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brainyxbat · 7 months ago

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Chapter 5: Adventure in the Country of Sand! The Monsters That Live in the Scorching Land

(episode 97)

The crew continued their journey through the desert, heading to Yuba. Soon, the heat was starting to get to them. "Burning up," Luffy panted, using a branch as a cane for support, "Sweat won't even come out."

"Quit moaning so much, Luffy," Nami reprimanded, as she waved her hand by her face, "You'll only tire yourself out." His only response was a loud moan. "Guess he's not listening."

Chopper was no better; in fact, Zoro had to pull him on a small sled, because he couldn't walk. "I can't go on. I can't take hot weather. I'm fine in cold weather, though."

"It's 'cause of all that fur," Usopp groaned, walking the same way as Luffy; with a stick. "You should take off that animal suit."

Chopper turned to him with a glare. "What was that, you jerk?!" He suddenly turned big, as Zoro was unable to pull him. "Don't make fun of reindeer!"

"Monster!" Usopp screamed in terror.

"Chopper! Don't turn big!" Zoro glared back. "Or else I won't pull ya!"

Chopper didn't notice him, as his confrontation with Usopp continued. "Who're you calling a monster, Humongo-Nose?!"

"D-don't be stupid!" Usopp shook with fear. "I-I'll have you know this nose-"

"Just turn back already!" Zoro shoved Chopper down by his head, making him small again.

"No more fighting!" Venus scolded. Ace walked with them, not saying a word.

"You don't seem to be having a hard time, Vivi-chan," Sanji noticed.

"I was born and raised here, so it doesn't bother me that much."

"But what's with all these hills?" Usopp griped. "I figured a desert would be more flat."

"This is a very old desert, so some sand dunes here are over 300 meters high."

"Th-three hundred meters?" He heaved. "No wonder it's like climbing mountains."

"It's too much," Luffy panted, "It's so hot."

"Just one drink, Luffy," Nami ordered, "Just one mouthful." However, he slurped up so much, his cheeks puffed out. "Don't drink so much!" Nami raged, as she and Usopp simultaneously punched the back of his head, making him spit it out.

"Let me have some too!" Usopp added. "That was 13 mouthfuls just now!"

"Hold on!" Sanji cut in. "You just had some! I'm next!"

A tussle broke out with all four of them. "Stop fighting!" Vivi exclaimed worriedly. "You'll only waste strength!"

"But she started it!"

"It's your fault!"

"Yeah! This is because of you!"

That night, the crew set up camp by some dunes, with a pair of tents and a campfire. "So hungry," Luffy groaned.

"Don't be so greedy!" Sanji scolded. "It's still raw! Don't eat that! Nami-san! Just a minute, it'll be ready soon!"

"Oh, looks pretty good!" Usopp smiled through shivering.

"Get away, you!" Sanji ordered at Luffy.

"Oh, come on!"

"Cheapskate! Let us eat!"

"Get away!"

A shivering Nami turned to Vivi in confusion. "It was so hot during the day! What's going on?!"

"With nothing to block out the temperature, the desert scorches during the day, but falls below freezing at night. The desert is fraught with unpredictable dangers."

Chopper admired the beautiful sky, as he sat by a tent with Usopp. "Oh! Look at all those stars!"

"Didn't you see stars on your winter island?"

"Winter island skies are always covered with thick snow clouds, so I've never seen this many stars before!"

Usopp shivered miserably next to him, unable to enjoy it. "I don't have the luxury of looking at stars right now."

"Cold weather doesn't bother me!"

To his chagrin, Usopp started snuggling his cheek in his fur. "That's because you wear such a warm suit!"

"Hey, you! Get away! Go hug Venus!"

"I don't wanna make her uncomfortable!"

"Just back off!"

"I can't help that you're so fluffy."

At that, an angry Chopper turned into his large form again. "Quit making fun of reindeer!"

"Monster!" Usopp screamed.

"Chopper, don't turn big," Zoro sleepily reprimanded, "We need your warmth."

"Yahoo!" Luffy jumped in, and hugged a small, delirious Chopper with Usopp. "So warm!"

"Come closer!"

"See? Warm, isn't it?"

"Yeah!" Chopper agreed.

Vivi suddenly heard chattering teeth, and turned to see the young witch shivering terribly, while sitting on the ground. "Venus-san, why don't you join them? You sound like you're freezing."

"I d-d-don't want to b-b-be a b-b-burden."

"I'm sure they won't mind," Ace assured, "Though if you'd like, I can keep you warm."

Venus' eye widened, her mind racing, as her cheeks turned red. Portgas D. Ace was offering to... snuggle with her? For the whole night? Should she say yes? What if she does something stupid? It did sound nice; curled up in his arms, her head on his chest, with his fire powers keeping her warm. However, her shyness ultimately took over, and she shook her head. "Oh, uh... th-thanks, but... th-th-that's okay. I'll just, uh... yeah, uh, th-thanks, though."

"No problem," He smiled kindly, as Vivi stifled a giggle.

At that, Venus began crawling to her crewmates, and wondered where to lay. Settling with Luffy's back, she carefully grabbed Usopp's hand, and began slowly lifting his arm up to rest underneath, hoping he wouldn't notice.

She stopped when he turned to see her. "Venus-chan? You okay?"

"Y-y-yeah. J-just a l-little chilly."

"Oh, here." Usopp raised his arm, and held her as close to himself as he could, and to Luffy's back. "This feel better?"

She nodded, not noticing a blush flaring up on his face. "It does, thanks." Her head landed on his shoulder, and she immediately drifted off into a peaceful slumber.

Usopp watched, as her back moved up and down rhythmically with her calm breathing. She was so sweet when asleep; and so darn cute.

"It must be a real surprise for you." Ace turned to Vivi at her observation. "I mean Luffy-san. I was surprised too, at first." She turned to them, as Chopper tried to push everyone away, deciding he wanted space; Venus was still asleep, so Usopp was trying to keep her undisturbed. "Maybe it's that he isn't captain-like, or that normal pirate captains are respected by their crewmates; but this afternoon, a simple drink of water caused that big fight. But... but you know..." The boys finally fell asleep, with Venus cozy under Usopp's arm, and her head between his and Luffy's. "The longer I've been with them, the more I've come to understand."

Ace smiled at her observation. "That's how Luffy does things."

"Eh?"

By now, Venus and Usopp's temples were rested against each other over her hood. "He hasn't changed a bit since he was a kid. Despite how he seems, people always gather around him. Even though he's my little brother, he has a mysterious charm to him."

"Oh, you already knew."

"He and I do go way back. But thanks." He became curious at her intentions, as one of Chopper's front hooves was in Luffy's open mouth. Venus' nose was less than an inch away from Usopp's.

"Eh?"

"You were worried that I was concerned, right?"

"Yes. But it looks like I didn't need to worry after all." They began stargazing without a word.

"Whoa! I found a shrimp!" Luffy announced early the next morning.

"So this is a shrimp?!" Chopper asked excitedly. "Wow!"

After laying a still sleeping Venus gently on the ground, using his backpack as a pillow for her, Usopp approached them with skepticism. "Shrimp don't live in the desert!"

"See?!" Luffy held up his discovery.

"Oh, you're right! Is it a "desert shrimp"?"

"It looks yummy!"

"Hey, now! Are they edible?!" Usopp asked eagerly.

"Probably! Crawfish are edible, after all!"

"I've never seen a real shrimp before!" Chopper exclaimed.

Vivi stepped out of her tent, and stretched her arms; she panicked at what he was holding up. "Stop, Luffy-san! Throw that away!"

"No! That'd be a waste!"

"That's a scorpion! It's small, but it's very poisonous! You'll die if it stings you!"

"Oh, it's not edible?" Luffy frowned calmly in disappointment, as Usopp and Chopper tensed up. "How boring. You can have it."

Usopp jumped back when he held up the scorpion to him. "Don't give it to me!"

"Then I'll throw it away." Luffy tossed it behind his back.

"I'm sorry," Vivi said, "I should've mentioned it earlier."

"That's for sure!" Usopp agreed.

They turned to Chopper when he appeared to be on alert. "What is it, Chopper?" Luffy looked down at him.

He jumped up on a rock for a better view. "Something's... coming."

"Something? What?" Usopp asked cautiously, as they began hearing the sound of whistling.

Ace emerged from the other tent, and turned to where the sound was coming from with a smirk. "Oh? Is the wind picking up?"

Vivi watched the horizon carefully; it seemed like there was a group of tornadoes. She then gasped in horror. "Everyone! Hide behind the rocks!"

"What?" Luffy blinked obliviously.

"A storm! A sandstorm is coming!"

"Oh?" Ace watched calmly.

"Whoa!" Luffy exclaimed, as the ground began shaking. "Cool!"

"Venus-chan!!" Usopp grabbed her from in front of the tent, and yanked her behind the rocks with him, Luffy, and Chopper. He had also grabbed Burton's carrier in his haste.

"Again?! Deserts are nothing but storms!" Luffy exclaimed.

"I forgot to mention it, but sandstorms are one of the desert's dangers!"

Usopp cried out in terror, hold Venus tightly, as she slept like a corpse through the commotion. "Mention these things sooner!"

When daytime came, the crew's campsite was rendered to a sandy mess. Ace rose from being submerged, and ran to Vivi in concern. "What the hell was that?!" Zoro started to wake up, while Chopper did as well..

"Can't people get some rest?!" Sanji griped from laying next to Nami.

Usopp rose up from the sand, then pulled Venus up close by, as Luffy sat up. Venus yawned, and groggily blinked her eye open. "What happened?"

After recovering, they were on their way. "Hey! Sanji! Let's have a lunch!" Luffy decided. "A Pirate Boxed Lunch!"

"Not yet. Not until Vivi-chan says so."

"Come on, Vivi!" Luffy grinned towards her with hope. "Let's eat! I'm out of strength!"

"But we're only one-tenth of the way to Yuba, Luffy-san."

"You're so dumb! Haven't you heard of this proverb?: "If you're hungry, eat"!"

"You liar!" Usopp puffed in exhaustion, as he walked with a stick. "Quit making stuff up!"

"All right," Vivi agreed with the captain, "Then what do you say we take a break at the next rocks we find?"

"Alright! Rocks!" He cheered, and stopped in front of the crew. "Guys! Let's hurry to the next rocks! Whoever wins rock-paper-scissors has to carry everyone's stuff!"

"Quit deciding things!" Usopp scolded.

"Shouldn't the loser carry the stuff?" Sanji pointed out.

Luffy held his fist in the air. "Alright, here goes! Rock, paper, scissors!"

"Hold up now!" Vivi tried to stop him, but the game commenced anyway.

"Hey! You went after!" Zoro exclaimed.

"Woohoo! I win!" Luffy cheered.

"Idiot," Nami griped.

As agreed on, they loaded their stuff on the sled for Luffy to pull along. "H-heavy," He panted, "So heavy. And hot. I won rock-paper-scissors, so why me?"

"It's because you won," Sanji replied, "Now shut up, and haul."

"Don't drop it now!" Nami added, and he groaned loudly in response.

Vivi turned to Venus, who was still holding her small pet carrier. "Venus-san, why don't you put Burton with our stuff?"

"I... I'm more comfortable carrying him myself," She replied warily, "I can't risk him falling over."

Using his goggles, Usopp looked over the horizon, and saw what Luffy was anticipating. "Rocks spotted a small ways ahead!"

"For real?!" He exclaimed happily, before barreling past everyone. "Break time! Food!" He sped off out of sight, leaving a cloud of sand behind.

"Whoa! He's fast!" Usopp gawked.

Up ahead, Luffy quickly slowed to a foot-dragging walk, and was relieved when he was under the rocks spotted. "Shade!" He flopped down in exhaustion. "Feels so good!" Out of nowhere, the sound of birds in distress rang through the area; Luffy sat up in curiosity, and went to investigate, leaving the crew's luggage. After turning a corner, he gaped in surprise; before him was a flock of strange birds with swirled cowlicks laying in the sand, as if they were hurt. He quickly approached the closest one, and dropped to his knees, picking it up in concern. "Hey! Say something! I'll go get you a doctor!" He set it down, and ran back where he came, still leaving everything behind. "Bad news!"

"Huh? He's coming back!" Usopp pointed out.

"There's a lot of hurt birds that can't move! Chopper!"

"Right!" He immediately sat up from his personal sled, and ran up to him in determination.

"Alright! Let's go, Chopper!"

"Yeah!"

"We gotta help the birds!"

"Birds?!" Vivi's eyes widened. Crap! "Wait, Luffy-san! Don't tell me these birds are-!"

He stopped running, and turned back. "Eh?"

When they arrived on the scene, Luffy screamed in terror; the sled was empty! "All our stuff is gone!" Zoro exclaimed.

"We've been had," Nami lamented.

"It's the truth!" He insisted. "There really were dying birds here!"

"I'm sorry. I should've mentioned it earlier. Warusagi birds are "desert bandits" that trick travelers, and steal their belongings."

"What?!" Luffy gaped.

"Birds playing dead?!" Usopp fussed. "That's dishonest!"

"Yes, that's how they are," Vivi choked up with guilt.

"They tricked me?!"

"Luffy!" Sanji grabbed him by the collar. "Is that all you can say for yourself?! There were three days of provisions in there! And you just had to let some damn birds steal everyone's stuff smack in the middle of this desert?! How're we supposed to cross the desert without food, or water now?!"

"It's not my fault. They tricked me."

Sanji leaned close to his face in fury. "Is your brain less than a bird's?!"

"Say what?!" Luffy glared in offense.

"Stop it, you two!" Zoro ordered.

He went to intervene when they kept it up, but Ace's hand on his shoulder stopped him. "There's no use. At times like this, it's best to let them have it out!"

