clean, the carpets de-stained and vacuumed, and he had moved his furniture into place. There still wasn't anything hung on the walls, but he had installed all of his books on his bookshelves. Well, the books that would live in the living room. There were three whole boxes and another set of shelves in his bedroom.

He was still drenched in sweat and he smelled like bleach, so he stripped off his dirty, sweaty clothes and showered. He took a long time shaving his stubble and making sure that his eyebrows were tamed. Then he glanced at his watch, swore, and rushed into his bedroom to put on clothes. It was almost 7:00, and he was running behind schedule. He hurried to the kitchen. He was pulling out wine glasses when he heard a soft knock on the door. He crossed the living room, running his hands through his hair, and opened the door.

Joe was standing there, holding a bottle of red wine. Nicky admired how well his shirt fit, then remembered the situation at hand. "Come in, come in!" he said, stepping aside to let Joe in. He reached to take the bottle of wine from Joe, who handed it over and looked around.

"It's very nice in here," he said generously. His eyes widened when he saw the bookshelf. "May I?" he asked, gesturing towards it.

"Oh, of course, please," said Nicky, setting the wine on the counter. "Do you want anything to eat? I don't have much right now but if you like cheese I have some meat and fruit to go with it."

Joe paused, weighing his next words. "I try my best to keep my food halal, even if I do have a drink from time to time. So the meat… I can't eat it, I don't think." The corner of his mouth twitched, a little embarrassed.

Nicky kicked himself. "That's no problem at all, I have some shrimp in the freezer, maybe shrimp cocktail instead?"

Joe turned to him, smiling. "That sounds lovely. You Italians and your insistence on feeding everyone." At Nicky's questioning look, he laughed a little. "You have a very subtle accent. Only confirmed by the books." He gestured at Nicky’s extensive collection of Italian novels.

Nicky smiled. "You got me. I lived there until I was ten. Most people don't notice," he said, not including how he had tried his best to suppress it when he was a teenager and therefore lost most of it.

"I have an ear for them. Accents, I mean," Joe said simply, turning back to the books. "How many languages do you speak? I saw Italian, Latin, English, what else?"

Nicky felt himself blush a little. "Those are the main three. I know a little Greek, and if you know Italian it's not too hard to pick up Spanish, so I can get by." He paused. "I'm teaching Latin and Italian this year," he said. "I just finished my master's in Italian literature."

"Oh, congratulations to you!" said Joe, tearing himself away from the bookshelves and joining Nicky in the kitchen. "How can I help you?"

"Please, sit, make yourself comfortable. Have a glass of wine," he said, gesturing to the glasses and the corkscrew on the counter.

"You will have one, too," said Joe, deftly opening the bottle and pouring two glasses of wine.

"I can't say no to that," said Nicky, taking the glass.

Joe raised his glass slightly, his eyes trained on Nicky's, and said "To your master's degree! And to our new jobs." Nicky tapped his glass against Joe's, and they drank.

The wine was delicious, tart and full. It was much nicer than anything Nicky would have bought himself. Joe held eye contact with him as he took another sip. Nicky felt his heart squeeze and forced himself to speak. "So, what are you teaching?" He turned to the freezer and pulled out the shrimp, trying to conceal the furious blush creeping up his neck.

"History," said Joe, leaning back against the counter as Nicky grabbed a bowl, dumped shrimp into it, and filled it with water. "They have me down for intro to ancient world and a study of Islam elective." He took another sip of wine.

"Are you coaching anything?" Nicky felt like he couldn't control himself, he just kept spouting off questions. He was terrified of what might happen if he let himself sit in silence with Joe.

"Not much of a sports man," said Joe. "Not playing, anyways. I'm going to proctor after-school art this fall."

"Are you an artist?" Nicky raised his eyebrows and smiled. It made sense to him, that Joe would be an artist. He couldn't put a finger on why, but Joe had a certain warmth to him that made him seem like a painter. Or maybe a potter. "I would love to see your work."

"An amateur," said Joe, blushing a little. "I don't have a lot here, most of it is at my sister's house. Just a couple sketchbooks and a painting or two here." He paused, and Nicky could tell he was a little uncomfortable. So he searched for a way to change the subject.

 His cat, Bruno, made a very opportune entrance. He had spent most of the day curled up on the cat tree in Nicky’s room. Joe's face lit up at the sight.

"Oh my goodness, what a handsome man that is!" he cried, setting down his glass and kneeling. He reached out his hand, and Bruno chirped as he rubbed up against it. Joe scratched under his chin. "What's his name?"

