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a-small-batch-of-dragons · 8 months

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Code Words | Trigger Phrase

Augh that was so good holds them gently Please tell me the person Jan went for support to was Remus I love that gremlin man – anon

Hello! Sorry if this arrives to you as you're already set on what the next chapter of 'Code Words' will contain. But in the event that you decide on the next chapter being from Janus’s perspective, could we get from his side on what happened at that meeting? Because we know what Roman’s side was, but depending on the wording used by the higher-ups it could've come off entirely differently. I think the writing for your work is excellent & regardless of this idea It'll be a banger of a chapter. – ax3-e0ns

I absolutely adore Code Words, oh my god. Protective sides is the best. I saw a note on AO3 asking opinions, so could I potentially ask if there’s going to be some Remus in this story? I absolutely love your protective Remus. But absolutely no pressure at all, I think I’m gonna go feral no matter what happens next honestly, I’m rotating this story around in my brain on a spicket. – anon

Read on Ao3

Warnings: descriptions of assault

Pairings: platonic dukeceit, platonic logince

Word Count: 5240

Janus has never really been bothered by heights.

There's something oddly freeing about it, about being able to look down from such a place and see the world sprawled out beneath you. Something reassuring about being reminded that the world truly is so much bigger than you, that it has existed long before you and with persist long after you're gone. He's just a part of it when he's looking at it like this, and there's nothing wrong with just being for a second.

He really needs to just be for a moment after what just happened.

Footsteps to his left and a moment later, Remus plops down next to him, one leg dangling over the edge of the hanger walkway, the other propped up next to him.

"So," he begins lowly, "I haven't gotten a call like that from you in a while."

Janus doesn't say anything for a long moment. Then he leans forward and buries his face in his hands, feeling Remus shift closer to catch him if his balance slips. And just that, just that little indication that Remus is here for him, that's enough to shatter the dam.

"He burst into the meeting."

"Huh?"

"The kid assigned to be the 'hero,'" Janus mumbles, talking mostly to his hands, "he burst into my debrief."

Remus swears under his breath. "Shit. Did he—"

"He only had a knife and he barely made it through the door, but he—" he chokes on the words— "he kept saying how he'd stop me, that I'd never hurt anyone again, that he'd—that he'd make sure of it."

Remus's hand lands on his back, rubbing in slow, soothing circles. "It's over, Janny. You're not on that mission anymore. You're not the bad guy, you never were. It's okay, it's over. That kid's gonna learn sooner or later, he'll come around—"

"No, you don't get it!" Janus smacks Remus's hand away before he can think better of it, only to stare at him horrified. "I'm sorry—"

"Hey, uh-uh." Remus just shakes his head and raises his hands. "You're upset right now, I'm not gonna hold anything against you."

God, everything Remus says is just reminding him of Roman's face—

"Don't spiral on me," comes Remus's gentle reminder, "keep going, if you want, what happened next?"

"They—Security tazed him." A lump appears in Janus's throat. "He just f-fell over and they kicked the knife out of his hands and he—Remus, he's just a kid. He's just a kid and he looked so upset."

He scrubs a hand over his face.

"And they just laughed at him."

Remus frowns. "Who laughed at him, the security officers?"

"Fucking everyone laughed at him, Remus, I—I laughed, I laughed at him."

"Well, yeah, little shrimp bursts into a meeting trying to stab you, gets tazed, shit, I'd probably laugh at him too. Whoa," Remus blurts out when Janus buries his face in his hands again, "whoa, whoa, hey, hey…"

"He didn't know, Remus!"

"Don't do that," Remus says, tugging his hands gently away from his face, "he didn't know what, that it was over?"

"He didn't know about me!" He just clutches Remus's hands because what else is he supposed to do, and how fucking awful is it that he has someone he can go to after all of this, that he's got the safety net he knows he can rely on, when Roman doesn't, how fucked up is that— "they didn't tell him anything!"

"Slow down. Take a breath for me." Remus takes a deep breath in and lets it out slowly. "Just like that, you copy me, okay?"

Janus tries. But he keeps seeing poor Roman's chest shuddering and shaking and how scared he was and how angry—

"Janus," Remus says, voice firmer now, "eyes on me. Only on me, okay? Stay with me here."

Janus closes his eyes and tries to concentrate on Remus's hands on his. His lungs fight him for every breath but he doggedly takes one after the other, slowly calming down until he can look at Remus and just see Remus.

"Hey," he hears softly, "welcome back, Janny. You wanna take a break for a moment, or you wanna keep talking to me."

"I've just gotta get it out, I think."

"Okay. Can you keep a hold of my hands for me?" Janus squeezes and Remus nods. "Okay. Good job. Can you tell me what happened next at the meeting?"

Janus forces himself to take another breath before continuing. "He got—he got up so slowly, Remus, those tazers weren't turned down at all, they hit him with the full blast. He must've been in so much pain."

"They do hurt, that's true."

"And he—he tried so hard to make like he wasn't scared and he said—he said—he tried to say what he said again but one of the supervisors cut him off." The lump in his throat his back. "Remus, he looked so small."

"What did the supervisor say?"

"That while this amount of drive was admirable," and he spits out the word, "he should really be saving it for the next mission. And he was so confused, he asked him what he was talking about—and they laughed at him again, Remus, they just laughed at him!"

"Stay with me," Remus reminds, gently squeezing his hands, "what were they laughing about?"

"The other one—she said that he'd done a good job and that he should be proud of himself, and that he should learn something from me and how I did my part of the mission—and that it's hard to be undercover like that for so long—"

"Which is it, Janny, you know that."

"—but he didn't know! A-and then he ran away and he was crying and I didn't know—he didn't have anyone, Remus, he didn't—I hurt him—"

"Slow down, you're jumping ahead again. C'mon, deep breaths." Remus squeezes his hands again, scooting a little closer. "Hey, you with me?"

"Yeah. I'm here."

"Did he come back to the meeting?"

Janus shakes his head. "I went to see him. Afterwards."

"Did he hurt you?"

"No, no, he didn't do anything, he did nothing wrong—"

"Okay, okay, take it easy."

"…thanks."

"Sure thing. What happened?"

He closes his eyes and Roman's defiant little face swims into view. His fists clenched at his sides and his shoulders drawn up in that way where he's trying desperately to make himself look bigger but it just makes it obvious how small and scared he is, and the poor thing was so scared…

"Janus?"

"They didn't tell him, Remus," Janus whispers, his eyes still clenched tightly, "they didn't tell him anything. They didn't tell him I was undercover, they didn't tell him any of the code phrases, they didn't—Remus, he's all alone. He's so scared, he's just a kid, and I—I hurt him, Remus, I hurt him so much."

Remus is silent. Janus warily opens his eyes, unsure of what Remus's reaction is going to be, only to see him glaring a hole in the jetway.

"R-Remus?"

"So he didn't know anything," Remus says, his voice low and dangerous, "not about your mission, not about the codes, not—not anything?"

"And they laughed at him, Remus, he was so scared—he is so scared."

Remus lets go of his hands, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Fuck."

"I hurt him. I tortured him—he relapsed because of me, Remus, I—" fuck, he's going to throw up, he's revolted at himself, how the fuck could he do this to a kid, and all for what? A mission? He didn't need to do any of that for the mission, he didn't even need to do half of it, and how is Roman supposed to reconcile all of that—

"Hey, uh-uh." Hands catch his again. "Janny, you gotta stop, you're gonna hurt yourself."

"But I—"

"What were you supposed to do? Come on," Remus continues when Janus just stares at him, "what were you supposed to do?"

"I should've—I should've checked, I should've told him—"

"How? How would you have told him without risking exposing yourself? Then both of you would've been royally fucked."

"B-but I—" he swallows— "Remus, I was so bad—"

"Hey," Remus says, gently yet firmly, taking his face in his hands again, "you're right, this is incredibly fucked up and it should never have happened. But it's not on you. You hear me?"

"How is it not my fault when I'm the one who hurt him?"

"It's not your fault that he wasn't told. You didn't debrief him. You were already years undercover when he was getting debriefed. You couldn't have known he was getting assigned until he was right in your face and then it was too late." Remus holds his tightly when Janus tries to pull away. "And it's not your fault they laughed at him."

"But I laughed—and he screamed at me to get out and I didn't listen—"

"You didn't know, Janus, you got fucked over by this too. If it's not Roman's fault, it's not yours either."

"Well, it seems awfully simple when you put it that way," he can't help but spit out.

"Sometimes shit is that simple. I'm not saying everything here is," Remus continues when Janus looks like he's about to explode, "and…yeah, Roman's probably not too happy with you right now—"

Janus lets out a mirthless laugh.

"—but the truth of the matter is: Roman not being briefed properly fucked both of you over. That's it. And that's not on either of you."

Remus is right, logically, he knows he is, but he can't get Roman's face out of his head. Not earlier up in his room, tear-stained and furious and scared as all hell, not in the meeting room, bright red with humiliation and confusion, not even earlier, with his eyes full of tears and defiance and so, so small…

He lets out a sob before he can stop himself, curling up as Remus wraps his arms around him. And doesn't that feel fucking awful, that he's here, upset about hurting Roman and getting comforted, when all Roman had was him? He's called Logan, Logan should be on his way sooner or later, but from the sounds of it he's off base and probably won't get in until tomorrow, which means Roman is all alone, all by himself, in a building where he no longer knows what's real, who to trust, and he's so young—

God, and his mission instincts are the opposite of helpful right now. Because all he wants to do is go eviscerate whatever bastard decided it was a good idea not to debrief Roman properly and then go fuck up the supervisors that laughed at Roman and then go beat the shit out of the security guards that tazed him, but he won't do any of that because he promised Roman he'd follow his lead.

"He's just a kid, Remus," he whispers into Remus's shoulder, "I don't know what to do."

"You're not gonna do anything right now except get some of this out," Remus says, not unkindly, "so you just take some deep breaths and stay with me, okay?"

Remus's heart rate beats steadily under his ear and he tries to sync his breathing to it, tries to push everything else aside for the moment and just focus on being here, with Remus, safe in the hanger. A few more tears slip down his face, a few more sobs leave his chest, as he takes the time to just breathe. He finds himself holding onto Remus's arm, just to have something to hold onto, such a far cry from being undercover where he had to keep his walls up all the time, even when he was about to sleep.

How exhausting that was, to be surrounded by minefields, unsure of where to step, unable to hold onto anything lest it drop out from under him. Up so high, dancing with death in the clouds in the midst of those who would happily push him off and watch him fall until he hit the ground with a splat.

How many times had he stood on Roman's neck to keep himself up there?

He sniffles again. Something in Roman's face as he turned to leave…something in how small and unsure he looked…the memory crawls up his throat and he knows Remus can feel the way his breath hitches.

"What's up, Janny?"

"Just…remembering something."

Remus hums, shifting until he can rest his weight against one of the support beams. "You wanna talk about it?"

"I think so."

"Whenever you're ready, then."

***

Deceit placed the hero's foot gently in his lap, tweezers in one hand to pluck the thorns and other sharp things out. His fingers rubbed soothingly whenever the hero tensed or flinched.

"I don't know why you insisted on running," he murmured, "at best, you're only embarrassing yourself. You're lucky it wasn't worse than this."

"Keep talking and I'll kick you." The hero's toes flexed.

"Kick me after I've done the other foot." Deceit patted his ankle absentmindedly. "Switch."

He could see the hero debated not doing it, but the thorns must've made themselves even more of an obnoxious presence, and so after a moment, he did, lifting his foot and placing it on Deceit's knee.

"Good." He winced. "You really did get torn up."

"You're the one who chose a location surrounded by a wasteland to interrogate me."

"Mhm, almost as if I didn't expect you to be clueless enough to run." He plucks out a long thorn. "Especially without shoes."

"You took my shoes."

"Because I didn't want you to run." He glanced up. "Seems that didn't stop you."

The hero glowered, hunching in on himself as much as he could with his foot still in Deceit's lap. "Why are you doing this?"

"We've been over this."

"Not that." The hero's foot flexed. "This."

Deceit sighed. "Because despite what you think, you being hurt like this isn't actually beneficial to me."

The hero scoffed.

"Scoff all you like, but it's the truth."

"Since when do you tell the truth?"

Deceit paused, looking up again. "Can you name one deliberate lie I've told you?"

The hero paused. Deceit could almost hear his thoughts: surely…surely there was one, right? Deceit had led him astray so many times, it had to be his fault, he had to be lying. He waited, fingers idly drumming on his ankle, patiently watching the hero struggle with himself.

Eventually, he just glared away and Deceit sighed, resuming the gentle care.

"I don't like seeing you in pain."

"Could've fooled me."

Ouch. "Oh, I'm perfectly willing to hurt you, but that doesn't mean I enjoy seeing you hurt."

"Oh, well, if that's all."

"If it makes you feel any better about it," he continued, setting aside the tweezers and picking up the ointment, "I'm doing this so you have a lower risk of infection, so you'll recover better. I don't look forward to carrying you everywhere until you can walk again."

The hero's head jerked around so quickly he almost told them to keep still again. "You what?"

"Easy," Deceit chided, "not so much. There are still open wounds down here."

"Wait, wait, you're planning on what?"

"You can't walk," Deceit said as though he were explaining to a child—which he was, "so I have to carry you."

"You don't have, like, a wheelchair?"

"This isn't exactly a hospital, you know. I don't just have medicine and mobility aids lying around."

The hero spluttered. "But you—you—you're—"

"Trust me," Deceit sighed, reaching for the bandages, "I'm not thrilled about it either. But I don't enjoy seeing you like this and I, like you, want it to be resolved as quickly as possible."

He tapped his leg to get him to switch.

"So, yes. I'm going to finish bandaging you, you are going to sit still while I put everything away, and then yes, if you need to go somewhere that isn't back to the interrogation room, I will carry you."

"Why don't you just kill me," the hero spat, "wouldn't that be easier?"

"Then I don't get the information you're holding onto."

"Then why go to all the trouble of fixing me, if you're just going to break me again?" Deceit didn't answer that one. "What if I can walk?"

It was Deceit's turn to scoff. "I've just pulled an entire rosebush out of your feet. If you can walk, I'd have to check what painkillers I gave you."

The hero set their mouth into a stubborn line and he sighed.

"Alright, fine. If it with assuage your doubts, you're welcome to try. Though don't come crying about your bruised dignity when you fail."

I will, he could almost hear, you'll see.

Deceit stood, carrying the supplies and tucking them back into the box they'd brought, leaning against the wall. He folded his arms and regarded them.

"Alright," he said, eyebrow raised, "do go on, then."

"Thank you."

The hero gritted his teeth and swung his legs down. Even a brush against the floor and Deceit could see the tug of pain in his lips, but the hero forced it away. He took a deep breath and held eye contact, and stood up.

In an instant, Deceit could see that his feet exploded in pain. His knees buckled and he grabbed at the rickety bed, fighting to stand back up. He shifted all the noises certainly building up in his throat down and took another deep breath.

Deceit just watched him silently.

The hero managed one step.

Two.

On the third, he must've landed on one of the deeper gashes and his weight collapsed, sending him hurtling toward the floor.

In the blink of an eye, Deceit swept forward and caught him, arms wrapped around his chest and keeping him from hitting the floor. He could feel the way the hero's cheeks burned with humiliation and he glared at the floor as if it were its fault he fell.

Deceit didn't gloat. He didn't say 'I told you so.' He just waited until the hero had settled a little to carefully pick him up and carrying him back to the bed. The hero turned his red and furious face away as soon as he could, as if he could forbid the tears from falling while Deceit was still in the room.

"I didn't mean it, you know," Deceit said softly, "about not crying. You can cry if you want."

"Thanks for the permission," the hero spat.

Deceit waited a moment longer before getting up, fetching the first aid kit and opening the door. As he turned to close it, he caught sight of the hero staring after him.

He closed the door before the urge to rush back over grew too strong.

***

Logan hums, setting aside the glass of water. "That does sound like a confusing experience, I'm sorry to hear that."

Roman chews on the last of the pizza crust, the box still sitting next to his knee. His milkshake sits half-finished on the bedside table, the blankets cleared away as he toys with the hem of one of the pillowcases. "I mean, it makes considerably more sense now, but when it was happening, I just…"

He shuffles, drawing his knees up.

"I don't know."

"You do," Logan corrects gently, "you can speak freely, Roman, I'm not going to get mad at you for expressing your feelings."

"…I just wanted him to pick. Whether he was going to be nice or not. And I know that's a thing," he says before Logan can say anything, "I know that's a technique that interrogators use to keep you off balance, I know that's what it's designed to do, I know I'm not supposed to fall for it, I just…yeah."

"You can't think your way out of being in pain. I know," Logan chuckles when Roman stares at him, "I know it might seem like that's what I've taught you—"

"No fucking shit."

