#with that whole can of worms and the other two aren't much help either but then Meryl is on the scene and it's great

[feniverse-unfiltered]

TriMax Western/Outlaw AU has me in a chokehold, so some thoughts:

Vash is an outlaw wanted for a string of robberies/destructions that have been happening across the country. They weren't his doings, but he of course ended up with the blame just by being there. Wolfwood is an ex hitman traveling with Vash and just trying to keep the two of them out of trouble

The two stumble across a small seemingly abandoned farm on the outskirts of town and decide to take refuge there for a bit, just lay low

Turns out this farm is Fen's great aunt's, who passed away a couple months ago, and it's being passed on to her.

So Fen travels down to this farm that's been lying mostly dormant for god knows how long and while she's in the kitchen lowkey panicking about what's she's supposed to be do with an entire ass farm, there's a commotion outside. The chickens are upset about something in the barn. So she grabs the shotgun by the back door and makes her way out to investigate

Long story short: Fen finds Vash in the barn, they come to an understanding (she'll let Vash stay on the farm as long as he needs as long as he doesn't cause trouble) and then one of the chickens sneaks up behind her and squawks really loudly, startling her, and she ends up shooting Vash in the leg (but it's okay! It's not a super bad injury!)

Later in the night Wolfwood returns, sees that there's suspiciously a light on in the kitchen, goes in to investigate and finds Vash getting patched up by Fen. There's some shouting, hurried introductions, rushed explanations, but then everything is fine and good

Vash and Wolfwood stay for a bit, a lot longer than Wolfwood was anticipating (initially was just gonna be until Vash's leg finished healing, but then Vash was adamant about helping out around the property and helping Fen figure everything out so they end up staying for soooo long) and Wolfwood gets a bit antsy but can't seem to convince Vash to leave.

but in the end they all become really good friends and the farm gets fixed up! (whether Fen decides to sell it or keep it is still tbd! but I like the idea of all this work being put in to fix up the place started as just trying to spruce the place up so it /could/ be sold but eventually turns into "oh this is OUR home now", real sucker for that plotline. Fen's aunt also just really didn't want the place sold off, at least not for awhile, so that's why she doesn't immediately sell the place, plus sentimental reasons)

[vncannyvalleygrrl]

1st, love the writing. i am in love with it its amazing.

2nd, if you dont mind - could you maybe do a charlie x like...i dunno hatefuck/brat reader..

(if thats clear? i can go into detail/reiterate it if you need! sorry ive never requested anything!).

possibly more male-leant or at least gn?? nsfw is ok (im over 18 incase thats needed)

tysm if you do and if you dont or need me to redo this ask thats cool! have a wonderful day :)

hatefucki g charlie... mmmf *gnaws at wall*

tysm for requesting and im glad i get to be the first person you've requested before!! hope you likie :3 no dating hcs i hope that's ok

Charlie x Bratty Reader (M)

includes: general and nsfw (there is some sexual tension in the general part and some NASTY sex stuff jsyk. can you tell i'm ovulating yet)

General

From the moment you stepped into the office, Charlie could tell he was gonna have an issue with you.

The way you walked, held yourself up on this nonexistent pedestal, thinking you were SO above him, just looking at your stupid face made his blood boil.

It's not like he just instantly hated you from the start. He tried to be nice to you, but it seemed like you just couldn't return the favor. Why the hell were you hired again??

You listen to music on your headphones too loud, when you chew gum you always pop it obnoxiously loud. Charlie knows you do it to get on his nerves, he can see you look over at him with that shit eating grin on your stupid hot lips!

And to him, you revel in it. You take pride in pissing him off. There have been times where you two got into verbal fights around the office. Pim awkwardly looks away from the scene, Allan steps out of the office, annoyed, and Glep watches the free entertainment from his bean bag.

It starts by either of you doing some stupid shit just to pick a fight. Charlie pops his back, he eats his lunch a little too loudly, you exist, then you get pissed at each other and start hurling insults like grenades.

There has never been a fight where Charlie hasn't wanted to shut you up by making out with you against the counter.

NSFW

It's an intrusive thought, nothing but an ear worm, he tells himself. But if he can't help but to fuck his own hand every night to the thought of you, what is it really?

Somehow, some way, you two actually started to form a relationship. Purely sexual, but a relationship nonetheless. It started by you two picking a fight in the office bathrooms, and it ended with you two locking lips in a stall, borderline dry-humping each other like you were in heat.

Since then, it's only gotten worse.

On days where no one else was in the office but you and Charlie, you would make out in the broom closet, muttering insults at each other as you took breaths of air. Sometimes you even share your gum with him when you kiss.

One night, you had been sent on a mission to retrieve office supplies with Charlie (Mr.Boss saw it as some bonding experience), but you just spent the whole day at his place instead.

You still can't burn the memory of Charlie looking down at you with that stupid cocky smile, grabbing a fistful of hair and thrusting himself into you as you gag on his dick. You aren't sure you want to forget it.

Charlie tends to take the more active roll in intercourse, using your body as he pleases. Obviously he stops whenever you look uncomfortable, but most of the time you enthusiastically agree.

Mutual masturbation 100%. He really gets off on the idea of it, especially when you sit close to him, stomach pressed against his, hand wrapped around both of your cocks. He thought he was going to pass out when he saw a mix of his and your cum on your heaving chest, your face red.

He hates that he finds you hot. Not just you, but how much of a total brat you are. He can't believe you two are fuck buddies now, and he especially can't believe how he actually loves it.

[pasta-in-the-pudding]

Yandere platonic jeff with a younger sibling reader?:00

-🎀

Yandere creeps>>>>>>

Credits to divider go to saradika-graphics! Go follow them and support their work

Thank you so much for requesting!!

Yandere!Jeff x Sibling!reader

Being an older sibling, Jeff would naturally be protective of you

But being as unstable as he is, it's kind of amped up a bit

He's lost so many people already, mostly of his own actions, but he's lost people nonetheless

So currently you have natural sibling instincts, mental instability, and the fear of losing you all stacked up

This makes him obsessively protective of you

He will only let you be friends with people he approves of, he doesn't let any of the caretakers actually take care of you, he doesn't let Slender give you any work, etc

In his mind, he is all you need to live a healthy happy life

He will feed you, wash your clothes, make money, all of it

He will take on every single responsibility he possibly can so that he can be the only person in your life

He doesn't mean any harm in this way of taking care of you, he just wants you to be safe

This being said, you have very few friends and the few friends you do have, you don't see often because they are scared of Jeff

If you want to do anything, you have to either go through Jeff first or try to sneak out without him knowing

Let's say you wanted to go to the mall with your friends

You'd have to practically beg Jeff, and he'd likely say no

He doesn't want you going out in public with strangers he's never met

So many things could happen to you!

And even if he did say yes, he'd be glued to your side the entire time

There's no getting away from him

OR if you tried to sneak out to go with your friends that's a whole other can of worms

Going out any of the main entrances is basically a no-go, because there are always creeps up and about, and they'd alert Jeff about you leaving

So you'll have to climb out of your bedroom window most likely

But Jeff would probably know that you are trying to leave pretty quickly, because he checks up on you every 30 minutes or so

Even if you were able to escape all of these factors, he'd find you eventually

And when he does, he'll be dragging you out by your ear, tossing you into his truck and chewing you out the entire way back to the manor

After this, he'd lock up your window and you probably won't be allowed to leave your room for the next few weeks

And the few times you are allowed to leave your room, Jeff is right by your side, making sure you don't try to escape again

If anything happens to you, he is the first to know and the only one allowed to take care of it

Let's say you scrape your knee

You aren't even crying or anything, but Jeff will be panicking, scooping you up and carrying you inside to go take care of it

No one else is allowed to even look at you until you are fully healed, because Jeff thinks it might hurt you in some way

And even then, you are banned from going outside without strict supervision just in case you get hurt again

If slender tries to give you any jobs or chores, he will chew Slender out before either getting the tasks eliminated from the roster or he will take them on himself that way you don't have to do it

All of this being said, the other creeps have picked up on Jeff's behavior

They think it's kind of weird, but they don't say anything because if they did, Jeff would beat them up

Slender gets very concerned of course, because a growing person such as you needs to have freedom

But he can't really do anything about it, because if he were to separate you two, Jeff would likely only have his mental state worsened

And Jeff being so far gone already, there's no saving him or making his obsession lessen

However, Slender will still help you out every now and then

For example, he will sedate Jeff so you can go hang out with friends or just have some alone time

Yes, he has to be sedated just so you can have privacy

[onejellyfishplease]

Good morning, Jelly!

So, regarding the question I mentioned last night; As you are well aware of by now, my Tabletop Turtles AU (or TTAU, for short) esentially combines RotTMNT with D&D mechanics and tropes.

And if you are going to tell a classic D&D story, you need to have your adventuring party face off against a dragon, right? The question is, which iconic RotTMNT villain should I turn into a dragon? I've got two options I've torn between, both with their own pros and cons (I apologize in advance for the slight info-dump)

1) The Shredder Aesthetically, this is the easiest option. I mean, the Shredder is halfway towards being a dragon already. Just slap some wings and a tail on that sucker and boom, you have a dragon. And let's be honest, a Shredder dragon would look cool as fuck. And the lore wouldn't be too difficult to flesh out either. But there is one problem with this idea, and that is that the Shredder isn't the 'final boss' of RotTMNT. Which means I'd need to come up with a climactic threat to come after this dope ass dragon. And how am I supposed to top a creature that is so iconic to Dungeons and Dragons that it's literally in the name?

2) The Krang Making the Krang dragons would help them fit in with the fantasy setting, where aliens might feel a bit out of place. Though, while having the Krang be dragons will solidify them as a world-ending threat that blends iconic creatures from both the show and D&D, it would open a whole can of worms in regards of questions to answer. How would I design them so that they look recognizable while still retaining that classic D&D feel? If they aren't aliens, what would exactly would the technodrome be? How would they krang-ify people? What's the deal with those mech-armor things? would they still use them? These are just a few of the questions that would need answering.

In short, the Shredder would be the simpler option in terms of design and lore but would give me an extremely high bar to clear when I introduce the Krang. I could just… not use the Krang at all, but they feel like too much of an important part of RotTMNT canon to just ignore, y'know? On the other hand, the Krang would fit better thematically, but come with a plethora of design challenges and lore questions to answer.

I know this is a bit of complex lore problem, and you might not be able to provide a miracle answer that will solve all my problems, but hearing your two cents on this will be very helpful. After all, you have much more experience creating AUs (you seem pretty much incapable of not constantly making new AUs), and this is the first real AU I've created since I was a child.

First of all, I love the name youve chosen!! very cool.

And oof i get the struggle between thematic and aesthetic choices! it can be really hard!

I have a few suggestions that might help?

(just saying that i dont know much about dnd lore besides looking through a few of the books and osmosis from being around my brother)

Okay, Idea one: Kraang as Beholders? they kinda look similar i guess?

Idea two: (this ones a bit more fleshed out)

In a lot if tmnt iterations, the kraang use technology to become physically stronger (ie the mech suits) but since this is dnd, perhaps they should have a more magical solution. perhaps, they lean more into the possession role. perhaps here they act more like parasites? perhaps theyre taking over the minds of dragons and other dnd monsters- using them to their own will? (taking inspiration from rabies here). then u could get some kraangified dragons.

maybe the defeat of shredder can cause the release of the kraang?

this way you could still do the dragon idea for both of them.

the technodrome could be an amalgamation of possessed monster that have become so twisted that they have moulded together? (depends on how dark u wanna go here)

id say you could turn them both into dragons and get away with it if u make their designs, nature and goals different enough.

have the shredder be originally a dragon, but then merged himself with so much magical and cursed armour that he no longer looks like one

(or -another thought- make him a man who wanted the power of a dragon, and so through both magic and armour twisted himself into something vaguly dragon like)

making them related to one another (not just genetically but also thematically) might work aswell?

maybe the shredder created the kraang? maybe in his goal to make a synthetic biological dragon (why he would want that idk, something powerful that shares his ideals) and it went wrong?

woah that was a lot of rambling. i realise that i mostly did both the shredder and the kraang as dragons instead of anything else. my bad.

i hope this helps!! i know i threw a lot of rambling at you just now!

[eliziarts]

It really gets me how you can't say shit about Helluva Boss (or Hazbin Hotel for that matter) to actually critique without fans getting buthurt, and the only people agreeing with you people who just hate Vivzipop (for the record i dont lol). But here are my gripes that I wish people were actually talking about (btw I really *want* to love Helluva Boss and none of this is mean-spirited, just things I've noticed that I wish the team would fix, or I believe are beyond fixing):

1. The very confused tone. I know a lot of people deflect any criticism from the show by saying 'oh but it's a comedy you shouldn't take it too seriously'. Here's the thing- it's literally taking itself too seriously. There's a balance that a show can have between dark elements and humor, but Helluva Boss consistently tries to tackle very, VERY heavy subjects. This combined with the Brandon Rodgers-essque d!ck joke comedy doesn't.. work. At least not in the way they're attempting. I think the most egregious example of this is the scene in the latest episode when Moxie's dad is literally threatening to kill him if he doesn't follow through with an arranged marriage... immeadiatly followed by Moxie walking though a hall of wall d!ldos. It kind of says, 'hey, we were taking this really seriously 2 seconds ago, but jk actually now you should laugh!'

Juxtaposition doesn't work if it actively confuses its audience on what to feel. I'm not sure how much influence Vivzie and Brandon have on the outcome of the show vs the rest of the writing team, but it seems like Brandon's humor and Vivzie's tendency to write melodramatic soap opera scenes just aren't really meshing together quite right. I wish it had more similar pacing and tone shifts that HH had, because it felt more sudden in a purposeful way, rather than 'we're too lazy to find a good transition between these two scenes.'

2. Why does Vivziepop never write interesting female characters? I know this is talked about a bit more, but it's growing increasingly prevalent in Helluva Boss. We still haven't gotten an episode focused on any of the female leads that's actually about *them*.

Millie is practically nonexistent without her relationship to Moxie. Even the episode where we meet her family, it doesn't give us any insight about her. Every time she goes feral(tm) it's either to save her husband or it's part of a group fight. The only backstory we got for Loona was there to service Blitzo's character, and show us *his* reaction. The only things we've seen with Octavia were put there to help us learn more about Stolas. Even in the scene where they only had Loona and Octavia on the screen, it didn't feel like it was about them at all. It didn't feel like the scene existed to show us them bonding about their shitty dads. It felt like the scene was there to once again ask the audience to give Blitzo and Stolas pity points. Which- brings me to my next problem.

3. Its justifications of abuse. I know they're in hell. Most of them should be shitty people, and they are! But I wish the story would stop trying to pretend they're not. Helluva Boss keeps doing this thing where it draws a line between 'good' abuse and 'bad' abuse. And this kind of completely changed Stolas and Blitzo's relationship. Ik some people may like this change but I personally don't.

