#we're kind of the Moms of the House (TM)

[milanowhore]

went downstairs for Sustenance and my wife one of my roommates was curled up in the fetal position in a chair with our dog and one of the cats on top of her there is so much love in the world if you only open your eyes

[dragynkeep]

(Sorry for dragging this topic back but) I don’t think Taiyang is abusive. However, I’m personally annoyed with how flippantly the show treats Taiyang’s parenting because its so half assed [how they depict it], me thinks. Granted, I haven’t watched past Volume 3, so that might be coloring my perception and I don’t have all the details, but it would have been so much better showing the effects of Yang taking care of Ruby at a young age, and Ruby being taken care of by someone literally 2 years older than her, with Taiyang absent and Qrow presumably away a lot.

Firstly, the show is way too ambiguous with it. How does Ruby feel about it? How does Qrow? Hell, does Taiyang ever talk to Yang about that? Is there even some sort of “sorry I was kind of out of it in your formative years” “Hey, don’t worry about it, since you’re here now and I know you’re doing your best and I’m glad we’re talking about it now”???

What did Yang have to do to help? Did she have to make Ruby’s breakfast and/or her own? Did she have to take her to and from school? Help her get showered? Clean their room? Wash their clothes? Could this tie into Yang’s recklessness and supposed overprotectiveness? Was there a babysitter? How much does Qrow contribute to their household and in what way(s)? What would have let Taiyang leave a cabin of two kids in/near the woods in a world where creatures like Grimm exist (was someone supposed to be watching them, did Tai have an emergency, did he just up and fucking leave, how long was he gone, was Qrow there, etc)? I know some of these are uncharitable perspectives but we aren’t getting any details and this stuff happens far more often than people think.

It just hits too close to my own home situation, where my mom would literally be in the house and not help with chores or talk to us much, but just stay in her room on hours long calls with her neighbor while adultifying my older sister, because my mom was also an adultified first born girl and refuses to deal with that, and seeing the show just drop this plot point without explaining how we got from Taiyang being sad to Taiyang being Best Dad (TM) is actually triggering to me.

I think another reason why people don’t like Taiyang is the same reason why people don’t like Ozpin, and that’s because the show gives these nonsensically contradicting traits or moments or descriptions, and its so confusing that its easier to do the time-old RWBY fan manouver and just tweak each scene to how you originally percieved the character.

Is Ozpin a manipulative shadow leader or a tragic figure who just wanted to help the world? I dunno, the show’s too busy trying to get people mad about BIIIIIIRDS to actually deal with either the fact that Ozpin willingly sent a bunch of first years to a third year mission to stop terrorists who then cause The Breach, or the fact that Salem abused him.

Is Taiyang a parent genuinely trying his best or a neglectful jerk who can’t even see his kids at the Vytal Tournament? I dunno, I know literally nothing about this man except he shows up at the ass end of Volume 3 and start of Volume 4, and any meaningful description of what he might be as a parent is muddled by the fact that his kids love him but he invites Peter the creepy teacher and tricked Qrow into wearing a skirt because “MaN sKiRt FuNnY”. I don’t know what I’m supposed to feel about him, there’s really both too much and too little going on with him.

honestly agree, & this seems to be a consistent problem with a lot of peripheral characters like the parents where we're told one thing & shown another. the belladonnas are another excellent example of it where like, we're told they're amazing parents & they love blake more than anything but also didn't do anything when she ran away to a supposed terrorist organization, exposed her to violent protests as a child, told her it was her job to tame violent men around her as a woman, & allowed her to blame herself for all the trauma she's carried for years.

shown one thing, told another. should be rwby's motto really.

[cakemagemaeve]

Ugh, I think I need to take a break from Serious Business(TM) for a while. I've been exhausted and stressed and just feeling so hopeless lately, and I think I need to take some time to just focus on happy shit for a little while.

Speaking of, anyone want to see pictures of the kittens that were born in my back yard this April and whom I've been taking care of until they're old enough to go to new homes? I've also got to find homes for their mother and older sister, who was the only survivor of the mom's first litter and who is still slightly feral (but she's made so much progress since we moved them all into the guest room). As attached as I am to these little shits, unfortunately I can't keep any of them. A stray cat having babies in my back yard is how I ended up with five of the seven cats I already have, so... yeah. It's also unfortunate that they're already 11 weeks old and I still haven't found anyone willing to take one. It's kinda stressing me out, to be honest! I mean I love them all and will no doubt cry when they do leave, but frankly, we're already struggling right now, and in more ways than one. Anyway, picspam time!

