#the only thing i 'forgot' was that the Mayor WAS bitter about his situation

[icharchivist]

OG:

Remake:

do you get. why i was being annoyed.

[lulu-nightbon]

its multiple or nothing there is no in between

neither of them is clear from blame, neither is to blame for the entire thing. maybe wukong leaving macaque behind started it- maybe wukong was only going to be gone temporarily, and forgot to communicate that to macaque. maybe he did communicate it to macaque and it still broke him.

that doesn't mean macaque didn't do something bad enough to warrant death, that doesn't mean macaque doesn't have more blame in this situation than wukong, regardless of how much more or less that happened to be. macaque apologist all you like, that's the truth.

what i find interesting is that macaque seems to know this. in s1, he seemed to be trying to power up, stealing wukong's power from mk, and on the surface it seems to be to draw out wukong or just get enough power to try to kill him. but if you look a little closer, it seems to just be to get rid of mk. he seems to not want mk to be around, but he doesn't seem to want to directly go after wukong- he probably just wants to make him hurt, make him experience the pain of losing his student again, likely in some twisted form of possession as wukong's first student. then, after that fight, possibly during shadowplay, he seems to have some form of affection for mk- the kid grew on him. maybe that first attempted killing was a test to see if mk was WORTHY of being wukong's student. and given that he survived and "defeated" macaque, even with wukong's help, he passed the test, and macaque came back around to give him another test, trying to prepare him for lbd cuz he knew she was back, in one way or another (he met with lbd after that bit with mk in the alley, when the mayor dragged his ass to her to get the lantern, putting him on the mech that HADN'T YET BEEN BUILT, NOR DID IT HAVE THE STAFF AT THIS POINT. this points to some other interesting conclusions i can go into later. my point here is he warned mk before he had been forced into servitude of lbd at the threat of being completely wiped from existence, implying that he was watching during revenge of the spider queen and s2 up to that point and knew she was back, just like wukong knew due to being wukong and being captured by spider queen due to lbd's assistance). then, of course, he's coming back around to try and bring mk and wukong in- except he curiously only targets mk, despite having split the truck and clearly knowing that wukong was extremely vulnerable at the time. especially with how he split the truck- tang, pigsy, and mo wouldn't have been able to do anything to stop him. not to mention, he essentially stated that he WANTED mk to fight back, to fight him for the chance to avoid being brought in. some of this can be attributed to his showboating- macaque's the monkey equivalent of a theatre kid (having an irl friend that is one and having to break up fights between him and his sister because of it, i DEFINITELY know what that is) after all, but even with his passion for flair, he could've easily incapacitated mk and brought him back, but he didn't. the only explanation i have for this is that he didn't WANT to. he wasn't so bitter that he wanted wukong to be wiped away by lbd, he wasn't so jealous he'd gladly kill mk as opposed to letting him be wukong's student. he still cares about wukong, he still wants to see his old friend flourish. this is ESPECIALLY evident when mk calls him out on it in s3 with his mini-hero speech in the underground library after he brings them the mayor and... allows himself to be tied up? the mayor i understand, but not macaque. he even tries nudging him towards a smarter conclusion, stating lbd wasn't too hot last time he saw her, that "suppressing wukong must be taking every bit of her power, leaving the mech vulnerable". not to mention how teasing and playful he is at the end of s3 during the noodle scene, leaving with "i dunno, somewhere where i can do a bit of scheming, probably", and how unhappy he looks before/after the flashback of his "meeting" with lbd, like he doesn't want to hunt them down. it's like he understands what he did wrong, but he's too guilty to face wukong or apologize- it's subtle, but it's probably one of the best redemption arcs ive seen, and i watched zuko's in atla, which is widely regarded as one of, if not the best redemption arc in an animated series

can you tell i took ap psych for fun

Spider queen and wukong but wukong is the one wearing the dress

[tabloidtoc]

National Enquirer, November 2

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Jealous O.J. Simpson killed Nicole Brown over sizzling photos 

Page 2: Melanie Griffith was caught in lockdown meltdown mode outside her Los Angeles home yelling at an unsuspecting laborer and giving him a good working over after he somehow crossed her bath and pushed her buttons but it doesn’t take much to get Mel to blow these days because she’s upset about two things which are getting old and not having a man in her life 

Page 3: Lisa Marie Presley’s son Ben Keough’s tragic last moments were caught on tape as he argued with his girlfriend according to the coroner’s report on his suicide and security camera footage also captured the eerie sound of an apparent gunshot said the officer who viewed the tape -- Ben had hosted a party for his girlfriend Diana Pinto then about 4 a.m. the 27-year-old musician went to his bedroom; two hours later Diana went to check on him and had to jimmy the bedroom door lock with a bobby pin and she discovered his body and called 911 but Ben was pronounced dead at the scene -- since his death a devastated Lisa Marie has blamed herself for not intervening sooner; Ben had been to rehab several months before and Lisa Marie could see he was struggling with drugs and depression and she has kept a close eye on Ben’s gravesite with Graceland’s surveillance system 

Page 4: Anne Heche’s shocking public pronouncement that she wants to reunite with former galpal Ellen DeGeneres was met with fury from Ellen wife Portia de Rossi -- Ellen and Anne were Hollywood’s highest-profile lesbian couple when they dated for three years before their bitter split in 2000 and they haven’t spoken since but Anne announced after her elimination on Dancing with the Stars that she would love to appear on The Ellen DeGeneres Show but Portia has made it clear she wants Anne nowhere near her wife and she believes Anne is using Ellen to drum up publicity for herself, lonely Ryan Seacrest is longing for a reunion with former flame Shayna Taylor but she wants no part of him -- workaholic Ryan announced the combustible couple’s third split in June after eight on-and-off years together -- Ryan’s obsession with being the next Dick Clark tests the patience of everybody around him and it’s made him a nightmare to be in a relationship with as Shayna found out firsthand -- Ryan seemed so cocky and sure that breaking up was the right thing to do but not having Shayna there to lean on has really gotten to him however Shayna is refusing to be played for a fool 

Page 5: Kelly Clarkson made a massive mistake dumping husband Brandon Blackstock according to famed numerologist Glynis McCants 

Page 6: Doting dad Kanye West is spoiling oldest daughter North rotten and it’s causing even more problems between him and wife Kim Kardashian because Kim feels North is getting too spoiled but Kanye won’t hear any of it because North is his firstborn and his princess and he treats her like it -- North is regularly served breakfast in bed on a silver tray and gets whatever she wants even if it’s waffles with strawberries and ice cream and she also has a team of beauticians and a stylist to cater to her every need as though she was a full-grown woman and her wardrobe is extensive and expensive and she never wears the same designer outfit twice plus North also loves to shop online for jewelry and Kanye gives her his credit card and she can spend $100,000 in a single sitting and Kanye just thinks it’s cute 

Page 7: Daring Jill Duggar and husband Derick Dillard are rebelling against her conservative parents and causing a full-scale family war as the couple has publicly defied Baptist patriarch Jim Bob Duggar several times since their 2014 marriage and now they’ve been banned from the 19 Kids and Counting reality clan; Jim Bob’s even demanded that their neighbors have nothing to do with them -- Jill and Derick drew Jim Bob’s fury after criticizing her parents’ conservative views and shutting down their own family factory after having two sons and said they’re stopping there for now unlike Jill’s folks who had 19 kids, dog lover Jennifer Aniston adores her new rescue puppy but potty-training the pooch has been the pits so desperate Jen had to sign up her new pup Lord Chesterfield for private lessons with a dog trainer -- she has two other dogs Clyde and Sophie but they’re well-behaved and know to do their business outdoors and Jen loves them all but she forgot how much work it is to train a puppy 

Page 8: Prince Harry’s wife Meghan Markle revealed her private battle with depression as her struggles with first-time motherhood and fitting in with the rigid royal family pushed her over the edge but Queen Elizabeth thinks her conniving confession is simply a ploy to sully the monarchy -- Meghan described the emotional pain caused by criticism as a death by a thousand cuts and said if people are saying things about you that aren’t true what that does to your mental and emotional health is so damaging -- Queen Elizabeth believes Meghan’s confession is a calculated attack on the monarchy and Meghan is acting like the royals waged a war against her but Meghan and Harry’s actions since they quit have infuriated Her Majesty because Meghan keeps orchestrating situations where she takes center stage appearing to support and put the spotlight on those in need but she turns them all into opportunities to talk about herself and how hard her struggle is

Page 9: Rattled Tyra Banks’ rocky start on Dancing with the Stars has her looking for a way to waltz off the show and she is already trying to back out of hosting because she hates the criticism she’s been getting from virtually everyone plus she’s unpopular with the contestants and is bickering behind the scenes with producers who now regret replacing longtime hosts Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews -- ratings have also plummeted since Tyra took the helm with the show losing more than a million viewers in early October from the same week in 2019

Page 10: Hot Shots -- Gwen Stefani during a photo session in Calabasas, Tiffany Haddish used a leaf blower during a skit on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Justin Bieber on a scooter in Beverly Hills, Zosia Mamet donned a unicorn horn as she wrapped the final scenes of The Flight Attendant, Robert Pattinson and Colin Farrell on the Liverpool set of The Batman 

Page 11: John Oliver’s jokey jabs have earned him a crappy honor from the town of Danbury in Connecticut -- after he ragged on tony Danbury on his show Mayor Mark Boughton vowed to rename its sewage plant after him and now it’s official that the Danbury Sewage Plant is now the John Oliver Memorial Sewage Plant and as promised John is donating $55,000 to local charities which has spurred fundraising efforts for local food banks and Boughton is offering tours of the plant for $500 donations to local food pantries, ailing Phil Collins was rocked by ex-wife Orianne’s betrayal and pals fear he won’t make it to Christmas -- the singer was shocked when it emerged that Orianne who he’d divorced in 2006 and reunited with a decade later married another man in Las Vegas and the stunning news prompted him to serve an eviction notice to get her out of his Miami home and his life for good but Orianne refused to leave

Page 12: Straight Shuter -- Nev Schulman on roller blades in an L.A. parking lot (picture), Eboni K. Williams only landed the gig on The Real Housewives of New York City because she co-hosts State of the Culture on Sean Diddy Combs’ Revolt TV cable network and Bravo is desperate to get famous New Yorkers on the show so cameras will be following Eboni around at work hoping to catch Diddy, with Keeping Up with the Kardashians ending E! is looking for the next big reality family and it may be Sylvester Stallone’s daughters Sophia and Sistine and Scarlet Stallone who are all models and not one has a sex tape, with Bravo boss Andy Cohen and axed Housewife NeNe Leakes at war their mutual friends are being forced to pick sides -- Andy gave NeNe access to his famous non-reality show friends and now he’s regretting it -- Kelly Ripa and Anderson Cooper are all Team Andy