Earlier on, we were made to believe Stolas kind of fucked up by cheating on his wife. Not only did this affect Stella (tho ofc we later learn it's due to image reasons) but his daughter as well. It's just generally an uncomfortable and tricky situation. And I liked it! It was interesting and had levels of nuance. However, now that we know that he was basically being abused by Stella this entire time, and met Blitzo when they were kids (which is a WHOLE OTHER UNCOMFORTABLE CAN OF WORMS LMAO) the audience no longer feels like Stolas did anything wrong. Now his actions feel justified.

As much as I loved his confrontational scene with Stella the first time I watched it, as I know many people did, I also know that it kind of ruined any sense of nuance that whole situation had. Now, Stolas suddenly has been absolved from any previously implied mistakes. And, Stella is portrayed as this 1 dimensional cruel monster.

Which brings me to the point of abuse in this show. It's a very prevalent theme, and it's a heavy one for a show branded as a sit-com to portray (hard, but not impossible). But it fails on the end that it doesn't stay consistent in its condemnation of it. Every time a character does something 'bad', as soon as we find out there is a reason for this bad behavior, the show suddenly makes it seem like we should feel bad for them and that their actions are justified because they're a broken person. See: the narrative around Stolas' affair suddenly being changed as soon as we find out he was being abused by Stella.

Inconsistent emotional consequences in writing is lazy for sure. But the real problem is when it gets to the abuse side of things, it can actually become harmful. It's implied that Blitzo had an emotionally abusive relationship with Verosika. But ohh we know he had a fucked up childhood and has fear of forming emotional bonds so! Geuss it's okay! But when it comes to Stella, she's just downright mean, 1 dimensional, and literally says she's doing things for no reason other than to make Stolas suffer.

It's important to note that every single time a character gets a *reason* for their assholery, it becomes a *justification* in the way the show frames it. But whenever a character doesn't have a reason for being as asshole, like Stella (at least not one that's shown), that's where the show then draws the line.

This is harmful! Hate to break it to you but the bulk of abusive people out there were abused themselves. They have multitudes of reasons for why they are the way they are. But that doesn't excuse their actions! And I really hate that this is the standard of framing Helluva Boss has set up for their show because now, no matter how bad a character's actions are, they can slap on a sad backstory and suddenly make that character a sympathetic one.

Yeah but anyways idk. If you read all of that I thank you for taking ur time to listen to my 2 cents. The last episode I really enjoyed was the Ozzie's one and I'm just kinda bummed at a lot of this stuff I mentioned.

[haljathefangirlcat]

So aside for the author throwing in things just to be cool, what do you think is going on with the Rosengarten heroes in their titular poem? Gibich, Gunther, Hagen, Gernot, Siegfried, and Ortwin are a given -- the family that fights together, after all. And Volker is a Burgundian mainstay too. Walther...I guess he was allowed to come hang out with his friends, even after maiming both Hagen and Gunther, because friends don't hold a little maiming against each other. Asprian is a giant who pops up both as friend and enemy to various heroes across the legendary timeline. Schrutan is named as a Hunnic knight in the Nibelungenlied, but maybe Kriemhild brought him along with her as some sort of bodyguard? Studefuchs turns up as one of Dietrich's knights in his exile stories. Pusolt seems to be a random guy unless you interpret him as Dietrich's frenemy Fasolt. So what's going on? Did Asprian and Studenfuchs leave the Burgundians after the fight with Dietrich? And there's the fact that in non-Rosengarten materials, Asprian, Schrutan, and Studenfuchs (and maybe Pusolt) are honest to god Jotun/giants/trolls who aren't just being exaggerated as literary license. Is everyone just okay with this?

Tbh, I tend to think of the Rosengarten as kind of... the Beach Episode of Germanic epics. You know, the old style filler episode that doesn't move the plot along or give that much new insight into the themes of the story, but it has character that wouldn't usually meet ourside of some specific context coming together to have a day of wacky adventures? There's so much weird stuff in it that I can't help but see it that way. XD *gestures wildly in the general direction of Ilsan's general existence*

I especially love thinking about Hagen and Walther in that context/mood, actually. The Waltharius ending is already either very touching in a very bittersweet way or simply hilarious, depending on if you take it as a case of using gallows humor to cope or just being Like That even normally, with them having literally just mutilated each other and being already cracking inappropriate jokes at each other's expense ("Don't you think it might a bit perverse, embracing Hildegund with your left hand?" "Aren't you worried that now, whenever you look at another knight, they're gonna think you're looking at them sideways because you don't trust them?"), so I enjoy thinking about everyone else expecting a dramatic confrontation between them only for them to be like... whatever the manly warrior hero equivalent of "OMG HI BESTIE *waves excitedly*" even is, I guess, at each other.

And also about Hagen really, really not wanting to even take part in Kriemhild's silly tourney (as, iirc, he disses the whole idea of it in at least one manuscript) and Walther showing up being one of the few bright spots in it for him.

And also, due to a couple of lines in the Waltharius about the "famous harmony" between Hagen and Walther and about Hagen clinging to Walther's embrace and having to force himself to let go of it to flee the land of the Huns and go back to Worms, about the two of them taking any occasion to sneak away to chat together when they're not the ones fighting even if they're supposed to be on rival "teams"...

So to me that's like... do I have any idea why Walther's even there? No. But do I have this ridiculous mental image of Dietirch somehow meeting him along the way and starting to say "so, anyway, we're going to Worms for.." only to Walther to immediately go "Worms, you said?! Man, I haven't seen Hagen in ages, can I come with you guys?" before he even finishes that sentence? Absolutely.

All the people who turn out to be giants and other supernatural beings are, like, an "okay, this might as well happen today in this poem. Hildebrand's just pretended to be dad so Dietrich would get angry enough to spit fire at Siegfried, making Siegfried cower and hide under Kriemhild's veil, after all" deal to me. I suppose it might come down to different traditions that kind of got lost around the way, but I remember reading somewhere years ago about a version of the Rosengarten where all the knights on Team Worms were referred to as giants, so who knows, it might be literary exaggeration, it might be a new take that didn't, well, take. As for the Hunnic knights, I find your ideas fascinating and think they have a lot of potential, but usually, I just write it off as the same kind of weirdness. The "Dietrich can spit fire and Hildebrand is not above playing dead to mess with him" thing itself fits just too well with the overall weirdness of both characters for me to dismiss it, however, so.... yeah, that one can definitely stay and be a whole thing in my headcanons. XD

[grassbreads]

Writer Interview Game

I was tagged for this by @torterrachampion . Thank you!!

Since this is my fandom-specific account, I'm going to keep these answers mostly limited to fanfiction.

When did you start writing?

I have been writing my entire life. I was one of those kids that was convinced I was going to write a novel at age 10 (although I never got further than a couple of chapters). For fanfiction specifically, the first fic I ever wrote was a halloween story project for middle school that I turned into D.Gray-man fanfiction. I started writing and publishing fic for real the following summer, when I was 14. (Much like the novels in elementary school, I never actually finished one of the longfics I started in high school).

Are there different themes or genres you enjoy reading than what you write?

Big time lmao. A *lot* of the original fiction I read is horror, and although I've played around with the idea of writing a horror fic, I'm yet to find a good concept for one. I'm also a huge lover of long multi-chapter fics and elaborate AUs, but I publish mostly oneshots.

Is there a writer you want to emulate or get compared to often?

I honestly cannot remember ever having my work compared to specific other writers?

But as I said, I love elaborate longfic AUs yet really struggle to write them myself (long projects are my enemy), so I would sell my soul to be able to emulate the works of travelingneuritis or oxfordroulette, both of whom I really admire. I've written whole long posts before about how much oxfordroulette's Homestuck fics impressed and impacted me when I first read them like 6 years ago.

Can you tell me a bit about your writing space?

My writing space is anywhere in my apartment :). Sometimes I write at my desk, but more often I'm curled up or crosslegged on my couch or futon. Gotta be cozy and comfy.

What’s your most effective way to muster up a muse?

Since fic is a pretty casual hobby for me these days, I mostly just kinda write when inspiration strikes (hence why I publish roughly one fic per year). That said, rereading canon scenes featuring the characters I'm writing always helps me get their voice into my head.

Are there any recurring themes in your writing? Do they surprise you?

I don't know if I write enough to have big recurring themes? I like writing about characters that aren't doing well mentally, but that's both broad and not always applicable.

I suppose it does always make me laugh when I see "Christmas" listed among my most-used tags on Ao3. I'm not even a christian, but I've written two fics set during christmas bc gift exchanges make for good fluff, and with my output, two times puts it in my top 10.

What is your reason for writing?

Sometimes a story worms its way into my brain so deeply that canon just isn't enough. I need to live in that world to a degree beyond what I can get from canon content alone. And when there isn't enough existing fic by others to scratch that itch, or when there isn't enough of the right *type* of existing fic, I simply have to sit down and make my own.

Also, writing fanfiction is fun :).

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

I'd like to think I'm good at characterization, at least most of the time. And I think I'm good at making sure things flow.

How do you feel about your own writing?

I really like a majority of the things I've written, or at least the stuff I've written as an adult. My really old writing makes me cringe a little sometimes, but I look back on it fondly, and I still reread newer stuff like An Act of Trust and Idle God, Idol Gossip for my own amusement.

The brief answer is that overall, I'm quite proud.

If either of you are interested in joining, I'll tag @cinammonelles and @azapofinspiration :)

[spaghettificationandpretzels]

The Reaper and the Death Angel Part 56

Series Masterlist

Part 55

Contains:Angst, so much angst, forensic procedures, alcoholic parent and alcohol misuse, hurt/comfort, fluff.

7.1K Words

Comment if you want to be tagged/removed or follow #the reaper and the death angel.

Train wreck takes on a whole new meaning.

Jax felt you stiffen as the person got out and Sam positioned himself in front of Ima without thought, "what, was wrong darlin?" You didn't say anything, Jax could see you looking at the person in shock, trying to make sense of their presence, "who is that."

You looked at Jax, the expression on your face filled him with worry, "that's our father."

"What?" Jax tried to take a good look at the man currently walking over, you barely blinked as he stopped in front of everyone.

"What the fuck are you doing here, haven't we made it clear to you already that we don't want anything to do with you."

He held his hands up, "I won't be here long. I saw something from your work, you got engaged?"

You crossed your arms over your chest as Sam sent Ima away, "yep and Sam got married, you've missed plenty before and haven't care, why the interest, do you need a liver from someone?"

"I've been sober for three years, I just wanted to come and say hello."

Sam stepped closer, towering over him, "you've done that, now fuck off before I drag you out of here by your fucking teeth." The look on Jax's face could have killed him a million times over.

"You should listen to him, this is my property and you are no longer welcome here."

Your father turned on his heel with a sad expression on his face, "I'll be at the inn if you want to come and see me. I just want a few minutes of your time."

****

"What the fuck are we going to do? You know what he's like, he'll either be up to his eyes in gin within the day or he'll move here so he can make amends."

Sam hadn't stopped pacing, "I don't give two shits, he can rot in that no end motel for all I care."

"You want him chased out of town?" Jax was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, he hadn't stopped scowling.

"No, that will just make it worse. Just leave him be, he's never been one to stick at anything. When he realises we aren't going to cave and see him he'll leave."

Riiiiiiiiiing

"Fuck that's work." You walked away to Sam still at a ten. 

"Dude, you gotta calm down. From what you and y/n have said about the guy he won't be sticking around."

Sam huffed, "it's not just that, he pops up at times like this are tries to worm his way back into our lives. Last time this happened I had just made Lieutenant and y/n had just made the New York Times bestsellers list for the second time. He wants to be able to say he walked his only daughter down the aisle and that's it."

You rushing out of the other room in had them turning their attention to you, "what's wrong darlin?" 

"Train crash, it's very bad. I won't be home tonight, you'll probably see me on the news in the next few hours." Jax sighed and slid to the floor, his head in his hands. 

"Haven't they cut the funding to the firehouse?" 

Sam nodded, "yep, my guess is she'll be doing triage the second she gets there, so will the others. It just doesn't fucking end. Our father will be at her work next, saying he was her on TV and he's so proud of her, I'm willing to bet money on it." 

"Yeah, I'm willing to bet you're right." 

****

"What are we walking into." The fire chief, Wallace Boden raced by to you, "it's bad, the first car caught before we got there, the passenger manifest says there's a state senator in there."

You rubbed your face, "no survivors?"

Boden shook his head, "it doesn't look like it. We have at least fifty people needing help, can you spare some people?"

You nodded, "we'll all help, I've got more work to do if more people die. I'll send Jess and Jack to deal with the bodies at the front, Cam and I will help the living, you just tell us where to go."

Another firefighter, Casey, the truck Lieutenant, ran over with a fireproof jacket with Forensics written on it in big yellow letters, "how long's it been since you had to wear one of these?"

"Not long enough. Jess and Jack will be at the front helping remove the remains, is there is a state senator there, you need to keep the scene as intact as you can and I want Kelly on this, I know he's not arson but he's the only guy I trust not to fuck up my evidence."

Casey nodded, "all good, I guess we get to put all that training you gave us to use."

You smiled, "talk about cutting your teeth on glass, can we go back to when you were just putting out frat house fires?"

He huffed, "come on y/n, you love working with us. At least we're not cops."

You sighed, "they'll be here soon enough."

****

"Yeah, come in. Hap and Bobby are already here, Jax is putting some shit in the oven." Sam invited Juice inside, it had become a tradition after you were called to a serious incident with news coverage for everyone to show up at your house to watch.

It started as a way to keep Jax and Sam company since Jax tended to worry and Sam began to itch for the action he was missing out on but after a while, it morphed into a way to be there for you in the same way you were there for them.

"Look there's the lass." Chibs pointed to the screen as you helped carry someone to the triage area with a paramedic.

"It's bad, reports say she's there because a politician was in the front car." Juice had been on his phone looking for more information most of the night.

"The front car where no one lived, the one that hit the car that was rigged to blow up?" Kozik sounded worried.

"Yeah, it's going to be a long night."

****

"Fucking vultures, the press is already here." Gabby one of the paramedics, shook her head and helped you with another injured passenger.

"You're more than welcome to have at them, you can say what we're all thinking without getting into trouble. This guy isn't going to make it."

You nodded, "yeah, sucking chest wound and no one to get him to the hospital, he's a black tag for sure. Good old San Joaquin, they keep cutting funding and people keep dying."

She sighed, "you haven't been hit yet?"

You shrugged as you dropped the man off to be looked after, "of course we have, our whole Vikings in the US exhibit was dumped and so was our settlement program, we lost six amazing members of staff and I've had to find a new toxicologist."

"Shit, I liked Tim."