"—but I'm trying to correct that now. I suppose I was trying to get you to understand that you shouldn't let the pain stop you if it got overwhelming, but that's not the right lesson either, is it?"

"I don't know."

"The point I'm trying to make is that you could know exactly what someone was doing if they were using that technique, and it would still be effective to some degree. After all, when your leg was broken, you knew exactly what was causing the pain, but that didn't stop it in anyway, did it?"

"No." Roman curls up a little tighter. "I don't like being in pain."

"I don't think anyone does," Logan says softly, reaching out and resting a hand on his knee, "thank you for telling me about that, Roman."

Finishing the last of the piece in his hand, Roman reaches for the pizza box. It's gone a bit cold now, but it's warm enough that it doesn't matter and he bites into another piece. Logan keeps his hand there, rubbing his thumb gently back and forth over the soft fabric of Roman's pajama pants.

"Can I ask," Logan says after a while, "what you'd like to see happen next?"

"With Janus?"

"With everything. It's okay if you don't know," he says when Roman starts to tense up, "I'm just curious."

What does he want to happen?

Well, he wants to no longer be scared whenever anyone knocks on his door. He wants to be able to walk outside without being scared of someone laughing at him or whispering about him or muttering about what happened. He wants to be able to talk to people without second-guessing whether this is a lie too. He wants to have this awful roiling pit in his stomach go the fuck away. He wants those years of his life back.

He wants all of this to have never happened. But, like with so many other things, Roman doesn't get what he wants.

"Little one," Logan calls softly, "can you stay with me, please?"

"Sorry."

"You've done nothing wrong, it's alright." Logan's hand moves to ruffle his hair. "I suppose that was too large and too sudden of a question."

"Yeah. I think…I think I just want to make sure it doesn't happen again."

"A perfectly reasonable thing to want."

"I want Janus to go be scary at the asshole who decided not to brief me properly." Instantly he flinches, waiting for the sharp reprimand from Logan about how immature that is, Roman, you know better. "I—I mean—"

"I'd quite like to go be scary at them as well." He chuckles when Roman just stares at him incredulously. "What's that look for?"

"Who are you and what the fuck did you do with the guy who always said to 'be the bigger person?'"

"Someone put his student in a terrifyingly unsafe situation where said student was hurt, traumatized, and had no way of protecting himself," Logan replies, his voice slightly firmer, "and that someone is about to learn the consequences of their actions."

It should be reassuring. That should be the reassurance he needs that he's safe now, that everything's going to be okay, that Logan's really on his side through all of this, but instead those words just remind him of being much smaller and standing alone in front of a lot of people and he swallows.

"You're not…you're not mad at me, are you?"

Logan blinks and he softens again, smiling gently and rubbing Roman's back. "No, little one, I'm not mad at you. I'm quite mad at the person who failed to brief you, if you hadn't noticed—"

"No shit."

"—but if it's alright with you, yes, I'd quite like to go and be scary at them, as you put it. Is that something you think you'd be alright with?"

"Yeah. You're really scary too."

Logan chuckles. "Is it alright if I tell you what needs to happen in order for us to go and be scary?"

"Sure."

"We would need to have a meeting with someone from Psych, just to clear the two of you. They'd need to understand exactly what went wrong, to have some sort of clearance to go after the person who briefed you lest we all get swept up and under the rug."

"I don't like Psych."

"I know, little one, I don't think anyone does. But I'd pull a few strings—I think there's still someone I trust who works there, who would take this seriously and see that it be handled in the way it deserved to be handled."

Roman picks at a loose seam in the bedspread. "And this—this meeting, who needs to be in it?"

"You and Janus, for one—"

"Does it have to be both of us," he blurts out, "a-at the same time?"

Logan pauses, looking over his face. "Ideally, yes, it should be."

Just the thought of having to spend that much time in the same room as Janus again sends spiders crawling all over his skin. He hugs himself tighter, leaning into Logan who lets him, setting his chin on the top of his head.

"Can you tell me what you're thinking right now?"

"I don't want to be so close to him. I don't—I know him not knowing—I know me not knowing isn't his fault, but—but—"

"But he still hurt you," Logan finishes when Roman just growls in frustration at his own inability to talk, "I understand."

"I don't want to be this scared of him still, but I can't help it."

"I know, little one, I know. You've always pushed yourself too hard to get comfortable with something too quickly. This is no exception."

"Well, if you assholes stopped demanding it of us, maybe I wouldn't be doing it all the time."

Logan sighs. "Believe me, I have a lot of questions myself now in retrospect about your training."

"Are you gonna go yell at more people?"

"Perhaps. I'm going to pace myself and set my sights on this person first." A hand cards through the hair at the base of his neck. "Is there anything that you think would help you be able to get through that meeting with Psych?"

Roman closes his eyes, letting his cheek rest against Logan's chest for a moment. Logan's breathing is smooth and steady, the hand on his back rubbing in soft, even strokes. Despite the parts of him that shy away for fear of rejection and chastisement, he can't help but relax a little bit just being so close to Logan.

"C-can—" he clears his throat— "can you be there with me?"

The hand stutters for a moment. He can feel the roll of Logan's throat as he swallows. Then his voice comes out a little hoarser than usual. "Of course I can, little one, if you'd like me to be."

"I want you there."

"Then I'll be there."

After another moment, Roman shifts. "Janus should be able to have someone too."

"In the meeting?"

"Yeah. That's fair."

"I agree," Logan says, a warmth bleeding into his voice that Roman hasn't heard in a long time, "I'll make sure he knows."

"Will he be okay with the meeting?"

"From what I know of him, from what you've told me and from how he sounded yesterday, I think he'd be satisfied with any course of action that gets us closer to ensuring the person who caused this whole mess is brought to justice."

"Will it be someone like you?"

"I'm not sure. If I had to speculate, I would guess he would bring another operative like him. Someone who's used to doing that sort of undercover work and understands the necessity of proper, thorough briefings. And someone whom he considers a friend."

"It's still weird to think of him as not Deceit," Roman admits, safe against Logan's shoulder, "I mean, I get it, but like…I don't?"

"It's going to take time, as I'm sure he's told you—"

"He said he wouldn't hold it against me if it took me a while to be okay with him."

"As well he should." There's a pause where Logan sighs. "It's…well, it's terribly unfunny, but it is…oh, I suppose what I'm trying to say is that I fear the two of you would've gotten along quite well if you'd met under different circumstances."

Roman scoffs a laugh. "What, you mean if he hadn't tortured me for years?"

"Yes."

"Gotta say, that's not really easy to imagine."

"I didn't expect it to be," Logan murmurs, "nor will I spend any more time thinking about what might have been. I promise you I will devote my attention to taking steps forward from now on."

"Thanks."

"Believe me, it's the least I can do." A rustle as Logan shifts and Roman's half-finished milkshake appears near his nose. "Here, drink up. Ice cream solves all sorts of problems."

Roman can't help but smile as he takes the cup. "Did you run that past Psych?"

"Oh, where do you think I got the recommendation from?"

Logan smiles to himself as he feels Roman laugh, soon accompanied by the sounds of a milkshake being drunk. When he's certain Roman's relaxed against him, he reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone, sending a message out to the Medical wing.

Subject: Meeting Regarding Inadequate Briefing

Patton,

I'm sure the scuttlebutt has reached your ears by now that something has gone wrong with one of the recently finished undercover missions. I'm sure you have also learned that Roman is directly involved. I am less than pleased at the outcome of this debacle and require your assistance as we move forward. If you would be willing to provide your services, I will owe you a great favor.

On behalf of Roman, I am requesting a meeting to discuss what happened as well as steps to be taken to prevent repeat occurrences in the future. I will be in attendance along with him. The other party involved is Janus, Agent 1432, Level 9. Please let him know that this meeting has been requested and that Roman has asked to ensure he knows that supporting parties are allowed to attend as well, as I am attending for Roman.

There's a full moon out tonight.

Sincerely,

Logan

General Taglist: @frxgprince@potereregina@gattonero17@iamhereforthegayshit@thefingergunsgirl@awkwardandanxiousfander@creative-lampd-liberties@djpurple3@winterswrandomness@sanders-sides-uncorrect-quotes@iminyourfandom@bullet-tothefeels@full-of-roman-angst-trash @ask-elsalvador @ramdomthingsfrommymind@demoniccheese83@pattonsandershugs @el-does-photography @princeanxious@firefinch-ember@fandomssaremysoul@im-an-anxious-wreck@crazy-multifandomfangirl @punk-academian-witch@enby-ralsei@unicornssunflowersandstuff@wildhorsewolf @thetruthaboutthesun @stubbornness-and-spite @princedarkandstormv @your-local-fookin-deadmeme @angels-and-dreams@averykedavra @a-ghostlight-for-roman @treasurechestininterweb @cricketanne @queerly-fluid-fan @compactdiscdraws@cecil-but-gayer@i-am-overly-complicated@annytheseal@alias290@tranquil-space-ninja @arxticandy @mychemically-imbalanced-romance@whyiask@crows-ace @emilythezeldafan@frida0043 @ieatspinalcords @snowyfires@cyanide-violence@oonagh2@xxpanic-at-the-everywherexx@rabbitsartcorner @percy-07734@triflingassailantofmyemotions @virgil-sanders-the-gay-emo@cerulean-watermelon@puffed-up-bees@meltheromanstan@joyrose-fandomer@insanitori@mavenmush@justablah65@10paradox10@uhhh-hi-there-i-am-nervous@cutebisexualmess@bella-bugatti-frogetti-baguetti@ultrageekygirl

#dragonbabbles #fic #sanders sides #roman sanders #logan sanders #janus sanders #remus sanders #sympathetic deceit #sympathetic remus #deceit sanders

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mygeekcorner · 1 year

Text

eight shows to get to know me. allegedly.

Tagged by @silversoulstardust

Babe what does this even mean??? What do you mean “get to know me”?? Shows that are the reason that I am the way I am?? That make people watch them and then go “yeah this explains so much about you”? Blorbos I project too hard on?? The vibes? The core memories??? The quoteability?? Which ones make me scream out loud the most?? What does it all mean?? You already follow my blog, you know which shows I'm obsessed with, but what shows do even give insight into anything besides what I like in stories??

But uh yeah. My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. Easy pick. Whatever reasoning you want from the potential meanings of this tag game up there, it has it. The first three seasons are so good! Though I did drop it when Twlight became an alicorn, that just felt too much toy-selling show to me personally, same with equestria girls. But like I grew up watching old school MLP (G1), and I adored it. Then I reach 20 and suddenly FiM (G4 for those keeping track) comes out and it is such a gigantic blast from the past and damn if I didn't get hooves over head from the start. I was obsessed. I was one of the “mods are asleep, post ponies” people. And the way they fucking based Pinkie Pie on me? Like right down to the Pinkamena rock farm backstory? Scary stuff right there I’m tellinng you.

But 7 other shows to pick?

Monarch of the Glen is an old show, and I will admit that I haven’t Really watched it since I was in school but it has stayed in the back of my mind since I was like 10 so. I never cared for the main couple, as characters they are fine but even back then it felt like a “oh yeah, here’s two pretty people from opposite genders (and social status) and so we have to make them get together” which was Not what the show was about To Me! But just all the other interpersonal relationships? The parents romantic relationship? Top notch. The struggle of trying to please your parents but still doing your own thing? Trying to find out what that thing is? It does never get old. Also I had the biggest crush on Duncan and that does tell you so much about my type still lol

Galavant released the trailer and at first glance everyone already knew it was a very Me show. I’m not sure what it says about me, but it fits me very well. With the sense of humour, disney references, bursting into unprompted song, wanting to dress like a ren fair character, horseback riding, daring sword fights. A prince in disguise! I mean what. I don’t project on anyone super hard, but I do vibe like crazy to the whole thing, and the soundtrack is a banger that never truly leaves my brain.

Scrubs might just look like the silly little doctor comedy show, and it is! But it also has SO MUCH heart and I just love the lessons it comes with. Again, it’s been a hot minute since I watched it so I won’t vouch for how well the humour has aged, but that was never the point of the show either. The point of the show was watching people care about each other in all different kinds of relationships and so many of the more heartfelt exchanges still live in my soul even now. Like that time JD went to the “evil lab guy” everyone was scared of because he didn’t want his patient to have what the results said they did and the lab guy asked “do you Think I made a mistake or do you Hope I did?” and JD just said “I’m kinda hoping you did” and the whole scene softened and lab guy did the test again. I don’t know, that scene has lived rent-free in my mind for like 20 years whenever I hope things aren’t as bad as they seem, hoping that some higher power lab guy will take pity on me and say they mixed some tests up.

Malcolm in the middle is again just that silly chaotic show from when we were kids - sibling edition - but again it just has so much heart and I don’t know. Watching it again as an adult, yes sure, it has aged, but the big bits stay the same. How the parents Chose each other every day. How the kids might beat each other up with bricks but wouldn’t hesitate to turn to arson if anybody else tried to do the same to their brothers? Yes, it means a lot and even though I might not have “learned” as much from it as Scrubs, it still resonates with me about how growing up felt.

Until We Meet Again because at my heart I am a hopeless romantic who wants to believe in soulmates. It’s a pretty recent show in general, and I only watched it a year ago, but it felt like it understood me more than I understood it, so it is on this list anyway. But I will always hope that if someone meant enough to you and you meant enough to them you Will find your way back to each other, in this life or the next. Not saying this show didn’t absolutely destroy me, I spent 3 hours just crying and shaking after the first episode, and I think I spent a majority of the show being a dehydrated little blob, but it was so worth it. To watch both timelines fall in love and choose each other? To watch the modern timeline have friends and be happy among more than just each other? Everything I could have asked for. 12/10. For real.

Not sure what Goblin has to say about me. We’re all depressed and deserve a good cry and a hug? I guess it means that there is always hope for things to get better, in some way. Even if it doesn’t come about as you thought it would, or when you hoped. But there is always someone out there who cares about you, whether or not you know they do.

I can’t believe I almost forgot about Black Books! Fran is me and I will turn into Fran if bf ever does leave me rip. For real. I even used to have a marriage pact with a friend who was just like Bernard that stated if we both reach our 40s and are single we can be drunk and miserable together. So many of these moments get referenced on a daily basis in our home, everything from how “on no accounts must they know the real you!” to the Cleaner. Yes, if you watch this show it will explain so much about me. (Please don’t do that)

Okay, yeah. This only took like 4 days to complete lmao. Might have taken it a bit more serious than intended, but the theme of the game is just to wide and I didn’t only want “these are the shows I’m currently obsessing over” cause yall already follow me and know which ones those are.

Anyway to pass this on - and feel free to not take it as deadly serious as I did unless you are so inclined - I am now tagging @krippe90 @jacquelinesrumbottle @hobbitsus @imaginarydragonling @tbiris @ablazenqueen @topcatnikki @7nessasaryevils @wanderingwistfulness @happygomadhatter @nevergonnafallfor @genderfluid-faerie-bf and anybody else who might want to play

Edit: added links to the shows~~

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babybluebanshee · 4 months

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Movies I Watched in 2023, Worst to Best

I watched 60 movies this year. Imma tell you about them. Also spoilers throughout, obviously.

60. Cats (2019): Genuinely the worst thing I’ve ever seen, and I paid to see Meet the Spartans in theaters. Very glad I drank heavily before viewing this. Can’t tell if it was worse because I’m a fan of the musical or not. I saw this movie and everything is worse now.

59. The Taking of Deborah Logan: Actually a really sound premise that goes off the rails and not in a good way. The lady who plays Deborah deserves an Oscar. Nothing worse to me than wasted potential, and this took a legit unnerving premise and made it a standard demon plot and I’m so very tired of that. Sorry @vaultsy

58. Red String and Blood Tea: This all means something, I just know it, but damned if I know what it is. I can’t really say anything that bad about it because stop motion is an intense labor of love and this clearly took a lot of time and effort, but it just didn’t leave much more of an impression on me.

57. Freddy vs. Jason: I wanted to like this movie really bad, and there were times when I did. But the 2000s stink was positively radiating off it - the slowed down footage, the nu metal blaring everywhere, the shitty costuming, it’s everywhere. Save yourself some time and just watch one of those YouTube videos where someone scrubs the whole movie for just Freddy and Jason’s bits.

56. Ladybug and Cat Noir: The Movie: Look, my girlfriend loves Miraculous. I couldn’t care less about it, but she really wanted me to see this movie and I love her very much. At least it’s very beautiful to look at and it did what it took the tv series a billion years to do.

55. Scrooge: A Christmas Carol: I’m gonna level with you - I watched this because gilf Scrooge intrigued me. Now that we have that out of the way, I can say aside from that, there’s nothing in this movie to really set it apart. A few arbitrary changes and making Scrooge more of an intentional asshole doesn’t set it apart from the millions of other adaptations of this story.

