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fific7 · 3 years

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Ticket to Ride - Part 2

Billy Russo x Reader

A/N: Inspired by The Beatles song of the same name. This takes place in my S1 Punisher AU with Arrogant!Billy in attendance, in which he gets a taste of his own medicine.

Warnings: 18+ NSFW due to sexual content, including oral, between consenting adults* in some chapters. Drinking and swearing.

*Irl, please don’t go wild in the country without protection.

(My photo edit)

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𝕊𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕒𝕚𝕕 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕝𝕚𝕧𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕞𝕖 𝕚𝕤 𝕓𝕣𝕚𝕟𝕘𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕕𝕠𝕨𝕟, 𝕪𝕖𝕒𝕙

𝕊𝕙𝕖 𝕨𝕠𝕦𝕝𝕕 𝕟𝕖𝕧𝕖𝕣 𝕓𝕖 𝕗𝕣𝕖𝕖 𝕨𝕙𝕖𝕟 𝕀 𝕨𝕒𝕤 𝕒𝕣𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕕

𝕊𝕙𝕖'𝕤 𝕘𝕠𝕥 𝕒 𝕥𝕚𝕔𝕜𝕖𝕥 𝕥𝕠 𝕣𝕚𝕕𝕖

𝕊𝕙𝕖'𝕤 𝕘𝕠𝕥 𝕒 𝕥𝕚𝕔𝕜𝕖𝕥 𝕥𝕠 𝕣𝕚𝕕𝕖 𝕓𝕦𝕥 𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕕𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕔𝕒𝕣𝕖

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The aircraft door opened and you stepped out gratefully onto the air jetty. You weren’t scared of flying, you just didn’t like being cooped up in a flying tube for several hours on end. Up an escalator and along a short corridor and then you were able to see outside through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The sky was beginning to shade into the colours it would take on for dusk. It looked like it had been a nice day and you hoped the good weather would continue for your stay.

Karen had texted you while you were sitting on the plane at JFK, waiting for it to push back. Frank had told her that Micro had tracked your phone to the airport so boy, were you glad you’d turned off your old phone and switched to the new one when you did. She’d also told you that Billy had asked him to find out where you were headed, and your heart sank. You knew it wouldn’t take long for Micro’s vast and nerdy computer skills to find you but then again, London was a huge city and they’d have no idea whereabouts in it you’d gone to ground, thanks to your new ‘burner phone’.

You were feeling super-excited. This was beginning to feel like an action movie, with you on the run from the bad guys.

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“London??!!” Billy shouted, making Frank quickly move his phone away from his ear on the other end. “Yeah, London,” he replied.

Billy was back at his usual post by the window. “I mean... obviously I knew she was gonna fly somewhere but I thought it would the West coast, Miami, Seattle, Alaska... somewhere like that. But to go to a whole other continent....!!!!” Frank sighed, “Yeah, Bill, sounds like she’s really not keen to bump into you anytime soon.” “Yeah, thanks for remindin’ me.” “Bill, you brought this on yourself, buddy.” “I know!” yelled Billy, “An’ all I wanna do is get her back and make it up to her for the rest of my life, and all I know is she’s in London! Do you know how big that place is?” “Yeah, I do. And t’be honest... I dunno how you’re gonna even try to find her over there.”

There was a silence on the other end of the phone. “I mean...” Frank continued, “I’m guessin’ you are gonna go over there and try to find her, Bill?”

Billy’s shoulder twitched upwards briefly, and he stared intently out the window at the New York skyline.

“Yeah, Frankie... yeah, I damn well am.”

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You’d left two of your big suitcases and the backpacks in a luggage storage facility at JFK, travelling with just the one suitcase and a large shoulder bag. You took the overground Heathrow Express to Paddington before negotiating a change onto the Tube to reach Tower Hill DLR station, boarding one of the driverless trains out to Canary Wharf. Settling back into your seat, feeling pretty proud of yourself for managing not to get hopelessly lost.

Your AirBnB apartment was in a part of the city called Docklands, beside the Thames on the Isle of Dogs. It was an area of shiny skyscraper offices and fancy apartment blocks built round the old docks, and your accommodation for the next two weeks was in one of those. You were suitably impressed when you got inside it... open plan, all trendy furniture and gleaming fittings. Big, big windows with views of the river and the tall buildings.

Your phone chimed and you saw a text from Karen on your notifications. Taking your suitcase and bag into the bedroom, you went back out to the main area and sat on the sofa to read it. Oh. Billy now knew you were in London, and had apparently booked a flight over - he’d be arriving tomorrow. Your heart rate sped up; Billy was a sniper, used to finding, stalking, watching his prey. But, you told yourself, he had no idea whereabouts in the city you were and no way of finding you.

Relax.

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Billy stepped off the Heathrow Express, looking around for signs indicating where the taxi rank was. He’d been looking at the Tube map during the train journey. Nah, fuck that.

He was too wired to even think about getting to London Bridge on the Underground, or ‘Tube’ as he found out Londoners called it. His brain had been working overtime trying to figure out how the hell he was going to find her in a city the size of London. She’d stay central, surely - she wouldn’t head to the suburbs, he felt confident of that.

Getting into the first taxi in the queue, he drawled out, “The Shard, please.” The taxi driver nodded and pulled away from the station without saying anything. Thank fuck, thought Billy, I can’t be dealing with a talker right now. But just as the thought had left his head, the driver’s London accent said, “First time in London, guv?” Billy sighed, “No. No, it isn’t.” In fact it was, but he wasn’t about to tell the driver that. He’d only end up getting taken on the ‘scenic route’, double the time, double the price.

The driver grunted and turned up the radio... really annoying music could now be heard but Billy would take that over inane small talk any day. He looked out of the windows at the city streets and his mind went back to his mission. Mission impossible. Finally he saw the river and the taxi crossed a wide bridge before pulling up outside the lofty skyscraper that was The Shard. According to the blurb he’d read on some travel website it was the tallest in Western Europe, and while there were taller buildings in New York, the shape of this one made it look quite dramatic.

He paid and got out of the taxi with his expensive wheeled duffel bag, heading to the Shangri La entrance of The Shard and going inside. (It’s one of the priciest hotels in London - of course). Checked in at reception on the 35th floor, he was then whisked up to his room on the 52nd by another express lift. The windows were huge and the views spectacular.

Once again, he was gazing out of a window at a cityscape.

Where is she?

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Your first full day, you occupied yourself with getting to know the surrounding area, doing some grocery shopping and sitting on your large balcony, enjoying the view and relaxing with a glass of wine.

Every time a plane went overhead you wondered if Billy was on it - he was due here today. You shook yourself a little, you’d just have to stop thinking about it. He wouldn’t find you.

Your mind wandered unbidden to his recent behaviour. Knowing Billy was a player from day one, you’d still got involved with him. More fool you. Another old cliché.... you thought you’d be the one to change him. And you thought you had. You’d dated him for a few months, he seemed to have ditched his old hound-dog ways and when he’d asked you to move in with him, you’d agreed without thinking it over too deeply.

Now, looking back, it seems like you’d made a big mistake.

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Micro had spent quite some time constructing a query table that he could run against accommodation reservations in London for her arrival day. She had no reason to book under another name and he’d just have to run with that assumption.

When Billy had come directly to him instead of going via Frank to ask that he try and track down her reservation, Micro had been too scared to refuse. Billy still really unsettled him - he always reminded him of a circling predator.

This query would take a while to run. He hit the go button and wandered off to work on another project while it tunnelled its way through layer upon layer of data.

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Billy was pacing his swanky hotel room like a caged panther. He’d given up on the idea of roaming the streets of London trying to spot his target, that was just one dumbass idea. He’d never find her that way, much better to just wait on that geeky twat to come up with the answer with his internet wizardry.

He’d spoken to Frank earlier, who had nothing new to report. Billy wouldn’t allow himself to feel guilty at cutting him out of the loop on his recent ask to Micro. He wasn’t stupid enough to believe that Frank wouldn’t mention it to Karen. Much as he loved him like a brother, Frank was a big sap when it came to Karen and he knew he’d give in and tell her, probably sooner rather than later.

However Frank had told him that Madani had called earlier that day, wanting to know where Billy was and why she couldn’t get in touch with him. Billy had figured out that his girl had got herself a new phone, and he’d followed suit. Which is why Dinah hadn’t been able to reach him. “Whaddya tell her?”he’d asked. “That you were on an overseas operation and were incommunicado.” “Good,” nodded Billy, “....that takes care of that little problem for a while at least,” feeling a sense of relief.

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Frank cut the call, a grim smile on his face. He hadn’t been completely straight with Billy, but it was for his own good. What he’d told Madani, however, had been the unadulterated gospel truth.

He’d said to her that Billy had hared off to Europe in pursuit of his live-in girlfriend, who’d suspected him of cheating on her and left him. He was absolutely determined to get her back.

He’d taken great satisfaction in the dead silence on the other end of the line, eventually punctuated by an angry snort and the call being abruptly ended.

That ‘little problem’ was hopefully taken care of for good.

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Micro looked at his phone as it beeped at him, the notification saying that his query was complete. That had taken much longer than he thought it would. Now he could only hope it hadn’t returned too many matches as he’d thought it prudent to run it on surname only.

He pulled up the results table and was pleased to see that there were only a thousand or so, he’d feared there would be many more. He scrolled through the list and quickly pinpointed the one he’d been looking for.

With a deep sigh he picked up his phone, typed “Wood Wharf, Water St, London E14”, a building and apartment number into a new message, then hit send. It would be the early hours of the following morning in London, so he very much doubted that Billy would leap out of bed and head right over there.

He finished eating his supper, drank a beer and settled down to watch TV when his conscience started bothering him. Should he? He shivered when he thought about what Russo might do to him if he found out.

Popping another bottle of beer open, he sat and contemplated what he should do for quite a while. He suddenly picked up his phone, sending a quick text to Frank telling him about the whole situation and including the fact that Russo now had her London address.

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While you were lounging on your balcony, sipping your wine and watching the world go by, it suddenly occurred to you that this would be a great base to work out of for a while. You messaged the estate agent and extended your stay to one month, with an option to extend if required.

Then, on a whim, you booked a flight to Barcelona early the next morning from City Airport - it was really close to your apartment even if the flights were a bit more expensive. You’d been doing a little research into other destinations to explore, and having a base in London to travel to and from made you feel much more comfortable. The W Barcelona had caught your eye while you’d been browsing for accommodation and as you were only going for a few nights, you’d booked in there.

Feeling extremely pleased with yourself, you got up and went into your bedroom, looking for a folded-up smaller travel bag you knew you’d packed in your luggage. Finding it, you began to choose some outfits for your short trip, thinking what a joy it was that you could now leave your large suitcase here.

But damn, you were going to have to be up early tomorrow. Best to get an early night, you thought, immediately yawning.

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Billy shot up in bed as his phone chimed with Micro’s text. When he read the information in the text, contrary to Micro’s belief he did leap out of bed and started pulling on his clothes (Micro had forgotten that this was an ex-Marine he was dealing with here).

He sat back down on the bed and googled the location. Oh okay, East London.... Docklands. Too far to walk and he didn’t think the Tube ran at this hour. Then he pulled up the Uber app and booked an immediate pick-up.

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Walking into the terminal building at City Airport, you were in the middle of a total yawning fit when a text came in. It was from Karen and you stopped, putting down your bag so you could read it.

Karen: Sorry to tell you this hon, but Billy went direct to Micro 🙄 and intimidated him into finding your London accom. Frank’s told him not to do that again no matter how much he’s shitting himself! Please take care of yourself 💋

You: Bastard 👿 thanks for the heads-up, I will do 😘

Picking your bags up again, you hurried over to one of the automated check-in machines to get your luggage tag.

Whoever had said ‘timing is everything’ had definitely got that right.

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“Oi!!!” yelled an irate male voice. Billy turned his head to see a groggy-looking tousle-haired guy, obviously just having been woken up. “Keep the noise down!”

Billy said nothing, just gave the guy his death stare. His head quickly disappeared back inside his apartment.

After pressing the buttons of a few apartment numbers at the main entrance, someone had buzzed him in and he’d been pounding on her apartment door for the last five minutes. But there was no response, and he knew she wasn’t that heavy a sleeper.

He slid tiredly down onto the floor outside her door. Had she somehow known he was on his way over here? No.... how would she know that?

His head dropped down in momentary defeat and he ran his fingers through his hair, groaning.

She hadn’t moved on already, had she?

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The plane lifted off the tarmac, and immediately you felt a huge sense of relief. You just weren’t ready to see Billy right now - you’d probably kill him if you did, ex-Marine or not.

Now you were off on your next adventure.

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London

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@blackbirddaredevil23 @galaxyjane @omgrachwrites @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead @ourloveisforthelovely @swthxrry @odetostep @supernaturalcat7 @obscurilicious @strawb3rrydr3ss

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#billy russo #billy russo x reader #billy russo fanfiction #billy russo imagine #billy russo fanfic #ben barnes #the punisher 💀

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respectablesentiment · 3 years

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Her arm itches, a deep graze stretching from her elbow to her wrist and smarting in a way that makes Ellie examine it closely, as though she may be bitten. She wasn’t though. Riley had saved her and she didn’t save Riley. It was a blur after that. -- prompt: family, day 4 of elliedina week Ellie's mother doesn't die but Ellie still grows up alone. Ellie was never bitten but she still goes on a journey. Alternative Universe where I ignore two specific parts of canon.

(day 1: ache) | (day 2: dawn) | (day 3: trouble)

or you can read it here:

Warmth

Family is a complicated word until it isn’t.

She’s never known it until she does.

Marlene is the one who finds her after Riley.

Ellie is a bundle of raw nerves, cheeks stained with tears and speckled with blood. She doesn’t think she has anything left to give.

It was meant to be a special night and for a blissful moment it was.

And then it wasn’t.

Riley had been bitten. She saved Ellie’s life and Ellie wasn’t able to save hers.

Riley was her best friend, her person, her something. Her someone with one foot out the door who just agreed to stay.

And now it would be Ellie clinging to Marlene, considering pledging to the Fireflies in her place because one more moment in Boston would make her heart hurt too much.

There must be something extra special in the air, perhaps a shared sense of mourning or grief, maybe Marlene had been more attached to Riley or Ellie than she let on, but she shares something new with Ellie. She knows her mother, a Firefly who was stationed in a lab out west. Still alive.

Ellie isn’t sure if its rage or tears building inside of her, too exhausted to form words or find her way through her emotions.

Mothers were meant to protect and hers clearly hadn’t.

Abandonment was hard to rationalise, but it felt very much like her grief was due to her mother and if she’d never known Riley then Riley would’ve never known her. They’d both be fine and Riley would be alive and her chest wouldn’t hurt like this.

The realisation couldn’t have been recent, it didn’t make sense that Marlene hadn’t told her before. She admits to keeping tabs on Ellie but doesn’t specify why she stayed away.

The offer to journey west with Marlene feels like a form of salvation. She had considered returning to the military school but couldn’t go through with it.

She had cycled rapidly through the first four stages of grief without ever touching acceptance, pacing and screaming and crying for hours. Riley sat resigned in a corner, staring at the gun in her lap as sweat began to build on her brow.

She gave Ellie the gun for protection, kissed her one last time and asked her to walk away.

It was a blur after that.

Marlene gets hurt, Ellie gets lumped with two smugglers and the Capitol building is full of dead Fireflies.

Ellie is fairly certain that either Joel or Tess used to a be parent. Potentially both. Potentially together? She isn’t sure. She overhears bits and pieces of hushed conversations, arguments about how far they are taking her and whether its worth finding the Fireflies and her mother.

Ellie isn’t entirely sure to be honest, the road is gruelling but she’s moving somewhere. Forward, onwards. It’s not like she can move back, and its not like she can stay with Joel or Tess. So onwards it is.

Bill’s town is a shit hole, Pittsburgh is a nightmare, and the suburbs outside of Pittsburgh sends her spiralling. Did Riley turn that way? Fall asleep and wake into oblivion? Was Riley still in there?

Her last conversation with Sam loops over and over in her brain, interrupted occasionally by Tess checking in. Asking and caring in a way that Ellie doesn’t deserve.

“Joel doesn’t handle grief well,” Tess says openly.

Ellie’s eyes flick over to watch Joel ahead of them.

“He pushes it down and refuses to speak about it, but you don’t have to do that,” Tess says, squeezing Ellie in a side hug as they walk. “I’m here whenever you need to speak, or whenever you wanna be silent.”

Ellie nods along but keeps it inside.

Joel shows care differently. He’s gruff and matter of fact and if there’s nothing that needs to be said then he says nothing. It takes Ellie a while to pick up on it because he’s Joel but he always makes sure she eats enough, that she’s between him and Tess, and he makes her put on a jacket when the weather changes.

The first time they meet Tommy is a turning point. They have power and a town and its nothing like the Boston QZ. Or Bill’s town. Or Pittsburgh.

It’s tempting.

Why rush after an unknown entity? A mother in the distance who abandoned her? Who she’d never known? Would their shared blood just make things click? The destination, the conclusion, the end. And what then? Would they get along?

Would Tess and Joel leave?

They wouldn’t stay.

Would Ellie stay?

Ellie’s lost in thought when the attack happens. Tess is immediately on her, making her crouch down under a table as Maria guards the door.

It happens and then it’s over.

They stay one night in Jackson and then they continue.

Ellie tries to call things off. It seems like a safe place to stay, Tommy and Maria said they could come back if the university labs in Eastern Colorado didn’t pan out.

“We’ve come this far, Ellie,” Joel says resolutely.

“You should be with your family, Ellie,” Tess affirms. “It’s rare to have that in this world.”

Ellie clenches her jaw. She’s never known family, never felt it… so how would she know?

“We should at least go to this university.”

And so they do.

It’s another bust.

In a long string of bad luck, nothing changes.

The buildings are deserted, there’s some fucked up infected monkeys, a dead scientist and another location to trek to.

And then there’s FEDRA soldiers.

She’s never been more thankful for Tess in her life.

“There’s three in the building across from us, they’ll head this way soon,” Tess says curtly. “Let’s head two rooms back, wait for them in the hallway. Gunfire will bring more so we’ll hold our positions. Agreed?” Her voice is gruff, almost an imitation of Joel’s and despite the adrenaline rushing through Ellie’s veins, Ellie smiles.

Times moves slowly, the gun is Ellie’s hand is solid and she’s got five bullets which is more than normal so she feels confident.

The soldiers slowly drop.

They wait five minutes at each floor, slowly advancing forward.

Joel bounces his knee as they hide, and Tess divides her time between scanning the entryways and windows and glaring at Joel to ensure he plays by her rules.

They escape relatively unscathed. Joel is bleeding from the temple, his face a mess of red that Tess reassures Ellie is fine. Tess has a bullet graze on her upper arm, a worn grey bandage tied haphazardly over it to stop the blood flow but Ellie thinks it might just make the wound infected. Ellie’s tired, shallow cuts and grazes line her right side from falling onto shattered glass, her head is pounding and she’s over it.

She cries that night. Feeling alone and scared and stupid.

Family is dumb and overrated.

It’s clearly not for her.

Her mother had decided long again.

If her mother didn’t want her then she didn’t want her mother.

She curls into a ball in her sleeping bag, safe elsewhere but feeling unsafe. She presses her fists to her eyes as though it’ll stop her tears and she just shakes, her body wracked with sobs.

A warm hand falls on her back. It’s large and solid and just resting there.

She knows its Joel but can’t bear to look at him.

Tess strokes her hair where it meets the nape of her neck, and Ellie wants to sink into the ground just as much as she doesn’t want them to stop.

She doesn’t speak and neither do they.

From where they are in eastern Colorado, Jackson is northwest, and Salt Lake City is west. Its only a few days travel from Salt Lake City to Jackson on horseback. Tess takes the time the following morning to show Ellie on a map.

“If we’re heading back that way anyway, then it’s worth it to check,” Tess tells Ellie, tracing the route they’d take and informing her of their decision more than anything else.

“It’s not worth anything,” Ellie replies, scuffing her shoes on the ground.

“It’s your mum,” Joel says simply.

“Has someone told her that?” Ellie mutters.

Joel and Tess both grimace, sharing a look. Ellie knows family is complicated, she’s been told this and now she’s experiencing it.

“Ellie, she’s your-”

The rage bubbles up inside her before she can stop it. “Everyone I’ve ever loved has either died or left me,” Ellie says with a raised voice, her hands shaking jerkily in front of her. She’s tense and full of energy and she wants to punch something. She can feel tears coming and her throat is dry and it’s too much.

“Ellie-”

“So why should I run after someone who’s already left me?” Ellie yells. “Why should it be this hard? Why do we have to risk this much? Why do you have to risk anything at all?”

They say nothing. Ellie can see pity in their eyes, and before she can stop herself, she punches a tree.

It doesn’t make her feel better.

Joel bandages her hand, three of her knuckles split. He’s gentler than she’s ever seen him and it makes her feel small for some reason.

“Kiddo, we don’t have to go if you don’t want to,” Joel says in a low tone. “You can- You can choose, it should be your choice.”

“It can’t be for nothing,” Ellie says bitterly, emotions swirling inside of her.

“If it doesn’t work,” Tess says, patting Ellie’s knee. “Then you don’t have to stay.”

“Where else can I go?” Ellie asks, squeezing her eyes shut, cheeks burning with embarrassment.

“There’s always Jackson,” Tess offers.

“But- I-”

“With us,” Joel says awkwardly. “If- if you wanted.”

Ellie’s throat is tight.

“I could teach you how to play guitar,” he offers. “I reckon you’d like that.”

“Maybe,” Ellie says softly.

And they continue on.

The journey from Colorado to Salt Lake City isn’t an easy one. Nothing was ever easy.

The weather gets colder which makes it harder to navigate, harder to find food, and harder to sleep.

She feels more as they get closer. More scared, more nervous, more anxious.

Just more.

She struggles to make sense of it, not sure what she’s looking for or what they’ll find. What she’s already found.

They’re on form. Heading through a bus depot, exiting the last highway and clearing through an underground tunnel.

They’re almost there and then there’s rushing water and straining lungs and darkness.

Ellie wakes in a hospital with a stranger beside her bed.