You sighed, "we all did. Anyway, we better get back in there before the cameras end up in our faces."

****

"Fox is going on about this being a terrorist attack."

Sam huffed, "get off the phone Juice, real reports say another person in the front carriage was a big shot banker, it looks like this is about the stock market."

"Shit, is it some international crime shit?" Happy tended to be outlandish sometimes.

"No, judging by the dude's portfolio, it was probably some wealthy CEO. I'm sure y/n will update us when she can, for now we should all start dinner."

****

It was finally time to load the bodies in the wagon when the press came to shove microphones and cameras in everyone's faces.

"Miss, your jacket says Forensics, why were you and your team helping the paramedics?"

"For one, it's doctor and two, in an emergency response situation, anyone trained in triage must prioritise the living." The short response sent that one person away but another just took their place.

"Can you give us a statement on the situation?"

You smiled, "is this live?"

Nods all around, "great, a situation is a burst pipe and a few busted cars, this is a tragedy and this tragedy happened because the district of San Joaquin has cut public funding while their officials take a pay rise. In the last six months, millions have been cut from both fire and ambulance and yet the people making those decisions have had salary increases. Nine people died today who would have lived had there been ambulances to take them to the hospital. You want a statement, here's my statement. Families members of the dead can have their lawyers contact me, I'll testify in their wrongful death suits."

"What about the firefighter and paramedics who were here today, are they at fault?" The glare you gave the reporter could have frozen hell.

"No, in fact, they are the only reason so many people lived today and they are the only reason I even have a crime scene to investigate. If it wasn't for them, many more people would be dead or permanently disabled. We all know what's going to happen after my statement, they will face serious backlash and so will my lab. By standing up for what is right and stating the facts, I have put a target on my back and the officials of San Joaquin are going to make my life and the lives of the people around me even harder."

****

"Your sister needs to go into politics. You realise she's just made sure that San Joaquin can't do anything now, she's just called them out in front of the media."

Jax chuckled, "well Bobby, you're more than welcome to be the one the suggest it to her."

Bobby made a face, "on second thoughts, I'd like to keep my head." The phone ringing with Jax's ringtone for you had them all relaxing.

"Hey darlin, you're on speaker."

Jax smiled at your chuckle, "let me guess, everyone is there?"

"You know no one can stay away when you're on the TV, also we ate all the chocolate."

You sighed, "that's alright. Things are pretty rough, all but fifteen of the bodies are easy to ID so that won't take much time. I'm going to get some of those done, then come home and get some sleep then back to work and start on the first class car. I have to go to the fire scene too so I can help with the arson guy. I'm not sure when I'll be home."

"You need anything for us darlin?" You could hear the relief in Jax's voice.

"Send anyone who's been drinking to the guest rooms tonight. You want the dirt deets about why it happened?"

There was a shout of yeses, "good Lord, I'll tell you, calm down. The first class car was filled with finance people going to a conference, the senator was a guest speaker. I spoke to the feds, they already have a few suspects. I'm going to be up to my eyeballs in FTC goons soon so I've got to go. I love you all."

After the goodbyes, you hung up to head back to work.

****

"Hey y/n, you're going to hate me." It was rare that Travis came into the lab to tell you there was someone waiting to come in but you were on the platform dealing with the bodies so he could buzz you from your office

"Travis, you know I could never hate you, who's at the front desk?" He pointed at the front through the glass doors.

"The district's RP representative, his name is Kyle and he would love to talk to you." You smiled and Travis knew that look well.

"I hope he has a strong stomach, you can send him in." Travis nodded, his smirk growing.

"I'll buzz him onto the platform you stay here and work, I give him a sick bag too." You went to say something and he huffed, "yeah yeah I know, thank you T, you're a lifesaver. I gotta get away from this stink."

Travis returned three minutes later with the man in tow, "I love to talk to you, can we go to your office."

You didn't even turn around to answer him, "we can do it here, doing your job will not get in the way of me doing mine. Travis will swipe you onto the platform, if you feel sick please use the bag you were provided." He looked at Travis who waved his hand.

"You heard the boss lady, up on the platform or you can wait here for hours for her to be done." The man stepped onto the platform after Travis swiped his car then he was walking over to the table you were working at.

"Ummm, I just wanted to talk to you about your statement and how we can help to fix all the issues you brought up." He sounded like he was going to be sick.

"I thought I made the fix pretty clear, take a cut to your pay and give it to public servants. I'm guessing you make two or three hundred thousand a year, how much are you willing to lose for to never happen again?"

"Miss." You cut him off.

"It's doctor and if you want to give me some hollow bullshit, you need to get lost. This body belonged to a fifteen year old boy, he could have lived but there weren't enough ambulances to get him to the hospital. Sure he'd have to spend a year in the burn unit but he would have lived, unless you want to give him back his stolen years I don't want to hear anything about money."

"We just wanted to let you know that we did some digging and found that some of our staff were being paid more than the standard, they have done the right thing and taken a pay cut so we can reinstate the ambulances and we're working on getting your museum back to the way it was before. Everything will be back to normal in no time and it would be great if you could make a statement supporting these changes."

"Let me get this straight, these staff were being paid so much, that paying them the normal rate will recovers ten of millions and you want me to make statement in support of you doing the right thing?" The man was getting greener by the second.

"Can we go into your office? I don't need to see this."

You removed your hands from inside the body, "how about this, I'll give you three options. Option one, I will retract my original statement and make one in support, if those officials come and spend the day with me. Option two, we just let this go, no more statements, no more anything. Option three, I make a statement saying that you came here and tried to shut me up and that you're so much of a coward that you can't stand to be in the same room as something you caused. Which one would you like to take?"

"I'm sorry Dr l/n, I see that you have a lot to deal with and I'm not going to take up any more of your time. As long as you raise issues with us before the press we'll be fine."

You pointed towards the door, "great, now leave or I'll change my mind."

****

"Please go in, she had a PR guy from district here the morning and she almost shoved his head into a dead body."

Jax raised a cup of coffee, "I figured you could use it considering you've been dealing with family members all day."

"Thanks man, has Ope said anything about your bachelor/bachelorette party?"

Jax shook his head, "nah, why?"

"I'm not saying anymore, we're all going to have a blast." Jax handed Travis the cup and walked into your office with a smile.

"Hello darlin, I bought coffee and flan."

"Oh I love you." Jax wrapped you in his arms with a chuckle.

"Are you saying that to me of the flan?"

"Both," you sat down and got stuck in, the sweet pudding easing the stress of the day.

"T told me about your visitor, you feeling stabby?"

You sighed, "what do you think." Another beep from the intercom had you dropping your head into your hands.

"The sperm donor is here, you want me to get rid of him." Jax looked like he wanted to kill someone.

"Send him in, he'll just wait outside if you don't." You reached across the desk and grabbed Jax's hand, "please just don't be all noble, I can handle him." Jax sat back with a huff and then the door opened.

"What are you doing here?"

He was sheepish, "I saw you on TV, I'm so proud of you, I just wanted to come and see where you worked."

"Fifteen years too late dad, it would have been nice to hear that when I got my first PhD or the fifth one."

He hung his head, "I know I missed out on everything, I just want you to hear me out."

"What there's to say that you haven't said every other time you got sober?" Jax was getting angrier and angrier by the second.

"I just want to take you and Sammy out to dinner, you can bring?" He raised his eyebrows in question.

"Jackson, my fiancé's name in Jackson. Sam wife's name is Ima."

He nodded, "ok, you can bring Jackson and Sammy can bring Ima. All I want is dinner, if you decide you don't want to see my after that I'll never talk to you again but unless you do I'm going to hang around until you change your mind."

"You never change do you, sober or not you're still a bully. I'll have dinner with you, if everyone else wants to come it's up to them. I'll come, I can't say the same for Sam and Ima." Your father relaxed and sat down in one of the chairs.

"This office is really nice, are you the boss here?" Jax lips were close to curling in a snarl.

"Yes and no, I'm the head of forensics and give all the orders but our boss is down the hall, he deals all the politics."

The sound of tiny feet bounding towards your office had your heart in your throat, the door opening just as Jax stood up to stop Abel in his tracks but it was too late.

"MUMMY, MUMMY. LOOK WHAT I MADE." You stood up and rushed to the door, taking his arms then closing it behind you.

Wendy was there looking worried, "what's going on?"

"My father is here, I don't want him anywhere near Abel. I need to ask a favour."

She took Abel's hand and got down to his level, "Mummy's very busy right now, can you go hand out with uncle T?" Abel smiled and raced off.

"Whatever you need."

"Thank you, he's going to ask what's going on. I just need you to wait out here, I'm going to tell him the truth and say it's your decision too but I don't want him around our child."

She nodded, "neither do I, I'd say no even if you and Jax were on board. From what you've told me he hasn't done enough to prove he should have access to you and Sam let alone Abel, I'll wait Abel you just call Travis and tell me when to come in."

"Thank you, you're amazing" You headed back inside, catching Jax telling your father that he wasn't going to say anything about it until you were back.

"You have a son?"

"I do, I adopted him when he was a few months old. Jax is his birth father and his birth mother is outside, she doesn't want you to meet out child and neither do I. In fact, you'll be meeting him over my dead body. If you want to hear it from her, she's ready to come in and tell you herself."

He waved his hand, "no, it's ok, I realise you might need time before you get there."

You clicked the intercom, "Travis, can you please give Abel and Wendy some cafe vouchers and send them for some afternoon tea?"

"Sure, Wendy's fine with that."

"I'll talk to Sam and Ima about dinner, do you have a number I can call?" He wrote it done on a slip of paper, "I'll be in touch, don't bother us unless I call. You need to go now, I have stuff to do and you're cutting into my time with my partner."

He left with a short goodbye, Jax reaching across the desk to hold your shaking hands, "you're fine. I'll talk to Sam and try to get him to come to dinner, if he does and that piece of shit doesn't go away, we can make him."

"Thank you, we're going to have to tell Abel the truth just in case. With any luck Wendy's already done it."

****

"No, fuck no. I'll go but there's no way I'm going to let him meet Ima."

Ima didn't like that, "that's not your choice, it's mine, I'll go. If it means he'll never come near us again, I'll go."

Sam threw his arms up in the air, "if he says one word about you I'm going to kill him."

"I'll make the call, Wendy let Abel know that he wasn't a safe person and that if Abel sees him that he should tell an adult, that's all I want him to know right now."

Jax sighed, "three parents are better than two. Abel's dead to the world right now, I'm going to get us all some ice cream."

****

"Seven on Saturday at The Blue Tavern. I need to go to the crime scene, please just call me if something goes wrong."

"The Blue Tavern, you packing your wallet in case he forgets his."

You huffed, "of course I am Sam. I really need to go."

"It's it getting a bit long the tooth?"

You rubbed your face, "the fire was forty hours ago, the firefighters cleared the area ten hours ago and the police are letting us in as of two hours ago, sure it should have been yesterday but I can't make people hurry."

"You wanna lift darlin?" You shook your head and hugged into Jax's side while Sam went to let Ima know about dinner.

"As much as I'd love you there for moral support, I need to take the lab van. This tops out at one of the worst weeks I have stateside, I want it to be over.

"It almost is, we'll be watching the news at the garage in case you want to ruffle more feathers."

"I love you so much Jax."

He pressed his lips to your forehead and ran his hand up and down your arm, "love you too, now go kick some ass."

****

"Hey Kelly, is everyone here doing overhaul?" He nodded, "wonderful, more hands if I need help. Can you take this side and I'll take that one, move from front to back, if you find any fleshy bits let me know and don't forget to call if you find something strange."

He chuckled, "I was in your class remember, I know what I'm doing."

"Yeah, I know. Just making sure in case all the heat you deal with fried your brain." There was no quip back which was strange.

"Hey ahhh y/n, is this what I think it is?" Kelly pointed a hunk of metal on the floor

You walked over and stood by him, following his finger until your eyes landed on what e was pointing to, "yep, that's a bullet. Mark where it is and we'll start from here."

"Did you find any bodies with gunshot wounds?"

You wiped the soot from for pants, "I haven't been through them all yet, we need to do trajectory so I can narrow it down. Can you head outside and get Jack to hand you the laser set up, I'll start pinning."

You bagged the bullet after taking photos, then stuck the pins around the area while Kelly brought the laser inside "bring it here and place it right where you found the bullet please." He did as you asked, and you clicked it on. When the laser found its mark, you pointed at the seat it landed on, "you know who was sitting there?"

Kelly shook his head, "nah but I can get you the manifest right now."

"Please do, I think we have a problem." You photographed the scene and waited for him to return, when he did, it was clear that something was very wrong, "what?"

"That was where the senator was sitting. There's more, judging by the way the back of this chair looks, she was bleeding when she got hit."

"What?" He walked you over to the chair and pointed at the back.

"See here, the fire was burning but she was alive enough to be bleeding."

You rubbed your face, "we know this was arson, the mess of the car the train rammed into proves that but the only person who could have fired that shot is another passenger or…."

He cut you off, "I knew all the guys there, it wasn't one of ours."

"Aright, hand me that pin." He took the long yellow pin and handed it to you before you stuck it in the hole in the seat. "Ok, judging by the angle it came from that direction." You pointed out the window and towards the treeline. "See how the hole is bigger in the back?"

He nodded, "that means it came through the font her body judging by the size of the hole it's come from beyond those trees."

"Which means this was a planned hit."

You nodded, "yep, we need to let someone know to get more cops here. Can you grab those little round wipes and get some of your guys here, we need to look for the spot where the person fired the gun."

You gathered some of the firefighters and handed then the gunshot residue pads, spray bottles and some little red flags, "look for damaged leaves and burns on the bark. If you find anything, wipe the pad over the area, then spray if. If it turns blue, yell real loud and stick the flag in the ground. Any questions?"

No one raised their hand, "alright, off we go."

It took about ten minutes before something came up, Boden had shot up and his deep voice came through the trees, "here." You ran over and looked where he pointed.

"That's it." You looked at the ground and shifted some of the leaves, "no shells. My guess is this was meant to happen later and they took advantage of the chaos to take the shot early. I need to go back and look at the body, there's nothing more any of us can do here right now."

Kelly nodded and you bagged the swab, "yeah, I'll you get all of this into the truck. Just call if you want to come back here."

"Thanks Kelly, I'll let everyone know when I know more." With a wave from everyone, you left for the lab.

****

"Well Kelly was right, she was alive when she got shot. It was the gunshot wound that killed her, it nicked her heart."

"You want me to run it?"

You handed the bag containing the round to Jack, "please and do it internationally, with the people in that cart, I have a very bad feeling."

You went back to the exam only to be stopped by Hale walking onto the platform, "hey, I got your report, the fire wasn't connected to the senator's murder, we got a confession right before I came to see you."

You sighed, "Jack will be back with ballistics soon, you might as well stay for a coffee."

