#they all look so good here and vince sounds great

[missfeelgood]

Happy saturday to 1989 Nikki Sixx at Moscow Music Peace Festival only

[munsons-melody]

putting the x in sixx (part 2)

summary: with corroded coffin now on tour with the boys of mötley crüe, nikki sixx takes the time to keep trying to get to you

pairing: rockstar!boyfriend!Eddie x female!reader

cw: mentions drugs/drug abuse,

recommended song: you’re all i need by mötley crüe

word count: 2.6k

a/n: this was a request and i was over the moon to write it!! also not very proofread :)

requested? yep :))

masterlist

part 1 can be found here

i do not consent to having any of my works republished, translated, or posted to any other site except here. if you see my works anywhere but tumblr, it has been republished without my knowledge, consent, or permission.

——

"uh huh... yes... yes of course... yep... okay... okay great thanks man" eddie said as he hung up the phone, turning to you with the biggest smile on his face

"good news?" you asked excitedly, moving up from your laying position on the couch, turning off the tv

"we're going on tour!" eddie screamed, jumping up and down causing you to giggle

"wait what? huh? explain!" you leaped from the couch to where he walked over to the living room

"that was our manager, he apparently talked to his buddy doc who talked to the boys of mötley crüe and said they loved our sound and our stage presence and when they go on tour they want us to open!" he explained, talking fast

your jaw dropped and you squealed, pulling him in close, wrapping your arms around his neck as you jumped and your legs wrapped around his waist

he held you close until you heard a small sniffle, and moved so you carefully landed on the ground

"eddie baby you okay?" you asked, moving a few strands of hair away from his face and wiping a tear that was falling down his cheek

he nodded and sniffled again, wiping the tears away from his face and looked at you

"i just can't believe it, i'm so happy" he admitted as you held his face gently and leaned into kiss him

as you pulled away, your brow furrowed in confusion "wait don't you need to tell the rest of the band?" you let out a small chuckle and eddie's eyes widened

"oh shit yeah thank you love you" he said, kissing you fast before running to the phone again

——

it was 2 weeks later and tour rehearsals were in full swing along with corroded coffin recording songs for their new album and mötley crüe doing endless press for their girls, girls, girls album that had just come out

you hadn't seen much of the boys of mötley crüe due to their heavy promo schedule, occasionally seeing vince in the studio helping eddie with some vocals, and of course, mick just appearing randomly, fueling yours and Eddie's inside joke that he truly was an alien with superpowers- reminding you of a specific girl that once escaped hawkins lab that led you to meet eddie

"god i'm just so excited for the tour!" you said excitedly, walking in between Jeff and Gareth into the rehearsal studio

eddie was stuck at the recording studio with dougie for another hour while you accompanied the boys to the rehearsal space as they deemed it necessary you be there since eddie couldn't

"me too! can you believe we're actually here and doing this?" gareth replied, matching the excitement in your voice

the three of you continued to talk as you walked through the corridors of the large building before appearing at the double doors before the room that served as the rehearsal room

you already heard Vince, singing out the last few high notes of 'dancing on glass' when the three of you walked in, standing there watching them finish up the song

once they were done, you clapped along with jeff and gareth and nikki looked at you, smiling

"great guys, take 5... and no bump- we have a lot to get through today" doc said in a grumpy voice before patting mick on the back and turning to talk to some other important looking person

nikki set down his bass carefully on its stand and walked over to where you were standing

"hey stranger" he said and you felt a blush creep onto your face

"hey yourself" you replied back with a smile

"didn't know you were going to be here today" he said casually and you nodded, turning to where gareth was once standing until you realized he was in conversation with jeff and their manager steve

"yeah well eddie's stuck in the studio for another hour and the guys wanted me to come watch them rehearse so here i am" you joked and he chuckled

"well i'm very glad you got to see us perform a little bit of our song" he said

"me too, i'm excited to see it on stage in a month when tour starts" you admitted, tucking your hair behind your ear while nikki gave you a confused look

"wait are you coming with us?" he asked and you nodded

"uh yeah i'm staying with eddie for the entire tour" you smiled and he did a slow nod and pursed his lips

"good to know" he said with a smirk when you heard tommy yell "sixx! we're doing girls now!"

"that's my cue... maybe you should stick around and watch us play, i'm very good at doing girls" he winked at you before turning around and walking back to where his bass sat

it didn't click until you heard the intro to their hit girls girls girls, that you understood the joke and for a second you felt stupid before you realized that nikki was hitting on you again... was he always this persistent with every other girl he's ever slept with? not like it mattered anyways, you were with eddie, and the happiest you've ever been

before you can fathom another thought about nikki, talking to you, the door swung open, and you saw eddie and dougie, walking in with smiles plastered on their faces

eddie immediately walked up to you and gave you the biggest kiss and wrapped his arms around you

"hey you still had like half an hour left before you had to be here?" you questioned with a laugh and he pulled back to look at you

"it's crazy, i just was able to sing every perfect note with the right amount of energy and dougie just knew the exact notes of what to play to help me and it was like everything just clicked and we finally nailed it, so now i can watch the rest of their rehearsal with you" he smiled, lacing your finger together

your heard the drums starting up along with the guitars and bass, and took eddie to one of the couches facing the set up as vince started singing

you've heard this song at least a thousand times, and you liked it too, but as you were sitting with eddie's arm around you, half your back leaned into his chest, it was hard to watch them perform with nikki's eyes fixed on you

this might be a long tour... you thought to yourself

——

the past week had been a blur with traveling all up and down the east coast, but you were finally in New York City, after a month into the tour

you were hanging out in the dressing room while corroded coffin did their sound check

you heard their songs being played in a row so many times within the past month that you took the opportunity to hang out in the dressing room and get a moment to yourself

you had just flipped, open a new magazine, and lay down on one of the plush couches in the room when there is a knock at the door, and before you could even get up to answer it, it was none other than Nikki walking into the room

"oh shit hey sorry didn't know you were in here" he laughed, attempting to turn around to walk out when you got up

"oh, no, it's fine, i just needed a break from everything, god this tour has been so hectic... i don't even know how you can put up with it all" you joked and he chuckled

"with this my dear" he laughed and pulled out a small bottle that you immediately recognized

"ah yeah right" you said, awkwardly smiling at him as he sat down at the table across from you

you aren't uncomfortable with drugs, as your boyfriend used to be a dealer back when you two were in high school but you've never actually seen anyone snort anything right in front of you

"want some?" he asked as he set it up on the table and you shook your head

"no thanks i'm good" you said as he took out a card from his pocket

he did his business and as his head came up, he looked at you, his eyes looking straight into yours

"what?" you asked, secretly praying that he wasn't somehow going to just OD right in front of you with how long he was staring at you before he finally spoke, which calmed your nerves

"i don't know why the fuck i can't stop thinking about you, but jesus christ i've fucked every girl i wanted, and yet you're still on my mind..." he said, fiddling with the card in his hand

you looked at him with raised eyebrows before you finally found the courage to speak again

"oh wow uhm... that's blunt" you choked out

"i'm that type of guy" he said before taking in another line

"listen nikki-"

"god even the way you say my name is so hot" he breathed out and you found yourself blushing yet again at his words

"i will admit years ago before i met eddie... i had the biggest crush on you and yes if i wasn't in the the most amazing loving relationship with eddie and these were all different circumstances, then it probably would've happened, but that's not what's going on and honestly, i highly doubt you'll even remember this conversation in a few hours" you finally said as he just stared at you

the tension was so thick you could chop it with an ax, and it would still be there, but eventually he leaned up from a seat, and took another line before falling back into his chair

"if i could turn back time" he started to sing and you let out a laugh

"if i could find a way" he continued

"oh now you're gonna try and seduce me with cher?" you joked and he let out a laugh

"no just manifesting i build a time machine and go back in time" he said, staring at the ceiling

"you know, for someone who likes to sleep around and not commit or come off as anything more than being a sexual partner to the opposite sex, you do have very romantic words" you admitted with a laugh and he shook his head with a smile

"i think tommy and his stupid hopeless romanticness is rubbing off on me" he laughed and you smiled

you heard cheers and screams from outside your door when it burst open to see a very wet corroded coffin barging into the room

"oh my god babe it started raining when we were outside on the stage and so after we finished up the last song we ran around on the grass and it was the most amazing thing!" eddie yelled walking to you and shaking his hair like a wet dog

"agh! babe!" you squealed with a laugh as he went to pick you up

you turned to run so he wouldn't pick you up to get you all wet but as you did, you fell right into nikki who was getting up

you landed on him he sat in the chair, your bum pressed against his crotch perfectly

"shit sorry!" you said, scrambling to get up

"don't ever apologize for getting this close to me" he quickly whispered, looking into your eyes before you got up, looking at eddie who had his head flipped over as he dried his long hair with a towel

"see you tonight boys! have a good show!" nikki yelled before giving you one last glance and headed out the door

—

it was an hour before showtime, and you sat with Eddie on the small loveseat in the dressing room, pretending to be in your own little bubble before you had to share your boyfriend with the rest of the world well the rest of the boys were trying to hype each other up and blasting the radio

you ended up telling him about everything that happened with nikki that day, and you sat there feeling guilty for no reason when eddie grabbed your hand and locked his fingers with yours

"y/n there's no reason to feel bad, i'm just thankful o have a girlfriend that's loyal enough to me that when nikki sixx is hitting on her, she doesn't cave, especially when you had the biggest crush on him... i love you and i trust you and just know that nothing you do will ever change that for me" he said, looking at you, bringing his other hand up to gently stroke your cheek

"i love you too eds" you said, immediately feeling better, and you wrapped your arms around his neck and the two of you switched positions so you could lay down together

"and honestly if you're feeling uncomfortable, i have no problem fighting him, he'll probably be too doped up to even realize he's in a fight" he joked causing you to laugh

"thanks but babe have you ever actually won a fight outside DnD?" you questioned and his face dropped into an expression of confusion and thinking

"uh not technically, well this one time-" you cut him off by kissing him and the second you pulled away, you could see the enamoration and love he has for you wash over his face

"when do we stop in Vegas?" you asked and he looked away for a moment as he thought about the schedule

"uh maybe like 2 weeks from tomorrow i think our show is there? why?" he asked and you smiled

"i think we should get married" you said as a smile grew on eddie's face

"you want to elope?" he asked and you nodded

"the whole nikki thing made me further realize that the only man i ever want to be with for the rest of my life is you eds, and i think it'll be romantic just the two of us together"

"sounds like a plan" he said ecstatically, kissing you

"wait what about nancy? didn't you and her already start planning wedding stuff, aren't you each others maids of honor or something?" eddie asked you once you pulled away

"what she doesn't know can't hurt her" you joked

soon enough, it was time for the boys to go on stage, and you kissed Eddie one last time before he ran from the side of the stage into the center as the music started to play

——

you had just finished corroded coffin's set and were in the middle of watching mötley crüe's set, standing in the private section of the crowd to catch a couple of their songs before you headed back to the tour bus

"this next one goes out to someone in particular, hope you know i remembered the conversation babe" nikki said as the beginning of 'you're all i need' started to play

you looked at eddie, who was looking right at you and you both let out a small laugh, knowing about the conversation you had with nikki earlier and how you believed that he wouldn't even realize what he said till just now

"you know i love this song" you joked as you moved his arms around your waist and yours around his neck

you were pulled in close to eachother, enjoying the song as you stared into each others eyes and stealing kisses from eachother, feeling like the only two people in the arena

"yeah, i know you" he smiled

"you could probably write a better ballad that's all about me" you said and eddie shook his head with a smile

"don't you think nikki will be upset i'll have my own personal love song dedicated to only you as your wonderful, soon to be husband?" eddie said with a laugh and you let out a chuckle

"what he doesn't know can't hurt him" you smiled

fin.

[cruesuffix]

Ok, as per my last ask I’ve been directed to a nice little site full of reports from groupies about rockstars (how good they are in bed…etc) so below I’ve screenshotted the ones about the crue…it’s kinda funny ngl

Warning: nsfw (be prepared!!)

this is just nasty LMAOO “the faces on money look younger than mick” EVIL!!! also nobody having any reports on mick…no one was fucking with that man fr. who’s willing to take one for the team and get the deets (me, it’s me old man pick me pls sir give me a chance!!!)

idek where to begin with this one. “has the build of eric cartman from south park” IM DYING!!! the groupies were NOT feeling vincent i fear. this is coming from someone who was fucked over by vince ROYALLY. they have some deep seeded hatred for this man and im kinda living for it.

didn’t even say anything, just started listing his accomplishments I can’t- I mean you don’t really need to say anything, we all know. (still would have loved a bit of commentary)

also not a lot of detail, but better than tommy tbh. between what’s been said about the other and then nikki…sounds like he’s logged into his secret acc to brag (jk…or am I??)

Bonus

we have izzy just cause vince caught another stray for no reason lmaoo like I said this person HATED his ass.

Finally, here’s a list of the Crüe members on how likely I would have slept with them if I was a groupie in the 80’s

1. Mick - because unlike these groupies, he would have been the only person I would have pursued. yes he’s still a man, but he would have been much more respectful than the rest of the guys

2. Nikki - might come as a surprise seeing as though I’ve been an avid nikki disliker on this blog but…how can I say no to a man that gives “great oral?” I would have just taped his mouth shut so I wouldn’t have to hear him talk, that’s all.

3. Tommy - like that person said, do I have to say anything? although, I’d probably have to knock back a couple of drinks to do it.

4. Vince - not because he has the shape of eric cartman (can’t believe they’d say that lmaoo) but because he has the EGO of eric cartman…and that’s even scarier.

Ok, that’s all…thanks for letting me yap a bit!

(btw if you want the link to this, it’s on sparkle-jump-broke-queen’s blog just scroll a bit!)

[deke-rivers-1957]

Charro! Review

Before Elvis could start filming, numerous changes were made to the script. Everyone who has heard of this movie knows about a cut opening scene featuring female nudity as well as the director having other violent scenes cut. Elvis himself was disappointed that the script he accepted ended up changing by the time he got on set.

Fans however were disappointed for other reasons. They supposedly didn't like that Charro! only had one song. A soundtrack album couldn't even be made due to only 2 songs being recorded with one of them not even being used in the movie. Critics were also unhappy as they considered it to be a cheap attempt at a western and panned Elvis for his dull acting. But were those the real reasons why this movie is considered to be his least viewed? Did this movie genuinely fail to live up to the standards Western moves established before them, or was it judged too harshly for not living up to expectations of both Western fans and Elvis fans? Let's find out.

"Charro" is a quintessential Western intro song. The score as a whole is a hit and it wasn't a surprise at all to see Hugo Montenegro was the composer. He is after all famous for his "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" theme cover that reached the #2 spot in US charts June of 1968. I personally don't even mind that this is the only song in the movie that plays as Elvis rides a horse into town. It would've made the movie too hokey if it was stylized as a typical Elvis vehicle.

I love the town's aesthetic. The scenery throughout the whole movie is amazing and I'm so glad they filmed on location throughout Arizona and not simply use rear screen projection. Jess speaking in Spanish so the other patrons don't get hurt is a nice touch. Even though the situation was obvious, it was great to see a character moment where he didn't want to assume anything.

Billy Roy getting slapped adds a level of corny that's sprinkled throughout what's an otherwise serious film. It's very odd to have his line delivery sound the way it does then not even a minute later, Jess is being held at gunpoint to mount his horse. While it's true that even serious movies can have some comedic moments, the nature of this comedy here only feels out of place.