Page 13: Kris Kristofferson is battling Alzheimer’s disease and has been forced to retire from singing and acting but the songwriter is in the best place he can be at his home in Maui with family and friends who are surrounding him with love and support, frantic Kate Gosselin is feeling a financial pinch and ready to take a bath on her house by putting her $1.2 million mansion on the market for a measly $815,000 because she’s been struggling with money because she hasn’t worked in a while and living off the money she made in past 

Page 14: Crime 

Page 15: Marie Osmond was blue over being booted from The Talk but husband Steve Craig gave her something to get over it which was a stunning pair of opal and tanzanite earrings worth nearly $3000, Megan Thee Stallion cheated death when she was shot twice in July and is now using the terrifying incident as a platform to empower Black women and she wrote an op-ed saying the attack proved she and other Black women are not protected as human beings -- fellow rapper Tory Lanez was charged with the shooting that left two flesh-shredding wounds in Megan’s feet and allegedly took place after they argued in an SUV in Hollywood Hills 

Page 16: Cover Story -- Rampaging O.J. Simpson was driven into a kill-crazy rage after seeing photos of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson dating hunky young boytoys and flaunting her body in modeling shots -- 25 years after the disgraced football star’s 1995 acquittal intimate images from Nicole’s secret photo album including a picture of the blond beauty posing topless with lover Brett Shaves is believed to have given the jealous ex-jock a motive for murder 

Page 18: American Life -- I found a $1M diamond in the rough 

Page 19: John Travolta paid tribute to wife Kelly Preston on what would have been her 58th birthday three months after tragic death following a secret two-year battle with breast cancer -- John addressed his late love in a touching Instagram post featuring an image from their 1991 wedding day alongside a picture of his own parents as newlyweds, sci-fi legend George Takei has fired yet another shot at former Star Trek castmate William Shatner as the aging actors’ war of words continues to rage on well into their 80s -- George who played Sulu claimed Shatner was jealous of the amount of fan mail received by their late co-star Leonard Nimoy who played Spock but Captain Kirk shot off a testy response and claimed George was making things up and the only person with jealousy is George -- when told Shatner’s comments George calmly remarked that you can tell by those words that he is upset to put it mildly 

Page 20: In a rerun of their long-running rivalry Madonna and Mariah Carey are prepping dueling biopics -- their cold war dates back to the ‘90s but Mariah ramped up their feud when she revealed the very exciting prospect of her biopic but that followed Madonna’s announcement that she was collaborating on her own script -- they’re each obsessed with getting their film out first and getting the right It Girl to play her so the other one doesn’t grab her first

Page 21: Elton John and ex-wife Renate Blauel agreed to zip their lips about their four-year marriage and privately settled her $3.8 million lawsuit over claims he blabbed about their relationship in his memoir Me and the movie Rocketman, Stevie Nicks admitted her insomnia has gotten so bad that she needs therapy or needs someone to hit her on the head with a hammer -- she’s long been nocturnal and it used to be she could sleep from 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. but now says she doesn’t nod off until 8 a.m., singer Amy Winehouse died in 2011 but her dad claimed he still can’t get her out of his house -- former taxi driver Mitch Winehouse who is working on a movie and stage show about the late singer insisted he’s regularly visited by his daughter’s ghost who comes and sits at the end of his bed -- Mitch also said Amy helps around the house in his dreams 

Page 26: Niecy Nash’s new bride Jessica Betts has a nightmarish criminal past according to police reports -- Jessica was arrested twice in Chicago once for domestic battery and then for selling a gun to a minor

Page 28: Stars Who Refuse to Zip It -- cringeworthy confessions and nasty habits and more -- Jennifer Love Hewitt, Megan Fox, Al Roker, Olivia Wilde 

Page 29: Kristen Stewart on Robert Pattinson, John Mayer, Lady Gaga, Suzanne Somers 

Page 32: Demi Lovato’s relentless ex Max Ehrich refuses to let her go and her friends are worried he’s turning into a stalker -- since their breakup he’s been particularly creepy, Tatum O’Neal’s confession that she was ready to jump off the balcony of a Los Angeles home was actually a desperate cry for help -- Tatum was reportedly put on a psychiatric hold at a local hospital after the alleged incident and the event signaled she was in unbearable emotional and physical pain and she feels lost and rejected because she was the youngest Oscar winner ever and now she has trouble finding a job and lost all confidence in herself 

Page 34: India Oxenberg has confessed she was afraid of former NXIVM cult master Allison Mack of TV’s Smallville -- India found herself Allison’s slave and realized she was being groomed as a sexual partner for NXIVM leader Keith Raniere and she was branded with Raniere’s initials in her pelvic regions, a disturbing TV interview in England has sparked new fears for the well-being on boxer Mike Tyson -- Mike looked like the train wreck he was when he was plowing through drugs and was sent to prison in the early ‘90s; he looked barely conscious as he slurred his speech and offered incoherent responses -- Tyson blamed his interview on lack of sleep and insisted his contact with drugs is now limited to growing and smoking pot on his California ranch 

Page 36: Health Watch

Page 42: Red Carpet -- Zendaya 

Page 45: Spot the Differences -- Debbie Matenopoulos on Home and Family 

[gabriellapatterson-blog]

A Drunken Confession

A/N: That’s an out of context spoilers up there. Have fun reading!

Saying goodbye to my family was a bitter rerun. Except this time I didn’t get cookies from the town mayor/baker and I’d be seeing my family again sooner rather than later. We were down to the final six, this wouldn’t go on for much longer. Not to mention I still wasn’t sure if I should tell Ben or not about the kissing dream but if I did I’d probably be gone the next day.

As I hugged them all goodbye my dad whispered in my ear. “Can I talk to you in private for a moment.”

I nodded but was a little confused about why he wanted to. We went inside my bathroom being the only private place I could think of I sat down on the rim of my bath as he leaned against the counter.

“You’re falling for Wyatt.” He stated bluntly with a bit of a smug grin.

“I AM NOT!” I yelled back full force and standing up from my seat, forgetting about the rest of my family. My mom who would probably drag me home by my ponytail if she knew I was falling for someone illegal for me to fall for and my sisters who two of them were too young to really understand.

He chuckled, “keep your voice down. You mom won’t believe me on my plan to tell her I was talking to you about my poems if you screech again.”

I sighed and sat back down on my ledge. “You know your mom was- is just like you. I know you don’t like hearing that because there are some major differences like she’s a cynic you’re an optimist, that’s my fault. But you have her defense stubborn nature. She must have bullied me for a year when she first fell for me.” He chuckled to himself as my face flushed in rage and embarrassment.

“I. do. Not. like. Wyatt.” I replied and crossed my arms. “He’s weird!” I added.

My dad laughed again, “You’ve just convinced yourself you don’t like him because it’s both unconventional for the selection, and because you’re again, like your mother. You don’t like feeling feelings without having been prepared for the feelings. I believe I have a poem about how romance rushes in, it doesn’t like giving you time to prepare which is something both you and your mother hate. You lash out defensively and end up being rude to the people you like.” He paused to stifle some laughter.

“Which is ironic considering you confessed to him in that very way today. What was it “I like you.” Then you turned to me and said, that's why you said boys were mean to me in elementary school, right? Yup. You act like an elementary school boy, Gabby.” He replied.

I wanted to argue. I knew I should argue. But I also knew my dad was right. He knows me so well and I’ve seen that defensive nature in both my mom and I before, just on things other than romance. I clenched my jaw as I managed to get out the words to the point, “Why are you bringing this up?” I asked.

“Well, back at the library you didn’t seem to really notice how you felt about Wyatt, otherwise you wouldn't have confessed to him. Second you unfortunately did not get my side of the families tendency to be bold. You like to act it but never follow through on the things that matter. You’ll glady swim with a shark but would never actually be emotionally vulnerable, which I’m not saying that’s bad it just makes relationships difficult. You’re my daughter so I just want you to be happy. You seem happy with him but you’re too much of a chicken to actually do anything about it.”

“That’s not true!” I insisted.

“Whatever happened with that boy you liked in high school? The one who was one of your mom’s patients?”

My eyebrows furrowed as I got his point. But I didn’t want to. I’m not a coward, I don’t do bad things, and dating Wyatt would be a bad thing, confessing to wyatt would be a bad thing, anything involving Wyatt is just bad. He’s just a dork. Why would I let myself get this racked up over a little- well he’s actually pretty tall- but anyways, why would I let myself get racked up over a mocking, witty, funny, ugh!

“Just let him know how you feel. I know you think it’s risky but the royals seem nice. They won’t penalize you for being honest. I know your mom would oppose the risk which is why I brought you in here, but that’s also why your mom’s first boyfriend was me. I was the only one who could get past her shell. Anyways, I just want you to be happy, but you shouldn’t expect people to read your mind. You have to be honest even if it’s scary.” He said.

I nodded and took his advice as much as I didn’t want to. If I wanted to be happy in life I needed to be honest. I like Wyatt. I may be scared because probability is he doesn’t like me back, but there’s no way I’ll ever know if I don’t put myself out there.

“Michael! We need to head out!” I heard mom say from my room.

We got up to head back out and my dad put his hand on my shoulder, “Remember Gabby, let your heart lead you. It’ll take you to a happy end.”  

We went out and regathered with the family. Mom gave me a tight up before they left, “Stay safe, Ella! Remember to be sensible. Use good judgement!” She said as they shuffled off leaving me alone again in my room.

I let out a sigh at everything running around in my head. I don’t like Wyatt, I do like Wyatt, I should go off of my gut and my heart, I should use my head and be sensible. I don’t know. I grumbled and laid down in my bed and took a nap. My go to activity for when I’m stressed.

I woke up at lunch time as my maids came in to get me ready to go down. I couldn’t see Wyatt like this. Let alone function. Hazel would probably pick up right away. She may be young but the girl is observant. I huffed and buried my face into my pillow.

“I don’t feel well, I want to stay up here for lunch and dinner.” I replied my voice muffled into my pillow. They listened and quickly left me alone again.

I just wanted to go back to sleep and stay asleep. Like sleeping beauty. Sleep through all the stress and drama and just wake up to my prince char- to my love interest kissing me awake. Though, I suppose that doesn’t really sound to consensual.

I rolled over in bed and shut my eyes tight as I tried to go back to sleep. All I could think about was the Wyatt situation. I still didn’t know what to do. Would Ben be hurt? Well I think he likes me but enough that it would hurt him if I told that I liked Wyatt. Would Wyatt tell Ben if I just told him? Would Ben tell Wyatt if I told him?

“Ughhhhh!” I groaned.

“Is everything alright, Gabriella?” I heard a voice speak.

“WHAT THE HELL!” I yelled as I sat up and I identified the voice as my maid Lily.