"How's the wedding going?"

You smiled, "great, invites aren't ready to go out just yet but you should get yours soon."

He smiled, "that's great, I'm really happy for both of you. It just sucks that shit like this seems to been coming up."

You shrugged, "that's the job, why did they set the fire?"

"Everyone's theories were right, they were trying to sink the stocks."

"Well that solves nothing, we now have the unrelated murder of a politician to deal with." Right on time, Jack knocked on the door looking worried, "oh no, what now?"

"The bullet popped but not in the US, it's linked to twenty other murders, all Sicilian mob hits."

"Ah fuck, there's nothing we can do now. The killer would be halfway home by now. We pass this onto the FBI and be done with it, we have other shit to do."

****

"It was a mob hit, holy shit. What are you going to do?"

You shrugged, "wait and see. This isn't the movies Juice, stuff like this doesn't get solved in a few days, and given the circumstances, I don't think it's going to get anywhere."

"Well that sucks, so what, you're just going to move onto new cases?"

"Yep, there's nothing else we can do."

****

"You ready?"

You turned to the sound of Jax's voice, "you're not wearing your kutte?"

He shook his head, "no, I want to make this as easy as I can and I don't want him to start asking questions."

You smiled, "wear it and tell Sam to wear his, my father will cope or he can fuck off."

Jax smiled and pulled you into his arms, "you have no idea how much I love you."

"Oh I think I do." He pressed his lips to yours and put his hand on your lower back, pressing you into his chest.

"I like your dress." You sighed.

"This is one step up from my court attire, I have no idea what you're going on about."

"It's my favourite colour on you, that dark blue makes you look so sexy." You kissed him again, biting his lip as he deepened the kiss.

"You're only saying that because it's the same colour as the lingerie you love so much."

"Maybe." Jax's hand brushed the hair out of your face, "the night's going to go fine don't worry, and if it doesn't, I'll break his legs for you and Sam."

Before you could say more, Ima called you away. You headed to her bedroom and she was standing there with two dressed, "which one covers up the bump?"

"You don't really have one but the white one."

"Thank you, the last thing any of us need if hom finding out about the baby."

"Yeah, that would be messy." She threw on the dress and walked out with you, Sam and Jax were already waiting by the door.

"Alright people, let's get this done."

****

You arrived at the restaurant right on time, your father already there waiting at the table.

"Please sit." Jax's hand never left your lower back as you all sat at the table.

"Do you want to order drinks?" You exchanged looks with your brother.

"We'll all have water, thank you."

"Are you sure? I'm alright with people drinking around me."

"Yeah, we don't want to risk it."

He smiled sheepishly, "so what have my children been doing? Other than helping those people who died on the train."

"Well dad, Sam keeps everyone in Charming on the road, so does Jax. Other than that we've been busy with personal stuff."

"And what do you do Ima?"

She swallowed, "I work in the adult film industry, I was an actor when I met Sam and I went into production a few months ago."

"Oh, that's interesting. I had no idea Sam lived such a colourful life."

"Well now you do and if you say anything about my wife, I'll kick your teeth in."

"It's fine, I'm sure my daughter would say that as long as you pay your taxes there's nothing wrong with what you do."

"As much as I like to think you're telling the truth, we all know what you used to say about y/n when she was in college."

"I know, and I'm sorry for that. I'm trying to do better now."

"We can see that but it's going to take a lot more than words to get back into our lives."

"I understand. I asked around, I hear you and Jackson are part of a motorcycle club."

'Yeah, but don't listen to what people say, we just like our Harleys."

Your father raised his hands, "I didn't say anything. I mean I have heard a lot and I'd be very disappointed in my children for making such terrible choices but I don't belive everything I hear. Just like I hope Jackson and Ima don't believe everything they hear."

"Oh boy here we go. Can we just order and get this night over with."

"Be nice y/n, I'm trying to get to know the man you're going to marry."

You huffed but Jax put his hand on yours, "I've never been here, I'd love to order dinner." His tone was tight.

"Yeah, me too, I could eat a horse."

Sam smiled and relaxed, "you heard my wife, we should eat."

You took some time to figure out what was good then sent your order away, the food coming out twenty minutes later.

"This very nice."

You nodded, taking a bite of your bread, "good bread too, that's how you tell if a restaurant is really good."

"It's not better than Juice's." There were nods of agreement.

"What's a Juice?"

You sighed, "you'll meet him if you stay sober and make the right choices, he's out friend, he works at T-M with Jax and Sam."

"Is he in the gang too?"

You went to throw something at him but Jax's hand on your leg stopped you, "it's not a gang and yes, he's in the Club. If you keep this up we're going to walk out."

'You're right, I'm sorry. I'm just worried about you y/n, I want you to find the right person."

"The right person, as in someone like you who gets drunk and hits me?"

"That's all in the past now, I've changed."

You and Sam looked at each other and you sighed but Ima cut in, "what do you do for a living sir?"

"I work in accounting, I'm making real good money too."

"Yeah, well if that's the case, you can give us all the money you stole from us when we were little."

He gave you a false smile, "I can do that, you just tell me where to send the check. Now are we going to get dessert, I hear the orange ice cream delicious."

"We don't eat that kind of thing, I got a bad orange one day and now they make me feel sick. Your children and Jax have been kind enough to avoid them without me asking them too. I'd say you raised wonderful kids but we all know that y/n did all the raising while you were drunk off your face." In truth, the smell of oranges made her sick since she got pregnant but no one was going to say that.

"I acknowledge that y/n was the parent and she did a good job but I'm better now and I'm ready to be a grandparent."

That was the last straw for you, "we're done here. This isn't going anywhere and you've been taking digs at us all night. Maybe we should try for something less formal, coffee or cakes at the cafe sound good."

The others didn't protest, "sure y/n, I'll get the check."

You shook your head, "I'll get it, I'm the best selling author, not that you would know."

He went to grab your wrist to stop you and Jax hand shot out and grabbed his hand, hard enough that the fingers changed colour, "you won't touch either of them ever again do you understand me. This is my town and if I want you gone, you will be. Your children are willing to see you for coffee be happy with that or I'll make sure you never see them again."

"Are you going to let him talk to me like this? How can you marry a man that's so disrespectful?"

You clenched your jaw and looked him dead in the eyes, "go now, before that offer for coffee is gone forever." He stormed out in a huff and everyone slid back into their seats.

"Thank god that's over, I say we get the really fancy flaming ice cream thing that everyone talks about."

Jax smiled, "great idea darlin, anyone think differently." They shook their heads.

"At least we can end the night on a good note."

****

There hadn't been more than a few texts after dinner that night and everyone was hoping that was the end of it. Jax was sitting with you, rubbing the ache out of your legs after a long day at work when the topic of the Italians came up, "that assassination, did you ever find out who did it?

"Yeah, the dude's back in Italy but it planned hit, it's Interpol's problem now. It was meant to happen at the conference but he took his chance when the train was hit. She was targeted because she was trying to pass a bill to establish better scrutiny at the ports where the US mob operated, the old guard back in Italy wanted to deal with it themselves. Why do you ask?"

"Cucuzza wants to meet up with the Mayans and us. He said something's going on in the families and he and some other factions need guns, a lot more. Galen's happy to help, I just finished talking to him before you arrive."

"The shit never ends, does it. Do you think the hit is connected?"

Jax shifted on the couch and pulled you into his arms, pressing his lips to your crow while he ran his hand over your thigh, "he asked if you knew who did it and said that the story the cops have isn't the correct one, she wasn't cracking down, she was making sure this problem family got a leg up."

"Do you know any more?"

"No, that's what we're going to talk about tomorrow. I was just making sure he wasn't lying to me."

"I don't think he is, Angela found some strange stuff in her financial but we just thought it was the part of why she was called to speak, we thought she did some under the table tax shit."

"Nope, she was being paid off."

You sighed, "tell me how tomorrow goes and we'll go from here, you're all still assets for the CIA and if it involves old world mob shit they need to know."

"No worries darlin, I figured you'd say that."

****

"What are we dealing with here Jimmy?" Jimmy sighed and broke Jax's gaze.

"It's not good Jackson, a new family is up and coming and they are armed and organised, they recruit from the Gruppo di Intervento Speciale and they aren't fuckng around."

Sam leaned into Jax to let him know what Cucuzza meant, "Gruppo di Intervento Speciale are the special ops of special ops my guess it is only a few guys training foot soldiers, there wouldn't be enough of them to form a group all on their own."

Jax shook his head, "are you're just telling us this now, you're one of my best buyers Jimmy, we need trust."

"I'm sorry Jackson, we needed to know what was going on and we got confirmation after that woman was killed."

Alvarez had been quite the whole time but it seemed he was ready to talk, "we'll get you the guns but you need to keep us in the loop and you better tell us if this shit's going to land on your doorsteps.

Jimmy smiled, "of course. Now gentlemen, I believe you have guns to sell me."

****

Just as they were ready to head home after the meeting Jax got a call.

"What?"

Jax sighed, "that was the Riverhead distributor they need me at the bar, something about the last batch being bad."

Sam rubbed his face, "I'll go with."

Jax shook his head, "nah, you go download Ima and your sister."

"I'll go with you boss." Happy was always ready for an adventure.

"See, go home Sam, we'll deal with this."

****

Jax and Happy walked into the bar unimpressed, this was the last thing they needed. They went in the back to avoid letting everyone know what was going on but it didn't matter, voices were being raised.

"You wanna tell us what's going on, we have deal with you and you've been selling to us for the last four years and you only let us know that we need to clear out bar now?"

The man crossed his arms over his chest, "yes, and we're fixing it. Your next three orders will be free and we promise this won't happen again."

"Good because if it does we'll find someone else to buy our booze from."

The man waved his hand, "I understand completely, please go to the bar and have a drink on me you already have a friend here."

Happy shrugged and Jax followed him outside only to be greeted by your father sitting at the bar drunk.

"What a fucking surprise, why are you here?"

The man stood up, his words a mess, "I saw the label when I came to visit my kids I thought if I let them know I was a friend I get some good drink."

Jax was shaking with anger, he was finding it hard to talk, "you need to get out of town. I'm going to have my friend here call you a cab, if I see you in town again I'll make you regret it."

"Nah, I think I'm going to stay. Don't tell my kids about this yeah, I'll get right back on the wagon I just needed one drink."

To Jax's surprise, Happy spoke, "it's never just just drink with people like you, walk out of the bar and let me call you a cab or I'll going to drag you out and make sure you never come back."

"Fine, I don't want to be here anyway. Your girlfriend's a real bitch Jackson."

Jax didn't just see red, he saw black but Happy was there, ready to stop him from making a mistake.

"Go home and break the news, Sam and y/n will need you there. I'll make sure he gets out of town safe."

Jax rubbed his face, "thanks Hap."

****

You knew something was wrong when Jax walked into the house, "what?"

His eyes got wet, "I'm so sorry."

You were worried now, "Jackson, what's going on?"

He pulled you into his arms and rested his chin in your head, "we went to the Riverhead bar to speak to the owner, your father was there drunk. He saw the name when he was there after we got the delivery and thought mentioning us would get him free drinks. I am so sorry darlin."

You sighed, "it's alright, do I need to go sober him up?"

Jax shook his head, "nope, Hap's getting him out of town."

"I need to go tell Sam, not that he's not expecting it too."

"We'll go together, you doing alright?"

You nodded, "yeah, it's just been a long ass week."

Part 57

[alovelyburn]

What do you think the endgame of Berserk would be like if Griffguts became canon? And what do you think would happen to Charlotte and the rest of the Black Swordsman party as a result?

....that's quite a question!

I mean in part it depends on what you mean by "canon" - if it's just explicit confirmation of their feelings then I don't imagine much would really change since the feelings are already present.

If you mean them literally ending up together romantically that's a WHOLE can of worms like you have to ask how they'd arrive in that place to begin with and then extrapolate from there about what the effects of that would be.

So let's see, if we're arriving at "Griffith and Guts get together" in this hypothetical Berserk ending, the first thing we need to do is ask what would make that possible. And since the question is about what the ending would be like under these circumstances (rather than like, what kind of fanfic would you write about this thing) I'm going to try to stick to things that would be tonally appropriate and fulfill the narrative promise as best as I can and not like, send them back in time or whatever.

So the first step to getting them to a place where they'd get together without completely going off the rails would be getting them on the same side. The good thing is they aren't really motivated by the same things and so their drives could theoretically both be achieved simultaneously.

For Guts I think there's only one real thing that could enable him to let go of his grudge and that is getting Griffith to a place where he can give Guts what he needs in order to move on. This basically means making him feel the weight of his actions and regret them or at least feel bad about it. That shouldn't be that difficult though, you'd just have to unfreeze his heart. It would probably also help if Guts were given some kind of understanding of why Griffith made the choices he did - a view of the Eclipse mindfuck sequence for example. I don't think understanding in itself would be enough but it would be a point along that path.

For Griffith as it stands what he wants is obviously to pursue his ambitions until he runs out of sky, more or less. Also to change the world. ...I kind of feel like once you get Guts to let go of the past, getting him on board with this wouldn't be that hard, but the other thing is that getting Guts on board would mean unfreezing Griffith's heart and if you do that then the entire equation changes since then the dream/ambition ceases to be the thing he is most invested in. So I think you could justify either having Griffith remain on the throne and Guts become like his enforcer/general, or having Griffith make the sacrifice of walking away from it.

I think for shippers in particular the second is more satisfying (well not for me necessarily, but I mean as a generality perhaps?). It's also probably the most... balanced outcome? There's poetry in it for sure - Griffith gave up everyone he loved in order to hold onto his dream, so in order to regain favor with the one he loves, he has to give up the thing he sold them out for. It would also get around the issue of Guts having to like, live and cooperate with the Apostles who ate the Hawks and raped Casca.

So I guess at this point in the brainstorming we have "Griffith somehow gets his emotions back and feels the weight of his actions, then gives up his dream in order to regain Guts' trust and affection."

So what would that mean for the RPG group.

Well I think in order to get to the this point Casca would probably have to be dead already. As long as she's alive Guts would have a very difficult time moving on, because she is a walking reminder of that betrayal. The other two things I can think of would be Casca becoming an apostle, thus removing a lot of the moral tug of war for Guts, or Casca just ditching them. I'm not sure the latter is really in character, though. Either way I don't see her still hanging around if Guts and Griffith made up - it's kind of a smack in the face if she has her memories back.

Isidro probably doesn't care about the moral implications of forgiving Griffith so I don't see why he'd necessarily leave.

I think that, aside from Casca, Schierke would have the biggest problem with it since her nature/background means she knows a bit more than the others about what Griffith is, and more importantly than that, he had Flora killed. So my feeling with her is that she'd be incredibly hurt and would leave.