54. From Dusk Till Dawn: The line that separates the Tarantino aspects of this movie from the Rodriguez aspects of it is about as subtle as a brick to the head, but it’s there, and honestly? I wish we would have focused more on the Rodriguez parts. Call me a plebeian, but I never have been fond of Tarantino’s style, nor am I particularly interested in his barely concealed foot fetish. Remake this as two separate movies and I’ll watch the one with the rad ass vampires.

53. Beauty and the Beast (1946): Is this a horror movie? I think this was supposed to be a horror movie. I can’t really fathom how this is supposed to be romantic when there’s creepy living statues, human arm candelabras, and the Beast stealing his romantic rival’s face when he transforms into a human man.

52. Gaslight: Can be genuinely gripping in places, but also kind of boring in a plodding way. The acting is pretty great though - Charles Boyer is an amazingly effective villain and I wanted to give poor Ingrid Bergman a hug.

51. The Bob's Burgers Movie: Kevin Kline and Zach Galifinakis need chiropractors from carrying this movie on their backs. Like, it’s fine if you’re a big fan of Bob’s Burgers (and I was on a BB jag at the time), the songs are fun, and the animation is gorgeously bouncy, but it suffers from the same thing that most movies based on tv shows do - it just feels like a longer episode of the show.

50. The Addams Family: A classic for a reason, though maybe with a bit less pathos than I was anticipating. Still fun, just not as fun as the movie that would come after it.

49. Suspiria: Pretty to look at and goddamn that soundtrack. Not a favorite, but it’s such a cerebral experience that you almost don’t mind all that much.

48. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: Kind of suffers from the same problems as Suspiria, with the leg-up of having an absolute banger of a third act. Also Franklin is the worst. Most of the problems in this movie could have been avoided if Franklin wasn’t around. The other ones could be solved by not trespassing on private property.

47. Paprika: Also a very cerebral film, and just as fun to look at. It’s slightly too charming to ever really be boring, but it’s still just kinda meh.

46. They Live: Fun alien designs and a neat idea. Has too many dead Keith Davids to get any higher on the list.

45. Wes Craven's New Nightmare: A fun spin on a dying franchise. I will never stop laughing at Freddy’s stupid trenchcoat and emo boots tho.

44. Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Warriors: More horror adventure than straight horror, but still fun and inventive. Probably has some of the most creative kills in the whole franchise (Freddy leading someone around by their exposed tendons, hello). My only complaint is that the absolute bitch doctor didn't get eviscerated.

43. But I'm a Cheerleader: The gays can have a silly high school rom com. As a treat. I also appreciate the movie adding in that the bible-thumping heteros tend to sexualize kids more than any queer person on this planet.

42. Psycho Goreman: I would like to congratulate PG on his coming out. Mimi was almost too annoying to be tolerable, but this is still a really fun movie with cool creatures and a lot of great humor.

41. Howard: Hi, catch me crying in the last fifteen minutes of this movie. Howard Ashman was an amazing talent and I’m forever depressed that we lost him far, far too early.

40. Little Shop of Horrors: Yeah, this is the first time I’ve ever seen the movie version of this. Gimme a break, I like the musical ending better. That being said, this movie is great camp fun and I love how much love and care was put into it. Also that Audrey II puppet will never fail to impress me.

39. Elvira, Mistress of the Dark: I would like to personally thank Cassandra Peterson for making this stupid, sexy, campy romp that made my life infinitely better.

38: Weird: The Al Yankovic Story: RIP Weird Al Yankovic, wish you could have seen the fabulous movie they made about you before you were gunned down by the cartels.

37. Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves: Another movie I saw at my girlfriend’s request, but I also would have wanted to see it for those motherfuckin creature effects. Jarnathan is my husband and I love him dearly.

36. The Super Mario Bros. Movie: Chris Pratt wasn’t in this movie, what are you talking about? It was just Jack Black and Charlie Day having a good time and being extra adorable. That’s all there was. There is no Crisp Rat in my wonderful Mario movie.

35. Black Swan: I’ve heard this described as “live action Perfect Blue” and…yeah. Also I could write entire essays about how Nina’s mother may or may not exist, but we’re not getting into that today.

34. The Wolf House: On a purely technical level, this is a fucking masterpiece. It’s all stop motion (which as previously mentioned is not for the faint of heart), with creative camera work that makes it look like one, long, continuous shot. Add to that the stunningly creepy atmosphere and the framing device of this being a recruiting tool for a cult, and it’s a beautiful nightmare.

33. How to Survive a Plague: Another one that made me weep like an infant. I prefer the book, but this is still a gorgeous tribute to everyone we lost and how far we’ve come.

32. The Girl With All the Gifts: A fun take on the zombie mythos. Also, I for one welcome our new Hungry overlords.

31. Basket Case: Was initially very dubious about the supposed pathos of this film, only to be pleasantly surprised by how true that is. Yes, this movie is schlocky and sleazy (could have lived a long, happy life without ever seeing the Basket Case puppet hump a corpse), but it’s still a great little B-movie.

30. Belle: I’m always a slut for a Beauty and the Beast story, and this one is just hella gorgeous. I would have preferred an extra scene of Justin getting his ass obliterated, but what we did get was wonderful.

29. Nerdy Prudes Must Die: Not my favorite Hatchetfield musical (Black Friday my beloved), but Starkid never put out anything bad. Always a pleasure to see what the Lords in Black are up to.

28. The Sea Beast: I need Grandpa Crow yesterday. Other than that, this was a fun little adventure film that gave me my dose of found family juice. And also it made me realize that there aren’t a lot of straightforward pirate movies anymore? Like, POTC really burned everyone out on those for a while, huh?

27. King Kong (2005): I’ve heard this movie called bloated and boring, but I actually think I love it? Like…maybe it’s just because I’m a monster fucker, but the companionship between Ann and Kong is so beautiful and sad and I nearly burst into tears while she was trying to comfort his as he died. Just let the goddamn gorilla ice skate, you monsters!

26. The Celluloid Closet: Had the opposite of How to Survive a Plague happen - I read the book and wasn’t nearly as moved as I was watching the people actually involved in making these films or other queer icons talking about them. Maybe it was the lack of academic language that made it so much more effective, but while the book is still great for film scholars, the movie is a must-watch for literally everyone.

25. Nimona: We need more feral female characters in general. Also I would never in all my life believe Ballister was a bad guy, simply because he has the most innocent, watery eyes I’ve ever seen that weren’t attached to a small, damp mammal.

24. Citizen Kane: Yes, it took me this long to actually watch this movie for the first time. I was dubious at first, because I’ve seen so many movies that claim to be the best thing you’ve ever seen in your life, and then fall gloriously short of your expectations. This, however, did not do that. I can see why this is a classic. And now you can all be aghast at all the movies that I liked better!

23. Sing 2: Help, I’m crying over Bono the lion dilf! Also this movie is fun and beautiful to look at and the music is amazing. I’m also a proponent of the Shitty Crime Uncle Jimmy Crystal Domestication idea.

22. The People Under the Stairs: More movies should be about the power of community action and solidarity in the face of exploitative gentrification and also blowing up your landlord’s booby-trapped torture dungeon and freeing their kidnapped cannibalistic troll children into the wild.

21. Sense and Sensibility: I’ve never cared that much about Sense and Sensibility as a book - it was strictly middle tier. This movie has changed that. I actually like Edward now, because Hugh Grant just plays him like the autistic king he was always meant to be.

20. Shiny Happy People: No, I do not care that this was a miniseries, it's too good not to include. Watching this show will make you want to deck every evangelical asshat that crosses your path and also terrified of the amount of influence they have in the USA.

19. Black Christmas: Where Chainsaw was kinda boring with a great climax, Black Christmas hits the ground running and doesn't really stop. It's scary, tense, and cinematically gorgeous.

18. Mannequinn: Yes, I liked this movie better than Citizen Kane. No one should listen to my opinion about anything. But it doesn't matter because it's dumb, campy fun and I want Hollywood Montrose to be my auntie.

17. Wishmaster: Absolute ham-to-ham combat between Andrew Divoff, Robert Englund, Tony Todd, Tom Savini. Some amazing practical effects. I wanna kiss the djinn right on the mouth. Only complaint is that I wish the sex pest friend who kept pestering Sam for a date would have stayed dead.

16. From Beyond: This movie had three of my favorite things in the world - moistened puppets, my mommy Barbara Crampton dressing up in a sexy outfit (thank you, Ms. Crampton *blows kiss*), and Jeffrey Combs being a sad, wet kitten man.

15. Renfield: I like that we're making movies about scary vampires again. It's nice. Also Nic Cage is quickly going the way of Daniel Craig and Robert Pattinson - they need to be cast as weird little guys for enrichment purposes.

14. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem: Animation? Charming and daring. Characters? I'm adopted all of them, and loving that all the turtles are actually voiced by children. Superfly? Got me feeling a way. Shredder being teased at the end? Where'd my panties go? Also this movie got me to sixty, so everyone say thank you to Shae for nice, round numbers.

13. Paris Is Burning: It's a classic of LGBT film, if you haven't watched it just to get a taste of the glorious world of drag ball culture, you need to. Stop what you're doing and watch Paris Is Burning. Now. This is a not a request. I will report you.

12. It's a Wonderful Life: I've never seen this show all the way through, so I fixed that this year, and goddamn I always forget how much I like Jimmy Stewart until I see him in another good movie. This movie also got him investigated by the House Un-American Activities Committee for communist sentiments, so all my little anarchists should watch it.

11. Return of the Living Dead: I'd like everyone to meet my husband, Tar Man. He's gonna eat your brains, you'll love it.

10. Re-Animator: I'll never get tired of watching Herbert West being a sassy little cunt to everyone around him, including his co-dependent boyfriend whom he should kiss directly on the mouth. My only complaint is the...um...scene with Dr. Hill's head and Meg. That's all I'm gonna say about it. Because it makes me extremely uncomfy and I can't even enjoy Barbara Crampton's tits because of it.

9. Bride of Re-Animator: Herbert and Dan should have just taken their beautiful daughter to live out the rest of their happy lives at the seaside. Also the effects are fucking amazing. That'll happen when your special effects guys is credited as "Screamin' Mad George".

8. Transformers: Rise of the Beasts: Catch me shrieking like a possessed baboon throughout this entire movie. Everything about it made me happy, from Bumblebee being a bamf to Ron Perlman as Optimus Primal to literally everything about Peter Cullen's Optimus. I will never be over him having enough of Scourge's shit and ripping out his spine.

7. Puss in Boots: The Last Wish: Can't talk. Too blown away by the fact Dreamworks put out one of the most visually stunning and vibrant animated films they have in decades. They are back babey.

6. Glass Onion: I cannot wait to see what else we get from Benoit Blanc. He's the blorbo from my shows and I adore him. Also you know he called up Marta after he got home and was like "hey, there's this friend of mine I want you to meet, I think you guys will get along swimmingly" while fully intending to play matchmaker.

5. Everything Everywhere All At Once: "Nothing matters so being kind and compassionate is even more important" is genuinely such a beautiful thing for a film to say, and I'm glad I finally got a chance to see it in a movie where people fight with dildos and Jamie Lee Curtis' outfit was based on a stock photo.

4. Nope: Jordan Peele owns my soul at this point.

3. To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything! Julie Newmar: I expected Priscilla but American, and was given a really heartfelt, sweet movie and I legit forgot several times that Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes, and John Leguizamo were cis men.

2. Barbie: I recommend Barbie to literally everyone who asks me about it. It's my religion now. Everything about it is delightful and

1. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse: This movie is utter perfection. I would marry it if I could.

#daily life with blue #movies #i'm not tagging this with all the titles #i know not many people care enough to clog up the tags

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softsnzstuff · 2 years

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🎬 eddieee? 💕

🎬: they’re watching a scary movie marathon with their friends and cannot. stop. sneezing. At first, maybe their friends thought it was funny, but now they’re starting to get concerned. What’s going on?

*******************************************************

“Hey hey!” Robin opened the door and let Steve and Eddie inside.

Nancy was sitting on the floor in front of the couch, with a laptop in front of her.

“Started the stream without you, hope you don’t mind.” She called out.

Steve took in the setup. Both girls had fluffy Halloween socks. The table was covered with treats, snacks, and hot cocoa. Nancy had lit a couple of candles, the room smelling of warm spices and pumpkins.

“Not at all! This looks cozy.”

The living room tv was paused on the opening of The Nightmare Before Christmas. The four of them were doing a Halloween movie night and streaming their commentary live.

Eddie was quick to plop himself on the couch, waving. “Hi guys!!!”

Eddie!!!!

Finally the boys are here!!

Play the movie!!

This is my favorite

“Hey Stevie they said hurry up and sit down so we can watch the movie!” Eddie teased, rubbing a hand against his nose. It suddenly started to feel tickly.

“Sheesh okay, I’m coming.” He sat down on the couch next to Eddie, one arm around his partner.

Robin sat on the floor in front of Eddie, they were all staggered so the viewers could see them all. She picked up the remote and pressed play.

“So it begins.” She said into the camera.

Eddie scrubbed a little harder at his nose, something Steve picked up on right away.

“You okay?”

“Yeah sorry, just tickly all of a sudden…” he twisted to the side, pinching his nose, “H’ixxT! NxxT! NxxT’iew!”

“Bless you, sneezy!” Steve teased.

“snFF thanks.”

The screen panned down, the opening beat for This is Halloween playing loudly from the speakers around them. Robin was singing along while Eddie head banged behind her, both Nancy and Steve laughing at their respective partners.

Robin and Eddie know what’s up! 🤘🏻

This is my favorite part

What an absolute banger

When the song ended, Eddie leaned back, letting himself sink into the couch cushions a little. His nose twitched suddenly and without warning.

“FHehhuck!” He pulled his collar over his nose and sneezed down towards his stomach, misting it slightly, “iK’tch’EW! H’ETCH’iew! snfSNF Hissh’IEW!”

Bless you!

This always happens lol

Steve turned to face him and squeezed his shoulder, “Bless you!”

“Gosh Eddie, we can’t hear the movie.” Robin joked, poking fun at his sensitive nose.

Eddie cleared his throat, “Snfff, ugh, excuse me. I’m gonna go blow my nose.”

He got up and carefully stepped over Robin and Nancy, making his way down the hall to their bathroom.

He flicked on the light and pulled a few tissues from the box. He gave his nose a blow, folding the tissue over and blowing again.

As he threw it away, Steve came up behind him.

“Hey,” he said in a hushed tone, “You okay?”

“snF! Yeah, just got real tickly all of a suhhhdden… A’KSHh’ew! KShh’EW! snf ISSHIEW! Jesus chrihhhst H’iKSH’iEW!!”

Eddie had ducked down into his sleeve. Sniffling thickly, he pulled a couple more tissues from the box repeating the process he’d just completed.

He was still wiping his nose when Steve furrowed his brow and held a hand to his forehead.

“You don’t feel warm…” he hummed.

“M’not sick, Stevie.” Eddie said, turning to wash his hands, “SNF, think I’m allergic to something, just don’t know what.”

Steve paused in thought. “I think I know what it is.”

Eddie turned off the bathroom light, taking a handful of fresh tissues with him, knowing he’ll probably need them.

He flopped back on the couch, the girls turning to him while Kidnap the Sandy Claws played on the tv.

“Alright Eds?” Nancy asked.

“Yeah, think I might be allergic to something in here.”

“I have a suspicion it might be your nice candles, Nance.”

Steve picked it up off the table and blew out the flame, a small trail of smoke and scent billowing up into the air. He held it in front of Eddie’s face and gently blew the smoke towards him.

“What’re you-? Oh fuhhhck.”

Eddie squeezed his eyes closed and waved his hands in front of his face, nostrils flaring. As Steve set the candle back on the table, Eddie was turned to the side, elbow pulled up to his face.

“it’CHEW! Tsch’EW! TsschEW!” He sneezed rapidly. “God dammbit Steve! I- hNG’chu! H’mpTCHew! eh’KSHh’IEW!”

Oh my god are you good bro?

Bless you bunches

No more pumpkin spice for Eddie :(

“Shit, sorry Eddie! We had no idea you were allergic!” Robin paused the movie and scrambled to take the candles and put them in a different room, turning on the ceiling fan to try and circulate the air a little more.

Nancy had also gotten up, bringing Eddie the tissue box from the kitchen. He already had the extras from the bathroom pressed to his face as he blew his nose, pausing only to sneeze into them, and then keep blowing.

Steve rubbed his back. The man was so drained that the sneezes came in singles every couple of seconds.

“Tissh’u! ….H’ssh’IEW!…snfSNF H’iKSHhiew!”

Eddie sniffled helplessly against the tissues as Steve wiped away an allergic tear from his eyes.

“Sorry Eds. Why don’t we finish this another night?”

“Are you crazy?? We cad’t bail on Hallowee’d m’bovie n’dight!”

The rest of the gang looked at him a little skeptically. “Are you sure Eddie?”