I sighed in relief as I now knew who it was, “What are you doing in here?” I asked since I had dismissed them earlier.

“Oh well you said you weren’t feeling well so Rose, Violet, and I have been going back and forth on checking on you. It was my turn.”

“What? I’ve been awake I didn’t hear any of you.” I asked confused as I looked around and saw my clock which said it was now 11pm. WHAT. Apparently, I had gone to sleep but still had been deep thinking, what?

“You’ve been asleep for awhile, actually. So is everything alright?” She asked again.

“Oh yeah I’m just stressed.” I sighed then rolled over and grabbed my pillow tossing it up in the air and catching it again, an activity I had started doing while on bedrest.

“Lily, what do you do when your stressed?” I asked.

She chuckled, “I normally get blackout drunk and watch a movie, doesn’t seem like a very you thing though.” She replied. Being drunk sounds actually great right now.

“Lily, can you bring me like, all the wines, a way to watch a movie, and a horrible chick flick?” I asked.

I then spent about a two hours downing three bottles of wine and screaming about Bella from twilight being a hoe. How can she do this to Mr shiny! He’s supposed to be with her! Now she’s off flirting with hairy mc-hair boy! I huffed and got up.

I needed to tell Wyatt about this movie! It was so intense! There was like murder! Blood! Sparkles! It was the epitome of- what was I saying again? It was movie good!

I stumbled on my feet as I sloppily got dressed and waddled up to his room. I walked up the step somehow not slipping down all of them, but by the time I made it to his room I had more or less forgotten why I came up there.

I knocked loudly on his door not having too great motor control, “Whyyyyyy-hit.” I slurred and had to stop for a small hiccup, “Why-hit.” I said again with a giggle thinking of his name as a pun on the word why.

I didn’t hear anything so I just turned and pressed my back against the door and dropped to the ground. The world was spinning and Why-hit was probably asleep. I giggled to myself again. “Whyyyyyattt-whhhhyyy.” I said with another giggle, “is the world spinning. So many whys. Why, Y, then wyatt. Its a name- word- in a nameee.” I said then accidentally hit my head on the door, “Owwwww.” I said.

I heard a quick shuffle from inside the room before the door flung open causing my to fall back on the ground fully laying down now and looking up at Wyatt. “Gabby?” He asked.

“Heyyy Wyatttt.” I said and giggled some more. “You have ah-an- a funny name. Did you know that? It's very fun to say though. Wyyyyattt.”

He blinked seeming surprised at my presence then frowned and crouched down so be closer to my level. “Where have you been all day?” Oh yeahhh he’s my right side table mate. I’ve missed lunch and dinner today. HAH maybe that’s why this stuff is so strong. Empty tummy. Hah TUMMY.

“My room. I haven't been feeling well so I took a nap all day. I feel great now though! I got three bottles of wine.” I said and reached up to put three fingers up but forgot what I was doing to I decided to squish Wyatt’s face instead, “Can I come innnn my room is so far away and the world is so dizzy. I don't wanna be on bedrest againnnn.” Since I’d probably fall and sprain my ankle again if I tried to walk too far like this.

He gave me a flat look, “So you're drunk?” He asked his voice muffled by his squished cheeks.

I let go of his face and kept one of my arms up for a very matter of fact point, “I am not drunk! I do not drink! I have drink once! I was 16! I'm a different person now. I'm just a litttttttllllleee bit tipsy now. But I've had a really- complicated- er confusing, maybe just horrible day so I needed it.”

“You didn't need it.” He said and tried to help me sit up.

“I needed it.” I was too busy thinking about our hot and steamy dream kiss I needed the wines to help the head thoughts. I rolled over to get on my knees then decided to just sit on them.

“My dad also kinda told me to. Since he told me I needed to not be such a chicken and al-alc- alc-o-ha whatever, makes you less of a chicken. Sitting up is so much workkk, can I come in your room?”

He gave me an unimpressed look, “I only understood 30% of the words you just said.”  Well that sucks for him because I understood 110%. He then looked down the hallway and pulled on my arm to help me get up, “You might as well get in so you can sober up.”

I giggled then shot up, “Yayyy, I havent been in your roombeforesince nayalya did the taking.” I mumbled slurring my words together. I looked around quickly before deciding I wanted to sit on his bed. Wyatt tried to block me BUT FOOL I PLAYED BASKETBALL so I got around him and flopped face first on his bed. “Your bed smells like you.” I said my voice muffled from the bed before I turned my head to breath.

Wyatt blushed at that and wiped his hands on his pants for some reason. Then decided to turn on the bigger room lights and pour me some water. I don’t need that! I’m not a wuss! All I need is more winesssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss. “I'll take that as a compliment.” He said.

“You're cute when you blush. You're like a little tomato its funny. I wish I liked tomatoes. The idea of them is so appealllinnggg hahhhhh appealing beacause you peel tom- you dont peel tomatoes do you?”

He took a deep breath and finished pouring the water, “Why do I always have to deal with drunk girls?”

“Do you constantly have to? This is very very unlike me. I dont get drunk offten because last time I got drunk I tattled on my bitch friend and told everyone she was a bitch then kicked her off the cheer team. Then I'm pretty sure Emma got rid of the party. SHE WAS A BITCH THOUGH!” I said with 0 filter.    

Wyatt stared at me in bewilderment, “What?”

“I'm sorry that was just the last time I was drunk. There was this girl in my cheer squad, Nina. She made Emma anorexic and was a general bitch so i got drunk ans publically called her out. Then she stole my boyfriend. I do stupid things when i drink, conclusion.” I explained giving him the chalked up summary.

“High schools can't possibly be like the movies.” He mumbled to himself.

I looked up at Wyatt from the bed, “What do you know about high school? Are you judging off of fiction? like the horses?You said that was wrong to do? but here you are. Judging! Though I guess your source is right because they are like them. Though I was not too good at being a hot cheerleader.” I paused to flop my head back onto the bed then yelled into the mattress, “No one would ever date me because I'm too defensive!” My reason for not being a good stereotypical cheerleader.  

“I was actually implying that I didn't judge them to be like the movies but you are making them sound like they are.” He replied then laughed at my second part. “I see... pity for them I guess.” He said walking over with the glass of water.

I then sat up in the bed ready to take the water and took the glass as I spoke, “Yeah a real pity. I'm a mighty fine catch. That's a phrase right? Yeah because its with fish in the sea. I almost got one but then I was too prideful to talk to him and Nina took him. His name was Jonathan. He was actually a lot like you, you're cuter though. But youre both mega dorks but somehow make it look cool.”

Once I compared the two Wyatt’s eyes got wide, his cheeks red, and he cleared his throat, “Uh, thanks.. I think.”

“You should think!” I chimed then pat him on the back. Then realized that didn’t quite make sense. “I dont think thats right. You should say thanks! it was intended as a compliment! there! Do you have any food?” I asked and took a sip of the water. I forgot what a blessing water was, “God i love water.” I said then set the cup down on his nightside table and flopped back down, sitting up being such a chore.

He blinked then walked over to his mini fridge, “So... how exactly did you end up here again?”

I thought for a moment trying to remember why I had come, then it hit me. THE MOVIE. “OH YEAH THATS RIGHT! Have you seen- okay so I don't remember their names, but I was watching these amazing movies while I was drinking! They're so good I had to tell you. There's like a sparkly person and a hairy boy and blood and murder!”

He crouched down to take out some, blessed oreos, and milk but paused to give me a look, “That doesn't really sound like my style of movie.” It is everyone’s style of movie. IT’S AMA-ZONG.  

“It's based off of a book! What was it called?” I asked as I went distraught in thought and rolled on his bed. “TWILIGHT!” I exclaimed.

He raised his eyebrows as he opened the package of oreos, “Oh wow, you must be really drunk.”

“Oh my God cookies!” I exclaimed as they were closer now and scootched over to them.

“I keep chips in my room at home but cookies are a better idea. And I'm not thattttt drunk. I asked my maid Lily what she does when she's stressed and she says she drinks and watches movies so I asked for a bad movie because they're funny BUT IT WAS ACTUALLY REALLY GOOD”

He rolled his eyes clearly trying to hold back a smile as he handed me a glass of milk and the cookies. “People don't tend to describe Twilight as "really good".”

“Well they should. I should be a movie critic I would be FANTASTIC I know all the acting and filming shit.”

“I'm so sure.” He said as he pulled a beanie bag over by the bed and plopped down on it. HAH ITS MY BED NOW. He then opened a can of canada dry, doesn’t that soda just taste like fizzy nothing? “Enlighten me.” He added.

“Well- like here's the first thing the scenes they get DARKER in dark parts of the movie. its artistic genius! and the actors are all like so into it. and the main character is like her name has meaning but i forget what it is BUT IT'S GOOD BELIEVE ME THAT!”

He nodded like ‘yes but of course’ and took a swig of his drink, “Sounds legit.”

My eyebrows furrowed and my cheeks flushed at the word, “I hate that word.”

He snorted and tried to sit up straighter in the beanie, “Why?”

“Well I wanna prove my dad wrong that I am NOT a coward so I'll tell you- hah stop saying i look like chicken little HE'S A COWARD AND I'M NOT A COWARD- sorry.” Wyatt grinned at my vine reference.

“But anyways. I had a dream the night you brought my toast but in my dream we kissed. When it ended you said "that was legitness" its been haunting me since and honestly is the reason I drank and didn't come to lunch or dinner because my dad said I liked you. Which I don't! at least I think i don't. I'm pretty sure I don't. *pauses* Well I do like you. But there wasn't a point in saying so until he had to call me a coward because now I had to prove that I'm not!” His grin quickly faded as I spoke and he seemed surprised when I mentioned the kiss. He stood up as I finished talking and laughed nervously.

“No, no. No, no. I really doubt you like me. It's just the alcohol speaking.” He tried to reason.

“No no. No no, I do. My dad knows me like the back of my hand. I get defensive and attack when I feel insecure which he pointed out. I'm that way with you being I like you and it catches me off guard so I amp up defense and bully. Which he pointed out was ironic since I jokingly said I liked you like one of those elementary school boys when I was apologizing but it's 100% true. You're dorky, cute, funny, your admirable, you have great interests, and being with you honestly just makes me feel entirely different than how I feel when I hang out with other people. I'm able to focus more on the present instead of stressing and just genuinely enjoy spending time with you. I like you. That I'm 100% certain which is what I realized today and why I hid in my room.” I explained. His face got redder and redder as I explained. He was clearly panicking. For some reason I wasn’t, shouldn’t I be? Oh wait no I’m drunk.

He plopped back down on his beanie and looked up at me for a moment before our eyes caught eachothers and he panicked and looked away. “I-Um, I enjoy spending time with you as well.” He said as he face palmed. He’s really working to hard. I don’t expect him to do anything but reject me here I’m not that unrealistic.