This puts Farnese in a position where she has to choose between her loyalty to Guts and her loyalty to Schierke. Depending on how much she knows about Casca's background at this point, and depending on what happened to Casca, that could also be a major factor. In any case, given that her primary reason for following Guts was to find her way, and her other thing with Guts is that she's in love with him, but in this scenario he's decided to hook up with Griffith, I think she would ultimately leave with Schierke.

And obviously Serpico goes with Farnese, although I imagine he'd be more ambivalent about the choice itself.

Puck just goes where Guts goes, and Ivalera goes with Schierke.

...So I guess the outcome of this path would be Guts and Griffith traveling with Isidro??!?!

Additional thoughts:

-I'd probably have Schierke, Farnese and Serpico either go back to Flora's forest and try to rebuild there, or keep traveling and learning new things and seeking new systems of magic.

-Does that make Isidro Guts and Griffith's adopted kid, IDEK.

-I guess this route leaves Falconia in Charlotte's hands. I think it's be interesting if Casca became an apostle and then remained in falconia to support Charlotte by keeping the demon armies in check, though I'm not sure it actually makes sense for her to be able to do that. ...also a lot of them assaulted her uh let's kill all of the survivors from the eclipse off so there's just some that didn't assault her. Ahem. EDIT: Actually unless you can find a way to de-godhand Griffith he's still the master of the apostles. so maybe he could just give the eclipse apostles another assignment I guess?

-Locus and Zodd would probably defect from Falconia and follow Griffith around. Two out of five morning Griffith would wake up to find Guts in a physical fight with one of them over some completely inconsequential bullshit.

-I have no idea about the tertiary rpg group. Leave them in Falconia maybe.

-EDIT: With Schierke being gone this leaves Griffith in charge of ego-checking the armor, I think?

Obviously there are other ways to go with it, and it's not even like what I personally would do, but I do think it's one of the more believable routes one could take toward that outcome.

It's tough though - even though I'm the first to say Guts would forgive Griffith if even a good reason to, I do think the story itself is s designed to prevent them from actually getting anywhere. And in the end I feel like if they ever reconcile it'll be on one or both of their death beds.

Or... death battlefields. As the case may be.

[inksword]

How do you convince someone to read Worm?

I've never successfully convinced anyone to read word other than a transactional agreement between close family haha. I convinced my sister to read Worm by promising to read another book she'd been trying to get me to read in exchange for her reading the first 8 arcs haha.

I myself got into Worm because I saw it independently cited multiple times in other discussions about media and googled it, so no one specifically convinced me either.

But, between those two things, and how I've seen a few other people mention getting into worm, I think the best thing to do is passionately discuss it openly and people will pick up on its merits and come to a conclusion of whether they want to read it themselves. If the straight forward back of the book-jacket pitch doesn't excite someone, it's going to take a while for them to come around.

If it's someone you know, talking about the things you think they specifically might be interested in is a good way to frame those passionate discussions. If they're someone who reads fic, worm crossovers have captured a lot of people. Worm positions itself explicitly in relation to other superhero media's themes and world building, so it's a less strained way to introduce it than it might be for other works. Show a friend pictures of a character you think they'll like!

However, there are a LOT of things that can turn people off of worm, and you can only do so much. You shouldn't sugarcoat the potentially triggering content and themes. You should be aware that as a work made in the 2011's without a strong editor's hand or eye for biases, that it has some things that haven't aged well, and be aware if the person you're pitching it to might need to be braced for that. You don't need to shove their face in this, but you shouldn't hide these things from them.

Some things you can do to ease the pain of jumping into a million word+ webnovel however are:

Don't ask them to read the whole thing. Arc 8 with leviathan is a place often cited as the point where you will know if you like worm or not. This is where I asked my sister to stop because it was an "even trade" and about the length of a (long) novel. It has a great stopping point with Taylor reaching the conclusion of the will-she-won't-she flirting with villainhood. It's also the first big incident of Wildbow's slowly built worldbuilding "snapping" into place with the endbringers effects bringing the "truce" between heroes and villains suddenly have the proper context. Additionally, if someone can't handle the grimness of the enbringer attack, further reading probably won't reward them with happier moments haha.

If you want to pitch them even shorter, the Travelers interlude arc is a good place to show off Worm's vibes. Just make sure they know these aren't the main characters haha

I've seen Kevin Norton's interlude being listed as one people enjoy as a stand-alone story if you want something even shorter. I'm not sure if it's the one I'd pick, but I'd have to reread interludes to pick one. They're often well contained bits of short story/writing.

To help the above shorter-offerings. Saving them off in a separate space so people don't have to dig out these suggestions in the whole worm archive. People can get intimidated by the sheer size so give them just the bite you want them to taste before letting them know there's more where that came from.

Don't hold spoilers completely back! Or at least confirm that they don't want spoilers before you valiantly try to avoid spoiling GM for them.; Better to read Worm spoiled than not at all! A lot of things that make Worm unique could otherwise be considered spoilers. Worm's reputation of being a praised deconstruction/reconstruction of superhero genre relies on reveals like cauldron, the source of powers, scion, etc. This is why I wasn't worried about offering interludes or later arcs to hook people.

Try to make a good judgement call when trying to convince someone too hard will turn them off. Give it your shot and if it doesn't take, let it cool off for a few months before trying gentler methods haha.

Sorry for the long post. TLDR; Know your audience, offer shorter appetizer version, and spoil them haha.

[mysteriawrites]

Hii! Could I please request a male Genshin Impact match up?

Pronouns: she/her

MBTI: ISFJ

Personality (kind of):

▪︎pretends to be the coldest b*tch on the planet but is actually a softie

▪︎i have hard time making close friends so i get into one relationship at time and stick with them for ages and you better know that i'll move mountains and walk through hell for them

▪︎always ready to help, give an advice or get u out of trouble (after spending 30min screaming at u for how dumb u're and telling u that there's no way i'm getting out of my house rn)

▪︎uses bullying and random punching as love language (but out of the main 5 it's acts of service&quality time both giving and receiving)

▪︎kind of a control freak + can get bossy and rigid at times

▪︎stress cleaner - mopping floor at 2am is a weekly occurrence

▪︎solves math equations when stressed (also most likely at 2am in the morning)

▪︎either talks 24/7 or doesn't show a sign of life for a whole week

Likes/Hobbies:

▪︎writing&reading

▪︎astronomy, stargazing

▪︎sudoku, rummikub, puzzles, history

▪︎cloudy and rainy weather, long walks

▪︎long conversations - the topic doesn't matter, as long as it goes smoothly it can be literally anything. I'm always happy to hear other people's opinions and get to know their view on the world

Ideal type: I need more time for processing to engage and interact and find it extremely hard to read non-verbal social cues so someone patient, who isn't afraid of showing their emotions and communicates openly would be highly appreciated

Thank you so much in advance!♡ Have a great day^^

Hello Hello thank you for the request! Sorry it took so long I've been busy and missing my motivation, but this one was actually pretty easy so thank you this got me out of my semi-idea slump. MAESTRO CUE THE DRUM ROLL IF YOU PLEASE!!!

🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁🥁

CHILDE/TARTAGLIA!!!

Lowkey, I put yall together just because I thought it was funny, but I don't think there is actually a better match then this it just works so well.

So, like you guys are the type of couple that people look at and be wondering: why/how on earth are these two together? And sometimes you ask yourself the same question when you have to put up with Ajax's antics (You use his real name when you're annoyed with him), but deep-down you guys love each other so much.

Had you guys been normal people you two probably wouldn't have given each other the time of day. However, you two aren't normal people. You're both members of the infamous Fatui organization, and you have both been assigned to the same mission in Liyue.

During the mission Childe kept trying to make conversation with you from just casual conversation to playful teasing, and yet you didn't bat an eye. Oh, that just made him want to break you more. You've caught his interest now and he's not one to lose easily (even if it is a one-sided competition).

From then on Childe did everything he possibly could to get your attention. You know how some people say that boys bully you because they like you, well that'd Childe although it's less bullying and more just being an annoying lil shit.

Eventually he realizes that what he feels isn't a desire to win at some competition, but to get your attention. He realizes how deeply he's fallen for you and starts trying to woo you instead. He notices how much you like astronomy and reading, so for your birthday he managed to use his connections to get you a rare out of print astronomy book. After seeing how thoughtful a gift it was, he started to worm his way into your heart.

You guys didn't get together until the incident with the traveler. After the fight and releasing the power of the delusion Childe was in pretty bad shape. He practically collapsed in your arms as you two made your escape. As you nursed him back to health and tended to your own wounds you both realized how terrifying it would be to lose the other. It planted a heavy tension in the air which led you two to talking about your feelings (It may have also helped that you two were a little drunk on pain medication but whatever works works I guess).

From then on you two are an official item, although not much changes dynamic wise. Childe tries to impress you by doing something dumb, you get him out of said dumb thing, scold him for a lifetime while sometimes patching him up if the situation calls for it, all while having a slight smile on your face wondering how you fell in love with such an idiot. You two are also an unbeatable pair in combat.

Dates for you two are quite simple given your hectic work life. Mainly they'll be spent taking long walks through whatever new location you two have been assigned to; exploring the area, seeing the sights, enjoying the food, and finding a high enough point to stargaze when the sun goes down (Childe bought you a new telescope and you scolded him for spoiling him even knowing full well he's still gonna do it anyway).

Childe's family absolutely adores you. Every time you and him go to visit his siblings swarm you and call you big sisters. His parents really appreciate the help, you even do the cooking and cleaning (even though they insisted you didn't have to since you told them it calms you down, they just let you).

Childe will do anything to protect you. Despite how goofy and competitive he can be, if anything ever happened to you this man would see red and stop at nothing till you were safe in his arms again.

Hey hope you like it. That's all I have to say really :p

Runners Up: Thoma, Diluc, and Kaeya

[hunterwritesstuff]

4!!!!!

So like, be ready for an essay because I'm super passionate about this, here we go!!! >:3

When you make a deal, nine times out of ten, it's with an Overlord. Dealing with an Overlord on their own is a pain to deal with, but like, making a deal with one is a whole other can of worms.

Imagine with me.

Let's think of a Demon. For all intents and purposes, his name will be Mark.

In life, Mark was a devout religious man. But one day, Mark died a sinner and appeared at the pearly gates, begging and pleading for God to let him in, that it was all a misunderstanding. The way Mark died was considered a poor way to go out and he was condemned to Hell for eternity.

Mark gets cast down and thrown out. Mark is weak and barely able to fend off any Imps.

Mark begs and pleads and prays for someone, ANYONE to help him.

Then someone does.

We'll call this person "NDO"(Non-descript overlord). He says that he has a way to help Mark, that he can make him powerful enough to defend himself. Mark jumps at the deal. The two shake on it, Mark signs the waiver, and now he's forever indebted to servitude to NDO.

Mark can't escape, Mark can't get out.

Or so you would think.

He CAN get out...if he either works out the complete deal(completes as he's asked to, thus nulling his use to NDO), or he makes another deal.

This doesn't always work. Some Overlords are more powerful than others, so breaking their contracts with another takes a lot of effort, and, in certain drastic cases, requires the other Overlord(original dealmaker) to sign off on the new one.

This can be good, if you made a deal with, say...Rosie, or Zestial, as they seem to be Overlords who treat their pact-keepers with respect(more than others, anyways.).

It can however, be incredibly horrible, if you made a deal with any of the Vees. Vox is more of the manipulative type, telling you that you "won't have any real use outside of me". Velvet is more willing to break you down until you submit to staying with her deal.

Val? You aren't getting out of that deal alive or unscathed. If you try leaving, he'll go to whatever lengths it takes to KEEP YOU. And if you aren't willing to listen to "ReAsOn", he'll just take you out. If you won't work for him, you won't fucking work at all.

Val is a fucking DANGEROUS GAME to play when choosing(if you want to make a deal with an Overlord)which Overlord to make a deal with, because he's one of the few who, once he has you, won't let go.

If you make a deal with Rosie or Zestial, you get pretty much free protection, free tea parties, gossip, free fancy dress(in Rosie's case), and just a good time all around(compared to everyone else).

Still trying to decide if it works with Angels too, but that's for another day, when I've worked out if it does work with them or not. If it does, depending on who you choose, it could either be absolutely wonderful and you just spend time reading books together, or you get worked to the bone, endless demands for intel on how Hell's doing after exterminations, and a shitload of buttdials.

Hopefully this word vomit made some lick of sense, ha ha!

[nakachuchu]

Love is in the Air or Not | Kuroo Tetsuro + Yaku Morisuke

SYNOPSIS: Harry Potter AU - Two boys are pining for you.

READER: female

WORDS: 2093

WRITTEN: 03/17/2021

NOTES: I rewrote this a lot of times and I read it so many times that I started hating it, so I'm not sure if anyone will actually enjoy it but I spent too much time on it.

You were one of the rare girls who didn't give into Kuroo. He was known at Hogwarts for being a player and being absolutely wicked at sex. It was why girls always crawled to him—but not you.

He wanted to know why it was so easy for you to resist his charms. He thought he was quite attractive, and for you to not agree was an insult.

Kuroo approached you while you were talking to a friend. You slowly turned around and looked up at the tall man as your friend shuffled away.

He grinned at you. "Go out with me."

You laughed with a smile as you reached up to fix his tie. "You're crazy."

The corner of his mouth twitched. "Is that a no?"

"It's a big no."

"Why not? I'm a catch," he said.

"Because it's obvious you just want to fuck me," you retorted.

"Aren't you even a bit curious?" he asked.

"No, but I am hungry," you said as you walked away from him to grab a muffin.

You didn't care for relationships or boys, so Kuroo was a no-go for you. You cared more about your friends and getting good grades.

The next day, Kuroo approached you once more in the common room. It was times like this where you wished you were sorted into a different House.

"Go out with me?" Kuroo asked with a flower bouquet in his hand.

The flowers looked as if he pulled them out of the dirt from the courtyard, and you wouldn't be surprised if he did.

You shook your head. "I'm not taking these."

Kuroo's arm swung back to his side. "Why not? Girls like flowers."

You fought back the urge to snatch those flowers and smack him on the head with it. "Not all girls like flowers and not all of them want to have sex with you," you retorted.

You left the common room without taking the flowers. Yaku walked in the room with a muffin in his hand and a book wedged in his armpit.

"Feels bad, doesn't it?" Yaku asked.

Kuroo's eye twitched. "Mouthy already, huh?"

"You tell me."

"Smartass," Kuroo commented with a snort.

"I don't know. Why don't you ask my ass? Here, it's been really calm today."

Yaku turned around and stuck his butt out. Kuroo rolled his eyes and shoved his back before smacking him with the flowers. Yaku turned back and whacked him in the face with his book.

"Dick," Kuroo muttered.

"Asshole," Yaku retorted. "Did you ever stop to think that maybe Y/N doesn't like you?"

