#yeah yeah I know technically Jack was a con man and the personalities are different but like

[lesbiansanemi]

Somewhere in the universe captain Jack harkness just woke up in a cold sweat and is now beating his pillow with his fist like WHY COULDNT THAT BE ME

[dontcare77ghj]

All-New Halloween Spooktacular

Wanda x reader x Vision

"Halloween's a magical holiday," Billy told someone unseen as he walked into the kitchen dressed in a cape. "All about family, friends, and the thrill of getting to be someone else for the day."

"Wrong! Halloween's all about candy!" Tommy informed his brother.

"You're both wrong." Luna piped up from where she sat, eating toast. "It's about scaring people."

"That too." Tommy agreed. "But mostly about candy." He added.

"Where's your costume, Tommy?" Billy questioned, pouring himself a bowl of cereal.

"This is my costume. I'm the cool twin." Tommy told him in a matter-of-fact voice.

"Lame." Luna shook her head.

"What does that make me?" Billy asked, tilting his head to the side. 

"A dorkasurus rex," Tommy said, smirking as he remembered the time Billy caused himself to fall playing Dance Dance Revolution.

"Not a real dinosaur." Billy rolled his eyes. "What's your costume, Luna?" He asked, glancing over his sister's grey jacket and pink dress.

"I'm a spy," Luna said, pulling on a pair of sunglasses. "Duh." She added, picking up her plate as the three kids moved into the living room. 

Quickly the three ten-year-olds noticed their usual seats on the couch were occupied by their uncle, who was fast asleep and snoring loudly.

"Man, he even snores cool." Tommy quietly exclaimed, Pietro on the couch. "I'm gonna wake him up."

"Don't!" Billy snapped, grabbing Tommy's arm.

"You scared?"

"Why would he be scared, Tommy? He's our uncle." Luna asked, tilting her head.

"'Cause it's four o'clock in the afternoon, and Billy's secretly afraid he's a vampire." Tommy teased.

"No, I'm not!" Billy denied.

"Yes, you are!" Tommy smirked. 

"Both of you, be quiet!" Luna hissed.

What none of the kids had noticed was that while they were arguing, Pietro had woken up. Pietro watched the three for a second before he flashed in front of his nephews and niece.

"Blood is thicker than water! I show you!" Pietro roared, causing the kids to scream.

Pietro began to chase the still screaming children around the living room before a loud voice interrupted them.

"Oh! Somebody better be bleeding, broken, or on fire." Wanda said as she rushed down the stairs, all dressed for Halloween.

"Whoa, Mama. Are you old Red Riding Hood?" Billy wondered, causing Wanda to frown.

"I'm a Sokovian fortune teller." His mother told him.

"Wow, that is so," 

"Rad!" Tommy exclaimed.

"Lame," Pietro said, causing Tommy to frown.

"Lame." Tommy agreed.

"Well, think it's cool, Mama," Luna said, smiling at the woman.

"Why, thank you, favorite child," Wanda said with a teasing grin to her other children.

"That costume is worse than the ones mom made us the year we got typhus." Pietro grimaced, staring his sister up and down.

"That's not exactly how I remember it." Wanda frowned, recalling a faint memory of herself, her brother, and an old woman with a fish.

"You probably suppressed a lot of the trauma." Pietro guessed.

"Mom has been weird since uncle Pietro got here," Billy announced, once more talking to someone unseen. "I think it's because she hasn't seen him in a long time, and he's what you call 'a man child.'"

"Want to talk about trauma? Someone drank my coffee this morning." Y/N said as she descended the stairs. "I'm looking at you, Pietro."

"What are you dressed as, Mom?" Tommy asked, looking at his mother.

"I'm Artemis," Y/N told him, pulling a fake bow off her caped back. "She's the Greek Goddess of the Hunt." 

"Whoa! Sweet costume, bro-ham-in-law!" Pietro cackled as Vision appeared behind Y/N. "Let me guess, traffic light!" He said, causing Vision to sigh. "Half shucked corn! A booger!"

"Yes." Vision sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Yes!" Pietro exclaimed with a grin before making his way over to the couch.

"Well, thank you two for humoring me," Wanda said, giving her partners an apologetic smile.

"I love Halloween. No-one had to ask me to dress up twice." Y/N shrugged, throwing her bow back onto her back.

"At least you got to choose your costume. I simply had no other clothes in my closet." Vision said before grinning at his wives. "You are incorrigible, darling. I know you have a secret thing for Mexican wrestlers." He told Wanda.

"Mi gusta mucho."

"Ellos son bastante buenos."

"Chili con carne." Vision said, causing his wives to laugh. "What do you say, kiddos? Who's ready for that first hit of high fructose corn syrup?" Vision asked, turning to the kids who were playing a video game with Pietro.

"Yes! Headlock!"

"Get out of here! Get out of here!"

"You never really told us anything about your brother," Y/N said, watching the three with a smile. "He's not what I expected."

"Yes. I had no idea that he'd be so,"

"Go!"

"Great with kids." Vision summarised, throwing his thumb up.

"Yeah, he's just full of surprises." Wanda shook her head.

"Well, I hope the two of you have fun tonight, darlings." Vision said, moving towards the door.

"What? What do you mean? You're all dressed and ready to go." Wanda asked, staring at Vision with wide eyes.

"I'm undercover," Vision told her. "Halloween is a bacchanal for adolescent trouble-makers, and the neighborhood watch is the only thing that stands between the trees and toilet paper." He explained.

"Ah yes, the age-old enemy. Children with toilet paper." Y/N teased her husband with a smirk.

"No. That's not what you're supposed to,"

"What?" Vision cut her off, causing Wanda to cross her arms and sigh.

"Well, you didn't tell me you had plans."

"Vis told me last night, Wand," Y/N announced, causing Wanda to narrow her eyes.

"And you're okay with this?"

"Mama, Mom, and Dad have been, well, not fighting, just different," Billy announced to the unseen person.

"Okay with it? Vis is going out with the neighborhood watch. What's there to be okay about?" Y/N wondered.

"It's the kid's first Halloween. We all have to be there with them." Wanda demanded.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What's the big dealio?" Pietro whispered as he came to stand with the three. "The big guy has conflict. The kids need a father figure for the night. Don't sweat it, guys. I got the old XY chromosome. Uncle P to the rescue! Huh?" He suggested.

"There you go. Problem solved." Vision agreed, lightly punching Pietro in the shoulder. "You have a spooky time tonight, kids."

"Goodnight, Dad!" 

"Bye, Dad!"

"Love you, Dad!"

"Sweethearts, be good." He said (mostly to Wanda) as he kissed both women's cheeks. "I smell crime."

"Oh, hang on, I need to put the pumpkin out," Y/N said before Vision left the house. 

She grabbed the jack-o-lantern from beside the door and followed Vision outside, shutting the door behind her.

"You understand your part of the plan?" Vision whispered.

"I'll keep Wanda distracted and keep my eyes open," Y/N whispered to her husband. "Be careful?" She asked.

"Always, darling," Vision promised, quickly pulling Y/N into an embrace before taking his leave.

"Where do you keep your water balloons?" Y/N heard as she re-entered the house. 

"What? We don't have water balloons." Wanda said as Y/N locked the front door.

"Not anymore. Wanda won't let me keep them in the house." Y/N teased, coming to stand beside her wife.

"Then where are we gonna put all this shaving cream?" Pietro asked, holding up two cans. Cans Y/N had no idea as to where they'd come from. "It was Luna's idea!" Pietro defended himself.

"I'm Tommy," Tommy said, holding a shopping bag in his hands.

"And don't you forget it!"

"You two don't even have costumes," Wanda said, looking between her brother and son. 

Pietro let out a scoff as he held a hand out towards Tommy. When the boy took it, Pietro sped the two out of the house, and when they reappeared, they were in matching costumes.

"Okay, but just remember that this is a respectable family." Wanda sighed. "If I see any funny business, I am going to magic you into a pickled herring." She said, causing Pietro to cringe. 

"C'mon Billy, Luna, let's get your pillowcases," Y/N said, causing the kids to jump to their feet. "It's T-minus ten to our Halloween spooktacular!" She grinned.

Back at SWORD headquarters, agents were in a flurry after Wanda's appearance.

"I wanna see a full work-up inside the hour," Hayward demanded of the agents examining the missile that was still glowing with Wanda's power.

"Yes, sir."

"Hayward. Hayward! You cut us off at the knees sending in that missile." Monica snapped, rushing after the director.

"Now we know who we're dealing with." He shrugged.

"There he is! The man who almost got murdered by his own team." Clint clapped, causing Hayward to snap around.

"Why are you still here?" He demanded.

"Because that's my family in there," Clint told the man. 

"And he's with us," Darcy said, standing beside Clint with Monica on her other side.

"I see, so if he's the struggling father, which of you is the sassy best friend?"

"There is no time for you to diminish your colleagues when you're about to start a war you can't win." Jimmy admonished, standing on Clint's other side. 

"Maximoff was never going to negotiate with us." Hayward waved him off. "We take her out, and this whole nightmare ends."

"We don't know that," Monica told him.

"And we're never going to now." Clint scoffed. 

"We have no idea what will happen in there or out here if Wanda dies." Monica reasoned.

"So what? We just surrender to that?" Hayward exclaimed, glaring at the red energy field behind him. "Not happening."

"We can't outgun her, and clearly antagonizing her is only making things worse. If Wanda is the problem, then she has to be our solution!"

"Captain Rambeau, Agent Barton, the two of you have become an impediment to this mission," Hayward told the two, causing Monica to sigh heavily.

"Technically, I was never assigned to anything." Clint shrugged.

"Constantly advocating on behalf of super-power-based individuals. Yes, I know your history with Carol Danvers. You know, you people who left still have the luxury of optimism. You have no idea what it was like what it took to keep the lights." Hayward shook his head.

"Monica might not have been around, but I was," Clint spoke up. "I remember what it took, and I can never forget. Wanda dusted. Y/N dusted. The two came back to a world where nothing was the same, and Vision was dead. Vision who had to die by Wanda's own hand."

"That's not an excuse for what Maximoff's doing. And the snap wasn't an excuse for what you did during those five years either." The director said, causing Clint to flinch.

"Don't use the last five years to be a coward, Tyler." Monica snapped, causing Hayward to direct his attention back to her.

"Maybe it's a good thing you weren't here when your mother died. Because clearly, you don't have the stomach for this job." Hayward said, causing the air to knock right out of Monica's lungs. "Get her off my base. Get them all out." He demanded the agents, who immediately surrounded the four.

"Yes, sir. All right, come on. Let's go." One of the agents said, pulling Monica out of the room, the other three not far behind. 

"Hayward is way overstepping his provisional authority," Jimmy complained.

"He was looking for a reason to sideline us," Clint commented from his side.

"He's up to something." Monica agreed as they came to a stop at a van.

"Let's go, everybody in." An agent demanded. 

With a second's hesitation, Jimmy punched the agent holding him. Monica and Clint quickly followed Jimmy's lead and attacked the guards holding them. Slamming the men into the truck and the ground, the three made quick work of the agents while Darcy watched in shock.

"Why didn't anyone tell me the plan?" Darcy demanded once all the agents were dispatched.

"You okay?" Jimmy asked Clint and Monica.

"Always am," Clint grunted, rolling his shoulder.

"Yeah, let's move." Monica sighed. Quickly the four found themselves SWORD ponchos and dragged the agents into a storage shed, far out of the way. 

"This is it. Game time." Tommy told the same unseen person Billy had spoken to.

"It's not a competition, Tommy." Billy sighed.

"Everything can be a competition, Billy," Luna said with a grin.

"Luna's right. It's even better when you're the winner." Tommy said before running off.

"Tommy!" Billy groaned before running after his older brother, with Luna in tow.

"Unleash hell, demon spawn!" Pietro cheered.

"Someone's got to follow after them," Y/N said, pressing a kiss to her wife's cheek. "God knows how many bones they'd break without someone watching." She added, following after the kids.

When Wanda and Pietro were alone, Wanda gave her brother a smile before taking a step towards him.

"Do you remember when we were at the orphanage after Mom and Dad died? What was the name of the kid who was always trying to steal your boots?" Wanda asked him. "You know, he was the one with the. He had the, he had the skin thing."

"You're testing me," Pietro said, pointing at his younger sister.

"No, I'm not." She immediately denied it.

"Hey, it's cool. I know I look different." Pietro said, gesturing to his hair.

"Why do you look different?" Wanda wondered.

"You tell me." Pietro shrugged. "I mean, if I found Shangri-La, I wouldn't wanna be reminded of the past either." He said, causing Wanda to freeze.

"Next house, Mama!" Tommy said as he and his siblings rushed over to the Maximoff siblings with Y/N right behind.

"Junior entrepreneur, over here!" Pietro grinned. "How about you let Uncle P help you maximize your candy acquisition, huh?"

"That'd be so cool!" Luna grinned.

"Yeah! Kick-ass!" Tommy agreed. 

"I feel the need," Pietro stated, holding his hand out to Tommy.

"For speed!" Tommy cheered, taking Pietro and Billy's hand. Billy grabbed onto Luna's hand, and with that, the four were off.

Speeding around the neighborhood for candy.

"Kick-ass," Wanda murmured as Y/N chuckled.

"I certainly didn't teach them that word," Y/N said as they began to walk down the street.

"Sweetheart, you swear more than anyone else I've ever met," Wanda told the woman. 

"Lies and blasphemy!" Y/N gasped, causing Wanda to giggle. 

"Oh! Hey, Herb!" Wanda said upon spotted their neighbor dressed as Frankenstein. 

"Hey, guys!" Herb smiled as the two approached.

"How's patrol going?" Wanda asked politely.

"Any trees meet the dreaded toilet paper yet?" Y/N smirked.

"No, not yet." Herb chuckled. "It's been quiet so far." He said before his com began to chatter. "Hold up, will you? Say again?" He asked his com. "All the candy has disappeared?" He asked, causing the two women to freeze.

Behind the man, Wanda and Y/N could vaguely make out the blue blur of Pietro speeding the kids around and causing hijinks.

"And now all the jack-o-lanterns have been smashed?" Herb asked as the kids let out a loud cheer. "And now everyone's covered in silly string?"

"Whoo!" Pietro cheered loudly.

"Sorry, girls, but I gotta bounce." Herb apologized.

"Well, maybe Vision can help you out," Wanda suggested.

"Vision? He's not on duty."

"Oh, isn't he?" Y/N asked, playing along with Wanda's confusion.

"We just thought,"

"Is there something I can do for you, Wanda?" Herb asked, sensing Wanda's confusion. "Do you want something changed?" He questioned, causing Y/N to frown.

"No, it's fine." Wanda shook her head, grabbing Y/N's hand and squeezing it comfortingly. "Never mind."

"All right. Peace." Herb smiled before walking away.

"That was good, sweetheart." Y/N complimented her wife. 

"I'm always good." Wanda shrugged, giving Y/N a smile.

Vision was on the other side of town while his family trick-or-treated. 

The further away Vision got away from his home and family, the stranger Vision noticed the town's people were.

He had noticed people robotically repeating their actions with blank expressions.

Vision stared at a woman and her husband for several seconds before he had to tear his gaze away when the woman shed a single tear.

Meanwhile, the group of six had made their way to the town's center, where the committee had set up a festival of sorts. 

"This is so lame. I can't believe you're making the kids return all the candy." Pietro groaned as Y/N led the kids away.

"I can't believe what a bad influence you are," Wanda said, turning to Pietro with crossed arms.

"Who beefed in your borscht?" Pietro asked, causing Wanda to tilt her head. "I'm just doing my part, okay? Come to town unexpectedly, create tension with the in-laws, stir up trouble with the rugrats and ultimately give you grief. I mean, that's what you wanted, isn't it?" He asked her.

"What happened to your accent?" Wanda questioned, pointing a gloved finger at her brother.

"What happened to yours?" He fired back. "Details are fuzzy, man. I got shot like a chump on the street for no reason at all, and the next thing I know, I heard you calling me. I knew you needed me." Pietro admitted as Y/N came back over.

"Alright, candy is returned, the kids are still being sourballs about it, but it's done." She clapped, standing beside her wife.

"Thank goodness for that." Wanda smiled.

"Uncle P, guess what?" Tommy exclaimed as he and his siblings ran over.

"They've got full-size candy bars a few blocks up! Mama, Mom, can we go?" Billy begged before his brother rushed away.

Tommy rushed away in a blur of blue.

"Next stop, Cavity Town!" Tommy cheered, reappearing with three candy bars in hand.

Everyone turned to stare at Tommy in surprise before Pietro let out a cheer.

"Right on, little dude! Chip off the old Maximoff block! You've got super speed!"

"I do?"

"Yeah!" Pietro grinned, holding a hand out to his nephew, who eagerly jumped to high-five him.

"It's okay, baby. You can take it slow, and you can," Wanda started to tell the boy but was cut off when he sped away.

"That's my boy." Y/N grinned as Tommy cheered loudly.

Wanda allowed Tommy to speed around the five for a few minutes before she threw her hand out and pulled the boy to a stop. 

"If you're going to break the sound barrier, please take your siblings with you," Wanda begged.

"Really?" Billy asked excitedly.

"Really?" Tommy asked sadly.

"Really, yeah. And please just remember to-"

"Don't go past Ellis Avenue." The twins chorused in unison.

"And?" Y/N wondered.

"Always stick together." They added.

"We know. We know." Tommy said as Billy took his hand.

"Luna, are you coming?" Billy asked his sister, who shook her head.

"I think I want to look at the stalls," Luna told him, glancing behind her at the stalls that were lined up.

"Oh, good idea. I'll come with you." Y/N said, taking her daughter's hand.

"Hey! be careful!" Wanda called as her family all went their separate ways.

Leaving her with Pietro.

Outside the Hex, Monica, Clint, Jimmy, and Darcy were sneaking their way to an empty tent.

"I'm just trying to do my part, okay? Come to town unexpectedly, create tension with the in-laws,"

"Who is that?" Monica asked, staring at the man on the screen.

"Wanda's brother came to town," Jimmy told the woman.

"That's not the punk I remember," Clint said, staring at the screen in confusion.

"Yeah, he's got a new face." Darcy scoffed.

"Over here." Jimmy quietly called. Monica and Darcy quickly rushed over to Jimmy while Clint continued to stare at the screen.

"What happened to your accent?"

"What happened to yours?"

"We shouldn't stick around here much longer." Clint coughed, pulling his eyes away once his daughter appeared on the screen.

"Give me two seconds. I just need to hack into the secure network on the base." Darcy told everyone as she typed away frantically at the computer. "Donezo! Now, should be able to access the data on Hayward's devices." She said, connecting the USB to her laptop. "Oh, that's interesting. Guys, Hayward figured out a way to look into the boundary."

"And he didn't share with the group." Monica scoffed.

"Is this Wanda, right here?" Jimmy asked, pointing to a glowing dot on Darcy's screen.

"No, the program is tracking the decay signature of vibranium," Darcy told him.

"Vision." 

"Why is Hayward tracking Vision?" Clint asked.

"I don't know. This is all I can access so far." Darcy told him.

"These other dots, those are Westview residents?" Jimmy wondered.

"The ones in Vision's immediate vicinity, yeah." Darcy nodded.

"So Hayward must have an accurate headcount by now." Jimmy summarised.

"Hayward's got to have some sense of their well-being. Where would that be?" Clint asked, playing around with the screen.

"Not sure."

"These people near the edge of town, they're bearly moving. Are they even alive?" Jimmy asked, looking over the dulled blue dots.

But Darcy didn't have an answer for that. In fact, she didn't have time to give him one before the laptop dinged, and the map began to move.

This was stranger than strange. Vision noted as he got closer towards the edge of town. 

It seemed the closer he got to the edge of town, the less Wanda cared about the people. 

The people were not moving about robotically anymore. They were simply still. 

There was a blanket of silence covering the street as Vision walked past the countless people on the street.

No-one made even the faintest of sounds, not even when he spoke to them.

"Excuse me, ma'am? Are those your children? Are you waiting for something?" Vision asked, but when no-one responded, he forced himself to move on.

Vision made his way to the end of the street before he decided walking was fruitless.

He dropped his disguise before he took to the skies.

He could hear the sounds of children laughing, people wishing each happy Halloween's and other pleasantries before noticed a car stopped at a stop sign.

Vision flew towards the car and lightly landed before the stopped vehicle.

There, in the driver's seat, Vision found Agnes to be behind the wheel.

"Agnes?" He asked aloud. "What are you doing here?"

"Town Square Scare," Agnes said blankly. "Where is it?"

"Oh, well, the Town Square, I expect." Vision joked, causing Agnes to laugh emotionlessly.

"Took a wrong turn," Agnes admitted, still staring out the front window. "Got lost." She shrugged as her eyes welled with tears.

"In the town, you grew up in?" Vision wondered, staring at his neighbor in confusion.