Zoro pulled his headwear back with a smirk. "Yeah, huh?" He then sat on a rock close by. "Let's take a short break. This heat is what has them fuming. I'm sure we'll manage, food-wise. It's nothing that'll kill us. Let's just put it out of our minds."

"Yeah," Usopp agreed tiredly, "Just thinking makes me thirstier."

Luffy and Sanji were in their fight, then they spotted something up ahead: Warusagi birds, drinking their water, and carrying their bags! Luffy began running like mad after them. "Give us our stuff back!"

"Luffy-san!" Vivi called after him. "Don't chase them!"

"That idiot," Sanji griped.

"Hey, you!" Nami called after. "Will you be able to come back?!"

"Come back, Luffy!" Usopp shouted, but it was no use.

He just kept going. "Stop! You can't get away from me!" His pace started slowing, due to the heat, as the birds started flying. "Get back here!" They flew higher and higher, until he couldn't reach them. "Get back here!" He was startled when all of a sudden, giant plants with sharp teeth shot out of the sand! "What are these?!" He leaped away from their jaws, but one caught him, ignoring his kicks and punches, before retreating back into the ground. After a few seconds, its severed head resurfaced, along with him. "What is this thing? A mystery desert plant? Neat!" He beamed.

He turned around at a strange groaning, and watched in confusion; a furry-saddled camel was keeping itself from getting eaten by another plant! "What are you doing?" He then started laughing, as it struggled. "That's funny!" The camel then glared at him. "Huh? You want me to help you?" It nodded in confirmation. "Gum-Gum... Pistol!" He leaped up, and his punch popped the plant, so the camel ran up to him. "Good thing you didn't get eaten!" He laughed, before getting angry again. "Those birds got away, while I was beating these guys up! The desert sure is full of strange creatures!" He then turned back to the animal he rescued. "Hey, camel. What're you doing out here all by yourself?" It turned away, now on alert. "What's that?" He watched in the same direction, and a hole sunk in the dune. "Did you find something?" After a moment of nothing, the ground started rumbling, and before them, something huge started emerging. "What the-?!"

Usopp watched the horizon, as he attempted to fan his face. "What's taking Luffy so long?!"

"Yeah," Chopper agreed, as he laid face-up on the ground, "Do you think he got lost?"

"He has a horrible sense of direction, but always has to run off!" Nami complained.

"And there are so many desert dangers he doesn't know about," Vivi added.

"Y'know, isn't he hungry from not eating anything?" Sanji pointed out.

Everyone was silent, before Zoro stood up. "He's such a lost cause," He griped.

"You can say that again," Sanji agreed, following suit.

"Sorry," Ace gained their attention, "For my little brother's ineptness. I apologize for the trouble."

Suddenly, Usopp was on alert at the sound of familiar crying. "Venus-chan!" She was sitting on a rock, with her face in her hands; he frantically ran over, and knelt down in front of her in concern. "What's wrong?!"

"M-m-my spell book was in my backpack!" She sobbed. "My first one ever, and it's gone!" Usopp pulled her into a comforting hug, letting her cry in his shoulder.

"Spell book?" Ace quirked a brow in confusion.

"She's a witch from a Devil Fruit," Nami explained.

"Ah."

"Don't you already know the spells from it?" Zoro asked.

"Well, p-pretty much yes, but... it's special to me. It's the first spell book I've ever had; Mr. Rauru got it for me when I was first starting out."

"That damn idiot!" The chef seethed. "How dare he make Venus-chan cry! Let's go find him, so I can tear him apart!"

As he comforted her, Usopp saw Zoro and Sanji heading out where the captain ran off. "Good luck finding him!"

"Yeah."

He then turned back to Venus. "A-at least Burton's still here," He tried to cheer her up.

"Yeah," She sniffled, "I'm glad I held his carrier myself. Those nasty birds would've eaten him for sure." When he held it up for her, she smiled, and stuck her finger inside for him to prod at affectionately. "Thank goodness you're safe."

Just then, Chopper quickly sat up at some rumbling. "What's that?!"

Everyone watched the horizon, as Usopp protectively kept Venus close, as did she with the carrier. "What's this rumbling?!" Using his goggles, while she held onto his waist, he looked ahead at the huge sand clouds, as they heard a familiar laugh. "Another sandstorm?! No, wait! That's-!" He looked on in shock, as Luffy was on a camel, running towards them. "Luffy?!"

"No... it couldn't be!" Vivi exclaimed.

"Why is he on a camel?!" Nami questioned.

"So?! What's that chasing him?!" Sanji asked frantically.

Zoro tried to look, but the sand behind them was too thick. "I can't really see! But it seems more like something's in the sand!"

Behind them, a giant, purple lizard emerged! "It's huge!" Usopp screamed.

"A Sandora Dragon!" Vivi shouted in shock.

"A what now?!" He exclaimed.

"They're the largest of the reptiles living in the desert, and they wait under the sand for their prey! They have sharp claws and fangs, but they hardly ever use them! The reason being that they tend to swallow their prey whole, because they're so large!"

Ace watched calmly from the shade. "He really does have a gift for attracting trouble."

"Setting aside the camel for a moment..." Sanji started.

"What star was he born under to be able to attract trouble like this?!" Zoro finished, before they went into action.

"Hey! Camel! Stop!" Luffy commanded.

"Luffy! Is it too much for you?!" Zoro asked frantically.

"We'll lend a hand!" Sanji added.

"Yeah! I brought some meat! Here goes, lizard! Gum-Gum..."

"Tatsu..."

"Épaule..."

"Whip!"

"Maki!"

"Shoot!"

All three attacked at once, everyone gaping in shock, as the giant lizard collapsed, now dead. "Y-you didn't have to go that far," Usopp cried with sympathy, as a wide-eyed Venus stared on.

"When they're fighting, you almost pity the monsters," Nami remarked. Just then behind them, another lizard popped up! "There's more?!"

"I forgot to mention it, but but Sandora Dragons hunt in pairs!"

"Mention these things!" Usopp, Venus, Nami, and Chopper reprimanded Vivi simultaneously.

Ace turned, and saw the predator before him, barely reacting. "Ace!" Nami exclaimed.

"Look out!" Vivi shouted.

He calmly stood to his feet. "What a nuisance. You wanna play?" It roared at him in response. "Oh, okay. If that's what you want." At that, he leaped into its mouth; when trapped inside, he released some flames, effectively cooking it from the inside, before emerging safely.

Everyone stared in awe, as it collapsed behind him, charred and smoking. "Wow, Ace!" Venus began swooning. "That was amazing!"

"Thanks!" He beamed.

Usopp rolled up his sleeve, and flexed his arm. He frowned in disappointment, as he poked at his bicep; too spindly. Damn.

Before long, using a rock as a stove, Sanji was cooking Sandora meat for everyone. "Check it out! These rocks are natural frying pans!"

"So, what's with the camel?" Zoro asked Luffy.

"I dunno," He replied through a mouthful of meat, "It was getting eaten by a mystery plant when I was chasing the birds."

"It doesn't seem to be a wild camel," Nami remarked.

"No," Vivi added, "It even has a saddle."

Chopper walked over in interest, thinking he looked familiar, and the camel perked up in recognition. "I knew it!" He smiled brightly.

The previous day...

After Sanji ditched him to approach dancer girls, Chopper started looking for some shade in Nanohana. 'This is bad,' He thought, 'I'm starting to have symptoms of heat stroke.' His vision was turning blurry. 'I need to go somewhere where it's cool.' Next to a building was a trailer; and the door was open. He sneaked inside, and laid on the wooden floor, feeling relaxed with a wide smile. 'Ah! That feels nice! I think I'll take a nap, until Sanji comes back. Is that okay? Is it? I guess it is. '

Just after he fell asleep, the door was shut behind him. "Is it closed?" The driver asked his co-worker.

"Yeah. Let's go."

"We don't want anyone finding it." Once he was onboard, the stagecoach started moving.

With Chopper inside.

When he woke up, he was alarmed at the rumbling movements, and the closed door. "Huh?! Where am I?!" He peeked out through the curtain, and saw a pair of mysterious men driving the coach; he quickly retreated when one of them looked his way, but thankfully, he didn't seem to see him. He turned small again, as he started to panic. 'Huh? Huh? Who're they? Where am I?' His eyes widened when a cabinet opened from a bump, and rifles fell out in front of him. "Rifles!" He accidentally shouted. When the same man peered in, he hid between two crates.

"What's wrong?"

"Thought I heard a voice. It's nothing."

When the curtain was closed, he began backing to the doors. 'I dunno what's going on, but they seem dangerous! I should probably get out of here quick!' He crashed into the doors when the coach suddenly stopped. "Oww!"

"Good work. That took a while."

"Yeah. The weapon store guy really raised his prices, that greedy bastard."

"It can't be helped. They're in huge trouble if they get found out too."

"Where's Koza?"

"Inside."

"We got a bit of food too. It's in the back."

"Got it."

The camel that pulled the coach yawned in boredom, watching the man approach the trailer. The man was surprised at what he saw; a reindeer laying on the floor, wearing shorts, a hat, and a backpack. "What is this?" Chopper tried to stay still. "They went, and bought a whole deer?"

As they talked to "Koza", Chopper managed to slip away, before another man looked in the trailer. "Hey! Wasn't there deer meat here?"

"Huh? Are you sure someone didn't haul it out already?"

"C'mon, do better checks, will ya?" He griped, before the camel nudged his back. "What?!" The camel hung its tongue out in parchment. "Water? There's some in that trough! Drink that!" It smiled in satisfaction, as it walked off with a green tarp over its back. "Hey! Let's get the rest out of here! Gimme a hand!"

"Right!"

Chopper stayed still under the tarp, as the camel strolled through the town casually, then stopped in the desert. Chopper peeked out cautiously, as the camel stared. "A-am I safe now?" It nodded in confirmation. "Whew! Thank you! But why did you help me?" He listened, changing back to small form, as it responded. ""I got no reason. I'm cool, ain't I?"" Chopper laughed nervously. "You're so strange!" He then jumped down, and waved in farewell, as it walked off to another town. "Thank you so much! He's a little strange, but he's a nice guy! I feel like I'm going to see him again! Still, who were those people? Oh well. Now which way is Nanohana?" He sniffed the air, before grimacing in disgust. Perfume. "This way." He headed in that direction. Hopefully Sanji has calmed down by the time he finds him.

He listened to it grunt. "Oh! Good for you!"

Luffy walked over, still eating. "Huh? You know each other?"

"Yeah! He gave me a ride when I escaped from Katorea!"

Usopp sat up from laying on the ground. "That's great! We can ride it?! That'll make things easier!"

"Yeah, that'll be a real help!" Sanji agreed. "Looks like it could carry two or three people!"

"Camels do go hand-in-hand with deserts!" Zoro added.

Luffy prepared to jump up. "Then I'll be the first one!" To his confusion, it bit his head to keep him down. "What was that for?!"

""I am a freedom-loving, hard-boiled, compassionate camel!"" Chopper translated. ""Thanks for helping me out of that pinch. I can give you a lift, but no men allowed!""

Usopp, Luffy, and Sanji started beating the camel in anger. "This guy's a punk!" Luffy griped.

"Yeah! You let Chopper ride you!" Usopp added.

""I'm manly!"" He translated, as it flashed a confident grin.

The beating continued as soon as it stopped. "Quit being stupid!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Why you-!"

Nami managed to stop them, and started comforting him. "I'm so sorry! My crewmates are so ill-bred!" She petted its head, to its delight, as it knelt down. "You're a good boy! What should we call you?"

"Idiot!" Luffy voted.

"Moron!" Sanji added.

"Doofus!" Usopp voted.

""Lashes", it is then!" Nami decided, already on the saddle.

"Uhh, that's the weirdest one of all," Zoro remarked.

"Okay! Get on Venus, Vivi!"

"No, I can still walk!" The princess kindly declined.

"Just get on," Nami insisted, as he knelt back down, and Vivi complied. "Venus! Hop to it!"

"Yeah, whatever," She grumbled somberly, finishing her meat; she couldn't help but smile when Lashes nudged her face, her tears being wiped away. "Thanks." She climbed on between Nami and Vivi with Burton's carrier on hand.

"Hey you, what's the big idea?!" Usopp raged in jealousy.

"Pervy camel! Pervy camel!" The boys griped, aside from Ace, who stayed quiet, as Lashes stood back up with the three girls.

Nami pulled her white hood back over her head. "Now we should make a little better time!" She looked back at Vivi, who was behind Venus. "We need to get to Yuba as fast as we can to talk to the rebel army!" She whipped the reins. "Giddyup, Lashes!"

At her command, he ran off, leaving the boys behind. "Hold on!"

"Wait, the boys!" Venus exclaimed, but was unnoticed, as she held the carrier tightly.

"Hurry, guys!" Nami ordered. "If you get separated, you'll never leave the desert alive!"

"Quit being stupid!" Usopp shouted angrily.

"I like this side of Nami-san too!" Sanji gushed.

"After them! Hurry!" Zoro urged.

"That pervy camel has Venus-chan!" Usopp added.

"He has Nami-san, and Vivi-chan too!" Sanji raged.

"Get on, Chopper!" Zoro ordered.

"Yeah!"

"Wait for us!" Once Chopper was on the sled, they began a mad sprint in Lashes' direction.

#magical straw hat #one piece #one piece oc #tempeste g. venus #alabasta #alabasta arc

2 notes · View notes

b0rista · 4 years ago

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— 𝐁𝐄𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐀 𝐌𝐎𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐍 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐄, 𝐒𝐀𝐒𝐇𝐀, 𝐉𝐄𝐀𝐍, & 𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐂𝐎 𝐒𝐐𝐔𝐀𝐃. ˚ ༘♡ ·˚ ₊

𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒: language, because i can't form sentences without using "fuck" every other word JDJD.

𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄𝐒: i only made this modern because i desperately wanted to include marco to the fullest leave me aloneEffsg. gn! reader, and i went pretty lengthy on this one so beneath the cut is where the headcanons start :)

𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐂𝐑𝐄𝐃𝐈𝐓: bearbrickjia on instagram!

by far, the best friend group to have. everyone balances one another out, and it's a perfectly imperfect mesh of teenagers.

there's jean, the group's centerpiece. he's the alpha of the posse, usually working as their own personal line leader whenever they're caught doing something as a group. he'll never admit it, but he's also the dad friend. of course, he's more of a "i wish i never gave birth to you oh my god please leave me alone also i love you" type than the stereotypical dad friend.

there's marco, the glue holding the group together. unsurprisingly, he's the calm, kindhearted support system that balances out the cokeheads, keeping them all sturdy. without a doubt, the group would fall apart without him. they need him, okay!! and by "them," i mean jean and yourself. marco, never change.

following up, there's connie & sasha, the wonder twins. their roles are pretty self explanatory, given their natural rambunctiousness. they're the two that hang out outside of the group the most, for obvious reasons. they're the crackhead siblings that bring life to the group, despite the hot water they typically land the others in. through their antics and their comic relief, they're irreplaceable. still, it's easy to want to strangle them sometimes.

next, there's you! because you're the reader, i won't name any specifics, but you're greatly cherished. you mark your place in the crew through various ways, having a unique relationship with each and every member. when he's in need of a breather outside of his typical nest (AKA marco), jean hits your line. if you're needing any kind of assistance with literally anything ever, marco's there to help. craving some chaos? bitch, connie & sasha have GOT YOU.

the main hangout spot is jean's house, 100%. not only has his mom practically adopted the whole squad, but there's only two people living there, so it isn't crowded. connie banned literally all four of you from his place, lmao. there was too many people there, and his family lives to humiliate him.

the group has this one policy, set down by yourself and jean: four piece maximum. this is directed solely towards sasha, of course, considering her tendency to raid her friends' fridges entirely of any food. if she's ever caught rummaging through a fridge for longer than necessary, it's the home owner's duty to shout, "four piece minimum!"

^ it never fails to startle her 😭. one time, she hit her head so hard on the fridge ceiling at jean's house she had to use a bag of frozen peas to soothe the swelling.

then, she proceeded to eat the thawed out peas. jean gagged.

the inside jokes? endless. all it takes is one word from a single event, and the five of you are losing your shit. it's cute, to be honest, how overzealous you all get from a single instance from months ago.

"ha. heh. hee."

"what is it?"

"ngGhh,, chEDDAR TIDDIES-"

"AHHHHHAGAGSHHDJF-"

if there are any inside jokes formed between two group members that isn't shared with the rest of them, there will be immediate bitterness. one time, you and sasha were giggling to yourselves over some druggie named jerry who'd tried selling baskets of rotten cherries to the two of you during a gas station haul— the boys were not having it. what the fuck were you doing without them, "friends"?

right before starting your guys' senior year of highschool, the five of you were on a group facetime when you all sent your schedules into group chat. due to the scarceness of your soon-to-be-majors, absolutely none of you had any classes together. you had a single lunch period with connie while marco had one with jean, but that was about it. it was,, a dramatic discovery. sasha fucking screamed.

"i have nothing with nobody!"

"calm down, sash-"

"you have lunch with y/n! LUNCH! that's my place, lunch. this is despicable, this is evil, this is a braus hate crime-"

yeah, she didn't take it that well. it's okay, doe. the four of you made a special effort during your passing periods, giving sasha enough of a fix for her to make it through each and every day.

it isn't like the five of you don't hang out outside of the classroom, either!! if you hadn't already made plans during that week, the weekend is where you absolutely thrive as a group. study sessions that always shift into exclusive house parties, lunches spent at your favorite places, the occasional visit to the movie theater, and so on. with a mini crowd like that, it's hard for any of you to get bored.

jean's hopeless crush on mikasa is a big factor in your friendship. when everyone minus marco (because he's an angel) isn't mercilessly teasing him, you're all trying to actually help the fucker score the girl. from talking him up obnoxiously enough whereas she'll hear, or flat out telling her to give him a chance, it's an actual effort. though, it's unfortunately all to no avail. shawty's too smitten with eren to even consider her options.

^ with that being said, the four of you have to give jean the "there are other fish in the sea" scoop more often than you'd like to admit.

group cuddles. that's that.

because he's the tallest and therfore the longest (probably, depending on your height), everybody has a chosen body part of jean's to latch onto during naps. connie has one leg while you have the other, and sasha keeps her head rested on his shoulder. marco's at the very bottom, entangling his legs in your own. somehow, this is heaven for jean. he'll never admit to it, though. as far as any of you are concerned, he HATES IT.

ranking from #1 as the best and #5 as the worst, these are the rated group therapists: ⇩︎

#1: marco. self explanatory, he's an amazing listener and provides supremely good advice. that, and he'd literally rather die than let any of his friends internalize anything they're dying to let loose.

#2: you. really, you're just a lot better than jean or connie. sasha's okay at it, but she's not the best at rationalizing, leaving you at second best. basically, when marco isn't available, you're where the freak shows go. marco goes to you about things, too.

#3: sasha. again, she's just a loT better than the final two. sasha's a sweetheart! she's empathetic, and nonjudgmental. we love her in this house.

#4: connie. also somewhat of a sweetheart, although not as much as sasha. he'll drop a shit ton of humor into serious conversations, making them just a tad bit more tolerable.

#5: jean. look, he's a great friend! however, he isn't all that empathetic, and he'll have some trouble understanding. still, he would try his hardest to make you or the other three feel better :,)).

in a modern universe, i know damn well connie's a half-assed stoner 30% of the time. he doesn't light up all that often, and he doesn't tell anybody about it, even you guys. mainly because marco will grill him for it DJFK. however, you stumbled upon his mini marijuana stash and he was like ahh, shit. you didn't really care doe, his secret is safe with you. you, however, now have DIRT on him.

matching bracelets that you all made for eachother yEars ago but never wear 🥺🥺.

many, many, many poly relationship jokes. only jokes, though. some people take it too literally, which y'all just laugh at.

there's a miniature rivalry going on between you and another nearby friend group: reiner, bertholdt, annie, ymir, and christa. of course, all of you are friends, it's all fun in games— most of the time, anyway. it's a funny rivalry, and you guys go at it quite a bit.

one of your guys' most intense debates is whether or not marco has freckles on his dick.

he,, refuses to show any of you, or even anSweR you.

"you act like we can't just check whenever we use the urinals, man."

"CONNIE-"

now, marco refuses to go to the bathroom at the same time as any of the boys <\33.

the group band? black eyed peas.

#aot #attack on titan #aot x reader #attack on titan headcanons #aot scenario #aot headcanons #jean kirschtien #marco bodt #connie springer #sasha braus #snk #shingeki no kyojin #snk headcanons #snk x reader #jean kirstein #sasha blouse

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lomappreciationblog · 2 years ago

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Episode 4 Thoughts: Basket Fish is a Nice Guy, Somehow

Whoa boy this episode. This episode is amazing! As always.

First of all - no surprise here anymore, but Polpota looks absolutely beautiful! Every location is again lovingly drawn and more than ever I wish I could visit that seaside town.

Also, our Mystery Blue Jumi is revealed to be the Sapphire Jumi, Sappho! We do actually get that name in the game, the gates in the Bejewled City are named after him, so that's a neat callback. The other Mystery Blue Jumi in the opening is also named, she's Marina, and though it's not stated I'm guessing she's an aquamarine Jumi based off her name.

I'll talk more about Sappho in a bit, but I really did like how this episode was structured.

They introduce Basket Fish as how he is in the game - a lecherous slimeball who looks down on all other people and calls them plebs. But! They actually made it so that there is more to him than meets the eye, I'm quite surprised.

They wrote this episode in a way that lessened the focus on the shipwreck investigation, since Shiloh and Boyd are at Polpota because they know Sandra is targeting the Blue Eye. They actually cut out the whole ghost business too. But they still gave justice to Thoma, here we get to actually hear how he feels and it is heartbreaking to see how desperate he was to find out how Thona died. So even if it's a pretty minimal role, you get to feel for him, and hey, he gets his peace at least.

They also do show in the anime that Elle's song did have the traditional siren effect in that her song caused the ship's crew to lose their senses and they ended up crashing into a rock because of it. I wonder if they will feature her again in this anime, though? Her questline is one of my favorites and I would think a lot of fans agree, but as considering how long the Jumi arc already is, it would be difficult to put it in without taking away too much screen time. But I hope, they adapt the other main arcs too and maybe we'll get to see Elle's story sometime. If it becomes an OVA, I would be so happy.

Oh, and yes, we get to see Elle in this episode!...before a lot of trouble comes to her, poor girl, but at least she looks happy here.

After Thona hears about the shipwreck, Boyd and Shiloh come in and find that Basket Fish is holding the Blue Eye, and he finally spills on why he has it. In the game, he was said to have inherited it, so I assumed it was a heirloom thing.

Here, however, the Blue Eye has a different story.

Basket Fish instead used to be a normal guy when one day he comes across an unconscious Jumi on the shore - and contrary to how we've seen him all this time, he's pretty nice, looking after Sappho even though the latter is very quiet and doesn't say much.

So, Sappho - here we meet our first (and perhaps the last) named male Guardian Jumi. We know the roles aren't tied to gender, seeing as Blackpearl is one of the strongest Jumi knights, but it's still good to see an actual male Guardian, since all the Guardians we see in game are female characters (Pearl, Florina, Esmeralda, Diana).

We also hear about Sappho's Knight, Marina. Unfortunately, going by the flashback she was already killed when she fended off a Jumi hunter to save him, and that was how he ended up washing up on Polpota's shores.

Poor Sappho seems to feel guilty, not because he lost his knight while he ran away, but because he never opened up to her like he did with Basket Fish. We also got see how he pays back Basket Fish's kindness and explains how he got so rich - he used his core's power to find sunken treasure, and that is how Basket Fish became wealthy. But, Sappho knowing he would be defenseless without a Jumi Knight, he instead entrusts his core to Basket Fish, so that at least the person who gets his core is a friend and not just some Jumi Hunter.

I imagine that would be pretty shocking, nursing someone back to health, being friends with them, and bam! The guy pulls his heart out and hands it to you. No wonder Basket Fish didn't want to let the Blue Eye go in Sappho's memory.

Back to the plot, I was wondering if they would do the Inspector Boyd switch, but nah, they made it so that Sandra disguised herself as Revanshe. It's a bit more believable for her to pull off, to be fair. It's still hilarious that she can transform into her thief attire with a swirl of a cloak, but I suppose that could be her special power as Alexandrite :b Magical wardrobe change seems to be her specialty anyway.

So she swipes the jewel and once again throws Shiloh into a wall, poor guy. Though, it's still a sweet detail that Shiloh checks on Basket Fish and promises to return the jewel before they give chase.

I appreciate that they show an actual physical fight between Sandra and Shiloh since in the game Sandra pretty much just sics Jewel Beasts on you. And boy we get to see that she can actually fight! No surprise given her former identity as a Jumi knight. Poor Shiloh gets beaten up for the third episode in a row and this time he has it especially hard. Thank goodness Serafina comes in to save him.

I wonder though, does Sandra have history with Serafina? She seemed reluctant to fight after seeing her and instead flees shortly after Serafina comes in. Could be that she was just reluctant to fight even more people, but it's still a strange reaction.

It's a shame though, I was hoping to see Serafina jump into a fight, but we'll have other chances.

Poor Shiloh though. The episode concludes with Boyd worried for him and saying he would have to stop Shiloh from joining the Jewel Thief investigations as it is too dangerous. Which isn't wrong...

Gahh, it keeps getting better and better! I'm guessing next episode is a breather one where Shiloh rests up and has to make up his mind whether to continue associating with Jumi business. I guess Serafina will be staying over too, since she's the one who's going to take him back to Domina.

And then we'll probably get the Looking Glass Tower soon. But that's just my guessing.

As always, had a blast watching this episode and eagerly awaiting the next one!

#legend of mana #legend of mana anime #it's too bad Sappho has minimal screen time #i really do like his design

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karliahs · 3 years ago

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It’s been months since he was this close to anyone. It might have even been Jon the last time, too; helping him walk down in the tunnels. How did they get from there to here? How-

“Tim?” Jon asks softly, pulling back to look him in the face, and it’s the loss of that warmth and pressure that makes Tim realise he’s started breathing in great, shuddering gasps. He screws his eyes shut and Jon reverses their positions, pulling Tim into his chest with unpracticed but fervent hands. His T-shirt is soft against Tim’s face; he hadn’t thought Jon would own anything so soft.

Tim’s throat is burning, but as long as he keeps his eyes screwed shut then he isn’t crying. He isn’t crying on Jonathan Sims the night before they both-

“It’s alright, Tim,” Jon says, searching for words of comfort he only half believes himself. “It’s - whatever happens tomorrow, it can’t - we’re safe here.”

Tim laughs bitterly. “Nothing’s fucking safe.”

Jon seems unable to decide between rubbing soothingly at his back and just holding on as tight as he can. Tim shouldn’t be here, shouldn’t be giving into this. But there's a reason he lost so much time when he should have been searching for the thing that killed his brother. The Institute was full of potential answers, but it was also full of bright, lovely distractions. He's buried in the arms of one of them.

Tim didn't used to think of that as weakness - but he didn't used to think there were worms that burrowed through your flesh, or creatures that took every true memory of your friend without you ever noticing, or monsters that played with skin, played with the fabric of who you were, because it was fun.

