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write-orflight · 4 years

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Galileo. Prologue

**Gif Not Mine**

Next Chapter

Pairings: SpencerXReader, enemies to friends to lovers trope

Rating: M

Words: 1.5K (She’s a smol Prologue)

Warnings: None right now. but will eventually be smut.

Request: OPEN/CLOSED

Summary: Y/N is an astronomer with her head constantly in the stars. But when a serial killer is threatening NASA’s top scientists, she is left in the protective custody of a man who’s gravitational pull threatens to pull her back down to earth.

A.N Hey, my children! This is an idea that’s been plaguing me for weeks and I just had to get at least the prologue out (This series is mainly just my excuse to get my pointless knowledge about space out there). I’m probably not going to update this until I finish ‘trouble’ which should be in this next coming week. I’m just really excited about this one and wanted to put it out there too. Message to be on the taglist! -Cia

Prologue: Mercury

There are 400 billion stars in the galaxy.

Some insignificant, some small, some large, and some with great potential.

Humans were the same way. Though most were insignificant to you, which is why you didn’t indulge in the trifles of relationships and companionship. The stars were far more interesting to you.

And you spent your life studying them.

Ever since your dad bought you your first telescope at age 7, you knew exactly what your purpose was. To study and find out what else was out there. And for a while that was all you did, all through school, no time for boys, friendship and trivial prepubescent things, your mind was literally in the clouds. That carried you all the way to Yale where you graduated Summa cum Laude with 3 Phds in Astronomy, Engineering, and Physics.

Getting the job at NASA wasn’t surprising to you at all.

Meeting Jonathan was.

Your first day together had been uneventful, you had been introduced and told your assignment which was to just track the movement of a comet that came every fifty years. A couple of months in and by pure accident you saw her.

It couldn’t be.

You immediately yelled at him to come over, to confirm that you were just crazy but he had seen it too. You had just discovered a planet. And not just any planet one that through your research could very well sustain human life. Jonathan, though not knowing you long, picked you up in a giant hug and swung you around. You couldn’t help the smiles and tears that had fallen from your eyes. This was exactly why you were doing this, for the art of discovery and the overwhelming feeling that came with it.

After weeks of convincing the boards and getting funding, you and Jonathan were now heads of your own department solely designed for tracking and finding new information on Gaia, the planet the two of you graciously named. Now your nights were filled with solving equations and trying to get more than a glimmer of Gaia from your telescope. Alas, as much as you loved her, she was very slow. Jonathan would play his old jazz records and sing off-key dancing around the planetarium gifted by NASA. You didn’t know exactly when they happened, but you started to feel like maybe all humans weren’t insignificant and you started to feel like that about Jonathan. You found yourself watching his bright smile as he danced and singed around, often asking you to please dance with him, which you always declined.

Now you wish you had.

If you knew it’d be the last time, you for sure would have.

But no one could’ve predicted a serial killer coming after NASA scientists.

And no one could’ve predicted you walking into work and seeing your best friends throat slit ear to ear.

—————————————————

The months following Maeve’s death were hard on Spencer. He was a man of science, he knew probability and often relied on statistics for his job. The predictability of it was what made it easy to cope.

But sometimes it wasn’t. And sometimes he hated the unpredictability of his job.

Losing Maeve had definitely been one of those days.

On one of his first couple weeks back, he’s called into the briefing room.

“We don’t have to go far for this case.” JJ says manning the slides to show the team “Four NASA scientists at the Goddard Flight Center in Maryland have been found in their offices, throat slit and hands bound with duct tape behind the back.”

“Execution style…” Morgan says with a grimace. “Brutal.”

“Obviously someone angry too.” Emily adds. “To just do it like that, no sign of remorse. But the jaggedness of it makes it look passionate.”

“The police and NASA believe they know who the next target is as well.” JJ adds moving to the next slide which showed a beautiful girl standing in front of a whiteboard of equations. Long silky hair tied up in a bun, glasses on her face and bright white teeth shown through the smile. You could obviously tell the picture was taken for an article or sort. Spencer thought she was cute but didn’t dwell on it long. “This is Dr. Y/N Y/L/N. She worked alongside Victim #4, Jonathan Brewer as co-head scientists of the Terra-Mora project.”

“They think the Unsub is specifically targeting her department and people who have done work for her department. And if he’s already killed the partner...” Hotch trails off.

“He’s escalating…” Spencer adds.

“Which puts her under extreme risk. Which is why I’m putting her in protective custody.” Hotch adds. “Reid, I’d like you to do that.”

Spencer looks confused. “Why me? Shouldn’t someone like Morgan or Prentiss go?”

“I’ve been told Dr. Y/L/N is very reluctant about having security. I figured having someone as intelligent as her would cushion the blow.”

Spencer leaned back in his chair. Great… just what he needed.

—————————————

“No, Clifton.”

“It’s not up for discussion, Y/N.” Cliff says walking away from you down the hall. You speed up to catch up with him.

“I’m 31 years old! I don’t need a babysitter.” You said, angrily.

“You’re not getting a babysitter, Y/N. The FBI is being gracious enough to provide you extra security. I’m sure I don’t have to remind you people are dying.”

“You know you don’t have to remind me! I lost Jon!”

“Then you know why you have to take protection, Y/N. You know what important work you and Jonathan were doing. You’re the only one left to finish it. Please just let someone take care of you while they catch the sick man who’s doing this.” You sigh, Cliff takes that as compliance. “Now get to work. I’ll show him to your office when he gets here.”

You walk into work and look at the time, 10:30 PM, peak time for planets to be seen. And if you were lucky, you’d probably get a glimmer of her again. You were right because just as soon as you stepped up to the telescope there she was, or more like there was a sliver of her. You’ve never been able to get a full look at Gaia, but just past Saturn was the curvature of the dwarf planet you adored so much. You pick up your tape recorder, and begin to speak into it.

“January 16th, Terra-Mora logs. This is Dr. Y/N Y/L/N. Dr. Jonathan Brewer has passed and will no longer be making logs.” You choke up a bit but clear your throat and keep going. “Gaia’s Southwest region is visible from earth tonight. Seems her clouds are finally dissipating, and you can see some of her icy plains, I am pretty positive it’s a lake. Hopefully with the Approval of SPOT, we’ll be able to know for sure what’s up there.” You look at your door to see your boss, Dr. Clifton and a man standing watching you. “Y/L/N out.” You say into the tape recorder.

You get up to walk over the two men.

“You know everyone does their logs into the computers now, no one uses an actual tape anymore.” Clifton says.

“I’m old fashioned.” You cross your arms.

“This is Dr. Spencer Reid with the Behavioral Analysis Unit. He will be watching you while we figure out what’s happening.”

“This is who’s supposed to be protecting me?” You ask. “You look like a strong wind would blow you over.”

The man looks at you annoyed. “I can assure you, I’m more than capable of doing my job, Miss--”

“Doctor.” You say.

“Excuse me.”

“It’s Dr. Y/N Y/L/N. And I worked very hard and paid a lot of debt for the title so I’d prefer it if you used it.” You looked annoyed right back at him. Something about the man rubbed you the wrong way.

Dr. Clifton looks at the both of you uncomfortable. “Well I’ll leave you both to it.” He nods at you both before leaving you alone.

“I think we got off on the wrong--”

“Listen Dr. Reid.” You cut him off. “This is probably going to be hell for the both of us. I expressed heavily to my boss about not needing protective custody which of course fell on deaf ears, so I’m going to make one thing clear. We’re not here to be friends. I’m here to do important work that I now have to do single-handedly because you guys failed to do your work in the first place and my coworker had to die because of it.” Tears threatened to choke you but you didn’t let them. “And to be frank, I don’t know what exactly you’re here for besides being a pain in my ass so I suggest staying out of my way and not fucking touching anything. Keep that in mind and we’ll get along swimmingly.” You say, turning your back to him, heading back to the telescope and looking at him as if daring him to challenge you. For a second it looks like he might, he’s standing trying very hard not to look like he’s completely fuming. Then he just blows a frustrated breath and sits in a chair halfway across the room.

You didn’t know why, and you didn’t have a real reason.

But you decided that you hated Dr. Spencer Reid.

Which you guessed was another thing humans could be.

Message to be tagged!

#spencer x reader #spencer reid x reader #spencer x you #spencer reid x you #criminal minds #bau x reader #spencer x reader smut #spencer reid x reader smut

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eideticmemory · 4 years

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EVER SINCE NEW YORK | MATTHEW GRAY GUBLER

Description: I was messaged saying: “If you don’t write a young Matthew enemies to lovers fic featuring an obsession with sucking on boobs then what’s the point 😔.” So, here it is, folks! The ultimate College!Matthew fic.

PART 1! - for Sara [@bravadostyles], the ultimate muse.

SOUNDTRACK:

Empire State of Mind - Jay Z.

Animals - Maroon 5.

Dopamine - Børns.

Word Count: 4,731.

Rating: M.

Warning/Includes: Sexual intercourse, recreational drug use, a bit of angst.

Spring, Freshman Year.

Tisch School of the Arts,

New York University.

New York City.

“You’ve got that face on,” Claire said.

“What face is that, Claire?”

“Your trademark ready-to-go-home face,” she giggled. “You tired?”

“Just a little,” you whispered, head resting on her shoulder, feet hanging off the bed. “Had a long day at rehearsal.”

“Ah,” she nodded. “Well, if you wanna go, we can go. I’ll walk you home.”

“No,” you shook your head, and placed your hand on her arm. “It’s fine. I’m having a good time.”

Soft music played through the small speakers on Jonathan’s desk, mixing in with the chatter of your friends. Everyone sat in different spaces around the room, some on the desk, some on John’s bed, and you and Claire rested on his roommate’s bed. Open solo cups of beer were scattered amongst the room. It was calm, chill, and then the door swung open.

“Yoooooo!” The entering voice rang, instantly earning a happy response from Johnathan, who hopped off his bed and ran towards the entrance.

“Gube!” John exclaimed, arms open wide to embrace his friend. He always got a little touchy-feely when he was tipsy. “Where the hell you been, man?”

“Consider my good time ruined,” you murmured to Claire.

“Be nice, [y/n],” she responded, patting your leg. “Everyone’s having a nice time, don’t start anything.”

“Me? Me? I don’t start anything, I never start anything. It’s him who starts it. That di—“

“Hey, [y/n],” Matthew greeted, taking a seat beside John. “Hey, Claire.”

“Hey, Gube,” Claire smiled. She gave you a gentle nudge with her elbow.

You rolled your eyes, “Hi, Matthew,” you reluctantly replied, refusing to make eye contact.

“Aw, c’mon, that’s all I get?” Matthew teased. “What’s wrong, sleeping beauty? You tired?”

“Oh, you have no idea,” you told him, finally looking over at him. He wore a white polo, paired with a busted pair of jeans and white converse with his mismatched socks poking out. On his chest sat his trademark gold chain, the medallion set in the center of his sternum.

“Might be past your bedtime,” he shrugged. “Really. Might be better if you just left.”

“Me?” You scoffed. “Why don’t you leave? We were perfectly fine before you got here.”

“Oh, God,” someone groaned. “Here they go.”

“John wants me here. I’m a little more fun than someone who falls asleep mid-conversation, so I can see why.”

“Matthew, why are you talking to me? Can you just pretend,” you waved your arms around. “Pretend there’s a wall here.”

“Don’t mind her,” Claire interjected. “She’s crabby because she hasn’t started editing her project yet.”

You gasped, “Why would you just announce that, Claire? I didn’t wanna be reminded of that.”

“[y/n], you’re gonna be fucked if you don’t get that shit done. It’s due next week.” Another friend told you.

You groaned, “Yes. I know that. But I’ve been killing myself practicing for the show every night. And when I finally sat down to start editing, I didn’t know how to work the damn software!”

“You don’t know how to work EasyEdit?”

“No,” you sighed. “I missed class that day. I tried to learn on YouTube, and that confused me even more. So, I have since then given up.”

“Hm,” John hummed. “You know who’s really good with EasyEdit?”

“Who?”

“Gube,” John answered. This prompted Matthew to lift his head up at astronomical speed, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “He taught me how to use it. He could help you, [y/n].”

“John...” Claire said.

“What, Claire?” John replied. “[y/n] needs help and Gube can help. I’m just saying.”

You cut your eyes over to Matthew, who was watching you, but he quickly turned away when you made eye contact.

“You’re not clever,” Claire shook her head. “You’re nosey is what you are.”

“Nosey?” You pipped, tapping Claire’s arm. “What do you mean nosey?”

“I mean, if you and Gube just...” John said. “I’m gonna say it - fucked - one good time, the two of you could get over this whole rivalry already.”

“And stop arguing all the damn time,” someone added. “The shit’s annoying.”

Your jaw had been dropped since the word ‘fucked’ was uttered. You looked up at Claire who gave you a sympathetic smile.

“I-“ You stuttered. “I...never say that again, John! Ever. Ew!”

“Ew?” Matthew exclaimed. “You’d be lucky if I tossed you a bone.”

Your jaw dropped even lower, stunned by Matthew’s words. “You arrogant son of a bitch,” you muttered. “And this is who you want me to allow near my final project?” You directed at John.

“Hey, if you don’t wanna fuck me, it shouldn’t be a problem, right?” Matthew taunted, biting his lip and tilting his head.

“No. I don’t wanna fuck you! I also don’t want to spend any more time with you than I absolutely have to. So I will learn EasyEdit by myself.”

“Okay,” Matthew shrugged. “You’re not gonna figure that shit out in time, but fine, princess. Be stubborn.”

You rolled your eyes at him, shaking your head in annoyance.

“[y/n], let Gube help,” Claire said. “You’re gonna drive yourself insane with that and the show coming up, plus finals? Just this once.”

You looked over at Matthew, instantly getting angry again. Hate is a strong word. It’s a very, very strong word. And you’d never use it against anybody. Ever. Except Matthew Gubler. That may sound a bit dramatic, so to clear up any confusion, here’s a composite list of every asshole, dick, bastard, bitch-ass move he’s made in one semester:

1. Broke your editing equipment trying to do magic tricks in class.

2. Didn’t apologize.

3. Called your last documentary “uninspired, dry, a little like a lullaby.”

4. Took the last spot for an internship over Christmas break.

5. Which he knew you wanted.

6. Refused to partner with you on a final project because “you can’t even get to class everyday.”

7. In front of everyone because he’s a jackass.

8. Told you that you were insane for majoring in film making AND ballet.

9. Proceeded to tell you that you look better in a leotard than a suit.

10. Fucked your roommate.

11. While you were in the room.

12. Insisted that Wes Craven is a better horror director than Tim Burton? Is he dumb?

13. Calls you ballerina barbie, short stack, princess, anything other than your actual name.

14. Won’t drop dead.

And, because you’re not going to let anyone treat you that way, here’s a list of things you’ve done in retaliation:

1. “Accidentally” stepped on his canvas.

2. 3 times.

3. Uploaded a video of you calling him a dick in place of his documentary.

4. Yes, he did play it for the class on accident.

5. Told him you didn’t want to be his partner anyway since he walks around stoned 24/7.

6. Laughed.

7. Told him he’d be a good ballerina. His tiny dick would fit perfectly in a leotard.

8. Fucked his friend. While said friend was supposed to help Matthew with his project.

9. Told him none of Edgar Allan Poe’s work was actually interesting enough for screen time. (He almost passed out, he got so mad.)

10. Told him his mismatch socks were dumb.

11. Consistently call him asshole, dick, jackass, or just Matthew. All synonyms.

12. Refuse to let him mess with you.

So, the idea of him helping you with your project, coming into your room, bothering you for hours on end, was a ridiculous thought. You should punch John for even mentioning it. Except. It wasn’t a bad idea.

“Hey, pants stay on,” Matthew said, giving you a smirk. “Boy Scouts honor.”

Everyone was looking at you. It made you queasy. Annoyed. Angry. And you couldn’t take it. So, you sighed heavily and cut your eyes towards Matthew. “Fine,” you grimaced. “Fine. Monday night. You will teach me how to use EasyEdit. And then we can all drop this.”

“Ah, success,” John cheered. “I’m not worried, though. Look at [y/n], she’s so innocent. She looks like she belongs on top of a Christmas tree. She does ballet for crying out loud. I doubt fucking is on her to-do list.”

“And on that note,” you pushed yourself off the bed. “I’m going to my room. Goodnight.”

Your room was just down the hall, and you showered, changed, brushed your teeth and got into bed in all of 30 minutes. Just about to fall asleep, you were disturbed by the sound of keys jingling in the door. Sloppy footsteps stumbled into the room, accompanied by silly giggles.

Thinking you were asleep, your roommate admired your sleeping frame, “Awwww,” she cooed. “Precious, precious, [y/n].” She walked over to you and rubbed your shoulder.

“You’re crazy to not wanna fuck Matthew,” she whispered, chuckling. “You don’t know what you’re missing, kid.”

And you stayed still, silent, pretended to snore. All while Claire crawled into her bed.

When Monday rolled around, you spent the entire day with a chip on your shoulder. Claire kissed the top of your head and insisted you’d be fine, that your project would be done by the end of the night and you’d be grateful for Matthew’s help. But she knew that was a dead cause in her heart of hearts. You both knew it’d be a miracle if Matthew and you made it through 15 minutes of editing.

When she left to go to a friend’s place, you changed into pajama pants, combined with a cozy cropped button sweater. You sat at your desk, and waited. You’d told Matthew to arrive at 7.

He got there at 7:59.

By then, you were laying in bed, pissed and upset that you’d actually been convinced to give Matthew a chance. He knocked on the door, and you answered with an attitude. “Go home, Matthew.”

“Don’t be like that, short stack,” he sighed, following you as you stomped into the room. “I got caught up. I’m sorry.”

“Yeah? What’d you get caught up with? A gram?” You spit.

He laughed, “Haha, so funny. No, I was not getting high. I was working on my own project. That I finished. Ahead of time. Can you relate, [y/n]?”

“Get out of my room,” you scoffed. “I asked you for one thing. One. And you couldn't even do that. You knew how important this project was to me, and you didn’t give a fuck. I wasted time waiting for you that I could’ve been working or rehearsing! I—Are you listening?”

Matthew’s eyes had been concentrated solely on your chest, “Are you wearing a bra?” He asked.

You took a step back, stunned, blinking rapidly as you searched around the room. “I’m sorry,” you said. “I’m just trying to find where the hell that came from?”

“It came from that itty bitty shirt you’re wearing,” he replied with a shrug. “Doesn’t really leave much to the imagination.”

“Stop staring at my tits!” You shouted, face turning red. “God, Matthew, I can’t stand to look at you right now. Just, leave. Please.”

He did not stop staring at your tits. Not for a very long time. But when he did, he had this look in his eyes. Like a wire had snapped. And he kissed you. Cupped your face in his hands, pulled you close, and kissed you. You pressed your hands against his chest, face contorting in shock and confusion.

You pushed him away, lips retracting with a sharp smacking noise. Saliva dripped from your lips, and you stood there, huffing and puffing like the two of you had just run a mile. “What the hell was that?” You snapped, your fingertips lightly touching your bottom lip.

He didn’t reply. He was just as speechless as you were. Speechless, and confused, and out of breath, and so, so pretty. He was so pretty. Has he always been that pretty?

You grabbed onto the hem of his shirt and pulled him back in, pressing your lips together in an aggressive collision. Matthew’s hand gripped onto your hair, his body pushing itself against yours in an eager attempt to get as close to you as possible. His other hand made its way to your waist, gripping onto your skin so hard, his nails left marks. Both his hands began to snake down your body, landing on the back of your thighs.

Very suddenly, Matthew scooped you up in his arms, yanking your feet off of the ground. You let out a breathy ‘oof’ as you found yourself perched in his grasp, your legs wrapped around his torso, your hands on his shoulders. He supported your weight so easily, all while sliding his tongue into your mouth.

He carried you over to your bed, where he abruptly dropped you onto the mattress, and looked down at you with a lustful grin. Standing beside the bed, he leaned in as if he was going to kiss you — slowly, with his hands reaching out to touch your body — but he didn’t. Instead, he placed his hands on your ribs and pushed your sweater up, over your breasts to reveal your chest.

“I knew it,” he whispered. “I knew you weren’t wearing a bra.”

Your breath caught in your throat, before you released it shakily. His lips wrapped around your nipple, wetting it with his tongue and applying light suction. A soft moan left your mouth, and you gripped onto his hair in ecstasy. He couldn’t stop himself from smiling. He sucked harder, to the point of pain, just to hear you make some noise. Any noise. When one nipple began to pulse between his lips, he moved to the other, leaving a trail of love bites between them.

The heat between your legs was suffocating, and you rubbed your thighs together for some relief. Matthew noticed this, and proceeded to stick his hands down your pants, fingers sliding underneath the band of your underwear. He smirked at how soaked you were already and rubbed your clit as he licked a trail up to your neck. You tightened your thighs around his hand, gasping at the friction and pulling at the bedsheets.

The sound caused Matthew to take in a sharp breath of air. His cock was pressed against the zipper of his jeans, and was getting to the point that it was excruciating. So, as he massaged your nerve, he undid his pants and pushed them down his legs.

He nibbled on your ear, and as you gave him a quiet moan, your eyes flickered down to look between your bodies. Flushed, and horny, and suddenly so desperate, you grabbed onto Matthew’s large erection and pressed the tip against your clit.

He grunted and pulled back to stare you in the eye, a sly grin creeping onto his face. He laughed, “I knew it. I fucking knew it. Innocent? Innocent, my ass.”

As you rolled your eyes at him, he kissed your lips softly, hands holding onto your thighs. You positioned his cock at your entranced and allowed him to press into you. He stood up straight, watching his cock disappear inside you, slowly, steadily, before he suddenly slammed into you. The sound of skin colliding on skin mixed in with your and Matthew’s moans, and he watched your head roll back in pleasure.

He licked his lips, smirking. And he did it again. And again. And again. Pulling out all the way and pushing back into you. Hard. The sensation struck your chest, and elicited vulnerable moans from you every time he pounded you. Matthew instantly began to speed his hips up, nails digging into your thighs as he pressed your legs open for him. His used all his strength to fuck you, your head knocking into the wall with every thrust. It was sloppy and messy and you couldn’t stop whimpering. Your eyes were screwed shut, and when you opened them again, the first thing you noticed with his chain. The gold medallion dangled in your face, Matthew’s lips pressed against your cheek.

Absentmindedly, you tangled your fingers in the chain, tugging on it as your volume increased. “Fuck,” you muttered. “Oh, fuck.”

He brought his hand up to your face, placing his thumb on your bottom lip. “Open your mouth,” he ordered, quietly, softly. And you did it without thinking. His thumb slid into your mouth, twirling around your tongue and stifling your moans.

He removed his hand and placed his thumb on your clit, wetting the skin with your own saliva. You let out a loud yelp at the new sensation, and a bubble instantly formed in your stomach.

Oh, no, not Matthew, you thought. Don’t let it be Matthew.

But with his cock and his hips and the way he kissed your neck and rubbed your sensitive nerve all at once. You came, you came with a fit of pornographic moans, trembling and writhing around on the bed.

And it was Matthew — the first guy to make you come. Ever.

He licked his lips as he watched you come undone beneath him, proud of himself — to the point of cockiness. Giving you a few more forceful pumps, he pulled out of you and released himself onto your chest, watching the fluid cover the hickies he’d left there.

He looked angelic on top of you, moaning, panting, swearing under his breath. But the moment he finished, he stepped back, fastened his pants and walked away. You propped yourself up on your elbows, watching him in a daze.

Matthew logged onto your computer, pressed a few buttons and then closed the laptop shut. Then he left.

However, the next day he sent you an email. Your project. Fully and perfectly edited.

Okay. So, that happened. They said it would happen and it happened. Didn’t necessarily make you hate Matthew any less, but it happened. It was good. You hated to admit it. And it was all you could think about. You couldn’t even touch yourself or hold your pillow without thinking of Matthew. It was bad.

Especially, given the fact that after the whole situation, he decided not to talk to you. At all. Not in class, not while hanging out with friends, not even to pick a fight. Complete and utter radio silence. He looked at you enough though. Not while you were looking at him, of course. So, as far as you knew, you were far off of his mind. But life had to go on. You had to focus on school, and on top of that, you were due to perform in NYU’s production of Swan Lake in less than two weeks.

You landed the main role of Odette, meaning for the next two weeks, you had to eat, sleep, breathe ballet. You practiced for hours on end, barely saw your friends, which gave you a good break from seeing Matthew.

Opening night rolled around and you were so nervous, you thought you might puke. Only a freshman, it was a miracle you landed the role in the first place, which meant your performance tonight was a make or break moment. Claire could tell you were sick to your stomach and tried to distract you by taking a bunch of pictures on her phone.

“Smile, pretty girl!” She beamed, the flashing going off in your face as you posed. “[y/n], you’re gonna kill it! I’m so excited! Aren’t you excited?”

“Yeah...” you whispered. “Deathly excited.”

“Aw, poor baby,” she swung her arm around your shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’m gonna be front and center, cheering you on. Just focus on me, okay?”

You smiled and nodded, taking in a deep breath. “Okay.”