Jess' relationship with Vince is very odd. Vince claims that he's upset that Jess left because of Tracy but I personally don't think that's the only reason. Jess claims that he left because he felt that there was no future with Vince. I don't believe that either. There's a certain amount of complexity would give us a greater insight to their character motivations.

Vince reveals that he stole Emperor Maximilian's cannon. Now his reasoning for getting Jess Wade involved makes absolutely no sense. Vince says that one of their buddies got shot in the neck. So Jess would be framed, they put out his name and branded him so he'd have the matching scar. There are a lot of factors that would have to work in Vince's favor for this plan to work. You are more likely to die from a gunshot wound to the neck given the amount of blood vessels in that area and the lack of fat covering the area. To avoid death by blood loss, let alone infection since this is the late 1800s, you would need an act of God to help you.

Vince's plan only works because the writers says it does which leads to a lot of problems down the line. The biggest issue being that he expects everyone who sees the poster to immediately associate Jess' new scar with a gunshot wound. I know the scar is makeup and might not fully reflect the injury Jess is supposed to have, but if we're assuming what we see is what the characters see, I don't think they would see a branding scar and realistically think it's a gunshot wound. Again based on the setting, people should know what a gunshot wound would look like and how it would damage the surrounding skin. Even if they're not a doctor, they at least would have functional enough eyes to know the difference.

I love the scene of Jess taming the horse but man is it obvious at times that Elvis isn't actually riding it. However, him getting water from a muddy river is the scariest thing I've ever seen. Knowing that in real life, water like that would cause so many problems like cholera or dysentery, Jess probably is God for somehow not coming down with either of those illnesses. It's even worse when you notice that he wiped that same water on his wound. Granted a burn wound from a branding iron isn't exactly an open wound, but it still doesn't mean there's no chance of an infection. Unless the writers specifically wanted Jess to use dirty water to wipe his wounds, I would've changed how it was shot so the water didn't look obviously undrinkable.

Now what is absolutely amazing was the weather effects. Seeing Jess having to ride his horse while a dust storm is forming is incredible. I have no idea if they purposely created a dust storm or if the camera crew manage to capture the perfect moment. Either way it's nice to see that this was the real life middle of the desert as opposed to using a soundstage. Having that atmosphere really draws you into the movie. I almost wish it was filmed in that classic black in white film to really capture that old, gritty Western aesthetic.

I love Jess' relationship with Sheriff Ramsey. Even though we don't know the full details, you can tell there's some type of mentorship role involved. It's especially clear that the sheriff is meant to be a grounding figure in Jess' life given how they emphasize the numerous lectures he had to listen to. Even when the sheriff chews out Jess for getting involved with Vince again, he at least believes him when Jess said it wasn't his choice.

Now Jess' relationship with Tracy really falls flat for me. I don't even care that her nude scene is cut, they just have no chemistry. Tracy in general not trusting Jess despite kissing him makes no sense. Especially when she's going on about how Jess is worse than Vince when she doesn't even give him a chance to tell his side of things. It only makes her look flakey to have her chew Jess out and not trust him, only to give him a gun as a means of helping him. I know she's conflicted on what to believe, but it would be best to frame it as a conflict and not something she's so adamant about.

Billy Roy shows up at the saloon and I have no idea what to make of it. He acts all sinister with Marcie yet also acts like a complete ham with Jess. Everyone knows he's part of Vince's gang yet none of the men do anything about it. Tracy is the only one who outright confronts him about his presence being unwanted and Jess only gets involved when he's called out.

Sheriff Ramsey getting shot should've never happened. You mean to tell me there wasn't a single person in that saloon with a gun that could've done something? No one knows about Vince having the cannon so they should have no reason to be afraid. This is an example of an idiot plot where the plot only works because the writers purposely make everyone dumb or inactive. The men dragging Billy Roy to the jail shows just how easy it should be to deal with one person.

I have no idea why we're supposed to think Sheriff Ramsey's wounds are considered fatal. Perhaps it's because the visuals don't fully reflect the extent of his injuries since it's only makeup, but I don't think it was that bad. The "bullet wounds" to me doesn't indicate that he'll die from blood loss. If anything, he's more likely to die from the infections brought on by Opie trying to dig the bullets out.

Sheriff Ramsey swears Jess in as his deputy. The fact that there's multiple witnesses shows that this is official. Since Jess is now in charge what does he do? Actively passes out rifles to the business owners so they can protect their property. And to think most of the town doesn't trust him because he was part of Vince's gang. I can understand being wary of Jess, but once he's actively taking the time to ensure the town's safety, tensions should've gone down. Especially since literally anyone could verify with Sheriff Ramsey that he sworn Jess in himself.

It's now daybreak and we get an idea of how small Vince's gang really is. Unless there's a whole bunch of people offscreen, I can only count a total of less than 10 men including Vince and Billy Roy. Vince freaking out about his brother being gone and one of his guys saying "I didn't wanna wake youuuuu" is one of the funniest line deliveries in this movie. I can't take anything he does seriously because there's just a lot of mood whiplash between him slapping someone then immediately apologizing like nothing happened. Then again it's possible that Vince was purposely supposed to be this way as a way to showcase how scary he really is. That unlike Billy Roy, Vince is capable of having normal human emotions so showing that he's still willing to commit a significant amount of atrocities for money makes him even more dangerous.

Tracy sees Jess at the barber's shop and immediately scolds him for leaving Billy Roy unguarded and not having armed men on the roofs. I have no idea why Tracy genuinely thinks Jess is that stupid to leave Billy Roy alone and leave the rest of the town unarmed. I actually chuckled when she realized that she was wrong because it's hilarious how for someone who's supposed to love Jess, she has absolutely no faith in him.

Because this issue happens throughout the movie, I'm only going to mention it here to avoid repetition. Vince being allowed to ride freely in town is the most nonsensical thing I've ever seen. The townsfolk know that he's dangerous. There's a bunch of them and only one of him. Jess gave them guns for a reason so why aren't they using them? Unless Jess specifically gave them orders to not shoot unless fired at first, there shouldn't be anything stopping them.

The fact that he's even allowed to be in the jail shows just how unclear his status is in this town. His plan to turn that cannon onto the town if Billy Roy isn't set free only showcases that he shouldn't just be allowed to roam freely. So Jess makes the active decision to do absolutely nothing. Even if we're supposed to infer that he needs Vince alive, why couldn't he use his power as Deputy Sheriff to arrest him? He literally admitted in plain English that he's going to commit an act of terrorism against the town. I would think that is a big enough of a crime to put him in jail so he can't carry out that plan.

The Mexican Army arrives and Vince threatens to rat Jess out. Jess meanwhile, continues to do nothing but threaten him back into convincing them to leave. So Vince decides to lead the Mexican Army away from Jess by leading them right to a pass that results in them all getting blasted by a cannon fire. What's lost on me is that this whole scene was kept in despite being the most violent scene in the movie. I know that we needed to know why the Mexican Army just disappears but how can you claim to want a film that isn't very violent yet keep a scene that features a mass murder?

Meanwhile, absolutely nothing is being done to prepare for an evacuation. Sheriff Ramsey's the only one with sense by telling Jess to not be a coward and give into Vince's demands. It's funny how immediately after his wife is like "don't let my husband convince you to let him die because he can't be moved. Set Billy Roy free" as if that would solve everything. Vince turning the cannon onto the town already proved that he's someone who can't be reasoned with. There's absolutely no proof that simply letting his brother go would make him not attack the town. Evacuating the town is the easiest solution to have Jess not give in and let a potential terrorist get what he wants.

It's honestly incredible how Jess is the one who's blamed when Sheriff Ramsey is killed by falling debris, when Vince is right there in front of them. Vince is the one who can tell his men to not fire. Vince is the one who gave them the ultimatum to let Billy Roy go when his actions got the sheriff injured in the first place. But no it's all Jess' fault. If you're going to blame Jess for anything, blame him for not doing anything to stop Vince when he was well within his power as the Deputy Sheriff to do something.

Mrs. Ramsey bringing out the posters as if he's a liar the whole time is pointless. No one in the town except Sheriff Ramsey ever fully trusted him, so bringing out the poster doesn't change anything. If anything it should show how irrational she is from grief because she actually believes it to be true without questioning anything. Tracy even buys into this idea despite supposedly loving him that it makes me not care that she apologized. I feel nothing for their relationship because even though she kisses him, at the end of the day, she didn't have his back when he needed it.

Despite Jess being gone, Mrs. Ramsey still thinks he's a rat when the cannon still fires on the town. What makes it even worse is that, she herself says that Billy Roy being let go might result in the cannon fire ending. Meaning despite being so adamant that Jess should rot for not letting him go, even she isn't sure about it ending. And yet after all this cannon fire, no one leaves town. The amount inaction when there doesn't need to be is so baffling. Unless Vince somehow has invisible guards keeping everyone but Jess and Billy Roy in the town, there's no reason for them to still be there.

It's now night time and Jess has Billy Roy handcuffed around some tree branches. I love the amount of tension in this showdown. The look in Jess' eyes when he sees the cannon rolling down into Billy Roy is amazing acting. Even though the whole series of events that resulted in Billy Roy's death could've been executed better, it doesn't take away from the genuine look of helplessness on Jess' face. As soon as he took in what was happening, he knew there was nothing he can do to stop it. And he felt absolutely guilty about. It once again shows that just because Jess is this stoic character, he's not a man who is completely unable of expressing emotion.

As much as I understand people thinking it's weak for Vince to still be alive at the end of the movie, this was the best way to go. When you look at his relationship with his brother, you know that the worst thing you can do to him is to let him live. Forcing Vince to live with the guilt that his actions caused Billy Roy to die, would be an even better comeuppance than simply killing him. Plus Jess realistically still needs Vince alive so he can have his name cleared of all charges. Killing him wouldn't have helped him accomplish that. On the opposite side, I love how Vince curses out Jess Wade but when he sees the man right in front of him, he does nothing. It shows that Vince is so broken by this death, that killing Jess wouldn't have changed anything. It wouldn't have brought his brother back. So he gives up knowing he has nothing left to live for.

I don't like how the townsfolk all apologize because it feels forced. Mrs. Ramsey especially going as far as to kiss Jess leaves a bad taste in my mouth since she was the reason why everyone ganged up on Jess in the first place. Even Tracy's part feels forced because of how she didn't show a level of loyalty that would make a happy ending feel earned. At least Jess got to ride off into the proverbial sunset knowing his name will be cleared.

The sad thing about this movie is that it had a lot of chances to be good. The concept of a man having to clear his name over a crime he didn't commit is a classic story for a reason. The problem is that the path the writers chose to get there had more holes than the town Vince attacked. It's incredible how one little detail can result in so much chaos. I'm well aware that a novelization exists, but since it was released separately from the movie, I'm not including that in my opinion. To me, a novelization of a movie shouldn't have to make up for details that weren't included in the movie.

Despite all of my criticisms, I still give this movie an 8/10. Even though some of the acting is corny, Elvis' portrayal of Jess Wade is amazing. I know it's a common criticism that Elvis' acting was flat. That. Was. The. Point. Jess is meant to contrast the chaotic nature that is Vince and Billy Roy because he's a man that has done wrong in the past but now wants to better himself. So why do I think this movie failed compared to Elvis' more musical ones? It's because it's a victim of circumstances. Westerns have been done to death and Clint Eastwood was the biggest contemporary name in that genre since John Wayne. Even though Elvis did a great job, he just didn't stand a chance because the heart of what makes a good Western story was lost.

An: Thank you @xanatenshi for requesting this. I understand why he has a following since Elvis did a great job portraying him. If I didn't tag you and you left a note on my previous reviews, please let me know and I'll be sure to tag you for Jess Wade's rank and my next review announcement.

Tagging: @whositmcwhatsit, @hooked-on-elvis, @smokeymountainboy, @atleastpleasetelephone, @stitchlover0112,

@tupelomiss, @vintagepresley, @eapep, @almightybigbrain, @coltswael,

@cieloestrelladoluna, @huhhhhsthings, @arrolyn1114, @peaceloveelvis, @peskybedtime,

@mercsandmonsters, @tacozebra051, @valloos, @ilovequeen978, @elvisvideos,

@presleyhearted, @depressedfairie, @kawaiiwitchy, @swingdownsweetchariot, @ruggednessworld,

@southcarolinawoman, @atrophyingaphrodite, @jrbrandi13, @summer56, @elvismylove04,

@eptodaytommorowforever, @lookingforrainbows, @araiarts, @fharysa, @lett-them-eatt-cake,

@fryb0rg, @wanderlustingtomboy, @slayingjd, @wildhorseinkansas, @somethingaboutelvis,

@jhoneybees, @elvisbooty76, @iloveelvisss, @presleyheart, @anakinsvault,

@illtakeyouhomeagain, @callieselvisobsessed, @50sexyshadesfashionista, @memphisflash, @arianatheangel-girl,

@madslovesmaws, @lucy114505, @presleygarden, @earthbaby-angelboy and @nicferg068.

[defjux]

Here's 100 of the albums from 2024 that i''ve enjoyed the most: 50 hip hop records, and 50 albums in other genres. There's still a ton of stuff I haven't gotten to yet or need to revisit, but i'm feeling pretty good about this and don't think too much would change aside from the order. Insane year for music overall, and surely there will still be some big releases in the next two months. Biggest surprise for me was definitely The Cure making a comeback after almost two decades and putting out their best album since Wish. I'm also convinced that Robert Smith is an actual vampire. he still sounds great after all this time. Charts with album titles included Again, i'm sure there's plenty of stuff that has gone under the radar for me so as always i'm open to recommendations. Let me know what your favorite records are, i'd genuinely like to know. I'll post the list of albums below, and maybe at the end of the year will do some kind of spotify playlist with one or two songs from each. Peace.

Hip hop:

ELUCID - REVELATOR

Ka - The Thief Next To Jesus

AKAI SOLO - DREAMDROPDRAGON

Mach-Hommy- #RICHAXXHAITIAN

Cavalier - Different Type Time

The Fortunate Ones - RESIN

Armand Hammer - BLK LBL

Dead Players - Faster Than the Speed of Death

ShrapKnel - Nobody Planning To Leave

Sunmundi & klwn cat - Lived and Born

Desert Camo - Desert Camo

Nakama - EMBERGO_

Lee Scott - To Tame A Dead Horse

Joshua Virtue - Black Box: JOSHUA IS DEAD

Freddie Gibbs - You Only Die ince

Navy Blue - Memoirs in Armour

Phiik & Lungs - Carrot Season

Nickelus F - MMCHT

Nuse Tyrant - Juxtaposed Echoes

Mary Sue - Voice Memos From A Winter In China

DJ Muggs & Raz Fresco - The Eternal Now

Revival Season - Golden Age of Self Snitching

Midnight Sons - Money Has No Owners

Tyler, the Creator - Chromakopia

Sasco - The Hottest Year on Record

Boldy James & Conductor Williams - Across The Tracks

Hester Valentine - Valenta

Mavi - Shadowbox

Serengeti - KDIV

JPEGMAFIA - I LAY DOWN MY LIFE FOR YOU

Rap Man Gavin & postureless - Memories, Dreams, Reflections

yungmorpheus - WAKING UP AND CHOOSING VIOLENCE

Sadistik & Maulskull - Oblivion Theater

Roc Marciano - MARCIOLOGY

R.A.P. Ferreira - the First Fist to Make Contact When We Dap

Deca & Dealz - Bough

Nxworries - WHY LAWD?

