#I had a blast drawing this one! Lots of reference searching but I find that part kind of fun too.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Bonus 6: Dress-up

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[zenmastercharles]

Conceptualizing Upgraded Powers for Every Miraculous

What’s up BITCHES🗣️‼️

…i’m sorry guys, I shouldn’t have called you bitches.

The concept of evolving powers in Miraculous Ladybug has raised some…interesting questions. When Ladybug basically said “fuck you, I do what I want” and made herself a new power, it confused a lot of us. And when Shadowmoth did the same goddamn thing, we were just kind of tired of it. The unspecific and wishy washy circumstances around upgrading a Miraculous user’s powers has inspired many people in the fanbase to make up their own headcanons for it, improving on the power that we were given and also conceptualizing upgrades for other users. 

Well, in this post, I’m gonna do the same thing….

For every goddamn Miraculous we see in this show

Am I crazy? Yes. Do I even have the time to do all of this? No.  Am I going to obsess over this for days on end instead of doing what I actually need to do? Absolutely.

To explain what exactly I’m doing here, instead of looking into the animals each Miraculous is based on, I’m purely going to draw concepts from the, well, concept the kwami embodies. That means I’m going to find a new power for Creation, Destruction, Transmission, Emotion, Illusion, Protection, Subjection (fuck Action, all my homies hate Action), Evolution, Intuition, Migration, Derision, Perfection, Jubilation, Inflatio-nah I’m just fuckin’ with you, Exaltation, Multiplication, Pretension, Passion, Determination, and Adoration.

Okay so maybe I lied about every Miraculous being in here since I’m ignoring the Eagle, but I’d rather wait until more Miraculouses from the NA Box get explored. Some of these are going to be easier than others, and some of these are going to be the bane of my existence, lookin’ at you Derision (which is oddly fitting). I’m gonna try my hardest not to make these upgrades OP. Now, without further ado, let’s do this.

🐞LADYBUG MIRACULOUS🐞

“Oh, Ladybug already got an upgra-” Well that upgrade was ASS, so we’re giving her a better one. When thinking of a new power for the Ladybug Miraculous, it was pretty damn difficult. I mean, Creation is a concept that’s so broad yet so specific. You have so many options yet no options at the same time. I was caught in a bit of a strange conundrum. So, in my desperate time of need, I turned to a friend that’s been helping me with shit like this since I first started writing.  My all-knowing buddy,

🪽𝒮𝓊𝓅𝓮𝓇𝓅𝓸𝓌𝓮𝓇 𝒲𝒾𝓀𝒾🪽

When I went to this site, I did what anyone would do and simply searched up Creation to see what I found. And I found a lot, a lot that could become too busted too fast. I had a few ideas at first, my first idea after going to this page was a literal goddamn domain expansion, that being Ladybug projecting her will in the form of a pocket dimension where her imagination reigns supreme. My second idea was something I would’ve called Power Plant, basically Ladybug’s spots glow and she can generate blasts of pure Big Bang energy, which again, is busted. 

Eventually, I found something that interested me and that’s Transmutation. Y’know, Alchemy from FMA? Yeah, that. It’s basically transforming one thing into another thing of equal value. And that, my friends, falls under Creation. Because you’re basically breaking something and using the parts to create something new. So, I’m guessing you can see where I’m going with this, right?

Ladybug’s new upgraded power is Overhaul, an ability that allows her to transform an inanimate object into an object of equal weight and density. So she can take a vase and transform it into an ax, but that ax is gonna be the same weight and density of the vase…and it’s gonna be made out of glass.

…holy shit, I just realized that’s an MHA reference, I legit didn’t even mean tha-

🐈‍⬛BLACK CAT MIRACULOUS🐈‍

Another upgrade that I came up with thanks to the help of with the help of my dear friend,

🪽𝒮𝓊𝓅𝓮𝓇𝓅𝓸𝓌𝓮𝓇 𝒲𝒾𝓀𝒾🪽

I am of the opinion that Chat Noir got absolutely shitted out of a new power in Season 5. You’re telling me you had Adrien go through all that bullshit that season and you couldn’t have at least given him some new razzle-dazzle to pay it off? Boosh.

Anyway, this one was actually fairly easier since Destruction isn’t really that broad a concept. I mean, you’re destroying shit, how complicated can it be? So, with Creation, I wanted to think about how Ladybug was creating something, but with Destruction, I want to focus on what Chat Noir’s destroying.

I went through some ideas before I came to a conclusion, Chat Noir being able to destroy someone’s soul to incapacitate them, him being able to destroy someone’s mental boundaries and what not. For the longest time I had the idea in my head that Chat Noir could maybe destroy an aspect of something, like maybe he could just destroy the color in an object and turn it completely gray. However, I feel that’s a bit more…situational. But, I eventually had a definitive idea. You know what falls under Destruction? Division.

“Wha-how does Division fall under Destruction?” You might ask, and that’s simple, division is destroying the bond that keeps multiple things whole, forcefully separating them. For example, if you have a lobster and you tear off it’s claw you have to destroy the shell to get to the meat inside. You’re dividing the shell from the meat by destroying the shell. (I’m fully aware that you didn’t need that explanation but I just watched the episode of Young Sheldon where George taught Missy how to crack a lobster and I’m still not over it)

So, Chat Noir’s new power is Hissection, it allows him to forcefully separate one thing from another by basically touching it and pulling that bitch out. He could use it on an akuma’s object and literally rip the akuma out of it without damaging the object. Or, if he’s getting really morbid, he could rip someone’s skeletal structure out of their body and just watch them fall down like ol jelly bones. He obviously wouldn’t do that, but still.

I have the perfect scenario for this power to develop too, Monarch finds out that Adrien is Chat Noir and tries to use the ring to get him to come to his side since Adrien’s a sentimonster, only for Chat Noir to use this power to separate himself from the Peacock Miraculous and wedding rings, granting himself his own sentience. Isn’t that just raw as hell?

🦋BUTTERFLY MIRACULOUS🦋

I’m gonna call Gabriel Hawkmoth for this section because I refuse to keep up with his new names. Hawk Moth has already got a kind-of upgrade with “Megakumas”. However, Megakumas are just boosh. They’re basically ‘akumas but stronger’. So I’ll be coming up with a new one just how I did with Ladybug. 

Now, the butterfly is connected to the concept of Transmission which I was having a hard time with because my stupid ass brain only thought of Transmission as “broadcasting TV/telekinetic signals”. That’s the reason I changed it to “Transformation” in one of my fics. However, one quick trip to le dictionary corrected me. Now I know that Transmission is the act of transferring something from one place to another. THAT’S why he can do that fuckin’ butterfly head thing…well my version doesn’t make sense anymore.

I really only have one idea for this and I find it perfect. Y’know how akumas transmit powers to akumatized victims right? Well, what if the butterfly user could transmit themselves?

Hawkmoth’s new power is Swarm Shadow, it allows him to break his corporeal form into a swarm of butterflies, allowing him to blast across large distances in a reduced timeframe and re-materialize. It’s basically teleportation with extra steps. 

I always thought him being able to do that in Volpina was cool as hell and I wished canon came up with a way to incorporate that someday…they didn’t.

🦚PEACOCK MIRACULOUS🦚

This one is gonna be a bit shorter because I pretty much got a great idea the moment I thought about it for more than three seconds. The Peacock is the Miraculous of Emotion, right? Well, what better upgrade would there be than, well, controlling emotions?

Argos’ new power is Vehementor, it allows him to subtly or blatantly influence a person’s emotions, he can push positive or negative emotions onto someone, or soften certain emotions to calm someone down. Someone with a stronger will could of course resist this. 

I used Argos instead of Mayura because we clearly aren’t seeing her again for a while. 

🦊FOX MIRACULOUS🦊

Now THIS one is harder. The Fox Miraculous is one of Illusion, which is a power that’s so straight-forward that it’s hard to think of anything to add to it without dipping into other domains. At one point, I thought of giving Rena a memory-based power, maybe the ability to take people’s memories and project them in the form of illusions, but that seemed like it was a bit situational in nature.

Eventually, I did come up with something. Imagine an illusion so advanced that it covered you at all times and that you could alter at will. You can make yourself invisible by forcing the illusion to mimic your surroundings, you could make it look like you’re teleporting by disappearing and reappearing behind people in puffs of orange smoke, you could make yourself look like someone else, you could make someone think you’re a shapeshifter, pretty much anything! 

So, Rena Rouge’s new power is Outfox, it allows her to manifest an illusion that’s connected to her brain and can react to her brain activity, twisting, shaping, and altering itself to whatever Rena can think of. She’ll definitely need to focus to keep pulling this off, or else the illusion would go haywire and out of her control, but it could still be pretty damn cool.

🐢TURTLE MIRACULOUS🐢

The Turtle Miraculous is one of Protection, which sounds like it would be difficult to come up for something with. I always felt that when coming up with new powers for the Turtle, other fan-creators did some that just…didn’t feel right to me. They just didn’t focus on the ‘protection’ part enough for me to feel like it made sense. My first idea for this was to give Carapace the ability to shape his shields into other stuff, and while I do think that would make for a good sub-power, it wouldn’t really fit for what I’m going for.

But then, I came up with something I like. Do you remember Metal Mario? It’s a powerup from, well, Mario, that gave him a thin coating of metal that enhanced his durability and strength. I’m going to give Nino something similar to that.

Carapace’s new power is Fortify, it allows him to create a forcefield that’s shaped around his body, allowing him to run around tanking attacks left and right. It also increases his physical strength, however, a downside is that he experiences a slight decrease in speed and agility. 

(Yes, I gave him and Rena similar powers intentionally, DJWifi is one of my favorite relationships, let me be)

🐝BEE MIRACULOUS🐝

Subjection! 

“Wait, isn’t it Action no-” SUBJECTION!

Subjection is an easy one. Subjection basically means ‘bringing something under your control’. So what better power for this one than mind control?

Queen Bee’s new upgraded power is Hive Mind, it allows her to stick someone with her trompo and bring them under her control, forcing them to do whatever she wants.

Notice how I said ‘Queen Bee’? Don’t worry Vesperia fans, I’m one of you, and I’m not leaving her out. In fact, I’m giving her a completely separate power upgrade. While Chloe would have no problem mind controlling someone, Zoe would likely find the concept…icky.  So, we’ll have to find something new for her. At first I wanted to give her the ability to control plants, because one, putting plants under subjection and two, bee, but that felt unoriginal. So, what did I go with? Something also unoriginal. Because what’s better than enacting subjection? Reversing it.

Vesperia’s new upgraded power is Layoff, it allows her to reverse low-level subjection, if someone else has you mind controlled, Vesperia can reverse that shit easy. Yes, it’s basically Bee Balm from Scarlet Lady (zoe please don’t sue me).

…ugh, fine, if I did consider the concept of Action, then the power would be Comb-Up, it would allow the user to drain the momentum from an object with the tip of the trompo to such a point that the object just completely freezes mid-air.

🐰RABBIT MIRACULOUS🐰

We’ve got the main 7 out of the way, let’s get onto the time-hopping Miraculous itself, the Miraculous of Evolution. I have mixed feelings on the linking of Evolution to the Time Miraculous because, like, I get it…but like, it doesn’t match all that well. I mean, Duration was right there if you really wanted something time-related. It doesn’t make that much more sense than Evolution, but it’s closer.

Now, at first, I focused a little too much on the time aspect, I thought of stealing time from someone else to slow them down DC style, I thought of enhancing her own time to speed herself up, I even thought of a power that’s actually going to the next Miraculous on the chopping block. But, I eventually got back to Evolution, and thought about what it means to evolve. And I came up with something pretty cool. What if Bunnyx could evolve objects?

Bunnyx’s new power is Rush Job, it allows her to harness a small percentage of chronokinetic energies and apply it to an object to evolve it, bringing it to a higher level. For example, you got a car? Do you want it to fly? BOOM! Rush Job! Now your car has jets and wings….I feel like I haven’t explained it well enough.

The weakness of this one would be, I guess, when it evolves it looses one of it’s best features from when it pre-evolved. Like, going back to the car, yeah it has jets now but there’s not a steering wheel anymore, just a steering mechanism that’s hella hard to get down. Also it wears off fast.

🐍SNAKE MIRACULOUS🐍

Ah, the Miraculous of the Snake, or as I like to call it, the one that basically lets you go “nuh-uh”. Intuition is a simple concept to get down, basically you’re super aware and have good instincts. This is also another wibbly wobbly time Miraculous, it and the Rabbit take turns making each other insignificant. This one was actually pretty easy for me, as I already had this power in mind for the snake for months now. 

Viperion’s new power is Scale Factor, it allows him to peer through time to view the possible outcomes of each action they take, and adjust for certain happenings. He would have to focus hard, but I feel that shouldn’t be hard for Luka.

🐴HORSE MIRACULOUS🐴

Bit of a detour, but the Horse Miraculous’ power doesn’t make sense to me, mostly because it’s a huge wasted opportunity. The concept is Migration, and that’s basically moving from one direction to another. And what are horses known for? Running! So the obvious conclusion for the Horse’s power is PORTALS! I’m gonna give the Horse the power I think it should’ve had in the first place.

Pegasus’ new power is Steed, it allows him to sprint at incredible speeds, becoming a light green blur (same color as the portals). 

🐒MONKEY MIRACULOUS🐒

This one…this one was the death of me. Because what the fuck is ‘Derision’? I didn’t even know that was a word before Thomas decided to pull it out of his ass and slap it onto the table. Apparently is means, “contemptuous ridicule or mockery”. So basically, magic bullying. Now, how do I find another application of this? Credit where credit’s due, Uproar is kinda perfect for the concept of Derision. Basically making your opponent the laughing stock by disrupting their power. After a few hours, I finally got it. What if your power made you the laughing stock.

What if you’re the jester, the joker, the one who made people laugh, whether they like it or not?

Roi Singe’s new power is Quip King, it allows him to tell a joke so bad, a joke so cringe, a joke so unbelievably garbage, that anyone who hears it laughs at him. Forcibly. And they can’t stop. It’s basically Joker Venom but WAY less lethal. Can’t exactly threaten the city while your ribs are quaking.

🐲DRAGON MIRACULOUS🐲 

Okay, Derision was the death of me, this buried me underground. This time, I knew what Perfection was, I just don’t know how that connects to the animal or the power. I mean, Ryuko has weather powers. The fuck does that have to do with Perfection? I mean, if you wanted her to have weather powers that bad, Precipitation was right there. 

Anyways, finding something to do with Perfection that still looped in with it’s main power was very hard…so I just didn't. I straight up forgot about the ‘Storm Dragon’ powers and focused completely on Perfection. Perfection means, well, making things perfect, so I thought of something like a stat booster, making the user a living unit of strength, speed, durability, and stamina. I realized that, one, that would be way too busted, and two, it would overshadow the turtle’s new power. I eventually came up with something different though.

Ryuko’s new power is Omni-Tongue, it allows her to understand and speak all existing languages, including ancient or fictional languages. It’s kind of situational but honestly, the Dragon is already one of the most busted of the Chinese Box, it doesn’t need another super flashy power. 

🐷PIG MIRACULOUS🐷

Ah yes, the Miraculous quite literally designed for Rose. It’s the Miraculous of Jubilation, meaning the feeling of great happiness or triumph. I’m sure you’re thinking “Zen Master Charles, how the hell are you gonna find another application of this.” Quiet, dear reader, as I know how to do this. I didn’t really have any other ideas for this one since the answer was pretty clear cut.

Pigella’s new power is Peace Out, it overloads whoever she hits with her tambourine with so much positive emotion that they can’t do anything else but frolic around and enjoy the world’s beauty.

🐯TIGER MIRACULOUS🐯

What the fuck is ‘exaltation’?

“Actually, the concept got changed to ‘elation’.” Ahhh…what the fuck is ‘elation’?

Okay so Elation means ‘a feeling of great joy or pride’. Now, how the hell does that factor into a super punch? I have no idea, but I do have an idea of what it’s upgraded power could be. See, when you’re super happy, you’re super energetic, like you’re bouncing around and shit. And you would need a lot of stamina for that, so…

Purple Tigress’ new power is Resolver, it allows her to grant herself nigh-infinite stamina and a slight increase in speed and agility. 

🐁MOUSE MIRACULOUS🐁

Eezy dubs.

Polymouse’s new power is Bootleg, it allows her to produce copies of physical objects, the only downside being that the copies will be of lower quality, y’know, like a bootleg version.

🐓ROOSTER MIRACULOUS🐓

Ah, pretension, a claim or assertion of a claim to something. It actually makes sense paired with the power of the Miraculous itself, good job Thomas! Of course the power itself is busted beyond all accounts and makes the rest of the show seem like it could’ve been solved if at least one character had an IQ above room temperature. It’s hard to come up with something new for Pretension because it’s such a…specific term.

My first idea was a power that allowed the user to create a specific rule that had to be followed within a certain area, but that sounded busted. Too busted, even by the standards of the power it already has. However, once I wrote this off, I had an idea. How about, instead of creating rules, the Rooster hero could break them?

So, Rooster Bold’s new power is Rebel Roost, it allows him to make himself exempt from any rule or law by writing it with his feather pen dagger. Seems pretty useless at first right? WRONG! Laws of gravity? Fuck you, I can fly. Rules of Nature? Hey, mouse! You can kill that cat that’s been hunting you now! Yes, it’s broken, but so is it’s other power.

🐐GOAT MIRACULOUS🐐

Another eezy dub, y’know how passion basically means you’re dedicated towards something and have strong emotions towards it? And when it’s at it’s peak, nothing can keep you away from it?

Caprikid’s new power is Scapegoat, it allows him to become intangible, meaning that he can walk and/or float through physical objects, but he can’t touch them until he deactivates the power.

🐂OX MIRACULOUS🐂

The Ox Miraculous of Determination, in the simplest terms, is literally a big blue ‘nuh uh’ button. Surprisingly, it also makes sense paired with the power Astruc came up with! I’m tired as hell so I’m not gonna explain my thought process here.

Minataurox’s new power is Oxenfree, it allows him to supply his allies with boosts to their willpower. It’s lazy, I know, idc. (God, I’m falling off.)

🐕DOG MIRACULOUS🐕

THE FINAL ONE, YEEEEES

The Miraculous of the Dog holds the concept of Adoration, makes sense with the animal, not so much the power. Now, how the hell am I supposed to find another application of Adoration…actually it’s quite easy. It’s the same thing as the Horse, where all I have to do is give it the power I think it should’ve had in the first place. 

Miss Hound’s new power is Track Star, it allows her to target a specific person and track them down wherever they go. 

~~hide away, hide away from me, hide away, hide away from me-~~

I’M FINALLY FUCKING DONE! 

Guys, this took me 10 days.

Alright, if you have any alternate ideas you want to share or want to use any of these for your fics, make sure to comment below.

[craziest-in-the-guild]

Point Rain

Chapter 3 of the Long Night series

Word Count: 5251

C/W: 18+ Description of severe injuries; medical treatments. Sex, unprotected p in v, oral sex (m and f giving/receiving), cream pie. Alcohol use.

A/N: Thank you all for reading this far! This one picks up on the action, both on the battlefield and behind closed doors. I did use vod in a way that I'm not quite sure is correct, feel free to leave notes on that for me to reference in the future. Hope everyone enjoys it!

_______________________________________________________

The assault on Geonosis was being initiated to regain control of the planet and destroy the new droid factory. Generals Skywalker, Mundi, and Kenobi were leading a three pronged attack in hopes that the factory could easily be taken.

Our forces were under fire as soon as we launched. The noise from the laser blasts, other ships, and our own gunship was excruciatingly loud. I put a hand to my helmet in discomfort.

“Here, let me help you adjust the sound filtering,” came the modulated voice beside me. Rex took my helmet, adjusted something and handed it back.

“Better?” he asked.

“Yes, much, now I can hear myself think,” I laughed nervously. The sound filtering had dampened the blasts and roar of the gunship.

The gunship beside us was hit several times by cannon fire and exploded, rocking our ship. I could feel my heart rate speeding up and I tightened my hold on the grab bar above.

Our ship was the next to be struck by a blast, causing it to lurch sideways. I lost my balance and fell into Rex. I quickly returned to a standing position and he placed one arm around my waist to help me brace. I could see smoke and flames streaming past the side door. The pilot yelled over the comm for everyone to brace themselves; we were going down.

The ship picked up speed as we hurled towards the ground. We struck hard, enough to knock the breath out of me. Once the burning hunk of metal came to a stop, I scanned quickly to see if everyone was ok. No one was down and we all evacuated.

“Are you good, Doc?” Rex yelled over the noise.

“Yeah, I’m fine, just a little shaken!” I yelled back, ducking as laser blasts flew overhead.

“Draw your blaster and stay with Fives, Jesse, and Tup, I’m going with the General and Commander.”

“MEDIC! Man down!” cracked across the comms. That didn’t take long.

“What’s your location?” Jesse asked.

The injured clone was close, so we diverted to his location. His vod had dragged him behind a rock outcropping for cover. He had been hit with three blaster bolts to his left arm.

“I can’t move my arm,” he said frantically.

There was little bleeding from the wounds. I removed his armor and cut the sleeve of his blacks to get a better look. His radial pulse was strong, a good indication that no major circulation had been disrupted. I wrapped the injuries with bacta impregnated dressings.

“Clankers incoming!” Jesse yelled. Tup pushed me further behind the rock outcropping just in time to dodge a blaster bolt that ripped through the rock where we had been standing.

I drew my blaster and we both peeked around the edge of the rock. I had a clear shot at a few droids, so I took it, taking out three of them. Tup congratulated me.

Overhead, a severely damaged gunship streaked by, hit the ground, and rolled, coming to a rest not far from our position.

Tup and I ran to Fives as he and Jesse fired on the last of the droids. We advanced towards the gunship crash site.

As we approached, we could hear the screams of pain. Called over comms for additional medics and a tank for evacuation. There were none available, everyone had suffered heavy personnel and equipment loss.

A trooper approached, pointing me in the direction of an injured brother.

“Is anyone else alive?” I inquired.

“I don’t think so, sir,” he said.

I reached the trooper and swiftly pulled my backpack off, reaching for two tourniquets. One leg had been fully amputated just above the knee and the other leg was partially amputated below the knee. Blood was pouring from both legs.

“Fucking hell,” I muttered.

“Jesse, I’m going to need you to help me so he doesn’t bleed out. Put this one on the left leg and I’ll take the right leg.”

I slid the tourniquet on and yanked the strap tight before cranking the windlass. The trooper screamed in pain.

“I know it hurts, but it’s going to save your life,” I said.

Jesse and I both got our tourniquets secure and the bleeding quickly stopped. I dressed what was left of his legs with two large bacta trauma dressings.

Next, I pulled out a syringe filled with pain medicine.

“This is going to help the pain, but make you sleepy. We’re going to get you out of here. You’re going to be ok,” I assured him. I removed his helmet and his skin was pale, clammy, and cool. His carotid pulse was thready. I pulled the IV kit out and started a like in his jugular vein. This would have been a great time to have blood or plasma, but fluids and bacta would have to suffice.

“Jesse, he’s going to need evaced now or he’s not going to make it.”

“I’ve already called for them to come get him, they finally have a tank in the area and it should be arriving any minute,” he said.

I hadn’t looked up from my patient until now. I wish I hadn’t. A couple meters away laid a trooper that had been completely transected. I continued scanning the area, seeing dead trooper after dead trooper.

My concentration was broken by the sound of moaning. I got up and started searching for the origin. I found a trooper who’s arm had been completely amputated and a large piece of metal debris was crushing his lower half. Judging by the amount of blood on the ground, he was close to exsanguination. I knew there was no saving him. I removed his helmet and was surprised to find he was still semi-conscious. His carotid pulse was barely palpable and his chest rise was short and shallow.

“Help….me...p..p..please,” he pleaded, in between gasps for air.

“I will, don’t worry. It’s going to be ok.”

I pulled out another syringe of pain killer and injected his neck, in hopes of easing his transition to the next world. I removed my helmet so that the last things he would see would not be cold, unfeeling plastoid. I held his head on my lap and gently stroked his hair watching his honey colored eyes struggle to stay open. A few seconds passed and his eyes closed and his chest was still.

I felt a hand under my elbow, pulling me up.

“C’mon, Doc, there’s more of my vod that will need you,” Fives urged in a somber tone.

For hours, Fives, Jesse, and Tup took me from injured trooper to injured trooper, dodging and fighting the clankers and bugs. I was exhausted and covered in blood and dirt and vomit.

“Rex needs us to join up with General Skywalker, he needs help taking down the wall,” Fives said. “It’s going to be tight in that gorge, so you need to keep your head down and stay right beside me.”

“Understood. Let’s go,” I replied.

__________________

General Skywalker’s forces were pinned down in the gorge by the laser blasts coming from numerous guns mounted on an insurmountable wall. It would need to be destroyed so that we could advance and meet the rest of our forces at Point Rain.

We took cover with the General, Commander, and Captain Rex. I was relieved to see that Rex was unharmed.

“Ahsoka and I will go to the top of the wall and destroy it from within. Rex, you and your men keep their attention down here,” General Skywalker ordered.

“Yes, sir!” Rex responded.

Rex came over to me.

“Are you doing ok?” he asked.

“Oh, you know, just living the dream,” I replied with a weak smile as I motioned to the mess on my armor.

“Good, stay here where it’s safe,” he ordered as he left cover to lead his men.

There were so many clones being shot down, but I could not reach them safely.

“Fire on the droids on top of the wall,” came Rex’s order over comm.

I looked out around the rocks I was behind to see General Skywalker and Commander Tano fighting the droids on top of the wall. The Jedi were mesmerizing to watch. I then noticed someone else had joined them. It was Rex.

“Take cover, the wall is about to blow!” He yelled over comms. Then I heard him scream. All I could see was three bodies falling from the top of the wall. The explosives detonated and I quickly took cover. I wondered if Rex had survived the fall.

As the smoke cleared, I noticed there were considerably less laser blasts. I started checking on the wounded troopers. There were very few survivors.

I patched up what injuries I could before we advanced.

After another intense firefight, we finally made it to General Kenobi’s position at Point Rain. The General was injured, but had already been given a bacta injection. I moved on to help load and evacuate the rest of the wounded.

I was kneeling, wrapping a trooper's head wound when I felt a presence behind me. It was Rex. I was relieved to see he was uninjured.

“I know there’s a lot to be done here, but we’re ready to move out and start the direct assault on the factory. We’re going to need you,” he said.

I finished securing the dressing.

“I need to restock my bag, but I’m ready,” I said wearily.