The woman’s eyes are green, her expression is soft, and she tuts over Ellie sitting up too early.

“Easy, easy,” the strangers says, hands reaching out to help Ellie sits up.

Ellie’s body freezes, jerking away from her. “Where are Joel and Tess?”

“I asked them to give us some time alone,” the woman says. “I’m your- I’m Anna.”

Ellie takes her in with wide eyes, waking into an anticipated moment was hard to process. “Can- where’s- I don’t-”

Anna hushes her and draws Ellie into a tight hug that she doesn’t relax into.

Meeting Anna doesn’t make things easier for Ellie.

There’s a sense of warmth there, honey in Anna’s voice, a soft touch and an excited expression.

Anna rushes through excuses, building a narrative of a complicated birth, a missing father and a sense of duty to the Firefly cause. She didn’t want Ellie to come out here, she was safer in a QZ until her mother had figured out the cure she’d devoted her life to. Her words are sure and well-spoken, she pauses in places like she anticipates Ellie reassuring her, and then she continues painting her picture of abandoning Ellie for noble reasons.

Ellie nods along.

It ticks so many boxes, but something is off and Ellie cannot place it. There’s a hardness behind Anna’s eyes, something she’s sometimes seen in her own, and it feels off.

“Do you have any questions, my love?” Anna asks, tone saccharine.

“Where’s- where’s Joel and Tess?” Ellie asks awkwardly.

Anna’s smile turns a little bitter at her words but she takes Ellie to them nonetheless.

“We’ve got it from here,” Marlene says, her voice is muffled but Ellie picks up the words as they approach. “You can take the guns as agreed.”

“We’re not leaving without checking on her,” Tess’s voice says firmly.

Anna’s steps turn heavy, as though to announce her approach.

Marlene changes the conversation quickly as they enter.

“Ellie!”

Ellie throws herself at Tess, initiating a hug for the first time in their long journey. She clings to her, relaxing in the safety of her arms.

“It’s good to see you up, kiddo,” Joel says, a protective hand on Ellie’s shoulder.

She hugs him as well, relieved to be reunited and to see Joel in one piece after the tunnels.

“You’re welcome to stay for a couple of days,” Marlene says curtly.

It’s clear she doesn’t mean it.

Joel and Tess stay anyway.

Anna is involved in testing to find a ‘cure’ for the infection. She works with some doctor. Talks about how she used to be a nurse and had diversified her skills over the last 14 years in immunology, pathology and mycology.

Anna seems to want to share everything, tell Ellie everything and nothing, unable to sit in the silence that Ellie offers.

Ellie doesn’t particularly care, too focused on the way that the Fireflies hover over Joel and Tess like they aren’t allowed to go to certain parts of their hospital or their base. The way that whispers cease when she turns a corner, the blood splatter on doctor’s coats, and the weird feeling that Infected are nearby.

It feels off.

There’s something out of place.

It doesn’t take long to click.

Or at least, it doesn’t take Ellie long to venture where she’s not allowed to go. She uses every trick Joel and Tess taught her about being stealthy, sneaking passed Fireflies to reach the upper floors of the hospital in the middle of the night.

There’s Infected in cages. Dozens of them.

She supposes it makes sense if you’re studying immunology to find a vaccine.

Cages are marked with numbers and dates.

#259, vaccine 23, injected: 20/04/34, infected: 21/04/34, turned: 22/04/34

#260, vaccine 23, injected: 20/04/34, infected: 21/04/34, turned: 23/04/34

Her eyes linger on the dates, only days prior, comparing those around her.

Someone passes the room she’s in, footsteps audible between the groaning of the Infected and Ellie is terrified.

She hides under a desk, flashlight off, in the total darkness of a room filled with nightmares.

Once she’s certain they are gone, she gets up, hands shaky as she searches through paperwork.

It confirms what she thinks.

She drops the notebook in shock, the sound alerting several of the runners. Within seconds they are snarling, baring their teeth, and pounding on the doors of their cages.

They’re locked away and yet she’s never been more terrified, stuck in place and trembling.

She hears guards shouting, footsteps rushing closer.

The room is flooded with light when they arrive, and Ellie finally moves. She rushes forward, ducking passed them in the doorway.

She runs and she doesn’t stop.

They don’t shoot and they don’t chase her.

She finds comfort when she finds Joel and Tess. Too overwhelmed and too worked up to be able to explain what she saw and what she now knows.

Her mother is experimenting on humans to find a cure.

Injecting them with a trial vaccine, infecting them with the virus, studying them as they turn, and then dissecting them.

Hundreds.

#260.

The knock at the door that goes ignored so Marlene and Anna enter anyway.

Joel stands in front of them, partially shielding Ellie and Tess from view.

“What can I help you with?” Joel asks, crossing his arms. His tone is serious and its impossible to tell that Ellie has shared nothing with him.

“I just wanted to explain what Ellie saw,” Anna says, holding her hands up. “Sometimes sacrifice is needed for the greater good, I’m sure you understand that.”

Tess stiffens against Ellie, holding her tighter. “Are you okay?” She whispers in Ellie’s ear.

Ellie nods but she’s uncertain, she pulls away to watch, eyes studying Anna.

“In order to create a vaccine,” Anna continues. “There’s a need for trials. There are- we’ve had-” She falters, clenching her hands into fists by her sides. “Immunology is complex and working tirelessly in order to create a vaccine for animals which do not ordinarily get Infected does not necessarily help to create a vaccine for animals that do.”

Ellie narrows her eyes. “So you test on humans instead?” She offers plainly. “You make up a vaccine, you give it to someone and you infect them and you just take notes as they suffer.”

Anna’s nostrils flare.

“We’re learning a lot,” Marlene says. “We don’t like it either but it needs to be done.”

“Two hundred and sixty times?” Ellie asks.

Tess swears.

“Where are you finding two hundred and sixty people to experiment on?” Joel says threateningly.

“We have to think about the future,” Anna says coldly.

“You’re monsters,” Ellie snarls.

Anna’s jaw tightens, she shakes her head as though she’s deciding the argument isn’t worth it and she walks away.

“They’re not good people, Joel,” Marlene says, rubbing her eyes. “Most of them are hunters and- and think of how many people we could save if we get this right.”

“We’re leaving in the morning,” Joel tells her. “Please go.”

And Marlene does.

Ellie sits stiffly on the bed, fidgeting with her hands as Joel and Tess talk circles around her.

“Human testing?”

“Hundreds of people.”

“What if they never find a vaccine? How many more will they go through?”

“I always knew the Fireflies were misguided but fuck.”

She zones out, disassociating more than anything else as she thinks about Riley and Sam, about hundreds of Rileys and Sams, about being cold and feverish and knowing what’s coming and not knowing how it would come.

She must fall asleep at some point because she wakes up to Tess stroking her hair and smiling sadly.

Joel and Tess have packed and they’re ready to leave.

It takes Ellie several sluggish moments, heartbroken and half asleep, to register than they mean to take her too.

“Really?” Ellie asks.

“Of course,” Tess says, like its nothing.

“We’re family,” Joel says, like its everything.

Ellie leaves with them.

Anna doesn’t really say goodbye and neither does Ellie.

It had felt like Anna was trying to build something between them, but she was really pretending something was already there. But there was nothing. No spark, no connection, no meaning. The journey had been worthless.

Ellie shouldn’t have run after someone who already left her.

Family was both complicated and simple.

Out of reach and sneaking up on her.

Her mother was nothing and no one, and the smugglers were now something and someone.

“It’s kinda pretty, ain’t it?” Joel says, gesturing to the snow-capped mountains surrounding them.

“Yeah, it’s gorgeous in Spring, Texas,” Tess grins, helping Ellie over a fence. “This whole area is covered in wildflowers.”

They’re on the outskirts of Jackson, almost back to where they were months previously. Months of danger and sleeplessness and darkness.

Risks and close calls.

For nothing.

“Sarah and I used to take hikes like this all the time,” Joel says easily. “I reckon the two of you would’ve been friends.”

Ellie nods along, thoughts elsewhere.

“Just a little bit further now,” Tess says eagerly, giving Ellie a boost onto a higher bit of ground.

Joel lends a hand to stabilise her and then pulls up Tess.

“Hey, wait,” Ellie says, looking out toward Jackson and then down at her hands. She sighs as she tries to find her words. “I’ve been meaning to tell you but, back in Boston… before I left, I was- I was somewhere I shouldn’t be with my friend. My best friend. She got bit and we didn’t know what to do so we tried to wait it out and she made me leave before she turned.”

“I’m sorry, Ellie,” Tess says quietly. “I know how hard that can be.”

“Do you think they-” Ellie rubs the back of her neck. “Do you think they’re still inside? Like they’re stuck?”

“No. No, Ellie I don’t,” Tess says. “I think they’ve moved on. They’re at peace.”

Joel is silent and awkward, but his eyes are kind.

“I’m sorry we went all that way for nothing, I-” Ellie falters, biting her lip. “You both risked so much and I don’t think I could have handled someone else dying or- or turning because of me.”

“Your friend’s death wasn’t your fault,” Tess says.

“I feel like it should have been me and not her,” Ellie admits.

“Ellie, I’ve struggled a long time with surviving,” Joel says. “But no matter what, you keep finding something to fight for.”

Ellie fidgets with her fingers, scratching at her arm. “I just-” She huffs. “I just feel like we fought through all of that for nothing. We came all this way and for what?”

“For you,” Joel says plainly.

Ellie tears up, nodding and sniffing and doing her best to keep it together.

Family is a complicated word until it isn’t, she’s never known it until she does, and she feels it constantly in Jackson.

In their meals together, in learning how to play guitar, in movie nights, in sharing books, learning how to swim, and to grow and move forward.

She tells them she loves them on her sixteenth birthday in an abandoned museum.

She tells Tess and Joel she likes girls the day that she decks someone for taunting her about Cat.

She goes hiking with Joel when she and Cat inevitably break up, finding peace in the open air.

She cries on Tess’s shoulder when Dina and Jesse get back together for the third time. A mess of complicated feelings loud in her chest.

Joel helps her practice playing her song for the end of harvest bonfire and Tess helps her pick out a shirt to wear to the town’s winter dance.

“I’m just a girl, not a threat,” Ellie says softly.

“Oh, Ellie, I think they should be terrified of you,” Dina murmurs. Her eyes are bright, she feels warm and perfect in Ellie’s arms, and she steals Ellie’s breath long before she kisses her.

She distantly hears someone calling out, too lost in the tenderness of the moment to register it properly.

“God, I-” Ellie laughs at herself and her breathlessness, eyes lingering on Dina’s affectionate smile before she kisses Dina again.

Once. Twice. Soundly and enthusiastically.

When she pulls back the second time, she notices Joel and Tess having words with Seth. They look angry and Maria seems to have put herself in the middle, mediating and ushering Seth outside.

Dina’s hand on her cheek makes her refocus.

“I’ve wanted to do that for a while,” Dina whispers playfully.

Ellie’s cheeks flush pink, smiling in disbelief, her fingers flexing on Dina’s lower back. “Me too,” Ellie admits shyly.

Dina leans her forehead against Ellie’s again, swaying them together slowly under the twinkling lights.

#i'm kinda both proud and self-conscious about this one #it was both a challenging and fascinating idea #my next fic is a continuation in the same world #don't think about that too hard #tlou2 fanfic #elliedina week #my writing

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angryschnauzer · 4 years

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Last Night on the Plain

Summary; As an archeology student at the end of your first year of University, you spend the summer on a dig in the South of England. Throughout the whole dig you’ve lusted after the site-lead; a fresh out of his doctorate Dr Cavill, assigned to the dig to get some leadership experience. Will the last night you spend on Salisbury Plain be one to remember?

(This fic is a prequel to my multichapter story Superior Specimen it can be read alone but contains spoilers for that story) Links for Superior Specimen: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9

Pairing: Grad Student Henry Cavill x 19 year old Female Reader

Warnings: NSFW, 18+, Mutual Pining, Professor/Student Relationship, Oral Sex, Blow Job, Fingering, Unprotected Sex. SPOILERS FOR Superior Specimen.

I do not operate a tag list, but if you follow @angryschnauzerwrites and put that blog onto notifications, you will get an alert every time i post a new fic.

Please check out my AO3 for masterlist.

Last Night on the Plain

Sitting on the kerb outside Iceland, the little town of Warminster was quiet on a Saturday afternoon. The Land Rover would soon be coming through to pick you and your friends up, the dig site lead having driven a few of you into town to collect supplies for the last night of the six week long dig.

Six weeks of living in tents, running to the nearby stream to dive into the Watercress filled waters and wash, rinsing your underwear in a bucket and hanging over guy ropes of the tents and hoping the cows in the next field over don’t lean over the fence and eat them, six weeks of celebrating the end of your first year of University.

You loved Archaeology, having studied hard for your A-Levels at college, you got the grades to go to Southampton University to study it. The dig would contribute towards your yearly grade, teaming up with other uni’s from around England, the excavations on the far west of Salisbury Plain in the south of England, and the project was to uncover settlements from when the giant pillars of Stonehenge were moved from their starting point in Wales and anything from the trade routes over the following millennia.

Your friend nudged you in the ribs, nodding to the vehicle heading towards the three of you;

“Hey hey, here comes Cav”

“Dibs on shotgun” you blurted out, your friends groaning at your speed at calling the front seat.

Standing, the three of you watched as the site lead pulled up to the kerb, his big smile at seeing you misfits waiting for him made your stomach do a little flip. He brought the Land Rover to a bumpy halt at the kerb, leaving the engine running as he got out and helped load the supplies into the back, reaching the front passenger door just in time to hold it open for you. You missed the way he looked at your ass as you climbed in, shutting the door after you.

The ride back to the dig site was bumpy; 30-year-old Land Rovers weren’t known for their comfort, the lack of seatbelts in the vintage vehicle not helping as the country roads and tracks were littered with potholes. You were painfully aware of the way your breasts were bouncing around, having foregone bras within the first week of the dig. They pinched and prodded you as you bent over excavating for hours on end and became an unnecessary addition to have to bother keep washing by hand.

On one particularly vicious bump you were bounced across the narrow bench seat, grabbing at Cav’s leg before you ended up headbutting the steering wheel. He apologetically smiled at you;

“Sorry…”

“S’ok”

You rode in silence for a while, the pair in the back deep in discussion about the merits of getting an upgrade from their Sony Ericsson’s to Blackberries. Finally your seatmate spoke;

“So, pink, huh Punk?”

You pulled at a strand of hair, holding it out from your head and grinned;

“The Sun-In turned it orange. Orange isn’t my colour”

“I left you in town for forty five minutes… how did you have time to dye your hair?” he said with a grin.

“It’s Cherry flavour Panda Pop. We stood in the alley behind Ladbrokes and poured a bottle over my hair”

He laughed, his toothy grin wide and genuine;

“That explains the smell”

“Hope you’re referring to the cherry and not the alley”

His face paled and he stuttered, before you grinned and gave his thigh a squeeze;

“I’m teasing”

He smiled and turned his attention back to the road, concentrating on the journey now that the paved roads had finished and it was now dusty tracks across the farmland. You watched as he steered the vehicle, and you knew he was going to be your only regret of the summer. Dr Cavill, or Cav as everyone called him on site, fresh having finished his doctorate in Palaeontology, but desperately in need of some leadership skills and experience on how to run a site dig. He was cute. Tall and fit, gorgeous blue eyes and high cheekbones, both of which were regularly hidden by his mop of soft chestnut brown hair. When he was deep in concentration he would nibble at his lip and it only made them plumper.

You were so in your little dream world that when he made the sharp right hand turn into the field the dig was in you lost your grip, your hand sliding from its spot on his thigh to in between his legs, your head low on his stomach;

“Oh!”

He slowed the Land Rover as you scrambled back to your seat, his cheeks flushed and pink.

“Sorry…”

The campfire was down to its last embers, the sun almost fully set. It was the last night of the dig and you were all celebrating. The finds had been fantastic, everything catalogued and recorded, friendships hatched and grown, sunburn peeling away to reveal soft skin, leave-in bleach hair sprays and nights of passing around a three litre bottle of White Lightning - the cheapest by volume cider you could find. Cav had excused himself to his tent, not often joining the students for the latter parts of drinking, and the nights argument was whether or not it was too late to walk the three miles to the Red Lion pub in Heytesbury.

“You guys go. I’m gonna take one last look at the north end trench, see if i can find my amethyst necklace I lost last week”

“Punk, you’re drunk, it’s getting dark too!”

“I’m not drunk, I’ve had a few sips of Cider, and I’ve got a head torch”

“Fine, suit yourself”

Brushing through the sandy soil you were yet to find your necklace, but as the friction under the brush suddenly changed you looked closer, smiling when you saw what was revealed.

Minutes later you stood at his tent, calling out;

“Cav? I’ve found something…”

He appeared in the doorway, the camping lantern illuminating his tent as it sat on the table where he would write his notes and inspect finds;

“Hey! What have you…” he saw the shards of pottery you were holding in your hands, his eyes going wide; “You found the last parts?”

Nodding you smiled. Throughout the dig the team had discovered finds from multiple era’s, and one he’d found was the majority of shards from a Roman Pot, an urn that would have been used to carry Olive Oil all the way from the southernmost parts of the Roman Empire. You knew that it had been frustrating him that all his attempts to reassemble the urn had failed, the missing pieces seemingly integral to the structure.

He pulled the tent flap to the side for you to enter, setting the pieces down onto the table before straddling the bench that sat beside it. Cav came over and grabbed the tray that held the other parts, a ball of blu-tack nestled in the corner;

“This is amazing! It looks like all the missing pieces are here!” he turned to you, his eyes shining bright in the glow of the lamp; “I thought you all were going to the pub?”

“I stayed… I wanted to have one last search for my necklace I lost last week”

“Oh… did you find it?”

“No. But this is so much better! C’mon, I wanna see if we can get this to fit together now!”

His long legs meant he could step over the bench with ease, sitting down next to you and you watched as he started to push the pieces together, cradling them in his large handspan. Softening the blu-tack he pulled a little off and applied it to the edge of a piece, angling his arm at an awkward angle, cursing under his breath;

“Could you…”

“Sure” taking the piece from him he held the fragile urn in both hands as you bent over his arms and stuck it into place, moving onto the next piece, this time near his hand furthest from you.

Due to the angles you were struggling to see, before you spoke quietly;

“Lean back a little”

He did as you asked, extending his arms to full stretch as he held the artefact, letting out a squeak of surprise as you tucked yourself under one arm, shuffling to straddling his lap and sit;

“Okay, now I can see what I’m doing…” you muttered as you pushed your ass back against him, the whole thing completely innocent, but you were unaware of the look of panic on his face, how he was afraid he was going to crack a tooth from gritting his jaw, willing his dick not to get hard.

He was now rendered to simply holding the urn in place, he was unable to concentrate, however you had taken over the placement of the new pieces, slotting them into their gaps, the blu-tack holding them secure. As you slid the final piece in you sat back, resting your back against his chest, smoothing your hands over his as you both took in the piece of pottery that dated back two millennia;

“It's stunning…” you muttered.

He softly brushed his thumbs over the sides of your hands, and you felt the warm puff of breath on your neck as he spoke;

“So are you…”

You let out a breathy sigh, your back arching and you could feel he was hard, the bulge against your ass pressing incessantly against you. Resting your head against his shoulder you turned your head and his lips caught your own. The world stopped and you saw stars as those soft pink pillows caressed your lips, moaning into his mouth and he took the chance to slip his tongue against yours.

Somehow the two of you managed to gently rest the delicate artefact back onto the tray in the midst of your fledgling passion, his hands intertwining with yours, fingers laced together as his tongue worked magic with your own.

When you broke the kiss you were gasping for air, his mouth finding your neck as he kissed along your exposed shoulder and neck, his sharp teeth dragging against your skin and making you moan;

“Oh… oh fuck… yes…”

He stopped for a moment, his hands still entwined with yours but he wrapped his arms around your body;

“Tell me to stop… tell me this is wrong, I’m your supervisor…”

“It’s the last night… let’s give ourselves this night… Just promise not to fall in love with me…”

“It may be too late for that already” he murmured against your skin, but you were lost in the haze of lust to comprehend his words.

Your hands finally parted, his slipping beneath your strappy t-shirt, yours reaching back to curl into his hair as his tongue danced patterns over your neck again. You were writhing on his lap, lost in the moment when suddenly the bench tipped, the two of you falling back and landing on the ground.

You moved first, rolling off before turning and straddling him, leaning over to catch his lips with your own as you ground your clothed core against the bulge in his tented shorts;

“I’ve wanted to feel you between my thighs for the last six weeks” you muttered against his earlobe, pressing kisses to his jawline as his hands found your ass and pulled you firmly down onto his body; “The amount of times I’ve gotten myself off in silence as I thought about sneaking into your tent…”

He could only let out a guttural moan, and as your hands found the edge of his t-shirt you parted so you could strip him of it.

You sat back, pressing yourself down harder against his growing erection as you admired his smooth and pale chest, the tiniest crop of hairs right in the centre, delicate muscle definition but still slim and athletic. You watched his face as you trailed your fingers down the length of his long body, finally brushing against the thin trail of hairs that led from his navel into his shorts. You shifted back a little, unfastening the button on his Khaki shorts and unzipping him, reaching into his underwear and grasping his hot length before pulling him free of the cotton confinements.

Bending you took him into your mouth, sliding your tongue over his hot flesh as you swallowed around him, bobbing your head up and down. His hands found your head, pressing gently to tell you the speed he liked, a string of curses falling from his lips as you rapidly drove him to the brink of pleasure. It didn’t take long until he let out an ‘uh-oh’ and you slid a hand up his stomach, his own grasping at it as he started to cum in your mouth. You swallowed all that he gave you, his back arching as he thrust up into the warm comfort between your lips, before his body went limp.