I couldn’t help but to burst out laughing finding it funny how much he had panicked, granted had the roles been reversed I probably would have reacted similarly. “I get it. You know I may be academically dumb but that doesn't mean I'm reckless. I know how to weigh pros and cons. I've already considered how you feel about me and decided that it seems you didn't like me. You don't have to try and formulate a perfect reply. We can just keep being friends for these last few weeks till I'm sent away.” I couldn’t help but to be smiley at his cute flustered face, but I had to be nice so I laid back down in bed and looked at the ceiling so he wouldn’t have to worry about eye contact.

“Anyways, it explains my weird behavior of eye contact avoiding a few days ago before breakfast. Additionally, any other weird behavior since then. Also my dads comments about me being like my mom. Apparently, she bullied him for their whole first year of knowing each other. He was too much of a dork supposedly.”

He sat up in the beanie bag and leaned forward on resting his elbows on his knees and sat in silence for a moment. Oh no, that’s a serious thing. He’s gonna say something serious, “So... that means I’m too much of a dork as well.”

I burst out laughing and rolled over on my side to look at him as I spoke, “I believe I established earlier, you're dorky enough that you somehow make it cool. Still enough for me to bully you for but not in an actual bad way.”

He looked to the floor once I rolled over, “I’m a paradox then.”

“I suppose so. That's probably why I drank like so much wines. Too much thinking because of paradox. Like is he an annoying dork? Is he a cute dork? Both Both is good. The Road to El Dorado.” I said making another reference.

He chuckled, “The best of both worlds?”

Hah! He’s activated my trap card, in my horrible horrible, bad enough that your father writes a poem about it singing I started, “YOU GET THE LIMO OUT FRONT UOAHAHAU.”

He covered his ears, “Oh no, I take it back, stop!”

I started laughing at his reaction then gathered myself, “It's too late, Schreave! It's your itsy bitsy hell but hannah montana now! HOtTEST STYLeS, EvERY SHoE EveRy ColOR!”

He got up and threw a blanket on top of me hoping that would be enough to stop me, “you’re not a superstar.”

I managed to flop some of the blanket off of me, “I have to be a superstar. Otherwise you wouldn't have taken all those pictures of me. It's truly because I'm a-” I did a dramatic pause and flipped my hair, “A superstar.”

He gave me a flat look, “Yes, you’re right. That must be it.”

I chuckled, “So what did you think of my family anyways? You didn't get to meet Mae or my mom but other than those 2.”

“Ellie is quite enthusiastic...it reminds me a bit of Hazel when she was younger.” He said and sat back down on his beanie. “Your dad kind of reminds me of my own, though mine holds back more when it comes to telling embarrassing stories about us-” He paused, “-Usually.”

I chuckled, “Yeah he aimed to destroy. You didn't get too see too much of Riley's personality because she's a lot more reserved around strangers but she's pretty chill. And mom and Mae, Mae is 13 months old and really likes bananas. Mom is very serious and likes to do her work at the hospital. I don't see her too much because of it but dad tries to remind her to take breaks.”

“And you went through life surfing and being a cheerleader with a girl you hated?” The question threw me off since we weren’t really on the topic of high school or cheer or Nina.

“You mean Nina? Nina only did cheerleading so it wasn't too big of a deal and it was just the first 3 years of high school. I also did other sports too and surfing so I had a lot of time away from her. Plus aren't you the one that was all like-” I paused and held my hand up making a mouth puppet with my thumb and other fingers, “sometimes you have to put up with nasty people for the GrEaTeR GoOD." I said in a mocking voice opening the hand mouth along with it.

He narrowed his eyes, “The outcome of Illéan economy doesn’t really depend on you being a cheerleader.”

I chuckled and put my hand down, “Well it mattered to me an I enjoyed being a cheerleader. I didn't see why I should stop just because another girl was a bitch. Honestly I should have gotten drunk and kicked her off the team much sooner than I did. I do good things when I drink. Like this time, I got cookies.”  

He nodded awkwardly and looked around the room, “Why were you still up?” I asked.

He looked back at me and hesitated for a moment before standing up and walking over to his desk covered with the photos. “I couldn't sleep, so I figured I should find something to do.”

I stumbled to get up curious to look at the photos and made my way over to them, “Why couldn't you sleep?” I asked.

He shrugged, “Well, my sleeping schedule isn't the best to begin with, but I guess with everything happening lately, it's only gotten worse.” HE'S LIKE BEN.

My daughter of a doctor instincts kicked in, “You should get a good sleep schedule, its high-hih-” I couldn't help but to giggle a bit as a struggled with the word, gosh drunk gabby is not good at arguing, “Very important! Health!” I said and threw my arms up.

He chuckled, “You say this as you stand before me drunk at..” He looked to his clock, “half an hour away from 2 A.M.”

“As I said before.” I said and pointed my finger at him, “I am n-no not! drunk. Just a litttleee wee bit tipsy. And this is not a normal thing for me. I would be asleep by now. Well most days. Recently I've been up late scared I'll have another that was legitness dream.”

He poked me on my forehead with his index finger to prove how off balance I was which resulted in me flopping back down onto his bed. He then cleared his throat and turned back to the pictures, “That traumatizing, huh?”

“Very.” I replied then realized that may have hurt his feelings, “Not because kissing you would be bad or even gross, though that is what I've been telling myself to try and persuade myself out of it, but I don't think it would be bad in a horrific sense, it's just been stressful because I've been going through the steps of like well maybe it'll just go away, and then it didn't, and then maybe I should tell you and/or Ben but I decided not too because keeping it to myself means nothing bad could happen and maybe it was just a blip and I would get back to liking just Ben and no one would ever need to know. But that didn't happen. Then dad told me to tell you but mom told me to be smart and telling you would not be smart so I just got more stressed and popped and normally i would go surfing but this stupid hip and foot so I drank. But anyways if I had another dream about you I'm sure it would have just added to the stress.”

“So you don't plan on telling Ben?” He asked as he flipped through the pictures.

“Undecided. I mean I wasn't going to at first to see if it would pass, but then I noticed last time we hung out alone I didn't feel like I liked him as much and that he should know regardless of my weird dream and liking you. But I also have selfish reasons that I want to stay like I like spending time with you and want to just wait it out since there's only a few girls left. And with rationalizing it seems easier to not tell him since it's not like there's a high probability he'd like me best anyways. So I could just show slight disinterest so I stay as long as natural but still get time to hang out as friends with you. But ethics and math and thinking. Now I want more alcohol.”

Wyatt’s ears got red as I spoke. “Alright... “ He said and shook his head, “I mean-- about the staying, not the alcohol.” He clarified. I heard him sigh then he spoke up again, “There's something else you can do if you don't want to think too much though.” He said and offered a hand to me.

I took his hand and sat up leaning on him a bit as I wasn’t the best at balancing in my current state, “Die?” I asked genuinely not knowing what he could mean.

He gave me a flat look, “Shut up.” As we walked towards the balcony.

“It’s my honest best guess.”

He let go of me for a moment to grab his camera, then came back and held my arm to help me stay balanced and we went outside on his balcony, “We can’t go to the beach but it’s the next best thing.” He said which made me smile. Either we had similar coping mechanisms to stress and liked being by the beach or he was actually considering me as a person and trying to help.

I chuckled and plopped down on the ground of the balcony, you could still see the shore and dangle your legs off the edge, “Yeah drinking and the beach are a bad combination. Plus it's what? Almost two am you said? I love the beach, don't you? It's interesting because there's just so much we don't know about it, and thrilling because you have no idea what's around you but somehow we as people always feel safe in it. Plus the sounds of the waves are just so steady that it could just put you to sleep. Not to mention the way that it connects us all. Doesn't matter which country you're from or in, if you're in the ocean you're in the same mass as everyone else in the world. It's just invigorating.” I said rambling on a bit I gazed out and watched as the black blobs that I knew to be waves gently swayed back and forth from the beach. I love the ocean at night.

I closed my eyes for a moment thinking about the night before I applied for the selection. The night I went out surfing and decided that there was no point in my applying. Nothing was void in my life so I shouldn’t do anything to risk derailing it. It was my mom talking in me. I hadn’t known what I was missing so I evaluated the risks poorly. Being with Wyatt and the relationship friendship or otherwise I was building with him was worth leaving home for a bit.

“You get really deep when you’re drunk... “ He replied. “We like the sound of waves because it’s a ‘non-threat’ sound. It fools your brain into thinking it should be calm because there’s no imminent danger.” He then added.

I turned back to look at him after he said that, “You're a genius.” I said before laying down on the floor of the balcony, my eyes needing a break as my head spun from the alcohol. Though, it’s silly that waves would tell us that when there’s all kinda of dangerous animals in the ocean, not to mention the waves themselves can kill.

“You know what animal I feel bad for?” I prompted.

He was taking a picture of the sea as he replied, “Porcupines?” What? No?

“No? Should I feel bad for porcupines? What's bad with them? I feel bad for sharks. They don't even want to eat people they hate how we taste! they just don't know what we are and their mouths are too big so when they try to figure it out they end up being vilified. We examine things all the time yet they are seen as evil! It's not fair!”

He raised an eyebrow at me, “That's a really bad comparison. But I said porcupines because they can't be hugged.” He said before placing a hand on his chest dramatically and making a deeply troubled face, “It's so sad.” He then paused and looked to no one behind his shoulder and added, “Alexa play despacito.”

I then burst out into laughter at both his meme and a pun that came to my head, “No no no! If you get like a space suite- suu- suit you could hug them! You just have to be careful! Wait- are they sad because they're.....POOR-CUPINES?!” I kept laughing at my own horrible joke.

He sighed and quickly gave me a glance, “You're truly awful.”

I chuckled at his reply and was about to insult him back before I caught myself. “I know. Hey, while I'm drunk and not a prideful moron I should apologize to you sincerely for all of the mean things I say to you as a defense. Like calling you a stupid mcstupid head. You're not a stupid mcstupid head.” I said. Wow. A real apology. My dad would probably cry from joy.

“Eh, maybe just a tad, but I appreciate the apology.” He replied with a small smile. We then sat in silence again and just rested listening to the sounds of the world.

I took a deep breath in as I closed my eyes for a moment. This felt right. Sitting with Wyatt and just thinking and being together. No words passed for a moment sandwiched between our small bits of banter and conversation.

“So this Jonathan never even showed interest in you? I thought cheerleaders were popular.” He asked. I had to hold back from grinning at the question. Oh, so he does care about my past romances?