Your body was on autopilot out on stage. The movements you’d practiced everyday, for hours and hours on end, just flowed. The lighting in the audience was dark, but you could just barely make out Claire’s figure under the soft hue.

It wasn’t until the finale, when you stood ready for your closing performance, that the lights switched to their full intensity and you noticed a hand resting on Claire’s shoulder. An arm resting behind her head. Someone whispering in her ear, making her laugh.

Matthew.

He was here. He was here and he was with Claire. He was with Claire and he was watching you. And it made your stomach feel weird. But then the music kicked up. So, you had to go. You fell into your dance, your rhythm and for some reason, you could not stop staring at Matthew.

Every twirl, you made him your focal point. Looking at him again, and again, and again. Until the lights went out.

Supporting ballerinas cheered you on as you walked offstage, throwing flowers at your feet and giving you applause. Your instructor marched right up to you, kissed both sides of your face and embraced you. It was a wonderful feeling, but right then, you were drained, emotionally, mentally, physically, you needed some rest.

You locked yourself away in your dressing room, taking a seat in the mirror and beginning to remove your tights. Pressing a makeup wipe to your skin, you jumped, startled by a knock on the door. You rose from your seat and walked to the entrance casually, expecting Claire to greet you.

 But you froze, as soon as you opened the door. Eyes glazing over the person in front you, your breath caught in your throat. “Matthew.”

“Hey,” he smiled. He looked you up and down — your naked legs, your breasts poking through the thin material of the leotard. “You...you were amazing tonight.”

“Thank you,” you whispered. “Bye.”

You attempted to close the door on him, but his put his elbow against the frame, stopping it in motion. “Whoa,” he exclaimed, pushing his way into the room. “What the hell is your problem?” He closed the door behind him.

“My problem is that I’m very tired, and still need to change, and greet everyone waiting for me. So, I don’t have time for this.”

“Time for what?” He crossed his arms over his chest.

You ducked your head down, “Nothing. Nothing. You need to leave.”

“Hey, hey, hey, ballerina barbie,” he mocked. “What’s your deal?”

“I don’t have a deal! I have nothing to say to you Matthew. Same way you have nothing to say to me.” You scrunched up your face in a frown.

“I...” he paused, laughing under his breath. “I never said I didn’t have something to tell you. In fact, I’ve been meaning to tell you something.”

You looked up at him — the gel in his hair, his black button down shirt flowing over his belt buckle, his dark eyes, his lips and the way they were pouting just a little. And like a magnet, you found yourself being pulled towards him. You jumped into his arms, hands on his face, and connecting your lips, mouths open, tongues touching.

Matthew held you up, moaning against your lips. “Mm,” you hummed. “Wait, what if someone comes in?”

Matthew thought quickly, hiking you up in his arms and shoving your back against the door. “Well, now they can’t get in, can they?” He mumbled, leaving kisses along your neck.

Your jaw dropped and you started to undo his belt, freeing his cock from his pants. He grunted against your skin as you stroked him, your head leaned back against the door, your chest heaving. You used your other hand to pull your leotard to the side, revealing your throbbing core.

Matthew smirked, letting you guide his dick to your entrance, and pushed his way into you swiftly. You instinctively wrapped your arms around his shoulders, burying your face in his neck to keep yourself quiet. His thrusts were quick, rough, messy. He was much more vocal this time, making no effort to stay silent.

“Fuck,” he moaned in your ear. “F-fuck, I forgot how good your pussy is. Fuck.”

The feeling was mutual. For the past month, you’d be wondering what the hell about Matthew had you so stuck. So fixated on him. And this was it. He filled you up perfectly, could manhandle you however he wanted, and always, always made sure you came.

He fucked you harder when he noticed your orgasm nearing — your quickened breaths, frequent moans and whines, and your legs tightening against his torso. “Oh, my God,” you whimpered.

“Shit, are you gonna come?” He asked. “Good.”

Breathless, speechless, you stared into his eyes helplessly as your body began to crumble. All power left your body and you held onto his shirt for dear life. He gave you a small smile, and flipped his hair out of his face, looking down at his cock. He could pinpoint the exact stroke that did it. The one that sent you into a state of euphoria, sent your eyes rolling back, your body into intense shock.

You let out a long and weakened sigh as the wave washed over you, and Matthew continued to plow into you like nothing was happening.

“It’s so cool how your pussy tightens up when you come,” he chuckled. “It’s hot.”

You rolled your eyes at the sound of his voice, clawing at the back of his neck. His breathing became ragged and hoarse, and he had to pull out of you before he came. He jerked himself off until he exploded onto your clothing. And with you being dressed in all black, his stains stood out perfectly on your costume.

This time, he gave you a kiss on the cheek before he left.

The week after that was finals week. And neither of you could be bothered to reach out. Despite the not-so-subtle confession of bitterness and the very intense orgasms you shared, you and Matthew simply went back to not talking. Your friends thought it was strange, even commented that they missed the bickering. The two of you shrugged in response.

Most of your dorm room was in boxes by the time you finished your last final exam. Claire was slower to pack up than you were, considering she only lived an hour away, but she applauded you for your determination. The day Claire did start packing was the day before you left for the summer. The two of you spent the day getting everything cleared out, cleaned, squared away.

While the two of you sat on your bed, watching Netflix, a knock sounded from your door. Claire hopped up and headed towards the entrance, opening it with a grand smile. “Gube!” She shouted, instantly opening her arms for a hug. Matthew wrapped his arms around her waist and picked her up, carrying her into the room with a smile.

“Are you about to leave?” She asked him, holding onto his arms as he placed her feet back on the ground.

“Yeah, my mom’s here. So, I wanted to stop by and say goodbye,” he nodded.

“Aw, Gube, you softie,” she giggled. “[y/n], come say bye.”

“I can say bye from right here, Claire,” you replied. She gave you a look, and you felt compelled to get off the bed. So you did, you approached them, “Bye, Matthew.”

“Bye, shortcake,” he laughed. “Bye, Claire.” He pulled your roommate into another hug, while you stood there, crossing your arms in annoyance.

Matthew peeked at you over Claire’s shoulder. One hand rubbed her back and the other reached out to you, holding a small note.

Your eyes went wide as you looked at him, then the note, then Claire. You ripped the paper from his hand, and stuffed it into your pocket right away. He smirked at you, and turned his attention back to Claire.

“Hey,” he said to her. “Come back to my place, I want everyone there to show my mom I actually have friends.”

Claire chuckled and nodded, “Okay,” she shrugged. “Let’s go. [y/n], you coming?”

“Uh, no,” you shook your head. “I’m gonna keep packing, but I’ll text you later.”

“Okay,” Claire smiled, and she let Matthew whisk her away.

You sighed, and as soon as the door closed, you pulled the crumpled piece of paper from your pocket. You opened it up to reveal — not a meaningful message, not even a few words. Just one string of numbers, writing in his handwriting:

505.

[PART 2.]

#mine #matthew gray gubler #matthew gray gubler imagine #matthew gray gubler fanfiction #matthew gray gubler fic #matthew gray gubler x reader #matthew gray gubler/reader #matthew gray gubler smut #college!matthew #esny

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clair-void-ance · 3 years

Text

Lucky Love (2/3)

Pairing: Cedric the Sorcerer x Alchemist! Reader

Word Count: Roughly 2854 words

Warnings: Mental health and emotional abuse mention

Notes: 😳😳 Yikes, this took too long to post lmaoo; hopefully the third installment is finished sooner than this one. I’m sorry to anyone who has been interested in this for its lateness!! For this one I was going for the same story line as the first part, but in Cedric’s point of view; that’s why it seems so similar. Hopefully you guys like it :) Feedback and requests are always welcomed <3 This one’s for my boi @queen-of-british-tea !!!

“The secrets of alchemy exist to transform mortals from a state of suffering and ignorance to a state of enlightenment and bliss.”

― Deepak Chopra

“He wishes he were a skilled poet, it would fit his chosen image perfectly; the poor, tragic, tortured artiste. But he has no talent for words, neither for paints nor music; his uselessness is tremendously total.”

― Curtis Ackie

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Being born the son of Goodwyn the Great, Cedric was destined to have unreachable expectations pushed onto him; his father’s blatant adoration for fame and glory had been clear to Cedric from an early age and, given he was the only son in his family, he knew that he would soon be groomed into his father’s perfect replacement for when he retired as the Royal Sorcerer.

The only problem that arose with that goal was that Cedric was only a child and was prone to making mistake after mistake. He knew he wasn’t perfect, no person is, but why did his father have to mention that fact so much?

It appeared that his father just couldn’t understand the notion that he was a conscience, feeling person though and decided to continue his crude actions anyway. No matter how much it hurt Cedric.

Unbothered by this fact though, his father set out on a mission to make Cedric’s life almost unbearable and filled to the brim with dread over the fact that he would probably never become the royal sorcerer or get the family wand. In Goodwyn’s eyes, Cedric was no more than a mistake that would never be worthy. And at this point, Cedric was starting to believe it.

The days he spent subjected to his father’s emotional neglect and constant taunting when he was tricked into messing up his spells had left him in an emotional limbo that he could not escape from. And who was he to not be affected by this tortuous treatment?

Soon he was counting down the days until he could get away from his toxic family in the castle and attend school at Hexley Hall.

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

One upside to Goodwyn, in Cedric’s opinion, was that he was just as skilled a sorcerer that he claimed he was. Cedric wasn’t sure if this was something he should feel more exasperated about, but he knew that he couldn’t deny the fact.

No matter how much he desired to demonize his father.

He had the ability to travel almost anywhere in the span of minutes and that was very convenient to a kid who had a very short attention span. And although he couldn’t travel to vast distances, Goodwyn could certainly get to many places three times faster than others.

Which meant that Cedric could arrive at Hexley Hall faster than all of the other kids and have more time to explore his home for the next seven years.

In less than one hour, Cedric and his father had travelled from the Castle and made it to the gate of Hexley Hall. The clean exterior of the castle was only rivaled by the beautiful architecture that made it the prestigious academy it is.

Wasting no time leaving his father and rushing with his items to the front doors, Cedric was awe-struck by the fact that the inside was even more beautiful than the outside. Even inch of it was designed with a purpose and each piece of art was shown with pride and respect.

And when he saw the warm smiles of the teachers waiting in the hall, beckoning him in, Cedric knew that he could get used to his new home.

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

After being toured around the castle by one of the teachers, as well as given a brief run down of its history, Cedric was left to his own accord and given a map so he wouldn’t get lost. The map had an incantation that would show him his current location and bedroom, which he thought was very convenient. But he wasn’t surprised, he knew how lost kids could get without proper guidance.

Looking down at the map after reciting the spell, he found a glowing mark on where his assigned dorm was located. Ironically enough, his was located with the rest of the sorcerers, witches, wizards, and warlocks.

Dinner commenced shortly after introductions were made and, after a bout of awkward shuffling, he found a quiet location to eat and then began his trek to his new dormitory.

By chanting the wandless spell to the map once again, an arrow led to his room in the lower regions of the castle where he began to unpack his hefty luggage.

After neatly organizing all of his ingredients, clothes, and books he quickly laid himself down on the comfortable mattress and ran through the events of the day. Although he still hadn't met any friends yet, he was able to get away from his father and analyze the place he’d be living in for a portion of his teenage life.

Putting aside those thoughts, he curled into a fetal position and fell into the most blissful sleep he’s had in years.

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Schedule: Year One- Semester One

Student: Cedric Goodwyn

Study: Sorcery

Study Order

Breakfast

Class One: Potions

Class Two: Intro to Alchemy: The People, The Places, and The Items

Class Three: Intro to Magic: Wands and Guidelines

Class Four: Intro to Magic: Practice

Lunch

Class Five: Magical Creatures and The Human Spirit

Dinner

Looks about right, Cedric thought to himself as he made his way down to the Great Hall for breakfast.

Being somewhat challenged by wand-based spells, Cedric was relieved to see that he had potions for his first class; it was the one subject that he excelled at and was something that used to calm the nerves created by his domineering father.

So he had no doubt that he would start his days off good with the way things looked on his schedule.

What if no one likes me enough to partner up with me though? he asked himself while ringing his wrists.

I guess I’ll just have to take it one step at a time….

With that thought in mind, he picked up his pace and quickly sat in a secluded spot. Looking around, he found that many people had already begun making friends. And, although this was a troubling notion given he had yet to meet anyone, he had hope that he would meet at leat (one) person that would approve of his company.

There has to be at least ONE person who will like me right? he questioned while gazing around the expansive room. Looking to the section where all the alchemy students sat, his eyes stopped on a girl with the most adorable (h/l) haircut and beautiful disposition.

Neptune’s Nettles they were gorgeous...Hopefully I share some classes with her. Blushing, he looked back down at his breakfast and waited until it was time to head to his first class session of the year.

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

Nice! Cedric thought. I’ve got the first pick of any seat in the class!

Looking around, he found a spot that felt just right; it wasn’t too far in the back and was just enough to be in the front and in a corner.

Smiling smugly, he sat down and began to unpack all the necessary items listed on the board in front of him.

Humming to himself, Cedric slowly stopped when he heard a series of footsteps approaching the classroom.

Thinking it was just the professor, given how early Cedric arrived, he kept his head down and decided to begin labelling the items in his journal.

That is, until he felt a tap on his shoulder. Whipping his head back, he stared dumbfounded at who was standing behind him: the girl from this morning!

Oh goodness, what if I’m sitting in the spot she wants?? What if she has some sort of beef with me already?? Oh dear, I’m gonna throw up..

This thought process continued until you let out a shy, "Do you mind if I sit next to you? I like the feel of this corner and you don't look half as bad as the rest of our class. Plus, I haven’t had much luck making friends."

OH, he thought, That’s not what I was expecting. Trailing his eyes to yours, he searched for any sign of this being a lie but couldn’t find any.

Softening his features, he opened his mouth and let out a:

"Really?....I suppose I don't mind."

He cautiously lifted his palm to you and said, "My names Cedric. I'm coming here to become one of the next Royal Sorcerers. What about you?"

With a firm grip, you shook his hand and settled down into your seat next to his. Watching you take out your schedule he heard you reply, "(y/n) Erwin! I'm studying to become the Royal Alchemist!"

Gripping your chin with an inquisitive look, you added a quick, "You wouldn't happen to be related to Goodyn the Great would you? I thought I recognized you at first, but I couldn't quite place from where…."

"Uhm….Yeah, I am. D-did you live at the castle as well?"

Analyzing you, he tried to remember times in which he would have seen you, but none came to mind. Which wasn’t surprising given he had all of his time stolen from either the prince or his father.

His thought process was halted though when you looked at him and said, "Yep. My dad's the Royal Astronomer, so we get to live with him at the castle…..I've seen you around you know….I always meant to say hi, but your dad and sister seemed to take up most of your time."

He rubbed his wrists anxiously and let out a, "yeah, they tend to do that…...but I digress. Do wanna compare schedules? I don't have any friends either, and y-you don't seem that bad as well…."

Looking down at the schedule you held loosely in your hand he noticed that it didn't seem so far off from his. You were both new to the school after all, so it made a tad bit of sense but luckily you both wouldn't have to split up very much for the next couple of years.

Schedule: Year One- Semester One

Student: (y/n) Erwin

Study: Alchemy

Study Order

Breakfast

Class One: Potions

Class Two: Intro to Alchemy: The People, The Places, and The Items

Class Three: Intro to Magic: Wands and Guidelines

Class Four: Gnosticism, Occultism, and Esoteric Beliefs

Lunch

Class Five: Magical Creatures and The Human Spirit

Dinner

Surprisingly, it seemed as though you would be seeing a lot of each other. Which didn't seem to bother either of you that much. After confirming your new friendship and planning your day out together, you both set up the rest of your supplies and began your first class of the day.

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

After cleaning up your respective area of the shared potions table when class ended, Cedric reminisced on how well the class had actually gone. Despite both of you being new, you and Cedric seemed to work in a sort of synchronized state. Even your teacher pointed out how good you two were together. This had made Cedric feel elated, it was the first praise he had gotten since leaving his father; that alone made him feel on top of the world. Even more so when he took into account that he gained a friend and intellectual equal.

Picking up the last of his mess, he gently put his bag over his shoulder and looked back to you waiting for him at the end of the desk.

You looked up and down and asked slowly, “Would you mind if I sat with you in our other classes as well today? I’m not really…..friends with anyone else here yet and we seem to make a good team. Plus, you seem really sweet.”

“I’d love to!,” he said in an excitable raised voice. His face broke out in a flustered blush at how desperate he sounded and quickly let out a, “I mean, if that’s what you want to do…”

To that, you chuckled and lightly punched his shoulder saying, “Of course I would you dork. Now let's hurry up so we can get the best seats in our next class."

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

After that day, the two of you were like two peas in a pod. Whenever you both had a class, were going somewhere, or ate, you were attached to the hip. Even teachers knew that, if they couldn’t find one of you, they wouldn’t find the other either as well.

For you two, there was never a subject left unstudied, never a prank left undone, and never a conversation left undiscussed.

It started off with you both teaming up in your shared classes, meeting for meals, and talking on the way to class, but soon branched off outside of school.

With coaching from you, and years of positive reinforcement on your end, Cedric had been coaxed out of his hesitant and neglected shell. All it took was one fond look and a caress of his hair from you and Cedric was turned into mush. The love you showed him through the years made him see that not everyone was out to get him. And not everyone was untrustworthy.

In summary, you brought hope in humanity back into his life. Something that he surely would have gone off the deep-end without.

To others, it seemed as though you had put him under a spell and transformed him into a new man; Cedric had never felt so confident in his life.

Especially since he never had anyone to support him. Until you, that is……

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

Year 7 at Hexley Hall

Flicking your wand in a cursive “J” formation while pointing your wand at the painted black stone, Cedric watched as you whispered, “Avifors.”

Within seconds, the rock you had been pointing at morphed in size and began to take the shape of a sleek, black raven that immediately began pecking the tip of your index finger. It cocked its head at you and turned to inspect Cedric.

Cedric, gazing back at the bird, looked absolutely stunned at the sight of this seemingly never-heard-of spell and immediately began to shift his eyes to you and then raven. He wasn’t sure where you had learned that, since you were only taking alchemy classes, but he was beyond interested in knowing.

“Merlin’s Beard! Did you make that spell up all on your own?”

“Not exactly,” you chuckled, “My father and I worked for days to come up with the correct spell and paint concoction when I was a child. But it worked out, and now I have a way to create any type of bird to do my bidding!”

Setting his chin in his palm, he began to gaze fondly at the scene in front of him and think about all the things he has yet to learn about you.

“Would it be alright if you taught me that spell? I know it’s yours and everything….. but it’s too bloody brilliant to be left unpracticed.”

“Sure!.......I'll write it down for you by tomorrow.”

That confirmation made his heart swoon and a grin break out on his face. Yet another thing that would bring him closer to you. He knew that this spell was very special to you, so you being willing to show him it reassured him that you cared about him as much as he cared about you.

He was willing to do anything for you and perfecting your spell was one of the best ways he could think of to honor your spectacular intelligence.

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

When night revealed itself and Cedric was tucked away trying to complete his assignment, he began to reminisce on the time he spent with you that day. He knew how special that spell was to you, and knew that you sharing it with him meant something. Right?

After all, you didn’t share personal things like that with just anyone; even he wasn’t privy to most of your private thoughts and feelings. Up until recently that is; you had begun to reveal more and more about yourself to him and, honestly, it made Cedric finally feel special and worthwhile. Which did NOT help the fact that he had been in love with you for the last five years.

And thought Cedric knew that he had to confess soon, he needed to know if you felt the same before he ruined whatever it was that you two had going on right now. If you didn’t reciprocate his feelings….that would make everything pretty awkward….Which wouldn’t help his situation out too much.

At least it would give him some closure....

He had been with you at every step of the way through your years at Hexley Hall, and he knew that you would be there for him for days to come. Working at Enchancia’s castle wouldn’t stop the bond that you both had formed over the years; it would only make it grow. Which it what he was hoping would help you develop feelings for him.

With each other until the end, that’s what you both had promised one another.

‘If only she liked me back,’ he thought to himself, gazing into the spell that he had been too distracted to work on for the last two hours.

With a huff of a laugh, he closed his textbook and laid down to go to sleep.

As if…………..

#cedric x reader #cedric the sensational x reader #cedric the sorcerer #Sofia the First #sofia the fandom #sofia the first imagine #STF #cedric the sensational #x reader #request

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crystalstar8 · 3 years

Text

Knights of the Night (Epilogue 2)

Epilogue 2

Ch 1, ch 2, ch 3, ch 4, ch 5, ch 6, ch 7, ch 8, ch 9, ch 10, ch 11, ch 12, ch 13, ch 14, ch 15, ch 16, ch 17, ch 18, ch 19, ch 20, ch 21, ch 22, ch 23, epilogue, epilogue 2

https://archiveofourown.org/works/29139240/chapters/71536491

pairing: Jungkook x oc

genre: vampire au, college au, twilight, romance

word count: 1,053

warnings: blood (obviously), kidnapping, child kidnapping, needles, France, human trafficking

notes: vampires, vampire au, college, college au, so many twilight references, blood, needles, kidnapping, children, homelessness, dance, ballet, flashbacks, romance, slow burn, probably no smut, idk yet tho, France, French things, attempted genocide, inaccurate French history, bisexual main character, @strawberriewithchocolate-blog @mozy-j @daechwitad-2 @zobadak @fallenstar-7

summary: Catalina starts college in a small town all the way across the country. She doesn’t know anyone and isn’t exactly looking for friends. She just wants to focus on dance. But when she meets fellow dance major, Jimin, and adventurous, fellow freshman, Jungkook, Catalina ends up discovering a whole new side to the small college town; one that is dangerous but oh so enticing...

Jungkook was waiting for her outside the building, a rose in his hand. Catalina’s nose scrunched into a smile as she skipped down the stone steps.

France was overwhelming; the architecture everywhere was ancient and beautiful, and the history was fascinating and rich. The people were a bit rude, especially once they realized they were Americans. They were only a bit more forgiving when Namjoon, Taehyung, and Yoongi showed off their fluent French.

The theater Catalina had her audition in was stunning. The outside was all white columns and friezes, the inside was mosaic tiled floors and painted ceilings.

When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she dropped her dance bag and threw herself into Jungkook’s arms.

“You got me a rose?” she asked, leaning back just enough to look at the rose in his hand.

“Of course I got you a rose,” he said. “You think I’d let you step out of an audition without a rose?”

Catalina giggled and took the flower from him.

“How did it go? Did you get in?” he asked.

“I don’t know yet,” said Catalina. “They’re going to do callbacks in a few days.”

“Good thing we’re staying for a while,” said Jungkook.

“But honestly, it doesn’t matter if I get in or not,” said Catalina. “There’s always next year. And There’s always plenty of shows.”

“Yeah, you have all the time in the world,” said Jungkook. He stared at her for a moment, then whispered, “I want you to turn me.”

“Oh yeah?” Catalina asked. She had been waiting for this. She knew that he was worried about aging without her, she could see it his eyes sometimes when they went to bed together, knowing she wouldn’t fall asleep. She especially saw it on his birthday. “You’re still young.”

“I know, but I’m already the same age as you now,” he said.

“Oh no! You’re the same age as me! You basically have one foot in the grave already!” Catalina giggled. “You should take your time. You get hotter every year. Let yourself ripen a bit before doing this.”

He laughed loudly and tugged her closer.

“That’s true,” he said.

“Wait until we both graduate,” said Catalina. “We can talk then.”

“You’re pulling an Edward on me?” he said. “Next thing I know, it’ll be, ‘wait until we’re married’.”

Catalina giggled and swatted his arm. “You’re being a baby.”

“I know. I’m kidding,” he said. “I can wait.”

“Besides, we need time to explore the wonders of blood drinking during sex,” she said. “Did you know there’s aphrodisiacs in the venom when you drink from someone? It’s supposed to make them pliant, but it doesn’t turn them into a vampire.”

“That sounds hot,” said Jungkook. “Also, I am a fan of being manhandled. I’m not ready for that to end just yet.”

“I know. We might need a chaperone though,” she said, tapping her chin. “I don’t know if I’d be able to stop once I got started. You smell way too good.”

“We have plenty of time to work out the specifics,” said Jungkook. “I need time to get hotter each year, so we’ll figure it out.”

They both laughed as they went to the car waiting for them.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Taehyung loved the Louvre. It was like a dream come true, wandering the unending corridors, seeing all the classics he’s idolized for hundreds of years.

“Taehyungie, what’s this one called?” Jimin asked. His hand was covering the informational plaque under a series of paintings depicting a man looking at a celestial globe. Jimin had been doing this for hours, but Taehyung didn’t mind. He loved sharing what he knew about all his favorite pieces.

“That’s ‘The Astronomer’, by Vermeer,” said Taehyung. Jimin smiled and strolled ahead down the corridor, in search of his next quiz. It was a weekday, so the museum wasn’t very busy. There was a tour group of young students, which Taehyung and Jimin ran into a few times, but otherwise there were only a few stray artists wandering around doing sketches of the statues.