Rex reached out a hand to help me up. I took it, my aching joints thankful for the assistance. He led me over to two lifeless bodies.

Unfortunately, there had been two medics who had not survived. I hesitated next to them momentarily.

“Go ahead and resupply from what they have left. It’s all we have,” Rex said.

I took their supplies and got ready to move out.

_________________________

Unfortunately Rex was right, they did need me. General Skywalker led an assault straight to the front doors of the droid factory, in an effort to distract the droids while Commander Tano and another padawan destroyed the factory from inside. The plan worked, but it left many casualties in its wake.

I worked with the other medics well into the night. We were exhausted by the time the last gunship left.

I shuffled back to camp, in search of somewhere to rest. There were a number of fires with troopers sitting around them. Some groups were boisterous, others somber.

Then I saw him, sitting alone by a fire that was separated from the others. I made my way to Rex.

“This seat taken?” I asked

“Nope, sit down and rest,” he said as he patted the seat next to him. The seat being the ground with rocks to lean on.

“You look awful,” he said as he scrunched his face.

“You don’t look so great yourself,” I quipped.

Rex smirked.

“You’re no longer a shiny after today, but that doesn’t mean you need to be covered in blood and vomit, either,” he retorted.

He took me to the deconn area and helped me scrub away the reminders of the day.

“You had a busy first day.”

“Yes, too busy.”

I put my clean armor on and we returned to the fire. We sat in silence for what seemed like hours, watching the flames dance and listening to the cracking of the fire. I was somewhere between exhausted and unable to sleep. I had seen bad injuries in med bay, but nothing like I’d seen today. I needed time to process everything.

Rex touched my shoulder and I was jolted out of my spaced out state.

“C’mere,” he said, beckoning me to lean up against him. He removed his chest plate so I could rest directly on him and not on plastoid.

I was so tired that I didn’t hesitate. I sat down between his legs and snuggled into his chest. It was definitely better than laying on the ground.

_________________

He watched her stare at the fire blankly for some time. She was no doubt replaying the events of the day. She’d held her own, but he could see it had taken a toll. He knew the feeling all too well.

Rex wanted to comfort her; let her know she wasn’t alone. He wasn’t sure what possessed him, but he offered her to rest with him.

She came to him, laying her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her. He wondered what it would be like to actually hold her without all the kriffing plastoid between them. She quickly fell asleep.

“Oh, cyar’ika,” he whispered into her hair.

————————————

The faint, pre-dawn light on my face was enough to wake me. I rubbed my eyes, trying to bring the blurry world into focus.

No one else was stirring, but I knew it wouldn’t be long. I thought it best that the Captain wasn’t caught snuggling the medic.

“Rex, Rex wake up,” I said quietly as I gently touched his face. His facial features were striking. His cheeks, chin, and jaw were perfectly defined. I held his face in my hand and ran my thumb over the slight stubble that had grown in.

“Hmmm?” He inquired.

“Rex, it’s nearly dawn, everyone will be awake soon.”

He squeezed me closer.

His voice was still gruff from sleep.

“Kriff. Better not get caught like this,” he rubbed his eyes and we both stood up. “We should be shipping back to the Resolute today. Do you want to, uh, meet me in my quarters later? We can debrief and, uh, have a drink.”

Rex looked a little sheepish, which was funny to me, since most of the time he was a brave, tough, clone.

“Yeah, that would be nice,” I smiled and left to see what needed to be done before departure.

——————————

We were back aboard the Resolute in the early evening, just in time for dinner. I sat with the boys, listening to them discuss how many clankers and bugs they killed. I hadn’t seen Rex since arriving on the ship. He was probably stuck in his quarters working on reports.

“I took out 70!” Fives boasted.

“Yeah? Well I took out at least 100, probably more!” Hardcase stood up and pretended to be firing his rotary blaster cannon.

I was sipping my caf and enjoying the banter.

“Did any of ya bother to ask our new medic how many clankers she took out?” Jesse asked.

“Oh, uh, well, it’s nothing compared to your counts,” I said, waving my hand dismissively.

“Tell us!!!” Hardcase coaxed.

“Ok, I took out...three.”

“Woooo! Hell yeah!” They all started cheering and giving me high fives.

“That’s pretty good for a shiny medic who’s not even trained for combat. Makes my heart proud,” Hardcase sniffled, pretending to wipe a tear.

“Doc ain’t shiny after that battle,” Fives pointed out.

“Sure isn’t. To Doc!” Hardcase said as he raised his glass in a toast.

Everyone followed and raised their glasses.

“To Doc!”

I smiled, raising my cup of caf.

“Welcome to the family, vod,” Fives said, slapping me on the back.

“Thank you, my vod,” I smiled. I knew what an honor it was to be considered one of their vod.

I caught something out of the corner of my eye and looked towards the mess hall entrance to see Rex standing in the hall, just far enough back from the mess entrance so that it was unlikely his men would see him. We made eye contact and he tilted his head, motioning me to come to his quarters. I could feel the butterflies stirring in my stomach.

I pushed back from the table. “Well boys, I’m going to hit the fresher and call it a night.”

————————————

I stopped at my quarters to grab a change of clothes to take with me. I hoped he would be fine with me using his shower. I had become quite attracted to him, but I was afraid if I delayed meeting him, I might lose my nerve.

I made my way to his door and rang the buzzer. He answered the door in just his blacks. I couldn’t help but notice how well they clung to him. It was nothing short of glorious.

“Would you like to come in, or are you going to stand in the hall all night?” He asked, breaking my trance.

“Yes, I’d love to come in. Can I use your shower?”

“You can. I’m going to finish up these reports while you shower.”

His fresher was much bigger and nicer than mine. I took off my armor and my dirty blacks and turned the water on. I was still grimy from the mission and eager to get clean.

The first drop of hot water touched my soul. I didn’t mind being on a mission, but not being able to shower was unpleasant. My hair was caked to my head, tangled, even though it had been braided. Thanks, helmet. The water at my feet ran grimy with dirt, sweat, and blood. I scrubbed until the water ran clean.

I dried off and reached for my clothes. I saw a robe hanging on the wall and changed my mind. My heart was racing and the butterflies returned as I stood there, thinking about wearing Rex’s robe, and only his robe.

“Be bold, you can do this,” I whispered to myself.

I made up my mind and grabbed the robe. It was soft, but not plush. It stopped just below my knees and the sleeves extended to my fingertips. I tied it shut and opened the door.

Rex looked up from his reports with one eyebrow raised. He laid the datapad on the table.

“Would you like a drink?” He asked as he moved to the small liquor cabinet in the corner.

“Yes, please,” I said as I sat down on the couch, knees to the side.

“Whiskey fine? It’s really all I’ve got.”

He handed me the glass and sat down beside me. I swirled the amber liquid and took a sip. There were notes of vanilla, caramel, dark fruit and wood and it finished with a slight spice of pepper.

“This tastes expensive”

“It is, but I thought this evening was the perfect time to share it,” he brought his glass to his lips, slowly sipping. It was then I noticed how the whiskey matched his brown eyes.

His hand was laying in the space between us. I reached my hand out and laid it on his, gently stroking. Rex took my hand and raised it to his lips.

“Come here, mesh’la.”

I straddled his lap. Maker, his cock was already hard beneath me.

He brushed my hair behind my ear and then pulled my face to his, kissing me. His mouth tasted spicy, yet sweet, from the whiskey.

He moaned and thrust his tongue into my mouth as I rocked my hips back and forth against his erection.

Rex loosed the tie at my waist and pushed the robe from my shoulders. He gently moved me into an upright position.

Rex’s eyes trailed up and down my naked body, stopping every so often to linger. His hands moved from my hips to cup my breasts.

“Last night while I was holding you, I tried to imagine how soft and warm you were beneath the cold, hard plastoid.”

His thumbs lazily passed over my nipples, demanding the soft flesh to stand at attention.

“It’s better than I imagined, cyar’ika.” His hands slid down and squeezed my ass.

I pulled his shirt off and ran my hands down his solid chest and abdomen to the waistband of his pants. A deep “V” ran from his hips to somewhere below the waistband. I traced it with my fingers, leaving goosebumps in my wake. I glanced up from my work to make eye contact. He understood my unspoken request and lifted his hips from the couch, sliding the pants down, cock springing free from its confines.

I wrapped my hand around him, admiring the girth. I used my thumb to tease the head as he had teased my nipples. The leaking precum aided my hand in sliding over his length.

I stood, then knelt on the floor between his legs, taking his cock into my mouth. It was rock hard, but the skin was silky. Rex let out a sharp inhale as my tongue flicked against his sensitive head. He squirmed as I took him fully into my mouth, deep into my throat. I cupped his balls and his hands shot to the back of my head, grabbing my hair. He was gentle, but needy, thrusting into my mouth.

After a few minutes he stopped and pulled out.

“My turn, mesh’la.”

He stood and led me to his bed. I laid down on the edge and he quickly pushed my legs apart. His hand slid down to my swollen clit, rubbing slow circles.

“Maker, you’re already soaking wet,” he said as his fingers moved lower, sliding up and down my slit. He thrust one large finger in, causing me to grab the sheets.

“That ok?”

“Yes, it’s…wonderful,” I said breathlessly.

He curled the finger up, easily finding my g-spot. I pushed my hips into the bed. Rex smiled as he lowered his head to my clit. Shockwaves pulsed through me as his tongue licked my clit while his finger pushed and rubbed my g-spot.

“Gonna...cum,” I squeaked out.

He sped up the pace, pushing me over the edge. A white hot warmth ripped through my abdomen and my walls clenched tightly around his finger. He didn’t let up, causing me to orgasm in waves. All I could see were flashes of light behind my clenched eyelids. I reached for his head, looking for something solid to grasp. My fingers clawed, trying to find a hold, but his hair was short. The last wave was more like a tsunami and I squirted onto his chin and into his upturned palm.

“Mmmm,” he moaned.

He slowed his pace and finally stopped, removing his finger from my sensitive slit. He licked my squirt from his hand.

“Maker, I’ve never known anyone to do that,” He complimented, pleased look on his face.

“Takes someone special to make me do it,” I answered.

“Ready for more?”

“Mhhmm.”

He flipped me over onto my stomach and entered from behind. His girth alone nearly made me orgasm again. I took several short breaths in an attempt to hold back. He thrust fully into me and I whimpered.

“Too much, mesh’la?”

“No, just, sensitive. Maker, you fill me up.”

He started thrusting slowly until he was certain I was ready for more. His hands gripped my hips, sliding me forward and back on his thick cock.

The thrusts intensified and the waves of orgasm washed over me again.

“Mmpph,” he groaned behind me, struggling to move against my spasmining.

My orgasm let up and I could feel his thrusts becoming more urgent and sloppy. I pushed my hips down and back repeatedly.

He moaned loudly, filling me with warm cum. Rex leaned on top of me, hands reaching around to hold my dangling breasts. My thighs and midsection were still tingling with aftershocks.

Rex placed a gentle kiss between my shoulder blades and stood, withdrawing his cock. I could fill the hot stickiness of his orgasm dripping out of me. I could see him watching, before he disappeared to the fresher and returned with a towel.

Rex laid down on the bed while I finished cleaning up. I couldn’t help but to stand and stare at him laying there, naked, eyes closed, one arm above his head. He looked like an ancient sculpture of some tragically handsome warrior. I tossed the towel to the side and crawled in beside him.

————————-

I laid with my head on his chest, enjoying the sound of his heart and gentle rise and fall of his chest.

“Bzzzzzz,” came the annoying noise of the doorbell. It was followed by a voice.

“Captain? It’s Fives.”

Rex sighed. Fives was going to be the reason he had a stroke one day.

“I’ll go to the fresher so he doesn’t know I’m here,” I said. It was better to keep things concealed for now.

“Grab my spare pair of blacks out of that drawer so you don’t have to wear your dirty ones,” he said as he pulled on his pants.

I hoped up and grabbed the shirt and pants and headed for the fresher. I couldn’t leave my armor behind, so wearing my personal change of clothes wasn’t an option.

Rex crossed the room to the door, wearing only the lower half of his blacks.

“Yes, Fives?” He sounded slightly annoyed.

“ Have you seen Doc anywhere? One of the men has a shoulder out and was hoping to see her and avoid med bay.”

“Shit,” I whispered. I started getting dressed as quietly as I could.

“Did you check her quarters?” Rex asked.

“Yes, sir, she’s not there, the mess, or med bay. Not answering her comm either.”

“Uh, give me just a minute to get dressed, and we’ll go find her,” Rex said.

————————

Fives waited outside the door while Rex dressed. He smiled and chuckled to himself. Rex was smart, but he’d forgotten to move the second whiskey glass off the table. Fives was certain he knew where she was.

He was proud of his captain. Rex never let himself have fun, and Fives knew he needed it. Fives was just wondering how he’d manage to land her when his own charm in med bay had never won her heart.

Rex came to the door, now fully dressed.

“What’s funny, Fives?” He inquired, squinting his eyes in suspicion .

“Uh, nothing, sir. Let’s go find her”.

——————————————-

As soon as they were gone I dressed at lightning speed. I opened the door and peeked into the hallway. Thankfully it was empty, since it was late at night.

Now, where should I go? My comm flashed and I turned it on. It was Rex and Fives talking.

“Let’s check her quarters, the med bay, the hangar, and the mess again, in that order,” Rex said.

I took that as my sign to make my way to the mess. That would give me enough time to get there, grab some caf, and come up with a story.

The mess was once again empty, which was good as there’d be no one to say I had just come in.

I grabbed a cup of caf and found a comfortable seat, trying to act relaxed.

About five minutes later, Rex and Fives entered the mess.

“Hey guys, want to join me?” I asked, pretending to be surprised to see them.

“Where ya been, Doc? I thought you were headed to the fresher and turning in hours ago?” Fives asked, squinting at me.

“Oh, well I got cleaned up but couldn’t sleep so I went for a walk around the ship and then decided to stop here for some caf.”

“Uh huh,” Fives was not convinced. “I’ve been trying to get you on comms for an hour.”

“Ummm damn thing must have been malfunctioning, I never heard a thing,” I shrugged my shoulders.

Rex decided to interject, before Fives could interrogate me further.

“Fives says one of the men has a shoulder out and wants to see you. Go with him to the barracks and see what you can do,” he ordered.

“Yes, sir.”

I followed the pair to the door. Rex turned to head back to his quarters.

“Sweet dreams, Captain!” Fives said in a sarcastic tone, waving ridiculously.

Rex didn’t even turn, he just held up his middle finger.

I stifled a laugh until he was out of sight and then Fives and I both laughed.

We composed ourselves as we headed towards the barracks.

“So, you and the Captain, eh?” He elbowed me.

“I have no idea what you are talking about? Me and the Captain what??” I tried to sound offended but the heat in my cheeks was giving me away. Fives could see right through me.

“I saw the second glass on the table in his quarters. It’s the only reasonable place you could have been since none of the clones on watch saw you. You and the Captain are bad liars,” he had a sly smile, as if he’d just uncovered a major separatist plot.

I looked down at the floor, embarrassed that I’d been so transparent and that I’d forgot to move the glass.

“It’s no big deal, Doc. I won’t tell anyone your secret. You two don’t need to go to such trouble to hide it. I’m just glad to see the Captain getting some ass!” He laughed and I socked him hard on the shoulder, the pain in my knuckles making me instantly regret my decision.

“Don’t be mad, cyar’ika, it’s all in good fun.”

“I’m not mad, you just deserved it for being a cheeky bastard,” I gave him a sly smile.

“You know you love me,” he grinned from ear to ear as he put his arm around my shoulder.

“So, whose shoulder is out?”

“Tup.”

“And how exactly did he manage that?”

“Hardcase.”

I placed my palm on my face in exasperation. You’d think the battles were enough fighting for them that they wouldn’t need to rough house in the barracks.

We arrived in the barracks to find an injured Tup, sitting on his bunk, guarding the injured left shoulder.

“Ouch, Tup, that’s definitely out of socket,” I observed as I palpated the injury. “Sure you don’t want to do this in med bay with a sedative?” The muscles were spasming and I knew it was extremely painful.

“Nah, I’ll be alright,” he grimaced.

“Ok, will you boys help him lay on the floor, please?”

“I thought a lady would prefer to do it in bed,” Fives quipped.

“Fives, you’re on thin ice,” I joked as I gave him a fake serious look and the “I’m watching you” motion with my fingers. He just laughed, as did his vod.

I worked to manipulate his arm, hoping the shoulder would pop back in with little resistance.

I rotated his arm 90 degrees at the elbow, rotating the shoulder outward as I gently pushed. After several minutes, I felt a pop as the humeral head relocated.

Tup breathed a sigh of relief and sat up. We helped him back onto his bunk.

“Thanks, Doc, that feels a lot better.”

“I’m going to give you a bacta injection to reduce the inflammation. I’m also going to put a sling on that arm tonight to give it time to rest. You should be good as new by tomorrow.”

The clones that had gathered to observe had started to disperse now that the excitement was over.

“Alright, Tup, I think you’re good to go. Try to get some rest, but comm me if you need me. As for the rest of you, try not to get hurt between now and revelry; I’m tired,” I yawned and rubbed my eyes.

I made my way back to my quarters, stripped, and flopped down on my bed. I just closed my eyes when my comm started beeping. I sighed and started to get up, assuming someone needed something.

“Might as well answer and get it over with,” I grumbled as I pressed the answer button.

“Nuhoy pirusti, cyar'ika.”

Sleep well, darling.

[lastsonlost]

The star begins a libel trial against a U.K. tabloid that called him a "wife beater." No matter the verdict, he's destined to lose.

If there's a single word to describe Johnny Depp's status at the moment, I'd go with zugzwang, which chess aficionados know to be the moment when a player basically gets cornered into making a move that will inevitably lead to an even more inferior position. On Tuesday, the star actor appeared in a London courtroom to take on the U.K. publisher of The Sun for characterizing him as a "wife beater" in the print edition of an April 27, 2018, online article.  Unfortunately for Depp, it seems to be a defamation trial that's a no-win situation.

Depp appears to think that success is achievable at a proceeding that will last several weeks and feature all sorts of inside details about his life plus celebrity friends including Paul Bettany and Winona Ryder. Depp is claiming that during his tumultuous marriage to Amber Heard between 2015 through 2017, he didn't actually throw a phone at her, slap her across the face, and grab her by the hair, as she once testified in a deposition during one of the nastiest divorces in Hollywood history. Perhaps Depp will play audio tapes in an effort to claim his ex-wife was the abusive one in this stormy relationship. It won't matter because there's really no reversing the damage that Depp has incurred these past few years.

That should have become obvious on June 26 when it was revealed that Disney was working on a new Pirates of the Caribbean, this time featuring a female-fronted cast led by Margot Robbie. In other words, at the exact moment when a U.K. judge was deciding on whether to actually proceed with Depp's libel suit after the actor's attorneys breached a court order by failing to turn over a series of text messages concerning the procurement of drugs, Depp may have lost his most lucrative role. A source tells The Hollywood Reporter that Jerry Bruckheimer would like to at least nod to the popularity of the Captain Jack Sparrow character in the coming film if the controversies die down, but at this point, Disney is resistant. Depp is too controversial. (Disney didn’t respond for comment.)

So Depp will pursue a favorable verdict and a nominal damages award from a trial that's playing out under English defamation standards — in other words, where the burden of truth is on the news publisher to establish rather than Depp. Meanwhile, over the next few weeks, amid an international pandemic, Depp will surely incur additional reputational harm from these prying court proceedings, the impetus for which was a column questioning J.K. Rowling's defense of Depp being cast in the adaptation of her book Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. It's hard to sue one's way out of controversy.

Given this situation, it's no wonder Hollywood insiders are increasingly puzzled over Depp's moves. I spoke to several industry attorneys and publicists, all of whom offered some variation on the theme that the public would likely have forgotten Depp's years-old troubles but for court actions that keep reminding everyone.

“One of the things you’re always balancing is, how do you respond to accusation? Do you add more fuel to the fire or let it dissipate?” asks Howard Bragman, a longtime crisis manager in the entertainment industry.

Says Neville Johnson, an attorney who has previously brought suits against tabloids but questions the star plaintiff's wisdom here: “Depp doesn’t need the money [from any damages award] and it is not going to enhance his reputation.”

***

How did Depp find himself at the point of zugzwang? More and more, one has got to question Depp's reliance on attorney Adam Waldman. Depp has many attorneys, and the others seem to be the ones actually doing the hard work in court, but Waldman has become Depp's mouthpiece and also looks to be the lawyer who has emerged as the star's svengali of sorts.

Who is Waldman?

A search on Google (where he referred this reporter instead of agreeing to an interview) yields some clues, though hardly anything definitive. Unlike most attorneys, Waldman maintains no bio page these days. A few years back, Waldman's D.C.-based Endeavor Group did have a working website, but no longer. A trip to the Internet Archive reveals that Waldman once took credit for overseeing "all corporate aspects" of the landmark antitrust trial United States v. Microsoft, being the "principal architect of several ground-breaking initiatives" including the Center for Global Development, and even predicting the 2009 financial crisis with a "seminal law review article" authored all the way back in 1993. That would be when he was a student at American University, which did indeed confirm his graduation in 1995.

Waldman, according to reputable press reports, seems to have been involved in various dealings with the Kremlin, Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, and Wikileaks founder Julian Assange. He had a lucrative ($40,000 per month) lobbying contract with Deripaska, was registered as an agent for the Russian government, visited Assange nine times in one year at the Ecuadorian embassy in London, apparently in connection with efforts to strike a deal with the DOJ, and more. His associations have become fodder for intrigue among reporters and lawmakers even if there’s a lack of public evidence of anything more than Waldman having a talent for landing recurring, if minor, roles in real-life Russian political dramas.

I'd say that Waldman's foray on the periphery of the industry hardly matters, except that it appears Depp is publicly burning bridges with the sort of abandon that one hardly ever sees among big Hollywood stars. Depp's recent legal pursuits include battling his former money managers over the disposition of hundreds of millions of dollars; splitting with longtime transactional attorney Jake Bloom; and, of course, continuing to face off against Heard again and again and again, including in a separate defamation suit against her over an op-ed she wrote for The Washington Post. That latter case is currently scheduled for trial in Virginia in January 2021.

That's a lot of legal work, and Waldman appears to have taken on a central role. As Stephen Rodrick put it in an often-cited Rolling Stone article, "Waldman seems to have convinced Depp that they are freedom fighters taking on the Hollywood machine rather than scavengers squabbling over the scraps of a fortune squandered."

Waldman is also conducting a public experiment on social media. In a nutshell, do tactics of preaching to a choir of a small number of Twitter accounts achieve anything outside of politics? Most attorneys don't pick fights with the media during a big case, particularly in the weeks before trial. Not Waldman. For weeks, he's been goading reporters at The New York Times who apparently are investigating him, and he's been whipping his followers into a frenzy with attacks on Rodrick, Variety ("Saudi Arabia's Variety"), THR ("too much corruption") and other journalists and news publications. (That said, Waldman may not be above going to his own favored media outlets. Depp's attorneys have been accused in court papers of leaking to outlets like The Blast, which seems to be to Depp what Fox News is to Trump.) He's also litigating on Twitter, presenting evidence procured from Depp's cases, and overall, exhibiting highly unusual behavior for a working attorney.

To what end? That one is very hard to answer. But if anyone in Hollywood is ready to take on "fake news," the ticket of Depp-Waldman should be deemed real contenders.

***

In the era of #MeToo, allegations of misconduct get attention — and deservedly so — but some newsrooms have traditionally made a distinction between behavior in the workplace and domestic conduct, with the latter being perceived as tabloid fodder. This time, though, an ugly divorce proceeding has transformed into something quite more.

Alas, the trial of John Christopher Depp II v. News Group Newspapers Ltd has now begun.

On July 7, Depp himself took the witness stand and accused Heard of being sociopathic, a narcissist, and completely emotionally dishonest. He insisted her "sick" claims of abuse are untrue. And in opening statements, his attorney David Sherborne said, "This is not a case about money. It is about vindication."

Depp, in fighting a battle against an unflattering headline, is merely going to draw more attention to The Sun's accusation that he's a "wife beater," especially once Heard gets on the witness stand. At the end of it all, no matter the verdict, this trial will likely do nothing to tamp down the controversies that have tarnished his career. He's elevated a tabloid columnist's random musing into something that's going to be covered by serious news outlets for weeks, months, years on end.

For that, Johnny Depp should regain his senses and fire his lawyers.

Vindication ain't possible. The damage is done. That's the only thing a successful libel claim shows.

__________

What kind of Weinstein bullshit is this?  So what, If he gives up on getting Justice for what hes been through Hollywood might throw him some crumbs? 

JUST SHUT UP AND SUFFER IN SILENCE!  ACCEPT THE LIES THAT WERE SPREAD ABOUT YOU! LET YOUR ABUSER WIN!

 I wonder if this clown would tell metoo victims not to get Justice?

[sugar-petals]

BTS Tarot Reading ➝ What Kind Of Porn Do They Watch? (18+)

↳ NOTE - due to several requests, a steamy and detailed one. ☕️ we’re asking the cards about the erotica they fancy in a wider sense. 

warning ⚠️ 18+ // bdsm mentions, worship, kinks left and right. we’re going graphic in all types o’ ways, lads.

♡ DISCLAIMER // tarot is speculative, there is no guarantee for accuracy. believing in the cards is a choice. all portrayals are fictive and for entertainment purposes only.