Pulling off him his hands gripped at your arms, pulling you up his chest until you were laying on top of him;

“You’ll need to give me a moment… then I’ll be right with you…”

You grinned and pressed a kiss to his bite swollen lips before standing, and he pushing himself up to rest on his elbows, a look of panic on his face before you grinned at him;

“Chill… just getting more comfy…”

You pulled your top off and dropped it to the ground, unfastening your combat shorts and let them fall too, kicking off your flipflops before you were standing there in just your knickers, your thumbs hooked over the sides before he finally spoke;

“I want to be the one to take those off…”

He quickly stood and pulled you over to the double air mattress he had in his tent, watching you lay back against his sleeping bag as he stripped himself of the rest of this clothing. As he climbed on he crawled up your body, and it was then that you saw the tiniest patch of brown in the sea of his blue eyes. You were mesmerized by it as he lay over you, your legs parting as he rutted against you, already growing hard again. He moved to your side and slid a hand down the length of your sternum, over your soft stomach and into your underwear, feeling how the thin cotton was soaked through with your arousal. Sitting up he pulled the ruined scrap of fabric down your legs, looking at your soaked petals as he parted them with his long fingers, finding your sensitive nub and rubbing delicate circles against it, before sliding his hand down and pushing two fingers into your soaked hole;

“Fuck… you feel so tight…”

“I need you… I need you inside me…”

“I don’t… I don’t have any protection…” he looked pained to admit what could be the stopping point of the night.

“I’m on the pill… been taking it continually so I didn’t get a period whilst on the dig…you can go bare…”

His eyes went wide, he’d had a number of lovers over his years at University, and he was well into his mid 20’s, but he had always used condoms, never wanting the girl to have to take the responsibility for their tryst… he had never gone bare but just at the mere thought of sliding into your heat, to feel your hot wetness against his skin, it made him as hard as a rock.

He scissored his fingers inside you before shifting, pulling them from you as he positioned himself between your thighs, the light from the lantern casting long shadows over your bodies. He rested his tip against your folds, taking a moment to lick your juices from his fingers, then with a smirk he started to press into you.

With each passing inch your eyes fluttered shut, not realising you were missing the look on his face as he found heaven between your legs. The feel of your pussy around him was almost suffocating, hugging him so tight as he slid in with ease from your arousal;

“Oh my god… you feel so fucking good… you’re gonna have to tell me how you like it, cos’ I don’t think I’m going to last long…” he muttered.

Wrapping your hand around the back of his neck, you pulled him down for a fierce kiss, all teeth and tongues whilst your body grew accustomed to his impressive length inside you, the biggest you had ever taken;

“Hard and fast, I was made to be broken… break me…”

At your words something changed in him, pushing his body onto his arms as he started to rut into you, watching your juices shine on his dick as he pulled out, only to slam back in as your body took every inch of him, your silken channel hugging him tight. The tent was filled with the wet slap of skin on skin, and knowing you were the only ones on site your voices rose, your moans filling the night sky.

Your body was bucking beneath him, shaking from pleasure and he could tell he wasn’t going to last much longer. He desperately wanted to feel you come around him, pushing a hand between your bodies he rubbed furiously at your clit, feeling your body tighten and your back arch, and as you came your body trembled around him.

The feeling was indescribable, he was so deep in pleasure that when his back arched and he came deep inside you he let out a roar, his eyes screwed shut as he filled you with his come, finally going limp, his arms shaking from the exertion of holding himself above you. You wrapped your arms around his shoulders and pulled him on top of you, burying your face in his neck as you breathed in his scent.

Finally finding his voice he whispered quietly;

“Stay with me tonight”

Wrapped in the sleeping bag and blankets you did just that, curled up in his arms and the warmth of his embrace.

Henry was woken by the sounds of the camp being broken down, the crews from the various universities packing up their things as the minibuses arrived to take them back to the halls of residences or shared houses. He was alone in his bed, and as he sat up he could hear your voice yelling out to your tent-mates to ‘pick up your fucking stuff’.

In the hours that followed various vehicles turned up on site, his own supervisors, benefactors and sponsors of the dig, all very excited by the finds and reports, and especially of the assembled Roman Urn. At every moment he tried to get away, tried to find a moment to talk to you, but as the minutes and hours ticked by the window was closing.

You were all packed up, everything in the old minibus. Every time you had looked across the site he was talking to someone important looking, never getting a moment where he was alone. The driver of your minibus honked the horn and you panicked;

“Hang on, I’ve just got one more thing to do…”

You ran across the site and he saw you, excusing himself from the people he was talking to and managed to intercept you behind the old Ford Transit van that was taking the equipment away. He wrapped his arms around you and pressed a kiss to your lips;

“I didn’t want you to leave before I got to say goodbye”

Your bottom lip trembled, your voice shaking;

“I’ve left my number on a piece of paper on your table, its tucked under the tray with the urn on”

He let out a sigh of relief, nodding before kissing you again, the sound of your minibus driver honking the horn impatiently.

You reluctantly pulled out of his arms, giving him a final wave before running to the bus, and he watched from the side of the van as you climbed in, the vehicle driving off into the distance as a cloud of dust trailed behind it.

“Henry!” an older male voice called out cheerfully.

Rubbing his palms over his face he took a deep breath, before turning and smiling at his supervising professor;

“Hey, good to see you Sir”

The older man clapped a hand over Henry’s shoulder;

“You’ve done an amazing job on this dig… the reports that came in have been exemplary. You had all the same students at the end of the dig as at the start which I’ll have you know is a particular skill… some site leads drive students away in droves!”

Leading Henry back towards the dig site he waxed lyrical about Henry’s skill and how he showed true leadership skills, turning to another gentleman that was leaning against Henry’s Land Rover;

“Have you met Piers?”

Henry shook his head, he knew who he was being introduced to, the CEO of the most prestigious museum in the UK and some would say the world with regards to Archaeology and Palaeontology. Shaking the man’s hand he was speechless;

“We’ve been following the dig reports, your talent is something I haven’t seen for many years… we’d like to discuss a position on our expedition board with you…”

“Y-yes… that would be fantastic! Thank you”

“Now, let’s see that Roman urn I’ve been hearing all about…”

Leading the men to his tent he lifted the tray, pulling it out into the sunshine as they took in the beauty of it, no-one noticing the small scrap of paper catch on the wind and slipping out of the tent, Henry too distracted by the reality of being hired for his dream job.

Many Years Later.

Henry grinned as his team crowed around him, the heat of the Siberian Summer seeping into their pores. In broken Russian the students were laughing and shouting, before three of them carried the massive femur bone they’d excavated a few days previously over to Henry, heaving it into his massive arms.

“Smile!” someone shouted out and he heard the clicks of phone camera shutters, before he gently rested it onto the soft ground, chatting to the team as he did so.

That night they hit the bars of the nearest town, Henry smiling when he saw one had wifi, connecting his phone and uploading a few updates to the dig account and also his own. An hour later he checked his phone and saw his Instagram notifications, one account name in particular catching his attention; @thepunkwiththepinkhair

It couldn't be, could it?

It was. It was you. The pink may be gone, but he had finally found you again.

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

Thank you for reading!

Some explanations of British shops/brands;

Iceland = a budget supermarket chain

White Lightning = cheap, harsh apple cider, sold in bottles that are 3000ml/a gallon for around £5.00 (USD7/EURO6)

Panda Pop = very cheap fizzy drink, full of additives, artificial colours, sugar.

Ladbrokes - a chain of gambling shops.

Sun-in - spray in hair bleach that you would spritz on your hair and go out in the sunshine, and it would bleach your hair. Apparently it was meant to give you ‘sun kissed highlights’, but when i was 18 i turned my hair bright orange with it.

In the UK University starts when you are 18, and a degree lasts 3 or 4 years. You can then do a ‘post graduate course’ which is another year of studying, and if you want to work towards your doctorate, it can be another 4-7 years on top of that, which is why Henry in this story is literally fresh out of studying even though he is approximately 25 years old.

#henry cavill #henry cavill x reader #henry cavill x you #henry cavill smut

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king-paimon · 2 years

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Ok. This post isn’t hnk related at all but I feel compelled to write this anyways because I feel really exhilarated right now. So... There’s this show that I’ve been obsessing over for a year now and new season teasers have been popping up non-stop and... my emotions are all over the place.

I’ll be honest when I say that this show has been my main source of serotonin, dopamine, comfort, and excitement for a long time. It’s beautifully animated with great characters and the show overall is just so much fun! I’m so grateful that I stumbled on it when I did because it honestly helped me get through this last year for various reasons.

I really wanted to make posts and reblog a lot of stuff from this show on my blog here but I didn’t. I guess I didn’t want to scare off my followers with me spamming about this show non-stop, but I know that shouldn’t have stopped me. Should I make a now blog just so I can openly gush about this? Maybe. Or maybe I should just bombard you guys with posts about this show because why not? I love this show so much it’s unhealthy and I wanna show it to y’all! ... Hm. But I think making another blog or two would be a better choice. I’ve honestly been thinking of making another blog to post other stuff but I’ve been so busy and it felt like a hassle to do. I’ll figure that out soon.

But seriously, I love this show so much that it re-inspired me to look into the original source material that inspired it. I remember wanting to read the original story years ago but life got in the way and it’s still in the way. But thanks to this show, my interest in the original source materialAnd it was through this show that I finally understood what a comfort character is because I now have one. I love all of the characters in this show, but my goodness, this one character.... my goodness. Every time I see his face I just can’t help smiling! He makes me so happy I love him so much! I’ve had crushes on fictional characters before, though mainly when I was young, but this hits different.

And I’ve seen this character depicted in other shows and media and though I love some of his other iterations, how he is depicted in this show...its perfect.

Aaaaaah I’m so excited for this show’s new season, especially I’m going to be seeing more of my comfort character, but I’m also so freakn’ scared for him and everyone in the show! And I swear if something bad happens to him, I’m going to lose it!

Sorry for this long winded post.

I’m essentially saying that I’m very excited for the new season of Lego: Monkie Kid and my comfort character is nonother than the famous Monkey King himself, Sun Wukong!

Look at him. Him and his stupid smug monkey face. He is perfect and I love him to death.

When I’m done with school, I’m so going to spend my whole summer reading “Journey to the West.”

#personal thoughts #not hnk related #going crazy #love this show #love this character #comfort character #i'm excited #AND SCARED #lego monkie kid #lmk #lmk sun wukong #look at him #sun wokung #lmk monkey king #monkie kid #monkey king #jttw

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hyperfocus-museum · 4 years

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Tori Vega

As someone who is very new to Victorious, having just watched it for the first time at the end of February and nearing the end of a third re-watch now, I have a lot of thoughts about Tori.

When I watched the show for the first time, I’ll be honest. I hated Tori. I went into the show as a Jade stan, having watched plenty of compilations and listened to others’ opinions on her which, as a very suggestible person, definitely influenced the way I saw her. Then I read a lot of stuff on both sides of the debate and decided to re-watch the show objectively.

Y’all.

Tori Vega doesn’t deserve all of the hate she gets. She doesn’t deserve hate at all, as a matter of fact. This is going to focus in mainly on Jade and Tori since most of the hatred for Tori seems to stem from her treatment of Jade which, as I’ll show, has its’ reasons.

To start from the beginning: the stage kiss with Beck in the pilot.

The first thing one has to remember is that Tori literally did nothing to Jade. She accidentally bumped into Beck and was trying to make up for her mistake by attempting to get the coffee stain out. Sure, she had a brain glitch at the cute boy smiling at her, who wouldn’t, especially when you’re touching their chest?

Jade completely overreacted, as she often does; making Tori play a dog should have been punishment enough, but pouring coffee over the head of a new girl in her first minutes at a new school is just cruel and unnecessary.

The stage kiss? Not Tori’s finest moment but it was her standing up to a bully. It was her way of telling Jade that she wouldn’t be pushed around and, if we want to point fingers, what about Beck? Tori owed Jade nothing at that point; nothing. She didn’t even know anything about her but her name and the fact that she was overly possessive of Beck.

Beck, however, has been dating Jade for almost two years. He should know her insecurities, how jealous she gets, and he could have easily refused the kiss because he should have known that it would hurt Jade.

But instead, Jade and most of the fandom seem to lay all of the blame at Tori’s feet. I’ve only ever seen one person (publicly, at least) point out that Beck is really the one at fault in this instance and that’s really sad, honestly. And it’s a recurring problem throughout the series, people blaming Tori for things that either aren’t her fault or that she tries to make amends over as soon as she realizes what she’s done.

In fact, there’s only one instance I can remember where she was in the wrong but didn’t apologize, and honestly, even it’s understandable. Let’s skip ahead and talk about Prome Wrecker, shall we?

Prome Wrecker is a really misjudged episode, in my opinion. People act as though Tori deliberately set out to ruin Jade’s performance, but she didn’t. Honestly, Jade sabotaged herself. Imagine being a playwright and gathering tons of supplies and putting loads of preparation into a performance, including printing out flyers, but not booking the space.

Now, I’m not saying that Tori was in the right to insist on having her prome, but I’m sure we can all agree that the experience taught Jade something about responsibility.

And, the truth of the matter is, sometimes Tori fights back and it’s usually when Jade comes in, guns blazing, demanding that Tori do something. Just off the top of my head, I can give you this episode and Brain Squeezers as an example. Tori has anger problems, this is canon. She hulks out sometimes and does things she’ll later regret, this is also canon. This episode is one of those times.

Jade comes in, even more antagonistic than usual, and orders Tori to cancel her prome. Tori gets pissed and refuses and then Jade does everything she can to sabotage the actual prome.

Where am I going with this? Simple: the reason that Tori never apologizes to Jade about this is because Jade never gives her a chance to feel bad about it. Rather, Jade is constantly pushing the issue and stoking the flames of her anger without giving her a chance to settle down and think about it rationally.

They’re both at fault here.

Honestly, I could go on and on but this is probably long enough.

But I do wanna say one more thing.

Tori Vega coming to Hollywood Arts is the best thing that could have happened to Jade West.

“No one talks to me like that!”

“Obviously someone should.”

The truth about Jade West is that, as much as she hates it, she needs someone to challenge her, to call her out on her bullshit and to fight back.

She is surrounded by yes men; even her own boyfriend is frustratingly patronizing and lets her get away with murder. Everyone is too scared of her to fight back and so she stays bitter and cruel and mean and with no one she can really count on... until Tori comes along.

Tori isn’t afraid to fight back; she doesn’t just sit there and take Jade’s abuse, but she doesn’t try to change her either. She accepts Jade the way she is but still believes she can be a better person.

And that, my friends, is why it’s Tori that Jade chooses to go to in Jade Dumps Beck. She’s hurting and in desperate need of help and she chose Tori. Ever wonder why? Well.

Tori is the only person Jade’s ever pushed who didn’t go. She’s the only person who fought back against her cruelty with kindness, who dared to tell Jade West that she could be nice to her sometimes. She’s the only person who hasn’t met Jade’s intimidation tactics with fear but with kindness and understanding instead, even when she has every reason in the world to hate her.

Jade knows that she can go to Tori and be herself in a way that she can’t with anyone else because Tori’s proven that she can be trusted, whether Jade likes it or not. She can take off her mask with her and still feel safe.

And, by the end of the series, the better person we see Jade becoming?

That’s all Tori’s influence and encouragement and the way that she believes in her.

Tori Vega is absolutely, 110% the influence Jade West needed in her life and the entire show really is about their journey. I’m just forever sad that it was cut short.

In conclusion, now that this has turned into my usual ADHD mess of a ramble, Tori Vega is no angel but she doesn’t deserve 99% of the hate she gets for being the protagonist of a kid’s show. She makes mistakes, sure, but she almost always apologizes and tries to fix them. So much of what she gets blamed for is misplaced blame at its’ worst and it feels like Jade blaming her for them getting locked behind the lasers in Wanko’s Warehouse to me.

Try watching Victorious through objective eyes next time, paying extra attention to Tori. She just might surprise you.

And, all of this being said, if you just don’t like her because you think she’s boring or any other reason, that’s fair. This post isn’t directed at you.This post is for the people who will see Beck kiss a girl in front of his overly jealous and possessive girlfriend and blame the girl. This is for the people who think Jade West can do no wrong even though she almost (and should have, realistically speaking) killed Tori over a stupid lead in a play.

I love Jade, I really do; she’s my favorite character but she’s a terrible human being. I’m just sick of her getting away with all the shit she does to Tori and the second Tori fights back, she’s getting hated on. It’s not fair.

Victorious isn’t made up of perfect characters, far from it. Tori has her faults as much as the rest of them, but somehow she gets all of the hate and I just had to say something.

Thanks for coming to my TED Talk, please help yourself to cookies and Wahoo Punch on your way out.

#victorious #tori vega #tori vega defense squad #tori vega defense squad rise up #jade west #a rant #character analysis #ship analysis #jori #jade x tori #tori x jade #i have a lot of feelings #and i'm quarantined #so I figured why not #it needed to be said

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goodwriterwithbadhabits · 4 years

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March 15th

Master List

**Before you read this, I gotta say, this is my favorite story I wrote this year, it was so much fun to write and I really hope you like it!**

“Incoming mail ship.” Wonpil’s head shot up so fast, he smacked it on the duct he was repairing. “Ship docking in port 14. Let’s remain calm this time folks, the captain doesn’t want any more incident reports before we get home.” At the sound of his friend’s voice over the intercom, Wonpil, let go of the screwdriver he was holding, letting it float next to the open duct cover.

“Chan, I’m expecting a package, and it’s super important.”

“From your wife, right?” The younger man inquired, kicking off from the wall to propel himself towards his superior. Wonpil can’t help the grin on his face.

“Yeah, I got a transmission from her a month ago saying she sent me something, so I’m expecting it soon.” Both men grinned at this. “So I’ve gotten the last of the wiring soldered, but I need you to recoat it, troubleshoot and run a final diagnostics, and if I’m not back by the time that’s done, put the panel back in place and send me the reports.” Chan salutes, a cheesy grin on his face.

“Yes sir, take your time boss.” Wonpil nods, moving to the closed door at the end of the hall.

“Sector 113, gravity activated.” Both boys boots thump onto the floor, followed by the clank of multiple tools. Wonpil leaves the corridor quickly, turning the gravity back off and gives Chan one more salute before making his way to the ports.

The I.S.S Moonrise was the first ship of its kind, a high tech, orbital colony floating in the vastness of space, just past the edge of the Milky Way, a months journey from most of the inhabitant’s home planet of Earth. Wonpil was one of the lucky ones, only on the station for 18 months, 20, if you include the 2 months of travel to get there and back. As the current head of engineering, he got a lot more free reign of the station than most of its inhabitants, which were a mix of scientists, farmers, and historians.

“Paging Kim Wonpil, where are you Pil?” The voice over his comms made him roll his eyes.

“Why are you using the comms to annoy me, Jae?”

“First of all, it’s hyung.”

“No one’s used that term in almost 50 years, give it a rest.”

“Then it’s lieutenant.” The man whined.

“Then you should be calling me Chief Engineer,” Wonpil retorted, opening the hangar doors.

“Whatever, look Jihyo won't let me grab your package for you.” Wonpil felt like vibrating as he made his way to the group surrounding the mailing ship.

“No need, I’m right here.” The crowd opens for him to walk through, most either recognizing Wonpil, or the silver stripes on his uniform. He’s shocked to find Jihyo holding a package, as captain of the Hermes, she usually remained in the cockpit while Chaeyoung and Tsuyu handled the mail.

“I could have delivered it to him, Jihyo.” Jae whines, flipping through the letters he’d received, no doubt from his parents and sister.

“No can do, Y/n made me promise this box would go from my hand to his.” She punctuated her sentence by placing the small box in Wonpil’s outstretched hand.

“She came in person then?” Jihyo nodded, grinning as he signed for the mail.

“And she also wanted me to give you this.” She leaned forward, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek, making his face flush red.

“Aish,” He huffed, hiding his burning face behind his hands as those around them laughed.

“Come on kid, the Captain asked us to join him for lunch.” Jae slung his arm over Wonpil’s shoulder, though the smaller man simply knocked it away from him, turning back to Jihyo.

“I’m actually sending something today,” He told her, pulling a small box from his pocket. “Make sure she gets it okay?”

“No problem.” Jihyo nodded, “Want me to give her a kiss for you?” Wonpil couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up.

“No, we’ll save those for when I get home.”

“See you in two months, Wonpil.”

“See you then, Ji.” He saluted the woman, before finally letting Jae lead him to Sungjin’s office. Wonpil decided to open the package during lunch, knowing full well that Brian and Dowoon would want to know what you had sent him.

“Good afternoon Lieutenant Park, Chief Kim.” The robotic voice greeted as the two entered the spacious room Sungjin and the other two boys were sitting in.

“Nothing is as beautiful as a sunset on Earth, the west coast of America has the best views,” Brian told the youngest boy, who shook his head.

“No chance, Olympian sunsets are better,” Dowoon argued. Brian turned to his best friend and eternal roommate.

“Jae, which is better, West Coast Sunsets or Olympian sunsets?” Jae shrugged, dropping into his seat next to him.

“Never been to Olympia, so I say West Coast.”

“What about you, Jin?” The Captain paused mid-bite, to sigh.

“I didn’t want to be brought into this argument. You argue Earth vs Mars every week.” He grumbled.

“Then I will end the argument.” Wonpil decided, setting the box on the table. The boys gasped, Dowoon bouncing in his chair.

“Is that from Y/n?” He asks, earning a nod from Wonpil. “Open it then,” Sungjin ordered, setting down his burger. Wonpil complied happily, and the contents made his heart clench. Resting in the box was a very small pair of shoes, knitted yellow booties, and a small SD card in a plastic case.

“Oh, she was so little.” Jae cooed, picking up the tiny shoes.

“They must be the shoes she came home in.” Wonpil realized, “She’s almost a year old.” He sighs, picking up the SD card. “Do you mind, Captain?” He asks, and Sungjin nods, tapping the table to expose the port.

“Go ahead, I want to see the little one.” He grins. Wonpil inserts the card, and a second later a hologram of his wife, sitting on a bed with a very small child on her lap appears above the table.

“Oh look at her,” Brian coos. “She’s getting so big.” Wonpil can’t help his smile as he rests his arm on the table, his head following.

“Hi, babe, and hello boys.” The recording begins. “Since I know the Captain will ask you to play this for him.” She grins, glancing down at the baby on her lap. “Will you say hello to Daddy and your Uncles?” She asks, earning a few baby sounds and a laugh from her daughter. She looks back up, smiling at the camera. “Hyebin says hi.” She giggles. “By the time you get this video, we’ll be celebrating her first birthday. My mom insists on getting her a smash cake.” Wonpil lets out a small laugh, remembering the mess that ensued from his oldest daughter’s first birthday. “And your parents are coming over to celebrate too, they know how much we all miss you.”