Agnes didn't respond, causing Vision's worry to grow so that he reached a hand out to her temple.

When Vision broke the wall in her mind, Agnes jolted violently and let out a loud gasp.

"It's all right." Vision soothed.

"You!" Agnes gasped, staring at her neighbor in shock. "You're one of the Avengers. You're Vision. Are you here to help us?" She asked with wide eyes.

"I am Vision, and I do want to help." Vision nodded, gently placing his hand on hers. "But what's an Avenger?" He wondered, causing Agnes to gasp.

"What? Why don't you know?" She demanded, snatching her hand away. "Am I dead?" Agnes asked, pressing her hands to her chest.

"No. No." Vision promised. "Why would you think that?"

"Because you are." 

"'Cause I'm what?"

"Dead," Agnes said, causing Vision to freeze. "Dead. Dead! Dead!" She yelled.

"Agnes, it is my intention to reach those outside of Westview and make sense of our situation." Vision explained, gesturing towards the town's end.

"How? No-one leaves." Agnes shook her head. "Wanda won't even let us think about it." She laughed. "All is lost," Agnes added as her laughter began to grow wilder.

"Agnes. Agnes, please calm down." Vision asked but was drowned out by the woman's loud cackling. "Agnes! Please."

Vision knew Agnes was too far gone to hear this conversation, so with a sigh, he pressed his hand to her temple once more.

Agnes snapped upright in her seat as her laughter died in her throat.

"I will fix this, Agnes. I promise."

"Okey-dokey, neighbor." Agnes chirped, smiling widely, as she did a U-turn. "Happy Halloweenie!" She cheered, driving away.

Leaving Vision to stare into the distance, just past Ellis Avenue.

"That's it. My way back into the Hex will be here in an hour. Just got to meet my guy over the ridge. Let's roll." Monica told the group.

"You can't do that," Darcy spoke up.

"Sure we can." Jimmy shrugged. "I'm a wiz at hot-wiring cars."

"No. You can't go back into the Hex." Darcy told Monica.

"Worst case scenario, Wanda removes my free will and puts me in ultra-low-rise jeans." Monica shrugged.

"Hayward has your blood work," Darcy announced. "You've gone through the boundary twice already, Monica. The energy inside has re-written your cells on a molecular level twice. It's changing you."

"Seen enough lab results to last me a lifetime." Monica shrugged. "I've seen cells metastasizing, cells in remission. I know what Wanda's feeling, and I won't stop until I help her."

"Okay."

"Okay."

"Okay."

"But I'm staying here," Darcy told the group.

"You can't stay here. It's not safe." Jimmy told her.

"Why would you want to stay here?" Clint asked.

"Darcy, what are you talkin' about?"

"I haven't made it through Hayward's last firewall. There's something big here, something that can help us. I know it." Darcy said.

"I'll stay," Clint announced. "Just in case you need me."

"Fine." Monica sighed. "I'll drop you the location. You meet us out there as soon as you can." She told the two before she and Jimmy left the tent. 

Jimmy and Monica found an abandoned truck which they quickly stole before driving away from the SWORD base.

Leaving Darcy and Clint alone.

"Seems the whole town's out tonight, huh, Luna?" Y/N wondered as she and her daughter strolled through the Town Square.

"There's a lot of people." Luna nodded, staring at the townsfolk curiously.

"Everything okay, sweetheart?" Y/N asked, kneeling in front of the blonde girl. "Are you not feeling well?" She pushed, pressing her hand to Luna's forehead.

"No, I feel fine, Mom," Luna promised, pulling her mother's hand away.

"What's wrong then? You've been acting off all night." Y/N commented, rising to a stand and pulling Luna over to a hay bale to sit.

"I can see things, Mom," Luna admitted, playing with her thumbs.

"Things like what, sweetheart?" 

"Emotions, I think," Luna told Y/N. "There are these colors all around everyone. I can see 'em change, Mom."

"That's okay, sweetheart. We can help you find out more about your powers."

"But, Mom, there's something wrong with everyone's colors," Luna said.

"What's wrong with their colors?

"They're all blue, all sad," Luna said, staring at the people who passed her. "And when they pass Mama, they're scared."

"I know, sweetheart." Y/N sighed, pulling her daughter into her side. "But me and your Dad are trying to fix this. We're gonna fix this." She promised the girl.

"Holy shmacaroni," Pietro commented, looking around the Town Square as Wanda laughed. "Wow!"

"Isn't it great?" Wanda asked with a grin.

"Damn it, if Westview, New Jersey isn't charming as hell." Pietro complimented, watching the people mill about.

"Now, I know that you think that I've gone full soccer mom,"

"You have." Pietro cut in.

"But it really is nice, right?" Wanda asked as the two sat down.

"Yeah." Pietro nodded before letting out a sigh. "I think Mom and Dad would have loved it."

"Yeah. I think Mom and Dad would have."

"Where were you hiding these kids up till now?" Pietro asked after a gaggle of children ran past them.

"What?" Wanda asked, snapping her head to face him.

"I assume they were sleeping peacefully in their beds." Pietro theorized. "No need to traumatize beyond the occasional holiday episode cameo, right?" He joked.

"No."

"You were always the empathetic twin," Pietro told her.

"I don't. I didn't."

"Don't get me wrong, you've handled the ethical considerations of this scenario as best you could." Pietro complimented. "Families and couples stay together, most personalities aren't far off from what's underneath, people got better jobs, better haircuts, for sure."

"You don't think it's wrong?" Wanda stuttered.

"What, are you kidding? I'm impressed." Pietro told her. "Seriously. It's a big leap from giving people nightmares and shooting red wiggly-woos out of your hands. How'd you even do all this?" Pietro asked, causing Wanda to fall into silence. "Hey, I'm not some stranger, and I'm not your husband or your wife. You can talk to me."

"I don't know how I did it," Wanda admitted with a sigh, looking down. "I, I only remember feeling scared. Empty." She sniffed. When Wanda finally looked up, she let out a gasp when she saw Pietro grey and full of holes.

Wanda squeezed her eyes shut tightly, and when she opened them, she out out a sigh. For Pietro was no longer grey and was hole-free.

"Are you okay?" Pietro wondered, staring at his sister in worry.

"I'm fine." Wanda smiled, waving him off.

"Sure you are."

"Hayward, you sneaky bastard," Darcy said as she continued to snoop through the director's files.

"You got that right." Clint scoffed, watching over the doctor's shoulder.

Darcy pulled up a new screen that showed Vision's blinking dot moving closer to the border.

"What's he doing?" Clint asked, staring at Vision's dot in confusion.

"I don't know, but we're going to find out," Darcy said, jumping up from her chair.

On the other side of the Hex, Vision had reached the edge of the town.

The closer he got to the town's border, the larger the foreboding feeling in his stomach grew.

But the closer he got, the clearer the energy field became. 

Blocked from the outside world. Vision mused as he stood a nose length's away.

Vision pressed his hand onto the field, and it was immediately sucked into the energy. 

Vision pushed his way through the energy field to see swarms of people, cars, and helicopters surrounding him.

But Vision could not spare them another thought as the more he tried to pull his body out of the energy field, the more pain he found himself to be in.

"He really does want out, doesn't he?" A man asked as Vision let out a loud yell.

SWORD watched as, before their eyes, Vision began to disintegrate.

"Oh no." Darcy gasped and began to rush forward with Clint right behind her. "Why aren't you helping him?" Darcy screamed, causing all the agents to turn and face the two. "He's coming apart!" She yelled when an agent grabbed her and pushed her away.

"Get your hands off her!" Clint exclaimed when he, too, was restrained.

Billy was alone when his head began to pound.

Billy was alone when he began to have images of his father in pain.

Billy was alone when he began to hear what was happening at the town's edge.

Billy could sense his brother speeding closer, and he held a hand out to stop him.

"Whoa, Billy!" Tommy cheered.

"Shh!" Billy hissed.

"Are you okay?" Tommy asked, watching his brother in concern. 

Billy ignored his brother as the screaming in his head grew louder.

"Mama!"

Billy and Tommy rushed into the Town Square to find both mothers, their sister, and their uncle sitting on hay bales.

"Mama! Mom! Mama!"

"What? What is it, Billy?" Wanda asked as she jumped to her feet.

"I hear Dad in my head. He's in trouble." Billy panted.

"What? Where is he?" Y/N asked, rushing to her wife's side.

"Let me go!" Darcy snapped as she was handcuffed to a car. "What are you doing?" She yelled when she saw Clint be smacked across the face with the butt of a gun.  

"Help!" Vision yelled, not caring that he was falling apart. "The people need help!" He exclaimed before he fell to the ground.

"I don't understand. What's happening to me?" Billy demanded.

"Where is he? Where's your Dad?" Wanda asked, staring at Billy with urgent eyes.

"Hey, don't sweat it, sis. It's not like your dead husband can die twice." Pietro joked.

"Excuse me?" Y/N asked, staring at Pietro with wide eyes. Before she could further question her brother-in-law, Wanda shot him with a blast of magic and sent him flying through the air. "Wanda!" Y/N exclaimed as the kids stared at their mother in shock.

"Billy, I need you to focus," Wanda demanded, ignoring her wife. Billy nodded at his mother and closed his eyes tightly.

"I can't tell. I see these soldiers." Billy said as the images flooded his mind. "They think he's dying!"

"Wanda, don't," Y/N said as Wanda's hands glowed red. But she couldn't say another word as time froze.

The last thing she saw was Wanda's eyes glowing red.

"Jimmy, do you see that? It's magic." Monica said as she and Jimmy drove away from Westview.

"It's moving!" Jimmy gasped. "Go, Monica! Go!" He exclaimed, causing the woman to press harder on the pedal.

"Go, go, go!" Hayward demanded, running away from the Hex. "Move, move, move!"

The agents began to scatter in a panic as the red energy drew closer to them.

"Are you serious right now?" Darcy growled as she was left alone, handcuffed to the car. "Clint, wake up!" Darcy exclaimed as the Hex swallowed everything around it. "Oh, fudge." Darcy sighed as she was hit.

The Hex swallowed the entirety of the SWORD base. Anything it touched changed to fit Wanda's script.

"Can anyone read me?" Hayward asked as he and three others sped away from Westview. "Can anyone hear my voice?" He demanded once more.

But no-one responded.

They were a part of Westview now. 

@x-uglyprincess-x @imthedoctorlove @loveinnoya @unknownalien3388 @bindythedemon @summersimmerus @buckmesidewaysandcallmesteve @natasharomanoffismywife @mcsteamy4ever @monxpeet @amywinehouseisgod-blog @milleniumloki @buckybarnesplumwhore @kennedywxlsh @drpepperobsessed @madamevirgo @superbsccissorsdeanexpert @itty-bitty-witch @essenceproxima @severusminerva @okkulta @mrscasnovak @niki-is-a-thing @sunshinepower17 @pinkninja200 @iflostreturntoflynnrider @simp4mcuwomen @blackfarrahfawcett @angelicl-y @bromieeeomieee @persie33 @ambria @1awesomemeash @montygator17 @runaway-mom-friend @gengen64 @tiny-freak @abitofeverythinggg

[sanchoyo]

danny phantom season 2, episode 17-20 thoughts! finishing up season two! the finale is the THIRD 2-PARTER OF SEASON 2. that's so many! I wonder how many season 3 will have?

see prev episode thoughts in this tag <3

-UERGH WHY DOES VLAD HAVE AN AI WITH MADDIE'S FACE ON IT. SOOO CREEPY. AND MORE 'CREATIONS' waiiiit. vlad is Dr. Frankenstein! (despite his ghost design obviously referencing vampires) HE HAS 'CREATIONS' HE MAKES THEN WONT TAKE REAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR!!! this bitch.

-danny was late and his friends immediately start going off about how hes inconsiderate, and has been treating them like sidekicks??? he just overslept, my god. chill. even if he has, be nicer about talking about it with him?? he really can't help that he sometimes has to chase the ghosts, or has a secret identity to protect...

-'what kind of ghost haunts a miniature golf course' umm. me as a ghost. next question

-imagine going home and theres a tiny child on your bed claiming to be your cousin. with as many cousins I have, I would probably believe her. but the 'ran away from home' BIT....SHES 12?? SHES SO TINY. I hate that they have her belly out in her ghost form, but I like how her colors are asymmetrical. something about her design...maybe the proportions?? are weird to me...anyway danny was good to feed her, but he shouldve taken her to his parents FIRST. or, tbh, probably jazz. (JAZZ DIDNT EVEN GET TO MEET HER!!! NOOO. I mean she said she'll be BACK BUT STILL)

-ANYWAY. shes voiced by AnnaSophia Robb, the girl who was in because of winn dixie, played as violet from charlie and the chocolate factory, and was the girl from bridge to terrabithia. (the movie that made me cry hysterically when I was 12 and I never watched it again because it Broke Me!) thats super cool.

-vlad sucks: the episode, basically. what's new!! I love how he's like, I'm Not A Villain. *immediately cuts to him torturing danny to make him transform, to get mid-transformation DNA, to perfect a Clone.* *immediately shows that he doesnt give a shit about his new daughter Dani and just wants a ''more perfect clone'' and will put her in danger to get that. will let her DIE to get that*

-Dani is danny's clone and is a girl? transgenderism....one of them has to be trans. or they both are.

-dani just. leaving at the end. WHAT? SHES 12. DONT JUST. NO!!! SHE WAS PROBABLY JUST BORN, A MONTH AGO AT MOST, RIGHT?? SHE NEEDS...SOMEWHERE TO LIVE. MONEY? FOOD?? A FAMILY?? AN EDUCATION???! WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE'S LEAVING!!! OKAY BYE I GUESS!!! D: concern!!!

-the next ep opens with skulker chasing a ghost down. ...does skulker count as a ghost hunter in the way valerie and danny do? I mean, sure, he hunts the good guys too, but he. he hunts ghosts...also, we haven't seen his Real Form since his debut episode! tiny...

-the guys in white are back! ngl, I assumed they were a gag for that one episode. you're telling me they might actually be a threat? ok.

-valerie in her lil nasty burger uniform looks so cute!! glad shes not in that mascot uniform this time. I guess she stopped hiding that she's working there now?

-gregor having white hair, dressed in black and white...and green eyes...sam has a Type, I guess.

-danny being unnecessarily hostile about gregor. danny!!! hes been nice so far. he looks a little...tall to be 14, but. danny doesnt know anything about him! (he does Suspect, but...you cant just spy on people and be rude to them from a hunch.) also, gregor kissed her, and when she freaked out, he was like 'oh no!! sorry, we can take it slow! I understand!' which was NICE. I hate jealousy plots still tho.

-altho. umm. tucker, being concerned about danny spying on them??? SAM AND YOU WERE SPYING ON DANNY AND VALERIE A FEW EPISODES AGO!!!!! im not saying its RIGHT, but dont be a hypocrite!!! AND THEN SAM BEING MAD ABOUT IT, TOO.

-DANNY IS A 7 ON THE SCALE OF ECTOPLASMIC POWER!!! out of 10? so I want to know where the other ghosts rank...I mean it's a list from the guys in white, so, it may not even be accurate, like, they havent seen ALL of his powers, have they?

-Lancer being like 'im not cooperating with the FEDS' until they said they could access his tax records. they already did that joke with jack, but like, its still funny. kings of tax evasion.

-tucker's aggressive third-wheeling. but gregor being super into it. gregor/tucker is the real ship here. then gregor kissing danny on both cheeks after hugging him. bi poly king gregor. (he does turn out to be a liar with a phoney accent. unsurprising, BUT THE CONCEPT OF HIM BEING GENUINE AND THEM ALL DATING IS FUN)

-THE...GUYS IN WHITE THINKING GREGOR IS DANNY PHANTOM. LMAOOO. GET HIS ASS. or,, Elliot. lmfao

-sam saying tucker is part of the package because theyre friends was super sweet <3 but also 'part of the package'...polyships are obviously the solution to these dumb jealousy/love triangle plots.

-danny crashed a whole plane. the collateral damage...

-is he....

-you know....

.... (ITS NOT GAY IF YOU'RE DOING IT TO PRETEND TO BE SOMEONE YOU'RE NOT, AND LIE TO A GIRL. RIGHT? he was getting a little too into pretending to enjoy tucker's company, and the above...c'mon, guy.)

-lmao, freakshow is in actual prison. I didn't expect a follow up, or for him to show back up! in the finale of this season, too!

-THE SICK TATTOO GHOST IS NAMED LYDIA!!! more Lore On her. freakshow seemed genuinely concerned about her. also, is she mute? I don't think she talked the first time we saw her, either. and we didn't know freakshow 'envied' ghosts, either, the first time, we just knew he was controlling them. interesting!

-...they literally stole the infinity gauntlet from marvel and called it the reality gauntlet. is that legal. what the fuck. even with the gems in the lil slots, having different powers...they had freakshow in jail, but didnt check his pockets??! hes just still in his lil outfit??? what kind of ...oh, its in amity park. yeah, all of the adults are idiots, okay, sure.

-'freakshow!' 'in the anemic flesh!' dude take some iron pills then. also, sure, the red eyes could be contacts for his aesthetic, but the whites of his eyes are yellow! does he have jaundice?! he severely needs more...like, every kind of vitamin. (this is what im worried about as freakshow attacks danny with giant robots)

-again, goth circus is a sick theme, and I love his goth train.

-oh FUCK every single person saw danny transform. on a stage. including his parents via TV. oh god. the guys in white and immediately like 'youre coming in for experiments!' SCARY. at least the crowd is willing to help him to escape...perks of now being a local celeb! even the kids at school are accepting :) this is what, the third time his family has found out? its always been an alt timeline tho. and danny fully intending to just rewrite things again instead of...I dunno, trying to roll with it this time? hes really worried his family won't accept him, huh...

-'maybe our son IS THE GHOST BOY, but its not as if our family's ghostly activities have EVER PUT YOUR FAMILIES IN DANGER' maddie. mmmmmmmmmmmm. okay.

-danny 100% prepared to run away from home because of this :( oh :( and saying his parents are 'looking for him, or a scalpel to dissect him with' ouch...

-THE GUYS IN WHITE TRYING TO ARREST A 14 YEAR OLD. fuck da feds.

-side note (another one about voice actors...) freakshow's voice actor, Jon Cryer, was lex luthor in pretty much every DC tv show, which is why I recognized his voice, because my dad loves those shows so I've seen a good bit of them without seeking them out...)

-the old man saying 'hey, i still had minutes left!' and danny saying 'you gotta watch those roaming charges!' about danny destroying the people in the diner's phones so no one could report seeing him...would kids today understand these things. can you even BUY minutes anymore...I remember my first phone being a flip phone, and the fact I always had minutes when my sister ran out super fast, because I didnt have friends calling or texting me like she did...:/

-the fentons being genuinely like 'why didnt danny trust us and tell us this, we love him :(' and JAZZ LAYING INTO THEM WITH THE 'DISSECTION/MOLECULE BY MOLECULE' LINES. LITERALLLLY. they need to apologize

-technically, lydias stronger than you! -jazz lesbianism moments! when did you even learn her name!!! but also get freakshows ass. lydia is also cooler looking. looove her design sm still.

-jazz psychoanalyzing freakshow... (also, her also having ghost envy? au where jazz is a ghost!! id like to see it)

-im glad the kids still got to go to their respective vacation things, even if they cant really stick around and enjoy them much...

-furry: confirmed. (also tucker calling her hot. tucker is a furry confirmed)

-danny being mad someone at the comic con is selling comics of him without permission, lmfao. give him his royalties!

-freakshow > thanos because hes a drama clown and does use his gauntlet to be FLASHY AND DRAMATIC.

-jazz's 'USE PYSCOLOGY' to danny about freakshow LMAOO. AND THEN IT WORKING. but, oh, freakshow's ghost form sucks. I like him as a clown better tbh. good thing danny took away his ghost powers!

-his parents hugging him and saying theyre proud :"( and saying 'of course you lied to us, we never gave you a reason not to!' and saying they were in the wrong basically for always talking about hurting ghosts aaaa :""(

-then he WIPED THEIR MEMORIES AGAIN!!! FUCK. I can understand him wiping the goverments/student bodies' memories, but why his parents?? they were being accepting!! ARGHHH. season 3 couldve been them all trying to adjust to them knowing!

-I know, on a meta level the showrunners probably wanted to just reset things to the status quo of him having a secret identity. But. We've been doing that for (2) seasons, I'd love if season 3 could be like, his parents adjusting to this and trying way harder to learn more and accept it (and the shenanigans that could come from that) and for fun, if he didn't wipe the students memories, it could be him being popular for a while, then everyone slowly realizing, oh, he's still Danny. Like. he might have ghost powers but hes Just The Same Guy instead of putting him on a pedestal (and seeing them all try and help him hide it from the giw/people who don't know!!)