SPREAD #1:

yoongi

⌈ THE WORLD ⇁ Jesus... Someone’s obsessed with girls in the nude. That card has a stark naked woman wrapped in very little satin on it so you know what our funky little guy is up to. Luscious aesthetic fotos might be just around his corner. Big duh, he’s a photography major. These folks are all about body appreciation. He’s also on a personal vendetta against lingerie 😂 Yoongi won’t get hard looking at even the most HD panty and bra ads. Only the skin in its full splendor will do, no editing. He loves pictures of nipples peaking through shirt fabric, it’s all over his phone. Yoongi likes his gals without underwear 24/7 just like he dislikes underwear himself. If we’re talking porn, the woman on the card is holding two very long rods so may I connect the dots: Threesomes, handjobs, blowbangs, spitroasting. Friction, friction, and more friction. To Yoongi’s brain, handjobs are a great um new version of holding hands. Sex standing up also, keeping it vertical. Yoongi doesn’t care about girth, inches count. Nice and elongated with a perfect plunge, something to hold onto. Yep, he’s pretty deliberate when searching that up. Yes, he loves the look of it. However, and you’ll be surprised: Even if he likes poly porn, it’s still nothing too extreme. This card is more about pleasure than pain. If a guy likes rough and degrading sex, you get swords and wands in his spread. THE WORLD is more about perfected skills and success. So, he likes the more accomplished porn stars. With a preference for curly blondes and redheads, that’s sort of the hair color on the card. Natural B or C cup. Medium height, not too curvy. Oversized booty not needed. In terms of nationality: We have three representative animals on the card. Eagle, lion and bull, plus a light blonde man’s head. So, anything that America/Germany/Albania/Mexico/Namibia (and so on, lot of countries with eagles as their national bird my dude), England, Spain and Scandinavia have to offer. Honey sugar is going international, baby.

hoseok

⌈ QUEEN OF WANDS ⇁ Did I just mention that guys who like rough sex in porn get wand cards in their readings in Yoongi’s segment? Well, there we have our candidate, with a very obvious card since it’s a court figure. Now, the thing is, this is not the guy being rough. The QUEEN OF WANDS is as notoriously femdom as can be. The very fiery and raw and fun version. So, with a degree of lightheartedness, but still being very fit — even buff — and hands-on with the sub. If you get the QUEEN OF SWORDS, that’s the more cool and calculated domme who signs you up for torture and humiliation, and she really looks like a domme. She’s all over the internet because she has the grit. Now wands combined with a tarot queen... it’s more about the stamina and she is approachable. Hobi does not like watching cruel girls, he likes challenging ones. Upbeat porn stars who can take a lot but most importantly dole it out assertively like pros are Hobi’s schtick. He’s unapologetic about that. With him it’s like, please not the local newcomers that turned legal a month ago. The queen cards are all about mature women. Mommy kink, hint hint. The kind of mommy who’s gonna whip out the spreader bar or cane (= wands again) and give a playful type of punishment. See how desert-like that imagery is, Hobi wants to sweat big time when he gets off to this. Now since wands also make for a damn good pole to dance on, go figure. This whole card has me wondering if, well alright, he is a Cardi B hard stan 😅 If Hobi blasts Money to get in the mood, I’d not be surprised. Anyway. Back to pole stuff: If you go through his youtube search history, you will find astounding things. I think he watches the more professional and athletic performers in competition though. High production value is key. Finally, an interesting card detail: There’s a sunflower on it. This is definitely his kind of tarot imagery.

jimin

⌈ KING OF COINS  ⇁ This card always looks like a scene from a medieval movie so you might have an erotic film enthusiast here. The more chaste type of genre, pentacles are very grounded and not hypersexualized. The intimacy is slow and more about security and pleasure. It’s graphic and detailed, but gives you a sense of relaxation. With a bit of romance in the plot, that might absolutely be Jimin’s thing. Castles and wine and nobility. Interesting type of erotica. Historical and classy. As expected of a prince, mind you. He might enjoy books of that genre also. And we know Jimin is an avid reader, right up there with Namjoon. Now, even with more risque and contemporary stuff that he googles up, we have similar dynamics going down on screen. With Hobi we had femdom because it’s a queen card, now with Jimin we get the classic male dom type of porn because that’s how the King usually rolls, unless it’s the KING OF CUPS who’s touchy-feely and subby. Meanwhile, the KING OF COINS is your local sugar daddy. Leaning towards being a soft dom, he’s not aggressive. And Jimin surely has a little crush on that concept. Ye know, if all the other members have female cards and Jimin gets the sugar daddy, we might be dealing with mxm action. Because if this card was a porn star, he’d be a really, really rich producer and a bear who’s done this since the frickin’ 90s. He’s treating his subs very gently and lets them sit on their lap, the imagery is sort of like that because the King is balancing a pentacle on his left thigh. Sex and comfort all in one are life for Jimin. A sexy detail I only noticed at a second glance, the King also has a shortened golden staff with him, which has a rounded tip. If that’s not a butt plug… whenever I see props like that in tarot, I interpret it as a sex toy. So, good vibes in here. And a bunch of aphrodisiacs, the KING OF COINS is a foodie. Which you know, might just be a food porn type of reference. Jimin’s taste in sexy things is quite something else.

jungkook

⌈ THE EMPRESS ⇁ If there’s one thing I like, it’s the Tarot giving me the important archetypes during readings of that kind. The Queens, the Kings, the Major arcana (see Yoongi’s and Jin’s segment). You can really draw a lot of hints out of it. Now with the EMPRESS you have a similar case to Hobi’s, just a lot more softcore. Jungkook has a refined and pretty vast taste in erotica, if not the most refined in Bangtan next to Jimin who likes that kind of dignified touch to it as well as we saw. Jungkook knows his stuff when it comes to searching things up, he is a first class netizen in that regard. In terms of genre: The EMPRESS is your highkey feminist and wholesomeness legend, so — you won’t find any super creepy things in some hidden file on his PC, and things by female producers instead. No slut-shaming or name-calling here, everyone gets their pleasure in their own right. Thanks to online sex ed, Jungkook has a map to the clit and he’s not afraid to use it. He’s the type to watch solo videos ad nauseam. He’s fascinated. Masturbation until it gets all messy with the juices flowing, and you bet he wants to see the girls buzzing themselves off lying on their back. Maybe even outdoors in a field. Cum play is a must, cunnilingus is a must, he loves unprotected sex and creampies, he loves breast massages. And yes. Anything that involves sex with pregnant and chubby women. Similar to Taehyung, it’s all about the focus on the girl, he doesn’t bother much with the guy performers. And given Yoongi’s reading on top of that, we have three members in BTS who are all about worshipping the female body right here, breasts over ass, and he likes blondes, too. The EMPRESS card is like… the entire porn industry who does the MILF and BBW genre is financed by Jeon Jungkook’s website subscriptions. Cue GOT7, with Jungkook it’s girls, girls, girls. The thirst is going strong, and he’s unashamed times ten, sex is sex. 

➝ we also have members who don’t really bother with erotica or have a complicated relationship with it.

SPREAD #2

taehyung

⌈  ACE OF WANDS reversed ⇁ He’s not about beating off until the world ends. Taehyung gets bored by porn or heated literature and doesn’t feel very motivated to search it up. He would rather come up with his own ideas to write but doesn’t have the energy. Sex drive: On hold, even if he tries to look something up it doesn’t feel very fulfilling to him. Most of it fails to turn him on, it’s not his kind of taste. He gets frustrated when he masturbates and would rather rest, dream, and doze. The only thing I can see him watch somewhat frequently — hold your horses — is lesbian porn. I’ll explain. The ACE OF WANDS is pretty much your most glaring handjob symbolism card. A hand gripping a stick. Yoongi’s THE WORLD card has very similar imagery, I mean even two wands and a girl, bisexual explosion much. He would be a big fan of the upright ACE OF WANDS card lmao! But the reversal is like, um no silly guys jerking off in here, pls. Keep your cum to yourself. That means: Zero dicks in Taehyung’s zone, girl-on-girl stuff is his very last resort for quality that he is desperate for but cannot find. And not the stuff where the producers just replace the guys with heavy arsenal sex toys, double-ended dildos, fucking machines, endless strap-on action without any clit stimulation on either side and whatnot. Taehyung is like ugh, cherie, why, give me the juicy stuff, give me the basics. What he wants is just pure scissoring, fingering, oral, little gentle bites, a lot of caresses and kisses. And slow, slow sex. Probably the amateur kind. He hates how brutal and exaggerated most things online are. Tae is looking for softness, a lot of lesbian action is what delivers in that regard so he takes all he gets. And it goes further than that, Taehyung knows the finest yuri recommendations, I’m telling you.

seokjin

⌈  THE STAR reverse ⇁ The opposite of Yoongi: not keeping it very naked in here. The upright card shows a nude woman pouring water from two cups. Hence a strong connection to the card of sexuality, TWO OF CUPS. Everything is very gentle and positive in that scenery. But then, the reversed card rather shows us that Jin doesn’t feel too thrilled watching other people film or write or photograph sex. Like in Tae’s case, he becomes bored, it’s all the same to him. Nothing’s ever new to him in porn. He feels negative and guilty rather than refreshed or entertained. He also doesn’t like a lot of kinks that very literally connect to, well, the pouring water. Squirting, cum play, watersports, sex in the pool or showers, lube overuse, creampies, bukkake, fake cum — Jin is rolling his eyes at that, he thinks it’s a circus. He’s surely given it a try, but ended up feeling worse and even more pent-up or dissatisfied. At best, you will find him on unknown websites looking for the most amateur videos there are. Because: THE STAR quite unequivocally hints at porn stars. If you reverse the card, it becomes someone not very well-known. He roots for the underdog. Accordingly, Jin’s reaction to mainstream videos goes this way: ‚Pipe down, you non-artists!’ 😆 Cause maybe, he does do it better aye, without the awkward angles anyway. He doesn’t want the body cult, like, put that airbrush and silicone out of my face bro. Not because he’s against surgery, but the idea behind sexual extremes and the shady high standards. It’s too polished for him to get turned on. And robotic/staged. Likely because he’s had an IRL sexual experience (gasp!) that set a different ideal to him, so the more glossy porn feels off. Home video has all he needs instead. I think it’s especially because you get so see more body hair there. The woman on the THE STAR card is all sleek, so the reversed card is the opposite, Jin wants that unshaved goodness.

namjoon

⌈ EIGHT OF CUPS ⇁ Now you’d think — and I thought, kinda — we’d get the master of erotica right here. And he’s had one hell of a reputation for that. Think of the ever-infamous Yaman TV interview where BTS were super upfront and revealing about their taste and what they watch privately. With especially Namjoon having the lion’s share. But this card says otherwise if his current state is concerned. The EIGHT OF CUPS shows a man wandering off into the night, leaving eight cups behind him. I think what that means is, he’s moved on. Namjoon’s cravings aren’t as strong as they used to be, nor does he have the time. He knows it won’t fix his loneliness or answer the questions of life. He might be on the search for different things to fulfill him, or ignore much of his hormones in favor for his career. Not that he didn’t dabble in it, he sure did, but that chapter is slowly closing and what’s next he doesn’t really know yet. He thinks about family and being a father, so the smaller and more risque pleasures become less significant. Desire, too. Ye olde soul syndrome is kicking in. The card is also centered around introspection, a quest for self, all these higher topics that aren’t the most grounded and don’t leave much space for being horny. Joon is simply to preoccupied and on the move. He sees porn as a distraction from his real self at this point, and he’s not the type to feel satiated after masturbating to something, similar to Jin and Taehyung. Instead, I think he carries that energy elsewhere, hence the wanderer going from A to B onto a mountain. In short, Namjoon naturally grew out of it by becoming more, well: Namjoon. He’s left a lot behind, he’s choosing self-development over temporary fun, and he will ponder a lot on the topic, the hows and whys and whats more often than not. So, he’s passed the baton to Yoongi and Jungkook if you will, and keeps a low profile as of now. 

tarot mlist | ko-fi

----

for anon:

[remmushound]

Curse of the Clans part 21! @selfindulgenz @scentedcandlecryptid @rottmnt-addict

With his latest failure, Raphael was back to the drawing board. His mind still buzzed with the sight he had seen in the council’s chambers, his thoughts at war with the need to find a new king to get a blessing from. He had even gotten desperate enough to do an online search for king yokai; it didn't take him long to realize why he wasn’t the tech savvy one, and it took him even less time to miss Donatello. His brother would have been able to find a billion kings by now, no doubt! And Raphael hadn’t even found one!

Asking around the Hidden City provided even less results. The few yokai that stopped to listen to his questions either had no idea how to help him, or they sent him on wild goose chases pursuing leads that led nowhere. Finally, when the frustration and constant disappointment became too much, Raphael screamed at the top of his lungs in the middle of the streets.

“HOW HARD IS IT TO FIND A KING?!”

The answer to all his problems slapped him in the face. Raphael gave a loud growl, swiping at the wet newspaper several times before he was able to peel it off of his face. He went to toss the offending paper, but then the headline caught his attention. He was just barely able to cling to the article as it tried to fly away.

Raphael read the headline out loud to himself, his hands tracing along the dark ink. “King Komodo strikes again…?”

The paper flew out of Raphael’s hand with the next gust of powerful wind. The next few hours were spent with Raphael once more referring himself to the people of the Hidden City for his aid.

“Excuse me?” He called out to a passing bear, who slowed to listen, “Do you know anything about King Komodo?”

“King Komodo?” The bear rumbled, “Baddest yokai there is! But you shouldn’t be talking about ‘em!”

Raphael tilted his head. “Why not?”

The bear simply made a vague gesture as he walked away a lot quicker than he had approached. Raphael stared after him a moment, considering the words of the bear yokai before he hurried to catch up to the next yokai that caught his eye.

“Excuse me?” Raphael called out, but the yokai kept walking. “Can you tell me anything about King Komodo?”

Raphael’s question was answered by a different passing yokai to the one he had initially addressed. “King Komodo? Didn't he eat a couple human kids a few years back?”

“Wha… eat?” This time, Raphael stopped and watched in a slight growing horror as the yokai disappeared into the crowd. He was in shocked silence for a moment before he found someone else, “D… do you know anything about—?”

“Sorry, can’t help ya kid.”

“Hey, can you tell me about—?”

“Sorry, I’m late for work!”

“Do you mind if I ask— oh, okay, guess you’re busy.”

The hours passed without Raphael getting much more information. When he did manage to ask the entire question, all the yokai he had asked tried to separate themselves from him as quickly as possible. A few of them made passing comments that Raphael shouldn’t be talking of such things, warning him to stop, but he didn't. This was a lead and he had to follow it, no matter what the well-meaning yokai said!

When Raphael ran out of ways to ask the same question, he sat defeated and downtrodden on a bench and rested his face in his hands. The second day was already drawing to a close, and he was still no closer to finding out where he could get a mystic blessing! He hoped his brothers were at least doing better than he was…

“Excuse me.”

Raphael looked up from his hands— and then up and up and up some more until his eyes met the cold, black stare of a water buffalo gazing down at him. His shadow completely swallowed Raphael, but Raphael felt very little fear looking up at the big yokai.

“Yeah? How can I help ya?”

The buffalo tilted his head ever so slightly. “You da one been askin’ ‘bout King Komodo?”

“Yes.” Raphael said innocently, almost excited. He climbed quickly to his feet, hardly coming up to the buffalo’s chest in height, and gave a hopeful smile. “Do you know him?”

The buffalo snorted. Hot breath blasted Raphael in the face and made him scrunch up his beak and pull away, waving his hang trying to dismiss the heat.

“Hey, no offense buddy, but could you maybe breath somewhere else?”

The buffalo didn't seem to care about Raphael’s request. He pulled back his lips and flashed flat, almost shiny teeth before his rough, four-fingered hands came down upon Raphael’s shoulder and gripped him firmly. Raphael winced at the sharp pinch of his muscles but, before he could even make an attempt to reach for his tonfa to free himself, the buffalo’s hands went from Raphael’s shoulders to grip instead at his jaw. The yokai slammed his head hard against Raphael’s and, after a moment of torment seared through his cranium, Raphael lost consciousness.

"The king sends his regards."

[bijvoorbeeldja]

Sobbe enemies to lovers

Robbe IJzermans could not stand Sander Driesen.

He hated his stupid leather jacket and his black boots, both of which announced his presence with annoyingly-omnipresent sound.

He hated the several-inch height he had over Robbe, always towering over him in self-assumed superiority. He hated how cool he thought he looked, in his Bowie t-shirts and box-bleached hair, girls trailing after him like groupies.

It made him sick.

Despite his disregard for Sander, the two had practically grown up together, sharing the same hallways at school, occupying the same classes, mixing in similar social circles. But really, they couldn’t have been more different. While Sander was loud, overly-confident, and snarky, Robbe was small, quiet, and didn’t thrive on being the center of attention. In fact, when he’d come out a few months before, he kept to himself even more, trying to distance himself from unwanted scrutiny. And for that and many other reasons, he avoided Sander Driesen any chance he got.

That is, until one biology class in October when he’d gotten in trouble for talking too loudly with Zoe. The two always sat together in their shared classes, having grown close when Robbe moved into the flatshare with Zoe, Senne, and Milan. They were in the midst of excitedly debriefing Milan’s date the night before, sharing details they’d gathered from their conversations with him. The teacher had been handing out assignments for a big, upcoming project to the seated pairs when she called out the two for their disruptive discussion.

“Loockx, IJermans, split up, please,” she’d finally announced, exasperated. “Zoe, please go work with Britt, and Sander, come up and pair up with Robbe. Maybe then you’ll actually get some work done.”

Annoyed, Zoe slumped her shoulders and started gathering up her books. “Yeah, I sincerely doubt it,” she said under her breath to Robbe, who smiled briefly before wishing her luck. “I bet Sander will have fun,” she offered quickly, resigning herself to the back row.

Robbe scoffed at her lame tease, but Robbe couldn’t escape the dread that was filling his stomach as he glanced back at Sander. With a cigarette tucked behind his ear, partially hidden in white locks, he gathered his bag while winking at Britt, who blushed.

Robbe groaned. Seriously? How could this be happening?

He turned back toward the desk, bracing himself for what was surely going to be a tortuous affair. Glancing over the pages of the assignment the teacher had distributed, his stomach dropped even more. It was a long project, surely demanding lots of time and effort, even more now that he’d probably have to do the whole assignment himself.

“Hey, Robin,” Sander said, finally appearing at his side. Slamming down his books on the desk and sitting backwards in the chair next to Robbe, he straddled it with the obnoxious confidence of someone who lived a middle-finger-to-the-world lifestyle.

Robbe rolled his eyes and kept flipping through his own textbook, determined to get a jump on the assignment, with or without Sander’s help.

“So, yeah. This is going to be a lot of work, so we better get started,” Robbe began, not looking at Sander. “We can just divide it up and do our own halves separately so that–”

“We could do that,” Sander said, interrupting him with a pointed smirk. “Or, we could work on it together. That is, if you trust me not to mess it up.” He was smiling, making Robbe roll his eyes again.

“Well, since you mention it, you’re right,” Robbe said, looking at him full-on now. “I don’t trust you.”

Sander’s smile faded, and he swallowed. He looked into Robbe’s eyes silently for a moment before speaking. “Maybe you don’t know me well enough to trust me, Robbe.”

Robbe furrowed his brow, not dissuaded by Sander’s genuine and suddenly out-of-character tone.

“I know you, Sander,” Robbe stated. “I’ve known you pretty much my whole life and I feel like I’ve got a pretty good read on who you are. So forgive me for not having the capability to trust you.”

With heat rising to his cheeks, Robbe slammed his book shut and started shoving books and papers into his bag. Then, the bell rang. Robbe didn’t waste any time leaving Sander behind.

This was going to be the longest four weeks of Robbe’s life.

........

All Robbe wanted to do was go home, climb under his covers, and sleep for days. Just a few weeks into the school year, and he was already drowning in work, stress, and insomnia. Plus, now the situation with his mother was creating additional worry that kept him up late into the night, rubbing dark circles into his eyes and straining aches into his shoulders.

But he couldn’t go home, not yet. He knew that once he walked through the door, Zoe would force him to eat a sensible dinner, Senne would assault him with questions about the dark circles under his eyes, and Milan would sit on the counter, talking endlessly about why he was so happy to be done with high school. He loved his flatmates, but for now, he had a mountain of work to do, and needed a quiet space to make a dent in it. 

So after classes ended, he collected all of his books and headed to the library, settling into a carrel near the back. It wasn’t like the library was crowded or anything. It was Thursday, and most of his friends and fellow students felt the weekend close enough that they gladly relaxed their grip on schoolwork stress and started going out. But still, Robbe felt more comfortable tucked away in the back of the library, so he could focus fully on his work.

Pulling out his books and pen, he took a deep inhale and started working.

…….

After two and a half hours, Robbe’s eyes were starting to glaze over, and he felt himself re-reading the same sentence in his textbook over and over again.

He needed to stretch his legs, get his blood moving again. Plus, there was a reference book he needed, so he allowed himself a quick break to get up and search the stacks. Wandering through the various genres of books, he stopped at a chemistry section, searching the call numbers for the title he needed. He was brushing his hands over the spines, getting closer when he heard muffled voices from a few stacks away. He was surprised anyone was still there. Some librarians, maybe, re-stacking leftover books or wiping down tables. But as he listened, he could’ve sworn he recognized one of the voices. Rounding the corner, he knew why. 

It was Sander. Robbe jumped back behind the shelf, making sure he couldn’t be seen. He could not deal with another “Hey, Robin!” encounter right now. Of all people, Robbe thought, it had to Sander. Sander was sitting with a boy a few grades younger. The boy had a textbook open in front of him, and Sander was leaning over gently, pointing out something on the pages to the boy, who was nodding. Robbe could only make out a few words of what Sander was saying, but he heard enough to gather something that made his mouth drop open slightly. It was biology. Sander was tutoring the boy in biology. 

For a few moments, Robbe could only stand motionless, trying to understand what he was seeing — and hearing. Absent was Sander’s usual bravado. Instead, he was smiling sincerely, talking quietly, and clearly, obviously teaching something well. Seemingly right in front of Robbe’s eyes, Sander’s usual cooler-than-you edges were worn down to reveal something much more real. Handsome, even.

That thought jolted Robbe back to his senses. Handsome? What was he talking about? Clearly, he had been studying too long. He was tired. He needed food. But as he headed back to his table and started to pack up his things, his thoughts were swirling. It didn’t make sense to Robbe, what he’d just witnessed. All this time, he had come to know Sander to be obnoxious, loud, and self-centered. The kind to skip school to smoke cigarettes….not help tutor other students. Sander was the one who would have meaningless hookups at parties, blast Bowie from his car driving out of the school parking lot, tease Robbe endlessly. But what he just saw….that was a different Sander. 

Maybe Robbe didn’t really know him at all. 

……

When Robbe got to biology the next day, Sander was already there, sitting in his seat next to Robbe’s, doodling something on the corner of his paper, lost in focus. He briefly looked up with Robbe sat down, shifting his books slightly to cover the drawing. 

“Robin,” he threw Robbe’s way, his mouth lifting in a small smirk. 

Their teacher entered the classroom, shuffling to her desk and immediately calling out to them to spend the period working on their projects. 

“Use your time wisely!” she admonished. 

Robbe swallowed and turned toward Sander.

“Sander, look I—”

“Don’t worry, Robin,” Sander interrupted. “I already started working on my half.” Sander took a handful of papers out of his bag, waving them in front of Robbe. Robbe was momentarily silent as he glanced at the papers, covered top to bottom with Sander’s handwriting, a neat scrawl that again surprised Robbe.

“Oh, wow,” Robbe finally said. “I didn’t think that you—”

“That I’d actually do anything?” Sander smirked again. “Like I said before, maybe you don’t know me quite as well as you think you do, Robbe.” Robbe met Sander’s gaze, his green eyes vibrant, piercing. Robbe just stared into them, trying to find his breath again. 

But before he could, Sander spoke again. “I’ll make sure to get all of my half done before the due date. Don’t worry about it.” At that, Sander turned back to his paper, resuming his drawing. 

Robbe just sat there, trying to hide his shock and growing humiliation. He glanced back at Zoe, desperately wishing for her help. But she didn’t meet his gaze. She sat, elbow on the desk, chin in her palm, looking bored as Britt told a story, her hands gesturing widely. 

Sander and Robbe spent the rest of the period in silence. 

……

Robbe felt like crap.

Sander had openly called him out on being judgmental, and okay. He had been. But before these last few interactions, Robbe wouldn’t have thought twice about what he’d said. He’d known Sander all his life, hadn’t he? He’d seen what he was like. The two had essentially been rivals for the majority of their lives. But now, Robbe felt like everything was off. Sander wasn’t pestering him with comments about his small size, or the long hair he’d had several years before. It seemed like...Sander was trying to be civil. 

Sure, Sander probably just wanted to stay on good terms for the duration of the assignment, not making things more difficult for either of them with endlessly unproductive back-and-forth banter about how much they disliked each other. Clearly, from what he’d seen yesterday at the library, Sander was smart. He must care about the assignment, and in general, his grades. But some small part of Robbe felt like...maybe...maybe Sander did want some sort of friendship with him. Okay, maybe not friendship. That was going too far. A mutual respect, maybe? How could Robbe cling to his stupidly stubborn pride when Sander was (albeit unconsciously) offering his own version of a tiny olive branch? Yeah, he knew what he’d seen of Sander. But deep inside, he knew it wasn’t all of him.

….. 

Robbe hadn’t gotten to talk to Zoe the whole period, so he waited after class for Britt to leave so he could detail his weird interactions with Sander. But to his surprise, it was Sander who approached Zoe first, giving Britt a small kiss on the cheek before telling her he’d see her around. She left the room looking a little deflated. 

The room was empty, and Robbe didn’t want to wait around, so obviously eavesdropping, so he went outside, pausing to wait at Zoe’s locker. Robbe waited, those few minutes annoyingly long. What could they even be talking about? 

Then suddenly, Sander exited the classroom with Zoe, the two laughing about something. Great, they have inside jokes now, Robbe thought. That’s just super.

“I’ll text you later, then.” Sander said, and Zoe nodded. Then he turned and started walking down the hall, those damn boots echoing through the hallway.

As Zoe approached Robbe, she started to speak quickly, seeing Robbe’s frustrated expression, and arms folded tight across his chest.

“Robbe, it’s not—”  

“What the hell, Zoe?! Did Sander seriously just try to ask you out?” Robbe spit out, his voice rising. “Everyone knows you’re with Senne! The nerve of that guy—”

Zoe took another step toward Robbe, reaching out to put her hands gently on his shoulders, smiling slightly.

“No, Robbe,” she said calmly. “He wasn’t asking me out. Relax. He asked for my help with something.”

“Are you serious?” Robbe asked. “What?”

She smiled again before answering. “He asked if I could help him bleach his hair.”

……

It was Saturday, and Zoe had been in the bathroom with Sander for over an hour. Sander had come over early, while everyone was eating breakfast, greeting the roommates with croissants before waving a paper bag full of boxed hair dyes at Zoe. 

“You ready for this?” He’d asked, smiling.

Robbe rolled his eyes, hiding his frown behind his coffee cup, pulling down his boxers to cover more of his exposed body. He could not believe Zoe had let Sander come to their flat, knowing how much he tortured Robbe. 

“I promise you it will be way easier than mine!” laughed Zoe, turning one of the boxes over in her hands, looking over the instructions briefly. “You have way less hair than I do.” 