He nodded.

“Yeah! Viewers are already waiti’g. As long as you do’t mind - eT’sch’EW! - that… I’ve got mby tissues, I’b good to go!”

Bless you again!

What a trooper

Watch Sleep Away Camp next!

“If you say so.”

Robin shrugged and pressed play, Jack Skellington resuming his mission of creating Christmas.

#s/tranger t/hings #e/ddie m/unson #s/teve h/arrington #snzblr #steddiesnz #fruity 4 #streamer AU #r/obin b/uckley #n/ancy w/heeler #r/onance #ask box #halloweensnz

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prophecydungeon · 4 months

Text

year in fic 2023

(crossposted from dreamwidth)

word count for posted works: 77,080 words word count for unposted works (incl. wips): 34,320 words total word count: 111,400 words

breakdown of works, meme, and goals below:

works posted to AO3 in 2023:

no quarter red vs blue, felix/locus, rated E 51,766 words — posted 4/23, finished 6/25

i wrote up a number of posts while working on this fic and idk if there's much left to say; this was one hell of an endeavor and i'm very proud of it.

exaptation (ficlet collection, ch. 7) bleach, grimmjow/ichigo, rated T (whole work) 2,416 words — posted 7/24

outside POV..... need i say more. this was a very Me™ fic to write and i'm really happy with how it turned out. here's to the next cour of TYBW also pulling fic out of me, whenever that happens.

neutron stars bleach, grimmjow/ichigo rated T 6,974 words — posted 8/29, finished 9/8

oh boy oh boy i love fics in the general roleswap/"X instead of Y"/"X but it happens to Y" category of canon divergence and it was SO much fun to write this one. the cool thing about this scenario is that it really wouldn't have changed much in the long run, which i think it precisely why it was so interesting to explore.

the blood of the covenant one piece, zoro/sanji, rated E 16,060 words — posted 11/9

i'm VERY happy with this fic, and it's also a victim of like, i started out wanting it to be lighthearted and uhhhh it is... not necessarily that. i also started this before reading the manga lmfao but shockingly, there wasn't much i got "wrong" or needed to change. still can't believe this was the year i got into one piece. lord.

—

unfinished/unposted works in 2023:

current wips + personal project: 20,573 words

deleted fragments from multiple works: 12,742 words

my unposted word count this year is higher than it's ever been since i started doing this -- this personal project thing was kind of a whim (and i'm losing steam on it) but it's been insightful and pretty fun.

—

end-of-year meme! trying a different one this year, nabbing from larissa.

Best title:

oooh that's tough... i did a good job with titles this year. let's go with the blood of the covenant since that evokes a lot of what the pov character's angst is about. (did you know that the whole thing about "actually, the full quote is [...]" is basically an unattributed asspull? not that it really matters; it's a great reinterpretation.)

Worst title:

cop-out answer, but the ficlet i added to exaptation didn't have a title, so that.

Best first line:

hmm. i don't think i had any standout banger opening lines, so let's go with the exaptation ficlet:

They’ve been around long enough to be us now and not me.

Worst first line:

again, didn't have any standout misses, so i'm going with no quarter's since it... idk, isn't a killer hook or anything? but it wasn't supposed to be, so 🤷‍♂️

The head of the hospital meets them outside, wearing an armor undersuit beneath her scrubs.

Best last line:

from neutron stars:

We have a score to settle, he reminds himself, and meets Kurosaki as he always has: hungry and ablaze, feeling the closest thing to alive since his death collapsed in on itself.

Worst last line:

another cop-out answer from exaptation, lol:

“Let’s get to it.”

Looking back, did you write more than you thought you would this year, less than you thought, or about what you predicted?

a lot more! i originally thought that no quarter would be like, 20-30k or so? joke's on me, lol. i also very genuinely did not predict-- you know what, that's the next question, so:

What pairing/genre/fandom did you write that you would never have predicted last year?

good lord never in a million years did i think that 2023 was going to be the year i got into one piece. i'm still not sure how that happened. i started writing no quarter at the very end of last year, but i also could not have predicted that to happen to me.

What’s your favourite story this year? Not the most popular, but the one that makes you the happiest.

bit of recency bias here but the blood of the covenant! it was really fun and satisfying to write, and it's much more plainly happy/uplifting than any of the others.

Okay, NOW your most popular story.

in every category (kudos, hits, bookmarks) but comments, this goes to the blood of the covenant! i would say that this is unsurprising considering the fandom/ship, but it's more that everything else i've written is either for a relatively small fandom/ship or a dead one.

Story most underappreciated by the universe?

definitely no quarter. it's a sequel fic for a different ship than the first entry and in a dead fandom, to boot. this thing was doomed from the start.

Story that could have been better?

idk if i have anything here! i'm happy with everything i wrote.

Sexiest story?

i guess the blood of the covenant; no quarter has smut in it too but it's kinda weird and tbotc's is there to actually be Sexy™ rather than like. weird.

Saddest story?

hmm. the blood of the covenant again, i guess; the pov character is not especially happy for most of the fic.

Most fun?

okay so i'm interpreting this as most fun For Me To Write and that has to go to no quarter -- sinking back into the halo zone to write was sooo fun and fulfilling. it's like coming home, every time.

Story with single sweetest moment?

the blood of the covenant got super sappy (by my standards, at least), which was the whole point of it.

Most fucked-up story?

no quarter, i guess? hard to not be at least kinda fucky when dealing with felix and locus, but i wouldn't say this is particularly or especially fucked-up.

Hardest story to write?

woof..... no quarter. it was really challenging in general to get through the first draft (lots of planning and changes and planning and changes etc etc) and i edited the chapters between posting them weekly; that got really difficult to keep up for a number of reasons.

Easiest/most fun story to write?

hmmm. i think the exaptation ficlet; it's really fun to write something short right as it comes to me.

Did any stories shift your perception of the characters?

not..... really? though i did have to spend a lot of time thinking about felix and locus for no quarter, which didn't so much shift my perception of the characters as it solidified my interpretation.

Most overdue story?

giving this to the blood of the covenant; i never read one piece in the early 2000s boom (though i was obviously into bleach and nart) so a lot of what i'm feeling about it is, like, "oh, finally; it feels like i've found the missing piece; i understand now; the world feels a little more full."

Did you take any writing risks this year? What did you learn from them?

yes indeed! no quarter was a departure from the norm for me in a lot of ways, from planning to posting. it had been a really long time since i posted a multi-chapter fic, and i wrote this one with very specific chapter breaks in mind; that changed my planning and writing process a lot. overall, it was really good for me -- chapters are something i've avoided for a long time and i still have no clue where or how i got the idea that they're... idk, bad or amateurish somehow. chapters were perfect for no quarter. my posting schedule was 1 chapter per week, which left me a week to edit the coming chapter into shape and pick at future sections too, which worked REALLY well for me. on the flip side, i really struggled with this fic emotionally when i was posting it; not getting "attention" when posting a fic very, very rarely gets me down at this point in my life and i've worked hard on that, but it definitely got me with this fic. so it goes! in retrospect, now, several months down the line, i am so proud of this fic and all the new and different things i tried with it. multiple/alternating POVs, too! that was a change for me and i liked how it came out.

—

goals for next year:

1. write something humorous (preferably more than just one something)

my fics have humor in them, sure, but i want to write Comedy Fic without it veering irreversibly into Serious Fic like what's happened the past several times i've tried. this is one of my current wips and it's going pretty well so far.

2. try a different editing method

i've tried this kinda halfheartedly before, but i want to try editing something in a full side-by-side with the old draft in one window and the new draft in another. i might try this with an old fic of mine; not for posting or anything, just for The Exercise of it.

3. i've never had to set this as a goal but..... finish my wips!

i've still got that P vs NP re-re-edit cooking in the oven; i still feel kinda ??? about what i have written so far (it veered off into a completely different direction at one point) but i want to use the aforementioned editing method for this, probs after i finish a test run on something else. i've also got that b-side fic that's unfinished and i want to get that done first, since it's going to be a much shorter endeavor than rewriting close to 100k words.

#fic talk #ficposting #whew what a year

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basedkikuenjoyer · 2 years

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Time was meaningless before, now I feel obligated to play with the order of this one. 1060 is a banger and I’ll say this first off. From the start when I raised the idea of a twist around Kiku/Yamato, I did say I could see it being the right logic but a setup for say, Vivi. Hancock last chapter seemed like another good outlet than can sorta straddle that thematic line. Bonney? Holy shit never even considered her but she’s perfect! If I had the rough idea but the answer was Bonney having a big role like Law/Bege for a bit? Love it, watch where she flips and seems inconsistent or two-faced. That said...if you made it with me this far:

🎶 Bonney, Bonney. Bonney...BOOOOOOONNNEEEYYYYYYY!!!! I’m beggin Oda please go with this plan. 🎶

Think about it, think about it, think about it. This is stupidly easy and it’s a perfect mirror to how we were meeting Kin in the first place. What role have I spun for Kiku as a new recruit? A big sister, nanny type Quartermaster. So what’s a great, borderline hackneyed trope plot for showing the virtue of such a character? I dunno, some kinda magic power turns all the crew into kids? Who cares about the specifics the concept is 24kt, surgical-grade gold. Know why? Returning the Favor for Kin’emon! Supernova tags the crew with a silly power that can really fuck em over and yes...if Luffy and Chopper (our Udon crew) get sucked out into a side story I 100% can see a nice establishing encounter out of Kiku & Bonney. Luffy can topple some local tyrant or whatever.

As perfect of an out as Bonney is for the themes, she’s also a great step forward for what I’ve been talking about. Mixed up time girls, winter island means kiddie Straw Hats will know what starving on the streets of Ringo felt like, them being hampered but not quite incapacitated is the perfect spotlight for a new Jill-of-All-Trades. Bonney’s own time abilities are perfect for unpacking our skewed Wano time.

Well hey! It’s that scene we talked about. You know, the one where if we kept showing it we’d see Luffy explain how Ace doesn’t like to show weakness. This is one of Fallensnowfan’s and it took me a sec, but honestly yeah seasickness could be a fun excuse. The idea is if Yamato built that much of a bond Kiku could easily be in Usopp territory and socially graceful enough it didn’t need to be spelled out. It could have been agreed to before the Raid even! The hook is keeping it subtle, but she did slip in “Torao-san” at the halfway mark. The big moments have happened, we need to sort out our time oddities though through the reveal. Playing with character knowledge and reader knowledge.

Chronic seasickness is a bomb gag for her no one else has, plays nice with this quirk she shares with Ace and is perfect for our timing needs. If she’s just seasick there’s no reason to worry or blab a lot about her, you’d just be adding shame to illness. Also a callback to Kin’s stomach issues in Act 1 and would work with the potential 1058 cameo. Just saying, perfect excuse to keep her out of sight and free from the initial setup if we’re doing kiddie Strawhats.

Then there’s this classic gag we had let’s see...right before Robin joined. With oh a t/n...probably something like “keikaku means plan.” No, wait, is it? It’s that pun I was waiting all Act 2 for! Big Mom & the Big Mum, featuring Chopper, Tama, & Momo. But well, it is a callback for Vivi too.

Robin, you’re about as blatantly taunting me as Law was about not needing to be a hyena to sniff out a mystery like who’s absent from the party. I love you. Oh yeah, and Caribou. Like...we know they shoved his evil ass in that barrel and chained it. Just the fact we never saw that though is weird. Okay, but one last big one I’m kicking myself from scrubbing off of last week’s post. Last time I ever worry about being too long-winded.

The hidden dream. Forget what it is for now, just the fact Luffy has a hidden dream he keeps to himself because people tend to laugh and it seems impossible anyways. Gee, who on Wano might be able to relate to something like that? Kiku doesn’t need a complex dream, hers is obvious and fate defying but she’s too guarded to easily cough it up. Oden/Kin callously laughed, Izo snipped at her, overheard people making fun of her, group of girls excluded her. Doesn’t have to be much. The fun is in the dramatic irony we know it’s something that can be sorted out easily by the time we meet her. No sense in saying anything until you actually meet up with Iva anyways. It be cruel to dangle that and not be able to deliver.

Just saying...I can certainly live with Bonney being the focal point for where all this was headed. That would be awesome to me actually because Jewelry Bonney is a riot! But it’s the same thing I always thought about Vivi. You’re someone we know was kinda spur of the moment by Oda’s own admission. Kiku goes even deeper in his history even if we meet her later.

#one piece #chapter 1060 #jewelry mutha fuckin bonney #op spoilers #op 1060 #Post-Wano Musings

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reachexceedinggrasp · 2 years

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(my original ramble from *cough* months ago that fuck it I should just post because I’m going to have to start over and this will no longer make sense once I finish the whole show)

In fairness, I've still only watched 8 episodes and I've seen more than one person say the thing doesn't properly get going until around episode 10, but I struggle to understand why Chuno is so highly regarded and enjoys almost universal acclaim. Maybe the momentum does pick up, but I don't know how much that's going to help since pacing is not really the problem I have with how it's going so far. The pacing is fine, my problem is lack of direction and lack of heart. It doesn't appear to be really about anything.

I’ve been stuck for agessss, first on ep 7 and now ep 8, and since scrubbing through some of the later eps to fix the subs after finally finding it in semi-decent quality, as far as I can determine the thesis statements of the series are: a) slavery possibly bad b) Daegil loves Ennoyeon absolutely unconditionally and always will and this may or may not be admirable of him c) loyalty??? something about saving the crown prince’s last surviving kid

And that’s it. That’s everything. It has nothing more specific to say and has almost no commentary on those two vague things that it does say. It just wants to point them out. There’s a repeated thematic beat about human dignity and not judging by appearances, but with only one exception thus far, dehumanisation is always tied directly back to the literal institution of slavery. The larger point about classism and prejudice is not developed despite looming hugely over the proceedings. It feels... hollow? I have a disconnect from what’s happening.

The positives are the fight scenes (rightfully revered, they’re balletic and gorgeous and all the work put in by the actors is fully captured by the fluid cinematography- totally get why everyone remembers these visuals, they are insanely good) and the music. The music is fantastic. That main fight song evokes historic grandeur and scale but it also has tonnes of individual personality and is an absolute banger. The editing and score always work together in a way that creates great atmosphere, powerful juxtapositions, and many iconic images. Like, A+ work on sensory storytelling, it frequently looks and feels incredibly cool and/or epic.

But it’s not a well-written show, man. There’s no real meat under all that artful presentation. The story and characters are so paper thin that I really struggle to care about them, even when there’s occasional good dialogue.

It has great eye candy (in both the usual sense and in that it just looks good in general- the stylish action beats, the stunning vistas, the grand scope), but there's no emotional core, no anchor. I'm on episode 8 and I have no idea what the actual story being told is supposed to be. It's endless exposition involving characters I mostly see no reason to care about and one giant, aimless, interminable, slow-motion chase sequence. There's certainly a prevailing theme about the rich and powerful grinding down the poor and how this creates a cycle of violence, but there's no substantive narrative tying any of it together or providing a way in for the audience. It's more of an amorphous blob of miseryporn with cheap cliffhangers than it is a story with a committed, focussed point (even one as facile as 'slavery bad', because for all the suffering on display the actual slaves are relegated to subplots, the show does not centre 'unjust society' as the villain despite feinting in that direction).

Out of the three leads, only Dae-gil is even a bit engaging to me on a pure writing level. He has some hints of genuine complexity that cause a lot of tension in everything he does, which is interesting, but he's also very, very static and opaque. You don’t really know what he’s thinking or feeling a lot of the time or what his larger motives are. But at least you wonder about him. The other two are so insufferably, staggeringly, impossibly boring that I cannot even imagine wanting to know more. The fallen general is a featureless plank of wood who causes my attention to wander every time he’s on screen and the girl is essentially a sentient piece of luggage with whom everyone falls in love for no adequately explained reason. Then these, the two most boring people in the universe, team up to be even more boring together.

It also outright lies to me with almost every episode-ending cliffhanger, in a way that borders on comic. Where the closing cliffhanger scene will be played differently with different shots in the opening of the following episode (eg: the closing sequence will have shown a big reaction of obvious shocked realisation on someone’s face as they catch sight of the person/thing they’re seeking, but the opening sequence replays the moment without the character noticing anything). Misleading us is fine, fake-outs can be okay if you don't overdo it, but fuck you show, blatant lying is too far!

Apparently it takes 15 episodes for Dae-gil and the luggage to even meet again and I'm so tired at the very idea of what nonsense will go on between now and then. I’m told there’s also no real emotional payoff or honest conversation between them later anyway. I love his undying devotion as a characterisation choice, I find his complicated attitude towards her and how it contrasts (and doesn’t) to the flashbacks really compelling in theory, but what is the point? She is a total nonentity and there’s no actual content to their relationship- there’s just the idea of it. What is he fighting for? He was this pure-hearted, clear-eyed idealist who wanted to change the world for her, then he became cynical when she left him for dead, and now he just seems ambivalent about slavery and the status quo. Disgusted by it but complicit in it. What is his suffering for? What has he learned? What’s my takeaway from this? I mean, I need to watch the rest, obviously, but seeing bits from later episodes, I’m already frustrated.