Tim doesn't know fucking anything, and maybe he never did, and now all that's left is to-

"What can I do, Tim?" Jon asks, and he sounds so honestly lost.

"Turn back time," Tim murmurs into his shirt. "Don't let go," he adds a moment later.

“I won’t, I won’t.” Jon clutches him impossibly closer. Tim’s world narrows down into warmth and pressure. “Tim, we don’t - we don’t have to do this. You don’t have to do this.”

The gentle vibration of his words is almost enough to distract Tim from the words themselves. He turns his head so he can speak un-muffled, and immediately misses the comfort of being closed in. “I do, Jon. I can’t…” Tim fumbles for the right words, wondering faintly if this is how Jon feels all the time, struggling to give voice to the unspeakable. “The worst thing in all of this, the worst thing would be if they hurt someone again while I��m just standing there."

Still not crying, not as long as his eyes are tight shut. He feels Jon hesitate, then push forward anyway. "Even if...Tim, even if you had moved, what could you have done?"

Tim squeezes hard at Jon's side and isn't sure if he means it as a warning or a plea.

"I'd never have met you," Jon says, so soft Tim isn't sure if he was meant to hear it.

"Was just thinking before,” Tim replies, because he’s fucked up enough that he might as well keep going, “I wish I'd met you somewhere normal."

Jon’s hands still, and for a moment the rise and fall of his chest does too. It’s the closest thing to absolution Tim’s ever offered. He’s glad he can’t see Jon’s face, can’t see whatever shock or gratitude is playing out there. At some point, he made himself into someone who no one expects to be kind. He wonders, vaguely, whether it counts as forgiveness, to want someone to spend what might be their last night on earth forgiven.

from: enemy of my enemy, aka jon and tim sit in various rooms and talk: the fic

thank you for asking!!! here we go:

It’s been months since he was this close to anyone. It might have even been Jon the last time, too; helping him walk down in the tunnels. How did they get from there to here? How-

do you ever just think about how fast things went wrong for the s1 crew...they were friends just a few months ago!! a few weeks in between no current supernatural experiences -> trying to survive supernatural experiences together by physically holding each other up -> complete alienation. some experiences just defy comprehension, emotionally speaking, even when you can see every step that led from there to here

i also like to make myself sad by thinking about the practical day to day aspects of everyone in the archives being alienated from everyone else. like...when were either of them last touched (non-violently)

so much has changed but they've circled back around to each other

'person starts crying without noticing until someone points it out' is a trope i generally try to stay away from partly because i just can't imagine that ever happening to me and therefore it doesn't ping my realism senses, but i get one (1) because it is undeniably juicy

this fic is very zeroed in on tim's perspective in terms of small sensory experiences, for a few reasons - drive home emotions, portray dissociation, and because i like writing about how it actually feels to be in a romantic gesture, to make it more real than just like...an image of people holding each other

small detail that jives with bigger points - jon's shirt unexpectedly soft, jon's surprising ability to still provide him with gentleness and comfort

i think jon here has no idea what to do but has been given permission to touch so is living his best tactile life with this inexpert hugging and is hoping that does something

Tim’s throat is burning, but as long as he keeps his eyes screwed shut then he isn’t crying. He isn’t crying on Jonathan Sims the night before they both-

“It’s alright, Tim,” Jon says, searching for words of comfort he only half believes himself. “It’s - whatever happens tomorrow, it can’t - we’re safe here.”

Tim laughs bitterly. “Nothing’s fucking safe.”

tim spends a lot of this fic having his inner-monologue cut off to try and show as well as tell that he's struggling to stay present

that 'both-' hurts me, honestly. hurts more than it actually being spelled out, i think. write to upset yourself, maybe you will upset others in the process

half is a word i absolutely overuse in writing but cannot stop. no one ever does something all the way, they are half- believing, wondering, worrying, etc.

i'm never 100% sure if i'm accurately capturing the way that jon speaks in canon but i did always like and want to emulate the fact that he speaks kind of hesitantly, trips over his own words, etc

again, jon does not know what to do so he is just trying. just trying to do any kind of soothing hand thing

i thought quite a lot about reconciling the seemingly happy-go-lucky tim that gets presented to us early on vs learning why he came to the institute in the first place. tim here is framing that as a failing because he's miserable and traumatised and guilt-ridden, but i think at least part of it was actual healing. he was taking time and enjoying the people around him and trying to make the best of things, until it all went wrong

related, the self-recrimination of tim hating himself for not having seen any of this coming, even though they were not predictable events...very human nature after you have been through something terrible. how dare i have not anticipated every trouble that ever befell me

'played with skin, played with the fabric of who you were' - a lot of this story was me just enjoying the themes of stranger-horror. i love the terror of knowing there are creatures who can change aspects of you that should be unchangeable, physically in skin and otherwise in terms of identity and memory. love applying that to jon and tim, who have been fundamentally changed against their will by trauma and their roles in a story neither of them wanted. skin as metaphor for identity, and learning that people can take away your skin is then utterly terrifying to someone who already feels like his identity is being forcibly eroded. and then that shared terror brings them back together, just a little

Tim doesn't know fucking anything, and maybe he never did, and now all that's left is to-

"What can I do, Tim?" Jon asks, and he sounds so honestly lost.

"Turn back time," Tim murmurs into his shirt. "Don't let go," he adds a moment later.

this fic...is so sad. why did i write this. why am i being attacked by my past self and their awful words on this day

explicit admission that tim wants/needs jon here...even a chapter ago he was like yeah i'm going to america with jon bc i am regrettably relying on him as my reality-anchor, nothing emotional here

“I won’t, I won’t.” Jon clutches him impossibly closer. Tim’s world narrows down into warmth and pressure. “Tim, we don’t - we don’t have to do this. You don’t have to do this.”

Still not crying, not as long as his eyes are tight shut. He feels Jon hesitate, then push forward anyway. "Even if...Tim, even if you had moved, what could you have done?"

Tim squeezes hard at Jon's side and isn't sure if he means it as a warning or a plea.

warmth, pressure, vibration...continuing to be fascinated by the little tactile details of what it feels like to be close to someone

emotional logic is so powerful. tim moving most likely would have either made no difference to the outcome or worsened it (because both him and danny would have died) but of course for tim standing still while someone he loves was destroyed counts for everything about who he is. sometimes blame feels better than helplessness, which mirrors what happens with his friendship with jon - is it scarier if they are all helpless, or if this one guy is The Enemy

‘give voice to the unspeakable’ sometimes i like poetic descriptions of jon’s role as archivist

"I'd never have met you," Jon says, so soft Tim isn't sure if he was meant to hear it.

"Was just thinking before,” Tim replies, because he’s fucked up enough that he might as well keep going, “I wish I'd met you somewhere normal."

tim views talking with and connecting to people as fucking up. how much of that is even slightly shrouded in logic and how much is just - tim is depressed and deep in self-loathing, somewhere still at the core of him tim loves people and making connections, so of course doing the thing he wants to do is wrong

‘At some point, he made himself into someone who no one expects to be kind.’ tim has this thought once and then worries at it like a sore tooth because his default state is hopeless fury with himself, with everyone. i also think this demonstrates how new information/realisations often can’t help you out of a bad mental state on its own, because it’s all too easy to slot it into your existing thought patterns. pushing everyone away was making tim worse - he starts to feel like that was a mistake, but it just becomes more self-recrimination

forgiveness is one of those words that seems to encompass so many different concepts that i find it hard to know exactly what it’s meant by saying you forgive someone. specifying what’s meant by this little shard of maybe-forgiveness makes it mean more, at least to me

may i reiterate: :(

#jontim #asks #give-me-a-minute-to-think #talking #tma /#long post #ps to the other person who sent me an ask for this meme: thank you!!! it'll be friday probs before i can answer

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aricazorel · 4 years ago

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"How ticklish are you?" suggested by @ljandersen

pairing: Kaidan Alenko x Kori Reese (my OC); set during ME1; 2115 words

The Normandy was once again docked at a port for resupply. Only this time it wasn't some backwater planet. This time it was a popular tourist spot established by human private investors. With a limited Alliance presence, Avalon was the perfect haven for some less than reputable people. But at the moment it was a location for the SR1 crew’s shore leave.

Shore leave that Doctor Chakwas insisted the crew needed to take. A 24 hour layover at Avalon fit the bill with little to no argument from Shepard much to Kaidan’s surprise. Of course that left 24 hours of free time for the crew to get into mischief. He had a feeling Kori might be one of those who ended up on report if she wasn't properly entertained. But she wouldn't appreciate a keeper. Maybe she'd be okay with someone who was more than friends.

There wasn't exactly a label for what they were. Their relationship wasn't something they wanted to advertise. It wasn't even something that should have occurred. Fraternization regs. His own personal rules. Reese’s tendencies to be exceedingly private because of her past. All of that was supposed to work against them. Somehow it hadn't.

After something finagling the two lieutenants had managed to sneak off to enjoy a day of shore leave without any other crew members present. Applying his habit of being thorough in his duties to researching the Avalon colony, Kaidan had discovered a little used beach some ways from the spaceport. Convincing Reece to trust him, they rented a skycar and headed to the beach. Slightly cooler temperature wise than the more popular beaches near the spaceport, it reminded him of the ones he visited near Vancouver on Earth in his youth.

Of course the first thing Reese had commented on was the temperature. How much cooler it was then at the spaceport, and he knew she hated being cold. He grinned at her as he casually took off his blue Alliance hoodie.

“Want to borrow this?” He offered nonchalantly. He'd worn it over his T-shirt having been prepared for the temperature. He suggested she take one as well, but Reese did as she wanted.

The younger Lieutenant glared at him as she snatched the hoodie from his hand and put it on. “You did this on purpose.”

“Me?” He said innocently, pointing at himself. “I suggested that you should bring one.”

“You didn't tell me why,” she accused as she pulled the too-long sleeves of the borrowed hoodie up to her elbows.

“You're a smart person. I thought you could figure it out,” Kaidan replied with a smirk as he began walking down the beach away from the skycar.

“Ass,” Reese grumbled as he stopped to glance back at her

Extending a hand behind him he said, “Don't be that way, Kori. I thought this could be …something just for us.”

“Just for us?” She echoed as she walked up to him, staring at his offered hand.

“Well yeah,” Alenko replied shyly. “I mean with everything else we've …done, I thought some time together off the ship would be nice …kind of like a date.”

“A date?” She repeated uncertainly.

Kaden nodded. “Maybe we aren't there yet but –“

“We shagged like rabbits in the back of the Mako, Kaidan,” Reese pointed out smugly.

Alenko arched an eyebrow as a satisfied grin spread across his face. “We did, didn't we?”

“Really? You are going to be smug –“

She was cut off when he took her hand and pulled her to his side. “Can we please just take a walk along this beach which reminds me at home and pretend we …could be a normal couple?”

His whiskey-colored eyes pleaded with her to indulge him this one time. He was well aware Reese thought he was a romantic at heart, a sentiment shared by Ashley. He had already gone way over the line concerning keeping things strictly professional with Reese anyhow. Walking down a remote beach acting as if they weren't on a life-or-death mission for a few hours wouldn’t do much more damage if anyone found out. At least it was more explainable than the Mako.

“I --we can do that,” Reese agreed as she slowly slid an arm around his waist.

Kaidan grinned as he mimicked her action with his arm around her shoulders. They walked in silence for a few minutes, listening to the waves gently crash against the shore. The sun shone brightly overhead as a cloud or two moved in front of it occasionally. It was comforting to just spend time with someone he cared about without any expectations. It was nice to be somewhere that reminded him of home. It was just nice to be with Reese.

“This beach reminds you of home?” The younger tech’s voice called up to him. Alenko glanced down to see grey eyes looking back at him with a curious expression.

“Well yeah. Even the temperature. Vancouver is along the coast, remember? My parents have some land in the countryside,” he explained. “We used to go whenever we could, not just in the to swim. Sometimes just to take a walk.”

“A beach is supposed to be warm,” Reese insisted.

“And how would you know?”

“Just 'cause I was a colony kid doesn't mean I've never been to a beach,” she answered indignantly. “Moirae was like Georgia. One of the reasons my parents chose it for colonization and terraforming …Georgia has beaches too.”

“That doesn't mean you've been to a beach. That's just show that you know what one is,” Kaidan observed with a teasing grin.

“Alenko –“

He kissed her quickly. “I'm teasing, Kori.”

She huffed as she said, “My grandma used to talk take us swimming during the summer. Trying to help me feel normal while learning how to cope with my biotics.”

“That's cool,” Alenko commented, using 20th century slang that both annoyed and endeared him to her more.

“Actually it was hot,” Reese said with a wink.

Kaidan chuckled as he hugged her to his side. “And that is why you hate being cold and why you have a stash of blankets in your bunk I suppose.”

“Do not mock the stash of blankets,” Reese said seriously. “They have kept me from climbing into your bunk. You're warm.”

Alenko shook his head. “I should thank the blanket stash for keeping us out of trouble then. As nice as it might be to go to sleep with you in my arms. “

“Are you getting all mushy on me, Alenko?”

“Maybe just a little. No one else is around so …”

Reese shook her head as they continued to walk down the deserted beach. “I haven't walked a beach in quite a while.”

Kaidan grinned, glad that his idea had been a good one. “Did you ever just take walks along the beach on Moirae?”

The Lieutenant regretted the question as soon as the words left his mouth. He stopped in his tracks and looked at her. “Kori, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to –“

“You probably don't know but colony kids have dances in high school. Just like you Earthborn kids do,” Reese interjected, ignoring his attempt to apologize. She went on as she gazed out at the ocean. “Granted my high school wasn't that big but we managed to still have dances. Our junior prom was supposed to be on the beach. Everyone was excited. It was going to be my first formal. I even had a dress picked out. No date of course but a few of us girls were just gonna go together in a group.