Oddisee - And Yet Still

Rich Jones & SINAI. - Sour Dub

Lupe Fiasco - Samurai

Noveliss & Hir-O - Cyberpunk Rhapsody

Cavalier & Quelle Chris - Death Tape 2: We Gon' Need Each Other

Killah Priest - Abraxas Rebis Simha Pleroma

Vince Staples - Dark Times

Kooley High & Tuamie - All Infinite

MIKE & Tony Seltzer - Pinball

Daniel Son & Futurewave - BUSHMAN BODEGA

Vic Spencer & August Fanon - Psychological Cheat Sheet 5

Jack Jetson & Illinformed - Winter Forever

bromethugzine - THUG ZINE issue 002: WORLD-SPIRIT

Everything else:

Chelsea Wolfe - She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She

Iglooghost - Tidal Memory Exo

chat pile - Cool World

Frail Body - Artificial Bouquet

The Cure - Songs Of A Lost World

Trauma Ray - Chameleon

Terry Green - PROVISIONAL LIVING

Gouge Away - Deep Sage

Thou - Umbilical

ØKSE - ØKSE

Tenue - Arcos, bóvedas, pórticos

Krallice - Inorganic Rites

Nala Sinephro - Endlessness

Punchlove - Channels

Milton Nascimento & Esperanza Spalding - Milton + esperanza

Arooj Aftab - Night Reign

Hammok - Look How Long Lasting Everything Is Moving Forward For Once

Blood Incantation - Absolute Elsewhere

Crumb - AMAMA

Kamasi Washington - Fearless Novement

Fievel Is Glauque - Rong Weicknes

Camila Bañados - Viento 1.

julie - my anti-aircraft friend

Oranssi Pazuzu - Muuntautuja

Skee Mask - Resort

Mary Halvorson - Cloudward

Infant Island - Obsidian wreath

Blushing - Sugarcoat

Godspeed You! Black Emperor - NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD

MAGDALENA BAY - Imaginal Disk

Leaving Time - Angel in the Sand

Joel Ross - nublues

Both Gibbons - Lives Outgrown

geordie greep - The New Sound

Nilüfer Yanya - My Method Actor

Nails - Every Bridge Burning

Hiatus Kaiyote Love Heart Cheat Code

Liana Flores Flower of the soul

Babii - Daredeviil2000

Blind Girls - An Exit Exists

HERIOT - Devoured by the Mouth of Hell

Julia Holter - Something in the Room She Moves

Cindy Lee - Diamond Jubilee

Melt-Banana - 3+5

Ulcerate - Cutting The Throat Of God

Spirit of the Beehive - YOU'LL HAVE TO LOSE SOMETHING

Hannah Frances - Keeper of the Shepherd

Ginger Root -Shinbanguni

Martha Skye Murphy - Um

Pluma - Não Leve a Mal

[bellysoupset]

OMG, the strep throat fix is so good!! Any chance for a part 2???!

LETS GOOOOO

Part 2 bc I thought of a way to use it for Part 3 🙈 Queen of self control.

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

"This is so embarrassing," Leo grumbled, rolling on the couch and pressing his feverish face to Jonah's tummy, voice coming out even more muffled by his sweater.

He felt, more than heard, his boyfriend chuckle, a hand resting on Leo's shoulder. The movement caused the sweater to slightly suffocate him, which would've been fine any other day, but given that he could only breathe through his mouth since his nose was stuffed, it caused a coughing fit and Leo sprung up.

He coughed and coughed until his ribs hurt, a horrible taste flooding his mouth and his head spinning from the lack of oxygen. The hot soup he had had for dinner tickling his throat, but Leo swallowed it back down.

It was embarrassing enough that he had crashed into Wendy's apartment five hours earlier than he should be, sick, and had caused Vince to stay behind from hanging out with his girlfriend. It was mortifying that he had to shower in her private bathroom, just to bring the fever down. Leo didn't want to add throwing up in her couch to the list of offenses.

"Here," Wendy's voice broke through the fog and Leo wiped at his eyes. It felt like they were burning and his head was throbbing. He really wanted to go home, but after all the stress he had put Jonah through in the morning, Leo was willing to sit around since the other man seemed to be genuinely enjoying himself.

Normally Vince's personality — earnest, warm, positive —, brought out all the sass Jonah had. It wasn't that he didn't love the guy, Leo knew damn well that wasn't case, it was just that he couldn't help the sarcasm with someone who was so sincere. However, that wasn't the case today.

Leo wasn't sure if the fever was playing tricks on him, but it seemed like Jon had forgotten his walls at the door... He had missed Vince, even if he would never say it out loud.

"What?" Leo asked tiredly, pressing the heel of his hand to his forehead and rubbing at it, as if he could remove the pain. Wendy sat near his foot on the couch, holding a metal tin.

"I knew I had this somewhere," she said, showing him the case and Leo stared at it, his brain refusing to cooperate.

"Vicks VapoRub?" Jonah sounded amused, "that's some mum stuff."

Wendy rolled her eyes at him, opening the tin, "lean back, Leo," she instructed and Leo frowned, instead of obeying.

He blinked owlishly at her, "I'm fine," the rasp sounded ridiculous even to his own ears and Jonah let out a scoff, while Wendy completely ignored him, pushing him back against his boyfriend.

"Get his shirt?" She asked, grabbing a dollop of the gel and Leo's frown deepened as he felt Jonah's hands pulling his shirt up.

"What the- No!" Leo whined when Wendy promptly smeared the gel on his naked chest. His whole face burnt with embarrassment and he brought his hands up, angrily covering his face, "this is so humiliating."

"You're really not my type, don't worry," Wendy teased him, "I don't do blondes," she continued to spread the gel around. Leo felt Jon press a kiss to his temple, but he still didn't pull back his hand, hoping the ground would open and swallow him. He couldn't believe he was getting rubbed down by Wendy, of all people.

"Shut up," Leo groaned, then whined when Jon pushed his hands down. Wendy was grinning at him, her cheeks pink and her green eyes alight with mischief.

"Leo, relax," she rubbed the gel up to his clavicle, her cold fingers making goosebumps spring up and causing Leo to blush even more, if that was possible. He was sure he looked great, swimming in an old sweats set from Vince, with the large sweat shirt all but tucked under his chin; His hair had dried all weird and was sticking out as if he was part of a grunge rock band, and now Wendy was sitting near his hip, lathering him in minty gel.

He let out a heavy sigh and sniffled grossly, reaching to wipe at his raw nose with the sleeve, only for Jonah to manifest a soft tissue in front of him.

"D-anks," Leo mumbled, blowing his nose again and clutching the tissue in a fist when the action caused his head to swim again. He groaned and slumped on Jon's shoulder, breathing through his mouth, "this is horrible."

"I know," Jonah continued to hold him, almost halfway across his lap like an overgrown baby, "let's head home?"

Yes, Leo thought, but he could clearly tell Jon did not want a positive answer. Not with how large he was smiling. He shook his head no, closing his eyes.

"In a bit," Leo said, shivering as Wendy tugged his sweatshirt down and then the minty cream started to warm up his skin and unclog his nose. He cuddled up even closer to Jonah as he could, trying to melt in his arms.

"So you were saying about school?" Jon said, his voice a note lower, rumbling in his chest, "how are the kids treating you?"

"The little ones are easy," Vince answered and Leo heard a squeal, probably him grabbing Wendy and causing her to fall on his lap, on the opposite couch, "the seniors are a bit of an issue. I don't think they give much of a fuck about my class at all."

"I mean, I sure didn't give a fuck about my history classes," Jonah teased him, while Wendy interrupted with a delighted sigh.

"Tell him about the pies," Leo could clearly hear the smile in her voice and the smugness in Vince's as he answered.

"I got five different moms bringing me pie this week, as a welcoming gift to the school board."

Jonah laughed, "you're already getting bribes?"

"Not bribes," Wendy sounded more smug than Vince, "they're flirting with him."

"No way," Jonah, incredulous, eagerly sitting up and causing Leo to groan as it moved him. Immediately Jonah settled back down, combing his fingers through his hair, "sorry, sorry- No way?"

"Yes, way," Wendy scoffed, "he's the new hot teacher, did you expect anything less?"

"Hot is an overstatement," Jonah teased, while Vince chuckled.

"Go fuck yourself, Banks- Leo, do you want a blanket?"

Leo was nearly drifting off, but almost as if he had missed a step in a set of stairs, he jerked from the slumber, forcing his eyes open. His stomach felt weird and his head cottony, vision slightly fuzzy as he rolled on the couch in order to see his friend.

True to what he had guessed, Vince was sitting in the other couch, with Wendy perched on his thigh.

"Whaa-"

"Do you want a blanket?" Vin repeated the question, looking concerned and before Leo could nod in agreement, Jon interrupted.

"He's still really warm, better not."

Leo whined, whole face scrunching up. He was freezing. He dug his feet on the couch, burying them in the crack between futons, and curled up, trying to prove that he did need a blanket. Lucas would've gotten him one.

"No, he wouldn't," Jonah answered him with a huff and Leo frowned, confused and blinking drowsily, all his limbs feeling heavy.

"Uh...?"

"Go to sleep," Jon rolled his eyes, stroking his cheek, "I'll wake you in a bit."

"Mmm'kay," Leo sighed, leaning against the soft touch and vaguely hearing as Vince tried to argue with Jon and Wendy that one blanket surely wouldn't kill him... Then the words all became white noise and all Leo could feel was Jon running his fingers through his hair and suddenly a blanket being tucked around him by rougher, bigger hands.

[layce2015]

Supernatural (Dean Winchester x Female!Reader)

Fear Of Flying

Masterlist / Next Chapter

Jerry was looking through a microscope as Dean and I stand near him. "Sulfur?" Dean asked Jerry, who sighs then nods at him. "Well, that's great." Dean grumbles, annoyed, as I rub my hands over my eyes. "All right, that's two plane crashes involving Chuck Lambert. This demon sounds like it was after him." I said.

"With all due respect to Chuck, if that's the case, that would be the good news." Sam said and we look over at him.

"What's the bad news?" Dean asked him.

"Chuck's plane went down exactly forty minutes into flight. And get this, so did flight 2485." Sam said.

"Forty minutes? What does that mean?" Jerry asked.

"It's biblical numerology. You know Noah's ark, it rained for forty days. The number means death." Dean replied.

"I went back, and there have been six plane crashes over the last decade that all went down exactly forty minutes in." Sam explains.

"Any survivors?" I asked. "No. Or not until now, at least, not until flight 2485, for some reason. On the cockpit voice recorder, remember what the EVP said?" Sam asked. "No survivors." Dean and I said in unison and something hits me. "It's going after all the survivors. It's trying to finish the job." I said.

*****

That night, Dean was driving the Impala as I follow them in my bike. While following them, I start to think that I need to find a safe place to put my bike in. As much as I love to drive this bike around, I wouldn't mind riding in the Impala with the boys and plus to save me gas money. Maybe I can stop at one of the safe houses Dad had bought and put the bike there for safety.

****

We make it to an airport and Sam gives me a rundown of the flight attendant from flight 2485, Amanda, was about to board a new flight. We rush into the airport and check the Departure board. "Right there. They're boarding in thirty minutes." Sam said once we make it inside. "Okay. We still have some cards to play. We need to find a phone." I said then Dean goes and picks up a courtesy phone.

"Hi. Gate thirteen." Dean answers. "I'm trying to contact an Amanda Walker. She's a flight attendant on flight, um...flight 4-2-4." He replied to the person at the other end then he stands there.

"Come on." He mutters, annoyed, as Sam and I stand there. Then Dean jumps then said. "Miss Walker. Hi, this is Dr. James Hetfield from St. Francis Memorial Hospital. We have a Karen Walker here. Nothing serious, just a minor car accident, but she was injured, so—" Dean started to say but pauses.

"You what?" He asked. "Uh, well...there must be some mistake." He said as Sam and I go up to Dean and try to hear what's going on.

"Is this one of Vince's friends?" I hear Amanda's voice asked.

"Guilty as charged." Dean said, smiling.

"Wow. This is unbelievable." Amanda said.

"He's really sorry." Dean said to her.

"Well, you tell him to mind his own business and stay out of my life, okay?" She said, angrily. "Yes, but...he really needs to see you tonight, so—" Dean started to say but Amanda interrupts him. "No, I'm sorry. It's too late." She said.

"Don't be like that. Come on. The guy's a mess. Really. It's pathetic." Dean said. "Really?" Amanda asked.

"Oh, yeah." He said.

"Look, I've got to go. Um...tell him to call me when I land." She said.

"No, no. Wait, Amanda. Amanda!" Dean shouts into the phone but I hear the dial tone.

"Damn it! So close." Dean growls. "All right, it's time for plan B. We're getting on that plane." I said to them and Sam nods. "Whoa, whoa, now just hold on a second." Dean said as he places a hand on my shoulder. I turn to him and see that he's wide-eyed.

"Dean, that plane is leaving with over a hundred passengers on board, and if we're right, that plane is gonna crash." I said to him. "I know." Dean said and I could've sworn I heard his voice shaking.

"Okay. So we're getting on the plane, we need to find that demon and exorcise it. I'll get the tickets. You guys get whatever you can out of the trunk. Whatever that will make it through the security. Meet me back here in five minutes." Sam said and Dean looks between us, anxiously.

*****

"Are you okay?" I asked him, concerned.

"No, not really." He replied.

"What? What's wrong?" Sam asked him.

"Well, I kind of have this problem with, uh..." Dean stammers, anxiously.

"Flying?" Sam and I asked.

"It's never really been an issue until now." He said.

"You're joking, right?" I asked him in disbelief.

"Do I look like I'm joking? Why do you think I drive everywhere, guys?" Dean said, angrily, and I chuckle a bit.

"What?" He asked me.

"Nothing. Just...I never thought I'd see the day where Dean Winchester was afraid of something." I said and had flowers at me. "Shut up." He grumbles.

"All right. Uh, (y/n) and I will go." Sam said to Dean. "What?" He asked. "We'll do this one on our own." Sam said, gesturing between me and him. "Yeah, we can handle it." I said.

"What are you, nuts? You said it yourself, Sam, the plane's gonna crash." Dean said. "Dean, we can do it together, or Sam and I can do this one by ourselves. I'm not seeing a third option, here." I said and I pat Sam's back and we started to leave.

"Come on! Really?" I hear Dean exclaim at us but I look ovef my shoulder and see him following us, reluctantly.

*****

Dean, in the aisle seat, was anxiously reading the safety card while I sat next to him and Sam got the seat behind us. "Just try to relax." I assured him, calmly. "Just try to shut up." He grumbles and then the plane takes off, with Dean jumping at every rumble and sound. I smirk then look behind and see Sam smirking as well and shaking his head.

Dean leans back in his seat, humming to himself. "You're humming Metallica?" I said, disbelieving, "Calms me down." He replies.

"Look, Dean, I get you're nervous, all right? But you got to stay focused." I said to him, firmly and calmly.

"Okay." He said.

"She's right. I mean, we got thirty-two minutes and counting to track this thing down, or whoever it's possessing, anyway, and perform a full-on exorcism." Sam said as he leans over to the side and looks over at Dean. "Yeah, on a crowded plane. That's gonna be easy." Dean remarks.