In the back of his mind, Taehyung knew that the rest of their group was supposed to meet them here at some point, but Taehyung and Jimin were so far into the maze of art that he wouldn’t even know how to direct them once they arrived. He wasn’t worried about it either. He was having too much fun with Jimin to care about the others right now.

Every moment spent with Jimin was special to him. He still couldn’t believe sometimes how quickly Jimin had reassured and forgiven Taehyung; he was so sure Jimin would hate him for making that decision for him. And while Jimin was struggling getting used to his new life, he made it clear that he was thankful to be alive, that he was excited to spend forever with Taehyung.

“What about this one?” Jimin asked. Taehyung strolled over to look at what painting Jimin was at.

“‘St. Michael Vanquishing Satan’,” said Taehyung. “Raphael.”

Jimin continued down the hall, eyes flitting across each painting. Taehyung was most excited to see David; he heard that the statue was way bigger in person than one would expect.

Taehyung stopped. The painting he was looking at made his eyes widen and his mouth fall open. The plaque said that the artist was unknown. Jimin must have noticed that Taehyung had stopped moving, because he wandered over, letting out a gasp when he saw the painting.

They didn’t say anything for a while. The school group wandered past behind them, the children’s voices bouncing off the stone walls.

“Hey, that guy looks just like you!” a voice shouted from behind them. Jimin turned around to talk with the girl, who was pointing at Taehyung. Taehyung didn’t take his eyes off the picture though. He felt a tear roll down his face.

“Can I take a picture of you with that painting?” the little girl asked. Taehyung wiped the tear from his cheek and nodded, turning around to face the girl. She lifted her phone and snapped a picture. She gave them a toothy smile before running to catch up with her classmates.

“Is this Adrianna’s work?” Jimin asked. Taehyung nodded. He turned back around to stare at the painting of himself with his dog.

A/N:

And that’s a wrap! Thank you to everyone reading this and sticking with me during this story. Reading the comments was my favorite part of this journey.

This story is officially novel length! I’ve never accomplished that before with a complete work! I’ll be posting this story on Wattpad, and I’m also thinking of changing names and adding scenes to make this a publishable work, so keep your eyes out for updates on that!

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takonei · 4 years

Text

Beta AU - Main story, Chapter 3, deadly life (Part 8)

Note of the author: Sheesh, that chapter was a huge mess, but I’m done!

Also graphic depictions of violence. Beware.

Chapter 3: What is beyond humans’ control - Deadly life

...

Shuichi stared at the screen for who knows how long.

He noticed Rantaro approaching Angie, looking furious. He thought the medic was going to harm her but...

He slammed his hand on her forehead.

“... I knew it.”

The girl rubbed her forehead and had now the trace of Rantaro’s palm on it.

“So she had the disease after all?” Kirumi narrowed her eyes at the craftswoman.

The despair disease...

A disease that is capable of twisting someone’s mind to the point of committing such atrocities.

A disease that made her kill Himiko in such a horrible way.

She wasn’t even willing to harm anyone, right?

... Right...?

...

Shuichi’s eyes widened in realization.

Why didn’t he realize sooner?

Shuichi didn’t know if asking her about her island was a good idea, but it was worth a shot. “Hey… I know this is probably a touchy subject for you and I won’t force you to talk but… How was it back there, sculpting?”

But when he looked at her, her eyes were empty. She had stopped in her tracks. “… I wish I could slaughter Atua with my own hands for all the shit he put all of us priestesses through. Just cutting him like Monokuma cut Maki with the scissors and watch his-”

The violinist couldn’t believe what she was saying. He wanted to put his hands on her shoulders, but refrained from doing so. “Angie! I-”

He paused. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have talked about this.”

Did she...

Did she have the disease from the very beginning?

Did she kill Himiko so she could take revenge on those who hurt her?

All of this could have been avoided if he thought this through.

The signs were right before his eyes and he ignored them entirely.

It felt like she murdered Himiko in front of him and he didn’t even flinch.

He glanced at Kiyo, who seemed to feel the same guilt.

Even after talking to her about her past, he hadn’t judged her suspicious.

Was she hiding the disease that well?

“Angie...” Kokichi muttered. “Why...?”

She stared at him with a deadpan expression... Then giggled.

“Silly Kokichi! It should be obvious by the crime scene~”

The lavender eyed boy froze. “I still... Don’t get-”

“It was for fun of course!~”

Shuichi saw everyone’s expression growing both worried and confused.

“... Huh?”

She approached Kokichi’s face at a high speed and gripped his hoodie with both of her hands.

“She was so fun to play with! The moment she told me she had a fragile constitution I knew she was the one!”

Shuichi frowned. “How... How would that make her-”

“Do you have any idea how much I wanted to see blood flood to the ground and painting the world in crimson red?”

She was only a few centimeters from the small boy’s face, staring at him with wide, joyful yet empty eyes.

“It was so easy to make her go to the shrine! She is so naive, you didn’t notice this?”

“I just had to write that I found a secret passageway outside for us to use! Just that she couldn’t tell the others! And she completely bought it!”

Shuichi could only watch in horror Angie describing her train of thoughts, a strong grip on the powerless boy.

“Have you ever tried to paralyze someone? It took exactly 4 seconds for her to fall to the ground!”

The violinist could only stare at her terrifying eyes.

“First I bashed her head against the ground. Then I twisted her ankles and her fingers.”

“Then I sliced her body into pieces to watch her sweet blood drip to the ground... Did you know she was hemophiliac?”

“When I saw how weak she was becoming, I took the axe to see how much blood would flood before dying... I had so much blood on me afterwards you know...”

She strengthened even more her grip, her forehead touching Kokichi’s and starring at his very own soul.

“Have you ever tried?! You keep repeating your karma killed so many, but have you ever tried enjoying the sight of mutilated bodies?! Of blood flowing beneath your feet?”

“THIS IS TRULY WONDERF-”

*slap!*

Angie fell to the ground, Kirumi towering above her, pure disgust on her face. “... Shut up. Just shut up.”

The craftswoman rubbed her cheek. The slap in her face was violent, but she didn’t seem to care.

“Hahahahah... Kirumi you’re pretty hypocritical, you know? You’re a mercenary, don’t you enjoy the sight of blood, too?”

“... Don’t compare me to you. We’re nothing alike.”

The girl stood up. “Blood... Hehehehehehe....”

She hysterically laughed. A laugh so similar to Kokichi’s earlier, yet so different.

Her laugh was a different kind of madness.

She grasped her head, nails digging her skull so much that the violinist wondered if she wasn’t doing it on purpose to make herself bleed.

“Blood, blood, blood! I could see it flowing all day, from each and every one of you! I could slice all of you into pieces! This disease truly opened my eyes to the art of slaughter! Himiko was my first and last piece after all!”

Shuichi wanted to puke.

Kokichi, who had felt horror when she was describing him the murder, was now staring at the ground with empty eyes.

“I’m guessing you have the bloodlust disease?” Tsumugi kept her distance.

Angie looked at her shaking hands “Hehehehehehehehe... What else would it be?”

Rantaro glared at Monokuma.

“So you had no intention of getting out after all?” Kiyo asked.

“Not really~ It was just for the amusement.” Angie replied like nothing was wrong.

“Monokuma...” the medic clenched his fists. “Was her disease truly the bloodlust disease?”

After a short silence, the bear giggled.

“Puhuhuhuhu... Absolutely! Angie Yonaga’s disease was the bloodlust disease!”

Shuichi could barely mutter “So the real Angie was long gone...”

Silence fell upon the group.

The only audible noise was Angie’s non-ending giggling as she kept mumbling the word “blood” over and over.

Everyone wanted to get out of here, but no one could bring themselves to say anything because they knew what was coming.

Himiko’s death was horrible. They all had stared at the dead body for what felt like an eternity this morning.

They all had wanted justice for the astronomer. And yet...

Did they really want to send Angie to her death...?

No- was it really Angie in front of them, expressing the pleasure she felt by killing her?

It certainly didn’t feel like it.

Shuichi hesitantly glanced at everyone.

Kaito was looking away, an expression of both guilt and denial on his face. Was he still thinking about Keebo?

Kiyo had the same expression as the biker. Did he choose to ignore Angie’s unusual behavior?

Tsumugi and Ryoma were unreadable. Although Ryoma seemed to keep an eye on Rantaro, the lack of emotion on the prodigy’s face was disturbing.

Kirumi was making sure Angie didn’t try anything.

Rantaro was looking away. Shuichi couldn’t even see his face.

Miu felt desolated. Her best friend accidentally killed someone, and everyone else was unable to accept the truth.

They all wondered how an illness could push someone to commit murder...

... And the answer was right in front of their eyes from the very beginning.

No one had anticipated Monokuma to pull out such a move.

And they should have.

As for Kokichi...

He was not responding. Like his spirit was somewhere far away, leaving a body devoid of soul standing in the courtroom.

“Heheheheheheheh... My execution will be wonderful too...” Angie perked up, glancing at Monokuma.

Shuichi snapped out of his panic, his heart racing like crazy. “W-Wait-”

“Looks like you’re already prepared. Now then, let’s get started...”

The bear grinned.

“It’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for-Punishment time!”

Angie continued giggling. “Heheheheheh... Maki and Tenko’s executions were so wonderful... Just thinking about it makes me so excited!”

She looked at Kokichi, arms wrapped around herself. “I’ve heard legends that killers have their blood tainted in a gorgeous ebony color...”

"...I wonder what your blood looks like.”

This sent a chill down Shuichi’s spine.

It was just like Rantaro said earlier.

Angie wasn’t even remotely sane.

Not anymore.

“I’ve prepared a special punishment for the Ultimate Craftswoman, Angie Yonaga!” Monokuma exclaimed.

“I can’t wait to see this... I can’t wait any longer...” Angie muttered.

“Let’s give it everything we’ve got! It’s... PUNISHMENT TIME!”

“THIS IS THE BEST I’VE EVER FELT IN ALL ETERNITY!!”

The bear took his toy hammer and pressed the red button.

GAME OVER

Angie has been found guilty.

Time for the punishment!

(BGM)

Angie found herself standing on grass, on what looked like a tropical island, the sun setting in the distance.

However, the scenery around looked fake. The waves were painted wood, and the sun itself was fake too.

Hundreds of black and white small dolls appeared from the ‘sea’, circling Angie.

The girl waited for them to attack, a wide grin on her face.

However, they didn’t. Instead, they formed a path leading to the top of the hill, to a gigantic tree, lianas hanging from the branches.

As an earthquake shook the island, Angie realized it was slowly sinking.

Her only choice was to follow the path the dolls created.

Emissary from Heaven and Hell Ultimate craftswoman Angie Yonaga’s execution: Executed

She ran and followed the path traced in front of her, panting as running on an upward slope started to feel exhausting.

She noticed the dolls were not even trying to survive. Every time she ran past one, it would face the fake sea and try to form a shield to make it stop flooding the stage.

She reached the top plateau, the giant tree towering on the small island.

On a closer look, the tree was fake too, and just as she noticed this, the wooden panels that served as a door lowered, revealing the center of the tree- or rather, an elevator, judging from the ropes on the sides.

Just as she stepped on it, three of the dolls joined her as guards, and the elevator started going up.

The interior was dark, aside from the candles each doll had.

The travel was long, she realized.

Out of boredom, she kicked one of the dolls to see how it would react.

Just as the poor doll fell, the two others reached for ropes and quickly attached her hands.

She couldn’t move, and the third one linked her feet with its rope close enough so she couldn’t try to do anything, but could still walk.

The elevator brutally stopped, and the door opened to reveal the tree’s top branches.

And just as she exited the elevator, a hoard of dolls shot her with darts.

Her eyes widened and after a few seconds, she stumbled on her feet out of dizziness.

When her conscience went back, she looked around in confusion, like wondering where she was.

And as Shuichi watched her eyes on the screen, it hit him.

The darts were the antidote for the disease, and she was now out of it.

She turned to the dolls, panicking and trying to resonate with them, but two of them planted something on her back and her head.

Fake wings and a wooden halo.

The dolls forced her to walk on one of the branches where she could see the horizon.

When she reached the end of the plank, looking down was an ocean of fake waves and giant stone spikes with them.

A doll forced her to jump.

And tears flowing down her face, she did.

As she was falling, the wings and the halo fell off, and her body finally crashed onto one of the spikes, impaling her.

Angie Yonaga, the ultimate craftswoman, was dead.

Shuichi kept staring in horror at the screen that played the execution.

The real Angie still existed but...

... She died not knowing what happened to her. She died not knowing why she was executed.

He looked away, closing his eyes.

What was Monokuma gaining from this? What was he gaining from those killings?

What was the use of those motives? Was it really entertainment?

What about the mastermind? Were they enjoying this? Were they truly enjoying their despair?

What did they want from them? What had they done to deserve this?

What was the point of putting them through a disease? Of reversing Kokichi’s karma? of making Angie a bloodthirsty killer?

He didn’t know.

... He didn’t know.

The rest of them kept starring at the screen.

Shuichi heard footsteps over the white noise in his head.

Kokichi was leaving without a word.

Kiyo turned to him. “Wait-”

“I’m fine.” he coldly responded.

Shuichi gulped. “But are you-”

“I said I’m fine.”

His gaze was cold and empty. He didn’t even bother completely facing him.

“Himiko is dead. We got it by now.”

“Everyone dies at some point, and her death was sooner than I expected.”

“I’m used to people dying, I don’t need anyone to tell me how I should feel.”

“It’s a killing game after all. People die. Big deal.”

“I was a fool to think anyone would be an exception to the case.”

As he approached the exit Miu took a step forward but stopped immediately.

Then it was Kaito’s turn to leave without a word.

This time Miu didn’t stay silent.

“Kaito wait-”

She reached her hand towards him but he slapped it away.

“... Stop trying to be everyone’s mom. It’s annoying. I’m not your damn kid.”

She stepped away, visibly troubled.

Miu starred at the ground, defeated, as the biker walked away.

Kiyo felt sorry for her. “Let’s just... Rest for now. Everyone is tired and we shouldn’t start fighting in this state.”

Rantaro was the first to move towards the exit. He was clearly furious about the entire trial.

Shuichi just managed to get a glimpse of his face. He didn’t look at anyone and just left the courtroom like Kokichi and Kaito.

The others followed shortly after.

He wanted to say encouraging words but...

They never came.

Even Kiyo was unable to say anything. Or perhaps it was because he didn’t think it was the time to cause another outburst in the group.

Shuichi approached Miu, who had her arms crossed and didn’t even look forward.

“Miu... I’m sure Kaito didn’t mean this...” he muttered.

“No... He’s right.” she mumbled. “I should stop. It’s weird.”

She fastened her pace before he could argue.

They finally reached the dorms and Shuichi muttered a good night, to which the remaining students responded quietly.

He let himself fall onto the bed, unable to think more about it.

...

He could only hope for the...

...

No.

Was there any hope at all?

There was surely a mastermind secretly laughing about their misery.

Someone enjoyed their situation.

And they were going to suffer even more.

There wasn’t any hope at all.

They were already in hell.

“...”

“I wish things would have gone differently.”

“But I can’t go back now.”

“And... I have our promise to fulfill.”

“I know this is neither your fault nor mine but...”

“I’m sorry.”

“...”

“I’ll fulfill our promise no matter what.”

#ndrv3 #danganronpa v3 #ndrv3 au #beta au #main story

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raven-wraith · 3 years

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This is Actually a Completely Subjective List Written in a Completely Objective Voice, so I’m not Wrong, Y’all just had a Bad Year: A Look at the Best Titles of 2020 A.D.

By Orova

I feel like a recap or an intro that encompasses the past year will be redundant to both the reader and the writer, so I just won’t. Instead, I’ll just say that due to circumstances provided by 2020, I had a lot of time to just shut up and play games. And games did I play. I played a lot of good games[1]. I played a lot of bad games[2]. I bought the newest games that came out[3] and I went back down memory lane with some classics[4]. But at the end of every day, I was completely satisfied with how I spent my time and did what I wanted. So this is a list of the games that surpassed satisfaction, pushed the bar higher, and made me reconsider what a truly great game can be in 2020.

The Last Of Us Part II

This game is a beautiful work of art and storytelling. If gripping gameplay is what you came for, then you’ll be staying for the story. Naughty Dog continues to come out with games that push current gen Playstations to astronomical heights, making that hardware and software work overtime to get a game that becomes so overwhelmingly tangible that it cause the player to stop. The Last of Us Part II is no exception to this rule. So often does this game take lefts and rights when you expect it to go straight that it is absolutely insane how much ground it truly covers. Sneaking about before getting into claustrophobic gunfights feels smooth and natural, the new mechanics and enemies are unique, and while the non-linear parts can overstay their welcome at times, the game is long enough for them to not fill in empty space.

When I first played this, I was with my girlfriend for the whole journey and at the end, I didn’t feel quite as fulfilled as I thought I should’ve from the sequel to one of the greatest games I’ve ever played. It wasn’t until I returned on a higher difficulty did I find just how much this game has to offer, making the story all the more powerful as every fight truly felt like my last and every enemy made me rethink my choices and decision making and every arrow I fired and molotov I threw felt a nice weight to it that I have to emphasize once more. This game is a beautiful work of art and storytelling as the gameplay speaks for itself before anything else.

Final Fantasy VII Remake

To those that actually care, I reviewed this game when it came out[5] and I was shocked to find how many people didn’t appreciate it as much as I did. Final Fantasy VII is one of the most influential titles of my life that being able to see Cloud’s hair rendered so cleanly in this dystopian futuristic gothic fantasy world was a miracle in my eyes. A dream come true. The action comes in spades with enough sword fighting and magic to make Power Rangers to look like a fucking picnic.

The graphical design of the game, the direction of animation, and the cunning take on a lot of depth we never got to see so early on makes me very excited for future titles to come. There are some downsides, lots involving the side quests and voice acting, but that is just some of its downsides to look past to find the content at its core. Shooting moonbeams out of your greatsword at stormtroopers while in chase on a motorcycle. Take down a tyrannical oil monger as an eco-terrorist. Find cats for a little girl. Is this a Bioshock? No. But is it a game I keep trying to remind myself to not replay? Yes.

Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1 + 2 Remake

Superman by Goldfinger played and my sister laughed as she watched me cry. This game brought tears to my eyes, literally. As I got to relive sitting in my grandma’s basement, I was propelled to complete absolutely everything I wanted to do. This game was a complete package and its delivery was spot on with what a remake should be. A collection on a past game with quality of life improvements, enhanced handling and accessibility, and a software overhaul.

The game is simple. Complete challenges, unlock drip, flex on your friends. Usually in that order. But it is finally that simplicity in a new game that makes it such a good title. We wanted the game we knew and loved and they promised that. Nothing more, nothing less, it is exactly what we got. A new soundtrack, updated graphics, and nostalgia not most can achieve is a massive point to play this game.

Huntdown

Contra meets Kung Fury. Why the fuck have you not grabbed a friend and played this masterpiece yet. I mean seriously. If you’ve got a roommate or SO or friend with nothing going on tonight, play this shit. It’s great. Moving on.

Mortal Shell

I would like to address the fact that, yes, this is a souls-like and it isn’t exactly the most friendly game because of it. However, this game came out of fucking nowhere and blew me on my ass. Going back to delivering on a promise, these guys crafted an unforgiving title with little to no hand holding to show that this-THIS[6]-is how you make a souls-like. It is balls to the walls skill based combat where the player has to use what little tools they have to overcome a myriad of enemies. Progress is possible only through rewards and items, meaning there is no grinding or farming, just straight gameplay.

This is a game where I paid half the price for a full game and got, while a shorter title, the enjoyment from a full priced AAA game. It takes no time to complete when the “click” happens and it is a fun, fulfilling title the whole time. There are some incredibly unique mechanics that forced me to break my souls brain and for that, it just makes the experience far more personal. If you aren’t weak hearted, I cannot recommend Mortal Shell enough.

Doom Eternal

When Doom Eternal dropped, my sister was playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons. After we both went into respective video game comas from it, we dubbed March 20th Doom Crossing Day. Doom is Doom. Nothing more to say past that honestly, but I will continue my rambling cause I know it’s what you all want anyway.

These guys keep cranking the intensity knob higher and higher. With Doom 2016 these guys said, “Hey, what if we gave the best first person shooter that requires no thinking whatsoever to completely obliterate enemies and zoom around the map at breakneck speeds?” With Eternal, the guys said, “Hey, what if we did what we did for 2016 except this time, we actually have the everyone (enemies and the player) move faster, hit harder, and actually require them to think?” With that, the gore orgy of Doom Eternal was born. Still very much a fast paced shooter with some extra content to fill the pockets of completionists, it delivers in fucking truckloads exactly what it wants from the player. To let loose and fucking floor every hellish abomination in their path.

And the soundtrack, while a sad story, is still one of the best things to listen to in gaming and probably the world.

Darkwood

The only thing that made me stop to consider buying this game was how reliant on a crafting system it seemed. I hate games that force crafting. I don’t know why, so I won’t elaborate. But, done with The Last of Us Part II and needing a survival horror itch to scratch, I sucked it up and bought it. After all, being an indie title for a genre I admire more than most, it couldn’t have been a terrible waste of time. That was probably the single best decision I made during the last year and Darkwood is not lost on me in that sense.

The fact that Darkwood has not only exposed the horizon of top-down horror, but it has experimented and perfected its use for the camera angle is astounding. The atmosphere rides on that perspective and, between the short days of scavenging and talking to the few NPCs you meet to the long nights crouched in the corner of your (un)safe haven, it is never lost. It’s a game where you constantly hear your heart in your ears. The combat can be sloppy at times but the story is one of a kind and its execution is phenomenal. If you are a fan of horror games or roguelikes, I cannot tell you enough. Get Darkwood.

Deep Rock Galactic

After lots of thoughtful consideration, I have deemed this the number one title of 2020. Not only did it keep me and my friends together and in touch during the hard times, it is a shooter that I support with my whole body. You and your friends play as a team of drunk space dwarves, tasked with a mission that sends you deep into a spider-infested planet, where you will have to use your class sets to fight, plunder, and escape the hostile environment.

With PvE at its core and ridiculousness as its foundation, Deep Rock Galactic is a masterpiece of cooperative shooting and procedurally generated dungeon crawling. Blending class play from Team Fortress 2 with unexpected and differing missions from Darkest Dungeon, one will find this lighthearted shooter is an easy, accessible title. With a hint of Risk of Rain to complete its graphics, the game is above all fun. That’s right. It. Is. Just. Fun. Shoot a spider that launches fireballs from its mouth, drink beer that teleports you into the farthest reaches of space, get rich off of gold veins while your team calls you greedy, dye your beard purple, and Rock and Stone in this amazing fusion of PvE and dungeon crawling.

Thank you for coming. There will be no score. It is simply a list where I feel those that need some new titles after the biggest disappointment of them all[7] should find some great titles in here for themselves. Have a safe next year and be patient. Patience is what will reward you. Practice is what humbles you. Hesitation is defeat. Toodles.

[1] Ghostrunner

[2] Hellpoint

[3] Mafia: Definitive Edition

[4] Silent Hill 3

[5] 9/10

[6] Not you Hellpoint

[7] Cyberpunk 2077 but I mean, we all saw this coming. I had to put it in here somewhere.

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addictedforbooksquad · 5 years

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ADDICTEDFORBOOKSQUAD BOOK EVENT # 3 🏳️‍🌈 P R I D E M O N T H

╙ Week 1 : books

B O O K R E V I E W

T H E L A D Y’S G U I D E T O C E L E S T I A L M E C H A N I C S B Y O L I V I A W A I T E

genre: romance, historical romance, LGBT, F/F romance

publication date: 25th June, 2019

rating (1-5scale):

writing: ★ ★ ★ ★

characters & character development: ★ ★ ★

could-not-put-it-down factor: ★ ★ ★ ★

general rating: ★ ★ ★ ★

*ARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review*

When I saw a synopsis of this book, I knew I had to read it. F/F romance set in a regency era? Between a rich widowed countess and a girl astronomer? My instant reaction was HOW FUN - COUNT ME IN. This story turned out to be so much more than that. I love reading books - I have fun doing it, whether it's a delighted pleasure taken in discovery of something amazing or twisted satisfaction in finishing a book that makes me want to fling my e-reader across the room. However, the type of...kinship and emotional fulfillment I felt while reading "The Lady's Guide to Celestial Mechanics" is extremely rare and precious. This is certainly a love story, between Lucy Muchelney, an astronomer who has recently had her heart broken, and Catherine St. Day, widowed countess whose marriage was a constant streak of personal unfulfillment and emotional abuse.

After her father’s death and her lover taking a husband, Lucy sets out to London with an ambitious goal of translating work of esteemed French astronomer. Catherine, aka Lady Moth, agrees to take her in as a guest, and, after members of Polite Science Society turn out to be anything but polite, offers to sponsor and publish her translation on her own. And thus, begins a bisexual awakening of Lady Moth and a blooming romance between the two.