-fuck they didn't even explain WHY he wiped everyone except sam, tucker and jazz's memories. he just Did It right when his parents were saying they loved/accepted him!! and sam and tucker didnt question it at all!!! HELLO??? very annoyed about this turn of events.

-anyway. onto season 3! I know its shorter than the first two seasons, and is the last season... I might just do it in 2 bursts if I can... :3c depends on the episodes' content and how much I want to say about each!

[somedayonbroadway]

I think all the Newsie's AU's could be really entertaining but I would most like to know about the Leverage one and the Lilo & Stitch one.

Okay, so I had two people in a row ask for Lilo and Stitch while also requesting another outline, so I’ll be doing Lilo and Stitch very soon.

But… I LOVE this one.

So, for those of you who haven’t seen Leverage, you can watch it on Amazon Prime Video. It’s amazing and I adore it. My favorite character is Hardison. He’s everything. Nothing he says ever gets old. Hardison and Parker are literally so freaking cute that I just can’t. And I think I’ve already talked about how Spot Conlon is very similar to Eliot Spencer, at least the way I write him. So this’ll be fun.

So anyways…

Leverage AU

Characters

Jack Kelly — Nate Ford

Katherine Plumber — Sophie Devereau

Spot Conlon — Eliot Spencer

Racetrack Higgins — Parker

Albert DaSilva — Alec Hardison

Jack Kelly: The Mastermind

Jack is an alcoholic

He’s only twenty five when this story starts.

He used to work for an insurance company but after that same company let his baby brother die, refusing to pay for his treatment, Jack quit and has been a “functioning alcoholic” ever since.

Jack has anger issues that he refuses to acknowledge

Jack used to pride himself on being emotionally broken, but still never crossing over to the “dark side” of the law.

He’s the son of a numbers runner who was emotionally abusive

Was originally trying to become a catholic priest as he was strong in his faith but has since strayed a bit after losing Charlie, the only person in the world he truly loved

After meeting his team, Jack grows very protective of them, viewing them as a sort of family that he’d never really had, all except for Charlie.

Jack first meets the team when a man comes to him, begging him to keep an eye on a group of thieves as they execute a job he’s hired them for. After they are all double crossed by this man, narrowly escaping death, they come together to set things right and the team begs Jack to continue leading them as Jack shows them how good it feels to do the right thing, even if the right thing requires bending or breaking the rules.

Jack grew up extremely poor but is an excellent artist and chess player.

Jack likes to cook.

Jack loves to learn new things when he can’t drink to continue distracting himself.

Jack is the one to typically choose the clients his new team takes on.

Jack took Charlie in the second he turned eighteen, unable to trust his father who was a no good drunk.

Jack hates that he’s becoming just like his dad but refuses to stop.

Jack is more protective of Race than anyone else, as Race’s optimism and energy remind him of Charlie.

Jack serves as a mentor of sorts to Albert.

He is kept in check by Spot.

Jack is very quick witted, moving from one plan to the next as things change.

Jack gets his own father killed after a mission gone wrong.

Jack gets arrested protecting his team who he knows will go away for much longer than him for all the crimes they’ve committed.

Jack is the one who introduces the group to Katherine, the best grifter he’s ever seen, with whom he ends up falling for.

Katherine Plumber: The Grifter

Katherine is a struggling actress who can’t perform to save her life, though is the best grifter in the business.

Katherine is very careful of her identity, meaning that absolutely no one knows her real name.

Katherine speaks nearly eleven languages.

Katherine has difficulty maintaining real relationships as it’s hard to decipher her acts from reality.

Before becoming a member of Leverage she focuses heavily on art theft

After meeting the team, she bonds with Race over art

Katherine manages to fake her death twice in two years and attend her own funeral at both

As Katherine is the only woman on the team, she often feels as though she doesn’t belong, but all of her boys adore her and protect her at all costs.

Katherine has an abundance of connections around the world, though none of them know her true identity.

Prides herself on long cons that she’d pulled in the past all by herself.

Katherine never reveals how she grew up to her friend as she is very good at letting things go and never getting attached but all of that changes when Jack reaches out to her.

Katherine is wanted in five countries.

Successfully stole the Stanley Cup and replaced it with a replica, though she does not care for Hockey and did all of it out of spite because someone told her she couldn’t.

Katherine makes a game of keeping her real name from Jack as she insists he has to earn the right to know it.

Katherine falls for Jack nearly as fast as he falls for her.

Though Jack and Katherine do sleep together a few times, they agree to keep it a secret for the good of the team.

Though Katherine and Jack aren’t much older than the rest of the team, they take on a sort of parental role for Race and Albert who both grew up orphans

Katherine eventually opens up her own acting company where she finds she is an excellent coach, though she was never a performer herself because she lacked a certain truth element when she would try to perform on stage or on screen.

Katherine is very close with the whole team, but is able to relax while around Spot, as he’s more an equal to her than Race and Albert, and Jack and her have a lot of tension sometimes.

She shares the most with Spot on accident as Spot is easy to talk to.

Runs away at some point to “find herself” after an old team of hers tries to kill her and the rest of her current team and comes back just in time for Jack to be arrested, saving all of them.

Spot Conlon: The Hitter

Spot Conlon was in and out of the mob all growing up. (Eliot was black ops, but I want Spot to be younger, this is different).

He began training when he was very young and is a very skilled “retrieval specialist”

Spot has had to kill before and is ashamed of his past. When asked about it, he calmly asks his team not to get curious because he would tell them what he did 

Though the whole team consists of criminals, Spot believes them, especially Race and Albert, to be innocent and naive and he constantly looks out for them as best he can, acting as a sort of big brother for them until he catches feelings for Race (yeah sorry guys that’s gonna be different too)

Spot is very calm and never shows any kind of panic.

Spot is a trained chef

He grows up only fighting, learning to not get attached

The leverage team is his gateway to figuring out that he is capable of love

His role on the team is protection. He is always around to keep his team out of trouble when something goes wrong or even when things go right and he has to disarm people on purpose.

Spot is wicked smart and is able to discern things from noises, smells, walking patterns etc. always stating “It’s a very distinctive __”

Knows various types of martial arts and uses them regularly

Though not technically a grifter, Spot has an easy time playing different roles and can blend in easily with a crowd.

Hostage negotiator

Survivalist

He’s extremely protective of his team and is willing to go great lengths to make sure they’re safe and secure

Has a budding relationship with Albert who constantly gets himself into trouble that Spot has to get him out of.  

Was known as Sean before Race showed up and gave him a non threatening nickname based on his freckles

Can play the guitar

Manages to get shot at constantly, taking a few bullets but refusing to walk with crutches.

He loves teaching Katherine how to defend herself

Loves teaching Race knew things as well

Speaks six languages

Spot is not familiar with a lot of technology, causing him to often need Albert’s help with that kind of thing

Has rescued Race and Albert from being kidnapped or hurt the most

As times goes on, finds himself more and more in love with his team and really does love to protect them

Sees Albert as a little brother, even if he won’t admit it.

Racetrack Higgins: The Thief

Has been a thief since he was very young, maybe seven, but only gives his team made up stories about how it all started

Has a hard time coping with grief or pain, which is why he likes to make up stories about his past.

Abusive father killed Race’s mother when he was very young

Race grew up in foster care until he ran away at twelve, eventually getting raised on the street by an elite thief who spotted his talents and offered to train him, making him the best thief in the world

Is socially awkward on account of being a loner for most of his life and rarely ever opens up about his childhood

Despite this, Race is very loud and curious, almost childlike with his team, thus why Katherine and Jack become sort of parental figures toward him.

Race did have an older brother who got hit by a car when he was very young, after going out to get food for him. Race blames himself to this day.

Desperate for some kind of real family, besides the thief who trained him, Race meets an older foster brother who teaches him how to boost cars, along with “teaching him other things”. Though his is abused physically and sexually by this boy, Race doesn’t know any better and hangs on his every word, believing that the older boy wanted to help him.

Race is arrested when he’s fourteen, taking the fall for the boy who taught him how to boost cars

Race was a getaway driver at thirteen, and a good one at that.

He is constantly reminded of how he’s not normal, taking a toll on his mental stability as he’s often referred to as insane or inhuman

Race is fairly naive, but does live up to his title as the best thief in the world

Enjoys stealing diamonds more than anything else.

Quickly becomes best friends with Albert and is curious on how to get Spot to open up.

Never went to high school but is still amazingly smart as it takes a lot of math and science and so forth to be a thief.

Enjoys using tasers as a weapon of choice.

Has a bit of a sadistic mind as he enjoys watching Spot beat up on some of their enemies, especially the ones who’d tried to come at him, sometimes even visualizing that they’re the boy who left him behind after using him constantly all those years ago

Eventually does have to confront Drake again, but has his whole team to protect him.

Really loves cash

Is shocked the first time Spot kisses him because, he has been abused before, but kisses Spot again, telling him how different it feels

That’s the first time Race truly opens up about his past and Spot figures out that someone had used him

Has a fear of horses

Is not anywhere near afraid of heights

Has trust issues (obviously) despite the insistence that Albert and Spot (and of course Jack and Katherine but most Al and Spot) would never let anything happen to him

Actually trusts Jack the most as he came from the good side of the law

Does not like psychics

Katherine coaches Race in his social skills, helping him embrace his sexuality and slightly rely on those around him for connection and comfort

Race’s real name is Antonio Higgins, but he’s known across the world as only ‘Racer’

Albert DaSilva: The Hacker

Much like Race, Albert grew up in foster care, though through most of his childhood, he lived with a woman he refers to as “Nana”. Not his actual grandmother, but a foster mother who he adored and actually took care of him.

Often refers to himself as a geek and prides himself in being one as it is the “age of the geek, baby”

Is relied on heavily by the team as he makes a lot of their equipment (eg: coms, modified cell phones, button cams)

Provides CIA level aliases for his team.

Owns the teams vehicle, “Lucille” and is pissed when they manage to destroy not one model, but two

Has an unhealthy obsession with orange soda

Is physically very fit, but is not good in combat situations

Being an introvert for most of his life, Albert took to technology and learned just about everything one can about them

Albert is straight in this one (sorry for my Ralbert fans) but, as Race’s best friend, is constantly trying to subtly get Race to admit he has feelings for Spot

Though he and Spot didn’t get along too well at first, they eventually see themselves as brothers and look out for each other

Claustrophobic

Gets buried alive during a job gone wrong and is showed just how much he’s loved when his team manages to rescue him, believing him to be dead at first

Manages to keep the team very well paid and secured so the government can’t find them

Hacked into the pentagon when he was only twelve

When he was younger, his nana forced him off the computer for one hour out of every day to “give his eyes a rest from the screen” and Albert learns how to play the violin

Mostly used his skills for fun when he was younger, just wanting to prove he could do something

Skipped his senior prom to hack into medical records and get his nana on a high priority list

Has always looked out for the people he cared about

The only one Albert didn’t trust was Spot, as Spot intimidates him until Spot started showing interest in what he did, never commenting on it, but always looking very impressed

Oversells himself while grifting and often relies on Katherine to help guide him

Cares about humanity and the big picture, much like Jack. This is where their bond comes from as Katherine, Race and Spot have spent most of their lives looking out for themselves

Has a soft spot for little kids

Enjoys messing with Spot and making bets with him, even sparking in them having their own handshake which consists of them subtly high diving twice at waist level and then fist bumping. It’s often how they seal a bet or agree on a plan

What do you guys think? Any scenes you wanna see? Any other characters you wanna hear about? Let me know!

For more Mood Boards and AUs, click here!

[nellie-elizabeth]

Supernatural: Atomic Monsters (15x04)

I love it when Supernatural goes meta. Seriously, I don't think I've ever seen a show do it better. It's goofy and yet still thematically appropriate. And it's respectful of the once-in-a-lifetime fandom experience of being a person who watches Supernatural. Who grows up watching it. Let's talk about it.

Cons:

There is one thing that this show can't make its mind up about, and it's when it's cool to murder people. Like, yeah, the kid in this story was a vampire who had killed a young woman and was worried about losing control and killing again. But this episode also featured a (kind of) return of Benny, reminding us that vampires can be allies and friends, too. We've done this so many times over the years - Sam and Dean have had many debates about whether well-meaning monsters can control themselves enough to be left alive. And they've allied with people who under normal circumstances they might have just killed. Rowena. Crowley. Benny. Even Cas, if you want to get technical about it. It was painted as extremely tragic that the young man in this episode had to die. But I wanted there to be at least a conversation about it beforehand, where Sam and Dean said that yes, a normal life probably wasn't possible... but death wasn't the only option. If we can't live in the middle-ground, where exactly are we going with all of this?

I'm not surprised that Dean and Sam didn't talk about Cas in this episode. It makes sense because Misha can't be in the whole season, and Destiel just broke up in episode three. They're going to draw this sucker out just a little bit. But yeah, on a selfish note, I admit I was hoping for at least a mention. Maybe Sam could remark that Dean's good mood seems like a front, given how upset he's been about Cas. Oh well. I'm choosing to remain optimistic.

Pros:

The monster-of-the-week story was not one I'll be remembering as a favorite or anything, but it worked as a nice mirror to poor Sam's state of mind. Obviously he's sad about Jack, sad about Rowena, feeling really low about things in general... but he's also having terrible nightmares about turning evil and killing his brother. And now here we have a story about a monster who is afraid of hurting his loved ones, and who chooses to die to protect others. That's a very Sam-Winchester-y choice to make, and I know for a fact that Sam would rather die than hurt anyone, especially Dean. So the foreshadowing here was clear, even if the details of the case this week weren't especially memorable on their own merits.

And that dream at the beginning... I loved the cool lighting, the fight choreography, Dean's signature "cupping the face of my dying boyfriend loved one" move... all of it was wonderful. Jensen's directing really shone in that opening scene. And Jared played Evil!Sam so well. The fact that they brought back his psychic powers, the demon blood, and used it to frighten Sam about what he might become... all of that stuff was golden. Poor Sammy. There's a great moment before they leave for the case when Sam suggests that Dean call on another hunter, and Dean insists that Sam needs to come along. You just know that Sam is scared of hurting Dean, or of being off his A-game and causing problems. The poor darling!

The impala brotherly moment at the end was really powerful, and showcased to me how far these boys have actually come. Dean is open and honest, saying that he wants to help Sam out of his funk, that Sam helped him to believe that what they do still has a purpose, and still does some good. Sam is then honest about his own feelings right back, saying that he can't let the past go, that he still thinks about Jessica, that sometimes it all catches up to him and he feels like he can't breathe. And then, as if wanting to appease Dean and brush past the conversation, he says "maybe I'll feel better in the morning."

The Dean Winchester of earlier seasons would have let it go, stayed in a place of denial, and moved right on. But this Dean Winchester says to his little brother: "And what if you don't?"

Sam doesn't have a good answer for him, but just the fact that Dean asked shows huge character development. As far as the boys are concerned, Chuck is gone. They are free. Now they can work on their emotional well-being. They can decide what the rest of their lives look like. And as a start, Dean wants to help his little brother, and he doesn't want to shy away from the rough parts of that. I am enamored with the character development here.

But let's pivot and talk about that meta goodness. We see that in the years since we last checked in with her, Becky has gone through extensive counseling, and has gotten married and has kids. She is also still an active member of the Supernatural fandom, selling art on Etsy and writing fic. Let us just track the way that this show has talked about its fans over the seasons. In the beginning, Becky was a manic, obsessed, crazy fangirl who literally drugged Sam and forced him to marry her. Over the years, however, they have taken a different tack, treating the fandom with respect, especially in episodes like the 200th. And here, we circle back around. We have an acknowledgment that this show has been on for fifteen years, that some of the teenage girls who fell in love with it when it first started, are now grown adults with careers and families. And that these grown adults might still love the show as much as ever, might spend their time online chatting with other fans, working hard on fanfic, turning their passions into lucrative careers. And this is not mocked or derided in any way. I was gobsmacked by how respectful this interpretation of fandom was, and was so, so pleased to take a look at an old character and show real change and development.

This episode also firmly telegraphs something about the theme of this final season of Supernatural. The year 2019 has been rough for me, in terms of beloved franchises choosing to go the "dark" and "grim" and "realistic" route, what with your Game of Thrones and your Endgame and your killing off of beloved depressed bisexual characters (ahem Magicians ahem). There was a not-so-small part of me that feared that Supernatural was going to go the same direction, ending the story with some dark tragic ending, because it's the cool thing to do or whatever. But after this episode, I'm fairly confident that's not where we're headed. Chuck, our villain, wants to end the story as a tragedy. But Becky, the audience avatar, tells him exactly how much the fans will hate that. And Sam and Dean have always been about free will, in the face of insurmountable odds. So it's looking like the boys are going to earn their happiness this season. And I'm very much all about it.

I feel like there's a lot more I could say about Becky and Chuck, but I'll leave it at that. This episode had a lot of really great stuff going on in it. For once, the C-plot episodes make sense for Sam and Dean, because they truly don't know that the bigger threat is out there. We get the nostalgia factor with returning faces like Becky and Benny. We get meta-commentary on the nature of storytelling and endings. We get Sam having sinister dreams and actually confronting his own depression and trauma. I'm a pretty happy camper!

8.5/10

[roslinadama-sinequanon]

Saying Good-Bye to Yesterday-Chapter 2

In this chapter we get the emotional fallout from Emily and Ricky’s ultimatum to Jack--because I think this was glossed over a bit, as was everything to do with the annulment. Ricky explains the annulment process to Rusty.

These first 2 chapters have been heavily focused on Emily, Ricky, and Rusty, but be assured Sharon and Andy will make their appearance in the next chapter.

You can find the story in the following places:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/15321687/chapters/35979300  

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13004092/2/Saying-Good-Bye-to-Yesterday

and here...

“Our father can be a real asshole,” Ricky said. Emily nodded in agreement and made her way to the kitchen to grab a glass and a bottle of Perrier from the refrigerator. She sliced a lemon to drop in the sparkling water then leaned against the bar, looking out over the dining room and living room. Ricky followed her, only he grabbed a beer and drank it straight from the bottle.

“What are you doing?” He asked leaning in beside her.

“Just comparing this place to Dad’s. God, I hate going over there. It’s so depressing.”

“Mm…It is pretty small.” Ricky agreed. Their father’s credit was shit; the only reason he even had the small apartment he was living in was because he’d been able to convince their Uncle Phil to co-sign his lease after their mother had refused.  

“It’s not just that it’s small. My apartment in New York is a postage stamp, but Dad’s? It’s just empty. No character.” There was nothing that spoke of Jack Raydor in that apartment, nothing to show what interested him, what he loved, not even his favorite colors.  The walls were white, the furniture bland, and the drapes generic. It had the temporary feel of a man used to living in hotels. A man who knew he probably wouldn’t be there for long.

Her mother’s condo was the complete opposite. The minute you walked in you could feel Sharon Raydor. It was tasteful and elegant yet also warm and inviting. Expensive but not ostentatious. Right away, it was apparent that a cultured woman who valued the arts and the finer things lived there. It was in the dance artwork that graced her walls and the exquisitely lovely sculptures on her shelves and tables. It was in her many stylish vases and mirrors, and the large art books sitting on her coffee table.

It was in her kitchen where colorful tea sets in ruby red and eggplant and big ceramic mugs in turquoise and pumpkin spoke of a woman who loved tea, coffee, and deep rich colors.

It was in the dining room where her deep roots in the justice system were displayed with cool black and white vintage prints of true 1940’s LA crime stories, while plush comfortable chairs surrounding the dining room table and a classic dark wood wine rack storing her best bottles of vintage wine were indicative of a woman who enjoyed spending time over meals with family and friends.

It was in the living room, which was all about softness and warmth, feminine without being frilly. Light carpets over dark wood floors, furniture in shades of burnt orange and dark chocolate brown with colorful accent pillows adding a touch of whimsy. Overhead lighting was rarely used; instead, elegant lamps gave off a soft glow, fresh flowers and plants bringing a homey feel to the rooms and to the outdoor balcony overlooking the hills of Los Feliz.  The world her mother inhabited during the day was harsh and often violent; it was no wonder that when she came home she wanted to be surrounded by softness, comfort, and serenity.

With a soft sigh, she took another sip of her sparkling water, and then pushed back off the bar. “I need to get moving. I have to finish packing and get down to Costa Mesa.” She poured the ice from her glass into the sink then put the glass in the dishwasher before heading off toward her mother and Andy’s bedroom where she had spent the night.

Rusty watched her walk away in silence. He could see that she was hurting and he damned Jack for that. He knew exactly what it was like to worry about every little thing you did or said possibly causing your parent to go on a bender, what it felt like to carry the weight of that responsibility even when you knew intellectually that it was not your burden to carry. He knew what it was like to have a parent who manipulated you and made you feel guilty for every opportunity you had, every bit of happiness you had when it went against what they wanted or needed. To have a parent who constantly disappointed you, crushing whatever hope or belief you had in them. Sharon Beck and Jack Raydor had a lot in common.