"Just take it one step at a time, all right?" I said and he looks over at me. "Now, who is it possessing?" I asked the boys. "It's usually gonna be somebody with some sort of weakness, you know, a chink in the armor that the demon can worm through. Somebody with an addiction or some sort of emotional distress." Dean replies.

"Well, this is Amanda's first flight after the crash. If I were her, I'd be pretty messed up." Sam said. "Mm-hm." Dean hums then he turns to a flight attendants.

"Excuse me. Are you Amanda?" He asked her.

"No, I'm not." She replied. "Oh, my mistake." He said and the attendant walks away. Then he looks to the back of the plane. "All right, well, that's got to be Amanda back there, so I'll go talk to her, and, uh, I'll get a read on her mental state." Dean said.

"What if she's already possessed?" Sam asked. "There's ways to test that." said Dean and he goes into his bag and comes out with a Virgin Mary-shaped bottle of water. "I brought holy water." He said and my eyes widen.

"No." I said as I snatch the bottle and tuck it inside my jacket. "I think we can go more subtle. If she's possessed, she'll flinch at the name of God." I said. "Oh. Nice." Dean said then he turns to go.

"Hey." Sam said and Dean turns to him.

"What?" Dean asked.

"Say it in Latin." Sam replied.

"I know." Dean said and he starts to leave but Sam stops him again.

"Hey!" He said.

"What?!" Dean said, annoyed and I try to hold back a chuckle. "Uh, in Latin, it's Christo." Sam said. "Dude, I know! I'm not an idiot!" Dean growls at him and he makes his way back to the plane.

****

Moments later, Dean returns to his seat. "All right, well, she's got to be the most well-adjusted person on the planet." He said once he sits down. "You said Christo?" Sam asked.

"Yeah." Dean replied.

"And?" I asked.

"There's no demon in her. There's no demon getting in her." He said. "So, if it's on the plane, it can be anyone. Anywhere." Sam said just as the plane shakes.

"Come on! That can't be normal!" Dean exclaims.

"Hey, hey, it's just a little turbulence." I said to him.

"(Y/n), this plane is going to crash, okay? So quit treating me like I'm friggin' four." He growls at me and I roll my eyes at him. "Well, maybe quit acting like one." I said and he glares daggers at me and I sigh.

"Look, you need to calm down." I said. "Well, I'm sorry I can't." He said. "Yes, you can." I said to him. "(Y/n), stow the touchy-feely, self-help yoga crap, it's not helping." Dean growls, angry and annoyed.

"Listen, if you're panicked, you're wide open to demonic possession, so you need to calm yourself down. Right now." I said, firmly. "She's right, Dean. We don't need that. So, calm down." Sam said and Dean takes a long, slow breath.

"Good." I said as Sam leans over to the side of the chair. "Now, I found an exorcism in here that I think is gonna work. The Rituale Romanum." He said.

"What do we have to do?" I asked Sam.

"It's two parts. The first part expels the demon from the victim's body. It makes it manifest, which actually makes it more powerful." Sam replied.

"More powerful?" Dean and I said.

"Yeah." Sam said.

"How?" I asked.

"Well, it doesn't need to possess someone anymore. It can just wreak havoc on its own." Sam said. "Oh. And why is that a good thing?" Dean asked. "Well, because the second part sends the bastard back to hell once and for all." Sam said and I nod at this.

"First things first, we got to find it." I said and Dean nods.

****

Dean walks slowly up the aisle with his EMF meter, getting odd looks but no readings. Sam suddenly claps him on the shoulder, and he jumps. "Ah! Don't do that." He said as I come up to them. "Anything?" I asked him.

"No, nothing. How much time we got?" Dean said and Sam looks at his watch.

"Fifteen minutes. Maybe we missed somebody." He said.

"Maybe the thing's just not on the plane." Dean said and I look over at him.

"You believe that?" I asked him. "Well, I will if you will." Dean said but then he looks down as the EMF meter spikes.

"What? What is it?" Sam asked as I look up and see Dean staring at one of the pilots. "Christo." Dean said and the man turns slowly to face us, his eyes are black. Then he goes into the cockpit as the boys and I share a glance.

*****

"She's not gonna believe this." Sam said to Dean as we make our way to the back. "Twelve minutes, dude." Dean mutters as we come up to Amanda.

"Oh, hi. Flight's not too bumpy for you, I hope." She said as she looks between us. "Actually, that's kind of what we need to talk to you about." Dean said and I closes the curtain.

"Um, okay. What can I do for you?" She asked, nervously. "All right, this is gonna sound nuts, but we just don't have time for the whole the truth is out there speech right now." Dean said. "All right, look, we know you were on flight 2485." I said to her and her smile disappears.

"Who are you guys?" She asked us. "Now, we've spoken to some of the other survivors. We know something brought down that plane and it wasn't a mechanical failure." Sam said to her. "We need your help because we need to stop it from happening again. Here. Now." said Dean.

"I'm sorry, I—I'm very busy. I have to go back—" she stammers and she brushes past Dean but I stop her.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait a second. We're not gonna hurt you, okay? But listen to me, uh...The pilot in 2485, Chuck Lambert. He's dead." I said and she looks up at us in shock.

"Wait. What? What, Chuck is dead?" She said, shocked. "He died in a plane crash. Now, that's two plane crashes in two months. That doesn't strike you as strange?" I asked her.

"I—"

"Look, there was something wrong with 2485. Now maybe you sensed it, maybe you didn't. But there's something wrong with this flight, too." Sam said to her. "Amanda, you have to believe us." Dean said to her.

"On...on 2485, there was this man. He...had these eyes." She admits. "Yes. That's exactly what we're talking about." I said to her.

"I don't understand, what are you asking me to do?" She asked us. "Okay. The copilot, we need you to bring him back here." Dean said.

"Why? What does he have to do with anything?" She asked us. "Don't have time to explain. We just need to talk to him. Okay?" I said to her.

"How am I supposed to go in the cockpit and get the copilot—" she said but Sam talks over her. "Do whatever it takes. Tell him there's something broken back here, whatever will get him out of that cockpit." Sam said.

"Do you know that I could lose my job if you—"

"Okay, well you're gonna lose a lot more if you don't help us out." Dean said to her, firmly, and she hesitates. "Okay." She said and she leaves and goes to the cockpit. She knocks on the door and says something to the copilot, who follows her back. Sam pulls out the holy water while Dean pulls out John's journal and hands it to me and I open it.

****

"Yeah, what's the problem?" The copilot asked as he comes in. Dean punches him in the face, knocking him down. He pins him down and puts duct tape over his mouth. "Wait. What are you doing? You said you were just gonna talk to him." Amanda said, freaking out.

"We are gonna talk to him." I said as Dean splashes holy water on his skin, which sizzles.

"Oh, my God. What's wrong with him?" She asked, confused and shocked. "Look. We need you calm. We need you outside the curtain." Sam instructs her.

"Well, I don't underst—I don't know—"

"Don't let anybody in, okay? Can you do that, Amanda?" I asked her. "Okay. Okay." She said, nodding then she leaves.

"Hurry up, Sam. I don't know how much longer we can hold him." Dean said as he and I hold the demon down while Sam looks down at the book and began to read it. "Regna terrae, cantate Deo, psallite Domino—" he said and the demon breaks free briefly and hits all three of us until Dean and I manage to subdue him again. Sam pick up where he left off but the demon knocks Dean off again and pulls the tape off his mouth then knocks me to the side.

Then he grabs Sam by the collar.

"I know what happened to your girlfriend! She must have died screaming! Even now, she's burning!" he taunts as Dean and I recover and we hit the demon as Sam sits there, stunned.

"Sam!" Dean and I shouted and he recovers and begins reading again. He puts the book down and helps us pin down the demon, who kicks the book up the aisle.

"I got him." Sam said but the demon exits the copilot's body and disappears into a vent. "Where'd it go?" I asked, fearfully.

"It's in the plane. Hurry up. We got to finish it." Dean said just as the plane suddenly dips and heaves violently. Sam struggles to retrieve the book as Dean and I splay ourselves against the exit door, Dean began to scream.

Suddenly a bright electrical charge runs through the entire plane, which then levels out. I sighed with relief then looked over at Dean. "You okay?" I asked him and he nods after letting out a few deep breaths. "Yeah, you?" He asked me. "Yeah..." I said, breathless, and he gets up then helps me to my feet. We come out from behind the curtain as we see Sam standing up.

****

The passengers from the flight were disembarking to an area milling with uniformed agents. The copilot was seated in a wheelchair with a blanket wrapped around him, being questioned by an FAA agent. Amanda was being questioned by another agent.

She sees us standing across the way and mouths Thank you to us and we nod at her. "Let's get out of here." Dean said to us and we head for the exit. I looked over at Sam and noticed he had a disturbed look on his face.

"You okay?" I asked and he stops and turns to us. "Guys, it knew about Jessica." he said and I give him a concerned look. "Sam, these things, they, they read minds. They lie. All right? That's all it was." Dean said to his brother.

"Yeah." Sam said in a tone of voice that said he didn't believe that. I frown then I go and hug him, he hugs me back and he buries his face into my shoulder. I patted his back, reassuringly, then I pull back from the hug and smiled at him. "Come on." I said and we head out.

*****

"Nobody knows what you guys did, but I do. A lot of people could have been killed." Jerry said to us as we went to tell him what happened the next day. He goes and shakes our hands. "Your dad would be real proud." Jerry said to me as I go and hug him. "Thanks, man." I said to him.

"We'll see you around, Jerry." Sam said and we head out to our vehicles and drive off.

[womanofwords]

The Poisoned Prodigy (Chapter 2)

The awards ceremony was glittering. The theme for the decorations was stars and constellations. It suddenly made a lot of sense why Patton was wearing this custom-made suit, but it also made me feel even plainer.

"Your tickets," the bouncer droned, giving us a dead-eyed stare.

"Here," Patton said, handing over our tickets. "I was told that I would be allowed to bring a plus one."

"Yep, looks good. In you go," the bouncer grunted, opening the gate for us. We walked into a room decorated to look like the Milky Way galaxy. Planets were projected onto the ceiling. I recognised the planets, but the constellations escaped me. So did Patton.

He was surrounded by other people who all looked better than me. "Patton, you look incredible! Who are you wearing?" someone giggled.

"This is a little something that I made a while ago," Patton giggled, as he played with a button of his. The compliments stampeded over each other like a crowd running in one direction. Patton was incredible. A child genius overlooked and later abandoned by his biological parents, later adopted by his aunt and uncle who took care of him and allowed his intelligence to thrive in a place where it was encouraged.

And here I was, someone who had to study relentlessly just to get a C, the dumbest person in this room by a country mile.

"And this is my best friend, Vincent!" Patton said. "Vincent, come here!"

Everyone was looking at me. I walked over, trying to look presentable. I probably didn't. "Hi," I said, waving at them. "I've . . . never gone to one of these before."

"It's usually more for connecting than anything," said a guy with a forest green suit and a bowl cut parted in the middle. "We're all waiting for the awards, personally."

"Patton truly deserves the award for best invention," another dude said. "He's been working so hard."

The group fell into a cacophonous sound of praise. Everyone loved Patton here. He said he was friends with a few people, but I should have known he was playing it down.

Patton steered me to a table and sat us down just before the main speaker, a woman in a gold dress, began to talk. "Welcome, everyone, wonderful turnout this year," she said, smiling widely at us all. "It's great to see you all. This year, the competition has been stiff, and it has been so difficult to choose who the winners of each category should be."

"Does this part take long?" I whispered to Patton.

"Usually," he whispered back.

"For the first category, we have the arts program. Nominated for the award of best artwork . . ."

"Let me know when your part comes up," I muttered, leaning against Patton's shoulder.

:-)

I must have fallen asleep, because Patton was shaking me awake and wiping drool off my face. "It's my one, Vince! Wake up!" he hissed.

"And now for the category of scientific advancement, we start with nominees," the announcer said. "Addison Raymond, Sally Kinley, and Ernest DuBois."

There was a smattering of polite applause, along with some muttering. Patton rubbed at the back of his neck.

"Ernest will not be taking this well," Patton muttered.

"Why?" I asked him.

"He . . . has some very high standards for himself. And he doesn't like being upstaged by anybody or anything." Patton lowered his voice even more. "He and I have never gotten along. In fact, we clashed a few days before this. He didn't think my prosthetic leg submission was very impressive."

This made me sit up a bit. Drama in a place like Sandalwood? Finally, something interesting. "So he's on some sort of warpath or something?"

"He has a grudge against me. I just hope he doesn't do anything crazy."

"And the winner for the category for scientific advancement is Patton Reynolds!" the speaker announced, to wild cheers. Patton downed his drink and got up to accept his award, stumbling from the number of people slapping him on the back with appreciation.

"Well, Patton, is there anything you'd like to say?" the announcer asked, handing the microphone over to my best friend.

"Only how grateful I am to everyone that's helped me get this far," Patton said. "My aunt and uncle, who couldn't make it, my teachers, who were so patient with me and assured me that I belonged here just as much as anybody else. The friends I -." Patton was interrupted by a coughing fit.

"Some water, Patton?" the announcer offered, shoving a bottle of water into Patton's face.

"Thank you," Patton said, downing half of the bottle and continuing on with his speech once it was put onto the podium. "Anywhere, where was I? Ah, yes, thanking people. I would like to give a special thank you to the friends I made that welcomed me into this fine institute and showed me the ropes." He paused again and clutched his head. "Goodness, my head hurts."

And then Patton fell to the floor.

People gasped and screamed as Patton Reynolds collapsed to the floor with a thud, the microphone screeching into our ears with feedback when it hit the floor.

"Someone call an ambulance!" the announcer said, as people screamed. Some ran away as I rushed to Patton's side. I might not be as smart as everyone else in this room, but I did know that Patton needed to be sat upright so he didn't potentially choke on his own vomit. From there, I did the Heimlich manoeuvre, and chunks of brown puke spluttered out of him like a clogged pipe. No prizes for guessing that it came from the chocolate cake he'd left half-finished when he went up to receive the award.

"I'll keep him upright so he doesn't choke to death on his own puke," I said, propping Patton up. Patton grabbed at me with one arm while drawing laboured, ragged breath into his lungs.

"Ernest DuBois did it," Patton groaned, just before he passed out and just as the terrified announcer had the microphone near his mouth. Gasps and whispers rippled through the audience like a Mexican wave.

"I did not do it to you, you lying little freak!" Ernest yelled, standing up to project his voice. He was rather short, with a tuft of thin blond hair that stuck in the air like old-timey TV antennae. "I don't need to listen to this slander!" He got up and attempted to leave, only to be tackled to the floor by a girl in a dark purple pantsuit.

"That's for poisoning Patton, you jealous little psychopath!" she yelled, as the blond struggled underneath her. More people grabbed at Ernest to hold him for the police, while I waited for the ambulance to arrive for Patton.

"You're doing great," I told Patton, my eyes stinging with tears as I looked at him twitching in my arms and calls were made to poison control. "You're really doing great, Patton."

If you want to read the other chapters, see Masterlist.

[ashintheairlikesnow]

I think it also probably plays a role that Vince and Kauri are a bit too similar for comfort, right? Vince is like a reflection of who Kauri really is, all the trauma and escapism and drug abuse — he is just much worse at hiding it both from others and from himself. It probably doesn’t sit right with Kauri just how much of Vince he sees in himself.