Kaidan watched as she paused, a wistful look on her face. She rarely talked about Moirae. She was more apt to talk about her time in Georgia but to be truthful she didn't often talk about her past at all. He probably knew more than anyone else on the SR-1 but even that was a smattering of whatever she let slip when her guard was down.

“The short version is that it didn't happen, and I never got to attend a formal dance,” the tech concluded with a shrug of the shoulders.

She began to walk again but was stopped by Kaidan’s hand on her arm. “You don't have to act like it isn't a big deal.”

“But that's just it. Missing a prom isn't a big deal. It was just a stupid dance.”

“Maybe but it was more to you. It was something you were looking forward to, something I think you were actually excited about,” Kaidan said as he brought her back to him. “I know the destruction of your colony took away your family and your home, but it also took away experiences that you could have had. Things you should have had. You can't get the exact experience back but maybe when this mission is over we can try to make up for that in some small way.”

“You mean arrange for me to go to prom?”

“Well no, not exactly, but definitely something requiring formal attire. A dress.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Now you just want to see me in a dress.”

“I’ve seen you in less,” he pointed out as he placed his hands on her hips.

As he absentmindedly made lazy circles with his thumbs, she huffed. “So that is where your mind is, techboy.”

“I think I’m allowed,” he replied as he noticed her beginning to fidget. Frowning he asked, “Something wrong?”

She shook her head. “Nope.”

Not convinced he stopped his ministrations and watched her fidgeting cease. An idea began to form as a wicked grin spread across his face. He lightly caressed her hips again but this time working his way up the side of her ribcage. She wiggled and began giggling.

“Alenko! Stop!”

As she backed away, he stared at hie wide eyed. “Kori, how ticklish are you?”

“That is need to know information and you, Lt. Alenko, don’t need to know,” she replied holding her hands up in front of her as a makeshift barrier.

“Oh, but I think I do need to know, Lt. Reese,” he countered as he began walking towards her with purpose.

“Aw, hell no!” she yelled as she began running from him.

He laughed as the tech began sprinting back towards the skycar. He gave pursuit, sorely tempted to use his biotics to halt her retreat. But that would be cheating, and Reese would definitely not like that. In the end he settled for catching up with her and tackling her.

She let out a shriek as they fell unceremoniously to the sandy ground. Kaidan gave a roar of laughter as he declared, “Got ‘cha!”

With Reese already struggling to escape, he immediately began to tickle her again, determined to discover just how ticklish she was. Her laughter was music to his ears as they rolled along the beach. He’d only rarely heard her giggle let alone laugh as if nothing could stop her. As she twisted and turned underneath him, he discovered to his delight she was very ticklish nearly everywhere.

The wheels in Alenko’s head began turning as he stopped tickling her. That weakness was definitely something he could exploit later. Grey eyes looked at him as tears of laughter slide down her cheeks. He leaned down and kissed her sweetly.

As she hummed her contentment Kaidan murmured against her lips. “Take shore leave with me after this mission.”

Reese pulled back just a bit as she said, “You’re serious?”

Kaidan nodded even though he was surprised as she was that he had uttered the words to begin with. She blinked and cupped his cheek. “You’re serious enough about us you’d want to see more of me after this mission…oryou just want to tickle me some more?”

Alenko grinned. “Maybe it’s both. And maybe I can find more places where you are ticklish…Ones I need to remove certain articles of clothing to discover…”

“Are you coming onto me, Alenko?”

Kaidan smirked. “I thought I was already on you, Reese.”

The tech rolled her eyes as he leaned down and kissed her again. “Will you?”

Reese made an amused sound before asking, “If I say yes, are you going to stop kissing me?”

“No.”

“Then yes.”

Kaidan grinned as he kept his word and continued kissing the Lt. Happy to have something to look forward to and happy that thing involved Reese. Happy to know she looked forward to it as well. As the waves crashed around them, he was once again reminded of home and how Kori now felt like that to him. And that he would never regret it. Ever.

#trilogyappreciationweek #mass effect #kaidan alenko #kori reese #kaidan x female original character #broken road

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michaelarowrites · 3 years ago

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Hello! I recently finished Honor the Words and loved it!! I'm not quite sure of where to start, so here are some random comments and questions, in no particular order (many spoilers below):

1. Why didn't Toshiaki take Basho in the room with them when he was planning to kill Masaomi (in the lines from "Perhaps Basho and Hitokiri should stay outside" to "Fine then")? I was mainly confused about the fact that Toshiaki says Basho is "better groomed" in response to Masaomi's "Basho goes everywhere with you." It makes sense that he wouldn't want a very unkempt "Hitokiri" inside for various reasons, but then he doesn't really put up any resistance when Masaomi insists on taking Youji in. Since Hitokiri went in, wouldn't it make sense to also bring Basho? Or was Toshiaki just confident that he'd succeed in killing Masaomi regardless of the two bulgae?

2. I loved how parts of the MasaYou plot were conserved!! Masaomi and Youji getting to know each other has been absolutely adorable because Masaomi is so out of depth in some of these situations and he just keeps getting saved by Youji. (And this is really looking like a slow burn, I love it.) Can't wait to see the process of them growing closer—not only MasaYou, but the whole crew :)

3. On that note, it's looking like Masami + Youji and Hinami + Shiori at the moment, which is beautiful especially because we didn't get to see much of the latter in D:M. A living Shiori makes everything better. When I first read Shine the Brightest, it was interesting to have Shiori + Masaomi be the ones who knew each other already, because that changed their dynamic; Masaomi doesn't go through the whole "who is this person and how is she so fascinating" stage on-screen (or, at least not yet). I particularly like how Shiori gets—and stays—angry at him in Honor the Words. There's also a lot less of Youji's crush on/obsession with Hinami thus far, so I'm curious as to how things will unfold in the Masaomi + Shiori / Hinami + Youji direction. Is it going to be an OT4 this time, or two pairs? (Please ignore that question if it'd be a huge spoiler.)

4. Kyouhei's dialogue was highly entertaining to read; his word choices were so hilariously absurd. Was it difficult to write?

5. I love the cover! Thank you for the kind mention, it was a very pleasant surprise :D I'm looking forward to cover art of Youji's true form! And Shiori's!

6. I just saw the previous ask and OMG YES there's going to be more books! Hopefully many more books, I will buy all the books!!!

Oops, that was a long ramble. I may send a second ask if another thought pops up. Until then, please take care! Thank you for yet another wonderful story!

—Jay

P.S. I have figured out how to embed images!

Thank you so much, friend! I didn't know you had a tumblr, I would have included that in the acknowledgements page had I known =) It is so amazing to see someone has copies of my books, so thank you so much for sharing that photo.

I realized after the other question ask that I should probably have a spoilers tag for this books, so now there's the #htw spoilers tag.

SO SPOILERS AHEAD! And under the cut.

1) Basho was in the room! Youji kills him too. It's pretty quick and easy to miss though, so sorry that was unclear! Toshiaki initially proposed Basho and Youji stay outside because he thought Masaomi would be suspicious if he said only Youji should stay behind. But since he thought it would be suspicious if he insisted, he also trusted that a) Basho would beat Youji, if necessary, because Basho was a pretty powerful fire dog and b) that Youji wouldn't actually want to help Masaomi. The Shiroryu's were pretty sure a fire dog would not feel loyal to Masaomi =)

2) Thank you! I really didn't want to just write the same story all over again, but I also wanted elements to be similar. And oh gosh this is turning out to be SUCH A SLOW BURN. So buckle up for a long ride here with everyone =)

3) You will find out! Hopefully. Hopefully I get to write all the books I would like to write for this. But since that is a huge spoiler, I will hold off on answering for now.

4) HIS DIALOGUE WAS SO HARD TO WRITE. I'm not even sure I did it justice. It required much use of a thesaurus.

5) Thanks again for connecting me to the cover artist!! I'm very happy with how it turned out.

6) I am so glad other people are interested in reading other books. Seriously, I cannot stress how much my interest in writing other books is directly correlated to reader feedback, so thank you so much. These asks have really helped motivate me in finishing book three!

Thank you again for reading and for all your lovely questions. If you have other asks, please feel free to send! I love hearing back from readers!!

#mikki writes #I have asks! and I'm answering them!#honor the words #The Magpie Chronicles #htw spoilers

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spicycreativity · 3 years ago

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Fanfic Appreciation Week Day 7: A Place Where I Can Breathe

Yes, folks, I'm appreciating my own darn fanfic for the final day of Fanfic Appreciation Week because I worked really hard on it and it was a labor of love for/with one of my QPPs, my roommate, the man who got me into Sanders Sides: @\cadeorade-powercade (That's him in the aesthetic board)

Allow me to present the director's commentary for A Place Where I Can Breathe:

Content Warnings: All content warnings mentioned in the fic apply.

Chapter 1: I actually wrote this fairly late in the game. It's meant to serve as a prologue and orient the viewer in the universe, s opposed to staring on Chapter 2, which just throws the viewer in without context. I think it was a good choice, as it also allowed me to introduce the concept of the Sides having power focuses early on.

The Premise: Cade is a Virgil stan and he was getting frustrated looking for Virgil fic. He was finding a lot of stuff written without nuance by young authors, a sort of "by teenagers for teenagers" type deal. We are not teenagers, so we both have a hard time relating to that kind of teen angst fic, as we're not the target audience. So he asked me to write him a Virgil fic and we worked together to identify what plot he wanted, what the Mindscape looked like, and what quirks the Sides have. So a lot of this fic is quite gratuitous and self-indulgent

The Title: Lizzie McAlpine has a song called "Apple Pie" which includes the lyric "I've been running around trying to find a place where I can breathe." Apple Pie SCREAMS Moceit to me, and I had taken notice of the lyric and wanted to use it as the title for a Moceit fic. I didn't really have an idea beyond that, and when Cade asked me to write this fic, I realized it was actually perfect and summed up Virgil's inner struggle quite nicely. So cheers to "A Place Where I Can Breathe," the Moceit Fic That Wasn't

-Cade asked me specifically to include Virgil having a spider and I wrote nearly the whole fic without doing so, then had to go back and sprinkle some references in. I think I managed 2 total.

Chapter 2:

"Uh, how about I hold off on that until I actually see my room?" Virgil stared expectantly at Roman, who bounced on his toes. "Lead on, Macduff."

"That's not the line and you know it," Roman complained, but he turned to lead Virgil to his room. "It's ' lay on, Macduff,' and--"

-This fic was originally supposed to reach a climax with a confrontation between Remus and Roman, and "lay on, Macduff" would come back as a brick joke. Unfortunately, the original ending was a result of me getting tired and lazy, so I had to go back and fix it, and we lost the Roman-Remus confrontation.

It was hard for Virgil to not shudder at the sudden heat and weight on him. With his senses already open and taking in more information than his brain seemed to want to process, touch was an added stressor, more unwanted sensory input.

-Virgil being touch-averse is a direct shoutout to Cade, who is also touch-averse.

Roman had already transformed the living room: metallic streamers of purple and black stretched across the corners of the ceiling, and shiny balloons spelling out A-N-X-E-I-T-Y hovered above the TV.

-Upon first writing, Virgil had already given the upstairs crew his name, so the banner spelled out "VIRIGL" which is way funnier than "ANXEITY." But then his name reveal became a plot point so I had to go back and change it.

-Let! Virgil! Be! Mean!

-Virgil's line about hearing refrigerator noise when Roman talks is another shout-out to Cade, who has leveled that accusation at me

A small, cruel part of him protested at the idea that he would need special treatment and desperately wanted to throw it back in Patton's face. He wasn't a sweetheart, he wasn't a baby. He didn't need to crawl into a blanket fort with Dad just because he was a little stressed.

-Remus calls Janus "Janus Geminus" because I was tired and couldn't come up with a pun. "Geminus" is one of the Roman god Janus' epithets; another is "Pater" meaning "Father." That led to a conversation about Remus deliberately confusing Patton by calling Janus "Daddy," but I couldn't think of a clean way to fit the explanation into the narrative, so I stuck with "Geminus."

Chapter 3:

"There's nothing normal about that! " Roman stared in horror at the coffee massacre Virgil had orchestrated. What had once been a respectable (if not very tasty) cup of black coffee was now part of a 1:1 coffee to milk suspension, the liquid a tasteful shade of tan suitable for business casual trousers or a show-ready chihuahua.

-Cade is a certified Nightmare Man and came up with Virgil's horrifying coffee order after I asked him about it. Keep an eye out for Janus' equally horrifying coffee order later in the fic.

1) Shouts out the fact that Janus is canonically a Dostoevsky fan

Chapter 4:

Janus smiled at him. "Where reason fails, the Devil helps." He fussed with his gloves and straightened his capelet. "It's showtime."

-I fucking love Crime and Punishment. Look at me. Look at me. I fucking love Crime and Punishment. Janus' quoting Raskolnikov serves multiple purposes:

2) Lampshades the fact that Roman just conveniently happened to be alone in the living room, because I didn't want to waste time getting him there. That makes me, the author, the Devil

3) Foreshadows the impending disaster. When Raskolnikov says this line it is because he had planned to commit axe murder. The axe he was planning to steal had been moved, but he finds another, different axe to use. Raskolnikov messes up the murder and ends up killing an innocent witness in addition to his intended target. Janus messes up his manipulation attempt and ends up murdering Roman's self esteem

-I was going to include a reference to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead (Remus' line "debauchery and vomit" was originally going to be "blood, love, and rhetoric") but I didn't because... Uh... Hm. Why didn't I do that. Maybe I just forgot about it???

-Roman is too stubborn to manipulate for long and that is a fact.

"I was pretty much done anyway," Remus said. "There's only so much debauchery and vomit you can fit into one story."