Now, let me count the ways I loved this romance. First of all, the apparent respect and support between Lucy and Catherine. While Lucy is ten years younger than Catherine, she’s the one more experienced in having a relationship with a woman. That’s not to say Lady Moth is an innocent miss straight out of schoolroom. No, she’s been married for fifteen years and even had an affair after her husband’s death (HUGE kudos for including that!) and she has a baggage of her own. They both do. Which is why I absolutely loved how they took things slow. And when they finally got together, I could feel how they cherished each other and their closeness. Secondly, this is not just about the romance. The outstanding theme, actually, at least to me, is women supporting and loving women. Women helping each other achieve their dreams and goals and realize that there is more to life than living in the shadow of men. “She ought to have paid more attention to her own self before now. She ought to have allowed herself to want things.” When Lucy and Catherine take a leap and begin a relationship, they don’t only embark on a journey towards love. No, they embark on a path of self-discovery and self-acceptance. And it’s beautiful and oh-so-heart-warming to read about them uplifting each other and being there for each other.

Apart from this, I really have to applaud the author for the way she handled the issue of homophobia in XIX century. Personally, at least, I found it to be the perfect balance between so-called historical accuracy and respect for queer readers. Do I want to read about two ladies getting it on in Regency era? HELL YES. Do I want to be brought down by “historically-accurate” mentions of how they are scorned and ostracized because of their love? NOPE. In this book, we do have mentions of homophobia – it would be impossible not to include it when writing about a time when it was systematic (sex between two men was criminalized). But just because a society you write about is homophobic as a rule, doesn’t mean your characters need to be as well! And I’m glad the author understands that. Not only are there mentions of other F/F and M/M relationships throughout the book, the characters that find out about Lucy and Catherine don’t react with scorn – they turn into allies. “They don’t let you have anything whole, you know. If you don’t follow the pattern. You have to find your happiness in bits and pieces instead. But it can still add up to something beautiful.” Lucy and Catherine? In the end, they don’t need to satisfy themselves with scraps of happiness, no matter how beautiful. In the end, they take it all – love, science, art, permanence, sense of security. To a large extent, this book also deals with sexism and misogyny. But again, the way it’s done leaves you feeling uplifted, not discouraged (and I don't want to spoil but there's a plot twist at the end that makes it even more amazing). Lucy ends up making a place for herself in a field that is almost entirely ruled by men. Catherine decides to follow her dreams in a field that has been discounted as a trivial female pursuit. Both of them team up to help other women have their voices heard. And just like with their relationship, they have allies here too. “But there is no brilliance of thought, no leap of logic that can take place without the power of imagination. Our learning requires intuition and instinct as much as pure intelligence. We are not simply minds, trained like lamps on the world around us, producing light but taking nothing in: we are bodies, and hearts, and hopes, and dreams. We are men, and we are women. We are poetry and prose in equal measure. We are earth and clay, but we are all - no matter our shape - lit with a spark of something divine.”

*stands and claps*

I think there is only one thing in this book that made me recoil as I read it: “First, I would have to count myself in very good company: many of our greatest thinkers through history have been as famous for their mistakes as for their insights. Didn’t Copernicus believe the sun revolved around the earth?” NO. No, he did not. That is, in fact, factually incorrect statement. Mikołaj Kopernik aka Nicolaus Copernicus was XV/XVI Polish astronomer who was one of the very first to introduce heliocentric system, so a system in which it’s the Earth that revolves around the Sun while at the same time turning daily on its axis. It’s just one sentence but I wouldn’t be myself if I didn’t point this out and given the focus this story has on astronomy, it’s a factual error that shouldn’t have been made. Going back to the good things though – I absolutely recommend this book. It was beautiful and emotional and simply a delight to read. Trigger warnings: mentions of emotional abuse, sexism, misogyny

#the lady's guide to celestial mechanics #lgbtqa literature #LGBTQ #historical romance #bookworm #bibliophile #litedit #book reviews #lucy x catherine #our reviews #by kate #booksquadevent #booksquadevent3 #our edits booksquadevent3 #3.1

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stormtrprinstilettos · 5 years

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Chameleon - Ch. 4

Summary: Reader (that’s you!) moves to London, hoping to leave her past behind and find happiness. She makes friends with her new neighbors. (Guess who?) - So far we’ve established that Reader & Freddie are BFF, Reader & Brian are absolutely into each other (but he has a GF) and Reader & Roger have a bit of sexual tension.

Word Count: 6k+ || AO3 link | Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3(1)(2)

A/N: Thank you to everyone who is reading this (especially @clogwearingspacepoodle who helped me decide where I wanted this to go!). So… this chapter’s got angst. It’s got language. It’s got smut. Now go on, Y/N - take what you want!

Tagging @chocolatealmondmilkshake - if you want to be tagged just let me know.

You had acquired a new roommate - Freddie. You thought it was pointless for him sleep on Brian and Roger's couch when you had an empty bedroom, so the two of you spent some time cleaning out the extra room that was full of your grandma's old junk to make space for Freddie's things. This new arrangement wasn’t hard to get used to. The four of you were constantly in and out of each other's places anyway. You all had jokingly discussed tearing down the wall that separated the two flats since it would save the time of opening and closing doors. You loved this somewhat strange arrangement you had with the three of them. It wasn't what others would consider normal, but it was the most normal you had ever experienced. They'd go off to their classes or jobs or rehearsals and you would "take care of the homestead" as you put it. The guys called you their domestic goddess. You even bought yourself a few cookbooks to become more domesticated.

Freddie had encouraged you to pick up your sketchbook and pencils again. You always loved to draw, and you were very good at it, but when you left your old life behind, that was one thing you left with it. You didn't even mention your love for art to anyone until Freddie saw some of your old sketches when you were clean out what would become his bedroom. They were mostly drawings of people, all seeming to be deep in thought, all with their own story to tell. He pulled the old book out of a box in the closet and flipped through, growing more and more impressed by every picture. "Who drew these?" he asked, snapping your attention from whatever you were rambling about. He wasn't paying any attention.

"Oh..." you cleared your throat. "I... I did.” You never showed your sketches to anyone except your mom and grandma. They were the only ones who never told you that you were foolish and wasting your time with your talent. "I forgot all about that thing. I can't believe she kept it."

His mouth dropped in amazement. "You? These are fantastic. I didn't know you draw."

You quickly grabbed the book from Freddie and closed it, throwing it nonchalantly back into the box. “I don’t. Not anymore." Once you had your back turned, Freddie took it back out and continued flipping through the pages. "So I'm thinking tonight for dinner I'll just do some chicken." Freddie didn't acknowledge. You waited a couple of seconds. "Is chicken okay with you? Maybe a salad..." You turned and furrowed your brows when you saw him looking at the book again.

"Who are these people, love?" Freddie asked, never taking his eyes away from the pages. "You must have cared about them. You didn't miss a single detail."

Knowing he wouldn’t let it go, you sat behind him, wrapped your arms around his waist and rested your chin on his shoulder and told him about every person on the pages. When he got to the last page, sensing your deep breath you took to regain your composure, Freddie turned his head to look at you and asked, "is this your mum?"

You stared down at the page and smiled. "Yeah, that's Mom." You ran your hand over the picture with adoration. "I miss her."

"Easy to see where you get your beauty from," Freddie said as he pinched your nose, an annoying habit they all seemed to have picked up that they used to get you to crinkle your nose for their amusement. "You look just like her."

The next week Freddie gifted you with two sketchbooks and a box of drawing pencils. You took his unspoken advice and began drawing again, which is how you would spend most of your days when the guys were off doing their thing. You’d go sit at the parks, mostly, sometimes at pubs or street corner cafes and people watch, choosing your subjects at random. It was therapeutic.

You had only ever gotten caught by a random subject once. You were drawing a man at a pub whose clothing style intrigued you. Flamboyant was an understatement, which is why you found him to be an interesting muse. Freddie would love this guy's style, you thought, which is why you chose him in the first place. He was unashamed of who he was and you couldn't take your eyes off of him. He caught you staring and they agreed that he would let you finish drawing him as long as you paid him in conversation. You sat together for a couple of hours and regaled each other with amusing stories from your pasts. You found out that he was leaving for New York that night, which was upsetting because you just knew that he and Freddie would get along perfectly.

Things between you and Brian oddly weren’t even really weird after finding out he had a girlfriend. The two kisses happened and that was it. It was never discussed. Freddie told you he wasn’t happy in the relationship, and you got the same vibe from Brian, but it, like the kiss, was never discussed. Well, it wasn’t discussed anymore after you let him know in passing that you knew about Jane. The two of you actually got closer. Not romantically – he was already spoken for. But he was spending more time with you, lazing around, watching TV or listening to a new album, depending on what you felt like doing. He would listen to you ramble on about whatever was exciting you that day. You would listen intently to him playing songs that he had written and sometimes just watch him sitting with his notebook, scribbling on the pages with deep concentration. You would show him your drawings and he would encourage you, just as you would encourage him with his music and studies. He would passionately talk about some random astronomical phenomenon and you would listen with immense interest. A few mornings you woke up to find that you both had fallen asleep on the sofa, but that's always as far as it went. You weren’t going to allow any lines to gets crossed and neither was he. But the feelings were there. You couldn’t deny them to yourself – and he couldn’t deny them either – but as long as this Jane person existed in his world, you weren’t going to say a word. You convinced yourself that everything would be fine as long as you at least had him as friend although you could feel your heart literally hurt whenever you were around him.

Then there was Roger, the incorrigible flirt that he was, who never kept himself from making sly comments, which you would return in kind, which made everyone else suspicious of the two of you. Things with him were frustrating. You wanted him. Badly. You knew he wanted you, too. You both would resist as much as possible, not wanting to cause any problems that could possibly arise, but you always gave in to the temptation. You tried so many times to just do it, but there was always a reason it never happened, no matter how close it came to happening. It never failed. The two of you would end up in a hot and heavy situation, and just as things were about to go that one step further, Freddie would come home, or the phone would ring, or Brian would knock on the door… The universe seemed to conspire against you.

Like that one time the two of you were in the kitchen, not exactly having the kind of conversation you’d have with a priest, waiting for the dinner roast to finish in the oven. You were standing at the sink as he walked up behind you, leaned against you with his hands on your hips. You turned around and as soon as he started to lean in for a kiss, the timer went off to let you know the roast was done. At the same time, Freddie, Brian, and John came in waiting to be fed. Or that time the two of you were going back home after seeing a movie. Brian wasn’t supposed to be home. The two of you didn’t even make it past the door before Roger had you pinned against it, ready to take you right there, only to be interrupted by Brian’s keys jingling to come inside. You both scurried to Roger’s room, but Brian barged in, asking about some stupid book he misplaced.

So, yes. Frustrating. While quite a bit of the time you and Roger spend together was working each other up, the two of you did bond over other things. You’d love watching movies – old and new – and swapping books especially. It wasn’t just about the physical attraction. He was a great friend to you who would listen when you needed an ear and hand out advice when you needed it, and you’d reciprocate in kind, but there was no way it would never delve into something serious between the two of you. You were too much alike and he didn’t give you that extra bit of mental stimulation like someone else did.

⊱ ────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ────── ⊰

You grab your purse and start to leave for a quick trip to the store when you hear voices coming from the other side. "Thank you for the help. And for the early dinner. I needed that." It was a female's voice. You listen closer, thinking you’ll have some new ammo for the next time Roger tried to trip you up during some playful argument.

"You don’t have to thank me for that." Your heart falls to your toes. It was Brian this mystery woman is talking to. You slowly open the door and peek through the crack. There he is, looking down at this beautiful blonde female with a smile on his face, holding her hand. You take a deep breath and open the door, not hiding your presence, startling Brian and his mystery friend.

"Hey Brian, is Freddie still over there?" You completely ignore the fact that this other person is there. You try to convince yourself don't care anymore because you don’t want to tread that thin line between the two of you anymore. It’s eating you up inside and you need to talk to the one person who always made you feel better no matter what.

His face lights up when he sees you, just like it always does, and his hand moves quickly behind his neck. “Hey, Y/N, yeah, he’s in there.” Your eyes lock in a gaze, you pleading for an explanation and he pleading for forgiveness.

“Y/N, the new neighbor,” the blonde says as she moves in between you and Brian and offers her hand. “Hi, I’m Jane.” The heart that fell to your toes before has now completely left your body and is laying right there on the floor, ready for Brian to stomp on it.

“Oh, yeah, Jane! Hi! Nice to finally meet you!” You hope you don’t sound fake, but, really, you couldn’t stand her from the start… because you were jealous as hell. You really hoped she didn’t exist, but she did, and she is standing right in front of you.

“Brian’s told me a lot about you. I feel like I know you already.” She keeps talking, and the things she’s saying let you know that he really did tell her a lot about you. She’s so nice you start to feel terrible about wanting to loathe her so bad. You can’t. She’s lovely.

“Why don’t you come out with us tonight?” she asks you. I’d love to get to know you more.”

You look up to Brian, who is still standing there with his hand on his neck, not knowing what to even say. “If you want to. We’re going… um…” He’s muddling his words, imagining how awkward it would be to spend an evening with the both of you at the same time.

“We’re going to dinner. We’ll decide the rest after that,” Jane tells you, deciding to finish Brian’s thought for him. She grabs your hands and begs you. “Please come with us.” She seems nice enough. Okay, so she seems like a wonderful person, but you aren’t sure if it’s a show she’s putting on or if she genuinely wants to know you.

“Oh, I don’t know, I…” You’re also imagining the potential awkwardness and it’s making you nauseated.

“Bring someone with you! It’ll be fun.” You really, really want to hate her. “I’m not taking ‘no’ for an answer.” You just really, really couldn’t hate her, no matter how hard you tried.

You sighed and give her a defeated smile. “Okay, I’ll go.” She claps with excitement, which is a bit annoying and over enthusiastic, but it’s kind of cute. “Guess I better go get me a date.” You laugh, probably a bit too fake, as you walk into Brian and Roger’s apartment to find Freddie.

"You’re my date tonight, Freddie!" you call out as you walk inside, annoyed, upset, and nauseous.

Freddie runs in from the kitchen. "Slow down, Princess. What?"

Your facial expression tells him all he needs to know. You just met Jane. You’re trying to be okay with it, but he can tell you’re not. You have a look of failure, pure defeat. “We’re going out with Brian and Jane.” You’re less than enthusiastic about it, but you already resigned yourself to the fact that there was no way you were getting out of it now.

Freddie cringed. “With that cow? I can’t, Princess. Remember? It’s my sister’s birthday and I promised I’d…”

"Ugh!" you cut him off and throw your hands up. You look over Freddie's shoulder and see Roger standing there, leaning against the wall. "Roger! Are you doing anything tonight?"

He jokingly puffs out his chest. “I’ll save you. I don’t have any plans. Go get ready, doll.”

You run up to him, hug and kiss him on the cheek. “Thank you. You’re the best.” When you move back he’s still holding you, his eyes smiling brightly and his mouth pursed into a puckish grin.

“Now, Y/N, we both know you can’t make that claim. Yet,” he said with a wink. You give him a playful slap on his chest and pull away. “I’m going get ready. I’ll come get you when we leave.”

As you turn to make your way home to get dressed, you come face to face with a concerned Freddie. In a soft, calm voice, he asks, "are you okay with this?" He knows how you feel about Brian and he was worried this was going to turn out to be a disaster.

You take a deep breath and answered, calmly. "It’s going to be fine. She seems really nice.”

“She’s not nice. She’s absolutely dreadful. You’ll see. Just... Don’t do anything stupid.” He stopped before he started saying what he really wanted to say. “Have fun, Princess.” He kissed you on the cheek. “I have to go. I’ll be home in the morning. I’m staying at mum and dad’s tonight.”

What the hell did I get myself into? you ask yourself. How am I going to be able to act normal? You knew “normal” wasn’t going to happen.

You hear Roger clear his throat before he sneaks up behind you, grabs you around your waist and nuzzles his face into your neck. “You’ll be all alone? Did I hear that correctly?”

“You did,” you say with a giggle as you wiggle out of his grip. “But you have to finish dinner before you get your dessert.”

⊱ ────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ────── ⊰

You decide on your short, low-cut red dress and high boots for the evening. You tied your hair up loosely, put on your red lipstick and smiled at yourself in the mirror. Perfect. You knew exactly what you were doing when you wore that dress. It never failed you before.

You and Roger were friends. You knew you could wake up next to him the next morning and it wouldn't be weird seeing him later. Hell, he didn't even have to spend the night. It could be your little secret. You didn't care. You just needed attention from someone, and you wanted that person to be someone you could trust for a change. Someone who never lied to you or pretended to be someone else. You had done it with so many other guys without getting emotionally attached, so you knew this would be no problem. And, well, let’s face it: You and Roger were beyond the point of no return.

But, if you were completely honest with yourself, you knew you weren’t wearing that dress just for Roger. You probably weren’t even wearing it for him at all. You could have worn a potato sack and the two of you would be on the verge again by the end of the night based on your short history. You were upset. You wanted Brian to see what he was missing. You wanted to drive him crazy with desire.

Roger knocked twice on the door and let himself in. "Hey Y/N? Ready for a wonderful night out with this handsome devil standing in your living room?”

"You're a fool, Roger Taylor," you tell him as you walk out of your room. When his eyes fell on you, he couldn't help but let out a whistle. You walk closer to him and lean in close to his ear. "But I wouldn't have you any other way." He pulls you close to him and bend down to kiss you. Instead, you bend down to dodge him.. "No, no. We have people waiting.” He groan and gives you a pleading look, but you weren’t giving in. “Now, are you gonna show me a good time?"

He sighed, accepting the fact that he has to wait for later, and chuckles. “Let's get this over with." He put his hand at the small of your back and walks with you out the door.

Brian and Jane were sitting outside waiting – her, patiently; him, not so much. Both of their eyes beamed with delight when they saw you and Roger finally come out. It seemed as if Brian had completely forgotten that his girlfriend was sitting right there next to him. “I love that dress, Y/N! Did you get it at Biba?” Jane asked.

“No. Bloomingdales in New York. You’re unable to take your eyes off Brian. His eyes, having turned beguiling at this point, follow you back and you, not aware of what you were doing, gave him a flirtatious grin. After making sure he took complete notice of you, you turn your attention to Jane, hoping she didn’t notice this toying that you were doing. “I’m guessing you got yours at…”

“Biba. Yes.” She noticed you and Brian staring at each other, as evidenced in her contrite reply, but she shook it off like a pro and became the nice, bubbly Jane almost immediately.

“We have the prettiest girls in London, don’t we, Bri?” Roger sensed the tension and wanted to snap everyone out of it. He cocks his arm for you to hook yours into it. “Shall we?” he asks you with a smile before giving you a kiss on the cheek.

Brian rushes to your side and leans down to your ear. “I’m guessing you’re feeling red today?” You glance up at him and smirk.

“Oh, yes. Very red.”

He gave a big smile and an amused chuff. “One day you’re going to tell me what these colors mean.”

He and Roger open the car doors for you and Jane respectively, and the four of you head out on your evening.

⊱ ────── {.⋅ ✯ ⋅.} ────── ⊰

Three hours and copious amounts of liquor into your night out, you were feeling fantastic. You felt alive. Roger hadn't left your side all night and made sure you weren’t drinking alone. Jane was also getting a little tipsy, but Brian stayed completely sober. He was the one driving, after all.

The fact that he wasn’t drinking made him very aware how everyone was acting, especially you. The fact that you were drinking, perhaps a bit too much, made you have less restraint in how you were acting. You saw Brian watching you in that red dress. You saw the way his eyes would follow your hand when you’d start to play with your necklace, or the way his eyes would look at your lips when you’d purposely wet them slowly and seductively when he was watching. You saw the hint of jealousy on his face when you were dancing with Roger, and you saw that jealously grow when you and Roger got to the point where you couldn’t keep your hands off of each other. You saw how he would react to every single little thing you would do. You almost felt a tinge of guilt knowing that you were driving him absolutely crazy. Almost.

Jane tried to keep his attention focused on her, but he would give her excuses why he was coming across as distant. “I’ve got classes in the morning that I’m thinking about,” or “I’m thinking about what we’re going to play next band rehearsal,” but the “I need to make sure Y/N doesn’t do anything stupid” line irked her last nerve. “Take me home, Brian,” you heard her tell him in a quite demanding way. You weren’t sure if “home” meant her place or his, but you didn’t care. After Roger assured Brian the two of you could find your way home safely, Brian left with Jane, albeit unwillingly. His eyes watched you, longingly, as he walked out. You saw that, too.

A slow, bluesy song started to play in the background as they walked away, and you started dancing against Roger. "I love this song,” you told him, your words drawn out dramatically. “Dance with me." You grabbed his hands and moved out to the dance floor. He wrapped his arms around your waist, yours wrapped around his neck, and you swayed to the music. You looked up at him, tilted your head and gave him a big smile. "Roger?"

He looked down and smiled back. "Y/N?"

"You're cute." You tapped him on the tip of his nose.

He pretended to be shocked. "Cute? I'm just... cute? Me? I'm offended."

You picked your head up and pulled yourself in as close as you could, bringing his head down to yours, touching your nose to his and stared deep into his eyes. "You're sexy as hell, Roger.” You let out a long, drawn out sigh. “I should have let you fuck my brains out the very first day you wanted to. I felt how hard you got when I had my hand on you..."

He pulled his head back a little bit and his mouth dropped open. "Fucking hell, Y/N. You don't mince your words." He looked down at your pleading eyes. He knew what you wanted, and he wanted it too. He missed too many chances to have you before and there was no way he was going to let another chance pass him by. He leaned down and whispered in your ear. "Do you want to hear a secret?" You shook your head yes and bit your bottom lip. "That day? That wasn't the first day I wanted to fuck your brains out."

The song ended, and you looked at Roger seductively. You broke free from his hold, backed up, and motioned for him to follow you with your finger, and he happily obliged. You walked over to a dark corner of the room, out of the eyesight of everyone else who was around. You leaned against the wall, one foot propped up on the wall behind you, and once again motioned for Roger to come closer. He leaned against the wall with one hand next to your head.

"Tell me about the first time you wanted to fuck my brains out?" You grinned, again nibbling on your lip, running a finger along his shirt collar.

He leaned his face down close to yours. "Well, it was probably a week after you got here. You were walking around in that tight blue tank top with those short shorts. You were driving me mad." He ran the back of his hand down your cheek, pausing when his thumb reached your lips. "You were wearing this red lipstick too." You parted your lips so that your tongue would touch his thumb. "And all I could think about when I would look at you was how much I wanted to see those lips wrapped around my cock." You opened your mouth a little more and took his thumb into your mouth, never taking your eyes off his, before he moved It out.

“Then there was the time you were outside in the back garden, sitting in the sun, wearing that bikini top. You knew I was looking at you,” he recalled. “You kept making sure I got a good view of these,” he reminded you as he rubbed his hand gently on your breasts.

You grabbed the waistband of his pants and pulled him closer to you, his hand coming off the wall and sliding down to your arm. You reached down and grabbed his manhood that was pushing against his pants, making him gasp and go silent, never taking his eyes off of yours. You pushed your body as close to his as you could and looked down at what your hand was resting on. "You remember what I said about this, right?" and smirked as you looked up at him, gently rubbing your hand up and down.

"Oh yeah, I remember." He smirked back. "Do you want it?" You shook your head yes. He moved his hand that was still resting on your breasts up to your neck, making you move your head up to look him directly in the eyes, his voice turning rigid. "No, Y/N. You have to say it."

"I want it."

His hand moved down, passing over your chest, stomach and to your thigh. "How bad do you want it?"

"Very, very bad."

"Hmm, let me see." He moved his hand from your thigh to under your dress, feeling your wet panties. "Mmm, yeah, I'd say you want it very, very bad." He leaned down and kissed you, keeping his hand rubbing you underneath your dress as you kept rubbing against his pants. "But I want to get one thing straight." He moved your panties to the side with his fingers, rubbing them gently around your wet flower. He moved his head to whisper in your ear, which caused your breathing to get heavy in his. "You get to have it..." He nibbled at your ear. "...but I get to say how you get it." He moved to look back into your eyes. "Understand?" You nod and he smirked. "Good girl."

You stopped rubbing on his member, grabbed his hand out from under your dress and moved it away. "So, Roger...?" You straightened your body out, wrapped one arm around his neck and started to run your fingernails across the nape of his neck. "Is today one of those days you wanna fuck my brains out?" You pulled him down for a kiss.

"Mmm hmm" is all he could get out as your tongues encircled and bodies rubbed together.

"Then you better take me home." He kissed you some more. “Now.” He grabbed your hand and you walked as fast as you could out the door.

The two of you made sure to be quiet walking into your flat. If anyone was around, you didn't want them to hear Roger going into your place, and you definitely didn’t want anyone conveniently disturbing what was about to happen. "This is between us, yeah?" Roger asked, not out of shame, but out of respect. He didn't care if the guys knew it when he was having sex with other girls. He didn't care what they thought about the other girls. He cared about what they thought about you, though. After assuring him that Freddie wasn’t home, you unlocked the door.

You walked inside and immediately started tearing off each other's clothes, not wanting to waste a single second of time for anyone to interrupt, leaving a trail from the door to the bedroom, both of you completely naked by the time you reached your destination.

He pushed you back onto the bed, but not before you grab him to fall with you. He starts to kiss you again, his hands roaming feverishly all over your body, your hands grabbing his hair. “Roger,” you say with a scratchy tone. “You better fuck me this time."