Peel away the self-delusion, and Kauri’s life is just as bleak as Vince’s. Even after Kauri’s escape, Vince is still a living reminder of everything Kauri is trying to run away from. No matter how hard he tries, Kauri is still Vincent Shield. He must hate that.

Let me give you a little somethin'-somethin' that I wrote once but never fit into anything so it just sat in my word docs gathering dust...

-

Vince looks up from the papers spread across the table as the door opens and closes. Nat waves one hand. "Don't worry about it, it's Kauri."

"How can you tell?"

"I know what it sounds like when he comes in." She doesn't elaborate and doesn't look up, either. She highlights, bright yellow line across a series of bolded black numbers. "This is the grant we get that helps cover the cost of food. With the recession, they're cutting the amount we receive by about a third."

"Uh-huh." Vince looks towards the doorway, watching, endlessly curious about the strange hostile clone of himself that sometimes sleeps here, more often elsewhere. "I'll cover it. The check can come through Dynastic Blood Technologies, they donate annually to you anyway."

"Vince, are any of your shell companies real?" Nat has a smile in her voice, leaning her cheek against her hand as she makes a note in pen.

"All of them are. Legally speaking. But Dynastic actually is a real research company. Trying to cure hemophilia, I think. I don't remember. I just went in on it as a co-founder, I don't remember much about the day to day. Yulia does all the detail stuff."

"Hm. So-... Okay, moving on to this-"

Vince flinches when Kauri pops into the doorframe from sheer surprise. Those blue eyes skip him entirely, refusing to land, and he doesn't blame him - direct focus tends to make Kauri black out and wake up with one hell of a headache. Or so he says. Vince has only seen it happen once.

"Hey, Nat."

"Hi, Kauri. You staying the night this time?"

"Nah. Just in dire need of a shower and some food that didn't come from McDonald's. Is Jake home?"

"Nope. Class."

"Damn. It's not Tuesday?"

"Wednesday."

Vince blinks. "You don't know what day it is?"

Kauri still won't look at him, but the smile drops off his face. "Can't read, asshole. Counts for calendars, too. Sometimes I lose fucking track of the date. They wiped all that smart shit away."

"Right. Sorry."

"Apology appreciated but maybe just fuck off next time you want to ask stupid questions. That's why I'm here, remember?"

"Kauri, be nice," Nat warns. "To Vince and to yourself." She looks up now, and Vince looks at her while fiddling with the travel mug in his hands. He undoes the lid and snaps it back. Finally takes a sip. The burn down his throat feels good.

Kauri snorts. "Whatever. What about Chris, is he around?"

"He is, but... He's having a hard day. Nightmares and then I did something wrong at breakfast, not sure what, he didn't seem to be able to explain it. But he's a little shaky."

"Oh. Should I... leave him alone, or..."

"No, honey. Go on up there, he'll be thrilled to see you. Just don't turn the light on. I think he's in Jake's room."

"Cool. How long is Sexiest Man of the Year going to be here?"

Vince groans, taking another drink. "Don't talk about that. Someone on my management team off paid People Magazine, I swear."

"Probably."

Vince feels his face warm and stares down at the paperwork on the kitchen table. "... Kauri, listen-"

"Nope."

"Vince and I are finishing up," Nat interjects smoothly. "He should be out of here in an hour or so, and we'll go out to lunch."

"Great. Hey, Vince, I wanted to ask you something."

Vince looks up, and Kauri is looking off to the side, his profile what Vince sees. Nearly identical to his own, years ago, at this age. Just with longer hair and paler skin. "What?"

"Is drinking yourself to death helping?"

He blinks and looks down at his travel mug, then back up. "This is coffee."

"Hm, not all of it though, huh? So is it helping? The liquor? Make you feel better, help you sleep at night?"

Some vicious hurt creature inside Vince lashes out, and before he can stop himself he hears his own voice asking, "Not really. Does fucking everyone who looks at you help you?"

Nat opens her mouth to protest or stop them, but before she can, Kauri laughs. The brittle bright laughter rings through the room, and he turns away, headed for the stairs.

"Can't hurt me by calling me what I already know I am, movie star," He says, carelessly, tossed over his shoulder as he takes the steps two at a time. "Hurts way worse to remember what I'm not."

Vince stares after him, then takes another swig from the travel mug. Whiskey and coffee, the blend of burn and bitterness.

"... Why is he better at that than me?" He mutters.

Nat looks over at him, then back towards the entryway, listening to the creak of Kauri walking across the old wooden hall above their heads. "He practices," She says, voice low. "All the time."

[twoidiotwriters1]

Almighty (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: The concert was amazing I feel great -Danny Words: 2,476 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter // Next Chapter Listen to: 'Cough Syrup' -by Young The Giant

XVI: I'm up to My Tits With Morons

Ara does not get to kill stuff, all she gets to witness is the egregious birth of more ant eggs and an outrageous rap from Apollo.

"I'm never calling that thing Mama," she protests as they crawl out of the nest. "There's something really wrong with you, man."

"Let's not go there," Apollo comes out behind her and examines what's in front of them. "It's a gateway, to the Grove of Dodona."

"Aren't we in the grove?" Meg asks squinting.

"No... I think this is more of an antechamber. The grove itself is behind those trees." 

"I don't hear any voices." Meg tilts her head.

"The grove knows we are here," Apollo mumbles. "It's waiting to see what we'll do."

"Ara," Meg says shakily, reaching for her hand and tugging. "Look..." The girl follows her gaze and feels her soul leaving her body: There, hanging from the trunks framing the entrance, are cocoons of... 

"Demigods," Ara says hoarsely.

"Oh, monstrous," Apollo closes ranks next to her. "We need to free them immediately."

"Wh-what's wrong with them?" Meg stammers.

Ara approaches Cecil and examines him, she sniffs the wrapping and makes a face. "Don't touch it, Lester." A growl comes from above and Peaches appears, severely beaten. 

"Thank the gods!" Apollo beams. "Meg, hurry! Order your friend to—"

"Apollo." Meg points over their shoulders sounding stifled. Emerging from the tunnel are two broad and tall male figures, imposing and blond like Octavian, but these men are not as weak-looking as him and they're covered in armor. Ara steps to the side to hide Meg.

"Germani." Apollo stands next to her in a way that tries to be protective. When he speaks, the guards step sideways and let a third person enter the scene.

Ara's blood pressure drops. "Is that..."

"Emperor Nero," Apollo says darkly. "The Beast."

The man smirks. "Nero will do. It's good to see you, my honored ancestor. I'm sorry I've been so lax about my offerings during the past few millennia, but I haven't needed you. I've done rather well on my own." He eyes Ara, stopping a moment on the flowers in her hair. "Daughter of Olympus," Nero drawls the name as if she's a yummy dessert he can't wait to take a bite of. "The wonder of a millennia... finally within reach."

"It's me you want," Apollo steps in. "Cut these demigods down from their stakes. Let them leave with Meg and Ara. They've done nothing to you."

"I'll be happy to let them go once we've come to an agreement. As for Meg... How are you, my dear?"

Meg keeps her head down. Ara understands who the spy is then, but she's left stunned and speechless, having the Nero before them terrifies her so that she's scared her voice will give it away. One of the guards whispers something at Nero and he nods a bit. 

"Soon. But where are my manners? Allow me to introduce my right hand, Vincius, and my left hand, Garius—Ah, sorry. My right hand, Garius, and my left hand, Vincius. Those are the Romanized versions of their Batavi names, which I can't pronounce. Usually I just call them Vince and Gary. Say hello, boys."

"They have serpent tattoos," Apollo points out, "like those street thugs you sent to attack me."

"I have many servants," Nero says casually. "Cade and Mikey are quite low on the pay scale. Their only job was to rattle you a bit, welcome you to my city."

"Excuse me?" Ara snaps out of her shock, but Apollo places a hand on her shoulder, knowing that attacking is exactly what Nero wants her to do. 

"And these two gentlemen... they are actually Germani from the ancient times? How?"

"Lord Apollo, please," Nero laughs. "Even before Gaea commandeered the Doors of Death, souls escaped from Erebos all the time. It was quite easy for a god-emperor such as myself to call back my followers."

"A god-emperor?" Apollo tenses. "You mean a delusional ex-emperor."

"What made you a god, Apollo... back when you were one? Wasn't it the power of your name, your sway over those who believed in you? I am no different. Vince, fall on your spear, please."

Vince prepares to stab himself with the spear before the emperor lazily gives him a new command. "Stop, I changed my mind. You see? I hold the power of life and death over my worshippers, like any proper god should."

"The Germani were always crazy, much like you."

"I'm hurt! My barbarian friends are loyal subjects of the Julian dynasty! And, of course, we are all descended from you, Lord Apollo."

"Wh-what do you want, Nero?" Meg stammers.

"Straight to the point. I've always admired that about you, Meg," Nero smiles. "Really, it's simple. You and Apollo will open the gates of Dodona for me. Then these six will be released."

"You'll destroy the grove," Apollo states. "Then you'll kill us."

"Not unless you force me to. I'm a reasonable god-emperor, Apollo! I'd much rather have the Grove of Dodona under my control if it can be managed, but I certainly can't allow you to use it. You had your chance at being the guardian of the Oracles. You failed miserably. Now it's my responsibility. Mine... and my partners'."

"As if you'd know better than the god of prophecy," Ara scoffs.

Nero sighs. "Apollo wasn't always in charge, child. And unlike him, we act. You can't argue that he's done his job right, can you?"

"Triumvirates have never worked," Apollo scoffs. "They always lead to civil war."

"The three of us have come to an agreement. We have divided up the new empire... by which I mean North America. Once we have the Oracles, we'll expand and do what Romans have always done best—conquer the world."

"You truly learned nothing from your previous reign."

"Oh, but I did! I've had centuries to reflect, plan, and prepare. Do you have any idea how annoying it is to be a god-emperor, unable to die but unable to fully live? There was a period of about three hundred years during the Middle Ages when my name was almost forgotten. I was little more than a mirage! Thank goodness for the Renaissance, when our Classical greatness was remembered. And then came the Internet. Oh, gods, I love the Internet! It is impossible for me to fade completely now. I am immortal on Wikipedia!"

"We can still give permanent destruction a try," Ara says, lifting Almighty.

He laughs. "You're delightful, girl. But unless you're a goddess, I wouldn't bother trying, we're way above your payroll." Nero turns to Apollo. "I could explain my plans and everything, but I have a lot on my plate today. I need you and Meg to open those gates. They've resisted my best efforts, but together you three can do it. Apollo, you have an affinity with Oracles. Meg has a way with trees. The daughter of Olympus, I've heard, has some pretty good charmspeak. Get to it. Please and thank you."

"We would rather die," Apollo hisses. "Wouldn't we, girls?"

"You know it," Ara responds bravely.

"Meg?" Apollo tries again.

"She won't," Ara looks at him somberly.

"Won't what?" He scowls. "What's going—why are you crying, Meg?"

"Oh, my," Nero feigns shock. "It seems we've had a slight miscommunication. You see, Apollo, Meg brought you here, just as I asked her to. Well done, my sweet."

"I—I didn't mean..." Meg trembles.

Apollo looks at Ara and gets the slightest nod. "Meg, no. I can't believe—" He tries to step closer and Peaches aims a bite, but Ara points her sword at the creature between Meg's feet, keeping him away. "This man killed your father! He's a murderer!"

"The Beast killed my father," Meg says weakly. "This is Nero. He's—he's my stepfather."

"That's right, my darling," Nero smiles proudly. "And you've done a wonderful job. Come to Papa."

"Oh, that is messed up," Ara frowns. "I really wanted to kill you before knowing this, but now I truly need to see your head sticking out of a spear."

Nero barks out a laugh again. "Oh, you're truly perfect."

"Meg, we are friends." Apollo demands in outrage. "How could you do this to me?"

"You barely know her, Lester." Ara reprimands him.

Her tone makes Meg wince. "I tried to tell you, to warn you."

"She has a good heart." Nero hums. "But, Apollo, you and Meg have been friends for just a few days—and only because I asked Meg to befriend you. I have been Meg's stepfather, protector, and caretaker for years. She is a member of the Imperial Household."

"I risked my life for you," Apollo insists. "And that actually means something, because I can die!"

"We're all impressed, Apollo," Nero says with boredom. "Now, if you'd open the gates. They've defied me for too long."

"Nero, what have you done?" Apollo demands examining the trees.

"Oh, a number of things! We found a way into this antechamber weeks ago. The Labyrinth has a convenient opening in the myrmekes' nest. But getting through these gates—"

"You forced the palikos to help you? You used a nature spirit to destroy nature? Meg, how can you tolerate this?"

"Come now, Meg knows there are good nature spirits, and bad ones. This geyser god was annoying. He kept asking us to fill out surveys. Besides, he shouldn't have ventured so far from his source of power. He was quite easy to capture. His steam, as you can see, didn't do us much good anyway."

"And the five demigods? Did you 'use' them, too?"

"Of course. I didn't plan on luring them here, but every time we attacked the gates, the grove started wailing. I suppose it was calling for help, and the demigods couldn't resist. The first to wander in was this one—The last two were your own children—Austin and Kayla, yes? They showed up after we forced Paulie to steam-broil the trees. I guess the grove was quite nervous about that attempt. We got two demigods for the price of one!"

Before Ara can jump him for putting her campers at risk, Apollo does it first, but he trips and lands face-first half a meter away from her. She picks him up, too pissed off to even reprimand him. "Apollo!" Meg tries to reach them and Apollo jolts back.

"I don't need your help! Don't you understand who your protector is? He's a monster! He's the emperor who—"

"Don't say it," Nero growls. "If you say 'who fiddled while Rome burned,' I will have Vince and Gary flay you for a set of hide armor. You know as well as I do, Apollo, we didn't have fiddles back then. And I did not start the Great Fire of Rome."

"But you profited from it. Meg, your stepfather watched as seventy percent of Rome was destroyed. Tens of thousands died."

"I was thirty miles away in Antium! I rushed back to the city and personally led the fire brigades!"

"Only when the fire threatened your palace."

"I can't help it if I arrived just in time to save the most important building!" 

Meg whines, trying to muffle their voices by pressing her hands on both ears. "Stop arguing. Please."

Ara has seen this too many times. Demigods influenced by evil because the gods, their main caretakers, abandoned them. It's infuriating to see so many kids suffer, so many souls get hurt and reaped just because the gods are too lazy to catch the abuser's hand before it can taint the world further. What a waste of godly power.

"You had the nerve to put a hundred-foot-tall bronze statue in your front lawn!" Apollo cries in anger. "A statue of yourself as Sol-Apollo, the sun god. In other words, you claimed to be me."

"Indeed. Even after I died, that statue lived on. I understand it became famous as the Colossus of Nero! They moved it to the gladiators' amphitheater and everyone began calling the theater after the statue—the Colosseum. Yes... the statue was the perfect choice."

"I fought there, against a giant. And here at camp, I will wipe the floor with your flimsy chin," Ara growls.

"Not now, dear, the men are talking," he brushes her comment away. "The point is, I had style! The people loved me!"

Apollo scoffs. "They turned against you. The people of Rome were sure you'd started the Great Fire, so you scapegoated the Christians."