I then took a deep breath in before explaining since there were a lot of knots and background reasons to put out for him to best understand, “Cheerleaders are popular but I didn't have the general cheerleader personality like Emma and Nina. They did much better with the boys than me. Plus Jon was a total nerd. His favourite class was English because he liked the books. Emma knew him better than though since they had math and english together and I'd just watch from afar she said he liked me at least enough that he would say yes if I asked him out but he never talked to me. Then I was too nervous to ever talk to him and Nina swooped in for vengeance since she knew I liked him and he's a two. She wants to be a model but shes a three. Not a upper class three like me either. My dad heard gossip about her in the biweekly mom's book club, so I'm not sure if its true at all, but they had heard she didn't live with anyone and the house she stayed in wasnt owned she was just squatting. It would make sense because she rarely invited us over and I know she didnt live with her biological parents. She told me her mom killed herself and her dad turned into an alcoholic so she was removed, but then shouldn't she have had a foster family? I never saw them at least. But anyways her foster parent or parents were threes so she got assigned a three caste. Not a model caste so Jonathan was a good person for her to leech to. I don't know why Jonathan is with her. Emma doesn't either she keeps trying to find out though.” I hope she does. I don’t know Jon too well, but just from human being to human being I wouldn’t want anyone to be stuck with that bitch.

“I did let him borrow a pencil once though. That was some real steamy action.” I added sarcastically. I wondered for a moment about Wyatt’s past with romance. Maybe it would come up later, maybe not. It would probably be too much to ask in addition to my big splur of an explanation. So I suppose I’ll just have to wait.

He laughed at my second comment, “An awkward, nerdy jock. Who would've thought.” He replied then thought for a moment, I was curious to know what he would say but quickly found out, “Not to judge Johnny boy or anything, but if he was bold enough to ask for a pencil he should've asked you out instead of waiting for you to do it. He missed his chance.” I smirked a bit at the name Johnny boy but tried to focus.

“Yeah I wonder why he didn't if he liked me. Probably Emma was just lying to encourage me. It wouldn't be out of character for her to do that. Or maybe he just wanted me for my pencils. And thank you I truly am a rare thing. I think Emma was always annoyed that I was more popular than her. Not with boys but people generally attracted towards me. It wasn't my fault though I'm just too awesome.” I replied with a smirk showing of my charm of humility.

“And let's not forget clearly humble.” He replied.

“Highly humble. Like if there is a human form of humble it would be me. I'm just that darn good.” I grinned at the adjective then got curious. I wonder if there's a way I can find out more of Wyatt thinks of me, “Let’s play a game.” I suggested.

“Like what?” He asked warily.

I sat up and faced him, “Okay so I haven't played this since elementary school but it was fun to me then. So it's super easy, I remembered it because of calling myself so many adjectives. But basically you have to come up with an adjective that fits each letter of another person's name and personality. Such as right now I would say wary for the W in Wyatt.” I said giving an example.

He scoffed a laugh, “For once I benefit from having a weird letter combination on my name. I'll go with gleeful.” I had a rather gleeful grin grace my face as he complied to play.

“I didn't even think of that. Y hmmmm.. Yyyyyyy…” YEET? Yeazy? What does that even mean? I spoke before I even thought, “Yummy!” I said then went bright red myself, “because you're attractive. It's the best I can think of.” I mumbled pretty embarrassed at my own word choice.

His face went red as well as he scooted away from me in panic, “I'll pretend that's just you being drunk and say absurd for A.” I chuckled at that. Well I really didn’t have a filter when I was this drunk.

“It is just me being drunk. Though you are attractive and there are very few Y adjectives I would normally never call you yummy. A, Affable.”

‘Interesting.” He said and took a moment to think but then quickly said, “Bold.”

“Hah I'm gonna run out before you. I'll have to go with your middle name then. What is it? And T for tall.” I asked planning ahead.

He chuckled, “Christopher. R for-” He then paused to dramatically wave a hand in the air, “-ravishing.” I wanted to comment on the fact that he just called me ravishing but instead my attention had to be distracted by the middle name.

“Your middle name is Christopher? I forgot you royal people like to pass on names like that. I think it’d be weird to give me kid my name as their middle. Alright last T. Hmmm tenacious.”

He nodded, “I thought you knew by now that I was a junior.”

“I did not. It hasn't come up. Well my middle names are funny too. My parents went with Rose Marie. Get it. like Rosemary. Rosemary was my grandmothers name so it’s supposed to be a tribute without being weird because rosemary is a weird name.” I said explaining my two middle names. Thankfully, they didn’t make it my first and it was my grandmother so thats not as weird as my dad or I guess in my case it would be my mom.

“So they decided not to be weird by naming you Rosemary, and instead made you Gabriella Rose Marie Patterson.” He then seemed to notice something, “You have more names than me,” He said all smug like. At first I was confused why then it occured to me I had just called him being a junior stuffy and having a long name was pretty stuffy itself.

I then slightly shoved him, “Shut up. At least mine isn't a copy of my parents name. Its my grandmother so that makes it more okay and its slightly changed. Thank goodness they didn't name me Rosemary. I don't know how I would have lived with that. Maybe I could go by Rose.” I wrinkled my nose at the sound of my name and shook my head. Rose was for sure a hard no.

Wyatt wrinkled his nose as well, “The girl that kissed Ben at the bar was named Rosie.”

“Ew. Yikes no. What about Mary then?” I asked and pressed my lips thinly together as I considered the name, “No for me. I think id just have to go by a whole new name had they done that to me.”

He thought for a moment refusing to give up, “Oh, I know. Rory. RO-sie and ma-RY.”

“Thats a boys name, isnt it? Like on The Office?” I asked.

He blinked, “I got it from a show Layla watched called Gilmore Girls. It was a nickname for this girl named Lorelai, but I never really understood the reason.”

I scoffed a laugh, “What kinda a name is Lorelai? I don't understand parents sometimes.” Though, realistically I’d be probably naming my own kid after a meme. Jarden Whaddup _______. My son.

Wyatt raised an eyebrow seeming fairly amused. Why? What had I done wrong? “Your etiquette teacher is named Lorelai with a spelling variation.” Oh crap.

“Can you tell I don't pay attention during those classes?” I asked rhetorically.

He jokingly gave a loud sigh, “You are a disappointment with napkins.”

HEY! “Shut up. You're a disappointment with I don't know...um..fuck...you're a disappointment with something”

He gave a brief chuckle, “Oh, of that I’m sure.”

I rolled my eyes, “God you're so stupid that's not how you're supposed to respond to insults. You don't just agree you moron.”

“Thanks.” Wyatt replied with a smile then decided to be a smart Aleck, “Very compelling advice as you insult me again.”

“Well you didn't accept being a moron at least. Are you an idiot sandwich?” I asked. Since he did accept being called a disappointment, but he hadn’t agreed to the moron insult.  

“Well, moron, stupid and idiot are kind of synonyms, chef Ramsay.” I already knew that, that wasn’t my question.

“Thanks. But do you think you're an idiot?” I asked deciding to clarify more.

“I’ve been an idiot once or twice, but I like to think it’s not my usual.” He answered.

“Good.” I said then pat him on the back. We talked for a bit longer about my total and complete perfection

“Impressive. Which by the way happens to be a word that perfectly fits with i.” He said about my total confidence in my perfection.

I chuckled, “Oh yeah I forgot about the name. I'm on your middle name now, right? Because Wary, Yummy, Affable, Tall, and tenacious. So C…Chivalrous.”

“Really? I thought I made the air foul.”

“Only when you watch me try to open napkins. Then it's like suffocatingly foul.”

His eyes narrowed as he focused on the next word. He chewed the inside of his cheek as he seemed to be deeply considering what he would say next, “Enlivening.”

He clicked his tongue, “I had ideas, I just wanted to use something better.”

“I suppose that could be true. A in Wyatt took me awhile because I wanted something harder than adorable.” I replied not thinking too much about the fact that I indirectly had called him adorable until he cleared his throat.

“Well, I wanted something more meaningful than empathetic.”

I scoffed a laugh, “Empathetic wouldn't even be accurate. I'm very me focused. Otherwise I wouldn't have come to your room in the middle of the night I would have thought "huh, he's probably asleep. I shouldn't wake him"

“Um…” He said as clearly hadn’t thought of that. “You still seem like the type of person that at least tries to understand how someone else feels occasionally though.”

I chuckled, “Well at least I may try too when I'm not near blackout drunk.”

“So not the most empathetic, but it's something. Either way, L is lighthearted.”

“R for reliable. At least when you want to ask someone to entertain your little sister. Reliable there.” I referenced him playing with Ellie and letting her use his camera.

He nodded, “And L again for loyal. With your family. It's pretty clear who's most important.” He replied which made me smile. I was happy to know he had gotten to know me enough to notice how important my family is to me.

I chuckled, “You're right there. It's honestly the reason I'll never be a surfer. I like to say it's just because I don't want to deal with fighting my mother because she disapproves. But I was around with Riley told mom she was marrying a five. It wasn't pretty. I'm not going to put Eliana or Mae through that. Did I tell you I got an idea for an occupation I might be able to settle for?”

“Marine biologist?” WOW THAT'S AN IMPRESSIVE GUESS.

“So I must have told you before. That was underconsideration yes, but shark tagging and studying sharks specifically would be fun. It wouldn't be as great as staying home and surfing and I'm not really a fan of travel and being away from my family but it gets me on the ocean and studying something thrilling. Plus a lot of its action so I don't have to use too much of my head for the tagging part.”

“You didn't say it, but talking about how much there is to explore about the ocean kind of gave you away... you actually want to study sharks though?” He replied. I suppose that was kinda a give away.

“Yes. They're interesting and wild. My dad made a good way of explaining my cowardness earlier that put the idea in my head. he said "you're brave on the outside enough that you would try to swim with a shark but so much of a coward that you'd rather argue with people and taunt them then let them see you emotionally open." I then gave a slight chuckle.

“Guess that does not apply when I'm drunk though.” I added before holding up a quick thumb up.

“But they're cute and they get a bad rep. I don't know too much about them but learning more could be fun. At least more so than being a lawyer,” I wrinkled my nose at the thought of being stuck with a load of long and boring paperwork.

“Then again there are drawbacks. I do think exploring is fun but I dislike the idea of travel. Even coming here was scary to me and it's only like an hour and a half away from my home. But still it's worth consideration.” I weighed the pros and cons. No job was perfect for me. I would just have to compromise like I had been raised to. But I’d still like to know the weight of the cons to determine if the compromise is worth it.

“There’s not enough sharks to study in the Angeles shore? That does sound like a tragedy.” He said and looked off to the shore.

“But.. a lot of people are scared to be, uh, emotionally open. So you’re not alone.”

“The problem there isn't the number of sharks, it's that studying sharks normally means following their travel patterns to understand them which is why they get tagged so you can help keep track. Though, realistically I'd be too much of a wuss and should just read books about them instead if I'm curious.” I further thought aloud then slightly huffed since the more I thought about it the more it seemed like a bad choice.