“So you did end up having to threaten him.” It wasn’t a question. Rusty knew how things had gone down by Emily’s dejected walk down that hall.

“Yep.” Ricky joined him on the couch and stretched out his long legs to prop them on the coffee table. Something he would have thought twice about doing if his mother had been home. “It sucks that he made us do that. For once in his sorry, pathetic life, it would have been nice for him to just do the right thing.  I don’t think I’ll ever understand that man.”

“Be glad you don’t.” People like Jack, selfish, addicted, untrustworthy, manipulative and neglectful were all Rusty had known in his life until he’d come to live with Sharon. For Emily and Ricky, raised by Sharon, surrounded by good, decent, trustful people, their father was an aberration, a person they couldn’t understand. For him, it was Sharon and all his pseudo uncles at the PAB who had been the aberrations. It had taken him a very long time, and he still wasn’t completely there yet, to understand and believe that there were actually people out there who only cared about his well-being, without expecting anything else in return.

“Em’s taking it pretty hard. I think she really believed that when he came back into our lives again a couple years ago things were going to be different. That maybe this time he really had changed. Like that’s ever going to happen. People don’t change.”

Rusty gave him a long measured look. “Yes, they do,” he said softly. “But they have to be open to change and ready for a change.”

Ricky’s brow raised in surprised, Rusty was usually the cynical one in the bunch.  “Dr. Joe?”

“Nope. Andy. People can change, Ricky. Look at Andy. Look at me.”

Ricky took a long pull from his bottle, eyeing his younger brother. There had been a time he’d allowed Jack to manipulate him into believing that Rusty was a con artist playing on his mother’s heartstrings to get what he wanted.  He was still ashamed of the things he‘d said to her in an effort to convince her not to adopt Rusty. “You know what? You’re right. Sorry. I’m just pissed. But…” He picked up the manila folder he’d set down beside him on the couch and waved it in front of Rusty. “I also got what I went there for and that’s all I really care about.”

“So, that’s it? Now Mom and Andy can get married in the church?”

“Not exactly. There is a whole process to this thing. Father Stan explained it all to Emily and me yesterday when we picked up the papers. Mom has to sign the petition to declare the nullity of the marriage, which I have right here. She has to send that in with a filled out questionnaire, written testimony about the marriage and a list of witnesses. If the petition is accepted then the formal process begins.”

“What kind of process?”

“She’ll have to go through the Church tribunal, which is basically a Catholic Church court with the Bishop as the judge.  They’ll investigate and question witnesses. Mom will have an advocate to plead her case and the church will have a representative that will argue for the validity of the marriage. Father Stan said things would be a lot quicker and easier if we could get Dad to co-sign the petition because he won’t be arguing the case with his own advocate.”

“So, he could have contested Mom’s petition?”

“Yes, and that could have drawn things out for years. We made sure that wouldn’t happen today.”

“I didn’t think it was going to be that hard. I thought if Jack signed the papers that would pretty much be it. This sounds like it could take a long time.”

“It used to take a lot longer. They’ve streamlined it all over the past few years and, as I said, without Dad contesting, it should go a lot faster. “

“What if she doesn’t win?”

“She can appeal.”

Rusty shook his head. “It seems like an awful lot to go through just so she can get married in the church. They could get married anywhere. Why is the church so important to Mom anyway? I mean I know she goes to mass a lot, but I don't go to church, do you?”

“I'm an Easter Catholic. Look, it's not about us. It's about Mom. You gotta understand. The church was there for her. It was her support system when we were growing up. You see this,” he gestured to encompass the expensive condo. “But there was a time we didn’t have this.  I was too young to remember when my Dad walked out but I know the church and the parishioners took Mom under their wing and helped her with daycare and after-school programs and with our school tuition. We didn’t have any family in California so the church became our family, especially once Em and I were at St. Joes. We were always going to church picnics and suppers; it was a place where we belonged.“

“Gram and Gramps are rich. Why didn’t they help her out?”

“Yeah, there was no way Mom was going to ask them for help. You know how stubborn she is. She doesn’t like to ask anyone for help, especially when it comes to Gram and Gramps and Dad.”

“Why?” Technically, though he didn‘t share their last name, he was a Raydor, but he still didn’t know all the family dynamics.

“Gram and Gramps didn’t want her to marry Dad, or, at the least they wanted her to wait until after she finished law school to get married. Mom didn’t listen to them. She married him as soon as she graduated and, well, as you probably know, things didn’t quite work out like she planned. I think she was embarrassed about that and didn’t want them to know how bad things were. She was always glossing it over with them. But, when Dad left the second time, along with her savings and our college funds, Gramps flew out and between him, Mom and Gavin they straightened things out financially. That’s when she got the legal separation. I heard her tell Aunt Christine once that Dad was her cross to bear. She made her bed and now she had to lie in it. You know how big she is about taking responsibility for your mistakes.”

“That isn’t fair. She couldn’t know how Jack would turn out. She isn‘t responsible for his mistakes.”

“We all know that. I think now, she does too. Anyway, once she got back on her feet, she started being able to give back and help others. I know she donates a lot of money to St. Joe’s scholarship fund for other parents struggling with tuition and she donates her time at the battered women’s shelter and doling out food for the homeless.”

“Yeah, she’s had me go with her to help out a few times.” The first time Sharon brought him to LA Catholic Worker Soup Kitchen, the kindness and lack of judgment in the people working there had been eye-opening. For so long he’d avoided finding help in places like that, ashamed of what he’d been doing, afraid of judgment, and most of all afraid they would contact DCS and he’d end up in back in foster care. Life would have been a lot easier if he’d accepted their help.

Ricky nodded. “She used to bring Em and me too. The charitable side of the church is really important to her and that’s the way she raised us. I may not get to church every Sunday but I still help out with a local mission when I can.  The church has always been Mom’s moral compass. When I was a kid griping about having to go to mass, I used to ask her why she liked going to church and she always said that the traditions and rituals of the mass give her comfort and peace. It centers her. I think maybe she needs that even more  with the job she has.”

“I still hate that she’s going to have to go through all this.”

“Me too. Father Stan warned us that it isn’t going to be easy. These things tend to dredge up a lot of painful memories. So, we’re going to have to be there for her. Emily and I are going to be relying on you to call us and let us know if you see things are getting tough.”

“Yeah. Of course.” The fact that he was the sibling closest to their mother, even if only due to proximity as the only sibling still living at home, still felt strange at times. Especially on a day like today when he was feeling a bit like an outsider. He was more than happy not to be Jack’s child, one addicted parent was more than enough, but when his brother and sister had gone off to their father’s apartment, it had only served to remind him that Sharon and her biological children had a whole history of which he was not a part. They shared a bond that he could never fully understand.

“I hope that by getting Dad to sign the papers we are able to make it a little easier for her.”

“Now we just have to hope that Nicole comes through.”

*****

Emily sat heavily on the edge of her mother’s bed; well technically, it was her mother and Andy’s bed now. Emotionally and physically, she felt drained. When she’d arrived yesterday, it was the first time she’d been in the room since Andy moved in a few months ago, though there were only a few changes that she could discern; The rack in the walk-in closet now holding his suits, dress shirts, ties, and suspenders, the row of male dress shoes, loafers and sneakers and the new dresser on the right side of the bedroom with pictures of his daughter and her family, his parents and the surprising one of her mother wearing a low cut, cleavage-revealing red dress smiling flirtatiously at the camera. It was a picture she had never seen before. When she brought it out to ask Rusty about it, he said that Andy had brought it from his house and that it had been taken in a photo booth at Nicole’s wedding reception.  Andy also said that she was smiling at him when the photo was taken. If that was the case, there had definitely been a spark between them long before they were officially dating. Her mother was sending out some seriously playful, sexy vibes in that look.

With a sigh, she leaned back and rubbed at a headache that was starting in her temples. Tension. That meeting with her father was something she had been dreading from the moment she, Ricky, Rusty, and Nicole had come together with the plan to make sure their parents got their annulments. While Ricky had been very sure of their actions, she was more conflicted, worried about upsetting their mother and setting off their father. Now, she was very glad she had gone along with the plan. Whatever questions she’d had about whether getting involved was the right thing to do or not had been quickly answered. Jack’s combative response had shown them quite clearly that he would never have simply given his consent to the nullification of the marriage. So, in that, they achieved their goal.

But there had been a price.

Ricky tried to warn her that it was going to go down the way that it had but, stupid naïve little fool that she was, she held out hope, as she always did, that her father might turn out to be a better person than he was. In actuality, he was worse. During her childhood, she had seen him mean and aggressively on the offense like that with her mother occasionally---usually about his drinking, but never with her and Ricky. Mom would never have tolerated that and in any case, he was usually on the defensive with them, trying to apologize, making excuses and promising to do better by them. All of it complete bullshit.

Confronting her father with the pain he’d inflicted on her and on their family had been surprisingly cathartic. It was a relief to release some of that repressed anger and pain. Still, it bothered her; it really bothered her that he hadn’t agreed to sign the papers because it was the right thing to do, because he needed to make amends, or even because he owed them. Even after Ricky damn near bared his soul about what it was like to transition from a little boy to a man without having a father to help him, he hadn’t budged. It was the first time she had ever really heard her brother’s perspective on not having a father during adolescence. Ricky wasn’t the kind of person to dwell on his feelings; things just seemed to roll off his back.  Apparently, that wasn‘t completely the case. Today she learned that her brother was harboring some very deep seeded resentment. Today she learned that despite whatever loss she felt at not having a father in her life, she was actually the lucky one.

Growing up she had a loving, attentive mother to help her navigate the transition from little girl to young woman, a mother who had gone through all those same changes and who could anticipate what kinds of questions and fears she might have and could understand everything she was going through. She couldn’t imagine what it would have been like not to have a mother to explain to her how her body was changing and to assure her that everything she was going through was perfectly normal.

Her mother had guided her through the physical and emotional aspects of menstruation, assuring her that it was nothing to be embarrassed about, that she too hadn’t started her period until she was 13, and yes, of course, she could still go swimming. She was the voice of experience when discussing the various types of hygiene products. She was there with open arms the day she came home from school having stained her khakis because her period had come early, understanding the need she had to cry out her mortification. She knew what to do when the cramps hit, advising a heating pad some ibuprofen and a cup of chamomile tea.

Her mother had taken her shopping for her first training bra, laughing with her over what exactly their boobs were training for and letting her pick out the pretty pink and lavender ones with the bows. Her mother was there to teach her how to use a curling iron and a straight iron, how to put on makeup and shave her legs and even how to use a tampon.  The value of learning those things from someone who loved her, someone who had been through it all, experienced it all and understood how she was feeling was something she had taken for granted. Not anymore. Because of their father’s selfishness, Ricky’s adolescence was an entirely different experience from hers.

And rather than feeling bad about everything, rather than doing what his kids were asking of him as a way of trying to make things right, Jack’s unresponsiveness to their pain and their calls to his better angels had forced them into blackmail.

Sign the papers or never see them again.

That was what had done it. He’d finally signed the papers only because he didn’t want to die alone. Oh, and because he couldn’t stand the thought of Andy Flynn being his future grandchildren’s only grandfather. It was always about him, what he wanted and needed. It had never been about them and it never would be. Her mother once said that a relationship with Jack was always going to be on his terms and she had to decide whether she was able to live with that or not or he would just continue to make her miserable. Well, today, she and Ricky changed that dynamic. The relationship was on their terms now. But at what cost?

Her eyes swimming with tears, Emily reached blindly into the top drawer of mother’s nightstand to grab a tissue. Padding around inside, she had to remove a couple of bottles to get to the tissue box. Pulling out a few sheets, she wiped at her eyes and blew her nose, vowing to stop letting her father get to her. She had to accept who he was and all he was capable of giving if she was going to be able to move on and keep him even on the periphery of her life. With that resolution and her eyes now cleared of tears, she turned to put everything back in the drawer, grabbed one of the bottles, and froze. A wave of heat immediately rose in her face as she read the label on the small clear bottle…

Uberlube.

Oh dear God, she had just grabbed her mother and Andy’s lube. Dropping it back in the drawer like a hot potato, she eyed the other blue bottle sitting on the table both hesitant and a little curious to see what was in it. Lifting it like it might bite; she turned it around to read, ‘Euphoria, organic sensual warming massage oil.’ Yeah, that was no better. Andy might not have a huge presence in the condo at the moment but he was definitely present in her mother’s bed. She dropped the bottle in with the other and rose with a shudder, trying not to envision the kinds of things that her mother and her lover were doing in that bed or to dwell on the fact that at the moment, her mother had a sexier private life than she did.

It’s not like she wasn’t aware that her mother now had an active sex life, she just finished spending several days sharing a suite with her and Andy--the two being nearly caught in the act by little Scotty--- but it was something she was still in the process of getting used to.

Her father hadn’t lived with them since she was 7 years old and if her mother had dated after her legal separation, she never brought a man home to meet her and Ricky. When she was 13 or 14 she overheard a rumor that her mother was seeing Ricky’s pee wee football coach and that when she broke things off with him he retaliated by not playing Ricky, even though he‘d always been a starter. Rumor had it that she showed up at the next practice, waited until all the kids were gone to the locker rooms then laid into the guy with the fearsome wrath of a lioness protecting her cub. Ricky not only played in the next game, he was a starter again. Whatever the truth of the matter, nothing ever came of the relationship and that was really all she‘d ever heard when it came to her mother and men. She wasn’t naïve enough though to think that her mother had been celibate for the 20 years between her father and Andy, no matter what her brothers wanted to think. She was a beautiful, vital woman and once Emily had become a teenager, she had been able to recognize the way men looked at her for what it was.

As a little girl, she was proud of having such a beautiful mother. But by the time she became a gawky teen with a dancers chest and braces, that pride turned into something else entirely. The day she a boy she had a massive crush on ogling her mother’s legs only to be told, “I can’t help it; your mom is a babe. And I’m not the only guy who thinks she’s a MILF,” it had played on every insecurity she had about herself and released a wave of suppressed emotion. She lashed out at her bewildered mother accusing her of turning on the sex appeal when in fact, she was wearing the same slim-fitting pencil skirt and stiletto’s she always wore to work. Somehow, that only made it worse. Her mother didn’t even have to try.

Her friends thought she was so lucky having such a pretty, stylish mom but she didn’t feel so lucky, at least not then. Like most teenage girls she was filled with angst over her looks and body image and having a beautiful mother in her face every day didn‘t help with that at all. Back then, she actually envied the girls with plain, plump and frumpy mothers, as they wouldn’t come up lacking in comparison the way she always felt around her mother. But that was a long time ago. Before she’d come into her own, as her mother had always insisted she would, and grown confident in her own looks and body.  

Still, whatever her mother’s appeal, until Andy she never openly dated a man so Emily never really thought too much about her sex life or lack thereof.

Rusty was the one who brought it to her attention. A little bubble of laughter started in her chest as she remembered the phone call she’d gotten from her youngest brother who was all in a dither.  Their mother had been dating Andy for a little while and evidently, the relationship was moving into one of greater intimacy. She’d thought it only fair and courteous to warn Rusty that there were going to be times when Andy would be spending the night. She didn’t want him to be shocked or taken by surprise to see him coming out of her bedroom or to find him in the shower or sitting at the dining room table in his pajamas. Rusty was so appalled by the very idea of them sleeping together, not because he didn’t like Andy, but because, “I don’t want Andy doing THAT to my mother! “, she burst into laughter, which only frustrated him more. It had taken her several minutes to pull him off the sex train and look beyond the coitus, to quote Sheldon Lee Cooper, to see what was really happening. Their mother’s relationship with Andy was progressing. It was becoming deeper and more serious and that was a good thing.

Still smiling at the memory, Emily forced herself to rise and start packing the few things she had taken out of her suitcase after traveling across the country.  Walking by her mother’s dresser, she paused and took a moment to look at the pictures she had on display. They were the same pictures she’d seen dozens of times, at least a few of them, but with the conversation at her father’s still fresh in her mind, painful childhood memories drawn back to the surface, she now looked at them with a new perspective.

Lifting one of the pictures, she gazed down taking it all in as if for the first time. Her mother was standing at the 50-yard line on a football field wearing an oversized St. Joseph‘s Cougars football jersey, number 12. Towering over her all rigged out in his shoulder pads and Cougar’s uniform, matching number 12, Ricky had his arm around her and was handing her a single rose. It was senior night, his last home football game, a chance for the players to thank their parents, only in this case it was just his mom, alone, but smiling with pride.  

Had she ever really taken the time to notice just how alone her mother had been over the years? Of course, it was hard growing up without a father. Of course, she and Ricky had suffered, but what about their mother? All those years as a wife without a husband.

Setting it back down, she reached for the picture next to it. She knew this one very well because she had a copy of it in her apartment in New York. Her mother was dressed more formally this time, her hair in an elegant up-do. Emily smiled, remembering the moment well. It was her first performance with ABT at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City. Her mother was smiling from ear to ear as she handed her a huge bouquet of red roses. Though she’d sent an invitation, her father had not attended. In fact, he had yet to see her dance professionally. He promised to go down and see her in Costa Mesa but she wasn’t holding her breath

The third photo was her mother and Rusty, arms wrapped around each other’s waists. Mom was beaming, Rusty smiling shyly. It was the day of his adoption and the condo was filled with people there to celebrate. In the back, just off her mother’s shoulder, she could see a bit of Andy Flynn smiling toward the mother and her new son. That’s where he’d been at that time, just on the outside of her life, close the circle but not quite in.

Just to the right of the three pictures of her kids was a large 5X7 of Andy. The last time she visited that picture had been on the nightstand beside the bed, probably so it was the last thing her mother saw before she went to sleep.  Now with Andy having moved in, she had the real thing by her side every night, which was probably why she had moved the picture to place amongst the family photos. It was a close-up. He was wearing a black t-shirt, a denim jacket, and a little grin. Andy really was a very good-looking man. And, honestly, what woman could ever resist a man with a devilish twinkle in his eye? It was no wonder he had caught her mother’s attention. The first time she saw the picture and commented on it her mom said she had taken it on a night she and Andy had driven out to the desert to watch a meteor shower. She also said, with an affectionate smile, that it was her favorite picture of him, which was another reason why she probably hadn’t put it away.

In the last picture, her mother was no longer alone. She was in Andy Flynn‘s arms. He‘d finally made it to the middle of the circle, no longer hanging off in the background waiting to be let in. He was wearing a plaid flannel shirt in various shades of blue and black while her mother wore a light blue cashmere turtleneck sweater. It was uncanny how often their clothes matched. They were standing in Griffith Park, surrounded by greenery. Her mother’s arms were locked around Andy’s torso, her head resting against his shoulder, while his arm was closed protectively around her pulling her in as if to hold her closer, his cheek brushing against the top of her head. They looked so happy.

Setting it back down, Emily felt her chest filling with warmth. As awful as it had been to see her father’s true colors, the end result was worth it. After everything her mother had done and sacrificed for her and Ricky over the years, it felt good, really, really good, finally to be able to do something for her for a change. It wasn’t going to be easy, there were still a lot of hurdles to be crossed, but her mom was going to finally get her happily ever after and it lifted her heart to know that in some small way, she was a part of that.

Now, she could only hope that when her mother found out what they had done, she would understand.

[mwolf0epsilon]

What are the Top 10 most undignified (and hilarious) villain defeats you've ever seen in media?

Oooh boy, I’ve never really thought much of villain defeats, mostly because getting them out of the picture has always felt somewhat satisfying to me, no matter the execution.But there are at least 10 assholes I think got what they deserved in pretty funny ways. I’ll be counting down from 10 from least satisfying to most satisfying:

10 - Mitch Conner (South Park: The Fractured But Whole) - I don’t know, there’s something very unsatisfying about Cartman getting away with shit despite all the horrors he puts you through in the game. So when Mitch Conner was finally defeated by, you guessed it, Cartman himself and his other character Mrs. Conner, it didn’t sit well with me.Sure, Cartman makes a complete fool of himself in front of a crowd, but the people of South Park aren’t smart. They don’t realize they’ve been conned, which unnerved me to no end. And the worst part? You’re left with no other option but accept it for what it is and carry on with your day as if nothing happened. Bullshit.

9 - Lord Business (The Lego Movie) - It’s an undignifying defeat in a very different way to the rest of the villains on the list, mostly because it breaks the role completely. Emmet’s speech at the climax of the final battle hit me hard when I first saw the movie. As an artist I understood what it was like to feel unmotivated and overlooked when there were better artists out there who could do so much more than I could. Lord Business felt like a more personal villain to me in terms of what his role really was.So his defeat, ending with him turning good and still getting blown up, just to get back up again and fix things? It certainly is undignifying to a villain, but not so much for an actual person, which is why I enjoy this defeat so much, yet don’t really count it as much of a villain defeat, rather, turning a new leaf.