“Don’t worry about that,” he replies. “I’m not walking out of here hard...” Your breaths are stuck in your throat as he holds your face, kissing you with more desire than you ever knew could exist. “... and you won’t be able to walk out of here without help.”

He quickly moved down and dove between your thighs, taking a moment to admire what he was seeing before he started lapping at your wet, heated flesh. “Still so wet,” he whispers as a groan escapes your lips. “So good,” he whispers as you groan again. You grab his hair and press him deeper into you. He thrusts his tongue into you as you groan louder.

“Not yet,” you beg, “not yet…”

“Don’t worry,” he says in between licks. “This is only the first round.” He flattens his tongue against your clit, grinning as he looks up at you as your moaning becomes uncontrollable. He begins to gently suck on you, inserting two fingers in the process. “I’ve been waiting too long for this to go quick.”

“Fuck, Roger!” you cry out. You try to say more, but you can only moan.

He moved his mouth away, but his fingers kept up their pace. “You want this, don’t you?” He asks. You can only nod. He gives you a devilish grin. “Now you know how I feel, being so close and not being able to do anything about it…” You feel your climax approaching and your body tenses up. “How close are you, Y/N?” You try to answer, but only a short whimper comes out. He chuckles deeply. “Mmm hmm…” He brings his voice down to a whisper. “So close…” He lowered his head back down, sucking gently on your clit, grazing it ever so lightly with his teeth.

“Oh my god, Roger!” You arch against him, rolling your hips and grabbing the bedsheets, moaning with pleasure before landing limp on the bed, breathless. He crawls up to you, his body over yours, leaning down for a deep, hard kiss.

You push him over onto his back and straddle him, your core grazing his. He pulls you down into a kiss, his hand grabbing his cock, ready to guide it inside of you. “Not yet,” you scold him as you push his hand away. He lets out an eager groan as you climb off him and make your way down to his dick. Your eyes meet his. “There’s something you said you wanted to see,” to say, as a mischievous grin crosses your mouth before you lower it, your pointed tongue licking the tip, then the entire length, before the heat and wetness of your mouth completely envelopes him.

He notices your red lipstick is smudged but it’s still there, and he watches intently as your red lips surround his rock. He holds a hand on top of your head, guiding it at the speed he wants you to go. His moans and groans getting louder. Before he gets too far, he stops you. “Get up here, Y/N,” he tells you, making you suck hard and pull your mouth away. You move up to straddle him, the mischievous grin never leaving your face. He guides himself to you, his tip just inside. “Are you sure you want this?” he jokes.

“Roger if you don’t stop joking and fu…” you couldn’t finish your sentence before he lowered you down, completely engulfing him in you. You start to rock your hips, hands on his chest to keep your balance, as he helps balance you in this perfect position with his hands on your waist, as you are in complete and total control of everything. He’s grabs hold of your breasts, watching your every move as you continue grinding against him.

You lean forward, your body becoming exhausted. “Finish me,” you tell him, your voice becoming desperate, and weak. He wraps his arms around your back, holding you tightly, as he lifts his hips with a feverous rhythm, pounding into you hard and deep from underneath. “Oh!” you scream. “Yes, Brian, just like that...”

He flips you over, spreads your legs, putting them over his shoulders and increases his speed. His thrusts getting harder, grunts getting louder. “Fuck, Y/N!” He yells out, knowing he can’t go much longer. “Come for me. You know you want to.” And you do. Your entire body shuddered before the two of you collapsed, exhausted and exhilarated, before he laid down next to you.

You covered yourself up with the bed sheet and rolled over on your side, your back to Roger. You just had amazing sex – probably the most amazing you had ever had – with one of the most gorgeous men you’ve ever laid your eyes on, and you felt completely... empty. You were worried that you were doing it again – your therapy, your self-destruction – only this time involving someone you cared about, platonically speaking. He’s going to ignore me after, just like the others, you thought to yourself. He got what he wanted. Why would he stick around? This is all I’m good for anyway.

“Uh, Y/N?” Roger snaps you out of your moment. “Should I…”

You roll back onto your back. “I’m sorry.”

He starts to chuckle. “Sorry for what? That was fantastic.”

“Yeah, it was,” you smile. “It’s just…”

“I know, Y/N. I promise, it won’t be weird.”

You roll over on your side again, this time facing Roger. “Promise?”

He cleared his throat. “Come on. That’s what we wanted.” He nudges your shoulder. You laugh, but your face falls quickly, because you can’t get him out of your head. He climbed out of the bed and walked over to your dresser to grab the ashtray you kept there. “Did you listen to the new Pink Floyd album yet?” he asks as he walks back. You give him a confused look as he lays back down, having lit a cigarette and rested the ashtray on his stomach. “I hear it’s pretty good.”

You sit up, body wrapped in the sheet. “Seriously, Roger? We just had sex and you want to talk about this?” You grab the cigarette out of his hand, take a drag and start to stand up.

“No, stay.” He laughs as he grabs you and pulls you back down when you hand him back his cigarette. He can tell you’re bothered and he was trying to lighten the mood before deciding it was better to comfort you. He knows the way you feel about his friend, and how his friend feels about you. He does feel a tinge of guilt, but, the way he sees it is if Brian was too stupid to act on it, then you both were free to do whatever you want. “This wasn’t wrong, Y/N.”

“No, it definitely was not,” you laugh as you lay back down, resting your head on the pillow with his arm behind your neck. You enjoyed it. It was amazing. And you knew it wasn’t wrong, but it felt wrong.

He pulled your head close to him and held the cigarette to your mouth so you could take another drag. “We’re both adults here..No explanations needed.” He chuckles. “And if you want to use me again I won’t object.”

“So basically, I can use your for sex until I’m tired of you,” you jokingly reply.

“Well…” he laughs before taking a puff. “Nothing wrong with having fun, right?”

“So that’s all this is. Fun.” While fun was nice, you wanted more than just fun. You wanted some sense of stability. An actual relationship. A relationship with someone you could depend on. Someone who cared about you. Someone who would take care of you. Someone to share your hopes and dreams with.

He sighs. “Look, Y/N, you’re great. I love spending time with you. But…” His voice trails off.

“There’s always a ‘but’ thrown in whenever I have these conversations with guys so just spit it out.” But, you think. But I’m looking for stability, but I’m not looking for a relationship, but I’m married… You start to replay in your mind all of the “buts” you’ve been told over the past few years before Roger snaps you out of it.

“What I was going to say,” he started with the same annoyed tone you finished your sentence in, “is that I know this is all you want, and I accept that.”

You lift your head and scoot up so you’re eye to eye with him. “And what if this isn’t all I want? What if I want more?”

“Do you?” He cocks up an eyebrow, not sure what you’re trying to say.

“What if I do? What if I actually want more?” You lay your head back on the pillow. “What if I’m tired of only being good enough for ‘fun’?”

“First, you are much better than just ‘fun’ and any man who makes you think otherwise is an idiot. You’re so much more than that. Don’t ever think you’re not. You deserve to get everything you want. Secondly, I know you want more…” He pauses, not hesitantly because he doesn’t know how to finish his answer, but because he’s trying to make sure you’re going to like what you are told. “… you don’t want it with me, though.” You looked over at him with a puzzled look. He started to comfortingly rub his hand on the top of your head as he let out a hearty laugh. “Come on, Y/N, you said his name.”

Oh shit, you thought to yourself as you remembered. Clearly it wasn’t a big deal since Roger was obviously not offended in the slightest. Deciding not to get too much deeper into the conversation, you joked, “Well this is the worst possible pillow talk isn’t it?” He continued his laughter, especially after noticing how embarrassed you had become. “Right now, I just want to lay here,” you sighed.

He pulls you in tight, resting his head on yours. “Then if that’s what you want, that’s what we’ll do.”

#brian may #roger taylor #brian may fic #queen fic #roger taylor fic #brian may x reader #brian may fanfiction #brian may fanfic #roger taylor x reader #roger taylor fanfiction #roger taylor fanfic #roger taylor smut #chameleon story

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hookaroo · 5 years

Text

Vocivore, Ltd. (40 of 46)

Also on FFN and AO3 (ListerofTardis)

Tagging @ouatwinterwhump, @killian-whump, @sancocnutclub, @killianjonesownsmyheart1, @courtorderedcake, @facesiousbutton82 <3

***THE MOST WONDERFUL, HEARTBREAKING, and BEAUTIFULLY WHUMPY COVER ART BY @cocohook38 HERE and HERE!!!!!!!!!*************

***Chapter 12 animation and art that will absolutely astound you!!!!!!!!!**********

***LETHAL Chapter 19 art in all of its BLOODSTAINED GLORY!!!!************

**POOR STABBED KILLIAN falling into the sheriff station! Ch. 7 & 23 art!!**

****KILLIAN AND HIS MASTER IN THE GORGEOUS CATHEDRAL!!!!!!!!!!!! CHAPTER 1 ART THAT KILLS ME EVERY TIME I SEE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*********

*CH 34 ART! A DEFEATED KILLIAN, HEAD BOWED BEFORE HIS MASTER!!*

***CH 36 ART! DETECTIVE JONES BOWS BEFORE HIS NEW MASTER!!!!!!***

***AAAAHHHH!!! THANK YOU MY WONDERFUL COCONUT FRIEND!!!!!!***

________________________________________________________________

Present (Friday, continued)...

How many times now?

In this exact chair, this oppressive waiting lounge with its dusty fake plants and decades-old magazines, a nearly empty water cooler in the corner, a vending machine down the hall that always jammed when you tried to get a pack of Cheez-Its. How many lifetimes had Emma spent here, always anxiously awaiting news on her gravely injured husband, fearing the worst as the minutes and hours ticked by, as people came and went and doctors brought tidings of good or ill?

Had her turn finally come to be on the receiving end of the ‘We Did All We Could’ speech?

Nearly midnight. It had been at least eight hours already. The hospital was thrumming, jam-packed with the influx of newly liberated slaves, all of whom were desperately ill, shell-shocked by the loss of that guiding voice in their minds, and the majority seriously wounded to boot. The ambulances kept coming; most were on their 7th or 8th trip by now despite having crammed as many casualties in each vehicle as was safe. Emma had not been involved in the discussion of whether some could be transported elsewhere to relieve the burden on the relatively small Storybrooke General, but it was by far the closest facility and more advanced than anything else the United Realms had to offer.

Because she’d been on the first ambulance to arrive, Emma had not endured much of a wait to have her minor forehead wound dressed, once Killian had been whisked back for emergency surgery. That would have been a different story now; even with every available physician, nurse, and allied health provider called in on disaster protocol, the ED was packed and wait times for anything less than a life-threatening condition were astronomical.

Emma’s hand clenched around the paper-flavored cone of water she held as she relived the day’s events. Everything had been such a close call. If anything had gone even slightly differently, she and all the others may not have been in this place at all, never mind Killian.

Try as she might, she could not rid herself of the image of the Vocivore as she’d seen it upon entering that abysmal cathedral. How it had loomed over a broken Killian, how grotesquely ominous her first impression of it had been.

What it had been doing to him, in plain view of her and all the other slaves in the building.

Another tear slipped down her cheek, following the salty trail blazed by countless predecessors. The last gulp of water overflowed out over her hand and onto her lap, the cone squeezed into a bitter crumple, and Emma didn’t give a damn about the wetness on her knees because it was such a minor inconvenience to all that her husband had suffered through in the month gone by. And she was at least 50% culpable, by her reckoning.

“Hey. Save some of that for the fishes,” came a gentle voice from the doorway to her left, and Emma scrubbed at her face before rising to her feet.

“Dad.” Her voice was tremulous, low and husky with emotion, and the prince was quickly at her side and wrapping her in a one-armed hug.

“You still here?” he murmured into her hair.

With a shuddering breath, Emma nodded. “Haven’t heard anything for… at least four hours,” she calculated. “They had to pause the surgery in the middle ‘cuz his blood pressure and temperature both got too low. They plan to resume as soon as he’s stable enough.”

If he ever reaches that point, was the unspoken addition.

David gave her one more squeeze before stepping back. He looked haggard, almost on the verge of collapse, so Emma took a seat in the hopes that he would follow suit. Letting out a low groan, he sank into the chair beside her, settling uncomfortably sideways to avoid touching his injured shoulder blade to the seat back. Rubbing his eyes, he gave a report of his own.

“Well, we just brought in the last of them, near as we could tell. There may still be some out in the woods, but we cleared all the buildings at least. Figure we’ll track down the rest when it gets light.”

“Thanks for taking over back there.”

“Of course.”

He was always so good to her; he and Snow both. Always willing to do whatever she asked, regardless of their own busy schedules. Emma could count on them both for anything at any time. Which made this apology so hard, but also so important. And maybe she should have waited for her mother to be there as well, or for a time when Killian could add his own, but Emma didn’t feel right putting it off any longer.

“Dad, I… I’m so sorry we lied to you.”

David looked as if he were steeling himself, and Emma cringed.

“About Hope?” he asked slowly, expression unreadable. She nodded and watched him massage his temples one-handed.

“How much did Detective Jones tell you?”

“Not much,” he mumbled. “He was in a lot of pain; mostly we just waited quietly.”

That was probably for the best, decided Emma. Jones’ own feelings of betrayal may have colored his retelling of the scheme; better for it to come from one of the bastards who had created it and pulled it off. Still, it might have been easier if David had had a little bit of preparation first…

Emma was still searching for the best place to start when David sniffed, cleared his throat, and gruffly asked,

“Does that mean… did you find… something…?”

A chill skittered up her spine. Her father was reaching for her hand, tears brimming in his eyes, and she realized she had unintentionally led him to draw a horrifically incorrect conclusion.

“Shit, Dad, I… no. Hope is fine, really and truly. That wasn’t the lie. She’s okay.”

As relief warred with confusion on David’s tired face, Emma berated herself for making things so much worse. She squeezed her father’s hand, more to get his attention and assure him that he was awake than anything else.

“Hope’s… okay?” he repeated.

“Yeah. With Belle. I swear to you; she’s fine. I’ll need to go get her, once we know Killian’s gonna…”

Emma trailed off, realizing again that there was no guarantee that she wouldn’t be bringing Hope home only to attend her papa’s funeral.

“Belle?” David pulled back his hand in order to clear the wetness from his cheeks.

“I wanted to tell you so badly!” whined Emma, her voice catching on the emotions constricting her throat. “It was killing me to keep it from you. But it was… it…”

The magnitude of what they had all been through struck her yet again, and suddenly, she was crying too hard for coherent speech. She managed one more strangled, “I’m so sorry” before she found herself enfolded in David’s grasp, her face against his shoulder.

“Emma, shh, it’s okay. We can worry about the rest later; right now, all I care about is knowing that Hope is safe.” David laughed a sob of his own. “Those are the sweetest words I’ve ever heard.”

Emma could not be sure how much he had worked out on his own; he must still have a million questions crowding his mind, and maybe once the relief wore off, the sting of betrayal would take over. Truthfully, Emma could not think that far ahead, and she was glad for the moment of grace right now. As she took what comfort she could from her father’s embrace, she barely felt the twinge of guilt over his patience. Now that the pressure was off to tell the whole story, her focus had returned squarely on one thing: Killian. And she could only pray that, against all odds, he surprised them all and lived through the night.

*****

Present (Saturday)...

Neither Emma nor David slept much in the padded chairs, as comfortable as they were for sitting. Worry for Killian was at the forefront of Emma’s thoughts, whether awake or dozing, so that any slight noise set her pulse racing in dread of bad news.

If David had managed to reach Snow aboard the Jolly Roger, Emma had missed that moment. His soft snores at her side--when he managed to drift off for a short while--were a small comfort when panic threatened to send her bolting into the depths of the hospital in search of information. She kept reminding herself of that old saying that ‘no news is good news.’ It did seem to apply in this case, for if there were any change in Killian’s condition, especially a turn for the worse, they surely would come and speak with her. If only to give her an opportunity to say goodbye, should they deem it necessary. So when someone burst into the lounge shortly after 6, Emma nearly toppled a lamp in her haste to leap to her feet.

But it wasn’t Whale, nor was it a solemn-faced nurse.

“The monster is dead?” demanded Regina, immaculately groomed as always despite the early hour. “Why am I only now hearing about this?”

“Sorry,” grumbled Emma, rubbing at her burning eyes. “There was a lot going on yesterday.”

“I had to find out about it from Leroy, of all people. Do you know how that makes me look? A queen so out of touch with important developments that she has to get her updates from the town gossip?”

“How did he find out?” Emma asked. She’d been so busy and then distracted that she hadn’t composed a single message after contacting her father.

“Ambulance driver?” suggested David.

Regina stood glaring the wallpaper off the wall behind Emma’s head. “Care to fill me in, Sheriff?”

Emma was so tired. She lacked the mental energy to convince Regina to wait. And maybe it would have been better to share the story individually with David first, so he could react honestly without the queen watching, but tough. Emma was also too exhausted to consider trivialities like that.

She shared the whole story. And then when it was over, she sat staring at the ‘Employees only’ door, unable to meet the eyes of either person watching her as they absorbed the month of falsehoods in stony silence. Finally, Regina spoke up.

”All those search parties… you’re telling me they were for nothing?”

Emma wilted slightly. “Not… nothing, no… they were to help the monster believe in Killian’s motive. And… well… it worked.”

Regina scoffed, then turned to David. “Were you in on this?”

“No. I wasn’t.”

Emma’s heart twisted just a little bit more at the careful control in his tone.

“And Detective Jones? You mentioned that he helped you yesterday?”

“He helped me get in, yeah. Took a stun projectile to the shoulder at close range but was conscious last I saw him.”

“I’m sure he’s still here,” added David. “I saw him off in the ambulance.”

After a beat of silence, Regina began,

“This is serious business, you know; the sheriff misleading the whole town like this--”

At that moment, Dr. Whale came marching through the door, and Emma truly could not care less about what Regina was saying. The blood drained from her face, seeming to concentrate in her ears as she got slowly to her feet.

“He was touch and go for most of the night,” reported the physician without a word of greeting to anyone, which Emma very much appreciated. “He’s still not out of the woods, to be frank. I’d like to see several numbers come up before we attempt surgery again. But… there has been a slight improvement since we were forced to halt the procedure last night.”

Dizzy and overcome with equal parts relief and fear, Emma nodded and collapsed back into her seat. She had a hundred questions but could not think of a single one.

“Right now, I’d say his odds are about 50/50, and even if he does pull through, he’s got a long and difficult recovery ahead of him. But we’ll do our best for him.

“Now. I’m off to try to get some rest,” Whale told them while the bleak outlook sank in. “Day shift has their orders and will contact me if anything changes. I suggest you try and do the same: you won't be allowed back there to see him for at least the rest of the day. You may as well go home where you’ll be more comfortable.”

Emma just stared at him as if the very idea were offensive. Whale shrugged and moved toward the exit, and if anyone had felt the urge to thank him, they would have been drowned out by Regina, who was hot on his heels.

“Victor? You wouldn’t happen to know anything about Detective Jones, would you?”

Their conversation faded down the hallway, and Emma sniffed. She’d retained a fairly good handle on her guilt where Jones was concerned. True, she felt terrible that he’d been injured in the rescue mission, but at least he’d gone in fully aware and of his own volition. Emma had enough other misdemeanors to regret.

One victim of which sat silent beside her while she tried to shake off Whale’s pessimism. It was the physician’s responsibility to be brutally honest, to prepare everyone for the possible worst-case scenario. Maybe the odds were 50/50 from a purely medical standpoint, but Emma knew Killian. Surely, his stubborn resilience had to stack things more in his favor?

Cringing, Emma cast a sidelong glance at her father, who had not directly addressed her since finding out the extent of their deception. Again, and certainly not for the last time, she squeaked,

“I’m so sorry.”

Not yet meeting her eyes, David slowly asked,

“This whole plan… All of this… you and Killian did it entirely of your own free will?”

“We’re insane. I know.”

“Hope was never in any danger.”

“Right…”

“But you went through with it anyway. Killian…”

He trailed off into silence and Emma braced herself for the inevitable rebuke. And for a moment, it appeared as if David would oblige. But then he shook his head, quiet resolve on his features.

“Nope. Not gonna do it; not yet.”

“W… what do you…”

He turned to her then, and though she could make out the traces of hurt and anger in his eyes, she also saw love and understanding.

“Later. I promised.” He reached out for her hand, wearing a tearful smile. “Today, you need a supportive dad way more than a stern lecture filled with fatherly wisdom. Right?”

As Emma returned the expression with a similarly watery one of gratitude, David added,

“But we’re going to have to repeat everything when your mother gets back.”

Suddenly too exhausted for words, Emma leaned against his shoulder and murmured,

“You said it best just a minute ago. Later.”

*****

Detective Jones hurt everywhere, but strangely enough, what was bothering him the most at present was the donor blood being pumped into him as he lay waiting for something to happen. The blood had been stored frozen, and while it had thawed enough for transfusion, it remained chilled well below body temperature, causing his arm to ache fiercely and highlighting the swollen tunnel from which several inches of coat hanger had previously been removed. A hazy sort of fog seemed to be collecting around the periphery of his room, and though the clock indicated 7:15, he would not be able to hazard a guess whether that was AM or PM.

The whole encounter with the monster had warped into what felt like an abstract nightmare; were it not for the physical proof on his body, he very well could have mistaken his current predicament to be a continuation of the sword battle’s aftermath. He had vague memories of waiting with David inside the church, bleeding and in pain, then treacherous transport by ambulance over unpaved, bumpy roads for the majority of the trip to Storybrooke General. After that, massive doses of narcotics blocked out most of his time spent in the emergency department, although he did remember more pain as the staff worked to assess and stabilize his condition.

Jones closed his eyes, determined to ignore his discomfort in favor of drifting into one of the short naps that were all he'd managed to do since arriving in his room. Inevitably, a nurse would come in to check for transfusion reaction, or a loud cart would rumble by, or he'd be awakened by a jolt of pain or for no reason at all. Given his total exhaustion, it was all very irritating indeed.

Right on cue, the moment he felt himself beginning to relax, brisk footsteps approached his door, then continued inside with hardly a pause. Probably a nurse, then. With a sigh, Jones dragged reluctant eyelids open. Maybe he would inquire about some method of warming the blood so he could get some real rest for once…

It was Regina. The concern on her face gave way to obvious relief when she saw that he was awake, but she covered it up with a dramatic scowl.

"Those idiots!" she ranted, coming to a stop at his side. Jones blinked up at her, already lost. She continued regardless. "What kind of utter imbecile gives himself up to a scream-eating monster on the off-chance it will reveal a weakness to him? And all on the advice of none other than the Dark One, who just so happens to be that idiot's mortal enemy?"

"You've spoken to Emma, I take it." Jones' voice sounded like the baleful call of a territorial raven, gravelly and hoarse. Regina gave him a look, spending half a second to glance around for a glass of water for him, which was nowhere to be seen.

"I might expect something like this from that damn pirate--no offense--but Emma? No one will ever trust another word coming out of the mouths of either one of them!" She narrowed her eyes at him in suspicion. "You didn't know anything about their asinine plan, did you?"

"Not until... whatever day that was." Jones waved his hand vaguely to indicate his complete loss of orientation, then winced as pain shot up his forearm and out through his chest.

"You're no less of an moron for going in the way you did," scolded the queen, though her tone now had much less bite to it. "You should have brought backup."

Jones lacked the energy to explain his reasoning just then. He settled for a gruff,

"Bad idea."

Regina just rolled her eyes, annoyed. "And yours was such a good one, I see."

Rather than arguing the point--an exercise he'd surely lose, even on a good day--Jones rested his head back and closed his eyes. "How is Killian?"

"Not good," she replied bluntly as she pulled a chair near his bedside. "They're having trouble getting him stable enough for the surgery needed to even start fixing him. And Whale said that the neurological deterioration compared to how it was even three days ago is very troubling. You know they still haven't been able to keep one single former slave alive, right?"

"Suppose I should begin planning my funeral then, too," murmured Jones, half asleep. He wasn't too concerned; they'd performed an MRI at some point before sticking him in this bed, and while the official results had yet to come back, Dr. Whale had not seemed troubled by his reading of the images. If there were changes, they would be extremely minor considering how short a time he'd been in the Vocivore's presence.

“You are going to be fine,” commanded Regina, leaving no room for argument. Hurriedly, she moved on. “So what exactly happened out there? The monster is dead, for sure?”

“You're asking the wrong person,” answered the detective, wishing again for a drink of water to soothe his parched throat. “One moment I was under the creature’s thrall; the next, I was flat on the floor and feeling like I'd been shot in the heart instead of merely the shoulder.”

“Emma mentioned seeing a green glow.”

“Did she?” Uneasily, Jones reached for his chest.

“It sounds an awful lot like the effects of your poisoned heart.”

Jones stared at her as dread got a chokehold on his throat. Finally, he slowly admitted,

“That's what it felt like, too.” He took a breath, shuddered slightly at the necessity of admitting it out loud at last, and winced. “But I'm completely cured and have been for nearly three years. I've even got a new heart to ensure it.”