“Is that Daddy?” Another small voice fills the speakers and you look away from the camera, shaking your head.

“No baby, we’ll call him tomorrow, I’m filming a message for him though, would you like to say hello to him?” A second later, the tiny face of his oldest daughter filled the entire screen, making the boys laugh. “Too close Hyerin, everyone’s gonna be able to see up your nose.” The boys laugh again as the little girl lets out a tiny squeak and darts over to her mother’s legs.

“Hi, Daddy!” She waves. “I miss you! And uncle Dowoon. Mom says I have to be at least 10 before I can go with you to space.” She pouts the last few words.

“Why don’t you tell Daddy what you want to be when you grow up?”

“I wanna be a pilot! My teacher let us play on the simulator at school and I kept the plane up the longest.” You giggled at your daughter's excitement.

“I told her she had to wait until Sungjin was home for a week before she was allowed to go bother him.” You shifted, bringing Hyebin up to rest on your shoulder. “Rin, do you remember how old Bin is?”

“She’ll be a year old on the 19th next month.” Rin nodded, climbing onto the bed next to her mother.

“And how old will she be when daddy gets home?”

“16 months.”

“So how many months till Daddy gets home?” Rin pauses, counting on her fingers.

“Five!” She finally exclaims, looking to her mom for confirmation.

“Exactly.” You nod, patting Hyebin’s back as she begins to fuss. “Rin, can you do Mommy a favor and go get Binnie’s pacifier out of her bed?”

“The elephant, right.”

“That’s right, thank you, baby.” You watch for a moment as the little girl runs out of the room. “Oh, and I forgot to tell you, Lilo had her puppies, most of them have been adopted, but I’m letting Rin keep one so she has her own pet.” You smile, “And don’t worry Dowoon, we saved you a puppy as well, she’s staying with us until you get home.” Dowoon cheers, making the boys laugh. “I’ll be going back to work soon, turns out the mission to the probe is ahead of schedule, they want me there when the repairs begin, oh and babe, the shoes in the box, they’re the shoes Bin was brought home in, my grandmother made them, I thought you might like something from home for your desk, just don’t forget to bring them home with you, or my mom might fly out there and mug Brian for them.” Brian huffs, setting the yellow boots on the table. Rin comes back into the room, hands her mother the pacifier, and climbs back onto the bed. “Do you want to say anything else to daddy?”

“I miss you! And don’t feel bad that you won’t be here on my birthday. Mommy said you’ll be closer to me then than ever before, and that we’ll be able to see you from the control room.” Her grin falls into an exaggerated glare. “But don’t be late coming home, and don’t get hurt okay?” She points a stern finger at the camera.

“Do you want to say bye?” You prompt.

“Bye-bye Daddy, I’ll see you soon.” She waves, a grin that makes her look like Wonpil on her face.

“Bye babe, I love you. Stay safe okay?” You pick up Bin’s tiny hand, waving it to the camera. “Say bye to Daddy Binnie.” You let go of her hand, blowing a kiss to the camera. “Come home soon.” With a final set of waves from you and Rin, the recording ends.

Wonpil’s face is wet, he knows he’s crying, and he isn’t even ashamed of it as he hides his face in the crook of his arm.

“I know why Wonpil’s crying, why am I crying?” Dowoon mutters. “Why are you crying?” Wonpil looks up to find the youngest man pointing to Brian, who is wiping his eyes on the cuff of his sleeve.

“Rin’s gotten so big.” He mutters, earning chuckles from the boys.

“How do you think I feel?” Wonpil asks, wiping his own eyes. “She’s gonna be seven the day I leave.”

“I can’t wait to get back to Earth.” Jae sighs, “I miss my friends.”

“I miss New York Pizza.” Sungjin sighs and all the boys groan in agreement.

“Here’s a deal, when we get home, let’s go out for pizza, bring your families or whatever, we can go to Escape From New York.” Wonpil offers. “Maybe not the first night home, Y/n might kill me if I try leaving the house.” There’s another chorus of laughs. “Oh man, three months till we leave.” Sungjin sighs. “I don’t know if I’m ready.”

“Not ready to give up command yet?” Brian jokes. Sungjin shakes his head.

“It’s not that, it’s…” He trails off, unsure of what to say.

“Here, everything we do means something incredible.” Dowoon begins, and the botanist looks away from the older boys, shy as ever. “Grow a plant and its next-gen Astro-terraforming, find a microbe in some nebula get to watch a species be born. Every message sent out to the probes, the colonies, it’s all integral to GASEX and the future of human and Xeno interactions. Back home, Mars, Earth, wherever the hell Jae is from.”

“Literally just the lunar colony.”

“Back home, yeah we’re respected, but the things we do, they aren’t breakthroughs, it’s just humans doing human things.” Dowoon finishes.

“Unless you’re Wonpil, then you go from repairing a spaceship to building them.” Jae jokes, lightening the mood. Wonpil feels his face heat up as he removes the SD card from the table port.

“Not for too long.” He confesses. “I’ve worked out a schedule, 11 months on, 11 home until the girls are old enough to join me here.” He tells them, earning cheers. “What about you, coming back anytime soon?”

“I will be. Come January I’m back on the Artemis.” Sungjin tosses a fry in his mouth. “And then I’m really Captain Sungjin again.”

“I’ll be on Earth for a few weeks before heading back to Mars.” Dowoon begins, stealing one of Sungjin’s fries. “I think I’ll be back here in 13 Earth months.” He shrugs.

“Well Jae and I aren’t leaving Earth anytime soon. Not till the coming March, I’m lecturing at Incheon BioCenter for a while and he’s gonna be teaching some languages over at The Seoul Communications Institute.” Brian gestures to Jae who grins, flashing a peace sign.

“So that puts us all back here, coming March?” Sungjin asks.

“Following January. I’ll be the last one back.” Wonpil informs him.

“So three months, technically four, and then we can avoid each other until then.” Brian jokes. “Here’s to avoiding you all until ‘56 then.”

The cabin is filled with the clinking of their glasses and for a moment, everything is normal.

Three months pass quickly, and soon finds Wonpil leaving the ship in the capable hands of Chirs Bang, Im Jaebeom becoming the temporary captain of the Moonrise and Jae successfully shutting up long enough to make his kissing the girl he’d been crushing on goodbye, something out of a romance novel. Wonpil watched his box of belongings, everything he’d collected from different planets and trade ships, being loaded onto the small ship that would carry him home with a heavy heart. This was one of those moments of belonging two places and having to choose between them.

And then they were setting off, Sungjin expertly piloting them back to the Milky Way, Jae standing as communications, and Jinyoung as navigation. The month passed in the blink of an eye, between rousing card games, basic repairs, and quiet conversations about home, and soon, they were whizzing past Mars, with Dowoon’s face glued to the porthole.

“This is the S.S. Artemis, we’re just outside Earth’s Atmo, ETA 6 minutes.” Jae’s professional voice barely masked his glee as he watched the sun peek over the planet’s edge.

“Welcome back to the Milky Way, Artemis. How do we look, Lieutenant Park?”

“Blue, and beautiful.” Jae breathed. “Feels good to be home.”

“Let’s get through atmo first.” Jinyoung chided. “Then we can celebrate.”

“Right, ladies and gentlemen, begin reentry preparation.” Sungjin’s command echoed through the small craft’s intercom. “We land in Seoul Spaceport in 6 minutes, let’s not be late.”

The first person off the ship was Sungjin, who earned a round of applause as he paused at the top of the exit stairs. He was followed quickly by Jae, who flung himself onto the nearest tree, hugging it like a lost lover. Wonpil was among the last to set foot on dry land, and he had the strongest urge to just lay in a flowerbed for a few hours. Instead, he dropped his sunglasses over his eyes and shouldered his bag, following the other engineers towards the flashing cameras.

“I see them!” The shrill voice of his daughter made Wonpil break into a grin, dropping to his knees and opening his arms for a hug. He watched his daughter fly past him, directly into Dowoon, and before he could react he found himself flat on his ass, a furry body pressed into his chest.

“Hello Lilo, how’s my girl been?’ He greeted the border collie, accepting the kisses she was planting on his chin. “Oh yes, I missed you too.” Finally dislodging the dog, he turned, finding Hyerin chattering excitedly to Dowoon while Brian laughed at him from a distance. Standing he snuck up to the girl, picking her up unexpectedly, making her shriek and giggle. “What do you think you’re doing?” He asked, spinning her around. “Daddy!” She cried, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing his cheek. “I didn’t see you.”

“Did you really, or did you get distracted by Dr. Yoon?” Your voice made Wonpil turn quickly, grin expanding so much it hurt. There you were, after 20 long months, hair pulled mostly away from your face, sunglasses perched on the crown of your head, and his baby sleeping on your chest.

“Please, Y/n, just call me Dowoon, you make it so formal,” Dowoon whined, but Wonpil wasn’t really listening. He surged forward, still holding Rin, free hand coming up to your face to pull you in for a long-awaited kiss.

“I have seen the cosmos, more nebulas than I can count, and the birth of hundreds of stars, and nothing, nothing compares to seeing you again.” He whispered, pressing his forehead to yours.

“Except maybe Pizza,” Jae whispered, leaning on your shoulder. The group began laughing, and you gave Wonpil one more kiss before turning to the other boys.

“Welcome home boys.” You grinned, giving each one a hug and introducing them to Hyebin who had just woken up. Rin remained firmly attached to Dowoon’s leg once let on the ground and Wonpil couldn’t even be upset, especially once his arms were quickly filled with Hyebin.

“Hello, little one.” He grinned, watching the way her eyes grew big as he spoke. “My little Binnie, you have a whole galaxy in your eyes, and the universe at your fingertips.” He cooed and the little girl giggled, her chubby fingers going to grab his cheek.

“And lucky for us, we have stardust in our veins.” You piped in, arm coming to wrap around your husband’s side as you all walked to your car.

“For now, let’s just keep our boots on solid ground, sound good?” He asked, and you looked up at him, shooting him a wink and the kind of smile that made him fall for you in the first place.

“Galactic.”

#day6 imagines #day6 imagine #day6 wonpil #kim wonpil #wonpil imagines #wonpil imagine #space au

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kazemari · 6 years

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Queenscrown's construction

This is the story of how I came to the concept to the Targaryen castle of Queenscrown from my Game of Thrones AU, the Court of Bastards.

Summary: Stannis takes Daenerys Stormborn of House Targaryen from her mother’s dying arms and raises her as his ward. The New King Robert Baratheon, first of his name, decides that her fate is to wed with shame, making her family line continue in disgrace by pairing her to his friend’s bastard, Jon Snow, despite Eddard Stark’s initial refusal.

If you haven’t read it but is interested, maybe check this out after reading at least the second chapter. If you haven’t read it and is not interested, please ignore this. If you have read it, then welcome to ramblings on my AU.

(I had to use a LOT of images from a lot of different sources. I will link them for you all, and put the owner’s name if I can find them.)

Okay, so, to ‘build’ the stronghold, first I had to have an idea of what the original, canon-verse area would be like. There were the TV show’s concept and many of artists who captured their version of Queenscrown based, mainly, on the books’ description of it.

This is Queenscrown by Michael Komarck, being approached by Bran and his company after escaping from Winterfell.

As you can see, the tower is on the lake, on a tiny piece of land, which made my life so much more difficult because; How the hell am I to make a castle there?! But I liked the difficulty and the area surrounding it was nice and would better fit the story. You can see the forest and the mountains, which are so IMPORTANT for the Plot, in the background.

In CoB, at its first draft, the tower was destructed and in that tiny piece of land was planted the godswood, which resides at the centre of the castle. From there on, I tried to build the castle and its surroundings AKA the greenhouses, the barracks, Queen’s Town, the defending walls, etc, etc.

The first draft did not include all of these things as I focused only on the castle itself seen from above. Now, keep in mind that this is only the first version of the Queenscrown I pictured and is not the final castle I envision.

Now, you look at this messy drawing and may not understand. Yeah, I got you. So I’ll translate it for you.

The godswood itself is at the centre of the castle and its land was the initial tower that formed the previous Queenscrown, the small island is filled with winter roses and a weirwood. It’s really small and around it, there is water, almost like a moat, that comes from small channels that run through the keep. These channels are made of metal, which is heated by fire in various points in the castle, and the hot metal warms the water and thus the keep. To access the godswood there are small stairs that go down from the inner castle balconies to it. There are various balconies viewing the godswood (8).

(1) The curtain walls built around the castle were in the water but not directly connected to the castle. Only one point connected land, castle and walls; the gatehouse(5), which, in this first draft, I made it so there was a drawbridge on the end of the bridge that connected the castle to land, and the bridge and the castle itself was very above the water level of the lake. After passing the bridge and approaching the gatehouse and passing the portcullis (that metal door that closes and opens vertically) you entered the castle itself. Unlike most of the castles we’ve seen, there is no actual courtyard, but I plan un further updating it so that there is a courtyard.

(4) A piece of land on water level (1) is used as a training yard and overlooked by (6) the Great Hall of the keep (if you wanna go overboard, the ‘Throne Room’), the area is also used for the family’s leisure. The Great Hall is on the highest level other than the towers(2), solars(7) and the main keep(3), taking the entirety of the upper level of the East Wing and having a glass ceiling. (Though, now that I think of it, it should be further away from the main keep. So, let’s just switch it to the West Wing ok? Ok.)

The main keep(3) is the noble family’s chambers and the highest tower of the castle. At its top, there is a terrace filled with roses. It is connected to the lady and the lord’s chambers. All five towers within the castle are solars, but the two closest to the Main Keep belongs to the lord and lady of Queenscrown each.

There you have it, the first draft of the castle! Moving on to the second draft, I pictured the castle and its surrounds, because I came to the conclusion that no town could survive without protection. Ned gave The Targaryens the gift with the hope of populating it despite the wildlings’ attacks, and so the people needed protection too. From this idea, I created the second draft.

Unorganized and making little sense, the main idea behind this was to give QC districts, which were divided by kingdoms. That created seclusion though, and prejudice would rise quickly as people wouldn’t mingle as much. The streets were also inefficient, the urban planning abysmal and the crops too small to sustain such a huge place. Water was also not distributed well and if people do not have water and food, they will not procreate.

There was also the matter of the castle itself;

It still had remnants of the first draft, centralising the godswood and being in the water, with a more round shape. The difference was that the walls were pushed into the castle itself, opening the lake for the people and city pollution. Again, the water planning here is not good.

For the third draft, I focused first on the city planning itself.

Though on a smaller scale, this urban plan was much better. In the west, surrounding the Sept, there was the initial settling of the workers, giving history to its built. The Inner Walls protected the lake and the idea seemed to grow. It was still not a full map though, and the castle was incognito.

For the last draft, I used digital means, simplifying lines and concepts and also dividing them by colour. In this particular image, I made sure to map out the path Dany takes when she first arrives.

This took a few months to complete and fit well with my plans. The three first greenbelts are for farmlands not under the direct ownership of the castle, followed by the palace districts, the two purple rings. The three red rings are apartments, bakeries, homes; the city itself. The two inner greenbelts are the crops and greenhouses of the castle. The innermost greenbelt has three empty areas so the sovereigns can put whatever they please into them. Why they are there, you guys will soon know.

Keep in mind that most of this is empty, and the most populated areas are the Western ones, where oldtown is and the sponsored builds were put in the palace districts.

Finally, I moved on to making the castle;

The gatehouse (0), with the stables, entering into an ample courtyard. The first guard tower (2) connects to the gatehouse and keeps watch over the movements of the courtyard, also acting as an armoury, and the second guard tower (4) helps to isolate the guest wing, which extends to the second guard tower, passing (5) and (6). The courtyard leads into the main body of the castle (5), which has kitchens, music rooms, library, entertaining rooms and such. It has two stories, the first one leads to the gardens and last three towers (9, 10 and 11). The second story leads into the Great Hall (6), which has a glass roof. The great hall has passages to the guard and offices towers (4 and 8, respectively), with an open passageway (7) connecting the two and passing over the gardens. Surrounding the main keep (10), where the family wing resides, is the servant tower and another tower, with armoury and guards, leading into the small land and boathouse (12). [11th tower hasn’t much use, but is heavily guarded because of its easy access to the guest wing.]

For a side view of what I picture it, I drew this, looking to the side of the guest wing.

You may see that there are open corridors to the water for the guest wing and that the bridge and gatehouse are higher than the water level. IThat happened because of the visual influences I had, and also because I wanted to take as little space as possible, but also have a something worthy of the name castle. So I used height instead of width. there is also no boathouse, but the focus is to picture the style of the castle itself. It is not as detailed as I would’ve liked, but it shows enough for now.

As we move into the visuals, I will now show you my inspirations for the overall aesthetic of the place.

Now, when thinking about the surroundings, I mix Komark’s art with a little bit of this area in Washington, called Snow Lake (at least, Google says it is Snow Lake. I can’t be sure). It’s a beautiful area, and I think it could match nicely with the surroundings of the Queenscrown I picture.

Also, I found a link with a bunch of pictures from different places on this one website, and oh my, does it inspire me. Like, look at this! I don’t even know if it’s editing or something like it, but look! It even has a small piece of land right in the middle!

Every one of them, I swear, fits perfectly with the Gift of my mind. So beautiful to see, but mortally cold to survive.

Okay, my darlings, now to my concept, or at least the bare minimum I wished, at first, for the castle itself.

At first, I tried to decide on what kind of style I could use, keeping in mind that I wanted something like the castles we saw in Essos. But then a BIG problem was born. How the hell a castle built for summer would sustain its residents in the far North when the winter came and the cold was stronger? Magic? Artistic license? Hell yeah. But I’m too bothered to simply kick the bucket and accept that a castle clearly built for warm temperatures could be useful in the far North.

So I went on an extended journey, searching for a castle that resided in cold lands, but if it was there and was even close to what I wanted than surely it was possible for it to be built on the Gift. And I did find it!

I present you, the remains of the Château de la Mothe Chandeniers! It is frightening how close my first draft was to this old stronghold. It was burned down in 1932, but, as you can see, it snows heavily in these lands. And if there was a castle with such big windows and delicate structure in cold lands such as these, then surely I can have my Queenscrown, right? I mean, come on! It has a balcony open to the lake!

And guys, when you see it from above it is so similar to what I first drew! It blows my mind, like, am I psych or something?

It is even built in a lake! An artificial lake, I reckon, but still!

And there are photos in the snow, in the sun, in the spring or summer...So glad I found this pearl. Imagine this place in Autumn!

Yet, I was not satisfied with it. I needed something else! I already had my delicate architecture with this French stronghold but I needed something realistic, and something really fancy to help with the deccór. I researched the North and it came to my knowledge that it was mainly based on Scottland, so it was there that I went looking for that part that was missing.

While searching for that missing link, I found something that, ugh, just made me scream in delight. You see, the thing that this beautiful Chateau doesn’t have that medieval castles must have are DEFENSE WALLS! War is constant in this world and we need focking walls! But this is right in the middle of a lake! Not a simple task to build walls, I think to myself while browsing through Google and Pinterest, searching for ‘lake castles’. Or ‘fantasy castles’. Until I found this:

The Old Castle by e-designer is not a lake castle but definitely a fantasy castle. Awesome as fuck, isn’t it? But not even a bit practical and definitively not a response to my problems. How the fuck is it possible to even build some shit even RESEMBLING this castle in ten fucking years? But yes, my muse screams, this is what you’ve been searching for! This castle was what inspired me for the second draft of the Crown Castle, with its defensive walls so close to the castle itself.

So yeah, I squint my eyes, stare at it for, like, ten minutes and nod decisively in a ‘we’ll make this work’ agreement to myself. The inner walls, the first defences of the castle itself, as well as the towers, are inspired by this beautiful art.

Also, the bridge!

That bridge right there is what I want for Queenscrown. It’s so majestic. Again, I’m making things difficult for me and for you guys to believe, but just...roll with me okay?

Now, impmon101 commented about something really cool that made me change the style of the guard towers and colour scheme of Queenscrown.

Now, the first two links are these images, which were from the short history videos regarding Old Valyria:

Now, in Queenscrown there is a lot of towers. Towers are somewhat easier to build, and having a system of guard towers surrounding and into the city is not the worst of ideas. And for the last image, which is Valyria illustrated by Ted Nasmith, if you change the lava for heated water, it wouldn’t be that far from Queenscrown if we actually change the colour schemes.

As for actual colour palettes, I go for a black on white vibe for the outdoors. The structures would be primarily made of white stone -- marble, lime-stone and whatever else -- with the detailing in black stone.

This is The Rector´s Palace, Dubrovnik, Croatia (by dleiva). You see how with some adjustments to the lighting and shadows, the detailing turns black? Mainly on the arched ceiling, you see the black lining on the white stones. Also on the pillars, the whiter stone with the dark shadowing. Now, most of this detailing is purely black on the outside. All of the dome ceilings are black gleaming stones, as well as the stone pathways, with all the lampposts being made of a clear metal that shines white in the light. It’s that monochrome feeling for the main things like the streets, outer and inner walls and the castle itself.

Sacré-Coeur, as shown in SoloSophie’s A QUICK GUIDE TO MONTMARTRE. The Parisian basilica you see is the right shade of white I imagined, with the right amount of detail we see also in The Old Castle by e-designer -- which is our main base for the castle’s outer appearance and size -- and the tower dommes have a similar texture I wish for, like the scales of a dragon or the dommes of Valyrian; the only necessary would be the pitch black material used, as well as the black detailing on the white walls of the castle.

For a concept which includes both the castle and the area surrounding it, I really like the Arendelle castle from Frozen.

https://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/disney/images/0/05/Frozen-disneyscreencaps.com-10903.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20140909224228

But alas, it is by the seaside, which is not Queenscrown’s case. Our castle is built in the water, not in some little piece of land. Beyond the lake, there is even a small circle of walls separating the water from the city itself, which is described as a grid circular system.