"Bruno," said Nicky, smiling. Bruno was a good judge of character, and Nicky always felt better about someone if they liked cats. Joe had plopped himself down on the tiles with his back against the cabinets, thoroughly entertained by Bruno, who had laid down against Joe's leg and was purring loudly. "He's a great cat."

"I can see," said Joe, grinning up at Nicky. He leaned down and kissed Bruno's forehead, then stood back up. He took another sip of wine. "What a wonderful little cat," he said, watching Bruno trot off towards Nicky's bedroom.

Nicky checked the shrimp, then pulled the cocktail sauce from the fridge. "These are ready, do you want to sit in the living room and eat?" He drained the water from the shrimp and picked up the bowl.

"Yes, please. Could I wash my hands first?" He pointed to the sink.

"Oh, of course," said Nicky.

Joe carefully washed his hands and dried them, then picked up Nicky's wine glass and carried it to the couch.

"Thanks," said Nicky, sitting down a couple of feet from Joe. Joe propped one ankle on his knee and relaxed.

"Where did you go to college?" Joe asked. He kept his eyes carefully trained on Nicky's face as he picked up a shrimp, dipped it in sauce, and popped it into his mouth.

"I did Northeastern for undergrad, and Middlebury for grad school," said Nicky. "You?"

"University of Chicago," said Joe. "I'm going to do some work this year towards my master's at Harvard." He blushed a little, embarrassed, then took another sip of wine.

"That's great!" said Nicky, taking the last sip of his wine. He set the glass down on the coffee table. "Where are you from?"

"Originally?" Joe said, raising his eyebrows. Nicky started to panic.

"Oh, no, jeez, I didn't mean–"

"I'm messing with you," Joe laughed. Nicky relaxed a little. "One immigrant to another? I'm from Morocco. We emigrated to New York when I was thirteen." He took a sip of wine. "And based on your accent, I'm guessing you moved from Italy to… Boston?"

Nicky laughed. "Can't slip anything past you, huh? Yeah, we moved around a little but we were always around Boston. You know, lots of Italian families there. And my family is pretty Catholic, so they liked being around other Catholics."

"Ah," Joe nodded. "Do you see a lot of them? Your family?"

"Not really," said Nicky, looking down. Joe seemed content to leave it alone.

 They sat in silence for a few moments as Joe finished his glass of wine, then stood. "I will go grab the bottle," he said, crossing to the kitchen. Nicky watched his back as he went, watched how he tread softly and how his broad shoulders tapered into a narrow waist. He shook his head a little to clear it. He stared at his hands, clasped in his lap, and tried to calm his breathing. This is not happening right now, he told himself. You just got here. But he had a twisting, hot feeling in the pit of his stomach that was growing every second he spent with Joe. It hadn't even been an hour, and it was threatening to outgrow the limits of his chest and spill out into the world. He felt his cheeks burn with a familiar shame.

When he looked up, Joe had his soft brown eyes fixed on his face. He was a few feet away, holding the bottle of wine. There was a small crease between his eyebrows. "Is everything alright?" Joe said, sitting down and tilting his head to the side. "I hope I did not upset you, asking about your family. I know things can be… Well, things can be complicated." He smiled, and Nicky's stomach gave an uncomfortable lurch.

"No, no, it wasn't you," Nicky sighed, then rubbed a hand over his eyebrows. "I mean, yes, my family is... But I think I'm just tired. Long day," he finished lamely. His heart sank. He barely knew Joe, who was gentle and kind and seemed genuinely interested in being friends, and he was already shutting Joe out. Withdrawing deep into the dark space within him, where he kept all of his most secret feelings tucked away.

"I understand," said Joe, setting the bottle of wine on the coffee table. "Would you like to call it a night? I would not be offended." Nicky looked up and took a deep breath.

A quiet, insecure voice in Nicky's head screamed out for Joe to stay. To stay and look at Nicky with his incredible brown eyes and his gentle concern. To smile and listen to Nicky talk about his family, his life, his intense love for Italian literature. To stay and stay and stay so Nicky didn't feel so terribly cold and alone. But that voice was drowned out by the others, which called for him to shut the door tightly behind Joe and never let him back in. To force the warm feeling growing inside him back down until it died.

"I'm really sorry," said Nicky. "It's just been a long couple of days. I feel so rude inviting you over and then kicking you out after one drink–"

"No, please," said Joe, reaching out and clasping Nicky's shoulder. He smiled gently. "Remember, I just finished moving in myself. I completely understand." He stood, and Nicky looked helplessly up at him. "Nicky, really, don't worry. Actually, here. Come over tomorrow for coffee, at 3:00," he said.