This is the mama, October Daye, taken when she was still pregnant. She's an incredibly sweet cat and an excellent mother, and honestly I don't think she's a stray so much as she and her previous litter were dumped in the woods by my house (it's a big problem in my area). I only saw her with two kittens, but they were both feral and only one of them was able to get over her fear of people, at least for the most part. Unfortunately, I couldn't save the other one.

This is the older sister, Little Soot. She used to run whenever she hear the door open, but little by little I was able to bond with her. I basically just did what Hiccup did in HTTYD, and I'm pleased to say that his dragon-training method works for cats, too. She's come a long way, but I've still got a lot of work left to do before she'll be be ready for a new home. Baby steps and all that. She took to the litterbox right away, and she's increasingly affectionate, playful, and showing signs of wanting to jump into my lap at times. The next big hurdle is going to be picking her up and putting her in a carrier, something we've only managed once (to get her into the guest room) and which kind of set us back a little ways. Had to rebuild some trust). As it is, her mama and siblings have had their shots, and she was supposed to get them at the same time, but we couldn't get her into the carrier and didn't want to traumatize her further. Still working on it.

And here are the babies the day they were born! There are only four in this picture, but we found the fifth not long after.

There's one boy and the rest are girls. Two calicos, one solid black, one black and white.

It took us a while to find the right box setup for them until we could bring them inside (was waiting for the flea/tick/heartworm/etc. meds to come in, which took a bit, but we somehow managed to keep them safe while they were living on the back porch. Luckily, the flea treatment I gave their mother and sister killed all the fleas on them, too.

Clockwise from the top we have Panda, Fumbo, Puzzle, Harriet Houdini and Sir Cheeto the Cheez Doodl of the Marmalade Order. And yes, he is my favorite and I wish I could keep him SO BAD.

During the day, we'd put them in a kiddie kitty pool for air and exercise. Also, my dog Pippin was and is both obsessed with and terrified of the kittens.

I think these are from the day we moved them all into the guest room (don't worry, we took that shelf behind them out of there). They also took to the litter box right away, and quickly turned the entire room into their personal playground.

Anyway, this is what I've spent most of my time and energy on these last few months. I love them all so so much, but boy am I exhausted! Also, my legs and hands look like I lost a fight with a weedwhacker. Which reminds me, it's time to give them another nail trim.

But yeah, the mama and the babies have had their first shots, and I'm trying to set up appointments for Toby and Soot at a low-cost spay/neuter clinic. I want to give them all the best start I possibly can, but even so it's not gonna be cheap, and right now we're hurting for money. Had some emergency expenses this week that took a chunk of my bank account (my cat Maya Miette [and yes, she does send me to jail for 1000 years on a daily basis] has a lump on her leg that's going to have to be removed), but worry not, I would gladly go hungry before I let any of my furry little demon children do without anything they need. So yeah, this is why I'm scrambling to get stuff listed on eBay.

More pics later if I have the energy!

[x0401x]

What did you think of Tsurune S2 episode 6?

Okay, gotta start this as I always do: pointing out the positive and canon-complying elements first and foremost, because I love them.

First of all, Minato being a lovable little dumbass. We had scenes of him being clueless or distracted here and there, but in this episode we have him being the deadpan airhead that he is. That comes in the form of him doing things like saying funny shit without realizing how ridiculous it is (the unironic use of cute onomatopoeia is a classic for him in the novel and I’m so glad to see it making its way into the anime at last), or getting overexcited about kyudo-related stuff while his body language completely contradicts his straight face. Gotta love Seiya and Kaito giving him the Parent Look TM every single time.

I love that this season is very focused on all the minute details of kyudo. It's visible that the animators have dug deeper into this hole and done even more research on it. I specially appreciate the way they've been including the right breathing techniques into this season and we get a pretty good display of it whenever the camera zooms in on the characters when they're firing a shot.