-Cade specifically ask me that nobody cry in this fic, but after I had Janus eviscerate Roman I knew he couldn't not cry a little. I kept it to a minimum because there's already a billion fucking fics about [literally any Side] crying on the shoulder of [literally any other Side] and it's really just not interesting to either of us.

-It didn't come up because it doesn't matter, but Thomas dreamed he was participating in the exact Dionysian orgy that took place in The Secret History because it's my fic and I said so.

Chapter 5:

He just sat back and watched and tugged at his hair while Janus spooned mound after mound of crisp white sugar into his mug and Virgil poured his customary eight fluid ounces of milk into his own mug.

-Cade strikes again. Virgil's coffee order is equal amounts milk to coffee; Janus' is equal parts sugar to coffee. He had asked me to include a scene where Roman catches Janus massacring his coffee and is appropriately horrified, but I uhh... Didn't write it. I still might include it as an omake someday.

-I imagine that Roman feels really strongly about dragons vs wyverns, and Remus just pretends to give a shit because he thinks it's funny to wind Roman up. Fortunately for me but unfortunately for my sense of realism in writing, I can't relate because I adore my sister and we get along perfectly almost 100% of the time.

"You shut us down every chance you get!" Remus said, baring his teeth. "How would you like it if your pens never wrote, hm? What would you do with all those thoughts in your head?"

-I do wish I had developed the concept of power focuses a bit more, established rules and such. Basically, Patton is always on the prowl for wrongthink and actively represses it, which in turn breaks or sabotages the Dark Sides' power focus.

Chapter 6: This chapter really should have been Janus and Roman but I was really tired and didn't want to bother with it. Plus, you know, Moceit. This chapter was meant to demonstrate how the characters would get along without Virgil nannying them. There's friction, but everyone is making a conscious, deliberate effort to get along because they love Virgil, and love is a series of choices you make.

I chose "Leo" as the answer for the answer to the crossword clue instead of "Virgo," because my other QPP is a Leo. She'll never read this fic, but I did it anyway because I love her. (Trivia: My sign is Virgo, so it was really a choice between shouting her out and shouting me out, and the last chapter is self-indulgent enough, thank you).

Chapter 7: I was gonna write a fic where all the Sides watched Cats the Musical because I was going through a phase. Then Cade requested this so I combined the two ideas. By this point I was fucking exhausted, and that's the only thing that saved you and the rest of the world from me writing the Sides riffing on the movie scene-by-scene. I could come up with snarky commentary for almost every, if not every single song from the movie.

Most notably, I cut a Patton-Remus interaction where Remus declares his love for Grizabella and Patton gets all staryy-eyed about Remus connecting with the idea of rising above rejection and being loved and accepted only for Remus to shoot him down and explain that he just likes that she got to die in a tire fire.

Other cut scenes include Janus quietly pretending not to go feral over Mister Mistoffelees, Patton full-on fucking sobbing over Grizabella and the kittens, and Logan experiencing a deep, soulful kinship with Munkustrap during Of The Awefull Battle of the Pekes and the Pollices (and henceforth introducing the phrase "like herding cats" into his regular vocabulary

#spicypost #fanfic appreciation week

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bbrandy2002 · 5 years ago

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Two Men and a Baby Part 9A-The Final Part.

This chapter took on a life of itself and is quite long, so I divided it up in two parts again. I will release the second part later today.

I put everything into this chapter, so, I hope it meets your expectations, because it is WILD 😂

The Royal Romance/The Royal Heir

Warning: YOU WILL LAUGH A LOT!! Also, there's profanity.

@emceesynonymroll

@gardeningourmet @dcbbw @crookedslimecreatorpasta @moonlightgem7 @katedrakeohd @sirbeepsalot @romanticatheart-posts @carabeth @ladyangel70

I do not own any of these characters...borrowing from Pixleberry.

[[Read more]]

Post 9A-Finale

He looked at her and uttered, "I'm sorry".

She replied with a soft smile, "I'm not".

Drake closed his eyes and took a deep breath, "but, what about Liam?"

"Drake, my husband never took the time to touch me like you did last night; trust me, I'm not worried about what Liam thinks."

"Yeah, last night sure was crazy."

10 hours earlier....

The press had gotten news of Bertrand's debacle and descended onto the gravel road that led through the Stormholt Vineyards.

Bertrand was still inside and the crews that weren't working the Beaumont Estate standoff were assigned to the Beaumont Zipper-gate send off. Firemen were busy working the jaws-of-life on the roof of the carriage; meanwhile a helicopter life squad was waiting in the air.

Bertrand was unable to close his legs and crewman concluded this would make it difficult to get him through the door. Once the roof had been lifted off, the helicopter got into position over the carriage.

Penelope had exclusive access to all the action. Being friends with Savannah paid off in this situation. Penelope offered Savannah a ride to the hospital in exchange for moment by moment, upclose coverage.

"Yes folks, Penelope here with all the action. Right now, the medical helicopter is lowering a harness down into the carriage with the assumption, the Duke will be raised out and transported to the emergency room immediately.....this is so awesome, lets watch".

Two fire rescuers climbed inside the carriage and carefully cut the legs of Bertrands pants; they wanted to make access to his "area" a little easier for the flight medics.

"Alright Your Grace, we have to place this harness through your arms and strap it around your chest. We assure you this is very sturdy and you will not fall okay?"

Bertrand nodded, but, didn't speak. He wanted to, but, what was there to say. In just mere moments, he would be lifted out of this carriage and would ascend into the sky, practically naked. He was aware the press was waiting outside. He was also aware that he would be front page news, right next to a damn boar. He closed his eyes and the image of Maxwell was so vivid in his mind. He knew he bought a "pig" yesterday, but, was he really that stupid to mistake it for what it really was, a wild boar. Bertrand concluded, he is.

When Maxwell was 10, he traded Pokemon at school with Neville Vancouer. Neville told Maxwell he had a hamster that he would give Maxwell for his rare holographic shadowless first edition Mewtew, Pokemon card. Neville got the card and Maxwell unknowingly got a rat. The rat had babies and the infestation was horrific. The vineyards behind the estate were nearly wiped out. Bertrand found one in his bed, just before climbing in, mating with another. When Bertrand brought his first girlfriend home, she left the estate in tears after one jumped on her just before he was getting ready to clear second base. The town was affected, as crops after crops were destroyed. Barthelemy Beaumont paid a heavy price in lawsuits and clean up that year; his families financial troubles began in that moment. It took Maxwell's tell-all book to bring them out of their woes. Bertrand would be appreciative of that fact, if it weren't for him telling people in his book that Bertrand gets bi-monthly Brazilian waxes from a shady massage parlor owned by Duke Godfrey in Krona. That parlor has since been been raided and shut down.

Once the harness was securely in place, life squad gave the signal and Bertrand was slowly liifted upward.

"Hey fellow Cordonians, Penelope here again. I have just gotten word, they are about to lift the Duke out of the carriage. Yes, there he goes...up, up and wow, is his asshole as smooth as a babys bottom. His brother was telling the truth....good job Duke Godfrey and all the former employees of Adelaide's Massage and Dance Parlor. Oh, hold up guys, there seems to be some kind of mechanical trouble. The lift has stopped working....whats that? There's a malfunction?.....okay, so the lift has malfuctioned and they are going to go ahead and proceed on to the hospital with the Duke hanging below. Good luck up there sir, you're little naked butt is flying with the birds now! Okay, I am heading to the hospital now and will update you all as soon as I can. Penelope out!"

Bertrand was such a trooper, because, of course the lift malfunctioned; it would be wrong if it didn't at this point. He was sure that at any moment, the harness would break too and he would simply fall from the sky. With his luck today, he probably would survive though.

Riley, Drake, Olivia and Maxwell were watching the events unfold on TV from the waiting room of the hospital. Maxwell had been released earlier and Drake finally caught up with them. Drake told Riley that Liam was meeting with someone to explain his absence. Savannah had replied to Riley's earlier text, letting her know that Bertrand would be going to the hospital soon. She didn't say why, but, the news in the waiting room was riveting. The press had already gathered outside, awaiting the arrival of Duke Ramsford.

"This is absolutely, the most insane thing I've ever seen." Riley watched in awe.

"Wow, that camera is really not letting up off his asshole." Olivia replied in complete astonishment.

"Well Maxwell, I owe you a hundred smackaroos, I thought you made it up, but, that camera angle doesn't lie. He really does get Brazilian waxes" Drake says as he leans back in his chair with his hands laced behind his head.

"Why would I lie Drake? Beside, you wanna know who else was getting one there?" Maxwell asked. Riley, Olivia and Drake all leaned forward in anticipation. "Who?" Olivia inquired eagerly.

"The Queen Mother", Maxwell said with a slight grin.

"Pfft...no fucking way!" Riley slapped both of her knees in shock.

"Maxwell, how do you know that? Did you see her there?" Olivia asked sceptically.

"Hell yeah I saw her there, who do you think gave them to her?

All three dropped their jaws simultaneously.

Drake finally rolled his eyes, "you're making this all up Maxwell."

"Did I lie about Bertrand?"

"Well...no...but, this sounds a lot like something Duchess Adelaide would tell."

"I swear Drake, I can prove it."

"How?"

"She has a tattoo of an apple pie on her left butt cheek with "Connie" written on top of it,"

Riley and Olivia lost it, laughing way too hard and trying to catch their breaths. Olivia even tipped her chair over and fell out of her seat onto the floor

"Well, Maxwell, I don't think any of us are going to look at Regina's butt cheek for proof." Drake scoffed.

"Wait Maxwell, why were you giving the Queen Mother a wax job?" Riley stopped laughing long enough to ask.

"You see, I got tired of Adelaide always hitting on me at these balls and such, so I talked to Madeleine about it. She said if I would help out with her fathers business, she would keep her mother away from me. So, I gave waxes once a week. Saw a lot of girls naked....it was a good gig, until it wasn't", he said with a frown, "but, yeah, Reggie, thats what we called her at the shop, would come in every now and again. She tipped well too"

Olivia scrunched up her nose, "I have no words right now for what you just told us, none."

"What did he tell you?" Liam asked. The group all turned around to see Liam and Bastien walking into the waiting room.

"Liam, why do you have claw marks all over your face?" Riley asked as she stood up to stand by her husband.

He looked over at Drake with a sneer, "I don't know, ask him."

Drake shrugged his shoulders and faked innocence, "I don't believe I know what you're referring to."

"You know damn well what I'm referring to doctor!" He shouted.

Drake started to giggle, while Riley told him to lower his voice, Bartie was sleeping.

"I will not....do you have any idea what I've been through tonight Drake?" he asked.

"No, but, I've a feeling I'm about to find out"

Liam walked dramatically to the middle of the waiting room and began to pace, moving his hands to express himself. "Let me set the scene for you. I had to deliver a baby....."

Riley sighed and interrupted him, "Liam, I told you we will have our own baby, you can't just keeping asking other people for theirs."

Liam looked at her and said, "Zip it" as he did the zipping motion with his hand and mouth.

"Aha, ha, just don't get your dick caught in it, am I right" Maxwell joked.

Olivia grabbed his arm, "not now Maxwell".

Riley crossed her arms in anger and thought to herself, Liam is going to pay for that little comment later.

"Now, where was I, Oh yes, I was forced into delivering a baby.....

Begin Flashback sequence....

"Doctor! Doctor! Wake up" the nurse yelled while slapping his face.

Liam slowly opened his eyes and started to focus on his surroundings."

The nurse told him he passed out and he reached behind his head to rub the bump that was starting to form. He asked where he was and she told him in the delivery room of the hospital. He questioned why he was there and slid his surgical mask down under his chin.

"You're not Dr. House, who are you?" She asked pointedly.

"I'm...I'm King Liam."

"Yeah right, and I'm a Kardashian".

He looked up at her confused, "what's a Kardashian?"

"Nancy, call security, we have a mental patient that must have gotten away."

"No No No, I really am the King, I swear."

"Okay, your majesty, what are you doing in the maternity ward" she asked sarcastically.

"Getting breastmilk from room 20" he stated with a raspy voice.

"GUARDS!!!!!!"

Liam tried to get up off the floor and run, but, the nurse started to attack him. She sat on top of him clawing at his face while an assistant held his arms down.

Security came in soon after and placed Liam's arms behind his back. As they dragged him out, he kept kicking, thrashing, knocking stuff over and screaming, "TREASON..... TREASON.... TREASON!!!!! I'LL GET ALL OF YOU FOR TREASON!!! Wait, where are you taking me, no, stop, I said stop....in the name of the mother fucking crown, STTTTOOOOPPPPP!!!!!"

He was taken to to the mental health ward. They didn't recognize him or have any missing people on the list, but, at that moment he qualified for admittance.

He was placed in a locked room alone with no furniture or adornments. He stood there with an angry scowl on his face and his arms crossed. Soon after, two men came in. One had a white pair of pants and a shirt in his hand, the other had a billy club and rubber gloves. The guy with the billy club told him they could either do this the easy way or the hard way. Liam didn't know what "this" was, but, he knew he didn't want to find out. He was instructed to remove his clothes.

"I most certainly will not" he protested.

The guy with the clothes in his hands spoke up, "listen dude, let's just get this over with and we can get you to your room and you'll be able to get a good nights rest, what"dya say?"

"What are you going to do?" Liam asked.

"We need to get you out of those clothes, then do a strip search".

Liam tried to make a run for it, but, both instantly grabbed him.

After this little show of defiance, he was clubbed on the back and fell to the floor, where he began to cry. Bastien quickly came in and explained everything to the orderly's before he was released, with many apologies.

To be continued.....9B will be out later today.

