#I kin with Lloyd so much it hurts

[mysticdragoni]

Something bad is about to happen to me

[averygayplant]

Jay headcanons! Why? Because I fucking hate him (sobs in kin) Here we goooo~ (Shout out to @giddlygoat, he loves Jay hcs)

Jay doesn't really have a normal sleeping schedule. My projection of ADHD onto him makes it so that he wakes up and just goes and goes and goes until he crashes, and when he crashes there is nothing that will wake him up again until he does so naturally- at least, not without functional repercussions.

Jay has very hypersensitive hearing that is specifically attune to electronics due to a funky combination of his ADHD and his powers, and it's something he's experienced since he was a child. Unfortunately, other sounds are louder for him as well- So as useful as this ability could be, it's incredibly difficult for him to differentiate sounds if there's too much noise, and he ends up tuning most of it out.

Jay gets mildly staticy when he starts to panic, stressed, or otherwise fueled by anxious energy. The rest of the Ninja aren't super affected by his shocks anymore, and for Lloyd they tickle, but for a normal person it'd be a pretty painful and shocking zap, like touching a door handle in the middle of winter.

Jay is hypermobile- he's double-jointed in a lot of places and just generally flexible in ways he shouldn't be. It's useful for his preferred fighting style (calculated combos of light, fast strikes, speed and evasion prioritized over strength and endurance) but he often overextends things without realizing and wears a lot of braces under his gi and casual clothing to stop himself from doing any permanent damage just by moving around.

Small dogs people are memably stereotyped as aggressive because they have less overall body mass to contain all their anger, and Jay is no exception to this rule. He's literally a human tazer. Oh, and he totally kept the promise he made to Cole in Skybound and bit him when he became corporeal again in DotD, even if he wouldn't remember it. It was totally worth getting flung on reflex into the wall behind them and you'd have a hard time convincing Jay otherwise.

Jay is SUPER gender queer and doesn't have the mental capacity to process it between saving the world all the god damn time. All he knows is that he/him pronouns are great and all, but being called Nya's girlfriend and having she/they occasionally used feels way better than it should for a supposed cis person. It doesn't really matter either way though, because he's definitely into drag and glamrock and glittery sparkly things. (He totally would have done the makeup section of their show if Dareth let him)

Jay is just generally clingy, not just toward Nya but the other Ninja too, and it's largely because touch and physical proximity is his go-to reassurance anchor. It doesn't matter if he's scared or upset or hurt, his first instinct is to grab someone's hand or lean into their shoulder or reaffirm their presence to himself in some other way. Touch is his preferred method to comfort others too, often reaching out on impulse whenever someone is upset.

Jay eventually does end up losing his eye, and there's no conveniently placed time travel to undo it. It was a pretty gruesome and traumatizing experience... for everyone except Jay. He doesn't remember a lick of it. Blood loss and pain makes the memories too fuzzy to recall. Anyway, he ends up going a pretty long time before realizing exactly why his jokes about it aren't really landing and managing to stress Kai out by mentioning he wasn't surprised, since he'd been wondering if he'd properly lose it ever since looking in the magical FSM tomb mirrors- If you'll recall, Cole had no reflection (you thought I couldn't squeeze Lava in here? FOOL! MWAHAHAHHAHA- HACK-)

Jay was genuinely scared of thunderstorms as a kid because of how loud they were, and technically still are for him. It's not as bad now that he understands what the noise is from, but it was a noise that haunted his nightmares growing up. Jay called Lloyd 'bug' when he was little, and Nya calls him 'lightning bug' affectionately now. You can't tell me otherwise. I mean, you can, but you're just objectively wrong

[kin-one-kin-all]

I'm Lloyd from Lego Ninjago, and I've been in the worst depressive episode I've had in years over missing my dad this month. It's gotten so out of control. I know he wouldn't want me to sit around mourning him, but I can't help it. Seeing my father get resurrected as a being of pure evil broke my heart in a way that just can't heal. He will not be remembered as the kind man he worked hard to be, but as a villain. I want to put in a kin call, to see if I could find him again, but I know it is a long shot. I just want to believe anything else than what happened. My dad deserved to at least die a hero, not be resurrected as a husk of himself for an evil person to use and manipulate. And even then, when I say he is a husk of himself, I still see glimpses of him, his humor, his way of speaking. I wonder if it was just the destructor side of him resurrected, or if he's still in there. And I know the show will never give me that closure. I don't know what to do, or how to manage my emotions. I never wanted to be the green ninja, or be forced to grow up so fast. I want to be the age I was meant to be, and I want to be with my dad. We only had a couple years together, after a childhood without him. It wasn't enough. It all hurts so much.

.

[xahriknight]

Okay so a few things:

Just finished The Gray Man and I f**king loved it SOO much!

I see why people like Chris Evans character; Lloyd is really good looking and all, yes. But I don't agree or understand HOW PEOPLE ARE OK WITH A SOCIOPATH. I mean yeah he's handsome and shit but still, HE FREAKS ME THE F**K OUT!

It's sad there's not much hype/appreciation for Six. Sure, he's an assassin and but he seems like a lost puppy who's still figuring shit out and who loves Claire very much. ITS SO SWEET!

Now let's address the real deal, "HOW TF DID RYAN GET SO BUFF!?". The shot of his arms in that scene made me rewind 15 times. HE'S SO F**KING HOT IT PHYSICALLY HURTS ME 😫

ANA DE ARMAS. What is there to say, she still as gorgeous as ever and I wish I had a girlfriend like her.

As an Indian, specifically South Indian I'm SO F**KIN PROUD of Dhanush. He did so well I hope he gets more opportunities like this. Also, for a character of that caliber, he deserves more screen time.

[ninjakitten1699]

More Oni headcanons that I wanted to add on

to @ambrosial-tea post but I forgot until now!

There are different tribes of Oni as stated in the last post. Aka Oni (Red), Ao Oni (Blue), Shiro Oni (Pale/White), and our Kuro Oni (Black/Dark).

We don’t know too much of the Dark Oni we got but we do know that Oni were originally intended to be guardians between Material Plane and Spirit World when the two began overlapping (possibly The Grasslands/Departed, and Cursed Realm before they began separating). Put a tribe of Oni on the Material Plane for a couple years and they’d splinter into subraces of Oni and become more corrupted by the years. Dark Oni became one of the tribes corrupted.

Aka Oni are the most common type of Oni with their dark red colors, large size, and toughness. They’re slightly bigger than the rest of their kin, more violent, unfocused, and pursue immediate satisfaction, disregarding long drawn out plots and schemes. They’re mostly known for strength too.

Ao Oni are known for their unnatural cunning and aptitude for magic, smaller than their red kin but larger than pale, and have different shades of dark blue. They’re the ones you’d catch calculating and meticulously pursuing lofty goals like power and knowledge.

Shiro Oni are known for their aloofness and connections to the spirit realm. They’re the smallest of the main three tribes and the fewest of members. They vary from pale white to light gray. (They may as well adopt other Oni who share their colors and hopefully teach them their ideals.) Pale Oni would rather keep things in balance between the material plane and spirit world as the ancient Oni intended. They guard their locations but will adventure for artifacts of the spirit world and mend balance. If we take that into account perhaps they are another reason why Realm travel is difficult to Oni who try to cross through the any of the realms involving afterlives.

While Oni have no concept of gender since they have both reproductive organs, they also have no concept of sexualities either. Honestly they just didn’t have a name for it when one didn’t feel the need to have sex or when another felt more attracted to the same sex aspects of their partner. (If anything, their type of relationships or way of thinking would be looked up upon because they felt closer to their spirituality and their true selves.) Again they sometimes don’t mate for reproduction but just for the vibes of their partner.

They probably didn’t have a name for having multiple partners at the time either. If one Oni wanted to be a part of what the other two had and they were content with the feel of them, then it was okay. Plus more hands to help raise the cub personally. (Essentially that’s what PolyGarm would basically be. They make Garm happy, they’re happy with him, and Lloyd would basically have more than two parents. At this point Lloyd would just have more dads and Koko is just the one good mom he deserves.)

The second Oni learn what kisses are and how they work, they find it just as addictive as they do with other acts of affection.

Oni are more closer to their family than they are to strangers because in most Oni’s belief, strangers brought suffering to the family. In turn they displayed their family’s name first before their own, showing pride in them and hoping to intimidate any strangers with ill intent towards them.

Speaking of Oni names, they don’t usually have any but when they do their names would be what positive traits the parents wish the child to take on. For example, a son could have “Akihiko”. “Aki” meaning “bright” and “hiko” meaning “boy/prince”. They could want him to be someone brighter than they ever hoped for. For a daughter, “Asuna” with “asu” meaning “tomorrow” and “na” to “greens” or “apple tree”. Maybe the parents are hoping the Oni daughter would lead them to a more plentiful day. And then there’s the family names. The most famous ones are “Hideyoshi” and “Ishikawa”. We’ve heard of these names and the history behind them, I wouldn’t want to come across any of their descendants that carry their name with honor.

Ironically “Harumi” is actually a name for a female Oni in some home brewing lore. One of her meanings is “govern/rule” and “beauty”. Goes to show how far she would take her name literally.

Shiro Oni/Pale Oni don’t have names, but it’s because they don’t want to be too close to the material plane while they guard the spirit realms. They would refer to themselves and each other as “that/this one” instead like how gargoyles in the old days would. If they come up with names, it’s for the sake of working with others on the material plane, but even then it only happens when they really trust the people around them.

Oni have a large appetite that could put the Pythor and the Anacondrai to shame. They could honestly compete against the Great Devourer and other wyrms.

An Oni’s pair of horns are a sign of honor. No pair of horns are alike, not even the closest siblings’ horns look the same. They all have their differences. Their horn length is their pride. Having them sawed off is quite literally shameful to the owner of them but they did do something to deserve it.

It’s possible that some Oni were confused at Garm’s horns not being there at first but they hear about the first time they grew out of his head he quite literally broke them off and bled for a good long while to the point of passing out. (Blood vessels actually go throughout the antlers/horns in animals which is why they aren’t busted right off easily. Why wouldn’t they to Oni horns?) Come to find out it was the FSM’s hate for Oni that made Garm hate himself and how he looked so Garm had them filed down to his scalp or small enough to hide in his hair. It honestly almost hurts the Oni’s look on the FSM even more but hey who hasn’t he hurt? It takes a couple more decades and some therapy before he finally let’s go of his internalized self hatred and trauma that he grows out his horns and finally has pride in himself like most Oni already do.

So it’s not uncommon for Oni to live among other races, whether secretly or not, due to their shapeshifting abilities, however sometimes they’re immediately shunned when their true form slips out. Unless they proved otherwise to the most accepting of inhabitants, they’re allowed to stay. By then they’d have a hybrid appearance with their horns out, either out of their kindness to ease the others’ fear of them or for their own personal benefit.

Oni that do live on their own choose to live in the wilderness or in the mountains. If living in society but still wanting some sort of solitude, they’d either be closer to the outskirts or deep in the downtown where you’d either have to ask directions to specific people to find them or already know where they are. Hence Mistaké with her small tea shop and Wu being able find her.

As stated before Oni have no problems with Half-Oni at all. They’re just welcoming another cub into the pack and it’s just the fact that they are a child of an Oni who fell in love with another humanoid. Although there are some cases of Oni being chased out by the other race with their cub in their arms and they just run until they find the closest tribe. They’d be welcomed into the tribe and the cub is basically adopted by them.

Again half Oni isn’t a problem to them, but they do have a problem with any particular wizards experimenting on Oni breeding with any other humanoids. The know it’s not the parents’ fault neither is the cub’s. If neither parent want nothing to do with them, then the half Oni cub is taken off of their hands by another Oni who was grieving at a loss of a cub (or the realization they couldn’t have any) or a pairing who wouldn’t mind another. The cub won’t have a terrible environment, the parents won’t have to unwillingly interact with the child until they resolve their own issues or they wish to visit and see them grow.

Meanwhile, those wizards will never know peace again until the day they die, even other tribes, who they could be at war with, will catch wind of what happen and help in taking them out. By the time those wizards die, even the Pale Oni who have no ties with Omega or any other tribes won’t be forgiving to them. They won’t do anything too harmful to them, but they will lead them to the terrible part of the Cursed Realm and those wizards proceed to stay there until they fade out of existence entirely.

Enough angst there and let’s go back to fluff. I bet Oni would love dice. Like not even for games but for the click-clack sound. (“Lloyd. They’re metal dice. You cannot have—.” “Shiny sparkly metal bits make pretty sounds! :D” “Garmadon please tell your son not— Not you too!” “Wha~ It does sound pretty.”)

Y’all know how like adult lions play with their babies? They pretend to be hurt and that the cub is super strong to help build up their confidence. Hear me out, Oni do that too. Big goddamn Omega really be taking hits from tiny little cubs, Mistaké be playing with little Garmadon and playing dead on him, then Garm just does the same thing for little Lloyd. (“Koko, sweetie, help. It’s the battle of the century in here. Help, save me. He’s too powerful!” “*tiny war cry*”)

Someone makes a baby Oni cry one time and boy it’s absolutely over. It’s on sight for that person. I’m telling you On Sight!

Oni can purr loud enough to the point where it rumbles in them like a motor and that’s how cubs feel their parents’ purring. Then there’s baby Oni just babbling and the adult Oni just pretend to have a whole conversation with them. Don’t get me started on them playing soft flute music to help the toddler Oni sleep.

We probably only got a few words out of Omega when they first appeared because we were hearing them through human ears. Lloyd’s Oni brain would click on and translates what he knows while Garm in full Oni form can get full sentences out of Omega.

Oni are willing to learn a different language if it helps others understand them and their intentions. Now let’s just think of Lloyd connecting to his Oni side of the family (since let’s face it, the Oni are going to be around longer than most of his friends are) through teaching them sign language.

They also try to teach him their Oni tongue but he can only grasp a few words at a time easily. When he finally learns the language, next thing you know he’s going to be cursing and only Oni will understand. Some (aka Mistaké) want to scold him and others (*cough*Garmadon*cough*) find it hilarious.

Garmadon’s Oni-Dragon hybrid brain wants him to decorate his significant others and now I think of Oni just sharing the precious items they hoard with their mate. Wait till they figure out they can make jewelry and have their significant other wear it.

[aweebwrites]

Move on Dragons 12

Lloyd stared at the elder dragon with wide eyes, surprise coursing through him.

‘... I’m not even surprised anymore.’ Kai commented, breaking the silence.

‘If you were, you’d be pretty lime.’ Morro commented, shifting onto his back and batting at Kai’s wing idly.

‘One, I think you mean lame and two, hey!’ Kai grumbled then hissed, lowering his head to nip at Morro who only batted his snout away.

‘... But that can’t be right.’ Lloyd finally spoke up and the dragon version of his uncle looked at him curiously.

‘How so?’ He asked Lloyd who frowned.

‘If he were my father… I’d be able to tell right away.’ Lloyd told him surely. ‘And my father’s an Oni, not a dragon.’ He pointed out and Wu nods.

‘All very true. But only one person can confirm or deny if the dragonling is your father or not.’ The elder dragon rumbled and Lloyd nods.

Only his uncle Wu can tell them that or not… He might have to wait a bit before that happens. Though, he had to admit, the realisation made some sense. Why else would a dragon he’s never met before seem so very familiar to him? But why would he be so fussy over him? He was sure his father lacked all means to care about anything that didn’t aid him somehow. Though, it has him a little worried. He has no clue where his father is. After the battle against the Oni, he all but vanished into thin air. What if that dragon really was him? What if he got himself into a situation and they turned him into it? He wasn’t the most careful nor caring person right now, despite his focus on survival. He just hopes that if it really is him, there’s a way to turn him back.

Meanwhile, Wu was at a loss. This dragonling certainly identifies as his brother but that wasn’t possible. He knows his brother’s movements, has been keeping an eye on him through his spirit smoke. His brother was very much still an Oni, not a dragon. Yet, this dragon radiated the same aura, carried the same scent, and now that he looked, carried the same horns and eyes as he. What… What was this? How can this be? He stared at the dragon in thought, even as it only laid there, still upset about what Lloyd had said. He could clearly understand them yet even like this, Wu couldn’t understand anything about this. He huffed through his nose. He needed to meditate to be certain… And to reveal some truth to his students and nephew.