"But the Christians were terrorists, you see. Perhaps they didn't start the fire, but they were causing all sorts of other trouble. I recognized that before anyone else!"

"He fed them to the lions," Apollo tells this to Meg as if that would make any difference. "He burned them as human torches, the way he will burn these six."

Meg trembles. "Nero, you wouldn't—"

"They will be released," Nero assures her, "as long as Apollo cooperates."

"Meg, you can't trust him! The last time he did this, he strung up Christians all over his backyard and burned them to illuminate his garden party. I was there. I remember the screaming."

"My dear, don't believe his stories! That was just propaganda invented by my enemies."

"Nero... you didn't say anything about making them into torches."

"They won't burn. It won't come to that. The Beast will not have to act."

"You see, Meg?" Apollo makes a face of disgust. "It's never a good sign when someone starts referring to himself in the third person. Zeus used to scold me about that constantly!"

Ara tries to speak in the calmest voice possible. "Meg, he's manipulating you. He's groomed you into believing you mean something to him..." She takes a step forward, and when Peaches doesn't attack, she keeps talking.  "But when someone truly cares for you, there is no fear involved. You don't flinch at their sudden movements. Look at me," the young girl avoids her gaze. "Let me help you, Meg..."

She gives another step forward and Nero growls, which causes Meg to push her and run over to the man. Ara stumbles and Apollo steadies her. "Go away!"

"You'll open the gates," Nero says darkly. "Then Meg will see if she can use the trees to interpret the future. If so, wonderful! If not... well, we'll burn that bridge when we come to it."

"Meg," Apollo tries one last time, "he's a madman."

"Nero cared about me, Apollo. He gave me a home. He taught me to fight." 

"You said he killed your father!"

"No! No, that's not what I said. The Beast killed him." 

"But—"

"Oh, Apollo... you understand so little. Meg's father was weak. She doesn't even remember him. He couldn't protect her. I raised her. I kept her alive."

"What a pig," Ara spits out venomously. All she wants is a clear shot, and she could tear this man to pieces with her bare hands.

"Meg..." Apollo keeps a hand on Ara's shoulder to keep her from pouncing. "I am so sorry..."

"She doesn't NEED sympathy." Nero snarls. "Now, my dear, if you would be so kind, open the gates. If Apollo objects, remind him that he is bound to follow your orders."

"Apollo, Ara, don't make it harder. Please... help me open the gates." 

Apollo looks at Ara and sends a message through his touch. "Not by choice."

Next Chapter –>

Taglist.

@siriuslysirius1107 @ask-giggles1303 @im-planning-something-look @bandshirts-andbooks @coolninjapaper @thewaterlily @whenisthefall @1randomcomic @you-bloody-shank @sunflowergraves @owlalex44 @taylordaughter @typicalsolangelolover @writingmia @espressopatronum454 @slytherinnqueen @orbitingpolaris @obxstiles @ellipsisspelled @thepixiechicksh @ebony-reine-vibes

[rainchyna]

𓆩♡𓆪 episode two: The Torch.

first day on the job and y/n is already a needle mover??? icon behavior fr fr. i know it took a little for this ep to come out but i rly hope y’all like it 🫶🏽 it’s also kinda long my bad i got carried away lmao lmk what y’all think tho‼️

“i have an offer to make”

this couldn’t be bad. …well

it’s Vince McMahon. only so much can go wrong.

“surprise me” you challenge.

“so, one of our women, Alundra Blayze to be specific, she hasn’t been .. the most cooperative. we haven’t been seeing eye to eye exactly regarding her contract and we’ve decided to terminate it. that means tonight will be her last Raw” he said.

you could feel that he was pointing to something, but to be completely honest, you had no idea where this was going. again, this is Vince McMahon, anything can happen. you’ve heard of Alundra before and have seen some of her matches. she’s pretty damn good.

Vince leaned back in his chair, “I have no issue with her leaving the company, the only issue is that she’s currently the women’s champion, and she’s considering signing with WCW” he explained.

“okay..?” you mumbled, confused.

“I want you to become the women’s champion” he stated.

your eyes widened, and you aggressively blinked shocked at what he was saying. “you want me as champion?” you ask, he nods. “this quickly?” you ask again and he nods. he looked a bit angry and seemed quite pissed at the fact that Alundra is leaving.

“has anyone won a title on their debut match, like .. ever?” you ask

“why don’t you be the first one?” he suggests.

that sounded insane. it two ways.

you were concerned about how Alundra would react to being stripped off of her title. did she know this was going to happen? was she okay with it? not that it mattered really, it was her last day her anyways, but you couldn’t help but over think.

on the other hand, you felt giddy. excited. you were going to debut, and win the women’s title on the same night? sounds like absolute fun. hopefully the WWF crowd reacts well, you just needed their support and that’s all that matters.

“are you sure this is a good idea? i don’t want the crowd to turn on me on my first day” you hesitantly say. he shakes his head, “don’t worry about it, they’ll love you. i just need to know if you’re on board” he says.

“i’m in” you say, you can almost see the cogwheels turn in Vince’s head as he looks down at his desk.

“i have a lot planned for you, you know?” he says, half zoned out. you smile, “that’s great to know”.

2:37 pm, catering.

“so what did Vince want?” Lita asked. should you tell her? it’s not like she’s not going to know, everyone will at the end of the night.

but what if Vince was using this as an opportunity to know wether or not you’re the type to blab about plans publicly?

“Y/n?” Chyna asked noticing you zoned out, “oh, we just talked about my debut later” you answer, sipping on some orange juice. you weren’t exactly lying, but you also didn’t want to spoil the show.

“that’s cool” Chyna said, “i hope we work with each other a lot” she added. “yeahhh” Lita smiled. “is this what you’re wearing later?” Chyna asked. you look down at yourself, you completely forgot that you’re still wearing your unofficial gear.

“i’m still figuring it out” you fix your hat, “i want something that’ll scream ‘y/n is here!’ y’know” you say. Chyna hums, “i think you should get something custom made” she suggests.

“any ideas?” you ask, Lita sits up. “shorts! but leather, kinda like same design as my pants, but shorts, y'know. and a top like Chyna’s, keep the coat ‘cause it looks cool” Lita says.

“i think the top should be white instead of black, to make it resemble you New Japan gear” Chyna said. “oooh, what if i wrap a white ribbon around the hat and wear white boots with my name on them?” you propose. “see that sounds pretty!” Lita says.

the mental image of that looks really pretty. “how am i supposed to get those done quickly though?” you ask.

“i have someone that’ll do it, don’t worry about it” Chyna winked.

these two are the real ones.

all three of you continued chatting about random segments and matches Chyna and Lita had, until you were interrupted.

“excuse me Y/n?” a staff member approached you, “yeah?” you reply, “there’s someone who would like to see you” he stated.

you look back at the girls concerned and they mirror your look, “okay” you say getting up. you walk behind the staff member down the hallway, until you’re lead to the … rehearsals ring hall?

“there” he pointed towards one of the rings, “thanks..” you say slowly stepping in. you walk towards the ring the man pointed at, and you can see someone sitting there. they look at you, getting up and leaning against the top rope. is that…?

“you’re Y/n, right?” she asked.

Alundra Blayze.

the blonde had a smile on her face, but you can tell she looked tired. “yeah! nice to meet you!” you smile, stepping in between the ropes. she gave you a hug which took you by surprise a bit, but after all, you’re the one taking her spot as champion. you might as well warm up to each other.

“i’m assuming Vince told you..?” you say, you both sit down on the ring mat. she chuckled, “i wish he told me directly” she began. “overheard him discussing it with one of the producers” she explained. your eyebrows furrowed in confusion, if he can tell you directly, he can tell her too.

“well that’s rude” you say taking off your hat putting beside you. “and unprofessional” she adds. “i wanted to discuss with you our match later, ‘cause if i’m gonna go out, i wanna go out with a bang y’know?” she said. you nod, “oh yeah, i get it”.

you both began building your match. Alundra would go out and issue an open match to any who wished to get a shot at her title, then you’d come out. you were responsible for the highflying spots in the match and she would bring in some technical wrestling.

you both found yourself fantasizing about spots you’d like to do, it felt really good knowing that you both were on the same page before even meeting each other.

she seemed like such a sweet person, you couldn’t help but feel a bit sad about her leaving.

“Y/n” she said, she look very determined yet a bit upset. there was change in the air. everything felt very serious all of a sudden. “yeah?”

“i know we barely know each other, but i want you to promise me” she began, placing her hand on your shoulder. oh, this is that kind of serious.

she got up and jumped off of the ring, you couldn’t see what she was doing but she seemed to be grabbing something. as soon as she sat back down next to you, you knew where this was going.

she placed the women’s championship between you.

“do not let this belt lose it’s value” she said, looking deep into your eyes. “i’ve seen a lot of your work in Japan, and i know what you’re capable of. Vince never took women in wrestling seriously, and I want you to change that. I want you to be that change” she explained.

“there’s no place for women in this company” she sighed “but there soon will be, i trust you with the championship. I hope you can put some respect on our name in this industry”.

it felt like a lot of weight was placed on your shoulders, but she was right. you’re here to wrestle and to make a name for yourself. everyone deserves respect in this business, everyone. women deserved a chance, and it’s time to make some changes around here.

“I promise”.

9:00 pm, RAW.

“it’ll only be six minutes, and that’s the end of it!”

you and Alundra just left gorilla after arguing with Vince about your match. he wanted it to only be six minutes but the match you planned was twenty minutes long, now way will you have even began the match at the six minute mark.

you both were very fucking angry. this was Alundra’s last match was your debut match, the least he can do is be a little generous. but okay.

okay.

you knew what you were going to do, this match is twenty minutes and it will be twenty minutes, because you fucking said so.

“what are we gonna do now?” Alundra asked. it wasn’t looking good for you two, but what looked good was tonight’s card.

UNDERTAKER VS. GIANT GONZALES

THE HART FOUNDATION VS. THE ALLIED POWERS

*ALUNDRA BLAYZE VS. Y/N Y/L/N (women’s title)*

OWEN HART VS. THE RING MASTER.

1-2-3 KID VS. RAZOR RAMON

FAROOQ VS. GOLDUST

BIG VAN VADER VS. BAMBAM BIGELOW

D'LO BROWN VS. AHMED JOHNSON

SYCHO SID VS. SHAWN MICHAELS

your match was right after the Hart Foundation's and you knew you could get Bret to do something. now, you weren't going to ask him to talk to Vince about it, because if you're the one wrestling and he's doesn't want to listen to you, he obviously will not listen anyone else.

"stay here, I'll be back" you say. you quickly jog your way to the men's locker room as show had began and the first match was about to start. you knock on the door and Bret and Jimmy come out to. "I need y'alls help" you breathe out.

you explain the predicament that Vince put you in and they are both visibly agitated by Vince's decisions. "now, I may be asking for too much but is there anyway you guys can shorten your match?" you ask.

both men are quite for some time, and it feels like all it's over.

Bret hums, "how much time do you need?" Jimmy asks. you're a little surprised, "wait really?" you ask, "and don't worry about Davey and Lex, I'll tell them" Bret said, hand on your shoulder. "like ten, twelve minutes" you say.

"you got it" Jimmy said.

"I owe you one, big time" you sigh, "don't stress it" Bret pats your head.

both men make it back into the locker room and you can hear Bret call out to Lex and Davey. thank god for them.

you jog back to Alundra, who was anxiously standing where you left her playing with her hands. "I bought us time! we'll do it all" you smile and Alundra physically relaxes. "thank fuck, oh my god". you quickly run her down through what's going to happen, before hearing your name being called from down the hallway.

you look behind you and it was Chyna and Lita, "just another moment please'" you say. you head in their direction and they spot you. "what's up?" you ask, "your gear is ready!" Chyna says handing you some folded clothes, "c'mon, I need to see you in it" Lita enthusiastically said.

everything was going great.

9:20 RAW.

you and Alundra closely watch the boys' match, you look down at your watch. it's going to end any moment now, right now, come on...

Bret slipped through the ropes and landed outside the ring, the referee ran out to check on him, and almost immediately held up the 'X' sign. you both jump to your feet, "we should stand by gorilla, right?" Alundra asked, you didn't hear what she said. you were concerned that Bret was actually hurt, but a part of you wanted to believe that that was his way to end the match early.

"y/n?"

"h-huh? oh yeah, let's go"

as soon as you approached gorilla all you could hear is chaos. from doctor's rushing to check up on Bret, to Vince freaking out over the time that was going to be wasted.

you pass by Davey, Lex, and Jimmy who winks at you.

he must be okay.

"BRING ME Y/L/N AND BLAYZE!" Vince bellows, "WHERE THE HELL ARE THEY? WE CAN'T STOP HERE!" he screams. you smirk at each other, before entering gorilla with innocence as a halo above your heads.

"what happened?" you ask, lips in a barely visible pout and brows furrowed. "is he okay?" Alundra asks referring to Bret. "LISTEN, listen. I need you two to go out there right now" Vince explained, "the show can't stop." he adds.

it was so funny seeing him panic over an episode of RAW, what would he have done if this was a pay-per-view?

"can we use up the extra time?" you ask, Vince answers without thinking, "do whatever the fuck you want, just put on a goddamn show!" he says settling back into his seat.

"are you sure?" Alundra asks, "will you draw me money?" Vince asks. you quickly nod, "you got it" you say.

less than a minute later, Blayze was out in the ring. you fluffed you hair and adjusted your boots. 'Y/N' was written on them, on the waistband of your new shorts and the ribbon on your hat.

you breathed in, then out. you felt more excited than anything.

"to any woman back there, if you want to try to beat me for this championship, this is your chance. come at me, no disqualifications, so you can do whatever you want. this is an open challenge and any of you are welcome" she boasted.

the tips of your fingers began feeling tingly, and you couldn't contain your smile. you began fiddling with the microphone you were handed.

then your New Japan theme hit.

as you walked out onto the ramp, your pyro went off, and that was the loudest crowd pop you've ever heard. it was so loud, and they cheered for so long. the fireworks made for such an amazing visual, and your titantron displayed your standing at the top of the ramp with a huge smile.

it felt so good being in front of a crowd again.

you walk down towards the ring, and bring the microphone to your mouth. "you said anyone?" you smirk, and crowd cheers again.

"anyone." Alundra nods.

you both throw your microphones to the ground and you slide into the ring. you take off your coat and hat, and the referee rings the bell.

and to say that the fans were invested in every last thing you two did, would be an understatement.

from every kick, to every punch. every flying elbow to every submission hold. this was the first women's match to truly feel like one in a hot ass minute, and they way you were fighting each other made it feel like the title meant something to you both.

it was so fun. it was your first night here and the fans felt fully invested in your match.

and everything got more interesting when the fight moved outside of the ring. you picked Blayze up and put her right through that damned spanish announcement table, to a thunderous pop. Jim Ross and King Lawler's commentary made it all the better.

you threw her back into the ring and locked in and 'Bank Statement', and another pop deafened you. you were facing the main camera, and Alundra began reaching out to the lower ropes only for you to shift your weight on her and move your legs to stomp on her hand. the crowd cheered again.

she held on for as long as she could before tapping out.

and just when you thought the crowd couldn't get any louder, they did. you pull away from Blayze and the referee calls for the bell to be rung, the arena felt like it was on fire.

you stood up both hands in the air, and the referee announced you as the winner. Alundra stood up and asked for the referee to give her the belt.

you both stood in the middle of the ring as she handed you the belt, successfully passing the torch. you both hugged and by now the crowd was chanting your name.

you pull away from her, "thank you" you smile as you raise her arm up.