These characters just go nowhere. It feels like nothing much changes with any of them.

Don’t get me wrong, I 10000% understand why Dae-gil is an iconic performance that’s indelible in the minds of audiences and will forever define a huge part of JH’s legacy as an actor. It deserved every accolade! But it’s because of his performance not the character on the page. No one else would have been that iconic in this role. The character on the page is every bit as anaemic, thin, and lacking personality as General Balsawood and the Living China Doll. The writing is just as one note, he’s just as much of a flat, stoic cipher as Tae Ha. The reason he feels like something more than that and is about ten million times more compelling to watch than the other two leads is the utterly towering charisma of an actor who is perfectly in his element playing this part, determined to fully inhabit the role with total abandon. There’s an absolute commitment to the character that infuses everything he does on screen with life and mystery.

Jang Hyuk is making this underwritten, one-note person engaging through sheer presence and his empathy as an actor; he has this unmatched ability to bring genuine humanity to archetypal badasses and it’s the exact same quality that makes him so mesmerising as Bang-won and Oh Hyun Jae and Doctor Lee. He can be scary and vulnerable, compassionate and callous, desperate and untouchable all at the same time. There’s so much tension in the way he plays these parts, like they’re at war with themselves, really making you believe their choices are an organic manifestation of troubled psyches, and that makes the characters feel incredibly real. He creates something endearing and intriguing out of rote tough guy bullshit by always allowing a child-like element into these macho personas, a melancholy note of broken idealism.

There is a primary lack of vanity in his approach to playing the ‘cool guy’ that elevates the whole enterprise and allows you to view a stylised character as if they were a real person. He presents no sense of self-consciousness or awareness of his own image in these performances, he makes you believe he just is and it’s all effortless and that puts him in the ranks of the all-time great Byronic heroes. He is aspirational but relatable, charming without trying to be, dark without becoming unsympathetic. Those things make him seem dynamic even when the writing isn’t. If Oh Ji Ho or another equally boring actor had played Dae-gil, he’d be just as boring as Tae Ha.

For example: All three lead characters have a deliberately huge contrast between who they used to be in their past circumstances and what they are in the present of the show, but the only one who actually conveys this shift in identity with his mannerisms is Dae-gil. He comports himself so differently that you could, in fact, be completely forgiven for not recognising him as the same person; the way he speaks, the way he carries himself, the habitual set of his features, the look in his eyes, etc. has all changed. He is a radically different man than he was, obviously transformed from within by his traumatic experiences and also forced to alter his outward behaviour in order to survive.

The other two change outfits a couple times. Nothing else about them illustrates any kind of shake-up in their class status or self-understanding or emotional state. Ennoyeon’s sameness against Dae-gil’s sea-change makes her empty artificiality even more egregious. She should be just as unrecognisable as he is, her rise parallels his fall and is equally drastic.

Imo it’s 30% fortuitous casting of the exact right person and 70% JH doing all the work that makes Dae-gil an iconic character.

And I figure he alone might deserve most of the credit for creating this performance* considering how terrible Lee Da Hae is as the luggage. I know she’s not a terrible actress, she was perfectly fine in Robber, so the fact that she’s this expressionless, lifeless, sucking void of Perfect Noblewoman stereotypes (especially frustrating because she’s supposed to have been raised a slave and it makes no sense she’s this delicate, sheltered wilting flower) is something I’m going to blame on the director. I haven’t seen Oh Ji Ho in anything else, but I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt that maybe he could do better than this, too. His woodenness might have been intended as the character being closed off, but in order for that to work you have to show there’s something going on under the surface and there isn’t. He’s got zero presence in this part, he’s overshadowed even by the one-scene day players.

So the director clearly wasn’t helping anyone much with their acting, is what I’m saying. Dae-gil’s two bros were all right, though General Choi is also a bit wooden and the ‘funny’ one can be kinda try-hard. None of the relationships in the show were super convincing, but the three of them at least had good chemistry together and comprehensible motivations. The same cannot be said of General Balsawood and the luggage, who had the opposite of chemistry. The two of them together is like watching paint dry. If the paint and the wall also somehow didn’t seem to like each other despite being inanimate.

The music is really fucking great though. I strongly suspect a massive amount of this show’s huge cultural impact comes from the epic music along with dazzling fight choreography, superbly shot, and great overall style distracting you from how boring most of the characters are. Coolness is doing a lot of heavy lifting. Even with Dae-gil, part of the appeal is definitely that he’s so cool that it covers how opaque he is as a character despite the phenomenal depth of agony he expresses. That action scene in the first episode is incredibly memorable and I can see how if you watched this on TV spread out over weeks, you’d just focus on the spectacular parts and the big tableaux with their effective imagery while forgetting the dragging, meandering, undefined slog that is the rest of it.

Edit from 300 years later: I mean, going further, and having watched some more contemporary shows, I’d venture that the action scenes are almost revolutionary for this kind of tv. They’re on a level so far above what I’ve seen in other historical dramas from that decade, it might be fair to credit them with the show’s success. The way they’re shot is genuinely beautiful and allows you to follow the flow of the action and actually see what’s going on in a way that’s still rare now. It just makes it ten thousand times more impressive when you can appreciate the choreography playing out in full, and the lack of ridiculous sound effects or wire-work is a big plus. People do flips, but they’re real flips done for real, not gravity-defying hovering.

(I am fine with ridiculous ott magic-fighting existing, it’s just when it’s in shows that are otherwise super grounded in the real world and played totally straight that I’m like ‘wat’. If people can fly, you need to set a tone where that seems appropriate; if you haven’t, the fights should remain tonally consistent and be believable - they don’t have to be realistic, they do have to be believable.)

Like, I’m watching the white whale show now (Daemang, the Great Amibtion, which was a white whale because it seemed like I would never be able to find it) and while it’s totally exceeding my expectations and is in fact genuinely wonderful as a show, the action scenes are terrible. It’s the anti-Chuno: the characters are fantastic, the story is thematically focussed and deeply profound, and the action is almost unwatchable. The fights are shot so badly that you have no idea what you’re looking at, there’s no sense of continuous movement or screen geography, and the sound effects are absurdly silly. The actors look super uncomfortable and mostly unconvincing.

I don’t know who decided constant fast cutting was a good way to cover action, but it’s just not. Even if you have to hide stuntmen or that what the character is supposed to be doing is physically impossible, you still shouldn’t cut every nanosecond. There are better ways to do it. The truly egregious offence is cutting people who can do the thing in a such a way that it looks like they can’t. If the actors can fight fluidly and do their own stunts, my dude you need to let the audience see it. Not that I tried to watch Voice and got motion sickness or anything.

Anyway, my point here is that Chuno’s action scenes are basically the Citizen Kane of action scenes in historical dramas and that plus coolness plus bulletproof anti-hero archetype played by a human inferno of charisma plus tragic romance is probably enough reason for it to take off. I still don’t get its sterling reputation as a masterpiece or why people think it’s such a great story (knowing very loosely where it goes and how it ends, I currently stand by my ‘vague directionless miseryporn’ assessment), but I do admire those elements. It’s a subpar whole with some really, really successful parts. I find I’d like to read fanfic that fleshed out Ennoyeon and her relationship with Dae-gil, so I’m buying in at least that much.

*he even choreographed his own action scenes. Learning that he did this blew my mind. Like... how? How was that allowed? How did he know how to do that? How could he be so good? I understand he was a gymnast and studied martial arts very seriously and went to university for theatre, but none of that really explains for me his ability to be a fight coordinator or do screen action at that level. He didn’t actually do a huge amount action before this! Maybe I’m overestimating how much experience/training you need to get handed that kind of responsibility even on a big budget production. Maybe I’m underestimating how much the director wanted him to play this part since JH said it was his request to design his own fights. An excellent call by the director in hindsight but must have seemed wildly risky at the time.

I think I read this show was over budget before it even started shooting, so maybe recklessness was a theme with the director. Paid off for them, though, didn’t it.

#kdrama #chuno #jang hyuk #daemang #I need you to understand that I'm not just fangirling he is seriously carrying this show on his back #the fact that he did the fight choreography himself makes this almost literally true #I know he won pretty much the biggest award he could have won for this but his contribution is still underrated #because holy shit #he should have got the Emmy as well #fun fact: he was legit nominated for an Emmy no joke #so spectacular even the Americans noticed

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tsuki-sennin · 2 years

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Maaaaaaaaaaaan, Revice ended yesterday, and so all of a sudden, these Donbura Dorks decide they have to end their show too, huh? And here I thought we had something special :<

-Aww man, don't remind me.

-"Yes, that finale was pretty poggers and based. My compliments to Mr. Kinoshita and the crew. Now... we have no reason to continue with this charade!"

-Hooray, we all get to go home!

-Haruka can't see herself stopping the whole hero thing, huh?

-"Well, as long as there's a single human being left on Earth, I doubt that the desires that corrupt the Hitotsu-ki will ever disappear..."

-"THAT'S SO NOT TRAFFIC SAFE!"

-Donbrothers is over.

-Pick the MVP!

-Man, I'm gonna miss this absolute banger of an OP next week. ...who even are the new Ranger dudes, anyhow? Are they friends with Mr. Geats already? Is Cosmic Fury gonna air alongside Geats?

-Wait, is this a clip show!?

-Aw son of a bitch, Inoue tricked me!

-...did Inoue even write this episode?

-Hang on, lemme check...

-Saburo Yatsude... that's the pseudonym used by Toei itself. I believe they also wrote the scripts for the Den-O crossover specials and Zenkai Red last year.

-Checked and cross referenced some Wikipedia articles (very cursorily mind you). The only show among the Noto's inspirations to have a Saburo Yatsude "Created by" credit is The Kagestar. This makes me believe that some producer really likes Sonoza, and I can't blame them for that.

-Well, you have been through an awful lot for a teenager, Haruka. A lot of kids fantasize about superheroics, but rarely do they take full notice of the consequences, both social and physical. I'd know, I was one of those kids, writing self-inserts kept under lock and key. Hell, even now, as a 21 year old, I still think it'd be worth it just to have something else going on in my life.

-You're a bit different though. Even if you were basically dragged into Ranger work kicking and screaming, you perform your combat duties very admirably, and still strive for that normal life. Not to mention how far you've come as a person. The Haruka from 25 episodes ago absolutely wouldn't have gone out of her way to help out her teammates the way she's been lately. I'm proud of ya, kiddo.

-Shinichi, did you have to transform between cuts to make your point? Seems a bit extra. Ah who am I kidding, that's just who you are, I wouldn't have it any other way <3

-Let's see... you've definitely haven't changed as much as Haruka has, but there's so much about you that interests me all the same. All the small things you use your powers for to help others, the way you stick to your asceticism despite all the obvious personal risk to your safety, the way even slightly giving into your desires seems to burn you up so quick... remember in Episode 20 when you immediately started living up the hero image? Do you even use your Kibi-Points, I wonder?

-Tsuyoshiiiiii, my man!

-"I kinda am a total scrub... if only I were a cool guy... Heh, guess I kinda got my wish in a way!"

-...and yeah, that's very much like you :)

-Hmmm... who's Mr. InuBrother?

-"Wan..."

-Don't put words in the doggo's mouth!

-Oh shoot, hello Sononi!

-...er... I'm sure Condorman's a pretty cool hero! Kohan Kawauchi's responsible for the creation of Moonlight Mask, Japan's first ever tokusatsu TV superhero, so he evidently knew what he was doing. He also created Warrior of Love Rainbowman, which was an inspiration for Cutie Honey.

-He was also an Islamic convert, which led to the creation of this show called "Messenger of Allah", starring a young Sonny Chiba, of all actors! I was a big fan of him as a teenager, but I don't think I've ever heard of this. Which is crazy to me, because a show like Messenger of Allah is absolutely something that should be explored from top to bottom.

-Sorry, I should be focusing on Donbrothers right now, but... Huh... I keep wondering how shows like these get made.

-Uhhhh... Sononi! You're presenting your case for Tsubasa, right? Yeah, show me.

-Gotta save the love of your life, Tsubasa-san!

-"Who the fuck are these weirdos, this is bullshit"

-Oooooooooooh, Dog Man throwin' shade!

-I have to wonder... the actor playing Sayama, Ryoji Sugimoto... do you think he wonders exactly what he's supposed to be doing as a character?

-Damn, Crane Lady got kicks.

-Yeah, I think that's one of my nicknames for Natsumiho.

-Man, that Momoi Tarou.

-He's one of a kind madman.

-Yeah, guess he really speaks for himself, huh?

-Oh yeah, the Enya Rideon.

-Beeg AND Smol!

-Oh yeah, the headpat lmao

-"Wait, Don Onitaijin is five guys, burgers and fries?"

-I love that little plush doggie they use for Tsubasa, I hope they keep it around when he... maybe or maybe not joins with the rest full time.

-SONOI

-"Now, hold on a moment. ...there's another Don. ...technically two? Or perhaps not."

-"I'm gonna be the strongest hero! Waaaaaaaaah!"

-Dragon Punch! Shoryuken! Dragon! Dragon! Rock the Dragon!

-Tiger Cutter! Tiger Uppercut! Lions Tigers and Bears! Oh My!

-"But nah, my rival is Don Momotaro. And you can't have him."

-Oh shit, Donbrothers MVP time.

-And the winner is Don Kaito.

-YEP FUCKING CALLED IT LMAO

-"I win."

-Shut up Kaito kjlhklghvghjg

-"...why were you all rainbow-y in that stock footage?"

-Awwww, he wants to reward us :)

-"For you all :)"

-Free photobooks :)

-"I was born to be a hero. I've always been a hero. I am the hero."

-Heeeeeeeeeeeeeey, what're you lads doing here!?

-"Jesus Christ, it's been 26 episodes and this shit isn't over."

-"Next time, Sonoza... I will defeat Momoi Tarou! Then Sononi can deal with Inuzuka Tsubasa as she pleases and you can resume your manga browsing with Kito Haruka. Now... watch me blow some bubbles."

-Are we at a water park next episode? Epic.

#avataro sentai donbrothers #don! don! it's a full force peachy festival!#donbrothers spoilers #donbrothers #super sentai #momo monday #taro tuesday #it's about midnight rn lol

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frenzyartist-voe · 4 months

Text

More Rumble headcanons because I think you all understand my motivations by now

(also pls don't be afraid to DM me questions about hcs or even just random thoughts if u enjoy the cassettes pls I don't bite, the only thing I do bite is the bars of my enclosure I'm Told)

Rumble headcanons on earth things!

Clothes! While at the decepticon party (human party thrown for "decepticon day" ) rumble noticed the various attire people wore to the party, and started taking notes on some of the things the humans he's had to beat up have worn in various settings.

Some clothes make him wonder why you'd even do that to yourself. Like..is that not itchy? While other clothes have made them heavily consider trying to get some in their size to try out. He won't wear form fitting clothes when he first tries it out (he's worried about sensory issues with the organic fabric hugging his plating. But as he tests the feel of different fabrics out he'll get more comfortable trying more form fitting clothes. (My headcanon for basic G1 rumble in regards to this is that he'd definitely put the clothes on wrong and get himself stuck)

Music! Honestly he's welcome to trying every genre once or twice! Just be prepared that if ur a diehard for smthin it better be a banger because if he disagrees with you in a "hell no" way then ur tusslin (love whatever music u like but if yo swearing on ya mama that it's good be prepared to hurt yo mama if u trippin) he likes slow but also fast paced songs! Definitely takes some of the beats and tracks from human songs and remixes them with Cybertronian music sometimes. I feel like he's more of a reverb daycore person then a nightcore one tbh

Dances! He's got a catalog of dances he knows (he may hang out with jazz to much to that objective degree but ssh) but he also studies human dances. I can't see him doing tiktok trend kinds though, but if you're in his circle and you wanna teach him he'll give you a klik or two to try and catch his interest.

Overall thoughts? Humans are interesting. Shorter lifespans which kinda sucks in their opinion, but he don't really sway either towards good or bad in regards to the entirety of humanity. He has no reservations on beating a human or two to a pulp if they get in the fraggin way. (He finds the fact their heads break very similarly to fauna they eat very ironic yet also hilarious) yet I won't say he can't also make friends or have dynamics with humans too. Frenemies, friends, unlabeled n fantastically strange in only a way rumble can, etc!

Food! I feel like he tried soda first due to how often it's advertised and how common it is to see it just about everywhere. Also the idea of bubbles...(would be the type to stare in horror when someone drinks something that's gone flat) however scrubbing the sticky syrup out of their internals was less then pleasant...still can't resist sometimes though even if he grumbles about the mess later.