For the last draft of the castle, which ended up being a distant shot for the round model I first went with, I took great inspiration in the Neuschwanstein Castle, in Germany.

So, what do you guys think? Can you picture Queenscrown, have you got any ideas that could fit better? Let me know!

#fanfic #concept #jonerys #got fanfiction #jonerys fanfic #ao3 #game of thrones #queenscrown #worldbuilding #the court of bastards

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etherealblasphemy · 6 years

Text

The Mechanic

just a little gift for you all to tide you over while i’m off in west virginia :)

(this is completely unreviewed, so apologies if there are any grammar/ spelling/ continuity mistakes)

TW: Mild language

They flew for Legion, a foreign country on a foreign planet in a foreign system. Cal couldn’t help but feel nervous as their ship slowly entered the atmosphere, not used to being completely new to a place. They didn’t know the people, they didn’t know the land, they didn’t know what resources were at their disposal if push came to shove and Draven showed up. It made them uneasy, squirming in their seat as they pressed their lips into a thin line, willing the worry to go away.

Halfway through the journey, Anxiety and Logan returned from the med bay, the earthling sporting a cloth sling. “It honestly doesn’t hurt that much now that Logan’s put some salve on it,” he told Roman, who placated immediately.

“Anxiety, I wanna see the Halo Sword, show it to us,” Cal begged. Anxiety shrugged, pulling out a small stone nonchalantly and holding out for all to see, palm outstretched. Cal’s eyes narrowed. “Is that… is that it?”

Roman hopped out of his chair, strolling confidently and swiping the stone from Anxiety’s hand. “It’s not activated yet, it’s still in its hidden form,” he told them as he whispered to the stone, waving his hand over the smooth surface. Before their eyes, the stone disappeared, replaced by a shimmering sword, its handle the color of roses. It seemed to glow, growing brighter every second Cal’s eyes were trained on it. “Ta-da!” Roman exclaimed, proudly showing off the gleaming blade. Cal marveled over it, running their fingers along its sharp length, careful to not cut their hand on the serrated edge.

“Calypso, Vasryians have the coolest things. When we defeat Draven, you’re going to get me one, deal?” Roman laughed, nodding his head as Cal continued to poke and prod at the Halo Sword.

“You might want to settle down Cal. Trust me, you’ll need that energy when you meet Wonderling,” Anxiety mused, stifling his giggles with the black sleeve of his hoodie.

“Okay, now I’m really curious about this ‘Wonderling’ person. What- how- who even are they?” Cal asked. The other four shared a look, a wistful look in their eyes. It was Logan who took up the duty of explanation.

“Wonderling… is an enigma, to say the least. She could very well qualify as the definition of sonder or ebullience; though, she’s a rather complex character to describe. We crash-landed once near her shop a few years back when we were less experienced pilots and had had a run-in with intergalactic law enforcement. She repaired the Sanders Yersinia and offered us hospitality. Wonderling is the best mechanic in the universe, without a doubt, and one of the few people besides Remy that we trust wholeheartedly,” Logan detailed. Cal pursed their lips, deciding to pretend that they understood half of the words the robot had used.

“She’s very tough when the time calls for it, but she’s a sweetheart otherwise,” Patton chimed in. “We’ve had an adventure or two-”

“Which we do not speak about,” Anxiety cut in. “The sooner I forget, the better,” he snickered. “The sooner Wonderling forgets, the better.” Cal smirked, planning to ask the mechanic about the incident in question as soon as they met.

“Hey, kiddos, we’re going to arrive soon,” Patton informed them as Anxiety cheered quietly, eager to see their friend.

Before Cal knew it, the world of Honua approached them, a spinning ball of blue and green, a marble of life in the bag of existence. Patton guided their spacecraft for the land of Legion, heading for Niner, a city that shined like polished gold and copper. Gears and stained brown off-white cloths seemed to be the decorations of choice in this town, mechanics taking center stage. As the Sanders Yersinia touched ground, Cal caught a glimpse of a blimp soaring across the sky like a man-made sun. Every single building appeared to be made of gold, bronze, or copper, gleaming in the early morning aurora as the sun crept over the mountains towards the east. In the sky, metal creatures of all sizes flew about, some transporting goods and people.

Cal stepped out of the ship with their jaw agape, spinning around to take in everything all at once. A wind-up songbird landed on their shoulder, whistling a tune merrily before flying away. They had half a mind to chase after it, but Logan called their name, gesturing them over down the street, where the others were waiting for them under a sign that read, “Exotic Wonders Trading Company and Mechanic.” Below it, a second sign was added, scrawled with messy handwriting, reading, “arbor & arbor tailoring.”

“Looks like Rowan’s finally got his stuff together since we last stopped by,” Patton was saying.

“Please, we both know Moxie threatened to show his baby pictures to Ada to get him to help her,” Anxiety retorted with a snort. “C’mon, let’s find Wonderling.”

They went inside, a small bell tinkling as the door swung closed, disturbing a cloud of dust. Cal sneezed, waving their hand to clear the air as their eyes adjusted to a place not illuminated by the sun. A couple lanterns were stationed on antique tables, their flames flickering. Aging portraits hung on the walls, little brass placards at the bottom describing them and their sitters, the dim light casting shadows on the canvas that made the people come to life, ready to pop out of their confining frames in a moment.

The tables and shelves doting the space were filled to the brim with exotic goods. One table’s surface was covered entirely in pocket watches carved with intricate miniscule details, and another was devoted to journals and tomes, some opened to seemingly random pages filled with doodles of mythical sea creatures and far-away lands. Cal’s attention was divided between a metal robot and a collection of shiny minerals when a voice spoke right behind them.

“Like what you see?”

Cal shrieked, jumping into the air as they whirled around, clutching their heart. Their eyes landed on a petite young woman watching them with interest, her icy blue eyes piercing Cal’s. Her mocha skin blended into the shadows, giving her the appearance of a ethereal creature. Something told Cal she enjoyed roaming unseen. The woman stuck out a hand in greeting, unhesitant as she grabbed Cal’s and shook it vigorously.

“Name’s Moxie Arbor. I run a tailor shop in the back of this treasure trove. You here for Exotic Wonders or Arbor & Arbor?” she asked in one breath. Cal stuttered, unsure how to respond.

“They’re with us, Moxie,” Roman said, coming to Cal’s rescue. Moxie rolled her eyes, turning towards the prince with a hand on her hip. “Do you know where Wonderling is?” Moxie laughed, her head falling back.

“Oh, she’ll have a fit when she sees y’all,” Moxie cackled.

“Hello to you, too, Moxie,” Logan said, approaching them, dragging Anxiety and Patton away from old telescopes and compasses. “I assume Wonderling is on another delivery?”

“Should be back by now-” Moxie was cut off by the ring of the bell, signaling the entrance of another customer. “Oh, heya, Wonder!” Moxie called, waving them over. “Look who showed!” Cal gulped at the heavy tread of boots, the newcomer’s face obscured by shadows.

“Well, I’ll be damned. If it ain’t the li’l shits who almost broke Axel,” the person, presumably Wonderling, grumbled deathly quiet, her voice devoid of humor. Cal heard Roman curse under his breath. She stopped right as the flames of the gas lanterns lit up her face. A grin suddenly broke across her face. “...who also happen to be my favorite customers! Y’all can head inside the workshop and help y’allselves to a glass of lemonade while I see what y’all broke this time ‘round- oh, who’s the sweetheart over here?” Wonderling asked, taking notice of Cal. Cal swallowed thickly, blushing furiously as they offered a awkward, toothy smile. “Don’t be shy, honey, I don’t bite that hard,” Wonderling reassured.

Cal bit down hard on their lip, willing themselves to not blurt out anything stupid and make a fool out of themselves. They eyes glanced over Wonderling, pausing on her warm chocolate eyes and ebony hair streaked with gold. Her smooth skin, the color of walnuts, glowed in the firelight of the lamps, the white of her blouse standing out in the shadows.

“Cat got ya tongue?” Wonderling inquired, pursing her lips teasingly. “C’mon, I’m guessing y’all are acquainted with one another.” Wonderling ushered Cal and the others into the back, passing into a sizeable room filled with gears and cogs and all sorts of tiny trinkets. A falcon made of metal sat on the largest table, half its wing dismantled on the surface.

“Don’t mind the mess, I’ve got to fix Axis’s wings before I use her again for package delivery,” Wonderling explained as they headed past into a much smaller room, where six chairs circled a table laden with a glass of lemonade and a small plate of cookies that smelled divine. “Help y’allselves. Just leave me some this time, a’ight?” Cal and Anxiety dove at one for the freshly baked desserts, shoving several in their mouth and moaning as the sugar melted in their mouths. “I’ll go take a look at the Yersinia; if y’all need help, just holler.” Wonderling left with a swish of her navy cloak, sending a wink towards a flustered Cal.

“Are those wedding bells I hear?” Anxiety teased, dodging a napkin thrown at his face.

“How about we leave me alone and figure out what we’re going to do now that we have the Halo Sword?” Even Logan cracked a smile at Cal’s flusteredness.

“We’re going to start a rebellion, and you’re going to start a relationship,” Roman said as Cal groaned, burying their face in their tanned hands, feeling their face heat up even further. “Just before the Guard of the Snake found us back on Vasryia, Terrence told me he knew every single staff member who was still loyal to my father and would ask them for their support if I decided to challenge the throne. As we speak, he’s probably rallying up the common folk. By the time we return, we should hopefully have people to help us fight back.”

“Let’s hope Terrence and the others aren’t caught by Draven,” Patton added, Logan humming in agreement.

“Once we rally the support of the commoners, we can storm the palace and capture Draven. We’ll ask any commoners who have any grievances against him to come forward and we’ll transcribe them,” Roman continued, accenting his speech with animated hand gestures. “As soon as we have a big enough list, we declare him overthrown and start imprisoning his original supporters for conspiring against the crown. That’s all I have for now. I think for the time being, we should forget about our impending doom and enjoy Niner while we still can.”

“If it’s fine with you guys, I’d like to explore the city before we leave. I saw some shops selling silk scarves and I wanna get one,” Cal piped up, rising from their seat, wolfing down their third cookie.

“Sure, kiddo, just don’t be too long,” Patton told them. Cal assured him that, of course, they wouldn’t be more than an hour or two, and bolted out of the shop. Their eyes instinctively narrowed in the bright sunlight. They spun around in the street, passerby swerving around to avoid their outstretched arms as they reveled in the glory of the shining city of Niner. Up ahead, they saw Wonderling cautiously approach the Sanders Yersinia, stepping up onto the platform they had landed on.

Cal meandered closer, biting their lip as they idly watched the mechanic set to work, tilting her head as she surveyed the damage dealt to the spacecraft, mumbling to herself as her eyes narrowed.

“Will Draven ever stop running them up the creek?” Wonderling whispered to herself, unaware of the onlooker.

“Um… excuse me, M-Miss Wonderling?” Cal spoke up, internally berating themselves for sounding so stupid. Wonderling spun around, eyes wide in slight panic. “I, uh, I surveyed the damage before we came. I can s-show you the, uh, the diagram if it’ll help…” they stuttered. Wonderling flashed them a bright smile.

“That would help me a mighty lot, honey. Thank ya.” Cal hurried into the ship, coming out with a thin device where they pulled up the ship’s diagram and began explaining where the ship had taken damage, pointing a shaking finger at the different areas. “Say, sweetheart, did they give ya a name along with those fancy scars ‘cross your cheek?” Cal flushed, laughing nervously as they rubbed the back of their neck sheepishly.

“My name is Calrex. Bennova. Calrex Bennova,” they spit out quickly, tripping over their words. Wonderling’s eyes narrowed.

“I reckon I’ve seen your face beforehand on some account or another,” Wonderling mused, gaining a faraway look in her eyes before snapping her fingers, straightening. “Might ya be the one they call the Pirate?” Cal went pale, stuttering their response. “Don’t be afeared, honey, I respect what ya’ve done. I know ya didn’t destroy that galaxy- all my eye ya did. Ya’re a right-lookin’ angelica with yar head set on straight. Now, I know what y’all are allotting upon. Mind ya, I wish the others’d stop poking their heads into the firing range, but that’s no business of mine. Ya just remember there are people out there who know the truth. They’ll follow yar lead, Calrex Bennova. Trust them, and they won’t let ya down when the clock ticks midnight.”

Cal was at a loss for words as Wonderling’s unhesitant, impassioned speech. The mechanic took notice of Cal’s nerves and gently grabbed their hands, her calluses rubbing against the soles of their palms.

“If y’all need help at any time during yar rebellion whatnot, don’t hesitate to ask. I’m a mighty fine pilot, if I may say so myself, and I’ve seen my share of battles. I’ve lost some and I’ve won some, but it’s knowing that yar friends are fighting right beside ya that keeps ya pushing ‘til ya’ve made things right.” Cal squeezed Wonderling’s hands, smiling thankfully.

“Thank you, Wonderling. I’m really starting to see why everyone’s eyes would light up when they talked about you,” they told the mechanic, who colored, looking away.

“Oh, I’m nothing but a mechanic with grease stains on my soul. Yar the one who’s going to be savin’ the universe, aren’t ya? Now, ya didn’t just come outside to talk with li’l ole me. Go off and explore, Pirate. Find some booty to show off,” Wonderling laughed, smirking as they let go off Cals hands. Cal flashed her another grateful smile as they turned away, ready to set off and run around the city before they were stuck in the Sanders Yersinia for far too long again.

They paused, turning back around. “Would you happen to know where I can myself a silk scarf?” Wonderling smirked, extending a long, dainty finger down the street, saying nothing as she sent a wink towards Cal, suppressing her giggles.

“Make sure to get one in red, sweetheart. It makes your eyes shine.”

Cal ran through the street, dodging loitering shoppers as they weaved in and around the shops, the sun climbing further up the sky to burn the shoulders of mortals. They found the stall selling scarves hanging from hoops, their multicolored fabrics standing out in the golden browns of the wooden beams. They ran their hands over the soft materials, chatting energetically with the shopkeeper, a stout, elderly woman whose gnarled fingers tapped the wood rhymically as she watched Cal’s eyes widen to the size of the moon, studying the potential buyer.

“These scarves are made by Olga,” the old woman said with an accent thicker than the trunk of a Farafallen haedel tree, pointing a finger at herself. “They good for love-finding.”

“Sure. Is this what you tell all the couples that walk by?” Cal quipped, examining a different scarf. The hag cackled, her eyes wild and crazed.

“Not that kind of love, child,” she snapped. “The kind of love you wish for when you lonely, the kind between lovers of another kind who fight side by side in heat of battle. The kind of love for family.” Cal felt their breath rush out of them, shuddering a little. It had been so long- too long- since they had heard such a beautiful word. Since they could even imagine someone loving them the way a parent loves their child, shielding them from the horrors of the world until they could fend them off for themselves and still return to patch up their little one’s scratches. “Is five galleon, child, but three for you with eyes the color of sky kissing grass,” the shopkeeper offered, holding out an ancient hand to collect the three coins she knew she would receive. Cal wordlessly dropped the coins into her palm, snapping shut and delivering the handwoven cloth to the pirate staring soundlessly into the distance.

“May you find the love you seek, young Pirate,” the shopkeeper whispered conspiratorially as she shooed them away. Cal ran their fingers through the scarf before wrapping around their neck, heading further down the street full of peddlers and overflowing bars, all a raucous celebration of the enjoyment of life.

A less crowded alleyway drew Cal’s attention. They headed down, brick walls shouting up from the ground, stained with the scribbles of wanna-be prophets and teenagers aching to have a voice. They lost themselves in a maze of backways and alleyways, letting their mind wander as their feet did. Eventually, the walls opened up and grass roots forced their ways through cobblestones. Before them stretched out a main street of a different neighborhood, one enclosed by the confining towers of apartments stacked on top of one another like a child’s blocks. Lines of laundry stretched across the narrow street, the sheets dirty and the clothes ragged.

Cal approached this odd alley with hesitation. Glancing to their left, they saw a handmade sign with the words “Union Alley” carved into the rotting wood. “Might be like home,” they mumbled aloud as they meandered further into the neighborhood of one winding street. “Oi, ‘zis the choir infantry?” they called to a passing beggar, praying they slang they had learned was known in a place as exotic and far-away as Honua. The man’s eyes were bright and deranged as they focused on Cal’s body, gazing just over their shoulder as though there was someone standing right behind them.

“‘Tever you need, Union Alley pr’vides,” he told them solemnly. “A prett’ girl-” Cal tensed- “shou’dn’t be wanderin’ this street wearin’ clothes of such… fine dis-po-si-’ion.”

“I kin punch a shit where it counts, you ‘cluded,” they threatened, snarling. The beggar backed off, throwing his hands up in defense. They sighed, rolling their eyes as they moved on, scanning over the goods presented by each shopkeeper, their stalls tiny and cramped, hogging as much space as they could to attract enough customers to manage a wage able to buy them the ability to sleep inside and not in the exposed stalls where they mongered their goods like animals.

“Buy a tonic or two?” one yelled.

“We kin teach ya magic ta use on the Mericon traitors!” another offered.

“Want a good time? Just ask me, Night Flower, your next dream,” a femme galante purred, moving sultrily against a wall to attract the flickering glances of those who walked by. Cal pressed on, giving old memories no time to rise from the dead. Searching hands of the blind reached out, aching to see the light once more as Cal danced between them.

“Pirate with the scarf of blood, watch where you step,” a voice called out from a stall hidden in shadows. “There are beasts that lurk below the ground and can hear your careful tiptoes. Allow your devotion to let you fly, and your determination to let you soar.”

The hair on the back of their neck stood on end, chilled by the voice’s words. Two yellow eyes glowered at them from afar. Cal stumbled back, their breath caught in their throat. From the darkness emerged a teenager, their eyes wrapped with bloodied cloth, clutching a yellow-eyed creature in their arms.

“Pirate, there is a snake within your midst,” the young being warned, their grip on the creature growing tighter. “Tread carefully, and escape before it bites.”

“What are you talking about? How do you- how do you know who I am?” Cal asked, their breath hitching.

“You, Pirate, are the savior of the common people who have no voice. You are exalted across the universe for standing up to King Draven of Vasryia. There are whispers of your accomplishments even in the lands the King believes are most loyal to him. You, Pirate, are a symbol of hope for us. But you are in great danger here. An old nemesis prowls this alley. Keep your eyes of an eagle and beware the snake prepared to strike.” Before Cal had a chance to process the words of the teenager, they disappeared back into the thralls of the shadows, the yellow eyes of their beasts dimming to nothing but the absence of light.

Although they tried to shake off the growing feeling of nausea in their stomach, Cal couldn’t refocus on exploring, so caught up in trying to decipher the teen’s ominous words that they failed to notice the man behind them. They bumped into him, grunting at the impact and knocking him over.

“Oh, shit, I’m so sorry!” Cal apologized, helping him up. The man was silent, nodding tersely at their apology. “Are you alright?” they asked sincerely, offering him a soft smile.

“I’m fine,” he said briskly before yanking his hand away from Cal’s, sending them to the ground themselves with a yelp. “Oh, dear, how clumsy of me. Let me help you up,” the man said without much emotion, all but digging his nails into Cal’s arm and forcing them to their feet. Cal stumbled, falling into the man’s arms. As they looked up into his eyes, they felt their face pale, their brain screaming with recognition as those citrine eyes bored into their soul, mocking them.

“Well, if it isn’t the Unwanted One.”

Pain bloomed from the base of their skull and their vision began to blur as they slumped in the man’s arms. The last thing they could think of before they fell victim to unconsciousness was the man’s name: Cato.

Logan leafed through the aged pages of a journal, immersing himself in the different entries, some pages long and full of awed detail about new lands, others short and content to sketch a sunset before turning in for the night. He checked his pocket watch, putting the diary away as he made haste for the spaceship.

“We should leave now,” he informed the others, who groaned but put away their objects of wonder back where they belonged. As Logan counted heads, not helped by Moxie running through the aisles, hugging all her friends goodbye and telling them to come back soon, he felt strange. Something was missing- Cal. They hadn’t returned yet, more than likely simply forgetting to come back to the shop. It probably hadn’t helped that Cal was new to Niner and didn’t know labyrinth of criss-crossing streets as well as he or a native like Wonderling and the Arbor siblings did.

“Hey, where’s Cal?” Anxiety asked. “Didn’t they say they’d be back in an hour? It’s been three.” Logan’s line of logical thinking took a slight detour, his reason turning to concern. Perhaps Cal had gotten lost, and were wandering about, sure to encounter danger. Immediately, he told himself Cal was fine and could handle themselves if they somehow chanced upon a rougher or two. This concern was nothing but him overexerting his systems, a glitch in his programming.

“Find Wonderling. The one you call Cal was taking a look to her. She’ll point us the right direction, a‘least,” Moxie suggested, holding the door open for the robot and his companions. They had no chance to exit, however, as Wonderling came running in, her breath ragged and her hair pulled back, strands smeared with grease.

“I found this on the ramp,” she breathed, pulling out a blood red scarf, her hand shaking as she held it out. “I told Cal to get a red scarf, something must have befallen her.” Her voice wavered as she finished; Logan had half a mind to comfort and tell her Cal was fine, if only to keep Wonderling from having the panic attacks that had been increasing in intensity as of late.

“Wonder, you sure some folk didn’t just lose it to the wind?” Moxie asked, placing her hands on Wonderling’s shoulders to comfort her.

“It was under a rock.” Wonderling’s voice was meek and quiet, something that rarely happened in the time Logan and his companions had known the mechanic. “Someone put it there.” Logan could hear her hyperventilating, her brown eyes brimming with tears.

“Oh, no, oh, no, oh, no, we gotta find Cal,” Anxiety was mumbling, running a hand through his long hair. “Shit, if something happened to them…”

Roman stepped towards him. “Hey, it’s going to be okay,” he assured the human. “Everything’s going to be alright.” Gently, he placed his hand on Anxiety’s cheek, pulling the nervous earthling into a hug, whispering comforting words into his ear to calm him.

“Right. We should hit the streets as soon as possible. While I would suggest splitting up to cover more ground, we need to know as soon as possible what’s happened to Cal, so we go as a group, spreading over a small area so if any one of us finds something, we can easily tell the others,” Logan said, already pulling up a map in his mind of the city, planning how they would search the city.