Nicky stood up and tried to hand the bottle of wine back to Joe, but Joe waved him off. "No, no, you keep it. Maybe we can finish it another night," he said, smiling.

"Coffee sounds great," Nicky said, forcing a smile. "Again, I'm really sorry." Guilt was washing over him in waves; guilt about being a bad host, guilt about kicking Joe out, guilt about the rising tide of warmth in his chest that swelled every time Joe spoke. Or looked at him. Or pushed his dark, curly hair back off his forehead.

"Nicky," said Joe. "You don't need to apologize. You were very kind to invite me over tonight. And I will see you tomorrow, for coffee." He crossed to the door. "Goodnight, Nicky." He gave Nicky one last, warm smile.

"Goodnight," Nicky said, and watched Joe walk out the door.

 As soon as the door closed, Nicky collapsed back onto the couch and put his head in his hands.

[roccinan]

I'm risking sounding terribly egoistical by sending a public ask about my own url here but I'm doing it!!!!! I need the super graphic-details

Your ego is my ego, dearest nharidy. There's a reason the doc is named after you hahaha

[ 👉 My Wips ]

OK so the Absolvisti sequel's been sitting in my head since well, the week after I published it lmao. But I never got around to writing because I wasn't sure if it was being too self-indulgent (I'm feeling more confident about it now that I know you'll be pleased by it!). Also because I was having trouble deciding on a pov: should I continue with the Tatiana 1st person pov as always? Change it up to Martin 3rd person? or surprise: 1st person Don Juan?? Should it be a new chapter or new fic? (def. open to suggestions here!) Also I think it'd be Iconic to publish a story in the Dies Irae universe with our new cat profile pics.

Graphic detail time :D Prepare for a SUPER LONG answer LMAO. Most of the things I mentioned here and here will make their way in, with maybe a bonus ns/fw chapter from Martin or Andres' pov. The main story is SFW however, and there's like a hilariously high amount of hurt!Andres, who doesn't have demons to rely on anymore but still carries all the permanent damage the demons left on him:

It takes place some months after Absolvisti so Andres is doing better, but not fully well yet. He's not actively dying anymore but he does faint a lot and isn't exactly making a full recovery. Because I wanted to make things harder for Martin. Because he's not a young man anymore, the wounds were super extensive, and this is the result of years of accumulated damage + a form of "withdrawal" (the shadows/demons that used to feed on him were also the things that kept him alive so it's one big cycle that his body isn't leaving that easily).

This means every time Martin plans something nice for him like seeing a play or going out for a nightly walk, Andres can't go through the whole thing without feeling unwell. (Martin: "I over-exerted the love of my life. I am so SELFISH. what does Andres see in me??" Andres: "I disappointed the love of my life. I am the WEAKEST. what does Martin see in me??" Tatiana: feed me, bitches)

They manage to sit through one play though (not sure if I want this at the beginning or end of the fic LMAO). It's the one Bogota wrote, The Necromancer's Lament, a "biopic" about Andres' life. And it's every bit as terrible as Martin expected. Bad special effects, bad acting especially from Martin's actor, Andres' actor has a beard, and Tatiana looks like this:

Andres thinks it's the best play ever. Martin hates it and demands a refund. Tatiana hates it too but Don Juan's like, "mi amor, you are still beautiful to me, even as a deformed puppet."

Martin's 120-page complaints aside, Bogota runs the theatre troupe with his partner, Nairobi/Agata, and they're both going to start teaching performing arts at Santa Catalina because the last drama professor died lmao

Meanwhile, Santa Catalina has a new bad girl student, Tokyo/Silene! Sergio took her in as a charity case after some dark and mysterious events in her life. But Tokyo being Tokyo can't stay away from trouble, and she becomes obsessed with finding the demons that Andres expelled. Some bizarre possessions start happening again and the school's sponsors force Raquel to keep it under wraps. (Raquel: maybe if you increased funding, we wouldn't have so many problems!!)

In the meantime, Martin gets that letter from a long lost relative asking to meet him. Not sure about the order of this either. Anyway, Martin was planning to ignore the relative, but Andres insists he go. Either Tatiana or Don Juan accompany him. Martin learns that he's the sole heir of his dead parents across the sea (the will: “we forgive you for being a heretic, a freak of nature, and the alchemist of Palermo. also no hard feelings for leaving you to die as a baby xoxoxo”). There's one (1) condition though: he has to end his partnership with the necromancer. Martin: NO THANKS.