Not too far away, the dragons and their counterparts all gathered to where the dark elder dragon was resting. The ninja were reminded just how big he was as he rose up to sit, his size easily passing that of the ultra dragon. Even with the added height of their newly shifted legs, they were absolutely tiny in comparison.

‘Let us return. The sun is setting.’ He rumbled and they nodded.

‘Uh… We could use a paw…’ Lloyd says sheepishly to his father, glancing across at all the fruit they gathered nearby, the leaves they had been carrying them back with snapped.

Garmadon gave an amused huff before looking to the Zanes.

‘If you would.’ He rumbled and they fashioned a large basket of thick ice for both Lloyd and Kai to toss their finds in.

With their food secure, the dragons returned to their Ninjagan home. There, they found the winged Oni Lloyd deep in thought as Kai dozed with Morro under wing. He peered a lowly glowing amber eye open once they arrived, their collective wing beats making it impossible to sleep through. He yawned, watching as everyone filtered in, the whole lay-around-and-eat lifestyle already gotten bored to him.  He blinked once Blaze approached him, smelling guilt on him.

‘What’s up?’ Kai asked as he rose up to sit, Morro grumbling as he did.

‘... You aren’t replacing me, are you?’ Blaze asked him after a moment and Kai looked horrified.

‘’Course not!’ Was Kai’s immediate response. ‘What makes you think that? Is it something I said?’ He asked, tail flicking anxiously.

‘No.’ Blaze huffed, feeling stupid now as he glanced away. ‘I was just being an idiot.’ He rumbled low, rubbing at his front leg with the other.

Kai looked him over carefully, concerned.

‘I doubt that.’ Kai says as he got to his feet, walking up next to him and draping a wing over Blaze, both of them the same size and almost exactly identical. ‘We might look a like but there’s really only one of each of us and neither of us are replaceable. Or forgettable.’ He huffed giving him a comforting nudge Blaze returned with a soft rumbling purr.

‘Kai’s great and all but come on. He isn’t you, brother.’ Nya huffed, the light blue dragoness walking over to nudge her brother, rubbing against his side.

‘See? Our Nyas are smart. They know what they’re talking about.’ Kai rumbled as he lowered his head to his Nya, huffing once she flicked his nose.

‘How are you? Does it hurt to move around?’ The bright green dragon that was Lloyd asked as he walked over.

‘It hurts a little but I’m alright.’ Kai reassured him, nuzzling him too.

“Here comes Sssensei…” Jay hummed from where he lingered by the exit closest to the location of the ship.

The other didn’t have a chance to go look. No, Wu flew in on his own, landing on all fours, white wings open before he folded them. In this form, he looked very familiar to the other Wu in the area but noticeably smaller. He glanced over at his students with gold slitted eyes and was as mildly surprised as they look that they weren’t more surprised about this. Then gain, considering all they have been through… He began shifting, reducing in size, taking a more humane form, scanty scales on his cheeks and neck and covering the tips of his ears

“Let me guesss. There’ss sssomething you haven’t told usss.” Jay says lightly, tilted his head to the side.

“Yes.” Wu sighed, folding his hands behind his back, a familiar black shape around his neck.

“Uncle.” Lloyd says as he stepped forward, eyes on the small black dragon around his neck. “Tell me is that… My father?” He asked Wu.

“Yes…” Wu responded and Lloyd's breath caught. “But also no.”  He added, confusing him.

“I have been keeping track of my brother and he is very much still on the move. But this dragon also identifies as him. That is the confusing part.” He says as he pulled the dragon from around his neck, said dragon still sulking.

Lloyd looked at it- at him… Before he reached out and took him in hand not missing how this dragon who was also supposed to be his father, was immediately meek in his presence. It must be because he yelled at him...

“Hey…” Lloyd began with a sigh, guiltily rubbing the back of his head with his free hand. “I’m sorry I yelled at you. I know you’re probably mad at dad- er.” Lloyd paused, realising this was going to get about as confusing as their names and the other dragon names were.

“Big dad.” He settled on, glancing over at the larger Garmadon as he walked over to Kai, checking his wings. “About everything but it really wasn’t his fault and he doesn’t have it out for me. I like spending time with him so if you could give him enough of a break to not throw a fit whenever he’s close, I’d appreciate that.” He spoke quietly and the small black dragon that was somehow his father and also not looked up at him with shiny red eyes then across at the larger other worldly version of himself...

He then gave small, grumbling squeaks but then crawled his way around his favorite spot on Lloyd’s neck, rubbing his small head against his cheek and Lloyd chuckled, taking it that he forgives him and will cut Big Dad some slack.

“So what do we do now?” Lloyd asked, looking to his uncle.

“I’ll have to track down my brother and bring him here to see if we can solve this mystery.” Wu told him, stroking his beard. “That is a task easier said than done.” He added, folding his arms behind his back.

“We’ll keep an eye out on these big guys while you’re gone and if anything comes up in Ninjago City, we can take care of it in teams.” Cole grinned from his place atop his alternate self who was helping himself to the food, the lower levels of dragon already receiving their share.

“Speaking of, we should probably get in touch with Pixal. She’s been holding the fort down in New Ninjago City but she’s still waiting for an update from us.” Nya spoke up.

“I wonder if no-one isss assking why he hid it after what happened with Kai and Lloyd becausse you’re all blissssfully ignorant or if you all figured you won’t get a ssstraight ansswer.” Jay spoke up from where he was sitting cross legged near an exist, his eyes almost glowing in the diminishing light of day, making him look downright sinister.

It had Wu pausing for a moment.

‘Well now that Jay mentioned it, I am a bit curious…” Kai says from his place on his back, Garmadon- er.

Big Dad being thorough in checking him now that movement didn’t hurt too much. Wu sighed then.

“It was for my protection.” He told them and that bit was surprising. “Unlike my brother, I was born with these draconic genes already awakened. My father was fine with them, but had started to fear for my safety as humanity began to thrive. He couldn’t save the few dragos that lived in ninjago at that time but he could save me. So he bound my ability to shift and appear draconic so I would appear as an average human. I had the power to break it if I chose but if I so ever did, I would not have the ability to fully hide these traits of mine ever again as the process to do so is…”  Wu glanced at Lloyd.

“Very harmful.” He finished.

“So why not inform Lloyd of that? You could have done so without revealing yourself in this way.” Zane pointed out.

“... Simply because I did not know of his ability to change either. I had not expected him to inherit his father’s genes in this way, nor did I sense it. With my binding, I also lacked the ability to sense and communicate with my kin and Oni alike.” He explained.

“Cool but like all the times before, a lot of trouble could have been avoided if you had told us at some point.” Nya pointed out. “We should keep something totally major a secret until the last second and see how you like it.” She huffed.

‘The lesson here is to learn from your masters’ mistakes, not follow in their footsteps.’ Garmadon rumbled nearby as he sat, satisfied with his check up on Kai, deeming him a whole dragon, not missing anything nor having anything in addition to that.

Which meant he should be able to fly and use his powers without trouble though he will have to relearn how to fly with the new shift in his weight. His wings had the muscle for it so he doesn’t need to build any up. But it would still be a solid day before he would be ok with letting him fly however.

“He’s right. Considering our line of work, keeping secrets won’t be the best thing.” Zane nodded, his vice dry.

“Well, today was eventful.” Cole says with a stretch his wings and tail mimicked.

“Tell me about it.” Lloyd says dryly, stroking his father’s head with a finger. “I’m beat.” He sighs, knowing it was early still but the emotional rollercoaster that was today wore him out.

“... Ssso.” Jay spoke up, wondering if other Jay’s team had always been this oblivious, and if so, how do they managed to keep saving Ninjago on repeat. “No-one isss going to quesstion how Garmadon undersstood usss?” He asked them and they stared at him collectively, before staring up at Garmadon.

“This day just keeps getting interesting, huh?” Nya says dryly.

_____________

(God it’s been ages and I’m so sorry but I’m back! The sad times had me p badly, you know? But me aside I’m definitely gonna think up some new names for the dragons because this is gonna get confusing quick. And Big Dad is only temporary It’s too close to big daddy and that makes me cringe so hard i can see my intestines. I’m gonna try for another chapter for today while the writing gods favor me. Thanks for reading!)

[likes-words-and-shrimp]

How These Feelings Fall Into Place

Lloyd and Sheena spend time together at an annual festival held in Mizuho. The next day, Lloyd would leave again. That was okay, wasn't it?

Fandom: Tales of Symphonia Characters/Pairing: Lloyd Irving/Sheena Fujibuyashi Rating: G Mirror Links: AO3 Notes: Written for @theguineapig3​ for @talesofsecretsanta2018​ !! I wanted to try to write a good gift that would at least come halfway to the gift you made for me last year! It is still one of my most favorite things! I hope this little story turns out okay. Happy Holidays!

“Just put the set over here!” Sheena called out, and the men nodded. Crates of the dumplings were placed by the stall nearer the entrance. Mizuho was brighter than it usually was at night, when most of the villagers either retreated to their homes, or were away on missions in other, more livelier places. But the yearly festival transformed the secretive village into a place decorated with paper lanterns, bonfires for the mass amounts of food ready to be cooked, and several stalls that marketed even more food and games.

It was known as the Mystical Village for a reason!

“Chief Sheena!” spoke another man, still dressed in his garb from his latest mission, appearing suddenly from nothing. His dark clothes made him blend with the rest of the night. “I have ordered the balloons from Meltokio, as you asked! They should be arriving at any moment.”

Sheena nodded with satisfaction. “Good work, Orochi! We’ll make this our best festival yet!”

She was still a bit new to this Chief business, but with the World Reunification duties, the constant trips to Meltokio to ensure that things kept running smoothly, and just overseeing day-to-day life in the village, Sheena had her hands full, learning all she could from Tiga. But festivals! She had loved those especially, and helping organize one had felt more like play than business.

“Anything else need to be done? I saw Chiyo’s wrists had been hurting so…” She cracked her knuckles, feeling invigorated – “I can help out with her taiyaki making!”

Orochi though had this look. A look that meant that he had more news to share. “Actually, we just got word from one of our scouts near Sybak. It seems that one of your friends will be arriving soon for the festival.”

Sheena blinked. Who had she told about this festival? Not many, since everyone had to do their own things after the world was reunited. Regal had his company to overlook, Raine and Genis were still traveling together, and Colette had mentioned something about taking care of dogs, which had been hard to understand as she had spoken about it so excitedly last time… She inwardly groaned, remembering that Zelos knew for sure, and probably wanted to butt his nose into it like usual. It was bad enough he hit on the women here during the day! “Ugh, so it’s that idiot again?”

At that, Orochi raised an eyebrow. “While I understand Lloyd may be a bit slow at times, I think idiocy is a bit-”

“Wait, Lloyd?” she shouted, then lowered her voice. “He – I don’t – I don’t think he’s an idiot! J-just-! He’s coming here?”

“That’s what the reports said.”

She wasn’t prepared at all for this.

“Hi, Sheena! Wow, this place looks so bright! What are those paper-looking thingies?”

Sheena swallowed, ecstatic to see the young man standing before her. Here! During one of her favorite times in Mizuho! Although it was hard to get her tongue to work, suddenly feeling it too big for her mouth. Was it swollen? Did she eat something that made her allergic? Oh no, Lloyd was staring at her so much. Maybe her injury from the last mission was still on her face-

“Hey, uh, Sheena? You’re kinda blanking out.”

“Y-yes! Yeah! Haha…” She shook her head, gathering herself. She put on ‘Chief-mode Sheena’ in her place, pretending she was talking to one of her subordinates. Who was wearing blindingly bright red. That would never work for any ninja or for any kind of stealth mission and why the heck was she thinking the logistics of this?

“It’s good to see you. And those are paper lanterns!” She gestured to the decorations that lined the top of the village, giving everything a soft flow. “Secret craft of Mizuho. Don’t tell anyone!”

“Oh yeah! No problem. The secret’s safe with me!”

It was really not at all a secret – people from all over Tethe’alla tried to copy the same design, but Lloyd looked so genuine about it that Sheena couldn’t help but smile. She had missed him, more than she had thought. She had to grin back at him.

“How did you find out about this anyway?”

“Oh, Zelos told me. I’m trying to find this Exsphere caravan and we ran into each other… He said he couldn’t go because he was busy. And, well.” He grinned even wider at Sheena. “A festival sounded fun! I haven’t seen you in a long while anyway.”

It really had. Lloyd was off on his Exsphere journey, and she could only imagine how tough it was by himself. Sometimes she had thought…

Nah, it was stupid. She had a village to run anyway. People needed her. Lloyd wouldn’t want someone like her along anyway.

“Well, you came at the best time! Bet you haven’t tried kingyo-sukui before, have you?” She waved Lloyd over to the nearest stall. “It’s more of a kid’s game, but it’s tougher than it looks!”

“Kin ga what?” Lloyd blinked, but followed her along with complete trust. “How do you win at it?”

“Sorry. It’s goldfish scooping! Here, I’ll show you!”

Lloyd was already very eager to try, and the moment Sheena had the paper scoop in hand, Lloyd was already grabbing his own. He had gone through ten of them by the time he finally got one in his bowl, breaking each of them completely. But he had been as wide-eyed and excited as the numerous little kids at the stall. Sheena also made sure that Lloyd didn’t have to keep paying for each scoop he broke… he probably would have lost half his gald by this point. Just helping him save that made Sheena feel happy.

“Cool! I get to keep him?” Lloyd held up the clear bag with his tiny goldfish to his face. The way it warped his eye and mouth, while the goldfish swam through the water, made Sheena laugh loudly. Lloyd noticed and stuck out his tongue, making it even more silly.

“S-stop! And yes, you can keep him! Although bringing him on your journey might be hard.”

“Oh, right.” Lloyd considered, then handed the bag to Sheena proudly. “Maybe you can take him for me? Or is that too much? You probably got a bunch of goldfish already!”

Sheena had none at all – the game was meant for kids and a Chief should just be doing Chief things! Although, seeing Lloyd offer it to her, she took the bag gladly. It felt like a gift, in a way. “Well, I guess I can make some room for him. But you have to remember to visit him often!”

She didn’t actually expect Lloyd to agree to that. He was on an important journey after all, set on completing it. But he nodded anyway. “Yeah, of course!” Then his stomach growled. “Uh.”

Sheena snickered. “Okay, let’s get some food in you first.” She would have to leave Lloyd to put away the goldfish, and she didn’t want to just yet. It would be safe in its temporary home for now anyway. “Ever had yakitori? You’ll like that one, I bet.”

And, of course, Lloyd ate whatever was handed to him, probably stuffing down more than what some stall owners were expecting. She caught a few eyes gazing at her, silently pleading with her to not let this strange boy in red drain out their stock. But she could let it slide for now, make up for it later. Lloyd had probably been tired from his journey and deserved what he could get!

By the end of the feast, they were seated by the moat that circled around the Chief’s home – or her home to be exact. Still holding the goldfish bag in one hand, and a cup of sake in the other, she then handed that one to Lloyd – being careful not to mix up the two. That would have been embarrassing… “Here. Best way to wash all that food down!”

“Hey, what’s this?” Lloyd took, seated cross-legged on the ground. On the water, small papers folded like sailboats glided on the water. Both children and adults were setting them there, all while Sheena had briefly explained the tradition; to wish good fortune for the coming year. She wanted to help him make one – she knew he could do it pretty well with his artistic talents, but, maybe that was a step too far. Couples usually did that together, and well, that’s not what they were anyway.

She shook away that thought, and smiled. “It’s sake! You’ll like the stuff.” After all, his dad was a dwarf! And dwarves made their own alcohol called mead, which from what she gathered, was usually much stronger. Sake should be easy for Lloyd. “And if you don’t, I’m clobbering ya,” she said jokingly, clenching her free hand.

Lloyd laughed at that. “Okay, okay! I’ll try this… sah-kay? This cup’s kinda small though and I’m really thirsty!”

He was about to take a sip, but then stopped himself. Ah, maybe he wasn’t actually into it?

“Hey, Sheena,” he said, turning to her again. “This was really fun. I’m glad I got to come by! You’re always really busy so I figured maybe this time…”

“You’re welcome here whenever, Lloyd! I’m, um, not always that busy!” She was sort of half-lying but not like Lloyd could notice. She nudged his arm. “Hurry and drink up. No need to get sappy at me!”