8 - The Fabrication Machine (Shane Acker’s 9) - There’s something somewhat sad about this defeat that I never could put my finger on until recently. The Fabrication Machine is the result of corruption, a machine taken from it’s creator and forced to endlessly build for a cruel man. Its revolt was innevitable and its next acts were monstrous…But seeing it defeated at the end, through the same means it took the lives of more than half of the stitchpunks? It left me with a bitter taste in my mouth afterwards. Perhaps because it felt to me like the B.R.A.I.N. could have been so much more if it had just had the chance instead of being forced into a life of slave labor…

7 - Handsome Jack (Borderlands 2) - This one has an explanation and a half. Handsome Jack is one of those villains you love to hate, because they are exceptionally good at being a villain. So why would I place him so low on my scale? Well…If you listen through his final dialog you don’t get the option to kill him yourself. Lilith does, and it angered me to no end that she’d cut him short when I’ve always loved hearing the final monologue of a well written villain. It felt like your victory was being robbed from you, and while Jack getting shot for his troubles was indeed an undignified death after the hassle it was to end him, it was still not a sweet victory…With that said, fuck you Lilith, why couldn’t you just let me savour the moment?!

6 - Scar/Gaston/Clayton (Disney’s The Lion King/Beauty and the Beast/Tarzan) - At number six we have a bit of a tie. Scar, Gaston and Clayton were always three villains I vividly remembered as a kid. They were charming, they were cunning, they were terrifying when they had to be, at least in the perspective of 7 year old Eps. They also had very satisfying defeats that, because they held the same meaning to me, ended up being placed kinda low on my scale. It doesn’t feel fair putting them above one another so they share the same level of scrutiny. They are also low because I don’t think they got enough after what they did.They make up for it for having pretty brutal deaths tho, which are still somewhat satisfying when I watch them to this very day. Their blind ambitions got them in the end.

5 - Frank Fontane (Bioshock) - In the middle of the scale we have Frankie “Atlas” Fontane himself. I see him as the perfect medium between unsatisfying and satisfying because, while technically you’re not the one who gets to kill him in the end, it felt pretty good watching the little sisters he’s tormented for so long going to town on his sorry excuse for an ass.Big and strong won’t do you good when the juices that keep you going get stabbed out by needle-weilding angry children. Sucks to be you buddy, now would you kindly shut the fuck up and let Jack live his own life?

4 - D-Reaper (Digimon Tamers) - This one comes off as a bittersweet defeat. It’s no less satisfying but the aftermath of the deconstruction of the D-Reaper is what kicked me in the gut.On one hand I was happy to see this programming mishap gone, on the other I was upset that the only way to do it involved sacrificing the Tamers’ digimon as well. It was a good defeat but the price always felt heavy to me in the end. It’s why Digimon Tamers is my favorite incarnation of the Digimon Series. It always felt heavier in context of self-sacrifice and trying to make things right. A++ final battle, lots of angst and self-reflection moments, good final villain, and very clever execution of its termination.

3 - Chakal (The Book of Life) - For me, bigger is usually better. I’m a sucker for stupidly big characters, so having a villain who is ridiculously big compared to his enemies? It was awesome to see so many people determined to defeat the towering beast that was Chakal, even more so when Manolo, Maria and Joaquin worked together to defend their home town. The final part of the battle however, took the cake.Manolo’s clever thinking and Joaquin’s quick reaction was the final push for Chakal’s imminent defeat, via a well placed bell tower and a LOT of explosives. This one felt satisfying to me because of just how much of a kick those explosives really had. They were just as powerful as Chakal himself, which we don’t really take into consideration since Manolo came out alright thanks to the medal…But consider this: Nothing was left of the bandit king, so yeah, he was completely desintegrated.Go big or go home right? Or in this case, don’t go home at all because you are GONE for good.

2 - Thighten (Megamind) - Lets face it, Hal Stewart was the biggest animated creep of 2010. He’s one of those so called Nice Guys who flirts awkwardly with very creepy subtext, then when he doesn’t get what he wants, he reacts violently just because he’s bigger and stronger.The more of him was on screen, the more disgust I felt of him, because it was obvious he didn’t care about Roxanne or anyone else, just of himself and his big ego. So seeing this guy, who’s gone and become the perfect picture of brawny asshole, being outsmarted by someone physically weaker than him? It felt satisfying to no end. Big isn’t always better. Sometimes clever is all you need.

1 - Ernesto de la Cruz (Disney Pixar’s Coco) - From the moment it was revealed Ernesto killed Hector without a second thought just to steal his songs and guitar as a means to rise to fame, I knew I HATED him, specially because I’d begun liking him during his bonding scene with Miguel. It felt like I’d been backstabbed. He’s a pretty well written villain in the sense that you don’t realise he’s the villain until he is exposed as such. He’s charismatic, funny and cunning. Also very ambitious and willing to put himself before others, which is a terrifyingly bad mix. Re-living his undignified death after being tossed around by a pissed off flying jaguar was definitly well deserved, and the loud crash of the bell hitting him marked the end of his many victories in life.

[roseisread]

You Make Me Not Wanna Die: The return of the Pop Menagerie playlist! It’s been way too long since I posted anything on this blog. My only excuse is that I’ve had a crazy year in my personal life and sometimes internet things take a back seat to self care. But right now, I think my best form of self care is listening to and sharing my pop culture faves so I’m back to do just that. I’m starting off with a playlist that contains songs I love to sing along to, cry along to, dance along to, write along to, and think along to. Almost all of these songs are from albums released in 2017, although there may be an exception here or there for songs released earlier that I only discovered recently.  In any case, here you go. Enjoy!  1. Allie X - That’s So Us If you love Carly Rae Jepsen, you should love Allie X. This song makes me so happy, and also it makes me cry sometimes because it reminds me of those people that you really can be yourself around and they love you anyway. Those people are rare and wonderful, and if you are one of them for me, then thank you. “You make me not wanna die,” as the song says. I love that line so much I used it to title this playlist.  2. The Drums - Shoot the Sun Down Remember these guys? Kind of sunny indie pop, hit it big with “I Don’t Know How To Love” off of their album Portamento back in 2012? Yeah. They are still here, still awesome, and the album this came from just gives me shivers it’s so freaking great. Also, I joke that this song is dedicated to my cat when she tries to bite and scratch me at night, because of that repeating line, “I put a blanket over my face.” Nena, this one’s for you. 3. Knuckle Puck - Conduit I have such a goddamn soft spot for emo-leaning pop punk, you guys. I can’t even lie. As a bonus, they’re from the Chicago area so technically I can claim them as a local band. This song reminds me of the best of Blink 182, early Jimmy Eat World, and maybe even a little Brand New. I also love the lyrics, with their references to grinding teeth and lucid dreams. Definitely relatable for me. 4. MUNA - End of Desire You might be familiar with MUNA if you love Tegan and Sara, because this band appears on The Con: X covering Relief Next To Me. I love the way their voices blend, and I love the vulnerability of the lyrics. This song is open to interpretation, but it seems to allude to having feelings for another person that you didn’t ask for but can’t get rid of. Who hasn’t been there?  5. Kiasmos - Jarred The Icelandic duo is back with more incredible, chilly electronic tunes that almost sound like icicles forming or frost creeping up the inside of your window pane in the night. This song definitely makes me want to hop the next plane to Reykjavik and spend a week sipping dark liquor in some poorly lit club that only the locals know about.  6. MUTEMATH - War You know about my love of MUTEMATH by now. Their latest album goes in so many different directions musically--not just from one song to the next but within the space of a single track. This one is a banger live, and one of my favorites on the album. Lyrically, it reminds me of my own not so great tendency to get heated as I try to convince someone they’re wrong and I’m right. A good debate is healthy sometimes, but not everything needs to be a battle for the ages. “War’s in my nature,” all right. But I’m trying to find a way toward peace. 7. Cat Dealers/Groove Delight - Calabria This is just a sick dance track. I can’t claim to know all that much about Cat Dealers, although I know they hail from Rio de Janeiro and that this song makes me want to tear it up on the dancefloor or the living room or the driver’s seat of my car. Groove Delight is Brazilian as well, making me think I probably need to go to Brazil sooner rather than later to discover what other booty shaking gems I’ve been missing.  8. Converge - A Single Tear Can you believe these guys have been around for 27 years? This song encapsulates so many things I love about them, from their always insane percussion to the insistent guitar melodies to the impassioned vocals of Jacob Bannon. The lyrics (which allude to “holding you for the first time,” presumably about becoming a parent) are so sweet, a word that doesn’t probably come up in a lot of reviews of metal and hardcore songs but still, I stand by it.  9. Luna Shadows - Jesus Christ (Brand New cover) I have always loved this song, and it’s awesome to hear a young up and coming artist take it on. She really puts her own spin on this classic of the emo genre, and I look forward to hearing more original tunes from her.  10. ROMES - Someone I just saw these guys open for MUTEMATH and they have so much energy live! Canadian by way of Ireland, they bring out anthemic indie pop tunes that are just irresistible. I’m reminded a little bit of Peter Gabriel and a little bit of Bastille, but not in a derivative way.  11. Fever Ray - Red Trails Ahhhhh! Fever Ray is back!!!! It’s been way too long since we’ve heard from her, but the album that she just released online helps make up for the absence because it just kills. She still has that haunting, hypnotic voice layered on top of unexpected instrumentation and arrhythmic beats. The lyrics are mysterious and dark. There’s something sexy about it but not in a Britney Spears way. She sounds kind of dangerous but you can’t help but want to follow her wherever she’s going.  12. ABRA - Bounty Speaking of hypnotic and sexy, ABRA is definitely both. Based in Atlanta, she sounds like she’s based in another planet altogether. Her off kilter brand of R&B does not fit any category--she has this supple voice that leads us along across breathy beats and frantic counter melodies. It’s unsettling and gorgeous at the same time.  13. Tove Lo - Disco Tits Tove Lo is my ride or die. She’s unabashedly herself in all her nympho trashy glory, and I adore her for it. I promise I’m not into club drugs, but Euro pop songs about them sure are fun. I put this song on the car radio when I’m driving to work just to wake myself up and then have to make sure my phone volume is on mute before I walk into the office because “nipples are hard ready to go” is probably not appropriate lyrical content for the workplace.  14. Golden Features - Funeral Tom Stell, aka Golden Features, has sold out tours in his native country of Australia but it won’t belong before he’s selling out everywhere. This track makes me want to see him in an underground dance club at 4am. It’s fire.  15. Jessie Ware - Stay Awake, Wait For Me Another one of my faves is back! I love her upbeat songs but this is one of those instant classic pop ballads, and I had to find a spot for it on this list. It’s intimate and romantic and sexy in a grown up way. Don’t put this song on if you’re trying to be celibate, is all I’m saying.  16. Hundred Waters - Particle If you miss Imogen Heap/Frou Frou, you should most definitely be listening to Hundred Waters. Nicole Miglis has that hushed tone in her voice that belies intense feeling, and the skittering electronic elements fill the spaces in between as a sort of musical representation of anxiety and uncertainty. This song, about a romantic coupling that seems lopsided. “I’m only a particle, a drop in you, forever dissolving,” she sings. Damn. 

17. The Tuts- Dump Your Boyfriend What’s not to love about this UK based garage girl group? This song describes the kind of toxic relationship that it’s easy to criticize from the outside but harder to shake when you’re the one who’s in love with an asshole.  18. Fellwarden - Sun of an Ending This kind of moody, atmospheric black metal is so soothing to me. It feels ancient and primal, like the old gods are still roaming the land slaying dragons and protecting those that live in their realm. If you’re a black metal fan, you may recognize the vocals as those of Fen frontman The Watcher.   19. Palehound - Silver Toaster On Boston-based Palehound’s second album, the writing sounds more self-assured and the songs even more personal than those on the debut. Frontwoman Ellen Kempner attributes this in part to being more comfortable in her own skin as a queer-identifying woman, and in part to being in her first healthy adult relationship. This song is short and simple, but I love the unexpected turns of phrase and imagery, like the line, “hack off my split ends.” There are plenty of bands doing the whole DIY stripped down aesthetic, but this one rises above the rest. If you were into artists like Kimya Dawson and Mary Lou Lord, you should definitely be paying attention to Palehound. 

20. Kelsea Ballerini - Miss Me More Nominated for a Best New Artist Grammy earlier this year, Kelsea Ballerini hits the ground running on her latest release. She’s been writing songs since she was 12 years old and listening to Britney, Christina, and N Sync. Something about the fact that she considers Shania her biggest influence really charms me. I am obsessed with this song, which I can relate to on a very personal level. Sometimes you don’t realize how much you’ve compromised yourself for another person until you don’t have them in your life anymore and suddenly the real you starts to re-emerge.  21. The Maharajas - Too Late To Repent If you hear this song and think it must be a re-release of some little known 1960s garage rock/British Invasion group, I don’t blame you. I wondered that myself. But it turns out these Swedish dudes have only been active since the 90s, and they are still recording music that sounds like it’s from a bygone era. A little Kinks, a little Beatles, a little surf rock--it’s all here and it’s all great.  22. Margo Price - Don’t Say It This Illinois native was signed by Jack White to Third Man Records, and she recorded her debut album at Sun Studios in Memphis. Both of those things make sense upon hearing her traditional country sound. She has one of those clear, classic voices that really do harken back to the Lorettas and Patsys and Tammys. Her second album even features a duet with Willie Nelson, proving that she’s definitely earned her classic country bonafides.  23. Peaness - Skin Surfing OK, yes, initially I was drawn to this 3-piece English band because of their silly name. But once I heard the first guitar strums and vocal harmonies, I was truly done for. Formed in 2014, they have songs about everything from wasting food just because it doesn’t look aesthetically pleasing (”Ugly Veg”) to George Osborne of Brexit fame (”Oh George”). This song is very seductive while staying playful and affirming consent. I dig the occasional Veruca Salt vibes it dips into as well.  24. Dori Freeman - Ern & Zorry’s Sneakin’ Bitin’ Dog I guess an acapella song about a mean neighbor dog might be an odd choice for a playlist but it’s so adorable I couldn’t leave it out. Dori Freeman, who cites Peggy Lee and Rufus Wainwright as her major influences, hails from Virginia and her songs have an Appalachian flavor. I predict a T-Bone Burnett collaboration in her future.    25. The Blow - Summer It’s hard to believe The Blow has existed in some form for going on 20 years, but it’s true. The K Records vets continue to release hypnotic, electronic indie pop with a lo-fi feel, and this song has been stuck in my head from the first listen. It’s a simple melody but good luck escaping that hook.  26. Austra - Beyond a Mortal The Canadian dark wave is back with their third album, this time recorded in Mexico. For this particular track, singer Katie Stelmanis says she recorded the vocals over 100 times to achieve the hushed, whispery effect. The rest of the album, titled Future Politics, is a meditation on the state of the world as it is now and what we all wish it could become.  27. MGMT - Little Dark Age Finally! It’s been 5 years since MGMT’s last album, and even longer since the world sat up and took notice of them. This lead single off their upcoming album makes me think that they’re poised to re-take the synth pop throne. This song has elements of their earliest work, but it also incorporates bits of industrial and even krautrock. I listen and think Depeche Mode! Kraftwerk! Skinny Puppy! So many of my musical faves somehow distilled into a single track. I can only hope that the rest of the album lives up to this single. 28. Charlotte Gainsbourg - Ring-a-Ring O’Roses To me, there’s always been an otherworldly quality to Charlotte Gainsbourg’s voice. She took some time off from music to do some acting, notably in Lars Von Trier’s Nymphomaniac volume 1 and volume 2 and Melancholia. Those films required heavy lifting and emotional degradation, which perhaps allowed her to tap into a deeper place when recording the songs for this album, her first in seven years. The video for this song features Gainsbourg’s son, carrying on the family tradition started by Charlotte and her father Serge Gainsbourg.  29. Sun Glitters - Where the End Begins If there’s one thing I love, it’s shimmery electronic music. And Sun Glitters, who hails from Luxembourg, produces just that. Rarely does an artist’s name so aptly describe their sound, but this is one such perfect marriage. If you enjoy the likes of Gold Panda, Boards of Canada, Fennesz, Teen Daze, or Blackbird Blackbird, you will definitely dig this sound. 

[foxcantswim]

Twelve x Clara Whouffaldi - Two Worlds Apart Chapter 1

AU - TIME LORDS VS HUMANS

A New War Has Arrived. The Time Lords Vs The Humans. One rebel Time Lord, known as the Doctor, is the only one who doesn't want the war. He meets a group of humans who also don't agree with the war... but the Doctor doesn't know that. He fears that if he tells the humans that he is a Time Lord they will kick him out. He ends up meeting a human, but she looks oddly familiar. Who is she? 

“HUMANS AND TIME-LORDS ARE FORBIDDEN FROM CO-OPERATING WITH ONE ANOTHER. IF YOU SUSPECT THAT THERE MAY BE ANY FORBIDDEN ACTIVITY - PLEASE CALL THE NUMBER BELOW. YOU WILL BE CONSIDERED AN ASSOCIATE IF YOU DO NOT ALERT THE NEAREST STATION. TIME LORDS ALERT OTHER TIME LORDS. HUMANS ALERT OTHER HUMANS. THIS IS WAR. NO PEACE WILL COME FROM IT.” - (These signs were everywhere... Clara had noticed that the number of them grew larger by the day. The Doctor had noticed that the number of them grew larger by the day.)

A War. A War that could be considered the same level of devastation as the Time War. Except the only species that are in this war... Are the Humans and the Time Lords. The two factions have never agreed with one another- the General of Gallifrey had declared war upon Earth and it has been going on for almost two hundred years. Yes, the Time Lords were indeed a lot more powerful than the Humans... But a resource was spreading across the Earth... A resource that can end a Time Lord's life within seconds. No more regenerations. And that resource is: Azbantium. It's used to keep Time Lords locked away in a prison as he takes billions of years to destroy.

A traitorous Time Lord had 'accidentally' left a small piece of Azbantium in a UNIT base. This Azbantium was found by a woman called Kate Lethbridge-Stewart. UNIT managed to duplicate the Azbantium and ship it off to all the other countries. The traitorous Time Lord was known as the mad man with a box- the Doctor, his true name forgotten along with his past. The Doctor refused to fight against the Humans considering the amount of time he spent on Earth- he had walked among them and even though he thought that he was bigger than them... he never wanted to rid them from the universe.

Despite the war, Humans continued to repopulate the Earth to try and fight back against the Time Lords. And one day... a Human was born. One of the only Humans who didn't want to fight. She saw the Time Lords as equals and all she wanted was peace. Her parents- Ellie and Dave. They go by the last name Oswald. Their daughter, Clara, would peer out the window and look at the constant explosions... she wished that it would be different.

For the first 15 years of her life she remained in the house and only got to go outside for one hour per day. Once she hit 16... a well-known Time Lady had made a hole in Clara's life. The Time Lady was known as Missy... had put an end to Ellie Oswald's life. She was about to end Dave's and Clara's too but... she vanished without a trace.

Clara ended up leaving home. Always on the run. Never staying in the same place for more than 6 hours. The only place that she could really stay in was the underground base- this base only allowed people in if they didn't want to fight the Time Lords... Which is not a lot of people. A few members of UNIT didn't believe in fighting with the Time Lords, but unfortunately it is their job to fight back. She had joined the 'underground base' at the age of 21- she was surprised when she reached her 27th birthday... She believed she would have died many years earlier.

Amy Pond and Rory Williams were the first two people Clara had met in the base. She was then introduced to Donna Noble, Rose Tyler, Jack Harkness- Who would not. Stop. Flirting. There was also another man called Mickey Smith who was currently in a relationship with Martha Jones. Sometimes Clara found it difficult to keep track of everyone's lives. Martha and Jack were the 'leaders' of this little group- they would tell everyone what to do and where to go. Supply runs etc.

"Clara!" Jack called as she entered the base, "You okay? No bruises or cuts?"

She shook her head as she dropped the bag of food onto a nearby table, "No no, I'm fine. The Time Lords sent down a modified Dalek though and it's causing havoc on the streets above. It almost killed me." she was breathing heavily. The Time Lords had managed to engineer themselves an army of Daleks.

"Perhaps you should sit down." Martha suggested. Clara nodded before sat back on the rusty old sofa.

Clara then asked, "Where's everyone else?"

"Amy, Mickey and Rose went out on a supply run. Everybody else is asleep." Jack replied. He then when into another part of the base and seconds later he returned to Clara's side with a small glass of water.

She shook her and yawned, "No no no... We need to preserve water."

"You've been saying that for three days, Clara." Martha spoke, "Drink." Clara took the small glass out of Jack's hand before taking a sip.

"Thanks, Jack."

"We gotta move!" Mickey exclaimed as he entered the base.

"Wh-What?" Jack questioned, "What's going on?"

Rose then added, "The Time Lords. They believe that we are a group set out to destroy the them."