On the topic of attention to detail, I almost screamed when we got to see Noa and Yuuna's houses. They got Rika's hair color wrong in one of the cuts of this scene but I couldn't care less. I loved it.

I love even more the tournament itself. The way that flower petals are used instead of tree leaves for the girls in order to showcase that their team has a different aura from the boys'. The flashbacks displaying their development and illustrating that it didn't come out of nowhere. The richness in their facial expressions and dialogues along the way.

I also like that they added a scene where Minato teams up with Seiya and Shuu for the first time. In the novel, we only ever get kind of an idea why these three were teamed in middle school, but we never got to see how this started or how they even knew they could work as a team in such a huge club like Kirisaki's. This also serves as a hint that they'd been doing kyudo outside of the club, which is a good explanation as to how they were able to nurture their skills given that Kirisaki's middle school kyudo club only allowed the third-years to actually do archery, while the juniors were stuck with other, more basic forms of practice and couldn't participate in tournaments.

Bonus points for it also being the first time Seiya realizes that Shuu is different around Minato, and that Minato has some sort of influence in him that other people don't. Plus, it gives us something that I missed a lot in S1 and that is being depicted beautifully in this one: Minato is a very charismatic kid. There's something about him that draws people in. His honesty, his innocence, his transparency - it all works to make people either love or resent him, and it's probably the most essential part of his character identity. After all, it's the eptome of Zen.

This scene was a very smart addition.

Speaking of his character identity, by the way, this episode was personality traits by the truckload. Minato's bow nerd-ness is at full power here. And also his impulsiveness being turned into productive, learning patience. He's on his way to being an even better archer and it all begins with the mindset.

Now, I wanna take a moment to appreciate Nanao being a little shit and Minato being embarrassed by it. Love me some in-character banter. And props to finally being shown that Minato's mom used to do archery and that she was his gateway to kyudo. I mean, we had seen that she was the person who taught him about tsurune, but she's also the first person who ever shared previous experience in kyudo with him, so it would've been unfair to just leave this fact out. Again, missed it in S1 and now we're making amends. Bless!

I'm almost in tears at the fact that the girls got themselves headbands too, as well as matching bow sleeves that have cute rabbit patterns to indicate that this is set in the year 2023. I'm also internally howling at the subtle, barely perceptible visual implications that Seiya is slowly migrating to Kaito's side. He's always right beside Kaito in every shot, and I almost didn't believe my eyes when he deliberately chose to sit next to Kaito instead of next to Minato to watch the tournament.

Now, for the things that aren't so positive. Luckily, there's actually very little negative stuff in this episode. It's been the most gratifying one to watch so far.

So, there's been a trend in this season ever since episode 4 where the storytelling ended up falling into the same territory as S1, in which we are getting a bunch of character arcs that culminate in a team arc instead of having a linear plot. It feels like we're checking boxes of character data and kyudo info that we were supposed to have had in S1, which isn't bad in itself, but the way it's being done strikes me as a bit inorganic. These arcs all serve a very specific purpose and are timed in order to fit exactly into the duration of each episode and it shows. It shows a little too much, I'd say, which makes them feel mechanic and somewhat artificial. Like, I know that I'm watching a fictional story, but that doesn't mean I wanna be aware of this fact.

Thanks to these arcs being a thing, we end up having another trend, which is that Minato's development is being delayed until his turn comes up. This ends up creating sort of a disconnect between him and his own habilities. In order to fit into his own arc while simultaneously serving as a proxy for the viewers who have no knowledge about kyudo, Minato literally seems to have forgotten everything. Ever since episode 1, we've seen Masaki do almost nothing but point out what Minato's been doing wrong in every single interaction they've had, so it's hard to ignore that Minato's been making a bunch of newbie mistakes.

This feels weird not just because Minato is the most experienced of the team, but also because he'd already received this exact kind of training at Yata Shrine during the beginning of the story, when he was getting back into archery and making up for the time he'd spent away from the dojo. He's already gone through this phase and was supposed to have overcome it. Besides, all of this stemming from just one fuck-up at a particular tournament is... a stretch, to say the least. Specially when said fuck-up was basically just a matter of teamwork-related mentality shift. It shouldn't mess up his entire form to a point where he has to almost relearn it from scratch, so we're left wondering what happened to his natural talent that everyone used to admire and how the hell he's managed to get to this point when he's literally sucking ass at the basics.