She took another sip of her coffee, gave Senne a quick kiss on the cheek, and motioned for Sander to follow her to the bathroom. Sander glanced over at Robbe before he followed, smiling at Robbe’s tousled bed head and giving him a quick wink, eyes glowing fiercely green. Robbe just blinked, feeling so out of place with Sander in their apartment. When the two blondes were gone, Milan gasped. 

“Who was that?” he asked excitedly. “He’s hot!” Senne laughed.

Robbe rolled his eyes again, groaning. “Don’t even start with that, please. He’s this obnoxious kid from school and he should not be here.”

“I didn’t mean hot for me, Robbe.” Milan stated. “I obviously meant hot for you.”

Robbe nearly choked on his coffee. “What are you talking about, Milan?” 

“Uhm, that obviously you two are going to be making out in ten minutes,” Milan said, as if it were the most decidedly obvious matter.

“Milan!” Robbe hissed, his face started to burn with humiliation. “Could you talk any louder?!” 

“Sorry,” Milan said casually, shrugging his shoulders. “But it’s true. The tension between you two is insane.”

“You are ridiculous, Milan,” Robbe said with a huff. “I hate Sander and he hates me, so. That’s that.” Robbe put his cup to his lips again, trying to calm his hands. 

Milan turned to him, looking confused. “Hates you? No. No, not a chance,” he said decidedly, picking up a croissant. 

“Why do you say that?” Robbe asked, bewilderment — and slight curiosity — now pricking at him. 

“Uhm, because we all saw the way he just looked at you,” he said, motioning around the room, as if a crowd had gathered. He took a bite of croissant. “That was clearly the look of someone who is into you...and just doesn’t know how to show it. Which makes sense. You are a bit...prickly, sometimes.”

Robbe could not believe what he was hearing. Milan was delusional. He needed to go back to bed. Grabbing his mug and what was left of his toast, he shook his head and got up to go back to his room. As he exited the doorway of the kitchen, Milan called out after him, “I will require a plus one on my wedding invite, Robbe!” 

Robbe gasped, sprinting back to hurl his toast at Milan, who ducked, laughing loudly.

Robbe groaned again, shaking his head as he finally made it to his room. Opening the door, he immediately jumped back, coffee sloshing out onto his t-shirt. Sander was in his room, and he was half naked. 

“Uhm, what the hell?” Robbe called out, and Sander spun around, quickly pulling a towel towards his chest. 

“Sorry, Robbe,” he said sheepishly. “I should’ve asked you. Zoe just told me to get undressed in here so I wouldn’t get bleach on my clothes. I didn’t mean to—”

“It’s fine,” Robbe stammered. “I—I just...you surprised me, that’s all.”

“Well, that’s obvious,” Sander smiled, motioning to the coffee stains spreading across his shirt. He grabbed his own Bowie shirt he’d left on the bed, handing it over to Robbe. “Here. Use mine.” He hesitated briefly. “But, then again, it isn’t a size small. You might drown in my clothes.” He was actually grinning now.

Robbe felt warm all of the sudden. He didn’t know if it was hot coffee seeping onto his body through his shirt, the sight of Sander’s tan skin, or the thought of wearing his clothes that was making him flushed. He was so infuriating.

“I don’t need your clothes, obviously,” Robbe shot back. “This is my room, remember? I have clothes here. Which I wouldn’t even need if you hadn’t gotten naked in my bedroom and shocked me into dousing myself with coffee.” Robbe was flustered, and Sander just smiled at him, his grin widening. He was taking a step towards Robbe, when Zoe called out from the hallway. 

“Sander? You coming? I have everything ready.”

“Be right there,” Sander answered back, eyes still locked with Robbe’s. For a second, Robbe thought he was going to say something, but while Robbe stood there, waiting, Sander exhaled and walked past Robbe into the hallway, brushing his arm with Robbe’s as he went by. 

……

Robbe could not fall asleep that night. 

Maybe it was the fumes from the bleach that were keeping him up. Zoe had cracked the windows in the bathroom while dying Sander’s hair, but still. The smell permeated. 

He just laid there, tossing and turning, trying to quiet his head and get the images from the day to clear from his mind. Well...just the one image. The image of Sander, shirtless, in his bedroom. He flopped on his back in frustration, internally writhing with shame that his mind was somehow hitching back repeatedly on these overpowering visions. Sander was always wearing that stupid jacket, the stupid boots, the stupid band t-shirts. It was his persona, his identity. But seeing Sander like that, unmasked, uncovered, and just...bare...it was too much for Robbe. He couldn’t stop thinking about the taut muscles of his biceps, his abs, the golden skin that contrasted with his white hair. Hair that now, when Robbe thought about it….didn’t look that bad at all. 

When Sander had left his room, he’d shut the door tight, avoiding Sander the rest of the morning. He couldn’t bear to face him again, likely saying or doing something stupid he’d regret. He just put on his headphones and tried to block out the sounds of conversation from the bathroom. He’d fallen asleep before Sander left. And now, sleep fled from him. He wanted so badly to close his eyes and get lost in meaningless dreams, letting the ridiculous thoughts about Sander slip into nothingness. He wanted to forget about it all. 

He and Sander were enemies. They were supposed to avoid each other at all costs, and when they did cross paths, they were to simply call out their usual insults to each other and move on, carrying on with their own separate lives.

But here they were, getting thrown together again and again in the space of a week, and Robbe wasn’t sure he could bear it. He wanted things to go back to normal. Robbe IJzermans and Sander Driesen, rivals. 

Just as this thought crossed his mind, Robbe’s phone buzzed from his bedside table, briefly lighting up his room in a blue neon glow. He reached out, opening the new message that pinged on the screen. It was a number he didn’t know.

Hey, Robin. It’s Sander. Zoe gave me your number. I just wanted to say sorry, again, for today. I shouldn’t have gotten into your personal space. 

Robbe’s stomach lept. Him. Again.

His fingers hovered over the keys. Should he answer? His mind swirled with competing thoughts. Finally, a thought settled on him. Maybe in order to get through the next few weeks with Sander unscathed, he just had to play nice. Avoiding him didn’t seem to be working, obviously. Maybe, he thought….maybe he should just lean in. Be civil, do the work, move on. That’s it. 

He typed back a reply before he could stop himself, then quickly turned off his phone and rolled back over in the bed. He tried to squash down the anxious feeling budding inside him. 

It’s okay, Sander. 

Also, I was thinking. I think we should work on the biology project together. Let’s talk tomorrow at school?

……..

Robbe’s palms were embarrassingly clammy as he knocked on the door to Sander’s flat. He wiped them on his jeans, berating himself for acting so ridiculous. He’d told Sander he wanted to meet up, after all. 

When he’d turned on his phone the next morning, he saw that Sander had replied immediately to his last message, shooting back Good idea. See you Monday. 

Sander had greeted him with a sheepish smile in class the next week, immediately jumping in to explain what research he’d done for the assignment so far. They’d settled quickly into easy conversation, exchanging ideas and letting the class hour pass rapidly. As the bell rang and they started to gather up their things, Sander had turned again to Robbe. 

“So, do you want to work on this more after school one day this week?” He paused briefly before continuing, looking at Robbe for confirmation. “We could...work on it at my house? Friday? My parents are going out and won’t be there to bug us.” He laughed.

Robbe smiled, but felt anxiety creeping up on him. 

“Uhm, yeah. We could do that.”

“Okay, great.” Sander said, pulling his bag up on his shoulder. “I’ll text you my address.” He smiled once more at Robbe before turning to leave. 

While Robbe finished packing up, Zoe appeared at his side.

“So, what exactly happened in your bedroom yesterday?” she asked, 

Robbe dropped his book on the desk, a loud smack echoing in the room. 

“What?” he said, startled.

Zoe laughed. “Sander told me that you walked in on him naked, and today...you guys seem chummy. What’s that all about? Was Milan right? Did you two make out?!” Her voice was getting louder, squealing at even the briefest thought of scandal. 

“Oh my gosh, Zoe. No!” Robbe shot back, trying to keep his voice level, while heat flooded his cheeks. “I kicked him out of my room and took a nap. That’s all.” 

Zoe’s shoulder slumped. “Dang,” she said with a huff. “I was hoping you two would finally do it and get it over with so you could stop torturing us.”

Robbe turned toward Zoe straight on. 

“What are you talking about?!” Robbe said, nearly yelling now. “Did Milan talk to you? I’m not sure why you two are so hell-bent all of the sudden on insisting there’s some sort of love connection between the two of us, but I can assure you, there is not.”

Zoe looked at Robbe skeptically, nodding with a Right. Sure. look as he spoke.

“Plus,” Robbe continued, arguing his stance. “He’s hooking up with Britt anyway. He’s not even into guys!”

“You’re not serious, right?” Zoe asked. “Everyone, literally everyone knows that those two aren’t hooking up. Even if Britt wanted that.” Zoe confirmed. “Believe me, all she talks about is boys. I’ve gotten the complete story on all the guys in her life the past few days. Sure, she and Sander have flirted, but it’s never been anything serious. I think she’s into some college guy….” Zoe trailed off, trying to remember specifics. “Plus,” she said, returning to the conversation again. “Sander is pansexual. Everyone knows that.”

Was he? And why was Robbe stomach suddenly leaping at this?

“I don’t believe you,” Robbe countered, brushing his dangerously wandering thoughts aside. “In fact, I don’t believe any of this. You and Milan are crazy.”

“Aw, you’re cute when you’re in denial,” Zoe cooed before turning on her heel and leading Robbe out into the hallway.

Now, days later, Robbe was standing in front of Sander’s door, his classroom conversation with Zoe tangling in his thoughts as he tried to level his shallow breathing. Then, the door opened, and Sander was standing there, in a Queen t-shirt and jeans that hugged his legs and made Robbe’s breath hitch in his throat. Stop staring, he commanded himself. Sander smiled and opened the door wider, motioning for Robbe to come in. He took off his shoes, placing them next to Sander’s boots that were parked by the door. Those damn boots.

“So I figured we could just start by comparing notes and then flesh out an outline for our paper?” Sander offered, leading Robbe into the flat. Robbe nodded in agreement, but didn’t speak, taking in the layout of Sander’s house. 

For all the things that Sander knew — or thought he knew — about Sander Driesen, he couldn’t have expected this. The flat was warm, cozy, and well-designed. There were soft couches and artsy interiors to his right, and an open kitchen to his left. Pictures torn out of sketchbooks — images surely done by Sander — lined the walls in frames.  

Catching Robbe staring at them, Sander laughed. 

“My parents are annoyingly proud,” he said. “I promise, I didn’t ask them to put these up.” He smiled, watching Robbe slowly walk down the hallway, looking at each one. Sander put his hands in his pockets, seeming sheepish now.

“They’re good,” Robbe finally admitted, turning towards Sander. “You’re really talented.”

The slightest of blushes crept to Sander’s cheeks, but he looked down quickly and cleared his throat. “Do you want anything to drink? Water? Soda?”

“Water’s fine,” Robbe answered. “Thanks.”

While Sander filled a glass in the kitchen, Robbe sat down on the living room couch, shrugging out of his jacket and taking out his books. Sander came into the room, leaning down to hand Robbe the glass. When Robbe grabbed it, Sander gasped.

“Whoa,” he said, startling Robbe. 

“What?” Robbe asked, worried. “What’s wrong?”

Sander smiled. “It’s nothing. It’s just...your hand.”

“My hand?” Robbe asked, confused. He put the glass down on the coffee table next to the couch, lifting his hand to his face, confused.

Sander laughed. “Sorry, I just meant...here—” Suddenly, Sander grabbed his hand, his skin warm and soft against Robbe’s. Pulling it gently towards him, Sander turned his hand over and began tracing the lines on his palm. Lightly brushing a finger over a line near his wrist, Sander spoke. 

“Your fate line, this one here,” he said quietly. “It’s a little curved, just like mine. I’ve never...I’ve never seen anyone else’s look like that.”

Robbe didn’t know if he was breathing. He swallowed, trying to push out the words hanging on his tongue. Sander was still holding his hand with his.

“My fate line?” he finally asked, a little weakly.

Sander smiled. “Yeah, have you ever read about that? Palm reading?”

“No, I haven’t.” Robbe replied, trying to ignore the warmth spreading from Sander’s skin to the rest of his body.

“Yeah, I guess it’s kind of silly,” Sander said, brushing his finger again along the other lines on Robbe’s palm. “My mom was into it for a while. The lines and folds on your hands are supposed to form narratives about who you are and predict your future.” He smiled again, continuing with the lightest of touches. 

“There’s your fate line, head line, life line, sun line….and heart line,” at this last one, he traced the top line, closest to Robbe’s fingers. He looked up and Robbe felt his gaze on him. Meeting his own eyes with Sander’s, his stomach flipped.

 Their brief silence settled there, almost crackling between them with electricity. Robbe watched Sander’s eye slowly roam his face, flicking down almost imperceptibly to his lips. Before Robbe knew what was happening, he yanked his hand from Sander’s grasp, turning back towards his books. 

“So, anyway, we should probably get to work,” Robbe said in a firm tone. 

Sander was still for a moment before clearing his throat. 

“Robbe, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to—”

“You know what, Sander?” Robbe said, rising to stand. “This was probably a bad idea. I should...I should go.”

“What?” Sander stood, stepping towards Robbe. “Robbe, I—”

But Robbe stepped away again, hastily stuffing his books into his bag and zipping it forcefully. 

“I’ll see you at school tomorrow, Sander.” 

Before he reached the door, Sander called out behind him. 

“Robbe, wait.” 

Robbe was turning the handle. 

“Robbe, stop.” Sander’s voice was firm, deep. Robbe didn’t turn, but paused with his hand on the knob. He waited for Sander to speak again.

But it wasn’t his voice that reached Robbe. It was his hands, grabbing Robbe’s waist and flipping him around. Suddenly, all at once, his lips were on Robbe’s, hands reaching up to tangle in his hair, gripping a handful of locks tightly. 

Robbe’s surprise only lasted for a second, as he, without a second thought, opened his lips to Sander’s and wrapped his hands around his back. Feeling his touch, Sander pushed him hard against the door, bringing them even closer. Limbs tangled feverishly, fueled by a heavy need that surprised them both. Sander’s lips enveloped Robbe’s, explored them, held them, like he never wanted to let go. 

Robbe’s insides were like fireworks. Electricity coursed through him, bringing to life his every nerve, every muscle, every feeling. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t breathe. Sander slid down the side of Robbe’s face, kissing deeply into his cheek, his jaw, then his neck. Robbe let a small hum of pleasure escape his mouth, making Sander pause. His face still tucked into Robbe’s neck, he let himself catch his breath.

“Robbe,” he whined, whispering gently against his ear, his cheek pressed to Robbe’s. “Are you always going to hate me?”

Robbe pulled back slowly, letting Sander’s question hang in the air between them as he looked back at him. He tried to take deep breaths, form coherent words in his mind. When he faced Sander head-on, Sander’s face bore an ache, the ache of vulnerable, pleading, longing.

“Look, I am sorry for always teasing you, Robbe,” Sander said gently, stroking Robbe’s jaw with his thumb. “For joking about your size, for calling you Robin,” Sander smiled at this. “I don’t know why I did that for so long. I just…” 

Robbe waited, breathless. He couldn’t believe what was happening. He looked again into Sander’s face again. How had he never noticed that freckle on Sander’s cheek? Or how his eyes were more forest green than he’d thought? Like moss, soft, yet vibrant. He couldn’t believe he’d never really seen Sander before. Not like this.

“The desire just made me crazy,” he said, exhaling, trying to get the words right. “The tension between us just made me want you even more. But I’m not someone who’s good at just saying when they want something,” Sander continued. “And I want you. I’ve wanted you for a long time.”

With one last glance into his eyes, and with a new need that he couldn’t even understand, Robbe grabbed a fistful of Sander’s shirt and pulled him back against him. 

…..

After a while, the messages were getting hard to ignore. 

When his phone sounded a near endless buzz, Robbe had to finally get up off the bed and make sure there wasn’t an emergency. But not being in the tangle of blankets didn’t last long, as Sander quickly tugged on his shirt, pulled him back down into the bed against him. Wrapping his arms around him again, Sander sighed contentedly. 

Robbe smiled, turning to meet Sander’s lips for one quick, deep kiss before turning back to scan his messages. There were a handful from Milan, Zoe, and Senne, all checking in on his whereabouts. 

Zoe: r u coming home soon? I made dinner

Zoe: hello? 

Zoe: hey! r u ok? 

Senne: hey man, u ok?

Milan: stop studying and come home to rescue me. Zoe’s trying to feed us all salad SOS

Zoe: Robbe! Let me know ur ok please!

Senne: can you text Zoe please? She’s freaking out

Milan: uhm, hello?

Sander glanced over, laughing. 

“They care about you, a lot.” 

Robbe smiled back. “Yeah, they’re pretty much my family now.”

He pulled away only briefly to fire off a rapid group text to Zoe, Milan, and Senne: I’m ok. I’m at Sander’s...Be home tomorrow.

Silencing his phone and tossing it across the room and out of sight, he let Sander tackle him back down into the mattress, hovering lightly on top of him.

“Well, I hope they don’t mind sharing,” he purred, leaning into Robbe’s ear. “I don’t think I’m going to let you go anytime soon.”

Robbe melted underneath Sander, allowing him to match the rapid flutters in his stomach with a trail of kisses to his collarbone, his neck, his jawline, and finally, his lips. 

……

It was late the next day when Robbe finally got back to his apartment, with flushed cheeks and donning one of Sander’s t-shirts. He hadn’t wanted to leave Sander’s. In fact, Sander had begged him to stay, attempting to persuade him with soft, fleeting caresses along his thighs, lustful nips at his neck, and gentle tugs on the waistband of his underwear. It was driving Robbe crazy, and he almost couldn’t resist. 

After talking for hours on end, Sander laughing about their decade-long stand-off and the sexual tension he swore was there between them from the beginning, he admitted easily that he thought Robbe’s long hair was sexy, and he loved that he was small enough to be picked up and carried to the bed. 

This made Robbe laugh, a bright blush creeping up into his cheeks. He told Sander how much he loved his drawings, and that he knew how smart he was. He sheepishly admitted that he hadn’t stopped thinking about Sander’s abs since that moment in his bedroom. He wasn’t, however, relinquishing his hate for his boots, though. That was non negotiable. Joking about throwing them out the window, Sander shoved Robbe playfully, pushing him down to the mattress, pinning his wrists above his head in submission. 

Eventually, their talking had turned into kissing, then slowly into touching, and they spent that whole night, and nearly the whole next day exploring each other, learning and re-learning their real selves in relation to the other. It felt like magic.

But as the sun set on Saturday night, Robbe finally pulled himself out of Sander’s grasp, promising with a nearly never-ending series of kisses that he’d be back. 

As soon as he entered his apartment and shut the door, his three roommates bolted from the kitchen, crashing into each other as they collided in the hallway. When they saw Robbe, they started screeching, yelling and talking over each other.

“Oh. My. God. Robbe!” Zoe squealed, running up to him.

Milan leaned against the wall, clearly pleased with himself. “I told you. I so told you. Okay, so it was more than ten minutes. But still. I am always right about these things.” Senne stood next to Milan, smiling widely. 

“Okay, okay, calm down!” Robbe shouted, shushing them with a wave of his hands. “Calm down. It’s not a big deal. It’s—”

Zoe squealed again, bringing her hands to her face. “Oh my god. You are so in love with him, aren’t you?”

Everyone quieted, listening for his answer. Robbe could only blush.   

With more loud talking and excited chatter, Robbe let his roommates pull him into the kitchen, eagerly awaiting a full minute-by-minute detail of the last two days. 

“What happened?! You have to tell us everything,” Milan pleaded. “Seriously. Everything.” 

Before he dove in, he checked his phone. A message from Sander was waiting for him:

Our next study session is in my room, tomorrow. Don’t be late, Robin.

Robbe fired back. 

I think we’re going to get an A on this assignment. 

.................

OMG you guys I am so nervous to post this, I desperately hope it doesn’t disappoint. But plz let me know what you think — I need the feedback! And send me more of your prompts!! <3

[optimistic-dinosaur-nacho]

Chapter X

Story Rating: 14+

Warnings: Violence, Murder, Mentions of Murder, Language, Mentions of Rape, Drugs Mentioned Summary: Y/N is Andy and Laurie Barber’s 14-year-old daughter who is a high-grade student in Archer Middle School. Her best friend, Alice Miller had been gone for a while. They search for the lost student and find out that Alice Miller’s body has the prints of Andy and Laurie Barber’s daughter, Y/N.

Chapter I Chapter II Chapter III Chapter IV Chapter V Chapter VI Chapter VII Chapter VIII Chapter IX Chapter X Chapter XI Chapter XII Chapter XIII