9:42 pm, backstage.

you knew you had gone over the time you had, even over the extra time you were given and you were ready to take the tongue lashing you were about to get for it.

you walk through the curtains into gorilla, and what you saw scared you a little more than it should've. Vince was sat in his seat in front of a monitor, with a smile that could've stretched from ear to ear. you and Alundra look at each other nervously.

"uhm.." you begin as you walk up to Vince, "was that alright?" you ask. "alright?" he asked, "that was fucking phenomenal!" he said, and the relief that washed over you was unmatched.

"that was hands-down the best women's match I've ever seen! it was so good, and all the spots - especially that table one - were fantastic and fans clearly loved it." he praised, he walked over to you and gave you a hug, then shook Alundra's hand. "I should've listened to you" he said, head a little low.

you smile, good. great.

you walk to your locker room, championship slung over you shoulder. you could pat yourself on the back right now. you saw something hang off of your door, it looked like... a paper? as you got closer, you realize it was note. you grab the little yellow paper and read what's written, it was a little hard to read since the handwriting was a little messy.

'I'd like to have a word with you' - Undertaker.

huh?

[bubblepp0p]

Everlong | Elvis!Vince x Masc!Reader

Summary: You work at a distribution company and as date has it Vince Everett and Peggy need some help with their record. You were always known as a dimwit but this is your chance to prove yourself.

Warnings: Vince is gonna switch up a lot

Word Count: 2.7k

Vince Everett had just created what he thought would be the new best selling song ever. He just needed someone to sign with him to put it out there. This happened well over a week ago.

“Come on, Vince. We can't give up now, there are still companies we haven't been to that could give us offers.” Peggy nagged, trying to get Vince off the couch he had been lazing about on.

“Face it peg, No one wants to sign with us! We should just make our own record company.” Vince whined like a five year old as he resisted from getting up. Peggy sighed and placed her hands on her hips like a tired mother. “I'll give you a free meal if you come with me today.”

A long pause was present meaning Vince was thinking it over. He hadn't eaten yet so that option was sounding good. “Fine. But we eat first.” He stated as he got up and aggressively grabbed his jacket. “Yeah, yeah.” Peggy scoffed out, walking through the door first with Vince tagging along behind very unwillingly.

✦

Your day had started slow as usual. Get up, brush your teeth, put your suit on, and walk next door to your father’s distribution and record company. It was simple. You liked simple. Simply because it was easy. Simple is such a fun word, you thought to yourself. You were never the brightest bulb in the box but your father told you that you never needed to. You were somehow heir to the company anyways. Although you hated that it was a fact, since your father was the CEO, you had many privileges. Including constantly having your ass covered from all the mistakes.

Today though, you felt like you wouldn't make a mistake. You felt that something good would come into the office. A great opportunity. The positive idea gave you a positive attitude. Oh how you loved days like these. Just on time, you walked into the fancy building that would soon be yours in decades time. When you had walked in, you overheard a woman and a man doing their best to convince the staff at the front desk to let them speak to, well, your dad.

You noticed that the man had a growing angry expression so you decided to step in. The staff seemed happy that you did at the moment. The man looked like he could explode at any second. “Excuse me, is there any trouble?” You asked politely, looking at them both with a soft smile. Their anxious demeanors died down at this. The woman spoke up first, “Hello, I'm Peggy Aldan. I'm here to see if the company would like to take part in our record.” She said calmly but all the well enthusiastically. You quickly recognized her name, “Oh! You worked with Mickey Alba!” She grinned at this and smiled.

You glanced at the man next to her, “And you must be the artist?” You question. The man looked to the side, cold faced. Peggy stepped in, “This is Vince, and yes he's the singer.”

Before she could continue, he rudely interrupted, “And who might you be?” Vince towered over you causing Peggy to gently hit his arm. “I'm Y/N L/N. The son of the person who owns this company.” You explained patiently. There was something different about these people, they looked like they had potential on multiple levels.

You hummed, “Alright. What do you say that I'll give this a listen and see what I can do?” You suggested with a cool smile. Their faces lit up at your offer, “Really?” Peggy chirped. “Of course, you both are more than welcome to accompany me to my office.” Your voice was soft as silk, showing them the upmost kindness.

Once you had entered your office, Vince looked awfully suspicious of you. “You ain't gonna steal our record, right?” He asked, dripping with caution. “Steal? Well, that's illegal and my father taught me never to do that.” You said casually, as you popped the record into the vinyl. “It's happened before.” Vince added. “I'm sorry that it did,” You gave him a genuine frown, “I won't do such a thing. You have my word, Mister Vince.” He was shocked at how your kindness never faltered. That you weren't even offended.

Peggy waited anxiously for your reaction as the record began to play. You always loved music and it was the only thing you were sure you were knowledgeable about. Like how most people have an eye for art, you had an ear for music. Carefully, you listened to peace and boy did it sound great. Vince’s voice was like honeydew, he sang with emotion. Passion. Something you can't find too easily nowadays. You stopped the record, giving it one last though. “Well?” Vince asked, impatient.

“Well..” You trailed, “I think it's amazing.” You grinned. Peggy couldn't contain herself, “You see that, Vince? He said it was amazing.” She tugged at his arm. Vince didn't look the slightest bit amused, “Yeah, I heard.”

“Now, since your name isn't known very well I'll have to pull some strings but I don't mind,” You rubbed the back of your neck. “Give me a day or two and I'll call you into the office for a contract.”

“Sounds great. Thank you so much, Mr. L/N.” Peggy grabbed your hand to shake it. “Oh please, Call me Y/N.” You went to shake Vince’s hand. “When everything is done our company usually likes to throw after parties with our clients if it's a success. Make sure to not be late.” You felt Vince squeeze your hand harshly, “Don't screw us over.”

✦

As the days passed, it took hours and hours for you to convince your dad to give them a try. After he had finally listened to the record, he too was left amazed. Vince offered opportunities no other big artist could and he was young too. Finally getting the approval, you dialed Peggy. “The contract is ready, hurry on up.” You informed quickly.

Within minutes, a pair walked into your father’s office. Vince gave you a more trusting stare. “Welcome.” Your father smiled, gesturing to them to sit down as you stood next to his desk. “My boy here bugged me about y'all for days and I gave in last night. It sure did surprise me.” Your father spoke, putting his cigar out. “Not the smartest one out of the bunch?” Vince bluntly put out there, you weren't hurt by it. You were used to being called dumb and what not. Peggy didn't like it one bit though and let out an angry, “Manners.”

“Well, you can say that.” Your father shrugged, “But he made a good decision. I'm trusting him to handle this and if he does then he'll prove himself to me.” He glanced at you and you only nervously looked away. “Oh? So Y/N will be the one handling our business?” Peggy asked. “He will. I'll just supervise.”

“Right. You’ll be signing under my branch and if you want. A partnership for you and vince. Your own record company under my branch.” You chirped in, pointing at a separate contract. Peggy gasped, her hand covering her mouth. “Really.” You answered as if you were reading her mind.

“Don't let me down.” Your father patted your shoulder and you blindly nodded, “Of course.” Vince continued to eye you down. Did he hate men or something? You thought to yourself in confusion. Your father excused himself out of the room for a meeting a second later so you took this moment to get them to sign. “Alright, I'll need both signatures here and here.” You pointed to blank spaces on multiple pages.

Once all the legal stuff was out of the way, you began to organize everything. You made conversation as you did so, “Since we are basically partners now in business, I'll be seeing you two a lot. I hope we can be friends as we go on.” You happily said, placing everything where it needed to be. Peggy nodded in joy, looking at Vince for any type of reaction only to be met with nothing.

“When will our record be released in shop?” Vince leaned back in his seat cooly. “Five work days, precisely. So Thursday.” You answered his question easily. “Come on peg. Let's get out of here.” Vince stood up, not saying goodbye to you and straight up left the room. Peggy apologized to you before quickly following after him.

✦

Your prediction was right. Vince’s record was a massive hit. Everyone had loved it, the teenagers especially. Vince as an artist was basically a goldmine now. A party was now getting thrown for Vince’s and Peggy’s great debut. Peggy had offered to throw it at her parents place since they were on vacation.

The night was young and you were there since the AM helping organize the party. You had a glass of water in your hand as you wandered around the house. People from the company, close friends, and other higher ups attended the party. You knew some of them but never to the point where you could casually conversate. You didn't try too becuase you always ended up as the butt of the joke. Either because you didn't get the joke or you couldn't keep up.

You found yourself wandering into Peggy’s old room, it was quiet and away from the ongoing party. Your curiosity got the best of you as your eyes laid on a vanity. It still had items laying upon it. Makeup. You've never seen before besides in stores on display. You picked up what looked like a pencil, examining it.

“Like makeup?”

You yelped at whoever talked, scaring you from suddenly popping out of nowhere. It turned out to be Vince who had just closed the door behind himself. “That's eyeliner.” He added, unable to hide his smug smile from your reaction at him scaring you. “Huh?” You tilted your head. “The stick in your hand, dummy.”

“Oh- You know about makeup?” You quickly set it down back where you found it. “A bit.” He answered as he walked towards you and sat on the edge of the bed. You leaned against the vanity. “Want me to teach you?” He asked calmly. This was a bit weird. What happened to the bad boy he was a few days ago. You could only nod in response. “Sit in front of me.” Vince looked into your eyes with no malicious intent.

Without a word, you got on your knees in front of him. Vince felt strange at how obedient you were. It made him feel things. He only hummed and reached over to the vanity to grab the makeup. “Stay still, got it?” You were about to nod again but he held your head still by grabbing your chin. “Still.” He repeated. You replied with a soft “Sorry.”

Vince began to work on your face while mumbling what he was doing. “The eyeliner goes on the bottom of your eyes, it can go here too if you want.” He continued on mascara, blush, eyeshadow, then finally your lips. He was using a nude lipstick so it looked like natural makeup. He stared at your lips as he slowly traced it. Your ears began to gain a red color at how intimate it felt.

He had finally pulled away, looking at his final product. “There. Look at the mirror.” He ordered and you did as you were told. Your eyes widened at your reflection. “Pretty…the make up I mean.” You looked back at vince. “Well you're a pretty boy.” He commented as he twirled a lock of your hair in his index finger. You blushed, “You mean handsome.”

“Why not pretty?” He asked. “I'm not supposed to be pretty.” You replied with innocence. “You can be whatever you want, baby.” You blinked at him, it was like Vince was an entirely different person. He treated you so softly in private. “I thought you didn't like me.”

He started to tap his foot, biting the inside of his cheek as if he were contemplating something. “I decided you weren't bad. ‘m sorry for treating you like crap.” Vince came clean. He would usually never do this but you were so goddamn cute in his eyes. You grinned at his apology, “It's okay, I wasn't mad.” You lightly chuckled. Vince gave a small smile, smearing the lipstick with his thumb. It was quite obvious he was attracted to you from his actions but you were too oblivious to notice.

“Whatcha drinkin’ there, doll?” Vince pointed at your sat down glass of water. “Hm? Oh just water.”

“Why not wine? It's on the house tonight.” Vince asked, liking that you were still on your knees for him. His heart felt like it was on fire and quite frankly he didn't care that you were a boy. “I've..I've never drank before. My dad never allowed me to,” embarrassed, you looked at him. “Well 'm allowing you to.” Vince handed you a glass of wine that was originally his. You hesitantly held the cup. “Go on, just try it, honey.” He caressed your cheek.

Squeezing your eyes shut, you gulped down the drink in just two seconds. “Woah! Woah! I said try it, not inhale the whole goddamn thing!” Vince snatched the now empty glass away, wide eyed. You hiccuped in response and made a nasty reaction at the liquid which earned a laugh from Vince. It was the first time you heard him laugh. “You're so silly, honey.” He held his stomach.

Your face burned from the alcohol, wine often worked faster than most liquor. Vince stared down at you, “Hey..thank you for what you did for me and peg. Without you, we would be knocked flat out. But now we're on our feet.” Vince rubbed the back of his neck, his ears turning red. Your voice was slurred, “It's your skill that got you where you are..” You laid your head onto his lap.

“Already drunk?” He mumbled to himself, examining you. “Maybe you should sleep it off.” He said aloud. Peggy had opened the room just then causing a commotion between you and Vince. Not thinking it through, you threw yourself onto the ground, pulling your blazer over your head with your behind in the air. Vince only stood up casting you a glance doing his best not to face palm. “Uh..Is Y/N alright? You didn't hurt him right, Vince?” Peggy asked, walking up.

“Of course not, why would I?” Vince crossed his arms, stepping in front of you so Peggy wouldn't catch a glimpse at your makeup. “Well you weren't too kind to him these past days. Y/N, dear, are you okay?” She peaked over Vince’s shoulder. “Fine! Thank you!” You said, keeping your head covered.

“Now Peg, we were kinda in a conversation,” Vince cleared his throat, “Aw you finally made up with him?”She cooed like she was proud of hun. “Yeah yeah,” Vince rolled his eyes. “Either way, people are asking for you so please join the party soon. Thank you, Vince.” She patted his shoulder before walking and closing the door behind herself.

Vince turned around to look at you. He stood there for a second, waiting for you to get up but you never did. “Y/N, she's gone.” He called placing his hands on his hips. “Oh.” You got up, rubbing your forehead. “Hurt yourself?” He glanced at the red mark on your head. You nodded with a hiccup following afterwards. He gently rubbed the mark, blowing softly on it. “You'll be okay, darling.” He drawled.

“Do you like boys?” You blurted out, the drunk in you removing your fear factor. Vince choked at your sudden question, pulling away. “I-I I mean. I certainly don' dislike them…but I like girls too..” He sounded unsure “Anyways! You need to sleep!” Vince hurriedly pushed you onto the bed and covered you. “But I don' wanna!” You said loudly. “You're gonna, boy.” Vince took your shoes off and grabbed a makeup wipe. “Now stay still like before.” Vince held your chin still and began to wipe his previous work away. It looked too pretty to wipe away but he did so anyway. Before he knew it, you had fell asleep right then and there. He hummed and pushed your hair out of your face.

“See you in the morning.”

[buttdawg]

Dwayne

If you can believe Twitter, everyone hates The Rock now. Twitter renamed itself X eight months ago, but the URL is still "twitter.com", so you can't always trust what you hear there.

Still, the impression I get is that WWE fans are upset about this week's TV, where Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson returned and basically usurped Cody Rhodes' WrestleMania 40 match with Roman Reigns. I didn't see this happen, so I don't know the exact details, but the whole thing sounds like a rumor, because fans have been talking about Roman/Rock for years, and they've been talking about Cody/Roman II ever since their last match at WrestleMania 39. Now, it seems like the stars have finally aligned for both matches, so WWE has to pick one or the other.

Some guy on Twitter posted a picture of Rock and Roman staring each other down, and asked users to describe the image in three words. My caption is "business as usual".

WWE's always had trouble making big decisions. In the final years of my viewership, I quit watching Raw and Smackdown because the shows never seemed to matter. Much of the airtime was spent haggling over the PPV matches and speculating over who would fight who. So I just started watching the PPV's only, since those decisions would already be made. Then the James Khahshoggi murder happened, and WWE had to decide whether to go forward with the 2018 Crown Jewel show. It took them three weeks to figure it out, and then they just did the show anyway. I canceled my WWE Network subscription and never looked back. Those who stuck around got to see Crown Jewel 2018, which absolutely sucked, so WWE ended up pleasing no one.