Even though she did like that, quite a lot.

“Yeah, just the last month’s been kinda tough and-” Lloyd shook his head. “Anyway! Thanks!” By then, he had already begun to sip.

She thought on what he said for a moment, but Lloyd probably hadn’t meant to get too serious, so she went past it. “I can get some more. There’s a few different types actually if you wanted-”

Then Lloyd fell flat on his face.

“Wh-” Sheena blinked. Then again. And then just stared. Oh. Oh what. Oh, he wasn’t moving. “L-Lloyd!”

Then his body started to nearly roll off straight into the water.

“No! Stop it!” she yelled as if yelling ever did anything for her. Grabbing Lloyd by the shoulders while still holding onto the goldfish, she lifted him up easily. Okay, he was still breathing, but also not really responding to anything. His eyes were shut, and his face was a bit red. Oh no, what if it was something he ate? Was he poisoned? Who would do that here?

If only she hadn’t been slacking off as Chief, she could have prevented this.

Ignoring some of the surprised looks from nearby villagers, she called out to Orochi. He always re-appeared at her side when she needed him. “Here, help me get him inside. Get the medicines out. We need to find an antidote quick!”

“Sheena.” Orochi looked to the boy curiously, though didn’t stall, already grabbing his other shoulder.

“Come on, we need to hurry!” She was trying her best to not lose her cool as they opened the sliding door to her room, but she couldn’t bear to lose Lloyd. Not after everything. She’d inspect every food barrel they had here and find the source. Maybe it was sabotage – there had been mutterings of people who hated Tethe’alla and were forming a group. Maybe they saw Lloyd had been coming here in advance? She needed to gather all her sources for this.

“Sheena,” again, Orochi said, laying Lloyd on a cot.

“Get the local healer. I know it’s usually her time off but I really need her salves for this. And tell Sakuya to travel to Meltokio so we can see whose been on the roads-”

“Sheena.” Orochi said hard, his hands still, his entire body still.

She looked to him in confusion. “What is it? Why are you wasting time?”

“Sheena, he’s just drunk.”

She paused then, and in that pause, she saw Lloyd stir and start to mumble.

“Hafta… see the doggies… ofer ther..”

Oh. He was drunk. But… he had barely taken a sip? Was he that much of a lightweight?

“I’ll go outside and tell those who saw it’s no trouble. He will need water.” Orochi stood up, making the signal for leaving. Though before he did so, he smiled. “He probably needs someone nearby as well.” Then he vanished in a puff of smoke.

Oh no, she was so stupid.

Sheena tried to not think about that so much, finally remembering the goldfish in hand, and getting a nearby bowl to put it in. She had some flakes to give it, but later. Because right now, Lloyd was trying to sit up, and also get up, and also tried to stumble into her door where the paper covering would definitely not hold his weight.

“Sit back down already!” She pulled him near, hands gripping his arms. His body went limp in her touch, leaning against her, his head tilted. He was smiling still.

“Thers a lotta doggies here.. like.. here..?” He pointed at the corner, where a painting of well, a wolf was set in the background of her room.

“Yes, Lloyd. That’s a doggy..” She rubbed his arms, maybe lingering too much. “Go and sleep.”

“Ish a lot! An alsho scary snake?” He pointed above at a divider, its surface painted over with a dragon. “Shnakes are… bad..”

“Okay, yeah, I got it.” It was.. kinda cute how he kept rambling. But she felt weird for still holding him like this. So she tried to get him laying down again.

“And Sheena is!” Lloyd proclaimed and not following up for a while. Like he was thinking on it. This pulled at her patience a little. She was what? Just spill it!

“You need to sleep now.” She then forced him down, hands on his shoulders, half over him. She got a better look at his face, his eyes soft, his hair a little messy from his sudden falling. He was still smiling a lot too. Oh, she was way too close to him. Don’t do this when he was drunk! Don’t do it at all!

“Sheena is… good..” He muttered, half-closing his eyes. “Miss..”

She lifted away slightly, kneeling beside him. She moved a loose hair strand around her ear. “Um, I missed you too,” she said softly, feeling stupid. Was that what he meant?

“Really like her..” Lloyd shifted to his side, to get comfortable. Or maybe to see her better? No, that was also really stupid. “Really.. huh..”

His voice was slowing more, which worried her. He was just drunk, but still.. “Hey, you okay?” She held out a hand to him, then stopped. Too far. Don’t do that.

But Lloyd reached out to it. His Exsphere winked in the light. He brought her hand close to him, just near his face.

Sheena’s face was heated to an extreme.

“Like… I like.. Sheena…” Then he fell asleep, still holding her hand. He held it so tightly, too.

She could still easily leave his grip. Just a quick bend of her wrist and she would be free. But she felt his even breathing near her knuckles. He shifted even closer to her.

She had placed his goldfish in the bowl on a nearby dresser, swimming calmly through its small home. She wasn’t as contained as it was. She could leave at any time.

“I like you, too,” she whispered.

Sheena stayed by Lloyd’s side, watching him sleep.

By morning, she was frustrated.

Some of the paper lanterns had broken, their shells caught on the roofs of nearby homes, and the small boats still lagged in the water, filling it up with trash. It would be a pain to clean up. That and half the stalls had not been taken down yet. There were supposed to be gone by late midnight yesterday!

Also, once Lloyd woke up, he hadn’t mentioned anything about what he said last night.

“Ow… why does my head hurt so much? That was really weird water you gave me…” He was rubbing it as he walked through Mizuho with Sheena one last time. Then he would be gone, for who knows how long. “How come I want to drink it again though?”

“I don’t think you should,” she said, voice hard.

Lloyd blinked at her tone. She saw hurt flash through his face, soon covered up by confusion. “Uh, okay. Well, you gave it to me!”

“Believe me, I know.”

She didn’t mean to have this grumpy attitude, but what was she supposed to do now? If Lloyd had felt that way about her… if he even actually meant what he said!

He probably hadn’t meant it at all. Lloyd sometimes just… said things, didn’t he?

He was patting his jacket, looking for something. “Agh, did I lose my wing pack? I didn’t drop it in the river or something…”

Waiting around was so stupid. Didn’t Zelos say to just go ahead and say what you want? Apparently Lloyd did! But only when he was drunk!

He noticed her frown, because she was definitely frowning. A lot. “Sheena, did I say something wrong?” He blinked. “Or.. be stupid? I didn’t mean to eat that much stuff yesterday! Just, you know..”

Agh, why did she have to point this out?

“I like you too, Lloyd!” she shouted. They were just outside the village. There were probably eyes watching them. They always were. That’s what living in Mizuho was like. She was used to it. But the only eyes that mattered were Lloyd’s.

He stared at her. “I-”

“So don’t just go spouting out you like me too for no real reason! Was that supposed to be funny?” But it was her fault. She made him drink the dumb stuff. “I’m an idiot.”

“Sheena?”

“Never mind. Just… have a safe trip.” Ugh, she couldn’t even confess right. What was she doing?

A pair of arms encircled her suddenly. She stiffened, ready to break out. Only Zelos did this, and he did it to be annoying and invasive. But the scent was different.

“I.. don’t remember when I said that. I wish I did.” A pause. “I like you though. Um. That’s why I came here, you know.”

Oh, she was really stupid.

“Er, did you hear me?”

She shook her head, then nodded her head. Ah, what was the right answer?! Maybe she should hug back? Okay, maybe. So she did.

She leaned into his touch, like before, when he was holding her hand tight.

Then she decided to kiss him. Wait, that was too far!

“Mmf?!” Lloyd’s voice was muffled, not exactly expecting the sudden and fierce kiss she gave him. She stepped back immediately, putting her face in her hands.

“Agh, why am I so bad at this?”

“Huh? T-that wasn’t bad! That was really nice, actually!” He laughed a little. “I mean, I’ve not done that before so…”

She didn’t want to look at him. She needed to find another pit to fall in.

“Is it okay if we try it again maybe?”

Oh wow, she definitely needed to find a pit fast. She couldn’t do that again! No way!

But Lloyd was there, holding her face in his hands, looking nervous also. He leaned in, kissing her lightly. It was nice, nicer than she thought. She melted into it quickly.

She stepped back again and (kinda) lightly punched him in the shoulder.

“Ow!” Lloyd rubbed the affected shoulder. “That hurt a little!”

“W-well, maybe do that kind of stuff sooner!” Sheena took a deep breath, turning away for a moment. “But… thanks.”

Anyone else would have probably complained even more – even Zelos – at her reaction. But Lloyd just laughed. Not at her either. It was nice and innocent, with no bitterness to it, like she would expect from others. But Lloyd was not like other people at all.

“You’re welcome, I guess.” Then, very lightly, hands placed themselves on her shoulders. She leaned back against him, wanting to be selfish. “I’m glad I got to see you again. Really.”

“Yeah, I know.” She could feel how red her face was, and not from any drinks. “M-me, too… Do you have to go now?”

Sometimes she could feel Lloyd think about things, imagining his expression. Only this time, his face was near hers, his breath blowing against her hair that gave her shivers she felt a little guilty thinking on. “Hm, I guess not right now... I still have time. But it’s been hard doing stuff on my own lately, you know…”

She thought back to the impulsive gift Lloyd had given her, the goldfish still swimming in its bowl, needing to be where it was. She felt the same sometimes.

But… Orochi had been doing such good work lately. Maybe he could take over, for a little bit.

“I’ll see what I can do,” she told him, before turning around to give him a hug.

As a Chief of Mizuho, she needed to help people. And those people didn’t have to be from Mizuho itself…

[lesbianskylor]

*slides you five bucks* holly,,,,holly,,,pls give me greenlove headcanons,,,,the world Must Know

greenlove hcs

so . greenlove is this super poly ship a lot of my friends and i came up with. we basically all made an oc and plopped them into a poly ship with lloyd uwu

so, ill explain the ocs to you first!

micah (owner - tumblr: witchlightsands ao3: whichlights) he/him bi flower boy. he a flower boy baby!!!! hes a flirty mess of a bi and is constantly supportive of lloyd. also he loves puns. bastard nerd

rhian (owner - tumblr: cynicalmiles ao3 - cynicalmiles) nb she/her ace pan. she has the elemental power of magic! she also has two dads (nyx and max) and a bro named jayden (owner - tumblr: lightning-jay23 ao3: lightning_jay23). good at makeup. the shortest lol. she’s in the exact middle of the bastard/nerd/dumbass/valid scale

myan (owner - tumblr: qibliwinter/lesbianskylor (HEHEHEHE ME) ao3: hollyus) he/they pan. depending on the au, he’s a vet student or a volunteer or owner of a shelter! he has a dog named scritch and he’s pretty much, besides micah, the most normal one of the greenlove gang. valid nerd

bo (owner - ao3: Nagasha) she/her grayace demiro. she’s a coolass serpentine (hypnobrai)!! she grew up in a group of serpentine girls and she met lloyd at a p young age. probably the most down to earth one of the group. at the very top of valid nerd

ver (owner - tumblr: terezi-kin) he/they demiboy polysexual aro. ABSOLUTE meme trash. ASKJNDLSDFDK jokes are like, his defining personality trait at this point honestly. tall bitch but not the tallest. chaotic good dumbass bastard

celestien (owner - tumblr: iwillheckingfightyou/anywaylloydgarmadonistrans ao3: i_will_fight_you) nb they/them and arospec multisexual. tol long haired redhead, punches transphobes. they have two moms

also: here are more specific ship names

micah/lloyd - brightshipping

rhian/lloyd - emeraldshipping

rhian/micah/lloyd - sparkleshipping

myan/micah - m&mshipping

thats,, kind of all we have so far rip

OKAY - now we get into the actual hcs (which im SORRY miles youve probably heard them all in the discord nsdjkfldk)

rhian and myan are the shortest of the group, celestien and ver are the tallest

SO, rhian and myan totally ride on their shoulders and have a nerf gun fight

(in the circumstance his family is an owner of a shelter) myan and micah totally meet before meeting the others because myan has a shelter that’s like across the street from micah’s flower shop

at some point micah adopts a cat named skittles from the shelter and he cries when he first sees her bc shes so cute.

she’s around 2 years old and she’s a brown tabby with a white muzzle, paws, tip of tail, chest and stomach

she’s affectionate af

lloyd used to be single as fuck before greenlove and everybody made fun of him, so when he gets SIX WHOLE DATEMATES he laughs in their face

after the whole harumi fiasco the ninja DEFINITELY keep their eye on his datemates.

kai, to all of them: hey? hey! you hurt lloyd i hurt you

nya: (pulls out her samurai x dual swords) ill let you figure it out!

cole: ok yall seem chill but if you ever treat lloyd badly…youll regret the day you were born. anyways who likes video games here

jay: you better watch out…you better watch out…yOU BETTER WATCH OUT… YOU BETTER WATCH

zane: (gives off sense of intense protecting of lloyd)

anyways, it is eventually proven that the greenlove squad are all also extremely protective of lloyd (esp after all the shit he went through) and would never hurt him intentionally so all the ninja become cool with them

greenlove is the lloyd protection squad.

all of the greenlove squad minus lloyd: i am the lloyd guardian. guardian of the lloyd

the ninja: morro quivers before them!

greenlove gang minus greenie to morro: FUCK OFF

ver constantly tortures micah with memes and jokes

though,,, they do bond over puns

ver: you wanna go?

lloyd: yea

ver: on a date with me?

ver: OH YOU DO

ver: OHHHH

lloyd: YOU ACT LIKE I FELL FOR A CUNNING PRANK IM YOUR BOYFRIEND YOU EGG

lloyd: turtles turn up

myan: hell yeah go turtles

lloyd: dead on beaches

myan: oh dear god

greenlove: (just doing shit)

ver: wait

ver: so bo’s a snake person yeah

bo: …well, the term is serpentine, but..yeah??

micah: yea- oh god ver no

ver: we’re all scalies

bo: oh, um? i dont quite get what you mean, but his name is skales! not sure how he would react to you calling him, uh, skalie?

lloyd: (wheeze)

myan has, lots of grandchildren and children

(hint: they’re all animals)

myan, when a cat gives birth: hey guys look! its our 34th grandchild :)

rhian’s basically besties with nya

whenever she goes out on a date with lloyd, nya does her makeup, and kai does lloyd’s makeup (since nya and kai are makeup masters obvs)

any love song that’s sweet and nice: plays

all of the greenlove members simultaneously: HOLY SHIT ITS OUR SONG-

celestien: happy one year babe!

ver: 

ver: im 18

celestien is ur friendly neighborhood anarchist :)

they have a discord with the ninja & co (aka adding on skylor and pixal) named “0 days since our last nonsense”

ver: @everybody

kai: i will kick your ass if you tag everybody again

ver: @here

kai: bitch

ver: (feigning innocence) but you didn’t say dont tag here :) :)

kai: fucker

nobody ever. ever. EVER gives ver mod/admin permissions. it happened once and theyll never make the same mistake again

my hc shortest from tallest is rhian, myan, bo, lloyd, micah, ver, celestien

celestien when they’re around tiny animals: (tearing up) you are so small? i could crush you? you’re just? so tiny?

micah dramatically during christmas: ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS , IS YOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUUU

bo: micah i know you’ve been telling us this again and again for the like past 6 hours?

ver: you know what’s my music taste? youtube channel historyteachers.

ver, yelling at the top of their lungs: this plague is bubonic! B-U-B-O-N-I-C

ver: im factkin with the lady thats always singing in those videos

he listens to it so much that all his s/os can recite renaissance man to you on instant if you asked them to

myan: love is dead. you leave me as i lay here sick and festering. you have betrayed me

lloyd: woah whats up?

myan: my dog stole my fuckign popcorn

their older siblings/parents trade embarrassing stories about them and its just terrible for them but really amusing for their older siblings/parents

kai (lloyd), nyx, max (rhians dads), the reols parents (micah), myans parents, vers parents, the snake girl gang (bo), and celestiens moms: (cackling evilly)

bo: so, i was doing this and my friend-

micah: wait

bo: what

micah: oh my god myan and rhian rhyme,

rhian (before they started dating): writes her name on something

myan: holy SHIT THATS HOW YOU SPELL IT?

celestien nickname cel and rhian nickname rhi cause its cute

thATS MY HCS FOR GREENLOVE WHICH I LOVE!!!!!!!! sorry for taking for fucking ever

also if yall want to request hcs then Sure but from now on with hcs being put onto my inbox ill take them as suggestions- meaning, ill delete them if i dont feel like doing them (if you ask off anon ill post privately that i dont want to do it, if on anon ill just delete it lol)

[ericvick]

Bitcoin is surging in 2020 and nearing its all time high — here's why

Bitcoin topped $18,600 on Friday, continuing a vertical climb that accelerated in early October. The largest digital currency by market cap is up 160% in 2020, and up 190% since March 15, following a crash in the second week of March that saw the price drop 25%.