So while Martin's dealing with this unexpected drama, Sergio decides to call in Andres' expertise TM again because it's also a good excuse to talk to his brother. Martin is Very wary about this and rejects him. But Andres insists that it'll be fine. Plus, maybe he wants to turn a new leaf and help Santa Catalina for nothing in return this time. Not everyone gets a second chance at life and he doesn't want to be a bad person anymore uwu (Tatiana: "Andres was a pretentious piece of shit, surprising no one." Martin: "Nobody deserves Andres, not even me, and I'm like, the most amazing person in the world.")

Andres comes to do the exorcism with the random priest the school hired. And they discover there aren't any demons- it's just some ghost fucking around (maybe I'll make it the spirit of Gandia or Alicia since they haven't shown up yet lol). Anyway, it doesn't go very well but Andres gets rid of the creature or whatever. Not before it punctures a hole in his side though. Then Martin loses it, just full-on screams at Sergio for almost getting Andres killed again, makes a lot of threats against the school, etc. etc.

Raquel, being more useful, plugs up the wound. But the priest accidentally provokes Martin more by asking Raquel if he should mop up Andres' blood with holy water or something. What if the necromancer's blood is cursed?? And now it's all over the floor, so disgusting :/

Martin, already in a very bad mood, beats the priest up.

They go home. Martin's in a really sour mood and he just doesn't understand why Andres isn't mad at Sergio. Martin: "It's really emotionally damaging to me if you don't give a fuck about yourself." Andres makes him even angrier by bringing up the Berrote family will and having the audacity to suggest Martin leave him for money. He makes a huge case about how he literally has nothing to offer Martin except a body that barely works and a terrible reputation. Martin: "I lost a fucking eye for you??"

They fight and Martin storms away, and also kidnaps Don Juan, his honorary new soulmate who would never betray him like Andres.

A while after this, the Spanish Inquisition local clergy arrests Andres for "questioning." Because the shenanigans at Santa Catalina are still going on and that one priest suspects him of being behind everything just because. Raquel's the one who bails him out. She may not like Sergio's brother, but the way everyone else treats him is ridiculous.

Andres limps home, hoping Martin's still away. Surprise! Martin felt guilty and came back. And it's pretty obvious that Andres has just been tortured. Martin: "Say no more. I'm going to kill some people."

Andres gets Martin to not do anything stupid by dropping the thing with the will. He admits he was wrong for saying those things to Martin and he selfishly, genuinely wants to stay with Martin forever. Martin: "I'm still going to kill your brother. You may appease me with a kiss."

Does it end here? No! Because the shit at Santa Catalina is still happening. Andres and Martin solve it for good though. But it's all very dramatic. I'm vaguest about this part, but maybe Nairobi's injured saving Tokyo, and this gives Tokyo the wakeup call to move on from whatever baggage that got her into this mess in the first place. Then Andres' solution for saving Nairobi is to ask Martin to work that alchemist magic and transfer her wounds onto himself (at this point, we're just going overboard with the Andres whump but asdfasdf why stop??). Raquel: Sergio, tell your brother to stop dying. That's a bad example for the kids.

It takes a lot of convincing, but Martin relents in the end, only because he trusts Andres. At this point, Andres has been through so much that he physically cannot take any more damage. Like, he just can't lmao. So the whole process puts Andres into a coma or something. But we don't need him anymore because now we can revel in Martin's angst!

Martin spends the rest of his time crying and angsting and guilt-tripping Sergio, and just being very loud in general. He also writes back to his family and tells them to fuck off.

Once we indulge in enough of Martin's pain, Andres finally wakes up. Still very bad off but he's alive and not showing signs of dying any time soon. So that's good enough for Martin. They have a nice heart-to-heart, and idk, maybe Raquel comes to see them because Sergio's too embarrassed to. Until Andres insists, because he loves hermanito unconditionally uwu. Martin: "watch your back, Sergio. I might murder you in your sleep (:"

Then at the very end (I have no idea how long this story is LOL), there's some kind of family photoshoot between Raquel, Sergio, and Paula. Everyone's raving over this new invention called the "camera." Andres is admiring it from a distance until Raquel's like, "get over here. what part of FAMILY photoshoot do you not understand!?"

Andres is shocked pikachu face because good will towards him for once?? he's being included in something?? people want him around?? what is happening??

Martin's happy for him though. Then he's admiring from a distance until Raquel's like, "I said FAMILY photoshoot. Get over here, Martin!"

Tatiana didn't want to be a part of it, but Paula saw her favorite talking cat and like, grabbed her lmao. Don Juan photobombs it because he can't be excluded from an activity with Tatiana, especially when his former rival Andres is in the photo too. (His current rival is Casanova, an unworthy white cat vying for Tatiana's affections)

Sergio proposes to Raquel. The end! Yes, the kitty love triangle is also a central theme of this story LMAO Hope that satisfies you, nharidy! And I welcome any and all suggestions!