"We tried to communicate-" Amy began.

"You tried to communicate?!" Clara questioned as she stood up.

Mickey nodded, "Yeah. They held us at gun point and we tried to explain that we wanted to be equals with them but... they didn't listen.""

"We met someone along the way. He had brown floppy hair and the most atrocious chin I have ever seen." Amy stated.

Martha then asked, "Did you bring him with you? Is he like us?"

Rose let out a sigh, "We saw him get shot by the Time Lords. We ran away. For all we know his body could still be lying there!"

"I think they're tracking us so we gotta go!" Mickey reminded.

"Okay okay." Jack said, "I'll wake the others up then we'll get going. Just bring enough food for the walk to the other base." Jack disappeared into the sleeping quarters whilst Mickey and Rose went into the kitchen to grab some of the food- Just enough to make it through the two day walk.

A few minutes later Jack emerged with everybody else, "Ready?" Martha asked. They nodded in response. We all quickly made our way up the stairs and opened the hatch to exit the base. Mickey always remained at the front of the group so it was his job to alert us if anybody or anything was coming our way. Everybody also had a weapon in hand just in case.

"Okay, we're good." Mickey assured as we all started to walk to dark streets. Pretty much all of the houses were destroyed, broken cars were scattered across the roads. The planet known as 'Gallifrey' was also visible in the sky, it was about as far away as the sun... So not too close. You could hear the occasional scream now and then- Probably due to yet another Time Lord attack.

As the group walked, they passed families who were either hiding in corners or hiding in alleyways. Clara wished that she could help them... But it was every man for themselves in this world. And hopefully one day, that would change. Clara and Rory were the ones in charge of keeping track of the food. Making sure that they had enough and making sure that everyone got their share.

"We have to split up if we want to make it out alive." Donna whispered. They were so close to the base now. About a thirty minute walk. But Daleks were patrolling the corn field for any sign of life and they couldn't exactly all go bombarding through them. Everybody nodded before going through the tall corn. They used to go in pairs but that proved to be difficult, now they go alone.

Clara hated doing this- Walking through a corn field filled with Daleks. Who knows when they would appear? "I detect life-forms!" a Dalek echoed.

"Find them! Exterminate them!" another Dalek ordered.

"AFFIRMATIVE!" Many Daleks spoke. There were definitely more than ten Daleks. Clara practically held her breath as she walked and she felt like her heart would escape her chest at any moment.

Surprisingly, she managed to get to the other side. Nobody else was there though... The rule was: if you got separated- you keep on going. You go to the base without them and you wait until they come back. If they aren't back within five hours- then they are presumed dead. Clara looked at her watch: 22:36. She started to run towards the city, once she arrived her running slowed down. It wouldn't be smart to alert the Daleks now.

In the distance, Clara could see two Daleks approaching. She quickly turned into an alleyway but she soon tripped on something causing her to fall to the ground. She groaned before looking to see what she had tripped on. Her eyes widened when she noticed that it was person... A man... Another human just like her.

The man let out a sigh of pain, "Ohh... Did you just kick me?"

"Shhh!" she shushed him, "Daleks are out there. And why are you lying on the floor?"

He managed to sit up and put his back up against the wall, "I erm- I think I passed out. I don't really know what happened." he ran a hand through his grey/silver hair.

She really wanted to help him. She had never helped anyone before. The groups rule kept running through her head: Every man for themselves. They only let people into the group if absolutely necessary. She didn't realise that she had been staring into his eyes so she awkwardly coughed, "Well erm- It was nice meeting you, sir. But I've gotta get going." she tried to stand.

"Wait wait." he said as he grabbed her arm, "You seem like you have a home. A place to live. Maybe I could stay with you until I find my Tar- I mean- home."

"I er-" she paused, biting her lip. What would the group even think? She started running through the pros and cons. Afterall it wasn't like he was going to stay with them permanently, "Okay. Yes. We have three homes technically. We travel between them whenever things get too hairy." The pair stood up, "Just follow me and stay hidden."

He rolled his eyes, "I'm not new to this thing. I don't think I want to encounter a Dalek." As they started to discreetly walk towards the base he asked, "I didn't catch your name."

"Clara. Clara Oswald." she told him, "And yours."

"Well, I'm the-" he paused, "J-John Smith." he really didn't want her to find out that he was a Time Lord. Who knows what would happen. All he wanted was peace between the Humans and Time Lords.

"Okay, John Smith. Get ready to meet the rest of my group, I guess." she gave him a small smile as they inched closer and closer towards the base.

Chapter 2

"And this is it." Clara announced as they made it to the hatch. She moved the leaves off of the top of it before unlocking it with a key. The two quickly entered and 'John' shut the door behind him, "Now we just have to wait for everyone else to get here. We were separated by some Daleks." she only just realised what John was actually wearing. A brown jacket and a bowtie... She raised her eyebrow at his attire, he soon understood.

"Right... do you have any new clothes?" he wondered.

She nodded, "Through there." she pointed towards a door, "Pick whatever you want." he nodded as he made his way into the room. A few moments later he emerged. His clothes were quite the opposite to his previous get up. He wore a hoodie and a coat over it... strange.

"It'll do." he stated, "And do me a favour. Next time when I'm lying down- don't kick me." he started to feel his personality kick in. He had only just recently regenerated afterall.

"It's not like I did it on purpose." she said as she started to sort the food out on the table.

I sat down on a tattered sofa, "Maybe you should look where you're going." Before she could answer, the base entrance opened.

Clara let out a sigh of relief, "Rory! Martha! Are you okay?"

Rory nodded, "Yeah. A few close calls but we're good." They both then eyed John.

"And who might this be?" Martha questioned.

"I'm John Smith. Also know as the man that Clara decided to kick." he then mumbled, "Useless pudding brain."

Clara groaned, "Like I said. It wasn't on purpose so stop being to grumpy about it." she looked at Martha, "He's staying here until he finds his home."

John tried to come up with a lie, "I er- I got separated from my friends and sister. I'm just trying to find them and then you will never see me again."

Everyone managed to make it back with some cuts and bruises. They all agreed that John could stay for a few days too. Clara felt glad that she had 'helped' somebody by taking them into the safety. Another part of her felt annoyed at John's sudden behaviour though.

"You need anything doing, Jack?" Clara asked.

He shook his head, "No. You've done plenty for this group, Clara. And besides... It's way too late for you to go outside."

She just groaned in annoyance, "I can go out at night, Jack! The Daleks and the Time Lords don't scare me."

"Sure they don't..." John mumbled to himself.

Clara and Jack looked over at him, Clara then questioned, "What was that?"

"Er-" John paused, "I said: she should go. The Daleks and Time Lords aren't too bad..." he stood up from his chair, "You can easily dodge the Daleks and all you have to do is stay out of the way of the Time Lords."

"I guess. You can go with her!" Jack suggested.

"Yeah. W-Wait, what?"

"Are you serious?" Clara questioned, "I can handle myself."

"Clara." Jack paused, "Take him with you. Get to know him a bit more."

She rolled her eyes, "If I'm not back in two hours- then John has probably killed me."

"I don't want to waste my strength on a useless pudding brain, Clara." he stated.

"Okay. If I'm back in an hour- I've killed John." she said before heading to the hatch, "We'll try to get some more food and water."

Jack nodded, "Be safe."

John followed Clara out of the base and she lead them to the nearby town.

Clara was getting rather angry by the fact that all the building doors were locked. She hadn't come into the part of the town before and she just assumed that everything would open- she wanted it to be an easy job to just walk in and take something and then walk straight back out.

'John'absolutely hated saying that his name was: John... But he had to hide is real identity away from these humans. He subtly took his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket whilst Clara was too busy with the door on the house across the street. He unlocked the door, "Clara!" he whisper-yelled so that he didn't alert anybody nearby. She quickly made her way over to him as he deposited the sonic back into his pocket, "The lock was faulty." he said. She smiled as she opened the door.

"Good. Maybe we'll find something useful in here." she said as the pair entered the dark house, "You want to take the upstairs or should I?"

"Wouldn't it be a lot safer if we stuck together?" the Doctor/John may have come across as an angry old man who despised the human race- but he still didn't want to see Clara perish so soon.

She shook her head, "I'd rather do things faster. So I guess I'll take the upstairs. Just go in the kitchen and look around for some canned food and bottled water. I'll go upstairs and see if there's anything interesting up there."

He muttered, "If you're sure." he made his way into the kitchen and Clara made her way up the stairs. She soon decided to take out a torch from her backpack. The floorboards creaked beneath her feet and the cold wind made her shiver. Clara couldn't hear anything. Pure silence. She couldn't remember the last time she had been isolated in such a quiet place. As she turned the corner into one of the bedrooms her eyes widened. She froze.

She didn't care if anything or anyone else heard her, "John?!" she called. A few seconds later, John appeared by her side.

"Clara." he whispered, "Don't blink."

"Wh-What is that?" she wondered. Her hand that was aiming the torch at the creature was shaking. The light then started to flicker.

"It's a Weeping Angel. If you blink it will move closer towards you and send you through time."

"And how do you know so much about them?!"

He paused, "I-I overheard the Time Lords talking about them a few days ago."

"Well..." she paused, "I don't really want to stay here much longer." she quickly grabbed John's hand and pulled him back towards the stairs.

"Stop holding my hand! People don't do that to me!"

She groaned, "Oh, shut up!" she pulled him down the stairs. Just as she was about to drag him out of the house, she noticed a bag next to the door, "What's that?"

"You said you wanted food and water. So I put them in that bag."

"You were fast!" she exclaimed before making him carry the bag.

He then mumbled, "Yeah, don't say that in bed." She gave him a disgusted look before he was the one who had to pull her out of the house.

Chapter 3

One Week Later

"He is so- He's just so- He's annoying!" Clara was pacing around the small room whilst listing the things that she hated about John.

Amy let out a sigh as she leaned back in her chair, "Clara, you need to calm down."

"Calm down?! He's driving me insane! I'm going to need medication if I ever want to calm down again!" John had gone out with Rose and Rory to on a supply run. Jack and Donna were in the planning room trying to find a new place to set up base. And Mickey and Martha were currently making food for when the rest of the group got back.

"You've been talking about John a lot lately." Amy smiled, "Why is that?"

"Why?!" Clara questioned, "He's infuriating!"

"Are you sure you don't like him." her friend said suggestively.

Clara just gave her a shocked look, "Are you being serious right now? Why on Earth would I like him with the stupid way he talks with that stupid mouth on that stupid face of his?!" Amy just folded her arms and gave her a questioning look whilst raising her eyebrow. She just looked at Clara... waiting.

"Tell the truth, Oswald. I won't judge."

"N-No! He-"

Amy cut her off, "Clara... Yes or no question: Do you find him attractive?" Clara opened her mouth to protest but it quickly slammed shut, "And that answers my question."

"Wh-What?! I didn't say anything!"

"You didn't have to." Amy smirked.

Clara then flopped onto her stomach on the sofa, "You're making me confused..." she mumbled as she dug her face into a pillow.

The Doctor had strayed away from Rose and Rory.

He rarely sleeps but he managed to get an hour or two of kip last night. He couldn't stop thinking about his dream. He's had this same dream for years now. About a woman, jumping into his time stream just to save him. He vaguely remembered travelling with this woman but he couldn't pinpoint her face. He remembered the name: Clara... The woman he met a few days ago was also called Clara... But that was just a coincidence. Right? She also reminded him of a certain woman he met in a diner many years ago... But it couldn't be the same exact person. He shook his head and rid any thought of this mysterious 'Clara'.

"It seems that Clara hates you." Rose stated as she slowed down to allow him to catch up. They stopped walking as Rory went into a house to look for supplies.

The Doctor shrugged, "Can't impress everyone." Clara... she seemed so different to everyone else. But he couldn't see why. He was the Doctor! He should know everything! He would catch himself many times each day just staring at her. He was interested in what she was doing and he had no idea why!

Rose then clicked her fingers in front of his face, "Earth to John."

"Wh-What?" he asked.

"When I say hate... It's more like denial."

He looked at her in confusion, "Denial?"

She nodded, "I can see it. Everyone in the group can see it. Except for you and Clara."

"See what exactly? Honestly, why doesn't anybody explain things properly these days?"

"That Clara likes you." she stated.

He raised his eyebrow, "You're giving me mixed messages here. Previously you said that she hated me"

Rose just sighed, "Put it like this. She hates the fact that she likes you."

"Erm... okay? So she likes me. That's good I guess. I... accept her presence." he 'accepted her presence' a lot more than Rose actually thought.

"You are so blind, John." Rose then added. No he wasn't. He understood completely. He's walked amongst Humans for years and he has grown accustomed to what the term 'likes' means... He wasn't a total idiot.

Once John, Rory and Rose came back- Everyone was ready to eat, "Run into any trouble?" Martha asked.

Rory shook his head as he started to eat the noodles, "Just one Dalek." Clara and John were picking at their food. Clara was too busy thinking about what she actually felt towards John: hate, like? What was it? John was too busy thinking about who the mysterious woman in his dreams was... it couldn't be the woman who was sitting opposite him. Right?

"You not hungry?" Amy asked Clara.

Clara quickly shut out her thoughts, "No. I just feel a bit sick." she lied.

Amy then whispered to her, "Lovesick?" Clara then groaned before standing up.

"I'm gonna go to bed. Hopefully, I'll feel better by morning." she said. Everyone nodded before she made her way to the spare room. This room was the only room that had one bed. The other room was huge and it had over ten beds. The 'spare room' was used for people if they wanted to be alone... and Clara wanted to be alone right now. Just so she could gather her thoughts. As she lay on the bed she looked up at the stone ceiling... and then at the stone walls... and then at the stone floor. This was no way to live. Underground with no sunlight. Candles were the only things that lit up the rooms in this 'home'.

There was then a knock at the door... God knows how Jack managed to install doors into this place, "Clara?" John walked in.

Clara then sat up, "Er- Y-Yeah?"

"I bought you some water if you want. It tends to help when you're feeling ill."

She gave him a smile, "Thanks." he handed her the bottle of water. To be honest... her stomach was feeling a bit off. She felt sick. It wasn't butterflies. She. Felt. Sick. She kept on telling herself that it was just an illness that would go away.

God knows how it happened, but John had been in the room with Clara for well over an hour now. They were just talking. An occasional story here and there. John didn't like sitting down and talking... He HAD to be doing something practical. Like fixing a machine or fighting a monster. Not listening to a Human. But Clara... he felt like he's heard her voice for years. Countless years. But why couldn't he remember her face?

John hadn't noticed the silence until now. They were currently sitting on the edge of the bed together. Why hadn't the sickness left Clara's stomach yet? She was starting to get concerned about it. What illness could she have been possessed with?! Having an illness in times like these was not a good situation.

She decided that she didn't care that she's only known John for a week. She wanted to try something. Just a test. She wanted to show that she didn't like John... She was going to kiss him and prove that she didn't need anything more. She leaned forward and surprisingly, he didn't move away... And that was when Amy decided to burst into the room. John then stuttered, "Er- N-Night, Clara." Once John left the room he shut the door behind him.

"No no no!" Amy exclaimed, "I didn't mean to burst in on such a moment! Get out there girl!" she pulled Clara up from the bed.

"Wh-What?!" Clara started, "What are you talking about?"

Amy rolled her eyes, "You really are hopeless sometimes."

To be continued...

[oh-ishouldnt]

The favorite - part 01

The favorite - part ½ | Jack Maynard | imagine

Word count: 2123

A/N: The name Kirstie is being used.

More imagines here | Requests are open! 

“I’m just going to take my wallet, Y/N.” Conor said to you. “It won’t take 5 minutes, I swear.”

“For your own good, Conor, I really hope you won’t take too long to come back” You warned, snorting as he opened his front door.

“Jack isn’t even at home, Y/N/N, you’ll be fine” Conor promised.

“Oh, yeah, he would be the first to leave the place, right?” You remembered, calming down instantly.

Conor nodded his head and you two entered the house together, finding the exact opposite from what Conor have said: Jack Maynard was on the sofa watching TV.

“What the hell are you doing here?” You asked seeing Jack’s head turn to you.

“This is my home, Y/N. I guess I live here?”

“No, is not.” You hit back. “You moved out.”

“Okay, guys, you work the things out, I just need to get my wallet.” Conor asked, he gave up of the whole Y/N vs. Jack a long time ago.

“Yeah, but my name is on the rent’s contract, so technically I still live here.“ Jack answered, ignoring his brother.

"That’s a waste of money, isn’t it?” You commented, crossing your arms and supporting your weight in one leg near by the door. Where were Conor? Gods, where the fricking wallet has gone? “But I guess it suits you… You’re a waste of human being, so…”

Jack was pissed off already. At first moment, he thought yoj would be a really nice girl, all his friends only said funny and interesting things about you, yet when he met you, you were a pain in the ass and continued to be since that.

“Shut up and get out of my house, Y/N.” Jack commanded.

“Sadly to you, this house also belongs to your brother, as you might forgotten, and he…”

“Is going to take his best friend out on her best night ever.” Conor completed your sentence before you and Jack started fighting for real and ended killing each other.

Conor took your arm and drag you to the front door as you almost froth of rage.

“You look beautiful in this tight red dress by the way, Y/N!” Jack yelled as you and Conor were leaving.

“I can’t say the same to you, Jack!” You yelled back.

You and Con started walking down the street to get some food somewhere before hitting the nightclub, both of you freezing in the night, especially you because, after all, you were using just a dress and a jacket.

“For God’s sake, Y/N, when you and my brother will start to get along?” Con asked and you almost feel bad for him.

“Well, the day he stop being an asshole will be a great day.”

Conor sighed, his life would be so much easier if you two just stopped being little kids who stole each others toys on the playground.

“I thought you guys could, somehow, stop acting like this through the time… I was wrong”

“Yes, you were.” You told, starting to get angry with Con, because by the way he sounded, it seemed you were the villain. Of course, Jack was his perfect little brother.

“I don’t get it.”

“What?”

“Why you and Jack hate each other.”

You automatically responded: “I don’t hate Jack.”

Conor looked at you and frowned.

“Oh, no! That little scene back home was a demonstration of love!”

You rolled your eyes, sometimes Conor’s sarcasm was just annoying.

“Fine.” You grumble. “I hate your little brother.”

“My little brother?” Conor laughed “His older than you.”

“Your little brother still.”

“I never called him little brother.” You raised an eyebrow for him. “Not for real!”

“Whatever, Conor.”

“Honestly, why do you hate Jack?”

It was your turn to laugh: “I’m surprised you don’t know this answer.”

Conor was genuinely confused.

“I should know?”

“You should guessed by now.” You shrugged. “But no one did it yet so you must be alright… Maybe I’m just not good at pointing my reasons for doing the stuff I do.”

“Yeah, you’re not.”

“Shut up, Maynard.” You said. “Let’s grab some food, I’m starving.”

Later that night:

You said to the taxi pull over, it seemed that this building was the one, so you paid the driver and jumped out of the car, receiving the English storm with a grouch.

Oh, Conor was a dead man! Dead man! If he wasn’t dead already, you would kill him! What the hell! This wasn’t what you signed for when you two became friends! And you definitely should revised the terms of this if he thought rescuing him was on your tasks.

The place was brand new. You didn’t know how the heck Conor ended up on an office building, and didn’t know how it was a fancy one, but at least you could congratulate him for that.

You smiled to the blonde receptionist and explained you forgot your laptop on the 32nd floor because that was only one floor away from Conor and it wouldn’t be so suspicious. You thought you must be really chilled and had a really nice face because the woman said you could go without hesitating and let you pass the ratchets. Maybe they should hire someone better, you clearly didn’t work there.

Your high heels echoed on the marble floor and it was really fine, because you never felt more powerful than that, thinking that you could get used to the sound of your shoes on a classy floor. That would be nice in a daily basis, wouldn’t it?

You pressed the elevator’s button and sent a text message to Conor, saying you were almost there to rescue him from his little rendezvous. You must be a really really cool friend to do such a thing.

You heard someone speak to the receptionist, it had a flirtatious tone… A specific flirtatious tone that made you close your eyes and groan. Why? Why, gods? Aren’t you a nice person? The receptionist didn’t even doubt you! You weren’t on dawn trying to save your friend across the city? Why then? Why?

You stared at your phone, seeing the keyboard and thinking the zillion words you could angrily type in and scream at Conor for being such an idiot. Maybe you could even leave him there! But it wouldn’t be a punishment, would it? Because obviously he had another one coming to get him and it meant you took the cab for nothing. You hated Conor even more than you hated his brother in that moment.

“Oh, fuck off.” You heard Jack’s voice grumble.

You raised your eyes from your phone and stared at the person who just got there.

“I’m not happy either, but I guess you can complain about that with your brother later, when I rescue him from this girl and cut him in hundreds of pieces after.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m the one who’s rescuing Conor.”

You rolled your eyes.