Speaking of Minato’s ordeal with getting back into practice, him using formal speech with Masaki during training is extremely uncomfortable to me. We do get the whole "awkward pupil who can't hold a candle to his mentor" vibe from him, but the formal treatment is pretty odd. In case anyone is wondering, Minato has dropped the formal speech since the second time he and Masaki met in the novel. So yes, this backtracking is something quite strange to witness.

Now, the thing that has me side-eyeing this character arc thing the most is that we seem to be wasting time with them. The show is using these arcs to flesh out the characters and make them likable because it failed to do this in S1, which is understandable, all right. However, I again would argue that having a linear plot would do the job better, not just because it'd feel more natural, but also because, while we're having these arcs, nearly nothing is accomplished except for working out non-canon, unnecessary problems that the anime has created... so that we could have these character arcs in the first place. And that's where I keep asking myself: why are we getting this instead of the source material's content? I mean, I do know the reason why. The original is too gay, we get it. But since I know what I'm missing out on, I at least want to see an on-screen justification for it. I want KyoAni to show us something that will make these changes worth it, because so far, it feels like they're dragging the story down in comparison to the novel.

I have already expressed this before but I still feel the need to voice my concern that this season is just as uneventful as the first. There’s just too little going on and therefore too little for the viewers to get invested in. The drama in the novel might feel exaggerated at times, but KyoAni doesn’t seem to have realized that it’s the only thing separating the series from... well, real life. Without that aspect, Tsurune is just a kyudo nerd-out galore with not much purpose. I’m of course not suggesting that they should suddenly insert into the anime the exact same amount of drama as the novels have, but that they could at least be a bit more daring than what we’ve seen so far and introduce some of it. Because I can't imagine how boring this series must be for anime-only’s.

I keep noticing, after every single episode, that I’m only enjoying this installment because I was already a fan of the original work. If I hadn’t read the novel and didn’t have it in me to read it, having the anime as my only form of contact with this series would’ve prompted me to drop it by S1. This season is way better than the previous one in every sense and it oozes good intentions, yet there’s still a palpable lack of excitement in it. The training at the inn, Shuu’s petty envy, the hotel shitstorm. So much stuff that isn't too far removed from the tone of the anime and that could be put to good use here, yet isn't.

KyoAni, I’m literally on my knees. I implore you to make this thing sell. Please make it sell.

But I want to end this one on a good note, so my last comment is gonna be on the later half of the episode. I adore Saionji's participation and the subtle, well-written explanations about what the boys' team is lacking. It was super refreshing to have the girls' team as the reason why they realized what they were missing in a different way from how the novel did it. Speaking of different way from how the novel did it, I like that we got to see Minato and Saionji's conversation about Shigeru. In the novel, we only had Minato telling Eisuke about it, so I'm happy that we got to actually see it. And gotta tip my hat to the scene where Masaki watches as Minato finally gets his form right once again. Pretty good punchline.

And of course, the last scene is a treasure. The girls being valued as important members of the team is my new favorite thing. Yuuna absolutely blasting Ren into outer space was a blessing. Minato being an unapologetic dork has watered my crops and cleared my skin. That nod to the one-eyed fish had me at the edge of my seat (yes, I still have hopes of it being at least referred to at some point, along with Masaki and Minato's scars). And finally, the Star Festival has been mentioned. Love the way that the dojo was decorated for it. Yata Shrine looks like a new world entirely, almost as if we've been transported to a feudal fantasy setting. I just don't get why it's gonna happen after the tournament. I guess this means we're not getting Ren and Minato's conversation and that honestly worries me, but as always, I'm just taking what I can get.

[generalherasyndulla]

for the ask meme, the five numbers you like the least. not the questions. the literal numbers.

"the five numbers you like the least" bruh I'm still not sure why I'd be expected to have strong number opinions but here we are I guess.