“And at least to me seems like other can be emotionally open enough to at least stay level headed and just not be like verbal about their emotions as opposed to me who decides attack is the best way to handle is and mocks people. To be fair you're very easy to mock. You're good at coming up with comebacks though, so I for Intelligent.” I replied and quickly changed the topic back to the game. I wasn’t really a fan of talking about my flaws, as shocking as that may seem.

He chuckled at my detailed explanation, “An honor to hear you to say that—even if you’ve also called me a moron tonight.”

“Please, over half of what I are are meaningless insults. You can't really take any of them to heart. Except for the dork ones. Those are true.”

“I kind of want to argue back, but I’m not sure how.”

“You can't because it's true. You're a big ol'dork. Just like I'm a big ol'nerd. We're both losers.” I said and put a thumb up.

He awkwardly smiled at me before putting my hand down, “Thanks.” He said before he just made eye contact. Is he thinking? Is there something on my face? Do I just look really bad right now? I heard moonlight was supposed to make people prettier? Fuck-fuck-fuck why is he staring at me? I flushed and looked away myself.

He cleared his throat and spoke up again, “Finally your first name is over. A for amusing.” Oh no such a long name 9 letters, oh the pain.

“But hey I still need to finish Christopher otherwise your middle name is just Chri. So I suppose you have to do Rose Marie now? Or just we need to discuss what to do.” I suggested since we really couldn’t progress without discussion.

“Wyatt Chri Schreave has a nice ring to it, but alright.” He paused then did a dramatic host voice, “Here comes the lightning round!” He said and acted like he had a microphone which he pointed at me.

I chuckled at his playful behavior before responding, “Alright. S for sarcastic. So fast, so speedy, like sonic.” I joked.

Wyatt however, was no longer playing, “R for rude.”

I got flustered and decided to make him suffer just the same and had to hold back from an evil grin as I knew just the way to, “It's not my fault that I'm rude. If you hadn't seduced me than I wouldn't be so defensive then I.E rude.”

Wyatt’s face quickly flushed giving me my revenge, “I DIDN'T SEDUCE ANYONE.”

“YOU SEDUCED ME WITH YOUR VASE HIDING, AND EYEBROW RAISING, IT WAS A SEDUCTION TACTIC!” I defended trying to play along but broke out into laughter unable to keep up my defensive act, “I'm sorry, I'm kidding, I don't victim blame.” I apologized through my laughter.

For his vengeance he decided to snap a picture of me without my consent as I laughed. Drunk or not I didn’t like pictures being taken of me. “NO! THAT'S SO RUDE.”

He then turned the camera to show me the picture. I didn’t look horrible, “I think it's nice.”

I pursed my lips as I thought deeply for a moment over if I should let this go or not. I grumbled as I decided, “Fine you can keep it but only because I look not horrible for once in it.”

He laughed then took another photo of the view in front of us, “You look not horrible in all the pictures I got of you at the library.”

“That would honestly surprised me. Considering I look bad in like all pictures. I'm pretty sure that's why Emma bribed me to apply for this too so there would be someone for sure with a worse picture than her.” He then looked at the photo and seemed unsatisfied with it. Great your very presence while he took it ruined his picture Gabby. Your powers have surpassed needing to even be in the photo.

“That would honestly surprised me. Considering I look bad in like all pictures. I'm pretty sure that's why Emma bribed me to apply for this too so there would be someone for sure with a worse picture than her.”

“Your application had a nice picture.” He replied. I wonder if Ben gushed to him about the applications before we got here. Oh wow he probably read that I had a special skill for falling down and destroying things. I mean I didn’t know I was going to be picked. Over half of my application was a shit post I had scribbled in the car with Emma while hoping she didn’t kill us both.

“Maybe you looked slightly uncertain, but that was it.” He added.

“Lmao I was debating if I wanted a bagel or an omelette.” I then chuckled, “twas paid for.”

“Alright. You’re also O for original.”

“Um, it was my turn you're rude.” I then put a finger up to his lips to guarantee he wouldn’t take my turn again. “so T for talented and O for odd.”

He then put my hand down with my wrist and amped up to battle like this was the elementary school spelling bee. “S for sassy, E for enthusiastic.”

I scooted closer being sucked in by the intensity, “P for Passionate, H for honest, and uh-” I stammered as my brain with blank for E words, “-E for Eponymous.”

He opened his mouth to reply but then frowned, “Epo-what now?”

I chuckled evilly like. Hah. Hah. HAH. “I'm smarter than you. It means named after someone. I know because when my dad first told me I was named after Rosemary he called me eponymous.”

“Well then, M for maverick, A for athletic, R for Resilient, I for ingenuitive and E for... easygoing.” He said then got a smug look, “I win Gabriella Rose Marie.” This isn’t even supposed to be a contest but I can’t let him think he’s won anything.

“R for Red to finish Christopher then S is sassy, c is charismatic, H is handsome, R is realist, E is earnest, A is argumentative, V is veracious, and E is elegant. There I win now Wyatt Christopher Schreave. Full name done! Mic drop!”

He was shook for a moment but then snapped back into it, “You can't reuse my sassy! And your name is longer than mine!”

I counted on my fingers for a moment to double check his work, “Fine then I just need three more. Replace the S with S for Scary. Then I can use the junior, JR. J for Jazzy, R for rambunctious, and the P in the period(.) for prominent!” I said taking advantage of his junior status.

“REAL MATURE”

“HAHAH I WIN NOW LOSER!” I cheered before it suddenly started to sprinkle which put an end to my haughty victory and Wyatt’s fuming rage at losing like a sourpuss.

“Guess we have to go back inside.” He mumbled. I really liked the rain but it would probably be better we not risk illness. It’d be weird to explain when I was outside in the rain if I did get sick.

“Bye bye rain!” I cheered before trying to push myself back up from my seat on the ground swaying a bit at the dizzy world welcomed me back.  Wyatt stood up first though and offered a hand to me. I took it gladly and leaned on him a bit.

I looked up at him for a moment, he was flustered, probably because I had my body leaning on him, “Oh yeah wyatt, I have a serious question.” I started.

He replied without looking down at me as he took us in, “What's that?”

“Do you think I could beat you in an arm wrestle? I mean i'm pretty strong. I did tennis and basketball. That helps. My legs are better than me-” hiccup, “-arms, but still.”

He laughed a bit, “I think my arms are stronger than yours.”

“I don't think so. Why would they be? Do you work out?” I asked. Or maybe idk Gabby, because you’re a 5’1 female so even if you work out as much as Wyatt you physically can’t be as strong as him because of body mass?

“We’re not there yet in our friendship Gabriella.” He joked but then raised an eyebrow, “Do I really look that lazy? I mean, I’m not the strongest guy out there but that’s just hurting my ego.” I felt a bit bad. He was probably joking and I mean I had a good reason for thinking I might be stronger than him, I’m a pretty freaking athletic person. I work out a lot. So it’s not like I was comparing him to say a bum.

“Sorry, your suits don't show off too much if there is any muscle and you just don't strike me as a gym type of person.” I said and plopped down on the bed. I was still holding onto his hand from earlier so I quickly grabbed the other and tried to pull him onto the bed to test it to see if I really were stronger than him since. I didn’t get too far though and only resulted in him bending forward a bit.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

“Well you weren't going to tell me so I thought, may as well just try.” I replied with my drunken logic. I let go of his hands and laid back down in the bed, “Worth a shot.” I sighed.

“I want more winnnneeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.” I complained as I rolled in his bed.

He grumbled something before he went to put his camera back, “You’re not drinking more.”

I quickly felt more and more drowsy and his bed smelled so nice so I grabbed his covers and decided to let myself go to sleep, “My bed now. Goodnight.”

THE NEXT MORNING

I shot up in bed in an unfamiliar room. I quickly looked around and saw Wyatt sleeping on a beanie bag and pictures. I much be in Wyatts room. I exhaled in relief. OH GOD I’M IN WYATTS ROOM! What if someone sees me? What if someone saw me come here? It had to be late last I remember I was watching twilight? OH GOD WHAT IF I TOLD HIM I LIKE HIM.  

I quickly got up and crouched down next to Wyatt on the bean bag. I gently poked his arm, “Hey Wyatt?” I said softly. He didn’t wake so I knew I would need more dirastic measures. I leaned in close right next to his ear. “WYATT!!” I yelled then regretted right away as a sharp pain kicked me in the head. Hangover, “Oh-FUCK!” I yelled which just made me hurt more as Wyatt let out a yelp and fell out of the bean bag.

He was incredibly red in the face, why? Was it embarrassing to wake up? “What's wrong with you?” He asked me.

“You didn't wake up the first time! I had to try more drastic methods!” I yelled before I felt the hangover again and put a hand on my head. I then took a deep breath in, “I have no idea why I came her last night or I drank way too much so quick question….” I paused trying to think of a non obvious way to ask, “.....did I tell you anything like embarrassing like about a slip'n slide made of sauce, or the time I ate a lemon whole on accident? Also your maids will probably be in soon which is why i woke you and it'd look weird if they found you on a beanie.”

He stared up at me completely stunned, “slip’n—” He paused. “You don’t remember anything from last night?”

I thought for a moment and tried to remember, “Twilight. I was watching twilight. Now I'm here-” I shrugged, “-I really drank too much-- Stress from family stuff.”

“No doubt, no doubt. No embarrassing childhood stories were brought up, don’t worry.” He said and looked up at me quickly before looking away again. OH NO DID I DROOL? DO I HAVE DROOL ON MY FACE?

“Um, so,” He said and stood up quickly, “You better head back before it's too late.”

I chuckled, “Oh yeah, it'd be difficult to explain why I wasn't in my room or why I'm in here if either of our maids get there before us.” I then looked around for my flats from last night slipped them on then made my way to the door, “See you at breakfast. Good look controlling the foul air.” I said smiling contently proud that I had controlled my tongue while drunk last night. Maybe I wasn’t horrible at keeping secrets while drunk. I had avoided it because of that but maybe last night was proof that I have enough self control to drink like a normal adult. I then gave him a quick wave and headed back to my room.

[kestrelsansjesses]

Fernweh [1]

[[Summary: Finally, it's here! My longer series, starring the story of Wren Ryder and her relationship with the Angara Jaal, as well as her companions. This takes place post Andromeda, so please keep in mind that spoilers will be a-plenty. In this chapter, Wren contends with political situations and introduces Jaal to Scott, but her twin is displeased to hear that she hasn't disclosed everything to her new lover. But what secrets could she be holding?

As always, comments are very, very appreciated, and suggestions for future story ideas are welcome. 

Pairing: Jaal x F!Ryder 

Rating: This chapter is all audiences. 

Word count: 1510]]

The more colonists that came from stasis, the more protesters there were on the Meridian. Today, they crowded the docking bay, waiting for Wren Ryder to step off the Tempest, all wanting their voices to be heard. Loudly.