---DEFENDING JACOB SPOILERS---

Just watched the last episode of Defending Jacob, can’t stop crying now

~~~

The drive was somewhat soothing. The music blasting in the car, one of Y/N’s songs she listens to 24/7 if Andy guessed she had. He glances over to see her sticking her head out the window, her hair up and not down to reach her shoulders. Revealing the traces of her jaw and her neck. 

Andy wanted to give Y/N some air. Not feel like she’s stuck in the house forever. Make her feel special. Taking her out fishing was more of a father and son thing, but she loved fishing.

A little father and daughter time out in the lake was better. 

Her hair flowing in the wind, some strands covering her forehead as she looks over to him and grins. “It’s pretty good, right?” She asks, referring to the song, “Admit it.”

Andy nods, “Yeah, it’s not bad. I like it better than the last one. It’s got kind of a Bryan Ferry thing going on,” He says.

“Who?” He heard her say, he turns over in shock. Mouth gaped as he tilts his head at her, “Who?” Y/N grins. “Oh,” He reaches for his phone, “I’m picking the next one.”

Y/N grins up at him and turns away to continue looking out. The two completely forgetting about the bad things that were happening. And looking forward to the good parts.

.

Y/N held onto her fishing rod as Andy nods at the man, “Thank you.” Andy comes over and grabbing the container along with his rod.

Y/N reached for the lures box and followed Andy. Setting up by the dock, Y/N grins at the lake in front of them. “I feel like we’re in a commercial. One of those father-daughter moments. Or maybe father-son moments.”

Andy smiles, throwing out his hook into the lake. “Can I ask you a question?” Y/N asked, Andy doesn’t respond but he welcomed her to ask. “Was it weird seeing your dad again?”

Andy squints up at the lake, thinking about what happened back there. Seeing his reflection match the side of his father’s. Haven’t seen him in 30 years probably.

“A little.”

Y/N turns, “He look the same?”

 “Yeah, pretty much. Older,” He shrugs. Y/N licks her lips and turns, “He was a dick to you, huh?” Andy chuckles at that, thinking she might’ve shared the same mind as him.

“That’s one way to put it,” He says. Y/N’s leg bounces up and turns to look at him again, “You hate him?” Andy thought about that. Sure, his father killed someone. Raped. But he was still a father to him.

“No,” He mumbles, “No, not really.”

“You don’t feel bad for him, do you?” She asks. Andy shakes his head, “No. Not at all.” After that, Y/N gotten quiet. It gave him the time to think about what last night was. 

“I’m sorry you had to go through that,” She says, cutting up his thoughts, Andy looked over, “You wouldn’t have had to go see him if it wasn’t for me.” Andy cranes his neck back.

“Hey,” He says, “Hey, listen to me.” Y/N looks over, “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you, okay? Nothing,” He says. Y/N looks away from him and gently nods. It all got quiet for a second, Y/N learning to process what was going on with their lives right now.

What would happen in the future. Andy thought about the party. The thing Sarah had said and the reason why Y/N always tried to shut him out. He probably has the chance now.

“Look... I know this isn’t what you don’t want to talk about, but it’s my job to know what happened at that party. If that happened to you, I need to know who and what.”

Y/N lowers her head, “I don’t remember.” Andy nods at her, “Just try. Start from the beginning when you got there.” Y/N stared at her hands gripping the rod. Swallowing hard, she breathes in shakily.

“I just remembered getting there and Alice was already starting to drink. She kept forcing me to do it.”

“So you took the drink?” Andy asked, Y/N nods, afraid to answer about it. “Then I remembered just that before I woke up... and I realized I was in a bedroom.” Andy shuffles in his seat. 

He knew what happened now. Who knew if Alice asked for Y/N’s pics and she never responded, getting the chance to rape his daughter at a party. Possibly drugs in the drink. Or Derek might’ve done it. Him and Henry could’ve done something to his daughter.

Maybe when Y/N was left in the bedroom, Derek found out about it and killed Alice for it. Or if that middle-aged man who was short enough to act like one of the high schoolers ended up sexually touching his daughter.

Andy tried not to look upset about the possibilities of who done this to her. Derek could’ve wanted to draw himself away because of what he did to Y/N. Between three or four people who could’ve touched his daughter in that way.

He had to tell Joanna about this. He hoped Y/N could possibly get out with this and be proven innocent.

Y/N’s leg bounces again, “Dad...”

Andy looks over to her, seeing her eyes look around the lake as if she was looking for someone or something to help her give her some soothe. “I’m scared.”

His eyes soften, “I know you are. Believe me, if I could take your place, I would. In a minute.” Y/N nods, “I know. It’s just all I think about sometimes. Going to jail.”

“We’re not going to let that happen.”

Y/N somewhat grins, “Bribe the jury?” Andy grins softly at her, “Trial’s still eight weeks out, sweetheart.”

“Seven weeks, three days,” She corrects, Andy nods, giving her some optimistic, “That’s still a lot of time. Anything can happen between now and then. And if we go to trial, we’re gonna fight harder than anyone’s ever fought. They gotta convince all 12 jurors. We just gotta convince one.”

Y/N looked over, him spotting the hint of gloss in her eyes. “Look, I know it’s hard, sweetheart, but why don’t you leave the worrying to me, okay?” Y/N looks away as he follows her gaze out to the lake.

He gently grins, “You wanna make yourself useful? Catch us some dinner.” Y/N smiled.

.

“That was fun. Thanks, dad,” Y/N says, Andy stares at the ground, thinking  about something to do at home, “Movie night?” He asks. Y/N shrugs, “Sure.” He looks up to the shack, holding the cooler in hand. “You wanna choose or should I?” He asked.

Y/N thinks, “Um... Are there any good Eddie Murphy ones I haven’t seen yet?” She asked. Andy nods, “Yeah, absolutely. Let me think.” Andy flinches when his phone began to rang.

He reached into his jean pocket and pulled it out, “Hang on a second, honey.” He reads the caller as Joanna and he took a walk over to the boat, answering, “Joanna.”

“I tried you earlier. It kept going to voice mail,” She says.

“Yeah, sorry, we’re in a bad area,” He replies. “CPAC has Alice’s phone. Derek turned it over,” She said. Andy pauses, “Really?”

“I just brought a motion to compel. If there is anything on that phone, we’ll get to see it. Logiudice looked like he just locked his keys in his car.”

Andy pierced his lips together, “Yeah, I bet.”

“Oh, and I have more news. I got a message from Liz Vogel when I was at the courthouse. Apparently your father’s had a change of heart,” She states. Andy lifts his head up, “What do you mean?”

“He’s agreed to give a DNA sample. She’s going back to the prison to pick it up first thing in the morning,” Joanna says. Andy goes silent as he turns out to the lake. William from being the asshole who didn’t help last time, he finally chosen to do the test.

What made him change his mind?

“Andy, did I lose ya?” Joanna asked. Andy turns back, “No, I’m here. Just... You sure he’s not messing with us?”

“It doesn’t sound that way. Listen, I have to go. We’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”

Andy nods, “Okay. Thanks, Joanna.”

“Bye-bye.” Andy hangs up and slips his phone back into his pocket to join back with his daughter who watched him closely. “What’s wrong?” She asked. Andy shakes his head, “Nothing. That was actually good news.”

Y/N turns and glances at him, “Tell your face.” Andy cranes his neck back, “Ha ha ha...” He fake laughs.

.

Once they returned home, surely enough, the family of four watched a movie in the living room. Milo at Andy’s feet, he reaches over and pets the dog’s head before returning to the movie.

Laurie and Y/N laughed at the movie causing Andy to look over just like he did every movie night. Seeing his family smile, haven’t seen them do that for a while now.

As if everything that was happening to them washed away. Only to have it grow back like mold on wood. 

After that movie, Laurie decided to clean up in the kitchen after Y/N had gone to bed. Coming over to stand behind her by the sink, Andy drops the dishes in the sink and washed them out. Laurie doing the same at the counter.

Not turning around to face her, he spoke, “You went to go see him today, didn’t you?” He asked. Laurie pauses at the question while Andy faces her. “You got him to change his mind,” He adds.

Laurie wipes down the counter, “We only talked for a few minutes. He wasn’t as scary as I thought he would be.” Andy shakes his head, “You didn’t have to do that.”

Laurie turns around, facing her husband, nodding, “Yes, I did.” A few seconds into gazing at each other, she slowly shook her head. “What?” Andy asked. She sincerely looked into his eyes that seem to be red at the slightest.

“You have his eyes.”

He stared blankly at her, he felt a punch feeling to the chest but it didn’t feel negative. He wasn’t so sure what he felt. Was she referring to a murderer’s eyes or someone who could be a good man. Someone who could change. 

Who knew if Y/N shared the same eyes. Would Laurie say the same to her?

That night, Andy watched Laurie sleep soundly next to him. Thinking that she did all of that to see someone she never heard much about, to do one small but huge thing for her daughter. Their daughter.

Laurie wasn’t scared to see him. Braver than Andy was. Just then, his phone buzzed on his nightstand. Turning onto his side, he sees the unknown caller ID and he pulled it up to his ear.

“Hello?”

The loud metal music screamed in his ear, no one was answering. “Who is this?” He asked. The caller didn’t respond, he thought this was some prank caller. “Hello?” His phone beeps three times to indicate they hung up and he stared at the screen and placed his phone back.

 He exhales softly, leaning back on the bed. The phone buzzes again, he groans, “Damn it.” Reaching over again, he sees the same Unknown ID caller and answers the phone, “Hello?”

The same heavy metal music played in the back, “Look, either have the guts to say something or don’t call this number again,” He growls. The caller hangs up again and Andy stares at his screen.

.

Madelyn groans, throwing her phone on the bed, “Fuck!” Dropping onto her bed, she lifts up the bong to her lips, using her lighter, the water bubbles. “Maddie,” Her mother calls, she pulls away and blows out the smoke, “Turn down the music!” 

Reaching for her hair, she lightly tugs and ignored her mother’s calls. Dropping fully on her back, she stared at the ceiling. Her teeth gritting against each other at the thought of what the man spoke about.

About Leonard Patz.

.

Ten days before the trial, Joanna had called about the phone Derek had turned it yesterday. She wanted Andy to come over for them to check out the phone’s data and what Alice may have been doing behind everyone’s backs.

Something they can tie in with the case.

Find a way that Y/N isn’t guilty. 

“Hey, Mr. B,” The man at the food truck spoke, an old friend of Andy’s, “I thought that was you.” Andy turns and grinned, “Hey, Bobby. How you doing?”

Bobby nods, “Not too bad. Can I get you something off the truck?”

“No,I’m okay. Just waiting for somebody,” Andy replies. The man nods, “All right. Well... stay strong for your family, okay?” He points. Andy turns away from him and looked down at his feet, hearing the door open from the courthouse.

“Andy,” Joanna spoke, he turns, “They’re ready for us.” He nods, following Joanna inside the courthouse over to the room where they’ll be going through his phone.

Walking up the stairs, they meet the hall. Andy spotted Neal at the end speaking to a fellow staff. Andy’s gaze seem to get tougher. “Ignore him. He can moan all he wants. The judge already ruled on the phone,” Joanna states.

Neal looks up to them and glared, going back to the files in his hands. “Mr. Barber has every right to be here, Neal,” She said, catching his look of oh-god-he’s-here.

Neal looked up, “Well, technically I could argue that he doesn’t since he’s a possible witness in the case, but I’m letting it slide.” Andy squints up at him. Joanna grins, “What a mensch.”

Neal grins back. Andy jumps in, “You’re not going in there with us, if that’s what you think was gonna happen.” Neal shook his head, “Of course not. I already examined the cell phone.”

Joanna nods, “We are well aware.”

He shook his head again, “I was up here for something else unrelated. I do have other cases.” Joanna shuffles, “Goodbye, Neal. And the next time you want to conceal evidence from us, don’t.”

Neal stood there as the two walk into the room. Before Andy could reach the room, Neal spoke, “Oh, I’ve been meaning to ask,” He says. Andy turns. Neal looks over to him, “How’s your father, Andy?”

Andy stops and turns fully to him, “What’d you say?”

Neal blinks at him, “I asked about your father.” Andy’s glare began to be feral. Angered. Neal continue to agitate him, “How’s he doing?” Andy steps up. “You know, I knew criminal law was a passion of yours, but...” 

Andy was just a feet away from him, “I had no idea it was the family business-Whoa!” Neal shouts as Andy grabs him by his suit and shoves him back. “You think this is a joke? Do you!” Andy growls, jerking him forward.

Pam rushes over, “Hey! Hey, Andy!” She pulls him off. “Come on, Andy!” Joanna says. Andy shrugs her off and storms out of the halls. “Jesus,” Neal hisses. Andy grits his teeth, “Fuck.”

“Don’t lecture me about concealing things,” Neal spoke, Andy turns back to walk back till Joanna steps in front. “Just let it go,” She says. Neal reaches down for his files. Pam holds her hand up, Andy panting furiously at her, “Hey.” Andy turns back around.

“I will say this,” Neal says, “It explains a lot, Andy, about you, about your daughter.” Andy reaches for his face, grazing his beard as his teeth grit in frustration and anger. 

The whole scene now made him feel like this family has some signs of aggressiveness. Closing his eyes, he tried to calm himself down, releasing an exhale through his nose. He dropped his head, “Damn it.”

The two women look over to him, “Detective, are you ready for us?” Joanna asked. Pam nods, “Yeah.” Andy turns around to face them. Pam looks over, “You okay?”

He sighed, holding his hands up, “Sorry.” He turns away and shakes off the tension in his limps. The women began to walk over to the room so Andy follows behind, keeping his head low.

Joanna turns to face him, “We knew he’d find out sooner or later. It’s fine,” She whispers, she gently pulls his arm to bring his attention to her when he looks out. “Andy, we’re already ahead of it.”

He nods as they walk in towards the table, sitting down. “That’s the passcode her parent’s provided,” Pam says, “Take all the time you need.”

“Thank you, Detective.”

Once Pam walked out the door, Andy folded his hands together. “I should’ve told you this sooner but I found out what happened at that party.” Joanna looks over, “About what?”

Andy sighs, “From what I’m hearing, Y/N was drugged and sexually assaulted.” Joanna’s face drops and turns to him. “Andy... Are you sure this happened?”

Andy shakes his head, “I wish it didn’t. We don’t know who it was... If Leonard was caught on the same night in that park, it could’ve been him or Derek.” Joanna shakes her head, “It would be no use if Alice was the one to do it cause she wouldn’t be charge either way.”

Andy drew his eyes toward the bag as Joanna lifts it up. “We’ll figure it out another time. We have something in front of us that could help.” Joanna turns the phone on, showing a photo of her and a familiar face.

Milo.

Alice liked Milo. Her parents didn’t allow her to have dogs but the only close one was the Barber’s dog. After that, they looked through her phone.

.

The session had gone on for a while now, Laurie had been staring at the same painting on the wall to zone out. Mouth gaped, she didn’t even realize she was doing, she turned away from the picture and heard the door open.

Laurie picks up her purse and stands up, Y/N walking out with her hands in her sweatshirt. Vogel comes out, “Sorry to keep you,” She says. Laurie nods, “That’s okay.” Her eyes look toward Y/N, “Hey.” Placing her hand on her daughter’s shoulder, Y/N ignored her gaze and slightly ignored the small gesture of Laurie’s hand.

Laurie draws her eyes back, “Same time next week?”

“Actually, today was our last session.”

Laurie pauses, “Oh. I didn’t realize. So then-”

Vogel gestures slightly, “So then you and Andy are scheduled to meet me with Joanna at the end of next week, the 17th, I believe. We can go over everything then,” Vogel states.

“The 17th?” Laurie asks.

“That okay?”

Laurie turns and gestures to Y/N, “Yeah, no, it’s just. That’s Y/N’s birthday,” She says. “Oh. Um...  Well, if you want, we can just--”

“No, it-it’s fine. Uh, she has her tutor that day, actually so...” Vogel nods. “All right.” Laurie looks over to Y/N, “Ready?” Y/N turns and took a step, “Yeah.” Laurie looks over to Vogel in confusion. What did she say to make Y/N so stumped?

“She’s probably a little talked out.”

Laurie manages to nod, “I’ll see you next week.” Vogel grins, “Right. Take care, Y/N. Happy early birthday.”  Y/N shoots a look at Vogel before replying a grumbled, “Bye.” She was the first to leave and Laurie looks at Vogel once again.

Only to have the doctor smile at her so Laurie gives her one last nod before following Y/N out of the building.

.

The drive was oddly quiet. Usually Y/N would speak throughout the whole drive back about her tutor or talk about her birthday coming up. Laurie was growing concern, “You’re quiet.” She stole glances at Y/N. Her daughter stole the next, “How was your session?” Laurie asked.

Y/N sighs, “It was fine. Annoying.”

“Annoying?” Laurie asked. Y/N looks out, “She just asks me the same questions every week, or different versions of them. When I call her out, she plays dumb... or at least tries. As if she didn’t realize she already asked me.”

Laurie gently shakes her head, “She’s only trying to help us.”

Y/N licks her chapped lips, “If you say so.” The seconds in, Y/N’s phone dings. Looking at the corner of her eye, she sees Y/N slip her phone out. “Who’s that?” She asked.

Y/N ignores her and began to type on her phone, “Y/N, who are you texting-?”

“Nobody. Dylan,” She says. Laurie tilts her head, “Dylan Stone?” Y/N’s phone dings again, “He’s at a sleepaway camp. This kid doesn’t believe he knows me so he’s trying to prove it,” Y/N grins.

The thought of her being popular around the country of being a murderer wasn’t what Laurie wanted to happen. The texting was selfish. Not right in her perspective. Very childish.

“How’s Matthew and Sarah? Haven’t heard their names in a while.” Y/N and Laurie look at each other for a second. Laurie turns away, “It’s good for you to have someone your own age to talk to.”

Y/N scratches the back of her head, “We’re not talking, so...”

Laurie looks over, “Is that your doing, or--”

“Mom, please. Don’t,” Y/N interrupts. Laurie stops and glanced at Y/N. Always had the habit to shut her out. Just like Andy would do.

.

Sent by Alice Got back my math test. 92!!

From Eric Amazing!

From Marla Super proud! We’ll celebrate at dinner, babygirl!

Andy looks over the messages in the phone and came across every small thing that just didn’t feel wrong to him. Just simple happiness to the family and prove how innocent they were.

A happy family

Sent by Alice Grace is coming over after soccer!

From Marla Is she staying for dinner?

Sent by Alice I’ll ask :)

The next conversation was between her and her dad, Eric. The game that happened to not come across to Alice. A soccer game that happened to be a week after Alice’s death.

From Eric PHOTO Got us tix for next week

Sent by Alice Awesome, thanks daddy!

Andy continued to scroll through the messages. The only names who were recent was her parents. It slowly broke his heart to see how much their family was just like his before everything came crashing down.

From Marla PHOTO Aunt Lisa just sent this. So cute!

The door opens to Joanna who walked in with two cups of coffee, she sat down and placed a cup in front of Andy. “Thanks,” He mumbles, he reaches over and takes a sip of it. “Anything?” Joanna asks.

Andy slowly shook his head.

.

The five hours of searching through Alice’s phone, Joanna began to sign the form for people who were last to check Alice’s phone for safety reasons. A check-in and check-out form to be exact. 

“Thanks, Detective,” Joanna says, handing her the clipboard, Pam nods, “Yeah. You got it.” Joanna’s phone began to ring as she lifts it up and glances at Andy who leaned in the doorway. “It’s my office,” She says, “Can you give me a minute?”

Andy nods, “Yeah.” Hearing her voice answer the phone, Andy kept his head low as he stared at his feet. Without knowing, Pam watched him stand there and she took the courage to walk up.

“Hey,” She says.

Andy looks up for a second to say, “Hey,” back. His head still hangs low as she  sighs softly,  “Listen, I just want you to know, I think it was fucked up, what Logiudice did.”

Andy lifts up his head, “Nah. He was being a lawyer. If I was in his place, I’d probably try to bury the phone too.” Pam shakes her head, “No, I think you would have thought about it, but you would have done the right thing... That’s not what I was referring to though,” She says.

Andy looks over to her and slightly changes his footing, putting his right foot over the other, “You mean what he said about my father,” He nods, “Everybody knows, huh?”

“Started going around yesterday. You know how people talk around here.” Andy sighs, knowing if people could gossip when Andy’s not working no more, they could say anything about him or his father.

“What have you heard?” He asked.

Pam stared, blankly, “That he’s serving life at Northern for rape and murder one.” Andy lifts up his hand and slowly breathed in, “He went in when I was a kid.” He looks over to Pam.

She lowers her chin, “I take it Laurie knows?” Andy turns away, “She does now. Y/N too.” Pam lowers her head next, taking her feet over to stand in front of him before speaking.

“I have a brother,” She spoke, “I told you about him.”

Andy lifts up his head, “Yeah.” She nods, “So I know what that’s like, carrying something like that around.” Andy couldn’t speak as his lips close shut as she sighs. “Listen, my hands are mostly tied on this case, but, you know... if you need any more of my help you know how to reach me.”

Andy nods at her, “Thank you.”

“Don’t underestimate him. He sounds real sure he’s gonna win. Too sure,” She says. Andy thought over confidence could somewhat be embarrassing. Proven wrong it could really change you, especially for something big like this.

Footsteps began to approach the two and Joanna comes up with a small grin. “Shall we go?” She asked. Andy looks over, “Let’s go.” Andy turns to Duff and gently winks at her.

“Thanks, Duff.”

Following beside Joanna, she spoke, “That was my assistant Ellen. She has a niece Y/N’s age,” Andy looks over, “They live in Needham, but you know how all the kids know each other these days.”

Andy and her continued to walk as she looked at him again, “It seems Y/N has been going online again.” Andy comes to a stop and looks at Joanna.

God dammit.

.

Andy busts through the door and slams it, “Y/N!” He calls. Laurie turns to Andy’s calling and sees him walk in quickly. He spots Laurie and stops, “Where’s Y/N?” Milo rushes in and began to wag his tail at his boss’s presence.

Laurie had the change look of worry and confusion, “Upstairs. How did it go with the phone?” Andy grits his teeth and clenched his fists, “It was a bust,” Turning his heel, he rushes upstairs. “Y/N!”

Laurie stands up from the table and follows behind.

Andy storms into Y/N’s room, seeing her on her laptop. “Are you May Kobbs?” He asks, harshly. Y/N perked up and Laurie comes in. Andy’s fists go pale, “Answer me, damn it!”

“Andy,” Laurie says.

Y/N crosses her legs, “It’s not that big of a deal,” She mutters. Andy’s brows furrow in anger, Laurie looked confused and scared. “Don’t tell me what’s not a big deal! Show your mother. Show her what you’ve been up to,” He says.

Y/N swallows thickly as she goes onto the account. Andy shakes his head as he heard the typing. Turning her screen, Laurie sees the post. 

May Kobbs What people think of me

The photo was a photoshop of Y/N’s face on Patrick Bateman, the American Psycho film. With only one follower and one post. Laurie’s face drops, “Shit. Y/N!” She says.

Y/N lowers her head, “It’s just a dumb joke.”

“Do you have any idea what this looks like?” Andy asks, “Joking about being a murder suspect?” Y/N looks up to him, “It’s not like anyone even knows who it is,” She stammers.

“Everybody knows!” Andy shouts and leans forward, “How do you think I know?” Laurie drops her hand, “Andy, calm down.” He looks over but quickly whips back towards Y/N.

“This-” His hand lifts up, “-is damaging. This is evidence, and you’re either too stupid or too arrogant to know the difference.” Y/N’s eyes began to get glossy. “I’m not stupid.”

“Then what’s wrong with you?” Andy asks.

“Nothing! You’re making too big of a deal out of this,” She says. “Do you have any idea what they’re gonna do with this picture?” Andy asks, he lifts his arm up, “They’re gonna wave it around in front of the jury and they’re gonna say it shows consciousness of guilt. That’s the phrase they’re gonna use.”

Y/N lowers her head and a tear streams down her cheek, “They’re gonna say this is how Y/N Barber sees herself, a psycho!” Laurie throws a look at her husband, “And they’re gonna use that word over and over again.”

“Andy, enough,” Laurie says.

“Jesus Christ,” Andy grits, turning to the door, “Do you know what’s at stake?” He asks, turning back, “Do you realize what they want to do to you?” Laurie gapes at him, “Stop it already.” Y/N had more tears fall down her redden cheeks. “You’re scaring her!”

“Good!” He shouts, turning to his daughter, “She should be scared! I’m scared!” Y/N drew her eyes down and inhaled slowly, “It was just a joke. I can delete it.”

“That doesn’t mean it goes away,” Andy says, his shoulders heaving up and down and the look of fear and anger. Y/N gently wipes her cheeks with her sleeves. “Okay. I’m sorry.”

“You can’t do things like this, Y/N. You just can’t,” Andy says. She swayed a bit, shaking at the slightest, “I said I’m sorry.”

Laurie looks over, “I think she should delete it anyway.” Andy sighs, nodding, “You’re goddamn right she’s gonna delete it. She’s gonna delete it right now.”

Y/N sniffles and reaches for her laptop, beginning to delete it, “This can’t happen again,” Andy says, “I need to know you understand that.” Y/N taps on her keyboard and nods, “I do. There,” She turns the screen, “It’s gone.”

The account may_kobbs has been permanently deleted. 

After that, Laurie walks out of her room. Leaving Andy there with his daughter. She slammed her laptop close and curled up on her side. Andy slowly lowered his head and shook it, placing his hands on his hips. “I’m sorry I yelled.”

Y/N doesn’t respond, eyes closed, hoping that all this was just some nightmare and open her eyes to see her dad not standing there any longer. “I shouldn’t have lost my temper. I just...” He walks over and sits on the edge of her bed, by her feet.

“I’m trying to look out for you, honey. You gotta understand that-”

“Just leave me alone...” She mumbles.  Andy looks over, “Y/N-”

“Please...” Her voice cracks in sorrow, the voice filled with tears and fear. She brought her feet closer to her and Andy saw that. Taking it as a sign, he looks away, “Okay,” He softly says.

He stands up but then stops, to say something but she spoke. “Okay, so go,” She says. Andy lowers his head and began to walk out. Y/N gently shuffles, “There’s nothing wrong with me,” She adds. Andy turns to her, “I know exactly what they’re going to do to me. I don’t need you to tell me that...”

The moment Andy heard her, he stopped. Not knowing what to say, he knew nothing was wrong with her. She was just a kid and she doesn’t know what they could see on the media. He just left her without another word.

.

Laurie pours in water and dog food into Milo’s bowl late at night as he took a small sniff and trotted away. She spotted Andy on his laptop, scanning through the webs. 

His eyes burned at the screen

All in the Family: Convicted Murderer “Bloody Billy” Barber Spawns a New Criminal Generation

“Are you gonna take out the garbage out, or should I?” Laurie asks, looking over to him. His shoulders were down as his finger grazes over the pad, “It’s everywhere.”

Laurie drops her head and shrugs, “It is what it is.” Andy continued to scan the websites and reports of his father. 

A few minutes later, Andy walks out with the can rolling behind him. Milo was out in the front sniffing around for moles or weeds in the grass as Andy pulls up to the curb with the can and parked it.

Andy glanced down the road and spotted a car parked in front of his neighbor’s house. He could see a faint light in the car from the cigarette being dragged and the smoke flowing out of their car window.

That car was familiar to him as he turned back and walked up the stairs, glancing over, “Milo, come.” The dog snorts and follows Andy up the stairs. Stepping through the front door, he lets Milo in and closes it. 

“Have you noticed an old blue car on the block recently? A Lincoln?” Andy asks Laurie in the kitchen. His wife looks up, “No. I don’t think so. Why? Who is it?” Andy shakes his head, “I don’t know. I saw him idling in front of the MacGreeveys’ house the other day. And now he’s in front of the Parson’s.”

No further questions were asked as Laurie followed Andy outside to see this blue car parked out in the street. Looking down the road, right to left, Andy didn’t see the car. Laurie shivered slightly and crosses her arms, “Where?” She asked.

Andy looked over to where he spotted the car, “It’s gone.” She follows his gaze as he turns, “It’s probably nothing. It’s okay.” Gently placing his hand on his wife’s back, he follows her back into the house and they got ready for bed.

That night, at 3 am, Andy woke up to the sound of his phone buzzing. Turning onto his side, he peers down at his phone and saw the Unknown Caller once again.

Prank callers.

He gripped his phone and pulled it up to his ear, “Look, I don’t know who this is, but if you keep calling this number--”  He cuts off to the familiar female voice. “Who?”

He then remembers who they were. “Oh, right, right,” He pulls the sheets off him, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, of course I remember.” He pauses once they started talking more. “When?”

Thinking he may need to write this down, he goes over to his notepad on his stand and grabbed a pen. “Okay. All right. I’ll find it.”

.

Just minutes after that call, Andy takes a night drive to the pizza parlor. Just across from Domino’s, Andy walks across the street and swings the door open. Seeing the blonde hair at one of the booths, he walks over.

Madelyn turns to see him come in view. “Hey,” She greets, Andy slides in the booth, “What’s going on?” He asked. She runs a hand through her disheveled hair, “Look, I’m sorry I called you so late. It’s just--” “Yeah, that’s okay,” Andy says, “It’s okay. What’s up?” Madelyn glanced up at him a few times, her eyes began to gaze around. He leans forward, “Madelyn,” His hands hold out to her in a ‘what?’

“You said you had something to tell me.”

She nods, “I do. It’s just...” Her hands tap on the wooden table nervously. Andy lifts up his head, thinking about that Lincoln earlier, “Wait. Are you the one who’s been coming to my house?” He asked.

Madelyn furrows her brows, “What?”

Guess not. Andy shuffles in his seat, “Nothing. Nothing. Forget it. Go.” Madelyn sighs, “I wasn’t gonna say anything ‘cause, I mean, what’s it my business? But I can’t fucking sleep. It’s, like, on me--”

Andy shakes his head, “Madelyn, I have no idea what you’re talking about-”

“Your girl...” She cuts him off, she shook her head.

“She didn’t do it.”

.

“Tell me about Leonard Patz. Where did you meet him?” Lynn asks. That next day, Andy asked Madelyn to somewhat explain everything towards the DA who could prove something that Leonard Patz could be attached to this case and prove that his daughter is innocent.

Madelyn and her mother both sat at the table with Duff, Andy, Joanna and Lynn. Neal was behind Andy listening. Madelyn had her blonde hair up in a ponytail, acrylic nails were almost half chewed or the polish was rubbing off. “I was at C&M. You know, the pizza place,” She replies.

“When was this?” Lynn asked.

“About a year ago. Last summer,” Madelyn says, Lynn raises her brows, “So you were 15 at the time?” The girl nods, “Yeah.”

“This morning is the first I heard about any of this,” Maddie’s mother says, Lynn nods at her. “I understand. Please continue.” Andy looks over to the teenager. “Anyway, Patz comes up to me and asked if I wanted something to eat. He said he’d buy me whatever I wanted if I’d sit with him, ‘cause he hated eating alone.”

Neal shoots a look at the back of Andy’s head before he looks over to the kid, “So I said fine. I mean... It’s free food,” Madelyn says, “So then we’re eating, and he tries to sound like some tough guy to impress me or whatever, you know, and I’m playing along, letting him think I can’t tell what a loser he is. And after a while, he starts talking about his sweet apartment, and how he’s got all this beer there, and if I wanna go back and hang out with him.”

“And did you?” Lynn asks.

Madelyn shakes her head, “Hell, no. I knew what he wanted. Straight up told him I wasn’t going nowhere with him, but...” She pauses to take a deep breath through her nose, she glanced over to her mom. “Maybe if he had some money, we could work something out.”

“Go on,” Lynn says.

“So, he says he’ll give me 5 bucks if he can touch me over my shirt. So, I told him I’d let him do it for a hundred,” She says. “And he agreed?” Lynn confirms. The teenager nods, “Yeah, like, right away. So after that we’d meet up here and there whenever he had some cash, do the same thing, just different places.”

Her mother looks away with an unexplained look. “He never tried for more?” Lynn asks. “Well, one time he asked if he could reach his hand down my shorts, but I told him I’d break his fucking arm.”

“How’d he react?” Lynn asks. Madelyn shrugs, “He backed off quick.”

“And these meetups, how many were there in total?”

“I don’t know, six. Maybe seven.”

“Including the one at the library?” Lynn asks. She nods, “Yeah, that was the last time. Leonard said he didn’t wanna pay me anymore. I told him if he didn’t, I’d report him, so I did.”

Neal stands up,  “I’m sorry. I-- I don’t see how this relates to our case,” He says. “Well, you see, that was his whole reason for dropping me. He said there was this new kid he was into, some kid named Alice and some other, he didn’t mention. Said to have h/c hair.” Andy’s shuffled in his seat.  

“Just Alice and the h/c girl, or did he give a last name?”

“No, but I know it was the same kid ‘cause of the park. He was gonna make a move after this party he heard. That’s where Leonard met her,”  Madelyn says. “So you’re saying Patz knew Alice Miller?” Lynn asks.

Neal rolls his eyes and sits back down. “I don’t think he actually knew her. But he spoke to her a couple times. Mostly just watched her,” Madelyn said. “Did he say anything else about Alice and this other girl?”

“Just that she was ‘beautiful’ and ‘perfect’. He used those words,” Maddie replies. Lynn looks and nods at her, “That’s all?” Madelyn slowly nods. “Yeah.” Glancing over to Y/N Barber’s father, she saw his brows raise up.

She inhales sharply, “Oh, shit, wait. He also had a knife.” Neal scoffs at that. “I only saw it once, but he carried it around sometimes, you know, in case someone gives him shit. Anyway, he tried to give it to me for money once time. I told him to fuck off.”

“What did it look like?” Lynn asks. Madelyn shrugs, “A knife, you know? With those little teeth on the side of it. It was kind of sick actually.” Lynn furrows her brows and blinks up at her. “Why did it take you this long to come forward?”

“Well, I mean, I got kind of a record, you know, with the whole possession charge, and lying about the library thing. I just wanted to stay out of it, you know? I heard his kid was getting blamed for it and I just kept thinking about--”

“Wait a second,” Neal interrupts, he stood up, “Did Mr. Barber compel you to come forward?”

Madelyn looks over to her mom and smiled, “Compel me?”

“Did you feel pressured in any way by Mr. Barber?” Lynn asks, Andy turns, “She called me with this.” Lynn looks over to him, “Please let her answer, Andy.” The two look back at the girl.

“No, I mean, he came to me first. I didn’t tell him anything, and so I guess, I don’t know, it was a little bit of both.”

“Yes or no? Were you coached in any way by Mr. Barber?” She asks. Madelyn laughs, “No, what I told you three is the truth. I got no reason to lie.” Neal perks up, “Really?” Madelyn looks up to him, “‘Cause you’ve made it pretty clear that you’d do a lot of things for money.”

Madelyn’s mouth gapes at the man. Joanna shakes her head, “Oh, that’s outrageous.” Mrs. McGrath scoffs, “The fuck? That’s my daughter you’re talking about.”

“Neal,” Lynn says, sternly. He looks at her and silently turns away without another word. Madelyn sighs, “Can I go now?” Lynn nods, “Thank you for coming in. I’m sure this wasn’t easy. Detective Duffy will take down your information in case we need to talk with you again.”

The two nod and stand up from their chairs, Duff steps behind them as they walked out quietly, leaving Lynn, Andy, Joanna and Neal in the room. Lynn turns to Andy, “I don’t know what to make of that girl’s story or how you cam to hear of it.”

Andy cranes his neck back, Neal nods, “I don’t believe a word of it.” Lynn looks over to him, “It’s too convenient. I can’t believe we’re entertaining this,” He whispers the last sentence.

Turning away, Lynn thinks about this Leonard Patz. It wouldn’t hurt to look in his house, if he’s been after a kid named Alice and some other girl that could be linked to Y/N. They needed answers.

Lynn glances at Andy who quirks his brows up for an answer. She sighs, “We’ll write up a search warrant for Patz’s home.” Neal turns away in defeat. “See if we can turn up a knife,” She adds.

Andy shuffles in approval, trying not to grin.

“Thank you.”