"Every girl likes me. They just want to be fucked."

Yaku rolled his eyes. "I'm going to the library. You're annoying the fuck out of me."

"Please do, midget."

Yaku ignored him and walked toward the library with his school bag. He didn't expect to see you there, standing by a bookcase though. He approached you hesitantly and you smiled faintly once you saw him.

"Hey, Yaku," you greeted.

"Hey, Y/N. How's your day so far?" he asked.

"Kuroo hasn't stopped bothering me. It's a miracle he's not here right now. You didn't shrink him and hide him in your robes, did you?"

Yaku smiled as he stuck his hand in his robes and patted his body.

"I don't think he's in there, but if he is, then I probably squished him by then."

You chuckled. "With that ego of his, there's no way we'll be able to shrink him."

He snorted. "You can say that again. I could power a whole town with that ego."

"Try the whole world," you retorted.

The two of you paused before bursting out in laughter. Students nearby curiously looked at you and the librarian shushed you. The two of you zipped your mouths and did your best to not laugh.

You never failed to make him laugh. It was why he liked spending time with you.

The two of you met in your first year and it wasn't difficult to become friends with him. He was a bit shy at first, but eventually came out of his shell when you started smiling and telling jokes to him during class.

"What are you studying for?" you asked.

"Charms," he answered. "You?"

"Potions."

Yaku nodded. "My best subject is Potions."

"And my best subject is Charms," you replied.

"Wanna be study partners?" he asked as he nervously scratched the back of his neck.

"It would be an honor."

The librarian shushed you again.

The two of you looked at each other before forcing down your laughter.

You enjoyed spending time with Yaku. He was humble, smart, and had a wicked sense of humor.

"Y/N, another Outstanding for you!" the professor said as he passed back your test.

You smiled gratefully. Charms always came naturally to you.

"Kuroo, Poor. Was this lesson too difficult for you? You usually do so well."

"Ah, well, I've been a bit under the weather. Maybe Y/N could tutor me since she's so smart," said Kuroo lazily.

"That sounds wonderful!" the professor exclaimed.

You froze and dropped the book you were holding onto the desk. "Please repeat that, Professor. I'm afraid my hearing is a bit wonky these days."

"You should tutor Kuroo!" he repeated. "Lunch is about to start, so everyone may leave. Y/N, I expect you to help Kuroo raise his grades."

You and Kuroo left the room, side-by-side.

"There's no way you purposely failed that test to get me to tutor you, did you?" you asked.

"Who knows?" he questioned with a smirk.

Truth was, he did fail on purpose to get time with you. But it wasn't because he had a crush on you.

He didn't do crushes. It was difficult for him to get attached to someone because no one was worth his time.

"Your technique is all wrong," you critiqued. "Why do you move your arm around like a dead worm?"

After class, you immediately dragged him to a corner of the library to coach him.

Kuroo rolled his eyes. "You're meaner than you look," he said. "Everyone thinks you're this saint, but you're really not."

You raised an eyebrow. "I think I'm pretty nice."

"If you're nice, then go out with me," he countered.

"I'm not that nice."

"Are you sure? I'm pretty cute," he said.

"That's a good joke," you retorted.

He rolled his eyes. "Okay, but I actually do have a good joke. Why did the ketchup blush?"

"I don't know. I don't like ketchup."

"He saw the salad dressing."

You blinked. "That's...horrible. Are you a dad? You're making dad jokes!"

"Hey, they're good! Look, look, I have another one, okay? What's the difference between a G-spot and a golf ball? A man will actually search for a golf ball."

You snorted. "Okay, that's actually—" You started laughing. "That's actually pretty funny."

Kuroo never noticed how cute your laugh and snort was. He liked it when you loosened up around him, so he continued to tell bad jokes.

"Stop making me laugh!" you scolded. "I'm supposed to be tutoring you!"

Kuroo laughed in return. "Think of this as a break!"

"We've had a ten-minute break with me laughing and you telling jokes!"

Other students in the library were starting to get annoyed with the two. At first, they were intrigued by you spending time with Kuroo, but they started to get annoyed with how loud you were.

"There's nothing wrong with that," Kuroo responded.

"Maybe. Unless you're actually failing Charms."

"I'm not. I'm actually smart, you know."

You hummed. "No, I don't think I know."

"Will you go out with me?" he asked again.

It was so sudden, that you didn't know what to say. And when you looked at how serious he was, you nearly agreed.

But you had never dated someone before, and Kuroo was known for being a player.

"No," you said softly. "But for good reason. Maybe you should ask out someone else? Like you said, you're a catch."

He nodded. His mouth felt a bit dry and there was a bad taste in his mouth. He felt a bit uncomfortable but understood what you meant.

The two of you met in your first year, but you only knew him through Yaku. Their families knew each other, so they grew up together.

You and Kuroo weren't close to each other, but if you were around Yaku, Kuroo would normally appear to tease him.

Along the way, he got intrigued by how you never gave him the time of day.

The Winter Ball was coming up. Students were asking each other out left and a right. Everywhere you turned, a student would be asking another student to attend the ball with them.

"Are you going to ask anyone to the ball, Yaku?" you asked as you sat down next to him in the library.

He suddenly seemed frigid. "No!" he exclaimed.

"Shh!" the librarian angrily shushed.

"You seem very eager about that. It's all right. You don't have to tell me anything."

He fidgeted with the ends of his robes. "Y/N, do you want to go to the ball with me?"

Yaku liked you. It wasn't hard to tell, and while you could picture a relationship with him, you weren't ready for one.

You froze, the book in your hand balancing on the spine. "I wasn't planning on going to the dance. I don't like loud, crowded places," you explained. "Sorry. It's definitely not you. Um—let's just study, okay?"

He felt dejected, but it was better than you rejecting him for another person. He nodded and opened his book.

Kuroo looked up from the couch in the common room once he heard the door open. You casually walked in, waving to others with a book wedged into your armpit.

He got up from the couch and walked over to you. You paused as he stood in front of you with his signature smirk.

"Do you want to go to the Winter Ball with me?" he asked.

"Yaku didn't put you up to this, right?" you asked.

"No. Did he do something?"

"He asked me to the dance, like, an hour ago. I'm going to tell you what I told him. I'm not planning on going," you said. "Dances aren't my thing. I'll just be in the common room."

You turned around and headed up to your dorm.

Dances weren't Kuroo's scene, either, but he asked because he wanted to get to know you better. But, he didn't mind the idea of spending time with you alone while the others were at a dance.

Kuroo left the common room to find Yaku to get some answers. Because Kuroo wasn't stupid—regardless of how people thought—he knew Yaku would be in the library.

"Do you like Y/N?" Kuroo asked as he approached him.

Yaku nodded, looking up from his seated position. "Yeah, I do. Do you?"

Kuroo scoffed. "I don't know. She's pretty cool though."

"Who knows? Maybe she'll actually end up liking you—when pigs fly," Yaku added.

Kuroo scoffed. "She'd definitely pick me."

The boys stared each other down silently.

On the day of the dance, you were left alone in the common room. The fire was going and you had a book on your lap.

It was quiet and peaceful, and you liked it. Until two bumbling idiots ran down the stairs while arguing with each other.

You looked up from your book. "Really, boys? You couldn't have gone to the dance like the others?"

"Well, the girl we asked didn't want to go," Kuroo retorted as he jumped over the couch and sat next to you.

Yaku quietly sat on your other side. You closed your book and placed it on the table in front of you.

"Fair point," you said as you waved your wand to turn on the radio.

You leaned your head back and closed your eyes.

"What are you doing?" Yaku asked.

"Taking a nap. We're not going anywhere," you retorted.

The two boys looked at each other as you drifted off to sleep. You didn't mind their company as long as neither of them bothered you—mainly Kuroo.

"She'll never date you," Yaku said.

"How do you know that? I'm a catch. I bet she'll date me."

"I doubt that. I have a better chance than you," Yaku retorted.

Kuroo rolled his eyes. "A midget like you would never win."

The two began to quietly bicker with each other. They were rivals, after all, and this was only the beginning.

[bellarosethefangirl]

Hello!! :) If possible, could I get a jjba matchup? Parts 1-3, villains are fine ^^

I'm a 19 y.o transmasc, I'm also mlm and polyam! I use they/he pronouns.

As for my personality, I'd say I'm definitely more on the reserved side. I tend to stay more focused on work than actual social interaction, which has led to a few worried calls from friends in the past. I try to stay positive and make other people happy, leading into me being a huge people pleaser and pushover. I'd say that I'm an affectionate person, my main love languages are acts of service and words of affirmation.

I'm at a bit of a stand still in life, as I'm not too sure what I want to do in the future. Currently, I've been focusing on my music and other arts. I do also cosplay, and used to be a fashion student, but my disabilities stopped me from fully pursuing. I am physically disabled and I have my fair share of diagnosed mental illnesses.

For a few likes and dislikes; I really enjoy snow and winter. I like the cold. I'm also a fan of more primary colors, my wardrobe is filled with more vibrant clothing than you'd think! On the other hand, Im not a big fan of the warmer seasons. Or rain. I don't like getting wet. I'm also not a big fan of the beach.

Physically, I'm 5' and plus sized. I'm more on the fair side. My hair is short and dyed, though it's fading pretty bad right now. It used to be pink :( I use a mobility aid and wear glasses (they're heart shaped !! so funky). I'm a Libra, INFP, and a 2w1 engram.

I have siblings! I have 3 of them, all older than me. My sister's are really close with me, for a long time I lived with both of them. I'm more distant with my brother, but we do have a mutual like of each other. My other familial relationships aren't the best, but that's a whole different can of worms.

My ideal date would be somewhere quiet. Somewhere that we could be free of judgemental stares and the gaze of the public. Just the two of us would be nice, yk?

Regarding stands, I'd be interested! I probably wouldn't bring it up into passive conversation, or mention it if I were to see the stand in action. I think the stand would be something I'd be nervous to interact with for a while, depending on which it is I might be a bit /too/ nervous to ever interact with it. Either way, I'd accept my s/o if they had a stand or not!

I'm sorry if this is too long, or too little !! Thank you if you decide to do this :)) Have a good day/night!!

Anime Matchups 💘

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure

Jjba matchup you got it! I very much appreciate your consideration. I hope you have a good day too. Thanks very much for your patience. Had a lot going on but I’m back to writing again.

Robert E. O. Speedwagon

Speedwagon will admire your kindness. He knows you’ve got a good heart and would like to be the one to make sure it isn’t taken for granted. He will be such a great partner and would be understanding of you.

He will enjoy your reserved nature. Speedwagon is adoring in that he admires a person for who they are as an individual. He can see your positivity and selfless desire to bring joy to others shows a nice personality he’ll like to cherish.

He won’t let others take advantage of you. He thinks you have a kindness that should be expressed to those deserving of it. He’ll be very protective of you.

He can respect good work ethic but will know when you’ve overworked yourself. He’ll be sure this doesn’t happen since he’ll also express concern for your wellbeing.

He will respect your pronouns and make sure others also respect them.

Acts of service and words of affirmation don’t go unappreciated. Speedwagon does all he can to return this love language.

He’ll support your love for music and arts. He understands not everyone knows exactly what they want to do in life. He won’t be judgemental seeing as the lifestyle he lives.

You having a physical disability will be most unfortunate he’ll be helpful but won’t be overbearing to you since he wants to treat you like a person.

He’s a comforting person and has a way with words so he’ll be there for you at all times.

If you bring up being a fashion student and how you cosplay he’ll like to hear all about it. Even though you’re no longer a fashion student he will want to hear about it simply because he’d like to know all he can about you.

He’ll keep in mind you adore cold weather and like primary colors for your wardrobe. He’d like to buy you clothing in those colors. He would like to take you out in the cold for a nice snowy or winter date.

He won’t care you’re plus sized and he’ll think your height is cute, not that he’d say it out loud. He won’t care your hair is fading and would offer to buy you hair dye. He thinks heart shaped glasses are cute and would compliment them. He will help you with your mobility aid if you don’t mind it.

He will want to make a good impression on your siblings especially your sisters. He understands not all families have the best relationships.

Considering the era speedwagon is from he’d agree a private setting is more suitable for dates. He will tell you as long as you’re both together he doesn’t care where the dates are located. He will want to be more romantic though.

You‘re both Libra’s. This means you’re both pretty compatible. Libra’s are very good for each other in relationships. You two will have same values, true romance, and get along very well.

You and Speedwagon would have a bff relationship and would be incredibly close. The dynamic is both loving and so incredibly understanding of each other. Think of it as “partners in crime”. You two take care of one another and get along so well. The level of understanding and communication is excellent which is why this works out so well. A great matchup if I’ve ever seen one.

[thewidowsghost]

The Daughter of the Sea - Chapter 7

(Y/n)'s  POV

The next few days I settle into a routine that feels almost normal if you don't count the fact that I am getting lessons from satyrs, nymphs, and a centaur.

Each morning I take Ancient Greek with Annabeth, and we talk about the gods and goddesses in the present tense, which is kind of weird. I discover that Annabeth is right about my dyslexia: Ancient Greek isn't hard for me to read. At least, no harder than English. After a few mornings, I can read a few lines of Homer without too much headache.

The rest of the day, I'd rotate through outdoor activities, looking for something Percy and I are good at. Chiron tries to teach Percy archery, but the three of us find out pretty quickly that he isn't any good with a bow and arrow, but I find that I was pretty okay at it.

The only thing Percy and I excelled at is canoeing, and that isn't the kind of heroic skill people expect to see from the kids who had beaten the Minotaur.

I know the senior counselors are watching the two of us, trying to decide who our dad is, but they aren't having an easy time of it. Percy and I aren't as strong as the Ares kids, or as good at archery as the Apollo kids. I don't have Hepheastus's skill with metalwork or - gods forbid - Dionysus's with vine plants. Luke tells me and Percy one night that we might be children of Hermes, a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. But I get the feeling that he is just trying to make us feel better. He didn't know what to make of us either.

One day, I am out by the canoe lake, just sitting on the dock, when I look over my shoulder to see Annabeth walking down the dock. She silently sits down beside me.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Annabeth wonders and I gather my thoughts before speaking.

"What if I'm not good at anything? What happens if I never get claimed?" I look over, my sea-green eyes meeting Annabeth's stormy-gray eyes.

Annabeth's gaze is slightly sympathetic and when she answers, her response doesn't really make me feel better. "You'd stay in the Hermes cabin."

I nod before gazing down the calm water of the lake again.

. . .

Thursday afternoon, three days after I'd arrived at Camp Half-Blood, I have my first sword-fighting lesson. Everyone from Cabin Eleven gathers in the big circular arena, where Luke would be our instructor.

We start with basic stabbing and slashing, using some straw-stuffed dummies in Greek armor.