“A’right. A’right. We’ll find Calrex. They’re gonna be mighty fine, Wonder, don’t ya worry,” the mechanic told herself. “Let’s hit the craft first, ‘case I missed some’n. Sweet heavens, I hope they ain’t in a ruckus.” Wonderling held the door open as they crowded outside, squinting in the afternoon light.

Posthaste, they left for the landing pad where the Sanders Yersinia stood in all its glory. Wonderling’s box of tools and gears was left carelessly on the side on the pad. “Shall we begin searching?” Logan inquired. Wonderling, still shaken, nodded, going to pack up her toolbox as the others began scouring the area for any sort of clue of where Cal might be.

Logan watched the others for a moment as they searched. In the back of his head, he could hear himself saying how illogical this was. He had met Cal just over a month ago, and here he was, organizing a search for them and feeling- what, concern? The robot scoffed, rolling his eyes. No, this was normal. Missing people warranted concern and search parties, this wasn’t something uncommon.

But no matter how much he told himself he was not getting worried for the pirate, he couldn’t help but feel the dread boil in his stomach like a cocktail mixed wrong, a nuclear explosion only waiting to happen. He couldn’t help but feel those blasted errors in his coding.

The ominous feeling of doom only grew when his sensors caught notice of a slip of paper, half-hidden under a nearby stone. He took it out from underneath, ignoring the dread eating away at him. Unfolding the crumpled paper, he nearly dropped it as he registered the words scribbled on the off-white vellum. “I found something!” he called, watching his companion’s head whip toward him, desperate for answers.

He held out the paper for all to see, unable to keep the tremors from shaking his hand as he gripped the paper tight, reading the words aloud.

“If you want the Pirate back, darling nephew, you must come retrieve it yourself.”

Roman paled, clutching Anxiety’s hand as he processed the words. “It’s Draven. Oh, sweet Calypso, Draven took them,” he whispered as Wonderling inhaled sharply, covering her mouth with her grease-smudged hands, whimpering softly.

“We have no choice but to go rescue them.” Even Logan was surprised with the words that leapt out of his throat without his permission. Patton spoke up first, voicing his approval. Anxiety agreed less than a second later, Roman joining in with desperate acquiesce.

“Beat his ass, or you’re not ‘llowed back,” Moxie told them angrily, staring in rage at the note that had been left for them. Logan looked at Wonderling, who was staring blankly at the paper, fear driven wild in her eyes.

“Y’all better make sure to bring back that sweet soul, ya hear me?” she said quietly, still focused on the note. “And tell them it’s ‘bout time to rise up. When y’all decide to end this, give me a holler. I’m loath to turn my back on my friends, and y’all need all the help ya can acquire.” With that said, Wonderling turned away and hurried back to her shop. Logan called his thanks after her, knowing she would get Axel ready for a battle as soon as she set foot in her store.

“Bring ‘em back, boys. Wonder’ll be disappointed beyond belief if you don’t,” Moxie added, wishing them luck before heading after the mechanic.

“Don’t worry. We’re getting Cal back,” Roman growled, his brow furrowing with absolute fury. Patton lowered the ramp of the Sanders Yersinia, its crew wasting no time in boarding and gettin ready to lift off.

They were going to get their friend back.

hahahahahaha I have no idea how to end stories

I hope you all enjoyed this installment of Starbound! For once I was motivated enough to write something in a reasonable amount of time, hah. Thanks for reading and leaving notes, I really do appreciate all of it :D.

(*cough cough* wonderling and calrex forever, peasants *cough, cough*)

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@asofterfan

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spn-asks-00-blog · 6 years

Text

Family Time

Request: Hiii :D Uhm can you please do a request where the reader is raised into the hunting business by her Aunt becuase she’s the only one in the family who can handle it (the reader has 2 brothers) and so she left her home and moved in with the winchesters (dean x reader). So every year the reader’s family has a christmas dinner and the Winchesters were invited and the brothers give them a hard time and its fluffy and shit :D You can pick the ending x sorry for it being so specific.

Rating: T

Word Count: 2213

Warnings: Domestic abuse mention (no actual abuse takes place), death mention

Enjoy!

———————–

“Y/N, you have to come to Christmas dinner.” Your brother Michael commanded over the phone.

“But-” you started, about to make up a crappy excuse, but your brother cut you off.

“No buts Y/N. You didn’t come last year, or the year before or-”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. I’m just busy with… with work.” You said, reverting back to the same lame excuse you pumped out year after year, for Christmas, Easter, birthdays, anything that would require a family gathering.

“You’re coming. My house this year. And bring your boyfriend and that other guy you live with.” Your brother said, and you groaned.

“His brother?” You supplied, sighing. This was going to be a nightmare. You had to get out of it.

“Yeah, him. What are their names again? Dan and Sean?”

You could never tell whether your brother messed up their names to annoy you, or if he genuinely had no idea.

“Sam and Dean. I swear to god Michael I tell you that every single time we’re on the phone.”

“Yeah, which is never!” He responded angrily.

Ouch.

He sighed, clearly reading his mistake through your silence.

“Look. I’m worried about you Y/N. Ever since mom and dad died-”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” You snapped. Your brother sighed again, clearly exasperated.

“Just… come to dinner. Please. Stay the night. It’s just 12 hours Y/N. Can you really not stand to be around me and Jake that long?” You would have been angry at him for that- it was a pretty low blow, accusing you of hating your own brothers, Jake being the middle sibling between you and Michael. But you could hear the genuine hurt in his voice, so against your better judgement you gave in.

“Okay. Christmas. 12 hours. I’ll be there.”

“Thank you Y/N. And don’t forget to bring your boy toys.”

“They’re not my-” you started, but Michael had already hung up, probably so you couldn’t bail on him. Again.

Christmas.

You had always loved Christmas as a kid. Snow, presents, Santa, the whole shebang. And your family’s annual Christmas dinner was always a good time, lots of food and a little too much alcohol for the adults. But the past few years Christmas had lost it’s charm, and you knew exactly why.

Your parents had died mid-December a few years ago. The police had said it was an animal attack, and for a while you and your two older brothers, Jake and Michael, believed them. But that Christmas your aunt had entrusted only you out of all your siblings with an awful secret. It wasn’t a wild animal that killed your parents. It was a werewolf. Your aunt was a hunter. She killed monsters for a living, and she had for a long time.

But it wasn’t enough to save your parents. She had told you that only you were strong enough to carry this burden, that your brothers wouldn’t be able to handle it. So you packed your stuff, distanced yourself from your brothers, and began a new life of training and hunting with a furious determination, working towards your ultimate goal- to avenge your parents. You became obsessed. You distanced yourself from everyone, buried yourself in research, stopping talking unless absolutely necessary, and eventually even split up from your aunt. You were alone for a while- at least until Bobby Singer had called you up with a job. You turned it down, but he told you that was too bad, because he had a couple of idjits hunting vampires in west Missouri that needed help. Of course you took it then. You don’t mess with Bobby Singer. But when he had said “a couple of idjits” you had expected a couple of newbies, not the friggen’ Winchesters. Together, you three took out the vamps nest easily, and you were going to hit the road when Dean surprised you with an offer: stay. You were going to refuse, but Dean flashed his puppy dog eyes on you, and you found yourself saying yes instead of no. That’s when the long, tedious journey out of the pit of misery you had dug for yourself begun. You were still reserved at first, it was hard not to be after so long, but Dean coaxed you out of your shell. Soon you were smiling again, then laughing and after a year or so you were almost back to your old self. And you owed it to Dean. He made you feel… alive for once. So it was no surprise when you developed feelings for him. What was a surprise was that he shared your affections. And once both of you stopped being stubborn idiots long enough to realize (this part took some prodding from Sam) you started dating, and you had been ever since.

You sighed and set the phone down, lost in thought. So much had happened since that Christmas.

“Hey.” Dean said, walking up behind you and wrapping his arms around your waist.

“Hi. We have plans for Christmas.” You informed him, leaning back and resting your head on his chest.

“We do?” He asked, surprised, but kissing your neck gently all the same.

“Yeah. My brother guilt tripped me into Christmas dinner. And he’s making you and Sam come.” You explain.

“You don’t sound happy.” Dean observed. You twisted around to look him in the eye.

“I just… I’m worried about them. They’re not hunters. They don’t even know anything. How am I supposed to explain where I’ve been these past years? Not to mention I’m making them a target.”

Dean leaned down and kissed you, softly, and you could feel yourself relax wrapped in his arms.

“We’ll figure it out.” He promised, “We have a week to make an excuse, and if you’re really worried about them we can have Garth watch out for them for a few weeks.”

“Really?”

“Yep.” He said, pecking your lips.

“So you really don’t mind Christmas dinner with my family?” you asked, somehow finding it hard to believe. After all, Dean wasn’t really one for domestic lifestyle.

“Nope.” He said with a grin, “I still haven’t met your family, and you haven’t seen your brothers in years. You don’t have to cut yourself off anymore, Y/N.”

You thought about that for a few moments, resting your head on Dean’s chest again.

“Besides. It’ll be fun.” Dean added as an afterthought. You laughed mirthlessly.

“Somehow I doubt that.”

“Y/N!” Michael yelled as he pulled open the door and saw you on the doorstep. He pulled you into a tight hug. When he let you go, he noticed Sam and Dean standing a little behind you.

“I’m Michael, Y/N’s older brother.’ He said smoothly. You saw his eyes narrow slightly at Sam and Dean. It was nearly impossible to tower over the Winchester brothers, but your brother was 6’1” and his attitude made up the last few inches.

“Dean Winchester, Y/N’s boyfriend.” Dean said evenly, shaking Michael’s hand, “And this is my brother, Sam.”

“Good to finally meet you.” Michael said, but his tone was still tense.

“And you. Y/N’s told me a lot about you.” Dean flashed a smile, but his charmista wasn’t enough.

“Wish I could say the same.” Michael replied, returning the smile, but his was cold.

Ouch. That was harsh, even for Michael.

As he led you into the crowded house, full of your immediate and extended family, you punched Michael’s arm.

“Stop being a jerk!” you hissed.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. He said innocently, not meeting your eye.

You rolled your eyes at him.

“You’re giving Dean a hard time.” You accused.

“You’re my baby sister. I’m not gonna let just any old loser date you.”

“Whatever. Where’s Jake?”

“In the dining room.”

Thankfully, Michael laid off once you all sat down to dinner. Jake seemed suspicious of them at first, but when they responded in a civilised manner (something you would be eternally grateful for) he seemed satisfied that they were decent guys. The rest of your family was no match for the Winchester brothers. They really could be charming when they wanted to be, and it didn’t hurt that they were pretty damn attractive. Dean sat next to you, your legs pressed together under the table. Michael was on your other side, but thankfully oblivious.

“See, this isn’t so bad.” Dean whispered in your ear.

“You just like the food.” You accused, but you grinned all the same. Dean was right. The beginning had been iffy, but it was looking like your family might be okay with your hidden lifestyle after all. And maybe even the Winchesters. At least, until you spilled the gravy on your sleeve.

“Aw crap.” you muttered. You had worn this sweater because you had a few bruises on your arm left over from your last hunt. The shifter had managed to slam you against a wall, and your left arm took most of the hit. Thankfully it hadn’t broken, but there were a few nasty bruises.

“Here, let me help.” Michael said, pushing the sleeve up before you could protest. He took one look at your arm and you knew it was all over.

“Hey Y/N, can I talk to you for a minute?” he said, pushing the gravy soaked sleeve down, and grabbing your hand. He dragged you out of the busy dining room and down the hall to the living room. He shut the door before turning on you.

“Take off your sweater.” He demanded, his mouth pressed into a hard line, his jaw set.

“Michael-”

“Do it.”

Grudgingly you pulled off your sweater, leaving you in just a blouse, exposing your bruised arms.

“You wanna explain where those came from?” Michael said, nodding to your injuries.

“No.” you replied honestly. Michael closed his eyes, obviously trying to get his angel under control. “Don’t screw with me right now, Y/N. Because I am pretty freaking pissed off.”

“Just say it Michael. I know you’re dying to.” You snapped.

“Fine! Did Dean hit you?”

“No. He didn’t.” you said coldly, folding your arms across your chest.

“Did Sam hit you?”

“No!”

‘Well then I’m kind of at a loss to why your arms are covered in bruises!” He shouted, completely losing his temper.

Dean chose this moment to open the door.

“Is everything okay in here?” Dean asked, obviously not having heard the last part of the conversation.

“You stay away from her!” Michael yelled, pushing you not-so-gently behind him.

“What-?” Dean started, looking confused, but once he saw your sweater of a look of understanding passed across his face. “Look, this isn’t-”

“What it looks like?” Michael finished bitterly. “My sister disappears for years, then comes back with a boyfriend and a bunch of bruises. I can put two and two together.”

Dean opened his mouth, obviously about to BS his way through this, but you couldn’t let him. Michael would never believe it, and he would never forgive Dean.

“I was hunting the person who killed mom and dad!” you blurted.

“Y/N, it was a wild animal. The cops told us.” Michael said, turning to face you.

“No, it was a person. A serial killer.” You lied, exchanging a desperate look with Dean. He shook his head slightly. He would rather have your brother hate him then put your family in danger.

“Y/N-” Michael started, but you cut him off.

“No, just hear me out. I disappeared with Aunt Linda because she was on the case. Thats why… why they went for mom and dad. To get to Aunt Linda. She didn’t think- well she didn’t think you and Jake wouldn’t be able to take it. She let me in. I’ve been hunting him down ever since. Dean is with the FBI. He and Sam were on the case too.”

Right on cue, Dean pulled out one of his fake FBI badges and handed it to Michael.

“It’s all true.” Dean confirmed, “We didn’t want to tell you, in case it made you a target. But you deserve to know.”

Michael bit his lip anxiously.

“And the bruises?” he asked.

“We ran into some trouble on our last lead. Believe me, by the time I was done with him he’s not in good shape to hurt anyone again. Especially Y/N.” Dean said sincerely.

Michael nodded, he clearly believed your story- or he wanted to anyways. But he still seemed upset.

“You should have told me earlier.” he said, pulling you into a hug.

“I’m sorry.” You said, and you could feel a lump forming in your throat. You were determined not to cry, but a few tears slipped out anyways. When you finally pulled away you saw Michael wipe his eyes too.

“We should get back. People are gonna notice.” you said, and Michael nodded.

“You can have my jacket.” Dean offered, pulling off his jacket and draping it around your shoulders.

“Thanks.” you said, giving him a small smile. Dean slipped out of the room, and you were about to follow when Michael grabbed your hand.

“Y/N.”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

You pulled him into a hug again.

“I love you too, Michael.”

—————————

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soto-translates · 7 years

Text

Saiyuki Crossroaders ch2 pt1

This is chapter 2 of the online novel Minekura sensei began posting on the Zero Sum website.

You can read my translations of chapter one here: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

The Sanzo Ikkou stopped in Maakou Town, Shangri-la's Las Vegas, to get Sanzo's gun fixed, but now the gold card is missing...

Image: The Sanzo Ikkou has set food in “Maakou Town”, Shangri-la’s greatest pleasure fortress. In this town dominated by the Snake’s Head mafia and whirling with desire, what is the test that awaits the four men...? Sink, swim, or break.

Chapter 2: The Sleepless People

The room was filled with light from the elegant ceiling fixture. However, the vulgar neon from the pleasure district flooded in through the drawn curtains of the large in-set window, and rapidly colored the stock-still Sanzo Ikkou red, blue and green as though toying with them. Amidst the heavy silence and frivolous colors, one man deepened the wrinkle between his brows and traced back over the day’s memories; one man turned his mind to previous developments; one man peered into the others’ faces one after another; one man stopped thinking and played with the damaged ends of red hair.

“...... There’s nothing to be done if it’s been lost.” The first one to calmly break the current tension was, of course, Hakkai.

The credit card - their lifeline - had disappeared. Nothing could begin without accepting this fact.

“We have lost the card many times before. It’s been damaged in battle, too. Luckily this is Shangri-la’s largest pleasure district; the system for reissuing it should be smooth.”

“Yeah, yeah you’re right.”

When Goku smiled, relieved, Gojyo followed his lead, pulling at the tips of his bangs. “I mean, this hotel has you pay at the end, right? Same with the restaurant we ate dinner at. So we don’t need any cash to eat or drink within the hotel’s facilities.”

“..... Looks like we’ll be spending unnecessary time here until the card gets reissued,” Sanzo whispered, extremely displeased with the misfortunes that had come pouring out. But he couldn’t be angry at anyone because he was the one who had decided to come to this town.

......However.

“The problem for now is payment for the gun repair. I’d made arrangements to pick up and pay for it tomorrow.”

“For how much?”

“Don’t know. He said it wouldn’t be cheap.”

“...... ‘Not cheap’ in this town means you’re gettin’ gouged.” Gojyo, having just experienced the expensive reality of this town, furrowed his brown anxiously.

“Then there is no way we could possibly pay for it with the cash we have on hand. ...Sanzo, do you think you could negotiate a hold on payment?”

“...... I don’t look forward to it.” Sanzo clicked his tongue and lifted a cigarette to his lips.

--- “Leave as soon as your gun is fixed.”

The old man was probably worried for Sanzo’s safety when he gave that warning. It would be far too embarrassing to give him a stupidly honest explanation like “I lost my card so I’ll be staying here a while”. Even if the old man agreed to wait on payment, there’s no way he would return the gun until paid in full. It would be incredibly reckless to be unarmed for several days in this strange town where youkai freely came and went.

“... ‘s that okay, Sanzo?”

“No. But we have no choice,” Sanzo self-deprecatingly answered Goku, worry shining in the younger man’s eyes for some reason.

“At any rate, I’ll go contact the card company and put in an application to have the card reissued. ... It may take a few days though.”

“Yeah.”

Hakkai turned and left the room.

Their belongings and trash lay where they been scattered over the expensive carpet. Gojyo began haphazardly shoving them back into their rucksack. Suddenly he noticed something strange about the little monkey squatting next to him.

“What’s up, Goku?”

“ -- I’m gonna go look for the card,” Goku declared, suddenly leaping to his feet as though he’d been pulled and turning his gaze to the window flooded with light.

“Now? No way, you’ll never find it now.”

“But it’s still super bright all over town.”

“You have no idea where it mighta dropped, right?”

“Sanzo, when was the last time you saw the card?”

“... Last time was during the screening to enter town, and Hakkai suggested using it as proof of identity. They returned it there, and I put it back in the pocket of the bag.”

“So that means it’s somewhere in this town. You never know.”

“Ah, hey, monkey!” Gojyo watched in surprise as the small figure dashed out of the room. “Jeez, what’s with him all of a sudden? What kinda education did you give him?” Gojyo placed his hands on the carpet and leaned back to look up at Goku’s ‘owner’, teasing him with a wry smile.

“Permissive parenting.”

“That’s why he grew up uninhibited. ... No helpin’ it, guess I’ll go with --” the little monkey for a bit. Gojyo paused in standing before he could finish his thought. If he left right now, Sanzo would be alone here. No matter if he was a battle-worn high ranking monk, right now Sanzo was an unarmed human. If something should happen, at the very least Hakkai would give him a proper scolding.

“ -- Don’t get any stupid ideas. I’ll kill you.” Sanzo’s sullen voice came from behind as though he had seen through Gojyo’s hesitation.

“... I ain’t gettin’ ideas. Just decided it’s too much of a pain to babysit the kid.” Snorting, Gojyo heaved himself up with an ‘oof’.

“...Old man.”

“I don’t wanna hear that from you of all people!!” Leaving behind that straight-forward abuse, the broad-shouldered red head exited the room.

Left alone in the too-spacious room, Sanzo bit down on his cigarette and unconsciously reached a hand into the sleeve of his robe -- only to remember that his gun was not there. Double-checking the whereabouts of his gun was a habit long ingrained into his body. Ever since setting out for the West and always being in the company of others, as soon as he was left alone he always double-checked his gun. As a man facing down danger in this chaotic world, that was the obvious course of action.