“Well…” Regina looked to be deep in contemplation. “I've been thinking about that. Rumplestiltskin gave you his heart and that's what’s been keeping you alive. Performing all of the duties of your old heart, unaffected by the poison. But... your old heart is still in there, kind of... wrapped around the new one. You don't feel any effects of the poison because the good heart is there, functioning for you. But I think the poison was still inside, and has been all along, only you were no longer cursed.”

Jones felt dizzy, and not just from his physical maladies. "Bloody hell. Are you sure about this, Regina?"

"Of course not; there's no way to be sure until magic is restored, and we're still working on that."

The nightmare had just gotten ten times worse. Jones imagined he could feel the poison coursing through each chamber of his inherited heart, growing stronger the closer Captain Smee sailed the Jolly Roger Kiddie Cruise to Storybrooke. And he could not stop tears from forming at the injustice of it all.

“What would have reactivated it, do you think?” Even he could hear the helpless exhaustion and sorrow in his tone; there was no way Regina would have missed it. She looked stricken for a second and rushed to reassure him.

“No, no; not reactivated, Killian. Transferred. From you to the Vocivore.”

The wave of relief was so strong that for a full minute, Jones felt nothing else: no pain, no weariness or confusion, only sheer gratitude that his happy ending with Alice had not been so suddenly taken away. “Transferred?”

Regina reached for his hand and pulled it away from where it had been clutching the gown over his breast. “That's what makes sense to me.”

“But how?”

“Again, this is all conjecture at this point. Emma was certainly too distracted to give all of the details I would have liked. But from what I gathered... am I correct in believing that you went in trying to suppress any positive emotions that may have alerted the monster to your approach?”

Jones nodded.

“And I assume you accomplished that by recalling painful memories of your separation from Alice.”

When the detective did not correct her, Regina continued as if her conclusions were the most simple connection she had ever made.

“Well, those memories and emotions are inextricably linked to the curse on your heart. They dwell, in part, within the poisoned shell still residing in your chest. So when the Vocivore started literally feeding on those emotions, it drew the poison into itself along with the energy. It could not get one without the other.”

Before Jones could express surprise or amazement at the queen’s revelation, the dryness in his throat caught up to him and he started to cough. This had the unfortunate effect of jolting the wound in his shoulder as well as aggravating the marked soreness in his chest, and he spent the next several heartbeats in excruciating anguish. Regina leapt to her feet, radiating frustration.

“Can't anybody get a cup of water in this place?” She made as if to go out into the hallway and throttle the next nurse she saw until they retrieved the requested water, but Jones reached out to stop her. He cleared his throat several times and finally managed to growl,

“Not allowed. Slated for surgery soon.”

Regina somehow managed to look even more impatient than she already had. “What's taking them so damn long? Haven't you been here for something like 14 hours already?”

Jones gingerly massaged his aching chest. “I couldn't begin to tell you, love. Feels like a lot longer, yet also no time at all.”

He swallowed, winced, and cleared his throat. Regina still looked peeved.

“Let me see what I can do to light a fire under Whale’s team.” She reached for his hand, gave a brief squeeze, and assured him, “Then I'll be back.”

As she made her way to the door, she tossed out over her shoulder,

“Glad you're in one piece. For the most part.”

________________________________________________________________

#ouat fanfiction #killian jones #emma swan #wish realm killian #david nolan #ouat regina #hospital #waiting room #waiting for news #emergency surgery #worry #confession #apologies #blood transfusion #poisoned heart #some questions answered #hooked queen #a little bit #Vocivore ltd

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zayashmaya · 5 years

Text

Gods and Monsters - 3 - Off to the Races.

Other chapters here!

Marvus x Reader; SFW

Your favorite clown comes to your rescue.

My ... man is a tough man But he's got a soul as sweet as blood red jam And he shows me, He knows me Every inch of my tar-black soul

- Lana Del Rey

You didn’t see Lanque for the rest of the evening, which was all fine and well once you were two drinks into some serious shit on the dance floor. Remele certainly knew her audience — the purplebloods in attendance had quickly taken control once they trickled in with fashionable lateness, and everything had been set up for the ensuing clownery that followed. With Marvus at your side and your veins flooded with dubious alcohol, you felt nigh unstoppable, letting loose your inhibitions among a sea of trolls who would have killed you on the spot in a fit of capriciousness.

But a few of the clowns had come by to ruffle your hair and honk at you in recognition for having been a frequent presence in the church. You’ve certainly come far from the days of running for your life and getting trapped in an alleyway with a purpleblood seconds away from bludgeoning you to death. You kind of like them now.

And you definitely liked the way Marvus watched you as you swayed to the dizzying rhythm of pulsating music. Even his hands caressing your bare skin sent ripples of ticklish excitement throughout your body. It felt so different from when you had danced with Lanque. More on your terms, so to speak, and thus more thrilling. All in good fun, you thought. It’s not like he was serious about his flirting, anyway.

The purplebloods finished off the party with a frenzy of rapping that Marvus felt compelled to join. Stelsa had found her way to your side and eagerly followed your lead as you both giggled and danced your sanity away. You recognized some of Marvus’s lyrics from a few performances you had attended, and screamed your head off with the crowd as you sang along, feeling the heat of the lighting and the blurring colors collapsing all over you in swirling synesthesia, until you embraced the euphoric sensations and became one with the music.

Chucklevoodoos, a voice whispered through the cracks of your fraying mind.

Who cares, you answered back. I want this. I want this.

I feel whole.

Marvus was watching you. You felt compelled to direct your entire attention solely to him, not to any other highblood or to Stelsa but to him and him alone, and for a moment you heard the cheers of partygoers distorted into screams of pain before he beckoned you over with his arms spread out in theatrical showmanship. You clawed your way through the masses and into his waiting embrace, laughing for no reason and yet there was every reason to laugh —

“Snap out of it babe,” he said as he directed the microphone away from him, and even though the cracks were suddenly breaking and collapsing like shattered glass, all you could think of was how he said it just for you, only you, only you —

“What if I don’t want to,” you whispered, but nobody heard your admission.

As your fingers dug into the lapels of his jacket, you pressed up against him and scanned the crowd in a moment of clarity. Stelsa. Was she safe? Did you imagine all of the blood and death and fire?

Marvus’s arm was wrapped around your back as he held you close during the madness. You ran a shaky hand through your hair and wondered where the night would lead, because the highbloods were getting a little too rowdy. A gentle pat to your behind pulled you out of your thoughts, and you threw a scandalized look to Marvus as he grinned down at you. With the microphone poised before him, he called out to the partygoers, “Hey.”

That simple word held all the weight of an important command. The crowd fell silent, and a shiver rolled down your spine. You pressed your forehead to his side and tried to make yourself seem as small as possible, conscious of being stared at by so many people.

“Yall havin a good time??” The crowd roared to life in answer. “Lemme hear u give it up for the mutherfxxer who made it all happen, ufeelme?!”

Amidst the chorus of cheers, Remele bounced up to the clearing where Marvus waited for her, snatching the microphone out of his hand and baring her fangs in a wide smile as she addressed her attendees. You huffed a quiet laugh as you listened to her shill out her latest art pieces and advertise her gallery.

“ — and I woulde like to thank one of my best supporters, my very goode friend and my darling muse!"

You jerked your head towards Remele as she zeroed in on you. “Please, no — “ you begged, but she already grabbed hold of your upper arm and snatched you out of Marvus’s embrace. You looked back at him in a silent plea, but he only winked at you and flashed his toothy grin.

Remele whirled you around to face the crowd. The spotlight was on you now.

You meekly waved and prayed for the ground to swallow you whole. “Tonighte, dear guests, I have a confession to make,” she dramatically said, her eyes flashing in excitement. “Were it not for our resident alien, my gallery might never have gotten so muche recognition! Because she was responsible for the gruesome murder of a highbloode mere steps from my gallery, all of those perigees ago!"

”Remele!” you screamed in a whisper, withering away from the crowd as it erupted into bewildered laughter and indiscernible heckling. “What are you doing?! They’re going to kill me!”

And not just the attendees, but Marvus, too. God, you could hardly bring yourself to look at him, because even though Remele was technically the one who killed the purpleblood, you were still pathetic enough to get yourself into trouble in the first place, and the last thing you ever wanted was for him to catch wind of your fucked up escapades, and now your mind was racing a mile a minute but Marvus was just looking at you with raised eyebrows, and he didn’t look angry, just thoughtful —

“Oh, relax,” Remele cut into your mental breakdown, ignoring your attempts to claw your way out of her grasp — she was ridiculously strong — and continued her speech. “In honor of my muse, I have channeled my inspiration for that fateful nighte to create — “ She threw her arm out in a wide arc and directed everyone’s attention to a covered canvas mounted to a wall. ” — this!”

A rustblood scuttled over as if on cue and tore down the white fabric covering the canvas. All eyes were on Remele’s latest painting. Perhaps now was your chance to abscond? Maybe you could use this precious time to find Stelsa and hightail it out of here with one last ‘fuck you’ to Lanque —

Except your attention was entirely captured by the painting as soon as you dared to glance at it.

You were the subject, pressed flat against a dark wall and limbs splayed out like a cheesy damsel in distress, gripping the brick behind you as you stared at the viewer, all wide-eyed and afraid. And, much to your mortification, you were naked — or rather, lacking any sort of clothing while retaining no bodily features characteristic of your sex. Remele had never seen you naked, after all. Rather imaginative of her to paint you completely sexless and alabaster white, with red and purple stains blotched over your figure as though you were covered in blood.

What the fuck, Remele. Did you really look that pathetic to her that night?

Your mouth simply hung open in shock while the audience ascertained the painting with thoughtful murmurs. Remele waited with baited breath, whispering to you, ”Just you waite and see, I’m gonna be fuqueing loaded after this!”

Suddenly, a voice rose high over the crowd and called out what appeared to be a price.

Remele squeeled. You felt your soul leave your body. That better not have been Zebruh.

As if on cue, an intense bidding war began over the painting. You closed your eyes and hung your head, letting Remele flop your arm around like a limp noodle in joy as the price rose higher and higher still. This was it — your lowest point. Your cowardly self on display for other people’s pleasure, awaiting a lifetime of being gawked at by a privileged highblood. And worst of all, you weren’t even going to get a cut of the profits.

Within minutes, the haggling price had skyrocketed to what you imagined to be astronomical numbers. Most of the bidders had dropped out as well, with just a select few voices trying to outbid each other. A small part of you was surprised that they hadn’t attempted to resolve the conflict with good, old-fashioned murder and mayhem. Judging by the growing agitation in the bidders’ voices and the heckling of the crowd, that outcome might not be far off from the future.

And indeed mayhem ensued. Four highbloods had rendered each other into a pile of limbs and — and bicycle horns — before Remele threw her hand into the air and called out, “Looks like it’s time to wrap this shitshowe up! Going once, going twice, to the gentlemane with the facepaint and broken horne — "

A hand came down over your head and ruffled your hair. Somehow, you knew everything would be okay.

“Na b i’ma take dat home tonite,” Marvus cut Remele off. “I’ll take it for dubble tha price k :o)“

”Solde!” she shouted into the microphone, and you breathed a sigh of audible relief.

Yet your momentary reprieve was ruined once you realized that Marvus had spent a ridiculous amount of money on a scandalous painting that he had no need for. A sense of guilt hung over you as Marvus waited for the canvas to be brought to him, keeping a steadying grip on your shoulder and commanding someone nearby to hand over the payment on his behalf.

“You really didn’t have to do that, Marvus,” you quietly said, tugging on his sleeve to catch his attention.

He merely grinned. “I did dis for a more selfish reason than u think.”

“Why? Don’t tell me you actually wanted that thing?”

“Fxxk yea i did brohime, i wanna b lookin at dis erry day to remember i got one dangerous lil mama who could knock me flat on my azz n paint da walls w my blood. Shit’s hot yo.”

“I’m sorry to break the fantasy, but Remele was pretty much embellishing her story. I didn’t actually kill anyone, I would never do that!” you whined.

“Mebbe not then,” he said, his eyes staring straight through you as though he knew more than you let on. “But u prolly did a whole lotta damage to otha ppl jus by being on dis planet. A wicked shorty like u can’t survive here for dis long w/o causing sum mischief. Basically, u iz one dangerous lil alien.”

Discomfort gripped your heart. Marvus was right; you were inadvertently responsible for a few deaths. Thankfully none of your friends suffered from your magnetic ability to welcome danger —

— Karako bleeding out from his stab wounds, seadwellers laughing in the distance —

— Daraya engulfed in flames as she fought through the pain —

— Boldir’s life withering away right before your eyes —

— Zebruh’s limbs torn apart in a frenzy of bloodlust —

You jolted and blinked through a haze of phosphenes coloring your vision. What were you thinking about again?

“Hey, it b ok u know.” Right, Marvus. Focus back on him. The painting is under his arm now, mercifully covered up so you didn’t have to look at it again. You welcomed the cold seeping into the skin of your shoulder from his touch. “U ain’t gotta b lookin so sad, doll. It just b dat way around here.”

You sucked in a shaky breath and mustered up a smile. “I know. And I guess if there’s anyone who I’d rather keep the painting, it would be you.”

Marvus lightly papped you on the cheek with the back of his hand. But before he could get a word in, Remele suddenly draped herself over you from behind. “Hello my sweete muse, please text me whenever you’re free againe; I’m going to make a livinge off of you!”

“Of course," you hastily replied, eager to worm your way out of her grasp and disappear. “I’m so … grateful that you painted such a — a charming rendition of me. You’ve truly outdone yourself!”

“It’s fxxn aces,” Marvus pipped up.

“Thank you so muche!” she gushed, and you had a sneaking suspicion she was amping up the charm for his sake. Her tactics were so shameless sometimes, but you loved her for it. You weren’t that much different from her in that regard.

“By the way, Remele, have you seen my friend Stesla anywhere around here? You know, the tealblood who speaks without stopping to breathe.”

“Ummm,” Remele hummed, tapping her cheek with a finger as she looked around. “She shoulde be lurking somewhere in the back, methinks. Thanks for introducing us, she’s gonna be so fuqueing useful in the long run. Juste like you!”

“How kind of you to say,” you humorlessly said.

“Mhm! Anyway, I muste get going. Goodbye, sweete muse!” And off she went, gone in a flash to conduct more mischief.

Marvus tapped you atop your head. “Hey.” You looked up to his sneaky face. “U lookin about as done w all dis as i b. Wanna bounce?”

Oh you sure as fuck did. The weight of tonight’s eventful party was finally starting to come down on you. “How do you always know? I’m starting to think you have some sort of savior complex.”

“Juss for funny lil hornless aliens who hang around weirdos.”

“Are you a weirdo, too, Marvus?”

He wiggled his eyebrows at you. “Hellz yea fam, but maybe not as much as u.”

“I am not!" you laughed, lightly swatting his forearm as you two walked towards where your instincts told you Stesla might be. “But seriously, thank you for getting me out of here."

“Don’t b thankin me just yet lil mama — maybe I got sum nefarious plans cookin in my think pan,” he teased and winked.

You chuckled. “I’m sure whatever you’re thinking of would be a million times preferable to being mobbed by frenzied trolls.”

“Ye tru. Lemme take u home, babe. Need me a lil bit of company in my sicknasty limo.”

“Oh, you didn’t come here with the other purplebloods?”

The corner of his grin turned up higher. “Sure did, but they ain’t who i’m lookin’ to take home tonite.”

You furrowed your brows at the strange phrasing — why would Marvus be so eager to take me back to my dilapidated hive instead of enjoying his friends’ wild company — but Stesla’s fashionable physique was in sight beside the restrooms, dabbing her face with a small powder puff while looking into a compact mirror. You called out to her in greeting, and she instantly perked up, hiding her cosmetics away in her purse before skipping up to you.

“OH MY GOODNESS DARLING THERE YOU ARE I THOUGHT I WOULD NEVER GET TO YOU TONIGHT HOW ARE YOU DID YOU SEE THAT INCREDIBLE PAINTING MY IT WAS SIMPLY EXQUISITE I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT THE MARVUS XOLOTO ACQUIRED IT — “

You practically pounced on her with a killer hug that would have knocked the air out of a human. But Stelsa was a force of nature in her own right, and as such, merely squeaked and hugged you back.

“I am feeling a little overwhelmed right now, Stelsa,” you confessed, murmuring into her chest before slinking out of her grasp to look at her. “I think I’m ready to leave now. Did you want to stay a little longer, or can I drop you off back home?”

“I SIMPLY CANNOT LEAVE JUST YET THERE IS STILL MUCH TO DISCUSS WITH REMELE AND SO MANY NEW POTENTIAL CLIENTS TO MEET HERE I WILL HAVE TO STAY BUT DON’T WORRY ABOUT ME PLEASE HURRY ON HOME AND REST YOU MUST BE EXHAUSTED AFTER THAT BIDDING DEBACLE AND I SEE THAT A CERTAIN SOMEONE IS WAITING FOR YOU — “ Stelsa peered over the top of your head in the least discrete way possible. Unbeknownst to you, Marvus waved back. “MY OH MY IT’S A GOOD THING I MANAGED TO PRIMP YOU UP BEFORE THE PARTY JUST LOOK AT YOU GETTING LUCKY HMMM?”

Your mind had wandered during her monologuing, so it took you a moment for her last statement to shock you back into reality. “Th — that, that isn’t what’s happening!” you hissed in a quiet whisper, blushing brightly at her implication. “He’s just my ride home, don’t be preposterous. Anyway, are you sure you’ll manage on your own here? I’m worried about leaving you with all of these highbloods around. What if you get caught in another deadly moshpit or whatever?”

Stelsa giggled and placed her hands on her hips. “DON’T BE SILLY I CAN HANDLE MYSELF JUST FINE I DON’T WORK OUT FOR NOTHING YOU KNOW.” Oh, that’s right. You forgot Stelsa was ripped.

“I’ll trust you … but I’m not letting you go that easy!” You fished out your phone and quickly got to texting. “I’m going to let Tyzias know that I need to leave you here. And you better send me a message when you get home, or else I’ll go looking for you, and you know what happens when I have a mission in mind; things can either go horribly right or horribly wrong — “

“YES YES DARLING I WILL BE SURE TO DO SO THANK YOU FOR BEING SUCH A LOVELY FRIEND NOW DON’T KEEP YOUR OTHER FRIEND WAITING TOODLES AND BE SAFE!”

She urged you along before you could get another word in, and you nearly stumbled like a clumsy fool if not for Marvus catching your fall. “Reddy reddy, buddy?”

“Ready ready,” you breathlessly replied, graciously allowing him to lead you away hand-in-hand.

The crowd parted for the both of you on your way out. You caught a glimpse of a few glares and reddened eyes being thrown at you, and if you had a death wish, you might have stuck your tongue out at them. But you were a flimsy human with too much to lose now, so you stared straight ahead and focused on matching Marvus’s quick strides.

The quietness of the outside was jarring to your senses after enduring the loud music and boisterous socializing. Alternia's twin moons cast their colored rays onto your shimmering skin, lighting it up in a dazzling shine that could not meet its full potential under artificial light. Your vibrant glow must have caught Marvus's attention — he turned to look at you with widened eyes and paused his step. “Damn, lil mama,” he smoothly cooed, beckoning you into a twirl as he admired you from all angles. “Now I know I said earlier that u be lookin good an all dat, but dis is sum wild shit.”

You giggled. “It’s just the wicked glow of the Mirthful Messiahs watching over me,” you said and pointed to the sky with a smile. “Get it? Two moons, two prophets.”

“Amen, baby. The messiahs are errywhere and in errything,” he replied, guiding you towards the limo with an arm swung around your shoulders.

The driver was waiting patiently, bowing in respect as he opened the door for you. For a brief moment, you spared Lanque one final thought and wondered how his night had gone after your mini feud got cut short. But with Marvus hot on your heel as you clamored into the limo, you decided that your mental energy had better trolls to focus on.

#homestuck #hiveswap #friendsim #marvus xoloto #marvus xoloto/reader #marvus/reader #marvus x reader #marvus xoloto x reader #remele namaaq #stelsa sezyat #gods and monsters #fanfic #lanque bombyx #lanque x reader #lanque/reader #lanque bombyx/reader

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verothexeno · 6 years

Text

TMNT OCs bios

‘CAUSE I FEEL LIKE IT. I’m thinking about creating a sideblog for my tmnt fic ... idk :’T I’m really inspired for it lately. ANYWAY, here’s dah girrlllsss ... and yeah sorry, there’s a self-insert ╮ (. ❛ ᴗ ❛.) ╭ !! Doing that kind of stuff helps me a lot with my anxiety so, WOOP, bare with me. Some things may change, I’m still editing a lot of things about the fic aarrgg. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT THEM, SEND ME AN ASK <3 ALSOOOOO !! Forgot to mention that this may be some sort of AU for the 2014/2016 verse ? The turtles would be in their mid-20′s

Véronique ''Vee'' Lavoie

Age: 26 Gender: Female Hair: Light Brown (mostly in a bun) Eyes: Green Height: 5'5'' Known languages: French (native), English, is currently studying Spanish and German. Will soon get to Brazilian Portuguese and Japanese. Tattoos/Piercings: 4 tattoos, a piercing on each ears + one at the top of right ear. Usual look: Serious, classic type. She's dressed in a way which leaves her comfortable when working on her projects. Occupation: Freelance artist (currently work as a cashier at a clothing store) Paired with: Donatello

Vee came from Montréal, Canada, seeking new opportunities in the grand city of New York. She got to be April O'Neil's new roommate as the reporter had placed an announcement online. She sees her moving as a fresh new start, a way to probably push aside her anxiety and depression, her curiosity making her crave for new adventures. Her path led her to study in many artistic fields such as music, arts, animation and writing. Although she had always dreamed of a scientific life (she had hoped to become an astronomer/astrophysicist or an herpetologist), she always stay updated on recent discoveries, her knowledge extending to many subjects. The first time she got to meet Donatello was actually through social medias. Shortly before she would move to the city, she had noted the sudden interest of a new follower on her various online accounts. At first she didn't mind, but soon both began to chat, the stranger revealing that he was living too in NYC and that he was a friend of April. That did pique Vee's interest as she tried to meet him in person many times, but he would always be shroudded in mystery, always bailing on their meetings or April being really vague about him. For months they would chat, both in writing and speaking form, and when Vee noted how good friends they actually became, she didn't hesitate to speak her mind: (donino) : How was your day? (veelicious) : Urg... I wish I could just land on a good job opportunity in my domain rather than hearing people complain about how they'll just go to another store only because we don't have an item that ran out of stock. (veelicious) : Like, I'm not even complaining, go shop somewhere else, I really won't miss your needy ass, customer from hell. (donino) : Aww gee, I'm sorry people can be such dickheads. … Have you tried looking for another place? I could help you search. (veelicious) : You're sweet Don, but you don't need to go into all that trouble for me. Don't worry, I'm always on the lookout for something else :) (donino) : Is there anything I can do to help and make you feel better though? (veelicious) : Yeah, what about a coffee date? … (donino) : Vee, idk... (veelicious) : For fuck's sake, Donnie, what could go wrong? I just want to get to know a new friendly face around here... (veelicious) : I really enjoy talking to you... April's been giving me the cold shoulder for some time now for some unknown reason. And now you just always come up with excuses. (veelicious) : I may be a stupid introvert, but damn sometimes I just hate being alone. I just want to talk. (donino) : we can voice chat if you want

(veelicious) : no donnie … I want to see you. I want to see your face, be able to put a picture over your name. I want to see you when you laugh. I want to see you smile. ... (donino) : Tomorrow night. Come alone. Go on top of the building that's on the corner of 4th ave. and 12th st. (donino) : … I know this sounds weird as hell, but trust me, it's the only way. (donino) : oh and yeah, bring coffees :) On that fateful meeting, Vee didn't scream nor run. She was curious, amazed and glad she could finally meet face to face with someone that she felt so at ease with. As soon as April let her into the gang, Vee would often meet up with the tall turtle, aiding him on various projects, soon their relationship blossoming to something far more grand.

Mikasa Kanegawa

Age: 27 Gender: Female Hair: Black (long) Eyes: Brown/Golden Height: 5'9'' Known languages: Japanese (native), English Tattoos/Piercings: None Usual look: Classy yet decontracted. Dressed in a way that she's always ready for action. Occupation: Martial Arts teacher Paired with: Leonardo Mikasa is a Japanese immigrant that came to New York city with her family when she was a teenager. She's the eldest of three kids family, having a brother and a sister. From an early age she's been learning karate, now teaching it at a school in the city. The first time she met Leonardo was when she wanted to take a shortcut through an alley, but was shortly met with a street gang who wanted to rob her. She didn't know she was already being observed by the turtle and before he could jump in to help, she managed to kick the living shit out of some guys. The turtle finally got involved when two men were able to maintain her, a third guy directing a gun towards her. As soon as Mikasa felt the hands around her get loose, she instantly went into battle mode, easily disarming the gun-holding thug and battling side to side with the shadow that was helping her. It was finally after the remaining gang member run away with the unconscious ones that Mikasa turned around to her helper, only seeing a large mutant now before her, breathing hard, katanas out. Her sole reaction was to be wide-eyed, frozen, mumbling a ''kappa''. She did not scream, she did not run. She simply bowed down, still in shock, knowing it was the only right thing to do before a mythical monster... Leo was confused at first, but he already liked the woman, especially after seeing her fighting. They did see eachothers again at times, mostly because Leo wanted to check up on her, giving up the excuse that the gang members could still be around. They would talk about combat techniques, and soon get to exchange personal information, getting to know eachothers better. At some point, Mikasa would be actually curious about where Leonardo was living at. She knows about his brothers and father, and she wonders how things would be arranged for a life down in the sewers... She has a hard time admitting for herself that she does have some interest for Leo, other than respect and friendship. She is really starting to love the mutant, seeing past his apparence and noticing the true leader under his shell.