I can't feel a blade that feels right in my hands. Either they are too heavy, or too light, or too long. Luke tries his best to fix me up, but he agrees that none of the practice blades seem to work for me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Annabeth and Chiron standing at the entrance of the arena.

We move to duel in pairs and Luke announces that he would be my partner, and Percy would have an older camper since it's our first time.

"Good luck," one of the campers tells me. "Luke's the best swordsman in the last three hundred years."

I face Luke, an uneasy expression on my face and he shoots me a reassuring smile.

3rd Person POV

Annabeth and Chiron watch (Y/n) and Luke's demonstration, and even Chiron is slightly interested as he watches (Y/n).

Luke thrusts his sword forward and (Y/n) instinctively sidesteps, and Luke, expecting to hit (Y/n)'s shield, stumbles forward.

Luke's eyes narrow and he presses her with more force.

(Y/n) steps forward and tries a thrust of her own and Luke deflects it easily.

The two's blades clash over and over again for a minute or so when the sword in (Y/n)'s hand grows heavy; the balance not quite right.

She tries the disarming maneuver that Luke had been talking about earlier.

(Y/n)'s blade hits the base of Luke's and she twists, putting her whole weight into a downward thrust.

Clang!

Luke's sword rattles against the stone; (Y/n)'s blade is an inch from his undefended chest.

The other campers are silent.

(Y/n) lowers her sword. "Sorry," she says sheepishly.

For a moment, Luke is too stunned to speak.

"Sorry?" his scarred face breaks into a grin. "By the gods, (Y/n), why are you sorry? Show me that again!"

This time, there is only a little bit of sparring before Luke hits the hilt of (Y/n)'s sword and sends it skidding across the floor.

After a long pause, someone in the audience says, "Beginner's luck?"

Luke wipes the sweat off his brow, appraising (Y/n) with an entirely new interest. "Maybe," he says. "But I wonder what (Y/n) could do with a balanced sword. . ."

. . .

Friday night, after dinner, there is a lot more excitement than usual.

At last, it's time for capture the flag.

When the plates are cleared away, the conch horn sounds, and all the campers stand at their tables.

Campers yell and cheer as Annabeth and two of her siblings run into the pavilion carrying a silk banner. It is about ten feet long, glistening gray, with a painting of a barn owl above an olive tree. From the opposite side of the pavilion, Clarisse and her buddies run in with another banner, of identical size, but gaudy red, painted with a blood spear and a boar's head.

Percy turns to Luke and yells over the noise, "Those are the flags?"

"Yeah."

"Ares and Athena always lead the teams?" (Y/n) asks curiously.

"Not always," he answers. "But often."

"So, if another cabin captures one, what do you do - repaint the flag?" Percy asks.

He grins. "You'll see. First, we have to get one."

Luke fives Percy a sly look, as if he knows something the other two don't. The scar on his face makes Luke look almost evil in the torchlight. "We've made a temporary alliance with Athena. Tonight, we get the flag from Ares. And you are going to help."

The teams are announced. Athena had allied with Apollo and Hermes, the two biggest cabins. Privileges had been traded —shower times, chore schedules, the best slots for activities—to win support.

Ares had allied themselves with everybody else: Dionysus, Demeter, Aphrodite, and Hephaestus. From what Percy'd seen, Dionysus's kids were good athletes, but there were only two of them. Demeter's kids had the edge with nature skills and outdoor stuff, but they weren't very aggressive. Aphrodite's sons and daughters he wasn't too worried about. They mostly sat out every activity and checked their reflections in the lake and did their hair and gossiped. Hephaestus's kids weren't pretty, and there were only four of them, but they were big and burly from working in the metal shop all day. They might be a problem. That, of course, left Ares's cabin: a dozen of the biggest, ugliest, meanest kids on Long Island, or anywhere else on the planet.

Chiron hammers his hoof on the marble.

"Heroes!" he announces. "You all know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!"

He spreads his hand and the tables are suddenly coated in metal equipment: helmets, bronze swords, speaks, oxhide shields covered in metal.

"Whoa!" Percy says. "We're supposed to use these?"

Luke looks at him as if he's crazy. "Unless you want to get skewered by your friends in cabin five. Here — Chiron thought these would fit. You'll be on border patrol, (Y/n), you're with me, I want to see what you can do with that sword."

Luke hands (Y/n) a circular shield and she straps it onto her arm. She tests the weight of the shield and is satisfied with the fact that it's not too light or too heavy.

Annabeth yells, "Blue Team, forward!"

The Blue Team cheers and shakes their swords and follows her down the path to the south side of the woods. The Red Team yells taunts at them as they head off to the north.

Percy manages to catch up to Annabeth, (Y/n) at his heels, without Percy tripping over his heavy equipment.

"Hey," Percy says; Annabeth keeps marching. "So what's the plan?" he asks. "Got any magic items you can loan me?"

Annabeth's hand drifts towards her pocket, as if afraid he'd taken something.

"Just watch Clarisse's spear," she tells Percy. "You don't want that thing touching you. Otherwise, don't worry. We'll take the banner from Ares. (Y/n), come with me."

With a blink, the two girls had ran forward, leaving Percy in the dust. . . .

Once they're in positions, a conch horn blows, and (Y/n), who Annabeth had left with Luke, sneaks forward.

She moves forward a few yards and instinctively raises her shield against an Ares camper. (Y/n) thrusts her sword and the Ares camper sidesteps. Changing her momentum, (Y/n) does a spin, hitting the Ares camper in the stomach with her shield; the camper falls to the ground.

Feeling more confident in herself, (Y/n) slinks into the shadows, her shield and sword low as not to glow from any lights nearby.

(Y/n) makes it across the boundary into enemy territory and sneaks forward a few more yards until she hears Clarisse's voice, "Give him a haircut. Grab his hair."

(Y/n) changes direction, breaking into a run and then bursting from the line of trees.

The five Ares campers turn on her and three advance, Clarisse and another continuing to beat on Percy.

(Y/n) swings the flat of her sword and hits the first guy's head and he crumples to the ground.

Two other guys come at her and she slams her shield into one's face and uses her sword to shave off the horsehair plume on his helmet.

(Y/n) steps into the water and pulls her twin to his feet, feeling as though she'd eaten some of her mother's double espresso beans.

Clarisse and the fourth guy advance and the guy swing his sword, catching (Y/n)'s shield arm and leaving a huge cut, from her wrist to elbow.

Percy catches Clarisse's electric spear with the edge of his shield and sword and snaps it like a twig.

"Ah!" she yells. "You idiot! You corpse-breath worm!"

She probably would've said worse, but Percy smacks her between the eyes with his sword-but and sends her stumbling backward out of the creek.

Then the twins hear yelling, elated screams, and see Luke raising towards the boundary line with the red team's banner lifted high. He is flanked by a couple of Hermes guys covering his retreat, and a few Apollos behind them, fighting off the Hephaestus kids. The Ares folks get up and Clarisse mutters a dazed curse.

"A trick!" Clarisse screams. "It was a trick."

The Ares kids stagger after Luke, but it's too late. Everyone converges on the creek as Luke runs across into friendly territory. The Blue team explodes into cheers and the red banner shimmers and turns to silver. The boar and spear are replaced with a huge caduceus, the symbol of Cabin Eleven. Everyone on the Blue Team picks up Luke and starts carrying him around on their shoulders. Chiron canters out from the woods and blows the conch horn.

(Y/n)'s POV

The game was over. We'd won.

Percy and I are about to join the celebration when Annabeth's voice, right next to me in the creek, says, "Not bad, hero."

I look, an eyebrow quirked, but Annabeth isn't there.

"Where the heck did you learn to fight like that?" Annabeth asks. The air shimmers, and she materialized, holding a Yankees baseball cap as if she'd just taken it off her head.

"You set me up," Percy says, looking slightly angry. "You put me here because you knew Clarisse would come after me, while you sent Luke around the flank. You had it all figured out."

Annabeth shrugs, "I told you. Athena always, always has a plan."

"A plan to get my pulverized," Percy retorts.

"I came as fast as I could. I was about to step in . . ." she shrugs. "You didn't need help."

Then she notices my wounded arm. "How did you do that?"

"It's a sword cut," I respond. "Where do you think it came from?"

"No. It was a sword cut," Annabeth says. "Look at it."

I look down. The blood is gone; where the huge cut had been, there is a long white scratch, and even that is fading. As I watch, it turns into a small scar and disappears.

"I - I don't get it," I stutter.

Annabeth is thinking hard. I can almost see the gears turning. She looks down at my feet, then at Clarisse's broken spear, and says, "Step out of the water, (Y/n)."

"What -" I question.

"Just do it."

I step out of the creek and immediately feel bone tired. I almost fall over but Annabeth steadies me.

"Oh, Styx," she curses. "This is not god. I didn't want . . . I assumed it would be Zeus . . ."

Before I can ask what she means, I hear a canine grows.

A howl rips through the forest.

The campers' cheering dies instantly. Chiron shots something in Ancient Greek, "Stand ready! My bow!"

Annabeth draws her sword.

There on the rocks, just above us is a black hound the size of a rhino, with lava-red eyes and fangs like daggers.

And it's looking right at me.

Nobody moves except Annabeth, who yells, "(Y/n), run!"

She tries to step in front of me, but the hound is too fast. It leaps over her - an enormous shadow with teeth - and just as it hits me, as I stumble backward and feel its razor-sharp claws ripping through my armor.

There is a cascade of thwacking sounds, like forty pieces of paper being ripped one after another; from the hound's sprouts a cluster of arrows.

The monster falls dead at my feet.

By some miracle, I am alive. I don't want to look underneath the ruins of my shredded armor and sway a little. My chest feels warm and wet, and I know I am badly cut. Another second and the monster would've turned me into a hundred pounds of deli meat.

Chiron trots up next to us, a bow in his hand, his face grim.

"Di immortales!" Annabeth says softly. "That's a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment. They don't...they're not supposed to..."

"Someone summoned it," Chiron murmurs. "Someone inside the camp."

Luke comes over, the banner in his hand forgotten, his moment of glory gone.

Clarisse yells, "It's all Percy's fault! Percy summons it!"

"Be quiet, child," Chiron tells her.

We watch the body of the hellhound melts into the shadow, soaking into the ground as it disappears.

"You're wounded," Annabeth tells me. "Quick, (Y/n), get in the water."

I'm too tired to argue and I step back into the creek, the whole camp gathering around me.

Instantly, I fell better; I fell the cuts on my chest closing up.

Some of the campers gasp.

"Look, I - I don't know why," I say, trying to apologize. "I'm sorry . . ."

But they aren't watching my wounds heal, they're staring up at something above mine and Percy's heads.

"(Y/n), Percy," Annabeth says, pointing. "Um . . ."

By the time I look up, the sign is already fading, but I can still make out the hologram of green light, spinning and gleaming.

A three-tipped spear: a trident.

"Your father," Annabeth murmurs. "This is really not good."

All around me, campers start kneeling, even Ares cabin, though they don't look happy about it.

"Our father?" Percy asks, looking completely bewildered.

"Poseidon," says Chiron. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus and (Y/n) Jackson, Son, and Daughter of the Sea God."

Word Count: 2641 words

[rocksandrobots]

Of Rocks and Robots Ch. 21 - Fishing Trip

"So what do you wanna do this weekend?" Hiro asked Varian.

The other boy only shrugged his shoulders as he had no idea.

It was Friday and they were both walking home from school while trying to make plans for the weekend. All of their other friends were either away or busy due to Father's Day coming up. Fred was going to accompany his dad on a mission. Gogo was driving down to her father's for a few days. Wasabi had bought plane tickets to fly back to his hometown of Seattle. Karmi went back upstate for the weekend with her parents, and Megan was still grounded, but had a full day planned to butter up her dad. Even Honey Lemon was going home to spend time with her abuelo.

This left Varian feeling a little awkward. In Corona they had a Guardians Day, which was meant for both parents or caretakers in general, but for Varian it was always a day for just him and his dad to spend time together. One of the few times in the year when his father wouldn't work in the field, or go to market, or have business at court.

Varian knew precisely what a day like Father's Day meant and how special time spent with the man who raised you could be. He envied his friends, but mostly, knowing this would be the second year without his dad pained him.

In a way, he was thankful that Hiro shared his delima. Though he certainly wouldn't have wished his predicament upon anyone, it was still somewhat comforting to know that he wasn't alone.

They were a less than a block away from the Lucky Cat, still discussing things to do, when a sleek car pulled to a stop beside them. The window rolled down to reveal a man with blonde hair, a large nose, and a wide smile. He was wearing a plaid shirt and a tan floppy hat.

"Hey Hiro! Go grab your overnight bag and some sunscreen!" He joyously ordered. "Your new brother, cousin, thingy too. We're going fishing!"

Varian could only look on confused, he didn't know this man nor why he wanted to him and Hiro to go on a fishing trip with him. However, Hiro apparently did know him and was also apparently not onboard with this idea at all. He stood with his mouth a gape with a look of horror in his eyes.

After processing this terrible news, Hiro could only sputter out, "But.. but why?"

The man in the vehicle began to offhandedly list his reasons. "Because fishing by oneself isn't any fun unless there's someone else around to show off to. Because I had an awful childhood, whose own father would never take fishing, and now I'm living vicariously through you. Also, you're still my intern and for the rest of the year, I still own you."

The man flashed another wide grin and Varian began to put the pieces together. This must be Krei. Owner of Krei Tech, the man in charge of the portals that brought him here, and also Hiro's boss. Though, this new revelation did nothing to stem the confusion in his mind. He couldn't for life of him see why he was being invited along on the trip nor did he understand Hiro's objections.

"But...but...b, but…" Hiro suttered desperately trying to think of way out of going.

"No buts! I've already talk with your aunt and got her permission, reserved the campsite, and I even bought you both fishing poles!" Still grinning, he reached down beside him and lifted the new poles up for Hiro and Varian to see.

Hiro let out a wordless half groan, half whine in defeat, before turning around and slumping towards the cafe. Varian blinked and looked back and forth between the two of them unsure what to do. Krei waved to him cheerfully, clearly excited for the upcoming trip, and Varian numbly waved back before deciding to follow Hiro and pack his own bag.

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

Varian found himself enjoying the fishing trip more than he had expected. The first day was spent mainly getting there and setting up the campsite. The second day was spent fishing, exploring, and just taking in the scenery.

Varian had been allowed to bring Ruddiger along, as Hiro had also brought Baymax. His pet was overjoyed to be back in his natural environment and Varian had to admit that he felt more at home here in the great outdoors than in the crowded streets of San Fansokyo. The big city was fascinating but he'd always be a simple farm boy at heart.

Krei felt much the same way. The businessman hadn't been raised in the countryside the way Varian had, but he had a great love of camping, fishing, and being out in nature. His passion stemmed from childhood summers spent on vacation at something called 'summer camp'.