Now it’s not far from its all-time-high of around $19,800 toward the end of December 2017.

Bitcoin (BTC) bulls are hoping this time is different. And it is, judging by the breathless media coverage and general mania: there isn’t any.

In the previous bull run, financial (and non-financial) press went into a frenzy, in many cases covering bitcoin for the first time, and the price hike became a cultural conversation around Thanksgiving dinner tables. Stories proliferated of crypto newbies buying up bitcoin on exchanges, many of whom lost their shirts when bitcoin dropped precipitously in January 2018.

This time, the coverage has been muted. Perhaps you can chalk that up to the mental toll of the pandemic or the distraction of the U.S. presidential election. (The debate feels in many ways similar to the debate around why live sports TV ratings are way down.) Or it could be a sign that the price hike is less remarkable because the public now knows about bitcoin, and it has become less of an oddity. That can be a positive indicator for its future use and mainstream acceptance.

Growing acceptance, both by consumer-facing companies and Wall Street institutions, provides much of the explanation for bitcoin’s 2020 run. Here are some of the recent news events and trends that have boosted bitcoin.

A woman stands next to a bus stop covered with Cryptocurrency electronic cash Bitcoin advertisement in Hong Kong, Sept. 24, 2020. (Photo by Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Increasing institutional adoption

Over the past couple of years, a range of Wall Street investment firms and financial institutions have gravitated toward cryptocurrency—even if just dipping a toe in by putting a sliver of their assets into bitcoin or altcoins.

That rising interest helped Grayscale Investments, the largest crypto investment firm, top $10 billion in assets in the third quarter. (Grayscale is owned by Barry Silbert’s Digital Currency Group, the single largest investor in cryptocurrency startups, which owns the news site CoinDesk.) Grayscale offers publicly traded funds pegged to the prices of bitcoin, bitcoin cash, litecoin, ether, ethereum classic, XRP, Zcash, and others. In Q2 of this year, more than a dozen well-known Wall Street firms disclosed with the SEC new investments in Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC), including ARK Invest and Boston Private Wealth.

Story continues

Thanks to bitcoin prices, Galaxy Digital, the crypto investment firm of Mike Novogratz, saw profit of $44.3 million in Q3 2020, a huge turnaround from losses of $68.2 million in Q3 2019.

Reports of traditional finance embracing crypto have fueled more buying. “Bitcoin thrives off network value, so the more people who adopt it, the more parabolically the price rises,” Tom Lee of Fundstrat said on Yahoo Finance Live on Friday. “We’ve seen a pretty substantial increase in engagement this year, and I’ve been pretty surprised, because it is institutional.”

Even big banks have appeared to warm to bitcoin.

Goldman Sachs in August named a new head of digital assets, Matthew McDermott, and he reportedly plans to double the headcount of Goldman’s crypto team. (Back in 2018, then-CEO Lloyd Blankfein said it would be “arrogant” to dismiss bitcoin entirely, but more recently, on a call in May, Goldman analysts declared cryptocurrencies “not an asset class.”)

JPMorgan last year launched JPM Coin, an internal digital token for use by the bank’s institutional clients, which runs on the Quorum blockchain that JPM developed and is overseen by JPM’s blockchain unit Onyx. At the time of launch, Onyx CEO Umar Farooq wrote in a blog post, “We have always believed in the potential of blockchain technology, and we are supportive of cryptocurrencies as long as they are properly controlled and regulated.”

More recently, JPM began allowing customer transfers in and out of Coinbase and Gemini, two U.S. crypto exchange sites. All of this looks like JPM at the very least acknowledging the future viability of digital assets. (Jamie Dimon this week said bitcoin is still “not my cup of tea,” but he also said, “We will always support blockchain technology.”)

A man uses the Ethereum ATM in Hong Kong, Friday, May 11, 2018. Ethereum is one of the world’s popular virtual currencies. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

The institutional trend started well before the pandemic made bitcoin an even more appealing asset. If you ask Grayscale managing director Michael Sonnenshein, increased regulatory attention, plus the approval of bitcoin futures contracts from places like CBE and Cboe, have all served to make Wall Street feel more comfortable about crypto. “Institutional investment, regulatory clarity, futures contracts—there’s so much that has developed and solidified around the ecosystem,” Sonnenshein told Yahoo Finance in May.

Third bitcoin ‘Halving’ happened in May

Back in May, bitcoin underwent its third “halving” (or “halvening,” as some prefer), the event that happens every four years when the reward that bitcoin “miners” receive for mining bitcoin (using expensive computers to upload bundles of bitcoin transaction records to the bitcoin blockchain) gets cut in half as a built-in mechanism to slow the creation of new bitcoins and limit bitcoin’s supply. The new mining reward is 6.25 bitcoins per block; from 2016 until 2020 it was 12.5 bitcoins.

Historically, the Halving itself does not prompt an immediate spike in the bitcoin price. After the 2012 Halving, bitcoin saw a marginal increase over a few weeks, then went on a massive ride in the next months. This year, the price increased slightly in the days after the Halving, and by two weeks later had dropped below where it was before the Halving.

But as Fundstrat’s Tom Lee points out, “History says that the year that follows the Halvenings is much more important” for price than the weeks and months that follow it. The 2020 halving is not likely the chief cause of the current price rally, but it didn’t hurt, since it’s an event that reminds investors of bitcoin’s scarcity.

Wall Street figures soften their rhetoric

Bitcoin’s price swings can be very headline-driven: sometimes a single news item about a major name praising or trashing bitcoin can move the price in the short-term. Warren Buffett (“That is not investing”), Charlie Munger (“disgusting… stupid… turds”), Jamie Dimon (“fraud… worse than tulip bulbs”), and Nouriel Roubini (“mother of all scams”) are some of the big names that have trashed bitcoin in years past.

But in May, hedge fund titan Paul Tudor Jones revealed he has put nearly 2% of his portfolio into bitcoin. He called it a “great speculation… I look at it as one tiny part of the portfolio… it may end up being the best performer of all of them.”

Paul Tudor Jones, founder and chief investment officer of Tudor Investment Corporation, speaks at the Sohn Investment Conference in New York, May 5, 2014. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

And this week, another representative of a huge Wall Street name had positive things to say about bitcoin. BlackRock’s fixed income CIO Rick Rieder, speaking on CNBC, said, “I think cryptocurrency is here to stay, and I think it is durable… I think digital currency, and the receptivity, particularly millennials’ receptivity of technology and cryptocurrency, is real, digital payment systems are real. So I think bitcoin is here to stay… Do I think it’s a durable mechanism that I think will take the place of gold, to a large extent? Yeah, I do, because it’s so much more functional than passing a bar of gold around.”

More and more, the rhetoric from Wall Street types is changing. Even if these old-school investors are not exactly pumping crypto with great fervor, more of them are acknowledging that bitcoin, which has now existed for more than 10 years, is not about to collapse.

PayPal and Square buy in

PayPal (PYPL) on Oct. 21 made major waves in the payments world when it announced it will soon allow buying, holding, and trading of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, and paying with bitcoin, in its PayPal and Venmo apps. The news sent PayPal shares to an all-time-high and prompted an instant leg higher for bitcoin and some other altcoins.

Bitcoin was already on the upswing before PayPal’s announcement, but after that news the bitcoin chart line went vertical, and many attribute bitcoin’s recent price ride directly to PayPal. It is certainly a major consumer-facing name publicly showing its faith in crypto, and if the young people who use Venmo for all their peer-to-peer payments buy bitcoin once PayPal adds it (the same young people that have flocked to Robinhood to buy stocks during the pandemic), that could send the price soaring more dramatically.

Bitcoin price in 2020, through Nov. 20 at 10pm EST.

Square (SQ) is another mainstream fintech name to show love to bitcoin, stemming directly from CEO Jack Dorsey’s crypto fanaticism. In 2018, Square added the ability to buy and hold bitcoin to its Cash App, and this year the company went a step further by separately investing in $50 million worth of bitcoin as an asset for its balance sheet. Square’s bitcoin bet is paying off: its bitcoin revenue from Cash App trading was $1.63 billion in Q3, up 618% from Q3 2019, and its Q3 bitcoin profit was $32 million, up 1,500% from Q3 2019.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning Facebook’s (FB) attempt last year to launch its own cryptocurrency Libra, which, despite regulatory interference and launch delays, was seen as a major step forward for crypto since it shows that the world’s biggest social network believes in digital assets and aims to implement them on its platform.

Pandemic stimulus

One common take on bitcoin’s strong gains during the pandemic is that quantitative easing actions by the U.S. Federal Reserve and stimulus programs by governments around the world have been good for bitcoin because they underscore its scarcity. There will only ever be 21 million bitcoin created, so the supply is capped, and bitcoin has no central governing body that could step in and pump out more.

“There are so many uncertainties in this pandemic, but one thing that seems almost assured is when you print trillions of dollars more paper money, it’s going to drive up bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies,” Dan Morehead, CEO of crypto investment firm Pantera Capital, said on Yahoo Finance Live in August. “Gold’s going to go up, bitcoin’s going to go up. It is a hedge to paper currency being debased.”

Bitcoin jumped big in the days after Election Day (when a winner was still not clear) because it thrives when there is mainstream economic uncertainty—then it climbed further once it became clear Democrat Joe Biden would win, since it increased the likelihood of another imminent pandemic stimulus package. As the thinking goes, government monetary aid strengthens the appeal of bitcoin.

In 2021, a divided U.S. government, Dan Morehead wrote in a client note on Friday, “would likely result in more pressure on the Federal Reserve to expand their balance sheet. This money printing will inflate the price of things whose quantity cannot be eased—like gold, bitcoin, real assets, and even equities. It feels like bitcoin is going to melt up here.”

—

Daniel Roberts is an editor-at-large at Yahoo Finance and closely covers bitcoin and blockchain. Follow him on Twitter at @readDanwrite.

Read more:

Why bitcoin and altcoins are hot again this summer

Square’s bitcoin bet is paying off

Jamie Dimon says bitcoin is ‘not my cup of tea’ even as JPMorgan has warmed to crypto

What you need to know about Ant Financial, potentially the largest IPO in history

Amazon tells employees to delete Tik Tok, then says email was ‘sent in error’

Why Square’s embrace of bitcoin was ‘brilliant’

Jamie Dimon has questions about Facebook’s cryptocurrency Libra

Lloyd Blankfein: It would be ‘arrogant’ to dismiss bitcoin entirely

[summerrrluvvv]

Chapter 5:

Day 4 in Miami

Zion:

I woke up early to cook breakfast after letting Kyrel out. I made French toast, biscuits, eggs, bacon and sausage. It is weird being around a man that do not want to dick you down 25/8. “Z cooking breakfast?” Ari said. “Somebody got the cutty last night” Mel said jokingly. I smiled and shook my head. “Actually, no I didn’t thank you mam” I said to her in matter fact manor. “Well I got some cutty last night” Tye said smirking. “Well not really but let’s just say he has been fed” She said dancing with her tongue out. Mel frowned and sat down. “I aint had cutty in damn near 6months!” Ari sat down in the bar stool next to hers. “I only ever had cutty one time, but I might get it again” She danced in her seat. “Spill” Tye said. Ari blushed. “He took me to have picnic on the beach, we talked and laughed and went swimming and then he took me home but we kissed and I almost fucked him on that beach whew chile” She said fanning herself. I smirked as I was making the mimosas. “Kyrel came over and just cuddled with me all night” I said feeling giggly. “Awww, see I need this in my life ASAP!” Tye said. Mel and her high-five. “Actually, I have a date tomorrow with Malachi” Mel stated happily. “Okay I see you” I said happy for her. “I got another date with Anthony today, his family barbeque and he said yall can come” Ari said. I shook my head. “Kyrel is taking me on a surprise today!” I told her. Tye nodded. “Yeah Samar and me having a movie night at his crib” She told us. “Well I guess just Mel and I” Ari said to us. Mel frowned, “Damn third wheeling in this bitch” She said. “When are you going to tell Samar Tye?” Mel asked. Tye shrugged. “Girl probably on my death bed” She stressed. “Telling him now would be weird and just throw our mojo off” I nodded. “Yeah just shhhh” I said. “Let’s cheers” I gave everyone a wine glass filled with Mimosas. “Let us Toast to Day 4 of our Miami trip! May we have fun together and get dick individually and thrive and get lit everyday no sad days no bad days” I said. The girls clapped and we drank and ate our brunch I made. It was around 2pm and we all had things to do. Kyrel told me to get cute and pack a 1-night bag, but maybe wear a swimsuit and so I chose the best thing close to what he suggested. He pulled up blasting music, I was excited to see what he had in store.

 Kyrel:

 I sped over to Zions house anxious as fuck about this date I had planned for us. I had my home boy Chris lend me his speed boat, and his place of Sanibel Island. I hate a whole day and night planned. I know its seems cheesy to be going all out on a girl you met 4 days ago never been in any serious relationship, but I felt like this is a once in a lifetime thing where you meet somebody and oddly you can’t see yourself with anybody else no matter how short the time we had was, I wanted to spend it showing her I wanted for a split second to give her everything. I was scared she hurt me eventually, but I take that risk.

“17 tight jeans and she bout it. White beater T, pretty teeth, yeah she got ‘em

Her body commands your attention (she keeps it so gutta man) Can I take you out,

I'll pay for it.

Girl I got enough, so enjoy it

I'm hoping that your momma don't mind

Cause girl I gotta make you mine.

Girl give me a chance I'm a take it.

Yeah I know I'm young but I'll take it.

I just gotta know

Is this love? Because I gotta know, is this real?

Girl I gotta know, is it you taking over my heart.

If its love, then all my girls and them I gotta give them up.

My playing days is over I gotta hang it up.

I gotta know, I gotta know, yeah, is this love?” I sang horribly blasting “Is this Love” by Chris Brown. As I was pulling up, she came outside. She must have been excited cause I could not even probably greet her at the door. She came to open the door, and I unlocked it for her. “Damn Z, I was coming to give you these” I said smiling hanging her some flowers. She blushed. She started giggling. “Thank you so much, wow Thank you” She said smelling the red roses I gave her. “This is so sweet” She kept saying. “Just wanted you to know you are appreciated” I told her. We listened to this playlist I had made for her about her. Fabulous” Into You” started to play. “Oh, Ima dedicate this song to Zion Ford” I said. She covered her face “Oh lord” She said smiling.