Ps. He's not immune to getting things stuck in his helm for random reasons even though he only heard the thing twice!

#generationvoe #generationvoerumble #generation voe rumble headcanons

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cadavercowboy · 2 years

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I gotta know what your favorite Steve look was cuz ngl these two hooked me 🥵

Strap in because I'm feeling especially unhinged and annoying tonight.

We all know that I am nothing but a slut and I go positively apeshit for

✨The Scrubs✨

But in my true and honest opinion, this was not just an outfit. Those scrubs had their own starring role. They stole the show. They are in a category all their own. And for that reason and that reason only, I must regrettably exclude them from my choices.

Let me first address the fact that every. fucking. outfit. in this godforsaken movie came directly for my pussy throat. I mean???? All those soft and cozy sweaters? How insane was he to wear them so sexily? I bet he has so many in all kinds of colors and it drives me crazy just to think about it. But I digress...for argument's sake, here are my nominations...

An absolute triple threat of life-altering fashion from my favorite Flesh Father:

Firstly, I must agree with your above and mentioned choice in this brown-sweater-blue-jacket combo. However, specifically from this detrimentally soft scene where he utters that little shy "hi" inside Noa’s cell. *chef's kiss*

Then we’ve got the Dapper Dinner Daddy. An absolute banger of a choice, right? How can you crucify a man for his doings when he looks this goddamn sleek in his snazzy little button-down? He came to dinner and not only ATE but also SERVED!

And to round out this lovely trifecta, I cannot neglect to bring your attention to what is arguably Steve in my most favorite form: Forrest Stump. Nothing makes an outfit quite like the accessory of fresh blood — in the shade Dick Chomp. Truthfully, this look (for me, personally) was less about the actual style and more about his bold and daring choice to show so much skin. It was a risk, but I think it paid off for him. As a true pioneer of fashion, even in the midst of getting his ass creamed and losing possession of every single one of his victims, he never forgot the power that a nice fur-lined flannel coat can bring to an outfit and for that...this look has my utmost respect. Plus, I just think it’s kinda hot. 😏

#steve kemp #fresh #fresh spoilers #onesketchylady #ask micky #*

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sugar-bunii · 3 years

Text

Adrenaline rush

You and Octane have been going steady for about 4 months now, everything has been perfect so far but something was missing. You’ve always wanted to be sexually intimate with him but he hasn’t been picking up on any of your hints.

First it was asking to shower together but he was too worried about taking off his prosthetics, next it was when you asked him if he wanted to try something new. He got exited but started going on about the new sushi bar that opened. Another time was just you walking into the room in a towel after showering, he quickly covered his eyes and left so you could get dressed.

As clueless as he was you decided to ask him directly once he got home from the arena. 9:47 rolled around and he opened the door excitedly, “Hey, you’re home early what’s up?” You ask him as he settled down next to you on the couch. “We got a flawless victory and the announcer said we deserved to go home early and take a break!” He wrapped his arm over your shoulder and you put your head on his arm. You thought if you were going to ask it might as well be now.

“What’s up with that look on your face, are you thinking about something?” He asked, taking his mask and placing it on the table. “I was just thinking of a way to celebrate this victory of yours.” You strattled him and kicked your leg on the other side of him. “Woah what’s this about?” He said with a smirk. You whispered in his ear “how about we take this to the bedroom?” A look of excitement washed over his face. “I thought you’d never ask!” He said with excitement, picked you up and practically ran to your room.

As he placed you on the bed he switched the playlist you were listening to, “Why’d you do that?” Slightly joking but almost offended. “I’ve got a special playlist I’ve been working on” he states and sticks his tongue out playfully. He puts on a playlist called “bangers” and the first song that plays is The hills by “The Weeknd.”

“Kay, now where we’re we?” You take off your shirt and he does the same, he stares at your topless body for what feels like forever, “wow,,,you look absolutely stunning” you feel a blush come over you due to the unexpected compliment. He began kissing your stomach, slowly moving his way up planting kisses all over your body, your scars, and taking his time with your stretch marks. You can hear him counting with every kiss.

He hovers over your neck, hesitating before resuming with the kisses “67, 68, 69 hehe 69, 70, 71…” he giggles and continues. The kisses started to become more and more passionate, leaving hickeys on your neck “mine, mine, mine” he mumbled as he ventured from your neck, to your jaw, moving to your lips.

As he pressed his lips to yours he moved one of his hands against your cheek and another slowly moving toward your sweatpants, “is it okay if I-“ you cut him off “oh please help yourself” you say as you waste no time getting back to connecting your lips. You place a hand on his chest and break away from the kiss gasping for air.

Octane pressed his forehead against yours as you both pant, “god I love you so much” he says “I love you too” he smiles as starts working his way into your panties and rubbing circles around your clit. The sudden movement sent a feeling of sensation through your body, your heavy breathing triggered something in Octane to start moving his long now dampened fingers faster at an exhilarating speed.

“Let me hear your pretty noises my love” Octane says as he began kissing your neck once more, as you moan in his ear you receive what sounded to be a mix between a growl and a moan from him. “Please~put them in me” you beg, with a slight hesitation Octane slips two fingers into your dripping wet pussy. “God you’re taking me so well, mi amor~ don’t cum yet, we still have a few more rounds to go and I want to make it last” He says with a raspy tone into your ear.

He pulls his fingers out of you as you’re on the verge of your climax, you let out a small simper and Octane seems to have noticed. “Oh what’s the matter baby, did you want me to keep going?” He says tauntingly. Octane slowly moves down your body trailing his hands, wandering almost like they had a mind of their own.

Octane propped himself up as he was hovering above your pelvis, he slid your sweatpants down every so slowly that you thought you would lose your mind if he didn’t hurry up. For being one of the fastest legends he sure did like taking his time with you. “Oh my, you’re soaking wet just because of these little guys” he says licking his fingers clean of your lingering taste. “And you did say I could help myself.” He says with a smirk.

He stood up and pulled something out of the nightstand next to the bed, “I picked this little bugger up last week.” He says sticking his tongue out at you. “You’re really taking your time tonight, aren’t you?” You ask impatiently “I’m exited and I kinda like making you wait.” He stuck out his tongue and opened the package to reveal a vibrating tongue piercing. He replaced the bar in his tongue with the rubber covered piercing and quickly got back to his position.

“Are you going to be able to handle this?” He teases. “It’ll depend on how well you can use it, but we’ll have to wait and see” you say in response. “If you say so” Octane says as he turns on the little bug in his mouth, as soon as the vibrations hit your lower lips your back arches and your hips buck upwards. Octane steadies your hips and pins then to the bed, for having such a small build he’s so much stronger than you’d think.

As he’s slurping up every drop that drips from your pussy the piercing is perfectly hitting your sweet spot. As he focused more on your clit one of his hands teased the surrounding area of your dripping hole. “God your little hole is so pathetic, dripping just from this piercing, let’s see if you can handle three fingers this time. Just tell me if it’s too much for you, okay?” Octane says reassuring you, making sure you feel comfortable. “Okay, I~” you’re cut off by his fingers curling inside you, keeping a steady pace but fast enough to satisfy his constant need for speed.

Steadily Octane began going faster and faster, in and out of your pussy, the noises from all of your juices leaking out with the speed of his fingers. You run your fingers though his hair and your other hand grips the sheets as you teacher your climax. “Octane, oh god, I’m gonna cum” you desperately say, bucking your hips and arching your back more and more. “Good baby, cum in my mouth, you’re doing so good for me”

As you finally reach your climax you thought it would be over from there, but as Octane held your legs down and locked in, you know you would be there for longer than you anticipated. “Oh good girl, but we’re not doing this for your pleasure, we’re doing this for me, it’s so fun to see you squirm and moan just because of me” You could feel your body getting hotter and hotter, the room smelt of sex and “It wasn’t me” by shaggy filled the silence in the room aside from the sound of the piercing in Octane’s mouth buzzing away as he started to ride you over the edge.

As you moaned his name and gripped his hair he would continue to rub your clit and finger your dripping hole, he moaned praises into your pussy and spat on it from time to time. Soon tears started to form in your eyes from the overstimulation, he had been eating you out for what seemed to have been hours but he didn’t seem to have lost any stamina from fingering you as fast as he did.

Octane started to slow down the pace of his fingers, looking up at you. Your body was twitching, tears stained your face, and you let out small whimpers and he finally removed his fingers from your drenched hole and replaced the burnt out piercing with the original bar that was in its place. “You did so good for me, baby. I’m so proud of you.” He said as he grabbed a wet rag from the bathroom. As he cleaned you up he praised you and told you how much you meant to him.

After he got you cleaned up he pulled an oversized shirt from the closet and clean underwear for you to put on. He placed you on the couch, put the bedsheets in the washer, and drew a bubble bath for the both of you.

He picked you up off the couch, undressed you and put you into the bathtub. “Are you gonna join me in here?” You ask with little energy. “Of course my love, I just need to remember if my legs are waterproof or not.” As he takes off his leg he looks at the small writing on the back of them: made for any type of terrain, adventure, and damage. “We’ll be fine”

He removes what little clothing he had left on him and slipped into the bathtub behind you, grabbing the shampoo and washing your hair. For how rough he was a few minutes ago he was quite gentle scrubbing the shampoo into your hair. “I love you mi amor, I really do mean it, you’re my everything and I would do anything to keep you happy” Octane rinsed your hair and planted soft kisses on your neck and shoulders. “I love you too, we should do this more often, Ive been trying to drop hints but I didn’t think you were picking up on any of them.” You respond as you move your hair to make way for his kisses.

“You have? I guess you just have to be more straight forward with me, but if I think you’re dropping hints I’ll ask before I assume.” He says in response rubbing body wash on your shoulders and arms. “Sounds good to me, thank you again, I love you.” You say with a slight hum to your voice. “I love you too y/n”

End

———————————————————————

Thank you for reading!! This is my first fanfic and it took me just about two days to make. Expect more in the future unless I get flagged for inappropriate content.

I may or may not have had to look up if octanes prosthetics were waterproof, but I’d say I like how this turned out!

#octane x reader #fiction #apex fanfic #octavio silva #imagines #apex imagines

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sabraeal · 3 years

Text

Sic Semper Monstrum, Chapter 6

[Read on AO3]

Obiyukiweek 2021, Day 2: Death Upright: Change, Ending, Release Reversed: Refusal to Change, Unfulfillment, Stagnation

A seam strains along a well-worn shoulder, so stretched he can actually hear it creak over the din of the canteen. That clinches is: that asshole’s got to be picking out too-small fatigues from the GI bin.

There’s no other way for him to look like that, biceps testing the tensile strength of cotton every time he takes a sip of his coffee. Sure, this guy’s jacked the way all the active rangers are, ready to heave 750 tons of metal onto their backs at a moment’s notice, but he’s not Mitsuhide. It makes sense when he pops buttons off his coverall, or stretches out one of their dingy cotton tees. But that’s not this asshole.

He’s lean, the kind that telegraphs that taking an elbow from him might be career limiting. There’s no reason the general issue tee should cling to his back like it’s painted on, his coverall hanging off his hips like he’s got an occupation other than freeloading. Shirayuki leans over, fingertips brushing over his sleeve with a laugh--

“Just punch him already,” Kiki drawls, “get it out of your system.”

Zen blinks, suddenly aware there’s still some Taco Tuesday left in his mouth. “What?”

“Kiki.” Dark bruises circle the skin beneath Mitsuhide’s eyes, underscoring the weary strain in his voices. “We shouldn’t be encouraging that sort of behavior.”

“Why not?” Her elbows dig into formica as she leans over her plate, shoveling rice into her mouth. At her father’s table, Kiki knows the use of every spoon, the name of every fork, but this deep in the dome, Ranger Seiran’s never met a meal she can’t inhale in five minutes flat. “I did it.”

Air hisses right through his perfect teeth, the only sign he’s annoyed besides the tense bar of his shoulders. “And you’re lucky you didn’t get caught.”

Kiki hums around the lip of her mug. “You mean like you did with Lugis?”

Mitsuhide doesn’t have skin like his, the sort that flares up like flash paper at the barest hint of sun or taunting. But still his neck flushes red as a burn, so bright Zen’s half tempted to slap it, just so he knows what it’s like.

“T-that was an accident,” he insists, even as his mouth settles into a satisfied smile. “Even the inquiry said so.”

It’s a struggle to keep his own from curling at the edges. “Only because Lugis didn’t want to press charges.”

“Only because he didn’t want it getting out that a girl ran circles around him on the mat,” Kiki corrects, each word a scalpel’s slice, excising those particulars from that shitshow with surgical precision. They can talk about this; Lugis’s challenge and the way Kiki swept him; that he was hardly on his feet when Mitsuhide somehow mislaid his fist and found it in his face, but everything else, the whys of it--

Those are all off the record. Forever. Or at least they would be, if Lugis wasn’t crawling through the dome like a stoat that’s caught whiff of an egg.

But that’s not what this is about. “And you want me to do that with that asshole?” Zen mutters. “Since it made Mitsuhide such good friends with Lugis, after all.”

“Obi isn’t Hisame,” Kiki informs him with the kind of steel in her tone that suggests she won’t be taking critique on that particular assessment. “All your issues with him are external.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he snaps, teeth gritting down.

It’s a mistake, a rookie one at that: never ask a Seiran a question you don’t want the answer to. “He’s got Shirayuki’s attention and you don’t.”

Mitsuhide clears his throat, shoulders set like Zen better plan to shelter in place. This particular storm isn’t about to hit its usual conversational breakwall. “Attention you’d have, if you hadn’t skipped out on your session.”

Zen grips the table to take that hit. But it’s not nearly the last; the stare Kiki turns to him is wide-eyed, half-betrayed. “You didn’t say anything about that.”

“It’s none of your business.” Even as the words fly from him, he knows it’s not fair, that he’s spitting nails into the wind so that they’ll hurt someone else instead of him. It doesn’t stop him, it never does, but a guilty knot settles in his gut. “The sessions are voluntary. They always have been. I don’t need--”

“Someone to keep your head on straight?” Every syllable snaps like ice, her eyes twice as cold. “That was the whole point, wasn’t it? So if something happens to us, you’d have--”

He can’t listen to this, not another word. “That was never the plan! I would never plan for you guys...”

Not coming back. For Redwood Dancer to be left a ruin on the sea floor, their bodies strapped in, hermetically sealed until the ocean wore the jaeger down to parts.

“Nothing is happening to you guys,” he grits out. “Shirayuki was always an addition, not a-- a replacement, because you’ll never--”

“No one can promise that.” Mitsuhide’s never one to throw a first punch, but oh, does he know how to end a fight. All the breath’s knocked clean out of him, and there’s Dancer’s right hand, shoveling down another bite of rice like it’s nothing. “Every time we go out there it’s a flip of a coin. It doesn’t matter how good we are, one day there’s going to be a kaiju that kicks us clean off our feet.”

He shakes his head, wishing the words would fall right out of them. “No. That’s not--”

“Zen.” He’s never heard a siren’s call, but it can’t be as inexorable as Mitsuhide saying his name in that tone, both firm and pitying and mournful all at once. “You know better than anyone. Rangers don’t grow old.”

There’s no thought when he levers himself up from the table, just up with away chasing its heels. He just can’t be here listening to this, not now, not after they just barely crawled home from another kaiju clawing its way across Korea’s shoreline. Not when he knows he should be fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with them-- that he would be if they stopped trying to saddle him with every rookie that rolled out of the simulator and finally put him with the only person that could fill that brace beside him.

“Zen!”

It’s easy to ignore Mitsuhide’s shout over the dinner rush; it’s just part of the noise, a buzz at the edge of his senses. Something to goad him, to push him out of there before either of them think to follow after. Their pity’s the last thing he needs, the last thing he wants. After all, it’s not him that won’t climb in the Conn-Pod, but his--

“Boss!”

Zen blinks, the empty corridor resolving around him. He’d let his feet carry him, their only imperative away-- and now he’s all turned around, every bulkhead the same. He’s heard about this happening to rangers when they lived in the dome too long; chasing the Minotaur, a ranger called it, three drinks down at the local hangar. And no fine little princess to give you string to find your way out.

Except he did have one of those. A person to help him through the labyrinth, even if she couldn’t show him the way. He’d been avoiding her.

That seems stupid now. It’s not like she’s on that asshole’s--

“Hey! Hey, boss.”

Speak of the devil. Zen turns, and there he is, too-tight t-shirt and all: his own personal problem. “What do you want?”

“Nothing.” He holds out his hands, as if that’s proof enough to clear him of ulterior motives. “I just...saw you head out and it looked like...”

Zen’s shoulders square, body braced like they’re back on the mat. “Looked like what?”

Obi’s breath rushes out of him. “It looked like you shouldn’t be alone.”