Also you didn't specify a fandom so I'm just gonna jump around here for funsies

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

Alright listen aitsf/aini fandom. I get why a lot of y'all don't like Lien. His interactions with Kizuna early on aren't great and there's a valid critque to be said about that dynamic perpetuating creepy stalkerish tendencies "wearing a woman down until she accepts a relationship". BUT there's a lot more to him than that which is super compelling. Lien at the chronological start of the game is a former criminal trying to better himself and feeling bummed out because he got fired from a legitimate job he had because of his criminal history. Ultimately his relationship with Kizuna motivates Lien to better himself and not give up and find a job that suits his skill set. I think the exploration of classism and the struggles of trying to better yourself in a society that believes "once a criminal always a criminal" in Lien is compelling plus he's just a big dumb guy that loves his girlfriend. YES their first meeting was bad but dammit Lien being Kizuna's legs for her so they can dance is so fucking cute and it fucking got me. Sorry haters in this house I love Lien Twining.

17. there should be more of this type of fic/art

I think there should be Sam and Max fic that actually fits closer to Steve Purcell's style. I've seen some really great fanart/fan comics that I think feel very Sam and Max and fit the style of its various incarnations but fic is kind of a different story. I've definitely read some INCREDIBLE sam and max fics but overall most of them are kinda mediocre and I think it's because a lot of sam and max writers are young and aren't quite equipped to tell a story that fits sam and max, mostly by treating them too seriously. Sam and Max is first and foremost a comedy and even canon at its darkest still manages to have plenty of genuinely funny moments. There's nothing wrong with trying to explore a more serious side to the characters mind you but a lot of it in my opinion takes it too far to the point where Sam and Max don't feel like Sam and Max.

18. it's absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on...

Okay buffy fandom, maybe I am looking in the wrong place by why is there Robin Wood fandom. I know season 7 sucks but Robin is a highlight of that season for me. I think he's a very compelling character, the son of a slayer who lost his mom at a young age and takes up the fight himself. I don't think the show really used his character to the fullest potential but that's what fandom is supposed to be for. At least it is when the character with untapped potential is white but ALAS here we are. Anyway I love Robin a lot I don't talk about him much but I think he's neat and I wish there was more appreciation for him out there.

19. you're mad/ashamed/horrified you actually kind of like...

Nothing tbh. CRINGE CULTURE IS DEAD BABY IN THIS HOUSE WE'RE BEING GENUINE ABOUT WHAT WE LIKE!!!!! THAT'S WHAT THE REAL COOL KIDS (TM) ARE DOING

23. ship you've unwillingly come around to

Probably franmaya. Like I used to really like not like it when I was younger (mostly because Maya is my favourite character while I didn't care much for Franziska. Like I didn't hate franziska per se I just didn't like her as much as other. idk what to tell you somehow I didn't get the crush on franziska gene that every other sapphic woman has) but due to it being a common background ship in narumitsu fics and one really good analysis post tumblr breaking down maya and franziska's similarities in a way that actually made it click I've softened on the ship. I still won't actively seek it out but I might reblog a cute fanart here or there if I come across it.

Thanks for the asks dude, even if u asked them in the weirdest fucking way

send me some more "choose violence" fandom asks

[noro-noro-noro]

first, a dream about chilling with some.friends at a vacation house, which was all well & good for a while. it was a bit sitcom-like. the mom, was watching all her other in laws or family members really get their acts together and quit being so lazy and help around the house with meals, fixing broken stuff, car, except for her husband who remained a lazy bum. I was watching a movie in the cozy upstairs room & then put on something called like skinamarink 2 bc I saw people's fanatt of Gregor and heathcliff in skinamarink 2, which had a similar premise of you're stuck in a dark house and then was completely different. there were definitely things in that house random jumpscares and weird animals in the atticc that were biting attacking. eventually the friend I was watching this with was reolaced with somebody's dad that looked like elrond. I found this uncomfortable and wanted to leave.

then a dream about zombies. first it was a weird eizouken pov where kanamori was replaced with an old man and we were there for a good vs evil event. we sat on the back bc that was only open spave but that's where all the evil tm people were. iw as too cheerful and was like goood luck though see you later :D & they were like ?. anyway then me & my dad were following the crowd trying to get down to the first floor from the 14th, but the elevator was small& kind busted and shitty & only fit 4 people. as it was going down it kinda lurched around and got smaller, and then when it opened we were halfway between floors. the bottom floor were random behind the scenes people workinf on cast parts, and suddenly thats when I knew the zombies were coming and they were after info I had on my laptop. I warned the guys down there, some darker guy name Brendan & a Korean girl named Maria & then they were like oh for real? & then showed up at my house later. we'd supposedly developed a cure and already self vaccinated, and I was trying to pack the most important things from my mom's house since I wanter to keep moving, but I couldn't find anything. I was worried to look outside since I didn't know if the slzombies were here yet. Brendan & maria were like we're staying behind with you so you better have a plan.. & I was like dude I'm literally trying to get out of here why are you staying