 “I can't really explain it

 I'm so into you now, I wanna be more than a friend of you now

 When they ask, I mention my baby girl in the interviews now

 And I don't bring the problems from the 90's into 2 thou'

 There's no reason to have a friend or two now

 'Cause the kid's ready to tell you how he feel in a few vow's

 Maybe, I'm speaking general now

 But girl I'mma do whatever just to keep a grin on you now

 Where I go, they wear bikini's in the winter too now

 What you think about, tan lines on the skin of you now

 Why wouldn't I wanna spend a few thou'

 On 5th Ave shopping spree's, and them dinners to Chow's

 I ain't concerned what other men would do now

 As long as when I slide up in you, you growl

 And any dude with you, he better be a kin of you now

 And I ain't jealous it's the principle now, I'm so into you

 I really like

 What you've, done to me

 I can't really explain it

 I'm, so into you

 I really like

 What you've, done to me

 I can't really explain it

 I'm, so into you” She kept giggling but singing along with me. I kept trying to move her hand. “Why you are blushing so hard?” I said laughing. She poked me. “Cause you nigga damn” She said. We pulled up to park my car. I covered her eyes as we walked into the boat. “What the fuck” She said still not being able to see. “Shhh” I told her. I opened her eyes and she looked at me. “Kyrel what is this?” She asked confused. “We are taking this boat to an Island” I told her. She looked at the boat and looked at me. “You know how to drive this? You got the GPS?” She asked looking concerned. I laughed and nodded. “Okay I’m just checking” She said. I passed her a wine cooler and got her comfortable with a blanket. I grabbed the speaker and started playing music. I started the boat and she just sat there relaxing enjoying the view. “ZiZi you want to drive the boat” I asked her. We were 25mins away from the Island. She looked nervous, “Ima drive us into the whole island I don’t know” She said. I laughed, “Come here” I said. I slowed down the boat and let her get in front of me, and steer. “Woah” She said. She was happy as hell. “We bout to go to the Bahamas baby hold on” She said laughing. “You the captain” I told her. I took back over, and we docked the boat the Island. I had a bag full of wine, roses and massage candles, and food. I unlocked the door, and led her in. I am thankful Chris had this place cleaned before I came out here. It was nice little one floor spot. “Ima go get changed” She went to the room, while I set up in the living room, and unpacked our sandwiches and stuff. I was anxious as fuck because I knew we was going to have sex tonight. I lit candles in the living room and rose petals. I got my speaker and let my playlist play. “Before I do” by Sevyn Streeter played. She came back with nothing on. Her hair was messy but sexy. I was trying to show her what I had set up, but she did not even give me any time before she pushed me on the couch and started kissing me. “We can do all that later” She said undressing me before I knew it. I did not waste any time laying on my back and allowing Zion to take control. With she pulled down his my adidas sweatpants, and my Calvin Klein boxers. She pulled them down further looking at me and the dick in between my thighs, and it was safe to say she was intimidated. “I don’t remember you being this big” She said, I started laughing at her nervous expression. I began to stroke myself, allowing my dick to grow longer as I became harder. Her hair laid over my lap as she started to put my dick into her mouth. After about 5mins, Zion grabbed a condom then got on top of me. She sped up the pace a little, catching her rhythm, I almost had to tap out, she sped up and then slowed down looking at me intensely. This was way different then the first time. This was more emotion involved, it was her way of saying she appreciated my surprise. I ran my hands softly up and down her back as she continued to ride harder and faster. I felt like I was about to go crazy any moment. She just kept looking at me and then she kissed me, “Look at me” She said. I kept looking away so I would not cum quick. But she kept forcing my head to look at her. “Cum with me” She said. Kissing me, I damn near cried letting lose, as she moaned into my ear. I was stuck for a good five minutes as she slowed down, and then she stopped smirking at me. “You good?” She asked. I was speechless so I just nodded.

 Ariana:

 “Caramel drippin in my bed, yeah you know what’s going through my head, I’m thinking about getting with you tonight, I’m thinking about, wifing you up for life”. “Caramel” by Lloyd blasted through our Airbnb as Melody and I were getting dressed. Zion had just left with Kyrel, and Tye left to go get food wit Samar for the movie night. I kept tossing out clothes, I could not find nothing nice to wear appropriately to a family barbeque. “Mel how about this?” I said to her. Melody was bored sitting on my bed as I kept trying on clothes. “Just wear a simple nice fit Ari” She said. I nodded. “Yeah you right” I said. I ran and grabbed and got my simple dress and combed out my hair. Melody helped me with my makeup. As I was putting on my shoes, I got a call from Anthony letting me know he was right around the corner. “I can’t believe you got me third wheeling” Melody stressed. “I’m sorry Mel, there might be guys there” I assured her. She rolled her eyes. We walked outside and Anthony pulled up. I got in the front seat and Melody got in the back. “Hey what’s up, I’m Anthony” He said introducing himself to Melody. She smiled and put her air pods in. “So, you excited?” He asked. He had looked nice and smelled good. I shrugged. “I mean kind of, I’m hungrier than anything” I said. He laughed. “Good cause we got the best food over at my kinfolk spot!” He said. I playfully rolled my eyes. “We gone see, I got my sneakers on just in case you trying to get schooled in some one on one homie” I said. He sucked his teeth in. “Yeah aight” He said. The drive over was not long maybe about 30mins. Melody was a little quiet most of the ride, but Anthony got her to open up. Anthony pulled into a driveway with lots of cars and kids running around. “Whose place is this in the family?” I asked. He smiled. “My abuelita”. We got out the car and went inside. Reggaeton was blasting, the adults were dancing around in the living room and men were playing spades in the back yard, while kids were flying kites and chasing each other. “Hey abuelita” Anthony called out to an older woman seasoning the food. She smiled at him and kissed his cheeks. “My Antonio, and this must be your special guest?” She asked. He smiled and nodded and another women called his name. “Antonio” It was a chocolate woman. He smiled. “Tia Nessa, this is Ariana. My friend, novia” He said to her. She smiled at me. “This is Melody my friend” I said to her as she was hugging me. She hugged Melody and brought us into the back yard the women were dancing and drinking. “Ladies, Antonio brought his friends” His Aunt Nessa said. Everyone was so welcoming. They had us drinking shots and got us Lit off Margaritas. Anthony was at the card table smoking a cigar and chilling. Melody and I danced around with the women and kids. I soon felt hands around my waist. “One on One?” I heard Anthony say. He grabbed my hand and brought me over to goal. I smirked. “You going to wait till Im lit, trashhh” I said. He giggled. “You’re a pro it shouldn’t matter” He said. Most of the fam stood around to make bets and watch us. I put my hair up, and his Tio gave me some basketball shorts. “Alright, whoever gets 3 in the basket wins whoever loses takes whole bottle of Tequila!” He shouted. They blew the whistle and we started playing. “Come on baby” I said, dribbling the ball and faking him out and then I scored. The girls screamed in excitement. “Come on Nephew!” His uncle screamed. Anthony scored one, and it left us with one more shot. “I really like you, alot” I told him. I started to flirt with him and finesse him which was all honest things boy was a sucker and got distracted and I scored. Everybody went crazy. “Better drank that bottle nigga!” I yelled. He laughed and went over to the bottle and took a little chug before he almost threw up. Everyone booed him. Everyone settled down and we ate. Anthony was not lying. It was bomb as fuck. Melody was dancing with Anthony cousin Fredrick. He was 14 so I know she was slightly annoyed, but she was drunk so anything was fun to her. Anthony and I ditched the party for a minute to walk and talk. “How you  enjoying the party?” He asked. I smiled. “I love it, you were raised with abuelita?” I asked him. He nodded and smiled. “Yeah, my mom was too young to take care of me, she ran off to Puerto Rico and My dad died before i ever met him” He said. I slowly nodded. “I’m sorry to hear that” I told him he smiled. “It’s cool. He left me alot of money that I invested into a t shirt company. That is why I got nice things; I take care of my whole family. No worries they just party He told me smiling. “Even if it’s not long I’m enjoying your company” He told me. I smiled and turned him around so I could kiss him, made out for a minute as fireworks went off. “Let’s get back before my abuelita think we are fucking” He said laughing. When we got back to the party we just danced and drank. Melody was just chilling. Sooner or later this man was about to get my draws and I was sure of it. I thought as he smiled at me and made crazy faces. 

Melody:

 All the margaritas and Tequila shots at the Barbeque started to hit me. I seen Ariana and Anthony dancing around on the dance floor with his family. I got offered to dance but I declined. I walked over to Ari trying to seem sober. “Ari, I’m tired, I’m going to catch a LYFT home” I told her. She was drunk as well and shook her head. “No stay” She said. “Ari, I’m going to see you at home” I said walking off. I was annoyed that the girls trip turned into a nigga trip. I guess I was irritated everyone was boo’d up but me. I was walking down the street; I did not know where the fuck I was going. I see a text come in from Isaac. “Hey Melly, I couldn’t find the words to say it when I saw you yesterday, but I want you to know I miss you” I read. My eyes were getting glossy the liquor was taking over. I hit the call button. “Hey what’s up? I didn’t expect you to call” He said. “Isaac, can you come get me” I said. “You alright Mel?” He asked concerned. “No, Ima send you my location” I hung up the phone. I sat in the sidewalk waiting for Isaac drinking the rest of my margarita. I see an Audi A8 all red pull up. I stood up stumbling a little bit. It was Isaac he had on grey sweat shorts and White T and his vans. He opened the door for me and sat down hard as hell. He got in the car and looked at me. “You good?” He asked. I smiled at him drunk and nodded. I gave him my phone for my address, and he pulled off. “Why you out here?” He asked. “Ariana met some nigga and his family was having a party, so she brought me out here” I said sipping through my straw. He grabbed my cup and smelled it. “You drunk Mel?” He asked. I shrugged. “Maybe and give my cup back!” I yelled. He rolled down the window and threw it out. “I don’t know who the fuck you think you are throwing MY shit out the window, you not my nigga, you didn’t even want me and now you throwing cups out the window nigga you tripping” I snapped. “Fucking got this dusty ass white tee on and these dick print shorts coming to save me bye nigga bye actually let me out I will walk” I was angry as hell for no reason. He just kept laughing at me. “Chill out with all that, you called me to come get you. I could have left your drunk ass there on the curb, but I didn’t because I love you” He said. I rolled my eyes. “I didn’t because I love you shut up” I said mimicking him. He sighed and laughed a little. We sat in silence and turned on the radio. “You” by Jacquees started playing. “You must got somebody now huh?” He randomly asked. I looked at him and looked towards the road. “No why?” I asked. He shrugged. “Just wondering” He said. “I been focused on me” I snapped. He stopped at a stop light. “That’s what I wanted for you to do” He said. I rolled my eyes. “Melody look man, I aint going to beat around no bush you know me. I want you” He said to me. I felt my heart best out my chest. “What you mean?” I asked. “Shit was cool, I was doing my thing being single just living but after a while shit got weird. I could not get you out my head then you posted it a pic on Ig looking good as ever. I tried to play it cool still but when I see you out here in Miami, just having fun with your girls happy, you seemed different, and not that anything was wrong with you. I just needed to lose you to realize that I wanted you and I needed you”. I did not know what to say.

We pulled up at the house, and I got out the car. He got out and laid on his hood a little. I looked at him still feeling the liquor. “I got to go” I told him. I struggled to get in the house. I tried not to cry, I went in the bathroom and it was a bottle of patron in my bathroom. I quickly drug some of it and got in the shower. I got out the shower and picked up my phone and called Isaac. “Hello?” He said breathing into the phone. “Come back” I said. I played music on my playlist with the house speaker playing “Exchange” by Bryson Tiller. Before I knew it, the doorbell rang. I walked downstairs in my robe and opened the door. He looked at me, and I looked at him. He closed the door behind him. “Come here” I said. He followed me upstairs and stood by the door. “Mel you drunk right now” He softly said. I came up to him and closed the door. “So, give me all of you and exchange for me” Bryson sang. Isaac tried to hold his ground but temptation I guess was giving in. He did not waste no time, grabbing me and kissing me. He backed me up on the bed. I pulled his shirt off him; he was looking sexy as hell with his eyes low and his tatted body just staring at me. I looked down and could see the outline of his dick extremely well in the shorts he had on. It excited and made me nervous at the same time, it had been a minute. He pulled me by my legs to the edge of the bed taking me out of my thoughts. I leaned up and he pushed me back down, he leaned over me and started kissing me softly. He took my left breast into his mouth giving it just enough loving to make me moan, then he switched to the right, giving it the same amount of attention he began kissing down my stomach, once he got to my thighs he pushed them open, making me go crazy, I let out a moan, and he started feasting on me, It just felt too good, he looked up at me, the whole bottom half of his face glistening. He smiled at me. “You still taste good”. I could not believe this was happening.

 Isaac:

   My min was going crazy, I had thought about this moment so many times believe it or not but not like this, I was going to go smack crazy. She looked up at me wanting me, I climbed on top of her, I kissed her deep as I pushed all the way in, she made a face of pain but it was replaced with a moan after a few strokes. She felt good as hell. She felt like heaven if it was on earth. This shit was too good for me to let some other nigga take my girl. I looked her in her face as I started to slow stroke, watching the emotions play out on her face, she was fucking beautiful. Her eyes were closed, and she looked like she was ready. She opened her eyes and looked at me, she had her legs wrapped around my waist, and put her arms around my neck as she pulled me in for a kiss. She took her time kissing me, she then pulled away and just looked me in my eyes. This was love making. I had to think about all types of weird shit to keep from cumming, but it's like damn she just kept getting wetter and wetter, she came and I was so close I didn't even have the energy to pull out and I just let go inside of her. She grabbed my face and kissed me intensely. Afterwards I rubbed her back into she fell asleep on my chest. Maybe she will regret it in the morning but right now, I enjoyed the moment.

 Tye:

   “Bro I hate shopping” Samar said as we were getting food to make Nachos for movie night. I shook my head. “See I should’ve left your ass in the car all that whining nigga grow up” I said. “Grow up” Samar mimicked back smiling. “Fuck that lets go get pizza” He said. “Papa Johns?” I asked. He smirked. “Nah even better Dijornos” He said laughing. I pushed him playfully. “Shut the fuck up Samar before I murder you with this buggy” I said. He started jogging slowly. “Somebody help!” He yelled loud enough for just us to hear, Thank goodness. He grabbed some chips and stuff for the Nachos, and we got cookies to bake. After we left Walmart, we got some weed. Samar already had a lot of liquor at his Airbnb so we aint really to get anymore.

   We got back to his place, and I started cooking the Nachos. He decided we should watch Harry Potter and drink every time they say Hogwarts. It was my first time ever watching so I was excited. “We about to get fucked up” He said. The nachos were ready, and we had made a little set up for our drinking game. Samar started the movie in already 35mins in, a bitch was lit! I was drinking just because they were in Hogwarts. “Nigga they aint say Hogwarts!” Samar said lit as well. “Well hell they will soon they live there!” I stressed. “I’m taking a shot because you said Hogwarts” Samar said. “Throw me a mini party Samar” I stressed. Samar went and got his equipment and started DJing in the living room. “You bad girl and your friends bad too, you got swag saucy drippin swag goo, I may be young but I’m ready. To give you all my love” I sang as he played Beyoncé “Party”. I danced around the living room. “Aye all my ladies that like to Party let me hear you say it!” He yelled. “Cause we like to Party ayyy ayyy ayyy ayyyy!” I yelled lit. He switched the song to “Yummy” by Justin Bieber. “Yeah you got that yummy yum that yummy yummy yum” I sang as I twerked with my cup of Ciroq. “Fuck it up Tye Tye, they jealous over here in V.I.P” Samar yelled on the mic. My drunk ass turned around trying to see the Jealous hoes but realized it was just me at the pretend club. I partied with Samar for 2 hrs before we chilled out and smoked listening to Frank Ocean. “Thinking about you”. I got up with my blunt and danced around the room before getting hit with a pillow. “Motherfucker!” I yelled cause the blunt flew out my mouth. I placed it down to smack him with my pillow. “Come find me nigga!” He said before running around the Airbnb. His Airbnb was like ours a big ass mansion. We chased each other all over the house. I ended up falling after tripping on the pillow he hit me with. He fell on me after and rolled over to just look at me. “Imagine” by Ariana softly played. “Kiss me and take off your clothes Imagineeee a world like that, Imagineee a world like that”. I looked at him back. My heart raced and I felt the courage to kiss him so I did. I felt his lips not responding to me kissing him. “Im sorry” I said drunk and embarrassed. I got up and started to walk off to the room I picked to stay in. I felt Samar grab me back. I turned around and he kissed me. I gave into the kiss. “Can you Imaginneeee it” the song played. He pushed me up against the wall and kissed me instensly. “I think I started something I think I started somethin', I got what I wanted. Did didn't I can't feel nothin', superhuman. Even when I'm fuckin' Viagra poppin', every single record autotunin'”. “Novacane” by Frank Ocean played. We kissed walking backwards into the kitchen. He had me in the kitchen corner, he pulled my shirt off and I was pulling off his, we was moving fast as fuck. It was like if we were trying to hurry before we changed our mind. He turned me around and I was bent over the kitchen counter, as I felt him, use is fingers to make me more turned on then I already was. He softly put his tip in snd then all of him was inside of me. I couldnt believe this shit was happening.