It’s not until he lifts his hand that he realizes it’s trembling, barely able to push his bangs back where he needs them. “Yeah? And you thought-- what? I’d want to see you?” Even to his own ears, his laugh is bitter, wrong, like it came from someone else’s mouth. “You, the guy who won’t get out of my way?”

Something ripples across this asshole’s face, too fast for him to catch more than its wake. “You think I’m the stick stuck in the mud here?” When those strange cat’s eyes stare at him, it’s out of placid waters, but that grin on his face-- it doesn’t reach them. “Rock, meet hard place.”

Zen’s hands clench, so hard his knuckles creak. “You think this is a joke? You’re trying to shove your ass in a seat that isn’t for you, and you--”

“You think I want to be out there?” He lets out a bark somewhere between pitying and derisive, arms folding over his chest. Zen takes special care not to check how stressed his seams are. “I did my time, Your Highness. I got out. I got told no one would ever look for me again.”

“Then why are you here?” Zen spits. “No one wants you.”

“You don’t know how true I wish that was.” A hand pulls at his shoulder, long fingers digging in around the blade. “But your brother dragged me down the coast because I’m not done. I’ll never be done, because I can’t sit on the sidelines and watch Snotju or Head Banger or whatever cosmic asshole crawls out of the rift wreck another wall.”

His hand lifts, scrubbing through the bristle of his hair, just a shade too shaggy to be regulation. “It’s fucked up, isn’t it, Master? I’m the one who doesn’t want to be here, but I’m the one who’s got the balls to get back in that jaeger. And you--” a cold gaze rakes over him-- “you’re content to sit there and watch the world burn just because I’m not--”

“Shut up.” He’s trembling, every muscle straining against his self-control. “Shut the fuck up. You don’t know a goddamn thing--”

“I’ve been in your head,” that asshole reminds him. “I know exactly what I’m talking about.”

“You don’t.” He can’t. “You don’t fucking know a thing about me.”

He cocks a hip, grin loaded like a bullet. “The prove it.”

Kiki’s right: in the instant where his knuckles hit that cut-glass cheekbone, Zen feels great.

Shirayuki’s office has always put him at ease; he stepped in here the first time before she’d even properly covered the walls, the tension seeping right out of him into the push carpet under his boots. There’s just something about how she fills a space-- something that has nothing to do with furniture or wall hangings or motivational posters-- that makes his brain put out whatever chemical that means safe. He’d never understood why the other rangers avoided her, not when they could have forty minutes in the room equivalent of a warm hug.

But it’s different this time.

“Izana made you call me here.” He’s ramrod straight on her worn couch, hands clenched in his lap. Or rather, right over the throw pillow he moved to sit. “Didn’t he?”

“The Marshal’s personal feelings have nothing to do with this.” Her words snap like a window on a sill, closing on that topic with a sense of finality he expected from the top brass, not their therapist. “The PPDC’s code of conduct is quite clear on the procedure to be followed after a non-sanctioned physical altercation between personnel.”

There’s a loose thread right by the fringe; he’d noticed it months ago, but never dared to tug it. Every time he’d felt the urge, he’d think of dominoes and load-bearing pillars, of the whole edge unraveling in his hands right as she looked at him.

Today, he pulls. It comes right off with a snap. “And that’s the only reason you brought me in?“

Shirayuki turns to him, one incredulous brow raised. “You were the one who cancelled our last session--” her mouth twitches as she twists the knife-- “last minute.”

Well, he deserves that one. Sure, he’s had his reasons, but Shirayuki-- well, she deserved more than one step up from ghosting. If the thought of having to look anyone in the eye after all that hadn’t made his stomach turn for three days, maybe he would have come to that conclusion before Kiki ripped him a new one over it.

“Sorry about that,” he mutters, aware with every word that it’s not enough, that there’s not enough apologies to patch up the trust he broke. “I wasn’t...ready to talk.”

He expects the clap back; yeah I got the message, or but you were ready to take a swing? But he should have known: that’s not how Shirayuki works. She’s a professional, whether that’s what he wants from her or not.

Instead he face softens, right back into his friend. “I know. What happened in the drift can be...intense.” She hesitates, teeth sinking into the plush bow of her lip. “I just wish that you had felt comfortable conveying that to me. As my patient, you’re supposed to be able to control--”

“I don’t want to be your patient.”

Her mouth closes with a grunt, hand pressed to her stomach as if he hit her. “O-oh,” she murmurs, breathless. “I hadn’t realized that you, ah, wanted to terminate our sessions--”

“No!” God, it would be nice to be able to say this all smooth like he’s sure that jacked asshole can, leaning against a wall with his hand right by her head, sexual tension rocking the Richter scale. “I just meant--” his teeth try to grind down his thoughts into something palatable-- “Shirayuki, I don’t want to just be your patient.”

He could fall into her eyes they’re so wide, rounded ‘o’s that match her mouth’s geometry. “Ah, Zen, that’s...”

“I don’t mean because I-I like you.” Even though he does, but there’s rules for that. The kind the PPDC will look the other way on, but not Shirayuki. She’s not from under the dome; she still worries about what people might think outside of it. “I just...wish you were on my side.”

“I am on your side.” Her shoulders pull straight against the back of her chair, her soft look hardening into resolve. “Which is different from telling you want you want to hear.”

He jerks back, cheeks stinging like he’d been slapped. “I didn’t say I wanted that,” he mumbles, hands clenching over his lap. “But I don’t need you to tell me to do whatever it is Izana wants me to either.”

“I wasn’t going to.” The notebooks in her lap closes with a snap, and with trembling fingers, she sets aside her shield. “Izana wants you back in a jeager for the legacy. For the unbroken line of Wisterias standing between humanity and the rift. But I...”

Her eyes lift to his, and they’re no longer the lush, leafy green of a forest, but the hard glint of emerald. “If you get back in that cockpit, you need to do it for yourself.”

It’s an effort not to say, I don’t see the difference.

“I saw you when the siren went off.”

Zen scrubs a hand over his face; he remembers. Their eyes had met over that seething mass of fear and competence, and-- and he’d been so sure that if he saw her, something more than that glimpse of red in the corner of his vision, he’d forget every inch of his resolve and go to her. That he’d just take her in his arms and tell her all the thoughts roiling in the sea of his mind, but--

But he hadn’t. He’s taken one look at her and, without even a pang of guilt, left her there. A real hero.

“Zen.” She says his name so firmly, so seriously, that his head jerks up, gaze tangling with hers. “You don’t want to be on the sidelines. You don’t want to be the general hiding being his troops. You want to be out there, Rex Tyrannis shoulder-to-shoulder with Redwood Dancer. And you could be.”

It’s his breath that’s rasping, the death rattle of the man he’s let himself be these past few years. “How?”

There’s not an ounce of hesitation in her when she says. “You have to choose to move forward.”

And cozy up in the cockpit with that asshole. He thinks about that grin, cocked with a confidence he’s never been in the neighborhood of having, and...

It’s so familiar that his double vision makes his head pound. “I can’t work with that-- Obi. I won’t.”

“I know that...” Her lips press together, bursting apart with a pop. “I know there’s no limit to the amount of people a ranger could potentially drift with, but there’s something...special when you find the right one. That there’s something right about it than can’t ever be replaced.”

He stares, head galloping in his chest. She shouldn’t know that-- there’s no way she could. Most rookies out of the academy just drift successfully once, and that’s it-- that’s their partner, for better or worse, like marrying the first kid you kiss. There’s exceptions-- emergencies, injury, irreconcilable differences-- but even though this job has a high turnover...rangers rarely die alone. There’s not enough people for a paper.

“Yeah, I’ve...heard that too.” Probably from the same mouth she did, though it seems Mitsuhide’s polished the speech since he last gave it. To him, at least.

“I understand that you have a vision of who you want beside you in the pod,” Shirayuki presses, voice growing tighter, more tense with every word. “But Atri’s gone.”

Every drop of blood in him turns to ice. “Atri?”

Her breath hisses out through her teeth, relief slumping her shoulders. “I know no one can be him, but--”

“You think this is about Atri?” A giggle bubbles up from him, bitter on his tongue. “I’ve been sitting here for weeks-- no, months! And you think all this, the whole reason I won’t climb in a jaeger with just anyone off the street is because of Atri?”

Every corner of her face lost. “Isn’t it?”

“No, I...” He pinches the bridge of his nose, like it might stem the pounding of his heart behind his brow. This whole time he’d been so careful, trying to be understood for once, to let someone see him instead of his mistakes--

But he should have known; as long as his brother is obsessed with sending him an endless parade of nobodies which he sits behind a desk, it’ll only be his hang ups hung out for everyone to rifle through.

“I should go,” he finally manages, levering himself to his feet. The room spins, his heartbeat thrumming in his ears, but he can’t stay here, not when she thinks-- when she’s always thought--

“Zen,” she murmurs, voice muffled by distance. “Are you all right?”

--That he’s pathetic. “Yeah.” He stumbles to the door, swinging it open. “I just need to--”

And of course, standing right there is that asshole, hand half-raised to knock.

“Boss,” he breathes, clearly stunned. “I, uh, didn’t think you’d be...”

The awkwardness in the office is palpable, so thick that he might as well be moving through molasses. Before this guy showed up, he’d though he had half a chance; he was practically the only one outside of K-Science that would even look at her, and his sessions always felt like more, but now--

Well, it’s no wonder he didn’t stand half a chance next to him, if she thought he was waiting for Atri.

“Don’t worry about it.” Zen pushes back him, shoulder clipping his. Or at least near enough to claim the feat. “I’d hate to keep you two from your--” date-- “dinner plans.”

Shirayuki’s breath gasps from her. “Zen, wait, we’re not--”

“It’s fine,” he lies, every muscle tense where he stands, fighting the urge to look back. “A couple of things are clearer now.”

It’s not just her. They all think he’s waiting for him, that one day he might stroll back in here like nothing happened, and Zen--

“Please.” Shirayuki’s voice trembles, and even if he’s not looking, he knows she’s at the door, vibrating in its frame. “Let’s just finish the session.”

-- and Zen’s been giving them nothing else to work with. All these years, looking like a kid stood up on prom night.

“No, I just remembered there’s something I’ve got to do.” He forces a smile on his face, giving her a bare hint of it as he peeks over his shoulder. “I’ll see you next week.”

It kills him how much hope lights in her eyes. “Next week?”

“That our appointment, isn’t it?” he says, light tone limping. “Unless I see you around the dome before then.”

“Right,” she breathes, cheeks flushed at both corners of her smile. Obi’s watching her, concern writ large in his eyes, and well-- maybe he’s not as much of an asshole as Zen wanted to believe. “Until then.”

He gets halfway down the hall, before Obi calls out, “Hey, boss...”

It’s clear when he looks back that Obi hadn’t meant to speak, but now that he has, he clear his throat, giving himself a visible shake.

“You could come with us,” he says, hesitant. “If you wanted.”

It’s an olive branch, one he doesn’t deserve. One he should take, if he wants all this to heal over without a scar. But he’s not ready for that, not yet.

“No.” He shakes head. “I wasn’t joking about having something I got to do. Go enjoy yourselves.”

This is a terrible idea.

He knows it the entire time he’s walking, the anxiety cresting the second he sees the plate on the door, engraved and letters painted black: IZANA WISTERIA. MARSHAL.

“Well,” Izana hums from his desk. “Are you going pace outside my office all day, or are you planning to come in?”

Zen lets out a rush of breath and pushes the door open the rest of the way.

“You win,” he says, all in a rush. “I’ll do it. I’ll give him another chance.”

“I think at this point, he’s giving you another chance,” Izana tells him, barely glancing up from his pile of papers. “But...I’ll arrange it.”

He nearly says, I figured you’d have it all arranged already, but bites it back. “Thanks.”

“My pleasure. And Zen.” His brother looks up, capping his pen calmly before he folds his hands over the desk. “It’s not me who wins. It’s humanity.”

“Yeah,” he breathes, meeting that steely gaze. “But I’m not doing it for them.”

For once, his brother doesn’t have anything to say.

It’s Obi who’s locked in first this time.

His cheeky smile is already waiting when Zen steps on deck, body gripped by Rex Tyrannis’s hydraulics when he throws him a wink. “Second time’s the charm, right Your Highness?”

“Third time,” Zen mutters, keying in his code. “It’s third time’s the charm.”

“Right, but you were top of your class.” A guy like Obi shouldn’t be so comfortable when he’s got twenty tons pinning him in place, not when he’s got a face just asking to be hit. “So we can shave one of those off, right?”

“Depends.” His mouth twitches. “Where did you rank?”

Obi’s grin grows stiff enough to float. “I think you’d say I’m a natural talent.”

“That bad huh?”

A laugh saws out of him, raw in the loud silence of the pod. “You have no idea.”

“I think I could take a guess.” The hydraulics hug Zen tight; even lifting to his arm to the panel is a chore. “Ready?”

“For you?” Obi’s mouth stretches into a leer. For once, he feels like he’s in on the joke. “Any time.”

Don’t chase the rabbit. It’s Obi’s voice that says it; not the way he had before, serious and concerned, a scolding and a reminder. No, this one is a laugh restrained, sing-song. One pill makes you big and one makes you small.

There’s a faint riff of guitar, and Zen’s about to tell him to can it, that putting trash in the drift just clogged up the flow, but--

But between one breath-- one blink and the next, he’s lost in the tide, rolling through his memories rudderless. When a hand grips his shoulder and--

“I’m ready.” Zen’s always too honest, too eager but he’s young here, younger than he ever remembers being wearing the badge. “To pick up the legacy. To be what father meant us to be.”

The memory runs true, his younger self still chatting away with Shidnote, unaware that his whole world’s about to be cut off at the knees. But he’s not watching that now, he’s watching the way shadows crawl across his brother’s face, a storm front that appears and vanishes in the moments no one looks.

“About that.” Izana settles his hand on the desk, but the drumming is no longer bored but...nervous. An asynchronous beat that runs at the speed of his thoughts. “I meant to tell you. I’m being promoted.”

“Promoted” The word still kicks his legs out from under him, still knocks the wind out of his lungs as efficiently as any punch to the gut. “But I thought we would--”

“They want me in a command capacity now that Mother’s taking over Anchorage.” Izana won’t look at him. The man who has built his career on being able to stare down Orochi in Sagami Bay can’t bear to look him in the eye. “I’m being taken off active duty.”

“But--” He looks between them. “But--”

“But--”

The memory stutters. It’s him, he’s the one who’s pushing away. He’d always thought he couldn’t give this to someone, to some guy right off the street, someone who might pity him, but it’s-- it’s him. He can’t look at this. He can’t face failure another time.

And he doesn’t know how to stop.

Hey. Obi’s voice is too close, but he’s just an outline in the drift, blues and grays fuzzing between misfiring synapses. Hey, we don’t have to watch this.

They do. They have to, if he’s going to get through this.

Right. There’s no way for Obi to sigh here, where there’s no air, but he does, long and loud. It sounds...different. Almost...feminine. I have worse. Want to see me wet the bed when I was--?

The words fuzz before they can continue. Go ahead, Obi says, sounding like himself. Take as much time as you need. It’s not like we have clocks here.

Zen can’t nod here, not without a body, but he breathes, one solid in and out--

“It’s supposed to be us.” Even with the distance of time, every word is carves straight from his flesh, laid out on a platter for his brother to see. “We’re supposed to carry on the legacy.”

“Shidnote will continue on in his current capacity,” Izana explains, bored, as if he didn’t even speak. “He’s served me well. I’m sure you’ll both be sufficiently compatible.”

“But--” Zen grits his teeth. “It’s supposed to be us. Why are you giving me an excuse--?

He blinks. He never said that. He’d been thinking it the whole way to his bunk, but in the moment it had only been a yes sir. I understand, sir.

Then why--

“It’s an excuse.” The shine’s all worn off Atri’s grin, baring the raw edge beneath. “That’s all I’ve ever been to you.”

Scrap litters the floor at his feet; he’s never known what jaeger-grade parts sold for on the black market, but he knows it’s not pocket money. This is a small fortune if someone knew where to sell it.

Which clearly Atri does.

“You’re going to blame me?” Zen’s laugh limps with bitterness. “I catch you with stolen goods, and it’s my--?”

“It’s not stolen, it’s salvage,” Atri snaps, snatching a length of steel from his hands. “It’s not like they’re using it.”

A lie-- there’s not a shred of steel or wire that’s wasted in the dome. Jaegars come with a price tag that only governments can pay, and any corner that can be safely cut on maintenance is considered savings passed onto tax payers. There’s no way he can’t know it, not after six months, but--

He doesn’t care. He never did.

“This is why you agreed to be my copilot.” Every word aches as he births them from his lips, a truth that cuts even as he speaks it. “You didn’t care about protecting your friends. You just wanted access to parts.”

Atri shrugs, the barest twitch of his shoulders. “I never said I gave a single fuck about all that hero shit. You just assumed I did, because you do.”