[wedreamedlove]

Speech Quirks in MLQC

Archived Reddit post but this is the improved and updated version. I've linked the Reddit one though because @sharinluna made fantastic comments which I hadn't considered.

Spoilers include content up to Chapter 18 and some unreleased calls and cards. None of these are plot lines though, just snippets to support their speech quirks. Also, my eternal disclaimer is that I'm pulling from CN lines so don't be alarmed if the quotes differ.

BAI QI

The cutest habit this man has is defaulting into a sincere and solemn tone whenever he doesn't know how to respond to MC. He's so genuine it hurts. It's especially apparent when he goes along with weird topics.

Here are some examples of Bai Qi being an adorably confused puppy but trying to do his best. He always takes MC's concerns seriously:

[CN Soaked Heart SSR Misunderstanding Date] Context is they keep misunderstanding each other today. "Though I don't understand women's hearts, yours is the only one I don't want to get wrong. Can you give me some more time?"

[Lightbath SSR Tenderness] Context is after he excessively praises MC to her embarrassment. "I'm sorry, maybe it's because I didn't convey it well enough. But I just wanted to express all my thoughts out. Next time, I hope I can use a better way to express them to you."

[Summer Loving SSR Undo Fail Call] Context is MC having a terrible day and mis-sent her messages to Bai Qi. "If you don't want to go to work then you can take a day off. As for your hairline... how about..."

[Blaze Up SSR Age Rage Call] Bai Qi takes MC's opening extremely seriously, thinking something happened, before having a small laugh at her being called "auntie" by the boy. But he immediately regains his seriousness to talk it over with her.

It's not that Bai Qi doesn't get jokes, but his response to them tends to be serious too (which leads to unintentional killer lines). I think his humor tends towards more of the deadpan kind, like Li Zeyan (except Li Zeyan has some witty sharpness).

I've also seen people mention this phrase and I love it because it encapsulates him so well: Bai Qi is either shy and blushes or he goes straight for the kill LOL.

Here are some examples of lines that may sound sleazy or too flirty if they weren't delivered in such a straight and sincere manner LOL:

[Cold Shower R Refreshing Moments] When you pick the choice saying you thought he was going to upload a picture he goes: "Um... I can DM you." I've seen that he uses a smiley in English but it's not there in Chinese.

[Against the Light SR Sweet Bomb Moments] When you pick the choice saying that he's become cola-flavored he asks: "What do I normally taste like?"

[2018 Valentine's Text] I chose a conversation path which had me telling Bai Qi that he needs to get used to pet hair if he's going to raise a pet and that one day I'd like to raise one. He seriously promises to do his best to get used to pet hair and asks to raise one together.

[Grocery Moments] When you pick the choice that he can use his other hand to carry bags he answers simply: "My other hand is for holding yours, so I can't use it."

Honestly, the takeaway in Bai Qi's speech is the unconditional support and love he gives to MC. He never questions her feelings about things, and oftentimes vehemently objects to her thinking she's bothering him or that her problems are trivial or silly.

He wants to hear about her happy news, her sad news, and everything about her. (I joke that Bai Qi is the perfect fit for the meme where it's like "Why are you crying?" "Oh, it's just these onions" "What the hell did you say to my girlfriend!?").

He always gives a heads up before he acts, even though he generally tends to be moving already. Like going to pick up MC in the rain or at any other location.

I wouldn't be surprised if some of this came from his family life. Through his Rumors and Secrets and [Seize SSR Sad Thoughts Call] you can get an idea that his mother didn't have any standing with his father, often got cut off, and nothing she wanted or felt mattered.

Even though Bai Qi was young at that time it probably left a mark on him because he never does that with MC; he lets her express herself before he brings up any of his feelings. Her feelings are always valid, but he does tend to be a proactive fixer and provides solutions if he can (much like Li Zeyan). Bai Qi will try to solve MC's problems, but I'm sure if she just wanted to rant then he'll gladly listen (ex. [Blaze Up SSR Age Rage Call]).

One other notable thing is that, in Asian cultures, social harmony is very important and that's why there's a culture around speaking indirectly and preserving the other person's dignity.

So Bai Qi's indifference and ability to cut straight to the point probably doesn't stand out that much in the West but it's actually a bit shocking and impactful in Chinese. Especially because he doesn't shy away from expressing his feelings. He might stutter, cough, clear his throat, and be all embarrassed but then he just delivers monologues of blunt emotion (ex. [Love Of My Life SSR Goodnight Wish & Wish Calls]).

I find that Bai Qi and Li Zeyan are the most stereotypical types of masculinity among the four men.