~~~

The season finale is tomorrow, but that doesn’t mean, my story ends now.

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[bssaz97]

How would the team especially Ruby react to Dracula Jaune (or Jaune D(racula) Arc)? Also does his semblance evolve? Like how he can give people his aura, it evolves where he can take others. Like how Dracula takes the life force/blood of his victims?

Ruby: Guys! I found Jaune! He’s over here!

Jaune Arc has been captured by Salem’s faction for Two. Whole. Months. But finally the group had been able to find where he was being kept and now they were going to bust him out. Thankfully Winter, Marrow and FNKI had defected from Ironwood’s military and decided to aid them in rescuing Jaune after they broke them out of captivity. They had barely escaped Ironwood’s clutches but now she had Jaune back. In order to avoid their Atlas pursuers the group decides to split up. One group (Oscar, Winter, Blake, Yang, FNKI, Penny, Pietro, Maria, Marrow, Robyn and Happy Huntresses) goes to Shade Academy in Vacuo while the others (Ruby, Weiss, Nora, Ren and Qrow) go to search for Jaune.

The odd thing was that they had kept Jaune in a vat of red liquid that she couldn’t immediately recognize but that could be looked at later. Although upon closer examination, Jaune looked quite paler and looked to be sleeping without a mask on. Soon enough Ruby blasted the control module and soon enough the tank emptied and Jaune slowly dropped to the ground. After a few seconds the tank opened and Ruby rushes to Jaune’s side, cradling his form in her arms.

Ruby: Jaune? Jaune, can you hear me? Are you ok?

When she received no response, Ruby began to panic and quickly checked his breathing. It was...slow, very slow. Next she moved her head towards his bare chest to hear his heartbeat.

*Ba....................................Bump!*

Ruby: Oh gods, please just let that be a part of my imagination.

Weiss: Ruby what’s taking so long?!

Ruby: He’s unconscious! I need someone to help me carry him.

Ren: I can-

Nora: I’LL HELP HIM. You just cover us!

Ren: ...Ok then.

Nora goes to Ruby’s side and together they carry Jaune out of the tank and then the group started to make their escape. As the group started making their way out of the base, they had to move quickly if they wanted to get out of there in one piece. Their group had made it outside and were making their way to their smuggled Manta ship, they were gonna make it out.....That is until a group of Atlesian soldiers came out of hiding and pointed their guns at them, Ironwood at point.

Everyone: Aw shit.

Ironwood: Sorry to interrupt your little rescue mission but but I believe you all will be coming with me now.

Qrow: Look James I know a lot of shit happened during the Fall of Mantle but that doesn’t mean we should keep aiming at each other’s throats.

Ironwood: Save it Qrow. From where I stand all I see are fugitives who are just as much a threat to the safety of Remnant as is Salem. Also if my memory serves me well, not only has your group acquired two stolen Atlas Mantas, taken the power of the Winter Maiden, corrupted my chain of command, and escaped Atlesian custody, you are also responsible for the death of many of my best men.

Ruby: Clover’s death wasn’t our fault it was Tyrian.

Ironwood: And Qrow allowed himself to aid in his murder. Qrow has as much of Clover’s blood in his hands as does that psychotic bastard. And don’t try to act innocent Rose. You’re just as much a criminal as is your uncle.

The General pulls out one of his signature pistols from it’s holster and points it at them.

Ironwood: Now drop your weapons you’re out numbered here. I won’t ask a second time.

Nora: Why so you can keep us as prisoners in your sky fortress! News flash! That plan didn’t work the first time so what makes you think it’ll work a second time!

Ironwood: .....For once you bring an excellent point Valkyrie. Why should I take you as prisoners, you’ve all already proven to be more dangerous alive so I can’t put you in a cage that you’re just going to break out of again. *Lowers his gun* Men...on my mark shoot to kill!

Weiss: Great one Nora! Now what’s your plan?!

Ironwood: 3...2...1....FI-

???: Before you do that Jimmy mind if interject?

Ironwood and everyone else present are brought out of the tense situation and notice that the once unconscious Jaune Arc was standing right begin Ironwood.

Ironwood: What?! H-How did?

Jaune: You see I just got out of being stuck in a tube for two months so understandably, I. Am. Very famished , so do you mind if I take a sip of one of your men? Sure? Gee thanks!

Ironwood: .....what?

Jaune: *Completely ignoring Ironwood * Hey you there, yes you, mind if I get some sip?

Specialist: W-What?

Jaune: *Grabs the soldier by the throat and lifts them up* I SAID LET ME GET SOME SIP!

The specialist screamed out of pain as they felt all of the aura in their body was being forcibly taken and dried up. The result was shown as the specialist looked paler and more dead than alive. Unceremoniously Jaune dropped the living corpse on the ground and looked much more livelier. Except not, as his skin remained pale, his hair had remained white instead of blonde and his once blue eyes opened showing that they were burning red with black sclera eyes instead. His voice was also very much deeper, he almost sounded like a different person.

Jaune: Aaaah! That really hit the spot! Now what was this you about killing us?

Ironwood: Open Fire!

At once all of Ironwood’s men open fired on the distorted Jaune Arc and watched as he seemed to take every shot they fired until he fell to the ground in a bloody mess.

Ruby: JAUNE NO!!!

Ironwood walked up to the body and shot the corpse two more times.

Ironwood: That was for Damien.

As Ironwood turns around to the rest of the group he’s met with a very angry Ruby pointing Crescent Rose point blank at his face.

Ruby: Give me one reason why I shouldn’t blow your brains out Ironwood!

Ironwood: Do you think I’m a fool, I know you won’t shoot me. You don’t have the resolve.

Ruby: *Cocks the bolt handle* You sure about that?

The two leaders stand-off each other and almost seem ready to kill the other in a moment’s notice.

Jaune: You know she’s right. She can do it.

Both leaders look back at the ‘corpse’ as it prepares to stand up from being gunned down. Once he stands up it almost as if he wasn’t harmed at all.

Jaune: You know what Jimmy....I’m feeling a bit more famished than I thought. Sooooooo I think I’ll just help myself to your men!

In a rapid pace Jaune charges at the group of specialists and proceeds to kill off each one. The others just witness as he effortlessly tears apart each of Ironwood’s men but leaves some alive to absorb their Aura. It was a terrifying and gruesome scene that left all of them sick to the stomach. By the end of it Jaune was nearly covered head to toe with the blood of many.

Jaune: WOW! I am impressed Jimmy...impressed of how shit your specialists were! Like seriously I didn’t even kill the last guy he just offed himself like a bitch! Now where were we again?

Ironwood: RRAAAHH! *Draws both of his pistols and starts to shoot at Jaune*

*BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!*

As if it was effortless, Jaune dodged all of Ironwood’s shots with a speed of a phantom and soon enough he was face to face to Ironwood.

Jaune: Sup.

Ironwood: H-Hey.

Jaune: I’m taking you arm now.

Ironwood: What?

Jaune grabs Ironwood’s left arm and rips it out it’s socket in a gory shower of blood and muscle.

Ironwood: AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!

Jaune: What’s wrong Jimmy?! You were talking good shit a second ago! Why don’t you have one of your dead men give you a new arm?! I’m sure they gladly do it as they now have plenty to give. * While still holding the torn off appendage, Jaune grabs Ironwood’s black pistol and shoots him three times in the back*

Ironwood: AAAHH! *Wrinths in pain and drops his white pistol*

Jaune: What’s that Jimmy?! Don’t like getting shot a bunch of times, oh but I bet you love shooting at children off cliffs DON’T YA!!! *brings the pistol closer to his ear* What’s that you want me to shoot off your appendages?! Well then I guess it’s my lucky day!!!

Ruby: JAUNE!!!

Jaune stiffens at the voice he hears calling him, he looks to the side and sees Ruby with tears in her eyes and a almost terrified expression. She walks closer slowly to keep his focus on her. Ruby then kneels down and grabs the other pistol from Ironwood dropped. Once it’s in her hands she stands up to look at Jaune, her dear friend. She places her empty hand on his face gently.

Ruby: Let’s just go...he’s can’t chase us in his current condition. Please...come with me.

Jaune: ......... *He steps away from Ironwood and closer to Ruby, looking at her with a soft expression that reminded her that the man before her was indeed Jaune* Ok Crater Face.

Ruby: *Smiles* ‘Sniff’ Ok.

Jaune: *Looks back at Ironwood and looks down at the black pistol* You got cool guns Jimmy...I’m keeping them.

Ruby: *Grabs his arm* Come on let’s go.

Jaune: As you wish.

Weiss: What on Remnant just happened.

Qrow: I got no fucking clue Icicle.

Ren: *Walks up cautiously* J-Jaune.....is it really you?

Jaune: *Looks at him before smiling* Ren...you sonava bitch....how you doing’ buddy?

Ren: Good....you?

Jaune: Been better but what can ya do?

Nora runs up and nearly tackles her lost leader and clings to him closely.

Nora: I....I thought we lost you again...when...when they all shot at you. I thought you were done for.

Jaune: Oh come on, Nora. Who do I look like, Cardin Winchester? I’m not gonna abandon you like that.

Qrow: ....kid. The hell happened to you.

Jaune: ...... *Laughs softly* Now that is a long fuckin’ story.

-End-

Hope you enjoy my take on Dracula Jaune. I was inspired by Hellsing Abridged Alucard and Other forms of Drac in case anyone spot any references. And yes Jaune is taking Ironwood’s guns as they almost are asking for him to take them. See you all later!

[tori-beanie]

I think y’all get it by now. Idea from FanartFunart. They’re awesome. Go check them out!!

https://fanartfunart.tumblr.com/post/184661279405/filed-under-aus-i-do-not-plan-on-actually-doing

Part Three: Blue Violet

Logan was so bored. He was in eight grade now, and had nothing to do. He’d read all his library books. He’d completed all his homework. He’d been staring at the ‘Digits of Pi’ sheet above his teachers desk, and so far he had memorized one hundred digits. The boys life had been moving smoothly, nothing surprising or out of the ordinary really happening. He still had four blackened marks on his wrist, and it was starting to annoy him how much they looked like black sharpie. Logan spent a few minutes counting ceiling tiles before he paused. He had been distracted by the need to use the bathroom.

As he was excused, he ran face first into a boy looking to be his age. He had a visitors tag on as well as a pair of purple headphones and a black and white flannel. He seemed to be nervous, eyes widening as he reached up to hold his forehead. They had run into each other after all. However when they met each other’s gaze, Logan get his arm tingling. He looked down to see one black line on his arm slowly turning to an honestly satisfying purple color. Slowly a smile appeared on his face, and he looked over the boy. Purple. Yes. It fit him.

“Hm. You seem to cause my zygomaticus muscles to contract.”

Patton had grown as well. He was still searching for his soulmate, but hadn’t been able to find them so far. Still the boy was longing for colors. He hummed gently, walking down the street after classes. Patton couldn’t see colors, but he could still see the beauty in the world around him. Fall was his favorite season. He could see so many shades of grey in the trees, on the ground… And when they would get the first snowfall, he knew that he was seeing the right color. The white of the snow was real. Something he would always have. It made him happy. And until he got his colors back, Patton would continue to find joy in the small things. In the details of this world. Because that’s all he could do.

For now though he was bundled up in a sweater his father said was light blue, heading to sit at the park. He had a bag full of corn with him to feed the ducks at the pond. It was a hobby he really enjoyed, as not only was it cute, but he could share with kids smaller than him and they could all enjoy themselves by watching ducks swim around for the corn. As he arrived at the park, Patton noticed that it was rather empty. The sixth grader was a bit lonely… Oh well! He would meet his soulmate one day! Then he wouldn't be lonely anymore!

Roman had finally gotten it through his thick skull that he had more than one soulmate. Not only did De have four in total, but he was still hearing music. One time they were sitting together at the lunch table, and Roman heard the blast of Panic At The Disco in his ear. De had looked confused until Roman explained what was going on, and then the red eyed boy got the pleasure of being laughed at by his soulmate. However Roman couldn’t stay mad. They were happy together even with the disparity in ages, and had managed to fit their schedules perfectly so that they could eat lunch and even spend study halls together!

Roman loved to look at the red tattoo that colored De’s left shoulder. How it glowed when he would just brush his fingers up against it. It made Roman very happy, and even though it made his soulmates face turn red, he would sceranade him on occasion. It was absolutely adorable! Yes, he was happy with De. And he could hardly wait to meet another one of his soulmates… Maybe he could talk to the emo and get him to turn down the My Chemical Romance too… There was a lot of emo music Roman needed a handle on. He couldn’t sleep when drums were pounding in his ears after all!

Watching Roman startle at random music was rather funny. In fact it was one of Declan’s main forms of entertainment. Sure he was nice to his soulmate, but it didn’t stop it from being funny. He wondered how Roman stayed sane though with all the songs in his head all the time. He couldn’t imagine how hard it would be to be singing one song while hearing another blasting in your ear! Roman must have a special kind of musical talent. However neither had had any luck coming across their other soulmates. Ro was far more poetic about the whole thing, referring to them all as pieces for the most extravagant and lovely puzzle. His soulmate tended to do that a lot, and had a knack for attempting to use slang. However he didn’t seem to understand De’s proficient use of sarcasm. He actually took his seriously a lot, something that bothered both of them. However De couldn’t really help the way he spoke. It was just who he was.

In the two years they had been together, Roman and Declan didn’t get into many fights. Anything they did argue about tended to be misunderstandings or just plain stupidity. Roman had to be talked down from jumping off the roof into a kiddy pool twice in one summer! De pretty much had to make sure that Roman didn’t hurt himself by being stupid and courageous as he called it. But all in all, they were happy! They just needed to find their missing pieces…

Virgil Casey was frozen. He knew what he had just heard, but there was no way he was prepared! The boy had just been delivering papers to his mother. She worked here at the school and had left something at home. After convincing Virgil to bring it for her, he had been wandering the halls looking for her classroom. The boy definitely hadn’t expected to run face first into a boy who looked almost his age! He had been dazed for a moment before hearing the boy speak. He knew the words. He’d read them a thousand times. But hearing them was still so surprising that Virgil could only stand there dumbfounded.

Logan reaches forward and held out his hand, looking to be proper. Honestly the boy seemed to fit the science speak. He also fit the dark blue writing on Virgil’s right arm.

“Forgive me for running into you. You may address me as Logan. Logan Foley. May I know your title as well?”

Yeah. He was a nerd. Slowly Virgil spoke, his voice shaking slightly.

“Virgil Casey… But uh, you can call me Virge…”

Yes, these two would need some time to get to know each other, but for now, they could be happy knowing they had found one of their matching set.

General Tags: @midnight--fox @your-friendly-neighborhood-enby @heathers-dorkness-0923

Soulmarked Tags: @fanartfunart @logan-sanders-is-my-binch @dragonsworn05 @i-have-n0-idea-what-im-d0ing @astraheart04 @of-mice-and-mentality

[shunkashuutou]

🔥PROMARE🔥

Get ready, this is going to be a long post.

So starting at the end of last September, Mabs and I fell in love with a movie called “Promare”, and we went to see it in the theater 4 times. This movie actually came out in May of 2019, and we missed it the first time it was in theaters, but it was so popular that theaters started showing it again in the fall. It was made by Studio Trigger, which also made some of my other favorite anime, Kiznaiver and Little Witch Academia. (and BNA which Mabs and I are watching right now!)

So what is Promare about, and was it really worth watching in the theater 4 times?

I feel like these titles of articles about it sum it up pretty well:

Promare is set in a future where some people, referred to as “Burnish”, spontaneously develop fire powers. The Burnish start off as normal humans and have no control over over their powers at first, which leads to them accidentally burning down buildings or injuring other people, so they are feared and shunned by human society. The main character Galo is a member of a firefighting team called Burning Rescue, while the other main character Lio is the head of Mad Burnish, a notorious group of Burnish arsonists.

Here’s a trailer:

It’s colorful, crazy, and over-the-top in true Studio Trigger style, so action-packed that you can’t look away for a single second, and it is one of the most visually amazing movies I have ever seen. (The only thing that is even sort of comparable to this vibrant 2D + 3D animation style would be “Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse”) The color palettes in every single scene of this movie are just incredible. It’s technically a mecha anime with giant fighting robots, but its story deals with themes of discrimination, and it even has a bit of gay romance mixed in, which is a huge step forward for a Japanese movie aimed at a mainstream audience.

All of the characters are wonderful, but especially the main duo Galo and Lio. It’s great to watch as they come to understand one another and work together. They’re both enthusiastic idiots who are the same type of crazy, which to me is both “relationship goals”, as well as the sort of relationship that I am lucky enough to be in.

It also has great voice acting, with the actor who played Sanada Yukimura in the Taiga Drama “SanadaMaru” as the mayor of the town, Kray Foresight (what a name), and the kabuki actor who played Ranbei in the movie “Dokurojo no Shichinin” (which is a super underrated, but another personal favorite ) as Lio.

And the MUSIC. This movie has the most amazing soundtrack, and it’s usage throughout the film is just perfect.

In particular, the scene featuring Lio’s theme “Kakusei” (”Awakening”) includes a volcano and a dragon and is just so INTENSE. In fact, the chorus of this song is not Japanese or English, but entirely made-up words, so that it would be able to convey feeling but not have the words distract viewers from the action.

“Inferno”, the opening track of the movie which is written from Galo’s perspective, is another very memorable song.

Also “Nexus” and “Gallant Ones” and aaa, just so much good music on this soundtrack. (The song lyrics from Lio’s and Galo’s perspectives also tell a bit more of their story) Search “Promare ost” on YouTube to find a full playlist of all of the music if you want to hear more!

===== ===== ===== ===== =====

And now it’s time for the story of how I’ve seen this movie 6 times now, 4 of which were in theaters.

The first time Mabs and I went to see Promare was after school one day. We got bibimbap and zunda daifuku for dinner first, and when we went to the theater, they were giving out these cool postcards!

----- ----- ----- 

The second time was on the first day of Halloween Month, so we got some Halloween donuts to celebrate before watching the movie!

This was right before Promare was going to stop showing in the theaters again, but we really wanted to see it one more time (there is so much going on in this movie, you have to watch it more than once), and the only showing that worked with both of our schedules was one that was marked “応援上映”, which I didn’t think too much about and just assumed that it was an extra showing to promote the movie.

But we knew that something was different when the person sitting next to us started pulling colored lights out of her bag. It turns out that an “ouen jyouei” is special interactive showing of a movie in which fans are encouraged to wave colored lights, yell out their favorite lines, and sing along with the songs. We were definitely not expecting that! It’s interesting too because “ouen jyouei” clearly have their own sort of culture. It wasn’t just like people were yelling out whatever they were thinking, there were set phrases and responses that fans would say at certain times. These responses were probably developed over a long period of lots of fans watching the movie over and over again; I wonder how many times the other people in that theater had seen Promare already.

----- ----- ----- 

It was around this time that Mabs and I found out that there was going to be a cosplay event conveniently close to Osaka Station at the end of October. We were both very in need of a change of pace, so we decided to go and cosplay Galo and Lio! To make things faster, we divided up the work, Mabs sewed the outfits and I made the wigs. (We also decided to share the cosplays because we both like both characters!)

Galo’s wig was a big challenge because I had never made a wig with a foam base before. First I patterned out the spikes with paper.

Then I cut them out of eva foam, assembled them and painted them blue, and glued layers of wig wefts over the top of them. After the glue dried, I trimmed off the excess hair and hairsprayed them into perfect (slightly dangerous) points, and used hot glue to attach the spikes to the wig base. I don’t know how much time this took, but definitely over 30 hours!

Lio’s wig was so much easier. The wig I got worked great as a base, and I just had to trim it, fluff it up, and add a couple different shades of green hair chalk to get the gradient that Lio has going on.

I am really happy with how they turned out!

----- ----- ----- 

After that it was almost time for the cosplay event, but a few days before, Promare came back to theaters, this time in 4D! It was our first time ever seeing a 4D movie and it was an experience! The seats moved all around and shot out blasts of air and mist, and the lights in the theater flashed to go with the movie. Promare with all of its crazy action was absolutely perfect as a 4D movie, and it was so much fun!! They also gave us this super cool postcard to celebrate the 4D release. I think this is probably my favorite piece of official Promare art.

----- ----- ----- 

And then it was time for the cosplay event!

We had such a fun day, and Mabs looked great as Galo! We ate pizza of course, since the characters eat pizza in the movie.

I was really happy with how I looked as Lio! Here’s a selfie, and a bonus ~fashion~ selfie with my favorite sunglasses.

We met a few new cameramen who took photos for us!

I love that Mabs is strong enough to pick me up for photos! This picture turned out cute!

And I had a lot of fun doing photo edits with flames and lots of crazy colors, since that is very Promare!

Before and After🔥

Before... (I liked the pose but not the background)

... After! (I had fun trying to get this one to look like a scene from the movie!

Using the song lyrics as backgrounds

And of course we took some silly offshots as well! These were my favorites!

Since we made the cosplays to share, next time we get a chance to wear them, I’ll be Galo and Mabs will be Lio! I can’t wait to see how we’ll look!

----- ----- ----- 

The movie came out on DVD and Blu-ray at the beginning of February, and Mabs had pre-ordered the special box set! (I wish I had a photo of the box and all of the extra stuff! So cool!) We had a fun time watching it at home and eating pizza! This movie drastically increased our pizza consumption. Particularly margherita pizza since that’s what the characters eat. I had always thought that it looked boring compared to pepperoni or deluxe, but I now understand the wonders of margherita pizza.  (Also look at the cute Galo and Lio cat ear plushies! Mabs got me a set for Christmas and they are adorable!)

----- ----- ----- 

Promare got put back in theaters in 4D AGAIN, on Valentine’s Day!! Of course we thought that sounded like the perfect V-day date idea, so we decided to go see it one more time, even though we already had it on Blu-ray!

So this year I made Mabs Promare-themed chocolates for Valentine’s Day! Yes, these are real, edible chocolates! (I had fun doing a little photoshoot of them before I gave them to her)

I found this wonderful triangular Engrish box at the 100 yen shop and customized it a bit with some shiny pink cellophane.

I made the chocolates by first drawing out the designs I wanted, and cutting up some regular chocolates into the right shapes to use as a base. Then I used colorful chocolate pens to cover the base layer and add the designs!

Before our date, I tried to do Promare-inspired nail polish too.

This is one of my new favorite photos of us! We had such a nice V-day date!

So glad that we got to see Promare AGAIN! And 4D is just the best way to see it! This time we saw it at a different theater than the first time we saw it in 4D, and the movement of the seats was programmed a little differently, which was interesting! This time we could also distinctly smell the rose fragrance when Galo sees Lio for the first time.

Absolutely the perfect Valentine’s Day movie. As Mabs put it, what could be more romantic than overthrowing the government, saving the environment, and setting the entire world on fire together?