[abbatoirablaze]

Teller Morrow Tragedy, The Prequel, Chapter 6

Word Count: 1.6k

Warnings: underage drinking, underage tattoo, sexual situations/sexual tension.

JAX'S POV

"I can't believe you did that," I laughed. She smiled, and pulled me to herself, kissing me roughly. I smirked into the kiss and pulled her back against my body.

"I know!" she exclaimed, pulling away from me. She grabbed my hand and pulled me down the street, "come on."

"Where are we going?" I laughed.

She kept pulling me along until we'd reached a tattoo shop, "I know it's five, and you would much rather do anything but be in a sho-"

"Let's go," I grinned, partially already knowing what she wanted to do. She smiled and pulled me into the shop. The guys at the counter looked bored, like they wanted to go home.

"Sorry guys, we're closing up early for the night."

"I'll pay you a grand," Tara said. She pulled out her fake ID, and her bank card, "I want a crow on the small of my back."

The two guys looked at one another. The one guy shook his head, "I'm going home. We were only supposed to be here til 4. Should have come in earlier."

Tara turned her attention to the other guy, "Can you, do it? I'll give you a grand. You can run my card right now and everything."

The guy bit his lip and nodded slightly, "I'll do it if it goes through."

"It will," she smiled. She took my hand and we watched as the guy ran her card and nodded.

"I'll catch ya later man," the first artist said, heading out the door. The second guy led Tara back and had her fill out some forms while he prepped the ink and he did a quick sketch. I heard the needle start up about half an hour later, and I walked to the front of the shop. Tara was getting a crow tramp stamped on her, and it kind of turned me on.

Yeah, I wasn't patched in yet, but this was something her and I argued over all the time. She told me that she didn't want me to be part of the Sons. Told me that it was a waste of both of our time. But lately, she’d been falling in line. She’d come on rides with me and had even shown up to the clubhouse a few times for the holiday parties. Guess she changed her mind.

"I'm your old lady now," she smiled a few hours later, admiring the work in the mirror. The guy patched her up and ushered us out of the shop so that he could go home. She smiled and kissed me, but winced when my hands went to wrap around her, “shit…super sore, Jax.”

"You realized you were my girlfriend before that, right?" I joked.

She stuck her tongue out at me, "yeah, but before...you know, Alicia had the crow because of you. Now I do."

I took it in stride but sucked in my cheeks. She seemed oblivious to my reaction as she didn't notice. I tried to smile it off as we made our way back to TM for the new year's eve party.

Did she only get it because of Alicia?

Did she really accept what I am, or did she do it because she's jealous? I hadn’t been allowed much time with Mikey ever since her and I had gotten together, and I knew that it pissed both Alicia and Tara off to no-end.

“Mikey is your daughter too,” she hissed, “Alicia is just being a bitch by not letting you see her.”

“I mean we live in the same house,” I shrugged, “I see Mikey all the time.”

“But she doesn’t let you take her out and do things with her,” she said quickly in response, “she doesn’t let you take her out when we do things.”

“Mikey doesn’t really know you, Tara,” I replied with another shrug of my shoulders, “you know how wary she is of new people.”

“She’s around bikers all the time,” Tara sneered, “she just doesn’t trust women other than Alicia and Gemma.”

“If I was a baby girl I wouldn’t trust the guys in my family around crow eaters either,” I laughed, trying to make a joke of it. Tara frowned and I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, “aww, come on, sweetheart, what did I say?”

"Jax," she squealed, making her way back to me. I don't know how far ahead she'd gotten, but she started coming back for me. She took my hand, "come on."