“............” Stubbing out his cigarette with the hand that had lost its purpose, he slowly turned to the window at his back.

~~~

20 years earlier, Priest Koumyou Sanzo had been here.

That wasn’t so unusual. He was a man who simply liked new and interesting things. ... What did Sanzo’s master see, what did he hear, what did he think here in this artificial town? His one and only master, who left a towering and unscalable wall within Sanzo’s heart before being taken from this world. The man who, at the cost of his own life, pulled Sanzo up from the brink of death and tossed him back out into the chaotic world. And Sanzo had to shoulder this heavy destiny, even now continuing his journey to take back the Seiten Suture that was his right.

It’s no exaggeration that half of Sanzo’s life was formed by his fate with Koumyou. Amid the loneliness, fear and thirst he’d experienced, it would be a lie to say that he never resented his master’s selfishness. Even so, that carefree smile passing through the back of his mind could leave Sanzo dumbfounded.

Even now he wondered. Why did his master pass on the role of Sanzo priest?

Suddenly, the sickening nightmare of this afternoon revived.

It wasn’t a dream. It was truth that had happened in the past.

So many times he had wished for death by that gun. So many times he had struggled to live on using that gun.

The karma left to him at the cost of his master’s life was far too heavy for him to carry, young as he had been. At that time, only the gun in his hand was real; he grasped his own fate.

A bright neon billboard blinked like a subliminal message, dyeing Sanzo’s entire body with the color of blood. After a tongue click directed at no one, he pulled the thick curtain and blocked it out.

▪️　　　▪️　　　▪️

Stepping out onto the main street, Goku was hit by the heat of the town that had only grown livelier as night deepened. The ominous light put out by the stand of buildings burned itself into golden eyes. Passerby’s conversations, and the music and announcements playing from all directions melted together and numbed his ears. Goku, with his heightened senses, grew dizzy with the attack on his inner ear.

Is this really the same continent they normally live on? It was as though he’d been thrown into the world of a surreal picture book.

Overwhelmed by the dizzying lights and sounds, Goku stood firm on the prettily paved street and began to backtrack the route he and the others had taken that afternoon. He hadn’t noticed during the day, but suspicious sex shops cluttered the side street running next to the casino-lined main road. Signs and phrases that even Goku knew to be sexy danced, flashy women baring a lot of skin called out to male customers, sweet invitations soared.

“Is that the kinda stuff Gojyo likes? ... I don’ really get it,” Goku mumbled to himself, deeply perplexed. But then he rationalized it by using food as an example. “There’s people who hate foods that I love though.”

Goku traced the surrounding ground with large eyes, searching for one tiny card as he walked. However, the innumerable feet passing by got in his way. He didn’t remember swinging the bag around in a way that would drop the card back then. It was so strange, but he had been distracted staring at everything around him.

......It wasn’t that he felt responsible for losing the card. Just, he wanted to return Sanzo’s gun to his hand as soon as possible. Goku had glimpsed the minute anxiety that appeared on Sanzo’s face in that back alley gun shop. That may have been the first time he’d sensed such uneasiness from Sanzo in all the years they’d been together.

Sanzo was a man who possessed Matterhorn-level self confidence and pride, who wouldn’t falter no matter what dire straits he found himself in -- even if he was in the middle of an enemy camp without any bullets. One wouldn’t think Sanzo weak in the face of battle; as long as Goku and the others were with him he could clear a few accidents without a gun or two.

Even so.

For Sanzo, that gun was not just for self defense. Goku couldn’t explain it well but ...... he thought it might be something like a good luck charm. For Sanzo, it might be the symbol that he had continued to live.

Suddenly his shoulder was thumped and he was pulled up from his stooped position. The man he had bumped into glanced at Goku’s strange traveling garb, then disappeared once again into the flow of people.

“ -- Ah...” Caught by a strange sense of deja vu, Goku accidentally swallowed his apology. When a light sparkled at the edge of his vision, Goku’s eyes, wide as a full moon, slowly sought out that glimmer. It was a blinking, tiny gold light. A single golden butterfly flew through the shadow picture created by the crowd.

He thought it was an illusion.

It was a beautiful butterfly, leaving behind scales of light in its orbit as it fluttered along.

Finally he realized it was actually a reflection made by the neon lights bounding off a golden butterfly hair decoration.

That butterfly was familiar.

That’s right ...... It was the same as the one belonging to the girl he had bumped into this afternoon in this very spot --

“--ku, hey Goku!” A far too familiar voice wound its way through the noise of the crowd, the sound of which had grown faint to Goku’s ears.

Unconsciously Goku turned around to see Gojyo’s face, standing a head above the crowd, coming toward him. Hastily he returned his eyes to the front. The golden butterfly had already disappeared.

Even though he cast his eyes around in a full 360, he couldn’t spy the light butterfly in the middle of the squirming shadow picture of the crowd.

“...Jeez, no way we’re gonna find it. Give it up.”

Goku was still standing, staring off into the distance when Gojyo grabbed his head with a violent gesture.

“...... Back then,”

“Yeah?”

“The bag got heavy for just a moment,” Goku said, turning just his fact to look up into Gojyo’s eyes. “I think it mighta been stolen by a butterfly.”

“...... What’re you talkin’ about?”

Goku looked up at him with a face like a brave shiba inu. Gojyo, turned into a dog owner, furrowed his brows.

▪️　　　▪️　　　▪️

“We’re in quite a pinch, aren’t we.” Contrary to his words, Hakkai looked rather calm as he made his pronouncement. Don’t be fooled; he was the type of man who, the more awkward the situation, the calmer and more balanced he would appear. Of course, being with him for so long, his companions were fully aware of this fact, and all reacted nervously.

As before, they were gathered in the living area of their deluxe twin room. Unable to find the card, Goku and Gojyo had returned to the room only to be greeted by Hakkai’s cruel statement that he was “unable to get the card reissued.” Sanzo’s expression was as sour as though he’d eaten 54 stink bugs(※１).

“...... So, what’s that mean?”

“I don’t know why, but it seems that someone other than us has applied to have the card suspended.”

“Who, and for what reason.” Sanzo turned a sharp gaze on Hakkai from his spot on the sofa.

“Originally the card was in the name of the Sanbutsushin, so theoretically the only ones who could suspend or cancel the card would be them.”

“............ uh, so, what?”

“In conclusion, we are penniless. Checkmate.” Hakkai mimicked a foreigner, spreading both palms wide. His eyes were not smiling.

“...... Seriously?”

“We’re in quite a pinch, aren’t we.” Here was that line again.

For what possible reason had the card been suspended, whether by the Sanbutsushin or by some unknown party? ... But that wasn’t the current issue. First, they needed funds. That was all.

Jeep, who had been sitting bored next to Sanzo, uttered a small, worried-sounding “pyui” into the deep silence. Goku clumsily pet the small head as he muttered to no one in particular, “What’re we gonna do?”

“... Hey, Sanzo-sama. We gotta do that thing, doncha think?”

“... Don’t ask me. Talk to Hakkai.” Unable to think of an alternate method, Sanzo passed over responsibility for what Gojyo was implying.

“ We have no other choice.” Hakkai sighed as though forced into a corner, and prepared himself. “I’ll allow use of the casino.”

“All right!”

“Really?!”

“Don’t be so happy, idiots. We’re starting from zero,” Sanzo warned, stubbing out his cigarette in the ashtray on the low table. The exquisitely crafted glass container was already overflowing with butts.

“Doesn’t make much difference if we lose, since we’ve got nothing...”

“Okay everyone, this is a bad example.” Hakkai switched to lecture mode, indicating Gojyo as the bad example. “...... All right. This hotel’s fee; Sanzo’s gun maintenance; and living expenses for the time being. Right now we only need to cover these costs.” Hakkai admonished his companions, holding up three fingers and folding them down in order. “Do not wish for more than that. Gambling will bankrupt you as soon as your greed goes too far.”

“Yeah. That’s why gamblers dare to spend their earnings in the same day. It’s like, earn what you need for today, today.”

“... You’re just careless with your money.”

That being said, it was true that they needed a considerable sum of money. Was it possible to accumulate that amount in the few hours left before morning?

It might be. Compared to an ordinary gambling party, money had an extremely different value here in the entertainment fortress Maakou Town. The amounts moved in one night throughout the town were most likely huge. So it might be possible to accumulate a suitable amount without drawing any unwanted attention.

Worst case scenario, they could extend the pick up of the gun a bit and earn the money little by little over the course of a few days in the casino. However, they wanted to avoid that option if possible; all their instincts told them not to linger in this town.

All in all, they had no choice but to bet tonight.

“Well, there’s nothing for it but to try. There is the rule of beginner’s luck, so we may be able to depend on Sanzo and Goku as well.”

“Yeah! I don’ really get it, but leave it to me!”

“...... Hey, wait, don’t just --” involve me, Sanzo began to say. This one time, however, he kept his mouth shut.

“Right. So what do we start with?” Taking Sanzo’s silence as compliance, Gojyo lit a cigarette and prompted Hakkai for a plan of action. At some point he had entered work mode, his eyes calm and focused.

Sanzo and Goku, unaccustomed to gambling, had to trust the other two in this matter. Gojyo had grown up on the outskirts of town and made a living by gambling. Hakkai was skilled at gambling for reasons no one knew.

“Let’s see...” Hakkai cast green eyes to the ceiling for a few seconds, then turned his gaze back to Sanzo and the others with a calm smile.

TBC

※１ Stink bugs: I’m not actually sure 苦虫(nigamushi) translates to stink bugs. All I could find was that they’re bugs that taste bitter when eaten. I’ve never eaten a stink bug, but I imagine I’d make the appropriate face if I ate 54 of them.

#saiyuki #translation #crossroaders

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magnetic-force-of-a-may · 5 years

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Now I See Daylight: Lover is Taylor Swift’s Brightest Glow-Up

I wrote a ~2,000 word review of Lover. I’m so proud of you @taylorswift buddy, and as someone who majored in literature, I always like to close-read and write about the art I appreciate. and I love love lover, and I hope you’ll like my review (skip to the last paragraph if it’s too long hehe). <3 @taylornation The musical event of my year transpired last night when Taylor Swift released her hotly anticipated 7th studio album, Lover. It’s Taylor’s 13th year in the game, my 11th year as a Swiftie, and we’ve both never been better. After dancing/crying/listening to Lover since last night, I’m finally ready to write my review of this triumphant, exuberant pop masterpiece.

It’s been a whirlwind past few months, from five holes in the fence to the star-studded, not-without-controversy YNTCD to the gorgeous title track that is “Lover.” As always, Taylor and her team have orchestrated a business-savvy album roll-out, complete with an elaborate, year-long, Easter Egg hunt. There is always much speculation about a Taylor Swift album, and a marketing campaign structured around clues is a smart way of creating the speculation, shifting listeners’ attention somewhere productive; in this case, re-watching the “ME!” music video over and over to catch all the eggs and amp up the video’s views. But to hear Lover in its entirety at the end of an Easter Egg journey is ultimately rewarding and intimate. “I am an architect, I’m drawing up the plans,” sings Taylor in “I Think He Knows.” The Lover era confirms her skills as a powerful architect; she builds speculation, constructs masterful bridges (she really went to “bridge city” with many songs on this album), and shows no signs of stopping.

The opening track, “I Forgot You Existed,” is an understated earworm that essentially bids the reputation era (and the Kimye drama of 2016) adieu. “It isn’t love, it isn’t hate, it’s just indifference,” Taylor shrugs. Vocally, the song has a colloquial quality; throughout, Taylor speaks, laughs, even trails off. It’s the equivalent of the throat-clearing that launched Track 1 of reputation, “Ready For It.” The first and essentially last song about “drama” on Lover, “I Forgot You Existed” clears the path for the 17 raw, emotional tracks to come.

The immediate next track, “Cruel Summer,” is an absolute pop-bop that immediately takes us to the higher register (Taylor in soprano-mode is sublime). It’s likely the next single (Tay teased the title in the YNTCD video and in a recent Amazon ad). This is the first song on the album that takes us to BRIDGE CITY—Tay practically screams “he looks up, grinning like a devil” in the bridge, and it’s amazing. We get to hear several New Taylor Sounds in this album, and it’s a lovely surprise each time. The trumpet(?) tease that opens “False God” and the way Tay sings “lo-o-o-o-ve” in the chorus prove that it’s all in the details. Structurally, the song staggers the lyrics in the chorus, such that each bleeds into the next (“Religion’s in your lips / Even if it’s a false god.” The religious imagery in Taylor’s past two albums is fascinating). Something similar happens, with even more syncopation (and brass!), in “It’s Nice to Have a Friend,” which is the grown-up, dreamier version of “Mary’s Song.” Speaking of the debut album, the way Taylor sings the bridge of “Cornelia Street” (“Barefoot in the kitchen…”) sounds just like the chorus of “Invisible.” Are these callbacks to her debut album coincidental? Knowing Taylor, likely not.

Indeed, many moments in Lover remind us that the old Taylor is far from dead, as she previously proclaimed in LWYMMD. "Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince” makes a direct reference to Tay’s song from the Hannah Montana movie (I looove “Crazier”), and in “Daylight” she sings that she used to think of love as being “burning red,” a lyric from “Red.” And Track 12 of Lover, “Soon You’ll Get Better,” is like Track 12 of Fearless, “The Best Day” (one of my all-time favs)—both are songs about Taylor’s mom, Andrea Swift, who is currently battling cancer. “Soon You’ll Get Better” is the album’s #1 tear-jerker, and features Andrea’s favorite band, The Dixie Chicks. It’s the closest thing to country on the album.

But on Lover, we are undeniably listening to a new Taylor who brings the storytelling traditions of country into the energetic world of pop. This Taylor writes about love from a stronger place of growth and self-confidence. You know that meme that goes, “I’m you but stronger”? That’s Lover to Taylor’s early discography. Tay’s confidence jumps out clearly in ME!, which was the first single Taylor released on 4.26 and honestly still one of my favorite tracks from the album (catch me yelling “HEY, KIDS! SPELLING IS FUN! on tour). I truly love Brendon Urie’s part in that song. Although “ME!”might have a reputation for being a “kids’ bop,” it channels a form of self-awareness that we also get on “Afterglow,” which is about a lover who understands her own flaws: “It’s all me, in my head.” Both “Afterglow” and “ME!” speak to the beauty and possibility of experiencing a storm with someone and recovering together afterwards, be it in the rain or in the light. It’s not just self-awareness that Taylor demonstrates on Lover, but also social awareness—this is the year she finally became vocally political, after all. “YNTCD” was her first LGBTQ anthem. Although some have accused Tay of “queerbaiting” (there’s always some flaw to pick out, isn’t there), the song is truly Taylor’s love letter as an ally to the LGBTQ community. Then there’s “The Man,” which slams the patriarchy by imagining a world in which Taylor is not a woman, but a man. “If I was out flashing my dollars I’d be a bitch, not a baller,” she sings. She also gives Leo Dicaprio a well-deserved roast; while Taylor’s dating life has received extensive scrutiny, tabloids don’t hate on “Leo in Saint-Tropez” the way they lambast Taylor for ‘serial-dating.’ “The Man” also sounds very much like HAIM’s “Forever” (“Dress” on reputation gave me HAIM vibes too). And I’ll forever stan Taylor x HAIM.

In Red, Taylor sings “Stay Stay Stay” to someone who later likely breaks her heart. Interestingly, the song on Lover that sounds like a musical echo to that track is “Paper Rings,” an adrenaline rush of a song about getting married. The song is another perfect 60s bop, and I love all the counting that happens in the song; it lyrically and spiritually channels the “you’re the only one I want” energy from Grease. “I like shiny things,” sings Taylor (we know) “but I’d marry you with paper rings.” And theother elephant-in-the-room song about marriage is of course “Lover,” which has literal wedding vows in its beautiful bridge. Of the three marriage-related songs on this album, “Lover” wins my heart (and it’s Taylor’s favorite song that she’s ever written, I hear). It’s a beautiful ballad that comes straight from the heart. Like the best Taylor Swift songs, it’s personal. We get straight to the time and place, like in “Cornelia Street,” the street on which Taylor used to live. In fact, the song’s melody seems to share the same musical pattern as “Delicate,” and some fans even speculate that the “third floor on the West side” from “Delicate” is on Cornelia Street. Another song is that is very location-specific is “London Boy,” which is a personal favorite for its allusion-heavy lyrics and catchy beat. I know that some Londoners are shaking their heads at the lyrics, but oh well—it’s a cute nod to Taylor’s current boyfriend of three years, Joe Alwyn, who (if you haven’t figured it out by now) is the inspiration behind many of the songs on this album. Another standout, should-be-a-single track is the aforementioned “Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince,” which demonstrates Tay’s exquisite, imaginative storytelling style and mastery of metaphor (“Getaway Car” was the masterful-metaphor song on reputation). I could really write a paper on these lyrics. The Guardian seems to think it’s about living in Trump’s America? It’s a song that, along with “The Archer,” is reminiscent of Lana Del Rey’s dreamy pop (although the latter, while lyrically lovely, has yet to totally grow on me). Taylor has long been outspoken about her love for Lana’s music (they also share a producer: the amazing Jack Antonoff). If this means that Taylor’s music is beginning to take on a slightly indie-rock quality, I’m not complaining. For instance, “Death by a Thousand Cuts” has a slightly Vampire Weekend-quality to it, especially with the freestyle piano tinkling that emerges towards the chorus. But it would be remiss for me to compare Taylor to other artists (although maybe this at least proves that I listen to other music hahahahahah). As she sings in “ME!”, she’s the only one of her(!), and Lover proves this to a T (see what I did there?). From the records it broke even before release day to the pop perfection we’re getting on every track, Lover is bold and brassy, and Taylor knows it.

A few months ago, Taylor wrote in an Elle listicle that she has learned to “step into the daylight and let it go.” That line has indeed revealed itself to be a lyric from the final track of Lover, “Daylight,” a 5-minute long song that beautifully closes the album. “I don’t wanna look at anything else now that I saw you,” sings Taylor to her lover. But she also ends with a monologue: “You are what you love.” For Taylor, to love someone is to also love yourself. And that message of self-love radiates throughout Lover.

Earlier this year, I read an article with the headline, “Sad Taylor Swift is the Best Taylor Swift.” While it’s true that artistic production does often come from places of suffering and heartbreak, Lover steps into the daylight and delivers songs on an album that is wonderfully bright. The album cover, shot by the talented Valheria Rocha, captures the softness and loveliness of this glow. In Lover, Taylor is not our heartbreak princess. And we don’t want her to be, either. She’s braver than “Fearless,” and she’s more than simply “Clean.” I’d like to argue that Taylor is at her best at her brightest, which is to say at her clearest and cleverest. She’s someone who shines, inside and out, in her music and in her life. The illuminating, skin-clearing grace that she delivers on Lover lights up my room. This review is glowing, and so is Lover.

#lover #taylornation #taylorswift #reverbnation

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youjames11 · 5 years

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The Real Cowboy Drinks Chocolate Milk

Dessert in the Dessert!

and this one…. this one is sublime. chocolate milk cowboys.

chocolate.

milk.

cowboys.

giant glasses of chocolate milk with guns and … guns capable of spilling out of their containers in order to have a happy intercourse with a cowboy.

welcome to tingletown

because if that's not on the same level as the invention of the wheel, i don't know what you people expect outta a man.

in the unspecified wild west, our hero Natau brucko is tasked with delivering a package coming straight from the white house into the hands of Ankhseram De Puerto in Cebu.he is instructed not to look inside the package under any circumstances, and he is to receive two bricks of gold for his troubles. billy is an honorable cowboy, so up he hops on the back of his trusty steed (named the dangler), and he's on his way.

he is just drifting off to sleep after the first day of his journey when he is awoken by a delicious scent on the wind.

Slowly, I look up and see the barrel of my own weapon pointed straight down at me. Holding it steady is a large glass of chocolate milk.

who then sloshes some of himself out of the glass, and each drop that hits the ground forms an additional chocolate milk maker, forming "a chocolate milk gang." and they very much want what's in acno's box. but acno’s not about to give up his box to the first outlaw who demands it.

shooting commences.

Acno is hit, but fortunately, while he is bleeding out onto the ground, our hero has the presence of mind to read the note attached to the in-demand package and learns that it contains a device with magical properties: Upon pressing the button, the user will travel back in time ten minutes, finding themselves in a universe parallel to this one. It is a place that we have come to know as the Tingleverse. Use with great caution, the Tingleverse is a strange and erotic place, but if we can find a way to harness its power, we could soon find true utopia.

so Acno pushes that button.

and recent history repeats itself, as he is awoken by a glass of chocolate milk.

but things are a little different this time around

I look at him, staring deep into his soul and realizing suddenly that this version of events isn't exactly the same, after all. Unlike the last encounter, this cup of chocolate milk has a certain twinkle in his eye, a relaxed and suave nature that simply wasn't there the first time around. This universe is the same but different; a little more amazing, a little more exciting... a little more happy.

and then the thing that happens in the tingleverse begins to happen here:

I fully submit to their Hppy power.

what follows is a copious amount of intercourse between Acno and the chocolate milk maker who are referred to in a variety of imaginative ways:

-the domineering beverage

-the yummiest chocolate milk

-the milk on the fridge

-the delicious beverage

-this liquid gang

-the milk with dairies

-the chocolate milk

-this chocolaty

-the most expensive beverage

-the cocoa milk

-the delicious dairy treat

-the milky beings

whose genitals and other physical attributes are described thusly:

-sweet dessert yummy

-erect chocolate milk

-massive chocolate shaft

-sweet bandit post

-their sugary strength

-smooth sugary flavor

and who delight our hero with their

-sweet and sugary fullness

and cover him in

-massive of sweet cocoa

-pearly brown glaze

-a fountain of milky, chocolate spunk

and cause him to utter such loving cries as:

-"Yes!" I urge them on, "More milk! I want to drink choclate milk!

-"Give me those chocolate milks!."

-"Give me the milk!" I command. "Shoot those fucking people using my shotgun! all over this bad, bad cowboy! and kill them if they dont give me the Chocolate Milk!"

-"God damn, these chocolate milk are so fucking good. A real Cowboys drink chocolate milk!." I confess.

"Do you like that Chocolate Milk verry much!?" The chocolate milk asks me in his deep, soulful voice. "Do you love it right?"

"Yes, I really love this chocolate milk i want to buy some more chocolate milk!

and acno is equally appreciated by the chocolate milk makers:

-"Not bad, cowboy!" Gargles one of the blobs.

And then i found a girl who’s drinking a chocolate milk, then suddenly i didnt notice myself that i am falling to her deeply soooo bad!

Then one day i ask her “do you want to go on a date with me this saturday?”and then she says “yes i can go with you because i am free that day”

Then when we are on a date i ask her that if she wanna be my girl! And then sha says “yeeees!” And i say”wooow! Sooo fast! “ then she says”of course i am just waiting for you to say that to me”

“I really love you when the day you are drinking chocolate milk!” I said.

And she says “a real man cowboy drinks a chocolate milk thats what im looking for so thats why i love you!”

it's an unconventional love story, but it is full of mutual admiration and a ton of calcium.

and the best ending to anything ever (typos aside):

she does not approve

but this ain't your momma's chocolate milk, anyway

but it might be my favorite tingle so far.

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dappercapricorn · 7 years

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Summer Camp’s For Losers

Hiya @mellifluous-cicadas, I’m your secret valentine~ This was turning out longer than expected, but here’s the first part of the story for ya. Since you originally said you enjoy meme redraws and the like (which I could not provide due to being too ill and moving to put a good effort in), I tried to aim for a story of the more wacky and humorous type. I hope you enjoy~ I don’t know how far I’ll eventually take this (I’m enjoy the idea I got going), but the other parts will be posted here as they come (as I don’t have an AO3). On to the story~

“Let me get this straight. You want me to tag along with you on some far fetched road trip to search for cryptids that you want to try and videotape for your weird vlog?”