“What if I just… didn’t leave the Tempest this time? I could have all the important conversations on vidcon, buy supplies from there. No reason to deal with… all that.” An expansive hand gesture took in the crowds visible from the ship’s windows even as she turned to Jaal with a shrug. Out of all the places in their brand new galaxy, they had chosen to stay here, among their own kind. The protestors were all human, but that they had taken time out of their lives, fresh from the thaw, to protest her was sheer dedication. All these precious seconds taken just to argue with little old her. It was almost flattering.

“But then how would I meet your brother, dearest one?” Jaal had a point, but that didn’t mean Wren had to enjoy it.

Pulling her hoodie over her head, desperately wanting to put the actual hood up as a shield against the world, Wren joined the rest of her crew milling around the extended ramp. “Okay, you’re all off duty. Go have fun. More fun than I’ll have. Vetra, tell Sid not to cause too much trouble. Peebee, remember your limits. I can’t keep picking you up off the floor. Liam, bring back as much beer as you can to the ship. The rest of you… Dismissed.” As per tradition, everyone had left before the end of Wren’s little speech, nodding and waving and generally enjoying the atmosphere of Meridian. As well they should. This was a vacation for them; they weren’t about to be accosted by an angry crowd.

For just a moment, Jaal’s hand slipped around hers. What was once strange- gloved fingers, jointed differently, a different number than human hands- now felt familiar and comforting. He walked a step behind her as she took a deep breath, descending down the ramp and into the madness.

“Pathfinder, a moment?” “Pathfinder, why aren’t you pushing the human agenda more?” “Pathfinder, is it true you appointed an Angara as representative instead of the mayor of Prodromos?” “Are you in bed with Angaran rebels?” Ah. That one she was willing to answer.

“Just one rebel, actually. No comment to the rest.” Though they didn’t want to let her pass, the crowd also didn’t want to step in her way, especially when she had a tall, formidable looking Angara following close behind. They had more to say, especially about the role Milky Way species should hold in the new galaxy, but they were still in awe of her enough to let it pass. For now.

As soon as they turned the corner, Wren leaned against the wall, letting out a gust of air she didn’t know she had been holding in. “They always make me wonder if I did the right thing. How many times did I mess up? How many more times are they going to be willing to forgive me?” It came from her unbidden, a surge of frustration and something deeper, more sad and more primal, that seemed to take even Jaal aback until he leaned forward, hand on her shoulder. The touch was light and simple, but it was enough. It had to be enough; if the Pathfinder couldn’t stand on her own two feet, what hope did anyone else have?

“He stays in dad’s old quarters. The real Pathfinder’s room.” There was more than a hint of bitterness as Wren spoke, but she shook her head, trying to clear it all away. No one needed to see this side of her, especially not Jaal, and especially not on a day that was supposed to be special.

Past the main hall, things were quieter. Instead of calling her ‘Pathfinder’, a few people greeted her as ‘Ryder.’ Gradually, the number of people died down until they reached a white hallway, as sterile as the rest, still pristine, with two doors- one to the side and one at the very end. “That’s SAM node. And this is dad’s old room.” Jaal had never met Alec, something Wren sometimes forgot. Whatever baggage she had with her father, it had to remain in the past. There were days when she missed him fiercely, and days when she cursed him for everything he’d done to her family. There were days where the two overlapped, and she wished she had liked him more, or at least tried harder to get along.

She raised her fist to the door and paused. With the omni-tool she could easily unlock it, but what if Scott was doing something… private? Okay, he expected her, but she also had absolutely zero desire to walk in on her brother doing who knows what. They both had enough of that as teenagers. “Scott, you free?”

“Wren?” The door opened with a hydraulic swish, and Scott flung himself at his twin, both dancing around each other like idiots. There were so many things wrong with the Andromeda Galaxy, but Scott being awake made things that tiny bit easier to deal with. He looked better every time she saw him, more rested and less weak, and the fact he actually had the strength to dance around with her said a lot about his recovery. Her baby brother wasn’t whole, but he was coming back to her in bits and pieces, remembering who he was and figuring out who he would be the best he could. Maybe they could figure out together.

“Scott! I want you to meet Jaal Ama Drav. He’s my…” Ah, shit. There wasn’t really a good term for it, was there?

“He’s my boyfriend.” It was the only thing that made sense, the only word that didn’t sound stupid in her head. Maybe Scott expected some baseline stupidity from his sister, but Wren wanted to prove that she had grown-up and matured in their time apart. She had to.

Stepping forward, Scott extended his hand to Jaal. Wren could hardly stand to watch, remembering her own first handshake with him, and how it had turned into an awkward, chest-bumping gesture. If they didn’t like each other, or if they didn’t manage to communicate well… Shit, again.

To her relief, Jaal took Scott’s extended hand, looking over at her for approval. Nodding and smiling from behind Scott’s back, she waited and then… Jaal pumped Scott’s hand from side to side, rather than up and down. Well, it was better than nothing, and Scott managed to hold himself together, though Wren could read the lines on his face, the way his chest tightened up as he tried not to laugh. “It’s great to meet you, Jaal. You’re the first Angaran I’ve actually met.” Even Scott looked small next to Jaal, but he was standing straight and proud, and he seemed genuinely happy and relaxed. Good. This was going… Good. This was going to be okay.

“Can I talk to Wren for a minute?” Or maybe not. Whatever Scott wanted to say to her, Wren didn’t want to hear it, but Jaal stepped back politely enough and she and Scott walked into the room. Alec’s room. Scott’s room now, though he hadn’t changed anything about it. It still smelled like burnt coffee and incendiary rounds.

“Did you tell him?” Scott’s voice was low and urgent.

“Which part?”

“About you.” Wren could only play dumb for so long.

“No. I was going to, but it was never the right time, and Scott… People need me to be the Pathfinder. They need me to be a symbol, and that’s so hard.”

“People do, but does Jaal? Do your friends? Just ask yourself that.” Without another word, Scott walked past her, body stiffer than it had been before, leaving Wren to lean against the wall for a minute and close her eyes. She had to tell Jaal; that much was clear. But how?

Outside, Jaal and Scott were talking easily enough, Jaal even laughing at something Scott said. The distant sound of a childhood story drifted over Wren as she walked back towards them, but her presence interrupted whatever it was that was being sad.

“You look pale, Wren. Are you feeling well?” The sound of Jaal’s voice sent her stomach to flipping, but the sensation was muted, not as joyous as it usually was.

“There’s someone else I want you to meet, and something else I have to tell you.” It was Scott’s turn to step back, though Wren could see how he nodded at her, face grave. “Please?” Offering her hand, she waited until Jaal’s grasped hers, and this time she kept it, feeling the slightest pulse of electrochemical energy even through his gloves, enough to make her feel awake and alive. Knowing the statement it would make, she walked hand-in-hand with her Angara love down the corridor of the crashed Ark, staring forward and trying not to look at Jaal’s grave face.

[volpereborn]

ZooDystopia Chapter 6

Part 6

The only thing Nick felt was his whole body aching in pain. It was like his body was being hugged very tightly and that no matter what he couldn't wake up. He had terrifying dreams of multiple cold hands rapidly touching his body. He experienced visions of multiple dark beings looming over him as he slept. He struggled in vain to escape this anguish for what seemed like an eternity. Then just when he had almost given up, he awoke. What he saw was something that never in all of his life, he thought he would experience.

From the foot of his bed, to the rafters in the ceiling, and to the rooms that surrounded him, were hundreds of rabbits staring at him. They were all of different heights, weights, and ages. No two of them were dressed the same. They all stood motionless, their faces a mixture of curiosity and delight. Nick saw one of them dash a way and moments later he returned with someone by the paw. It was Judy! She ran over to Nick from the hallway and came to his bedside.

"Oh Nick you're finally awake!" Judy said with relief as she embraced him. Her hug was well meaning but painful as she squeezed around his ribs. Nick gasped in pain and looked down. His shirt was opened and around his chest he could see that he had been bandaged. His tie was missing and his pants had several holes in them.

"Judy…the waterfall…the river…what happened…" Nick said as he struggled to remain awake. The pain from his chest and his fatigue was almost too much for him to bear. He felt like he had been run over by a car.

"We fell down to the river and got swept out of the city. You got banged up pretty bad on the rocks and almost drowned. You were unconscious when I got you over to the shore. There was a pay phone near where we ended up so I made a call and I got us far away" Judy explained. As she talked, Nick could see that the rabbits around them all started to move closer to the two. Their eyes had switched from Nick and were now transfixed on Judy.

"If we are…out of the city…where are we now…" Nick said as he started to gain his strength. He tried to move up on the bed but his arms gave out, causing him to fall back on the bed. Judy helped him reposition his body so that he was propped up on a pillow

"We are in Bunny Burrows…at my family's house" Judy said. Nick looked around at their audience. He noticed it now, all of the eyes bright blue, all of their fur dark grey except for the top of the head, which was white. These were no doubt Judy's siblings. Then he had a realization.

"Judy wait, why did you bring me here? It's dangerous! The police and who knows what else are after me!" Nick said fearfully.

"Nick it's alright, everything is OK. The Police aren't going to come looking for you here. They probably still think that you have me held hostage somewhere in the woods by the city," Judy said "besides, nobody even knows you're here. We transported you at night in the back of a truck with a tarp thrown over you. "

"Well I guess it's alright but…"

"No buts Nick…everything is OK now. You are far away from the city in the middle of farmland. There is literally no one for miles. What you need to do is stop worrying and get better. Your ribs are still bruised pretty bad and your head doesn't look any better," Judy said. She started to go around the room and shoo her siblings out of the room they were in. Some went quietly and others begged to stay. Apparently they had never seen a fox up close before. They all submitted in the end, Judy had a stern face she gave them that caused all dissent to fade away... Perks of being the eldest sister.

Over the next couple of days, Nick was confined to his bed and was attended to by Judy and her siblings. Judy would come in at various points of the day to give Nick pain medicine, which consisted of very bitter herbs that made him light headed. At appointed meal times, Nick would be served a variety of meals. Many of which consisted of fruits and vegetables, normally distasteful to predators but foxes are omnivores, so Nick had no problems eating. For most of the day, however, Nick slept. On the fifth day of this routine, Nick felt well enough to stand.

After taking a warm bath, Nick went back into his room to find that Judy had sewn his clothing and laundered them. He got dressed and entered the kitchen of the house. There he found Judy sitting at the table talking to what Nick assumed where her parents. After sitting at the table Nick was introduced to Stu and Bonnie Hopps. Stu was an elderly rabbit that had made a career of carrot farming. He had spent many hours in the sun, which showed by his sun-bleached face. Bonnie was a kind woman who showed great love to each and every one of her children. She knew just what to say to make sure that all of her offspring felt loved and acknowledged, all 276 of them.