Patricia ''Trish'' Walker

Age: 25 Gender: Female Hair: Dark brown afro type of hair Eyes: Brown Height: 5'7'' Known languages: English (native) Tattoos/Piercings: Nose ring, navel ring, Mandala tattoo on her back Usual look: Sporty/tomboy look, hip-hop trend. Occupation: Waitress Paired with: Michelangelo Born and raised in New York city, Trish lost her mother at a young age due to a car accident, since then living with her father and her older brother. She is street-wise, never having any troubles going around the city through the subway or executing some parkour. Her dream is to one day open her own restaurant, cooking being one of her main passions. In general Trish is a very active woman, never missing an opportunity to go party somewhere or meet new people. And it's by going to one party on a rooftop that she got to meet Michelangelo. She had moved apart a bit only so she could smoke her cigarette in peace, until she heard some new voices coming from another rooftop not so far from her position. Peeking out, she discovered the turtles, her instant gasp capting their attentions. She saw one of them walk up to her, greeting her, but she backed up, getting to the rooftop's edge, loosing balance. Her wrist was quickly grabbed, next being pulled back up, her body crashing against the mutant. She first noticed his blue eyes and the orange mask, all fear going away as some unseen sparks seemed to bloom between them. Ever since, Trish was quick to get used to the gang, testing new recipes on them and being the newest goofy ball of energy addition, alongside Mikey.

#me #vero writes

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soepicsokim · 7 years

Text

cause you dared me

How are you, really? I'm depressed, lonely and my shoulder hurts!

How do you feel right now? I feel tired and in pain What are you thinking about? I'm thinking about sleep and the fact the museum is really empty.

What’s your favorite color? green

What’s your favorite food? Pasta or Pancakes

What’s your favorite dessert? CAKE or COOKIEs

How old are you? 23

What have you learned today? Don't know, I've only been awake for 2 hours

What was your favorite subject in school? Writing and History

What do you do? I'm a intern at the museum along with a secretary at another job.

What are some of your favorite books? O geez I mostly read memoirs or historical books... Profiles in Courage by JFK and 11/22/63 by Stephen King

What are some of your favorite movies? STAR WARS

What kind of music are you into? EVERYTHING

If you were going to write a book, what would you call it and what would it be about? It would be called something like, "Love, Death and Twisted Hope." And it would be a lot like my OC's story but it would be my original story.

What’s one of the scariest things you’ve ever done? Fell in love

What accomplishment are you most proud of? Getting accepted into John Hopkins only to turn them Down!!!! HA. !% school in England baby.

Are you married? No

How did you meet your spouse / girlfriend / boyfriend? N/A

Do you think it’s better to get married when you’re young or better to wait a while? Both.

Do you have any kids? Um.... No

Have you ever thought of adopting? I can't with my health

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up? Astronomer - still do

How did you get into [INSERT THEIR CAREER FIELD]? Museum Studies. I got into it at the Holocaust museum in Washington DC. There is a room full of blue/black leather shoes and one white pair of shoes. I wanted to know the story to the white pair of shoes and why they were placed on the top of the pile. So I looked into Museum studies.

Would you recommend [INSERT THEIR CAREER] for other people? It's up to you. If you want to spend hours researching an object, restoring and object, and then displaying the object, then sure by all means get your masters degree and work at a museum.

What do you do for fun? I read, write, play video games, sleep.

Do you like traveling? YES

If you could visit any country in the world, where would you go? Germany, Poland, Russia.

Who are some people you’d like to meet someday? O geez.... Um.....

If someone asked you to give them a random piece of advice, what would you say? Be true to who you are. Don't let the world change you. Do what you want to do even if everyone tells you it's wrong.

What’s one of your favorite habits you have? Playing with my hair to calm me down.

What are some things that make you really happy? Superman art. Comic Con's. And a really good Disney movie... COOKIES

What are some things that make you really sad? No cookies, Bad Superman art. Bad museum displays.

What are some things that scare you? CLOWNS, and Ferris wheels

Do you like to plan things out in detail or be spontaneous? Both

Are you a religious person? YES

If you could go back in history, who would you like to meet?...... Um... I can't answer this completely because then people will hate me so I'll give you half of the answer. JFK

Would you rather live in the country or in the city? Well I live in the country... CITY!!!!

What was your life like growing up? good for the most part

What were you like in high school? NERD!!!!

Do you have any brothers or sisters? How many? YES, 1 Sister.

What’s your favorite part about today so far? COFFEE

Who in your life has influenced you the most? How did they do it? O geez. There isn't even enough room to start this list and reasons.

What’s your favorite joke? What's a joke?

Have you ever tried sushi? (Did you like it?) I love sushi

Do you like spicy food? I live in New Mexico. Of course I like spicy food.

How do you like your steak cooked? Medium Rare. (You taking me on a date?)

Do you have a favorite number? 3 Any particular reason why you like that number? My number on every soccer jersey I ever had

If you were a type of animal, what would you be and why? PEACOCK because of the colors

What’s one of the strangest things you’ve ever done? Um not safe for children's eyes... ha ha sorry

What kind of vacations do you like? Fun... Disneyland, Six Flags, Museums.

What are some of your major goals in life? Get my PHD and have people call me Doctor Kim.

What are some of your smaller goals in life? Find a husband

What do you like least about yourself? My everything

What embarrasses you? People making fun of how I look

If you could try out any job for a day, what would you like to try? No idea

What’s your earliest memory?... I don't have many memories any more. The last stroke I had took a lot of my child hood memories away.

What’s the best decision you ever made? College

Who’s your best / closest friend? K.T. @kathlyan and Te'a @bat-lakota

What do you think people think of you? That I'm ugly, I'm TOO smart and I need to get a better job.

What were your grades like in school? Straight A's with a c in math

If you could learn one random skill, what would you learn? Tap dance

Are you an introvert or an extrovert? I can be both at times.

Have you ever taken a personality test? (How did the results turn out?) Um... no I haven't but I took an animal personality text. It said I was an Omega Peacock, I like to be showy but I like to be in the back ground.

What’s the first thing you notice about people? Smiles, eyes, fidgety hands,

Do you think people can control their own destiny? No

Do you think all people are equally valuable, or do you think some people in certain situations might be more valuable than others (say, a severely retarded patient vs. a doctor who could potentially save hundreds of lives)? Huh. Every one is equal. You are the only one that can make your self better or worse. No one causes you to be what you are.

Do you think people are basically bad or basically good? Neutral

Do you think morals are universal or relative to the beliefs, traditions, and practices of individuals or groups? Um... Morals are absolute?

Do you think God exists? Yes

Do you think any kind of afterlife exists? Yes

Do you vote? YES Why / Why not? If you do vote, how do you usually vote? Non of your business - independent

Do you think gay people choose to be gay? Do you think straight people choose to be straight? No comment

Is torture ever a good option? If no, why not? If yes, when? No comment

Would you kill an innocent person if you thought it might mean saving a dozen other people? No comment

What’s the most money you’ve ever given away? Ain't tellen ;)

What’s the biggest personal change you’ve ever made? Depressed to non depressed

What’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever done? hahahaha good times. o man I .... oh your standing there um look a cat!

What do you think would be one of the best steps we could take toward ending poverty around the world? As a historian, I have no comment

What do you think we could do to best improve the education system? EDUCATE THE STUDENTS!!!! Not just standardize test them.

In general, what do you think about art? It's ok

What are some of your favorite websites? NOPE

What’s the biggest turnoff in a man/woman? NOPE

What’s the biggest lie you’ve ever told? hahahahah NOPE, NOPE and NOPE (I Worst day of my life started with this lie.)

What’s something most people don’t know about you? I have 2 rare blood diseases, but I look perfectly fine

What’s something you wish everyone knew about you? I don't want to talk about that

What are some of the first things you do in the morning? Read emails, Read tumblr, read text messages, feed the pets then get ready for the day

What’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to you? I really don't want to talk about it. only 6 people outside of my family know. and 3 of those 6 are my friends here on tumblr

Do you cry easily? Depends on my day... NO

How do you feel about public speaking? Um, I'll do it only if I have too

Do you like to talk on the phone? yes, I like that better than texting

How many emails do you get each week, roughly? 200 for work and school

If someone were to make a movie about your life, who would you hope would play you? ...... hmmmm.... ummm... hmmmm. No idea

What’s one of your favorite questions to ask new friends or to get a conversation going? Tell me something random about you

Would you ever sky dive or bungee jump? No and NO

Have you ever been in a fist fight? YES

What’s the best prank you’ve ever pulled? HAHAHA not telling

What did you do on your 16th birthday? went to school and my boyfriend at the time broke up with me on my 16th birthday

What do you think is one of the most undervalued professions right now? MUSEUM CURATOR's

How would you explain your basic life philosophy? You live, you learn, You pass on your knowledge, You be kind, You love, You die/

Would you rather be hated or forgotten? Neither

If you knew you would die tomorrow, would you feel cheated today? NO

THERE I ANSWERED THEM ALL!!!!!

THIS IS ABOUT ME!

so glad only one person sent in this dare. Just saying I post this numbered questions that way everyone can send me random numbers or send me their own questions.

I got depressed while answering these...

#anon #anona dared me #bleh

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everyonethinksmynameiskayla · 7 years

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Coding data and binge eating clementines

I’ve been meaning to sit down and write another post for a while now but since my head is no longer preventing me from having a coherent thought (I do still get occasional headaches), I’ve been working on coding my interview data and by the time I’ve done that all day I just want to lie down and not use my brain. Coding is so exhausting - it requires such intense concentration. I had to jump through all these absurd hoops to get the software for it too, I had to download VirtualBox to run Windows 10 on my MacBook in order to run the coding software, QDA Miner, and getting Windows 10 for free or really downloading anything is a huge challenge with crappy internet. So that took almost a week. But now I’m in the groove, so to speak. I’ve got giant pieces of paper hanging in my apartment so I can work out my ideas etc. and I’ve got all of my transcripts back from Oumoul as of this morning.

^ My giant paper

Starting next week I’ll be in Thies (about 1.5 hours east of Dakar) for almost two weeks for a training that Tostan is doing on their human-rights based non-formal education approach to community empowerment. I didn’t know about it until last week but they’re letting me slip in at the last second for a fraction of the price that the other representatives from other African development NGOs are paying for room/board/training (I think that’s basically who’s going to be there, but we’ll see) since they’re my sponsoring organization and my research, which the training will be useful for, is going to be helpful for them.

Last weekend Brittany’s friend from the US, Teresa, was here visiting so we went to spend a night in Simal in Sine Saloum, a region on the coast of both the ocean and the river about three hours south of Dakar. I think I’ve probably already talked about this, but to get anywhere outside of Dakar you have to take a “sept-place” the ridiculous old, worn-out circa-1980′s Renault station wagons which hold 7 people, hence the name “sept-place” which means “seven places”. To get a sept-place you have to go to the garage baux maraichers, which 3 years ago when I was here was the apex of chaos in the universe but has since gotten a bit cleaner and more organized. So we found a guy going to Fatik, which is past Sine Saloum but we were just going to get off early. We had to wait a little while since no one else was there for Fatik yet but that actually worked out okay because we got the three best seats (the passenger seat and the two window seats in the middle, you have to be a contortionist to sit comfortably in the way back). It took forever, as per usual, to get out of Dakar and Rufisque, the next city which at this point is being swallowed up by Dakar, because there was an insane accident that seemed to involve a giant truck flipping over into a ditch so a crane had come and pulled it out and so we sat in completely stand still traffic (engine off and driver nowhere to be found) for at least an hour. So by the time we got out of the sept-place in Tataguine (which I enjoy because when you say it with a Senegalese accent it sounds like Tataouine) it was dark. After much negociation and confusion we found a guy who had a car and who claimed to have a vague idea of where Simal, the coastal village where we were going to stay, was. However once we got closer to the village it became clear that he in fact had no idea where he was going, and we proceeded to drive around in the sand for approximately an hour, asking random people who clearly did not know where the campement was either for directions, at one point a little boy even got in the car to try to help but he kept changing his mind about which way the driver should turn so that was useless. The driver kept calling the lady from the campement, which was likely also useless since the only descriptor of where we were at any given moment was “near some sand and a fence and some donkeys”. But eventually we made it and boy, was it worth it, we sat at a table right on the water and had tabouleh and chicken and then the next morning had an assortment of jams with tappalappa (the village bread that I like) and coffee that wasn’t instant. Then we had a ride on a pirog that came with the room, so for about two hours a very nice man steered us down the river and through the marches on a very large pirog (there are pictures of that on the photo blog). He explained how the women would wade out and plant what looked like tiny mangroves in the marsh in these perfect rows, and showed us the shrimp nets that were tied to long bamboo poles propped up in the trees, which you have to come collect in the middle of the night. Then I had a headache so I hung out in the restaurant area while Brittany and Teresa kayaked, which was fine because it was serene and beautiful and I was happy to sit and do nothing for a while.

As we were discussing how we should get home and when we should leave, this young French woman came up and said she couldn’t help but overhear and explained that she and her husband were about to drive back to Dakar in about ten minutes, did we want a ride? We obviously wanted a ride. Her husband was Senegalese but they met in France and they turned out to be the absolute coolest people ever. We all chatted the whole three hours back and he let me borrow a book about microlending in Bangladesh and Brittany promised to show the woman, Sophie, around the art scene in Dakar (since she’s an artist and they had just moved here when they got married in January - she had some incredible stories about the marriage rituals Souleman’s mom had guided her through).

^ Where we stayed, Campement Simal

Other than that little jaunt to Sine Saloum (and I would say another day trip to Ile des Madelines, but I’ve been there so many times it doesn’t really count anymore, although this time I did ride in the trunk on the way there), life is fairly normal (by Dakar standards).

^ In the trunk on the way to the island, at the top of the cliff once there

I go home for lunch a couple of times a week and over to Moussa’s for attaya every couple of days. During the day I mostly code and work and read either at home or at a café. My new friend who works in the monitoring and evaluation department of Tostan invited me to come use the extra space in their office to work but I have’t gotten around to doing that yet because it’s not super close to where I live. Every Thursday Brittany I go to “Marché Jeudi” (Thursday Market) which is a labyrinthine collection of people selling giant piles of clothes and various other random things that pops up around the corner from my apartment every Thursday and you have to really dig (literally) but everything is about 200-300 francs and we’ve had some amazing finds. Like last week I got an Eddie Bauer button down and a top from Zara (for less than 50 cents a piece!!). Right next to Marché Jeudi is the “beignet lady” and I go to her fairly often and bring beignets (which are fried balls of sweet dough) to Moussa’s to go with the attaya. She’s legendary and always surrounded by a huge crowd waiting, but it’s a very modest set-up, just a woman sitting on a stool on a particularly narrow street surrounded by a giant vat of boiling oil, buckets of dough, and a big bowl where she deposits the beignets when they’re done so her daughter can wrap them in Swedish newspapers (my bread I get from the boutique next door also is wrapped in Swedish newspaper…I don’t understand where it’s all coming from…maybe Sweden…but why???) and bag ‘em.

I go every now and then to Marché HLM also, which is the fabric market in the HLM neighborhood, which is like the projects but for Dakar. I love Marché HLM for a couple of reasons. The fabric is so vibrant and beautiful so I enjoy being surrounded by it (it’s also only about $1 for a yard) but I also like that it’s one of the only spaces in Dakar that feels ruled by women. Most of the sellers and shoppers are women, and even if they’re men they aren’t crazy aggressive like they are at markets like Sandaga where they gets lots of tourists so when they see a Toubab they descend and won’t leave you alone until you buy something. At HLM I’m pretty much always guaranteed to be the only Toubab and it’s also just quieter in general even though it’s absolutely massive and ten times as labyrinthine as Marché Jeudi. There are tiny little corridors lined with fabric stalls and you can only pass through one person deep. It’s also my favorite place to practice my Wolof, because everyone there is super game to speak Wolof to me instead of French and because of the repetition of buying and selling and each stall owner asking me the same questions over and over I learn the words better and it’s easier to repurpose them later.

^ Some of the fabric I’ve gotten at HLM that hasn’t become clothes

I’ve really gotten to know the bus and informal public transportation systems (car rapides, kolandos) even better and only take cabs if it’s too late at night for buses. It’s great because I know the city so well now and taking public transport everywhere makes me feel more connected to Dakar and my fellow Dakarois (most ex-pats just take cabs all the time, since relative to the West it’s cheap, but relative to the buses here it’s astronomically expensive). It can be frustrating as public transport can be anywhere else; waiting forever, insanely crowded buses (like the kind of crowded where you don’t need to hold on to anything because you can’t move at all anyway), people accidentally stepping on you or elbowing you in the head etc. But now that I’ve gotten used to it I can never justify a cab to myself. 100 francs (16 cents) versus 1500 francs ($2.50) for the same distance…not a hard choice. That might seem petty but it’s all relative, I don’t convert currencies unless I’m making a big purchase when I’m living abroad.

One instance where I do convert and allow myself to splurge a bit (by Dakar standards at least) is this new restaurant about 10 minutes from my apartment called Mawa’s Taste of America, which is owned by a Senegalese woman who lived in the US for decades and makes absolutely incredible American breakfast food. I’ve also been obsessed with clementines (about $1.20/kilo…I eat A LOT of them) but the season is ending soon and I’m so bummed. Speaking of food, Brittany and I also recently tried some sort of weird cake called the Dakaroise from the bakery near my apartment and it was not only twice the size of our faces but one of the strangest things I’ve ever eaten. It was fairly dry yellow cake with layers of filling that was what I can only assume pure butter whipped with some sugar in it. It was like if I was making cookies and stopped after the first two ingredients and then used that to fill the cake.

^ Brittany’s head for scale

Also here’s the most adorable picture ever of me having a tender moment with my baby cat who fell asleep with his paw on my face (not at all my cat, but I like it more than Brittany and it’s her families’):

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charllieeldridge · 4 years

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15 Things To Do in Prague: A Guide for Travellers

There’s no doubt that Prague is one of the rising stars of European travel destinations. There are plenty of fun things to do in Prague, and we’ll take a look at 15 of them in this post.

One word that often comes up when describing Prague is “fairytale.” For most, this is due to the fact that there’s literally a castle on a hill here. My reason for describing Prague as something out of a storybook has more to do with the scenic hikes, mouth-watering food, and tasty draft beer that’s almost as cheap as water.

In all seriousness, though, this is an absolutely stunning city. Prague somehow managed to escape World War II relatively unscathed. While many of Europe’s cities were left in ruins after the war, the historic center of Prague remained intact. Here you’ll find Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and Romanesque styles present in the architecture.

Adding to the enchantment is the city’s location along the Vlatva River and the rolling hills that are indeed home to a castle. If there’s a better-looking city out there, I haven’t been there yet. One of my favorite things to do in Prague is just walking around with a camera and admiring the beauty that’s around every corner.

As far as what to do in Prague, you’re really spoiled for choices here. In addition to exploring the famous Old Town and all its landmarks, there’s an abundance of museums, some great opportunities for enjoying nature, and plenty of excellent places to eat and drink. Did I mention that the beer is practically free here?

Let’s get to it and Czech out all that Prague has to offer. Here are the top 15 things to do in the city that you won’t want to miss.

1. Join a Free Walking Tour

There’s no better way to get to know Prague than by joining a free walking tour. In just a few short hours, you’ll visit some of the most famous places in the city while learning a bit about the history and culture along the way.

I’ve been on several of these in the last few years all over the world and the one I took here was easily one of the best. It was really interesting to learn random tidbits about the city. For example, if you were born in Prague 100 years ago, you would have lived in eight different countries by now!

I won’t go and spoil the rest of the tour for you, though. The team at Sandeman’s New Europe run free walking tours of the city several times a day, so go to their website to check out the available times.

☞ SEE ALSO: 10 Cheap European Destinations You Can Visit on $50/Day (or Less)

2. Visit The Old Town Square

While you’ll visit it briefly on any walking tour, it’s well worth it to return to Old Town Square at your own leisure. This is the most historic part of the city and is a beautiful place to wander around for a while.

Within the square, you’ll find the Old Town Hall, Týn Church, the Jan Hus Memorial, and a whole lot more. There are several architectural styles on display here, as well as the 600-year old medieval astronomical clock. Every hour between 9AM and 9PM, you will see a parade of the 12 apostles appear in the window.

Since this is the center of tourism in the city, there are also plenty of cafes, shops, and street performers vying for your attention and Czech Crowns (they don’t use Euros here, by the way). As you may expect, prices here are a bit higher than in other parts of the city. Best to take your photos and move along if you ask me.

The Old Town Square is fun to visit both day and night, so you’ll probably end up making at least a few trips here. Plus, it’s always a good place to regroup if you get lost wandering around Old Town. Click here to get directions.

3. Check Out The Prague Castle

One of the most popular things to do in Prague is visiting the city’s iconic castle on a hill. This UNESCO listed ancient castle dominates the skyline of Prague and can be seen from all across the city.

This historic landmark dates back to the 9th century and it has served many purposes over the centuries. It’s a vast and sprawling complex full of palaces, churches, gardens, and more. You can easily spend an entire day here and just barely scratch the surface of all that there is to see and do.

The Prague Castle complex is open from 6AM-10PM year-round, but the various sites have different opening hours. There are a variety of ticket options depending on what you want to see. There’s this 2.5-hour tour that has thousands of positive reviews, or this skip-the-line admission ticket.

Since the castle complex is quite large and sprawling, there are a few different ways to come and go. The most popular seems to be taking tram #22 to arrive and then walking down the stairs to catch the metro after visiting. Click here for directions to the Prague Castle.

☞ SEE ALSO: A Mini-Guide To Travelling in Prague

4. Dig Into Czech Cuisine

We can’t talk about what to do in Prague without mentioning Czech cuisine. You wouldn’t want to travel all the way here and end up eating a disappointing, overpriced cheeseburger in a tourist trap restaurant, would you?

One of the quintessential Czech dishes is Svíčková. Don’t worry, I have no idea how to pronounce that, either. It’s a heaping plate of sirloin steak in a cream sauce served with bread dumplings and cranberry sauce, and it’s delicious! This city is also famous for its pork knuckle, sausages, as well as its pickled cheese.

It can be intimidating figuring out where to eat in a city, and Prague is no different. The Prague Foodie Map is a great resource for finding the best places to eat here and you can download it for just $6.

If you’d prefer to dive into the culinary scene here and make friends at the same time, there are plenty of excellent food tours available in Prague. Eating Prague has a great half-day tour where you’ll sample 7 authentic foods while learning about the city along the way. Click here to learn more.

5. Walk Across The Charles Bridge

One of the most iconic landmarks in Prague is Charles Bridge. This beautiful stone bridge spans the Vlatva River, with impressive Gothic towers on both ends and an array of statues in between.

The bridge dates all the way back to 1357 and the rule of King Charles IV. It replaced a bridge that had been destroyed by a flood and has managed to withstand many subsequent floods. One urban legend says that egg yolks were mixed in with the mortar during construction to make it stronger.

Taking a walk across Charles Bridge and admiring the scenery is definitely one of the top things to do in Prague. Just be aware that you won’t be the only one with this bright idea! If you want to avoid the biggest crowds, try to get here early in the morning or later at night.

Both day and night, the bridge is bustling with activity. There are usually artists, musicians, vendors, and other street performers on the bridge, which makes for a very lively and interesting scene.

6. Walk Up Petrin Hill

For some absolutely stunning views of Prague from above, head to the top of Petrin Hill. You’ve got several options for getting to the top of the hill, including a steep but relatively easy 30-minute hike. If you’re not up for the challenge, you can take a ride on the funicular or you can catch a tram. Both are included in a public transport ticket for the city.

Atop the hill, you’ll find the Petrin Lookout Tower — Prague’s tribute to the Eiffel Tower in Paris. While it’s not quite as impressive as the original, its hilltop location provides some superb panoramic views of the city. Tickets cost about $6.50 for adults and $3.50 for children.

There’s more to the hill than just the tower. While you’re up here, you can also take a walk in a rose garden, get lost in a mirror maze, and visit a monastery with a brewery. Be sure to add a trip up to Petrin Hill to your list of what to do in Prague. Click here to check the location on the map and get directions.

7. Explore The Jewish Quarter

A trip to the Jewish Quarter, also known as Josefov, is a must when visiting Prague. This was once home to the city’s Jewish ghetto, which was one of the largest in Europe.

During World War II, Hitler had plans for Prague to be a cultural center of the Third Reich. Jews were forced to wear the Star of David and were deported to concentration camps shortly thereafter. It was a dark time in the history of not only the city but the entire continent.