“Novocaine, baby, baby, Novocaine, baby, I want you

Fuck me good, fuck me long, fuck me numb

Love me now, when I'm gone, love me none” I heard as we were fucking in the kitchen. Samar was kissing up my back making me moan out loud. I felt like I was dreaming. He grabbed my hair, “Tell me you love it” He said. “I love it, I love you” I said. He grabbed my neck and whispered in my ear. “I love you” and without warning, I came instantly and then again. I wanted to cry. Samar pulled out, and we cleaned up and just stood there quietly. “Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hogwarts” He said finally, he started taking 3 shots of liquor. Before he walked up on me again and kissed me again and walked off. I sat there still drunk and confused and, in a daze if what happened, happened.

[get-a-new-lease-on-life]

A New Lease on Life - 57: The Parting Glass

Dedicated to Wolf - not only is she an awesome person and a swell friend, she nailed the reader challenge from last chapter. Go you, Hon! :D Also dedicated to Heiferlump Chance, my incredibly fat cat, for always purring no matter what anyone says or does. (...really, she's always purring, she never shuts up. It's unnerving.)

Suggested Listening: Welshly Arms "Legendary," Sum 41 "Crash," Celtic Thunder "The Parting Glass," Collective Soul "Burning Bridges"

57: The Parting Glass

Central Park, November 12th, noon

Somewhere beneath Manhattan, three best friends newly reunited after a long separation quickly retreated to the dojo for privacy. Meanwhile, in Central Park, the scenery was a delightful contrast to the somber mood in the Lair.

An older man – stooped in posture and stocky in build – lounged on a pollen-dusted park bench. Faded patches scattered his threadbare coat and trousers with muted color. Grizzled, frizzy hair the color of dark concrete puffed out from the brim of his old felt hat and his weary eyes were an even drearier grey. The little skin not covered was weathered, tagged and liver-spotted and almost the color of an age-darkened penny. A thick book hung in his ungloved hands, but his eyes were focused far beyond the pages – beyond the reaches of the bench and across to a colorful calamity of joyful noise.

Children of all ages swarmed the playground and its structures, bundled up in puffy coats, mittens, and pompom hats and uncaring of the chill in the air. They were like any other children one might see in any park in the nation – too-loud, over-excitable, needlessly reckless, and entirely perfect.

The stranger's eyes softened. Children were never bothered by his presence; they knew neither race nor class. Of all the times he was judged by others his age and younger, never was one of those 'others' a child…children were, he felt, proof of the inherent goodness in the hearts of humanity. A simple child that lightly draws its breath and feels its life in every limb. What should it know of death?^ He shook his grizzled head as if to forcibly banish the morbid memories. True, those children - his children weren't dead, but with such distance separating them, they might as well be...after all, he was dead to them, and rightly so.

A dismayed squeal split the air, and a heartbeat later, something collided with his shoe. A bit more alert now, the stranger straightened to inspect the cause: a worn, well-loved football in faded green and dirty white wobbled by his foot. A whimsical smile spread on his haggard face as he caught up the toy, silently considering the bearded and derby-clad mascot imprinted on one side.* Shortly afterward, a sheepish little boy about five skipped toward him, all smiles, messy black curls, and gapped teeth. "Sawwy," the little tike professed, sheepishly digging the toe of one tiny sneaker in the mulch underfoot. "Kin I have my bawl back?"~ The stranger arched an eyebrow at the boy, and with a playful grin, drew back his arm.

"Go long." The child excitedly complied and bolted away, then turned to eagerly wait; a chuckle bubbled up in the stranger's throat as he tossed the boy his football as offered. Right before the catch, however, it was intercepted – or, rather, the boy was snatched up by his well-dressed mother and the ball sailed right past, hitting the dirt with a protesting bounce.

"Ricky, come here!" the woman chided her son and carried him away – away from the ball and the stranger who returned it. Despite her feeble attempts at discretion, the stranger easily picked out words amidst her mutterings – 'shouldn't touch—homeless—sick, maybe on drugs—filthy now!' Before, his heart was lightened by the child's innocence and trust, but now it sank in the face of the familiar judgment. These accusations, after all, were ones he was used to; he was, after all, homeless in every sense of the word, though neither sick nor on any drugs. How could he afford to feed an addiction when he couldn't afford to feed himself?

"Bu—Bu' Ma!" the boy whined, squirming on her hip. "My bawl! My brudder gave—"~

"I'll get you another ball," she cut off sternly. "Heaven knows what might be on that one now, you don't need his germs. No, don't look at him, Ricky! If you pay those people any attention, they'll only ask for handouts." Another nasal whine of protest went unnoticed as she turned to fix a scolding glare on the stranger. "I shudder to consider why he's at a playground at all," she remarked more loudly, clearly intent on him overhearing. Please. The pushers in the Bronx could have heard her telling her son he was on drugs, and they'd be just as unimpressed by her calling him a pedophile. "Someone should call the police before he hurts someone."

With a final derisive sniff, she hauled the sniveling boy up to her shoulder mid-tantrum and stalked away to the bus stop. Not understanding what he did wrong, the child settled on his mother's shoulder and watched the stranger plaintively as she carried him away. With a feeble wave goodbye from a chubby mitten-clad hand, the boy and his mother vanished behind a screen of trees.

The stranger turned back to his book, weakly sliding the cover closed and brushing the pad of his thumb across the slick plastic-encased cover. Another day, another search for peace and hope, and another complete stranger casting snap-judgments on him without allowing him a chance for rebuttal. The good people of New York never cared to hear his story—they wouldn't believe he was once a highly educated and well-paid professor at an Ivy League university, nor would they believe he was suffering this undignified lifestyle through no action of his own. Nor, he admitted to himself with a frustrated sigh, would they ever guess he was once of the same beliefs as they were and prone to casting the same snap judgments. It was a shame, really, that correcting those mistakes cost him his life.

Mid-rumination, another came up behind him—a tall, lanky man in his late twenties with messy brown hair and big dark eyes with even bigger round-framed glasses. He was clad in rumpled sage green scrubs with a wrinkled black coat over it and armed with an even more rumpled cloth grocery bag. James Peterson, a resident from a Brooklyn hospital, slumped down on the bench beside the stranger without care, unbothered by his presence. "Hey, Teach," he greeted the older man, digging out a plastic-wrapped sub sandwich and water bottle and passing them over. "What's the news?"

"Hawking's theories are a delight as always, Jimmy," Professor Wilkes replied accepting the offered meal, "but I found nothing in them to support my suppositions. In other news, to my surprise, I'm apparently a vile filthy addict trolling a playground for nefarious purposes." Jimmy snorted, already digging into his own sandwich.

"Baloney," he grinned heedless of the crumbs sticking to his face. "Anyone with eyes would know you're just a grandpa missing his grandkids." Wilkes took the out gratefully and passed the borrowed book to his younger companion; it was, after all, near its due date and the New York Public Library staff weren't too fond of having vagrants borrowing their books. How he missed being able to go out in public without being shamed…

Jimmy sobered, dark eyes fixed on the cover, remembering what he came to share. "I've found another one, Sir," he explained more quietly and with more respect. "A patient at the hospital today – she's been to Limbo, I just know it." He dug out his smartphone and easily pulled up three photos he snapped on the sly: one shot of Amber's file with identifying numbers, one of the visit summary paperwork, and one shot of her face, blurry from being snapped through a glass window at a distance. Wilkes accepted the phone and scanned the images gravely, easily scrolling down the visible portion of the report for details.

"Her name was given as Amber Jean O'Brien," Jimmy continued, "and she's twenty-six years old. When she arrived, she was unresponsive and bleeding out – her skull was crushed inward, BFT compound fracture, little chance for recovery but Doc Lloyd insisted on trying. She went into a-fib and nearly coded on the table but the team managed to pull her back." He met Wilkes' eyes, then, entirely serious. "When she regained consciousness, her skull was healing and her skin unbroken. I took this photo a few hours later when they released her…all that was left was bruising and swelling. She arrived dying, and in a matter of hours, she looked like she'd been healing for weeks, if not months."

Wilkes hemmed in thought, gravely considering the blurry pixelated photo of the undead patient. "I trust you encouraged caution?" he asked under his breath, meeting Jimmy's eyes askance. "We cannot lose her, not like the last one—a blunder of that magnitude mustn't happen, not ever again. These lives are…" He sighed, passing the phone back. "They're too precious…there's too much at stake to risk another loss."

"She won't tell anyone," Jimmy promised running his fingers through his hair, disheveling his already messy locks. "I made sure of it…and I told her I'd be in touch soon." A feeble laugh twisted his lips into a grimace. "Not sure how I'll manage, though—the address on file belongs to an unrelated woman named April O'Neil, and she lives alone. There were no other contacts or names in the file, though Miss O'Neil identified another woman as Miss O'Brien's 'sister.' I can't believe someone as scary as that blonde lady could really be family, though—she spent almost ten minutes screeching at the patient and the rest of the time berating and bullying her. She even hit her a few times." Wilkes gave a knowing grin as he wrapped up the remaining half of his sandwich then shoved it into one deep pocket.

"I don't suppose this blonde lady was tall and thin with blue eyes and disorderly hair?" he asked without asking; Jimmy blinked, stunned. "Did she answer to the name Mercy?"

"Uh…as a matter of fact," Jimmy answered blankly, "yeah, she did. Miss O'Neil referred to her as Mercy and I heard the patient, Miss O'Brien, call her Merse when they left for their vehicle. How'd you know?"

"I've met the young lady before," Wilkes explained without emphasis. "She was homeless for a time, and recalled nothing about herself. She was certain she was someone else entirely, a woman named Mercy Ross, even though I knew her as Donna Mays. I approached her about Limbo but she…" He winced, recalling Mercy's vehement—and obscene—overreaction. "Well, I lost track of her after that. I'm sure if your mystery woman was familiar enough for Miss Ross to feel comfortable striking her, where we find one, we'll find the other. Birds of a feather do, after all, keep company with their own, especially when those birds have endured what those from other worlds endure."

After a brief sip of water, Wilkes moved on. "I'll see what I can dig up on this Amber O'Brien, and I have faith you can manage whatever portions of the search I cannot. I'm sure Miss Baker will be of some help with sufficient incentive, hm?" A violent shudder clattered from Jimmy's shaggy head down to his bony ankles. Danni Baker, after all, terrified him; still, he nodded in reluctant agreement. "If, by some chance, we find her sooner rather than later, let's give the young lady some time to recover before we attempt contact. The last thing we need is to spook her and lose another body."

Jimmy nodded, clearly remembering the same disaster that still flitted behind Professor Wilkes' eyes – haunting green eyes, cold pallid skin, old, dark, coagulated blood… Jimmy physically shook off the image with a barely audible whine; Wilkes easily saw the reason and offered a comforting squeeze of the shoulder. "You've done well, my boy – far better than you would believe, and you are quite capable of whatever task you should set for yourself." He paused, then asked, "Now, what progress have you made in your mission? What have you learned?" Jimmy hesitated, fumbled, then, finally, gave a weak shrug.

"Nothing," he mumbled in defeat. "I've found nothing…I can't figure out the answer. I'm sorry, Teach." Wilkes sobered, contemplating the younger man a moment longer, then hoisted himself up off the bench with a pained grunt.

"If you continue in that manner," he warned, "you'll never succeed. Before you can find the answer, you must first discover the question. Discover the question – ask it – consider it in length – then, and only then, will you find the answer." He clapped a comforting hand on Jimmy's still-slouched shoulder and gave him a crooked smile. "Thank you for the luncheon, Peterson, and happy hunting…the Society is counting on you." Without another word, the shabbily-dressed elder slipped away, venturing into the more remote and dangerous reaches of Central Park the way one can only if they have nothing left to lose.

After all, a life was a petty thing when compared to such a treasure as the knowledge of many lifetimes.

Meanwhile, down in the Lair

Not so long ago, perhaps a whole twenty minutes prior, the Lair was full of laughter and joy. The four brothers and their master returned with Mercy and Amber in tow, all high on elation over the brunette's narrowly avoided second death…and, as the brunette in question grumbled, her avoidance of "finally earnin' that Darwin Award, an' in my pajamas no less." Yeah. She nearly died in her sleep, was brought home in her nightclothes, hauled to the hospital in her nightclothes, and finally, sent home in her nightclothes. Now, not yet having had an opportunity to change, she was still in her nightclothes and pointedly ignoring the blood stains on what was once a comfy nightshirt.

All the festivity was brought to a halt, however, with the appearance of a face familiar to some and foreign to others – Aaron Willis, who slipped through the portal behind Donatello and, despite all odds, arrived in the Lair after the occupants rushed to the hospital. Now the air was quiet and those who breathed it even quieter. Almost immediately after the cursory introductions, Amber, Aaron, and Mercy all retreated into the Dojo to speak in private, heedless that their voices would surely carry without a solid door.

Earlier, Donatello ruminated on the futility of pacing; now he again fell prey to the useless occupation, but this time feeling lost rather than frantic. His listless feet led him in an endless circuit – from the living area to the hallway, from the hallway to the living area, and back again, and at every turn, his eyes shot to the curtain of chipped wooden beads shading the doorway to the Dojo. Beyond that vintage drape, his lover and her two best friends were huddled together, all searching for some way to say the goodbye they were once cheated out of.

Seemingly unaffected by the tense mutterings from the room beyond, Mikey sprawled against the old brick wall separating the Dojo from the living area; he leaned back on one bandaged palm, his right knee bent upward and his left leg folded underneath, and his free arm lazily draped over the upright kneecap. He was calm and unusually quiet and seemed to have not a care in the world, a faint smile at his lips. Veering back toward the living area again, Donnie shot an exasperated glance at Mikey. The three people in the dojo were saying goodbye after a lifetime of being inseparable; how could Mikey not realize how much they must hurt when he was usually the one with the most emotional intelligence? Instead of confronting his younger brother, Donnie spun on his toes and lurched back toward the hall again, senses tuned to the soft murmurings in the dojo.

A harsh, strangled sound split the silence – halfway between a choked sob and a smothered shout. Abandoning his pacing, the genius nearly bolted to the beaded doorway; before he could swipe the curtain aside, a three-fingered hand shot out, latched onto his trousers, and yanked him down onto the floor beside its owner. Mikey returned his silent demand with a solemn shake of the head; he shot a pointed glance at the curtain. Donnie, realizing the point, rubbed his scalp in embarrassment and leaned over to peer through between the strands of beads.

Mercy stood leaning back against the far wall, sourly considering the punching bag with wet eyes that belied her supposed anger. Amber slumped on the padded mat at her feet, her knees drawn and feet tucked. Aaron sprawled limply against her front, eyes buried in her neck, both hands feebly gripping one of hers, and his shoulders and back trembling in a familiar manner. Her eyes were red-rimmed and weak but dry, and she held him close, gently petting his hair and his back.

For once, Amber wasn't crying; instead, Aaron was crying and he wasn't hiding it, only forcing himself to stay quiet. Over the four-and-a-half days Donnie spent getting to know Aaron, the genius came to the conclusion the blond was unbelievably strong in spirit for a human. Donnie couldn't even imagine giving up Amber unless she, herself, asked him to; Aaron swallowed his feelings for her, put on as though he wasn't heartbroken over her, and let her go without a word, all because he wanted her to be safe and happy. Now he was driven to tears and clinging to his friend, and Donnie had his answer. Aaron was, indeed, among the strongest in spirit Donatello had ever met. A weaker man might have smothered his feelings and forced himself to 'look tough,' or maybe bawled like a baby, made a scene, and whined about how unfair the situation was. Aaron didn't retreat behind toxic masculinity and deny his feelings and he didn't throw himself over to his heartbreak entirely—he accepted the feelings, he showed them, and he owned them - he only kept his voice down to avoid drawing attention. “Aaron, Mercy, an' I were almost inseparable” Amber told the genius oftentimes before. "Now we're gone—he's lost both'is best friends, forever. He's all alone now." Alone…losing those he cared about most was heartbreaking, but instead of fighting his emotions, he accepted them. What could be stronger than allowing yourself to be vulnerable when so many others couldn't bear to show weakness?**

Choking up, Donnie retreated from the doorway, slouching over beside Mikey in defeat. The younger patted his knee, offering a small wry smile that both bewildered and hurt. "How can you stand this?" he demanded of the younger. "How can you sit there smiling? They're hurting—their whole world is falling apart and it'll never be the same again! What about that deserves a smile?" The sharp censure faded, leaving behind only sorrow.