ZHOU QILUO

As always, I need to thank my Luoluo-loving friend for the discussion here because I always have the least thoughts on him. Oops.

I don't think I'd be wrong in saying he has the most range among all the men. He gets to play with a pouting baby voice, his acting hero voice, his KEY voice, his Helios voice, and then his normal voice.

He has a harder speech habit to pin down because of this massive range, but I think you can catch how he leans into a sly or teasing tone. He's very quick with comebacks and jokes and I'd say he's the first to establish an inside joke with MC (both being each other's superheroes).

He and MC have a relationship where they're both building each other up. If Bai Qi provides unconditional support and acceptance then Zhou Qiluo is all about cheering her on whenever possible.

It's also interesting to point out that even though he's so emotive on the outside, when things are serious he goes deadly quiet and calm. You can see that in Chapter 8, 14, and his Helios persona in Chapter 17. They say watch out for the quiet ones, but more like watch out for the people who use their jokes and loudness to hide their quiet intensity.

I'm not sure how clear this came across in English but Luoluo notably repeats himself on several occasions in Chinese. It's sad because it's like he's reassuring the person he's talking to and himself at the same time.

[Main Story 14-20] "It'll be okay, it'll definitely be okay [...] You'll be okay."

[Main Story 14-20] "Miss Chips, wait for me... will you wait for me?"

I've also noticed that, even though he tries to be as genuine as possible, he's actually not as emotionally open as someone like Bai Qi. Luoluo tends to bring up his own emotions in a third-person or hypothetical perspective. For example:

[Call after Main Story 11-8: Important Decision] Luoluo calls and talks around the subject of an important decision he needs to make (aka. turning into Helios) and whether or not MC would be able to accept him if he changed completely into another person.

[CN ASMR Bear Cub's Troubles] He tells a story about a number of bears doing things and they're clearly supposed to represent him but he never admits that either.

We're about to hear much more from Helios but, as a start, he's extremely curt. Luoluo is definitely pulling an opposite here with his speech style, but it's neat how you can hear tones of Zhou Qiluo throughout too.

See, there's these things called modal particles in Chinese that you stick on the end of your sentences to give them meaning, emphasize meaning, strengthen meaning, or soften the meaning and tone.

Luoluo has the habit of using one 啊 (ah) which can have all these sort of meanings and other ones you just sort of pick up on:

[attached to the end of a sentence to indicate admiration]

[attached to the end of a sentence to show approval or self-protectiveness or to urge or enjoin]

[attached to the end of a sentence to indicate doubt]

[sign of pause in the middle of a sentence to draw attention to what one is going to say next]

[attached to the end of each item enumerated]

In Luoluo's case it makes his sentences sound more excited and younger and goes really well with his bright atmosphere. However, when he's Helios, this modal particle is dropped completely. Helios is flat, blunt, and basically pulling a Li Zeyan LOL.

XU MO

I think I've talked way too much about how Xu Mo is a wordsmith LOL but I'm always impressed by how he can corner MC into accepting his invitations without it being creepy. But I suppose this is a point of contention due to localization decisions and voice direction.

Putting that aside, it has to be noted that Xu Mo asks for a lot of permission. His speech style is designed to get you to lower your guard as much as possible, which I've touched on in my wordsmith post.

Again, returning to modal particles, Xu Mo has ones that basically gives all his sentences a "May I?" "Could I?" "Would you...?" style.

[Sound of Silence SSR The Little Prince Call] "Would you like to hear what I have to say?"

[Call after Main Story 3-1: Movie Invitation] "Then, would this lady be willing to watch Manhattan with me this Sunday?"

[CN Archery Date] "May I ask this lady here for some assistance?"

To be more specific, he uses a lot of 吧 (ba) which has these sort of meanings (the first one especially):

[a particle used at the end of the sentence to indicate discussion, suggestion, request, or instruction]

[an indication of agreement or approval at the end of the sentence]

[an indication of doubt or guess at the end of the sentence]

[an indication of uncertainty in the sentence]

[it can express a pause, tone of assumption, difficulty in making a choice, or dilemma in the sentence]

You can imagine how much this softens his sentences right? It's why he's so good at sounding disarming LOL and then you walk away and take 5 seconds to realize he said something alarming and/or got you to accept a date.

On another note, much like Bai Qi, Xu Mo quietly accepts all of MC's feelings and doubts. But he's much more of a natural at gently refuting her points and wording things in a way that helps her mature slowly (a big theme with him).

Compared to the others, he checks more often on whether MC wants to listen to his opinion before he gives it. Or, he supports his view from an empirical standpoint (like how he's been the adviser to Miracle Finder pretty much at the beginning and seen her growth from there).