#choices trr #the royal romance #trr fanfic #trr drake #trr liam #liam x riley #king liam #liam x mc #maxwell beaumont #bertrand beaumont #the royal heir #choices trh

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peantbutter-honeycombs · 4 years ago

Text

Prologue

Title: Prologue

Word count: 1,586

Characters: John Watson and Matilda May

Warnings: Hints of abuse, unedited.

Notes: So here’s the prologue of my Sherlock story. It’s shorter compared to the next chapter I’m currently working on. If there are any triggers please tell me so I can add them to the tags. I haven’t edited it yet so take all typos and grammar mistakes with a grain of salt.

———

The waiting room was nothing like she'd imagined it being. It was small and crowded. Crowded with sick adults and sick children. It appeared each and every seat was filled by someone. Not everyone was sick but they were clearly afflicted with some sort of ailment or issue, very few appeared to only be in for a casual check up. Every now and then a nurse would come call out a name and off the patient in question went. They'd disappear behind the plain painted blue doors.

At least the waiting room had some form of entertainment for the young children. A small flat screen hanging from the wall about the children's area. She'd seen it on her way in, mutedly broadcasting Peppa Pig, that hadn't interested her in the slightest. Instead she focused her attention on the floor, head down trying to bring as little attention to herself as she possibly could.

She didn't dare touch the toys. Not only were they colourfully decorated breeding grounds for germs, they weren't hers. And she'd been rigorously taught, never touch what doesn't belong to you.

So she sat. Sat amongst the grownups in the room. Her neighbour seated to her right a complete stranger seated to her left.

A sharp acidic smell burned her nostrils. An unmistakable mixture of both cheap booze and classless cigarettes. She had a hunch the foul smelling stranger beside her engaged in the distasteful hobbies as her father.

She wanted to look, to just sneak a peek at the person beside her, but again that was something she knew better than to do. So she kept her eyes, those deep, earthy brown orbs, trained on her old trainers. They were so worn, her big toe was pushing its way through her right toe cap.

All she could do was sit and listen to the gentle repetitive tune of the wait rum music. It's soft rhythmic hum provided some comfort. It was enough to relax the poor girl's tense muscles. She didn't want to be there. She couldn't be there. But there she was and she felt utterly sick.

It was her well to do neighbour who'd made the appointment. The young woman claimed she wanted to ease some of the weight off the girl's busy father's shoulders. The child had had questions but thought it better not to ask them. She should have been more bold. Then perhaps she wouldn't be there.

Her neighbour, Cartia Hennigan, was a lovely young woman approaching her early thirties. She often meant well but had a tendency to overstep her bounds. Nonetheless, the little girl couldn't help but feel pity for the woman. Cartia, all her kindness and charity was nothing more than a façade, covering her great loneliness.

The little girl twiddles her thumbs, replaying the unfortunate event that landed her little butt in the stiff plastic chair. I have to be less of myself, she swore, this never would have happened if I had.

She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. Her forehead throbbed, as if her brain was protesting. Her rational analysis was fighting against her self blame. She massaged her temple with her left index and middle fingers, pressing her right arm tightly against her stomach. It didn't help.

She sat straight, mimicking the posture of a proud queen, eyes still shut, she placed her palms on her knees gripping the fabric of her pant leg. In times of great distress she often found it best to disappear. Unfortunately, unlike the deep sea pelagic octopod she couldn't actually become invisible. She could retreat to the quiet sanctity of her own mind.

Some people retreat to what they call a "happy place". Her? Well... At least she had some place all her own, where the world would slowly fade away.

"Matilda Hennigan.”

Her little head flew up, eyes snapping to the kindly nurse standing in the door separating the waiting room from the rest of the clinic.

Her eyes darted to Cartia who was already standing, walking toward the blue, aluminum trim door. Her eyes widened, pupils anxiously constricting, she quickly pushed herself out of her seat then hurriedly followed after her neighbor.

When she finally reached the door she cast one more nervous glance up at her neighbor. "Shall we?" the nurse smiles warmly and holds the door open wider for the two to enter.

JWJWJW

Matilda sat on at the practice table hands folded like so, neatly rested on her lap. She had to admit this wasn't going as terrible as she'd originally envisioned it going. From what her father had told her, the doctors clinic was an utterly awful place reserved for terrible, no good people. And Matilda was certain she wasn't a terrible person. Or at least she tried not to be.

Her dad mustn't have done his research or had to have been thinking of another clinic. This one was adequate.

The nurse was nice enough. Mary? Yes, that was her name.

She was kind, she made the tedious tests Matilda was forced to endure more bearable. She'd commented on how cute Matilda purple pink polka dotted leggings were. And even promised the little girl a lollipop before she left.

Mary did however seem suspicious when Cartia explained the reason for her bringing Matilda to the clinic in the first place. Matilda wasn't sure why, maybe the explanation sounded weird. It was rather silly. She shouldn't have been playing so close to the stairs.

Matilda tried not to vocalise her disappointment when Mary left to retrieve the doctor, but failed accidentally letting slip a small puppy like whimper. It was unintentional and it bothered her.

Now she sat in the room, not quite alone, with her neighbour. Matilda hated the dressing gown. It left her exposed, back half vulnerable and visible.

At the very least if she moved in front of the mirror she could count how many freckles dotted her skin back there. Maybe like her forehead, nose, and cheeks they formed shapes in a connect the dots kind of way.

Matilda pushes herself up and jumps to the floor. Pain sliced upward like a swift blade through her left ankle. This unbalanced her making her landing less than perfect she ignored the feeling knowing the pain would subside momentarily. Then under the critically watchful eyes of Cartia, she pressed forward across the room toward the only thing that interested her. At least now that Mary was gone.

It was like most things in the public clinic, cheap, only standing about two Tildas tall. Matilda, standing a little less than an arms length away from the mirror, extended an arm gently resting her hand on the smooth reflective glass. It felt cool, good against her skin.

She stared at her reflection, eyes narrowing. She angled her body to one side. She didn't get why both Cartia and Mary seemed worried. She thought she looked fine.

Two rich brown eyes sparkled back at her - the colour of the earth after long torrential rains. Freckles dotted her face, like a chaotic mess of chipped marble. Matilda loved her freckles. A tumble of stringy blonde hair, with dark brown roots, messily pulled back into a low lopsided pony-tail hung between her shoulder blades. Yeah she looked fine.

Hold on. Matilda rolled her tongue across her cheek. There was a jagged cut that'd scabbed over on the right side of her temple, giving her a Harry Potter esque mark.

Matilda frowned, noticing the somewhat sickening shade of blackish blue on her skin, creeping out from beneath the neck lining of her dressing gown. Matilda pulled her collar down revealing a dark purple bruise spreading from the lower half of her neck to her shoulder.

Matilda could feel a lump form in her throat. Still... nothing to worry about. Bruises fade. She shouldn't have played so close to the stairs.

JWJWJW

Matilda heard the door open and shut, it's swift creaking noise made her arms go rigid.

The Doctor entered in a cable crew neck sweater and dark almost black jeans, his pepper salted hair was closely cropped. He had a face like some guy that'd seen much pain, and suffered much loss.

"Hello." Greeting the two, he had the posture of a soldier but after shaking hands with Cartia he visibly relaxed. "What's your name?" His voice came out like he'd just pulled a double shift the day prior, only functioning because he was running on six cups of tea.

Whilst he exchanged casual pleasantries Cartia, Matilda mindfully walked around him back to her seat at the practice table.

She knew how to keep a poker face, even in uncomfortable situations. As she went she observed the doctor carefully, eyes critically analysing every last detail of the pale man. Matilda bit her inner cheek. She'd found it was always best to keep her final findings to herself. Kept her out of trouble.

Dr. Watson gave a brief look at his clipboard before turning to Matilda. Already still, she felt a tight knot form in her chest, under his gaze. He knelt in front of Matilda, allowing her to see the stethoscope draped round his neck. Her first thought, strangulation hazard.

She leaned back sitting further in your seat. "Hey there, you must be Matilda." Her breathing stopped momentarily as the man extended his hand out for her to shake. "What a lovely name." He gave her a smile that just seemed so genuinely sweet. "I'm your doctor, Doctor Watson."

——————

I actually really enjoyed writing this story and it might be the one I chose to continue. I’ve seen stories where Sherlock has a child but none with John and so I’m writing this. Her name is Matilda in honour of my favourite reading character as a child. I hope she lives up to her namesake. She doesn’t have a last name as far as anyone thus far is aware hence her name being Matilda May. Her first name and second middle name. I do enjoy this story but am considering another for front runner of the year.

#bbc sherlock #sherlock fandom #sherlock fanfic #john watson #john watson x oc!child #platonic fic #platonic #mild angst #matilda may series #MM Series

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woozletania · 7 years ago

Text

Sanctuary (RR/GOTG slice of life)