After Vince McMahon stepped down in 2022, there was a renewed optimism about WWE's product, which was dampened by Vince's return in early 2023, but there still seemed to be an improvement in morale. There was a lot of frustration over Cody vs. Roman at Mania 39, because it seemed like Cody was due to "finish the story", but Roman defeated him to retain his title. But at least WWE made a decision. They didn't do some bullshit double-DQ, or a no-contest, or have Hulk Hogan come out to win the title in an impromptu match, or send Seth Rollins out to make it a three-way. They just had Roman beat Cody. The end. Cody will have to try again next time.

That might have been the wrong call, but at least WWE made a call and stuck with it. Roman's record-breaking title reign is kind of incredible for modern WWE. Back when I was watching, everyone knew WWE wanted to book Roman as a top guy, but they kept getting in their own way, spoiling all of his triumphs in a vain effort to set up some bigger triumph that they could never quite get right. Now that's he's finally been established, I can appreciate WWE's reluctance to change the status quo. Roman represents stability.

But now it's starting to look like WWE has the same problem in the opposite direction. One of these days, someone needs to upset Roman to win his title, but they can't seem to decide who that person is, or when it should happen, or how it should happen.

The way I remember it, Rock vs. Roman was something WWE wanted to do for a while now, and it seemed like WrestleMania 39 was a good time to go for it, except the Rock couldn't make it so they had to shelve those plans. So Cody got the spot instead, and fans really got behind that idea. Maybe he should have won the title then, but you could argue that it builds to an even bigger rematch at WrestleMania 40 this way. And that seemed to be the idea, since he won the Royal Rumble. Except this year the Rock seems to be available, so here we are.

The dilemma here is that fans had a whole year to get invested in Cody's quest for a rematch, while the Rock is this super-megastar who only comes around once in a great while. He's 51, so if they don't do this Rock/Roman thing soon, they may never make it happen. Cody will still be around for a while, but it strains credibility to have him chase Roman for three years. It also doesn't make much sense for him to just pass up a title shot at WrestleMania when he has first dibs on it.

Instead, Cody seems to be pivoting to a match with Seth Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship. This leads to speculation that he might win that match and try to unify the belts or something, but it says a lot that any of this is an option. Over the past twenty-two years, WWE has established two "brands" and two world titles. Sometimes they recombine them, only just just split them off again. These days there's even two nights of WrestleMania, so it shouldn't matter that Rock and Cody are kind of occupying the same spot. There's plenty of main event space for both of them.

And yet, the fans still appear unsatisfied. Cody was going after Roman specifically. He wanted his title. That was the way the story was presented, right until the Rock showed up and then Cody graciously stepped aside.

I think it's that stepping aside that ticks the fans off. It reminds me a lot of when Batista came back in 2014, and fans booed him out of the building because they wanted Daniel Bryan to win the title, not him. And WWE did the smart thing and worked Bryan into the match, but I'm not sure that would work here. In 2014, Batista won the Royal Rumble, and Bryan defeated Triple H to get into the main event. So they each had a claim to challenge for the title. But in 2024, Cody won the Royal Rumble, and he's the guy everyone wanted. What claim does the Rock have to any of this?

I mean, he's a big celebrity, sure, but there's a lot of fans who are too young to remember his heyday. They grew up with the Rock being this guy who comes out sometimes to beat up heels and lead the crowd in silly chants like "Kung Pao Bitch" or "Tofu Anus". Cody's actually on TV every week. I think WWE may have been so starstruck by the Rock that they failed to notice that their active roster has a greater rapport with the fans.

This could all work out in the end. I think the best bet would be to do some Double-Gold Double Dash thing like they did at WrestleKingdom in 2020. Do Rock/Roman and Cody/Seth at Night 1, and then do Cody/Roman in a unification match at Night 2. That ought to please everyone, and maybe WWE's going there, but they can't reveal i yet because the story just started.

But it says a lot to me that they invented all these extra shows and extra titles and extra events just to give themselves wiggle room, but it still feels like threading a needle every time. Everything has to be done a certain, exact way, or we have to scrap everything and wait another year to get it right.

Personally, I'd just have Cody beat Roman at Summerslam and get it over with. WrestleMania is overrated, and they run a dozen other PPV's with the same roster, so just do a big moment at one of them for a change. Not everything has to happen at WrestleMania.

[muldoonlives]

"I did it all by myself..."

Owen Hart. Was he my favorite wrestler as a kid? No. Did I like him? Yes. I'm not one of the many who claim he was always my favorite. Maybe it's true with some, but I feel it's usually said because fans feel guilty for not acknowledging him when he was here. I wonder if they believe showing him more support would have gained him a bigger push. A push that would have prevented Owen from being placed back in The Blue Blazer gimmick. Of course, we know now it wouldn't have mattered. Shawn Michaels didn't want Owen in the spotlight so Vince McMahon granted his wish. Stone Cold Steve Austin didn't want to work with him again. There was no other choice but mid-card status. Besides, Owen Hart himself didn't care about being a main eventer because it would cut down on time to go back home to his family.

In a previous post, I spoke on being a fan of Davey Boy Smith, but none of the kids I knew cared anything about him. Same went for Owen. The only time he was mentioned was a couple of days after "Over the Edge". Very few of my classmates had their parents order pay-per-views. None were ordered for me, and I had to settle on VHS rentals from Blockbuster and Movie Gallery. The next episode of Raw was the way we learned about the accident.

In the months prior to his death, my main focus was Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, and Chyna. I didn't have much interest in Owen's companionship with Jeff Jarrett like I did when he had Davey Boy Smith by his side. I liked Jeff Jarrett's in-ring abilities but didn't care much for his character. Debra wasn't that attractive to me, and her teasing Owen and Jeff's opponents with her "puppies" was annoying. The last thing involving Owen that sparked my interest was his feud with Ken Shamrock.

Owen Hart's passing was the first "celebrity" death that upset me. This man I watched perform week after week died in front of thousands of people. How could a stunt which I saw executed hundreds of times in not only wrestling but movies and other tv shows be so poorly handled? It was strange. I started to rent more VHS tapes featuring Owen. Searched his name on the internet when I visited my sister's apartment. It didn't take long reading about the real Owen to realize what a good-natured person he was.

Owen Hart isn't overrated when fans say he was an excellent wrestler who still deserves praise. However, Owen is overrated when it comes to saying he was better than Bret. As far as mat skills, Owen did outshine his big brother, especially matches prior to working for the WWF. Plus, his move set was more exciting. I'd rather see a missile dropkick than a figure four around a ring post. The enziguri needed to be his finisher instead of the sharpshooter though. The simple act of dropping it from his arsenal might have made Owen stand out more to fans and move him even further out of Bret's shadow.

Now I'm going to seem like I'm contradicting myself because of my previous post concerning Davey Boy Smith. I said Bret, Owen, and Davey weren't "characters". They didn't portray wrestlers who seemed like they could only exist on television, but they still had their on-screen personas. Bret had Owen beat by a long shot when it came to his character. Bret brought realism to being a tough guy. Owen came across as a loudmouthed punk. He was funny as a heel, but his babyface Blackhart gimmick wasn't that great. It was awesome to see Owen earning victories without sneaking in low blows or outside interference coming to his aid, but his interview segments were stale. He was overdramatic and yelled like he did as a heel. His natural voice was deep and raspy, but anyone who has heard Owen yelling knows he sounded nasally and cartoonish. Speaking and acting calmly like Bret did would have made things more convincing instead of unintentionally funny. Owen's threats about making life Hell for DX and constant talk of breaking Triple H's legs made him look pathetic as they manhandled and cheated him out of victories. The Hitman didn't make threats. He just went out to the ring, did his thing, and whatever happened happened.

Owen lost to Bret when it came to work ethic. Owen had good intentions putting on purposely bad matches for his co-workers to make them laugh, but I'm sure it confused and irritated them to some degree as well as the audience. Bret was serious about his work and always put forth one hundred percent. I know we all fuck up, but let's not forget the injury Stone Cold Steve Austin endured because of Owen. I'll get it over with. Owen not apologizing to Stone Cold was a shitty decision. There's one thing to remember. We all have times in our lives when we intentionally or unintentionally do something horrible to someone, and our embarassment and guilt hinders us from reaching out. I don't think any of us have always apologized. I know I haven't. And yes, I know Stone Cold caused the same injury five years before, but that's not the point. Bret truly was a professional.

I liked Owen Hart while Bret is my favorite wrestler. If I were a wrestler, I would want to carry myself the way Bret did. He might be my favorite wrestler, but I don't watch his matches non-stop. If I want to watch an old match, it usually includes Owen. He's just fun to see in action. Every move he made was performed with such ease.

"How do I want them to remember me? Well, I don’t want to become one of those watered-down guys, who just walked and talked in the ring. I want them to remember me as a guy who was diverse in his talents, could fight anybody and have a good match, whether it was Undertaker, or Vader. These big giant guys, I remember thinking, how can I have a good match with them, and coming back and saying, wow, those people were really entertained. They really thought that I had a chance to beat Vader or beat the Undertaker. And that’s going against the odds, when you’re 5’10”, 220 pounds fighting a guy that’s 6’7″, 320 pounds, or Vader that’s 6’4″, 400 pounds. How am I going to go up there and convince these people that I’ve actually got a chance of winning? When you go out there and even beat them, people believe it, that’s unbelievable, you know. It’s kind of an art to going out and performing. I’d like fans to remember me as a guy who would go out and entertain them, give them quality matches, and not just the same old garbage every week."

Owen Hart succeeded.

[the-tiger-with-a-computer]

How would you and knock out first meet?

If I was in Transformers Prime Part 5

Cat and Knockout would first become aware of each other during the episode Deus Ex Machina during the museum scene though they would officially meet during the episode Speed Metal.

Me: So Jack. You are going to a race?

Jack: How did you -

Me: I overheard. I want to join you.

Jack: Fine. But don't tell anyone.

Me: Don't worry. I wouldn't tell a soul.

*During the race*

Me: Jack. Bee. We've got company.

Jack: The good or bad kind?

Me: Try the Con kind.

Jack: Not good. What do we do?

Me: Get us out of here Bee!

Bumblebee: *Don't have to tell me twice*

Jack: He's still on our tail. Can you lose him Bee?

Bumblebee: *I can try, but no promises*

Me: Jack. Bee's going to try to lose him, but no promises. Knockout is a race car after all. Bee. Once we are in the clear radio for backup.

Jack: Wait. We'll get in massive trouble.

Me: Boy! I would rather face Arcee and the rant she's going to give us than risk being shot at.

Jack: Good point.

*Vince shows up*

Jack: Oh great.

Me: Let me handle this. What up?

Vince: What's up is Jack abandoning the race.

Me: Well sorry. It's just that street racing is illegal and unlike you, we have more important things to do than getting caught by the cops.

Vince: Like what, cleaning out your litter box?

Me: Like getting back home cause your father sounded pretty mad about you not being home.

Vince: Wait. How do you know my dad?

Me: My dad and your dad enjoy watching football games. Now run back home to daddy before he starts calling other people.

Vince: Fine. But this isn't over yet Cat.

*Vince leaves*

Me: *sigh* Crisis avoided.

Knockout: And another shows up.

Before Bee or Jack can act Knockout grabs me before transforming into his vehicle mod, trapping me inside, and making a run (drive?) for it.

Knockout: Not trying to escape?

Me: I know better than to piss off a Con while I am near them.

Knockout: Guess not all organics are dumb.

Knockout: Anyway. Breakdown. You'll never guess what I'm packing. One of the Autobots human pets.

Breakdown: Nice. Where shall we meet up?

Knockout: I'll send you the coordinates.

*Meanwhile*

Jack: Oh my god. Arcee is so going to kill me. Bee. Have you called the others? We'll need their help.

Bumblebee: *Um. Excuse me? More like I'm going to need their help and yes I have called the others.*

Arcee: Jack. We need to have a little chat.

Jack: Later. Right now Cat is in trouble. They got snatched by Knockout after they got Vince out of danger.

Arcee: This is bad. Cat has a rough idea of where our base is and unlike Fowler, they can't handle being tortured by the Cons.

Bulkhead: Then we better get going.

*After they reach a parking lot*

Bumblebee and Bulkhead were dealing with Breakdown while Knockout was hiding, but not for long.

Knockout: Where's the two-wheeler?

*Arcee jumps down onto Knockout.*

Knockout: Hey, watch the paint!

Me: I'm still here you know!

*Knockout takes off while Arcee chases after him*

Knockout: Uh, Breakdown, in case you're looking for me, things get messy, so I hit the road. Once scrape is enough for today.

*After he starts to lose Arcee*

Knockout: Eat my dust.

*Optimus shows up and knocks Knockout off road*

Me: Spoke too soon.

Knockout: Oh shut up.

Arcee: Optimus, Knockout has Cat.

Optimus: Understood.

*Optimus tears off Knockout's door which causes Knockout to yell in pain before grabbing me. Then Knockout transforms.*

Knockout: Do you know how hard that is to replace? *he sees the others driving towards them and he drives away.*

Me: Thanks for the save.

Jack: Optimus. This was my fault. If I hadn't gone to race against Vince then none of this would have happened.

Optimus: What matters now is that you are all safe. Though I expect an explanation from all of you when we get back.

[bellysoupset]

hi i’m new here and i def just stalked your oc tag so i could soak up any and all info on your college oc’s i love them so much (jonah’s my fave <3)

may i ask what each character’s like… normal burps are like when they aren’t sick? i def have a bit (more than a bit) of a thing for burps as well as a love for sickfics so im pretty curious.

no worries if you don’t want to answer tho :)

Warms my heart to get asks like this!! Also I'm so sorry for my messy OC tag, i've tried to come up with a less terrible system, but so far no luck.

Alright so burps, when they're not sick:

Luke: unashamed long burps. He's actually really good at burping almost on command and 90% of the time Bell doesn't care, so he's very unapologetic about it.

Vince: Vin looks like the type of guy who'd have big, loud burps, but that's not actually the case. Much like with puking, he's very quiet and dainty. Actually annoys him, and when he's with the guys and manages a big burp he's the opposite of ashamed, but pretty proud. Patting his tummy all "that was great, did you hear that?!" Really puts into perspective why him and Luke are tied at the hip.

Leo: Breathy, no relief burps that tend to get stuck on his chest. It's very rare they come up on his own and normally they just fizzle out on his throat, causing him to have those gurgly burps that have no sound, you know?

Jonah: the best burps out there. Not only he's super burpy when nauseous, but even after a good meal, which he loathes and he's like muffling these burps left and right. They're not as long as Luke's, but more brassy and loud, the type that hurt his throat.

Bella: She's honestly a good burper and unless they sneak up on her, she also doesn't particularly care. Louder than Luke's, not as long tho.

Wendy: technically speaking Wen's burps are similar to Jonah's, shorter but brassy. However, she'd literally rather die than let anyone hear those, so normally she burps in her mouth and lets them out under her breath.

Max: Very comfortable with burping, but also he's the only one of my characters who's got hiccup-urps. Every time he'll get a hiccup fit, it'll turn into those breathy, icky burps. He's a bit annoyed by how often he hiccups, especially given he's a teacher and hiccups are involuntary...