Because of how his speech habit is designed to be soft when he's Xu Mo, it makes his Ares persona really interesting. He drops his softeners and speaks in a more clipped tone but he still maintains his politeness.

At the news conference in Chapter 16 you can hear how he uses starts using rhetoric to push the MC around (as a mix between Ares and cold Xu Mo). He actively challenges her opinions, compared to before when he was just providing alternative (and supportive) views. The news conference is actually amazing because in Chinese they both become EXCESSIVELY polite to demonstrate this new distance between them after Chapter 13.

CRIES WHENEVER I THINK ABOUT XU MO AND ARES. So, Xu Mo also has a quirk that's very apparent in his ASMRs where he repeats himself because he flusters the MC so bad she's always like "Huh!?".

But as Ares he literally has a line where he coolly says that he doesn't like to repeat himself and that he won't repeat himself...

Switching gears, Xu Mo also shares a habit with Li Zeyan where they give nonverbal responses. In Xu Mo's case, he goes "Mm?" "Hm?" or "Oh?" and tends to raise the end of his sentences to soften them. Li Zeyan just grunts acknowledgements LOL but it's the hottest noise in Chinese.

Lastly, Xu Mo really, really loves nicknaming the MC and has called her kitten, sea otter, this lady, night owl, etc. It's adorable! (I'm not mentioning his use of little fool or silly girl because I'm going to go more into that in Li Zeyan's section.)

LI ZEYAN

Okay, let's get the elephant out of the room. One of his speech quirks is calling MC a dummy, idiot, or moron LOL.

But there's an extremely interesting cultural difference here that people might not be aware of. In Chinese, the word he uses for "idiot" and "dummy" (笨蛋; bendan) is actually light and almost negligent. If I were to give an analogy, it's more like he's calling you "silly" all the time.

Obviously, the fact that you're being called something still hasn't disappeared. But the word Li Zeyan uses lands as a 0.1/10 on the insult scale in Chinese.

I don't have enough background in sociology to explain why this is but there's an interesting talk about the vagueness of Japanese insults vs. English ones that basically applies here to Chinese too:

One likely reason for the relatively few Japanese words for 'fool' is vagueness. In both English and Japanese, the words for 'fool' have meanings that vary along scales of friendly–hostile, or joking–serious. In English, at one end of a scale are words like silly goose and at the other end are words like stupid asshole. And in Japanese, at one end are words like kamaboko baka 蒲鉾馬鹿 'silly chump' and at the other end are words like baka-yarō 馬鹿野郎 'damn fool'. The difference is in the degree of lexical diversification along the scales of meaning. English seems to have more 'fool' words with more specificity – Japanese seems to have fewer 'fool' words with more vagueness. There are decided pragmatic and communicative advantages to such lexical vagueness. If you call me a stupid son-of-a-bitch, I know exactly what you mean. But if you call me a baka-yarō, I cannot be so sure of what you mean. The expression baka-yarō 馬鹿野郎 is one of the most insulting terms in the Japanese lexicon, but it is vague and can range in meaning from an affectionate 'silly-willy' to an abusive 'jerk-off fool'. Baka-yarō is so widely used that it has become semantically weak and vague. Such vagueness can serve to conceal hostility and thus to maintain social harmony.

Carr, Michael (1982). "Baka and Fool". The Review of Liberal Arts. 63: 1–18. Retrieved 2013-04-19.

On this note about insults, all the other guys have their own terms for the MC as well. For example, Xu Mo and Bai Qi use 傻瓜 (shagua; fool, silly melon) with Xu Mo often adding more affection with the diminuitive 小 (xiao; small, little).

I've seen Luoluo take some heat for also calling the MC "stupid" like Li Zeyan but did you know in Chinese he only uses 笨 (ben; dumb) which is even more lighter than Li Zeyan's word? It's like a 0.01/10 on the scale.

Putting this cultural difference of insults aside, I've mentioned above that Li Zeyan is also a fixer of problems like Bai Qi. Except he goes straight for it without checking with the MC (overbearing CEO style). He decides on an action, carries it out, and then tells MC after the fact.

[Marauder SSR Change Hotel Call] He switches her hotel immediately and gets her to move only after he's done it during their call.

[Chapter 11] Pretty much the entirety of this chapter and how he had her treated at the hospital, escorts her to and from work, assigns bodyguards for MC, etc.

Basically, whenever Li Zeyan receives MC's problems, he'll make a dry comment about it first, but then end up solving it.