And we had pizza for dinner that day, of course!

----- ----- ----- 

Also in February, the Lawson near my school did a special Promare collaboration! It looked so cool, and they had a bunch of posters up all over the inside too!

----- ----- ----- 

And a bit after that, some special Promare merch that had gone out of stock before I even watched Promare the first time got restocked! I needed some new shirts anyway so I couldn’t resist, and Mabs and I placed an order.

I love these plushies so much! They are so cute with their little noodle arms and legs!

----- ----- ----- 

Now that I think about it more, I can’t figure out if we’ve watched Promare 6 times or 7 times. But the most recent time was with strawberry waffles (our food obsession changed from pizza to strawberry waffles after playing Tales of Zestiria, lol)

----- ----- ----- 

Promare will be released on DVD in English in the US on May 19th! I’ve heard that the English dub is really well done, so I can’t wait to see it that way too!

I HIGHLY recommend this movie to anyone and everyone! It’s worth watching for the color palettes alone, but the animation, characters, and music make it one of my all-time favorite movies!

[renaroo]

Some Times (Time and Time Again) (4/8)

Disclaimer: Booster Gold, Blue Beetle, and associated characters are the creative property of DC Comics. Warnings: Canon shaken not stirred, Heavy canon references to Booster Gold (2009-2011) and Blue Beetle (2016-2018) Pairings: Boostle Rating: T Synopsis: Booster Gold and the rest of the Time Masters are still straightening up things in the wake of the most recent universal Rebirth. But Rip Hunter is still missing in the aftermath, leaving Booster in charge with Skeets, Michelle, and Rani. But there’s a distraction for Booster, one he can’t keep himself from ignoring.

Ted Kord, miraculously, is still alive. And that makes everything more complicated than Michael could have ever imagined.

A/N: Haha! How’s that for an improved rate for chapter turn arounds! I don’t know if I can manage it weekly, but boy wouldn’t that be nice. All things considering. 

And lovely and well deserved thanks to @mcbangle, @shibascarf, @secretlystephaniebrown, AlreadyThere, and Schwoo99 for your lovely feedback and support! It’s greatly appreciated.

Booster Gold

It was already a hell of a day by the time Booster finds himself racing throughout the busted up laboratory in search for Rani. He is in an all around bad mood, conflicted and somewhat wounded with old pains and traumas licking at his heels thanks to the conversation with Ted.

Then Rani — sweet, terrified, all his fault Rani — is gone. And there’s only an open wormhole leftover in the cabinet to clue him into what’s going on.

Using the Legionnaire flight ring, Booster kicks off the ground and zips back to where Michelle is standing by the lab command center. She’s looking a little shellshocked but Booster absolutely does not have time for that.

“She’s gone!” he yells at his sister instead. “She’s teleported out, but why!?” When that fails to draw Michelle’s attention, Booster comes to a hovering stop by her and stares in disbelief. “Michelle!” he snaps in imitation. “Are you listening!?”

Without turning toward him, Michelle says, “I know where she went.” Her hand draws up and points toward the chalkboard.

Not even fully listening to Michelle, Booster follows her gaze to the board and feels himself go slightly off balance. If he hadn’t been using the flight ring, he might’ve ended up on the floor sideways from the knock to his teeth.

On Rip’s meticulously kept chalkboard is a newly etched message that Booster knows for a fact was not there even earlier that day when he got back.

Ted Kord is KEY.

“What the hell?” Booster articulates first. Then, with a slight pang, he recognizes something even more pressing about the message. “Is that… is that Rip’s writing? No… Who…” he rambles out loud before glancing around the lab.

Half of him wants to accuse Rip Hunter of hiding in the shadows, of playing some kind of joke wrapped up in the 4D Chess he has been doing since he first met Booster. But there is nothing to see. There’s no one but them. Only Michael and Michelle.

Which begs another question.

“Skeets?” Booster calls out to no avail.

“Rani is looking for Rip. She sees a message from Rip. She takes the message and runs with it before thinking things through,” Michelle deduces. She then gives Booster and accusatory stare. “Wonder where she picks that up from?”

“I need to get to Ted’s, get Rani, put out any fires…” Booster lists off, already on his way to the transmat.

“Would you hold your horses?” Michelle demands. “I’ll put on my Goldstar suit and we’ll go together. I don’t like how this feels, Michael—“

“I’ve got this,” Booster doesn’t so much as argue as he is concluding the conversation.

“Jesus Christ what did I just say about running into things without thinking them through?” Michelle yells as she takes off running toward her room.

“No time for thinking!” Booster yells back, already beginning to transport. “The multiverse is colliding together because my daughter and my best friend are meeting each other!”

Michelle apparently has no comeback because rather than screaming it, Booster only hears a frustrated roar that he is far more familiar with than he should be.

In Booster’s mind, the worst case scenario is already upon him. Rani, freaking out and distressed, huddled in a corner while Ted, freaking out and distressed, is calling up whatever passes for social services among the Justice League. Someone will ask questions, take records, and Rani is suddenly on the map for some sort of time traveling ne’er-do-well to get at Booster if they want to. And he’ll lose Rani out of the great wide nothing just like he lost Rip—

Booster does his best to turn the alarms in his brain from an eleven to about a nine and thinks what complications this means for him and Ted.

Things are already complicated, Booster was hoping to go over some script or something with Michelle before hanging out with Ted again. How many things can he share? How much can Ted even be expected to believe? And how in the world is Ted going to forgive him for being a different person without any of the years and years of context that is suddenly missing between them?

How can Booster resist his instinct to constantly screw things up with the two people, at the moment, he cares about the most in terms of not getting screwed over?

It seems like a tall order, and before he touches foot in Ted’s lab again, he’s certain there’s a mix of these two things that will be his worst case scenario.

That is, until the reality smacks him in the face with a whole lot worse.

Black Beetle — his seemingly nameless and faceless enemy throughout the time stream — is standing in Ted’s laboratory. And worse yet, he is doing so with a gun much more serious than Ted’s old BB gun, right at Ted’s head. And Ted, for his part, seems genuinely stunned.

“Ted Kord,” Black Beetle snarls, “you must die!”

“NO!” Booster screams, the sound ripping through his throat from the core of his being.

He’s in the air and barreling toward Black Beetle before it even registers that Ted has leaped into action, grabbing Rani and rolling behind the desk. It’s a close call and Booster can only begin to thank his stars that Ted really is the Ted of his memories, but there’s not time to dwell.

“Get the hell away from them!” Booster roars as he connects his forcefield protected knuckles with the side of Black Beetle’s armored head.

Even with his field up, Booster feels the hit in the bones of his fist. There’s something harder to Black Beetle than the last time they fought. Which, Booster has to admit to himself, is not a good sign for him.

“Booster Gold,” Black Beetle snaps angrily, catching the second fist Booster throws at him. “I am surprised by your resilience.”

“By now you really shouldn’t be,” Booster growls back. He aims for the unarmored mouth on Black Beetle only to be caught a second time.

“After our last Beetle adventures, I had thought you had your fill of failing to save your friend from death,” Black Beetle hisses. Then, without warning, his head comes jutting forward, breaking through the field around Booster’s body with speed and precision to land a perfect headbutt for Booster’s nose. “But apparently your masochism is greater than that of the average fool.”

Dazed, Booster backs away with his hands released and instinctively reaches for his nose. Definitely broken, definitely gushing blood — but he doesn’t have the time for it because Black Beetle is already coming back at him.

Gritting his teeth, Booster directs the field shields to his left side and successfully deflects the incoming right hook. It gives him enough time to spit out a mouthful of blood and course correct. He needs some distance, maybe use a concussive blast to further to swing it.

He doesn’t get the time or the distance, however, as the Black Beetle armor produces a clawing arm-like extension which grabs Booster at the waist and clamps down, hard.

“Booster!” Ted yells.

“Mikey!” Rani screeches.

A quick panic tears its way through Booster and he glances wildly in the direction of the two voices. His fingers are still grappling with the claws of Black Beetle but his attention is fully on Ted and Rani — they are too close to all of this! Booster has to get Black Beetle away from them and do it fast.

“Stay down! Both of you!” Booster yells at them just before Black Beetle slams him headlong into the Bug.

“I have lost my patience for your persistent meddling!” Black Beetle snarls. “I will set all things right today! I will see to it that any anomalies for the time stream are destroyed! And I will enjoy listening to your pathetic screams as you know that you still are powerless to do a thing!”

Booster has literal stars in his vision once the dark clad time traveler drops him on the ground. His neck aches and he can feel the wheeze of air pushing back into his lungs. He knows he has to get back up, though, or else someone is going to do something stupid.

“I’ve had about enough of this!” Ted growls.

“Oh, no,” Booster says, smacking himself in the head to try to clear his vision quicker.

“Sir!” Skeets buzzes in front of him.

“Skeets! Save Ted! Rani! Anyone! Fuck!” Booster orders, pushing to his feet and seeing where Ted was.

Ted has already slid over the top of his desk, goggles on and pulled out some sort of large canon looking device with a fanned out disk at its front. When Black Beetle immediately shoots for the in-the-open Ted, the reply is given in kind by the strange device which showered the entire room with an immense white light.

“Solar gun kinetic converter!” Ted preens, even as the blowback sends him to the ground. He coughs. “Has a kick, but anything you throw at me, this baby will convert into a concussive blast and hit brighter!”

Booster smirks and pushes off from the ground in order to boost his launch speed as he hurled himself at Black Beetle.

The light flash from Ted’s machine has put the Black Beetle off balance enough for Booster to throw himself into and shove the man out toward the door and into the hall, out the tenth floor window.

As soon as Black Beetle crashes through the glass, Booster firmly digs his heels into the ground and skids to a halt just short of heading out himself. He releases a long sigh of relief as he actually does seem to have gotten ahead.

Unfortunately, Black Beetle’s armor seems to remember it has flight capabilities much faster than Booster did.

“Damn it,” Booster hisses, looking over his shoulder and realizing that Ted is rushing his way and Rani has crawled out from under Ted’s desk to get a better look. “Skeets! Get her down!”

The tiny robot is quick to listen, and Booster barking orders at all seems to make Ted take pause, but not before the shadow of Black Beetle hovering outside eclipses them both.

Booster locks eyes with Ted and feels that ever present twinge of guilt and horror that has lived with him for nearly five years at this point.

“Ted! Down!” Booster yells.

But it isn’t like before. There is action that Booster can take.

Thinking on his feet, Booster projects his forcefield onto Ted. It encloses the semi-retired Blue Beetle in an oval dome before moving along with Booster as they flew toward the laboratory.

“Are you going to explain anything that’s happening to me?” Ted demands as they land in relative safety from their attacker.

“Later over beer if we make it,” Booster promises wearily.

For a brief moment, Ted looks in Booster’s direction. He’s only nodding along to Booster’s words and yet, as he does so, Booster sees a trust and security from Ted that warms something deep inside of him. It’s been so long since they were doing this, side by side, both in the exact same moment.

Both trusting each other because… as long as they’re Blue and Gold they’re bound to win. Somehow. Some ridiculous fashion.

It’s all Booster can do to take a breath and feel confident that it’s going to be okay.

Just before he loses Ted’s gaze. Ted’s looking back in the direction of Black Beetle and his body immediately seizes in tension.

“Round Three!” Ted yells in warning.

Booster raises his guard and steels himself, but he already knows his main objective.

Skeets has Rani. Booster has Ted guarded with every ounce of reserve power his suit has.

Whatever comes next is going to hurt.

Black Beetle flies at Booster like a bat out of hell, crashing into him and the Bug once more. The metal surface crushes in around Booster as a result of the impact. Booster feels the air pushed out of his lungs but he refuses to think about it, instead punching as much as he can right for Black Beetle’s big dumb jaw.

Some hits land, but the momentum is working against Booster as he feels a pop in his shoulder against the grinding metal of the bug.

“You have no concept of the danger you’re in!” Black Beetle snarls, grabbing Booster’s shoulders and flying with him to the floor.

They crash into the cement, Booster first yet again, but this time Booster can get a footing. He kicks off the pavement and plants his feet right for Black Beetle’s crotch.

Even armored, the villain juts away on instinct, which gives Booster time use a concussive blast. He can only lift his left arm, but it’s enough to give space between them.

It’s not enough. Black Beetle is ready to go before Booster’s even caught his breath.

Fortunately, there is a boom followed by the cracking and folding of metal all around them.

Booster lifts up his head to get a good view as Michelle uses her magnetic fields to crush what’s left of the Bug and the surrounding loose metal and bring it down on the Beetle’s head.

“Get away from my brother!” she yells.

Taken by surprise, Beetle is brought down, the crushing weight growing the longer Michelle levies her magnetism on him. “Damn you, Carters, no!” he roars, reaching with his loosest hand toward the chest piece of his suit. “This is not over!”

With a similar BOOM and spectacle, the Beetle is gone, and all the metal and electronics in the area around him fall in a heap to the ground.

“Heard… that before,” Booster musters, pushing to his feet. His ankle twists in a wrong way and he collides with the floor. His unresponsive arm does nothing to brace for the fall.

“Michael!” Michelle yells.

“Booster!” Ted yells right along with her.

And just before he passes out, Booster thinks how unexpected and wonderful it feels to hear both of their voices at once.  

[vincent-frankenstein]

To My Heart and Soul

[ 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | you are here | read on AO3 ]

Warnings: major character death, villain/abusive deceit, blood, fighting, panic attacks, creepy imagery

Pairings: logince, hints of moxiety, a tiny smidge of remile and past abusive anxceit

“So,” Roman began. “Logan’s a seer —”

“You’re a what?” Virgil asked, head whipping around to stare at Logan. Logan swallowed hard, shoulders tensing.

“Hush, Gerard Gay, I’m telling a story here.” Roman waved his hand dismissively. “About a year ago, he… gave me a prophecy in his sleep. And I interpreted it to mean that… Dorian would come for me. That he would kill Logan if I stayed, if I let him get involved in any way.”

“But I’m not dead,” Logan pointed out.

“No, you’re not,” Roman said. “My interpretation might have been… wrong. It seemed obvious at the time, but prophecies are meant to be ambiguous and vague. It's easy to get it wrong.”

“You jumped to a conclusion,” Logan said, raising an eyebrow. “And you acted rashly as a result.”

“I… I did,” Roman agreed. He shifted uneasily, not quite meeting Logan’s eyes. “I was scared, but that doesn’t excuse what I did. If I had just stayed, maybe — maybe things would have gone differently.”

Logan placed his hand over Roman’s and laced their fingers together against the floor. Their eyes met — and Logan found that it was still just as impossible to stay mad at him as it was before. How infuriating.

“What was the prophecy?” Patton asked, glancing around. The rest of the Council was back on their feet, mostly; they milled around, healing each other and just barely beginning to celebrate their victory. Logan could hear the relief in Patton’s voice; his family was okay.

“‘He who seeks to steal the throne,” Roman began, “will find the one who gave it away; he who rules a world of gold sends his puppet out to slay.’”

“Dorian,” Virgil said, shoulders tensing. Roman nodded.

“Exactly. Patton told me how hard he fought to get a seat on the Council, and how offended he was when they wouldn’t give it to him. He wanted to steal it, and I gave it away.” Roman twisted his fingers in his lap, an old nervous habit he’d had since Logan had first met him. “At first I thought Virgil was the puppet, because Dorian sent him after me quite a few times while I was on the run, but… I guess Dorian himself was the Golden One’s puppet.”

“Sorry about that, by the way,” Virgil said, glancing over his shoulder at Dorian’s body as if he’d get back up again.

“All water under the bridge of friendship, Hot Topic,” he said. “Anyway, uh. ‘Beloved husbands, torn apart. Beloved husband's time is nigh. Beloved husband finds his heart. Beloved husband, he must die.’ I assumed that was referring to you, Logan. You’re certainly my beloved.”

Logan made a noise somewhere between a cough and a squeak, his cheeks dusted with pink. “But again, I didn’t die,” he said, pulling the tattered remains of his tie back into whatever approximation of fixed he could manage. “You… appeared to be dead, for a few moments, but obviously, you didn’t die either.”

Roman shrugged. “I think I did die,” he said, eyebrows furrowing. “I may not have my magic anymore, but this is still my home. This place strengthens me. Even if my heart stopped for a few moments, that alone might have been enough to revive me. That, and — well, I could hear you calling out to me, Logan.”

Finally, he caught Logan’s gaze, and any response Logan could have possibly given died on his tongue. Roman stopped twisting his hands in his lap to take Logan’s hand again; Logan’s skin burned at the contact but he wouldn’t pull away to save his life.

“So you two are even more infuriatingly gross when you’re together? Great.” Virgil rolled his eyes, lips pursed sharply to keep from smiling. Patton nudged him in the arm, one hand held delicately to his cheek like he’d start crying at any moment.

“I think it’s cute,” he whispered, and — yep, he was crying. Tears began to fill his eyes and he sniffled. Virgil blinked, holding his arm, his eyebrows furrowing.

Roman winked at Virgil and continued. “‘Brothers caught in endless war; brothers trapped in heavy chains.’” He glanced at Patton. “‘One rules; one hides; one kills.’ That’s… us, obviously. Me, you, and… Dorian.”

“Heavy chains…” Logan repeated. “Roman, your chains were literal. Dorian appeared to be chained to the Golden One. Patton…?” He trailed off; Patton’s expression had shifted ever-so-slightly, a flicker of pain passing through his eyes, gone in the blink of an eye.

“Huh?” Patton shook himself, lips quirking up into a smile. “Oh, you’re wondering what my chains were? Well, I dunno! I don’t feel chained to anything, but I guess that could chain-ge at any moment.”

Logan raised an eyebrow. He remembered a few earlier conversations that seemed to indicate the opposite. “Are you sure?”

“Sure-tainly!” Patton said with a giggle. “Besides, this chain of events really helped tie up all those loose ends. Everything’ll be fine from here on out!”

“Right…” Virgil said, one eyebrow quirked in suspicion. He shared a Look with Roman, eyes flicking to Patton, concern and confusion written across his face, and Patton pretended not to notice. Roman shrugged and cleared his throat.

“Uh… ‘The seer will follow, and death will follow him,’” he continued. “‘Victory waits within the Hollow, and waits within a prophecy grim.’”

“Sleepy Hollow!” Patton burst out, his face lighting up. “I completely forgot — Roman, we met your daughter!”

Logan choked, the memories suddenly snapping back into place as Roman gasped, slapping a hand over his mouth in surprise. “Oh — oh my goodness, you met Sera! How is she? Is she okay, is she safe, how —”

“She’s fine,” Logan said, clearing his throat. “It was a… bit of a shock to meet her, as you can probably imagine. You — you don’t have any… other —”

“No,” Roman said quickly, with a nervous laugh. “Just Sera. Was it a… bad shock? I mean, you don’t have to like her, she’s not your responsibility —”

“No! No, she’s… wonderful,” Logan said, face coloring. “I simply didn’t expect — I mean — she’s a dragon.”

“I found her egg out in the forest ten years ago,” Roman said. “Her parents had been killed. I wasn’t about to let her die, too, so I took her in and took care of her. She imprinted on me the moment she hatched, and, well — the rest is history.”

“That’s so cute,” Patton whispered through his fingers, his hands smooshed up against his cheeks happily. “You should have seen Logan’s face when she called him ‘dad,’ I’ve never seen him so happy!”

Roman gasped. “She called you dad?”

If the windows around them hadn’t already been broken by the blast from before, Patton and Roman’s twin squeals would have shattered them. Logan shoved his glasses back up the bridge of his nose and pursed his lips, not quite meeting either of their gazes.

“Yes, she did,” he said, and even as embarrassment curled in his stomach, happiness floated just above it, a deep golden fondness at the thought of Seraphina. He shook his head. “Roman, continue the prophecy. Please.”

“We have a child together,” Roman whispered, ignoring Logan completely, and Patton squealed even louder.

“Roman.”

“I’m sorry, I just —” Roman’s hands flapped through the air excitedly. “Okay. Uh… ‘When he trusts none and believes all, the final battle will begin. Puppets freed; the chains will fall. Death will reap and you will win.’”

“Who’s he?” Virgil asked, picking at a hole in his jeans.

“I… I think it’s me,” Logan said, biting his lip in thought. “Right before I came here, I felt… I mean, it seemed as though… I didn’t think I could trust anyone. I saw you helping Dorian in the forest,” he said, turning to Virgil, who winced apologetically, “and I assumed that you had tricked me, that giving me the dragon’s eye was all a part of Dorian’s plan. Then I discovered that I’m a seer, and everyone seemed to want to lock me up because of it.”

“What?” Roman interrupted, eyes widening.

“F-For his own protection,” Patton said, eyebrows furrowing. “I didn’t want to, I promise, but… we figured it would just give Dorian more reasons to want to hurt him, y’know? We were scared.”

“I see that now,” Logan said, nodding, “but at the time, it seemed like no one would help me. Like… like I was alone. I believed that, with the weapon, I could fix everything on my own. I trusted none and believed all, I suppose.”

“I’m so sorry we made you feel that way,” Patton said, his voice ever-so-soft. Logan waved his hand dismissively.

“I understand your actions, there is no need to apologize.” He quirked a brow. “Besides, I think everything worked out in our favor regardless. It was meant to be this way.”

“Yeah,” Virgil said, drawing a knee up to his chest and resting his arms around it. “I mean, seeing you rush in here spurred me to go get the Council for help. And without me, they couldn’t have gotten through Dorian’s spell. If you hadn’t come… I think he would have won.”

Patton nodded. “We owe a lot to you, Virgil,” he said earnestly, offering Virgil a kind smile. Virgil’s face darkened; he looked away, his bangs falling in his face to hide his pink cheeks. “Anyway, now we know the prophecy. What happened after?”

“Well…” Roman sighed. “I went on the run for as long as I could manage. Once I figured out that Dorian knew I was still alive, I took the weapon, changed it so that people other than me could activate it, and gave it to Seraphina. Patton, I was going to give you the other key, and a letter explaining what had happened, but… I never got the chance. Dorian caught me, and I was dragged along with him as he searched for the weapon. When I wouldn’t talk… he decided to go after you.”

“And that’s where I come in,” Virgil spoke up suddenly. Roman shot him a searching look, his eyebrows furrowing, and Virgil nodded, letting out a shaky breath. “Yeah, I can… I can tell it. I met Dorian way before all this shit happened. We were friends, and then… more. A lot more. When Roman faked his death and Dorian started trying to get his spot on the council, my brother and I tried to help. We were a team, back then.”

“Your brother?” Logan asked.

“I’ll get to that in a second,” Virgil said, waving his hand dismissively. “When they refused to give him a seat, he… started searching for other ways to get power. He disappeared for a few weeks, and when he came back, he was… different. The Golden One had gotten to him. He had the power he wanted, but he wasn’t himself anymore. Honestly, I’m not sure if there was any of him left by the time you guys took him down.”

Patton and Roman had grown very still, and very silent. Patton held himself tightly, his fingers digging into his arms. Virgil didn’t meet either of their gazes. “Around the time that he caught Roman and started torturing him for information, my brother and I decided to leave. We were gonna escape together, go on the run until we could build a new life for ourselves, but… I was weak. Dorian had too strong of a hold on me. I chickened out at the last minute, and my brother… he got captured by the Council.”

Patton’s eyes widened. He leaned forward, disbelief sparking to life in his eyes. “What was your brother’s name?”

“Remy,” Virgil said, and Logan’s eyes widened. He hadn’t realized it before, but now he could see the resemblance; they had the same sharp chins, the same dark eyes. That explained Remy’s hostility. “Do… do you remember him?”

“Of course I do,” Patton said, slapping a hand over his mouth in shock. “He escaped a few months after we caught him, and we’ve been trying to — I mean, he’s been eluding us ever since. Just… causing chaos all over.”

“Exactly,” Virgil said. “He’s trying to find me. He’s probably pissed out of his mind over what I did.”

Logan pressed his lips into a thin line. “That’s… one way to put it, yes,” he said. “He attacked me about a week after you saved me from the shadowbeasts. He thought I knew where you were. He seemed… a little unhinged, in all honesty.”

“I’m not surprised,” Virgil said softly. “That’s… that’s why I have to go. I have to find him, and set things right.”

“Then I’ll come with you,” Patton said suddenly. “Toby and I, we’ve been trying to find your brother for years. Toby’s got tons of information on him. I’m sure if we work together, we can find him!”

Virgil blinked. “You don’t have to —”

“I want to,” Patton said, his voice firm. “It’s my job, first of all, but… you shouldn’t have to face this alone. We’ll find him, I promise.”

Crimson spread from Virgil’s cheeks all the way to the tips of his ears. He held Patton’s gaze for a long moment before turning away, glaring resolutely at the floor. “Right. Yeah. Uh.” He cleared his throat. “Sure.”

Roman raised an eyebrow and caught Logan’s eyes, and Logan shrugged.

“Anyway,” Virgil said, voice gruff. “After that, Dorian settled down here, and left me to keep an eye on Roman while he searched for the weapon alone. I was… in a really dark place, then. Remy was gone and Dorian kept disappearing for weeks on end and I didn’t know what to do. And Roman… he helped me through it. I was his enemy, and he still helped me out.”

“Not at first,” Roman admitted. “But once I saw how you were without Dorian around, I knew there was still good in you.”

“Ugh, shut up,” Virgil muttered, dropping his face to rest in the crook of his arm. “Anyway, eventually,” he continued, voice muffled, “he trusted me enough to send me out to help you, Logan. He gave me the dragon’s eye and the other key to his weapon, and… he gave me hope again. I wouldn’t have been able to break free of Dorian’s control if it weren’t for him.”

“No, no,” Roman said, fondness swirling beneath his soft voice. “That was all you, Virge. All I did was talk to you, you’re the one who took action. You saved yourself.”

“Wow, the great Roman, being modest? Amazing.” Virgil quirked an eyebrow teasingly, lifting his bright pink face out of his arms. At Roman’s offended gasp, he laughed. “Sorry, it was getting too sappy. I can’t stand that shit.”

“Do you still have the other key?” Logan asked, glancing at Roman’s bare hands. Virgil dug into his pocket and drew out the ring — their ring, the one that Logan had spent months painstakingly choosing. Roman reached out for it but Logan took it first, turning it over in his hands hesitantly.

He took a breath and took Roman’s hand, a thrill of warmth shooting down his arm at the touch. Ever-so-gently, he slid the ring back onto Roman’s finger, and then stood, pulling Roman up. “There,” he said, with a fond smile.