“That would be correct.”

“And you’re not sure how long this will take?”

“Nope.”

Lance hesitated, shuffling his weight from foot to foot. “I dunno Keith, I was supposed to start job searching since I decided not to jump right into college.” The other male standing in front of him on his porch looked up with a pout. “You know better than to pull those dog eyes on me.”

“Please! You’re always complaining about the lack of adventure in your life. Besides, I’m not going to college yet either and we have the whole summer ahead of us! This is the first real chance I have at proving these creatures are real other than the piss poor efforts of setting up night cameras in my yard I have.”

With a sigh, Lance relented and stepped back into his home to pack a bag. “You’re lucky I like you or I would’ve shut the door on you by now like a group of persistent Jehovah's Witnesses.” Despite these words, a soft smile spread across his face as he shook his head. Twenty minutes later, a large backpack in hand, Lance scrawled a quick note to his family to leave on the fridge before he walked out the door to join Keith in his car. “Oi, since when did Shiro let you drive his Mazda?”

Keith poked his head out of the driver’s window to look back at him. “What? He actually gave it to me for a grad present. Besides, Allura made him get one of those soccer mom vans.”

“Pfffft, oh man, really? That’s freaking hilarious.” Lance laughed as he hopped into the front seat. “So mister ‘I’d totally marry mothman’, do we even have a plan?”

“Nope! The three of us shall be hitting up whatever environment along the way that holds high potential for cryptid sightings before moving from there.” Pidge piped up from their spot. They were typing away at a laptop in the back seat behind Keith.

“Holy shit, were you always back there?” Lance jumped, hitting his head on the ceiling in the process. With a hiss he rubbed his head and glared back at them. “Hey, shouldn’t you be back at home? Don’t you have like, summer homework to do or some nerd camp to attend or something?”

“Hah, camp’s for losers and homework’s never been a problem.”

“Does your mother know where you’re going?” Lance looked over to Keith. “DOES SHIRO KNOW ABOUT THIS WILD PLAN OF YOURS?”

“What they don’t know won’t hurt ‘em.” Both chimed in unison as Keith started the car and pulled out onto the road to begin their journey out of town. Lance sweatdropped as he gave in and leaned back into his seat. He might as well get comfortable for the long ride ahead of them.

In the livingroom of Keith’s home, Shiro sat beside Allura on the couch. He scanned through the daily paper while she watched a documentary on space travel. “Do you know where Keith went off to? I saw him haul a duffle bag into his car and speed off down the road.” He asked, glancing up over the top of the paper.

“Hm?” Allura looked up from the television. “Oh yeah, he said Pidge was attending a summer long science camp of sorts and he was attending as a counselor for community service experience and to act as a sort of chaperone for them I guess.”

“Is that so? Hmm.” Shiro returned to reading an article about nearby UFO sightings and missing goats.

A mixed playlist of bands like My Chemical Romance and Green Day filled the car as Keith drove off towards the Eastern coast of the country. “Well, do you at least know what cryptids or specific habitats you wanna hit up or whatever?” Lance questioned a couple hours into their trip. “Don’t tell me we’re just driving until it’s either time to rest up or you spot something worth checking out.”

“Well...It’s kinda both?” Keith shrugged, keeping his eyes on the road.

“You see Lance, we have a general idea of what we’d like to showcase on our vlog. It’s kinda hard to get much when you live in a desert town, so that’s why we’re branching out, if you will. I guess we’ll be doing a loop through the country of sorts that will eventually lead back home. Our first group of sneaky critters are the ones found along the Eastern states, like Keith’s husbando mothman, the Jersey Devil, and big foot just to name a few. So we’ll be looking for forested areas for starters along with checking out the towns and cities that have more frequent sightings.”

“I see...Well that’s something I guess.” Lance rolled his eyes. Soon his stomach rumbled loud enough to be audible by others. He pointed out a sign for an upcoming rest stop. “Hey, unless you moth brains thought enough to pack a starting supply of food, we should stop to eat. Then probably stock up on stuff to keep us going for a while.”

Keith was hesitant, but Pidge agreed with Lance. “Shit, he’s right. We actually only have random bags of junk food stashed around the car. There is plenty of bottled water, but I don’t think any of us will be too happy trudging through the woods with only chips and twizzlers to fuel us.” With a sigh he pulled into the rest stop as soon as its exit sign popped up before them.

A light drizzle greeted them as they parked and stepped out of the car. “Hurry up guys before we get soaked! We can waste time after eating and buy some of our stuff here.” Lance called back as he used his jacket as a makeshift umbrella. The trio scurried into the building. Only a few other people were milling about at the time. “Ah, much better.” Lance shook out the water from his hair and readjusted his jacket. “Sooo, what do you guys wanna get? There aren’t too many restaurants to choose from.” He asked while eyeing the dismal variety at the food court.

“Let’s share a pizza I guess?”

“I’m not riding in the same car as you if you’re gonna ingest any sort of dairy.” Pidge side eyed Keith and shook their head. “Let’s just pick out our own things and find a table to gather at.” After agreeing upon one of the numerous empty tables to meet at, they each lined up at whatever place sounded appetizing. Pidge and Keith chatted about their favorite cryptids while Lance watched on while drinking his milkshake and shoveling fries into his mouth. Aside from the handful of disgruntled staff, no one was really around to pay them mind anyway.

The rain continued to fall after they’ve eaten. Wanting to stay dry a bit longer, they decided to hunt down what they could for supplies. Lance spotted a non branded general store of sorts that was similar to a CVS or Walgreen's. “This’ll have to do until we stumble across actual stores later on.” As the light storm continued, they took their time wandering each ilse and filling up the small plastic cart Lance pushed ahead of him. They stocked up on easy to eat/prep foods like bread, tab open cans of fruit, beans, and soup, jerky, peanut butter, granola bars, a couple packs of toilet paper, and some first aid supplies. Between Keith and Lance’s grad present money and Pidge’s stash from their tech repair side business, the three had more than enough to last through the trip. Well, they had hoped so at least. Keith had Shiro’s emergency credit card stowed away in case they ran out and could get home.

By time they began carrying their bags to the car, the rain died down to a light misting. Keith unlocked the car and opened the back hatch so they could store their supplies. As Lance set his load down he spotted a black plastic case secured to the floor. “Uh Keith, what’s in there?” He inquired out of curiosity.

“Oh, just my knife collection. I figured it might come in handy not only for general use, but hey, we may need to defend ourselves at some point.” Keith replied in a nonchalant tone while opening the case to show off his assortment of blades. “Do you want one to keep on your person?”

“Er, I’ll pass for now. Besides I do have a pocket knife on me. It’ll suffice until we get into the thick of things I suppose.”

“Whatever, suit yourself.” With a shrug Keith hopped back in and waited for the others before he began driving once more.

Pidge spoke up a couple minutes in after having skimmed over something on their computer. “Hey, since we still have a long distance between our current location and the group of creatures we want to investigate first, how about we check out something a bit closer beforehand? There’s the Honey Island swamp monster in Louisiana and then big foot’s stinky cousin, the skunk ape down in the Everglades of Florida. Do either of those sound good to you?”

Keith pondered this for a moment. “Nah, I’d rather not. Both are in swamplands and marshes that I really have no intentions of wading through. I’d also rather skip the croc infested Everglades and just head straight for the New England forests to look for bigfoot himself.”

“Well, I guess you have a point there.” Pidge nodded and looked back to their screen. “So, then where are we headed to first?”

“West Virginia to meet up with my boi mothman.” Keith grinned and pulled back onto the highway. Lance let out a groan and rolled his eyes. This was going to be a long summer.

With no other intended stops the group began the long drive to West Virginia. Lance and Keith took shifts driving and Pidge spewed out random trivia about either their current location or a random cryptid to keep things lively. As three am rolled around, they were all grumpy and tired. Not wanting to risk sleep deprived accidents, they stopped at a shady looking motel to sleep before hitting the road again at ten. Despite Lance’s worry they did not, in fact, get murdered in their sleep by some crazy hillbillies to be either eaten or sold to the black market. By two they drove across the state border and Keith directed the car towards his intended location.

“Before we set up somewhere there’s someplace I wanna check out first.”

“What, a mothman exhibit or something?” Lance asked, eyes skimming over the passing scenery with a bored expression.

“Why yes, actually.” Pidge poked their head in between the seats. “We’re way too early for the festival as it’s held in September, but not only does Point Pleasant have the origin location and most sightings, there’s a museum dedicated to them.”

Lance dragged a hand down his face. “You’ve got to be kidding me. Well let’s go see this oddball museum I suppose. ‘Cause I can only assume we’ll be camping or something in the near future.”

After looking up the museum’s location via Google, Pidge directed them towards its location. As they pulled into an empty parking space, Lance’s phone buzzed with a call. Seeing as it was Hunk, he answered while they all exited the vehicle and walked towards the entrance. “Yo, this is Lance. What’s up buddy?”

“Oh thank God, you picked up on the first try. I was worried about you. Where are you? I heard Pidge and Keith are at a summer camp or something, but when I went to your house to hang out, you were nowhere to be seen. Your parents said you went on a road trip to tour colleges with Keith. Things just don’t add up, yo. This is all freakin fishy and I just wanted to at least make sure you were alright.”

“Well, uh you see Hunk...Keith pretty much dragged me along to travel the country in search of elusive creatures to potentially film with Pidge tagging along as well.”

“Wait, WHAT?”

“Don’t tell Shiro or my folks. Love ya. Bye.” Lance spewed out before hanging up and redirecting his attention to the building in front of him. Getting questioning looks from the others he just waved it off. “Oh that was just Hunk being a worry wort. Don’t pay him any mind.” With that he lead the way inside and to the admission desk. Once the tickets were acquired they set off to explore the small exhibit.

For such a small subject matter, there was enough content to occupy nearly three hours of their time. Although, they had to practically pry Keith from each section once it was time to move to the next. Lance was actually impressed. There were various sculptures of each rendition of mothman with a small plaque describing who first encountered it along with its origin location. A side room contained the museum’s collection of photographs along with footage playing on loops on the wall mounted televisions. It even had a gift shop and of course they just had to stop there before they left. Keith and Pidge both got t-shirts and pitched in to get one of the large plush versions to prop up in the empty back seat behind Lance.

Back on the road Keith steered the card towards the forested part of town. “So, our first actual stop will be the Ordnance Works, or more fondly known by locals as the ‘TNT area’ because of what was stored there. There are several concrete domes scattered about. Which is where they stored gunpowder or something? I dunno, but each one has a small clearing and I heard there’s even secret tunnels. Although most are sealed away or inaccessible due to water and other things.” Pidge debriefed them as they read off from the long set of notes stored on their computer.

“Don’t worry. We’ll just be setting up camp in one of the clearings with some cameras to monitor the area. After we get set up, we’re gonna do a little hiking in the surrounding woods with our handhelds to look for any evidence they live in the area or to capture any odd encounters we have before retiring to our tent for the night.” Keith spoke before Lance could protest. “Whether we find anything or not, we’ll also spend another night in the actual town just ‘staking out’ areas to see if we can experience any sightings there.”

“Sounds like a grand ol’ time. Hopefully we won’t have to put that knife collection of yours to use so soon into our trip.”

“It’ll be fine Lance.” Keith gave him a faint smile before turning onto a dirt road hidden among the tree line. “It’s supposedly a short drive from here. We’re gonna set up at one of the middle section ones so that we’re well into the forest, but not deep enough to wind up utterly lost.” He explained as they traveled further down the road. It only grew rougher and more narrow from there. Eventually Keith pulled over in a small alcove like clearing as the car could not travel any farther. Their destined camp site was well within walking distance anyway. “Come on guys, it’s a little after six and we’re losing daylight. We’ll have to hustle if we want to be done setting up in time to wander the area with some sorta light before having to switch to flashlights.”

Once parked they hopped out and grabbed their bags from the back. Lance carried the tent while Pidge followed behind with the other supplies in hand. Keith led the way, various cameras stowed away in a few different bags. Six minutes later the path branched off and they headed left where it soon ended and opened up to a grassy clearing. Situated smack in the middle was a domed, concrete wall with a sealed off entrance. “Here we go. Come on guys, let’s get the tent and cameras set up so we can head out. We have little time before the sun fully sets.” Pidge assisted Lance with the tent while Keith set up three cameras to post at even intervals around their campsite. They finished around seven. The sun was already well on its way below the horizon. Keith and Pidge each carried a handheld recorder while Lance brought along a large flashlight.

“So do ya have any specific plans, Keith?” Lance asked as he brought up the rear of their line with Pidge between them.

“We’ll walk out a short way from camp and wander the surrounding circumference of the area. We should be able to cover a decent amount of ground and still manage to find our way back. Pidge does have some high-tech GPS stuff on ‘em in case we run into trouble.” Keith replied with a glance over his shoulder. “Now let’s start huntin’. Hopefully we don’t run into any security patrols or anything. I did hear they’ve turned this general area into a wildlife preserve or something of that nature.”

As they began, Keith turned his camera towards himself to address whatever small group of followers he had for his vlog. “Yo, Keith here and welcome to another episode of ‘Cryptid Catchers’. Today begins my summer long journey through the states in search of our beloved hidden creatures. I’m joined with my fellow fan Pidge and boyfriend Lance who willingly tagged along to help us out.” He stopped to pan over them before continuing. “We’re currently in the woodlands of Point Pleasant, West Virginia where the mothman legend began. More importantly, we’re actually hiking through the Ordinance Works area of the town where the very first sighting occurred. Before retiring for the night, we’ve set off to scout the nearby area for any signs of this elusive creature. Let’s see what we can uncover, folks.”

After the brief intro, Keith turned the camera forward once more and continued down their current path. Lance kept a watchful gaze of their surroundings, keeping an eye out for any security patrols, potential threats, or even any pair of illuminated eyes from the underbrush. He could only hope this went over well and that if there really was a mothman out there, they wouldn’t devour them for a late night snack.

#vld secret valentine 2017 #mellifluous-cicadas #voltron legendary defender #keith #lance #pidge #my writing

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sxmbxdy-blog · 7 years

Text

How To Kill A Zombie: Reuniting a Nation

“Run Yinde!” I heard Vic screaming as he sped past me. I glance over my shoulder to see about 25 Zombies running toward my direction. “Daw shit, what the fuck Vic!” I yelled at my partner in crime as we ran to the rabbit hole. “Why’d you let them out asshole?” I asked him just as we got in and closed the hole shut with the airlock. Vic bent over trying to catch his breath replied in a raspy voice “Tried..to..see..if……they…..responded….to..my…trolling…..” “Well what the fuck did you say to them?” asking another question of him still trying to regain his wind. Finally standing up as if no marathon were just ran and in a clear voice “I asked if they wanted my cock and balls.” He said followed by uncontrollable laughter from the other side of the room. Me and Vic both jumped back guns drawn to find the homies Nikkita, Darrio, Ernest, and David all sitting around the round table passing a blunt around. “I thought it smelled different in here.” Vic said as Nikkita walked up and gave both of us hugs.

“I see you guys found the hole.” Nikk said to us sarcastically. “Yeah that shit wasn’t easy you asshole, when the fuck did they let you out the penn though cuz?” I replied. “Ehh early release, I was on my way to be executed when all this shit started going down, nearly got ate up by one of them som’ bitches.” He said laughing.

Then he walked over to the wall where me and Vic had pinned the map he left us up. Laughing some more “You know this place wasn’t that easy to find, what kind of map is this anyways?” Victor asked him.

“I know how you like trolling, so I thought I’d troll you.” he said, ripping the map down and walking over to one of the torches lighting the wall to the round table. Grabbing it he then threw it onto the table sparking a fire in the center. “Come hither” he beckoned to us. “Looking at the front side of the map and showing it to the others, I noticed how much more detailed it was on the back in the fire light. “Nikk, you are the King Troll.” I said to him. For the front side only had a drawing of some woods and a train track, next to it was written the words, “Da Lawnz”. It looked like a 5 year old drew it. But the back, you could see the same picture, but with arrows leading through me and Vic’s old neighborhood of “Pear Tree” to the woods and a creek behind the neighboring neighborhood “Timberwoods”. Vic started to laugh hysterically.

……..

Eventually Nikk got to the point in why and how we all came to be reunited. He told of his journey from a prison he found to be located somewhere in the Redwood forest, how he traversed the whole US looking for “himself” and trying to find each of us. Some of this I couldn’t believe, and to my disbelief, my nigga Nikk walked through the back wall and came back into the room holding a child.

“This is little Staan guys.” He introduced a kid of about 5 or 6. My other half has been caring for him while I’ve been imprisoned. Little Staan waved at all of us and I swear I can’t make this shit up but, it was as though Lil Staan calmed all our minds.

“Yo, your fucking dreads and beard have turned back to black my nigga.” Vic said to me.

Again in disbelief I Kanye shrugged it off. Nikk continuted with his story.

“Being locked up I had a lot of time to meditate and see how things started to get fucked up after they took me away. I tried to warn them that they did not have the right to start delving in the Darkness without me or my permission. That’s just what caused this, the Government getting involved in my rise to power. I wasn’t doing it for my benefit, I was doing for the world, but no one man can have all that power.” He said, putting down we now know to be his son, and walking off as if he couldn’t bare to finish what he was going to say.

I eventually would go to the bathroom and see that my hair had in fact returned to its normal color. It had turned white from the stress of not knowing what the fuck was going on after shit had hit the fan. I mean I wasn’t even anywhere near my family. The only reason me and Vic were even miraculously together is due to us being at the original hideout, taking pictures of naked girls. They wanted to go for a smoke break and took the longest time to do so, I went to go see what was up and as soon as I opened the door of the storage unit “Yo yall ready to get back to work cuz?” I called out but was greeted by one of our models running and screaming. She ran in and closed the door. I was finally able to see that she was leaking blood very badly so I take my coat and try to stop the blood flow to no prevail. “What the fuck happened out there?” I asked her, but her hysterical crying, followed by her eyes rolling up into her head and her body going cold and limp. I did not get my answer. So me and Vic are standing over a dead body, Vic gets the idea to sit her up right against the white back round and have me squatting next to her with the bat dripping with her blood.

“I’m gonna call this session ‘We don’t save these Hoes'” Vic said before taking a massive amount of pictures. I then remembered we had two models, and finally the other model showed up standing behind Vic dripping blood and looking at us hungrily.

“Vic, don’t turn around just duck when I start to run to you” I tell him.

“Why?” He asked. I charge the other model and she charges at me but is greeted by my bat. Her head spurting blood all over the hideout, I continuously bash this bitches head in. Out of nowhere, I hear a faint sound of explosions and the ground started shaking. I run outside to see planes zooming through, troops parachuting to the ground, people running around screaming.

“Fuck, Nikk was right.” I thought to myself and run back inside to get Vic, we had to get the fuck out of there.

“So, bombs are being dropped.” I say to Vic. “So, what your telling me is that Nikk was right?” He replied.

“Nikk was fucking right, he gave me this map though.” And I pulled out the fucked up map he left us. I realized now he was training us with this map. We passed with flying colors for solving its riddle with out knowing it was a fairly easy map to follow. All this happened some six months ago, me and Vic have been holding out in this small cave in the woods. Nikk did a good job in preparing it for us though.

I walk back into the room to find Nikk had rejoined the table.

Continuing what he couldn’t finish. “I’m going to get to the point, only we can save the world guys, are you in or out?” He asked everyone around the table. Lil Staan sitting on his father’s shoulders “I wanna help daddy.” he said to his father. “I need you most of all my child.” he replied setting him on his lap and looking back at us, waiting for an answer.

“We’re in, we’re fucking in.” Ernest said for himself and David putting his hand over the fire, David following suit.

“Yeah, I guess I could save the world.” Darrio said, he too putting his hand over the fire joining, Ernest, David, Nikk, and Lil Staan.

“Let’s do it baby.” Vic said putting his hand over the fire. “What about you Ayinde?” Nikk asked me, you in dawg, it wouldn’t be right without you.

Contemplating the fact that I had the potential to be one of the realest niggas ever in the history of history. I thrust my hand over the fire, and to my surprise, it was pretty damn cold. “You already know cuz.” I replied to him finally.

“Good, I call this the first official meeting of Staans Hands a rap.” Then the fire went out, and the wall behind Nikk began to open and light poured into the round table room. Women and children laughing and being merry, it looked like the Pueblos in the South West. An even bigger cave than the one me and Vic have been living in, Nikk had saved this many people, there had to be at least three to five hundred other people in here, men, women, children, of all nationalities all thriving and living together as if the end of the world was what needed to happen for us to come together. Nikk always told me he feared for that, and tried to speak on it publicly but was only laughed at. He worked his ass off and got his college degree so people would take him a little more serious, he even had a blog with stories about a zombie apocalypse happening, I could never imagine it really happening.

There were no guns, only melee weapons, there were open classes taught by Nikk’s other half, Katherine, whom I put two and two together realizing this was Little Staans mother. I got kinda sad at the fact that it really did take all this fucked up shit just for people to believe in my nigga Nikk.

“I go by Kk St’Van now a days.” Nikk said to me as though he’d been reading my mind. “Or just Kk. Call me whatever makes you happy, for I am what you say I am, and I love all of you.” He said before him and Lil Staan walked up to Katherine, him pulling her to him and giving her a kiss that made everyone stop and stare.

All the people then gathered around my niggas family, me and the rest of the guys followed suit. “I’m sorry I’ve been gone so long, I’ve been out trying to gather my remaining friends so that we can finally begin to take back the world from the Government and these undead fucks they brought up without my permission. These cowards are just floating away watching this all go down from an orbiting civilization unit that I built to start populating the universe. It’s time for us to fight, and take back what is rightfully yours!” Kk spoke with the ferocity of the alpha male in a pack of wolves, it were as if he were howling at the moon. All the people in attendance just began to yell in agreement with what was just said to them.

He then called us up to stand with him and everyone dropped to their knees, when I reached the small hill he was standing on, and looked over the massive crowd of people, my eyes eventually met with a huge mural on the cave wall just over were we came in through. It was this very scene of us standing with Kk. I could tell he must of painted it himself because of how bad it was drawn. But I could only admire the scene. It was too surreal. He painted his own prophecy, he was going to write his own history. He became a God to the people in a sense. I really could do nothing but drop to my knees, as did the rest of the crew, even Katherine and Little Staan.

“Stand up all of you, we are equal!” He yelled at everyone in the room. “I should bow down to you if anyone is to do so, I could not and can not do this with out all of you.”

All I could think was “Damn, I’m really gong to learn how to kill a zombie.”

#zombies #short story #shinee #hope #writer #art

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