Stu and Bonnie attempted to act normal towards Nick, but he could tell that they were nervous around him. Even as they ate, they always kept one eye on him at all times even though he still wore his heavy metal shock collar. Nick didn't take this personally as he assumed that they probably had not been around many predators. Judy kept the energy in the room placid by initiating small talk. Nick did his best to not talk and only did so to answer basic questions. He was careful not to give away too much information as he wasn't aware of how much they knew. Though their conversation, Nick gleamed the story that Judy had told her family. Judy told them that she was on her way home for a surprise visit from the when she came across him drowning in the river. She dove in to save him and preformed CPR when she had reached the shore. She said that she assumed he was homeless based on the way he dressed and had brought him back home because she didn't know what to do with him. Nick gave her a smirk; she was a rather clever bunny…when she wanted to be.

Throughout the rest of the week, Nick slowly regained the rest of his strength. Judy had removed his bandages and after having him perform several stretches, confirmed that his ribs had healed. He still had a faint bruise on his forehead and his black eye hadn't healed but only got smaller. What picked at him in the back of his mind was what to do now. Judy's story wouldn't last forever. Her parents were already asking her about what she planned to do with him. She told them repeatedly that she was looking online for homeless shelters to take him to but that she had not found one yet. Nick attempted to think of a plan of action but none of what he thought of sounded good. Judy came to him one day and delivered a bombshell to him.

In her room held the only working computer in the house and on said computer was an article published from Fauna City. Judy looked at him nervously and pressed play on the video on the site. The seal of the city played out on the screen for several seconds and then faded to a podium with a smiling pig. This was no ordinary pig, however, it was the mayor of Fauna City Mrs. Kathy Swinton. She stood there in her designer suit for several seconds before she spoke.

"My dear citizens, no doubt by now you have already heard the shocking news of what has happened in our fair city recently. A dangerous fox has escaped prison and has been wreaking havoc all around the city. This dastardly criminal has also taken a hostage as well. In both Little Rodentia and in our wonderful Tundratown, we have come close to capturing this hardened criminal. Still he has evaded us! Worry no longer, the city counsel and I have been working hard to capture this miscreant. We have increased our police force all over the city to protect you and we have also alerted the surrounding counties of our issue. I can personally promise you that this predator will be captured and he will pay for his crimes!"

There was the sound of clapping followed by several photographs taken. The video ended with a shot of Mayor Swinton's jubilant face looking straight into the camera followed by a picture of Nick and Judy taken from a security cam. Judy looked at Nick with concern. It was obvious to the both of them now how truly dire their situation was. No matter where they went they were screwed. They couldn't go back into the city nor could they leave and go to any other city. Nick had started to pace around the room. He had to think of something and he had to think of it fast. Just when he thought he had run out of ideas he found one. It wasn't one that he particularly enjoyed.

The two of them left the next morning before the sun had risen. Judy had left a note for her parents saying that she had found a shelter for Nick and that she had to get there early the next morning before someone else took his place in the availability queue. Nick hid with a blanket thrown over him in the back of the car they had borrowed from Stu and only occasionally stuck his head out to help Judy with the directions. The drive took several hours and when she could no longer stand it she asked Nick a question that had been burning inside of her.

"Nick?"

"Yeah…"

"You told me that you would tell me something…"

"What?"

"About what happened…in Happytown"

"Oh…yeah…forgot about that…"

"Well…what happened?"

"Its not a pretty story carrots…but if you really what to know, I will tell you. Happy Town started up as a community for everyone. It was really cheap and it had everything you could want in a small community. Over time however, Happytown became more and more a center for controversy. Due to it's location, it caught the attention of several prey separatist groups, who wanted the location to be a prey only haven. Happytown wasn't their only goal as they wanted to eventually have all the islands in the inlet between Savannah Central and Sahara Square. Their plan's didn't succeed as they instigated a riot after there was an attack on a doe by a cougar during the Covenant Day fair. Prey animals stopped buying houses there out of fear of being attacked. Swinton became elected soon after, becoming popular from her rhetoric which put the blame on predator genetics. She put Happytown under Marshal Law for a while as she said she was committed to searching for evidence of "savagery", some mental disorder she swears she can medically diagnose. Eventually, after things settled down, it became the slum it is today," Nick explained. The words spilled from his mouth with a hint of sadness. Nick didn't like to tell this story.

"I don't understand Nick, why do you want to go there when everyone is looking for you?" Judy said.

"Because I know a place no one will find me" Nick said.

A couple of hours later they arrived in Happytown. They had arrived near the shore of the lake which Fauna City rested on and taken several shifty back roads in order to make it on the highway without being seen. From the highway, Nick took several turns and reached the web of bridges which spread out from it to the islands below. Taking a turn for the exit, Nick drove the car down a bridge which took them to down to a small island. As they drove, Nick saw a sign pass over him which had rusted from neglect; The sign read "Welcome to Happytown". Nick drove down the street and turned at the corner, passing by an old salon which was now boarded up. This section of Happytown was uninhabited as many of the buildings they past were partially destroyed. There was long grass had started to grow from the concrete. Nick told Judy to park the car as soon as they entered the town and from then on they went in silence. Tall buildings surrounded them on both sides as they walked down the street. There were old, dilapidated apartments and trashed restaurants. What stood out to Judy the most was that there were rusted cars strewn all throughout the street like something out of a horror movie. She looked at Nick, who walked slowly and with half lidded eyes. Suddenly he stopped in front of a building.

There in front of them was a two-story building that had boarded up windows and was covered in graffiti. It was down a long hallway which was situated in between two other buildings, hiding it from the main street. At the top of the front door was a sign that said "John's Tailor Shop". She heard a noise and looked down to find Nick was tearing off the boards to the door. They had been there for so long that they had begun to rot and came off easily. Judy watched as Nick tore off the last board on the door and put his paw on the door.

"Nick…what is this place?

"This was my home."

The two of them stepped in to the house and were met with a ghastly sight. The whole of the bottom floor was devoted to the tailor shop and at one time it could have been nice. However, it now looked like tornado had ripped through the place. Mannequins and large piles of fabric littered the floor and all of the counters had been smashed, covering the floor with small shards of glass. Nick walked across to the other side of the room. He went into a large walk in closet and grabbed hold of a shelf in the back. With minimal effort he managed to pull it from the wall. Instead of it toppling over, it swung out in an arc revealing a hidden staircase. As Nick ascended the staircase, Judy followed behind with bated breath.

She found Nick on a couch on the second floor. Whatever happened down stairs didn't happen upstairs as the second floor of the building was remarkably preserve albeit covered in a thick layer of dust. The room that Nick sat in looked like a small living room and out of the corner of her eye she could see a small kitchen. As Judy got close to him, she could see that Nick was clutching a small picture frame in his paws. She sat down on the couch next to him and saw that a small tear was rolling down his face. Looking at the picture she could see a large adult fox was hugging a smaller child fox. The picture seemed to radiate a feeling of happiness as both people in the picture were smiling without a care in the world. What Judy found odd was that none of them wore a collar.

"Is that you?" Judy asked as she pointed to the small fox in the picture.

"Yep…" Nick said nodding his head

"And that's…"

"That's my dad…" Nick said, another tear rolling down his face.

"Nick…what happened?"

"My dad had just returned from a run to the store for more fabric when the riot started. I was just a kid at the time…I didn't know what was going on. My dad tried his best to calm me down but when he heard someone break in down stairs he went to kick them out. He locked me upstairs and made me promise not to follow him. When the riots ended, he didn't come back. I went out and found him dead…don't know who killed him but I know the bastard did it with a shard of glass. The door bust open and a police officer came in and took me from the house. I was in an orphanage after that. Never got adopted…at the time everyone was scared of predators. Nobody wanted to adopt a predator…even if they were a child. Don't know what happened to my dad's body…I guess they cremated him and buried him somewhere. "

"Nick that's…awful!" Judy said as she hugged him. As he talked, she found that she grew closer to him as she could see the pain in his face as he spoke.

"It's in the past now…what's important is that no one will find me here." Nick said. Nick knew deep down in his heart that this was a terrible plan. He knew that eventually he would have to leave to find food and he didn't even know if the water or electricity worked. Still though, he clung to the fact that no one came to this part of the city. Mayor Swinton had placed this area of Happytown under quarantine after the riots were over and the marshal law had ended, supposedly to reduce "the spread of savagery", as she called it.

"Nick…"

"Yeah?"

"In this picture neither of you are wearing collars…"

"How old are you?"

"24"

"Ah, then you wouldn't have remembered. After the riots, Mayor Swinton signed it into law that all predators in the city were required to wear them. Didn't you learn this in school?"

"No…we were taught that predators wore collars as a way to keep them from going savage. That the shocks help them from reverting back. I never new Happytown had anything to do with it," Judy said

Nick thought this over for a while. No wonder why Judy seemed ignorant about predators, her schooling had not told her the full truth. Nick put down the picture frame on the coffee table and stood up. He stretched for a second and walked around the apartment. It had been 20 years since he had been here. All this time he had wondered what life would have been like if the riots never happened. Judy grabbed a duster from a closet and started to clean up the place while Nick walked around. He saw his old bedroom, complete with his old toys and books. The bed seemed so small to him that he couldn't fathom being that small. He walked into his father's room. His father was one for cleanliness and kept his room immaculate. Nick opened the closet and saw that all of his fathers clothing was still there. He took a shirt down from the hanger and gazed at it. He remembered his father coming home with it one day, mad at himself for buying it. Nick chuckled to himself; those were the good old days.

Just then he heard the sound of shattering glass from the front room. He ran down the hall and saw that Judy had fallen to the floor. The window on the other side of the room had a hole in it and the floor was covered in glass. Nick ran to Judy's body and turned her over. There was a small pellet on the side of her neck, which Nick ripped off. Holding it up to his eye, he saw that the end had a small needle on it. Nick was about to pull her over from the front of the window when he heard the window break and felt a sharp pain on his neck. Paralyzed, he fell over next to Judy. He felt himself falling unconscious and just before he went out, he could see that on the rooftop across the street was a person with a gun.

"Damn it…" Nick said before he was enveloped in darkness.

A cold splash of water hit him, waking Nick up. Cold and scared, he looked around. He could see that he was tied to a chair and to his left was Judy who had similar circumstances. They were in a dark room with only a single spot light shinning down on them. Judy was still asleep but not for long as a bucket of water came out of the darkness and hit her. She awoke with a scream and instantly started to fight with the rope tying her hands and feet to the chair. There was the sound of laughter and footsteps. Out of the shadow approached a figure.

"Oh no" Judy said.

"Oh shit" Nick said.

"That was a neat trick you pulled at the water fall…but I am going to get the last laugh," said the sheep with a grin.