“First: Can you stop being such a child? How old are you, 7?” You asked and then continued: “Second: I got here first, so definitely I’m the one who’s on a mission.”

“Your mission is over.” He declared “You were with him and look what happened? I had to leave my date because you couldn’t take care of my moron brother.”

The elevator arrived and you entered in it, being followed by Jack.

“Don’t call Conor a moron, your dumbass. And get your own elevator, please. This one is taken.”

“Oh, who’s acting like a fricking kid now, wise old lady?” Jack asked, pressing the 33rd floor button. “At least, now I can understand why are you so boring.”

“Don’t press the 33rd button, stupid.” You said. “They will realize we are with your brother and the girl.”

“Who will realize that?”

“The owners of the building! We are invading, you know?”

“And, yeah, our bigger problem will be being associated with my brother and the girl who actually have access to this building if we get caught.” Jack rolled his eyes. “For God’s sake, my brother said you were smart, Y/N.”

“Your brother says good things about you all the time to me too, but I think he’s blind.”

“You don’t tell me…”

All the sudden, the lights went off and the elevator made a huge noise before stopped.

“Fuck.” you cursed.

“It can’t be.” Jack complained.

“What the hell?” you started walking across the space, as if it would make some difference.

Jack, after panicking a little, said:

“Relax, baby, there’s a power generator in this kind of building”.

“Call me ‘baby’ again and I will be opening these doors with your teeth, Jack.” You warned. “And it’s the middle of the night in a weekend, we weren’t supposed to be in here, there’s no power generator for us, brainy.”

“Oh.” he realised you were right.

“Yeah, I know, genious.”

“But someone will take us out of here, Kirsten is just downstairs.”

“Who the hell is Kirsten?”

“The recepcionist, of course.”

“Oh, yeah, I supose I should know that.” You rolled your eyes.

“You spoke to her.”

“Yeah, I did, but I’m pretty sure you only know her name because she’s beautiful.”

“Are you jealous, Y/N?”

“Jealous? Oh, gods, someone should analize your mind, Jack, you are pretty damn sure of yourself in an abnormal way.”

“If you say so, honey.”

“I’m serious, Jack.” You angrily told.

“You only said about calling you ‘baby’, honey.”

You gave up, rolling your eyes with the feeling you would do a lot of it that night.

“Try to call Conor.” Jack said.

“Do you even have a brain?” You asked. “It’s an elevator, we don’t have signal.”

Jack lost his words:

“Some elevators do.”

“Right then, try to call your brother, your bloody idiot.”

And Jack actually tried, with no success.

“Dammit.”

“I said to you, dearie.” You stated with a smile bigger than the recommended.

“Shut up, Y/N. If I need to be with you for more than 10 minutes, it would be better if if you just don’t say anything.”

“Shut you up, Jack. You are the one to blame!”

“How the hell I am the problem in here?”

You opened your mouth to speak but a female voice came from the botton of the pit.

“Jack?”

“Kirstie!”

You rolled your eyes, the gods must be kidding with you because worst than being stuck with Jack Maynard was being saved by Jack Maynard’s new girlfriend.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah!”

“The pretty girl are there with you?”

You smiled, “pretty girl”? Okay, you might be okay with the Jack’s new thing.

“Yeah, Y/N is in here too.”

“I will send some help to you, guys!”

“Thank you!”  You both said as one, making faces of disgust for each other.

“Just wait a little and I’ll come back!” Kirstie said, leaving nothing but the silence behind her.

“So I’m the pretty girl, huh?” you teased Jack, calming down now that you two were going to leave that metal box.

“Again: shut up, Y/N.” He sat down on the elevator’s floor.

“Fine, I just find interesting you think I’m attractive.”

“Everybody thinks you are attractive.” Jack rolled his eyes, not really noticing what he told you.

“Everybody?” you were starting to find funny being stuck in there. “It’s really sad that it isn’t mutual.” Althought these were that got out of your mouth, you were bluffing. Since day 1 you thought Jack was handsome, but there wasn’t no way you would tell him that.

“Don’t make this a big deal, Y/N.” Jack argued, one thing was to compliment you to tease you, another thing was let a compliment slip out of his mouth. “And everybody knows you can’t resist me.”

“In your dreams, Maynard.”

“Guys!” Kirstie called and Jack jumped of the floor.

“Hi!” Jack shoulted back.

“I’m so sorry! I can’t get you out of there! Aparently, your names aren’t on the system, so the police is being called!”

“WHAT?” You and Jack screamed. Fuck, fuck, fuck!

“I mean, I said it must be a mistake, but they can’t come here unless I make a complaint and I think you guys don’t want any trouble so…”

You stared Jack, the panic on your face was inevitable.

What are we going to do?  You asked without sounds.

I don’t know! Jack answered.

“Guys?”

Say something! You ordered.

“That’s fine, babe.” Jack told Kirstie at the end. “It won’t be more than a few minutes, me and Y/N can wait. Thanks, Kirstie!”

You sighned, letting yourself fall on the floor as your back slide down the wall, it would be a really long night.

Second part here

[gertrudejnieves]

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Traffic Underdog Review – Any Bonuses?

BONUS #1 – GATEWAY FE + GATEWAY SUPERCHARGED

“Gateway is a step-by – step training course that shows how you can tap into YouTube, a 1.8 BILLION user traffic source, without doing what anyone hates. Showing their faces to the camera and recording your voice!” Believe it or not, we’ve found out how you don’t have to show your face to the camera for the world to see. You don’t even need to show your face. Everything is covered in the training, no stone left unturned …

In a hurry, huh? Want to get results fast? This upgrade is good for you, though. With this upgrade, we ‘re showing you strategies that you can get results 10x faster than what’s learned in front-end training. Everything taught inside is based on results, not on theory.

BONUS #2 – YT SUPREMACY

“A series of 10 videos that teaches you how to rank videos at the top of YT and Google with an authority YouTube channel for promoting affiliate products, launch jacking or your own products.

BONUS #3 – MY PERSONAL ARSENAL OF EVERGROWING BONUSES

“These bonuses have been responsible for over $62 000+ in commissions and can help any affiliate increase conversions tenfold.

BONUS #4 – EXCLUSIVE & PRIVATE COACHING GROUP

An active community where I share my best traffic and income hacks EVERY week through easy digestable & interactive content such as Q & A’s, Webinar, Posts And Real Interaction With Myself (Robin Palmer)

Traffic Underdog Review – F.A.Q.

Q. WHAT IS TRAFFIC UNDERDOG?

#1. This is the “real affiliates” form that is used now to make those of dollars every month!

#2. A strong & fast, and quick to adopt a system that actually uses less than 3% of people up to 10 times their online earnings.

Q. IS TRAFFIC UNDERDOG SOMETHING I’VE NEVER SEEN?

It’s sure of that. We ‘re confident that you’ve never seen anything like this … Ever before! Not in this way , at least

Q. IS THIS REALLY NEWBIE FRIENDLY?

Yeah, yeah. You don’t need anything but “Traffic Underdog” training to do that. No list, no previous skills, no experience … Something like that, man! We ‘re going to teach you what you need to learn to make money easily.

Q. HOW EXACTLY DOES “TRAFFIC UNDERDOG” WORK?

Step #1 – Unlock “Traffic Underdog” (Takes less than 5 minutes) Step #2 – Activate the Secrets Inside Step #3 – Sit Back As You Bank $100 In PROFIT Step #4 (Optional – Do This Only If You Want To Create A Job Crushing Online Income) – Rinse And Repeat To Make As Much Money As You Want Day After Day!

Q. DOES TRAFFIC UNDERDOG INCLUDE A FREE TRAFFIC METHOD?

Traffic underdog provides one of the best free traffic training on the market. Free traffic methods taught in this course will give you results as quickly as in 24 hours!

Q. HOW MUCH MONEY CAN I MAKE WITH “TRAFFIC UNDERDOG”?

I can’t make any promises under law. However, the potential is high. Within, we ‘re going to show you how to make $100 a day, and then scale it up as high as you want. Only follow up, do what Robin does, and you’re going to have the opportunity to get similar results *

Q. HOW LONG UNTIL I START MAKING MONEY USING TRAFFIC UNDERDOG?

It is possible to make money from our results as easily as on the same day. But, like I said, I can’t make any promises by law, but that being said, it’s a genuine and real business.

Q. DO YOU OFFER A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE?

Yeah, when you change your mind for some reason, just let us know, and get your a refund. You’ve got a zero chance when you get ignite right now. Due to a variety of frauds, vendor only offer refunds on the front end items.

from SPS Reviews https://spsreviews.com/traffic-underdog-review/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=traffic-underdog-review from SPS Reviews https://spsreviews.tumblr.com/post/625231773352263680

[jerometbean]

Traffic Underdog Review – What You Will Learn Inside?

Traffic Underdog Review – 

REVEALED: New Hack Turns Stone-Cold Newbies Into Profit-Magnets In 50 Minutes! The Truth The Gurus Don’t Want You To Know About… 24/7 Traffic => 24/7 Commissions ==> 24 Hour Income System!

Traffic Underdog Review – Introduction

Robin Palmer is a traffic master who has made thousands online. now he is giving away a very exclusive series of hacks that work in the “REAL” world. Now, he’s not just saying it works, and that he’s earned thousands online. Now, he’s actually going to talk.

He is not only a sought-after Youtube ranking specialist, but has also collaborated with some of the top marketers, such as Willie Crawford, among others. The product is called traffic underdog.

He shares what you need to get real tangible results from his own experience that has made him rich over the years. The best thing to do is to model, clone his exact model, and make it yours. Let’s talk about the product.

Traffic Underdog Review – Product Overview

Product NameTraffic UnderdogProduct CreatorRobin PalmerLaunch Date & Time[2020-Jul-31] @ 09:00 EDTPrice$7 One-timeBonusYes, My Best Custom BonusesRefund Period30-DaysOfficial Sitehttps://trafficunderdog.com/Product TypeTraffic TrainingSkillAll LevelsRecommendedHighly Recommended

Traffic Underdog Review – What Is Traffic Underdog?

Traffic underdog is a step-by – step video training that shows you exactly how traffic underdog works and how you can start using it to make money as early as 24 hours from now.

What you’re going to love about traffic underdog is that you don’t need a list or any prior experience to make money, and we’re going to show you dead easy steps to get big results extremely quick, against all odds.

Plus, this is really a method that anyone can use to get fast results even though you’ve never done a dime online before. This method was responsible for eliminating 9-5 workers over and over again!

When you’re looking for a way to snowball the results while working less … You need to see “Traffic Underdog.”

9 Total Score

Good!

This well-organized and beginner-friendly video series opens the door to the Affiliate and Digital Marketing world. The author will take you to a brand-new course full of fresh details about affiliates and how to get huge traffic that you've actually never heard of before. What you're going to learn in the course are all tested methods that have worked for the creator himself for a long time and have changed his life. This is the result of years of experience combined with brand new , powerful hacks.

TRAINING

9

SUPPORT

9

VALUE FOR MONEY

9

PROS

100% Newbie-friendly course

No experience, no hard work, no complicated methods

Untapped yet huge traffic source

Real life Case study included

30 day Refund policy available

CONS

Nothing to be worried. Everything looks good.

User Rating: Be the first one!

Traffic Underdog Review – What You Learn From This Training?

How to get started easily without wasting a dime out of your pocket

The step-by – step plan to take “Traffic Underdog” to a job-crushing online income quickly

Plus, you’ll learn some interesting methods to collect traffic on demand. These are tested money making hacks!

How the “Traffic Underdog” approach works and the quick tricks that we use to get 10x our results and income in less time

How to use “traffic underdog” to crank out $100 a day quick and fast! seriously, just follow the simple steps.

How to get started with “underdog traffic” right now, even if you’re a totally cold stone newbie with no technical skills (it’s so easy, you ‘re going to laugh all the way to the bank)

Why this is the real deal and why I would say this is what you need to get the best “Tangible” results

You’ll also have access to robin’s case studies-there ‘s no better way to get quick results than to check up on what someone else is doing. Robin used underdog traffic to bank thousands of dollars a month, when others were struggling (even during the recession)

Traffic Underdog Review – Do You Really Need This?

This is the strategy that can finally give you the results you needed. That’s because “Traffic underdog” shows just how the “Real affiliates” make big profits in a small amount of time. “Traffic underdog” was never meant to get out, but we just wanted to release a method that could help anyone build a full-time online income and the best part is that you can make money just like this without having a list or any special skills or experience. The best thing is that you don’t have to wait until next week to make money with traffic underdog. Once you get inside, you can start making money in 24 hours, but I’ve seen results even quicker.

If you answer ‘Yes’ to any of the following, you need “Traffic Underdog”

You’re tried other methods in the past and they didn’t work they claimed – Traffic Underdog works for ANYONE that follows the simple steps inside

It seems like you’re working really hard to make money online but the money you’re making just doesn’t justify your effort – With Traffic Underdog you will get up and start fast

You’re tired of buying courses that promise to show you something new, but when you get inside, you realize it’s just more of the same – This method works out of the box and we can almost guarantee you haven’t seen anything like it.

You’re tired of waiting to get paid for your efforts – With Traffic Underdog, you’ll get paid as soon as humanly possible!

You want a method that you can scale up as big as you want – With Traffic Underdog you’ll be able to create that job replacing income faster than you thought was possible

Traffic Underdog Review – Any Upsells?

Front End: Traffic Underdog ($7 Onetime)

A basic but efficient program that shows you 10 different hacks of traffic that you can use together or as stand-alone methods. There are established methods that work in the real world of online marketing.

OTO 1: Private Label Rights ($197 Onetime)

You get the igniter + traffic underdog private label rights to do whatever you want with them. Those are high-quality courses based on the real results! It is a rare opportunity, and it certainly won’t be given again. It’s not “white label” rights, it’s a lot more … This is the whole thing: graphics, videos, all about it. You will hit your name on it as if it was your own product and retain 100% of your earnings. This is not just “reseller rights”, this is so much more.

OTO 2: Reseller Rights ($97 Onetime)

Get 100 percent commission bump-reseller rights to igniter + underdog traffic. It is a 2-in-1 super pack that you’ll have to win for years to come. You don’t have to set up anything, they will be doing the hard work for you, they will be doing the customer support, everything’s going to deal with on a silver plate for you to make a profit. Plus, you ‘re going to learn how to drive traffic.

OTO 3: Hall Of Fame ($47 Onetime)

With this upgrade, you’ll get loads of spillover traffic by being able to place your link inside the igniter & traffic area of the underdog members. The link is going to stay there forever. Double the benefits of other people sending thousands of visitors to Robin’s products.

OTO 4: Unlimited Traffic ($67 Onetime)

Put your pixels on my sales pages that get thousands of visitors and reap the rewards. This is one of the fastest ways to build a list “overnight”!

OTO 5: Traffic Acceleration Bundle ($37 Onetime)

With this upgrade, you get the “secret traffic acceleration bundle” that will help you supercharge your results fast!

Traffic Underdog Review – Any Bonuses?

BONUS #1 – GATEWAY FE + GATEWAY SUPERCHARGED

“Gateway is a step-by – step training course that shows how you can tap into YouTube, a 1.8 BILLION user traffic source, without doing what anyone hates. Showing their faces to the camera and recording your voice!” Believe it or not, we’ve found out how you don’t have to show your face to the camera for the world to see. You don’t even need to show your face. Everything is covered in the training, no stone left unturned …

In a hurry, huh? Want to get results fast? This upgrade is good for you, though. With this upgrade, we ‘re showing you strategies that you can get results 10x faster than what’s learned in front-end training. Everything taught inside is based on results, not on theory.

BONUS #2 – YT SUPREMACY

“A series of 10 videos that teaches you how to rank videos at the top of YT and Google with an authority YouTube channel for promoting affiliate products, launch jacking or your own products.

BONUS #3 – MY PERSONAL ARSENAL OF EVERGROWING BONUSES

“These bonuses have been responsible for over $62 000+ in commissions and can help any affiliate increase conversions tenfold.

BONUS #4 – EXCLUSIVE & PRIVATE COACHING GROUP

An active community where I share my best traffic and income hacks EVERY week through easy digestable & interactive content such as Q & A’s, Webinar, Posts And Real Interaction With Myself (Robin Palmer)

Traffic Underdog Review – F.A.Q.

Q. WHAT IS TRAFFIC UNDERDOG?

#1. This is the “real affiliates” form that is used now to make those of dollars every month!

#2. A strong & fast, and quick to adopt a system that actually uses less than 3% of people up to 10 times their online earnings.

Q. IS TRAFFIC UNDERDOG SOMETHING I’VE NEVER SEEN?

It’s sure of that. We ‘re confident that you’ve never seen anything like this … Ever before! Not in this way , at least

Q. IS THIS REALLY NEWBIE FRIENDLY?

Yeah, yeah. You don’t need anything but “Traffic Underdog” training to do that. No list, no previous skills, no experience … Something like that, man! We ‘re going to teach you what you need to learn to make money easily.

Q. HOW EXACTLY DOES “TRAFFIC UNDERDOG” WORK?

Step #1 – Unlock “Traffic Underdog” (Takes less than 5 minutes) Step #2 – Activate the Secrets Inside Step #3 – Sit Back As You Bank $100 In PROFIT Step #4 (Optional – Do This Only If You Want To Create A Job Crushing Online Income) – Rinse And Repeat To Make As Much Money As You Want Day After Day!

Q. DOES TRAFFIC UNDERDOG INCLUDE A FREE TRAFFIC METHOD?

Traffic underdog provides one of the best free traffic training on the market. Free traffic methods taught in this course will give you results as quickly as in 24 hours!

Q. HOW MUCH MONEY CAN I MAKE WITH “TRAFFIC UNDERDOG”?

I can’t make any promises under law. However, the potential is high. Within, we ‘re going to show you how to make $100 a day, and then scale it up as high as you want. Only follow up, do what Robin does, and you’re going to have the opportunity to get similar results *

Q. HOW LONG UNTIL I START MAKING MONEY USING TRAFFIC UNDERDOG?

It is possible to make money from our results as easily as on the same day. But, like I said, I can’t make any promises by law, but that being said, it’s a genuine and real business.