Surprisingly, most of the buildings here survived through the war. This was because Hitler had an idea for a “Museum of an Extinct Race” here. He even had his Nazi forces gather up Jewish artifacts from other parts of Europe to send here.

Today, these monuments form the Jewish Museum of Prague. This includes four synagogues, the Ceremonial Hall, and the Jewish Cemetery. Join this walking tour to explore the area and learn more along the way. The ticket price includes entrance fees as well.

8. Go Museum Hopping

There are several other museums that are worth visiting in Prague. In addition to the usual art and history museums, the city is also home to museums on Communism, public transportation, Apple (the company, not the fruit), and sex machines. No, that last one wasn’t a typo…

The Czech National Museum should be high on your list of things to do in Prague. It’s actually several buildings in and outside of the city, with the main Historical Building as the main attraction. It re-opened in October 2018 after some massive renovations and is more impressive than ever.

Tickets for the main building cost $11 for adults and $7.50 for children. It’s open daily from 10:00-6:00pm and deserves at least a few hours of your time. Their current “2 x 100” exhibition celebrates 200 years of the museum and features a vast collection of artifacts, many of which are on display for the first time.

Another must-see is the Kafka Museum. It’s all about Franz Kafka, one of the most famous writers from Prague. The museum houses some of his original manuscripts, photos, diaries, and more. Before you head in, be sure to check out the odd sculpture titled “Piss.” It’s a fountain shaped like the Czech Republic with statues of two men urinating on the country. You can even request them to write something by sending a text message (the number is written near the sculpture).

The Kafka Museum is also open every day from 10-6. Tickets are $11 for adults and $8 for children. Click here to get directions.

☞ SEE ALSO: The Ultimate Guide to Backpacking Europe

9. River Cruise (One of the Most Relaxing Things to Do in Prague)

Enjoying a cruise on the Vlatva River is definitely a must-do in Prague. There are plenty of options for cruising along the river and taking in the scenery of this beautiful capital city.

A standard one-hour river cruise costs around $15 and includes refreshments. You’ll get to enjoy the views of the historical center from the deck as you move along the river. For a little bit extra, you can add a tasty glass of Prosecco.

That’s not all, though. You also have the option of taking a lunch or dinner cruise of the river. Music lovers may opt for a ride on the jazz boat instead, where you’ll get to enjoy some live tunes along with your dinner. These range in price from around $30 up to $100 depending on the type.

If you happen to be in Prague at the end of the year, you may want to ring in the New Year with one of the special river cruises. You can get more info about all the various options on this website.

10. Hang Out on the Island

There are actually a few islands in the river here, and they make for a great place to hang out and enjoy a leisurely afternoon. You can choose between Strelecky, Slavonic, or the so-called Children’s Island.

All three islands are in a little cluster in the river just south of the Legions Bridge. They’re all easily accessible and each island offers something different. Strelecky often hosts cultural events, Slavonic is home to the Zofin Palace, and the Children’s Island features a fun playground for kids.

You can find a few cafes and restaurants on each island as well as restrooms. There are also paddle and rowboats available to rent, so you can make your own river cruise! Click here for directions to Strelecky Island. You can easily visit them all in an afternoon if you want.

☞ SEE ALSO: Central and Eastern Europe: Highlights From Our 5 Month Trip

11. Check Out The Local Markets

Perusing the many local markets is easily one of the top things to do in Prague. From flea markets to farmer’s markets to the very festive holiday markets, there are plenty of choices!

One of the oldest markets in the city is Havel, which dates all the way back to 1232. Here you can shop for fresh produce, arts & crafts, wooden toys, jewelry, souvenirs, and much more. It’s open from 6 AM-7 PM during the week and gets going a bit later on the weekend. Click here to get directions.

If you love finding random things and a good bargain, then be sure to squeeze in a trip to the flea market. It’s located in U Elektry and only open on the weekends from 6:00am-2:00pm. Just get yourself to the Hloubetin metro station and there’s a free shuttle that will take you to the market.

Last but not least, there are the magical holiday markets in Prague! Around Easter and Christmas, the number of outdoor markets in the city skyrockets. Visiting these holiday markets is definitely one of the most popular things to do in Prague, and many people plan their trip here just to visit them. Some of the best include the markets in Old Town Square and at the Prague Castle.

12. Drink Czech Beer

There’s no doubt that beer is an important part of Czech culture. People here enjoy a nice cold glass of pivo to go along with their meal, even if it’s lunchtime on a Monday. Actually, beer is considered a food in the Czech Republic! That’s why it’s so cheap here, as it’s not taxed like it is in other countries.

The most popular brand of beer here is definitely Pilsner Urquell, which was actually the first pilsner ever brewed. Another go-to brew here is Budweiser Budvar, which used the name long before the American brand even existed. The local beer of choice is Staropramen, as it’s actually brewed in Prague.

As you may expect, there are plenty of places to wet your whistle with a cold one in Prague. You can check out the brewery at the Strahov Monastery, hit a local watering hole like the Golden Tiger, enjoy an outdoor beer garden, or even soak in a tub full of suds in a beer spa. I guess you can say that Czechs love their beer!

I consider myself an avid beer drinker, and I found the beer in Prague to be some of the best I’ve ever had. Best of all, a half-liter of crisp, refreshing draft beer only costs about $1.50 here, so drink up. This article lists several of the best beer halls and pubs in Prague, and if you want to join an informative beer crawl, check out this informative tour which includes 3 large beers.

If you find yourself in Berlin, drinking beer is definitely one of the top things to do there as well!

13. Visit Letna Park

While we’re on the topic of drinking beer in Prague, one of the best places to enjoy a cold one is Letna Park. There’s a large beer garden here that boasts some incredible views of the city thanks to its hillside location.

In addition to the beer garden, you can also enjoy a leisurely stroll along the tree-lined paths in the park. It’s a popular place for locals to go jogging, have a picnic, or play sports. We saw a pretty intense pick-up game of roller hockey on our visit as well as a group of kids ripping it up on their skateboards.

Not too long ago, there was a memorial to Stalin atop the hill in Letna Park. It was blown up in chaotic fashion with dynamite and eventually replaced by a large metronome, which serves to remind people of the past. It’s a common hangout spot for both locals and tourists alike, especially as the sun is going down over the city. Click here for directions to Letna Park.

☞ SEE ALSO: 15 Things To Do in Seville Spain

14. Explore Mala Strana

Across the river from Old Town is the area of Prague that’s known as Lesser Town. Don’t let the name fool you, though — this is a beautiful corner of the city that’s well worth exploring.

Locally known as Mala Strana, this is the area on the west bank of the Vlatva River just below the Prague Castle. The name actually translates as “Little Side,” which makes sense seeing as how this side of the river is much smaller due to its hillside location.

After visiting the castle, you can head down the stairs and begin your exploration of Mala Strana. There’s plenty to see and do here, including a few of the city’s most important churches. You’ll find the stunning St. Nicholas Church and the Church of Our Lady Victorious, which is home to the famous statue of the Infant Jesus of Prague. Roman Catholics from all over the world travel to Prague to see this image of baby Jesus.

Other must-sees in Prague’s Lesser Town include the scenic Wallenstein Garden and the John Lennon Wall. The former surrounds a Baroque palace that’s home to the Czech Senate, while the latter is a colorful memorial to the legendary musician. You’ll also find plenty of excellent shops, cafes, restaurants, and bars, so go ahead and make a day out of your trip to Mala Strana.

15. See A Show

Winding down our list of things to do in Prague is seeing a show in one of the city’s countless venues. Whether you’re interested in classical music, opera, jazz, ballet, rock, or electronic, you can probably find it on a night out in the Czech capital.

One of the best places to catch a show in Prague is the Rudolfinum. This 19th-century concert hall is said to have perfect acoustics, making it the perfect place to catch a performance by the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. Click here to view their schedule and see what’s playing while you’re in town.

Another popular way to spend an evening in Prague is by experiencing the city’s unique black light theater. Using black curtains, UV lighting (black lights), and fluorescent costumes, the result is an ongoing optical illusion on stage.

A good place for first-timers to start out with black light theater is at IMAGE. Their “Best of Image” show lasts 90 minutes and showcases highlights from 30 years of shows. Tickets cost $25 for adults and $17.50 for children. Head to their website to check showtimes and book your tickets online.

Ready For Prague?!

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to book my flight to Prague after writing about all the fun things to do there. I mean, where else in the world can you visit a castle in the morning, take a river cruise in the afternoon, see a black light theater show in the evening, and party it up in a beer hall at night?

I did a pretty good job exploring the city en route to the World Cup in Russia, but a few days there was just a tease. I’m hoping to head back there soon and stay for at least a month next time to really dive into all that this incredible city has to offer.

Have you visited Prague? Got any tips on some other awesome things to do there? Don’t be shy, leave a comment below and let us know about it!

Images in this article are courtesy of Shutterstock. Click here to learn more about their royalty-free images and videos.

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seanmeverett · 7 years

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Notes from Gigaom’s AI 2017 Conference

Insights from Enterprise AI startups, CIOs, and Data Scientists

I. Setting the Stage

Yesterday we attended the Gigaom’s Artificial Intelligence conference in San Francisco. The focus was on the enterprise, from the perspective of what’s actually being implemented rather than the possibilities of what could come in the future.

All of the notes below are typed using the exact words said by the participants. We did not take any leeway with the language, interpretation, nor have we provided any opinion on this.

What you read below is factually accurate as best as we could copy from the participants themselves.

II. Blueprint for Building & Deploying Enterprise AI Solutions Across Industries

Panelists

Tim Crawford (moderator)

Somya Kapoor: ServiceNow

Josh Sutton: Publicis Sapient

Kumar Srivastava: BNY Mellon

Biggest industries from a survey (most participants work in a company with 1K to 25K employees)

Financial services

Healthcare

Manufacturing

Construction

Where do people get started with AI?

33% are in evaluation stage

25% in planning and getting to production

Why still early stages?

Most organizations are used to the past rate of change

But now time period is a much shorter cycle

Many people are hurrying to react and do it smartly

Now people are getting in deep

Are enterprise projects net new?

90% of AI work is net new activity

Existing things in production means you have to refactor what’s already there and takes time

This it’s easier to start fresh

Traditional devops is not used to dealing with new models

Easier to try something new business production container is new. Deploy that up front and no legacy software to deal with

Smarter for enterprises to start with net new

Learnings from starting to implement AI (commands)

Modify how a user or employee operates

Based on patterns this might be the right thing to do, adds an extra step. Safer, harder to inspect a black box AI

How to retrain employees for working with AI

People seem to start with Bots as their first experience with AI

Vast majority of respondents sit to 5 to 100 bots, not 1–5 buckets

Intent and entity abstraction

Next up consolidation of bots

Entire customer journey experience (look at the entire thing, not just one small piece) is the holy grail

accounting, supply chain, customer service

Are people looking to solve a broad set of problems or specific?

Vast majority of respondents are split evenly between a broad approach and holistic approach

One problem that gets solved first then use that to build off of for the holistic strategy

Agile and BI opened the door

Initiatives can start in IT (becoming a service later, reduce headcount)

Password reset is one of the biggest requests for Bots

Problems

Training the people is one of the hardest things to do

Strategy situation from Board to CEO, lots of competition within the firm: different solutions for different problems that don’t work together

What part of the organization started the AI conversation?

Finance (cost cutting as goal could result in problems in the future)

Huge drop off after that

But there’s an expectation that other parts of the organization will be able to consume what comes out of IT. Needs to be a company driven strategy.

IT is becoming a provisioning layer so others can consume it

Doesn’t matter where it starts just that it does

But needs to become consistent with a coherent strategy

In House vs External?

45% are building their AI services in-house rather than getting outsiders

Market is flooded with too many vendors

ServiceNow taking a two-prong approach (google, Watson) don’t feel like they can solve it all by themselves

What role does open source play? And how?

Have the best minds in the world working on this stuff, competing to give away the best services

Leverage but know you still have to build on top

Majority of AI effort starts with open source

Platform company so have to work with open source but have to add more

Two types: academic or large tech companies (incentives) both are starting points

Use them to go from zero to 60 very quickly

Many product companies are based on open source underpinnings

75% of survey respondents say open source plays a very significant role

Explainability is the big problem. How do you rewind the decision-making for transparency for how it works?

Use case

Show how a customer incident is correlated to a knowledge article based on machine learning

Confidence interval. Can’t say why it’s the answer but can give you 99% confidence that it is right

III. How To Consider Proof of Concept Use Cases, Building & Scaling Your POC

Panelists

Soma: Madrona Group (moderator)

Jim McHugh: NVIDIA

Peter Marx: GE Digital (predix platform, former CTO city of LA)

Jim

NVIDIA DGX-1 is a supercomputer in a box

Most of the people working on AI don’t have the resources to set up a farm

NVIDIA wanted to come out with something turnkey, democratize it and make the compute power accessible

Only been about 4 years from AlexNET

Peter

GE has 380,000 employees

Turbines produce about 12% of the world’s power (scale is crazy)

60% of airplanes run on a GE turbine

Been in AI world for a long time, came out of medical imaging, then Apple to work on videos, then work in video games (football AIs, race car AIs)

Techniques has been around a long time but what changed is access to data (and processing power

How do you get started in a POC?

Peter Marx:

GE looks at asset performance management across all their machines, when will they break?

LA has several million trees. Lifetime of a tree is 80 years, 3 years to establish a tree, fancy neighborhoods have more trees. Trees represent equity, how thriving the city is, and different than urban street islands with no trees.

With the drought, LA had to figure out what to do with the trees along with 20-year lawsuit on sidewalk damage where replacing a couple hundred thousand trees

Need a catalogue of trees, hiring a bunch of people to drive around the streets doesn’t work in today’s world (need more fidelity and automation)

Tensorflow and computer vision techniques used to identify species: did it on google street view, the computer is driving down the street and cataloguing getting down to sub-meter resolution

How do you do that in a mayor’s office

He did a small POC in Caltech then pulled up satellite image from 1996 data (pretty scratchy). Over 20 years many things changed. Get started with a small area, make it highly visible. Then we said we need money to do it across entire city of LA. By the time they got the money, had already done it across the entire city of LA and looked like Gods.

Reason GE is moving into Predix is because we’ve reached the limits of performance improvements in our engines, materials science, process engineering. But now we can start to optimize thrust across an entire fleet of planes and power performance. Level of complexity not taken by man before.

Jim McHugh

Bring people through their demo center

Put cameras in car and let them learn intuitively, after 100 hours they were hitting all the orange cones, after 3000 hours it’s driving through the streets of New Jersey in rain and showing the power of image recognition

Identifying objects: “do you know how many warehouse issues that solves for me?”

Showed it to consumer companies: P&G, Oil of Olay (do a study of your face and recommend right lotion, 60% to 70% didn’t understand product line, after app it’s a 90% product satisfaction and 88% repurchase rate)

Pattern recognition: studying network traffic patterns then detect an anomaly, understand where connections belong; same thing with Voice

Always start with Gaming in demo center, incredible amount of computational math, showing raw compute power and simulation (don’t need experience in real life)

PRISMA art overlays on top of your photo, generate new scenes for Blade Runner

Oxford getting 93% accuracy at lip reading, most humans are just above 50% (what can you do with cars and trucks)

IV. Fireside Chat: Auren Hoffman & Byron Reese

Auren Hoffman Bio

Started LiveRamp sold to Axiom

CEO of a startup that makes data sets for AI

Angel investor

Why was now the time AI is coming out?

We have enough data (stock market)

Over-predicting self-driving cars, most still driven by humans in the next 10 years

Under-predicting other interesting types of AI

What can we do to speed up the development of AI?

Really focus on getting the historical data on the truth of what happened

Truth is really important (chess moves, stock market mostly true)

Building models based on bad data can compound the mistakes very quickly

How much time are they spending on data?

80% to 90% of their time is cleaning, munging, dealing with privacy

Spending only 5% of their time on the actual AI

One of the reasons Google gets all the researchers is they don’t have to do any of the other stuff around the data, just work your magic (compelling recruiting pitch)

Biggest complaint is they have to do all this other stuff, the problem is labeled training data

Enterprise problems

500 vendors yesterday, 5,000 vendors today, another order of magnitude tomorrow

Wal-Mart has 1,000 vendors for just marketing technology alone

Number of vendors is astronomical and it’s growing

How do you manage vendors? Law firm, for instance

Instead of using a spreadsheet, now using an API

Almost a vendor assembly line, sometimes vendors work together to move data around

A company’s DNA is defined by their vendor: it’s like a fingerprint

Thesis for investing in AI companies

Have to tease out if someone wants to be cool, or do they have a passion about this particular thing

Hard thing to test for

Invests in B2B kind of companies, but seems a bad idea

Just investing in a good time to be a good time to be an investor

Where do you get data?

First, make sure the data is true (bad algorithms from bad data)

Scale is important, what is scale?

Watson Oncology, data from Sloan Kettering (procedures and outcomes); going to need more data from more sources, guessing the data is labeled, true, and clean

Probably want data from all hospitals that don’t have the best people and practitioners, and from all over the world. Variation.

Most interesting data sets that he has at his startup?

It’s not about one data set, but many together

Quant hedge funds

Graphing data cross data sets

Originally look at each data set by itself, train and that works relatively well, each data set had some sort of value to get better performance

But the real value they found was graphing all these data sets together, then asking questions

But by putting these things together, you start to learn a lot of interesting things

Nutrition is hard: everything you ate, wealth, DNA of people all together to graph for understanding on what’s going on

But if we could we would unlock the benefits to humanity

This is basically general intelligence

V. Line of Business AI: How Marketing, Sales, Customer Support, HR, Finance & Product Can Use AI Without Being a Data Scientist

Panelists:

Sam Charrington: CloudPulse strategies (moderator)

Simon Chan: Salesforce

Matt Gandolfo: Charlotte Russe

Terry Cordeiro: Lloyds

Charlotte Russe

Fast fashion, don’t rebuy products, have to make decisions quickly and repeatably

Issue is with a lot of people making decisions manually

Instead of just prescribing an action, actually take that action

Identify that the fleet is in the right location

If you shut a store down can ecommerce pick up the slack

They’re looking for commoditized solutions so they don’t have to hire data scientists or machine learning

Aren’t going to hire a bunch of data scientists and PhDs because they’re too expensive

Components of change management and retraining people when you get rid of their job of updating excel spreadsheets

AI is nobody’s full-time job, only have 50-person IT team total

So the question is how do they leverage solutions

Partnered with a vendor to take data around physical stores and eCom, other attributes to run a bunch of what-if scenarios

Problem is it’s built on an external vendor’s platform

cost was cheaper, shifting more data to them is more risk, what if data leaks out

Salesforce

Einstein platform, AI that runs on top of Salesforce as a CRM tool (came from Prediction.io startup he built)

Automate tasks they don’t want to do

In addition to metamind acquisition

Focus on improving the customer experience, customer improvement

Have an AI system that can help them

Make their business more efficient, and make AI customizable for any business to use

They have 100 machine learning researchers / PhDs

Data is already in the cloud and ready, so much easier to get benefit from it

Cloud is the infrastructure that can empower AI (get data ready, get model ready, get production ready)

When compare in-house development vs external: moving from POC to mass production they start to see the cost difference (maintenance in own IT infrastructure)

Pivotal point where people look to external solutions is when the scale and productionization happens

Keeping business users in the team with data scientists, that’s when real value is created

Privacy and data protection seems to be a big problem (at least with consumer use cases)

Trust is #1 value of salesforce

Lloyds

One of the products they want to build is a cognitive platform; started thinking about virtual assistants and then extended into the rest of the business (“empower colleagues as well as customers”)

Definitely a skills shortage in this area

Build a centralized AI team that offers AI as a Service to the rest of the organization

Good relationship with IBM Watson so chose them, use Bluemix as their dev environment, use data already had

Learning: spent too much time training the model, should have done it quicker and cheaper

Have 5 people: data scientist, product manager, scrum master, engineer, architect sit around a table and get something done quickly (paid for by different parts of the bank)

Can’t do this on-premise, would be impossible

Build components out as services, then put a wrapper around it

Use some open-source

Their differentiator will always be their data, and the bank should use that intelligently

IP will be in AI as a Service platform approach

Very worried about sensitivity of data in the cloud

VI. Super Powers of Innovation

Sandy Carter

CEO & Founder, Silicon Blitz (spent 20 years at IBM)

[email protected]

Stats

Narrative Science has been doing research on AI

80% of business executives in 2017 believe AI will help improve worker performance and create new jobs

Gartner predicts 85% of interactions will be done without a human in 2020

Bloomberg: $300M as first investment in new AI startups

PWC: 1757 execs: 93% of execs depend on innovation to drive growth

Forrester: why companies DON’T use AI

42% there is no defined business case

39% not clear what AI can be used for

33% don’t have the required skills

29% need first to invest in modernizing data management platform

Jeremiah Olang (did a study on innovation)

114 companies, asked them “What is innovation?”

Answer was across 4 areas: AI innovation in product, operational, client experience, business model

Startup: 360 Fashion collaborating with Intel, Chinese government, and CCTV (1.2 billion people watched new year’s celebration)

Smart glove fashion

162 dancer synchronization, sensor based, learned gestures

Use of AI in media and entertainment using these smart gloves

Mastercard

#36 on Fortune’s most innovative companies list

Who are you, are you you, what can you do

85% of payments are still done with cash

Disruptive business model

Atipica

Look at a profile and look at unconscious bias in hiring company (removes it from resume)

Diversity and inclusion, automatically review matches

Tesla

AI in cars, obviously

Ecosystem around their technology (if you leave your car at a charging station, keeps charging you)

Marketing AI Use Cases

Personalization

Content Creation & Curation

Recommendation Engine

Search Optimization

Product Pricing

Customer Service

Ad targeting

Voice recognition

Segmentation (her favorite as a past CMO)

Superpowers

Super Intelligence: understand the technology, but also the business and use case

Super Speed: ability to experiment rapidly

Super Synergy: build ecosystem of partners (not just a standalone system)

VII. CIO Panel: Do It Yourself, Partner, Or Buy?

Panelists

Tim Crawford (moderator)

Paul Chapman Box, prior at HP

Tom Keiser: Zendesk, prior Gap, then Victoria’s Secret

Elinor Mackinnon: Devcool, prior esurance, prior Blueshield California, prior biopharma company, prior Charles Schwab

Where is AI fitting into CIO agenda, or is it not?

Zendesk

consumer of AI right now, it is definitely one of the tools they use

Don’t really have an AI initiative, have a series of initiatives to drive productivity and scale (which have some AI components)

Growing rapidly globally requires customer service touchpoints

Global products that need to be secured

13 data centers now, each year a few more, whole series of AI around capacity planning, knowing when bad things are going to happen

Box

Heavily millennial workforce, taking friction out of product

Deliberate set of investments to change how employees interact with technology

Dialogue-based user experience, Bots, voice controlled conference rooms, Alexa

Expectation that they’re a forward thinking tech company

Deliberate that there’s enough meat to move the company forward

Insurance (P&C)

See a pretty big spectrum

Use an internal team for service and support like Lloyds

Struggle going from low impact, low risk and moving to something that would have a big impact is very risky and hard for them

Attendees at InsurTech: many were from outside the US (lots of innovation globally), many called themselves purely AI

Small startups taking a narrow slice of AI combined with something else (dongles and data for car insurance)

Is AI like mobile apps where you plug into the cloud, or does it require something net new?

400 service reps closing out a ticket from 100,000 tickets

A reply of “thank you” from the customer re-opens a ticket so machine learning can learn not to open that instead of “thank you, but”

Role of CIO, where does CIO fit in conversation around AI?

Depends on how role is defined, sometimes the expertise of other business unit leaders can bring AI to the table

Some CIOs are likely spending a lot of their time working on infrastructure-related issues

AI slash deep learning, AI slash IoT, AI slash robotics

AI is not just in a vacuum or in a silo, it’s always coupled to something else

AI for support functions is a big deal, take out the repetitive processes

CIO previously was a foreign relationship in the C Suite, now it’s a much closer relationship

The language of IT

“AI is the convergence of the physical, digital, and biological set to disrupt everything.”

In the world of insurance, who do we insure if nobody is driving a car, do we stay in the business, get out of it, what do we do with the actuaries

Build versus Buy?

Most of the survey respondents are using a best of breed approach solution rather than using a platform

Outside providers, all of them want to be a platform, all my data is in there, second platform

No one is selling you just the component you need, instead they want them to live in their platform

Insurance space: move to micro-products, go small instead of selling you an entire platform

Don’t know if there ever will be a single platform?

Before we pick a platform, lets have a strategic conversation, architecture could get really complicated

“Show me the org chart of Ralph Lauren” instead of having to go through single sign on, two-factor authentication, navigate to the person, then open it up

Big use case for email:

3 suggested responses to any email based on your tone and writing style, inherent to the subject of the message

Most innovation in insurance tech

UK: less regulation

Micro products, people don’t want to buy an entire portfolio of insurance products, they just want to turn some product on or off

AI: use service side of it to give insurance customer an entirely different experience in the moment when the problem happens (it how they remain loyal to the companies)

Insurance: such a huge corpus of data, all available in the public domain

I want to take my bike out of the house, turn my insurance on, bring my bike home, turn the insurance off

— Sean