I also think that, out of the rest of the guys, he questions MC the most on everything (remember, Xu Mo isn't naturally confrontational until he goes cold or Ares-mode). Li Zeyan can't seem to stop himself from challenging MC's views and opinions every step of the way (in his mind, he's doing it for her own good).

On a side note, I think he also has the habit of being unable to say what he truly wants to say sometimes and you can hear him swallow back a lot of words or just sigh heavily. For example:

[Call after Main Story 11-19: Routine Greeting] Granted he was really emotional due to story reasons here. But there were so many pregnant pauses and heavy silence.

[Gentle Confrontation SSR Tacit Game Call] In Chinese, when MC opens with her question you can actually hear him go "Uh..." LOL. IT'S HILARIOUSLY CUTE. But the rest just has him sighing deeply.

I mentioned above that he and Bai Qi share a similar sense of humor in being deadpan, but Li Zeyan definitely takes it to another level. He also delivers a serving of dry wit or sarcasm. I think it's cute that he mimics the MC a lot though and their inside joke is him recalling everything she's called him.

[Main Story 11-16] Same speech pattern. "Are you Li Zeyan...?" "... Are you a moron?"

[Winter Infatuation SSR Before Sleep Call] "Even though on the way back you were clearly crying, 'Ah, so tired... ah, so sleepy...', the moment you get home you have the energy to turn on the computer?"

There's too many occasions where he quotes her words about him being an unsmiling K(ing), but whenever it happens some cute back and forth ribbing gets brought up. Like how it slipped out of her mouth, but he just so happened to recall it too and it's not like he remembers this stuff on purpose or keeps it in his mind. Uh huh.

Despite how exasperated he gets though, Li Zeyan never stops participating in all the silly games MC drags him into. Is this true love--- LOL.

Lastly, I want to bring up how Li Zeyan gives nonverbal responses much like Xu Mo except his are like grunts of acknowledgment. His favorite words is probably 嗯 (ng). The sound is more like "en" with a bit of a nasal noise and just means "mm". It can be used as a question too.

But hands down I think it's the hottest noise in Chinese LOL especially when Wu Lei (Li Zeyan's Chinese voice actor) does it in his deep voice. Erm, oops, getting distracted.

My main point here is to say that Li Zeyan leans towards being brief and monosyllabic, moreso than the other men. For example, in [Main Story 18-8] Li Zeyan uses the shortest words possible to reply to Xu Mo. At one point he literally just goes "Reason?".

I actually think he uses the most Chinese idioms to get across his meaning as short as possible (but this would be impossible to carry over in English...). Xu Mo tends to use 4 character combinations too but those are for scientific theories and don't count.

A Chinese player actually compiled the majority of idioms you hear from Li Zeyan LOL and here they are. By the way, these are supposed to be said as one whole phrase but I've added spaces to make the pronunciation clearer:

少见多怪 (shao jian duo guai); lit. seldom seen very strange. It means making a fuss or being excited over something normal.

上蹿下跳 (shang cuan xia tiao); lit. leap up jump down. It means jumping around excitedly and being hyperactive.

当众出丑 (dang zhong chu chou); lit. public fool. It means making a fool of yourself in public or making yourself a spectacle.

差强人意 (cha qiang ren yi); lit. lacking improvement to one's expectation. It means being barely passable or barely satisfactory.

不近人情 (bu jin ren qing); lit. not close to human emotions. It means being unreasonable or inhuman, and this one was actually Li Zeyan asking if MC sees him as this.

乱七八糟 (luan qi ba zao); I don't think you can make this literal but it basically means a complete mess.

自作多情 (zi zuo duo qing); lit. self-made many feelings. It means being full of yourself, like a narcissist, or flattering yourself by thinking people love you when they don't LOL.

漏洞百出 (lou dong bai chu); lit. full of leaks. It means you're full of loopholes, inconsistencies, and all your arguments are faulty.

莫名其妙 (mo ming qi miao); I'm not sure if this can become literal either but it means baffling, ridiculous, or incomprehensible.

想都别想 (xiang duo bie xiang); It literally means don't you even think about it LOL.

笨手笨脚 (ben shou ben jiao); lit. dumb hands dumb legs. It means being clumsy.

罪加一等 (zui jia yi deng); lit. adding a cardinal sin. It basically means becoming doubly guilty or you just keep piling up wrongs.

叽叽喳喳 (ji ji zha zha); lit. chirp chirp. But it basically means you're being a chatterbox, babbling, and jibberjabbering.

Of course we can't forget 笨蛋 (bendan; dummy, idiot) and 白痴 (baichi; moron) which are the insults Li Zeyan uses the majority of the time, the former more than the latter. These aren't idioms though.