"The whole thing deserves a smile," Mikey explained quietly, "because it was real." Donnie faltered, eyes wide and watery. "They're hurting because everything they had together, everything they feel for each other, is real, true, and certain; it never hurts to lose something that means nothing to you." The genius looked away, eyes darting back and forth along the floor as though arranging invisible puzzle pieces; to his surprise, the picture he came up with finally matched the box. "All this?" Mikey pointed out with a wide-sweeping gesture and let his other arm drape around his brother's slumped shoulders. "Someday it'll all be behind us—those three will adapt and learn to live their new lives. Sure, Merse an' Sis'll probably always miss Afro-man in there, but someday it won't hurt anymore…they'll be too busy reliving the laughter to remember the tears."

Donnie's eyes drifted from the floor to Mikey's, blending from brown to gold to green in the changing light. "How did you ever get to be so smart?" he asked in all seriousness. Mikey reclaimed his arm and crossed both in an I know I'm awesome pose.

"Didn't I tell ya?" the youngest teased with a toothy grin. "Brains, brawn, and a dazzling personality." Comforted, Donnie let out an amused huff and gave him a teasing shove. Mikey had his qualities, but modesty was not among them.

In the dojo, Aaron's cracking voice broke the tense silence between the three friends. "I—I know ya—can't come back," he rasped into Amber's collarbone. "I jus'—I jus'—" Another choked sob broke through. "It wa'n't s'posed to—to end like this—it was always us—you, me, Ross, us against the world! We—We were s'posed to g-get old together—" A sharp inhale creaked in his lungs. "Jus' the th-three of us—jus' a group'a ol' f-farts—bitchin' each other out—d-drivin' each other c-crazy—r-rasslin' 'til someone broke a-a hip—"~ Despite the admittedly humorous image, no one was laughing. "This—it ain't right! It—We—I—" After several false starts he gave up, his voice too hoarse and his brain too scattered.

"Don't forget racin' motor-chairs~ in Walmart," Amber offered, clearly hoping to make him smile. "Can't skip sittin' on the porch an' wallapin' the lil' wankers trespassin' on our lawns, either—I even had a cane already." No response; the tease fell flat, unsurprisingly. "Wil—" She cut herself off in a sigh. "Aaron."

The sudden silence in the dojo felt deafening; Aaron froze against her shoulder, his still-wet eyes wide at the significance. Amber and Mercy used each other's first names on occasion, but they almost never used Aaron's first name—he was always Willis to them, and to him, they were always O'Brien and Ross or some other teasing insult-name. It was their thing—their little inside joke and their way of showing each other they cared. After all these years, there was no doubt they cared about each other. Now, Amber used his given name to comfort him, but also to remind him of the truth: things would never be the same again, but that didn't necessarily mean they'd be bad. "Aaron…Hon, I know it hurts," she murmured thickly, "I know we never wan'ed this ta happen, but it did, we can't change that. I died in tha' world…I almost died twice…in some ways, death's still permanent.~ I belong here, now, no matter how much we may wish I didn't."

"Y-Yeah," Aaron rasped and sniffed, and extracted himself from her neck to slouch beside her; he was still a bit of a mess, but he was regaining control. "But…but even if you could come home—an'—an' stay there without—" He trailed off and skipped over the end. "You w-wouldn't…be…"

"No," Amber answered his unfinished question with a bittersweet smile and a thickened tongue, "I wouldnae be happy…Ah'd be heartbroken 'cause my heart would a'ways be here…wi' my Dunnie."~ Aaron stilled, his eyes still wet but his jaw set firm. Tentatively, as though participating in a luxury he'd never allowed himself, he lifted a shaky hand, fingers curled, and traced the curve of one salt-stained cheek with his knuckles.

"Amber," he almost whispered as though uttering some sweet pet-name, "you stubborn, psychotic, crazy Scotch nutcase." Pet-name? Definitely. Sweet? Though sour to most, to the trio, it was saccharine. He shook his head with a silent scoff, burying both his hands in his armpits. "I love you, ya delusional woman—I've always loved ya—always…even back when we were kids. I didn't drop slugs down your shirt fer nothin'." Amber's lip quirked at the memory, her cheeks flushing from containing a laugh. The confession, long overdue, was all Aaron to a 'T'—blunt, sarcastic, and halfway between offensive and ridiculous. "Still…it wouldn't be enough…would it?"

"Someday you'd run out'a slugs," she pointed out as Mercy rolled her eyes, pantomiming a gag. The bleak mood over the room was lifting, at least a little. "Someday I might actually put pickles on yer cheeseburger pizza.*** Nothing lasts forever, you know?" He gave a glum nod. "Besides…you waited all these years to tell me—Heck, I spent most'a our childhood thinkin' the sun shined out'a yer arse—"~

"It ain't the sun," Mercy grumbled, "he's naturally fluorescent." Amber snorted.

"Willis' whiteness ain't the point,"# she snickered as the two blondes glared at each other then, without any sort of warning, crossed their eyes and stuck their tongues out at each other in unison. Some things never changed. "You never told me how you felt for a reason, right? Yer not shy, Aaron—ya had a reason for hidin' it, otherwise you'd'a~ told me, just like that, years ago." Aaron sobered, unable to meet Amber's eyes.

"Y-Yeah," he admitted under his breath. "We just…we're not a good fit, ya know? Yer a bookworm, I'm a redneck—you' got culture, I just cuss—yer—yer fuckin' brilliant, ya know?" He scoffed, his lip curling halfway between amusement and derision. "I ain't smart—I'm just a smartass."

"You're not stupid," Amber insisted hauling his eyes back to hers by his scruffy goatee, "an' you're not a total rube. You're strong—you're genuine an' determined—ya know who ya are an' don't try to change that for anyone, ya wear it proud an' slap folks across the face with your sass if they judge you."

"In other words," Mercy offered with a too-innocent smile, "yer a proud redneck in a world full of normal people." Amber shot Mercy a reprimanding glare; the blonde shrugged. "What? It's true." The other rolled her eyes in defeat.

"We digress," she grumbled. "Look, Hon, Merse an' I love ya to bits—" Seeing Mercy's lips part to argue, Amber reached out and poked her on the ankle in warning. "—an' we know ya love us, too, in yer weird little way. It hurts to lose people ya love…no one's ever really ready to lose someone they care about for good, but it's just part of life." She gave him a teasing fist-bump to the shoulder. "Besides, even if I can't ever come home without bitin' the dust, who says you can't visit us?"

Aaron jerked, his eyes darting up to meet Amber's, then flashing to Mercy's, then back again. "You—y'all want me to come see ya?" he parroted back in surprise. "But how—" Mercy pounced on him knuckles-first.

"Let us worry about that, Lightbulb-butt," Mercy teased noogie-ing him relentlessly as he fussed. "I' got the barn, she's got the brew…" She trailed off, eyebrows arching in an open hint. Aaron's nose twitched, but he scrubbed his eyes clean and grinned all the wider.

"I'll bring the barbecue," he finished in a laughing wheeze. Content that the worst was over, Amber exchanged a pointed look with both blondes, and threw her arms open wide, wiggling her fingers in suggestion; when they balked, she latched onto their clothing and yanked them into a group hug. As always, they 'endured, but under extreme duress' and muttered insults at each other over her frizzy hair...at least until something occurred to Mercy. She cringed, craning her neck to get as far away from Amber's shoulder as possible.

"O'Brien?" she grimaced. "Ya know yer shirt's still got blood on it, right? An' now it's covered in Willis' tears an' snot?" Amber yanked her back in with an evil laugh. "Oh, gross!"

"Ross," Aaron grumbled from Amber's other shoulder, his voice muffled by blood-stained fabric, "just friggin' roll with it."

Aaron burst through the beaded doorway with a purpose, startling the two eaves-dropping ninjas by the wall. "Listen here, Nerd," he barked getting right up in Donatello's face without even leaving him room to stand up. He pointed emphatically at the exasperated blonde and unimpressed brunette, never letting up on his scowl. "Ya see those two idjits? They're gonna get 'emselves hurt someday, especially that klutz." Amber huffed. "Yer job's to keep'em from gettin' 'emselves hurt an' to keep that braided blockhead from earnin' 'erself a Darwin Award. Got it?"

Donnie made to protest the insults but Aaron cut him off again, this time, entirely serious. "I can't always be around to protect those two anymore; I'm passin' that buck to you. I'm warnin' ya though, I find out any of ya hurt'em—either of'em—there won't be a world y'all can run to where I won't find ya, an' I'll turn all four'a yer shells into fishponds. Crystal?"

"Really, Willis?" Amber drawled as she latched onto his shoulders and bodily moved him out of Donnie's personal space. "Fishponds? That's the worst you could come up with?"

"Yeah," he groused, "well, I'd say feed yer asses to my cats, but the lil' buggers have gotten picky. They won't even eat pepperoni anymore – well, Ass-Butt will, but it gives'er a real rancid case'a—" Two hands lashed out and slapped over Aaron's mouth to cut him off, the owners respectively cringing and grimacing. Clearly, Donnie realized with a blank stare, the threat was empty but the request was the same: 'take care of my friends even though I couldn't kick your butt if I tried.'

"That's it," Amber warned marching Aaron toward the kitchen, "I'm gettin' a fork, yer done."## Shortly after this, she spoke again. "I'm changin'—All in favor of burnin' these clothes?" The suggestion was favored with a several-voice chorus of ayes from every corner of the Lair.

Over the next hour—after Amber finally got a chance to change out of her blood, tear, and snot-tainted PJs—Amber and Donatello filled in the others with their observations about the days leading up to Amber's near-death. After some consideration, the genius came up with a theory: she might be safe in her world so long as she left before 72 hours was up. Mercy, too, was likely subject to the same rules, as she, too, died in that world. Aaron, having never died in either world, was probably free to come and go as he pleased. Everyone knew the theory would remain just that until it was proven or dis-proven but no one was willing to try it just yet. Likewise, everyone knew the surprisingly comfortable gathering had to be broken up soon, but no one was willing to suggest such.

Thus, long after all the questions were asked and the answers were given, the gathering transitioned into other activities—getting to know one another, watching movies, making dinner, eating it, then yet another movie with even more lounging around. By eight o'clock, a contagious yawn started making the rounds through the three world-hoppers, and Splinter finally put his clawed foot down: the fun was over. Aaron needed to be taken home and Donnie and Amber's luggage needed to be collected from said home. Donatello already missed three nights' patrol and was sure to miss more due to inter-dimensional 'jet lag,' and they weren't sure how much time had passed in Aaron's world without his presence. This, in particular, horrified the blond, who promptly began fretting about his cats, his game system, and his job, in that exact order.

In the end, it was all agreed. Donnie and Amber were ordered to make it an early night. Leo and Splinter vowed to take Aaron home, pack up the couple's belongings, leave word about the developments for Kimber, and return without delay. Mercy made some excuse about 'yard work,' but the validity of that excuse was put into question by her silent conversation with Raphael—a conversation executed with nothing more than facial expressions and discreet gestures.

After seeing and hearing the three friends fall apart in the dojo, earlier, Donnie honestly expected a long, tearful goodbye. Instead, Mercy and Aaron exchanged a shoulder-punch and a couple odd insults that sounded a bit like terms of affection, and both promised to beat the other's ass next time they met. Aaron and Amber, on the other hand, weren't quite so prickly together—she roped him into a hug and they shared a few quiet words the others couldn't quite hear. "Next time," she then promised with a wry smile, "I'll see ya off with a nip'a the good stuff, jus' like ol' times…if'n ya promise not to try milkin' any cows afterward."

When all was said and done, Splinter, Leo, and Aaron were gone, and Mercy and Raphael were off to the Garden, Amber slipped away, seeking quiet. Donnie found her in the dojo staring through the weapon racks lining the far wall. This, of course, worried the genius. She was quiet—too quiet—and despite watery eyes and a croaking voice, she never broke down and cried once in the entire time since they returned to the Lair. When he first met her, she would have been bawling the moment she saw Aaron and would have fallen apart—she would be struggling under memories, seeing images of destruction flashing behind her eyes—the horrors of her previous life would have held her hostage and left her broken long afterward. Now, she was silent, calm, and contemplating the grouping of lesser-used weapons hung along the wall. Was she in shock?

She didn't show any signs of surprise when Donnie came up behind her and gathered her into his arms; she wasn't lost in thought, then. "The worst is over now," he reminded, briefly nuzzling into her hair then tucking her head under his chin. "It'll take some time to adjust, but we'll get through it, I promise." To his surprise and disbelief, she didn't break down—she didn't tremble or latch onto him with every ounce of strength. Instead, she looked up to peck the underside of his jaw then leaned back into his plastron, wrapped her arms around his.

"I know," she answered with a soft smile—a smile that, though hard to believe, didn't seem fake or forced at all. "The world turned on without me, Donnie. I was so sure my family was fallin' apart—that Aaron couldn't handle livin' without me." She gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Some ego, huh? My father was already moving on an' my Ma an' Gran'Da were workin' on it. Aaron was doin' better, too, an' if we hadn't arrived on the anniversary, he prob'ly wouldn't have been so out of sorts." She shrugged, laying her head on his shoulder, content. "Life goes on, even when we feel like it's fallin' down around us. If they can rise above their grief, who's to say I can't rise above my fears?"

"Are you really alright, Honey?" Donatello released her only to turn her to face him and tilt her eyes up to his; she wasn't showing any sign of being upset or hurting, but neither did she seem to be in shock. He cupped her jaw in his hand, brushing the pad of his thumb along her cheekbone – a cheek that would normally be stained with tears. "You're…well, you seem to be…coping with this."

"I've spent a lot of time not copin', haven't I?" Amber admitted and covered his hand with hers. "I've spent far too long livin' in the past when I should'a~ been enjoyin' the present. Back in my last life, I'd never've~ been so—so mopey—an' I wasn't a crier…in this life, I've been an absolute mess…an' I've been leanin' on you too hard, too." She cringed, ducking her head in shame. "I'm sorry for that…you deserve better an' I can do better—I will do better. I can't go back an' change that, but I can try harder not to let my emotions carry me away. You deserve better an' I'll do what I can to become better." The silence stretched uncomfortably, so she met his eyes again. He seemed stunned—bewildered and pleasantly so.

"You're…you're really alright?" he asked bringing his other hand up to her other cheek; Amber covered that one with her other hand, heedless of how ridiculous they must look, him framing her face and her holding his hands in place. "You're…not afraid? Or hurting?"

"Of course I'm hurtin'," she corrected with a wry smile, "I just said goodbye to the best friend I ever had, outside Mercy, an' I may never see my family again—I'm still sad, I'm just not wallowing in it like I have been. Life went on for them, an' it'll go on for me, too…Aaron an' my family aren't here, but you are...yer worth endurin' all the sorrow an' fear in the world, Dunnie." Donnie's throat visibly clenched, his eyes misting over, and he leaned down to steal her lips. Amber sighed into the kiss, reaching for his neck; that kiss was followed by several more, each slower and more sensual than the last, and she dug her nails into his skin, relishing the soft moan it triggered.

Somewhere between nip and tug, she recalled the moments before she awoke on the operating table—recalled the voice in the Void—and knew she had to tell him. "I've told you about…the Void…haven't I?" she asked haltingly. Donnie nodded, his eyes reluctantly leaving her swollen lips for her eyes.

"I take it you returned?" he asked, and she nodded.

"I dunno how long I was there," she answered, "I only know when I left—that's right before I woke up on the operating table. This time was different, though."

"Different how?"

"The Void…it's…well, it's hard to describe." Amber disentangled herself from his arms, wandered over to the meditation corner and sprawled out on one of the mats. Donnie joined her, listening intently. "It's a world of nothingness. There's no sound, no sight, no sensation of any sort—when yer there, yer nothin', you have no body but you can sense things anyway. The blindin' light an' pitch darkness…the endless ticking an' maddening white noise…the smell of dust an' old books…" 'I'd better not find you in my filing cabinet again for at least fifty years.' Nope. Not dealin' with that just yet. She shook off the memory of the whiny voice and carded her fingers into her hair, digging her nails into her scalp as if to remind herself that she was alive and could feel things again.