“But the drift...” His breath wheezes, the way it did when he was a kid, before his dad paid for all that to be fixed. “How did you...?”

“I just thought about the stuff you cared about. Friends. Kaiju. Me.” Atri’s grin turns smug. “Some of us don’t wear our heart on our sleeves, Wisteria.”

Wow. Obi’s outline fuzzes as he circles behind Atri, a single brow raised. He’s a real fucknut, huh?

His memories are jumbles, him-now and him-then all tumbled together until his first instinct is to jump to Atri’s defense. He may not be an academy-trained ranger, someone who has a lifetime worth of experience in a simulator, but put him in Rex Tyrannis and he’ll--

Steal the toilet cover? Obi offers, mouth canting into that insufferable grin. The one that always reminded him of--

Ah.

Obi darts a glance to where Atri stands frozen beside him. Jeeze, you really know how to hit a guy where he lives. You think I look like this asshole?

Just the grin, really. He’s almost a head taller, broader in the shoulders, and Asian besides. Better looking too--

Obi’s smile stretches into a leer. You don’t say, bossman?

Maybe Atri’s right. He’s got to get better about what he thinks about in the drift. Especially with someone this insufferable around.

If anything, Obi’s more amused. So it’s this guy though, he’s whole hold up you have with me? It’s not--

Against his will, Atri springs to life, mouth curled into his nastiest sneer when he says “I don’t know why you’re acting so betrayed. After all, you only wanted me to get back at the Marshal, and I played my part, didn’t I? I’m sure he’d jump in the pod if that meant he could be rid of me.”

“That’s not--” true, he should say. He can’t though, not when he’s not this-Zen, when he’s just looking out from his eyes, straight into Obi’s.

“Yeah.” There’s no spit to swallow in the drift, but he does anyway, a force of habit. “It is.”

The memory fuzzes away from him, and it’s just them now, two men braced in the Conn-pod, staring at each other through their visors.

“Right hemisphere, calibrated.” Zen blinks, watching as his hand opens and closes, the robotic voice’s dulcet tones washing over him.

“I never wanted this, you know,” he murmurs, “not if it wasn’t with my brother. That’s how it was supposed to be, me and him versus the kaiju.”

“Left hemisphere, calibrated.” His arms seem to move on his own, and it’s strange how he can’t keep the smile off his face this time. It feels good, moving like this again.

“No,” he breathes. “It was supposed to be me and him versus the world.”

“Ready to activate the jeager.“

Obi’s arms lift, a fighting stance to mirror his. It’s easy, so easy. Easier than he ever thought it could be. “What changed?”

He’d shrug, if the hydraulics would let him, but this isn’t Redwood Dancer. “Seemed like a shitty reason not to save the world.”

“Calibration complete.”

Obi grins, teeth shining bright under the lights of his visor. “Doc tell you that?”

Zen laughs. “Pretty much.”

“She’s got a gift,” Obi agrees, hands moving in sync with his. “And it’s making you feel like an asshole.”

“Tell me about it.”

“Looks like you jokers are getting along,” Kiki deadpans through their helmets. “How do you feel about taking Rex out for a drag?”

“After being cramped under this dome for months, Princess?” Obi drawls, tossing him a conspiratorial wink. “It’d be my pleasure.”

“Just give us a sec!” It’s been a long time since Zen’s talked much with the crew in CIC, but he recognizes that voice-- Yuzuri, one of Shirayuki’s friends. The peppy one with the cute accessories. The one that told him she’d give him cement shoes if he made her cry. “Let’s see if we can get you off your leash.”

He’d always liked her. Hopefully the feeling’s mutual, since she’s right next to the plug.

“Hey, boss.”

Zen blinks, glancing across the cockpit. “Yeah?”

“I know Atri was supposed to be a big fuck you to His Majesty, but...” He hesitates, thoughtful. “You drifted with the Big Guy for a while after that. Why?”

“Ah--”

It’s impossible not to think of it, the siren rising in the air, the men running past them, voices drowned out by the drone.

“I’ll do it,” he says, glaring up at the man across from him. “At least you know you’re just a seat warmer.”

“Zen--”

He blinks, the memory stuttering beneath him. That’s not what Mitsuhide called him then, that wasn’t until after--

“Zen.”

That’s not inside the memory, that’s inside his helmet. “Mitsuhide?”

“You’re out of alignment.”

He shakes his head, uncomprehending. “What do you--?”

“You’re out of alignment.” He repeats, each words strained. “You both chased the rabbit, and...Obi went straight down the rabbit hole.”

It doesn’t make any sense. “But I--”

“You have to go get him,” Mitsuhide says, dire. “He’s pointing the plasma cannon at Mission Control.”

#obiyukiweek21 #obiyuki #akagami no shirayukihime #snow white with the red hair #pacific rim au #my fic #ans #never did i think i'd cause so much controversy about who would end up in Rex Tyrannis #but i'm glad that this chapter was already going to cover it #and oh my what's that?#are we getting Obi backstory next chapter?#>:3c

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let-me-love-you-loki · 3 years

Text

In A Day or Two--Ch. 35

Chapter 35

“Shaye, come in here,” my father said, standing at the door of his study. He was in his shirtsleeves, his tie loose around his neck.

I looked up from the sofa in the formal sitting room. Since that night with Kenny, I’d taken to using the formal room just to spite my mother. Damon and I played card games on the Persian rug, milkshakes and coffees sitting next to us. We ate greasy burgers and fries over the six hundred dollar polished coffee table. My mother hated it. She fumed every time she saw us, but my father just laughed and joined us most nights when he was home.

“Sit down,” he said as he shut the door to the study. It wasn’t often that I ended up in the study. “We need to talk.”

“What about?” I queried, plopping into one of the plush leather armchairs in front of his heavy mahogany desk. “Am I in trouble?”

He grinned. The father I remembered from my childhood hadn’t been one who smiled often. He was the hard-ass absentee father who spent more time in his company office than he did at home with us. Jeremy Pitzer lived up to the pure reputation of a New York City banking mogul, right down to the delinquent son in a military boarding school.

“No, you’re not in trouble. I wanted to talk to you about your trip to Japan.” My father stripped off his tie and rolled his sleeves to his elbows. “Did you like it? Other than meeting Kenny. Obviously.”

I laughed and tucked my knees up against my chest. “Obviously,” I replied. “He made it better, of course… showed me around the city. Made me feel more at home. But yes… I liked it. I liked practically everything about it.”

“Good. Would you want to go back?”

“To visit? If I didn’t have to work… if I had the time…” I looked away, thinking of Kenny and his two toned curls. “I’d love to be able to go back.”

My father’s head cocked to the side. “Just to visit?”

I felt my brow crinkle in confusion. “I don’t think I get what you mean, Daddy.”

He let his head fall forward for a split second. “You haven’t called me that since you were little, Shaye.” A smile spread over his face. “It makes me second guess what I’m about to ask you.”

***

The phone rang. And rang. And rang. I’d accounted for the time difference between New York and Los Angeles. Or, at least, I thought I had. I did the math again and made sure I’d checked for the time for the end of their show. When Kenny didn’t answer after the third time I tried to call, I could feel worry starting to burn in my chest.

I scrolled through my phone, looking for the number I wanted. The person on the other end picked up after two rings. “Hey, Shaye,” Nick Jackson said playfully. “To what do I owe the honor?

For some reason, the sound of his voice loosened some of the anxiety. “Uh… is the show over?”

“Yeah?” he replied, curiosity in his voice. “It ended half an hour ago. I’m on the road back to Rancho now.”

“Oh, shit, I’m sorry! That drive’s like an hour, right?” I huffed. “Eyes on the road, Jackson.”

“Don’t worry, Shaye. I’ve got one of those Bluetooth things. Completely hands free.” I could practically hear the smile in his voice. “Totally safe. Besides, it’ll help keep me awake.”

“Matt’s not with you?”

“No.” He answered quickly. “His girlfriend came down for the show—they rode back together.”

I curled up against the headboard, a pillow in my lap. “You don’t sound too happy about that.”

“Nah, I’m just used to putting miles on my Nissan with my brother. Feels weird without him.” Nick sighed. I heard horns and the annoying click of a blinker. I knew New York traffic. I couldn’t even imagine what LA traffic was like.

“How was the show?” Moment by moment the anxiety in my chest worked free.

He laughed, and I could see his bright blue eyes and his grin. I remembered how kind he was to me. “Don’t you know that’s the worst thing to ask a professional wrestler? It was a banger. We tore the house down, Shaye. It was one of the best matches we’ve ever had.”

I found myself laughing too, asking question after question about the show and the match. Before I knew it, I looked at the clock and it was almost four in the morning. One o’clock in LA. “Nick, are you home yet?”

“I’ve been home for an hour, Shaye.”

“Oh my God, go to sleep! Go!”

Nick chuckled, even as he tried to hide a massive yawn. “I will. I just have to get off the phone with you. You know, you never told me why you called.”

Guilt slipped into me as I thought back a few hours. “Crap. I’m a horrible person, Nick. I tried calling Kenny but he didn’t answer. I actually called you to see if you were with him.”

“He left before I did. I don’t know which hotel he’s at. I offered to let him crash at my place, but he said he already paid for it.”

My heart slipped sideways just a little. Kenny wasn’t answering his phone. He wasn’t staying with Nick. Part of me wanted to be sick. And part of me couldn’t figure out why. “Thanks, Nick,” I said quietly… almost dejectedly. “Go get some sleep, okay? I’m sorry I’ve kept you up so long.”

Once again, I could see his smile in my mind. “It’s fine, Shaye. We don’t get to talk enough anyway. And I’ll get on Kenny as soon as I talk to him.”

“Thanks,” I replied. “Night, Nick.”

“Good night, Shaye.”

***

The next morning, my head throbbed as I dragged myself down the hallway to the kitchen. My father was at the coffee maker, pouring his steel cup full. He looked up at me when I came around the corner. “You look rough.”

I rolled my eyes and yanked a cup from the cabinet. “Late night. Life of a long distance relationship halfway across the world.”

“How is Kenny?” my father mixed creamer and sugar into his coffee before screwing the lid on top.

“I don’t know,” I replied as I lifted the pot and poured a straight black cup. I didn’t even bother to let it cool off before I took a drink. It was strong and bitter. Enough to wake my sleep-deprived brain. “He didn’t answer his phone. I was talking to Nick.”

My father nodded in a way that made it clear that he thought that was odd. He didn’t say much, but I could tell that he didn’t know what to think about that. He leaned against the counter and took a long drink of his coffee.

“So, did you think anything about my offer?”

I scrubbed my hand over my forehead. “It’s only been twelve hours, Daddy. Can I at least have a day or two to decide?”

“Don’t take too long. I can’t hold the position too long.”

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#in a day or two #kenny omega #kenny omega fanfiction #aew #aew fanfiction #multi-chapter #ofc #oc #japanese #travel #strangers to friends to lovers #japan #romance #kenny omega x shaye walker #kenny x shaye

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sunnypogue · 4 years

Text

come & get your love (jj maybank one shot)

pairing: jj x reader

requested: yes by my brain!!! (and an anon)

warnings: swearing - can i stop warning for this it’s gonna happen all the fuckin’ time

a/n: this was originally gonna be a rudeth one shot but i get weird writing about real life ppl so i went with jj (my perfect boy!!!) and incorporated what i consider some heavy rudeth vibes. this is unedited and mostly written on my notes app, so excuse any typos lol.

songs (bangers) mentioned: misty mountain hop - led zeppelin, fortunate son - creedence clearwater revival, come and get your love - redbone, i found you - alabama shakes, when a man loves a woman - percy sledge, baby i’m yours - barbara lewis (arctic monkeys cover is good too)

enjoy xx

________________________________________________________

the door slammed into the wall, doorknob slotting perfectly into a hole, created years ago during one of the couples first trysts.

jj was humming the opening riff to misty mountain hop, playing an enthusiastic air guitar as he shimmied through the front door, his fiance following gingerly behind him.

“okay, zeppelin,” she laughed, dodging his flailing arms. “I gotta get out of these death traps - my feet feel like they’re gonna fall off.”

he didn’t respond, just pelvic thrusting to his own humming as she limped towards the direction of the bedroom.

“I’ll be back out in a second - do you mind starting on the dishes? it looks like a war zone in there.” she jerked her head in the direction of their kitchen, where a day’s worth of dishes sat piled up.

jj nodded, left fingers strumming mindlessly. “yeah baby, I got you.”

he kept humming to himself as he walked into their dated kitchen, briefly acknowledging the overflowing sink before reaching behind the potted plants to turn the portable speaker on. he cued up his “bitchin’” spotify playlist before starting on the dishes, slinging a bleach stained rag over his shoulder as he worked.

fortunate son rumbled through the house as jj scrubbed the pans from breakfast, bopping his blonde mop of hair to the music. the playlist turned over as he began to scrape the remnants of lunch into the trash (he swore the next house they got would have a garbage disposal), the familiar opening to come and get your love pulling him out of his work.

“baby!” he yelled, hands covered in soapy water, as he tried to quickly wash and dry the dish without breaking it. “BABY!”

after a beat, he ditched his endeavors at the sink, moving towards the living room. “BABY! come and get your love!”

“oh my god, what?” she huffed, ambling into the room as she put her hair into a bun, not looking in his direction. as she finished piling her hair on top of her head, she took in the sight of her fiance, standing in the middle of their living room, white shirt halfway unbuttoned, thumbs hooked into his suspenders, bare feet shoulder width distance apart.

he grinned, vampire teeth on display. “you heard me. come over here and get your fuckin’ love.”

“oh my god.” she giggled again, walking towards him. he shortened the distance, taking two big steps before swinging her up in his arms, holding her up by her thighs.

“I wouldn’t have changed if you were going to continue the party.” she laughed, wrapping her arms around his neck. “I feel underdressed.”

unlike jj, she had immediately slipped out of her formal wear, opting for a broken-in kildare county shirt (courtesy of jj) and gray pajama shorts.

jj, caught up in the music, didn’t register her outfit. instead, he spun once, before dipping her towards the ground, laughing as she shrieked from the quick movements.

they danced for the remainder of the song, screeching the lyrics back and forth as the song devolved into repetitive “come and get your loves” for the closing minute. as the song faded into alabama shakes’ i found you, the couple slowed down, breathing heavily from the energy put into their living room performance. she rested her head on his, breath intermingling.

“I love when we go to weddings.”

jj lifted his forehead from hers, blue eyes crinkled. “I thought you hated your cousin.”

she laughed, brushing his blonde hair back from his sweaty forehead. “I do. god, he sucks.” she rolled her eyes, thinking of how obnoxious he was during his nuptials earlier that evening. “but it doesn’t matter - I still love going to weddings with you.”

“why?” his hands shifted under her bottom, catching her from sliding out of his grip.

“because you get like this.”

“like what?”

she re-gripped her hands behind his neck, blushing. “I don’t know. like this. you’re happy. light. I don’t know.”

“you don’t know, but you like it?” he grinned.

she rolled her eyes. “yeah, story of my life with you.”

he moved his hands from under her quickly, jolting her out of his grasp for a split second, just to startle her. she yelped, grabbing onto his shoulders. “hey!”

“hey!” he mimicked, laughing as he leaned in to kiss her.

she pouted into the kiss, before giving in and matching his pace with a hum. the playlist changed again - percy sledge’s “when a man loves a woman” - as he slid his tongue in her mouth.

she pulled back after a moment, touching her tongue to the bottom of her front teeth. he brushed a thumb under her eye, lips stretching into a soft smile.

“baby i’m yours” started up in the background.

“why do you like weddings so much? I mean, we could go to a wedding for a toad, and you’d come back all amped up” she asked, after an extended moment of silence.

he shrugged, setting her down, quickly mumbling something. she popped up on her tiptoes, leaning into his chest.

“what was that?”

he huffed, looking down at her with false annoyance. “I said, I think about how we’re gonna be doing this in a couple months, and I get excited.”

she gaped. “jj maybank, you sap!”

he took her hand, gently leading her away from him. “If i’m a sap, that’s on you baby. I was actually kind of a badass before I met you.”

a sharp, bright laugh burst from her, as she started to walk towards the bedroom. “uh huh, alright. sure you were.”

“I was!”

she paused in the doorway leading to their bedroom, looking back over her shoulder as he stood where she left him, thumb hooked in the lone suspender that clung to his shoulder. “you gonna stand there all night?”

he crossed his arms, eyebrow cocked, unmoving.

she laughed, turning back around to fully enter the bedroom, “come on you sap, I wanna go to bed.”

she managed to take one full step closer to the bed before she was lifted clear off the ground and tossed onto the bed, bun flopping around from the impact. he stood at the foot of the bed, suspenders dangling, a single button holding the white shirt together. she grinned, crooking her finger towards him.

“c’mere baby. come and get your fuckin’ love.”

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