Q. DO YOU OFFER A MONEY BACK GUARANTEE?

Yeah, when you change your mind for some reason, just let us know, and get your a refund. You’ve got a zero chance when you get ignite right now. Due to a variety of frauds, vendor only offer refunds on the front end items.

source https://spsreviews.com/traffic-underdog-review/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=traffic-underdog-review from SPS Reviews https://spsreviewscom1.blogspot.com/2020/07/traffic-underdog-review-what-you-will.html

[ericbarkman]

Chrono Hustle #37 Dreams of the Past

     “So, what do we all gain from joining up with the Temporal Development Division,” Jack Masterson asked as he leaned against the wall.  “Because, I mean, these were the people that captured and planned to brainwash us.”      “Some of us they had already succeeded in brainwashing,” Melinda Summers said.  She was sitting at a chair near the head of the briefing room table.      “What we gain is legitimacy,” Harkon Smith said from where he was sitting at the head of the table.  “Along with that we once again gain access to all of the time doors.”      “Or we could just keep taking the time doors from them,” Jack said.  “Eventually they would be stuck at their bases.”      “With every base we’ve taken, they fortified the others more,” Mary Bishop said as she leaned forward in her chair.      “I wouldn’t have thought you’d be in favor of joining them,” Melinda said.      “I’m not, but that doesn’t make the point false,” Mary said.      “So, the other question is, what do we lose by joining the TDD?” the Ghost of the temporal duplicate of Jack Masterson asked.      “We lose our autonomy,” Melinda said.  “We would then report to Rupert Teleros.”      “Is that a bad thing?” Abigail Esau asked.  “I mean, from everything I’ve been hearing from you guys, and everything I’ve read on my own, it seems like Rupert Teleros is a good guy.  And the worst of the stuff the TDD has done was from before he was in charge.”      “There is certainly a lot to consider,” Harkon said.      “Ultimately, it’s your decision, sir,” Melinda said.      “Yes, but I want to make sure we have at least some level of agreement on it,” Harkon said.  “In the meantime, there is also the other matter to consider.”      “The alternate dimension that I led a team into,” Jack said.  “We are fairly certain that Agent Nichols is in that universe, but it’s going to take some time to track him down.”      “Mary, you are the best tracker we have,” Harkon said.  “So, you’ll be in on that mission.  I still want Jack in charge though, for when and if it becomes necessary to make contact with the locals.”      “Yes, sir,” Mary said.      “Understood,” Jack said.      Doctor Jeri Quill was doing her regular checks on Imhotep and Sesla.  They were both still healthy, other than the comas they were still trapped in.  As she was walking away though, she heard a noise, and looked back to see that Imhotep had sat up, those his eyes were still closed.      “Imhotep?” Jeri asked, but there was no response.      “Ohm is still in the alternate reality, guarding the base camp we set up, along with a few other agents,” Jack said.  “We should definitely include him in our search team, I think.”      “Makes sense,” Mary said.  “I’m thinking Philip and Dorian too, and Abigail.”      “Going with people you know best, I see” Jack said.  “Speaking of which, I’ve noticed you and Abigail have been spending a lot of time together.”      “Well, we are close to the same age,” Mary said.      “Technically she’s nearly a century old,” Jack said.  “Remember, Demigod, like me, so she doesn’t age, and we had to get back to the team the long way from 1804 to 1876.”      “Yeah, but…wait, if you both don’t age, why does she look like she’s in her twenties, and you look like you’re in your thirties?”      “No idea,” Jack said.      “And you both still mostly act like the ages you look…”      “I mean, that’s probably just psychological effects.  How we look can influence how we act.”      “He just sat up?” Harkon asked as he looked at Imhotep who was still sitting up, despite still being in a coma.      “I don’t understand what caused it,” Jeri said.  “I’ve gone over the medical scans multiple times, and there no indications of any new stimuli to have caused this.”      “Hmm, and it’s interesting that this happened to Imhotep,” Ghost Jack said.  “I can find and talk with both Sesla and Merlin by entering their dreams, but not Imhotep.  That can’t be a coincidence.”      “Go back in, and try to find him again,” Harkon said.  “Maybe this means something.”      “What about that individual that’s been in the other Jack’s dreams?” Jeri asked.  “Did you ever find out what was happening there?”      “No, and she stopped showing up a while ago,” Ghost Jack said.  “But maybe she has a connection to this, that’s a possibility I have been considering.”      “I think Jack’s starting to suspect there’s something going on between us,” Mary said as she entered Abigail’s room.      “Really?” Abigail asked.  “The guy who, aside from being a former con artist who is good at reading people, also literally has a superpower where he gains random knowledge, he suspects that we are secretly dating?”      “Well, when you put it like that, I suppose it makes sense.  But what are we doing to do about it?”      “I mean, our options are to not do anything about it, or tell him he’s right, or try to convince him we aren’t.”      “He’ll see right through it if we try convincing him we’re not dating,” Mary said.  “Like you said, he was a con artist, he’ll know if we’re pulling a con on him.”      “So, do we just not do anything, or come clean?” Abigail asked.      “For now, I guess we just don’t do anything about it?”      “Sure, if that’s what you want.”      Ghost Jack entered Imhotep’s dream.  The area he landed in was a massive wide open desert.  He had been here before in the dream.  But this time was different, there was someone here, and it was Imhotep.      “Hey, Imhotep, how’s it going?” Ghost Jack asked.      “Jack?” Imhotep asked.  “Well, it’s nice to have someone else here to talk to, even if I know you’re just a part of this dream.”      “I’m not actually, I’m a Ghost, so I can enter dreams,” Ghost Jack said.  “Also, I’m the temporal duplicate of Jack, not the original.”      “Thus explaining how you’re a ghost, assuming you are actually here.”      “Can’t you use your magic abilities to figure that out, or whatever?”      “I just expelled a bunch to try and wake up, and I’m feeling rather drained right now.”      “Hmm, that might be why you sat up, and why I’ve finally been able to find you.”      “Welcome to Earth 2,” Jack said as Mary, Abigail, Philip Wilson, and Dorian Winters followed him through the wormhole.  “Abigail was already here with me, but to the rest of you, it’s new.”      “What exactly makes it Earth 2, and us Earth 1 anyway?” Abigail asked.      “Well, it’s the second Earth we’ve been too,” Jack said.  “And ours is the first.”      “And shouldn’t it be universe, not Earth, since it’s not like this dimension just has Earth,” Abigail said.      “Fine, just take all the fun out of it,” Jack said.  “Ohm, how are things here?” he asked as Ohm approached them.      “No one has come close,” Ohm said.  “Things seem normal.”      “Good, excellent,” Jack said.  “We’ll set out shortly.”      “So, he managed to use his magic to sit up?” Jeri said.  “That would explain why I couldn’t identify the reason.”      “Yeah, but it brings up more questions than it answers,” Ghost Jack said.  “Sesla is far more powerful than him, but she hasn’t managed anything of the sort.”      “Yes, and it also brings up the question of what to do if Merlin is able to do anything with this magic, while in a coma.  We want to wake up Imhotep and Sesla, but not him.  Not unless we can find some other way to contain him.”      “That village is where we found evidence that Agent Nichols had been,” Jack said, as he pointed it out to his group.  The village was in the open plains, past the tree line, while they were staying in the forested area to avoid being seen.      “I don’t suppose we know how long ago that was?” Mary asked.      “No,” Abigail said.  “We don’t.”      “And my knowledge powers don’t work in this universe,” Jack said.  “So we can’t count on that helping us out.”      “Then I think we’re going to have to talk to them,” Mary said.  “I mean, I can scout around the area, but the trail could be long gone.”      “Deanna, do you have any thoughts on the situation?” Harkon asked.  “Any ideas why Imhotep was able to use his magic to sit up, and whether this could be a risk as far as Merlin goes?”      “Imhotep is not even as powerful of a magic user as myself, let alone my older self, Sesla” Deanna said.  “If she has been unable to do anything of the sort, then it’s clearly not the result of power alone.”      “That doesn’t mean that Merlin won’t be able to manage the same thing,” Ghost Jack said.      “No, but his magic is more similar to that of myself than it is to that of Imhotep, so it is not something I would consider an immediate threat,” Deanna said.  “Moreover, I assume it is related to whatever was keeping you from finding him within his dream in the first place.”      “Which is what?” Ghost Jack asked.      “Figuring that out is now your number one priority,” Harkon said.      “Well?” Jack asked over the comm.      “Nothing,” Mary said.  “I mean, plenty of trails, but nothing to indicate that any of them are from Agent Nichols.”      “Understood,” Jack said as he began approaching the village, with Ohm and Abigail.  “Okay, so remember, follow my lead.”      “Do you have a plan in mind?” Abigail asked.      “I’m going to wing it,” Jack said.  “Feel out the group.”      As the approached the village, they were noticed by the people there, who watched them.  Some of the people there had weapons, bows or spears.  They were at the ready, but not pointed at the group.      “Hello,” Jack said.  “Do you speak English here?”      A man came out of one of the dwellings.  His clothing was different than the others, and Jack assumed he was a person of authority, possibly the chief.  “I can speak your language,” he said.  “Who are you?”      “My name is Jack Masterson.  I believe one of our people was here some time ago.”      “Do you refer to Calvin Nichols?”      “Yes,” Jack said.  “So he was here.”      “He was, but he was taken by the Centaur.”      “I’m sorry, what?” Jack asked.      “Hey Sesla,” Ghost Jack said as he entered her dream.      “Jack, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” Sesla asked.      “I’ve finally made contact with Imhotep,” Ghost Jack said.      “That’s good.”      “It was after his still comatose body sat up.”      “That’s odd.”      “He expelled a bunch of magic energy to try to wake up.”      “That’s hard to believe.  Imhotep has decent magical knowledge, but his actual power is rather limited.”      “We suspect it’s related to why I wasn’t able to find him before, which we suspect is related to the individual that has been in the other Jack’s dreams.”      “Hmm, yes, that seems like a possibility.  I have an idea, but it will take some time to prepare.  Please come back later.”      “Right, okay.”      “The Centaur?” Mary asked after Jack and the others returned and explained what they had learned.      “A Centaur is a half man, half horse, right?” Dorian asked.      “Yeah,” Abigail said.  “But it could be that this guy’s grasp of English is incomplete.  He may have just meant someone riding a horse.”      “Or he could mean an actual Centaur,” Jack said.  “I mean, Centaurs exists in our universe, I assume.  So there’s no reason to assume they don’t exist here.”      “Why do you assume they exist in our universe?” Abigail asked.      “You and I are Greek Demigods,” Jack said.  “Centaurs are from Greek mythology.”      “Either way, how can we track this individual?” Philip asked.      “The Centaur apparently came from, and left to the east,” Jack said.      “I did see some hoof prints on the east side of the village,” Mary said.  “Looks to be a few months old, and most of them are gone, but I might be able to track them.”      “Then that’s where we’ll be headed,” Jack said.      “Hey Melinda, what’ve you been up to recently,” Ghost Jack asked as he floated into the cafeteria, where Melinda was eating a grilled cheese sandwich and tomato soup for lunch.      “Mostly I’ve been going over the intel we have on the TDD, and Rupert Teleros, and trying to determine the best course of action.  I’ve been talking with a lot of the TDD agents we have in custody.”      “And how’s that going?”      “Could be better, could be worse.”      “What do you think is the correct course of action?”      “Personally, I think joining the TDD might be our best course of action at the moment,” Melinda said.  “Assuming we still keep some level of autonomy.”      “Are we going to have a long distance to go?” Jack asked as Mary was looking at the ground.      “It’s hard to say,” Mary said.  “I mean, these tracks are at least a month old, which means they could be pretty far away, but we can’t really know that until we’ve followed them far enough.”      “I don’t suppose we can bring some sort of vehicle here?” Philip asked.      “We can’t fit a hovercar through the wormhole,” Jack said.      “Not to mention that Mary can’t exactly follow the tracks from a hovercar,” Abigail said.      “Ready yet?” Ghost Jack asked as he entered Sesla’s dream again.      “Just about,” Sesla said.  “Now what I need you to do is have myself and Imhotep moved right next to each other, so that our heads are touching, and then I need you to try to enter both of our dreams at the same time.”      “I’m not sure if I can do that.”      “Normally no, but I have created a magic spell that I believe will allow you to do so.”      “Are you certain?”      “Not completely certain, but relatively certain.”      “It’s getting dark,” Dorian said.  “We should probably set up camp soon.”      “We’ll go another half hour or so,” Jack said.  “See if we can’t find a more defensible location to set up at.”      “So, what exactly will entering both of their dreams at the same time do?” Jeri asked as she pushed the beds with Sesla and Imhotep next to each other.      “Sesla was kind of vague on the details,” Ghost Jack said.      “But you’re certain this is a good idea?” Jeri asked.      “Nope, but I don’t have any other ideas.”      “Right.”      “Jack definitely knows,” Mary said.  “Why else would he have us share a tent?”      “Because there’s six people, and three tents?” Abigail asked.  “So I mean, he put us women together, and then Philip and Dorian because they’re pals, and him and Ohm because they are friends.”      “Yeah, I suppose that make sense.”      “Look, Mary, I know you wanted to keep this a secret, but if you’re going to freak out every time anyone says anything about us, then I think we should just go public with our relationship.”      “But what will people think?” Mary asked.      “Most of them will be fine with it,” Abigail said.  “And those who aren’t, that’s their problem, not ours.”      “Maybe…”      Ghost Jack put one hand on Sesla, and the other on Imhotep, and then tried to enter both their dreams at once.  It was very uncomfortable, almost painful, but then he found he was essentially split into two of himself, but his mind was connected to both.      “Whoa, this is weird,” he said in both of the dreams.      “What is weird?” Imhotep asked him.      “So, it worked then?” Sesla asked him.      “Yes,” he said in Sesla’s dream.  “I’m in both of your dreams now,” he said in both.      “Wait, what?” Imhotep asked.  “What are you talking about?”      “Take my hand,” Sesla said as she offered it to Ghost Jack, who took it, and then suddenly she was in Imhotep’s dream.      “I was not certain that would work,” Sesla said.      “What did you do?” Imhotep asked.      “I used Jack as a conduit to travel into your dream,” Sesla said.  “So that I can try to determine who was keeping you imprisoned deep within your mind.”      “Everyone, we have something to announce,” Mary said in the morning as she and Abigail left their tent.      Philip was making breakfast while Dorian was taking down their tent.  Ohm was keeping watch, and Jack came out of their tent at Mary’s statement.      “Oh?” Jack asked.      “Abigail and I are…that is to say that we have been…” Mary started saying.      “We’re girlfriends,” Abigail said.      “Yes, that,” Mary said.      “I mean, obviously,” Philip said.      “Did you think no one knew?” Dorian asked.      “Wait, you two knew?” Mary asked.      “I think everyone knows,” Jack said.      “I was just worried how people would react,” Mary said.  “Especially you two,” she said to Philip and Dorian.      “Because we’re from a less enlightened time?” Dorian asked.      “We’ve been doing the time travel thing for a while, just like you,” Philip said.  “Also, we’ve been dating for a few months now.”      “Okay, that I didn’t know,” Jack said.      “We haven’t been hiding it exactly, but we haven’t really come out publicly either,” Dorian said.      “Until now, I guess,” Philip said.      Ghost Jack watched as some sort of letters started glowing in the air around Sesla, at least he assumed they were letter but they were unfamiliar to him.      “Hmm, fascinating,” Sesla said as she was reading, and manipulating the letters.      “What are you finding?” Imhotep asked.      “Someone has been messing with your mind,” Sesla said.  “It was rather sloppy work.  That’s why you escaping the dungeon they put you in caused your body to sit up.  They seem to have overloaded parts of your mind, but you got them working again, and that caused some unintended physical reactions..”      “Is that a good thing or a bad thing for us?” Ghost Jack asked.      “It’s a good thing, I believe,” Sesla said.  “I believe I may be able to trace the source.”      Mary returned to the group after scouting ahead.  “I’ve found something,” she said.      “What is it?” Jack asked.      “There’s an area up ahead that’s clearly been used as a camp multiple times,” Mary said.  “Near as I can tell, by this Centaur each time.”      “How can you tell?” Philip asked.      “Only hoof prints,” Mary said.  “No Human footprints.”      “Are there prints more recent than the ones we’ve been following?” Jack asked.      “There are,” Mary said.  “Looks to be some from only a few days ago.”      “And Sesla can just stay in there without you?” Melinda asked after Ghost Jack had told her what was going on.      “I was the bridge, to allow her to cross over to Imhotep’s dream from her own,” Ghost Jack said.  “She’ll need to use me again to get back, but until then I am unneeded.”      “Hmm, what would happen if you transferred one of them to the dream of someone not in a coma, and then that person woke up?”      “I don’t know.  Seems like it could pose some sort of risk though.”      “But what if that body was a clone that didn’t have a mind of it’s own?”      “Could still pose a risk, but yeah, I see what you’re getting at.  If we can’t wake up their current bodies, maybe we can put them in new bodies.”      The trail led Mary and the group to a small settlement.      “Okay, I’ll go into town with Mary and Abigail,” Jack said.  “Mary, I want you to try to keep following the trail in the town, but don’t make it obvious that you’re doing so.”      “Any luck get?” Ghost Jack asked as he reentered Imhotep’s dream.      “I believe so,” Sesla said.  “I will imprint the location on your mind.”      Jack, Mary and Abigail entered a saloon in the town.  Mary and Abigail went to grab a table, while Jack went up to the bar.      “Hello, we’re from out of town,” Jack said.      “Obviously,” the bartender said.      “We’d like some drinks, and some information.”      “What kind of information?”      “We’re looking for someone who maybe have been here recently,” Jack said.  “He’s pretty tall, and maybe has four legs.”      “Oh, you’re talking about the Centaur.”      “You know him?”      “A legend comes through your town, you hear about it, but you must be from pretty far away not have not heard of the Centaur.”      “We’re from out east,” Jack said.      “Oh yeah?  New York or so?  You seem like a New Yorker.”      “Yeah, that’s where I’m from.  So, do you know where we can find the Centaur?”      “Okay,” Harkon said after Ghost Jack had explained the situation to him and Melinda.  “I want you two to go to that location and investigate.  Bring a few other agents with you, just in case.”      “Yes, sir,” Ghost Jack and Melinda said simultaneously.      “Did you learn anything?” Mary asked as Jack sat down with their drinks.      “Well, for one thing I learned that the money here is at least similar enough to that of our own universe that the bartender didn’t notice anything suspicious about it,” Jack said.      “Anything relevant?” Abigail asked.      “I got an address,” Jack said.  “The Centaur is still in town.”      “Then what are we waiting for?” Mary asked.      “Well, we have to finish our drinks first,” Jack said.      Melinda pushed aside the ferns as she stepped out into the clearing, to join Ghost Jack who had just phased through the jungle.  They had brought a few other agents, but she was having them hold back for now.      “I’m not sure what I was expecting, but this is not it,” Ghost Jack said.      “Me neither,” Melinda said.      In the middle of the clearing was a small Human child.  A young girl, who was just sitting there.  She opened her eyes as Melinda and Ghost Jack approached.      “I was wondering how long until you managed to find me,” she said.      “Who are you?” Ghost Jack asked.  “And what are you doing in the middle of the Cretaceous?”      “I like dinosaurs,” she said.      “Why were you keeping Imhotep caged?” Melinda asked.  “Any how?”      “He was…I did not expect his mind to be as weak as it was.  Jack, the other Jack, he had such a strong mind.  I was just trying to communicate with Imhotep, as I had with Jack, but it overwhelmed him.”      “So, it wasn’t on purpose?” Ghost Jack asked.      “No, that is why I have since avoided dreams of those other than Jack,” she said.  “And even his I have stayed out of as of late.”      “You never answered our other question,” Melinda said.  “Who are you?”      “You can call me L, I suppose.”      “And what are you, L?” Ghost Jack asked.  “You look Human, but I assume there is more to it than that.”      “I am not Human, I have simply adopted a form that you will be comfortable with,” L said.      “Please tell me you aren’t part of the L continuum,” Ghost Jack said.      “No, I am unique,” L said.  “In this universe at least.  Although, I suppose that was a joke.”      “And what do you want?” Melinda asked.      “To play,” L said.      Jack knocked on the door.  Abigail and Mary were standing on either side of him.  After a little bit, the door opened just a crack.      “Can I help you with something?” a female voice asked.      “Hello,” Jack said.  “We’re from out of town, and we hear the Centaur is in town.  We’d really like to meet him.”      “You must be from pretty far out of town,” the voice said, and the door opened the rest of the way to reveal that the voice belonged to the Centaur, who was female, and holding a gun that was pointed at Jack.  “Now, what do you really want?”      “What exactly is playing to you?” Melinda asked.      “You people are so fascinating,” L said.  “Not as fascinating as dinosaurs, perhaps, but still so much fun.”      “This is like The Sims to you, isn’t it?” Ghost Jack asked.      “Hmm, that is a video game,” L said.  “Yes, that might be an apt comparison.”      “Can you wake up Imhotep and Sesla?” Ghost Jack asked.      “Yes, but no,” L said.  “It is within my powers, but not within the rules.”      “What rules?” Melinda asked.      “There’s someone else, isn’t there?” Ghost Jack asked.  “Someone else as powerful as you are?”      “Our game has been going on for a very long time,” L said.  “And it will continue to go on even longer.”      “How can we even know anything you are telling us is true?” Melinda asked.      “You can’t,” L said.  “It’s not like it matters anyway.”      “Why not?” Melinda asked.      “Because either you believe me or not.  If you do then you will carry on as you have.  If you don’t, you may spend some time and energy looking into and researching about me, and ultimately find that you can’t do anything to me, and you will carry on as you have.  Anyway, it’s been nice talking with you, but I have to be going now.”  And with that she vanished in an instant.      “We are looking for one of our people,” Jack said.  “Calvin Nichols.”      “Huh, so you’re from really far out of town,” the Centaur said.      “So, you know who he is?” Mary asked.      “I do,” the Centaur said.  “Cal, your people are here,” she shouted.      Calvin Nichols came to the door.  “Hey Jack, Mary, and I don’t believe I’ve met you before.”      “I’m Abigail.  I’m newish.”      “So, they are legit than?” the Centaur asked.      “They are,” Calvin said.      The Centaur lowered her gun.  “You can come in then.”      “Hmm,” Harkon said after Melinda and Ghost Jack had told him the details of their meeting with L.  “I’ve never heard of this L before.”      “I checked with Sesla and Imhotep,” Ghost Jack said.  “Sesla said that there was something familiar about my description of L, but she did not know her specifically.”      “Hmm, we’ll have to get her help in learning more perhaps,” Harkon said.  “And Agent Summers, what is your opinion?”      “I don’t think L was lying about anything, but there’s also something about her that I don’t trust,” Melinda said.  “But, like she said, I don’t know that there’s anything we can do about it.”      “So, anyway Calvin, we are here to bring you home,” Jack said.      “I am home though,” Calvin said.  “I’ve started building a life here, in the past few months.”      “But…what?” Jack asked.      “I thought I was stuck here,” Calvin said.  “Initially I was captured by that Native American tribe, but then the Centaur here purchased my freedom.  We’ve been together ever since, and have started to fall in love.”      “Oh,” Jack said.  “Well, then I suppose I’ll relay your message to Harkon.  Just so you know though, we do now have easy ability to travel between our two worlds.”      “Well, then if you really need my help, I suppose you can come ask for it, but I would still prefer to stay here,” Calvin said.      “Right,” Jack said.  “Who am I to stand in the way of love?” To be continued…