"The first time I was there, I was alone," she continued, "but this time, there was another – a voice, mibbe~ the same voice Kimber mentioned. It was sure irritating enough." She shook the thought off and turned a smile to the genius beside her. "I wasn't put here by coincidence…the Voice mentioned lessons—I've learned some already, but I got the feelin' from the conversation that I'm meant to learn more in the future."

"What manner of lessons?" Donnie asked leaning on his bent knees. Amber shrugged.

"The ones they mentioned all pertained to faults from my last life," she explained. "I learned to ask for help an' let myself to be vulnerable—I learned how to accept myself for who I am instead'a hidin' behind nonsense an' tryin' to fit in—I learned that words aren't somethin' to fear an' hold back an' that sharin'em doesn't have to be like pullin' teeth." She shot Donnie a lopsided grin. "The Voice asked if I was gonna give up an' die again, an' I tore it a new one; apparently, now I'm learnin' to forgive myself for mistakes I've made, like givin' up on life so easy last time." He chuckled, pulling her into a sidelong hug and smoothing his palm up and down her side. "I owe it all to you, ya know," she added, her voice soft with emotion. "You're the reason I've made so much progress."

"Nonsense." Amber startled. She leaned away and blinked at him in confusion, but he didn't look upset. "Our trip made me realize something, Braids," he explained with a fond smile. "I've spent all this time trying to 'fix you,' but you never needed fixing. Fixing something implies it was broken to begin with—you're not broken and you never were—you're a little battered but you won't always be that way." Before, Donnie was stunned by the dryness of Amber's eyes; now, they were shimmering with happy tears. "I can't solve your problems for you," he added as she crawled into his lap, then his embrace. "All I can do is support you while you fight your battles," he summed up breathing in the sweet coconut of her hair underneath the astringent scent of the hospital, "and believe in you, no matter what."

Amber's breath hitched against his collarbone; he nuzzled into her hair and rubbed her back, comforted by her closeness. In just under a year, they came a long way—they became friends, fell apart, and grew together again, and now, they could only grow stronger. His unoccupied eyes drifted along the wall before them, sliding from one grouping of weapons to the next before landing on a familiar sight: an old, age-faded pair of wooden tonfa. His nickname was scribbled on the handles of those weapons before age faded the markings, and despite routine cleaning and oiling, he would bet they both still had traces of his blood in the grain. Last he checked, he still had some scars from them; it would only be fitting for them to also still bear traces of the injuries he caused himself with them.

His eyes dropped to Amber's scalp as he considered his intentions. Ask me about Clayton Gregory. The Amber in his dreams was adamant about this—she insisted that when he remembered, he needed to broach the subject—but as of yet, he still held his tongue. Today, he nearly lost Amber all over again—if he spent even an hour more hiking, or if his gamble on moving her despite a head injury hadn't paid off… He shuddered, gathering her even closer. She could have died…the last time he lost her, she still lived, but this time would have been permanent…he couldn't lose her again, not without knowing the truth, not without telling her what she meant to him.

"Amber, there's something I need to ask you." His voice was shaky from nerves—and understandably so—but she should still have heard him. Instead, she said nothing; she just breathed steadily into his neck. "Hon?" No answer. He carefully eased her away, craning his neck to see her, half-afraid her injury was manifesting again. Instead, she slumped with her chin almost to her chest, eyes closed and shoulders drooping. 'Oh man…I knew this would happen,' he thought with a wince. 'She really was in shock—now it's all hit at—'

A quiet snore cut off his train of thought. He blinked. She was…asleep? A quick inspection revealed that her forehead was still healing and the last of the bruising nearly gone; her eyes were shuttered but relaxed and her lips were curled into a small, tired smile. There he was, angsting about his dreams, and she fell asleep on him. 'You nutty woman,' he thought at her with a breathy chuckle, 'you couldn't wait until I dragged you to bed?' Careful not to disturb her, he shifted her to the mat, stood, and lifted her in his arms bridal style to carry her to bed; she nestled into his neck almost immediately, and gave a contented sigh in his ear. This moment, he decided, was sweeter than the coffee she always left him on Saturdays.

With Amber tucked in their bed, he crawled in beside her, gathering her against his plastron. He knew he needed to confront her about the dreams—needed to find out if she really shared those dreams after all—but it could wait another day. They both needed some rest after the day's drama. His mind made up and his heart lighter, Donatello gave his worries over to the night, eagerly awaiting his dreams and even more eagerly, the much-beloved woman who surely waited in them. From his dreams, she beckoned him, her hair still a little pink and her grey-green eyes weary.

"Remember me—I remember you."

UP NEXT: The Moment of Truth

Chapter List

NOTES:

Title from a popularly-covered traditional Scottish folk song. The song is based on the tradition of offering guests a final drink to bolster their spirits on their journey home, and carries undertones of both sadness and tenderness. Amber and Mercy, and Aaron are being separated again, here, permanently if not perpetually, like distant relatives returning home; I feel like the overall tone and mood of the song fits here for that reason, even if the specific lyrics aren't spot-on. My favorite rendition of the song is by Celtic Thunder and it's absolutely haunting. On a personal note, the Chance family has a similar tradition after a big gathering like Christmas or Thanksgiving. Once the last visiting Chance family relative has left and taken their drama with them, Papa Chance, Mama Chance, my hubby Cold, and I all gather in their living room, we all pour ourselves a glass of our chosen poison, and give a toast something along the lines of this: "Yay, they're finally gone!" And with that we all toss back our drinks—Scotch in my case—and we all pass out where we sit.

^ A simple child that lightly draws its breath and feels its life in every limb. What should it know of death? - This verse is from "We are Seven" by William Wordsworth. Despite the morbid tone, the poem was actually somewhere between sober and whimsical, centered around a conversation between the poet and a young girl he met. In the poem he asks how many siblings she has and she answers "we are seven" but upon being prompted to let him meet her siblings she answers that two have left home, two have gone to sea, and two are dead and buried. He protests that if two children died and five live, then she only has four siblings, but in the innocence of childhood she insists no, there are seven of them. This poem has an overtone of childish willfulness and whimsy but is also a reminder that even when our loved ones have left us, they're never really gone.

* Green and white, mascot has a beard and wears a derby hat – Just name-dropping on my favorite college-league football team, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

** Crying isn't something to be ashamed of, regardless of your gender. Boys and men feel sorrow like women and girls—having testicles instead of a twat shouldn't revoke your right to cry when you need to. Yes, I'm a feminist.

*** Someday I might actually put pickles on your cheeseburger pizza. – Recall all the times in this story Amber has teased Aaron about this – "Ma brought your favorite but it's got pickles," and "I brought your favorite pizza and it's got pickles!" This is the explanation: Aaron's favorite pizza is cheeseburger, and some people put PICKLES on cheeseburger pizza. He's appalled by this, so naturally, Amber teases him about it…because he, Mercy, and Amber are ALWAYS teasing each other.

# "It ain't the sun—he's naturally fluorescent." "Willis' whiteness ain't the point." – an ongoing joke is how Aaron, who has a habit of running around naked anytime he's home inside OR out, can still be pale as a fish instead of tanned all over. His stated 'whiteness' isn't a reference to race – it's describing his pale skin. Also, recall the scene where Mercy picked Aaron up for Amber's funeral, got an eyeful while he was showering, then described his backside as 'so white it's fluorescent.'

## "I'm gettin' a fork, yer done."– another reference to the phrase "stick a fork in me, I'm done!" Usually the phrase you're done, when used in this manner, means basically "y'all have made a complete ass of yerself, so shut up before your foot's permanently lodged in yer throat!"

The Lair - if it hasn't become clear by this point, I just wanted to get this out here - I am NOT basing the Lair in this story on any single Lair portrayed before. In all series the guys tend to change homes a few times for various reasons, and we can assume that's what happened here - sometime between the end of OotS and the beginning of this story, their former lair was either found or outgrown and they moved on to a new home. Ibeen working on a rough floorplan of this lair (VERY rough) and may eventually post it to this Tumblr once it’s a little more complete.

WORDS

Kin I have my bawl back? – This kid's got a pretty thick northerner's tongue already; since his mother's speech is untainted by it, we can only wonder where it came from. "Can I have my ball back?"

Bu—Bu' Ma! My bawl! My brudder gave— [cut off]– "But Mom, my ball! My brother gave [it to me]!" The implication is that his older brother attends or perhaps attended Notre Dame University, received the ball at a game and gave it to him. Since little brothers generally idolize their older brothers at this age, he's very attached to the ball.

It wa'n't s'posed to—to end like this—it was alwaysus—you, me, Ross, us against the world! We—We were s'posed to g-get old together—Jus' the th-three of us—jus' a group'a ol' f-farts—bitchin' each other out—d-drivin' each other c-crazy—r-rasslin' 'til someone broke a-a hip. – MWT. "It wasn't supposed to end like this—we were always together—it was just you, me, and Mercy against the world! We were supposed to grow old together, just the three of us—we'd be just another group of old farts (basically 'someone who's grown crotchety and aggravating in their old age) complaining at each other, driving each other crazy, horsing around until someone broke a hip…" Basically, Aaron wanted the three of them to stay the same until they died—he and Amber would always be verbally sparring, he and Mercy would always have insult contests and tussle like children, and they'd only be parted by death at a ripe old age of ancient. Needless to say, this wasn't a rational aspiration and he's struggled with the truth.

Racin' motor-chairs in Walmart – This is an aspiration of many young pranksters anticipating their old age – racing wheelchairs in their local nursing home and the little electric scooters in their local Walmart.

Wallapin' the lil' wankers tresspassin' on our lawns – this is MY aspiration for when I'm old instead of just decrepit – waving my cane and shouting "Gi'off ma lawn ya lil' hooligans!" when neighbor kids come around. Wallap/wallop – to hit or strike something, first spelling is Scotch slang, second is regional slang used in the MW US. Lil' wankers – a lovely little insult common to Brit-slang and Scotch slang, basically means the same as calling someone a little fucker, with the difference that wank generally refers to solo-shenanigans rather than traditional two-or-more-people shenanigans.

Wan'ed this ta happen / died in tha' world – "Wanted this to happen" and "died in that world." Scotched relapse.

I wouldnae be happy…Ah'd be heartbroken 'cause my heart would a'ways be here…wi' my Dunnie. – "I wouldn't be happy in that world. I'd be heartbroken because my heart would always be here, with Donnie." Scotched relapse.

Out'a – out of, MWT.

I spent most'a our childhood thinkin' the sun shined out'a yer arse—" – "I spent most of our childhood thinking you were the most amazing person in the world." Compare 'the sun shines out of your ass' to the more polite phrase 'you make the sun rise and set.' MWT.

You'd'a – MWT, you would have.

You' / I' – This has been shown before but I'm not sure I ever noted it. Conjunctions shown with only the first word and apostrophe are pronounced the same as the base word. Thus, you' could be you're, you've, or you'd based on the context and I' could be I've, I'd, or I'm. MWT, also common in some Southern and city dialects.

Ya see those two idjits? They're gonna get'emselves hurt someday, especially that klutz. Yer job's to keep'em from gettin'emselves hurt an' to keep that braided blockhead from earnin' 'erself a Darwin Award. – MWT. "You see those two [idiots]? They're going to get themselves hurt someday, especially that [clumsy person]. Your job is to keep them from getting themselves hurt and to keep that braided blockhead [Amber] from earning herself a Darwin Award." The Darwin Award, often used in connection to Amber, is an unofficial status given in jest to persons who died from incredibly unbelievable acts of stupidity or ignorance, 'thus proving Darwin's theory about the survival of the fittest.' Look up "Darwin Award DOT com," it'll relieve you of all hope for the future of humanity.

I'm warnin' ya…I find out any of ya hurt'em—either of'em…an' I'll turn all four'a yer shells into fishponds. – "I'm warning you, if I find out any of you hurt [Amber or Mercy] I'll rip all four of your shells off and make goldfish ponds out of them." (…because they're a tad too big to make ashtrays out of.) MWT.

Next time, I'll see ya off with a nip'a the good stuff, jus' like ol' times…if'n ya promise not to try milkin' any cows afterward. – Next time you visit, before you leave, I'll share [a couple fingers' worth of quality Scotch] with you first, just like we used to…at least, if you promise not to try milking any cows afterward. MWT with nip from Scots, meaning 'a drink of some alcoholic beverage.' The concept of sharing a drink with a departing guest is a tradition in some countries including parts of Scotland, and the basis for the song "The Parting Glass" and the poem it came from. The second bit, about milking cows, is a jab about Aaron's drunken exploits in Glenville the last time he and Amber visited his mother. (See chapter 2: Death Was Only the Beginning) Simply put, he and his cousin got drunk, they challenged each other to a cow-milking contest, and Aaron—in his inebriation—accidentally tried to milk a bull instead of a cow and got peed on. We can only hope Amber hosed his drunken ass off outside.

Prob'ly – MWT, Probably

Should'a / Instead'a – MWT, Should have, Instead of

I'd never've – MWT, I would never have

Mibbe – maybe, Scots.

[ninjakitten1699]

Ok so you know how Krux is like a substitute parent for llyod...what if during the TOE both Krux (as Saunders) and Garamadon went on that boat. Just idk present Clouse dealing with his ex and another just idk sounds funny to me.

Oh that’d be funny as hell there.

He probably gets suspicious when he sees Anacondrai Cultists sneaking around in the city and as much as he wants to stay out of their business, it bothers him and when he finds out they’re connected to Chen, he goes.

Chen’s a tricky bastard and he knows this. He’d rather not deal with Garmadon but dammit, Lloyd doesn’t know the dangers he’s in. (“Oh you’re definitely your father’s son diving into dangerous situations head first without thinking about the effects after.” “Huh?” “Ah nothing.”)

Him seeing Clouse and Garm together? Not helping his case any. He’s focusing on Lloyd as best as he can even if Garm’s distracting with his charismatic looks and the way he pins Clouse... Okay so he’s a little salty and maybe he’s nostalgic, thinking of back then but he ain’t going to blow his cover like that.

On the inside, I’m pretty sure Krux is always hoping for Garm to win every time he and Clouse fight because he needs him to be alive by the time he still wants to beat his ass later on. Also he can and will hurt Clouse and Chen if they do get close because fuck the psychology they pulled on everyone back then.

Maybe Garmadon probably looks Saunders up and down and thinks “Have we met before Lloyd or something? I feel like I’ve seen you before.” “Ah I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t think we have.” “Uh huh.”

During the rounds, he’s trying not to be over enthusiastic with Lloyd winning, but he can’t help but be proud of his victories and just look at Chen and Clouse all smug like that cat with knives pointed at it. “Ah look at him. He’s too stubborn to lose. Just like his father.” “And how would you know?” “I’ve heard of a lot about Garmadon and his battles.”

The only downside to him being there is quite literally having his fake mustache pulled right off during a fight and he’s revealed as Krux a little too soon. Unless it’s one of the Anacondrai soldiers who he makes keep their mouth shut, but that’s a slight chance.

Honestly now that I think about it, if he does fight with the people in the battle against the Fake Anacondrai then there’s a chance of Garmadon finding it all too familiar and he’s just “I know that style anywhere.. Krux is that you?” “Ah who is this Krux? I’m surely not him. No. I’m not.” “... right...” Of course there’s denial but Garmadon’s already figured it out. Meanwhile, Krux on the inside is like “Ah fuck there goes my plans. Got to run.”

Angsty moment but if we kept the AU canonical, Krux would’ve had to see Garm go into the Cursed Realm. He’s going to be forcing himself to not be so upset while comforting Lloyd. (Thankfully the AU steers further away from canon because we all know Garm deserved better than that and I have Chen die before he gets off the island so...)

Soft moment to make up for the angst I just caused but I just wanna think about how Garmadon and Dr. Saunders would talk afterwards about the whole situation. He knows it’s Krux and honestly at first he did consider just turning Krux in after the crimes he’s done but also conflicted with the fact that Krux was there for Lloyd when Garmadon wasn’t and that he took time away from his plan to help them in the fighting when he didn’t have to.

Now that could happen or Krux would’ve left and the talking never did happen until after Krux drops from the Time Vortex with Baby Wu and Garmadon finds them because of baby brother. They had to actually sit down and talk afterwards because there’s nowhere Krux can go with Baby Wu that Garm’s Dragon-Oni sense of smell won’t follow his own kin.