Roman laughed wetly, tears pooling in the corners of his eyes. He leaned in for another kiss, and Logan was all-too-happy to oblige; their lips pressed together in a burst of warmth, and Logan could have stayed that way forever. When they pulled apart, he slipped his arm around Roman’s waist, and held out his other hand to Patton, pulling him to his feet. Patton giggled and helped Virgil up as well, intertwining their fingers with a cheerful grin, and though Virgil blushed profusely and mumbled something incoherent, he didn’t pull away.

Logan leaned into Roman’s side and smiled, a few stray tears sliding down his cheeks. It felt like the world had finally righted itself; like he’d been hanging upside-down for far too long, like finally, finally, he could stop holding on and start living again. He squeezed Patton’s hand and let out a breath, happiness blooming in his chest. This felt right. This felt —

“Guys?”

Toby stood beside Dorian’s body, peering down at it like a particularly nasty piece of garbage. They went to join him, still arm-in-arm; Logan tightened his hold around Roman’s waist and squeezed Patton’s hand comfortingly. It was hard enough for him to look at the body, and all Dorian had ever done to him was hurt and deceive him. He couldn’t imagine what it was like for the two of them, to see their brother killed in such a way.

“I don’t understand how that shit didn’t destroy him,” Virgil said, nose wrinkling warily. “That weapon was some of the strongest magic I’ve ever seen, it should have eviscerated him at the very least.”

Patton whimpered, his grip around Logan’s hand growing even tighter. “I-I mean — uh.” Virgil cleared his throat. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Roman said, his voice thick. “I don’t understand either. He… he shouldn’t be here.”

“I can’t sense any magic on him,” Patton said. His voice shook like he was on the verge of tears, and he held Logan’s hand like a lifeline, never tearing his watery gaze from Dorian’s body.

“Yeah, his magic’s gone,” Toby agreed. “The Golden Bitch probably took it with him when it died.”

“So you think it’s dead, then?” Logan asked. It did seem that way; the beast had disintegrated around Dorian with a final, agonized scream, and the spell upstairs vanished. The outside world seemed to have been returned to normal. Even the air itself felt different — like a great evil had been torn from it.

“I sure as hell hope so,” Toby said. “It makes sense, with your stupid prophecy. If the Golden Bitch is gone, its little silver bitches are gone, too. According to the old myths, their lives were all connected.”

“‘End of all,’” Logan recited. “Do we know for certain that the myths are true? What if they aren’t connected? And what about the rest of the prophecy? ‘Beginning of one.’” He readjusted his glasses, mind racing. “Who — or what — is beginning?

“Maybe it was referring to me?” Roman asked. “It certainly feels as though my life is beginning anew.”

“Could be me,” Virgil said. “I’m not trapped with… with him anymore, I can start over.”

Logan opened his mouth to speak, questions rushing through his mind — but then Toby tensed, and held up a hand to stop him. Eyes narrowing, he kneeled beside Dorian, placing a hand atop his chest. Logan’s blood ran cold.

No. He pulled himself out of Roman and Patton’s grip and kneeled beside Toby, setting his hand on Dorian’s chest. No. There was no way; it made no logical sense.

Gently, faintly — so weakly that Logan just barely felt it — Dorian’s chest rose and fell.

Patton covered his mouth in shock, tears filling his eyes. “Is he…?”

Logan’s heart pounded in his throat. He nodded.

“He’s alive.”

[gyromitra-esculenta]

Synchronicity 16

Notes: After hitting brick wall, restructure! So, that one’s a bit of Frankenstein’s Monster. Introducing: Remnant, references to past happenings that were supposed to be referenced much, much later, and morally (VERY) questionable actions (if you get the reference). Jack’s still high on morphine.

Previous parts under this one link: gyromitra-esculenta(.)tumblr(.)com/post/173374189022/synchronicity-15

Jack grimaces when from behind the APC a figure shambles out, a man in a stained dress shirt with a suitcase held in his right hand. Something unsettling in how strangely his neck twists to the left.

"I wonder, Sunshine," the Beast teases, "fight or flight?"

***

(…) And all I see is war path ahead of me Each and every step I welcome readily And if my lack of fear bring the death of me Let the spirits of my ancestors envelop me (…)

His fingers still grip the rifle, the knuckles white on the dark surface of the gun, and he still stares into dark crimson eyes. The last words reverberate between them – him and the Beast – the talk of ashes and charred bones left in their collective wake somehow does not sound like merely a pretty metaphor anymore. Jack swallows back another question and slowly lifts himself off the floor.

The walker is gone in the minutes that had trickled by and he tries somehow to justify its lack of awareness of his own position – was he shielded by the structure or was a single signature not worth the hassle, or, maybe, the interference had messed with the mech’s systems?

There is also a different possibility, one that now is not as far-fetched as one would imagine otherwise, and he knows it’s the morphine talking as he glances back to the Beast.

"I’m dead, aren’t I?"

"Now, what makes you say such a thing, Sunshine?" The Beast tilts its maw to the side, playfully contrarian – yet under the light timbre something darker lurks with the intensity of razor-sharp fangs biting into the nape of his neck.

"This is limbo. Tartarus. The ceaseless punishment," Jack shakes his head, picks up the pace.

"Do tell me, Sunshine, how does one escape from such a predicament?" The Beast now keeps his stride slinking forward at his side, the words simultaneously mocking and paternalistic.

"One doesn’t."

"One doesn’t unless one has their own guide," the Beast chortles.

"I don’t remember ever being so goddamn fucking vague."

"You’re learning yet, Sunshine. You're learning yet."

"Goddamn fucking morphine," Jack murmurs. His vision is focused and swimming at the same time. His breath coils around his tongue with a taste of rusted iron. "If you're my guide, I'm fucking lost."

"Oh, Sunshine, did I ever aspire to such a title?" The barbwire lull of the laughter pierces his ears together with the roar of the fire, and the smell of burning plastic and artificial fabrics suddenly becomes dominant. The plane.

One wing is broken off and missing, the other is buried deep in a collapsed building. The fuselage is smashed into three neat pieces - the tail rests sideways on the street.

The inside of the craft is still on fire and the asphalt is soaked by fuel. No bodies. No blood. The luggage is strewn around. No body parts. Nothing. There's a ripped in half pink suitcase in front of him with a small plastic hand sticking out of the bundled clothes.

"Who's there? Please!" A woman. Jack turns towards the voice and a greenish silhouette swivels there with its hands outstretched as if fumbling in the darkness. A child cries. "Please, say something!"

"They're all dead," Jack whispers taking a step back.

"Yes, they are, and it was us who killed them, Sunshine, or did you so conveniently forget?" The Beast seethes with smug satisfaction. "Only ash and charred bones, no evidence and no witnesses," it hisses as it focuses the glare of its crimson eyes on him, like he is a mere insect under its scrutiny, "this is what remains in our wake. This is," it bares its fangs in a feral growl as it punctuates every word, "what we are, what we were, and what we are to become yet again."

"No," Jack backs further, a stumbling step after a stumbling step, away from the encroaching darkness that swallows him only to spit him out in a green-lit hell. "No."

His fingers move over the panel covered with a delicate synthetic mesh designed to evaporate on blast. A child cries. The explosive arms without a sound. The goggles give him fleeting vertigo with a split-second delay of the processed image.

"Please, say something!" The woman moves in his direction, slightly off to the side, and Jack evades her. The carpet muffles his steps. "I know someone's here!"

The child is still crying. A man screams in anger somewhere down the corridor.

"One. Two. Three. Boom," the Beast intones with a static of bad reception raising in the background - its voice morphs into that of a newscaster, "...that Mehdi Benjelloun has just claimed the responsibility for the bombing for..."

White noise. Everything drowns in white noise. The clock is ticking. The hands do not move, do not even strain, and the room is white.

"Mr. Morrison," the psychiatrist whose name he cannot recall smiles, the kind of impersonal smile one could expect from a professional detached from the situation. "Did the change in the prescription have any adversarial effects? Any notable differences you have experienced regarding your frame of mind?"

The Beast stings behind his teeth, scrapes the sides of his throat, looks through his eyes.

"No. Can’t think of any. Can’t…" Jack turns his gaze to the tree in the painting hanging above the vibrant ficus to his left, to the maelstrom of the painted sky behind it. The rapid strokes of the brush give it an illusion of a slow deliberate motion. "Felt worse for the first week but I don’t think I really thought about killing myself since then."

"That’s good to hear," the man types something on the keyboard.

"You redecorated."

"Excuse me?"

"This picture, it’s new. It’s different from the one before."

The doctor looks at him quizzically, maybe even slightly alarmed. The Beast whispers of danger, a hissing kind of murmur seeping into his thoughts.

"And what do you see in the picture, Mr. Morrison?"

"Morbid landscape with a tree," Jack swallows, eyes darting to the other side, searching for a route of escape from some undefined peril that now sits heavy on his shoulders. Its claws dig deep enough below his collarbone to draw blood that seeps through and stains the fabric.

"Visual hallucinations. This merits additional evaluation." The man extends his hand under the desk and the Beast roars in fury, it roars as everything is white noise again.

The white room. The chair is covered in dark rust, no - not rust - old dried blood, cracking and flaking off. The infernal ticking thunders louder and louder until he wants to scream just to drown it away.

"Getting lost in your own head again, Sunshine? We can't have that, not yet," the Beast whispers. "Inhale." Inhale. "Count." Count to five. Count against the ticking. Don't lose focus. "Exhale." He exhales, slowly pushes the air out of his lungs. "Remember..."

"Remember my training," Jack repeats opening his eyes - when had he closed them? The plane is yet again in front of him but in the meantime, he must have passed it. The cockpit looks almost intact - if not for the missing panes of glass and something still sparking inside.

He's hunched behind a concrete barrier - it seems the street had been closed off to the traffic before. Jack leans to the side to observe the plaza. There are several cars and a bus, one unmarked APC lying on its side. Recreational area primarily. He can see a bright red restaurant umbrella halfway thrown through a display window. A lot of bodies on the ground he can safely identify as Blackwatch personnel.  

Jack grimaces when from behind the APC a figure shambles out, a man in a stained dress shirt with a suitcase held in his right hand. Something unsettling in how strangely his neck twists to the left.

"I wonder, Sunshine," the Beast teases, "fight or flight?"

The man turns away and Jack mentally reconstructs the area mapping the best route. He licks his lips, runs his tongue over the chapped skin. Changes the grip on the Patten and moves hunched - eyes darting between the man and the ground - trying to find safe footing. Seconds he measures in breaths trickle by as he makes his way towards an overturned cart painted with happy pastels now greyed with settled ash.  

Jack stops to take another look at his surroundings. Crumbled building blocks the nearest street - he could climb over the rubble but the prospect is risky especially if he wants to avoid meeting the civilian or whatever else the man with the suitcase actually is.

Slowly, as the figure disappears behind the APC, Jack raises. Maybe he can circle him. A blink, and the man stands before him in a cloud of swirling black ash. No. Not a man anymore. Something that used to be human. The lower jaw is missing, the eyes are white, the broiled skin sloughs off the meat.

The creature shrieks with an unearthly tone; the wave of sound hits with a multitude of stabs and knocks the breath out of him. Jack falters and almost drops the rifle, scrambles to regain his composure.

Twisting tendrils of purplish light lash out but not towards him, no, to the side, and with growing dread he sees a body dragged upwards with the entrails flopping from under the vest, and limbs swinging in disjointed tugs like a ragdoll shaken erratically by attached strings. It raises the gun and turns towards him. Jack ducks behind the collapsed decorative gazebo. Bullets thunder against the cement.

A shriek again, his vision darkness for a second, and another body joins in the puppet dance. Shots spray wildly in a wide swipe rising clusters of dust where they hit.

Jack emerges quickly from the side and aims at the closest enemy. Two shots send the helmet flying, the third one shatters the brow, and the glowing tethers snap as the body hits the ground.

It’s not enough, the strings spring out from the creature anew and latch onto the fallen cadaver, sink and dig into the flesh, and bring it upright again.

"A resourceful abomination, isn’t she?" The Beast rumbles with glee, its presence growing, enveloping him, and mucous darkness shifting against his skin. The taste of mildew and rot steals into his mouth. "She tests our patience. We will kill her."

"We will kill her," Jack echoes as yet another puppet joins the fray.

"We will grind down her bones between our teeth," the Beast purrs. Claws rest over his hands, and then he runs between the bullets sailing with deadly grace through the air.

The Beast keeps his pace; the loud empty thumps explode in the sudden eerie silence as its paws hit against the pavement rising up clouds of ash. It bares its fangs, its maw low to the ground, and then it jumps through the motionless air swamped in the iridescent afterglow.

The Beast’s jaws close around the creature’s neck with a nauseating crunch. It turns and twists thrashing its head from side to side until meat, tendons, and bones separate. Mutilated head rips off and freezes midflight in the air.

With a snap, the movement resumes. Hunks of meat hit the ground with wet squelches, the violet tendrils dissipate, and the risen corpses fall over once again.

The Beast roars triumphantly, and Jack, with his hands buried to the elbows in the creature’s clawed apart chest smiles mirroring its expression: all teeth and savagery.

[molly2140]

Introducing Octavia Freeman 😎

Includes brief shit about my Half-Life universe.

Gordon has a twin sister, Octavia, she's approx. 4 hours younger than him if that matters haha. Their mother died during their birth (depressing as hell I know but I like the tragedy and dramatic shit), so their awesome father took it upon himself to raise his twin children the best he possibly can and give them a good life. Since Gordon can't speak, he, Octavia, and their father learned ASL in order for them all to communicate. Octavia acts as Gordon's voice and helps translate his signs for those who don't understand ASL. While growing up, Octavia becomes very defensive for Gordon, she hates when people make fun of him for not being able to speak. High school consisted of lots of fights and detentions for Octavia simply because she's defending her beloved twin. The two have a very unique bond, not only are they twins but they are best friends. Gordon has a really hard time opening up to other people, especially other girls, but he's always found it easy to confide in his sister, and Octavia is extremely supportive of him.

About a year after Gordon and Octavia graduate high school, their father falls ill and soon passes away, by then they are sharing an apartment on the university campus. Gordon is undoubtedly a genius, Octavia is quite intelligent as well, but she is studying for casual things such as photography and journalism, compared to Gordon who's clearly working for his PhD in science stuff. Soon after their father passes, Octavia finds herself taking the loss much worse than Gordon, and somewhere down the line she finds herself addicted to heroin. If Gordon wasn't home the night she finally overdosed, she would have died. During her rehabilitation and healing process, this brings the two of them closer and Gordon simply tells her that he cannot lose her, because she's the only family he has left. From that day forward, the two became even more inseparable.

Gordon and Octavia both end up at Black Mesa! Gordon obviously working in anomalous materials, whilst Octavia became the first female security guard, and she and Barney form a great friendship. Barney even tells her about his interest in Lauren, and she instantly hooks them up and everybody watches them fall in love. Octavia, like Barney, is a huge party animal, and enjoys grabbing some beers with Barney and Gordon after a long shift. Did I mention that Octavia and Barney are huge Queen fans? 😎 They will blast their music every day when they hit up the shooting range or while on lunch break. Also, Barney proposes to Lauren and Octavia was so happy when he announced it to her that she literally would not shut up about wedding plans for a whole week.

Black Mesa Incident time, yayyyy.

Octavia loses her shit when she can't find Gordon, she knew he was going in the test chamber that day, she wasn't supposed to know but he had told her anyways. She and Barney team up to fight the foreign alien creatures in order to escape Black Mesa alive. They are extremely pissed about the military simply executing any scientist or Black Mesa employee, however their highest priority is finding Gordon. Octavia and Barney get separated inside the Lambda facility, Octavia is trapped within and simply focuses on finding Gordon. She finds a portal to Zen, where she fights more of the alien creatures and soon realizes there's no way back to Earth. Suddenly the G-Man introduces himself to her, and offers her a job, she hesitates, but accepts when he tells her that he has Gordon. Together, the twins are put into stasis until their "hour has come again".

I'm not gonna get too much into the Half-Life 2 era stuff cause I'm planning on making a fan fic of it but here's some highlights and other facts about Octavia.

The land outside City 17 is fairly different, White Forest still exists, however everything is more inland and not next to the coast. The only large bodies of water are rivers and lakes. Technically City 17 is somewhere in Russia or in Soviet territory because I noticed a lot of the buildings and signs there are in Russian, but let's pretend City 17 is in the US because I want Octavia and Gordon to find their home as well as the ruins of Black Mesa. :3

City 17 has a wall around it that the Combine patrol heavily, the canals still exist but there is also underground tunnels that lie below City 17. The Combine are completely clueless of the underground tunnels, therefore Alyx uses them to help transport supplies and escort citizens to other outposts.

The Combine become aware of Gordon and Octavia's return a couple months after they arrive, unlike literally within the first day in the actual game.

Gordon and Alyx do fall in love of course. :)

Barney and Octavia fall in love too. :) Not gonna spoil shit about what happens to Lauren though I'm sure you can figure it out easily.

Eli's lab is far outside City 17, further west, so instead of it being called Black Mesa East, it's now Black Mesa West. It's actually a fairly large building that is partially submerged underground and is hidden in the trees so the Combine aren't aware of it. There's a nice open area to the south of the lab where Alyx and Dog have plenty of room to play fetch.

Since the lab is partially submerged underground, kinda like some houses where the back end is underground but the front isn't, that's literally this concept. So you can basically walk onto the roof, and that's Barney and Octavia's hang-out spot. This is also the spot where they confide in each other and talk about their tragedies, for Octavia, her heroin addiction and overdose, and for Barney, what happened to Lauren.

Oh yeah they also stole a Combine helicopter and fixed up Black Mesa style. 😎

Octavia helps Barney cope with his reoccurring nightmares over Lauren and the things he's seen working undercover, oh, and about that cat.

Barney managed to save some of the old mixtapes he and Octavia made back in the day, as well as the portable cassette player, which he rigged so it doesn't need batteries. So they constantly jam out to their favorite old tunes when hanging out or going on supply runs or hunting trips.

Octavia is definitely a night owl, Gordon is as well and they both have troubles sleeping sometimes. Gordon sometimes joins Octavia on the roof at 3am to talk some energy out in hopes of going back to sleep.

The classic desert eagle is Octavia's preferred weapon, the one she used while on security at Black Mesa. She is forever grateful that Barney managed to find and keep her prized gun after the Incident, as well as Gordon's infamous crowbar. The crowbar he still swears his life on by the way, ha.

Like Alyx, Octavia is quite fit and flexible, it's obvious they're experts at parkour. ;) If you haven't noticed, Alyx has a hoodie underneath her leather jacket with the Black Mesa logo, so I decided Octavia's shirt should have the Lambda logo with a similar color concept as seen on Gordon's HEV suit.

Octavia sometimes will go undercover with Barney to try and understand what he does every day, as well as gain more Combine information. She starts doing this soon before they confide in each other and confess their newfound love for each other. They definitely feel like they're working together again like in the old days but now forming secret crushes on each other.

Okay I'm not gonna spill too many more details without spoiling everything haha. But this is Octavia, as well as a brief explanation on my Half-Life universe. I showed my finished drawing of Octavia to my boyfriend and he swears she looks like me in real life but I don't see it other than the fact we both wear glasses and we both have our hair in ponytails all the time lol. The pose was based off of Kibbitzer's reference sheets, as mentioned before, you can find Kibbitzer's sheets on DeviantArt, their Patreon, or by simply searching it in Google. So yeah, this is my OC, Octavia Freeman, I hope you guys like her because I've put a lot of thought into her character and I've never done that with my other OCs haha. But I'm really proud of it. :)

[thatfanficstuff]

Salvation (9)

Pairing: Loki x OC

Warnings: Canon typical stuff

Series Masterlist

***

Thor and Isolde landed on the roof of Stark tower while Stark attempted to get Selvig to shut the device down.  When that failed he attempted to destroy the machine with his blasters only to get blown back.

"We're too late," Isolde said. "Let me see what I can do."

"Have at it, Svengali." Stark's voice came through the earpiece Fury had provided. 

"I don't understand that reference, Metal man. It better not be an insult," Isolde said as she stepped away from Thor. She began to make her way toward the doctor. Maybe if she could repair the damage to his brain he'd be able to shut everything down. It was a long shot, but it was worth a try. A screech filled the air and Isolde stumbled backward as the Chitauri general stepped between her and the man. He appeared to have no lasting damage from Coulson's well-placed shot. Annoyance flared through Isolde with the realization.

"I could use a little help here, Odinson," Isolde said as the being continued to screech at her. 

"Already on it," he answered as he began to spin Mjolnir and clouds gathered overhead. Isolde widened her stance with her shield in front of her and sword in hand. 

The general hissed and fired a blast from his gun. She lifted her shield only for the bolt to go straight through, missing her head by millimeters. 

"Well, then." She tossed her useless shield to the side. "I guess we'll do this the old fashioned way."

"Yes. Let's," Thor said and she glanced over to see a wide grin on his face. A bolt of lightning shot from the sky, striking the machine. 

The impact threw everyone back and Isolde closed her eyes against the bright, glaring light. Getting back to her feet, she frowned to see the device still functioning normally. "That didn't work, Thor."

"I see that, Isolde," he snapped back. 

The general had managed to slip closer to her while she was distracted and he pressed the scepter to her chest. She glanced down before glancing back up with an arched brow. The general shrieked and repeated the action two more times. "Sorry, ugly. Doesn't work on me. Guess mine's bigger than yours."

"I like her," Stark said with a laugh which trailed off. "Shit."

"What?" she asked but answered her own question when she realized a beam of light had shot up into the sky from the device. Everyone looked up to see the hole open in the sky. 

The Chitauri made a sound that resembled laughter. 

"Thor, help the metal man," she called without looking at her friend. Instead, she swung her blade at the alien in front of her. Her sword glanced harmlessly off his armor. "Oh, come on," she yelled as he screeched at her. 

She stumbled back, putting more room between her and her foe. 

***

"Holy hell," Raven breathed out as the alien army streaming from the sky came into view. "They must not have made it in time."

Loki leaned against the back of her chair. "This is only a small portion. They will keep coming. They are unrelenting and unending."

Clint glanced at him from the seat beside his wife. 

Natasha looked out the window from behind her partner. "Stark. We're flying into the city at your three. Heading northeast."

"What did you do go for drive through?" he snarked back. 

"How did you know?" Raven asked even as she adjusted their trajectory to bring them in at a better angle. 

"Everyone's a comedian," Stark grumbled. "Go down Park. I'll lay 'em out for you."

"Way ahead of you, tinman," Raven said.

Loki's stomach sank as he took in the destruction in front of them, knowing the part he played in all of this. His eyes darted from location to location looking for any sign of his brother or his love. He resisted the urge to ask after her in the device the archer had given him so he could hear everyone else. 

The jet took out several of the aliens as they flew in front of them. They veered away and flew by a large tower. It was there he spotted Isolde, battling the Chitari general. He gripped the back of the seat in front of him. "You need to get me down there. I have to help her," he said. 

"We're working on it," Clint replied and flipped a couple of switches as Raven changed the angle of the jet. Several rounds were fired toward the general only for him to turn and fire at the jet. His aim was better than theirs and one of the engines exploded in flames. 

"Shit. Hold on," Raven snapped and the three who were not in seats all scrambled for something to grasp onto. 

The jet crashed into the ground tossing them all around. Quickly they were up on their feet and out the back. "We've got to get back up there," Loki said looking at the tower. 

A sound like a sick beast sounded through the air drawing everyone's attention to the portal. 

"No. no. no," Loki breathed out as the hulking beast flew into view. "Too fast. This is all happening too fast," he muttered. 

He had to get to Isolde. Now.

***

Isolde kicked at the general and he lost his footing, falling to a lower part of the roof. Taking advantage, she lunged toward the disheveled doctor. Placing her hands on his head, she fixed his brain as quickly as she was able. It undoubtedly hurt the man as she couldn't use the finesse she was used to. 

"Oh, God," the man said as he came back to himself. "What have I done?"

"We have to shut that machine down," she told him.

He shook his head. "We can't it's impossible."

Her heart sank. Was there no way to stop this invasion?

"We can't do anything without the scepter."

Her head jerked up with those words. "Start talking, doctor."

***

"We've got to help these civilians," Captain America said as they all hid behind a car. 

"Go, we've got this," Natasha said.

"Are you certain you can hold them off?" he asked.

"It would be my genuine pleasure," the archer answered.

"I need one of those flying craft," Loki said as he observed several whizzing by. A plan was slowing forming in his mind. And it was just crazy enough to work. 

"Well, let's see what we can do," Natasha said with a grin.

***

When Isolde went to engage with the general again, she was surprised to find Thor already there. And, of course, the prince wasn't wearing an earpiece so she could tell him to go for the scepter. 

She watched as Thor swung Mjolnir hitting the Chitauri on the side of the head. He jerked away with a hiss and dropped over the side of the building. They both ran over to see him fall onto one of the vehicles as it flew by. 

Things just got a lot more difficult. 

"Go," she said to Thor with a jerk of her head. He didn't wait to be told twice.

She watched as vehicles zipped by then dropped onto one with perfect timing. The Chitauri on board swung his gun around and she smacked him in the face, shoving him from the vehicle. She took his place and began the search for the general, taking out those she could along the way. 

"If anyone can hear me, we need that scepter. The doctor built in a way to shut down the device but we must have the scepter. Does anyone hear me?"

"Everyone copy? Get the scepter to Svengali," Stark said and Isolde smiled in relief that she had been heard even if she still didn't know what the metal man was talking about.

"Isolde?" was the next thing she heard, surprising her. 

"Loki? Where are you?"

***

The three SHIELD agents and the god were taking out as many invaders as they could while they attempted to get civilians to safety. Loki would use his magic to confuse and distract so the agents could take out the Chitauri with more ease. 

Natasha fired her guns while Clint fired his arrows and Raven threw microexplosives, directing them where they needed to go. "Just like Budapest all over again," Natasha said as she emptied her guns once more.

"You and I remember Budapest very differently," the archer said with a scowl as he fired arrow after arrow.

Raven shrugged. "I can see it," she added then pressed a button to blow up more Chitauri. "See?"

Clint shook his head. "You two spend entirely too much time together."

Several bolts from an alien weapon fired around them and they all turned as Isolde landed nearby. She nodded a greeting. "I'm here to borrow my fiance if you don't mind," she said. 

Loki hurried over and swung up behind her. She moved aside to let him drive so she could focus on firing the weapon she'd stolen at the enemy. "Find me that general," she told him.

"As you wish, my dear," he answered as they lifted into the air.