It started one day in the most innocuous way imaginable: nothing more dramatic than an E-mail. "Hey Rock," Quill said, slumped back in the pilot's chair idly scanning the screen as he helped Rocket work on a problem with the Milano. "Got a letter from your doctor friend." "Those're always good," Rocket replied, his head and body down to the armpits inside a panel working on control connections. "Try the upper right aileron control." Star-Lord obediently pressed a control and Rocket made a happy noise from inside the console, his ringed tail twitching in not-quite-a-wag. Peter went on. "Weird thing is the subject line is public but the body is locked, or I'd read it to you. All I can see is 'P. Foster' and 'It's happening again'." There was a dull bang from inside the console as Rocket's tail went stiff. Peter watched curiously as a hand appeared, set down a wrench. Rocket's voice was deadly calm. "Read that again, Pete." "'It's happening again.' That's all I can read, man." "Oh. Okay then." The hand grabbed the wrench and Rocket worked briefly, then slid back into view. As usual he was covered with dust and smears of grease but a spot of bloody fur over one eye showed where he'd hit his head. "That'll hold it. I gotta hit the can." Gamora came up the stairs just as Rocket went down and the little raccoon pushed past her with even worse manners than usual. The green-skinned assassin took one look at the open panel and discarded tools the raccoon left in his wake and came to the obvious conclusion. "In the middle of something? Mantis has lunch ready." "I guess.". Peter fiddled with the controls, watching the indicators as he tried the various control surfaces, thrusters and engines. "Looks like it's all working. Figure Rocket will want to work on it more though, he doesn't leave his personal tool kit just lying where everyone can get at it unless he's in the middle of something." But Rocket didn't show up at lunch and didn't answer when Mantis knocked on his door. Weirdly enough he'd even locked Groot out and the tree, a little taller than the raccoon now and going through early teenage crankiness, spent two minutes banging on the door until Rocket finally swore and opened it. "What? I was just doin' some stuff." Groot handed him back his tools, which got a grunt of something like 'thanks' from the raccoon, who then finally emerged and locked the door behind him. Drax happened by just then and the three made their way to the common area for a belated lunch. Peter, Gamora and Mantis were all there around the table and Mantis reached out without thinking to pet Rocket, seeing from the angle of his ears that he was in a bad mood. Rocket was a lot more likely to let someone pet him these days but this time he flinched away and sat by himself, grabbing one of the sandwiches from the platter without a word. Seeing Rocket in a bad mood was nothing new but he was usually nicer to Mantis than this and Peter spoke up. "Was that letter bad news, Rock?" "Oh that," Rocket grunted between bites. "Not really. He did say he met another guy who's up on my model of cybernetics and that I should have him take a quick look next time I'm in the area. So I wanna swing by Kopleth today, since we're between money runs." "Kopleth? Dull place, but I guess," Peter said. There was nothing but the sound of munching and Drax loudly slurping soup after that until Rocket finished eating. The second the door to his room closed, though, the conversation started up again. "You don't believe him, do you?" Said Gamora. "Not for a second," Quill replied. "I am Groot," said the sapling. "Yes," rumbled Drax. "He had his weapons out and a bag of bombs half packed when I saw into his room for a moment. Whatever he's going to Kopleth for, it is not to see a doctor." Gamora's smart pad beeped, and she read the message before turning the screen so the others could see. It was from Nebula. 'Not supposed to tell you this, but he's in your crew. Rocket just asked me to help him kill some people. Something going on I should know about?' Rocket should have known that on a ship this small it was impossible to keep secrets. Perhaps he did, because when they arrived on Kopleth and he made his way down the docking ramp, bag-full-o-guns over his shoulder, it was an expression of resignation more than anything else that crossed his face when he found his friends waiting at the bottom. "Before you say anything," he said. "This isn't anything you want to be a part of. It's personal business." Gamora held up her smart pad once more. 'If you are reading this I am dead, on the run or in jail. The bounty on me will be huge if it's the middle one, so I'll understand if you come after me. It was something I had to do. No apologies.' Rocket groaned. "That was supposed to be time locked until tomorrow." "Not when I know to look," Gamora said. "And I knew something was going on." "Yes," said Nebula as she stepped off her ship. "What is going on, fox?" "It's happening again," Rocket said a little later in the Milano's common area. "I can't let it happen again. Never again." "What's going on, buddy?" Rocket sat with his ears down and his little clawed hands between his knees. He counted the grenades on his belt, twice, before continuing. "Doc Foster got a job offer. They knew he worked at Halfworld and gave him a virtual tour of the new facility. Animal Uplift. Cybernetic implants. Vivisection. Euthanizing the subjects when they were done. Somehow they had data files from the Halfworld complex. There must have been a backup elsewhere and now it's all happening again." There were no tears in the raccoon's eyes. Just determination. "If I have to spend the rest of my life in a cell to stop this, I'll do it. Every one of these bastards has to die. But research like this is legal on Kopleth. I'm going, but the rest of you oughta get out of here now. 'Cept maybe the lady who already has a giant bounty on her bald head," he said, nodding to Nebula. "You're not going, buddy," Star-Lord said. "Not without me." "There will be heavy security, yes?" Drax asked, and Rocket nodded. "Then I will not be left out of a good fight." "And if my sister goes, I go," said Gamora. Nebula just smiled. "You don't get it," Rocket said. "We spent the last year building up a reputation. This could destroy it. If it's just me you can say I was a rogue. I'm expendable." "No," Gamora said, and everyone (except maybe Nebula) said together, "You aren't." Rocket sighed. Not surprised, just a little sad. Peter spoke up next. "So you got a plan, little buddy?" "'Course I got a plan," Rocket mumbled. "Always got a plan." "One that involves all of us, not just you?" "Told you," Rocket said with the beginning of a smile. "I always got a plan." And that's why it was that Drax, armed with a missile launcher of Rocket's own design, Gamora with her plasma rifle and Quill with his pistols stormed the front of the complex to draw attention away from the back, while Rocket, Rocket-sized Groot and Nebula, whose cybernetics made her eerily flexible, entered via the ductwork Rocket had identified from the schematics he'd studied. Some of the vents were too small for even Nebula and so they soon separated with a whispered "Kill only when necessary," for Rocket eventually allowed himself to be reminded that not everyone they encountered would be a monster. Yet the first thing he did was drop out of an air vent onto the shoulders of a Xandarian who was cutting open a black-furred creature, dig his claws into the man's throat and rip it out. "Nod if you understand," he whispered, undoing the furry thing's restraints even as the researcher toppled over. It nodded, and Rocket slapped an emergency medical patch over the hole the "doctor" had put in the long-eared creature and gestured for it to follow him. There was a thump against the wall nearby, probably Nebula shattering some fool's skull, and a black-clad security guard popped through a door only to get a chest full of Rocket's hand-made APX - Armor Piercing Explosive - rounds. The next room had nothing but a few empty cages and bloodstained operating tables, though Rocket reflexively pocketed a handful of servo components from a table. Distant shouts and gunfire meant the other Guardians were fighting their way in and this place clearly wasn't built and staffed to withstand a major assault, which was just what you got when Gamora and Drax led an attack. "I am Groot?" The black-furred test subject jumped when a three-foot-tree man man his appearance but Rocket just smiled. "Yeah, can you get that door?". He'd been about to blast the armored portal but Groot's strength was all out of proportion to his size and his tendrils ripped the thing from its hinges. "Jackpot!" Cages, test subjects - and a couple of guards. Rocket got one before they recovered from the sudden disappearance of the armored door and speed and small size gave him the advantage he needed to take out the other. "Get 'em out, get 'em out!" He blew away what he recognized as a cybernetics jammer mounted just outside the row of cages and Groot ripped the door off the nearest just as a white-jacketed researcher appeared. Rocket hesitated to shoot an unarmed man and thus made a mistake that would make him wake staring at the ceiling and shaking for years afterward. The man didn't need a gun to smash his hand into a panic button and the result was clouds of green poison gas spraying from nozzles on the ceiling. "Shit! Hurry!" The furthest cages were already out of sight in a cloud of poison, as was the researcher, and Rocket resorted to shooting the locks off the cages he could still see. Half shaved, cybernetic implant-studded animals of several unfamiliar species leapt out and ran for the door and Rocket cursed as he shot the lock off a cage that held a shivering yellow-furred creature curled in a ball as far away from the bars as it could get. He had already breathed more of the green gas than he liked and all he could do was grab the thing and yank it out of the cage. Mistake. He should have known it would panic and with an animalistic shriek the long, flexible yellow creature wrapped around him like a snake and sank sharp fangs into his neck. The spray of red told him he was in real trouble but Rocket was no stranger to pain and he grabbed a gas-added creature from another cage and staggered for the door, weighed down by two of them and passing the handheld one off to Groot as he made it through the doorway and slammed it shut. Everything still alive in that room wouldn't be that way for long and he wasn't doing so good either. The whiskery muzzle was still clamped down on the side of his neck and Groot had to help him run the few dozen yards to daylight. What he saw when he burst into the light astonished him. Not just the Guardians but hovering Nova fighters, not to mention ground troops who had rounded up a dozen white-coated researchers and were similarly trying to keep track of at least that many research animals. His keen ears picked up the argument going on between a Nova officer - he recognized Dey - and what must be the head researcher. "No authority here - research animals, perfectly legal," and something about "Murderous thugs." Rocket ignored the blood running down his chest, got his fingers into the scruff of the yellow thing slowly killing him with its bite and whispered, "Listen - all of you Subjects, listen, say this -" "Rocket!" Quill came running as Rocket's vision began to gray around the edges, blood loss and gas, and Gamora right behind him. No sign of Nebula of course, she'd wisely taken a powder. Just then the yellow thing's fangs came out of his neck and it said, slowly and clearly to the nearest Nova corpsman: "In accordance with the Uniform Sapience Act -" "No!" The head researcher tried to intervene, only for Drax to clothesline him to the ground. "I request sanctuary on the basis of inhumane treatment," the yellow thing said, and the other animals repeated "Sanctuary, sanctuary," and the less Uplifted or vocal ones spitting out the syllables the way he used to, "sanct-u-ary," And then Rocket was falling over, weighed down by the yellow thing and never so happy in his life to hear one word. It'd all been worth it. Live or die, it was so worth it. ***** 'So, not dead,' were Rocket's first thoughts when he woke. His neck hurt, his chest hurt, and oddly enough his leg hurt too. And the second thing that passed through his mind when he opened his eyes was how familiar the metal ceiling looked. "Why am I not in jail," he mused, and Peter jerked upright in the chair next to the bunk, dropping the Zune headphones he'd been tinkering with. A strange animal chirp came from low down, out of his range of vision, but it hurt to turn his neck so he couldn't see what made it. "Rocket! Hey, everybody, he's awake!" In an instant the room was crowded with the crew, and even Nebula, and Rocket realized he was in Peter's quarters on board the Milano. The captain's cabin, if you could call it that, was about fifteen percent larger than the space he had before he turned it into a lifeboat and started sleeping in his round padded bed. "I have lots of questions," Rocket said, and then there was another, because a sleek yellow head sporting long, familiar whiskers popped into view as well. He'd never gotten a good look at it but this was indisputably the creature that nearly killed him. He was too tired and sore to hold that against her. "I guess they all fall under 'what happened'." "Peter had an idea," Gamora said, and Mantis smiled as she gently scratched Rocket's ears. "A good one, for a change." "Thanks Gamora," Pete said sourly. "I called Nova Corps before we went to the compound to see if I could get them to look the other way for a little while as we took off for our new outlaw lives. When I explained what was going on to Dey he said the following," with that he pointed at Drax. "Animal research is legal in many places," the giant intoned. "But as far as Nova is concerned, Uplift, or at least the abuse of the resulting sapients is legal nowhere." Peter grinned. "Since Kopleth has no military to speak of they couldn't do much when a Nova troop transport and escorts showed up. Even medics who patched you up, though it was a near thing. You had nerve gas in your system, a nicked artery in your neck and a splinter from a ricochet or something in your calf below the armor." "So we're not outlaws," Rocket said wonderingly. "What about the research subjects?" "Under Nova supervision," Gamora said. "To be granted full sapient rights and a share of the penalty fines being assessed against the company. And we get a share of that too." "Free money!" Pete cheered. "A reward for just doing good things!" "What about her?" Rocket looked at the whiskery creature, seeing the bolts almost concealed by her fur where the artificial collarbones lay. He had bolts like that, too. "Her?" Pete looked puzzled. "You mean 96L02?" "Subject Nine-Six-Lima-Zero-Two reports as ordered, sir," the creature said, and stood up as straight as its long cylindrical body allowed. Rocket winced. "Damn it Pete, you know better than that. That's not a name and she - yeah, you bald bodies have no noses I know but she is a she - is conditioned to respond to that number. I don't want to hear one of you say it again. Ever." He reached over to see how she would react, careful not to touch, and webbed hands/forepaws clasped his fingers. "Rocket," she chirped. "So so-ree I bit you." "I woulda done the same thing," Rocket said. "Ask Pete. He got the scars to prove it. Now we need to get you a name." She stood bolt upright. "Subject Nine-Six-Lima-" "No!" She shrank back, her little low-set ears sinking. "That was what they called you. You don't belong to them now. You can have any name you want." "But I don't have a name," she chirped. Do you know the names of the researchers?" "Rocket," Peter said firmly. "You are not naming her after guys you killed to get her out." "Hey, it worked for me. And I only killed four anyway." "I am Groot." "That guy killed himself," Rocket said, and that brought back bad memories. "How many got out? Test subjects that is." "Thirteen," Gamora said, "But one died from gas exposure. Before you ask, including the one in the operating room there were twenty-six in various stages of Uplift." Rocket swore, but Peter cut him off. "Subject-" and the yellow creature stood bolt upright, "Er, Lima told us what happened. Rocket, I was the one who told you not to shoot people who weren't a threat. It's my fault. And if we'd all gone in the front, which was my plan, they would have gassed them all. Your plan got some of them out and would have got them all out if you hadn't listened to me. So blame me, not yourself." "It's all right," Rocket grunted. "I woulda hesitated anyway. Didn't think a guy would kill himself just to get rid of some Subjects." Lima stood bolt upright at the word. "Why is she doing that, Rock? You don't do that when people say 89P-" Rocket let out an inarticulate growl and Pete stopped. "Oh yeah, you killed all the people who called you that." "Except Doc Foster," but then Lima was gripping his clawed hand again in her webby ones. "Why are you so angry, Rocket," she chirped, and Pete smothered a laugh. "'Cause I was made to be angry. To be a weapon. You don't have to be like me, Lima." "I'm not," she said immediately. "I am for linguistics, and diplomacy, and companionship. I am to be cute." And with her whiskers and ink-dark eyes she certainly was. "No! You don't gotta be what they made you. You can be whatever you want." "I don't know what I want to be," she chirped, and Rocket smiled sadly. "Welcome to the club, lady." One by one the others wished him goodnight and left for their beds, for it was very late indeed. He'd apparently been granted Peter's cabin until he recovered, though he protested that he didn't need anywhere near that much space. "You're in no shape to curl up to sleep," Peter said. "You need a real bed." I've got a real bed, and it's round, Rocket thought but did not say. That brought it to mind when Lima dropped down to all fours and curled up on a wadded-up blanket. "Groot," Rocket mumbled, and then spoke up despite his sore chest. "Groot!" "I am Groot?" Naturally, the tree had been resting right outside the door. He wasn't going anywhere until he was sure Rocket was fully recovered. "Get my bed, please." "I am Groot?" "No, it's not for me. Pete will yell at me if he has to sleep on a bunk and I don't use the bed he's lent me. And yeah, I'm too sore to curl up. But look," Rocket said, and gestured at Lima. "I am Groot." "Thanks, pal." A moment later the tree was back with the round, padded bed, the one embroidered with "Rocket" and the Ravager symbol. Rocket knew perfectly well it was a pet bed Pete picked up on Earth but Pete never lorded that over him (which showed he had an active survival instinct) and the thing was damn comfortable. "Lima." The yellow creature - Rocket was sure there was a species name for her, but he had no idea what it was except that she was clearly designed for an aquatic life - popped her head up out of the nest of blankets. "Use this. It's comfy." She slithered out of the blankets on her short web-footed legs and gave it a sniff. "It smells like you, Rocket." "Yeah, I sleep in it, but you need it more than I do right now." "Are you sure?" "Yeah." Rocket smiled as she curled up in a ball in the padded bed, just as he did. She was long and sinuous compared to his more humanoid build, but she still fit perfectly into the thing. There was a time he and Groot shared the thing every night, but Groot was too big now. That had taken a lot of getting used to. For years he'd slept in leafy beds Groot grew each night, then he and mini-Groot shared various beds, and then ultimately it was just Rocket, and now it was just Lima, or whatever her name would eventually be. "Good night, Lima. Tomorrow we'll talk about your name." And that would have been the end of it, except that later, when the ship lights were turned down to a dim glow, Rocket was woken by a familiar sound. A nervous chattering, whining, and the sound of claws on fabric. Lima was in the midst of a nightmare. He'd heard all these sounds before from himself, and heard them described to him. She twitched in the round bed, and whined, and he had all too good an idea of what she was dreaming about. He'd always been the one to wake screaming, or shivering. Peter had the occasional nightmare, and with good reason, but he was stronger than Rocket. Or maybe his nightmares didn't involve being strapped down and cut open. Rocket didn't know what Pete had nightmares about. Ego? The Ravagers? His mother dying? Yondu? He did know how Pete had helped him with his own night terrors, though. Rocket winced as he sat up, and using the cabin chair as a stepping stool (not something he'd normally need) finally made it to the floor. He was tough, he healed fast, but the nerve gas had really done a number on him. Stapled-up wounds in neck and leg didn't hurt half as much as his chest but he dropped to all fours and padded over to the round bed an its occupant. Peter, much larger than himself, had just petted him or rubbed his back to get him to relax. Lima was as big as he was, though, and the only way he could see to make her feel safe was to crawl into the round bed and snuggle up next to her. She moved in her sleep and soon her whiskery muzzle rested on his shoulder next to his own. Bit by bit she shifted and he moved with her until they were curled up together. If it weren't for their dramatically different fur colors and body shapes it'd be hard to tell where one ended and the other began. By the time they were snuggled up together she had relaxed, the shivering tension gone from her muscles and her breathing slow and relaxed. 'What I should do now is wriggle out of here and bed back on the bed,' Rocket thought. But he was tired, and sore, and there was something about lying here snuggled up with another furry creature. 'Safe,' Rocket thought as he drifted off to sleep. 'I feel safe. I hope she does too.'

#Rocket Raccoon #lylla #Guardians of the Galaxy #Groot #Star-Lord #gamora #mantis #nebula #death

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