Varian found he got along with older man well. They spent the ride up chatting about science and it's more practical applications, spent the trip sharing wilderness tips, and fishing out in Krei's boat. Fishing had never been Varian's favorite activity, but he now found a new sense of nostalgia for it and the praise Krei would send his way whenever he caught one helped to fuel his enjoyment of the sport even more. Plus he got a chance to show off his cooking skills after they had cleaned their catch. Not the most pleasant task ever, but Varian could stomach it much better than butchering other kinds of meat.

Hiro however did not enjoy fishing, or camping, or anything to do with the outdoors really. The other teen mostly sulked the whole trip. When he wasn't busy gagging at the worms used for bait or getting scared by the unfamiliar sounds of the local wildlife that is. Mainly he stuck close to Baymax and the tent, bored out his mind and annoyed he had been forced to come long. Varian's enthusiasm only aggravated him further and, if he was being honest with himself, he was a little jealous by how easy things came to the other boy. He'd spent half a year trying to get on Krei's good side and impress him, while Varian had managed it in mere minutes of meeting the CEO.

The only time Hiro came out of his grumpy shell was at night, when they built a campfire and roasted marshmallows. Varian had never had smores before, but they were tasty, if also sticky and a little too sweet. Ruddiger however went nuts over the fluffy sweets and had to be kept from stealing the whole bag of them. Hiro didn't really care one way or the other about the traditional treat, but was more than eager to share ghost stories with the rest of the group. Gleefully recalling with gory detail about the spirit of an ax murderer who apparently stalked the woods. Perhaps it was a little vindictive of him, to try his best and scare the other teen, but Hiro couldn't help filling a little thrill whenever Varian gave a little jump or clutched his pet raccoon even tighter in comfort.

Keri was only amused by the story. He'd heard similar ones growing up at camp. He laughed at the end of Hiro's tale.

"Ha! Kids are still telling that one? Let me tell you a real horror story."

It was about tax audits.

Both boys could only shrug at each other.

"I do not understand the purpose of a 'ghost story'." Baymax observed.

"It's suppose to be for fun." Hiro informed him.

"I see; an adrenaline rush within a safe and controlled environment can be considered a pleasant feeling for some people. However I do not understand how taxes figure into that."

"Uuuuh, neither do we." Hiro admitted, "but I guess fear is subjective. Do you have any stories to share, Varian?"

Varian had to rack his brain on that one. His own life was more of a horror story then most ghost tales he knew, but he didn't want to devel into that. Instead he told a folk legend that his dad had once told him. It had been an old story from his home country; a parable about a rich man who was so greedy that he hoarded a well from the poor townspeople during a drought. Forcing them to pay him tribute lest they die of thirst, but he made the mistake of refusing water to a witch and so was cursed to become a vampire. To spend an eternity in thirst himself and to be forever alone, because he could no longer get close to other people without risking harm to them.

"And so a leader must care for his people, son," he remembered his father instructing him at the end of the tale, "He must share and give back to the community. He who sacrifices love for his fellow man in exchanged for selfish possessions, forfeits his right to live among mankind and to even be called a 'man' himself."

If only his father's words had been true. If real life had been as simple as stories, then Corona would have sided with him and not the evil king who kept the wondrous healing flower hidden away and who turned his back upon people need. But Varian conveniently left out this more personal anecdote.

"Wow." Hiro said flatly. "That's deep."

He wasn't used to horror stories having explicit morals attached to them and didn't know how else to respond. The tale hadn't been scary so much as eerie with an unnerving ending. Unlike his serial killer story, it wasn't anything you could be afraid of happening to you, yet questioning your place in the world was somehow more off putting than simple dismemberment.

The mood was broken however, by Ruddiger stealing Hiro's marshmallow off his roasting stick. It turned out to be last one as Krei had spent the majority of Varian's story battling the gluttonous raccoon over their food stores.

"I know racoons aren't 'mankind', but does this mean he's doomed to be a marshmallow vampire now?" Hiro joked as Varian got onto his pet.

"I don't know. Your robot looks like a walking marshmallow though." Varian shot back good naturedly.

Now out of food, save for leftover fish, they all decided to tuck in for the night.

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

Hiro hated the woods. He hated how unfamiliar everything was, how inconvenient it was, and most of all he hated how gross it was. He woke up irritated and sore from sleeping on the thin sleeping bag inside the tent. He couldn't find anything decent to eat for breakfast. He never stopped grumbling while he was forced to use the bathroom outside. To make an awful morning even worst, he couldn't shake the feeling of being stalked as strange animals hooted and howled. One bush in particular shook right when he pasted it. He nearly jumped out of skin when Ruddiger pop out of it holding the last of the fish in its mouth.

He groaned as he watched the raccoon scurry away and climb up a tree a little ways off from the campsite. He didn't much care for the creature, or for wild animals in general, but he knew how important the pet was to Varian and so had tried to be polite about having it around. Still Hiro's patience was wearing thin. The walking bottomless pit had eaten practically everything in the camp.

Hiro reluctantly followed after, debating if it was worth trying to get the fish back. Probably not, he didn't even like the taste of fish all that much to begin with. He stopped in surprise when an apple core fell from tree and nearly hit him. He looked up and found Varian sitting in one of the top branches, raccoon by his side, and reaching up to pick another apple off the tree.

The other teen paused when he saw Hiro. "Hey! Morning! You wanna an apple for breakfast?"

Hiro's stomach growled in response but all he actually said was, "How did you get up there?"

Varian laughed, "Climbed up here. How else you do think? Fly?"

Hiro looked up at him blankly. It was an obvious answer, of course, and he felt silly for having asked it.  

"Come on up!" Varian encouraged. "There's plenty of apples to go around."

"I..I can't." Hiro admitted sheepishly.

"Why not?"

"I don't know how to climb a tree." He mumbled.

Varian looked surprised by this revelation and before Hiro could do anything else, the other boy quickly climbed back down to join him.

“You never climb a tree before?”

‘Well, I did once, with Baymax’s help.” He rubbed the back of his neck self consciously.  

“It’s not like there’s a whole lot of trees in San Fransokyo to climb.”

“Oh, well, it’s easy. Here, I’ll show you. Just put your foot there, in that knot, and place your hand here on this bump in the bark.” Varian instructed, helping Hiro find the footholds. “Now you see that groove up here, place your other foot there, and as you hoist yourself up grab that lowest branch with your other hand, like climbing a really uneven ladder.”

Hiro did so, though not without some struggling, but eventually he pulled himself up onto the lowest branch.      

“Great!” Varian cheered and followed after with practiced ease. “The hardest parts done. Now all you gotta do is swing up the rest of the branches, like so.”

Varian took off, showing Hiro the best way to navigate the tree top. Hiro followed him, mimicking the other boys actions. With great effort he hauled himself up onto the final branch and heaved a ‘wooooph’ in relief of having made it up.

His sigh quickly turned to awe though when he caught sight of the view. The early morning sun sparkled on the lake. Further out a misty fog was beginning to disperse and you could see the opposite shoreline reflected in the water like glass. Beyond that giant redwoods poked out of the canopy of trees and way, way off in the distance you just about make out the tips of blue mountains.

“Woah.” He breathed. Hiro had to admit, you didn’t get scenery like this in the city.

‘Here.” Varian handed him an apple. It was smaller than the ones you’d buy in the store, with pink and yellow skin. Hiro tentatively took a bite. It was crunchy and very tart, but edible. Not to mention it was practically the only food they had left in the camp, so Hiro wound up eating it all and started in on a second one.

“So, where did you learn to climb?” Hiro asked taking another large bite of the wild fruit.

“Oh, I’ve been climbing trees since I could walk.” Varian laughed. “We owned an apple orchard along with the farm. Also the forest is right next to my village.”

Ruddiger joined them, procuring his own apple and sitting right on Varian’s lap to enjoy his meal. Varian scratched his pet’s ear.

“Does he ever get full?” Hiro asked.

“Nope.” Varian replied, and then they both broke into giggles.

Once the laughter had subsided Hiro commented, “I guess that’s why you’re so good at this outdoors stuff. This is the first time I ever been fishing, and with any luck, it’ll be my last.”

“My dad taught me.” Varian quitely confessed. “He’d take me on trips like this sometimes. Try to teach me how to hunt and fish. The fishing is a lot better than the hunting, let me tell you. I never could fire an arrow right and I can’t stand the sight of blood.” He cringed as if recalling a gruesome memory. “But, I guess he was just looking out for me. He taught me the skills he had to live on to survive. Apparently there were no farms where he grew up, the land was always baren. I guess that’s why he prefered gardening to being a knight.”

“Wait, your dad was an actual for real knight?”

Varian nodded, “Yeah, I found his armor after...after the accident. Along with a bunch of other important stuff he never told me about.” He added bitterly.

Hiro didn’t know how to respond to that. So he stayed quiet and let Varian dictate the conversation.

“Anyways, it worked. The fishing did come in handy. I had to do a lot of that, when.. when I was on my own.” He worked his jaw as he mulled over that last confession, his eyes gazing out to into the distance, clearly not seeing the breathtaking view before them.

Hiro’s heart dropped. He had a vague idea of what happened to Varian, but this was the first time it really hit home just how messed up the other’s teen’s life had been before now. He could empathize with losing a loved one, but he had always had his aunt and his friends to depend upon. If nothing else to be there and take of him as he sank into depression. But Varian had to do everything for himself, even while battling that same depression. The idea of having to catch or scavenge for your own food on top caring for you ill father was a nightmare that Hiro could barely comprehend. A nightmare that only somehow got worse.

“Fortunately, there’s a river that runs through my village, and I could set up lines overnight and just go check them in the morning, and we had food stored up for winter. Like oats, bacon, dried peas, that sort of thing. That is, until spring rolled around and the king's guards run me out of my house.” He said irritably.”Then I just had to forage or steal to survive.”

“Be...because you stole medicine?” Hiro asked disquietly. He couldn’t imagine a world so cruel and yet to his surprise the story got even worse.

“Oh no, this was before I stole the flower.” Varian said matter of factly and Hiro just stared at him in horror. Varian heaved a heavy sigh and went on to explain. “My father was the only other person who knew about the sundrop. The king kept it hidden from everyone. I guess when he found out that my dad, was, was ‘gone’, he decided to try and remove me from the picture, so as to keep his secret safe. He made a bunch of false charges about me ‘attacking the princess’ so that no one would believe me when I asked for help or told them the truth about the flower. Then he sent his elite guard to arrest me and I had to run.”

Varian gave a little shrug and added, “I guess after that, ‘treason’ didn’t seem like that big of deal. I mean they were going to throw me in jail either way, and not many people leave those dungeons alive.”

Hiro could barely process what was being told to him. He didn’t know what to say. His stomach churned and his breath shallowed. Varian’s past was far scarier than any ghost story.

Then suddenly he felt guilty. He’d been so caught up in his own grief and his own struggles with readjusting, that he hadn’t actually stopped to think about things from Varian’s perspective. He had thus far grinned and bared the discomfort of having his life turned upside down, because, well because that's what he thought he needed to do in order to be a mature decent person. And while that was true in part, it never occurred to him that this move was yet another upset in Varian’s life, in a long, long string of seemingly never ending upsets.  

Hiro found himself so easily annoyed by the other teen, yet he really had no right to be. Varian was readjusting to whole new culture and way of life in addition to struggling with his grief and trauma. So what if he cooked weird food sometimes, didn’t always know the appropriate conduct to certain situations, or was so super confident in nearly everything he did that it made Hiro self conscious and a little jealous at times. Deep down, Varian was suffering through something that no one in Hiro’s little corner of the globe could fully understand, and the least that Hiro could do was try to be a little more patient and a little more open about letting Varian into his life.

“You know,” Hiro slowly said, trying to ease the conversation and offer a little understanding, “I never really knew my dad. I was just four when he and my mom died. It was always Tadashi who taught me things, like how to ride a bike or how to hotwire a robot. Though he never taught me to climb to tree, so I guess that’s one I owe you.”

He smiled encouragingly at Varian, who nervously returned it. Once again Varian wasn’t used to praise or acknowledgement that he anything ‘right’.

“Maybe, you could teach me more outdoorsy stuff.” Hiro offered. “And I can teach you more about more modern stuff, like how to play Mind Smith II Turbo .”

“That..that’s that video game you like, isn’t it?” Varian asked as he tried to remember what Hiro even talking about.

“Yeah!” and with that Hiro eagerly launched into a detailed description of the game.

Soon the boys were interrupted by Krei emerging from the tent. He stretched sore back and tried to reheat the leftover instant coffee he’d brought. He then promptly spit it back out in disgust. The boys tried their best to suppress their snickers. Keri spotted them anyways.

“How ‘bout we pack it up and go get tacos instead?” He asked them.

“Yeeesss!” Yelled Hiro, who was more than ready to go.

“Sounds great!” Agreed Varian. “We’ll be right down!”

Keri went back in the tent to start packing and Ruddigger scurried down after him, hoping to maybe steal another treat from the camp.

Varian stood up and started to also make his way down when Hiro’s voice stopped him.

“Ummm...Sooo how do you get down exactly?”

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

The day ended with a trip to Yaki Taco and a huge feast of fast food nachos and deep fried burritos. Rudiger was once again confined to his carrying cage, but was allowed a cup of some cheese sauce to snack on. Baymax was let out of his charger case to kept an eye on the mischievous raccoon. All agreed it was actually the best part of the camping trip.

“Say, ‘cheese’.” The robot said, as he took a photograph with his internal camera.  

The three guys sing songed the the word even as actual cheese dripped off the burritos they held in their hands, plastering on dopey grins for the camera. Then a few more pictures with silly faces to complete the set.

“Fantastic!” Krei said. “I want copies for the office.”

“Why?” Hiro asked.

“So if any clients come in I show off ‘my family’ to them instead just the photo of my mother. I love the woman but she doesn’t necessarily impress the image of ‘family friendly company’.”

“I knew there was a catch.” Hiro scoffed.

Keri looked wounded. “Hey, I told you, my employees are my family.”

Hiro rolled his eyes but he couldn’t help giving a little smile at that. He knew Krei well enough by now to know that, underneath his seemingly conviving self-serving self, he had a heart, and he wouldn’t have invited Hiro and Varian along if he didn’t care.

“Aunt Cass put you up to this, didn’t she?” He prodded.

“I’m sworn to secrecy.” Krei insisted and they gave Hiro a knowing wink. Then more seriously he said, “I know what it’s like not having your dad around on Father’s Day. So, I figured, why not a fishing trip? It’s better than being stuck at home while your father’s away on a business trip to Tahiti that weekend.”

Hiro raised in eyebrow. Keri had a tendency of oversharing at times.  

“Buuut, enough about me. Who wants dessert!?”