I nodded along, following her as she practically ran to the clubhouse. Mom was there, sitting on Clay's lap. Bobby's wife, precious Ryan had taken the night off and were there as well. Off in the corner I saw how Happy had come down from Tacoma yet again and was talking to Alicia. It kind of pissed me off, for the past few months I would catch her on the phone with him. He would come down and visit when he passed through and visited his mom. Even Mikey had started taking a liking to him.

I walked over to the bar and nodded to a crow eater. She handed me and Tara beers. My mom pulled them away from us before we could take sips, "what in the hell do you think you are doing?"

"Aww come on," Clay laughed, ruffling my hair, "it's new year's eve Gem, give em a break."

"You two going to stay at the clubhouse tonight?"

I nodded, lying to her. She gave me a stern look and I smiled at her, "of course we are, mom."

Mom narrowed her eyes at me before looking to Tara, "and you?"

Tara nodded her head, "of course, Gemma."

I smiled as mom gave us the beers back. I nodded over to the corner Alicia was in, "what's with SAMTAC being here so much?"

"He's trying to make her his old lady," mom laughed, leaning against the bar, "she had a date with Happy ass over there a few months ago and ever since then he’s been coming by every couple of weeks."

I nodded, taking a swig of my beer, "thanks mom."

We started walking off to the table where Chibs and Tig were playing cards with Piney, "Jacky boy."

I smirked as Chibs got out of his chair and hugged me. I looked over to Piney, "Ope coming by tonight?"

He shook his head, "Mary took the keys to his bike. He snuck out to go see Donna."

I laughed and sat down in the chair, pulling Tara onto my lap. Tig nodded at my beer, "your mom say that was alright?"

"And Clay," I added in. Tig shook his head, and they dealt the next hand. We bullshit with everyone for a while, until our beers were empty. Tara took my empty and went over to the bar to exchange them.

"She changed er tune quick, huh, Jacky boy?"

I shook my head, "I don't know. I'm just going with it. She dragged me to a tattoo shop today and got a crow tattooed on the small of her back."

"Your 16-year-old girlfriend got a tramp stamp?"

I nodded at Tig, "Yeah."

He shook his head, "Oh I'd kill Dawn and Fawn if they did that."

I chuckled as Tara came back. I sat for a few more hands before Chibs got himself out. I saw him walk over to the pool table where Alicia now stood with Bobby Elvis and his wife. I looked around and couldn't see Happy or any other SAMTAC guys.

"Clay pulled em about twenty minutes ago."

"What?" I asked, turning to Tig.

"It's quarter til 12. Clay grabbed them so they could help with the fireworks. That reminds me," he said. He turned around to the crow eater at the bar, "go wake up Missy. Gemma told me to make sure she's awake for the fireworks. She's sleeping in Clay's room."

The crow eater nodded and went to wake up my little sister. I looked back to the pool table, "wanna play pool?"

Tara nodded, "Sure."

We excused ourselves from the cards and made our way over to the pool table. Precious Ryan and Bobby had left, and it was just Chibs and Alicia, "need another pair?"

"No," Alicia laughed, "I don't even know what I'm doing. We aren't playing a game. Chibs just said he’d show me a few things."

"Awwwww, come on," Chibs urged, playfully pushing her shoulder, "Come on Alli cat, I know we could beat Jacky boy."

She smiled, "I doubt it, Chibsy. You know I’ve never bothered learning to play."

"Come on," Tara urged very tipsy, "It will be fun."

I smiled, "come on Leesh."

She nodded, "Alright, but I'm terrible. Don’t be mad at me when we lose, Filip."

"It's all in good fun," I smirked. Tara nodded and kissed me. I saw her rack em up, and Chibs broke it.

A crow eater brought the table a round of beers and Chibs thanked her before turning his attention back to the game.

“Wait,” Alicia called as the crow eater turned around. She gave him a look and pulled his beer from him, “he prefers Jameson! Go get him that.”

The crow eater shot her a look but said nothing as she turned and went back to the bar, “you didn’t ‘ave to do tha’ lass.”

“She’s a crow eater. She should know what you drink, Chibsy.”

He smiled and playfully smacked her ass, “alright lass, yer up.”

“Help me,” she giggled, giving him doe eyes. He helped Alicia line up her shot and I felt a small pang in my chest as she kissed him on the cheek in thanks, “you’re the best, Filip.”

Chapter 7